tellers--Procuring Rain in India--Mysterious Lights on
the River St. Lawrence--The Queen of Hearts--Superstition in
America--Superstitious Artists--Hogarth's last Picture, "The
End of all Things" 629

THE RISE AND PROGRESS OF SUPERSTITION.

CHAPTER I.

Rise and Progress of Superstition--The Serpent--Cain's
Departure from the true Worship--Worship of the Sun,
Moon, and Stars--Strange Story of Abraham--The Gods of
Antiquity--Ether, Air, Land, and Water filled with
living Souls--Guardian Angel--Cause of the
Flood--Magic--How the Jews deceived the Devil--A Witch
not permitted to live--Diviners, Enchanters,
Consulters with familiar Spirits and Necromancers
proved a Snare to Nations--Charms worn by the
Jews--Singular Customs and
Belief--Prognostication--Allegorical Emblems--Marriage
Customs--Divers Ceremonies at Death and
Burials--Divination among all Nations--Observers of
Times--Opinion concerning the Celestial Bodies--Power
of Witches--Wizards--Necromancers' Power to call up
the Dead.

Superstition has prevailed in every generation and country in the
world. There are people who think that even Adam and Eve were tainted
with this hateful delusion, and that their offspring of the second
generation entertained opinions opposed to true religion. That man,
soon after the Creation, became acquainted with and yielded to the
doctrine of devils, scarcely admits of doubt. Those who conversed with
our first parents must have learned from them the circumstances
connected with the temptation, fall, and expulsion from the Garden of
Eden. It is not unreasonable, then, to suppose that the serpent was
looked upon at an early period as something more than an ordinary
earthly reptile. One can imagine Adam and Eve, when wandering in
perplexity and fear, after their first great sin, starting at the
sight of a serpent,--not being certain whether they beheld a reptile
of flesh merely, or looked upon their old enemy that had betrayed them
in their days of innocency. If they looked with suspicion on the
serpent, it is natural to suppose that their children would learn to
view this creeping animal as a creature endowed with supernatural
powers, by which it could bring about evil, and perhaps good.

Cain, there is reason to conclude, departed from the true worship of
the Most High before hi