ΤΟ COUNTESS OF PEMBROKE, AND MONTGOMERY, RONESS HERBERT, &c. &c. OM fome pleafing conferences, with ich you have at times honoured me, d judge, that the following treatise t not prove unacceptable, if it is ind to your notice. It relates to that nd interefting object of purfuit, Relihich you have made the fubject of oughts and inquiries. Upon this acventure to prefix your very honourme for a recommendation; and to our acceptance of this mark of my respect, and esteem. In the profecu my endeavour of my purpose it has been avoid all prolixity from an unneceffary acculation of evidence; efpecially fuch as is eign, and too remote. For the mind is gued by being overloaded; and too much t tends often to dazzle, and confuse, her than illuftrate. It is not however my ention to abridge myself of material any icle, that may tend to conviction; but y to restrain myself from being too diffuse; I not to engage myself in the depths of ence and philofophy for an aggregate of wieldy proofs. For I never found, that multiplicity of inftances, and illustrations, e fo convincing, as a few well-digefted uments, fairly stated, and strongly enced. A fingle dart may be made to fink per, than a cloud of arrows ill directed. inftance to this purpose I once expeced; the hiftory of which, with your perTion, I will lay before you. * camp n one of those when I was in years, h your truly Noble Father, the Duke of The proofs to which I allude, may be found in Ray, wentyt, Derham, Grew, Cheyne, Stilling fleet, and others : re well worth consulting, though too abundant to be noby me. Marlborough ; Marlborough; a defired me, upc fion, to take hi Our converfatic ufual upon fuch things he asked were my notion trafively, or at inquiry feemed idle curiofity: happy confeque planation. How made me a vilit me a few days. evening he put and at the fam be really oblig thoughts in gen this I turned t paufe told him fmall compars compendious a permit. Relig falfe. This is medium. If i idle fyftem, an ough; an officer of my acquaintance ne, upon my making a fhort excur→ take him with me in my carriage. verfation was rather defultory, as is on fuch occafions: and among other he asked me, rather abruptly, what y notions about religion. I answered 7, or at least indeterminately, as his feemed to proceed merely from an riofity and I did not fee that any onfequence could ensue from an exn. However some time afterwards he e a visit at my house, and stayed with ew days. During this interval, one he put the question to me again; the fame time added, that he should ly obliged, if I would give him my ts in general upon the fubject. Upon curned towards him, and after a fhort old him, that my opinion lay in a compaís: and he should have it in as dious a manner, as the fubject would Religion, I faid, is either true, or This is the alternative: there is no n. If it be the latter,-merely an tem, and a cunningly devifed fable: let at and drink, for to-morrow we die. The me that he was much affected with the s, to which I brought the object of in: and I truft, that it was attended with y confequences afterwards. ach, Madam, is our fituation: and on chever fide the truth may lie, the subas I faid above, merits our most diligent iry. But from whence are we to begin? oubtedly from the existence, and attributes of of the Suprem bout which we must be a laws that lawgiver n and Confervat cannot be of foundation the therefore be truth, before are deducible f Such then i moft true regal |