and what it continually verges to; and this becomes as vifible as the very character it is

written in.

But Dr. Berkley was unacquainted with mathematical principles, and out of his averfion to these sciences, and zeal for orthodoxy, cavilled and difputed with all his might, and endeavoured to bring the matter to a state unintelligible to himself, and every body else. -Here Maria had done, and for near a quarter of an hour after, I fat filently looking at her, in the greatest astonishment.

But as to our travels, the 10th of Auguft we got fafe to London, and the confequence of the journey was, that the last day of the fame month, I had the honour and happinefs of being married to this young lady.

SECTION

SECTION IX.

I am thinking with myself every day, (Jays one of the philofophers) how many things are dear to me; and after I have confidered them as temporary and perishable, I prepare myself, from that very minute, to bear the loss of them without weakness.

S. I.

W

CLEANTHES. (14)

ISE is the man, who prepares The death both for his own death and the of the audeath of his friends; who makes ufe of the wife, and

forefight

(14) Cleanthes was a native of Affus in Lyfia, in Afia Minor, and fo very poor, when he came to Athens to ftudy, that, for his fupport, he wrought at nights in drawing water for the gardens, and in grinding behind the mill. He attended the lectures of Zeno, fucceeded him in his fchool, and grew into very high efteem with the Athenians. He lived to 99, but the year he died we know not. His mafter Zeno died 342 years before Chrift, and had converfed with Socrates and Plato.

The antient academics were Plato, (the difciple of Socrates), Speucippus, Zenocrates, Polemo, Crates, and Crantor; and from Crates, the fifth academic, fprung the old floics, to wit, Crates, Zeno, Cleanthes, Chryfippus, and Diogenes the Babylonian; not he that was furly and proud. Cicero in his works often mentions this Babylonian, the floic. We find in the Roman hiftory, that he was living in the year of Rome 599, that is, 155 years before Chrift; but when he died we know not.

These gen

tlemen

thor's 4th

his behavi our thereupon.

forefight of troubles, fo, as to abate the uneasi nefs of them, and puts in practice this refolution of the philofopher. I thought of this the morning I married the beautiful and ingenious Mifs Spence, (as related in the latter end of my eighth fection), and determined if I loft her, to make the great affliction produce the peaceable fruits of righteoufnels. The man muft feel, in such a cafe; the chriftian will fubmit. Before the end of fix months, fhe died, and I mourned the lofs with a degree of forrow due to fo much excellence, endearment and delight. My complaint was bitter, in proportion to the defires of nature. But as nature fays, let this cup pafs: grace fays, let thy will be done. If the flower of all my comfort was gone the glory departed! yet thy glory is, O man, to do the will of God, and bear the burthen

tlemen of the two old fchools were to be fure great philofophers,-excellent men but then, to be strictly impartial, we must own, that all they knew in relation to the will of God, and a kingdom to come, was but poor moral learning, in refpect to what is written in the New Teftament for our inftruction, if we will lay afide our fancies and fyftems, and let reason explain revelation. The Chriflian religion is really more for the glory of God, and the good of mankind, than reafon, without infpiration, has been able to teach. Chriftianity, without the additions and fupplements of monks, is not only above all juft exception, but preferable to any other fcheme.

he
lays upon thee. Let nature, grace, and
time, do their part, to close the wound, and
let not ignorance impeach the wisdom of the
moft high. The cup which my father hath
given me fhall I not drink? I will. I will
not quarrel with providence. In fhort, I
refigned, and not long after I had buried this
admirable woman, (who died at her seat in
Westmoreland,) I went into the world again,
to relieve my mind, and try my fortune once
more. What happened there, I will report,
when I have related the extraordinary cafe
my wife, Mifs Spence, and the four phy-
ficians I had to attend her. It is a very cu-
rious thing.

of

fever, and
an account
of four

tended her.

§. 2. This young lady was seized with that The cafe of fatal diftemper, called a malignant fever: a lady in a Something foreign to nature got into her blood, by a cold, and other accidents, it may be, phyficians and the luctus or ftrife to get clear thereof who atbecame very great. The effervefcence or perturbation was very foon fo violent as to fhew, that it not only endangered, but would quickly fubvert the animal fabrick, unless the blood was fpeedily difperfed, and nature got the victory by an exclufion of the noxious shutin particles. The thirst, the dry tongue, the coming caufus, were terrible, and gave me too much reafon to apprehend this charming

woman

woman would fink under the conflict. To fave her, if poffible, I fent immediately for a great physician, Dr. Sharp, a man who talked with great fluency of medicine and diseases.

This gentleman told me, the Alkaline was the root of fevers, as well as of other diftempers, and therefore, to take off the effervefcence of the blood in the ebullitions of it, to incide the viscous humour, to drain the tartarous falts from the kidnies, to allay the preternatural ferment, and to brace up the relaxed tones, he ordered orange and vinegar in whey, and prescribed fpirit of fulphur, and vitriol, the cream, chryftals, and vitriolate tartar in other vehicles. If any thing can relieve, it must be plenty of acid. In acidis pofita eft omni curatio. But these things gave no relief to the fufferer.

I fent then in all hafte for Dr. Hough, a man of great reputation, and he differed fo much in opinion from Sharp, that he called an acid the chief enemy. It keeps up the luctus or ftruggle, and if not expelled very quickly, will certainly prove fatal. Our fheet anchor then must be the teftacea, in vehicles of mineral water, and accordingly he ordered the abforbent powders to conflict with this acidity, the principal cause of all difeafes. Pearl and coral, crab's eyes, and crab's claws, he prescribed in diverse forms;

but