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"wrought night and day ever fince, to furnish out the "neceffaries for thefe deceased. But fo it is, Sir, that "of this vaft number of dead bodies, that go putrify"ing up and down the streets, not one of them has come to us to be buried. Though we should be loth 66 to be any hinderance to our good friends the phyfi"cians, yet we cannot but take notice what infection "her Majesty's subjects are liable to from the horrible ftench of fo many corpfes. Sir, we will not detain you; our cafe in fhort is this: Here we are embarked in this undertaking for the public good: Now if "people should be fuffered to go on unburied at this 66 rate, there is an end of the usefulleft manufactures "and handicrafts of the kingdom: For where will be "your fextons, coffin-makers, and plummers? what "will become of your embalmers, epitaph-mongers, " and chief mourners? We are loth to drive this mat❝ter any further, though we tremble at the confequences "of it: For if it fhall be left to every dead man's dif "cretion not to be buried until he fees his time, no 66 man can fay where that will end; but thus much we "will take upon us to affirm, that fuch a toleration " will be intolerable.

"What would make us eafy in this matter is no "more, but that your Worship would be pleafed to "iffue out your orders to ditto Dead to repair forthwith "to our office, in order to their interment; where con"ftant attendance shall be given to treat with all per"fons according to their quality, and the poor to "be buried for nothing: And for the convenience of "fuch perfons as are willing enough to be dead, but "that they are afraid their friends and relations "fhould know it, we have a back-door into Warwick"Street, from whence they may be interred with all "fecrecy imaginable, and without lofs of time, or "hinderance of business. But in cafe of obftinacy, "for we would gladly make a thorough riddance, we "defire a further power from your Worship, to take up fuch deceased as shall not have complied with your first orders, wherever we meet them: And if after that there fhall be complaints of any per

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fons fo offending, let them lie at our doors.

are,

Your Worship's until death,

We

The Master and Company of Upholders.

"P. S. We are ready to give in our printed propofals at large; and if your Worship approves of our "undertaking, we defire the following advertisement may be inferted in your next Paper.

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"Whereas a commiffion of interment has been awarded against Doctor John Partridge, Philomath, profeffor of Phyfic and Aftrology; and whereas the "faid Partridge hath not furrendered himself, not fhewn caufe to the contrary; Thefe are to certify, that the company of Upholders will proceed to bury "him from Cordwainers-hall, on Tuesday the twenty"ninth inftant, where any fix of his furviving friends, who ftill believe him to be alive, are defired to come prepared to hold up the pall.

Note; we fhall light away at fix in the evening, "there being to be a fermon."

N° 100. Tuesday, November 29, 1709.

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Jam redit & Virgo, redeunt Saturnia regna.

VIRG. EC. 4. ver. 6.

Returning Juftice brings a golden age.

Sheer-lane, November 28.

R. W.

Was laft week taking a folitary walk in the garden of Lincoln's-Inn, (a favour that is indulged me by feveral of the Benchers, who are my intimate friends, and grown old with me in this neighbourhood) when,

according

according to the nature of men in years, who have made but little progrefs in the advancement of their fortune or their fame, I was repining at the fudden rife of many perfons who are my juniors, and indeed at the unequal diftribution of wealth, honour, and all other bleffings of life. I was loft in this thought, when the night came upon me and drew my mind into a far more agreeable contemplation. The heaven above me appeared in all its glories, and prefented me with fuch an hemifphere of ftars, as made the moft agreeable profpect imaginable to one who delights in the ftudy of Nature. It happened to be a freezing night, which had purified the whole body of air into fuch a bright tranfparent æther, as made every constellation vifible; and at the fame time gave fuch a particular glowing to the ftars, that I thought it the richest fky I had ever feen. I could not behold a fcene fo wonderfully adorned and lighted up, if I may be allowed that expreffion, without fuitable meditations on the Author of fuch illuftrious and amazing objects: For on thefe occafions, philofophy fuggefts motives to religion, and religion adds pleasures to philofophy.

As foon as I had recovered my ufual temper and ferenity of Soul, I retired to my lodgings, with the fatisfaction of having paffed away a few hours in the proper employments of a reasonable creature; and promifing myfelf that my flumbers would be sweet, I no fooner fell into them, but I dreamed a dream, or faw a vifion, for I know not which to call it, that feemed to rife out of my evening-meditation, and had fomething in it fo folemn and ferious, that I cannot forbear communicating it; though I must confefs the wildness of imagination, which in a dream is always loofe and irregular, discovers itself too much in feveral parts of it.

Methought I faw the fame azure fky diverfified with the fame glorious luminaries which had entertained me a little before I fell asleep. I was looking very attentively on that Sign in the heavens which is called by the name of the Balance *, when on a fudden there appeared in it an extraordinary light, as if the fun fhould rise at

Libra or the Balance is next to the fign Virgo, into which Aftraa, the goddess of Juftice, was tranflated, when the could no longer stay on earth.

VOL. II.

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midnight. By its increafing in breadth and lure, I foon found that it approached towards the earth; and at length could difcern fomething like a fhadow hovering in the midst of a great glory, which in a little time after I diftinctly perceived to be the figure of a woman. fancied at first it might have been the angel, or Intelligence that guided the conftellation from which it defcended; but upon a nearer view, I saw about her all the emblems with which the goddess of Juftice is ufually defcribed. Her countenance was unspeakably awful and majestic, but exquifitely beautiful to thofe whofe eyes were ftrong enough to behold it; her fmiles transported with rapture, her frowns terrified to defpair. She held in her hand a mirror, endowed with the fame qualities as that which the painters put into the hand of Truth.

There ftreamed from it a light, which diftinguished itfelf from all the fplendors that surrounded her, more than a flash of lightning fhines in the midst of day-light. As fhe moved it in her hand it brightened the heavens, the air, or the earth. When she had defcended so low as to be feen and heard by mortals, to make the pomp of her appearance more fupportable, fhe threw darknes and clouds about her, that tempered the light into a thousand beautiful fhades and colours, and multiplied that luftre, which was before too ftrong and dazzling, into a variety of milder glories.

In the mean time, the world was in an alarm, and all the inhabitants of it gathered together upon a spacious plain; so that it seemed to have the whole fpecies before my eyes. A voice was heard from the clouds, declaring the intention of this vifit, which was to reftore and appropriate to every one living what was his due. The fear and hope, joy and forrow, which appeared in that great affembly, after this folemn declaration, are not to be expreffed. The first edict was then pronounced, "That "all titles and claims to riches and eftates, or to any "part of them, fhould be immediately vefted in the " rightful owner." Upon this, the inhabitants of the earth held up the inftruments of their tenure, whether in parchment, paper, wax, or any other form of conveyance; and as the goddess moved the mirror of Truth which the held in her hand, so that the light which flowed

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flowed from it fell upon the multitude, they examined the feveral inftruments by the beams of it. The rays of this mirror had a particular quality of setting fire to all forgery and falfhood. The blaze of papers, the melting of feals, and crackling of parchments, made a very odd fcene. The fire very often ran through two or three lines only, and then stopped. Though I could not but obferve, that the flame chiefly broke out among the interlineations and codicils; the light of the mirror, as it was turned up and down, pierced into all the dark corners and receffes of the univerfe, and by that means detected many writings and records which had been hidden or buried by time, chance, or defign. This occafioned a wonderful revolution among the people. At the fame time, the spoils of extortion, fraud, and robbery, with all the fruits of bribery and corruption, were thrown together into a prodigious pile, that almoft reached to the clouds, and was called, "The mount of reftitution ;" to which all injured persons were invited, to receive what belonged to them.

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One might fee crouds of people in tattered garments come up, and change clothes with others that were dreffed with lace aad embroidery. Several who were Plumbs, or very near it, became men of moderate fortunes; and many others, who were overgrown in wealth and poffeffions, had no more left than what they ufually fpent. What moved my concern moft was, to see a certain street of the greatest credit in Europe from one end to the other become bankrupt.

The next command was, for the whole body of mankind to feparate themselves into their proper families; which was no fooner done, but an edict was issued out, requiring all children "to repair to their true and na"tural fathers." This put a great part of the affembly in motion; for as the mirror was moved over them, it infpired every one with fuch a natural instinct, as directed them to their real parents. It was a very melancholy fpectacle to fee the fathers of very large families become childlefs, and bachelors undone by a charge of fons and daughters. You might fee a prefumptive heir of a great eftate afk bleffing of his coachman, and a celebrated Toast paying her duty to a Valet de Chambre,

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