The best way he can take, now he's at that Age, is to get a good Place, which 'tis likely may be fuitable enough, fince he either has, or foon may have, moft of the Qualities that are requifite; but we would not advife him to leave a certain Maintenance for any thing hat thould be lefs than Life, how plaufible foever it may appear; and, with the Intereft of his Friends, that won't be found fo difficult to be got. 'Tis true, there's many ways for an Ingenious Man, that has Money, to take, in order to his Advancement, but none that is of less hazard than this.

Q. Do you think there was ever any such Man as Hercules? Or, was his Story a pure Invention of the Poets, without any other Reafon, except their own Fancy? If were wholly groundless, I deAre your Reasons to prove it fo; but if there were any thing of Truth in it, you will very highly oblige fome of your expecting Friends, if you'll be pleased to give us as full an Account of it as you can.

have added many things to the
Hiftory, purely to embellish,
and render it more agreeable.
The Phenicians having filled
almoft all the fides of the Me.
diterranean with their Colonies,
made Voyages to every Part;
and as their Country-men al-
ways were well pleased with
the News of ftrange Countries,
fo they omitted not to relate
at their return, whatsoever they
had feen in their Voyages. And
'tis not improbable but they
might add a little touch of Fan-
cy to their Narrations, and
tell things that in themselves
were ordinary enough, after
a wonderful and furprizing
manner. 'Tis also very like-
ly, that thofe that heard them,
might, in their turn, affist a
little with their Imaginations;
it being very Natural for Men
to form great Idea's of things
that are remote from them
and where they did not well
understand their Relations
they have made them say things
they never thought. Thus, it
may be, all those things have
contributed to the obfcuring of
the Hiftory of their Voyages,
which has made fome of those
Events appear to us as mon-

A To be of an obliging Temper, is a good thing; and we have made fome Pretenfions to it a great while; and fince aftrous Fables, which had noMarter of this Nature may be thing furprizing in them, as is as likely to direct and benefit very probable in this Story of our loving Querifts, as many Hercules. In the time that Deof our late Learned and Wife borab and Barac were Judges of Difcuffions, we fhall very wil-Ifrael, a Phenician Merchant, lingly gratifie you with the named Alcides, who was born in moft probable Account we have. Boetia (and who, 'tis fuppofed, "Twould be impoffible to give a was our very Hercules) underReafon for all the Circumftan took great Voyages, fometimes ces that the Greeks have re- alone, and fometimes in comJared about it, because they pany, fome upon his own Ac

Count

of the

Quarrelld with fome
Rich People about the greater
Catcle; and altho' they Fought,
on Horseback, and the Hera-
clides had only Foot, yet either
through their own Address or
Advantage of the Hills, they
got the Better, aud Destroy'd
their Enemies. They had a-
nother Quarrel alfo with certain
Shepherds, who Liv'd at the
upper Parts of Peloponefus, on
whom they fer their Dogs that
they kept their Flocks with,
which was their ufual custom,
when they Attacked 'em. At
the fame time, they fet at Li-
berty fome Perfons of Attica
that thofe Shepherds had taken
Prisoners.

count, and others by Commia Mountain in Arcadia, they fion. He Eftablifht many Colonies; and as Greece was not yet well Peopled; fo in many places, the new Inhabitants were obliged to take a great deal of pain to defend them felves, as well from wild Beafts, as the Injuries of the Air. In that time, there were many young Men that Kept and Fed the tamer Beafts, that had fuccessfully accuftem'd themselves to the Fighting with Bears and Lions. This Alcides had at 18 Years of Age, Kill da Licn in a Mountain of Boetia, who had made a great Ravage in the Theban Flocks. Lipon which account, the King of that Place gave in Marriage to him, or to his Men, fome Daughters that he had and Alcides used afterwards to wear the Skin of the Lion he had flain, for a Cloak. He likewife Kill'd another Lion in the Foreft of Nemea, which, by the order of the King of Mycena, he had chafed into fome Park, where he continued a long time, and there Eftablifht the powerfull Colony of the Heraclidas, which fignifyed Merchants. This Colony deliver d the Country from many Vene-Sacrifice their own Children: mous Animals that incommoded Yet Iphtus, the Kings Son, beit, and made themfelves very came a Friend to Alcides, whom Famous, by the Hunting of afterwards he Killd in a Quardivers Beafts, as the Wild- rel; for which Murder, he fled Boors and Savage Bulls of the to Laconia, where the Prince of Mountains. But 'twas too dif the Place purified him accord. ficult for this new Colony to ing to the manner of that Time: over-rum the Neighbouring by plunging him in a River: Country, fometimes for the But falling Sick, he thought Chafe, and fometimes for Pa- the Gods were Angry with fture, withour raifing them him for the Murder, and therefelves Enemies. Either in Hunt-fo:e refolv'd to confult a la. ing our Feeding their Flocks near mous Prieft that Liv'd at Del

After this, Alcides left his Colony in Peloponefus, and return'd to Thebes; but departing upon fome Bufinefs in his Tra vels, Eurytus, Prince of Ecalia, promifed to give his Daughter to him that beft drew the Bow? Alcides prefented himself, and made appear that he was the most expert in that Exercife; but the Kiug kept not his word, under pretence that the Phenecians had been accuflom'd c

pbus

mongst the Number of the Gods.

And although all these Things were not done by himself only, because he was the Chief, he had the Honour of all Enterprizes. Befides the Name of Alcides or Alceus, that he had from his Infancy, he was called Herokel, which the Gruiks made HPAKAEIZ,Heracleis,and the Latins, Hercules. 'Tis a Phenician Word, which fignifies Merchant: And indeed Alcides did nothing else but establish Phenician Colonies, or make the Negotiations of those more flourishing that drew their Original from Phenicia.

pbos, Mafter of the Place; tho' afterwards, being reconcild to the Prieft, he told Alcides, that to cure his Infirality, he muft quit Greece, and make Satisfaction to Eurytus. This Advice he intended to follow; but being arrived to the Coafts of Afia, he was made a Slave by fome Men of Omphales, Queen of Lydia, where he continued three Years. In which time he made fome Famous Voyages, and in one of them, at laft difcovered fome Phenician Veffels, whom he join'd, and upon his making himself known to them, they delivered him from his Captivity. He went not very far, but ftopt in Myfia, where Q. I defire your Opinion whether he Eftablished a Colony; but Love, fuch as is between Huthe Neighbourhood and Riches mane Creatures) be a Good or Evil of Porygia, raised an Envy in to us? And which is most laudathe Phenicians that were in Myfia, ble, to place it upon Mankind, aud put them in mind of fei-or some other Object, as Fame, zing fome Advantageous Port &c. near Troy, and Eftablish thern felves there: To which end, they equippd a little Fleet of 18 Vefleis, that they themselves had built, and went under the Conduct of Alcides; but the Repulfe of the Enemy, and fome Divifions amongst themselves, made 'em foon leave the Place. Alcides returning from thence into Greece, was a new engaged in Wars to defend his Colony at Peliponnefus; whereof the Particulars may be feen in the 21. 7 c. of Apollodorus. He a little after died upon a Moun-relifht amongst us. rain of Theffaly, called Eta, where his Body was burnt, as then the Cuftom of that Country was; and because of his mighty Actions, he was placed a

A. Next to Being it felf, the Capacity of Loving is the greateft Gift that God has bestowed upon Man, fince by that Faculty only he is fitted for the Enjoymeat of all outward Goods. And the more Noble and Excellent the Object is, so much is it the more capable of giving us an extenfive and durable Happiness; the efore the Love of each other is

preferable to that of Honours, Fame, or Riches. And our Inconftancy and ill Choice is the Reason why it is fo indifferently

Q. Did not Origen hold the Opinion of the Anthropomor⚫ phites?

A. 'Tis

Q. You have formerly given us fome Account of the Opinions and Ecclefiaftical Customs of Georgia, but never yet, as I have met with, any thing about their Politicks, or what Power their Clergy have, which I defire you would be pleased to do at your Leifure?

What was Moloch, And how do ye reconcile it with Amos 5.25, 26. Te have born the Tabernacle of this Moloch, and Chiun your Images, the Star of your God, which ye made to your felves.

A. Let's firft, if we can, find out who this Moloch fhould be who appears in fo many Shapes and Names, both in Sacred and Prophane Hiftory, grinning thro' a Black Cloud, as Cowley defcribes him, which may be applied to the Obfcurity, as well as Terror of this very Ancient Idol. And ft, For his Name, it's varied into, Malach, Malcham, Melech, Melcom, Milcom, Molech Molach, Molcham. We find it writ Malach, in the Famous Infcriprion, ΑΓΛΙΒΩΛΩ καὶ ΜΑΛΑΧBHAS, yet remaining at Rome in the Farnesian Gardens; and in the fame manner is that puz

A. Their Princes are abfo lute, and Treat the Ecclefiafticks with as much haughtiness as the reft of their Subje&s: In the Election of Patriarchs they give their Suffrage with the Bifhops, and it is of fo great Weight, that they generally choose whomfoever the Prince Nominares. There is no form of Juftice, the Will of the Prince ferves in(tead of Laws to all the Province, and thofe of each Lord in the Territories of his Juridiction. They use their Subjects like Slaves, andling Anfwer that Lucian got take not only their Goods from from the falfe Prophet [ MAthem when they please, but e- LACH, the Son of Sabafdalach, ven fell them alfo, without re- was another Atys] which fome garding whether he that buys other time we may take occafithem is a Chriftian or not. E. on to explain: It's call'd Malvery one Revenges himself of cham, Zep. 1. 5. “That swear his Enemy as well as he can; "by the Lord and Malcham, and it he cannot injure him in 2 Kings 17. 31. He's Meloch, in his Perfor, hell do it in his Comparison. "The Sepharvites Goods, Lands or Houfe, never "burnt their Children in the regarding Juftice at all. "Fire to Adrammelech and Anamgia is pofiled by divers Princes"melech. They fear'd the Lord, who are not very well united together, nor have they any ed of the Afliftance of one another.

Geor

and fery d their own Gods, as the
Samaritans did before 'em. Those
Words fignifying no more, as
Learned Men are of the Opinion
than magnificent and answering,
or Oraculous King or Moloch, from
the Addition of and
and their way of Worship tar-
ther clears it; Idols, together
with God, as thofe before, who

אור

: ענה

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