rom so great
a part of the world of his creatures, the noblest uses to which their
faculties, and the powers of their souls are adapted; yet that he has
bestowed upon them the same reason, affections, sentiments of kindness
and obligation, passions of resentment, sincerity, fidelity, and all the
capacities of doing and receiving good that he has given us; and that
when he is graciously pleased to offer them occasions of exerting these,
they are as ready, nay, more ready, to apply them to the proper uses for
which they were bestowed, than we often are. These thoughts would make
me melancholy, especially when I considered how mean a use we make of
all these, even though we have these powers enlightened by the Holy
Spirit of God, and by the knowledge of this world, as an addition to our
understanding; and why it has pleased the heavenly Wisdom to conceal the
life saving knowledge from so many millions of souls who would certainly
make a much better use of it than generally mankind do at this time.
These reflections would sometimes lead me so far, as to invade the
sovereignty of Providence, and, as it were, arraign the justice of such
an arbitrary disposition of things, that should obscure that light from
some, and reveal it to others, and yet expect a like duty from all. But
I closed it up, checking my thoughts with this conclusion; first, That
we were ignorant of that right and law by which those should be
condemned; but as the Almighty was necessarily, and by the nature of his
essence, infinitely just and holy; so it could not be otherwise, but
that if these creatures were all destined to absence from himself, it
was on account of sinning against that light, _which_, as the Scripture
says, _was a law to themselves_ and by such rules as their consciences
would acknowledge to be just, though the first foundation was not
discovered to us. And, secondly, That still as we were the clay in the
hand of the potter, no vessel could thus say to him, _Why hast thou
fashioned me after this manner_?

I had not been above two or three days returned to my castle, but my
chief design was, how I should bring Friday off from this horrid way of
feeding; and to take from him that inhuman relish he by nature had been
accustomed to, I thought it my duty to let him taste other flesh, which
might the rather tempt him to the same abhorrence I so often expressed
against their accursed way of living. Upon which, one morning I took him
out with me,