tET. V. OF THE SYSTEM OF DeS CARTES. yt

every opinion or fancy of every man was true.Whilst others, again, ran into the opposite ex-treme, and were so sceptical as to doubt evenwhether they doubted or not.

But to leave these, and a thousand other crudenotions, which deserve no remembrance, wewill now proceed to consider the more plausiblehypothesis of a philosopher of modern times,who has attempted to explain the phænomenaof nature by principles less exceptionable thanthose of the ancients ; and has acquired such areputation amongst his followers, as makes itnecessary to examine his doctrine with moreparticular attention.

Renes des Cartes, a French philosopher, whowas born in the year 1596, was the author ofthis new system, which has been so highly ex-tolled, and considered by many, as the most ex-tensive, and exquisite in its contrivance, of anythat had yet been imagined. Endowed with abold and elevated genius, he scorned to subjecthimself to the servile drudgery of observationand experiment, but attempted to unveil all themysteries of nature at once ; and thought it be-neath him to offer any thing to the world, lessthan a complete and finished system.

In order to attain this grand purpose, he be-gins his Principia, by endeavouring to establisha clear and perfect idea of the existence and at-tributes of the Supreme Being; which he makesF 4 to