is intimately united with him. He is able to difquiet the Soul, and vex it in all its Faculties. He can hinder any of the greatest Comforts of Life from refreshing us, and give an Edge to every one of its flighteft Calamities. Who then can bear the Thought of being an Out-caft from his Prefence, that is, from the Comforts of it, or of feeling it only in its Terrors? How pathetick is that Expoftulation of Job, when, for the Tryal of his Patience, he was made to look upon him felf in this deplorable Condition! Why haft thou fet me as a Mark against thee, fo that I am become a Barthen to my felf? But, Thirdly, how happy is the Condition of that intellectual Being, who is fenfible of his Maker's Prefence from the fecret Effects of his Mercy and Lo ving-kindness.

!

Our

THE Bleffed in Heaven behold him Face to Face; that is, are as fenfible of his Prefence as we are of the Prefence of any Perfon whom we look upon with our Eyes. There is doubtlefs a Faculty in Spirits, by which they apprehend one another, as our Senfes do material Objects; and there is no Queftion but our Souls, when they are difembodied, or placed in glo fified Bodies, will by this Faculty, in whatever Part of Space they refide, be always fenfible of the Divine Prefence. We, who have this Veil of Flefh ftanding between us and the World of Spirits, muft be content to know that the Spirit of God is prefent with us, by the Effects which he produceth in us. outward Senfes are too grofs to apprehend him ; we may however tafte and fee how gracious he is, by his Influence upon our Minds, by thofe virtuous Thoughts which he awakens in us, by thofe fecret Comforts and Refreshments which he conveys into our Souls, and by thofe ravifhing Joys and inward Satisfactions, which are perpetually fpringing up, and diffufing themfelves among all the Thoughts of good Men. He is lodged in our very Effence, and is as a Soul within the Soul, to irradiate, its Understanding, rectifie its Will, purifie its Paffions, and enliven all the Powers of Man. How happy therefore is an intelleQual Being, who, by Prayer and Meditation, by Vir

tue

tue and good Works, opens this Communication be tween God and his own Soul! Tho' the whole Creation frowns upon him, and all Nature looks black about him, he has his Light and Support within him, that are able to cheer his Mind, and bear him up in the Midft of all thofe Horrors which encompafs him. He knows that his Helper is at Hand, and is always nearer to him than any thing else can be, which is ca pable of annoying or terrifying him. In the Midft of Calumny or Contempt, he attends to that Being who whispers better things within his Soul, and whom he looks upon as his Defender, his Glory, and the Lifterup of his Head. In his deepest Solitude and Retirement, he knows that he is in Company with the great eft of Beings and perceives within himfelf fuch real Senfations of his Prefence, as are more delightful thair any thing that can be met with in the Converfation of his Creatures. Even in the Hour of Death, he confi ders the Pains of his Diffolution to be nothing elfe but the breaking down of that, Partition, which tands be twixt his Soul, and the Sight of that Being, who is always prefent with him, and is about to manifest it felf to him in Fullness of Joy. I star

int

IF we would be thus happy, and thus fenfible of our Maker's Prefence, from the fecret Effects of his Mercy and Goodness, we must keep fuch a Watch over all our Thoughts, that, in the Language of the Scripture, bis Soul may have Pleasure in us. We must take care not to grieve his holy Spirit, and endeavour to make the Meditations of our Hearts always acceptable in his Sight that he may delight thus to refide and dwell in us. The Light of Nature could direct Seneca to this Doctrine, in a very remarkable Paffage among his Epiftles; Sacer ineft in nobis fpiritus bonorum malorumque cuftos, & Oba fervator, quemadmodum nos illam tractamus, ita

ille nes. There is a holy Spirit refiding in us, who watches and obferves both good and evil Men, and will treat us after the fame Manner that we treat him. But I fhall conclude this Difcourfe with those more em phatical Words in Divine Revelation, If a Man love me, he will keep my Word, and my Father will love

him, and we will come unto him, and make our Abode with him.

EKOUZOKING KIK??

N 572.

Monday, July 26.

I

Quod medicorum eft

Promittant medici -

Hor.

Am the more pleased with thefe my Papers, fince I find they have encouraged feveral Men of Learning and Wit to become my Correfpondents: I Yefterday received the following Effay against Quacks, whiely I fhall here communicate to my Readers for the 'Good of the Publick, begging the Writer's Pardon for those Additions and Retrenchments which I have made in it.

THE Defire of Life is fo natural and strong a Pal fion, that I have long fince ceafed to wonder at the great Encouragement which the Practice of Phyfick finds among us. Well-conftituted Governments have always made the Profeffion of a Physician both honourable and advantageous. Homer's Machaon and Virgil's Japis were Men of Renown, Heroes in War, and made at leaft as much Havock among their Enemies as among their Friends. Those who have little or no Faith in the Abilities of a Quack will apply themfelves to him, either becaufe he is willing to fell Health at a reafonable Profit, or because the Patient, like a drowning Man, catches at every Twig, and hopes for Relief from the most Ignorant, when the most able Phyficians give him none. Though Impudence and many Words are as neceffary to thefe Itinerary Galens as a laced Hat or a Merry Andrew, yet they would turn very little to the Advantage of the Owner, if there were not fome inward Difpofition in the fick Man to favour the Pretenfions of the Mountebank. Love of

Life

Life in the one, and of Money in the other, creates a good Correfpondence between them.

THERE is fcarce a City in Great-Britain but has one of this Tribe, who takes it into his Protection, and on the Market-Day harangues the good People of the Place with Aphorifms and Receipts. You may depend upon it, he comes not there for his own private Intereft, but out of a particular Affection to the Town, I remember one of thofe Publick-fpirited Artists at Hammersmith, who told his Audience that he had been born and bred there, and that having a special Regard for the Place of his Nativity, he was determined to make a Prefent of Five Shillings to as many as would accept of it." The whole Crowd ftood agape, and ready to take the Doctor at his Word; when putting his Hand into a long Bag, as every one was expecting his Crown-Piece, he drew out an Handful of little Packets, each of which he informed the Spectators was conftantly fold at Five Shillings and Six Pence, but that he would bate the odd Five Shillings to every Inhabitant of that Place: The whole Affembly immediately clofed with this generous Offer, and took off all his Phyfick, after the Doctor had made them vouch for one another, that there were no Foreigners among them, but that they were all Hammerfmith Men.

THERE is another Branch of Pretenders to this Art, who, without either Horfe or Pickle-Herring, lie fnug in a Garret, and fend down Notice to the World of their extraordinary Parts and Abilities by printed Bills and Advertisements. These feem to have derived their Custom from an Eastern Nation which Herodotus fpeaks of, among whom it was a Law, that whenever any Cure was performed, both the Method of the Cure, and an Account of the Distemper, fhould be fixed in fome Publick Place; but as Cuftoms will corrupt, thefe our Moderns provide themselves of Perfons to atteft the Cure, before they publish or make an Experiment of the Prefcription. I have heard of a Porter, who ferves as a Knight of the Poft under one of these Operators, and tho' he was never fick in his Life, has been cured of all the Difeafes in the Difpenfary. Thele

arc

are the Men whofe Sagacity has invented Elixirs of all forts, Pills and Lozenges, and take it as an Affront if you come to them before you are given over by every Body elfe. Their Medicines are infallible, and never fail of Succefs, that is of enriching the Doctor, and letting the Patient effectually at Reft.

At

I lately dropt into a Coffee-houfe at Westminster, where I found the Room hung round with Ornaments of this Nature. There were Elixirs,, Tinctures, the Anodine Fotus, English Pills, Electuaries, and, in fhort, more Remedies than I believe there are Difeafes. the Sight of fo many Inventions, I could not but ima gine my felf in a kind of Arfenal or Magazine, where ftore of Arms were repofited against any fudden Invafion. Should you be attack'd by the Enemy fide-ways, here was an infallible Piece of defenfive Armour to cure the Pleurifie: Should a Diftemper beat up your Head Quarters, here you might purchafe an impenetrable Helmet, or, in the Language of the Artift, a Cephalic Tincture: If your main Body be affaulted, here are various Kinds of Armour in cafe of various Onfets. I began to congratulate the prefent Age upon the Happiness Men might reafonably hope for in Life, when Death was thus in a manner defeated, and when Pain it felf would be of fo fhort a Duration, that it would but juft ferve to enhance the Value of Pleafare: While I was in thefe Thoughts, I unluckily called to mind a Story of an ingenious Gentleman of the laft Age, who lying violently afflicted with the Gout, a Perfon came and offered his Service to cure him by a Method, which he affured him was infallible; the Servant who received the Meffage carried it up to his Mafter, who enquiring whether the Perfon came on Foot or in a Chariot; and being informed that he was on Foot: Go, fays he, fend the Knave about his Business: Was his Method as infallible as he pretends, he would long before now have been in his Coach and Six. In like man, ner I concluded, that had all thefe Advertifers arrived to that Skill they pretend to, they would have had no Need for fo many Years fucceffively to publifh to the World the Place of their Abode, and the Virtues of

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their