40 
MEMOIR OF SWAMMERDAM. 
perfect body, infinitely surpassing the utmost stretch 
of human understanding. As for my part, I dare 
boldly affirm, that the incomprehensible greatness of 
the deity manifests itself in these mysterious opera- 
tions in a particular manner, and affords us an 
opportunity of examining, as it were, with our senses, 
the divine nature/’* 
Long before the period when these and other valu- 
able investigations of a similar kind were undertaken, 
a notable change had taken place in Swammerdam’s 
mind, which led him to regard such pursuits in a 
very different light from what had been customary 
to him. He had always been of a devotional frame 
of mind, and this feeling was gradually deepened by 
observing the wonderful instances of design, power, 
and goodness, which his studies so abundantly sup- 
plied. Hence his anxiety to direct the attention of the 
reader, on all fitting occasions, to the Almighty Author 
of all the wonders his penetration enabled him to re- 
veal, and to awaken those sentiments of devout adora- 
tion which they are so well fitted to inspire. But an 
event happened, apparently in the year 1672, which 
corrupted the source from which these feelings flowed, 
diverted them into a wrong channel, and ultimately 
brought his mind into a state of the most deplorable 
fanaticism. The immediate cause of this was the 
perusal of the works of Antoinette de la Porte 
Bourignon, a wild enthusiast, who was then using 
every effort to propagate her doctrines. She was a 
* Book of Nat. II. 51. 
