have Saints, who fupply the fame Offices. Artificers and Profeffions have alfo their particular Saints who prefide over them; Scholars have their Saint Nicholas, and Saint Gregory; Painters, Saint Luke; as Soldiers and Lovers had formerly their Mars, and Venus: Diseases too have their Saints to cure them; as the Pox, Saint Roque; the Falling-Evil, Saint Cornelius; the Tooth-Ach, Saint Apollin: And even Beasts and Cattle have their's; Saint Loy is the Horse-leech, and Saint Anthony the Swine-herd.

As the Heathen Priefts would fuffer none to come into their Sanctuaries but themselves; neither will the Popish Priefts permit any Layman to come within the Rails of the Altar, and prophane with unhallowed Feet that Holy Place. As the Antients obliged all who were initiated into their Myfteries to confefs, under the most severe Denunciations, all the Secrets of their past Lives, by which Means they were fo much in their power, that they never afterwards durft blab out what they faw, nor give the leaft Oppofition to their Designs; fo the Romish Priests truft their Mysteries only to the vere Adepti, (their trufty Affociates) and have made the fame ufe of Confeffion, (the lofs of which is forely lamented by others:) for they oblige, upon the Penalty of Damnation, all their Votaries to confefs not only their private Sins, but fecret Thoughts, as well as every thing else they know of other Peoples, which may any way regard the Interefts of their Order; and

fo

fo have Poffeffion and faft Hold of all Families, and become acquainted with all the Defigns, which may ever thwart their Pride; and confequently have fecured their own Domination, and the Peoples Mifery, beyond almost a poffibility of Redress.

LASTLY, As the Heathen Priefts facrificed Goats to Bacchus, for browsing his Vines; and Men to Pluto and Proferpine, and other angry Deities, to appease their Wrath, and avert Evils from themselves; fo the Popish Priests facrifice and devote their Enemies, under the Names of Hereticks and Schifmaticks, to the infernal Fiend: And as thofe Idolaters were allowed to know when was the most proper Time to make their Sacrifices to their Deities, and what Victims would be moft acceptable to them, as being prefumed to understand beft the Minds of their provoked Gods; fo the present Ones are in poffeffion of the fole Judgment of what is Herefy, and of facrificing by that means whom they please to their Ambition and Revenge; which equally subjects the unhappy Laity to them.

THEY have alfo imitated the Heathens in making every human Foible and Imbecility, as well as every common and uncommon Appearance in Nature, contribute to their Interefts; which fhall be the Subject of my next Paper.

T.

NUM

NUMBER LIII.

Saturday, January 7. 1721.

Priestly Empire founded on the
Weakneffes of Human Nature.

HERE is not a living Creature in the Universe, which has not fome innate Weaknefs, or orignal Imbecility co-eval with its Being; that is, fome Inclinations or Difgufts, fome peculiar Defires or Fears, which render it an eafy Prey to other Animals, who, from their constitutional Sagacity or Experience, know how to take Advantage of this Infirmity; of which it would be needlefs, as well as endlefs, to enumerate Particulars. My Purpose is only to fhew, that all the Dignity of human Nature, and the Superiority which Almighty God has given to Man above other Beings, has not exempted him from this Imperfection; which probably was left in his Fabrick, to put him in mind of his Mortality, to humble his Pride, and excite his Diligence.

1

THE

THE peculiar Foible of Mankind, is Superftition, or an intrinfick and pannick Fear of Beings invifible and unknown. It is obvious to every one, that there must be Causes in Nature for all the Good or Evil which does, or ever can happen to us; and it is impoffible for any Man fo far to diveft himself of all Concern for his own Happiness, as not to be follicitous to know what thofe Causes are: and fince, for the most part, they are so hidden and out of fight, that we cannot perceive or difcover them by our own Endeavours, we conclude them to be immaterial, and in their own nature invisible; and are, for the most part, ready to take their Accounts, who have the Dexte rity to make us believe that they know more of the Matter than we do, and that they will not deceive us:

To this Ignorance and Credulity joined together, we are beholden for the most grievous Frauds and Impofitions, which ever did, or do yet opprefs Mankind, and interrupt their Happinefs; namely, for the Revelations and Visions of Enthufiafts, for all the forged Religions in the World, and the Abuses and Corruptions of the true One; as well as all the idle and fantaftical Stories of Conjurers and Witches, of Spirits Apparitions, Fairies, Dæmons and Hobgoblins, Fortune-Tellers, Aftrologers, and the Belief in Dreams, Portents, Omens, Prognofticks, and the feveral Sorts of Divinations; all which, more or lefs, difturb the greatest part

of

of the World, and have made them the Dupes and Property of Knaves and Impostors in all Ages.

EVERY thing in the Universe is in constant Motion, and where-ever we move we are furrounded with Bodies, every one of which muft, in a certain degree, operate upon themselves and us; and it cannot be otherwise, that in the Variety of Actions and Events, which happen in all Nature, but fome must appear very extraordinary to those who know not their true Causes. Men naturally admire what they cannot apprehend, and feem to do fome fort of Credit to their Understandings, in believing whatever is out of their Reach, to be supernatural.

FROM hence perpetual Advantages have been given to, and Occafions taken by, the Heathen and Popish Priests, to circumvent and opprefs the credulous and unwaryVulgar. What fraudulent Ufes have been made of Eclipfes, Meteors, epidemical Plagues, Inundations, great Thunder and Lightnings, and other amazing Prodigies, and feeming Menaces of Nature? What juggling Tricks have been or may be acted with Glaffes, Speaking-Trumpets, Ventriloquies, Echoes, Phofphorus, Magick - Lanthorns, &c. in the ignorant Parts of the World? The Americans were made to believe, that Paper and Letters were Spirits, which conveyed Mens Thoughts from one to another; and a Dancing-Mare was, not many Years fince,

burnt