J A I C I P H R Q R, THE MINUTE PHILOSOPHER. IN SEVEN DIALOGUES. CONTAINING for /&CHRISTIANRELIGION, againjl thofe who are non vereor ne hunc err or em meum mortui Philofophi irrideant. Cicero. The THIRD EDITION. LONDON; Printed for J. and R. T o N s o N and S. DRAPER in the Strand. M DCC LIL . . - ADVERTISEMENT. HE Author's Defign being to consider the Free-thinker in the various Lights of Atheift, Libertine, Enthufiaft, Scorner, Critic, Metaphyfician, Fatalift, and Sceptic, it muft not therefore be imagined, that every one of thefe Characters agrees with every individual Free-thinker, no more being implied, than that each Part agrees with fome or other of the Seel:. There may poffibly be a Reader who hall think the Character of Atheift agrees with none : But though it hath been often faid, there is no fuch thing as a fpeculative Atheift; yet we muft allow, there are feveral Atheifts who pretend to Speculation. This the Author knows to be true ; A 2 and I.'-.. U ADVERTISEMENT. and is well affured, that one of the moft noted Writers againft Chriftianity in our Times, declared, he had found out a Demon ftration againft the Being of a God. And he doubts not, who- ever will be at the pains to inform himfelf, by a general Converfation, as well as Books, of the Principles and Tenets of our modern Free-thinkers, will fee too much Caufe to be per- fuaded that nothing in the enfuing Characters is beyond the Life. As the Author hath not confined himfelf to write againft Books alone, fo he thinks it neceflary to make this Declaration. It muft not therefore be thought, that Authors are mifrepre- fented, if every Notion of Alciphron or Lyficles is not found precifely in them. A Gentleman, in private Con- ference, may be fuppofed to fpeak plainer than others write, to improve on ADVERTISEMENT. on their Hints, and draw Conclufions from their Principles. . Whatever they pretend, it is the Author's Opinion, that all thofe who write either explicitly or by Tnfinuation againft the Dignity, Freedom, and Immortality of the Human Soul, may fo far forth be juftly faid to unhinge the Principles of Morality, and de- ilroy the Means of making Men reafonably virtuous. Much is to 'be apprehended from that Quarter .againft the Interefts of Virtue. Whether the Apprehenfion of a certain admired Writer*, that the Caufe of Virtue is likely to fuffer lefs from its witty An- tagonifts, than from its tender Nurles, who are apt to overlay it, and kill it with Excels of Care and Cherifliing, and make it a mercenary thing by * EJfay on the Freedom of Wit and Humour, Part. II. Sift, 3. A 3 talking ADVERTISEMENT. talking fo much of its Rewards : whether, I fay, this Apprehenfton be fo well founded ? the Reader may de- termine. T O . THE . -;. - THE C O N T E N T S. THE FIRST DIALOGUE. SECT. i. Introduction. 2. Aim and Endeavours of Free-thinkers. 3 . Oppofed by the Clergy. 4. Liberty of Free-thinking. 5. Farther Account of the Views of Free-thinkers. 6. The Progrefs of a Free-thinker towards Atheifm. 7. Joint Impofture of the Prieft and Magiftrate. S. The Free-thinker's Method in making Converts and Difcoveries. 9. The Atheift alone Free. Hh Senfe of natural Good and Evil. 10. Modern Free-thinkers more properly named Mi- nute Philofophers. 11. Minute Philofophers, what fort of Men, and how educated. 12. Their Numbers, Progrefs, and Tenets. 13. Compared with other Pbilofophers. 14. What Things and Notions to be efteemd Natural. A 4 15. Truth THE CONTENTS. 15. Truth the fame t notwithftanding Diverfity of Opinions. 1 6. Rule and Me a fur e of moral Truths. THE SECOND DIALOGUE. Sed. i. Vulgar Error , That Vice is hurtful. 2. The Benefit of Drunkennefs^ Gaming and Whor~ ing. 3. Prejudice againft Vice wearing off. 4. Its Ufefulnefs illujtrated in the Inflames Foolijhnefs to Man. 1 8. Re 'afon, no blind Guide. 19. Ufefulnefs of Divine Revelation. 20. Propbejies, whence cbfcure. 2 1 . Eaftern Accounts of I'ims older than the Mo- faic. 22. 'The Humour of ^Egyptians, ; Aflyrians, Chal- deans, ami other Nations extending their SJ.H- tiquity beyond Truth, accounted for. 23. Reafons confirming the Mofaic Account. 24. Profane Hiftorians incon/iftent. 25. Celfus, Prophyry, and Julian. 26. T'be Teftimony of Jofephus confidered. 27. Alteration of jews and Gentiles to Chriftianity* 2 8 . Forgeries and Herefies. 29. Judgment and Attention of Minute Philof;- pkcrs. 30. Faitb and Miracles. 31. Probable Arguments a fufficient Ground of Faitb. 32. fbe Chriftian Religion able to Jland the Teft cf rational Inquiry. THE THE CONTENTS. .Yttv THE SEVENTH DIALOGUE. Soft. i. Chriftian Faith impo/ible. 2. Words ft and for Ideas. 3. No Knowledge or Faith without Ideas. 4. Grace, no Idea of it. 5. Suggefting Ideas not the only Ufe of Words ^ 6. Force as difficult to form an Idea of as Grace. j. Notwithstanding which, ufeful Propofitions may le formed concerning it. 8. Belief of the Trinity and other Myfteries not abfurd. 9. Miftakes about Faith an Occafan of profane Rallery. 10. Faith its true Nature and Efecls. 1 1 . Iliuftrated by Science. 12. By Arithmetic in particular. 13. Sciences converfant abont Signs'. 14. fbe true End of Speech, Rea/bn, Science ', and Faith. 15. Metapfyjical Objections as ftrong again/I Human Sciences as Articles of Faith. 1 6. No Religion, becaufe no Human Liberty. 17. Farther Proof againft Human Liberty. 1 8. Fatalifm a Conference of trroneous Suppofitions. 19. Man an accountable Agent. 20. Inconjiftency, Singularity, and Credulity of Mimti Pbilofopbers. 2 1 . Untroden Paths and new Light of the Minute Philofophers. 22. Sophijlry of the Minute Philofophers. 1$. Minute Philofophers ambiguous^ ^enigmatical^ # fathomable. 24. Scepticifm of the Minute Philofopbers, 25. How a Sceptic ought to behave. 26. Minute THE CONTENTS. 26. Minute Pbilofophers, why difficult to convince. 27. 'thinking^ not the epidemical Evil of thefe Times. 28. Infidelity, not an Effett of Reafon or Thought ', its true Motives ajjigned. 29. Variety of Opinions about Religion^ EJfeffs thereof. 30. Method for proceeding with Minute Pkilofophers. 31. Want of Thought and want of Education Defefts of the- prefent Age. THE m THE MINUTE PHILOSOPHER, THE FIRST DIALOGUE. Introduction. II. Aim and Endeavours of Free- thinkers. III. Oppofedby the Clergy. IV. Liberty of Free-thinking. V. Farther Account of the Views of Free-thinkers. VI. The Progrefs of a Free- thinker towards Atheifm. VII. Joint Impofture of the Prieft and Magiftrate. VIII. Tfc* Free-think- er's Method in making Converts and Difcoveries. IX. The Atheifl alone Free. His Senfe of natural Good and Evil. X. Modern Free-thinkers more properly named Minute Philofophers. XI. Minute Philofophers, what fort of Men, and how edu- cated. XII. Their Numbers, Progrefs and Tenets. XIII. Compared with other Philofophers. XIV. What Things and Notions to be ejleemed naturaL XV. Truth the fame, notwithftanding Diverjity of Opinions. XVI. Rule and Meafure of moral Truths. Flattered myfelf, Theages, that before this time I might have been able to have fent you an agreeable Account of the Succefs of the Affair, which brought me into this remote Corner of the Country. But inftead of this, I fhou'd now give you the Detail of its Mifcarriage, if I did not B rather 2 TH E MINUTE DIAL, rather choofe to entertain you with fome amufing I. Incidents, which have helped to make me eafy ' under a Circumftance I cou'd neither obviate nor forefee. Events are not in our Power ; but it always is, to make a good ufe even of the worft. And I muft needs own, the Courfe and Event of this Af- fair gave opportunity for Reflexions, that make me fome amends for a great Lofs of Time, Pains, and Expence. A Life of Action which takes its iflue from the Counfels, Paffions and Views of other Men, if it doth not draw a Man to imitate, will at lead teach him to obferve. And a Mind at liberty to reflect on its own Obfervations, if it produce nothing ufeful to the World, feldom fails of Enter- tainment to itfelf. For feveral Months paft I have enjoy'd fuch Liberty and Leifure in this diftant Re- treat, far beyond the Verge of that great Whirlpool of Bufmefs, Faction, and Pleafure, which is called the World. And a Retreat in itfelf agreeable, after a long Scene of Trouble and Difquier, was made much more fo by the Converfation and good Qualities of my Hoft Euphranor, who unites in his own Perfon the Philofopher and the Farmer : two Characters not fo inconfiftent in Nature as by Cuftom they feem to be. Etiphranor^ from the time he left the Univerfity, hath liv'd in this fmall Town , where he is poffeiTed of a convenient Houfe with a hundred Acres of Land adjoining to it ; which being improved by his own Labour, yield him a plentiful Subfiftence. He hath a good Col- lection, chiefly of old Books, left him by a Clergy- man his Uncle, under whofe Care he was brought up. And the Bufmels of his Farm doth not hinder him from making good ufe of it. He hath read much, and thought more ; his Health and Strength of Body enabling him the better to bear Fatigue of Mind. He is of opinion that he cou'd not carry on PHILOSOPHER. 3 on his Studies with more Advantage in the Clofet DIAL, than the Field, where his Mind is feJdom idle while I. he prunes the Trees, follows the Plough, or looks ^~\(^ after his Flocks. In the Houfe of this honed Friend I became acquainted with Crito, a neigh- bouring Gentleman of diftinguiflied Merit and Eftate, who lives in great Friendfhip with Euphranor. Lad Summer, Crito, whofe Parifh Church is in our Town, dining on a Sunday at Eupbranor's, 1 hap- pened to inquire after his Guefts, whom we had feen at Church with him the Sunday before. They are both well, faid Crito 9 but, having once occa- fionally conformed, to fee what fort of Aflembly our Parifh cou'd afford, they had no farther Curio- fity to gratify at Church, and fo chofe to ftay at home. How, faid Eupbranor^ are they then Dif- fenters ? No, replied Crito, they are Free-thinkers. Euphranor, who had never met with any of this Species or Sect of Men, and but little of their Writings, Ihew'd a great Defire to know their Principles or Syftem. That is more, faid Crito, than I will undertake to tell you. Their Writers are of different Opinions. Some go farther, and explain themfelves more freely than others. But the current general Notions of the Seel: are bed learned from Converfation with thofe who profefs themfelves of it. Your Curiofity may now be fatisfied, if you and Dion would fpend a Week at my Houfe with thefe Gentlemen, who feem very ready to declare and propagate their Opinions. Alclphron is above forty, and no Stranger either to Men or Books. I knew him firft at the Temple, which upon an Eftate*s falling to him, he quitted, to travel through the polite Parts of Europe. Since his Return he hath lived in the Amufements of the Town, which being grown dale and taftelels to his Palate, have flung him into a fort of fpleneuc In- B 2 dolence. 4 THE Mi NUTE DIAL, dolence. The young Gentleman, Lyfides, is a near I. Kinftnan of mine, one of lively parts, and a ge- neral Infight into Letters ; who, after having pafied the Forms of Education and feen a little of the World, fell into an Intimacy with Men of Pleafure and Free-thinkers, I am afraid much to the damage of his Conftitution and his Fortune. But what I mod regret, is the Corruption of his Mind by a Set of pernicious Principles, which, having been obferved to furvive the Pafiions of Youth, foreftal even the remote Hopes of Amendment. They are both Men of Fafhion, and wou'd be agreeable enough, if they did not fancy themfelves Free-thinkers. But this, to fpeak the Truth, has given them a certain Air and Manner, which a little too vifibly declare they think themfelves wifer than the red of the world. I fhou'd therefore be not at all dif- pleafed if my guefts met with their Match, where they leaft fufpecled it, in a Country Farmer. I fliall not, replied Eupbranor^ pretend to any more than barely to inform myfelf of their Principles and Opinions. For this end I propofe to-morrow to fet a Week's Task -to my Labourers, and accept 'your Invitation, if Dion thinks good. To which I gave confent. Mean while, laid Grito* I mall prepare my Guefts, and let them know that an honed Neighbour hath a mind to difcourfe them on the Subject of their Free-thinking. And, if I am not miftaken, they will pleale themlelves with the Profpect of leaving a Convert behind them, even in a Country-Village. Next Morning Euphranor rofe early, and fpent the Forenoon in ordering his Affairs. Alter Dinner we took our Walk to Ch'/0's, which lay through half a dozen pleafant Fields planted round with Plane-trees, that are very common in this part of the Country. We walked under the delicious Shade of thefe Trees for about an PHILOSOPHER. 5 an Hour before we came to Crito's Houfe, which DIAL. Hands in the middle of aTmall Park, beautify'd I. with two fine Groves of Oak and Walnut, and a v*^v>-/ winding Stream of fweet and clear Water. We met a Servant at the Door with a fmall Basket of Fruit which he was carrying into a Grove, where he faid his Matter was with the two Strangers. We found them all three fitting under a Shade. And after the ufual Forms at firit meeting, En- pbranor and I fat down by them. Our Conver- fation began upon the Beauty of this rural Scene, the fine Seafon of the Year, and fome late Im- provements which had been made in the adjacent Country by new Methods of Agriculture. Whence Alciphron took occafion to obferve, That the mod valuable Improvements came lateft. I mould have fmall Temptation, faid he, to live where Men have neither polifhed Manners, nor improved Minds, though the Face of the Country were ever fo well improved. But I have long obferved, that there is a gradual Progrefs in human Affairs. The firft Care of Mankind is to fupply the Cravings of Na- ture : in the next place they ftudy the Conveniencies and Comforts of Life. But the fubduing Prejudices and acquiring true Knowledge, that Herculean Labour, is the laft, being what demands the mod perfect Abilities, and to which all other Advan- tages are preparative. Right, faid Euphranor^ Al- cipbron hath touched our true Defect. It was al- ways my Opinion, That as foon as we had provided Subfiftence for the Body, our next Care mould be to improve the Mind. But the Defire of Wealth Iteps between and ingrofifcth Mens Thoughts. If. ALC. Thought is that which we are told diftinguifheth Man from Bead : and Freedom of Thought makes as great a difference between Man, B 3 anc| THE MINUTE and Man. It is to the noble AfTerters of this Pri- vilege and Perfection of Human kind, the Free- thinkers I mean, who have fprung up and multi- plied of late Years, that we are indebted for all thofe important Difcoveries, that Ocean of Light which hath broke in and made its way, in fpite of Slavery and Superftition. Euphranor, who is a fmcere Enemy to both, teftified a great Efteem for thofe Worthies who had preferved their Country from being ruined by them, having fpread fo much Light and Knowledge over the Land. He added, That he liked the Name and Character of a Free- thinker : but in his Senfe of the Word, every honeft Inquirer after Truth in any Age or Country was intitled to it. He therefore defired to know what this Sect was that dlciphron had fpoken of as newly fprung up ? what were their Tenets ? what were their Difcoveries? and wherein they employ'd them- felves, for the Benefit of Mankind ? Of all which, he fhou'd think himfelf obliged, if dkipbron would inform him. That I mall, very ealily, replied Al- ciphron, for I profefs myfelf one of the number, and my moft intimate Friends are fome of the moft confiderable among them. And perceiving that Euphranor heard him with Refpect, he proceeded very fluently. You muft know, faid he, that the Mind of Man may be fitly compared to a piece of Land. What flubbing, plowing, digging, and harrowing, is to the one ; that thinking, reflecting, examining, is to the other. Each hath its proper Culture ; and as Land that is fuffered to lie wafte and wild for a long Tract of Time, will be over- fpread with Brufh-Wood, Brambles, Thorns, and fuch Vegetables which have neither Ufe nor Beauty -, even fo there will not fail to fprout up in a neglected uncultivated Mind, a great number of Prejudices and abfurd Opinions, which owe their Origin partly to PHILOSOPHER. 7 to the Soil itfelf, thePafllons and Imperfections of DIAL. the Mind of Man ; and partly to thofe Seeds I. which chance to be fcatter'd in it by every Wind of ^^\r^ Doctrine, which the Cunning of Statefmen, the Singularity of Pedants, the Superftition of Fools, or the Impofture of Priefts, fhall raife. Reprefent to yourfelf the Mind of Man, or Human Nature in general, that for fo many Ages had lain ob- noxious to the Frauds of defigning, and the Follies of weak Men : How it muft be overrun with Prejudices and Errors : what firm and deep Roots they muft have taken : and confequently how difficult a Task it muft be to extirpate them : And yet this Work, no lefs difficult than glorious, is the Employment of the modern Free-thinkers. Al~ ciphron having faid this, made a Paufe, and looked round on the Company. Truly, faid I, a very laudable Undertaking! We think, faid Eupbranor, that it is praife-worthy to clear and fubdue the Earth, to tame brute Animals, to fafhion the Out- fides of Men, provide Suftenance for their Bodies, and cure their Maladies. But what is all this in comparifon of that moft excellent and ufeful Un- dertaking, to free Mankind from their Errors, and to improve and adorn their Minds ? For things of lefs Merit towards the World, Altars have been raifed, and Temples built in ancient Times. Too many in our Days, replied Alclphron^ are fuch Fools as not to know their beft Benefactors from their worft Enemies: They have a blind Refpect for thofe who inflave them ; and look upon their De- liverers as a dangerous Sort of Men, that wou'd un- dermine received Principles and Opinions. EUPH. It were a great pity fuch worthy ingenious Men fhou'd meet with any Difcouragement. For my part I fliou'd think a Man, who fpent his time in fuch a painful impartial Search after Truth, a better B 4 Friend 8 THEMINUTE Friend to Mankind than the greateft Statefman or Hero; the Advantage of whofe Labours is con- fined to a little Part of the World, and a fhort Space of Time ; whereas a Ray of Truth may en- lighten the whole World, and extend to future Ages. dLC. It will be fome time, I fear, before the common Herd think as you do. But the better Sort, the Men of Parts and polite Education, pay a due Regard to the Patrons of Light and Truth. III. EUPH. The Clergy, no doubt, are on all Occafions ready to forward and applaud your worthy Endeavours. Upon hearing this, Lyfides cou'd hardly refrain from Laughing. And Al- dphrojjy with an Air of Pity, told Eupbranor, that he perceived he was unacquainted with the real Character of thofe Men : For, faid he, you muft know, that of all Men living they are our greateft Enemies. If it were pofllble, they wou'd extinguifh the very light of Nature, turn the World into a Dungeon, and keep Mankind for ever in Chains and Darknefs. EUPH. I never imagined any thing like this of our Proteftant Clergy, particularly thofe of the eftablifhed Church ; whom, if -I may be allowed to judge by what I have feen of them and their Writings, I fhould have thought Lovers of ^earning and ufeful Knowledge. dLC. Take my Word for it, Priefts of all Religions are the fame: wherever there are Priefts, there will be Priefkraft : and wherever there is, Prieftcraft, there will be a perfecuting Spirit, whicfr'they never fail to exert to the utmoft of their Power againft all thofe who have the Courage to think for themfelves, and will not fubmit to be hoodwinked and manacled by their reverend Leaders. Thofe great Mafters of Pedantry and Jargon have coined leveral Syftems, which PHILOSOPHER. 9 which are all equally true, and of equal Importance DIAL, to the World. The contending Seels are each alike I. fond of their own, and alike prone to difcharge ^ -v their Fury upon all who difient from them. Cruelty and Ambition being the darling Vices of Priefts and Churchmen ail the World over, they en- deavour in all Countries to get an Afcendant over the reft of Mankind ; and the Magiftrate having a joint Intereft with the Prieft in fubduing, amuf- ing, and fearing the People, too often lends a hand to the Hierarchy ; who never think their Authority and Pofleflions fecure, fb long as thofe who differ from them in opinion are allowed to partake even in the common Rights belonging to their Birth or Species. To repreient the matter in a true Light, figure to yourfelves a Monfter or Speclre made up of Superftition and Enthufiafm, the joint Ifiue of Statecraft and Prieftcraft, rattling Chains in one Hand, and with the other brandishing a flaming Sword over the Land, and menacing Deftruclion to all who (hall dare to follow the Dicl^tes of Reafon and Common Senfe. Do but confider this, and then fay if there was not Danger as well as Difficulty in our Undertaking. Yet, fuch is the generous Ardour that Truth infpires, our Free- thinkers are neither overcome by the one, nor daunted by the other. In fpite of both we have already made fo many Profelytes among the better Sort, and their Numbers increafe fo faft, that we hope we fhall be able to carry all before us, beat down the Bulwarks of Tyranny, Secular or Ec- clefiaftical, break the Fetters and Chains of our Countrymen, and reflore the original inherent Rights, Liberties, and Prerogatives of Mankind. Euphranor heard this Difcourfe with his Mouth open and his Eyes fixed upon Alcipbron, who, having uttered it with no fmall Emotion, ftopt to draw Breath io THEMINUTB DIAL; Breath and recover himfelf: But finding that no I. body made anfwer, he refumed the Thread of his Difcourfe, and turning to Eupbranor fpoke in a lower Note what follows. The more innocent and honeft a Man is, the more liable is he to be impofed on by the fpecious Pretences of other Men. You have probably met with certain Writings of our Divines that treat of Grace, Virtue, Goodnefs, and fuch matters, fit to amufe and deceive a fimple honeft Mind. But believe me when J tell you they are all at bottom (however they may gild their Defigns) united by one common Principle in the fame Intereft. I will not deny there may be here and there a poor half-witted Man that means no mifchief : but this I will be bold to fay, that aJl the Men of Senfe among them are true at bottom to thefe three Purfuits of Ambition, Avarice, and Revenge. IV. While dlcipbron was fpeaking, a Servant came to tell him and Lyfides, that fome Men who were going to London waited o receive their Orders. Whereupon they both rofe and went towards the Houfe. They were no fooner gone, but Euphranor addreflmg himfelf to Crito faid, he believed that poor Gentleman had been a great Sufferer for his Free-thinking : for that he feemed to exprefs him- felf with the Paflion and Refentment natural to Men who have received very bad Ufage. I believe no fuch thing, anfwered Crito y but have often obferved thofe of his Sect run into two Faults of Converfa- tion, declaiming and bantering, juft as the tragic or the comic Humour prevails. Sometimes they work themfelves into high Paffions, and are fright- ened at Spectres of their own railing. In thofe Fits every Country- Curate paffes for an Inquifitor, At other times they affect a fly facetious Manner, making PHILOSOPHER. n making ufe of Hints and Allufions, expreffing little, DIAL. infmuating much, and upon the whole Teeming to I. divert themfelves with the Subject and their Ad- u^-v- - 1 verfaries. But if you wou'd know their Opinions, you muft make them fpeak out and keep clofe to the Point, Perfecution for Free-thinking is a To- pic they are apt to enlarge on though without any juft Caufe, every one being at full liberty to think what he pleafes, there being no fuch thing in Eng- land that I know as Perfecution for Opinion, Senti- ment, or Thought. But in every Country, I fup- pofe, fomeCare is taken to reftrain petulant Speech : and, whatever Mens inward Thoughts may be, to difcourage an outward Contempt of what the Public efteemeth Sacred. Whether this Care in England hath of late been fo exccffive, as to diftrefs the Sub- jects of this once free and eafy Government : whether the Free-thinkers can truly complain of any Hard- fhip upon the fcore of Confcience or Opinion : you will better be able to judge, when you hear from themfelves an account of the Numbers, Progrefs, and Notions of their Seel: : which I doubt not they will communicate fully and freely, provided no body prefent feems mocked or offended. For in that cafe it is poffible good Manners may put them upon fome Referve. Oh ! faid Euphranor, I am never angry with any Man for his Opinion : whether he be Jew, Turk, or Idolater, he may fpeak his Mind freely to me without fear of offending. I fhou'd even be glad to hear what he hath to fay, provided he faith it in an ingenuous candid Manner. Who- ever digs in the Mine of Truth, I look on as my Fellow-labourer : but if, while I am taking true pains, he diverts himfelf with teizing me and fling- ing duft in mine Eyes, I (hall foon be tired of him. V, In THE Mi N u T E V. In the mean time Akipbrtn and Lyficles hav- ing difpatched what they went about, returned to us. Ly/icles fat down where he had been before. But Alciphron (lood over-againft us, with his Arms folded acrofs, and his Head reclined on the left Shoulder in the Pofture of a Man meditating. We fat filent not to difturb his Thoughts ; and after two or three Minutes he uttered thofe Word?, Oh Truth ! Oh Liberty ! After which he remained mufing as before. Upon this Euphranor took the freedom to interrupt him. Alcipbron, faid he, it is not fair to fpend your Time in Soliloquies. The Converfation of learned and knowing [Vien is rarely to be met with in this Corner, and the Opportunity you have put into my Hands I value too much, not to make the beft ufe of it. ALC. Are you then in earnett a Votary of Truth, and is it pofiible that you fhou'd bear the liberty of a fair Inquiry ? EUPH. It is what I defire of all things. ALC. What ! upon every Subject ? upon the Notions which you firft fucked in with your Milk, and which have been ever fince nurled by Parents, Paftors, Tutors, religious Afiemblies, Books of Devotion, and fuch Methods of prepofleffing Mens Minds? EUPH. I love Information upon all Sub- jects that come in my Way, and efpecially upon thofe that are moft important. ALC. If then you are in earned, hold fair and (land firm, while 1 probe your Prejudices and extirpate your Principles. Dum veteres avias tiki de pulmonc revello. Having faid thus, Alcipbron knit his Brows and made a fhort Paufe, after which he proceeded in the following manner. If we are at the pains to dive and penetrate into the bottom of things, and analyfe Opinions PHILOSOPHER. Opinions into their firft Principles, we fhall find that thofe Opinions, which are thought of greateft Confequence, have the flighted Original, being de- rived either from the cafual Cuftoms of the Country where we live, or from early Inftruction inftilled into our tender Minds, before we are able to difcern between Right and Wrong, True and Falfe. The Vulgar (by whom I underftand all thofe who do not make a free Ule of their ReafonJ are ape to take thefe Prejudices for Things facred and un- queftionable, believing them to be imprinted on the Hearts of Men by God himfelf, or convey'd by Revelation from Heaven, or to carry with them fb great Light and Evidence as muft force an Afient without any Inquiry or Examination. Thus the mallow Vulgar have their Heads furnifhed with fundry Conceits, Principles, and Doctrines, re- ligious, moral, and political, all which they main- tain with a Zeal proportionable to their want of Reafon. On the other hand, thofe who duly em- ploy their Faculties in the Search of Truth, take efpecial care to weed out of their Minds and ex- tirpate all fuch Notions or Prejudices as were planted in them, before they arrived at the free and intire ufe of Reafon. This difficult Task hath been fuc- cefsfully performed by our modern Free-thinkers, who have not only diflected with great Sagacity the received Syflems, and traced every eftablimed Pre- judice to the Fountain-head, the true and genuine Motives of Afient : But alfo, being able to embrace in one comprehenfive View the leveral Parts and Ages of the World, they have obferved a wonder- ful variety of Cuftoms and Rites, of Inftitutions Religious and Civil, of Notions and Opinions very unlike and even contrary one to another : A certain Sign they cannot all be true. And yet they are all maintained by their feveral Partizans with the fame pofitive THE MINUTE pofitive Air and warra Zeal ; and if examined will be found to bottom on one and the fame Foundation, the Strength of Prejudice. By the help of thefe Remarks and Difcoveries, they have broke through the Bands of popular Cuftom, and having freed themfelves from Impofture, do now generoufly lend a hand to their Fellow-Subjects, to lead them into the fame Paths of Light and Liberty. Thus, Gentlemen, I have given you a fummary Account of the Views and Endeavours of thofe Men who are called Free-thinkers. If in the Courfe of what I have faid or mail fay hereafter, there be fome things contrary to your pre- conceived Opinions, and therefore mocking and difagreeabie, you will pardon the Freedom and Plainnefs of a Philolbpher ; and confider that, whatever difpleafure I give you of that kind, I do it in ftridt regard to Truth and Obedience to your own Commands. I am very fenfible, that Eyes long kept in the dark, cannot bear a fudden View of noon Daylight, but muft be brought to it by degrees. It is for this Reafon, the ingenious Gentlemen of our Profeffion are accuftomed to proceed gradually, beginning with thofe Prejudices to which Men have the lead Attachment, and thence proceeding to undermine the reft by flow and infenfible Degrees, till they have demolished the whole Fabric of Human Folly and Superftition. But the little time I can propofe to fpend here obligeth me to take a fhorter courfe, and be more direcl and plain than pofiibly may be thought to fuit with Prudence and good Manners. Upon this, we aflured him he was at full liberty to fpeak his Mind of Things, Perfons, and Opinions without the lead Referve. It is a Liberty, replied Alciphron, that we Free-thinkers are equally willing to give and take. We love to call things by their right Names, and cannot endure that Truth PHILOSOPHER^ 1$ Truth fhou'd fuffer through Complaifance. Let us DiAL. J therefore lay it down for a Preliminary, that no I. Offence be taken at any thing, whatfoever (hall be " faid on either fide. To which we all agreed. VI. In order then, faid dlcipbron, to find out the Truth, we will fuppofe that I am bred up, for Inftance, in the Church of England: When I come to maturity of Judgment, and reflect on the par- ticular Worfhip and Opinions of this Church, I do not remember when or by what means they firft took poffeflion of my Mind, but there I find them from time immemorial. Then calling an Eye on the Education of Children, from whence I can make a Judgment of my own, I obferve they arc inftrucled in religious Matters before they can reafon about them, and confequently that all fuch Inftruftion is nothing elfe but filling the tender Mind of a Child with Prejudices. I do therefore rejedt all thofe Religious Notions, which I confider as the other Follies of my Childhood. I am con- firmed in this way of thinking, when I look abroad into the World, where I obferve Papifts and feveral Se6ts of Difienters, which do all agree in a general Profeffion of Belief in Chrift, but differ valtly one from another in the Particulars of Faith and Wor- Ihip. I then enlarge my View fo as to rake in Jews and Mahometans^ between whom and the Chriftians I perceive indeed fome fmall Agreement in the Belief of one God ; but then they have each their diftincl: Laws and Revelations, for which they exprefs the fame Regard. But extending my view dill further to Heathenifh and Idolatrous Nations I difcover an endlefs Variety, not only in particular Opinions and Modes of Worfhip, but even in the very Notion of a Deity, wherein they widely differ one from another, and from all the forementioned Seds. THE MINUT E Sects. Upon the whole, inftead of Truth fimple and uniform I perceive nothing but Difcord, Op- pofition, and wild Pretenfions, all fpringing from the fame Source to wit the Prejudice of Education. From fuch Reafonings and Reflexions as thefe, thinking Men have concluded that all Religions are alike falfe and fabulous. One is a Chriftian, ano- ther a Jew, a third a Mahometan, a fourth an Idolatrous Gentile, but all from one and the fame Reafon, becaufe they happen to be bred up each in his refpective Sect. In the fame manner, there- fore, as each .of thefe contending Parties condemns the reft, fo an unprejudiced ftander-by will condemn and reject them all together, obferving that they all draw their Origin from the fame fallacious Principle, and are carried on by the fame Artifice to anfwer the fame Ends of the Prieft and the Magiftrate. VII. EUPH. You hold then that the Magiftrate concurs with the Prieft in impofing on the People. dLC. I do, and fo muft every one who confiders things in a true Light. For you muft know, the Magiftrate's principal Aim is to keep the People under him in awe. Now the public Eye reftrains Men from open Offences agamft the Laws and Government. But to prevent fecret Tranfgreffions, a Magiftrate finds it expedient that Men fhou'd believe there is an Eye of Providence watching over their private Actions and Defigns. And, to intimidate thofe who might otherwife be drawn into Crimes by the Profpedt of Pleafure and Profit, he gives them to understand, that whoever efcapes Punifliment in this Life will be fure to find it in the next ; and that fo heavy and lafting as infinitely to over-balance the Pleafure and Profit accruing from his Crimes. Hence the Belief of a God, the Immortality of the Soul, and a future State of Rewards PHILOSOPHER. Rewards and Punifhments have been efleemed ufe- ful Engines of Government. And to the End that thefe notional airy Doctrines might make a fenfible Impreflion, and be retained on the minds of Men, skilful Rulers have in the feveral civilized Nations of the Earth devifed Temples, Sacrifices, Churches, Rites, Ceremonies, Habits, Mafic, Prayer, Preach- ing, and the like fpirituil Trumpery, whereby the Prieft maketh temporal Gains, and the Magiftrate findeth his Account in frightening and fubduing the People. This is the Original of the Combi- nation between Church and State, of Religion by Law eftablifhed, of Rights, Immunities, and Incomes of Priefts all over the World : There being no Government but would have you fear God that you may honour the King or Civil Power. And you will ever obferve that politic Princes keep up a good Understanding with their Clergy, to the end that they in return, by inculcating Religion and Loyalty into the Minds of the People, may render them tame, timorous, and flavifh. Crito and I heard this Difcourfe of Alciphron with the utmoft Attention, though without any Appearance of Surprife, there being indeed nothing in it to us new or unexpected. But Eupbranor who had never before been prefent at fuch Converfation, could not help mewing fome Aftonifliment ; which Lyficles obferving, asked him with a lively air, how he Jiked Alciphrotfs Lecture. It is, faid he, the firft I believe that you ever heard of the Kind, and re- quireth a ftrong Stomach to digeft it. EUPH. I will own to you, that my Digcftion is none of the quickeft ; but it hath fometimes, by Degrees, been able to mafter things which at firft appeared indi- tsftible. At prefent I admire the free Spirit and loquence of Alcipbron ; but, to fpeak the Truth, I am rather aftoniflied, than convinced of the C' Truth. THE M i N u T B Truth of his Opinions. How, (faid he, turning to Altipbron) is it then pofilble you Ihould not believe the Being of a God ? ALC. To be plain with you, J do not. VII T. But this is what I forefaw, a Flood of Light let in at once upon the Mind being apt to dazzle and diibrder rather than enlighten it. Was I not pinched in Time, the regular way would be to have begun with the Circumftantials of Religion, next to have attacked the Myfteries of Chriftianity, after that proceeded to the practical Doctrines, and in the laft place to have extirpated that which of all other religious Prejudices, being the firft taught, and Balis of the reft, hath taken the deepeft Root in our Minds, I mean, the Belief of a God. I do not wonder it flicks with you, having known ieveral very ingenious Men who found it difficult to free themfelves from this Prejudice. EUPH. All Men have not the fame Alacrity and Vigour in thinking : For my own part, I find it a- hard matter to keep pace with you. ALC. To help you, I will go a little way back, and refume the Thread of my Reafoning. Firft I muft acquaint you, That having applied my Mind to contemplate the Idea of Truth, I dilcovered it to be of a (table, permanent, and uniform nature ; not various and changeable, like Modes or Fafhions, and Things depending on Fancy. In the next place, having ob- ferved feveral Seels, and Subdivifions of Sects efpoufing very different and contrary Opinions, and yet all profefling Chriftianity, I rejected thofe Points wherein they differed, retaining only that which was agreed to by all, and fo became a La- titudinarian. Having afterwards, upon a more en- larged View of things, perceived that Chriftians, Jews, and Mahometans had each their different Syftemg PHILOSOPHER. 19 Syftems of Faith, agreeing only in the Belief cf DIAL. one God, I became a Deift. Laftly, extending my 1. View to all the other various Nations which inhabit s-^v*s^ this Globe, and finding they agreed in no one Point of Faith, but differed one from another, as well as from the foremen tioned Seels, even in the Notion of a God, in which there is as great Di- verfity as in the Methods of Worfhip, I thereupon became an Atheift > it being my Opinion, that a Man of Courage and Senfe mould follow his Ar- gument wherever it leads him, and that nothing is more ridiculous than to be a Free-thinker by halves. I approve the Man who makes thorough Work, and, not content with lopping off the Branches, extirpates the very Root from which they fprung. IX. Atheifm therefore, that Bugbear of Women and Fools, is the very Top and Perfection of Free- thinking. It is the grand Arcanum to which a true Genius naturally rifeth, by a certain Climax or Gra- dation of Thought, and without which he can never poflefs his Soul in abfolute Liberty and Re- pofe. For your thorough Conviction in this main Article, do but examine the Notion of a God with the fame Freedom that you would other Prejudices. Trace it to the Fountain-head, and you (hall not find that you had it by any of your Senfes, the only true Means of difcovering what is real and fubftan- tial in Nature. You will rind it lying amongft other old Lumber in fome obfcure Corner of the Ima- gination, the proper Receptacle of Vifions, Fancies, and Prejudices of all Kinds: And if you are more attached to this than the reft, it is only be- caufe it is the oldeft. This is all, take my Word for it, and not mine only, but that of many more the mod ingenious Men of the Age, who, I can allure you, think as I do on the Subject of a C 2 Deity. THE MINUTE Deity. Though fome of them hold it proper to proceed with more Referve in declaring to the World their Opinion in this Particular, than in mott others. And it muft be owned, there are ftill too many in England who retain a foolifh. Prejudice againft the Name of Atheift. But it leflens every Day among the better fort ; and when it is quite worn out, our Free-thinkers may then, (and not till then) be faid to have given the finifh- ing Stroke to Religion ; it being evident that fo long as the Exigence of God is believed, Religion mult fubfift in fome Shape or other. But the Root being once plucked up, the Scions which fhot from it will of courfe wither and decay. Such are all thofe whimfical Notions of Confcience, Duty, Principle, and the like, which fill a Man's Head with Scruples, awe him with Fears, and make him a more thorough Slave than the Horfe he rides. A Man had better a thoufand times be hunted by Bailiffs or Mefiengers than haunted by thefe Spectres, which embarafs and embitter all his Pleafures, creat- ing the moft real and fore Servitude upon Earth. But the Free-thinker, with a vigorous flight of Thought breaks through thofe airy Springes, and aflerts his original Independency. Others indeed may talk, and write, and fight about Liberty, and make an outward Pretence to it, but the Free- thinker alone is truly free, dlciphron having ended this Difcourfe with an Air of Triumph, Euphranor fpoke to him in the following manner. You make clear Work. The Gentlemen of your Profefiion are, it feems, admirable Weeders. You have rooted up a World of Notions, I mould be glad to fee what fine Things you have planted in their flead. ALC. Have Patience, good Eupbranor. I will fhew you in the firfl place, That whatever was found and good we leave untouched, and encourage PHILOSOPHER. 21 it to grow in the Mind of Man. And fecondly, DIAL, I wili fhew you what excellent things we have planted [. in it. You muft know then, that purfuing our v^v"^- clofe and fevcre Scrutiny, we do at laft arrive at fomething folid and real, in which all Mankind agree, to wit, the Appetites, Paffions, and Senfes : Thefe are founded in Nature, are real, have real Objects, and are attended with real and fubilantial Pleafures j Food, Drink, Sleep, and the like animal Enjoyments being what all Men like and love. And if we extend our View to the other kinds of Animals, we fhall find them all agree in this, that they have certain natural Appetites and Senfes, in the gratifying and fatisfying of which they are conftantly employ'd. Now thefe real natural good things which include nothing of Notion or Fancy, we are fo far from destroying, that we do all we can to cherifli and improve them. According to us, every wife Man looks upon himfelf, or his own bodily Exift- ence in this prefent World, as the Centre and ul- timate End of all his Actions and Regards. He confiders his Appetites as natural Guides directing to his proper Good, his Paflions and Senfes as the natural true Means of enjoying this Good. Hence he endeavours to keep his Appetites in high Relifh, his Paffions and Senfes ftrong and lively, and to provide the greateft Quantity and Variety of real objects fuited to them, which he ftudieth to enjoy by all pofiible means, and in the higheft per- fection imaginable. And the Man who can do this without Reftraint, Remorfe or Fear, is as happy as any other Animal whatfoever, or as his Nature is capable of being. Thus I have given you a fuccinct View of the Principles, Difcoveries, and Tenets of the felect Spirits of this enlightned Age. C 3 X. Criio THE MINUTE X Crito remark'd, that Alciphron had fpoke his Mind with great Clearnefs. Yes, replied Eupbra~ r.cr, we are obliged to the Gentleman for letting us at once into the Tenets of his Sect. But, if I may be allowed to fpeak my Mind, Aldphron^ though in compliance with my own Requelt, hath given me no fniall Uneafmefs. You need, faid Alciphron^ make no Apology for fpcaking freely what you think to one who proiefTech himlelf a Free-thinker. I Ihou'd be forry to make one, whom I meant to oblige, uneafy. Pray let me know wherein I have offended. I am hall" afhamed, replied Eupbranor^ to own that I who am no great Genius have a Weaknefs incidental to little ones. I would fay that I have favourite Opinions, which you reprefent to be Errors and Prejudices. For Inftance, the Im- mortality of the Soul is a Notion I am fond of, as what fupports the Mind with a very pleafing Profpecl. And if it be an Error, I mould perhaps be of fully's Mind, who in that Cafe profefled he Ihould be forry to know the Truth, acknowledging no fort of Obligation to certain Philolbphers in his Days, who taught, that the Soul of Man was mortal. They were, it feems, Predeceffors to thofc who are now called Free-thinkers 5 which Name being too general and indefinite, inafmuch as it comprehends all thofe who think for themfelves, whether they agree in Opinion with thefe Gentle- men or no, it fhould not feem amifs to affign them a fpccific Appellation or peculiar Name, whereby to diitinguim them from other Philofophers, at leaft in our prefent Conference. For I cannot bear to argue againft Free-thinking and Free-thinkers. ALC. In the Eyes of a wife Man Words are of fmall Moment. We do not think Truth attached to PHILOSOPHER. 23 to a Name. EUPH. If you pleafe then, to avoid DIAL, Confufion, let us call your Sect by the fame Name I. that 'Tully (who underftood the force of Language) < v*- beftow'd upon them. ALC. With all my heart. Pray what may that Name be? EUPH. Why, he calls them Minute Pbilofophers. Right, faid Crito, the modern Free-thinkers are the very fame with thofe Cicero called Minute Philofophers, which Name admirably fuits them, they being a fort of Sect which diminifh all the moft valuable Things, the Thoughts, Views, and Hopes of Men ; all the Knowledge, Notions, and Theories of the Mind they reduce to Senfe ; Human Nature they contract and degrade to the narrow low Standard of Animal Life, and aflign us only a fmall Pittance of Time inflead of Immortality. Aldpbron very gravely re- marked, That the Gentlemen of his Sect had done no Injury to Man ; and that if he be a little, fhort- lived, contemptible Animal, it was not their faying it made him fo : And they were no more to blame for whatever Defects they difcover, than a faithful Glafs for making the Wrinkles which it only mews. As to what you obferve, faid he, of thofe we now call Free-thinkers, having been anciently termed Minute Philofophers^ it is my Opinion this Appel- lation might be derived from their confidering things minutely, and not fwallowing them in the grofs, as other Men are ufed to do. Befides, we all know the bed Eyes are neceffary to difcern the minuteft Objects: It feems therefore, that Minute Philofophers might have been fo called from their diftinguifhed Perfpicacity. EUPH. O Alcipkron / thefe Minute Philofophers (fince that is their true Name) are a fort of Pirates, who plunder all that come in their way. I confider myielf as a Man left ftript and defblate on a bleak Bea. h. C 4 XT, THE MINUTE XI. But who are thefe profound and learned Men that of late Years have demolifhed the whole Fabric, which Lawgivers, Philofophers, and Di- vines, had been erecting for fo many Ages ? Lyficles hearing thefe Words, fmiled, and faid he believed Eupbranor had figured to himfelf Philofophers in fquare Caps and long Gowns ; but, thanks to thefe happy Times, the Reign of Pedantry was over. Our Philofophers, faid he, are of a very different Kind from thofe aukward Students, who think to come at Knowledge by poring on dead Languages, and old Authors, or by lequeltring themfelves from the Cares of the World to meditate in Solitude and Retirement. They are the beft bred Men of the Age, Men who know the World, Men of Pleafure, Men of Fafhion, and fine Gentlemen. EUPH. I have fome fmall Notion of the People you mention, but fhou'd never have taken them for Philofophers. CRI. Nor would any one elfe till of late. The World it feems was long under a Miftake about the way to Knowledge, thinking it lay through a tedious Courfe of Academical Edu- cation and Study. But among the Difcoveries of the prefent Age, one of the principal is, the finding out that fuch a Method doth rather retard and obttru(5t, than promote Knowledge. ALC. Aca- demical Study may be comprifed in two Points, Reading and Meditation. Their Reading is chiefly employ'd on ancient Authors in dead Languages : fo that a great Part of their Time is fpent in learn- ing Words ; which, when they have mattered with infinite pains, what do they get by it but old and obfolete Notions, that are now quite exploded and out of ufe ? Then, as to their Meditations, what can they pollibly be good for ? He that wants the proper PHILOSOPHER/ 25 proper Materials of Thought, may think and me- DIAL. ditate for ever to no purpoie : Thofe Cobwebs fpun I. by Scholars out of their own Brains being alike * -v unferviceable, either for Life or Ornament. Proper Ideas or Materials are only to be got by frequent- ing good Company. I know feveral Gentlemen, who, fmce their Appearance in the World, have fpent as much Time in rubbing off the Ruft and Pedantry of a College Education, as they had done before in acquiring it. LYS. I'll undertake, a Lad of fourteen, bred in the modern way, {hall make a better Figure, and be more confidered in any Drawing Room or Afiembly of polite People, than one of four and twenty, who hath lain by a long time at School and College. He mall fay better things, in a better manner, and be more liked by good Judges. EUPH. Where doth he pick up all this Improvement ? CRL Where our grave Anceftors wou'd never have look'd for it, in a Drawing Room, a Coffee Houfe, a Chocolate Houfe, at the Tavern, or Groom Porter's. In thefe and the like fafhionable Places of Refort, it is the Cuftom for polite Perfons to fpeak freely on all Subjects, religious, moral or political. So that a young Gentleman who frequents them is in the way of hearing many inftruftive Lectures, feafoned with Wit and Rallery, and uttered with Spirit. Three or four Sentences from a Man of Quality fpoke with a good Air, make more Impreilion, and convey more Knowledge, than a dozen DifTertations in a dry Academical way. EUPH. There is then no Method or Courfe of Studies in thofe Places. LTS. None but an eafy free Converfation, which takes in every thing that offers, without any Rule or Defign. EUPH. I alwnys thought that fome Order was neceflary to attain any uleful degree of Knowledge ; that Hafte and Confufion begat a conceited 26 THE Mi NUT E DIAL, conceited Ignorance j that to make our Advances I. fure, they fhould be gradual, and thofe Points firlt Vx-v^ learned which might call a Light on what was to follow. ALC. So long as Learning was to be ob- tained only by that flow formal courfe of Study, few of the better fort knew much of it ; but now it is grown an Amufement, our young Gentry and Nobilty imbibe it infenfibly amidil their Diverfions, and make a confiderable Progrefs. EUPIL Hence probably the great number of Minute Philofophers. CRI. It is to this that Seel, is owing for fo many ingenious Proficients of both Sexes. You may now commonly fee (what no former Age ever faw) a young Lady, or a Petit Maitre nonplus a Divine or an o'd-fafhioned Gentleman, who hath read many a Greek and Latin Author, and fpent much Time in hard methodical Study. EUPH. It fhou'd feem then that Method, Exactnefs, and Indutlry are a Difadvantage. Here Alciphron^ turning to Lyfales, faid he could make the Point very clear, if Eupbranor had any Notion of Painting. EUPH. I never faw a firftrate Picture in my Life, but have a tolerable Collection of Prints, and have feen fome good Drawings. ALC. You know then the difference between the Dutch and the Italian manner. EUPH. I have fome Notion of it. ALC. Suppofe now a Drawing finiflied by the nice and laborious Touches of a Dutch Pencil, and another off hand fcratched out in the free manner of a great Italian Matter. The Dutch Piece, which hath coft fo much Pains and Time, will be exact indeed, but without that Force, Spirit, or Grace, which appear in the other, and are the Effects of an eafy free Pencil. Do but apply this, and the Point will be clear. EUPH. Pray inform me, did thofe great Italian M afters begin and pro- ceed in their Art, without any choice of Method or Subject, PHILOSOPHER. 27 Subject, and always draw with the fame Eafe and DIAL. Freedom ? Or did they obferve fome Method, be- I. ginning with fimple and elementary Parts, an Eye, a Nofe, a Finger, which they drew with great Pains and Care, often drawing the fame thing, m order to draw it correctly, and fo proceeding with Patience and Induftry, till after a confiderable length of Time they arrived at the free mafterly manner you fpeak of. If this were the Cafe, I leave you to make the Application. ALC. You may difpute the Matter if you pleafe. But a Man of Parts is one thing, and a Pedant another. Pains and Method may do for fome fort of People. A Man muft be a long time kindling wet Straw into a vile fmothering Flame, but Spirits blaze out at once. EUPH. The Minute Philofophers have, it feems, better Parts than other Men, which qualifies them for a different Education. ALC. Tell me, Euphranor, what is it that gives one Man a better Mien than another ; more Politeness in Drefs, Speech and Motion ? Nothing but frequenting good Company. By the fame means Men get inienfibly a delicate Tafte, a refined Judgment, a certain Politenefs in thinking and exprefllng one's felf. No wonder if you Countrymen are Strangers to the Advantage of polite Conversion, which conftantly keeps the Mind awake and active, exercifing its Faculties, and calling forth all its Strength and Spirit on a thoufand different Occafions and Subjects, that never come in the way of a Bookworm in a College, no more than of a Ploughman. CRI. Hence thofe lively Faculties, that Quicknefs of Ap- prehenfion, that Slinefs of Ridicule, that egregious Talent of Wit and Humour, which diftinguim the Gentlemen of your Profeffion. EUPH. It fhould feem then that your Seel: is made up of what you call fine Gentlemen. LTS, Not altogether, for w<* have THE MINUTE have among us fome contemplative Spirits of a coarfer Education ; who, from obferving the Be- haviour and Proceedings of Apprentices, Water- men, Porters, and Affcmblies of Rabble in the Streets, have arrived at a profound Knowledge of Human Nature ; and made great Difcoveries about the Principles, Springs, and Motives of moral Actions. Thefe have demolifhed the received Syftems, and done a world of good in the City. jiLC. I tell you we have Men of all Sorts and Profeffions, plodding Citizens, thriving Stock- jobbers, skilful Men in Bufinefs, polite Courtiers, galant Men of the Army ; but our chief Strength and Flower of the Flock are thofe promifmg young Men who have the Advantage of a modern Edu- cation. Thefe are the growing Hopes of our Seel, by whofe Credit and Influence in a few Years we expect to fee thofe great Things accomplished that we have in view. EUPH. I cou'd never have imagined your Seel fo confiderable. ALC. There are in England many honeft Folk as much in the dark about thefe Matters as yourfelf. XII. To judge of the prevailing Opinion among People of Fafhion, by what a Senator faich in the Houfe, a Judge upon the Bench, or a Prieft in the Pulpit, who all fpeak according to Law, that is, to the reverend Prejudices of our Forefathers, would be wrong. You mould go into good Com- pany, and mind what Men of Parts and Breeding fay, thofe who are bed heard and moft admired, as well in public Places of Refort, as in private Vifits. He only who hath thefe Opportunities can know our real Strength, our Numbers and the Figure that we make. EUPH. By your Account,, there muft be many Minute Philolbphers among the Men of Rank and Fortune. ALC. Take my Word for it, not PHILOSOPHER. 29 not a Few, and they do much contribute to the DIAL fpreading our Notions. For he who knows the I. World muft obferve, that Famions conftantly de- fcend. It is therefore the right way to propagate an Opinion from the upper end. Not to fay that the Patronage of fuch Men is an Encouragement to our Authors. EUPH. It feems then you have Authors among you. LTS. That we have, feveral, and thofe very great Men, who have obliged the World with many ufeful and profound Difcoveries. CRI. Mofcbcm, for inftance, hath proved that Man and Beaft are really of the fame Nature : That con- fequently a Man need only indulge his Senfes and Appetites to be as happy as a Brute. Gorgias hath gone further, demonftrating Man to be a Piece of Clock-work, or Machine; and that Thought or Reafon are the fame Thing as the Impulfe of one Ball againft another. Cimon hath made noble ufe of thefe Difcoveries, proving as clearly as any Pro* pofition in Mathematics, That Confcience is a Whim, and Morality a Prejudice ; and that a Man is no more accountable for his Actions than a Clock is for ftriking. Tryphon hath written irrefragably on the Ufefulnefs of Vice, fhrafenor hath confuted the fooiifh Prejudice Men had againft Atheifm, fhewing, that a Republic of Atheifts might live very happily together. Demylus hath made a Jeft of Loyalty, and convinced the World there is nothing in it: To him and another Philofopher of the fame Stamp this Age is indebted for difcovering, that Public Spirit is an idle Enthufiafm which feizeth only on weak Minds. It would be endlefs to recount the Difcoveries made by Writers of this Seel:. LTS. But the Malter-piece and finifhing Stroke is a learned Anecdote of our great Diagoras, containing a Demonftration againft the Being of God, which it is conceived the Public is not yet ripe JO THE MlNUTE DIAL, ripe for. But I am afiured by fome judicious I. Friends who have feen it, that it is as clear as Day- Sxv"*- ; light* an ^ will do a world of Good, at one Blow demolilhing the whole Syftem of Religion. Thefe Difcoveries are publifhed by our Philofbphers, fome- times in juft Volumes, but often in Pamphlets and loofe Papers for their readier Conveyance through the Kingdom. And to them muft be afcribed that ablblute and independent Freedom, which groweth fb faft, to the Terror of all Bigots. Even the Dull and Ignorant begin to open their Eyes, and to be influenced by the Example and Authority of fo many ingenious Men. EUPH. It mould feem by this Account that your Seel: extend their Difcoveries beyond Religion ; and that Loyalty to his Prince, or Reverence for the Laws, are but mean things in the Eye of a Minute Philofopher. LTS. Very mean ; we are too wife to think there is any thing Sacred either in King or Conftitution, or indeed in any thing elie. A Man of. Senfe may perhaps feem to pay an occasional Regard to his Prince, but this is no more at bottom than what he pays to God when he kneels at the Sacrament to qualify himfelf for an Office. Fear God, and honour the King, are a pair of flavifh Maxims, which had for a long time crampt Human Nature, and awed not only weak Minds, but even Men of good Under- ftanding, till their Eyes, as I obferved before, were opened by our Philofophers. EUPH. Me- thinks I can eafily comprehend, that when the Fear of God is quite extinguimed, the Mind muft be very eafy with refpect to other Duties, which be- come outward Pretences and Formalities, from the Moment that they quit their hold upon the Con- fcience: and Confcience always fuppoleth the Being of a God. But I (till thought that Englijhmen of all Denominations (how widely foever they might differ PHILOSOPHER. 31 differ as to fome particular Points) agreed in the DIAL Belief of a God, and of fo much at leaft as is I. called Natural Religion. ALC. I have already told you my own Opinion of thofe Matters, and what I know to be the Opinion of many more. CRT. Probably, Eupbranor, by the Title of Deifts, which is fometimes given to Minute Philofophers, you have been mifled to imagine they believe and worfhip a God according to the Light of Nature : but by living among them, you may foon be con- vinced of the contrary. They have neither Time, nor Place, nor Form of Divine Worfhip : They offer neither Prayers nor Praifes to God in Public : and in their private Practice fhew a Contempt or Diflike even of the Duties of Natural Religion. For inftance, the faying Grace before and after Meals is a plain Point of Natural Worfhip, and was once univerfally practifed ; but in proportion as this Seel: prevailed it hath been laid afide, not only by the Minute Philofophers themfelves, who would be infinitely amamed of fuch a Weaknefs as to beg God*s Bleffing, or give God Thanks for their daily Food; but alfo by others who are afraid of being thought Fools by the Minute Philofophers. EUPH. Is it poflibie that Men, who really believe a God, Ihould yet decline paying fo eafy and reafonable a Duty for fear of incurring the Contempt of Atheifts ? CRI. I tell you there are many, who believing in their Hearts the Truth of Religion, are yet afraid or amamed to own it, left they fliould forfeit their Reputation with thofe who have the good luck to pafs for great Wits and Men of Genius. ALC O Eupbranor, we muft make Allowance for Ch'/o's Prejudice: he is a worthy Gentleman, and means well. But doth it not look like Prejudice, to afcribe the Refpect that is paid our ingenious Free-thinkers rather to good Luck 32 THE MINUTE DIAL. Luck than to Merit ? EUPH. I acknowledge their I. Merit to be very wonderful, and that rhofe Authors * v muft needs be great Men who are able to prove fuch Paradoxes : for Example, That fo knowing a Man as a Minute Philofopher fhould be a mere Machine, or at beft no better than a Brute. ALC. It is a true Maxim, That a Man fhould think with the Learned, and fpeak with the Vulgar. I mould be loath to place a Gentleman of Merit in fuch a Light before prejudiced and ignorant Men. The Tenets of our Philofophy have this in com- mon with many other Truths, in Metaphyfics, Geometry, Aftronomy, and Natural Philofophy, that vulgar Ears cannot bear them. All our Dif- coveries and Notions are in themfelves true and certain ; but they are at prefent known only to the better fort, and would found itrange and odd among the Vulgar. But this it is to be hoped, will wear off with Time. EUPH. I do not wonder that vulgar Minds mould be flartled at the Notions of your Philofophy. CRL Truly a very curious fort of Philofophy, and much to be admired ! XIII. The profound Thinkers of this Way have taken a direct contrary Courfe to all the great Phi- lofophers of former Ages, who made it their En- deavour to raife and refine Human Kind, and re- move it as far as poffible from the Brute ; to mo- derate and fubdue Mens Appetites; to remind them of the Dignity of their Nature ; to awaken and improve their fuperior Faculties, and direct them to the nobleft Objects ; to pofiefs Mens Minds with a high Senfe of the Divinity, of the fupreme Good, and the Immortality of the Soul. They took great pains to ftrengthen the Obligations to Virtue 5 and upon all thofe Subjects have wrought out noble Theories, and treated with fingular Force of PHILOSOPHER!/ 33 of Reafon. But it feems our Minute Phlofophers DIAU act the reverfe of all other wife and thinking Men; I. it being their End and Aim to erafe the Principles __ y -nj of all that is great and good from the Mind of Man, to unhinge all Order of civil Life, to under- mine the Foundations of Morality, and, inftead of improving and ennobling our Natures, to bring us down to the Maxims and way of thinking of the mod uneducated and barbarous Nations ; and even to degrade Human Kind to a level with the brute Beads. And all the while they would pafs upon the World for Men of deep Knowledge. But in effect, what is all this negative Knowledge better than downright iavage Ignorance? That there is no Pro- vidence, no Spirit, no future State, no moral Duty : truly a fine Syftem for an honeft Man to own, or an ingenious Man to value himfelf upon ! Alciphron^ who heard this Difcourfe with fome Uneafmefs, very gravely replied. Difputes are not to be decided by the Weight of Authority, but by the Force of Reafon. You may pafs, indeed, general Reflexions on our Notions, and call them brutal and barbarous if you pleafe : But it is fuch Brutality and fuch Bar- bar ifm as few could have attained to, if Men of the greateft Genius had not broke the Ice; there being nothing more difficult than to get the better of Education, and conquer old Prejudices. To re- move and caft off a heap of Rubbifh that has been gathering upon the Soul from our very Infancy, re- quires great Courage, and great Strength of Faculties. Our Philofophers therefore do well deferve the Name ot Efprits forts, Men of ftrong Heads , Free- thinkers, and fuch like Appellations, betokening great Force and Liberty of Mind. It is very pofllble, the Heroic Labours of thefe Men may be reprefented (for what is not capable of Mifrepre- fcntation ?) as a piratical plundering and dripping D ' the 34 THE MINUTE DIAL, the Mind of its Wealth and Ornaments ; when it J. is in truth the diverting it only of its Prejudices, fe^p-y > and reducing it to its untainted original State of Nature. Oh Nature ! the genuine Beauty of pure Nature! EUPH. You feem vtry much taken with the Beauty of Nature. Be pleafed to tell me, Alciphron, what thofe Things are which you efteem natural, or by what Mark 1 may know them. XIV. ALC. For a thing to be natural, for inftance, to the Mind of Man, it mud appear ori- ginally therein, it muft be univerfaUy in all Men, it muft be invariably the fame in all Nations and Ages. -Thefe Limitations of Original, Univerfal, and Invariable, exclude all thofe Notions, found in the Human Mind, which are the Effect of Cuftom and Education. The Cafe is the fame with refpect to all other Species of Beings. A Cat, for Ex- ample, hath a natural Inclination to purfue a Moufe, beCaufe it agrees with the forementioned Marks. But if a Cat be taught to play Tricks, you will not fay thofe Tricks are natural. For the fame Reafon, if upon a Plumbtree, Peaches and Apricots are in- grafted, no body will fay they are the natural Growth of the Plumbtree. EUPH. But to return to Man : It feems you allow thofe things alone to be natural to him, which mew themfelves upon his firft Entrance into the World ; to wit, the Senfes, $nd fuch Pafllons and Appetites as are difcovered upon the firft Application of their refpe&ive Ob- jects, ALC. That is my Opinion. EUPH. Tell me, Alcipbron, if from a young Appletree, after a certain Period of Time, there t ihould fhooc forth Leaves, Bloflbms, and Apples ; would you deny thefe Things to be natural, becaufe they did not difcover and difplay themfelves in the tender Bud ? ALC, I would not. EUPH. And fuppofe that in Man. PHILOSOPHER. 35 Man, after a certain Seafon, the Appetite of Luft, DIAL, or the Faculty of Reafon fhall Ihoot forth, open, I. and difplay themfelves, as Leaves and Bloflbms do < - v- in a Tree ; would you therefore deny them to be natural to him, becaufe they did not appear in his original Infancy ? ALC. I acknowledge I would not. EUPH. It feems therefore, that the firft Mark of a Thing's being natural to the Mind was not warily laid down by you ; to wit, that it fhould appear originally in it. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. Again, inform me, Alcipbron, whether you do not think it natural for an Orange-plant to produce Oranges ? ALC. I do. EUPH. But plant it in the North- end of Great-Britain^ and it lhall with Care produce, perhaps, a good Salad : in the Southern Parts of the lame Ifland, it may with much Pains and Culture thrive and produce indifferent Fruit : but in Portugal^ or Naples, it will produce much better, with little or no Pains. Is this true, or not ? ALC. It is true. EUPH. The Plant being the fame in all Places, doth not produce the fame Fruit; Sun, Soil, and Cultivation making a dif- ference. ALC. I grant it. EUPH. And fince the Cafe is, you fay, the fame with refpect to all Species 5 why may we not conclude, by a Parity of Reafon, that things may be natural to Human Kind, and yet neither found in all Men, nor inva- riably the fame where they are found? ALC. Hold, Euphranor, you mud explain yourfelf further. I (hali not be over hafty in my Conccfiions. L TS. You are in the right, Alciphron, to (land upon your guard. I do not like thefe enfnaring Queftions. EU P H. I defire you to make no Concefiions in complaifance to me, but only to tell me your Opinion upon each Particular, that we may under- ftand one another, know wherein we agree, and proceed jointly in rinding out the Truth. But (added D 2 36 THE MINUTE DIAL. Eupbraner, turning to Crito and me) if the Gentle- I. men are againft a free and fair Inquiry, I fhall give i y ' them no further Trouble. ALC. Our Opinions will ftand the Teft. We fear no Trial. Proceed as you pleafe. EUPH. It feems then that from what you have granted it fhould follow, Things may be natural to Men, although they do not actually fhew themfelves in all Men, nor in equal Perfection ; there being as great difference of Cul- ture, and every other Advantage, with refpect to Human Nature, as is to be found with refpect to the vegetable Nature of Plants ; to ufe your own Similitude. Is it fo, or not ? ALC. It is. EUPH. Anfwcr me, Alciphron, do not Men in all Times and Places, when they arrive at a certain Age, ex- prefs their Thoughts by Speech ? ALC. They do. EUPH. Should it not feem then, that Language is natural ? ALC. It fhould. EUPH. And yet there is a great variety of Languages. ALC. I acknow- ledge there is. EUPH. From all this will it not follow, a Thing may be natural and yet admit of Variety? ALC. I grant it will. EUPH. Should it not feem therefore to follow, that a Thing may be natural to Mankind, though it have not thofe Marks or Conditions affigned j though it be not original, univerfal, and invariable ? ALC. It fhould. EUPH. And that confequcntly religious Worfhip and civil Government may be natural to Man, not- withstanding they admit of fundry Forms and dif- ferent Degrees of Perfection ? ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. You have granted already that Reafon is natural to Mankind. ALC. I have. EUPH. Whatever therefore is agreeable to Reafon is agree- able to the Nature of Man. ALC. It is. EUPIL Will it not follow from hence that Truth and Virtue are natural to Man? ALC. Whatever is reafonable I admit to be natural. EUPH. And as thofe PHILOSOPHER. 37 thofe Fruits, which grow from the mod: generous DIAL, and mature Stock, in the choiceft Soil, and with I. the beft Culture, are moft efteemed ; even fb ought * -v" we not to think, thofe fublime Truths, which arc the Fruits of mature Thought, and have been ra- tionally deduced by Men of the beft and moft im- proved Understandings, to be the choiceft Pro- ductions of the rational Nature of Man ? And if fo, being in Fact reafonable, natural, and true, they ought not to be efteemed unnatural Whims, Errors of Education, and groundJefs Prejudices, becaufe they are raifed and forwarded, by manuring and cultivating our tender Minds : Becaufe they take early Root, and fprout forth betimes, by the Care and Diligence of our Inftructors. dLC. Agreed, provided ftill they may be rationally de- duced. But to take this for granted, of what Men vulgarly call the Truths of Morality and Religion, would be begging the Quettion. EUPH. You are in the right ; I do not, therefore, take for granted, that they are rationally deduced : I only fuppofe that, if they are, they muft be allowed natural to Man, or in other Words, agreeable to, and grow- ing from, the moft excellent and peculiar Part of Human Nature, ALC. I have nothing to objefc to this. EUPH. What Ihall we think then of your former Aflertions ? That nothing is natural to Man but what may be found in all Men, in all Nations and Ages of the World : That to obtain a genuine View of Human Nature, we muft extirpate all the Effects of Education and Inftruction, and regard only the Senfes, Appetites, and Paffions, which are to be found originally in all Mankind : That, therefore, the Notion of a God can have no Foun- dation in Naturej as not being originally in the Mindj nor the fame in all Men. Be pleafed to re- concile thefe Things with your late Conceflions, D 3 which 38 THE Mi N uf E DIAL, which the Force of Truth feems to have extorted I. from you. XV. ALC. Tell me, Euphranor, whether Truth be not one and the fame uniform invariable Thing : And, if fo, whether the many different and incon- fiftent Notions which Men entertain of God and Duty be not a plain Proof there is no Truth in them. EUPH. That Truth is conftant and uniform I freely own, and that confequently Opinions re- pugnant to each other cannot be true : Bat I think it will not hence follow they are all alike falfe. If among various Opinions about the fame Thing, one be grounded on clear and evident Reafons ; that is to be thought true, and others only fo far as they confift with it. Reafon is the fame, and rightly applied will lead to the fame Conclufions in all Times and Places. Socrates, two thoufand Years ago, feems to have reafoned himfelf into the fame Notion of a God, which is entertained by the Phi- lofophersof our Days, if you will allow that Name to any who are not of your Seel. And the Re- mark of Confucius^ That a Man fliould guard in his Youth againil Lutt, in Manhood againlt Faction, and in old Age againft Covetoulhels, is as current Morality in Europe as in China. ALC. But (till it would be a Satisfaction if all Men thought the fame Way, Difference of Opinions, implying Un- certainty. EUPH. Tell me, Alcipbron^ what you take to be .the Caufe of a Lunar Eclipfe. ALC. The Shadow of the Earth interpofing between the Sun and Moon. EUPH. Are you afTured of this ? ALC. Undoubtedly. EUPH. Are all Mankind agreed in this Truth ? ALC. By no Means. Ig- norant and barbarous People affign different ridicu- lous Caufes of this Appearance. EUPH. Jt feems then there are different Opinions about the Nature of an PHI LOSO PH E ft. 39 an Eclipfe. ALC. There are. EUPH. And never- DIAL. thelefs one of thefe Opinions is true. ALC. It is. I. EUPH. Diverfity, therefore, of Opinions about a Tiling doth not hinder, but that Thing may be, and one of the Opinions concerning it may be true. ALC. This I acknowledge. EUPH. It fhould item, therefore, that your Argument againft the Belief of a God from the Variety of Opinions about his Nature is not conclufive. Nor do I fee how you can conclude againft the Truth of any moral' or religious Tenet, from the various Opinions of Men upon the fame Subject. Might not a Man as well argue, that no hiftorical Account of a Matter of Fact can be true, when different Relations are given of it ? Or may we not as well infer, that becaufe the feveral Seels of Philofophy maintain different Opinions, none of them can be in the right, not even the Minute Pbilofopbers themfelves? During this Converfation Lyficlcs feerned uneafy, like one that wifhed in his Heart there was no God. Alcipbron, faid he, methinks you fit by very tamely, while Eupbranor faps the Foundation of our Tenets. Be of good Courage, replied Al- ciphron^ a skilful Gamefter has been known to ruin his Adverfary, by yielding him fome Advantage ac firft. I am glad, faid he, turning to Eupbranor, that you are drawn in to argue and make your Ap- peals to Reafon, For my part, wherever Reafon leads, I mall not be afraid to follow. Know then, Euphranor^ that I freely give- up what you now contend for. I do not value the Succefs of a few crude Notions thrown out in a loofe Difcourfe, any- more than the Turks do the Lofs of that vile In- fantry which they place in the Front of their Armies, for no other End but to wafte the Powder, and blunt the Swords of their Enemies. Be af- fured, I have in referve a Body of otherguefs Ar- D 4 guments, 4O THE MINUTE DIAL, guments, which I am ready to produce. I will un- I. dertake to prove. EUPH. O Alcipbron! I do Vx-v"^ not doubt your Faculty of proving. But before I put you to the Trouble of any farther Proofs, I Jhould be glad to know whether the Notions of your Minute Philofophy are worth proving. I mean, whether they are of Ufe and Service to Mankind ? XVI. ALC. As to that, give me leave to tell you, a Thing may be ufeful to one Man's Views, and not to another's: But Truth is Truth, whether ufeful or not, and muft not be meafured by the Convenience of this or that Man, or Party of Men. EUPH. But is not the general Good of Mankind to be regarded as a Rule or Meafure of moral Truths, of all fuch Truths as direct or influence the moral Actions of Men ? ALC. That Point is not clear to me. I know, indeed, that Legiflators, and Divines, and Politicians have always alledged, That it is necefTary to the well-being of Mankind, that they fhould be kept in Awe by the flaviih Notions of Religion and Morality *. But granting all this, how will it prove thefe Notions to be true ? Con- venience is one Thing, and Truth is another. A genuine Philofopher, therefore, will overlook all Advantages, and confider only Truth itfelf as fuch. EUPH. Tell me, Alcipbron^ is your genu- ine Philofopher a wife Man, or a Fool ? ALC. Without Queftion, the wifeft of Men. EUPH. Which is to be thought the wife Man, he who a6b with defign, or he who acts at random ? ALC. He who afts with defign. EUPH. Whoever acts with defign, acts for fome End. Doth he not? ALC. He doth. EUPH. And a * The moral Virtues are the political Offspring which. Flattery begot upon Pride, Fable of the Bees, Part the Ifeft. p. 37- wife PHILOSOPHER. 4* wife Man for a good End ? ALC. True. EUPH. And he fheweth fiis Wifdom, in making choice of 6t Means to obtain his End. ALC. I acknow- ledge it. EUPH. By how much, therefore, the End propofed is more excellent, and by how much fitter the Means employed are to obtain it, fo much the wifer is the Agent to be efteemed. ALC. This feerns to be true. EUPH. Can a rational Agent propofe a more excellent End than Happinefs ? ALC. He cannot. EUPH. Of good Things, the greater Good is moft excellent. ALC. Doubtlefs. EUPH. Is not the general Happinefs of Mankind a greater Good, than the private Happinels of one Man, or of fome certain Men? ALC. It is. EUPH. Is it not, therefore, the moft excellent End ? ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. Are not then thofe who purfue this End by the propereft Methods to be thought the wifeft Men ? ALC. I grant they are. EUPH. Which is a wife Man governed by, wife or foolifn Notions ? ALC. By wife, doubtlefs. EUPH. It feems then to follow, that he who pro- motes the general well-being of Mankind by the proper neceffary Means, is truly wife, and ads upon wife Grounds. ALC. It mould feem fo. EUPH. And is not Folly of an oppofite Nature to Wifdom ? ALC. It is. EUPH. Might it not therefore be inferred, that thofe Men are foolifli who go about to unhinge fuch Principles as have a neceflary Connexion with the general Good of Mankind ? ALC. Perhaps this might be granted : But at the fame time I muft obferve, that it is in my Power to deny it. EUPH. How ! you wilJ not furely deny the Conclufion, when you admit the Premifes. ALC. I would fain know upon what Terms we argue 5 whether, in this Progrefs of Queftion and Anlwer, if a Man makes a Slip it be utterly irretrievable ? For if you are on the catch to THE MINUTE to lay hold of every Advantage, without allowing for Surprife or Inattention, I muft tell you this is not the Way to convince my Judgment. EUPH. O Akipbron ! I aim noc at Triumph, but at Truth. You are therefore at full liberty to unravel ail that hath been faid, and to recover or correct any Slip you have made. But then you muft distinctly point it out : otherwife it will be impofiible ever to arrive at any Conclufion. ALC. I agree with you upon thefe Terms jointly to proceed in fearch of Truth, for to that I am fincerely devoted. In the Progrefs of our prefent Inquiry I was, it feems, guilty of an Overfight, in acknowledging the ge- neral Happinefs of Mankind to be a greater Good than the particular Happinels of one Man. For in Fact, the individual Happinefs of every Man alone conftitutes his own entire Good. The Happinels of other Men making no Part of mine, is not with refpect to me a Good : I mean a true natural Good. It cannot therefore be a reafonable End to be pro- pofcd by me in Truth and Nature, (for J do not fpeak of political Pretences) fmce no wife Man will purfue an End which doth not concern him. This is the Voice of Nature. Oh Nature ! thou art the Fountain, Original, and Pattern of all that is Good and Wife. EUPH. You would like then to follow Nature, and propofe her as a Guide and Pattern for your Imitation. ALC. Of all Things. EUPH. Whence do you gather this Refpect for Nature ? ALC. From the Excellency of her Productions. EUPH. In a Vegetable, for Inftance, you fay there is Ufe and Excellency, becaufe the fcveral Parts of it are fo connected and fitted to each other, as to protect and nouriih the whole, make the individual grow, and propagate the Kind, and becaufe in it* Fruits or Qualities it is adapted to pleafe the.Senfe, or contribute to the Benefit of Man. ALC. Even fo PHILOSOPHER. 43 fo. . Elf PH. In like manner, do you not infer the DIAL; Excellency" of Animal Bodies from obferving the I. Frame and Fitnefs of their feveral Parts, by which they mutually confpire to the well-being of each other as well as of the whole ? Do you not alfo ob- ferve a natural Union and Confent between Animals of the fame Kind, and that even different Kinds of Animals have certain Qualities and Inftincts where- by they contribute to the Exercife, Nourifhment and Delight of each other? Even the inanimate unorganized Elements feem to have an Excellence relative to each other. Where was the Excellency of Water, if it did not caufe Herbs and Vege- tables to fpring from the Earth, and put forth Flowers and Fruits ? And what would become of the Beauty of the Earth, if it was not warmed by the Sun, moiftened by Water, and fanned by Air? Throughout the whole Syftem of the vifible and natural World, do you not perceive a mutual Con- nexion and Correfpondence of Parts ? And is it not from hence that you frame an Idea of the Per- fection, and Order, and Beauty of Nature ? ALC. All this I grant. EUPH. And have not the Stoics heretofore faid, (who were no more Bigots than you are) and did you not your felf lay, this Pattern of Order was worthy the Imitation of ra- tional Agents? ALC. I do not deny this to be true. EUPPL Ought we not therefore to infer the fame Union, Order, and Regularity in the moral World that we perceive to be in the natural ? ALC. We ought. ' EUPH. Should it not therefore feem to follow that reafonable Creatures were, as the Phi- lofophical Emperor * obferves, made one for ano- ther ; and confequently that Man ought not to M. Antonia. 1. 4. con- 44 TH E MINUT E DIAL, confider himfelf as an independent Individual, I. whofe Hapinefs is not connected with that of other L.V- i Men; but rather as the Pare of a Whole, to the common Good of which he ought to confpire, and order his Ways and Actions luitably, if he would Jive according to Nature ? ALC. Suppofing this to be true, what then ? EUPH. Will it not follow, that a wife Man fhould confider and purfue his pri- vate Good, with regard to, and in conjunction with, that of other Men ? in granting of which, you thought yourfclf guilty of an Overfighu Though, indeed, the Sympathy of Pain and Plea- fqre, and the mutual Affections by which Mankind are knit together, have been always allowed a plain Proof of this Point : And though it was the con- ftant Doctrine of thofe, who were efteemed the wifeft and moft thinking Men among the Ancients, as the Platonifts, Peripatetics, and Stoics : To fay nothing of Chriftians, whom you pronounce to be an unthinking prejudiced Sort of People. ALC. I mall not difpute this Point with you. EUPH. Since therefore we are fo far agreed, mould it not feem to follow from the Premifes ; That the Be- lief of a God, of a future State, and of moral Duties are the only wife, right, and genuine Prin- ciples of Human Conduct, in cafe they have a neceffary Connexion with the well-being of Man- kind? This Conclufion you have been led to by your own Conceffions, and by the Analogy of Na- ture. ALC. I have been drawn into it flep by ftep through feveral Preliminaries, which I cannot well call to mind ; but one Thing I obferve, that you build on the neceflary Connexion thofe Principles have with the well-being of Mankind : which is a Point neither proved nor granted. LTS. This I take to be a grand fundamental Prejudice, as I doubt PHILOSOPHER. 45 doubt not, if I had time I could make appear. DIAL. But it is now late, and we will, if you think fit, I. defer this Subject till To-morrow. Upon which Motion of Lyfedes we put an end to our Conver- lation for that Jivening. THE 46 THE MINUTE DIAL. : 1L THE SECOND DIALOGUE. I. Vulgar Error \ That Vice is hurtful. II. the Be- nefit of Drunkennefs, Gaming, and Whoring. III. Prejudice againjl Vice wearing off. IV. Its life- fulnefs illuftrated in the Inflames of Callicles and Telefilla. V. The Reafoning of Lyficles in behalf of Vice examined. VI. Wrong to punijh Aftions when the fiottrines whence they flow are tolerated. VII. Hazardous Experiment of the Minute Phi- lofophers. VIII. {Their Doctrine of Circulation and Revolution. IX. Their Senfe of a Refor- mation. X. Riches alone not the Public IVeal. XI. Authority of Minute Philosophers : their Pre- judice agaivft Religion. XII. Ejfetts of Luxury : Virtue ', whether notional? XI II. Pleafure of Senfe. XIV. What fort of Pleafure mofl natural to Man. XV. Dignity of Human Nature. XVI. Pleafure mi/taken. XVII. Amufemsnts^ Mifery and Cow- ardife of Minute Philofophers-. XVIII. Rakes cannot reckon. XIX. Abilities and Succefs of Minute Philofophers. XX. Happy Effects of the Minute Philofophy in particular Inflames. XXI. Their free Notions about Government. XXII. England the proper Soil for Minute Philofophy. XXIII. The Policy and Addrefs of its Profe/ors. XXIV. Merit of Minute Phlofophers towards the Public. XXV. fbeir Notions and Character. XXVI. Their Tendency towards Popery and Slavery . I. NEXT PHILOSOPHER. 47 DIAL. t E ,X T Morning Alciplron and Lyftdes n. laid, the Weather was fo fine, they \^^> had a mind to fpend the Day abroad, and take a cold Dinner under a Shade in fome pleafant Part of the Country. Whereupon, after Breakfaft, we went down to a Beach about half a Mile off; where we walked on the fmooth Sand, with the Ocean on one hand, and on the other wild broken Rocks, intermixed with fhady Trees and Springs of Water, till the Sun began to be uneafy. We then withdrew into a hollow Glade, between two Rocks, where we had no fooner feated ouvfelves, but Lyfules, addrefiing himfelf to Eupbranor^ faid : I am now ready to perform what 1 undertook laft Evening, which was to mew, there is nothing in that neceflary Con- nexion which fome Men imagine between thofc Principles you contend for, and the public Good. I freely own, that if this Queftion was to be de- cided by the Authority of Legiflators or Philofo- phers, it muft go again ft us. For" thofe Men generally take it for granted, that Vice is pernicious to the Public ; and that Men cannot be kept from Vice but by the Fear of God, and the Senfe of a future State ; whence they are induced to think the Belief of fuch Things neceflary to the well-being of Human Kind. This falfe Notion hath prevailed for many Ages in the World, and done an infinite deal of Mifchief, being in Truth the Caufe of religious Eftablifh meats, and gaining the Protection and Encouragement of Laws and Magiftrates to the Clergy and their Superftiticois. Even fome of the wifefl among the Ancients, who agreed with our Sed: in denying a Providence, and the Im- mortality of the Soul, had neverthelefs the Weak- nefs tp lie under the common Prejudice that Vice was 48 THE MINUTE DIAL, was hurtful to Societies of Men. But England hath If, of late produced great Philofophers who have unde- u v-'J ceived the World, and proved to a Demonftration that private Vices are public Benefits. This Dif- covery was referved to our Times, and our Sect hath the Glory of it. CRL It is poffible fome Men of fine Underftanding might in former Ages have had a Glimpfe of this important Truth : Bat it may be t>refumed they lived in ignorant Times and bigoted Countries, which were not ripe for fuch a Difcovery. LTS. Men of narrow Capacities and fhort Sight, being able to fee no further than one Link in a Chain of Confequences, are fliocked at frnall Evils which attend upon Vice. But thofe who can en- large their View, and look thro* a long Series of Events, may behold Happinefs refulting from Vice, and Good fpringing out of Evil, in a thoufand In- ftances. To prove my Point, I (hall not trouble you with Authorities, or far-fetch'd Arguments, but bring you to plain Matter of Fact. Do but take a View of each particular Vice, and trace it through its Effects and Confequences, and then you will clearly perceive the Advantage it brings to the Public. II. Drunkennefs, for Inftance, is by your fober Moralifts thought a pernicious Vice ; but it is for want of confidering the good Effects that flow from it. For, in the firft Place, it increafes the Malt Tax, a principal Branch of his Majefty's Re- venue, and thereby promotes the Safety, Strength, and Glory of the Nation* Secondly, it employs a great Number of Hands, the Brewer, the Malfter, the Ploughman, the Dealer in Hops, the Smith, the Carpenter, the Braficr, the Joiner, with all other Artificers-neceffary to fupply thofe enumeratedj with Iheir refpective Instruments and Utenfiis. All which PHILOSOPHER. 49 which Advantages are procured from Drunkenneis, DIAL. in the vulgar Way, by ftrong Beer. This Point is II. fo clear it will admit of no Difpute. But while you < -y- * are forced to allow thus much^ I forefee you are ready to object againft Drunkennefs occafioned by Wine and Spirits, as exporting Wealth into foreign Countries. But you do not reflect on the Number of Hands which even this fets on Work at home : The Diftillers, the Vintners, the Merchants, the Sailors, the Shipwrights, with all thole who are employed towards victualling and fitting out Ships^ which, upon a nice .Computation, will be found to include an incredible Variety of Trades and Callings. Then for freighting our Ships, to anfwer thefe foreign Importations, all our Manufactures through* out the Kingdom are employed, the >> pinners, che Weavers, the Dyers, the Wool- Combers, the Car- riers, the Packers : And the fame m^f Is it not fo? LTS. It is. EUPH. And the Reafon that Vice produceth this Effect, is, becaufe it caufeth an extravagant Confumption which is the moft beneficial to the Manufacturers, their Encou- ragement confiding in a quick demand and high price. LTS. True. EUPH. Hence you think a Drunkard moft beneficial to the Brewer and the Vintner, as caufing a quick Confumption of' Li- quor, inafmuch as he drinks more than. other Men. LTS. Without doubt. EUPH. Say, L/icles, who drinks moft, a Tick Man or a healthy ? LTS. A healthy. EUPH. And which is healthieft, a fo- ber Man or a Drunkard ? LTS. A fober Man. EUPH. A fober Man therefore in Health may drink more than a Drunkard when he is fick. LTS. He may. EUPH. What think you, will a Man confume more Meat and Drink in a long Life or a mort one? LTS. In a long. EUPH. A fober healthy Man, therefore, in a long Life may circulate more Money by eating and drinking, than a Glutton or Drunkard in a mort one. LTS. What then ? EUPH. Why then, it mould feem, that he may be more beneficial to the Public, even in this way of eating and drinking. LTS. I mail never own that Temperance is the Way to promote drinking. EUPH. But you will own that Sicknds leflens, and Death puts an end to all drinking. The fame Argument will hold, for ought I can fee, with refpect to all other Vices that impair Meris Health, and fhorten their Lives. And if we admit this, it will not be fo clear a Point, that Vice hath Merit towards the Public. LTS. But admitting that fome Artificers or Traders might be as well encouraged by the fober Men as the vicious 5 what E 4 Ihall THE MINUTE fhall we fay of thofe, who fubfift altogether by Vice and Vanity ? EUPH. If iuch there are, may they not be otherwife employed without Lois to the Public ? Tell me, Lyjtdes^ is there any Thing in the Nature of Vice, as Iuch that renders it a pub- lic Bleffing, or is it only the Confumption it occa- fiuns ? LTS. 1 have already (hewn how it benefits the Nation by the Confumption of its Manufac- tures. EUPH. And you have granted that a long and healthy Life coniumes more than a fhort and fkkly one , and you will not deny that many con- fume more than one. Upon the whole then, com- pute and Jay, which is mod likely to promote the Jnduftry of his Countrymen, a virtuous married Man with a healthy numerous Offspring, and who feeds and clothes the Orphans in his Neighbourhood, or a fafhionable Rake about Town. 1 would rain know whether Money fpent innocently, doth not circulate as well as that fpent upon Vice. And if fo, whether by your own Rule it doth not benefit the Public as much ? LTS. What I have proved, I proved plainly, and there is no need of more Words about it. EUPH. You feem to me, to have proved nothing, unlefs you can make it out that it is impoflible to fpend a Fortune innocently. J fhould think the public Weal of a Nation confifts in the Number and good Condition of its Inhabi- tants ; Have you any thing to object to this ? LTS. I think not. EUPH. To this end which would mod conduce, the employing Men in open Air, and manly Exerciie, or in fedentary Bufinefs within Doors ? LTS. The former, I fuppofe, EUPH. Should it not feem therefore, that Build- ing, Gardening, and Agriculture, would employ I\ en more ufcfully to the Public, than if Tailors, Barbers, Perfumers, Diftillers, and fuch Arts were p.uJtiplied. LTS. All this J grant 5 but it makes again.ft PHILOSOPHER. 57 againft you. For what moves Men to build and DIAL. plant but Vanity, and what is Vanity but Vice ? II. EUPH. But if a Man mould do thofe things for his Convenience or Pleafure, and in proportion to his Fortune, without a foolifh Oftentation or over- rating them beyond their due Value, they would not then be the Effect of Vice ; and how do you know but this may be the Cafe ? CRI. One thing I know, That the readied Way to quicken that lore of Induftry,and employ Carpenters, Mafons, Smiths, and all fuch Trades, would be to put in practice the happy Hint of a celebrated Minute Philofo- pher ; who by profound Thinking has difcovered, That burning the City of London would be no fuch bad Action, as filly prejudiced People might pof- fibly imagine ; inafmuch as it would produce a quick Circulation of Property, transferring it from the Rich to the Poor, and employing a great Num- ber of Artificers of all kinds. This at leaft can- not be denied that it hath opened a new way of Thinking to our Incendiaries, of which the Public hath of late begun to reap the Benefit. EUPff. I cannot fufficiently admire this ingenious Thought. VI. But methinks it would be dangerous to make fuch Notions public. CRI. Dangerous ! to whom ? EUPH. In the firft place, to the Pub- lifher. CRI. That is a Miftake ; for fuch Notions have been publifhed and met with due Applaufe, in this moft wife and happy Age of Free-thinking, Free-fpeaking, Free-writing, and Free-acting. EUPH. How ! may a Man then publifli and prac- tife fuch Things with Impunity ? CRI. To Ipeak the Truth, I am not fo clear as to the practic Part. An unlucky Accident now and then befals an inge- nious Man. The Minute Philofopher Magirus, be- ing defirpus to benefit the Public, by circulating an Eltate 58 THE Mi NUT E DIAL. Eftate pofleiTed by a near Relation, who had not II. the Heart to fpend it, foon convinced himlelf, up- X"v~*v; on thefe Principles, that it would be a very worthy Action to difpatch out of the way fuch a ufelefs Fel- low, to whom he was next Heir. But for this lau- dable Attempt, he had the Misfortune to be hang- ed by an under- bred Judge and Jury. Could any thing be more unjult ? EUPH. Why unjuftv CRL Is it not unjult to punifh Actions, when the Principles from which they directly follow are tole- rated and applauded by the Public ? Can any thing be more inconfiftent, than to condemn in Practice what is approved in Speculation ? Truth is one -and the fame ; it being impoflible a Thing fliould be practically wrong, and fpeculatively right. Thus much is certain, Magirus was perfect Mailer of all this Theory, and argued mod acutely about it with a Friend of mine, a little before he did the Fad for which he died. LTS. The beft on't is, the World every Day grows wifer ; though it muft be owned, the Writers of our Sect have not yet fhaken off all Refpect for Human Laws, what- eyer they may do as to Divine. It feems they venture no further, than to recommend an inward Principle of Vice, operating under an outward Re- flraint of Human Laws. CRL That Writer who confiders Man only as an Inftrument of PafTion, who abfolves him from all Ties of Conference and Religion, and leaves him no Law to refpect or to fear, but the Law of the Land, is to be lure a pub- lic Benefit. You miftake, Eupbranor, if you think the Minute Philofophers idle Thcorifts: They are Men of practical Views. EUPH. As much as I love Liberty, I mould be afraid to live among fuch People : it would be, as Seneca fomewhere exprefieth it, in liber t ate be His ac tyrannis feviorc. LTS. What do you mean by quoting Plato and Seneca ? Can PHILOSOPHER. 59 Can you imagine a Freethinker is to be influenced )] AL< by the Authority of fuch old-fafhioned Writers? jj EUPH. You, LyJideSi and your Friend have quot- v_ v- ed to me ingenious Moderns, profound fine Gen- tlemen, with new Names of Authors in the Minute Philofophy, to whofe Merits I am a perfect Stran- ger. Suffer me in my turn to cite fuch Authorities as I know, and have palTed for many Ages upon the World. VII. But, Authority apart, what do you fay to Experience ? My Oblervation can reach as far as a private Family : and fome wife Men have thought, a Family may be confidered as a fmall Kingdom, or a Kingdom as a great Family. Do you admit this to be true ? LTS. If I fay, Tes, you'll make an Inference ; and if I fay, No, you'll demand a Rea- fon. The beft way is to fay nothing at all. There is, I fee, no end of anfwering. EUPH. If you give up the Point you undertook to prove, there is an end at once : But if you hope to convince me, you muft anfwer my Qaettions, and allow me the Liberty to argue and infer. LTS. Well, fuppofe I admit that a Kingdom may be confidered as a great Family. EUPH. I mail ask you then, whether ever you knew private Families thrive by thofe Vices you think fo beneficial to the Public ? LTS. Suppole I have not. EUPH. Might not a Man therefore, by a Parity of Reafon, fulpect their be- ing of that Benefit to the Public ? LTS. Fear not, the next Age will thrive and flourifli. EUPH. Pray tell me, Lyficles: Suppofe you faw a Fruit of a new untried Kind : would you recommend it to your own Family to make a full Meal of ? LTS. I would not. EUPH. Why then would you try upon your own Country thefe Maxims which were never admitted in any other ? LTS. The Experi- ment 60 THE MINUTE DIAL, ment muft begin fomewhere; and we ar refolved II. our own Country fliail have the Honour and Ad- i , - ' vantage of it. EUPH. O Lyficles ! hath not Old England fubfifted for many Ages without the help of your Notions? LTS. She has. EUPH. And made fome Figure? LTS. I grant it. EUPH. Why then fhould you make her run the Risk of a new Experiment, when it is certain fhe may do without it ? LTS. But we would make her do better. We would produce a Change in her that never was feen in any Nation. EUPH. Sallujl ob- ferves, that a little before the Downfall of the Roman Greatnefs, Avarice (the Effect of Luxury) had erafed the good old Principles of Probity and Juftice, had produced a Contempt for Religion, and made every thing venal: while Ambition bred Difiimulation, and caufed Men to unite in Clubs and Parties, not from honourable Motives, but narrow and interefted Views. The fame Hiftorian obferves of that ingenious Free-thinker Catiline, that he made it his Bufinefs to infmuate himfelf into the Acquaintance of young Men, whole Minds unim- proved by Years and Experience, were more eafily ieduced. I know not how it happens, but theie Paflages have occurred to my Thoughts more than once during this Converfation. LTS. Sallujl was a fententious Pedant. EUPH. But confult any Hif- torian : look into any Writer. See, for Inftance, what Xencphon and Livy fay of Sparta and jRome, and then tell me, if Vice be not the likelieft Way to ruin and in (lave a People. LTS. When a Point is clear by its own Evidence, I never think it worth while to confult old Authors about it. CRI. It requires much Thought and delicate Obfervation, to go to the bottom of Things. But one who hath come at Truth with Difficulty, can impart it with Eafe. I will therefore, Eupiranor, explain to you PHILOSOPHER. 6 1 you in three Words (what none of your old Writers DIAL ever dreamed of) the true Caufe or Ruin to thofe 1 1. States. You mud know that Vice and Virtue, be- ing oppofite and contradictory Principles, both working at once in a State, will produce contrary Effects, which inteftine Difcord muft needs tend to the Diffblution and Ruin of the whole. But it is the Defign of our Minute Philolbphers, by making Men wicked upon Principle, a thing unknown to the Ancients, fo to weaken and deftroy the force of Virtue, that its Effects mall not be felt in the Pub- lic. In which cafe Vice being uncontrolled, with- out Let or Impediment of Principle, pure and genuine, without Allay of Virtue, the Nation mud doubtlefs be very flourifhing and triumphant. EUPH. Truly, a noble Scheme ! CRI. And in a fair way to take effect. For our young Profici- cients in the Minute Philofophy, having, by a rare Felicity of Education, no Tincture of Bigotry or Prejudice, do far outgo the old Standers and Pro- feflbrs of the Sect ; who though Men of admirable Parts ; yet, having had the Misfortune to be im- bued in their Childhood with fome religious No- tions, could never after get intirely rid of them ; but (till retain fome fmall Grains of Confcience and Superftition, which are a Check upon the nobleft Genius. In proof of this, I remember that the famous Minute Philofopher, old Demodicus^ came one Day from Converfation upon Bufinefs with 7/- mander^ a young Gentleman of the fame Sect, full of Aftonifhment. I am furprifed, faid he, to fee fo young, and withal fo compleat a Villain, and, fuch was the Force of Prejudice, fpoke of TI-? mander with Abhorrence, not considering that he was only the more egregious and profound Philo* fopher of the two. VIII, THE MINUTE VIII. EUPH. Though much may be hoped from the unprejudiced Education of young Gentle- men, yet it feems we are not to expect a fettled and intire Happinefs, before Vice reigns pure and unmixed : Till then, much is to be feared from the dangerous Struggle between Vice and Virtue, which may perchance overturn and diflblve this Government, as it hath done others. LTS. No matter for that, if a better comes in its Place. We have cleared the Land of all Prejudices towards Government or Conftitution, and made them fly like other Phantafms before the Light of Reafon and good Senfe. Men who think deeply cannot fee any Reafon, why Power mould not change Hands as well as Property : Or, why the Fafhion of a Go- vernment mould not be changed as eafily as that of a Garment. The perpetual circulating and revolv- ing of Wealth and Power, no matter through what or whofe Hands, is that which keeps up Life and Spirit in a State. Thofe who are even (lightly read in our Philofophy, know that of all Prejudices the fillieft is an Attachment to Forms. CRI. To fay no more upon fo clear a Point, the overturning a Government may be juftified upon the fame Prin- ciples as the burning a Town, would produce parallel Effects, and equally contribute to the public Good. In both Cales, the natural Springs of Action are forcibly exerted : And in this general Induftry what one lofes another gets, a quick Circu- lation of Wealth and Power making the Sum Total to flourifh. EUPH. And do the Minute Philo- fophers publifh thefe Things to the World ? LTS. It muft be confeflfed our Writers proceed in Poli- tics with greater Caution than they think necefiary with regard to Religion. CRI. But thofe things plainly follow from their Principjes, and are to be admitted PHILOSOPHER. 63 admitted for the genuine Doclrine of the Seel, ex- DIAL. prefled perhaps with more Freedom and Perfpicuity, II. than might be thought prudent by chofe who would manage the Public, or not offend weak Brethren. EUPH. And pray, is there not need of Caution, a Rebel or Incendiary being Characters that many Men have a Prejudice againtt ? LTS. Weak People of all Ranks have a world of abfurd Prejudices. EUPH. But the better Sort, fuch as Statefmen and Legiflators ; do you think they have not the fame Indilpofition towards admitting your Principles? LTS. Perhaps they may ; but the Reafon is plain. CRI. This puts me in mind of that ingenious Phi- lofopher, the Gamefter Glaucus^ who ufed to fay, that Statefmen and Lawgivers may keep a Stir about right and wrong, juft and unjuft, but that, in truth, Property of every Kind had fo often paffed from the right Owners by Fraud and Violence, that it was now to be confidered as lying on the Common, and with equal Right belonged to every one that could feize it. EUPH. What are we to think then of Laws and Regulations relating to Right and Wrong, Crimes and Duties ? LTS. They ferve to bind weak Minds, and keep the Vulgar in awe : But no fooner doth a true Genius arife, but he breaks his Way to Greatnefs, through ail the Trammels of Duty, Confcience, Religion, Law ; to all which he fheweth himfelf infinitely fuperior. IX. EUPH. You are, it feems, for bringing about a thorough Reformation. LTS. As to what is commonly called the Reformation, I could never fee how, or wherein the World was the better for it. It is much the fame as Popery, with this Dif- ference, that it is the more prude- like and difagree- able Thing of the two. A noted Writer of ours makes it too great a Compliment, when he com- putes 64 THE MINUTI DIAL, putes the Benefit of Hooped- Petticoats to be nearly II. equal to that of the Rciormadon. Thorough Re- * -v ' formation is thorough Liberty. Leave Nature at full Freedom to work her own Way, and all will be well. This is what we aim at, and nothing fhorc of this can come up to our Principles. CH/0, who is a zealous Proteftanr, hearing thefe Words, could not refrain. The worft Effecl: of the Reformation, faid he, was the refcuing wicked Men from a Dark- nefs which kept them in awe. This, as it hath proved, was holding out Light to Robbers and Murderers. Light in itfelf is good, and the fame Light which mews a Man the Folly of Superftition, might fhew him the Truth of Religion, and the Madnefs of Atheifm. But to make ufe of Light, only to fee the Evils on one Side, and never to lee but to run blindly upon the worfe Extreme -, this is to make the beft of Things produce Evil, in the fame Senfe that you prove the worft of Things to produce Good, to wit, accidentally or indirectly : And by the fame Method of arguing, you may prove that even Difeafes are ufeful : But whatever Benefit feems to accrue to the Public, either from Difeafe of Mind or Body, is not their genine Off- fpring, and may be obtained without them. Z/y- ficles was a little difconcerted by the affirmative Air of Crito , but after a fhort Paufe replied briskly, That to contemplate the public Good was not every one*s Talent. True, laid Euphranor, I queftion whether every one can frame a Notion of the public Good, much lefs judge of the Means to pro- mote it. X. But you, Lyficles^ who are mafter of thra Subject, will be pleafed to inform me whether the public Good of a Nation doth not imply the par- ticular Good of its Individuals? LTS. It doth. MUPff. PHILOSOPHER. 65 EUPH. And doth not the Good or Happinefs of DIAL. a Man confift, in having both Soul and Body II. found and in good Condition, enjoying thofe Things which their refpective Natures require, and free from thofe Things which are odious or hurtful to them. LTS. I do not deny all this to be true. EUPH. Now it would feem worth while to con- fider, whether the regular decent Life of a virtu- ous Man may not as much conduce to this End, as the mad Sallies of Intemperance and Debauchery. LTS. I will acknowledge that a Nation may merely fubfift, or be kept alive, but it is impoffible it fhould flourim without the Aid of Vice. To pro- duce a quick Circulation of Traffic and Wealth in a State, there muft be exorbitant and irregular Mo- tions in the Appetites and Paffions. EUPH. The more People a Nation contains, and the happier thofe People are, the more that Nation may be faid to flourim. I think we are agreed in this Point. LTS. We are. EUPH. You allow then that Riches are not an ultimate End, but mould only be con- fidered as the Means to procure Happinefs. LTS. I do. EUPH. It feems, that Means cannot be of ufe without our knowing the End, and how to apply them to it. LTS. It feems fo. EUPH. Will it not follow, that in order to make a Nation flourim, it is not fufficient to make it wealthy, without knowing the true End and Happinefs of Mankind, and how to apply Wealth towards at- taining that End ? In Proportion as thefe Points are known and pradlifed, I think the Nation fliould be likely to flourim. But for a People, who neither know nor pracftife them, to gain Riches, feems to me the fame Advantage that it would be for a fick Man to come at Plenty of Meat and Drink, which he could not ufe but to his Hurt. LTS. This is mere Sophiftry : It is arguing without perfuading. F Look. THE MINUTE Look into common Life : Examine the Purfuits of Men : Have a due Refped for the Confent of the World , and you will foon be convinced, that Riches alone are fufficient to make a Nation flourifh- ing and happy. Give them Riches and they will make themfelves happy, without that political In- vention, that Trick of Statefmen and Philolbphers, called Virtue. XI. EUPH. Virtue then, in your Account, is a Trick of Statefmen. LTS. It is. EUPH. Why then do your fagacious Sec! betray and divulge that Trick or Secret State, which wile Men have judged neceffary for the good Government of the World ? Ly fides hefitating, Crito made anfwer, That he preiumed it was becaufe their Sect, being wifer than all other wife Men, difdained to fee the W'orld governed by wrong Maxims, and would fet all Things on a right Bottom. EUPH. Thus much is certain : If we look into all Inftitutions of Government, and the political Writings of fuch as have heretofore pafied for wife Men, we fhall find a great Regard for Virtue. LTS. You mall find a ftrong Tincture of Prejudice. Bur, as I laid before, confult the Multitude if you would find Nature and Truth. EUPH. But among Country Gentlemen, and Farmers, and the better Sort of Traddmen, is not Virtue a reputable Thing ? LTS. You pick up Authorities among Men of low Life and vile Edu- cation. EUPH. Perhaps we ought to pay a decent Refpedt to the Authority of Minute Philofophers. LTS. And I would fain know whole Authority mould be more c'onfidered, than that of thole Gentlemen who are alone above Prejudice, and think for themfelves. EUPH. How doth it ap- pear that you are the only unprejudiced Part of Mankind ? May not a Minute Philolbpher, as well as PHILOSOPHER. 67 as another Man, be prejudiced in Favour of the DIAL. Leaders of his Sect ? May not an atheiftical Educa- JI. tion prejudice to wards Atheifm ? What mould hinder v- v - a Man's being prejudiced againrt Religion, as well as for it ? Or can you aflign any Reafon why an Attachment to Pieafure, Intereft, Vice or Vanity, may not be fuppofed to prejudice Men againfl Virtue? LTS. This is pleafant. What! Suppofe thofe very Men influenced by Prejudice, who are always difputing againft it, whofe conftant Aim it is to detect and demolifh Prejudices of all Kinds ! Except their own, replied Crito, for you muft pardon me, if I cannot help thinking they have fome fmall Prejudice, though not in Favour of Virtue. XII. I obferve, Lyficles, that you allowed to Euphranor, the greater Number of happy People are in a State, the more that State may be faid to flourim : It follows therefore, That fuch Methods as multiply Inhabitants are good, and fuch as di- minifh them are bad for the Public. And one would think no Body need be told, that the Strength of a State confifts more in the Number and Sort of People, than in any Thing elfe. But in Proportion as Vice and Luxury, thofe public Bleffings encou- raged by this Minute Philofophy, prevail among us, fewer are difpoied to marry, too many being divert- ed by Pieafure, difabled by Difeafe, or frightned by Expence. Nor doth Vice only thin a Nation, but alfo debafeth it by a puny degenerate Race. I might add, That it is ruinous to our Manufactures; both as it makes Labour dear, and thereby enables our more frugal Neighbours to underfeil us : and alfo as it diverts the lower Sort of People from honed Callings to wicked Projects. If thefe and fuch Con fidcrai ions were taken into the Account, I F 2 believe 68 THE MINUTE DIAL, believe it would be evident to any Man in his II. Senfes, that the imaginary Benefits of Vice bear v ~ v ~ ; no Proportion to the folid real Woes that attend it. LyfedeS) upon this, (hook his Head, and fmiled at CritOy without vouchfafing any other Anfwer. After which, addrefling himfelf to Eupbranor> There cannot, faid he, be a ftronger Inftance of Prejudice, than that a Man mould at this Time of Day pre- ferve a Reverence for that Idol, Virtue, a Thing fo effectually expofed and exploded by the molt knowing Men of the Age, who have mewn, that Man is a meer Engine, play'd upon and driven about by fenfible objects : and that moral Virtue is only a Name, a Notion, a Chimaera, an Enthu- fiafm, or at bed a Famion, uncertain and change- able, like all other Fafbions *. EUPH. What do you think, Ly/tcks, of Health ? Doth it depend on Fancy and Caprice, or is it fomething real in the bodily Compofition of a Man ? LTS. Health is fomething real, which refults from the right Con- ftitution and Temperature of the Organs, and the Fluids circulating through them. EUPH. This you fay is Health of Body. LTS. It is. EUPH. And may we not fuppofe an healthy Conftitution of Soul, when the Notions are right, the Judgments true, the Will regular, the Paffions and Appetites directed to their proper Objects, and confined with- in due Bounds? This in regard to the Soul, feems what Health is to the Body. And the Man whofe Mind is fo conftituted, is he not properly called virtuous? And to produce this healthy Difpofition in the Minds of his Countrymen, fhould not every good Man employ his Endeavours? If thefe things have any Appearance of Truth, as to me they * In Morals there is no greater Certainty than in FaJ/Acns. Fable of the Bees, Part the Firil, p. 379. feem PHILOSOPHER. 69 feem to have, it will not then be fo clear a Point, DIAL. that Virtue is a mere Whim or Fafhion, as you are II. pleafed to reprefent it : I muft own fomething un- ' v- ' expectedly, after what had been difcouried in laft Evening's Conference, which if you would call to mind, it might perhaps five both of us feme Trouble. LTS. Would you know the Truth, Eupbranor ? I muft own I have quite forgot all your Difcourfe about Virtue, Duty, and all fuch Points, which, being of an airy notional Nature, are apt to vanifh, and leave no Trace on a Mind accuftomed only to receive Imprefiion from Re- alities. XIII. Having heard thefe Words, Euphranor looked at Crito and me, and faid fmiling, I have miftaken my Part : it was mine to learn, and his to inftruct. Then addreffing himfelf to Lyficles^ Deal faithfully, faid he, and let me know whether the public Benefit of Vice be in truth that which makes you plead for it ? LTS. I love to fpeak frankly what I think. Know then, that private Interelt is the fir ft and principal Consideration with Philofophers of our Sect. Now of all Interefts, Pleafure is that which hath the ftrongeft Charms, and noPleafures like thofe which are heightened and enlivened by Licence. Herein confifts the peculiar Excellency of our Principles, that -they mew People how to ferve their Country by diverting the mfelves, caufing the two Streams of public Spirit and Self- v love to unite and run in the fame Channel. I have told you already, that I admit a Nation might fub- fift by the Rules of Virtue. But give me leave to fay, it will barely fubfift in a dull, joylefs, infipid State ; whereas the fprightly Exceffes of Vice in- fpire Men with Joy. And where Particulars re- joice, the Public, which is made up of Particulars, F 3 mult yo TH E MINUTE DrAL. muft do fo too : that is, the Public muft be happy. II. This I take to be an irrefragable Argument. But * -v" a -' to give you its full Force, and make it as plain as poffible, I will trace Things from their Original. Happinefs is the End to which created Beings na- turally tend, but we find that all Animals, whether Men or Brutes, do naturally and principally purfue real Pleafure of Senfe ; which is therefore to be thought their fupreme Good, their true End and Happinefs. It is for this Men live ; and whoever underftands Life muft allow that Man to enjoy the Top and Flower of ir, who hath a quick Senfe of Pleafure, and withal Spirit, Skill, and Fortune, fufficient to gratify every Appetite, and every Tafte. Niggards and Fools will envy or traduce fuch a one, becaufe they cannot equal him. Hence, all that fober Trifling, in Difparagement of what every one would be mafter of if he could, a full Freedom and unlimited Scope of Pleafure. EUPH. Let me fee whether I understand you. Pleafure of Senfe, you fay, is the chief Pleafure, LTS. I do. EUPH. And this would be crampt and diminifhed by Virtue. LTS. It would. EUPH. Tell me, Ly/icles, is Pleafure then at the height when the Ap- petites are fatisfied ? LTS. There is then only an Indolence, the lively Senfe of PJeafure being paft. EUPH. It fhould Jeem therefore, that the Appe- tites muft be always craving to preferve Pleafure alive. LTS. That is our Senfe of the Matter. EUPH. The Gm&Philofopher therefore was in the right, who confidered the Body of a Man of Pleafure as a leaky VefieJ, always filling, and never full. LTS. You may divert yourfelf with Alle- gories, if you pleafe. But all the while ours is laterally the true Tafte of Nature. Look through- out the Univerfe, and you fhall find Birds and Fifties, Beafts and Infecls, all kinds of Animals with PHILOSOPHER. 71 with which the Creation fwarms, conftantly engaged DIAL. by Inftinct in the Purfuic of fenfible Pleafure. And II. fhall Man alone be the grave Fool who thwarts, >x-v^*^ and crofies, and fubdues his Appetites, while his Fellow-creatures do all moil joyfully and freely in- dulge them ? EUPH. How! Lyftcles ! I thought that being governed by the Senles, Appetites and Pafiions, was the moft grievous Slavery : and that the proper Bufinefs of Free-thinkers, or Philoib- phers, had been to fct Men free from the Power of Ambition, Avarice, and Senfuality. LXS. You jniftake the Point. We make Men relifh the World, attentive to their Interefts, lively and luxu- rious in their Pleafures, without Fear or Rcfcraint either from God or Man. We defpiie thofe preach- ing Writers, who ufed to difturb or cramp the Pleafures and Amufements of human Life. We hold that a wife Man who meddles with Bufinefs, doth it altogether for his Intered, and refers his Intereft to his Pleafure. With us it is a Maxim, That a Man mould feize the Moments as they fly. Without Love, and Wine, and Play, and late Hours, we hold Life not to be worth living. I grant, indeed, that there is fomething grofs and ill- bred in the Vices of mean Men, which the genteel Phi- lofopher abhors. CRI. But to cheat, whore, be- tray, get drunk, do all thefe things decently, this is true Wifdom and Elegance of Tafte. XIV. EUPH. To me, who have been us'd to another .way of thinking, this new Philofophy feems difficult to digeft. I muft therefore beg leave to examine its Principles, with the fame Free- dom that yqu do thofe of other Sc6ls. LTS. Agreed. EUPH. You fay, if I miftake not, that a wife Man purfues only his private Intereft, and that this confifts in ienfual Pleafure, for proof F" 4 whereof THE MINUTE whereof you appeal to Nature. Is not this what you advance ? LTS. It is. EUPH. You conclude therefore, that as other Animals are guided by na- tural Inftinct, Man too ought to follow the Dic- tates of Senfe and Appetite. LTS. I do. EUPH. But in this, do you not argue as if Man had only Senfe and Appetite for his Guides, on which Sup- pofition there might be Truth in what you fay ? But what if he hath Intellect, Reafon, a higher Inftinct, and a nobler Life? If this be the Cafe, and you being Man, live like a Brute, is it not the Way to be defrauded of your true Happinefs ? to be mor- tified and difappointed ? Confider moft forts of Brutes : you fhall perhaps find them have a greater Share of fenfual Happinefs than Man. LTS. To our Sorrow we do. This hath madefeveral Gentle- men of our Sect envy Brutes, and lament the Lot of human Kind. CRI. It was a Confideration of this fort, which infpired Erotylus with the laudable Ambition of wifhing himfelf a Snail, upon hear- ing of certain Particularities difcovered in that Ani- mal by a modern Virtuofo. EUPH. Tell me, Lzfides> if you had an inexhauftible Fund of Gold and Silver, mould you envy another for having a little more Copper than you ? LTS. I mould not. EUPH. Are not Reafon, Imagination, and Senfe, Faculties differing in Kind, and in Rank higher one than another. LTS. I do not deny it. EUPH. Their Afts therefore differ in Kind. LTS. They do. EUPH. Confequently the Plcafures perfective of thofe Acts are allo different. LTS. They are. EUPH. You admit therefore three forts of Plealure : Pleafure of Reafon, Pleafure of Imagination, and Pleafure of Senfe. LTS. I do. EUPH. And, as it is reafonable to think, the Operation of the higheft and nobkft Faculty to be attended with the highcft Pleafure, may we not fuppofe the two former PHILOSOPHER. 73 Former to be as Gold or Silver, and the latter only DIAL as Copper? Whence it fhould feem to follow, that II. Man need not envy or imitate a Brute. LTS. And neverthelefs there are very ingenious Men who do. And furely every one may be allowed to know what he wants, and wherein his true Happinefs confifts. EUPH. Is it not plain that different Animals have different Pleafures ? Take a Hog from his Ditch or Dunghill, lay him on a rich Bed, treat him with Sweetmeats, and Mufic, and Perfumes. All thefe things will be no Entertainment to him. Do not a Bird, a Bead, a Filh, amufe themfelves in various manners, infomuch that what is pleafing to one may be Death to another ? Is it ever feen that one of thefe Animals quits its own Element or Way of living, to adopt that of another ? And fhall Man quit his own Nature to imitate a Brute ? LTS. But Senfe is not only natural to Brutts : is it not alfo natural to Man ? EUPH. It is, but with this Dif- ference : it maketh the Whole of a Brute's, but is the lowed Part or Faculty of a Human Soul. I he Nature of any Thing is peculiarly that which doth diftinguim it from other Things, not what it hath in common with them. Do you allow this to be true? LTS. I do. EU: J H. And is not Reafon that which makes the principal Difference between Man and other Animals ? LTS. It is. EUPtf. Reafon therefore being the principal part of our Nature, whatever is molt reaionable fhould fcem moft natural to Man. Muft we not therefore think rational Pleafures more agre<-ab!e to Human Kind, than thofe ot Senfe ? Mn and Btaft having different Natures, feem to have different Faculties, different Enjoyments, and different ions of Happinefs. You can eafily conceive, that the fort of Life which makes the Happinefs of a Mole or a Bat, would be a very wretched one for an Eagle. And may you . not THE MINUTE not as well conceive that the H.ippinefs of a Brute can never conftitute the true Happinefs of a Man ? A Bead without Reflexion or Remorfe, without Forefight or Appetite of Immortality, without Notion of Vice or Virtue, or Order, or Reafon, or Knowledge ! What Motives, what Grounds can there be for bringing down Man, in whom are all thefe Things, to a Level with fuch a Creature ? What Merit, what Ambition in the Minute Phi- Jofopher to make fuch an Animal a Guide or Rule for Human Life ? XV. L TS. It is ftrange, Euphranor, that one who admits Freedom of Thought as you do, mould yet be fuch a Slave to Prejudice. You ftill talk of Order and Virtue, as of real things, as if our Phi- Jofophers had never demonftrated, that they have no Foundation in Nature, and are only the Effedts of Education. I know, faid Crito> how the Minute Philofophers are accuftomed to demonftrate this Point. They confider the animal Nature of Man, or Man fo far forth as he is Animal : and it muft be owned that confidered in that Light, he hath no Senfe of Duty, no Notion of Virtue. He there- fore, who fhould look for Virtue among mere Ani- mals, or Human Kind as fuch, would look in the wrong Place. But that Philofopher, who is atten- tive only to the Animal Part of his Being, and raifeth his Theories from the very Dregs of our Species, may probably upon fecond Thoughts find himfelf miftaken. Look you, Grito, faid Lyficks^ my Argument is with Euphranor, to whom ad- drefling his Difcourfe ; 1 obferve, faid he, that you Hand much upon the Dignity of Human Nature. This Thing of Dignity is an old worn-out Notion, which depends on other Notions, old and ftale and worn-out, fuch as an immaterial Spirit, and a Ray derived PHILOSOPHER, derived from the Divinity. But in thefe Days Men of Senfe make a Jeft of all this Grandeur and Dig- II nity : and many there are would gladly exchange their Share of it for the Repofe, and Freedom, and Senfuality of a Brute. Bat Comparifons are odious : waving therefore all Inquiry concerning the refpec- tive Excellencies of Man and Beaft, and whether it is beneath a Man to follow or imitate Brute Ani- mals, in judging of the chief Good and Conduct of Life and Manners, I fhall be content to appeal to the Authority of Men themfelves, for the Truth of my Notions. Do but look abroad into the World, and ask the common run of Men, whether Pleafure of Senfe be not the only true, folid, fub- ftantial Good pf their Kind ? EUPIL But might not the fame vulgar fort of Men prefer a Piece of Sign-poft Painting to one of Raphael's^ or a Grub' jlreet Ballad to an Ode of Horace? Is there not a real Difference between good snd bad Writing ? LTS. There is. EUPH. And yet you will allow- there muft be a Maturity and Improvement of Un- derftanding to diicern this Difference, which dotli not make it therefore left real. LTS. I will. EUPH. In the fame manner what fhould hinder, but there may be in Nature a true Difference between Vice and Virtue, although it require fome Degree of Reflexion and Judgment to obferve it ? In order to know whether a thing be agreeable to the rational Nature of Man, it feems one fliouid rather obferve and confult thofe who have moft employ 'cl or im- proved their Reafon. LTS. Well, I fhall not infift on confuking the common Herd of Mankind. From the ignorant and grofs Vulgar, I might myfelf appeal in many Cafes to Men of Rank and Fafhion. EUPH. They are a fort of Men I have not the Honour to know much of by my own Ob- fervation. But I remember a Remark of Ariftotle, who 76 TH E MINUTE DIAL, who was himfelf a Courtier, and knew them well. II. Virtue, faith he, * and good Senfe are not the Property of high Birth or a great Eftate. Nor if they who pofiefs thefe Advantages, wanting a Tafte for rational Pleafures, betake themfelves to thofe of Senfe ; ought we therefore to efteem them eligible, any more than we fhould the Toys and Paftimes of Children, becaufe they feem fo to them ?'. And indeed one may be allowed to queftion, whether the trueft Eftimate of Things was to be expected from a Mind intoxicated with Luxury, and dazzled with the Splendor of high living. Gun ftupet infanis actes fulgoribus. & cum dcclinis falfis animus meliora recufat. HOR. Crito upon this obferved, that he knew an Englijh Nobleman, who in the Prime of Life profefieth a liberal Art, and is the firft Man of his Profeflion in the World : and that he was very fure, he had more Pleafure from the Exercife of that elegant Art, than from any fenfual Enjoyment within the Power of one of the largeft Fortunes, and moft bountiful Spirits in Great-Britain. XVI. LTS. But why need we have Recourfe to the Judgment of other Men in fo plain a Cafe ? I appeal to your own Breaft : confult that, and then fay if fenfual Pleafure be not the chief Good of Man. EUPH. I, for my part, have often thought thofe Pleafures which are higheft in the Efteem of Scnfualifts fo far from being the chiefeft Good, that it feemed doubtful upon the whole, whether they were any Good at all, any more than the mere * Ethic, ad Nicom. 1. 10. c. 6. Removal PHILOSOPHER. 77 Removal of Pain. Are not our Wants and Appe- DIAL* tites uneafy ? LTS. They are. EUPH. Doth not II. fenfual Pleafure confift in fatisfying them ? LTS. It doth. EUPH. But the Cravings are tedious, the Satisfaction momentary. Is it not fo? LTS. It is, but what then ? EUPH. Why then it fhould feem that fenfual Pleafure is but a fhort Deliverance from Jong Pain. A long Avenue of Uneafmefs leads to a Point of Pleafure, which ends in Difguft or Remorfe. CRL And he who purfues this ignis fatuus imagines himfelf a Philofopher and Free- thinker. LTS. Pedants are governed by Words and Notions, while the wifer Men of Pleafure fol- low Fad, Nature, and Senfe. CRL But what if notional Pleafures fhould in fact prove the moft real and lafting ? Pure Pleafures of Reafon and Ima- gination neither hurt the Health, nor wafte the Fortune, nor gall the Confcience. By them the Mind is long entertained without loathing or fatiety. On the other hand a Notion, (which with you it feems pafifeth for nothing) often embitters the moft lively fenfual Pleafures, which at bottom will be found alfo to depend upon Notion more than perhaps you imagine : it being a vulgar Remark, that thofe things are more enjoyed by Hope and Foretafte of the Soul, than by PofTeflion. Thus much is yield- ed, that actual Enjoyment is very fhort, and the Alternative of Appetite and Difguft long as well as uneafy. So that, upon the whole, it fhould feem thofe Gentlemen, who are called Men of Pleafure from their eager Purfuit of it, do in reality with great Expence of Fortune, Eafe, and Health pur- chafe Pain. LTS. You may fpin out plaufible Arguments, but will after all find it a difficult Matter to convince me, that fo many ingenious Men fhould not be able to diftinguifh between Things fo directly oppofne as Pain and Pleafure. Hew 78 THEMINUTE DIAL. How is it poffible to account for this ? CRL I be- ll, lieve a Reafon may be affigned for ir, but to Men of Pleafure no Truth is fo palatable as a Fable. Jove once upon a Time having ordered, that Pleafure and Pain fliould be mixed in equal Pro- portions in every Dofe of Human Life, upon a Complaint that fome Men endeavoured to feparate what he had joined, and taking more than their Share of the Sweet, would leave all the Sour for others, commanded Mercury to put a Stop to this Evil, by fixing on each Delinquent a Pair of invi- fible Spectacles, which fhould change the Appear- ance of Things, making Pain look like Pleafure, and Pleafnre like Pain, Labour like Recreation, and Recreation like Labour. From that Time the Men of Pleafure are eternally miftaking and repent- ing. LTS. If your Doctrine takes place I would fain know what can be the Advantage of a greac Fortune, which all Mankind fo eagerly purfue ? CRT. It is a common Saying with Eucrates, That a Great Fortune is an edged Tool, which a hundred may come #/, for one who knows how to ufe it, fo much eafier is the Art of Getting than that of Spending. What its Advantage is I will not fay, but I will venture to declare what it is not. I am fure that where Abundance excludes Wanr, and Enjoyment prevents Appetite, there is not the quickeft Senfe of thofe Pleafures we have been fpeak- ing of: in which the Footman hath often a greater Share than his Lord, who cannot enlarge his Sto- mach in proportion to his Eftate. XVII. Reafonable and well-educated Men of all Ranks have, I believe, pretty much the fame Amufements, notwithftanding the Difference of their Fortunes : Bat thofe who are particularly dif- tinguifhcd, as Men of Pleafure, feem to pofiefs it in PHILOSOPHER. 79 in a very fmall Degree. EUPH. I have heard DIAL. that among Perfons of that Character, a Game of II. Cards is efteemed a chief Diverfion. LTS. With- Vx-v^ out Cards there could be no living for People of Famion. It is the molt delightful way of pafling an Evening when Gentlemen and Ladies are got together, who would otherwife be at a lofs what to fay or do with themfelves. But a Pack of Cards is Ib engaging, that it doth not only employ them when they are met, but ferves to draw them to- gether. Quadrille gives them Pleafure in profpect during the dull Hours of the Day, they reflect on it with Delight, and it furnifhes Difcourfe when it is over. CRL One would be apt to fufpect thofe People of Condition pafs their Time but heavily, and are but little the better for their Fortunes, whofe chief Amufement is a Thing in the Power of every Footman, who is as well qualified to receive Pleafure from Cards as a Peer. I can eafily con- ceive that when People of a certain Turn are got together, they mould prefer doing any thing to the Ennui of their own Converfation : but it is not eafy to to conceive that there is any great Pleafure in this. "What a Card-table can afford, requires neither Parts nor Fortune to judge of. LTS. Play is a fe- rious Amufement, that comes to the relief of a Man of' Pleafure, after the more lively and affecting Enjoyments of Senfe. It kills Time beyond any Thing; and is a rnofl admirable Anodyne to divert or prevent Thought, which might otherwife prey upon the Mind. CRL I readily comprehend, that no Man upon Earth ought to prize Anodynes for the Spleen, more than a Man of Fafhion and Pleafure. An ancient Sage fpeaking of one of that Character, faith he is made wretched by Difappointments and Appetites, XvTremu aTreruy^av&v v,yj, iTtfltijCiWV. And if this was true of the Greeks who lived in the Sun, and 8o THE MINUTE DIAL, and had fo much Spirit, I am apt to think it is II. ftill more fo of our modern Engltfb. Something L v -^ there is in our Climate and Complexion, that makes Idlenefs no where fo much its own Punifhment as in England, where an uneducated fine Gentleman pays for his momentary Pleafures, with long and cruel Intervals of Spleen ; for relief of which he is driven into fenfual Excefifcs, that produce a pro- portionable Depreflion of Spirits, which as it cre- ateth a greater Want of Pleafures, fo it leflens the Ability to enjoy them. There is a Caft of Thought in the Complexion of an Englifhman^ which renders him the moft unfuccefsful Rake in the World. He is, (as Ariftotle expreflfeth it) at variance with him- fclf. He is neither Brute enough to enjoy his Ap- petites, nor Man enough to govern them. He knows and feels that what he purfucs is not his true Good 5 his Reflexion ferving only to (hew him that Mifery which his habitual Sloth and Indolence will not fuffer him to remedy. At length being grown odious to himfelf, and abhorring his own Company, he runs into every idle Afiembly, not from the Hopes of Pleafure, but merely to refpite the Pain of his own Mind. Liftlefs and uneafy at the prefent, he hath no Delight in reflecting on what is pad, or in the Profpect of any thing to come. This Man of Pleafure, when after a wretched Scene of Vanity and Woe his animal Nature is worn to the Stumps, wifhes and dreads Death by turns, and is fick of living, without having ever tried or known the true Life of Man. EUPH. It is well this fort of Life, which is of fo little Benefit to the Owner, conduceth fo much to that of the Public. But pray tell me, do thefe Gentlemen fet up for Minute Philofophers ? CRT. That Sedl you muft know, contains two forts ot Philofophers, the Wet and the Dry. Thofe I have been defcribing are of the PHILOSOPHER. 8r the former Kind. They differ rather in Pra&ice DIAL, than in Theory. As an older, graver, or duller v II. Man, from one that is younger, and more capable < v* ' or fond of Pleafure. The dry Philofopher paflfeth his Time but drily. He has the Honour of Pimp- ing for the Vices of more fprightly Men, who in return offer fome fmall Incenfe to his Vanity. Upon this Encouragement, and to make his own Mind eafy when it is paft being pleafed, he employs him- felf in justifying thofe Exceffes he cannot partake in. But to return to your Queftion, thofe miferable Folk are mighty Men for the Minute Philofophy. EUPH. What hinders them then from putting an end to their Lives ? CRL Their not being per- fuaded of the Truth of what they profefs. Some indeed, in a Fit of Defpair, do now and then lay violent hands on themfelves. And as the Minute Philofophy prevails, we daily fee more Examples of Suicide. But they bear no proportion to thofe who would put an end to their Lives if they durft. My Friend Clinias^ who had been one of them, and a Philofopher of rank, let me into the fecret Hiftory of their Doubts and Fears, and irrefolute Relblutions of making away with themfelves ; which laft he aflures me is a frequent Topic with Men of Pleafure, when they have drunk themfelves into a little Spirit. It was by virtue of this me- chanical Valour the renowned Philofopher Her- tnocrates (hot himfelf through the Head. The fame thing hath fince been practifed by feveral others, to the great Relief of their Friends. Splenetic, worried, and frightened out of their Wits, they run upon their Doom with the fame Courage as a Bird runs into the Mouth of a Rattle Snake ; not be- caufe they are bold to die, but becaufe they are afraid to live. Clinias endeavoured to fortify his Irreligion by the Difcourfe and Opinion of other G Minute THE MINUTE Minute Philofophers, who were mutually ftrength- ened in their own Unbelief by his. After this manner, Authority working in a Circle, they en- deavoured to atheize one another. But though he pretended, even to a Demonftration, againft the Being of a God, yet he could not inwardly conquer his own Belief. He fell fick, and acknowledged this Truth ; is now a fober Man and a Chriftian ; owns he was never fo happy as fince he became fuch, nor fo wretched as while he was a Minute Philofoper. And he who has tried both Conditions, may be allowed a proper Judge of both. LTS. Truly, a fine Account of the brighteft and braved Men of the Age ! CRI. Bright and Brave are fine At- tributes. But our Curate is of opinion, that all your Free-thinking Rakes are either Fools or Cowards. Thus he argues ; If fuch a Man doth not fee his true Intereft he wants Senfe; if he doth, but dare not purfue it, he wants Courage. In this manner, from the Defect of Senfe and Courage, he deduc- eth that whole Species of Men, who are fo apt to value themfelves upon both thofe Qualities. LTS. As for their Courage, they are at all times ready to give Proof of it : and for their Underfland- ing, thanks to Nature, it is of a fize not to be meafured by Country Parfons. XVIII. EUPH. But Socrates, who was no Country Parfon, fufpected your Men of Pleafure were fuch through Ignorance. LTS. Ignorance ! of what ? EUPH. Of the Art of computing. It was his Opinion that Rakes cannot reckon *. And that for want of this Skill they make wrong Judgments about Pleafure, on the right Choice of which their Happinefs depends, LTS. I do not * Plato in Protag. underftand PmtoSOPHER. 83 underftand you. EUPH. Do you grant that Senfe DIAL, perceiveth only fenfible things ? LTS. I do. II. EUPH, Senfe peceiveth Only things prefent.. LTS. This too 1 grant. EUPH. Future PJeafures, there- fore, and Pleafures of the Undemanding, are not to be judged of by Senfe. LTS. They are not. EUPH. Thofe therefore who judge of Pleafures by Senfe, may find themfelves miftaken at the foot of the Account. f Cum lapidofa cbiragra Contudit articulos veteris ramalia fagi, Turn craffos transij/e dies lucemque paluftrem, Et fibi jam feri vitam ingemuere reliftam. To make a right Computation, fhould you not confider all the Faculties, and all the Kinds of Pleafure, taking into your Account the Future as well as the Prefent, and rating them all according to their true Value ? CRI. The Epicureans them- felves allowed, that Pleafure which procures a great- er Pain, or hinders a greater PJeafure, fhould be regarded as a Pain ; and, that Pain which procures a greater Pleafure, or prevents a greater Pain, is to be accounted a Pleafure. In order therefore to make a true Eftimate of Pleafure, the great Spring of Action, and that from whence the Con- duel of Life takes its Bias, we ought to compute intellectual Pleafures and future Pleafures, as well as prefent and fenfible : We ought to make Allow- ance in the Valuation of each particular PJeafure, for all the Pains and Evils, for all the Difguft, Re- morfe, and Shame that attend it : We ought to regard both Kind and Quantity, the Sincerity,, the Intenfenefs, and the Duration of Pleafures. Let a f- Perfius, Sat. 5. G * Free- 84 THE MINUTE DIAL. Free-thinker but bethink himfelf, hovr little of Hu- ll, man PJeafure confifts in actual Senfation, and how v^V^^ much inProfpect ! Let him then compare the Prof- pect of a virtuous Believer with that of an unbeliev- ing Rake. EUPH. And all thefe Points duly con- fidered, will not Socrates feem to have had. Reafon of his Side, when he thought Ignorance made Rakes, and particularly their being ignorant of what he calls the Science of More and Lefs, Great- er and Smaller, Equality and Comparifon, that is to fay, of the Art of Computing ? LTS. All this Difcourfe feems notional. For real Abilities of every kind, it is well known we have the brighteft Men of the Age among us. But all thofe who know the World do calculate, that what you call a good Chriftian, who hath neither a large Confcience nor unprejudiced Mind, muft be unfit for the Affairs of it. Thus you fee, while you compute yourfelves out of Pleafure, others compute you out of Bufi- nefs. What then are you good for with all your Computation ? EUPH. I have all imaginable Re- fpect for the Abilities of Freethinkers. My only Fear was, their Parts might be too lively for fucli flow Talents as Forecaft and Computation, the Gifts of ordinary Men. XIX. CRT. I cannot make them the fame Com- pliment that Eupbranor does. For though I fhall not pretend to characterize the whole Sect, yet thus much I may truly affirm : That thofe who have fallen in my way have been moftly raw Men of Pleafure, old Sharpers in Bufinefs, or a third fort of lazy Sciolifts, who are neither Men of Bufinefs, nor Men of Speculation, but fet up for Judges or Critics in all kinds, without having made a Progrefs in any. Thefe among Men of the World, pals for profound Theorifts, and among fpeculative Men would PHIL o s OPH ER^ 85 would feem to know the World : a conceited Race, DIAL equally ufelefs to the Affairs and Studies of Man- II. kind ! Such as thefe, for the mod part, feem to be w^v"^- Sectaries of the Minute Philofophy. I will noc deny that now and then you may meet a Man of cafy Manners, that, without thole Faults and Af- fectations, is carried into the Party by the mere Stream of Education, Fafhion, or Company ; all which do in this Age prejudice Men againft Reli- gion, even thole who mechanically rail at Preju- dice. I rnuft not forget that the Minute Philo- fophers have alfo a ftrong Party among the Beaux and fine Ladies ; and, as Affectations out of Cha- racter are often the ftrongeft, there is nothing fo dogmatical and inconvincible as one of thefe fine things, when it fets up for Free-thinking. But, be thefe Profeflbrs of the Sect never fo dogmatical, their Authority muft needs be fmall with Men of Senfe. Who would choofe for his Guide in the Search of Truth, one whofe Thoughts and Time are taken up with Drefs, Vifits, and Diverfions ? Or whofe Education hath been behind a Counter, or in an Office ? Or whofe Speculations have been employed on the Forms of Bufineis, who is only well read in the Ways and Commerce of Mankind, in Stock-jobbing, Purloining, Supplanting, Brib- ing ! Or would any Man in his Senfes give a Fig for Meditations and Bifcoveries made over a Bot- tle ? And yet it is certain, that inftead of Thought, Books, and Study, mod Free-thinkers are the Pro- felytes of a Drinking Club. Their Principles are often fettled, and Decifions on the deepeft Points made, when they are not fit to make a Bargain. LTS. You forget our Writers, Crito. They make a World of Profelytes. CRT. So would worie Writers in fuch a Caufe. Alas! how few read ! and of thefe, how few are able to judge ! How G many THE MINUTE many wim your Notions true ! How many had rather be diverted than inltructed ! How many are convinced by a Title ! I may allow your Reafons to be effectual, without allowing them to be good. Arguments, in themfelves of Imall Weight, have great Effect, when they are recommended by a mif- taken Intereft, when they are pleaded for by Paf- fion, when they are countenanced by the Humour of the Age : and above all, with fome fort of Men, when they are againft Law, Government, and efta- blifhed Opinions : things which, as a wife or good Man would not depart from without clear Evidence, a weak or a bad Man will affect to difparage on the (lighten: Grounds. LTS. And yet the Arguments of our Philofophers alarm. CRT. The Force of their Reafoning is not what alarms : their Con- tempt of Laws and Government is alarming : their Application to the Young and Ignorant is danger- ous. EUPH. But without difputing or difparaging their Talent at Ratiocination, it feems very polfible their Succefs might not be owing to that alone. May it not in fome meafure be afcribed to the De- fects of others, as well as to their own Perfections ? My Friend Eucrate ufed to fay, that the Church would thrive and flourifh beyond all Oppofition, if fome certain Perfons minded Piety more than Politics, Practics than Polemics, Fundamentals than Confectaries, Subftance than Circumftance, Things than Notions, and Notions than Words. LTS. "Whatever may be the Caufe, the Effects are too plain to be denied. And when a confidering Man obferves that our Notions do, in this moft learned and knowing Age, fpread and multiply, in oppo- fnion to eftablifhed Laws, and every Day gain ground againft a Body fo numerous, fo learned, fo well fupported, protected, encouraged for the Service and Defence of Religion : I fay, when a Man obferves and PHILOSOPHER. 87 and confidersall this, he will be apt to afcribe it to DIAL, the force of Truth, and the merits of our Caufe ; II. which, had it been fupported with the Revenues < v - and Eftabli foments of the Church and Univerfuies, you may guefs what a Figure it would make, by the Figure that it makes without them. EUPH. It is much to be pitied, that the learned Profefibrs of yorrSeft do not meet with the Encouragement they deferve. LTS. All in due time. People be- gin to open their Eyes. It is not impofilble thole Revenues that in ignorant Times were applied to a wrong Ufe, may, in a more enlightened Age, be applied to a better. CR1. But why ProfdTors and Encouragement for what needs no teaching ? An Acquaintance of mine has a moft ingenious Foot- man that can neither write nor read, who learned your whole Syftem in half an Hour : He knows when and how to nod, lhake his Head, fmile, and give a Hint as well as the ableft Sceptic, and is in Faft a very Minute Phlofopher. LTS. Pardon me, it takes time to unlearn religious Prejudices, and requires a ftrong Head. CR1. I do not know how it might have been once upon a Time. But in the prefent laudable Education, I know feveral who have been imbued with no religious Notions at all ; and others who have had them fb very flight, that they rubbed off without the leaft Pains. XX. Panope, young and beautiful, under the Care of her Aunt, an Admirer of the Minute Phi- lofophy, was kept from learning the Principles of Religion, that (he might not "be accuftomed to believe without a Reafon, nor aflent to what /he did not comprehend. Panope was not indeed pre- judiced with religious Notions, but got a Notion of Intriguing, and a Notion of Play, which ruin- ed her Reputation by fourteen, and her Fortune G 4 by * 88 THE MINUTE by Four and twenty. I have often reflected on the II. different Fate of two Brothers in my Neighbour- hood. Clean the elder being defigned an accom- plifhed Gentleman, was fent to Town, had the firft part of his Education in a great School : What Religion he learned there was foon unlearned in a certain celebrated Society, which, till we have a better, may pafs for a Nurfery of Minute Philofo- phers. Clean drefied well, could cheat at Cards, had a nice Palate, underflood the Myftery of the Die, was a mighty Man in the Minute Philofophy, And having mined a few Years in thefe Accom- plimments, he died before thirty, childlefs and rot- ten, exprefiing the utmoft Indignation that he could not outlive that old Dog his Father ; who, having a great Notion of polite Manners, and Knowledge of the World, had purchafed them to his favourite Son, with much Expence, but had been more frugal in the Education of Ctuerepbott, the younger Son ; who was brought up at a Coun- try-School, and entered a Commoner in the Uni- verfity, where he qualified himfelf for a Parfonage in his Father's Gift, which he is now pofieffoi of, together with the Eftate of the Family, and a nu- merous Offspring. LYS. A Pack of unpolifhed Cubbs, I warrant. CRL Lefs polifhed, perhaps, but more found, more honeft, and likely to be more ufeful than many who pafs for fine Gentlemen. Grates, a worthy Juftice of the Peace in this Coun- ty, having had a Son mifcarry at London, by the Converfation of a Minute Philofopher, ufed to fay with a great Air of Complaint : If a Man fpoils my Corn, or hurts my Cattle, I have a Remedy againft him: But if he fpoils my Children, I have none. LTS. I warrant you, he was for penal Methods : He would have had a Law to perfecute tender Confciences. CRL The tender Conference of PHILOSOPHER. Sg of a Minute Philofopher ! He who tutored the Son DIAU of Crates, foon after did Juftice on himfelf. For n. he taught Lycidas, a modeft young Man, the Prin- v v -^ < ciples of his Sect. Lycidas, in return, debauched his Daughter, an only Child : Upon which, Char- Wildes, (that was the Minute Philofopher's Name) hanged himfelf. Old Bubalion in the City is cark- ing, and ftarving, and cheating, that his Son may drink and game, keep Miftreffes, Hounds, and Horfes, and die in a Jail. Bubalion neverthelels thinks himfelf wife, and pafTeth for one that minds the main Chance. He is a Minute Philofopher^ which Learning he acquired behind the Counter, From the Works of Prodicus and Trypbon. This fame Bubalion was one Night at Supper, talking againft the Immortality of the Soul, with two or three grave Citizens, one of whom the next Day declared himfelf Bankrupt, with fivethoufand Pound of Bubalion 's in his Hands : And the Night fol- lowing he received a Note from a Servant, who had during his Lecture waited at Table, demand- ing the Sum of fifty Guineas to be laid under a Stone, and concluding with moft terrible Threats and Imprecations. LTS. Not to repeat what hath been already demonftrated, That the Public is at bottom no Sufferer by fuch Accidents, which in truth are inconvenient only to private Perfons, who in their turn too may reap the Benefit of them : I fay, not to repeat all that hath been demonftrated on that Head, I fhall only ask you whether there would not be Rakes and Rogues, although we did not make them f Believe me, the World always was, and always will be the fame, as long as Men are Men. CRL I deny that the World is always the fame. Human Nature, to ufe Alciphrotfs Comparifon, is like Land, better or worfe, as it is improved, and according to the Seeds or Principles fown go THE MINUTE DIAL, fown in it. Though no body held your Tenets, II. I grant there might be bad Men by the Force of corrupt Appetites and irregular Pafllons. But where Men, to the Force of Appetite and Pafllon, ac! 1 that of Opinion, and are wicked from Principle, there will be more Men wicked, and thofe more incurably and outrageoufly fo. The Error of a Jively Rake lies in his Pafilons, and may be reform- ed : But the dry Rogue who fets up for Judgment, is incorrigible. It is an Obfervation of driftotle's, That there are two forts of Debauchees, the ax.jO^ru'r, and the axaXar', of which the one is fo againft his Judgment, the other with it : And that there may be hopes of the former, but none of the latter. And in faft I have always obferved, that a Rake who was a Minute Philosopher, when grown old, becomes a Sharper in Bufinefs. LTS. I could name you feveral fuch who have grown moft noted Pa- triots. CRT. Patriots ! fuch Patriots as Catiline and Marc Antony. LTS. And what then ? Thofe fa- mous Romans were brave, though unfuccefsful. They wanted neither Senfe nor Courage ; and if their Schemes had taken effecl:, the brisker Part of their Countrymen had been much the better for them. XXI. The Wheels of Government go on, though wound up by different Hands : if not in the fame Form, yet in fome other, perhaps a better. There is an end lefs Variety in things: weak Men, indeed, are prejudiced towards Rules and Syftems in Life and Government : and think if thefe are gone, all is gone : But a Man of a great Soul and free Spirit, delights ir. the noble Experiment of blowing up Syttems, and diilblving Governments, to mould them anew upon other Principles, and in another Shape. Take my Word for it : there is a plaftic Nature in things that feeks its own End. Pull a State PHILOSOPHER. gr State to pieces, jumble, confound, and fluke to- DIAL. gether the Particles of Human Society, and then II. Jet them ftand a while, and you (hall foon fee them v^V^ fettle of themfelves in fome convenient Order, where heavy Heads are loweft, and Men of Genius uppermoft. EUPH. Lyficles fpeaks his Mind freely. LTS. Where was the Advantage of Free-thinking, if it were not attended with Free-fpeaking 5 or of Free-fpeaking, if it did not produce Free-acting ? We are for thorough, independent, original Free- dom. Inward Freedom without outward is good for nothing, but to fet a Man's Judgment at va- riance with his Praftice. CRI. This free Way of Lyficles may feem new to you : it is not fo to me. As the Minute Philofophers lay it down for a Maxim, that there is nothing facred of any kind, nothing but what may be made a Jeft of, exploded, and changed like the Fafhion of their Clothes: fo nothing is more frequent than for them to utter their Schemes and Principles, not only in felect Companies, but even in public. In a certain Part of the World, where ingenious Men are wont to retail their Speculations, I remember to have feen a Valetudinarian in a long Wig and a Cloke, fitting at the upper End of a Table, with half a dozen of Difciples about him. After he had talked upon Religion in a Manner, and with an Air that would make one think, Atheifm eftabliflied by Law and Religion only tolerated, he entered upon Civil Go- vernment : and oblerved to his Audience, that the natural World was in a perpetual Circulation. Ani- mals, faid he, which draw their Suftenance from the Earth, mix with that fame Earth, and in their turn become Food for Vegetables, which again nourilh the Animal Kind : The Vapours that afcend from this Globe, defcend back upon it in Showers: The Elements alternately prey upon each other : 92 THE MINUTE D JAL. other : That which one part of Nature Jofeth, II. another gains ; the Sum total remaining always the fame, being neither bigger nor lefler, better nor worfe, for all thefe inteftine Changes. Even fo, faid this learned Profefibr, the Revolutions in the civil World are no Detriment to Human Kind : one part whereof rifes as the other falls, and wins by another's Lofs. A Man therefore who thinks deeply, and hath an Eye on the whole Syftem, is no more a Bigot to Government than to Religion. He knows how to fuit himfelf to Occafions, and make the beft of every Event : For the reft, he looks on all Tranflations of Power and Property from one hand to another, with a Philofophic In- difference. Our Lecturer concluded his Difcourfe with a moft ingenious Analyfis of all political and moral Virtues, into their firtt Principles and Caufes, fhewing them to be mere Fafhions, Tricks of State, and Illufions on the Vulgar. LTS. We have been often told of the good Effects of Religion and Learning, Churches and Univerfities : But I dare affirm, that a dozen or two ingenious Men of our Sect have done more towards advancing real Know- ledge by extemporaneous Lectures in the Compafs of a few Years, than all the Ecclefiaftics put to- gether for as many Centuries. E UP H. And the Nation no doubt thrives accordingly. But, it feems, Crito, you have heard them difcourfe. CRI. Upon hearing this, and other Lectures of the fame Ten- dency, methought it was needlefs to eftablifh Pro- feffbrs for the Minute Philofophy in either Uni- verfity : while there are fo many fpontaneous Lec- turers in every Corner of the Streets, ready to open Mens Eyes, and rub off their Prejudices about Religion, Loyalty, and public Spirit. LTS. If Wifhing was to any purpofe, I could wifh for a Tclefcope that might draw into my View things future PHILOSOPHER. 93 future in Time, as well as diftant in Place. Oh ! DIAL, that I could but look into the next Age, and behold II. what it is that we are preparing to be, the glorious Harveft of our Principles : the Spreading of which hath produced a vifible Tendency in the Nation to- wards fomething great and new. CRL One thing I dare fay you would expect to fee, be the Changes and Agitations of the Public what they will, that is, every Free-thinker upon his Legs. You are all Sons of Nature, who chearfully follow the For- tunes of the common Mafs. LTS. And it muft be owned we have a Maxim, that each fhould take care of one. CRI. Alas, Lyficles^ you wrong your own Character. You would fain pafs upon the World and upon yourfelves for interefted cunning Men : But can any thing be more difinterefted than to la- crifice all Regards to the abftracted Speculation of Truth ? Or can any thing be more void of all Cun- ning than to publilh your Difcoveries to the World, teach others to play the whole Game, and arm Mankind againft yourfelves. XXIJ. If a Man may venture to fuggeft fo mean a Thought as the Love of their Country, to Souls fired wich the Love of Truth, and the Love of Liberty, and grafping the whole Extent of Nature : I would humbly propofe it to you, Gentlemen, to obferve the Caution practifed by all other Di coverers, Projectors, and Makers of Experiments, who never hazard all on the firft Trial. Would ic not be prudent to try the Succels of your Principles on a fmall Model in fome remote Corner ? For in- ftance, fet up a Colony of Atheifts in Monomotapa, and fee how it profpers, before you proceed any further at home : Haifa dozen Shiploaiof Minute Philofophers might eafily be fpared upon fo good a Defign. In the mean time, you Gentlemen, who have THE MINUTE have found out that there is nothing to be hoped or feared in another Life : that Confcience is a Bug- i bear: that the Bands of Government, and the Cement of Human Society are rotten Things, to be diflblved and crumbled into nothing, by the Argumentation of every Mmute Philofopher : be fo good as to keep thefe fublime Difcoveries to yourfelves : Suffer us, our Wives, our Children, our Servants, and our Neighbours, to continue in the Belief and way of Thinking eftablifhed by the Laws of our Country. In good earned, I wifh you would go try your Experiments among the Hottentots or Turks. LTS. The Hottentots we think well of, believing them to be an unprejudiced People : but it is to be feared their Diet and Cuftoms would not agree with our Philofophers : As for the Turks, they are Bigots, who have a Notion of God and a Refpeft for Jefus Chrift. I queftion whether it might be fafe to venture among them. CRL Make your Experiment then in fome other part of Chrljtendom. LTS. We hold all other Chriftian Nations to be much under the power of Prejudice : even our Neighbours the Dutch are too much prejudiced in favour of their Religion by Law eftabliihed, for a prudent Man to attempt Innova- tions under their Government. Upon the whole, it feems we can execute our Schemes no where with fo much Security, and fuch Profpecl: of Succefs as at home. Not to fay that we have already made a good Progrefs. Oh ! that we could but once fee a Parliament of true, ftanch, libertine Free-think- ers ! CRK -God forbid ! I mould be forry to have fuch Men for my Servants, not to fay, for my Matters. LTS. In that we differ. XXIII. But you will agree with me, that the right Way to come at this wat to begin with ex- tirpating PHILOSOPHER. 95 tirpating the Prejudices of particular Perfons. We have carried on this Work for many Years with II. much Art and Induftry, and at firft with Secrecy, working like Moles under Ground, concealing our Progrefs from the Public, and our ultimate Views from many, even of our own Profelytes, blowing the Coals between polemical Divines, laying hold on and improving every Incident, which the Pafilons or folly of Churchmen afforded, to the Advantage of our Sect. As our Principles obtained, we ftill proceeded to farther Inferences: and as our Num- bers multiplied, we gradually difclofed ourfelves and our Opinions : where we are now, I need not fay. We have flubbed, and weeded, and cleared Human Nature to that degree, that in a little time, leaving it alone without any Labouring or Teach- ing, you mall fee natural andjuft Ideas fprout forth of themfelves, CRI. But I have heard a Man, who had lived long, and obferved much, remark that the worft and mod unwholfom Weed was this fame Minute Philofophy. We have had, faid he, divers epidemical Diftempers in the State, ^ but this hath produced of all others the moft deftructive Plague. Enthufiafm had its Day, its Effects were violent, and foon over : This infects more quietly, but fpreads widely : The former bred a Fever in the State : this breeds a Confumption and final Decay, A Rebellion, or an Invafion, alarms and puts the Public upon its Defence ; but a Corruption of Principles works its Ruin more ilowly perhaps, but more furely. This may be illuftrated by a Fable I fomewhere met with in the Writings of a Swifs Philofopher, fetting forth the Original of Brandy and Gunpowder. The Government of the North being once upon a Time vacant, the Prince of the Power of the Air convened a Council in Hell : wherein, upon Competition between two Daemons of 96 THE MINUTE PIAL. of Rank, it was determined they mould both mak II. trial of their Abilities, and he fhould fucceed who c- v ' did mod Mifchief. One made his Appearance in the Shape of Gunpowder, the other in that of Brandy : The former was a declared Enemy, and roared with a terrible Noife, which made Folks afraid, and put them on their guard : the other pafied as a Friend and a Phyfician through the World, disguifed himfelf with Sweets, and Per- fumes, and Drugs, made his way into the Ladies Cabinets, and the Apothecaries Shops, and under the Notion of helping Digeftion, comforting the Spirits, and cheering the Heart, produced direft contrary Effects; and having inlenfibiy thrown great Numbers of Human kind into a fatal Decay, was found to people Hell and the Grave fo faft as to merit the Government, which he ftill poffefles. XXIV. LTS. Thofe who pleafe may amufe themfelves with Fables and Allegories. This is plain Englijh : Liberty is a good Thing, and we are the Support of Liberty. CRI. To me it feems that Liberty and Virtue were made for each other. If any Man wifh to inflave his Country, nothing is a fitter Preparative than Vice : And nothing leads to Vice fo iurely as Irreligion. For my part I can- not comprehend or find out, after having confidered it in all Lights, how this crying down Religion fliould be the Effeft of honeft Views towards a juft and legal Liberty. Some feem to propofe an In- dulgence in Vice : others may have in profpecl the Advantages which needy and ambitious Men are ufed to make in the Ruin of a State : One may in- dulge a pert petulant Spirit : another hope to be clteemed among Libertines, when he wants Wit to pleafe, or Abilities to be ufeful. But, be Mens Views what they will, let us examine what Good your PHILOSOPHER. 97 your Principles have done: Who has been the DIAL. better for the Inftructions of thefe Minute Philofo- II. phers ? Let us compare what we are in refpect of v - V -* J Learning, Loyalty, Honefty, Wealth, Power, and public Spirit with what we have been. Free-think- ing (as it is called) hath wonderfully grown of late Years. Let us lee what hath grown up with it, or what Effects ic hath produced. To make a Cata- logue of Ills is difagreeable : And the only Blefling it can pretend to is Luxury : That fame Blefling which revenged the World upon old Rome : That fame Luxury which makes a Nation, like a difeafed pampered Body, look full and fat with one Foot in the Grave. LTS. You miftake the Matter. There are no People who think and argue better about the public Good of a State than our Sect ; who have alfo invented many Things tending to that End, which we cannot as yet conveniently put in practice. CRI. But one Point there is, from which it muft be owned the Public hath already received fome Advantage, which is the Effect of your Principles, flowing from them and fpreading as they do : I mean that old Roman Practice of Self- murder, which at once puts an End to all Diftrefs, ridding the World and themfelves of the miferable. LTS. You were pleafed before to make Reflexions on this Cuftom, and laugh at the Irrefolution of our Free- thinkers : But I can aver for Matter of Fact, thac they have often recommended it by their Example as well as Arguments : And thac it is folely owing to them that a Practice, fo ufeful and magnanimous, hath been taken out of the Hands of Lunatics, and reftored to that Credit among Men of Senfe, which it anciently had. In whatever Light you may con- fider it, this is in fact a folid Benefit. But the belt Effect of our Principles is that Light and Truth fo vifibly fpread abroad in the World. From how H many 98 THE MIN UTE DIAL, many Prejudices, Errors, Perplexities, and Con- II. tradiclions have we freed the Minds of our Fellow- ? How many hard Words and intricate ablurd Notions had poffefled the Minds of Men before our Philofophers appeared in the World ? But now even Women and Children have right and found Notions of Things. What fay you to this, Crito ? CRL I fay, with refpect to thefe great Advantages of deltroying Men and Notions, that I queftion whether the Public gains as much by the later as it lofeth by the former. For my own part I had rather my Wife and Children all believed what they had no Notion of, and daily pronounced Words without a Meaning, than that any one of them Ihould cut his Throat or leap out of a Window. Errors and Nonfenfe as fuch are of fmall Concern in the Eye of the Public, which confidereth not the metaphyfical Truth of Notions, fo much as the Tendency they have to produce Good or Evil. Truth itfelf is valued by the Public, as it hath an Influence, and is felt in the Courfe of Life. You may confute a whole Shelf of Schoolmen, and dif- cover many fpeculative Truths, without any great Merit towards your Country. But if I am not miftaken, the Minute Philofophers are not the Men to whom we are moft beholden for Difcoveries of that Kind. This, I fay, muft be allowed ; fup- pofing, what I by no Means grant, your Notions to be true. For, to fay plainly what I think, the Tendency of your Opinions is lo bad, that no good Man can endure them, and your Arguments for them fo weak that no wife Man will admit them. LTS. Has it not been proved as clear as the Me- ridian Sun, that the politer Sort of Men lead much happier Lives, and fwim in Pleafure fmce the fpreading of our Principles ? But, not to repeat or infift further on what has been fo amply deduced, I mall PHILOSOPHER. 99 fhall only add, that the Advantages flowing from DIAL, them, extend to the tendered Age and the fofter JJ. Sex. Our Principles deliver Children from Terrors u y . by Night, and the Ladies from fplenetic Hours by Day. CRI. Inftead of thole old fafhioned Things, Prayers and the Bible, the grateful Amufements of Drams, Dice, and Billet-doux have fucceeded. The fair Sex have now nothing to do but drefs and paint, drink and game, adorn and divert themfelves, and enter into all the fweet Society of Life. But I thought, Lyjicks, the Argument from Pleafure had been exhaulted : However, fince you have not done with that Point, let us once more by Eu- pbranor's Rule caft up the Account of Pleafure and Pain, as Credit and Debt under diftinct Articles. We will let down in the Life of your fine Lady, rich Clothes, Dice, Cordials, Scandal, late Hours, againft Vapours, Difhifte, Remorfe, Lofifes at Play, and the terrible Diftrefs of ill fpent Age in- creafing every Day : Suppofe no cruel Accident of Jealoufy, no Madnefs or Infamy of Love : Yet at the Foot of the Account you mall find that empty, giddy, gaudy, fluttering thing, not half fo happy as a Butterfly, or a Grafhopper on a Summer's Day. And for a Rake or Man of Pleafure, the Reckoning will be much the fame, if you place Liftlefnefs, Ignorance, Rottennefs, Loathing, Craving, Quarrelling, and fuch Qualities or Ac- compliftiments over-againft his little Circle of fleet- ing Amufements : Long Woe againtl momentary Pleafure : And if it be confidered, that when Senfe and Appetite go off, though he feek Refuge from his Confcience in the Minute Philofophy, yec in this you will find, if you fift him to the Bottom, that he affects much, believes little, knows nothing. Upon which Lyjiclcs turning to me obferved, that Crito might difpute againft Fad if he plcafed, buc H 2 that ioo THE MINUTE that every one muft fee the Nation was the merrier for their Principles. True, aniwered Crito t we are a merry Nation indeed : Young Men laugh at the old : Children defpife their Parents : and Subjects make a Jeft of the Government : Happy Effects of the Minute Philofophy ! XXV. LTS. Infer what Effeds you pleafe, that will not make our Principles lefs true. CRL Their Truth is not what 1 am now confidering. The Point at prefent is the Ufefulnefs of your Principles : And to decide this Point we need only take a fliort View of them fairly propofed and laid to- gether : That there is no God or Providence : That Man is as the Beafts that perifh : That his Happinefs as theirs confifts in obeying Animal In- ftin&s, Appetites, and Paffions : That all Stings of Conference and Senfe of Guilt are Prejudices and Errors of Education : That Religion is a State Trkk : That Vice is beneficial to the Public : That the Soul of Man is corporeal and diflblveth like a Flame or Vapour : That Man is a Machine actuated according to the Laws of Motion : That confequently he is no Agent or Subject of Guilt : That a wife Man will make his own particular individual Intereft in this prefent Life, the Rule and Meafure of all his Actions: Thefe, and fuch Opinions, are, it feems, the Tenets of a Minute Philofopher, who is himfelf according to his own Principles an Organ play'd on by fenfible Objects, a Ball bandied about by Appetites and Paffions : So fubtile is he as to be able to maintain all this by art- ful Reafonings : So fharp-fighred and penetrating to the very Bottom of Things as to find out, that the mod interested occult Cunning is the only true Wifdom. To compleat his Character, this curious Piece of" Clock- Work, having no Principle of A&ion PHILOSOPHER. vQ* Adion within itfelf, and denying that it hath or DIAL can have any one free Thought or Motion, fets up II. for the Patron of Liberty, and earneftly contends wv*- for Free-thinking. Crito had no fboner made an end, but Lyficks addrefied himfelf to Eupbranor and me: Crito ) faid he, has taicen a world of Pains, but convinced me only of one fingle Point, to wit, That I muft defpair of Convincing him. Never did I, in the whole Courfe of my Life, meet with a Man fo deeply immerfed in Prejudice ; let who will pull him out for me. But 1 entertain better Hopes of you. I can anfwer, faid I, for myfclf, that my Eyes and Ears are always open to Conviction : I am attentive to all that pafles, and upon the whole (hall form, whether right or wrong, a very impartial Judgment. Crito, faid Eupbranor , is a more en- terprifing Man than I, thus to rate and lecture a Philofopher. For my part, I always find it eafier to learn than to teach. I (hall therefore beg your Affiftance to rid me of fome Scruples about the Tendency of your Opinions ; which I find myfelf unable to mafter, though ever fo willing. This done, though we mould not tread exactly in the fame Steps, nor perhaps go the fame Road ; yet we fhall not run in all Points diametrically oppofitc one to another. XXVI. Tell me now, Lyftcles^ you who are a minute Obferver of Things, whether a Shade be more agreeable at Morning or Evening, or Noon- day. LTS. Doubtlefs at Noon-day. EUPH. And what difpofeth Men to Reft ? LTS. Exercife. EUPH. When do Men make the greateft Fires ? LTS. In the coldeft Weather. EUPH. And what creates a Love for iced Liquors ? LTS. Exceffive Heat. EUPH. What if you raife a Pendulum to a great Height on one Side? LTS. It will, when H 3 left 102 THE MINUTE DIAL, left to itfelfafcend fo much the higher on the other. 11. EUPH. It mould feem, therefore, that Darknefs * v ' en lues from Light, Reft from Motion, Heat from Cold, and in general that one Extreme is the Con- fequence of another. L TS. It fhould feem fo. EUPH. And doth not this Obfervation hold in the civil as well as natural World ? Doth not Power produce Licence, and Licence Power? Do not Whigs make Tories, and Tories Whigs ? Bigots make Atheifts, and Atheifb Bigots ? LTS. Grant- ing this to be true. EUPH. Will it not hence fol- low that as we abhor Slavifli Principles, we mould avoid running into licentious ones ? I am, and al- ways was, a fincere Lover of Liberty, legal Englifh Liberty j which I efteem a chief Blefling, Orna- ment, and Comfort of Life, and the great Preror gative of an Engliftoman. But is it not to be feared, that upon the Nation's Running into a Licentiouf- nels which hath never been endured in any civilized Country, Men feeling the intolerable Evils of one Extreme may naturally fall into the other ? You mud allow, the Bulk of Mankind are not Philo- fophers like you and dlciphron. LTS. This I readily acknowledge. EUPH. I have another Scruple about the Tendency of your Opinions. Suppofe you mould prevail and deftroy this Proteftant Church and Clergy : How could you come at the Popifh ? I am credibly informed there is a great x Number of Emiflaries of the Church of Rome dif- guifed in England: Who can tell what Harveft a Clergy fo numerous, fo fubtile, and fo well furnifh- ed with Arguments to work on vulgar and un- educated Minds may be able to make in a Country defpoiled of all Religion, and feeling the Want of it ? Who can tell whether the Spirit of Free-think- ing ending with the Oppofition, and the Vanity with the Diftinclion, when the whole Nation are alike PHI L OS O P H E R, IQ3 alike Infidels, who can tell, I fay, whether in fuch DIAL. a Juncture the Men of Genius themfelves may 11. not affct a new DiftinfHon, and be the fird Converts to Popery ? LTS. And fuppofe they mould. Between Friends it would be no great Matter. Thefe are our Maxims. In the firft Place, we hold it would be beft to have no Religion at all. Secondly, we hold that all Religions are indiffer- ent. If, therefore, upon Trial, we find the Coun- try cannot do without a Religion, why not Popery as well as another ? I know feveral ingenious Men of our Se6b, who, if we had a Popifh Prince on the Throne, would turn Papifts to-morrow. This is a Paradox, but I fhall explain it. A Prince whom we compliment with our Religion, to be fure muft be grateful. EUPPI. I underitand you. But what becomes of Free-thinking all the while? LTS. Oh ! we mould have more than ever of that, for we Ihould keep it all to ourfelves. As for the Amufe- ment of retailing it, the Want of this would be largely compenfated by folid Advantages of another Kind. EUPH. It feems then, by this Account, the Tendency you obferved in the Nation towards fomething great and new proves a Tendency to- wards Popery and Slavery. LTS. Miftake us not, good Euphranor. The Thing fir ft in our Intention is Confummate Liberty : But if this will not do, and there muft after all be fuch Things tolerated as Religion and Government, we are wifely willing to make the beft of both. CRI. This puts me in mind of a Thought I have often had, That Mi- nute Philofophers are Dupes of the Jefuits. The two moft avowed, profcfied, bufy Propagators of Infidelity in all Companies, and upon all Occafions, that I ever met with, were both bigoted Papifts ; and being both Men of confiderable Eftates, fuf- fered confiderably on that Score ; which it is H 4 wonder- 104 THE MINUTE wonderful their Thinking Difciples mould never refled upon. Hcgemon, a mod diftinguifhed Writer among the Minute Philofophers, and Hero of the Sc6t, I am well afiured, was once a Papift, and never heard that he profefled any other Religion. I know that many or the Church of Rome abroad, are pleafed with the Growth of Infidelity among us, as hoping it may make way for them. The Emifiaries of Rome are known to have perfonated feveral other Sedts, which from time to time have fprung up amongft us ; and why not this of the Minute Philofophers, of all others the beft calcu- lated to ruin both Church and State ? I myfelf have known a Jefuit abroad talk among Englijh Gentle- men like a Free-thinker. I arn credibly informed, that Jefuits, known to be fuch by the Minute Phi- Jofophers at home, are admitted into their Clubs : And I -have obfervcd them to approve, and fpeak better of the Jefuits, than of any other Clergy \vhatfoever. Thofe who are not acquainted with the fubtle Spirit, the refined Politics, and wonder- ful Oeconomy of that renowned Society, need only read the Account given of them by the Jefuit, Inchofer^ in his Book De Monarchia Solipforum ; and thofe who are, will not be furprifed that they mould be able to make Dupes of our Minute Philofophers : Dupes, I fay, for I can never think they fufpect that they are only Tools to ferve the Ends of cun- ninger Men than thcmfelves. They feem to me drunk and giddy with a falfe Notion of Liberty, and fpurr'd on by this Principle to make mad Ex- periments on their Country, they agree only in pulling down all that (lands in their Way ; without any concerted Scheme, and without caring or knowing what toereft in its ftead. To hear them, as I have often done, defcant on the moral Virtues, refolve them into Shame, then laugh at Shame as a Weak- PHILOSOPHER. ioc; a Weaknefs, admire the unconfined Lives of Sa- DIAL vages, defpife all Order and Decency of Education i 11. one would think the Intention of thefe Philofophers ^or* was, when they had pruned and weeded the No- tions of their Fellow-Subjedls, and diverted them of their Prejudices, to (trip them of their Clothes, and fill the Country with naked Followers of Na- ture, enjoying all the Privileges of Brutality. Here Crito made a Paufe, and fixed his Eyes on ^ilcipbron^ who during this whole Con verfation had fat thought- ful and attentive, without faying a Word ; and with an Air, one while diflatisfied at what Ly/ides ad- vanced, another, ferene and pleafed, feeming to ap- prove fome better Thought of his own. But the Day being now far fpent, Alctyhron propofed to ad- journ the Argument till the following j when, faid he, I (hall fet Matters on a new Foundation, and in fo full and clear a Light, as, I doubt not, will give intire Satisfaction. So we changed the Di courfe, and after a Repaft upon cold Provifions, took a Walk on the Strand, and in the cool of the Evening returned to Crito's. THE ic6 TH E MINUTE THE THIRD DIALOGUE. I. AlciphronV Account of Honour. \\.CbaracJerand Conduct of Men of Honour. III. Senfe of moral Beauty. IV. The Honeftum or TO *aXov of the . Ancients. V. Tafte for moral Beauty whether a fure Guide or Rule. VI. Minute Pbilofophsrs ravijhed with the Abftraft Beauty of Virtue. VII. Their Virtue alone difmterefted and heroic. VI II. Beauty of fenfible Objcfts what and how perceived ? IX. The Idea of Beauty explained by Painting and Architecture. X. Beauty of the moral Syftem^ wherein it conjifts. XI. It fuppofetb a Providence. XII. Influence of TO xaXav and ro TT^TTC-J. XIII. Enthufmfm of Cratylus compared with the Senti- ments of Ariftodc. XIV. Compared Men different ways, according to the Prevalency of jjj this or that Appetite or Paffion ? ALC. I do not deny it. EUPH. And will it not follow from hence, that Duty and Virtue are in a fairer Way of being praclifed, if Men are led by Reafon and Judgment j balancing low and fenfual Pleafures with thofe of a higher Kind, comparing prefent Loffes with future Gains, and the Uneaiinefs and Difguft of every Vice, with the delightful Practice of the oppofite Virtue, and the pleating Reflexions and Hopes which attend it ? Or, can there be a ftronger Motive to Virtue, than -the mewing that confidered in all Lights it is every Man's true In- tereft ? VI. ALC. I tell you, Euphranor, we contemn the Virtue of that Man, who computes and deli- berates, and muft have a Reafon for being virtuous. The refined Moralifts of our Seel: are ravifhed and tranfported with the abftracl: Beauty of Virtue. They difdain all forinfecal Motives to it ; and love Virtue only for Virtue's fake. Oh Rapture ! Oh Enthufiafm ! Oh the Q^iinteflence of Beauty ! Me- thinks I could dwell for ever on this Contempla- tion. But rather than entertain myfelf, I muft en- deavour to convince you. Make an Experiment on the firft Man you meet. Propofe a villanous or unjuft A&ion. Take his firft Senfe of the Matter, and you mall find he detefts it. He may indeed be afterwards mifled by Arguments, or overpow- ered by Temptation ; but his original, unpreme- ditated, and genuine Thoughts, are juft and ortho- dox. How can we account for this but by a moral Senfe, which, left to itfelf, hath as quick and true a Perception of the Beauty and Deformity of Hu- man Actions, as the Eye hath of Colours. EUPH. I 3 May 1 1 8 THE MINUTE DIAL. May not this be fufHciently accounted for, by Con- ill, fcience, Affection, Paflion, Education, Reafon, Cuftom, Religion, which Principles and Habits, for ought- 1 know, may be what you metaphorically call a Moral Senfe ? ALC. What I call a Moral Senfe, is ftrictly, properly, and truly fuch, and in Kind different from all thoie Things you enume- rate. It is what all Men have, though all may not obferve it. Upon this, Euphmnor fmiled, and faid, Atcipbron has made Difcoveries where I lead ex- pected it. For, faid he, in regard to every other Point, I fhould hope to learn from him : but for the Knowledge of myfelf, or the Faculties and Powers of my own Mind, I fhould have looked at home. And there I might have looked Jong enough, without finding this new Talent, which even now after being tutored I cannot comprehend. For Alcipbron, I muft needs fay, is too Sublime and ^Enigmatical upon a Point, which of all others ought to be moft clearly underftood. I have often heard that your deepeit Adepts and oldeft Profefibrs in Science are the obfcureft. Lyficles is young, and fpeaks plain. Would he but favour us with his Senfe of this Point, it might perhaps prove more upon a Level with my Apprehenfion. VII. Lyficles fhook his Head, and in a grave and earnelt manner addrefied the Company. Gen- tlemen, faid he, Alcipbron ftands upon his own Legs. I have no part in thefe refined Notions he is a* prefent engaged to defend. If I mull fubdue my Pafiions, abftract, contemplate, be enamoured of Virtue ; in a word, if I muft be an Enthufiaft : 1 owe fo much Deference to the Laws of my Country, as to choofe being an Enthufiaft in their way. Befides, it is better being fo for fome End than for none. This Do&rme hath all the folid Incon- PHILOSOPHER. ng Inconveniencies, without the amufing Hopes and DIAL Profpects of the Chriftian. ALC, I never counted III. on Lyftcks for my Second in this Point ; which af- ter all doth not need his Affiftance or Explication. All Subjects ought not to be treated in the fame manner. The way of Definition and Divifion is dry and pedantic. Befides, the Subject is fome- times too obfcure, fometimes too fimple for this Method. One while we know too little of a Point, another too much, to make it plainer by Difcourfe. CRL To hear Alcipbron talk, puts me in mind of that ingenious Greek, who having wrapt a Man's Brother up in a Cloke, asked him whether he knew that Perfon ? being ready, either by keeping on, or pulling off the Cloke, to confute his Anfwer, whatever it mould be. For my part, 1 believe, if Matters were fairly dated, that rational Satisfaction, that Peace of Mind, that inward Comfort, and confcientious Joy, which a good Chriftan finds in good Actions, would not be found to fall more of all the Ecftafy, Rapture, and Enthufiafm fup- pofed to be the Effect of that high and undefcribed Principle. In earned can any Ecftafy be higher, any Rapture more affecting, than that which fprings from the Love of God and Man, from a Confci- ence void of Offence, and an inward Difcharge of Duty, with the fecret Delight, Truft, and Hope that attend it ? ALC. O Euphranor^ we Votaries of Truth do not envy, but pity, the groundlefs Joys and miftaken Hopes of a Chriftian. And, as for Confcience and rational Pleafure, How can we allow a Confcience without allowing a vindictive Providence ? Or how can we fuppole, the Charm of Virtue confifts in any Pleafure, or Benefit at- tending virtuous Actions, * without giving great * There can never be lefs Self-enjoyment than in thefe fuppofed wife Chara&ers, thefe felfifh computers of happinefs and private good. Charafteriftks, Vol. 3. p. 501. I 4 Ad van- I2O THE MINUTE DIAL. Advantages to the Chriftian Religion, which it III. feems excites its Believers to Virtue by the higheft < - v~ ' Interefts and Pleafures in Reverfion. Alas ! fhould we grant this, there would be a Door opened to all thole rufty Declaimers upon the Neceffity and Ufe- fulnefs ot the great Points of Faith, the Immorta- lity of the Soul, a Future State, Rewards and Pu- nifhments, and the like exploded Conceits ; which, according to our Syftcm and Principles, may per- haps produce a low, popular, interefted Kind of Virtue, but muft abfolutely deflroy and extinguifh it in the fublime and heroic Senfe. ', VIII. EUPH. What you now fay is very in- telligible : i vvim I underftood your main Princi- ple as well. ALC. And are you then in earned at a Jofs ? Is it poffible you fhould have no Notion of Beauty, or that having it you mould not know it to be amiable, amiable I fay, in hfelf, and for it- felf? EUPH. Pray sell me, Alcipbron, are all Mankind agreed in the Notion of a beauteous Face ? ALC. Beaury in Human Kind feems to be of a more mixt and various Nature : forafmuch as the Paffions, Sentiments, and Qualities of the Soul be- ing feen through and blending with the Features, work differently on different Minds, as the Sympa- thy is more or lefs. But with regard to other things is there no fteady Principle of Beauty ? Is there upon Earth a Human Mind without the Idea of Order, Harmony, and Proportion ? EUPH. O Alcipbron* it is my Weaknels that I am apt to be loft in Abftractions and Generalities, but a par- ticular thing is better fuited to my Faculties. I find it eafy to confider and keep in View the Ob- jects of Senfe ; let us therefore try to difcover what their Beauty is, or wherein itconOUs; and fo, by the help of thefe fenfible things as a Scale or Lad- der, alcenid to moral and intdhclual Beauty. Be pleafed PHILOSOPHER. 121 pleafed then to inform me, what it is we call Beauty DIAL. in the Objects of Senfe ? ALC. Every one knows III. Beauty is that which pleafes. EUPH. There is then Beauty in the Smell of a Role, or the Talte of an Apple. ALC. By no means. Beauty is, to fpeak properly, perceived only by the Eye. EUPH. It cannot therefore be defined in general thac which pleafeth. ALC. 1 grant it cannot. EUPH. How then fhail we limit or define it ? Altiphron, after a fhort Paufe, faid, that Beauty confifted in a certain Symmetry or Proportion pleafing to the Eye. EUPH. Is this Proportion one and the fame in all Things, or is it different in different Kinds of Things? ALC. Different doubtlefs. The Pro- portions of an Ox would not be beautiful in an Horfe. And we obferve alfo in things Inanimate, that the Beauty of a Table, a Chair, a Door, con- fifts in different Proportions. EUPH. Doth not this Proportion imply the Relation of one thing to another ? ALC. It doth. EUPH. And are not thefe Relations founded in Size and Shape ? ALC. They are. EUPH. And to make the Propor- tions juft, muft not thofe mutual Relations of Size and Shape in the Parts be fuch, as fhall make the whole compleat and perfect in its Kind ? ALC. I grant they muft. EUPH. Is not a thing faid to be perfect in its Kind, when it anfwers the End for which it was made ? ALC. It is. EUPH. The Parts therefore, in true Proportions muft be fo re- lated, and adjufted to one another, as that they may beft confpire to the Ufe and Operation of the Whole. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. But the comparing Parts one with another, the confidering them as belonging to one Whole, and the refer- ring this Whole to its Ufe or End, mould feem the Work of Reafon : Should it not ? ALC. It mould. EUPH. Proportions therefore are not, ftric"l!y (peaking, 1-22 THE MINUTE DIAL, fpeaking, perceived by the Senfe of Sight, but III. only byReafon through the Means of Sight. ALC. This I grant. EUPH. Confequently Beauty, in your Senfe of it, is an Object, not of the Eye, but of the Mind. ALC. It is. EUPH. The Eye, therefore, alone cannot fee that a Chair is handfom, or a Door well proportioned. ALC. It feems to follow; but I am not clear as to this Point. EUPH. Let us fee if there be any Difficulty in it. Could the Chair you fie on, think you, be reckoned well proportioned or handfom, if it had not fuch a Height, Breadth, Wideaefs, and was not fo far reclined as to afford a conve-.ient Seat ? ALC. It could not. EUPH. The Beauty, therefore, or Symmetry of a Chair cannot be apprehended but by knowing its ufe, and comparing its Figure with that ufe, which cannot be done by the Eye alone, but is the Effect of Judgment. It is therefore, one thing to fee an Object, and another to difcern its Beauty. ALC. I admit this to be true. IX. EUPH. The Architects judge a Door to be of a beautiful Proportion, when its Height is double of the Breadth. But if you mould invert a well -proportioned Door making its Breadth become the Height, and its Height the Breadth, the Fi- gure would ftill be the fame, but without that Beauty in one Situation, which it had in another. What can be the Caufe of this, but that in the forementioned Suppofuion, the Door would not yield a convenient Entrance to Creatures of a hu- man Figure ? But, it in any other Part of the Uni- verfe, there mould be fuppofed rational Animals of an inverted Stature, they muft be fuppofed to invert the Rule for Proportion of Doors : and to them that would appear beautiful, which to us was diftgreeable, ALC. Againft this I have no Ob- jection. P H T L O S O P H E R. jedtion. EUPH. Tell me, ALiphron, is there not ibmething truly decent and bea-itifu 1 in D;efs ? jiLC. Doubtlefs there is. EUPH. Are any like- lier to ,>.>,! ve us an Idea of this B-jau'y in Drels, than Painters and Sculptors, whofe proper Bufine/s and Study it is, to aim at graceful Reprelenrarions ? ALC. I believe not. EUPH. Let us then examine the Draperies of the great Matters in thefe Arts : How, for inftance, they u.^ to clothe a Matron, er a Man of Rank. Caft an Eye on thofe Fi- gures : (faid he, pointing to fome Prints after Raphael and Guido, that hung upon the Wall) what Appearance, do you think, an Englifh Cour- tier or Magiftrate, with his Gothic, fuccin&, plaic- cd Garment, and his full-bottom'd Wig ; or one of our Ladies in her unnatural Drefs, pinched, and ftiffened, and enlarged with Hoops, and Whale- bone, and Buckram, muft make ; among thofe Fi- gures fo decently clad in Draperies, that fall into iuch a variety of natural, eafy, and ample Folds ; that cover the Body without incumbenng it, and adorn without altering the Shape ? ALC. Truly, I think they muft make a very ridiculous Appear- ance. EUPH. And what do you think this pro- ceeds from ? Whence is it that the Eaftern Nati- ons, the Greeks^ and the Romans, naturally ran in- to the moil becoming Dreflcs ; while our Gothic Gentry, after fo many Centuries racking their In- ventions, mending, and altering, and improving, and whirling about in perpetual Rotation of Fafhi- ons, have never yet had the Luck to ftumble on any that was not abfurd and ridiculous ? Is it not from hence, that irrftead of conluking Ufe, Reafon, and Convenience, they abandon them lei ves to Fancy, the unnatural Parent of Moniters ? Where- as the Ancients, confidering the Ufe and End of Drefs, made it fubfervient to the Freedom, Eafe, and 124 TH E MINUTE and Convenience of the Body, and, having no Notion of mending or changing the natural Shape, they aimed only at mewing it with Decency and Advantage. And, if this be fo, are we not to conclude that the Beauty of Drefs depends on its Subferviency to certain Ends and Ufes? ALC. This appears to be true. EUPH. This fubordinate relative Nature of Beauty, perhaps will be yet plainer, if we examine the respective Beauties of a Horfe and a Pillar. Virgil's Defcription of the former is, . I Hi ardua cervix ', Argutumque caput^ brews ahus, obefaque terga^ Luxuriatque tons animofum peftus. Now I would fain know, whether the Perfections and Ufes of a Horfe may not be reduced to thefe three Points, Courage, Strength, and Speed ? and whether each of the Beauties enumerated doth not occafion, or betoken one of thefe Perfections ? After the fame manner, if we inquire into the Parts and Proportions of a beautiful Pillar, we mall perhaps find them anfwer to this fame Idea. Thole who have confidered the Theory of Architecture, tell us *, the Proportions of the three Grecian Orders were taken from the Human Body, as the moft beautiful and perfect Production of Nature. Hence were derived thole graceful Ideas of Columns, which had a Character of Strength without Clumfi- nefs, or of Delicacy without Weaknefs. Thofe beautiful Proportions were, I fay, taken originally from Nature, which, in her Creatures, as hath been already obferved, refcrreth them to fome End, . i i >.' * See the learned Patriarch of Aquihia* Commentary on VitruvittSy 1. 4. c. i. Ufe. ' PHILOSOPHER. 125 Ufe, or Defign. The Gonfiezza alfo, or Swelling, DIAL and the Diminution of a Pillar, is it not in fuch III. Proportion, as to make it appear ftrong and light at the fame time ? In the fame manner, mud not the whole Entablature, with its Projections, be fo proportioned as to feem great but not heavy, light but not little ; inafmuch as a Deviation into either Extreme would thwart that Reafon and Ufe of Things, wherein their Beauty is founded, and to which it is fubordinate ? The Entablature, and all its Parts and Ornaments, Architrave, Freeze, Cornice, Triglyphs, Metopes, Modiglions, and the reft, have each an Ufe, or Appearance of Ufe, in giving Firmnefs and Union to the Building, in protecting it from the Weather, and cafting off the Rain, in reprefenting the Ends of Beams with their Intervals, the Production of Rafters, and fo forth. And if we confider the graceful Angles in Fron- tifpieces, the Spaces between the Columns, or the Ornaments of their Capitals; fhall we not find, that their Beauty rifeth from the Appearance of Ufe, or the Imitation of natural Things, whofe Beauty is originally founded on the fame Principle? which is, indeed, the grand Diftinftion between Grecian and Gotbic Architecture , the latter being fantaftical, and for the mod part founded neither in Nature, nor in Reafon, in Neceflity nor Ufe, the Appearance of which Accounts for all the Beauty, Grace, and Ornament of the other. CRL What JLuphranor hath faid confirms the Opinion I always entertained, that the Rules of Architecture were founded, (as all other Arts which flourifhed among the Greeks) in Truth, and Nature, and good Senfe. But the Ancients, who, from a thorough Confide- ration of the Grounds and Principles of Art, formed their Idea of Beauty, did not always con- fine themfelves ftrictly to the fame Rules and Pro- portions : THE MINUTE DIAL, portions : But, whenever the particular Diftance, Hi. Pofuion, Elevation, or Dimenfion of the Fabric L- -V- ' or its Parts Teemed to require it, made no Scruple to depart from them, without deferring the original Principles of Beauty, which governed whatever Deviations they made. This Latitude or Licence might not, perhaps, be fafely trufted with moft modern Architects, who in their bold Sallies leem to act without Aim or Defign ; and to be governed by no Idea, no Reafon, or Principle of Art, but pure Caprice, joined with a thorough Contempt of that noble Simplicity of the Ancients, without which there can be no Unity, Gracefulnefs, or Grandeur in their Works ; which of Confequence muft ferve only to disfigure and difhonour the Na- tion, being fo many Monuments to future Ages of the Opulence and ill Tafte of the prefent ; which, it is to be feared, would fucceed as wretchedly and make as mad Work in other Affairs, were Men to follow, inftead of Rules, Precepts, and Models, their own Tafte and firft Thoughts of Beauty. ALC. I fhould now, methinks, be glad to fee a little more diftinctly, the Ufe and Tendency of this Digreffion upon Architecture. EUPH. Was not Beauty the very thing we inquired after ? ALC. It was. EUPH. What think you, Alciphron, can the Appearance of a Thing pleafe at this Time, and in this Place, which plealecJ two thoufand Years ago, and two thoufand Miles ofr^ without fome real Principle of Beauty ? ALC. It cannot. EUPH. And is not this the Cafe with refpect to a juft Piece of Architecture ? ALC. No body denies it. EUPH. Architecture, the noble Offspring of Judgment and Fancy, was gradually formed in the moft polite and knowing Countries of A/ia, Egypt, Greece and Italy. It was cherilhed and efteemed by the moft flourifhing States, and moft renowned Princes, who PHILOSOPHER. 127 who with vaft Expence improved and brought it DIAL to Perfection. It feems, above all other Arcs, III. peculiarly converfant about Order, Proportion, and Symmetry. May it not therefore be fuppofed on all Accounts, moil likely to help us to fome rational Notion of the je ne fyai qzwi in Beauty ? And, in effect, have we not learned from this Di- greffion, that as there is no Beauty without Pro- portion, fo Proportions are to be efteemed juft and true, only as they are relative to fome certain Ufe or End, their Aptitude and Subordination to which End is, at bottom, that which makes them pleafe and charm ? ALC. I admit all this to be true. X. EUPH. According to this Doctrine, I would fain know what Beauty can be found in a moral Syftem, formed, connected, and governed by Chance, Fate, or any other blind unthinking Prin- ciple ? Forafmuch as without Thought there can be no End or Defign ; and without an End there can be no Ufe ; and without Ufe there is no Aptitude or Fitnefs of Proportion, from whence Beauty fprings. ALC. May we not fuppofe a certain vital Principal of Beauty, Order, and Harmony dif- fufed throughout the World, without fuppofing a Providence infpecting, punifhing, and rewarding the moral Actions of Men ? Without fuppofing the Immortality of the Soul, or a Life to come ; in a word, without admitting any Part of what is com- monly called Faith, Worfhip, and Religion ? CRT. Either you fuppofe this Principle intelligent, or not intelligent : If the latter, it is all one with Chance, or Fate, which was juft now argued againft : IF the former, let me intreat Alciphron to explain to me, wherein confifts the Beauty of a moral Syftem, with a fupreme Intelligence at the head of it, which neither protects the Innocent, punifhes the Wicked, nor 128 THE MIN UT DIAL, rewards the Virtuous ? To fuppofe indeed a Society III. of rational Agents acting under the Eye of Provi- u v-* ' dence, concurring in one Defign to promote the common Benefit of the Whole, and conforming their Adlions to the eftablifhed Laws and Order of the Divine Paternal Wifdom : Wherein each par- ticular Agent (hall not confider himielf apart, but as the Member of a great City, whofe Author and Founder is God : In which the Civil Laws are no other, than the Rules of Virtue, and the Duties of Religion : And where every one's true Intercft is combined with his Duty : To fuppofe this would be delightful : On this S'jppofition, a Man need be no Stoic or Knight-errant, to account for his Vir- tue. In fuch a Syftem Vice is Madnefs, Cunning is Folly, Wifdom and Virtue are the fame Thing, where, notwith (landing all the crooked Paths and By-roads, the wayward Appetites and Inclinations of Men, fovereign Reafon is fure to reform whatever feems amifs, to reduce that which is devious, make ftraight that which is crooked, and in the laft A6t, wind up the whole Plot, according to the exadleft Rules of Wifdom and Juftice. In fuch a Syftem or Society, governed by the wifeft Precepts, enforced by the higheft Rewards and Difcouragements, it is delightful to confider, how the Regulation of Laws, the Diftribution of Good and Evil, the Aim of moral Agents, do all confpire in due Subordination to promote the nobleft End, to wit, the compleat Happinefs or Well-being of the Whole. In con- templating the Beauty of fuch a moral Syftem, we may cry out with the Pfalmift, Very excellent Things ere fpoken of .tbtc, tbou City of God. XI. In a Syftem of Spirits, fubordinate to the Will, and under the Direction, of the Father of Spirits, governing them by Laws and conducting them PH i LOSO PU E R* 129 them by Methods fuitable to wife and good Ends, DIAL. there will be great Beauty. But in an incoherent for- III. tuitous Syftem, governed by Chance, or in a blind Syftem governed by Fate, or in any Syftem where Providence doth not prefide, how can Beauty be, which cannot be without Order, which cannot be without Defign ? When a Man is confcious that his Will is inwardly conformed to the Divine Will, producing Order and Harmony in the Univerfe, and conducting the whole by the jufteft Methods to the belt End : This gives a beautiful Idea. But on the other hand, a Confcioufnefs of Virtue over- looked, neglected, diftrefied by Men, and not re- garded or rewarded by God, ill-ufed in this World, without Hope or Profpect of being better ufed in another, I would fain know, where is the Pleafure of this Reflexion, where is the Beauty of this Scene? Or, how could any Man, in his Senfes, think the fpreading fuch Notions the way to fpread or pro- pagate Virtue in the World ? Is it not, I befeech you, an ugly Syftem in which you can fuppofe no Law and prove no Duty, wherein Men thrive by Wickednefs and fuffer by Virtue ? Would it not be a difagreeable Sight to fee an honeft Man peeled by Sharpers, to lee virtuous Men injured and del- pifed while Vice triumphed ? An Enthufiaft may entertain himfelf with Vifions and fine Talk about fuch a Syftem 5 but when it comes to be confidcred by Men of cool Heads, and clofe Reafon, I believe they will find no Beauty nor Perfection in it ; nor will it appear, that fuch a moral Syftem can pofii- bly come from the fame Hand, or be of a piece with the natural, throughout which there flbincs fo much Order, Harmony, and Proportion. ALC. Your Difcourfe ferves to confirm me in my Opi- nion. You may remember, I declared, that touch- ing this Beauty of Morality in the high Senfe, a K Man's * 30 THE MINUTE DIAL. Man's firft Thoughts are beft ; and that, if we III. pretend to examine, and infpect, and reafon, we v*r>y>*/ are in danger to lofe Sight of it * That in fa6fc there is fuch a Thing cannot be doubted, when we confider that in thefe Days fomc of our Philofophers have a high Senfe of Virtue, without the leaft No- tion of Religion, a clear Proof of the Ufefulnels and Efficacy of our Principles ! XII. CRL Not to difpute the Virtue of Minute Philofophers, we may venture to call its Caufe in queftion, and make a doubr, whether it be an inexplicable Enthufiaftic Notion of Moral Beauty, or rather, as to me it feems, what was al- ready affigned by Eupbranor, Complexion, Cuftom, and Religious Education ? But, allowing what Beau- ty you pleafe to Virtue in an Irreligious Syftem, it cannot be lefs in a Religious, unlefs you will fup- pofe that her Charms diminifh as her Dowry in- creafeth. The Truth is, a Believer hath all the Motives from the Beauty of Virtue in any Senfe whatfoever that an Unbeliever can poffibly have, befides other Motives which an Unbeliever hath not. Hence it is plain, that thole of your Seel, who have moral Virtue, owe it not to their peculiar Te- nets, which ferve only to leflen the Motives to Vir- tue. Thole therefore, who are good, are lefs good, and thofe who are bad are more bad, than they would have been were they Believers. RUPH. To me it feems, thole heroic infidel Inamorato's of abftraclcd Bqauty are much to be pitied, and much to be admired. Lyficles* hearing this, faid with fome Impatience.; Gentlemen, You (hall have my * Men? firft Thoughts on moral Matters are generally better than their f^onJ.: their natural Notions better thao thofe refined by Study. Charadlsrillics, Vol. i. p. 13. . whole PHILOSOPHER* whole Thoughts upon this Point plain and frank. All that is faid about a Moral Senfe, or Moral Beauty, in any Signification, either of dkipbron or Euphranor^ or any other, I take to be at bottom mere Bubble and Pretence. The /caXov and the TfpsTroy, the beautiful and the decent, are Things outward, relative, and fuperficial, which have no Effect in the dark, but are fpecious Topics to dif- courfe and expatiate upon, as fome formal Preten- ders of our Sect, though in other Points very Or* thodox, are ufed to do. But mould one of them get into Power, you would find him no fuch Fool as Eupbranor imagines. He would foon mew he had found out, that the Love of one's Country is a Prejudice : That Mankind are Rogues 'and Hypo- crites, and that it were Folly to facrifice one's felf for the fake of fuch : That all Regards center in this Life, and that, as this Life is to every Man his own Life, it clearly follows that Charity begins at home. Benevolence to Mankind is perhaps pre- tended, but Benevolence to hirnfelf is practised by the Wife. The livelier Sort of our Ph'ilojbpnefs do not fcruple to own thefe Maxims; and as for the' graver, if they are true to their Principles, one may guefs what they muft think at bottom. CRL Whatever may be the Effect of pure' Theory upon certain felecl Spirits, of a peculiar Make, or in fome other Parts of the World ; I do verily think th;ic in this Country of ours, Reafon, Religion, Law, are all together little enough to fubdue the outward to the inward Man; and that it mud argue a wrong Head and weak Judgment to fuppofe, that without them Men would be enamoured of the golden Mean. To which my Countrymen perhaps are lefs inclined than others, there being in the Make of an Englifli Mind a certain Gloom and Eagernels, which carries to the fad Extreme ; Re- K 2 ligion 132 H & MINUTE DIAL, ligion to Fanaticifm ; Free-thinking toAtheiftn^ HI. Liberty to Rebellion : Nor Ihould we venture to v' be governed by Tafte, even in Matters of lefs Coniequence. The beautiful in Drefs, Furniture, and Building, is, as Euphranor hath obferved, fome- thing real and well grounded : And yet our Eng- lijh do not find it out of themfelves. What wretched Work do they and other Northern Peo- ple make, when they follow their own Tafte of Beauty in any of thefe Particulars, inftead of ac- quiring the true, which is to be got from ancient Models and the Principles of Art, as in the Cafe of Virtue from great Models and Meditation, fo far as natural Means can go ? But in no Cafe is it to be hoped, that TO xaXov will be the leading Idea of the many, who have quick Senfes, ftrong pafli- ons, and grofs Intellects. XIII. ALC. The fewer they are, the more ought we to efteem and admire fuch Philofo- phers, whofe Souls are touched and tranfported with this fubhme Idea. CRT. But then one might expect from fuch Philofophtrs, fo much good Senfe and Philanthropy, as to keep their Tenets to them- felves, and confider their weak Brethren, who are more ftrongly affected by certain Senles and Noti- ons of another Kind, than that of the Beauty of pure difinterefted Virtue. Cratylus^ a Man preju- diced againft the Chriftian Religion, of a crazy Conftitution, of a Rank above moft Mens Ambi- tion, and a Fortune equal to his Rank, had little Capacity for fenfual Vices, or Temptation to dif- honeft ones. Cratylus having talked himfelf, or imagined that he had talked himfelf, into a Stoical Enthufufm about the Beauty of Virtue, did, under the Pretence of making Men heroically virtuous, endeavour to deftroy the Means of making them realbnably PHILOSOPHER. 133 reafonably and humanly fo : A clear Inftance, that DIAL. neither Birrh nor Books nor Converfation can in- ill. troduce a Knowledge of the World into a conceit- ed Mind, which will ever be its own Object, and contemplate Mankind in its own Mirrour ! ALC. Cratylus was a Lover of Liberty, and of his Coun- try, and had a mind to make Men incorrupt and virtuous, upon the pureit and moft difinterefted Principles. CR1. It is true, the main Scope of all his Writings (as he himfelf tells us) was to af- fert the Reality of a Beauty and Charm in moral as well as in natural Subjects : to demonftrate a Tafte, which he thinks more effectual than Principle : to recommend Morals on the fame Foot with Manners : and fo to advance Philofbphy on the very Foun- dation of what is called agreeable and polite. As for religious Qualms, the Belief of a future State of Rewards and Punifhments, and fuch Matters, this great Man (ticks not to declare, that the libe- ral, polifhed, and refined Part of Mankind muft needs confider them only as Children's Tales and Amufements of the Vulgar. For the fake therefore of the better Sort he hath, in great Goodnefs and Wifdom, thought of fomething elfe, to wit, a Tafte or Relifh : this he allures us, is at laft what will influence : Since according to him whoever has any Imprefiion of Gentility (as he calls it) or Politeneis, is ib acquainted with the Decorum and Grace of Things, as to be readily tranfported with the Con- templation thereof*. His Conduct feems juft as wile, as if a Monarch fhould give our, that there was neither Jail nor Executioner in his Kingdom to enforce the Laws, but that it would be beautiful to obferve them, and that in 10 doing Men would * See Charafteriftics, Vol. III. Mifcel. 5. cap. 3. and Mifcel. 3. cap. 2. K 3 taftc , 134 T* IE MINUTE DIAL, tafte the pure Delight which refults from Order III. and Decorum. ALC. After all, is it not true that V-^*V>^ certain ancient Philofophers, of great Note, held the fame Opinion with Cratylus^ declaring that he did not come up to the Chara6fcer, or deferve the Title of a good Man, who practiced Virtue for the fake of any Thing but its own Beauty ? CRI. I believe, indeed, that fome of the Ancients faid fuch Things as gave occafion for this Opinion. driftotle * diftinguifheth between two Charac- ters of a good Man, the one he calleth et^afe or fimply good, the other y*a\os xaya^or, from whence the Compound Term y.aXcxa 7-/a, which cannot, perhaps, be rendered by any one Word in our Language. But his Senfe is plainly this : ayaSor he defineth to be that Man to whom the good Things of Nature are good : For, according to him, thofe Things, which are vulgarly efteemed the greateft Goods, as Riches, Honours, Power, and Bodily Perfections, are indeed good by Nature, but they happen neverthelefs to be hurtful and bad to fome Perfons, upon the account of evil Habits : Inafmuch as neither a Fool, nor an unjuft Man, nor an Intemperate can be at all the better for the Ufe of them, any more than a fick Man for ufing the Nourimment proper for thofe who are in Heahh. But xaXor xaya&cV is that Man in whom are to be found all Things worthy and decent and laudable, purely as fuch, and for their own fake, and who practifeth Virtue from no other Motive but the foleLbveof her own innate Beauty. That Philofopher obferves likewife, that there is a cer- tain political Habit, fuch as the Spar fans and others had, who thought Virtue was to be valued and pradifed on account of the natural Advantages * Ethic, ad Eudemum, lib. 7. cap. ult. dug PHILOSOPHER. 135 that attend it. For which Reafon he adds, They DIAL. are indeed good Men, but they have not the III. xaKoy-ayaQ-'ct, or fupreme confummate Virtue. From --v- hence it is plain that, according to Ariftotle^ a Man may be a good Man without believing Virtue its own Reward, or being only moved to Virtue by the Senfe of moral Beauty v It is alfo plain that he diftinguifheth the political Virtue of Nations, which the Public is every where concerned to main- tain, from this ibblime and fpeculative Kind. It might alio be obfcrved, that his exalted Idea did coniirt with fuppofing a Providence, which infpecls and rewards the Virtues of the bed Men. For, faith he in another Place*, if the Gods have any Care of Human Affairs, as it appears they have, it mould feem reafonable to fuppofe, that they are moft delighted with the mod excellent Nature, and moft approaching their own, which is the Mind, and that they will reward thofe who chiefly love and cultivate what is moft dear to them. The fame Philofopher obferves -f-, that the Bulk of Man- kind are not naturally difpoied to be awed by Shame, but by Fear : nor to abftain from vicious Practices, on account of their Deformity, but only of the Punimment which attends them. And again ^, he tells us, that Youth, being of itfelf averfe from Abftinence and Sobriety, mould be un- der the Reftraint of Laws regulating their Educa- tion and Employment, and that the fame Difcipline fliould be continued even after thiey became Men. For which, faith he, we want Laws, and, in one Word, for the whole ordering of Life : inafmuch as the Generality of Mankind obey rather Force than Reafon, and are influenced rather by Penalties, than the Beauty of Virtue ; Zflplats n irS * Ad Nicom. I. 10. c. 8. f Ibid. c. 9. J Ibid. K 4 From i 3 6 THE Mi NUTE DIAL. From all which it is very plain, what Ariftotlt III. would have thought of thofe, who mould go about to leflen or deftroy the Hopes and Fears of Man- kind, in order to make them virtuous on this fule Principle of the Beauty of Virtue. XIV. ALC. But, whatever the Stagirite and his Peripatetics might think, is it not certain the Stoics maintained this Doctrine in its higheft Senfe, afTerting the Beauty of Virtue to be all-fufficient ; that Virtue was her own Reward ; that this alone could make a Man happy, in fpite of all thofe things which are vulgarly efteemed the greatelt "Woes and Miferies of Human Life ? And all this they held at the fame time that they believed the Soul of Man to be of a corporeal Nature, and in Death difiipated like a Flame or Vapour. CRI. It muft be owned, the Stoics fometimes talk, as if they believed the Mortality of the Soul. Seneca, in a Letter of his to Lucilius, fpeaks much like a Minute Philofopher, in this Particular. But in fe- veral other Places, he declares himfelf of a clear contrary Opinion, affirming, that the Souls of Men after Death mount aloft into the Heavens, look down upon Earth, entertain themfelves with the Theory of Celeitial Bodies, the Courfe of Nature, and the Converfation of wife and excellent Men, who having Jived in diftant Ages and Countries upon Earth, make one Society in the other World. It muft alfo be acknowledged, that Marcus Antoni- nus fometimes fpeaks of the Soul as perifhing or difiblving into its Elementary Parts : But it is to be noted, that he diftinguifheth three Principles in the Compofition of Human Nature, the e-w/za, *> * Body, Soul, Mind, or as he other- * L. 3. c. 16. wife PHILOSOPHER. 137 wife exprefleth himfelf Non radii folis> non lucida tela dlel Difeutiunt, fed Nature fpecies raticque *. My Part, faid I, (hall be to (land by, as I have hitherto done, and take Notes of all that pafieth during this memorable Event : while a Minute Phi- lofopher not fix Foot high attempts to dethrone the Monarch of the Univerfe. Alas ! replied Lucretius. Arguments THE MINUTE Arguments are not to be meafured by Feet and Inches. One Man may fee more than a Million : and a flhort Argument, managed by a Free-thinker, may be fufficient to overthrow the moft gigantic Chimsera. As we were engaged in this Difcourfe, Crito and Euphranor joined us. I find you have been beforehand with us to-day, faid Crito to Al- cipbron, and taken the Advantage of Solitude and early Hours, while Euphranor and I were afleep in our Beds. We may therefore expect to fee Atheifm placed in the beft Light, and fupportcd by the ilrongeft Arguments. II. dLC. The Being of a God is a Subject upon which there has been a world of Common-place, which it is needlefs to repeat. Give me leave there- fore to lay down certain Rules and Limitations, in order to fhorten our prefent Conference. For as the End of Debating is to perfuade, all thofe Things which are foreign to this End, mould be left out of our Debate. Firft then, let me tell you, I am not to be perfuaded by Metaphyfical Arguments : fuch for Inttance as are drawn from the Idea of an All-perfect Being, or the Abfurdity of an infinite Progreffion of Caufes. This fort of Arguments I have always found dry and jejune : and, as they arc not fuited to my way of Thinking, they may per- haps puzzle, but never will convince me. Secondly, I am not to be perfuaded by the Authority either of paft or prefent Ages, of Mankind in general, or of particular wife Men : all which pafieth for little or nothing with a Man of found Argument and free Thought. Thirdly, All Proofs drawn from Utility or Convenience are foreign to the Purpofe. They may prove indeed the Ufefulnefs of the Notion, but; not the Existence of the Thing. Whatever LegifLuors or Statefmen may think, Truth and Con- venience PHILOSOPHER* 147 venience are very different Things to the rigorous DIAL. Eyes of a Philofopher. And now, that 1 may IV. not feem partial, I will limit myfelf alfo not to ob- v "V ject, in the firit place, from any thing that may feem irregular or unaccountable in the Works of Nature, againft a Gaufe of infinite Power and Wifdom : becaufe I already know the Anfwer you would make, to wit, That no one can judge of the Sym- metry and Ufe of the Parts of an infinite Machine, which are all relative to each other, and to the whole, without being able to comprehend the intirc Machine, or the whole Univerfe. And in the fecond place, I mail engage myfelf not to object: againft the Juftice and Providence of a Supreme Being, from the Evil that befalls good Men, and the Profperity which is often the Portion of wicked Men in this Life : becaufe I know that, inftead of admitting this to be an Objection againft a Deity, you would make it an Argument for a future State 5 in which there fhall be fuch a Retribution of Re- wards and Punilliments, as may vindicate the Di- vine Attributes, and fet all Things right in the End. Now thefe Anfwers, though they mould be admitted for good ones, are in truth no Proofs of the Being of God, but only Solutions of certain Difficulties which might be objected, fuppofing ic already proved by proper Arguments. Thus much I thought fit to premife, in order to fave Time and Trouble both to you and myfelf. CRI. I think that, as the proper End of our Conference ought to be fuppofed the Difcovery and Defence of Truth, fo Truth may be juftified, not only by perfaading its adverfaries, but, where that cannot be done, by mewing them to be unreafonable. Ar- guments, therefore, which carry Light have thefr Effect, even againft an Opponent who ihuts his Eyes, becaufe they mew him to be obftinate and JL 2 prejudiced. 148 THE MINUTE DIAL, prejudiced. Befides, this Distinction between Ar- IV. guments that puzzle and that convince, is leaft of all V-' r V x * / obferved by Minute Philofophers, and need not therefore be obferved by others in their favour. But, perhaps, Eitpbranor may be willing to encounter you on your own Terms, in which Cafe I have nothing farther to fay. .">rfi III. EUPH. Aldpbron afts like a skilful General, who is bent upon gaining the Advantage of the Ground, and alluring the Enemy out of their Trenches. We, who believe a God, arc intrenched within Tradition, Cuftom, Authority and Law. And neverthelefs, inftead of attempting to force us, he propofes that we mould voluntarily abandon thefe Intrenchments, and make the Attack : when we may act on the defenfive with much Security and Eafe, leaving him the Trouble to difpofiefs us of what we need not refign. Thofe Reafons (con- tinued he, addrefling himfelf to Alcipkrori) which you have muttered up in this Morning's Meditation, if they do not weaken, muft eftabliih our Belief of a God : for the utmoft is to be expected from fo great a Mafter in his Profeffion, when he fets his Strength to a Point. ALC. I hold the confufed Notion of a Deity, or fome invifible Power, to be of all Prejudices the moft unconquerable. When half a dozen ingenious Men are got together over a Glafs of Wine, by a chearful Fire, in a Room well- lighted; we banifh with cafe all the Spectres of Fancy or Education, and are very clear in our Decifions. But as I was taking a folitary Walk before it was broad Day- light in yonder Grove, methought the Point was not quite fo clear: nor could J readily recollect the Force of thofe Arguments, which uled to appear fo conclufive at other times. I had I know not .what Awe upon ray Mind, and feemed haunted by a fort ' PHI LOSOPHER; a fort of Panic, which I cannot otherwife account for, than by fuppofmg it the Effect of Prejudice : For you muft know, that I, like the reft of the World, was once upon a Time catechifed and tu- tored into the Belief of a God or Spirit. There is no furer Mark of Prejudice, than the believing a Thing without Reafon. What Neceffity then can there be that I fhould fet myfelf the difficult Task of proving a Negative, when it is fufficient to ob- ferve, that there is no Proof of the Affirmative, and that the admitting it without Proof is unrealbn- able ? Prove therefore your Opinion, or, if you can- not, you may indeed remain in pofieffion of it, but you will only be pofiefied of a Prejudice. EUPH. O Alciphron ! to content you, we muft prove, it feems, and we muft prove upon your own Terms. But, in the firft place, let us fee what fort of Proof you expect. ALC. Perhaps I may not expect it, but I will tell you what fort of Proof I would have : And that is in Ihort, fuch Proof as every Man of Senfe requires of a Matter of Fact, or the Exiftence of any other particular Thing. For Inftance, mould a Man ask why I believe there is a King of Great Britain ? I might anfwer, Becaufe I had feen him : Or a King of Spain ? Be- caufe I had feen thofe who faw him. But as for this King of Kings, I neither faw him myfelf, nor any one elfe that ever did fee him. Surely if there be fuch a Thing as God, it is very ftrange that he fhould leave himfelf without a Witnefs ; that Men fhould ftill difpute his Being -, and that there fhould be no one evident, fenfible, plain Proof of it, without recourfe to Philofophy or Metaphyfics. A Matter of Fact is not to be proved by Notions, but by Facts. This is clear and full to the Point. You. fee what I would be at. Upon thefe Principles I defy Superftition. EUPH. You believe then as far as you can. fee, ALC. That is my Rule of L 3 Faith. . THE MINUTE Faith. EUPH. How ! will you not believe the Exiftence of Things which you hear, unlefs you alfo fee them ? ALC. I will not fay fo neither. When I infifted on Seeing, I would be underftood to mean Perceiving in general. Outward Objects make very different Impreffions upon the animal Spirits, all which are comprifed under the common Name of Senfe. And whatever we can perceive by any Senfe we may be fure of. IV. EUPH. What! do you believe then there are fueh Things as animal Spirits ? ALC. Doubtlefs. EUPH. By what Senfe do you perceive them ? ALC. I do not perceive them immediately by any of my Senfes. I am neverthelefs perfuaded of their Exiftence, becaufe I can collect it from their Effects and Operations. They are the Meffengers, which running to and fro in the Nerves, preferve a Com- munication between the Soul and outward Objects. EUPH. You admit then the Being of a Soul. ALC. Provided I do not admit an immaterial Subftance, I fee no Inconvenience in admitting there may be fuch a Thing as a Soul. And this may be no more than a thin fine Texture of lubtile Parts or Spirits refiding in the Brain. EUPH. \ do not ask about its Nature. I only ask whether you ad- mit that there is a Principle of Thought and Action, and whether it be perceivable by Senfe. ALC. I grant that there is fuch a Principle, and that it is not the Object of Senfe itfelf, but inferred from Appearances which are perceived by Senfe. EUPH. If I underftand you rightly, from animal Functions and Motions, you infer the Exiftence of animal Spirits; and from reafonable Acts you infer the Exiftence of a reafonable Soul. Is it not fo ? ALC. It is. EUPH. It fliould ieem therefore, that the Being of Things imperceptible to Senle may be collected from Effects and Signs, or fenfible Tokens. ALC. PHILOSOPHER. 151 ALC. It may. EUPH. Tell me, Alciphron, is not DIAL. the Soul that which makes the principal Diftin&ion IV. between a real Perfon and a Shadow, a living Man ^s*v~*J and a Carcafe ? ALC. I grant it is. EUPH, I can- not, therefore, know that you for Inftance are a diftinct thinking Individual, or a living real Man, by furer or other Signs, than thofe from which it can be inferred that you have a Soul. ALC. You cannot. EUPH. Pray tell me, are not all Acts im- mediately and properly perceived by Senfe reducible to Motion ? ALC. They are. EUPH. From Motions therefore you infer a Mover, or Caufe : and from reafonable Motions (or fuch as appear calculated for a reafonable End) a rational Caufe, Soul, or Spirit. ALC. Even fo. V. EUPH. The Soul of Man actuates but a fmall Body, an infignificant Particle, in refpect of the great MaiTes of Nature, the Elements, and heavenly Bodies, and Syftem of the World. And the Wifdom that appears in thofe Motions, which are the Effet of Human Reafon, is incomparably lefs than that which difcovers itfelf, in the Structure and Ufe of organized natural Bodies, Animal or Vegetable. A Man with his Hand can make no Machine fo admirable as the Hand itfelf : Nor can any of thofe Motions, by which we trace out Hu- man Reafon, approach the Skill and Contrivance of thofe wonderful Motions of the Heart and Brain and other vital Parts, which do not depend on the Will of Man. ALC. All this is true. EUPH. Doth it not follow then, that from natural Motions, independent of Man's Will, may be inferred both Power and Witlom incomparably greater than that (5f the Human Soul ? ALC. It ihould feem fo. EUPH. Further, is there not in natural Produc- tions and Effects a vifible Unity of Counfcl and L 4 Dcfign ? 152 THE MINUTE- DIAL* Defign? Are not the Rules fixed and immoveable? JV. Do not the fame Laws of Motion obtain through- out ? The fame in Cbina and here, the fame two thoufand Years ago, and at this Day ? ALC. All this I do not deny. EUPH. Is there not alfo a Connexion or Relation between Animals and Ve- getables j between both and the Elements ; be- tween the Elements and heavenly Bodies ; fo that from their mutual Refpects, Influences, Subor- dinations, and Ufes, they may be collected to be Parts of one Whole, confpiring to one and the fame End, and fulfilling the fame Defign ? ALC. Suppofing all this to be true. EUPH. Will it not then follow, that this vaftly great or infinite Power and Wifdom muft be fuppofed in one and the fame Agent, Spirit, or Mind 3 and that we have, at leaft, as clear, full, and immediate Certainty of the Being of this infinitely wife and powerful Spirit, as of any one Human Soul \vhatfoever befides our own ? ALC. Let me confider : I fu/pecT: we pro- ceed too haftily. What ! Do you pretend you can have the fame Aflurance of the Being of God, that you can have of mine whom you actually fee fhnd before you and talk to you ? EUPH. The very fame, if not greater. ALC. How do you make this appear ? EUPH. By the Perfon Alcipbron is meant an individual thinking Thing, and not the Hair, Skin, or vifibje Surface, or any Part of the outward Form, Colour, or Shape of Aldpbron. ALC. This I grant. EUPH. And in granting this, you grant that, in a ftrict Senfe, I do not fee Al- cipbron, i. e. that individual thinking Thing, but only fuch vifible Signs and Tokens, as fuggeft and infer the Being of that invifible thinking Principle or Soul. Even fo, in the felf fame Manner it feems to me, that though I cannot with Eyes of behold the invifible God ; yet I do in the ftriftefl; PHILOSOPHER^ 153 ftrideft Senfe behold and perceive by all my Senfes DIAL.' fuch Signs and Tokens, fuch EfTecls and Operations, IV. as fuggeft, indicate, and demonftrate an invifibk God, as certainly and with the fame Evidence, at leaft, as any other Signs, perceived by Senfe, do fuggeft to me the Exiftence of your Soul, Spirit, or thinking Principle ; which I am convinced of only by a tew Signs or Effects, and the Motions of one fmall organized Body : Whereas I do at all Times, and in all Places, perceive fenfible Signs, which evince the Being of God. The Point, there- fore, doubted or denied by you at the beginning now feems manifeftly to follow from the Premifes. Throughout this whole enquiry, have we not con- lidered every Step with Care, and made not the kail Advance without clear Evidence ? You and I examined and afiented fingly to each foregoing Pro- pofition : What mall we do then with the Conclu- lion ? For my part, if you do not help me our, I find myfelf under an abfolute NecefTity of admit- ting it for true. You muft therefore be content, henceforward to bear the Blame, if I live and die in the Belief of a God VI. ALC. It muft be conFeft, I do not readily find an Anfwer. There feems to be fome Foun- dation for what you fay. But on the other hand, if the Point was fo clear as you pretend, I cannot conceive how fo many fagacious Men of our Sc<5b mould be fo much in the dark, as not to know or believe one Syllable of it. EUPH. O Alcipbron, it is not our prefent bufinefs to account for the Overfights, or vindicate the Honour of thofe great Men the FYee-th inkers, when their very Exiltence is in danger of being called in queftion. ALC. How fo ? EUPH. Be pleafed to recoiled the Con- c.efiions you have made, and then fliew me, if the THE MINUTE Arguments for a Deity be not conclufive, by what better Argument you can prove the Exiftence of that thinking Thing, which in ftrictnefs conftitutes the Free-thinker. As foon as Euphranor had utter- ed thcfe Words, dlcipbron ftopt fhort and Hood in a Pofture of Meditation, while the reft of us con- tinued our Walk and took two or three Turns, after which he joined us again with a fmiling Coun- tenance, like one who had made fome Difcovery; I have found, faid he, what may clear up the Point in difpute, and give Euphranor intire Satisfaction ; I would fay an Argument which will prove the Exiftence of a Free- thinker, the like whereof can- not be applied to prove the Exiftence of a God. You mult know then, that your Notion of our perceiving the Exiftence of God, as certainly and immediately as we do that of a Human Perfon, I could by no Means digeft, though I muft own it puzzled me, till I had confidered the Matter. At firft methought, a particular Structure, Shape, or Motion was the moft certain Proof of a thinking, Feafonable Soul. But a little Attention fatisfied me, that thefe Things have no neceflary Connexion with Re'afon, Knowledge, and Wifdom. And that al- lowing them to be certain Proofs of a living Soul, they cannot be fo of a thinking and reafonable one. Upon fecond Thoughts, therefore, and a minute Examination of this Point, I have found that no- thing fo much convinces me of the Exiftence of another Perfon as his fpeaking to me. It is my hearing you talk that, in ftrict and philofophical Truch, is to me the beft Argument for your Being. And this is a peculiar Argument inapplicable to your Purpofe : For you will not, I fuppofe, pre- tend that God fpeaks to Man in the fame clear and fenfible manner, as one Man doth to another. VII, PHILOSOPHER. 155 DIAL. VII. EUPH. How ! is then the Tmprefiion of IV Sound fo much more evident than that of other Senfes ? Or, if it be, is the Voice of Man louder than that of Thunder ? ALC. Alas ! You miftakc the Point. What I mean is not the Sound of Speech merely as fuch, but the arbitrary Ufe of fenfible Signs, which have no Similitude or neceflary Con- nexion with the Things fignified ; fo as by the ap- pofite Management of them, to fuggeft and exhibit to my Mind an endlefs Variety of Things, differing in Nature, Time, and Place : thereby informing me, entertaining me, and directing me how to act, not only with regard to Things near and prefenr, but alfo, with regard to Things diftant and future. No matter whether thefe Signs are pronounced or written, whether they enter by the Eye or the Ear : They have the fame Ufe, and are equally Proofs of an intelligent, thinking, defigning Caufe. EUPH. But what if it mould appear that God really fpeaks to Man j mould this content you ? 4LC. I am for admitting no inward Speech, no holy Inftincls, or Suggtftions of Light or Spirit. All that, you muft know, pafleth with Men of Senfe for nothing. If you do not make it plain to me, that God fpeaks to Men by outward fenfible Signs, of fuch fort and in fuch manner, as I have defined, you do nothing. EUPH. But if it mail appear plainly, that God fpeaks to Men by the Intervention and Ufe of arbitrary, outward, fenfible Signs, having no Re- femblance or necefTary Connexion with the Things they ftand for and fuggeft : If it (hall appear, that by innumerable Combinations of thefe Signs, an endlefs Variety of Things is difcovered and made known to us j and that we are thereby instructed or informed in their different Natures , that we are taught and admoniJhed what to fhun, and what to jpurfue \ '56 THE MINUTE D IAL. purfue ; and are directed how to regulate our JV. tions, and how to aft with refpect to Things dif- tant from us, as well in Time as Place ; will this content you ? ALC. It is the very Thing I would have you make out j for therein confifts the Force and Ufe and Nature of Language. VIII. EUPH. Look, Akipbron, do you not fee the Caftle upon yonder Hill ? ALC. I do. EUPH. Is it not at a great Diftance from you f? ALC. It is. EUPH. Tell me, Alcipbron, is not Diftance a Line turned End-wife to the Eye ? ALC. Doubtlefs. EUPH. And can a Line, in that Situ- ation, project more than one fingle Point on the Bottom of the Eye ? ALC. It cannot. EUPH. Therefore the Appearance of a long and of a fhort Diftance is of the fame Magnitude, or rather of no Magnitude at all, being in all Cafes one fingle Point. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. Should it not Follow from hence that Diftance is not immediately perceived by the Eye ? ALC. It mould. EUPH. Muft it not then be perceived by the Mediation of fome other Thing ? ALC. It mud. EUPH. To difcover what this is, let us examine what Al- teration there may be in the Appearance of the fame Object, placed at different Diftances from the Eye. Now I find by Experience that, when an Object is removed ftill farther and farther off in a direct Line from the Eye, its vifible Appearance ftill grows letter and fainter : And this Change of Appearance, being proportional and univerfal, feems to me to be that by which we apprehend the various Degrees of Diftance. ALC. I have nothing to object to this. EUPH. But Littlenefs or Faintnefs,. in their own Nature, Teem to have no neceflary Connexion with greater Length of Diftance. ALC. I admit this to be true* 'EUPH. Will it not follow PHILOSOPHER. 157 then, that they could never fuggeft it but from DIAL. Experience ? ALC. It will. EUPH. That is to IV. fay, we perceive Diftance, not immediately, but l/V by Mediation of a Sign, which hath no Likenefs to it, or neceflary Connexion with it, but only fuggefts it from repeated Experience, as Words do Things. ALC. Hold, Euphranor: Now I think of it, the Writers in Optics tell us of an Angle made by the two Optic Axes, where they meet in the vifible Point or Object ; which Angle, the obtufer it is the nearer it mews the Object to be, and by how much the acuter by fo much the farther off ; and this from a neceflary demonftrable Connexion. EUPH. The Mind then finds out the Diftance of Things by Geometry. AL C. It doth. EUPH. Should it not follow, therefore, that nobody could fee but thofe who had learned Geometry, and knew fome- thing of Lines and Angles ? ALC. There is a fort of natural Geometry, which is got without Learning. EUPH. Pray inform me, Alcipbron, in order to frame a Proof of any Kind, or deduce one Point from ano- ther, is it not neceflary, that I perceive the Connexion of the Terms in the Premifes, and the Connexion of the Premifes with the Conclufion : And, in general, to know one Thing by means of another, muft I not firft know that other Thing ? when I perceive your Meaning by your Words, mud I not firft perceive the Words themfelves ? and muft I not know the Premifes before I infer the Conclufion ? ALC. All this is true. EUPH. Whoever, therefore, collects a nearer Diftance from a wider Angle, or a farther Diftance from an acuter Angle, muft firft perceive the Angles themfelves. And he who doth not perceive thofe Angles, can infer nothing from them. Js it fo or not ? ALC. It is as you fay. EUPH. Ask now the firft Man you meet, whether he per- ceives or knows any Thing of ihofe Optic Angles ? Or i^g THE MINUTE DIAL. Or whether he ever thinks about them, of makes JV > any Inferences from them either by natural or ar- L ^r-u-f tificial Geometry ? What Anfwer do you think he would make ? ALC. To fpeak the Truth, I believe his Anfwer would be, that he knew nothing of thofe Matters. Elf PH. It cannot therefore be, that Men judge of Diftance by Angles : Nor confe- quently can there be any Force in the Argument you drew from thence, to prove that Diftance is perceived by means of fomething which hath a neceffary Connexion with it. ALC. I agree with you. IX. EUPH. To me it feems, that a Man may know whether he perceives a Thing or no : and if he perceives it, whether it be immediately or mediately : and if mediately, whether by means of fomething like or unlike, neceffarily or arbitrarily connected with it. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. And is it not certain, that Diftance is perceived only by Experience, if it be neither perceived im- mediately by itfelf, nor by means of any Image, nor of any Lines and Angles, which are like it, or have a neceffary Connexion with it ? ALC. It is. EUPH. Doth it not feem to follow from what hath been faid and allowed by you, that before all Ex- perience a Man would not imagine, the Things he iaw were at any Diftance from him ? ALC. How ! let me fee. EUPH. The Littlenefs or Faintnefs of Appearance, or any other Idea or Senfation, not neceffarily connected with, or refembling Diftance, can no more fuggeft: different Degrees of Diftance, or any Diftance at all, to the Mind, which hath not experienced a Connexion of the things figni- fying and fignified, than Words can fuggeft No- tions before a Man hath learned the Language. ALC. I allow this to be true. EUPH. Will it not thence follow, that a Man born blind, and made PHILOSOPHER. 159 made to fee, would, upon firft receiving his Sight, DIAL take the things he faw, not to be at any Diftance IV. from him, but in his Eye, or rather in his Mind ? ALC. I muft own it feems fo : And yet, on the other hand, I can hardly perfuade myfelf, that, if I were in fuch a State, I fhould think thofe Objects, which I now fee at fo great a Diftance, to be at no Diftance at all. EUPH. It feems then, that you now think the Objects of Sight are at a Diftance from you. ALC. Doubtlefs I do. Can any one queftion but yonder Caftle is at a great Diftance ? EUPH. Tell me, Alciphron, can you difcern the Doors, Windows, and Battlements of that fame Caftle ? ALC. I cannot. At this Diftance it feems only a fmall round Tower. EUPH. But I, who have been at it, know that it is no fmall round Tower, but a large fquare Building with Battle- ments and Turrets, which it feems you do not fee. ALC. What will you infer from thence? EUPH. I would infer, that the very Object, which you ftrictly and properly perceive by Sight, is not that Thing which is feveral Miles diftant. ALC. Why fo ? EUPH. Becaufe a little round Object is one Thing, and a great fquare Object is another. Is it not ? ALC. I cannot deny it. EUPH. Tell me, is not the vifible Appearance alone the proper Ob- ject of Sight ? ALC. It is. What think you now, (faid Eupbranor pointing towards the Heavens) of the vifible Appearance of yonder Planet ? Is it not a round luminous Flat, no bigger than a Sixpence ? ALC. What then? EUPH. Tell me then, what you think of the Planet itfelf. Do you not con- ceive it to be a vaft Opaque Globe, with feveral unequal Rifings and Vallies ? ALC. I do. EUPH. How can you therefore conclude, that the proper Object of your Sight exifts at a Diftance ? ALC. I confefs I know not. E UP H. For your farther Con- 160 THE MINUTE DIAL. Conviction, do but confider that crimfon Cloud, IV. Think you that if you were in the very Place where L.-V -; it is, you would perceive any Thing like what you now fee? ALC. By no means. 1 fhould perceive only a dark Mift. EUPH. Is it not plain, there- fore, that neither the Caftle, the Planet, nor the Cloud, which you fee here, are thofe real ones which you fuppofe exift at a Diftance ? X. ALC* What am I to think then ? Do we fee any thing at all, or is it altogether Fancy and II- lufion ? EUPH. Upon the whole, it feems the proper Objects of Sight are Light and Colours, with their ieveral Shades and Degrees ; all which, being infinitely diverfified and combined, form a Language wonderfully adapred to fuggell and ex- hibit to us the Diftances Figures, Situations, Di- jnenfions, and various Qualities of tangible Objects : not by Similitude, nor yet by Inference of necefiary Connexion, but by the arbitrary Impofition of Pro- vidence : juft as Words fuggeft the Things fign- fied by them. ALC. How ! Do we not, ftnclly fpeaking, perceive by Sight fuch Things as Trees, Houfes, Men, Rivers and the like ?//>#. We do, indeed, perceive or apprehend thofe Things by the Faculty of Sight. But will it follow from thence, that they are the proper and immediate Objects of Sight, any more than that all thofe Things are the -proper and immediate Objects of Hearing, which are fignified by the Help of Words or Sounds? ALC. You would have us think then, that Light, Shades, and Colours, varioufly combined, anlwer to the fe- veral Articulations of Sound in Language : and that, by means thereof, all Sorts of Objects are fuggcfted to the Mind through the Eye, in the larne manner as they are fuggefted by Words or Sounds through the Ear : that is, neither from necejflfary Deduction to PHILOSOPHER. 161 to the Judgment, nor from Similitude to the Fan- DIAL. cy, hue purely and folely from Experience, Cuftom, IV. and Habit. EUPH* I would not have you think * v~- J any Thing, more than the Nature of Things obligeth you to think, nor fubmic in the leaft to my Judgment, but only to the Force of Truth : which is an Impofition that I fuppofe the freeft Thinkers will not pretend to be exempt from. ALC. You have led me, it feems, Step by Step, till I am got I know not where. But I (hail try to get out again, if not by the Way I came, yet by fome other of my own finding. Here Akifbron, having made a Ihort Paufe, proceeded as follows. XI. Anfwer me, Euphranor, fhould it not fol- low from thefe Principles, that a Man born blind* and made to fee, wouid at firfl Sight not only not perceive their Diftance, but alfo not fo much as know the very Things themfelves which he faw, for Inftance, Men or Trees ? which furely to fup- pofe muft be abfurd. EUPH. I grant, in conie- quence of thofe Principles, which both you and I have admitted^ that (uch a one would never think of Men, Trees, or any other Objects that he had been accuflomed to perceive by Touch, upon hav- ing his Mind filled with new Senfations of Light and Colours, whofe various Combinations he doth not yet underhand, or know the Meaning of j no more than a GbSrtefe, upon firft hearing the Words .Man and Tree, would think of the Things fignified by them. In both Cafes, there mud be Time and Experience, by repeated Acts, to acquire a Habit of knowing the Connexion between the Signs and Things fignified ; that is to fay, of understanding the Language^ whether of the Eyes or of the Ears. And I conceive no Abfurdity in ail this. ALC. I fee, therefore, in 'ftrict -Philofophic.il M Truth, 162 THE MiNUti DIAL. Truth, that Rock only in the fame Senfe that I IV. may be faid to hear ir, when the Word Rock is t -v ' pronounced. EUPH. In the very fame. ALC. How comes it to pafs then, that every one fhail fay he fees, for Inftance, a Rock or a Houfe, when thofe things are before his Eyesj but no body will fay he hears a Rock or a Houfe, but only the Words or Sounds themfelves, by which thofe things are faid to be fignified or fuggefted, but not heard ? Befides, if Vifion be only a Language fpeaking to the Eyes, it may be asked ; When did Men learn this Language ? To acquire the Knowledge of fo many Signs, as go to the making up a Language, is a Work of fome Difficulty. But will any Man fay he hath fpent Time or been at Pains, to learn this Language of Vifion ? EUPH. No Wonder, we cannot affign a Time beyond our remoteft Me- mory. If we have been all practifing this Lan- guage, ever fince our firft Entrance into the World : If the Author of Nature conftantly fpeaks to the Eyes of all Mankind, even in their earJieft Infancy, whenever the Eyes are open in the Light, whe- ther alone or in Company : It doth not feem to me at all ftrange, that Men mould not be aware they had ever learned a Language, begun fo early, and praclifed Jo conftantly, as this of Vifion. And, if we alfb confider that it is the fame throughout the whole World, and nor, like other Languages, differing in different Places : it will not feem unac- countable, that Men mould miftake the Connexion between the proper Objects of Sight and the Things fignified by them, to be founded in necefiary Rela- tion or Likenefs : Or, that they mould even take them for the fame things. Hence it feems ea!y to conceive, why Men, who do not think, Ihould confound in this Language of Vifion the Signs with the Things fignified, otherwife than they PHILOSOPHER. 163 they are wont to do, in the various particular Lan- DIAL. guages formed by the feveral Nations of Men. IV. XII. It may be alfo worth while to obferve, that Signs being little confidered in themfelves, or for their own fake, but only in their relative Capacity, and for the fake of thofe things whereof they are Signs, it comes to pafs, that the Mind often over- looks them, fo as to carry its Attention immedi- ately on to the Things fignified. Thus, for ex ample, in reading we run over the Characters with the flighted regard, and pafs on to the meaning. Hence it is frequent for Men to fay, they fee Words, and Notions, and Things, in reading of a Book : whereas in Strictnefs, they fee only the Characters, which fuggeft Words, Notions, and Things. And by parity of Reafon, may we not fuppofe, that Men, not refting in, but overlooking the immedi- ate and proper Objects of Sight, as in their own Nature of fmall moment, carry their Attention on- ward to the very thing fignified, and talk as if they faw the fecondary Objeds ? which, in Truth and Strictnefs, are not feen, but only fuggefted and apprehended by means of the proper Objects of Sight, which alone are feen. ALC. To fpeak my Mind freely, this DifTertation grows tedious, and runs into Points too dry and minute for a Gentle- man's Attention. I thought, faid Crito^ we had been told, the Minute Philofophers loved to confi- der things clofely and minutely. ALC. That is true, but in fo polite an Age, who would be a mere Philofopher ? There is a certain Scholaftic Accu- racy which ill fuits the Freedom and Eafe of a well-bred Man. But, to cut fhort this Chicane, I propound it fairly to your own Conference, whe- ther you really think that God himfdf fpeaks every Day and in every Place to .the Eyes of all Men ? M 2 EUPH. THE MINUTE EUPH. That is really and in truth my Opinion : and it fliould be yours too, if you are confident with yourfelf, and abide by your own Definition of Language. Since you cannot deny, that the great Mover and Author of Nature conftantly explained! himfclf to the Eyes of Men by the fenfible Inter- vention of arbitrary Signs, which have no Simili- tude or Connexion with the Things figrtifkd ; fo as by compounding and difpofing them, to luggeft and exhibit an endlefs Variety of Objects, differing in Nature, Time, and Place, thereby informing and directing Men how to act with refpect to things diftant and future, as well as near and pre- fent. In Confequence, I fay, of your own Sentiments and Conceptions, you have as much reaibn to think, the univerfal Agent or God fpeaks to your Eyes, as you can have for thinking any particular Perlbn ipeaks to your Ears. ALC. I cannot help think- ing, that fome Fallacy runs throughout this whole Ratiocination, though perhaps I may not readily point it our. It feems to me that every other Senie may as well be deemed a Language as that of Vi- fion. Smells and Taftes, for inftancc, are Signs that inform us of other Qualities to which they have neither Likenefs nor necefiary Connexion. EUPH. That they are Signs is certain, as alfo that Language and all other Signs agree in the ge- neral Nature of Sign, or fo far forth as Signr. But it is as certain that all 5igns are not Language : not even all fignificant Sounds : fuch as the natural Cries of Animals, or the inarticulate Sounds and Interjections of Men. It is the Articulation, Com- bination, Variety, -Copioulhcls, extenfive and ge- neral Ule and eafy Application ofr Signs (all which are commonly found in Vifion) that conltitute the true nature of Language. Other Senfes may in- deed furnifli Signs > and yet thole Signs have no more PHILOSOPHER. 165 more right than inarticulate Sounds to be thought DIAL. a Language. ALC. Hold ! Jet me fee ! In Lan- IV. guage the Signs are arbitrary, are they not ? wv"^ UPH. They are. ALC. And confequently, they do not always fuggeft real Matters or' Fact. Whereas this natural Language, as you call it, or thefe vifible Signs, do always fuggeft Things in the fame uniform way, and have the fame conftant regular Connexion with Matters of Fact : whence it mould feem, the Connexion was necefliry, and therefore, according to the Definition premifed, it can be no Language. How do you folve this Objection ? EUPH. You may folve it yourfclf, by the help of a Picture or Looking-glafs. ALC. You are in the right. I fee there is nothing in it. I know not what elfe to fay to this Opinion more, than that it is fo odd and contrary to my way of thinking, that I mall never aflent to it. XIII. EUPH.. Be pleafed to recoiled your own Lectures upon Prejudice, and apply them in the prefent Cafe. Perhaps they may help you to fol- low where Reafon leads, and to fufpect Notions which are ftrongly riveted, without having been ever examined. ALC. I difdain the Sufpicion of Prejudice. And I do not fpeak only for myfclf. I know a Club of mod ingenious Men, the treed from Prejudice of any JVfen alive, who abhor the Notion of a God, and I doubt not would be very able to untie this Knot. Upon which Words of Alciphron, I, who had acted the Part of an indif- ferent Stander-by, obferved to him : That it mis- became his Character and repeated Profcfiions, to own an Attachment to the Judgment, or build up- on the prefumed Abilities ct other Men, how inge- nious foever : and that this Proceeding might en- courage his Adverfaries to have recourfe to Au.tho- M 3 rity, THE MINUT rity, in which perhaps they would find their Ac- count more than he. Oh ! faid Crito, I have often obferved the Conduct of Minute Philofophers. When one of them has got a Ring of Difciples round him, his Method is to exclaim againfl Pre- judice, and recommend Thinking and Reafoning, giving to underftand that himfelf is a Man of deep Refearches and clofe Argument, one who examines impartially, and concludes warily. The fame Man in other Company, if he chance to be preflfed with Reafon, {hall laugh at Logic, and afiume the lazy lupine Airs of a fine Gentleman, a Wit, a Rail- ]eur, to avoid the Drinefs of a regular and exact Inquiry. This double Face of the Minute Philo- fopher is of no fmall Ufe to propagate and maintain his Notions. Though to me it feems a plain Cafe, that if a fine Gentleman will fliake of? Authority, and appeal From Religion to Reafon, unto Reafon hemuftgo: And if he cannot go without Lead- ing-firings, furely he had better be led by the Au- thority of the Public, than by that of any Knot of Minute Philofophers. ALC. Gentlemen, this Dik courfe is very irkibtn and needlefs. For my part, 1 am a Friend to Enquiry. I am willing Reafon Ihould have its full and free Scope. I build on no Man's Authority. For my part, I have no Interefl in denying a God. Any Man may believe or not believe a God, as he pleafes, for me. But after all, Eupbranor mud allow me to flare a little at his Conclusions. EVPH. The Conclufions are yours as much as mine, for you were led to them by your own Concefiions. XIV. You it feems flare to find, that God is not far from every one of us ; and that in him we Jive and move and have our Being. You, who in the Beginning of this Morning's Conference, thought PHILOSOPHER. .167 thought it ftrange, that God Ihould leave himfelf DIAL. without a Witnefs, do now think it ftrange the IV. Witnefs fhould be To full and clear? ALC. 1 muft ^s~\r+J own I do. I was aware, indeed, of a certain Me- taphyfical Hypothefis, of our feeing all things in God by the Union of the Human Soul with the intelligible Subftance of the Deity, which neither I, nor any one elfe could make Senfe of. But I never imagined it could be pretended, that we Taw God with our flefhly Eyes, as plain as we fee any Human Perfon whatioever, and that he daily fpeaks to our Senfes in a manifeft and clear Dialect. CRL As for that Metaphyfical Hypothefis, I can make no more of it than you. But I think it plain, This optic Language hath a neceffiry Con- nexion with Knowledge, Wifdom, and Goodnefs. It is equivalent to a conftant Creation, betokening an immediate Ad of Power and Providence. It cannot be accounted for by mechanical Principles, by Atoms, Attractions, or Effluvia. The initan- taneous Production and Reproduction of fo many Signs combined, difiblved, tranfpofed, diverfiried, and adapted to fuch an endlefs variety of Purpofes, ever fhifting with the Occafions, and fuited to them, being utterly inexplicable and unaccountable by the Laws of Motion, by Chance, by Fate, or the like blind Principles, doth fet forth and teftify the immediate Operation of a Spirit or thinking Being : and not merely of a Spirit, which every Motion or Gravitation may pofiibly infer, but of one wife, good, and provident Spirit, who directs, and rules, and governs the World. Some Philo- fophers, being convinced of the Wifdom and Power of the Creator, from the Make and Contrivance of organized Bodies, and orderly Syftem of the World, did neverthelefs imagine, that he left this Syftem, with all its Parts and Contents well ad- M 4 jutted 1 68 THE MINUTE DIAL, jufted and put in Motion, as an Artift leaves a IV. Clock, to go thenceforward of itfelf for a certain * v-' Period. But this vifual Language proves, not a Creator merely, but a provident Governor actu- ally and intimately preient and attentive to all our Jnterefts and Motions : who watches over our Con- duct, and takes care of our minuted Actions and Defigns, throughout the whole courfe of our Lives, informing, admonifhing, and directing ir.ctfiantly, in a moft evident and ienfible manner. This is truly wonderful. EUPH. And is it not fo, that Men mould be encompafifed by fuch a Wonder, without reflecting on it ? XV. Something there is of Divine and Admir- able in this Language, addrefied to our Eyes, that may well awaken the Mind, and deferves its ut- moft Attention : it is learned with fo little Pains : it expreffeth the Differences of Things fo clearly and aptly : it inftrucls with luch Facility and Dif- patch, by one Glance of the Eye conveying a great- er Variety of Advices, and a more diitincl Know- ledge of Things, than could be got by a Difcourfe of feveral Hours. And, while it informs, it amufes and entertains the Mind with fuch fmgular PJeafure and Delight. Jt is of fuch excellent Ufe in giving a Stability and Permanency to Human Dif- courfe, in recording Sounds and bellowing Life on dead Languages, enabling us to converfe with Men of remote Ages and Countries. And it anfwers 'fo appofite to the Ufes and Ntcefiities of Mankind, "informing us more diftinc'tly of thofe Objecls, whole Nearnefs and Magnitude qualify them to be of greareft Detriment or Benefit to our Bodies, and Jefs exaclly, in proportion as their Littlenefs or Dii- tance make them of Jels Concern to us. ALC. And yet thefe ftrange Things affeft Men but iittlo. EUPH. PHILOSOPHER. 169 EUPH. But they are not ftrange, they are Fami- DIAL. liar, and that makes them to be overlooked. Things IV. which rarely happen ftrike ; whereas Frequency leffens the Admiration of Things, though in them- felves ever fo admirable. Hence a common Man, who is not ufed to think and make Reflexions, would probably be more convinced of the Being of a God, by one fmgle Sentence heard once in his Life from the Sky, than by all the Experience he has had of this vifual Language, contrived with fuch exquifite Skill, fo conftantly addreffed to his Eyes, and fo plainly declaring the Nearnefs, Wif- dom, and Providence of him with whom we have to do. ALC. After all, I cannot fatisfy myfelf, how Men fhould be fo little furprifed or amazed about this vifive Faculty, if it was really of a Nature fo furprifing and amazing. EUPH. But Jet us fuppofe a Nation of Men blind from their Infancy, among whom a Stranger arrives, the only Man who can fee in all the Country : Let us luppofe this Stranger travelling with fome of the Natives, and that one while he foretells to them, that, in cafe they walk ftraight forward, in half an Hour they fhall meet Men, or Cattle, or come to a Houfe : that if they turn to the right, and pro- ceed, they (ball in a few Minutes be in danger of falling down a Precipice : that fhaping their courfe to the left, they will in fuch a time arrive at a Ri- ver, a Wood, or a Mountain. What think you ? Muft they not be infinitely furprifed, that one, who had never been in their Country before, fhould know it fo much better than themfelves ? And would nc t thofe Predictions feem to them as unac- countable and incredible, as Prophefy to a Mi- nute Pi ilofopher ? ALC. I cannot deny it. EUPH. But it feems to require intenfe Thought, to be able to unravrl a Prejudice that has been fo 170 THE MINUTE PIAL. l n g forming, to get over the vulgar Error of ]V. Ideas common to both Senfes, and fo to diftinguifh v^^^^j between the Objects of Sight and Touch, which have grown (if I may fo fay) blended together in our Fancy, as to be able to fuppofe ourlelves ex- actly in the State, that one of thofe Men would be in, if he were made to fee. And yet this 1 be- lieve is poffible, and might feem worth the pains of a little Thinking, efpecially to thofe Men whole proper Employment and Profeffion it is to think, and unravel Prejudices, and confute Miftakes. I frankly own I cannot find my way out of this Maze, and fliould gladly be fet right by thofe who fee better than myfelf. CRI. The purfuing this Sub- ject in their own Thoughts would poffibly open a new Scene to thofe fpeculative Gentlemen of the Minute Philofophy. It puts me in mind of a Paf- lage in the Pfalmift, where he reprefents God to be covered with Light as with a Garment, and would methinks be no ill Comment on that ancient No- tion of fome Extern Sages : That God had Light for his Body, and Truth for his Soul. This Con- verfation Jatted till a Servant came to tell us the Tea was ready : Upon which we walked in, and found Ly/icles at the Tea-table. XVL As foon as we fat down, I am glad, faid Alciphron, that I have here found my Second, a frefh Man to maintain our common Caufe, which, I doubt, Ly/icks will think hath fuffered by his Abfence. LTS. Why fo ? ALC. I have been drawn into fome Conceffions you won't like. LTS. Let me know what they are. ALC. Why, that there is fuch a thing as a God, and that his Exif- tence is very certain. LTS. Blefsme! How came you to entertain fo wild a Norion ? ALC. You know we profefs to follow Reafon wherever ic leads. PHILOSO p HE R. 171 leads. And in fhort I have been reafbned into it. DIAL LTS. Reafoned ! You fliould fay amufed with IV. Words, bewildered with Sophiftry. EUPH. Have you a mind to hear the fame Reafoning that led Alciphron and me Step by Step, that we may examine whether it be Sophiftry or no? LTS. As to that, I am very eafy. I guefs all that can be faid on that Head. It mall be my Bufinefs to help my Friend out, whatever Arguments drew him in. EUPH. Will you admit the Premifes, and deny the Conclufions ? L TS. What if I admit the Conclufion ? EUPH. How! will you grant there is a God ? LTS. Perhaps I may. EUPff. Then we are agreed. LTS. Perhaps not. EUPH. O Lyficles ! you are a fubtlc Adverfary. I know not what you would be at. LTS. You muft know then, that at Bottom the Being of God is a Point in itfelf of fmall confequence, and a Man may make this Concefllon without yielding much. The great Point is, what Senfe the Word God is to be taken in. The very Epicureans allowed the Being of Gods : but then they were indolent Gods, uncon- cerned with human Affairs. Hobbes allowed a cor- poreal God : and Spinofa held the Univerfe to be God. And yet no body doubts they were ftanch Free-thinkers. I could wim indeed the Word God were quite omitted, becaufe in mod Minds it is coupled with a fort of fuperftitious Awe, the ve- ry Root of all Religion. I mail not, neverthelefs, be much difturbecl, though the Name be retained, and the Being of God allowed in any Senfe, but in that of a Mind, which knows all things, and beholds human Actions, like fome Judge or Ma- giftrate, with infinite Observation and Intelligence. The Belief of a God in this Senfe fills a Man's Mind with Scruples, lays him under Conftraints, and imbitters his very Being : But in another Senfe, 172 THE MINUTE DIAL, it may be attended with no great ill Confluence. IV. This I know was the Opinion of our great Diago- v v ' ras, who told me he would never have been at the pains to find out a Demonftration that there was no God, if the received Notion of God had been the fame with that of fome Fathers and Schoolmen. JLUPH. Pray what was that ? XVII. LTS. You mud know, Diagoras, a Man of much Reading and Inquiry, had dilcovered, that once upon a time the molt profound and fpeculative J)ivines finding it impoflible to reconcile the Attri- butes of God, taken in the common Senfc, or in any known Senfe, with Human Reafon, and the Appearances of things, taught that the Words Knowledge, Wifdom, Goodnefs, and luch like, when fpoken of the Deity, muft be underftood in a quite different Senfe, from what they fignify in the vulgar Acceptation, or from any thing that we can form a Notion of, or conceive. Hence, whatever Objections might be made againft the Attributes of God they eafi.Jy folved, by denying thofe Attri- butes belonged to God in this or that, or any known particular Senfe or Notion : which was the fame thing as to deny they belonged to him at all. And thus denying the Attributes of God, they in effect de- nied his Being, though perhaps they were not aware of it. Suppofe, for inftance, a Man mould object that future Contingencies were inconliftent with the Fore- Knowledge of God, becaule it ; s repugnant that certain Knowledge fliould be pi an uncertain thing : it was a ready and an eafy Anfwer to lay, that this may be true, with refpecl to Knowledge taken in the common Senfe, or in any Senfe that we can pofTibly form any Notion of : but that there would not appear the fame Inconflilency, between the contingent Nature of Thing?, and Divine Fore^ knowledge PHILOSOPHER. 173 knowledge, taken to fignify fomewhat that we DIAL, know nothing of, which in God fupplies the Place IV. of what we underftand by Knowledge , from which it differs not in Quantity or Degree of Perfection, but altogether, and in kind, as Light doth from Sound ; and even more, fince thefe agree in that they are both Senfations : whereas Knowledge in God hath no fort of Refemblance or Agreement with any Notion, that Man can frame ot Know- ledge. The like may be laid of all the other At- tributes, which indeed may by this means be equally reconciled with every thing, or with nothing. But all Men who think muft needs fee, this is cutting Knots, and not untying them. For how are things reconciled with the Divine Attributes, when thefe Attributes themfdves are in every intelligible Senfe denied ; and coniequently the very Notion of God taken away, and nothing left but the Name, without any Meaning annexed to it? In fhort, the Belief that there is an unknown Subject of Attri- butes abfolutely unknown, is a very innocent Doc- trine: which the acute Diagoras well {aw, and was therefore wonderfully delighted with this Syftem. XVIII. For, faid he, if this could once make its way, and obtain in the World, there would bean end of all natural or rational Religion, which is the Bafis both of the Jewifh and the Chriftian : for he who comes to God, or enters himfelf in the Church of God, muft firft believe that there is a God, in fome intelligible Senfe : and not only that there is fomething in general without any proper Notion, though never fo inadequate, of any of its Qualities or Attributes : for this may be Fate, or Chaos, or Plaftic Nature, or any thing elie as well as God. Nor will it avail to fay, there is fome- thing in this unknown Being analogous to Know- ledge 1 74. THE MINUTE DIAL, ledge and Goodnefs : that is to fay, which produceth IV. thofe Effects, which we could not conceive to be produced by Men in any Degree, without Know- ledge and Goodnefs. For this is in Fact to give up the Point in difpute between Theifts and Atheifts, the Queftion having always been, not whether there was a Principle, (which Point was allowed by all Philofophers as well before as fmce Anaxagoras) but whether this Principle was a vbJ Senfr, or in a Senfe which none of us underftand. Since, therefore, nothing can be inferred from fuch an Account of God, about Conlcience, or Worfhip, or Religion, you may even make the bed of ic: And, not to be fingular, we will ufe the Name too, and fo at once there is an End of Atheifm. EUPH. This Account of a Deity is new to me. I do not like it, and therefore mall leave it to be maintained by thofe who do. XIX. CRT. It is not new to me. I remember not long fince to have heard a Minute Philofopher triumph upon this very Point; which put me on inquiring what Foundacion there was for it in the Fathers or Schoolmen. And for ought that I can find, it owes its Original to thofe Writings, which have been publifhed under the Name of jJioKyfiqs the Areopagite. The Author of which, it mult be owned, hath written upon the Divine Attributes in a very fmguhr Stile. In his Treatife of the Ce- leftial Hierarchy * he faith, that God is fomething above all Eflence and Life, uVb ra-ao-av sV/av ; M|V : and again in his Treatife of the Divine Names -}-, that he is above all Wifdom and Under- ftanding, uVb oraVay ircxp'av ^ a-wjteiv, ineffable and innominable, apcnr^ ^ dvwmfjfr: the Wifdom of God he terms an unreafonable, unintelligent, and fooliui ^Afifdorn ; T aXoycv ^ avsv ^ /jiwrav <7c(p;'av. But then the Rcafon he gives, for exprefling him- felf in this ftrange Manner, is, that the Divine W ifdom is the Caufe of all Reafon, Wifdom, and Understanding, and therein are contained the Treafures of all Wifdom and Knowledge. Pie calls * D Hierarch. Cceleft, c. 2. f D Norn. Div. c. 7. God 176 THE MINUTE DIAL. God uTTspercCp' and uVeg^ws- : As if Wifdom and IV. Life were Words not worthy to exprefs the Divine i v* ' Perfections : And he adds, that the Attributes unin- telligent and unperceiving muft be afcribed to the Divinity, not .ar sXXa-^/iv by way of Defect, bu xaQ' uTrsgo^riv by way of Eminency : which he ex- plains by our giving the Name of Darknefs to Light inacceflible. And, notwithstanding the Harfhnefs of his Expreffions in fome Places, he affirms over and over in others, that God knows all Things ; not that he is beholden to the Creatures for his Knowledge, but by knowing himfelf, from whom they all derive their Being, and in whom they are contained as in their Caufc. It was late before thefe Writings appear to have been known in the World : And although they obtained Credit during the Age of the Schoolmen, yet fince critical Learning hath been cultivated, they have loft that Credit, and are at this Day given up for fpurious, as containing feveral evident Marks of a much later Bate than the Age of Dionyfms. Upon the whole, although this Method of growing in Exprefllon, and dwindling in Notion, of clearing up Doubts by Nonfenfe, and avoiding Difficulties by running into affected Contradictions, may perhaps proceed from a well-meant Zeal ; yet it appears not to be ac- cording to Knowledge, and inftead of reconciling Atheifts to the Truth, hath, I doubt, a Tendency to confirm them in their own Pcrfuafion. It mould feem, therefore, very weak and rafh in a Chriftian to adopt this harm Language of an Apocryphal Writer, preferably to that ot the Holy Scriptures. I remember, indeed, to have read of a certain Phi- lofopher, who lived fome Centuries ago, that uled to fay, if thefe fuppofed Works of Diomfiui had been known to the Primitive Fathers, they would have furnifhed them admirable Weapons againft the Heretic?, and would have faved a world of pains. But LOSO PrffiR. i*J*J But the Event fines 'their Difcovefy hath by no DIAL, means confirmed his Opinion. It muft be owned, IV. the celebrated Picus of Mirandula, among his Nine u /- Hundred Conclufions (which that Prince being very young, propofed to maintain by public Difputa- rion at Rome) hath this for one ; to wit, that it is more improper to lay of God, he is an Intellect or intelligent Being, than to fay of a reafonable Soul > that it is an Angel : Which Doctrine it feems was not relifhed. And Picus, when he comes to defend it, fupports himfeU altogether by the Ex- ample and Authority of Dionyjius, and in effect explains it away into a mere verbal Difference, affirming, that neither Dionyfius nor himfelf ever meant to deprive God of Knowledge, or to deny that he knows all Things : But that, as Reafon is of kind peculiar to Man, fo by Intellection he un- derftands a kind or manner of Knowing peculiar to Angels : And that the Knowledge, which is in God, is more above the Intellection of Angels, than Angel is above Man. He adds thatj as his Tenet confifts with admitting the moft perfet: Knowledge in God, fo he would by no means be underftood to exclude from the Deity Inteliectiori hfelf; taken in the common or general Senfe, buE only that peculiar fort of Intellection proper to Angels, which he thinks ought not to be attributed to God any more than Human Reafon*. Picus ^ therefore, though he fpeaks as the Apocryphal Dionyfius^ yet when he explains himfelf, it is evident he fpeaks like other Men. And although the for- mentioned Books of the Celeftial Hierarchy and of the Divine Names, being attributed to a Saint and Mart-yr of the Apoftolical Age, were reflected by the Schoolmen ; yet ic is certain they rejected or * Pic. Mirand. in Apolog. p. 155. Ed. Baf. N foftncd THE MINUTE fofoned his harfti Expreffions, and explained away or reduced his Doctrine to the received Notions taken from Holy Scripture, and the Light of Nature. XX. Thomas Aquinas exprefieth his Senfe of this Point in the following manner. All Perfections, faith he, derived from God to the Creatures are in a certain higher Senfe, or (as the Schoolmen term it) eminently in God. Whenever, therefore, a Name borrowed from any Perfection in the Creature is attributed to God, we muft exclude from its Signification every thing that belongs to the im- perfect Manner, wherein that Attribute is found in the Creature. Whence he concludes, that Know- ledge in God is not an Habit, but a pure Act: *. And again the fame Doctor obferves, that our In- tellecl gets its No-dons of all forts of Perfections from the Creatures, and that as it apprehends thofe Perfections, fo it fignifies them by Names. There- fore, faith he, in attributing thele Names to God, we are to confider two Things , firft, The Per- fections themfelves as Goodnefs, Life, and the like, which are properly in God j and, fecondly, The Manner which is peculiar to the Creature, and can- not, ftrictly and properly fpeaking, be faid to agree to the Creator {-. And although Suarez, with other Schoolmen, teacheth, that the Mind of Man con- ceiveth Knowledge and Will to be in God, as Faculties or Operations, by Analogy only to created Beings , yet he gives it plainly as his Opinion, that when Knowledge is faid not to be properly in God, it muft be understood in a Senfe including Imper- fection, fuch as difcurfive Knowledge, or the like * Sum. Theolog. p. i. Qiueft. 14. Art. i. f Ibid. Quxit. 13. Art. 3. imperfect PHILOSOPHER. 179 imperfect kind found in the Creatures : And that, DIAL. none of thofe Imperfections in the Knowledge of IV. JMen or Angels belonging to Knowledge as fuch, it v - v - will noc thence follow that Knowledge, in its proper Senfe, may not be attributed to God : And of Knowledge taken in general for the clear evident underftanding of all Truth, he exprefly affirms that it is in God, and that this was never denied by any Philofopher who believed a God *. It was in- deed a current Opinion in the Schools, that even Being itfelf mould be attributed analogically to God and the Creatures. That is, they held that God^ the fupreme, independent, felf-originate Caufe and Source of all Beings, muft not be fuppofed to exift in the fame Senfe with created Beings, not that he exifts lefs truly or properly than they, but only be- caufe he exifts in a more eminent and perfect Manner. XXT. But to prevent any Man's being led, by miftaking the Scholartic Ufe of the Terms Analogy and Analogical, into an Opinion that we cannot frame in any Degree, a true and proper Notion of Attributes applied by Analogy, or, in the School Phrafe, predicated analogically, it may not be amifs to inquire into the true Senfe and Meaning of thofe Words. Every one knows, that Analogy is a Greek Word ufed by Mathematicians, to fignify a Similitude of Proportions. For Inftance, when we obferve that Two is to Six, as Three is to Nine, this Similitude or Equality of Proportion is termed Analogy. And although Proportion ftridfy figni- fies the Habitude or Relation of one Quantity to another, yet in a loofer and tranfiated Senfe, it hath been applied to fignify every ocher Habitude : And * Suarez Difp. Metaph. Tom. 2. Difp. 30. Se&. 15. N 2 con- iPo THE MINUTE DIAL, confequently the Term Analogy comes to fignify IV. all Similitude of Relations, or Habitudes what- < -v -' foever. Hence, the Schoolmen tell us there is Analogy between Intellect and Sight : Forafmuch as, Intellect is to the Mind, what Sight is to the Body ? And that he who governs the State is ana- logous to him who fleers a Ship. Hence a Prince is analogically itiled a Pilot, being to the State as a Pilot is to his Vefiel *. For the farther clearing of this Point it is to be obferved, that a two-fold Analogy is diftinguifhed by the Schoolmen, meta- phorical and proper. Ot the firft Kind there are irequent Inilanccs in Holy Scripture, attributing Human Parts and Pafiions to God. When he is reprefented as having a Finger, an Eye, or an Ear : when he is faid to repent, to be angry, or grieved : everyone fees the Analogy is merely metaphorical. Becaufe thofe Parts and Pafiions, taken in the proper Signification, muft in every Degree necef- iarily, and from the formal Nature of the Thing, include Imperfection. When therefore it is faid, The Finger of God appears in this or that Event, Men of common Senfe mean no more, but that it is as truly afcribed to God, as the Works wrought by Human Fingers are to Man : and fo of the reft. But the Cafe is different, when Wifdom and Knowledge are attributed to God. PafTions and Senfes, as fuch, imply Defect :. but in Knowledge fimply, or as fuch, there is no Defect. Knowledge therefore, in the proper formal Meaning of the Word, may be attributed to God proportionably, that-i, prelerving a Proportion to the infinite Na- ture of God. We may fay, therefore, that as God is infinitely above Man, io is the Knowledge of God infinitely above the Knowledge of Man, and * Vide Cajetan. de Norn. Analog, c. 3. this PH ILOSOPHER. 181 this is what Cajetan calls Analogia proprie fatta. And DIAL. after this fame Analogy, we mult underitand all IV. thofe Attributes to belong to the Deity, which in s^v^ themfelves fimply, and as fuch, denote Perfection. We may .therefore confidently with what hath been premifed, affirm that all forts of Perfection, which we can conceive in a finite Spirit, are in God, but without any of that Allay which is found in the Creatures. This Doctrine therefore of Analogical Perfections in God, or our knowing God by Ana- logy, feems very much mifunderftood and mifap- plied by thofe who would infer from thence : that we cannot frame any direct or proper Notion, though never fo inadequate, of Knowledge or Wil- dom, as there are in the Deity : or underftand any more of them than one born blind can of Light and Colours. XXII. And now, Gentlemen, it may be ex- pected I mould ask your Pardon for having dwelt fo Jong on a Point of Metaphyfics, and introduced foch unpolifhed and unfafliionable Writers, as the Schoolmen, into good Company : but as Lyjicles gave the Occafion, I leave him to anfwer for it. LTS. I never dreamed of this dry Difftrtation. But, if I have been the Occafion of difcuffing thele Scholaftic Points, by my unlucky mentioning the Schoolmen, it was my firfl Fault of the Kind, and I promife it mail be the Jaft. The meddling with crabbed Authors of any fort, is none of my Tafte. I grant one meets now and then with a good Notion in what we call dry Writers, fuch an one for example as this I was fpeaking of, which I mult own {truck my Fancy. But then for thefe, we have fuch as Prodicus or Diagoras, who look into obiblete Books, and fave the reit of us that trouble. CRl. So you pjn your Faith upon them. LYS, It is only for N 3 fome 182 THE MINUTE DIAL, fome odd Opinions, and Matters of Fact, and cri- IV. tical Points. Befides, we know the Men to whom ^Y"^- we give credit : They are judicious and honeft, and have no End to ferve but Truth. And I am con- fident iome Author or other has maintained the forememioned Notion in the fame Senfe as Diagoras related it. CRL That may be. But it never was a received Notion, and never will, fo long as Men believe a God : the fame Arguments that prove a firii Caufe, proving an intelligent Caufe : Intelligent, I fay, in the proper Senfe : Wife and Good in the true and formal Acceptation of the Words. Other- wife it is evident, that every Syllogifm brought to prove thofe Attributes, or (which is the fame thing) to prove the Being of a God, will be found to con- fift of four Terms, and confequently can conclude nothing. Bat for your part, Alciphron^ you have been fully convinced, that God is a thinking intel- ligent Being in the fame Senfe with other Spirits, though not in the fame imperfect Manner or Degree. 'O ' XXIII. ALC. And yet I am not without my Scruples: For with Knowledge you infer Wifdom, and with Wifdom Goodnefs. Though I cannot fee that it is either wife, or good, to enact fuch Laws as can never be obeyed. CRL Doth any one find fault with the Exactnefs of Geometrical Rules, be- caufe no one in Practice can attain to it ? The per- fection of a Rule is ufeful, even though it is not reached. Many may approach what all may fall fhort of. ALC. But how is it poflible to conceive God fo good, and Man fo wicked ? It may per- haps with fome Colour be alledged, that a little foft Shadowing of Evils fets off the bright and luminous Parts of the Creation, and fo contributes to the Jkauty of the whole Piece : But, for Blots fo large arjd fb blade it is impofiible to account by thac Principle, PHILOSOPHER. 183 Principle. That there mould be fa much Vice, and DIAL Co little Virtue upon Earth, and that the Laws of IV. God's Kingdom ihould be fo ill obferved by his >^-v^ Subjects, is what can never be reconciled with that furpaffing Wifdom and Goodnefs of the fupreme Monarch. EUPH. Tell rne, Alciphron^ would you argue that a State was ill adminiftred, or judge of the Manners of its Citizens, by the Difbrders com- mitted in the Goal or Dungeon ? slLC, I would not. EUPH. And for ought we know, this Spot with the few Sinners on it, bears no greater Pro- portion to the Univerfe of Intelligences, than a Dungeon doth to a Kingdom. It feems we are led not only by Revelation, but by common Senfe, obferving and inferring from the Analogy of vifible Things, to conclude there are innumerable Orders of intelligent Beings more happy and more perfect than Man : whole Life is but a Span, and whofe Place, this earthly Globe, is but a Point, in refpect of the whole Syftem of God's Creation. We are dazzled indeed with the Glory and Grandeur of things here below, becaufe we know no better. But I am apt to think, if we knew what it was to be an Angel for one Hour, we mould return to this World, though it were to fit on the brighteft Throne in it, with vaftly more Loathing and Reluctance, than we would now defcend into a loath fome Dun- geon or Sepulchre. XXIV. CRT. To me it feems natural, that-fuch a weak, paffionate, and fhort- lighted Creature as Man, mould be ever liable to Scruples of one kind or other. But, as this fame Creature is apt to be over-pofitive in judging, and over-hafty in con- cluding, it falls out, that thefe Difficulties and Scruples about God's Conduct are made Objections to his Being. And fo Men come to argue from N 4 their THE MINUTE their own Defecls, againft the Divine Per fed: ions,' And, as the Views and Humours of Men are dif- ferent, and often opposite, you may fometimes fee them deduce the fame atheiftical Conclufion from contrary Premifes. I knew an Inftance of this in two Minute Philofophers of my Acquaintance, who ufed to argue each from his own Temper againft a Providence. One of them, a Man of a choleric and vindictive Spirit, faid he could not believe a Providence : becaufe London was not fwallowed up or confumed by Fire from Heaven : the Streets being, as he faid, full of People, who (hew no orher Be- lief or Wormip of God, but perpetually praying that he would damn, rot, fink, and confound them. The other, being of an indolent and eafy Temper, concluded there could be no fuch Thing as a Pro- vidence : for that a Being of confummate Wifdom rnuft needs employ himfelf better, than in minding the Prayers, and Actions, and little Interefts of Mankind. ALC. After all, if God have no Pafiions, how can it be true that Vengeance is his ? Or how can he be find to be jealous of his Glory ? CRT. We believe that God executes Vengeance without Revenge, and is jealous without Weaknefs, juft as the Mind of Man fees without Eyes, and appre- hends without Hands. XXV. ALC. To put a Period to this Difcourfe, we will gran.t, there is a God in this difpaffionate Senfe : but what then ? What hath this to do with Religion or Divine Worfhip ? To what purpofe are all thefe Prayers and 'Praifes, and Thankfgiv- ings, and Singing of Pfalms, which the foolifh Vulgar call ferving God ? What Senfe, or Ufe, or End is there in all thefe Things? CRI. We worfhip God, we praife and pray to him : not be- caule we think that he is proud of our Worfhip, or fonc) PHILOSOPHER." 185 fond of our Praife or Prayers, and affecled with DIAI,; them as Mankind are : or that all our Service can IV. contribute in the leaft Degree to his Happinefs or *-* vJ Good : But becaufe it is good for us, to be fo dif- pofed towards God : becaufe it is juft and right, and fuitable to the Nature of Things, and becoming the Relation we (land in to our fupreme Lord and Go^ vernor. d LC. If it be good for us to worfliip God, it fhould feem that the Chriftian Religion, which pretends to teach Men the Knowledge and Worfhip of God, was of fome Ufe and Benefit to Mankind. CRL Doubtlefs. ALC. If this can be made appear, I fhall own myfelf very much mif- taken. CRL It is now near Dinner-time. Where- fore, if you pleafe, we will put an end to this Con- verfation for the prefent, and To-morrow Morning refume our Subject. Tut t86 THE MINUTE THE FIFTH DIALOGUE. *? in I. Minute Philofophers join in the Cry, and follow the Scent of others. II. Worfhip prescribed by the Chriftian Religion fait able to God and Man. III. Power and Influence of the Druids. IV. Excel- lency and Ufefulnefs of the Chriftian Religion. V. It ennobles Mankind ', and makes them happy. VI. Religion neither Bigotry nor Super/Titian. VII. Phyficians and Phyftc for the Soul. VI H. Crf- N0I0 1 0f */tf Clergy. IX. Natural Religion and Human Reafon not to be difparaged. X. Tendency and Ufe of the Gentile Religion. XI. GW / quern part prudentes ac viri boni difficillime po/unt. PHILOSOPHER. 195 pojfiint. But although you might fbmetimes obferve DIAL* particular Perfons, profefling themfelves Chriftians, V. run into faulty Extremes of any Kind, through < -vW Paffion and Infirmity, while Infidels of a more calm and difpafiionate Temper fhall perhaps behave better. Yet thefe natural Tendencies on either fide prove nothing, either in favour of Infidel Principles, or againft Chriftian. if a Believer doth Evil, it is owing to the Man, not to his Belief. And if an Infidel doth Good, it is owing to the Man, and not to his Infidelity. VII. LTS. To cut this Matter fhort, I fhall borrow an Ailufion to Phyfic, which one of you made ule of againft our Stci. It will not be denied, that the Clergy pals lor Phyficians of the Sou!, and that Religion is a fort of Medicine which they deal in and adminifter. If then Souls in great numbers are difealed and loft, how can we think the Phyfician skilful, or his Phyfic good ? it is a com- mon Complaint, that Vice increafes, and Men grow daily more and more wicked. If a Shepherd's Fiock be difeafed or unfound, who is to blame but the Shepherd, for neglecting, or not knowing how to cure them ? A Fig therefore for fuch Shepherds, fuch Phyfic, and luch Phyficians, who like other Mountebanks, with great Gravity and elaborate Harangues put off their Pills to the People, who are never the better for them. EUPIL Nothing feems more reasonable than this Remark, That Men lliould judge of a Phyfician and his Phyfic, by its Effect on the Sick. But pray, Lyficks^ would you judge of a Phyfician, by thofe Sick who take his Phyfic and follow his Prescriptions, or by thofe who do not? LTS. Doubt lefs by thofe who do. &UPH. What fliail we fay then, if great Num- O 2 bers THE MINUTE bers refufe to take the Phyfic, or inftead of it take Poifon of a direct contrary Nature prefcribed by others, who make it their Bufinefs to difcredit the Ph)fician and his Medicines, to hinder Men from ufing them, and to deftroy their Effect by Drugs of their own ? Shall the Phyfician be blamed for the Mifcarriage of thofe People ? LTS. By no means. EUPH. By a parity of Reafon mould it not follow, that the Tendency of religious Doctrines ought to be judged of by the Effects which they produce, not upon all who hear them, but upon thofe only who receive or believe them? LTS. It feems fb. EUPH. Therefore to proceed rairly, mall we not judge of the Effects of Religion by the Re- Jigious, of Faith by Believers, of Christianity "by Chriftians. VIII. ITS. But I doubt thefe fincere Believers are very few. EUPH. But will it not fuffice to juftify our Principles, if in proportion to the Num- bers which receive them, and the degree of Faith with which they are received, they produce good Effects ? Perhaps the Number of Believers are not fo few as you imagine : and if they were, whofe Fault is that fo much as of thofe who make it their profefTcd Endeavour to leflen that Number ? And who are thofe but the Minute Philosophers ? LTS. I tell you it is owing to the Clergy themfelves, to the Wickednefs and Corruption of Clergymen. EUPH. And who denies that there may be Minute Philofophers even among the Clergy ? CRT. In fo numerous a Body it is to beprefumed there are Men of all forts. But notwithftanding the cruel Re- proaches caft upon that Order by their Enemies, an equal Obferver of Men and Things will, if I mif- take nor, be inclined to think thofe Reproaches owing PHILOSOPHER. 197 owing as much to other Faults, as thofe of the DIAL. CJergy : efpecially if he confiders the declamatory V. Manner of thofe who cenfure them. EUPH. My Knowledge of the World is too narrow for me to pretend to judge of the Virtue, and Merit, and liberal Attainments of Men in the feveral Pro- feffions. Befides, I ihould not care for the odious. Work of Comparifon : But I may venture to fay, the Clergy of this Country where I live are by no means a Difgrace to it: on the contrary, the People feem much the better for their Example and Doc- trine. But fuppofing the Clergy to be (what all Men certainly are) Sinners, and faulty ; fuppofing you might fpy out here and there among them even great Crimes and Vices ; what can you conclude againfl the Profeffion itfelf from its unworthy Pro- fcflbrs, any more than from the Pride, Pedantry, and bad Lives of fome Philofophers againlt Phi- Jofophy, or of Lawyers againft Law ? IX. CRI. It is certainly right to judge of Prin- ciples from their Effects, but then we muft know them to be Effects of thofe Principles, it is the very Method I have obferved, with refpect to Re- ligion and the Minute Philofophy. And I can honeftly aver, that 1 never knew any Man or Fa- mily grow worfe in proportion as they grew re- ligious : But I have often obiervtd, that Minute Philofophy is the worft Thing which can get into a Family, the readied way to impoveriih, divide, and difgrace it. ALC. By the fame Method of tracing Caufes from their Effects, I have made it my Obfervation, That the Love of Truth, Virtue, and the Happinefs of Mankind are fptcious Pretexts, but not the inward Principles that fet Divines at work : Elfe why mould they affect to abufe Human Reafon, to difparage Natural Religion, to traduce O 3 the 198 THE MINUTE DIAL. Philofophers, as they univerfally do? CRI. Not fo V. univerfally perhaps as you imagine. A Chriftian, \S-Y^*S indeed, is for confining Reafon within its due Bounds : and fo is every reafonable Man. If we are forbid meddling with unprofitable Queftions, vain Philofophy, and Science faifly fo called, it cannot be thence inferred, that all Inquiries into profitable Queftions, ufeful Philofophy, and true Science, are unlawful. A Minute Philofopher may indeed impute, and perhaps a weak Brother may imagine thofe Inferences, but Men of Senfe will never make them. God is the common Father of Lights : and all Knowledge really fuch, whether natural or revealed, is derived from the fame Source of Light and Truth. To amafs together Autho- rities upon fo plain a Point would be needlefs. It muft be owned fome Mens attributing too much to Human Reafon, hath, as is natural, made others attribute too little to it. But thus much is generally acknowledged, that there is a natural Religion, which may be difcovered and proved by the Light of Reafon, to thofe who are capable of fuch Proofs. But it muft be withal acknowledged, that Precepts and Oracles from Heaven are incomparably better fuited to popular Improvement, and the Good of Society, than the Reafonings of Philofophers : and accordingly we do not find, that natural or rational Religion, as fuch, ever became the popular national Religion of any Country. X. ALC. It cannot be denied, that in all Heathen Countries there have been received under the colour of Religion, a world of Fables and fuperftitious Rites. But I queftion whether they were fo abfurd and of fo bad Influence, as is vulgarly reprelented, fince their refpeclive Legiflators and Magiftrates muft, without doubt, have thought them ufeful. CRI. PHILOSOPHER. 199 CRT. It were needlefs to inquire into all the Rites DIAL and Notions of the Gentile World. This hath been V. largely done when it was thought necefiary. And ^x-v" > -' whoever thinks it worth while, may be eafily fatif- fied about them. But as to the Tendency and Ufe- fulnefs of the Heathen Religion in general, I beg leave to mention a Remark of St. Aiigufiim^ *, who obferves that the Heathens in their Religion had no AfTemblies for preaching, wherein the People were to be inftructed what Duties or Vir- tues the Gods required, no Place or Means to be taught what Per/ins f exhorts them to learn. Difciteque 6 miferi, & caufas cognofcite & quidnam vifturi gignimur. ALC. This is the true Spirit of the Party, never to allow a Grain of Ufe or Goodnefs to any thing out of their own Pale : But we have had learned Men who have done Juftice to the Religion of the Gentiles. CRL We do not deny but there was fomething ufeful in the old Religions of Rome and Greece^ and fome other Pagan Countries. On the contrary, we freely own they produced fome good Effects on the People : But then thefe good Effects were owing to the Truths contained in thofe falfe Religions : the truer therefore, the more ufeful. I believe you will find it a hard Matter to produce any ufeful Truth, any moral Precept, any falutary Principle or Notion in any Gentile Syftem, either of Religion or Philofophy, which is hot compre- hended in the Chriftian, and either enforced by ftronger Motives, or fupported by better Authority, or carried to a higher Point of Perfection. * De Civitate Dei 1. 2. f Sat. 3. O 4 XI. . 2oo - THE MINUTE XI. ALC. Confequently you would have us think ourlelves a finer People than the ancient Greeks or Romans.- CRL If by finer you mean better, perhaps we are : and if we are not, it is not owing to the Chriftian Religion, but to the want of it. ALC. You fay perhaps we are. I do not pique myfelf on my Reading : But fliould be very ignorant to be capable of being impofed on in fo plain a Point. \Vhat! compare Cicero or -Brutus to an Engtijh Patriot, or Seneca to one of our Parfons ! Then that invincible Conrtancy and Vigour of Mind, that difmterefted and noble Virtue, that adorable public Spirit you 16 much admire, are things in them fo well known, and fo different from our Manners, that I know not how to excufe your perhaps. Eu- pbranor, indeed, who pafieth his Life in this ob- fcure Corner, may pofiibly miftake the Characters of our Times : but you who know the World, how- could you be guilty of fuch a Miftake? CRL O Alcipbron ! I would by no means detract from the nob e Virtue of ancient Heroes : But I oblerve thofe great Men were not the Minute Philofophers of their Times: and that the bed Principles upon which they acted are common to them with Chriftians, of whom it would be no difficult Matter to aflign, if not in our own Times, yet within the Compafs of our own Hiftory, many Inltances, in every Kind of Worth and Virtue, public or pri- vate, equal to the mod celebrated ot the Ancients. Though perhaps their Story might not have been ib well told, kt off with fuch fine Lights and Co- lounrgs of Stile, or fo vulgarly known and con- fided by every School-Boy. But though it fhould be granted, that here and there a Greek or Roman Genius, bred up under ftricl Laws, and fevcrc Difcipline, animated to public Virtue by Statues, PHILOSOPHER. 201 Statues, Crowns, Triumphal Arches, and fuch DIAL; Rewards and Monuments of great Actions, might V. attain to a Character and Fame beyond other Men ; *-"* yet this will prove only, that they had more Spirit, and Jived under a civil Polity more wifely ordered in certain Points than ours : Which Advantages of Nature and Civil Inftitution will be no Argument for their Religion, or againft ours. On the con- trary, it leems an invincible Proof of the Power and Excellency of the Chriftian Religion, that, without the help of thofe Civil Institutions and Incentives to Glory, it fliould be able to infpire a Phlegmatic People with the nobleft Sentiments, and foften the rugged Manners of Northern Boors into Gentlenefs and Humanity : and that thefe good Qualities mould become National, and rife and fall in proportion to the Purity of our Religion, as it approaches to, or recedes from the Plan laid down in the Gofpel. XII. To make a right Judgment of the Effects of the Chriftian Religion, let us take a Survey of the prevailing Notions and Manners of this very Country where we live, and compare them with thofcof our Heathen Predecefibrs. ALC. I have heard much of the glorious Light of the Gofpe!, and mould be glad to fee Ibme Effects of it in my own dear Country, which, by the bye, is one of the molt corrupt and profligate upon Earth, not- withttanding the boafted Purity of our Religion. But it would look mean and diffident, to afreet a Companfon with the barbirous Heathen, from whence we drew our Original : If you would do Honour to your Religion, dare to make it with the molt renowned Heathens wt Antiquity. CRI. It is a common Prejudice, to defpiie the prefer) t, and over rate remote 1 imes and Things. Something of 201 THE MINUTE DIAL, of this feems to enter into the Judgments Men V. make of the Greeks and Romans. For though it *X*V~v; muft be allowed, thofe Nations produced fome noble Spirits and great Paterns of Virtue : yet upon the whole, it feems to me they were much inferior in point of real Virtue and good Morals, even to this corrupt and profligate Nation, as you are now pleafed to call it in difhonour to our Religion ; however you may think fit to characterize it, when you would do honour to the Minute Philofophy. This, I think, will be plain to any one, who (hall turn off his Eyes from a few fhining Characters, to view the general Manners and Cuttoms of thofe People. Their infolent Treatment of Captives, even of the higheft Rank and fofter Sex, their un- natural expofing of their own Children, their bloody Gladiatorian Spectacles, compared with the com- mon Notions of Englishmen) are to me a plain Proof that our Minds are much foftened by Chriftianity. Could any thing be more unjuft, than the condemning a young Lady to the moft infamous Funimment and Death for the Guilt of her Father, or a whole Family of Slaves, perhaps fome hundreds, for a Crime committed by one ? Or more abominable than the Bacchanals and unbridled Lufts of every kind ? which, notwithftanding all that has been done by Minute Philofophers to debauch the Nation, and their fuccefsful Attempts on fome part of it, have not yet been matched among us, at lead not in every Circumftance of Impudence and Effrontery. While the Romans were poor, they were temperate ; bur, as they grew rich, they be- came luxurious to a Degree than is hardly believed or conceived by us. It cannot be denied, the old Roman Spirit was a great one. But it is as certain, there have been numberlefs Examples of the moft refolute and clear Courage in Britons, and in ge- neral PHILOSOPHER. 203 neral from a Religious Caufe. Upon the whole, it D IAL . feems an Inftance of the greateft Blindnefs and In- y. gratitude, that we do not fee and own the exceed- u v - ing great Benefits of Christianity, which, to omit higher Confiderations, hath fo vifibly foftned, polifhed, and embellifhed our Manners. XIII. ALC. O Crito, we are alarmed at Cruelty in a foreign Shape, but overlook it in a familiar one. Elie how is it poflible that you mould not fee the Inhumanity of that barbarous Cuftom of Duel- ling, a Thing avowed and tolerated and even re- pucabie among us ? Or that feeing this, you fhould iuppoie our Englijhmen of a more gentle Difpofition than the old Romans^ who were altogether Strangers to it? CRL I will by no means make an Apology for every Goth that walks the Streeis, with a de- termined Purpofe to murder any Man who mall but fpit in his Face, or give him the Lye. Nor do I think the Chriftian Religion in the leaft answerable, for a Practice fo directly oppofite to its Precepts, and which obtains only among the idle Part of the Nation, your Men of Fartiion ; who, inftead of Law, Reafon, or Religion, are governed by Famion. Be pleafed to confider that what may be, and truly is, a moft fcandalous Reproach to a Chriftian Country, may be none at all to the Chriftian Religion : For the Pagan encouraged Men in feveral Vices, but the Chriftian in none. ALC. Give me leave to obferve, that what you now fay is foreign to the Purpofe. For the Qjeftion, at prefenr, rs not concerning the refpe&ive Tendencies of the Pagan and the Chriftian Religions, but con- cerning our Manners, as actually compared with thole ot ancient Heathens, who I aver had no fuch barbarous Cuftom as Duelling. CRL And I aver that, bad as this is, they had a worfe : and that was THE MINUTE was Poifoning. By which we have Reafon to think there were many more Lives deftroyed, than by this Gothic Crime of Duelling : Inafrnuch as it ex- tended to all Ages, Sexes, and Characters, and as its Effects were more fecret and unavoidable : and as it had more Temptations, Intereft as well as Pafiion, to recommend it to wicked Men. And for the Fa&, not to wafte Time, I refer you to the Roman Authors themfelves. LTS. It is very true : Duelling is not fo general a Nufance as Poifoning, nor of fo bafe a Nature. This Crime, if it be a Crime, is in a fair way to keep its Ground in fpite of the Law and the Gofpel. The Clergy never preach againft it, becaufe themfelves never fuffer by it : and the Man of Honour muft not appear againft the means of vindicating Honour. CRL Though, ic be remarked by fome of your Soft, that the Clergy are not uled to preach againft Duelling, yet I neither think the Remark itfelf juft, nor the Reafon afligned for it. In effect, one half of their Sermons, all that is faid of Charity, Brotherly Love, Forbearance, Meeknefs, and Forgiving Injuries, is directly againft this wicked Cuftom ; by which the Clergy themfelves are fo far from never fuffering, that perhaps they will be found, all Things con- fidered, to fuffer oftner than other Men. L TS. How do you make this appear? CRI. An Obferver of Mankind may remark two kinds of Bully, the Fighting and the Tame, both public Nufances : the former (who is the more dangerous Animal, but by much the lefs common of the two) employs himfelf wholly and folely againft the Laity, while the tame Species exert their Talents upon the Clergy. The Qualities conftituent of this tame Bully are natural Rudenefs joined with a delicate Senfe of Danger. For, you muft know, the Force of in- bred Infolence and ill Manners is not diminifhed, though PHILOSOPHER. 205 though it acquire a new Determination, from the DIAL, fafhionable Cuitom of calling Men to account for V. their Behaviour. Hence you may often fee one of >^V>. thefe tame Bullies ready to burft with Pride and ill Humour, which he dares not vent, till a Parfon has come in the way to his Relief. And the Man of Railery, who would as foon bite off his Tongue, as break a Jeit on the Profeffion of Arms, in the Pretence or a military Man, fhall inftantly brighten up and affume a familiar Air with Religion and the Church before Ecclefiaftics. Dorcon, who pafieth for a Poltron and ftupid in all other Company, and really is fo, when he is got among Clergymen, affects a quite oppofite Character. And many Dorcons there are, which owe their Wit and Courage to this Paflive Order. XIV. ALC. But to return to the Point in hand, can you deny, the old Romans were as famous for Juftice and Integrity, as Men in thefe Days for the contrary Qualities ? CR I. The Character of the Romans is not to be taken from the Sentiments of 2"//X, or Cato's Actions, or a mining Pa'ffage here and there in their Hiftory, but from the prevailing Tenor of their Lives and Notions. Now if they and our modern Britons are weighed in this fame equal Balance, you will, if I miftake not, appear to have been prejudiced in favour of the old Romans againft your own Country : probably becaufe it pro- fefleth Chriftianity. Whatever Inltancesof Fraud or Injuftice may be feen in Chriftians carry their own Cenfure with them, in the Care that is taken to conceal them, and the Shame that attends their Difcovery. There is, even at this Day, a fort of Modefty in all our public Councils and Deliberations. And 1 believe, the boldeil of our Minute Philo- fophcrs would hardly undertake in a popular Af- fembly, 206 THE MINUTE DIAL, fembly, to propofe any Thing parallel'to the Rape V. of the Sabines^ the moft unjuft Ufage of Lucius !j ColfatinuSj or the ungrateful Treatment of LamiliuS) which, as a learned Father obferves, were Inftances of Iniquity agreed to by the public Body of the Romans. And if Rome in her early Days were capable of fuch flagrant Injuftice, it is moft certain (he did not mend her Manners, as flic grew great in Wealth and Empire, having pro- duced Monfters in every Kind of Wickednefs, as far exceeding other Men, as they furpaffed them in JPower. I freely acknowledge, the Chriftian Re- ligion hath not had the fame Influence upon the Nation, that it would in cafe it had been always profeffed in its Purity, and cordially believed by all Men. But I will venture to fay, that if you take the Roman Hiftory from one End to the other, and impartially compare it with our own, you will neither find them fo good, nor your Country- men fo bad as you imagine. On the contrary, an indifferent Eve may, I verily think, perceive a Vein of Charity and Juftice, the Effeft of Chriftian Principles, run through the latter ; which, though not equally difcernible in all Parts, yet dilcloieth itfelf lufficiemly to make a wide Difference upon the whole, in fpite of the general Appetites and Paffions of Human Nature, as well as of the par- ticular Hardnefs and Roughnefs of the Block, out of which we were hewn. And it is obiervable (what the Roman Authors themfelves often fuggeft) that, even their Virtues and magnanimous Actions rofe and fell with a Scnfe of Providence and a future State, and a Philofophy the neareft to the Chriilian Religion. XV. Crito having fpoke thu?, paufed. But Al- tipbron addreffing himfdf to Euphranor and me, laid, PHILOSOPHER. 207 faid, It is natural for Men, according to their feveral DIAL, Educations and Prejudices, to form contrary Judg- V. ments upon the fame Things, which they view in very different Lights. Crito, for inftance, imagines that none but falutary Effects proceed from Re- ligion : on the other hand, if you appeal to the general Experience and Observation of other Men, you (hall find it grown into a Proverb that Religion is the Root of Evil. Tantum Religio potuit fuadere malorum. And this not only among Epicureans or other ancient Heathens, but among Moderns fpeaking of the Chriftian Religion. Now methinks it is unreafon- able to oppole againft the general concurring Opinion of the \V orld, the Obfervation of a par- ticular Perfon, or particular Set of Zealots, whofe Prejudice flicks clofe to them, and ever mixeth with their Judgment ; and who read, collect, and ob- ferve with an Eye not to difcover the Truth, but to defend their Prejudice. CRI. Though I cannot think with Alciphron^ yet I rnuft own 1 admire his Addrefs and Dexterity in Argument. Popular and general Opinion is by him reprefented, on certain Occafions, to be a fure Mark of Error. But when it ferves his Ends that it fhould ftem otherwife, he can as cafily make it a Character of Truth. But ic will by no means follow, that a profane Proverb ufed by the Friends and admired Authors of a Minute Philofopher, mull therefore be a received Opinion, much lefs a Truth grounded on the Experience and Obfervation of Mankind. Sadnefs may fpring from Guilt or Superftition, and Rage from Bigotry : But Darknefs might as well be fuppofed the natural Effect of Sunmine, as fallen and rurious Paffions to proceed from the glad Tidings and divine Precepts of the 208 THE MINUTE DIAL, the Gofpel. What is the Sum and Subftance, Scope V. and End of Chrift's Religion, but the Love of God and Man ? To which all other Points and Duties (whether pofitive or moral) are relative and fubordinate, as Parts or Means, as Signs, Principles, Motives, or Effects. Now I would fain know, how it is poffible for Evil or Wickednefs of any kind to fpring from fuch a Source. I will not pretend, there are no evil Qualities in Chriftians, nor good in Minute Philofophers. But this I affirm, that what- ever Evil is in us, our Principles certainly lead to Good : and whatever Good there may be in you, it is mod certain your Principles lead to Evil. XVI. ALC. It muft be owned there is a fair Out- fide, and many plaufible Things may be faid, for the Chriftian Religion taken fimply as it lies in the Gofpel. But it is the Obfervation of one of our great Writers, that the firft Chriftian Preachers very cunningly began with the faireft Face and the beft moral Doctrines in the World. It was all Love, Charity, Meeknefs, Patience and fo forth. But when by this means they had drawn over the World and got Power, they foon changed their Ap- pearance, and (lie wed Cruelty, Ambition, Avarice, and every bad Quality. CR1. That is to fay, iome Men very cunningly preached and underwent a world of Hardfhips, and laid down their Lives to propagate the belt Principles and the beft Morals, to the end thaj others fome Centuries after might reap the Benefit of bad ones. Whoever may be cunning, there is not much Cunning in the Maker of this Obfervation. ALC. And yet ever fince this Religion hath appeared in the World, we have had eternal Feuds, Factions, MaiTacres, and Wars, the very Reverfe of that Hvmn with which it is introduced in the Gofpel : Glory be to God on higb^ OH PHILOSOPHER* 209 en Earth Peace, Good-mil towards Men. CRT. DIAL* This I will not deny. I will even own, that the V. Gofpel and the Chriftian Religion have been often v v . the Pretexts for thefe Evils : but it will not thence follow they were the Caufe. On the contrary it is plain, they could not be the real proper Caufe of thefe Evils ; becaufe a rebellious, proud, revengeful, quarrelfome Spirit is directly oppofite to the whole Tenor and moil exprefs Precepts of Chriftianity : a Point fo clear that I fhal-1 not prove it. And fecondly, becaufe all thofe Evils you mention were as frequent, nay, much more frequent, before the Chriftian Religion was known in the World. They are the common Product of the Pafiions and Vices of Mankind, which are fometimes covered with the Mask of Religion by wicked Men, hav- ing the Form of Godlinefs without the Power of it. This Truth feems fo plain, that I am furprifed how any Man of Senfe, Knowledge, and Candour can make a Doubt of it. XVII. Take but a View of Heathen Rome ; what a Scene is there of Faction and Fury and civil Rage ? Let any Man confider the perpetual Feuds between the Patricians and Plebeians, the bloody and inhuman Factions of Marius and Sylla, Cinna and QttaviuS) and the vaft havoc of Mankind, during the two famous Triumvirates. To be fhort, let any Man of common Candour and common -Senfe but caft an Eye, from one End to the other of the Roman Story, and behold that long Scene of Se- ditions, Murders, Maffacres,Profcriptions and Defo- lations of every kind, enhanced by every cruel Cir- cumftance of Rage, Rapine, and Revenge , and then fay, whether thofe Evils were introduced into the World with the Chriftian Religion, or whether they are not lefs frequent now than before ? 4LC, P The 210 THE MINUTE The ancient Romans, it muft be owned, had a high and fierce Spirit, which produced eager Con- tentions and very bloody Catastrophes. The Greeks, on the other hand, were a polite and gentle Sort of Men, foftened by Arts and Phiiofophy. It is im- pofiible to think of the little States and Cities of Greece, without wifhing to have lived in thole Times, without admiring their Policy and envying their Happinefs. CR 1. Men are apt to confider the dark Sides of what they pofiefs, and the bright ones of Things out of their Reach. A fine Cli- mate, elegant Tafte, polite Amufements, Love of Liberty, and a moft ingenious inventive Spirit for Arts and Sciences were indifputable Prerogatives of ancient Greece. But as for Peace and Quietncfs, Gentlenefs and Humanity, I think we have plainly the Advantage : For thofe envied Cities compofed of gentle Greeks were not without their Factions, which perfecuted each other with fuch Treachery, Rage, and Malice, that in refpect of them our factious Folk are mere Lambs. To be convinced of this Truth, you need only look into ffycydides*i where you will find thofe Cities in general involved in fuch bitter Factions, as for Fellow- Citizens without the Formalities of War, to murder one another, even in their Senate-houfes and their Temples ; no re- gard being had to Merit, Rank, Obligation, or Nearnefs of Blood. And if Human Nature boiled up to fo vehement a Pitch in the politeft People, what wonder that Savage Nations fhould fcalp, roft, torture, and deftroy each other, as they are known to do ? It is therefore plain, that without Religion there would not be wanting Pretexts for Quarrels and Debates j all which can very eafily be accounted for by the natural Infirmities and Cor- * Thucyd. I. 3. ruption PHILOSOPHER. 211 ruption of Men. It would not perhaps be fo eafy DIAL* to account for the Blindnefs of thofe, who impute V. the mod hellim Effects to the moft divine Principle, < v^" if they could be fuppofed in earned, and to have confidered the Point One may daily fee ignorant and prejudiced Men make the moil abfurd Blunders : But that Free-thinkers, Divers to the Bottom of Things, Fair Inquirers, and Openers of Eyes fhould be capable of fuch a grofs Miftake, is what one would not expect. XVIII. ALC. The reft of Mankind we could more eafily give up : but as for the Greeks, Men of the moft refined Genius exprefs an high Efteem of them : not only on Account of thofe Qualities which you think fit to allow them, but alfo for their Virtues. CRL I mall not take upon me to fay how far fome Men may be prejudiced againft their Coun- try, or whether others may not be prejudiced in favour of it. But upon the fulleft and moft equal Obfervation that I am able to make, it is my Opinion, that, if by Virtue is meant Truth, Juftice, Gratitude, there is incomparably more Virtue, now at this Day in England, than at any Time could be found in ancient Greece. Thus much will be al- lowed, that we know few Countries, if any, where Men of eminent Worth, and famous for deferving well of the Public, met with harder Fate, and were more ungratefully treated than in the moft polite and learned of the Grecian States. Though Socrates* it muft be owned, would not allow, that thofe Statefmen, by adorning the City, augmenting the Fleet, or extending the Commerce of Athens, de- ferved well of their Country, or could with Juftice complain of the ungrateful Returns made by their Fellow-Citizens, whom, while they were in Power, they had taken no Care to make better Men, by P 2 improving 2 T THE MINUTE DIAL, improving and cultivating their Minds with the V. Principles of Virtue, which if they had done, they ^v"^ needed not to have feared their Ingratitude. If I were to declare my Opinion, what gave the chief Advantage to Greeks and Romans, and other Na- tions, which have made the greateft Figure in the World, 1 fhould be apt to think it was a peculiar Reverence for their reipe&ive Laws and Inftitutions, which infpired them with Steadmefs and Courage, and that hearty generous Love of their Country : by which they did not merely underftand a certain Language or Tribe of Men, much lefs a particular Spot of Earth, but included a certain Syftem of Manners, Cuftoms, Notions, Rites, and Laws Civil and Religious. ALC. Oh! I perceive your Drift, you would have us reverence the Laws and Religious Inftitutions of our Country. But herein we beg to be excufed, if we do not think fit to imitate the Greeks, or to be governed by any Au- thority whatfoever. CRT. So far from it. If Ma- hometanifm were eftablimed by Authority, I make no doubt, thofe very Free-thinkers, who at prefer, t applaud Turkifli Maxims and Manners to that Degree you'd think them ready to turn Turks^ would then be the firft to exclaim againft them. ALC. But to return : As for Wars and Factions, I grant they ever were and ever will be in the World upon fome Pretext or other, as long as Men are Men. XIX. But there is a fort of War and Warriors peculiar to Chriftendom, which the Heathens had no Notion of : I mean Difputes in Theology and Polemical Divines, which the World hath been wonderfully peftered with : thefe Teachers of Peace, Meeknefs, Concord, and what not ! if you take their Word for it : But if you caft an Eye upon their Practice, you find them to have been in all Ages PHI LOSOPHER. 213 Ages the moft contentious, quarrelfome, disagree- DIAL. ing Crew that ever appeared upon Earth.' To V. obferve the Skill and Sophiftry, the Zeal and \*s~\f~*J Eagernefs, with which thofe Barbarians, the School-Divines, fplit Hairs, and conteft about Chimasras, gives me more Indignation, as being more abliird and a greater Scandal to Human Reafon, than all the ambitious Intrigues, Cabals, and Politics of the Court of Rome. CRI. If Di- vines are quarrelfome, that is not fo far forth as Divine, but as Undivine and Unchriftian. Juftice is a good thing ; and the Art of Healing is excellent; neverthelefs in the admmiftring of Juftice or Phyfic JVIen may be wronged or poifoned But as Wrong cannot be Juftice, or -the Effect of Juftice, fo Poifon cannot be Medicine or the Effect ot Medi- cine, fo neither can Pride or Strife be Religion or the Effect of Religion. Having prcmifed this, I acknowledge, you may often iee hot-headed Bigots engage themfelves in religious as well as civil Parties, without being of Credit or Service to either. And as for the Schoolmen in particular, I do not in the leaft think the Chriftian Religion concerned in the Defence of them, their Tenets, or their Method of handling them : bur, whatever Futility there may be in their Notions, or Inele- gancy in their Language, in pure Juftice to Truth one mud own : they neither banter, nor rail, nor declaim in their Writings, and are fo far from mew- ing Fury or Paffion, that perhaps an impartial Judge will think : the Minute Philofophers are by no means to be compared with them, for keeping clofe to the Point, or for Temper and good Man- ners. But after all, if Men are puzzled, wrangle, talk Nonfenfe, and quarrel about Religion : fo they do about Law, Phyfic, Politics, and every thing elfe of Moment. I ask whether in thefe Profcffions, P 3 or 214 THE MINUTE or in any other, where Men have refined and ab- flmctrd, they do not run into Diiputes, Chicane, Nonlenfe, and Contradictions, as well as in Di- vinity ? And yet this dotn not hinder but there may be many excellent Rules, and juft Notions, and ufeful Truths in all thole Proteffions. In all Dif- putes Human Paffions too often mix themfelves, in proportion as the Subject is conceived to be more or lefs important. But we ought not to contound the Caule of Man with the Caufe of God, or make Human Follies an Objection to Divine Truths. It is eafy to diitinguifh what looks like Wifdom from above, and what proceeds from the Paffion and "Wcaknefs of Men. This is fo clear a Point, that one would be rempted to think, the not doing it was an Effect, not of Ignorance, but of fomething worfe. XX. The Conduct we object to Minute Philo- fophers is a natural Confequence of their Principles. "Whatfoever they can reproach us with is an Enid, not of our Principles, but of Human Paffion and Frailty. ALC. This is admirable. So we muft no longer object to Chriftians the abfurd Conten- tions of Councils, the Cruelty of Inquifitions, the Ambition and Ufurpations of Churchmen. CRI. You may object them to Chriftians, but not to Chriftianity. If the Divine Author of our Re- ligion, and his Diiciples, have lowed a good Seed ; and together with this g( od Seed, the Enemies of his Golpel (among whom are to be reckoned the Minute Philolbphtrs of all Ages) have lowed bad Seeds, whence fpring Tares and Thiitlesi is it not evident, thcfe bad Weeds cannot be imputed to the ^.ood Sttd, or to tnolc who io\\cd u ? What- ever you do or can object againft Ecclefialhcal 1)raiiy UlUTpation, orSophittry, nay, wuhout an) Bitiiaifh or Diiauvanu-gc to Reh^.cn, be ac- acknowJcd^ed PHILOSOPHER. 215 knowledged by all true Chriftians : provided dill that DIAL. you impute thole wicked Effects to their true Caufe, V. not blaming any Principles or Peribns for them, but thofe that really produce or juftify them. Certainly, as the Interefts of Chriftianity are not to be ;up- ported by unchriftian Methods, whenever thele are made ufe of, it mull: be fuppofed there is fome other latent Principle which lets them at work. If the very Court of Rome hath been known, from Mo- tives ot Policy, to oppolc fettling th Inquifition in a Kingdom, where the fecular P. , r hath en- deavoured to introduce it in fpite of that ' Jourt * : We may well fuppofe, that e{fe where Factions of State, and Political Views of Princes, hath given birth to Tranfadlions feemingly religious, wherein at bottom neither Religion, nor Church, nor Churchmen, were at all confidered. As no Man of common Senfe and Honelty will engage in a general Defence of Ecclefiailics, fo 1 think no Man of common Candour can condemn them in general. Would you think it realonable to blame all Scatefmen, or Lawyers, or Soldiers, for the Faults committed by thofe of their Proieffion, though in other Times, or in other Countries, and influenced by other Maxims and other Difcipline ? And if not, why do you meaiure with one Rule to the Clergy, and another to the Laity ? Surely the belt Reafon that can be given for this is Prejudice. Should any Man rake together all the Miichiefs that have been committed in all Ages and Nations, by Soldiers and Lawyers, you would, I fup- pofe, conclude from thence, not that the State fhould be deprived of thole uiehjl Profeffions, but only that their Exorbitances fhould be guarded againft and punimed. If you took the fame equi- table Courfe with the Clergy, there would indeed * P. Paolo iltoria dell' Inquifizione, p. ^z. P 4 be 2i 6 THE MINUTE DIAL, be lefs to be faid againft you : but then you would V. have much lefs to lay. This plain obvious Con- V-^V^*^ fideration, if every one who read confidered, would lefien the Credit of your Declaimers. ALC. But when all is faid that can be faid, it muft move a Man's Indignation to fee reafonable Creatures, under the Notion of Study and Learning, employ'd in read- ing and writing fo many voluminous Trac"ts de Una caprind. CR1 I (hall not undertake the Vindication of Theological Writings, a general Defence being as needlefs as a general Charge is groundlefs. Only let them fpeak for themfelves : and let no Man con- demn them upon the Word of a Minute Philofo- pher. But we will imagine the very worft, and iuppofe that a wrangling Pedant in Divinity difputes and ruminates and writes upon a refined Point, as ufelefs and unintelligible as you pleafe. Suppofe this fame Perfon bred a Layman, might he not have employed himfelf in tricking Bargains, vexa- tious Law-fuits, Factions, Seditions, and fuch like Amufements, with much more Prejudice to the Public ? Suffer then curious Wits to fpin Cobwebs : Where is the Hurt ? ALC. The Mifchief is, what Men want in Light they commonly make up in Heat: Zeal, and Ill-nature, being Weapons con- ftantly exerted by the Parti fans, as well as Cham- pions, on either Side: And thofe perhaps not mean Pedants or Book- worms. You fhall often fee even the learned and eminent Divine lay himfelf out in explaining Things inexplicable, or contend for a barren Point of Theory, as if his Life, Li- berty or Fortune were at ftake. CRL No doubt all Points in Divinity are not of equal Moment. Some may be too fine fpun, and others have more Strefs laid on them than they deferve. Be the Subject what it will, you lhall often obferve that a Point by being controverted, fingled out, examined, and nearly PHILOSOPHER. 217 nearly infpe&ed, groweth confiderable to the fame DIAL. Eye, that, perhaps, would have overlooked it in y. a large and comprehenfive View. Nor is it an un- < /-^, common Thing, to behold Ignorance and Zeal united in Men, who are born with a Spirit of Party, though the Church or Religion have in Truth but fmall Share in it. Nothing is eafier than to make a Caricatura (as the Painters call it) of any Profeffion upon Earth : But at bottom, there will be found nothing fo ftrange in all this Charge upon the Clergy, as the Partiality of thofe who cenfurethem, in fuppofing the common Defects of Mankind peculiar to their Order, or the Effect of religious Principles. ALC. Ocher Folks may difpute or Iquabbleas they pleafe, and nobody mind them: but it feems thefe venerable Squabbles of the Clergy pafs for Learning, and intereft Mankind. To ufeihe Words of the moft ingenious Characterizer of our Times, " A Ring is made, and Readers gather in " abundance. Every one takes Party and encou- " rages his own Side. This mail be my Champion! " This Man for my Money ! Well hit on our Side! " Again a good Stroke ! There he was even with " him ! Have at him the next Bout ! Excellent " Sport! *" CRT. Methinks I trace the Man of Quality and Breeding in this delicate Satire, which ib politely ridicules thole Arguments, Anfwerr, Defences, and Replications which the Prefs groans under. AL.C. To the infinite wade of Time and Paper, and all the while nobody is one whit the wifer. And who indeed can be the wifer for read- ing Books upon Subjects quite out of the wav, in- comprehenfible, and molt wretchedly written ? What Man of Senfe or Breeding would not abhor the Infection of prolix Pulpit Eloquence, or of that * Cbarafleriltics, Vol. III. c. 2, dry, 218 THE MINUTE DIAL, dry, Formal, pedantic, ftiff, and clumfy Stile, which V. fmells of the Lamp and the College ? XXI. They who have the Weaknefs to reverence the Univerfiries as Seats or Learning, rnuft needs think this a ftrange Reproach ; but it is a very juft one. For the moll ingenious Men are now agreed, that they are only Nurferies of Prejudice, Cor- ruption, Barbarifm, and Pedantry. LTS. For my part, 1 find no Fault with Univerfities. All I know is, that I had the fpending three hundred Pounds a Year in one of them, and think it the cheartultft time of my Life. As for their Books and Stile I had not leifure to mind them. CRI. Whoever hath a mind to weed, will never want Work : and he that fhall pick out bad Books on every Subjed will foon fill his Library. I do not know what Theological Writings Alciphron and his Friends may be converfant in : but I will venture to fay, one may find among our Engtijh Divines many Writers, who for Compals of Learning, Weight of Matter, Strength of Argument, and Purity of Stile, are not inferior to any in our Language. It is not my Dcfign to apologize for the Univerfities : whatever is amifs in them (and what is there perfect among Men ?) I heartily wiih amended. But I dare affirm, tecaufe I know it to be true, that any impartial Obferver, although they mould not come up to what in Theory he might wifh or imagine, will neverthelefs find them much fuperior to thofe that in Fact are to be found in other Countries, and far beyond the mean Picture that is drawn of them by Minute Philofophers. It is natural for thole to rail moft at Places of Education, who have profited leaft by them. Weak and fond Parents will alfo readily impute to a wrong Caufe, thofe Corruptions themfelves have occafioned, by allowing their Children PHILOSOPHER. 219 Children more Money than they knew how to fpend DIAL. innocent]/. And too often a Gentleman, who has V. been idle at the College and kept idle Company, will judge of a whole Univerfity from his own Cabal. ALC. Crito miftakes the Point. I vouch the Authority, not of a Dunce, or a Rake, or abfurd Parent, but of the moft confummate Critic this Age has produced. This great Man cha- racterizeth Men of the Church and Univerficies with the fineft Touches and moft mafterJy Pencil. What do you think he calls them ? EUPH. What ? ALC. Why, the black Tribe, Magicians, For- malifts, Pedants, bearded Boys : and, having fuf- ficiently derided and exploded them and their mean ungenteel Learning, he fets moft admirable Models of his own for good Writing : And it muft be ac- knowledged they are the fineft things in our Lan- guage ; as I could eafily convince you, tor I am never without fomething of that noble Writer about me. EUP H. He is then a noble Writer. ALC. I tell you he is a Nobleman. EUPH. But a Nobleman who writes is one Thing, and a noble Writer another. ALC. Both Characters are coin- cident, as you may fee. XXII. Upon which Akiphron pulled a Treatifc out or his Jrocker, intitled, A Soliloquy, or Advice to an Author. Would you behold, laid he, look- ing round upon the Company, a noble Specimen of fine Writing : do but dip into this Book, which Crito opening read verbatim as follows *. [mifes * Where then are the Pleafures ivhich Ambition pro- * Atia Love <-/t,rds? How's ihe gaj World enjoy* d? * ?au 3. Seft. 2. 'Or 220 THE MINUTE Or are thofe to be ejleentd no Pleafures, Which are loft by Dulnefs and Inaftion ? But Indolence is the higheft Pleafure. To live and not to feel! To feel no Trouble. What Good then ? Life itfelf. And is This properly to live ? Is Sleeping Life ? Is this what IJhouldJludy to prolong ? Here the Fantaftic Tribe itfelf feems fcandaliz'd. A ' .ivii War begins : 'The major Part Of the capricious Dames do range themfelves On Reafon's Side, And declare againft the languid Siren. Ambition blujhes at the offer* d Sweet. Conceit and Vanity take fuperior Airs. Ev'n Luxury herfelf in her polite And elegant Humour reproves th* Apoftate Sifter. And marks her as an Alien to true Pleafure. Away thou Drowfy Phantom / Haunt me no more^ for I Have learn* d, from better than thy Sifterhood, That Life and Happinefs conjift in Attion And Employment. But here a bufy Form folicits us, Aftive, induftrious, watchful, and defpifwg Pains and Labour. She wears the ferious Countenance of Virtue, but with Features Of Anxiety and Difquiet. What is'tjhe mutters ? Wloat looks fos on with Such Admiration and Aftonijhment ? Bags ! Coffers ! Heaps of Jhining Metal ! What ? For the Service of Luxury ? For her ? Tbefe Preparations ? Art thou then her Friend, Grave Fancy! Is it for her thou toirfl ? No, but for Provifion againft IV ant. But Luxury apart ! fell me now. PHILOSOPHER. 221 Haft thou not already a Competence ? DIAL. tc Tis good to be fe cure againft the Fear V. Of flawing. Is there then no Death but this ? L/"V"XJ No other PaJJage out of Life ? Are other Doors * Secur'd if this be bar'd ? Say Avarice ! Thou emptieft of Phantoms, is it not vile Cowardife thou ferv'ft ? What further have I then To do with thee (thou doubly vile Dependent} When once I have difmijl thy Patronefs, And defpifed her Threats ? Thus I contend with Fancy and Opinion. Euphranor, having heard thus far, cried out : What ! will you never have done with your Poetry ? another time may ferve : But why fhould we break off our Conference to read a Play ? You arc mi taken, it is no Play nor Poetry, replied Aiciphron, but a famous modern Critic moralizing in Piofe. You muft know this great Man hath (to ufe his own Words) revealed a Grand Arcanum to the World, having inftructed Mankind in what he calls Mirrour-writing, Self-difcourjing Praclice^ and Author Praftice, and fhew'd, " That by virtue of an intimate Recefs, we may difcover a certain " Duplicity of Soul, and divide our Self into two " Parties, or (as he varies the Phrafe) practically form u the Dual Number." In confequence whereof he hath found out that a Man may argue with himfelf : and not only with himfelf, but alfo with Notions, Sen- timents, and Vices, which by a marvellous Profopo- pceia he converts into Ib many Ladies : and fo con- verted, he confutes and confounds them in a Divine Strain. Can any thing be finer, bolder, or more fub- lime ? EUPH. It is very wonderful. I thought indeed you had been reading a Piece of a Tragedy. Is this he who defpifeth our Univerfities, and lets up for reforming the Stile and Tafte of the Age ? ALC. 222 THE MINUTE DIAL. ALC. The very fame. This is the admired Critic V. of our Times. Nothing can ftand the Teft of his - v-^-J correct Judgment, which is equally fevere to Poets and Parfons. " The Britl/h Mufes (faith this great " Man) lifp as in their Cradles : and their ftam- EUPH. Pray tell me, Lyficles, are not the Clergy legally poflefTed of their Lands and Emoluments ? LTS. Nobody denies it. EUPH. Have they not been pofleffed of them from Time immemorial? LYS. This too I grant. EUPH. They claim then by Law and ancient Prefcription. LTS. They do; EUPH. Have the oldeft Families of the Nobility a better Title ? LTS. I believe not. It grieves me to fee fo many overgrown Eftates in the Hands of ancient Families, on Account of no other Merit, but what they brought with them into the World. EUPH. May you not then as well take their Lands too, and beftow them on the Minute Philofophers, as Perfons of more Merit? LTS. So much the better. This enlarges our View, and opens a new- Scene : It is very delightful in the Contemplation of Truth, to behold how one Theory grows out of another. ALC. Old Pi PHILOSOPHER. 245 Savages we have grown civil, polite, and learned. DIAL, We have made a decent and noble Figure both V. at home and abroad. And, as our Religion de- >^V^ creafeth, I am afraid we fliall be found to have declined. Why then fhould we perfift in the dangerous Experiment ? ALC. One would think, Cri/0, you had forgot the many Calamities occa- fioned by Churchmen and Religion. CRI. And one would think, you had forgot what was an- fwered this very Day to that Objection. But not to repeat eternally the fame Things, I fhall obferve in the firft Place, That if we refledt on the pad State of Chriftendom, and of our own Country in particular, with our Feuds and Factions fubfifting while we were all of the fame Religion, for inftance, that of the White and Red Rofes, fo violent and bloody and of fuch long Continuance ; we can have no Affurance that thofe ill Humours, which have fince fhewn themfelves under the Mask of Re- ligion, would not have broke out with fome other Pretext, if this had been wanting. I obferve in the fecond Place, that it will not follow from any Obfervations you can make on our Hiftory, that the Evils, accidentally occafioned by Religion, bear any Proportion either to the good Effects it hath really produced, or the Evils it hath prevented. Laftly, I obferve, that the beft Things may, by Accident, be the Occafion of Evil ; which acci- dental Effect is not, to fpeak properly and truly, produced by the good Thing itfelf, but by fome evil Thing, which, being neither Part, Property, nor Effect of it, happens to be joined with it. But I mould be amnmed to infift and enlarge on fo plain a Point. Certainly whatever Evils this Nation might have formerly fuftained from Su- perftition, no Man of common Senfe will fay, the Evils felt or apprehended at prefent are from that R 3 Quarter, 246 TH E MINUTE DIAL. Quarter. Prieftcraft is not the reigning Diftemper V. at this Day. And it will be owned, that a wife V-Or>w/ Man, who takes upon him to be vigilant for the public Weal, fhould touch proper Things at proper Times, and not prefcribe for a Surfeit when the Diftemper is a Confumption. ALC. I think we have fufnciently difcuffcd the Subject of this Day's Conference. And now, let Lyjicles take it as he will, I mud in regard to my own Character, as a fair impartial Adverfary, acknowledge there is fomething in what Crito hath faid, upon the Ufe- fulnefs of the Chriftian Religion. I will even own to you that fome of our Sect are for allowing it a Toleration. I remember, at a Meeting of feveral ingenious Men, after much Debate we came fuc- cdlively to divers Refolutions. The firft was, that no Religion ought to be tolerated in the State : But this on more mature Thought was judged im- practicable. The fecond was, that all Religions fhould be tolerated, but none countenanced except Atheifm : But it was apprehended, that this might breed Contentions among the lower Sort of People. We came therefore to conclude in the third Place, that fbme Religion or other fiiould be eftablifhed for the Ule of the Vulgar. And after a Jong Dif- pute what this Religion mould be, Ly/is* a brisk yourrg Man, perceiving no Signs of Agreement, propolc'd, th;it the prefent Religion might be tolerated, till a better was found. But allowing it to be expedient, I can never think it true, fo long as there lie unanfwerable Objections againft it, which, if you pleate, 1 fhall take the Liberty to propoie at our next Meeting. To which we all agreed. .THE PHILOSOPHER. THE SIXTH DIALOGUE. I. P0/#/j agreed. II. Sundry Pretences to Revelation. III. Uncertainty of 'Tradition. IV. O/V# #*/- rd//0 neither impoffible nor abjurd. X. Qbjettiom from the Form and Matter of Divine Revelation^ confidered. XI. Infidelity an Effect of Narrow- nefs and Prejudice. XII. Articles of Cbriftian Faith not unreafonabk. XIII. G/7/ /&* natural Parent of Fear. XIV. Things unknown, reduced to the Standard of what Men know. XV. /Vf- judices againfl the Incarnation of the Sen of God. XVI. Ignorance of the divine Qeconomy, a Source of Difficulties . XVII. Wifdom of God, Foolijh- nefs to Man. XVIII. Reafon, no blind Guide. XIX. Ufefulhefi of Divine Revelation. XX. Prophecies* whence obfcure. XXI. Eajlern Ac- counts of Time older than the Mofaic. XX I. The Humour of ./Egyptians, AfTyrians, Chalde- ans, and other Nations extending their Antiquity beyond Truth, accounted for. XXIII. Reafons confirming the Mofaic Account. XXIV. Profane Hiftorians inconfijtent. XXV. Celfus, Prophyry, and Julian. XXVI. The feftimony of Jofcphus conftdered. XXVII. Alteration of Jews and Gentiles to Chriflianity . XX VI II. Forgeries and Herefies. XXIX. Judgment and Attention of Mi- nute Philofophers. XXX. Faith and Miracles. R 4 XXXI. 248 THE; MINUTE DIAL. XXXI. Probable Arguments afufficient Ground of VI. Faith. XXXII. The Cbriflian Religion able to S v -' Jland the Teji of rational Inquiry. HE following Day being Sunday, our Philosophers lay Jong in Bed, while the reft of us went to Church in the neighbouring Town, where we dined at uphrancr's t and after Evening Service returned to the two PhiJofophers, whom we found in the Library. They told us, That, if there was a God, he was prefent every where, as well as at Church ; and that if we had been ferving him one way, they did not neglect to do as much another ; inaimuch as a free Exercife of Reafon muft be allowed the moft acceptable Service and Worfhip, that a rational Creature can offer to its Creator. However, faid dlciphron, if you, Gentlemen, can but folve the Difficulties which I fhall propofe to-morrow morning, I promife to go to Church next Sunday. After fome general Con- verfation of this Kind, we fat down to a light Supper, and the next Morning aflembled at the fame Place as the Day before: where being all leat- ed, I obferved, that the foregoing Week our Con- ferences had been carried on tor a longer Time, and with lefs Interruption than I had ever known, or riwell could be, in. Town : where Mens Hours are fo broken by Vifits, Bufmefs, and Amufements, that whoever is content to form his Notions from Converfation only, muft needs have them very Shattered and imperfect. And what have we got, replied Alciphron^ by all thefe continued Confer- ences ? For my parr, I think myfelf juft where I was, with refpect to-the main Point that divides us, the Truth of the Chriftian Religion. I anfwered : That fo many Points had been examined,, difcufTcd, and PHILOSOPHER. 249 and agreed between him and his Adverfaries, that DIAL. I hoped to fee them come to an intire Agreement VI. in the end. For in the firft Place, faid I, the Principles and Opinions of thofe who are called Free-thinkers, or Minute Philofophers, have been pretty clearly explained. It hath been alfo agreed, That Vice is not of that Benefit to the Nation, which fome Men imagine : That Virtue is highly ufeful to Mankind : But that the Beauty of Virtue is not alone fufficient to engage them in the Prac- tice of it : That therefore the Belief of a God and Providence ought to be encouraged in the State, and tolerated in good Company, as an ufeful Notion. Further, it hath been proved that there is a God : That it is realbnablc to worfhip him : And that the Worfhip, Faith, and Principles prefcribed by the Chriftian Religion have an ufeful Tendency. Ad- mit, replied Akiphron^ addreffing himfelf to Crito, all that Dion faith to be true : Yet this doth not hinder my being juft where I was, with refpedt to the main Point. Since there is nothing in all this that proves the Truth of the Chriftian Religion : Though each of thole Particulars enumerated may, perhaps, pre- judice in its favour. I am therefore to fufpecl my- felf at prefent for a prejudiced Perlon 5 prejudiced, I fay, in favour of Chriftianity. This, as I am a Lover of Truth, puts me upon my Guard againft Deception. I muit therefore look fharp, and well confider every Step I takeJi vifliV yd n in33noD 3i "ijjvtjoiiw 3crlj II. CR1 You may remember, Alcipkron, you propoied for the Subject of our prefent Conference the Confideration of certain Difficulties and Ob- jections, which you had to offer againit the Chriftian Religion. We are now ready to hear and confider whatever you fhall think fit to produce of that Kind. Atheifui, and a wrong Notion of Chrifti- anity, 250 THE MINUTE DIAL, anity, as of fomething hurtful to Mankind, are Vf. great Prejudices ; the Removal of which may dif- pofe a Man to argue with Candor, and fubmit to reafonable Proof : But the removing Prejudices againft an Opinion, is not to be reckoned prejudi- cing in its favour. It may be hoped therefore, rhat you will be able to do juftice to your Caufe, with- out being fond of it. ALC. O Crito ! that Man may thank his Stars to whom Nature hath given a fublime Soul, who can raife himfelf above popular Opinions, and, looking down on the H rd of Mankind, behold them fcattered over the Surface of the whole Earth, divided and fubdivided into numberlefs Nations and Tribes, differing in Notions and Tenets, as in Language, Manner?, and Drefs. The Man who takes a general View of the World and its Inhabitants, from this lofty Sfand, above the Reach of Prejudice, feems to breathe a purer Air, and to fee by a clearer Light : But how to impart this clear and extenfive View to thofe who are wandering beneath in the narrow dark Paths of Error. This indeed is a hard Task : yet, hard as it is, I (hall try if by any means, Clara tu after an hundred Reflexions be- tween two parallel Mirrours ! Thus like, and thus lively do I think a faint vanifliing Tradition, at the End of fixteen or feventeen hundred Years, Some Men have a falfe Heart, others a wrong Head : and where both are true, the Memory may be treacherous. Hence there is ftill fomething added, fomething omitted, and fomething varied from the Truth : And the Sum of many fuch Additions, Deductions, and Alterations, accumu- lated for feveral Ages, doth, at the Foot of the Account, make quite another Thing. CRI. An- cient Fads we may know by Tradition, oral or written : And this latter we may divide into two Kinds, private and public, as Writings are kept in the Hands of particular Men, or recorded in public Archives. Now all thefe three Sorts of Tradition, for ought I can fee, concur to atteft the genuine Antiquity of the Gofpels. And they are Strengthened by collateral Evidence from Rites inftituted, Feftivals obferved, and Monuments erect rd PHILOSOPHER. 253 erected by ancient Chriftians, fuch as Churches, DIAL. Baptifteries, and Sepulchres. Now, allowing your VL Objection holds againft oral Tradition, fingly taken, yet I can think it no fuch difficult Thing to tran- fcribe faithfully. And Things once committed to Writing, are fecure from Slips ot Memory, and may with common Care be preferved incire io long as the Manufcript lafts : And this, Experience fhews, may be above a thoufand Years. The Alexandrine Manufcript is allowed to be above twelve hundred Years old : and it is highly pro- bable there were then extant Copies four hundred Years old. A Tradition, therefore, of above fix- teen hundred Years, need have only two or three Links in its Chain. And thefe Links, notwith- ftanding that great length of Time, may be very found and intire. Since no reafonable Man will deny, that an ancient Manufcript may be of much the fame Credit now, as when it was firft written. We have it on good Authority, and it feems pro- bable, that the primitive Chriftians were careful to tranfcribe Copies of the Golpels and Epiftles for their private Ufe : and that other Copies were pre- ferved as public Records, in the feveral Churches throughout the World : and that Portions thereof were conftantly read in their Affemblies. Can more be faid to prove the Writings of ClafTic Authors, or ancient Records of any kind authentic? Alciphron, addrefiing his Difcourfe to Eupbranor^ laid, It is one Thing to filence an Adverlary, and another to convince him. What do you think, Eu- fhranor? EUPH. Doubtlefs it is. ALC. But what I want, is to be convinced. EUPH. That Point is not fo clear. ALC. But if a Man had ever fo much mind, he cannot be convinced by pro- bable Arguments againft Demonfi ration. EUPH. I grant he cannot. IV. ALC. THE MINUTE IV. ALC. Now it is as evident as Demonftration can make it, that no Divine Faith can pofiibly be built upon Tradition. Suppofc an honelt credulous Countryman catechifed and Jeftured every Sunday by his Parifh-Prieft : It is plain he believes in the Parfon, and not in God. He knows nothing of Revelations, and Doclrines, and Miracles, but what the Prieft tells him. This he believes, and this Faith is purely human. If you fay he has the Liturgy and the Bible for the Foundation of his Faith, the Difficulty ftill recurs. For as to the Liturgy, he pins his Faith upon the civil Magiftrate, as well as the Ecclefiaftic : neither of which can pretend Divine Infpiration. Then for the Bible, he takes both that and his Prayer- Book on Truft from the Printer, who, he believes, made true Editions from true Copies. You fee then Faith, but what Faith ? Faith in the Prieft, in the Ma- giftrate, in the Printer, Editor, Tranfcriber, none of which can with any Pretence be called Divine. I had the Hint from Cratylus : it is a Shaft out of his Quiver, and, believe me, a keen one. EUPH. Let me take and make trial of this fame Shaft in my Hands. Suppofe then your Countryman hears a Magiftrate declare the Law from the Bench, or fuppofe he reads it in a Statute Book. What think you, is the Printer or the Juftice the true and proper Object of his Faith and Submiflion ? Or do you acknowledge a higher Authority whereon to found thofe loyal Ac~ts, and in which they do really ter- minate ? Again, fuppofe you read a Pafiage in Tacitus that you believe true ; would you fay you aflented to it on the Authority of the Printer or Tranfcriber rather than the Hiftorian ? ALC. Per- haps I would, and perhaps 1 would not. I do not think mylelf obliged to anfwer thefe Points. What PH ILOSOP-HE R. 255 is this but transferring the Queftion from one Sub- DIAL. ject to another ? That which, we confidered was Vi. neither Law nor profane Hiftory, but religious iXVS Tradition, and Divine Faith. I fee plainly what you aim at, but (hall never take for an Anfwer to one Difficulty, the flatting of another. CRI. O Alcipbron, there is no taking hold of you who ex- pect that others fhould (as you were pleafed to ex- prefs it) hold fair and ftand firm, while you plucked out their Prejudices : How /hall he argue with you but from your Concefiions, and how can he know what you grant except you will be pleafed to tell him? EUPH. But to lave you the Trouble, for once I will fuppofe an Anfwer. My Queftion ad- mits but of two Anfwers : take your Choice. From the one it will follow, that by a Parity of Reafon we can eauly conceive, how a Man may have Di- vine Faith, though he never felt Infpiration or faw a Miracle : inafmuch as it is equally poffible for the Mind, through whatever Conduit, oral or fcriptural, Divine Revelation be derived, to carry its Thought and Submifiion up to the Source, and terminate its Faith, not in Human but Divine Authority : not in the Inftrument or Vefifcl of Conveyance, but in the great Origin itfelf as its proper and true Object. From the other Anfwer it will follow, that you in- troduce a general Scepticifm into Human Know- ledge, and break down the Hinges on which civil G .vernment and all the Affairs of the World turn and depend : in a word that you would deftroy Human Faith to get rid of Divine. And how this agrees with your profeffing that you want to be convinced, J leave you to confider. V. ALC. I fhould in earned be glad to be con- vinced one Way or other, and come to. fame Con- clufion. But i have ib many Objections is &ore, you 256 THE MINUTE DIAL, you are not to count much upon getting over one* VI. Depend on it you mall find me behave like a Gentle- c -v* ' man and Lover of Truth. I will propofe my Ob- jections briefly and plainly, and accept of reafonable Anfwers as faft as you can give them. Come, Eu- phranor, make the moft of your Tradition : you can never make that a conftant and univerfal one, which is acknowledged to have been unknown, or at beft difputed in the Church for feveral Ages : And this is the Cafe of the Canon of the New Teftament. For though we have now a Canon, as they call it, fettled j yet every one muft fee and own that Tradition cannot grow ftronger by Age ; and that what was uncertain in the primitive Times cannot be undoubted in the fubfequent. What fay you to this, Euphranor ? EUPH. 1 (houid be glad to conceive your Meaning clearly before I return an Anfwer. It feems to me this Objection of yours fuppofeth that where a Tra- dition hath been conftant and undifputed, fuch Tra- dition may be admitted as a Proof; but that where the Tradition is defective, the Proof muft be fo too. Is this your Meaning ? ALC. It is. EUPH. Confequently the Gofpels and Epiftles of Saint Paul, which were univerfally received in the Be- ginning, and never fince doubted of by the Church, muft, notwithftanding this Objection, be in reafon, admitted for genuine. And if thefe Books contain, as they really do, all thofe Points that come into Controverfy between you and me ; what need I difpute with you about the Authority of fome other Books of the New Teftament, which came later to be generally known and received in the Church ? If a Man affcnts to the undifputed Books he is no longer an Infidel : though he mould not hold the Revelations, or the Epiftle of Saint James or Jude, or the latter of S.iint Ptter t or the two lalt of Sainc PHILOSOPHER. 257 Saint John to be Canonical. The additional Au- DIAL. thority of thefe Portions of Holy Scripture may VI. have its Weight, in particular Controversies between s.x-v*^ Chriftians, but can add nothing to Arguments againft an Infidel as fuch Wherefore, though I believe a fubfequent Age might clear up what was obicure or dubious in a foregoing, and that good Regions may be affigned for receiving thefe Books, yet. thofe Reaibris feem now beficle our Purpofe. When you are a Chriftian it will be then Time enough to argue this i^oint., And you will be the nearer being 10, if the Way be fliortened by omit- ting it for the prefent. ALC. Not fo near neither, as you perhaps imagine : For, notwithftanding ail the fair and plaufible Things you may fay about Tradition, when I confider the Spirit of Forgery which reigned in the primitive Times, and reflect on the fevcral Gofpels, Ads, and Epiftles, attributed to the Apoftles, which yet are acknowledged to be ipurious, I confefs I cannot help fufpecting the whole. EUPH- Tell me, Alcipbron, do you fuf- pecl all Plato 9 & Writings for fpurious, becaufe the Dialogue upon Death, for inttance, is allowed to be io ? Or will you admit none of fTu/lfs Writings to be genuine, becaufe Sigonius impofcd a Book of his own writing for 2//y.*s Treadle de Confolatione^ and the Impofture pafled for fome Time on the World ? ALC. Suppofc I admit for the Works of futty and Plata thoie that commonly pafs for fuch. What then? EUPH. Why then I would fain know, whether it be equal and impartial in a Free- thinker, to meafure the Credibility of profane and f.icred Books by. a different Rule. Let us know upon what Foot we Chridians are to argue with Minute Philofophers : whether we may be allowed the Benefit of common Maxims in Logic and ..w&S. 30i. .Cruiciiin.? THE MINUTE Criticifm ? If we may, be pleafed to affign a Reafon why fuppofititious Writings, which in the Stile and Manner and Matter bear vifible Marks of 1m- pofture, and have accordingly been rejected by the Church, can be made an Argument againft thole which have betn univerfaliy received, and handed down by an unanimous conitant Tradition. I know nothing truly valuable that hath not been countcr- feited : therefore this Argument is univerfal : But that which concludes againft all Things is to be ad- mitted againft none. There have been in all Ages and in all great Societies of Men, many capricious, vain, or wicked Impoftors, who for different Ends have abufed the World by fpuricus Writings, and created Work for Critics both in profane and facred Learning. And it would feem as filly to reject the True Writings of profane Authors for the fake of the fpurious, as it would feem unreafonable to iuppole, that among the Heretics and feveral Seels of Chnftians, there mould be none capable of the like Impofture. ALC. 1 fee no means for judging: it is all dark and doubtful, meer Guefs-work, at fo great diftance of Time. CRI. But if I know, that a Number of fit Perfons met together in Coun- cil, did examine and diftinguifh authentic Writings from fpurious, relating to a Point of the higheft Concern, in an Age near the Date of thofe Writ- ings ; though I at the Diftance of many more Centuries had no other Proof ; yet their Decifion may be of Weight to determine my Judgment. Since it is probable they might have had feveral Proofs and Reafons for what they did, and not at all improbable, that thofe Reaions might be loll in fo long a Trad: of Time *. * Vide Can. Ix. Concih Laodicen. VI. ALC- PHILOSOPHER. 259 DIAL. VI. ALC. But, be the Tradition ever fo well VJ. attefted, and the Books ever fo genuine, yet I can- not fuppofe them wrote by Perfons divinely in- fpired, Ib long as I fee in them certain Characters inconfiftent with fuch a Suppofition. Surely the pureft Language, the moft perfect Stile, the exact- ed Method, and in a word all the Excellencies of good Writing, might be expected in a Piece com- pofed or dictated by the Spirit of God : But Books, wherein we find the reverie of all this, it were im- pious, not to reject, but to attribute to the Divinity. EUPH. Say, Aldpbron^ are the Lakes, the River. , or the Ocean bounded by ftraight Lines? Are the Hills and Mountains exact Cones or Pyramids? Or the Stars caft into regular Figures? ALC. They are not. EUPH. But in the Works of Infects, we may obferve Figures as exact as if they were drawn by the Rule and Compafs. ALC. We may. EUPH. Should it not feem, therefore, that a regular Exact- nefs, or fcrupulous Attention to what Men call the Rules of Art, is not obferved in the great Pro- ductions of the Author of Nature ? ALC. It Ihould. EUPH. And when a great Prince declareth his Will in Laws and Edicts to his Subjects, is he care- ful about a pure Stile or elegant Compofnion ? Does he not leave his Secretaries and Clerks to ex- prefs his Senfe in their own Words? Is not the Phrafe on fuch Occafions thought proper if it con- veys as much as was intended ? And would not the divine Scrain of certain modern Critics be judged affected and improper for fuch Ulcs ? ALC. It muft be owned, Laws and Edicts and Grants, for Solcecifm and Tautology, are very offcnfive to the harmonious Ears of an ingenious Man. EUP H. Why then fhould we expect in the Oracles of God an Exactnefs, that would b~ misbecoming and S 2 beneath 260 THE MINUTE DIAL, beneath the Dignity of an Earthly 'Monarch, and VI. which bears no Proportion or Refemblance to the magnificent Works of the Creation ? ALC. But granting that a nice Regard to Particles and critical Rules is a Thing too little and mean to be expected in Divine Revelations $ and that there is more Force and Spirit and true Greatnefs in a negligent unequal Stile, than in the well turned Periods of a a polite Writer : Yet what is all this to the bald and flat Compofuions of thofe you call the divine Penmen ? I can never be perfuadtd, the fupreme Being would pick out the pooreft and meaneft of Scriblers for his Secretaries, EUPH. O dlcipbron, if I durft follow my pwn Judgment, I Ihould be apt to think there are noble Beauties in the Stile of the Holy Scripture : in the narrative Parts a Strain fo fimple and unaffected : in the devorional and prophetic, fo animated and fublime : and in the doctrinal Parts fuch an Air of Dignity and Au- thority as feems to fpeak their Original divine But I fhall not enter into a Difpute about Tafte j much lefs let up my Judgment on fo nLe a Point againft that of the Wits, and Men of Genius, with which your Sect abounds. And I have no Temptation to it, inafmuch as it feems to me, the O acles of God are not the lefs fo for being delivered in a plain Drefs, rather than in the enticing Words of Man's Wifdf.m. ALC. This may perhaps be an Apology for fome Simplicity and Negligence in writing. Vfl. But what Apologv can be made for Non- fenle, crude Nonlenie ? Of which i could eafily aflign many Initances, having once in my Life read the Scripture thorough with that very View. Look here, laid he, opening a Bible, in the forry-ninth Plalm, the Author begins very magnificently, calling upon all the Inhabitants of the Earth to PHILOSOPHER. 261 give ear, and affjring them his Mouth (hall fpeak DIAL. of Wifdom, and the Meditation of his Heart (hall VI. be of Undemanding. ' /-* Quid dignum tanto feret bic promijfor hiatu ? He hath no fooner done with his Preface, but he puts this fenfclefs Qutftion. ' Wherefore fliould I * fear in the Days of Evil ; when the Wickednefs * of my Heels (hall compafs me about ?' The Iniquity of my Heels ! What Nonfenfe after fuch a folemn Introduction ! EUPH. For my own part, I have naturally weak Eyes, and know there are many Things that I cannot fee, which are never- thelcfs diftinctly feen by others. I do not therefore conclude a Thing to be abfolurely invifible ; becaufe it is fo to me. And fince it is poffible it may be with my Under (land ing, as it is with my Eyes, I dare not pronounce a Thing to be Nonfenfe, becaufe I do not underftand it. Of this PafiTage many In- terpretations are given. The Word rcnder'd Heels may fignify Fraud or Supplantation : By fome it is tranflatcd pad Wickednefs, the Heel being the hinder Part of the Foot ; by others Iniquity in the End of my Days, the Heel being one Extremity of the Body ; by fome the Iniquity of my Enemies that may fupplant me ; by others my own Faults or Iniquities which I have paffed over as light Matters, and trampled under my Feet. Some render it the Iniquity of my Ways : others my Tranfgrefilons which are like Slips and Slidings or" the Heel. And after all might not this Expreffion fo harfh and odd to Englijb Ears have been very natural and obvious in the Hebrew Tongue, which, as every other Language, had its Idioms ? the Force and Propriety whereof may as eafily be con- ceived loft in a long Tract of Time, as the Signi- S 3 fkation THE MINUTE fication of divers Hebrew Words, which are not now intelligible, though no Body doubts but they had once a Meaning as well as the other Words of that Lan- guage. Granting, therefore, that certain PaiTages in the Holy Scripture may not be underftood, it will not thence follow that its Penmen wrote Nonfenfe: For I conceive Nonfenfe to be one Thing and Unintelligible another. CR1. An Englifh Gentleman of my Ac- quaintance one Day entertaining fome Foreigners at his Houfe, lent a Servant to know the Occafion of a fuclden Tumult in the Yard, who brought him Word, The Horfes were fallen together by the Ears: His Gueits inquiring what the Matter was, he tranfiated it literally ; Les Cbevaux font tombez en- femble par les oreittes. Which made them flare: what expreflcd a very plain Senfe in the Original Englifo, being incomprehenfible when rendered Word tor Word into French. And I remember to have heard a Man excufe the Bulls of his Coun- trymen, by fuppofing them fo many literal Tranf- lations. EUPH. But not to grow tedious, I refer to the Critics and Commentators where you will find the Uic of this Remark, which clearing up feveral obfcure Paffages you took for Nonienfe, may poffibly incline you tofufpect your own Judgment of the reft. In this very Pfalm you have pitched on, the good Senfe and Moral contained in what follows, fhould, methinks, make a candid Reader judge favourably of the original Senfe of the Au- thor, in that Part which he could not underftand. Say, Alciphron, in reading the Ciaffics, do you forth- with conclude evcr^y Pailige to be Nonienfe, that you cannot make Senfe ot ? A L C. By no means : Difficulties mult be luppofed to rife from different Idioms, old Culloms, Hints and Illufions, clear in one Time or Place, and obfcure in another. . And why will you not judge of Scripture by PHILOSOPHER. 263 by the fame Rule? Thofe Sources of Obfcurity DTAL. you mention are all common both to facred and VI. profane Writings : And there is no Doubr, but an v exader Knowledge in Language and Circumftances, would in both caufe Difficulties to vanifli like Shades before the Light of the Sun. yeremiah^ to defcribe a furious Invader, faith: Behold, he Jball come up as a Lion from the Swelling of Jordan again/I the Habitation of the ftrong. One would be apt to think this Paflage odd and improper, and that it had been more reafonable to have faid, a Lion from the Mountain or the Defert. But Travelie s as an ingenious Man obferves, who have feen the River "Jordan bounded by low Lands with many Reeds or Thickets affording Shelter to wild Beails, (which being fuddenly diflodged by a rapid Overflowing of the River, rum into the Upland Country) perceive the Force and Propriety of the Compirifon ; and that the Difficulty proceeds, not from Nonfenfe in the Writer, but from Ignorance in the Reader. ALC. Here and there a difficult Paffage may be cleared : But there are many which no Art or Wit of Man can account for. What fay you to thofe Difcoveries, made by fome of our learned Writers, of fa He Citations from the Old Teftament found in the Gofpel ? EU P H. That fome few PafTages are cited by the Writers of the New Tef- tamenr, out of the Old, and by the Fathers out of the New, which are not in fo many Words to be found in them, is no new Dilcovery of Minute Phi- lofophers, but was known and obferved long before by Chriftian Writers; who have made no Scruple to grant, that fome things might have been inferted by carelefs or miitaken Tranlcribers into the Text, from the Margin, others left out, and others aher'd ; whence fo many various Readings. But thefe are things of fmall Moment, and that all other ancient S 4 Authors 264 THE MINUTE DIAL. Authors have been fubject to; and upon which VI. no Point of Doctrine depends, which may not be v^xv* s - / proved without them. Nay further, if it be any Advantage to your Caufe, it hath been obferved, That the eighteenth Pfalm^ as recited in the twemy- fecond Chapter of the Second Book of Samuel 9 varies in above forty Places, if you regard every little literal Difference: And that a Critic may now and then difcover fmall Variations, is what nobody can deny. But to make the moft of thefe Con- ceffions, What can you inter from them, more than that the Defign of the Holy Scripture was not to make us exactly knowing in Circumftantials ? And that the Spirit did not dictate every Particle and Syllable, or preferve them from every minute Alteration by Miracle? which to believe, would look like Rabbinical Superftition. ALC. Bu: what Marks of Divinity can poffibly be in Writings which do not reach the Exactncfs even of Human Art ? EUPH, I never thought nor expected that the Holy Scripture (hould mew itielf divine, by a circumftantial Accuracy of Narration, by Exad- nefs of Method, by ftricUy obferving the Rules of Rhetoric, Grammar, and Criticifm, in harmonious Periods, in elegant and choice Expreflions, or in technical Definitions and Partitions. Thefe Things would look too like a Human Compofition. Me- thinks there is in that fmiple, unaffected, artlefs, unequal, bold, figurative Stile of the Holy Scrip- ture, a Character fingularly great and majeftic, and that looks more like Divine Inlpiranon, than any other Composition that I know. But, as I faid re, I ihall not dilputea Point of Criticifm with the Gentlemen of your Seel, who, it feems, are the modern Standard tor Wit and Tafte. ^LC. Weil, 1 flu 11 not infill on fmall Slips, or the In- accuracy of ciring or tranfcnbing : And I ireely own, PHILOSOPHE R. 265 own, that Repetitions, Want of Method, or DIAL. Want of Exactnefs in Circumftances, are not the VJ. things that chiefly (tick with me ; no more than the plain patriarchal Manners, or the peculiar Ufages and Cuttoms of the Jews and firft Chrif- tians fo different from ours ; and that to rejet the Scripture on fuch Accounts would be to ad like thofe French Wits, who cenfure Homer becaufe they do not find in him the Stile, Notions, and Manners of their own Age and Country. Was there nothing elfe to divide us, I fhould make no great Difficulty of owning, That a popular uncorrect Stile might anfwer the gentral Ends of Revelation, as well, perhaps, as a more critical and exact one. But the Qbfcunty (till flicks with me. Methinks if the Supreme Being had Ipoke to Man, he would have fpoke clearly to him, and that the Word of God mould not need a Comment. VIII. EUPH. You feem, Alciphron, to think Obfcuritya Defect; but if it mould prove to be no Defect, there would then be no Force in this Objection. ALC. I grant there would not. EUPH. Pray tell me, are not Speech and Stile inftrumental to convey Thoughts and Morions, to beget Know- ledge, Opinion, and Afifcnc ? /ULC This is true. EUPH. And is not the Perfection <>f an Inftrument to be measured by the Uie to winch it is iubfer- vienc? ALC. It is. EUPH. What therefore is a Defect in one Inftrument, may be none in another. For Inftance, edged Tools are in general defigned to cut ; but the Uics of an Axe and a Razor being different, it is no Defect in an Axe, that it hath not the keen Edge of a Razor : nor in the Razor, that it hath not the Weight or Strdrigtfi f an Axe. ALC. I acknowledge this to be true. hU H And may we not fay in general, that every Initrument is 266 THE MINUTE DIAL, is perfect which anfwers the Purpofe or Intention VI. of him 'who ufeth it ? ALC. We may. EUPH. c-.~ v --> Hence it Teems to follow, that no Man's Speech is defective in point of C'-.^arnefs, though it fhould not be intelligible to all Men, if it be fufficiently fo to thofe who, he intended, mould underftand it : or though it fhould not in all Parts be equally clear, or convey a perfect Knowledge, where he intended only an imperfect Hint. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. Ought we not therefore to know the Intention of the Speaker, to be able to know whether his Stile be obfcure through Defect or Defign ? ALC. We ought. EUPH. But is it poflible for Man to know all the Ends and Purpofcs of God's Reve- lations ? ALC. It is not. EUPH. H;>w then can you tell, but the Obfcurity of fome Parts of Scrip- ture may well confift with the Purpofe which you know not, and confequently be no Argument againft its coming from God ? The Books of Holy Scrip- ture were written in ancient Languages, at diftant Times, on fundry Occafions, arid very different Subjects. Is it not therefore reafonable to imagine, that fome Parts or PafTages might have been clearly enough underdood by thofe, for whofe proper Ule they were principally defigned, and yet ieem ob- fcure to us, who fpeak another Language, and live in other Times ? Is it at all abfurd or unfuitable to the Notion we have of God or Man, to fuppofe that -God may reveal, and yet reveal with a Reicrve, upon certain remote and iublime Subjects, content to give us Hints and Glimpies, rather chan Views ? May we not alfo fuppofe from the Rcafon of Things, and the Analogy of Nature, that fome Points, which might otherwife have been more clearly ex- piated, were left obfcure merely to encourage our Diligence and Modefty? Two Virtues, which, if it migiu n"ji iee:ii difrdpectfu! to fuch great Men, I would PHILOSOPHER. 267 would recommend to the Minute Philosophers. DIAL. Lvjides replied, This indeed is excellent : You ex- VI. peel that Men of Senfe and Spirit fliould in great Humility put out their Eyes, and blindly fwallow all the Abfurdities and Nonfenfe that (hall be offered to them for Divine Revelation. EUPH. On the contrary, I would have them open their Eyes, look fharply, and try the Spirit, whether it is of God : and not fupinely and ignorantly condemn in thegrofs, all Religions together, Piety with Superftition, Truth for the fake of Error, Matter of Fact for the fake of Fiction : a Conduct, which at firft Sight would feem abfurd in Hiftory, Phyfic, or any other Branch of Human Inquiry ! But to compare the Chriftian Syftem, or Holy Scriptures, with other Pretences to Divine Revelation, to confider im- partially the Doctrines, Precepts, and Events therein contained; weigh them in the Balance with any other religious, natural, moral, or hiftorical Ac- counts ; and diligently to examine all thofe Proofs, internal and external, that for fo many Ages have been able to influence and perfuade fo many wife, learned, and inquifitive Men : Perhaps they might find in it certain peculiar Characters, whicli fuffici- ently diftinguifh it from all other Religions and pre- tended Revelations, whereon to ground a reafonable Faith. In which Cafe I leave them to confider, whether it would be right to reject with peremptory Scorn a Revelation fo diftinguifhed and attelted, upon account of Oblcurity in fome Parts of it ? and whether it would feem beneath Men of their Senfe and Spirit to acknowledge, that, for ought they know, a Light inadequate to things, may yet be adequate to thePurp&fe of Providence?' and whether it might be unbecoming their Sagacity and critical Skill to own, that literal Transitions from Books in an ancient Oriental Tongue, wherein there are 2 68 THE MINUTE DIAL, are fo many Peculiarities, as to the Manner of VI. Writing, the Figures of Speech, and the Idioms L<-% ' fo remote from all our modern Languages, and in which we have no other coeval Writings extant, might well be obfcure in many Places, efpecially fuch as treat of Subjects fublime and difficult in their own Nature, or allude to Things, Cuftoms, or Events, very diftant from our Knowledge? And laftly, whether it might not become their Character, as impartial and unprejudiced Men, to confider the Bible in the fame Light they would profane Au- thors ? Men are apt to make great Allowance for Tranfpofitions, Omifllon?, and literal Errors of Tranfcribers in other ancient Books, and very great for the difference of Stile and Minners, efpecially in Eaftern Writings, fuch as the Remains of Zo- roafter and Confucius^ and why not in the Prophets ? In reading Horace or Perfws^ to make out the Senfe, they will be at the pains to difcover a hidden Drama, and why not in Solomon or St. Paul ? I hear there are certain ingenious Men who dcfpife King David's Poetry, and yet profefs to admire Homer and Pindar. If there be no Prejudice or Affectation in this let them but make a literal Verfion from thofe Authors into Englijh Profe, and they will then be better able to judge of the Pklms. ALC. You may difcourfe and expatiate ; but not- wirhitanding all you have laid or mall fay, it is a clear Point that a Revelation, which doth not re- vral, can be no better than a Contradiction in Terms. EUPH. Tell me, dlcipbron, do you not acknowledge the Light of the Sun to be the moft glorious Production of Providence in this Natural World ? ALC. Suppofe I do. EUPH. This Light, neverthelefs, which you cannot deny to be of God's making, mines only on the Surface of Things, fhints net at all in the Night, fiiines imperfectly in the PHILOSOPHER. 269 the Twilight, is often interrupted, refra&ed, and DIAL. obfcured, reprefents diftanc things, and fmall VI. things dubioufly, imperfedtly, or not at all. Is v - y ^ this true or no ? ALC It is. EUPH. Should it not follow therefore, that to expect in this World a conftant uniform Light from God, without any Mixture of Shade or Myftery, would be departing from the Rule and Analogy of the Creation ? and that conftquently it is no Argument the Light of Revelation is not Divine, becaufe it may not be fo clear and full as you expect ; or becaufe it may not equally mine at all Times, or in all Places. ALC. As I profefs myfelf candid and indifferent throughout this Debate, I muft needs own you fay fome plaufible things, as a Man of Argument will never fail to do in vindication of his Prejudices. IX. But, to deal plainly, I muft tell you once For all, that you may queftion and anfwer, illuftrate, and enlarge for ever, without being able to convince me that the Chriftian Religion is of Divine Reve- lation. I have faid feveral things, and have many more to fay, which, believe me, have Weight noc only with myfelf, but with many great Men my very good Friends, and will have Weight whatever Euphranor cm fay to the contrary. &U P H. O dlcipbron ! I envy you the Happinels of iucli Acquaintance. But, as my Lot fallen in. this re- mote Corner deprives me of that Advantage, I am obliged to make the mod of this Opportunity, which you and Lnficles have put into my Hands, I confider you as two able Cairurgeons, and you were pleaftd to confider me as a Patient, whole Cure you have generouQy undertaken. Now a Patient muft have full Liberty to explain his Caff, and teli all his Symptom?, the concealing of which might prevent a perfect Cure. You will be pleafed therefore 270 THE MINUTE therefore to underftand me, not as objecting to, of arguing againft, either your Skill or Medicines, but only as fetting forth my own Cafe, and the Effects they have upon me. Say, Alcipbron, did you not give me to underftand that you would extirpate my Prejudices ? ALC. It is true : a good Phyfician eradicates every Fibre of the Difeafe. Come, you fhall have a patient Hearing. EUPH. Pray, was it not the Opinion of Plato, that God infpired par- ticular Men, as Organs or Trumpets, to proclaim and found forth his Oracles to the World * ? And was not the fame Opinion alfo embraced by others thegreateft Writers of Antiquity? CRI. Socrates feems to have thought that all true Poets fpoke by Jnfpiration ; and Fully, that there was no extraor- dinary Genius without it. This hath made fome of our affected Free-thinkers attempt to pafs them- felves upon the World for. Enthufiafls. A LC. What would you infer from all this ? EUPH. I would infer, that Infpiration mould feem nothing impoffible or abfurd, but rather agreeable to the Light of Reafon, and the Notions of Mankind. And this, I fuppofe, you will acknowledge, having made it an Objection againft a particular Revelation, that there are ib many Pretences to it throughout the World. ALC. O Eupbranor, he who looks into the bottom of things, and refolves them into their firft Principles, is not eafily amufed with Words. The Word Infpiration founds indeed big, but let us, if you pleafe, take an original View of the Thing fignified by it. To infpire, is a Word borrowed from the Latin., and ftrictly taken means no more than to,breathe or blow in : nothing therefore can be infpired but what can be blown or breathed, and nothing can be fo but Wind or Vapour, which * Plato in lone. indeed PHILOSOPHER. 271 indeed may fill or puff up Men with fanatical and DIAL. hypochondriacal Ravings. This fort of Infpiracion VI. I readily admit. EUPH. What you fay is fubtle, and I know not what Effect it might have upon me, if your profound Difcourfe did not hinder its own Operation. ALC. How fo ? EUPH. Tell me, Aldphron^ do you difcourfe or do you not ? To me it feems that you difcourfe admirably. ALC. Be that as it will, it is certaifl 1 difcourfe. EUPH. But when I endeavour to look into the bottom of things, behold ! a Scruple rifeth in my Mind how this can be ; for to difcourfe is a Word of Latin Derivation, which originally fignifies to run about ; and a Man cannot run about but he muft change Place, and move his Legs ; fo long therefore as you fit on this Bench, you cannot be faid to di courfe. Solve me this Difficulty, and then perhaps I may be able to folve yours. ALC. You are to know, that Difcourfe is a Word borrowed from fenfible Things, to exprefs an invifible Action of the Mind, reafoning or inferring one Thing from another : and, in this tranflared Senfe, we may be faid to difcourfe, though we fit ftill. EUPH. And may we not as well conceive, that the Term In- fpiration might be borrowed from fenfible things to denote an Action of God, in an extraordinary- manner, influencing, exciting, and enlightening the Mind of a Prophet or an Apoftle? who, in this fecondary, figurative, and tranflated Senfe, may truly be faid to be infpired, though there mould be nothing in the Cafe of that Wind or Vapour implied in the original Senfe of the Word ? It feems to me, that we may by looking into our own Minds plainly perceive certain Inltmcts, Im- pulfes, and Tendencies, which at proper Periods and Occafions fpring up unaccountably in the Soul of Man. We oblerve very vifible Signs of the fame 2yi THE Mi NUT E D IAL. f ame i a ^ other Animals. And thefe things being VI. ordinary and natural, what hinders but we may conceive it poffibie for the Human Mind, upon an extraordinary Account, to be moved in an extra- ordinary manner, and its Faculties ftirred up and actuated by a fupernatural Power ? That there are, and have been, and are likely to be wild Vifions, and hypochondriacal Ravings, no body can deny : but to infer from thence, that there are no true Infpirations would be too like concluding, that fome Men are not in their Senfes, becaufe other Men are Fools. And though I am no Prophet, and con- fequemly cannot pretend to a clear Notion of this Matter ; yet 1 (hall not therefore take upon me to deny, but a true Prophet or infpired Perfon might have had as certain Means of difcerning between divine inlpiration and hypochondriacal Fancy, as you can between Sleeping and Waking, till you have proved the conirary. You may meet in the Book of Jeremiah with this Paffage : The Pro- phet that hath a dream let him tell a dream.: and he that hath my word, let him fpeak my word faithfully : what is the chaff to the wheat, faith the Lord ? Is not my word like as a Fire, faith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?*' You fee here a Diftinclion made between Wheat and Chaff, true and fpurious, with the mighty Force and Power of the former. But I beg pardon for quoting Scripture to you. I make my Appeal to the general Senfe of Man- kind, and the Opinion of the vvifed Heathens, which fcems fufficient to conclude Divine Inlpira- tion poilible, if not probable, at kali till you prove the contrary. * Jerem. xxiii. 28, 29, X. ALC. PHILOSOPHER* 273 DIAL. X. ALC. The Poffibility of Infpirations and VI. Revelations I do not think it neceffary to deny. <- v- -^ Make the beft you can of this Concefiion. EUPH. Now what is allowed poffible we may fuppofe in fad. ALC. We may. EUPH. Let us then fuppofe, that God had been pleafed to make a Re- velation to Men ; and that he infpired fome as a means to inftruct others. Having fuppofed this, can you deny, that their infpired Difcourfes and Revelations might have been committed to Writing, or that being written, after a long Tract of Tims they might become in feveral Places oblcure ; that fome of them might even originally have been lefs clear than others, or that they might fuffer fome Alteration by frequent Tranfcribing, as other Writings are known to have done ? Is it not even very probable that all thefe things would happen ? ALC. 1 grant it. EUPH. And granting this, with what Pretence can you reject the Holy Scrip- tures as not being divine, upon the account of fuch Signs or Marks, as you acknowledge would pro- bably attend a Divine Revelation tranfmitted down to us through fo many Ages ? ALC. But allowing all that in reafon you can defire, and granting that this may account for fome Obfcurityj may reconcile fome fmull Differences, or fatisfy us how fome Difficulties might arife by inferting, omitting, or changing here and there a Letter, a Word, or per- haps a Sentence : Yet thefe are but fmail Matters, in refpect of the much more confiderable and weighty Objections 1 could produce, againft the confcfied Dodrines, , or fubject Matter of thofe Writings. Let us fee what is contained in thefe facred Books, and then judge whether it is probable or pofllble, fuch Revelations fhould ever have been made by God f Now I defy the Wit of Man to T contrive 274 THE MINUTE DIAL, contrive any thing more extravagant, than the VI. Accounts we there find of Apparitions, Devils, u v ' Miracles, God manifelt in the Flefh, Regeneration, Grace, Self-denial, Refurrection of the Dead, and fuch like v" s -' neous, I can fee no reafon ,to be pofitive, that the one muft necefifarily be extinguifhed upon the Dif- folution of the other ; efpecialJy fince I find in my- felf a ftrong natural Delire of Immortality, and I have not obferved that natural Appetites are wont to be given in vain, or merely to be fruftrated. Upon the whole, thofe Points which you account extravagant and abfurd, I dare not pronounce to be fo till 1 fee good Reafon for it. XII. CRL No, Akiphron, your pofitive Airs muft not pafs for Proofs ; nor will it fuffice to fay, things are contrary to common Senfe, to make us think they are fo : By common Senfe, I fuppofe, fhould be meant either the general Senfe of Man- kind, or the improved Reafon of thinking Men. Now I believe that all thofe Articles, you have with fo much Capacity and Fire at once fummed up and exploded, may be (hewn to be not difagree- able, much lefs contrary to common Senfe in one or other of thefe Acceptations. That the Gods might appear and converfe among Men, and that the Divinity might inhabit Human Nature, were Points allowed by the Heathens; and for this I appeal to their Poets and Philofophers, whofe Tef- timonies are fo numerous and clear, that ic would be an Affront to repeat them to a Man of any Edu- cation. And though the Notion of a Devil may not be fo obvious, or fo fully defcribed, yet there appear plain Traces of it, either from Reafon or Tradition. The larer Platonifts, as Porphyry and lamblicbus, are very clear in the Point, allowing that evil Demons delude and tempt, hurt and poflefs Mankind. That the ancient Greeks, Cbal- ) and Mgypilan^ believed both good and bad Angel*, PHILOSOPHER. 277 Angels, may be plainly collected from Plato, DIAL. Plutarch, and the Chaldean Oracles. Origen-ob- VI. ferves, That almoft all the Gentiles, who held the ^s~\r>~i Being of Daemons, allowed there were bad ones *. There is even fomething as early as Homer ', that is thought by the learned Cardinal Bejfarion -f 1 to allude to the Fall of Satan, in the Account of Ate, whom the Poet repreients as caft down from Heaven by Jove, and then wandring about the Earth, doing Mifchief to Mankind. This fame Ate is faid by Hefiod, to be the Daughter of Dlfcord^ and by Euripides ', in his llippolytus, is mentioned as a 'Tempter to Evil. And it is very remarkable, that Plutarch, in his Book De vitando before DIAL. as Cmcejefus Cbrift. CRL That great Man, it VI. feems, teacheth, that common Senfe alone is the ^vJ Pole-Star, by which Mankind ought to fteer ; and that what is called Revelation mult be ridiculous, becaufe it is unnecefftry and ufelefs, the natural Talents of every Man being fufficient, to make him happy, good, and wife, without any further Cor- refpondence with Heaven either for Light or Aid. EUPH. I have already acknowledged how fenfible I am that my Situation in this obfcure Corner of the Country deprives me of many Advantages, to be had from the Conversation of ingenious Men in Town. To make myfelf fome Amends, I am obliged to converfe with the Dead and my own Thoughts, which laft I know are of little Weight againit the Authority of Glaucus, or fuch like great Men in the Minute Philofophy. But what ihall we fay to Socrates , for he too was of an Opinion very different from that afcribed to Glaucus ? ALC* For the prefent we need not infift on Autnorities, ancient or modern, or inquire which was the greater Man Socrates or Glaucus. Though, methinb, for fo much as Authority can fignify, the prefent Times, gray and hoary with Age and Experience, have a manifeft Advantage over thofe that are falfly called ancient. But not to dwell on Authorities, I tell you in plain &igli[h ? Euphranor, we do not want your Revelati-jns : and that for this plain Reafon, thofe that are clear every B xiy knew be- fore, and thofe that are obfcure no Body is the better for. EUPH. As it is impoffible, that a Man fhould believe the praclic Principles of the Chrillun Religion, and not be the better for them : So k is evident, that thole Principles may be much more eanly taught as Points of Faith, than demonstrated or difcovered as Points of Science. This I call U 3 evident* 294 THE MINUTE DIAL, evident, becaufe it is plain Fact. Since we daily VI. fee that many are inftructed in Matters of Faith 5 Wv"*~ ' that few are taught by Scientific Demonftration ; and that there are ftill fewer who can dilcover Truth tor themfelves. Did Minute Philoibphers but reflect : How rarely Men are fway'd or go- verned by mere Ratiocination, and how often by Faith, in the na-ural, or civil Concerns of the World! how little they know, and how much they believe ! How uncommon it is to meet with a Man who argues juftly, who is in truth a Mailer of Reafon, or walks by that Rule ! How much better (as the World goes) Men are qmlified to judge of Facts than of Realonings, to receive Truth upon Ttftimony than to deduce it from Principles ! How general a >pirit of Truft or Reliance runs through the whole Syltem qt" Life and Opinion J And at the lame time how leldom che dry Lighc of unprejudiced Nature is fol.owed or to be found J 1 fay, did our thinking Men but bethink themlelves cf chcle Things, they would perhaps find it diffi- cu t to affign a good Realon, why Faith, which hath fo great a Share in every Thing elic, mould yet have none in Religion. But to come more clofely t j your Point, Whether it was polTible for Mankind to have known all Farts or the Chriftian Religion, befides MyiU-ries and pofitive .nilituti- ons, is not the Qjettion between us ; and that they Actually did not know them, is too plain to be de* nied. This, perhaps, was tor Want of making a due Ufe of Heafun. But, as to the Ufdulne s of i Revelation, it feems much the fame thing whether Men could not know, or would not be at the pains to know the Doctrines Revealed. And as for thole Doctrines which were too obfcure to pene- trate, or too fublime to reach, by Natural Realon 5 far Mankinci m.ay be ihe better ior them is PHILOSOPHER. 295 more, I had almoft faid, than even you or Glaucus DIAL. can tell. VI. XX. ALC. But whatever may be pretended as to obfcure Doctrines and Difpeniations, all this hath nothing to do with Prophecies ; which, being altogether relative to Mankind, and the Events of this World, to which our Faculties are iurely well enough proportioned, one might expect fhould be very clear, and fuch as might inform inftcad of puzzling us. EUPH. And yet it muft be al- lowed that as fome Prophecies are clear, there are Others very obfcure : but left to myielf, I doubt I fhould never have inferred from thence that they were not Divine. In my own way of thinking I fhould have been apt to conclude, that the Pro- phecies we underftand are a Proof for Infpiration : but that thofe we do not underftand are no Proof againft it. Inafmuch as for the latter our Igno- rance or the Referve of the Holy Spirit may ac- count : but for the other Nothing, for ought that I fee, can account but Infpiration. ALC. Now I know feveral iagacious Men, who conclude very differently from you, to wit, that the one Sort of Prophecies are Nonfenfe, and the other contrived after the Events. Behold the Difference between a Man of free Thought and one of narrrow Prin- ciples ! EUPH. It ieems then they reject the Re- velations becaufe they are obfcure, and Daniels Prophecies becaufe they are clear. ALC. Either way a Man of Senfe fees Cauic to fuf^ect there has been foul Play. EUPH. Your Men of Senfe are, it feems, hard to pleale. ALC. Our Pnilo- fophers are Men of piercing Eyes. EUPH. 1 fup- pole fuch Men never make tranfient Judgments from tranfient Views, but always eftablifh fixed Conclufions upon a thorough Inlpection of Things. U 4 For 206 THE MINUTE DIAL. For my own part, I dare not engage with a Man, VI. who lias examined thofe Points fo nicely, as it may < v- -* ' be prefumed you have done : But I could name fome eminent Writers, of our own, now living, whofe Books on the Subject of Prophecy have given great Satisfaction to Gentlemen, who pafs for Men of benfe and Learning, here in the Country. ALC. You muft know, Eufhranor, I am not at Iciiurc to peruie the learned V\ ritings of D, vines, on a Subject which a Man mav fee through with half an Eye To me it is fufficient, that the Point itfelf is odd and out of the Road of Nature. For the reft, I leave them to difpute and icttle among them- felves, where to fix the precife Time when the Scepter departed from Judab : or whether in Daniel's Prophecy of the Mejfiab we mould com- pute by the Chaldean or the Julian 'Year. My only Conclufion concerning all fuch Matters is, that I will never trouble myielf about them. EUPH. To an extraordinary Genius, who fees Things with half an Eye, I know not what to fay : But for the reft bf Mankind, one would think it fhould be very rafh in them to conclude, without much and exact Inquiry, on the unfafe Side of a Qieftion which ..(Concerns their chief Intered. AL.'^. Mark it well : a true Genius in p irluit of Truth makes fwift Advances on the Wings of general Maxims, while Jj.ftle Minds creep and grovel 'amidft mean Par- ticularities. I lay it down for a certain Truth : that by the fallacious Arts of Logic and Criticifm, flrainingand forcing, palliating, patching and dif- tinguifbing, a MUn may juftify or make out any Thing : and this Remark, with one or two about Prejudice, faves me a world of Trouble. EUPH. You Akipbron, who f"ar fublime on ftrong and free Pinions, vouchfafe to lend a helping Hand to thofe whom you behold intangled in the Birdlime of PHILOSOPHER. 297 of Prejudice. For my part, I find it very poffible DIAL. to fuppofe Prophecy may be Divine, although there VI. jfhould be fome Obfcurity at this diftance, with V -"V'N^ refpect to Dates of Time or Kinds of Years. You yourfelf own Revelation poffible : and allowing this I can very eafily conceive it may be odd, and out of the Road of Nature. I can, without Amaze- ment, meet in Holy Scripture divers Prophecies, whereof I do not fee the Completion, divers Texts I do not 'iinderftand, divers Myfteries above my Comprehenfion, and Ways of God to me un- accountable. Why may not fome Prophefies re- late to Parts of Hiftory I am not well enough ac- quainted with, or to Events not yet come to pafs ? It feems to me that Prophecies unfathomed by the Hearer, or even the Speaker himfelf, have been afterward verified and underftood in the Event : and it is one of my Maxims, That, wbat bath been may be. Though I rub mine Eyes, and do mine ut- moft to extricate myfelf from Prejudice, yet it ftill feems very poffible to me, that, what I do not, a more acute, more attentive, or more learned Man may underftand : At Jeafl thus much is plain : the Difficulty of fome Points or Paflages doth not hinder the Clearnefs of others : and thole Parts of Scrip- ture which we cannot interpret, we are not .bound to know the Senfe of. What Evil or what Incon- venience, if we cannot comprehend what we are not obliged to comprehend, or if we cannot account for thole Things which it doth not belong to us to account for ? Scriptures not underftood, at one Time, or by one Pcrfon, may be undeHlood at another Time, or by other Perfons. May we not perceive, by Retrofped: on what is paft, a certain Progrefs from darker to Jighter, in the Scries of the Divine Oeconomy towards Man ? And may not future Events clear up fuch Points as at prefer; t exercife THE MINUTE exercife the Faith of Believers? Now, I cannot help thinking (fuch is the Force either of Truth or Prejudice) that in all this, there is nothing ftrained or forced, or which is not reafonable and natural to fuppofe. XXI. ALC. Well, Euphranor, I will lend you a helping Hand, fince you defire it, but think fie to alter my Method : For you muft know, the main Points of Chriftian Belief have been infuied fo early, and inculcated ib often, by Nuries, Peda- gogues, and Prierts : that, be the Proofs ever fo plain, it is a hard matter to convince a Mind thus tinctured and ftained, by arguing againft Revealed Religion from its internal Characters, I mail there- fore let myfelf to confider things in another Light, and examine your Religion by certain external Characters or Circumftantials, comparing the Syftem of Revelation with collateral Accounts of ancient Heathen Writers, and fhewing how ill it confifts with them. Know then, that the Chriftian Revelation fuppofing the Jewi/b, it follows, that if the Jewi/h be deftroyed, the Chriftian muft of courfe fall to the Ground. Now, to make fhorc Work, I (hall attack this Jewijb Revelation in its Head. Tell me, are we not obliged, if we believe the Mofaic Account of Things, to hold the World was created not quite fix thoufand Years ago ? EUPH. I grant we are. ALC. What will you fay now, if other ancient Records carry up the Hiftory of the World many thoufand Years beyond this Period? What if the ^Egyptians and Cbinefe have Accounts extending to thirty or forty thou- fand Years ? What if the former of thele Nations have obferved twelve hundred Eclipfes, during the fpace of forty eight thoufand Years, before the Time of Alexander the Great ? What if the Cbinefe have PHILOSOPHER. 299 have alfo many Obfervations antecedent to the DIAL. Jewi/h Account of the Creation ? What if the VI. Chaldeans had been obferving the Stars for above four hundred thoufand Years ? And what (hall we fay if we have Succefiions of Kings and their Reigns, marked for feveral thoufand Years before the Beginning of the World, affixed by Mofes ? Shall we reject the Accounts and Records ot all other Nations, the moft famous, ancient, and learned in the World, and preferve a blind Reve- rence for the Legiflator of the Jews? EU P H. And pray if they deferve to be rejected, why fhould we not rtjcct them? What if thole mon- ftrous Chronologies contain nothing but Names without Actions and manifeft Fables ? What if thofe pretended Obfervations of ^Egyptians and Chaldeans were unknown or unregarded by an- cient Aftronomers ? What if the Jefuits have fhewn the Inconfiftency of the like Cbincje Pre- tenfions with the Truth of Epbemerides ? What if the molt ancient Cbinefe Obfervations allowed to be authentic, are thole of two fixed Stars, one in the Winter Solftice, the other in the Vernal Equi- nox, in the Reign of their King Tao, which was fince the Flood * ? ALC. You mull give me leave to obferve, the Romijh Mifiionarics are of fmall Credit in this Point. EUPH. But what Know- ledge have we, or can we have, of thofe Cbinefe Affairs, but by their Means ? The fame Perfons that te;l us of thefe Accounts refute them : if we reject their Authority in one Cafe, what Right have we to build upon it in another? ALC. When I confider that the Cbinefe ha.ve Annals of more than forty thoufand Years, and that they are a learned ingenious and acute People, very curious and ad- * ^ianchini Hiilor. Univerf. c. 17, dieted 300 THE MINUTE DIAL, dieted to Arts and Sciences, I profefs I cannot help VI. P a X' n g f me Regard to their Accounts of Time. - v > EUPH. Whatever Advantage their Situation and political Maxims may have given them, it doth not appear they are fb learned or fo acute in point of Science as the Europeans. The general Character of the Cbinefe, if we may believe Trigaltius and other Writers, is that they are Men of a trifling and credulous Curiofity, addicted to learch after the Philofopher's Stone, and a Medicine to make Men immortal, to Aftrology, Fortune-telling, and Prefages of all Kinds. Their Ignorance in Na- ture and Mathematics is evident, from the great Hand the Jefuits make of that Kind of Know- ledge among them. But what mail we think of thofe extraordinary Annals, if the very Cbinefe themfelves give no Credit to them for more than three thoufand Years before Jefus Cbrift ? If they do not pretend to have begun to write Hiftory above four thoufand Years ago ? And if the oldeft Books they have now extant in an intelligible Cha- racter, are not above two thoufand Years old ? One would think a Man of your Sagacity, fo apt to fufpcct every Thing out of the common Road of Nature, mould not without the cleareft Proof admit thofe Annals for authentic, which record fuch ftrange Things as the Sun's not fetting for ten Days, and Gold raining three Days together. Tell me, Alcipbron, can you really believe thefe Things without inquiring- by what Means the Tradition was preferved, through what Hands it palled, or what Reception it met with, or who firft com- mitted it to writing? ALC. To omit the Cbinefe and their btory, it will ferve my Purpofe as well to build on the Authority of Manet bo that learned ^/Egyptian Pried, who had fuch Opportunities of fcarching into the moft ancient Accounts of Time, and PHILOSOPHER. 301 and copying into his Dynafties the mod venc- DIAL rable and authentic Records infcribed on the Pillars VI. of Hermes. EUPH. Pray, Alcipbron, where were thofe Chronological Pillars to be feen ? ALC. In the Seriadical Land. EUPH. And where is thac Country ? ALC. I don't know. EUPH. How were thofe Records preserved for fo many Ages down to the Time of this Hermes, who is faid to have been the firft Inventor of Letters ? ALC. I do noc know. EUPH. Did any other Writers, before or fmce ManetbOy pretend to have feen, or tranfcribed, or known any Thing about thefe Pillars ? ALC. Not that I know. EUPH Or about the Place where they are faid to have been ? ALC. if they did, it is more than I know. EUPH. Do the Greek Authors that went into Mgypt, and confulted the Algyptian Priefts, agree with thefe Accounts of Manetho? ALC. Suppofe they do not. EUPH. Doth Diodorus^ who Jived fmce Manetho, follow, cite, or fo much as mention this fame Manetho? ALC. What will you infer from all this ? EUPH. Jf I did not know you and your Principles, and how vigilantly you guard againft Impofture, I Ihould infer that you were a very credulous Man. For what can we call it but Credulity to believe moft incredible things on moft (lender Authority, fuch as Fragments of an obfcure Writer, difagree- jng with all other Hiftorians, fupported by an obfcure Authority of Hermes' s Pillars, for which you muft take his Word, and which contain things fo improbable as Succeffions of Gods and Demi- gods, for many thouiand Years, Vulcan alone having reigned nine Thoufand ? There is Jitrle in thefe venerable Dynafties of Manetho, bcfides Names and Numbers : and yet in ttac hctle we. meet with very ftrange Things, that would be thought Ro- mantic in another Writer : For inrtance, the Nile over- 302 THE MINUTE DIAL, overflowing with Honey, the Moon grown bigger, VI. a fpeaking Lamb, feventy Kings who reigned as va^-y-*-' many Days one after another, a King a Day *. If you are known, Alcipbron, to give credit to thefe Things, I fear you will lofe the Honour of being thought incredulous, ALC. And yet thefe ridi- culous Fragments, as you would reprefent them, have been thought worth the Pains and Lucubra- tions of very learned Men. How can you account for the Work that the great Jofepb Scaliger and Sir John Mar/ham make about them ? EUPH. I do not pretend to account for it. To fee Scaliger add another Julian Period to make room for fuch Things as Manetho's Dynafties, and Sir John Marjham take fo much learned pains to piece, patch, and mend thofe obfcure Fragments, to range them in Synchronifms, and try to adjuft them with facred Chronology, or make them confident with them- felves and other Accounts, is to me very ftrange and unaccountable. Why they, or Eufebius^ or yourfelf, or any other learned Man fhould imagine thofe Things dcferve any Regard I leave you to explain. XXII. ALC. Afcer all it is not eafy to conceive what fhould move, not only Manetbo, but alfo other ^Egyptian Priefts, long before his Time, to let up fuch great Pretences to Antiquity, all which, however differing one from another, agree in this, that they overthrow the Mofaic Hiftory. How can this be accounted for without forne real Foun- dation ? What Point of Pleafure, or Profit, or Power, could fet Men on forging Succeflions of ancient Names, and Periods of Time for Ages be- fore the World began ? EUPH. Pray, Alciphron, * Seal. Can. Ifag. I. z. is PHILOSOPHER. 303 is there any Thing fo ftrange or fingular in this vain D IAL, Humour of extending the Antiquity of Nations VI. beyond the Truth ? Hath it not been obferved in molt Farts of the World ? Doth it not even in our own Times fhew itfelf, efpecially among thofe dependent and fubdued People, who have little elfe to boaft of. To pafs over others of our Fellow- Subje&s, who, in proportion as they are below their Neighbours in Wealth and Power, lay claim to a more remote Antiquity ; are not the Preten- lions of Irijhmen in this Way known to be very extravagant? If I may truft my Memory, O'Fiaberty, in his Ogygia, mentions Ibme Tranf- aftions in Ireland before the Flood. The fame Humour, and from the fame Caufe, appears to have prevailed in Sicily, a Country, for fome Cen- turies paft, fubjedt to the Dominion of Foreigners : during which Time, the Sicilians have publifhed divers fabulous Accounts, concerning the Original and Antiquity of their Cities, wherein they vye with each other. It is pretended to be proved by ancient Infcnptions, whole Exiitence or Authority feems on a level with that of Hermes's Pillars, that Palermo was founded in the Days of the Patriarch Ifaac by a Colony of Hebrews, Phoenicians, and Syrians, and that a Grand ion of EJau had been Go- vernor of a Tower lubliiting within theie two hundred Years in that City '*. The Antiquity of Mcffma hath been carried itili higher, by iome who would have us think it wab enlarged bv Nimrod^. The like Pretenfions are made by Catania, and other Towns of that Ifland, who have lound Au- thors of as good Credit as Manetbo to fupport them. Now I mould be glad to know why the Jgyptians 9 * Fazelli Hift. Sicul. decad. r. 1. 8. f Reina Nottzie Iftoriche di Meiiina. a fub- 304 THE DIAL, a fubdued People, may not probably be fuppofed -VI. to have invented fabulous Accounts from the fame v - /-Y"N*' Motive, and like others valued themfelves on extra- vagant Pretenfions to Antiquity, when in all other Reipe6ts they were fo much inferior to their Mafters? That People had been fucceffively conquered ' by JEtbiopians* Affyrians, Babylonians, Perfians, and Grecians^ before it appears that thofe wonderful' Dynaftics of Manetho and the Pillars of Hermes were ever heard of 5 as they had been by the two firft of thofe Nations before the Time of Solon him- felf, the earlieit Greek that is known to have con- fulted the Pnefts of JEgypt .* Whofe Accounts \vere fo extravagant that even the Greek Hiftorians, though unacquainted with Holy Scripture, were far from giving an intire Credit to them. Hero- dotus making a Report upon their Authority, faith, Thofe to whom iuch Things feem credible may make the bed of them, for himfelf declaring that it was his Purpofe to write what he heard *. And both he and Diodorus do, on divers Occafions, fliew the fame Diffidence in the Narratives of thofe ^Egyptian Priefts. And as we obferved of the it is no lefs certain that the Phoenicians, and Chaldeans were each a conquered and reduced People, before the reft of the World ap- pear to have heard any Thing of their Pretenfions to fo remote Antiquity. CRL But what Occafion is there to be at any pains to account for the Hu- mour of fabulous Writers ? Is it not fufficient to fee that they relate Abiurdities : that they are un- fupported by any foreign Evidence : that they do rot appear to have been in Credit, even among their own Countrymen, and that they are incon- iiftent one with another ? That Men mould have * Herodotus in Euterpe. the PHILOSOPHER. 305 the Vanity to impofe on the World by falfe Ac- DIAL. counts, is nothing ftrange : it is much more fo, yl. that after what hath been done towards undeceiving v-^-y-^ the World by fo many learned Critics, there mould be Men found capable of being abufed by thofe paltry Scraps of Mane.tho^ Berofus, Ctejias, or the Jike fabulous or counterfeit Writers. ALC. Give me leave to obferve, thofe learned Critics may prove to be Ecclefiaftics, perhaps iome of them Papifts. CRL What do you think of Sir Ifaac Newton, was he either Papift or Ecclefiaftic ? Per- haps you may not allow him to have been in Sa- gacity or Force of Mind equal to the great Men of the Minute Philofophy : But it cannot be de- nied that he had read and thought much upon the Subject, and that the Refult of his Inquiry was a perfect Contempt of all thofe celebrated Rivals to Afofes. ALC. It hath been obferved by ingenious Men, that Sir Ifaac Newton, though a Layman, was deeply prejudiced, vvitnefs his great Regard to the Bible. CRL And the fame maybe faid of Mr. Locke, Mr. Boyle, Lord Bacon^ and other famous Laymen, who, however knowing in feme Points, muft neverthelefs be allowed not to have attained that keen Difcernment which is the pecu- liar Diftinction of your Set. XXIII. But perhaps there may be other Reafons befide Prejudice, to incline a Man to give Mofes the Preference, on the Truth of whofe Hiftory the Government, Manners, and Religion of his Countrymen were founded and framed ; of whofe Hiftory there are manifcft Traces in the moil ancient Books and Traditions of the Gentile 's, par- ticularly of the Brachmans and Perfees -, not to mention the general Atteftation of Nature as well as Antiquity, to his Account of a Deluge -, whofe X Hiftory 306 THE MINUTE DIAL. Hiftory is confirmed by the late Invention of VJ. Arts and Sciences, the gradual Peopling of the VX^TN^ World, the very Names of ancient Nations, and even by the Authority and Arguments of that re- nowned PhilofopherL#r proving the Image Worfhip of the Egyptians and other Nations, went out from J&gypt and iectled in Jerufalem, where they built a Tenijple to one only God without Images f- XXV.^LC. WewhoaflerttheCaureofLi- berty againlt Religion, in thefe, later Ages of thp World, lie under great Di fad vantages, from the Lofs of ancient Books, which Beared up many Points to the Eyes of thofc great Mdi, Ceifus 9 Prophyry^ and Julian* which at a greater Diftancc and with lefs Help cannot fo eafily be made out by us : but, had we thofe Records, I doubt not we might demolifh the whole Syftem at once. CRT. And yet I make fome Doubt of thisj becaufe thofe great Men, as you call them, with all thofe Ad- vantages could not do it. ALC. That muft needs * Jofeph. contra Apion. 1. i. f Strab. 1. 16. X 3 have 3 ro T H E M i N u T E DIAL, have been owing to the Dulnefs and Stupidity oi VI. the World in thole Days, when the Art oi Reafon- k -v"* ' ing was not fo much known and cultivated as pf late : But thofe Men of true Genius law through the Deceit themfelves, and were very clear in their Opinion, which convinces me they had good reafon on their Side. CRL And yec that great Man Celfus Items to have had very flight and incon- ftant Notions : one while, he talks like a thorough Epicurean , another, he admits Miracles, Prophecies, and a tuture Srate of Rewards and Punishments. What think you, dlcipbron, is it not fomething ca- pricious in fo great a Man, among other Advan- tages which he afcribes to Brutes above Human Kind, to fuppofe they are Magicians and Prophets -, that they have a nearer Commerce and Union with the Divinity -, that they know more than Men ; and that Elephants, in particular, are of all others moft religious Animals and ftricT: Obfervers of an Oath *. 4LC. A great Genius will be fometimes whimfical. But what do you fay to the .Emperor Julian^ was not he an extraordinary Man ? CRT. He feems by his Writings to have been lively and fatirical. Further, I make no difficulty of owning that he was a generous, temperate, galanr, and facetious Emperor: But at the lame time ir mud be allowed, becnufe his own Heathen Panegynit Ammianus Mar- cellintis T al'ows it, that he was a prating, light, vain, fuperftiuous Sort of Man. And therefore his Judgment or Authority can be but of fmall Wright with thofe, who are not prejudiced in his Favour. ALC. But of all the great Men who wrote againll Revealed Religion, the greateft without qucftion was that truly great Man Porphyry, the llofs of -whofe invaluable Work can never be fuf- ficiently lamented. This .profound .Philofopher xvent to the Bottom .and Original of Things. He * Orjgen. contra Celfum J. 4. f Am. Marcellin. 1. ay. moft PHILOSOPHER. 311 tnoft learnedly confuted the Scriptures, fhew'd the DIAL* Abfurdity of the Mofaic Accounts, undermined and VI. expofed the Prophecies, and ridiculed allegorical Interpretations *. The Moderns, it muft be owned, have done great Things and fhewn themielves able Men : yet I cannot but regret the Lofs of what was done by a Perfon of fuch yaft Abilities, and who lived to much nearer the Fountain-head; though his Authority furvives his Writings, and muft ftill have its Weight with impartial Men, in fpite of the Enemies of Truth. CRT. Prophyry^ I grant, was a thorough Infidel, though he appears by no means to have been incredulous. It feems he had a great Opinion of Wizards and Necromancers, and be- lieved the Myfteries, Miracles, and Prophefies of Tbeurgifts and Mgyptian Priefts. He was far from being an Enemy to obfcure Jargon, and pretended to extraordinary Extafies. Jn a word, this great Man appears to have been as unintelligible as a School- man, as fuperftitious as a Monk, and as fanatical as any Quietift or Quaker : and, to compleat his Character as a Minute Philofopher, he was under ftrong Temptations to lay violent Hands on himfelf. We may frame a Notion of this Patriarch of In- fidelity, from his judicious Way of thinking upon other Points as well as the Chriftian Religion. So fagacious was he as to find out, that ttie Souls of Iniecls, when feparated from their Bodies, become rational : that Daemons of a thoufand Shapes affift in making Philtrums and Charms, whofe fpiritual Bodies are nourifhed and fattened by the Steams of Libations and Sacrifices : That the Ghofts of thofe, who died violent Deaths, ufe to haunt and appear about their Sepulchers. This fame egregious Phi- lofopher advifeth a wife Man not to eat Flefh, left * Luc. Holftenius de vita & fcriptis Porphyrijj X 4 the 312 T?HE DIAL, the impure Soul of the Brute that was put to vio- VI. lent Death mould enter, along with the Flefh, into V.-V J thofe who eat it. He adds, as a Matter of FacT: confirmed by many Experiments, that thofe who would infmuate into themfelves the Souls of fuch Animals, as have the Gift of foretelling Things to come, need only eat a principal Parr, the Heart, for inftance, of a Stag or a Mole, and fo receive the Soul of the Animal, which will prophciy in them like a God *. No wonder if Men whofc Minds were preoccupied .by Futh and Tenets of fuch a peculiar Kind, fliould be averfe from the Re- ception of the Gofpel. Upon the whole, we de- fire to be excufed if we do not pay the fame De- ference to the Judgment of Men, that appear to us whimfical, fuperftitious, weak, and vifionary, which thofe impartial Gentlemen do, who admire their Talents, and are proud to tread in their Footfteps. ALC. Men fee Things in different Views : what one admires another contemns : it is even poffible for a prejudiced Mind, whofe Attention is turned towards the Faults and Blemifhes of Things, to fanfy fome Shadow of Defect in thofe great Lights, which in our own Days have enlightened, and ftill continue tOfenlighten the World. "V< which Impofture hath been fufficiently detected by able Critics in the lad Age. CRL Though there are not wanting able Critics on the other fide of the Queftion, yet, not to enter upon the Difcuflion of that celebrated Paflage, I am con- tent to give you all you can defire, and fuppofe it not genuine, but the pious Fraud of fome wrong- headed Chriftian, who could not brook the Omiflion sin Jofepbus : But this will never make fuch Omiflion a real Objection againft Chriftianity. Nor is there, for ought I can fee, any thing in it whereon to ground either Admiration or Sufpicion *, inafmuch as it mould feem very natural, fuppofing the Go pel Account exactly true, for Jofephus to have faid nothing of it ; confidering that the View of that Writer was to give his Country fome Figure in the Eye of the World, which had been greatly pre- judiced againft the Jews, and knew little of their Hiftory, to which end the Life and Death of our Saviour would not in any wife have conduced 5 confidering that Jofepbus could hot have been an Eye-Witnefs of our Saviour or his M racles ; con- fidering that he was a Pharifee of Quality an,d Learning, foreign as well as Jewi/h, one *of great Employment in the State, and that the Gofpel was preached to the Poor ; that the firft Inftruments of fpreading it, and the firft Converts to it were mean and illiterate, that it might not feem the Work of Man, or beholden to Human Intereft or Power ; confidering the general Prejudice of the Jews, who pxpected in the Mefflab a temporal and conquering Prince ; THE MINUTE Prince-, which Prejudice was fo ftrong, that they chofe rather to attribute our Saviour's Miracles to the Devi), than to acknowledge him to be the Chrift : Confiderinp; allb the hellilh Diforder and Confufion of the Jcvi/lj State in the Days of Jo- fephus : when Mens Minds were filled and aftonifh- ed with unparallel'd Wars, Diffenfions, Maflacres, and Seditions of that devoted People. Laying all thefe things together, I do not think it ft range, that fuch a Man, writing with fuch a View, at fuch a Time, and in fuch Circumftances, fhould omit to defcribe our blefled Saviour's Life and Death, or to mention his Miracles, or to take notice of the State of the Chriftian Church, which was then as a Grain of JVJuftard- Seed, beginning to take root and germinate. And this will feem ftilllefs ftrange, if itbeconfidered, that the Apoftles in a few Years after our Saviour's Death departed from Jerufalem, fetting themfelves to convert the Gentiles^ and were difperfed through- out the World ; that the Converts in Jerufakm were not only of the meaneft of the People, but alfo few i the three thoufand, added to the Church in one Day upon Peter's preaching in that City, ap- jjearing to have been not Inhabitants but Strangers from all Parts afTemblcd to celebrate the Feait of Pentecqft ; and that all the Time of Jofephus, and for feveral Years after, during a Succeflion of fifteen Bifhops, the Chriftians at Jerufakm obferved the Mofaic Law *, and were confequently, in outward Appearance, one People with the reft of the Jews^ which mutt have made them lefs obfervable. I would fain know what Reafon we have to fuppofe, that the Gofpel, which in its firft Propagation ieemed to overlook the great or confiderable Men of this World, might not alfo have been overlook- ed by them, a-s a thing not fuited to their Appre- * Self. Sever. Sacr. Hift. 1. 2. & Eufeb, Chron. lib. porter. henfions PHILOSOPHER. 315 henfions and way of thinking? Befides, in thofe DIAL, early Times might not other learned Jews, as well VI. as ]" Gamaliel^ fufpend their Judgment of this new wv^ way, as not knowing what to make or fay of it, being on one hand unable to quit the Notions and Traditions in which they were brought up, and, on the other, not daring to refill or ijpeak againft the Gofpel, left they fhould be found to fight againft God ? Surely at all Events, it could never be ex- pelted, that an unconverted Jew mould give the fame Account of the Life, Miracles, and Doctrine of Jefus Chrift, as might become a Chriftian to have given : Nor on the other hand was it at all improbable, that a Man of Senfe mould beware to leffcn or traduce what, for ought he knew, might have been a heavenly Difpenfation : between which two Courfes the middle was to fay nothing, but pals it over in a doubtful or a refpeftful Silence. And it is obfervable, that where this Hiftorian oc- cafionally mentions Jefus Chrift in his Account of St. James's Death, he doth it without any Re- flection, or faying either (Good or Bad, though at ..the fame time he (hews a Regard for the Apoftle. It is obfervable, I fay, that fpeaking of Jefus his Expreffion is, who was called the Chrift, not who pretended to be the Chrift, or who was falfly called the Chrift, but (imply T Xsyojmsvs Xg/sii *. It is evident Jofepbus knew there was fuch a Man as Jejus 9 and that he was faid to be the Chrift, and yet he condemns neither him nor his Followers ; which to me feems an Argument in their favour. Certainly if we fuppole Jofepbus to have known or been perluaded that he was an Impoftor, it will be difficult to account for his not faying fo in plain terms. But if we fuppofe him in Gamaliel's way pf thinking, who fufpended his Judgment, and was -}- Afls v. * Jof. Ant. 1. 20. c, 8. afraid THE MINUTE afraid of being found to fight againft God, ft mould kern natural Tor him to behave in that very man- ner, which according to you makes againft our Faith, but I verily think makes for it : But what if Jofephus had been a Bigot, or even a Saddutee^ an Infide), an Atheitt ? What then \ we readily grant there might have been Perfons of Rank, Po- Hticians, Generals, and Men of Letters, then as well as now, Jews as well as Englijhmen^ who believed no Revealed Religion : And that fome fueh Per- fons might poffibly t>ave heard of a Man in low Life, \vhoperformedMiraclesbyMagic, without informing themfelves, or perhaps ever inquiring, about his Miflion and Doctrine. U^on the wnole, I cannot comprehend why any Man Ihoukl conclude againft the Truth of the Gofpcl, from Jofepbufs omitting to fpeak of it, any more than from his omitting to embrace it. Had ti*e fir ft Chnftians been Chief Prieib and Rulers, or Men of Science and Learning, like Pkila and Jcjepbus, it might perhaps with better Colour have been objected, chat the'ip Religion was of Human Contrivance, than now that it hath pjeafed God by weak things to confound the Strong. This I think fufficiently ac- counts, why in the. beginning the Gofpel might overlook or be overlooked by Men of a certain Rank and Character. - bqr )T < nfiifVnfO amoDxl Jon b XXVII. ALC. And yet it feernsan odd Argu- ment in proof of any Doctrine, that it was preached by ft m pie People to fimple People, C R L Indeed if there was no other Attefhmon to the Truth of the Chi;iftian Religion, this muft be owned a very weak one. But if a Doctrine begun by Inflru- ments, mean, as to all human Advantages, and making, its firft Progrefs among thofe, who had neither. Wealth npj- Art nor Power to grace or en- ia coura fi c I LO SbPH E R. it, (houkl in a (hort time by its own innate Excellency, the mighty Force of Miracles, and the Demonftration of the Spirit, not only without, but againft, all worldly Motives fpread through the World, and fubdue Men of all Ranks and Condi- tions of Life, would it not be very unreafonable to reject or fufpecT: it, for the want of Human Mearts? And might not this with much better reason be thought an Argument of its coming from God? ALC. But ftill an inquifitive Man will want the Teftimony of Men of Learning and Know- ledge. CRL But from the firft: Century on- wards, there was never wanting the Teftimony of fuch Men who wrote learnedly in defence of the Chriftian Religion, who lived, many of them, whtri the Memory of things was frefh, who had Abili- ties to judge and Means to know, and who gave the cleared Proofs of their Conviction and Since- rity. ALC. But all the while thefe Men were Chriftians, prejudiced Chriftian*, and therefore their Teftimony is to be fupected. CRL It feerns then you would have Jews or 'Heathens atteft to the Truths of Chriftianity. ALC. That is the very Thing I want. CRT. But how can this be? or if it could, would not any rational Man be apt to fufpect fuch Evidence, and ask, how it was po ftble for a Man really to believe fuch things him- felf, and not become a Chriftian ? The Apoitles and firft Converts were themfelves Jews, and brought up in a Veneration for the Law of Mojes^ and in. all the Prejudices of that People : many Fathers, Chriftian Philosophers, and learned Apologifts for the Faith, who had been bred Gentiles ^ were with- out doubt imbued with Prejudices of Education ; and if the Finger of God and Force of Truth con- verted both the one and the other from Judaifm or Gentilifm, in fpite of their Prejudices, to Chriftia- nity TH E MINUTE nity, is not their Teftimony fo much the ftronger ? You have then the Suffrages of both Jews and Gentiles ? attefting to the Truth of our Religion, in the earlieft Ages. But to expect or defire the Atteftation of Jews remaining Jews^ or of Gentiles remaining Gentiles^ feems unreafonable : nor can it be imagined that the Teftimony of Men, who were not converted themfelves, mould be the likelieft to convert others. We have indeed the Teftimony of'heathen Writers to prove, That about the time of our Saviour's Birth, there was a general Expectation in the Eaft of a Meffmh or Prince, who mould found a new Do- minion : That there were fuch People as Chriftians : That they were cruelly perfecuted and put to Death: That they were innocent and holy in Life and Worfhip : And that there did really exift in that time certain Perfons and Facts mentioned in the New Teftament : and for other Points, we have learned Fathers, feveral of whom had been, as I already obferved, bred Heathens, to atteft their Truth. A LC. For my part, I have no great Opi- nion of the Capacity or Learning of the Fathers*, and many learned Men, efpecially of the Reformed Churches abroad, are of the fame mind, which faves me the trouble of looking myfelf into their vo- luminous Writings. CR /. 1 mail not take upon me to fay, with the Minute Philofopher Pompona- tius .*, that Qrigen> Bafil^ Auguftine^ and divers other Fathers, were equal to Plato, Ariftotle, and the greateft of the Gentiles in Human Knowledge. But, if I may be allowed to make a Judgment from what I have feen of their Writings, I mould think feveral of them Men of great Parts,, Eloquence, and Learning, and much fuperior to thole who feem to undervalue them. Without any Affront to certain modern Critics or Tranflators, Erafmits * Lib. de immortalitate animse. may PHILOSOPHER. 3 1 g. may be allowed a Man of fine Tafte, and a fit D i AL*. Judge of Senfe and good Writing, though his V1-. Judgment in this Point was very different from. .xv^o theirs. Some of our Reformed Brethren, becauie the Romanics attribute too much, feem to have at- tributed too little to them, irorra a very ufual, though no very judicious Oppofition : which is ape to lead Men to remark Detects, without making proper Allowances, and to fay things which nei- ther Piety, Candor, nor good Senfe require them to fay. XXVIII. ALC. But though I fhould acknow- ledge, that a concurring Teftimony of many learned and able Men throughout the firft Ages of Chriftianity may have its Weight, yet when I confider the great number of Forgeries and Hasre- fies that fprung up in thole Times, it very much weakens their Credit. C R /. Pray, dlcipbron, would it be allowed a good Argument in the Mouth of a Papift againtt the Reformation, that many abfurd Sects fprung up at the fame time with it ? Are we to wonder, that when good Seed is fowing, the Enemy mould few Tares ? Bui at once to cut off feveral Objections, Jet us fuppole in fad, what you do not deny poflible, that there is a God, a Devil, and a Revelation from Heaven com- mitted to Writing many Centuries ago. Do bu take a view of Human Nature, and conlider, wha would probably follow upon fuch a Suppoiition : and whether it is not very likely, there Ihould be Ha If- believers, raiftaken Bigots, holy Frauds, am- bitious, imerefted, difputing, conceited, fchifma- tical, hasretical, abfurd Men among the Proftfibrs of fuch Revealed Religion, as well as after a courfc of Ages, various Readings, Omiffions, Tranfpofi- tions, and Oofcuriries in the Text of the facred Oracles? $20 THE MINUTE DIAL. Oracles? Andiffo, I leave you to judge, whe- VI. ther it be reafonable to make thofe Events an Ob- jection againft the Being of a Thing, which would probably and naturally follow upon the Suppofal of its Being. ALC. After all, fay what you will* this Variety of Opinions muft needs fhake the Faith of a realbnable Man. Where there are fo many different Opinions on the fame Point, it is very cer- tain they cannot all be true, but it is certain they may all be falfe. And the Means to find out the Truth ! When a Man of Senfe fees about this In- quiry, he finds himfelf on a fudden ftartled and amufed with hard Words and knotty Queftions. This makes him abandon the Purfuit, thinking the Game not worth the Chace. CRI. But would not this Man of Senfe do well to confider, it muft argue want of Difcernment, to reject divine Truths for the fake of human Follies ? Ufe but the fame Candor and Impartiality in treating of Religion, that you Would think proper on other Subjects. We defire no more, and expect no lefs. In Law^ in Phyfic, in Politics, whereever Men have refinedj is it not evident they have been always apt to run into Difputes and Chicane ? But will that hinder you from admitting there are many good Rule?, and juft Notions, and ufeful Truths in all thofe Profeffions. Phyficians maydifpute, perhaps vain- ly and unintelligibly, about the Animal Syftem : They may affign different Caufes of Diftempers, fome explaining them by the elementary Qualities, hot and cold, moift and dry, others by chymical, others by mechanical Principles : Yet this doth not hinder but the Bark may be good for an Ague, and Rhubarb for a Flux. Nor can it be interred from the different Seels, which from time to time have fprung up in that Profeffion, the Dogmatic* for inftance, Empiric, Methodic, Galenic, Para- celfian t PHILOSOPHER. 321 cdfian, or the hard Words and knotty Queftions DIAL, and idle Theories which have grown from tnem, or Vj. v been ingrarted on them, that therefore we mould deny* the Circulation of the Blood, or reject their excellent Rules about Exercife, Air, and Diet. A L C. It icems you would fcreen Religion by the Example of other Profefllons, all which have pro- duced Sects and Difputes as well as Chriftianity, which according to you may in itfelf be true and uiefulj notwithstanding many falfe and fruitlefs No- tions ingrafted on it by the .Wit of Man. But certainly if this had been obferved or believed by many acute .Reafoners, they would never have' made the Multiplicity of Religious Opinions and Controverfies, an Argument againft Religion in general. CRL.tiow iuch an obvious Truth mould elcape Men of Senfe and Inquiry I leave you to account : But I can very eafily. account for grofs Miitakes in thofe, who pals' fpr Free-thinkers, without ever thinking : or, if they do think, whdfe Meditations are employed on other Points, pf a very- different Nature, from a ferious and impartial In^ quiry about Religion. XXIX. But to return: What or where is the Profefiion of Men, who never fplit into SchifmV or never talk Nonfenfe ? Is it not evident, that out of all the kinds of Knowledge, qn which the. Hunlan Mind is employ'd, there grow certain Ex*' crefcences, which may be pared off like the Clip-, pings of Hair or Nails in the Body, and with no worfe Confrquence. Whatever Bigots or Enthu- fiails, whatever notional or fcholaflic Divines may fay or think, it is certain the Faith derived from Chrift and his Apoftles, was not a piece of empty Sophiftry : They did not deliver and tranfmit down to us.juvlw aTrarnv.but yu/^v/jv yv^Zw, 'to. y ufc THE MINUTE ufe the Expreflion of a holy Confefibr *. And to pretend to demolifli their Foundation for the fake of human Superftructure, be it Hay or Stubble or what it will, is no Argument of juft Thought or Reafon ; any more than it is of Fairnefs, to fuppoie a doubtful Senfe fixed, and argue from one fide of the Queftion in difputed Points. Whether, for inftance, the beginning of Genefts is to be under- ftood in a literal or allegorical Senfe ? Whether the Book of Job be an Hiftory or a Parable ? Be- ing Points difputed between Chriftians, an Infidel can have no right to argue from one fide of the Queftiqn in thofe or the like Cafes. This or that Tenet of a Sect, this or that controverted Notion is not what we contend for at prelent, but the general Faith taught by Chrift and his Apoftles 7 and prefer ved by univerfal and perpetual Tradition in all the Churches down to our own Times. To tax or ftrike at this Divine Doctrine, on account of things foreign and adventitious, the Specula- tions and Difputesof curious Men, is in my Mind an Abfurdity of the fame kind, as it wou'd be to cut down a fine Tree yielding Fruit and Shade, be- caufe its Leaves afforded Nourifhment to Caterpil- lers, or becaufe Spiders may now and then weave Cobwebs among the Branches. ALC. To divide and diftinguifh would take time. We have feveral Gentlemen very capable of judging in the grofs, but that want Attention for irkfome and dry Stu- dies or minute Inquiries. To which as it would be very hard to oblige Men againft their Will, fo it mud be a great Wrong to the World, as well as themfelves, to debar them from the Right of de- ciding according to their natural Senfe of things. C.R1. It were to be wifhed thofe capable Men would employ their Judgment and Attention * Socr. Hiftor, Ecclef. 1. or, PHILOSOPHER. 3*3 on the fame Objects. If theological Inquiries are DIAL. unpalatable^ the Field of Nature is wide. How VI. many Difcoveries to be made ! How many Errors to be corrected in Arts and Sciences ! How many Vices to be reformed in Lite and Manners ! Why do Men fingle out fuch Points as are innocent and ufeful, when there are fo many pernicious Mif- takes to be amended ? Why fet themfelves to de- ttroy the Hopes of human Kind and Encourage- ments to Virtue ? Why delight to judge where they difdain to inquire? Why not employ their noble Talents on the Longitude or perpetual Motion ? jf'L C. I wonder you fhould not fee the Difference between Points of Curiofity and Religion. Thofe employ only Men of a Genius or Humour fuited to them : But all Mankind have a right to cenfure, and are concerned to judge of thefe, except they will blindly fubmit to be governed, by the ftale Wifdom of their Anceftors and the eftablifhed Laws of their Country. CRL It fhould feem, if they are concerned to judge, they are not lefs con- cerned to examine before they judge. ALC. But after all the Examination and Inquiry that mortal Man can make about Revealed Religion, it is impoffible to come at any rational fure footing. Strange things are told us, and in proof thereof it is faid that Men have laid down their Lives. But it may be eafily conceived, and hath been often known, that Men have died for the fake of Opi- nions, the Belief of which, whether right or wrong, had once poflkfTed their Minds. CR /. I grant you may find inftances of Men dying for falfe Opi- nions which they believed. But can you aflign an inftance of a Man's dying for the fake of an Opi- nion, which he did not believe. This Cafe is in- conceivable : and yet this muil have been the Cafe, if the Witnefles of Chriit's Miracles and Refur- re&ion are fuppofed Impoftors. y 2 xxx. 324- THE MINUTE DIAL. VI. XXX. There is, indeed, a deal of fpecious Talk about Faith founded upon Miracles : But when I examine this Matter thoroughly, and trace Chrif- tian Faith up to its Original, I find it refts upon much Darknefs and Scruple and Uncertainty. In- ftead of Points evident or agreeable to Human Reafon, I find a wonderful Narrative of the Son of God tempted in the Wildernefs by the Devil, a thing utterly unaccountable, without any End, or Ufe, or Reafon whatfoever. I meet with ilrange Hiftories of Apparitions of Angels and Voices from Heaven, with furprifing accounts of Demo- niacs, things quite out of the Road of common Senfe or Obfervation, with feveral incredible Feats faid to have been done by Divine Power, but more probably the Inventions of Men : nor the lefs likely to be fo, becaufe I cannot pretend to fay with what View they were invented. Defigns deeply laid are dark, and the lefs we know the more we fufpefb : But, admitting them for true, I mall not allow them to be miraculous, until I thoroughly know the Power of what are called fecond Caufes and the Force of Magic. C RI. You feem, Alciphron^ to analyfe not Faith, but Infidelity, and trace it to its Principles ; which, from your own Account, I collect to be dark and doubtful Scruples and- Surmifes, Haftinefs in judging, and Narrovvnefs in thinking, grounded on a fanciful Notion which over-rates the little Scantling of your own Experience, and on real Ignorance of the Views of Providence, and of the Qualities, Ope- rations, and mutual Refpe&s of the feveral kinds of Beings, which are, or may be, for ought you know, in the Univerfe. Thus obfcure, uncertain, conceited, and conjectural are the Principles of Infidelity. Whereas on the other hand, the Prin- ciples of Faith feem to me Points plain and clear. It PHILOSOPHER. 325 It is a dear Point, that this Faith in Chrift was DIAL- ipread abroad throughout the World foon after VI. his Death. It is a clear Point, that this was not effected by human Learning, Politics, or Power. It is a clear Point, that in the early Times of the Church there were feveral Men of Knowledge and Integrity, who embraced this Faith not from any, but againft all, temporal Motives. It is a clear Point, that, the nearer they were to the Foun- tain-head, the more Opportunity they had to fatisfy themfelves, as to the Truth of thofe Facts which they believed, k is a clear Point, that the lefs Intereft there was to perfuade, the more need there was of Evidence to convince them. It is a clear Point, that they relied on the Authority of thofe who declared themfelves Eye-witnefles of the Mira- cles and Refurrection of Chrift. It is a clear Point, that thofe profeffed Eye-witnefles fuffer'd much for this their Attention, and finally fealed it with -their Blood. It is a clear Point, that thefe Wit- nefifes, weak and contemptible as they were, over- came the World, fpread more Light, preached purer Morals, and did more Benefit to Mankind 9 than all the Philofophers and Sages put together. Thefe Points appear to me clear and fure, and, being allow'd fuch, they are plain, juft, and reafon- able Motives of Afient : They {land upon no falla- cious Ground, they contain nothing beyond our Sphere, neither fuppofing more Knowledge nor other Faculties than we are really Mafters of: and if they mould not be admitted for morally certain, as I believe they will by fair and unpre- judiced Inquirers, yet the allowing them to be only probable is fufficient to flop the Mouth of an In- fidel. Thefe plain Points, I fay, are the Pillars of our Faith, and not thofe obfcure ones by you fuppofed, which are in truth the unfound, uncer- " v X 3 taiu 326 THE MINUTE DIAL, tain Principles of Infidelity, to a raft), prejudiced, VI. and afluming Spirit. To raife an Argument, or i-!,-.^ anfwer an Objection, from hidden Powers of Na- ture or Magic, is groping in the dark : But by the evident Light of Senfe, Men might be fufficiently certified of fenfib'e Effects, and Matters of Fact, fuch as the Miracles and Refurrection of Chrift : and the Teftimony of fuch Men might be tranf- mitted to After-ages, with the fame moral Cer- tainty as other historical Narrations : and thofe fame miraculous Facts, compared by Reafon with the Doctrines they were brought to prove, may afford to an unbiafied Mind ftrong Indications of their coming from God, or a fuperior Principle, whofe Goodnefs retrieved the Moral World, whofe Power commanded the natural, and whofe Provi- dence extended over both. Give me leave to fay, that nothing dark, nothing incomprehenfible, or myfterious, or unaccountable, is the Ground or Motive, the Principle or Foundation, the Proof or Reafon cf our Faith, although it may be the Ob- ject of it. For it muft be owned, that, if by clear and fure Principles we are rationally led to believe a Point lefs clear ; we do not therefore reject fuch Point, becaufe it is myflerious to conceive, or dif- ficult to account for ; nor would it be right fo to do. As for Jews and Gentiles anciently attributing our Saviour's- Miracles to Magic, this is fo far from being a Proof againft them, that to me it feems rather a Proof of the Facts, without dif- proving the Caufe to which we afcribe them. As we do not pretend to know the Nature and Ope- rations of Daemons, the Hiftory, Laws, and Syftem of rational Beings, and the Schemes or Views of Providence, fo far as to account for every Action and Appearance recorded in the Gofpel : fo neither do you know enough of thofe Thing.9, to PHILOSO PHEIU 327 to be able from that Knowledge of yours to object DIAL- againft Accounts fo well attefted. It is an eafy VI. Matter to raife Scruples upon many authentic Parts ^ ^v of Civil Hiftory, which, requiring a more perfect Knowledge of Fads, Circumftances, and Councils, than we can come at to explain them, muft be to us inexplicable. And this is Hill more eafy with refpect to the Hiftory of Nature; in which, if Surmifes were admitted for Proofs againft Things odd, ftrange, and unaccountable j if our fcanty Experience were made the Rule and Meafure of Truth, and all thofe Phenomena rejected, that we, through Ignorance of the Principles, and Laws, and Syftem of Nature, could not explain ; we mould indeed make Difcoveries, but it would be only of our own Blindnefs and Prefumption. And why Men that are fo eafily and fo often gravelled in com- mon Points, in Things natural and vifible, mould yet be fo fliarp-fighted and dogmatical about the invifible World, and its Myfteries, is to me a Point utterly unaccountable by all the Rules of Logic and good Senfe. Upon the whole, therefore, I cannot help thinking that there are Points fufficiently plain, and clear, and full, whereon a Man may ground a reafonable Faith in Chrift : but that the Attacks of Minute Philofophers againft this Faith are grounded upon Darknefs, Ignorance and Pre- fumption. ALC. \ doubt I mall ftill remain in the dark as to the Proofs of the Chriftian Religion, and always prefume there is nothing in them. XXXI. For how is it poflible, at this remote Diftance, to arrive at any Knowledge, or frame any Demonftration about it ? CRL What then ? Know- ledge, I grant, in a Uriel Senfe cannot be had without Evidence or Demonftration : but probable Arguments are a fufEcient Ground of Faith. Who Y 4 ever 328 THE MINUTE DIAL, ever fuppofed that fcientifical Proofs are necefifary to VI. make a Chriftiun ? Faith alone is required : and L v-*^ provided that, in the main and upon the whole, Men are perfuaded, this laving Faun may confift with fome Degrees of Oblcurity, Scruple, and Error. For although the Light of Truth be un- changeable, and the lame in its eternal Source, the Father of Lights : Yet, with refpectto us, it is va- rioufiy weakened and obicured, by patting through a long Diftance or grois Medium, where it is inter- cepted, diftorted, or tinctured by the Prejudices and Paffions of Men. But all this notwithftanding, he that will ufe his Eyes may fee enough for the Purpoies either of Nature or of Grace i though by a Light, dimmer indeed, or clearer, according to the Place, or the Diftance, or the Hour, or the Medium. And it will be fufficient, if fuch Analogy appears between the Difpenfations of Grace and Nature, as may make it probable (although much fhould be unaccountable in both) to fuppofe them derived from the fame Author, and the Workman- fhip of one and the fame Hand. dLC. Thofe who faw and touched and handled Jcfus Chrift after his Refnrreciion, if there were any fuch, may be laid co have feen by a clear Light: But to us the Light is very dim, and yet it is expected we fhould believe this Point as well as they. For my part, I believe with Spino/a, that Chrift's Death was Literal, but his Refurrectibn Allegorical *. CRI. And for my parr, I can lee nothing in this celebrated Infr- del, that fhouid make me defcrt Matters of Fact, and .moral Evidence.-, to adopt his Notions. Though 1 muft needs own I admit an allegorical Refurrection that proves the real : to wit, a Refurrection of Chnll's Difciples from Weaknefs to Refolution, from Fear to Courage, from Defpair to Hope : of ?Vid, Spinofse Epift. al Cldenburgiunu hic'i PHILOSOPHER. 329 which, for ought lean fee, no rational Account DIAL. can be given, but the fenfible Evidence that our yi Lord was truly, really, and literally rifen from the dead : But as it cannot be denied that his Dif- ciples, who were Eye-witneffes of his Miracles and Refurrection, had ftronger Evidence than we can have of thofe Points : So it cannot be denied, that fuch Evidence was then more necefiary, to induce Men to embrace a new Inftitution, contrary to the whole Syftem of their Education, their Prejudices, their PafTions, their Interefts, and every human Motive. Though to me it feems, the moral Evi- dence and probable Arguments within our Reach, are abundantly fufficient to make prudent thinking Men adhere to the Faith, handed down to us from our Anceftor.s eftablifhed by the Laws of our Country, requiring Submiflion in Points above our Knowledge, and for the reft recommending Doc- trines the moft Agreeable to our Interett and our Reafon. And, however ftrong the Light might have been at the Fountain-Head, yet its long Con- tinuance and Propagation, by fuch unpromifing In- ftruments throughout the World, have been very wonderful. We may now take a more compre- henfive View of the Connexion, Order, and Pro- grefs of the divine Difpenfations, and by a Retro- Jpec~l on a long Scries of paft Ages, perceive a Unity of Defign running throughout the Whole, a gradual difclofing and fulfilling the Purpofes of Pro- vidence, a regular Progrefs from Types to Anti- types, from Things Carnal to Things Spiritual, from Earth to Heaven. We may behold ChrHl crucified, that Stumblingrblock to the Jcws^ and Fooliflbnefs to the Greeks^ putting a final Period to the Temple Worfhip of the one, and the Idolatry of the other, and that Stone, which was cut out f the Mountain without Hands, and brake in Pieces 330 THE MINUTE DIAL. Pieces all other Kingdoms, become itfelf a great VI. Mountain. XXXII. If a due Reflexion on thefe Things be not fufficient to bf^et a Revtrence for the Chriftian Faith in the Minds of Men, I fhouid rather impute it to any other Caufe, than a wife and cautious In- credulity : When I fee their Eafinefs of Faith in the common Concerns of Life, where there is no Prejudice or Appetite to bias or difturb their na- tural Judgment: When I fee thofe very Men that in Religion will not ftir a Step without Evidence, and at every Turn expect Demo.ifl radon, truft their Health to a PhyF.uin, and their Lives to a Sailor with an implicit Faich, I cannot think they deferve the Honour of being thought more incredulous than other Men : or that they are more accuftomed to know, and for this Rjafon lefs inclined to believe. On the contrary, one is tempted to fufpect, that Ignorance hath a greater Share than Science in our modern Infidelity : and that it proceeds more from a wrong Head, or an irregular Will, than from deep Refcarches. L TS. We do not, it rnuft be owned, think that Learning or deep Refearches arc neceffary to pafs a right Judgment upon Things. I fometimes fufpect that Learning is apt to produce and juftify Whims, and fmcerely believe we fhouid do better without it. Our Sect are divided on this Point, but much the greater Part think with me. I have heard jnore than once very obferving Men remark, that Learning was the true human Means which preferved Religion in the World : and that, if we had it in our power to prefer Blockheads in the Church, all would foon be right. CRT. Men muft be ftrangely in Love with their Opinions, to put out their Eyes rather than part with them; But jc ,ir. PHILOSOPHER. it has been often remarked by obferving Men, that DIAL there are no greater Bigots than Infidels. LTS. VI. "What! a Free-thinker and a Bigot, impoffible ! CR1. Not fo impoffible neither, that an Infidel fhould be bigoted to his Infidelity. Methinks I fee a Bigot, where-ever I fee a Man over-bearing and pofitive without knowing why, laying the greateft Strefs on Points of fmalleft Moment, hafty to judge of the Confcience, Thoughts, and inward Views of other Men, impatient of reafoning againft his own Opinions, and choofing them with Inclina- tion rather than Judgment, an Enemy to Learning, and attached to mean Authorities. How far our modern Infidels agree with this Defcription, I leave to be confidered by thofe who really confider and think for themfdves. LTS. We are no Bigots, we are Men that difcover Difficulties in Religion, that ty Knots and raife Scruples, which difturb the Repofe and interrupt the golden Dreamsof Bigots, who there- fore cannot endure us. CRI. They who caft about for Difficulties, will be fure to find or make them upon every Subject : But he that would, upon the Foot of Reafon, erect himfelf into a Judge, in order to make a wife Judgment on a Subject of that Nature, will not only confider the doubtful and difficult Parts of it, but take a comprehenfive View of the whole, confider it in all its Parts and Relations, trace it to its Original, examine its Principles, Effects, and Tendencies, its Proofs in- ternal and external : he will diftinguifh between the clear Points and the obfcure, the certain and un- certain, the eflential and the circumftantial, between what is genuine and what foreign. He will con- fider the different Sorts of Proof, that belong to dif- ferent Things : where Evidence is to be expected : where Probability may fufficc : and where it is reafonable to fuppofe there fiiould be Doubts and Scruples. 32 THE MINUTE DIAL. Scruples. He will proportion his Pains and Exact- VI. nefs to the Importance of the Inquiry, nnd check th.-t Difpofition of his Mind to conclude all thofe Notions, groundlefs Prejudices, with which it was imbued before it knew the Rcafon of them. He will filence his PafTions, and Men to Truth. He will endeavour to unty Knots as well as to ty then, and 'veil rather on the lighr Parts of Things than the o .cure. He mil balance the Force of his Underitanding with the Difficulty of the Sub- ject, and to render his Judgment impartial, hear Evidence on ail Sides, and fo far as he is led by Audioriry, choofe to follow that of the honefteil and wnt-tt Men. Now it is my fmcere Opinion, the Cnriftian Religion may well ftund the Teft of fuch an Inquiry. LYS. But luch an Inquiry would coil too much Pains and Time. We have thought of another Method, the bringing Religion to the Ted of Wit and Humour : This we find a much Ihorter, caller, and more effectual- Way. And, as all Enemies are at liberty to choofe their Weapons, we make choice of tnofe we are moft expert at : And we are the better pleafed with this Choice, having obferved that of all Things a folid Divine ha;es a Jcit. EUPH. To confider the whole of the Subject, to read and think on all Sides, to object plainly, and anfwer directly, upon the Foot of dry Rcafon and Argument, would be a very tedious and troublefome Affair. Befides it is attacking Pedants at their own Weapons. How- much more delicate and artful is it, to give a Hint to cover one's felf with an Enigma, to drop a double Entendre^ to keep it in one's Power to recover, and flip afide, and leave his Antagonift beating the Air? LTS. This hath been practifed with great Succefs, and I believe it the top Method to gain Profelytes, and confound Pedants. CRL I have PHILOSOPHER. 333 I have feen feveral Things written in this Way, DIAL. which, I fuppofe, were copied from the Behaviour VI. of a fly Sort of Scorners one may fometimes meet with. Suppofe a conceited Man that would pafs for witty, tipping the Wink upon one, thrufting out his Tongue at another ; one while waggifhly fmiling, another with a grave Mouth and ludicrous Eyes ; often affecting the Countenance of one who fmothered a Jeft, and fometimes burfting out in a I-iorfe-laugh : What a Figure would this be, I will not fay in the Senate or Council, but in a private Vifit among well-bred Men? And yet this is the Figure that certain great Authors, who in this Age would pafs for Models, and do pafs for Models, make in their polite and elaborate Writings on the moft weighty Points. ALC. I who profefs myfelf an Admirer, an Adorer of Reafon, am neverthe- lefs obliged to own, that in fome Cafes the Sharp- nefs of Ridicule can do more than the Strength of Argument. But if we exert ourfelves in the Ufe of Mirth and Humour, it is not for want of other Weapons. It fhall never be faid that a Free-thinker was afraid of Reafoning. No, Crito, we have Reafons in ftore : the belt are yet to come : and if we can find an Hour for another Conicrence before we let out to-morrow Morning, I'll undertake you lhall be plied with Reafons, as clear, and home, and clofe to the Point as you could wifh. THE MINUTE THE SEVENTH DIALOGUE. I. Chriftian Faith impo/ible. II. Words ft and for Ideas. III. No Knowledge or Faith without Ideas. IV. Grace, no Idea of it. V. Suggefting Ideas not the only Vfe of Words. VI. Force as difficult to form an Idea of as Grace. VII. Notwitbftanding which , ufeful Proportions may be formed concerning it. VIII. 'Belief of the Trinity and other Myf- teries not abfurd. IX. Alt/lakes about Faith an Occajion of profane Rallery. X. Faith its true Nature and Effects. XI. Jlluftrated by Science. XII. By Arithmetic in particular. XIII. Sciences convcrfant about Signs. XIV. The true End of Speech, Reafon, Science, and Faith. XV. Me<- taphyfical Objections as ftrong again/I Human Sri- tnces as Articles of Faith. XVI. No Religion* 'facatife no' Human Liberty: XVII. Farther Proof againft Human Liberty. XVIII. Fatalifm a Con- fequence of erroneous Suppofitions. XIX. Man an accountable Agent. X). Inconfiflency^ Singularity^ and Credulity of Minute Pbilofophers. XXI. Un- 'trbden Paths and new Light of the Minute Phi- lofophers. XXII. Sophi/try of the Minute Phi- lofophers. XXIII. Minute Philofopbers ambiguous, ^enigmatical* unfathomable. XXIV. Scepticifmof the Minute Philofophers. XXV. How a Sceptic ought to behave. XXVI. Minute Philosophers, why difficult to convince. XX VI I. 'Thinking, not the epidemical Evil of thefe Times. XXVIII. Infidelity, not an Effect of Reafon or Thought, its true Motives ajjigned. XXIX. Variety of Opinions about Religion, Efetfs thereof. XXX. Method for PHILOSOPHER. i 335 for proceeding with Minute Philofophers. XXXI. DIAL. Want cf Thought and want of Education Defefts VJL cf the prefent Age. <- ~ v ..j H E Philofophers having refolved to fet out for London next Morning, we affembled at break of Day in the illSbSllf Library, dkiphron began with a Declaration of his Sincerity, afiuring us he had very maturely and with a moft unbiafied Mind confidered all that had been faid the Day before. He added that, upon the whole, he could not deny feveral probable Reafons were produced for embracing the Chriftian Faith. But, faid he, thofe Reafons being only probable can never pre- vail againtl abfolute Certainty and Demonftration. If therefore I can demonftrate your Religion to be a thing altogether abfurd and inconfiftent, your . probable Arguments in its Defence do from that Moment lofe their Force, and with it all Right to be anfwered or confidered. The concurring Tef- timony of fincere and able WitnefTes hath without: queftion great Weight in human Affairs. I will even grant that Things odd and unaccountable to Human Judgment or Experience, may fometimes claim our Aflent on that fole Motive. And I will alfo grant it poflible, for a Tradition to be conveyed with moral Evidence through many Centuries. But at the fame time you will grant to me, that a thing demonftrably and palpably falfe is not to be admit- ted on any Teftimony whatever, which at belt can never amount to Demonftration. To be plain, no Teftimony can make Nonfenfe Senfe: no moral Evidence can make Contradictions confident, Know then, that as the Strength of our Caufedoth not depend upon, fo neither is it to be decided by any critical Points of Hiftory, Chronology, or ;./*_ ' T Languages. 336 THE MINUTE DIAL. Languages. You are not to wonder, if the fame VII. lore of Tradition and moral Proof, which governs ^ "V ' our Aflent with rrfpect to Facts in civil or natural Hiftory is not admitted as a fufficier.t Voucher for metaphyfical Abfurdities and abfolure Impofiibili* ties. Things obfcure and unaccountable in human Affairs, or the Operations of Nature, may yet be poffible, and, if well attefted, may be aflented unto : but religious Aflent or Faith can be evi- dently fhewn in its own nature to be impractica- ble, impoffible, and abfurd. This is the primary Motive to Infidelity. This is our Citadel and Fortrefs, which may, indeed, be graced with Outworks of various Erudition, but, if thofe arc demolifh'd, remains in itfelf and of its own pro- per Strength impregnable. EV P H. This, it mud be owned, reduceth our Inquiry within a narrow Compafs: do but make out this, and I mall have nothing more to fay. ALC. Know then, that the mallow Mind of the Vulgar, as it dwells only on the outward Surface of things, and con- fiders them in the grofs, may be eafily impofed on. Hence a blind Reverence for religious Faith and Myftery. But when an acute Philofopher comes to difieft and analyfe thefe Points, the Im- pofture plainly appears : and as he has no Blind- nels, fb he has no Reverence for empty Notions, or, to fpcak more properly, for mere Forms of Speech, which mean nothing, and are of no ufe to Mankind. . II. Words are Signs: they do or mould (land for Ideas ; which fo far as they fugged they are fignificant. But Words that lugged no Ideas are infignincant. He who annexeth a clear Idea to every Word he makes ufs of fpeaks Senfe : buc where fuch Ideas are wanting, the Speaker utters Nonienfe, PHILOSOPHER. 337 Nbnferife. In order therefore to know whether any DIAL. Man's Speech be fenfelefs and infignificant, we have VII. nothing to do but Jay afide the Words and con- Fider the Ideas fuggefted by them. Men, not be- ing able immediately to communicate their Ideas one to another, are obliged to make ufe of fen 2- ble Signs or Words ; the life of which is to raife thofe Ideas in the Hearer, which are in the Mind of the Speaker: and if they fail of" this End they ferve to no Purpofe. He who really thinks hath a Train of Ideas fucceedir.g each other and connected in his Mind : and when he expreficth himfelf by Difcourfe, each Word fuggefts a di tinct Idea to the Hearer or Reader ; who, by that means hath the fame Train of Ideas in his, which was in the Mind of the Speaker or Writer. As far as this Effect is produced, fo far the Difcourfe is intelligible, hath Senfe and Meaning. Hence it follows, that whoever can be fuppofed to under- ftand what he reads or hears, mud have a Train of Ideas raifed in his Mind, correfpnndent to 1 the Train of Words read or heard. Thefe plain Truths, to which Men readily affent in Theory, are but little attended to in Practice, ?.nd there- fore deferve to be enlarged on and inculcated however obvious and undeniable. Mankind are generally averfe from thinking though apt enough to entertain Difcourfe either in thernfelves or others : the Effect whereof is, that their Minds^re rather ftored with Names than Ideas, the Huslcbf Sciercs rather than the Thing. And yet thefe Words without Meaning do often make Diftinclions of Parties, the fubject Matter of their Difputes, and the Object of their. Zeal. This is the moll general Caufe of Error, which doth not in- fluence ordinary Minds alone, but even theft who pafs for acute and learned Philofophcrs are Z often 338 THE MINUTE DIAL, often employ 'd about Names inftead of Things or VII. Ideas, and are fuppofed to know when they only v -V- ' pronounce hard Words without a Meaning. III. Though it is evident that, as Knowledge is the Perception of the Connexion or Difagree- ment between ideas, he who doth not diftinctly perceive the Ideas marked by the Terms, fo as to form a mental Propofitton anfwering to the Ver- bal, cannot poffibly have Knowledge : No more can he be faid to have Opinion or Faith which im- ply a weaker A (Tent, but ft ill it muft be to a Pro- pofition, the Terms of which are underftood as clearly, although the Agreement or Difagree- ment of the Ideas may not be fo evident, as in the Cafe of Knowledge. I fay, all Degrees of Afient whether founded on Reafon or Authority, more or lefs cogent, are internal Ads of the Mind which alike terminate in Ideas as their proper Ob- ject: without which there can be really no fuch thing as Knowledge, Faith, or Opinion. We may perhaps raife a Duft and Difputc about Tenets purely verbal : but what is this at bottom more than mere Trifling ? All which will be eafily admitted with refpect to Human Learning and Science j wherein it is an allowed Method to expofe any Doctrine or Tenet by dripping them of the Words, and examining what Ideas are underneath, or whe- ther any Ideas at all ? This is often found the fhorteft way to end Difputes, which might other- wife grow and multiply without end, the Litigants neither underftanding one another nor themfelves. It were needleis to illustrate what mines by its own Light, and is admitted by all thinking Men. My Endeavour (hall be only to apply it in the prefcnt Cafe. I iuppofe I need not be at any pains to prove, that the iiinie Rules of Reafon and good PHILOS6tHt R* 239 good Senfe which obtain in all other Subjects ought D IAI. to take place in Religion. As for thofe who con- VJI. fider Faith and Reafon as two diftinft Provinces, < - v * and would have us think good Senfe has nothing to do where it is moft concerned, I am refolved never to argue with fuch Men, but Jeave them in quiet poflefiion of their Prejudices. And now, for the particular Application of what I have laid, I fhall not fingle out any nice difputed Points of School Divinity* or thofe that relate to the Na- ture and Eflence of God, which being allowed in- finite you might pretend to fcreen them, under the general Notion of Difficulties attending the Nature of Infinity. TV. Grace is the main Point in the Chriftian Difpenfation, nothing is oftner mentioned or more confidered throughout the New Teftament ; wherein it is reprefented as fomewhat of a very particular Kind, diltin6l from any thing revealed to the Jews, or known by the Light of Nature. This fame Grace is fpoken of as the Gift of God, as coming by Jefus Cbrift, as reigning, as abound- ing, as operating. Men are faid to fpeak through Grace, to believe through Grace. Mention is made of the Glory of Grace, the Riches of Grace, the Stewards of Grace. Chriftians are faid to be Heirs of Grace, to receive Grace, grow in Grace, be ftrong in Grace, to (land in Grace, and to fall from Grace. And laitly, Grace is faid to juftify and to fave them. Hence Chriftianiry is (bled the Covenant or Difpenfation of Grace. And it is well known that no Point hath created more Con- troverfy in the Church than this Doctrince of Grace. What Difputes about its Nature, Extent, and Effccls, about univerlal, efficacious, fufficienr, pre- venting, irrefiftible Grace, have employ'd the Pens Z 2 of THE MINUTE of Proteftant as well as Popifli Divines, of Janfenifi* and MoliniftS) of Lutherans^ Cahinifts, and Armi- nians t as I have not the lead Curiofity to know, fo I need not fay. It fuffice'th to obferve, that there have been and are ftill fubiifting great Con- tefts upon thefe Points. Only one thing I fhould defire to be informed of, to wit, What is the clear and diftinct Idea marked by the Word Grace ? I prefume a Man may know the bare meaning of a Term, without going into the Depth of all thole learned Inquiries. This furely is an eafy Matter, provided there is an Idea annexed to fuch Term. And if there is not, it can be neither the Subject of a rational Difpute, nor the Object of real Faith. Men may indeed impofe upon themfelves or others, and pretend to argue and believe, when at bottom there is no Argument or Belief, farther than mere verbal Trifling. Grace taken in the vulgar Senfe, either for Beauty, or Favour, I can eafily underftand. But when it denotes an active, vital, ruling Principle, influenc- ing and operating on the Mind of Man, diftinct from every natural Power or Motive, I profefs myfelf altogether unable to underftand it, or frame any diftinct Idea of it : and therefore I cannot af- fcrnt to any Propofirion concerning it, nor confe- quently have any Faith about it : and it is a felf- evident Truth, That God obligeth no Man to Impofiibilities. At the Rcqueft of a Philofophical Friend, I did Cull an Eye on the Writings he fhew'd me of fome Divir.es, and talked with others on this Subject, but afor all I had read or heard could make nothing of if, having always found whenever 1 laid afide the Word Grace, and looked into my own Mind, a perfect Vacuity or Privation of all Ideas. And, as I am apt to think Mens Minds and Faculties are made much. PHILOSOPHER. 3 4 r ' alike, I fufpect that other Men, if they examined DIAL. what they call Grace with the lame Exactnefs and VII. Indifference, would agree with me that there was v - Y -^ nothing in it but an empty Name. This is non the only Inftance, where a Word often heard and pronounced is believed intelligible, for no other Reafon but becaufe it is familiar. Of the fame Kind are many other Points reputed necefiary Ar- ticles of Faith. That which in the prefent Cafe impofeth upon Mankind I take to be partly this. Men fpeak of this holy Principle as of fomething that ads, mov^s, and determines, taking their Ideas from corporeal things, from Motion and the Force or Momentum of Bodies, which being of an obvious and fenfible Nature they fubftitute in place of a thing fpiritual and incomprehenfible, which is a manifeft Delufion. For though the Idea of corporeal Force be ever fo clear and intelligible, it will not therefore follow that the Idea of Grace, a thing perfectly incorporeal, muft be fo too. And though we may reafon diftindly, perceive, afTent, and form Opinions about the one, it will by no means follow that we can do fo of the other. Thus it comes to pafs, that a clear fenfible Idea of what is real produ- ceth, or rather is made a Pretence for, an imagi- nary fpiritual Faith that terminates in no Object ; a thing impoffible ! For there can be no Affcnt where there are no Ideas t and where there is no AfTent there can be no Faith : And what cannot be, that no Man is obliged to. This is as clear as any thing in Euclid. V. EUPH. Be the Ufe of Words or Names what it will, lean never think it is to do things impofliblc. Let us then inquire what it is ? and fee if we can make Senfe of our daily Practice. Z 3 Words, 342 THE MINUTE DIAL. Words, it is agreed, are Signs : it may not there- VII, fore be amifs to examine the Ufe of other Ur-v"*" 1 ' Signs, in order to know that of Words. Couni ters, for Inftance, at a Card -Table are ufed, not for their own fake, but only as Signs fubftituted for Money, as Words are for Ideas. Say now, Al- ciphron, is it neceffary every time thele Counters are ufed throughout the whole Progrefs of a Game, to frame an Idea of the diftinct Sum or Value that each reprefents ? ALC. By no means: it is fufficient the Players at firrt agree on their re- fpective Values, and at laft fubftitute tiiofe Values in their ftead. EUPH. And in cafting up a Sum, where the Figures ftand for Pounds, Shillings, and Pence, do you think it necefiary, throughout the whole Progrefs of the Operation, in each Step to form Ideas of Pounds, Shillings, and Pence ? ALC. I do not, it will iuffice if in the Conelufion thofe Figures direct our Actions with refpect to Things. EUPH. From hence it feems to fol- low that Words may not be infignirkant, although they fhould not, every time they are ufed, excite the Ideas they fignify in our Minds, it being fuffi- cient, that we have it in our Power to fubftitutc Things or Ideas for their Signs when there is Occafion, It feems alfo to follow, that there may be another Ufe of Words, befides that of marking and fuggefting diftinct Ideas, to wit, the influenc- ing our Condu6t and Actions; which may be done either by forming Rules for us to act by, or by raifing certain Paflions, Difpoficions, and Emo- tions in our Minds. A Difcourfe, therefore, that directs how to act or excites to the Doing or For- bearance of an Action may, it feems, be ufeful and fignirkant, although the Words whereof it is com- pofcd fhould not bring each a diftinct Idea into our Minds. ALC. It feems fo. EUPH. Pray tell me, Aid- PH ILO S O PH E R. Alriphron, is not an Idea altogether inactive ? It is. EU P IL An Agent therefore, an active Mind, or Spirit cannot be an Idea or like an Idea. Whence it mould feem to follow, that thofe Words, which denote an active Principle, Sou!, or Spirit, do not, in a ftrict and proper Senie, ftand for Ideas : And yet they are not infignificant nei- ther : fince I underftand what is fignified by the Term /, or myfelf, or know what it means al- though it be no Idea, nor like an Idea, but that which thinks and wills and apprehends Ideas and operates about them. Certainly it muft be allowed that we have fome Notion, that we underftand, or know what is meant by, the Terms myfelf, /F"///, Memory, Love, Hate, and fo forth, although, to fpeak exactly, thefe Words do not fuggeft (b many diftinct Ideas. AL C. What would you infer from this? EUPH. What hath been inferred already, that Words may be fignificant although they do not ftand for Ideas *. The contrary whereof having been prefumed feems to have produced the Doctrine of abftract Ideas. ALC. Will you not allow then that the Mind can abftract ? EUPH. I do not deny it may abftract in a certain Senfe ; inafmuch as thofe Things that can really exift, or be re&lly perceived afunder, may be conceived afunder, or abstracted one from the other ; for Inftance a Man's Head from his Body, Colour from Motion, Figure from Weight. But it will not thence follow, that the Mind can frame abftract general Ideas, which appear to be impoffible. ALC. And yet it is a current Opinion, that every fubftantive Name marks out and exhi- bits to the Mind one diftin6t Idea feparate from all others. EUPH. Pray, Alciphron, is not the Word Number fuch a fubftantive Name ? ALC. * See the Principles of Human KnovdeJge. Set?. 135. W the Intndu&ian. Se&. 20. Z 4 It THE MINUTE It is. EUP H. Do but try now whether you can frame an Idea of Number in abftract exclut five of all Signs, Words, and Things numbered. J profefs, for my own part, I cannot. ALC. Can it be fo hard a Matter to form a fimple Idea of Number, the Object of a moil evident de monftmble Science ? Hold, let me fee, if I can't abftradb the Idea, of Number, from the numeral Names and Characters, and all particular numera- ble Things. Upon which Alcipbron paufed a While arid then laid : To confefs the Truth I do not find that lean. EUPH. But though, it feems, neither ypu nor I can form diftin6t fimple Ideas of Number, we can neverthelefs.make a very proper and. fignificant Ufe of numeral Names. They direct us in the Difpofition and Manage- ment of our Affairs, and are of fuch neceffary Ufe, that we mould not know how to do without them. And yet, if other Mens Faculties may be. judged of by mine, to attain a precife fimple abftract Idea of Number, is as difficult as to comprehend any Myftery in Religion. JOJ^v r rt VI. But to come to your own Inftance, let us examine what Idea we can frame of Force abftract- ed from Body, Motion, and outward fenfible Ef- fects. For myfdf, I do not find that I have or can have any.. fuch Ijica. ALC. Surely every one knows what i.s meant by Force. EUPff. And yet I queflion whether every one can form a clftinct Idea of Force. Let me intreat you, Al* cipbron, be not amufcd by Terms, lay afide the Wi rd Furce^ and exclude every other Thing from your Thoughts, and then fee what precife Idea i have of. Force. ALC. Force is that in lies which produceth Motion and other fenfible .fts. EUPH. It is then fomcthing diftinft fron ] PHILOSOPHER. 345 from thofc Effects. ALC. It is. EUPH. Be DIAL. pleafed now to exclude the Confideration of its VII. Subject and Effects, and contemplate Force itfelf In its own precife Idea. ALC. I profefs I find it no fuch eafy Matter. E UP H, Take your own Advice, and fhut your Eyes to aflift your Medita- tion. Upon this Alciphron having clofed his Eyes, and mufed a few Minutes, declared he could make nothing of it. And that, replied Euphranor, which it feems neither you nor I can frame an Idea of, by your own Remark of Mens Minds and Faculties being made much alike, we may fuppofe others have no more an Idea of than we. ALC. We may. EUPH. But, notwithstanding all this, it is certain there are many Speculations, Reafonings, and Dif- putes, refined Subtilities and nice Dittinctions about this fame Force. And to explain its Nature, and diftinguifh the feveral Notions or Kinds of it, the Terms, Gravity^ ReaRion, vis inertia, vis infita^ vis impreffa^ vis mortua, vis viva, impetus, momentum^, JblicitatiO) conatus, and divers other iuch like Ex- preffions have been ufed by learned Men : and no fmall Controverfies have arifen about the Notions or Definitions of thefe Terms. It has puzzled Men to know whether Force is fpi ritual or corporeal, whether it remains after Action, how it is tranf- ferred from one Body to another. Strange Para- doxes have been framed about its Nature, Proper- ties, and Proportions : For inftance, that contrary- Forces may at once fiibfift in the fame quiefcenn Body : That the Force of Percuffion in a fmall Particle is infinite : For which, and other Curi- ofities of the fame fort, you may confult Borellus de vi perciffionis, the Lezioni Academiche of 1'orricelli^ the Exerci cations of Hermanns^ and other Writers. It is well known to the learned World, what a jppntroverfy hath been carried on between Mathe- maticians, 34.6 THE MINUTE DIAL, maticians, particularly Monfieur Leitmife. and Mon* VII. fieur Papin in the Leipjic AEla Eruditorum, about VM^V'^ the Proportion of Forces : whether they be each to other in a Proportion compounded of the fimple Proportions of the Bodies and the Celerities, or in one compounded of the fimple Proportion of the Bodies and the duplicate Proportion of the Ce- lerities ? A Point, it feems, not yet agreed : as in- deed the Reality of the Thing itfelf is made a Queftion. Leibnitz diftinguifheth between the tiifas elementaris and the impetus^ which is formed by a Repetition of the nifus elementaris, and feems to think they do not exift in Nature, but are mad only by an Abstraction of the Mind. The fame Author treating of original, active Force, to illuf- trate his Subject hath Recourfe to the fubftantial Forms and Eittelecbeia of Ariftolle. And the in- genious lorricelli faith of Force and Impetus^ tha they are fubtile Abftractsand fpirituol Quinteflences : and concerning the momentum and the Velocity of heavy Bodies tailing, he faith they are un certo che and unn&nfo cbe, that is in plain EngHJh\ie. knows not what to make of them. Upon the whole therefore, may we not pronounce, that excluding Body, Time* Space, Motion and all its fenfibie Meafures and Effects, we (hall find it as difficult to form an Idea of Force as of Grace ? ALC. I do not know what to think of it. VII. EUPH. And yet, I prefume, you allow riiere are very evident Propofitions or Theorems relating to Force, which contain ufeful Truths : for inftance, that a Body with conjunct Forces de- fcribes the Diagonal of a Parallelogram, in the fame time that it would the Sides with feparate. Is *ot this a Principle of very extenfive Ufe ? Doth not the Doctrine of the Corapoficion and Refolution of PHILOSOPHER. 347 of Forces depend upon it, and in Ccnfequence DJAL. thereof, numberrefs Rules and Theorems directing V1L Men how to act, and explaining Phenomena ^"V^-' throughout the Mechanics and mathematical Phi- lofophy? And if, by confidering this Doctrine of Force, Men arrive at the Knowledge of many In- ventions in Mechanics, and are taught to frame Engines, by means of which Things difficult and otherwise impofiible may be performed -, and if the fame Doctrine, which is fo beneficial here be- low, ferveth allb as a Key to difcover the Nature of the Celeitial Motions; Hull we deny that it is of Ufe, either in Practice or Speculation, becaufe we have no diftinct Idea of Force ? Or that which we admit with regard to Force, upon what Pretence can we deny concerning Grace ? If there are Queries, Difputes, Perplexities, Diverfity of Nor tions and Opinions about the one, fo there are about the other alib : if we can form no precise diftinct Idea of the one, fo neither can we of the other. Ought we not therefore by a Parity of Reafon to conclude, there may be pcffibly divers true and ufeful Propofitions concerning the one as well as the other ? And that Grace may for ought you know- be an Object of our Faith, and influence our Life and Actions, as a Principle destructive of evil Habits and productive of good ones, although we cannot attain a diftinct: Idea of if, feparate or ab- frracted from God the Author, from Man the Subject, and from Virtue and Piety its Effects ? . VIII. Shall we not admit the fame Method of arguing, the fame Rules of Logic, Reafon, and good Senfe to obtain in Things Spiritual and Things Corporeal, in Faith and Science ? and fhall we not ule the fame Candor, and make the fame Allow- ances in examining the Revelations of God and the Inventions THE MINUTE Inventions of Men? For ought I fee, that Pnilo- fopher cannot be free from Bias and Prejudice, or be faid to weigh Things in an equal Balance, who fh?.ll maintain the Doctrine of Force and reject that of Grace, who mall admit the abftract Idea of a Triangle, and at the fame time ridicule the Holy Trinity. But, however partial or prejudiced other Minute Philofophers might be, you have laid it down for a Maxim, that the fame Logic, which obtains in other Matters, mud be admitted in Re- ligion. LTS. I think, jflcipbfon, it would be more prudent to abide by the Way of Wit and Humour, than thus to try Religion by the dry Teft of Reafon and Logic. ALG. Fear not: by all the Rules of right .Reafcn, it is abfolutely impofiible that any Myftery, and lead of all the Trinity, fliould really be the Object of Man's Faith. EUPH. I do not wonder you thought fo, as Jong as you maintained that no Man could afTent to a Pro- pofition without perceiving or framing in his Mind diftinct Ideas marked by the Terms of it. But although Terms are Signs, yet having granted that thofe Signs may be fignificant,, though they fhould not fugged Ideas reprelented by them, pro- vided they ferve to regulate and influence our Wills, PafTions, or Conduct:, you have confequemly grant- ed that the Mind of Man may aOent to Propofi- tions containing Rich Terms, when it is fo directed or affected by them, notv/ithftanding it fhould not perceive diftinct Ideas marked by thofe Terms. Whence it ftems to follow, that a Man may believe the Doctrine of the Trinity, if he finds it revealed in Holy Scripture, That the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghoft are God, and that there is but one God ? Although he doth not frame in his Mind, any abftract or diftinct Ideas of Trinity, Subftance, or Perfonality, provided, that this Doctrine of a Creator PHILOSOPHER. Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier makes proper Impreflions on his Mind, producing therein, Love, Hope, Gratitude, and Obedience, and thereby becomes a lively operative Principle influencing his Life and Actions, agreeably to that Notion of faving Faith which is required in a Chriftian. This, I fay whether right or wrong, feems to follow from your own Principles and Concefiions. But for further Satisfaction, it may not be amifs to inquire, whether there be any Thing parallel to this Chriftian Faith in the Minute Philofophy. Suppofe a fine Gentle- man or Lady of Fafhion, who are too much em- ployed to think for themfelves, and are only Free- thinkers at lecond hand, have the Advantage of being betimes initiated in the Principles of your Sect, by converfing with Men of Depth and Ge- nius, who have often declared it to be their Opinion, the World is governed either by Fate or by Chance, it matters not which : will you deny it pofiible for fuch Perfons to yield their Affent to either of thefe Propositions ? AL C. I will not. EUPH And may not iuch their Affent be properly called Faith? ALC. It may. EUPH. And yet it is poffible, thofe Difciples of the Minute Philofophy may not dive fo deep, as to be able to frame any abftract, or precife, or any determinate Idea whatfoever, either of Fate or of Chance. ALC. This too I grant. EUPH. So that according to y6u, this fame Gentleman or Lady may be faid to believe or have Faith, where they have not Idea?. ALC. They may. EUPH. And may not this Faith or Per- fuafion produce real Effects, and mew itfelf in the Conduct and Tenor of their Lives, freeing thesn from the Fears of Superftition, and giving them a true Relifh of the World, with a noble Indolence or Indifference about what conu's afrer. ALC. It may. EUPH, And may no: Chriftians, with equil 350 THE Mi NUT ft DIAL, equal Reafon, be allowed to believe the Divinity of VII. our Saviour, or that in him God and Man make * v ~> one Perfon, and be verily perfuaded thereof, fo far as for fuch Faith or Belief to become a real Prin- ciple of Life and Conducl ? inafmuch as by virtue of fuch Perfuafion they fubmic to his Government, believe his Dodrine, aad praftife his Precepts, al- though they frame no abftraft Idea of the Union between the Divine and Human Nature ; nor may be able to clear up the Notion of Perfon to the Contentment of a Minute Philofqpher. To me it feems evident, that if none but thofe who had nicely examined, and could themielves explain, the Principle of Individuation in Man, or unty the Knots and anfwer the Objections, which may be raifed even about Human Perfonal Identity, would require of us to explain the Divine Myfteries, we fhould not be often called upon for a clear and diitind: Idea of Perfon in relation to the Trinity., nor would the Difficulties on that Head be often objected to our Faith. ALC. Methinks, there is tip fuch My fiery in Perfonal Identity. EUPPL Pray in what do you take it to confift ? A L C. In Confcioufnefs. LUPH. W hatever is poffible may be fuppofed. ALC. It may. EUPH. We will fuppoie now (which is poffible in the Nature of Things, and reported to be Fa<5r.) that a Perfon, through forae violent Accident or Diftemper, mould fall into fuch a total Oblivion, as to lofe all Conlcioufnefs of his paft Life, and former Ideas. I ask, is he not fr.il! the fame Perfon? ALC, He is the fame Man, but not the fame Perfon. Indeed you ought not to fuppofe that a Perfon lofeth its former Confcioufnefs ; for this is impoflible, though a Man perhaps may -, but then he becomes another Perfon. In the fame Perfon, it mud be owned, feme old Ideas may be loft, and fome new ones got : buc PHILOSOPHER. 351 but a total Change is inconfiftent with Identity of DIAL. Perfon. EUPH. Let us then fuppofe that a Perfon VI f. hath Ideas and is confcious during a certain Space of Time, which we will divide into three equal Parts, whereof the later Terms are marked by the Letters, A, B, C. In the firft part of Time, the Perfon gets a certain Number of Ideas, which are retained in A : during the fecond part of Tinw, he retains one Half of his old Ideas, and lofeth the other Half, in place of which he acquires as many new ones : So that in B his Ideas are half old and half new. And in the third Part, we fuppoic him to lofe the Remainder of the Ideas acquired in the Firft, and to get new ones in their (lead, which are retained in C, together with thofe acquired hi the fecond Part of Time. Is this a poflible fair Suppofition? ALC. It is. EUPH. Upon thefe PremifTes I am tempted to think, one may demon- ftrate, that Perfonal Identity doth not confift in Confcioufnefs. ALC. As how ? EUPH, You ihall judge; but thus it ieerns to me. The Perfons in A and B are the lame, being confcious of commorr Ideas by Suppofmon. The Perfon in B is (for the fame Reafon) one and the fame with the Perfon in C. Therefore the Perfon in A, is the fame with the Perfon in C, by that undoubted Axiom, J^W conveniunt uni tertio coirveniunt inter fe. But the Perfon in C hath no Idea in common with the Per- fon in A. Therefore Perfonal Identity doth not confift in Confcioufnefs. What do you think, Al- cipbron, is not this a plain Inference ? dLC. I tell you what I think : You will never afllft my Faith, by puzzling my Knowledge. IX. EUPH. There is, if I miftake not, a Prac- tical Faith, or AfTenr, which fheweth itfelf in the Will and A&ions of a Man, although his Under- ftanding THE MINUTE (landing may not be furnifhed with precife, diftin<5t Ideas, whichj whatever a Phi- Jofopher may pretend, are acknowledged to be above the Talents of common Men ; among whom, neverthelefs, may be found, even according to your own Concefiion, many Inftances of fuch practical Faith, in other Matters which do not concern Re- ligion. What fliould hinder therefore, but that Doctrines relating to Heavenly Myfteries, might be taught in this faving Senfe to vulgar Minds, which you may well think incapable of all teaching and Faith in the Senfe you fuppofe. Which mil- taken Senfe, faid Crito, has given occafion to much profane and mifapplied Rallery. Bat all this may veryjuftly be retorted on the Minute Philofophers themfelves, who confound Scholafticifm with Chriftianity, and impute to other LVIen thofe Per- plexities, Chimaeras, and inconfiftent Ideas, which are often the Workmanlhip of their own Brains, and proceed from their own wrong way of Think- ing. Who doth not fee that fuch an ideal abftracl:- ed Faith is never thought of by the Bulk of Chrif- tians, Husbandmen, for inftance, Artifans, or Ser- vants ? Or what Footfteps are there in the holy Scripture to make us think, that the Wiredrawing of abftract Ideas was a Task injoined either Jews or Chriftians ? Is there any thing in the Law or the Prophets, the Evangelifts or Apoftles, that looks Jike it? Every one, whofe Understanding is not perverted by Science falfly fo called, may fee the faving Faith of Chriftians is quite of another Kind, a vital operative Principle, productive of Chanty and Obedience. ALC. What are we to think then of the Difputes and Decifions of the famous Council of Nice, and fo many fubfequent Councils ? What was the Intention of thofe venerable Fathers the Homooufians and the Homtioufians ? Why did they dif- ILOSOPHER. 3 1^3 difturb themfelves and the. World with hard Words, DIAL. and fubtile Controverfies ? CR1. Whatever their VII. Intention was, it could not be to beget nice ab- v Y~-' ftracted Ideas of Myfteries in the Minds of com- mon Chriftians, this being evidently impofBblc : Nor. doth jt appear that the Balk of Chriftian Men did in thofe Days think it any part of their Duty, to lay afide the Words, fhut their Eyes, and frame thofe abftract Ideas ; any more than Men now do of Force, Time, Number, or feveral other things, about which they neverthelefs believe, know, argue, and difpute. To me it feem?, that, whatever was the Source of thofe Controveriies, and howfoever ^ they were managed, wherein human Infirmity rr.uft be fuppofed to have had its Share, the rmin End was not, on either fide, to convey preci'e pofitive Ideas to the Minds of Men, by the ufe of thofe conteiled Terms, but rather a negative Senft, tend- ing to exclude Polytheifm on the one hand, and Sabellianifm on the other *. ALC, But what fhall we fay to fo many learned and ingenious Divines, who from time to time have obliged, the World with new Explications of Myfteries, \vho, having themfelves proftfifedly laboured to acquire accurate Ideas, would recommend their Difcoveries and Speculations to others for Articles of Faith ? CRI. To all fuch Innovators in Religion I would fay with Jerome, ** Why after fo many Centuries do you ** pretend to teach us what was untaught before?; *' Why explain what neither Pt'/fr.nor i } aul thought lt neceflary to be explained ?f' And it mud be owned, that the Explication of Myfteries. in Di- vinity, allowing the Attempt as fruitlels as the Purfuit of the Philofopher's Stone in Chymiftry, or the Perpetual Motion in Mechanics, is no more * Vid. Sozomen. 1. 2. c. 8. -f- Hieronym. ad Pam- niachiarn & Occar.um dc erronbus.Crigeuis. A a than 354 THE MINUTE ^IAL. than they, chargeable on the Profeffion itfelf, but V,I. only on the wrongheaded Profdfors of it. X. It feems, that what hath been now faid may he applied to other Myfteries of our Religion. Original Sin, for Inftance, a Man may find it im- pofliblc to form an Idea of an abftracl, or of the manner of its Tranfmiflion, and yet the Belief thereof may produce in his Mind a falutary Senfe of his own Unworthinefs, and the Goodnefs of his Redeemer : from whence may follow good Habits, and from them good Aclions, the genuine Effects of Faith : which confidercd in its true Light, is a Thing neither repugnant nor incomprehenfibie, as fame Men would ptrfuade us, but iuited even to vulgar Capacities, placed in the Will and Affcdtions rather than in the Underitanding, and producing holy Lives, rather than fubtile Theories. Faith, I fay, is not an indolent Perception, but an operative Perfuafion of Mind, which ever worker.ii fome fuitabJe Action, Difpoficion, or Emotion in thofe who have it : as it were eafy to prove and illuftrate i .y innumerable Inftances taken from human Affairs. And, indeed, while the Chriftian Religion is con- fidercd us an Infticution fitted to ordinary Minds, rathe? than to the nicer Talent, whether improved or puzzled, of' fpcculative Men , and our Notions about Faith are accordingly taken from the Com- merce of the World, and Practice of Mankind, rather than from the peculiar Syftcms of Refiners ; it will, I think, be no difficult Matter to conceive and juftify the Meaning and Uie of our Belief of Myfteries, againft the moft confident AfTcrtions and Objections of the Minute Philolbphers, who are eafily to be caught in thofe very Snares, which they have fpun and fpread for others. And that Hu- mour of Controversy, the Mother and Nurfe of rM Herefies, PHILOSOPHER. 3 5 $ Herefies, would doubdefs very much abite, if ic DIAL. was confidered that things are to be rated, not by VII. the Colour, Shape, or Scamp, fo truly as by the < -v"- - Weight. If the Moment of Opinions had been by ibme litigious Divines made the Meafure of their Zeal, it might have fpared much Trouble both to themfelves and others. Certainly one that takes his Notions of Faith, Opinion, and Aflenc from common Scnfe, and common Ufc, and has maturely weighed the Nature of Signs and Lan- guage, will not be fo apt to controvert the Word- ing of a Myftery, or to break the Peace of the Cnurch, for the Jake of retaining or rejecting a Term. But, to convince you, by a plain Inftance, of the efficacious necefiary Ufe of Faith without Ideas: we will fuppofe a Man of the World, a Minute Philosopher, prodigal and rapacious, one of large Appetites and narrow Circumrlances, who ihall have it in his Power at once to ieize upon a great Fortune by one villanous Act, a Tingle Breach, of Truft, which he can commit with Impunity and Secrecy : Is it not natural to fuppoie him arguing in this manner? All Mankind in their Senfes pur- fue their Interelr. The Interefts of this prefent Life are either of Mind, Body, or Fortune. If I commit this Fact my Mind will be eafy (having nought to fear here or hereafter) my bodily Pleafures will be multiplied, and my Fortune enlarged. Sup- pofe now, one of your refined Theorilts talks to him about the Harmony of Mind and Affections, inward Worth, Truth of Character, in one word, the Beauty of Virtue j which is the only Interefthe can propofe, to turn the Scale againtt all other fccular interefts and fenfual Pleafures ; would it not, think you, be a vain Attempt? I lay, ki fuch a Juncture what can the moft plaulihle and refined Philofophy of yonr Sect offer, to difiuade fuch a A a 2 Man THE MINUTE Man from his Purpofe, more than afiuring him that the abftracted Delight of the Mind, the Enjoy- ments of an interior moral Senfe, the To xaXcv are what conftitute his true Intereft ? And what Effect can this have on a Mind callous to all thofe things, and at the fame time ftrongly affected with a Senfe of corporeal Pleafures, and the outward Intereft, Or- naments, and Conveniencies of Life? Whereas that very Man, do but produce in him a fincere Belief of a future State, although it be a Myftery, although it be what Eye hath not feen, nor Ear heard, nor hath it entered into the Heart of Man to conceive, he mail neverthelefs, by virtue of fuch Belief, be withheld from executing his wicked Project : and that for Reafons which all Men can comprehend, though no body can the Object of them. I will allow the Points infixed on by your refined Moralifts to be as lovely and excellent as you pleafe to a reafonable, reflecting, philofophical Mind. But I will venture fay, That, as the World goes, few, very few, would be influenced by them. We fee, there- fire, the neceflfary Uie as well as the powerful EfFtds of Faiih, even where we have not Ideas. ^\..ALC. It feerns, ..Eupbraxor and you would periuade me into an Opinion, that there is nothing fo fingularly abfurd as we are apt to think, in the Belief, of Myfteries: and that a Man need not re- nounce his Rcafon to maintain his Religion. But if this were true, how comes it to pafs, that, in pro- portion as Men abound in Knowledge, they dwindle in Faith? EUPH. O A'cipbrcn, I have learned from yoi, that there is nothing like going to the Bottom of things, and analyfing them into their firft Prin- f' )les. 1 (hall therefore make an Eflay of this ethod, for clearing up the Narure of Faith : with wftat Succefs I fli.:li leave you to determine : for I dare P"* " HILOSOPHER. dare not pronounce myfelf on my own Judgment, whether it be right or wrong: But thus it fcems to me. The Objections made to Faith are by no means an Effect of Knowledge, but proceed rather from an Ignorance of what Knowledge is : which Ignorance may poflibly be found even in thofe who pafs for Matters of this or that particular Branch of Knowledge. Science and Faith agree in this, that they both imply an Aflent of the r.-'ind : And, as the Nature of the firft is mod clear and evident, it mould be firft considered in order to caft a Light on the other, To trace things from their Original, it feems that the human Mind, naturally furnilhed with the Ideas of things particular and concrete, and being defign'd, not for the bare Intuition of' Ideas, but for Action or Operation about them, and purfuing her own Happinefs therein, ftands in need of certain general Rules or Theorems to direct her Operations in this Purfuit : the fupplying which Want is the true, original, reafonable End of ftudy- ing the Arts and Sciences. Now thefe Rules be- ing general, it follows, that they are not to be obtained by the mere Confederation of the original Ideas, or particular Things, but by the means of Marks or Signs, which, being fo far forth univer- fal, become the immediate Inftruments and Ma- terials of Science. It is not therefore by mere Contemplation of particular Things, and much Ids of their abrtract general Ideas, that the Mind makes her Progrefs, but by an appofite Choice and skilful Management of Signs : For inftance, Force and Number, taken in concrete with their Adjunct?, Subjects, and Signs, are what every one knows : and confidered in abftract, fo as making precile Ideas of themfelves, they are what no body can comprehend. That their abftract Nature, there- fore, is not the Foundation of Science, is plain : A a 3 And 358 THE MINUTE DIAL. And that barely confidering their Ideas in concrete, VII. is not the Method to advance in the refpective Sci- ences, is what every one that reflects may fee ; nothing being more evident, than that one, who can neither write nor read, in common Ufe under- llands the Meaning of Numeral Words, as wel the belt Philofopher or Mathematician. XII. But here lies .the Difference : the one who underftands the Notation of Numbers, by means thereof is able to exprefs briefly and diftinctly all the Variety and Degrees of Number, and to per- form with Eafe and Difpatch feveral Arithmetical Operations, by the help of general Rules. Of all which Operations as the Ufe in Human Life is very evident, fo it is no lefs evident, that the performing them depends on the Aptnefs of the Notation. If we fuppofe rude Mankind without the Ufe of Language, it may be prefumed, they would be ig- norant of Arithmetic : But the Ufe of Names, by th:i Repetition whereof in a certain Order they might exprefs endlefs Degrees of Number, would be the firit Step towards that Science. The next Step would be, u devife proper Marks of a per- manent Nature, and vifible to the Eye, the Kind and Order whereof mutt be chofe with Judgmenr, and accommodated to the Names. Which Mark- ing or Notation would, in proportion as it was ape and regular, facilitate the Invention and Application of general Rules, to affift the Mind in reafbning and judging, j n extending, recording, and com- municating its Knowledge about Numbers: in which Theory and Operations, the Mind is im- mediately occupied about the Signs or Notes, by iViciliaticn of. which it is- directed to act about Tilings, or Number in concrete (as the Logicians call i:) without ever confiderifig the fimplc, abftract, intellectual, PHILOSOPHER. 359 intellectual, general Idea of Number. The Signs, DIAL- indeed, do in their Ufe imply Relations or Propor- VII. tions of Things : but thefe Relations are not ab- > - v draft general Ideas, being founded in particular Things, and not making of themfelves di'tinct Ideas to the Mind, exclufive of the particular Ideas and the Signs. I imagine one need not think much to be convinced, that the Science of Arithmetic, in its Rife, Operations, Rules and Theorems, is alto- gether converfant about the artificial Ufe of Signs, Names, and Characters. Thefe Names and Cha- racters are univerfal, inafmuch as they are Signs. The Names are referred to Things, the Characters to Names, and both to Operation. The Names being few, and proceeding by a certain Analogy, the Characters will be more ufcful, thefimpler they are, and the more aptly they exprefs this Analogy. Hence the old Notation by Letters was more ufeful than Words written at length : And the modern Notation by Figures, expreffing the Progreffion or Analogy of the Names by their fimple Places, is much preferable to that for Eafe and Expedition, as the Invention of Algebraical Symbols is to this for extenfive and general Ufe. As Arithmetic ancj Algebra are Sciences of great Clearnefs, Certainty,- and Extent, which are immediately converfant about Signs, upgn the skilful Ufe and Management whereof they intirely depend, fo a little Attention to them may poflibly help us to judge of the Pro- grefs of the Mind in other Sciences , which, though differing in Nature, Defign, and Object, may yet agree in the general Methods of Prooi and In- quiry. XIII. If I miftake not, all Sciences, fo far as they are univerfal and demontlrable by human Rcafon, will be found converfam about Signs as A a 4 their 360 THE MINUTE DIAL, their immediate Object, though thefe in the Ap- VII. plication are referred to Things : The Reaion ^ -v ' whereof is not difficult to conceive. For as the jVlind is better acquainted with fome fort of Object?, which are earlier offered to it, ftrike it more fen- fibly, or are more eafily comprehended than others, it feems naturally led to fubftitute thefe Objects for fuch as are more fubtile, fleeting, or difficult to conceive. Nothing, I fay, is more natural, than 10 make the Things we know, a Step cowards thofe we do not know ; and to explain and reprc- fcnt Things lefs familiar by others which are more fo. Now, it is certain \ve imagine before we re- flect: and we perceive by Senfe before we imagine : and of all our Senfes the Sight is the mod clear, diftinct, various, agreeable, and compreheufive. Hence it is natural ,to affift Intellect by -Imagina- tion, -Imagination by Senfe, and other Senfes by Sight. Hence Figures, Metaphors, and Typts. We illaftrate fpiritual Things by corporeal : we fubftitute Sounds for Thoughts, and written Letters for Sounds; Emblems, Symbols, and Hieroglyphics for Things too obfcure to ftrike, and too various or too fleeting to be retained. We fubftitute Things imaginable for Things intelligible, fenfible Things for imaginable, fmaller Things for thofe that are too great to comprehend eafily, and greater Things ior inch as are too fmall to be difcerned distinctly, prefcnt Things for ablent, permanent for pcriih- ing, and viable for invifible. Hence the Ule of Models and Diagrams. Hence Lines are fubfti- tuted for Time, Velocity, and other Things of very different Natures. Hence we fpeak of Spirits in a figurative Style, exprcfling the Operations of the Mind by Allufions and Terms, borrowed from jenfible Tilings, fuch as apprehend, conceive^ rcfeff, tkfcourfi) and fuch like : And hence thole Allegories which PHI LO SOPH E R. 361 which illuflrate Things intellectual by Vifions exhi- DIAL. bleed to the Fancy.- Plato, for inftance, repre- VII. ferns the Mind prcfiding in her Vehicle by the the Driver of a winged Chariot, which fometimes moults and droops and is drawn by two Horfes, the one good and of a good Race, the other of a contrary Kind ; fymbolically expreffing the Ten- dency of the Mind towards the Divinity, as fhe foars or is born aloft by two Inftincts like Wing?, the one in the Intellect towards Truth, the other in the Will towards Excellence, which Inftincts moult or are weaken'd by fenfual Inclinations ; expreffing alfo her alternate Elevations and Depref- fions, the Struggles between Reafon and Appetite, like Hcrfes that go an unequal Pace, or draw dif- ferent ways, embarrafiing the Soul in her Pro- grds to Perfection. I am inclined to think the Doctrine of Signs a point of great Importance, and general Extent, which if duly ccnfidered^ would caft no fmall Light upon Things, and af- ford a juft and genuine Solution of many D^H- culties. - XIV. Thus much, upon the whole, may be faid of all Signs : that they do not always fuggeft Ideas fignified to the Mind : that when they fuggeft Ideas, they are not general abftract Ideas : that they have other Ufes befides barely (landing for and exhibiting Ideas, fuch as raifing proper Emotions, producing certain Difpofitions or Ha- bits of Mind, and directing our Actions in pur- fuit of that Happineis, which is the ultimate End and Defign, the primary Spring and Motive, that fcts rational Agenrs at work : that Signs may im- ply or fuggeft the Relations of Things; which Re- huions, Habitudes, or Proportions as they cannot be by us underftood .but by the help of Signs, fo. being THE MINUTE being thereby expreffed and confuted they direct: and enable us to act with regard to Things : that the true End of Speech, Reafon, Science, Faith, Affent, in all its different Degrees, is not merely, or principally, or always the imparting or acquiring of Ideas, but rather fomething of an active, operative Nature, tending to a conceived Goods which may fometimes be obtained, noe only although the Ideas marked are not offered to the Mind, but even although there Ihould be no Poffibility of offering or exhibiting any fuch Idea to the Mind : for inftance, the Algebraic Mark, which denotes the Root of a negative Square^ hath its Ufe in Logiftic Operations, although it be impoffible to form an Idea of any fuch Quantity. And what is true of Algebraic Signs, is alfo true of Words or Language, modern Algebra being in fa& a more fhort, appofite, and artificial Sort of Language, and it being poffible to exprefs by Words at length, though lefs conveniently, all the Steps of an Algebraical Frocefs. And it muft becon- feffed, that even the Mathematical Sciences thefn- felves ? which above all others are reckoned the moft clear and certain, if they are confidered, not as Internments to direct our Practice, but as Speculations to employ our Curiofity, will be found lo fall fhort in many Inftances of thofe clear and diftinct Ideas, which, it feems, the Minute Phi- lophers of this Age, whether knowingly or igno- rantly, expect and infift upon in the My aeries of Religion. XV. Be the Science or Subject what it will, whenfoever Men quit Particulars for Generalities, things Concrete for Attractions, when they forfake practical Views,, and the ufeful Purpofes of Know- ledge for barren Speculation, coafidering Means, and PHILOSOPHER. 363 and Inftruments as ultimate Ends, and labouring DIAL. to obtain precife Ideas which they fuppofe indifcri- VII. minately annexed to all Terms, they will be fure (/VNJ to embarrafs themfelves with Difficulties and Dif- pu'tes. Such are thofe which have fprung up in Geometry about the Nature of the Angle of Con- tact, the Doctrine of Proportions, of Indivifibles, Inrinitefimals, and divers other Points; notwith- ftanding all which, that Science is very rightly ef- teemed an excellent and ufeful one, and is really found to be fo in many Occafions of human Life ; wherein it governs and directs the Actions of Men, fo that by the Aid or Influence thereof thofc Operations become juft and accurate, which would other wife be faulty and uncertain. And frorri a parity of Reafon, we fhoukl not conclude any other Doctrines which govern, influence, or direct the Mind of Man to be, any more than that, the lefs true or excellent, becaufe they afford Matter of Controverfy and ufelefs Speculation to curious and licentious Wits: particularly thofe Articles of our Chriftian Faith, which, in proportion as they are believed, pcrfuade, and, as they perfuade, in- fluence the Lives and Actions of Men. As to the Perplexity of Con trad id ions and abstracted No- tions, in all parts whether of Human Science or Divine Faith, Cavillers may equally object, and unwary Perfons incur, while the judicious avoid it. There is no need to depart from the received Rules of Reafoning to juftify the Belief of Chrif- tians. And if any pious Men think otherwise, ic may be fuppofed an Effect, not of Religion or of Reafon, but only of human Weaknefs. If this Age be fingularly productive of Infidels, I fhall not therefore conclude it to be more knowing, but only more prduming, than former Ages : And their Conceit, I doubr, is net the Effect of Con* fideration. 364 T HE MINUTE DIAL, fideration. To me it feems, that the more tho- VII. roughly and extenfively any Man mall confider and lean the Principles, Object?, and Methods of proceeding in Arts and Sciences, the more he will be convinced, there is no Weight in thole plaufible Objections that are made againll the Myfteries of Faith, which it will be no difficult Matter for him to maintain or juftify in the received Method of arguing, on the common Principles of Logic, and by numberlefs avow'd parallel Cafes, through- out the feveral Branches of human Knowledge, in all which the Suppofition of abftradt Ideas creates the fame Difficulties. ALC. According to this Doctrine, all Points may be alike maintained. There will be nothing ablurd in Popery, not even Tranfubflantiation. E UPJL Pardon me. This Doctrine juftifies no Article of Faith which is not contained in Scripture, or which is repugnant to human Reafon, which implies a Contradiction, or which leads to Idolatry or Wickednefs of any kind: all which is very different from our noc having adiftinct or an abftract Idea of a Point. p XVI. ALC. I will allow, Eitpbranor^ this Reafoning of yours to have all the Force you meant it mould have. I freely own there may be Myfteries : that we may believe, where we do fiot'underftand : and that Faith may be of ufe although its Object is not diftinctly apprehended. In a word, I grant there may be Faith and My- fterie's in other things but not in Religion : And that for this plain Reafon : becaufe it is abfurd to fuppofe, there mould be any fuch thing as Reli- gion : and if there be no Religion it follows there cannot be Religious Faith or Myfteries. Religion, it is evident, implies the Worfhip of a God, wtych Worfhip fuppofeth Rewards and Punifh- ments, PHILOSOPHE R. 365 ments, which fuppofe Merits and Demerits, DIAL. Actions good and evil, and thefc fuppoie hu- yj^ man Liberty, a thing impoffible : and confequently ^r^^/ Religion a thing built thereon muft be an unreafo- nable abfurd thing. There can be no rational Fears where there is no Guilt, nor any Guilt where there is nothing done, but what unavoidably follows from the Structure of the World and the Laws of Motion. Corporeal Objects ftrike on the Organs of Senfe, whence enfues a Vibration in the Nerves, which being communicated to the Soul or Animal Spirit in the Brain or Root of the Nerves, produceth therein that Motion called Volition : And this produceth a new Determina- tion in the Spirits, caufing them to flow into fucli Nerves as muft neceiTarily by the Laws of Mecha- nifm produce fuch certain Actions. This being the Cafe, it follows that thofe things, which vul- garly pafs for human Actions, are to be efteem- ed Mechanical, and that they are falfly aicribed to a free Principle, There is therefore no Founda- tion for Praiie or Blame, Fear or Hope, Reward or Punishment, nor confequently for Religion, which, as I obferved before, is built upon and fuppofeth thofe things. EU P H. You imagine, jilcipbron, if I rightly underhand you, that Man is a fort of Organ played on by outward Ob- jects, which according to the different Shape and Texture of the Nerves produce different Mu- tions and Effects therein. A~LC. Man may, in- deed, be fitly compared to an Organ : but a Pup- pet is the very Thing. You muft know, that certain Particles iffuing forth in right Lines from all fenfible Objecls com pole fo many Rays, or Fila- ments, which drive, draw, and actuate every part of the Soul and Body of Man, juft as Threads or Wires do the Joints of that little wooden MushinC vulgarly THE MINUTE vulgarly called a Puppet : with this only Difference that the latter are grofs and vifible to common Eyes, whereas the former are too fine and iubtlc to be difcerned by any but a fugacious Free-thinker. This admirably accounts for all thofe Operations, which we have been taught to afcribe to a thinking Principle within us. EUPH. This is an ingenious Thought, and muft be of great Ufe in freeing Men from all Anxiety about moral Notions, as ic transfers the Principle of Action from the Human Soul to things outward and foreign. But I have my Scruples about it. For you Juppofe the Mind in a literal Senfe to be moved, and its Volitions to he mere Motions. Now, if another mould affirm, as it is not impoffible fome or other may, that the Soul is incorporeal, and that Motion is one thing and Volition another, I would fain know how you could make your Point clear to fuch a one. It muft be owned very clear to thofe who admit the Soul to be corporeal, and aH her Acts to be but fo many Motions. Upon this Suppofition, in- deed, the Light wherein you place human Nature is no lefs true, than it is fine and new. But let any one deny this Suppofition, which is eafily done, and the whole Superftrutlure falls to the Ground* If we grant the abovementioned Points, I will not. deny a fatal Neceffity muft enfue. But I fee no reafon for granting them. On the contrary it feems plain, that Motion and Thought are two things as really and as manifeftly diftind as a Triangle and a Sound. It feems therefore, that in order to prove the Necefiicy of Human Actions, you fuppofe what wants Proof as much as the V^ry Point to be proved. XVII. ALC. But fuppofing the Mind incorpo- real, I (hall, ncvcrthelcls, be able to prove my Point. PHILOSOPHER. 367 Point.' Not to amufe you with far-fetched Argu- DIAL, merits, I (hall only defire you to look into your VII. own Bread and obferve how things pafs there, < - v^-J when an Object offers itfelf to the Mind. Firft the Understanding confiders it : in the next place the Judgment decrees about it, as a thing to be chofen or rejected, to be omitted or done, in this or that manner : And this Decree of the Judgment doth nectrfTarily determine the Will, whofe Office is merely to execute what is ordained by another Faculty : Confequently there is no fuch thing as Freedom of the "Will. For that which is neceffary cannot be free. In Freedom there mould be an In- difference to either fide of the Queftion, a Power to act or not to act, without Prelcription or Control : and without this Indifference and this Power, ic is evident the Will cannot be free. But it is no ids evident, that the Will is not indifferent in its Ac^ tions, being abfolutely determined and governed by the Judgment. Now whatever moves the Judg- ment, whether the greateft prefent Uneafmeis, or the greateft apparent Good, or whatever el ft ic be, it is all one to the Point in hand. The Will being ever concluded and controlled by the Judg- ment is in all Cafes alike under Neceffity. There is, indeed, throughout the whole of human Na- ture, nothing like a Principle of Freedom, every Faculty being determined in all its Acts by fume- thing foreign to it. The Underftanding, for inftance, cannot alter its Idea, but muft neceffarily fee it fuch as it prefents itfelf. The Appetites by a natural NecefTicy are carried towards their refpec- tive Objects. Reafon cannot infer indifferently any thing from any thing, but is limited by the Nature and Connexion of Things, and the eternal Rules of Reafoning. And as this is confdfedly the Cafe of all other Faculties, fo it equally holds with ^68 THE MINUTE o DIAL, with refpect to the Will itfelf, as hath been already VII. fhewn. And if we may credit the Divine Cha- u v ' racterizer of our Times, this above all others muft be allowed the moft flavifh Faculty. " Appetite '* (faith that noble Writer) which is elder Bro- <* ther to Reafon, being the Lad of ftronger Growth, is fure on every Conteft to take the " Advantage of drawing all to his own Side : " And Will, fo highly boafted, is but at beft a " Foot- bail or Top between thofe Youngfters " who prove .very unfortunately matched, till the " youngeft, inftead of now and then a Kick or " Lafh beftow'd to little purpofe, forlakes the Ball " or Top itfelf, and begins to Jay. about his elder Brother." CRT. This beautiful Parable for Stile and Manner might equal thofe of a known Engllfb Writer, in low Life renowned for Alle- gory, were it not a little incorrect, making the weaker Lad find his Account in laying about the ftronger. ALC. This is helped by luppofing the ftronger Lad the greater Coward. But, be that as it will, fo far as it relates to the Point in hand,' this is a clear State of the Cafe. The iiwjfe Point may be alfo proved from the Prefcience of God. That which is certainly foreknown will certainly be. And what is certain is neceflary. And necefiary Actions cannot be the Effect of Free-will. Thus you have this fundamental Point of our Free-thinking Philofophy demonftrated dif- ferent ways. EUPtf. Tell me, Akipbron, do you think it implies a Contradiction, that God fhould make a Creature Free ? ALC. I do not. EUPH. Ic is then polTibie -there p may be fuch a, thing. ALC. This I do nor deny. EUPH, You can therefore conceive and fuppofe fuch a Free Agent. ALG. Admitting that. I. can; what then? EUPH. WouU-not fuch an one think that he acted?. ALC. PHILOSOPHER. 369 jjLC. He would. EUPH. And condemn him- DIAL. felf for Ibme Actions and approve him felf for VII. others ? ALC. This too I gram. EUPH. Would * ~* he not think he deferved Keward or Punifhment ? ALC. He would. EUPH. And are not all chefe Characters adually found in Man ? ALC. They are. EUPH. Tell me now, what other Charac- ter of your fuppofed Free Agent may not actually be found in Man ? For if there is none fuch, we muft conclude that Man hath all the Marks of a Free Agent. ALC. Let me fee! I was certainly overfeecn in granting it poffible, even for Al- mighty Power, to make fuch a thing as a Free- Agent. I wonder how I came to make fuch an abfurd Conceflion, after what had been, as I ob- ferved before, demonftrated fo many different ways. E UP H. Certainly whatever is poflible may be fuppofed : And whatever doth not im- ply a Contradiction is pofiible to an infinite Power : Therefore if a rational Agent implieth no Contra- diction, fuch a Being may be fuppoied. Perhaps from this Suppofition I might infer Man to be free : But I will not fuppofe him that free Agent ; fince, it feems, you pretend to have demonftrated tn"e contrary. O Alripbron^ it is vulgarly obferv- ed that Men judge of others by themfelves. Buc in judging of me by this Rule, you may be miftaken. Many things are plain to one of your 1 Sagacity, which are not fo to me, who am often puzzied rather than enlightned by thofe very Proofs, that with yo\i pafs for clear and evident. And, indeed, be the Inference never fo juft, yec fo long as the Premifes are njt clear, I cannot be thoroughly convinced. You muft give me leave thtrcfore to propofe fome Qjeftions, the So!udun of which may perhaps lli^w what at preient I am not able to difcern. ALC. I Hull Iwve whuc B b hath 370 THE MINUTE DIAL, hath been (aid with you, to confider and ruminate VII. upon. It is now time to fee out on our Jour- v-v- J ney : there is, thererore,no room for a long btring of Queflion and Anivver. XVIII. EUPH. 1 (hail then only beg leave in a fummary Manner, to make a Remark or two on what you have advanced. In the firft place I 'obferve, you take that for granted which 1 cannot grant, when you aficrt whatever is cer- tain the lame to be neceflary. To me, certain and nectflary Ieem very different ; there being nothing in the former Notion that implies Cenfiraint, nor conftquently which may not confift with a Man's being accountable for his Actions. If it is fcrefeen that fuch an Action fhall be done : may it not alfo be forefeen that it fhall be an Eiftct of human Choice and Li- berty ?' In the next place f oblerve, that you very nicely abftract and diftinguifh the Actions of the Mind, Judgment, and WilJ : That you make ufe of fuch Terms as Power, Faculty, Act, De- termination, Indifference, Freedom, Necefiity, and the like, as if they ftood for dnlinct abftradt Ideas: And that this Suppofition feems to inihare the Mind into the fame Perplexities and Errors, which, in all other Inftances, are oblerved to at- tend the Doctrine of Abstraction. It is feif-evi- denr, that there is fuch a thing as Motion : and yet there have been iound Philolophers, who, by refined Reaibning, vvou'd undertake to prove there was- no fuch thing. Walking before them was thought the proper Way to confute thofe inge- nious Men. It is no lefs evident, that Man is a free Agent : and though by abilractcd Kea Ion ings you fhou'd puzzle me, and ieem to prove the contrary, yet io long as i am eonicious of my own PHILOSOPHER. 771 6 / * own Actions, this inward Evidence of plain Fact DIAL. will bear me up againft all your Reafonings, how- yjj ever fubtile and refined. The confuting plain < -y-w Points by obfcure ones, may perhaps convince me of the Ability of your Philofophers, but never of their Tenets. I cannot conceive why the acute Gratyltts fnould fuppofe a Power of Acting in the Appetite and Reafon, and none at all in the Will ? Allowing, I lav, the Diftinction of three fucli Beings in the Mind, I do not fee how this could be true. But if I cannot abflract and diftinguifh fo many Beings in the Soul of Man fo accurately as you do, I do not find it neceffary, fince it is evident to me in the grofs and concrete that I am a free Agent. Nor will ic avail to fay, the Will is governed by the Judgment, or determin- ed by the Object, white, in every Hidden com- mon Caufe, I cannot difcern nor abftract the De- cree of the Judgment from the Command of the Will', while I know the fenfible Object to be abfolutely inert : And lailly, while I am con- fcious that I am an active Being, who can and do determine myfelf. If I fhould fuppofe things fpiritual to be corporeal, or refine things actual and real into general abftracted Notions, Or by metaphyfical Skill fplit things fimple and indivi- dual into manifold Parts, I do not know what may follow : But if I take things as they are, and ask any plain untutored Man, whether he acts or is free in this or -that particular Action, he readily aftents, and I as readily beiieve him from what I find with- in. And thus, by an Induction of Particulars, I may conclude M-in to be a free Agent, although 1 may be puzzled to define or conceive a Notion of Freedom in general and abftract. AnJ if Man be, free, he is plainly accountable. BJC if you (hall define, abftract, fuppofc, and it mail B b 2 -follow THE MINUTE follow that according to your Definitions, Ab- ilractions, and Suppofkions, there can be no Free- dom in Man, and you (hall thence infer that he is not accountable, I fiia.ll make bold to depart irom your metaphyfical abftracted Senfe, and ap- peal to the common Senle of Mankind. XIX. If we confider the Notions that obtain m the World of Guilt and Merir, Praife and Blame, accountable and unaccountable, we (hall find the common Qjeftion in order to applaud or cenfure, acquit or condemn a Man, is, whether he did fuch an Action ? and whether he was himftlf when lie did it ? which comes to the fame thing. It ihould fee m therefore that in the ordinary Com- merce of Mankind, any Perfon is efteemed ac- countable fimply as he is an Agent. And though you mould tell me that Man is inactive, and that ihe fenh'ble Objects act upon him, yet my own Experience allures me of the contrary. I know I act, and what I act I am accountable for. And if this be true, the Foundation of Religion and Mo- rality remains unlhakeri. Religion, I fay, is c >n- ccrned no farther than that Man mould be account- able; : And this he is according to my Senle, and the common Senfe of the World, if he acts : and that he doth act is ielf-evident. The Grounds, therefore, and Ends of Religion are Secured : whe- ther your philofophic Notion of Liberty agrees with Man's Actions or no , and whether his Actions are certain or. contingent j the Qjeftion be- ing not whether he did it with a Free Will? or what determined his \Vill ? nor, whether it was certain or foreknown that he would do it ? but only whether he did it wilfully? as what mult iiititlc him to the Guilt or Merit of it. ALC. But fiiil d Qaellion recurs,. Mr '..o'bne ; d a PHILOSOPHER. 373 Man be Free ? EUPH. To determine this Qje- DIAL. ftion, ought we not firft to determine what is VII. meant by the word Free? ALC. We ought. ^ *~ EUPH. In my Opinion, a Man is laid to be Free, fo far forth as he can do what he will. Is this Ib, or is it not? ALC. It feems fo. EUPIL Man therefore acting according to his Will, is to be accounted Free. ALC. This I admit to be true in the vulgar Senfe. But a Philofopher goes higher, and inquires whether Man be free to will ? EUPH. That is, whether he can will as he wills ? I know not how Philofophical it may be to ask this Qjeftion, but it feems very idle. The Notions of Guilt, and Merit, Juflice and Reward are in the Minds of Men, antecedent to all Metaphyiical Dif- quifitions : And according to thofe received natural Notion?, it is not doubted that Man is accoun- table, that he ads, and is felt- determined. XX. But a Minute Philofopher (hall, in virtue- of wrong Suppofirions, confound things mofl: evi- dently diftind ; Body, for inlhnce, with Spirit, Motion with Volition, Certainty with Neceffity ; and an Abftracter or Refiner fhall fo analyfe the moft fimple inftantaneous Act of the Mind, as to diftinguifh therein clivers Faculties and Tendencies, Principles and Operations, Caufcs and Effects ; and having abftractod, fuppofed, and realbned up- on Principles gratuitous and obfcure, he will con- clude it is no Aft at all, and Man no Agent, bjt a. Puppet, or an Organ play'd on by outward Objects, and his Will a Top or a Foot-ball. And this pafleth for Philofophy and Free- thinking. Perhaps this may be what it pafleth for, but it by no means feems a natural or juft way of think- ing. Tome it feems, that if we begin from Things particular and concrete, and thence proceed to ge- B b 5 neral 374 THE MINUTE DIAL, neral Notions and Conciufions, there will be no VII. Difficulty in this Matter. But jf we begin with * "v~ ' Genera! iries, and lay our Foundation in abftradt Ideas, we ihall find ourfeives in tangled and loft in a Labyiimh of our own making. 1 reed not ob- ferve, what every one mud -fee, the ridicule of proving Man no Agent, and yet pleacing for Free Thought and Aclion, of letting up at once for Advocates of Liberty and Ncceffity; I have haftily thrown together theie Hints or Remarks, on what you call a fundamental Article of the Minure PhiJofophy, and your Method of proving ir, which feems to fcrnifh an admrrable Specimen of the Sophiftry of abftract Ideas. If in this lum- inary way 1 have been more dogmatical than be- came me, you mull excufe what you-occafioned, by declining a joint and leifurely Examination of the Truth. 4LC. 1 think we have examined Matters fufficiently. CRl. To all you have faid againti human Liberty, it is a fufficient Anfwer to obierve that your Arguments proceed upon an erroneous Suppofition, either of the Soul's being corporeal, or of abilracl Ideas : not to mention other giofs Miftakes and gratuitous Principles. You might as well fuppofe, that the Soul is red or blue, as that it is iolid. You might as well make the Will any thing elfe as Motion. And v-hatever you infer from luch Premifcsj which (to j'peak in the fofteft manner^' are neither proved nor probable, I make no difficulty .to reject. You dif- tinguifii in all human Aciions between the lad De- cree of the Judgment and the Act of the Will. You confound -Certainty with Necefficy. You in- quire, and your Inquiry amounts to an abfurd Qacftion : whether Man can will as he wills ? As evidently true as is this identical Propofition, fo evi- tkmJy ialfe maft that way of thinking be, which -led PHILOS o P H E R. 375 led you to make a Queftion of it. You fay, the DIAL. Appttites have by necefiity of Nature a tendency VII. towards their refpective Objects. This we grant, ^-*-v -J and withal that Appetite, if you pleafe, is not free. But you go farther and teli us rhc Under- ftancjing cannot alter its Idea, nor infer indiffe- rently, any thing from any thing. What then ! Can we not act at all if we cannot alter the Nature of Objects, and may we not be free in other things if we are not at liberty to make abibrd Inferences ? You take for granted, that the Mind is inactive, but that its. Ideas act upon it: as if the contrary were not evident to every Man of common Senfe, who cannot but know, that it is the Evltnd which confiders its Ideas, choofes, rejects, examines, delibe- rates, decrees, in one word acts about them, and not they about it. Upon the whole, your Premises being obfcure and falfe, the fundamental Point, which you pretend to demon ft rate fb many diffe- rent ways, proves neither Senfe nor Truth in any* And on the other hand, there is not need of much Inquiry to be convinced of two Points, than which none are more evident, more obvious, and more univerfally admitted by Men of all fort?, learned or unlearned, in all Times and Place-, to wit, that Man acts and is accountable for h'S Actions. Whatever Abftracterv Refiners, or Men prejudiced to a falfe Hypothecs may pre- tend, it is, if I miftake not, evident to every thinking Man of common Senfe, that human Minds are fo far from being Engines or Foot-ball : , acted upon and bandied about by corporeal Object , without any inward Principle of Freedom oi - Action, that the only original true Notions that we have of Freedom, Agent, or Act-ion, are ob- tained by reflecting on ourfelves, and the Opera- tions of our own Minds. The Singularity ainl Credulity of Minute Philofophers, who fairer them* B b 4 fclves 376 THE -MINUTE DIAL, felves to be abufcd by the Paralogifms of three of VII. four eminent Patriarchs of Infidelity in the laft Age, is, I think, not to be matched ; there being no Inftance of bigoted Superftition, the Ringleaders whereof have been able to 1 educe their Followers, more openly and more widely from the plain Dictates of Nature and common Senfc. ' XXIV. ALC. It has been always an Objec- tion againft the Difcoverers of Truth, that they depart from received Opinions. The Chara&er of Singularity is a Tax on Free-thinking : And as fuch we mod willingly bear it, and glory in it. A Genuine Philofopher is never modelt in a falfe Senfe, to the preferring Authority before Reafon, or an old and common Opinion before a true one. Which falfe Modtfty, as it difcourages Men from treading in untrodcn Paths, or ftriking out new Light, is above all other Qualities the greateft Enemy to Free-thinking. CRL Authority in diP putable Points will have its Weight with a judi- cious Mind, which yet will follow Evidence wherever it leads. Without preferring we may allow it a good Second to Reafon. Your Gentlemen, therefore, ot the Minute Philofophy, may fpare a World of Common Place upon Reafon, and Light, and Difcoveries. We are not attached to Authority againft Reafon, nor afraid of untroden Paths that lead to Truth, and are ready to follow a new Light when we are fure it is no ignis fatuus. Reafon may oblige a Man to believe againft his Inclinations: but why fhould a Man quit falutary Notions, for others not lefs unrealonable than per- nicious ? Your Schemes, and Principles, and boifted Demonftrations have been at large pro- pofed and examined.. You have (hiked your No- tions, fucceilivtly retreated from one Scheme to anther, and in the End renounced them all. Your PHIL oso p HE R. 377 Objections have been treated in the fame DIAL. Manner, and with the fame Event. If we except VII. all that relates to the Errors and Faults of particular Perfons, and Difficulties which, from the Nature of Things, we are not obliged to explain ; it is furprifing to fee, after fuch magnificent Threats, how little remains, that can amount to a pertinent Objection againft the Chriftian Religion. What you have produced has been tried by the fair Teft of Reafon : and though you mould hope to prevail by Ridicule when you cannot by Reafon, yet in the up. Ihot J apprehend you will find it impracticable tode- ilroy all Senfe of Religion. Make your Countrymen ever fo vicious, ignorant, and profane, Men will flill be difpofed to look up to a fupreme Bring. Religion, right or wrong, will fubfift in fome Shape or other, andfome Worfhip there will furely be either of God or the Creature. As for your Ridicule, can any thing be more ridiculous, than to fee the molt unmeaning Men of the Age fet up for Free-thinkers, Men fo ftrong in Afftrtion, and yet fo weak in Argument, Advocates for Freedom introducing a Fatality, Pa- triots trampling on the Laws of their Country, and Pretenders to Virtue deftroying the Motives of it? Let any impartial Man but cafl an Eye on the Opinions of the Minute Philofophers, and then fay if any thing can be more ridiculous, than to believe fuch things, and at the fame time laugh at Credulity* . XXV. LTS. Say what you will, we have the Laughers on our fide : And as for your Reafoning I take it to be another Name for Sophiftry. CRL And I fuppofe by the fame Rule you take your own Sophifms for Arguments. To fpeak plainly, I know no fort of bophifm that is not employed by Minute Philofophers againft Religion. They are guilty of a Petiiio Principii, in taking for granted that 378 THE MINUTE* DIAL, that we believe Contradictions - 3 of -non Caufa pri VII. Caufa, in affirming that uncharitable Feuds and v^Y^/ Difcords are the Effects of Christianity ; of Ignb~ ratio elenchi, in expecting Dernonftratiqn where we pretend only to Faith. If .1 was not afraid to offend the Delicacy of polite Ears, nothing were eafier than to affign Inftances of every kind of Sophifm, which would (hew how skilful your own Philofophers are in the Practice of that Sophiftry you impute to others. EUPH. For my own part, if Sophiftry be the Art or Faculcv of deceiving other Men, I muft acq lit thefe Gentlemen or it. They feem to have led me a Progrefs through AtheifiTi, Libertinism, Enthufiafm, FataliUn, not to convince me of the Truth of any of them, fo much as to confirm me in my own way of think- ing. They have expofed their fairy Ware not to cheat but divert us. As I know them to be pro- feffcd Matters of Ridicule, fo in a ferious Senie I know not what to make of them. ALC. You do not know what to make of us ! I mould be forry you did. He muft be a fuperficial Philofopher that is (bon fathomed. XXVI. CRI. The ambiguous Character is, it kerns, the iure way to Fame and Efteem in the learned World, as it ftands conftituted at prefent. \VJien the Ingenious Reader is at a lofs to deter- mine whether his Author be Atheiit or Deift or Polytheift, Stoic or Epicurean, Sceptic or Dog- matift, Infidel or Enthufiaft, in jeft or in earned, he concludes him without Mentation to be ^enigmatical and profound. In fact, it is true of the mod -ad- mired Writers of the Age, That no Man alive can. tell what to make of chern, or what they would be at. y/Z/A We have among us Moles that dig deep nnd'jr Ground, and Kaglcs that foar out of fight. We PHILOSOPHER. 379 We can aft all Parts and become all Opinions,, put- DIAL. ting them on or off with great freedom of Wit and VII,! Humour. EUPPf. It feems then you arc a Pair ^"V^ of inlcriitable, unfathomable, fafliionable Philofo- phers. ALC. It cannot be denied. EUPH. Bur, I remember, you fet out with an open dogmatical Air, and talked of plain Principles and evident Reafoning, promifcd to make things as clear as Noon-day, to extirpate wrong potions and plane right in their ftead. Soon after, you began to recede from your firft Notions and adopt others : you advanced one while and retreated another, yielded and retracted, faid and unlaid : And after having followed you through fo many untroden Paths and intricate Mazes I find myfelf never the nearer. ALC. Did we not tell you the Gentlemen of our Seel: are great Proficients in Rallery ? bUPH. But, mcthinks, it is a vain Attempt, for a plain Man of any fettled Belief or Principles to engage with fuch flippery, fugitive, changeable Phiiofo- phers. It feems as if a Man mould (land (till in the fame place, while his Adverfary choofes and changes his Situation, has full Range and Liberty to traverfe the Field, and attack him on all Sides and in all Shapes, from a nearer or farther diftance, on Horfeback -or on Foot, in light or heavy Ar- mour, in clofe Fight or with miliwe Weapons. jfLC. It mint be owned, a Gentleman hath great Advantage over a flrait-laced Pedant or Bigot. E UPH. But after all, what am I the better for the Conversion of two fuch knowing Gentlemen ? I hoped to have unlearned my Errors, and to have learned Truths from you, bar, to my great Dif- appointmenr, I do not find that I am either un- taught or taught. ALC. To unceach Men their Prejudices is a difficult Task: And this muft firft be done, before we can pretend to teach them the Truth. . THE MINUTE Truth. Befides, we have at prefect no Time to prove and argue. EUPH. But fuppofe my Mind white Paper, and without being at any Pains to extirpate my Opinions, or prove your own, only fay what you would write thereon, or what you would teach me in cafe I were teachable. Be for once in earned, and let me know fbme one Con- clufion of yours before we part: or I fhall intreat Crito to violate the Laws of Hofpitality towards thofe, who have violated the Laws of Philofophy, by hanging out falfc Lights to one benighted in Ignorance and Error. I appeal to you (faid he turn- ing to Crito') whether thefe Philofophical Knight- errants Ihould not be confined in this Caflle of yours, till they make Reparation. Eupbranor has Reafon, faid Crito, and my Sentence is that you remain here in durance, till you have done fbme- thing towards fatisfying the Engagement I am under, having promifed, he fhould know your Opinions from yourfelves, which you alfo agreed to. .; iq :J6rf3 p XXVI I. ALC. Since it muft be fo, I will now reveal what I take to be the Sum and Subftance, the grand Arcanum and ultimate Conclufion of our ScftT and that -in- two Words, I1ANTA ITTJ- AH'-PIS. CR1. You are then a downright Sceptic. But, Sceptic as you are, you own it probable there is a God, certain that the Chriftian Religion is ufe- fi:J, poffible it may be true, certain that if it be, the Minute Philcfophers are in a bad way. This being the Gafe, how can it be queftioned what Courfe a wife Man fhould take ? Whether the Principles cf Chriftians or InBdels are trued may be made a Qjeftion, but which are fafeft can be none. Cer- tui'nly if you doubt of all Opinions you muft doubt nf your own : and then for ought you know, the Cliriftian may be true. The more doubt, the more room PHILOSOPHER. 381 room there is for Faith, a Sceptic of all Men DIAL. having the lead Right to demand Evidence. But, VII. whatever Uncertainty there may be in other Points, u-*v""^ thus much is certain : either there is or is not a God : there is or is not a Revelation : Man either is or is not an Agent: the Soul is or is not Immortal. If the Negatives are not fure, the Affirmatives are poffible. If the Negatives are improbable, the Af- firmatives are probable. In proportion, as any of your ingenious Men finds himfelf unable to prove any one of thefe Negatives, he hath grounds to fufpe& he may be miftaken. A Minute Philofo- pher, therefore, that would aft a confident parr, fhould have the Diffidence, the Modefty, and the Timidity, as well as the Doubts, of a Sceptic j not pretend to an Ocean of Light, and then lead us to an Abyfs of Darknefs. If I have any Notion of Ridicule, this is moft ridiculous. But your ridi- culing what, for ought you know, may be true, I can make no Senfe of. It is neither acting as a wife Man with regard to your own Jntereft, nor as a good Man with regard to that of your Country. XXVIII. Fully faith fomewhere, aut undique re- ligionem tolls aut tifquequaque conferva : Either let us have no Religion at all, or let it be reflected. If any fingle Inftance can be fhewn of a People that ever profpered without Ibme Religion, or if there be any Religion better than the Chriftian, propofe it in the grand Aflembly of the Nation fo change our Constitution, and either live without Religion, cr introduce that ntw Religion. A Sceptic, as well as other Men, is Member of a Community, and can didinguifh between good and Evil, Natural or Political. Be this then his. Guide as a Patriot,^ though he be no Chriftian. Or, if he doth not pretend even to this Difcernment, ic: him not pre- tend T II E M I N U T E DIAL, tend to corrtft or alter what he knows nothing of: Nci'-ntr let him that only doubts behave as if he could dcmonllrate. Timagoras is wont to fay, I find my Country in pofieffion of certain Tenets : they appear. to have an ulcful Terd i cy, arc), as fuch, are encouraged by the Legiflature ; they make a main part 01 our Conftitution : I do not find thefe Innovators can dilprove them, or fubltitute things more ufer'ul and certain in their (lead : out of Re- gard therefore to the Good of Mankind, and the Laws of my Country, I mail acquiefce in them. I do not Jay fimagoras is a Chriftian, but I reckon him a Patriot. Not to inquire in a Point of fo great Concern is Folly, but it is ftilJ a higher degree of Folly to condemn without inquiring. Lfales itemed heartily tired of this Converlation. It is now late, faid he to Alcifhron^ and ail things are ready for our Departure. Every one hath his own way of thinking : and it is as impoffible for me to adopt anotner Man's, as to make his Complexion and Features mine. Alciphron pleaded that, having complied with Euphranor' 's Conditions, they were now at liberty : And Eupbranor anfwered that, all he deiired having been to know their Tenets, he had nothing further to pretend. XXIX. The Philofophers being gone, lobferved to Crito how unaccountable it was, that Men fo eafy to confute mould yet be fo difficult to convince. This, faid Crito, is accounted for by Ariftotle^ who tells us that Arguments have not an Effect on all Men, but only on them whofe Minds are prepared by Education and Cuftom, as Land .is for Seed *. Make a Point never fo clear, it is great odds, that a Man, whole Habits and the Bent of whofe Mind * Etliic. ad Niccni. 1. 10. c. 9. lie PHILOSOPHER. 383 lie a contrary way, fhall be unable to comprehend DIAL.' it. So weak a thing is Reafon in competition VII. with Inclination. I replied, this Anfwer might hold with refpect to other Perfons and other Times : but when the Queftion was of inquifitive Men, in an Age wherein Reafon was fo much cultivated, and Thinking fo much in vogue, it did not feem fatif- factory. I have known it remarked, faid Crito, by a Man of much Obfervation, that in the prefent Age Thinking is more talk'd of but lefs practifed than in ancient times : and that fince the Revival of Learning, Men have read much and wrote much, but thought little: infomuch that with us to think clofely and juftly is the lead part of a learned Man, and none at all of a polite Man. The Free-think- ers, it mud be owned, make great Pretenfions to Thinking, and yet they mew but little Exactness in it. A lively Man, and what the World calls a Man of Senfe are often deftitute of this Talent ; which is not a mere Gift of Nature, but muft be improved and perfected, by much Attention and Exercife on very different Subjects : a thing of more Pains and Time than the hafty Men of Parts in our Age care to take. Such were the Sentiments of a judicious Friend : And, if you are not already fuf- ficiently convinced of thefe Truths, you need only caft an Eye on the dark and confufed, but rtever- thelefs admired, Writers of this famous Sect : And then you \vill be able to judge, whether thofe who are led by Men of fuch wrong Heads can have very good ones of their own. $uch, for inftance, was Sfino/Of the great Leader of our modern In- fidels, in whom are to be found many Schemes and Notions much admired and followed of hie Years: Such as undermining Religion, under the Pretence of vindicating and explaining it : The maintaining it not neccflary to believe in Ghrift according to the Flcfh : THE MINUTE Flclh : The perfuading Men that Miracles are to be underftood only in a Ipiritual and allegorical Senfe : That Vice is not fo bad a thing as we are apt to think : That Men are mere Machines impelled by fatal Neceflity. I have heard, faid I, Spinofa re- prefented as a Man of clofe Argument and De- mon ftration. He did, replied Criio, demonftrate : but it was after fuch a manner, as any one may de- monftrate any thing. Allow a Man the Privilege to make his own Definitions of common Words, and it will be no hard matter for him to infer Con- clufions, which in one Senfe fhall be true, and in another falfe, at once feeming Paradoxes and mani- feft Truifms. For Example, (et but Spinofa define natural Right to be natural Power, and he will eafily demonftrate, that whatever a Man can do he hath a ri^bt to do *. Nothing can be plainer than the Folly of this Proceeding : but our Pretenders to the lumen Jiccum, are Ib paffionately prejudiced againft Re- ligion, as to fwallow the grofifelt Nonfenfe and So- phiftry of weak and wicked Writers for Demon- itration. XXX. And fo great a Noife do thefe Men make, with their thinking, reafoning, and demonftrating, as to prejudice fome well-meaning Per fons again It all Ufe and Improvement of Rcafon. Hone(t Dcmca, having feen a Neighbour of his ruined by the Vices of a Free-thinking Son, contracted fuch a Prejudice ngiinit Thinking, that he would not fuffsr his own co read Euclid, being told it might teach him to think ; till a Friend convinced him the epidemical Diftempt-r was not Thinking, but only the Want and Affectation of it. I know an eminent Free-thinker, who never goes to bed, with- out a Gallon oi" Wine in his Beiiy, and is lure to * Traftat. Politic, c. z. re- T> PHILOSOPHER. 385 replenifli before the Fumes are off his Brain, by DIAL. which means he has not had one. Ibber " Thought VII. thefe /even Years ; another, that would not for the v_- v *. World lofe the Privilege and Reputation of Free- thinking, who games all Night, and lies in Bed all Day : And as for the Outfide or Appearance of Thought in that meagre Minute Philofopher Ibycus^ it is an Effect, not of thinking, but of carking, cheating, and writing in an Office. Strange, faid he, that fuch Men mould fet up for Free-thinkers ! But it is yet more ftrange that other Men fhould be out of Conceit with Thinking and Reafoning, for the fake of fuch Pretenders. I anfwered, that fome good Men conceived art Oppofition between Reafon and Religion, Faith and Knowledge, Nature and Grace ; and that, confequently, the way to promote Religion was to quench the Light of Nature, and difcourage all rational Inquiry. XXXI. How right the Intentions of thefe Men may be, replied Crito 9 I mail not fay j but furely their Notions are very wrong. Can any thing be more diflionourable to Religion, than the repre- fenting it as an unreafonable, unnatural, ignorant Inftitution ? God is the Father of all Lights, whether natural or revealed. Natural Concupiience is one thing, and the Light of Nature another. You cannot therefore argue from the former againft the latter : Neither can you from Science falfiy fo called, againft real Knowledge. Whatever therefore is faid of the one in holy Scripture is not to be inter- preted of the other. I infifted that human Learn- ing in the Hands of Divines, had from time to time created great Dilputes and Divifions in the Church. As abftracted Metaphyfics, replied Grito* have always*"* had a Tendency to .produce Difputes among Chriftians, as well as other Men ; Ib it C c mould 3 86 THE MINUT E DIAL, fhould feem that genuine Truth and Knowledge Vlf. would allay this Humour, which makes Men fa- *-~v-*-' crifice the undifputed Duties of Peace and Charity to difputable Notions. After all, faid I, what- ever may be faid for Reafon, it is plain, the Sceptics and Infidels of the Age are not to be cured by it. I will not difpute this Point, faid Crito : in order to cure a Diftemper, you fhould confider what pro- duced it. Had Men reafoned themfelves into a wrong Opinion, one might hope to reafon them out ot it. But this is not the Cafe; the Infidelity of Minute Philofophers fceming an Effect of very different Motives from Thought and Reafon. Little Incidents, Vanity, Difguft, Humour, Inclination, without the leaft Afliftance from Reafon, are often known to make Infidels. Where the general Ten- dency of a Doctrine is difagreeable, the Mind is prepared to reliih and improve every thing that with the leaft Pretence feems to make againft it. Hence the coarfe Manners of a Country Curate, the polite Manners of a Chaplain, the Wit of a Minute Philofopher, a Jeft, a Song, a Tale can ferve inftead of a Reafon for Infidelity. Bupalus .preferred a -Rake in the Church, and then made ufe of him as an Argument againft it. Vice, Indo- lence, Faction, and Famion, produce Minute Phi* Jofophers, and mere Petulancy not a few. Who then can expect a thing fo irrational and capricious fhould yield to Reafon ? It may, neverthelefs, be worth while to argue againft fuch Men, and ex- pofe their Fallacies, if not for their own fake, yet for the lake of others ; as it may leflen their Credit, and prevent the growth of their Sect, by removing a Prejudice in their Favour, which fometimes in- clines others as well as themiclves to think they have made a Monopoly of human Reafon. -2 soigpixtf XXXII. The PHILOSOPHER. ;v.u2- . . '-JOif* XXXII. The moft general Pretext which looks like Reafon, is taken from the Variety of Opinions about Religion. This is a refting Stone to a lazy and fuperficial Mind. But one of more Spirit and a jufter way of Thinking, makes it a Step whence he looks about, and proceeds to examine, and com- pare the differing Inftitutions of Religion. He will obferve, which of thefe is the moft fublime and rational in its Doctrines, moft venerable in its Myfteries, moft ufeful in its Precepts, moft decenc in its Worfhip ? Which createth the nobleft Hopes, and moft worthy Views ? He wijl confider their Rife and Progrefs: which oweth leaft to human Arts or Arms? Which flatters the Senfes and grofs Inclinations of Men ? Which adorns and improves the moft excellent Part of our Nature? Which hath been propagated in the moft wonderful Manner ? Which hath furmounted the greateft Difficulties, or fhew'd the moft difinterefted Zeal and Sincerity in its Profeflbrs ? He will inquire, which beft accords with Nature and Hiftory ? He will confider, what favours of the World, and what looks like Wifdom from above? He will be careful to feparate human Allay from that which is Divine ; and upon the whole, form his Judgment like a reafonable Free- thinker. But inftead of taking fuch a rational Courfe, one of thofe hafty Sceptics mail conclude without demurring, that there is no Wifdom iri Politics, no Honefty in Dealings, no Knowledge in Philofophy, no Truth in Religion : And all by one and the fame fort of Inference, from the nu- merous Examples of Folly, Knavery, Ignorance, and Error, which are to be met with in the World. But as thofe who are unknowing in every thing elfe, imagine themfelves fharp-fighted in Religion, this C c 2 learned : 388 TrHE MINUTE DIAL, learned Sophifm is ofteneft levelled againft Chrif- VII. tianity. L~-V ; XXXIII. In my Opinion, he that would con- vince an Infidel who can be brought to Reafon, ought in the firft place clearly to convince him of the Being of a God, it feeming to me, that any Man who is really a Theift, cannot be an Enemy to the Chriftian Religion: And that the Ignorance or Disbelief of this fundamental Point, is that which at bottom confiitutes the Minute Philofopher. I imagine they, who are acquainted with the great Authors in the Minute Philofophy, need not be told of this. The Being of a God is capable of clear Proof, and a proper Object of human Reafon : whereas the Myfteries of his Nature, and indeed whatever there is of Myftery in Religion, to en- deavour to explain and prove by Reafon, is a vain Attempt. It is fufficient if we can mew there is nothing abfurd or repugnant in our Belief of thofe Points, and, inftead of framing Hypothefes to ex- plain them, we ufe our Reafon only for anfwering the Objections brought againft them. But on all Occafipns, we ought to diftinguifh the ferious, modefi, ingenuous Man of Senfe, who hath Scruples about Religion, and behaves like a prudent Man in doubt, from the Minute Philofophers, thofe pro- iane and conceited Men, who muft needs profelyte others to their own Doubts. When one of this Stamp prcfents himfelf, we fhould confider what Species he is of: Whether a firlt or a fecond-hand Philofopher, a Libertine, Scorner, or Sceptic ? Each Character requiring a peculiar Treatment. Some Men are too ignorant to be humble, without which there can be no Docility : But though a Man muft in fcms Degree have thought and confidered : tO PHILOSOPHER. 389 to be capable of being convinced, yet it is poflible DIAL.' the moft ignorant may be laugh'd out of his VII. Opinions. I knew a Woman of Scnfe reduce two Minute Philofophers, who had long been a Nufance to the Neighbourhood, by taking her Cue from their predominant Affectations. The one fet up for the moft incredulous Man upon Earth, the other for the moft unbounded Freedom. She obferved to the firft, that he who had Credulity fufficient to truft the moft valuable Things, his Life and For- tune, to his Apothecary and Lawyer, ridiculoufly affected the Character of Incredulous, by refufing to truft his Soul, a Thing in his own Account but a mere Trifle, to his Parifh-Prieft. The other be- ing what you call a Beau, me made fenfible how abiblute a Slave he was in point of Drefs, to him the moft important thing in the World, while he was earnellly contending for a Liberty of Think- ing, with which he never troubled his Head : and how much more it concerned and became him to affert an Independency on Fafhion, and obtain Scope for his Genius, where it was beft qualified to exerc itfelf. The Minute Philolbphers at firft hand are very few and, confidered in themfelves, of fmall Conlequence : But their Followers, who pin their Faith upon them, are numerous, and not lefs con- fident than credulous ; there being fomething in the Air and Manner of thefe fecond-hand Philofophers, very apt to difconcert a Man of Gravity and Argu- ment, and much more difficult to be born than the Weight of their Objections. XXXIV. Crito having made an end, Eupbranor declared it to be his Opinion: that it would much conduce to the public Benefit, if, inftead of dif- couraging Free- thinking, there was erected in the midft of this Free Country a Dianoetic Academy, DIAL, or Seminary for Free-thinkers, provided with retired VII. Chambers, and Galleries, and fhady Walks and i v*-' Groves : where, after feven Years fpent in Silence and Meditation, a Man might commence a genuine Free-thinker, and from that time forward, have Licence to think what he pleafcd, and a Badge to diftinguifh him from Counterfeits. In good earnefr, faid Crito, I imagine that Thinking is the great Defideratum of the prefent Age : and that the real Caufeof whatever is amifs, mayjuftly be reckoned the general Neglect of Education, in 'thofe who need it moft, the People of Famion. What can be expected where thofe who have the moft Influence, have the leaft Senfe, and thofe who are fure to be followed, fet the worft Example ? Where Youth fo uneducated are yet fo forward ? Where Modefty is efteemed Pufillanimity, and a Deference to Yearf, Knowledge, Religion, Laws, wane of Senfe and Spirit ? Such untimely Growth of Genius would not have been valued or encouraged by the wife Men of Antiquity ; whofe Sentiments on this Pcint arc fo ill fuited to the Genius of our Times, that it is to be feared modern Ears could not bear them. Bur, however ridiculous fuch Maxims might feem to our Britijh Youth, who are fo capable and fo forward to try Experiments and mend the Conftitution of their Country : I believe it will be admitted by Men of Senfe, that if the Governing Part of Mankind would in thefe Days, for Experiment's fake, confider themfelvcs in that old Homerical Light as Paftors of the People, whofe Duty it was to improve their Flock, they would foon find that this is to be done by an Education very different from the Modern, and otherguefs Maxims than thofe of the Minute Philofophy. If our Youth were really inured to Thought and Reflexion, and an Acquain- tance with the excellent Writers of Antiquity : we fhould PHILOSOPHER. fhould fee that licentious Humour, vulgarly .called Free-thinking^ banilhed from the Prefence of Gentle- men, together with Ignorance and ill Tafte : which as they are infeparable from Vice, fo Men follow Vice for the fake of Pleafure, and fly from Virtue through an Abhorrence of Pain. Their Minds therefore betimes fhould be formed and accu Homed to receive Pleafure and Pain from proper Objects, or, which is the fame thing, to have their Inclina- tions and Averfions rightly placed. KaXo>1SW d3UoY ICO II : '" 3iij . Lately Publijhed, A M I S C E L L A N Y, containing fe veral Trafts ** on Various Subjec-ts. By the BISHOP of CLOTNE, Printed for J. and R. To N s o N and S. DR A p E n in the Strand. Inhere may be had. Written by the fame Author^ A Treatife concerning the Principles of Human Know- ledge. Wi.erein the Chief Caufes of Error and Diffi- culty in the Sciences, with the Grounds of bcepticifm, Atheifm, and 1 1 religion, are inquired into. Xo which are added, Three Dialogues between Hylas and Pbilonaus, in opposition to Sceptics and Athcifts. . The Theory of Vifion, or Vifual Language, {hewing the immediate Prefence and Providence of a Deity, Vindi- cated and Explained. Price One Shilling. . The Analyft ; or, A Difcourfe addrefled to an Infidel Mathematician. Wherein it is examined whether the Object, Principles, and Inferences of the modern- Analyfis are more diftin6tly conceived, or more evidently deduced, than Religious My fteries and Points of Faith. Price u. 6d. A Defence of Free-thinking in Mathematics. In anfwer to a Pamphlet of Philalethes Gantabrigienfis 9 intitled Geometry no Friend to Infidelity, or A Defence of Sir Ifaac Newton^ and the Britijh Mathematicians. Alfo an Appendix concerning Mr. Walton's Vindication of the Principles of Fluxions again ft the Objections contained in the Analyft. Wherein it is attempted to put this Contro- verfy in fuch a Light as that every Reader may be able to judge thereof. Price One Shilling. ,.V- ^D*S LIBRARY