your Trinkets. But, fays Mrs. Bargrave, I'll get fomething to drink in for all that; but Mrs. Veal waved it, and faid, It is no Matter, let it alone; and fo it paffed.

All the Time I fat with Mrs. Bargrave, which was fome Hours, the recollected fresh Sayings of Mrs. Veal. And one material Thing more fhe told Mrs. Bargrave, that old Mr. Breton allowed Mrs. Veal ten Pounds a Year; which was a Secret, and unknown to Mrs. Bargrave till Mrs. Veal told it her.

Mrs. Bargrave never varies in her Story; which puzzles those who doubt of the Truth, or are unwilling to believe it. A Servant in the Neighbour's Yard adjoyning to Mrs. Bargrave's House heard her. talking to fome Body an Hour of the Time Mrs. Veal was with her. Mrs. Bargrave went out to her next Neighbour's the very Moment fhe parted with Mrs. Veal, and told her what ravifhing Converfation fhe had with an old Friend, and told the whole of it. Drelincourt's Book of DEATH is, fince this happened, bought up ftrangely. And it is to be obferved, that notwithstanding all the Trouble and Fatigue Mrs. Bargrave has undergone upon this Account, fhe never took the Value of a Farthing, nor fuffered her Daughter to take any thing of any Body; and therefore can have no Intereft in telling the Story.

But Mr. Veal does what he can to ftifle the Matter, and faid, he would fee Mrs. Bargrave; but yet it is certain Matter of Fact, that he has been at Captain Watson's fince the Death of his Sifter, and yet never went near Mrs. Bargrave; and fome of his Friends report her to be a Lyar, and that fhe knew of Mr. Breton's ten Pounds a Year. But the Person who pretends to fay fo, has the Reputation of a notorious Lyar, among Perfons whom I know to be of undoubted Repute. Now Mr. Veal

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Veal is more of a Gentleman than to fay fhe Lyes; but fays, a bad Husband has crazed her. But the needs only present herself, and it will effectually confute that Pretence. Mr. Veal fays, he afked his Sifter on her Death-bed, Whether fhe had a Mind to difpofe of any Thing? And the faid, No. Now, that the Things which Mrs. Veal's Apparition would have difpofed of, were fo triffling, and nothing of Justice aimed at in their Disposal, that the Defign of it appears to me to be only in order to make Mrs. Bargrave fo to demonftrate the Truth of her Appearance, as to fatisfy the World of the Reality thereof, as to what she had seen and heard; and to fecure her Reputation among the reasonable and understanding Part of Mankind. And then again, Mr. Veal owns that there was a Purfe of Gold; but it was not found in her Cabinet, but in a CombBox. This looks improbable, for that Mrs. Watfon owned, that Mrs. Veal was fo very careful of the Key of the Cabinet, that she would truft no Body with it. And if fo, no doubt, fhe would not truft her Gold out of it. And Mrs. Veal's often drawing her Hand over her Eyes, and asking Mrs, Bargrave, Whether her Fits had not impaired her? looks to me, as if she did it on purpose to remind Mrs. Bargrave of her Fits, to prepare her not to think it ftrange that the fhould put her upon writing to her Brother, to difpofe of Rings and Gold, which looked fo much like a dying Perfon's Requeft; and it took accordingly with Mrs. Bargrave, as the Effect of her Fits coming upon her; and was one of the many Instances of her wonderful Love to her, and Care of her, that the fhould not be affrighted; which indeed appears in her whole Management, par- · ticularly, in her coming to her in the Day-tiine; waving the Salutation, and when he was alone; and then the manner of her parting, to prevent a fecond Attempt to falute her.

Now,

Now, why Mr. Veal fhould think this Relation a Reflection (as it is plain he does, by his endeavouring to stifle it) I cannot imagine; because the Generality believe her to be a good Spirit, her Difcourfe was so heavenly. Her two great Errands were to comfort Mrs. Bargrave in her Affliction, and to afk her Forgiveness for her Breach of Friendship, and with a pious Difcourfe to encourage her. So that, after all, to fuppofe that Mrs. Bargrave could hatch fuch an Invention as this from Friday Noon, till Saturday Noon (fuppofing that she knew of Mrs. Veal's Death the very firft Moment) without jumbling Circumstances, and without any Intereft too; fhe must be more witty, fortunate, and wicked too, than any indifferent Perfon, I dare fay, will allow. I afked Mrs. Bargrave feveral times, If she was fure she felt the Gown? She answered modeftly, "If my Senfes "be to be relied on, I am sure of it. I asked her, If fhe heard a Sound when the clapped her Hand upon her Knee? She faid, She did not remember she did, but faid, She appeared to be as much a Substance as I did who talked with her. "And I may, faid

fhe, be as foon perfuaded that your Apparition is "talking to me now, as that I did not really fee her: "For I was under no manner of Fear, and received "her as a Friend, and parted with her as fuch. I "would not, fays fhe, give one Farthing to make

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any one believe it; I have no Intereft in it; no"thing but Trouble is entailed upon me for a long "Time, for ought I know: And had it not come "to Light by Accident, it would never have been "made publick." But now, fhe fays, fhe will make her own private Use of it, and keep herself out of the Way as much as fhe can; and fo fhe has done fince. She fays, "She had a Gentleman who came Thirty Miles to her to hear the Relation; and that "fhe had told it to a Room full of People at a time." Several particular Gentlemen have had the Story from Mrs. Bargrave's own Mouth.

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This

This Thing has very much affected me; and I am as well fatisfied, as I am of the beft grounded Matter of Fact. And why we fhould dispute Matter of Fact, because we cannot folve Things of which we can have no certain or demonftrative Notions, feems ftrange to me. Mrs. Bargrave's Authority and Sincerity alone, would have been undoubted in any other Cafe.

THE.

That there is nothing more dreadful than Death, to fuch as have no Hope in Go D.

A

N infpired Pen ftiles Death very fignificantly, The King of Terrors; that is to fay, the moft terrible of all other things. For there is nothing that we can imagine in the World more dreadful and more frightful than Death. It is poffible to decline the Edge of drawn Swords, to close the Lion's Jaws, to quench the Fire's Fury; but when Death fhoots its poifoned Arrows, when it opens its infernal Pit, and when it fends forth its devouringFlames, it is altogether impoffible to fecure ourfelves; impoffible it is to guard our felves from its merciless Fury. There is an infinite Number of warlike Inventions, by which we commonly defeat the evil Designs of the most powerful and dreadful Enemies; there is no Stratagem of the most renowned General, no Fortifications ever fo regular and artificial, nor Army ever fo victorious

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that