t follow truth,
justice, and plain dealing, and never fear their leading you out of the
labyrinth, in the easiest manner possible. The knot which you thought a
Gordian one, will untie itself before you. Nothing is so mistaken as the
supposition, that a person is to extricate himself from a difficulty by
intrigue, by chicanery, by dissimulation, by trimming, by an untruth,
by an injustice. This increases the difficulties ten fold; and those who
pursue these methods, get themselves so involved at length, that they
can turn no way but their infamy becomes more exposed. It is of great
importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an
untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible; and he
who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a
second and third time, till a length it becomes habitual; he tells lies
without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him.
This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time
depraves all its good dispositions.

An honest heart being the first blessing, a knowing head is the second.
It is time for you now to begin to be choice in your reading; to begin
to pursue a regular course in it; and not to suffer yourself to be
turned to the right or left by reading any thing out of that course. 1
have long ago digested a plan for you, suited to the circumstances in
which you will be placed. This I will detail to you, from time to time,
as you advance. For the present, I advise you to begin a course
of ancient history, reading every thing in the original and not in
translations. First read Goldsmith's History of Greece. This will give
you a digested view of that field. Then take up ancient history in the
detail, reading the following books in the following order: Herodotus,
Thucydides, Xenophontis Hellenica, Xenophontis Anabasis, Arrian, Quintus
Curtius, Diodorus Siculus, Justin. This shall form the first stage of
your historical reading, and is all I need mention to you now. The
next, will be of Roman history.* From that we will come down to modern
history. In Greek and Latin poetry, you have read or will read at
school, Virgil, Terence, Horace, Anacreon, Theocritus, Homer, Euripides,
Sophocles. Read also Milton's Paradise Lost, Shakspeare, Ossian, Pope's
and Swift's works, in order to form your style in your own language.
In morality, read Epictetus, Xenophontis Memorabilia, Plato's Socratic
dialogues, Cicero