CONVERSATION WITH A NUMBER OF JEWS.

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(boundless,) moral, (every thing is moral to which the ten commands apply,) excellence, knowledge, treasures, affection, homage, lofty attendance, (distinguished, noble in rank,) worldly, fowls, cattle, treasures of darkness, (hid in the dark; i. e. in the earth,) fulness of the earth, (all that the earth contains,) gems, mines, strength, (of his beams to give light and warmth,) walking, (wheeling, revolving,) countless, silently, principalities, powers, (high spiritual dignities or rather dignitaries,) heavenly places, (places in heaven,) portion, wanders, despised, rejected, acquainted, (by experience,) cross, (the cross,) disciples, aloof, apparel, condition, low, (obscure, and perhaps wretched,) glitter, contented, humble, lot, values, bestows, favor, bearest, (feelest,) food, raiment, inheritance, want.

SECT. CXXXIV.-CONVERSATION WITH A NUMBER OF JEWS.

1 In the evening of the same day Messrs. Fisk, King, and Wolff had several interesting conversations: particularly one 2 with a number of Jews at their lodgings. They sometimes conversed in Italian, and sometimes Mr. Wolff spoke with 3 the Jews in Hebrew. The following is given as a part of their conversation.

4

5

Jews. What do you believe?

Mr. Wolff. I believe in Moses and the Prophets; who tell me that Jesus Christ is the Messiah of the world: the Redeemer of our souls: the Holy One: blessed be He, and 6 blessed be his name. And now I will ask you, what is your

belief?

Jews. We believe that the Holy One, (blessed be He,) He 7 who is blessed in himself, is truth; and Moses is truth; and the Prophets are truth.

8

Mr. W. You do not believe in the Holy One; (blessed be He, and blessed be his name, and who is blessed in himself ;) do not believe that he is truth; and you do not believe that Moses is truth; and you do not believe that the Prophets are truth!

you

9 Jews. God forbid that we should not believe! 10 Truth! truth! truth!

11 Mr. W. I will prove by this very book, (opening the Hebrew Bible,) that you do not believe.

Here Mr. Wolff spoke at some length respecting Deut. 12 xviii. 15; Jer. xxxi. 31-34, and Gen. xlix. 10; and then said,

Now tell me whether you believe?

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13

REMARKS ON JERUSALEM.

Jews. We must recur to the Gemara, (Talmud,) and to Rabbi Solomon Isaac, and other wise men.

14 Mr. W. The Gemara is a lie.

Mr. W. I will prove it afterwards; but let us go on with 18 the Prophets, by which you will see that you tell lies, if you say that you believe in Moses and the Prophets.

19

Here followed a discussion respecting Zech. xii. 10. DEFINITIONS, &c.-Define particularly, lodgings, Italian, Jews, Hebrew, Moses, prophets, belief, recur, Gemara, (a religious book of the Jews,) afterwards.

1

SECT. CXXXV.-REMARKS ON JERUSALEM.

JERUSALEM is a considerable place. 2 The most beautiful building within its wall is the Mosque of Omar; which stands on the site of Solomon's temple. The Turks have a singular 3 reverence for this Mosque'; and will not permit a Christian even to set his foot in the large grassy area which surrounds it.

4

The walks which I most frequent are those that lead down the valley of Jehoshaphat, by the fountains of Siloah; 5 or those that run along the side of Olivet. From the side of Olivet you have a very commanding view of Jerusalem. 6 The Mosque of Omar appears particularly fine from this 7 situation. The greater part of the surrounding country is most desolate and dreary. Hills of white parched rock, dot8 ted, here and there, with patches of cultivated land, everywhere meet and offend the eye.

9

In the north of Palestine are many beautiful and fertile 10 spots; but not so in Judea. The breath of Jehovah's wrath seems in a peculiar manner to have blasted and withered the 11 territory of the Daughter of Zion! What a change has been wrought in the land, once flowing with milk and honey!

Often as I have contemplated Jerusalem, have the words 12 of the Prophet escaped my lips: "How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a 13 widow! She, that was great among the nations, and prin

cess among the provinces,-how is she become tributary!

SAVAGE AND CIVILIZED LIFE.

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how hath the Lord covered the Daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel, and remembered not his footstool in the day of his anger!"

DEFINITIONS, &c.-Define Jerusalem, Mosque of Omar, (Mohammedan church, which is on the site of the ancient temple,) singular, reverence, grassy area, fine, desolate, dreary, parched, dotted, patches, offend, Palestine, beautiful, fertile, blasted, withered, territory, escaped, solitary, tributary, widow, princess, provinces, footstool.

SECT. CXXXVI.-COMPARATIVE HAPPINESS OF SAVAGE AND CIVILIZED LIFE.

AMONG the numerous speculations of the learned, many 1 erroneous theories have been advanced on the comparative happiness and contentment of the enlightened and savage life. 2 It is said by some, that there is more real enjoyment and contentment predominant in the savage than in civilized man; but I question whether the gentlemen who support this argument, would be willing to renounce the privileges of polished society, and voluntarily adopt the manners of savages, and take their abode in the wilderness, far from civilized people'. 3 Will any one believe that an Indian with his bow and quiver, who walks solitary in the mountains, exposed to cold and hunger, or the attacks of wild beasts, trembling at every unusual object, his fancy filled with agitating fears, lest the next step should introduce his foot to the fangs of the direful snake, or entangle it "amidst his circling spires that on the grass float redundant," actually possesses undisturbed contentment superior to a learned gentleman of this commercial city, who has every possible comfort at home? can any one convince me, that the degraded Hottentot in Africa, or the wild Arab in the desert of Sahara, whose head is exposed to the piercing rays of a meridian sun, entirely dependent on his camel for safety, enjoys more real contentment of mind than the poorest peasant of England? will any one compare the confined pleasures of the Hindoo, whose mind is burdened with the shackles of superstition and ignorance; who bows before the car of Juggernaut, or whose wretched ignorance compels him to invoke the river Ganges for his salvation;-will any one, I say, compare

his

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SAFETY OF SHIPS AT SEA.-ART OF WRITING.

pleasures to the noble and well-regulated pleasures of a Herschel or a Newton, who surveys the regions of the universe; views the wisdom of the Deity in forming the lights of heaven with all the planets and attending satellites revolving in their orbits, irradiating infinite space as they move around their common centres; and demonstrates, with mathematical exactness, the rapid flights of the comet, and its future visits to our solar system?

DEFINITIONS, &c.-Define speculations, learned, (men?) erroneous, theories, comparative, predominant, savage, civilized, argument, renounce, polished society, voluntarily, wilderness, quiver, bow, solitary, exposed, hunger, attacks, unusual, fancy, agitating, fears, fangs, direful, entangle, spires, (coils,) redundant, actually, undisturbed, superior, commercial, convince, degraded, Hottentot, Sahara, peasant, burdened, satellites.

SECT. CXXXVII.-SAFETY OF SHIPS AT SEA.

THE situation of a ship in a heavy gale of wind, appears 1 indescribably terrific, yet, practically speaking, its security is so great, that it is truly said, ships seldom, or never founder in deep water, except from accident, or inattention. How 2 ships manage to get across that still region, that ideal line which separates the opposite trade-winds of each hemisphere; how a small box of men manages, unlabelled, to be buffeted for months up one side of a wave, and down the other'; how they ever get out of the abysses into which they sink'; and how, after such pitching and tossing, they reach in safety the very harbor in their native country, from which they originally departed, can and ought only to be accounted for, by acknowledging how truly it hath been written, "that the Spirit of God moves upon the face of the waters."

DEFINITIONS, &c.-Define heavy gale, (strong, high,) indescribably, terrific, security, founder, accident, inattention, manage, across, ideal, separates, trade-winds, hemisphere, unlabelled, buffeted, abysses, originally, departed from, acknowledging.

SECT. CXXXVIII.-THE ART OF WRITING.

1 MR. MARINER, in the account of his visit to the Tonga Islands, gives an interesting anecdote of a native's astonish

THE ART OF WRITING.

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2 ment at the art of writing. Mr. Mariner, shortly after the commencement of his captivity among these savages, had, in the hope of thereby obtaining his liberty, written a letter, with a solution of gunpowder, on a piece of paper which he obtained from one of the natives; and he confided it to the care of a chief, with directions that it should be given to the captain of any ship which might appear on the coast. Finow, 3 the king, however, having heard of this transaction, his suspicions were excited; and he immediately sent to the chief for the letter, and obtained it. When it was put into his 4 hands, he looked at it on all sides; but not being able to make any thing of it, he gave it to Jeremiah Higgins, (who was at hand,) and ordered him to say what it meant :—Mr. 5 Mariner was not present. Higgins took the letter, and translating part of it into the Tonga language, judiciously represented it to be merely a request to any English captain that might arrive, to interfere with Finow for the liberty of Mr. Mariner and his countrymen: stating that they had been kindly treated by the natives, but nevertheless wished to return, if possible, to their native country.

6 This mode of communicating sentiments was an inexplicable, puzzle to Finow: he took the letter again and examined 7 it, but it afforded him no information. He considered the matter a little within himself, but his thoughts reflected no 8 light upon the subject. At length he sent for Mr. Mariner, and desired him to write down something: the latter asked what he would choose to have written: he replied, put down me he accordingly wrote " Fee-now:" (spelling it according to the strict English orthography :) the chief then sent for another Englishman who had not been present; and, commanding Mr. Mariner to turn his back and look another way, he gave the man the paper, and desired him to read what that was: he accordingly pronounced aloud the name of the king; upon which Finow snatched the paper from his hand, and, with astonishment, looked at it, turned it round, and examined it in all directions; at length he exclaimed, “This 9 is neither like myself, nor anybody else! Where are my 10 legs? how do you know it to be me?" And then, without stopping for any attempt at an explanation, he impatiently ordered Mr. Mariner to write something else; and thus he employed him for three or four hours in putting down the