12 ANTIENT METAPHYSICS. Book I. 



well-being of the animal life of man; for it is only concerning this 

 life of man, that we are at prefent inquiring, not his intelledual. 



This inquiry naturally leads us to compare the life of the brute, 

 who lives in the pure natural ftate, with the animal life of man in 

 the civilifed ftate. And I hold it to be certain, that his life is much 

 more perfect, of the kind, than the fame life in civilifed man. 



And, in the firft place, every man, who believes in God, muft 

 likewife believe that his wifdom and goodnefs has appointed for 

 every animal the life the moft fuitable to his nature, and fuch as will 

 preferve and continue his health longer than any other : Nor do I 

 know, that any philofophers, not even thofe philofophers of modern 

 times, who appear to be difl'atistied with the providence of God, 

 have maintained, that any way of life, of the feveral fpeciefes of brute 

 animals, could be contrived to make them more happy than the 

 life in which God and Nature has deftined they Ihould Hve. If, 

 therefore, the natural life of man be fuch as I have defcribed it, it is 

 evident, that, in a ftate of nature, he muft be healthier, bigger, 

 ftronger of , body, and longer-lived, than in the civilifed ftate j for 

 it is impofhble to luppofe that he could have invented any better 

 life, than that aftlgned him by God and Nature. The brutes, who 

 live that natural life, and are not under our dominion, by which 

 they are often made almoft as difcafed as . we are, enjoy much 

 better health than we do: And, indeed, it does not appear, that 

 they are liable to any difeafes, not even that difeafe which we call a 

 plague, and which muft proceed from fome contagion of the air; 

 for the greateft plagues that have been known, one of which is faid 

 to have deftroyed one half of the human fpecies, did not aire<ft the 

 wild animals'*. The nearer, therefore, we come to this natural life, 

 the ftronger and healthier we muft be. 



If 



•*' See Vol. in. of this work, p. 79. — See alfo p. 186. and following. 



