TWELFTH CONFERENCE.

Scene changes. Mofes and Club at the door of the Church Vault.

Mofes. G with Mr. Sexton, follow you.

ENTLEMEN, here is the key, we,

Sexton. This is the corpfe interred last night, and there lies his brother. Sir, will you be pleased to rife? I fear fome mif-hap, he feems not to breathe; he is cold; I doubt he is dead.

Club. God forbid; as cold as clay his lifelefs corpfe; miferable and fleeting are the pursuits of man, last night full of vigour, ftrength and heroic courage, in which he braved the tyrant death, and fell a victim to the cause of virtue. O Brutus, how juft was your complaint? O virtue, virtue, I have ever worshipped you as a deity, but now find you a fhadow. Similar, dear brother, is your fate to that noble Roman, great Cato, hardy in ftern virtue, fell in her caufe, by his own hand; and, where fhould we end, the task is endless, even amongst the dark ages of earth who faw thus, that it should be fo, and which, though great, is not to be brought into contact with the great and mighty men, heroes of this our new philofophy of this our enlightened age and northern hemifphere.

Moses. You err, building your hypothefis upon erroneous principles, as the heathens of old, fophiftry, to make one thing appear for another, in order to obtain the end you wish, which, in general, is nothing more than prefent

enjoyment, to me feems the characteristic or quality of your new philofophy of this your enlightened age and northern hemifphere.

Club. Alas, a-well-a-day, he is dead; the end of man is truly defpicable, forrow has filled our hearts, our philofophy might truly lament and howl, crying aloud, alas! our brother is

no more.

Mojes. Order him to be taken away into his lodging, put into bed between warm blankets; call in the affiftance of the faculty; how can we tell but God may be merciful to his foul and restore him?

Sexton. What you fay, Rabbi, is truly juft; I am a witness, in the courfe of thirty years, of feveral to appearance dead, that the tender mercy of Almighty God has reftored.

Club. It is to no effect to pretend to revive the dead; there is no God; fo that you place your hope in what is not; bury the corpfe, and be at no further trouble, as it will be attended with expence, and might incur the new philofophy of this our enlightened age and northern hemifphere. Do the matter with all privacy, and be content.

Mofes. My friend, do as I fay, here is my purfe, fee nothing be wanting, I am anfwerable, and will, from time to time, affift at his lodging.

Sexton. All fhall be faithfully complied with, according to your benevolent heart; you are truly the common father of us all, God will bless you.

Club

Club. This is all ftuff, to be throwing money upon the dead, that can neither thank you, or make use of it. Abfurdity.

Mofes. My duty is more precious than all the gold of the Indies. One foul is more dear to the Almighty than millions of worlds.

Sexton. My good lads we are arrived at the lodgings, take the corpfe up to the one pair of stairs, and there lay it in his bed as Rabbi Mofes has ordered, with care, betwixt the blankets, then call in the faculty, that every trial may be made to restore life.

Mofes. I find you have done all things faithfully, let the apartments and all things be kept warm; have you called in the faculty?

Sexton. They are fent for, and here is an experienced nurfe that will attend; I must return to my duty.

Nurfe. Sir, all things fhall be duly adminiftered, and every care taken.

Faculty. 'Tis paft recovery, it is in vain to attempt, there is not the least appearance of a restoration; however, we will ufe every trial in our power.

Mofes. I beg every means may be tried to reftore life.

Faculty. All things are done you fee, fir, to no purpofe; there is not the leaft appearance of life.

Mofes. Nurfe, keep you the corpfe between the blankets, and let there be one more blanket laid over the corpfe, until fome fign of putrefaction convinces us there is no hopes; I will not leave the room until I feé the end.

Nurfe. Sir you will be ill, it is now two nights, you have neither eat or taken any reft I pray take fomething and go to reft; I will do every thing neceffary.

Mofes. The ghaftliness is gone off, and I begin to have hopes; endeavour to get a little warm fpirits down his throat, it may warm the ftomach.

Nurfe. The teeth are locked so fast that nothing will pafs; I feel a good fign, a warmth about the breast.

Mofes. Let us rub the different parts, and endeavour to bring on a warmth.

Nurfe. I now, fir, begin to have hopes; I really find life in the heart, thanks to our merciful Lord his life is in him. God be praised.

Mofes. Let us continue without ceasing rubbing, to endeavour to bring on a pulfe. I perceive life; hold the glafs to the noftrils.

Nurfe. It is ftained, he breathes; O my God! your mercy endureth for ever. I fee a glimmering in the eyes.

Mofes. God be ever honoured and glorified, who creates and revives, according to his divine will; repeat your endeavours to get the cordial into his ftomach.

Nurfe. It has paffed, his eyes quicken, his heart plays, his pulfe trembles, and now breathes; his whole body is in a damp or rather returning perfpiration.

Ignatius. Through infinite mercy I am reftored. O my Saviour, my Lord, and my God. Thou art truly God of power, juftice, and mercy. You create, deftroy, and reftore

when

whenever your pleasure is, my good God, and in me, not worthy to be called your creature; thefe great properties of your Godhead, in this inftance, is most abundantly fhewn forth. From this I date my life, what has paft till now was a ftate of reprobation, though born of chriftian parents, and received every advantage and inftruction from my infancy, in the rules of christianity; yet, my heart was prone to vice, happy, if happiness can be obtained in wickednefs, in complying with every wifhed-for fleshly pleasure, and whatever was fuggefted to my mind, the thirft of glory egged me in makiug large ftrides to arrive at the fummit of my ambition; and to forward my purfuit I inlifted myself under the banner of Saint Ignatius; but with a very different fpirit to that he purpofed in his conftitutions and rules for the fociety, which was, to the greater glory of Almighty God, and falvation of their neighbour; but mine, to my own greater honour and glory, and by example make others as proud, conceited, and joyous as myfelf. My hours, which fhould have been occupied and devoted to my God, were filled up in contriving to promote respect to the fociety, and that they might appear as confequential as applaufe is capable of raising matter. This thought feemed inherent from the day I entered into the fociety, and perfuaded myself that it was a duty incumbent on every member of the fociety to raife her honour and dignity in the most confpicuous manner, to trumpet her great feats and noble conqueft with heroic exploits. But in the midft of

my