er.

cended the high hills of Bagdat, in order to pass the rest of the day in meditation and prayAs I was here airing myfelf on the tops of the mountains, I fell into a profound contemplation on the vanity of human life; and paffing from one thought to another, furely, faid I, man is but a fhadow, and life a dream. Whilst I was thus amufing, I caft my eyes towards the fummit of a rock that was not far from me, where I difcovered one in the habit of a fhepherd, with a little mufical inftrument in his hand. As I looked upon him, he applied it to his lips, and began to play upon it. The found of it was exceeding fweet, and wrought into a variety of tunes that were inexpreffibly melodious, and altogether different from any thing I had ever heard: they put me in mind of those heavenly airs that are played to the departed fouls of good men upon their first arrival in Paradife, to wear out the impreffions of the laft agonies, and qualify them for the pleafures of that happy place. My heart melted away in fecret raptures."

I had often been told that the rock before me was the haunt of a genius; and that feveral had been entertained with that music, who had paffed by it, but never heard that the mufician had before made himfelf vifible. When he had raised my thoughts by thofe tranfporting airs which he played, to taste the pleasures of his converfation, as I looked upon him, like one aftonished, he beckoned to me and by the

waving of his hand directed me to approach the place where he fat. I drew near with that reverence which is due to a fuperior nature; and as my heart was entirely fubdued by the captivating strains I had heard, I fell down at his feet and wept. The genius fmiled upon me with a look of compaffion and affability that familiarized him to my imagination, and at once difpelled all the fears and apprehenfions with which I approached him. He lifted me from the ground, and taking me by the hand, Mirza," said he, "I have heard thee in thy foliloques: follow me :"

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He then led me to the highest pinnacle of the rock, and placing me on the top of it, "Caft thy eyes eastward," faid he, " and tell me what thou feeft." "I fee," faid I, "a huge valley, and prodigious tide of water rolling through it." The valley thou feeft, said he, is the vale of mifery, and the tide of water that thou feeft is part of the great tide of eternity. What is the reason, faid I, that the tide I fee rifes out of a thick mist at one end, and again loses itself in a thick mift at the other? What thou feeft, faid he, is that portion of eternity which is called time measured out by the fun, and reaching from the begining of the world to its confummation, Examine now, faid he, this fea that is bounded with darkness at both ends, and tell me what thou difcovereft in it? I fee a bridge, faid I, ftanding in the midst of the tide. The bridge thou seest, said he, is human life;

confider it attentively. Upon a more leifurely furvey of it, I found that it confifted of threefcore and ten entire arches, with feveral broken arches, which, added to those that were entire, made up the number about an hundred. As I was counting the arches, the genius told me that the bridge confifted at firft of a thoufand arches; but that a great flood swept away the reft, and left the bridge in the ruinous condition I now beheld it; but tell me further, faid he, what thou difcovereft on it? I fee multitudes of people paffing over it, faid I, and a black cloud hanging on each end of it. As I looked more attentively, I faw feveral of the paffengers dropping through the bridge, into the great tide that flowed underneath it; and Ifaw innumerable trap-doors that lay concealed in the bridge, which the passengers no foontrod upon, but they tell trough them into the tide, and immediately disappeared. These hidden pit-falls were fet very thick at the entrance of the bridge, fo that throngs of people no fooner broke through the cloud than many of them fell into them. They grew thinner towards the middle, but multiplied and lay clofer together towards the end of the arches that were entire.

There were indeed fome perfons, but their number was very small, that continued a kind of hobbling march on the broken arches, but fell through one after another, being quite tir cd and spent with fo long a walk.

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I paffed fome time in the contemplation of this wonderful ftructure, and the great variety of objects which it prefented. My heart was filled with a deep melancholy to fee feveral dropping unexpectedly in the midft of mirth and jollity, and catching at every thing that ftood by them to fave themfelves. Some

were looking up towards the heavens in a thoughtful pofture, and in the midst of a fupplication ftumbled and fell out of fight. Multitudes were very bufy in the purfuit of bubbles that glittered in their eyes and danced before them; but often when they thought themfelves within the reach of them, their footing failed, and down they funk. In this confufion of objects, I obferved fome with feimitars in their hands, and others with urinals, who ran to and fro upon the bridge, thrusting feveral perfons on trap-doors which did not feem to lie in their way, and which they might have efcaped, had they not been thus forced upon them.

The genius feeing me indulge myself in this melancholy profpect, told me I had dwelt long enough upon it; Take thine eyes off the bridge, faid he, and tell me if thou feeft any thing thou doft not comprehend. Upon looking up, What mean, faid I, thofe great flights of birds that are perpetually hovering about the bridge, and fettling upon it from time to time? I fee vultures, harpies, ravens, cormorants, and among many other feathered creatures feveral

little winged boys, that pearch in great numbers upon the middle arches. Thefe, faid the genius, are envy, avarice, fuperftition despair, love, with the like cares and paflions that infeft human life.

I here fetched a deep figh; Alas! faid I, man was made in vain! how is he given away to mifery and mortality! tortured in life, and fwallowed up in death! The genius being moved with compaflion towards me, bid me quit fo uncomfortable a profpect. Look no more, faid he, on man in the firft ftage of his existence, in his fetting out for eternity? but cast thine eye on that thick mift into which the tide bears the feveral generations of mortals that fall into it. I directed my fight as I was ordered, and (whether or no the good genius frengthened it with any fupernatural force, or diflipated part of the wift that was before too thick for the eye to penetrate) I faw the valley opening at the farther end, and fpreading forth into an immenfe ocean, that had a huge rock of adamant running through the midst of it, and dividing it into two equal parts, The clouds ftill refted on one half thereof, infomuch that I could difcover nothing in it : but the other appeared to me a vat ocean planted with innumerable iflands, that were covered with fruits and flowers, and interwoven with a thoufaad little fhining feas that ran among them. I could fee perfons dreffed in glorious habits with garlands upon their heads,

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