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However, I have been perplexed for føme time, to refolve what would be the moft proper form to fend it abroad in. To which end, I have been three days courfing through Westminster-hall, and St. Paul's church-yard, and Fleet-ftreet, to perufe titles; and I do not find any which holds fo general a vogue, as that of A letter to a friend. Nothing is more common than to meet with long epiftles addreffed to perfons and places, where, at first thinking, one would be apt to imagine it not altogether fo neceffary or convenient; fuch as, a neighbour at next door, a mortal enemy, a perfect franger, or a perfon of quality in the clouds; and thefe upon fubjects, in appearance, the leaft proper for conveyance by the poft; as, long schemes in philofophy, dark and wonderful mysteries of state, laborious differtations in criticism and philofophy, advice to parliaments, and the like.

Now, Sir, to proceed after the method in prefent wear: (for, let me fay what I will to the contrary, I am afraid you will publish this letter, as foon as ever it comes to your hand :) I defire you will be my witness to the world, how careless and fudden a scribble it has been; that it was but yesterday, when you and I began accidentally to fall into difcourfe on this matter; that I was not very well when we parted; that the poft is in fuch hafte, I have had no manner of time to digeft it into order, or correct the ftyle; and if any other modern excufes, for hafte and negligence, fhall occur to you in reading, I beg you

to

to infert them, faithfully promifing they fhall be thankfully acknowledged.

Pray, Sir, in your next letter to the Iroquois virtuofi, do me the favour to prefent my humble fervice to that illuftrious body; and affure them, I shall send an account of those phænomena, as soon as we can determine them at Grefham.

I have not had a line from the literati of Tobinambou these three last ordinaries.

And now, Sir, having difpatched what I had. to fay, of forms, or of bufinefs, let me intreat, you will fuffer me to proceed upon my subject; and to pardon me, if I make no further use of the epiftolary style, till I come to conclude.

IT

SEC T. I.

is recorded of Mahomet, that, upon a vifit he was going to pay in Paradife, he had an offer of feveral vehicles to conduct him upwards; as fiery chariots, winged horfes, and celeftial fedans but he refused them all, and would be borne to heaven upon nothing but his ass. Now, this inclination of Mahomet, as fingular as it seems, hath been fince taken up by a great number of devout Chriftians; and doubtlefs with very good reafon. For fince that Arabian is known to have borrowed a moiety of his religious fyftem from the Chriftian faith, it is but just he should pay reprifals to fuch as would challenge them; where

in the good people of England, to do them all right, have not been backward. For though there is not any other nation in the world fo plentifully provided with carriages for that journey, either as to fafety or ease, yet there are abundance of us, who will not be satisfied with any other machine, befides this of Mahomet.

For my own part, I must confess to bear a very fingular refpect to this animal, by whom I take human nature to be most admirably held forth, in all its qualities, as well as operations: and, therefore, whatever in my fmall reading occurs, concerning this our fellow-creature, I do never fail to fet it down by way of common-place; and, when I have occafion to write upon human reafon, politics, eloquence, or knowledge, I lay my memorandums before me, and infert them with a wonderful facility of application. However, among all the qualifications afcribed to this diftinguished brute, by ancient or modern authors, I cannot remember this talent, of bearing his rider to heaven, has been recorded for a part of his character, except in the two examples mentioned already. Therefore, I conceive the methods of this art to be a point of useful knowledge in very few hands, and which the learned world would gladly be better informed in: this is what I have undertaken to perform in the following difcourfe. For towards the operation already mentioned, many peculiar properties are required, both

in

in the rider and the afs; which I shall endeavour to fet in as clear a light as I can.

But, because I am refolved, by all means, to avoid giving offence to any party whatever, I will leave off difcourfing so closely to the letter as I have. hitherto done, and go on for the future by way of allegory, though in such a manner, that the judicious reader may, without much ftraining, make his applications, as often as he shall think fit. Therefore, if you please, from henceforward, instead of the term afs, we fhall make use of gifted, or enlightened teacher; and the word rider we will exchange for that of fanatic auditory, or any other denomination of the like import. Having fettled this weighty point, the great fubject of enquiry before us, is, to examine, by what methods this teacher arrives at his gifts, or fpirit, or lights and by what intercourfe between him and his affembly it is cultivated and supported.

In all my writings, I have had conftant regard to this great end, not to fuit and apply them to - particular occafions, and circumstances of time, of place, or of perfon; but to calculate them for universal nature, and mankind in general. And of fuch catholic ufe I efteem this prefent difquifition: for I do not remember any other temper of body, or quality of mind, wherein all nations and ages of the world have fo unanimoufly agreed, as that of a fanatic ftrain, or tincture of enthufiafm; which, improved by certain perfons or focieties of men, and by them practised upon the

reft,

reft, has been able to produce revolutions of the greatest figure in hiftory; as will foon appear to thofe who know any thing of Arabia, Perfia, India, or China, of Morocco and Peru. Farther, it has poffeffed as great a power in the kingdom of knowledge, where it is hard to affign one art or fcience, which has not annexed to it fome fanatic branch: fuch are the philofopher's Stone, the grand elixir**, the planetary worlds, the Squaring of the circle, the fummum bonum, Utopian commonwealths, with fome others of lefs or fubordinate note; which all ferve for nothing elfe, but to employ or amuse this grain of enthusiasm, dealt into every compofition.

But if this plant has found a root in the fields of Empire and of Knowledge, it has fixed deeper, and spread yet farther upon holy ground: wherein, though it hath paffed under the general name of enthusiasm, and perhaps arisen from the fame original, yet hath it produced certain branches of a very different nature, however often mistaken for each other. The word, in its univerfal acceptation, may be defined, A lifting up of the foul, or its faculties, above matter. This defcription will hold good in general: but I am only to understand it as applied to religion; wherein there are three general ways of ejaculating the foul, or tranfporting it beyond the fphere of matter. The firft is the immediate act of God, and is called prophecy or infpiration. The fecond is the immediate

Some writers hold them for the fame, others not.

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