the world's innumerable and inevitable phenomena Nor would his presence be one whit less nugatory, than that of him, who shall have made a clock, to measure out, with absolute precision, each moment of a hundred years, and that but with a single winding, then should sit and count the motions of its' penplainero eidt al benistena bas bonifqibaib.10319d dulum. h machine revolve as

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well, were he who wrought them dead, as though lived to watch the progress of their uniform and per fect revolutions?And if thus-wherefore should doubt, or disbelief, of such a character be bandied, except from fool to fool, as sinfulness or reproach? What but Bigotry, or Lunacy would deem it blasphemous to say, that such a God, whether of Gentile, Jew, or Christian, is not more useful than a man of straw; nor more deserving of human veneration?

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But then you say, perhaps, that intelligence must have been employed, in arranging the materials of this complicated physical Universe, and the phenomena, they specifically, and relatively present. Intelligence, therefore, becomes the subject of present and particular inquiry; and is, without a doubt, as far as ordinary humanity is able to distinguish, exclusively, an atribute of an organized, living sentient being, in possession of a brain and nervous system, and consists in a more or less clear perception of the phenomena of Nature, and the several relations existing among them: And hence the brain, and not the heart, should be contemplated, as the exclusive instrument of mind, thought or soul; and this, wheth

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er consciousness result from organic functionality, or from a more or less successful effort of the soul to display itself, through the vulgar medium of physical organism. And, whatever the mode of operation, it is already the settled opinion of all educated persons, that the better developed, the more healthy, and the better disciplined and sustained, is this cranial or psychological machinery, the clearer, and more elevated, is the intellectual product or functional intelligence, it displays.

In these respects, thought and locomotion possess a parallel character, both being alike embarrassed by defective, or unhealthy, organism, or deficient, or excessive exercise.

The idea of thought existing abstractly from a brain, would be no less preposterous, than that of animal motion, unconnected with muscular developement. A brainless philosopher, and an agile skeleton would be equally strange phenomena. In fine, it appears to me quite impossible to conceive of mind, or soul, but as an attribute or function of organized, living, animal matter. And hence it follows, that deity, in order to posses the attribute of intelligence, should be also in possession of a brain, or some other appropriate, physical organ, through which intelligence, mind, or soul, may be displayed, or by which it may be generated. It appears, therefore, incontrovertible, that the intelligence of God must be animal intelligence, or that, of which mankind can have no manner of conception: And hence the theist cannot escape the vexatious dilemma, that his God is clothed

with human attributes, or with none at all, as far as he can apprehend. And do you think the former kind, which is scarcely adequate, at best, the ordinary exigences of temporal humanity, well befitting the creator and director of a, world's affairs world's affairs ? Nor can the difficulty be at all obviated, by the vulgar, senseless expedient, of annexing the term, infinite, to this, or any other, imputed attribute of God. For this adjective, like the subject, it is so often used to qualify, however, convenient, or indespensable, use may have rendered it, neither more nor less, than an indefinite extension of its substantive, beyond the limits of human apprehension: And in every case in which it is used, it is synonymous with an acknowledgement of of what it is it of total ignorance intended to express. Therefore, whoever speaks of wisdom, power and goodness, as attributes of God, whether qualified by the nugatory adjective, infinite, or not, is manufacturing a deity of the attributes of humanity. And here you will allow me to ask again, Who else but fool or lunatic would kneel in pious veneration, to so uncomely and so strange av vagary?

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The difficulty upon this question seems to depend upon the fallacy of confounding an attribute of mere humanity, and one in no inconsiderable degree common to men and beasts, denominated intelligence, with the adaptiveness or consistency of Nature, of which this same human intelligence is a constituent; man himself being a part of her physical system, and employed in the performance of her functions.ve

And were I indulged a moment, for recapitulation,

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I would express my own belief of God and his intelligence, in the language of the following theorems.

First, That the original idea of God is universally and unexceptionably the same, with all mankind, who are endowed with the ordinary powers and opportunities of reflection; and that it is identical with that of inherent, primitive, or ultimate causality, and spontaneously engendered in the mind of every inquirer after the causes of things. And thus, is the only plausible notion of atheism completely invalidated-no man being obnoxious to the epithet, who is able to contemplate the existence of an unknown cause: Upon which point, the savage and the sage are nearly equal competitors; both infallibly attaining their goal, but by different steps, and unequal despatch.

Second. That natural Theology affords no other evidence, or knowledge of Deity, than that of mere abstract existence, obtained by induction whilst investigating the relation of cause and effect. And that nothing more can ever be known upon the subject, except by the assistance of supernatural revelation.

Third. That intelligence, as applied to God, is altogether void of meaning, or palpably slanderous of his imputed omnisciency; and cannot be theologically employed without the basest irreverence; or, the deepest stupidity. It would, nevertheless, be strikingly absurd, to utter an explicit denial of the intelligence of God, or causality, which it is not man's province to determine; but it is his right to insist upon the truth of the proposition, that human appréhen

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