fery brought upon Men by Anger, Avarice, Deceit, and many other Paffions and Vices: But the Moment he touches on the Paffion of Love, we no longer fee the fame Elegance and Fire, nor the fame Strength of Argument; on the contrary, he becomes weak, fneaking and pitiful. Now, as this Subject pleases most Men, all that give him a Hearing take but little Pains to weigh and fift his Discourse: They eafily excufe themselves from the Trouble of examining, on account of the Credit which the Author has juftly acquired in all other Articles, which don't much concern his particular Cafe or Bent, Thus, disguised Error perfifts; and the general Confent, which they suppose it to have acquired, establishes and infenfibly confirms it, giving it even the Weight of Authority, which paffes for a Law; so that from thence forth none will dare to meddle with it. The fame is done to almost all other Vices by their favorite Authors: And I doubt not but that if there were any Algerine or Tunifian Civilians, they would find Arguments that there is some Honesty and Justice

to prove

in Piracy and Depredation.

It is also very hard to guard against an Equivoque and a Paralogifm very frequent among Men. There is an Evil which is always preferred to a greater. There is an Evil, which Men commit, for want of being able to do the Good that ought to take Place of it. Society is more injured by one Crime than by another: And every Man has not Strength and Means to do all the Good that becomes him. One Man kills another in Defence of his own Life, because he wants Coolness, Difcernment and Dexterity to fave both. Some take up with Courtezans, to avoid greater Infamy. Officers of Juftice, Executioners, Axes, Wheels and Gibbets, are only good to prevent and ftem the abominable Torrent of Vices and Cruelties, with which corrupt Men would otherwife deluge the Earth. Hence a fatal Prejudice is formed; the World taking that for a real Good, which is only a leffer Evil that prevents a greater, for want of Means to fupply its Place by fuch a Good as is precifely wanted. Even among the Literati there are but few that don't mistake this Matter, not to reckon fuch Authors as are devoted to a Country, to the Government, or the private Intereft

Intereft of Princes, and fometimes engaged to maintain Pofitions and Affertions advanced in their former Works. How fhould fuch Men

as these attack and overthrow Prejudices, which perhaps they don't perceive, or which fly away and vanish as soon as they are pointed out to them?

A

CHA P. XIV.

FTER this fhort Sketch I know not whether they will ftill venture to affert, that we may rely on any particular Man, even the most learned in the World, for a certain Knowledge and folid Decifion of what is just and honeft. Thus, though the Ground of Nature is to be found, we may always be uncertain of finding a good Guide to it; and every Man that would truft none but himself in this important Research, must be the proudeft and most rash Creature living. Is not every one fubject to Prejudices, and to all the Illufions confequent thereon? What Inference, then, must we draw from all this evident Light and Knowledge? The Inference is, that

the

PART I. the Author of human Nature would not forfake Man in the deplorable Confufion and Blindnefs into which he had plunged himself, but would enlighten him, and lead him by the Hand in the important Search after Good and Evil, Justice, and fovereign Equity. Those Civilians who have deviated leaft from divine Revelation, have fucceeded in this Inquiry better than the others, fuch as the illuftrious Grotius and the learned Barbeyrac, notwithstanding certain Prejudices, which they durft not entirely shake off, either for want of Courage or Attention. On the contrary, the most material and most dangerous Errors have been the Portion of all Authors that have forfaken or concealed Revelation, in order to fubftitute thereto, without being fenfible of it, human Traditions.

FOR Inftance, has M. de Montefquiou done any thing more in his elaborate Work, than giving a Loose to his Genius, and displaying his fingular Talents, in order to reason on a Heap of Laws, Customs, and Texts, artfully chofen to fuit his Syftem? A System which he durft not plainly disclose, left he should fhock his Countrymen and the Majority of Mankind,

Mankind, without gaining even the GoodWill of Republicans. It is a large Stride already, to have given the Preference to all the Relators of Customs in the remotest Parts of the East, who are fo liable to Exception, and to have collected the Fragments of the Laws of the Greeks and Romans, and most other idolatrous Nations, all the Interpretations of which, and the Confequences he has drawn from them, he himself would not warrant. He talks of Genoa, and of Venice, where I was born, and where he himself did formerly refide fome Time; and yet I doubt not, in case of reprinting his Work, but that he will amend most of the Paffages concerning this Republick, if he is a Lover of Truth. What Stress then is to be laid on the rest, which is grounded on little elfe but Suppofitions? If this great Genius had gone upon a more folid Foundation, and divested himself of the Prejudices cultivated in his florid Perfian Letters, what a valuable Work might we not have had from his Hand!

BUT this we shall ever expect in vain, fo long as Men will not refpectfully inquire of divine Revelation, which ought to be confidered

as