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July 13, 1755. Having lived not without an habitual reverence for the Sabbath, yet without that attention to its religious duties which Christianity requires, [I resolve]

1. To rise early, and in order to it, to go to sleep early on Saturday.

2. To use some extraordinary devotion in the morning.

3. To examine the tenour of my life, and particularly the last week ; and to mark my advances in religion, or recession from it.

4. To read the Scripture methodically with such helps as are at hand.

5. To go to church twice.

6. To read books of Divinity, either speculative or practical.

7. To instruct my family.

8. To wear off by meditation any worldly soil contracted in the week x.

27.

ON THE STUDY OF PHILOSOPHY, AS AN INSTRUMENT OF LIVING 2.

July.

O Lord, who hast ordained labour to be the lot of man, and seest the necessities of all thy creatures, bless my studies and endeavours ; feed me with food convenient for me ; and if it shall be thy good pleasure to intrust me with plenty, give me

son) was a heavy day to me when April. He was now casting about I was a boy. My mother confined for fresh employment. Though he me on that day, and made me read did not, he says, pursue the study of The Whole Duty of Man, from a philosophy, nevertheless in the im- great part of which I could derive no aginary University which he and instruction.' Ib. i. 67. See post, Boswell planned, he was to teach under April 16, 1781. For his un- 'logick,metaphysicks,andscholastick willingness to attend church see Life, divinity.' Life, v. 109. i. 67, n. 2, and for the observance of Hume wrote in 1764: 'Civil em- Sunday, ib. ii. 72, 376 ; v. 69. ployments for men of letters can
 * Life, \. 303. ' Sunday (said John- had been published in the previous

2 This prayer is not in the Pern- scarcely be found : all is occupied by

broke College MSS. See Life, i. 302. men of business or by parliamentary

The Dictionary on which he had interest.' Burton's Hume, ii. 187. been working for nearly eight years

VOL. I. C a compassionate

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