fore after several Reasonings of this nature, whereby I would prove to him the Souls distinction from the Body and its Immortality, when nothing of such subtile Considerations did any more execution on his Mind, then some Lightning is said to do, though it melts the Sword on the fuzzy consistency of the Scabard: Well, said I, Father L, though none of these things move you, I have something still behind, and what your self has acknowledged to me to be true, that may do the business; do you remember the clap on your Back, when your Servant was pulling off your Boots in the Hall? Assure your self, said I, Father L, that Goblin will be the first that will bid you welcome into the other World. Upon that his Countenance changed most sensibly, and he was more confounded with this rubbing up his Memory than with all the Rational or Philosophicai Argumentations that I could produce.
Indeed, if there were any Modesty left in Mankind, the Histories of the Bible might abundantly assure Men of the Existence of Angels and Spirits; but these Wits, as they are taken to be, are so jealous forsooth, and so sagacious, that whatever is offered to them by way of established Religion, is suspected for a piece of Politick Circumvention; which is as silly notwithstanding, and childish, as that Conceit of a Friend of yours when he was a School-Boy in the lowest Form of a Country Grammar School, who could not believe scarce that there were any such Men as Cato and Æsop, Ovid, Virgil and Tully much less that they wrote any such Books, but that it was a trick of our Parents to keep us up so many Hours of the Day together, and hinder us from the enjoying our innocent Pastime in the open Air, and the Pleasure of planting little Gardens of Flowers, and of hunting of Butter-flies and Humble-Bees.
Besides, though what is once true never becomes false, so that it may be truly said it was not once true; yet these shrew'd Wits suspect the truth of things for their Antiquity, and for that very reason think them the less credible: Which is wisely done as of the old Women the Story goes of, who being at Church in the Week before Easter, and hearing the Tragical Description of all the Circumstances of our Saviours Crucifixion, was in great sorrow at the reciting thereof, and so solicitous about the business, that she came to the Priest after Service with Tears in her Eyes, dropping him a Courtsie, and asked him how long ago this sad accident happen'd; to whom he answering, about fifteen or sixteen Years ago, she presently begun to be comforted, and said, Then in Grace of God it may be true. At this pitch of Wit in Children and old Wives is the Reason of our profes-
