Page:Vindication Women's Rights (Wollstonecraft).djvu/197

Rh almot a atiety of life, and we dicover by the natural coure of things that all that is done under the un is vanity, we are drawing near the awful cloe of the drama. The days of activity and hope are over, and the opportunities which the firt tage of exitence has afforded of advancing in the cale of intelligence, mut oon be ummed up.—A knowledge at this period of the utility of life, or earlier, if obtained by experience, is very ueful, becaue it is natural; but when a frail being is hewn the follies and vices of man, that he may be taught prudently to guard againt the common caualties of life by acrificing his heart—urely it is not peaking harhly to call it the widom of this world, contrated with the nobler fruit of piety and experience.

I will venture a paradox, and deliver my opinion without reerve; if men were only born to form a circle of life and death, it would be wie to take every tep that foreight could ugget to render life happy. Moderation in every puruit would then be upreme widom; and the prudent voluptuary might enjoy a degree of content, though he neither cultivated his undertanding nor kept his heart pure. Prudence, uppoing we were mortal, would be true widom, or, to be more explicit, would procure the greatet portion of happines, conidering the whole of life, but knowledge beyond the conveniences of life would be a cure.

Why hould we injure our health by cloe tudy? The exalted pleaure which intellectual puruits afford would carcely be equivalent to the hours of languor that follow; epecially, if it&ensp;