A remarkable instance, somewhat bearing upon this point, and at any rate illustrative of the origin of many a ghost story, is given by our author, (p. 24) of a gentleman, who, being benighted, lodged in a small but in the highlands of Scotland; previous to going to bed he was informed that in that same room a pedlar had hanged himself; and his body, according to the superstition of the country, had been let out at the window to be buried. Placing his fire-arms by his bed-side he went to sleep, but in a dream "Beheld a frightful apparition, and awaking in agony found himself sitting up in bed, with a pistol grasped in his right hand. ' On casting a fearful glance round the room, he discovered by the moonlight, a corpse, dressed in a shroud reared erect against the wall close by the window. With much difficulty he summoned up resolution to approach the dismal object, the features of which, and the minutest parts of its funeral apparel, he perceived distinctly. He passed one hand over it, felt nothing, and staggered back to the bed. After much reasoning he renewed the investigation, and found that his terror was produced by the moon-beams forming a long bright image through the broken window, on which his fancy, impressed by his dream, had pictured, with mischievous accuracy, the lineaments of a body prepared for interment." Yet more frequently the physical operations of nature end to mislead the senses; mountains, caverns, fogs, remarkable trees, in short, any singular combination, or uncommon phenomenon, throws the mind off its centre, and leaves it open to the powers of conjecture and imagination. The well-known wonders of the Hartz mountains we should not repeat from our author, if it were not in our power to corroborate them by a similar, and even more singular, appearance nearer home. It is well known that, on ascending to the summit of the mountains, when the sun is near the horizon, a colossal figure of the spectator is reflected on the opposite clouds, which imitates, of course, all his motions as in a looking-glass-it is, in fact, his shadow. Till this was discovered, the appearance, however, was, of course, attributed to supernatural interference; and it is still recognized under the name of the Spectre of the Broken. The corroborative circumstance we refer to, is that of a party, among whom was a gentleman of great respect. ability in private life, and another now high in office in the establishment of the East Indies, and well known in the literary world, who, some years since, ascending to the summit of Ben Lomond, in Scotland, were struck with this very appearance, each seeing the figure of himself at apparently a few hundred yards distance, reflected on the clouds, and sur rounded by a halo. What rendered this more peculiar, and, we may add, the more likely to have given rise to superstitious stories, had it happened in former ages, was, that it was never before, and, probably, has never since been known, to have occurred there. The guides, who had officiated as such for seven and twenty years, had never heard of, and were equally astonished at the appearance with their stranger visitors. We remember to have somewhere read of appearances seen in the skies among the Highlands, during the troubles of 1715 or 1745. Men were seen riding about, and exercising their arms and horses, as if preparing for combat; and this was endeavoured to be explained by the writer who records it, upon some such principles as the foregoing, as it was actually known that such preparations were secretly going on in the interior of the mountains; and the ærial -reflection which took place in the one instance might possibly have done so in the other. We, by no means, wish to' insist on the point; but were one such case as this established, it might possibly go to account for the existence of many of the ancient stories and miracles related by Herodotus, and the other old historians, of battles seen in the air, the appearance of gods, &c. The great mass of these, like other stories of apparitions, are indeed doubtless fabrications: but one such really occurring, and witnessed, as it well might be, by a whole city, may either have originally given rise to the belief, or, what is more probable, have served to confirm and substantiate it beyond the reach of contradiction. Remarkable forms, however, assumed by vapours, and yet more so by meteors, may frequently be supposed to account for these, more particularly, on occasions when the credulity and the superstition of the multitude had been previously called into action by the circumstances of the times. The effect of political events, in producing such a state of mind among the people, is very ably illustrated by our author, when observing upon the very great prevalence of spectral delusions during the interregnum in this country, after the civil war in 1649. "The melancholic tendency of the rigid Puritans of that perică their occupancy of old family seats, formerly the residence of acero, tality and good cheer, which in their hands became tasol gloomy; and the dismal stories propagated by the disco led to the ancient establishments, ecclesiastical and civil, eco together to produce a national horror unknown in other history."-p. 109. In concluding we cannot avoid remarking, that ng more than anything besides to explode th in apparitions, and to remove the mischief such belief has occa sioned, the doctrine of the materiality of man is of infinite advantage. Take away the vulgar notion of an immortal and spiritual substance in man, capable of existing independent of his body-and the popular belief in infernal agencies, (a belief which receives no support whatever from revelation), together with the whole system of apparitions, vanishes away-across our church-yards nothing will then be seen to glide more dangerous than the parson, or be known to haunt our habitations at the dead hour of night, more frequently than the rats and the mice. We have now endeavoured to lay before our readers the prominent features of Dr. Ferriar's theory, interspersing our remarks with such facts and observations as appeared to us to bear upon the subject. Fortunately for the age in which we live, the belief, or the causes which may have contributed to the existence of a belief in apparitions, is rather a matter of curious speculation than of useful or necessary research. The case however is not wholly thus--many men, and men too of talent and of genius, might be named, who in very late years have not been able to overcome the evidence adduced in favour of many supernatural appearances. Need we mention Dr. Johnson? We think the reasoning of this essay would have gone far to convince a mind like his of the absurdity of his creed in this respect; for his belief in apparitions appears to have been principally founded upon the indisputable evidence given by persons both of judg ment and veracity, in favour of many of the recorded cases. We need not however refer to the dead to prove the modern -existence of such a belief: in a review of the very work before us, which has just fallen under our notice, edited too by a man who we believed to be very superior to the generality of reviewers for judgment and for knowledge of literature (Mr. Valpy), much is hinted at in favour of the truth of apparitions. The Sampford ghost is mysteriously alluded to, and both Greek and Latin are adduced in favour of their existence; and we are ourselves acquainted with a gentle-, man, who, after receiving a finished and a classical education, passing all his days at once in the busy and the polished scenes of life, and distinguishing himself before the world as an author, and a man of genius, would now tren ble at the idea of an apparition, believes all the foolish stories about the town of supernatural illuminations and appearances, and who, should a cat stare him too long in the face, would actually believe her bewitched, and that she had an evil design against him. To such men the work before us may be of real and of essential service; to all who love to speculate on past events, intimately connected with the progress of the human mind, and who wish to pierce into their nature and their causes, it is certainly one of superior value, and from which they cannot fail to gain much curious information. As such we do not hesitate to recommend it to those of our readers who are peculiarly interested in studies of this nature, and for the benefit of such of them as may not chance to see the work we have been tempted to enter into our present length of extract and of analysis, leaving them in every case to form their own judgments upon the facts and the observations, which, in the course of our examination, we have adduced and recorded. SINCE INCERITY consists in a single intention to please God, and to meet with his approbation through our whole course of life in an impartial inquiry into the whole extent of our duty-in an upright and universal application to the practice of our duty as far as we know it, and in an honest correspondence between the thoughts of our hearts, the words of our lips, and the actions of our lives.--A Lie is a wilful disagreement of the mind and the tongue with a design to deceive. A lie is to speak that which is false, contrary to the force of truth shining on the mind; and it is spoken with an intention to impose upon others. LESSON TO PRINCES AND HISTORIANS. In China there has existed from time immemorial an historical tribunal, instituted in order to perpetuate the virtues and vices of the reigning monarch. One day the Emperor Tai-t-song ordered this tribunal to produce the history of his reign. "You know," answered the president, "that we give an exact detail of the virtues and vices of our sovereigns; and we are no longer at liberty to record the truth, if our registers be subject to your inspection." What!" replied the Emperor, you transmit my history to posterity, and do you assume the liberty to acquaint it with my faults?" "It is inconsistent with my character," rejoined the president, and with the dignity of my place, ever to disguise the truth. I am bound to record the whole. If you are guilty of even the slightest fault, I shall sensibly feel it; but I must not forget my duty; I cannot be silent. And such is the exactness and severity of the duties which my office of historian imposes upon me, that I am not suffered to omit our present conversation." --Tai-t-song had an elevation of soul:"continue," said he to the president, to write the truth without constraint. May my virtues and vices contribute to the public utility, and be instructive to my successors. Your tribunal is free. I will for ever protect it, and permit it to write my history with the greatest impartiality." What an excellent lesson to the princes of the earth! Happy would it be for themselves and their subjects did they constantly reflect that the faithful hand of history will not fail to render them dear or odious to the latest times! ORIGINAL POETRY. ON THE INANITY OF ALL PLEASURE THAT IS NOT TRACED to the deity. THO' Nature's charms salute the sight 1 In morning's orient dyes, In evening's gilded skies; Alas, how poor, almighty pow'r, Domestic bliss, each joy refin'd, When pond'ring o'er each mercy past, What can exceed the pure delight Of tracing all to thee! When Hope has left the anxious breast, When over comforts lost we mourn, Still, still, the virtuous mind relies TO CORRESPONDENTS. The well-meant strictures of W. I. on the letter of a "Friend to Truth and Consistency," are evidently occasioned by his misunderstanding the argument. That writer has no where argued "the existence of the Deity because space and matter exist."-His argument was simply designed to shew the imbecility of the reasoning of Mr. Burdon, which asserted a knowledge of the metaphysical nature of God to be necessary before we can with propriety ascribe any thing to him as a cause. The reply of his opponent is, that we are compelled to believe in many things, the metaphysical nature of which we do not understand; space and matter, for example. The existence too of the sun and moon is, as W. I. observes, widely different from the existence of Deity; but we are unacquainted with their nature, yet their existence can be proved independent of this knowledge, and so can the existence of God. This is all that is intended by "a Friend to Truth and Consistency" we only wonder how he could have been misapprehended. We were some time since favoured with a communication in defence of the disputed chapters at the commencement of Matthew and Luke's Gospels, which has been mislaid by our printer, and consequently has never been submitted to us; but if the writer can convenienlty furnish us with another copy it shall be duly attended to. ERRATA in part of the impresion of No. 32. › Page 338, line 18, for 15, for 351, 13, for 856, 371; A first cause,' read A cause. 10 from the bottom, for deprecate, read depreciate. J^1^7^^;i 15, for devoting aside,' read, 'setting aside. |