10 NORTHERN MEMOIRS. 



Theoph. Because, so vehement in the pursuit 

 of sin, we outdo our ancestors and what's the 

 conclusion ? Adam, you see, was made an exile, 

 and compell'd to relinquish the sunshine of pa- 

 radise he was forced to sit down under the 

 shades of Mesopotamia ; but we renounce both 

 law and gospel to monopolize the world and ag- 

 grandize posterity. This is now our deplorable 

 state ; compare it with Adam's, and give your 

 opinion. 



Am. My opinion in short is, Adam comes 

 short of us ; for, as he was the father of all his 

 posterity, so, as father, we patronize all manner 

 of impiety. Now, I have given you my opi- 

 nion, how do you approve on't ? 



Theoph. I'll sum it up thus. Whilst Adam 

 stood in purity, his beauty shin'd without de- 

 formity ; so that by the will of the divinest, had 

 he kept his station, posterity had never been 

 doom'd to die by the cold and icie finger of 

 death. 



Arn. O, Theophilus ! that one single sin should 

 so deform him, that was elevated and exalted 

 above the beauties in the creation ! 



Theoph. Just so it happ'ned to that bright 

 star Lucifer, (and his aspiring conspirators,) whose 

 ambition dethron'd him, and so it will us. He, 

 striving to get above that that was super-excel- 

 lent, lost that excellency the Supreamest had 

 given him. So we, placing our affections on ex- 



