SECT. XI. This Loathfomeness prevented, and Convictions from thence.

ASK now an Atheift, whether he could fufficiently praise the Wisdom of fuch a one as had found out a Method to prevent all these naufeous and loathfome Inconveniences? And if he himself could have done it, or could have taught Mankind the way whereby all corrupted Plants, all the Carkaffes of Men and Beafts, in a Word, all other putrified Bodies could be converted to a moft profitable Matter, and to a moft fruitful Earth, and even to fuch a one as fhould be capable of restoring Lands that were quite worn out and fpent, to their former Fertility: I fay, if he himfelf could have found out fuch a Way, would he not think that he had laid a perpetual Obligation upon all Mankind?

Now this is what we daily fee come to pass, and that without any Pains and Trouble on our Part.

SECT. XII. The Circulation of almost all things from Earth to Earth; and Convictions from thence.

CAN it be then thought that fuch ingeniously contrived Bodies of Men, of Beafts, and of Plants, proceed all from the Earth, without the Concurrence of a great Director? and having appeared in fuch Forms, after a little while are turned to Earth again; which brings forth more, that are likewise to undergo the fame Fate. And can an Atheist be fo void of all Reason, as to conceive, that fuch a wonderful Circulation and Revolution of Things, during fo many Ages, can come to pass without a wife Direction? Whereas, if he were required to perform the leaft thing analogous thereto by his Wisdom;

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Wifdom, he would be forced to confefs, that his Understanding did not extend near fo far.

SECT. XIII. Several Texts of Scripture proving the fame, and Convictions from the whole.

THE Wisdom of the Almighty in his Holy Word has often plainly occurr'd to me, in which this unconceivable Circulation of Things, from Earth to Earth again, is mention'd with great Energy. We fhall not now fpeak of the firft Production of all Things, according to which, Grafs, Herbs and Trees, Gen. i. 11, 12. Living Creatures, ver. 24, 25. and Gen. ii. 7. Man was formed from the Earth: Since this was done in a particular and unintelligible manner; but only obferve from thence, that an Infidel has not fo much reafon to look upon any thing mention'd in this Chapter as impoffible, forafmuch as we are taught by Experience, even now, that all these things come out of the Earth; and that what we daily fee with our Eyes, does at moft, only differ in the Manner, from what is there related by Mofes.

Now it is very credible, that an-Atheist, by whom the Manner how this was brought to pafs has never been comprehended, would not make Jefs Difficulty in admitting, that all these things proceeded from Earth, now at this time, if any one affured him of the Truth of it, than he does, that it was fo in the beginning, upon the Words of Mofes. From whence certainly appears with how Jittle Ground thefe unhappy Men contradict Divine Revelation, only becaufe that they don't underftand it. And this their Blindness is fo much the more to be pitied, forafmuch, as if they only attended to modern Experience, they would neceffarily be of another Opinion, and acknowledge, that there daily happens before their Eyes fome

thing analogous to that which their Creator affured them of in the foregoing Text of Genefis, but which they would not believe upon his Word.

So

To illuftrate the foregoing by other very plain Texts; Could Solomon fpeak otherwife than he does, about the Production of all things from Earth, and their Return to the fame, in Ecclef. iij. 20? All go into one place; all are of Duft, and all return to Duft again. And in Chap. xij. 7. in the following Words; Then fhall the Duft return to Earth, as it was: where he calls Human Bodies (because they proceed from Earth, and after Death are turned into it again) even by the name of Duft. At the fame time acknowledging, that that which the great Jehovah had faid to the first Man, Gen.iij. 19. Till thou return unto the Ground; for out of it waft thou taken for Duft thou art, and unto Duft fhalt thou return, appeared even in his time, to a diligent Obferver, to remain in the full force of Truth. likewife the the Composer of the 104th Pfalm, counting this among the Wonders of the most High, in ver. 29. where fpeaking of Men, Beasts and Fifhes, he fays, Thou hideft thy Face, they are troubled; thou takeft away their Breath, they dye, and return to their Duft. Thou fendeft forth thy Spirit, they are created; and thou reneweft the Face of the Earth. Several other Places might be here quoted from the holy Scriptures, in which mention is made of Things being turned to Earth, which we shall now pafs by; only adding this brief Remark, that the great Infpirer of this Word does not only point at the returning to Earth, but even to Dung also. Thus it is faid in Jeremiah xvj. 4. and xxv. and xxxiij. of flain Men; and on Chap. viij. ver. 2. even of their Bones too; that they should be for Dung upon the Face of the Earth. And again, in Isaiah, Chap. li, ver. 12. Who art thou, that thou shouldeft be afraid

afraid of a Man that shall die, and of the Son of Man, which shall be made as Grafs.

SECT. XIV. An Experiment about Diftilled Earth.

Now as wonderful as the Matter of Earth has been fhewn to be, yet it has been but very flightly examined in the preceding Ages; and tho' in this laft Age the Science of Nature has been more promoted than in feveral of the former, yet the knowledge of the true Properties of the fruitful Earth does ftill remain very obfcure. Now, that in fo learned an Age the Enquiry into Nature fhould be wholly neglected, is not to be fuppofed; for which reason, perhaps, the Difficulty of faying any thing concerning it upon fure Grounds, may be the Caufe that fo little is written about it.

To lay fomething of its common Origin: That the Earth can be produced from Water, has been fhewn before, when we treated of the Latter; and it appears from Boyle's Experiment, how Water by a continual Diftillation, is turned into a certain Earth. But to fay fomething particularly about Fruitful Earth; many Plants (as has been more. largely fhewn in the foregoing Contemplation, §. IV.) grow out of Water,which Plants, being corrupted or rotten, yield a fruitful Earth; in a word, thisis confirmed by daily Experience, namely, that all Beafts and Plants may be converted into a Fruitful Earth.

We fhall forbear to deduce any general Hypothefis from hence; fince we have not yet made fufficient Discoveries upon which to found any certain Opinion; and we are not afhamed to own, with many others, that we do not fully know from whence and how Earth is produced: And that the Modern Experiments, tho' they fhow us many things, are not yet capable of imparting to us the right Knowledge of all that ought to be comprehended upon this Subject. Now,

Now, fince the Nature itself of the Fruitful Earth feems to have been but little enquired into as yet, I procured from an accurate Florift, one fort of fuch an Earth (for that there are feveral is plain from Experience:) this Earth was compofed of Cow and Horfe Dung, mingled with Sand, and had been cleared from Stones by fifting: I diftilled it in a Glass Retort, and found that it yielded a Liquor, which being mingled with the Acid Spirit of Nitre, boiled up, or effervefced, to ufe a Chymical Word, the Quantity of this Spirit was in Proportion to that of the Earth; there likewife proceeded from it a dark stinking Oil.

Thus we alfo find, that rotten Plants and Herbs (among which this Dung must be reckon'd, fince it proceeded from Grafs, which is the Food of Cows and Horses) yields a Sal Volatile, and the like kind of Oil, as is well known to thofe that deal in Chymistry.

Now how this Property of the Earth can contribute to the Production of all Plants, and to the farther Fertility of the Earth, I fhall not enquire here; fince these Discoveries are more proper to carry us on to others, than to the concluding any thing that affords the requifite Certainty.

SECT. XV. The Earth produces Inftruments fit to be apply'd for the rendering itfelf more useful.

AND that a Sceptical Mind may be more powerfully convinced of the Wisdom and Goodnefs of Him that formed the Earth; Let him confider with himfelf, how a Man that muft live by the Earth, is born unfit and unable to Cultivate the fame without any Inftruments. Can he then fee no Defign of his Creator therein? That this fame Earth is not only difpofed to produce

Wood,