Methinks I begin to pity my Brethren, the moderate Men of the Church, that they cannot see into this New Plot, and to wish they would but get up into our Consolidator, and take a Journey to the Moon, and there, by the help of these Glasses, they would see the Allegorical, Symbollical, Hetrodoxicallity of all this Matter; it would make immediate Converts of them; they would see plainly, that to Tack and Consolidate, to make Exclusive Laws, to persecute for Conscience, disturb, and distress Parties; these are all Phanatick Plots, meer Combinations against the Church, to bring her into Contempt, and to fix and establish the Dissenters to the end of the Chapter: But of this I shall find occasion to speak Occasionally, when an Occasion presents it self, to examine a certain Occasional Bill, transacting in these Lunar Regions, some time before I had the Happiness to arrive there.

In examining the Multitude and Variety of these most admirable Glasses for the assisting the Opticks, or indeed the Formation of a new perceptive Faculty; it was you may be sure most surprizing to find there, that Art had exceeded Nature; and the Power of Vision was assisted to that prodigious Degree, as even to distinguish Non-Entity it self; and in these strange Engines of Light it could not but be very pleasing, to distinguish plainly betwixt Being and Matter, and to come to a Determination, in the so long Canvast Dispute of Substance, vel Materialis, vel Spiritualis; and I can solidly affirm, That in all our Contention between Entity and Non-Entity, there is so little worth meddling with, that had we had these Glasses some Ages ago, we should have left troubling our heads with it.

I take upon me, therefore, to assure my Reader, That whoever pleases to take a Journey, or Voyage, or Flight up to these Lunar Regions, as soon as ever he comes ashoar there, will presently be convinc'd, of the Reasonableness of Immaterial Substance, and the Immortality, as well as Immateriality of the Soul: He will no sooner look into these Explicating Glasses, but he will be-able to know the separate meaning of Body, Soul, Spirit, Life, Motion, Death, and a Thousand things that Wise-men puzzle themselves about here, because they are not Fools enough to understand.

Here too I find Glasses for the Second Sight, as our Old Women call it. This Second Sight has been often pretended to in Our Regions, and some Famous Old Wives have told us, they can see Death, the Soul, Futurity, and the Neighbourhood of them, in the Countenance: By this wonderful Art, these good People unfold strange Mysteries, as under some Irrecoverable Disease, to foretell Death; under Hypocondriack Melancholy, to presage Trouble of Mind; in pining Youth, to predict Contagious Love; and an Hundred other Infallibilities, which never fail to be true as soon as ever they come to pass, and are all grounded upon the same Infallibility, by which a Shepherd may always know when any one of his Sheep is Rotten, viz. when he shakes himself to pieces.

But all this Guess and Uncertainty is a Trifle, to the vast Discoveries of these Explicatory Optick-Glasses; for here are seen the Nature and Consequences of Secret Mysteries: Here are read strange Mysteries relating to Predestination, Eternal Decrees, and the like: Here 'tis plainly prov'd, That Predestination is, in spight of all Enthusiastick Pretences, so intirely committed into Man's Power, that whoever pleases to hang himself to Day, won't Live till to Morrow: no, though Forty Predestination Prophets were to tell him, His time was not yet come. There abstruse Points are commonly and solemnly Discuss'd here; and these People are such Hereticks, that they say God's Decrees are all subservient to the means of his Providence; That what we call Providence is a subjecting all things to the great Chain of Causes and Consequences, by which that one Grand Decree, That all Effects shall Obey, without reserve to their proper moving Causes, supercedes all subsequent Doctrines, or pretended Decrees, or Predestination in the World: That by this Rule, he that will kill himself, GOD, Nature, Providence, or Decree, will not be concern'd to hinder him, but he shall Die; any Decrees, Predestination, or Fore-Knowledge of Infinite Power, to the contrary in any wise, notwithstanding that it is in a Man's Power to throw himself into the Water, and be Drown'd; and to kill another Man, and he shall Die, and to say, God appointed it, is to make him the Author of Murther, and to injure the Murtherer in putting him to Death for what he could not help doing.

All these things are received Truths here, and no doubt would be so every where else, if the Eyes of Reason were opened to the Testimony of Nature, or if they had the helps of these most Incomparable Glasses.

Some pretended, by the help of these Second-sight Glasses, to see the common Periods of Life; and Others said, they could see a great way beyond the leap in the Dark: I confess, all I could see of the first was, that holding up the Glass against the Sea, I plainly saw, as it were on the edge of the Horizon, these Words,

The Verge of Life and Death is here. 'Tis best to know where 'tis, but not how far.

As to seeing beyond Death, all the Glasses I lookt into for that purpose, made but little of it; and these were the only Tubes that I found Defective; for here I could discern nothing but Clouds, Mists, and thick dark hazy Weather; but revolving in my Mind, that I had read a certain Book in our own Country, called, Nature; it presently occurr'd, That the Conclusion of it, to all such as gave themselves the trouble of making out those foolish things call'd Inferences, was always Look up; upon which, turning one of their Glasses Up, and erecting the Point of it towards the Zenith, I saw these Words in the Air, REVELATION, in large Capital Letters.

I had like to have rais'd the Mob upon me for looking upright with this Glass; for this, they said, was prying into the Mysteries of the Great Eye of the World; That we ought to enquire no farther than he has inform'd us, and to believe what he had left us more Obscure: Upon this, I laid down the Glasses, and concluded, that we had Moses and the Prophets, and should be never the likelier to be taught by One come from the Moon.

In short, I found, indeed, they had a great deal more Knowledge of things than we in this World; and that Nature, Science, and Reason, had obtained great Improvements in the Lunar World; but as to Religion, it was the same equally resign'd to and concluded in Faith and Redemption; so I shall give the World no great Information of these things.

I come next to some other strange Acquirements obtained by the helps of these Glasses; and particularly for the discerning the Imperceptibles of Nature; such as, the Soul, Thought, Honesty, Religion, Virginity, and an Hundred other nice things, too small for humane Discerning.

The Discoveries made by these Glasses, as to the Soul, are of a very diverting Variety; some Hieroglyphical, and Emblematical, and some Demonstrative.

The Hieroglyphical Discoveries of the Soul make it appear in the Image of its Maker; and the Analogy is remarkable, even in the very Simily; for as they represent the Original of Nature as One Great Eye, illuminating as well as discerning all things; so the Soul, in its Allegorical, or Hieroglyphical Resemblance, appears as a Great Eye, embracing the Man, enveloping, operating, and informing every Part; from whence those sort of People who we falsly call Politicians, acting so much to put out this Great Eye, by acting against their common Understandings, are very aptly represented by a great Eye, with Six or Seven pair of Spectacles on; not but that the Eye of their Souls may be clear enough of it self, as to the common Understanding; but that they happen to have occasion to look sometimes so many ways at once, and to judge, conclude, and understand so many contrary ways upon one and the same thing; that they are fain to put double Glasses upon their Understanding, as we look at the Solar Ecclipses, to represent 'em in different Lights, least their Judgments should not be wheadled into a Compliance with the Hellish Resolutions of their Wills; and this is what I call the Emblematick Representation of the Soul.

As for the Demonstrations of the Soul's Existence, 'tis a plain case, by these Explicative Glasses, that it is, some have pretended to give us the Parts; and we have heard of Chyrurgeons, that could read an Anatomical Lecture on the Parts Of the Soul; and these pretend it to be a Creature in form, whether Camelion or Salamandar, Authors have not determin'd; nor is it compleatly discover'd when it comes into the Body, or how it goes out, or where its Locality or Habitation is, while 'tis a Resident.

But they very aptly show it, like a Prince, in his Seat, in the middle of his Palace the Brain, issuing out his incessant Orders to innumerable Troops of Nerves, Sinews, Muscles, Tendons, Veins, Arteries, Fibres, Capilaris, and useful Officers, call'd Organici, who faithfully execute all the Parts of Sensation, Locomotion, Concoction, &c. and in the Hundred Thousandth part of a Moment, return with particular Messages for Information, and demand New Instructions. If any part of his Kingdom, the Body, suffers a Depredation, or an Invasion of the Enemy, the Expresses fly to the Seat of the Soul, the Brain, and immediately are order'd back to smart, that the Body may of course send more Messengers to complain; immediately other Expresses are dispatcht to the Tongue, with Orders to cry out, that the Neighbours may come in and help, or Friends send for the Chyrurgeon: Upon the Application, and a Cure, all is quiet, and the same Expresses are dispatcht to the Tongue to be hush, and say no more of it till farther Orders: All this is as plain to be seen in these Engines, as the Moon of Our World from the World in the Moon.

As the Being, Nature, and Scituation of humane Soul is thus Spherically and Mathematically discover'd, I could not find any Second Thoughts about it in all their Books, whether of their own Composition or by Translation; for it was a General received Notion, That there could not be a greater Absurdity in humane Knowledge, than to imploy the Thoughts in Questioning, what is as plainly known by its Consequences, as if seen with the Eye; and that to doubt the Being or Extent of the Soul's Operation, is to imploy her against her self; and therefore, when I began to argue with my Old Philosopher, against the Materiality and Immortality of this Mystery we call Soul, he laught at me, and told me, he found we had none of their Glasses in our World; and bid me send all our Scepticks, Soul-Sleepers, our Cowards, Bakers, Kings and Bakewells, up to him into the Moon, if they wanted Demonstrations; where, by the help of their Engines, they would make it plain to them, that the Great Eye being one vast Intellect, Infinite and Eternal, all Inferior Life is a Degree of himself, and as exactly represents him as one little Flame the whole Mass of Fire; That it is therefore uncapable of Dissolution, being like its Original in Duration, as well as in its Powers and Faculties, but that it goes and returns by Emission, Regression, as the Great Eye governs and determines; and this was plainly made out, by the Figure I had seen it in, viz. an Eye, the exact Image of its Maker: 'Tis true, it was darkened by Ignorance, Folly and Crime, and therefore oblig'd to wear Spectacles; but tho' these were Defects or Interruptions in its Operation, they were none in its Nature; which as it had its immediate Efflux from the Great Eye, and its return to him must partake of himself, and could not but be of a Quality uncomatable, by Casualty or Death.

From this Discourse we the more willingly adjourned our present Thoughts, I being clearly convinced of the Matter; and as for our Learned Doctors, with their Second and Third Thoughts, I told him I would recommend them to the Man in the Moon for their farther Illumination, which if they refuse to accept, it was but just they should remain in a Wood, where they are, and are like to be, puzzling themselves about Demonstrations, squaring of Circles, and converting oblique into right Angles, to bring out a Mathematical Clock-Work Soul, that will go till the Weight is down, and then stand still till they know not who must wind it up again.

However, I cannot pass over a very strange and extraordinary piece of Art which this Old Gentleman inform'd me of, and that was an Engine to screw a Man into himself: Perhaps our Country-men may be at some Difficulty to comprehend these things by my dull Description; and to such I cannot but recommend, a Journey in my Engine to the Moon.

This Machine that I am speaking of, contains a multitude of strange Springs and Screws, and a Man that puts himself into it, is very insensibly carried into vast Speculations, Reflexions, and regular Debates with himself: They have a very hard Name for it in those Parts; but if I were to give it an English Name, it should be call'd, The Cogitator, or the Chair of Reflection.

And First, The Person that is seated here feels some pain in passing some Negative Springs, that are wound up, effectually to shut out all Injecting, Disturbing Thoughts; and the better to prepare him for the Operation that is to follow, and this is without doubt a very rational way; for when a Man can absolutely shut out all manner of thinking, but what he is upon, he shall think the more Intensly upon the one object before him.

This Operation past, here are certain Screws that draw direct Lines from every Angle of the Engine to the Brain of the Man, and at the same time, other direct Lines to his Eyes; at the other end of which Lines, there are Glasses which convey or reflect the Objects the Person is desirous to think upon.

Then the main Wheels are turn'd, which wind up according to their several Offices; this the Memory, that the Understanding; a third the Will, a fourth the thinking Faculty; and these being put all into regular Motions, pointed by direct Lines to their proper Objects, and perfectly uninterrupted by the Intervention of Whimsy, Chimera, and a Thousand fluttering Damons that Gender in the Fancy, but are effectually Lockt out as before, assist one another to receive right Notions, and form just Ideas of the things they are directed to, and from thence the Man is impower'd to make right Conclusions, to think and act like himself, suitable to the sublime Qualities his Soul was originally blest with.

There never was a Man went into one of these thinking Engines, but he came wiser out than he was before; and I am persuaded, it would be a more effectual Cure to our Deism, Atheism, Scepticism, and all other Scisms, than ever the Italian's Engine, for Curing the Gout by cutting off the Toe.

This is a most wonderful Engine, and performs admirably, and my Author gave me extraordinary Accounts of the good Effects of it; and I cannot but tell my Reader, That our Sublunar World suffers Millions of Inconveniencies, for want of this thinking Engine: I have had a great many Projects in my Head, how to bring our People to regular thinking, but 'tis in vain without this Engin; and how to get the Model of it I know not; how to screw up the Will, the Understanding, and the rest of the Powers; how to bring the Eye, the Thought, the Fancy, and the Memory, into Mathematical Order, and obedient to Mechanick Operation; help Boyl, Norris, Newton, Manton, Hammond, Tillotson, and all the Learned Race, help Phylosophy, Divinity, Physicks, Oeconomicks, all's in vain, a Mechanick Chair of Reflection is the only Remedy that ever I found in my Life for this Work.

As to the Effects of Mathematical thinking, what Volumes might be writ of it will more easily appear, if we consider the wondrous Usefulness of this Engine in all humane Affairs; as of War, Peace, Justice, Injuries, Passion, Love, Marriage, Trade, Policy, and Religion.

When a Man has been screw'd into himself, and brought by this Art to a Regularity of Thought, he never commits any Absurdity after it; his Actions are squared by the same Lines, for Action is but the Consequence of Thinking; and he that acts before he thinks, sets humane Nature with the bottom upward.

M. would never have made his Speech, nor the famous B——ly wrote a Book, if ever they had been in this thinking Engine: One would have never told us of Nations he never saw, nor the other told us, he had seen a great many, and was never the Wiser.

H. had never ruin'd his Family to Marry Whore, Thief and Beggar-Woman, in one Salliant Lady, after having been told so honestly, and so often of it by the very Woman her self.

Our late unhappy Monarch had never trusted the English Clergy, when they preacht up that Non-Resistance, which he must needs see they could never Practice; had his Majesty been screw'd up into this Cogitator, he had presently reflected, that it was against Nature to expect they should stand still, and let him tread upon them: That they should, whatever they had preacht or pretended to, hold open their Throats to have them be cut, and tye their own Hands from resisting the Lord's Anointed.

Had some of our Clergy been screw'd in this Engine, they had never turned Martyrs for their Allegiance to the Late King, only for the Lechery of having Dr. S———- in their Company.

Had our Merchants been manag'd in this Engine, they had never trusted their Turkey Fleet with a famous Squadron, that took a great deal of care to Convoy them safe into the Enemies Hands.

Had some People been in this Engine, when they had made a certain League in the World, in order to make amends for a better made before, they would certainly have consider'd farther, before they had embarkt with a Nation, that are neither fit to go abroad nor stay at Home.

As for the Thinking practis'd in Noble Speeches, Occasional Bills, Addressings about Prerogative, Convocation Disputes, Turnings in and Turnings out at Ours, and all the Courts of Christendom, I have nothing to say to it.

Had the Duke of Bavaria been in our Engine, he would never have begun a Quarrel, which he knew all the Powers of Europe were concern'd to suppress, and lay all other Business down till it was done.

Had the Elector of Saxony past the Operation of this Engine, he would never have beggar'd a Rich Electorate, to ruin a beggar'd Crown, nor sold himself for a Kingdom hardly worth any Man's taking: He would never have made himself less than he was, in hopes of being really no greater; and stept down from a Protestant Duke, and Imperial Elector, to be a Nominal Mock King with a shadow of Power, and a Name without honour, Dignity or Strength.

Had Mons. Tallard been in our Engine, he would not only not have attackt the Confederates when they past the Morass and Rivulet in his Front, but not have attackt them at all, nor have suffer'd them to have attackt him, it being his Business not to have fought at all, but have linger'd out the War, till the Duke of Savoy having been reduced, the Confederate Army must have been forced to have divided themselves of course, in order to defend their own.

Some that have been very forward to have us proceed The Shortest Way with the Scots, may be said to stand in great need of this Chair of Reflection, to find out a just Cause for such a War, and to make a Neighbour-Nation making themselves secure, a sufficient Reason for another Neighbour-Nation to fall upon them: Our Engine would presently show it them in a clear sight, by way of Paralel, that 'tis just with the fame Right as a Man may break open a House, because the People bar and bolt the Windows.

If some-body has chang'd Hands there from bad to worse, and open'd instead of closing Differences in those Cases, the Cogitator migyt have brought them, by more regular Thinking, to have known that was not at all the Method of bringing the S—-s to Reason.

Our Cogitator would be a very necessary thing to show some People, That Poverty and Weakness is not a sufficient Ground to oppress a Nation, and their having but little Trade, cannot be a sufficient Ground to equip Fleets to take away what they have.

I cannot deny, that I have often thought they have had something of this Engine in our Neighbouring Antient Kingdom, since no Man, however we pretend to be angry, but will own they are in the right of it, as to themselves, to Vote and procure Bills for their own Security, and not to do as others demand without Conditions fit to be accepted: But of that by it self.

There are abundance of People in Our World, of all sorts and Conditions, that stand in need of our thinking Engines, and to be screw'd into themselves a little, that they might think as directly as they speak absurdly: But of these also in a Class by it self.

This Engine has a great deal of Philosophy in it; and particularly, 'tis a wonderful Remedy against Poreing; and as it was said of Mons. Jurieu at Amsterdam, that he us'd to lose himself in himself; by the Assistance of this piece of Regularity, a Man is most effectually secur'd against bewildring Thoughts, and by direct thinking, he prevents all manner of dangerous wandring, since nothing can come to more speedy Conclusions, than that which in right Lines, points to the proper Subject of Debate.

All sorts of Confusion of Thoughts are perfectly avoided and prevented in this case, and a Man is never troubled with Spleen, Hyppo, or Mute Madness, when once he has been thus under the Operation of the Screw: It prevents abundance of Capital Disasters in Men, in private Affairs; it prevents hasty Marriages, rash Vows, Duels, Quarrels, Suits at Law, and most sorts of Repentance. In the State, it saves a Government from many Inconveniences; it checks immoderate Ambition, stops Wars, Navies and Expeditions; especially it prevents Members making long Speeches when they have nothing to say; it keeps back Rebellions, Insurrections, Clashings of Houses, Occasional Bills, Tacking, &c.

It has a wonderful Property in our Affairs at Sea, and has prevented many a Bloody Fight, in which a great many honest Men might have lost their Lives that are now useful Fellows, and help to Man and manage Her Majesty's Navy.

What if some People are apt to charge Cowardice upon some People in those Cases? 'Tis plain that cannot be it, for he that dare incur the Resentment of the English Mob, shows more Courage than would be able to carry him through Forty Sea-fights.

'Tis therefore for want of being in this Engine, that we censure People, because they don't be knocking one another on the Head, like the People at the Bear-Garden; where, if they do not see the Blood run about, they always cry out, A Cheat; and the poor Fellows are fain to cut one another, that they may not be pull'd a pieces; where the Case is plain, they are bold for fear, and pull up Courage enough to Fight, because they are afraid of the People.

This Engine prevents all sorts of Lunacies, Love-Frenzies, and Melancholy-Madness, for preserving the Thought in right Lines to direct Objects, it is impossible any Deliriums, Whimsies, or fluttering Air of Ideas, can interrupt the Man, he can never be Mad; for which reason I cannot but recommend it to my Lord S—-, my Lord N—-, and my Lord H——-, as absolutely necesssary to defend them from the State-Madness, which for some Ages has possest their Families, and which runs too much in the Blood.

It is also an excellent Introduction to Thought, and therefore very well adapted to those People whose peculiar Talent and Praise is, That they never think at all. Of these, if his Grace of B—-d would please to accept Advice from the Man in the Moon, it should be to put himself into this Engine, as a Soveraign Cure to the known Disease call'd the Thoughtless Evil.

But above all, it is an excellent Remedy, and very useful to a sort of People, who are always Travelling in Thought, but never Deliver'd into Action; who are so exceeding busy at Thinking, they have no leisure for Action; of whom the late Poet sung well to the purpose;

—— Some modern Coxcombs, who Retire to Think, 'cause they have nought to do; For Thoughts were giv'n for Actions Government, Where Action ceases, Thought Impertinent: The Sphere of Action is Life's Happiness, And he that Thinks beyond, Thinks like an Ass. Rochest. Poems, p. 9.

These Gentlemen would make excellent use of this Engine, for it would teach 'em to dispatch one thing before they begin another; and therefore is of singular use to honest S——, whose peculiar it was, to be always beginning Projects, but never finish any.

The Variety of this Engine, its Uses, and Improvements, are Innumerable, and the Reader must not expect I can give any thing like a perfect Description of it.

There are yet another sort of Machine, which I never obtained a sight of, till the last Voyage I made to this Lunar Orb, and these are called Elevators: The Mechanick Operations of these are wonderful, and helpt by Fire; by which the Sences are raised to all the strange Extreames we can imagine, and whereby the Intelligent Soul is made to converse with its own Species, whether embody'd or not.

Those that are rais'd to a due pitch in this wondrous Frame, have a clear Prospect into the World of Spirits, and converse with Visions, Guardian-Angels, Spirits departed, and what not: And as this is a wonderful Knowledge, and not to be obtained, but by the help of this Fire; so those that have try'd the Experiment, give strange Accounts of Sympathy, Prexistence of Souls, Dreams, and the like.

I confess, I always believ'd a converse of Spirits, and have heard of some who have experienced so much of it, as they could obtain upon no Body else to believe.

I never saw any reason to doubt the Existent State of the Spirit before embody'd, any more than I did of its Immortality after it shall be uncas'd, and the Scriptures saying, the Spirit returns to God that gave it, implies a coming from, or how could it be call'd a return.

Nor can I see a reason why Embodying a Spirit should altogether Interrupt its Converse with the World of Spirits, from whence it was taken; and to what else shall we ascribe Guardian Angels, in which the Scripture is also plain; and from whence come Secret Notices, Impulse of Thought, pressing Urgencies of Inclination, to or from this or that altogether Involuntary; but from some waking kind Assistant wandring Spirit, which gives secret hints to its Fellow-Creature, of some approaching Evil or Good, which it was not able to foresee.

For Spirits without the helps of Voice converse.

I know we have supplied much of this with Enthusiasm and conceited Revelation; but the People of this World convince us, that it may be all Natural, by obtaining it in a Mechanick way, viz. by forming something suitable to the sublime Nature, which working by Art, shall only rectify the more vigorous Particles of the Soul, and work it up to a suitable Elevation. This Engine is wholly applied to the Head, and Works by Injection; the chief Influence being on what we call Fancy, or Imagination, which by the heat of strong Ideas, is fermented to a strange heighth, and is thus brought to see backward and forward every way, beyond it self: By this a Man fancies himself in the Moon, and realizes things there as distinctly, as if he was actually talking to my Old Phylosopher.

This indeed is an admirable Engine, 'tis compos'd of an Hundred Thousand rational Consequences, Five times the number of Conjectures, Supposes, and Probabilities, besides an innumerable Company of fluttering Suggestions, and Injections, which hover round the Imagination, and are all taken in as fast as they can be Concocted and Digested there: These are form'd into Ideas, and some of those so well put together, so exactly shap'd, so well drest and set out by the Additional Fire of Fancy, that it is no uncommon thing for the Person to be intirely deceived by himself, not knowing the brat of his own Begetting, nor be able to distinguish between Reality and Representation: From hence we have some People talking to Images of their own forming, and seeing more Devils and Spectres than ever appear'd: From hence we have weaker Heads not able to bear the Operation, seeing imperfect Visions, as of Horses and Men without Heads or Arms, Light without Fire, hearing Voices without Sound, and Noises without Shapes, as their own Fears or Fancies broke the Phanomena before the intire Formation.

But the more Genuine and perfect Use of these vast Elevations of the Fancy, which are perform'd, as I said, by the Mechanick Operation of Innate Fire, is to guide Mankind to as much Fore-sight of things, as either by Nature, or by the Aid of any thing Extranatural, may be obtain'd; and by this exceeding Knowledge, a Man shall forebode to himself approaching Evil or Good, so as to avoid this, or be in the way of that; and what if I should say, That the Notices of these things are not only frequent, but constant, and require nothing of us, but to make use of this Elevator, to keep our Eyes, our Ears, and our Fancies open to the hints; and observe them;

You may suppose me, if you please, come by this time into those Northern Kingdoms I mention'd before, where my Old Philosopher was a Native, and not to trouble you with any of the needful Observations, Learned Inscriptions, &c. on the way, according to the laudable practices of the Famous Mr. Br—-mly, 'tis sufficient to tell you I found there an Opulent, Populous, Potent and Terrible People.

I found them at War with one of the greatest Monarchs of the Lunar World, and at the same time miserably rent and torn, mangl'd and disorder'd among themselves.

As soon as I observ'd the Political posture of their Affairs, (for here a Man sees things mighty soon by the helps of such a Masterly Eye-sight as I have mention'd) and remembring what is said for our Instruction, That a Kingdom divided against its self cannot stand; I ask'd the Old Gentleman if he had any Estate in that Country? He told me, no great matter; but ask'd me why I put that Question to him? Because, said I, if this People go on fighting and snarling at all the World, and one among another in this manner, they will certainly be Ruin'd and Undone, either subdu'd by some more powerful Neighbour; whilst one Party will stand still and see the t'others Throat cut, tho' their own Turn immediately follows, or else they will destroy and devour one another. Therefore I told him I would have him Turn his Estate into Money, and go some where else; or go back to the other World with me.

No, no, reply'd the Old Man, I am in no such Fear at this Time, the Scale of Affairs is very lately chang'd here, says he, in but a very few Years.

I know nothing of that, said I, but I am sure there never was but one spot of Ground in that World which I came from, that was divided like them, and that's that very Country I liv'd in. Here are three Kingdoms of you in one spot, said I, One has already been Conquer'd and Subdu'd, the t'other suppres'd its Native lnhabitants, and planted it with her own, and now carries it with so high a Hand over them of her own Breed, that she limits their Trade, stops their Ports, when the Inhabitants have made their Manufactures, these wont give them leave to send them abroad, impose Laws upon them, refuse to alter and amend those they would make for themselves, make them pay Customs, Excises, and Taxes, and yet pay the Garrisons and Guards that defend them, themselves; Press their Inhabitants to their Fleets, and carry away their Old Veteran Troops that should defend them, and leave them to raise more to be serv'd in the same manner, will let none of their Mony be carry'd over thither, nor let them Coin any of their own; and a great many such hardships they suffer under the Hand of this Nation as meer Slaves and Conquer'd People, tho' the greatest part of the Traders are the People of the very Nation that treats 'em thus.

On the other hand, this creates Eternal Murmurs, Heart-burnings and Regret, both in the Natives and the Transplanted Inhabitants; the first have shewn their Uneasiness by frequent Insurrections and Rebellions, for Nature prompts the meanest Animal to struggle for Liberty; and these struggles have often been attended with great Cruelty, Ravages, Death, Massacres, and Ruin both of Families and the Country it self: As to the Transplanted Inhabitants, they run into Clandestine Trade, into corresponding with their Masters Enemies, Victualling their Navies, Colonies and the like, receiving and importing their Goods in spight of all the Orders and Directions to the contrary.

These are the effects of Divisions, and Feuds on that side; on the other hand there is a Kingdom Entire Unconquer'd and Independent, and for the present, under the same Monarch with the rest.—— But here their Feuds are greater than with the other, and more dangerous by far because National: This Kingdom joins to the North part of the first Kingdom, and Terrible Divisions ly among the two Nations.

The People of these two Kingdoms are call'd if you please for distinction sake, for I cannot well make you understand their hard Names, Solunarians and Nolunarians, these to the South and those to the North, the Solunarians were divided in their Articles of Religion; the Governing Party, or the Establish'd Church, I shall call the Solunarian Church; but the whole Kingdom was full of a sort of Religious People call'd Crolians, who like our Dissenters in England profess divers sub-divided Opinions by themselves, and cou'd not, or wou'd not, let it go which way it will, joyn with the Establish'd Church.

On the other hand, the Establish'd Church in the Northern Kingdom was all Crolians, but full of Solunarians in Opinions, who were Dissenters there, as the Crolians were Dissenters in the South, and this unhappy mixture occasion'd endless Feuds, Divisions, Sub-divisions and Animosities without Number, of which hereafter.

The Northern Men are Bold, Terrible Numerous and Brave, to the last Degree, but Poor, and by the Encroachments of their Neighbours, growing poorer every Day.

The Southern are equally Brave, more Numerous and Terrible, but Wealthy and care not for Wars, had rather stay at Home and Quarrel with one another, than go Abroad to Fight, making good an Old Maxim, Too Poor t'Agree, and yet too Rich to Fight.

Between these the Feud is great, and every Day growing greater; and those People who pretend to have been in the Cogitator or thinking Engine tell us, all the lines of Consequences in that Affair point at a fatal period between the Kingdoms.

The Complaints also are great, and back'd with fiery Arguments on both sides; the Northern Men say, the Solunarians have dealt unjustly and unkindly by them in several Articles; but the Southern Men reply with a most powerful Argument, viz. they are Poor, and therefore ought to be Oppress'd, Suppress'd, or any thing.

But the main Debate is like to lye upon the Article of Choosing a King; both the Nations being under one Government at present, but the Settlement ending in the Reigning Line, the Northern Men refuse to joyn in Government again, unless they have a rectification of some Conditions in which, they say, they have the worst of it.

In this case, even the Southern Men themselves, say, they believe the Nolunarians have been in the Chair of Reflection, the thinking Engine, and that having screw'd their Understandings into a Direct Position to that Matter before them, they have made a right Judgment of their own Affairs, and with all their Poverty stand on the best Foot as to Right.

But as the matter of this Northern Quarrel comes under a Second Head, and is more properly the Subject of a Second Voyage to the Moon; the Reader may have it more at large consider'd in another Class, and some farther Enlightnings in that Affair than perhaps can be reasonably expected of me here.

But of all the Feuds and Brangles that ever poor Nation was embroild in, of all the Quarrels, the Factions and Parties that ever the People of any Nation thought worth while to fall out for, none were ever in reality so light, in effect so heavy, in appearance so great, in substance so small, in name so terrible, in nature so trifling, as those for which this Southern Country was altogether by the Ears among themselves.

And this was one Reason why I so earnestly enquir'd of my Lunarian Philosopher, whether he had an Estate in that Country or no. But having told him the Cause of that enquiry, he reply'd, there was one thing in the Nature of his Country-men which secur'd them from the ruin which usually attended divided Nations, viz. that if any Foreign Nation thinking to take the advantage of their Intestine Divisions fell upon them in the highest of all their Feuds, they'd lay aside their Parties and Quarrels and presently fall in together to beat out the common Enemy; and then no sooner had they obtain'd Peace abroad, by their Conduct and Bravery, but they would fall to cutting one anothers Throats again at home as naturally as if it had been their proper Calling, and that for Trifles too, meer Trifles.

Very well, said I to my learned Self, pretty like my own Country still, that whatever Peace they have abroad, are sure to have none at home.

To come at the historical Account of these Lunarian Dissentions, it will be absolutely necessary to enter a little into the Story of the Place, at least as far as relates to the present Constitution, both of the People, the Government, and the Subject of their present Quarrels.

And first we are to understand, that there has for some Ages been carry'd on in these Countries, a private feud or quarrel among the People, about a thing call'd by them Upogyla, with us very vulgarly call'd Religion.

This Difference, as in its Original it was not great, nor indeed upon Points accounted among themselves Essential, so it had never been a Difference of any height, if there had not always been some one thing, or other, hapning in the State which made the Court-Polititians think it necessary to keep the People busy and embroil'd, to prevent their more narrow Inspection into Depredations and Encroachments on their Liberties, which was always making on them by the Court.

'Tis not deny'd but there might be a Native want of Charity in the Inhabitant, adapting them to Feud, and particularly qualifying them to be alwavs Piquing one another; and some of their own Nation, who by the help of the famous Perspectives before-mentioned, pretend to have seen farther into the Insides of Nature and Constitution than other People, tell us the cross Lines of Nature which appear in the make of those particular People, signify a direct Negative as to the Article of Charity and good Neighbour-hood.

'Twas particularly unhappy to this wrangling People, that Reasons of State should always fall in, to make that uncharitableness and continual quarrelling Humour necessary to carry on the Publick Affairs of the Nation, and may pass for a certain Proof, that the State was under some Diseases and Convulsions, which, like a Body that digests nothing so well as what is hurtful to its Constitution, makes use of those things for its Support, which are in their very Nature, fatal to its being, and must at last tend to its Destruction.

But as this however enclin'd them to be continually Snarling at one another, so as in all Quarrels it generally appears one Side must go down.

The prevailing Party therefore always kept the Power in their Hands, and as the under were always Subject to the lash they soon took care to hook their Quarrel into the Affairs of State, and so join Religious Differences, and Civil Differences together.

These things had long embroil'd the Nation, and frequently involv'd them in bitter Enmities, Feuds, and Quarrels, and once in a tedious, ruinous, and bloody War in their own Bowels, in which, contrary to all expectation, this lesser Party prevail'd.

And since the allegorick Relation may bear great Similitude with our European Affairs on this side the Moon: I shall for the ease of Expression, and the better Understanding of the Reader, frequently call them by the same Names our unhappy Parties are call'd by in England, as Solunnarian Churchmen, and Crolian Dissenters, at the same time desiring my Reader to observe, that he is always to remember who it is we are talking of, and that he is by no means to understand me of any Person, Party, People, Nation, or Place on this side the Moon, any Expression, Circumstance, Similitude, or Appearance to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.

This premis'd, I am to tell the Reader that the last Civil War in this Lunar Country ended in the Victors confounding their own Conquests by their intestine Broils, they being as is already noted a most Eternally Quarrelling Nation; upon this new Breach, they that first began the War, turn'd about, and pleading that they took up Arms to regulate the Government, not to overthrow it, fell in with the Family of their Kings, who had been banish'd, and one of them destroy'd, and restor'd the Crown to the Family, and the Nation to the Crown, just for all the World as the Presbyterians in England did, in the Case of King Charles the Second.

The Party that was thus restor'd, accepted the return the others made to their Duty, and their Assistance in restoring the Family of their Monarch, but abated not a Tittle of the old Rancour against them as a Party which they entertain'd at their first taking Arms, not allowing the return they had made to be any attonement at all for the Crimes they had been guilty of before. 'Tis true they pass'd an Act or Grant of General Pardon, and Oblivion, as in all such Cases is usual, and as without which the other would never ha' come in, or have join'd Powers to form the Restoration they were bringing to pass, but the old Feud of Religion continu'd with this addition, that the Dissenters were Rebels, Murtherers, King-killers, Enemies to Monarchy and Civil Government, lovers of Confusion, popular, anarchial Governments, and movers of Sedition; that this was in their very Nature and Principles, and the like.

In this Condition, and under these Mortifications this Party of People liv'd just an Egyptian Servitude, viz. of 40 Years, in which time they were frequently vex'd with Persecution, Harass'd, Plunder'd, Fin'd, Imprisoned, and very hardly Treated, insomuch that they pretend to be able to give an account of vast Sums of their Country-Mony, levy'd upon them on these Occasions, amounting as I take it to 2 Millions of Lunatians, a Coin they keep their Accounts by there, and much about the value of our Pound Sterling; besides this they were hook't into a great many Sham Plots, and Sworn out of their Lives and Estates in such a manner, that in the very next Reign the Government was so sensible of their hard treatment, that they revers'd several Sentences by the same Authority that had Executed them; a most undeniable Proof they were asham'd of what had been done; at last, the Prince who was restor'd as abovesaid, dyed, and his Brother mounted the Throne; and now began a third Scene of Affairs, for this Prince was neither Church-man, nor Dissenter, but of a different Religion from them all, known in that Country by the Name of Abrogratzianism, and this Religion of his had this one absolutely necessary Consequence in it, that a Man could not be sincerely and heartily of this, but he must be an Implacable hater of both the other. As this is laid down as a previous Supposition, we are with the same Reason to imagine this Prince to be entirely bent upon the Suppression and Destruction of both the other, if not absolutely as to Life and Estate, yet entirely as to Religion.

To bring this the more readily to pass like a true Polititian, had his Methods and Particulars been equally Politick with his Generals, he began at the right End, viz. to make the Breach between the Solunnarian Church, and the Crolian Dissenters as wide as possible, and to do this it was resolv'd to shift Sides, and as the Crown had always took part with the Church, crush'd, humbl'd, persecuted, and by all means possible mortify'd the Dissenters, as is noted in the Reign of his Predecessor. This Prince resolv'd to caress, cherish, and encourage the Crolians by all possible Arts and outward Endearments, not so much that they purpos'd them any real Favour, for the destruction of both was equally determin'd, nor so much that they expected to draw them over to Abrogratzianism, but Two Reasons may be suppos'd to give Rise to this Project.

1. The Lunarian Church Party had all along Preach'd up for a part of their Religion, that Absolute undisputed Obedience, was due from every Subject to their Prince without any Reserve, Reluctance or Repining; that as to Resistance, it was Fatal to Body, Soul, Religion, Justice and Government; and tho' the Doctrine was Repugnant to Nature, and to the very Supreme Command it self, yet he that resisted, receiv'd to himself Damnation, just for all the World like our Doctrine of Passive Obedience. Now tho' these Solunarian Church-Men did not absolutely believe all they said themselves to be true, yet they found it necessary to push these things to the uttermost Extremities, because they might the better fix upon the Crolian Dissenters, the Charge of professing less Loyal Principles than they. For as to the Crolians, they profess'd openly they would pay Obedience to the Prince, as far as the Laws directed, but no farther.

These things were run up to strange heights, and the People were always falling out about what they would do, or wou'd not do, if things were so or so, as they were not, and were never likely to be; and the hot Men on both sides were every now and then going together by the Ears about Chimeras, Shadows, May-be's and Supposes.

The hot Men of the Solunarian Church were for knocking the Crolians in the Head, because as they said they were Rebels, their Fathers were Rebels, and they would certainly turn Rebels again upon occasion.

The Crolians insisted upon it, that they had nothing to do with what was done before they were Born, that if they were Criminal, because their Fathers were so, then a great many who were now of the Solunarian Church were as Guilty as they, several of the best Members of that Church having been Born of Crolian Parents.

In the matter of Loyalty they insisted upon it, they were as Loyal as the Solunarians, for that they were as Loyal as Nature, Reason and the Laws both of God and Man requir'd, and what the Other talk'd of more, was but a meer pretence, and so it would be found if ever their Prince should have occasion to put them to the Tryal, that he that pretended to go beyond the Power of Nature and Reason, must indeed go beyond them, and they never desir'd to be brought into the extream, but they were ready at any time to shew such Proofs, and give such Demonstrations of their Loyalty, as would satisfy any reasonable Prince, and for more they had nothing to say.

In this posture of Affairs, this new Prince found his Subjects when he came to the Crown, the Solunarian Church Caress'd him, and notwithstanding his being Devoted to the Abrogratzian Faith, they Crown'd him with extraordinary Acclamations.

They were the rather enclin'd to push this forward by how much they thought it would singularly mortify the Crolians, and all the sorts of Dissenters, for they had all along declar'd their abhorrence of the Abrogratzians to such a Degree that they publickly endeavour'd to have got a general Concurrence of the whole Nation in the Publick Cortez, or Dyet of the Kingdom, to have joyn'd with them in Excluding this very Prince by Name, and all other Princes that should ever embrace the Abrogratzian Faith.

And it wanted but a very little of bringing it to pass, for almost all the Great Men of the Nation, tho' Solunarians, yet that were Men of Temper, Moderation, and Fore-sight, were for this exclusive Law. But the High Priests and Patriarchs of the Solunarian Church prevented it, and upon pretence of this Passive Obedience Principle, made their Interest and gave their Voices for Crowning, or Entailing the Crown and Government on the Head of one of the most Implacable Enemies both to their Religion and Civil Right that ever the Nation saw; but they liv'd to Repent it too late.

This Conquest over the Crolians and the Moderate Solunarians, if it did not suppress them entirely, it yet gave the other Part such an ascendant over them, that they made no Doubt when that Prince came to the Crown, they had done so much to oblige him, that he could deny them nothing, and therefore in expectation they swallow'd up the whole Body of the Crolians at once, and began to talk of nothing less than Banishing them to the Northern part of the Country, or to certain Islands, and Countries a vast way off, where formerly great numbers of them had fled for shelter in like Cases.

And this was the more probable by an unhappy Stroke these Crolians attempted to strike, but miscarry'd in at the very beginning of this Prince's Reign: for as they had always profest an aversion to this Prince on account of his Religion, as soon as their other King was dead, they set up one of his Natural Sons against this King, which the Solunarians had so joyfully Crown'd. This young Prince invaded his Dominions, and great Numbers of the most zealous Crolians joyn'd him—— But to cut the Story short, he was entirely routed by the Forces of the new Prince, for all the Solunarian Church joyn'd with him against the Crolians without any respect to the Interest of Religion, so they overthrew their Brethren: The young invaded Prince was taken and put to Death openly, and Great Cruelties were exercis'd in cold Blood upon the poor unhappy People that were taken in the Defeat!

Thus a second time these Loyal Solunarian Church-men Establish'd their Enemy, and built up what they were glad afterwards to pull down again, and to beg the assistance of those Crolians whom they had so rudely handled, to help them demolish the Power they had erected themselves, and which now began to set its foot upon the Throat of those that nourish'd and supported it.

Upon this exceeding Loyalty and blind Assistance given to their Prince, the Solunarians made no question but they had so Eternally bound him to them, that it would be in their Power to pull down the very Name of Crolianism, and utterly destroy it from the Nation.

But the time came on to Undeceive them, for this Prince, whose Principle as an Abrogratzian, was to destroy them both, as it happened, was furnish'd with Counsellors and Ecclesiasticks of his own Profession, ten thousand Times more bent for their general Ruin, than himself.

For abstracted from the Venom and Rancour of his Profession as an Abrogratzian, and from the furious Zeal of his Bramin, Priests, and Religious People, that continually hung about him, and that prompted him to act against his Temper and Inclination, by which he ruin'd all, he was else a forward and generous Prince, and likely to have made his People Great and Flourishing.

But his furious Church-Men ruin'd all his good Designs, and turn'd all his Projects to compass the Introduction of his own Religion into his Dominions.

Nay, and had he not fatally been push'd on by such as really design'd his Ruin, to drive this deep Design on too hastily and turn the Scale of his Management from a close and conceal'd, to an open and profess'd Design, he might have gone a great way with it.————- Had he been content to have let that have been twenty Year a doing, which he impatiently as well as preposterously attempted all at once.———- Wise Men have thought he might in time have supprest the Solunarian Religion, and have set up his own.

To give a short Scheme of his Proceedings, and with them of the reason of his Miscarriage.

1. Having defeated the Rebellious Crolians, as is before noted, and reflecting on the Danger he was in upon the sudden Progress of that Rebellion, for indeed he was within a trifle of Ruin in that Affair; and had not the Crolians been deceiv'd by the darkness of the Night and led to a large Ditch of Water, which they could not pass over, they had certainly surpriz'd and overthrown his Army, and cut them in pieces, before they had known who had hurt them. Upon the Sense of this Danger, he takes up a pretence of necessity for the being always ready to resist the Factious Crolians, as he call'd them, and by that Insinuation hooks himself into a standing Army in time of Peace; ——- nay, and so easy were the Solunarian Church to yield up any point, which they did but imagin would help to crush their Brethren the Crolians, that they not only consented to this unusual Invasion of their antient Liberties, but sent up several Testimonials of their free Consent, nay, and of their Joy of having arriv'd to so great a Happiness, as to have a Prince that setting aside the formality of Laws would vouchsafe to Govern them by the glorious Method of a Standing Army.———

These Testimonials were things not much unlike our Addresses in England, and which when I heard I could not but remember our Case, in the time of the late King James, when the City of Carlisle in their Address, Thankt his Majesty for the Establishing a Standing Army in England in time of Peace, calling it the Strength, and Glory of the Kingdom.

So strong is the Ambition and Envy of Parties, these Solunarian Gentlemen not grudging to put out one of their own eyes, so they might at the same time put out both the Eyes of their Enemies; the Crolians rather consented to this badge of their own Slavery, and brought themselves who were a free People before, under the Power and Slavery of the Sword.

The ease with which this Prince got over so considerable a Point as this, made him begin to be too credulous and to perswade himself that the Solunarian Church-Men were really in earnest, as to their Pageant-Doctrin of Non-Resistance, and that as he had seen them bear with strange extravagancies on the Crolian Part, they were real and in earnest when they Preach'd that Men ought to obey for Conscience's sake, whatever hardship were impos'd upon them, and however unjust, or contrary to the Laws of God, Nature, Reason, or their Country; what Principle in the World could more readily prompt a Prince to attempt what he so earnestly coveted, as this zealous Prince did the restoring the Abrogratzian Faith, for since he had but two sorts of People to do with; one he had crush'd by force, and had brought the other to profess it their Religion, their Duty, and their Resolution to bear every thing he thought fit to Impose upon them, and that they should be Damn'd if they resisted, the Work seem'd half done to his Hand.

And indeed when I reflected on the Coherence of things, I could not so much blame this Prince for his venturing upon the probability, for whoever was but to go up to this Lunar World and read the Stories of that Time, with what Fury the hot Men of the Solunarian Church acted against the Dissenting Crolians, and with what warmth they assisted their Prince against them, and how Cruelly they insulted them after they were defeated in their attempt of Dethroning him, how zealously they Preach'd up the Doctrine of absolute undisputed Resignation to his Will, how frequently they obey'd several of his encroachments upon their Liberties, and what solemn Protestations they made to submit to him in any thing, and to stand by and assist him in whatever he Commanded them to the last Drop, much with the same Zeal and Forwardness, as our Life-and-Fortune Men did here in England. I say, when all this was consider'd, I could not so much condemn his Credulity, nor blame him for believing them, for no Man could have doubted their Sincerity, but he that at the same time must have Taxt them with most unexampled Hipocrisie.

For the Solunarians now began to discern their Prince was not really on their side, that neither in State Matters any more than Religion, he had any affection for them, and the first absolute Shock he gave them, was in Publishing a general Liberty to the Crolians. 'Tis true this was not out of respect to the Crolian Religion any more than the Solunarian, but purely because by that means he made way for an Introduction of the Abrogratzian Religion which now began to appear publickly in the Country.

But however, as this was directly contrary to the expectation of the Solunarians, it gave them such a disgust against their Prince, that from that very time being disappointed in the Soveraign Authority they expected, they entred into the deepest and blackest Conspiracy against their Prince and his Government that ever was heard of.

Many of the Crolians were deluded by the new Favour and Liberty they receiv'd from the Prince to believe him real, and were glad of the Mortification of their Brethren; but the more Judicious seeing plainly the Prince's Design, declar'd against their own Liberty, because given them by an illegal Authority, without the assent of the whole Body legally assembled.

When the Solunarians saw this they easily reconcil'd themselves to the Crolians, at least from the Outside of the Face, for the carrying on their Design, and so here was a Nation full of Plots, here was the Prince and his Abrogratzians plotting to introduce their Religion, here was a parcel of blind short-sighted Crolians plotting to ruin the Solunarian Establishment, and weakly joining with the Abrogratzians to satisfy their private Resentments; and here was the wiser Crolians joining heartily with the Solunarians of all sorts, laying aside private Resentments, and forgetting old Grudges about Religion, in order to ruin the invading Projects of the Prince and his Party.

There was indeed some verbal Conditions past between them, and the Solunarians willing to bring them into their Party promised them upon the Faith of their Nation, and the Honour of the Solunarian Religion, that there should be no more Hatred, Disturbance or Persecution for the sake of Religion between them, but that they would come to a Temper with them, and always be Brethren for the future. They declared that Persecution ran contrary to their Religion in general, and to their Doctrin in particular; and backt their Allegations with some Truths they have not since thought fit to like, nor much to regard.

However by this Artifice, and on these Conditions, they brought the Crolians to join with them in their Resolutions to countermine their designing Prince; these indeed were for doing it by the old way down-right, and to oppose Oppression with Force, a Doctrin they acknowledg'd, and profest to join with all the Lunar part of Mankind in the practice, and began to tell their Brethren how they had impos'd upon themselves and the World, in pretending to absolute Submission against Nature and universal Lunarian Practice.

But a cunning Fellow personating a Solunarian, and who was in the Plot, gravely answer'd them thus,

'Look ye, Gentlemen, we own with you that Nature, Reason, Law, Justice, and Custom of Nations is on your side, and that all Power Derives from, Centers in, and on all Recesses or Demises of Power returns to its Great Original the Party Governed: Nay we own our Great Eye from whom all the habitable Parts of this Globe are inlightned, has always directed us to practice what Nature thus dictates, always approv'd and generally succeeded the attempt of Dethroning Tyrants. But our Case differs, we have always pretended to this absolute undisputed Obedience, which we did indeed to gain the Power of your Party; and if we should turn round at once to your Opinion, tho' never so right, we should so fly in the Face of our own Doctrin, Sermons, innumerable Pamphlets and Pretensions, as would give all our Enemies too great a Power over us in Argument, and we should never be able to look Mankind in the Face: But we have laid our Measures so that by prompting the King to run upon us in all sorts of bare-fac'd Extreams and Violences, we shall bring him to exasperate the whole Nation; then we may underhand foment the breach on this side, raise the Mob upon him, and by acting on both sides seem to suffer a Force in falling in with the People, and preserve our Reputation.

'Thus we shall bring the thing to pass, betray our Prince, take Arms against his Power, call in Foreign Force to do the Work, and even then keep our Hands seemingly out of the Broil, by being pretended Sticklers for our former Prince; so save our Reputation, and bring all to pass with Ease and Calmness; while the eager Party of the Abrogratzians will do their own Work by expecting we will do it for them.

The Crolians astonish'd both at the Policy, the Depth, the Knavery and the Hypocrisy of the Design, left them to carry it on, owning it was a Masterpiece of Craft, and so stood still to observe the Issue, which every way answer'd the exactness of its Contrivance.

When I saw into the bottom of all this Deceit, I began to take up new Resolutions of returning back into our Old World again, and going home to England, where tho' I had conceiv'd great Indignation at the Treatment our Passive Obedience Men gave their Prince here, and was in hopes in these my remote Travels to have found out some Nations of Honour and Principles. I was fill'd with Amazement to see our Moderate Knaves so much out-done, and I was inform'd that all these things were meer Amusements, Vizors, and Shams, to bring an Innocent Prince into the Snare.

Would any Mortal imagin who has read this short Part of the Story, that all this was a Solunarian Church Plot, a meer Conspiracy between these Gentlemen and the Crolian Dissenters, only to wheedle in the unhappy Prince to his own Destruction, and bring the popular Advantage of the Mob, to a greater Ascendant on the Crown.

Of all the Richlieus, Mazarines, Gondamours, Oliver Cromwels, and the whole Train of Polititians that our World has produc'd, the greatest of their Arts are Follies to the unfathomable depth of these Lunarian Policies; and for Wheedle, Lying, Swearing, Preaching, Printing, &c. what is said in our World by Priests and Polititans, we thank God may be believ'd; but if ever I believe a Solunarian Priest Preaching Non-Resistance of Monarchs, or a Solunarian Polititian turning Abrogratzian, I ought to be mark'd down for a Fool; nor will ever any Prince in that Country take their Word again, if ever they have their Senses about 'em, but as this is a most extraordinary Scene, so I cannot omit a more particular and sufficient Relation of some Parts of it, than I us'd to give.

The Solunarian Clergy had carry'd on their Non-Resistance Doctrin to such Extremities, and had given this new Prince such unusual demonstrations of it, that he fell absolutely into the Snare, and entirely believ'd them; he had try'd them with such Impositions as they would never have born from any Prince in the World, nor from him neither, had they not had a deep Design, and consequently stood in need of the deepest Disguise imaginable; they had yielded to a Standing Army, and applauded it as a thing they had desir'd; they had submitted to levying Taxes upon them by New Methods, and illegal Practices; they had yielded to the abrogation or suspension at least of their Laws, when the King's absolute Will requir'd it; not that they were blind, and did not see what their Prince was doing, but that the black Design was so deeply laid, they found it was the only way to ruin him, to push him upon the highest Extreams, and then they should have their turn serv'd.—— Thus if he desir'd one illegal Thing of them, they would immediately grant two; one would have thought they had read our Bible, and the Command, when a Man takes away the Cloak, to give him the Coat also.

Nor was this enough, but they seem'd willing to admit of the publick Exercise of the Abrogratzian Religion in all Parts; and when the Prince set it up in his own Chappel, they suffered it to be set up in their Cities, and Towns, and the Abrogratzian Clergy began to be seen up and down in their very Habits; a thing which had never been permitted before in that Country, and which the Common People began to be very uneasy at. But still the Solunarian Clergy, and all such of the Gentry, especially as were in the Plot, by their Sermons, printed Books, and publick Discourses, carry'd on this high topping Notion of absolute Submission, so that the People were kept under, and began to submit to all the impositions of the Prince.

These things were so acted to the Life, that not only the Prince, but none of his Abrogratzian Counsellors could see the Snare, the Hook was so finely covered by the Church-Artificers, and the Bait so delicious, that they all swallow'd it with eagerness and delight.

But the Conspirators willing to make a sure game of it, and not thinking the King, or all his Counsellors would drive on so fast as they would have them, tho' they had already made a fair progress for the Time, resolv'd to play home, and accordingly they persuade their Prince, that they will not only submit to his Arbitrary Will, in Matters of State, and Government, but in Matters of Religion; and in order to carry this Jest on, one of the heads of their Politicks, and a Person of great Estem for his Abilities in Matters of State, being without question one of the ablest Heads of all the Solunarian Nobility, pretended to be converted, and turn'd Abrogratzian. This immediately took as they desir'd, for the Prince caress'd him, and entertain'd him with all possible endearments, proferr'd him to several Posts of Honour and Advantage, always kept him near him, consulted him in all Emergencies, took him with him to the Abrogian Sacrifices, and he made no Scruple publickly to appear there, and by these degrees and a super-achitophalian Hypocrisie, so insinuated himself into the credulous Prince's favour, that he became his only Confident, and absolute Master of all his Designs.

Now the Plot had its desir'd effect, for he push'd the King upon all manner of Precipitations; and if even the Abrogratzians themselves who were about the King, interpos'd for more temperate Proceedings, he would call them Cowards, Strangers, ignorant of the Temper of the Lunarians, who when they were a going, might be driven, but if they were suffered to cool and consider, would face about and fall off.

Indeed the Men of Prudence and Estates among his own Party, I mean the Abrogratzians in the Country, frequently warn'd him to take more moderate Measures, and to proceed with more Caution; told him he would certainly ruin them all, and himself, and that there must be some Body about his Majesty that push'd him upon these Extremes, on purpose to set all the Nation in a Flame, and to overthrow all the good Designs, which with Temper and good Conduct, might be brought to perfection.

Had these wary Councils been observ'd, and a Prudence and Policy agreeable to the mighty consequence of Things been practis'd, the Solunarian Church had run a great risque of being over thrown, and to have sunk gradually in the Abrogian Errors, the People began to be drawn off gradually, and the familiarity of the thing made it appear less frightful to unthinking People, who had entertain'd strange Notions of the monstrous things that were to be seen in it, so that common Vogue had fill'd the Peoples Minds with ignorant Aversions, that 'tis no absurdity to say, I believe there was 200000 People who would have spent the last drop of their Blood against Abrogratzianism, that did not know whether it was a Man or a Horse.

This thing consider'd well, would of it self have been sufficient to have made the Prince and his Friends wary, and to have taught them to suit their Measures to the Nature and Circumstances of Things before them; but Success in their beginnings blinded their Eyes, and they fell into this Church Snare with the most unpitied willingness that could be imagin'd.

The first thing therefore this new Counsellor put his Master upon, in order to the beginning his more certain Ruin, was to introduce several of his Abrograzians into Places of all kinds, both in the Army, Navy, Treasure, and Civil Affairs, tho' contrary to some of the general Constitutions of Government; he had done it into the Army before, tho' it had disgusted several of his Military Men, but now he push'd him upon making it Universal, and still the Passive Solunarians bore it with patience.

From this tameness and submission, his next Step was to argue that he might depend upon it the Solunarian Church had so sincerely embrac'd the Doctrine of Non-Resistance, that they were now ripen'd not only to sit still, and see their Brethren the Crolians suppress'd, but to stand still and be opprest themselves, and he might assure himself the Matter was now ripe, he might do just what he wou'd himself with them, they were prepar'd to bare any thing.

This was the fatal Stroke, for having possest the Prince with the belief of this, he let loose the Reins to all his long conceal'd Desires. Down went their Laws, their Liberties, their Corporations, their Churches, their Colleges, all went to wreck, and the eager Abrograzians thought the Day their own. The Solunarians made no opposition, but what was contain'd within the narrow circumference of Petitions, Addresses, Prayers, and Tears; and these the Prince was prepar'd to reject, and upon all occasions to let them know he was resolv'd to be obey'd.

Thus he drove on by the treacherous Advice of his new Counsels, till he ripen'd all the Nation for the general Defection which afterward follow'd.

For as the Encroachments of the Prince push'd especially at their Church Liberties, and threatened the overthrow of all their Ecclesiastical Privileges, the Clergy no sooner began to feel that they were like to be the first Sacrifice, but they immediately threw off the Vizor, and beat the Concionazimir; this is a certain Ecclesiastick Engine which is usual in cases of general Alarm, as the Churches Signal of Universal Tumult.

This is truly a strange Engine, and when a Clergy-Man gets into the Inside of it, and beats it, it Roars, and makes such a terrible Noise from the several Cavities, that 'tis heard a long way; and there are always a competent number of them plac'd in all Parts so conveniently, that the Alarm is heard all over the Kingdom in one Day.

I had some Thoughts to have given the Reader a Diagram of this piece of Art, but as I am but a bad Drafts Man, I have not yet been able so exactly to describe it, as that a Scheme can be drawn, but to the best of my Skill, take it as follows. 'Tis a hollow Vessel, large enough to hold the biggest Clergy-Man in the Nation; it is generally an Octagon in Figure, open before, from the Wast upward, but whole at the Back, with a Flat extended over it for Reverberation, or doubling the Sound; doubling and redoubling, being frequently thought necessary to be made use of on these occasions; 'tis very Mathematically contriv'd, erected on a Pedestal of Wood like a Windmil, and has a pair of winding Stairs up to it, like those at the great Tun at Hiedlebergh.

I could make some Hierogliphical Discourses upon it, from these References, thus. 1. That as it is erected on a Pedestal like a Wind-Mill, so it is no new thing for the Clergy, who are the only Persons permitted to make use of it, to make it turn round with the Wind, and serve to all the Points of the Compass. 2. As the Flat over it assists to encrease the Sound, by forming a kind of hollow, or cavity proper to that purpose, so there is a certain natural hollowness, or emptiness, made use of sometimes in it, by the Gentlemen of the Gown, which serves exceedingly to the propogation of all sorts of Clamour, Noise, Railing, and Disturbance. 3. As the Stairs to it go winding up like those by which one mounts to the vast Tun of Wine at Hiedleburgh, which has no equal in our World, so the use made of these ascending Steps, is not altogether different, being frequently employ'd to raise People up to all sorts of Enthusiasms, spiritual Intoxications, mad and extravagant Action, high exalted Flights, Precipitations, and all kinds of Ecclesiastick Drunkenness and Excesses.

The sound of this Emblem of emptiness, the Concionazimir, was no sooner heard over the Nation, but all the People discover'd their readiness to join in with the Summons, and as the thing had been concerted before, they send over their Messengers to demand Assistance from a powerful Prince beyond the Sea, one of their own Religion, and who was allied by Marriage to the Crown.

They made their Story out so plain, and their King had by the contrivance of their Achitophel rendred himself so suspected to all his Neighbours, that this Prince, without any hesitation, resolv'd to join with them, and accordingly makes vast Preparations to invade their King.

During this interval their Behaviour was quite altred at home, the Doctrin of absolute Submission and Non-Resistance was heard no more among them, the Concionazimir beat daily to tell all the People they should stand up to Defend the Rights of the Church, and that it was time to look about them for the Abrograzians were upon them. The eager Clergy made this Ecclesiastick Engine sound as loud and make all the Noise they could, and no Men in the Nation were so forward as they to acknowledge that it was a State-Trick, and they were drawn in to make such a stir about the pretended Doctrins of absolute Submission, that they did not see the Snare which lay under it, that now their Eyes were opened, and they had learnt to see the Power and Superiority of Natural Right, and would be deceiv'd no longer. Others were so honest to tell the Truth, that they knew the emptiness and weakness of the pretence all along, and knew what they did when they Preacht it up, viz. to suppress and pull down the Crolians: But they thought their Prince who they always serv'd in crying up that Doctrin, and whose Exclusion was prevented by it, would ha' had more Gratitude, or at least more Sense, than to try the Experiment upon them, since whatever to serve his Designs and their own, which they always thought well united, they were willing to pretend, he could not but see they always knew better than to suffer the practice of it in their own Case. That since he had turn'd the Tables upon them, 'tis true he had them at an advantage and might pretend they were Knaves, and perhaps had an opportunity to call them so with some reason; but they were resolv'd, since he had drove them to the necessity of being one or t'other, tho' he might call them Knaves, they would take care he should have no reason to call them Fools too.

Thus the Vapour of absolute Subjection was lost on a suddain, and as if it had been preparatory to what was coming after, the Experiment was quickly made; for the King persuing his Encroachments upon the Church, and being possest with a Belief that pursuant to their open Professions they would submit to any thing, he made a beginning with them, in sending his positive Command to one of his Superintendent Priests, or Patriarchs, to forbid a certain Ecclesiastick to officiate any more till his Royal Pleasure was known.

Now it happen'd very unluckily that this Patriarch, tho' none of the most Learned of his Fraternity, yet had always been a mighty zealous Promoter of this blind Doctrin of Non-Resistance, and had not a little triumph'd over and insulted the Crolian Dissenters upon the Notion of Rebellion, antimonarchical Principles and Obedience, with a reserve for the Laws, and the like, as a scandalous practice, and comprehensive of Faction, Sedition, dangerous to the Church and State, and the like.

This Reverend Father was singl'd out as the first Mark of the King's Design; the deluded Prince believ'd he could not but comply, having so publickly profest his being all Submission and absolute Subjection; but as this was all Conceit, he was pusht on to make the Assault where he was most certain to meet a repulse; and this Gentleman had long since thrown off the Mask, so his first Order was disobey'd.

The Patriarch pretended to make humble Remonstrances, and to offer his Reasons why he could not in Conscience, as he call'd it, comply. The King, who was now made but a meer Engine, or Machine, screw'd up or down by this false Counsellor to act his approaching Destruction with his own Hand, was prompted to resent this Repulse with the utmost Indignation, to reject all manner of Submissions, Excuses or Arguments, or any thing but an immediate, absolute compliance, according to the Doctrin so often inculcated; and this he run on so high, as to put the Patriarch in Prison for Contumacy.

The Patriarch as absolutely refus'd to submit, and offer'd himself to the Decision of the Law.

Now it was always a sacred Rule in these Lunar Countries, that both King and People are bound to stand by the arbitrimnet of the Law in all Cases of Right or Claim, whether publick or private; and this has been the reason that all the Princes have endeavour'd to cover their Actions with pretences of Law, whatever really has been in their Design; for this reason the King could not refuse to bring the Patriarch to a Tryal, where the Humour of the People first discover'd it self, for here Passive Obedience was Try'd and Cast, the Law prov'd to be superior to the King, the Patriarch was acquitted, his Disobedience to the King justify'd, and the King's Command prov'd unjust.

The Applause of the Patriarch, the Acclamations of the People, and the general Rejoycings of the whole Nation at this Transaction, gave a black prospect to the Abrograzians; and a great many of them came very honestly and humbly to the King and told him, if he continued to go on by these Measures he would ruin them all; they told him what general Alarm had been over the whole Nation by the Clamours of the Clergy; and the beating of the Concionazimir in all Parts, inform'd him how the Doctrin of absolute Obedience was ridicul'd in all Places, and how the Clergy began to preach it back again like a Witches Prayer, and that it would infallibly raise the Devil of Rebellion in all the Nation, they besought him to content himself with the liberty of their Religion, and the freedom they enjoy'd of being let into Places and Offices of Trust and Honour, and to wait all reasonable Occasions to encrease their Advantages, and gradually to gain Ground; they entreated him to consider the impossibility of reducing so mighty, so obstinate, and so resolute a Nation all at once. They pleaded how rational a thing it was to expect that by Degrees and good Management, which by precipitate Measures would be endanger'd and overthrown.

Had these wholsome Counsels taken place in the King's Mind he had been King to his last hour, and the Solunarians and Crolians too had been all undone, for he had certainly incroach'd upon them gradually, and brought that to pass in time which by precipitant Measures he was not likely to effect.

It was therefore a master-piece of Policy in the Solunarian Church-men to place a feign'd Convert near their Prince, who shou'd always biass him with contrary Advices, puff him up with vast prospect of Success, prompt him to all Extreams, and always Fool him with the certainty of bringing Things to pass his own way.

These Arts made him set light by the repulse he met with in the Matter of the Patriarch, and now he proceeds to make two Attacks more upon the Church; one was by putting some of his Abrograzian Priests into a College among some of the Solunarian Clergy; and the other was to oblige all the Solunarian Clergy to read a certain Act of his Council, in which his Majesty admitted all the Abrograzians, Crolians, and all sorts of Dissenters, to a freedom of their Religious Exercises, Sacrifices, Exorcisms, Dippings, Preachings, &c. and to prohibit the Solunarians to Molest or Disturb them.

Now as this last was a bitter reproach to the Solunarian Church for all the ill Treatment the Dissenting Crolians had receiv'd from them, and as it was exprest in the Act that all such Treatment was Unjust and Unchristian, so for them to read it in their Temples, was to acknowledge that they had been guilty of most unjust and irreligious Dealings to the Crolians, and that their Prince had taken care to do them Justice.

The matter of introducing the Abrograzians into the Colleges or Seminaries of the Solunarian Priests, was actually against the Sacred Constitutions and Foundation Laws of those Seminaries.

Wherefore in both these Articles they not only disobey'd their Prince, but they oppos'd him with those trifling Things call'd Laws, which they had before declar'd had no Defensive Force against their Prince; these they had recourse to now, insisted upon the Justice and Right devolv'd upon them by the Laws, and absolutely refus'd their compliance with his Commands.

The Prince, pusht upon the Tenters before, receiv'd their Denial with exceeding Resentment, and was heard with deep regret, to break out in Exclamations at their unexpected faithless Proceedings, and sometimes to express himself thus: Horrid Hypocrisy! Surprizing Treachery! Is this the absolute Subjection which in such numerous Testimonials or Addresses you profest, and for which you so often and so constantly branded the poor Crolians, and told me that your Church was wholly made up of Principles of Loyalty and Obedience! But I'll be fully satisfied for this Treatment.

In the minute of one of those Excursions of his Passion, came into his Presence the seemingly revolted Lunarian Noble Man, and falling in with his present Passions, prompts him to a speedy revenge; and propos'd his erecting a Court of Searches, something like the Spanish Inquisition, giving them plenipotentiary Authority to hear and determine all Ecclesiastical Causes absolutely, and without Appeal.

He empower'd these Judges to place by his absolute Will, all the Abrograzian Students in the Solunarian College, and tho' they might make a formal Hearing for the sake of the Form, yet that by Force it should be done.

He gave them Power to displace all those Solunarian Clergy-Men that had refus'd to read his Act of Demission to the Abrograzian, and Crolian Dissenters, and 'twas thought he design'd to keep their Revenues in Petto, till he might in time fill them up to some of his own Religion.

The Commission accordingly began to act, and discovering a full Resolution to fulfil his Command, they by Force proceeded with the Students of the Solunarian College; and it was very remarkable, that even some of the Solunarian Patriarchs were of this number, who turn'd out their Brethren the Solunarian Students, to place Abrograzians in their room.

This indeed they are said to have repented of since, but however, these it seems were not of the Plot, and therefore did not foresee what was at hand.

The rest of the Patriarchs who were all in the Grand Design, and saw things ripening for its Execution, upon the apprehension of this Court of Searches beginning with them, make an humble Address to their Prince, containing the Reasons why they could not comply with his Royal Command.———

The incens'd King upbraided them with his having been told by them of their absolute and unreserv'd Obedience, and refusing their Submissions or their Reasons, sent them all to Jail, and resolv'd to have brought them before his new High Court of Searches, in order, as was believ'd, to have them all displac'd.

And now all began to be in a Flame, the Sollicitations of the Solunarian Party, having obtain'd powerful Relief Abroad, they began to make suitable preparations at Home. The Gentry and Nobility who the Clergy had brought to join with them, furnish'd themselves with Horses and Arms, and prepar'd with their Tenants and Dependants to join the Succours as soon as they should Arrive.

In short, the Forreign Troops they had procur'd, Arriv'd, Landed, and publish'd a long Declaration of all the Grievances which they came to redress.

No sooner was this Forreign Army arriv'd with the Prince at the head of them, but the face of Affairs altred on a suddain. The King indeed, like a brave Prince, drew all his Forces together, and marching out of his Capital City, advanced above 500 Stages, things they measure Land with in those Countries, and much about our Furlong, to meet his Enemy.

He had a gallant Army well appointed and furnish'd, and all things much superior to his Adversary, but alas the Poison of Disobedience was gotten in there, and upon the first March he offer'd to make towards the Enemy one of his great Captains with a strong Party of his Men went over and revolted.

This Example was applauded all over the Nation, and by this time one of the Patriarchs, even the same mention'd before that had so often preacht Non-Resistance of Princes, lays by his Sacred Vestments, Mitre, and Staff, and exchanging his Robes for a Soldier's Coat, mounts on Horseback, and in short, appears in Arms against his Lord.——- Nor was this all, but the Treacherous Prelate takes along with him several Solunarian Lords, and Persons of the highest Figure, and of the Houshold, and Family of the King, and with him went the King's own Daughter, his principle Favourites and Friends.

At the News of this, the poor deserted Prince lost all Courage, and abandoning himself to Despair, he causes his Army to retreat without fighting a Stroke, quits them and the Kingdom at once, and takes Sanctuary with such as could escape with him, in the Court of a Neighbouring Prince.

I have heard this Prince exceedingly blam'd, for giving himself up to Despair so soon. ——- That he thereby abandon'd the best and faithfullest of his Friends, and Servants, and left them to the Mercy of the Solunarians; that when all these that would have forsaken him were gone, he had Forces equal to his Enemies; that his Men were in Heart, fresh and forward; that he should have stood to the last; retreated to a strong Town, where his Ships rod, and which was over against the Territories of his great Allie, to whom he might have deliver'd up the Ships which were there, and have thereby made him Superior at Sea to his Enemies, and he was already much Superior at Land; that there he might have been reliev'd with Forces too strong for them to match, and at least might have put it to the issue of a fair Battle.——— Others, that he might have retreated to his own Court, and capital City, and taking possession of the Citadel, which was his own, might so have aw'd the Citizens who were infinitely Rich, and Numerous, with the apprehensions of having their Houses burnt, they would not have dar'd to have declar'd for his Enemies, for fear of being reduc'd to heaps and ruins; and that at last he might have set the City on Fire in 500 Places, and left the Solunarian Church-Men a Token to remember their Non-Resisting Doctrine by, and yet have made an easy Retreat down the Harbour, to other Forts he had below, and might with ease have destroy'd all the Shipping, as he went.

'Tis confess'd had he done either, or both these things, he had left them a dear bought Victory, but he was depriv'd of his Counsellor, for as soon as things came to this height, the Achitophel we have so often mention'd, left him also, and went away; all his Abrograzian Priests too fosook him, and he was so bereft of Counsel that he fell into the Hands of his Enemies as he was making his escape, but he got away again, not without the connivance of the Enemy, who were willing enough he should go; so he got a Vessel to carry him over to the Neighbouring Kingdom, and all his Armies, Ships, Forts, Castles, Magazines, and Treasure, fell into his Enemies Hands.

The Neighbouring Prince entertain'd him very kindly, Cherish'd him, Succour'd him, and furnish'd him with Armies and Fleets for the recovery of his Dominions, which has occasion'd a tedious War with that Prince, which continues to this Day.

Thus far Passive Doctrins, and Absolute Submission serv'd a Turn, bubl'd the Prince, wheedled him in to take their Word who profess'd it, 'till he laid his Finger upon the Men themselves, and that unravell'd all the Cheat; they were the first that call'd in Forreign Power, and took up Arms against their Prince.

Nor did they end here, but all this Scene being over, and the Forreign Prince having thus deliver'd them, and their own King being thus chas'd away, the People call themselves together, and as Reason good, having been deliver'd by him from the Miseries, Brangles, Oppressions, and Divisions of the former Reign, they thought they could do no less than to Crown their Deliverer; and having Summon'd a general Assembly of all their Capital Men, they gave the Crown to this Prince who had so generously sav'd them.

And here again I heard the first King exceedingly blam'd for quitting his Dominions, for had he staid here, tho' he had actually been in their Hands, unless they wou'd have Murther'd him, they could never have proceeded to the Extremeties they did reach to, nor cou'd they ever have Crown'd the other Prince, he being yet alive and in his own Dominions.

But by quitting the Country, they fix'd a legal Period to their Obedience, he having deserted their Protection, and Defence, and openly laid down the Administration.

But as these sort of Politicks cannot be decided by us, unless we know the Constitutions of those Lunar Regions, so we cannot pretend to make a Decision of what might, or might not have happen'd.

It remains to examine how those Solunarians behav'd themselves, who had so earnedly cryed up the Principles of Obedience, and absolute Submission.

Nothing was so Ridiculous, now they saw what they had done, they began to repent, and upon recollection of Thoughts some were so asham'd of themselves, that having broken their Doctrin, and being now call'd upon to tranfpose their Allegiance, truly they stopt in the mid-way, and so became Martyrs on both sides.

I can liken these to nothing so well as to those Gentlemen of our English Church, who tho' they broke into the Principles of Passive Obedience by joining, and calling over the P. of O. yet suffer'd deprivations of Benefices, and loss of their Livings, for not taking the Oath; as if they had not as effectually perjur'd themselves by taking up Arms against their King, and joyning a Forreign Power, as they could possibly do afterward, by Swearing to live quietly under the next King.