532 L E S 
more efpecially of that which is fubtile, and is confe- 
quently moveable more eafily, and with a lejjcr power. 
Woodward. 
The larger here, and there the Icjfer lambs, 
The new-fall'n young herd bleating for their dams. Pope. 
LESS'ER, adv. [formed by corruption from Not 
fo much : 
Some fay he’s mad ; others, that lejfer hate him, 
Do call it valiant fury. Shakefpeares Macbeth. 
LESS'ES, J. [ laijfees , Fr.] The dung of beafts left on 
the ground. 
LESSI'NES, a town of France, in the department of 
the Gemappe, on the river Dender, celebrated for its 
lirten-manufacture: thirteen miles fouth-eaft of Oude- 
narde, and twenty-three weft-fouth-weft of Bruffels. 
LES'SING (Gotthold-Ephraiin), an eminent German 
writer, was born at Kamenz in Pomerania in 1729. His 
father, John-Godfrey, was a voluminous writer in theo¬ 
logy, and was the proteftant minifter of Kamenz, having 
fucceeded his wife’s father in that office. Gotthold- 
Ephr.J n, his eldeft fon, after a fuccefsful early education, 
partly at home, and partly at a boarding-fchool, was ad¬ 
mitted at the age of twelve to the free-fchool of Meiffien ; 
his extraordinary progrefs in learning having obtained him 
the privilege of anticipating by a year the legal age of re¬ 
ception at that feminary. He remained at Meiffen five 
years, and laid in a ftock of Greek and Latin which proved 
an excellent foundation for his after-purfuits; fome odes 
of Anacreon which he tranflated at this fchool were af¬ 
terwards publiffied in his works. His removal to the uni- 
verfity of Leipfic opened a new fcene to him ; and his 
paffion for excelling in the focieties to which he belonged 
induced him to acquire the ornamental accomplifhments, 
and to imitate that licentious freedom of manners, which 
there, as in other places of advanced education, ufually 
mark the fuperior order of Undents. One of his intimates 
was Mylius, a kind of head of the free-thinkers in that 
univeriity, with whom he was fond of walking in public, 
though the philofopher’s appearance often indicated the 
fcantinefs of his finances. Another acquaintance was 
Weiffe, the dramatift, then a ftudent at Leipfic; and 
their converfation mutually inflamed each other’s paffion 
for the theatre. Leffing was not only a conftant atten¬ 
dant on the playhoufe, but contracted a familiarity with 
the aCtors and aCtreffes. He was particularly in the good 
graces of Mad. Neuberin, a fine woman and applauded 
performer, and then direCtrefs of the Leipfic theatre. He 
had completed three feffions at the univerfity in 1749, 
when his father, who had with difficulty fupplied his ex- 
penfes fo long, urged him either to take orders, or a me¬ 
dical degree, to which lad profeffion he had fliown fome 
inclination. He declined both, and was left to provide 
forhimfelf. His port-folio furnilhed him with fome pieces, 
chiefly poetical tranflations, for a periodical work under¬ 
taken by his friend Mylius. He altered fome French 
theatrical pieces for the German ftage; and, following 
Mad. Neuberin to Hamburg, fet up a weekly publication 
of his own, containing critical remarks on the drama. 
His firft original play was brought on the ftage with fuc- 
cefs through the exertions of his fair friend, and was to 
be reprefented for his benefit, when he received a fum- 
mons to vifit his mother, who was faid to be dying. Fi¬ 
lial duty led him inftantly to obey the call, which leems 
to have been planned for the purpofe of reclaiming him 
to a regular courfe of life. The remonftrances of his pious 
parents fo far fucceeded, that he confented to take an¬ 
other feffion at Leipfic with a view to a profeffion ; but 
one of his firft exploits when returned thither was to form 
a connexion with a young aCtrefs, with whom he made an 
excurfion to Vienna. The details of his wanderings and 
diltreffes would be tedious in the narration ; and it is 
enough to obferve, that parental admonitions had no lad¬ 
ing influence upon him ; and that a literary profeffion, 
L E S 
with a particular reference to the theatre, and a frequent 
change of fituation and objeCt, was his decided choice. 
At Berlin, which was often his refidence, he became ac¬ 
quainted with one Richier, a kind of fubaltern in litera¬ 
ture occafionally employed by Voltaire. By his means 
Leffing was introduced to that great genius ; but his fpi- 
rit was too independent to fubmit to the fubfervience ex¬ 
pected from him, and their connexion was of lhort dura¬ 
tion. An untoward circumftance refpeCting a copy of 
the Siecle de Louis XIV. which Leffing had obtained from 
Richier, and buffered to be read by a lady before the pub¬ 
lic appearance of that work, excited the indignation of 
the irritable French bard, who injured him in the opinion 
of the king of Pruffia, and thereby fruftrated his hopes of 
procuring a fettlement under him. He removed to Wit¬ 
tenberg, where he took the degree of mafter of arts, with 
a view to a profefibrftiip at Gottingen ; for fome fubfe- 
quent years, however, his literary employment cor.fifted 
in a great variety of writings, originals, tranflations, and 
compilations, profe and verfe. In thefe he fitowed equal 
ingenuity, copiouinefs, and verfatility; but the number 
of his projects prevented him from executing any great 
performance. Leffing’s proficiency in the game of chefs 
introduced him to the diftinguiihed Jewifti philofopher, 
Mofes Mendelfohn ; and the printer Nicolai made the 
third of a literary trio, who mutually fharpened each other’s 
intellectual faculties, and influenced each other’s opinions. 
Dramatic compofition was ftill the favourite exertion 
of Leffing’s talents, and he produced a tragedy in com¬ 
mon life, entitled “ Mifs Sara Samfon.” It was aCted in 
various towns of Germany with applaufe, and was tranf¬ 
lated into Italian, French, and Danifti. In 1755 he was 
introduced at Leipfic to Mr. Winkler, a man of fortune, 
who engaged him to be his companion on a tour through 
Europe. Before he fet out, Leffing vifited his father, and 
was received with cordiality by every member of his fa¬ 
mily ; but, as neither his principles nor private life were 
altered, it mull have been to his growing reputation that 
he was indebted for this change of fentiment in his fa¬ 
vour. His tour was not prolonged beyond Amfterdam; 
for, Mr. Winkler having received intelligence there of 
the irruption of the Pruflians into Saxony, and the occu¬ 
pation of his lioufe by their commander, thought proper 
to return. But he endeavoured, unbecomingly, to be rid 
of Leffing without any indemnity. The diffniffal was 
abrupt: the pretext, that Leffing aflociated with Kleift: 
and other Pruffian officers, and took part againft the inha¬ 
bitants. Leffing demanded his due, and appealed to his 
contraft ; he pleaded, (for he was obliged to plead in a 
court of juftice,) that he had put himielf to many ex- 
penfes for travelling equipments; that he had diffolved 
contrafts with editors and bookfellers, which interrupted 
his fources of maintenance ; that he had fpent in necef- 
fary unprofitablenefs the months paffed with Mr. Wink¬ 
ler, without the equivalent he expeCted in the knowledge 
of foreign nations ; and that he could not afford this gra¬ 
tuitous lofs of time. In 1765 the lawfuit terminated in 
Leffing’s favour, to vvhom the 8co dollars for his four 
years’ falary were adjudged. Leffing owed to this jour¬ 
ney, lhort as it was, the infpeCtion of many private as well 
as public cabinets of art, and had begun to colleCt ma¬ 
terials for a biftory of engraving. 
In 1754 Leffing tranflated, at Mendelfohn’s inftiga- 
tion, Hutchefon’s Moral Philofophy into German ; and 
at his bookfelier’s requeft, Richardfon’s Seleftion from 
JEfop's Fables. This laft went through four editions ; 
and gave occafion to the compofition of that elegant little 
volume of original fables, which Mr. Richardfon tranflated 
into Englifli, and printed at York. Another piece of be- 
fpoken work which he began, but which a friend com¬ 
pleted, was a verfion of Law’s Exhortation. In conjunc¬ 
tion with Mendelfohn and Nicolai, he undertook a peri¬ 
odical work entitled the Library of Belles Lettres, which 
was a kind of review of works in polite literature, with 
original correfpondence. In 1760 he was eleCted a mem- 
