clearness in his ftating the questions, and his anfwers to them, that his Majefty commanded him to bestow fome time in drawing the arguments into a method, and then to write his anfwers to them; and having done that, not to fend but be his own messenger and bring them to him. To this he presently and diligently applied himself, and within fix weeks brought them to him, under his own hand-writing, as they be now printed; the book bearing the name of "Pfeudo-Martyr ", printed anno 1610. X When the King had read and confidered that book, he perfuaded Mr. Donne to enter into the ministry; to which at that time he was, and appeared, very unwilling, apprehending it (fuch was his mistaken modefty) to be too weighty for his abilities and though his Majefty had promifed him a favour, and many perfons of worth mediated with his Majefty for fome fecular employment for him (to which his education had apted him), and particularly the Earl of Somerfet, when in his greateft height of favour; who being then at Theobald's * with the King, where one of the clerks of the council died that night; the Earl pofted a mefsenger for Mr. Donne to come to him immediately, and, at Mr. Donne's coming, faid, "Mr. Donne, to "teftify the reality of my affection, and my purpose to prefer 66 you, ftay in this garden till I go up to the King and bring you "word that you are clerk of the council: doubt not my doing this, for I know the King loves you, and know the King will not deny "me."-But the King gave a pofitive denial to all requests; and, having a difcerning fpirit, replied, "I know Mr. Donne is a learned man, has the abilities of a learned divine, and will prove a "powerful preacher, and my defire is to prefer him that way, "and in that way I will deny you nothing for him." After that time, as he profefseth in his Book of Devotions, "The "King defcended to a perfuafion, almost to a folicitation, of him to enter into facred orders ";" which though he then u "Wherein this conclufion is evicted, that those who are of the Roman religion in this kingdom, may or ought to take the oath of allegi ance, 1610." In this year Dr. Donne was incorporated M. A. in the University of Oxford, having already been admitted to that degree at Cambridge. 66 66 * The houfe at Theobald's, near Waltham in Efsex, was built by the Lord High Treasurer Burghley, in the reign of Elizabeth. A place, than which, as to the fabric, nothing can be more neat, and as to the gardens, walks, and wildernesses about it, nothing can be more plea"fant," James I. was fo much delighted with its fituation, that he gave the manor of Hatfield Regis in exchange for it to Lord Cecil, afterward created Earl of Salisbury. He died at this his favourite palace, March 27, 1627. This noble and beautiful édifice was plundered and deftroyed by the Rebels in 1651. y Walton probably alludes to the following pafsage in the dedication of Donne's Book of Devotions. "To the most excellent Prince, Prince "Charles. denied not, yet he deferred it for almoft three years 2. All which time he applied himself to an incefsant study of textual divinity, and to the attainment of a greater perfection in the learned languages, Greek and Hebrew. In the first and most blessed times of Chriftianity, when the clergy were looked upon with reverence, and deferved it, when they overcame their oppofers by high examples of virtue, by a blefsed patience and long-fuffering; thofe only were then judged worthy the ministry, whose quiet and meek spirits did make them look upon that facred calling with an humble adoration and fear to undertake it; which indeed requires fuch great degrees of humility, and labour, and care, that none but fuch were then thought worthy of that celeftial dignity; and fuch only were then fought out, and folicited to undertake it. This I have mentioned, becaufe forwardnefs and inconfideration could not in Mr. Donne, as in many others, be an argument of infufficiency or unfitnefs; for he had confidered long, and had many ftrifes within himself, concerning the ftrictness of life and competency of learning required in fuch as enter into facred orders; and doubtlefs, confidering his own demerits, did humbly afk God with St. Paul, Lord, who is fufficient for "these things?" and with meek Mofes, "Lord, who am I?" And fure, if he had confulted with flesh and blood, he had not for these reafons put his hand to that holy plough. But God, who is able to prevail, wrestled with him as the Angel did with Jacob, and marked him; marked him for his owna; marked him with a blessing, a blefsing of obedience to the motions of his blefsed fpirit. And then, as he had formerly asked God with Mofes, "Who am I?" fo now, being infpired with an apprehenfion of God's particular mercy to him in the King's and others' folicitations of him, he came to ask King David's thankful queftion, "Lord, who am I, that thou art fo mindful of me?" So "Charles. Moft excellent Prince, I have had three births; one natu"ral, when I came into the world; one fupernatural, when I entered "into the miniftry; and now a preternatural birth in returning to life "from this ficknefs: in my fecond birth your Highnesse's royal father "vouchfafed mee his hand, not onely to fuftaine me in it, but to lead me to it." 2 Mr. Granger quotes a passage from Dr. Barwick's Life of Bishop Morton, relating to Donne, that he (Barwick) faw a portrait of Donne at Lincoln's Inn, all enveloped with a darkish fhadow, his face and features hardly difcernible, with this ejaculation and with written thereon: "Domine, illumina tenebras meas;" and that this with was afterward accomplished, when at the perfuafion of King James he entered into holy orders. (Biogr. Hist. vol. II.) a Is this the origin of Gray's beautiful exprefsion in his " Elegy in a Country Church-yard?" "And melancholy mark'd him for her own." D mindful of me, as to lead me for more than forty years through this wilderness of the many temptations and various turnings of a dangerous life; fo merciful to me, as to move the learnedeft of kings to defcend to move me to ferve at the altar; so merciful to me, as at laft to move my heart to embrace this holy motion:-Thy motions I will and do embrace :-And now I fay with the blefsed Virgin, "Be it with thy fervant as feemeth "best in thy fight;" and fo, blefsed Jefus, I do take the cup of falvation, and will call upon thy name, and will preach thy gofpel. C Such ftrifes as these St. Austin had, when St. Ambrofed endeavoured his converfion to Chriftianity, with which he confefsed he acquainted his friend Alipius. Our learned author (a man fit to write after no mean copy) did the like. And declaring his intentions to his dear friend Dr. King, then Bishop of London, a man famous in his generation, and no stranger to Mr. Donne's abilities,-(for he had been chaplain to the Lord Chancellor, at the time of Mr. Donne's being his Lordship's fecretary); that reverend man did receive the news with much gladnefs; and, after fome exprefsions of joy, and a persuasion to be conftant in his pious purpofe, he proceeded with all convenient fpeed, to ordain him first deacon, and then priest not long after. b Thefe juft and exquifitely beautiful reflections affix infinite credit equally to Dr. Donne and to his Biographer. Is it not devoutly to be wifhed that they were deeply imprinted on the minds of every candidate for holy orders? AUGUSTIN, the famous Bishop of Hippo, and ufually called "the great Doctor of Africa," was born in 359, and died in 430. The carelefsness and levity of the earlier period of his life were in fome measure compenfated by the unbounded charity, the piety and zeal which he difplayed after his converfion to the true faith. This converfion is attributed partly to the affecting difcourfes of St. Ambrofe, whofe lectures he was induced to attend through mere curiofity, and partly to the tears and tender entreaties of his mother Monica. He hath fo freely acknowledged and cenfured the impropriety of his former con duct, in his books of Confefsions, that it is justly deemed " tyanny "to trample on him that proftrates himself." Erafmus, who hath written his life, exhibits him as the most finished pattern of goodness"quafi Deus voluerit in Auguftino tanquam in una tabula vividum quoddam exemplar Epifcopi repræfentare omnibus virtutum numeris abfolutum.” d Bishop of Milan, from the perfuafive powers of his eloquence, and the charming sweetnefs of his language, called "the Mellifluous Doctor." The effects which his difcourfes produced on St. Auguftin are described in Confessionum, lib. v. cap. 14. • He had bid farewel to poetry the year before; his laft poem being written upon the death of Lord Harrington, a nobleman of extraordimary piety and learning. Now the English Church had gained a fecond St. Austin, for I think none was fo like him before his converfion; none fo like St. Ambrofe after it: And if his youth had the infirmities of the one, his age had the excellencies of the other; the learning and holiness of both. And now all his studies, which had been occafionally diffused, were all concentred in divinity. Now he had a new calling, new thoughts, and a new employment for his wit and eloquence. Now all his earthly affections were changed into divine love; and all the faculties of his own foul were engaged in the conversion of others;-in preaching the glad tidings of remifsion to repenting finners, and peace to each troubled foul. To these he applied himself with all care and diligence: And now fuch a change was wrought in him that he could fay with David, "O how amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord God of "Hofts!" Now he declared openly, "That when he required "a temporal, God gave him a fpiritual blefsing." And that "He was now gladder to be a door-keeper in the house of God, "than he could be to enjoy the noblest of all temporal em"ployments." Presently after he entered into his holy profefsion, the King fent for him, and made him his Chaplain in Ordinary, and promised to take a particular care for his preferment. And though his long familiarity with scholars and perfons of greatest quality was fuch as might have given fome men boldnefs enough to have preached to any eminent auditory; yet his modesty in this employment was fuch that he could not be perfuaded to it, but went ufually accompanied with fome one friend, to preach privately in fome village not far from London; his first fermon being preached at Paddington: This he did till his Majesty sent and appointed him a day to preach to him at Whitehall; and though much was expected from him, both by his Majefty and others, yet he was fo happy (which few are) as to fatisfy and exceed their expectations; preaching the word so as fhowed his own heart was possessed with those very thoughts and joys that he laboured to distil into others: A preacher in earneft, weeping fometimes for his auditory, fometimes with them; always preaching to himself like an angel from a cloud, but in none; carrying fome, as St. Paul was, to heaven in holy raptures, and enticing others by a facred art and courtship to amend their lives: Here picturing a vice fo as to make it ugly to those that practifed it, and a virtue fo as to make it be beloved even by those that loved it not, and all this with a most particular grace and an inexpressible addition of comeliness. There may be fome that may incline to think (such indeed as have not heard him), that my affection to my friend hath tranfported me to an immoderate commendation of his preaching: If this meets with any such, let me intreat, though I will omit many, yet that they will receive a double witness for what I fay, it being attested by a gentleman of worth (Mr. Chidleyf,a frequent hearer of his fermons), in part of a funeral elegy wrote by him on Dr. Donne; and is a known truth though it be in verfe. Each altar had his fire He kept his love but not his object. Wit Taught it both time and place, and brought it home To PIETY, which it doth beft become. For fay, had ever pleafure fuch a dress? Have you feen crimes fo fhap'd, or loveliness So near the danger of becoming good. And when he preach'd the wifh'd her ears exempt How did bis facred flattery beguile Men to amend? More of this, and more witnefses might be brought, but I forbear and returns. f Rather Mr. Chudleigh:-JOHN CHUDLEIGH, M. A. of Wadham College in Oxford, and the eldest fon of Sir George Chudleigh, Bart. of Alfton in Devonshire. " The character of Dr. Donne's Sermons is faithfully delineated by his fon in the Dedication of them to Charles I. They who have been "converfant in the works of the holieft men of all times, cannot but " acknowledge in these the fame fpirit with which they writ; reason"able demonftrations every where in the fubjects comprehenfible by reafon: As for thofe things which cannot be comprehended by our "reafon alone, they are no where made easier to faith than here; and "for the other part of our nature, which consists in our pafsions and in τε our affections, they are here raised and laid, and governed and dif "pofed, in a manner, according to the will of the author. The doc"trine itself which is taught here is primitively Chrifiian; the Fathers are every where confulted with reverence, but apoftolical writings only "appealed to as the laft Rule of Faith. Laftly, fuch is the conjuncture "here of zeal and difcretion, that whilft it is the main fcope of the "author in thefe Difcourfes, that glory be given to God, this is accom"panied every where with a fcrupulous care and endeavour, that peace "be likewife fettled amongst men." The two following extracts will enable the reader to form a judgment of Dr. Donne's fiyle and mode of writing: "It is not enough not to trust in flesh, but thou must trust in. "that that is fpirit. And when thou art to direct thy truft upon him "who is fpirit, the spirit of power and of confolation, ftop not, firay "not, divert not upon evill fpirits to feeke advancement or to feeke "knowledge from them, nor upon good fpirits, the glorious faints of "God in heaven, to feeke falvation from them, nor upon thine own "fpirit, in an over-valuation of thy purity or thy merits. For there is a peftilent pride in an imaginary humility, and an infectious foulenesse |