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cies of compofition only, but extends to all the various kinds; to the humble paftoral as well as to the lofty epic; from the flightest letter to the moft folemn difcourse.

I know not whether Sir William Temple may not be confidered as the first of our profe authors, who intro duced a graceful manner into our language. At least that quality does not feem to have appeared early, or fpread far, amongst us. But wherefoever we may look for its origin, it is certainly to be found in its highest perfection in the effays of a gentleman whofe writings will be diftinguished fo long as politeness and good fenfe have any admirers. That becoming air which Tully efteemed the criterion of fine compofition, and which every reader, he fays, imagines fo eafy to be imitated, yet will find fo difficult to attain, is the prevailing characteristic of all that excellent author's most elegant performances. In a word, one may justly apply to him what Plato, in his allegorical language, fays of Ariftophanes; that the Graces, having fearched all the world round for a temple wherein they might for ever dwell, fettled at laft in the breast of Mr Addison.

II. On the Structure of Animals.

THOSE who were skilful in anatomy among the an cients, concluded from the outward and inward make of an human body, that it was the work of a being transcendently wife and powerful. As the world grew more enlightened in this art, their difcoveries gave them fresh opportunities of admiring the conduct of providence in the formation of an human body. Galen was converted by his diffections, and could not but own a fupreme Being upon a furvey of his handy-work. There were, indeed, many parts of which the old anatomifts 'did not know the certain ufe; but as they faw that most of those which they examined were adapted with ad mirable art to their feveral functions, they did not queftion but thofe, whofe ufes they could not determine, were contrived with the fame wisdom for respective ends and purposes. Since the circulation of the blood has been found out, and many other great difcoveries have been made by our modern anatomists, we see new

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wonders in the human frame, and difcern feveral important ufes for thofe parts, which ufes the ancients knew nothing of. In fhort, the body of man is fuch a fubject as ftands the utmost test of exainination. Though it appears formed with the niceft wisdom, upon the most fuperficial furvey of it, it fill mends upon the fearch, and produces our furprise and amazement in proportion as we pry into it. What I have here faid of an human body, may be applied to the body of every animal which has been the fubject of anatomical obfervations.

The body of an animal is an object adequate to our fenfes. It is a particular fyftem of providence, that lies in a narrow compals. The eye is able to command it, and by fucceffive inquiries can fearch into all its parts. Could the body of the whole earth, or indeed the whole univerfe, be thus fubmitted to the examination of our fenfes, were it not too big and difproportioned for our enquiries, too unwieldy for the management of the eye and hand, there is no queftion but it would appear to us as curious and well contrived a frame as that of an human body. We fhould fee the fame concatenation and fubferviency, the fame neceffity and usefulness, the fame beauty and harmony in all and every of its parts, as what we discover in the body of every single animal.

The more extended our reason is, and the inore able to grapple with immenfe objects, the greater ftill are thofe difcoveries which it makes of wisdom and provi dence in the works of the creation. A Sir Ifaac New ton, who stands up as the miracle of the present age, can look through a whole. planetary fyftem; confider it in its weight, number, and meafare; and draw from it as many demonftrations of infinite power and wisdom, as a more confined understanding is able to deduce from the system of an human body.

But, to return to our fpeculations on anatomy. I shall here confider the fabric and texture of the bodies of animals in one particular view, which, in my opinion, fhows the hand of a thinking and all-wife Being in their formation, with the evidence of a thoufand demonftrations. I think we may lay this down as an incontested principle, that chance never acts in a perpetual unifor-mity and confiftence with itself. If one fhould always

fling the fame number with ten thousand dice, or fee every throw juft five times lefs, or five times more in number than the throw which immediately preceded it, who would not imagine there were fome invifible power which directed the caft? This is the proceeding which we find in the operations of nature. Every kind of ani mal is diversified by different magnitudes, each of which gives rife to a different fpecies. Let a man trace the dog or lion kind, and he will obferve how many of the works of nature are published, if I may use the expreffion, in a variety of editions. If we look into the reptile world, or into those different kinds of animals that fill the element of water, we meet with the fame repetitions among several species, that differ very little from one another, but in size and bulk. You find the fame creature that is drawn at large, copied out in feveral proportions, and ending in miniature. It would be tedious to produce instances of this regular conduct in providence, as it would be fuperfluous to those who are verfed in the natural history of animals. The magnificent harmony of the univerfe is fuch that we may obferve innumerable divifions running upon the fame ground. I might alfo extend this fpeculation to the dead parts of nature, in which we may find matter dif. pofed into many fimilar fyftems, as well in our furvey of stars and planets, as of ftones, vegetables, and other fublunary parts of the creation. In a word, providence. has fhown the richness of its goodness and wifdom, not only in the production of many original fpecies, but in the multiplicity of defcants which it has made on every original fpecies in particular.

But, to purfue this thought ftill farther. Every living creature, confidered in itself, has many very complicated parts, that are exact copies of fome other parts which it poffeffes, which are complicated in the fame manner. One eye would have been fufficient for the subsistence and prefervation of an animal; but, in order to better his condition, we fee another placed with a mathemati cal exactness in the fame most advantageous fituation, and in every particular of the fame fize and texture. Is it poffible for chance to be thus delicate and uniform. in her operations? Should a million of dice turn up twice

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together the fame number, the wonder would be nothing in comparifon with this. But when we fee this fimilitude and refemblance in the arm, the hand, the fingers; when we fee one half of the body entirely correfpond with the other in all thofe minute ftrokes, without which a man might have very well fubfifted; nay, when we often fee a fingle part repeated an hundred times in the fame body, notwithstanding it confists of the most intricate weaving of numberless fibres, and thefe parts differing ftill in magnitude, as the convenience of their particular fituation requires; fure a man must have a strange caft of understanding, who does not difcover the finger of God in fo wonderful a work. These duplicates in those parts of the body, without which a man might have very well fubfifted, though not fo well as with them, are a plain demonftration of an all-wife Contriver; as thofe more numerous copyings, which are found among the veffels of the fame body, are evident demonftrations that they could not be the work of chance. This argument receives additional ftrength, if we apply it to every animal and infect within our knowledge, as well as to thofe numberless living creatures that are objects too minute for a human eye: and if we confider how the several species in this whole world of life resemble one another, in very many parti culars, fo far as is convenient for their respective states of existence; it is much more probable that an hundred million of dice fhould be cafually thrown a hundred mil lion of times in the fame number, than that the body of any fingle animal fhould be produced by the fortuitous concourfe of matter. And that the like chance fhould arife in innumerable inftances, requires a degree of credulity that is not under the direction of common fenfe..

III. On Natural and Fataftical Pleafares.

IT is of great ufe to confider the pleasures which con ftitute human happiness, as they are diftinguished into Natural and Fantaftical. Natural pleasures I call thofe, which, not depending on the fashion and caprice of any particular age or nation, are fuited to human nature in general, and were intended by Providence as rewards for the using our faculties agreeably to the ends for which..

which they were given us. Fantaftical pleafures are those, which, having no natural fitnefs to delight our minds, prefuppofe fome particular whim or tafte accidentally prevailing in a fet of people, to which it is owing that they please.

Now I take it, that the tranquillity and cheerfulness with which I have passed my life, are the effect of having, ever fince I came to years of difcretion, continued my inclinations to the former fort of pleasures. But as my experience can be a rule only to my own actions, it may probably be a ftronger motive to induce others to the fame scheme of life, if they would confider that we are prompted to natural pleasures by an instinct impreffed on our minds by the Author of our nature, who best understands our frames, and confequently best knows what thofe pleasures are, which will give us the leaft uneasiness in the purfuit, and the greatest fatisfac tion in the enjoyment of them. Hence it follows, that the objects of our natural defires are cheap or easy to be obtained; it being a maxim that holds throughout the whole fyftem of created beings, "that nothing is made in vain,” much less the inftincts and appetites of animals, which the benevolence as well as wildom of the Deity is concerned to provide for. Nor is the fruition of thofe objects lefs pleafing than the acquifition is eafy; and the pleasure is heightened by the fenfe of having anfwered fome natural end, and the confcioufness of acting in concert with the fupreme Governor of the universe.

Under natural pleafures I comprehend thofe which are univerfally fuited, as well to the rational as the fenfual part of our nature. And of the pleasures which af fect our fenfes, thofe only are to be efteemed natural that are contained within the rules of reason, which is allowed to be as neceffary an ingredient of human nature as fenfe. And, indeed, exceffes of any kind are hardly to be efteemed pleafures, much lefs natural pleafures.

It is evident, that a defire terminated in money is fantaftical; fo is the defire of outward diftinctions, which bring no delight of fenfe, nor recommend us as useful to raankind; and the defire of things merely because they

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