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S KETCH

I.

OF PRIMÆVAL TRADITION,

THE firft inquiry of the human mind,

when it begins to expand, and is capable of Reflection, is concerning the origin of sensible Objects. The ears of the wifeft parent are repeatedly faluted with fuch Interrogatories from his child, as he finds himself unable

to

Such is the natural thirst of man after knowledge, that with avidity he recurs to antiquity, being unable to pry into futurity, he delights particularly to enquire into the beginning of those kingdoms and families wherein he finds himself interested: nay, into the origin of the world, and the era of human existence. The fabulous accounts of profane writers yield him no fatisfaction, being enveloped in thick darkness, fave only in those veftiges which ftill retain the evident marks of an origin derived from revelation.

That Adam was capable of giving fuch inftruction is eafily deduced from this reafon; We cannot form an idea

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to answer; but fuch is that natural g that innate affection of parental love, that he will not intentionally mislead his children, neither will he fill their inquifitive minds with vain, uninteresting fables instead of truth; but he will endeavour, according to his ability, and the extent of his information, to cultivate their understandings with such found inftruction as they are capable of receiving, and fuch as may prove conducive to their happiness, and confequently to the good of fociety. He will not therefore, as our Blessed Saviour expreffes it, when his fon asketh bread,

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of man's original formation according to the mosaic account, and not at the fame time be strongly convinced, that as man was formed in a state of maturity, he was alfo endowed with a maturity of wisdom, with an understanding already furnished with perfect ideas fuited to his fituation. He was not to be taught either knowledge or language by tedious and laborious fteps, for having a familiar intercourfe with the Deity, the Deity was his immediate preceptor, who endowed him with fuch powers of reason, as never could be equalled by the greatest philofophers. But how is this to be proved, and how to be exemplified? We have no writings of Adam handed down to pofterity, as monuments of his great abilities; but we have to this day thousands of monuments to atteft the truth of the affertion. This feeming paradox becomes evident, when we confider that in giving names to all the variety of creatures which were brought before him, even fuch names as were in a great manner explanatory of their nature, was difplayed a wisdom unaccountable on any other grounds than the inftruction of God himself. Even Plato, the nobleft of all heathen philofophers, says, c'μaι μev ey, &c. &c. I think the beft reafon that can be affigned for this matter is, that whatever power first adapted mames to things must have been more than human.

However

bread, give him a stone, nor when he asketh fish, give him, intentionally, what might prove as baneful as a ferpent.

We may well conceive, tho' not with adequate ideas, with what unremitting attention, and painful folicitude, Adam endeavoured to inftruct his children, in order to counteract those evil tendencies and depraved difpofitions, with which human nature became invefted, and which had been induced by the means of his first tranfgreffion: and as he lived nine hundred and thirty years, the doctrines of the unity and attributes of God, of genuine piety and religion, of pure moB 2 rality,

However impertinently the fall of man may have been treated by fceptical men, however they might turn into ridicule the primary teft of man's obedience, the forbidden fruit; yet, upon calm reflection, let it be pointed out what other fort of test could have been better fuited to the occafion. Man was newly created, and had converfed with his maker, therefore required not the first commandment of the decalogue; no idolatry hadany existence, and therefore the second commandment was unneceffary; intimacy with God would have made it impoffible for him to take his name in vain; his gratitude would have naturally led him to commemorate the era of creation by an obfervance of the fabbath-day; he had no parents to obey; the world was his own, and he had no neighbours to injure, by fraud, violence, or covetousness. If, therefore, any precept were neceffary, it must have been fimilar to what Mofes has recorded. Man being placed in a garden of Paradife, furnished with all the delights that new-formed nature in her primitive luxuriance and perfection could difplay, was only prohibited from the participating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

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