those who had any defire to buy it, by the public cryer, that it was fituated in a good neighbourhood. Now this we can affure you is the cafe of Hell; and can produce to you, as authorities of the truth of our affertion, a set of people, whose testimony will certainly not be disputed, since they have been looked on as infallible, not only with regard to this point, but in feveral others. Thefe are the grave and irrefragable doctors of divinity; who have all affured us, with as much boldness and certainty, as if they had themselves feen it, that the frontiers of the infernal. empire are inhabited by people of the most quiet, the moft pacific difpofitions in the world, and the most incapable of breeding any kind of mifchief, doing even the smallest injury, or giving the very flightest offence to their neighbours. AND now, I know you are going eagerly to ask me, which is the delightful country, where fo much quiet, fo much fweetness reigns? I answer, in a word, it is Purgatory. A country, as it is faid, inhabited by children who have died yet unregenerate: by which you may conceive it is the habitation of innocence and candour; perfections, it is much, if we ever meet with here on earth. THE learned writers, who have given us a description of that country, affure us, it was formerly inhabited, during the space of four thousand years, by pious and facred perfons, who neither were lefs quiet, nor lefs innocent. But, that, at the end of that time, they they quitted this habitation to go to a much better one, where, notwithstanding, they have ftill remained to keep up a friendly correspondence with the inhabitants of Hell, their former neighbours. The truth of this relation we also further learn, from the account of the wicked rich man we have before mentioned; in which we find that one of the ancient inhabitants of Purgatory, in speaking to him, gives him even the tender name of Son. Nor can we at all. doubt, that, in imitation of these facred perfons, their fucceffors, the new inhabitants of Purgatory give alfo to their neighbours the fweet and tender titles of Papa and Mama, as we behold the little Foundlings do to those who talk to or carefs them. BUT The unspeakable utility of Hell.. UT, if the peace and good agreement which is maintained by the inhabitants of Hell with their neighbours increafes the worth of the place, it furely has feveral other properties which no lefs add to it. One of the firft which prefents itself to the mind is its usefulness. THE greatest part of the works of men, particularly those which moft excite our admiration, are ra ther monuments of their vanity and oftentation, than useful works. Recall to mind those celebrated pyramids of Egypt, of which we hear fo much boafling; afk thofe enormous heaps of ftone, placed in the midft of defarts, whofe tops feem to reach the very clouds, and for the building which three or four hundred thousand workmen were for fcores of years employed; afk them, I fay, of what ufe they are; what purpose they have ever anfwered? It is a point the ancientest hiftorians have never told, and what the modern ones will never be able to inform us of: fhould they not then be looked on as ridiculous monuments of the vanity of thofe who built them? as labours equally useless and expensive ? LET us in the next place caft our eyes upon that famous obelisk of Semiramis, which was an hundred and fifty feet in height, and four and twenty in circumference: it was of one fingle ftone, and that stone had been cut in the mountains of Armenia. Now, how many artifts, how many labourers, how many machines, muft there have been employed, to, cut, to model, to draw this huge mass of ftone? How many carriages and horfes to drag it even to the river's fide, where it was to be embarked? How many floats and barges must be used to tranfport it from that place to Babylon, where it was to be, and was erected in one of the fquares of that large and magnificent city? And for what purpose, pray, was all this immenfe expence? Only for a moment to amuse the the curiofity of paffengers: to have the childish pleafure of hearing all the boobies of that age and country cry out with astonishment: "See, there's an e"normous stone!" Would not a good hospital, wellendowed, either for poor or fick, for aged, for orphans, or for invalids; an hospital, whofe foundati on would furely not have cost one half of the expence it did to erect this mass of stone, quite useless to the Babylonians, been of a thousand times the advantage to that nation, and done far more honour to Semiramis? WHAT more can be faid of that other folly, which, notwithstanding the ancients have called it one of the wonders of the world, I mean that Coloffal ftatue of brafs, which the Rhodians erected at the mouth of their port, and was of fo great a fize, that the largest D 6 veffels Pliny and Zonarus relate, that it was feventy feet in height: It was the workmanship of Charles of Lendos, and was caft down by an earthquake. These hiftorians fay, that there were but few people able to clasp round its thumb; and that each of its fingers were larger than many whole ftatues. Its fall difcovering fome of its cavities, there were found many large ftones in them, wherewith the skilful workman had contrived fo to poife and counterballance the weight of the ftatue, as to render it intirely firm against all the attacks of any ftorm whatfoe ver. veffels could go betwixt its legs, in full fail; one of which was fixed on each of the two moles which formed the entrance of the harbour. Tell me, for Heaven's fake, of what ufe could this huge piece of work be to the Rhodians, which muft have coft them fuch vaft fums? None at all: unless they fet it up to terrify their children, as the mothers, maids and nurfes do at this time, with the ftories of giants and witches. THE fame question may also be afsked in regard to that famous labyrinth of Crete; another of the wonders of the world; or, rather, a wonder of foolishness; which the poets have left us fome pompous defcrip. tions of. A work that must have coft king Minos, by whofe orders it was built, vaft fums of money. And, after all, for what purpose? Why truly, to enclose a monster; which, for the honour of that prince, and still more fo for that of his wife, ought to have been ftrangled at its birth, rather than kept, in this -> pompous manner, to render their infamy immortal. Here is what Ovid says about it : Now Minos, landed on the Cretan fhore, An ver. As it could not be erected again, it was broke to pieces, and the metal whereof it was compofed, being fent to be melted again, loaded three hundred camels. |