Earth! fo fresh and fine! ye Hills, and Vallies! ye Plains, Woods, and Rivers! and ye that live and move, all ye fair Creatures! tell me (if ye faw) how I came here? --- Not of myself. ---- Then by fome great Maker, pre-eminent in Goodnefs, and in Power: Tell me, how I may know him, how adore him, from whom I have this Power of Motion and this Life, and feel that I am happier than I yet know. While I called thus and wandered, I did not know whither, from the Place where I firft drew Breath, and firft beheld this happy Light, and rone returning Answer, I fat me down penfive on a green fhady Bank, covered with Flowers; there gentle Sleep first came upon me, and with foft Oppreffion feized my drowzy untroubled Senfes, (though I then thought I was paffing to my former State, that I was going to become again infenfible, and forthwith be in a State of Diffolution) when fuddenly there appeared to me a Dream, which gently moved my Fancy to believe, that I yet had Being, and lived. Methought there came one of divine Shape, and faid to me, "ADAM !

thy Habitation wants thee; rife, first MAN, and "ordained firft Father of innumerable MEN! I come "(called by thee) to be thy Guide to thy prepared "Seat, which is the Garden of PARADISE." Saying this, he took and raised me by the Hand, and over Fields and Waters, in the Air, as it were wafting me along, without stopping, at last led me up to a woody Mountain, upon whofe high Top was a Plain a wide Circuit inclosed, planted with all Manner of goodly Trees, having many Walks and Bowers, in Comparison of which what I faw upon Earth before fcarcely feemed pleasant: Every Tree was loaded with the faireft Fruit, that hung tempting to the Eye, and moved in me a certain Appetite to gather of it and eat; whereon I waked, and found all real before my Eyes, as the Dream had in a lively Manner reprefented to me. Here I had began to wander

again, had not he, who was my Guide up hither, appeared from among the Trees; it was GOD himself.

Rejoicing, but with great Awe and Submiflion, I fell down in Adoration at his Feet: He raised me up gently, and mildly faid; "Whom thou foughtest I am, the Author of all this thou feeft, above, or ' beneath, or round about thee. I give thee this "PARADISE, account it thine, to till and keep it, "and eat the Fruits of it with chearful Heart; eat

freely of every Tree that grows in the Garden; "fear no Scarcity here: But of the Tree, whofe O"peration brings the Knowledge of Good and Evil, "which I have fet as the Pledge of thy Faith and O

bedience in the Middle of the Garden, and close by

the Tree of Life, (remember what I warn thee!) fhun "to tafte it, and fhun the bitter Confequence; for "know, the Day that thoueateft thereof, tranfgreffing "my fole Command, thou fhalt affuredly die: From "that Day take Mortality; lofe this happy State, "and be expelled from hence into a World of Woe

and Mifery."--- He pronounced the fevere Prohibition fternly, which yet refounds dreadfully in mine Ear, though it be in mine own Choice, not to incur the Penalty of Difobedience: But foon again clearing his Afpect, he thus renewed his gracious Purpofe, and faid; "Not only this PARADISE, but to thee and "thy Race I give all the Earth; poffefs it as Lords, "and alfo all the Things that live therein, or in Sea, "or Air In Sign of which, behold every Bird and "Beaft after their Kinds: I bring them to thee, that

they may from thee receive their Names, and pay "thee Homage with low Subjection: Thou mayeft "understand the fame of Fish, that refide in the Wa"ters, and are not brought hither, feeing they can"not change their Element, nor live in the thin "Air." As he spake thus, every Bird and Beaft came towards me in Pairs; the Beafts creeping near the Ground and fawning, and the Birds flying low: I named

I named them as they paffed, and Gop endued my fudden Apprehenfion with fuch Knowledge, that I understood all their Natures; but in all thefe, methought, I did not find what I wanted; and thus I prefumed to speak to the divine Prefence:

By what Name, or how may I adore Thee; for Thou being above all thefe, above MANKIND, or any Thing higher than MANKIND, art far above any Name that I can give Thee, Great Author of this Universe, and all this Good to MAN? For whofe well Being fo fully and fo liberally thou haft provided all Things. But I fee none who partakes thefe Bleffings with me: What Happiness is there in Solitude? Or what Enjoyment can there be alone? Or enjoying all Things what Contentment can be found?

THUS much I ventured to fay; and GOD made me this Reply: What is it thou calleft Solitude? Are not the Earth and Air full of various living Creatures, and all these ready at thy Command, to come and play before thee? Doft not thou understand their Language and their Ways? For they alfo know, and reafon in a Manner not to be contemned. Thy Dominion is large, do thou be contented to govern, and pass thy Time away with Pleafure among the Crea

tures.

THUS fpake the univerfal LORD of all, and feemed in fuch Manner to give out his Order: When I, imploring Leave to fpeak, and humbly begging that I might hot offend, made this Reply :

HEAVENLY Power! let not my Words make thee angry, let my MAKER be propitious while I fpeak! Haft Thou not created me here, and made me thy Substitute, and fet thefe inferior Creatures far beneath me? What Harmony, what Society, or

true

true Delight, can fubfift between Unequals? For all Happineis muit be mutual, given and received in due Proportion; but where there is a Difparity, one affectionate and the oth indifferent, the Society agrees not well with either, but foon grows tedious to both: I fpeak of Fellowship fit to partake in all rational Delights, which is that I feek, in which Brutes cannot be conforted with MAN; they can rejoice with each other, the Lion with the Lionefs, as being fitted to that End: But it is not fo with Bird and Beast, nor Fish and Fowl with one another, as being of quite different Species; neither can the Bull fo well converfe with the Ape (e); much worse then, and least of all, can MAN converfe with Beast.

To which the ALMIGHTY, not difpleafed with my Words, anfwered: ADAM! I fee thou propofeft to thyfelf a nice and refined Happinefs, in the Choice of thy Affociates, and though furrounded with Pleasure, wilt táfte no Pleafure, as being without Companion.. What then doft thou think of me, and of this my State? Do I seem to thee fufficiently poffeft of Happinefs, or not, who am alone from all Eternity? For I know none, either fecond to me or like me; much lefs equal to me. How then have I any to hold Converfation with, except with the Creatures which I have made, and all thofe are infinite Degrees inferior to me, more than what the loweft of the other Creatures are to thee?

HERE he left off speaking, and I lowly and fubmiffively replied: Supreme LORD of all! human

(4) Ape; Sax. A Monkey; there are several Sorts of them; Baboons and Monkeys have Tails which the Ape wants. It is the Mimic of Mankind: The Antients believed this Creature came

nearest to the human Species of all other Animals: But the Chimpanze found lately in Africa, comes nearer by far to the Refemblance of Man and Wo

man.

Thoughts

Thoughts fall fhort to attain the Height and Depth of thy eternal Ways: In Thee is found no Deficiency, for Theu in thyfelf art perfect: But MAN is not fo, only in Degree; which is the Caufe that he defires by Conversation with his Like, to help his Defects, or give Comfort. There is no Need that Thou fhouldest propagate, who art already infinite; and though but ONE, art through all Numbers: But MAN is to beget Like of his Like, and multiply his Image, which requires collateral Love, and ftricteft Amity. Thou although alone, art beft accompanied with Thyfelf in thy own Secrecy, and doft not feek focial Communication, yet at thy own good Pleasure canft highly dignify thy Creatures, and raise them up to what Degree of Union or Communion Thou wilt. I by converfing with the Brutes, cannot elevate their Natures, nor find any Complacence in their Ways.

THUS I fpoke, being by Permiffion emboldened to use fuch Freedom, and found Acceptance; which from the gracious divine Voice obtained this Anfwer: ADAM! thus far I was pleafed to try thee, and find thee knowing not only of Beafts, (to which thou hast given right Names according to their Natures) but of thyfelf; expreffing well the free Spirit within thee, which is my Image, and not imparted to the Brutes; whofe Fellowship therefore being improper for thee, there was good Reason that thou fhouldeft freely dif like it; keep ftill in the fame Mind: I, before thou fpakeft, knew well that it was not meet for MAN to be alone; and no fuch Company as thou then fawest, was intended for thy Converfation, but only brought for Trial, to fee how thou couldeft judge of what was meet and fit. What I bring thee next be affured fhall pleafe thee; for it shall be thy Likeness, thy fit Help, thy other Self, and exactly according to the Wifh and Defire of thy Heart.

CHAP.