for a few years, that our ladys would find a greater and more fubftantial happiness than it is poffible for them to produce from the most refined diffipations; I am fure they would be quite another fort of women. They would be ftrangers to voluptuoufnefs, the frauds of play, and ambition, to those chimerical actions and ridiculous paffions, which represent them in a diminutive and despicable light. They would dread the divine displeasure above all fublunary evils, and live with a divine fear before their eyes. Instead of paffing away a fhort life in a miserable dream, and devoting their precious time to the interests and enjoyments of this world, the vanity and delufion of earthly defires; they would become the most valuable and useful creatures, and feel the mysterys of their redemption opened in life and power. Like the glorious reclufes I am speaking of, they would not only be happy in every advantage and accomplishment, that education ought to have in view; make confiderable advances in real knowledge, and improve in languages and the fine arts; but, by their rule, become acquainted with the fublime indifputable truths of genuine chriftianity, and enjoy a living fenfibility of the work of God on the foul. They would have a truth and reality of religion, and sense the light and fpirit, the wisdom and love,

- the

the peace and joy of God within them. No Athanafian herefy is profeffed in this fine retreat. No conformity is feen to the vain customs and foolish paffions of this world. They hearken to the great Immanuel within, the word or voice of everlasting reason, and are as bleft and happy as creatures can be by the redeeming power of the holy Jefus.

Mrs. Harcourt dyed fuddenly, at her feat in Richmondshire, the first of December 1745, in the 39th year of her age; and not in the year thirty-feven, as the world was told in feveral advertisements in the London

Evening poft of December 1739, by a gen-
tleman who was impofed on in a falfe ac-
count he received of her death. She left the
greatest part of her fortune to the ladys, who
were the conftituents of her new founded
clauftral house, upon condition the fociety
was fupported and ordered, according to her
written directions; but made her favorite
Mrs. Bathurst fole acting executor, and re-
fiduary legatee. This lady is ftill living, and An account
one of the illuftrious members of this pro- of Mrs.
testant monastery. She is to this day an ex- Richmond-
traordinary fine woman, tho a year or two be- fhire.
yond 30, and by her uncommon good fenfe and
knowledge, her virtues and piety, is a bright
ornament to the fociety fhe belongs to. She
is a master in the Hebrew, Greek and Latin.
In this refpect she equals the late Mrs. Har-

Ι

court:

Bathurst of

1

N

Anna Ma

man.

court: She likewife talks as many languages: And that lady could fpeak more tongues than the justly admired Maria Schurman; of whom Jean le Laboureur fays, en son Hisria a Schur- toire de Voyage de la Reyne de Pologne, imprimée a Paris l'an 1648. -Elle refpondit en Italien a Monfieur d'Orange, qui l'interrogeoit par ordre de la Regne, & elle argumenta tres-fubtilement en Latin fur quelques poincts de theologie. Elle repartit auffi fort elegamment en mefme langue, au compliment que je lui fis pour Madame la Marefchalle. Elle parla grec avec le Sieur Corrade premier medicin de la Regne. Enfin elle nous euft encore parlé d'autres langues fi nous les euffions fçeuës; car outre la Grecque, la Latine, la Francoife, l'Italienne, l'Espagnole, l'Alemande, et le Flaman qui lui eft naturel, elle a encore beaucoup de connoiffance de l'Hebreu, Syriacque & Chaldaïque; & il ne luy manque qu'un peu d'habitude pour les parler (a),

An account of Mrs.

This

(a) Maria Schurman, was born at Cologne, the 5th of November 1607, and dyed at Wieuwert en Frife, Anna Ma- the 5th of May 1678, in the feventy-first year of her

ria Schur

man.

age. Her works are Opufcula Hebræa, Graca, Latina, Gallica, one thick volume in twelves, publifhed by Frederic Spanheim, professor of divinity, Batav. Elzevir, 1648. There are later editions, but this is the valuable one. There are fome admirable Latin letters on moral subjects in this book. Her epiftle de Vitæ

Ter

This account of Mrs. Schurman, confirmed by many great men, who converfed

and

Termino to Berovicius, is a fine thing. See how the concludes: -Unam tantum follicitudinem nobis reliquit Deus, ut, quam nobis impofuit provinciam curemus fedulo ante rerum eventum; poft vero in hoc uno fecure acquiefcamus, quod ille fic voluit, qui nifi optima velle non poteft. Audiamus, obfecro, divinam illam Epicteti vocem; femper magis volo quod Deus vult, quam quod ego. Adjungar et adhærebo illi, velut minifter et affecla: cum illo appeto, cum illo defidero, et fimpliciter atque uno verbo, quod Deus vult, volo. Hic unica Halcyonia curarum æftibus; hic animorum per ancipitia fluctuantium ftatio tutiffima: hic denique terminus in quo mente et calamo acquiefco, This is beautiful.

Her other work is called Eukleria, or Bona Pars, in allufion to Mary's chufing the better part. This is hard to be met with. It is one octavo in Latin, and tho it be not without fome vifion, yet it is in the main a beautiful and folid performance. It is in the manner of Mr. Law's Chriftian Perfection, and has feveral fentiments resembling those of madam Guion, in her comment on the New Testament, and madam Bourignon, in her numerous works. It was the famous Labadie, the fanatic, who brought Mrs. Schurman over to the interior life and filent worship, in the forty-third year of her age, and from that time to her dying-day, fhe renounced the world, and never went any more even to public worship. The men of learning and worth were no longer feen in crouds at her house, engaged with her in the nobleft literary converfations; for the advancement of truth and the fciences; but in a folitude she purchased, the moped away her remaining life in quietifm, and holy reveries, and parting from reafon in religion, funk into paffive unions of nothing with nothing,

and

An account

mous Jean

13, 1610.

1674

and correfponded with her, I often wondered at, and had fome doubts about, till I became

and became the prey of cunning and ftupid religionifts.
Her house was always full of them. She would see no
other company. The holy Labadie expired in her arms,
aged fixty four, in the year 1674 ; Mrs. Schurman being
then fixty-feven What a deplorable change was
here and owing to -no reafon in religion-
oh heavenly! Adhere to reafon, Jewks. Whoever
tells you, you must give it up in religion, is the fon of
darkness, and the truth is not in him.

Labadie had been many years a Jefuit, then Jansenift, Carme folitaire, Miffionnaire, and Devat, and afterwards by the intereft of the marquis de Favas, a proteftant, was made minifter of Montauban.

Bayl and Bernard, and Bafnages, in the Nouelles de of the fa- la Republique des Lettres, tell a ftrange ftory of this Labadie, man, while he was minifter at Montauban: that he the fanatic, had brought over a beautiful young lady, Madamwho was moifelle de Calonges, to the interior or fpiritual life, and to born Feb. make her perfect in what they call la fpiritualité et l'oand died in raifon mentale, he told her fhe must be absolutely alienated from all fenfible objects in her meditations, and loft in the depths of reflection, dans le reueillement interieure. To this purpose he gave her a point to meditate on, and defired fhe would give it her whole application, as the fighed after chriftian perfection. Mifs began, and the director left her, under a detachement abfolu; but returned in an hour or two to her chamber. He found her like contemplation on a monument; her eyes fixed, and her whole body, as if it were a pet refaction. Softly the holy man approached; ftrange pleasures filled his foul, as he gazed upon his heavenly difciple, and believing her quite perfect, from her attitude, in the interior way, he gently put his pious hand upon her lovely breaft, and began to feel the