Bridges, by the Sea-fide, &c. in order to put the Travellers in mind of the Gods, under whofe Protection they travelled. The vast number of the Statues made Petronius fay, that the Country was fo crouded with Gods, that it was ea fier to meet with a God, than a Man, Utique noftra regio tam præfentibus plena eft Numinibus, ut facilius poffis Deum, quam hominem invenire. It was the Cuftom of Travellers, in going out, or coming into any City, to kifs the Hands of the tutelar Gods. To this Custom allude the following Verses of Lucretius:

Strataque jam vulgi pedibus detrita viarum
Saxea confpicimus; lu portas propter abena
Signa manus dextras oftendunt attenuari
Sæpe falutantum tactu, præterque meantum
Englished by Mr. Creech thus:

The Streets, by often treading, wear;

The Brazen Statues, that our Gates adorn,
Show their Right-Hands diminish'd much, and

worn;

By Touch of those that vifit or pass by.

Alciatus miftakes widely the Senfe of this Paffage, taking Lucretius to speak here, not of the Statues of the Gods, but of the rich and powerful Men of Rome; who, fays he, in order to avoid the Trouble of giving Audience every Morning to their Clients, caufed their Statues to be fet up before the Gates of their Houses, and obliged the Clients to make their Compliments, and pay their Refpects to them, instead of paying them to the Patrons themselves. Had there been any fuch Cuftom among the Romans, it

would

Lucr. Lib. 1. vf. 316.

would infallibly have been mentioned by fome Writer or other but the general Silence of Authors, in this Particular, is a fufficient Confutation of what Alciatus is pleased to advance. Mr. Creech thinks, that the Ceremony of kiffing the Statues of the Gods, cannot be proved from any of the antient Writers; but is greatly mistaken for Tully mentions it in exprefs Terms, and takes notice of a Statue of Hercules in the City of Agrigentum (now Girgenti) in Sicily, whofe Mouth and Chin were, in fome measure, worn out with the Kiffes of the Votaries: cujus riɛlum, says he,ac mentum paulo attritius, quod in precibus & gratulationibus non folum id venerari, verum etiam OSCULARI folebant*.

The third and fourth Chapters treat of the Gods who prefided over the Ways among the Egyptians, Jews, Syrians, Chaldeans, Arabians and Perfians. Among the Egyptians, prefided over the High-ways Ofiris and Ifis; among the Syrians, Aftarte; the Teraphim among the Chaldeans; the Stars among the Arabians; and the Sun and Moon among the Perfians. As to the Jews, they used to worship, when they fell into Idolatry, the Gods of the neighbouring Nations. The northern Nations worshipped the Sun and Moon, directing their Prayers to them, before they undertook, a Journey. The Moon however was their chief Divinity: and this is the reason, why the antient Germans counted Time by Nights, and not by Days, as other Nations did; which way of reckoning is ftill kept up among us; for we fay, this Day fe' night, this Day fortnight, wherein we differ from all other Na

tions.

*Cicero IV. in Verr. c.43.

In

In the remaining Chapters of this first Part, our Author treats of the particular Gods, that were worshipped by the Greek and Roman Travellers; of their various Names and Titles; of the Manner and Ceremonies of their Worship, and the Favours each of them was believed to bestow upon his Votaries. He observes, that the Romans, as well as the Egyptians, paid worfhip, erected Temples, and confecrated Altars, not only to the Gods, at whofe hands they expected Favours; but to thofe likewife, who had no other power but that of doing mischief. Hence we read of Temples and Altars raised in honour of the Goddefs Fever, of Contumely, Impudence, Ill-luck, &c. Among the Infcriptions of Gruter one begins thus ; FEBRI DIVE, SANCTAE, MAGNAE, &c*. Prudentius counts the Itch among these antient Goddeffes; and adds, that this loathfome Deity had her Chapels and Altars his Words are,

Par furor illorum, quos tradit fama dicatis
Confecraffe Deos Febrem Scabiemque Sacellis.

h

The ignorant Vulgar truly believed, "that the Gods inhabited the Temples and Statues which were erected to them; but fuch as had the least Tincture of Learning, laughed at their Simplicity, and turned into ridicule the Gods they adored. Horace, in the eighth Satyr of the first Book vf. 1. introduces a wooden Priapus, telling how he came to be a God. I was formerly, fays he, the Stump of a Fig-tree, and an ufelefs Piece of Wood; but the Workman, after having been for fome time in fufpenfe, whether he should make a Stool or a God of me, determined at last that I should be a God: hence a God

• Gruter. Infcript. pag. 97.

1

God I am, a God who is the Terror of Birds
and Thieves.

Olim truncus eram ficulnus, inutile lignum:
Cum faber, incertus fcamnum faceretne Priapum,
Maluit effe Deus; inde ego furum aviumque
Maxima formido.

And Martial, Libr. 8. Epigram. 40. addreffing
himself to a wooden Priapus, fet up for a Safe-
guard to a Wood, advifes him to be watchful
againft Thieves, becaufe he is of Wood himself;
infinuating thereby, that the Master of the
Wood would make no confcience to burn him,
could he not fupply his Fire otherwife.

Non horti, neque palmitis beati,
Sed rari nemoris, Priape cuftos,
Ex quo natus es, & potes renafci
Furaces, moneo, manus repellas,
Et fylvam domini focis referves.
Si defecerit hoc, & ipfe lignum es.

If a Writer fhould now-a-days be fo free with
a wooden Saint, as thefe two Poets were with a
wooden God, it would coft him his Life in a
Country where the Inquifition reigns. Our Au-
thor obferves here, that to the Gods of the An-
tients have fucceeded the Roman Catholic Saints;
to Diana, the Virgin Mary; to Hercules, S.
Christopher; to Mercury, the God of Thieves,
the penitent Thief; to Caftor and Pollux, the
tutelary Gods of Sailors, S. Nicholas and S.
Telmus, &c, S. Nicholas well deferved the Ho-
nour that was conferred upon him; for being
appointed by the Pope to preach the Gospel to
the Muscovites, he failed (if we believe
No. XVI. 1732..
D d
VOL. III.

his

his Legend) from Rome to Muscovy on a Millftone. Cardinal Baronius * owns, that moft part of the Roman Catholic Ceremonies have been borrowed from the Gentiles; but adds, that as the primitive Chriftians thought it no Crime to convert the Temples of the Gentiles into Chriftian Churches; fo they are not to be blamed for having maintained the fame Ceremonies, fince they have fanctified them by changing their Object. If the primitive Chriftians thought fit to keep fome Rites of the Gentiles, in order to gain them over, with more eafe, to the Chriftian Religion; yet they never kneeled down before Images, nor offered Incenfe, or addreffed their Prayers to Stocks and Stones, as the Roman Catholics do now-a-days. There are several Edicts of the firft Chriftian Emperors forbidding the kneeling down, or burning of Incense before any Image or Statue whatfoever. And the Fathers, namely Gregory and Athanafius, often put the Chriftians in mind, that the Images of Saints are not to be worshipped, being allowed in the Churches only as Ornaments; and their Actions painted on the Walls, that they may serve instead of Books to fuch as cannot read, and ftir them up to follow their Examples. Were Gregory, Athanafius, and the other Fathers, who were for embellishing the Walls of Churches with the Images of Saints, to return from the dead, and fee the fcandalous Abuses, and idolatrous Worship, which, by degrees, have been introduced, and are entirely owing to fuch uselefs Ornaments; they would, no doubt, be of a different mind, and the first to pull down, and confume in the Flames, all Images of Saints.

Baronius ad A.44. cap. 72.

Qur