haps it would rather tend to confuse the mind, and be a fource of endless conceit and fancies.

In a letter affixed to this book, dated from London, 1769, and written by Baron Swedenborg himself, he gives the following account, I was born at Stockholm in the year of our Lord 1689, Jan. 29. My father was bishop of Westgothia, and of celebrated character in his time: He was alfo a member of the fociety for the propagation of the Gospel, formed on the model of that of England, and appointed prefident of the Swedish churches in Penfilvania and London by King Charles XII. In the year 1710, I began my travels, first into England, and afterwards into Holland, France and Germany, and returned home in 1714. In the year 1716, and afterwards, I frequently converfed with Charles XII. King of Sweden, who was pleased to bestow on me a large fhare of his favour, and in that year appointed me to the office of affeffor in the Metallic College, in which office I continued from that time 'till 1747, when I quitted the office, but ftill retain the falary annexed to it, as an appointment for life: The reafon of my withdrawing from the business of that employment was, that I might be more at liberty to apply myself to that new function to which the Lord had called me. About this time a place of higher dignity in the ftate was offered me, which I declined to accept left it should prove a fnare to me. In 1719 I was ennobled by Queen Ulrica Eleonara, from which time I have taken my feat with the nobles of the Equestrian order, in the triennial affemblies of the ftates. I am a fellow, by invitation, of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Stockholm, but have never defired to be of any other community, as I belong to the fociety of angels, in which things spiritual and heavenly are the only fubjects of difcourfe and entertainment, whereas in our literary focieties the attention is wholly taken up with things relating to the body and this world. In the year 1734, I published the Regnum Minerale at Leipfic, in three volumes, folio; and in 1738, I took a journey into Italy, and staid a year at Venice and Rome.'

He afterwards gives an account of his family connections, among which are the archbishop of Upfal, the bishop of Oftrogothia, and the bishop of Weftmannia and Dalecarlia, the two laft of whom are his nephews. After which he proceeds, I converse freely and am in friendship with all the bishops of my country, who are ten in number, and alfo with the fixteen fenators and the reft of the grandees, who love and honour me, as knowing that I am in fellowship with angels. The king and queen themselves, as alto the three princes their fons, fhew me all kind countenance; and I was once invited to eat with the king and queen at their table (an honour granted only to the peers of the realm, and likewife fince that with the hereditary

prince.

prince. All in my own country wish for my return home, fo far am I from the leaft danger of perfecution there, as you feem to apprehend, and are also so kindly folicitous to provide againft, and should any thing of that kind befal me elsewhere, it will give me no concern. Whatever of worldly honour and advantage may appear to be in the things before-mentioned, I hold them but as matters of low eftimation when compared to the honour of that holy office to which the Lord himself hath called me, who was graciously pleased to manifeft himself to me his unworthy fervant in a perfonal appearance in the year 1743, to open in me a fight of the fpiritual world, and to enable me to converse with Spirits and angels, and this privilege has continued with me to this day. From that time I began to print and publish various unknown arcana that have been either feen by me or revealed to me, concerning heaven and hell, the ftate of men after death, the true worship of God, the fpiritual fenfe of the fcriptures, and many other important truths tending to falvation and true wifdom and that mankind might receive benefit from these communications was the only motive which has induced me at different times to leave my home to vifit other countries. As to this world's wealth, I have what is fufficient, and more I neither seek nor wish for. Your letter has drawn the mention of these things from me, in cafe, as you fay, they may be a means to prevent or remove any falfe judgment, or wrong prejudices with regard to my perfonal circumftances.'

To this relation which the author himself gives, we may join the following fhort extracts from the tranflator's preface, That Baron Swedenborg's life, qualifications and high pretenfions, have paffed through a ftrict fcrutiny in his own country; as to every part of his character, moral, civil and divine, is not to be doubted; and that he maintains dignity, efteem and friendship there with the great, the wife and the good, I am well informed by a gentleman of that nation now refiding in London; and from whose mouth I could relate an inftance of the author's fupernatural knowledge as well known in the court of Sweden, and not to be evaded or called in question, if the fact be as is related; but as I have not the author's leave for this, I think not myself at liberty to mention it.-The extenfive learning difplayed in his writings evinces him to be the fcholar, and the philosopher; and his polite behaviour and addrefs bespeak the gentleman: He affects no honour, but declines it; pursues no worldly intereft, but spends his fubftance in travelling and printing, in order to communicate inftruction and benefit to mankind; and he is fo far from the ambition of heading a fect, that wherever he refides on his travels, he is a mere folitary and almost inacceffible, though in his own country of a free and open behaviour; nor does he perfuade any to leave that establish

ed

ed church to which they belong: 'Till very lately he has not fet his name to any of his theological works: He has nothing of the precifian in his manner, nothing of melancholy in his temper, and nothing in the leaf bordering upon the enthufiaft in his converfation or writings, in the latter of which he delivers facts in the plain tile of narrative, fpeaks of his converfe with spirits and angels with the fame coolnefs that he treats of earthly things, as being alike common to him; he proves all points of doctrine from scripture teftimony; always connects charity and good life with true faith, and is upon the whole as rational a divine as ever I read.' Thus does the anonymous tranflator plead in favour of his author. He informs us that he has converfed with him at different times, in company with a gentleman of a learned profeffion and of extenfive intellectual abilities; that they both confider their acquaintance with the author and his writings as one of the greateft bleffings of their lives, and think he may properly be called the living apoftle of these days.

We apprehend that Baron Swedenborg is to be claffed with Jacob Behmen, our countryman William Law, and other myftic writers. Jacob, if we remember right, talks of the hot, cold, dry qualities of the foul, and if he means any thing, we suppose means fomething of the fame kind with the prefent author, who appears, however, to be much his fuperior in learning and abilities.

Publications of this kind do not commonly merit any particular attention, but as this gentleman's character and pretenfions are of a very fingular and extraordinary nature, we thought that fomething more than a general account was fuitable to the nature of our own work and would be acceptable to our readers: for which reason we fhall add the following marvellous relation of what is faid to have paffed in one of the ftrange reveries of our learned vifionary. After this lucubration was finished, I prayed that the Lord would pleafe to grant me an interview with the difciples of Ariftotle, with thofe of Defcartes, and also with thofe of Leibnitz, to the end that I might hear from them their tenets concerning the communication and operations of the foul and body; and in anfwer to my prayer, nine perfons presented themselves to my view, three of each clafs, and ranged themfelves in order, the Ariftotelians towards my left hand, the Cartefians towards my right, and the Leibnitzians behind them, and through the intermediate fpaces, at a great diftance off, appeared three men as if crowned with laurel, whom I knew by an influxile perception to be the three founders of those feats: Behind Leibnitz, ftood one who had hold on the skirts of his garment, and I was told that he was Wolfius. Thefe nine men at their first interview, behaved courteously to one another, but on the appearance of a spirit from beneath with a torch in his

right-hand, which he waved before their faces, they immediately. commenced enemies, three against three, for they became inflamed with the zeal of difputation. The Ariftotelians, who were of the schoolmen, began the debate, faying, Who does not perceive that influx proceeds from outward objects through the fenfes into the foul, and that as plainly as a man is feen to pafs into a room at the door, and confequently that ideas are excited in the foul by the laws of fuch influx?-Do not numberless inftances demonftrate that the bodily fenfes are the only in'ets to the foul, and fufficiently eftablifh the doctrine of phyfical influx? To this the Cartefians, who hitherto ftood, with their fingers upon their eyebrows, in a mufing pofture, replied as follows: What delufion is here! and how do you reason from fallacious appearances only !-Shew, if you can, what else causes the tongue and lips to fpeak but thought, or the hands to work but the will; now thought and will proceed from the foul, and not from the body; and hence likewise it is that the eyes fee, the ears hear, and the reft of the corporeal organs difcharge their refpective functions: From thefe, and many more convincing proofs, every one that has a grain of intellectual knowledge may know of a truth, that influx proceeds not from matter to fpirit, but contrariwife, and therefore we call it by the name of fpiritual, and fometimes by that of occafional influx.' After this, the three who were followers of Leibnitz, cried out and faid, We have heard, and compared the arguments on both fides, and find that each has both its advantage and difadvantage and being afked, how they would compound the difference? they anfwered, By fetting afide all influx from the foul to the body, and from the body to the foul, and by maintaining a joint confent and inftantaneous operation of both together, which a celebrated author has properly diftinguished by the name of Pre-established Harmony'. A fpirit, it is faid, afte wards appeared waving a torch behind them, on which their ideas became confufed, and they all acknowledged their ignorance: They agreed to decide the difpute by lots; three lots were accordingly put into a receiver, and the perfon appointed to be the drawer, drew out that on which was written fpiritual influx. They concluded to abide by this; and an angel appeared who affured them that the lot came not to hand by chance, but by a divine direction.'

The reader will make his own reflections on this wonderful narrative. The writer of the preface fays what can be faid in defence of his author, and hopes that his difcoveries may be ufeful to check that propenfity to materialism which it is to be feared too much prevails at prefent, but we apprehend will require fome different methods to prevent its progrefs and growth.

REV. June 1770.

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ART.

ART. VII. An Effay on the Nature and Immutability of Truth; in Oppofition to Sophistry and Scepticism. By James Beattie, Profeffor of Moral Philofophy and Logic in the Marifchal College and Univerfity of Aberdeen. Octavo. 6s. bound. Dilly. 17:0.

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HOEVER is acquainted with the genius and fpirit of fcepucifm, and has reflected on its obvious and manifelt tendency to throw darkness and perplexity into the underflanding, and coldness and infenfibility into the heart, to fpread a gloom over the whole intellectual and moral world, to diveft the mind of fan of every principle, to fubvert the most folid foundations of his happiness, and, in a word, to render him an ufclefs and a wretched being, will be highly pleased with this ingenious author's well meant and laudable attempt to expose it in its genuine colours, and to vindicate the caufe of truth and virtue. Such of our readers too, as have been long wandering in metaphyfical mazes, been fond of the refinements and fubtleties of modern fceptics, and, as the fruit of their cold, intricate, and often uninterefting investigations, have reaped little more than darknefs and uncertainty in regard to the first prin ciples of action and science, will receive no fmall comfort and fatisfaction from an attentive perufal of Mr. Beattie's Effay; through the whole of which he appears not only in the character of a good citizen, earnestly defirous of promoting the best interefts of mankind, but in that of a judicious philofopher and agreeable writer. His ftyle is clear and eafy, his manner of writing lively and entertaining, and the many illuftrations, interfperfed throughout his Effay, are extremely pertinent and inge. nious. In a word, we cannot help confidering his performance as an excellent antidote againft fcepticism and infidelity, and accordly we recommend it to our readers; not doubting but that fuch of them as are converfant with metaphyfical and fceptical writers, will readily acknowledge, with us, that they have received both pleasure and inftruction from the perufal of it.

Ifit fhall be acknowledged, fays he, by the candid and intelligent reader, that I have in this book contributed fomething to the effablithment of old truths, I fhall not be much offended, though others should pretend to discover, that I have advanced nothing new. Indeed I would not with to fay any thing on thefe fubjects, that hath not often occurred to the common fenfe of mankind. In Logic and Morals, we may have new treatifes, and new theories; but we are not now to expect new cifcoveries. The principles of moral duty have long been undertood in thefe enlightened parts of the world; and mankind, in the time that is patt, have had more truth under their confideration, than they will probably have in the time to come. Yet he who makes thefe fciences the ftudy of his life, may perhaps collect particulars concerning their evidence, which, though known to a few, are un

known