not appear to be perfectly without Fault, can with little Justice complain of the Wrong he receives by it, fince it has prevented his suffering a much greater; no more than a Man, who is pushed.down out of the Way of a Bullet, can with Reason take as an Affront, either the Blow he falls. by, or the Dirt he rises with. But indeed I have very little Uneafiness up on me for fear of any Injury the Author's Credit and Reputation may receive from any Imperfection or Uncorrectness in these following Tracts, fince the Persons, from whom I had them, and in whose Hands I have reason to believe the Author left them, when his Affairs called him out of this Kingdom, are of so much Worth themselves, and have so great a Regard for the Author, that I am confident they would neither do, nor suffer any thing that might turn to his Disadvantage. I'must confess, I am upon another Account under fome Concern, which is, left some of the following Papers are such as the Author perhaps would rather should not have been Published at all, in which Case, I should look upon my self highly, obliged to ask his Pardon : But even this Suppofition, as there is no Person named, the supposed Author is at liberty to difown as much as he thinks fit of what is here Published, and so can be chargeable with no more of it, than he pleases to take upon himself. From this Apology I have been making, the Reader may in part be satisfied how these Papers came into my Hands; and to give him a more particular Information herein, will prove little to his Use, tho' perhaps it might fome what on what gratify his Curiosity, which I think not material any farther to do, than by afsuring him, that I am not only my self sufficiently convince ed, that all the Tracts in the following Collection, except those before, which I have in the Book expressed my Doubtfulness, and the other three (to which I which I have prefix'd their Author's Names) were Wrote by the fame Hand, but feveral Judicious Persons, who are well acquainted with the supposed Author's Writings, and not altogether Strangers to his Conversation, have agreed with me herein, not only for the Reasons I have before hinted at, but upon this Account also, that there are in every one of these Pieces some particular Beauties that discover this Author's Vein, who excells too much not to be di, ftinguished, fince in all his Writings such a surprizing Mixture of Wit and Learning, true Hųmour and good Sense, does every-where appear, as fets him almost as far out of the Reach of Imitation, as it does beyond the Power of Censure, The Reception that these Pieces will meet with from the Publick, and the Satisfaction they will give to all Men of Wit and Tafte, will loon decide it, whether there be any Reason for the Reader to suspect an Impofition, or the Author to apprehend an Injury: The former, I am fully fatisfied will never be; and the latter I am sure, I never intended. In confidence of which should the Author, when he fees these Tracts appear, take some Offence, and know where to place his Resentment, I will be so free as to own, I. could without much Uneasiness fit down under some degree of it, fince it would be no hard Talk to bare lome Displeasure from a single Person, for that which one is sure to receive the Thanks of every Body else. THE ? THE Discourse of the Contefs and Diffentions between the Nobles and Commons in Athens and Rome, with the Consequences they bad upon tbose States. THỂ Sentiments of a Church of England man, with respect to Religion and Government, IN Argument to prove, that the Abolishing of Chriftiani- ty in England may, as things now Aand, be attended with fome Inconveniencies, and perbaps not produce those many Good Effe&ts proposed thereby, Proje&t for the Advancement of Religion, and the Re- formation of Manners. To theCountess of Berkeley, in Meditation upon 4 Broom-Stick, according to the Style and Manner of the Honourable Robert VARIOUS Tooughts, Moral and Diverting, 144 Tritical Efay upon the Faculties of the Mind, 150 PREDICTIONS for the Year, 1708. Wberein the Montb, and Day of the Month are fet down, the Perfons named, and the great Actions and Events of next Lear particularly related, as they will come to pass. Written to prevent the People of England from being farther imposed on by Vulgar Almanack-Makers, 158 THE Accomplishment of the Firft of Mr. Bicker- ftaff's Predi&tions; being an Account of the Death of Mr. Partridge the Almanack-maker, upon the A Vindication of Isaac Bickerstaff, Efq; againf what is obje&ted to him by Mr. Partridge in bis Alma- nack for the present Tear, 1709. By the said Isaac A Famous Predi&tion of Merlin the British Wizard, Written above a I bousand Tears ago, and relating to this present Year, 1709. With explanatory Notes. VEKSES wrote in a Lady's Ivory Table Book, 190 TO their Excellencies the Lords Fustices of Ireland, the Humble Petition of Frances Harris, LADY B-B-finding in the Authors Room fome Verses Unfinished, underwrote a Stanza of her own with Raillery upon him, which gave occafion to this Ballad, to the Tune of the Cutpurse, 197 V's House, Built from the Ruins of White- THE Description of a Salamander, Baucis and PHILEMON. Imitated from the Eightb A Grubstreet Elogy on the supposed Death of Par- APOLLO Outwitted. To the Honourable Mrs. Finch un- THE Virtues of Sid Hamet tho Magicians Rod, 228 THE Seventh Epistle of the firft Book of Horace Imitat- ed. And address'd to a Noble Lord, 7 Letter from a Lay-Patron to a Gentleman design. DISCOURSE OF THE Between the IN both those STATES. Si tibi vera videtur Dede mands; a fe falfa eft accingere contra. Lucrot; Written in the Year, 1701. T CHAP. I. is an absolute unlimited Power, which naturally and originally seems to be placed in the whole Body, wherever the Executive Part of it lies. This holds in the Body natural ; For wherever we place the Beginning of Motion, whether from the Head, or the Heart, or the animal Spirits in general, the Body moves and acts by a Consent of all its Parts. This un. limited Power placed fundamentally in the BoB dy |