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vations arbitrarily instituted. Of this sort there were various kinds,as by sacrilices, entrails, ilame, cakes, ilour, wine, water, birds,lots, verses, omens, &x. Divination, which is generally the offspringof credulity, nursed by imposture, and strengthened by super-stition, was necessarily an occult science, retained in the hands ofthe priests and priestesses, the magi, the soothsayers, the augurs, tin-visionaries, the priests of the oracles, the false prophets, and otherlike professors, till the time of the coming of Jesus Christ . Thelight of the gospel dissipated much of litis darkness; but it is moredifficult, titan is commonly conceived, to eradicate from the humanmind a deep-rooted superstition, even though the truth be set inthe strongest light, especially when the art lias been practised al-most front the origin ot the world: so we still find existing amongus the remains of this pagan superstition, in the following chimeras,which enthusiastic and designing men have formed into arts andsciences; though it must he owned, to the honour of the 18th cen-tury, that the pure doctrines of Christianity , and the spirit of phi-losophy, which becomes every day more diffused, concur inbanishing these visionary opinions. The vogue for these im-pious sciences and arts, is nearly past, at least in the enlightenedparts of the world, though most of them are still esteemed andpractised in those parts of the globe which are enveloped in theclouds and darkness of ignorance and superstition. By enume-rating them here, therefore, we only mean to shew their impiety,and to mark those rocks upon which the human mind has founderedin almost all ages and countries. 1. Aeromancy, the art of di-vining by the air. 2. Astrology ; divided into natural astrologyand judicial. Tite former is a branch of the art of almanack-makers ; but bv merely confronting their predictions in the calen-dar, with the weather each day- produces, every man of sense wdlsee what regard is to be paid to our modern astrologers. The lat-ter is still more illusive: and having been at first the wonderful artof visionaries, it afterwards became that of impostors; a very com-mon fate with all these chimerical sciences. 3. Augury consistedin observing the flight, singing, &c. of birds. 4. Chiromancy , theart which pretends to discover, by inspecting the hand, not onlythe inclinations of a man, but his future destiny also. The foolsor knaves, who practise this art, pretend, that the lines of the handhave a relation to the internal parts of the body, as some to theheart, others to the liver, spleen, &c. On this false supposition,and on many others equally extravagant, the principles of chiro-mancy are founded. 5. Geomaney was a divination made by ob-serving cracks or clefts in the earth. It was also performed bypoints made on paper, or any other substance, at a venture; andthey judged of future events from the figures that resulted fromthence. This was certainly very ridiculous: but it is nothing lesssolo pretend to predict future events by the inspection of thegrounds of a dish of tea or coffee, or by cards, and many oilierlike matters. 6. Haruspic.y consisted in the inspection of thebowels of animals, but principally of victims; and from thenceiredicting grand incidents relative to the republic, and the good or>ad events of its enterprises. 7. Horoscopy is a branch of astro-logy, by w hich they draw a celestial scheme, containing the twelvehouses, wherein they mark tiie disposition of the heavens at themoment, at which a man is born, in order toforetel his fortune, orthe chief incidents of his life. But as there cannot be any probableor possible relation between the constellations and the human race,all the principles they lay down, and the prophecies they drawfrom them, are chimerical, false, absurd, and a criminal impositionon mankind. 8. llydromuncy is the art of divining by water.The Persians, according to Varro, invented it; Pythagoras andNuma PompiUus made use of it; and some still admire the likewonderful prognosticators. 9. Physiognomy , or Physiognoinancy,is a science that professes to teach the nature, the temperament,the understanding, and the inclinations of men, by the inspectionof their countenances, and is therefore thought bv manv, to belittle less frivolous than chiromancy ; though Aristotle , and a num-ber of learned men after him, and in the present age, the cele-brated I.avator, have written express treatises concerning it. Butas it is an undeniable fact, that our passions, especially wlien fre-quently and violently agitated, make indelible impressions on ourfeatures, by their repeated action on particular muscles, insomuchthat the tempers of many people may be known at first view fromtheir looks; and as it is not improbable, that certain habits of vicemake impressions equally uniform, and perhaps equally legible,if we were accustomed to study them, physiognomy appears to be

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worthy of being rescued from the rubbish of superstition and ofimposture ; of being restored to its place among the useful sciencT-s ;and cultivated and reduced to fixed principles by those who haveleisure for such investigations. See Physiognomy. 10. Pyro-mancy is a divination made by the inspection of a Ilame, either byobserving to which side it turn. 1 ., or by throwing into it some com-bustible matter, or a bladder tilled with wine, or any thing elsefrom which they imagined they were able to predict. '1 bus de-signing men made use of all the four elements to impose upon thecredulous.

Divination, Natural, was so called, because not attainedby any rules or precepts of art, but infused or inspired into thediviner, without his taking any further care about it, than to purityand prepare himself for the reception of the divine atllatus.

DIVING, the art or act of descending under water to consider-able depths, and remaining there for some time. The uses ofdiving are very considerable, particularly in the fishing for pearl 4 ,corols, spunges, &c. See Pearl-fishing, fxc. Various methodshave been proposed, and machines contrived, to render the busi-ness of diving more safe and easy. The great point is to furnishthe diver with fresh air; without .which, he must either make ashort stay or perish. Those who dive for spunges in the Me-diterranean, help themselves by carrying down spunges dipt in oilin their mouths. But considering the small quantity of air that canbe contained in the pores of a sponge, and how much that littlewill be contracted by the pressure of the incumbent water, sucli asupply cannot long subsist tiie diver. For it is found by experi-ment, that a gallon of air included in a bladder, and by a pipereciprocally inspired and exspired by the lungs, becomes unfitfor respiration in little more than one minute. For though itselasticity be but little altered in passing the lungs, vet it loses itsvivifying spirit, and is rendered effete. A naked diver, Dr.Halley assures us, without a sponge, cannot remain above a coupleof minutes inclosed in water, nor much longer with one, withoutsuffocating; nor, without long practice, near so long; personsnot accustomed to dive, beginning to stifle in about half a minute.Besides, if the depth be considerable, the pressure of the water intiie vessels makes the eyes blood-shotten, and frequently occasionsa spitting of blood. Ilence, where there has been occasion to con-tinue long at the bottom, some have contrived double ilexiblepipes, to circulate air down into a cavity, inclosing the diver aswith armour, both to furnish air and to bear oft the pressure of thewater, and give leave to his breast to dilate upon inspiration ; thefresh air being forced down one of the pipes with bellows, andreturning by the other. But this method is impracticable whenthe depth surpasses three fathoms; the water embracing the barelimbs so closely as to obstruct the circulation ot the blood in them ;and withal pressing so strongly on all the junctures where thearmour is made tight with leather, that, if there be the least defectin any of them, the water rushes in, and instantly fills the wholeengine, to the great danger of the diver’s life.

Diving-bell, a machine contrived for the safe conveyance ofa diver to any reasonable depth, and whereby he may stay a con-siderable time underwater. It is most conveniently made in formof a truncated cone, the smaller base being dosed, and the largeropen. It is lo be poised with lead: and so suspended, that thevessel may sink full of air, with its open basis downward, and asnear as mav be in a situation parallel to the horizon, so as to closewith the surface of the water all at once. Under this covercle thediver sitting, sinks down with the included air to the depth desired:and if the cavity of the vessel can contain a tun of air, a single manmay remain a full hour, w ithout much inconvenience, at five or sixfathoms deep. But the lower he goes, the more the included aircontracts'itself, according to the w eight of the water which com-presses it': so that at 33 feet deep the- bell becomes half full ofwater, the pressure of the incumbent water being then equal tothat of the atmosphere; and at all other depths the space dccu-pied bv the compressed air in the upper part of the bell will be tothe under part ot its capacity filled villi water, as 33 feet to thesurface of the water in the bell below the common surface thereof.And'this condensed air being taken in with die breath soon insinu-ates itself into all the cavities of die body, and lias no ill ellect, pro-vided the bell be permitted to descend" so slowly as to allow timefor that purpose. One inconvenience that attends it is found in theears, within which there are cavities which open only outwards, andthat bv pores so small as not to give admission even io the air itself,81 unless