338 
At the beginning of every month, both in 
time of war and peace, one of thefe vefiels 
fails to:the Havannah, carries letters for 
all the Spantfh colonies in America, and 
touches at Puerto-Rico. From the Ha- 
vannah, another fails to Veracruz; and 
likewife to and fro between Puerto-Rico, 
Cartagena, Porto-bello, and Panama. 
From Puerto-Rico, a packet is difpatched 
every two months to Buenos-Ayres3, and 
thence in the fame order to Chil1, Peru, 
and the Philippines. Befides this; fince 
the yesr 1767, a packet-boat fails every 
‘two months from Corunna, for Buehos- 
Ayres, Chili, Peru, and the Philippines, 
to Montevideo, whence the letters are for- 
warded in the manner above ‘mentioned. 
_ To facilitate the inland communication, 
poits are eftablifhed from Veracruz to 
Mexico, and from the other fea-ports to 
the interior of the country. A road has 
been made acrofs the Cordilleras; and 
arri€rosy or muleteers, traverfe and con- 
vey travellers through the provinces, as in 
Spain. 3 
All the above-mentioned embarcaciones 
correos carry fome articles of merchan- 
dife; and, by particular permiffion, like- 
wife paflengers. The price of about 150 
piaftres is paid for fuch a paflage; and 
the voyage generally lafts from 50 to 60 
days. The poftage of a letter to Lima, 
amounts to 3 piaftres. 
From Lifbon, likewife, regular packet- 
boats fail to the Portuguefe fettlements in 
America; but only fince the commence- 
ment of the year 1798. Every two months 
ene is difpatched to Affa, direét; anda 
fecond to Bahid, and thence to Riojaneyro. 
And in the interior of Brafil, and in the 
ifland of Madeira and the Azores, pofts 
have now firff been eltablified. That 
there may be a fuflicient revenue to defray 
the expences of thefe packet-boats, no 
letters are permitted to be fent by other 
fhips trom Portugal to the colonies :—but 
in Spain, there 1s no reftriction in this 
refpect. 
ee 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
THe ENQUIRER, No. XXI. 
WHAT {S THE REAL NATURE OF FAMILY 
PRIDE? 
N T ORALISTS and Divines agree in 
\ | 
the condemnation of pride, trom 
whatever fource it is derived ; but fome. 
kinds of it have ever been treated with 
lighter cenfure than others ; and-fome, in 
the common eftimate,, have even been 
elevated into laudable principles of action, 
and have been fuppofed to denote an ex- 
The Enquirer, No. XXI. 
[May 1, 
alted foul. The pride of virtue amon 
the ancient philofophers, efpecially of the 
Stoic fect, though it was apt to infpire an 
arrogant and unamiable demeanour, cer- 
tainly in many cafes raifed the mind above 
every thing mean and vulgar, and proved 
an incitement to worthy condu&. Similar 
effects have ufually been attributed to the 
pride of family; and no common place is 
more frequent in works of fi€tion, and 
even in popular morality, than the. in- 
fluence of high defcent in dignifying the 
fentiments, and prompting to noble deeds. 
It is obvious, that the reality of fuch ef- 
feéts muft depend upon the character and 
foundation of this fpecies of pride; for 
the mere affection of pride, confifting ina 
high eftimate of one’s-felf, is more likely 
to debafe than to ennoble, to reprefs than 
to roufe, fince it fuppofes the objeé al- 
ready attained for the fake of which great 
exertions are made. Let us therefore en- 
quire into the aétual fource of family 
pride, as prevailing among ourfelves. It 
is pofible, that its character may admit 
of different {hades and variations from local- 
circumftances ; yet.I fhould imagine, that 
it muft every where derive its eflence from 
the general principles of human nature. 
There are two grounds upon which a 
fentiment of this kind may be made to 
appear not unreafonable; one, the fuppo- 
fition that fuperior qualities are a&tually 
tran{mitted in certain families by procrea- 
tion; the other, that defcendants poflefs 
a fort of inheritance in the public merits 
of their anceftors. 
With refpeét to the firft, as it is an un- | - 
doubted faét, that not only the bodily but 
the mental conftitution of parents is, in 
fome degree, renovated in their children; 
it was no improbable opinion that thofe 
qualities which in a rude ftate of fociety 
had raifed their poffeffors above their fel- 
lows, fhould, for a time at leaft, thine 
confpicuous in their lineal progeny. A 
race of Heraclide might long be diftin- 
cuifhed by @ portion of the ftrength and 
fortitude of their great progenitor. Ho- 
race, by the analogy of the brute creation, ~ 
fupports his pofition of 
“< Fortes creantur jortibus & bonis; 
‘¢ The brave: and good produce the good and 
brave,” _ 
Tt was unfortunate, that the race of 
human beings by whom he exemplified his 
doctrine, was the family of the Neros; 
but he was a poet and not a prophet, and ~ 
could not forefee how foon a name which ~ 
great qualities had raifed to honour, might 
be rendered eternally infamous by the vices 
of a degenerate oftspring. In more mo- 
ky ae ae dera 
