to the neceffary Laws of a Comet's Trajection, which the Scriptures tell us was fent by God for the Sin of Mankind, feems to give too great a Scope for the Scoffs of Libertines, and the atheiftical Fatality. His turning Days into Tears, and denying the diurnal Revolution of the Earth at firft, is methinks a little too bold, when it does not feem at all to Favour his Hypothefis, but only to give, God fix Years time to work in, when the Infidels already grudge him fo much as fix Days. His fancying two Courfes of Rain from the Scripture, which only feems to repeat the Relation of one, is not to me fo fatisfactory; nor his Exclufion of Clouds and Mifts, which is agree able indeed to the Burnettian Theory, but, I think, not to his. Neither can I conceive, that the bare paffing through the Tailor Atmofphere of a Comet could afford the thoufand Part of the Water that Theory has occafion for, and he himself is forced to fetch a great Part of it from the Abyfs. Nor is it credible, that the Earth, a cold Planet, fhould go off with 750,000 Miles of the Comet's Tail, which could not be fupported by the Comet it felf, but only by Reafon of the burning Heat of the Body of it. And it is a Miftake, I fuppofe, to think, that the round Circle about the Body of the Comet is a watry Atmosphere, much groffer than the Tail, fo as to afford nine Times as much Water to the Earth paffing through that, as through the Tail, for the Ring is by fome curious Obfervers thought to be only the curling and winding round of the Smoke, rifing at firft to a determinate Height from all Parts of the Comet, and then making off to the Part oppofite to the Sun, as you may fee Fig. III. Neither do I fancy, that the Earth, paf fing even through the Atmofphere of a Comet, could gain any more Water by that, than any Thing can do by paffing through the Smoke of a Chimney; for both of them are but Smoke, only the former is the thinner, as being the fume arifing from the terreous Part of the Comet, by its Parelion almoft vitrified and calcined, the aqueous Parts being firft evaporated and fent off farther into the Extremity of the Tail. And befides, I cannor conceive,

conceive, how the Earth fhould not almoft have been fired, and Noah, and his Ark, burnt to Powder, by the glowing Heat of the melted Planet; for according to my little Philofophy, I fhould imagine it as comfortable living in a red hot Oven for an hour or two, as in fuch a fultry Atmosphere as this. And it is hard to think, that this Comet fhould give no more Disturbance in this Part of the Universe, but only to turn the Earth's Annual Orbit, from a Circle to an Ellipfis; for according to Mr. Newton's Principles, if the Comet had been bigger than the Earth, it had carried it away to Rights in its Parabola, through the vast extra-faturnine Spaces; and if it had been lefs, it had been stopt by the Earth, and so we had been troubled with its fmoky Tail about us ever fince. Or if it had been of the fame Bignefs with the Earth, and if it had well nigh the fame Celerity with the Earth, we fhould have had the fame troublesome Companion nevertheless; or however, it is ten thousand to one, but it would have run away with our Moon, if it had happened to have come nigher to That than the Earth does. Nor does it lie eafy upon my Mind, how fuch a prodigious Quantity of Water, that he fuppofes to have come from the Comet, could be difpofed of; it is impoffible it could be one quarter of it fufpended in the Air, or lodged in the Chanels of the Seas; for the Chanels could bear no proportion to it. Nor can I think the Seas were fo much as inlarged by the Deluge, but that they both, before and fince, have been growing lefs, and lefs, by the prodigious Quantities of Water employ'd in the Production of Trees and Plants, which are reduced afterward into Mold, and always retain the Species of Earth, or lie buried in the Ground, and never return to the Sea again. To fay nothing of how much more is employed in the Concretion of Stones and conchous Substances, how much is licked up by the Ether out of the Atmosphere as the Earth is fwimming through it, how much more flies over in Vapours to the Poles, notwithstanding the Barricado of the Hills, is frozen there, and never returns again, unless fome few Particles, it may be, of them at S 2

fome

fome Seafons of the Year in Winds: And to pafs over the Obfervations of the Chanels of great Rivers near the Sea, which feem formerly to have been far broader than they are now, and the many great Countries which the Sea has deferted. And befides, laftly, in my Mind it is impoffible that the fwelling of the Abyss fhould alter the Figure of the Earth's Cruft, from a Circle or Oval to a Sphæroide; that the Water had force enough to do it; or that this Effect could happen without shattering the Compages, being of a brittle faxeous Substance, into Pieces. These are my Reafons, why I cannot acquiefce in the Hypothesis of that ingenious and learned Gentleman, as exactly true; yet I think it a curious Effay to fhew the Infidels not only the Poffibility of the mosaick Hiftory, but how finely it may be made to correfpond with Philofophy; and after all, that 'tis easier to find Faults with this Theory, than to compose another fo good.

Phil. Well! Now you fee how these great Wits are miferably at a Lofs to explain this unaccountable Hiftory; and therefore it is in vain to try any further to explain that, which will admit of no Solution. So that you had better ingenuously give up the Caufe, and own, that it is an impoffible Relation, calculated only for the Illiterateness of thofe Times, to make the Jews ftand in Fear of the Deity, when they were told that fuch a tragical Punishment was inflicted by him upon Mankind for their Sins.

Cred. If God was the Caufe of the Deluge, as our Religion fuppofes, and not natural and mechanical Causes of their own proper Tendency; then God might bring it to pass a thousand Ways, that we know nothing of; for his Omnipotence will be able to bear up against all the pretended Impoffibilities that you are able to raise against the Hiftory of the Deluge.

1. But if this Hiftory of the Deluge be fuch an impoffible unaccountable History, how come all the Nations of the World, to have fuch an impoffible Notion got into their Heads? Though feveral Men might have the fame

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unaccountable Fancies, yet it is hard to think that all Men should be troubled with the fame Dreams. And it seems to me to have more Impoffibility, that all Nations should have Traditions of a Deluge, if there had been no fuch Thing as a Deluge; than any you can fhew me in the Deluge it felf. The Babylonians, Phoenicians, Affyrians, in their Hiftories make mention of a Deluge, as you may fee in Eufebius, and Jofephus. Deucalion's Flood was fo famous in all the Greek and Latin MythoPogifts and Poets, that nothing more need be faid of it. Martinius in his Hiftory of China relates the fame of the Chinese; and fo does Jofephus Acofta, Herera, and De Laet of the Americans. And Lucian relates the ancient Tradition they had of the Deluge at Hierapolis in Syria; which is almoft as Exact as the mosaick Relation of it. The Account, though it be fomething long, is not un pleasant, and deferves Confideration. This Race of Men, which now is, was not the first; but that Race was quite deftroyed. But thefe are of a fecond Generation, and from their firft Progenitor Deucalion have increafed to fo great a Multitude as we fee. Now of those former Men they tell this Story: They being contentious, did very unrighteous Things, they neither kept their Oaths, nor were hofpitable to Strangers; for which this great Misfortune befel them: All of a sudden the Earth gave out of her felf a great Quantity of Water, there were mighty Showers, the Rivers overflowed, the Sea was much higher, by which all Things became Water, and all Men perished. Only Deucalion was left unto the fecond Generation, † upon Account of his good Counsel and Piety. Now he was faved after this manner. He had a great ▲apvaž (i. e.) an Ark or Cheft, into which he came with the Children and Women, of his House; and then entered Hogs, and Horfes, and Lions, and Serpents, and all other Animals, which live upon the Earth, manura (súyea, all of them with their Mates. And he received them all, and they did him no harm; for by Affiftance from Heaven, there was

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* De Deâ Syria. + 'Euberías Evexa. This is agreeable to what the Scripture fays of Noah's being a Preacher of Righteousness to the ungodly Antediluvians.

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a great

a great Amity between them. So all failed in this one Cheft, as long as the Water did predominate. But thefe Things are told in the Greek Hiftories of Deucalion. But of thofe Things which happened after, one Thing worthy of great Admiration is told by the Inhabitants of Hierapolis; that in their Country, there was a great Gap into which all this Water funk. Upon which, Deucalion built Altars and a Temple over the Gap, and confecrated it to Juno. Imy felf faw the Gap. It is very little at the bottom of the Temple, as I told you. Whether it was formerly bigger or no, and grown nar rower by Age, I cannot tell, but this I can tell, that That which I saw was but little. Now they make this the Sign of the Hiftory. Twice in a Year Water is brought into the Tem ple: And not only the Priests bring it, but all Syria and Arabia. Nay, Men come even from Euphrates to the Sea, all carrying Water; which they first pour into the Temple. Then the Water defcends into the Gap; and though the Gap be fmall, yet it receives a prodigious Quantity of Water. And when they do this they tell, that Deucalion first inftituted this Custom, to be a Memorial of the Calamity, and his Deliverance from it. This is the ancient Tradition which thofe about the Temple tell.

From which Relation it is remarkable, that it was the Opinion of the People of Syria, that there had been an univerfal Deluge, that a certain Man and his Family were faved in an Ark, and a Male and Female of every kind of Animals, to reftore again the drowned Creation; and that all this vaft Quantity of Water funk into an Hiatus of the Earth, and made the World habitable again. Now, I hope, that Mofes's Relation is not fo incredible, when it has the joint Testimony of fo many Nations, and particularly the Heathen Syrians fo exactly correfponding with it. Indeed this Story in Lucian is told after his Way drollingly, as if he did not believe it; but yet there is no queftion to be made but that it was the Relation of thofe People, though he has a Mind to expose it.

But I need not trouble my felf to prove the Being of a Deluge by Tradition of Nations, when late Obfervati ons have given Demonftration of it. The Beds of Shells