act of folving fome great and ufeful problem in mathe matics.

And now at this later period, in the commencement of the nineteenth century, and in fo enlightened a city as New-York, fhall it be credited, that, when a perfon of long experience comes before the public with both the ability and intention of expofing, and, if poffible, exterminating the very dregs of fanaticifm, that he should be avoided and detested by the remnants of the difciples of illiberality, fome of whom have the felf fufficiency of an Ostrich that thrust his head into a bush when closely pur fued by the hunters, under the fagacious idea, that they cannot fee him whilst his own eyes are fhut against them. To fuch contracted fpirits as thefe, one more opportunity will be given, to clear away the mists that have been cast over their understandings, by the artful deceivers of an. tiquity. One more opportunity afforded them to avoid the felf-condemning difgrace of dying under the clouds of superstition, which they have it now in their power fo easily to difpel.

On TUESDAY, the 22d of the prefent month, the Apocryphal story of the Witch of Endor, the Athenian Oracle, &c. &c. will be explained by the powers of Ventriloquifm. The changing of Metals and Liquids-the Metamorphofis of Cards-Feats of an Artificial Fish, will be exhibited, together with a vast variety of other entertainments as will be expreffed in the hand bills of the day, which is to be the last night of Mr. RANNIE'S Performance in the city of New-York. May 19.

An Original Letter of THOMAS PAINE, to a friend, after the publication of the Age of Reason, will appear in the next Number.

NEW-YORK:

Printed and published by the Editor, No. 26, Chathamstreet, at Two Dollars per annum, one half paid in advance, every six months.

Comments upon the Sacred Writings of the Jews and Christians. Exodus Chapter 4th.

OSES is now about to commence the career of his conjuring glory, in which however, notwithstanding the affistance of his God, he does not appear to triumph much over the prophane conjurers of antiquity, while fome of modern times have certainly furpafsed him. If Mofes were here now with his rod and his ferpent he would be obliged to yield the palm to the ingenious Rannie, while the latter would pofsefs by far the greatest merit in as much as he forewarns the fpectators that he intends to elude the vigilence of their fenfes and play off upon them a compleat trick of deception. Not fo with the miracle working Mofes, for he pretends to fpeak in the name of heaven, and thus blinds the eyes of his deluded followers by a fuperstitious reverence for his character. If men of the prefent day can perform as great miracles as thofe of Mofes, and thefe too by human art and ingenuity, why fhould a fupernatural power be reforted to for the purpofe of lifting the Egyptian conjurer out of his difficulties. Thofe who are fuch strong advocates for miracles, and who believe that they constitute an infurmountable proof in favour of the divinity of the fcriptures, ought first to compare the two kind of conjurers-thofe who pretend to be divine, and those who operate by mere human ingenuity. To bring a full fledged bird out of a fresh egg, is as great a miracle as to turn a rod into a ferpent; yet the former has been recently performed in this city, that is to the

view of the audience fuch appeared to be the fact. If the enlightened people of this age and country can be thus deceived, why fhould we form any better opinion of the Hebrews and the Egyptians? They were not fo well informed, they were more fuperstitious and of course were subject to greater impofitions. This affair, therefore, of Mofes turning his rod into a ferpent, mentioned in the third verfe of this chapter, has nothing in it fo very miraculous; any one well fkilled in legerdemain tricks could do the fame. The miracle mentioned in the fixth verfe of this chapter, where it is faid Mofes changed the colour of his hand, is still more eafily performed. This could eafily have been performed by means of artificial colouring. But there are other matters contained in this chapter which merit feverer reprehenfion, and which prove with indubitable clearness that it is not a revelation from God. In the twentyfirst verse these words are put into the mouth of God, "but I will harden his heart (that is Pharaoh's heart) that he fhall not let the people go." Here is a piece of villiany at which every fanatic believer in christianity ought to blush! God is faid to have hardened Pharaoh's heart, and afterwards to have brought distreffing plagues upon him and the people of Egypt, because he would not do what he could not do, for God himself had prevented it. Do believers in this book believe that God is fuch an un just being? If they do, they destroy all our confidence in him ;—and if he is not fuch a being, the book that makes him fuch is without credit. There is another circumstance mentioned in the twenty-fourth verfe of this chapter, which is really laughable, and which overthrows at once the pretended divinity of the scheme. God is faid to have met Mofes at fome Egyptian tavern, and from the manner in which the affair is reprefented, we ought to conclude that fome difficulty arose between them, or that there was an old quarrel existing which had created in the bofom of Jehovah a spirit of resentment against Mofes. That is in plain common language, he had laid up a rod in foak for him a long time

and whenever he could catch him at a tavern, he intended to give him a found whipping, or put an end to his existence. The words in the twenty-fourth verse are. thefe: "And it came to pafs, by the way in the inn, that the Lord met him, and fought to kill him." Now the word fought implies efforts without fuccefs. Whether the Lord chafed him up and down through the several rooms of the tavern, or whether Mofes was an over match for him, is a matter concerning which we cannot decide-we leave this to christian commentators; they understand these matters well, and can doubtlefs give fatisfactory explanation. How this matter was finally fettled with him does not appear; but one thing appears very plain to the unprejudiced eye of reafon, that fuch a degrading fcandalous defcription of the character and conduct of God, must fubvert the fuppofed truth and divinity of any book whatever. If any perfon, at this period of the world, were to fay, that God met the Bishop of New-York, or any other clergyman at the City Hotel -that a difficulty arofe between them, and that God fought to kill either the one or the other, would not every reasonable man, who refpects the attributes of the Grea tor, cry out shame upon fuch blafphemous reprefentations! Is your opinion of God no more exalted than to imagine that he goes about in taverns, or other public places, with a defign to kill fome one of the creatures of his power, when, if he chofe, it is well known, he could erufh the whole to atoms in a fingle moment. however is the fact in the prefent cafe before us. Let those who reverence the Bible and hate Deifm read this affair and blufh, either for their ignorance or their im pudence.

Such

A Correspondent has favoured us with the following Letter from Thomas Paine, in answer to one be bad received from a friend, after the publication of the Age of Reason. PARIS, MAY 12, 1797.. your letter of the 20th of March, you give me fee.

In

W

veral quotations from the Bible, which you call the word. of God, to fhew me that my opinions on religion are wrong, and I could give you as many from the fame book to fhew that yours are not right; confequently then the. Bible decides nothing, because it decides any way, and every way, one chufe to make it.

But by what authority do you call the bible the word of God? for this is the first point to be fettled. It is not your calling it fo that makes it fo, any more than the Mahometans calling the Koran the word of God that makes the Koran to be fo. The Popish Councils of Nice and Laodocia about 350 years after the time that the perfon called Jefus Christ is faid to have lived, voted, the books that now compose what is called the New Testament to be the word of God. This was done by yeas and nays as we now vote a law. The Pharifees of the second Temple, after the Jews returned from captivity in Babylon, did the fame by the books that now compofe the Old Testament, and this is all the authority there is, which to me is no authority at all. I am as capable of judging for myfelf as they were, and I think more fo, becaufe as they made a living by their religion, they had a felf-interest in the vote they gave.

You may have an opinion that a man is inspired, but you cannot prove it, nor can you have any proof of it yourself, because you cannot fee into his mind in order to know how he comes by his thoughts, and the fame is the cafe with the word revelation. There can be no evidence of fuch a thing, for you can no more prove revelation than you can prove what another man dreams of neither can he prove it himself.

It is often faid in the bible that God fpake unto Mofes ; but how do you know that God fpoke unto Mofes? Becaufe, you will fay, the Bible fays fo. The Koran fays that God fpake unto Mahomet, do you believe that too? No. Why not? Becaufe, you will fay, you do not believe it; and fo, because you do, and because you don't, is all the reafon you can give for believing or disbelieving, except that you will fay that Mahomet was an im