(264)
in the invention of tortures, and persevering in enduring them. Hence some have persisted in sitting or standing for years together in one unvaried posture; supporting an almost intolerable burden; dragging the most cumbrous chains; exposing their naked bodies to the scorching sun, and hanging with the head downward before the fiercest fires. Relig. Ceremon. vol. III. p. 264, &c. White's Sermons, p. 504.
Page 114.—some that cherished vermin.
In this attachment they were not singular. The Emperor Julian not only discovered the same partiality, but celebrated, with visible complacency, the shaggy and populous beard, which he fondly cherished; and even "The Historian of the Roman Empire," affirms "that the little animal is a beast familiar to man, and signifies love." Vol. II. p. 343.
Page 115.—Visnow and Ixhora.
Two deities of the Hindoos. The traditions of their votaries are, probably, allegorical; but without a key to disclose their mystic import, they are little better than senseless jargon; and, with the key, downright nonsense.
