We read in the Scripture of Two Great Storms; One past, and the Other to come. Whether the last be not Allegorical rather than Prophetical, I shall not busie my self to determine. The First was when God caused a strong Wind to blow upon the Face of the Delug'd World; to put a stop to the Flood, and reduce the Waters to their proper Channel. I wish our Naturalists would explain that Wind to us, and tell us which way it blew, or how it is possible that any direct Wind could cause the Waters to ebb; for to me it seems, that the Deluge being universal, that Wind which blew the Waters from one Part must blow them up in another. Whether it was not some perpendicular Gusts that might by their Force separate the Water and the Earth, and cause the Water driven from off the Land to _subside_ by its own Pressure. I shall dive no farther into that mysterious Deluge, which has some things in it which recommend the Story rather to our Faith than Demonstration. The Other Storm I find in the Scripture is in the _God shall rain upon the Wicked, Plagues, Fire, and a horrible Tempest_. What this shall be, we wait to know; and happy are they who shall be secured from its Effects. Histories are full of Instances of violent Tempests and Storms in sundry particular Places. What that was, which mingled with such violent Lightnings set the Cities of _Sodom_ and _Gomorrah_ on fire, remains to me yet undecided: nor am I satisfied the Effect it had on the Waters of the Lake, which are to this Day call'd the _Dead Sea_, are such as some fabulous Authors have related, and as Travellers take upon them to say. CHAPTER II _Of the Opinion of the Ancients, That this Island was more Subject to Storms than other Parts of the World_ I am not of Opinion with the early Ages of the World, when these Islands were first known, that they were the most Terrible of any Part of the World for Storms and Tempests. _Cambden_ tells us, The _Britains_ were distinguish'd from all the World by unpassable Seas and terrible Northern Winds, which made the _Albion_ Shores dreadful to Sailors; and this part of the World was therefore reckoned the utmost Bounds of the Northern known Land, beyond which none had ever sailed: and quotes a great variety of ancient Authors to this purpose; some of which I present as a Specimen. _Et Penitus Toto Divisos Orbe Britannos. Britain's_ disjoyn'd from all the well known World. _Quem Littus adusta, Horrescit Lybiæ, ratibusq; Impervia_ [A]Thule _Ignotumq; Fretum_. Claud. [A: Taken frequently for _Britain_.] And if the Notions the World then had were true, it would be very absurd for us who live here to pretend Miracles in any Extremes of Tempests; since by what the Poets of those Ages flourish'd about stormy Weather, was the native and most proper Epithet of the Place: _Belluosus qui remotis Obstrepit Oceanus_ Britannis. _Hor._