(Francis), a man more famous after his death than during his life, by the miracles which were said to be performed at his tomb. He is generally known by the name of Abbé Paris; and his pretended miracles, with others of like manufacture, have furnished deistical writers, and Mr Hume in particular, with a kind of argument against the reality of the miracles of which we have an account in the Gospel. It is merely that we may state his pretensions fairly, that we have introduced him to the notice of our readers; for in every other respect he is wholly unworthy of their regard. He was the son of a counsellor in Parliament, and had the prospect, if he had chosen it, of succeeding to his father's appointment; but he chose rather to become an ecclesiastic, and he became a very zealous one. He gave up all his professions to his brother, refused preferment intended for him by the cardinal de Neailles, devoted himself entirely to retirement, and made stockings for his own support, and for the assistance of the poor. He died, perhaps in consequence of his rigorous mode of life, May 1, 1727, at the age of only 37. His brother raised a monument to him in the small churchyard of St Medard, to which the poor and the pious soon began to flock; and after a time it was reported, that, in consequence of their prayers at that tomb, some sick persons had received cures. As Paris had been a rigorous Jansenist, this was a fine opportunity for that sect to gain credit to their cause; the miracles were therefore multiplied, and a variety of persons affected the most singular convulsions.

The minds of the people becoming inflamed by these extravagancies, the court found it necessary to shut up the churchyard, which was done on the 27th of January 1732. On this occasion, some profane wit wrote upon the wall of the place,

De par le Roy, defense à Dieu, De faire miracles en ce lieu.

The convulsions were continued, for a little while, in private houses; but by degrees the matter subsided, and the Abbé Paris was forgotten.

The distinction between miracles exhibited to serve a party, and attested only by those who are zealous in its support, and miracles performed in the fight of unbelievers, who, in spite of their deep-rooted prejudices, were converted by them, is too striking to be overlooked by any; but those who are desirous of drawing a false and impious parallel; yet, has Mr Hume dared to represent the miracles performed at the tomb of this saint as outvying in number, nature, and evidence, the miracles of Christ and his apostles—with what truth, the following observations will show:

1stly, It was often objected by the enemies of the saint, and the objection was never confuted by his friends, that the proliferations at his sepulchre, like animal magnetism more lately, produced more effects than they cured. Such, surely, was not the nature of our Saviour's miracles.

2ndly, Though the crowds of sick and infirm persons who flocked to the tomb for relief were, by all accounts, innumerable; yet all the cures, of which the zealous historian of the Miracles could procure vouchers, amounted only to nine! Now, were thousands, and ten thousands of diseased persons to apply to some circumstantial quack, in full assurance of his extraordinary abilities and skill in physic, could it surprise any person, if the distempers of eight or nine of them should take a favourable turn while they were under a course of his useless medicines?

3rdly, We do not read that of those nine who were cured by the dead Abbé, the greater part were Jesuits, and enemies to the Jansenists; whereas the greater part of our Saviour's miracles were performed upon unconverted Jews, and one of them upon the servant of the high priest, who was thirsting for his blood.

4thly, The cures reported to have been performed at the grave of Paris were all such as might have been accomplished by natural means. Thus, a Spaniard who had lost one eye, and was afflicted with an inflammation in the other, had the inflamed eye gradually cured, but not the lost eye restored. Another person having pricked his eye with an awl, lost the sight of it in consequence of the aqueous humour dropping out; but his sight was restored whilst he was paying his devotions to the Abbé—and so it would have been while he was cursing the Abbé, had he continued his execrations for a sufficient length of time. PAR

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gibly, None of the cures said to have been performed were instantaneous. All the worshippers at the tomb perished for days; several of them for weeks, and some for months, daily imploring the intercession of the Abbé before they received relief from their complaints.

Glibly, Most of the devotees had been using medicines before they applied to the saint, and continued to use them during the whole time of their application; whilst it is confessed that the distempers of others had abated before they determined to solicit his help.

Glibly, Some of the cures attested were incomplete, and only of a temporary duration. Thus, the Spaniard was relieved only from the most inconsiderable part of his complaint, and that too but for a very short period; for soon after his return home he relapsed into his former malady, as was fully attested by certificates and letters from Madrid. All this has been completely proved by the Archbishop of Sens; who in his Pastoral Instruction, published at the time the miracles were making a noise, has,

Glibly, Clearly detected the deceit and little artifices by which those pretended miracles were so long supported. To that work we refer our readers; requesting them, after they have read it, to compare the evidence for the miracles of Paris with the evidence which in the article Miracles (Encyc.) we have stated for the reality of the Gospel miracles, and to judge for themselves with the impartiality of philosophers.

Paris wrote a few very indifferent books of annotations on the Epistles to the Romans, to the Galatians, and the Hebrews; but few have ever read them, nor would they have refused the author from oblivion, without the aid of his lying wonders.