ties, by maintaining, that the natives were not men, but a species of the Ouran Outang; for no better reason, than that they were of a copper colour, spoke an unknown language, and had no beard. The Pope iffued a bull, declaring, that it pleased him and the Holy Ghost to acknowledge the Americans to be of the human race. This bull was not received cordially. In the council of Lima, ann. 1583, it was violently difputed, whether the Americans had fo much understanding as to be admitted to the facraments of the church. In the 1440, the Portuguese folicited the Pope's permiffion to double the Cape of Good Hope, and to reduce to perpetual fervitude the negroes, because they had the colour of the damned, and never went to church. In the Frederician Code, a propofition is laid down, That by the law of nature no man can make a testament. And in fupport of that propofition the following argument is urged, which is faid to be a demonftration: No deed can be a testament while a man is alive, because "it is not neceffarily his ultima voluntas; and no man can make a testament after his death." Both premiffes are true, but the negative conclufion does not follow. It is true a man's deed is not his ultima voluntas, while he is alive: but does it not become his ultima voluntas, when he dies without altering the deed?

Many reasonings have paffed current in the world as good coin, where premisses and conclufion are both of them falfe. Ariftotle, who wrote a book upon mechanics, was much puzzled about the equilibrium of a balance, when unequal weights are hung upon it at different diftances from the centre. Having obferved, that the arms of the balance describe portions of a circle, he accounted for the equilibrium by a notable argument: "All the

properties of the circle are wonderful: the equilibrium of the two weights that defcribe portions of a circle is wonderful. "Ergo, the equilibrium must be one of the properties of the "circle." What are we to think of Aristotle's logics, when we

find him capable of fuch childish reafoning? And yet that work has been the admiration of all the world for centuries upon centuries. Nay, that foolish argument has been espoused and commented upon by his difciples, for the fame length of time. To proceed to another inftance: Marriage within the fourth degree of confanguinity, as well as of affinity, is prohibited by the Lateran council; and the reason given is, That the body being made up of the four elements, has four different humours in it *. The Roman Catholics began with beheading heretics, hanging them, or stoning them to death. But fuch punishments were discovered to be too flight, in matters of faith. It was demonstrated, that heretics ought to be burnt in a flow fire: it was taken for granted, that God punishes them in the other world with a flow fire; and hence it was inferred, "That as every prince and every magi"strate is the image of God in this world, they ought to follow his example." Here is a double error in reasoning: firft, the taking for granted the fundamental propofition, which is furely not self-evident; and next, the drawing a conclufion from it without any connection.

It once was a general opinion among those who dwelt near the fea, that people never die but during the ebb of the tide. And there were not wanting plaufible reasons. The fea, in flowing, carries with it vivifying particles that recruit the fick. The fea is falt, and falt preserves from rottenness. When the fea finks in

* The original is curious: "Quaternarius enim numerus bene congruit pro"hibitioni conjugii corporalis; de quo dicit Apoftolus, Quod vir non habet po"testam fui corporis, fed mulier; neque mulier habet poteftatem fui corporis, fed "vir; quia quatuor funt humores in corpore, quod conftat ex quatuor elemen"tis." Were men who could be guilty of fuch nonfenfe, qualified to be our leaders in the most important of all concerns, that of eternal salvation?

ebbing,

ebbing, every thing finks with it: nature languishes the fick are

not vivifyed: they die.

What shall be said of a reasoning where the conclufion is a flat by the laws of the same contradiction to the premisses? If a man shooting at a wild pigeon country no apeverahappen unfortunately to kill his neighbour, it is in the English tion but an oath can law excufable homicide; because the shooting an animal that is is a lawful act. If the aim be at a tame fowl property for amusement, which is a trefpafs on the property of another, the death of the man will be manslaughter. If the tame fowl be fhot at in order to be ftollen, it will be murder, by reafon of the

no man's

be taken in criminal causes, the in "the in quite peation of the practi a civil suin, it w pily wages, that it felonious intent. From this laft the following confequence is to the the date may be equiment drawn, that if a man, endeavouring to kill another, misses histon of a falschord

blow, and happeneth to kill himself, he is in judgement of law

guilty of wilful and deliberate self-murder (a). Strange reasoning the delinquent to expeped, subje to conftrue an act to be wilful and deliberate felf-murder, con- the penalter of

trary to the very thing that is fuppofed.

A plentiful fource of inconclufive reafoning, which prevailsjung! –

greatly during the infancy of the rational faculty, is the making. of no proper distinction between strong and weak relations. Minutius Felix, in his apology for the Chriftians, endeavours to prove the unity of the Deity from a most distant analogy or relation, viz. That there is but one king of the bees, and that more than one chief magiftrate would breed confufion. It is a prostitution of reafon to offer fuch an argument for the unity of the Deity. But any argument paffes current, in fupport of a propofition that we know beforehand to be true. Plutarch fays, "that "it feemed to have happened by the peculiar direction of the gods, that Numa was born on the 21st of April, the very day "in which Rome was founded by Romulus ;" a ry childish inference from a mere accident. Suppofing Italy to have been tole

(a) Hale, Pleas of the Crown, cap. 1. 413. VOL. II.

R

rably

rably populous, as undoubtedly it was at that period, the 21ft of April, or any day of April, might have given birth to thousands. In many countries, the furgeons and barbers are claffed together, as members of the fame trade, from a very flight relation, that both of them operate upon the human body. The Jews enjoy'd the reputation for centuries, of being skilful phyficians. Francis I. of France, having long laboured under a difeafe that eluded the art of his own phyficians, apply'd to the Emperor Charles V. for a Jewish physician from Spain. Finding that the perfon fent had been converted to Christianity, the King refufed to employ him; as if a Jew were to lofe his fkill upon being converted to Christianity. Why did not the King order one of his own phyficians to be converted to Judaifm? The following childifh argument is built upon an extreme flight relation, that between our Saviour, and the wooden crofs he fuffered on. "Believe me,"

fays Julius Firmicus, "that the devil omits nothing to destroy "miferable mortals; converting himself into every different form, "and employing every fort of artifice. He appoints wood to be "ufed in facrificing to him, knowing that our Saviour, fixed to the crofs, would beftow immortality upon all his followers. A pine-tree is cut down, and used in facrificing to the mother of "the gods. A wooden image of Ofiris is buried in facrificing to "Ifis. A wooden image of Proferpina is bemoaned for forty

66

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nights, and then thrown into the flames. Deluded mortals, "these flames can do you no fervice. On the contrary, the fire "that is destined for your punishment rages without end. Learn "from me to know that divine wood which will fet you free. A "wooden ark faved the human race from the univerfal deluge. "Abraham put wood upon the fhoulders of his fon Ifaac. The "wooden rod ftretched out by Aaron brought the children of Ifrael out of the land of Egypt. Wood fweetened the bitter waters of Marah, and comforted the children of Ifrael after wan

«dering

"dering three days without water. A wooden rod ftruck water 66 out of the rock. The rod of God in the hand of Mofes overcame Amalek. The patriarch dreamed, that he faw angels descending and afcending upon a wooden ladder: and the law of "God was inclofed in a wooden ark. These things were exhi“bited, that, as if it were by certain fteps, we might afcend to "the wood of the crofs, which is our falvation. The wood of the

crofs fuftains the heavenly machine, fupports the foundations "of the earth, and leads men to eternal life. The wood of the devil "burns and perishes, and its afhes carries down finners to the "lowest pit of hell." The very flightest relations make an impreffion on a weak understanding. It was a fancy of Antoninus Geta, in ordering his table, to have services compofed of dishes beginning with the fame letter; such as lamb and lobster; broth, beef, blood-pudding; pork, plumbcake, pigeons, potatoes. The name of John King of Scotland was changed into Robert, for no better reason, than that the Johns of France and of England had been unfortunate.

In reasoning, instances are not rare, of mistaking the cause for the effect, and the effect for the cause. When a stone is thrown from the hand, the continuance of its motion in the air, was once univerfally accounted for as follows: "That the air follows the "stone at the heels, and pushes it on." The effect here is miftaken for the caufe: the air indeed follows the ftone at the heels ; but it only fills the vacuity made by the stone, and does not push it on. It has been flyly urged against the art of phyfic, that phyficians are rare among temperate people, fuch as have no wants but those of nature; and that where physicians abound, diseases abound. This is mistaking the caufe for the effect, and the effect for the cause people in health have no occasion for a physician; but indolence and luxury beget difeafes, and diseases beget phyficians.