sh.

The life of man is, or should be, a measure of allotted time; as his
time is measured out to him, so the measure is limited, must end, and
the end of it is appointed.

The purposes for which time is given, and life bestowed, are very
momentous; no time is given uselessly, and for nothing; time is no more
to be unemployed, than it is to be ill employed. Three things are
chiefly before us in the appointment of our time: 1. Necessaries of
nature. 2. Duties of religion, or things relating to a future life. 3.
Duties of the present life, namely, business and calling.

I. Necessities of nature, such as eating and drinking; rest, or sleep;
and in case of disease, a recess from business; all which have two
limitations on them, and no more; namely, that they be

1. Referred to their proper seasons.

2. Used with moderation.

Both these might give me subject to write many letters upon; but I study
brevity, and desire rather to hint than dwell upon things which are
serious and grave, because I would not tire you.

II. Duties of religion: these may be called necessities too in their
kind, and that of the sublimest nature; and they ought not to be thrust
at all out of their place, and yet they ought to be kept in their place
too.

III. Duties of life, that is to say, business, or employment, or
calling, which are divided into three kinds:

1. Labour, or servitude.

2. Employment.

3. Trade.

By labour, I mean the poor manualist, whom we properly call the
labouring man, who works for himself indeed in one respect, but
sometimes serves and works for wages, as a servant, or workman.

By employment, I mean men in business, which yet is not properly called
trade, such as lawyers, physicians, surgeons, scriveners, clerks,
secretaries, and such like: and

By trade I mean merchants and inland-traders, such as are already
described in the introduction to this work.

To speak of time, it is divided among these; even in them all there is a
just equality of circumstances to be preserved, and as diligence is
required in one, and necessity to be obeyed in another, so duty is to be
observed in the third; and yet all these with such a due regard to one
another, as that one duty may not jostle out another; and every thing
going on with an equality and just regard to the nature of the thing,
the tradesman may go on with a glad heart and a quiet conscience.

This article is very nice, as I intend to speak to it; and it is a