No. 545. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1712.

Quin potiùs pacem æternam pactosque hymenæos

Exercemus

Let us in bonds of lasting peace unite,
And celebrate the hymeneal rite.

VIRG. ÆN. iv. 99.

I CANNOT but think the following letter from the emperor of China to the pope of Rome, proposing a coalition of the Chinese and Roman churches, will be acceptable to the curious. I must confess, I myself being of opinion that the emperor has as much authority to be interpreter to him he pretends to expound, as the pope has to be vicar to the sacred person he takes upon him to represent, I was not a little pleased with their treaty of alliance. What progress the negotiation between his majesty of Rome and is beliness of China makes, as we daily writers say upon subjects where we are at a loss, time will let us know. In the mean time, since they serve in the fundamentals of power and authory, and diffe only in matters of faith, we may expot the noter will go on without difficulty.

Chia di lettera del re della China al Papa, interpwn de pace segretario dell' India della compesa & Gi

*** ****vere S 1 BENEDETTI P. P. ED DE PONTIFICI E

363

GREAT EMCHRISTIANS,

NGS OF EU

I

the VIIth, rful of the

he sun and aina, above

ge of God .th to 115 the quill of

ease of old

which the into fruit ⚫ desire of d of that determin orous vir.ess and a s that your many unh out our nd she shall some other

"I's right eye. her, the fideba. We would may look upon a shell fish to : her age must let her stature and her girth

sadors to

"Sodisfando noi padre e amico nostro questa nostra brama, sarete caggione di unire in perpetua amicitia cotesti vostri regni d'Europa all nostro dominante imperio, e si abbracciranno le vostri leggi come l'edera abbraccia la pianta; e noi medesemi spargeremo del nostro seme reale in coteste provincei, riscaldando i letti di vostri principi con il fuoco amoroso delle nostre amazoni, d'alcune delle quali i nostri mandatici ambasciadori vi porteranno le somiglianza dipinte.

"Vi confirmiamo di tenere in pace le due buone religiose famiglie delli missionarii gli' figlioli d'Ignazio, e li bianchi e neri figlioli di Dominico, il cui consiglio degl' uni e degl' altri ci serve di scorta nel nostro regimento e di lume ad interpretare le divine legge, come appuncto fa lume l'oglio che si getta in mare.

"In tanto alzandoci dal nostro trono per abbracciarvi, vidi chiariamo nostro congiunto e confederato, ed ordiniamo che questo foglio sia segnato col nostro segno imperiale della nostra citta, capo del mondo, il quinto giorno della terza lunatione l'anno quarto del nostro imperio.

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Sigillo e un sole nelle cui faccia e anche quella della luna ed intorno tra i raggi vi sono traposte alcune spada.

"Dico il traduttore che secondo il ceremonial di questo lettere e recedentissimo specialmente fessere scritto con la penna dello struzzo-vergine con la quelle non sogliosi scrivere quei re che le pregiere a Dio e scrivendo a qualche altro principe del mondo, la maggior finezza che usino, e scrivergli con la penna del pavone."

A letter from the emperor of China to the Pope, interpreted by a father Jesuit, secretary of the Indies.

TO YOU BLESSED ABOVE THE BLESSED, GREAT EMPEROR OF BISHOPS AND PASTOR OF CHRISTIANS, DISPENSER OF THE OIL OF THE KINGS OF EUROPE, CLEMENT XI.

"The favourite friend of God, Gionatta the VIIth, the most powerful above the most powerful of the earth, highest above the highest under the sun and moon, who sits on a throne of emerald of China, above 100 steps of gold, to interpret the language of God to the faithful, and who gives life and death to 115 kingdoms, and 170 islands; he writes with the quill of a virgin ostrich, and sends health and increase of old age.

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Being arrived at the time of our age in which the flower of our royal youth ought to ripen into fruit towards old age, to comfort therewith the desire of our devoted people, and propagate the seed of that plant which must protect them; we have determined to accompany ourselves with a high amorous virgin, suckled at the breast of a wild lioness and a meek lamb; and, imagining with ourselves that your European Roman people is the father of many unconquerable and chaste ladies, we stretch out our powerful arm to embrace one of them, and she shall be one of your nieces, or the niece of some other great Latin priest, the darling of God's right eye. Let the authority of Sarah be sown in her, the fidelity of Esther, and the wisdom of Abba. We would have her eye like that of a dove, which may look upon heaven and earth, with the mouth of a shell fish to feed upon the dew of the morning: her age must not exceed 200 courses of the moon; let her stature be equal to that of an ear of green corn, and her girth a handful.

"We will send our mandarins ambassadors to

could not be the work of chance. This argument receives additional strength, if we apply it to every animal and insect within our knowledge, as well as to those numberless living creatures that are objects too minute for a human eye; and if we consider how the several species in this whole world of life resemble one another in very many particulars, so far as is convenient for their respective states of existence, it is much more probable than a hundred millions of dice should be casually thrown a hundred millions of times in the same number, than that the body of any single animal should be produced by the fortuitous concourse of matter. And that the like chance should arise in innumerable instances, requires a degree of credulity that is not under the direction of common sense. We may carry this consideration yet further, if we reflect on the two sexes in every living species, with their resemblances to each other, and those particular distinctions that were necessary for the keeping up of this great world of life.

There are many more demonstrations of a Supreme Being, and of his transcendant wisdom, power, and goodness, in the formation of the body of a living creature, for which I refer my reader to other writings, particularly to the sixth book of the poem entitled Creation*, where the anatomy of the human body is described with great perspicuity and elegance. I have been particular on the thought which runs through this speculation, because I have not seen it enlarged upon by others.

* Creation. A poem by sir Richard Blackmore.