may add, that in the Persian sphere this constellation is designated as a brave man armed with a sword."

Near Perseus is Capella, or the she-goat accompanied by the he-goats or kids, from whom Jupiter is said to have derived the title of Ogiochus, and whom the author of the Samaritan Genesis probably alluded to, when he said: "In the beginning the hecreated the heaven and the earth."

We see, Richard Carlile, how the greatest apparent absurdities are explained by a reference to ancient astronomy. Indeed, almost all the personages of remote antiquity, whether called Gods, or men, were either constellations, or personifications of the effects and properties of natural objects. Hence, the Jabons, to whose Religion Abraham belongs, were adorers of the Stars, and regarded as natural Gods, Adam, Eve, and the Serpent; and the Chronicle of Alexandria telleth us, that these same fabulous beings, together with Cain, Seth, &c., were Genii, Gods, or Angels.

Dupuis here presenteth the Reader with a sort of astronomical map, which sheweth, at a single coup d'œil, the state of the heavens as he hath just been describing them. This of course I cannot insert; and indeed I hope it is unnecessary, after the detail which I have entered into, in these three letters. In my next I shall commence the second chapter of this admirable treatise, and having already explained the fall of man as occasioned by the serpent, shall proceed to show that the Evil was repaired by that Heavenly Lamb, which taketh away the sins of the world, even by Aries when the Sun entering this constellation repaireth the evil of Winter, and triumpheth over the powers of darkness.

Believe me, Fellow Citizen,

THY FRIEND.

TO MR. R. CARLILE, DORCHESTER GAOL.

Sheffield, year 1724, of havoc, bloodshed, massacre, and misery caused by Christianity.

MUCH ESTEEMED CITIZEN, WITH inexpressible satisfaction I forward to you the undermentioned subscription, being the mites of a few friends to universal, civil, and religious liberty, in this town. Some of them are ardently attached to your principles; others, though not exactly agreeing with you, sincerely hope that you will conquer the despotic, intolerant, persecuting, and despicable faction, by whom you are assailed; they admire your persevering constancy in a good, yea, in the best of causes, and have chosen this method of conveying to you what pecuniary assistance they can afford, their sincere and heartfelt thanks. You are assailed by a powerful

body of corruption, superstition, fanaticism, and vice; but, powerful as they are, they dare not attack you, but in the most dishonorable manner; they would come before you, but they know you would hold up the sacred mirror of truth, and expose them in all their black and glaring deformity; they dare not come to the light, because their deeds are evil, they dare not attack you with the pen and printing press, knowing, that with those weapons they would soon be foiled; they dare not let you rest on your own intrinsic merits, knowing that you would soon put to flight every thing corrupt, venal, and tyrannic in the country, and then their craft would be at an end. But what dare they do? They dare send an informer to buy a book from a servant of yours; they even dare to swear it is blasphemous though they cannot define the term; they dare to send him to prison, and when they have done all this, they dare not take him to trial, until they have prepared a Jury, whom they well know (to repeat a former libel) are, "like a well whipped pack of hounds, eagerly attempting to run him down by their joint clamour and exertion."

Having glanced at what our enemies dare and dare not do: let us see what we dare to do? WE DARE DO ALL THAT MAY BECOME US AS MEN. Our enemies, and the enemies of all that is good, great, and ennobling, dare do more. They resort to the most UNMANLY practices, and why? Because we have truth on our side. Is truth then become so hateful? Alas! it is, and falsehood, because it supports and props the most dishonest practices, is the idol of the day. Kings and priests must be put down before truth will be publicly embraced; the two crafts are so interwoven with each other and with falsehood, that it is necessary to destroy the one, to rid the world of the other. It is only under a virtuous system of Government, that virtue will be encouraged and esteemed; that truth will be sought after and practised; and that man will enjoy his natural rights. Such a system of Government we pledge ourselves to endeavour unceasingly to establish in this island: a system in which the rights of man will be respected; in which the few will not legislate for the many, without fair election, in which, every theory, every system, will stand upon its own bottom; in which vice of every kind will be punished, and held up to execration; and in which every man may enjoy his own opinion unmolested, so long as he will do so without injuring or persecuting his fellow creature.

I should like to face little Jef again, to let him see, that his angry looks, his parchment bonds, and his years of imprisonment, cannot deter men from speaking the truth. He says, the truth is a libel, and must not be spoken; but it shall be spoken, and rung in his ears, till he is deafened with the sound. Our friends in Sheffield return their thanks to the brave fellows who have already battled in the legal storm, and they hope a man will not be wanting, till persecution is stayed, for by suffering we shall conquer.

Hoping that you will finally triumph over your detestable enemies, and live to enjoy the fruit of your labours, your sentence reversed, remunerated for the robberies and injuries inflicted on you, and your persecutors made to acknowledge and feel that yours has been an illegal and unjust imprisonment,

I remain Citizen, in behalf of the subscribers,
Your friend, and fellow labourer,

TO MR. WILLIAM HOLMES, 28, WEST-BAR GREEN,

SHEFFIELD.

Dorchester Gaol, June 20, 1824, as the fable goes.

CITIZEN, I CONGRATULATE your friends in Sheffield, you, and myself, that that town is now so well suited with an agent for my publications. You are just the man to re-kindle those mental powers which the temporary absence of the necessary solar rays had rendered cold and torpid. Mankind are every where the same, and at all times born in like ignorance; so that the savage of a thousand or two thousand years ago, would be followed in character by the savage of to day, did not that education which is constituted in the knowledge, the customs, and the manners of society, educate him to different habits and reflections. All that is necessary to make all happy is right education, and I pride myself in the assurance, that what you are doing in Sheffield is the most speedy and most effectual means to that end. It rather becomes me to thank you for what you have done, and are doing, than to say a word to you about perseverance, whose conduct in that shape is so exemplary. I return my thanks to the Sheffield friends for this further subscription, and acknowledge that I feel invigoration renewed and increased by every notice and support of this kind. I am, Citizen, your gratified fellow labourer,

RICHARD CARLILE.

NEWSPAPER REPORTS.

In the Morning Chronicle of Wednesday June 9, a very good report of the trial of Mr. William Campion was inserted: the next day, Thursday the 10th, the admirable defence of Mr. Hassell was inserted at length. This was fair, honest conduct. The Chroni

cle, like every other newspaper, ought to give fair accounts of all public trials, and its proprietors and managers ought to be held no more responsible for the opinions of Deists expressed in their trials, than for the conduct of those who may be tried for crim. con.; yet all good Christian people read those latter trials with avidity, and run to purchase those papers which contain the most lascivious accounts. Let the Editor of any one of those papers, the sale of which has been greatly increased by accounts of rapes and crim. cons., only do bare justice to an honest Deist, and out fly all the good Christian people who have read with delight his luscious descriptions, and threatens him with throwing up his paper. As much bawdy, Sir, as you please, but no reasoning against superstition. You may do as much as you dare for the corruption of morals. Adultery, rapes, abductions, boxing matches, &c. you may detail at any length, these things we admire very much, keep to these and we will purchase your paper. These things are good, they assist to "train up the child in the way he should go, that when he is old he may not depart therefrom." But no reasoning on speculative subjects, or look to the sale of your paper. This lesson has been just read to the Morning Chronicle, and the consequence is the following paragraph:-

"We do not doubt that if the system now acted on with regard to Carlile, be followed up vigorously, it will be so far successful, that it will deter people from serving in the shop in Fleet Street, and consequently will break up that concern. We can hardly conceive that mere attachment to any set of principles, without any hope of gain or advantage, will induce men (in any number) to expose themselves to an imprisonment of three years.-In fact, we do not well see what motive a mere sceptic can have of exposing himself to any great severity of punishment. A very zealous believer in a positive religion, may lay down his life in its defence, upon the same principle that he would deem its triumph cheaply purchased by the sacrifice of the lives of others, because, in return for what he loses here, he secures eternal happiness. But the sceptic who looks forward to no compensation in a future life for suffering in this, who conceives that when his eyes are closed for the last time, he will be as if he never had been, to whom the progress of mankind, in good or evil, a thousand years hence, cannot be known, and, therefore, must be a matter of perfect indifference,if he is at all consistent with himself, ought to enter into no contest respecting principles which may expose him to privation or suffering Allowing him to be impressed with the highest idea. of the beneficial tendency of his principles, and admitting that a sentiment of benevolence might lead him to communicate a knowledge of them to others, it would be carrying benevolence very far indeed, were he to offer up his own life, or subject himself to severe punishment, for the pleasure of exercising it. Vanity and the love of distinction sometimes carry men a great way, but they