It is related of Dr. Harvey, who was one of the college of physicians, that upon setting off on his travels to Padua, he shewed on his arrival at Dover his pass, but was detained by the governor without any reason being assigned. The. packet sailed without him and was lost, and next day the news reached Dover. It is added that the doctor was unknown to the governor, but that the night before the arrival of Dr. Harvey the governor had a perfect vision of him, with warning to stop him as he informed the doctor. The authority upon which this account also is given is uot known to the author,

* Nocturnal Revels, p. 97.

A dissipated person is related to have been converted by the impression of a dream, in which he imagined that he was rescued from a pit in which he was about to sink when sporting with some companions who were revelling with him, and whom he supposed to represent the guilty pleasures which endangered his safety:

" For pleasure's but a kind of wanton stream That carries men to hell as in a dream."

Some of the dreams which have been produced appear to come to us on authorities so respectable, and to have had a tendency so beneficial, that they present certainly some excuse for credulity on this subject. The author would be unwilling to invalidate any impression that might tend to keep alive a sense of Gods moral government; he is himself fully convinced of the care and particular providence of God watching over individuals, and does not mean to deny the agency and snper-intendency of angels appointed over every man, an opinion which seems to derive some countenance from our Saviours words, when he speaks of the angels of children who beheld the face of God in Heaven*; He is aware also that it may possibly be contended that the promise of Joel with respect to dreams and visions, was not expressly restricted to any particular period of the Gospel; but, "notwithstanding, he cannot but adhere to the conviction that revelations no longer continue to be imparted by dreams, subscribing to a remark of the great Bacon, that they ought all to be despised, and ought to serve but for winter's talk by the fire-side: "though," continues this great writer, "when I say despised, I mean it as for belief, for otherwise the spreading and publishing them is in no sort to be despised, for they have done much mischief."

* Matt, xviii. 1.

They may, as Mr. Dacier observes, be com-pared to the stories of an avowed liar which casually may be true; we have, however, no "criterion by which to judge whether they may bear any affinity to remote events, and it is reasonable to presume that they do not by any concerted appointment, since God cannot be supposed to have designed to harass us with fruitless premonitions, and to distract our minds with fallacious ambiguities. They may still, however, be understood to be designed for great moral purposes as affording subject for reflection, in a point of view in which they will be considered in some succeeding chapter.