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nepi AeiciAMMONi^c 
 
 PLUTARCHUS, 
 
 THEOPHRASTUS, 
 
 SUPERSTITION; 
 
 VARIOUS APPENDICES, 
 
 A LIFE OF PLUTARCHUS. 
 
 Printed 
 A. D. 
 1828 
 
 Price, one Guinea. 
 
JAN 30 19T5 
 
 I'riiiteil by Julian IIibbert, Islo. l.Fitzroy Place, Kentish Town. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 About the 5th, of March last year, I published a reprint of the 
 text of tkt Orphica. In the preface to that " Typographical 
 Experiment " I said (p. vi & vii): " I am preparing an edition' 
 of Plutarch's treatise on Superstition, in Greek and English, which 
 will serve to occupy my compositor, 'till I can ascertain from the 
 sale of the present volume, whether it is worth my while to con- 
 -tinue printing." This I said, writing on the 9th. Jan. 1827. 
 
 The fate of my " Experiment" was soon decided. Very few 
 booksellers condescended to let a copy of the unfortunate production 
 remain in their shops on sale or return. Some said, they did not 
 deal in Greek books; some that they did not deal in new hooks; 
 and one even said, that the book was too thin and might be lost. 
 
 When I received this disastrous information I would willing- 
 -ly have renounced printing altogether; but two or three half- 
 sheets of the Plutarchus were already worked off; nay, supposing 
 that a book with an English translation might be more sought 
 after than a work entirely Greek, I had been guilty of the folly 
 of having each time 300 copies taken, and all too on fine paper. 
 
 But I had still a hope. I had sent copies of the Orphica to 
 two or three of the Newspapers and to most of the principal 
 Reviews. But more than a year has elapsed ; and no Newspaper 
 or Review has in the slightest degree condescended to take no- 
 
 ' I know not how this word escaped me. I ought to have said 
 " a reprint. " 
 
-tice of the book.- My vanity was at first much offended at this 
 silence. Now, however, that I reflect upon the matter more calm- 
 -ly, I am seriously persuaded, that the various daily, hebdomadal, 
 monthly, and quarterly editors were silent principally out of mer- 
 -cy; as being, on the one hand, unwilling to blame a poor devil 
 who did his best, and as being, on the other hand, unable to praise 
 a most imperfect and faulty publication. 
 
 Before " the treatise of Plutarchus " was finished, it was evident 
 that my Experiment had proved an abortion. What then was to 
 be done? I was unwilling to part so soon with my compositor; 
 yet, on the other hand, I did not wish to begin another volume. 
 I therefore determined to enlarge the present one, tho with ex- 
 -traneous matter. My work has every appearance of being has- 
 -tily compiled. But I do not apologize for it. If the "nonum 
 prematur in annum" had been applied to my Appendices, they 
 would each of them have swollen to double their already exces- 
 -sive length. 
 
 As Greek scholars have (with extremely few exceptions) not 
 thought it worth their while even to thank me for my trouble, and as 
 no person whatsoever has recommended me to make any further 
 " Experiment, '' I have, of course, only so far improved my Greek 
 type as I had promised to do. But I have been obliged to pur- 
 -chase a great deal of English type. On first turning printer, I 
 had vowed I would buy no other than Greek, because I was 
 afraid I might be tempted to print heterodoxy. When, therefore, 
 in the greater part of the Orphica, I wanted a few words in La- 
 -tin, I sent to London on purpose to borrow them ; (and the whole 
 of my preface was printed there). This was a very troublesome 
 plan, two or three hours being sometimes lost for a single word. 
 But perhaps I ought to have observed my anti-anglo-typographical 
 vow; — not indeed for any reason of heterodoxy (for this volume 
 is, doubtless, rather ultra-orthodox than otherwise) — but, if I had 
 confined myself to a Greek type, I should not have printed some 
 tame and meagre (tho yet perhaps incorrect) translations, nor some 
 Appendices yet more demonstrative of ignorance. 
 
 However, what is printed, is printed; and I must give as an 
 excuse for having besmeared so much excellent paper, that here- 
 -by I have (at any rate partially) attained my avowed object. 
 The non-success of my "Experiment" being fully demonstrated 
 
 ' The only place in which I have seen the title in print, is in Mr. 
 Cuthell's catalogue. 
 
(as per margin) *, my compositor ■• must now find work elsewhere. 
 
 As to my Greek type, it must, after a short incarceration, go 
 
 (what is ultimately) the way of all type. The same must be the 
 
 ^ The followina; is my account with the literary world. 
 
 Lost 01 reprmtmg Urphic., mdependent oi all pnm- 
 -ary expenditure. 
 
 For composing 14 & a half half-sheets, at 25shllngs. £l8 2 6 
 
 For the press work, 15 times at 2s. 6d. each .... 1 17 G 
 For paper, 260 copies of 8 sheets each (2080 sheets 
 
 = 4 & l-3rd. Reams) at 36sh. a Ream . 7 16 
 
 For Cold Pressing 6 6 
 
 For Boarding 258 copies at 6d. each 6 9 
 
 £34 11 6 
 Receipts down to the 5th. April, 1828. 
 
 12 copies paid for by Mr. B. at 2s. 6d £l 10 
 
 6 do. paid for by Messrs. Tr. & W 15 o 
 
 1 do. sent for by a gentleman at Hampstead ... 36 
 3 do. forced upon H. . . . Esq. at 3s. 6d. each . 10 6 
 
 2 do. J. B. Esq. at 3s. 6d. each 7 
 
 1 do. N. G. Esq 3 6 
 
 25 copies £3 9 6 
 
 remains unpaid £31 2 
 
 I must however most gratefully acknowledge the receipt of a 
 
 book from a profound philosopher, of another book from a learned 
 
 divine, and of some fac-similes from one of our greatest suroeons. 
 
 Account of Copies. 
 
 25 as above 
 
 20 now out at various Booksellers'. 
 5 sent, by order of Act of Parliament, to [ a 
 Cutler's] No. 26l, Regent Street, 
 about 12 given away to various Reviews, &c. 
 about 46 given away to various individuals. 
 258 — 108=^50 , now on hand. 
 
 * Before this half sheet could be finished, he suddenly obtained 
 a most advantageous employment. Another compositor therefore 
 terminates this Preface, together with some inordinately-copious 
 Addenda. The door of my printing-room must then be closed. 
 I earnestly solicit the prayers of the faithful, that I may never 
 again be guilty of the horrible crime of scribbling. 
 
immediate destination of the brevier loman, which seems eompilecl 
 from various founts, and bears an invincible antipathy to a straight 
 line. It was the first modern type I ever bought, and sadly was 1 
 cheated in the purchase of it. But I left that type-founder ; and 
 bought some bourgeois, and also some small pica, of Caslon, whose 
 type is well known to be the best in England. Albeit, I have still no 
 italic for the small pica ; and no accented letters for the roman 
 brevier. My reader must have mercy upon my poverty, if in tiie 
 greater part of this volume I have been forced to various typographi- 
 -cal shifts, such as putting an inverted 5 for a ^. &c. &c. 
 
 The only advice which any one has yet condescended to give 
 me, with regard to my manner of printing Greek, is, that I ought 
 not to have omitted the bieat/iings. And I confess, indeed, that 
 I begin to think I have been in the wrong. At any rate 1 am 
 ashamed of the trifling reason I gave for their non-insertion in 
 the reprint of the Orphica (Preface, p. iv). In my present work 
 the reader will perceive, that the greek quotations of my third 
 appendix have the aspirate. I do not see any use in the lc7te : 
 it only creates confusion. 
 
 That the aspirate was pronounced by the Greeks is fully shewn 
 by \(}) for Ano , o for to, <S:e. &c. Servius (ad ^neid.2; vid. 
 Fabr., B. Gr., vol. 1, p. 147) says,2,either that the aspirate, or?that 
 the aspirated letters, were invented by Palamedes. And certainly 
 the aspirate is very ancient. It has occasionally been sculptured as an 
 H ; and may also in some cases have replaced the Digamma. I can 
 scarcely believe what is said in Dr. V'alpy's grammar that " the 
 old Dialects of Greece admitted few or no aspirates." I should 
 have thought, that the more ancient a language was, the more it 
 would have abounded in gutturals. 
 
 I wish, that, at the end of Greek grammars, there was a list 
 of all tlie aspirated roots. The student would tlien read ordinary 
 Greek type with less hesitation about false prints. Nor would he 
 find any great difficulty in reading an upncumatic, or spiritless, type. 
 His principal hesitation would be at" the word oy i ^nd occa- 
 -sionaily at h , on , en , e? , eic , hn . oioc i and opoc i as also 
 at some words rare in one or both senses, as aaimoc . aainoc , 
 
 iknAOyC , ATTA , 2>pMOI , €ICA , €ON , OMH , OCCik i C0A6 , UpA , OCAN. 
 
 Sometimes there is no diversity of either accent or breathing in 
 words, literally identical, but of very different derivation or mean- 
 -inj^: as -aaia , 'AnTco , eiK€ . 'ecoc , hka , ion , oj^eA , oyAON , 
 oyAOc . oypoN . oypoc > and otoc ; so tiiat tl)e use of those 
 \aunte(i udditanicnts is not perhaps so great as at first 
 
may be imagined. Moreover in some words the breathing 
 seems to be unknown, or variable, or indifferent: as in abpyna . 
 
 eiAY" & CAY" . eiAO , enoc vetus, epcH , cy" i haoc , HAiEikToc , 
 and lAAOC. 
 
 But I will say no more upon this subject, which is entirely 
 above my faculties. I have no doubt it is fully investigated in 
 a host of dissertations, which are in every body's hands, but which 
 I cannot afford to purchase. The res angusta domi has obliged me 
 to vow to buy no more books. Nearly a year ago I purchased 
 Fabricius's Bibliotheca Graeca, a very cheap and most learned and 
 useful compilation ; but there I stop. 
 
 It is probably fortunate that my experiment has not succeeded, 
 as I should have been at a loss what work next to fix upon. 
 
 I am partial to Nonnus's Dionysiaca ; but this work is of prodi- 
 -gious length, and moreover has not yet been sufficiently well edited, 
 for me to know how to i-eprint it. 
 
 A good Dictionary of early Greecian philosophers might be form- 
 -ed by arranging Diogenes Laertius in an alphabetical order, 
 and con-ecting his errors and filling up his omissions by quo- 
 -tations from other authors; but this would be a voluminous 
 publication, for which I have neither the intellect, nor the health, 
 nor the librar}', nor the patience. 
 
 I have thought of printing extracts from Clemens Alexandrinus. 
 But the Fathers of the Church are shockingly out of fashion : a 
 papist refers to them only for transubstantiation, grace, original sin, 
 and so forth ; while a protestant is afraid of them, and (except in 
 determining the canon of the N. T.) impiously affects to despise 
 them. When will these writings be considered, like others, to be 
 useful — positively, as records of wisdom, — negatively, as records 
 of folly? 
 
 I consider no book so amusing as the Old Testament, or (as 
 I have heard it called) " the compendium of ancient Hebrew 
 Literature." I know indeed little more of Hebrew than the 
 letters, and those only without the points ; but, as this language has 
 all the simplicity which it would retain among an unsocial people, 
 I can manage, with the aid of a translation, to understand most 
 of the words. If I ever printed any Hebrew, I would put all the 
 proper names in capital letters, as I have done in the Greek. I 
 would also divide both prose and verse into short lines, confident 
 that the system of direct or indirect parallelism is so congenial 
 
to the language of tlie Hebrews, that it is often difficult to 
 distinguish their prose from their verse. But my philosophical 
 friends would laugh at my spending time about ancient treatises, 
 which have been infinitely better printed by many a calculating 
 hypocrite and officious zealot. Unhappy is the lot of tlie Hebrew 
 sages — to be condemned to the admiration of folly; while common 
 sense, whicli, if free, might applaud, disdains, in its captivity, to 
 do otherwise than ridicule. 
 
 I know not what I shall do with the present volume. When in 
 better health than usual, I determine to lock up the whole edition ; 
 when rather ailing, I determine to give away a few copies to par- 
 -ticular friends ; when, finally, I consider that I have only a few 
 months or days to live, I then determine to offer the whole edition 
 for sale. At all events, the price marked on the book shall not be 
 humble. I was decidedly wrong with regard to my reprint of the 
 Orphica : for what few purchasers there were, would probably as 
 soon have paid seven shillings, as three and sixpence ; and then 
 again, in giving a copy away, tlie larger the sum marked, the 
 greater present it seems. " Price one Guinea" therefore ornaments 
 the title-page of this volume ; and any one silly personage, who 
 will give this sum, will put more money into my pocket, than three 
 more sensible men, who would only honour me with the cost price 
 of between six and seven shillings. 
 
 I terminate this my Preface by consigning all " Greek Scholars " 
 to the special care of Deelzebul. 
 
If the reader wish for a graphical representation of Superstition, 
 there are two engravings, in van Dale's " de Oraculis" (p. 1 , & 308), 
 which seem to express almost every species of sacerdotal knavery. 
 These excite a smile ; but the frontispiece of Schedius "de Diis 
 Germanis" fills one with horror. Nothing can be more disgusting 
 than the solemn hypocrisy of the priest and the brutal indifference 
 of the priestess ; while the headless bodies, around them, attest the 
 power of cruel impostors, aitd the misery of a deluded people. 
 
A LIFE OF PLUTARCHUS. 
 
'I'uK Iwo following Testimoniu concerning I'lutarchus are placed 
 before his Life by Xylander in the editions of Plutarch's works of 
 \C>W, nnrl 1624. " 
 
 €K TOY COYIAA . [a] 
 
 HAOYTivpxOC X^ipCON£YC rue BOICOTIAC rcroNuc €ni twn 
 Tp^YANOY KMC^poC xpoNCON , kj^i exi npoceeN . MeT&Aoyc 
 AS .vyTui Tp\Y>.NOC thc twn yniKTUN a^iac , npoccTA^e mh- 
 
 -A6NA , TCON K&TA THN lAAYpiA^ ApxONTWN , Hivpe? THC ^Y'''<^Y 
 TNOMHC Tl AIAnpj,TTeceikl . €rp\4'€ A€ nOAAA . [b] 
 
 6IC eiKONA OAOYTAPXOY 
 
 ATAeiOY C X O A A C T I K O Y • [ ^ 1 
 
 c€io noAyKAHeNT^ TynoN cthcanto , X£pC0N€Y 
 HAOYTApxe , KpAxepcoN yieec AYCONICON , 
 
 OTTi n\p&AAHAOici Bioic €AAHNAC *piCToyc 
 pCOMHC eynoAeMoic HpMocAC eNNikCTAic . 
 
 AAAi Xeoy EIOTOIO OAp^AAHAON BION iAAON 
 
 oyAe cy r t^n rp^^-^ic : oy r^p omoion exeic . [d] 
 
 [ a ] The lexicographer Suidas, ( who is carried back to the first 
 century by Giraldiis, and is brought down to the fcSiirteenth 
 contiiry by Hieronyniu^ WoKius, ) probably flourished about 
 the end of the ninth century ; and this is all that is known 
 about him. Wytteubach hi his Preface p. Ixiv. says: " Suidas 
 locum de Plutarcho non ipse auctor scripsit, sed ex antiqui- 
 -ore descrijisit. " 
 
 [b] Eudocia [about A. D. 10fi5 ] quoting this passage, 
 adds, at the end, *bN ta nACio oyx eypiCKexM . 
 
 [c] Agathias was a poet, historian, and lawyer. He flourish- 
 -ed under Justinianus, about A. D. 555, 
 
 [ d ] Of this epigram there exist no less than five Latin trans- 
 .latif)ns, three of whicli were written bv Henri F^stienne. 
 
A LIFE O V P L U T A K C II I: S. 
 
 The following is an abridgment of the Life of Plutarclnis, winch 
 was compiled by Joannes Rualdus, ' and is inserted in the I ans 
 Edition * of Plutarch's works by Antoine Estienne in 1624. 
 
 Cap. I, & II. 
 
 Plutarchus says of himself in many parts of his 
 works 3 that he was born at Cheeronea in Boeotia. ^ 
 The epithet Chaeroneiis, or Chaeronensis, distinguish- 
 -es our Plutarchus, from many other persons of the 
 same name, viz: 1st. a Christian Bishop of Byzan- 
 -tium; 2ndiy. an Alexandrian who suffered martyr- 
 -dom for Christianity ; and 3rdly. an Athenian Phi- 
 
 ' I do not know who Rualdiis was. ^, lie has dedicated his 
 work to the abbe Jacques du Perron, the same man, I sup- 
 -pose, who was made a Cardinal in i601. Wyttenbach very 
 justly says, that there appears, in Rualdus's Life of Plutarch> 
 " multa loquacitas et alienarum a proposita quasstione reruin 
 jactatio. " ( Prajfat. p. cxxii. ) 
 
 2 Fol. The Bibliotheca Britannica seems to say that Plu- 
 -tarch's Life by Rualdus was published '[ separately ] in 4t0i 
 the same year, I cannot resist the temptation of here adding- 
 Wyttenbach's admirable remarks concerning the first pages of 
 this Paris edition of Plutarch's works. " In - - titulo exstat 
 imag-o Plutarchi, scilicet ! chalcographico pictura; artificio ex- 
 -pressa ; inficetuni negotium et ploranti monacho simillimum. 
 Sequitur imasjo Ludovici XIII, equo insidentis et hostes in 
 pngn4 sternentis. Turn vero etiam Dedicatio, Francorum et Na. 
 -varrcEorum Regi Christianissimo Ludovico XIII, Jiisto, Invktissimo, 
 semper Augusto : plena mendacissimie adulationis. " ( Praefat. p. 
 cxx. ) 
 
 * In \it. Syll. p. 462. D; Cimon. p. 479, A; pcoMMK. p. 257. 
 
 D; nep: thc ptCMMWN ryx. p. 318, D; & nepi noAynpArMOCY- 
 .NHC , p. 51.5, C. 
 
 * In that part of Btjeolia, which is on li'e confines uf Phocis: 
 for Slophanus say;; : xAipoN€i/n , noAic npoc toic opoic (Jjcokiaoc. 
 
4 A LIFE 
 
 -losopher, son of Nestorius, who flourished about the 
 time of the first Emperor Constantinus. ^ 
 
 Chaeronea was in old time called ApNH, as Pau- 
 -sanias, followed by Stephanus of Byzantium, says : 
 
 " eKiACITO A€ H AOAIC ^pNH TO ApXAION." 
 
 Under this name it is mentioned in Homer's Cata- 
 -logue of Ships : ^ 
 
 " oire noAYCT^<)>YAON ApNHN exoN " 
 
 and in Lycophron's Cassandra ( v. 644 ) : , 
 
 " ApNHC nAAMi.c r€NNA , T6MMIKC0N npoMOi . " 
 
 Alluding to the city's change of name, Plutarchus 
 himself says : ' 
 
 " COCnep THN eMHN AATpiAA , f\pOC Zec|)YP0N AN6MON KCKAIMe- 
 -NHN , KAl TON HAION ep6IAONTA A6IaHC AnO TOy H^pNACCOY 
 
 AexoM€NHN i en\ t\c anatoaac TpjknHNM AeroyciN yno Toy 
 XMpCONOC ." 
 
 Chaironea was but a very small city in Plutarch's 
 time ^ : 
 
 " HM€1C Ae MIKPAN 01K0yNT€C AOAIN , KM IN^ MH MIKpOTep* 
 reNHTM 4>IAOXUpOyNT€C . " 
 
 Even in the time of Lucullus, nearly 200 years be- 
 -fore the time of Plutarchus, the city was very 
 much reduced 9; 
 
 ^ Brticker ( Hist. Phil. , Vol. 2, y. 183.) says: •' Duodecim 
 Ptutarclios cum cnunierent viri docti, noster ab aliis accurate 
 distin^ueudus, et imprimis cum Plutarcho Nestorii - - - con- 
 -fundeiidus non est. " 
 
 6 Iliad. B. V. 507. 
 
 ' nepi noAynp^rMocyNHC , in init. 
 
 ' BitoN nip^AA. p. 846, E. [j. e. in rit. DemosUi. ] 
 
 P in ut. Cimon. \i. 479. A. 
 
OK PLUTARCHLS. O 
 
 " ikT€ AH KM THC n\TpiAOC HMCON TOTE Aynfb. ^p^TTOYCHC > 
 KM AIA MIKpOTHTA KM neNIAN nj.popOM€NHC . 
 
 Marcus Antonius forced tlie Chceronenses to serve 
 as porters ; and caused them to be flogged Avhen 
 they were dilatory with their burdens ; as Plutar- 
 -chus relates in his life of that commander. ^*' 
 
 Cap. III. 
 
 The Boeotians were generally considered as a stu- 
 -pid people. Thus Cicero says ^ : 
 
 " Athenis tenue crelum, ex quo acutiores eliam putanlur -\Uici ; 
 ciussum Thebis, itaque pingues Thebani ei valentes. " 
 
 Similarly Dionysius Halicarnessensis says - : 
 
 '' ^©HNAIOC TOpOC > AAAOC , CO<j>OC : ICON ABpOC , *N€!Me- 
 
 -Noc : BOICOTOC eyHeHC : G€TTAAOC AinAoyc . noiKiAoc . " 
 
 and Lucianus introduces ^ Momus as saying [ to 
 Hercules ] : 
 
 " ArpOIKON TOyTO €ipHKi.C KAl AEINWC BOICOTION." 
 
 Plutarchus himself acknowledges that this failing 
 was attributed to his compatriots, when ^ he speaks 
 of Hercules as — 
 
 " NeOC ■'CiN KM KOMIAH BOICOTIOC." 
 
 and when again he says ^ : 
 
 " Toyc BOICOTOyC HM&C 01 ATTIKOI . kai nikxeic , kai an- 
 -MceHToyc . KM HAieioyc , maaicta aia tac AAH(|)»nAC . npoc- 
 -HTopeyoN .Joyroi a6 Ay cyct. " 
 
 '" EIQN HApAAA. p. 918. A. 
 
 ' in libr. " de Fato. " 
 
 * In syntagni. nepi aopun e^gXAcecoc . 
 
 ^ [ In his admirable " Jupiter Tragoedus. " ch. 32. ] 
 
 '' In libr. nepi roy a xoy eN a€a<j)oic, p. 3S7, D. 
 
 " In orat. ncpi CApKo4)AriAC, p. 995, E. 
 
6 A LIFK 
 
 He remarks, however, that this reproach was al- 
 -ready wearing away, when expressing his fear ^ — 
 
 " ANereipeiN to kata BOICOTCON Apxi^ioN eic micoaotun ONei- 
 
 -AOC HAH MApi>INOMeNON . " 
 
 But the talents of Epaminondas and Pindarus had 
 already shewn : 
 
 " Sunimos posse viros, et magna exempla daturos 
 Vervecum in patria, crasso que sub Sere nasci. " 
 
 as Juvenalis "< says, when speaking of Democritus, 
 a native of Abdera, in Thrace, a calumniated city, in 
 a similarly calumniated country. 
 
 Cap. IV. 
 
 The year in which Plutarchus was born cannot be 
 exactly ascertained. 
 
 Origines ^ mentions him among the 
 
 " TOIC N€(0T£pOIC . KM xeeC KM npUHN rereNHMGNCIC . " 
 
 And Origines was born A. D. 191, according to the 
 anonymous author of the Fasti Siculi ; and flourish - 
 -ed A. D. 230, according to the Chronicon of Euse- 
 -bius. 
 
 PhotiuSj'J as also Paulus Diaconus, mentions PIu- 
 -tarchus em toy NepCONOC. 
 
 The anonymous writer, above mentioned, says, at 
 the 13th. year of Nero, when Capito and Rufus were 
 consuls : 
 
 " KJkTA ToyTON TON xpoNON AOYKIi^NOC n4.p\ pCOMAIOIC 
 
 " In libr. nepi Toy cwKp^Toyc AMMONioy, p. 575, E. 
 ' Sat. X. V. 49. 
 
 ' KXTik K6ACoy, B. 5. [ p. 268. edil. Spencer. J 
 s Myriobibl. Cod. 245. in fine. 
 

 
 OF PLUT\RCHUS. 7 
 
 MerAC HN K\i enAiNoyMeNOG t omoicoc as kai MOyCWNIOC , 
 K&i nAOYTApXOC , (jjiAOCO^ioi erNwpizoNTo . " 
 
 Eusebius, in one part of his Chronicle, places Mu- 
 -sonius and Plntarchus iu the 14th. year of Nero ; 
 but, in another part of his Chronicle, at the 3rd. year 
 of the 224th. Olympiad, or A. D. 120, he says : 
 
 "HAOYT^PXOC X>.ip6^NeYC . C6?TOC , km ^TAeOEOY- 
 -AOC . (j)iAOCO(j)Oi erNupizoNTo . " 
 
 So also Suidas says of Plntarchus : 
 
 " r€roN€N&i eni tun TpXIANOY Toy KMC^pOC xpoNCON , km 
 en npoce€N . " 
 
 All the information that can be derived from these 
 contradictory data, is, that Plntarchus was proba- 
 -bly born about the middle of the reign of Claudius. ^^ 
 He could not have been born much later: because, 
 when Nero ( probably about the 11th. year of his 
 reigii)was at Delphi, Plntarchus was already stu- 
 -dying- under Ammonius. - Again, he could not have 
 been born much earlier ; because he lived ( probably 
 many years) under the reign of Trajanus.^ 
 
 "> Who reigned from the 24th. of Jan. A. D. 41 to the 13th. 
 of Oct. A. D, 54. 
 
 ' A. D. 66. 
 
 ' vid. libr. nepi roy ei eN a€A(J). p. 385, B. 
 ' Who reigned from the 27th. of Jiilv A. D. 98, to Aug. 
 A, D. 117. 
 
Till following Table'' will present the reader with a synoptic view 
 ot SoTue of Plutarch's contemporaries. 
 
 Plutarchvs 
 
 horn about A. D. * 50 died about A. D. 120 '' 
 
 Quinlus Asconius Pedianus 
 
 aged Sr) died under Nero 
 Aulus Persius 
 about A. D. 34 2S A. D. 62 
 Annaeus Cornutus 
 
 banished by Nero 
 
 M. Annceus Lucanus 
 about A. D. 39 26 A. D. 65 
 
 Lucius Annaeus Seneca 
 bn. betw. A. D. 1 & 6. A. D. 68 
 
 Flavins Josephus 
 about A. D. 37 56 A. D. 93 
 
 Marcus Fabius Quinctilianus 
 
 about A. D. 42 80 about A. D. 122 
 
 Caius Valerius Flaccus 
 
 aged about 30 about A. D. 93, or 94 
 Marcus Valerius Martialis 
 
 about A. D. 29 75 about A. D. 104 
 
 Caius Plinius Secundus ( Maj. ) 
 born A. D. 23 56 A. D. 79 
 
ApoUonius T yanaeui 
 
 aged nearly 100 died about A. D. 97 
 
 Caius Coraelius Tacitus 
 A. D. 54 or 55 ab. 80 about A. D. 134 or 135 
 
 Caius Suetonius Tranquillus 
 bn. betw. 64 & 79 died after the year 121 
 
 C. Caecilius Plinius Secundus ( Ju7i. ) 
 A. D. 62 51 A. D. 113 
 
 L. Annaeus Julius Florus 
 
 flourished under Trajan and Adrian 
 
 Lucianus 
 
 about A. D. 90 90 A. D. 180 
 
 * In Rualdus there is no Table or dates, but the names are 
 mentioned in this order, and are divided into three classes, viz : 
 those persons whom Plutarchus may have seen, 1st. in his youth, 
 2ndly. in his maturity, and 3rdly. in his old age. I have omit- 
 -ted Probus Berytius, and Papinius Surculus, of whom I know 
 nothing. Observe, that there is a great uncertainty in many of 
 the dates which I have given. I find from the Biographic Uni- 
 -verselle, that Lucianus is supposed, by Reitz, to have lived from 
 A. D. 120 to A. D. 200. 
 
 ^ One of the most grievous false prints, in that incorrect work 
 the Dictionnaire Historique Universel, is the fixing this birth a"t 
 " 48 ou 50 avant J. C. " 
 
 ^ According to Brucker, Saxius, Chalmers, and the Bibliotheca 
 Britannica. But Ladvocat, the Dictionnaire Historique, and Lem- 
 -priere, would fix the death of Plutarchus at about A D. 140. 
 The following extract, from Morferi, seems to explain the cause of 
 this discrepancy : " S. Jerome dit qu'il vecut jusqu' a la 3. annee 
 d' Adrien, qui etoit I'an 119. mais si ce que Plutarque meme as- 
 -sure, dans ses Discours de Table, est vrai, je veux dire, qu'il 
 ait ^te Preteur ou Archonte de Cheronee, il faut qu'il ait vecu 
 long tems aprfes. Et mcme on peut croire qu'il ne mourut que 
 sous Antonin le Pieux, conformement a ce qu'il dit dans le Traite, 
 si les vieillards peuvent avoir V administration des affaires publiques. " 
 
10 A LIFE 
 
 Cap. V. 
 
 Plutarch's great-grand father was Nicarchiis ^ who 
 lived under the [2iid. ] Triumvirate. 
 His grand-father was Lamprias, of whom he says :^ 
 
 " HN AC Ai^Mnpi^C , o HMexepoc n4,nnoc , eN Tcoi nmeiN 
 typeTiKCOTAToc *>YToc t^YTOY kai AoncoTikToc ; eicoeei a€ Ae- 
 
 -reiN , OTI T«l AISi>NOTCOI Ai^pAnAHClUC Y'^O eepMOTHTOC »>Nk- 
 
 The name of Plutarch's Father has not come down 
 to us, but his son has preserved ample testimony of 
 his mildness and prudence, as for instance, in the 
 following passage : 9 
 
 " MCMNHMAl NEON eM^yTON €TI , np€C8eyTHN M€e eTgpOy n€M(|)- 
 
 -e€NTi npoc kNeyni,T3N » &noA£i(j)eeNTOc a€ nwc eKeiNoy . mo- 
 -NON cNTyxoNTi. Ki^i Ai Anp^5^^^€N0N . cjc oyN eMCAAON cn^N- 
 -gAecJN AnonpecEeyeiN , ^.n^ctac o hathp k&t iai\n , eKeAeyce 
 
 MH ASreiN " QIXOMHN " , AAA " UIXOMCeA " ! MHSe " eiHON " , 
 
 AAA " einoMeN " t kai t aaaa cyN€(|iAnTOMeNON oyru km koi- 
 -NoyweNON An&rreAAeiN . " 
 
 Plutarchus had at least two Brothers, Timon, and 
 Lamprias, both men of genius and education. 
 
 Among the Nepotes ^° of Plutarchus the most cele- 
 -brated is Sextus Cha^ronensis, the preceptor of 
 Marcus Antoninus, who says ^ that he was taught 
 by him — 
 
 ' Whom Plutarchus mentions in vit. M. Ant. p. 948. A. 
 ® Symposiae. Problem, B. I, p. 622, E. 
 
 9 Of the noAiTiKA nipArreAMATA, p. 816, D. 
 
 "> I retain the Latin word, for fear I should make a mistake. 
 But Rualdus by the M'ord Ncpos evidently means nephew ; and 
 Suidas says AAeA(|>iAoyN . 
 
 ' B. i, th.^. 
 
OF PLUTARCHllS. 
 
 I* 
 
 " TO K*,TAAHnTIKWC KXI OAWI €56 YP^''""^^'^ """^ '^^' TikKTIKON TWN 
 6IC BION ikNATKMWN AOTMiiTtON . " 
 
 Similarly Eutropius ^ says of the philosophical 
 
 Emperor : 
 
 " Institutus est ad scientiam literarum Grsecarum per Sextum 
 Chaeronensem, Plutarehi nepotem. " 
 
 So also Julius Capitolinus says of this prince : 
 
 " Audivit et Sextum Cliicronensem, Plutarehi nepotem. '' 
 
 Suidas calls Sextus 
 
 " AA€A(f)iAOYN nAOYTApxoY . " 
 
 and says that the Emperor held him in such honour, 
 
 " WCT€ KM CyNAIK^ZeiN AyTCCI . " 
 
 Dio Cassius ^ also says of Antoninus : 
 
 " ACreTM TAp , KM ^YTOKpATCop ^CON , MH MAfelCeikl , MHA€ 
 OKN6IN . eC AIAACKAAOY CJ)OIT2ilN , &AA\ KM C6^TC0I npOCl€N*l , 
 
 TOi eK BOICOTCON ({'I'^oco^iui. " 
 
 And Philostratus says * : 
 
 " €cnoYA^ze mcn o ^Y^OKpATtop M^pKOC nepi C€^TON , ton 
 €K BOICOTI^C 4"'^o<^o1'°^ ' Q*>MizwN i.YTcoi , km 4)oiTaiN eni 
 ^ eYpMC . " " 
 
 2 Hist. Rom. L. Till. 
 
 3 Principio Lib. LXXI. 
 
 * Libro II. de vitis Sophistarum, in Herode. 
 
 * [ It surely ought to be (J)Oitcon em eYP^c .] 
 
 ^ In the following paragraph, which I omit, Rualdus shews, 
 what, though doubted by Huet, is sufficiently evident, viz : that 
 the Sextus, surnamed Empig-ictis, is not the same person as Sex- 
 -tus ChoBTonensis ; but Rualdus uses a false argument, when he 
 says, that Galenus speaks of Sextus Empiricus as of a writer 
 whose fame was already established : for the Isagoge, here re- 
 -ferred to by Rualdus, is not reallv Galen's; and Brucker 
 ( Hist. Phil." , Vol. 2, }). 636. ) seems to shew, that Sextus 
 Empiricus probably did not flourish till about the beginning of 
 the third centurv. 
 
12 A LiFK 
 
 Cap. VI. 
 
 Plutarch's wife's name was Timoxena.^ He meu- 
 -tions her in the most flattering terms, saying, that 
 she was by no means a busy-body, or a Superstiti- 
 -ous woman ; ^ that she attended the theatre and the 
 public ceremonies without any vain pomp of dress 
 or attendants ; that she bore the death of her children 
 with perfect philosophy ; and that she had the talent 
 of making other women as virtuous as herself. 
 
 Timoxena bore her husband at least five children, 
 four boys and a girl. It was the death of this last 
 child, at the age of scarcely two years, which in- 
 -duced Plutarchus, then at Tanagra, to write one 
 of his most famous treatises. 9 
 
 Two of Plutarch's sons had died, before their sis- 
 -ter, namely the eldest and probajjly the youngest. 
 The father dedicated one of his books ^° to his sons 
 Autobulus and Plutarchus, 
 
 Cap. VII, 
 
 Ammonius the Egyptian was Plutarch's Tutor; 
 as Eunapius tells us : ^ 
 
 " eN oic AMM60NIOC re ^hn , "^o "e^ MrynTOY ■ nAOYTi^p- 
 
 .XOY TOY efiOTJ^Toy reroNuc aia>>ckj,aoc . " 
 
 and, lower down : 
 
 " ^Y'''"^'^ °Y^ ° eecnecioc HAOYTApXOC . ton re caytoy 
 
 ' "As Rtialdus conjectures with probability," say some En- 
 -glish critics. ^ 
 
 •* [He directs lier to bury the child aixa hachc nepiepruc kai 
 
 A6ICIAMM0NUC . 'cON 'HKICTA COI M€TeCTI . Vol. 2. p. 608. B. ] 
 
 9 viz: the nip&MYeHTiKON npoc thn iai^n pynaika . 
 '" viz : that nepi thc cn timakoi Iy^^o^oniac . 
 ' In tiic Preface to iiis Lives of the Philf)sophers and Sophists. 
 
OF I'LUTARCIIL S. iJj 
 
 BION *>Ni.rpA<|l€l TOIC ElBAIOIC 6NA leCAApMENWC r KAI TON TOy Al- 
 
 -AACK^Aoy : K&i oTi Tc ^MMCONIOG A9HNHICIN €T6a6Yta 
 
 BION . KM TOI r€ TO KAAAICTON Ay^OY '''"'^ Cy rrOAMMATUN 
 €ICIN Ol KAAOyMSNOI HApAAAHAOl BIOI TUN ApiCTCON , KATA epfk 
 KAr npA^eiC . ANApWN • AAAX TO HAIOn' , KAI TOy AlAACKAAOy. 
 KAe 6KACT0N TCON BIBAlUN 6rKAT6Cn6ip6N : WCT€ , €1 TIC O^y- 
 
 -AepKoiH nepi TAyTA , km ANixNeycoN , kata to npocninTON 
 
 KAI (f)AINOM€NON , KAI CU;})pONUC TA KATA M6pOC ANAACTOITO . 
 AyNACeAl TA AAeiCTA TWN BGBlCOMeNWN AyTOIC €IA£CeAI • " 
 
 This last passage shews, how many of the works 
 of Plutarchus have been lost since the time of Euna- 
 -pius : for, in the extant Avorks, we meet with only two^ 
 passages in which Ammonius is expressly mentioned. 
 
 The first passage is : ^ 
 
 O A€ HM€TepOC KAeHTHTHC AMMCONIOC t CN A6IAINHI AlATpi- 
 -BHI , TCON TNCOpiMCON TINAC AlCeOMeNOC HpiCTHKOTAC OyX 'AOAOyN 
 
 ApiCTON , eKeAeycEN iaicoi oaiai riAHrAC cmbaaein ton AneAeyee- 
 -poN , eneincoN . oti xcopic o^oyc ApicTAiN oy AyNATAi ; kai 
 
 AMA npOC HMAC AneBA€ + €N , iOCTe TCON CNOXCON AvI'ACeM THN 
 
 eniTiMHCiN . 
 The other passage is : * 
 
 " COC Ae KAGICAC nepi ton NECON , TA men AyTOC Hp^AMHN 
 
 ZHTeiN , TA^cKeiNoyc epcoTAiN , yno Toy Tonoy kai tcon ao- 
 
 -rCON AyTUN , A HAAAI n0T€ , KA9 ON KAipON CMIAHMei N€pCON , 
 HKOyCAMCN ^MMCONlOy • kai TINCON AAAC/JN Aie^lONTCON . 6N- 
 
 -TAyeA THC AyTHc AnopiAC oMoicoc eMnecoycHC . " 
 
 Cap. VIII. 
 
 Plutarchus must have been a most diligent reader. 
 
 * I never read Euna])ius, but I suppose that to haion is 
 a false print for ton iaion. 
 
 ^ In the ncoc tic AiAKpiNcie ton koaaka Toy (fiiAoy , p. 70. E. 
 
 * In the nepi Toy ei €n AeA(j)Oic , p. 385. B. 
 
14 A LIFE 
 
 In what is extant of only his " Parallel Lives " we 
 find that he quotes no less than 240 ancient writers; ^ 
 while Plinius the Elder, in the preface to his Natu- 
 -ral History, says that, for that great work, he had 
 not read more than 100. 
 
 It appears from the following passage ^ that Plu- 
 -tarchus was in the habit of making Adversaria ( or 
 unconnected observations ) upon various subjects : 
 
 " MHT€ A6 xpoNON excJN , uc npoHipoy^HN , r€Necei.i npoc OIC 
 CBOY^OY ' f^HTe ynoM^NUiN k€Nmc n^NTin»,ciN ton h.NA\>^ xep- 
 -ciN o(j>eHNM coi n^p HMCON jk(j)irM€NON , ANEAe^AMHN nepi eysY" 
 -Muc > eK TON ynoMNHMATON , toN eMAyTWi nenoiHMeNOC 
 eTyrx^NON . " 
 
 Cap. IX. 
 
 That Plutarchus " was not unacquainted with the 
 divine gospels, " and that he " transfused much of 
 the Christian theology into his own writings" is af- 
 -firmed by Theodoretus, Bishop of Cyrus, in his se- 
 -cond oration. ^ 
 
 The same [ Father of the Church, ] in his tenth 
 oration, ^ fully shews, that Plutarchus was persua- 
 -ded, that not Gods, but Daemons, gave the oracular 
 responses ; and that the Priests, instigated by those 
 Daemons, promidgated venal and false oracles ; and 
 that these Daemons were evil, base, and crueL All 
 these are certainly the arguments of a Christian. I 
 may add, that Plutarchus seems to have condemned 
 
 * A list of these writers, with references, is given in the Pre- 
 -face to the Phitarch's works of A. D. 1624. p. 40--42. 
 " In the nepi gyeyMi^c, p. 464. F. 
 ' viz : in that which is inscribed nepi ^pxHc . 
 •^ Or that nepi xpHC^ACON . 
 
OF PLUTARCTIUF:. 35 
 
 Polytheism, at any rate in the following passage : 9 
 
 " €neiT*> TIC ^N^^KH noAAoyc €1nai AI^C kn OAeiONec oci 
 
 KOCMOI 1 KM MHjKAe eKJ^CTON ipxONT& npWTONlKM Hr6MON\ TOY 
 
 OAOY 9€ON . exoNTik km NoyN km aoton . oioc o n\\) hmin 
 
 KYPIOC AHANTUN KAI OATHp enONOMAZOMSNOC ? 
 
 I may also observe, that in the books of Plutarchus 
 are many opinions, derived from I know not whence, 
 which, from their truth and gravity, may be taken 
 for a Christian ^^ Oracle. Therefore, as Tertullianus, 
 in his book de anima, ^ calls Seneca, so also I here " 
 w onld not doubt to call Plutarchus, " often one of 
 our party. " ^ 
 
 But, in having written many things agreeable to 
 our religion, he has only done, as Plato, Hermes,^ 
 the above-mentioned Seneca, and others, did, who 
 certainly were not Christians. As however Hermes 
 and Plato may have read our Old Testament, ^ so 
 also Plutarchus may have read the New, ^ but, that 
 
 9 Of the ncpi TCON eKA€AOinOTtON xpHCTHp. p. 425. F. 
 
 •" [ As far as Christianism is svnoniinous with Reason. ] 
 ' [ Cap. 20. ] 
 
 * I know not why Rualdus omits referring to tlie equally 
 tolerant opinion of iJohannes Euchalta. 
 
 3 [ Or of the party of the Confucians, or of that of the Indi- 
 -ans of the Six Nations, or of &c, ] 
 
 * Rualdus seems therefore to believe in the srenuineness and 
 authenticity of the writings attributed to "Hermes." The 
 writer who has .assumed this name was a sort of Gnostic, 
 Beausobre ( IVIanich.,Tom. 2, p. 731 ) says of him : " Son prin- 
 -cipe fetait que la foi ne convient qu'au peuple ; que le sage se 
 conduit par la science. " 
 
 * [ Though nothing can be more improbable : for none of 
 the old Jewish books were translated into Greek 'till about 
 260 B. C. ] 
 
 ^ [ Though it "was probably not formed into one volume till 
 after his time. ] 
 
m A LIFE 
 
 m 
 
 he should have believed in it, is utterly improbable : 
 for, in one of his treatises, " written not many years, 
 perhaps not many days, before his death, he mentions 
 that he had been worshipping the Pythian Apollo. ^ 
 It is therefore universally acknowledged that he al- 
 -ways remained a Pagan; and even Theodoretus^ 
 calls him 
 " ivNAp& Ti^ic €AAHNIKAIC ao^mc AeAoyACOMeNON : " 
 
 and afterwards says : 
 
 " TAY"'"'' oy npo(|)HTHc HMerepoc , oyA j>nocTOAOc eipHKCN , 
 oy^e TIC iAAOC tcon CKeiNoic nenicreyKOTON , Ki»i ta cksincon 
 
 AO^AZeiN eCnOyAiKOTCON t A,AA JvNHP , OACAN MCN HCKHMeNOC n\i- 
 -AeUN . THI Ae nAA&l&l TtON (|)IAOCO!j)WN e^AHATHI AOyASycON . " 
 
 For one reason, however, we Christians ought to 
 be less hostile to him than to the other writers of 
 of those times, because he has never written a sylla- 
 -ble against us and our religion, whereas almost all 
 the other Pagan writers ^^ have vied with one ano- 
 
 ' viz: the ei npecByrepui noAiTeyreoN (p. 792. F. ) 
 * " olce^ Me twi nyetui AeiToyproyNT2k roaa^c nyeii>Aic . " 
 ^ In his tenth book above mentioned. 
 
 '" [ i. e. such as condescended to notice us ; but this was sel- 
 -dom tlie case, even down to the period when the Morsliip of 
 the Gods ceased to be the orthodox religion. Some of our 
 modern advocates do indeed suppose, that, even within the 
 first 150 years after the execution of our blessed Saviour, we 
 — are not'only reprobated bv Tacitus ( A. D. 105 ), Plinius and 
 yfaVafla^CmlTrajanus ( A. D. 106 ), Suetonius ( A. D. 115 ),^Marcus An- 
 -toninus ( A. D. 170 ), Lucianus ( A. D. 176 ),^, and especially 
 by Celsus, ( A. D. 176 ) but — may also perhaps be alluded to 
 ( jjenerallv with contempt ) bv Epictetus ( A. D. 109 ) , Martialis 
 ( A. D. 95 ) , Juvenalis ( A. D. 100 ) , Apuleius ( A. I). 164 ) , 
 and Aristides ( A.D. 176 ). Yet surely there is not the most 
 distant allusion to us, or to our worthy founder, in the follow- 
 -ing writers, who likewise flourished during the above-mentioned 
 period, viz: Plinius the naturalist ( A. D. 70 ), Seneca the phi- 
 -losopher (A.D. 60 ) , Pomponius Mela ( A. D. 40 ) , Pausanias 
 
OF PI.UTARCHUS. 17 
 
 -ther in heaping abuse upon us. Thus [ Suetonius ] 
 Tranquillus ^ most falsely names the Christians " a 
 race of men of a new and pernicious superstition." 
 And Tacitus - most impudently says, that they were 
 " hated for their crimes, " and calls their faith a '' dead- 
 -ly superstition. " Moreover, Lucianus ^ impiously 
 denominates our Lord Christ a " crucified sophist. " * 
 [ About A. D. 270 ] , Porphyrins bitterly insulted the 
 Christians; and [ about A. D. 222], the lawyer Ul- 
 -pianus wrote seven volumes " de torquendis Chris- 
 -tianis. ^ " [ About A. D. 396 ], '^ Eunapius^ calls 
 the holy relicks of the saints 
 
 " ocTe\ Kb.\ Ke(^ikA«kC TCON em moaaoic jim^pthmacin e^ACOKO" 
 
 -TCON CyN'^AIZOMeNiiC , OyC TO nOAIKITON eKOA&Z€ AlKACTHpiON ," 
 
 He also calls the divine Martyrs 
 
 / A. D. 170 ). Ptolemceus (A. D. 130), ^lianus (A. D. 120). 
 Dio Prusseus ( A. D. 98 ), Quinctilianus ( A. D, 100) , Lucius 
 Floms ( A. D. 110 ) , Arriarius ( A. D. 140 ) , Appianus ( A. D. 
 123 ), Petronius Arbiter ( A.D. 60 ) , Papinius Statius ( A. D. 
 90), Anneeus Lucanus (A.D. 63), and Aulus Persius (A.D. 
 60 ) . It is shocking to think what little effect our miracles 
 can have produced upon these literarv men. They will all be 
 d d. ] 
 
 ' B. 6. ch. 16. 
 
 2 Annal. XV. ch. 44. 
 
 ^ In the Dialogue nepi thc neperpiNoy reAeyTHC , ch. 13. 
 
 * " TON AN€CKOAOniCM€NON eK€INON CO(j)ICTHN ^yTCON . " 
 
 * I am ignorant of Rualdus's authority. Lactantius ( B. 5. 
 ch. 11.) does indeed say: " Domitius, de officio Proconsulis, 
 libris septem, rescripta nefaria coUegit, ut doceret quibus poe- 
 -nis affici oporteret eos qui se cultores Dei profiterentur." But, 
 first, the title of the work appears to be different ; and secondly, 
 for libris septem, some MSS. read libro septimo, which I suppose 
 is the right reading, as Lardner adopts it without alluding to 
 the former one. Observe, that, in the Corpus Juris, there is not 
 extant one word against the Christians. 
 
 6 I take these dates from Lardner's works, Vol. 4. 4to. edit. 
 ■ In vit. .-Edesii, circa finem. 
 
18 A LIFE 
 
 " iiNApAHOTA AeAOy^^Y'^O'''*' KAKWC . KM MACTI?! KATkACAJkHJ^- 
 -NHM€Nik , K&l TJkC THC MOxeHpiiC COTeiAikC CN TOIC €lAWAOIC 
 4)epONTA . " 
 
 And he calls the monks : 
 
 " ANepconoyc men k^t*. to eiAoc . o ae eioc ikY'''°'^ cywahc . 
 KK\ ec TO €M<j)i>Nec enicxON t€ km enoioYN Mypi^ Kt^Ki. kai 
 
 A(j)pACT& . " 
 
 Similarly, the monks are bitterly inveighed against 
 by Rutilius Galliis, in his Itinerarium, [ about A. D. 
 418.] 
 
 [ But let us return to Plutarchus. ] This writer has 
 not expressly affected to injure the Christian faith ; ^ 
 and, in this respect, as in many others, he agrees with 
 Seneca the philosopher. For the passage in Seneca : ^ 
 
 " In Tiberii principatum juventae tempus inciderat : alienigenarum 
 sacra movebantur; sed inter argumenta superstitionis ponebatur 
 qiiorundam aninialium abstinentia, - - " 
 
 alludes, not to the Christians, but to the Jews and 
 Egyptians, who were banished from Rome thirteen 
 years before the death of ow Saviour. 
 
 Cap. X. 
 
 Plutarchus was so well acquainted with every sort 
 of philosophy, that he was fully entitled to be called, ^"^ 
 
 '">! 4>I^OCo4)IAC 'An&CHC "i^jpOAlTH Ki-I Aypi* . " 
 
 He may perhaps even be placed among the Eclectics, 
 of whom Laertius says : ^ 
 
 * [ Perhaps because he had never heard of it. ] 
 
 9 Epist. CVIII. [ Lardner has wisely refrained from even 
 alluding to this testimony. ] 
 
 10 i. i^y Acrathias Smyrna^us" says Rualdus ; but siirely this is 
 a fault, and Rualdus meant to refer to Ennapius, de vitis So- 
 -])histarum, Prooem. p. 11, as indeed he does in his last chap- 
 -ter, p. .55. 
 
 ' In extremo proormio 1. libri de vitis Pbilosophorum. 
 
OF PLUTARCHLS. 19 
 
 " €Ti Afi npo OAiroy €KA€KTIKH tic Mpecic eiCHxeH yno 
 nOTAMCONOC Toy AAG^ANApecoC . 6KAe5i>MeNOY t^ ^peci-w- 
 
 -TA THC CKACTHC TUN Aip€CeCON . " 
 
 Saint Clemens of Alexandria may also perhaps be 
 
 considered as belonging to this sect, when he says : - 
 
 " <t>iAoco4)iAN A6 , oy THN CTCOVkhN Aeru , oyAe thn HAA- 
 
 -TCONIKHN , H THN eniKOYp€ION Te , ka> ^piCTOT€AI- 
 
 -KHN , AAA OC2> eipHTil HAp eKACTHI TON AipeC€WN TOY'TCiN KK- 
 -ACOC , AlKMOCyNHN M6T cyCeEOyC eniCTHMHC eKAIA&CKONTA , 
 TOyTO CyMHAN TO €KA€XTlKON , ({)l AOCO(j)l AN (J)HMI . " 
 
 But those doctrines, which Plutarchus more par- 
 -ticularly maintained, were those of the Academy. ^ 
 Thus he says * : 
 
 *' TAyTA , O C})ABCOpiNc , TOIC 6ipHM€NOIC ycf) eTepCON OApA- 
 -SAAAe . KAIN MHT6 ACinHTAI TH I nieANOTHTl , MHT6 ynepexHi 
 
 noAy , xAipeiN eA tac ao^ac > to " enexeiN 6n toic aahaoic " 
 Toy cyrKATATieecGAi <))iAOCO(()a3TepoN HroyMCNOc . " 
 
 and again ^ he says, of himself: 
 
 " MSAACON eiC nANTA TIMHCEIN TO " MHAeN ATAN " , EN i»K^- 
 
 -AHMIM reNOM€NOC . " 
 
 Now there were various Academics, ( the Old, the 
 Middle, the New, the Antiochean, and the Philoni- 
 -an ) ; but they almost all agreed , in professing 
 doubtfulness, in rejecting rash assertions, and in 
 maintaining '5 that they knew 
 
 - [ Stromat. I. p. 388, edit. Potter. ;^-Rualdus only quotes 
 down to the word kaacoc. I have added the remainder of the 
 sentence, that its meaning may be more evident. ] 
 
 ' [ For more ample information on this subject, see the ex- 
 -tracts from Brucker, infra. ] 
 
 * In libro nepi Toy npuToy >i'yxpoy , p. 955. C. 
 
 ' In libro nepi Toy e^. ''"'^Y ^'^ AeA(j)otc , p- 387. F. 
 
 ® quod est apud Plaloneni in 3Ienonc neipACTiKcot . 
 
20 A LIFK 
 
 " oyTe \AAo . H AyToyc j,nopeiN , km royc »,aaoyc noieiN 
 
 AHOpeiN . " 
 
 They therefore dift'ered entirely from the Stoics, who 
 admitted some things, and rejected others, relying on 
 certain lixed axioms which they called aotmata. On 
 the other hand, the Sceptics or Pyrrhonists main- 
 -tained, as the fimdamental laws of their sect, " we 
 define nothing; ^ " " we persist in our Scepticism ; "" 
 " this is not more certain than that, or than any thing 
 else. 9 " 
 
 But, although the Academicians, like the Pyrrho- 
 -nists, were called 
 
 " CKenriKoi " , " €<J)€ktikoi " ■ " *nopHTiKOi " t 
 
 yet they did not, like the Pyrrhonists, maintain, that 
 even our uncertainty is uncertain. 
 
 " Non cnim sumus it, quibus niliU verum esse videatiir, sed qui 
 omnibus veris falsa quadam adjuncta esse, dicamns, tauta similitudine, 
 ut nulla insit certa judicandi et discerncndi nota. - - " 
 
 is the language which Cicero attributes to the Aca- 
 -demicians in his Lucullus. ^° 
 
 Cap. XI. 
 
 ^ If those Philosophers are to be despised, who, to 
 use the language of Epictetus are, 
 
 " AN6Y TOY np^TTeiN , M€xpi Toy AerciN " : 
 
 and, if it be the perfection of Philosophy " spectare, 
 simul que agere," as Seneca says; then we must 
 
 '' " OYA6N OpiZOM€N . " 
 
 * " CKenTOM€NOI AUTCAOyMeN . " 
 
 '^ " oy M^AAON oyTttc exei toae , h eKemcoc , oyA erepcoc . " 
 '" [ i. o. the 2nd. ( or 4th. ) Book of his Qmestiones Aca- 
 -demicae ; but I cannot find the passage. ] 
 
 ' I do not know what name grammarians, or rhetoricians, 
 give to a phra?>e involving this sort of negative and unexpected 
 
OK PLUTARCH IS. 21 
 
 certainly have the greatest esteem i'or Plutarchus, 
 who lived in all the integrity and holiness, which any 
 man could, who was not a Christian. - 
 
 We may judge that he was of a kind and merciful 
 disposition, from his condemning the misanthropy 
 and inhumanity of the Elder Cato. One of his ar- 
 -guments in favour of kindness towards aged slaves, 
 is'' 
 
 '■ Kb.\ r«.p innuN AneipHKOxON y'^o noNoy Tpo4)M , km kynwn , 
 
 Oy CKyAi,KIM MONON , i^AA^ Kil rHpWKOMIM , TWI xpHCTWI npOC" 
 -HKOyCIN . " 
 
 Again he says : * 
 
 " oy TAp wc ynoAHMikCiN H CKsyeci , thn 4'Y^'^n exoyci xpHc- 
 
 -T60N , KOneNTi KAl K«>T«>TplB6NT& TMC ynHp€CIMC inoppiHTOyN- 
 -T\C ! &AAiei Al!k MHAEN ikAAO , MeA€THC eneKh. Toy (J5IAi>NepWnOY , 
 
 npoeeicxeoN e^yroN €N tovtoic np^0N cinm Ki.[ m€iaixon . era 
 
 MGN OyN OyA6 EOyN AN €prATHN Ali> rHp\C AOOAOIMHN . MHTire 
 
 npecEyrepoN ^NepconoN , €k xup^c cyNTpocf'oy km ai&ithc 
 cyNHeoyc , wcnep €k nAjpiAoc , MeeiCTikMeNON , anti KepMA- 
 
 -TUN MIKpCAJN , AXpHCTON r€ TOIC UNOyM6NOIC , COCnep TOIC Al- 
 -npACKOyCl . r€NHCOMeNON . " 
 
 How much he abhorred inconstancy and anger, is 
 evident from his saying : ^ 
 
 " erur oyN &n eeeAOiMi maaaon royc Awepconoyc AereiN nepi 
 
 conclusion, but it appears to me peculiarly inelegant. 
 
 ^ Rualdus should have defined what he meant by the word 
 "holiness;" and, as regards " integrity," he should have pro- 
 -duced instances to prove that the Christians were more honest 
 than the worshippers of Jupiter. 
 
 3 In vit. Caton. maj. p. 338, F. 
 
 * p. 339, C. 
 
 ■'• In libr. nepi AeiciAMMONiAC , p. 161). ¥. [ p. 36 of my re- 
 -print. ] 
 
22 A LIFE 
 
 €MOY • MHTe reroNfNM TonApAnAN ■ mht€ eiNi,i nAOYT^pXON . 
 H AcreiN . OTi nAOYTApXOC ecxiN ANepconoc ab€smoc , ey- 
 -MexiBOAOC , eyxepHC npoc oprHN , em toic Tyxoyci timco- 
 -pHTIKOC , MiKpoAynoc . " 
 
 That he was also free from the opposite extreme, 
 which the Greeks call 
 
 " ivNMCGHCIA " , " p^eyMIA " , OF " ANAATHCIC " . 
 
 may be proved from the following anecdote, ^ which 
 the philosopher Taurus recounted to Aulus Gellius : 
 
 " Plutavchus servo suo, nequam homini et coiitumaci, sed libris 
 disputationibus que Philosophia; aures imbutas habenti, tunicam 
 detrahi, ob nescio quod delictum, csedi que eum loro jussit. Cce- 
 -perat verberari : obloquebatur, non meruisse ut vapularet ; nihil 
 mali, nihil sceleris, admisisse. Postremo vociferari inter vapulan- 
 -dum incipit; neque jam querimonias, aut gemitus ejulatus que 
 facere, sed verba seria et objurgatoria: " non ita esse Plutarchum, 
 ut dicevet, Philosophum ; irasci turpe esse ; saepe eum de malo 
 irae disertavisse, librum quoque nepi &oprHCuc pulcherriraum con- 
 -scripsisse; his omnibus, qua in eo libro scripta sunt, nequaquam 
 convenire, quod, provolutus effusus que in iram, plurimis se pla- 
 
 ^ I think it rather proves, that all men are, at times, tyrannical ; 
 and that, therefore, the power of tyrannizing over their fellow 
 beings, should not be granted even to the greatest philosophers. 
 Montaigne ( Ess. , Livr. II, Chap. XXXI. ) has translated the 
 whole of this anecdote, without adding any observation. Ville- 
 -main, in the Biographie Universelle, very justly says ( of Plu- 
 -tarch's command to the executor of the punishment ) : " II y 
 aurait dans ce bon mot plus d'esprit que d'humanite. " After- 
 -wards Villemain says: " Plutarque semble nous apprendre lui- 
 -meme, qu'il n'avait ni tant de patience, ni tant de rigueur. 
 ' Je ni etais, dit-il, eniportc plusieurs fok co7itre mes esclaves ; tiiais, 
 a la Jin, je me sids apergu qu'il valait mieux les rendre pires pur 
 7/10)1 indulgence, que de me gater moi-meme par la colore, en vou- 
 -hmt les corriger.' [ nepi ^oprHCiic, p. 459. C. ] Nous pre- 
 -ferons croire a cet aveu ; et, il s' accorde davantage avec le ca- 
 -ractere universel de bienveillance, avec cette cspbce dc tendresse 
 d'ame, que Plutarque nionlre dans ses ocrits, et qu'il ctend jusqu' 
 aux animaux. " 
 
OF PLUTARCHUS. 23 
 
 -gis mulctaret. " Turn Plutaielius, lente et lenitur : " Quid autem, 
 inquit, verbero, nunc ego tibi irasci videor? Ex vultu ne meo, an 
 ex voce, an ex colore, an etiam ex verbis correptum esse me ira 
 intelligis? Mihi, quidem, neque oculi, opinor, truces sunt, neque 
 OS turbidum, neque immaniter clamo, neque in spumam ruborem 
 ve effervesco, neque pudenda dico aut poenitenda, neque omnino 
 trepido ira et gestio : haBC enim omnia, si ignoras, signa esse 
 irarum solent. " Et simul ad eum qui caedebat, conversus: " In- 
 -terim, inquit, dum ego et liic disputamus, hoc tu age. " ^ 
 
 Plutarchus was very averse to discord. When in 
 a quarrel with his wife's relations, he went with her 
 to [ mount ] Helicon, and sacrificed to [ the genius 
 of ] Love, who was supposed to be the appeaser of 
 strife. ^ Plutarchus also always endeavoured to con- 
 -ciliate persons who were at variance, as we learn 
 from what he says 9 of the two brothers, who chose 
 him to be arbiter between them. 
 
 Plutarchus was extremely attached to his wife, to 
 his children, and to his brothers. He was also par- 
 -ticularly attached to his country. ^'^ He tells us ^ 
 that he undertook to write the life of Lucullus, be- 
 -cause that commander had shewTi kindness to [ the 
 people of] Chccronea. It was to increase the popula- 
 -tion of this, his native town, that Plutarchus left the 
 splendour of Rome. ^ Finally, because Herodotus 
 had spoken contumelioiisly of Boeotia, Plutarchus 
 wrote against that Historian a furious diatribe. ^ 
 
 " vid. Noct. Alt., Lib. I, cap. XXVI. 
 
 * vid. libr. quem inscripsit epcoTiKoc , p, 74Q. B. y,^. 
 
 9 In the nepi 4>iAi>ACA(|)uc , p. 479, F.. 
 
 "^ [ A sure sign that his country was a very miserable one. ] 
 
 ' In Cimonis vita, p. 474, E. 
 
 2 As he tells us in his life of Demosthenes, p. 846, E. 
 
 ' Entitled nepi rue HpoAOToy KAKoneeit-c . [ The injustice 
 of this attack upon Herodotus shews how much even a Philo- 
 
24 A LIFE 
 
 Plutarchus must have been very averse to Flat- 
 tery, if he could write to Trajanus so boldly as John 
 of Salisbury says that he wrote. ^ 
 
 His aversion to Superstition is evident from his 
 book nepi a€iciammoniac . 
 
 That, however, he was not j>erfectly free from Su- 
 -perstition is shewn by his confessing ^ that, he, 
 for some time, abstained from eating eggs, in con- 
 - sequence of an admonition which he had received 
 in his dreams. 
 
 Cap. XII. 
 
 Plutarchus was two or three times at Rome be- 
 -fore he took up his abode there — at what period 
 is not exactly known : but he was still in Greece 
 towards the end of the reign of Nero ; and it is pro- 
 -bable that he had [ quitted Italy ] before Arulenus 
 Rusticus, one of his auditors at Rome, was put to 
 death by Domitianus.^ Some persons suppose 
 that Plutarchus settled at Rome at the persuasion 
 of Senecio. C. Sossius Senecio was four times con- 
 -sul: first probably under Nerva, in A. D. 99; se- 
 -condly, thirdly, and fourthly, under Trajanus, in 
 the years [ 100, 103 or 104, ] and 108 or 109. ^ Now 
 
 -sopher can be depraved by Natmialism. It is by fostering this 
 same prejudice in favour of some spot of earth, that tyrants 
 change reasonable beings into soldiers. ] 
 
 * " [ Verum et ipsa epistohe ratio, psedagogum spirans, et a 
 moribus Plutarchi tota aliena, et lingua in qua scripta est La- 
 -tina, foetum satis produnt supposititium, " savs Brucker, Hist 
 Phil., Vol. 2. p. 180.] 
 
 ^ Lib. II, Sympos. Probl. noxepoN 'h opNic nporepoN ^h to 
 WON ereNCTO , p. 635. E. 
 
 ^ vid. libr. nepi noAynpArwocYNHC , p. 522, E. 
 
 ' [ In the Pastes Consulaires given by Picot, C. Sosius Sene- 
 -cio is marked as Consul in tlie years 99. 102, and 107-] 
 
OF PIUTARCHUS. 25 
 
 that Senecio was a great friend to Plutarchus, is ma- 
 -nifest from this writer's having dedicated so many 
 books to him. ^ 
 
 But Plutarchus must have been sufficiently in- 
 -duced to come to Rome by the consideration of the 
 superior facilities which he would there receive for 
 compiling his works. Thus he says:^ 
 
 " TOI M€N TOI CYNT&5IN Y^OBeBAHMeNUI , KM ICTOpiikN 6? OY 
 npOxeipUN , OYA OIKSIWN , JvAAA ^€NWN T6 tun nOAAWN K&l 
 AieCn^pM€NUN €N STepOIC CYNIOYCi^N i^N^^NWCM^TUN , TCOl ONTl 
 xpH npOTON Y'^^P'^^'N KM MJkAICTA THN nOAIN €Y^OK\tAON K&l 
 <J)IAOK&AON Kit nOAY^NepWnON . UC BIEAICON re HANTOA^nON A- 
 
 -4)eoNUN exeiN . km oca toyc rpA^JONT&c AiA<|)eY'"°'^''''^ coth- 
 
 -piAl MNHMHC €ni(j)ANeCT€pAN 6IAH(|)€ AlCTIN , ynOA^IASt^HUN AKOHI 
 KAI AlAnYNeANOMENOC i MH nOAAON . MHA ANATKAIUN €NAe€C 
 AMOAIAOIH TO CpTON . " 
 
 The Historians, Diodorus Siculus and Dionysius 
 Halicarnessensis, tell us that they went to Rome 
 for the same purpose. 
 
 Cap. XIII. 
 
 In what respect Plutarchus was held at Rome is 
 evident from the foUoAving passage : ^° 
 
 " eMOY noT€ 6n pCOMHI AiAAeroMeNOY < pOYCTIKOC ( €k- 
 -eiNoc 'ON ''YCTepoN AncKTeiNe AOM€ri>iNOC thi ao^hi ^eo- 
 
 -NHCAC ) HKpOATO ! KM AIA MeCOY CTpATICOTHC nAp€AeWN eniC- 
 -TOAHN AYTCOI KMC^pOC €neA6iK6 . r€N0M6NHC A6 CIUHHC , 
 KMMOY AUAinONTOC OHCOC ANATNWI THN eniCTOAHN , OY^ Hee- 
 
 8 The Parallel Lives, and also the ncoc an tic aicgoito, and 
 the eight books of the cymhociaka . 
 
 9 In vit. Demosth. ,Vol. 1, p, 846, D. 
 
 '° In libro nepi noAYnpArwocYNHC , Vol, 2, p. 522, D. 
 
2() A LIFF, 
 
 -AHC€N ; OY^e SAYce nporepON , h Aie^^AeeiN cMe ton aoton , 
 
 KM AIAAYSHNAI to iKpOJkTHpiON . " 
 
 L. Junius Arulenus Rusticus, who shewed this 
 reverence for Plutarch's lectures, was a man of the 
 highest rank, and was celebrated for his writings and 
 integrity. He was a Stoic Philosopher [ and a friend 
 to liberty. ] The cause of his death is thus mentio- 
 -ned by Tacitus : ^ 
 
 " Legimus, cum Aruleno Rustico Paetus Thrasea, Herennio Se- 
 -necioni Priscus Ilelvidius, laudati essent, capitale fuisse; neque 
 in ipsos modo auctoies, sed in libros quoque eorum ssevitum, de- 
 -legato triumviris ministerio, ut monumenta clarissimorum ingenio- 
 -nim, in comitio ac foro, urerentur. " 
 
 Thus also Suetonius says : - 
 
 " Junium Riisticum, quod Pesti Thraseae, et Helvidii Prisci, lau- 
 -des edidisset, appella^set que viros sanctissimos, ' interemit. " 
 
 And Xiphilinus says : 
 
 " TON AH pOYCTIKON TON ^pOYAINON i^neKTeme , oti 
 
 e(})IAOCO<})€l * . KikI OTI TON GpXC€^N lepON ' UNOMAZe . 
 
 That Arulenus Rusticus should have attended the 
 Lectures of Plutarchus, is not by any means a sin- 
 -gular instance of the reverence in which philoso- 
 -phers were held by many great Romans : for anec- 
 
 ' III praefatione Agricolae. 
 
 ^ In Domitiano, cap. X. 
 
 ' [ We cannot expect that Cliristians should ever be made 
 Saints of for their love of Civil, or Political, Freedom: for, 
 after implicit faith, a Christian's first and greatest duty is pas- 
 -sive obedience, ] 
 
 * ["Because he philosophized" — an admirable reason for kil- 
 -ling a man! But Domitianus lived, when Persecution was 
 only in its childhood, and had as yet no idea of system. Were 
 that worthy and legitimate despot now in life and power, he 
 might be informed ( by various persons with whom I have the 
 honour of being acquainted ) that itnprisonmenf is a more tedi- 
 
OF PLUTARCHUS. 27 
 
 -dotes are related of still greater condescension to- 
 -wards philosophers from Pompeius, Augustus, Ti- 
 -berius, Claudius, and, in later times, from Alexan- 
 -der [ Severus. ] 
 
 Cap. XIV. 
 
 It is probable that Plutarchus lectured in Greek : 
 for, as he tells us in the following passage, ^ he did 
 not acquire the Latin language 'till late in life : 
 
 " eN pCOMHI , KM TMC nepi thn IT>.AIAN AurpiEMC , oy cxo- 
 -AHC oycHC ryMNAzecsM nepi thn pCOM^'lKHN auackton , Y'^o 
 
 xpeiUN nOAlTlKUN . Kit TON AU (^Jl AOCO(|>l*.N HAHC li>ZONTiON , 
 
 olenore > Ki>i noppco thc haikiac , HJikMeeA pCOK^IKOIC rp^M- 
 
 -MikClN €NTYrXi>N€IN . Ki.1 npjkTMik SAyMACTON MEN , AAA AAH- 
 
 -eec enikCxoMeN : oy r^p oyTUc ck twn onom^twn ta np^r- 
 
 -MATik CyNieNM , K^\ TNWpiZeiN CyN€SiklN6N HMIN . COC €K TUN 
 
 npATMATUN kMcocrenuc €ixoMeN eMneipiAC , eniKOAoyeeiN aia 
 TAyxA KM Toic ONOMAci . KJkAAoyc AC pcOMMKHC Anirr£AI- 
 
 -iC KAI TikXOyC AlCeJkNeceikl , km M6Tik<j)0pAC ONOM\TC0N , KM 
 kpMONIAC I KM TON AAAUN OIC O AOTOC ArkAACTikl , X^pieN MCN 
 
 HroyMeeA kx\ oyK i^Tepnec . h a6 npoc Toyro MeAern km 
 
 ACKHCIC OyK eyxepHC . AAA OIC TICI nA€lUN T6 CXOAH . KM 
 
 TA THC opikC eTi , npoc T*.c Toi^yTAC enixcopei (|)iaotimiac . " 
 
 [ The above passage will probably be thought quite 
 sufficient upon the subject, but ] I will add another, 
 from the life of the Elder Cato, ( p. 340^ A ) : 
 
 " oeeN oyK oia\ ti nenoNe^ciN oi Toy AYCIOY aopcoi m*,- 
 
 -AlCTA (f)»M6NOI npOC€01K€NM TON K^TCONOC . Oy MHN AAAA 
 TAyTA MeN . OIC MAAAON IA€AC AOTCON pCOMMKCON MCeAN€CeAl 
 npOCHKSl , AlAKpiNOyCIN . " 
 
 -ous, and at the same time a less invidious, punishment, than 
 the mere passing agony of an immediate death, ] 
 
 ^ In vita Demostlienis. 
 
•JS A LIFE 
 
 Yet Plutarchus has himself remarked how univer- 
 -sally the Latin language was spoken : ^ 
 
 " 60C AOKci Moi nepi pCOMAICON AerciN , un men aotui nyn 
 
 OMOY Tl HANTeC ANepWAOl xpCONTAI . " 
 
 Roman commanders, from the days of Pauliis 
 ^milius, even perhaps till after the foundation of 
 Constantinople, seem to have required that the cx- 
 -amination of witnesses, &c, should be carried on in 
 Latin. * 
 
 Cap. XV. 
 
 Plutarchus held considerable offices in his country 
 and at Rome. When young he Avas deputed by the 
 Cheeronenses to the Roman proconsul, as appears 
 from the passage already quoted. ^ When at Rome 
 bis time was fully occupied either by those who came 
 to him to be instructed in Philosophy, or by certain 
 *' public affairs, " '•> with the nature of w hich we are 
 unacquainted. If we can rely upon John of Salis- 
 -bury, Plutarchus was Trajan's praeceptor ; ^^ and Sui- 
 
 ^ 111 llie nAATCONlKA ZHTHMATA,!). 1010. C. 
 
 ■ [ But whetlier I6s(5us and Pilatus talked Latin, ( as also whe- 
 -tlier Pauliis Taisensis wrote to the Ronuins, or rather to a few 
 Roman slaves and freedinen, in Latin, ) I will not take upon 
 ine to decide, 'till I have consulted some learned ( or at any 
 rate some most orthodox ) divine. ] 
 
 ^ In cap. V. [p. 10.] taken from tiie aoaitika n^pArreA- 
 -MATA , p. 816, D, 
 
 '' " yno xpeiWN ooaitikun ," [see tlie long quotation in the 
 last page. ] 
 '0 [ So Dempster ( quoted by Pojie Blount, Cens. Cel. Auct. 
 p. 100. ) understands tlie passage, vid. Brucker. Hist. Pliil. 
 Vol. 2, p. 180, note u. Wyttenbach has inserted the Institutio 
 Trajani, or Epistola [ Plutarchi ] ad Trajanum, among the Frag- 
 -menta Incertonnn Librorum, at the end of the lOfli. 8vo. vol. 
 ( or Turn. V, P. 11. ) of his edition of Phitarch's works. ] 
 
OF PLUTARCH US. 29 
 
 -das says that Trajamis conferred the consulship '■ 
 on Plutarchiis. It was probably after the death of 
 this Emperor, that the Philosopher returned to his 
 country. Here he became Archon,^ that is Pra^fect, 
 or Praetor. -^ He was also, for many years. Priest to 
 the Pythian Apollo : for, in one of his treatises, ^ he 
 says: 
 
 " KAi MHN oice\ M€ Twi nY©IW A€iTOYproNT». nOAAAC nysu- 
 
 -AAC . AAA oyK AN eiHHIC : ''IKANA COI , ^U, r\AOYT^pX£ , 
 
 TeeyTAi KAi nenoMneyxAi kai KexopeyjAi : NyN Ae «pA npec- 
 
 ' [ Bat for the first 250 years after Christ, I cannot find a 
 Graecian name among those of the Consuls, in Picot's Cata- 
 -logue, except Pffiduceus, A. D. 141. The Biographie Universelle 
 very properly says: " Ce conte de Suidas est assez dementi 
 par le silence de 1' histoire, et par les usages des Romains. " ] 
 
 * Near the beginning of the 8th. problem of the 6th. book of 
 Symposiaca, he says : " ApxoNToc oyN eMoy -- . " [I will here 
 add, from the Biographic Universelle, (Tom. XXXV, p. 108) 
 an account of the philosopher's conduct when at Chaeronea : 
 " Plutarque, pendant le long sejour qu'il fit dans sa patrie, fut 
 sans cesse occupe d' elle. Jaloux avec passion de 1' ombre de 
 liberie qui restait a ses concitoyens sous I' abri de la conquete 
 romaine, il les invitait a terminer leurs affaires et leurs procfes 
 par la juridiction de leurs propres magistrats, sans jamais re- 
 -courir a la haute -justice du proconsul ou du preteur. Pour 
 leur donner 1' exemple, il remplit lui-meme avec zele, dans 
 Cheronce, toutes les fonctions, toutes les charges publiques de ce 
 petit gouvernement municipal que Rome laissait aux vaincus : 
 non-seulement il fut archonte, ce qui etait la premifere dignite de 
 la ville; mais il exerga long-temps avec exactitude, et avec joie, 
 un office inferieur, une certaine inspection de travaux publics, 
 qui lui donnait le soin, nous dit-il, de mesurer de la tuile, et d' 
 inscrire sur un registre les quantitcs de pierres qu'on lui presen- 
 -tait. " [ vid. f\OAiTiKA nApArreAMATA, p. 811, C . ] 
 
 ^ [ And Briicker twice says, that, according to Syncellus, Plu- 
 -tarchus was, under Hadrianus, made Procurator of Grteeia.] 
 
 * The €1 npecByrepcoi noAixeyxfiON , p. 792, F. 
 
30 A LIFE 
 
 -ByTepON ONTA TON CT€(J)ANON ^nOeeCGM , KAI TO xpHCTHpiON 
 
 AnOAineiN aia to rnp^c . ' " 
 
 Cap. XVI. XIX. 
 
 Notwithstanding his avocations, Plutarchus found 
 time to write treatises [ on almost every imaginable 
 subject. ] 
 
 His principal work, [ which is nearly equal in point of 
 length to the sum total of what is extant of his opus- 
 -cula, ] is entitled the Parallels, or Parallel Lives, of 
 the most remarkable Graecians and Romans. Thus 
 we have the Lives of 23 Graecians from Theseus 
 down to Philopoeraen, and of as many Romans 
 from Romulus down to [ Marcus Antonius. ] Besides 
 the Parallel Lives, Plutarchus wrote some [ separate 
 ones, ] of which all have perished, except those of 
 Aratus, Artoxerxes, Galba, and Otho. 
 
 Among the Lost works of Plutarchus the names 
 have been preserved of [ six double, or parallel Lives, 
 and of sixteen separate Lives, ] as also of no less 
 than a hundred and thirty four Opuscula or Moral 
 treatises. * The greater part of these titles have been 
 handed down to us in the Catalogue of Plutarch's 
 works, made by his son Lamprias.^ As this cata- 
 -logue has not been preserved entire, it is impossible 
 
 ^ [ But it appears that the MS. of Lamprias's r\\Nu^ is, in 
 many places, illegible ; and tlierefore surely no exact calcula- 
 -tion can be made from it. ] 
 
 ^ [ Let me here observe, what I ought to have observed before, 
 that the mention in this catalogue of any one of Plutarch's ex- 
 -tant treatises, does not prove that the treatise we now have 
 under the title in question was actually written by Plutarchus : 
 for the Ano4)e€rMi>TA B^ciAeuN , the Ano4>eerM^TA aakconika , the 
 cpoTiKAi AiHTHceic , the Bioi TQN ASKA pHTopuN , and the nepi 
 TUN i.pecKONTUN Toic ((>i Aoco<|)oic , though mentioned in the 
 catalofiue. are nevertheless suspected to be more or less 
 spurious, ] 
 
OF PI-UTARCHUS. 31 
 
 to say how many other works Plutarchus may have 
 written. ^ 
 
 [ The loss of so many of Plutarch's writings is by 
 no means extraordinary, when we consider how many 
 other writers have suifered in an equal, and even far 
 greater, proportion. ] Thus : ^ of the 40 books of the 
 Universal History of Polybius, only the 5 first re- 
 -main complete. ^ Of 18 works ^° written by C. Julius 
 Caesar, we have only his Commentaries. Titus Li- 
 -vius wrote a Roman History in 142 books, of which 
 there are not 35 left entire. ^ The Bibliotheca of Dio- 
 -dorus Siculus is reduced from 40 books to 15. Of 
 the Roman History by Dio [ Cassius ] we have only 
 
 ^ [ If this catalogue, enumerating about 170 Ethica, men- 
 -tions ( as appears to me ) all but about 12 of the 80 extant, then, 
 according to the rule of proportion, as 80 are to 170, so are 
 SO plus 12 to about 195. ] 
 
 ^ In the following list, Rualdus very properly limits himself 
 to the mention of prose writers, chiefly historians, 
 
 ® [ But there are fragments of the next twelve, besides extracts 
 from the remainder. The fragments might, it is said, be very much 
 increased, if the MSS were duly inspected which are preserved 
 ( Qu.? lejft to rot ) at Naples, in Spain, and elsewhere. ] 
 
 '" [ On Grammar, Astronomy, Religion, History, &c. ] 
 
 ' [ Pope Gregorius the great is said to have caused all the co- 
 -pies of Livy's history, that could be found, to be committed to 
 the flames, because the prodigies contained in them might appear 
 favourable to the cause of Paganism. It has been supposed, that 
 part of the eighth, tenth, and eleventh decads were sold by the 
 monks of Fontevrault to their apothecary, by whom they were re- 
 -sold to a shopman who converted them into battledores. In 1772, 
 a fragment of Livy's 91st. book discovered in the Vatican, was, 
 with difficulty, decyphered under the super-inscribed text of part 
 of the Old Testament. F, v6ih. the Christian scribes would have 
 recollected, that an old, or an tie^tiated, testament is worth nothing, 
 when we have a ngw, py fresh, ^nie, ] 
 
32 A LIFE 
 
 21 books - out of 80. Others have been still less for- 
 -tunate. The 44 books of [ the Universal History 
 of ] Trogus Pompeius have entirely perished. ^ 
 * ^ All the writings of Fabius Pictor, Fenestella, and 
 of many other Romans, are lost ; as also those of in- 
 -numerable Grgeciaus, as for instance, Theopompus, 
 Ctesias, ^ Ephorus, &c, &c. ^ 
 
 * [ I do not know how Rualdus calculates. It appears that, of 
 the original 80 books, the first 35 are lost, witli the exception of 
 some fragments, the next 19 are nearly complete; and there is an 
 abridgment of the 6 following, besides Xiphilin's abridgment of 
 the last 20. ] 
 
 ^ [ Except as far as may be preserved in the abridgment made 
 by Justinus. ] 
 
 ■* Rualdus here mentions, that of [ Varro, ] the most learned of 
 the Romans, we have only a few volumes. But I scarcely think 
 this a case in point; for I should suppose that a great part of 
 Varro's 500 treatises were lost in the civil wars during the author's 
 life time. 
 
 ^ Rualdus adds that of the 6000 volumes [ i. e. books or ser- 
 -mons, ] written by that great ecclesiastic Origines, we have not the 
 twentieth part. [ Time then has slightly revenged upon the Chris- 
 -tian writers, the injuries which their copyists and librarians, and 
 their inquisitors of all kinds, have inflicted upon Philosophers. Re- 
 -collect, that, in A. D. 449, Theodosius the younger ordered to 
 the flames all works written " contra religiosum christianorum 
 cultum. " vid. Lardner's Works, Vol. 4, p. 111. 4to. Edit. ] 
 
 ^ [ But Photius has preserved a long fragment out of Ctesias. ] 
 
 ' [ I have considerably abridged the whole of this paragraph : 
 and perhaps I might have expressed its meaning by saying, that 
 no classical prose writer has come down to us entire; nor even any 
 classical poet, with the exception of A^irgilius and HoratiuSjJ 
 
OF PLUTARCHUS. 33 
 
 The remaining 25 folio pages of Rualdus's Life of Plutarchus, 
 I have not thought wortli abridging ; ' but, in order to maJce a 
 sort of termination to this biographical sketch, I will extract a 
 few apposite passages from Brucker's Historia Critica Philoso- 
 -phiag. And I will first translate what concerns the death of 
 the great Chaeronensian. After saying, that, according to the 
 conjectures of tjie learned, Plutarchus died in the fourth or 
 fifth year of the reign of Hadrianus, about A. D. 120; Bruck. 
 -er adds : 
 
 Artemidorus ^ tells us, ( and let those credit him 
 who will, ) that [ Plutarchus ] , when on his death-bed, 
 dreamt that he was ascending into heaven ^ under 
 the guidance of Mercurius. This was interpreted to 
 
 ' Still less will I trouble my reader with any portion of the 
 83 folio pages, in which Rualdus has pointed out 72 ( or rather 
 only 52 ) remarkable mistakes made by Plutarchus, principally in 
 his Lives, and as regards historical matters, Wyttenbach ( Prssfat. 
 p. cxxii. ) applies to the too severe criticism of Rualdus, the say- 
 -ing of Ruhneken, " odi censores nimium nasutos. " N. B. I 
 have at last discovered some account of Rualdus ; and am asha- 
 -med that I had not discovered it, when I began this sketch. 
 Jean Ruault, was born about 1580, and died in 1636. He was 
 twice Rector of the University of Paris. Besides his Life of Plu- 
 -tarchus, he wrote Proofs of the history of Yvetot, and Panegy- 
 -ricks of St. John the Baptist, and of St. Ursula, vid. Diet. Hist, 
 and Biogr. Univ. 
 
 * Oneirocrit, L. IV, c. 47, p. 245. 
 
 ^ [ Ascensions into the regions of imperceptibility were the 
 fashion in those centuries. A celestial transformation was 
 imagined for that splendid wholesale cut-throat Julius Caesar. 
 The miracle-worker Apollonius Tyanaeus was, according to 
 some authorities, invited up-stairs by sweet-voiced virgins. The 
 ascension of the Syrian God Adonis was annually celebrated 
 ( vid. Lucian.,de Syr. D. ,ch. 6.). A sort of ascension seems 
 to have been performed in the temple of the Egyptian God 
 Serapis ( vid. Creuzer. Dionys. p. 204 ) . I have also seen 
 pictures of a very handsome Jew, who is represented as rao- 
 -ving centrifugally, towards heaven, or to heaven knows where. ] 
 
34 A LIFE 
 
 mean that he was to enjoy the most perfect beati- 
 -tude. And indeed soon afterwards he departed this 
 life. 
 
 The next extract ^vhicll I will give from Brucker regards 
 the judgment and accuracy of Plutarclms ; and I must confess 
 that the Historiographer here seems rather fastidious, though he 
 persists in the same opinion, even in his supplementary volume. 
 
 That [ Plutarchus ] did not enjoy that power of 
 judgment which some persons attribute^ to him, is 
 sufficiently shewn by the arguments which he has 
 treated of, by the way of reasoning which he has ' 
 used, and by the extracts which he has illustrated 
 from the systems of the ancients. For, in what re- 
 -gards [his own compositions,] he has often made 
 use of weak reasons, and light arguments ; and, in 
 what regards [ historical narrations, ] he occasional- 
 -ly perverts the doctrines of the different sects, and 
 attributes to them opinions which they did not pro- 
 -fess. As examples of this, [ we may refer to ] his 
 dissertations on the Epicurean philosophy and on 
 the Platonic doctrine of the soul of the world, which 
 do not agree with the [ real ] opinions of either Epi- 
 -curus or Plato : for he wrongly attributes, to Epicu- 
 -rus, the patronage of base and idle voluptuousness; 
 and, to Plato, the admission of a malignant soul, among 
 the physical principles, besides God and Matter. 
 But [ Plutarchus ] was better acquainted with Ethics 
 
 * Tlie praises bestowed upon Plutarchus may be seen in 
 Hanckius, de Rom. rer. script. P. J, c. 12, p. 81 ; G. J. Vos- 
 -sius, de Hist. Grsec. c. X, p. 208; T. Magirus, Eponvm, crit 
 p. 86, [p. 677-699. edit. 1687. ]; Th. Pope Blount, Cens. eel. 
 auct. p. 143, [p. 100. 101, edit. 1690.]; Boeder, bibliograph. 
 flit. pol. p. 652; &c. 
 
t)P PLU'IARCIIUS. 35 
 
 than with Physics ; and his vast reading has occa- 
 -sionally diminished, and, as it were, suftbcated the 
 force ol his judgment. ^ And he has shewn this [ judg- 
 -ment ] more in his historical, than in his philosophi- 
 -cal, arguments. Wherefore, if, as Vossius argues, 
 [ Plutarchus ] is to be considered as one of the great- 
 -est of philologists and historians, ( a [ question ] 
 which we are unwilling to discuss, ) yet, at any rate, 
 it is contrary to all truth, to place Plutarchus, as 
 Vossius does, among the greatest of philosophers ; 
 inasmuch as his philosophy is bounded by very nar- 
 -row limits. ^ Albeit he enjoyed a fertility of genius, 
 and a certain versatile force of imagination which 
 seizes every part of the arguments which he exhibits, 
 and embraces every department of literature. He 
 had also an excellent memory, which, as it was as- 
 -sisted by great industry and immense study, gave 
 him a wonderful knowledge of the best methods of 
 reasoning, and rules of conduct. 
 
 These few last lines seem partly to atone for the severity of the 
 former ones ; and, in the next page but one, Brucker again 
 speaks favourably of the Chjeronensian sage : 
 
 * [ In many of the early Christian teacliers erudition appears 
 to have yet more perfectly smothered intellect. But it is the 
 duty of a good Christian to read, and not to think: for thinking, 
 
 especially /refi-thinking, is apt to occasiuii d able heresies, 
 
 which would be avoided, if we confined ourselves to reading. 
 By reading, however, must be understood orthodox reading; i. e, 
 the perusal of the works of our spiritual pastors and masters, 
 who have been so unambitiously condescending as to thivkhr us. ] 
 
 ° [ If, by Philosophy, be meant the invention of neiv dogtnata, 
 let >is thank Plutarchus for having been moderate in this exer- 
 -cise of the imagination. I should like to be informed, whether 
 the world is wiser, for the " intentional species, " the " virtu- 
 -alities, " the "imaginative reactions," the " vibratiuncles, " 
 and the "transcendental qualities," of ancient and modern, 
 ideologists. ] 
 
f36 A LiFi; 
 
 It is lucky for us, that in so great a loss of ancient 
 writers, most of Plutarch's works have been preser- 
 -ved. [ These works ] throw a great light, not only 
 on Gra?cian and Roman History, but also on ancient 
 philosophy, especially as regards ethics. ^ They also 
 most admirably illustrate philosophical history, altho' 
 it is doubtful whether the treatise "deplacitis philo- 
 -sophorum " is really Plutarch's. " At any rate it is 
 universally acknowledged, that these treatises prove 
 [ their author to have been a man of ] immense rea- 
 -ding and remarkable erudition. Hence [Plutar- 
 -chus ] has been greatly praised both by the ancients 
 
 ^ Hence they are divided into Parallel Lives, and Moral Trea- 
 -tises. The best of the Greek editions is that of H. Etienne, of 
 the Greek and Latin, that printed at Paris in 1624, fol. We 
 have followed the version of William Xylander ( a learned man, 
 and our compatriot ) printed at Frankfort, 6 vols.Svo. 1606. Bayle 
 generally follows Amyot's French translation. [This note is ta- 
 -ken from the author whom I am " doing into English, " as also 
 are all other notes, which are not included in crotchets, or do 
 not contain the name of the author who is undergoing translation. ] 
 
 8 Vossius ( Hist. Grtec. L. II. c. 10, p. 210. et desatisfact, 
 J. C. p. 1. ) [ argues against the genuineness of the book,] that 
 Plutarchus never mentions it where we should expect that he 
 would ; that elsewhere he maintains the contrary : and that he 
 [ generally ] uses a different method, conf. Jonsius, L. Ill, c. 
 6, p. 2.34. But to these conjectures we may justly reply that 
 all the ancients attribute this work to Plutarchus. We will 
 hereafter shew, that the tieatise, on the History of Philosophy, 
 attributed to Galenus, is the same, though neither of the trea. 
 -tises is complete, conf. Jons. p. 268. [ Wyttenbach says of 
 the nepi tun i>pecKONTQN toic 4'iaoco4)oic •' " Spuriuin opus. 
 Ratio et oratio prorsus abhorrent a Plutarchi ingenio : in ma- 
 -teria si quid sit, de quo non statuo, Plutarchei, hoc e perditis 
 quibusdam germanis libris compilatum t. " Prcefat. p. 168. 
 MeiiKM-s also ( de vero Deo, p. 246.) blames the pseudonymous 
 writer's audacity "quSDeorum numen et providentiam impug. 
 -navit, quii^que a Plutarclii pietate et moribus longe abhorret."] 
 
OF PLITARCIUS. Ji7 
 
 and the moderns. Among these [latter,] Gassendus, 9 
 an impartial judge and censor of learned writers, 
 said, that, if all the writings of the ancients were lost, 
 those which we should most lament would be Plu- 
 -tarch's. Theodorus Gaza also has declared, that, 
 if all [ the books of ancient writers ] were to be thrown 
 into the sea, he would preserve Plutarch's [ book ] 
 for the last. 
 
 Moreover Johannes, Metropolitan of the Euchai- 
 -tenses, who flourished under Constantinus Mono- 
 -machus and the Comneni, wrote some verses, ad- 
 -duced by Fabricius, in which [ the poet ] declares, 
 that, if it were permitted to liberate from hell any in- 
 -fidels to Christianity, he would pray for [ the sal- 
 -vation ] of Plato and Plutarchus, as having, in their 
 opinions and morals, approximated very nearly to 
 the laws of Christ. ^^ This may be too much. ^ 
 
 Nevertheless the books [ of Plutarchus ] ought to 
 be most highly esteemed, as a judicious selector may 
 tind them a storehouse of ancient erudition. They 
 are also useful and amusing to youth. Wherefore 
 
 ' In vit. Epicuri,L. Ill, c. 7, p. 98. Conf. Naude, Apologie 
 des accusez de magie,p. 194. [ p. 169, edit. 1712. ] and other 
 authors quoted by Fabricius [ Bibl. Greec. ,Vol.' 3, ] p. 331. 
 
 '° [ These verses cannot be too frequently repeated. I will 
 therefore copy them out from Wyttenbach's preface, p. Ixiii : 
 " einep tin&c boyaoio tun ^AAorpiON 
 
 THC CHC AneiAHC e?6A€CeM , xpiCTe MOY > 
 OAATONA , Kal nAOyTipxON , e^CAOlO MOI : 
 &M(j)W r\p 61C1 , KM TON AOTON KAI TON TpOAON , 
 
 TOic coic NOMOic emcT^ npocnec^Y'^o'''^*^ ' 
 ei A &rNOHCi>N «c eeoc cy tun oaun , 
 
 eNT^yS*' ■''HC CHC xpHCTOTHTOC Aei monon , 
 
 Ai HN Knh,Mri.c AupsivN ccozeiN esAeic . " ] 
 ' [ How too much? — Must ttie writer of a " Critical History 
 of Philosophy " adopt ihp intolerant exclusiveness of Anti-Phi- 
 -losophers ? ] 
 
38 A 1.1 1' K 
 
 we must applaud those learned men, who, for the 
 benefit of youth, have edited separate treatises of 
 Plutarchus ; though scholars find some blemishes 
 in them, especially a harshness of language. 
 
 As to [ Plutarch's ] philosophy, although many of 
 the learned have highly praised his judgment, yet, 
 as Lipsius justly says, he is rather an agreeable 
 than an acute teacher ; and, as Scaliger says, he wrote 
 more for men of the world than for men of erudition. 
 This certainly is evident, that Plutarchus is not so 
 much a philosopher, as an interpreter of philoso- 
 -phers. - For, in handling an argument, he [ first ] 
 adopts the principles of some sect, and then, when 
 in a difficulty, turns Sceptic, and leaves the reader 
 in doubt and suspense ; rather amusing, than assist- 
 -ing, him, by the [ variety ] of the opinions [ adduced ] ; 
 and, instead of strengthening his judgment, ^ only in- 
 -creasing the history of doctrines, by researches into 
 [ the opinions of ] every sect. Yet it cannot be de- 
 -nied, that [ Plutarchus ] has been most favourable 
 to Plato and the old Academia, and that he has phi- 
 -losophized learnedly on these principles, though not 
 always with accuracy, nor agreeably to Plato's 
 
 * [ The Biographie Univevselle says : " Sans doute le fond des 
 meilleurs traites de Plutarque est emprunte a tons les philosophcs 
 de la Giece, dont il n'est, pour ainsi dire, que 1' abreviateur. 
 Mais la forme lui appartient; les doctrines qu'il expose ont re^u 
 I'empreintede son arae; et ses compilations memes ont un ca- 
 -chet d'originalite. " ] 
 
 ^ [i.e. " strengthening his obstinacy " — a consummation as 
 devoutly to be wished for by the bigot, as it is reasonably to 
 be regretted by the philosopher. Let us thank Plutarchus, if he 
 often leave his reader in doubt and suspense : for scepticism is 
 surely preferable to dogmatism ; and, in the acquisition of real 
 knowledge, we can rarely know anything, till we confess that 
 we know nothing-. ] 
 
OF PIATARCHUS. 3i) 
 
 meaning'. But, on some points, particularly as re- 
 -gards virtue, he has followed Aristoteles; and, as 
 regards the soul, he [ has followed ] the ^Egyptians, 
 or rather the Pythagoreans. In his book " de prime 
 frigido " he has adopted the physiology of Parme- 
 -nides. Yet often he argues Academically and Scep- 
 -tically ; and was hostile to the Stoics and Epicu- 
 -reans, against both of which sects he wrote express 
 treatises. 
 
 But it is uncertain, whether it is a sign of a love 
 of ti-uth and justice, or of some negligence and con- 
 -tempt, that in his various writings he never makes 
 any mention of the Christians.* For we have alrea- 
 -dy shewn, ^ that the Elpistici ^ were Stoics, and not, 
 as a certain great scholar ^ imagined, [ of our religi- 
 -on. ] 
 
 Plutarchus speaks every where prudently and pi- 
 -ously concerning the Gods. Nevertheless Petrus 
 
 * Tillemont ( Hist, des Empereurs, Tom. 2, p. 477. ) says, 
 that [Plutarchus] " did not dare to speak well [of the Christi- 
 — ans, ] and did not wish to speak ill of them, [as St. Au- 
 -gustinuisavs of Seneca. ] " We would rather attribute Plut 
 -arch's silence to the contempt in which the Christians were 
 held, as being considered illiterate. [See what is said above, 
 in my translation of Rualdus, p. 18.] 
 
 * L. II. c. 9. [or rather Per. II, Part. 2, Lib. 1, cap. 1, 
 sect 3, i.e. Vol. 3, p. 244]; and Misc. Berolin. T. V, obs. 
 ult. [ or P. Ill, n. II, p. 222, &c. ] 
 
 ® [ cY^noc . npoBAHM . Lib, IV^ ProbI, 4, sect. 3 : 
 " wcnep oyN oi npoc\ropeYe€NTec eAnicxiKOi 4>iaoco4>oi cynck- 
 
 -TIKC0T>,TON eiNikI TOY BIOY TO eAOlZeiN ino4>MNONTAI , TUI 
 
 AnoYCHC €AniAOC oya haynoychc > oyk anskton cinm ton 
 
 BION : tlYTCOC KM THC SHI THN TpO(J)HN Op€3JeWC CYNEKTIKON 
 
 eexeoN , *oY mh n^poNToc , \xj>pic riNCTiki xpo^iH n\cj> , kai 
 AYcepuToc . ''J 
 ' Chr. Aug-. Heumann. Act. Philos.^Vol. 2, p. 911. 
 
40 A LIFF 
 
 Molina3Us^ places him among the enemies of the Dei- 
 -ty, for having written a book to shew that Atheism 
 is more tolerable than Superstition. But, not also do 
 many learned men of the present day maintain this 
 doctrine ; but also, as Fabricius has well she^Ti, 
 Plutarchus only says, that some sorts of Supersti- 
 -tion are as insulting to the Deity, as Atheism is, and 
 are more fatal to honour, virtue, and [ the well-being 
 of J human society, than the mere speculative Atheism 
 of naturally good men. That some of the ancient 
 [ Christians ] were of the same opinion, 9 is maintain- 
 -ed by the acute writer Pierre Bayle,^*^ who has so vi- 
 -gourously combated for the opinion of Plutarchus, 
 as himself almost to fall under a suspicion of Atheism. 
 
 The above is Brucker's account of Plutarch's philosophy, as given 
 in the 2nd. volume of the Historia Critica Philosophia. ' In the 
 6th. , or supplementary, volume, Bi-ucker says : 
 
 ^ de Cognitione Dei, p. 81. [I .should suppose that all this 
 .subject is thoroughly investigated in J. .T. Zimmerman's " Disser- 
 -tatio de Religione Plutarchi," quoted in the Catal. Bibl. Bunav. 
 Tom. 1, Vol. 2. p. 1523, with a reference to the Museum Hel- 
 -vet. Tom. 4, Part. 15, p. 379, &c. ] 
 
 9 Epiphanius, Tom. II, p. 13 [edit. 1682, says: x€ipt5NS< 
 KikKonicTiA THC AnicTiAC, whlch the annotator calls " aureum 
 Epiphanii dictum; unde constat haereticos quibusvis infidelibus 
 esse deteriores. " ] ; Arnobius, [ B. 4, ch. 34, says: " rectius 
 multo Deos esse non credere, qiram esse illos tales, talique 
 existimatione sentire, " ] 
 
 '" In his R^ponse aux Questions d'un provincial, and his Pen- 
 -sees diverses sur la com^te. Conf. Fabric. Syllab. ; and Bud- 
 -deus de Atheismo, cap. X, §. 2. [ or rather cap. IV, p. 250, 251.] 
 
 ' [ All the principal matters of fact ( independent of the criti- 
 -cisms ) contained in Brucker's chapter upon Plutarchus are laken 
 from Fabricius's Bibl. Graec. Vol. 3, p. 329—374. I regret that 
 I never had the opportunity of reading a syllable of Fabricius's 
 admirable work, 'till I had written out what Brucker says of the 
 Chseronensiau. i 
 
OF FL\ I'ARCHUS. 41 
 
 Cud worth' accuses Plutarchus of impiety, for main- 
 -taining two principles, [1st.] a God, and [2ndly. ] 
 a soul without reason, or demon eternally existing, 
 the cause of human evils. * But we think that this 
 opinion cannot be absolutely attributed to Plutar- 
 -chus, wiio elsewhere argues justly concerning God. 
 For, altho' in many places, and especially in his 
 book entitled " de Cosmogonia secundum Timaeum, " 
 he may say [ as Cudworth states, ] yet it is evident 
 that he is [ only ] speaking historically, and accor- 
 -ding to the meaning of Plato's Timaeus. He him- 
 -self gives no opinion upon the subject, being 
 doubtful on many points, and often favouring scep- 
 -ticism. 
 
 ' System. Intellect, cap. 4, p. .')26, seq. [vol. 1, p. 677, edit. 
 Mosh. } 
 
 * [ I do not know M'hether this be Impiety, but to me it ap- 
 -pears extremely like Christianity. ] 
 
 The following, among other, references for Plutarchus are given 
 by Joh. Fabricius, Bibl., P. 3, p. 70: 
 
 Kbnis, [ Biblioth. vet. et nov. p.] 649. 
 
 Whear, Rtlect. hiemal.,p. 74; & Neu, in Accession. 116. 
 
 Voss. ,de Histor. Gr.,1. 2, c. 10, p. 120. 
 
 Erasmus et alii ap. Crenium, Methodor. T. II. 
 
I had nileuded here lo have given a sort of abridgir.tut of ^^'yt- 
 -tenbach's Catalogue of the ancient writers who have mentioned 
 Piutarcl)us; but my prefatory tract has already tilled 41 pages, 
 which readers will ])robably consider as 41 too many; 1 will 
 therefore content myself with compiling a list of the Biographers 
 of the Chajronensian, none of whom, however, 1 have been able 
 to inspect except the two first : 
 
 Gulielmus Xylandlr, " Vita Plutarchi. " pramissa est To- 
 -mo I. Operum Plutarchi ex edit. Xylandri, Frf. 1620, fol. [but it 
 probably appeared before, as Xylander died in 1576.] 
 
 Johannes Rualdus, " Vita Plutarchi, et animadversiones in in- 
 -signiora C(J)aamat^ ejus. " Paris. 1624. 
 
 Decius Celer, " de Plutarchi Chaeronei, Philosophi gravissimi, 
 vita. " Patavii ap. Paul. Frambottum, 1627, 8vo. Thus the 
 Catal. Bibl. Bunav. Tom. 1, Vol. 2, p. 1522. Brucker (Vol. 2, 
 p. 179, note 3, ) says the work was published in 1617. I can 
 find no mention of Celer elsewhere. 
 
 " Lives of Epaminondas Plutarch and Seneca, " 
 
 added to the English Edition of Amyot's translation of Plutarch's 
 Lives, 1631. vid. Biblioth. Brit. Vol. 2, (Part. 1,) p. 764, t. 
 
 John Dryden, "The Life of Plutarch,"' prefixed to a transla- 
 -tion of Plutarch's Lives. Lond. 1683. Tlie Bibl. Brit. ( p. 764, 
 u. ) says : " This is a very indifferent translation, to which Dry- 
 -den seems only to have lent his name. " Nevertheless it was 
 translated into trench: for the Catal. Bibl. Bunav. (Tom. 1, Vol. 
 2. p. 1522, ) mentions "La vie de Plutarque, traduite de I'Anglois 
 de Dryden. v. dans le Ilecueil de Pieces d'Histoire et de Litte- 
 -rature, a Paris, 1738, 12mo. Tom. II, p. 1-97. " 
 
 Job. Ern. Muller, "Programmade Plutarcho." Rudolst. 1697, 
 4to. 
 
 Andre Dacier, " La vie de Plutarque, " a la fin du Tome 
 VIII des Vies de Plutarque traduites en francais par Andr6 Da- 
 -cier, a Paris, 1721, 4to. pag. 253-296. 
 
 ' Diderot, in his Essay on the Reigns of Claudius and Nero 
 (Tom. 1, p. 308—314, note 1.), abridges, and answers, Dryden's 
 parallel of Plutarchus and Seneca. In another note ( Tom. 2, p. 
 148—152, ) Naigeon gives Montaigne's parallel between these two 
 philosophers. Essais, Livr. II, chap. x. Montaigne makes ano- 
 -ther snort comparison between them in Livr. Ill, chap. 12. 
 
Revtl. Joliii LvNGiioRNr, "A new Life of Plutaidi, " with ii 
 translation of Plutarch's Lives. Lend. 1770, 8vo. 
 
 Wyttenbach tells us repeatedly that he intended to write a 
 Life of Plutarchus ; but it appears, that, if he ever did write one, 
 at any rate his MS. has never as yet been published. 
 
 The following list, of the MSS. and separate editions of Plutarcli's 
 treatise on Superstition, is given by Wyttenbach (Vol. 1, p. clix ) : 
 
 "Codices scriptos habuimus x: Parisienses quinque, A. C. D. E. 
 
 G. ' Moacuemes duos. Veiietum, Num. 511. Britannkos duos. 
 
 Collegii Novi, et liar/. 5612. 
 SaUierii notaj Ilistor. Acad. Paris. Inscript. torn. v. p. 160, ct 
 
 sequ. '•^ habent aliquam doctrinje commendationem, emendatiouis 
 
 nullam. 
 
 Latine versus a T/toina Naogeorgo, in editione Stephaniana Plu- 
 -tarehi. ' 
 
 Editiones peculiares duas habuimus: alteram Gallice versi libelli 
 et notis illustrati a Tanaquillo Fahro, Salmurii, 8. 1666;* ha- 
 -bet quasdam correctiones e conjectura : caeterum venustum 
 magis. quam doctum, opusculum. Altera est C/ir. Frkl. UTat- 
 -thai, IMoscuae, 8. 1778, * cum aiiimadversionibus Xylandri, 
 Reiskii, suis, variis lectionibus Editionis Graeco-Latinss, et co- 
 -dicuni duorum Moscuensium." 
 
 ' I extract from other parts of Wyttenbach's Preface the fol- 
 lowing account of these IMSS. : 
 ( A ) Codex membranaceus [ Pariensiensis ] Vitarum et Moralium, 
 
 [scriptus] anno 1296. 
 ( C ) Codex 'Moraliuin, Bibliothecffi RegijB Parisiensis. [Seec. XIV.] 
 ( U ) Codex scriptus [ membranaceus ] Bibliothecas Regise Pari- 
 
 -siensis. [ Sffic. XIL J 
 ( E ) Codex membranaceus Parisiensis praestantissimus ■ 
 
 ex Codice A exscriptus sed ita ut vetustiora adhibe-^ 
 
 -rentur [Saecul. XIV.] 
 
 ( G ) Codex scriptus Bibliothecae Regiae Parisiensis [ written 
 
 between the middle and end of the 15th. century.] 
 
 * The title is thus given in the Catal. Bibl. Bunav. (Tom. 1, 
 Vol. 1, p. 168): "Claude Snllier, Remarques critiques sur le 
 Traite de E'lutarque touchant la Superstition. " 
 
 ^ Thomas ( Kirchmaier, or as he called himself) " Nao-Geor- 
 
-<rus, " was a Lutlieiaii, who declainiPLl violently against the Cliurch 
 of Rome. His translations of some of Plutarch's Treatises were 
 printed at Basle, in 1556, 8vo. 
 
 * The title of J.ef^vre's book is thus given in Niceron's Me- 
 -moires (Tom. 3, p. 120, 121 ) : "Traite de la superstition composd 
 par Plutarque et tvaduit en Francois, avec un entretien sur la vie 
 de Romulus. " Saumur, 1666, 12mo. Niceron adds " L'entretien 
 sur la vie de Romulus ne contient que I'histoire de ce Roy jus- 
 -qu' a I'enlovement des Sabines. " It appears to me, that Le- 
 -ffevre, as afterwards Matthaei, did not dare to publish Plutarch's 
 f/e supcrxtitione by itself; but tacked to it some treatise upon a 
 totally different subject, by way, I suppose, of gilding the pill. 
 
 * The title of Matthaei's publication is thus given in the Rio- 
 -graphie Universelle, Tom. 27, p. 469 : " Plutarchi libellus de 
 superstitione, et Demosthenis oratio funebris in laudem Atheni- 
 -ensium qui pro patria pugnando caesi sunt ad Chaeroneam, graec^ 
 et latinb. " 1779, 12mo. The Bibliotheca Britannica ( Vol. 2, p. 
 765, b. ) says: " 1777, 8vo. " 
 
 In the Biographic Universelle, at the art. " Ricaud " ( the last 
 French translator of Plutarch's works, ) there is a long note, 
 written by Villenave, in which, ( as far as my eyes can peruse 
 so diminutive a type, ) almost, if not entirely, all of Plutarch's 
 moral treatises are mentioned and classified, with the apparently 
 sole exception of the "de Superstitione." Wherefore this excep- 
 -tion? Is it that the French litterati of the present day, like their 
 brother-hypocrites of England, condescend to employ— that power- 
 -ful, but shameful, engine of stultification,— a bigotry-begotten si- 
 -lence ? 
 
 Dr. Watt (at the art. Plutarch), probably misunderstanding a 
 very obscure passage in Chalmers's Diet. (Vol. 9, p. 232,) seems 
 to say, that there is an English translation of Plutarch's " de Su- 
 -perstitione " at the end of Strype's Life of Cheke. I have, how- 
 -ever, inspected a copy of this rare work of Strype's, and have 
 found that it only subjoins Cheke's Discourse on Superstition to 
 King Henry VIII. I suppose, therefore, that Cheke's Latin trans- 
 -lation of Plutarch's book has never yet been published. 
 
 The only translations which I have ever seen, are 1st. that in 
 Latin by Xylander which is improved by W^yttenbach; and 2ndly. 
 that in English, by Baxter, which is a part of the Translation of 
 Plutarch's .Moral works, I.ond. 1704, 5 vols. 8vo. 
 
THE FOLLOWING 
 
 DANIEL WYTTENBACH'S 
 
 FIRST, OR PREFATORY, NOTE 
 
 PLUTARCH'S TREATISE 
 
 • SUPERSTITION. 
 
\V Y'l'TKN BAL' I I'S I'll !■: !• Al O H V N UJ'K 
 
 This book is truly Plutarchean, though it is not ex- 
 -pressly mentioned by the ancients. A phrase taken 
 from it, p. 167, A. ^ is quoted by St. Maximus, p. 
 906, and by Joh. Damascenus, in a MS. [work, ] 
 who attribute it to Plutarclius, but without mention- 
 -ing the name of the treatise. But Plutarchus names 
 himself at p. 170, A.'^; and, even if he had not 
 named himself, the appearance and language of the 
 book would have sufficiently proved him to be the 
 writer. --s^ 
 
 In Lamprias's Catalogue, No. 150, as also in the 
 Venetian copy, we read nepi a6iciammoni^c npoc 
 €niKOYpoN. The words npoc eniKoypoN excite some 
 doubt. If [ therefore the title ] be correct, some lost 
 Treatise is meant : for the one which we now possess 
 is not written against Epicurus ; but, if the present 
 treatise be meant, then the addition to the title must 
 be spurious.^ I will not, however, deny, but that 
 Plutarchus may have written a work, in which he 
 defended the cause of Aeici ammonia against Epicu- 
 -rus ; as he does to a certain degree in his book, en- 
 -titled "Non suaviter vivi secundum Epicurum, " p. 
 1101, B, &c^; where also he inserts an harangue, 
 
 ' [ p, 18 of my reprint. ] 
 
 ' [ p. 36 of my reprint. ] 
 
 ' [ But Fabricius ( Bibl. Gr. ,Vol. 3, p. 351 ) very properly 
 says: " Videntur separanda esse verba npoc eniKoypoN ."] 
 
 ■• [ As this passage is very important, I will give a conside- 
 -rable portion of it : 
 KAi Aerto , MiMoy^^^NOC , «c oyx htton ecTi k^^kon AG60- 
 
 -THC COMOTHTOC KM AO^OKOnuC , €IC HN ^.TOyCIN HMlkC Ol THN 
 XAp^N €K TOY ©SOY f^STK THC OpTHC ivNAipoyNTeC . E6ATI0N 
 
rRi;i ATor.'i noti:. <j 
 
 against Ihose, wiio contcuc], that Epicurus has ,i;ivca 
 better reasons tiian Plato, i'or easily and cheerfully 
 dying-, p. 1103, E, F. And it is well known, that 
 Plutarchus in his philosophical treatises frequently 
 argues. Academically and Peripatetically, oa both 
 sides [ of a question ] ; and inserts in his writings 
 contrary opinions on the same argument ; of which 
 habit we have pointed out some proofs, when shewing 
 that Plutarchus was not the author of the " Dc 
 Educatione Puerorum. " 
 
 The present treatise is written "against Supcr- 
 -stition, " to shew, that the Superstitious are more gric- 
 -vously in error than Atheists, and entertain a worse 
 idea of the Gods, and act ill even towards themselves : 
 for, that Atheists, although in error, as believirm (hat 
 
 TAp eNyn^'PxeiN ti kai cyrseKpAceM thi nepi QSCON a.i^hi koi- 
 -NON MAoyc KM c()OBOY H^eoc , H noy Toyro cJ^eyroNT^c . mh- 
 
 -T€ 6AniA», , MHTe XApiN e^yTOIC , MHT€ e^pCOC ^TAeUN HApON- 
 -TUN , MHT€ TINA AyCXyxOyCIM AnOCTpO(j)HN npoC TO 06ION 
 
 AnoAeinecoAi . 
 A€i M6N PAp AMfASi , THC nspi 0£WN AO^HC . wcnep ojeuc 
 
 AHMHN , A(J)Aip£IN THN A6 1 CI A A I MON I ^N ; ei A6 TOyTO AAy- 
 -NATON , MH cyN6KKOnT6IN , MHAG Ty(|)AOyN , THN niCTlN , HN 
 
 oi HA'jiCToi nepi 9SC0N exoyci . AyTH a€ ecTiN oy 4)Od€pA 
 TIC , oyA€ CKyapojnH , KAOAnep oyToi nAATToyciN , aiabaaon- 
 -T6C THN npONOIAN , cocnep oaicin cMnoycAN , h noiNHN 
 
 AAlTHpiUAH KAI Tpi.ri.<HN €ni rerpAMM€'JHN . AAA OAITOI M6N TWN 
 ANepUnCON ACAIAClN TON 9£ON , OIC OyK AMSINON MH AtAlfcNAl : 
 A6A10TeC TAp UCnsp ApXONTA XpHCTOIC HniON , AnexSH A£ <j)Ay- 
 -AOIC t €NI (JjOBCOl Al ON Oy A€OyCI HOAAUN 6A€yO€poyN FUN 
 em TO AAIK6IN , KAI HAp AyTOlC ATp6MA THN KAKIAN exONTeC 
 OION AHOMApAINOMeNHN , HTTON TApATTONTAl TWN xptOMGNCON Ay- 
 -THI KAI TOAMCONTON , eiTA €yeyc A6AIOTWN KAI M€TAM€AOAAe- 
 -NUN . H A6 TWN nOAAWN KAI AMAGUN oy HANy MOXGHpWN AIA- 
 
 -eecic npoc ton ©€0N exei m€n AweAei twi ceEOMSNUi kai 
 
 TlMONTI MSMITMeNON TINA CCJjyrMON KAI (j)OBON , H KAI A€ICI- 
 
 -Ai^lMONIX K€KAHTAi . Phitaulius proceed.;; to aigue iti favour 
 of Religion from the joys of (Pagan) festivals. " Whether an 
 Anglican, or Presbyterian, Sunday would afford the same ar- 
 -guineut, I will not take upon ine to decide. ] 
 
WYTTEXBACH S 
 
 there is no divine power, are yet less in eiTor than 
 [ the persons ] who suppose the Gods to be evil, and 
 that, by this error, they to a certain degree tend to 
 [ make ] life more tranquil, in as much, at any rate, 
 as they do not fear the Gods ; but that the Supersti- 
 -tious are so foolish, that, by a perverted species of 
 piety, they fall into the greatest impiety, forming the 
 worst opinions of the Gods, considering them as an- 
 -gry, cruel, and malevolent, and, in consequence of 
 this error, pass their days and nights in perpetual 
 trepidation. ^ 
 
 Now Plutarchus has not written this dissertation 
 to praise Atheists ; but, in order to lead the Super- 
 -stitious into the right path, and to admonish them, 
 that, in avoiding impiety, they must not throw them- 
 -selves into the vice which is the contraiy of Super- 
 -stition, but that they must follow the virtue whieh 
 is placed betv, een the two extremes, viz : Piety. 
 
 As the w hole argument is treated in a more ora- 
 -torical and popular, than in a dialectical and sci- 
 -entific, manner, and as [ the treatise ] is almost 
 wholly occupied with the blame of Superstition, with- 
 -out any mention of its praises and advantages, or 
 any accurate and express rules for its cure and pre- 
 -vention ; ° therefore am I the more inclined to sup- 
 
 * [ If this long sentence be considered rough and obscure, all 
 I can say is, that I have translated it as literally as ];os«ible, 
 which, in such a delicate subject as Superstition and Atheism, 
 is perhaps the wisest method. ] 
 
 ^ Plutarchus proposes remedies for the cure of vices, in most 
 of his other [ Moral ] Treatises ; as, for instance, in his nepi 
 AoprHCl^c , in his nepi noAynpArMOCYNHC , in liis nepi Aycunuc , 
 in his nepi aaoaecxuc . and in his nepi <|)iAcnAOY"''i.\c . [ I iia\e 
 brought this passage of Wytteubacli's iiilo a uote, cutlitijpoi>ra. 
 phia- siratkt: for I have no Greek type which ranges evenly 
 with tlie small pica of the text. ] 
 
PREFATOny iXOTE. 
 
 -pose, that the present work is [ but ] the half of a 
 double treatise written on Superstition. ^ 
 
 It is consequently an error, to imagine, that, in this 
 work, the whole of Plutarch's sentiments on Super- 
 -stition are contained, and that [ herein,] that impie- 
 -ty, which the ancients called ^eeoTHC , and which 
 the moderns call Atheism, is considered superior to 
 every imaginable species of Superstition. That some 
 persons have been of this opinion is evident—from 
 their being confuted, while Plutarchus is praised, by 
 Tanaquil Faber, in the preface to his French transla- 
 -tion of this treatise ( p. 30, &c ) ; -- and also from 
 what we read in Pierre Bayle ( CKuvr. Diverses, Tom. 
 Ill, p. 120,) Kalph Cudworth (System. Intel!., Cap. 
 V, §. 43-45, ) and J. A. Fabricius (Bibl. GrtecVol. 
 Ill, p. 351, ) the last of whom understands Plutarch's 
 proposition with tolerable correctness. Moreover, if 
 my memory does not deceive me, J. Fr. Buddeus, in 
 his book De Atheismo et Superstitione, treats upon 
 this question concerning Plutarchus. ^ 
 
 Now I will not venture to oppose my judgment to 
 that of such learned men ; yet I think I can perceive, 
 
 ' [ But surely there is not the slightest authority for such au 
 opinion, which, I suppose, Wyttenbach only advances by way of 
 a screen, or a sedative. However, I will, in some way, atone for 
 this omission of Plutarch's by giving at the end of my volume a 
 catalogue of the works written against Atheism. The importance 
 of printing such a catalogue is very evident. If any person have 
 doubts with regard to the great hypothesis, the occasional perusal 
 of a dozen or two of the works mentioned in my list, will in a 
 very short time, most effectually quiet and compose him. ] 
 
 ^ [At p. 250, 251. Likewise, at p. 66, Buddeus mentions, on 
 one hand, that Anthony Collins, in his "Discourse on Freethinl- 
 -ing, " has inserted Plutarchus among the freethinkers; and, on 
 the other hand, quotes what llichard Simon says of Plutarchus, 
 that he is " si entete de son paganisme, qu'il est quelqucfois rc- 
 -ligieux juscju' a la superstition. '^.J 
 
WVTrENKACll S 
 
 and lor Plutarch's sake I will not conceal my opini- 
 -on, that those who have written on this subject have 
 not paid sufficient attention to definitions ^ and dis- 
 -tinctions. 
 
 For, what is Superstition, and what is Atheism? 
 And what are the species and degrees of these [ vi- 
 -ces ] ? When these [ words ] are explained, and com- 
 - pared with one another, we may then understand 
 what sort, or degree, of Atheism, ought to be pre- 
 -ferred, or rejected, [ as compared with ] such, or 
 such, a sort, or degree, of Superstition. But, first 
 of all, it is very difficult to define these words which 
 are the subject of disputation. The word "Atheist*' 
 may indeed be easily defined ; as its [ derivation ] 
 shews it to mean " one who supposes that there is 
 no God. " But this definition cannot be understood 
 till we declare what Ave mean by the word " God. " 
 
 Now it is well known, how much, not only whole 
 nations, but even separate individuals— and not only 
 the vulgar, but even the learned,— difler in their no- 
 -tions and definitions of "God"; so that, the more 
 they [ write ] upon the subject, the less they agree 
 about it. Suppose, however, that we reduce this de- 
 -finition to the fewest possible terms, and say, that 
 " God is an eternal ^^ mind, ^ the creator - and ruler ^ 
 of all things. * " Some persons will think that this 
 
 ^ [ Mankind would never quarrel if they would but define. Yet, 
 how few books there are, which begin, like Euclid's Elements, 
 with definitions ! ] 
 
 '" [ But if God be retrospectively eternal, what was he doing 
 before he created matter ? ] 
 
 ' [ But what do we mean by the word Mind 1 Do we mean 
 a sort of iiuman brain, composed of all Dr. Spurzhcini's 33, or 34, 
 organs ? ] 
 
PIiv:rATOR^ noti. 
 
 [ definition j implies too much, others that it implies 
 too little: neither party will consent to be called 
 Atheists, and yet each party will accuse the other of 
 being Atheists. " Certainly, says one party, the idea 
 of God cannot be comprised in so scanty a definiti- 
 -on : such a God cannot be the true God. ^ " The 
 other party answers : " You include so many attri- 
 -butes in your idea of the Deity, that it cannot pos- 
 -sibly be admitted : such a God is not the true G od, 
 and indeed cannot even exist. " Such then is the 
 present state of the subject. We are every day hear- 
 -ing that hacknied phrase " The True God " ; by 
 which [ phrase ] every man implies his own [ pecu- 
 -liar ] notion of the Deity, often that silly [ notion, ] ^ 
 so unworthy the supreme power. 
 And it would be lucky for us, if such [ notions, 
 
 ^ [ But does this imply absolute creation out of Nothing, or 
 merely the distribution of chaotic Matter ? j 
 
 ^ [ But does this imply a peculiar, or a general, providence; 
 and how is it connected with the doctrines of predestination and 
 free-will ? ] 
 
 '' [ But does the word " things " imply Angels, Devils, &c ; or 
 are we to admit the emanation, and absorption, of spiritual sub- 
 -stances, in the substance of the Divinity ? ] 
 
 * [The true G— is our G— ; viz. the G— of the church of 
 England by law established, i. e. Yehouh, the Jewish G--, as or- 
 -thodoxically trisected into a species of Platonic Deity. ] 
 
 * [ I suppose Wyttenbach alludes to the Painter's G— ; an an- 
 -thropomorphous long-bearded and cloud-supported phantasm, bear- 
 -ing a scandalous resemblance to the pagan Jupiter. Mr. Car- 
 -lile's picture of the Deity, though founded upon scripture autho- 
 -rities, has not, I believe, as yet received the sanction of the 
 Church ; which is the more to be regretted, as mere verbal descrip- 
 -tions are very inferior to visible representations :~accordingly as 
 Horatius has said (ad Pison. v. 180): 
 
 " Segnius irritant animos demissa per aurem, 
 Quam quae sunt oculis subjecta fidelibus — " ] 
 
WYTTrNEACII ?) 
 
 and such a method of argumentation^ ] were confined 
 to tlic unlearned vulgar. But now, philosophers, at 
 any rate persons who wish to be considered as phi- 
 -losophers, talk in the same random style. They 
 dispute about *' The True God, " yet do not set out 
 witli a definition, ^ considering that to be known by 
 all persons. Afterwards they pronounce, that many 
 of the Grecian and Roman sages were unacquainted 
 with " The True God, " and must therefore be consi- 
 -dered as Atheists. I may here observe, that this 
 very-commonly-used appellation '' The True God " 
 has come to us from the custom of the Church, whose 
 different sects formed, in ancient times, different 
 notions of the Deity, and were therefore in the habit 
 of reproaching, not only the Profane, but even one 
 another, with an ignorance of [ The true God, ] and 
 [ consequently ] with ^eeoTHC . 
 
 Thus much concerning the word " Atheist " ; ^ of 
 which we can form no idea, till we have determined 
 our notion of the " Deity. " 
 
 Nor is the word " Superstition " less arbitrarily 
 used. The etymology and origin of the Latin word is 
 uncertain : ^ its signification however is not obscure, 
 inasmuch as it answers to the Greek word aciciaai- 
 -MONiA, and is used as [ the translation of that word. ] 
 Now this Greek word means literally "a fear of 
 
 ' [I suppose that Wyttenbach alludes to Meiners's Treatise de 
 vero Deo, in which, as far as I have read the work, I have not 
 yet met with any express definition of the verus Deus,/^ 
 
 * [ Upon this word, as also upon the grand word, of which the 
 first word implies a denyer, I propose speaking at some length 
 in my^appendix. ] 
 
 ^ [The word "Superstition" is as great a stumbling block to 
 the Etymologists, as it is to the Theologists. If " Superstitio " 
 bo derived from " superstes, " then I should think it must imply 
 
PliElAT(lRV NOTK. 
 
 Demons, " and is used to express " an absurd I'ear 
 of Gods. ' It is [ therefore ] the opposite of " Reli- 
 -gion, " which implies ''a pious worship of the Gods, " 
 to use the expression of Cicero ( de Nat. Deor. I. 42. ) 
 
 But [ Superstition ] itself would be an endless sub- 
 -ject, and is not the one before us. Our only desire 
 is to find the interpretation of the name. Therefore, 
 in the word AeiCiA^-iMONU, we must investigate the 
 meaning of the words " Daemon " and " Fear. " And, 
 in the first place, it is certain, that the word ammcon 
 was, in ancient times, used as synonymous AAith 
 the word eeoc, i. e. God, Fate, Chance, Fortune, 
 and Prosperity or Adversity, the causes of which 
 were considered as hidden, and as placed in the pow- 
 -er of the Gods. Hence the word oabioa>>imwn 
 means "happy" or ''blessed." Such [is the mean- 
 -ing of the Avord in ] Homerus. Hesiodus considers 
 the AAiMONec as different from the Gods, and inferior 
 to them. Op. et D. 122. Plato also, in his Sympos. 
 p. 327, more particularly makes the Daemons the 
 messengers and ministers of the Gods. Afterwards 
 the question was more fully agitated ; and two sorts of 
 Daemons were imagined, the Good and the Bad; of 
 which distinction Plutarchus has treated in his " de 
 Defectu Orac.'*p. 415, et alib. ^^ 
 
 The word agici ammonia, at whatever period it 
 
 ( not " survivance, " but, what is probably the original and ante- 
 -metaphorical sense of the word, viz : ) standing over, that is p7-e- 
 -siding, or governing. ^. Albeit, I wish some oriental scholar would 
 endeavour to find out, in I know not what language, such a word 
 as " shefersted, " or " djepershdet, " implying " fear " or " rever- 
 -ence. "] 
 
 '" [ For more information with regard to the word " Daemons " 
 see Semler de Daemoniacis, p. 17—21, note; B. Bekkei's World 
 Bewitched, p. 14—17, Engl. Tr. ;.and the references in El. Sched, 
 de Diis Germ. p. 243, 244, note. ] 
 
!0 W\TTENBA(n's 
 
 may have begun to be used, referred certainly, at 
 first, both to Gods and Dsemons. But the bad sense 
 gradually prevailed. It is indeed taken in the good 
 sense, as meaning " the observance of the establish- 
 -ed religion " in certain passages of the ancients : as, 
 for instance, in Xenophon's Cyropaid. Ill, 3. 6 ; & 
 Agesil. XI, 8; Polyb. VI, 56. 7; though even here, 
 and elsewhere, a middle signification may de retain- 
 -ed. Moreover, Hesychius says : o eyceEnc , k*.i aeiaoc 
 nepi eeoYc . i. e. " a picms man, and fearing the 
 Gods, " where Alberti makes some remarks upon 
 (he same subject. 
 
 But this favourable signification, whatever it 
 may have been, was entirely lost in the usage of the 
 contrary sense. For the words 4>oBeiceAi eeoN , cfjosoc 
 ©€oY . do not always mean " piety towards God, " 
 which is the ecclesiastical meaning ; ^ but only refer 
 to one particular department of piety, viz : that abs- 
 -taining from evil actions which is produced by a 
 fear of divine vengeance. - On this subject, the say- 
 -ings of the ancients should be consulted, which Ca- 
 -saubon has inserted in his first note on Theophras- 
 ^tus's Character of a€ICiaaimonu .3 
 
 Where the whole of piety, and a true affection to- 
 -wards the supreme Deity, is implied, the words 
 [ used by Pagan winters ] are 
 
 ceeeceM , riMiiiN , eyceBeiN ; cyccBHC . 4>iAoeeoc . eeoccBHc . 
 [ These are the words used ] in many well-known 
 precepts, as in the Pythagoric Golden verses : 
 
 ' [ — granted, with regard to these ivords; but, as regards the 
 Trinity and such like mysteries, lieretics say, that the ecclesiastical 
 meaning is no meaning. ] 
 
 ' [ Divine Vengeunce /--Bune Deus \ ] 
 
 ^ [ I regret that Astius has apparently only given us the com- 
 -jnencenient of this note. ] 
 
PREFATORY >;OTE. 
 
 II 
 
 ieJ>N^TOYC m€n npwTx ©€OYC . nomwi ac aixkeitm , 
 
 TIMk » KM C€BOY OpKON . - - - . 
 
 And thus Philemon, ( as quoted by Stobseus, Eclog. 
 Eth. p. ir/o, ap. Grot. p. 170) : 
 
 06ON -NOMize Kii cesoY ■ 2ht€i as n>h . ■* 
 
 And Phocylides, as he is called : 
 
 npwTik 960N TiMj, ; MeT€neiT\ a€ C€io tonhjiC . 
 
 Wherefore, in the passage of the speech of Isocrates 
 to Demonicus, p. J) : 
 
 TON MSN 06ON (JjOBOY • TOYC AG TONCIC T1M.\ , TOYC AS i^\- 
 -AOYC MCXYNOY ' TOIC AC NOMOIC neisoY ' 
 
 I should imagine that the author, as speaking the 
 language of the people, wrote : toyc mcn eeoyc cesoY : 
 for many MSS. give the plural, which seems to 
 have been changed to the singular by Christian co- 
 -pyists. 
 The stage could admit such an expression as : 
 
 (fjOBOC T^ eei/k TOICI CU>^pOC\ EpOTcCN ; 
 
 which is thus blamed by Plutarchus, in his "dc Au- 
 -diend. Poetf^p. 34, AT 
 
 KAI MHN OYA\Ma;C ( <|)OSOC ) . AAAi. 
 
 eAPCOC Ti e£IA TOICI C«4>pOCI gpOTtON ; 
 <f>OEOC Ae TOIC AcJjpOCI KM AX^piCTOlC KM iiNOHTOIC . Oil Kil THM 
 
 niiNTOc i^iTii^N \ri>eoY ayn^min km »,pxHN , coc CvAAnTOYC^i^' 
 
 Y(|>OpUNTJil KM AEAIivCIN , ^ 
 
 * [ " Worship God ; but do not seek him, " or, in other words : 
 " worship ye know not what "—good advice in the careless days 
 of paganism. But Christianity and Judaism seem rather to bid 
 us seek the Lord ; and many of us have sought him a very long 
 while indeed.] 
 
 * ["And indeed the Deities [ are ] by no means (a fear,) but, 
 an encouragement, to sage mortals. [They are a] fear [only] to, 
 fools, to the ungrateful and the unintelligent, who can dread, and 
 look with alarm at, the cause, power, and principle of alt good, 
 as if thereby they could be injured, '" ] 
 
1:2 \vviTi.NU.\( 11 s 
 
 And such expressions are by no means rare, in the 
 works of Plutarchus, Plato, and other philosophers.*^ 
 Books, now lost, were written by the ancients upon 
 the same subject. Thus: Athengeus (VIII. p. 346, 
 D ) quotes a passage from Antipater Tarsensis, the 
 
 Stoic philosopher, ^n Ter^pTtoi nepi A€ICIAAIMONIAC . 
 
 We do not agree with Fabricius ( Biblioth. Gr. Vol. 
 II, p. 888 ) in supposing that this author is the An- 
 -tipater Oneirocrita quoted by Artemidorus, ( IV, 
 67). The book of Theophrastus twn nepi to eeioN 
 icTopuc is quoted by Porphyrins ( de Abst. II, 7. 8, ) 
 and from him by Meursius (in Theophrasto §. clxxv,) 
 and by Fabricius ( Bibl. Gr. Vol. II, p. 249 ) . Se- 
 -neca wrote a book " contra Snperstitiones, " as we 
 are told by Augustinus, in his de Civit. Dei, VI, 10. 
 One of the comedies of Menander was entitled Aei- 
 -ciAMMON, which Caecilius considered as transcribed 
 from the oiwnicthc of Antiphanes, according to Por- 
 -phyrius ( ap. Euseb. Pra^p. Evang. X, p. 465, D. ) . '^ 
 We have still remaining the Theophrastean Cha- 
 -racter of a€ICIaaimonia . s ^e fii^j also many pas- 
 
 * [ This ]nirt of Wyttenbach's note seems to end very nbruptly. 
 Was his MS. liere defective, or is a censorship exercised at the 
 ('larendon press '. I su])pose tlie great critic intended to tell us 
 in what cases the ignorant and benighted worshippers of Jove 
 could use the expression of fecn-ini; (»od. Afterwards ^^ yttenbach 
 would probably have explained, in what sense we must understand 
 Shelma's dogma, that " the feni' of Yehouh is the beginning of 
 wisdom, '' whereas, according to Plutarchus, it would rather be the 
 beginning oi folly. I regret that Wyttenbach has not informed us 
 on these points. I regret also that the Oxford editor, whoever he 
 may be, has not supplied the omission : for, then, we miglit have 
 derived some learned information, upon a most interesting subject, 
 from that monkish idiode, wliich is the ^ery fountaiu-hoad of 
 Orthodoxy. ] 
 
 ' [ ((.nr. l";d)i-.,Bibl. Gr.,Vnl. I, p. 770, J 
 
iMu.rAiouv ^ul^.. 13 
 
 -sages upon the same subject in Cicero's second book 
 on Divination, and third book on the Nature of the 
 Gods. 
 
 8 [ I may here obser\e, that both Theophrastus and Plular- 
 -chus ( in common with Simon, Xenocrates, Straton, Posidonius, 
 Chrysippns. Cleanthes, and Epicurus,') wrote treatises nepi 0€- 
 -CON . Vid. No. 79 in Lamprias's Cata logne of Plutarch's works , 
 and ( if I have rightly counted, ) No. 177 of Laertius's Catalo- 
 -<iue of Theophrastus's works. Theophrastus wrote 3 books nepi 
 ee"N , 6 books tcon nepi to eeioN icTopuc (No. 176. Laert. ) 
 a book entitled erKUMiA eecoN (No. 128, Laert.) and another 
 book entitled n?pi eyceBeiic (No. 213, Laert.), Except as far 
 as re^'ards the writing these theological treatises, tiiere are. 
 I think, few points of approximation between Plutarchus and 
 Theoplirastus ; unless it be that one of the lost treatises of 
 Plutarchus ( No. 51, Lanipr. ) is entitled nepi eeo<|;p/iCTOY npoc 
 Toyc KMpoyc i oi^ rather npoc e€0(|)pikCTON nepi Tcy KMpoy .] 
 
 Wyttenbacli having mentioned the ancients who have written on 
 Superstition, I will take the liberty of here adding the names of 
 of the moderna who have written on the same subject, chiefly foun- 
 -ding my Catalogue on the references given at the art. Si'persfiflon 
 in the Biographia Britannica. 
 
 Sir John Cheke, " De Superstitione, ad Regem Henricuni. " ' 
 
 Nicolaus Hemmingius, "Admonitio de Superstitionibus Main- 
 -cis vitandis. " Hafn. 1575, 8vo. 
 
 Gasp. IIoMBERGivs, " De Superstitiosis Campananmi Pulsi- 
 -bus, ad Eliciendas Preces, quibus Placenlur Fulmina, S^c. " Franc. 
 1577, 8vo. 
 
 Jo. Fred. Hervart, " Admiranda Ethicse Theologiee Mysteria 
 Propalata, de Antiquissima veterum Nationum Superstitione, qua 
 Lapis Magnes pro Deo habitus colebatur. " Ing. 1623. Monacli. 
 1626, 4to. 
 
 Daniel Cawdrv, " A threefold Exercitation with Dr. Ihuu- 
 
 ' printed at the end of Sfrypc's " Life of (.'heko. " Lond. 1705, <3vo. 
 
-raons, concerning Superstition, Will \\'orshij), and Christmas 
 Festival. " Lend. 1654, 8vo. " Bowing towards the Altar, upon 
 Religious Reasons, implied to be grossly Superstitious. " Lend. 
 1661, 4to. 
 
 Tannegui Le Fevre, " Plutarclius de Superslilione. " 1666. 
 
 . Wilson (a Non-conformist), " Nehushtan, or a Dis- 
 
 -course concerning the abolishing of Things abused to Superstition 
 and Idolatry. " Lond. 1668, Bvo. Anon. 
 
 Fortunius Licetus, " De Monstrorum Causis, Naturi'i, et Dif- 
 -ferentiis. " Patav. 1616, 1634, 4to. Et a Blasio, Amst. 1665, 
 4to. Patav. 1688. This work is replete with instances of Credu- 
 -lity and Superstition. 
 
 Joannes Biioun, " contra Lamberti \'^eUhusii Sententiani 
 
 Libertino-Erastianam, de Idololatria, et Superstitione. " Amst. 1670, 
 12mo. 
 
 Thomas Manningham, (Bishop of Chichester,) "The Nature 
 and Effects of Superstition, on Acts xvii. 22." 1692, 4to. 
 
 Antonius van Dale M. D. , " De Origine ac Progressu Idolo- 
 -latria;. " Amst. 1696, 8vo. 
 
 Louis de Cice, " Lettre aux Jesuites sur les Idolatries et sur 
 les Superstitions de la Chine. " 1700, 19mo. 
 
 John ToLAND, " Dissertationes duse; Adeisidamon, sive T. Li- 
 -vius a Superstitione vindicatus; et Origines Judaictc. " Hagae-Co- 
 -mitis, 1709, 8vo. 
 
 John Teenchakd, "The Natural History of Superstition." 
 1709. 
 
 Johannes Franciscus Buddeus, "Theses Theologicse de Atheis- 
 -mo et Superstitione. " Jenae, 1717, 8vo. 
 
 Caspar. Hartzheim, " Explicatio Fabularum et Superstitionum, 
 quarum in S. Scripturis fit mentio. " Col. Ag. 1724, Bvo. 
 
 Pierre Le Brun, " Lettres pour prouver ITllusion des Philo- 
 -sophes sur la Baguette. " Paris, 1693. Reprinted in 1702, with 
 many Additions, under the title of " Histoire critique des Prati- 
 -ques Superstitieuses, &c. " Of this there was a new Edition, 
 1732,* 3 vols. 12mo. ; and, in 1737, the abb6 Granet printed a col- 
 -lection of Pieces, intended as a fourth volume. 
 
 " See also what is said in the Biogr. Brit, at tlit art. "Thier.«i, 
 M. Doctor of Theology. " 
 
Jean Frederick Bernard, *' Picarl's lleligious Ceremonies."' 
 Amst. 1723—43, 9 vols. Fol. " Superstitions anciennes et mo- 
 -dernes. " 1733—36, 2 vols. Fol. Second Edition of these two 
 last works, 1739—43, 11 vols. Fol. Another Edition by the abb^s 
 Banier and Le Mascrier, Paris, 7 vols. Fol. Abridgment, by Pou- 
 -celin. Paris. 4 vols. Fol. And, lastly, a new edition of the whole, 
 with plates, and an additional volume. 13 vols. Fol. 
 
 Revd. W. Weston, B. D. " Some kinds of Superstition worse 
 than Atheism;" 2 Sermons on Phil. iii. 6. 1739, 8vo. 
 
 Henry Piers, M. A., "Religion and Liberty rescued from 
 Superstition and Slavery, on Psal. cvii, 2, " 1746, 8vo. 
 
 Samuel Chandler, D.D. (an eminent Dissenting Minister,) 
 " St. Paul's Rules of Charity, and his incurableness of Superstiti- 
 -on;" a Sermon on 2 Cor. IX, 12. 1748, 4to. 
 
 William Dodwell, ( Arch Dean of Berks, ) "Native Mischiefs, 
 and Remedy of Superstition ; " a Sermon on Psal. xxxi, 7. Oxon. 
 1754, 8vo. 
 
 Revd. Thomas Denton, "The House of Superstition; a Visi- 
 -on. " 1762, 4to. Afterwards prefixed by Mr. Gilpin to his Lives 
 of the Reformers. 
 
 Christian Frederick Mattii.^i, " Plutarchi libellus de Super- 
 -stitione, et Demosthenis Oratio funebris . " * 
 
 William Burton, " Superstition, Fanaticism, and Faction ; a 
 Poem. " 1781, 4to. Is. 
 
 Thomas Mole ( a Dissenting Minister ) , " Piety ; or the Hap- 
 -py Mean between Profaneness and Superstition. " 1782, 8vo. 
 
 Jean Louis de Lolme, LL.D. " History of the Flagellants ; 
 or Memorials of Human Superstition. " 1783, 4to. 
 
 Samuel Rogers ( Esq. Banker in London ) " An Ode to Su- 
 -perstition, with other Poems. '' 1786, 4to. 
 
 John Christopher Adelung, " History of Human Folly; or 
 the Lives of the most celebrated Necromancers, Alchymists, Ex- 
 -oicists. Diviners, &o. in seven parts. ^" Leipsic. 1785 to 1789. 
 
 ^ I should have thought this title ought to be in French. 
 
 ' I have already given this title, p. 44. 
 
 * I add this work as probably treating upon all sorts of Super- 
 -stition. 
 
William C'olmxs, " An Ode on tlie popular Superstitions of 
 the lligiilands of Scotland. " Lond. 1788, 4to. 
 
 Francis Ghose, F. S. A., "A Provincial Glossary, with a Col- 
 -lection of local Proverbs and popular Superstitions. " Lond. 
 1788, 8vo. 
 
 T. Prall, "Superstition; a iMoral Essay." 1792. 4to. Is. 6d. 
 
 Revd. M. J. Naylok, B. D. , " The Insanity and Mischief 
 of Vulgar Superstitions ; in four Sermons. " Lond. 1795, Bvo. 
 
 Revd. Thomas Rennell, D. D., " Ignorance productive of 
 Atheism, Faction, and Superstition; a Sermon." Lond. 1798, 4to. 
 
 Revd. Richard Graves, D. D. , "Sermons on the following 
 subjects; viz: on the Clerical Character, on Superstition, on Mi- 
 -racles, ." Lond. 1799, 8vo. 
 
 Revd. Robert Fellowes, A. M., "Religion without Cant; a 
 Preservative against Lukewarmness and Intolerance, Fanaticism, 
 Superstition, and Impiety. " 1801, 8vo. 
 
 Revd. John Evans, M. A. , " The unhappy Effects of Enthu- 
 -siasm and Superstition; a Sermon." 1804, 8vo. 
 
 Joseph Strutt, " The Test of Guilt ; or Traits of ancient 
 Superstition; a Dramatic Tale. " Lond. 1808, 4to. 
 
 Mrs. Grant, " Essays on the Superstitions of the Highlanders 
 of Scotland. " Lond. 1811, 2 vols. 12mo. 
 
 " A Chronological Table of the Principal Modern Anti-Super- 
 -stitionists. '' ^ Printed by and for William Campion, Richard Has- 
 -sell, and T. R. Perry, Chapel Yard, Newgate. [ Published pro- 
 -bably about Nov. 1825. ] 
 
 "A Dictionary of Modern Anti-Superstitionists ."' Lond. 
 
 Printed and Published by and for R. Carlile, 62, Fleet Street. 
 1826, 8vo. 
 
 ^ This Chart, as also the under-mentioned Book, is of course 
 not mentioned in the Biogr. Brit. 
 
 ^ This work, which was published in sheets, was tliscontinued 
 for want of purchasers, and scarcely extends beyond the middle 
 of the letter A. 
 
THE FOLLOWING IS THE TREATISE 
 
 PLUTARCHUS 
 
 CONCERNING 
 
 SUPERSTITION. 
 
l^.MS- 
 
 i. 
 
 ^' 
 
 nAoyT^pxoY 
 
 nepi A€ICIAAIMONI^C 
 
 I. TMC nepi ©€CON i,M\ei^c km atnouc , eyey^ ""^5 ApxHc Aixik 
 pyeiCHC , TO M6N , ucnep eN xwpioic CKAHpoic , toic ANTiry- 
 -noic Heeci , thn A0€OTHTA , to Ae , cocnep cn yrpoic , toic 
 AHAAOic , THN A£ I C I AM MONI ^,N eMnenoiHK€N . ' 
 
 An^CA MEN OyN KplCIC ^^yAHC , AAAUC T6 '^ KMN HI n€pi TAy- 
 
 -T4, , MoxeHpON ; HI Ae KAi nxeoc npocecTi , MOxenpoTepoN : 
 n^N r^p n^eoc eoiKeN knt-TH (|)A€rMMNoycA €inm ^ ; km , Kxei^.- 
 -nep M M€T\ Tp^YM^TOc ckboam twn ^pepoN * , oyTOc ai mgta 
 n&eoyc AUCTpot^M thc lyxHC , xAAenuTcpM . 
 
 ATOMOyC TIC OI6TAI KM K€N0N ApXAC eiNM TCON OACON ? ^GY ' 
 
 ' Geminus fere est locus Plutarchi in Vit^ Alexandri, ji 
 708. B: 
 
 OyTUC ipA A6INON MEN AHICTIA MpOC TA GeiA , KAI KATA(})pONH- 
 -CIC AyTUN ! AeiNON A AyeiC H A6ICIAAIMON1A , AlKHN yAATOC 
 Aei npOC TO TAneiNOyMCNON KAI ANAnAnpoyN AB€ATHPIAC KAI <j)0- 
 
 -Boy rcNOMeNH . oy mhn aaaa KAinep oyToc exwN aac^an- 
 -Apoc , xpHCMUN re :nepi hc^aictiqnoc 6k eeoy NOMiceeNTUN , 
 AnoeeMCNOc to neNeoc , Ayeic hn cn eyciMC kai noToic . 
 
 Exemplum idem refertur in liomines adulatoribiis deditos, " De 
 Discern. Adiil. ab Amico, " p. 66. B: 
 
 TOyTO MAAICTA TOIC KOAA^IN eyAHHTOyC KAI HAATIOyC HApAAI- 
 
 -AUCiN Ano TUN C(j)OApA npoCANTUN KAI ANTiTynuN , tocHep eni 
 
 TA KOIAA KAI MAAAKA . AlKHN yAATOC AHOAICSANONTAC . 
 
 - AAAOc Te KAI is, I believe, generally translated " especi- 
 -ally ; " yet perliaps I may be right in attempting to retain 
 the original sense of the word aaacoc . 
 
 ' Nunc Stoicos serpiitur. Nam " de Virfute Moral!," ubi 
 Peripateticorum weTpionAeeiAN commendat, vehementiora <an- 
 -tum nA9H , non item mediocria, ivfammata ac tumentia vult 
 
PLUTARCHS 
 
 ON vSUPERSTlTION. 
 
 Ignorance and uninstructedness concerning [ the] 
 Gods may be [ compared to a river] divided into two 
 streams ; one of which, as in stubborn soils, ( that 
 is refractory minds, ) produceth Atheism ; and the 
 other of which, as in marshy soils, ( that is soft and 
 flexible minds, ) produceth Superstition. ^ , Now every 
 false judgment, even when in other ^ cases than these, 
 is [ nevertheless ] pernicious ; but it is still more 
 pernicious, when it is connected with some passion. 
 For every passion seemeth to be an inflamed error ; ^ 
 and, as dislocations of the limbs are more dangerous 
 at the same time there is a wound, so also mental 
 errors are more dangerous when attended by any 
 passion. 
 
 Doth a person imagine, that the Universe hath its 
 origin only in Atoms and a Vacuum ? The conjec- 
 
 dici ( p. 452. A ) : 
 
 OlAOyNTI r^p 60IK6 KM (j)A€rMi> INONTI C60MJ.TI TO nepiAAfOyN Kil 
 
 nepixA.p6C KM nepiAynoN thc ^Y^hc , oy to xMpoN , oyAe to 
 AynoyMENOX , oyAe to 4)Oboym€non , 
 
 * lonicam dictionem tenet Herodotus (111, 129 ) de Dario 
 loquens : 
 
 AApeiON CTpM|)HNM TON noAK i KM Kwc icxypoTepcoc ec- 
 
 -Tp^*H : o TAP oi ACTpjiri.Aoc e^exwpHce €K TCJN i^pepWN : 
 quod Dio Chrvs. bis rereiens ( p. 231, B-et 652, E) omillit 
 ex TWN ApepcoN , 
 
4 nAOYT-\pxoY 
 
 -AHC H Y'^'^^'^'t''^ I kAAA 6AKOC oy Hoiei , oyAe C<|)YrMON , 
 
 OyAe OAyNHN TApATToyCkN . YnOA^MBAN€l TIC TON HAOyTON 
 iiTAeON €INM MenCTON ? TOyTO TO ^-eyAOC ION 6X61* , N6MeTM 
 THN ^t'YXHN I 65ICTHCIN . oyK eM K*,eeYA61N , OlCTpcON 6Mni- 
 -nAHCIN ■ £0661 KAT& TUN neTpCON * . i>rxei 1 THN nAppHCUN *»(|;A1- 
 -peiTAI . n\AIN , OIONTi>l TINeC eiNAI CWMA '' THN Ap€THN KM 
 THN KAKI&N ; MCxpON ICCOC TO ikPNOHMA , epHNUN A6 KM OAyp- 
 -MWN pyK A^ION . AAA MTINeC €ICI TOUyTM KpiC6lC KAI ynO- 
 -AH+6IC : 
 
 " ®<0 TAHMON Ap6TH . AOTOC Ap HCS . erw A6 Ce 
 
 coc eproN HCKoyN 
 
 ii<j)€IC THN AAOyTOnOION AAIKIAN 1 KM THN TONIMON AOACHC HAO- 
 -NHC AKOA&CUN ! " TAyTAC A^ION CCTIN OIKT6lp€IN OMOy Kk\ AyC- 
 -xepMNflN ; OTI nOAAA NOCHMATA KM AAeH , KAGAHep eyAAC KM 
 CKUAHKAC . eNTIKTOyCl TMC ■fY'^^''^ HApoyCM , 
 
 II. oyKoyN KM nepi «n o aotoc . h m€n ^Q€0THC , Kpicic 
 oycA <|)AYAH Toy mhacn 6inm mak^pion km a^jgapton ■ eic 
 
 * Sic Plutarchus " Prajcept. Reip, " p. 819. E: 
 
 - - <|)IAOnAOyTIAN KM (f)! AOxpHMATI AN , CCCnep ClAHpON KM M6CT0N 
 '°.Y. NOCHMA THC |yxHC AnOAyCAM6NOC . 
 
 Dio Chrys. Or. 78. p. 663. A : 
 
 - - ^^Y'^^^ AI6(j)GApM€NH t MA AIA . Oyx yno (})ApMAKCON XplCTCON 
 
 H noTUN 1 oyAe yno lojy tinoc ai€Cgiontoc . aaa ync Te 
 
 ATNOIAC KAI nONHpiAC KAI (flGONOy AH KAI AynHC KAI MypiUN 
 
 eniGyMitoN . 
 
 Horatiu?, de Art. Poet. v. 330: 
 . . - ad hiTC animos serugo et cura peculi 
 cum seniel imbuerit - - - 
 6 Ductum est ex Theognidis dicto, 177, .... on poverty, 
 
 'HN AH XpH <j)eyrONTA , KAI eiC MerxKHTeA nONTON 
 
 pinTeiN , KAI neTpoN , KypNe , kat haibatun . 
 ' Stoicorum placitum, qui omnes vires et qualitates corpo- 
 -reas statueriint. 
 8 Dio Cassias ( XLVII. 49, ) says of Brutus: 
 
 - - - CIC TON GANATON KAI AyTOC KAT6(j)yre , KAI ANABOHCAC TO 
 
nepi A€ICIAA!MONI^C 5 
 
 -ture is false ; but it inflicteth no wound, no palpita- 
 -tion, no tormenting sorrow. [ But, ] doth any one 
 conjecture that money is the summum bonum ? This 
 falsity is, [ as it were, ] poisonous, ^ it preyeth upon 
 the mind, alienateth it, preventeth it from sleeping, 
 filleth it with fury, debaseth it, '^ stifleth it, enslaveth 
 it. 
 
 Again: do some persons imagine that virtue and 
 vice arc substances ? ^ Such an error is perhaps dis- 
 -graceful, but it is not such a one, as we should la- 
 -ment and deplore. But what are those judgments 
 and conjectures, [ which excite a man to say ] : 
 
 ^ " Oh Virtue, tliou art but a name, 
 
 Yet I did long- believe in tiune existence,' 
 
 and have quitted [for thee ] injustice v/hich might 
 have enriched me, and intemperance which produceth 
 every pleasure?" We cannot but lament and even 
 feel angry with such [ opinions, ] because they pro- 
 -duce many disorders and passions in the mind, 
 [which arc] like ulcers and wonrss [to the body]. 
 
 II. To apply these observations to the subject be- 
 -fore us, [I may remark, that] Atheism, being a false 
 opinion that there is nothing [ perfectly ] blessed and 
 
 Hp\KA€10N : 
 
 " a TAHMON &peTH , AOTOC Ap HCQ ! € TW A6 C6 
 
 coc eproN hckoyn ; cy a Ap eAoyAeyec ryxHi , " 
 
 n&p€KAA6C€ TIN& TQN CyNONTUN , INA i^yTCN AHOKTeiNHI , 
 
 This passage is no longer to be found in the remains of any 
 Greek Tragedian. Fortasse ob impietatis speciem a Gramma- 
 -ticis deletum. 
 
 9 I am no poet. But those persons who must have rhyme, 
 may take Baxter's translation: 
 
 " Poor Vertue ! tliou wast but a name, and meer jest, 
 And I, choust fool, did practise thee in earnest. " 
 
nAoyTApxoY 
 
 &n2k9ei^N TINA AOKei thi &niCTiM Toy eeioy nepi^jepeiN ; km 
 
 T€AOC eCTIN i^YTH\ TOy '^H N0M1Z6IN ©cOY^ . TO MH <f)OS€IC- 
 
 -e\i I THN AC A€ICI AMMONI AN Kiii MHNyei ToyNOMik , ao^an 
 
 CMnAeH KAI A€OyC nOIHTIKHN ynOAH4'IN OyCAN CKTineiNOyNTOC 
 Kiil CyNTpiBONTOC TON ANepOnON , OlOMtNON M€N eiNAI ©€OYC . 
 
 eiNAi Ae Aynnpoyc km EAAEepoyc . eoiKe r^p o m£n A960C 
 &K1NHTOC eiNM npoc TO eeiON : o A6 A6ICIAAIM0N , KiNoy- 
 
 -MENOC WC Oy npOCHKCI AIA.CTp€(|)eCeAl . H TAP ATNOIA TWI MCN 
 AHICTIAN TOy CO^ieAOyNTOC eMASnOIHKe ■ TCOl A6 KAI AO^AN QTI 
 
 EAAnTei npocTee6iK€N . oeeN h m6n A9€0THC aotoc €cti Aie- 
 -4'6ycM6NOC ; H Ae A6ICIAMMONIA hagoc eK Aoroy •j'cy- 
 -Aoyc errereNHMeNON . 
 
 III. AlCxpA MGN AH nANTA TA iyxHC NOCHMATA KAI OAGH S 
 TO Ae TAypON CNIOIC OMCOC KAI y^HAON KAI AlHipMeNON eN€CTlN 
 
 yno KoydiOTHToc ; ApACTHpioy as opMHc oyA€N . wc enoc 
 eineiN i AnecxepHTAi . aaaa ToyTo ah kai to koinon erKAH- 
 
 -MA HANTOC AAeOyC eCTIN , OTI TAlC npAKTIKAIC OpMAIC 6KB1AZO- 
 
 -MCNA , KATeneirei kai cyNTeiNei ton aoticmon . monoc Ae o 
 
 (bOEOC I Oyx HTTON WN TOAMHC CNAeHC H AOTlCMOy . AHpAKTON 
 exei KAI AAOpON KAI AMHXANON TO AAOTICTON i HI KAI A6IMA 
 
 KAI TAPSOC AyToy TO cyNAeoN oMoy thn ^-yxHN kai tapat- 
 
 -TON CONOMACTAI . (j>OB«N A€ AiNTUN AApAKTOTATOC KAI AAOpW- 
 
 -TATOC o THC A€ I C I A Al MON I XC . oy (JiOseiTAi gaaaccan o 
 
 MH AAeWN , OyA6 AOAeMON O MH CTpATeyOMENOC . OyAe AHIC- 
 -TAC O OIKOypWN , OyAe CyKO<J)ANTHN O AENHC , OyAS 4>eONON 
 
 o lAitoTHC 1 oyAe ceiCMON o eN TAAATMC . oyAe KepAyNON 
 o 6N Zvl9lo4'lN '" . o Ae SeoyC AeAiwc , aanta AeAie , 
 
 '0 Similarly Plinius, Hist. Nat. II. 80. 
 " Et autumao et vere, terra; crebrius moventiir, sicut fiiint 
 fulmina. Ideo Gallia et /Egyptiis ininime quatiuntur ; quoni- 
 -aiTi liic lestatis caussa obstat, illie hieiiiis. " 
 
 Stobauj, Eclog. Physic, p. 67 : 
 
 en XCOpAIC I OCAI NK^eTUAeiC KAI 'I'yxpAl , KAI DC A I AN KCKAyMg. 
 -NAI yno HAlOy , oy KATACKHAToycm ; Ol KATACKHJANTeC AC CN 
 eAyMATI ANAfjjepONTAI , K.NOAner fN KtATOIC KAI AAp AiryATIOIC. 
 
nepi A€ I CI A M M O N I ^C 7 
 
 immortal, seemetli, by its denial of the Deity, to lead 
 to a sort of apathy; and the consequence, of not 
 believing" that tlicre are Gods, is, the not fearing them. 
 
 The word a€iciaaimoni^ [or "Superstition" ] im- 
 -plieth an impassioned thought, and conjecture full 
 of fear, which humbleth and depresseth man; and 
 [ maketh him ] suppose indeed that there are Gods, 
 but [ that they delight in ] causing grief and misery. 
 
 For the Atheist appeareth to be unaffected towards 
 the Deity ; while the Superstitionist [ appeareth in- 
 -deed ] to be affected, [ but only ] in a perverse man- 
 -ner. For ignorance produceth in the [ Atheist, ] a dis- 
 -belief that [ God ] is benevolent; and in the Supersti- 
 -tionist, an opinion that [ God ] is cruel. Whence it 
 foUoweth, that Atheism is indeed a false opinion ; but 
 that Superstition is an [ evil ] affection of the mind 
 originating in a false opinion. 
 
 III. Of a truth, all the disorders and passions of 
 the mind are disgraceful ; yet, in some, there is a sort 
 of levity which produceth boldness, sublimity, and 
 highmindedness. It may also be said that there is 
 no [ passion ] that is deficient in an impulsive prin- 
 -ciple. And indeed, it is an accusation that may be 
 brought against all the passions, that being urged 
 on by active forces, they oppress and exhaust reason. 
 Fear alone, being as devoid of boldness as of reason, 
 maketh that which is irrational [ in us ] idle, stupid, 
 and perplexed ; whence it is called [ by the Greeks ] 
 AeiMA , because it bindeth, and T^pBoc , because 
 it disturbeth, the mind. And there is no sort of Fear 
 so fatal to occupation, and so productive of perplex- 
 -ity, as Superstition. He that remaineth on dry land, 
 feareth not the storm ; he that goeth not to the war, 
 feareth not the battle; and he that leaveth not his 
 house, feareth not the highwaymen. Neither doth 
 
8 nAOYTApxoy 
 
 THN I e»>AATTAN , ACpA , Oypi'NON . CKOTOC . cfjUC . KAHAONA . 
 ClUnHN ■ ONEipON Tjloi AOyAOl TUN ACCnOTCJN eniAANejkNONTJk I 
 
 KAeeyAONxec . toic nsAHTAic eneAA(()pYN€i ton a€Cmon o Y"- 
 
 -NOC t <j)A€rMONM nepi TpAyMATA KM NOMAl CApKOC GHpiOAEIC 
 KAI nepiOAyNIAl KOIMCOMCNCON A(J)ICTANTAI . 
 
 "■^« <}>Yaon "ynNoy ecArHTpoN eniKoypoN Nocoy . 
 "^oc 'HAy Moi npocHAeec cn asonti re ! " ' 
 
 ToyTo oy AiAOCiN eineiN h A6ICIAMMONIA : monh r^p oy 
 cncNACTAi npoc TON ynNON , oyAE THi -J'yxHi noT€ royN ai- 
 
 -AOCIN ANAONeyCM KM JkNAe&ppHCM , TAC HlKpAC KAI BApCIAC 
 
 nepi Toy 0€OY ao^ac AnucAweNHi . aaa , cocnep en AceBCON 
 xcopui' . TUi ynNUi tun A€ICI AMMONCON , ciacoaa <|)piKUAH , 
 
 KM repkCTIA (|)ACMATA , KAI nOINAC TINAC , CreipOyCA , KAI CTpO- 
 -BOyCA * THN AGAIAN ^I'yxHN . CN TON yONUN €KAIWK6I TOIC ON- 
 
 I Wyttenbach supposes, that, in this sentence, either the 
 thought of the thing is put for the thing itself; or that other 
 -wise (^AerMONAi nepi TpAyMATA kai nomai CApKoc enpiuAeic 
 KAI nepicoAyNiAi should be taken in the sense of nepiWAyNiM 
 
 (bAerMONCON nepi TpAyWATA kai NOMCON CApKOC GHpiOAUN . 
 
 ' Euripides, Orest, v. 208. 
 
 3 Thus /Eschines, or whoever was the author of the Dialogue 
 entitled Axiochus §.21: 
 
 OCOIC Ae TO ZHIN AIA K AKOy pPHMATUN HAAGH , ATONTAI npOC 
 
 epiNNycoN en epeeoc kai xaoc aia TApTApoy . eNGA xcopoc 
 
 ACeBON,;,^, KAI TANTAAOy Al|oC ■ KAI TITyoy CnAATXNA , KM Cl- 
 
 -cy(j)OY neTpoc anhnytoc . 
 Virgilius, Mn. V, v. 734: 
 
 " . ... non me iinpia namque 
 Tartara habent, tristes umbrse; sed amoena piorum 
 concilia Elysiumque colo ..." 
 Lucianus, Necyomant. T. 1, p. 472: 
 o A oyN MiNUc eniMeAOC e^eTAZON AneneMneN ckacton €ic 
 
 ton TON ACeEON XOpON f"|'' y^e^ONTA KAT A^IAN TON T€TOAMHM- 
 -eNON . 
 
 * Sic Plutarchus, " De Cupidit. Divitiar. " p. 525. D: 
 
 Cy AC TOCAyTA npATMATA CyNexeiC ■ KAI TApATTeiC KAI CTpO- 
 -B€IC CCAyTON . 
 
nepi Aei CI AM M O N I AC 9 
 
 the poor [ individual ] fear flattery, nor the humble 
 [ individual ] fear envy. The Gaul feareth not earth- 
 -quakes, nor the Ethiopian thunderbolts. ^^ But 
 he, that feareth Gods, feareth all these things,— 
 earth, sea, air, heaven, darkness, light, noise, silence, 
 dreams. 
 
 In sleep, the slave forgetteth his master, the captive 
 feeleth not the weight of his fetters, and [ the sick 
 man ] experienceth a mitigation even of inflamed 
 wounds, and of cruel and excruciating ulcers. ^ 
 
 " O sleep, thou balmy soother of disease. 
 How opportunely thou hast come to me ! " * 
 
 But the Superstitionist is incapable of saying this. 
 For [ Superstition ] alone maketh no truce with sleep ; 
 nor doth she, now and then, permit the mind to reject 
 its bitter and oppressive thoughts about God, and 
 [ consequently ] to respire and take courage. But, as 
 it were in the shades below, ^ she exciteth, against 
 the sleep of the Superstitious, frightful images, and 
 monstrous visions, and certain [ unknown ] punish- 
 -ments ; and thus agitateth ^ the wretched soul with 
 dreams, that drive away real repose : for [ Supersti- 
 
 - . - . "Numa " p. 68, D: 
 
 AOIMUAHC NOCCC nepiVoyCA THN IT^AliN €CTpOBHCe KAI THN pCO- 
 'MHN . "" 
 
 Ennius, apud Ciceronem De Senect. init: 
 
 " curamve levasso 
 
 Quae nunc te coquit et versat sub pectore fixa, " 
 
 Horatius Epist. II, 2. 90, ( according to the reading proposed 
 by Bentley) •• 
 
 " Qui minus argutos versat furor iste poetas. " 
 
 Propertius III, 17, 12 : 
 
 " Spesque timorque animum versat utroque modo, " 
 
10 nAoyTiivpxoY 
 
 -€ipOIC r MivCTIZOM€NHN KM KOA\ZOM€NHN A-yTHN Y"^ '^V'HC , COC 
 Y4> exepoy , km ASINA npOCTATMikT^^ KAI ^AAOKOXi, A\ME\NOY- 
 
 -CAN . eiT €i;AN^CT^NTec oy KATe<t)poNHC^N , oyAe ercAACi^N , 
 
 OyA HICeHC^N on ton TAP&^^NTCOM OyACN HN i>AHeiNON , i^AAA 
 
 CKiiN <})eYroNT€c &n\THC oyAeN kakon exoycHc , yni^p* e^An*,- 
 -TociN eAyroyc km aahanuci kai TApATToyciN ■ eic ArypTAC kai 
 roHTAc ANepconoyc ewnecoNTec , AeroNTic i 
 
 " AAA €IT CNynNON (})ANTACMA (|)OBH1 , 
 
 xeoNiAC e €KATHC "^ kumon ^ CAe^to ,^ 
 
 THN nepiMAKTpiAN KAA6I PpAyN i KAI BAnTlCON CCAyTON €10 SA- 
 -AACCAN ^ . KAI KABICAC GN THI THI AlHMepeycON . " 
 
 U BApBAp €?€ypONT€C €AAHN€C KAKA ! '" 
 
 THI A€ICI AAIMON! M , nHAWceic ' , KATABopEoptoceic , caebatic- 
 
 * Frequentissim^ conjunctione, ynh^ ^vigilia, et oNAp , som- 
 -■nium , opponi*«untur . 
 
 ^ De Hecates terriculis similiter auctor libri " De Morbo 
 Sacro " inter Hippocrateos p. 303 : 
 
 OKOCA A6 AEIMATA NyKTOC HApiCTATAI KAI (|)0B:M KAI OApANOIAI 
 KAI ANAHHAHCeiC 6K THC KAINHC KAI (jjOEHTpA KAI (jjey^ieC e^CJ , 
 CKATHC ({)ACIN €INAI eniBOyAAC KAI HpCOCON e(|)OAOyC . KAOAp- 
 -MOICI AG xpeONTAI , KAI ANOCIOTATON KAI AGeCOTATON noiecy- 
 
 -ciN , coc eMoi re aok€i : KAeMpoyci rAp Toyc exoMENoyc 
 
 THI NOCWI , AIMACI T6 KAI TOICIN AAAOICI TOICI MIACMACIN , 
 
 exoNTAC AAACTopAC , H ne4> ApMATMeNoyc yno ANeponcoN , H 
 Ti eproN ANOcioN eiprACMeNoyc . 
 7 Thus Euripides, Bacch. v. 1166: 
 - - Aexecee kwmon eyVoy eeoy . [eyioN Hermann.] 
 
 * Videntur Coniici esse Tragicum imitantis. 
 
 9 Mare efficacissimum ad lustratinnem olim credebatur. 
 Thus Euripides, Iphigcn. Taur. v. 1192: 
 
 eAAACcA KAyzei hanta t ANepconwN kaka . 
 after citing which passage, Stobaeus (Tit. IV, p. 53 ) hoc scho- 
 -lion habet : 
 
 <))ep€TAI A€ €IC ToyC ACICI AA IMONAC , Ol eAAACCHI nepiKASAI- 
 _pONTAI . 
 
 Sic reiis caedis et exul, Platonis sententia Leg. IX, p. 657. C.- 
 
 CKHNOCAMENOC CN e^A^TTHI TfPrUN TOyC nOAAC . HAOyN €ni- 
 
n€pi AeiCI AM MON I ^C 11 
 
 -tion ] makelh [ the soul ] to be beaten and buffet ed 
 by itself as if by another [ person, ] and forceth it to 
 receive oppressive and absurd directions. Moreover, 
 when [ superstitious men] awake, they do not despise 
 or ridicule [ their dreams, ] nor do they perceive that 
 what tormented them had no real [ existence ; ] but, 
 fleeing from the shadow of a harmless deceit, they de- 
 -ceive [ their imaginations, ] even when broad awake, ^ 
 [ till ] they completely exhaust and torment them- 
 -selves. They [even! fall into the hands of jugglers 
 and impostors, who say : 
 
 " If some nocturnal phantasm doth affright thee ; 
 or if, from the terrestial Hecat, "^ 
 thou liast a visit ^ been receiving, " 
 
 then send for some old woman to perform expiati- 
 -ons, and dip thyself in the sea, 9 and sit for some 
 [ hours ] on the ground." 
 
 " Alaf?, that Graecians should adopt 
 vile customs, fitted only for barbarians ! " '" 
 [ It is OAving ] to Superstition, that men roll them- 
 -selves in the dirt, ^ thrust themselves into dunghills, 
 
 '« Euripides, Troad. v. 759. 
 
 > Herodotus, II. 85, ^gyptiorum notat luctum : 
 
 TO SHAY reNoc n\N to gk tcon oikhVwn toytwn , kat con enAA.- 
 
 -CATO THN K€c|)AAHN nHAOil , H KAI TO npOCWHON . 
 
 ubi Valckenarius eadem fere iisdem verbis a Diodoro Sic. ( I, 
 72. ) dicta apponit. 
 Demosthenes, " De Corona, " p. 350, A: 
 
 KAGAipUN ^TOYC T€AOYMeNOYC . KAI AOOMATTCON TCOl AHAOI KAI 
 TOIC niTYpOlC 1 KAI ANACTAC AnO TOY KASApMOY i KAI KGAeY* 
 
 -UN AereiN." 
 
 " e^Y^ON KAKON , eYPo*^ amsinon . " 
 Philo Judae-Tis, " De Special. Leg." p. 792, D: 
 
 KAKOTexNlA . HN MMNATYPTAI KAI BUMOAOXOI M6TIACI , KAI TY" 
 
12 HA O YT ^pXO Y 
 
 -Moyc I pi^eic em npocwnoN , McxpAC npoK^eiceic ' ■ aaao- 
 -KOToyc np^cKYNHceic . 
 AiKMCoi Tcol cTOMkTi' Toyc KieApCOIAOyC CKeAeyON AlAeiN Ol 
 
 THN NOMIMON MOyCIKHN CWZeiN AOKOYNT6C S HMSIC A€ TOIC 
 
 ©€OIC A^ioyweN opewi tcoi CTOMi^Ti km aikaioi npoceyxecGAi i 
 
 KM MH THN 6ni TON COAArXNCON MEN TAUTTAN * , 61 KASApA K&l 
 open . CKOneiN ; THN AC ^yTCON Ali.CTp€4)0NTAC km MOAyNON- 
 -TAC . ATOnOIC ONOM^CI . KM pHMACl BApUApiKOIC * , KATMCxyNCIN 
 
 KM n^pjiNOMeiN TO eeiCN km n^TpioN a^iwma thc eyceei/kc. 
 
 AAA ore KcoMiKOc'' oyK AHAOc eipHKS noy , npoc T^yc k&t&- 
 -xpycoyNTAC t\ kainiau kj^i Ki.T&prypoyNTAC ■ oti "monon €aw- 
 
 -KAN HMIN Ol 0€OI npOIKA TON yONON T Tl KM TOyTO nOAyTeACC 
 
 ce^yTOi noicic ? " ecTi ae km npoc ton A€tCIAMMON^ eineiN , 
 
 OTI " TON ynNON Ol ©£OI AHSHN K&KWN eAOCJvN HMIN KM &NX- 
 
 -N&IKWN KM ANApAOOACON T\ (})AyAOTATA. , nepiMA,TT£IN KAI KA- 
 -eAipeiN KAT€nArr6AAOM6NA . 
 
 Plutarchus, " Quoest. Rom." p. 280. B: 
 
 THI €KATHI CKyAAKU MET*. TON AAACON K&eApClUN eK(})€poyCI . 
 
 KAi nepiMATToyci CKyAAKioic Toyc ArNfCMoy AeoMeNoyc . 
 Aristides, " Or. Sacr." T. I. p. 807, in eadem superstitione : 
 
 npOC€TA5€ XDHCACeM TUI HHAWl , npOC TCOI <j>peATI TCOI lepoi , 
 
 KM AoycAceM AyToeeN . n&p€cxoN oyN ee^N km tot6 . to- 
 
 -CAyTK A HN Toy T6 nHAOy KM TOy AepOC H lyxpOTHC , CiCTe 
 epMMON emiHCAMHN npOCApAMeiN TWI <|>peATI ; KM MOI TO yA«p 
 ANT AAAHC AAP&C HpxeCe . 
 
 * Plato, Leg. IX. j). 652. F, in poenis numerat: 
 
 riNAC AMop<|ioyc eApAc . h ctaccic , H nApACTAceic eic lepA . 
 
 ' *' Ore justo, " id est, " antiqua; iniisicaj diligenter et accu- 
 -ratfe jus suum tribuendo "—formula non alibi nobis observata, 
 
 •'cThat is, I suppose, some linguiform part of the liver. The 
 word cnArxNA sometimes means the spleen, liver, and heart. ( vid. 
 Potter's^Antiq. Vol. 1, p. 271. ) So also in Latin the word viscera 
 implies whatever is under the hide ( vid. Adam's Antiq. p. 325. )? 
 
 ' Tims Lucianus, " De Necyomant. " T. I. p. 469: 
 
 O A6 MArOC eN TOCOyTtOI AAIAA KAIOMENHN exWN , OyKCT HpC- 
 -MAIM THI (j)WNHI , HAMMereeeC Ae , WC OIOC T HN ANAKpATWN , 
 
nepi A€ICIAMMONI\C 13 
 
 observe sabbaths, throw themselves on their faces, 
 seat themselves before [ the temples, ] - and practise 
 absurd prostrations. 
 
 Those who imagined, that they kept up the genu- 
 -ine art of musick, directed the players on the harp 
 to sing with an even mouth. ^ And we also recom- 
 -mend [religious people ]to pray to the Gods with 
 a composed and regular countenance ; and while we 
 are examining whether the tongue upon the entrails * 
 [ of the victim ] is pure and straight, we should not 
 roll about, and distort, our own [ tongues, ] by pro- 
 -nouncing absurd names and barbarous phrases,^ 
 disgracing and perverting the divine religion [ es- 
 -tablished on ] the authority of our forefathers. 
 
 But the Comic writer^ hath not inelegantly said, 
 against those who ornament couches with gold and 
 silver: "Why dost thou make sleep expensive, 
 whereas sleep is the only blessing which the Gods 
 bestow upon us gratuitously. " Similarly [ we ] may 
 say to the Superstionist : "Why dost thou make 
 sleep a perpetual torment and pain, whereas sleep is 
 
 AMMONikC T€ OMOy AANTJiC eneEO^TO I KikI nOINivC ■ KM epiN- 
 -NY^C 1 KM uyxib^H eKATHN , KM CMMNHN n€pC€({!ON€lAN , IM.- 
 -pivMirNyC *.M\ BivpEJkpiKA TINA. KM ACHMA ONOMATA KM nOAyCY^- 
 
 Pseudomant . " T. II. p. 221 = 
 
 o A6 (|)WNAC TiN^c ACHMoyc <|)eerroMeNOc , oim reNOiNT an 
 espMCON ^ <()OiNiKUN , e^€nAHTTe Toyc ANepconoyc , oyK eiA- 
 
 -OTAC O Tl ACrOI . 
 
 Porphyrius ( ap. Euseb, " Praep. Evang. " V. p. 196. D : ) 
 
 ncoc &N €i€N eeoi MArr\NeiMc - - - km ticin aaaoic achmoic 
 
 KM BApBApiKOIC HXOIC TE KAI (bwNMC KHAOyMENOI - - ? 
 
 - ib. p. 198. D: 
 
 Tl AC KM Ti, ACHMA BOyA6TM ONOM^T^ KM T65N &CHMCON T& 
 BApB&pA npO TWN 6KACTU1 OIKCIUN ? 
 
 ^ Credo Menandnini s>if,niificaii, quanu|ua:n alibi sententiam 
 citatam non reperiinus. 
 
14 nAOyT^pxoY 
 
 -nAyciN' ; ti toyto koaacthpion CAyrwi noieic eniMONON K^r 
 
 OAYNHpON , THC ASAUC ly^^C €IC AAAON ynNON ® ivnOApivNM MH 
 AyNAM6NHC ? " 
 
 o HpAKA€ITOC (})HCi • " toic erpHropociN gna k&i koinon koc- 
 
 -MON eiNikl , TQN AC KOIMCOMeNUN CKACTON €IC lAION AHOCTpe- 
 
 -<j)eceiii " . Tcoi A6 . AeiCI AAIMCNI koinoc oyAeic ecri koc- 
 -Moc : oyre r&p erpHropuc rtoi (|)poNoyNTi xpHXiki , oyre koimo- 
 
 -MeNOC ^nAAAikTTeTM Toy TAp^TTONTOC ! AAA ONSiptOTTei M€N O 
 
 AoncMOC , erpHrope a€ o (Jjoboc ^ei ; 4>Y'"^^ ^^ oy^ ecTiN . 
 
 OyA€ MeXikCTACIC . 
 
 IV. HN 4>OEepoc , CN C^MCOI , nOAYKpATHC Typ\NNOC : hn , 
 €N KOpiNecOl , r\epi2ivNApoC ; AAA oyAeic e(})OEeiTo Toy- 
 
 -TOyC MeTACTAC €IC nOAIN CACyeepAN km AHMOKpAXOyMeNHN . o 
 
 Ae THN TCJN 0€CON ApxHN , coc TypANNiAA <j)OBoyMeNoc CKyepu- 
 
 -nHN KAI An&pMTHTON , AOy M6TACTH1 , noy (fyHI ? nOIAN THN 
 
 &960N eypHi , nouN eAAACCAN ? eic ti kataayc Toy KocMoy 
 Mepoc , KM AnoKpy^l'AC c€i-yTON , CO T&AAinwpe , nicTeyceic oti 
 ton ©eoN &non€<))eyrAC ? ^ 
 
 €CTi KM AoyAOic NOMOc '" , eAeyeepiAN AnorNoyci i np&ciN mt- 
 -eice^i , KM A€cnoTHN MeTi.EAAA6iN enieiKecTepON , h ac A6ICI- 
 -AMMONIA ©€CON aaaathn oy aiawcin s oyA ecTiN eypeiN 
 
 ON oy <t)OBHC6TM ©€ON , O (J)OBOyMeNOC TOyC HATpWIOyC KAI 
 
 reNGGAioyc t o 4'pi''"'''"^ Toyc cuthpac km Toyc MciAixioyc ; 
 TpeMCON KAi A6A0IKUC HAp UN AiToyweeA OAoyTON , eynopiAN . 
 
 ^ Hanc Plutarcheam admonitionem opportune Davisius con- 
 -tuiit cum Ciceronis gravissiino loco. ( Divinat. II. 72 : ) " Per- 
 -fiigium videtur omnium laborum et soUicitudinum esse som- 
 
 -nus ; at ex ipso plurimse cura3 metusque nascuntur . " Sed 
 
 totus in ipso libro locus legendus est. 
 
 8 I should wish to erase this second ynNON, and to consider 
 that there is some word understood after aaaon, as alter eTepoy 
 in p. 10, lin. 2. 
 
 9 The Israelitish Hymnographer celebrates the uni^eJ■sal pow- 
 -er of his Deity under the apparent influence of more amiable 
 ideas, vid. Psalm. 139, v. 7. &.c. 
 
 '" I do not understand this ( Athenian ) Law, which I sup- 
 
nepi A€ICIAMMONI^C 15 
 
 bestowed upon us by the Gods, ^ that, when [ our ] 
 wretched souls can have recourse to no other [ com- 
 -forter ] ^ our cares may cease and be forgotten ? " 
 
 Heraclitus saith, that " those who are awake enjoy 
 one world m common, but that those who sleep inha- 
 -bit each of them a separate [ world ] ". But the Su- 
 -perstitious [ man ] hath no world in common [ with 
 other men ] : for, when awake, he doth not enjoy his 
 right senses, and, when asleep, he is not liberated from 
 [ the dream ] which toraienteth him ; but, while the 
 principle-ofreason is torpid, theprinciple^ffearis ever 
 active, and there is no fleeing from it and no removal. 
 
 IV. The tyrant Polycrates was feared at Samos, 
 and so was Periander at Corinth ; but they were 
 feared by no one, who had removed into a State, where 
 freedom and democracy were established. But, whi- 
 -ther can he escape, who looketh upon the government 
 of the Gods as a morose and inexorable tyranny? 
 What land, [ or ] what sea, shall he find, that hath 
 not [ its ] God ? Wretched being ! Into what part of 
 the universe wilt thou go down and hide thyself, in 
 the belief that thou wilt have escaped the Deity ? 9 
 
 Slaves, who have renounced freedom, are entitled, 
 by law, 1° to demand a sale, and can [ thus ] obtain a 
 milder master ; but Superstition will not allow a 
 change of Gods ; nor can a God, that shall not occa- 
 -sion terror, be found by any one, who feareth pater- 
 -nal and genethliacal [ deities, ] and who dreadeth the 
 [ Gods, called ] Saviours, and [ those called ] Propi- 
 -tious : for he regardeth with fear and trembling, those 
 beings of whom we ask wealth, plenty, concord, 
 
 -pose the slave could only avail himself of, in very particular 
 cases. Perhaps the conditions may be explained in the works 
 referred to bv Wvttenbach. 
 
16 nAOYT^pxoy 
 
 eipHNHN , opewciN AoruN KM epruN . 
 eiTA oyxoi TO AOY^eY^"^ kTyxHM* htoyntm i km Aeroyci '■ 
 
 " /i€INH TIC «>NApi KM ryNMKI CyM(J)OpA , 
 
 AoyAoyc r6N€cejki , ACcncTikC re Aycryxcic 
 AABeiN J - - - - " ' 
 
 noccii Ae A€iNOTepoN oiecee niiCxeiN &yToyc ' . ANEK^ieyK- 
 -Toyc , A.Ni.noApj.cToyc , A.NAnocT*.TOYC ! . ecri AoyAUi (pey- 
 
 -^IMOC BOMOC . 6CTI KAI AHICTMC ikS€BHAA, ^ AOAAA TUN lepUN » 
 
 KAi noAeMioyc cfieyroNTec , an ataamatoc aaewntm h N&oy , 
 
 eAppOyciN , O A€ ACICIA^IMCON TAyTA MAAICTA <J)piTT€l KM 
 <J)OBeiTAl KAI ACAOIKeN ■ €N CIC Ol <J)OEOyM€NOI TA ACINOTATA 
 
 TAG eAniAAc exoyci . mh AnocnA ton A€ICI AAIM0N>> twn 
 
 lepON ! CNTAyeA KOAAZCTAI KAI TIMUpeiTAI . 
 
 Tl A€l MAKpA ACrCIN ? HCpAC ECTI TOy BlOy AACIN ANepCOnOlC 
 O GANATOC * S THC' AC A€ I CI A^ ! MONl AC , OyA OyTOC J AAA 
 
 ynepBAAAgi royc opoyc eneK€iNA Toy zhin , MAKpcxepcN Toy 
 
 BlOy nOIOyCA ton <J)OBON , KAI CyNAHTOyCA TQI OANATWI ka- 
 -KWN eniNOIAN AeANATWN i KM OT6 HAyCTAI npAFMATWN , * Ap- 
 
 ' Somewhat similarly Euripides, Medea, v. 54 : 
 
 xpHCTOICI AOyAOIC 25yM4>OpA TA A€CnOTWN 
 KAKOC niTNCyNTA , KAI (fpCNUN ANeAnTCTAI . 
 
 Ptiilemon, ap. Stob. Tit. 60. p. 384: 
 
 KAKCN eCTI AOyAUl AeCAOTHC npACCCJN KAKCOC : 
 MeTexeiN ANATKH TWN KAKON TAp riN€TAI . 
 
 Aristophanes, Plut. v. 1 : 
 
 WC AprAA€ON npATM CCTIN t (0 ZCy KAI 6601 i 
 
 AoyAON reNCCGAi nApAc^ipcNoyNTOc AecnoToy ! 
 
 * Wyttenbach supposes that we perhaps ouglit to read : 
 noctii A€ AeiNOTepoN oiecee exeiN AyToyc AycTyxeic Aecno- 
 
 -TAC , ANeK(J)€yKTOyC , K . T . A . 
 
 ^ I take these words in the same sense as Baxter does. But 
 Xylander, tacitly followed by Wyttenbach, translates : " multa 
 sunt quaj ^ latronibus non violantur templa. " 
 
nepi A6ICIAMMONIAC 17 
 
 peace, [ and the ] direction of [our ] words and 
 actions. 
 
 Again : [ Slaves ] consider their slavery a misfor- 
 -tune, and say : 
 
 " How dreadful a calamity it is 
 
 for man or woman to become a slave, 
 
 and be subservient to ill-tempered masters. "' 
 
 But, how much more severely they suffer, ^ who are 
 subservient to masters, that cannot be fled from, 
 that cannot be avoided, that cannot be removed ! 
 
 An altar is a refuge for a Slave ; even for robbers 
 many of the temples are sanctuaries ; ^ and those who 
 flee from the enemy take courage if they can clasp 
 hold of an image or shrine. But these very things, 
 in which those who fear the greatest dangers place 
 their confidence, are objects of dread, fear, and alarm 
 to the Superstitionist. Drag not away the Supersti- 
 -tious [ man ] from the temples, for it is there that 
 he is punished and tormented. 
 
 But I will come to another argument. Death, 
 which is to all men the termination of life, * is not 
 [ the termination ] of Superstition. She passeth over 
 the limits of existence, prolonging fear beyond life, 
 and joining to death the consideration of eternal mi- 
 -sery, and imagining that when [ transitory ] aft'airs ^ 
 
 * The phrase is apparently taken from Demosthenes, Orat. 
 pro Corona, p. 326. C : 
 
 nep\c MSN rK\> &n\ciN ^Nspunoic €Cti toy sioy o eknuToc , 
 
 K&IN €N OIKICKCOI TIC b^yTON Kieeip5\C THpHl I A€l A6 TOyC 
 
 Afi^eoYc JkNAp^c erxeipeiN m€n ahacin j>ei toic kaaoic i thn 
 xr^eHN npoBikAAOMeNOYc CAniAik , <f)€p€iN A€ o Ti i>N o eeoc 
 
 AlAOi r€NNAIUC , 
 
 * Might we not perhaps read n^pkroMeNCON instead of npATM^TcoN? 
 
18 
 
 nAOyTApxOY 
 
 -xece^i AOKoyc* mh rwyoMeNON . 
 
 AIAOY TiN€C ^NoiroNTM nyAM B^eeiM , k\' hotamoi nypoc 
 OMoy K&i cxyroc Anoppurec &Ni,neT&NNyNTM , km ckotoc 
 
 e^HAAUTM nOAy4)JkNTACTON ^ , CIAWACON TINWN , XJin6AJiC M€N 
 OJ'eiC , OIKTpAC AC <^)CON^C , eniljsepONTCON t AIK^vCTAI A6 , KM KO- 
 -AACTM , KM XACMATi . KM MyxOl , KiiKON MypiCON rCMONTeC '' . 
 OyTUC H KAKOAAIMON A€ I CI A ^t MONI ^ , KAI [o TWl ] * MH 
 
 n^eeiN CKnetJieyreN , [ AcfiyAAKTON , Ttoi] npocAOKMN , AyxHi 
 nenoiHKe . ^ 
 
 V. ToyrwN oyACN thi A960THTI npocecriN • &aa h mcn 
 APNOiA xAAenH . KAI TO n>.popMN KAI Ty({)ACOTTeiN nepi THAIKAy- 
 
 -TA , CYM(|)OpA MCTAAH lyxHC . CJCncp OMMATCiN OOAAUN TO 
 <))ANWTATON KM KyplCiTATON , JkneCBCCMeNHC THN TOY ©^OY 
 
 NOHCiN . TAyTHi AS TO CMnAeec 1 ocnep eipHTAI . KAI €AKU- 
 
 -A€C . KAI TApAKTiKON ■ KAI KATAAeAOyAOMCNON , eyoyc npOC€C- 
 -Tl THI AO^HI . '"* 
 MOyCIKHN (JJHCIN O HA^TCON ' , CMMeASIAC KAI CypySMIAC AH- 
 
 -MioyproN 1 ANepconoic yno secON . oy Tpy(})HC cnska kai 
 
 KNHC€COC UTCON AOGHNAI , AAAA TO TUN THC ^^yxHC nepiOAQN 
 KAI ApMONlUN TApAXWAeC KAI nenAANHMfNON €N CWMATI , MOy- 
 -CHC Te KAI XApiTOC eNA6IM i HOAAAXH . Al AKOAACIAN KAI fVAHM- 
 
 -MCAeiAN 1 e^yspizoN , Ayeic €ic ta^in AweAiTToycAN oikciwc 
 KAI nepiAfoycAN nApeiNAi . 
 
 •5 This reminds me of the " darkness visible " of Milton, vid. 
 Far. Lost, B. 1, v. 63; wiiere the annotators refer to Euripid. 
 Bacch. V. 510, and Senec, Epist, 57. 
 
 7 The English word groaning mav, I think, be here used to 
 express the double sense of the Greek word rcMciN. viz: " re- 
 -pletion and lamentation. " 
 
 ^ I have adopted the reading proposed by Xylander and 
 Wyttenbach. The common reading is kai eecoi to mh nAeeiN 
 SKnecfjeyreN A(|)yAAKTcoi npocAOKAiN AyTHi nenoiHKC: of which, I 
 suppose, no sense could be made. 1 must observe that I have 
 translated AcjsyAAKJON as if it were a false reading for A(|)yKTON, 
 Xylander seems to translate " calamitosum. " 
 
 9 Similiter, in alia re, Dio Chrysost. Or. 64. p. 593. C : 
 
nepi AGi Ci A M M O N I AC 10 
 
 are terminated, interminable one^s begin! 
 
 [ Tliereiore ] are certain vast gates of Hades open- 
 -ed, and rivers are spread out with waves of fire and 
 of hatred, and a darkness full of phantasms ^ is 
 brought on, and ghosts with horrible countenances 
 and screeching voices; and there are judges too, 
 and executioners, and chains, and dens groaning ^ 
 with infinite tortures. Thus hath wTetchcd Super- 
 -stition rendered for herself by anticipation, that 
 [ very period ] inevitable, " which she avoideth by 
 ceasiiig to sufter ! '-> 
 
 V. There are none of those [ miseries ] in Atheism. 
 Yet [ certainly ] ignorance is blameable ; and the 
 overlooking, and shutting-one'sreytfs-upon, matters of 
 such importance, is a great calamity for the soul, 
 which is extinguished as regardeth the knowledge of 
 God, as if [ towards ] what appeareth extremely clear, 
 and proper, to most [ other ] eyes. But, in this opi- 
 -nion, [ viz. Atheism, ] are ^" there those perturbations, 
 diseases, troubles, and servitudes, which I have 
 above described [ as beloiiging to Superstition ] ? 
 
 Plato saith, ^ that Music, which is the maker of 
 concord and agreement, was given by Gods to Men, 
 not to tickle the ear and produce luxury, but that 
 the motions and harmonies of the soul, when distur- 
 -bed and wandering in the body, from tlie absence of 
 [ the ] Muses and [ the ] Graces, might be recalled to 
 their former consent and conformity. 
 
 H ryxH Ti-p ^YT"! • TO MHAGN AAeeiN nepinoiHCiMf.KH , to at- 
 
 -NO€lh4 eA60K€N , Onep OMOION HM TQI MH HASGIN . 
 
 '" I have ventured ( in the English ) to read this sentence 
 interrogatively, which seems to me to render unnecessary the 
 negation intrndnced hy Stephanas, and the remote reference 
 imagined by Wyltenbach. 
 
 ' Non ex uno Platoni? loco sumia, &ed pluribus i:i libris 
 
20 nAoyTApxoy 
 
 " OCA r^p MH n64)IAHK€ 
 
 Z€YC - - - 
 
 (e(|>H niNAApOC)' 
 
 .... ATyZONTiil BOAN 
 
 ni€piACON aVonta - - -:" 
 
 KM TAp AIArpiAIN€TAI KAI APANAKTei . KAI TAC TirpiC f}>ACI nep(- 
 -TYMnANIZOM€NAC CKMAINeCeAl KAI TApATTeCeAl , KAI TeAOC Ay 
 -TAC AlACnAIN . 
 
 6AATTON OyN KAKON , OIC i AIA KCOcfjOTHTA KAI HMpCOCIN AKOHC i 
 AHAeeiA npOC MOyClKHN KAI ANAICeHCIA CYMSeBHKeN . o T€l- 
 
 -peCIAC expHTo AycTyxiAi , mh BAencoN ta tckna mhac Toyc 
 cyNHeeic ' : o Ae X©AM\C MeizoNi , kai h AFAYH > BAenoN- 
 
 -TeC COC A60NTAC KAI €AA<j)OyC . KAI* TCOl Hp^KA€l AHOOy MA- 
 
 -NeiMTi Toyc yieic eAyciTCASi mhtc iacin . mhtc AiceeceAi n\- 
 
 -pONTAC . H xpHCGAI TOIC (fllATATOIC tOC nOA€MI01C . 
 
 VI. Ti oyN ? oy AOK€i coi KAI TO TUN ^9€C0N npoc 
 
 TOyC A€ICIAAIMON^C AASOC €X€IN TOlAyTHN AIA<f)CpAN ? Ol 
 
 M€N oyN oyx opwci G€OYC TonApAOAN , Ol A€ ynApxeiN ka- 
 
 -KOyC NOMIZOyCIN * : Ol AAeN OApopOCIN , Ol A€ AO^AZOyCI (J)0- 
 
 -BepON TO eyMeseC , kai TypANNIKON to HATPIKON , kai BAABepON 
 
 TO KHAeMONIKON . KAI TO AMIKTOn"^ ATpiON 61NAI KAI OHplWACC , 
 
 fITA XAAKOTynOIC M€N nCieONTAl KAI AieO^OOIC KAI KHpOHAAC- 
 
 sparsim tradifa, indeque collecta sunt. - - - Plurima tamen ex 
 Tiinffio, p. 533. E. 
 
 * Pyth. I. 25. [ only, there, it is occa ac mh - - - ] 
 
 ' Tiresiam coecum novimus ; sed eum non vidisse filios suos 
 et familiares, idque miseratum esse, non videtur ex aliquo po- 
 -pta sumtum, sed "k Plutarcho ita positum, ut cum videntium 
 lurentiumque exemplis componeretur. 
 
 * Is not the particle an wanting in this sentence ? 
 
 * Thus Seneca. Epist. 123. fin ; 
 
 " Siiperstitio error insanus est ; amandos timet, quos colit vio- 
 -!af. Quid eiiiiii interest, utrum Deos noges, an infamesf " 
 
n€pi AeiCI A M MO N I ^C 21 
 
 Pindar - saith : 
 
 " Those in whom Jove doth not delight, 
 are troubled, when they hear the Muses' voice, " 
 
 for indeed they become angry and indignant [ at it. ] 
 So also it is said, that Tigers, when drums are bea- 
 -ten around them, will become so furious, as, at last, 
 to tear each other to pj@g|ees. 
 
 They therefore suffer less, who, through defect of 
 hearing, or from [ absolute ] deafness, are insensible to 
 music, and are [ therefore ] unmoved by it. Tire- 
 -sias was very unfortunate, in not being able to see 
 his children or his friends ^ ; but Athamas and Agave 
 were still more unfortunate, who took [ their children 
 and friends ] for lions and deer. It would also have 
 been better for Hercules, when he was distracted, if he 
 could have neither seen his children, nor have been 
 aware of their presence, than that he should have 
 treated, as enemies, those whom he loved so dearly. 
 
 VI. What then? Doth there not appear to thee a 
 similar difference in the state of the Atheist's mind 
 [ as compared ] with that of the Superstitionist's ? The 
 former seeth not the Gods at all ; the latter believeth 
 their existence, but at the same time their malevo- 
 -lence. ^ [ The Atheist ] indeed overlooketh them ; but 
 the [ Superstitionist ] mistaketh [ their ] mildness for 
 terror, [ their ] paternal affection for tyranny, [ their ] 
 care for injuriousness, and [their] imperturbability^ 
 for savageness and brutality. 
 
 Moreover, [ Superstitionists ] suffer themselves to 
 be persuaded, by workmen in copper, stone, and wax, 
 
 " Wyttenbach modestly retains in the text the word ^mikton 
 'Iho' he shews that it evidently ought to be changed to iMHNi- 
 -TON, the meaning of which last word I have therefore given 
 ( or attempted to give ) in the English, 
 
22 nAoyTxpxoY 
 
 -TAic *NepcjnoMop(j)i> TOON 06CON t*. cum\t^ eiNJki . km toiaY''"*^ 
 nAi^TToyci KM K&TiCK£Y*'ZOYCi KM npocKyNoyci : 4>'^0'^ot"'^ 
 
 A€ K&l nOAITIKWN ^NAp«N K^T^(|)pONOYCIN , inOAClKNYNTCON THN 
 TOY ©60Y CeMNOTHTJk MgTA xpHCTOTHTOC . KM M6rAAO<|)pO- 
 -CyNHC . KM 6Y'>^€N€IAC . KM KHAeMONUC . 
 
 nepiecTiN oyN . toic men anaicghci/^ km &nicTiA tcon u<|>€a- 
 
 -OyNTUN K&AMN . TOIC A6 T&pikXH Kt.\ ())OBOC OpOC Th, COcbeAOYN- 
 
 -T\ . KM OAUC , H M6N ^9€OTHC ^nAeel^ npoc to ©CION 
 ecTi , MH NooycA TO ATAeoN ! H A€ A€ I CI A^l MON I X , no- 
 -AYnikeeu' , kakon to atagon Y'^°^°°Y^'^ • <t'OBOYNTM Toyc 
 06OYC . KM KATAcJjeYroYciN em Toyc G€OYC : KOAAKcyoy- 
 
 -CIN ^ , KAI AOIAOpoyCIN ; eyxONTAI , KM K&TikM€M(})ONTAI . 
 
 KOiNON JkNepuncoN TO MH HANTA AicyTyxeiN , 
 
 " KeiNOI TAp ANOCOI KAI ATHpAOl , HONWN TC AHeipOl > 
 
 BApyBOAN nopaMON necjjeyroTec AX€pONTOC ■ ^ " 
 o niNA^pOC'° 0€OYC <f"ci ; ta Ae ANoptoniNA hagh kai npAr- 
 
 -MATA MCMIKTAI CyNTyxiAIC AAAOT6 AAAUC peoyCAlC • 
 
 VII. <})ep6 AH ■ npUTON 6N TOIC ABOyAHTOIC • CKOOei TON A- 
 -©£ON , KAI KATAMANGAN6 THN AlAQeCIN : eAN HI TAAAA M6TpiOC i 
 xpWM6N0y CICOHHI TOIC HApoyCI , KAI nOpiZONTOC AyTUI BOHG€l- 
 
 -AC KAI nApnropiAC « an ag Ayc4>opHi kai BApynAeni ■ oantac 
 
 ^ Rariiis vocabuluin, factum ad imitationem AnAeeiAC. Sic 
 Syinpos. IX, p. 734. A: 
 
 H nepi TA AoyTpA thc c^pKOC noAynAGeiA . 
 Item noAynAGHC [ infra, cap. XIV, lin. 1. ] de ipsa Superstitione, 
 
 8 Igitur acute Maximus Tyrius superstitiosum in adulatori- 
 -bus censet ( Diss. XX. (5, p. 211 : ) 
 
 - - o MeN eycesHc ({iiaoc eewi . o Ae aciciaaimon koaa^ 
 eeoy . km makapioc o eycesHc , <|)Iaoc eewi » AycTyxnc Ae 
 
 O A61C1AAIM(a>N , KOAA5 Gfeoy , 
 
 9 It seems unknown in what metre these lines are written. 
 
 '" Bis sin? I'indaii nomine, reposuit Phitarchus, in Amato- 
 -rio, p. TJS^ Cj ct de Communib. Not. adv. Stoic, p. 1075, A. 
 
n€pi AeiCIAAIMONIAC 23 
 
 that the bodies of the Gods are anthiopomoiphoiis ; 
 and [ accordingly ] they fabricate, ornament, and 
 worship them, as such; and they despise philoso- 
 -phers and statesmen, who describe the venerable na- 
 -ture of the Deity, by [ giving him the attributes of] 
 goodness, magnanimity, mildness, and protective- 
 -ness. 
 
 [ Atheists ] therefore, neither perceive nor credit 
 the excellent [ things ] which would be useful [ to 
 them ; and [ Superstitionists ] change what would 
 be useful to them into a cause of trouble and fear. 
 And, in short. Atheism is apathetical as regardeth 
 the Deity, and is incapable of percei\ing the [ sum- 
 -mum ] bonum ; while Superstition is polypathetical, ^ 
 and mistaketh the [ summum ] bonum for [ the sum- 
 -mum ] malum. [ The Superstitionist ] is afraid of 
 the Gods, yet hath recourse to the Gods. He flatter- 
 -eth them,'' and yet reproacheth them. He prayeth 
 to them, and yet accuseth them. 
 
 No Mortal can be always happy. It is with refer- 
 -ence [ only ] to the Gods that Pindarus i" saith : 
 
 '* They have no illness, no old age ; 
 no labour they endure ; 
 nor are they obliged to pass 
 the deeply-sounding Acheron, " 
 
 But human passions and actions are liable to a mul- 
 -tiplicity of uncertain accidents. 
 
 VII. Now, first in things not under the disposal 
 of his volition, consider the Atheist and obsei^ve his 
 behaviour. If he is [ a man ] of a forbearing temper, 
 he endureth the present events in silence, and endea- 
 -voureth to provide himself with assistance and 
 consolation. But, if he is [ a man ] of fretful and ini- 
 
24 nAOYTApxoy 
 
 €ni THN TYXHN KikI TO A Y'''0'*^'^"'"ON l»n€p€IAOMCNOY TOyC OAyp- 
 -MOyC I Kil BOWNTOC . <0C OYA6N KATA AIKHN . Oy^ CK npO- 
 -NOUC . AAAA AANTi CYrK€XYM€N£JC KAl AKpiTOC 4>€peTJkl KM 
 CnieATAI ' TA TON ANepCOHCON . 
 
 Toy AC AeiCIAXIMONOC oyx oyToc o Tponoc i aaa ei kai 
 
 MIKpOTATON AyTOI KAKON TO CyMneHTCOKOC €CTIN , '{aAAA ' KASH- 
 
 -TAI n^eH , XAAeOA , KAI MerAAA , KAI AyCAnAAAAKTA , THI 
 
 AynHI npOCOIKOAOMUN , KAI npOC€M<|)0.pUN AyTQl AeiMATA , KAI 
 
 <))OBOyC , KAI ynO^IAC , KAI TApAXAC . nANTl epHNUI KAI nANTI 
 
 CTeNATMCoi' KAeAnTOM€Noc i oyTc TAp ANepwnoN , oyTe ryxHN . 
 
 OyT€ KAipON , Oye AyTON , 'AAAik nANTCiN TON GCON AITIA- 
 
 -TAi , KAiKcieeN en AyTON hkcin kai (^epeceAi peyMA aaimonion 
 
 ATHC (})HCI ; KAI , tOC Oy AyCTyxHC CON , AAAA eeOMICHC TIC 
 
 ANepconoc . yno ton GCCON KOAAzeceAi , kai aikhn aiaonai , 
 
 KAI nANTA AACXeiN HpOCHKONTWC Al AyTON OIGTAI . 
 
 NocuN Te ■* o AG€OC eKAOnzeTAi kai anamimnhckctai nAHCMo- 
 
 -NAC AyTOy KAI OINWCeiC . KAI ATA^IAC ngpl AlAITAN , H KO- 
 
 -noyc ynepsAAAONTAC i h mctaboaac AepcoN AHeeic kai ATonoyc , 
 eneiTA , npocKpoycAc €n noAiTeiAic . kai nepinecoN aao^iaic 
 
 npOC OXAON . H AIABOAAIC HpOC HTeMONA , THN AITIAN €^ AyTOy 
 KAI TON nepi AyTON ANACKOn€l 1 
 
 " HH HApeBHN ? Tl A epe^A ? Tl MO! A€ON OyK CTCAeCeH ? * " 
 
 TOI AC A6ICIAMMONI kai COMATOC AppOCTIA AACA , KAI 
 XpHMATCCN AnOBOAH , KAI T€KNCON eANATOi i KAI nepi AOAITIKAC 
 
 ' Wyttenbach seems to conjecture tapattctai or cnApATTeTAi. 
 I follow the translation of Xylander. 
 
 * My unaccented type is unable to distinguish between -"AAAi 
 but, and^AAA other ^ 
 
 3 Wyttenbach proposes aantoc epHNOi kai hantoc CTeNAPMOi, 
 which I have adopted in the English. 
 
 * Might we not read ag instead of Te? 
 
 * Pythagoricum praeceptuin in Aureo Carmine, versu 42. 
 
n€pi AeiCIAMMONlXC 25 
 
 -patient temper he directeth all his complaints against 
 Chance and Spontaneity ; and declareth, that no- 
 -thing here below is directed by Justice or Provi- 
 -dence, but that all things are hurried on, and impel- 
 -led, 1 in promiscuous confusion. 
 
 But this is not the custom of the Superstitionist. 
 However small may be the evil which hath happen- 
 -ed, he abandoneth himself to sorrow, adding to his 
 grief other; oppressive, and almost incurable, pas- 
 -sions, by presenting his [ fancy ] with terrors, fears, 
 suspicions, and trepidations, and doing nothing 
 without tears and groans. ^ For he blameth neither 
 Man, nor Fortune, nor the Seasons, nor himself; but 
 he layeth all the blame upon [ his ] God, and saith, 
 that, from that quarter, a spiritual flood of venge- 
 -ance is let loose upon him. Moreover, he doth not 
 consider himself as unfortunate, but as a [ poor ] 
 mortal under-divine-displeasure, punished by the 
 Gods, and making satisfaction for his [ sins ] , and 
 enduring all things deservedly. 
 
 The Atheist, when ill, calculateth, and calleth to 
 his remembrance, how often he ha.th eaten or drunken 
 too much, what irregularities he hath made in his 
 diet, whether he hath over-exerted himself, or hath 
 gone into an atmosphere contrary to his habits [ and 
 his constitution ] . When again he maketh a mis- 
 -take in political aiFairs, and either incurreth the 
 displeasure of the mob, or is falsely accused before 
 [ the ] head-of-the-government, he seeketh for the 
 cause [ of these things ] in himself, and [ in ] those 
 around him ; [ and saith ] : 
 
 " What fault, or what omission have I made? " * 
 
 But, by the Superstitionist, every bodily infirmity, 
 loss of wealth, death of children, vexations and 
 
26 nAoyTxpxoy 
 
 npA^eic AY'^^"^^?"'' *''^' knoT6Y3i€ic . nAHrM G€OY kai npoceo- 
 •AM AMMONOC AeroNTiki ^ . oeeN oyAS toamm BOHeeiN ■ 
 oy^e AUAyeiN to cyMBesHKoc , oyAe eep^neyeiN i oyAe ^n- 
 
 -TITATeCeM , MH AO^HI eeOMAXElN^ KM ANTlTCINeiN KOAJ.ZOM6- 
 NOC . iAA UeeiTM M6N €?« NOCOyNTOC O lATpOC . »>nOKA€l€Tk| 
 
 Ae neNGoyNToc o NoyeexuN k\\ nAp^MyeoyMiNoc 4)iaoco4)Oc: 
 
 '* €k M€ I (JjHCIN , ASepwne , AIAONAI AIKHN , ton AC6BH , TON 
 €nJip2kTON 1 TON 06OIC KA.I AMMOCI MeMICHM€NON ." * 
 
 €CTiN iiNeponoy MH neneicMCNoy ©€ON cinai , AynoyMeNoy 
 A AAACOc KAi nepin^eoyNTOc , ahoma^m AAKpyoN , AnoKeipM 
 
 KOMHN , A(j)€A€CeAI TO IMATION . TON AC A€ICIAAIMONA HUC 
 
 AN npoceinoic ! h hh bohghcoic ? e^w kaghtai cakkion €x- 
 -coN ^ , H nepiezucMesoc pAKeci pynApoic ; ooaaakic ac ryMNOC 
 
 €N AHAOl KAAINAOyMENOC e^ATOpeyCl TINAC AMApTlAC AyTOy 
 KAI OAHMMeAeiAC , OC TOA6 (j>ArONTOC . H EAAICi'NTOt: OAON HN 
 OyK €l\ TO AAIMONION . AN A€ ApiCTA npATTHI, i KAI CyNHI 
 
 npAtoi A6I CI AMMONIA! , nepieyoM€Noc oikoi kaghtai i nepi- 
 
 -MATTOMGNOC S Al AC rpA6C . KAGAHep r\^TT|AAWI , <J)HC1N O 
 
 ^ Ex commimi quodam fonte Cicero ( Tusc. III. 29: ) " Acce- 
 -dit Superstitio muliebris quaedam : existimant enim, Diis Immor- 
 -talibus se facilius satisfactiiros, si, eorum plaga perculsi, ad- 
 -flictos se et stratos fateantur. " 
 Sophocles, ap. Theophil. ad Autolyc. ( II. p. 110, edi^, Wolf. ), 
 
 GCOy A€ OAHTHN Oyx ynepOHAAl BpOTOC . 
 
 7 Similarly Menander, ap. Stob. p. 570: 
 
 MH eeoMAxei > mhag npocAroy tcii npATMATi 
 xeiMUNAc €Tepoyc , Toyc ANAPKAioyc <|)epe . 
 Cicero, Tusc. III. 25: " Necessitas ferendae conditlouis huma. 
 -nse, quasi cum Deo pugnare prohibet, admonetque esse homi- 
 -nem. " 
 « Similarly Eusebius, Praep. Evang. VI. p. 263. D: 
 
 - - Oe€N KAI AerONTUN €CT1N AKOyCAl TUN HOAAON , OTI " ApA 
 
 npAxGHceTAi ToyTO I eire eiMApTAi moi i kai ti M6 xpn nApe- 
 
 -xeiN eWAyTUl npATMATA ? " - - nCOC OyN , O TAyTA MH €5 Ay- 
 
 -Toy HroyMCNOC erxeipeiN . aaa yno thc e^uGeN anatkhc , 
 npocc^oi AN noT6 tui NoyGeToyNTi , kai AIAACKONTI . MH 
 CAyTON eniAiAONAi CKAOTON Toic npoe ipHMeNoic ? einoi rAp an 
 
nepi AGJGrA icIMON I ^C 27 
 
 disappomiments in political aiFairs, are said to 
 be divine inflictions, and spiritual chastisements ^ . 
 Wherefore he dareth not to a;ssist himself, or to re- 
 -move, or to cure, or to oppose, his misfortunes, lest 
 he might be thought to contend with [ his ] God,^ and 
 to make resistance under correction. But, when in 
 sickness, he refuseth the visits of the medical man ; 
 and, when in grief, he shutteth the door upon the 
 philosopher, who would console and encourage him. 
 " Leave me, " he saith, " I am a wicked man^ and 
 under the curse of heaven, hated both by Gods and 
 Spirits. "8 
 
 When a man who believeth not that there is a 
 God, endure th grief and distress, he can wipe away 
 his tears, cut his hair, and change his garments. 
 But how can one accost the Superstitionist, or how 
 can one assist him'? He sitteth, before his door, 
 clothed in sackcloth, 9 or wrapped round in dirty rags. 
 Oftentimes also he rolleth himself naked in the mire, 
 confessing certain sins and transgressions of his 
 own, as having eaten or drunken something, or as 
 having walked in some path, which the Spirit doth 
 not permit. Even when he is at his best, and is 
 affected [ only ] by a mild Superstition, he sitteth at 
 home, surrounded with frankincense and lotions, 
 while the old women bring him whatever they meet 
 
 npoc TON NoyeeTOYNTA. , uc kai tun npo hmun ticin eipH- 
 -TM " ti M€ , (0 iiNepcone . Noys^Teic ? T^yTk r^p oy AHnoy 
 
 6CTIN en €MOI TO MeTABikAA€IN THN npOAipCClN j H TAp eiMipM€- 
 -NH npOK\T€IAH(|)€ . " 
 
 9 Nota religio ex Jadaeorum ritibxis. Attigit Wesselingius 
 ad Diodor. Sic. T; II. p. 399. Et de Syris memorat Menan- 
 -der ( citatus Porphyrio de Abstin. IV. 15. ) : 
 
 " - - - CiKKlON CAiBOM , €IC S OAON 
 
 eKAeicAN »,yToi em Konpoy , kai thn eeoN 
 
 e^lAiCANTO TWI TAneiNCOCA.1 C(j)OApi , " 
 
28 RAOYTis^pXOY 
 
 BICON'" , oTi AN TyxociN AY""""' nepiinToyci (JjepoycAi kai 
 nepupTcoci . 
 VIII. TON THpiBXZON' <j)ACiN , yno ton ncpCCON cyAA^M- 
 
 -BANOMCNON , CAACACeAl TS TON AKINAKHN . eypCOCTON ONTX , 
 KAI AUMAXeCeM i MApTypOMeNWN A6 KM EOONTWN OTI CyAAAM- 
 -BANOyCIN AyTON BAClAeCOC KCAeyCANTOC , AyTIKA TO ?l4)OC 
 
 KATABAAeiN , KM Tto x€ipe cyNAHCM nApACxeiN . Ap oyN oyx 
 
 OMOION eCTI TO riNOM€NON ? Ol M€N AAAOI AIAMAXONTAI CyM- 
 -(})OpAIC , KAI AlCOeOyNTAI TA npATMATA , (JjyrAC CAyTOIC MHXA- 
 -NWMeNOI , KAI HApATponAC TWN ABOyAHTCON I O AC ACICIAM- 
 
 -MCON , oye€Noc AKoycAc , AyToc npoc AyTON cinwN , " TAyTA 
 
 nACX€IC , O KAKOAAIMON , €K npONOIAC , KAI 0€OY K€A€yON- 
 -TOC t " eppi>|'€ OACAN CAHIAA , npOHKATO EAyTON , €(|)yre , Al€- 
 -KpoyCATO TOyC BOHeoyNTAC . 
 nOAAA TWN M€TpitON KAKWN OAgepiA HOIOyClN Al ACICIAAI- 
 
 -MONIAI* . MIAAC o nAAAioc , coc eoiK€N * , eK tinun €n- 
 -ynNiwN AeyMWN kai tapattomcnoc , oyTuc kakoc ecxe thn 
 4'yxHN , wcTe eKoyciwc AnoeANeiN , aima TAypoy niON ' . o 
 
 "> Diogenes Laertius ( IV. 55—57. ) says of Bion, who while 
 in health had derided Superstition : 
 
 KAI ycTepoN noT6 CMnectoN cic nocon . oc €(J)ackon 01 eN xaa- 
 -KiAi ( AyToei TAP KAi KATecTp6|e , ) nepiAATA AAseiN eneiceH , 
 
 KAI MeTAriNCOCK€IN €^ OIC enAHMMeAHCe ec TO eeioN . 
 
 Mox iambico metro idem narrat : 
 
 " KAI rpAV AWK6N SyMApUC TpAXHAON CIC €nCOIAHN , 
 KAI CKyTICIN BpAXIONAC nen€ICM€NOC T CAHCe . " 
 
 So also Plutarchus says of Pericles, who when in health also 
 despised superstition ( de Pericl. p. 173. A ) : 
 
 - - O rOyN e€0(|)pACTOC , eN TOIC HGIKOIC , AlAnopHCAC €1 
 
 npoc TAc TyxAC TpeneTAi ta Hen . kai KiNoyMCNA toic tun 
 
 CWMATCJN OAeeClN , €5ICTATAI THC ApeTKC . ICTOpHK€N , OTI NO- 
 
 -cuN o nepiKAHC , enicKonoyM€Nui tini twn (})iaun , Aei^eie nepi- 
 
 -AHTON yno TWN ryNAlKWN TWI TpAXHAOl nepiHpTHM€NON , COC 
 C(})OApA KAKOC fXWN , OnOT€ KAI TAyTHN ynOMCNOl THN AB€A- 
 -THpUN . 
 
 ' Terihazus is mentioned by Diodorus Siculus ( XV. 8. seq. ) 
 [ But that ]-Euni comprehentibus vim opposuisse, ex alio, eo- 
 
nepi AeiciAMMONi^c 29 
 
 with, and hang it [ for a chann ] upon him, as if, to 
 use the expression of Bion, ^" he were but a peg. 
 
 VIII. It is said, that Teribazus, ^ when arrested by 
 the Persians, drew his scymetar, and, being a strong 
 man, began to fight; but that, when the Persians 
 cried out and protested that they arrested him at 
 the order of [ The ] King, he immediately threw down 
 his sword, and stretched out his hands to be bound. 
 Now is not the case before us precisely similar? 
 Other men combat with their misfortunes, push 
 through affairs, and contrive for themselves means 
 of escaping from, and of preventing, what is unplea- 
 -sant. But the Superstitionist, of his OAvn accord, and 
 without any person^ suggesting it, saith to himself: 
 *' Ah wretch, thou sufferest these things, according to 
 the foreknowledge, and at the command, of [ thy ] 
 God. " He thus throweth away all hope, abandoneth 
 himself [ to despair ] , and shunneth, or alfronteth, 
 [ the friends ] who would console him. 
 
 Superstitions render fatal many evils which are 
 [ in themselves ] of very slight importance. [ Thus ] : 
 we are told- that the ancient Midas, when disenheart- 
 -ened and distressed by certain dreams, suffered his 
 mind to be so sadly affected, that he killed himself, by 
 drinkinsf bull's blood. ^ 
 
 .que deperdito, scriptore sumptum est, fortasse Theopompo - - . 
 
 * If Wyttenbach did not tell us that uc €Oik€n means ut fer. 
 -tur, I should have translated " Midas, the elder probably, 
 when . - - " 
 
 3 Plutarchus ( T. Q. Flamin. p. 380. E. ) de Hannibale fa- 
 -mam. fuisse a quibusdam proditam mimhc^mcnon eeMicxoKAeA. 
 KM MiAJ^N , i.iMA Ti,Y<p£\ON ni€iN - - - . Taurlni sanguinis vim 
 tradit Dioscorides, Alexiph. XXIV, indeque Plinius atticit, 
 XXVII. 41. 
 
30 nAoyT^pxOY 
 
 A€ TUN M€CCHr4IC0N BxciAeyc ApiCTOAHMOC . cn toi npoc 
 A^K€AMMONIOYC * noAeMwi , kyncon aykoic wpyoMeNMN 
 OAAOiA 1 KAi nepi THN 6CTUN iiY''"^Y ^^f^ n^TpwuN i^rpucTeuc 
 
 ANABAACTANOyCHC , KM TWN M\NT€C4N TA CHMEIA <|>OBOYMeNCJN . 
 
 e^AeyMHCAC , km KAT&cBeceeic t.mc €AniciN , ay'''oc 6i>Y^°N 
 Anec(j>A?€N , * 
 HN Ae icwc KM NIKIM** , TCOl A@HNMON cTp^TH^Wl . Kp\Tic- 
 
 -TON . OyTWC AnAAAATHNM THC A£ I CI A^l MONI XC . oc Ml- 
 -AAC . H ApiCTOAHMOC , H , 4>0BHeeNTi thn ckun eKAinoy- 
 -CHC THC ceAHNHC . KASHceAi , nepiT€ixizoM€NON yno TON no- 
 -A6MIUN I eiTA , OMOy T€TTApCI MypiACIN > NspconuN (^jONeyeeN- 
 -T6JN H ZWNTUN AAONTWN , ynOX€ipiON TCNeCeM . KM AyCKA€WC 
 
 AnoeAN€iN . oy rAp thc antkJjpa^ic €n mccwi reNOMCNHC ())ob€- 
 
 -pON t Oy^e A6IN0N €N KAipWI OOAOn'' CtClAC HpOC C6AHNHN AHAN- 
 -THCIC^ » AAAA AeiNON TO THC A6I CI AM MONI AC CKOTOC I €M- 
 
 -nccoNTOc^ ANepconoy cyrxeAi , kai TytfjACocAi aoticmon cn npAr- 
 
 -MACI MAAICTA AOflCMOy AeOM€NOIC . 
 
 " rAAYK€ OpA : EAeyC rAp hah KyMACI tapaccctai 
 
 noNTOc . AM^)! A AKpAi rypeyoN opeoN ictatai Ne<j)OC , 
 
 CHMA X6IMC0NOC - - - " '° 
 
 * Libri omnes vitiose npoc MsccHNioyc . 
 
 * Pausanius ( IV. 3. ) relates, that the despair of AHstodemus 
 arose from this King's seeing the ghost of his daughter whom 
 he had put to death. 
 
 6 vid. Thucydid. , VII. 35--87; Plutarch. , in vita Niciae, p. 
 523, 524. seq. 
 
 7 The word aoawn seems imintelligible. Wyttenbach says, 
 " Verisimillima est lectio nepiOAUN, a nullo quamvis codice ex- 
 -hibita. " i. I should like/ to iiik a preek scholar whether Plu- 
 -tarchus might not ha ye written ijf^uAOJN/ he^llenizing the Latia- 
 word " Nodi," in the senge of "/the Nt>deS, "? ,%,. 
 
 * In simili caussa territis railitibus prudentius egit Dion, in 
 cujiis vitS hffic Pltitarclms ( p. 96S. A ) : 
 
 e^cAineN 'w ceAHNH i kai toic mcn nepi ton aimna eAyMACTON 
 
 OyACN ^HN , AOriZOM€N01C TAC eKAeiHTIKAC nCplOAOyC t KAI THN 
 
n€pi A€ICIAMMONIAC 31 
 
 Similarly, Aristodemus, the King of the Messeni- 
 -ans, having, during the war with the Laceda^moni- 
 -ans,* heard dogs howling like wolves, and having 
 also, seen [ the herb ] Agrostis growing up around 
 liis paternal hearth, miracles that alarmed the di- 
 -viners, was so disinheartened and so disappointed 
 in his hopes, that he slew himself. ^ And it would 
 perhaps have been best for Nicias, ^ the general of 
 the Athenians, to have been delivered of his Super- 
 -stition in the same way as Midas, or Aristodemus, 
 was, than, to have remained in inaction during an 
 eclipse of the moon, while he was invested by the 
 enemy, and consequently be made a prisoner ( with 
 40,000 men, who were slain, or taken ) and so to die 
 ingloriously. For there is nothing formidable in the 
 interposition of the Earth between [ the Sun and 
 Moon, ] nor is it terrible that [ the Earth's ] shadow 
 should fall upon "^ the Moon at [ the ] time of [ the ] 
 
 ; ^ but to fall into the darkness of Superstition is 
 
 [ really ] terrible, when it obfuscateth the Reason, 
 in circumstances when [ men ] have particular need 
 of Reason. 
 
 " Mark, Glaucus, how the ocean is disturbed ; 
 and how the cloud circle th the promontory, 
 portending tempest . " '<• 
 
 r€NOM€NHN TOY CKUMikTOC \nikNTHCIN THC CCAHNHC , Kkl THC 
 PHC ANTI(|)pi^?IN npOC TON HAION , 
 
 9 Malim cMnecoN ton. ut fere Faber, et Reiskius, 
 
 '* Archilochi hanc dictionem ex Heraclidis libello de Allege 
 
 -riis ( p. 412. ) tertio etiam versii integram, retulerunt collect!. 
 
 -ones Fragmentorum Lyricorum, Commeliniana ( Anni 1598, ) 
 
 Stepbaniana ( A. 1600 ) . - - J. Peirsonus - - trochaicum me- 
 
 -truni - - purgavit, sic : 
 
 " TAkyK OfK : EAeyC ri^p hah KYM^CIN TkpACC€TM 
 nONTOC « AM<|)I A AKpjk rYp€ON OpHON ICTATI^I Ne^JOC 
 CHMA xeiMONOC f K1X*N€I A €? A€AnTIHC (^lOBOC . " 
 
32 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 TOyTO lAON KYEepNHTHC' €YxeT*>l MEN Y^^^KtJjYreiN , KM ©€OYC 
 
 €niKAA€iTAi CCOTHp^C * , eYxoM€NOC A6 TON ouKJk npockrei , 
 
 THN KepM&N Y4""^' ' 
 
 " (fieyrei Meri> am4>oc Y'^o^TOMCi^c epeeoAeoc €k ei^AACCHC."^ 
 
 o HCIOAOC ■• K€AeYei . npo AporpoY k&i cnopoY t ton recop- 
 -roN eY><^ceM All re xeoNic.)! , AHMHT€pi e atnhi , thc ex- 
 
 -eTAHC €XOM€NON ! OMHpOC £>£ TON MANTA^ <})HCI , TCOl €K- 
 -TOpi MGAAONTA MONOMAxeiN , CYXeCeM KCACYeiN TOYC 6AAH- 
 
 -NAC Y*^^? ^Y'l'oy '^^'<^ ©€OIC , €ita , €Yxom€nwn eKeiNWN , 
 onAizece&i . kai o ArAM€MN&iN ^ , OTe toic maxom€noic npo- 
 -ceTA^eN : 
 
 " ey '^^N TIC AopY en^Acew , ey ^ achiaa eecew , " 
 
 TOTe nApA TOY AlOC AITei : 
 
 " AOC M€ KATA npHNeC BAAe€lN HpiAMOlO MEAAepON . " 
 ApeTHC TAp eAHIC O ©£OC eCTIN , OY A6IAIAC npO(j)ACIC^ . AAAA 
 
 ' Similarly, Dio Chrysost. , Or. 16, p. 246. A; 
 
 nWC eNeCTlN CKACTOY TOYTUN AlCeANOMeNON KAI pAlAIOC CNAI- 
 -AONTA MH KAKOAAIMONeCTATON AHANTCON eiNAI , npOCCYXOMCNON 
 
 TOIC eeoic , onuc mh ToyTo ■ mhae toyto , cymbhi s kasa- 
 -nep ei tic cn OMBpoi nopeYo^^^^oc . ckghacma mcn exoi mh- 
 
 -AEN 1 6YX01T0 Ae MONON EKACTON TUN CTAAATMtON AIA(f)YreiN . 
 
 noAY roYN tun ctaaatmun CYNexecTepA ecTiN ta AYCxepH nApA 
 
 THC TYXHC . H , NH AIA , EITIC HAEUN , ANTI TOY ^OIC OlAiJI 
 
 npocexeiN , kai to npocninTON AexeceAi kaauc , €Y'<0''''o '^^- 
 
 -AEN TWN KYM^TUN KATA THN NAYN reNeCSAI ! 
 
 Julianus, Or. 2, p. 97. D: 
 
 ATAeOC KYBCpNHTHC €? AHglAHC N€(J)UN pAPCICHC AAIAAAOC , €ITA 
 
 ( en del. ) aytoy toy eeoY ceiontoc ton byson kai tac 
 
 hVONAC : CNOAYeA TAp TOYC MEN AHCipOYC AEINON KAI ATOHON 
 KATEAABE AEOC ; O ae HAH XAipEI KAI TANNYTAI , TAAHNHN AKpi- 
 -BH KAI NHNEMIAN EAHIZUN . 
 
 ' [ Castor and Pollux, I suppose. Concerning other GoiJs Sa- 
 -vkmrs, especially ^sculapius, I have derived much amusement 
 and information from the treatise of Schwarzius " de Diis (j)i- 
 -AANepunoic . " ] 
 
 ^ Geminus est locus De Animi Tranq. p, 475. F, 
 
nepi A€l CI Aisvl MON i^c 
 
 33 
 
 As soon as the Pilot perceiveth this, ^ he doth [ in- 
 -deed ] pray that he may escape, and invoketh [ the ] 
 Gods [ the ] Saviours ; - but, while he prayeth, he 
 draweth to the rudder, letteth down the main-yard, 
 
 " and gathering in the sails 
 
 escapeth the dark sea's engulphing force. "^ 
 
 Hesiodus* ordereth the agriculturist, before ploughing 
 and seed time, to pray to the terrestial Jove, and 
 the chaste Ceres, [ but ] with his hand upon the 
 plow-tail. Similarly, Homerus saith, that Ajax^ 
 when about to engage in single combat with Hector, 
 ordered the Greeks to pray for him to the Gods ; and 
 that then, while they were praying, he armed him- 
 -self. So also Agamemnon, ^ at the same time that 
 he directed his combatants : 
 
 " Sharpen )'our spears, and well fix on your shields;" 
 
 then also asketh of Jove : 
 
 •' King Priam's palace may I overthraw. " 
 
 for God is the hope of valour, not the excuse of cow- 
 -ardice. ^ Albeit, the Jews, sitting still, in unbleached 
 
 * €pr. V. 463, [ 435. ] 
 
 " €YxeceM Ae aiV xeoNicoi , AHMHTepi e atnhi . 
 
 6KT6A6& BpieeiN AHMHTepOC ICpON JkKTHN , 
 ApxOMeNOC Ti npCOT ^pOTOy . OTAN ikKpON €X€TAHC 
 xeipi AAEWN , OpnHKI BOCON CHI NUTON IKH\I 
 CNApyON eAKONTWN MeCAECON . 
 
 * Iliad. H. V, 193. 
 
 s Iliad. K. V. 382; and 414, in which last verse aoc mc Plu- 
 -tarchus fecit pro npiN Me. 
 
 '' Egregia sententia, proverbii frequentiam habet, aliis tamen 
 verbis prodita. Hujusmodi est Philemonis ap. Theophilum ad 
 Autolyc. III. p. 294 : 
 
 " oi r^p eeon ceBONTec €AniAic kaaac 
 
 6KOYCIN «IC CWTHpi/kN . " 
 
34 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 lOY^^'O' ' Ci.BB^TON ONTON , €N ArNi>MnTOIC KJ,e€ZOMeNOI * . 
 TUN nOA€MIUN KAIMAKiiC npOCTie€NTWN i KAl TA T€IXH KATAAJkM- 
 -BANONTCON , OyK ».NeCTHCAN , AAA €M€INAN WCnep £N CArHNMI 
 
 MiAi THi A£ICi AMMONI^I cyNAeAeMeNOi . 
 
 IX. TOl^Y''''^ '^SN , €N TOIC ABOyAHTOIC KAI nepiCTATIKOIC AG- 
 -rOM€NOIC npATMACI KM KMpOlC . H AC I CI A>. I MONI X ! B6AT1UN 
 
 Ae OYA6N , oyAC eN toic HAiocr , thc ^©EOTHTOC . haicta 
 A€ ^ TOIC ANepconoic eopTAi , KAi eiAiniNM npoc lepoic . kai 
 MYHceic K&i oprucMoi , kai KATeyxAi'" ©GCON km npocKyNHceic . 
 €NT&yeA ToiNyN CKonei ton A06ON , reAUNTA, mcn manikon kai 
 CApACONION r€AOTA ' ToyToic noioyMSNOic^ ■ kai noy nApA- 
 -4>eerroM€NON ATpeMA npoc Toyc cyNHeeic , oti " T€Ty(|)QNTAi 
 
 kai AAIMONWCIN Ol ©60IC TAyTA ApACSAI NOMlZONTeC " , AAAO 
 Ae OyA€N eXONTA KAKON . O AS A6ICIAMMC0N BOyACTAI 
 MEN , Oy AyNATAI A6 ■ XAlpeiN , OyA€ HACCGAI . 
 
 " nOAlC A * OMOy M€N eyMIAMATCON reM€i ; 
 OMOy Ae nAlANWN TC kai CTeNAPMATWN " * 
 
 H lyxH Toy A€ICI A^IMONOC . ecTecJiANWMeNoc wxpiAi , eyei 
 KAI (J)OBeiTAi , eyxeTAi (})wnhi nAAAOMeNHi , kai xepciN enieymiAi 
 
 •* Spectat factum in primis celebratuin sub Antiocho Epi- 
 -phane et initiis Maccabaeoruin, proditum Maccab. I. 2, 37. 
 seq. et Josepho, Autiq. Jud, XII. 6. 2. 
 
 9 I should like to read ah for Ae. 
 
 '0 KATeyxH bono sensu, exstat Vit. 301. C, 968. A, 970. E; 
 et KATeyxeceAi, quod fi'equentev malo sensu est devovere, e.r- 
 -sccrari, in ineliorem partem usurpatur, v. c. Opp, Mor. p. 
 108. F, Vit. 963. C. 
 
 ' risii dolorem animi disshnulantc , Originem cum varife eruditi- 
 -oixjs copifi prodit Zenobius^V. 85; unde sua habet Suidas et 
 partim Apostolius. [ Yet surely we understand the word sar- 
 -donic smile in a very different sense; and it seems to me evi- 
 -dent, that Plutarch's Atlieist is ridiculing, and not deploring, 
 the ceremonies of the Superstitious. ] 
 
 2 Nunc intelligendus est Dativus Consequentice. 
 
nepi AeiciA^iMONi^c 35 
 
 clothes,^ because it was the sabbath, suffered the 
 Iji^emy to plant ladders, and seize upon the walls, 
 they themselves not rising, but remaing inactive, like 
 [ fishes] in a net, [ though ] fettered only by their 
 Superstitioii. 
 
 IX. Such then is Superstition, in dangerous and 
 undesir- able times and circumstances. Nor, even in 
 more agreeable [ days, ] is [ Superstition ] at all bet- 
 -ter than Atheism. Surely, 9 very agreeable to men 
 are feasts and banquets in the temples, and initiati- 
 -ons and orgies, and the praying and adoring the 
 Gods. Here therefore observe the Atheist, how he 
 derideth, with a wild and sardonic grin, ^ these cere- 
 ^nonies ; and occasionally whispereth aside to his iel- 
 -low guests: " They, who think that these [ ceremo- 
 -nies ] are performed to Gods, ^ are silly and be-de- 
 -viled. " And this [ erroneous judgment ] is the only 
 evil that happeneth to [ the Atheist ] . On the other 
 hand, the Superstitious [ man ] wisheth indeed to 
 rejoice and he merry, but cannot. 
 
 " With sacrifice the city teemeth ; 
 
 but, with paeans, groans are mixed "^ 
 
 in the soul of him who is Superstitious. He turneth 
 pale, beneath his chaplet of flowers ; he sacrificeth, 
 while in dread ; he prayeth, with a faultering tongue ; 
 and throweth the frankincense, with trembling hands. 
 He proveth, in short, the falsity of the saying of Py- 
 
 3 Perhaps I ought to have translated: "They who think it 
 right that Gods should be thus worshipped, - . . . " 
 
 ■• I have ventured to consider Ae a false print. And indeed 
 Wyttenbach has a' in his notes. 
 
 ^ Sophoclis (Edip. Tyr, v. 4. 
 
36 HAOYT^pXOY 
 
 Tp€MOYc>>ic : KAi OAWC AnoAeiKNyci TON r\Y©^ropOY AOrON^ 
 (JjAYi'PON , einoNTOc on "seATicToi riNOMeeA npoc Toyc 960YC 
 
 BAAIZONTeC " : TOTe TAp AeAIUTiiTA KM KJkKICTA np^TTOyClN Ol 
 
 A6ICI AAIMON€C , cocnep *pKTcoN ()>ua€Oic , h xeiAic Api^KON- 
 
 -TUN I H MyxOIC KHTUN ■ TOIC TWN ©6C0N M€r*.p01C H ANAK- 
 
 -TOpoic npocioNTec . 
 X. oeeN eMOire km eAyw^zeiN eneici Toyc thn AeeoTHT* 
 
 <j>ACKONTAC ACeSSlAN eiNAI , MH (|)i>CK0NTAC AC THN A€ICIAM- 
 
 -MONIAN ^ . KAiToi re ANA^ATOpAC * aikhn €4)YreN *.c€B€uc 
 em Ttoi AieoN eineiN ton haion . KIMMCpioyC^ Ae oyAeic 
 eineN Aceeeic ■ oti ton haion oyA eiNAi TonAp&nAN NOMizoyci . 
 Ti cy Aereic ? o mh nomizun 0€OYC eiNAi i anocioc cctin ? o 
 Ae ToioyToyc nomizcon , oioyc oi A€ICIAAIMON€C , oy mak- 
 -pwi AO^Aic ANOcicoTepAic cyNecTiN ? erwr oyN an eecAOiM! 
 MAAAON Toyc ANepcoAoyc AcreiN nepi CMoy , mhtc reroN€NAi 
 
 TOAApAHAN MHAE eiNAI riAOYTApXON . H ACreiN , OTI HAOY" 
 
 -TApXOC ecTiN ANeptonoc AeesAioc e eyweTABOAOC , eyxepnc 
 npoc opTHN ■ em toic Tyxoyci TiMwpHTiKoc , MiKpOAynoc s 
 AN KAAWN em AeinNON eTepoyc i riApAAinHic CKeiNON i an acxo- 
 
 ^ Plutarchus ," Defect. Orac. " p. 413. B, in simili argu- 
 -mento : 
 
 cocTe KATA KpAToc e^EAerxeceAi ton nyeAropAN , einoNTA , eeA- 
 -TicToyc cAyTWN rmeceAi Toyc ANeponoyc i otan npoc Toyc 
 eeoyc eaaizwcin , 
 
 Refertur hue narratio Scriptoiis Incerti de vita Pythagorae, 
 apud Photium §. 5 : 
 
 eAeroN Ae ton ANepwnoN AyTON eAyToy ecatiu kata Tpeic Tpo- 
 -noyc riNecGAi ! npcoTON weN thi omiaiai thi npoc Toyc eeoyc : 
 anatkh TAp npociONTA AyToic . KAT eKeiNO KAipoy , xupizeceAi 
 
 AyTON AACHC KAKIAC , eiC AyNAMIN OMOIOyNTA eAyTON TtO' 
 
 eeui : - - - . 
 
 Cicero, de Leg. II, 11 : 
 
 " Et illud bene dictum est a Pythagora, doctissimo viro, turn 
 maxime et pietatem et religionem versari in animis, cum rebus 
 divinis operam daremus. " 
 
 conf: Senec. Epist. 94. p. 352. Geminam fere laudat senten- 
 -tiam Aristotelis, Queest. Nat. VII. 30. 
 
neplAGICIAAIMONIAC 37 
 
 -thagoras, ^ that we are then best, when we walk to- 
 -wards the Gods. For indeed then do the Supersti- 
 -tious feel themselves most miserable and wretched, 
 approaching the palaces, and the royal-abodes, of 
 the Gods, as they would the dens of bears, the pits of 
 dragons, or the caves of crocodiles. 
 
 X. Hence, to me at least, it is even a subject of 
 astonishment, that [ men ] call Atheism Impiety, but 
 do not so call Superstition. ^ Albeit, Anaxagoras ^ 
 [ was obliged to ] flee from an accusation of impiety, 
 when he had affirmed that the Sun is a stone ; though 
 no one hath affirmed that the Kimmerians y are ini- 
 -pious, in their denial of the existence of the Sun. 
 [ But] what sayest thou? Is he guilty who supposeth 
 that there are no Gods ; and is not he afflicted with 
 far more guilty opinions, who considereth that the 
 [ Gods ] are such as the Superstitious suppose them to 
 be? Hence, I, at least, would rather that mankind 
 should say of me, that Plutarchus doth not, nor ever 
 did, exist ; than that they should say, that Plutarchus 
 is a weak-minded, fickle man, that he is prone to an- 
 -ger, soon disposed to revenge, and offended at trifles ; 
 and that, if thou omittest|to invite 1 him when thou 
 givest a dinner, or if, from pressure of business, thou 
 
 7 Tale est Epicuri effatum.ap. Diog. Laert. X, 123: 
 AceBHc AC oyx o Toyc tcon hoaaun eeoyc i^NAipuN , aaa o 
 TAC TCON noAAUN AO^AC eeoic npocAnrcoN . 
 Philo Jud. " de Temulentia, " p, 2.56. C : 
 o AnepiCKenroc - - Ki.Teiprj>ci.To ToyNi^NTioN oy npoceAOKHC€N , 
 
 ANTI OCIOTHTOC iiC€B€l\N : TO PAp nOAyeCON CN TAIC TUN A(j)- 
 -pONQN lyxMC . iieeOTHC . 
 
 * Hanc ejus opinionem plurimi memorarunt, quos citant 
 Menagius ad Diog. Laert. II. 8. 10, et Davisius ad Max. Tyr. 
 XXV. 3. p. 595. 
 
 9 vid. Odyss. A. v, [ 14. - - 19. ] 
 
38 nAoyT^pxoY 
 
 -Auc coi reNOM€NHc , em eYP*>ic '" mh gAGHic ;' ei mh npocei- 
 -nHic ! AieAETM coy TO cuM». npoc4)YC ■ k&i cy^ajibon i>no- 
 
 -TYMHANiei TO nMAION > H GHpiON exCON TOIC KikpnOIC e(})HC€l ■ 
 KAl AYW^NeiT&l THN OHUp^N . * 
 
 TOY TIMOeeOY thn ApT€MIN maontoc €n ^eHN>>IC ■ km 
 
 AeroNTOc : " eY^A\ , 4)oie>,aj> , mmn^aa , aycc^^aa " , KINH- 
 -CIAC o MEAonoioc , eK twn ee^roN ^n^ct&c , " toi^Y'''^^ coi" , 
 eine , " eYrA.THp reNOiTo " . km mhn omoiz* ToyTOic , km xei- 
 -poN^ , nepi >>pT€MIAOC oi A6ICIAMMON€C Y'^O'^^'^^^^oY" 
 
 -CIN , 
 
 3 «< 
 
 HT en iirxoNic Jki^ACAN, 
 
 HT6 KM AexO NikK^Y'^^'^'^ ■ * 
 HT6 KMK N6Kp0Y MlivNSeiCik ,® 
 
 KAiN n€<[)YPMeNA r eneiCHAeeN 
 
 "> Sic libri nostri ; et tamen ratio eYP2>c postulat : - - dicitur 
 enim em eyp^c tinoc epxeceM . c^oitmn , icnm ; et em ey- 
 -pMC TINOC eiNM . 
 
 ' I cannot help thinking there must be something omitted here. 
 
 ^ Significatur Diana, qurs aprum Calydoniiim in O^nei sata 
 immisit. Iliad. I. 537; quod item tangit Lucianus " de Sacri- 
 -ficiis. " T. I, p. 526. 
 
 3 I have placed these lines in the text, according to the 
 form recommended by Wyttenbach, who says: " suspicati su- 
 -mus subesse versus trochaicos dimetros hypercatalectos. " The 
 original is so corrupt and unintelligible that I do not think it 
 worth copying. The poverty of my translation clearly indi- 
 -cates that I do not understand the passage even with Wytten- 
 -bach's corrections. Yet probably the reader will prefer^**,^to 
 the translation, or rather paraphrase, given by Baxter, who tlius 
 renders the two last lines of the original : 
 
 " Thou down chairs and tables rumbl'st 
 When with Oberon thou tumbl'st. " 
 
 * Thus Hippocrates, nepi ni^peeNiUN ,p. 562: 
 
 - - inO THC TOI^YTHC O^IOC OOAAOI HAH JvOHrxON ICSHCAN ■ 
 
 HAeioNec A€ rYN*.iKec h ikNApec ; - - Y'^o ^^ thc nepi thn KAp- 
 -AUN me^ecoc ^rxoN^c kpmnoycin : - - <^poNHC»CHc ae thc 
 
 ANepUnOY • 'THI ApT€MIAI M TYNMKeC AAAJk T6 HOAAk , AAAii AH 
 KM nOAYTCACCTiiTA , TCON IM&TICON KAOiepOYCI TCON fYNAIKeiWN . 
 K€AeYONTC0N TCON M^NT€UN . e^^nATWM,eNM - - , 
 
nepi A€ICIAMMONIAC 39 
 
 dost not call upon him, ^ if thou dost not address 
 him; he will seize upon thee, and gnaw thy body, or 
 catch hold of [ thy ] infant and beat him to death, or 
 let loose a wild beast of his upon [ thy ] crops and 
 spoil [ thy ] harvest. - 
 
 When Timotheus was, at Athens, singing [ the 
 glory of] Diana, and calling her : 
 
 " Mad, furious, inspired, frantic, " 
 
 Kinesias, the Lyric poet, rose from among the spec- 
 -tators, and said " [ Then ] may thy daughter be such 
 [ as thou representest the Goddess to be ] " . And 
 indeed such qualities, and even worse, do the Super- 
 -stitious believe concerning Diana ; 
 
 ^ " Who biddeth this poor woman hang herself, * 
 and addeth to the pains of her in child bed ; ^ 
 who, by some dead body touched,^ 
 shall come and sprinkle thee ; 
 
 Eustath. Odyss, M. p. 1714: 
 
 KAI K^AMMA.XOC OyN eN Y'^O'^NHM^CI THN ^pXeMIN €ni5€N«eHNAI 
 (JJHCIN 6(j)£CCCI Y'"' KiY'^''"P°Y ' eKEAAAOM6NHN £>€ Yr\0 THC ry- 
 -NAIKOC . TO M6N npCOTON M€TABikAeiN UyTHH €IC KyNA , eiT 
 
 hye^c eA€HC^c^N ^noKikT2kCTHC».i eic ANepconoN : km aythn men 
 iicxYNeeicikN em Ttoi cy'^b6bhkoti , ^ni^r^ACeiki r thn ac eeoN . 
 nepieeic&N ikY'''H' ton oiksion kocmon , eKj^THN onomjvCM . 
 
 Conjuncta est causa cultte apud Arcades ApreMiAoc ^nz^rxoMe- 
 
 -NMc, de qua prodit Pausanias ( VIII. 23 ) , et Clem. Alex. 
 
 ( Protrept, p. 24. C): ApreMiN a€ ApK^Aec . &n\rxoM€NHN ka- 
 
 -AOY'^^NHN , npOTpenONTM , UC (|>HCI K&AAIMAXOC . 
 
 * Diana - - - malum ac difficilem partum immittere solebat, 
 ut notat Callimachus, 127. - - . Exemplum puerperaj a Dae- 
 -mone vexatae narrat Psellus, de op. Djem. p. 101. 
 
 •5 Thus Euripides says of Diana ( Iphig. Taur. v. 380 ): 
 
 " TK THC eeoy ^e m6m<})Omm co^jicm^ta , 
 
 HTIC , BpOTCON M€N AN TIC a4'HT&I (JjONOY i 
 
 H K&l Aoxeuc , H NeKpoY ■ eiTHi xepoiN , 
 BCOMCON eneiprei . Myc^poN uc HroY^eNH ; 
 
 J^YTH A€ eYCIMC HA6TM BpOTOKTONOIC . " 
 
40 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 HTe KMN TpiOACOl ' KkeipMM€CCIN , 
 
 enicnwMCN^ , h^aamnmoi 
 
 CYMnA€KOI C€ - - . " 
 
 oyACN AG ToyTUN €ni€i K€CT€pA, (JjpoNHcoyci nepi AnOAACO- 
 -NOC , nepi HpAC , nepi A(})pOAITHC : ni^NTiC ri.p Toyroyc 
 TpeMoyci KM ACAOiKAcr . KAiToi Ti TocoyTON H NIOBH nepi 
 THC AHTOyC €BAJvc4)HMHC€N , oiON H A€ I CI AAI MON I A nenei- 
 -K€ nepi THC ©€OY Toyc kcfipoNikC ? wc ApA AOiAopHeeiCA ka- 
 -TeTo^eyce thc ^eAiAC ryNMKOc , 
 
 ""«? MeN eyrATepAC , *e25 a yieic HsooNTiiC,"^ 
 
 OyrUC AnAHCTOC &AA0TplON Ki»KWN HN , Kil iNIAikCTOC ! €1 TAp 
 i>AHe«C H 0€OC XOAHN eixe , Kit MICOnONHpOC HN , KA! HA- 
 
 -rei KkKCJC AKoyoycA i km «h KAtereAA thc kNeponiNHC ^Mk- 
 -ei\c KM ATNOuc , i>AA HTANiKTei f ToyToyc CAei To^eycM 
 
 TOyC TOCA.yTHr4 tOMOTHTik KM HIKpUN K&TA|6yA0M€N0y C Ay- 
 -THC I KM TOIi^yTA rp»>({)ONTAC Kill AePONTAC . THC TOyN €KA- 
 -BHC npOB».AAOMeeX THN niKpiAN . WC EApSApON KM enpiWAH , 
 
 AeroycHC : 
 
 " — Toy erco mccon nnAp exoiMi 
 eceeM€NM npoc4>yc& - - - . " ^ 
 THN AC CYpi^N e€ON oi A€ICIAMMON€C NOMizoyciN , an 
 
 MMNIAA '" TIC H AcfjyAC ' (J)ArHI , TA ANTIKNHMIA AieCei€IN , CA- 
 
 Porphyrius ( de Abstin. IV. 16, p. 353. ) in Eleusiniis prodi- 
 -tum scripsit: kai eniCHC msmiansai , tui t€ Aexoyc A4'AceM ■ 
 
 toe TOI GNHCeiAeWN . 
 
 7 Thus Lucianus, T. I, p. 330: 
 
 ei noy eypoi eN thi TpiOAOi eKATHC AeinNON KeiMeNON . h 
 
 tOON €K KASApClOy , H T) TOIOyTO . 
 
 And Theocritus, Idyll. II. 12: 
 
 " TAI xeONIAI e eKATAI , TAN KAI CKyAAKeC TpOMeONTl 
 epXOM€NAN N6KyUN ANA T HpiA KAI MCAAN AIMA . " 
 
 And Dio Chrys.,Or. IV. p. 73. D: 
 
 eiweAciN eNioi twn nepi tac tcactac kai ta kasapcia mhnin 
 
 €KATHC lAACKOMCNOI Te KAI e^ANTH <()ACKONT€C nOlHCCIN ! CneiTA , 
 
n€pi A6ICIAAIM0NIAC 41 
 
 and, if she ineeteth thee abroad, " 
 shall subject thee to penitence. " 
 
 Nor do [ the Superstitious ] entertain milder [ sen- 
 -timents ] than these, concerning Apollo, Juno, or 
 Venus; for they fear and dread all these [Deities]. 
 Albeit, what blasphemy did Niobe ever utter against 
 Latona, so great as that which Superstition hath per- 
 -suaded silly [ people to believe ] concerning the God- 
 -dess. [ For it is believed, ] that, being reproached, 
 she slew-with-her-arrows the poor woman's 
 
 " Six daughters and six youthful sons, "^ 
 
 so implacable, and insatiable was she, in the inflic- 
 -tion of evils ! For if the Goddess had really been 
 angry, and had borne enmity to the wicked, and felt 
 grieved at being ill-spoken of, and grew indignant, 
 instead of laughing at the uninstructedness and igno- 
 -rance of mortals ; she ought to have slain with her 
 arrows those, who falsely accused her of such cruelty 
 and bitterness, and could write and say such things 
 of her. We condemn as barbarous and brutal, the 
 rancorous ( savageness ) of Hecuba, when she saith : 
 
 " Oh that I could seize his liver ! 
 
 That I could cling to and devour it ' ;" ^ 
 
 Yet the Superstitious imagine, that, if any one eateth 
 a mainis ^^ or aphuas, ^ the Syrian Goddess " will eat 
 
 OIMXI , (j)ikCMikTA nOAAJi KikI HOlKlAJk npO TON Kiei^pMUN e^H- 
 
 -royMCNOi Kii eni^eiKNYNTec . ou 4)acin enineMneiN xoAoy- 
 
 -MENHN THN e€ON . 
 
 8 Iliad. CO. 604, 
 
 9 Iliad. CO, 212. 
 
 10 ^'i A cackrel fish. Some take it for a kind of herring, or pil- 
 -chard, " Ainsw. ] 
 
 * \_" A small ordinary fish as a minnow, a loach or bleak, AinsVT." ] 
 - Thus Menander ( ap. Porphyr. deAbstin. IV. 15 ) : 
 
42 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 -K6CI TO CUMA nlMnA^NM , CYNTHKeiN TO Hfl^p . ' 
 
 XI. ip oyN TO M6N AsreiN r^ ^h^y^'^ "^P' "''"'^ ©£C»)N , a.mo- 
 
 -CION , TO AC AO^AZeiN , OyK i^NOClON ? H KAI THN (J)WNHN 
 
 iiTonoN H AO?^ noiei toy baac(J)hmoyntoc ? kai rAp hm€ic thn 
 
 eAikC(J)HMIAN , OTI AYCMCNeiAC CHMeiON eCTI , npOBikAAOMeeA !■ 
 KM TOYC K\KCOC HMiiC ACTONTAC , exepOYC NOMIZOMCN , tOC KM 
 ikHICTOYC KM K^KWC (jjpONOYT^C . OpMC A€ OI\ n€pi TON G6C0N 
 
 oi A€1CI AAIMON€C <j)poNOYCiN , eMnAHKTOYC t ahictoyc . 
 
 €Y'^£T^BOAOYC . TIMCOpHTIKOyC . OMOYC . MIKpOAYnOYC Y'^0' 
 -AJkMB^NONTEC ; €? «N ANATKH KM MIC€IN TON A€ICIAAIMONA 
 
 KM <})OBeiceM TOYC ©€OYC . nwc r^p OY mcaaci , ta MencTA 
 
 TCON KAK60N AY"''"' '^ ' eKCINOYC OIOMGNOC rerONCNM , KM n^AIN 
 
 reNHceceM ? micon ae GCOYC kj^i 4)oeoy'^£noc i exepoc ecTi . 
 
 KMN A€AI€ , Ki.\ npOCKYN€l , KM GYei ■ KM KikOHTM npOC 
 
 lepoic , OY e^Y^i^CTOC ecTi : km tap toyc typ^^nnoyc acaa- 
 -zoNTAi , nepienoYci • xpYCOYc anictacin ; naaa micoyci cimi , 
 KApTA GYONTec ^ . ^A€^^NApoN 'CpMOAAOC * eeepAneY^ ■ 
 
 n^YC^NiAC €AopY<j5op€i (t)iAinnoN . xAipe^c rM"oN s aaa 
 
 eKACTOC TOYTWN €A€r6 AApAKOAO Y©<JN = 
 
 "h C AN TICAIMHN , 61 MOI AYNAMIC r€ nApeiH;"* 
 
 " OApAAeiTMA TOYC CYpoYC AASe t 
 
 OTAN 4)ArWCIN IxeYN CKeiNOI AlA TINA 
 AYTCON AKpAClAN , TOYC HOAAC KAI TACTepA 
 OIAOYCIN ! €ITA CAKKION eAABON , CIC S OAON 
 
 eKASiCAN AYToi em KonpoY t kai thn eecN 
 
 65IAACANTO TOI TAneiNWCAl C(|>OApA . 
 
 . conf. Selden. de Diis Syris II. 3, Voss. de Idol. Genii I. I. 
 23. [ and Scliedius, de Diis Germanis, p. 184, 185. ] 
 
 ^ As the word KApTA is Ionic, Wyttenbacli is rather disposed 
 to adopt the readine: of some MSS : " kapa ceiONTec ." 
 Thus Sophocles, Antig-. v. 296. • 
 
 " - - - AAAA TAYTA KAI HAAAI nOAgCOC 
 
 ANApec MOAic 4)epoNTec eppoeoYN cmoi , 
 KpYtfiH '^'^P'^ ceiONTec - - . " 
 and Hippocr.,Ep. 20. p. 20. B: 
 
 KM O AHMOKpiTOC Y^^'^^Y"'^ • "'"'^ '^^^ €MeiAIA , TA AC e^CPeAA , 
 KAI OYKSTI OYA6N erpAC^EN , THN Ae Ke(|)AAHN eAMINA en€C€iceN . 
 
nepi AeiciAMMONiAc 43 
 
 through his shin-bones, cover his body with ulcers, 
 and dissolve his liver. 
 
 XI. Is it, therefore, irreligious to speak evil things 
 of the Gods, and not irreligious to think them? And 
 is it not the thinking of the blasphemer [ or curser ] 
 which maketh this speaking improper? For we also 
 ourselves condemn blasphemy [ or cursing, ] because 
 it is sign of malevolence ; and those who speak ill of 
 us we consider our enemies, [ because we look upon 
 them ] as unfaithful and evil-minded. But see'st 
 thou what the Superstitious think of the Gods? They 
 believe them to be furious, unfaithful, changeable, 
 revengeful, cruel, [ and ] easily offended. Whence 
 [ it is evident, that ] the Superstitionist must hate 
 and fear the Gods. 
 
 But how can he do otherwise [ than fear them, ] 
 when he supposeth that the greatest of [ his ] misfor- 
 -tunes have happened to him, and will happen to him, 
 through them? But he that hateth and feareth [ the ] 
 Gods is their enemy. Even if he feareth, and [yet] 
 worshippeth, and oiiereth sacrifice, and sitteth in the 
 temples, he is not remarkable [ in so doing ] . For, 
 in like manner, [ men ] compliment Tyrants, attend 
 them, and erect golden statues to them, yet hate them 
 in silence, [ despite of] their frequent sacrifices. ' 
 Hermolaus' waited upon Alexander, Pausanias was 
 in-the-body-guard of Philippus, as Charrea was in 
 that of Caius [ Caligula ] ; but each of these said, 
 while following [ his despot ] : 
 
 " I'ld glut my vengeance on thee, if I could. " ^ 
 
 * Concerniiiar Herinolaiis, vid. Plutarch, in Alex. p. 693. C : 
 Arrian. IV. 13. 14; Quinl. Curt. VIII. 6. 7. 
 
 •* Iliad, X. 20. 
 
44 nAoyT^pxOY 
 
 oyK OI6TM e€OYC eiNAi o ^e€OC : o ae AeiCIAMMCON 
 oy BOY^eTM , niCTeyei Ae akwn : ^nlCT€lN ri.p <})OE6itm . km- 
 -Toi re , ucnep o T^NT^AOC yneKAyN&i ton AieoN ynMto- 
 -poyMeNoc , oyxw km oyxoc ton (J)obon . wc oyx htton yn 
 AyToy niszoMeNOC , Ar^nHceieN ^n , km MiiKJ.piceie thn Toy 
 ^eeOY AueeciN , coc cAeyeepiJ^N . 
 
 NyNi Ae Tcoi M€N ^9€C0I A€l CI AMMONIAC oyA€N weTec- 
 -TiN ; o A6 AeiCIAMMGiN ■ thi npoMpecei AG€OC ciN , ac- 
 -ecNecTepoc cctin h uctc AO?\zeiN nepi ©€C«iN o BoyA€TAi . 
 
 XII. KM MHN o >>e€OC A€ICIAMMONUC oyA^MH cyNki- 
 -Tioc : H AC A€ICIAMMONl^ thi AeCOTHTI km reNeceM 
 
 n&peCXeN ApXHN , km r€NOM€NHl AIAWCIN AnOAOrUN . OyK AA- 
 -H6H M6N . OyA€ KAAHN , npO<f)\C€«C A€ TINOC OyK ^MOipON 
 
 oycAN . oy r^p €n oyp^NUi ti MeMnTON '^ , oyA €n ^CTpoic . 
 oyA eN (opMC , H nepiOAOic C€ahnhc h kinhcccin HAioy nepi 
 
 THN , ( HMep».C KM NyKTOC AHMIOyprOIC^ , ) H TpO(j)MC ZCOtON ■ 
 H Ki^pnUN reN€C€Cl I HAHMMeAeC KA,I ikT\KTON €NIAONT€C > OyTCOC 
 
 A0£OTHT>> Toy nivNTOC K^TerNCOCAN . aaa^ thc AGICIAAI- 
 -MONIAC eprii km n^eH K^Ti^^eA^CT^*, km pHMi>TA , kai kin- 
 
 -HMATA , KM rOHTeiM , KM MATEIM , KM nepiApOMM , KM TyM- 
 -nANICMOl '^ , KM AKAGApTOI MEN KAe^pMOl . pyHApM A€ ATNeiAl , 
 BApBApOl Ae KAI n^pANOMOl npOC lepOlC KOAACMOI KM npOHH- 
 -AAKICMOI ; TAyTA AlACOCIN €N101C AereiN , WC MH €INAI 0€OYC 
 
 '' Redoiet hoec dictio dispulationem Stoici adversiis Epicu- 
 -reos, cujusinodi est ilia apud Ciceronein ( de Nat. Deor. II. 
 34): " Mundi administratio nihil habet in se quod reprehendi 
 possit : ex iis enim naturis qiioe erant, quod effici optimum po- 
 -tuit effectum est. Doceat ergo aliquis, potuisse melius, Sed 
 nemo umquam docebit. " Scepe id inculcavit Chrysippus, teste 
 Plutarcho ( de repugn. Stoic, p. 1051. B): 
 " nepi Toy mhasn erKAHTON €inm . mhac mematon , cn toi 
 KOCMUi , noAAAKic rerpAtficcc - - . " 
 
 ' Platoiiica dictio ex Timreo, p. 530. E. 
 
 '' [Drums were used in Ihe worship of Cybolo, and of.iHwiUVJt.] 
 
nepi AeiciAMMONi^c 45 
 
 The Atheist supposeth that there are no Gods : 
 and the Superstitionist wisheth there were none ; and 
 believeth against his will, for he is afraid to disbe- 
 -lieve. Albeit, like Tantalus who seeketh to remove 
 the stone from above [ his head, ] so also this [ man 
 would wish to remove ] the fear, which fully as much 
 oppresseth him, and would embrace, and hail as a 
 blessing, the condition of the Atheist, as a [ compa- 
 -rative state of] freedom. 
 
 So now therefore the Atheist in no wise partici- 
 -pateth in [ the misfortunes attendant on ] Supersti- 
 -tion ; while the Superstitionist, being in his heart 
 an Atheist, is too weak to think that of [ the ] Gods 
 which he wisheth. 
 
 XII. Moreover, the Atheist giveth no handle what- 
 -soever to Superstition ; but Superstition hath given 
 to Atheism [ the veiy cause of its ] existence, and, 
 since it hath existed, fumisheth a plea in its favour 
 — no true or excellent [ plea ] indeed, but one not 
 deficient in some excuse. For [ it was ] not any thing 
 reprehensible in the heaven, ^ nor in the stars, nor in 
 the seasons, nor in the periods of the Moon, nor in the 
 motions of the Sun round the Earth, ( which produce 
 daylight and darkness,^) nor in the food of animals, 
 nor in the production of fruits,— [ it was not from ] 
 seeing [ any thing ] superfluous or disorderly [ in these 
 things, ] that men fancied-they-knew that the universe 
 is without-a-God. But it was the ridiculous* actions 
 and passions of Superstition, her [ canting ] words, 
 her [ frantic ] motions, her juggleries, and enchant- 
 -ments, and perambulations, and drummings, ^ and 
 impure purifications and filthy sanctifications, and, 
 at the temples, her barbarous and unlawful penances 
 and bcmirinffs. It is these things which make some 
 
46 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 kMeiNON , H eiNM , ToiAyT/k MeN AexoMfeNoyc I Toioyroic ac 
 xiiipoNTAC t oyjui Ae y^P'^T^c . oyrci Ae MiKpoAoroyc , Ki.t 
 MiKpoAynoyc . 
 
 XIII. oyK &M6INON OyN HN TAAATAIC €KeiN01C ' Kk\ CKY- 
 
 -©MC '° I ron.b.pKr\uN mhts cnnoia.n exeiN GCCON , mht6 <j)anta-' 
 
 -CIAN ■ MHT€ ICTOpiAN : H ©60YC eiNAI NOMIZeiN XAipONTAC 
 ANepCOnUN C^JATTOMGNWN AIMACI , KAI T€A€COTATHN eyCIAN KAI 
 
 lepoypriAN TAyrHN nomizontac ? ti a6 K^pXHAONIOIC oyK 
 
 €AyCITeA€l KpiTI>»N' AABOyciN H Ali^rOp^N^ NOMOe€THN AA 
 ApxHC I MHTe TINA ©£CON MHT6 AAIMONCON NOMIZeiN , H 
 
 ToiAyTA eyeiN oia tcoi KpONCOl eeyoN ? oyx wcnep €Mn€- 
 
 -AOKAHC (|lHCI I TWN TA ZCOA eyONTWN KAeAnTOM€NOC . 
 " MOp(J)HN A AAAA^ANTA HATHp <j>lAON yiON AEipAC . 
 
 C(j)Azei , €neyxoMeNOC meta nhmioc i — "^ 
 
 AAA eiAOTCC , KAI TINWCKONTeC , AyTOI TA AyTCON TEKNA KAGie- 
 
 -peyoN . oi Ae atcknoi nApA tcon neNHTcoN coNoyMCNOi haiaia 
 
 KATeC({)AZON KASAnep ApNAC H NeOCCOyC . HApeiCTHKei AC H MH- 
 -THp ATeTKTOC KAI ACTCNAKTOC ; €1 A6 CTENA^eiCN H AAKpycei€N ■ 
 eA€l THC TIMHC CTepeCGA I , TO AS HAIAION OyA€N HTTON 66- 
 
 -yeTo ! KpoToy a6 KATeniMHAATo nANTA npo Toy apaamatoc 
 
 ^•J. do not understand the force of this word eKeiNoic*.^? 
 
 '" De religione huinanarnm victiinarum apud Gallos, ex Po- 
 -sidonio referunt Strabo ( IV. p. 303. A, B. ) • Diodorus Sic. 
 ( V. 31. ) , Pomponins Mela (III. 2.)^ sua ipse cognitione 
 Ciesar (Bell. Gall. \'I. 16.). De Scythis in proverbium fere 
 abiit, et hospitiiin sacrifieiiun, et suorum popularium. vid. He- 
 -rodot. IV. 61-70-72. 
 
 ' Critias in Alheis imineratur ab aliis et Sexto Empirico 
 Pyrrhon. Hvpotyp. ( III. 218. ) et adv. Mathem. ( IX. 54, ) 
 iibi e<iref;iu7n locum ex ejus SisA'pho adfert. [ conf, Reimmann. 
 Hist, Atiieism. p. 123. 129, and 235-, Budd. de Atheism, p. 
 20, 21.-, Bayle, Diet. art. "Critias" Notes H. and I. ; Dic- 
 -tioniiaire des Atliees^ p. 90, 91. ] 
 
 * Diagoras Melius a Sexto Emp. cum Critiae mentione con- 
 -jungitur, et cicterum freiuens est e.jus nonien in Atheis, v. c. 
 
nepi AeiciAAiMONiAC 47 
 
 [ persons ] say that it would be better, that there 
 should not be Q than that there should be) Gods, who 
 can receive and bless such [ ceremonies], and [ be ] 
 so unjust, and so unreasonable and easily oftended. 
 XIII. Would it not therefore have been better for 
 those 9 Gauls and Scythians, ^° to have had no no- 
 -tion, nor idea, nor tradition, concernino^ [ the ] Gods, 
 than to imagine the existence of Gods, who rejoice 
 in the blood of slaughtered men, and who consider 
 this the most perfect sacrifice and expiation? And 
 how much would it have been better, for the Carthat- 
 -ginians, to have had a Critias, ^ or Diogoras, " for 
 their first law-giver, nor to believe in any one among 
 [ the ] Gods or Spirits, than they should sacrifice, what 
 they sacrificed to Saturn!— Not as Empedocles saith, 
 when alluding to those who sacrifice animals : 
 
 " The Son, transformed, is slaughtered by his Sire, 
 Who silly fool, then offereth up his prayers. " ^ 
 
 For, on the contrary, [ the Carthagi^ns ] sacrificed 
 their children, knowing them, and recognizing them 
 as such. And those who were childless purchased 
 children from the poor, and slaughtered them like 
 lambs, or young [ pigeons ] . The mother, in the mean 
 while, stood by, without either weeping or groaning : 
 for, if she sighed or wept, she lost the price [ that had 
 been agreed upon, ] and her child was nevertheless 
 sacrificed. And all [ the space ] before the image 
 
 Cicero ( de Nat. Deor. I. 1. 23 ) , Plutarch. ( Mor. p. 880. D, 
 1075. A. ) Alios etiam citant Wesselinijius ( ad Diodor Sic 
 T. I, p. 5-46 ) , Fabricius ( Bibl. Gr.,Vol. I^ p. 817.). 
 
 ^ Origines, contra Celsum (V, p. 615. E ), eosdem versus 
 citat, priore decurtato, et mutatos ; integros, et alios ejusdem 
 loci, omnino novem, appouit Sextus Empiricus adv. Mathem. 
 ( IX. 128, 129 ) . 
 
48 nAOYT^pxoy 
 
 enikY^oYNTUN km xyMnANizoNTtON , ^ncku toy mh reNcceM 
 
 THN BOHCIN TUN epHNCON 6^».KOYCTON * . €1 AC TY9^N€C TINeC 
 
 H nr^NTeC HpxoN hmwn , royc Q60YC CKBiiAONTec . nouic 
 
 AN HAONTO eyCli^lC , H TINAC UAAb.C ICpoypriAC* AOHITOyN ? AM- 
 
 -HCTpiC A6 , H ^ep^OY ryNH , AOA€KA KA.Tcopy?eN ANepunoyc 
 zcONT&c , ynep i>YTHC , xui >ilAHI *^ ; on o ^\A^T60N ' <J)HCi 
 
 <j)IAJ^NepC0nON ONTi KM CO(J)ON KM HAOyCION , 061601 KM AOTCOI 
 
 K&TexoNTA Ti>c Iy'^'^c , AIAHN® ONOMAceAi . ^€NO(})ANHCJ' 
 A€ o <J)yciKoc Toyc AirYHTIOYC . KonTOMeNoyc €n tmc eop- 
 
 -TMC KM epHNOyNTAC OpUN , yn€MNHCeN OIKeiQC : " oyToi • 
 
 (JjHCiN , ei MeN 0£OI eici , mh epHNeixe t^yjoyc i ei a€ *,n- 
 -epwnoi , MH eyere i>yToic . "■'^■ 
 
 XIV. AAA oyA€N oyTGj noAyAAANec KM noAynAeec nochma , 
 
 KM M€MirMeN0N 6NANTIMC AO^MC KM MAXOM6NMC MAAAON , CiC 
 
 TO THC A€lCIA>>IMONIAC . ((leyKTeoN oyN AyxHN , a,c4»'ACJc 
 re KM cyM(})epoNTuc i oyx cocnep oi ahictun h ewpiUN e^o- 
 -AoN ■ H nyp , AnepicKenrcoc kai AAOncTOc nepi^jeyroNxec , cm- 
 
 * [ conf.^Sched. de Diis Germ. cap. XXXIII, ^] 
 
 * I should imagine that lepoypru differs from eyciA in being 
 a sacrifice of a more initiatory, or sacramental, nature. 
 
 ^ Ex Herodoto ( VII. 114): 
 
 AMHCrpiN ■ XHN 5€p^60 ryNMKA nyNeANOMM rHp&CACAN , AlC enxA 
 
 eoNXUN €ni4)AN€QN ncpceoN oMA&c , ynep euj'^^^ ' '''"' V^o 
 THN A€roM6Ncoi eiNM eecoi , ANXixApizeceM KAXopyccoycAN : 
 cujus loci a nostro dissensum notavit Wesselingius, 
 
 7 In Cratylo, p. 265. C-F. 
 
 ^ I have never read Plato, but I suppose that philosopher 
 means, that Hades is derived from aaco ( or anaanu ) placco, 
 in which case there surely ought to be no Iota in the word 
 
 AAHN. 
 
 9.^Aristoteles paulo aliter ( Rhet. II. 23 ) : 
 
 5€N0(|)ANHC , CAAIAXAIC CpUXOCIN , CI SyCOCI THI ASyKOeeAl KAI 
 
 epHNUCiN , €1 MH ? cyNeBoyAcyeN , ei men eeoN ynoAAMBA- 
 
 -NOyCI , MH epHNSIN I €1 A€ ANepUHON . MH ey€iN . 
 
 Athen^us ( XV. p. 697. A ): 
 
 AplCTOX€AHC . CN XHI AnOAOTIAI , €1 MH KAXG^eyCXAl O AOTOC . 
 (JJHCIN : " OY TAp AN nOX€ €pM€lAI eyCIN tOC AeANAXOI OpOAl- 
 
n€pi A6ICIAAIMONIAC 49 
 
 was-made-to-resound with [ the ] miisick of fifers and 
 drummers, that the noise of the [ infant's ] crying 
 might not be too audible. * 
 
 Now, if any Typhous, or Giants, had expelled the 
 Gods, and ruled over us [ in their place, ] what 
 [ other ] sacrifices w ould they have delighted in, or 
 what other sacraments ^ would they have chosen ? 
 Am^stris, the wife of Xerxes, caused twelve men to 
 be buried alive, [ as a propitiatory sacrifice ] for her- 
 -self, to Hades [ or the Infernal Jupiter ] ; of whom 
 [ nevertheless ] Plato saith, that he is called Hades, 
 because'^ he is philanthropical, wise, and rich, and 
 govemeth the souls by persuasion and reason. 
 Moreover Xenophanes » the Physician, ^'^ seeing that 
 the Egyptians lamented and wept at their festivals, 
 made a very proper observation to them, saying " If 
 they are Gods, do not weep for them; but, if they 
 are men, do not sacrifice to them. "'^ 
 
 XIV. But there is no disease so full of errors and 
 perturbations, and so much mingled with opposite 
 and incongruous opinions, as Superstition. We must 
 therefore avoid it; [but] safely and prudently ; 
 [ and ] not like those, who, when without reason or 
 common sense, fleeing the attack of robbers, or of 
 wild beasts, or a fire, fall in with untrodden paths. 
 
 -pOy^^SNOC , COC eNHTCJI MNHMA KikTeCKey^ZON ! Kil ikeXN«iTIZ£IN 
 THN (j>YCIN BOYAOM6NOC , £niT&(j>IOIC *,N TIMAIC CKOCMHCA " ,^^. 
 
 Exemplum secutus est Julianus, apud Cyrillum { VII. p , 
 224. D ) de Solomone loquens : 
 
 einep oyN yno ryNMKOc HnikTHeH , royroN co^on mh Aerere ? 
 ei A€ nenicxeyK^Te eiNAi cocfiON , mhtoi n^pA ryNMKoe AyroN 
 e^HnATHCSAi NOMizere . 
 
 '" In the proper sense of the word Physician, that is ( not a 
 medical adviser, but ) ao investigator of natural effects and 
 causes. 
 
50 nAoyTApxoY 
 
 -niATOYCiN eic anoauc Bj>p&ep*, kai KpHMNoyc exoycAC . OY* 
 -Twc TAP €Nioi , (jjeyroNTec thn A€IClAMMONl AN , eMnin- 
 -ToyciN eic A©€OTHTA*TpAX6iAN km iNTirynoN , ynepnHAHCAN- 
 
 -T€C €N MeCWI ' KeiMeNHN THN €YC€B6 1 AN . * 
 
 ' Hcec PeripaticK sunt rationis, virtutes MecoTHT^c facientis. 
 Thus Stobseus ( Eclog. Ethic, p. 195): 
 
 6yc€B€UN M€N oyN eiNM 6?iN ee«N KAi AAIMONCON eepAHeyTi- 
 
 -KHN , MCTA^y OyCAN &e€OTHTOC KAI A€1C1 AMMOMIAC . 
 
 and Philo Jud. ( de Immutab. Dei, p. 316. E ) , virtutis 
 mediam eamque regiam esse viam docens : 
 
 K\\ AeiCIAMMONIAN MeN COC AG^ION A.AAOI MeTAAIQKOyC IN , AnO" 
 -AlApACKOyCI A «C ({igyKTON ACeSeiAN . INA OyN MH TAIC MAXO- 
 -M6NAIC KAKIAIC ANATKACeOMeN eKTpenOMeNOl xpHCOAl , THN MeCHN 
 
 OAON cyeyNeiN EoyAO^AeeA T6 kai eyxwMeeA i msch a€ epA- 
 coyc KAI AeiAiAC , anapsia i pAieyMiAC Ae CKKexyMeNHC kai 
 (fjeiAOAiAc AN€A€ye€poy , cco(f)pocyNH ! nANoypriAC T€ Ay kai 
 
 MCOpiAC , (j)pONHCIC KAI MNHMH : A6ICI AAIMONI AC AC KAI AC6B€1AC ■ 
 
 eyc6B€iA t AyTAi m6cai t«n AAp eKATepA eKTponcoN eici b.vci- 
 
 -MOI I KAI A6C0(j)OpOI OAOI HACAI - - . 
 
 [ And Horatius ( Epist. II. 18. 9 ) : 
 " Virtus est medium vitiorum, et utrinque reductum. " ] 
 
 Platonica eyceseiA explicatur in dialogo Euthyphrone, et Epi- 
 -nomide 703. H. sequ. 
 
 Stoica, Diog. Laert. VII. 119. ubi Menagius consulendus, 
 
 Ejusdem a duobus i'^tis contrariis erroribus secernendae offi- 
 -cium attigit Cicero ( Divin. II. 72, ) epilogo sane gravissimo.^. 
 
 * I should wish that the word Piety were always reserved 
 to denote filial affection ; yet T am obliged to use it difterent- 
 -ly here, because the Mord Orthodoxy is unfortunately always 
 
 Here endeth the treatise of 
 
nepi A6ICI A AIMON I ^C 51 
 
 full of pits and precipices. For thus some [per- 
 -sons, ] avoiding Superstition, proceed so far as to 
 fall into a rough and refractory Atheism,'' instead of 
 remaining at that [ happy ] medium, ^ Piety. " 
 
 understood in a ludicrous sense, at any rate by the present 
 generation. Yet by the word eyce&ew Plutarchus evidently 
 means a decent and orderly respect for the Gods, viz. Ortho- 
 -doxy, i. e. a mild and gentlemanly compliance in the prevail- 
 -ing form of worship. As to the word Religion, though it is 
 certainly often used in a good sense, ( as for instance in the 
 very apposite passage of Cicero, referred to, by Wyttenbach, 
 in the last note, ) yet I cannot help recollecting those verses 
 of Lucretius : 
 
 " Religio peperit scelerosa atque impia facta." B. 1, v. 84. 
 
 And 
 
 " Tantane Religio potuit suadere malorum ! " B. 1, v. 103. 
 
 I may here add, that there are many other passages of Lucre- 
 -tius which might have been aptly quoted in notes to various 
 parts of this treatise ; as where the poet says ( B. 3, v. 37 ): 
 " Et metus ille foras praeceps Acheruntis agundus, 
 Funditus humanam qui vitam turbat ab imo. 
 Omnia sufluscans mortis nigrore ; neque ullam 
 Esse voluptatem liquidam puram que relinquit. " 
 
 and again ( B. 5, v. 1194 ) : 
 
 " O genus infelix humanum ! talia Divis 
 Quom tribuit facta, atque iras adjunxit acerbas ; 
 Quantos tum gemitus ipsi sibi, quanta que nobis 
 Volnera, quas lacrumas peperere minoribu' nostris ! " 
 
 Plutarchus on Superstition. 
 
PRELTMINARY OBSERVATIONS 
 
 THE SIXTEENTH CHAPTER 
 
 CHARACTERS OF THEOPHRASTUS. 
 
OBSERVATIONS 
 
 TIIEOPHRASTUS. 
 
 Although Aslius doubts whether this chapter were really written 
 by Theophrastus, yet it may perhaps be worth while to say a 
 few words concerning the author to whom it is attributed. 
 
 On the opposite page I give a table which presents a synoptic 
 view of some of the philosophical Contemporaries of Theophrastus. 
 
 This Chronological Table is extracted from Priestley's biographi- 
 -cal chart, and is adapted to the scale of an inch to 30 years. 
 
 The dates I have chieHy taken from the Biographic Universelle. 
 
 I use the minus sign to show that the years are measured (from 
 the beginning of the Christian epocha, ) negatively, or retrograda- 
 -tively. 
 
 Observe that, according to Saxius, Theophrastus was born in 
 Olymp. 97. 1. ( i. e.— 392), and died in Olymp. 123, 1, ( i. c. 
 —288), when consequently he was aged 104. And indeed the 
 author of the letter prefixed to the Characters says of himself 
 - - B€BiWKUC €TH eNNeNHKONTA eNN€A - - ; wliile, ou the other 
 hand, Diogenes Laertlus says of Theophrastus : ereAeyTA ah 
 
 THpMOC , ElOyC fTH n6NT6 KM OfAOHKONTA . Must WC folloW 
 
 Casaubon, who would alter the numbers in Laertius ; or Astius, 
 who would reject the w hole of the Prooeniium to the Characters ? 
 
•©€Od)p^CTOC nepin^THTiKoc 
 
 born,— 371 
 Olyit)}). cii. 2. 
 
 85 
 
 i^piCTOTGAHC 
 
 —384 ] H2 
 
 HAATWN 
 
 died— 322 
 
 died— 286 
 Olvinj). exxiii. 3. 
 
 CTp*.TCON 
 
 nepiHATHTIKOC 
 
 aged 83 ] (lied.— 317 
 
 ^SNOKpATHC ^KAAHMiTKOC 
 
 — 3St)] 
 
 a-pd ^^2 
 
 died. 
 
 -301 
 
 AlorfeNHC K\NiKoc 
 
 nOACMCON AKAAHMiiVKOC 
 
 r died, old, ab — 272 
 
 I 
 Kp^NTCOp 
 
 akaahmaVkoc 
 
 flour, ab.— 30() 
 I 
 i>pK€CIA\OC 
 
 akaahmaVkoc 
 
 a-ed 90 ] 
 
 di'd,— 323 born,— 3J6 
 nYPPWN CKenTiKoc j 
 
 Hi>ur. ab. — 33') 
 ZHN60N (KY^pioc) ctcoVkoc 
 
 born, — 3()2 
 
 aged 9S 
 
 €niKOYpoc 
 
 born, — 3il [ died in his 72nd. year, 
 
 ANNIK€piC KYpHNAiKoc I 
 
 fl.— 330. 
 
 — BSV 
 
 — 300 
 
IV OBSER^ATIONS 
 
 The following ave tlie references which Saxius in his Onomasti- 
 -con ( Vol. 1, p. 83, 84. ) gives for the life and writings of Theo. 
 -phrastiis. 
 
 Diogenes Laertius, Lib. V, Sect. 36-57. [p. 288-298, edit. Meibom.] 
 Vossius, de Philosophia, cap. XI, §. 32, p. 88. 
 
 de Philosopher. Sectis, cap. XVIII, §. 2, p. 85. 
 
 Jonsius, [ de Script. Histor. Philosoph. ] Lib. 1, cap. XIV, §. 2, 
 p. 85. 
 
 Simson, Chron. ad A. M. 3682, and 3718. 
 Pope Blount, Censur.,p. 36-38 [ p. 100, 101, edit. 1690. ] 
 Fabricius, Bibl. Graec.^Lib. Ill, cap. IX, Vol. 2, [ p. 234-255. ] 
 Bruckerus, Hist. Crit. Phil., Vol. 1, p. 840-845. 
 Vol. 6, p. 244, 245. 
 Catal. Bibl. Bunav.,Toni. 1, Vol. 1, p. 127-129. 
 
 Vol. 2, p. 1646 
 
 Vol. 3, p. 2129 
 
 Hamberger, Part. 1, p. 279—287. 
 
 Thus Saxius; 
 
 To whose references may, I believe, be added : 
 Th. Stanley's Hist. Phil.. Part. 5. 
 Sav^rien's Phil. Anc.Tom. 3, p. 189-209. 
 Diderot's Opin. des Anc. Phil., Tom. 2, p. 425—427. 
 Coray's Discours Pr^lirainaire suv la vie et les Merits de Theo- 
 -phraste. 
 
ON THKOPHRASTUS. V 
 
 The following books may be consulted with regard to Tlieophras- 
 
 -tus's ideas of the Deity, or Supreme Principle. 
 
 Cicero, de Nat. Deor. The passage is quoted in Reimmann's Hist. 
 
 Atheismi, p. 186. 
 Montaigne, Essais, Livre II, chap, xii; Tom. 3, p. 161, edit. 
 
 1818. 
 Cudworth's System. Intell. cap. 4. [Vol. 1, p. 644. edit. Mosh.] 
 Diet, des Ath^es, p. 478. 
 
 The article given in the Biographic Universelle ( Tom. 45, p 
 342—348. ) is, of course, the best account of Theophrastus that 
 can any where be found. The author ( Thi^baut de Berneaud ) 
 announces, that he intends, at some future time, to give a Life 
 of Theophrastus, together with a collection of the fragments of 
 his writings. 
 
 Theophrastus was one of the most voluminous writers of antiqui- 
 -ty. Diogenes Laertius gives the titles of 229 of his treatises, 
 some of which contained many books each. They treat of gram- 
 -mar, logic, rhetoric, poetiy, music, ethics, mathematics, metaphy- 
 -sics, and especially of natural history, particularly botany. Of 
 the vast mass of his writings, those which have survived the neg- 
 -lectfulness of his heirs,' and the destructiveness of barbarism, are 
 the nine books of his History of Plants, six books of his Cau. 
 -ses of Vegetation, seventeen of his treatises on various other 
 physical subjects, and his Characters. 
 
 The last of these three works, is the only one which I need 
 give any account of. It consists of 30 chapters. The first 15 of 
 
 ' vid. Strab. B. 13, ch. 1; & Plutar. vit. Syll. p. 468. B. 
 
VI OBSERVATIONS 
 
 these were published, in 1327, from a MS. previously belonging 
 to Jo. Fr. Picus, Count of Mirandula. The next 8 were published 
 in 1551, by Jo. Baptista Camotius. In 1598, Casaubon added 5 
 more Characters, copied, by Marquard Freher, from a MS. in the 
 Palatine Library at Heidelberg. The 29th. and .30th. Characters 
 were published by Amaduzzi, in 1786, from a MS. of the eleventh 
 century belonging to the Library of the Vatican. Few books have 
 been so often edited. A list of the Greek Editions is given in 
 the Bibliotheca Britannica ( art. Theophrastus ) ; and, of course at 
 much greater length, in Astius's Prolegomena to the Characters 
 ( p. 33—45 ) . It appears that about 30 MSS., more or less per- 
 -fect, of the Characters, are known to exist, and have been in- 
 -spected. 
 
 The characters were translated into French, by Hieronyme de 
 B6nevent, in 1613; by La Bruyere, in 1688; by Levesque, in 
 1782; by Belin de Ballu, in 1790; and by Dr. Coray, in 1799. 
 They were translated into Spanish, in 1787; into Italian, in 1620, 
 and 1761; into German, in 1606, in 1737, in 1754, &c, See, of 
 which the last apparently was in 1810. 
 
 The Bibliotheca Britannica gives the following account of the 
 English Translations : 
 
 "The Characters of Theophrastus, translated from Mr. Bruyere's 
 French version into English, by Eustace Budgell Esq. Loud. 
 1699, 1702, 8vo. A version which can be little trusted to. 
 
 The Characters of Theophrastus, translated from the Greek, by 
 Eustace Budgell Esq. Lond. 1713, 8vo. Lond. 1714, 1715, 12mo. 
 An excellent translation, characterized by Addison as being tl)e 
 best extant of any ancient author in the English language. 
 
 The Characters, translated from the Greek, with Notes, * by Ilen- 
 'ly Gaily, M. A. Lond. 1725, 8vo. A useful translation." 
 
 * The title is !;iven at length, in the Catal. Bibl. Bunav. Tom. 1 , p. 1 •:!8. 
 
ON THEOPHRA.STUS. VU 
 
 To these translations I may add one, which I liave seen nien- 
 -tioned in some booksellers' catalogues, viz: " The Characters of 
 Theophrastus, translated from the Greek, and illustrated by fifty 
 physiognomical , sketches, to which are subjoined the Greek Text, 
 with Notes, and Hints on the Individual \'arieties of Human Na- 
 -ture, by Francis Howell. " Koyal and Imperial 8vo.; published 
 by J. Taylor. Lond. 1824. 
 
 In reprinting and translating the following chapter I have never 
 had a sight of any English or Latin translation. Indeed the on- 
 -ly book I possess which could be of any use to me, besides As- 
 -tius's Edition of the Characters, is La Bruy^re's translaticn of 
 the work, with the Avertisement, and ?^'otes of Schweigha:user, 
 Paris, 1823, 18mo.-"^-' 
 
 Astius's Edition of the Characters (printed at Leipsick, in 1816,) 
 is probably the most complete work of its kind in existence ; but, 
 in addition to his 48 pages of Prologemena, and ( 265-37, i. e. ) 228 
 closely printed pages of Notes, I wish he would have condescend- 
 -ed to favour such Ignoramuses as myself, with any one of the 
 various Latin translations which exist of the Characters. I am 
 moreover surprised, that neither Astius, nor apparently any other of 
 the writers whom I have been able to consult with regard to Theo- 
 -phrastus, mention du Rondel's treatise on the 16th. Character. 
 Albeit the Dictionnaire Historique, as also Ladvocat's Diet. , men- 
 -tions, at the art. " Rondel, " that this friend of Bayle's wrote a 
 " Discours sur le chapitre de Theophraste qui traite de la Super- 
 -stition. " Amsterdam, 1685, 12mo. 
 
 Schweighaeuser's Notes are so far valuable, as they serve as a 
 sort of counterpoise to those of Astius, as regards the importance 
 of the additions contained in the MS. of the Palatine Library of 
 the Vatican. Astius, when telling us, in his preface, p. 47, that 
 this Codex PaUitino-Vofiraniis, which cniitains the 15 last ciinp- 
 
-lers, excels all the other MSS. of the Characters " et antiquitate 
 et praestantia " , may perhaps say almost enough in favour of the 
 authority of its readings, to counterbalance the criticisms, which, 
 together partly with Siebenkees and Coray, he has brought 
 against these readings. 
 
 I will conclude these preliminary observations by observing, that 
 I have divided the chapter of Theophrastus into various portions, 
 which, as far as depends upon the extraordinary method of con- 
 -stantly repeating the word " And, " bear a great resemblance to 
 the Hebrew verses given in our Bibles. In venturing to print 
 the chapter with these subdivisions, I confess I have only follow- 
 -ed my own fancy; though I think I may be justified, by the in- 
 -variable peculiarity of style, which prevails throughout this and 
 all the other chapters in Theophrastus's book. I know not why 
 Astius has not turned our attention towards this peculiar style. 
 An editor of the Characters ( apparently Peter Needham ) seems 
 to allude to it, when he says ^ " se Characteres istos in tantum 
 emendatos dare conatum esse, in quantum natura operis, BpAxy- 
 -AoriAi &no(J5G€rMATiKHi adeo constricti, elliptica orationis structura 
 saepius hians ac interrupta, et periodi nulla aaahaoyxim cohaeren- 
 -tes, sed plurimum intercisse, patiuntur. " I know not whether 
 it 'is to this sort of ( Hebraical ) style, that the writer in the Bio- 
 -graphie Universelle may allude, when saying : " Le defaut d'ordre 
 de I'ouvrage provient de ce que nous ne le possedons pas en en- 
 -tier, et que ce que nous en connaissons n'est r^ellement, comme 
 le dit Schneider, que des extraits faits par des plumes inexp^- 
 -riment^es, par des rapsodes. " 
 
 N. B. In the following chapter, the passages under the line are 
 the readings of the Codex Palatino-Vaticanus. 
 
 ' As quoted by Johannes Fabricius, in his Bibliotheca, P. 6, 
 p. 261, 262. 
 
Y 
 
 THE FOLLOWING IS THE SIXTEENTH CHAPTER 
 
 OF 
 
 THE CHARACTERS 
 
 OF 
 
 THEOPHRASTUS, 
 
 NAMELY 
 
 THE CHAPTER ENTITLED 
 
 nepi AeiciAAiMONiAC. 
 
-e-eo^pxcToy 
 
 n€pi 
 ACrClAMMONIKC . 
 
 '*M€Aei* A H A€ICI AMMONIA' A0?€I€N in €INkl A€IAIk * 
 
 npoc TO AAIMONION . 
 
 o A€ A6ICIAMMON ToiOYTOC tic . OlOC — 
 
 (A) JknONl4'fcM€NOC * TAC xeipAC KAI ncpippxNAMCNOC kno icpoY . 
 i^X<^NHN^ €IC TO CTOMk AiiBUN . OyTO THN HMCpkN n€pin\T€IN . 
 
 Kk\ THN OAON ciN nkpAApAMH taah' , MH npoTepoN nopeY®n'- 
 
 -Nil I €OC JkN AI€^€AeHI TIC . H AieoyC Tp€IC Y^^P THC OAOY 
 AIXB&AHI .° 
 KXI CiN lAHl 04>IN '° €N THI OIKUI (6) , ICpON CNTAYS'^ 1^- 
 
 -pYCkce&i . 
 
 KXI TON AinjkPON AieMN '* TON €N TiklC TpiOAOIC OAplON , 
 6K THC AHKYeOY CAklON KATAXCIN : KAI CAI TONkTA HCCUN , 
 KAI npOCKYNHCkC . i>nkAAATT6Cekl . 
 
 KAI «iN MYC '* SYAikKON AA^dTON AIA4>krHI npOC TON C^HTH- 
 -THN '* CAeON CpOTJkIN . Tl xpH HOICIN I Kk\ €AN AHOKpiNHTAI 
 
 (A) enixpuNHN [or rather em kphnhn , or aoo kphnhc ] . ® 
 (B)eiN nipeiAN " . CABAAION [or rather CABAZION] 
 
 KJkAeiN J €AN Ae lepoi [ or rather icpoN i or lep^N '* ] cntay®'* 
 
 icpoN €Y©Yc lApycAceAi . " 
 
THEOPHRASTUS 
 
 SUPERSTITION. 
 
 * And, of a truth,- a€ici ammonia ' [ or Superstiti- 
 -on ] would seem to be a fear* towards the ammoni- 
 -ON [ or Spirit. ] 
 
 But the Superstitionist is such [ a man ] as [ this ]— 
 
 [ He ] will wash ^ his hands ( A ) and [ come ] 
 sprinkled from [ the ] temple, placing a [ branch of ] 
 laurel upon [ his ] mouth, and thus walk about 
 [the remainder of] the day. 
 
 And if, in the road, a weasel ^ run past [ him, ] 
 [he] will not go on, until some [other person] 
 Cometh out [ before him, ] or, until he hath thrown 
 three pebbles upon the road. 9 
 
 And, if he see a serpent ^° in the house, ( B ) [ he ] 
 will build a temple there. 
 
 And when he passeth by the anointed stones ^* in 
 the places-where-three-roads-meet, he will pour oil 
 [ upon them ] out of the cruise, and falling upon 
 [ his ] knees, will worship [them, ] and [ so]^depart'- 
 
 And if a rat ^^ eat through a sack of provisions, 
 [ he ] will go and ask the Expounder ^^ what ought 
 to be done ; and, if [ this person ] shall answer him 
 
 A. ^ At a fountain.^ 
 
 B.) If a serpent [called] Pareia, " [or large- 
 -cheekedj he will call upon [ the God ] Sabazius, 
 but if a serpent [ called ] Hiera, [ or Holy, ] ^^ he 
 will immediately build there a temple. ^^ 
 
4 e60ct)pACT0Y 
 
 AYTwi . eKAoyNi.! Twi cKYTOAe^Hi '^ cnippilM , MH npoce- 
 -x€iN TOYTOic , AAA I AnoTp^neicTeKeycjiCeAi . 
 
 KM nyKNik A€ THN OIKUN KAQApAl (C). 
 
 KM oyre eniEHNAi mnhmati '^ , oyx em NCKpoN -" €Ae€iN i 
 oyr em a€xw *' ( D ) . 
 
 KAi OTAN eNynNioN '" lAHi , nopeyeceM npoc xoyc on€i- 
 -poKpiTAC , npoc Toyc MiNTeic ■ npoc Toyc opNieocKonoyc . 
 epoTHCMN , TiNi G6C0I H 96M npoc€yx€ceM a€i . 
 
 KM TSAeceHCOMeNoc *^ npoc royc op4)€OT€A€CTAC kat\ 
 MHNA nopeyece&i m€Ta thc ryNMKoc : €&n ae mh cxOA^ZHl h 
 ryNH , m€ta thc xireHc Kin twn haiaicon (E). 
 
 Ki.1 em TAIC TpiOAOlC AneAecCN KATA K€(|)AAHC AOyCACSAI . 
 
 (C) ACiN , «c [ or rather asinoc ] 6KATHC (Jiackcon en*- 
 -r«rHN '* r€roN€NAi . kan rAAyKA baaizontsc Ayroy TAp&TTe- 
 -TM , Kh.\ einuN [ perhaps kan rAAyi? baaizontoc Ayroy 
 nApinTHTAi einwN ] " AGHN^ KpeiTTUN " nApcAeeiN oyrco 
 [ perhaps oyru nApeAeeiN ] . 
 
 (D)*' oyr em NeKpoN , oyr em Aexti eAeeiN eeeAHCAi , aaaa 
 TO MH MAiNeceAi [ Or rather MUiNecsAi ] cyM(})epoN <()hcac Ay- 
 
 -TCOI . KAI TAIC TCTApTAIC^^ AC , KAI TMC CBAOMATAIC , npOCTA- 
 
 -5AC oiNON e4'eiN toic cnaon , e^eAewN AropACAi MypciNAC . ai- 
 
 -BANOTCJN [ AlBANCOTOy ] niNAKA ! KAI eiCeAGCON eiCO CT€(|)ANWN 
 [ CT€(J)ANOyN ] TOyC €pM^({)pOAITOYC -* OAHN THN HMCpAN .'^ 
 
 ( E) KAI nepippAiNOMeNcoN em eAAATtHC . eniMgAcoc AO^eitN 
 AN eiNAl I [or perhaps kai tun nepippAiNOMCNCON aho 6aaatthc 
 
nepi AeiciA^iMONi^e 5 
 
 that he must give it to the tanner ^t to be sewn-toge- 
 -ther, he will not content himself with these [ mode- 
 -rate counsels,] butuvill return, and ^ will expiate 
 [ the evil omen ] with sacrifice. 
 
 And [ he J will frequently purify his house. ( C ) 
 
 And [ he ] will never approach a tomb, ^9 nor come 
 near to a deadbody, -° or to a woman in childbed "^(D). 
 
 And, when he hath seen a vision "^ during- his sleep, 
 [ he ] will go, to the diviners of dreams, to the sooth- 
 -sayers, to the observers of [ the flight of] birds, and 
 will ask them to what God, or Goddess, he ought 
 to sacrifice. 
 
 And, having been initiated"^ by the Orpheotelestae, 
 [ he ] will go [ to their mysteries ] every month, with 
 his wife ; and, if his wife be not at leisure, with the 
 nurse and the children. (E) 
 
 And, [ he ] will go out to the places-where-three- 
 
 ( C. ) constantly saying that there hath been a visit 
 from Hecate. ^^ 
 
 And, if an owl fly near him, while he is walking, 
 he will cry " The victoiy is Minerva's, " and will 
 thus pass on. 
 
 (D. ) He will be unwilling to come near to a dead 
 body or to a woman in childbed ; but will say, that 
 it is better for him not to be polluted. 
 
 22 And, on the fourth, ^3 and seventh [ days of the 
 month ] he will order the inmates to cook some wine ; 
 and he will go out and buy branches of myrtle, and 
 a box of frankincense; and, when he hath come 
 [ back ] into [ his house, ] he will crown the Herm- 
 -Aphroditae "* during the whole day.^^ 
 
 (E.) And he would seem to be one of those who 
 are repeatedly purified by aspersion at the sea. 
 
6 e€Oct)pXCTOY 
 
 KM l€pei*C KkAeCAC . CKIAAHI H CKyAAKI ^' KeAeyCikl t^YTON 
 
 nepiKAekpM . "* 
 
 M*>INOM€NON " T6 IAC3N H CniAHATON , ^fl-^i^C €IC KOAOON my- 
 -CM . 
 
 CniMCAUC AO^eiCN i*N 6INAI ] ! KiN nOTC CniAHl CKOpOAUl eCTCM- 
 
 -M€NUN T«N ** eni TZkic TpioAoic eneAeoNTWN , kata Ke(J>ikAHC 
 Aoyc^ceki [ perhaps cKopOAWN e(J)HMM€NON " tun €n taic rpio- 
 -AOic , AncAewN k^tx k€(})&ahc AOYC&ce&i . ] 
 
 Here endeth the text and the English translation of 
 
 Let us now come to the notes which 
 
nepi A€ ICI A AIMON I AC 1 
 
 -roads-meet, and wash his head [ there ] , 
 
 And, [he ] will call priestesses, and order himself 
 
 to be purified ^^ by the circumgestation of a squil and 
 
 a whelp. "■* 
 
 Also, seeing a madman, ^^ or one-subject-to-epi- 
 
 -lepsy, [ he ] will shudder, and spit into [ his own J 
 
 breast. 
 
 And, if at any time he should see [ a person ] 
 handling the garlick [ which is found ] at the places 
 where-three-roads-meet, he will depart and wash his 
 head. 
 
 the IGth. Chapter of the Characters of Theophrastus. 
 
 Astius hath written on this Chapter. 
 
» AN ABRIDGMENT OF ASTIUS S 
 
 ' Astius incloses the whole of this chapter between crotchets, as 
 he also incloses the Preface and the whole of the 26th. and the 
 20th. chapters, together with the final paragraphs of the 1st, 2nd, 
 3rd, 6th, and 8th. chapters. The reason, why he gives this mark 
 of suspicion to the whole of the chapter now before us, seems to 
 be expressed in the following part of his first note: 
 
 Recte Hottingerus non solum codicis Palatini additamenta, sed 
 totum quoque caput, in quo homo superstitiosus non mimice ex- 
 -primitur, sed cum antiquaria quadam accuratione ea enarrantur, 
 quae ad superstitionem apud veteres pertinebant, suspecta habuit. 
 Suspicionem movet iam vox aciciammonia , quae serioribus demum 
 temporibus earn significalionem, qua usurpatur in hoc capite, vi- 
 -detur accepisse, et quidam Polybii fere tempore, qui ( VI, 56. 7. 
 Excerpt. XII, 24. 5. ) hoc vocabulo hoc sensu usus est. 
 
 ' [Similarly this word AMeAei is used by Theophrastus at the 
 beginning of the 13th, 18th, 23rd, and 25th. chapters. He also 
 sometimes uses it in the middle of the chapter, as in the 21st, 
 24tb, and 30th. Ernesti ( as quoted in Hederic ) explains the 
 word " q. d. noli de hoc, quod aio, animo angi aut dubitare. " ] 
 
 ■* "Alii sic definiunt: AeiciAAiMONi*. ecTi <|>oeoc eeuN km am- 
 -MONCON. Sed Theophrastus voce ammonion et deos et daemones 
 complexus est et quicquid divinitatis esse particeps male sana pu- 
 -tavit antiquitas. " Casaiih. 
 
 * " A€iAiAN accipe metum alium ab eo, qui pios decet. Scite 
 enim A'arro apud Augustinum dicebat: deum a religioso vereri, a 
 superstitioso timeri. " Casaub. 
 
 * " Duplicem lavationem sive purificationem tangit; altera ad 
 nianus perlinet, altera ad totum corpus; ilia proprie xepNi^, haec 
 nepippANCic appellatur, fiebatque e&AACOi, id est, ramo felicis oli- 
 -vae, ul ait Virgilius (Aen. VI. 230.). Aqua vero lustralis, qua 
 adspergebantur, sic fiebat. Erat ad fores templi aquiminale quod- 
 -dam magnum, quales fere tinctorum cortinae, in quod mergebant 
 titionem ardentem ab ara sumtum, quando victima adoletur; eaque 
 aqua omnes, qui templum ingrediebantur, sese adspergebant ipsi 
 aut a sacrificulis adspergebantur. Euripides Here. Fur. (v. 928.): 
 
 MCAAUN A6 AiiAON X€ipi AC^IM ^'^P^'N 
 6IC XCpNIB UC Bii-l'eieN ikAKMHNHC TONOC . 
 
 Athenaeus, quid sit xepNi-l- explicans (IX, 18. p. 409. B. ): ec- 
 
 • TiN , inquit, yAcop eic o j^neB^nTON a^aon €k Toy BWMoy aam- 
 'BANONTec , ei^ oy thn eycuN €n€T€AoyN. Nee solum in tern- 
 
NOTES TO THEOPHRASTUS. 9 
 
 -plis erant nepipp^NTHpu , sed etiam ad fori introitum, quorum 
 saepe meminere oratores Graeci. " Casmib. Vid. Feith. Antiq. 
 Homer. I, 10. p. 71, et Append, p. 21. ed. Argentor. 1743. et 
 Potter. Archaeol. II, 4. 
 
 * Astius, rarely admiring tha additions of the Palatine MS. 
 liere says : 
 
 Constat quidem, veteres adhibuisse in lustrationibus aquam fon- 
 -tanam ( v. Sophocl. Oedip. Col. 460. Virgil. Aen. II, 719. IV, 
 635. VI, 229. sq. 635. sq. al. ) , sed marina quoque utebantur 
 (v. Homer. Odyss. II, 261. Apollon. Rhod. IV, 670. al. ) vel 
 aqua sale permixta ( v. Theocrit. Idyll. XXIV, 44. al. ) Igitur 
 ino KpHNHC per se iam incommoda esset additio. Accedit quod 
 verba t^r\o kphnhc vel em kphnhn CAeuN non solum supervacanea 
 essent, verum etiam orationis cohaerentiam turbarent; ^noNil&MgNoc 
 enim cum v. ^no lepoy cohaeret. Aqua videlicet intelligenda est 
 lustralis ( lepoN int. y^wp ) > qua et manus sibi lavabant et corpus 
 spargebant templum ingredientes et ex eo egredientes; h. e. , to 
 xepNiBON ( vid. Homer. Odyss. III. 440. Athen. X, 408. C. Eus- 
 -tuth. ad Odyss. A- p- 1400. 58. ) . 
 
 ^ " Moris fuit Graecis baculum laureum prae manibus habere* 
 tanquam AAe^iK&KON <|)ApM\KON, ut ait Suidas, quod crederent lau- 
 -ro inesse vim quandam malum averruncandi. Inde natum pro- 
 -verbium a^^cJjninhn (j)opu eakthpi&n (v. Erasmi Adag. I, 1. 79. 
 p. 44. Ed. ) , cum quis negat se sibi ab alicuius insidiis metuere. 
 Eodem etiam spectat, quod observare aliquando meminimus, soli- 
 -tos Graecos pro foribus laurum statuere; auctov Hesychius in voce 
 KWMyeA. Quod ait Theophrastus, laurum in os capi solitum a 
 superstitiosis, nescio an huic similis superstitio sit, quam apud 
 Hieronymum in Marcellae viduae epitaphio adnotavimus. Sic ille : 
 ' Nee mirum, si in plateis et in foro rerum venalium fictus ariolus 
 stultoi-um verberet nates, et obtorto fuste dentes mordentium qua- 
 -tiat. ' Nam ariolorum consuetudo fuit ( colligi potest ex Seneca 
 de beata vita ) laurum gestare, cum per urbem incederent, quam 
 fustem videtur Hieronymus vocare, quia erat, credo, virga maius- 
 -cula e lauro. Hesychius ( T. II. p. 34.): leyNTHpiON o ({lepoy- 
 
 -CIN Ol MANTeIC CKHHTpON &nO AA(|>NHC. " CuSaub. 
 
 * Mustela " fuit olim inter ea, quae occursu sue auspicium face- 
 -rent, quod Graeci vocabant 6noaion cywisoAON. " Casaub. Vid. 
 Aristuph. Eccles. 787. h AiM?eieN r*,AH. Pluut. Stich. Ill, 2. 7. 
 Terent. Phorm. IV, 4. 26. al. 
 
10 AN ABRIDGMENT OF ASTIUSS 
 
 * " Ridere licet veterum stultitiam. Putarunt illi, cum aliquod 
 triste signum apparuisset, posse id facile eludi, et quod ostende- 
 -batur periculum effugi, si vel verbis vel aliquo facto indicarent, 
 se omen non accipere, sed aborainari; verbis quidem, cum dice- 
 -rent eic ( rectius €C Ed. ) ks^iaahn coi, in caput tuum, omen 
 nempe redeat; quae abominandi formula frequens est apud utriusque 
 linguae scriptores; unius Senecae verba ponam ex Consol. ad 
 Marciam ( c. 9.): *Quis non, si admoneatur, ut de suis cogitet, 
 tanquam dirum omen respuat, et in capita inimicorum aut ipsius 
 intempestivi monitoris abire ilia iubeat ? ' Re vero aut facto aliquo 
 detestabantur, id, quod portendebat sinistrum aliquid, insectantes. 
 Cum enim vel avis vel aliud infaustura animal occurrisset, pe- 
 -riculo se defunctos putabant, si id lapidibus petissent et feriissent. 
 Planissime Dio Chrysost. Orat. XXXIV. (T. II. p. 34. Reisk.): 
 
 ANHp (fipY? eni KTHNOyC GaikAIZ€N ; CJC A eeeikCATO TINAi Kopco- 
 
 -NHN , oicoNic\MeNoc Aieui BAAAEi , KM HUC Tyrx&Nei <kY'''HC . 
 
 nANY OYN HCeH , km NOMICAC eiC CKEINHN T€TpA(j)eM TO XAA€- 
 -nON ANMpeiTM KM ANAE&C HAJ,YNeN I H A€ MIKpON AIAAIHOYCA 
 €NeC(j)HA€ , TO AG KTHNOC HTOHeeN &nOBi.AA€l TON ANApA ■ KM 
 
 oc necwN KiT^rNYCi to ckgaoc . " Casaub. 
 
 '" " Constat, serpentem vidisse in aedibus aut in itinere, triste 
 auspicium fuisse. Solebant autem loca, in quibus monstra fue- 
 -rant visa, religiosa fieri; ut in eo loco, qui fulmine tactus es- 
 -set, observabant. Idem puto fuisse observatum in aliis locis, 
 ubi portenta visa fuissent. Hinc ilia Platonis querela de super- 
 -stitiosis hominibus, mulieribus praesertim, quas ait levissimas ob 
 causas et pavores inanes impelli solitas, ut aras et sacella diis 
 statuerent, ut iam, inquit Plato, nullus locus lis vacet, non do- 
 -mus ulla, non vicus ( v. Legg. IX. p. 909. E. p. 412. ed. 
 nostr. Ed. ) . Porro serpentes fere per impluvium e tectis de- 
 -scendebant in aedes, et ibi soliti conspici. Plautus Amphitr. 
 ( V. 1. 56.): * Devolant angues iubati deorsum in impluvium 
 duo.' Terentim Phorm. ( IV, 4. 27, ) : 'Anguis per impluvium 
 decidit de tegulis. ' Eo igitur loco, ait auctor, sacella a sui tem- 
 -poris superstitiosis hominibus solita excitari. " 
 
 " Serpens nApei&c ( Lucan. IX, 721. pareas; inde sic dictus, 
 quod malas habet magnas et tumentes ) , quia morsu neminem 
 dicebatur laedere, Aesculapio sacer erat ( vid. Schol. ad Aristoph. 
 Plul. 690, Aelian. H. A. VIII, 12.); idem in sacris Bacchi- 
 -ois adhibebalur ( vid. Demosth, p. 313. Reisk. Valchen. ad 
 Amnion, p. 185. Sprcngel. in: Beytr. z. Gcsch. d. Arzn. T. I. 
 P. II. j>. 180. et BuUigcr. w libro qui e'st : uber den Raub 
 
NOTES TO THEOPHRASTUS. 11 
 
 der Kassandra p. 54. n. 52.). Hinc c^veazion (cod. Palat. 
 CABAAioN ) KAAeiN : est enim caeazioc Bacchi cognomen, vid. 
 Schol. ad Aristoph. Av. p. 583. Vesp. p. 432. et Lysistr. ( v. 
 390. ) p. 861. Diodor. Sic. IV, 4. Davis, ad Cicer. de nat. 
 deor. Ill, 23. 
 
 •* [Aristot. H. A. VIII. 29]: ecri as ti o4>iaion MiKpoN , o 
 KAAoyci TiN€C i€poN , o oy OANy MefAAOi otfieic <f>€yroYci i 
 riNeTAi Ae to Mereeoc Toyroy nnxyAioN , km AAcy iaein r 
 o TI A AN AAKHi , eyeyc CHneTAi to KyKAUi. Schneiderus ad- 
 -notat : " Aristotelis serpens, morsu venenatus, vix domesticus 
 fuit; nee eum interpretari hodie uUa ratione possumus. Quin 
 nullum plane genus pilosum serpentum cognitum adhuc habe- 
 -mus, nee, quis serpens iubatus vetemm scriptorum fuerit, di- 
 -vinare mihi licuit. Nominis ( lepoN ) ratio, obscura nobis ho- 
 die, superstitiosum movet, ut aediculara exstruat in loco eo, 
 ubi colubnim primum conspexeiat. " 
 
 '* Hoc additamentum Grammatico deberi eruditionem suam ven- 
 -ditanti, nobis quidem persuasum est. 
 
 '^ Lapides intelligi oportet in viis a viatoribus coli solitos. 
 In universum veteres statuas et lapides ungere,, coionare et re- 
 -ligiose colere solebant, vid. Theaphr. Hist. Plant. VI, 7. Ae- 
 -lian. V. H. IX, 39. Elmenhorst. ad Arnob. I. p. 22. Ouzel. 
 ad Minuc. Fel. Octav. p. 15. sq. Coray. ad Isocrat. Epist. p. 
 317. et ad h. 1. p. 254., ubi excitavit praeter Theophrastum iam 
 laudatum Atken. XV. p. 679. Plin. XXI, 39. Lucian. Con- 
 -templ. 22. T. I. p. 519. De mere. cond. 28. p. 687. Deor. 
 Cone. 12. T. III. p. 534. et Plutarch. Aristid. T. II. p. 530. 
 Adde Tumeb. Advers. I, 17. In proverbium autem abierunt 
 uncti lapides. " Dicebant enim de homine superstitioso hanta 
 AieoN AinApoN npocKyN6i. Clemens Alexandr. VII. Strom. ( p. 
 302. T. II. p. 843. 22. Potter, ubi v. not. Ed.) oi AyToi a 
 
 OyTOI HAN ?yAON KAI nANTA AieON , TO AH AerOMCNON , Al- 
 
 -HApoN npocKyNoyNT€c. (^Luciaii. Alexandr. §. 30. T. I. p. 532. 
 sq. Schmied. poyTiAAiANoc - - ta a€ nepi Toyc eeoyc nANy 
 
 NOCOJN KAI AAAOKOTA Oepi AyTWN neniCTeyKCCC , KAl ei MONON 
 AAHAIMM6NON HOy AieON H €CT€({)AN60M€NON e€ACAITO ■ npOCMin- 
 
 -TUN eyeyc kai npocKyNcoN , kai em noAy nApecTHKWc kai 
 eyxoM€Noc kai t atasa nAp AyToy aiton. Ed. ) Meminit et 
 Apuleius initio Floridorum (p. 340. Elmenh. ): 'Neque enim 
 iustius religiosam moram viatori obiecerit aut ara flovibus redi- 
 -mita, aut spelunca frondibus inumbrata, aut quercus cornibiis 
 onerata, aut fagus pellibus coronata, vel enim colliculus sepimine 
 
12 AN ABRIDGMENT OF ASTIUS'S 
 
 consecratus, vel truncus dolamine effigiatus, vel cespes libamine 
 humigatus, vel lapis uvguine delibutus.' Cf. Tibull. I, 1. 11. 16. 
 Ed. ) " Casaub. 
 
 '* " Etiam mures olim auspicium faciebant; inprimis triste pu- 
 -tabant, si quid mures arrosissent, vide Ciceronem de divinat. 
 II, 27. Plinius VIII, 57. Augustin. de doctr. Christ. II. Hinc 
 sunt ilia : cum vestis a soricibus roditur, plus timere suspicionem 
 futuri mali, quam praesens damnum dolere. Unde illud elegan- 
 -ter dictum est Catonis, qui cum esset consultus a quodam, qui 
 sibi a soricibus erosas caligas diceret, respondit, non esse illud 
 monstrum, sed vere monstrum habendum fuisse, si sorices a cali- 
 -gis roderentur. Cf. Clemens Alex. (Strom. VII, p. 712. Ed.). 
 --. Adeo autem familiare est miu-ibus syaakoyc rodere, ut prop- 
 -terea eyAi-KOTpwrec a poetis appellentur. Hesychius: eyA&KO- 
 -Tpo^ 1 Myc 1 oi A6 AKpic . " Casuub. 
 
 '* " Hoc est, ad portentorum interpretum et divinum, qualis 
 olim Athenis Lampon o mantic , qui kat' c^oxhn dictus est o 
 €^HrHTHC . " Casaub. Vid. ad Plat. Legg. p. 294. 
 
 " Merito offenderunt Coraius et Hottingerus in hoc interpretis 
 responso ( coriario, CKyroAelm , tradendum esse saccum a mus- 
 -culo perrosum, ut sarciatur ) , quippe quod ab eiusmodi hominum 
 ingenio prorsus abhorreat. 
 
 '^ en^rurH refertur ad magicam daemonum evocationem, vid. 
 Ruhnken. ad Tim. p. 114. sq. et nostra ad Plat. Polit. p. 406. 
 Male, si quid video, Coraius intelligit Lunae incursum ( " une 
 attaque d' Hecate, h. e. , cette influence maligne que la Lvme 
 ^toit s'lpposee exercer sur les hommes, ainsi que les terribles ef- 
 -fets qui en etoient la suite, et du nombre desquels etoit la ma- 
 -ladie connue sous le nom d' epilepsic ou mul caduc. " ) . Bene 
 contra Schneiderus: "Ad en^rcomN pertinet locus Hesychii in 
 tonwTHpe . AI& (fjjvpMiiKuN eiweiiCi risec enireiN thn skathn taic 
 oiKUic . Ceterum est hoc novum superstitionis genus, cum putat 
 homo timidus, invidi alicuius vel inimici sibi hominis venificio in 
 domum inductam esse Hecaten; quare omnem domum lustrat 
 diligenter. Quae fuerint indicia inductae Hecates, non memini 
 legere traditum a scriptoribus. " 
 
 " " Hesiod. epr. 748. [ or 695. ] 
 
 MHA €n AKINHTOICI KAOIZCIN ( Oy TAp AMeiNON ) 
 HAIAA AyUAeKATAION , O T iN€p ANHNOpA HOiei . 
 
 Nota sunt bustorum formidamina et monumentorum terriculamen- 
 
NOTES TO THEOPHRASTUS. 13 
 
 -ta. " Casauh. Vid. Kirchmann. de funer. Rom. II, 21. p. 175. sq. 
 
 ^ Funesta erat domus, in qua quis mortuus esset; idciico, ne 
 inscius aliquis ingrederetur et se imprudens pollueret, indicia ap- 
 -ponebantur foribus, vas aqua lustrali plenum ( ^p^anion), capilli 
 de ipsius defuncti capite secti, apud Romanes cupressus, al. Vid. 
 Casauh. ad h. I. et Kirchmann. I, 14. p. 71. sq. 
 
 " [ conf. Euripid. Iphig. Taur. 380, which I have quoted above, 
 in my reprint of Plutarch's treatise, p. 39. ] 
 
 *^ [ These ivords ] plura continent e serioris, ut videtur, antiquita- 
 -tis cognitione deprompta, de quibus nihil certi posse statui equi- 
 -dem existimo. Ceterum non mimica haec est hominis superstiti- 
 -osi descriptio, sed antiquaria morum superstitiosorum enarratio. 
 
 *' Quartus cuiusque mensis dies Mercurio et Ilerculi vel Mi- 
 -nervae (vid. Schol. ad Aristoph. Plut. 1127. Plutarch. Thes. 
 T. I. p. 75. Reisk. ) et septimus Apollini ( serioribus, ut videtur, 
 temporibus etiam Veneri, v. Schweighaeus. ad Bruyer. p. 74. sq. ) 
 sacer erat, vid. Philochor. ap. Procl. ad Hesiod. epr. 770. et 
 Schol. ad Aiistoph. Plut. 1127. Coraius observat, ap. Aristoph. 
 Vesp. 857. thus cum myrtis et cip^icoi seu vino cocto iiidem con- 
 -iungi. Schv?eighaeuserus ad Bmyer. p. 74 : " Le vin cuit est relatif 
 a des libations ou a des sacrifices, et les branches de myrte ap- 
 -partiennent au culte de Venus. " Idem vir doctus textum esse 
 coriTiptum censebat; sextum enim, non septimum, diem Veneri 
 consecratum fuisse, laud. lamhlich. vit. Pythag. c. 28. §. 152. 
 Cf. Nov. Bibl. litt. elegant. V. LXXII. p. 92. sq. Equidem ni- 
 -hil in hoc loco pro certo affirmari posse iudico. 
 
 "^^ Etiam de Hermaphroditorum religione nihil constat. Athenis 
 fuisse Hermaphroditi templum, ex Alciphr. Epist. Ill, 30. patet, 
 ut Schneiderus iam observavit. Notus est Ilermaphroditus, Mer- 
 -curii et Veneris Alius, utriusque sexum habens ( v. Ovid. Meta- 
 -morph. IV, 285. sq. Hygin. i. 217. ) . Etiam Halicarnassi, Vi- 
 -truvio auctore II, 8. , Veneris et Mercurii ( i. e. , Hermaphroditi ) 
 fanum erat ad Salmacidis fontem, cuius cultuni feminis praecipue 
 familiarem fuisse Schneiderus (p. 212. ind. edit. min. ) opinabatur. 
 
 ^ " Notum est, veteres, cum triste aliquod insomnium viderant, 
 AnoTponucMOY xkpiN sacra quaedam factitasse. \. Aristoph. Ran. 
 ( 1376.): 
 
 AAA* MOI AM(f»inOAOI AyXNON A + ATe , 
 KAAniC( T EK nOT&MCON ApOCON ipAT€ , 
 
14 AN ABRIDGMENT OF ASTIUS'S 
 
 eepM€T€ A Y^"P ' 
 
 coc AN eeiON ONeipON ahokayco . 
 Martial. XI, 50 : 
 
 Amphora nunc petitur nigri cariosa Falerni, 
 
 Expiet ut somnos garrula saga tuos. " Casauh. 
 
 ■•"" \'erbum TCAeceHNAi h. 1. latiori sensu positum est, ut sit ex~ 
 -piari ( TeAeiN enim, ut constat, de omnibus usurpatur, quae ad 
 res divinas pertinent ) . Et praecipue erat Orpheotelestarum, pre- 
 -cum formulis carminibusq\ie superstitiose confictis, hominum sce- 
 -lera expiare. vid. Platu Polit. II, 7. p. 3G4. E. ubi cf. not. p. 
 407. De opc^iKMc T€a6Taic vid. Herod. II, 81. Aristoph. Plut. 
 1059. ibique Spanh. T. III. p. 260. Beck. Eurip. Rhes. 943. 
 Diod. Sic. Ill, 64. et Creuzer. in: Symbol, et Mythol. T. III. p. 
 150. sq. [ Let me here add Schweighaeuser's note to tliis passage: 
 " On ne se faisait pas initier tous les mois, mais une fois dans 
 la vie, et puis on obscrvait certaines ceremonies prescrites par ces 
 niystferes. — — II faut observer, au reste, que les mysteres 
 d'Orphee sont ceux de Bacchus, et ne pas les confondre avec les 
 mysteres de Ceres. Toute la Grece celebrait ces derniers avec 
 la plus grande solennite, au lieu que les prfetres d' Orphee et- 
 -aient une espcce de charlatans ambulans, dont les gens senses ne 
 iaisaient aucun cas, et qui n' ont acquis de 1' importance que 
 vers le temps de la decadence de 1' empire remain. " ] 
 
 ^' e4)i>nTece&i, attingere, est, ut constat, etiam capessere, sumere, 
 passivum vero, ut solet, vim activi habet, vid. ad Plat. I.egg. p. 
 448. Superstitiosus homo, si quem videt alliuna arripientem idque 
 in trivio ( ubi Hecatae constat ova, caseos al. homines divites ves- 
 -peri apposuisse, quae pauperes rapere solebant, vid. ad c. X.), 
 pro impuro ilium habet, caput sibi laval, tanquam adspeclu istius 
 contaminatum, et scilla vel catulo se expiat. ^'erba CKopoAWN 
 TWN €ni TAic TpioAOic vel ad coenam Hecatae in triviis s. coni- 
 -pitis apponi solitam referre, vel omnino allium in triviis forte re- 
 -pertum intelligere poteris ( triviis enim et quadriviis praeesse 
 credebatur Hecate, vid. Euer. Otto de Tutela viarum I, 8. ) . Ac- 
 -cedit, quod allio veteres vim tribuebant expiandi et malum aver- 
 -tendi ( v. Pers. V, 180. ibique interpp. ), et nefas habebatur, 
 eiusmodi res attingere, Porphx/r. de abstin. II, 44: dantcc r^p en 
 
 TOYTCOI WMOAOTHCAN Ol eeOAOrOl . coc OYT6 inT€ON CN TAIC 
 
 AnoTponAioic gycaic twn eYOMCNCON kja . Certe propius acce- 
 -dit haec scriplura ad libri Palatini lectionem, sensumque praebet, 
 i;t credo, baud iacommodum. 
 
NOTKS TO THEOPHRASTUS. 15 
 
 ■•'* [ Astius, in this extract, and correction, twice gives a k. t. 
 A., which 1 have ventured to till up, in order that it may be 
 seen to what my English translation refers. ] 
 
 ^ Tangit duplicem veterum consuetudinem expiandi lustrandi- 
 -que se ; altera erat circumacta circa corpus scilla, altera catulo 
 similiter circa corpus ducto : hoc enim significat nepiKAeApAi. De 
 scilla, quod expiandi vim crederetur habere, notum vel ex Plinio 
 et medicorum libris ( v. Plin. XX, 19. XXI, 17. XXVII, 12. 
 Cels. Ill, 21. V, 28. M, 8. Vid. Theophrast. hist. Plant. VII, 
 12. Clem. Alexundr. Strom. VII. p. 843. sq. al. Ed.). De ca- 
 -tulo, res minus vulgo, ut videtur, nota. Verum est, quod dixi- 
 -mus, veteres catulo solitos lustrare se, eum circumferentes circa 
 corpus, eamque lustrationem vocabant nepiCKyAAKiCMON. Plutarch. 
 Quaest. Roman. (T. II, p. 280, C.),vit. Romul.{T. I, p. 31, B.)." 
 Casauh. 
 
 ■^ "Significat hoc verbum applicare aliquid corpori, expiandi 
 causa, idque in orbem ducere, quod et nepiMA^Ai dicitur, Latinis 
 circumferre. " Casauh. qui praeterea excitavit Virgil. Aen. VI, 
 226. ubi Servius : circumtulit, purgavit. Antiquum verhum est. 
 Vid. Plaut. Amphitr. II, 2. 143. Claudian. in Panegyrico Hono- 
 -rii, sexto eius consulat. ( v. 324. sq. ) al. 
 
 •*' Plautiis Captiv. Ill, 4. 15: 
 
 Ilegio, hie homo rabiosus habitus est in Alide. 
 Ne tu, quod istic fabuletur, aures iramittas tuas; 
 Nam istic hastis insectatus est domi matrem et patrem, 
 Et illic isti, qui sputatur, morbus interdum venit. 
 Proin' tu ab istoc procul recedas. 
 
 Morbus, qui sputatur (hinc nrycM eic koa«on ) est morbus cadu- 
 -cus s. epilepsia. Plinius II. N. X, 23: comitialem propter mor- 
 -bum despui suetum. XXVIII, 4: despuimus comitiales morbos, 
 hoc est, contagia regerimus. — \'^erba nxycAi €ic koahon conveni- 
 -unt mis ap. Tibull. I, 2. 96: 
 
 Despuit in molles et sibi cjuisque sinus. 
 
 HERE END THE KOTES OF ASTIUS ON THE SIXTEENTH (HAPTER 
 OF THE CHARACTERS OF THEOPHRASTUS. 
 fc." 
 
o 
 
APPENDICES. 
 
 APPENDIX THE FIRST. 
 
 ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 
 
 The reception of a certain maxim, is, I think, the principal cause 
 why Superstition, tho occasionally written against, and partially 
 (or at any rate nominally) condemned, is yet able to exist and to 
 flourish. We may indeed attribute a great part of the success of 
 Superstition — to the principles of fear, ideality, and wonder, inhe- 
 -rent in the human mind ; — to the influence of educations formed 
 by brutish nurses and dogmatical psedagogues; — and to the ex- 
 -citement occasioned by the gloomy prophecies and furious denun- 
 -ciations of pulpited hypocrites. But the grand support of Super- 
 -stition is from those whose greatest interest it is to put down 
 Superstition. Physicians, historians, legislators, school-masters, 
 newspaper-editors, and political-oeconomists, are the most enlight- 
 -ened and useful of literati ; and, if properly united, for their own 
 (the public) benefit, might rule the world. Yet do these very 
 men (who, in a land of perfect Superstition, would for the most 
 part be annihilated) uphold and protect their arch-enemy, by main- 
 -taining the fatal maxim, that it is necessary to deceive the vulgar. ' 
 
 It would be superfluous to show how much ancient priests fol- 
 -lowed this maxim, in keeping for themselves sublime doctrines 
 while they fed the people with fables. This is sufficiently well 
 
 ' That branch of the subject which considers silence as a means of 
 deceit, I am not yet prepared to treat upon ; but may refer, ex. gr., 
 to a passage in Lardner's works, vol. 4, p. 164, edit. 4to. 
 
2 ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 known, * especially as regards the Egyptians. But even legislators 
 condescended to use tliese tricks?*' Diodorus Siculus (B. 1, p. 59), 
 after mentioning that Mneues, the first mortal legislator among the 
 Egyptians, pretended to derive his laws from Hermes, adds : " Si- 
 -milarly it is said, that, of the GrtBcians, Minos in Crete, and 
 Lycyrgus^ in Lacedaemon, gave out that they had derived their 
 laws, the one from Jupiter, and the other from Apollo. And 
 among most other nations it is reported, that this maxim obtained, 
 and was a cause of great advantages to the believers. For it is 
 related, that, among the Arimaspians, Zathi-austes*' feigned that he 
 had received his laws from the Agatho-da'mon; as, among those 
 who are called Getae, Zamolxis feigned that he had received his, 
 from the great goddess of their republic, ^'^esta; and as, among 
 the Jews, Moses^ feigned that he had received his from a God 
 called lao; — either judging that an idea which was to be useful 
 to a multitude of men, was altogether divine and wonderful; — or 
 considering that the vulgar would be more obedient, when con- 
 -templating the power and magnificence of those who were said 
 to have promulgated the laws. " 
 
 Thus Diodorus: to whose list of divinely-commissioned Legis- 
 -lators may, I think, be added some other Grecians,* viz. — Tri- 
 -ptolomcs (if there was such a person) the missionary of Ceres, — 
 Zuleucus, who was assisted by Minerva,* — and Solon, who availed 
 himself of the sanctity of Epimenides. 
 
 ' I believe that the subject is investigated by Toland, in his Clei- 
 -dophorus ; but it is three or four years since I ever saw that book, 
 and all that I recollect of it is, that it quotes one of the following 
 passages, either that from Diodorus or that from Strabo. 
 
 ^ Clemens Alex, (strom. B. 1, p. 422, edit. Potter) blames the pa- 
 -gans for rejecting Moses, while they believe in Minos Lycurgus and 
 Zaleucus. 
 
 * Moses is scandalously compared to Numa, in the famous " Moi- 
 -sade, " written by J. B. Rousseau, or perhaps by Lourdet. The 
 poem is inserted in note (4) of (Duvernet's) " Life of Voltaire. " 
 
 * Compare what is said of even Lycaon, by an author in Suid., ap. 
 Fabric, 13. Gr., vol. 1, p. 548. Fabricius adds, in a note: " Plura 
 ejusmodi Legislatorum leges suas ad Deos referentium exempla col- 
 -legit Balthasar Bonifacius, Historic ludicrae xix, 1. E veteribus 
 Diodorus Siculus lib. 1, p. 48, & \'alerius Max. lib- 1, c. 2."^ 
 
 « vid. Plutarch. " de sui laude," tom. 3, (P. 1, vol. 5) p. 192, edit. 
 Wyttenb.; & Clem. Alex., strom-. B. 1, p. 422, edit. Potter. 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 3 
 
 But the great chief of deceptive Legislators was Pj/thugoras, 
 whose followers,^ to the latest ages, appear to have delighted in 
 working miracles. The Platonists, also, (or rather Pluto ^ himself, 
 and the Neo-Plutonicians, as distinguished also from that Sceptical 
 sect the Academics,) seem to have been fond of mysterious im- 
 -posture.^ 1\vq' Stoics were hypocritical and dogmatical. 
 
 Ewipides '" said, that, in the early state of society, some wise 
 man insisted on the necessity of darkening truth with falshood, 
 and of persuading men that there is an immortal Deity, ' who 
 hears and sees and understands our actions. 
 
 The eristic philosopher Sfilpo, when Bion, and at another time 
 Crates, asked him in the street, concerning the Gods, replied, that 
 he could not speak upon this subject where the vulgar could hear 
 him. (vid. Diogen. Laert., B. 2, ch. 117). 
 
 ' ex. gr. Einpedocles, and (five centuries afterwards) Apollonius 
 Tyanteus. See also the 3rd. Dissertation of the Pythagorean Mimas, 
 in Gale's Opuscula, tractat. penult, p. 61-65. 
 
 * vid. infra p. 16, note 5 ; & conf. Blount's Anima Mundi p. 58 ; 
 and Gale's Pythagoric fragments, p. 61, note 1. 
 
 * Plato (de Republ. B. 2, & 3; Oper. vol. 4, p. 108—138, edit. 
 Ast.) introduces Socrates as condemning a great many poetical ficti- 
 -ons concerning the gods ; but as considering that rulers might lie 
 for the benefit of the state (conf. V^anini amphitlieatr. p. 36).» 
 
 *" In one of his tragedies quoted in the pseudo-Plutarchean treatise, 
 de placitt. philoss., B. l,ch.7. Sextus Empiricus seems to be wrong 
 in referring the verses to Critias, vid. Mosheim's Cudworth, vol. 2, 
 p. 72, 73. 
 
 ' Cudworth argues at great length (syst. intell. vol. 2, p. 128-142) 
 that the notion of a Deity was not invented by legislators. He relies 
 especially upon the argument of (the sceptic) Sextus, that then it is 
 not explained whence the legislators themselves derived this notion. 
 But Sextus seems not to speak of tlie Deity (a philosophical abstrac- 
 -tion) but of the Gods (the sprites or daemons of the vulgar). If there- 
 -fore " primus in orbe Deos fecit Timor" some legislators may pos- 
 -sibly have availed themselves of the ignorance of the superstitious, 
 so as to methodize and concatenate political religions. Cudworth 's 
 annotator (p. 138) grants part of this argument. He also (very safe- 
 -ly) allows, that Mahomet and Oliver Cromwell made a tool of 
 religion. 
 
4 ON THE SUPPOSED KECESSITT 
 
 Strabo (Geogr. B. 1, ch. 2) shews, at great lengtli, the general 
 use, and important effects, of theological fables : " It is not possi- 
 -ble for a philosopher to conduct, by reasoning, a multitude of wo- 
 -men * and of the low vulgar ; and thus to invite them to piety, 
 holiness, and faith. But he must also make use of superstition ; and 
 not omit the invention of fables,' and the performance of wonders.. 
 For the lightning, and the segis, and the trident, and the thyrsolon- 
 -chal arms of the Gods, are but fables; and so is all ancient theolo- 
 -gy. But the founders of states adopted them as bugbears to frighten 
 the weak-minded." 
 
 The deep policy of the RomanSy in religiously deceiving the vul- 
 -gar, is well known. 
 
 Thus Nmiia (if there ever was such a person) pretended to derive 
 
 legislative information from the goddess Egeria:"* " ne luxuria- 
 
 -rentur otio animi, omnium primum, rem ad multitudinem 
 
 inperitam, et illis seculis rudem, efRcacissimam, Deorum metum* 
 injiciendum ratus est : qui quum descendere ad animos sine aliquo 
 commento miraculi non posset, simulat sibi cum Dea Egeria con- 
 -gressus nocturnos esse : ejus se monitu, quae acceptissima Diis 
 essent, sacra instituere; sacerdotes suos cuique Deorum praeficere." 
 Thus Livius, B. 1, ch. 19. And Plutarchus (in Vitis, p. 62, D & E), 
 after requiring us to believe that Zaleucus, Minos, Zoroaster, Nwna, 
 and Lycurgus, were visited by the deity, says of them, that •uc 
 /^YC'^^Q^'^T'^ KAi AYC&pecTA rvAHeH xeipoyMeNoi , - - - npocenom- 
 -c^NTo THN hr\o Toy 0€OY ao^an , i-YTOic eKeiNOic . npoc 'oyc 
 expHMATizoNTo . coTHpioN oYc^N . And further on (p. 64, E) we 
 read, of Numa alone: - - - Hr^reTO thn ino tun ©6C0N soHeei- 
 
 -JkN , - - - AHM&rOrtON KAI Tiei^CC€|0/7lN TO SYMOeiAeC KM <|)IAOnO- 
 -ACMON . 6CTI A 'OT€ KM (JlOEOYC TIN^C* AnATreAAQN nu\>b. TOY 
 
 * conf. Strabo, B. 7, ch. 3; quoted in Heraldus's note to Minut. 
 Fel. p. 115; and in Hume's Essays, vol. 2, p. 393. See also the 
 Syst. de la Nat. tom. 4, p. 213, note; & Sylvain Marechal " Pour & 
 contre la Bible" p. xxxiv, xxxv. 
 
 ' Macrohius speaks of the use of mythological fables in Somn. 
 Scip. p. 4-7. So also Salust'ms, de Diis, ch. 3 & 4 ; in a note to 
 which^Gale (p. 36) refers to " Prochis, Theol. Plat. lib. l,cap. 4, p. 
 10; & multo copiosius dissert. 5. in lib. de R. P. p. 369." 
 
 * vid. Ennius, Cicero, & Dio Chrysost., referred to by Fabric, B. 
 Gr., vol. 1, p. 548. Fabricius adds that Romulus pretended to have 
 derived his laws from Consus. 
 
 * An interlocutor in Plutarch's " non suaviter vivi secundum Epi- 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VLLOAn. 
 
 ©€OY I KM <j)ACMikTii AMMONUN AAAOKOTA , KM (j)WN\C OyK CY'^^" 
 
 -N6IC I eAoyAOY km T^n€lNHN enoiei thn aianoian j>y''""n 'yno 
 
 A6ICIA4.IMONUC .* 
 
 The hone-cutting-razor-miracle, ' achieved by Tarquinius Priscus 
 and Attius Navius, was probably got up for political purposes. 
 
 The Dictator Camillus was a very religious man ; his speech^ to the 
 Romans, after the Gauls had retired, principally turns upon the im- 
 ■^portance of the national religion; and the military tribunes created 
 by him " null& de re prius, quam de religionibus, senatum consu- 
 -luere. In primis fcedera ac leges - - conquiri , quee comparerent, 
 jusserunt; alia ex eis edita etiam in vulgus : quae autem ad sacra 
 pertinebant, a pontificibus maxime, ut religione obstrictos haberent 
 multitudinis animos, subpressa." (vid. Liv., B. 6,ch. 1). 
 
 The elder Scipio Africanus constantly pretended to be peculi- 
 -arly favoured by the gods. Thus he took care frequently to go 
 alone to the Capitol, where the vulgar imagined that he received 
 some revelation from the deity. Polybius praises this policy, and 
 compares it to that of Lycurgus (vid. Biogr. Univ., tom. 41, p. 
 301, b; conf. p. 300, b; 311, a; & 322, a). 
 
 The pontifex maximus Scavola thought it expedient that the people 
 should be deceived in religion ; and the learned Van-o said plainly, 
 that there are many truths, which it is useless for the vulgar to know; 
 and many falsities which it is tit the people should not suppose are 
 falsities.'' Hence comes the adage " Mundus vult decipi,* decipia- 
 -tur ergo. " 
 
 -curum " (p. 1104, B. edit. Xyl.) argues that Superstition is of use to 
 keep the wicked from crime. But afterwards (p. 1105, B.) he ac- 
 -knowledges, that most persons regard the infernal punishments as 
 mere nurses' stories; and that those who do fear them, secure theni- 
 -selves by religious ceremonies and purifications. 
 
 ' By a sort of poetical justice, the writings of Nwua, when found 
 about four [or nearly five] hundred years after his death [U. C.573; 
 ant. Chr. 181], were burnt by order of the Senate; the prator Peti- 
 -lius having declaied: mh aokgin a.Y"'""' ©€miton eiNM,MHAe "ocion, 
 €KnicT2k Toic noAAoic TA r6rpAMM€NA r€N€ceAi . (Plutar vit. Num.) 
 p.74. E). ' 
 
 ^ vid. Liv., B. 1, ch. 36; & Cicer., de N, D., B. 2, ch. 9; & de 
 divin., B. 1, ch. 31-33 ; B. 2, ch. 80. 
 
 3 vid. Liv., B. 5, ch. 51,52. 
 
 ■• vid. Augustin. de civ. Dei, B. 4 ; as quoted by Cudworth, syst. 
 intell. vol. 1, p. 672, & 812-813; coiif. Vanin. ampliithealr. p. 36; 
 
6 ON THE SlFrObi:i> NECtsSnY 
 
 The religious policy of the Roman government, especially in later 
 times, is inimitably described in the following passages of Gibbon : 
 
 "The various modes of worship, which prevailed in the Roman 
 world, were all considered, — by the people, as equally ti-ue, — by the 
 philosopher, as equally false, — and by the magistrate, as equally 
 useful. " (Decl. & Fall, ch. 2, vol. 1, p. 46). 
 
 " Notwithstanding the fashionable irreligion which prevailed in the 
 age of the Antonines, both the interests of the priests and thecreduli- 
 -ty of the people were sufficiently respected. In their writings and 
 conversation, the philosophers of antiquity asserted the independent 
 dignity of reason : but they resigned their actions to the commands 
 of law and of custom. Viewing, with a smile of pity and indul- 
 -gence, the various errors of the vulgar, they diligently practised 
 the ceremonies of their fathers, devoutly frequented the temples 
 of the gods; and sometimes condescending to act a part on the 
 theatre of superstition, they concealed the sentiments of an Atheist 
 under the sacerdotal robes. Reasoners of such a temper were 
 scarcely inclined to wrangle about their respective modes of faitli, 
 or of worship. It was indifferent to them what shape the folly 
 of the multitude might chuse to assume; and they approached, with 
 the same inward contempt, and the same external reverence, the 
 altars of the Lybian, the Olympian, or the Capitoline Jupiter. " 
 
 Thus Gibbon (vol. 1, p. 49, 50; read also p. 51). 
 
 After mentioning the opinions of those most enlightened Pagans, 
 the Graccians and Romans, it is scarcely necessary to shew how 
 much the doctrine of deceit was practised by less free-minded 
 Polytheists. * I will only give the following well-known instance. 
 The Indian Sophist Xekia,'' when on his death bed, delivered to 
 
 Blount's anim. mund. p. 58; and Montesquieu's most interesting 
 and important ' ' Dissertation sur la politique des Romains dans la 
 religion. " 
 
 * A graphical illustration of this motto constitutes the frontispiece 
 
 of the " Charlatanerie des Savans. " 
 
 ® The Druids did not commit their doctrine to writing, "quod ne- 
 -que in vulgus disciplinam efferri velint. " (Caesar, de bell, gall., B. 
 6, ch. 4?). 
 
 ^ Espr. de I'Encycl. art. " Asiatiques. " torn. 2, p. 25 1 ; conf. p. 283. 
 And let me here observe, that Zoroaster (if he ever existed), and, ma- 
 -ny ceiitiuies afterwards, Manes (of wiiose existence I have some 
 doubt -j, arc said (like Pythagoras) lo have concealed themselves in 
 
OF DECEIVING THF. VILOAR. 7 
 
 his disciples his secret doojmata, adding that they should abandon 
 the exoteric doctrine to the people, and themselves at any rate 
 only conform to it outwardly. 
 
 But let us pass over the benighted heathens, whose religion was, 
 no doubt, that of the father of lies ; and let us come to the reli- 
 -gion of light' and truth. 
 
 Paulux Taraemis seems to have imagined that the Deity could 
 occasionally deceive the peopled for he says : * " God shall send 
 them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie ; that they all 
 might be damned' who" &c. (see also Epist. ad Roman, ch. 3, v. 7). 
 
 caverns where they prepared their sacred books. Another Persian 
 legislator, Mazdek, who was also put to death (about A. D. 535), 
 pretended to converse with a pyraeum. 
 
 ^ In his 2nd. letter to the Thessalonicians, ch. 2, v. 11, 12. Fau- 
 -lus was perhaps thinking — of the complaint of Jeremiah (ch. 20, v. 
 7) : " O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived " (conf. 
 Origen. adv. Cels. p. 3; & Mosheim. de turbata &c. p. 802, 803); 
 — and of Yehouh's denunciation of the idolatrous prophets, in Eze- 
 -kiel (ch. 14, v. 9): "I the Lord have deceived that prophet.'' De- 
 -ceitful miracles are mentioned in the Apocalypse of John, ch. 13, v. 
 13 Sc 14; ch. 16, v. 14; ch. 19, v. 20. Indeed, in the primitive 
 times of Christianity, little attention was paid to miracles (vid. Gib- 
 -bon, vol. 2, p. 377), as all parties claimed an almost equal power of 
 working them. Lactantius (B. 5, ch. 3, p. 241, 242) prefers prophe- 
 -cy to miracles. St. Petei- had said (epist. II, ch. 1, v. 19): "we 
 have a more sure word of prophecy. " Tertiillianus (adv. Marcion. 
 B. 3, ch. 3) shews, that miracles are, in themselves, no argument. 
 
 Referring to Matth. xxiv, 24, he says : " edicens virtutes magnas 
 
 edituros temerariam - - virtutum fidem ostendit, ut etiam apud 
 
 pseudochristos facillimarum " (conf. Casal. de ritibus Xrum. p. 346, 
 347; & Mosheim's Cudworth, vol. 2, p. 166-175). Locke has adop- 
 -ted Spinoza's definition of a miracle (vid. Deschamps' Wolffian 
 philosophy, tom. 1, p. 332, 12mo). In our own times, a reverend 
 orator, on being asked what he understood by the word miracle, an- 
 -swered " Mirwn, a wonder, Miraculum, a little wonder"; to which 
 his antagonist replied, that a derivation was not a definition. But 
 surely a derivation indicates the primary meaning of a word. 
 
 ® I regret the use of so strong a word, but I follow the orthodox 
 translation. If the words KpiNw , aiashkh , Aoroc . (as also per- 
 -haps eKKAHCl^ . nNey''^'^ • ArreAOC , &iun , aaimonion . npecBy- 
 -Tepoc , eniCKonoc) are occasionally ill translated, let the Kiiig 
 
o ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 Concerning the Christians of the first centuries, I will give the 
 following passage from Dr. Mosheim : '" " The Platonists and Py- 
 -thagoreans held it as a maxim that it was not only lawful, but 
 praiseworthy, to deceive, and even to use the expedient of a lie, 
 in order to advance the cause of truth and piety. The Jews who 
 lived in Egypt, had learned and received this maxim from them, 
 before the coming of Christ, as appears incontestably from a mul- 
 -titude of ancient records; and the Christians were infected from 
 both these sources with the same pernicious error, as appears from 
 the number of books attributed falsely to great and venerable 
 
 names . " Thus Dr. Mosheim; who, however, attributes most 
 
 of these pious frauds to the heretics, not to the genuine Christians; 
 and it is piously to be hoped that he is right. 
 
 The above paragraph refers to the 2nd. century after Christ ; but, 
 in the 4th. century, it was an almost universally-adopted maxim 
 " That it was an act of virtue to deceive and lie, when by such 
 means the interests of the church might be promoted. " ' I will 
 only give one more quotation from Mosheim ; (it regards the 5th. 
 century) : " The simplicity and ignorance of the generality in those 
 times furnished the most favourable occasion for the exercise of 
 fraud ; and the impudence of impostors, in contriving false mira- 
 -cles, was artfully proportioned to the credulity of the vulgar; 
 while the sagacious and the wise, who perceived these cheats, were 
 over-awed into silence by the dangers that threatened their lives 
 and fortunes, if they should expose the artifice. Thus does it gene- 
 -rally happen in human life, that, when danger attends the disco- 
 -very and the profession of the truth, the prudent are silent, the 
 multitude believe, and impostors triumph." (E. H., vol. 2, p. 11). 
 
 After giving these extracts from so learned a theologian, it is unne- 
 -cessary for me to mount up to the fountain head, and to turn over 
 the heavy folios of the Fathers of the Church, of which indeed I 
 
 and the King's bishops look to it. It is their affair, not mine. My 
 orthodoxy is not stopped by trifles. " Vive le Roi [^et sa foi^ quand 
 mcme — . " 
 
 '" Eccles. Hist. vol. 1, p. 197, 198. Engl. Transl. In his "de re- 
 -bus Xnis. ante Constantinum" (p. 166, a) Mosheim says, that pious 
 frauds were approved of by the christians as early as the time of 
 Hernias. 
 
 ' Eccles. Hist. vol. 1, p. 381, 382; conf. Brucker, Hist. Philos., 
 vol. 3, p. 354 ; conf. p. 362. 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 9 
 
 possess but very few. However, I will give the following passages. 
 
 The Apostolic Hennas says : "I never spoke a true word in my 
 life ; but always lived in dissimulation, and affirmed a lie for truth 
 to all men ; and no man contradicted me, but all gave credit to my 
 words." * (Pastor, B. 2, mandat. 3, (v. 6, edit. Hone), p. 45, edit. 
 Cotel. The Pastor is "scripture", vid. Iren. B. 4, ch. 20, p. 253). 
 
 The author of the Clementina has impiously dared to introduce 
 even St. Peter himself, telling the father of Clemens, to put on the 
 appearance of Simon Magus, and, as such, to confess that he had 
 wickedly lied against Peter [vid. Cotelier, p, 808 — 810; conf. p. 
 521 — 524]. Dr. Mosheim is very severe upon the delusion (de tur- 
 -bata, p. 796, 797). Elsewhere (Homil. Clement, p. 575, Cotel.), St. 
 Peter is made to speak very strangely about the lies of Scripture. 
 
 St. Clemens Alexandrinus seems to me decidedly favourable to pious 
 frauds, (vid. strom. B. 5, p. 656 ; conf. p. 680 — 686). Moreover, in 
 B. 6, p. 802, after referring to St. Paul, &c., Clemens says; "They 
 are not liars, who accommodate themselves according to ceconomy of 
 salvation, nor who err in any things which are in part; but those 
 [are liars] who stumble at principal things, and who reject the Lord, 
 and the Lord's true doctrine." 
 
 St. Cyprianus tells us (vid. Diet, des Athees, p. 93) that it is dan- 
 -gerous to speak the truth concerning God.^ 
 
 St. Gregorius Nazianzenus was of opinion, that words are sufficient 
 to deceive the vulgar, who admire the more the less they xinderstand. * 
 
 * The Christians and Pagans mutually accused one another of 
 credulity, as is shewn at great length by Kortholt, in his paganus 
 obtrectator, P. 1, ch. X. 
 
 ' Origenes quotes the same saying from some one (vid. Epiphan. 
 Haeres. 64, p. 531.) These Christians seem to follow Plato, who, 
 in his Timseus, considers it difficult and dangerous to explain to 
 the multitude the father of all things, (see Potter's note to Clemens 
 Alex., cohortat., p. 58). |^. Moreover, in his second Epistle to Dio- 
 -nysius, Plato says : "I must speak to you aenigmatically [concerning 
 God], so that, if any thing happens to those tablets, he that reads 
 them may not understand" — a passage which Clemens (strom. B. 5, 
 p. 685) compares to those of the apostle Paulus, I. Corinth, ch. 2, 
 V. 6&7;&ch. 3, V. 1,2, 3. 
 
 ■• This saying reminds me of ftat of Dioni/sius Alexandrinus (ap. 
 
10 ON T}1E SVPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 According to the same Doctor of the Church, "Our fathers and 
 teachers have often said, not what they thought, but -what circum- 
 -stances required." (vid. Diet, des Athees, p. 172.) 
 
 St. Hierom/mus, tho he condemns Origen's doctrine of deceitfiil- 
 -ness (vid. Mosheim, de turbata, p. 802), nevertheless declares*, that 
 the Fathers were obliged to say, not what they thought, but every 
 thing requisite to refute what the heathens believed. He endeavours 
 to vindicate them by the example of St. Paul ; but Blonde! has 
 shewn the insufficiency of such a justification. 
 
 St. Chri/sostomus ® declares, "that miracles are proper only to ex- 
 -cite sluggish and vulgar minds ; that men of sense have no occasion 
 for them; and that they frequently carry some untoward suspicion 
 along with them."' Elsewhere (inhis"de Sacerdotio." vid. Mosheim, 
 de turbata, p. 803), Chrysostomus maintains that a certain degree of 
 deceitfulness "is honourable, not only in war and towards enemies, 
 
 Euseb., Hist. EccL, B. 7, ch. 20) : "I do not reject what I have not 
 observed ; but admire it the more, because I have not seen it." Com- 
 -pare the famous passage of Tei-tidliamis (de came Christi, ch. 5) : 
 "Alias non invenio " 
 
 * Apolog. ad Pammachium pro libris adv. Jovinian. vid. Mande- 
 -ville's Free Thoughts, p. 172. 
 
 " vid. Middleton's Prefatory Discourse to his Letter from Rome, 
 p. civ, edit. 1741. 
 
 ~ This language seems liberal for a Christian Saint. But one is 
 less astonished at finding similar common sense among the worship- 
 -pers of Jupiter. Thus: Po/(/6iMs considered all miracles as fables, 
 invented to preserve in the vulgar a due sense of respect for the deity 
 (vid. Reimmann. hist. ath. p. 233; Casal. de ritibus Christianorum, 
 p. 347 ; the Travels of J. Massey, p. 264, edit. 1733 ; & the Esprit de 
 I'Encycl. torn. 2, p. 335-337). Even Xenophoii, tho much addicted to 
 superstition, says of certain prodigies, that they were considered to 
 have been forged and contrived by the magistrates (vid. Middleton's 
 Letter from Rome, p. 205). Well therefore was it said by Epicharmus 
 (ap. Polybium; vid. Fabric. Biblioth. Gr. vol. 1, p. 678) that " to 
 be vigilant, and to be hard of faith, are the sinews of wisdom.'' Mar- 
 -ctis Antoninus {meA\\.3i\.i. B. 1, p. 1) congratulates himself that he bad 
 learnt " to disbelieve what is said by wonder-workers and jugg- 
 -lers, conoernine; incantations and the sending-back demons and the 
 such like". 
 
OF DECEIVIKG THE VULGAR. 11 
 
 but also in peace and towards friends." He then talks about the 
 conduct of St. Paul [vid. I Cor. IX, 19, &c.; Acts XVI, 3 ; Galat. VI, 
 12, &c.]. Afterwards he says : "Great is the force of deceit, provided 
 it be not excited by a treacherous intention. And such as this indeed 
 ought not to be called deceit, but a certain oeconomy and wisdom."- 
 - - "He is justly called a deceiver, who uses the method unjustly, 
 not he wlio does this with a sane mind. It is often useful to deceive, 
 and thus to give great assistance." 
 
 Eusebiiis (who, tho a sort of an Arian, was the most useful man 
 Christianity ever possessed,) seems to have been rather actuated by 
 the principle of deceit, when he composed his Ecclesiastical History. 
 If we subtract falsifications, interpolations, and evident improbabili- 
 -ties, his account of the Christians, during the first century of their 
 sera, amounts to little more than what we read in (that undateable 
 but highly-to-be-reverenced compilation, ycleped) the New Testa- 
 -ment. Gibbon says of our grand historian : "Eusebius indirectly 
 confesses that he has related whatever might redound to the glory, 
 and that he has suppressed all that could tend to the disgrace, of 
 religion." (Decl. and Fall, ch. 16; vol. 2, p. 490) 
 
 After speaking of the christian who first endeavoured to give a 
 methodical, and something like common-sense, account of the origin 
 of his religion, I may add the avowal of SozoMenen, * another of our 
 christian historiographers, that he did not dare to relate the creed of 
 Nice, because " some of his pious and learned friends in this matter," 
 advised him to suppress the things, "which the initiates and mys- 
 -tagogues alone should understand " ; and that, according to their 
 advice, he has concealed what was to be kept silent. 
 
 I will only refer to one more of the ancient churchmen, namely to 
 Si/nesius. This demi-philosopher, on being offered the bishoprick of 
 Ptolemais, wished his Patriarch to be informed, that, altho he could 
 not believe the common doctrine of the resurrection, yet he had no 
 objection to amuse the vulgar with fables. ^ " As darkness suits the 
 
 8 B. 1, ch. 19 & 20. conf. Mandeville's Free Thoughts, p. 74. 
 
 ' See the Latin translation of his Letter, in Brucker, Hist. Phil, 
 vol. 3, p. 514 ; and partly in Mosheim ad Cudworth., vol. 1, p. 812, 
 813 ; & vol. 2, p. 804 ; conf. Gibbon, Decl. and Fall, vol. 3. p. 299, 
 note ; and Helvetius, de ITIomme, section 2, note 5. Another im- 
 -portant passage from Si/ucainx is quoted in the " de Diis Syris " (p. 
 ■54 & 69) of Selden, who appears to admire this doctrine. 
 
12 ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 blear-eyed better than light, so I think that falsehood suits the vulgar 
 better than truth.'' The liberal theologian Beausobre, after quoting 
 various parts of this famous epistle, says : " On voit dans I'histoire 
 que j'ai rapportee, une sorte d'hypocrisie, qui n'a peut-etre et^ que 
 trop commune dans tons les tems. C'est que des ecclesiastiques, 
 non-seulement ne disent pas ce qu'ils pensent, mais disent tout le 
 contraire de ce qu'ils pensent. 'Philosophes dans leur cabinet, hors 
 dela ils content des fables,' quoiqu'ils sachent bien que ce sont des 
 fables. lis font plus; ils livrent au bourreau des gens de bien, pour 
 I'avoir dit. Combieu d'athces et de prophanes ont fait bruler de 
 saints personnages sous pretexte d'heresie ! Tous les jours des 
 hypocrites consacrent et font adorer I'hostie, bien qu'ils soient aussi 
 convaincus que moi, que ce n'est qu'un morceau de pain." (Man- 
 -icheisme, torn. 2, p. 568, 569)- 
 
 A famous medical metaphysician '" has ventured to say, of the 
 early Christian priests : " Nothing was more obnoxious to all their 
 enterprizes, than the Pagan philosophers as well as historians, and the 
 good sense contained in their works. Knowledge is the bane of 
 Priestcraft ; which made some prelates, as soon as it was in their 
 power, behave themselves against all human literature, and every 
 
 thing belonging to arts and sciences, with an uncommon rage. 
 
 The inveteracy - - of Gregory - - the Great - - against learning and 
 paganism was so excessive, that he not only was angry with an 
 Archbishop of Vienna, for suifering grammar to be taught in his 
 diocese, but studied to write bad Latin himself; and in one of his 
 letters boasted, that he scorned to conform to the rule of grammar, 
 not in any thing to resemble a heatlien. In pursuance of this refined 
 policy, the Clergy has refused to recede an inch from what had been 
 gained on the credulity of the laymen ; and whoever attempted to 
 undeceive the people was always looked upon as a false brother, and 
 rendered odious to the world." Thus Mandeville ; who protests that 
 he does not allude to latter times. And I am sure he would not, if 
 alive, allude to this nineteenth century : for we see that our clergy 
 has established everywhere schools of mutual instruction, — as soon 
 as it was found, that, otherwise, the education, or rather the bible- 
 -teaehing ', of the poor would fall into the hands of the dissenters. 
 
 '" Dr. Mandeville, in his Free Thoughts, p. 151, 152. Compare 
 Hume's Essays, vol. 1, p. 54, & p. 504. Read also a passage in 
 p. 14 &15 (edit. 1816) of that interesting, tho pseudonymous, pam- 
 -phlet, called "Janus on Sion." 
 
 ' I know not why we anti-papi.>ts thrust upon all the world the 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 13 
 
 When guch as I have above stated were the doctrines of some of 
 the Fathers of the church =*, it is not surprising if their lineal descend- 
 -ants the Roman ^ Catholics have perpetually acted upon the princi- 
 -ple of deceit. Hence the 11,000 virgin martyrs of Cologne; hence the 
 two or three heads of St. Ursula; hence the girdle of the virgin Mary 
 shewn in eleven- different places ; hence the eight authenticated sin- 
 -doni, or cerements, of our blessed saviour; hence enough wood of the 
 true cross to build a first rate man of war. To this doctrine of deceit 
 we owe— the most stupendous forgeries, such as letters from the Virgin 
 Mary &c.,— and the perpetual succession of miracles, such as the still 
 annually liquified blood of St. Januarius. No wonder if the priests 
 ridicule, when by themselves, that ignorance by which they live ; and 
 
 sacred books of our holy and mysterious religion. Semler would tell 
 us that these books were really kept sacred in the early ages : "Chris- 
 -tiani doctores non in vulgus prodebant libros sacros suos, licet 
 soleant plerique aliter opinavi. Erant tantum in manibus clericorum, 
 priora per saecula" (dissertat. in TertuUianum I, §. 10, note 57). For 
 the Fathers of the church, and modern theologians, who have con- 
 -demned the indiscriminate reading of the Scriptures, vid. " Pour et 
 contre la Bible", p. 381-384; conf. p. 254. 
 
 ^ But probably the Gnostics were fully as deceitful, ex. gr. vid. 
 supra. Life of Plutarchus, p. 15, note 4. Dr. Mosheim (de turbata, 
 p. 804) says : " The most celebrated and learned Christians, from the 
 age of Origenes whom I consider as the principal teacher of this 
 doctrine, appear to me to have been infected [with deceit], until the 
 
 Priscillianists, in the fifth century, carried this doctrine a great 
 
 deal too far, and many of the orthodox were not afraid to imitate them. 
 It was then that all lies were condemned and rejected by St. Augus- 
 -tinus, whose doctrine was afterwards preferred, by many teachers, 
 to the Platonicians' liberty of lying." Among modern heretics, the 
 Anabaptists have had their Clancularii, " qui disaient qu'il fallait 
 parler en public comme le commun des hommes sur les matiores de 
 religion, et ne dire qu'en secret ce que Ton pensait. " vid. Diet. Hist. 
 Univ., tom. 20 (chronol.) p. 233. 
 
 ^ But Montesquieu (gr. et dec. des Romains, p. 258, 259) says of 
 their rivals at Byzantium: "Quand je pense a I'ignorance profonde dans 
 laquelle le clerge grec plongea les laiques, je ne puis m'empecher 
 de les comparer a ces Scythes dont parle Herodote (Liv. IV, ch. 2), 
 qui crevoient les yeux a leurs esclaves, afin que rien ne put les em- 
 -pecher de battre leur lait." 
 
14 ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 if Pope Leo X: should be reported to have said "What riches this 
 fable of Clirist has brought us !" 
 
 But from the 2nd. (or at any rate the 3rd.) century of our sera, 
 down to the 16th., we know that Christianity was not Christianity; 
 and that the church, against which the powers of darkness were not 
 to prevail, was in a perfect state of eclipse. When, however, the in- 
 -vention of printing '' had begun to popularize knowledge; and when 
 Luther, aided by the Saxon princes, had overthrown the papal 
 power in the north of Germany, and those time-servers, Cromwell 
 and Cranmer, had revolutionized the religion of England ; then 
 (evidently by the grace of God alone) Christianity shone fortli in its 
 virgin splendour. Yet, even since this auspicious renovation, how 
 many Anglican priests have (as is said to have been the case with 
 Archbishop Sheldon) regarded religion as a state-mystery ! For I 
 regret to say, our prelates are sometimes more endued with reason 
 than with faith. Thus: Archbishop TUlotsoji v/as suspected of lati- 
 -tudinarianism; Bishop Hoadlij has been called the greatest dissenter 
 that ever was preferred in the Church; and Bishop ifare*has been 
 accused of having even offered to bet against the prophecies. 
 
 Almost in our own times, Bishop Watson, notwithstanding his two 
 Apologies, has, I am told, acknowledged, in his Memoirs, that his own 
 faith, as regards the soul, was not perfectly sound. Dr. Paley, who, 
 tho' not a prelate, has been a most influential theologian, confessed he 
 could not afford to keep a conscience; the which confession, added 
 to his somewhat Jesuitical doctrine of expediency, may tend to shew, 
 that the shrewd Archdeacon has soinetimes argued " according to 
 oeconomy" ' i. e. in a manner adapted, not to truth, but to circum- 
 
 ■* Many discussions were excited among our clergy by tiie introduc- 
 -tion of printing into England. For, altho it was Thomas Bourchier, 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, who had been principally instrumental to 
 the introduction of that art, (which moreover was first practised in 
 Westminster Abbey, under the patronage of Thomas Milling, Bishop 
 of Hereford,) yet, at that period, a certain Bishop of London said, in 
 an assembly of his episcopal brethren : " If we do not succeed in 
 destroying this dangerous invention, it will destroy us." vid. Bio- 
 -graphie Univ. torn. 7, p. 462. This was I suppose, when Caxton's 
 first book was published here, in 1474. Gilbert, Kemp, and Hill, 
 were Bishops of London about that time. I know not which of 
 them made this most lamentably true prognostic. 
 
 ' vid. Daillc "on the use of the Fathers," ch. 6, p. 107 - 115. 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 15 
 
 -stances. Finally, there now exists a learned Bishop, who could 
 publicly declare, that, altho he believed in the Articles collectively, 
 he did not believe in them separately. Such an assertion should not 
 surprise us, if it is allowable to suppose, that the divines of the pre- 
 -sent Church of England subscribe, with a sigh or a smile, to articles 
 which they can hardly wish to be thought believers in. They make 
 probably some mental reservation; or perhaps do not conceal, that 
 (like Chillingworth) they regard these articles only as peace-articles, 
 — a comfortable manner of reasoning, which would equally entitle 
 the subscribers to lecture in a Turkish mosque as in an Anglican 
 steeple-house. And who are our embryo pulpiteersi Are they chiefly 
 such younger sons, as are neither possessed of bookish industry and 
 oratory for the bar, nor of physical strength and courage for the 
 army? Such instructors must consider religion only as a trade; 
 and, in the hopes of promotion in the church militant, must be will- 
 -ing to lend a hand toward supporting any profitable system of 
 delusion. * 
 
 If living upon the people, instead of enlightening them, be not the 
 object of the clergy, it certainly is the object of the Lawyers. A 
 certain Lord Chief Justice is said to have declaimed, only a few days 
 ago, against the bad effects of education. 
 
 Among the more independent part of our laity, there have always 
 existed persons, who, like Sir William Temple^' \h\nk that religion is 
 only good for the mob. Indeed, our English aristocrats* especially 
 those of the last and the present generation, are notoriously hypocriti- 
 -cal in both religion and politics* They assist at public prayers, only, 
 as they say, to set a good example to their servants. Even a long 
 residence abroad, which ought to enlarge the mind, serves only to 
 render some persons yet greater favourers of hypocrisy. I have heard 
 of a gentleman, who admires the maxim of deceiving the people, 
 because he found that the Hindoos might be forced to speak the 
 truth by swearing them upon consecrated rice. 
 
 If the doctrine of deceitfulness is almost universally maintained by 
 the aristocracy of the British Isles (which have long been the most 
 religious part of Europe), it is no wonder if the aristocrats oi foreign 
 climes are equally barefaced, in desiring freedom for themselves and 
 slavery for the producers of their wealth. 
 
 * Dr. Isaac Vossius, when asked what had become of a certain 
 man of letters, answered bluntly : " He has turned country parson, 
 and is deceiving the vulgar." See Desmaiseaux's Life of St. Evre- 
 -mond; and Niceron's Meraoires torn. 13, p. 131. 
 
16 ON THE SUPPOSED NECESSITY 
 
 The use of certain dogmata in stultifying the people was never 
 more strikingly exemplified, than in the famous Catechism ' promul- 
 -gated, only a few years ago, by Austriaco-Italian despotism, (sed 
 vid. infra, App. II, p. 14). 
 
 Italy has long been famous for pious frauds ; but it has occasion- 
 -ally produced detecters of these frauds. Pomponatius maintained, 
 that the dogma of a future life and of the soul's immortality was 
 invented by politicians (vid. Espr. de I'Encycl. torn. 2, p. 543). 
 Machiavclli said, that miracles were invented by princes for the 
 benefit of their subjects '' , and that the prince ought to be the first of 
 deceivers in observing religious ceremonies.* 
 
 In more northern countries, the grammarian Antonius Schorus ® 
 was banished from Heidelberg, because, in his latin comedy " Eu- 
 -sebia," he wished to prove, that religion was despised by the 
 great people and was respected only by the vulgar. We read also 
 of the unfortunate law-student J. G. Rum, who, before voluntarily 
 quitting the woes of this life ^, wrote a species of testament, in 
 which he says : - - " religio ad vulgus pertinet, inventa scilicet ad 
 
 ^ One of our English Newspapers (the Morning Chronicle), after 
 giving copious extracts from this most orthodox church-and-state 
 publication, said : " How early is the great business of deception 
 commenced ! The mouths of our veiy babes and sucklings are sys- 
 -tematically filled with falsehoods, and even in their spelling-books 
 they are nursed in delusion. It would seem that it is never too 
 early to learn lies. A system of education ah ovo, which should 
 exclude only notorious falsehood, would be a perfect curiosity — a 
 thing that has never yet been seen." 
 
 ■* vid. Vanin. amphitheatr. p. 35 & 50 ; conf. Syst. de la Nature, 
 torn. 4, p. 15, note. 
 
 * see the Charlatanerie des Savans, p. 197, note. In the same note 
 it is remarked, that, according to Plato and Xenopbon, governors 
 should be permitted to lie for the public good; and that, according 
 to Valerius Maximus (B. 7, ch. 3), certain things to be well received 
 by the public, must be introduced by fraud. 
 
 * A Dutch protestant who died at Lausanne in 1552, vid. Diet. 
 Historique Universel, torn. 16, p. 50. 
 
 ' In the year 1688, and apparently at Wittemberg. vid. Reim- 
 -mann. Hist. Atheismi, p. 505. 
 
OF DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 17 
 
 decipiendos homines, eosque melius regendum. - - Ut - - ea, quae 
 vulgo de veligione traduntur, a sacerdotibus doceantur, ratio, uti 
 dicitur, postulat . "^ 
 
 Before concluding the historical part of this appendix, let me 
 add what some of the modern French literati (whose influence 
 has been so powerful over the whole of Europe) have said, or 
 written, concerning the grand question of deceiving the vulgar. 
 
 Buffon^ is reported to have said, that he considered Religion 
 to be necessary for the people ; and that, for this reason, he used 
 the word "creator" instead of "nature, " and [thereby] also avoided 
 giving offence to the Sorbonne. 
 
 Voltaire, the greatest Theist of modern times, says : ' 
 
 Consulte Zoroastre, et Minos et Solon, 
 
 Et le martyr Socrate, et le grand Ciceron : 
 
 lis ont adore tous un maitre, un juge, un pere. 
 
 Ce systfeme sublime a I'homme est necessaire. 
 
 C'est le sacrc lien de la societe, 
 
 Le premier fondement de la sainte equite, 
 
 Le frein du scelerat, Tesp^rance du juste. 
 
 Si les cieux, depouilles de son empreinte auguste, 
 Pouvaient cesser jamais de le manifester. 
 Si Dieu n'existait pas, il faudrait l'inventer.'" 
 
 Moreover, Voltaire, in his " Traite sur la Tolerance, " printed 
 in 1763, has devoted a chapter to this very subject " S'il est utile 
 d'entretenir le peuple dans la Superstition " ; in the beginning of 
 which chapter he says : " Telle est la faiblesse du genre humain, 
 et telle sa perversite, qu'il vaut mieux sans doute pour lui d'etre 
 
 ^ vid. Diet, des Athees, p. 56. 
 
 ' Epitre a I'auteur du livre des Trois Imposteurs. In the CEuvres 
 de Voltaire, tom. 12, p. 186, edit. 1821. 
 
 '" This last verse, which is often printed in capitals, was a great fa- 
 -vourite of Voltaire's. In a letter to Saurin, he says ( (Euvr. tom. 
 12, p. 514) : " Je suis rarement content de mes vers; mais j'avoue 
 que j'ai une tendresse de pfere pour celui-la." La Harpe, in his 
 Eloge de Voltaire, says " ce beau vers fut une des pens^es de sa 
 vieillesse. " And, indeed, old age naturally has recourse to the doc- 
 -trine of deceit, as conducive to (the summum bonum of decrepi- 
 -tude ) temporary quiet. 
 
lo ON THr, Sri'HOSED NECESSITY 
 
 subjuc^aie par toutes les superstitions possibles, poiirvu qu'elles ne 
 soient point meurtriferes, que de vivre sans religion. L'liomme a 
 tonjours eu besoin d'un frein; — ". Methinks, if \'oltaire had al- 
 -ways written thus, the priests would have canonized him? 
 
 The author of the Essai sur les Prejuges is decidedly opposed 
 to the doctrine of deceit; but he acknowledges (ch. 2, p. 17, 18. 
 edit. 1777): "La Politique se croit obligee de tromper Its peu- 
 -ples, de les retenir dans leur tristes prejuges, d'aneantir dans tons 
 
 les coeurs le desir de s'instruire et I'amour de la verity. Les 
 
 chefs des peuples - - s'obstinent a regarder I'ignorance et I'abrutisse- 
 -nient com me utiles — *' . 
 
 Lingiiet, ' an anti-philosophical publicist, says, in his Essai phi- 
 -losoph? sur le IVIonachisme, that Religion is a sublime invention. 
 
 Lemuire,^ the editor of the " Contagion Sacri'e" (Paris, An. \ .) 
 says: "the people must have a religion." 
 
 La Place ( the greatest mathematician that ever existed ) was 
 of opinion * that Atheism is adapted only for the savans. * 
 
 I have now brought forward cjuite a sufficiency of instances to 
 prove the universal prevalence of the doctrine of deceit. But the 
 universality of a doctrine is no proof of its truth; otherwise we 
 might believe in witchcraft, ghosts, &c. Let us rather argumen- 
 
 ' vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 249. 
 
 * vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 242, & 312. 
 
 " according to the Diet, des Ath. p. 232. 
 
 * Yet, if I recollect right, La Place says, at the end of his " Sys- 
 -tcme du Monde, " that the great use of Astronomy is its incompati- 
 -bility with Superstition. In the same work the author gives us a 
 most admirable cosmogony founded on the idea of successive solar 
 refrigerations. I ruention these circumstances with the greater plea- 
 -sure, because many astronomers have done their utmost to favour su- 
 -perstition. I forget which of our star-gazers has insinuated that the 
 entrance of Paradise may be in a spot of the belt of Orion. The grea t 
 Lalande was not one of these ultra-seers. " I am more proud of my 
 progress in atheism, than of what I may have learnt in astronomy '' : 
 and again : "At nineteen I thought the heavens proved god ; now 1 
 see in them nctliing but matter and motion." Yet even Lalande 
 thouglit that Atheism was " beyond the vulgar, to v»hom it would be 
 neither agreeable nor useful." vid. Biogr. Univ. torn. 27, p. 9, note 1. 
 
oi PEC.i.ivixr. Tiir, vulgak. 19 
 
 -latively enquire, whether deceiving the vulgar is really a good 
 policy. 
 
 Now the term vulgar, in the phrase before us, evidently means 
 the ignorant; and all ignorance is comparative, and is, moreover, 
 of infinitely diversified species. But let it be granted, that tite 
 ignorant are, in this' country, smcA persons as cannot read or write. 
 These persons are of two sorts: 1st. those who have not yet been 
 taught, viz : children ; and 2ndly. those who probably never will be 
 taught, viz : old uneducated people. It is impossible to reason 
 with either of these two classes of persons, as with those who have 
 profited by the recorded wisdom of past ages, and still less as with 
 those, who have attained — that grand object of a refined educa- 
 -tion — the power of judging in the abstract. 
 
 It is then evident, that " the vulgar, " as above defined, are be- 
 -ings of inferior rationality. But, because they are inferior beings, 
 they are not, I think, to be therefore habitually deceived. 
 
 For, how many ir^tances could be produced, of persons, who have 
 seemed to consider themselves privileged to deceive the vulgar, and 
 who have ultimately had good reason to repent of their deceitfulness. 
 I do not allude to any silly youth, who, when playing the ghost, 
 may have been '^very properly? run t'lro' the body by another youth 
 who would not be frightened. But I allude to those hoary-headed, 
 systematical, and licensed hypocrites, who, after long encouraging 
 an error, have at last fallen victims, either to the same, or to a cog- 
 -nate or similar error. The most learned Egyptian might perhaps 
 liave been torn to pieces by the mob, if he had, tho unwillingly, de- 
 -stroyed a cat. The Brahmin of highest caste may, I have heard, 
 sink, at once, into a Pariah, if forced to eat beef. The most faithful 
 believer, in the divine mission of Mohammed, would perhaps be 
 impaled, if he openly derided the horse El-Borak and the bridge 
 El-Seirat. Even under more regular governments, one of our most 
 orthodoxly intolerant high-churchmen might find himself inconveni- 
 -ently situated, if, when abroad, he refused to take off his hat to a 
 
 * I say " in this country '' : for ii is evident that some nations, tho 
 incapable of reading or writing, may nevertheless contain eniight- 
 -ened individuals. The North American Indian, perfect in body 
 and mind, and free from alm.ost every species of tyranny and preju- 
 -dice, is surely a superior being to the uiiseiablc ihoologian, who 
 has wasted his health and intellect in the endeavour to comprehend 
 learned nullities and dogmatical absurdities. 
 
20 ON THE SUPPOSED KECESSITT 
 
 popish precision. Again, in part of this our blessed country, the 
 strictest believer in our old 39 Articles might, I am told, be preven- 
 -ted from gaining his livelihood in the church, if he refused to sign 
 the 80 new Articles of one of our present bishops. 
 
 In short : in a barbarous country it is almost impossible to be se- 
 -cure against the savageness of superstition ; and, in a demi-civilized 
 country, like our own and the greater part of Europe, faith ( unless 
 perhaps such as the vicar of Bray's) does not always produce 
 security or comfort. Cranmer, a founder of our half-reformed 
 Christianity, burnt heretics under Edward the sixth's reign, and was 
 himself burnt as a heretic under the reign of Edward's successor. ® 
 On the other hand, those four Dominicans were similarly burnt 
 alive, who wished to keep up a long established doctrine of chris- 
 -tianity, even by imposing upon, and frequently endeavouring to 
 poison, one of tlieir own brethren.'' 
 
 Superstition therefore ( the grand effect of the doctrine of deceit ) 
 is often of no avail, and is sometimes of great detriment, even to the 
 deceivers. 
 
 And to the deceived themselves, it is far more frequently destruc- 
 -tive. For instances of p/n/sical destruction, read of the crusades 
 and of the St. Barthelemi. For instances of moral destruction, 
 behold one quarter probably of the inhabitants of mad-houses. 
 
 It may indeed be objected, that some persons are enamoured of 
 their error, and that we have no right to deprive them of it.*^ Thus Gib- 
 -bon ^ says : " The practise of Superstition is so congenial with the 
 multitude, that, if they are forcibly awakened, they still regret the 
 loss of their pleasing vision." /Elianus' mentions a certain Thra- 
 -syllus, who rejoiced at seeing any vessels enter the Pirseus, belie- 
 -ving them to be his own; and Horatius" speaks of a man (by 
 
 * I might perhaps also mention, that Leibnitz, who v/rote against 
 all sorts of anti-Lutheran heresies, would once have been thrown in- 
 -to the sea [a la Jonas] by some popish sailors, if he had not pre- 
 -tended to be a catholic. 
 
 ' vid. Moshemi's Eccl. Hist. torn. 4, p. 18, to 22. The punish- 
 -ment inflicted on these clumsy impostors was an ad terroi-cjii event, 
 which must have given some room for reflection to getters up of 
 miracles. 
 
 ^ Decline and Fall, vol. 2, p. 356. 
 
 8 Var. Hist. B. 4, ch. 24. 
 
 '» Epistles, B. II, 2, V. 128-140. 
 
DP DECEIVING THE VULGAR. 21 
 
 some called Lycas ) who, in an empty theatre, imagined that he heard 
 admirable tragedies. Now these examples would form a good argu- 
 -ment, if Superstition were only a private and solitary vice. Lycas 
 was a good neighbour and an agreeable host, as the poet tells us ; 
 therefore his peculiar fancy about the theatre might have been left to 
 him, as affecting no one except himself. But it is otherwise with 
 Superstition.' Firm believers must have often thought it an act of 
 charity, rather to broil an incredulous neighbour for half an hour in 
 this world, than to let him broil for ever in the next. It is evident 
 therefore, that, for every individual of common sense, to attack dam- 
 -natory doctrines and the other dogmata of licensed deceivers, is but 
 a rightly-understood system of self-defence. 
 
 As to attempting to cure a people's vicious education by im- 
 -postures, this is only perpetuating an evil, and perhaps giving it 
 a yet worse direction. Mohammed may have cured the Arabs of 
 idololatry ; ^ but he inspired them with a spirit of proselytism, 
 which spread ruin over half the world ; and, by giving them a 
 written code of faith, he bound down their intellects for ever. ^ 
 
 Deceit can only be justifiable, for a very short time, and to- 
 -v/ards an infuriated mob. When the vulgar are once in a state 
 of tranquillity, they will more safely be kept quiet by the staff of 
 
 ' Superstitions purely national may perhaps to a certain degree 
 be excepted. Brahminism is a genealogical religion, and is ( I am 
 told ) incapable of the odious folly of proselytism. Besides, a Ilin- 
 -doo, in choosing his own personal deity, may profess a sort of pan- 
 -theism. Public self-torturers should be prosecuted as nuisances ; 
 but, if a fool wishes to throw himself under the wheels of the car of 
 Jagernaut, I do not see why he should be prevented. 
 
 ^ This, however, is the most harmless, and poetical, species of su- 
 -perstition ; and is also the most ancient, after star-and-element-wor- 
 -ship. It is but a materialization of the anthropomorphism of the 
 vulgar. The religions the most fatal to toleration (see the 9th. sec- 
 -tion of Hume's Natural History of Religion) are those which have 
 inculcated the worship of ideas-without-prototypes. Adorers of a 
 wooden image may throw their deity into the fire, and be liberated 
 from their folly in a moment; but what can cure the madmen, who 
 adore a being so indefin able, that, to judge from his attributes, he 
 must be infinitely stronger than iron, yet infinitely thinner than air .' 
 
 * Even Truths, if they deprived the mind of its elasticity, would 
 2,degrade?human intellect into brutish instinct. 
 
22 ON TUl. Sl'in'OSi,!) XLCBSSIiV 
 
 a policc-ofricor than by the crozier of a bishop. Forcible restraint 
 is the oily argument fit to be used with l;,;;iiigs, who were never 
 endued willi instinct, and who have left uncultivated, or have 
 abandoned, their reason. A desperately-ignorant and actively-vici- 
 -ous man ought to be treated as a tiger : for, in depriving a furious 
 animal of the means of doin^ inj^'iyj i^ sif^nifies little whether he 
 v^a!!; upon two legs or upon four, llonce, if any one were entrus- 
 -ted with the government of tlie Neapolitan Lazzaroni, or of some 
 liot-'icated, wild, half-naked. Irishmen, or any other set of human 
 Ijeings whom superstition and bad cj;overnment has deprived of 
 reason, he would be fully justified in forcibly preventing them 
 from annoying one another or their neighbours. 
 
 But /orcc ceases to be justifiable, after sufficient time has been 
 allov/ed for usefully educating those who are now infants. The 
 grown-up generation may be despaired of. Human beings have hi- 
 -therto been, for the most part, mere masses of variously compoun- 
 -ded folly and villanj'. But let us not despair of the future ge- 
 -nerations. The descendant of the most ignorant bigot, or of the 
 most cruel despot, is, physically speaking, almost, if not entirely, 
 as capable of receiving useful knowledge as the cliild of the 
 most profound philosopher. 
 
 The vulgar should therefore, be educated, not deceived; and the 
 selfisli, or sliort-sighted, rulers, who give themselves no pains to 
 improve the intellects of the rising generation, ought to be con- 
 -demned to banishment and contempt, the punishments best in- 
 -fiicted upon tyrants. 
 
 i'.ND or rUK IIKST Al'l'ENUIX. 
 
APPENDIX THE SECOND. 
 
 OP PERSONS FALSELY UNTITLED ATHEISTS. 
 
 Wyttenbacu ' lias very properly shewn, that the words Atheism 
 and A f heist are altogether unmeaning, until it is decided what is 
 meant by the word " God. " 
 
 Albeit, th.e herd of mankind do not argue in tliis candid nian- 
 -ner; and, as the existence of some sort of a deity has usuailv 
 been considered undeniable, so the imputation of Atheism and the 
 title of Atheist have usually been considered as insulting. No 
 doubt, indeed, there has, during the last forty years, been here and 
 there a philosopher, who, like Mongez, '^ has said, that he has "/Ae 
 honour to be an Atheist. " But I do not treat upon those com- 
 -paratively rare individuals; my object is widi those who have 
 J'alselj/ received this generally-unenvied title. 
 
 And to plunge at once in medias res, let me recommend ray 
 readers ( if I have any) to turn to the 10th. chapter of that most 
 useful work, Kortholt's " Paganus Obtrectator. " ^ A fact, here ful- 
 
 ' In his first note, wliich I have placed before the treatise of PIu- 
 -tarchus. 
 
 ' An antiquary, and member of the French national Institute, vid. 
 Diet, des Athees, p. 292. 
 
 ^ But it is much to be regretted, that about one half of this chap- 
 -ter is occupied with a very misplaced digression, concerning con- 
 -venticles, cliurclres, &c. , which is only so far useful as it may re- 
 -mind us, that the modern christians have inverted ( and ten thou- 
 -sand times deteriorated ) the practise of certain Polytheists who 
 turned tombs into temples. We seem, during the last ten centuries, 
 to have thought our prayers most efficacious when we are breathing 
 the putrid effluvia of charnel-houses. It must have been propheti- 
 -cally (as well as literally) that, by Libanius and Julianus, we are 
 called oi nepi Toyc x^tjioYC ; " tho (as indeed the Emperor liim- 
 -self says ) it is no where commanded [us] to wallow in sepulchres 
 and worship there." (vid. Lardner's Works, vol. 4, p. 340. 4to. ).^. 
 
2 OF PERSONS 
 
 -ly stated, may put to the blush such modern Y^susites, as ab- 
 -surdly bestow, on refractory metaphysicians, a title, which was 
 very frequently bestowed on their own sanctified predecessors. 
 Justinus martyr, Athenagoras, Clemens Alex., TertuUianus, Mi- 
 -nucius Felix, Lactantius, Eusebius, Gregorius Nyssenus, Sozome- 
 -nes, Cyrillus Alex., and Prudentius, all these ancient christians 
 allow, that their co-religionists were considered as i,eeoi or ac€Boi. 
 The quotations, or at any rate the references, may be found in 
 Kortholt. Let it suffice for me to repeat what Arnohius has said 
 to the gentiles : " We are called by you ill-omened men and 
 atheists." — "you call us impious, and irreligious, and atheists." 
 — " you are in the habit of exciting the hatred of the mob agamst 
 us, by calling us atheists. " Thus Arnobius. ■* 
 
 And if we turn to such Pagan writers as have condescended to 
 notice us, we shall find ourselves similarly denominated. 
 
 The Emperor * Antoninus, in his ( real or supposed ) letter to 
 the people of Asia, says of the Christians : 
 
 THN TNCOMHN Ay^WN • HNHep exOyCIN , COG iiG€CON KATHPOpeiTe. 
 
 There also exists® a letter of the Emperor Marcus Antoninus to 
 the Roman Senate, in which the Christians are called, those : 
 oyc ■xr^o/\tKtA\ihHotAZH AGCOyC eiN&i.^ 
 
 The prophet Alexander (as recorded by Lucianus) terrified his 
 adversaries by saying : 
 
 AGcCON 6MnenAHce&i , kai XpiCTIMMCON , ton HONTON , oi 
 nepi «>Y^OY toamcoci t\ K^K1CTA eaa.c<j>hm6in. 
 
 ■• This author ( who constantly preaches Atheism or Deism, while 
 he fancies that he is preaching Christianity) asks also : " Is the wor- 
 
 -ship of a supreme Deity, an execrable and ill-omened religi- 
 
 -on, full of impiety and sacrilege, contaminating old-established ce- 
 -remonies by the superstition of its novelty? " B. 1, ch. 25. 
 
 ^ It is not decided whetlier the letter is from Titus, or Marcus. 
 Dodwell thinks it could not be written by a heathen. Thirlby and 
 Jortin reject it as a fovgeiy. (vid. Lardner's WorkSjVol. 4, p. 70.) 
 
 * In the same place as the former one ; viz. in Eusebius, and at the 
 end of the Apologies of Justinus martyr. 
 
 ' But it is now granted that this letter is a forgery, and was not 
 composed before the sixth century of our sera. ( vid. Lardner, vol 4, 
 p. 100. ) 
 
 «• 
 
 O 
 
FALSELY ENTITLEn ATHEISTS. 3 
 
 and, on the first day of his holy feast, he ordered a herald to pro- 
 
 -claim : 
 
 " ei TIC Ae€OC , H XpiCTUNOC , h eniKOYpeiOC , hk€I Ki.- 
 
 -TACKOnOC TUN OpflWN , (jiS Y^'^TO. " 
 
 Tlie Emperor Jidiunus, writing to the High Priest Arsacius, 
 blames the Christians as ^e€OTHT\ eeoc€B€i&c npoTiMcoNTCoN,* 
 He also says (ap. Cyril.; vid. Lardner. vol. 4, p. 332.) that the 
 Christians had borrowed their atheism out of the absurd [religion] 
 of the Jews. There are likewise numerous passages in which he 
 calls us " the impious Galilseans. " But it must be owned that 
 we Christians have amply returned the compliment. The blind 
 Maris, Arian bishop of Chalcedon, insulted JuUanus even to his 
 face, — TON 2ikC€BH k^acon , ton AHOCT^THN , km Ae60N , — 
 —an act of martyrdom-seeking insolence, which the Emperor had 
 the good sense to pardon, (vid. Lardnev, vol. 4, p. 320, 321, out 
 of Socrates B. 3, ch. 12, p. 183, D.) 
 
 The reason, why the Christians were considered as impious, is 
 explained in Eusebius's Praeparatio Evangelica, * where a Pagan is 
 introduced speaking as follows : 
 
 ncoc oy n^NT^xoeeN AYCC€B6IC an eieN , km ^9€0I , oi ton 
 
 HATpiMN eeUN AnOCTANT€C , Al 6JN HAN eONOC KAI nt,CA nOAIC 
 CYNCCTHKCN ? H Tl KAAON €AniCAI €IKOC ToyC TCON CCOTHplCON 
 
 exepoyc Kb.\ noAeMioyc katactant^c , kai Toyc €Y€pr€T^C 
 
 fUpWCAMfNOyC ? KAI Tl TAp AAAO H eCOMAXOyNTAC ? nOIAC A€ 
 
 KAi A^iOGHceceAi cyrrNWMHC Toyc e? aiunoc m€n nApA hacin €A- 
 
 -AHCI KAI BApBi^pOIC , KATA T6 nOA6IC KAI ATpoyC , AANTOIOIC 
 lepOIC KAI TeACTAIC KAI MyCTHplOIC ■ npOC AHANTWN OMOy BACI- 
 
 -A6C0N T€ KAI NOMoeeTWN KAI <})iAoco(|)WN , eeoAoroyMeNoyc Ano- 
 
 -CTpA(|)€NTAC i eAOMCNOyC AC TA AC€BH KAI A0€^ TCON 6N ANSpU- 
 
 -noic ? 
 
 " Ought not those men to be considered altogether irreligious and 
 atheistical, who desert the customs of their forefathers, by which 
 every nation, and every city, hath been preserved? What good 
 [actions] can be reasonably expected, from those, who openly op- 
 -pose our Saviours, and who reject our Benefactors, and thus make 
 
 ^ vid. Sozomen. H. Eccl. B. 5, ch. 16 [15] ; ap. Kortholt, p. 409. 
 » B. 1, ch. 2, [p. 3,] ap. Kortholt, p. 410. 
 
4 or PERSONS 
 
 themselves enemies of ouv Gods ? And can they deserve pardon 
 who adopt whatever is impious and atheistical among; men, having 
 turned away from the worship of beings, honoured every-where, 
 from time immemorial, both by Grecians and foreigners, with all 
 sorts of sacrifices rites and mysteries, by all kings legislators and 
 philosophers ? " '" 
 
 Such was the language used, by the followers of the establish- 
 -ed religion of Jupiter, against the daring preachers of the per- 
 -sonified AOrOC; and it must be owned, that, as an exclusive 
 Monotheism had never been publicly preached in the south of 
 Europe, the arguments of the Polytheists were not altogether des- 
 -titute of plausibility. 
 
 Euselnus elsewhere says : ' 
 €Y MivAA neneiKACiN , eAyToyc , ta ©61^ riMtoNXkc . ta aikma 
 
 np&TT€IN ; HM^C Ae TA MenCTA AC€8€IN , TAG OyTCOC eM(|>ANeiC KAI 
 
 eYepreriKAC aynameic gn oyaeni aotcoi TieeMeNoyc . ANXiKpyc 
 
 A€ nApANOMOyNTAC ! ACON Ceg€IN 6KACTON TA HATpiA , MHA€ Kl- 
 -N€1N TA AKINHTA* , CTOIxeiN AS KAI e(j>€neCeAI THI TUN HpOHATO- 
 
 -pcoN eyceseiAi , aaaa mh noAYnpAfMONeiN epuxi kainotomiac s 
 
 TAYTHI rOYN <j)ACIN eOA^ICOC KAI eANATON^ Y^O '''"'^ NOMCON OpiC" 
 -eAI TOIC nAHMM€AOYCI THN ZHMIAN. 
 
 " [The Gentiles] are persuaded, that they themselves, in honour- 
 -ing the Deities, act justly ; and that we are extremely irreligious, 
 and violators of the law, who can despise such evident, and such 
 benevolent. Powers. [They consider] that every man ought to 
 worship the [Gods] of his country, and not attempt to OAerthrow 
 established customs*; that we should continue to follow the piety 
 
 '" The Polytheist goes on to blame the new converts, for " adop- 
 ■ -ting the universally-hated fables of the Jews, " and yet " not wor- 
 -shipping the Jewish deity according to the [Jewish] rites." 
 
 ' Praep. Evang. prooem. B. 4, [p. 130.] 
 
 ' This argument was properly used, against innovators, by the Gra?. 
 -cians, whose religion had existed from time immemorial, at any rate 
 since the mission of Bacchus, or of Triptolemus. But, in the mouths 
 of Christians, and still more of F?'otestanfs, or of Protestant Dissen- 
 -fersi, such an argument, tho frequently used againsts Deists, may, I 
 am afraid, be considered an egregious specimen of religious impu- 
 -dence. 
 
FAi.srr.Y r.NTiTLi:p atheists. cr 
 
 of om- forefathers, and not act as busy-bodies out of a love of 
 novelty. Hence they say, that such offenders are justly punished 
 by the law with death. " * 
 
 Such, according to Eusebius, was the opinion of the worship- 
 -pers of the Greecian gods, concerning the early apostates to the 
 religion of Christ ; and such, I believe, has been, and still is, the 
 opinion of the worshippers of our holy Trinity, concerning apos- 
 -tates to the religion of Nature. 
 
 It is, however, very evident, that both the early christians, and 
 the modern philosophers, must have been unjustly called Atheists, 
 if by the word "Theos," or "God," they merely denoted the 
 primary cause of all things. 
 
 Now supposing that almost all the metaphysicians, who pretend 
 to any independency of thought, acknowledge Matter to be eternal, 
 we then need not seek a cause for the world. But certainly the 
 human race has not always existed. What then were we crea- 
 -ted from? According to the Hebrews, and their followers the 
 Christians and ( I believe ) the Mohammedans, man was made of 
 dust, that is ( I suppose ) of various fine particles of silex, or ra- 
 -iher perhaps of alluvial matter. Yet it would be atheistical to 
 aliirm, that man naturally proceeded out of a sort of mud.* There- 
 -fore Theism and Atheism only differ in supposing, that the for- 
 -mative particles were moved, either by the invisible finger of an 
 always incompiehensible (and now perhaps defunct) Animal, or 
 otherwise by the probably invisible agency of a now unknown 
 modification or property of INIatter. 
 
 The great primary Cause seems to have been considered — by the 
 Greecian poets, to be Chaos, Oceanus, or Jupiter; — by the Ile- 
 
 ^ But Death is no punishment. It is, however, an operation, 
 which the magistrate never ought to ordain the performance of, ex- 
 -cept on such furious, destructive, and notoriously-uiitameable, ani- 
 -mals (whether human or brutish), as are not thought worthy to be 
 fed during perpetual confinement. 
 
 •• sed vid. Pompon. Mel. B. 1, ch. 9, p. i'2, edit. 1658. I may 
 here observe, that John Tuberville Needham, who shewed that ani- 
 -malcula are generated in sour paste, is enveighed against, repeated- 
 -ly, by Voltaire, as favouring materialism. Albeit, tiiis Jesuitical 
 F.R. S. was a pious catholic, and a most zealous opponent of anti- 
 -chriStiauism. 
 
OF PERSONS 
 
 -brews and Christians, to be Yehouh, Shedai, Elohim, the holy 
 spirit, or the Logos ; — and by the Philosophers, to be Necessity, 
 Appetency, Nature, Matter, plastic forms, the Soul of the world, 
 and the concurrence either ofKomoiomereiae or of simple atoms. 
 Persons, belonging to any one of these three sects, may, if imwil- 
 -lingly denoted atheists, reply, in the words of the christian Jus- 
 -tinus : * " We confess that we are atheists as regardeth those 
 whom ye call Gods; but we are not atheists as regards the truest 
 of the Gods."® Thus Justinus; and somewhat similar sentiments 
 may be found in Athenagoras, Clemens Alex., and Arnobius.' 
 
 And here, before mentioning the various applications of the 
 word "atheist" made by the christians among themselves, I will 
 first give a list of some individuals among the Pagans, who ( with 
 more or less injustice) have been accused of atheism. The list is 
 given us by J. A. Fabricius (vol. 1, p. 818 of his Bibliotheca 
 Grteca); and was, I suppose, drawn up by him. I copy it out the 
 more willingly, because (except at the article "atheismi — ") 
 there are various parts of Fabricius's very copious index, in which 
 I have vainly sought references to it. I arrange the principal names 
 under one another, in order, if possible, to give a reference for 
 each. 
 
 "vide Mariangelum Bonifacium a Reuten de atheismo Diago- 
 -rffi, & eruditissimi Ba;lii lexicon in Diagora. Alii, philosophi 
 maxime veteres, quibus atheismus jure an injuria impactus fuit, 
 sunt 
 
 Archagoras [[the orator, disciple of Protagoras?] 
 Anaximander [vid. Reimmanni® hist, atheismi, p. H4j 
 
 * apolog. II, p. 50. 
 
 " " as if there could be false Gods! " exclaims Diderot: — I con- 
 -fess I forget where; but I think Naigeon particularly admires this 
 simple yet profound sentiment. 
 
 ' vid. Rortholt. p. 433, 434. 
 
 ^ I quote this work as being the best arranged, most compendious, 
 and probably the most faithful and most learned, treatise on this sub- 
 -ject. Where I cannot find a name in Reimmann's history, I am 
 obliged to have recourse to Buddeus's dissertations. Tiie few extra 
 names, mentioned by Biiddeus and Fabricius, seem taken from \'a- 
 -Icriiis Maximus. 
 
l-ALSELV ENTITLED ATHEISTS. 
 
 ApoUophanes [<,the Stoic who flattered K. Antigonus? vid. Bud- 
 Aristagoras Melius [vid. Buddeus, p. 57.] -deus, p. 57.] 
 
 Aristoteles [vid. Reimmann, p. 183, &. 544.] 
 
 Bion Borysthe^ites [vid. Reimmann. p. 176.] 
 Callimaclms [vid. Buddeus, p. 57.] 
 Carneades [vid. Reimmann, p. 169, 170.] 
 Cinesias [vid. Buddeus, p. 57.] 
 Clitomaclms, [vid. Reimmann, p. 171, 172.] 
 Critias [vid. Reimmann, p. 128, & 235.] 
 
 Daphidas [ilhe Epigrammatist crucified by K. Attains? vid. Bud- 
 Democritus [vid. Reimmann, p. 210.] -deus, p. 57.] 
 
 Diceearchus Messenius [vid. Reimmann, p. 233, & 237.] 
 Diogenes Phryx [vid. Reimmann, p. 222, ex ^^Lliano.] 
 Epicurus [vid. Reimmann, p. 196, 197, & 545.] 
 Evemerus Tegeates [vid. Reimmann, p. 177, 178, & 246.] 
 Gorgias [vid. Reimmann, p. 223, tho not in index ; & Buddeus, p. 57.] 
 Hippias Eleus [or perhaps "the Tyrant." vid. Buddeus, p. 57.] 
 Ilippnn Melius [vid. Reimmann, p. 146, Sc 177, ex iEliano &Clem. 
 Leucippus [vid. Reimmann, p. 209.] AIex._ 
 
 Nicagoras Cyprius [vid. Arnob. B. 4; but " Nicanor" ap. Clem. Alex. 
 Plinius, liistoria2 nat. scriptor, [vid. Reimmann, p. 201, & 283-283. 
 Prodicus Chius ["Ceus, " vid. Reimmann, p. 132.] 
 Protagoras Abderita [vid. Reimmann, p. 39, 129-131, & 175.] 
 Pyrrho [vid. Reimmann, p. 219, & 545,] 
 
 et alii sceptici [vid. Reimmann, p. 84, & 218.] 
 prseterea 
 Sosias [vid. Reimmann, p. 222, ex iEliano.] 
 Stilpo Megarensis [vid. Reimmann, p. 179.] 
 Strato Lampsacenus [vid. Reimmann, p. 186-188, & 545.] 
 Theodorus Cyrenseus [vid. Reimmann, p. 128, 143, 174-177.] 
 Xenophanes [vid. Reimmann, p. 203.] 
 
 Fuere etiam qui Anaxagoram, Ciceronem, Empedoclem, Euripi- 
 -dem, rieraclitum, Panaetium, Pythagoram, Socratem, et alios ejus- 
 
 * I think it a pity that Fabricius should here insert the name of 
 Averroes. This commentator may perhaps have said " raoriatur 
 anima mea morte philosophorum " ; but, if we admit, into the above 
 list of ancient polytlieistical philosophers, a Mahommedan who died 
 in A. D. 1206, we might almost as well admit any other famous mo- 
 -dern Aristotelician, such as Pomponatius, a christian who died in 
 1526. 
 
8 01 PKUSONS 
 
 -modi arguerent, hoc nomine, sed minore lonj^e, ut videtu.r, specie 
 verisimilitudinis. Lysippi Epirotac catalogue AcescoN memoratur in 
 scholiis ad ApoUon. p. 288. " 
 
 The above list shews, I think, that almost all the most celebra- 
 -ted Greecian metaphysicians have been, either in their own, or 
 in following ages, considered, with more or less reason, to be 
 atheistically inclined. For tho, indeed, the word Atheist was pro- 
 -bably not often used till about a hundred years before Christ, 
 yet the imputation of impiefj/ was no doubt as easily and com- 
 -monly bestowed, before that period, as it has been aftenvards. 
 
 Apuleius, in his apology, " has well said : " hcec, ferme communi 
 
 quodam errore imperitorum, philosophis objectantur : ut qui 
 
 corporum causas meras & simplices rimantur, irreligiosos putent, 
 eo que ajant Deos abnuere ; ut Anuxagorcnii, & Lcucippitm, & Dv- 
 -mocritwn, & Epicurum, ceteros que rerum nature patronos; - - " 
 
 It is said by Lady Morgan ("Italy," vol. 1, p. 413, edit. 1821, 
 8vo.)^"that "In the entire history of Greece, the death of Socrates 
 is the only instance of religious persecution." But, (unless by 
 " persecution " be meant the execution of a judicial sentence of 
 death, ) her ladyship's assertion is sufficiently disproved, by the ac- 
 -cusations brought against — Anaxagoras, Aspasia, Protagoras, Aris- 
 -toteles, Stilpo, Diagoras, Theodorus, and perhaps against Prodi- 
 -cus, not to mention the burning of the Pythagoreans, and the 
 occasional banishment of the Epicureans. 
 
 Luckily for the present orthodoxy of the ancient Greecian plii- 
 -losophers, an anti-idolatrous faith replaced that polytheistical reli- 
 -gion, under the prevalence of which, a man of wit must have 
 found, at every step, palpable objects to excite his contempt and 
 ridicule. Our learned saint, Clemens of Alexandria, '" has been 
 extremely ftberal in christianizing the old pagans : 
 
 " e^Y'^^zeiN eneici moi , otcoi rponcoi 6YHM€pON ton 
 
 AKpXrANTINON , km NIK^NopA ton KYnpiON , kai AIATO- 
 -p^N , KM inn(A)NA TON MHAION , ton Te KYpHNAION em 
 
 TOyTOIC CKCINON O ©€OA60pOC ONOM^ iyTWI , KAI TINiC &A- 
 
 -Aoyc cyxNoyc t ccocjjpoNuc bebicokotac , km KAeswpjvKOTi.c o^y 
 
 ^ de magiii oratio, p. 51, vol. 2, edit. 1738. Bipont. 
 '" protreptic. p. 20, 21, «dit. Potter. 
 
TAI.Sr.LY FMITI.r.D ATIiriSTS. 9 
 
 -TepoN noy tc^in aoihcon ^Nepc.5ncoN thn am(J)i Toyc ©€OYC Toy- 
 -Toyc AAANHN , AGEoyC eniKeKAHK^ciN ? ei kai thn AAHeeii^N 
 
 AyTHN MH N£NOHKOTAC . AAA>v THN OAANHN Tfi yncOHTeyKOTAC : 
 
 onep oy cwiKpoN eic iAHeeuc (JjpoNHcetoc zconypoN ANA(j)y€TM 
 cnepMA . - - " 
 
 This famous passage of Clemens reminds every one of tlie yet 
 more famous passage of Justinus:^ 
 
 "oi M6Tik Aoroy BIUCANT6C XpiCTIANOI €ici , KMN Ae£0! 
 CNOMicGHCAN ; oiON €N €AAHCI MSN CCOKp^THC , KM Hp^KA€l- 
 -TOC , KAi OI OMOioi J^yroic ; 6n B>>pB>.pOIC as ^Bp>,^M , kj^i 
 ANANIAC , KAi ^Z^piAC , KAi MICAHA , km HAUC , KAi_i^AAOi 
 noAAOi , con tac npA^eic h ta onomata KATAAereiN , MAKpoN eiNAi 
 
 eniCTAM€NOI , TANyN HApAITOyMeeA . COCTe KA; oi npOr€NOM€NOI 
 
 ANey Aoroy ei60cant€C . AXpHCTOI kai exepoi tcoi xpiCTWI 
 
 HCAN , KAI <j)0N6IC TUN META AOTOy BIOyNTCON . OI A€ M€TA AO- 
 
 -roy BiucANTec kai BioyNxec , XpiCTI>>NOI , kai a<})oboi , kai 
 ATApAxoi ynApxoyci . " 
 
 The word Atheist seems, indeed, to have been used in a rather 
 vague manner by most of the early Christians. 
 
 Tlius Paulus Tarsensis (epist. ad Ephes. II, 12 ) tells his gentile 
 converts, that formerly they were "atheists in the world." In a si- 
 -milarly vague manner, He^sippus ( ap. Euseb.^ ) saj's, that, " af- 
 -ter the death of the Apostles, there began a conspiracy of athe- 
 -istical error," by which he only means that many heresies arose. 
 And indeed Basilidcs, and some other early heresiarchs, have been 
 more or less accused of Atheism, by certain zealots. 
 
 Moreover, Tafiamis is by Origines accused of atheism, for not 
 having rightly understood what Moses says of the creation of 
 light". By a merited punishment, Origiites himself, has, in later 
 times, been suspected, however unjustly, of Spinosism. 
 
 ' Apologia 2, p. 83, c & d. The passage is not much relished by 
 some modern christians (vid. Walch. biblioth. patristica, p. 515, 516), 
 who, no longer fearing pagan emperors, generally condemn pagan 
 sages to tartar us. 
 
 ^ For this and the following quotations, down to the middle of 
 the next page, I rely upon Reimmann. de Atheism, p. 319-331. 
 
10 or PERSONS 
 
 As Christ came to be considered equal with the deity his fatlier, 
 those who denied tliis equality might be considei-ed atheistical. 
 Hence Aj-iiis (ap. Epiphan. ) complains, that the bishop Alexander 
 (who afterwards prayed out his adversaries bowels) had banished 
 him and his followers uc ANepunoyc ieeoyc. Actius, a disciple 
 of Arius, was more peculiarly called the Atheist, as we are told 
 by Socrates and Sozomenes; and Eunomius, the disciple of Aetius, 
 is entitled an Atheist by St. Ilieronymus. 
 
 That A7Hans ( i.e. crypto-nionotheists, ) should be condemned by 
 Athanasians (i. e. crypto-trilheists) as guilty of atheism, is not 
 altogether illogical ; but it seems strange, that Severus bishop of 
 Antiochia, or else Johannes Fhiloponus of Alexandria, whose tri- 
 -theism was more evident than orthodoxy permits, should be called, 
 by Photius, "a polytheist and therefore an atheist." 
 
 The above quotations sufHciently shew, that the early Christians 
 used the word "atheist" with very little discrimination; nor have 
 wodern Christians been more exact. Othenvise, how, for instance, 
 could those Jesuits,^ the ridiculous Garasse and the paradoxical 
 Ilardouin, ^ find atheists everywhere; and how also could the "Mi- 
 -nime et tres minime " father Mersenne say, that, in Paris alone, 
 the number of atheists was 50,000 1 * 
 
 Tiie truth appears to be, that atheism, among individuals born 
 christians, is of very modern growth. 
 
 Those learned men, Lisoius and the other canons of Orleans, who 
 were condemned to the stake in A. D. 1017, were probably only 
 a sort of mystical deists ; and, even if they were justly accused of 
 
 ^ They have themselves been both accused of atheism, vid. Reim- 
 -mann, p. 407, 408; 418, 419. 
 
 ■' The Biographie Universelle says, of this author's At/iei detccti : 
 "•' Ton ne peut s'empecher d'eprouver un sentiment de pitie pour 
 le P. Hardouin, cjuarid on pense que les athees qu'il a decouverts 
 sont C. .lansenius, Ambroise-Victor ( c'est-a-dire Andre-Martin ) , L. 
 Thomassin, Quesnel, Ant. Legrand, P. Silv. Regis, Descartes, Male- 
 -branche, le grand Arnauld, Nicole et I'illustre Pascal. " 
 
 ^ In quoting ]\Iersenne,.^Reimmann,the Biographic Universelle^ 
 &c. give the number 50,000,JBuddeus,and SylvainMarechal 60,000. 
 But, in the year 1623, to which Mersenne's account refers, even 
 50,000 must, I should think, have been nearly a half of the adult 
 male inhabitants of Paris. 
 
TALSF.IY ENTITLED ATHEISTS. 11 
 
 raanicheisni, yet it is uotoiious, that the Manicheans, liowever much 
 ignorant christians might abuse them, were not atheists, but only 
 (what may be called) dualists or duoprincipialists. 
 
 Pierre Abelard, Aiiiauri de Chartres, and David de Dinant, who 
 succeed one another in the dark ages, were surely nothing more 
 than men whose intellect was rather superior to that of the blind 
 bigots who surrounded them. 
 
 The saying, attributed, either to the learned Emperor Frede7-ic 
 II, or otherwise to a certain French theologian named Simon of 
 Tournay, was probably not seriously spoken, if indeed it be not 
 altogether fictitious ; and the saying of King Alfonso X was, as 
 many persons have remarked, not so much an insult to the wisdom 
 of the great creative power, as to the system of the astronomer 
 Ptolemaeus. 
 
 Barba (de Cilia), Empress of Germany, was merely a woman 
 of strong animal passions. Many Troubadours were either thought- 
 -less upon religious subjects, or may have occasionally attacked 
 priestcraft; without being seriously atheistical. Certain Italian t^o- 
 -liticians are condemned by Dante, perhaps from mere party spi- 
 -rit. The Greek-Italian poet, Michael Murullus, may now and then 
 have inveighed against the cruelties of the divine power; but not 
 so as to make proselytes, or to expose himself to persecution. 
 
 Dolet, who was burnt in 1546, suffered rather for lutheranism 
 than for atheism. Geoffroy VuUie, who was put to death in 1574, 
 was not an atheist, but an epicurean-deist ; as also probably was 
 his more fortunate great-nephew, Desbarreaux. The same may 
 have been the creed of the>.poets Theophile,^ Saint-Pavin, and 
 lAniire.'' 
 
 ^ This poet, altho he had abjured protestantism, and afterwards 
 wrote in favour of the immortality of the soul, was nevertheless 
 brought to a premature death by the insatiable hatred of the Jesuits. 
 One of this holy body, Garasse, wrote, while his enemy was in pri- 
 -son, "that Pasquier, the Cardinal Wolsey, Scaliger, Luther, Calvin, 
 Beza, the King of England, the landgrave of Hesse, and Th^ophile 
 are belistres d'at/iiistes et de carpocratiens" (vid. Voltaire, lettre sur 
 les Francais, ccuvr. tom. 41, p. 217) . Theophile replied to these 
 base insults with dignity and moderation (vid. Biogr. Univ., tom. 
 45, p. 341, b.) 
 
 '' Boileau said that Linibre had no wit except against the deity. 
 
12 ciy iT.nsoN.s 
 
 Giordano Briaio was, as regards metaphysics, a semi-pyliiagori- 
 -cian, or rather perliaps an eleatico-platonist. That Vanini \vas 
 not really an apostle of atheism, is proved in Arpe's apology, par- 
 -ticularly in the excellent abstract (p. 106-108), which concludes 
 with " damnatus tamen : ut multi innocentes. " 
 
 Knutzen's sect of " Conscienciaries " seems to have soon expi- 
 -red. Lord Herhert was a superstitious deist. The metaphysical 
 doctrine of materialism, advanced by Hohbes, must have found 
 fewer readers, as this writer maintained likewise a political doc- 
 -trine of most imperious tyranny. Spinoza's materialism, drawn up 
 according to the method of the geometricians, is surely more spo- 
 -ken of than read. Bayle was only a sceptic. 
 
 In short, ( for this list might be carried to an awful length, ) 
 atheism, in its purely negative sense, probably did not exist — in 
 England, till the time of Toland, — and^ in France till the time of 
 Diderot, and d'Holbach, and their friends Daniilaville, Saint-Lam- 
 -hert, &c. 
 
 To/and, in his "Pantheisticon"' ( Cosmopoli, 8vo., 1720), says: 
 " sodales pantheists prsBcipue et prse aliis locis omnibus Lon- 
 -dini abundant, ibique sedem et quasi arcem sure sects coUocant. " 
 Albeit I think it is very evident, that there was no sect of atheists 
 in Toland's time, at any rate not in England. Even now, the few 
 atheists that exist here, seem very distrustful of 0P|JiiiPtlLer, and 
 are scarcely to be found except among the working^classe'sv' 
 
 Dr. Johnson, our english pensioned moral critic, has similarly said, 
 that a scholar would despise the facility of impious allusions ( or 
 words to that effect) .^. Those satirists seem not to have been aware 
 what hypothesis they were in reality satirizing. I will only say The 
 Lord protect the Lord from the Lord's friends ! 
 
 ■ ^ I can say nothing of the Germans, except that this bookish and 
 speculative people seem to have less esteem for the pantheism of the 
 materialist Schelling than for the transcendentalism of the idealist 
 Fichte. Albeit even F ichte was accused of atheism. " II cprouva 
 le sort de beaucoup d'hommes de genie, il fut accuse d'athcisme par 
 des gens qui I'avaient mal compris." Biogr. Univers.;,tom. 14, p. 
 489, a. 
 
 ^ The different enjoyment of political rights is probably the reason, 
 why anti-christianism, which began in France among the wealth-con- 
 -sumers, begins in England among the wealth-producers. 
 
FALSELY ENTITLr.n ATHEISTS. l'.^ 
 
 In France, atheism spvv\ng up later, but more successfully. In 
 1748, de MaUlet's posthumous work attempted to describe a na- 
 -tural cosmogony, which was perhaps improved upon in the book 
 <<de la Nature"'" published, in 1761, by Robinet, who however 
 afterwards recanted. La Mettrie published, in 1745, his " His- 
 -toire naturelle de Tame;" and, in 1748, his " Ilomme-machine " 
 and his " Ilomme-plante. " In 1758, Helvetius published his "de 
 I'Esprit, " a work which every where indirectly announces mate- 
 -rialism. 
 
 But these writers, except the last, were unconnected individuals. 
 D'Holbach and his friends could assist and countenance each other; 
 and, working in secret, could, without subjecting themselves to 
 persecution, compose that multitude of anonymous and pseudony- 
 -mous publications, of which the " Systeme de la Nature, " putj- 
 -lished in 1770, is the most famous. 
 
 It would hardly be supposed, that, during any part of the French 
 republic, atheism would have been made a pretext for judicial mur- 
 -der. But we must not be deceived by names. That sol-dhuntc 
 republic was in reality little more than the government of a few 
 self-erected clubs. The consequence was (such as might be ex- 
 -pected among a people degraded by immemorial superstition ) 
 — an ignorant and ferocious tyranny. Robespierre ( who proclaim- 
 -ed both the existence of a supreme being and the immortality of 
 the soul, and who even perhaps undertook to defend the ecclesi- 
 -astics) sent to the scaffold — C/uiumette, Clootz, JMomoro, Vincent, 
 Dubuissoii, &c. — as members of an atheistical, anarchical, and ul- 
 -tra-revolutionary faction. " 
 
 The military man, who, six or seven years afterwards, became 
 the master of France, was yet more willing, or at any rate more 
 
 '" This book must not be confounded with INIorelly's " Code de la 
 Nature" ( Partout, chez le vrai sage, 1755, 12mo. ) written in favour 
 of, that primary but much neglected law of Christianism, the com- 
 -munity of property. 
 
 " But these members of the Commune were not Atheists in the 
 real sense of that word. They wished men to pay worship to pfer- 
 -sonitications of Nature and Reason. They were therefore religio- 
 -nists, and even idololaters. The true Atheist maintains only nega- 
 -tive doctrines in metaphysics; he carefully avoids sectarianism ; he 
 considers all processions as nuisances ; and he makes no appeal to 
 the public except through the calm medium of the press. 
 
14 or PERSONS 
 
 able, than his predecessor, to put down tlie infidels. In a school- 
 -book '* printed under the despotism of this Ilobespierre-on-horse- 
 -back, we read in a conspicuous place : 
 
 "D. Par quel acte public Napoleon I a-t-il commence son regne ? 
 R. Par un decret en faveur de la religion. " 
 
 Indeed the French emperor seems to have used the same po- 
 -litico-religiovis means of over-awing the people, which have since 
 been adopted and improved by his Austrian father-in-law. ' Even 
 one of our own Tory writers says, of a Bonapartean treatise : 
 
 "The imperial catechism, promulgated under authority, pro- 
 -claimed the duties of the catechumen to the emperor, to be love, 
 obedience, fidelity, and military service ; the causes assigned were 
 Napoleon's high and miraculous gifts, his immediate mission from 
 the Deity, and the consecration by the pope ; and the menace to 
 disloyalty was no less than eternal condemnation — here and here- 
 -after."^ 
 
 Thus did the Cromwell of France make a tool of our holy re- 
 -ligion, tho I suppose his European Christianity was not more 
 sincere than his Egyptian mahomedanism. He was however a 
 believer in fatalism, the most dangerous ( because the most inde- 
 -fineable and intangible) of superstitions. At all events, it was 
 an unfortunate mistake, in Sylvain Mareehal, or rather perhaps 
 in Lalande, ^ to have inserted the name of this victorious General 
 in their " Dictionnaire des Athees. " 
 
 And assuredly there never was a work, in which persons were 
 more unjustly entitled Atheists, than in the last mentioned labori- 
 -ous compilation. 
 
 Here we meet with — the Anglican divines, Berkeley, Clarke, 
 
 " " Instruction sur I'histoire de France." Paris, 1806. 
 
 ' See above, in my first appendix, p. 15, 16. 
 
 ' I borrow this sentence from "Paul's letters to his Kinsfolk," p. 
 396. The author adds, that the Prussian government ( probably of 
 Frederic William II) had previously written a catechism of this 
 kind, but not cjuite in so barefaced a style. I have read somewhere 
 tliat even Frederick the Great, tho a notorious infidel, encouraged re- 
 -ligion among his subjects, manifestly with the view of giving him- 
 -self an additional hold on their allegiance. 
 
 ^ vid. Biogr. Univ. torn. 20, p. 0, note 1, b. 
 
rALSELY EXTITLED ATHEISTS. 15 
 
 Ciidwortli, Hall,'' Sherlock, ancnVhilby;— the foreign proteslant the- 
 -ologians, Pierre Dumoiiliii, Jiirieii, Basnage, and Beausobre ; — the 
 religious reformers, Wickliffe, Luther, Melancthon, Beza, and Osi- 
 -ander; — tiie religious pliilosophers, Grotius, Locke, Newton, Leib- 
 -nitz, and Lambert;'^ and Descartes, Malebranche, * and Pascal;— 
 — tlie intolerant Justus Lipsius; — the prae-adamitical La Peyrbre; 
 the half-witted Postel; — the popish theologians, Cardinals Baronius, 
 and Bellarminus, the intolerant Bossuet, the mystic Fenelon, the 
 pious sceptics Hirnhaym and Iluet, the cabalistical Gaffarel, the 
 turn-coat Pelisson, and a host of other zealots, Garasse, Mersenne, 
 Jansenius, Arnauld, Ilouteville, &c, &c. We have even most of 
 tlie Fathers of the Church ; Augustiuus, Chrysostomus, Athanasius, 
 Gregorius Nazianzenus, Lactantius, Dionysius Areopagita, Cypri- 
 -anus, Minucius Felix, Tertullianus, and Justinus!; nay, St. Paul 
 of Tarsus, and the evangelist St. John, ! ! ; and, to crown all, tlie 
 venerated name of Jesus ! ! ! 
 
 It may, I think, be affirmed as a general rule, that no person 
 ever yet argued about the essence of the Deity, without being ac- 
 -cused of impiety, either by his contemporaries, or by posterity. 
 As Anaxagoras and Socrates ( to whom we are the most indebted 
 for tlie prevailing idea of the Deity ) were prosecuted by the bi- 
 -gots of their own time ; so there is, I believe, scarcely any phi- 
 -losopher of ancient or modern times, who has not been accused 
 of Atheism by one or more of our Atheographcrs, Garasse, Mer- 
 -senne, and Hardouin ; Vossius, ^^oetius, Spizelius, Reiserus, Kor- 
 -tholt, Calvoer, Parker, Leibnitz, Buddeus, Reimmann, Struve, 
 Thomasius,'' &c. 
 
 * This Rt. Rev. Bishop is however reported to have said, that the 
 most useful book that could be v/ritten, would be "de paucitate cre- 
 -dendorum." vid. Diet, llist. tom. 8, p. 216, 217. 
 
 * This Pnissian does indeed say, that we often believe we believe 
 more than we really believe. Novum Organum, quoted by Ilelv^- 
 -tius "de I'Homme, " section 1\\ note 68. 
 
 ^ But Reimmann, p. 417, 418, gives, out of this Oratorian's "Re- 
 -chcrches de la v^rite, " twelve most dangerous propositions, which 
 might have sent to the stake any one except a licensed pseudo-theist. 
 Moreover, the Oratorian had even the blasphemous impertinence to 
 publish a serious dialogue between himself and the second person of 
 our holy Trinity. 
 
 ' I mean Jeiikinas Thomasius, a name which I cannot find in vari- 
 
IG OF PKHSOXS 
 
 D'llolbach, in his " Systbme de la Nature, " ( Tom. 3, cli. 4, p. 
 137, note) says: "Descartes, Pascal, le docteur Clarke lui-meme 
 ont ete accuse d'atheisme par les theologiens de leur temps, ce 
 qui n'empeche point que les theologiens subsequens ne fassent 
 usage de leurs preuves et ne les donnent comme trcs-valables. 
 Depuis peu un auteur celbbre ( sous le nom du docteur Bau- 
 -mann) vient de pv^blier un ouvrage dans lequel il pretend que 
 toutes les preuves donnees jusqu' h present de I'existence de Dieu 
 sont caduques; il leur substitue les siennes, lout aussi peu con- 
 -vaincantes que les autres. " 
 
 Similarly, in his " Christianisme devoile " ( p. 94, note ), d'Hol- 
 -bach says : " Jamais les Theologiens Chretiens n'ont ete d'accord 
 entr' eux sur les preuves de I'existence d'un Dieu. lis se traitent 
 reciproquement d'Athies, pares que leurs demonstrations ne sont 
 jamais les memes. II est tres-peu de gens, parmi les Chretiens, 
 qui ayent ecrit sur I'existence de Dieu, sans se faire accuser 
 d'atheisme. Descartes, Clarke, Pascal, Arnauld, Nicole, ont etc 
 regardes comme des athees ; — . " 
 
 But now let me mention a few isolated individuals, who, often 
 for ridiculous reasons, have been accused of impiety.** 
 
 Pierre Brhsot, M.D., who died in 1522, ventured to maintain 
 that a plem-itical patient ought to be bled on the side afi'ected. 
 But the King of Portugal issued a decree to the contrary; and 
 afterwards, in 1529, the followers of Dr. Denys persuaded the 
 emperor Charles V. that Brissot's mediod was an attack upon reli- 
 
 -ous biographical dictionaries, no doubt because the author's real 
 name was Jenkin Philipps, as Walchius tells us ( Biblioth. Theol. 
 vol. 1, p. 740). I might however perhaps consider Cln hfianus Tho- 
 -masius as an atheographer ; altho this phi losopherovas banished at 
 die instigation of the theologians,^escribes what liappened to him in 
 consequence of the imputation of atheism,^nd intended to write an 
 apology for those falsely accused of this sentiment. 
 
 ® I must here express my regret, that I do not possess tlic treatise 
 of .loh. Christ. Wo/Jius " de alheismi falso suspectis. " Wittemb. 
 1709,1717. Treatises of a similar kind ( mentioned by AValchius, 
 J]ibl. Theol. vol. 1, p. 742) are — that of Jacobus Hascriis "de genti- 
 -liuiu pliilosophis atheismi falso suspectis." Brcm. 1716; — that of 
 J. Chr. Buri:)/iunn " de Stoa a spinozismo et athcismo cxculpandri. " 
 Wittemb. 1721; — and also those written to defend the theism of 
 Hippocrates, yy. 
 
FALSELY ENTITLED ATHEISTS. 17 
 
 -gion, being an impious and mortal doctrine, as injurious to the 
 body as Lutheranism is to the soul.' 
 
 Such an argument might be held in the 16th. century.'" It 
 reminds me, that, in the next century, the use of emetic tartar was, 
 if I mistake riot, made a subject of religious dispute, even in 
 France; and that, on the other hand, a protestant lady, the duchess 
 of Marlborough, ' at a still later period, refused to be cured of an 
 ague by the use of cinchona, because that admirable medicine 
 bore the name of " Jesuits' powder. " 
 
 About the year 1700, the pious Bo'er/iaave (who had received a 
 gold medal for opposing the systems of Epicurus, Hobbes, and 
 Spinosa) was reported to be himself a spinosist, and was conse- 
 -quently deterred from offering himself for ordination, because he 
 had once ventured to ask an ignorant declaimer against spino- 
 -sism whether he had ever read the works of the author whom 
 he decried. - 
 
 Ilaller, another pious doctor of medecine, was addressed by his 
 confrere La Mettrie^ as an atheist; but the aristocrat and poet 
 was a very religious man, and even wrote against Voltaire, to 
 
 * vid. Bayle, Diet. art. " Brissot, " note B. 
 
 '" Vesalius, who died in 1564, was accused of impiety, before the 
 Inquisition, for having dissected a body in which (according to the 
 accusers ) life was not extinct. y>^. The biographers of Vesalius say, 
 that — " les moines espagnols lui firent cruellement expier ses eter- 
 -nelles plaisanteries sur leur ignorance, leur costume et leurs moeurs. 
 Les inquisiteurs saisirent avec avidite I'occasion offerte pour se de- 
 -barrasser d'un savant incommode. Comme Socrate chez les anciens, 
 et tant d'hommes illustres parmi les modernes, Vesale mourut done 
 victime de celte guerre tantot sourde et tantot declaree, que les apo- 
 -tres de I'erreur et du mensonge firent de tout temps aux scrutateurs 
 de la nature et de la verite. " Biogr. Univers. torn. 48, p. 309, a. 
 
 ' vid. Voltaire, Diet. Phil., art. " Cartesianisme. " 
 
 ^ vid. Chaufepie, Diet. art. " Boerhaave, " note I. And here let 
 me condemn the imprudence of questioning. Belief, or disbelief, is 
 involuntary; but silence is the first grand rec[uisite, for any one who 
 
 aims at riches and honours. A silent philosopher will be d d 
 
 only in the next world; but a questioner will be d d even in this. 
 
 * In the dedication of his "Ilomme-macliino," Leydcn, 17-13, 8vo. 
 
1 ^ or PF.nsoxs 
 
 whom, during tlie travels of Josepli 11, he was prefeired by the 
 imperial and most christian sagacity of Maria Theresa. 
 
 And this must suffice concerning practitioners in medecine. 
 Albeit I could no doubt bring forward many more instances of 
 similar accusations brought against those learned individuals, if I 
 had ever seen the "Apologia pro medicis atheismi accusatis" 
 (Amsterdam, 1736, 8vo. ) written by, that learned young man, 
 Elias Frederick Heister. 
 
 It was, I suppose, as literary and not as medical men, that, 
 in 1557, &c. the doctors J. C. Scaliger and Hieronymus Cavda- 
 -nus (as also in 1607, &c., the critics J. J. Scaliger and Gaspa- 
 -rus Scioppius) mutually accused one another of atheism, '' out 
 of a spirit of mere quarrelaomness and abusiveness, and with 
 scarcely any appearance of reason. 
 
 Francis Burmann, S. T. P., the elder, who died in 1679, was 
 accused of spinosism by the arminian Philip van Limborch, an 
 accusation which was victoriously refuted by Francis Burmann the 
 younger, in his " Burmannorum pietas " published in 1701. 
 
 And how many other divines have been accused of atheism! 
 Some journalist or other* has said, that "it is not astonishing if 
 the Jesuits sometimes defend the philosophy of Wolff, for the 
 Jesuits are all atheists." J.J. Rousseau says, that he had never 
 met with more than three priests who believed in God. No 
 doubt, indeed, there have been various ecclesiastics, who, as it is 
 reported of Cardinal Duperron, " would, in the hope of pleasing 
 
 ■' Abuse and calumny arethe grand support of critics. A person 
 accused of atheism may often reply to his accuser, what Saint-Pavin 
 replied to Boileau : 
 
 " en verite je lui pardonne ; 
 s'il n'eut mal parlc de personne, 
 personne n'eiit parlc de lui. " 
 
 ' vid. Voltaire, conseils a un journaliste, ceuvres, torn. 41, p. 291. ». 
 
 * vid. Voetius, quoted by Bayle, art. Monin, note C. But, accor- 
 -diiig to the Diet. Hist. Univers. (torn. 13, p. 429, 430) it is acknow- 
 -ledged that the anecdote is not sufficiently attested. Yet Chalmers 
 (diet. vol. 24, p. 351) seems to think it may be true. I may here 
 observe, that, according to an extract from Pasquier ( given in the 
 Diet, des Athees, p. 262, 263.) the learned, but perhaps heretical, 
 Jesuit Maldonado argued, in one of his lectures, the snfficicnci/ of tiie 
 natural proofs of the deity, and, in another lecture, the iiisiijjicieiici/ 
 of these proofs. 
 
FALSELY ENTITITD ATHLISTS. 19 
 
 a king, offer to argue, as well against the existence of a deity, 
 as for it. 
 
 I will give only one more anecdote. An Italian musician of 
 the 18th. century, named Porpora,'^ composed, and executed with 
 great applause, a Credo, the beginning of which he is said to 
 have lengthened, in order to suit his measure, by prefixing a 
 "non." It is said also, that, when brought before the Inquisition, 
 he was acquitted, on proving that he did not understand Latin. 
 
 Thus much of isolated and often ludicrous instances of alled- 
 -ged atheism. Let us now search for some practical meaning of 
 this most obnoxious word. 
 
 (/^'^Tertulliunus says to the gentiles:^ "It is you who are impious, 
 / sacrilegious, and irreligious, towards your Gods; you, who neglect 
 those whom you believe in, who destroy those whom you fear, 
 who ridicule those whom you avenge." And what TertuUianus 
 here says, of the manner in which the Pagans treated their mate- 
 -rial Deities, may be said of the Christians, as regards their ini- 
 -material Deities : for surely those Christians are atheists of the 
 worst kind, who swear, who hoard up their wealth, who make war, 
 and who persecute heretics, in direct opposition to that Deity who 
 has said Swear not at all. Sell what thou hast and give to the 
 poor. Resist not evil, and Love your enemies. 
 
 Ilelvetius' says: " Rien de moins determine que la signification 
 de ce mot ivipie, aviquel on attache si souvent une idee vague & 
 confuse de sceleratesse. Entend-on par ce mot un athcel Donne- 
 -t-on ce nom a celui qui n'a que des idees obscures de la divi- 
 -nite? en ce sens, tout le monde est athee: car personne ne com- 
 -prend I'incomprehensible. Applique-t-on ce nom aux soi-disants 
 materialistes y mais si Ton n'a point encore d'idees nettes & com- 
 -plettes de la maticre, on n'a point en ce sens d'idees nettes & 
 complettes de I'impie materialiste. Traitera-t-on Apathies ceux qui 
 n'ont pas de Dieu la meme id^e que les catholiques? II faudra 
 done appeller de ce nom les paiens, les heretiques & les infi- 
 -dfeles; en ce dernier sens, athee n'est plus synonime de scelerat. 
 
 "^ The Dictionnaire Historique is my only authority for thib most 
 improbable anecdote. I know not whether the musician in question 
 was the famous Nicolo Porpora, who died, aged 82, in 1767. 
 
 * Apolog. ch. 13; vid. Kortholt, p. 437. 
 
 ' " de I'llomme',' section IV^ note 75. ^. 
 
o 
 
 20 
 
 il dtsigne un lionuiif; qui, suv ct'Vtains yioints de metaphysitjue 
 ou. de tliLologie, no pense pas comme le moine & la Sorbonne. 
 Pour que ce mot (Yuthce, on d'impie, rappelle a I'esprit quelque 
 idt'e de sceleratesse, a qui I'appliquer? — aiix perstcuteurs.'' Tluis 
 llelvc'iius . And certainly it is just to consider persecutors as 
 atheists ; because, if we may judge of the Deity from the beloved 
 of the Deity, they tend to prove that God is possessed of unami- 
 -able attributes. And what is said of men of power, who inflict 
 persecution, ought to be said of men of letters, who recommend 
 or justify persecution. But how many, even of the most highly 
 patronized publications, would then be laid aside as atheistical, 
 which are now considered especially religious ! 
 
 Let us tlien no longer hear the jackal-cry of the fanatics, that 
 atheistical publications must be put down; for there is no book, 
 however orthodox, whic'a may not be proved, in some sense or 
 other, to be, directly or indirectly, atheistical. And why should 
 not Atheists be tolerated as much as Unitarians? Is it so slight 
 an ofl'ence to dock off two thirds of our holy and indivisible Tri- 
 -nity, and is it so grievous an ofl'ence to doubt concerning the 
 single remaining third?. And who are the atheists that they should 
 be so persecuted? 
 
 "Speculative Atheists are those unhappy people, who, being 
 loo fond of knowledge or reasoning, are first deluded into scepti- 
 -cism, till, unable to extricate themselves from the mazes of Phi- 
 -losophy, they are at last betrayed into a disbelief of every thing 
 they cannot comprehend, and become the most convincing evi- 
 -dences of the shallowness of human understanding. The number 
 of these has always been very small ; and, as they are commonly 
 studious peaceable men, the hurt they do to the publick is incon- 
 -.siderable. " 
 
 I extract the abo\ e paragraph from Dr. Mandeville '*' ; but, should 
 this writer be rejected as heterodox, I can refer to a most ortho- 
 -dox or rather ultra-orthodox, authority. The Jesuit Martinus 
 BccoHus ' says : " Altho' atheists do not believe in a Providence, 
 yet they do notecase to follow, in very many cases, the rules of 
 honesty. They neither steal, nor murder ; they abhor lying ; they 
 keep their promises; they detest unjust wars, and love peace." 
 
 '" Free Thoughts, ]>. 4. 
 
 ' Opusc. Theol, Tom. 1, as quoted in the Diet, des Ath. p. 35. 
 
 END Ol' THE SECOND API'E.NPIX. 
 
APPENDIX THE THIiiD. 
 
 VARIOUS DEFINITIONS 
 OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 
 
 I DEEM it unnecessary to prove that almost all the Greecian plii- 
 -losophers believed (tho with various decrees of modification) 
 t!»at Nature is God. ' The principal Greek metaphysicians, who 
 can be supposed to have thought otherwise, are Thales, Pythagoras, 
 Anaxagoras, Socrates, and Plato. - 
 
 Thales, like most other ancient physiologists, constructed his cos- 
 -mogony, without — either admitting, excluding, or in any way re- 
 
 ' In this hypothesis I include, not only that the universe — but 
 also, that the soul of the world — is God. I will not therefore admit, 
 into my text, any separate paragraph concerning the Stoics ; who, 
 despite of their canting about the wisdom, providence, &c. of the 
 deity, notoriously believed that god (as every thing else) is cor]:)0- 
 -real — viz. that he is a fire, warmth, or animal spirit, penetrating 
 into inanimate matter, and producing the four various efl'ects of at- 
 -traction, vegetation, sensation, and intelligence. The Stoics believed 
 in a multitude of inferior gods, some sidereal, and others even per- 
 -sonal. They also admitted divination. Most of them likewise, from 
 their doctrine of the periodical renovations of the universe, may be 
 accused of supposing, that the deity ( whom they often call Nature, 
 Jupiter, &c. ) occasionally thickens himself into a world, and after- 
 -wards thins himself back again into his own fiery substance. 
 
 - I say nothing about Deniocritus and his follower Epicitriis, whose 
 gods (invented seemingly only to please vulgar prejudice) were 
 created, not creative ; being mere apparitions, or thin ( tho eternal ) 
 confluences of atoms, and who, moreover, were indifferent to human 
 affairs. Yet the deities of Epicurus agree with that of most christians, 
 in being anthropomorphous, and perhaps in the inhabiting intermun- 
 -dane space. 
 
■i VARIOIS DEFINITIONS 
 
 -fening to a god. But altho the founder of the Ionic sect did not 
 allude to a demiourgical deity, yet he considered all things to be 
 full of gods or spirits, and proved this by referring to the attrac- 
 -tiveness of the loadstone and of amber. ^ Thus says Meiners. * 
 But Brucker* is not content with attributing to the most learned 
 of the seven sages so meagre a theology. lie adds, that T/iales- 
 believed, in the system of emanations, and in the anima mundi. 
 The truth seems to be, that the doctrine of Thales can only be 
 collected from very uncertain and contradictory data. 
 
 Pythagoras, like most of the ancient theologers especially the 
 Egyptians, considered, that it was difficult and dangerous to speak 
 to the people concerning god and the divine natures, and that no 
 one ought to relate these mysteries to the profane. The merited 
 reward of this contemptuous and aristocratical taciturnity was, that 
 in a few centuries the Pythagoric theologj' became extremely uncer- 
 -tain. Brucker thinks, that the deity of Pythagoras is best descri- 
 -bed in the following passage, extracted, by Cyrillus Alexandrinus, ® 
 from, apparently, some old Pythagoric writer : 
 
 "The deity is unique. [He] is not, as some suppose, beyond the 
 universal-frame; but he is wholly in himself, in the whole circle, 
 [llej watcheth over all acts-of-production, being a mixture of the 
 universe, eternally, and a worker of his [own] powers and works. 
 [He is the] beginning of all [things,] [he is] one, [he is] a lumi- 
 -nary in heaven ; and of all [things] tatiier, mind, and spirituality 
 of the universe, [the] motion of all the circles." 
 
 Brucker deduces, from this passage, and from various others, 
 .liiit tiie Pythagoric deity is a most subtle mundane fire, endued with 
 the active faculty of moving, forming, and, according to certain 
 laws, of disposing- , all things; the which deity, tho in himself a 
 
 ^ So the Savages consider that a watch, a ship, a gun, &c. are ani- 
 -mated by a spi7-it. see Le Bon Sens, ch. 20, 21 ; & the Systcme de 
 .d. Nature, tom. 3, p. 217, note. 
 
 ■• According to this author ( in his " de vero deo" p. 25.5-258) we 
 must reject the metaphysical notions of a supreme deity attributed to 
 Tiiales, by Diogenes Laertius (B. l,ch. 35), by the author of the 
 Banquet of the seven sages (which Wyttenbach reclaims for Plu- 
 -tarchus) , and even by Cicero ( de N. D., B. 1, ch. 10 ) . 
 
 « vid. Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philos. vol. 1, p. 467-475. 
 
 « apud Brucker, vol. 1, p. 1077 ; & ap. Sched. de Diis,,p. 298. 
 
or AN IMrOUTAXT WOKD. 3 
 
 most subtle Matter, is nevertheless incorporecd, according to the 
 sense usually given by the ancients to this word. 
 
 Thus Biucker. But Meiners is of a different opinion. He wish- 
 -es to rely only on what Aristoteles says of the Pythagoreans ; and 
 does not mention the passage of Cyrillus, no doubt considering 
 it as too modern. According to the great German eclectic,'' the 
 ancient Pi/thagofeans ( however absurdly ) derived all things from 
 a Number or Numbers. They believed, indeed, in an all-pervading 
 divine force; but they considered that this, as every thing else, 
 was generated from Numbers. They thought, therefore, no more 
 about a Mind as creative of the universe, than the disciples of 
 Thales did. They considered that excellence and beauty did not 
 consist in the principles of things, but in the things produced by 
 these principles; hence, instead of worshipping Numbers, they 
 highly reverenced the central fire round which the Earth and Stars 
 revolve. They considered also, that the ^ther is a deity, and 
 that human minds are particles of this divine /Tither. 
 
 And here I may be expected to insert a few words concerning the 
 founder of the Eleaiic sect : for Clemens Alexandrinus ^ says : 
 
 ey royN kai ?eNO(j)ANHC 'O KOAOCj)C0NIOC , aiaackcon 'oii 
 •eic KM \cuM».Toc 'o e€oc , enicjjepei .- 
 
 " 'eic 0€OC , eN xe 0€OICI km ^Nepunoici Mencroc t 
 
 Oy Tl A€M\C GNHTOICIN "OMOlVoC . OyAS NOHM.\ . " 
 
 It may be questioned whether Clemens was authorized to deduce 
 the incorporeity of the Xenophanean god, from these two verses. 
 Meiners ^ blames Clemens for having made so perverse an inter- 
 -pretation. 
 
 And here let me observe that we ought always to distinguish 
 between corporeity and materiality. The Deity of Xenophanes 
 was not corporeal, because it was not a body like any animal body ; 
 but it might, I think, be considered material, as being co-in-exis- 
 -tent'" with the universe, or as being a latent force dwelling in 
 
 ^ de vero Deo, p. 307, 308. 
 
 * stromal. B. 6, p. 714, edit. Potter. 
 
 ' de vero Deo, p. 332, 333, note. 
 
 '" According to Sextus Empiricus ( quoted by Meiners, &c. ) Xe- 
 -nophanes believed -en eiNM to n^N > k^^i ton eeoN cyMcjjyH 
 
VAUIOLS nillMTIU.\r 
 
 matter. ' Such a force ouglit surely to be considered material, 
 unless we affirm the immateriality of gravity, electricity, &c., viz. 
 of those properties of Matter by which alone Matter is known to 
 us. 
 
 The Xenophanean god possessed, I suppose, only a vegetative 
 power. If it had not this power, I know not how to distinguish 
 it from nothing. It probably rather sympathized with, tlian pro- 
 -duced, the periodical renovations of parts of the universe.* At 
 all events it did not concern mankind : for Xenophanes, as after- 
 -wards Epicurus, rejected divination ; which, if I mistake not, was 
 considered by the Greeks the main proof of a peculiar provi- 
 -dence. ^ 
 
 Anaxagoras ^ may be considered as one of the principal inventors, 
 or creators, of what is now called God.^ Rejecting the emanative, 
 he imagined a dualistical, system ; viz. a system of two principles, — 
 — God and Matter, both eternal. God, an infinite incorporeal Mind, 
 gave motion to the previously quiescent INIatter, which then, of itself, 
 by the concurrence of the *DMOioMepeiM, or homogeneous particles, 
 
 Toic n^ci . The word cytA^Y^ seems very difficult to translate; 
 Meiners ( p. 327) renders it " eundeni. " 
 
 ' vid. Brucker, vol. 1, p. 1151. 
 
 - I suppose the Xenophanean Deity is not considered to be the 
 soul of the world, because he would then be more active and influ- 
 -ential. 
 
 ' Yet Xenophanes, like other philosophers called atheistical, hated 
 those fables of the poets which degrade the Gods (vid. Laert. B. 9, 
 ch. 18) . His disdain of superstitious rites is mentioned by Plutar- 
 -chus ( supra, p. 48, 49 ) . In didactics he was an esoterist, in dia- 
 -lectics a sceptic or rather a rationalist, and in physics one of the 
 earliest of the neptunians. 
 
 ■* I say nothing about Hermotimus of Clazomente, because it might 
 sound ill to attribute the discovery of "the true God," to a man who 
 ( unless epileptical ) was probably an impostor. Nevertheless see 
 Brucker, H. Ph., vol. 1, p. 493, note r ; and Meiners, de vero deo, p. 
 253. 
 
 ^ In the history of early metaphysics, it is always necessary to dis- 
 -tinguish between eeoC , 'oi 9601 , and to e€ION . Also we 
 must of course distinguish, as much as we can, between the principle 
 out of which, and the cause by which, all things were created. 
 
OF AN IMPOKTANl WOUD. ,5 
 
 assumed tlie forms wliich now exist. Tlie God of Aiiaxagoras seems 
 to have pervaded Matter, but to have been independent of Matter. 
 It appears to me, that Anaxagoras only wanted a First-Mover, and 
 that, this obtained, he made no further reference to a deity. He 
 tlierefore, I suppose, excluded a particular Providence. Observe, 
 tliat his denial of the divinity of the celestial bodies, and his affir- 
 -mation that the Sun is only an immense red hot stone,* brought 
 down upon him a great deal of theological hatred, and was even 
 blamed by Socrates and Plato.'' 
 
 Soc?-ufcs believed that " the Deity, tho he cannot be perceived, 
 may be discovered. " I know not what this means, but I translate 
 literally from Brucker, (vol. 1, p. 560). Again: Socrates believed, 
 that " God is the cause of the universe, and that this may be proved 
 from the appearance of contrivance evident in its construction. " He 
 believed, that "God takes care of man, both of his mind and body"; 
 and that God is omniscient and omnipresent. Moreover, Socrates 
 admitted various inferior Gods, or Spirits, whom men are bound to 
 iionour. He also approved of divination. * He is ridiculed by Aris- 
 -tophanes as a cloud-worshipper. It is notorious that he preten- 
 -ded to have a familiar da;mon, concerning whom he expressed 
 liimself very enigmatically. 
 
 Yet, notwithstanding all this, Socrates does not appear to have 
 invented much nonsense concerning spiritual natures. Lactanlius 
 ( B. 3, eh. 19) tells us that Socrates was wont to say: "What is 
 above us does not concern us " — a sentence which, according to 
 our Christian Cicero, attacks religion. Brucker (p. 537) blames 
 Lactantius for this inference ; which, however, appears to be the 
 
 * See above, p. 36 or 37, (note 8) of my reprint of Plutarch's 
 treatise. 
 
 7 vid. Brucker, vol. 1, p. 510. According to Meiners (p. 366- 
 -368), Aristoteles and Plato blamed Anaxagoras, because he more 
 frequently ( as they said ) spoke of Necessity than of God, and made 
 no reference to the Deity till he could not explain a difficulty other- 
 -wise. On the other hand, Socrates blamed Anaxagoras, because he 
 investigated too closely the yjlans of the Gods, and also because he 
 denied the divinity of the celestial bodies, which was acknowledged, 
 not only by Socrates, but also by various other philosophers, viz: 
 Anaximander, Alcmceon, Plato, Xenocrates, Theophrastus, Zeno, 
 and Cleanthes. (vid. Sched.,de Diis, p. 77, 78. ) 
 
 ^ vid. Brucker, vol. 1, p. 562, 563. 
 
VARIOTS DEIIMTIONS 
 
 natural one. In short : the great Atlienian philosoplier believed 
 ( or thought he believed ) in one supreme god ; but it does not 
 appear that he has ever positively defined what he meant by this 
 word. Socrates was averse to the idle disputes of metaphysicians ; 
 and his object seems to have been, that of every modest philoso- 
 -pher, not to build up a system of his own, but to shew the slight 
 foundation of existing systems. 
 
 Plato, like all or most of the ancient philosophers, seems to 
 have admitted the very simple doctrine "ex nihilo nihil fit."' He 
 believed that God and Matter were co-eternal. Matter was in a 
 state of chaos ; but the deity arranged and adorned it, having for 
 this purpose before him an Idea, that is a model or pattern. Thus 
 Plato admitted three Principles, — God, Matter, and Idea.'" What 
 Plato meant by the Idea, which is also called Logismos and Lo- 
 -gos, perhaps even Plato himself did not know ; tho it is proba- 
 -ble that he might mean a reason, or divine mind, emanating from 
 the Deity. Matter was of a refractory and evil nature; so that 
 god could not make the world absolutely perfect. The Deity is 
 
 * Mosheim ( appendix to Cudworth, vol. 2, p. 287—346 ) main- 
 -tains that the doctrine of a creation fr om nothing originated in the 
 Christians. But is it probable that such an abstraction should have 
 been invented by a barbarous demi-jewish sect? I should have thought 
 that the apostolic Hermas might have derived this refined doctrine 
 from the works of some philosopher now lost. Yet we read in the 
 Systeme de la Nature (tom. 3, p. 236, note) " Un auteur qui a voulu 
 refuter Spinosa, pretend que TertuUien est le premier qui ait sou- 
 -tenu cetle opinion conire un autre philosophe chrctien qui soutenait 
 Teternite de la matiere. \^oyez VImpie convaincu, [by Aubert de 
 Verse,] a la fin de I'avertissement. '' 
 
 '" This triad of Archoe ( or Principles, ) was afterwards changed 
 into a triad of Hypostases (or Persons) which was generally con- 
 -structed of — 1st. a father, or latent Deity, — 2ndly. a Mind or Intel- 
 -ligence, — 3rdly. a mundane or supramundane soul. We Christians 
 say, that this alteration v.'as made, in order to effect an approximation 
 with our own most sublime and incomprehensible trinity. But, 
 should we Christians have ever thought of a triad, if the Platonicians 
 had not set us the example? I am disposed to imagine, that, either 
 the trinitarian formula of baptism inserted at the end of ]\Iatthew's 
 gospel is an interpolation (tho found in all tlie MSS.), or that other- 
 -wise our earliest extant gospel is not so ancient as we generally sup- 
 -]iose. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD, 7 
 
 the Fcitlier of the world. lie made it spherical, and placed in it 
 a soul. A variety of Gods and Daemons were generated at the 
 same time with the soul of the world. The Sun, Moon, and itars 
 are Gods. The world will endure eternally, but undergoes perio- 
 -dical renovations. 
 
 Aristoteles believed, not only that Matter is eternal, but also 
 that the World is eternal, having been made and moved from all 
 eternity by god. The Deity is a mind, immutable and impassible, 
 an eternal and most perfect animal, perpetually employed ' in im- 
 -parting motion to the universe.^ Chance and Fortune are the 
 causes of whatever is contrary to Nature. Besides the Causes, 
 there are two Principles, namely Matter and Form. As this world 
 is moved by one deity, so the stars are moved by other deities ; 
 tho, whether tiiese deities are dependent on our deity, Aristoteles 
 does not absolutely say. Besides the Deity, who is incorporeal, 
 there exists what is called "a fifth body," (which is corporeal, but 
 immortal and spontaneously-moving,) from whence our souls or 
 intellects are derived. There also exists a certain animal force, 
 which constitutes life, sensation, and memory, and which perishes 
 with the body. 
 
 The above accounts of the Deity, given by the most spiritxially- 
 — deistical of the early Greek philosophers, are, I am afraid, not 
 very satisfactory. We may however, observe that the Deity (or 
 more properly speaking, the primaeval Matter or Principle ) seems 
 to have been gradually spiritualized, especially among the Ionic 
 pliilosophers. The Principle of Thales was water, of Anaxhnaii- 
 -der — a something between air and water, and of Ana.rimenes—aiT. 
 Diogenes ApoUoniates seems to have made air both a principle 
 and a cause: for he attributed to it a divine reason. About the 
 
 ' It must be dull work, to be eternally trundling a wheelbarrow ; 
 and perhaps hard work too, for an incorporeal being. See what Vel- 
 -leius says, ap. Ciceron., de N. D., B. 1, ch. 13, § 33. 
 
 * According to our present system of theoretical astronomy, the 
 planets, once set in motion, continue of themselves to revolve eter- 
 -nally; perhaps, therefore, the deity has not given some of them a 
 fresh push for these 6000 years. Now it appears to me as easy to 
 imagine that a solar, or systemical, mass of matter has been eternally 
 endued with circular (or nearly circular) motion, as that it should 
 be at rest. But, granting such an eternal motion, then the deity, as 
 a mere prime-mover, becomes superfluous. 
 
8 VARIOrS DF.riNITlONS 
 
 same time Anaxagoras separated the cause from tlie principle ; and 
 ( whatever may have been the opinions of his pupil Archelaus ) 
 this theory of Anaxagoras has proved the successful one, having 
 been adopted by Socrates, whose disciples have, to the present 
 day, been almost always spiritualizing Mind, and depriving Mat- 
 -ter of nearly all its attributes. 
 
 Let us now see what information on the subject of Deity we 
 can receive from late?' Graecians; viz. from those who flourished 
 after the subjugation of their country by the Romans.^ 
 
 The author of the "De Placitis Philosophorum, " inserted in 
 Plutaj'ch's works, has devoted a chapter to the question " what is 
 God?""* But he merely quotes the opinions of a few of the an- 
 -cient philosophers, and seems, for his own part, to disapprove of 
 them all: for he argues against the Anaxagorean* and the Plato- 
 -nic Deity; and (like an Epicurean) says, that God would be 
 
 ^ In matters of philosophy I consider the Ramans as a part of the 
 Greeks : for those Italian plunderers never invented any thing in me- 
 -taphysics, all their information upon which they derived from their 
 Hellenic subjects. Varro, and PUnius the elder, believed in the soul 
 of the world, or in the divinity of the universe. Ciaro's deity seems 
 difficult to be ascertained. Seneca maintains that nature is God. 
 Apuleius always speaks of the Deity magnificently, but perhaps 
 indeterminately. 
 
 * B. 1, section 7; Tom. 4, P. 2, (vol. 8,) p. 541, edit. Wyttenb. 
 8vo. Remark, that Schedius ( de Diis^p. 299, 300), when shewing 
 that most ancient philosophers believed the unity of the Deity, has 
 given two or three short extracts from the genuine works of Plutar- 
 -chus. The only extract involving a definition is from the de fugii 
 (ch. 5): 'eic km B^ciAeyc . k&i &pxON , eeoc , ^pxHN re , kai 
 MecHN . Kill T€A€YTHN exWN Toy Hj^NTOc. Bfucker's account of 
 Plutarch's religious opinions I have already given, " Life of Plutar- 
 -chus" p. 39-41, and in " Wyttenbach's prefatory note," p. 5. Let 
 me here add, that, in the de Iside (p. 369, edit. Xyl.), Plutarchus 
 appears to me a decided dualist. y^^. 
 
 *'In section 29 of B. 1, it is asserted, that, according to Anaxago- 
 -ras and the Stoics, some events happen through Necessity, some 
 through Fate, some through Chance, &c. Meiners ( de vero Deo, p. 
 370-372 ) highly condemns the pseudonymous author for this asser- 
 -tion, and calls him an "insulsus nugator. " 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 9 
 
 miserable, if, as a workman, he were obliged to labour at the 
 arrangement of the universe. 
 
 Among the "Sententise" of a certain Pythagorean philosopher 
 named Sextus, we may find : * " Deus sapiens lux est non capax 
 contrarii. " " Deus sicut mens est quae movetur. Sponte secun- 
 -dum haec & subsistit. " ' " Mali nullius autor est Deus. " Quse- 
 
 -cunque Deus possidet ha;c et sapiens. " " Sapientis anima 
 
 semper est cum Deo. " " Quid sit Deus agnosce, et quid in te 
 quod cognoscit Deum." 
 
 But Sejtus also says : " De Deo etiam qua; vera sunt, loqui 
 periculum est, et non parvum. " " In multitudine dicere de Deo 
 non audeas." "Nomen Dei ne quseras quia non invenies. Deus 
 non nomen est Deo, sed indicium quod sentimus de Deo. " 
 "Multis verbis uti de Deo ignorautia Dei facit. " 
 
 Apollonius Tyanaeus (who was born about the time of the bles- 
 -sed Jesus ) seems to have imagined that God is all things, or the 
 unique, but variously-modified substance of all things. * 
 
 The opinion of the sophist Secundus^ (who lived in Hadrian's 
 reign,) is delivered in very express words, tho perhaps in such 
 as are rather more poetical and incongruous, than well defined 
 and co-inciding: 
 
 Ti ecTi e€OC ? 
 
 lAionAACTON AT^eoN , noAYMop(|)ON eiKACMA , kz\ui.r\TQH 'yI- 
 
 ® in Gale's Opuscula (Cambridge, 1670, 1671) Tract the eleventh, 
 pp. 12. Sextus's book of proverbs has been interpolated by a Chris- 
 -tian (vid. Fabric. Biblioth. Gr. vol. 13, p. 645-647; and Mosheim 
 add. ad Cudworth. vol. 2, p. 801 ); but the phrases which I give 
 above are probably some of the genuine ones. Q. Sextius was a Ro- 
 -man, but wrote in Greek. }Ie followed the strict morality of the 
 Stoics; and rejected the patronage of Julius Casar. ( vid. Brucker, 
 vol. 2, p. 87). 
 
 ' These two first sentences I do not understand ; and therefore 
 leave them, and the others likewise, in the language in which I find 
 them . 
 
 * vid. Brucker, vol. 2, p. 154, and index, /s^. 
 
 ® vid. Gale's Opuscula, tract the 6th., p. 21 ; conf. p. 27, & 30; &. 
 the "Altercatio lladriani & Epicteti", an. Tabnc. Biblioth. Gra^c. 
 vol. 13, p. 557. 
 
iO VARIOtS DEflKlTIOKS 
 
 -UMA , nOAYX>,pi*KTON MOp^lCOMA , AYCNOOyM^NON ZHTHMA . Ae»- 
 -NikTOC NOyC . nOAYAlOlKHTON nNeyM^ ■ ivKOIMHTOC 0(j)ei»AMOC , 
 
 lAiA nj.NTciN oycii. ■ noAyuNYMOC ayn^mic i nA.rKp\THc xeip . 
 
 4)QC , Noyc , AyWAMlC , 
 
 ^/^ Themistius, a friend of the emperor Julianus, supposed, that 
 / tlie Deity wishes to hide himself, and that this is a sufficient 
 proof that he does not wish all men to be of the same religion, 
 but leaves them to think about him as they may choose."* 
 
 And having said thus much of the Greeks, let us pass to the 
 Barbarians. 
 
 Concerning lehuu/i, the Deity of the Hebrews, I have but few 
 books to consult. ' 
 
 The word Yah, means " he who is, " and the word Yehouh means 
 "the Being necessarily existing."- The word Aleim, often appli- 
 -ed to Yehouh, is interpreted by Parkhurst (Ilebr. Lex. p. 18) 
 "The denouncers of a conditional curse." I should rather, how- 
 -ever, imagine, that the word is but a sort of plural of the Ara- 
 -bic Allah J 
 
 At any rate Aleim is a plural word: for Paikhurst (p. 19) says: 
 " Let those who, in these days of Arian, Socinian, and Rabbini- 
 -cal, blasphemy, have any doubt whether Aleim, when meaning 
 the true God, Jehovah, is /)/«;■«/, or not, consult the following pas- 
 -sages where they will iind it joined with Adjectives, Pronouns, 
 
 and Verbs plural . " After giving references, Parkhurst adds : 
 
 *' O that the children of Abraham, according to the flesh, would 
 attentively consider and compare the texts above cited from their 
 
 ' I have indeed slightly perused a wqjk, entitled "The God of the 
 Jews, or Jehovah Unveiled. " Lond. "ISIQ, Hvo. ; but this pamphlet 
 is rather a critique upon the History of the Jews, than an account of 
 the Deity whom they worshipped. It may easily be imagined that I 
 have never seen the book of Ilieronymus Zanchius " de tribus Elo- 
 -him, a;terno patre, tilio, et spiritu sancto, uno eodem que jeliova. '• 
 Frankf. 1572. 
 
 * vid. Parkhurst's Hebr. Lex. p. 157, & 155; et conf. WoUaston's 
 " Religion of Nature, " p. 1 19, 120, note (g) . 
 
 ^ vid. Court de Gcbelin, (in his explanation of Sanchoniathon) 
 Monde Primitif, torn. 1, p. 23. 
 
 •^■"' vid. Brucker, vol. 2, p. 490j f^- 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 11 
 
 own scriptures! Could they then help owning a Tlurulitii of Aleim 
 in Jehovah? When they read for instance, Gen. 1, 26, that the 
 Aleim said " Let us, ( or ive will ) make man in our image, accor- 
 -ding to our likeness — ; " and compared these words with Eccles : 
 xii, 1 : " Remember thy Creators, " could they doubt whether Aleim, 
 as applied by Moses in the history of the creation, denoted a 
 Pluraliti/ of Agents?" Thus Parkhurst. 
 
 But I wish the learned would rather enquire, whether these Crea- 
 -tive Aleim were merely Hebrew Deities. Volney (New Research- 
 -es, p. 94,) says : " These Elahim were the decans of the Egypti- 
 -ans, the Genii of the months and planets among the Persians and 
 Chaldeans, God-Genii mentioned under their own name by the 
 Phoenician author Sanchoniathon, where he says: 'The compaui- 
 -ons of II or FJ, who is Kronos (Saturn), were called Eloim or 
 Kronians, and were said to be the equals of Kronos' (vid. Euseb. 
 Prsep. Evang. Lib. 1, p. 37)." Thus Volney, whose opinion, 
 however, must be rejected, if not orthodox. 
 
 Yehouh, considered as merely one of those beings generically 
 called Aleim, appears to have been only a national, or hereditary. 
 Deity : for Jephthah, one of the Presidents of the Hebrew RepulD- 
 -lic, said to the King of tlie Ammonites (vid. Judg. xi, 24): 
 " Shalt thou not possess that which C/iemos/i, thy Aleim, hath made 
 thee to possess ? And shall we not possess, all that, which Ythouh, 
 our Aleim, hath made us to possess (or hath driven out) from be- 
 -fore us? "* 
 
 The Deity of the Hebrews was evidently considered, by the Po- 
 -lytheists, to be the divine power of the material heavens.* 
 
 Thus Juvenalis (Sat. 14, v. 96) says: 
 
 Quidam sortiti metuenlem sabbata patrem 
 
 Nil praeter Nubes et Cceli Numen adorant. 
 
 : ^ 
 
 * Concerning this extraordinary passage, see Voltaire, " Dieu et 
 les Hommes" ch. 16, (CEuvr. Tom. 30, p. 65,) and Rousseau, "Con- 
 -trat Social, " B. 4, ch. 8. 
 
 * Schedius (de diis, p. 152) says, that the v/ord Shemim is often 
 used by the Hebrews to denote the Deity ; as the word Ouranos is 
 used in Matthew's gospel ( ch. 21, v. 25) ; and in Luke's ( ch. 15, v. 
 18). Various other references, establishing this important fact, are 
 given by Parkhurst, Lexicon, p. 342, b; & 746, a. 
 
12 VA1U013 DLllMTIONS 
 
 And Diodoriis Siculua * says of Moses : 
 
 AriiAM\ AC 0£CON TO CyNOAON Oy KA.TeCK€yiC€ , AIA TO MH 
 
 NOMizeiN kNepunoMop(j>ON eiNAi TON ©€ON s t^AAi. TON nepiex- 
 
 -ONTA THN THN OYP^NON MONON CINAI G60N KA.I TUN 'OAWN 
 KypiON ." 
 
 And Strabo ( B. 16, cli. 2 ) also says of Moses : 
 -- 6AIAACK6N *wc oyK opeuc <j)poNOi€N AirYHTIOI eHplOIC 61- 
 -K^zoNTec KM BOCKHM^ci TO e€ioN , oyA 'oi AIBY€C I oyK ey 
 Ae oyA 'OI *€AAHNeC , ANepconoMop^ioyc TynoyNTCc : eiH rAp 
 
 •€N TOyTO MONON 06OC , TO nepi€XON 'HMJiC 'AnANTAC KAI THN 
 KM e^AikTTAN . 'O KAA0yM6N OypANON KAI KOCMON KAI THN TCON 
 ONTUN (j>yCIN . TOyTOy AH TIC JvN €IKONA HAATTeiN GAppHCeie . 
 NOyN exCON "OMOIAN TINA TCON HAp 'HMIN ? AAA eAlN ACI DACAN 
 ^OANOnOl'i'AN , TgMCNOC A(|)OpiCANTAC KAI CHKON A^IOAOTON TIMAIN." 
 
 €IAOyC xupic . 
 
 Albeit. Lucanus ( Pharsal. B. 2, v. 593 ) says : 
 
 " dedita sacris 
 
 Incerti7 Judcea Dei ." 
 
 Tacitus (Ilistor., B. 5, ch. 5, ) says: " Judaei mente sola, unum 
 
 que numen intelligunt : summum illud, et Beternum, neque 
 
 mutabile, neque inteiiturum. " So also Dio (vid. not. ad Minut. 
 Felic. p. 94 ) says: tcon mcn aaawn G6C0N oyASNA timucin , 'ena 
 A6 TiN\ icxypuc cesoyci ; oyA jvtaama oyASN gn AyToic noTg 
 Toic 'lepOCOAYMOIC ecxoN ; AppnTON Ae ah kai aciah AyiON 
 NOMizoNTec 6INAI , nepiccoTATA ANGpconcoN epHCKeyoyci , These 
 
 * B. 40, fragment: p. 922. Diodoius also gives an account of the 
 Jewish religion in a fragment of the 34th. book, p. 901, where he 
 says, that the Hebrews were driven out of Egypt "as impious [men] 
 and hated by the gods. " So Tacitus ( Histor. B. 5, ch. 3 ) says of 
 the Jews, that, according to many authors, a king of Kgypt was or- 
 -dered by the oracle of Hammon, "id genus hominum, nt invis\im 
 Deis, alias in terras avehere. " 
 
 ^ Concerning the worsliip of unknown Gods, see Lardner (Works, 
 vol.4, p. 171,-176, 4to); & J. G. Voss. ( de Idol. B. 1, p. 14).^^. 
 
OF AN IMPOUTAXT WOUU. 13 
 
 two passages shew that the Jews had very much spiritualized 
 their deity, but do not explain what that deity was. 
 
 Volney, in a note to his "Ruins of Empires," appears to say, 
 that the God worshipped at the Egyptian Thebes was similarly 
 unrepresentable. He seems to refer to the following passage in 
 Plutarchus ( de Isid. et Osir. eh. 21 ; p. 359, edit. Xyl.): 
 
 eiC A€ TAC jrpAtflACTTWN T1MC0M€NC0N ZCJCON , TOyC MEN AAAOyC 
 
 CYNTeTArMeNJ> reAeiN ; MONoyc a6 mh aiaonai Toyc GHB^Ta^ 
 
 K^TOrKOYNT^C , 'WC GNHTON ©SON OyAeNik NOMIZONTAC , AAAA 
 'ON KAAOyClN &yTOI KNHCJ) , ^reNNHTON ONTA KAI ie^NATON ." 
 
 But all the critics seem agreed that the word rpi>(|)Ac is faulty, 
 and that we ought to read rpotjiAC or TAcj)iiC . And it is notorious, 
 that this Theban Deity, Kn^ph, or the Agatho-damon, was repre- 
 -sented, either under a human, or more probably a serpentine 
 form. ^ I think, therefore, that Count Volney, if he refers to the 
 above passage of Plutarchus concerning Cneph, is wrong to say: — 
 — " voila le. dieu que Moi'se, tleve a Heliopolis, adopta par pre- 
 -ference, mais qu'il n'inventa point.'' 
 
 But ( unless orthodoxy forbids us ) may we not believe, that 
 Moses really did invent this heavenly Deity?. I think I have read, 
 that some Chinese philosopher invented a very similar but more 
 
 * Meiners ( de vero Deo, p. 35, note) not only reads ta<J)ac for 
 rpAc|)AC ; but even says that Plutarchus was wrong to dissent from 
 tierodotus, who mentions (B. 2, ch. 74) that the Thebans buried their 
 sacred serpents in the temple of Jupiter. De Brosses, in his "Dieux 
 Fetiches'' (p. 87, & p. 80, edit. 1760) , quoting this passage, also 
 reads rpA(j)Ac, which I suppose therefore is the reading of Amyot. 
 The brazen (or copper) Serpent which saved the Hebrews (vid. 
 Numbers, ch. 21, v. 9) is, I think, the only emblem common to both 
 Yehouh and Rneph. Jablonski (Panlh. .(Egypt, p. 84, note) justi- 
 -fies the reading of ta(J>ac, by shewing that this word ought to be 
 read instead of Tpo(|)AC, in a similar passage of Diodor. Sic. (B. 1, 
 p. 76, edit. Wechel). Jablonski (p. 85) bids us recollect, that, not 
 only the serpent, but also the crocodile, the eagle, and the ram, were 
 held sacred by the Thebans. He supposes ( p. 94-98) that the an- 
 -tliropomorphous egg-vomiting deity, mentioned by Eusebius (Praep. 
 Evang. B. 3, ch. xi, p. 115), was not Cneph (Cnouph, or Ichanou- 
 -phi, the "good spirit") but Caiuephi (the '^ guardian of Egypt") 
 here meaning- \'ulcan.. 
 
14 VAlUDt'S DF.FINITIONS 
 
 perfect being-, doubtless in order to reclaim the people from a 
 gross material idololatry. Perhaps, however, Moses may only have 
 preserved, or restored, the very ancient idea, that the Gods were 
 not anthropomorphous. Thus the Pei-sianx, even in the time of 
 Herodotus ( vid. B. 1, ch. 131 ), considered that the Gods were not 
 of human shape, and that the supreme deity was the entire circle 
 of the heavens. Thus also the ancient GrerAs are said to have 
 worshipped the Gods without any visible representation, till the 
 time of Cecrops ; and according to Plutarchus (Op. vol. 1, p. 65, 
 Xyl. ) the lioniuns, for the first hundred and sixty years after Numa, 
 had no statues in their temples. Moreover. Lucianus (de Syria 
 Dea, ch. 3) says: "In the most ancient times the temples even of 
 the Egyptians were without statues"; but Dr. Potter (Antiq. vol. 
 1, p. 225) seems to think Lucianus is perhaps mistaken. 
 
 It is probable that Arnobius ( adv. Gentes, B. 3, ch. 12, edit. 
 Orell.) is wrong* in saying that the Sudducecs attributed forms (or 
 corporeity) to God. 
 
 Philo Judffius seems to iiave believed that PJatter is coeval 
 with God. (vid. Brucker, Hist. Phil., vol. 2, p. 804) . 
 
 According to most of the Rabbi, God cannot be defined. He 
 is only to be known by his attributes and names, which coincide 
 with his essence. His essence is absolutely perfect, and entirely 
 spiritual, (vid. Bmcker, vol. 2, p. 874, 875, 877) . 
 
 According to the Rabbi David Nicto (as quoted in the Diet, 
 des Alh., p. 307), God and Nature, Nature and God, are one. 
 
 The CabbaUsts, who denied the existence of Matter, conceived 
 that the Divine essence could be divided. The Cabbalists called 
 the Deity a foimtain of infinite light, and a hidden and inex- 
 -haustible sea. They imagined that certain Sephiroth, or emana- 
 -tions from the latent deity, produced and govern all things, (vid. 
 Brucker, vol. 2, pp. 980, 996, 1015, & 1031) . 
 
 Mahommed is (however falsely) reported'" to have said, that 
 God is a round' body, and extremely cold. 
 
 ^ vid. Brucker, vol. 2, p. 724. 
 
 '" vid. Histoire de la religion des Turcs, par Michel Baudier, 
 1641, quoted in the Diet, des Ath., p. 260. 
 
 ' Euthymius Zigabenus, in his "Dogmatic Panoply, " also says 
 that the Mohammedan Deity is spherical ; but Reland (de relig. 
 Mohamm. p. 100) seems to reject this assertion, when maintaining 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 15 
 
 Okail, or Lebid, the poet of Mahommed, said : * "All that is not 
 God is nothing: for God is all things." 
 
 According to the orthodox Mahommedan theologians,^ God is 
 the name of the necessarily existing essence. He is uniform, eter- 
 -nal, the first and last, the interior and exterior. He is not a 
 corporeal form, nor a circumscribed substance, nor a defined 
 measure. 
 
 Certain Mahommedan theologians, mentioned by Maimonides, 
 (vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 56) were unwilling to call God the first 
 cause : for, if God, as the necessary cause, has existed from eternity, 
 therefore ( according to tliera ) the thing caused, or effected, viz : 
 the world, must also have existed from eternity. 
 
 A Mahommedan sect, apparently that entitled the Zendikai, main- 
 -tained (vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 138) that there was no God but 
 the four elements; and that the soul was not spiritual or immor- 
 -tal, but a compound of the four elements. 
 
 The Soojis of Persia believe, that God, or the eternal immuta- 
 -ble Being, draws out from his own substance, not only (human) 
 souls, but whatever is corporeal and material in the universe. 
 Creation therefore is only an extraction, production, or extension, 
 of the divine substance, drawn, like a spider's web out of the en- 
 
 that Mohammed's Deity is incorporeal. But the God of Xenopha- 
 -nes was spherical (vid. pseud.-Origen. ap. Brucker, vol. 1, p. 1151) 
 and yet was perhaps incorporeal. Moreover some of the Stoics (ex. 
 gr., vid. Manil. astron. B. 1, v. 204) attributed a spherical form to the 
 Deity., ^. It seems a very general and reasonable idea. Nevertheless 
 some religionists have adopted what an Arian called " a triangular 
 superstition. " ( see the treatise upon St. Matthew, quoted in L ard- 
 -ner's works, vol. 3, p. 63 ) . Albeit \"ieira, a Portuguese preacher, 
 has said (vid. Diet. des Ath. p. 502) "if the Almighty should happen 
 to appear in a geometrical form, it would surely be the circular, in 
 preference to the triangular, the square, or the pentagonal. " "This 
 reminds one of the famous definition, that God is a circle, whose 
 centre is every where and circumference no where. ^^..God had already 
 been said to be "every where and no where" hy Philo Judaeus, whose 
 deity appears to have been " celestial space. " (vid. Mosheim, note 
 to Cudworth's Intell. Syst. vol. 2, p. 364). 
 
 * vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 311. 
 
 3 vid. Algazel. ap. Pocock, quoted by Brucker, vol. 3, p. 158 ; conf. 
 Reland. de relig. Mahomm. p. 8 — 13, edit. 1705. 
 
16 VARIOl^S pr.riMTIONS 
 
 -trails of tlie Deity. These theologians compare the Deity to a 
 vast ocean, in which swim innumerable phials full of water, so 
 that the water, if the bottles are broken, return again to the ocean 
 from which they were taken.* 
 
 The Bralinihis, when asked to shew God, trace a circle, as if. 
 they said, God is (but) the great circle of Nature (see the Voya- 
 -ges de Dillon, as referred to in the Diet, des Atb. p. 162, 163). 
 It appears too tjiat they describe a triangle in this circle (vid. 
 Diet, des Ath. p. 323). They believe God to be the father, and 
 mother, of men and of all things. Albeit if I may judge from the only 
 original v/ork which I possess upon the subject of Brahminism, * the 
 Deity recommended by the Indian Vedas, ( notwithstanding some 
 too literal expressions about Light, Void Space, &c. ) is neverthe- 
 -less very similar to our own modern Jehovah. For, according 
 to the Ved: "He from whom the universal world proceeds, who 
 is the Lord of the Universe, and he whose work is the universe, 
 is the Supreme Being. " But I suppose the Brahmins cannot de- 
 -fine (or give a positive account of) their Deity; for, according 
 to the Veds : " The Supreme Being is not comprehensible by vi- 
 -sion, or by any other of the organs of sense ; nor can he be con- 
 -ceived by means of devotion or virtuous practices. " " He sees 
 every thing, though never seen ; hears every thing, though never 
 directly heard of. He is neither short, nor is he long; inaccessible 
 to the reasoning faculty ; nor to be compassed by description ; 
 beyond the limits of the explanation of the Ved, or of human 
 conception ."•* /s^. 
 
 The Deity of the j/jore ancient Chinese seems to answer almost 
 
 ■• vid. Brucker (vol. 5, p. 808, 809), who considers this system 
 as neither Spinozistical, nor Stoical, but rather Cabbalistical, and 
 Zoroastrian. The I'Esprit de I'Encyl. (art. " Asiatiques" by Dide- 
 -rot ) says of the doctrine of the Soofis: " lis ne vous paieront, dis-je, 
 que de ces sortes de comparaisons, qui n'ont aucun rapport avec 
 Dieu, et qui ne sont bonnes que pour jeter de la poudre aux yeux 
 d'un penple ignorant. " 
 
 ^ A short tract drawn up by Ronunohitn Jioy, Calcutta, 1816, 4to. 
 pp.14. 
 
 ® I am afraid an infidel would say : " This negative language is 
 wonderfully sublime; but all that it means is, that nothing is not ant/- 
 -thing, — a linism which metaphysicians should abandon to etymolo- 
 -gists." Such might be the argument of an infidel. For my part, 
 I, of course, protest against it. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WOT-P. 17 
 
 exactly to the Zeus, or Jupiter, of the Stoics (vid. Brucker, vol. 
 5, p. 888, 889 ; & conf. p. 897, 898 ) . He is the soul inhabiting 
 the whole world, but more especially the heavens. The soul of 
 man emanates from this universal soul, and reverts to it. 
 
 According 'to later Chinese philosophers, (or to those who flou- 
 -rished between the 12th. and the 15th. centuries after Christ,) 
 there has existed from all eternity, a cause of all things, called 
 Li, which is an incorruptible and infinite being (vid. Brucker, 
 vol. 5, p. 890, 891). This universal cause has neither life, nor 
 intelligence, nor authority, nor body, nor figure ; and, tho it is not 
 spiritual, yet, as if spiritual, it can only be comprehended by the 
 intellect.'' 
 
 I cannot discover any very accurate account of the Deity men- 
 -tioned in that highly to be reverenced volume of mysterious tracts, 
 entitled "the New Testament." The t/n^ee first gospels contain 
 the miraculous life and death of a certain " Galilaean peasant, " 
 who was rather an enemy to hypocrisy than a theologian. In the 
 fourth gospel, we meet with a personified Logos, whose doctrine 
 may, to our limited faculties, appear vague. The Acts, or Adven- 
 -tures, of some of the apostles ( principally of the blessed Paul of 
 Tarsus) are as interesting as they are true; but this book is in 
 general more narrational than didactic. The Letters, written by 
 the above mentioned holy Paul, say but little of the Deit/: for 
 they chiefly turn upon dissensions with the Jews, and upon money- 
 -matters. Similarly the other apostolic circulars appear (humanly 
 speaking) to be mere pastoral charges; and are, moreover, unen- 
 -cumbered with those matters of fact, which are useless except to 
 historians. The Apocalypse, with which the whole concludes, is 
 very sublime and brilliant, being full of dragons, thrones, trum- 
 -pets, five, and brimstone; but it contains very little abstract theo- 
 -logy. 
 
 And indeed no orthodox believer will expect positive metaphy- 
 -sical information from the New Testament, or from any other of 
 the writings of our ancient Christian sages. Yhih preached, in 
 general, only a calm morality, combined widi a species of inde- 
 
 ^ I confess that my intellect does not comprehend it; and indeed 
 the whole of Brucker's account of the Chinese Philosophy is so en-' 
 -tirely above my compreliension, that I have not the courage toinves- 
 -tigate any further concerning the doctrines, either of the Chinese, oe 
 of the Japanese, or of any other of the uilra-orientals. 
 
18 
 
 VARIOUS DEriNITXONS 
 
 -terminate, or at most only Pharisaical, Theism. Tlie Chriatiuns 
 •were entirely different people. Animated with a furious zeal against 
 idololatry (to which Yesus does not allude) these iconoclasts 
 seem to have maintained few positive metaphysical dogmata, till 
 they wanted excuses for plundering from one another the plunder 
 of paganism. 
 
 It is difficult therefore to give any account of the Christian 
 Theology.* Our god is (g^ doubt the true god ; but, when v/e are 
 asked what this true god is, we either launch into negative epi- 
 -thetSj or else are altogether at a stand-still. Is the Christian 
 deity merely a poetical personification, or a hyper-philosophical 
 ultra-abstraction? — God is a spirit; and modern Christians tell us 
 that, by the word spirit, they mean something absolutely immate- 
 -rial. But, as this definition would lead us to a vacuum; and, as 
 a vacuum, or Nothing, cannot be possessed of positive attributes, 
 let us see whether we cannot find out some less negative idea of 
 supreme power. 
 
 Were our deity an amalgamation, or rather a quintessence, of all 
 former Deities, infidels might deduce him from three grand sour- 
 -ces — 1st. the national deity of the ancient Jews, who seems to 
 have been of a rather material nature and the unique cause both 
 of good and evil; — 2ndly. the Persian deity, namely the good 
 Principle who is always opposed to the evil Principle ; — and 3rdly. 
 the deity of the fathers of the church, who seems to have been 
 taken, partly from the Platonists, and partly from the Stoics. 
 We speak as magnificently of our present deity, as the Stoics did 
 of their soul of the world ; and we consider the indivisible as tri- 
 -partite, probably following some Platonic theogonist. The Devil 
 we have gradually thrown aside, since the time of the great Bal- 
 -thazar Bekker. ^ The Angels seem abandoned to the painters. 
 Finally, all positive epithets concerning the Deity himself are dis- 
 -couraged; and no persons are considered orthodox, except those 
 
 ^ Those learned men — Johann Wier, in 1564, & 1577,-and Rey- 
 -nolde Scott, in 1584, had already combated demonology ; to say 
 nothing of Petrus Powponatiiis, who must have written his " de in- 
 -cantationibus" about 1520. There is mention in Brucker (vol.5, 
 p. 716) of an anti-demoniacal work written, in englisli, by Orchard, 
 in 1676, and which was translated into dutch, in 1697, by William 
 .S'eu'c//. Antonius van Dale attacked tlie ancient demons in 1683. 
 Benjamin de DuUlon, in 1687, acknowledged only one devil. ( vid. 
 Mosh. in Cudw. Syst. Int. p. 159, b.). Bckkcr, writing in 1691 &c., 
 
or AN nfPOKTANl VVOIID. 19 
 
 who speak "piously and soberly" (i. e. verbosely and negatively) 
 concerning that excessive power, which made the universe out of 
 nothing, and whose peculiar providence has eternally governed 
 every particle of matter, in every planet and system, world with- 
 -out end. 
 
 But before speaking of the Christian orthodoxy of the present 
 day, I should have done well to give an account of the Deity as 
 represented to us by the ancient Christians. ' I am afraid however 
 that almost all their accounts of the deity are rather of a negative 
 kind. 
 
 Thus:St. Basiliiis (in his comment, upon Psalm. 115"*) says: 
 niCTeycM r^p agi (^hcin , 'oti ecri ©60C , oyxi ZHTHCivi , oyAS 
 zyroMAXHCM TO Ti €CTi .' And Isidorus Pehisiota says: eiA€N&i 
 rap xpH KM niCTeyeiN , -oti ecri ©60C , oy to ti ecTi no- 
 -AynpATMONeiN . [conf. Al. Moras, ap, Bayle, Diet, vol.4, p. 636]. 
 
 chained the devil in tartarus. More information upon this important 
 subject may no doubt be found in the "History of the Devil," by 
 Daniel Defoe, 1726, ; and in the "Historia Diaboli" by Joh. Godfr. 
 J\Iat/£?; in 1777, 4to ; & 1781, 8vo.i. One of the latest of the diabo- 
 -lical writers seems to be G. H. Lei/ccsto; a barrister; who wrote, on 
 " the Moral and Religious Use of a Devil" 1797, 8vo ; and "On 
 the Political and Moral uses of an Evil Spirit" 1799, 8vo. Be it 
 recollected, moreover, that one Sarah Flaxmer has written : " Satan 
 
 Revealed ; with a testimony that Richard Brothers is a Prophet 
 
 sent from the Lord." 
 
 ' It is useless to speak about the various Gnostical sects, who seem 
 to have agreed in believing that all tilings are emanations from a la- 
 -tent deity ( vid. Brucker, vol. 2, p. 645-650 ) . The doctrine of tiie 
 A'alentinians is shewn by the engraving, opposite p. 1, of JMassuet's 
 Irena?us. I do not think that Gnosticism can ever have been adop- 
 -ted by the vulgar. Tertullianus has shewn how easily it could be 
 ridiculed. And what priests could have found it their interest to 
 support a vague doctrine, capable of infinite diversifications ? The 
 belief in a latent god seems a pledge of toleration. 
 
 '" I take this and the following quotation from the note of Elmen- 
 -horstius upon Minutius Felix, p. 143, (edit. 1672). A host of 
 other quotations are here given ; but I doubt whether there is among 
 them the verse from Philemon ( ap. Stob. ) quoted by Wyttenbach in 
 his " Prefatory note," supra,p. 11. 
 
 ' The earl^ Christians had an advantage over the i/uukrH ones', 
 because they could retort upon their adversaries. " Pagaui - - dicuiit 
 
20 VAlilOrS lUlIMTlONS 
 
 But how difticult it is to build up one theology when pulling 
 down another ! Mlnutius Felix must have forgotten that he was 
 an advocate for Christianity ,when he said to the Pagans ( p. 222 ) : 
 " Unusquisque vestrum non cogitat, prius se debere Deum nosse 
 quam colere. " 
 
 And a few of the Fathers (unfortunately not always tlie most 
 orthodox) have attempted to give us some account of the Being 
 whom we adore. Thus — 
 
 Tatianus, a Syrian Sophist who became the disciple of Justinus, 
 has manifestly adopted the emanative system : 
 
 0€OC , 'O KAG 'HMAC , OyK €X€I CyCTACIN CN xpONWI , MONOC 
 ANApxOC CON , KM h^yrOC 'yni'pXWN TON "OACON ApxH . HNCyMA 
 'O ©60C , Oy AIHKON AU THC 'yAHC , nNeyMATWN A€ 'yAlKCON 
 KAI TCON CN AyJHI CXHMATON KATACKCy &CTHC XOpATOC Te KM AN\- 
 -(J)HC , MCeHTCON KAI AOpMCON AyTOC rerONWC HATHp . - - - nN€yMA , 
 
 TO AiA THC 'yAHC AIHKON , €Ai,TTON 'ynApxci Toy eeioTcpoy 
 nseyMATOC . * - - - G60C hn en ApxH ; thn a€ ?pxHN AOrOY Ay- 
 
 -NAMIN HApei H(J>AMeN . 'O TAp A€CnOTHC TCON 'OACON AyTOC 'yOAp- 
 
 -xcoN Toy nANToc 'H "ynocTACic , KATA M€N THN MHAGnco rercNH- 
 
 -MENHN nOIHCIN MONOC HN , KAG'O AC OACA AyNAMIC , 'OpATCON 
 T€ KAI AOpATCON AyTOC 'ynOCTACIC HN . CyN AyTCOl TA nANTA -. 
 CyN AyTCJI TAp AIA AOTIKHC AyNAMCCOC , AyTOC KAI 'O AOfOC 
 
 'oc HN CN AyTcoi -ynecTHce . eeAHMATi a€ thc 'aoaothtoc Ay- 
 -Toy nponHAM AOroC . - - 
 
 - - ubi est Deus tuus? Ipsi dicant, ubi sunt Dii eorum - - . " Thus 
 Augustinus, (\\xoi&A in a note to Minucius Felix, p. 102, (couf. note to 
 pp. 94, 95) . There is here also a quotation from Amulius, in which, 
 an awkward question about the peculiar benevolence of the Christian 
 deity is replied to by " Requirimus et nos contra, cur et vos, &c. &c."yi^. 
 When arguing with atheists we must be more accurate. But the 
 above subterfuge was useful in the days of polytheism. It might 
 even serve as a first step towards converting a Jew into a trinitarian. 
 see the dialogue inserted in Fabric. Bibl. Gr. vol. 8, p. 384, 385. 
 
 * The inferiority, of this spirit which penetrates Matter, is, I think, 
 very heterodox ; but it is evidently a constituent part of the doctrine 
 of emanations (vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 386; & the axiom, in vol. 2, 
 p. 648). 
 
or AN IMPORTANT WORD. 21 
 
 Tlie meaning: of tlie principal parts of tliis most important pas- 
 -sage may be thus expresseiP: "God, an incomprehensible spirit, 
 does not insinuate himself into matter; but is, in matter, an 
 invisible and intangible fabricator of material spirits and forms. 
 As being the substance ( hypostasis ) of all things, he was alone 
 before the formation of the world ; but, as regards his power, he 
 is the substance of all things visible aud invisible, in whom they 
 subsist; aud all things were with him." The author proceeds 
 to say, that the " Logos leapt forth, " and constructed the universe 
 by the division of matter. 
 
 f/^themgoras* says: n^NT^ -o ©eoC ecTiN aytoc &ytwi , <^uc 
 / AnpociroN , KOCMOC reACioc , nNeyM^ . ayn^mic . Aoroc . 
 
 Tcrtidliamis by no means believed in the immateriality of the 
 Deity or of any other spirit, for he says : * " Quis enim negavit (or 
 negabit) Deum corpus esse, etsi Deus spiritus est? Spirilus enim, 
 corpus sui generis in sua effigie."" This father of the churcli ne- 
 -vertheless believed that plants are endued with a sort of soul : 
 for he says (de animti, ch. 19): "Siquidem et illis necdum avbus- 
 -culis, sed stipitibus adhuc, et surculis etiam nunc simul de scro- 
 -bibus oriuntur, inest propria vis aninire."^ 
 
 ^ I follow, as much as possible, the expressions of Brucker, vol. 3, 
 p. 380-382. 
 
 "* apolog. p. 15; ap. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 403, art. 3. 
 
 * adversus Praxean, ch. 7. The Systbme de le Nature, after allu- 
 -ding to this passage, adds (torn. 3, p. 229, note):" Scmpion disait 
 en pleurant, qu'on lui avait ote son Dieu en lui faisant adopter I'opi- 
 -nion de la spiritualite, qui cependant n'etait pas aussi subtilisee 
 
 pour lors qu'elle I'a etc depuis. La spiritualite est devenue le 
 
 dernier retranchement de la theologie, qui est parvenue ti faire un 
 Dieu plus qu'aerien, dans I'esperance, sans doute, cju'un pared Dieu 
 serait inattaquable; il Test en effet, vu que I'attaquer, c'est combattre 
 une pure chimbre. '' 
 
 ® Moreover he attributes extension to God, describing him as the 
 Being " in quo omnis locus, non ipse in loco. " advers. Praxean, 
 ch. 16 ; conf. Mosheim in Cudworth., vol. 2, p. 365. 
 
 ^ TertuUianuSjWhen writing this, must have forgotten the abnegati- 
 -on wliich he elsewhere makes of superfluous doctrines (de pra;scrip- 
 
 -tionibus, ch. 7) " Quid Athenis et lerosolymis? Viderint qui 
 
 Stoicum Christianis prsetulerunt. Quum credimus, nihil 
 
 desideramus ultra credere.' 
 
■22 VARIOUS PFriN'ITIONS 
 
 .SV. Clemens Alexandrbuis is rather a pliilosopher tlian a theolo- 
 -gian.^ lie is constantly adopting the sentiments of the Platonists 
 and the Stoics. Thus, liive Plato, he grants ® that — the world was 
 generated by God, almost as a son is generated by his father, — 
 — and that there are two worlds the sensible and the intelligible. 
 Moreover, he tells us, that the Stoical God (who, he says, is both 
 corporeal and spiritual) is the God of the Scriptures (strom. B. 
 5, p. 699 ). Yet just before (p. 693), he insists upon the diffi- 
 -culty of giving any account of God. "How can he be spoken 
 of, who is neither a genus, nor a diiference, nor a form, nor an 
 atom, nor a number, nor any thing actively or passively contin- 
 
 -gent ? He has neither dimension, nor end, nor figure. And 
 
 lie cannot be named : if we call him the one, or the good, or 
 Mind, or the existing Being, or Father, or God, or Demiurgus, 
 or Lord, we only use these fine names, out of a want of better, 
 that the mind may rest on them. For no one of these names by 
 itself denotes the Deity ; but taken together they indicate the pow- 
 -er of the almighty." After this magnificent but somewhat nega- 
 -tive description, Clemens quotes the saying of Paulus Tarsensis 
 (Acts xvii, 22, 23) that he thought the Athenians too superstitious, 
 and that he came to preach to them the "Unknown God." 
 
 According to that most learned christian Origenes, "* the creative 
 power was not entirely able to overcome the obstinacy of matter. 
 A very subtle body may be attributed to the deity. God, and his 
 persons, as also angels, and man, are, as regards the soul, of one 
 and the same substance. God occasionally produces Matter out of 
 himself. 
 
 Lactanfhts seems to believe,' that God has figure and form,* 
 and that he is the force or rather the wisdom of nature.^ He 
 considers the Virgilian God as nearly the same as ours (p. 11, 
 conf. p. 430); and speaks of the discursiveness of tlie divine Mind 
 (p. 488) in a manner worthy of a Stoic (vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 
 
 * vid. Dupin, quoted in Blount's Censura, p. 126. 
 
 ^ Strom. B. 5, p. 701, 702, edit. Potter; and in Brucker, vol. 3, 
 p. 426.A. 
 
 '» vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 443, 444, 445, 457. 
 ' In his book to prove God's anger, ch. 2, & 18. 
 
 * vid. deprehensa in Lactantio, ad fin. edit. 1685, p. 509. 
 
 ^ vid. p. 12, & 429 ; conf. Ainsworlh's Diet, at the word "Natura." 
 
''^W^ 
 
 or AN IMPORTAKT WORD. 23 
 
 467,468). He even argues atheistically : for he asks (p. 486)> 
 what is the use of the spleen? — But I must say no more about 
 Lactantius: he forgets to mention the Trinity*; and is therefore 
 scarcely worthy to be a Father of our holy Church. 
 
 Sj/nesius, in his hymns, * speaks of the deity in a style most 
 scandalously Gnostical, \''alentiniacal, or Cabbalistical : "Thou art 
 a father and a mother, a male and a female ; * thou art voice and 
 
 silence; thou art the fruitful nature of nature." "Thou art 
 
 the father of all fathers; and, being without a father, thou art 
 thine own father and son." - - "O source of sources, principle of 
 principles, root of roots, thou art the unity of unities, the num- 
 -ber of numbers, being both unity and number." - - "Thou art 
 one and all things, one of all things, and one before all things. " 
 Thus S)/)iesius, whose language is wonderfully unintelligible, and 
 nevertheless we now consider it heterodox. 
 
 These latter paragraphs may be considered as involving defi- 
 -nitions; but the quotations I am now about to add (though also 
 from Fathers of the church ) are, I am afraid, mere confessions of 
 ignorance. 
 
 Minutim Felix (p. 155, edit. Ouzel.) after saying that the Chris- 
 -tians thought of the Deity almost as Plato did; adds that, like 
 the Athenian sage, they avoided speaking of the Deity except 
 when asked.'' 
 
 Arnohius, a Christian writer, (but who sometimes argues with the 
 Platonists, and sometimes even with the Sceptics,) says to the 
 
 Deity : * " O unseen, and incomprehensible, thou art - - 
 
 the place ' and space and foundation of all things ; with- 
 
 * vid. Walch. Bibliotheca Patristica, p. 542. 
 
 * vid Brucker, vol. 3, p. 516, 517; & Massuet's preface to Ire- 
 -nseus, p. xxxii; conf. Beausobre, Manich. tom. 1, p. 584. 
 
 ^ I wish some one would compile a tract "de Diis, hermaphro- 
 -ditis, eunuchis, et praeter naturam natis. " 
 
 '' Souverain, in his "Platonisme devoile," p. 63, after quoting this 
 passage, says that it was impossible to explain to the people [the 
 orthodox idea of the Deity], " parcequ'il etoit dangereux. " 
 
 ^ adv. gentes, B. 1, ch. 31-33, edit. Orell.; conf. Brucker, vol. 3, 
 p. 464. 
 
 * I abridge the following note from Orellius. God is called " the 
 
24 
 
 VARIOUS DEFINITIONS 
 
 -out quality, quantity, position, or motion ; of whom notliing 
 
 can be said and expressed in the signification of mortal words ; 
 to understand whom, we must be silent; and to obtain a vague 
 and obscure glimpse of whom, we must not utter a syllable. Oh 
 
 supreme king! it is no wonder if thou art not known, it would 
 
 rather be wonderful if thou wert known." Thus Arnobius, who 
 appears to add, that it is dangerous to attempt proving the exis- 
 -tence of the Deity. He then asks, whether the idea of God is 
 not innate; and whether, if trees, clods. Sec. could speak, they 
 would not proclaim a Lord of all things. 
 
 According to St. Ci/rillits of Jerusalem, God is not circumscribed 
 
 by any place, nor is he less than heaven. He is in all things, 
 
 and without all things ( v. 48, edit. Milles). Elsewhere (p. 78) 
 
 Cyrilius says: "We say concerning God, not what is right , 
 
 but what the weakness of human nature can bear. For we do 
 not explain what God is; but we confess with candour that we 
 have no accurate knowledge of him : for, in what regards the Deity, 
 
 it is a great knowledge to confess one's ignorance. But it will 
 
 be said : < if the divine essence is incomprehensible, why talkest 
 
 thou of these things?' (p. 80). Let no man be ashamed to 
 
 confess his ignorance (p. 81). It is enough for our piety to 
 
 know that we have a God, an unique Deity, who is all eye, 
 
 all ear, and all mind '" ( p. 82 ). Many have attempted to give 
 
 a description of the Deity, but all have failed. Some have thought 
 
 the Deity to be a fire; others consider him to be winged; 
 
 others have dared to say he has seven eyes (conf. Zachar. iv, 10) 
 
 But the Deity is not bounded by a place ; but, as a maker 
 
 of places, is in all, and is circumscribed by none (p. 83). 
 
 He is an eternal light, uninterruptedly shining, an unconquerable 
 force, accommodating itself to our weaknesses . " Ct/rillus ter- 
 
 filuce of all things, " by the Peripatetics, who are refuted by Sextus 
 Empiric, adv. Mathem. B. 10. Here Fabricius says: the Jews 
 sometimes call the Deity Mequ&m, or place, as in the book of Pas- 
 -chal rites edited by Rittangelius, and as Philo Judoeus says when 
 explaining Exodus, xxi, 13. So, among Christian writers, Theophi- 
 -his { ad Autol. B. 2, p. 81) says o€Oc r^p oy xupeiTM , ^aa 
 AYTOC 6CT1 Tonoc TUN "OAUNj and in a confession of the Greeks, 
 edited by Normannus, God is called Tonoc ^y'^°'^ 'eAyTOY. 
 But St. Augustinus rejects this appellation. 
 
 '" These words are probably taken from Irenaus.B. 1, ch. 6. Sir 
 Isaac Newton uses the same language. ^Marechal calls it spinosistical. 
 
OF AN IMl'OUTA.NT WORD. 25 
 
 -miiiates this part of his subject witli that best of all theological 
 conclusions : " Oh the depth of the riches - - . " 
 
 St. Augustinus^^ says: "God is a being whom we speak of, but 
 whom we cannot describe ; and who is superior to all definitions. " 
 
 It is said, that, in the works of a demi-Platonician called Dio- 
 ~)ii/siu>> the AnopagUe, we may read : '* " God is all the beings, not 
 merely one of the beings " ; and also : ' " we then best know God, 
 when>we know that we do not know him." 
 
 And thus much concerning the Fathers of the Church.* Let 
 me now come to the Scholastics of the middle ages. 
 
 Johannes Scoftts Eringena, ^ apparently followed by Almurkiis 
 Carnotensis, ■* adopted the opinion, that all things are God and God 
 all things. Similarly Davides de Dinanto (who was persecuted 
 about A.D. 1209) maintained, that God is the primary matter, 
 or that all things are one in Matter.^ 
 
 St. Anselmus (who was elected archbishop of Canterbury in 
 1093) argues for the existence of the Deity from our innate idea 
 of a supreme being. * 
 
 " As quoted by Formey ( Espr. de I'Encycl. art. Dieu, vol. 5, p. 
 176). In the same page we read the famous answer made (accor- 
 -ding to Cicero ) by Simonides to Hiero, and ( according to Tertul- 
 -lianus) by Thales to Croesus. 
 
 '^ vid. Diet, des Athees, p. 100. 
 
 ' vid. Syst, de la Nature, torn. 3, p. 178, note; & (apparently) 
 the Christianisme devoile, p. 92. 
 
 - Here perhaps I might mention the opinion of Severinus Boe- 
 -tliitis, that the Creator is extremely beautiful, and binds the elements 
 with numbers (vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 525). But, altho Boethius 
 was beheaded for Trinitarianism (A.D. 526), yet he was perhaps 
 not so much of a Christian as a Stoic; and his above mentioned opi- 
 -nion seems to savour partly of Platonism and partly of Pythagorism . 
 
 3 vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 620. Scotiis was still living in France, 
 in A. D. 872. 
 
 ^ vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 688; Mosheim, Eccl. Hist. vol. 3, p. 
 287. 
 
 * vid. Brucker, vol. 3, p. 602 ; conf. Reimmann, Hist. Alh. p. 
 342, & Buddeus, de Ath. p. 77,78. 
 
 ^ vid. B)ucker, vol. 3, p. 665. Descarles afterwards argued simi- 
 
26 VARIOIS DEriNITIOKS 
 
 St. Tlwwas Aquinas argues,' that, for men to obtain a certain 
 and indubitable knowledge of God, it is necessary that they shoold 
 be taught the divine attributes as articles of faith. 
 
 Raymond LulU * said : "God is not a part, but the whole. " 
 
 Some scholastics, especially Gregorius of Rimini (a general of 
 the Augustins who died in 1358), supposed that God could de- 
 -ceive (vid. Bayle, art. Jiimiui, note B.). 
 
 According to Gabriel Biel (a German scholastic who died in 
 1495 ), the proofs which reason can furnish for the existence of 
 God are only probable.* 
 
 Let us now come to more modern metaphysicians and philoso- 
 -phers. To begin then with the Italians. 
 
 Marsilitts Ficiniis (who died in 1499) probably borrowed all 
 his theology from the Alexandrine Platonists. At any rate, (what- 
 -ever he may have thought of the remote gods ) he appears to have 
 believed, that the world is animated, and contains, moreover, a 
 spirit which connects its soul and body (vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 53). 
 
 Petrus Pomponatim (an Aristotelician who died in 1525) seems 
 to have denied the terrestial power of demons or intelligencies ; 
 and to have said, that the vulgar alone refer to a god or demon 
 the effects of which we do not perceive the causes (vid. Brucker, 
 vol. 4, p. 172). 
 
 Franciscus Georgius \'enetus (a franciscan and Cabbalo-Plato- 
 -nist, who was yet alive in 1536) is said to have maintained that 
 God is veiy prolific. "* 
 
 Bernardinus Telesim (who died in 1588) maintained, that there 
 are three principles, two opposite and incorporeal, viz. heat and 
 cold ; and one corporeal, viz. matter. ' I suppose therefore he 
 imagined the Deity to be an excessive heat. 
 
 -larly. The argument of JamhUchus is the same in words, but not in 
 meaning, vid. Brucker, vol. 2, p. 432. 
 
 ' vid. Huet, "Foibl. de I'Espr. hum." L. 3, ch. 15, p. 278. The 
 Angelic Doctor died in 1274. 
 
 * vid. CoUetet, quoted in the Diet, des Ath. p. 335. The Enlight- 
 -ened Doctor suffered martyrdom in 1315. 
 
 * vid. Huet, " Foibl. de I'Espr. hum. " p. 277. 
 
 "* vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 377; sed conf. art. 30, p. 380. 
 
 ' vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 456, & 458. This doctrine scarcely seems 
 
et AN IMPOnTA.NT WORD. 27 
 
 Accoidiiig to Jordanus Brunus ( who was burnt to death in the 
 year of grace 1600) God, a monad, the fountain of all numbers, 
 is the monad of monads ; and is the simplest essence, in which 
 no composition can exist intrins cally. * (vid. Brucker, vol. 5, p. 
 42, 44, 48). 
 
 Vanini, in his Amphitheatrum seternse Providentias p. 8, says : 
 " Do you ask me, what God is ? If I knew, I should be a God : 
 for no one knows God ; nor does any one know %s'hat he is, ex- 
 -cept God himself. " Notwithstanding this discouraging information, 
 Vanhiiis, at p. 10, says of the Deity : " he is all, [and] all things, 
 above all things, beyond all things, within all things, beside all 
 things, before all things, and after all things."^ 
 
 Andreas Cccsalphius (who died in 1603) maintained, that there 
 is one common soul to all animated beings ; and that there is only 
 one intelligence, viz. God, which intelligence is the intelligence 
 of all things, being as it were the measure of all things ( vid. 
 Brucker, vol. 4, p. 224, 225). 
 
 Thomas Campanella (who died in 1639) appears to have said: 
 "The first substance, which is the basis of all [substances, but] 
 does not exist in any thing subject, is the space which forms the 
 substratum of tlie whole collection of bodies. ** In this sense God 
 is improperly called a substance. " Campanella imagined moreover 
 
 anti-christian ; but, as it opposed that of Aristoteles, the monks gave 
 Telesius some trouble in his old age; and, after his death, his " de 
 remm natura" (first printed in 1565) was put in the index. 
 
 * I hope tlie reader understands these phrases. To me they appear 
 so obscure, that I am surprised Giordano Bruno was not revered as 
 a great theologian, instead of being burnt, as an atheist, or ( what is 
 worse) as a heretic. 
 
 ^ This sort of definition is rather rhetorical than logical. And it is 
 certain, that some of Vanini s expressions (tho principally only those 
 he had spoken) were not found orthodox: for he had his tongue torn 
 out, and was then burnt alive, A. D. 1619. 
 
 ^ I endeavour to translate this sentence literally from Brucker, vol. 
 5, p. 129, art. 24. Campanella defended the doctrine of Telesius 
 against that of Aristoteles. Accused, about 1599, of treason and blas- 
 -phemy, he was seven times tortured, and after being confined in va- 
 -rious prisons for nearly twenty seven years, was dismissed as inno- 
 -cent of treason. He was a pious and orthodox catholic, and a firm 
 believer in magic and judicial astrology. 
 
28 VAHIOtS DEFINITIONS 
 
 that there are three " primalities " in the essence of the Deity, 
 power, wisdom, and love (vid. Brucker, p. 143, 144; conf. p. 139, 
 art. 42 ). The universe is animated : its rays and diffusive virtue 
 are its hands, the stars and luminaries are its eyes ( Brucker, art. 
 23, p. 138 ; conf. art. 19, p. 137, & art. 46, p. 139, & 140 ). Some 
 animals are produced from heat and putridity (art. 72, p. 135, & 
 art. 27, p. 138). Nothing is incorporeal (art. 24, p. 132). All 
 things, even darkness and cold, are endued with sensation ( art. 
 54, p. 140). 
 
 I must now pass to the Gei'mans, t^t. 
 
 Cornelius Agrippa (who died in 1539) relates, I suppose, ra- 
 -ther the opinion of the Cabbalists than his own, uhea he says 
 that — God, the first monad, before communicating himself to in- 
 -ferior beings, first diffuses himself into the principal number, viz. 
 tlie number three. Agrippa afterwards says, that the world is ani- 
 -mated, and has a soul and sense (vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 415, 
 No. 47, & 48). 
 
 According to Paracelsus (who died in 1541 )^God is the circle 
 and centre of all things produced from himself. It is from him 
 that all things flow. lie penetrates all things, and embraces all 
 things (vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 682, art. 65 ). 
 
 According tojhat admirer of ParacelsusJ. B. van Helmont (who 
 died in 1644), God is tlie true, perfect, and entire essence of all 
 things (vid. Brucker, vol. 4, p. 718) . 
 
 Jacob Boehm, or Boe/imen, (who died in 1624) says (vid.Bruck- 
 
 -er, vol. 4, p. 702, 703): "God is the essence of all essences. 
 
 The Matter with which God made the world is his own essence. 
 
 It cannot be said that death and hell exist in God, but it 
 
 must be said that these things are derived from him." Some of 
 Bochmen^s doctrines seem also to imply that the soul is the es- 
 -sence of God.* 
 
 Spinoza (who died in 1677) considered, that there is only one 
 substance, ® which, by its two modifications, thought and extension, 
 is infinitely varied, and contains in itself the necessary causes of 
 
 * It is the fashion to laugh at Jacob Boehmen. But are his doc- 
 -trines more absurd than those of more refinedly educated ideologists? 
 
 ^ This system evidently depends upon the meaning of the word 
 "substance." (Brucker, vol. 5, p. 691 ). The unique substance of 
 Spinoza answers to the Or hacnsoph of the Cabbalists (id. p. 695 ) . 
 
OF AN IMPOUTAiVT WORD. 29 
 
 its own mutation. Thus Brucker (vol. 5, p. 693), who hurries 
 over Spinoza s doctrine with surprising rapidity. 
 
 Let us turn therefore to Spinoza himself. " God is [the] abso- 
 -lutely infinite Being; that is, [the] substance consisting of infinite 
 attributes, of which each expresses an eternal and infinite essence " 
 (oper. posth. p. 1 ; conf. p. 8, 184, 397, &c). This language I do 
 not understand; but elsewhere Spinoza says, that God is incorpo- 
 -real ( p. 1 3 ) ; tho he is the " res extensa " ( p. 42 ), and the " natu- 
 -ra naturans " (p. 27). He is also the immanent, not the transient, 
 cause ( p. 449 ) of all things which have an essence ( p. 512 ). God 
 is without passions ; he has neither joy nor sadness, neither love nor 
 hate (p. 247). God is the "res cogitans" (p. 42), but does not 
 know things abstractedly ( p. 480). 
 
 Spinoza strongly opposes the doctrine of final causes : " for, says 
 he, that eternal and infinite Being, which we call God or Naturet^ 
 acts, by the same necessity, by which it exists" ( p. 162 ). And else- 
 -where (p. 36 ) Spinoza says : " I can easily shew that all final causes 
 
 are but himian fictions." "Men go on enquiring after the causes 
 
 of causes, 'till they fly for refuge to the will of God, which is the asy- 
 
 -lum of ignorance" (p. 37). " Whoever seeks into the real cau- 
 
 -ses of miracles, wishing to study nature wisely, not to admire it 
 foolishly, is proclaimed heretical and impious, by those, whom the 
 vulgar adore as the interpreters of nature and of the gods. " But Spi- 
 -noza here seems ( what is rarely the case with him ) to be wandering 
 from his subject. Besides he is evidently a pantheist. Let us hasten 
 to a more orthodox philosopher. 
 
 Godfr. Wilh. Leibnitz (an universal scholar, who died in 1716) 
 has in general shewn himself a stanch Lutheran. Albeit, he has 
 once ventured to say : " God alone is the primitive unity, or sim- 
 -ple originary substance; from whom all created and derivative 
 monads are produced, they being, as it were, born from the Di- 
 
 -vinity's continual fulgurations ." I cannot translate the re- 
 
 -mainder. But it is sufficiently evident, as indeed Brucker remarks 
 (vol. 5, p. 413, 414), that this definition implies an emanative, or 
 pantheistical, system, which surely Leibnitz was far from wishing 
 to advocate. And indeed elsewhere, Leibnitz says, that creatures 
 do not necessarily exist, nor derive their being from God's essence. 
 According to Leibnitz ( vid. Brucker, art. 7, p. 442 ), if space were 
 an absolute being, it would be God. This metaphysician supposed 
 ( vid. Brucker, p. 410) that the existence of God could not be 
 proved without admitting the doctrine of " sufficient reason. " His 
 
30 VARIOUS DEn.MTIONS 
 
 " prcc-established harmony" has been thought by some (vid. Bruck- 
 -er, p. 497) to lead to fatalism.' 
 
 Christianus Thomasius (who died in 1728) says (No. 35, & 36):* 
 "God is in himself, and all creatures are in him; but beyond 
 God is nothing. All things therefore derive their origin from God, 
 and are together in God." Yet directly afterwards he says (No. 
 38): "All Creatures were made from nothing beyond God. " But 
 ( No. 52 ), " God operates nothing beyond himself " ; and (No. 53) 
 " No creature is beyond God, and yet the essence of the creature 
 differs from the essence of God." Elsewhere (No. 116) Thoma- 
 sius says : " God is a being merely active, a pure act, a spirit, 
 a most efficacious virtue, a light, a most subtle wind. " Yet ( at 
 No. 105) he says: "The space in which all bodies are moved is 
 a spirit, and the space in which all spirits are moved is God. " 
 At No. 115, Thomasius says (what he would have done well to 
 have previously recollected ) : " Concerning the essence of God as 
 being incomprehensible, men can only speak by similitudes. " (vid. 
 Brucker, vol. 5, p. 485-491). 
 
 According to the Prussian philosopher, Theod. Ludw. Lau ( who 
 died in 1740), "God is a simple matter, Man a modified mat- 
 
 -ter ; God is as fire, iMan as a spark ; God is as the 
 
 sun, Man as a ray; &c. " (vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 237 ) . 
 
 According to Emmanuel Swedenhorg (who died in 1772), God 
 is anthropomorphous. A certain celestial and spiritual Sun is the 
 first emanation from God. The warmth of this Sun is the divine 
 love; its light is the divine wisdom. God formed creatures in 
 order that he might love them. He took them out of his own 
 substance. It is by the spiritual Sun that god created all things 
 immediately, and from thence by the natural Sun; this being the 
 instrument of the other. There are three heavens, besides a world 
 
 ' The monadology of Leibnitz (vid. Brucker, p. 404, & 417, 418), 
 and even perhaps his optimism (vid. Brucker, p. 440), very much 
 resemble part of the system of Jordanus Brunus ; yet Brunus is exe- 
 -crated as an atheist, and Leibnitz is preached up as a " christian 
 philosopher." But which is the more fortunate? — The system of 
 Bruno has long been almost entirely forgotten ; &that of Leibnitz has 
 received a most unenviable immortality from the satirical pen of 
 Voltaire. 
 
 ^ These numbers refer to the articles of Brucker's abridgment from 
 Thomasius's Confession of his doctrine, printed in 1695. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 31 
 
 of spirits, and also a purgatory, and a hell. The Swedenborgians 
 baptize "in the name of Jesus Christ, who is the father, son, 
 and holy-ghost."® 
 
 Christopher Meiners (who died in 1810) wrote, in 1780, a trea- 
 -tise entitled ^' Historia doctrinje De Vero Deo omnium rerum 
 auctore atque rectore. " This most scanty definition ( if definition 
 it can be called ) naturally excites the questions which I have 
 given above (in Wyttenbach's Prefatory note," p. 7, notes 2, 3, 
 & 4 ) ; not to mention that Meiners forgets those essential epithets 
 "spiritual" and "immaterial," besides the host of attributive epi- 
 -thets, such as "all-good, "*• all-just, " &c., &c. 
 
 And having said thus much concerning Germanic metaphysicians, 
 let us now come to the French. 
 
 Ren^ Des Cartes (who died in 1650) argued for God's exis- 
 -tence in a manner which even most theologians have considered 
 as very unsatisfactory. He supposed that the idea of God was 
 innate ; and positively rejected the doctrine of final causes. '" I 
 am not aware that he has given any precise definition of the 
 eternal and omniscient creator whom he called God, Indeed he 
 says, that we ought never to dispute about infinity, concerning 
 which, we, being finite, can determine nothing ( vid. Brucker, vol. 
 5, p. 298 ) . Des Cartes invented the present system of spiritua- 
 -lity : for, tho before him the soul was regarded as spiritual, yet 
 this French philosopher was the first who established that "that 
 which thinks ought to be distinguished from matter." (vid. Syst. 
 de la Nat., torn. 1, p. 182, note) . I should imagine that the me- 
 -taphysics of Descartes have only been so far useful to the world, 
 
 * The Swedenborgians consider some books of the Bible as of less 
 authority than others. They believe that "the New Jerusalem" ex- 
 -ists in the centre of Africa; and consequently, they send missionaries 
 into that quarter of the globe, and strongly oppose the slave trade. 
 Swedenborg was a latin scholar, a mathematician, and especially a 
 metallurgist, lie was a frank in his manners and pure in his morals, 
 (vid. Biogr. Univ. tom. 44, p. 249-258). 
 
 '" " De causis finalibus, quippe quae, nulli cognitas sunt, perpe- 
 -tuum esto in academia mea silentium." (vid. Mosheim. ad Cud- 
 -worth. vol. 2, p. 120, b.). Sir Francis Bacon only so far rejected 
 the investigation of final causes, as they might interfere with the in- 
 -vestigation of physical truth and might proceed from superstition 
 (id. ibid. & p. 112, a.). 
 
'■^ ViARIOrS nr.FIMTIOKS 
 
 inasmucli as, tliey upset those of Aristoteles, and also insisted 
 upon the importance of doubting before deciding. 
 
 Souverain. in his posthumous work the " Platonisme devoile" (Co- 
 -logne, 1700, 12mo.)^ seems to give liis own opinion of the Deity 
 when saying (ch. 3, p. 34, 35) : " God is a rich source, which has 
 always sought to pour itself forth. This he has done,— either by 
 msinuating himself into his whole work, which he has inspired with 
 a soul and life, so that every part of the universe bears some mark 
 or ray of his divinity; — or in pouring forth his extraordinary grace 
 upon such of his intelligent creatures as he has chosen to be the 
 interpreters of his will. " 
 
 According to the abbe Houteville " (who died in 1742)>God is 
 not a body, after the manner of extended substances, but he has 
 all the positive and real qualities of a body. He may even be 
 considered to be all things. 
 
 Fontenclle said, that, if God made man in his own image, Man 
 had amply returned the compliment. Yet Fontenelle also said," 
 that, if he had his hand full of truths, he would not open it for 
 the vulgar. 
 
 In the "Despotisme Oriental" ( 1761, &1 766 ),a work founded 
 on a sketch left by Boulanger, it is affirmed (according to the 
 Diet, des Ath. p. 49 ) that " God is a hors d'ceuvre. " 
 
 Louis Racine, in a poem entilled "La Grace" (1722, 12mo.),- 
 says, when speaking of the Deity, "the clouds are the powder[bT dastjoi 
 
 " as quoted in the Diet, des Ath. p. 197. Houteville ( a confiden- 
 -tial secretary of Cardinal Dubois ) was one of the principal French 
 apologists for Christianity ; but his book ( 1722, & 1740 or-41 )^th6 
 at first very successful, afterwards fell into discredit, as it was found 
 rather to prodiice than to diminish antichristianism. The length of 
 his objections and shortness of his answers was peculiarly injudicious. 
 ( see the art. in Ladvocal's Diet., which is copied into Chalmers's ) . 
 
 ' vid. Biogr. Univ. art. "Boindin. " In this article we also read, 
 that, when a spy, not understanding Boindin's allegorical phraseolo- 
 -gy, asked that famous atheist who " Monsieur de I'Etre" was, Boin- 
 -din answered: "Monsieur de I'Etre " (the Deity) "is an espion de 
 police." 
 
 * In this same pious poem we read, that the English, since be- 
 -coming tolerant, have become silly ! ( vitl. Voltaire, mcl. litt., torn. 
 l,p. 48, 49). 
 
OF AN IMI'ORTAM WOHD. 33 
 
 his feet" — an idea which, as Voltaire says (melanges littcraires 
 torn. 3, p. 30), is eqvially false and disgusting.f 
 
 Jean Cachet (a doctor of the Sorbonne who died in 1771) says: ^ 
 " the word God signifies a Being infinitely perfect. " Afterwards 
 (p. 130) Cochet maintains that the idea of God is innate, and adds : 
 "Nier I'existence de I'idee innee, c'est fournir aux Incredules des 
 armes victorieuses pour combattre I'existence de Dieu et I'immate- 
 -rialite de notre ame. " In this case, Locke and all his followers, 
 who deny the existence of innate ideas, must be considered as 
 indirect favourers of atheism. 
 
 Helvitius* says: — "Que dcsigne le mot Dieu? La cause encore 
 inconnue de I'ordre & du mouvement. Or, que dire d'une cause 
 inconnue? Attache-t-on d'autres idees a ce mot Dieu? On tombe, 
 
 comrae le prouve M. Robinet, dans mille contradictions." 
 
 "Nul doute, " disent les lettres Chinois, "qu'il n'y ait dans la 
 nature, un pr'mcipe puissant Sf igjiore de ce qui est : mais lorsqu'on 
 divinise ce principe inconnu, la creation dCun Dieu, iiest uloi^s que 
 la deification de V ignorance humaine." 
 
 Voltaire, in his Diet. Philos., art. "Dieu," (torn. 2, p. 548-550) 
 ridicules the idle questions * of the scholastics : 
 
 — " Quelle id^e as-tu de Dieu ? Dieu est-il infini sec undum 
 
 quid, ou selon Tessence ? Dieu est-il en un lieu, ou hors de 
 
 lout lieu, ou en tout lieu? Peut-il faire que ce qui a etc 
 
 n'ait point tte, et qu'un baton n'ait pas deux bouts ? voit-il le futur 
 comme futur ou comme present? comment fait-il pour tirer I'etre 
 
 du neant, et pour aneantir I'etre? Qu'est ce-que Dieu? 
 
 Quelle est sa nature ? Est-il corporel ou spirituel ? Jl faut 
 
 absolument t'apprendre ceque c'est qu'un esprit; c'est, c'est, c'est.... 
 Je te dirai cela une autre fois. " The answer made to this last re- 
 -mark is: "J'ai bien peur que vous me disiez moins ce qu'il est 
 que ce qu'il n'est pas. " 
 
 Elsewhere (at the end of the 1st. ch. of his "Philosophie de 
 Newton") Voltaire, after arguing very strongly in favour of a 
 
 ^ p. 113, of his anonymous work " La Metaphysique, '* published 
 at Paris, 1753, sm.Svo. 
 
 "• "de I'homme," section 2, ch. 2, oeuvr. tom. 3, p. 96, 97. 
 
 ^ Deists agree with most modern Christians in condemning such 
 questions as these ; but does not all theology, and consequently all 
 religion, depend upon these questions .' 
 
34 VARIOUS DEFINITIONS 
 
 Deity, says : " La pliilosophie nous montre bien qu'il y a un Dieu ; 
 mais elle est irapuissante a nous apprendre ce qu'il est, ce qu'il 
 fait, comment et pourquoi il le fait; s'il est dans le temps, s'il 
 est dans I'espace, s'il a commande une fois, ou s'il agit toujours, 
 et s'il est dans la matifere, s'il n'y est pas, etc. etc. II faudrait 
 etre lui-meme® pour le savoir." 
 
 In a treatise' which, after circulating perhaps a hundred years 
 in MS., was at last printed in 1793, we read (§. xi, p. 24):" si 
 Ton demande ce que c'est que Dieu, je reponds que ce mot nous 
 represente I'etre universel — . " 
 
 In the "Bon Sens du Cut6 Meslier" (first published in 1772) 
 it is asked (ch. 26): "Qu'est-ce que Dieu?"; and it is answered: 
 " C'est un mot abstrait fait pour designer la force cachee de la 
 nature; ou c'est un point mathematique qui n'a ni longueur, ni 
 largeur, ni profondeur. " 
 
 According to the author * of the " Examen impartial des prin- 
 -cipales religions du Monde," God is merely an operation of our 
 minds. 
 
 The followiiig verses constitute the epigraph of the " Esprit de 
 la Morale et de la Philosophic " (by Curra) : 
 
 Cet Etre merveilleux qu'on nomme Etre supreme, 
 
 Ce Dieu, n'en doute point, 6 homme, c'est toi-meme : 
 
 C'est en meconnoissant les droits de ta raison. 
 
 Que tu perds ce beau titre & qu'il n'est qu'un vain nom. 
 
 According to Lahlce,^ (a french poet and literator,) "God is an 
 abstract and unintelligible word ; a great subject of dispute, and 
 signal of proscriptions." Lablie also said : " Upon all subjects sub- 
 -mitted to human intelligence, our ideas have become simplified 
 and enlightened, in proportion as we have occupied ourselves 
 about them. But upon the word God, our ideas have become 
 more complicated and obscured ; which is always tlie case, while 
 
 ^ So also said Vanini, vid. supra, p. 27. 
 
 ' Although it mentions Descartes (p. 99 & 100, conf. p. 165) yet 
 it is most anti-chronologically entitled the " Traite des trois Impos- 
 -teurs." 
 
 * apparently Saint- Floscef, a philosopher who died in London be- 
 -fore the French revolution, vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 141, & 149. 
 
 ^ vid. Diet, des Athees, p. 223. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WOP.D. oo 
 
 we speak of a tiling without understanding it, or use words of 
 which we know not the meaning. " 
 
 Baron Grinnn '" says : " L'existence de la montre prouve I'exis- 
 -tence de I'horloger; un tableau indique un peintre, une niaison 
 annonce un architecte; voila des argumens d'une force terrible 
 pour les enfans. Le philosoplie s'en paierait comme eux, si, en 
 les admettant, il ne se trouvait pas replonge dans une mer de 
 difficultes interminables ; il aime encore mieux croire que I'intelli- 
 -gence peut etre I'eftet du mouvement de la matifere, que de I'at- 
 -tribuer — a un ouvrier tout-puissant qui ne peut rien, et dont la 
 volonte ne peut empecher que ce qui est ne soit, ni rien changer 
 a sa manifere d'etre, — a unJtitre?souverainement intelligent, et qui, 
 des que vous lui supposez une qualite morale, peut etre justement 
 accuse dans toutes ses productions, ou la somme des inconvcniens 
 I'emporte infiniment sur les avantages. " 
 
 Sylvain Marcchal, in his " Dictionnaire des Athees, " p. 313, says: 
 
 II est un Dieu, sans doute, a qui tout est possible.... 
 Ce Dieu, le mieux servi, pfere des autres Dieux, 
 Compte aussi ses martyrs, et meme a ses miracles. 
 Sa presence fait taire, ou parler les oracles, 
 (iui touche a son autel est gueri de ses maux .... 
 Ce Dieu n'a pas encor rencontre d'incredule .... 
 Flechissez le genou, mortels ! ce Dieu, c'est L'OR. 
 
 Charles Francois Dupuix, when beginning his famous " Origine 
 de tons les Cultes ", says : "Le nom de Dieu est un mot vide de 
 sens, s'il ne designe la cause universelle, et la puissance active 
 qui organise tou4 les etres qui ont un commencement et une fin, 
 c'est-a-dire, I'etre principe de tout et qui n'en a point d'autre que' 
 lui-raeme. Telle la Nature s'est toujours montree aux hommes, 
 qui ont juge de ce qui est, par ce qu'ils voient, et par ce qu'ils 
 sentent; les nations qu'il nous plait d'appeler sauvages, en sont 
 resteea la, et les plus grands philosophes, fatigues de longues et 
 d'inutiles recherches, ont ^te forces d'y revenir." 
 
 Let us now come to the British theologians and philosophers. 
 
 Thomas Hobbes (who died in 1679) expressly says, that a spi- 
 -rit is determined by its place and figure, and consequently is a 
 body, however thin and intangible (vid. Brucker, vol. 5, p. 175). 
 
 '" As quoted in pp. 31, 32, of the " Pieces Diverses" prefixed to 
 the edition of 18'22,of that famous bnak the "Systeme de la Nature". 
 
• 
 
 36 VARIOUS DF.riMTIO:\b 
 
 The necessary consequence, that God is corporeal, he defends by 
 referring to Terlullianus ' (vid. Buddeus, de ath., p. 141; & Farkerus, 
 de Deo, p. 94). It is even said, that he considered tlie Deity to 
 be, like man, finite, imperfect, and a cause of evil (vid. Reim- 
 -mann, hist. ath. p. 444). Yet we elsewhere read, that Hobbes, 
 like Epicurus, denied that the Deity was actuated by passions 
 either bad or good (vid. Brucker, p. 181). ]\Ioreover [and in this 
 respect unlike Epicurus] Hobbes acknowledged the supreme power 
 of the Deity ; and considered it impious to maintain, either that 
 the universe is eternal, or that God is careless about human af- 
 -fairs (id. p. 175). Ilobbes's definition of the Deity is to a cer- 
 -tain degree allowable, if, by bodi/, he meant what is usually called 
 substance (id. p. 178). 
 
 That versatile divine. Dr. Samuel Parker (who died in 1687), 
 opposes (in his "Cogitationes deDeo, " vid. infra, p. 3) both Hobbes, 
 and Descartes, himself giving, as far as I have read his book, no de- 
 -finition of God except perhaps in sometimes calling him the prime 
 mover. Paley may have read the anatomical part of this work, es- 
 -pecially when treating of the puckering up of the guts to the mesen- 
 -tery. But can a theologian fail to convince himself? Bishop Burnet 
 
 says of Bishop Parker, that he was rather impious as to religion, 
 
 and seemed to have no other sense of religion but as a political inter- 
 -est, and a subject of party and faction. ^ 
 
 That adopter of Neo-Platonism, Dr. Ralph Cudworth (who died 
 in 1688), maintains^ that " God is a nature or mind, endued with 
 most perfect knowledge and wisdom, which exists of itself from eter- 
 -nity, and has given all other tilings life and birth. " Many objec- 
 -tions might, I think, be made to this definition ; and still more to 
 one elsewhere given of the supreme fiitlier, or "the eternal fountain, 
 whence flows, and [ever] has flowed, the truth and wisdom which - 
 - - " (vid. syst. intell., vol. 2, p. 193). 
 
 Moreover , Cudworth affirms, that there exrsts a certain generating, 
 procreative, or formative Nature, which acts " fatally, magicaliy, and 
 sympathetically." It is incorporeal, but is the same thing as the 
 
 ' vid. supra, p. 21 ; and add (from the de carne Christi, ch. 11): 
 " omne quod est, corpus est sui generis : nihil est incorporale, nisi 
 quod non est. " 
 
 ^ vid, Chalmer^ Diet. vol. 24, p. 125. 
 
 3 In his Intellectual System, vol. 1, p. 270, 272; & vol. 2, p. 20, 
 edit. Mobheim. 
 
or AX nrPORTANT WORD. . 37 
 
 laws of motion. It is inferior to the Deity, and lias no object or 
 desii^n. Yet it is not an occult quality, but the unique intelligible 
 cause of the order, constancy, and beauty of the universe "(vol. 1, p. 
 19G-25J). This language seems to imply a soul-of-the-world, depen- 
 -dent upon a latent, or only demiourgical. Deity. 
 
 Ciuhcorth's arguments in favour of a God are rather unfortunate. 
 Nearly half his work is occupied in maintaining the hackneyed hy- 
 -pothesis, that all philosophers, and all nations, have acknowledged 
 a supreme Deity. lie maintains likewise, some things, which even 
 his translator (Alosheim) cannot but refute ; such as, — that it is 
 atheism, and not religion, which both excites fear (vol. 2, p. 82-85) 
 and is produced from an ignorance of causes (p. 88-95); that demo- 
 -niacs are indirect proofs of a God; and that the Devil could work 
 miracles and predict futurity (p. 142-184). 
 
 The Hble. Robert Boyle (that grand glory of anglican ortho- 
 -doxy, who believed in the cures of Valentine Greatr akes"*) has 
 written a treatise upon the different meanings of the word "Na- 
 -ture. " One of the eight meanings which he distinguishes is that, 
 in which Nature signifies " the action of providence, the principle 
 of all things, that is, the power or spiritual being which acts and 
 operates on all bodies, in order to give them certain effects. " 
 D'Alembert* says, that Nature, taken in this sense, which is that 
 which Boyle adopts, is no other than God himself acting accor- 
 -ding to certain laws which he has established.® 
 
 John Tolund (who died in 1722) says, in his "Motion essential 
 to Matter,"^ that the Deity has been refined into mere Nothing 
 by the unwary zeal of certain theologians : 
 
 '•'Others, whose heads sublimer notions trace. 
 Cunningly prove that thou'rt almighty Space; 
 And Space w'are sure is Nothing ; ergo Thou : 
 These men slip into truth they know not how. " 
 
 * as also in the efficacy of amulets, such as pounded human cra- 
 -nia. vid. Espr. de I'Encyclop. Tom. 2, p. 27. 
 = vid. Espr. de I'Encyclop. Tom. 11, p. 153. 
 
 ® It seems therefore, that Boyle was (unintentionally) a Naturalist, 
 Physitheist, or Atheist. The extremes of Orthodoxy and Heterodoxy 
 will sometimes meet. Mallebranche often agrees with Spinoza. 
 
 ^ p. 220, of Toland's Letters, Lond. 1704, sm. 8vo. 
 
38 VARIOUS DEriNUrONS 
 
 Elsewhere* Mr. Toland gives the following account of his idea 
 of the Deity: 
 
 " In mundo omnia sunt unum, unumque est omne in omnibus. 
 Quod omne in omnibus, Deus est; aeternus ac immensus, neque 
 genitus, neque interiturus. In eo vivimus, movemur, et existiraus. 
 Ab eo natum est unumquidque, in eumque denuo revoluturum; 
 omnium ipse principium et finis. " 
 
 The Revd. William Wollaston, in his " Religion of Nature de- 
 -lineated'' (p. 122), says of the Deity: "His manner of existence 
 
 is above all our conceptions." "Neither infinite space, nor 
 
 infinite duration, nor matter infinitely extended or eternally exis- 
 -ting, nor any, nor all of these taken together, can be God. " 
 (p. 132). Thus Wollaston; who tells us dogmatically what God 
 is not, but who, as far as I have read the very dull book in ques- 
 -tion, forgets to tell us what God is. 
 
 According to Sir Isaac Newton, " God governs all things, not 
 as the soul of the world, but as the Lord and Sovereign of all 
 things." "durat ab seterno, adest ab infinito in infinitum." - 
 
 - - " He is neither eternity nor infinity, but he is eternal and in- 
 -finite; he is neither space nor duration, but he endureth and is 
 
 present." God is one and the same, for ever and everywhere, 
 
 not only by his virtue or energy, but also by his substance. "- - 
 
 - " All things are contained in him and move in him ; but with- 
 -out reciprocal action on his part. " (vid. Syst. de la Nat. torn. 3, 
 p. 195-200). "God is altogether like to God; all eye, all ear, all 
 brain, all arm, all sensation, intellect, and action; but in a man- 
 -ner altogether unknown to us, and by no means human or cor- 
 
 -poreal. " " He has neither body nor figure. " " We have 
 
 no idea of his substance but only of his attributes. " (vid. Bruck- 
 -er, vol. 5, p. 630). Such is Neivtoii's most orthodox Deity, some- 
 -what negative except as despotic, and perhaps more worthy of a 
 commentator on the Apocalypse than of a discoverer of Fluxions. 
 
 Dr. Samuel Clarke (who died in 1729) maintains,* that the 
 self-existing Being (by which he means, not Matter, but God) is 
 necessarily intelligent.'" But the "Systfeme de la Nature" torn. 
 
 * In his Pantheisticon ; which I am obliged to quote from Clial- 
 -mers's Diet. vol. 29, p. 431. 
 
 * I give the title of his book, infra, p. 11 . 
 
 '" Formey (in the Espr. de I'Encycl. torn. 5, p. 190, art. "Dieu^) 
 
OF AN IMPOUTANT WORD. 39 
 
 3, p. 150, remarks, that the doctor here attributes a human qua- 
 -lity to God : for we are not acquainted with any intelligence 
 separate from organization. Elsewhere (tom. 3, p. 138-140, note) 
 the Systfeme de la Nature says: "Dr. Clarke has endeavoured 
 to prove the existence of God a p riori, which others judge im- 
 -possible, and consider as a petitio principii. This sort of proof 
 has been rejected — by the Scholastics, Albertus Magnus, Thomas 
 Aquinas, and Johannes Scotus — and by most of the moderns, with 
 the exception of Suarez. They maintain, that the existence of 
 God cannot be demonstrated a^ p rior i, because nothing is anterior 
 to the first cause ; and that this existence can only be proved a 
 pos teriori, that is, by its effects. Consequently, the book of Dr. 
 Clarke was attacked by a great many theologians, who accused 
 him of injuring their cause, by employing an unusual, rejected, and 
 barely sufficient method. See 'an Enquiry into the ideas of Space, 
 Time, Immensity, &c, by Edmund Daw,' Cambridge, 1734." 
 
 Lord Bolingbroke's Deity, as described by Pope in the foUow- 
 -ing verses of the " Essay on Man," seems to be merely the Anima 
 Mundi : 
 
 "All are but parts of one stupendous whole 
 Whose body Nature is, and God the soul; 
 That, chang'd thro' all, and yet in all the same. 
 Great in the earth, as in th' aethereal frame, 
 Warms in the sun, refreshes in the breeze. 
 Glows in the stars, and blossoms in the trees. 
 Lives thro' all life, extends thro' all extent, 
 Spreads undivided, operates unspent. " ' 
 
 Such may be the idea of a philosopher concerning Deity; but 
 the ideas of the vulgar are of course far different : 
 
 " See from the rending earth, and bursting skies, 
 
 says : " C'est sur cette proposition que roule le fort de la dispute 
 entre les athees et nous. J'avoue qu'il n'est pas possible de demon- 
 -trer d'une manibre directe d priori, quel'Etre existant par lui-meme 
 est intelligent . " 
 
 ' Dr. Parkhurst, after quoting the above passage (in his Hebr. Lex. 
 p. 322) exclaims, with bishoprick-deserving orthodoxy : " Is it not 
 shocking to see the beauties of language and poetry thus misapplied, 
 in dressing up the abomination of the Moabites, and in substituting 
 Cfwmosh, or the Almighty Father Ether of Virgil, in the place of 
 
 JEHOVAH? " 
 
40 
 
 VAr.int's DPrixiiioNs 
 
 Fierce gods descend, and fiends infernal rise; 
 Here fix'd tiie dreadful, there the bless'd abodes; 
 Fear made her devils, and weak hope her gods; 
 Oods partial, changeful, passionate, unjust. 
 Whose attributes were rage, revenge, or lust; 
 Such as the souls of cowards might conceive, 
 And form'd like tyrants, tyrants would believe." 
 
 David Hume, in his "Natural History of Religion" and still 
 more in his "Dialogues concerning Natural Religion", has stated 
 almost every imaginable hypothesis on the subject of Deity. His 
 own opinion, if a sceptic can have any opinion, is difficult to be 
 discovered; but perhaps it may be contained in the following sen- 
 -tences : " By supposing [the present material world] to contain 
 the principle of order within itself, we really assert it to be God ; 
 and the sooner we arrive at that divine Being so much the better. 
 When you go one step beyond the mundane system, you only 
 excite an inquisitive humour, which it is impossible ever to sa- 
 -tisfy." (Essays, vol. 2, p. 493). "The [universe] presents nothing 
 but the idea of a blind Nature, impregnated by a great vivifying 
 principle, and pouring forth from her lap, without discernment or 
 parental care, her maimed and abortive children" (p. 553). "The 
 
 true conclusion is, that the original source of all things has no 
 
 more regard to good above ill, than to heat above cold, " (p. 554). 
 
 Thomas Paine, in his celebrated Age of Reason,' says: "Do 
 
 we want to know what God is? Search the Scripture called 
 
 the Creation." Then he continues: "The only idea man can af- 
 -fix to the name of God, is that of a first cause, the cause of all 
 tliings. " Observe, that Paine, in this page of his Age of Reason, 
 speaks most eloquently of the Deity ; whereas his victorious (i. e. or- 
 -thodox) antagonist, Bishop Watson, in the 135th. &c 136th. pages' 
 of his Apology for the Bible, has thought proper to bring forward 
 very plausible arguments in favour of Atheism, saying: " What think 
 you of an uncaused cause of every thing ? and a Being who has no 
 relation to time, not being older to-day than he was yesterday, nor 
 younger to-day than he will be tomorrow ? who has no relation to 
 space, not being a part here and a part there, or a whole any where ? 
 What think you" &c. &c. 
 
 ' Part 1st. p. 23, edit. 1819, 8vo. 
 
 « Of the 12mo. edition of 1823, " printed for C. & F. Rivington, 
 Booksellers to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. " 
 
or AN IMPORTAM WOKD. 41 
 
 Dr. Paleij, in his "Natural Tlieology," proves the existence 
 of a [material] watchmaker, from the inspection of a [material] 
 watch.* I insert the word "material,"*" because Paley's treatise 
 seems to me a system of materialism. I do not recollect having 
 met with the word " soul " anywhere in the book. Indeed Fukif 
 has derived his argumentsJ'from human anatomy; and Mr. I-aw- 
 -rence, the great surgeon, very properly observes (Lectures, p. 7) 
 that "an immaterial and spiritual being could not have been dis- 
 -covered amid the blood and filth of a dissecting room." ^\ hat 
 little Puleij says of the "spirituality" of the Deity (p. 397) is un- 
 -supported by any argument, and is evidently contrary to his system . 
 He insists very properly that the great intelligent power must bej)er- 
 -son (vid. ch. 23, p. :-i62, 363, & 391). But, after saying "the seat 
 of intellect is a person," he immediately adds : " We have no authc- 
 -rity to limit the properties of mind to any particular corporeal form, 
 or to any particular circumscription of space. " Some readers may, 
 however, think, that we have every authority for limiting mind to 
 cerebral substance. At all events the Doctor seems here to make his 
 Deity some sort of a " corporeal form. " 
 
 Yet the only approach to a positive and intelligible definition of 
 the word God, which I have as yet found in Pulei/, is where (at p. 
 
 365) he says : " Gravitation depends, if upon a fluid, upon a 
 
 fluid, which, though botli powerful and universal in its operation, is 
 no object of sense to us; if upon any other kind of substance or ac- 
 -tion, upon a suljstance or action, from which we receive no distiii- 
 -guishable impressions. Is it then to be wondered at, that it should, 
 in some measure, be the same with the Divine nature? " Thus Dr. 
 Palej/, whose idea seems very heterodox. This gravitation-like Dei- 
 -ty may be the soul of the world, or the mere energy of nature. 
 At any rate it cannot be a person. 
 
 No wonder the Doctor confesses (p. 397), that, when we think of 
 
 V^'— ^conf. Syst. de la Nat., torn. 3, p. 217-219 ; & torn. 4, p. 302. 
 /~~~' ^ The watch-argument is, I suppose, borrowed from CondiUac, 
 ' who was so attached to it, that, according to Lablee (quoted in the 
 Diet, des Athees,p.86), if no watch existed, it would appear as if the 
 existence of God could not be proved, y'lt could hardly be expected 
 that Paley, being a theologian, would have the candour to confess how 
 many arguments had previously been brought forward to prove a 
 God. He confesses however, p. 336, that Astronomy "is not the 
 best medium thro' which to prove the agency of an intelligent cria- 
 -tor. " (conf. Syst. de la Nat., lorn. 4, p. 8D,'nolt}. 
 
42 VAKIOUS DEFINITIONS 
 
 the Deity, "the mind feels its powers sink under the subject. " The 
 author says (p. 381), that Buffon's "internal moulds" are "but a 
 name without signification ; unintelligible, if not self-contradictory. " 
 Yet when (at p. 391) he sums up his most important chapter, by 
 saying "the necessary resort is to a Deity," " does he explain more 
 by this word Deity, than Buffon does by his "internal moulds?" 
 Some persons may, on the contrary, think, that he explains far less. 
 
 Most of the few attributes which Palet/ attributes to his Deity are 
 merely high-swmding "superlatives" (vid. p. 393), as worthy of a 
 Stoic, as of a Christian. The author does not seem to mention 
 " goodness " among these primary attributes. Yet he afterwards 
 gives a chapter upon the subject; in which, he says more of the hap- 
 -piness of brutes than of that of men; apologizes for vipers, scorpions, 
 and gnats, (as also for the gout and the gravel) ; and even eulogizes 
 the artificial distinctions of what he calls civil life. 
 
 Percy Bysshe Shellei/ says, in plain terms:'' 
 
 "There is no God!" 
 
 yet he modifies this opinion whert he says (speaking I suppose of 
 
 tlie Universe) : 
 
 "The exterminable spirit it contains 
 Is nature's only God; but human pride 
 Is skilful to invent most serious names 
 To hide its ignorance." 
 
 Then he adds : 
 
 "The name of God 
 Has fenced about all crime with holiness 
 Himself the creature of his worshippers, 
 Whose names and attributes and passions change, 
 Seeva, Buddh, Foh, Jehovah, God, or Lord, — " 
 
 Jilsewhere (Canto IV, ad fin.) the poet gives this definition of 
 
 the word God, ot to-IKct H\\s <}MC-(i)>V!o-a of Ike "X.'Vot jtu>i»K. qod. •. 
 
 "A vengeful, pityless, and almighty fiend, 
 Whose mercy is a nick-name for the rage 
 Of tameless tygers hungering for blood. " 
 
 " He ought rather to have said " the necessary resort is to a sus- 
 -pense of judgment." contrast Mr. Owen's opinion. 
 
 ^ In the magnificent poem called by the somewhat comic name of 
 "Queen Mab,'' canto vii, in init. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WOUO. -IS 
 
 I regret that Mr. Shelley should have entertained such heterodox 
 notions ; but poets will sometimes reject the opinions of ordinary 
 men. Moreover, there is a note, given (p. 166, edit. 1813, 8vo. ) 
 on the sentence: "There is no God!", which says: "This nega- 
 -tion must be understood solely to affect a creative Deity. The 
 hypothesis of a creative spirit, coeternal with the universe, remains 
 unshaken." This note, if written by Shelley himself, may be con- 
 -sidered as a proof, that poets will never entirely give up the idea 
 of a Deity. Indeed, personification is one of the greatest ornaments, 
 or is perhaps the chief essence, of poetry.* 
 
 Sir William Drummond, in the pi'eface to his OEdipus Judaicus, 
 says: " -- I adore the God, whom philosophy has taught me to 
 consider as the infinite and eternal Mind, that formed, and that 
 sustains, the fair order of Nature, and that created and preserves 
 the universal system." 
 
 Mr. Robert Otven's opinion concerning the " First Cause " is 
 stated, by one of his disciples, in the following peculiarly modest 
 sentence:^ "The impressions which he has received lead him to 
 believe, that the human intellect, in its present imperfect state, is 
 altogether incompetent to judge correctly on the subject. lie sees 
 around him marks of the sublimest wisdom and design ; but find- 
 -ing himself unable to attach 'intelligence' to that which can nei- 
 -ther have organic structure nor dimensions, he is compelled to 
 remain in ignorance '" till the subject be more clearly revealed to 
 him. " 
 
 Mr. Richard Carlile has written a short work entitled "What 
 is God?" (1826, 8vo. pp. 46) — in which, however, instead of an- 
 -swering the question, he has only shewn how difficult it would 
 
 ^ Thus Dorat Cubieres said (vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 91, 92) : " II 
 nous faut des Dieux, a nous autres poetes. " 
 
 * I extract it from the notes of an Owenian to a " Phrenological 
 Analysis of Mr. Owen's New Views of Society" in No. II. of the 
 "Phrenological Journal." Edinburgh, 1824, 8vo. 
 
 '" Pascal was equally ignorant, but not so calm : — " voyant trop 
 pour nier, et trop peu pour m'assurer, je suis dans un etata plaindre, 
 et ou j'ai souhaite cent fois que, si un Dieu soutient la nature, elle le 
 marquat sans equivoque, et que si les marques qu'elle en donne sont 
 trompeuses, elle les supprimat tout-a-fait : qu'elle dit tout ou rien, 
 afin que je visse quel parti je dois suivre. '' I extract this passage 
 from the Systt'mc de la Nature, torn. 4, p. 143, note. 
 
44 VARIOUS DEriNIJlOKh 
 
 be to answer it. In the following phrase of that ])art of the 
 pamphlet which is entitled a "Sketch of the History of one God" " 
 Mr. Carlile seems to give us his definition, or ?/o«-definitiony of 
 the Deity : " God is a word for which we liave no prototype or 
 sign among the things which we see or know to exist. " 
 
 In later times, the sect of Deists has raised itself into notice. 
 In the Liturgy drawn up by the Reverend Robert Tai/lor, A. B. 
 &, M.R. C.S., there is a Te Deum, in which the Deity adored is 
 evidently the Sun. Thus we read : " When thou takest upon thee 
 to irradiate the Earth, thou appearest in succession through all 
 the Zodiac. When thou hast overcome the sharpness of winter, 
 thou openest the kingdom of summer to all creatures. Thou sit- 
 -test in the centre of our system, in the glory of a Father. " '^ I 
 have been assured, that the chief priest of the Parsees. if he were 
 to see this Te Deum, would acknowledge the Revd. Ivlr. Taylor 
 as an important convert to fire-worship. And it would indeed 
 have been well for Mr. Taylor to have lived among the Parsees, 
 for a more barbarous sect of religionists have rewarded his incom- 
 -parable oratory with imprisonment. 
 
 In addition to Mr. Taylor's Liturgy, I have perused a sort of 
 
 imitation of it, called " A Form of Public Worship arran- 
 
 -ged and compiled by R. Detrosier, Minister." (Manchester, 1827, 
 18mo). Mr. Detrosier s Deity seems to be the great Pan, or per- 
 -haps the soul-of-the-world. Thus in the Te Deum (p. 8), the 
 deity is called: "The unchanging essence : of all materiality. " And 
 in the "solemn Declaration of Principles" (p. 10), we read: "I 
 acknowledge one omnipresent, eternal, and unchangeable Being, 
 the primeval essence of all materiality, and the Creator of all 
 things visible and invisible." Afterwards, at p. 13, ^Iw Detrosier, 
 in a sort of amplification of the christian pater noster, uses many 
 expressions similar to those which we find in Martianus Capella's 
 famous hymn to the Sun (p. 43, edit, (irot., 1599, 12mo.). 
 
 The two above-mentioned Liturgies call themselves Deistical ; 
 
 " Sylvain Marcc/iul, in his Diet, des Athees, p. 110, proposes, as 
 " a book to be made " — "a Philosophical and Political History of 
 God." lie adds " ce livre est sur le metier "; by wliich words I 
 suppose he means that he was preparing the book in question. 
 
 '-' Mr. Tai/lor himself says, in a note to the above passage (p. 21), 
 that '' — as the language of all religions is the language of the pkie;^, 
 and Cometh down from the Father of Lights, i.e. the ;5r.\ — ." 
 
or AN IMPORTANT WORI). 45 
 
 but one vvliicli has just appeared, and which is compiled by "tlie 
 Reverend Joseph Fitch,"' calls itself only "the Universal Liturgy, 
 or Divine Service on principles common to all sects and all reli- 
 -gions." In this book,' the Deity's personality and location are 
 denied ; while his ubiquity and incomprehensibility are asserted 
 (p. 16, note). Elsewhere (p. 6 & 7), Mr. Fitch says, that the "Cause 
 of all other Causes" is 
 
 -" the great Directing Mind, 
 
 That changed through all, and yet in all the same ; — " 
 
 &c. &c. 
 
 And having thus given the opinion of many persons, who, wil- 
 -lingly or unwillingly, have lived under the domination of Chris- 
 -tianijtn, I might be expected to say something of the ideas of the 
 Deity eiitertained by the various sects of modern Christians. But 
 it might be said, that the Romcmists adore the ^'irgin, the Russians 
 St. Nicholas, and the Methodists the Devil. I will therefore avoid 
 so delicate a subject; and content myself with giving the two 
 following quotations from Bayle (Diet. vol. 4, p. 637) : The Deity 
 of Calvin is, according to the Roman Catholics, " a deceitful, cruel, 
 and inhuman being, without justice, reason, or goodness"; and 
 the Deity of the Socinians was considered, by a certain Calvinist, 
 to be an ignorant and very powerless God, not better than the 
 God of Epicurus. The reader may judge, from these two quota- 
 -tions, that I am justified in saying no more upon the subject. 
 
 I might be expected to terminate this appendix by giving »/y 
 own idea of Deity. But I have no other opinion than that of our 
 holy mother church. Whatever the ti-ue sectaries of infinitely-divi- 
 -ded protestantism adopt, that I adopt (holpen be my non-adoption) ; 
 and when they change, I change (holpen be my non-changement). 
 
 Albeit, I cannot help thinking, that men's ideas of the Deity 
 must differ, accordingly as they embrace the various systems, which, 
 after reading part of Volney's "Ruines" (ch. 22, §. viii), I would 
 call Elementism, Sabeism, Symbolism, Dualism, Animism, and 
 Demiourgism. 
 
 Yet the ideas of a God, conveyed in any of these or of any 
 
 ' I regret that, at p. 6, Mr. Fitch should adopt ^'oltaire's famous 
 verse, of which I have already spoken in my first Appendix, p. 17. 
 Naigeon said that this verse " est le langage d'un politique et d'un 
 politique Athee. " vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 507. 
 
40 VAiiiovs mriNrnoNS 
 
 other systems, may perliaps be deduced from only two prototypes, 
 viz: 1st. Man, and 2ndly. the Sun. 
 
 The first Deity is a person. He acts by design, not to say ca- 
 -price. He is perhaps demiourgical, and certainly exerts a pecu- 
 -liar providence. He is endued with human passions. Moreover 
 he can walk, talk, eat, and even perhaps beget. He is the God 
 of all barbarians. He is also the God whiefe Paley, and indeed 
 all priests, wish to demonstrate. He might have been the Epicu- 
 -rean God, if Epicurus had wished for a demiourgical and provi- 
 -dential power. 
 
 The second prototypical Deity is the solar universe considered 
 as a self-developing globe. It is the God of most philosophers, 
 especially of the Stoics. It may be called the anima mundi, or 
 the pervading spirit, or nature. It may be assimilated to gravita- 
 -tion and magnetism, to light and heat. It is the source of all 
 sublime language on the subject of Deity. It is omnipresent* 
 eternal and immutable, and acts without any peculiar design or 
 providence. 
 
 But it would be a sufficient answer to this system, that the se- 
 -paratiou of our ideas of God is the creation of more than one 
 God, even as the polypus is multiplied by division. 
 
 This my third appendix has already extended to a prodigious 
 length, and I have not yet sought the definition of the word before 
 us through the medium of the derivation. 
 
 I once imagined, that the greater part of the names of the Deity 
 might be derived from the idea of existence particularly as im- 
 -plied in the definite article of various languages. I have, how- 
 -ever, since abandoned this theory, considering that etymological 
 argumentation leads to endless absurdities. The following passa- 
 -ges will shew, that even the Greeks could not agree about the 
 derivation, or primary meaning, of their word G60C, 
 
 Herodotus^ says: eeyoN ag hanta nporepON 'oi n€AACrOI 
 ©£OICI en6Y><o'^^NOi . - - enwNy^iHN a . oyA oyNOMA enoieyN- 
 
 ^ When extremely rarified it becomes mere Space. The Systfeme 
 de la Nature (torn. 3, p. 149 ; conf. p. 166, & 214) asks : " Le Dieu 
 des theologiens serait-il par hasard I'etre abstrait que Ton nomme 
 Vespacc ou le videV (conf. Toland, supra, p. 37). A compendious 
 treatise "de non entibus " would, 1 think, be an important work. 
 
 ^ B. 2, ch. 52; conf. Meiners "de vero deo, " p. 1G5. 
 
or AN IMPORTANT WORD. 47 
 
 -TO OYA6NI AYTeWN : Oy T^p AKHKOeCAN KCO ; Q£OyC AS npOCW- 
 
 -NOMic^N c4>eAC t.no Toy ToioyTOY > 'oti kocmwi GeNTCC ta 
 
 HANTA npHTMATA KM HACAC NOMAC eixON. 
 
 Phornutus* says: eyAoroN Ae km Toyc OeOYC aho thc 06- 
 -C€COC ecxHKeNM thn npocHropuN : npQTON r^p 'oi &pxMoi 06- 
 -Oyc yncAAMBANON eiNM , 'oyc •eypoN AAiAnruToyc (fiepoMe- 
 -Noyc , AiTioyc AyToyc nomicant€C cinm twn Acrepoc (vel *,€poc) 
 
 MeTABOAtON , KM THC CUTHpiAC TMN 'OACON . TAyTA A €I€N 'OI 
 
 ©€OI , G6THp6C km ooihtm tcon riNOMeNCON -oaun. 
 
 Plutarchus^ says: — toic ©60IC aacin ■ &no Ayem rpAMMATWN 
 (leg, phmaton) Toy e6A,TOY km Toy 06ONTOC ■ cctin onoma 
 koinon. 
 
 Clemens Alexandrinus,^ in his Cohortatio ad Gentes [p. 22], says : 
 — 'OI r^p eyeecoc am(J)I thn oyp&Noy ee^N AnATC0M€NOi , km o4'ei 
 MONHi ncnicTeyKOTec , tcon ACTepwN t\c kinhc€ic enieeoMeNoi , 
 ee^yMACAN T6 . km e^eeeucAN . ©€OYC 6k Toy ©6IN onoma- 
 
 -CANTAC TOyC ACTCpAC.'' — 
 
 * " de diis, " p. 3, edit. Gale. This passage is translated by Park- 
 -hurst, in his Hebrew Lexicon, (art. Shemim) p. 745, a & b. 
 
 « «de Iside, " p. 375, C, edit. Xyl.; ch. 60, p. 536, edit. Wyttenb. 
 
 ® I borrow this passage, and the following one out of Simplicius, 
 from Menage's note to Diogenes Laertius (B. 8, ch. 27) where it is 
 said, that, according to the Pythagoreans, the sun moon and stars 
 are gods. 
 
 7 Dr. Potter's note to this passage says: "Plato, in Cratylo, ex- 
 -istimare se dicit sidera , quibus solis Barbari & Graeci veteres divi- 
 -nos honores solvebant, primo ©60YC dictos fuisse, tanquam a€i 
 lONTA ApoMCOi KM ©60NT^, qucB perpetuo cnrsu ferantur ; dein id 
 
 nominis ad alios Deos venisse. Etymologici Auctor : ©6- 
 
 -OC , nAp& TO ©6C0 , TO TpexQ , eic 'on nANTec TpexoMeN , nApA 
 TO ©6C«) , KAi eeyco , ©60C s 'Oc 4)QA€yw , <^uAeoc . 'oi rAp 
 
 ApxAIOl • em TO MACICTON , em -HAlOy KAI C€AHNHC KAI ACTepCON , 
 ACTATOyCl TAp , €Tie€CAN TO ONOMA , AipA TO A€l ©6IN KAI KIN6I- 
 
 -coAi . KAI €ni Toy xupic ToyTWN AeroMeNoy ©60Y • astoit an 
 HApA Toy OANTAxoy ciNAi KAin6pi06lN. Clemens, stroin. 4, p. 
 535, vult ©60N dici kata thn AMSTATpenTON Toy Aei ©6IN ta 
 A TAG A 'e^iN, propter immutahilem cursum, quo bona semper fluunt." 
 
■J8 VAKIOVS UEFINITIONb 
 
 Macrohius ( Satiirnal. B. I , ch. 23, p. 309 ) when explainin<j 
 the famous passaije in Homer's Iliad B. 1, v. 423-425, says, 
 that the Gods mean the stars: " ©60YC enim dicunt sidera 
 et Stellas aro toy ©€€IN id est rpexeiN, quod semper in cursu 
 sint; H mo Toy eecopeiCGAI ." 
 
 Siniplicius (ad enchiridium Epicteti, cap. 38) says: ApxH ac thc 
 CKC'l'ecoc ecTiN , lAeiN npwroN ti CHMAiNei to Toy ©60Y onoma. 
 
 KM ICT60N , 'OTI '01 HpCOTON GeNTeC AyTO , TOyC CN TCOl Oyp^NUl 
 
 nepmoAoyNTAc . n^pA to e€IN ToyTecTi TpexeiN h o^euc kincic- 
 
 -&AI , -OyTOC ONOMACAN . xpONCOl AC 'yCTepON , KM €ni TAC &CW- 
 -MATOyC KM NOHTAC TUN ONTWN AITIAC ANHTATON TO ONOMA , KAI 
 M€Xpi THC MrAC TUN HANTUN ApxHC KAI AITIAC I 'OCT6 AHAOyN TO 
 ONOMA ApXHN TUN ONTUN . KAI MTIHN NOHTHN npWTICTHN KAI Ky- 
 -piUTATHN . - - - - KAI AyTO TOyN . 'COC €ipHTAI ; TO TOy ©€OY 
 ONOMA AHO TUN OypANlUN MCTHKTAI , 'UC O^CUC KINOyMCNCCN KAI 
 
 eeoNTON. 
 
 In the mythology of Fulgentius (p, 32, edit. Muncker), where 
 the sentiment of Petronius is quoted, that feai; first made Gods, 
 we read in the note " Hinc to Deus quidam a Aeoc deduxe- 
 -runt. vid. Fest. in Deus; Etym. in Z€YC ; et Bartli. ad Stat, 
 torn. 2, p. 854 i Lorinum in Ecclesiast. cap. xii. " 
 
 In Schleitsner's Dictionary for the Greek N. T., the word ©€- 
 -OC is thus explained: " ita dictus, ex plerorumque sentenlia, 
 "a eeeiN currere, quia Deus virtute sua infinita omnia percurrit. 
 AlO. Gloss. Gr. p. 60. ©€ON , aho Toy ©€€IN kai nepiTpexeiN 
 
 KAI MHAAMH €CTANAI , AAAA TA OANTA HAHpoyN. AliaS virorum 
 
 doctorum de hujus vocabuli origine sententias collegit Wolfius 
 in Theophyl. ad Autolycum I, p. 18. I suppose the passage is 
 that in p. 71, of the edit. 1686, where we read: ©eoc ee a€- 
 
 -reTAi AiA TO T۩eiKeNAI ta oanta em thi 'CAyToy ACffiAAeiAU 
 
 KAI AIA TO ©€€IN : TO AG ©€€iN eCTI TO Tp€xeiN , KAI KIN6IN , 
 
 KAI eNcpreiN , kai Tpe(|)€iN , kai npoNociN , kai KyeepNAiN , kai 
 zuonoieiN ta aanta . 
 
 The Systeme de la Nature (tom. 3, p. 51, note) says: "Le mot 
 grec ©eoc vient de TI©HMI, pono, facio; ou plutbt de ©6AO- 
 -MAI, specto, contemplor," 
 
 Thus Dr. Potter ; who also refers to the passage of Plutarchus, de 
 Jside, and of Theopiiilus, ad Autolycum. 
 
OF AN IMPORTANT WORD. 49 
 
 Court de Gebelin, in his Monde Primitif, ascends to a very 
 remote source for the word ecoc. The entrance,' or door, of tents 
 admitted the light, or sunshine. Therefore, from the root De, or 
 Di, meaning daj/, in Latin dies, in Irish di, &c., came the words 
 A IOC divine, A IOC, Jovis, &c. Hence the supreme deity, call- 
 -ed in Greek eeoc, in Lat. Deus, in Gall. Dhew, in French Dieu, 
 
 &c. means " la Divinity source de toute lumiere le ptre du 
 
 jour --- I'Etre-Lumibre " (vid. dictionn. grec-fy., p. 257, 270; 
 dictionn. lat., p. 508, 509, 521; & dictionn. franf., p. 382). 
 
 Volnei/ (in a note to his "Ruines" p. 400, 401, edit. 32mo.), after 
 saying : " En derniere analyse, tons les noms de la divinite revi- 
 -ennent a celui, d'un objet materiel quelconque qui en fut cens6 
 le siege," adds, that, according to Plato (in Cratylo), Macrobius 
 and Plutarcluis [already quoted], the root of the word ©€OC is 
 eeeiN , errare. like [nAi.N».iN or nA^NeicoM] whence comes the 
 name of the Planets, wiiich were worshipped by the ancient 
 Greeks, as well as by the Barbarians, - . - The Phoenician word 
 thUli (with an ain)^° also signifies to wander, and may be the 
 source of eeem. If Deus comes from ZCYC Jupiter, which is 
 derived from z^t^, I live, it will then signify the soul of the 
 world, the principial fire. Divus, which only means a secon- 
 -dary deity, appears to me to come from the oriental div, for diby 
 a ivolj', or rather a jackal. Dim, Sc dies, may come from dih, 
 the cry of the hawk, which was sacred to the sun." Thus Volney. 
 
 There were then at least three roots assigned by the ancients' 
 
 ® As it is necessarily triangular, it naturally prescribed the form of 
 the letter A, which, tho with some variation, is observed in many 
 languages. Court de Gebelin seems to refer to the same source, the 
 radiant triangle which is used to denote the deity (vid. dictionn. 
 grec-fr.j P- 257; & dictionn. lat. p. 508, 509). I cannot help 
 thinkmg that the ancient constellation of the triangle, which is placed 
 over the head of Aries, may indicate the gate of the Sun. Some say 
 that it indicates the first letter of the word A IOC (vid. Dupuis, 
 Origine des Cultes, tom. .3, P. 2, p. 91, b, edit. 4to). 
 
 '" It is the word given in p. 792, 793, of Parkhurst's Hebrew 
 Lexicon. But if the Greecian ©€OI are derived from a word 
 which signifies, both literally and metaphoricallv, to go astray, 
 then the. 0601 can have little relation to the philosophical idea of 
 an immu'able !»K/t'rat<»ig- principle. 
 
 ' Tliat the moderns, especially the great etymologist Court de 
 Gobelin, should not adopt any of tliese derivations (except perliaps 
 
60 Vjvrious definitions 
 
 to the word G€OC ; viz, eec, place; eee, run; eeu, behold.^ Of 
 these roots, the idea of p/«cc, "(including position, and formation), 
 seems to me the best. As to deriving God a currendo, it reminds 
 one of the famous saying, that, if a God were invented by hor- 
 -ses, he would i-un, or trot, upon four legs.^ 
 
 Concerning the English word " God, " Sir William Drummond, 
 in his Origines, says, that it is derived from the Persian word 
 [Kheda]. This may seem strange, but I think it possible. Of 
 course, the English, or more properly the Germans, cannot have 
 gone to Persia in search of this word ; but, as similarly organized 
 machines may, when similarly acted upon, produce similar sounds,^ 
 so it is possible, that the idea (whatever it may have been)^ which 
 the Persians wished to express by the word "Kheda" may have 
 been the same which our ancestors wished to express by the word 
 God, or Gott. 
 
 Whetlier these two last words are derived from Good and Gut, 
 or rather vice versa, I do not know. But they seem to have some 
 affinity with the Arabic Djadda, " felicitas. prospera fortuna"; and 
 still more with the Hebrew Gad, which is synonimous with Me- 
 
 that which is common to ee&oM&i,) is a sure sign that etymology is 
 a very uncertain science, or at any rate is only in its infancy. 
 
 * If e€OC has any real affinity with Aeoc, then I would derive 
 this last word from a€W Z/g-o ; and would say, that the Deity (the 
 sacerdotal deity) is the coercive principle, whe*restrains the mind 
 by reZig-ion. 
 
 3 Clemens Alexandrinus (strom. B. 5, p. 715, edit. Potter), has 
 preserved some verses of Xenopluines, which are thus translated by 
 Voltaire (Diet. Philos., art. " Emhleme," torn. 3, p. 90) : 
 Chacun figure en toi ses attributs divers; 
 Les oiseaux te feraient voltiger dans les airs. 
 Les bceufs te prcteraient leurs cornes menacantes, 
 Les lions farmeraient de leurs dents dechirantes, 
 Les chevaux dans les champs te feraient galopper. — 
 ■» This, I think, is all that can be meant, by the derivation of an 
 European word from an Asiatic one, or rather by the affinity which 
 may subsist between any two such words. If there is no affinity be- 
 -tvveen the language of the English, and of (for instance) the Chinese; 
 then the English and the Chinese are not similarly organized. 
 
 * Probably it meant unitij, as in Syriac. vid. J. Drusius, ad iMa- 
 -crob., ap. Selden, de Diis, p. 177. 
 
01 AN IMPORTANT WOUt). 51 
 
 -zel tob, or Mezela teba (vid. Selden de Diis, p, 77, 79, & 93), 
 Good Fortune, ArAGH TYXH, or that one of the genethliacal 
 points dedicated to the moon. 
 
 The word Gad may belong to the constellation Capricornus, 
 which was called by the Hebrews Gedi, Gadi, Sec; and this sign 
 is said® to contain the Fortunes, and the lucky stars, to [one of] 
 which it is probable that Leah refers (Genesis, ch. 30, v. 11th., ac- 
 -cording to the LXX, Vulg., &c). But Capricornus is constantly 
 confounded with Capella (especially as regards ^gipan). The 
 cause of this confusion may be, that Capella [except in our north- 
 -ern latitudes, where it does not set at all,] sets in the morning, 
 about the time of the winter solstice, when the Sun is in Capri- 
 -cornus (vid. Dupuis, torn. 3, P. 2, p. 103, a). And Capella seems 
 much connected with Aries. Eratosthenes and Aratus (ap. Dupuis) 
 do indeed consider Capella and the Hoedi as paranatellons with 
 Taurus; but Manilius (astron. B. 5, v. 102, 103; & 128-130), if one 
 may quote so bad an authority, places the rising of the Kids at 
 the 20th. degree of Aries, and of Capella at the last degree (so 
 also Firmicus ; vid. Dupuis, torn. 3, P. 2, p. 222). Probably Ca- 
 -pella had, in remote times, indicated the vernal equinox; and, 
 even when it did not rise heliacally till near the end of April, it 
 might poetically be referred to Aries, the eqviinoxial sun having, in 
 reality, receded to this sign. At any rate, if Kircher can be relied 
 on, tlie tribe Gad was classed under the sign, or banner, of Aries, 
 (vid. Dupuis, torn. 1, p. 69).' 
 
 Now the Ram (which was the domicile of Mars, and the place 
 
 ® by Dupuis, tom. 3, P. 2, p. 68, b. But elsewhere (torn. 2, P. 1, 
 p. 273, b) he says, that the goat Amalthea was called felix sydus. 
 Even to the present day. Fortune is represented with the horn, or 
 cornucopia, of the famous goat. 
 
 ^ In a passage of Isaiah (ch. 65, v. 11, 12) Gad seems to be put 
 in parallelism with tebehhe or slaughter. I suppose the wit of the sen- 
 -tence is (fW,Il^l6/ew poetry seems to delight in contrasts,or)5i sort of 
 sublime pu(iBi6§) that the deserters of Yehouh shall find Gad (i. e. 
 Mazal tab, the good star) not a source of goodness, but of destruction. 
 Mr. Parkhurst (Heb. Lex. p. 98, b) says in explanation of the pas- 
 
 -sage : " therefore Gad, or Baal Gad, denotes the destructive 
 
 troops (see Job. xxxv, 3) of the heavens, in thunder, lightning, &c . 
 
 They worshipped the heavens under this attribute, for the same rea- 
 -son as the Indians are said to worship the devil, namely that they 
 might not hurt them." 
 
52 VARIOUS DEFINITIOKS 
 
 of the exaltation of the Sun) was called "princeps Signorumy" 
 "piinceps Zodiaci," "ductor exercitus Zodiac!" (vid. Dupuis, 
 torn. 3, P. 2, p. 31, 32). But our (the Jewish) Deity is repeat- 
 -edly called " Yehouh of hosts," & "Aleini of hosts." Mr. Park- 
 -hurst, giving the references (in his Hebr. Lex. p. 607, b), says, 
 these two appellations "are frequently used as titles of the true 
 God, and import that from Him the host of the heavens derive 
 their existence and amazing powers, — . " iVfr. Parkhurst considers 
 that the root of Ghedi (a kid), Ghid (a nerve, or sinew). Gad 
 (the idol), &c, implies rushing and mpellirig (vid. Hebr. Lex. p. 
 97, a ; & 98, a) ; which ideas may, I think, be well applied, both 
 to the leading sign of the Zodiac, and also to the grand active 
 principle of the universe. Far be it from me to confound a Deity 
 with a goat; but we may recollect, that in Greece, Pan was the 
 husband of iEga, and had other goatish attributes; while, in a 
 country of more importance to the true faitli, certain Samaritan 
 pentateuchs are, however calumniously, reported to have commenced 
 with : " In the beginning, Azima (according to many Hebrews a 
 goat-like idol) created the heaven and the earth " (vid. Dupuis, 
 Orig., tom. 2, P. 2, p. 270, b; & torn 3, P. 2, p. 316, b). 
 
 And here terminates my third appendix. I flatter myself, that 
 the definitions which it contains will be very useful, as answers 
 both to the talkative religionist, and also to the profane scoffer, 
 who may excite suspicion, that, when we are asked what God is, 
 we are reduced to silence (see Wyttenbach's Prefat. note, p. 6-8, 
 supra; & also the Bon sens du Cure Meslier, ch. 122, p. 162). 
 
 If, in this or in either of the previous appendices, there be 
 found any doctrine contrary to the faith which (in this age and 
 country) is the true faith, I most humbly beg leave to represent, 
 that I do not adopt the objectionable opinion, but only relate it. 
 
 Yet, for fear this historical matter should excite the fiend of he- 
 -terodoxy in any reader's mind, I have provided an antidote, viz: 
 the following catalogue of books. Let the reader, affected by the 
 above-mentioned distressing malady, purchase forthwith a dozen-©*- 
 or two of the works whose titles I give, and I have no doubt but 
 that he will find them perfect sedatives. It is for this charitable 
 purpose, and to sliew my zeal in the good cause, that I have 
 compiled mi/ fourth appendix: — 
 
A CATALOGUE OF THE PRINCIPAL WORKS WRITTEN 
 
 AGAINST ATHEISM, 
 
 OR 
 
 TO PROVE 
 THE EXISTENCE OF GOD. 
 
 R. Obadia Sephorxo, " Lux Populorum: explicat xv. Quses- 
 -tiones Metaphysicas de Deo et Anim^. " Bolon. 1471, 4to. 
 
 John Sennonoys Veron, or Vernon, " A Fruteful Treatise of 
 Predestination, and of the Divine Providence of God; with an 
 Apology of the same against the swynishe gruntinge of the Epi- 
 -cures and Atheystes of oure time. Wherevnto are added, as de- 
 -pending of it, a veiy necessary Boke againste the Free-Wyll of 
 Men ; and another of the True Justification of Faith, and of the 
 Good Workes proceadynge of the same, made dialogue-wyse; be- 
 -ing an Apology or Defence of the Doctryne of Predestination. " 
 Lond. printed by W. Tisdale, without date, 8vo. [ probably about 
 1550. ]. 
 
 Guillaume Postell, " Liber de Causis, seu Principiis et Ori- 
 -ginibus Naturae, contra Atheos. " Par. 1552, 8vo. [ Yet Postell 
 has been accused of Atheism, though in reality very superstitious, 
 vid. Reimm. de Ath. p. 389, 390.] 
 
 Marcus Antonius Natta, " De Deo, " in 15 books. [ about 
 1555. ] Fol. 
 
 Hieronymus Zanchius, "De Dei Natur&. [ libri quinque. '* 
 Heidelb. 1577, fol. 1590, 4to.] 
 
 Nicolaus Hemmingius, (a learned Danish Divine,) " The Faith 
 of the Church Militant, • moste effectuallie described in this Expo- 
 
 ' This peaceable epithet seems, to me, to be derived from the 
 religion of Mithra, each of whose followers declared himself " miles 
 Mithra. " ( vid. Tertull. de coron. ad fin. ) The opposite word 
 Paganns means, — one who is not a soldier, i. e. a civilian. 
 
-sition of tlie 84 Psalme, by that Reiierend Pastor, &c. , Nicholas 
 Hemmingius. A Treatise written as to the Instruction of the Ig- 
 -norant in the Grounds of Religion, so to the Confutation of the 
 Jewes, Turks, Atheists, Papists, Hereticks, and all other Adver- 
 -saries of the truth whatsoever.- Translated out of Latine into En- 
 -glish, &c., by T. Rogers." Lond. 1581, 8vo. 
 
 Reginald Scot, ( a learned English gentleman, ) " The Discoue- 
 -rie of Witchcraft ; wherein the lewde dealing of witches and 
 witchmongers is notablie detected, the knauerie of coniurors, the 
 impietie of inchanters, the foUie of soothsaiers, the impudent 
 falshood of cousenors, the infidelitie of atheists, the pestilent prac- 
 -tises of pythonists, the curiositie of figure-casters, the vanitie of 
 dreamers, the beggerlie art of alcumstrie, the abhomination of ido- 
 -latrie, the horrible art of poisoning, the vertue and power of 
 naturall magike, and all the conueniancies of legierdemaine and 
 juggling are discovered, &;c. ; heerevnto is added, A Treatise vpon 
 the Nature and Substance of Spirits and Diuels, &c. " Lond. 1584, 
 4to. Reprinted in 1651, 4to.; and 1665, fol. ; also translated 
 into German. [ James the 1st. wrote against this book. ] 
 
 Franciscus Zumei., Palentinus, " De Deo ejusque operibus. 
 Comment, in primani partem S. Thoma?." Salmanticee, 1587,1590. 
 
 Christophe Cheffontaines, " Epitome novse illustrationis chris- 
 -tianae Fidei adversus Impios, Libertinos, et Atheos, &c. " Paris, 
 1586, 8vo, 
 
 William IIoi.me, printed "The Touchstone of True Religion; 
 deciphering the right use and finall end thereof, against the im- 
 -pietie of Atheists, Epicures, Libertines, Ilippocrites, ^ and Tempo- 
 -risours, of these times." Lond. 1590, 8vo. 
 
 Joh. Egranus Avenau, D. D., "An Enemie to Atheisme, or 
 Christian godly Praiers for all Degrees, &c. translated by T. 
 Rogers. " Lond. 1591, 16mo. 
 
 Henry Smith, " God's Arrow against Atheists." Lond. 1593, 
 4to. 
 
 Pierre Charron, " Les Trois Veritas." [a Cahors, Anonym.] 
 
 ' Mr. ( Printer ) Holme seems, by his peculiar Orthography, 
 to have imagined, what is no doubt true, that many of our long, 
 --faced saints arc good jnrlgrs of Ao/'se-flesh. 
 
1594. Tlie first of these three truths is, that there is a GckI and 
 a true religion. 
 
 [Anox.] , "A Treatise of the Nature of God.'' Printed 
 
 by Thomas Creed. Lond. 1599, 8vo. 
 
 [Anon.] , "A Treatise of the Nature of God. " Prin- 
 
 -ted by Robert Dexter. Lond. 1599. 8vo. 
 
 Thomas Morton, (a learned English Bishop,) "A Treati.se 
 of the Nature of God. " Lond. 1599, 8vo. 
 
 Nicolas de Nancel, died 1610, " Tr. de Deo, de Irnmor- 
 
 -talitate Animae, contra Galenum; et de sede Animse in Corpore." 
 . 8vo. [ vid. Niceron, Mem. Tom. 39, p. 295. ] 
 
 Conrade Vorstius, " De Deo, sive de Natura et Attribulis 
 Dei. " Steinfurt. 1606 et 1610, 4to. King James 1. drew up, 
 with his own hand, a Catalogue of the several Heresies lie had 
 found in this work, and ordered it to be burnt at London, and 
 the two English Universities. 
 
 Cyril TouRNEUE, "The Atheist's Tragedie; or the Honest 
 Man's Revenge, as in divers places it hath often been acted. " 
 Lond. 1611. 
 
 Robert Hepburn, " Demoustratio, quod Deus sit. " Ediiib. 
 1614, 8vo. 
 
 [ ] \'anini, " Amphitheatrum aeternte Providentia? Di- 
 
 -vino-Magicum, Christiano-Physicum, necnon Astrologico-Catlioli- 
 -cum, adversus veteres Philosophos, Atheos, Epicnreos, Peripateti- 
 -cos, et Stoicos. " Lyons, 1615, 8vo. [ See the art. in Chaufep. 
 Note G. ] 
 
 Martin Fotherbv, D.D., (Bishop of Sarum,) " Atheomastix ; 
 or, the clearing of Four Truths against Atheists. " Lond. 1622, fol. 
 
 Marin Mersenne, " Qusestiones celeberrimai in Genesim, cum 
 accurate Textus Explicatione : in quo volumiae Athei et Deisti 
 impugnantur, &c. " Paris, 1623, fol. [A list, of the Atheists of 
 the time, which occupied five folio columns of this work, has 
 been suppressed, as " imprudent and perhaps dangerous. " ] 
 
 Francois Garasse, ( a satiric French Jesuit, ) " La Doctrine Cu- 
 -rieuse des Beaux Esprits de ce terns, ou pretendus tels, contenant 
 plusieurs maximes contraircs a I'etat, a la religion et aux bonnes 
 moeurs, combattue et renvcrsee par le pcre Garasse, do la com- 
 
-pagnie de J^sus. " Paris, 1623, in 4to.' " Apologie pour sou 
 livre contre les Atheistes et Libertin s de nostre siecle, et Re^onse 
 aux Calomnies de I'auteur Anonyme. " Par. 1624, 8vo. [ After 
 accusing others of Atheism, he has been himself accused of it, 
 which serves him quite right. ] 
 
 Phil. Faventinus Faber, Ord. Min. , " Disputationes quatuor 
 contra Atheos. " Ven. 1627. 
 
 AviCENNA, ( died A. D. 1036,) " Oratio quaedam Avicen- 
 
 -nse, de Deo et ejus attributis, Arabice tantum. " Ludg. Bat. 1629, 
 8vo. [ Yet Algazali accuses Ebn-Sina of impiety, because he at- 
 -tached himself more to the Philosophers than to the Koran. ] 
 
 Johannes Crellius, " Liber de Deo, et ejus Attributis. " 
 [ Cracav. 1630, ; Amsterd. 1648, 4to. ] 
 
 Thomas Campanella, "Atheismus Triumphatus, [ seu contra 
 Anti-christianismum. '■ Rome, 1631, fol. Paris, 1636, 4to. Some 
 one has said that it ought to have been entitled " Atheismus tri- 
 -umphans. " ] 
 
 John Weemse, ( Prebend, of Dunelm, ) "Treatise of the four 
 degenerate Sons, viz. the Atheist, Idolater, Magician, and Jew. " 
 Lond. 1636, 4to. 
 
 Augustinus Oregius, ( a learned Cardinal, ) " De Deo. " 
 [probably ab. 1637. ] 
 
 Thomas Barlow, " Exercitationes Metaphysics de Deo. '' 
 Oxf. 1639, fol. 1658, 4to. 
 
 John Dove, D.D., "Confutation of Atheism." Lond. 1640, 
 8vo. 
 
 Rene Des Cartes, " Meditationes de Prima Philosophic, in 
 qua Dei existentia, et Animae immortalitas demonstratur. " Paris, 
 1641, 8vo. 
 
 Ludovicus Capellus, (an eminent French Protestant,) " J^e Pi- 
 -vot de la Foy et Religion, ou Preuve de la Divinite contre les 
 Athees et Prophanes. " a Saumur, 1643, 8vo. 
 
 Corn, ab Hogelande, " Cogitationes de Dei Existentiu, Ani- 
 
 ' Bayle, ( Diet. Tom. 2, p. 530, note A ) says of Garasse: "II 
 a moins contribue a convertir les Libertins, qu' a les endurcir. " 
 
-mae Spiritualilale, et CEconomia Corporis Animalis. " Amst. ap. 
 Elzev. 1646, 8vo. 
 
 vTacob Bathumley, "The Light and Dark Sides'* of God set 
 forth. " Lond. 1650, 8vo. 
 
 Walter Ciiarleton, M. D., "The darkness of Atheism dis- 
 -pelled by the Light of Nature. A Physico-Theologicall Treatise. " 
 Lond. 1652, 4to. 
 
 William Towers, B. D., " Atheismus vapulans, against Atheism; 
 and Polytheismus vapulans, or that there is but one God." Lond. 
 1654, 8vo. 
 
 Seth Ward, (Bishop of Salisbury,) "A Philosophical Essay to- 
 -wards an Eviction of the Being and Attributes of God, the Im- 
 -mortality of the Souls of Men, and the Truth and Authority of 
 Scripture. " Oxf. 1652, Svo. Oxon. 1655, 8vo. 
 
 Henry More, D. D., "An Antidote against Atheism." Lond. 
 1656, Svo. 
 
 Joachimus Jungius, ( died 1657,) " Disputaiiones, de Na- 
 
 -turali Dei Cognitione, de . " [ These treatises are not 
 
 mentioned by Chaufepie, but I suppose they are noticed by Mol- 
 -ler or Fogel. ] 
 
 Vine. Hattecliffe, " God or Nothing : against the Atheists 
 of our age and nation. " Lond. 1659, 8vo. 
 
 Fran5;ois Dirois, (a learned Doctor of the Sorbonne,) " Preu- 
 -ves et Prejuges pour la Religion Chretienne et Catholique, con- 
 -tre les fausses Religions, et I'Atheisme. " 4to. 
 
 Samuel Parker,( Bishop of Oxford, ) " Tentamina Physico-The- 
 -ologica de Deo. " Lond. 1665, 4to. " Disputationes ^ de Deo et 
 Providentia Divina. " Lond. 1678, 3 vols. 4to. 
 
 Revd. Joseph Glanvil, "Blow at Modern Sadducism; or 
 Philosophical Considerations touching the being of Witches and 
 Witchcraft: with an account of the Demon of Tedworth; as also 
 
 ■* Perhaps Mr. Bathumley was thinking of Hercules Melampygos. 
 
 * In the edition of 1704, 1 vol. 4to. the first word in the title 
 is, not " Disputationes, " which savours of scepticism, but " Co- 
 -gitationes, " which sounds more allowable. 
 
Reflections on Drollery and Atlieism. " Load. 1666, 4to. 1667, 
 fol. 1668, 8vo. " A Whip for the Droll, Fiddler to the Atlieist." 
 1668, . [ I do not understand the titles of these latter tracts, but 
 they appear, to me, unworthy of a F. R. S. ] 
 
 Meric Casaubon, " Of Credulity and Incredulity in things 
 Natural, Civil, and Divine. Wherein, among other things, the 
 Sadducism of these times in denying Spirits, Witches,^ and Su- 
 -pernatural Operations, by pregnant instances and evidences is 
 fully confuted ; Epicurus, his Cause discussed, and the juggling 
 and false dealing lately used to bring him and Atheism into Cre- 
 -dit clearly discovered ; the Use and Necessity of Ancient Learn- 
 -ing against the innovating humour^ all along proved and asser. 
 -ted. " Lond. 1668, 8vo. 
 
 David Derodon, " Opera Philosophica, sciz. Logica, INIeta- 
 -physica, Philosophise Compendium, Disputatio de ente reali, et 
 Disputatio de Existentia Dei. " Genev. 1669, 4to. [ The dates 
 of separate and earlier editions are given in the Biogr. Univer- 
 -selle. ] " L'Atheisme Convaincu, ou la Lumiere de la Raison con- 
 -tre les Athees; premiere partie Angl. per Josh. Benhome. " 
 Orange, 1659, 8vo. Et en Deux Parties. Genevac, 1663, 8yo. 
 Translated into English by Josh. Bonhome. Lond. 1679, 8vo. 
 
 Sir Charles Wolseley, Bart. , " The Unreasonableness of 
 Atheism." Lond. 1669, 8vo. 
 
 Antonius Reiserus, " De Origine, Progressu, el Incremento 
 Antitheismi. " Aug. Vind. 1669, 8vo. [He distinguishes about 
 23 sorts of Atheism, vid. Diet, des Ath. p. 389, 390. ] 
 
 J. M. - - , " The Atheist silenced ; or the Existence of a 
 Deity demonstrated by Axioms and Theorems. " Lond. 1672, 8vo. 
 
 Nathaniel Fairfax, M.D. , "A Treatise of the Bulk and Sel- 
 -vedge of the World ; wherein the greatness, littleness, and last- 
 
 ® We see that the belief in witches is acknowledged in the only 
 true faith ; and consequently is part and parcel of the law of the 
 land, as we have perhaps been informed by that enlightened Judge, 
 Sir Matthew Hale. 
 
 ^ An " innovating humour " always forbodes heresies, reform.-, 
 discoveries, and all other things that are horrible and shocking. 
 
-tingness of Bodies are freely liandled, willi an answer lo " Ten- 
 -tamina de Deo, by S. P., J). D. " Lond. 1674, 12mo. 
 
 Johannes Bredexburgils, " Enervatio Tractatus Theologico- 
 -Politici Benedicti Spinosae, una cum Demonstratione Geometrica 
 Naturam non esse Deum. " Rotterdami, 1675, 4to. [ 'Concern- 
 -ing this Atheistical production of a would-be Religionist, see 
 Bayle, Diet. art. Spinosa, note M. ] 
 
 Jean de Brlyx, (--- died 1675,) " De Cognitione Dei Na- 
 -turali. " 
 
 Thomas Good, D. D. , " Firmianus et Dubitantius ; or Dialo- 
 -gues concerning Atheism, Infidelity, and Popery." Oxf. 1674, 8v'o. 
 
 Richard Barthogge, " Causa Dei ; or, an apology for God, on 
 the perpetuity of Infernal Torments, Scc'^Lond. 1675, 8vo. " Es- 
 -say upon Reason, and the Nature of Spirits." Lond. 1694, 8vo. 
 " Divine Goodness Explicated and Vindicated, from the excepti- 
 -ons of the Atheists. " Lond. 1670, 1672, 8vo. " Discourse of 
 Reason and Truth. " Lond. 1678, 8vo. " Of the Soul of the 
 World. In a letter to Mr. Locke. " Lond. 1699, 8vo. 
 
 Franciscus Cuperus, "Arcana Atheismi revelata, Philosophice 
 et Paradoxc refutata, examine Tractates Theologico-Politici. " 
 Roter. 1676, 4to. 1678, 4to. [It appears that Cupper is a sort of 
 wolf in sheeps-clothing. vid. Walch.^Bibl. Theol.,Vol. 1, p. 683.] 
 
 Tobias Wagnerus, (Acad. Tubigensis Cancellarius,) " Examen 
 Elencticum Atheismi Speculativi. " Tub. 1677, 4to. 
 
 Ralph CuDwoRTir, D. D. , " The true Intellectual System of 
 tlie Universe; wherein the Reason and Philosophy of Atheism is 
 confuted - - . " Lond. 1678, fol. - - In Latin, by J. L. Mosh- 
 -eim. Jena;, 1733, 2 vols. fol. Ludg. Bat. 1773, 2 vols. 4to. 
 [Yet Bayle accuses Cudworth's plastic nature as favouring Atheism.] 
 
 Thomas Manningham, ( Bishop of Chichester, ) " Discourse 
 concerning Truth: Popery one great cause of Atheism. " Lond. 
 1681, 8vo. 
 
 William Bates, D. D., " Considerations on the Existence of 
 God, and the Immortality of the Soul; a Sermon on Ileb. xi. 6." 
 Lond. 1676, 8vo. 1677, 8vo. 
 
 Pierre Poiret, " Cogitationes Rationales de Deo, [ anima et 
 malo. ] " Amst. 1677, 4to. twice reprinted. 
 
 Joshua Bonhome, (Rector of Suddington, Leicestershire,) "The 
 
Arraignment and Conviction of Atheism. '' Lond. 1679, 8vo. 
 [ Apparently the same work as that I have mentioned in the last 
 page. ] 
 
 Simon Croonenburg, " de Infinite. " Ultraj. 1679, 4to. "de 
 Independentia Dei. " Ultraj. 1680, 4to. 
 
 Stephen Charnock, " Several Discourses of the Existence and 
 Attributes of God. " Lond. 1682, fol. 
 
 Henry Care, Gent., "The Darkness of Atheism expelled by 
 the Light of Nature. " Lond. 1683, 8vo. 
 
 Edmund Bohun, [ who published various works between 1683 
 and 1698,] translated "Sicurius' Origin of Atheism." [Crusius, 
 or Crenius, had published " Dorothei Siculi Origo Atheismi in 
 pontificia et evangelica ecclesia. " 1684. vid. Job. Fabr., Hist. 
 Bibl.,P. 5, p. 371, 372.] 
 
 Louis Courcillon de Dangeau, [or rather Franc. Timoleon de 
 Choisy, ] " Dialogues sur - — la Providence, I'existence de 
 Dieu, et la religion." Paris, 1684, 12mo. 
 
 Thomas Otway, ( a very celebrated Dramatic Writer, ) " The 
 Atheist; or the Second Part of the Soldier's Fortune; a Comedy." 
 Lond. 1684, 4to. 
 
 [ Anon. ] - -, " The Atheist unmasked. " Lond. 1685, 4to. 
 
 Thomas Reynolds, " Determinationes Philosophicae de Deo 
 Creatore et Providente. " Traj. ad Rhen. 1686, 4to. 
 
 John NoRRis, (a learned English Divine and Platonic Philoso- 
 -pher, ) " Reason and Religion ; or, the Grounds and Measures 
 of Devotion considered, from the Nature of God and the Nature 
 of Man, in several Contemplations : with Exercises of Devotion 
 applied to every Contemplation. " Lond. 1689, 8vo. 
 
 Thomas Tenison, D. D., (Archbishop of Canterbury,) "The 
 Folly of Atheism ; on Ps. xiv. 1. " 1691, 4to. 
 
 Francois Lami, (a Benedictine,) " Le Nouvel Ath^isme Ren- 
 -verse, [ on Refutation du sysjfeme de Spinosa, tiree pour la plu- 
 -part de la connaissance de la nature de I'homme." Paris, 1696,] 
 12mo. 
 
 Job. Hermann von Elswich, " Controversiae recentiores de") 
 Atheismo. " [Wittemb. 1716, 4to. vid. Walch.,Bibl. Tlieol.,Vol.| 
 1, p. 738. ] 
 
John Rav, '' Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of 
 the Creation. " Lond. 1691, 1692, 1704, 1714, 8vo. 8th. edit. 
 1722, 8vo. 4s. 
 
 [ Anon. — , " Discourse of natural and revealed Religion, 
 in several essays, or the light of nature a guide to divine truth. " 
 Lond. 1691, 8vo. ] 
 
 [ Henr. Horchius, " Investigationes Theologicae viii. circa ori- 
 -gines rerum ex Deo, contra Spinosam. " Herborn. 1692, 4to. ] 
 
 Clement Ellis, (an English Divine,) " The Folly of Atheism 
 demonstrated. " Lond. 1692, 8vo. 
 
 Michael Moor, (a learned Irish Roman Catholic Divine), "De 
 Existentia Dei, et Humana; Mentis Immortalitate. " Paris, 1692, 
 8vo. 
 
 Sir William Dawes, ( Baronet, and Archbishop of York ) , "An 
 Anatomy of Atheism; a Poem." Lond. 1693, 4to. 
 
 [ Anon. - - , "A conference between an Atheist and his 
 friend. '' Lond. 1693. ] 
 
 Richard Bentley, ( Regius Professor of Divinity ) , " Eight 
 Sermons against Atheism, preached at Boyle's Lecture. " Lond. 
 1693, 4to. 1739, fol. 
 
 Paulus BucHius, " The Divine Being, and his Attributes, 
 philosophically demonstrated from the Holy Scriptures and Origi- 
 -nal Nature of Things. " Into English, out of Dutch. Lond. 
 1693, Bvo. 
 
 Thomas Watts, M.A., (Vicar of Orpington and St. Mary 
 Cray, Kent), "The English Cretes and Atheistical Christians; 
 Thanksgiving Sermon on Tit. i. 16. " 1695, 4to. 
 
 [Jo. Georg. Pritius, "De Atheismo et in se foedo et humano 
 generi noxio. " Leips. 1695. ] 
 
 John Edwards, D. D. , " Thoughts concerning the Causes 
 and Occasions of Atheism. " 1695. " A Demonstration of the 
 Existence and Providence of God. " 1696. 
 
 * Here insert Lami's work, which is unfortunately placed in 
 the page opposite. 
 
10 
 
 Edward Pf.lli.ng, " Discourse, Philosophical and Practical, 
 on the Existence of God. " Lond. 1696,-1705, 2 parts, 8vo. 
 
 Isaac Jacquelot, " Traits de Texistence de Dieu. " Amst. 
 1697, 4to. [ vid. Walch. Tom. 1, p. 707, 708. ] 
 
 * « 
 
 Michael Malduit, " Traite de la religion, contre les Ath^es, 
 les Deistes, et les nouveaux Pyrrhoniens. " 1697, 12mo. 
 
 Thomas Emes, " The Atheist turned Deist, and the Deist tur- 
 -ned Christian. " Lond. 1698, 8vo. 
 
 Charles Lidgould, M. A., "Proclamation against Atheism, 
 &c. on Jerem. viii. 17. " 1699, 4to. 
 
 Peter Berault, (Chaplain in his Majesty's Ships, the Kent, 
 and Victory, ) " Discourses on the Trinity, Atheism, Physic, Me- 
 -taphysic, and Astronomy. " Lond. 1700, 12mo. 
 
 Thomas Knaggs, M. A., " Against Atheism, on Prov. xix. 9." 
 1701, 4to. 
 
 Joh. Fabricius, (in Acad. Julia, S. P. T., ) " Consideralio 
 variarum Controversiarum, videlicet earum quae nobis intercedunt, 
 cum Atheis, Gentilibus, Judseis, Mahommedanis, Socinianis, Ana- 
 -baptistis, Pontificiis, et Reformatis. " Helmst. 1704, 4to. 
 
 George Cheyne, M. D., "Philosophical Principles of Natural 
 Religion." Lond. [1704,] 1705, Bvo. 
 
 [ Ruardus Andala, " Dissertatio Philosophica, qua existentia 
 Dei, non modo a posteriori, sed et d priori per ipsam ejus natu- 
 -ram demonstratur. " Franequ. 1705, 4to. ] 
 
 [ Edward Pelling, "Discourse concerning the existence of 
 God. " Lond. 1705, 8vo. Part 2. The 1st. Part was in 1696. ] 
 
 [ Michael Le Vassetjb, " Entretiens de la Religion contre les 
 Athees, les Deistes, et tous les autres ennemis de la Foi Catho- 
 -lique. " Blois, 1705, 12mo. ] 
 
 * * Here I might mention the dissertation of Zacharias Gra- 
 -pius, " an Atheismus necessario ducat ad corruptionem morum. " 
 (Rostoch. 1697, 4to.); but Mr. Grapius's doubts upon this sub- 
 -ject must be highly heretical: for, whoever does not acknowledge, 
 that an Immaterial being can act upon Matter, must evidenth/ be 
 ,1 cut-throat, a swindler, &c, &c, &c. 
 
11 
 
 T!loma^5 W isk, B. D. , "A C.'onl'utatiou of llie Reason and 
 Philosophy of Atheism ; being an Abridgment of Cudworth's In- 
 -tellectual System. " Lond. 1706, 2 vols. 4to. 
 
 T. OLDFiEi,r, " Mille Testes; against the Atheists, Deists, and 
 Scepticks. " Lond. 1706, 8vo. 
 
 Samuel Clarke, D. D. , "Demonstration of the Being and 
 Attributes of God; the Obligations of Natural Religion; and the 
 Truth and Certainty of the Christian Revelation, being the sub- 
 -stance of sixteen Sermons preached at Boyle's Lecture. " Lond. 
 1706, 1732, 1739, 2 vols. fol. 1749, 8vo. " Discourse concern- 
 -ing the Connexion of the Prophecies in the Old Testament, and 
 the application of them to Christ; to which is added, A Letter 
 concerning the Argument a priori, in the Proof of the Being of 
 God. '' Lond. 1725, 8vo. " Several Letters to Dr. Clarke, re- 
 -lating to his Discourse concerning the Being and Attributes of 
 God, with his answers thereto. " Lond. 1749, 8vo. 
 
 Nicolas Malebranche, " Entretiens d'un Philosophe Chretien, 
 et d'un Philosophe Chinois, sur I'existence et la Nature de Dieu. " 
 1708. [ Paris, l2mo. ] 
 
 [Val, Ernest Lceschek, " Praenotiones Theological contra Na- 
 -turalistarum et Fanaticorum omne genus, Atheos, Deistas, Indif- 
 -ferentistas, Antiscriptuarios crassos seque et subtiles, custodiendse." 
 Witemb. 1708, 4to. ] 
 
 [Conrad Schwartz, " Demonstrationes Dei, quem Ratio docet 
 ac Scriptura sacra. " Lips. 1708, 8vo. ] 
 
 [Adam Rechenberg, " Fundamenta verae religionis Prudentum, 
 adversus Atheos, Deistas, et profanos homines, asserta et vindica- 
 -ta. " 1708, 12mo. ] 
 
 Jenkinus Thomasius, " Historia Atheismi. " Bes. 1709, 8vo, 
 
 John Oliver, M. A. , "Against Atheism; an Assize Sermon 
 on Ps. xiv. 1." 1710, 4to. 
 
 Joh. Christoph. Wolfius, " Dissertatio de Atheismi falso sus- 
 -pectis. " Wittemb. 1710, 4to. 
 
 [Jo. Raphson, " Demonslratio de Deo; sive Methodus, ad 
 Cognitionem Dei naturalem, brevis ac demonstrativa, - - . " Lond, 
 1710, 4to. Leips. 1712, 8vo. Walchius condemns this book. ] 
 
 Richard Burridge, " The Faith of a Converted Atliei!>t. " 
 Lond. 1712, 8vo. 
 
12 
 
 Paul LoRRAiN, ( Ordinary of Newgate, ) " Popery near a-kiii 
 to Paganism and Atheism ; in a Sermon on James i. 27." Lend. 
 1712, 8vo. 
 
 Mathurin Veyssifere de La Croze, " [ Entretiens sur divers 
 sujets d'histoire, de litterature, de religion et de critique. " Co- 
 -logne (Amsterdam), 1711, 12mo; ibid. 1733, 12rno. The fourth 
 of these dissertations is upon Atheism, and the modern Atheists. 
 It has been translated into English. Lond. ] 1712. 
 
 Sir Richard Blackmore, M.D., "Creation; a Philosophical 
 Poem, demonstrating the Exertion and Providence of God. " Lond. 
 1712, 8vo. Often reprinted. " Natural Theology, or Moral Du- 
 -ties considered apart from Positive. With some Observations on 
 Desirableness and Necessity of a Supernatural Revelation. " 
 1728, 8vo. 
 
 Francois de Salignac de Lamotte Fekelon, ( Archbishop of 
 Cambray, and author of Telemachus, ) " [ Demonstration de I'ex- 
 -istence de Dieu, tiree de la connoissance de la nature, et pro- 
 -portionnee a la foible intelligence des plus simples. " 1713, 
 12mo. 1718, 1810.] Translated into English. 1713, 4to. 
 
 [Jo. Ulr. Feommann, ( a theologian of Tubingen, ) "Atheus 
 siultus, sive de stultiti^ Atheismi, dissertationes II, ad Ps. xiv, 
 1. " Tubing. 1713, 4to.] 
 
 [Anon. - - , " Wiederlegung der Atheisten, Deisten, und neuen 
 Zvveifeler. " Frank. 1713, 8vo. ] 
 
 George Berkeley, (Bishop of Cloyne, ) "Three Dialogues, 
 the design of which is plainly to demonstrate the reality and per- 
 -fection of Human Knowledge, the incorporeal Nature of the Soul, 
 and the immediate providence of a Deity, in opposition to Scep- 
 -tics and Atheists. " Lond. 1713, 8vo. 
 
 William Derham, D.D., (Canon of Windsor,) " Physico- 
 -Theology, or a Demonstration of the Being and Attributes of 
 God, from his works of Creation; being the substance of 17 Ser- 
 -mons preached at the Hon. Mr. Boyle's Lectures." Lond. 1713, 
 1714, - - - - Often reprinted. A new edition, with additional 
 Notes. - - Lond. 1798, 2 vols. 8vo. " Astro-Theology, or a De- 
 -monstration of the Being and Attributes of God, from a survey of 
 the Heavens; illustrated with plates." Lond. 1714, 1715, --8vo. ' 
 
 ' It appears Mr. Derham imagined he had seen the cmpy- 
 
13 
 
 William Sworder, ( Vicar of Great Samford and Herapsted, 
 Essex, ) " Three Sermons against Practical Atheism and Occasi- 
 -onal Conformity; on 1 Kings xviii. 21." 1714, 8vo. 
 
 Bernard Niei-wentyt, " [ Het regt gebruyk der werelt-besch- 
 -ouwingen. " Arast. 1715, 1717, 1720, with 23 plates, 4to. ] . 
 Translated into English by Mr. John Chamberlayne, under the 
 title of " The Religious Philosopher ; or, the Right Use of the 
 Contemplation of the World, for the conviction of Atheists and 
 Infidels." Lond. 1718-19, 3 vols. Svo. Lond. 1730, 3 vols. Bvo. 
 [ Noguez, the French translator, has omitted, as too diffuse and 
 trivial, a preliminary discouse, on the sources and remedies of 
 Atheism, which is contained in tlie Dutch and English editions. 
 That enthusiastic Theist, J. J. Rousseau, detested the dull and prc- 
 -lix work of Nieuwentyt. Voltaire says, that according to Nieu- 
 -ventyt, " God has given us ears, in order that we may have 
 faith; because faith comes from hearsay. " vid. Hist, de Jenn. 
 ch. 8.] 
 
 William Wishart, D. D. , "Theologia; or Discourses of God, 
 delivered in cxx Sermons." Edin. 1716, 2 vols. Svo. 
 
 Thomas Philips, " Dissertatio Historica de Atheismo. " Lond. 
 1716, Svo. 
 
 Jo. Frahcisc. Buddel'S, " Theses Theologies de Atheismo et 
 Superstitione. " Jenae. 1717, Svo. 
 
 -reum, in the Milky Way. vid. Voltaire, Micromeg. ch. ], where 
 the Edit, de Kehl remarks, concerning the reverend astronomer: 
 " malheureusement lui et ses imitateurs se trompent souvent dans 
 r exposition de ces merveilles; ils s'extasient sur la sagesse qui se 
 montre dans I'ordre d'un phenomfene, et on decouvre c^ve ce ph6- 
 -nomene est tout different de ce qu'ils ont suppose; alors c'est ce 
 nouvel ordre qui leur parait un chef-d'oeuvre de sagesse. Ce 
 d^faut, commun a tous les ouvrages de ce genre, les a decredites. 
 On sait trop d'avance que, de quelque manifere que les choses 
 soient, I'auteur finira toujours par les admirer. " But the astro- 
 -nomico-theologists are, I think, not more unfortunate than the 
 anatomico-theologists. vid. Lawrence's Lectures, p. 50, 5L 
 
 * Here, and not at p. 8, I should have mentioned Elswich's 
 book. 
 
14 
 
 CoLEEBER,' " Impartial Enquiry into the Existence and 
 
 Nature of God. " 1718, 8vo. 
 
 [The Count Lorenzo Magalotti, " Lettere Famigliari." Ve- 
 -nice, 1719, 1732, 1741, 4to. These letters are not what theii ti- 
 -tle indicates, but are an absolute treatise of controversy against 
 Atheists. Tiraboschi says that we have no book worthy the re- 
 -putation of Magalotti, except these letters. The critic was no 
 doubt right to make this exception ; for all books against Atheists 
 must, of course, be good. ] 
 
 Revd. Thomas Parsons, " The Being of God Demonstrated 
 from the Formation of Man, in a Discourse on Genesis ii. 5. " 
 Oxf. 1721, Bvo. 
 
 William Dawson, "Atheist; a Philosophical Poem.'' Load. 
 1723, 4to. 
 
 William Nichols, D.D. , "A Conference with a Theist: con- 
 -taining an Answer to all the most usual Objections of the Infi- 
 -dels against the Christian Religion : in five parts. " Lond. 1698- 
 -1703, 4 vols. 12mo. A third edition, with the addition of two 
 Conferences; the one with a Machiavelian, and the other with an 
 Atheist; carefully revised and prepared for the press by the Au- 
 -thor himself. Lond. 1723, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Roger Davies, " Essay on the Existence of a Divine Being. " 
 Lond. 1724, 8vo. 
 
 George Bernard Bilfingee, " Dilucidationes Philosophicce de 
 Deo, AnimS [ humana, mundo, et generalibus rerum affectioni- 
 -bus ] ." ' Francf. 1725, 4to. 
 
 Joh. Albert Fabricius, * (one of the most eminent and labori- 
 
 * The same, I suppose, as Samuel Colliber mentioned opposite. 
 ^ But this Wolffian and Leibnitzian sometimes uses very un- 
 
 -guarded expressions, vid. Syst. de la Nat. Tom. I, note at p. 
 72, & p. 80. 
 
 * Fabricius had already given a specimen of this work in the 
 seventh volume of his Bibliotheca Graeca; from which I have 
 copied into the present Catalogue, the principal works written 
 subsequently to 1690. The titles, of upwards three-dozen more- 
 -ancient works against Atheism, I would also have inserted, if 1 
 had not forgotten Fabricius's Catalogue till after my last half 
 sheet was consigned to the press. 
 
15 
 
 -ous Scholars of liis time, ) " Delectus Argumentorum et Sylla- 
 -bus Scriptoium, c|iu veritatem religionis Christianee adversus 
 x\theos, Epicureos, Deistas seu Naturalistas, Ido latras, Judaeos, et 
 Mahammedanos lucubrationibus suis asseruerunt. " Hamb. 1725, 
 8vo. 
 
 Thomas Morell, D. D., "Poems on Divine Subjects, origi- 
 -nal, and translated from the Latin of Marcus Hieronymus Vida; 
 with large Annotations, more particularly concerning the Being 
 and Attributes of God. " Lond. 1732, 8vo. Reprinted, 1736. 
 
 Revd. John Jackson,* "The Existence aud Unity of God, 
 &c. " 1734. 
 
 Samuel CoLLiBER, *' Free Thoughts concerning Souls.*' Lond. 
 1734, 8vo. " Impartial Inquiry into the Nature and Existence 
 of God. " Lond. 1735, Bvo. 
 
 J. Thomas Philips, " Disseitationes Hisloricae quatuor. 1. 
 De Atheismo; 2. De Papatu; 3. ." Lond. 1735, Bvo. 
 
 John Hancock, D. D., " Sermons on the Being of God ; 
 preached at Boyle's Lecture. " Lond. 1739, vol. 1. 
 
 Archibald Campbell, " The Necessity of Revolution ; * or an 
 Inquiry into the extent of Human Powers with respect to matters 
 of Religion, especially the Being of God, and the Immortality of 
 the Soul." Lond. 1739, 8vo. 
 
 W. Weston, "Some kinds of Superstition worse than Atheism; 
 2 Sermons on Phil. iii. 6." 1739, Bvo. 
 
 Benjamin Heath, ( a Lawyer , ) " An Essay towards a 
 
 Demonstrative Proof of the Divine Existence, Unity, and Attri- 
 -butes ; to which is premised, A Short Defence of the Argument 
 commonly called a Priori. " 1740. 
 
 Jeremiah Hunt, D.D., (a Dissenting Divine, died 1744,) 
 " Sermons on the Being and Attributes of God ; on Moral Obli- 
 -gations, and on various subjects. " 4 vols. Posth. 
 
 * He also wrote against Cato's Letters, and against Antk.CoI- 
 -lins, and Tindal, Morgan, and Middleton; ^. 
 
 * A false print, I suppose, for " Revelation. " I have often 
 heard this mistake made in the theological orations of Mr. Gale 
 .Fones. 
 
 O 
 
16 
 
 Richard Jack, "Mathematical Principles of Theology; or the 
 Existence of God Geometrically Demonstrated. " Lond. 1747, 8vo. 
 
 Henry Piers, M.A. , " Atheism a commoner sin than thought 
 of; the Substance of three Sermons on Ephes. ii. 12." 1748, 8vo. 
 
 [Anon.] -- , " Thoughts on suth Phrases of Scripture as as- 
 -cribe Affections and Passions to the Deity. " Lond. Buckland, 
 12mo. 1750. Is. 
 
 Henry Home, I-ord Kames, " Essays on the Principles of 
 Morality and Natural Religion; with other Essays concerning the 
 proof of a Deity." Edin. 1751, Bvo. Anon. 
 
 Samuel Boyse, "The Deity; a Poem." 3rd. edit. 1752. 
 
 Hammond L'Estrange, ' " Essays on the being of a God, his 
 governing and preserving Providence; also some further thoughts 
 on the necessity and certainty of a Divine Revelation. " Lond. 
 1753, Bvo. 2s. 
 
 Francois Marie Arouet de \'oltaire, " [ Histoire de Jenni, 
 ou I'Athee et le Sage. "' 17" , • Translated into En- 
 
 -glish under the title of ] " Young James, or the Sage and the 
 Atheist; an English Story." Lond. 1776, Bvo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 Daniel Concina, ( a very celebrated Dominican Divine, ) 
 " Treatise on Revealed Religion, against atheists, deists, materi- 
 -alists, and indifferents. " In Italian, ^'^enice, 1754, 4to. 
 
 Alexander Campbell, "A Chain of Philosophical Reasoning: 
 being an attempt to demonstrate the Necessary Existence of a 
 
 ' It seems not to be ascertained by which Hammond L'Estrange 
 this book was written. 
 
 * This attack upon Atheism is not the less powerful for being 
 gay and witty. Its faults are, the want of definitions, and the 
 confounding Metaphysics witli Ethics. But these faults are com- 
 -mon to almost all anti-atheistical works. I might here ask, why 
 the priests, who are constantly talking of the cause of God, do 
 not patronize the works of Voltaire and Rousseau, who were firm 
 believers in God. Is it that the priests are really indifferent about 
 the Deity, and care for nothing but their own tithe-enjoining dog- 
 -mata? But such an idea is impossible, — inadvisable, — heretical in 
 short. I mention it, only to show my reprobation of it. 
 
17 
 
 Supreme Being, both from Nature and Reason. Likewise a Re- 
 -futation of the Epicurean System of the Formation of the Uni- 
 -verse, &c. " 1754, 8vo. 2s. 
 
 Joseph Smjth, D. D. , "A clear and comprehensive View of 
 the Being and Attributes of God. " 1754. A pamphlet. 
 
 Sir Isaac Newton, " Four Letters to Dr. Bentley ; containing 
 some arguments in proof of a Deitj'. " Lond. 1756, 8vo. Is.® 
 
 [Anon. ] - - , "Thoughts on the Being of a God, the Nature 
 of Man, and the Relation of Man to his Maker, &c; addressed 
 to Mankind in general. " Lond. Crowder, 1756, 8vo. 2s. 
 
 [ Anon. ] - - , "A New Method of demonstrating from Rea- 
 -son and Philosophy, the four Fundamental Points of Religion, '" 
 viz. The Existence of the Immateriality of the Spirit or Soul of 
 Man; 2. The Existence of the Supreme Spirit, or God; 3. The 
 Immortality of the Soul of Man; 4. The Certainty of a Future 
 State of Eternal Happiness or Misery. " Lond. Millar, 1756, 
 8vo. 4s. 
 
 William Duncombe, " Remarks on Lord Bolingbroke's notion 
 of a God, with some occasional notes. " " A Translation from 
 Cicero, De Natura Deorum; of the Arguments of Q. Lucilius 
 Balbus, the Stoic, ' in proof of the being, and of the wisdom, pow- 
 -er, and goodness of God." 1763. 
 
 ' According to the Biogr. Univ., Newton was, in 1693, afflicted 
 with a severe mental disorder. He died in 1727. I know not 
 when these letters were written. 
 
 '" I wonder what Religion the anonymous writer alludes to. 
 By his mentioning "the Supreme Spirit" one might imagine that 
 he worshipped "the Great Spirit" the "Owaneeyo" of the North 
 American Aborigines. As to the Immortality of the Soul it is a 
 Platonic rather than a Christian doctrine. Paulus Tarsensis seems 
 to speak only of the Resurrection of the Body — a Pharisaic and 
 perhaps Mithriac or even Egyptian doctrine, seemingly incompati- 
 -ble with that of Plato. At any rate the Anonymous writer de- 
 -serves to be considered as an Infidel, because apparently he does 
 not allude to the sublime Israelitish publications on which de- 
 -pends the only true ( the present Anglican ) Religion. 
 
 ' A Christian's borrowing the arguments of a Pagan, in order 
 to remove him out of a difficulty, is evidently not at all like ;». 
 
18 
 
 llulpli IIeathcote, D. D. , "A Discourse upon the Being of 
 God, against Atheists; in two Sermons." Lond. 1763, 4to. Is. 
 2 editions. 
 
 Jean Baptiste Bullet,' [ " L'Existence de Dieu d^montree par 
 ies merveilles de la nature.^' Paris, 1768,] 2 vols. 12mo. 
 
 [ Anon. ] - - , "A Treatise on the Existence of a Divine Be- 
 -ing from all Eternity : to which is annexed, A Succinct Treatise 
 on the Immortality of the Soul ; illustrated by demonstration. By 
 Christianus. " Norwich, 1770, 4to. 
 
 [Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire, "II faut prendre un 
 parti, ou le principe d'action. " 17 . ( (Euvr. Tom. 29, p. 
 166. ) Condorcet ( \'ie de Voltaire, last page but one, ) says, 
 that this work " renferme peut-etre Ies preuves Ies plus fortes de 
 I'existence d'un Etre supreme, qu'il ait etc possible jusqu'ici aux 
 hommes de rassembler. ""♦ ] 
 
 The Hon. and Revd. James Cochrane, " On the Existence 
 of a Deity; a Sermon on Rom. i. 20. " 1780, 8vo. 
 
 Giacomo Belgrado, " Delia Esistenza di Dio da' Teoremi 
 Geometrici dimostrata, Dissert. " Udina, 1777, . " Dell' 
 
 Esistenza d'una sola specie d'esseri ragionevoli e liberi si arguisce 
 I'Esistenza di Dio, Dissertazione." Udina, 1782. 
 
 [ Anon. ] - - , "An Attempt to shew that the Knowledge of 
 God has in all ages been derived from Revelation or Tradition, " 
 not from Nature."* Glasg. 8vo. Is. 
 
 poor wretch's jumping at the Devil's cloven foot to drag him of 
 a well. Moreover, Baltaus argues, in part, from auguries, and from 
 apparitions of the Deities. He maintains also that the World is 
 wise ; and is scarcely even ashamed to acknowledge that God is 
 round and roUable. 
 
 ' Here is the true proof — solid, weighty, and irresistible. 
 
 + Other works of Voltaire in favour of a Deity, are " Lettres 
 de Memmius a Ciceron " (Tom. 29, p. 197-229 ); the " Home- 
 -lie sur I'Alheisme " (Tom, 29, p. 332-350); the articles "Atheis- 
 -me," and " Dieu " of his Dictionaire Philosophique ; the " Pofcme 
 sur la Loi Naturelle; " "Les Adorateurs, ou Ies louanges de Dieu" 
 ( Tom. 32, p. 348—374 ); and the second Dialogue d'Evhemfere 
 " sur la Divinite. " ( Tom. 32, p. 472-481. ) 
 
 ' The man who wrote this title must either have been a wolf 
 
19 
 
 M. J. G. LiNOEMANX, " Gescliicto der Mciiiuiiuoii, &c; or, a 
 History of the Opinions of Ancient und Modern Nations, con- 
 -cerning the Deity, Religion, and the Priestiiood; together with a 
 particular Ecclesiastical History of the Egyptians, Persians, Chal- 
 -deans, Chinese, Phenicians, Greeks, and Romans, and a \'iew 
 of the Religion of the Savages. Part. i. " 1784, 8vo. 
 
 Franfois Blanchet, (a French abbe,) "\'uessur I'Education 
 d'un Prince, " with " an ode on the existence of God. " ' 1784, 
 12mo. 
 
 Hugh Hamiltox, D.D., ( Bishop of Ossory, ) " An Attempt 
 to prove the Existence and absolute Perfection of the Supreme 
 Unoriginated Being, in a demonstrative manner. " Lond. 1785, 
 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 Peter Schoi'ten, " A Treatise on the Being of a God ; pub- 
 -lished by the Society of Edam: from the Dutch." Lond. 1787, 
 12mo. 
 
 Jean Baptiste Aubry, " Lefons metaphysiques a un milord 
 incredule sur I'existence et la nature de Dieu. " 1790. " Questi- 
 -ons aux philosophes du jour, sur I'ame et la matiere, " 1791. 
 
 John Hill, Philologus, "Lectures and Reflections on various 
 subjects : viz. Divinity, Law, Civil and Ecclesiastical ; Philosophy, 
 Characters, Atheism, and Hypocrisy; Manliness, Godliness, and 
 Gratitude; Coalition, Marriage, Industry, and Sloth; with The 
 Force of Wonder; a Poem. Lond. 1792, 8vo. 4s. 
 
 [Akon. ] -- , "An Answer to their own Principles, to direct 
 and consequential Atheism.'*'' Lond. Ridgway, 1793, 8vo. 3s. 
 
 in sheep's clothing, or must otherwise have had much more zeal 
 than knowledge. It is dreadful to see how the best of causes is 
 betrayed by false, or foolish, advocates. The Lord defend the 
 Lord from the Lord's friends ! 
 
 * If these works, apparently posthumous, were published con- 
 -jointly, and in the order mentioned by Dr. Watt; then, although 
 I cannot but approve of every union of Church and State, yet 
 I may at the same time be surprised, and even scandalized, that 
 the Prince should seem to take precedence of the Deity. 
 
 * This title seems equally ill-written and furious. The author 
 should have given his name. He might have been promoted to 
 a methodist class-leadership. 
 
20 
 
 Richard Joseph Sulivan Esq., "A View of Nature; in Let- 
 -ters to a Traveller among the Alps ; with Reflections on Atheis- 
 -tical Philosophy, now exemplified in France." Lond. 1794, 
 6 vols. 8vo. 36s. 
 
 Revd. John Malham, (Vicar of Hilton in Dorsetshire,)* "A 
 Word for the Bible; being a serious Reply to the Declarations 
 and Assertions of the Speculative Deists and Practical Atheists of 
 modern times, particularly the Age of Reason, by Thomas Paine. " 
 Lond. •1796, 8vo. 
 
 Revd. John Prior Estein, LL. D., "The Nature and the 
 Causes of Atheism. " 1797, 8vo. 2s. [He also wrote against the 
 Age of Reason. ] 
 
 Edward Dunn, " The Existence of God in Three Persons, 
 Philosophically proved. " Lond. 1799, Bvo. 
 
 William Hamilton Reid, " The Rise and Dissolution of the 
 Infidel Societies in this Metropolis, including the Origin of mo- 
 -dern Deism and Atheism, the Genius and Conduct of these As- 
 -sociations, their Lecture-Rooms, Field-Meetings and Disputations, 
 from the publication of Paine's Age of Reason till the present 
 period ; with general Considerations on the Influences of Infidelity 
 on Society, &c. " 1800, 8vo. 2s. 
 
 William Paley, D. D. , "Natural Theology; or Evidences of 
 the Existence and Attributes of the Deity ; collected from the ap- 
 -pearances of Nature. " ^ [ 1st. and perhaps also ] 5th. edit. 
 Lond. 1802, 1803, 8vo. 9s. 
 
 * But I ought to have omitted this work : for, w hatever Mr. 
 Malham may say against " Practical Atheists " (an absurd term,) 
 yet I am most piously afraid, that most of the opponents of Mr. 
 Thomas Paine have, in crying up the Bible, done little more 
 than decry the Deity. 
 
 * Here I might mention the " Dictionnaire des Atliees, " by 
 Pierre Sylvain Markchal, Paris, 1800, 8vo. But this laborious, 
 'tho' uncandid, as also hastily-printed, work, unfortunately pleads 
 on the heterodox side of the question. 
 
 * This book has, in our country, so obliterated all former pub- 
 -lications on the subject, that one would suppose there existed no 
 written proof of the Deity, till within the last 25 years. Dr. Pa- 
 
21 
 
 George Henry Law, D.D., (Lord Bishop of Chester,) "The 
 Limit' to our Inquiries with respect to the Nature and Attributes 
 of the Deity. '' 1804, 4to. Is. 6d. 
 
 Thomas Langdon, " The Divine Being, a God that hideth 
 himself;* a Sermon, preached at Salem Chapel, Leeds. 1804, 
 12mo. 
 
 George Clarke, ( of Surrey, ) " Farther Evidences of the Exis- 
 -tence of the Deity; intended as a humble Supplement to Arch- 
 -deacon Paley's Natural Theology. " 1806, 8vo. 2s. 
 
 Frederick Shoberl, " Demonstration of the Existence of God 
 from the wonderful Works of Nature; from the French of Cha- 
 -teaubriand; being an Extract from his Beauties of Christianity."' 
 1806, 8vo. 
 
 John Scott Byerley, " Leopold de Circe, or the EfTects of 
 Atheism; a Novel." 1807, 2 vols. 12mo. 
 
 Revd. Samuel Vince, A.M., ( Plumian Professor of Astrono- 
 -my. Archdeacon of Bedford, ) "A confutation of Atheism from 
 the Laws of the Heavenly Bodies; in four Discourses; preached 
 before the University of Cambridge. " Camb. 1807, 8vo. 
 
 Revd. David Savile, " Dissertation on the Existence, &,c. of 
 God, and '" of the Deity ; Character, 8cc. of his righteous sub- 
 -jects." Edin. 1807, 8vo. 
 
 -ley's arguments are chiefly anatomical, despite of the famous 
 proverb " duo Medici, tres Athei. " Moreover, it is much to be 
 lamented, that the confessedly best proof of a most wise ( and 
 consequently most beneficent ) Being, must be derived from a 
 disgusting and unnatural pursuit, which the laws of this country 
 so strongly reprobate, that all our young surgeons are now obli- 
 -ged to study at Paris. 
 
 ' This title looks very much like an extinguisher. 
 
 * What a homble and shocking title! The Deity hide himself? — 
 Why, what should he be ashamed of? 
 
 " It is said, that Chateaubriand wrote his "Beauties of Christia- 
 -nity " at the suggestion of a Bookseller, who, when the Marquis 
 presented for sale an irreligious MS. , remarked that the popular 
 tide now ran in the contrary direction. 
 
 '" Docs Mr. Savile distinguish God from the Dcil;jf 
 
22 
 
 Revd. Christopher Hodgson, LL. B., "A Discourse on the 
 Existence of God. " 1808, 8vo. 
 
 [Anon.] - - "A New Ai-gument for the Existence of God. " 
 Lond. Longman, 1808, cr. 8vo. 
 
 Revd. Robert Adam, B.A. , "The Religious World Display- 
 -ed, or a View of the four grand Systems, Judaism, Paganism, 
 Christianity, and Mahomedanism ; and of the various existing De- 
 -nominations. Sects, and Parties in the Christian World ; to which 
 is subjoined a View of Deism and Atheism."' 1809, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 31s. 6d. 
 
 William Enfield, A.M., "Natural Theology; or a Demon- 
 -stration of the being and attributes of a God, from his works of 
 Creation, arranged in a Popular Way for Youth. "^ Lond. 1809, 
 12mo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 John GoLDiE Esq., "A Treatise upon the Evidences of a 
 Deity. " 1809. 
 
 William Lawrence Brown, D.D. , "An Essay on the Exis- 
 -tence of a Supreme Being possessed of Infinite Power, Wisdom, 
 and Goodness; containing also the Refutation of the Objections 
 urged against his Wisdom and Goodness. " To which Mr. Bur- 
 -net's first prize of £1200 was adjudged.^ 1816, 2 vols. 8vo. 21s. 
 
 * I must protest against this title, as savouring of candour and 
 heterodoxy : for it is not dogmatical, but only historical and de- 
 -scriptive. 
 
 ' I do not like this Title. Adults reject every book " arranged 
 in a Popular way for Youth. " And then again : children believe 
 in every thing, in which they suppose grown up people believe. 
 And why should Schoolmasters ( i. e. Stultifiers ) excite Scepticism 
 by attempting to prove what is assumed? 
 
 ' Dr. Brown seems therefore to have argued on the winning 
 side of the question. 
 
23 
 
 The above list is chiefly compiled from the references given^^^in 
 that most laborious and useful work the Bibliotheca Britannica. 
 
 1 will now give the titles of some books, which Walchius, in his 
 Bibliotheca Theologica (Vol. 1, p. 698—704), has very metho- 
 -dically arranged : 
 
 Fr. Hoffmann, as also Detharding, Heister, and Hebenstrein, 
 have derived arguments in favour of a Deity from the inspection 
 of the human frame. Other anatomico-theologians have been more 
 minute. Sturmius, in 1678; and Thummigius, in 1725; prove a 
 Deity from the eijc: J. A. Schmidius, in 1694, from the ear; G. 
 A. Hamberger, in 1709, from the heart; Chr. Donatus, in 1686, 
 from the hand; J. F. Wucherer, in 1708, from the brain; ' and 
 .T. Timmius, in 1735, from the spine. Other anthropo-physico- 
 -ilieologians have proved the same grand problem, without being 
 obliged to contemplate the horrors of a dissecting room. I allude 
 to I'everlin's proofs from the human voice ; Jenichen's from the 
 external senses; Ries's from the union of the mind and body; 
 Kromayer's and Weitzmann's from our passions. 
 
 Walchius next mentions the treatises, in which the Deity is 
 proved from observations on irrational Animals. Zornius, in his 
 Petinotheologie, argues from birds ; Richter, in his Ichthyotheolo- 
 -gie, from fishes ; Coel.Sec.Curio, and Ger. Meier, from spiders ; 
 Rathlef, in his Akridotheologie, from locusts ; ^ Lesser, in his Tes- 
 -taceotheologie, from shell-jish; and in his Insectotheologie, from 
 insects. Even mice, ants, and silkworms, ' have afforded excellent 
 
 ' Yet the physiologists, who, in latter times, have the most pro- 
 -foundly studied the brain, have been accused of establishing a 
 system of materialism. 
 
 ^ I think Mr. Rathlef ought to have reserved the locusts to 
 prove the existence of the Devil, — an essential part of the Christi- 
 -an Pneumatocracy, who, 'tho' of infinite use to the fathers of the 
 church, has latterly fallen into most shocking and inconceivable 
 neglect. 
 
 3 I have no doubt but silkworms were created in order that 
 ladies might wear satins, and levantines, and gros-de-Naples, &c. 
 &c. &c. 
 
24 
 
 arguments ; and have no doubt equally shown the ingenuity and 
 the orthodoxy of the pious naturalists who condescended to in- 
 -vestigate their habits. Moreover, Andr. Murray, in 1724, has 
 argued from the voice of animals; * Leon. Bohner, in 1725, from 
 the variety of the external forms of animals; and, in the same 
 year, Reimarus proved " the existence of a most wise God " from 
 the instinct of brutes. 
 
 Rational beings, and even Irrational, have thus proved the ex- 
 -istence of a being supremely rational; we need not therefore be 
 surprised if we arrive at the same result from the consideration 
 of beings, or rather things, yet lower in the scale of organization. 
 The plants attest a Deity, according to the Phytotheologie of 
 Jul. Bern, von Rohr, and various treatises of J. Christian Bene- 
 mann. The Mountains * are " witnesses of the Deity " in the 
 opinion of Faverlinus ; and Lesser, in his Lithotheologie, argues 
 even from stones. * These are German Treatises : of the English 
 may be mentioned the " Metaphysical and Divine Contempla- 
 -tions on the Magnet " ^ by that enlightened ^Vitch-burner Sir 
 Maghew Hale. 
 
 After mountains and stones, nothing more simple can be ima- 
 -gined than the elements ; and even these unorganized substances 
 evince the existence of a grand organizer: for that most laborious 
 of scholars, Jo. Alb. Fabricius, proves a Deity, in his Hydrotheo- 
 -logie, from Water; and, in his Pyrotheologie, from Fiie. It 
 may be added, that the Water-argument must to a certain degree 
 have been previously alluded to, in Meier's treatise on Rain, * 
 
 * The yelling of dogs, and the screeching of owls, I suppose, 
 as instances of universal harmony. 
 
 ^ I suppose Mr. Feverlin alludes to those mountains which 
 . skipped like rams and the little hills like lambs. 
 
 * Yet Paley, in the veiy first page of his Natural Theology, 
 seems to confess that no argument could be founded on a stone. 
 But Mr. Lesser can scarcely allude to ordinary stones. Perhaps 
 he proves the goodness of God from that agreeable disease the 
 stone in the bladder. 
 
 ' Lond. 1695, 8vo. The Bibl. Brit, says fol. 
 
 * In his dissertation de Pluvia, existenti^ Dei teste. Hamb. 
 1686, 4to. 
 
25 
 
 and Leutwein's upon Snoiv^; as the fire-argument may afterwards 
 have been improved by the treatise upon Thmider mid Lightning 
 by von Seelen '", Zopf', RhyzeP, and Ahlwart^ 
 
 I will abridge no further from Walchius's 4th. §. of the 5th. sect, 
 of his 5th. chapter: for Schwartzius with his demons*, and Stengelius 
 with his monstruosities *, must I think have been, either secret ene- 
 -mies, or most unprofitable friends, to the grand cause which they 
 proposed defending. Here therefore ends my catalogue; which, 
 however, the transcription of a few more pages, from Walchius 
 and Fabricius, would nearly have doubled. 
 
 The pious theiosebist must, I think, allow, after reflecting upon 
 the multitude of books written upon the subject, that, if the 
 
 " In his "Theologia Nivis physico-mystica dogmatico-practica ; 
 oder geistliche lehrschule vom Schnee.'' Nurinib. 1693, 8vo. 
 
 '" "de Tonitru, existentiae Dei teste." 1722, & 1724. 
 
 * "de providentia Dei fulminantis''. 1728, 4to. 
 
 * In his "Brontologia theologico-historica,"written in the Swed- 
 -ish language, 1721, 4to. 
 
 ' "Brontotheologie ; oder vernunftigen und theologischen be- 
 
 -trachtungen iiber den Blitz und Donner; wodurch ." 1746, 
 
 Bvo. Let me here observe, that I wish the thunder-and-lightning 
 argument were reserved for the Evil principle : the Good principle 
 mio-ht, like Franklin, have drawn away the dangerous fluid with p.on- 
 -ductors. Electric explosions may indeed plead for false (antiquated, 
 vanquished, or foreign) Gods. Petronius somewhere says : 
 
 " Primus in orbe Deos fecit timor, ardua ccelo 
 Fulmina cum caderent discussa que moenia flammis." 
 
 But Lucretius (B. 6, v. 380 — 423) brings forward some plausible rea- 
 -sons against the divine origin of lightning. Sir William Drummond, 
 in his " Odin", p. 113, when describing the principle of Evil, says : 
 " He speaks in thunder ". 
 
 * " de usu et praestanti^ Dsemonum ad demonstrandam naturam 
 Dei." Altorf. 1715. 
 
 *"de Monstris et Monstrosis, quam mirabilis bonus et Justus 
 in mundo administrando sit Deus, monstrantibus." Ingolstad. 
 1647, 8vo. 
 
26 
 
 existence of " the true God " is not already proved, it probably 
 never will be proved. At any rate let us piously hope, that well- 
 -meaning persons will for the future keep their proofs to themselves : 
 for, as was remarked, a century and a half ago, by the devout 
 Father Sainte Marthe : " So many books are written to prove 
 religion, that in time there will be no religion"; and, even eighteen 
 centuries ago, Cicero's Cotta, after saying that he believed in 
 the Gods because his ancestors believed in them, said to Balbus : 
 "You bring forward all your arguments to prove the existence of 
 the Gods ; so that, what in my opinion is by no means doubtful, 
 you, by your argumentation, render doubtful." 
 
 END OF THE FOURTH APPENDIX. 
 
 o 
 
THE FOLLOWING ARE THE PRINCIPAL 
 
 CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 Observe, that, throughout the volume, some words are spelt in 
 various ways, viz. Grecian, Greecian, & Graecian ; idolatry & idolo- 
 -latry; Demons & Daemons ; 'though, 'tho', & tho. Also there are 
 sometimes blanks, where an author copied seems to have left a 
 false print. 
 
 In the Preface, 
 p. i, line ^tfor : Oi-phica, read : Orphic Hymns 
 p. iii, note 3, for : No. 2 , read: No. 261. 
 p. vi, line 10, _/br : edition, read: impression 
 
 In the Life of Plutarchus. 
 p. 3, note 1, line 1, after: was, add: but see p. 33, note 1, line 9. 
 p. 6, note 6, read: p. 575, E; [vol. 5, p. 321, Wytt.] 
 p. 10, line 15, read: Ai^npi^iiMeNON <s«c;-A 
 
 p. 13, add (as a note to line 13) : [But he is often an interlocutor^ in 
 the Symposiaca Problemata.] ^ 
 
 p. 13, line 16, read: oyx ikHAoyN 
 p. 13, line 23, read: ta a eKeiNoyc 
 
 p. 16, note 10, after: Lucianus(A. D. 176), a(/d: Galenus(A.D. 180) 
 p. 19, lines 15, 16, read: mht€ yn^pexHi noAy . x&ipeiN €a 
 p. 19, note 2, after: edit. Potter., add: conf. strom. B. 6, p. 642; 
 Brucker, H.Ph., vol. 3, p. 317; and Mosheim, de turbata, p. 754, 
 
 p. 23, read the end of note 8, thus : p. 749, B. [In the same 
 
 treatise (p. 756) Plutarch's father, after remarking that the 
 tradition of one's country is the best foundation of religion, 
 adds, that Love is not enHAyc €k tinoc EipBApiKHc AeiciAAiMo- 
 
 -NiAC , '(ocnep XTTAI tin€C km ^ACONAIOI A€roMeNoi . 
 
 Afterwards (p. 764. C & E) we are told, that Love is the 
 only deity who is acknowledged by those three directors of 
 
2 CORIUGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 our opinions concerning gods, the poets the legishitors and 
 
 (he philosophers.3 
 p. 25, line 24, read: AOM€TUNOC 
 !>. 29, read the end of the note 2, tlms: presentait." vid. noAixiKi 
 
 nAp*.rr6AM^T&, p. 811, B& C; vol. 7, p. 523, Wytt.]. 
 
 p. 31, note I, efface (as contemptible) from: I wish, down to: fresh one. 
 p. 32, note 7, after: prosewriter, add: (except Thucydides and pos- 
 -sibly Herodotus). After: Horatius, add: and probably Juvenalis. 
 p. 35, line 13, for : versalite, read: versatile. 
 In Wyttenbach's Prefatory Note. 
 
 p. 5, at the end of note 8, add : But conf. Hume's Essays, note. SS, 
 vol. 1, p. 519.] 
 
 p. 8, at the end of note 7, add : except that given in the title page 
 (vid. infra, 3rd. appendix, p, 31), 
 
 p. 8, note 8, line 3, for: my appendix, read: my second and third 
 appendices. 
 
 p. 9, note 9, after the word *^ governing' \ add: (vid. Lucretius, as 
 quoted by Servius, ad iEn. VIII, in Elmenhorst's note to Mi- 
 -nut. Felix, p. 37.) 
 
 p. 9, note 10, after: Engl. Tr., insert: van Dalen de Idololatria, ch. 
 3 to 10; the references in the index to Mosheim's Cudworth; 
 Brucker, Hist. Phil., vol. 2, p. 425, & alibi ; 
 
 In Plutarch's Treatise. 
 
 I regret that I have not always distinguished my own remarks by 
 brackets. But observe that whatever note is in Latin, or is preced- 
 -ed by a Latin sentence, is extracted literally from Wyttenbach. 
 Where I have abridged any of this critic's sentences, I have used 
 English. Such English notes as include Wyttenbach's name, or as 
 refer to Baxter, are but too evidently my own, and have been some- 
 -times inserted only to equalize the pages, 
 p. 10, note 5, read: opponuntur 
 p. 10, note 6, lin. ult. read: anocion 
 p, IJ, note 1, lin. penult,, read: Judaeus 
 p. 12, note 4, line 2, read: cnA^ri<N^ 
 p. 13, line 8, transpose the comma from after the first and to after 
 
 the second and. 
 
CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 3 
 
 p, 16, line 7, with : ecTi begin a fresh paragraph. 
 
 p. 18, line 15, read: Ti^p^KTiKON 
 
 p. 19, ch. 5, line 3, read: one's eyes 
 
 p. 21, end of 1st. paragraph, read : pieces 
 
 p. 30, note 7, from : I should, to the end of the note, efface as 
 contemptible ; the more so, as the word ncoaon would mean : 
 "of those who have no teeth". 
 
 p. 34, note 10, line 2, read : frequenter 
 
 p. 36, line 1, read: nY©^ropOY 
 
 p. 37, lin. penult, for: to write to, read: [to invite] 
 
 p. 38, line 1, read: cAeHic 
 
 p. 38, note 3, line 7, for : it, read : my attempt at a version 
 
 p. 43, line 16, /or: then, read: than 
 
 p. 44, line 19, add (as a note to the word K^r^reAkCTi,) : conf. de 
 Iside, p. 378, D; ch, 68, 69,: 'oi a€ hoaaoi atoaoic reAou 
 
 ApWCIN eN TiklC nOMAMC KAI T&IC '60pTAIC . 6Y<J)HMIAN npOKHpY" 
 -TTONTeC ? €ITA nepi TCON eeCON h.yVUiH Jh. AYC<t>HMOTATA K&l 
 AerONT€C KM AI&N0OYM6N0I . HUC OYN XpHCTCON eCTl TMC 
 
 CKY©P"niiic KAi AreA\cToic km neNeiMotc gycimc , ei mht€ 
 
 HApAAineiN Th. NeNOMICMgNA KikAWC Exei , MHTE 4)YP€IN T&C HCpi 
 eeCON AO^AC . km CYNXi^p^TTeiN "YHO'I'IMC 4,fonoic ? 
 
 p. 44, note Q,for: and of Moloch, read: Bacchus, Isis, and Yehouh. 
 
 p. 46, to note 9, add: for the mention of the taaatai in ch. 3, (p. 6), 
 is surely too remote.] 
 
 p. 47, lines 11 & 19, read: Carthaginians. 
 
 p. 48, read note 4, thus : conf. " de his qui sero, " ch. 6, p. 552, A. 
 For the worship of Moloch, vid. Schedius, ch. 33, p. 595 — 598. 
 With regard to human sacrifices, see the notes to Minutius Felix, 
 p. 291 — 293, and Parkhurst's Hebrew Lexicon, art. Melech, p. 402. 
 
 p. 48, begin the 9th. note thus : Laudat sub Xenophanis nomine 
 aliquoties, de Iside, p. 379, B; A.mator. p. 763, C. Aristoteles 
 
 p. 49, to the end of ch. XIII, add (as a note) : conf. Clem. Alex., 
 cohort, p. 21, with Potter's note. 
 
 p. 49, in note 9, after: gkocmhc^". add: Et quod Aristoteles 
 Xenophanem Elaeatis de Leucothea, idem de eadem Thebanis 
 Lycurgum respondisse scribit auctor Apophth. Laconicorum, 
 p. 228, D & E. [But there Wyttenbach says " non videtur 
 Lycurgi"]. 
 
4 , CORRIGENDA AND ADDEKDA. 
 
 p. 50, line 3, to the word ^eeoTHTA , add (as a note): conf. de 
 Iside, p. 378, A; ch. 57 : 6NI01 - - Anoc4)&A6NTec n^NTAniciN €ic 
 
 A€ICIAMMONIAN COAICSON I 'Ol AG (JjeyrONTeC 'COCnep -eAOC THN 
 
 ACiciAAiMONiivN , eA^eoN Ayeic 'wcnep eic kphmnon CMnecoNTec 
 
 THN AeeOtHTA . 
 
 p. 50, to the end of note 1, add: [Clem. Alex., in his cohortatio, 
 
 says: >.KpOTHT€C Ap& AMAeiiC AeeOTHC KAI AeiCIAMMONU (p. 
 
 21) ; and, at p. 74, he says : &noAAY6i a6iciaaimonia kai ccozei 
 eeoceseiA], 
 
 In the observations on Theophrastus. 
 
 p. vii, insert (as a note to the end of the 2nd. paragraph) : I had for- 
 -gotten that Gale's "Opuscula" contain the Characters of Theo- 
 -phrastus. Moreover there is a translation of the following chapter 
 in van Dalen "de Divinationibus '', p. 366, 367; and in Buddeus 
 "Theses de Atheismo et Superstitione ", p. 549. 
 
 p, 4, lin. ult. read: cinai , [or 
 
 p. 12, after line 22, insert (as a note to the word AnorpAneic 
 in p. 4, line 2.) : [Wyttenbach (not, in Plutar. VII. sapientt. 
 conviv. p, 149, D) says we ought to read AnorponAioic.] 
 
 p. 15, read the two last lines of note (29) thus: p. 280, C), vit, 
 
 Romul. (T. 1, p. 31, D.)." Casaub. [conf. Potter's Antiq. vol. 1, 
 p. 263.]. 
 
 In the first Appendix. 
 
 p. 2, line 2, to the word : tricks, add (as a note) : Campanella has 
 been accused of saying, that Nimrod, Abraham, Moses, David, 
 and Christ, as also Minos, Numa, Mahomet, and other legislators, 
 used artifice to inspire the vulgar with awe (vid. Branchedor. ap. 
 Brucker, H. Ph., vol. 5, p. 115). 
 
 p. 2, line 10, to the word : Zathraustes, add (as a note): Fabricius 
 (who tells us, in his B. Gr., vol. 1, p. 550, that some MSS. read 
 "theAriani" instead of " the Arismaspians") seems to know no- 
 -thing more about Zathraustes. Volney (New Researches, p. 263) 
 appears to conjecture that Zatliraustes may possibly be the same 
 as Zoroaster. 
 
 p, 2, at the end of note 5, add: Clemens Alex, says:— eneici 
 Moi eAyMAzeiN i tici noxe <|)Antaciaic AnAxeeNxec 'oi nptoroi 
 
 n€nAANHM6N01 , AEICIAAIMONI AN ANGpCOAOIC KATHTreiAAN , AAIMONAC 
 AAHTHpiOyC NOMOeeTOYNT€C C€BeiN ; €1X6 (})Op60N€YC eK€INOC 
 
 HN , eixe MCpOvl' , €ix€ aaaoc xic , -oi Necoc kai EWMoyc anec- 
 
 -THCAN AYTOIC i npOC AE KAI eyCIAC HApACTHCAl npCOTOI MEMAe- 
 
CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 5 
 
 -eyNTAi ! KM r^p ah km KiXik xPONoyc 'YCTepoN ■ ^NenA^TTON 
 9€0YC . 'oic npocKYNOieN . tohort. ad Gentes, p. 38, and 
 see Potter's notes, 
 
 p. 4, line 16, to the word : metum, add (as a note): Seneca (Qusest. 
 Natural. B.,2, ch. 42, quoted by Mosh. ad Cudw. vol. 2, p. 74) 
 says : "ad coercendos animos imperitorum sapientissimi viri judi- 
 -caverunt inevitabilem metum, ut supra nos aliquid timeremus". 
 
 p. 7, line 8, to the word : people, add (as a note) : A modern itine- 
 -rant arch-hypocrite, Jean Labadie, also maintained that God 
 occasionally deceives, (vid. Niceron, Memoires, torn. 18, p. 396). 
 
 p. 7, note 8, line 16, read: temerariam. 
 
 p. 9, note .3, line 5, after: 58, add: & Brucker, vol. 3, p. 374. Com- 
 -pare the opinion of Pythagoras, infr. App. 3, p. 2, and of the 
 Pythagorean Sextus, ibid. p. 9). 
 
 p. 14, line 1, to: Leo X, add (as a note): Others attribute to Boniface 
 VIII. this famous sentiment, which, tho it may have been thoiight 
 by most of the popes, was probably not openly spoken by any of 
 them (vid. Voltaire, Ess. sur les Mceurs, torn. 2, p. 244). 
 
 p. 14, line 18, after: "Hare", add (as a note): Dr. Hare, when only 
 a Dean, made a blunder with regard to one of Mr. Toland's 
 works, which occasioned the publication of a pamphlet entitled 
 "A short Essay upon Lying" [probably in 1720]. The Bibli- 
 -otheca Britannica no where mentions this treatise ; but, in vol. 4, 
 we find references to the following works. The Rev. Henry Ma- 
 -son, in 1624 & 1634, wrote " the New Art of Lying, covered by 
 Jesuites under the vaile of Equivocation". In 1757 there was 
 published anonymously " an Essay on Political Lying," which was 
 replied to anonymously in the same year. In 1762 was published 
 "The Progress of Lying, a Satire." I never saw any of these 
 tracts; but I dare say they merit to be re-edited, and enlarged. 
 An epigraph for them might be taken from the greatest of poets : 
 " Praised be all liars and all lies " 
 
 p. 15, line 23, after " Temple ", add (as a note) : Sir William Drum- 
 -mond, in the preface to his (Edipus Judaicus, says : " These 
 are opinions which I have no wish of promulgating to the mob." 
 
 p. 15, line 24, to the word : aristocrats, add (as a note): Their love 
 of deceiving the vulgar is, no doubt, fully developed, in the two 
 following pamphlets: "A Catechism for the Swinish Multitude, 
 by the late Professor Porson " ; and " Politics for the People, 
 or Hog's wash"; published by Daniel Isaac Eaton. In an equal- 
 
CORKIGENDA AND ADDF.NUA. 
 
 -ly ludicrous style, but with very libeiticide intentions, Mr. Can- 
 -ning wrote his "Knife-grinder", a political squib, which shews, 
 too well, the impossibility of arguing with grown-up ignorance. 
 
 p. 15, line 26, to the word: politics, add (as a note): Condorcet (in 
 his Tableau de I'esprit humain, p. 182, Paris, 1822, 12mo.) has 
 dared to say of our constitution [which is the envy of surrounding 
 nations, &c. &c.] that it "has no support but national superstition 
 and political hypocrisy". 
 
 p. 1 7, after : postulat ", add : Even Christianns Thomasius said : 
 
 " Wise men improve the silly, by taking advantage of the fears 
 which the silly feel towards imaginary powers." vid. Brucker, 
 vol. 5, p. 515, No. 102. 
 
 p. 18, line 12 & 13, read: philosophique 
 
 p. 18, line 4, after the word: him, add: But unfortunately for his 
 orthodoxy, he very often argues otherwise, as in his " Reflexions 
 pour les sots " (Melanges litteraires, torn. 1 , p. 48.). His Turkish 
 proclamation, against printing, (ceuvr. torn. 40, p. 67 — 70,) reveals 
 one of the grand secrets of universal priestcraft. 
 
 p. 19, line 17, read: instances 
 
 p. 20, line 1, read: procession 
 
 p. 20, line 24, after : of it, add (as a note) : vid. Syst. de la Nature, 
 torn. 3, p. 276 — 273. The argument is best replied to, at p. 308, 
 note, ad fin. 
 
 p. 21, note 3, lin. ult. read: instinct. 
 
 In the second Appendix. 
 
 p. 1, note 3, lin. ult., add: The cause of the above-mentioned appa- 
 -rent digression is explained on reading the title of Kortholt's "de 
 atheismo ", as published separately in 1689, i. e. nine years before 
 the publication of the entire " Paganus obtrectator ". vid. Walch. 
 ■ Biblioth. Patristica, p. 425 ; where we read that Adamus Rechen- 
 -bergius also wrote a tieatise " de atheismo christianis olim a 
 gentibus objecto". 
 
 p. 8, line 17, after: Bvo., add (as a note): conf. Voltaire, Essai sur 
 les moeurs, ch. 73, torn. 2, p. 300, note. See also Hume's Essays, 
 vol. 2, p. 130; tho, in vol. 1, p. 500, note C, we read : " It is a 
 vulgar error to imagine that the ancients were as great friends 
 to toleration as the English or Dutch aie at present". 
 
 p. 9, line 22, read: Hegesippus 
 
CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 p. 11, line 27, for: the poets, read\ some other French poets — 
 
 p. 12, note 7, after the word : effect)., insert : Euripides (ap. Plutar. 
 de Stoicc. repugnantt. p. 1049, F) had said, 2000 years before 
 them: "to pi^icroN ein^c AiTuc^ceAi eeoyc". 
 p. 14, line 22, (& in App. 4, p. 20, note *) read: Marechal 
 p. 15, line 8, read: the imperious Bossuet , ,, , . ,_^-> 
 
 p. 16, to the end of note 8, add: Moreover, J.-j- Zimmerman^drew 
 up a very long " apologia doctorum virorum atheisrai accusato- 
 -rum ; but only a small part has been printed, and the remainder 
 seems lost. vid. Brucker, H. Ph., vol. 5, p. 547, note i ; & vol. 
 6, p. 904, 905. 
 p. 17, note 10, line 3, after : extinct, add: Giacomo Berengario had, 
 not long before, been banished from Bologna, on a similar accu- 
 -sation. (vid. Biogr. Univers. tom. 4, p. 236, 237.) 
 
 p. 18, at the end of note 5, add: Voltaire (oeuvr., tom. 12, p. 9,) 
 says of Volf: 
 
 " Toi qui prouvas un Dieu, mais qu'on nommait athee." 
 
 p. 19, after: "word", add (as a separate paragraph): Epicurus (ad 
 Menoec. vid. Diog. Laert. B. 10, eh. 123,) says : &c€6hc oyx 'o 
 
 TOyC TCON nOAACON eCOyC iiNMpON , AAA 'O' T\C TON OOAAWN 
 
 AO^AC ©€OIC npocAOTUN — a sentiment which seems to please 
 most parties: vid. Brucker, H. Ph., vol. 1, p. 1292; & the Syst. de 
 la Nat. tom. 4, p. 127. Nothing can be more extraordinary than the 
 definition given by Apollonius Tyanseus (ap. Philostr. ep. 17, quot- 
 -ed by Brucker, vol. 2, p. 152): "Qui non magus, ille atheus." 
 The philosophical Emperor Antoninus distinguishes various sorts 
 of impiety, Meditatt. B. IX, ch. 1. Cudworth (vol. 1, p. 180) 
 distinguishes four species of atheism among the ancients : 1 . the 
 hylopathic, or Anaximandrine ; 2. the atomic, or Democritean; 
 3. the cosmoplastic, or Stoical; & 4. the hylozoic, or Stratonian. 
 
 p. 19, to note 9, add: But a more precise account of non-atheists is 
 given, section 2, note 28 ; oeuvr. tom. 3, p. 235, 236. 
 
 In the third Appendix. 
 
 p. 8, to note 4, add: The question is disputed at great length between 
 Cudworth and his annotator Mosheim (syst. intell. vol. 1, p. 298 — 
 305, & 323). Proclus (ap. Cudw. p. 309) says, that, according 
 to Plutarchus Chaeronensis and Atticus [the Platonist, vid. p. 273, 
 note] matter had existed [from all eternity] animated by an inor- 
 
CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 -dinate soul. Stobaeus (vid. Mosh. p. 311, note) seems to say that 
 Atticus and Plutarchus considered liarmony to be occasioned by 
 the two opposite principles. 
 
 . 9, note 8, read: and index, art. Deus. Cudworth (who at- 
 
 -tributes the miracles of this sophist to the Devil) is probably 
 wrong in thinking that the Deity of Apollonius was of a very 
 superior kind. (Syst. Intell. vol. 1, p. 396, 397). 
 
 . 10, after: ayn^mic . add: .SLlius Arist ides, who also flourished 
 under Hadrianus, gives a magnificent description of Jupiter (vid. 
 Cudworth, vol. 1, p. 679), in which he says that Jupiter first made 
 himself. Lactantius (B. 1, ch. 7, conf. B. 2, ch. 8,) seems to say 
 the same of the christian deity (vid. Cudw. vol. 1, p. 622, 623). 
 lamblichus, relating the theology of the Egyptians (de Mysteriis, 
 B. 8, ch. 2), speaks magnificently of the God who was before the 
 first God. The Emperor JuUanus maintained that he had more 
 magnificent ideas of the supreme deity than Moses had (vid. 
 Cudworth, vol. 1, p. 404). 
 
 . 10, place note 10, above note 1 ; and read; 490; Cudworth, 
 
 vol. 1, p. 681; & Lardner's works, vol. 4, p. 352. 
 
 . 12, begin the 3rd. paragraph, thus : Albeit, Varro (as we are told 
 by St. Augustinus, de consensu evangelistt., vid. not. ad Minut. 
 Fel., p. 145) considered Jupiter as the God of the Jews: "nihil 
 interesse censens quo nomine nuncvipetur, dum eadem res intelli- 
 -gatur." Arist(eus (ap. Joseph., vid. Cudworth, vol. 1, p. 714) calls 
 
 Jehovah ZHNA . . . b.no Toy zhin . In Plutarch's Sym- 
 
 -posiaca (at the mutilated end of the 4th. B.) it is argued 
 that Bacclius is the Jewish God. But Lucanus - - . 
 
 . 12, to the end of note 7, add : ' Josephus (contr. Apion. B. 2, ch. 
 15, vid. Cudworth, vol. 1. p. 723) says of [the Hebrew] god : 
 
 AYN&Mei MONON 'HMIN TNUpiMOC , OHOIOC A€ KA,T OyClAN 
 ArNWCTOC . 
 
 .13, at the end of note 8, add: But in Mosheim (ad Cudworth. 
 vol. 1, p. 257, conf. p. 731) Jablonski is blamed for thus taking a 
 local for a national Deity. Albeit, Brucker (vol. 6, p. 134, & 143) 
 says Jablonski has sufficiently proved that Cneph, or Cnuph, was 
 the same as Vulcanus, and the good spirit, creator of the world. 
 
 . 13, line 20, to the word : Deity, add (as a note) : Yet Simplicius 
 (in Aristot. vid. Cudworth, Syst. Intell., vol. 1, p. 467) says, that 
 Moses borrowed his ideas of the creation of the world Ano 
 wyywN MrynTiWN. 
 
CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. \f 
 
 p. 15, note 1, line 8, after: spherical form to tlie deity, inxert: Sel- 
 -den (de Diis, p. 223) would derive Helagabal from Aghol—Baal, 
 i. e. dominus rotundus. Afterwards (p. 226), Selden refers to 
 Aristoteles, de Zenone & Gorgia, for the circularity of the deity. 
 It seem§ 
 
 p. 15, note 1, line 16, after: circumference no where, insert: Huet 
 (Alnet. Quaest. p. 105) says, that this definition is attributed to 
 Empedocles. Voltaire (diet, philos. torn. 3, p. 91) says, that Plato 
 adopted it from Timaeus Locrensis : and that it has been inserted 
 by Pascal in the materials now called his "Thoughts". 
 
 p. 16, at the end of the second paragraph, add: Brucker (H. Ph. 
 vol. 5, p. 835, 836) gives a more precise account of the primary 
 deity of India: "The supreme being is called Barahara Vastou, 
 ov the being of beings. He is a seed without a seed, an infinite 
 wisdom, and a light of spirit. He is without blemish. He has 
 an eye in his forehead. He is just, but immoveable and im- 
 -mutable. - - - He lies concealed in an infinite and profound 
 
 ocean. He cannot be adored, because incomprehensible; 
 
 we ought therefore to adore the minor deities ''. Brucker 
 
 refers this theology to the system of emanations. 
 
 p. 17, line 23, to the word -.deity, add (as a note) : But in the anony- 
 -mous epistle to the Hebrews, we read (XII, 29): -o eeoc 
 •HMcoN HYP KA.Ti,NAMCKON . And sucli evldcntlv was the God 
 of the ludseans. vid. pentateuch. B. 5, eh. IV, v. 24, & IX, 
 3,; Isai. X, 17. 
 
 p. 18, line 8, to the word: Tiieology, add (as a note): Perhaps 
 some christians think of the universal Deity, as the ancient 
 Romans did of their own tutelary god, — to AppHTON km to 
 
 i>rNC0CTON J>Ccj)AA€CTikTHN €INi*l esoy Ki^l E€EMOTikTHN (j>pOYP^N. 
 
 vid. Plutar., Queest. Rom., eh. 61, p. 279, A. 
 
 p. 19, note 8, after : Mayer 8vo. add: Moreover,Barbier(Dict. 
 
 des Anon., tom. 1, p. 359, No. 2926) mentions a " Histoire du 
 diable, traduite de I'anglais (de Schwindenius ; par Bion). Ams- 
 -terdam, 1729, 2 vol. in-12. " 
 
 p. 20, note 1, line 5, read: " Perquiramus et nos contra, cur et 
 
 vos ". B. 2, ch. 76, p. 105. Elsewhere (B. 1, ch. (T^) 
 
 Arnobius says : " Falsa de Christo compingimus ; et vos de 
 Diis vestris . Falsitatis arguitis res nostras; et nos ." 
 
 p. 21, insert (as a second & third paragraph) : 
 
 The author of f/ie Clemoilinc Homilies (written in the 2nd. centu- 
 -ry) introduces St. Peter, as arguing, that God is all things ; that 
 
10 CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 he has a form and figure ; that he has all [our] limbs or parts, 
 but not as wanting them ; that he is, in space vacuity or nothing, 
 as the Sun is in the air ; & that he is the heart [of the universe], 
 pouring forth, from himself as from a centre, the vital and in- 
 -corporeal power. The author afterwards seems to consider God 
 as the interior of the cubical universe (Homil. XVII, p. 722 — 
 724, Coteler.) 
 
 St. Melifo, bishop of Sardis about A. D. 175, maintained, as 
 afterwards TertuUianus did, that God is corporeal, (vid. Coteler. 
 p. 428, nott. in Patres Apostolicos). 
 
 p. 22, to the end of note 9, add: Observe too, that, according to 
 Photius, Clemens, in his hypotyposes, afBrmed that matter is 
 eternal, vid. testimonia in Clem. Alex. p. antepenult. 
 
 p. 29, to the end of line 15, add (as a note) : Perhaps the insertion of 
 these two words " or Nature " may be a fault of the printer's : for 
 it is said, that Meyer, when translating Spinoza's Ethica into 
 Latin, used to change the word "Nature" into "God", vid. Le 
 Clerc, ap. Mosheim. ad Cudworth. vol. 1, p. 272, note 1. 
 
 p. 33, line 2, read: torn. 3, p. 30), is equally false and dis- 
 
 -gusting. [but see Nahum, ch. 1, v. 3]. 
 
 p. 41, line 3, and under the rule, transpose the notation and the 
 
 notes, 
 p. 50, line 1 , read : - - - eec , place ; eee , run ; - - - 
 In the fourth Appendix. 
 
 p. 11, add (as a note to the end of line 26) : I know not what is 
 meant by the " vera religio Prudentum," but I suppose it is the 
 religion of statesmen, lawyers, bankers, &c. Other works, which 
 have a similar title to this of Rechenberg's, are " Joh. Petri Gf'u- 
 -nenbergii, theologi Rostoch., de atheorum religione prudentum;" 
 
 & " Frid. Ernesti Kettneri religio prudentum . " (vid. Fabr., 
 
 B. Gr., vol. 7, p. 118). 
 
 p. 15, at the end of note 5, add: Yet he was himself considered as 
 a heretic, and was publickly refused the Sacrament. 
 
 p. 23, line 1, read : - - given, at the articles "Atheism", "Atheists"^ 
 and "God", in that 
 
 p. 24, line 19, read: Matthew 
 
 ENU Of IHE TKINCirAL CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA. 
 
To be worked off 
 this Wednesday, the 2Ut. of May, 1828. 
 
 Printed by Julian IIibbert, >'o. 1, Fitzroy Tlace, Kentish Town. 
 
ORDER OF CONTENTS. 
 
 Preface, &c. _ . - - . pp. 8 
 
 A Life of Plutarc/nts, --------- 44 
 
 Wyttenbach's prefatory note, &c. ----- 16 
 
 Plutarchus on Superstition ------- 52 
 
 Observations on Theophi-astus --_-__ 8 
 
 Theophrastus on Superstition, with notes, - - - 16 
 
 APPENDICES 
 
 1. On the supposed necessity 
 
 of deceiving the vulgar _ - _ , _ 22 
 
 2. Of persons 
 
 falsely entitled Atheists - _ - 1 _ 20 
 
 3. Various definitions 
 
 of an important word ----- 50 
 
 4. A catalogue of books 
 
 written against atheism ----- 26 
 
 CORRIGENDA AND ADDENDA - - 10 
 
 ^