Page:The Story of Manon Lescaut and of the Chevalier des Grieux.pdf/8

xii misery; who, possessed of every quality necessary for the attainment of brilliant distinction, yet, of his own choice, prefers an obscure and roving lift to all the advantages which nature and fortune have placed at his command; who foresees the sorrows which await him, without making an effort to avert them; who feels them so keenly as to be overwhelmed by them, and yet dees not avail himself of the remedies which are continually offered him, and which might at any moment bring them to an end: in short, a character made up of contradictions; a mixture of vices and of virtues, a perpetual contrast of lofty sentiments and of unworthy conduct—such is the groundwork of the picture which I am about to present.

To judicious minds, a work of this nature will not appear a waste of labor. Besides the entertainment to be derived from its perusal, it will be found to contain but few incidents that may not be turned to good account as lessons in morality; and I take it to be no slight service to the public to instruct and amuse them at the same time.

No one who reflects over the precepts of morality can fail to be amazed at observing how they are at once both honored and neglected; or to ask himself the reason of this strange capriciousness of the human heart, which leads it to delight in ideals of virtue and perfection, only to deviate from them in practice. Let any one of a fair degree of intelligence and cultivation consider what is the most frequent subject of his conversations, or even of his solitary meditations. He will readily perceive that they nearly always turn upon some moral theme. The most delightful moments of his life are those which he spends, either in solitude or with some friend, in open-hearted communion on the charms of virtue, the joys of friendship, the means of attaining happiness, the frailties of our