a mortal enemy to God, and the object of divine vengeance, could he converse with such a perfon; nay indeed, ought he to be sent to him? But how could we carry on any commerce, or perform any of the civil duties of society, if we were convinced that we were converfing with perfons deftined to eternal damnation ?

O ye different worshippers of a God of mercy! if ye have cruel hearts, if, while you adore that Deity who has placed the whole of his law in these few words, "Love God and your neigh"bour," you have loaded that pure and holy law with fophiftical and unintelligible difputes, if you have lighted the flames of discord fometimes for a new word, and at others for a single letter only; if you have annexed eternal punishment to the omiffion of fome few words, or of certain ceremonies, which other people cannot comprehend, I muft fay to you with tears of compaffion for mankind: "Transpor

yourselves with me to that great instant in " which all men are to receive judgment from "the hand of God, who will then do untc "every one according to their works, and with "me behold all the dead of past ages appearing "in his presence. Are you very sure that ou

"hea

"heavenly father and creator will fay to the "wife and virtuous Confucius, to the great le

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giflator Solon, to Pythagoras, Zaleucus, "Socrates, Plato, the divine Antoninus, the good Trajan, to Titus the delight of hu

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man kind, and to many others who have been "the models of human kind: Depart from "me, wretches! into torments that know "neither alleviation nor end; but are, like

himself, everlafting. But you, my well-beloved fervants, John Chatel, Ravaillac, Car"touche, Damiens, &c. who have died accord

ing to the rules prefcribed by the church, enter thou into the joy of your Lord, and "fit for ever at my right-hand in majesty, and * glory?"

�

Methinks I fee you start with horror at thefe words; however, as they have efcaped me, let them pafs; I fhall say nothing more to you.

СНАР.

CHA P. XXIII.

An ADDRESS to the DEITY.

N

O longer then do I addrefs myself to men, but to thee, God of all beings, of all worlds, and of all ages; if it may be permitted weak creatures, loft in immenfity, and imperceptible to the rest of the universe, to presume to petition thee for aught, who hast given plenty of all things, and whofe decrees are immutable as eternal. Deign to look with an eye of pity upon the errors annexed to our natures! let not these errors prove the fources of mifery to us! Thou haft not given us hearts to hate, nor hands to kill each other; grant then that we may mutually aid and affift each other to support the burthen of this painful and tranfitory life! May the trifling diffe rences in the garments that cover our frail bodies, in the mode of expreffing our infignificant thoughts, in our ridiculous cuftoms, and our imperfect laws, in our idle opinions, and in our several conditions and fituations, that appear fo difproportionate in our eyes, and all are equal in

thine; in a word, may the flight variations that are found amongft the atoms called men, not be made ufe of by us as fignals of mutual hatred and perfecution! May thofe who worship thee by the light of tapers at noon-day, bear charitably with those who content themselves with the light of that glorious planet thou haft placed in the midst of the heavens! May those who dress themselves in a robe of white linen to teach their hearers that thou art to be loved and feared, not deteft or revile those who teach the same doctrine in long cloaks of black wool! May it be accounted the fame to adore thee in a dialect formed from an antient or a modern language! May thofe, who, cloathed in veftments of crimson or violet colour, rule over a little parcel of that heap of dirt called the world, and are poffeffed of a few round fragments of a certain metal, enjoy without pride or infolence what they call grandeur and riches, and may others look on them without envy; for thou knoweft, O God, that there is nothing in all thefe vanities proper to infpire envy or pride.

May all men remember that they are brethren! may they alike abhor that tyranny which feeks to fubject the freedom of the will, as they do the rapine which tears from the arms of induf

try

try the fruits of its peaceful labours! And if the fcourge of war is not be avoided, let us not mutually hate and destroy each other in the midst of peace; but rather make use of the few moments of our existence to join in praifing, in a thoufand different languages, from one extremity of the world to the other, thy goodness, O all merciful creator, to whom we are indebted for that existence !