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was inftantly relished and agreed to. An idol was formed by uniting the capricious gifts of all the affembly, though no way refembling the departed Genius. The ladies of China furnished the monster with wings; thofe of Kashmire fupplied him with horns; the dames of Europe clapped a purfe in his hand; and the virgins of Congo furnished him with a tail. Since that time, all the vows addreffed to Love are in reality paid to the idol; but, as in other falfe religions, the adoration feems moft fervent, where the heart is leaft fincere, Adieu,

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MANKIND have ever been prone to expatiate on the praise of human nature. The dignity of man is a fubject that has always been the favourite theme of humanity; they have declaimed with that oftentation, which ufually accompanies fuch as are fure of having a partial audience: they have obtained victories because there were none to oppofe. Yet from all I have ever read or feen, men appear more apt to err by having too high, than by having too defpicable an opinion of their nature; and by attempting to exalt their original place in the creation, deprefs their real value in fociety.

The most ignorant nations have always been found to think most highly of themselves. The Deity has ever been thought peculiarly concerned in their glory and preservation; to have fought their battles, and infpired their teachers: their wizzards are faid to be

familiar

familiar with Heaven; and every hero has a guard of angels, as well as men to attend him. When the Portuguese first came among the wretched inhabitants of the coaft of Africa, thefe favage nations readily allowed the ftrangers more skill in navigation and war; yet ftill confidered them, at beft, but as ufeful fervants brought to their coafts, by their guardian ferpent, to fupply them with luxuries they could have lived without. Though they could grant the Portuguese more riches; they could never allow them to have fuch a king as their Tottimondelem, who wore a bracelet of fhells round his neck, and whofe legs were covered with ivory.

In this manner, examine a favage in the hiftory of his country and predeceffors; you ever find his warriors able to conquer armies, and his fages acquainted with more than poffible knowledge: human nature is to him an unknown country; he thinks it capable of great things, because he is ignorant of

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its boundaries; whatever can be conceived to be done he allows to be poffible, and whatever is poffible he conjectures must have been done. never measures the actions and powers of others by what himself is able to perform, nor makes a proper estimate of the greatnefs of his fellows by bringing it to the ftandard of his own incapacity. He is fatisfied to be one of a country where mighty things have been; and imagines the fancied power of others reflects a luftre on himself. Thus, by degrees, he lofes the idea of his own infignificance in a confused notion of the extraordinary powers of humanity, and is willing to grant extraordinary gifts to every pretender, becaufe unacquainted with their claims.

This is the reafon, why demi-gods and heroes have ever been erected in times or countries of ignorance and barbarity; they addreffed a people who

had

had high opinions of human nature, because they were ignorant how far it could extend; they addreffed a people who were willing to allow that men fhould be gods, because they were yet imperfectly acquainted with God, and with man. Thefe impoftors knew, that all men are naturally fond of feeing fomething very great made from the little materials of humanity; that ignorant nations are not more proud of building a tower to reach Heaven, or a pyramid to laft for ages, than of raifing up a demi-god of their own country and creation. The fame pride, that erects a coloffus or a pyramid, inftals a god or an hero: but though the adoring favage can raise his coloffus to the clouds, he can exalt the hero not one inch above the ftandard of humanity; incapable therefore of exalting the idol, he debases himself and falls proftrate before him.

When man has thus acquired an erroneous idea of the dignity of his fpecies, he and the gods become perfectly intimate; men are but angels, angels are but men, nay but fervants that ftand in waiting to execute human commands. The Perfians, for inftance, thus addrefs their prophet Haly *. I falute thee, glorious Creator, of whom the fun is but the shadow. Mafterpiece of the Lord of human creatures, Great Star of Juftice and Religion. The fea is not rich and liberal but by the gifts of thy munificent hands. The angel treasurer of Heaven reaps his harveft in the fertile gardens of the purity of thy nature. The primum mobile 'would never dart the ball of the fun through the ' trunk of Heaven, were it not to ferve the morning out of the extreme love fhe has for thee. The

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angel Gabriel, meffenger of truth, every day kiffes

* Chaudin's Travels, p. 402.

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'the groundfil of thy gate. Were there a place 'more exalted than the most high throne of God, "I would affirm it to be thy place, O mafter of the faithful; Gabriel with all his art and knowledge is but a meer scholar to thee.' Thus, my friend, men think proper to treat angels; but if indeed there be fuch an order of beings, with what a degree of fatirical contempt muft they liften to the fongs of little mortals thus flattering each other. Thus to fee creatures, wifer indeed than the monkey, and more active than the oyfter, claiming to themselves the maftery of Heaven; minims, the tenants of an atom, thus arrogating a partnership in the creation of univerfal Heaven! Surely Heaven is kind that launches no thunder at thofe guilty heads; but it is kind, and regards their follies with pity, nor will destroy creatures that it loved into being.

But whatever fuccefs this practice of making demi-gods might have been attended with in barbarous nations, I do not know that any man became a god in a country, where the inhabitants were refined. Such countries generally have too clofe an inspection into human weakness, to think it invested with celeftial power. They fometimes indeed admit the gods of ftrangers, or of their ancestors, which had their exiftence in times of obfcurity; their weakness being forgotten, while nothing but their power and their miracles were remembered. The Chinese, for inftance, never had a god of their own country; the idols which the vulgar worship at this day were brought from the barbarous nations around them. The Roman emperors, who pretended to divinity, were generally taught by a poignard that they were mortal; and Alexander, though he paffed among barbarous countries for a real god, could never perfuade his polite countrymen into a fimili

tude

tude of thinking. The Lacedemonians fhrewdly complied with his commands by the following farcaftic edict:

Ε. Αλέξανδρος βελεαι είναι Θεος, Θεος εξω.

LETTER

CXV.

Adieu.

TO THE SAME.

THERE is fomething irrefiftibly pleafing in the converfation of a fine woman; even though her tongue be filent, the eloquence of her eyes teaches wifdom. The mind fympathizes with the regularity of the object in view, and ftruck with external grace, vibrates into refpondent harmony. In this agreeable difpofition, I lately found myfelf in company with my friend and his niece. Our converfation turned upon love, which the feemed equally capable of defending and infpiring. We were each of different opinions upon this fubject; the lady infifted that it was a natural and univerfal paffion, and produced the happiness of those who cultivated it with proper precaution. My friend denied it to be the work of Nature, but allowed it to have a real exiftence, and affirmed that it was of infinite service in refining fociety; while I, to keep up the difpute, affirmed it to be merely a name, firft ufed by the cunning part of the fair fex, and admitted by the filly part of ours, therefore no way more natural than taing fn uff, chewing opium.

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"How is it poffible," cried I," that fuch a paffion can be natural, when our opinions even of "" beauty,

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