come fometimes; and approved of my Lectures fo well, that he once moved me to print them; but I told him I could not do that, for they were not written down, but fpoken off-Hand, from fhort Notes, as a great Part of my Sermons at Lowestoft were also: Which gained me Time for my other more learned Studies, without neglecting my Cure: And by being naturally spoken in a more easy Way, and more Familiar Stile, were generally more edifying and acceptable than eleborate compofed Difcourses; which in thofe of a learned Education, are not feldom quite above the Level of ordinary Capacities; fuch as the generality of our Hearers muft needs be. I alfo took Care that my Curate preached once a Day at Keffingland, and once at Corton; a very poor Neighbouring ignorant Village, of hardly any Revenues, and formerly abandoned to Diverfions on the Lord's Days: While every Month I gave them of Keffingland a Sermon myself, in the Morning and a Catechetick Lecture in the Afternoon. I also a little tried there to inftruct the private Families on Week Days at Home, but found their Heads and Hands fo engaged,about their Hufbandry that I could only do it in the Evenings of Lord's Days, when they were more at leifure: But I was foon recalled to Cambridge, to be Sir Ifaac Newton's Deputy, and afterward his Succeffor, in the Beginning of thisCentury, when I refigned my Living, fo I fhall not enlarge farther on my Behavior in that Place. I fhall only add to what is in my Life of Dr. Clarke (page 9. 1ft. Edit. ) these two Facts which I well remember to have happened to me, while I lived

at

at Lowestoft. The Parish Officers came once to me to defire me to fet my Hand to a License, for fetting up a new Alehoufe in Lowestoft, the Juftices it feems, paying that Compliment to the Town as not to fet it up without the Confent of the Minifter, (and I fuppofe of the Church-Wardens also.) My Anfwer was fhort, " If they would bring me a Paper to fign to pull down an Alehoufe, I would "certainly fign it; But would never fign one to "fet up an Alehouse". At another Time there came to me an Order from Mr. Bachelor, who then acted in the Ecclefiaftical Court as Deputy, to Dr. Pepper, Chanceller of Norwich, for Reading an Excommunication against a Woman of my Parish, who it seems had called another Woman Whore: These Courts not being able to proceed, till fuch an Excommunication is read in the Parish Church: Upon this I went and enquired of the fober People in the Neighbourhood, whether this Imputation was believed to be true or falfe? The Anfwer was that ⚫ the Accufer might have kept her Tongue between her Teeth, yet they doubted the Thing was too True'. I then wrote to Mr. Bachelor, that I was furprized to have an Order for reading an Excommunication against a poor Woman for fpeaking what the fober People in the Neighborhood thought to be true. His Anfwer was, Veritas Convitij non excufat conviciantem, a Maxim of the modern Antichriftian, but not of the ancient Christian Law; of which fee my Pamphlet of Chriftian Discipline, page 63, 64. However I never did read that Excommunication; nor do fuch Ecclefiaftical Courts,

generally

generally do other than overturn all good Order in Matters of Religion; excepting it were under fuch an excellent Chancellor as Dr. Tanner, afterward Bishop of St. Asaph, who was difpofed to use his Power more for the real Advantage of good Order and Discipline, than any other in that Office within my Knowledge; till the Nicety of fome Law of the Land spoiled his Designs for any farther Reformation.

In the Year 1699 I wrote to Bishop Lloyd, a true Account of fome late Elections of Fellows at ClareHall, Cambridge; juft before I married and left the College; as I had written to him another Letter in a like Cafe. Thefe Elections were Things of great Confequence to the College at that Time; and I was fo deeply concerned in them, and at last fo unworthily trick'd by fome ill Men there, that I could not forbear writing an Account of them for the Bishop: Whether I sent it him I cannot now remember: It is however preferved, and fit to be known by the Master and Fellows of that College; to whom I shall be ready to communicate it at any Time; altho' it be of too private a Nature, and too long, to be published to all the World in this Place.

However, there were two Perfons (to say nothing of many others) fo utterly ruined in my Time in our College, for want of due Encouragement to Sobriety and Virtue, and Defect of College Difcipline, that I cannot forbear mentioning their Cafes, tho' without naming the Perfons; and I do it for a Caution to the present and future Members of

that

that and other Societies. The firft Example which I fhall give fome Account of, was one of my own Year: He came to the College with a Sweetness of Temper, a Skill in Oratory and Poetry very extraordinary, and was accordingly very much beloved in the Society: He came a fober Youth, and fo continued for his first Year; but after that Year he fell into the Acquaintance of a drinking Sophifter, who foon made him drink like himself: I then gave him a friendly Caution, and told him, that if he did not take Care that Sophifter would be his Ruin; as he was accordingly; for it is now I fuppofe above forty Years fince he could hardly bring a Glass of Wine to his Mouth, his Hand fo trembled: Yet was his Company still so acceptable, that the Youths, who were to stand for Fellowships, by getting in with him, and drinking with him, endeavoured to make their Way to our Fellowships. One of which Youths they killed, with a Boul of Punch; and yet did he foon go with his other Companions to the Tavern, to drink in piam Memoriam of their Friend whom they had just killed; till in a little Time this fine Youth himself died with drinking; which, tho' it did not kill him fo foon, as if he had stabb'd himfelf with a Dagger, yet it did it as furely. The fecond Example was one of the next Year to us, and who came a good Scholar, and had an excellent Memory, and was fober for feveral Years, and one of a Triumvirate of fober Men; of which I was one, and my Friend Mr. Laurence, of whom hereafter, was another. Now this poor unhappy Man came at laft to ftand for a Fellowship, foon after

Mr.

Mr. Laurence and I had been made Fellows, and had by Consequences with the fore-mentioned Person of my Year Votes in that Election. He thought at first that of the Electors the major Part were on the Side of the Drinkers; and accordingly forfook his Sobriety, and for a Month or fix Weeks drank hard with them at the Tavern, till we that were his old fober Friends faw it, and difcarded him, and refolved to choose a better, because a more fober Candidate in his Room, I mean Mr. Troughton, who was afterward my Curate, as already mentioned. He at last found his Mistake, and that the fober Party were likely to be the Majority, fo he forely repented of his Debauchery, and tried earnestly to recover his old Friends Votes, but to no Purpose, One Circumstance was peculiar to myself, who, during this Interval, was walking in the back Walk of the College, or rather fitting down in one of the End Seats: This unhappy Man came to me there, and fell down on his Knees to me, confeffing that he had turned Debauchee for Preferment, as thinking that was the Way then to. it in Clare-Hall; but folemnly protesting, that if I would believe him, and give him my Vote, he would ever afterward become a fober Man, as he had been formerly. My Anfwer was fhort, but fuch as cut off all, his Hopes. • Sir, faid I, you have confeffed that you have facrificed your Inte-, grity to your Preferment, and thereby made it impoffible for me to ferve you.' After which, his oppofite Candidate, Mr. Troughton, was chofen, and he himself halted between Sobriety and Debau-, K

chery