cut off according to the common course of things, or hurried out of the world by the violence of wicked men, still we are fully persuaded it shall be well, They may destroy but they cannot hurt us. They will only send us to our incorruptible, undefiled, and unfading inheritance, a little before the time allotted by the course of nature.

It is our determination, therefore, to adhere to the Bible, and the truths therein contained, at the risk of every thing that is held dear among men. We have counted the cost, and hesitate not a moment in saying, it is our glory and joy; dearer to us than thousands of gold and silver.

"I swear, and from my solemn oath

Will never start aside,

That in God's righteous judgments I
Will stedfastly abide.

The world's contempt of his commands

But makes their value rise

In my esteem, who purest gold

Compared with them despise."

Sincerely pitying, and ardently praying for, the whole generation of those unhappy persons, who have forsaken the only fountain of living waters, and hewn out to themselves broken cisterns that can hold no water; with the great Bacon we declare, "There was never found in any age of the world, either philosophy, or sect, or religion, or law, or discipline, which did so highly exalt the public good as the Christian faith." With Brown, "We assume the honourable stile of Christian, not because it is the religion of our country, but because, having, in our riper years and confirmed judgment, seen and examined all, we find ourselves obliged by the principles of grace, and the law of our own reason, to embrace no other name but this, being of the same belief our Saviour taught, the apostles disseminated, the fathers authorised, and the martyrs confirmed." With Mirandula, we rest in the Bible "as the only book,

evil come upon us? If any person approves not of religion and its ministers, he is at perfect liberty, to decline paying them any attention. He may think and act according to his own pleasure. Why then

Second's time, there were upwards of 2000. clergymen, whe sacrificed their interest to principle.

Bigotry and persecution generally defeat their own purposes! What a consequence did not this sad measure give to the dissent. ing interest in England? The same foolish game was played by the bishops and clergy in the present century. Instead of encou raging moderating, and regulating the zeal of a few pious young men, in Oxford, by gentle and lenient measures, they shut their churches against them, and compelled them to go out into the highways and hedges to preach to those who were inclined to hear them; and though they were then but a small band, they are now become a goodly company, and have already overspread England, Scotland, Ireland, America, and the West Indies.-All this weight, too, is thrown into the dissenting scale! A few more such imprudent measures, and down goes mother church!

We have spoken of pluralities and non-residence. The former, in all cases, implies the latter. We scarcely ever read an account of deaths in the periodical publications, but we find an account of one or more instances of this nature. The poet Mason, though a worthy man, and a character highly respectable, accumulated several preferments in the church. And it is well known to be the custom of great numbers of the clergy in the establishment, to procure as many as their interest will reach. This we call good management, prudent foresight, taking care for a family, and the like. If there be no God, it is all very well

But if we are accountable creatures, and are to exist in a future state, our present trading in livings and souls will not yield us satisfaction another day. It is popery, rank popery, the worst part of popery, under the highest pretensions of being the most pure and reformed part of Christ's church. Burnet shewed a great deal of disinterested integrity, by vehemently exclaiming against pluralities, as a most sacrilegious robbery. And in his first visitation at Salisbury, he urged the authority of Bernard, who being consulted by one of his followers, whether he might accept of two benefices, repli ed—And how will you be able to serve them both? I intend, an swered the priest, to officiate in one of them by a deputy. Will your deputy be damned for you too? cried the saint. Believe me, you may serve your cure by proxy, but you must be damned in person. This expression so affected Kelsey, a pious and worthy clergyman then present, that he immediately resigned the rectory of Bemerton in Berkshire, worth 200 pounds a year, which he

then held with one of greater value.

should any man desire to see this land involved in a destruction so complete? Be assured, whenever it comes it will be promiscuous. The generation then living will be, in every temporal sense at least, to

All the bulk of church-preferment, in this country, is engrossed by about one thousand clergymen out of the eighteen thousand. Whereas, the emoluments of the establishment are capable of providing for 10.000 persons in a very comfortable way, by abolishing pluralities, without disturbing the present order of things. Let every bishop retire within his diocese, and dwell among his clergy, as a father in his family. Let every clergyman reside upon his living, superintending his people, as a shepherd his flock. And let no man be promoted to the first livings in the kingdom, merely because he is related to or connected with some great personage; but let the most active, useful, and laborious ministers, especially when the infirmities of age come on, be accounted worthy of double honour, by being rewarded for their extraordinary services with the best livings the country affords.

But all this is visionary. It is a plausible theory, but never will be reduced to practice. I think it might be well for the great body of the poor rectors, vicars, and curates of the country, to petition government to take their distressed circumstances into consideration. If it had no other effect, it would call the attention of the public to the horrible monopolies of preferments which prevail among the bishops and higher orders of the clergy. I would recommend that committees should be formed in every district through England and Wales, to correspond with a grand and superintending committee in London. Let them investigate the business of church preferments thoroughly, and drag to broad day-light all the great offenders in this pretended spiritual com

merce.

Out of the 18,000 clergymen belonging to the establishment of this country, there are several hundreds of zealous and lively men, and the number is much upon the increase, who, properly speaking, are the only true members of the church of England. They believe, and preach, and live by her doctrines. These conscientious men, however, are almost universally dubbed Methodists, in contempt, by the majority both of bishops and clergy. This is shameful treatment. Those " downy doctors, that recumbent virtues preach,'

," who will swear any thing, and subscribe any thing, no matter whether they believe it or not, for the sake of a good bishoprick, a fat rectory, are among the first to exclaim against their more zealous, useful, and pious brethren.---Master, 30 saying, and so doing, thou condemnest us. Woe unto you. ye scribes,. phurisees, bypocrites! for ye shut the kingdom of heaven against men:

wherein is found true eloquence and wisdom." With Robinson, we say, "The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, contain a system of human nature, the grandest, the most extensive and complete, that ever was divulged to mankind since the foundation of nature." With Grew, we profess, that "The Bible contains the laws of God's kingdom in this lower world, and that religion is so far from being inconsistent with philosophy, that it is the highest point and perfection of it." With Hartley, we say, that "No writers, from the invention of letters to the present times, are equal to the penmen of the books of the Old and New Testaments, in true excellence, utility, and dignity." With Boileau, we say, "Every word and syllable of the Bible ought to be adored: it not only cannot be enough admired, but it cannot be too much admired." With Hale, we are clearly of opinion, "There is no book like the Bible, for excellent learning, wisdom, and use." With Boyle, we consider it as "A matchless volume," and believe that "It is impossible we can study it too much, or esteem it too highly."(4) With Newton, "We account the Scriptures of God to be of the most sublime philosophy." With Milton, we are of opinion "There are no songs comparable to the songs of Sion, no orations equal to those of the prophets, and no politics like those which the Scriptures teach." With Rousseau, every ingenuous man may say, “I

(4) This philosopher says, " Deists must, to maintain their negative creed, swallow greater improbabilities, than Christians, to maintain the positive creed of the apostles. And they must think it fitter to believe, that chance, or nature, or superstition, should perform wonderful, and hardly credible things, than that the great author of nature, God, should be able to do so."

John, earl of Orrery, relation to Boyle, was a lover of truth even to adoration. "He was a real Christian, and, as such, he constantly hoped for a better life, there trusting to know the real causes of those effects, which here struck him with wonder, but not with doubt."

must confess to you, that the majesty of the Scriptures astonishes me, and the holiness of the evangelists speaks to my heart, and has such strong and striking characters of truth, and is moreover so perfectly inimitable, that if it had been the invention of men, the inventors would be greater than the greatest heroes. With Selden, after having taken a deliberate survey of all the learning among the ancients, we solemnly profess, "There is no book in the universe, upon which we can rest our souls, in a dying moment, but the Bible." And we therefore boldly declare,. before the face of all the unbelieving and disobedient world, in the words of Chillingworth, "Propose to me any thing out of the Bible, and require whether I believe it or no; and seem it never so incomprehensible to human reason, I will subscribe it with hand and heart; as knowing no demonstration can be stronger than this-God hath said so, therefore, it is true." And may we not, finally, exhort and admonish the sceptical reader in the glowing language of Young?

Retire, and read thy Bible, to be gay.

There truths abound of sovereign aid to peace:
Ah! do not prize them less, because inspir'd,
As thou, and thine, are apt and proud to do.
If not inspir'd, that pregnant page had stood
Time's treasure! and the wonder of the wise!"

We treat all your stale cavils, which have been a hundred times repeated, and a thousand times confuted, with the contempt they deserve, and say with the royal psalmist," The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple: the statutes of Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes: the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether; more to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine