the left, and leopards to the right: and when I wondered at this, the
angel said, "They are neither bears nor leopards, but men, who guard
these inhabitants of the north; by their nostrils they have a scent of
the sphere of life of those who pass by, and they rush violently on all
who are spiritual, because the inhabitants are natural. Those who only
read the Word, and imbibe thence nothing of doctrine, appear at a
distance like bears; and those who confirm false principles thence
derived, appear like leopards." On seeing us, they turned away, and we
proceeded. Beyond the forest there appeared thickets, and afterwards
fields of grass divided into areas, bordered with box: this was
succeeded by a declivity which led to a valley, wherein were several
cities. We passed some of them, and entered into one of a considerable
size: its streets were irregular, and so were the houses, which were
built of brick, with beams between, and plastered. In the places of
public resort were consecrated buildings of hewn lime-stone; the
under-structure of which was below the ground, and the super-structure
above. We went down into one of them by three steps, and saw on the
walls idols of various forms, and a crowd on their knees paying
adoration to them: in the middle of the building was a company, above
whom might be seen the head of the tutelary god of that city. As we went
out, the angel said to me, "Those idols, with the ancients who lived in
the silver age, as above described, were images representative of
spiritual truths and moral virtues; and when the science of
correspondence was forgotten and extinct, they first became objects of
worship, and afterwards were adored as deities: hence came idolatry."
When we were come out of the consecrated building, we made our
observations on the men and their dress. Their faces were like steel, of
a grayish color, and they were dressed like comedians, with napkins
about their loins hanging from a tunic buttoned close at the breast; and
on their heads they wore curled caps like sailors. But the angel said,
"Enough of this; let us seek some instruction concerning the marriages
of the people of this age." We then entered into the house of one of the
grandees, who wore on his head a high cap. He received us kindly, and
said, "Come in and let us converse together." We entered into the
vestibule, and there seated ourselves; and I asked him about the
marriages of his city and country. He said, "We do not