and in pure algebra, had gone much farther than Antonia. With wonder I beheld her, while the answered the moft difficult queftions as faft as fingers could move; and in the folution of cubics, and the refolution of équations, both according to Des Cartes' laborious method, and the better univerfal way, by converging feries, work with a celerity and truth beyond what I have ever feen any man do. Nor was it only algebra Independent of geometry that fhe underftood. She could apply its reafoning to geometrical figures, and defcribe the loci of any equations by the mechanical motion of angles and lines. She was in this respect the greatest prodigy I ever faw. But it was not on account of this excelfence that I fo much admired Azora, and honour her memory fo greatly as I do; nor because the talked fo excellently on various fubjects, as I have related; but, for her knowledge of the truths of chriftianity, and the habits of goodness she had wrought into Her foul; for the care fhe took of the people under her government, by communicating every felicity in her power, to their bodies and minds; and the pure religion of Chrift Jefus, which the publickly maintained, in all the beauty of holinefs, and in a just fervor of practice. She was herfelf, in her manners manners and piety, a fine copy of those !bleffed women who converfed with our Lord and his apostles: and her fociety, in inno"cence and goodness, in usefulness and devotion, feemed an epitome of the first christian church at Jerufalem. Under a juft impreffion of the most heavenly principles they all lived, and strictly regarded their feveral offices. As the gofpel directs, they worshipped a first caufe, the Deity, as the 'difciples of the Chrift of God, our holy mediator; and the authority of a Being of infinite wisdom, and unchangeable rectitude of nature, had made fuch an impreffion upon their minds, that they laboured continually to acquire that confecration and fanctity of heart and manners, which our divine religion requires. -Excellent community! happy would Europe be, if all her ftates were like this people. A falfe religion would not then prevail; nor would fuperftition be the idol to which the world bows down. The evils, which now dishonour human nature, and infest fociety, would not be feen among us; nor thofe exceffes of paffion be known, which are the parent of difcord and calamity, and render this lower world one scene of fin and forrow: but, as revelation inculcates, as reafon fuggefts, mankind would worship the Almighty Principle, the One God, the Only True God, with a worship suitable to the nature nature of a Being, who is not confined to, or dependent upon, particular places and circumstances, who is always, and every where prefent with us; and like the ministers attending on the glorious throne of the monarch of the world, they would, according to their measure, be pure, benevolent mortals, and as perfect in goodness, as men can be within the degree and limit of their nature. ——In a word, the Supreme Father of all things would then be the God of all chriftians; and in doing his will, in imitating his perfections, and in practising every thing recommended by the great and univerfal law of reafon, (that law which God fent our Lord to revive and enforce), they would find the greatest pleasure. Such were the people of Burcot-Hamlet. Azora and Antonia were indeed moft glorious women (21.) 45. The (21) Azora Burcot died in the year thirty-two, fix years after I left them, but Antonia Fletcher is ftill living in the fame happy fituation; and by advifing the young women to marry fome young men of those mountains, has made an alteration in the community for the better, and increased the number of her people.. The fettlement is now like to continue, and they find many advantages from having men among them. The rifing generation thereby acquired, now proves a bleffing to the firft colony, whom years have rendered much weaker and dependent than when I first saw them. Azora, a little before fhe died, did intend to get: July 19, 'Hamlet, and 45. The 18th of June, 1725, I took my leave of Mrs. Burcot and Mrs. Fletcher, (for fo they would be called, as they informed me, after I had once ufed the word Mifs), and from this fine place, proceeded on my journey, by a paper of written directions I had arrive at a burning val ley. get in a recruit of female children for the fupport of the fociety: but Antonia judged it was much better, to let the young girls of the community get honeft youths for their fpoufes; for, by this means, they can never want young people to affift and comfort them, and to increase and perpetuate their happy republic. For these reafons, the fent for fome young men to feveral neighbouring villages in Richmondshire, to make several things wanting, and to dig, and work in the gardens, for fo much by the year certain; and as they were smitten with the clean, civil girls of Burcot-Hamlet, feveral marriages foon enfued, and infants were produced before the twelve months had expired. More than half of the twenty women that married, had twins the first year, and all of them had ftrong, healthy children. The ten extraordinary girls I mentioned, got very good husbands, and as Antonia was particularly kind to them on their marrying, and gave to all the wedded folks great encouragement in profitable gardens and houses, grain and cattle, they and their spouses became rather more dutiful and useful to their mistress and ruler than otherwise, and in gratitude, and for the fake of their children, did their best to please Mrs. Fletcher, and increase the common felicity. In this condition I found them on my 1 I had received from them; as there was a pretty good, though a long and tedious way out of the mountains, if a traveller knew the paffes' and turnings; but otherwife, my fecond arrival at Burcot-Hamlet. They were a flourishing village, and a moft happy people. My fecond vifit was fourteen years after the firft; and I faw them a third time in the year fifty-two. They were then all well, and enjoyed every comfort of life that can proceed from good and useful manners. Mrs, Fletcher, tho' now in years, has no fign of age in her constitution, and still leads a moft active and pious life. She is a fubaltern providence to them, and with the tenderest care, makes it the labour of her every day, to fecure and advance the temporal and eternal intereft of the people: but their fouls is her main care. She performs to them divine fervice twice every day, as good Azora was wont to do. She reads the beft fermons to the aged, and conftantly catechifes the young ones. She is a bleffed woman. By the way, reader, I muft obferve to you, that in travelling over that part of Richmondshire, which is called Stanemore, I found feveral fmall villages, that are not mentioned in Camden, or the Britannia Antiqua et Nova, or in England's Gazetteer; and tho' not fo pretty and happy as Burcot in the northern end of the fells of Westmoreland; yet in tolerable condition, and remarkable on account of feveral things and people; tho' they live intirely on what their spot affords, and have little communication with their countrymen beyond the mountains that feparate the inhabitants of Stanemore from the rest of England. I took notice, in particular, that although those poor remote people |