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In Oedipus Coloneus, the other tragedy mentioned, a very different opinion is maintained. A defence is made for that unlucky man, agreeable to found moral principles; that having had no bad intention, he was entirely innocent; and that his misfortunes ought to be afcribed to the wrath of the gads.

Thou who upbraid ft me thus for all my woes,
Murder and inceft, which against my will
I had committed; fo it pleas'd the gods,
Offended at my race for former crimes.
But I am guiltless: can't thou name a fault
Deferving this? For, tell me, was it mine,
When to my father, Phoebus did declare,
That he fhould one day perish by the hand
Of his own child; was Oedipus to blame,
Who had no being then? If, born at length
To wretchedness, he met his fire unknown,
And flew him; that involuntary deed

Can't thou condemn? And for my fatal marriage,
Doft thou not blush to name it? was not fhe
Thy fifter, fhe who bore me ignorant

And guiltless woman! afterwards my wife,
And mother to my children? What fhe did, fhe
did unknowing.

But, not for that, nor for my murder'd father,
Have I deferv'd thy bitter taunts: for, tell me,
Thy life attack'd, wouldst thou have ftaid to ask
Th' affaffin, if he were thy father? No;
Self-love would urge thee to revenge the infult.
Thus was I drove to ill by th' angry gods;
This, fhou'd my father's foul revifit earth,
Himself wou'd own, and pity Qedipus.

Again, in the fourth act, the following prayer is put up for Oedipus by the chorus,

O grant,

O grant,

That not opprefs'd by tort'ring pain,

Beneath the ftroke of death he linger long;

But fwift, with easy steps, descend to Styx's drear abode;

For he hath led a life of toil and pain;

May the just gods repay his undeferved woe.

The audience was the fame in both plays. Did they think Oedipus to be guilty in the one play, and innocent in the other? If they did not, how could both plays be relifhed? if they did, they must have been grofsly ftupid.

The ftatues of a Roman Emperor were held fo facred, that to treat them with any contempt was high treafon. This ridiculous opinion was carried fo far out of common fenfe, that a man was held guilty of high treafon, if a ftone thrown by him happened accidentally to touch one of thefe ftatues. And the law continued in force till abrogated by a refcript of Severus Antoninus (a):

In England, fo little was intention regarded, that cafual homicide, and even homicide in felfdefence, were capitally punished. It requires ftrong evidence to youch fo abfurd a law; and I have the ftrongeft, viz. the act 52 Henry III. cap. 26. converting the capital punishment into a forfeiture of moveables. The fame abfurdity continued much longer to be law in Scotland. By act 19. parl. 1649, renewed act 22. parl. 1661, the capital punishment is converted to imprisonment, or a fine to the wife and children. In a period fo late as the Restoration, ftrange blindnefs it was not to be fenfible, that homicide in felf-defence, being a lawful act juftified by the ftricteft rules of morality, fubjects not a man to punishment,

(a) 1. 5. ad leg. Jul. Majest.

more

more than the defending his property against a robber; and that cafual homicide, meaning homicide committed innocently without ill intention, may fubject him to reparation, but never to any punishment mild or fevere.

The Jefuits in their doctrines feem to reft on the external act, difregarding intention. It is with them a matter of perfect indifference, from what motive men obey the laws of God; confequently that the fervice of thofe who obey from fear of punishment, is no lefs acceptable to the Deity, than of those who obey from a principle of love.

The other error mentioned above, is, That the

end juftifies the means. In defence of that propofition, it is urged that the character of the means is derived from the end; that every action must be wrong which contributes to an ill end. According to this reafoning, it is right to affaffinate a man who is a declared or concealed enemy to his country. It is right to rob a rich man in order to relieve a perfon in want. What becomes then of property, which by all is held inviolable? It is totally unhinged. The propofition then is untenable as far as light can be drawn from reason. At the fame time the tribunal of reafon may be juftly declined in this cafe.Reafon is the only touchftone of right and wrong. And to maintain, that the qualities of right and wrong are difcoverable by reafon, is no lefs abfurd than that truth and falfehood are difcoverable by the moral fenfe. The moral fenfe dictates, that on no pretext whatever it is lawful to do an act of injuftice, or any wrong (a): and men, confcious that the moral fenfe governs in matters of right and wrong, fubmit implicitly to its dictates. Influenced however by the reasoning mentioned, men, during the nonage of the moral

a) See the first part of this sketch, Sect. 3. at the end.

moral fenfe, did wrong currently in order to bring about a good end; witness pretended miracles and forged writings, urged without reserve by every fect of Chriftians against their antagonists. And I am forry to obferve, that the error is not entirely eradicated miffionaries employed in converting infidels to the true faith, are little fcrupulous about the means: they make no difficulty to feign prodigies in order to convert those who are not moved by argument. Such pious frauds tend to fap the very foundations of morality.

SKETCH III,

Principles and Progress of Theology,

As no other fcience can vie with theology, either in dignity or importance, it justly claims to be a favourite ftudy with every perfon endued with true tafte and folid judgement. From the time that writing was invented, natural religion has employed pens without number; and yet in no language is there found a connected hiftory of it. The prefent work will only admit a flight sketch: which I fhall glory in, however imperfect, if it excite any one of fuperior talents to undertake a complete hiftory.

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CHAP. I,

THAT

Existence of a Deity.

HAT there exift beings, one or many, powerful above the human race, is a propofition univerfally admitted as true, in all ages, and among all nations. I boldly call it univerfal, notwithstanding what is reported of fome grofs favages; for reports that contradict what is acknowledged to be general among men, require more able vouchers than a few illiterate voyagers. Among many favage tribes, there are no words but for objects of external fenfe is it furprising, that fuch people are incapable to exprefs their religious perceptions, or any perception of internal fenfe? and from their filence can it be fairly prefumed, that they have no fuch perception †? The conviction that men have of fuperior powers in every country where there are words to exprefs it, is fo well vouched, that in fair reafoning it ought to be taken for granted among the few tribes where language is deficient. Even the groffeft idolatry affords evidence of that conviction. No nation can be fo brutifh as to worship a ftone, merely as fuch; the vifible object is always imagined to

be

In the language even of Peru, there is not a word for expreffing. an abstract idea, fuch as time, endurance, space, existence, fubftance, matter, body. It is no lefs defective in expreffing moral ideas, fuch as virtue, juftice, gratitude, liberty. The Yameos,, a tribe on the river Oroonoko defcribed by Condamine, use the word poettarrareincouroac to exprefs the num ber three, and have no word for a greater number. The Brafilian lan, guage is nearly as barren,

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