n society as cowards in an army; they themselves are seized
with a panic fear, and communicate it to others. It was loudly exclaimed
that Mr. Locke intended to destroy religion; nevertheless, religion had
nothing to do in the affair, it being a question purely philosophical,
altogether independent of faith and revelation. Mr. Locke's opponents
needed but to examine, calmly and impartially, whether the declaring that
matter can think, implies a contradiction; and whether God is able to
communicate thought to matter. But divines are too apt to begin their
declarations with saying that God is offended when people differ from
them in opinion; in which they too much resemble the bad poets, who used
to declare publicly that Boileau spake irreverently of Louis XIV.,
because he ridiculed their stupid productions. Bishop Stillingfleet got
the reputation of a calm and unprejudiced divine because he did not
expressly make use of injurious terms in his dispute with Mr. Locke. That
divine entered the lists against him, but was defeated; for he argued as
a schoolman, and Locke as a philosopher, who was perfectly acquainted
with the strong as well as the weak side of the human mind, and who
fought with weapons whose temper he knew. If I might presume to give my
opinion on so delicate a subject after Mr. Locke, I would say, that men
have long disputed on the nature and the immortality of the soul. With
regard to its immortality, it is impossible to give a demonstration of
it, since its nature is still the subject of controversy; which, however,
must be thoroughly understood before a person can be able to determine
whether it be immortal or not. Human reason is so little able, merely by
its own strength, to demonstrate the immortality of the soul, that it was
absolutely necessary religion should reveal it to us. It is of advantage
to society in general, that mankind should believe the soul to be
immortal; faith commands us to do this; nothing more is required, and the
matter is cleared up at once. But it is otherwise with respect to its
nature; it is of little importance to religion, which only requires the
soul to be virtuous, whatever substance it may be made of. It is a clock
which is given us to regulate, but the artist has not told us of what
materials the spring of this chock is composed.

I am a body, and, I think, that's all I know of the matter. Shall I
ascribe to an unknown cause, what I can so easily impute to the o