verfal monarchy over the hearts of mankind. Luxury had many generals under him, who did him great fervice, as Pleafure, Mirth, Pomp, and Fax fbion. Avarice was likewife very strong in his officers, being faithfully ferved by Hunger, Industry, Care, and Watchfulness: he had likewise a privycounsellor who was always at his elbow, and whifpering fomething or other in his ear: the name of this privy-counsellor was Poverty. As Avarice conducted himself by the counfels of Poverty, his antagonist was entirely guided by the dictates and advice of Plenty, who was his firft counsellor and minifter of ftate, that concerted all his measures for him, and never departed out of his fight. While these two great rivals were thus contending for empire, their conquefts were very various. Luxury got poffeffion of one heart, and Avarice of another. The father of a family would often range himself under the banners of Avarice, and the fon under those of Luxury. The wife and husband would often declare themselves on the two different parties; nay,. the fame perfon would very often fide with one in his youth, and revolt to the other in his old age. Indeed the wife men of the world ftood neuter; but alas! their numbers were not confiderable. At length, when these two potentates had wearied themfelves with waging war upon one another, they agreed upon an interview, at which neither of their counfellors were to be prefent. It is faid that Luxury began the parley, and, after having reprefented the endless state of war in which they were engaged, told his enemy, with a franknefs of heart which is natural to him, that he believed they two fhould, be very good friends, were it not for the inftigations of Poverty, that pernicious counfellor, who made an ill use of his ear, and filled him with groundless apprehenfions and prejudices. To this Avarice replied, that he looked upon Plenty (the first minister of his antagonist) to be a much more. VOL. I. + X deftructive

deftructive counsellor than Poverty, for that he was perpetually fuggefting pleasures, banishing all the neceffary cautions against want, and confequently undermining those principles on which the government of Avarice was founded. At laft, in order to

an accommodation, they agreed upon this preliminary: That each of them fhould immediately dif mifs his privy counsellor. When things were thus far adjusted towards a peace, all other differences were foon accommodated, infomuch that for the future they refolved to live as good friends and confederates, and to fhare between them whatever conquefts were made on either fide. For this reason, we now find Luxury and Avarice taking poffeffion of the fame heart, and dividing the fame perfon between them. To which I fhall only add, that fince the difcarding of the counsellors abovementioned, Avarice fupplies Luxury in the room of Plenty, as Luxury prompts Avarice in the place of Poverty. C

No. 56.

FRIDAY, MAY 4.

Felices errore fuo

Happy in their mistake.

TH

LUCAN. 1. i. ver. 454.

HE Americans believe that all creatures have fouls, not only men and women, but brutes, vegetables, nay, even the most inanimate things, as ftocks and ftones. They believe the fame of all the works of art, as of knives, boats, looking-glaffes; And that as any of these things perifh, their fouls go into another world, which is inhabited by the ghofts of men and women. For this reason they always place by the corpfe of their dear friend a bow and arrows, that he may make use of the fouls of them in the other world, as he did of their wooden bodies

bodies in this. How abfurd foever fuch an opinion as this may appear, our European philofophers have maintained several notions altogether as improbable. Some of Plato's followers in particular, when they talk of the world of ideas, entertain us with fubftances and beings no lefs extravagant and chimerical. Many Ariftotelians have likewife fpoken as unintel. ligibly of their fubftantial forms. I fhall only inftance Albertus Magnus, who, in his differtation upon the Loadstone, obferving that fire will destroy its magnetic virtues, tells us that he took particular notice of one as it lay glowing amidst an heap of burning coals, and that he perceived a certain blue va· pour to arife from it, which he believed might be the fubftantial Form, that is, in our Weft-Indian phrafe, the Soul of the loadstone.

There is a tradition among the Americans, that one of their countrymen defcended in a vifion to the great repository of fouls, or, as we call it here, to the other world; and that upon his return he gave his friends a distinct account of every thing he faw among those regions of the dead. A friend of mine, whom I have formerly mentioned, prevailed upon one of the interpreters of the Indian Kings, to inquire of them, if poffible, what tradition they have among them of this matter: which, as well as he could learn by those many questions which he asked them at several times, was in fubftance as follows.

The vifionary, whofe name was Marraton, after having travelled for a long fpace under an hollow mountain, arrived at length on the confines of this world of fpirits, but could not enter it by reason of a thick foreft made up of bushes, brambles, and pointed thorns, fo perplexed and interwoven with one another, that it was impoffible to find a paffage through it. Whilft he was looking about for fome track or path-way that might be worn in any part of it, he faw an huge lion couched under the fide

of it, who kept his eye upon him in the fame pofture as when he watches for his prey. The Indian immediately started back, whilft the lion rofe with a fpring, and leaped towards him. Being wholly deftitute of all other weapons, he ftooped down to take up an huge ftone in his hand; but to his infinite surprise grafped nothing, and found the fuppofed ftone to be only the apparition of one. If he was difappointed on this fide, he was as much pleafed on the other, when he found the lion, which had feized on his left fhoulder, had no power to hurt him, and was only the ghoft of that ravenous creature which it appeared to be. He no fooner got rid of his impotent enemy, but he marched up to the wood, and after having furveyed it for fome time, endeavoured to prefs into one part of it that was a little thinner than the reft: when again, to his great furprise, he found the bushes made no refiftance, but that he walked through briers and brambles with the fame ease as through the open air; and, in fhort, that the whole wood was nothing elfe but a wood of fhades. He immediately concluded, that this huge thicket of thorns and brakes was defigned as a kind of fence or quick-fet hedge to the ghofts it inclosed; and that probably their soft fubftances might be torn by these subtle points and prickles, which were too weak to make any impressions in flesh and blood. With this thought he refolved to travel through this intricate wood; when by degrees he felt a gale of perfumes breathing upon him, that grew ftronger and fweeter in proportion as he advanced. He had not proceeded much further, when he obferved the thorns and briers to end, and give place to a thousand beautiful green trees, covered with bloffoms of the finest scents and colours, that formed a wilderness of sweets, and were a kind of lining to thofe ragged fcenes which he had before paffed through. As he was coming out of this delightful

part

part of the wood, and entering upon the plains it inclosed, he faw feveral horfemen rushing by him, and a little while after he heard the cry of a pack of dogs. He had not liftened long before he faw the apparition of a milk-white fteed, with a young man on the back of it, advancing upon full ftretch after the fouls of about an hundred beagles that were hunting down the ghoft of an hare, which ran away before them with an unspeakable fwiftnefs. As the man on the milk-white fteed came by him, he looked upon him very attentively, and found him to be the young Prince Nicharagua, who died about half a year before, and, by reafon of his great virtues, was at that time lamented over all the western parts of America.

He had no fooner got out out of the wood, but he was entertained with fuch a landfcape of flowery plains, green meadows, running ftreams, funny hills, and fhady vales, as were not to be represented by his own expreffions, nor, as he said, by the conceptions of others. This happy region was peopled with innumerable fwarms of spirits, who applied themfelvés to exercifes and diverfions according as their fancies led them. Some of them were toffing the figure of a coit; others were pitching the shadow of a bar; óthers were breaking the apparition of a horfe; and multitudes employing themfelves upon ingenious handicrafts with the fouls of departed utenfils, for that is the name which in the Indian language they give their tools when they are burnt or broken. he travelled through this delightful fcene, he was very often tempted to pluck the flowers that rose every where about him in the greateft variety and profufion, having never feen feveral of them in his own country: but he quickly found, that, though they were objects of his fight, they were not liable to his touch. He at length came to the fide of a great rives, and being a good fisherman himself, stood

X 3

As

upon