able them to overtake and mafter it. Thus life is sacri. ficed to the fupport of life. But to this deftruction limits are fet. The fmall birds are much more numerous and prolific than the birds of prey; and though they cannot refift his force, they have dexterity and nimbleness of fight fufficient in general to elude his purfuit. It is in this balance that the wisdom of Providence is feen; and what can be a greater proof of it, than that both fpecies, the defroyer and his prey, have fubfifted together from their first creation? Now look again, and tell me what thou feeft."

5. "I fee," faid the Solitary, "a thick black cloud gath ering in the sky. I hear the thunder rolling from fide to fide of the vault of heaven. I behold the red lightning darting from the bofom of darknefs. Now it has fallen on a stately tree and thattered it in pieces, ftriking to the ground an ox fheltered at its foot. Now it falls again in a flock of timorous sheep, and feveral of them are left on the plain; and fee! the fhepherd himself lies extended by their fide. Now it strikes a lofty fpire, and at the fame time fets in a blaze an humble cottage beneath. It is an awful and terrible fight!"

6. "It is fo," returned the ftranger, "but what doft thou conclude from it? Doft thou not know, that from the genial heat, which gives life to plants and animals, and ripens the fruits of the earth, proceeds this electrical fire, which, ascending to the clouds, and charging them beyond what they are able to contain, is launched again in burning bolts to the earth? Muft it leave its direct course to strike the tree rather than the dome of worship, or to spend its fury on the herd, rather than the herdsmen ?

7. Millions of millions of living creatures have owed their birth to this active element; and fhall we think it ftrange if a few meet their death from it? Thus the mountain torrent that rufhes down to fertilize the plain, in its courfe may fweep away the works of human induf try, and man himself with them; but could its benefits be purchased at another price?

8. "All this," faid the Solitary, "I tolerably comprehend; but may I prefume to ask whence have proceeded

the moral evils of the painful fcenes of yesterday? (1) What good ends is anfwered by making man the fcourge of man, and preferving the guilty at the coft of the inno cent?"

9. "That too," replied the venerable ftranger," is a confequence of the fame wife laws of Providence. If it was right to make man a creature of habit, and render thofe things eafy to him with which he is most familiar, the sailor mult of course be better able to shift for himself in a fhipwreck than the paffenger; while that felf.love, which is effential to the prefervation of life, muft, in general, caufe him to confult his own fafety preferably to that

of others.

11.

10. "The fame force of habit in a way of life, full of hardship and peril, muft conduce to form a rough, bold, and unfeeling character. This, under the direction of principle, will make a brave man ; without it, a robber, and a mur. derer. In the latter cafe, human laws ftep in to remove the evil which they have not been able to prevent. Wickedness meets with the fate which fooner or later always awaits it; and innocence, though occafionally a fufferer, is proved in the end to be the fureft path to happiness.” "refumed the Solitary, "But," 66 can it be faid that the lot of innocence is always preferable to that of guilt in this world?" If it cannot," replied the other, "thinkeft thou that the Almighty is unable to make retribution in a future world? Difmifs then from thy mind the care of SINGLE EVENTS, fecure that the GREAT WHOLE is ordered for the beft. Expect not a particular interpo. fition of Heaven, becaufe fuch an interpofition would feem to thee feafonable. Thou, perhaps, wouldft flop the vaft machine of the universe to fave a fly from being crushed under its wheels. But innumerable flies and men are crushed every day, yet the grand motion goes on, and will ge on, to fulfil the benevolent intentions of its Author."

12. He ceafed, and fleep on a fudden left the eyelids of the Solitary. He looked abroad from his cell, and beheld all nature smiling around him The rising fun fhone on a clear sky. Birds were fporting in the air, and fise glancing on the surface of the waters. Fleets were pur fuing their fteady courfe, gently wafted by the pleasant (1) See Chapter L.

breeze. Light fleecy clouds were failing over the blue expanfe of heaven. His foul fympathifed with the fcene, and peace and joy filled his bofom.

CHAPTER LH.

JUSTICE.

HERE is no virtue fo truly great and godlike as

•T Juftice. Mult of the other virtues are virtues of

created beings, or accommodated to our nature as we are men. Juftice is that which is practifed by God himfelf, and to be practifed in its perfections by none but him. Omniscience and omnipotence are requifite for the full exertion of it. The one to difcover every degree of uprightness in thoughts, words, and actions. The other, to measure out, and impart fuitable rewards and pun. ishments.

2. As to be perfectly juft is an attribute in the divine nature, to be fo to the utmost of our abilities is the glo. ry of man. Such an one who has the public administration in his hands, acts like the reprefentative of his Maker, in recompenfing the virtuous, and punishing the of fender. By the extirpating of a criminal he averts the judgments of heaven, when ready to fall upon an impious people.

3. When a nation once lofes its regard to juftice; when they do not look upon it as fomething venerable, holy and inviolable; when any of them dare prefume to leffen, affront or terrify thofe who have the distribution of it in their hands; when a judge is capable of being influenced by any thing but law, or a caufe may be recommended by any thing that is foreign to its own merits, we may venture to pronounce that fuch a nation is hafening to its ruin.

4. It is happy for a nation, as well as for individuals, that a tribunal is filled with a man of an upright and inflexible' temper, who in the execution of his country's laws can overcome all private fear, refeutment, folicita tion, and even pity itself. Whenever paffion enters inte a fentence or decifion, fo far will there be in it a tincture of injuftice. In short, justice discards party, friendship, kindred, and is therefore always reprefented as blind, that

K

we may fuppofe her thoughts are wholly intent on the equity of the caufe, without being diverted or prejudic ed by objects foreign to it.

5. As one of the Perfian Sultans lay encamped on the plains of Avala, a certain great man of the army entered by force into a peafant's houfe and grofsly violated the rules of juftice againft his family. The peafant complained the next morning to the Sultan, and defired redrefs; but was not able to point out the criminal. The Sultan, who was much incenfed at the injury done to the poor man, told him that probably the offender might vis it his houfe again, and if he did, commanded him immediately to repair to his tent and acquaint him with it.

6. Accordingly, in a few days, the offender again entered the peafant's houfe, and turned the owner out of doors; who thereupon applied himself to the imperial tent, as he was ordered. The Sultan went in perfon with his guards, to the poor man's houfe, where he arrived about midnight. As the attendants carried each of them a flambeau in their hands, the Sultan, after having order. ed all the lights to be put out, gave the word to enter the houfe, find out the criminal, and put him to death.

7. This was immediately done, and the corpse laid out pon the floor by the Sultan's command. He then bid every one to light his flambeau, and stand about the dead body. The Sultan approaching it, looked upon the face, and immediately fell upon his knees in prayer. Upon his rifing up, he ordered the peafant to fet before him what ever food he had in his houfe: the peafant brought out a great quantity of coarse fare, of which the Emperor ate very heartily.

& The peafant, feeing him in good humour, prefumed to ask him, why he ordered the flambeaus to be put out before he had commanded the offender to be flain? Why upon lighting them again, he looked upon the face of the dead body, and fell down in prayer? And why, after this, he had meat fet before him, of which he now ate so hearty? The Sultan being willing to gratify the curiofity of his hoft, answered him as follows.

9. "Upon hearing the greatness of the offence, which had been committed by one of the army, I had reason to think it might have been one of my own fons, for who

I

elfe would have been fo audacious and prefuming? gave orders therefore for the lights to be extinguished, that I might not be led aftray by partiality and compaffion, from doing juffice on the criminal. Upon lighting, the flambeau a fecond time, I looked upon the face of the dead person, and to my unfpeakable joy, found it was fon. It was for this reafon that I fell upon my knees and gave thanks to God. As for my eating heartily, you will ceafe to wonder at it, when you know that the great anxiety of mind I have been in, upon this occafion, fince the first complaint you brought me, has hinder. ed my eating any thing from that time till this moment."

not my

臂。

T

CHAPTER LIII. (1)

THE SCRIPTURES.

O perfuade men to believe the fcriptures, I only offer this to their confideration. If there be a God, whofe providence governs the world, and all the creatures in it, is it not reasonable to think, that he hath a particular care of men, the nobleft part of this visible world and feeing he hath made them capable of eternal duration; that he hath provided for their eternal happinefs, and fufficiently revealed to them the way to it, and the terms and conditions of it!

2. Now let any man produce any book in the world, that pretends to be from God, and to do this; that for the matter of it is worthy of God, the doctrines thereof are so useful, and the precepts fo reafonable, and the arguments so powerful, the truth of all which was confirmed by so many great and unquestionable miracles, the rela tion of which has been tranfmitted to pofterity in public and authentic records, written by those who were eye and ear witneffes of what they wrote, and free from suspicions of any worldly intereft or design.

3. Let any produce a book like this, in all these ref. pects; and which over and befides, hath by the power and reasonableness of the doctrines contained in it, prevailed fo miraculously in the world, by weak and inconfid

(1) See Rule V. page 17.