me with my dying breath repeat my
master's admonition, that _all attacks from without will not
destroy unless there is some confederate within_. O that the keepers
of all other castles would learn from my ruin, that he who parleys
with temptation is already undone. That he who allows himself to go
to the very bounds will soon jump over the hedge; that he who talks
out of the window with the enemy, will soon open the door to him:
that he who holds out his hand for the cup of sinful flattery, loses
all power of resisting; that when he opens the door to one sin, all
the rest fly in upon him, and the man perishes as I now do."

THE GRAND ASSIZES, ETC.;

OR, GENERAL JAIL DELIVERY.

There was in a certain country a great king, who was also a judge.
He was very merciful, but he was also very just; for he used to say,
that justice was the foundation of all goodness, and that
indiscriminate and misapplied mercy was in fact injustice. His
subjects were apt enough, in a general way, to extol his merciful
temper, and especially those subjects who were always committing
crimes which made them particularly liable to be punished by his
justice. This last quality they constantly kept out of sight, till
they had cheated themselves into a notion that he was too good to
punish at all.

Now it had happened a long time before, that this whole people had
broken their allegiance, and had forfeited the king's favor, and had
also fallen from a very prosperous state in which he had originally
placed them, having one and all become bankrupts. But when they were
over head and ears in debt, and had nothing to pay, the king's son
most generously took the whole burden of their debts on himself;
and, in short, it was proposed that all their affairs should be
settled, and their very crimes forgiven (for they were criminals as
well as debtors), provided only they would show themselves sincerely
sorry for what they had done themselves, and be thankful for what
had been done for them. I should, however, remark, that a book was
also given them, in which a true and faithful account of their own
rebellion was written; and of the manner of obtaining the king's
pardon, together with a variety of directions for their conduct in
time to come; and in this book it was particularly mentioned, that
after having lived a certain number of years in a remote part of the
same king's country, yet still under his eye and jurisdiction, there
should be a _gran