and beggary. They only created a dictator *, in order to drive a nail into a door; and by that means, they thought that they had fufficiently appeased their incensed deity.

In EGINA, one faction entering into a confpiracy, barbar-ously and treacherously affaffinated feven hundred of their fel-low-citizens; and carried their fury fo far, that, one miserable fugitive having fled to the temple, they cut off his hands, by which he clung to the gates, and carrying him out of holy ground, immediately murdered him. By this impiety, fays HERODOTUST, (not by the other many cruel affaffinations) they offended the gods, and contracted an inexpiable guilt.

Nay, if we should fuppofe, what seldom happens, that a popular religion were found, in which it was exprefly declared, that nothing but morality could gain the divine favour; if an order of priests were inftituted to inculcate this opinion, in daily fermons, and with all the arts of perfuafion; yet fo inveterate are the people's prejudices, that for want of some other fuperftition, they would make the very attendance on these fermons the effentials of religion, rather than place them in virtue and good morals. The fublime prologue of ZALEUCUS's laws infpired not the LOCRIANS, so far as we can learn, with any founder notions of the measures of acceptance with the deity, than were familiar to the other GREEKS.

This obfervation, then, holds univerfally: But ftill one may be at fome loss to account for it. It is not fufficient to observe, that the people, every where, degrade their deities into a fimilitude with themfelves, and confider them merely as a fpecies.

Called Dictator clavis figendæ caufa. T. LIVII, 1. vii. c. 3. + Lib. vi. To be found in DIOD. SIC. lib. xii.

of

of human creatures, fomewhat more potent and intelligent. This will not remove the difficulty. For there is no man fo ftupid, as that, judging by his natural reafon, he would not esteem virtue and honesty the most valuable qualities, which any perfon could poffefs. Why not afcribe the fame sentiment to his deity? Why not make all religion, or the chief part of it, to confift in these attainments?

Nor is it fatisfactory to say, that the practice of morality is more difficult than that of fuperftition; and is therefore rejected. For, not to mention the exceffive penances of the Brachmans and Talapoins; it is certain, that the Rhamadan of the TURKS, during which the poor wretches, for many days, often in the hottest months of the year, and in some of the hottest climates. of the world, remain without eating or drinking from the rifing to the setting of the fun; this Rhamadan, I fay, muft be more fevere than the practice of any moral duty, even to the most vicious and depraved of mankind. The four lents of the MUSCOVITES, and the aufterities of fome Roman Ca tholics, appear more difagreeable than meeknefs and benevolence. In short, all virtue, when men are reconciled to it by ever fo little practice, is agreeable: All fuperftition is for ever odious and burthenfome..

Perhaps, the following account may be received as a true folution of the difficulty. The duties which a man performs as a friend or parent, feem merely owing to his benefactor or children; nor can he be wanting to thefe duties, without breaking through all the ties of nature and morality. A ftrong inclination may prompt him to the performance: A fentiment of order and moral beauty joins its force to these natural ties:

And

And the whole man, if truly virtuous, is drawn to his duty, without any effort or endeavour. Even with regard to the virtues, which are more auftere, and more founded on reflection, fuch as public spirit, filial duty, temperance, or integrity; the moral obligation, in our apprehenfion, removes all pretence to religious merit; and the virtuous conduct is esteemed no more than what we owe to fociety and to ourselves. In all this, a fuperftitious man finds nothing, which he has properly performed for the fake of his deity, or which can peculiarly recommend him to the divine favour and protection. He confiders not, that the most genuine method of ferving the divinity is by promoting the happiness of his creatures. He still looks out for fome more immediate fervice of the fupreme Being, in order to allay thofe terrors, with which he is haunted. And any practice, recommended to him, which either ferves to no purpose in life, or offers the strongest violence to his natural inclinations; that practice he will the more readily embrace, on account of those very circumstances, which should make him abfolutely reject it. It seems the more purely religious, because it proceeds from no mixture of any other motive or confideration. And if, for its fake, he facrifices much of his ease and quiet, his claim of merit appears still to rise upon him, in proportion to the zeal and devotion which he discovers. In reftoring a loan, or paying a debt, his divinity is nowife beholden to him; because these acts of justice are what he was bound to perform, and what many would have performed, were there no god in the univerfe. But if he fast a day, or give himself a found whipping; this has a direct reference, in his opinion, to the fervice of God. No other motive could engage him to fuch aufterities. By these distinguished marks of

of devotion, he has now acquired the divine favour; and may expect, in recompence, protection and safety in this world, and eternal happiness in the next.

Hence the greatest crimes have been found, in many instances, compatible with a fuperftitious piety and devotion: Hence it is justly regarded as unfafe to draw any certain inference in favour of a man's morals from the fervour or ftrictness of his religious exercifes, even though he himself believe them fincere. Nay, it has been obferved, that enormities of the blackeft die, have been rather apt to produce fuperftitious terrors, and encrease the religious paffion. BOMILCAR, having formed a confpiracy for affaffinating at once the whole fenate af CARTHAGE, and invading the liberties of his country, loft: the opportunity, from a continual regard to omens and prophefies. Those who undertake the most criminal and moft dangerous enterprizes are commonly the most fuperftitious; as an antient hiftorian* remarks on this occafion. Their devotion. and spiritual faith rife with their fears. CATILINE was not contented with the established deities, and received rites of the national religion: His anxious terrors made him feek new inventions of this kind †; which he never probably had dreamed of, had he remained a good citizen, and obedient to the laws of his country.

To which we may add, that, even after the commission of crimes, there arife remorfes and fecret horrors, which give no reft to the mind, but make it have recourfe to religious rites and ceremonies, as expiations of its offences. Whatever weakens or diforders the internal frame promotes the

Drop. SIC. lib. xv.

+ CIC. CATIL. i. SALLUST. de bello CATIL.

interefts

interefts of fuperftition: and nothing is more destructive to them than a manly, fteady virtue, which either preferves us from difaftrous melancholy accidents, or teaches us to bear them. During fuch calm funshine of the mind, these spectres of falfe divinity never make their appearance. On the other hand, while we abandon ourselves to the natural undifciplined fuggeftions of our timid and anxious hearts, every kind of barbarity is afcribed to the fupreme Being, from the terrors with which we are agitated; and every kind of caprice, from the methods which we embrace in order to appeafe him. Barbarity, caprice; thefe qualities, however nominally disguised, we may univerfally obferve, form the ruling character of the deity in popular religions. Even priests, instead of correcting thefe depraved ideas of mankind, have often been found ready to fofter and encourage them. The more tremendous the divinity is represented, the more tame and fubmiffive do men become to his minifters: And the more unaccountable the meafures of acceptance required by him, the more neceffary does It become to abandon our natural reason, and yield to their ghoftly guidance and direction. Thus it may be allowed, that the artifices of men aggravate our natural infirmities and follies of this kind, but never originally beget them. Their root ftrikes deeper into the mind, and springs from the effential and univerfal properties of human nature.

SECT. XV. General Corollary.

Though the ftupidity of men, barbarous and uninftructed, be fo great, that they may not fee a fovereign author in the more obvious works of nature, to which they are fo much

fami