in the loweft degree claimants with this royal bird to LATRIA?

- Club. You feem to use reafon in your argument, and would be of weight, did the brightnefs and ftrength of our philofophy depend folely on weight, measure, and quantum of brains. But there is a great degree of force to be grant ed to the ftate and degree of mixture and refinement of the paste or matter to this fource or firit mover of wifdom. The faculty heretofore thought a foul is formed. The reafon we affume, to get rid of this difficulty, is, the texture, quality, and, firmnefs of man's nature might be the caufe of this fuperior degree of knowledge in him preferable to every other animal. For it is too glaring to deny that fome little and most frequent headed men, with very large bodies, have more understanding than little bodies with great heads. Some fay, there may be more brains and better compacted in a fmall head than within a great fkull. But this is not proved, and the dignity of philofophy is to affirm nothing but what is proved by a mathematical demonftration, as a philofopher fhould glory in truth.

Hoft. If we refer to reafon and truth, the two grand bafes and pillars of found philofophy, we shall defeat your new, or rather old, exploded twofold herefy; philofophical and religious being oppofive to truth and order. Other animals are equal in their creation with man, and yet, for near fix thoufand years, cannot be produced one fingle.inftance above their natural or general inftinct, unless fome anticks or

training, by the ingenuity or contrivance of man. Name me one, but man, that has made use of reafon, to tranfmit, to the latest times, by writing, hierogliphicks or tra dition, the different arts and fciences, or other ufeful knowledge, and whatever they judged requifite to tranfmit or hand down to pofterity. No animal, but man, was ever known to contrive or form inftruments of various forts for various purpofes, to extend and affist them in the arts and fciences, and their other purfuits and purposes. No animal, but man, was ever known to build fhips to tranfport themfelves in fearch of nations to them unknown, as Columbus and many others. Never was it known that the ape, parrot or any other animal, but man, carried their knowledge to the heavenly bodies, meafuring their diftances, confidering and marking out their motions and periodical revolutions. Myfelf have spent much time at fea, with fome improvement in naviga tion, which has communicated and improved my ideas. It is there, in a particular manner, by experience, we fee the wonders of the almighty and fuperior knowledge of man, travelling many thousand miles through an extenfive and tracklefs ocean, having no guide but the fkill of man, affifted with the fun and ftars for obfervation, compafs, and chart to direct, and log-line to meafure his diftance, which infure him his desired haven. But in all my voyages never efpied one fingle veffel guided by monkey, parrot, dog, hog, or other animal, but man. Let us now return to land, and take a

view of empires and kingdoms, their regulations, laws, and government, both civil and military, general, and particular, offenfive and defenfive, politics, alliances, commerce, &c. manoeuvring and marshaling armies; the laws of prudence in erecting fortifications, offenfive and defenfive, and a thousand other requifites, in a well-ordered government, cities, towns, architecture, of various forts and high finishings, and this regulated according to order, rule, and precifion. All this is peculiar to man and him alone; to him the world is put under fubjection. I do not exaggerate when I affirm, that both earth and heaven were made for man; who fees not, that all matters of ftate, commerce, or any other contract among men, are marked out and regulated according to the periodical movements of the Great Luminary? One half of man explore the vast bofom of the deep, bending to their ufe, fun and stars, to escort, convey, and guard them on their road. I am travelling in an inexhauftible ocean, of man's extenfion in power, glory, greatness, nobility, wisdom, knowledge, perfpicuity, and perfection, which labyrinth, to be properly fet forth, 'would require volumes, and for tranfcending my inability and illiterate conceptions. But thus far, for the honour of my fpecies, I have endeavoured to fhew the abfurdity in advancing tenets the most bafe and humiliating to man, that could be contrived by art, degeneracy, malice and folly; the whole acting against reafon and common fenfe.

Club,

Club. Your argument feems to carry weight, fortified with reafon, to those of little brains; but to us feniors, who poffefs a full quantum, in measure, weight, and quality, is of no force. You cannot catch old birds with chaff, neither will you frighten us with raw head and bloody bones, or any other fuch spiritual fnare, or artful contrivance, that imprefs and feduce weaklings and children; but we that have fprung and got quit of your foares, stand fearlefs free from remorfe or ftings of heart, we were heretofore affailed with, after feafting ourfelves on the good things of the earth, which was and is rivetted innate and clenched in the inner receffes of our hearts, from which glut of pleasure, like the bee, we will never recede until for want of breath we can hold out no longer, when we fhall return each element its proper gift.

Hoft. This membrane, or web, that I now produce, was all the contents contained in a Imall cavity, in the head of a fea toad, or tortoife, the head being all to the cavity folid. This creature weighed one hundred and fifteen pounds, without brains or marrow, the bones being folid as the head, all but the aforefaid cavity.

Club. What you advance reminds us of the furprising latitude travellers affume and think yourselves entitled to be credited.

Hoft. What I advance is known to feveral that will testify the fame, and yourfeives will be pleased to examine and give testimony that

it

it is nothing but a web confifting of nothing more than fibres.

Club. What you produce resembles tarantula fheath or web, free from brains or other mat¬

ter or contents.

Hoft. The fingular inftinct of the tortoife, in her care at the time of her depositing her eggs, to prevent the vigilance of her adversary (the turtle) from robbing her neft, or making a prize of herself, brings her the nearest to man of any other animal. Rabbi Mofes, whofe character you are no ftranger to, will give the furprising inftinct and many particulars relating to this animal, and this from his own inspection, in the Weft-Indies, where they are produced.

Club. Rabbi Mofes is a character of diftinguished merit, on whofe veracity we are agreed, We would think ourselves happy in making feveral enquiries from fo worthy a character, who, according to report, has been in fearch of truth. to all quarters of the world, from his youth, poffeffed of whatever is worthy praife, in fortune, goodnefs, refined fentiments, and ftrong understanding; but there arifes a doubt his being of the Jewish perfuafion, who are a people not eafily deluded or drawn from even error, as they are ridiculously fo, moft abfurdly. We will caft in our minds the utility of feeing this good and intelligent man, and if we fuppofe it not hurtful to our light, raifing doubts that there is a God, and fpiritual intelligences, who watch our actions with an eye far more clear and penetrating than the fun at noon-day, and that man is composed of two fubftances; one