been ruined by fires, and are restored by charities! They need only present themselves at the doors of the mosques: they also go to their houses to comfort the afflicted. The diseased, and they who have the pestilence, are succoured by their neighbour's purse, and the parish funds. For the Turks, as Leunclavius observes, set no bounds to their charities. They lay out money for repairing the high ways, and making fountains for the benefit of passengers; and build hospitals, inns, baths, bridges, and

mosques.

"As charity and love of our neighbours are the most essential points of the Mahometan religion, the high-ways are geneFally kept mighty well; and there are springs of water common enough, because they are wanted for making the ablutions. The poor look after the conduit pipes, and those of tolerable fortune repair the causeways. The neighbourhood joins together to build bridges over the deep roads, and contribute to the benefit of the public according to their power. The workmen take no hire, but find labourers and masons gratis for the several sorts of work. You may see pitchers of water standing at the doors of the houses in the towns, for the use of passengers; and some honest mussulmen lodge themselves under a sort of sheds, which they erect in the road, and do nothing else during the great heats, but get those who are weary to come in, and rest themselves, and take a refreshment.-The beggars themselves, though there are very few to be seen, think they are obliged to give their superfluities to other poor folks; and carry their charity, or rather vanity, to such an extreme, that they give their leavings even to sufficient persons, who make no scruple to receive their bread, and to eat it, to shew how highly they esteem their virtue.

"The charity of the Mahometans is extended also to animals and plants, and to the dead. They believe it is pleasing to God, since men who will use their reason want for nothing; whereas the animals, not having reason, their instinct often exposes them

to seek their food with the loss of their lives. In considerable towns they sell victuals at the corners of the streets to give to the dogs; and some Turks, out of charity, have them cured of wounds, and especially of the mange, with which these creatures are miserably afflicted toward the end of their life; and we may see persons of good sense, out of mere devotion, carry straw to lay under the bitches which are going to whelp; and they build them small huts to shelter them and their puppies. We would hardly believe there are endowments settled in form by will for maintaining a certain number of dogs and cats so many days in the week; yet this is commonly done; and there are people paid at Constantinople to see the donor's intention executed, in feeding them in the streets. The butchers and bakers often set aside a small portion to bestow upon these animals yet with all their charity, the Turks hate dogs, and never suffer them in their houses; and in a time of pestilence, they kill as many as they find, thinking these unclean creatures infect the air. On the contrary, they love cats very well, whether it be for their natural cleanliness, or because they sympathise with themselves in gravity; whereas dogs are wanton, sporting and noisy.

"As to plants, the most devout among the Turks water them out of charity, and cultivate the earth where they grow, that they may thrive the better.The good mussulmen believe they do in it a thing agreeable to God, who is the creator and preserver of all things."

Even though we should make a small matter of allowance for that exaggeration, which a gentleman might be betrayed into, who was surprised with so much benevolence and humanity, where perhaps he little expected to find them; enough will still remain; and the concurrent testimony of others, will all together sufficiently establish the fact, of the Turks being a most humane benevolent people. But to return.

The Koran, beside being composed at different times, dictated by, and suited to, different temporary occasions, exhibits much of that unconnected desultory manner, so observable in eastern compositions: so that far from having any discoverable relation

among the divisions of it, or any seeming digest of the whole, it was often very difficult to select passages which admitted of being classed under any distinct head. Such as consisted of general precepts, too miscellaneous to belong with propriety to any one subject, are placed together at the end, in their order of occurrence, under the title General Precepts; under which head the reader will find a number of promiscuous precepts and observations relating to most of the subjects specified under the foregoing divisions. Some passages will appear dark and unaccountable to many of our readers, from the want of a sufficient acquaintance with the eastern usages; and the collection might have been greatly swelled by the admission of the notes of Arabian commentators, as given by Mr. Sale; but the sense of the text is as capable of being ascertained without their assistance; there not appearing more agreement among them, than we experience among those who comment on our bible.

NOTE. In the next number we shall commence with our extracts from the Koran.

FANATICISM.

FANATICISM is to superstition what a delirium is to a fever, and fury to anger: he who has extacies and visions, who takes dreams for realities, and his imaginations for prophesies, is an enthusiast; and he who sticks not at supporting his folly by murder, is a fanatic. Bartholomew Diaz, a fugitive at Nuremberg, who was firmly convinced that the Pope was the Anti-Christ in the revelations, and that he has the mark of the beast, was only an enthusiast; whereas his brother, who set out for Rome with the godly intention of murdering him, and who actually did murder him for God's sake, was one of the most execrable fanatics that superstition could form.

Polięuctes, who on a pagan festival, went into the temple, pulling down and breaking the images and other ornaments, showed himself a fanatic, less horrible, indeed, than Diaz, but

equally rash and imprudent. The murderer of Francis, Duke of Guise, of William, Prince of Orange, of the Kings Henry III. aud Henry IV. and so many others, were demoniacs, agitated by the same evil spirit as Diaz.

The most detestable instance of fanaticism is that of the citizens of Paris, who on the feast of St. Bartholomew could massacre their fellow citizens for not going to mass.

Some are fanatics in cool blood: these are the judges who can sentence people to death without any other guilt than for not being in their way of thinking: these judges are the more guilty, and the more deserving of universal execration, as not being under a fit of rage, like the Clements, the Chatels, the Ravaillacs, the Gerards, the Damiens. One would think they might listen

to reason.

When once fanaticism has touched the brain, the distemper is desperate. I have seen convulsionists who, in speaking of the miracles of St. Paris, grew hot involuntarily; their eyes glared, they trembled in all their limbs, their countenance was quite disfigured with rancour, and they unquestionably would have killed any one who had contradicted them.

The only remedy to this infectious disease is a philosophical temper, which spreading through society, at length softens manners, and obviates the accesses of the distemper; for whenever it gets ground, the best way is to fly from it, and stay till the air be purified. The laws and religion are no preservation against this mental pestilence. Religion, so far from being a salutary aliment in these cases, in infected brains becomes poison. These unhappy creatures dwell continually on the example of Ehud, who assassinated king Eglon; of Judith, who cut off Holophernes's head, when lying with him; and on Samuel hewing king Agag in pieces. They are not aware that these instances, however respectable in antiquity, are abominable in our times they foment their phrenzy with religion, which absolutely condemns it.

The laws likewise have proved very ineffectual against this spiritual rage; it is, indeed, like reading an order of council to a lunatic. The creatures are firmly persuaded that the spirit by

which they are actuated is above all laws, and that their enthusiasm is the only law they are to regard.

What can be answered to a person who tells you that he had rather obey God than men, and who in consequence of that choice, is certain of gaining heaven by cutting your throat?

The leaders of fanatics, and who put the dagger into their hands, are usually designing knaves; they are like the Old Man of the Mountain, who, according to history, gave weak persons a foretaste of the joys of paradise, promising them an eternity of such enjoyments, provided they would go and murder all those whom he should name to them. In the whole world there has been but one religion clear of fanaticism, which is that of the Chinese literati. As to the sects of philosopers, instead of being infected with this pestilence, they were a ready and sure preservation against it: for the effect of philosophy is to compose the soul, and fanaticism is incompatible with tranquillity.

VOLTAIRE.

CHARACTER OF JAMES MONROE.

Supposed to be written by W. Wirt, in a letter to a friend, dated at Richmond, September 1805, at which time Mr. Munroe was governor of Virginia.

JAMES MONROE, the present governor of this commonwealth, is the same, who, not long since was American minister at Paris. His present office is sufficient evidence of the estimation in which he is held by his native state. In his stature, he is about the middle height of men, rather firmly set, with nothing farther remarkable in his person, except its muscular compactness and apparent ability to endure labour. His countenance, when grave, has rather the expression of sternness and irrascibility: a smile, however, (and a smile is not unusual with him in a social circle,) lights it up to very high advantage, and gives it a most impressive and engaging air of euavity and benevolence.