hoods, and mifapplications of truths frequently vented in fermons, when they wrefted the Scripture by challenging God to be of their party, and called upon him in their prayers to patronize their facrilege and zealous phrenzies in this time", he did fo compassionate the generality of this mifled nation, that though the times threatened fuch an undertaking with danger; yet he then hazarded his fafety by writing the large and bold preface now extant before his laft 20 fermons, (firft printed in the dangerous year 1655), in which there was fuch ftrength of reason, with fo powerful and clear convincing applications made to the Non-conformists, as being read by one of thofe difsenting brethren, who was pofsefsed of a good fequeftered Living, and with it fuch a fpirit of covetoufnefs and contradiction, as being neither able to defend his error, nor yield to truth manifested (his confcience having flept long and quietly in that Living) was yet at the reading of it fo awakened (for there is a divine power in reafon), that after a conflict with the reafon he had met, and the damage he was ftill to fuftain, if he confented to it, and being ftill unwilling to be fo convinced, as to lofe by being overreafoned, he went in hafte to the bookfeller of whom it was bought, threatened him, and told him in anger, "he had fold 66 a book in which there was falfe divinity; and that the preface "had upbraided the Parliament, and many godly Ministers of "that party for unjuft dealing." To which his reply was "('twas Tim. Garthwaite"), that 'twas not his trade to judge "of true or falfe divinity, but to print and fell books; and yet "if he or any friend of his, would write an answer to it, and "own it by fetting his name to it, he would print the answer, and promote the felling of it."

About the time of his printing this excellent preface, I met him accidentally in London, in fad-coloured clothes, and God

Of the impious and infolent familiarity, with which the Preachers of thefe times addressed the Supreme Being, too many proofs are extant. One of these Preachers thus boldly expoftulates. "O Lord, when wilt "thou take a chair, and fit among the House of Peers? And when, O "God, when I fay, wilt thou vote among the honourable Houfe of Com"mons, who are fo zealous of thine honour?" Again, "Lord thou ha "faid, that he is worse than an infidel, that provides not for his own family. Give us not reason to say this of thee, Lord; for we are of thine own family, and yet have been fcurvily provided for of a long time." See many other inftances in "Scotch Prefbyterian Eloquence."

Several books which appeared at this time were printed for "Timothy Garthwaite, at the Little North door of St. Pauls." In 1660" The Gentleman's Calling" was published, with an epiftle addrefsed to Mr. Garthwaite, recommending an imprefsion of it dated, "Sarum, Oct. 27, 1659, your afsured friend, HUM. H."—that is Humphrey Hinchman, afterward Bishop of Salisbury, and then of London. To this induftrious bookfeller the literary world is obliged for the prefervation of the Letters of Mr. John Hales of Eton, written from the Synod of Port. See Mr. Faringdon's Ad drefs to Mr. Garthwaite, prefixed to "Golden Remains," 1673.

knows, far from being coftly: The place of our meeting was near to Little Britain, where he had been to buy a book, which he then had in his hand: We had no inclination to part prefently, and therefore turned to ftand in a corner under a penthoufe (for it began to rain) and immediately the wind rofe, and the rain increafed fo much, that both became fo inconvenient, as to force us into a cleanly houfe, where we had bread, cheefe, ale, and a fire for our ready money. The rain and wind were fo obliging to me, as to force our stay there for at least an hour, to my great content and advantage; for in that time he made to me many ufeful obfervations of the present times with much clearnefs and confcientious freedom. I fhall relate a part of them, in hope they may also turn to the advantage of my reader. He feemed to lament, that the Parliament had taken upon them to abolish our Liturgy, to the grief and scandal of fo many devout and learned men, and the difgrace of thofe many martyrs, who had fealed the truth and necefsary use of it with their blood: And that no Minifter was now thought godly that did not decry it; and, at leaft, pretend to make better prayers extempore: And that they, and only they that could do fo, prayed by the spirit, and were godly: though in their fermons they difputed, and evidently contradicted each other in their prayers. And as he did dislike this, fo he did moft highly commend the Common Prayer of the Church, faying, "The "Holy Ghost seemed to afsift the compofers; and that the ef"fect of a constant use of it would be, to melt and form the foul into holy thoughts and defires; and beget habits of de"votion." This he faid; and that "the Collects were the "most passionate, proper, and most elegant comprehenfive exprefsions that any language ever afforded; and that there was "in them fuch piety, and that, fo interwoven with inftructions, that they taught us to know the power, the wisdom, the ma"jefty, and mercy of God, and much of our duty both to him. "and our neighbour; and that a congregation behaving them"felves reverently, and putting up to God, thefe joint and known "defires for pardon of fins, and their praifes for mercies re"ceived, could not but be more pleafing to God, than those raw "unpremeditated exprefsions which many understood not, and "to which many of the hearers could not fay, Amen."

And he then commended to me the frequent use of the Pfalter or Pfalms of David, fpeaking to this purpose, "That they "were the treasury of Chriftian comfort, fitted for all perfons "and all necefsities, able to raise the foul from dejection by the "frequent mention of God's mercies to repentant finners; "able to ftir up holy defires; to increase joy; to moderate for"row; to nourish hope, and teach us patience, by waiting God's "leifure for what we beg: Able to beget a trust in the mercy, "power, and providence of our Creator; and to caufe a refigna"tion of ourselves to his will: and then (and not till then) to

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believe ourselves happy" This he faid the Liturgy and Pfalms taught us; and that by the frequent use of the laft they would not only prove to be our foul's comfort, but would become fo habitual, as to transform them into the image of his foul that compofed them. After this manner he expressed himfelf and forrow concerning the Liturgy and Pfalms; and feemed to lament that this, which was the devotion of the more primitive times, should in common pulpits be turned into needless debates about free-will, election, and reprobation, of which, and many like queftions, we may be fafely ignorant, because Almighty God intends not to lead us to heaven by hard questions, but by meeknefs and charity, and a frequent practice of devotion. And he feemed to lament very much, that by the means of irregular and indifcreet preaching, the generality of the nation were pofsefsed with fuch dangerous mistakes, as to think, "they "might be religious first, and then just and merciful; that they 66 might fell their confciences, and yet have fomething left that "was worth keeping; that they might be fure they were elected, "though their lives were vifibly fcandalous; that to be cunning "was to be wife; that to be rich was to be happy, though it is " evidently falfe; that to speak evil of government, and to be "bufy in things they understood not, was no fin." Thefe, and the like mistakes, he lamented much, and befought God to remove them, and reftore us to that humility, fincerity, and fingleheartedness, with which this nation was blefsed, before the unhappy covenant was brought amongst us, and every man preached and prayed what seemed best in his own eyes. And he then faid to me, "that the way to restore this nation to a more meek, t "and Christian temper, was to have the body of divinity (or "fo much of it as was needful to be known by the common "people) to be put into fifty-two homilies, or fermons of fucha 66 a length as not to exceed a third or fourth part of an hour's "reading; and thefe needful points to be made fo clear and "plain, that those of a mean capacity might know what was ne"cefsary to be believed, and what God requires to be done; "and then fome plain applications of trial and conviction: and "these to be read every Sunday of the year, as infallibly as the "blood circulates the body at a fet time; and then as certainly "begun again, and continued the year following P."

"The Pfalms," fays Dr. Donne (Donne's Sermons, Vol. I. p. 663.), are the Manna of the Church." As Manna talted to every man like that that he liked beft, so do the Pfalms minifter inttruction and fatisfac tion to every man in every emergency or occafion. How beautiful are the late Bishop Horne's fentiments on this fubject! Happier hours than those which have been spent in meditations on the fongs of Sion he never expects to see in this world; and he has justly remarked, that the Pfalms are calculated alike to profit and to please; they inform the understanding, elevate the affections, and entertain the imagination.

P Of the Homilies appointed to be read in Churches, it must be allowed, that they abound with ftrange phrafes, with obfolete and uncouth expref

And he explained the reafon of this his defire, by faying to me, "All grammar scholars that are often fhifted from one to "another fchool, learn neither fo much, nor their little fo truly, 6t as thofe that are conftant to one good mafter: because by the "feveral rules of teaching in thofe feveral fchools, they learn "lefs, and become more and more confufed; and, at laft, fo "puzzled and perplexed, that their learning proves useless both "to themselves and others. And fo do the immethodical, uselefs, needlefs, notions that are delivered in many fermons, "make the hearers; but a clear and constant rule of teaching "us what we are to know, and do, and what not, and that "taught us by an approved authority, might probably bring the "nation to a more confcientious practice of what we know, "and ought to do." Thus did this prudent man explain the reafon of this his defire: and oh! that he had undertaken what he advised; for then, in all probability, it would have proved fo ufeful, that the prefent age would have been blessed by it; and posterity would have blefsed him for it.

And at this happy time of my enjoying his company and this difcourfe, he exprefsed a forrow by faying to me, "O that I had ·66 gone Chaplain to that excellently accomplished gentleman, "your friend, Sir Henry Wotton! which was once intended when "he first went Ambassador to the State of Venice: for by that " employment I had been forced into a necefsity of converfing, "not with him only, but with several men of feveral nations; "and might thereby have kept myself from my unmanly bash"fulness, which has proved very troublesome, and not lefs incon"venient to me; and which I now fear is become fo habitual 66 as never to leave me : and befides, by that means, I might "alfo have known, or at least have had the satisfaction of fee"ing one of the late miracles of mankind, for general learning,

fons, with coarse and inappofite applications of Scripture; not to enumerate fome more efsential defects. And though an entire difsent may not be withheld from the declaration of an eminent Prelate, that "the second, third, fourth, and fifth Homilies exhibit an unexceptionable summary of "doctrine upon the important points which they tend to illustrate, and an "excellent model of composition for popular instruction ;” yet the profecution of the plan recommended by Dr. Sanderson, with the addition of fome difcourfes to be ufed on the festivals, cannot fail of being attended with the most beneficial consequences. The expediency of such a work will appear to be at this time more immediately necefsary, when we confider the recent introduction and too extenfive circulation of thofe miferable and motley difcourfes, which, under the direction of venal compilers, are fold at a low price, to supply the lazy and the ignorant.

"Is unus, quem et fateri pudet, pudor plufquam fubrufticus, et, quam facilè patior amicos, amoris quodam errore, modeftiam interpretari, in"virilis quædum verecundia.-Infuperabilis illa quidem, ut quam natura "infevit, formavit educatio, fovit hactenus atque etiamnum fovet tenuitatis "propriæ confcientia: Sed quâ tamen vix aliud comperi quidquam à pri"mâ pueritiâ ad hunc usque diem aut rationibus meis, aut exiftimationi "magis adverfarium.' (Oratio habita in Schold Theologicâ Oxon. à R. S. sacra Theologiæ, &c. 12. Oct. 1646.)

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'prudence, and modefty, Sir Henry Wotton's dear friend, Pa"dre Paulo, who, the author of his life fays, was born with a "bafhfulness as invincible as I have found my own to be: A 66 man whose fame must never die, till virtue and learning shall "become fo ufelefs as not to be regarded."

This was a part of the benefit I then had by that hour's converfation and I gladly remember and mention it, as an argument of my happiness, and his great humility and condefcenfion. I had also a like advantage by another happy conference with him, which I am defirous to impart in this place to the reader. He lamented much, that in those times of confusion in many parishes where the maintenance was not great, there was no Minister to officiate; and that many of the best fequeftered Livings were possessed with fuch rigid Covenanters as denied the facrament to their parishioners, unless upon fuch conditions, and in fuch a manner as they could not with a good confcience take it: This he mentioned with much forrow, faying, " The blef"fed facrament did, even by way of preparation for it, give oc"cafion to all confcientious receivers to examine the perform"ance of their vows, fince they received that last seal for the "pardon of their fins paft; and alfo to examine and research "their hearts, and make penitent reflections on their failings; "and, that done to bewail them seriously, and then make σε new vows or resolutions to obey all God's commands better, "and beg his grace to perform them. And that this being "faithfully done, then the facrament repairs the decays of grace, "helps us to conquer infirmities, gives us grace to beg God's grace, and then gives us what we beg; makes us still hunger " and thirst after his righteoufnefs, which we then receive, and "being afsifted with our own endeavours, will still so dwell in us, "as to become our fanctification in this life, and our comfort 66 on our last fick-beds." The want of this blefsed benefit he lamented much, and pitied their condition that defired, but could not obtain it.

I hope I fhall not difoblige my reader, if I here enlarge into a further character of his perfon and temper. As firft, that he was moderately tall; his behaviour had in it much of a plain comelinefs, and very little (yet enough) of ceremony or courtship; his looks and motion manifefted an endearing affability and mildnefs, and yet he had with thefe a calm and fo matchiefs a fortitude, as fecured him from complying with any of thofe many Parliamentary injunctions that interfered with a doubtful confcience. His learning was methodical and exact, his wisdom ufeful, his integrity vifible, and his whole life fo unfpotted, fo like the primitive Chriftians, that all ought to be preserved as copies for pofterity to write after, the Clergy efpecially, who with impure hands ought not to offer facrifice to that God whofe pure eyes abhor iniquity, and especially in them.

There was in his fermons no improper rhetoric, nor fuch perplexed divifions, as may be faid to be like too much light