more editions, than why it fhould have fo many. Having thus endeavoured to satisfy the curious with fome account of this author's character, let us examine what might probably be the motives to engage him in fuch a work. I fhall fay nothing of the principal, which is a fum of money; because that is not a mark to diftinguish him from any other trader with the press. I will fay nothing of revenge and malice, from refentment of the indignities and contempt he hath undergone for his crime of apoftacy. To this paflion he has thought fit to facrifife order, propriety, difcretion, and common-fenfe, as may be feen in every page of his book: But, Í am deceived, if there were not a third motive as powerful as the other two; and that is, vanity. About the latter end of king James's reign he had almost finished a learned difcourfe in defence of the church of Rome, and to justify his conversion: All which, upon the revolution, was quite out of feafon. Having thus proftituted his reputation, and at once ruined. his hopes, he had no course left, but to fhew his fpite against religion in general; the falfe pretenfions to which, had proved fo deftructive to his credit and fortune: And, at the fame time, loth to employ the fpeculations of fo many years to no purpofe; by an easy turn, the fame arguments he had made ufe of to advance popery, were full as properly levelled by him against Chriftianity itself; like the image, which, while it was new and handsome, was worshiped for a faint, and when it came to be old and broken, was ftill good enough to make a tolerable devil. And, therefore every reader will observe, that the arguments for popery are much the strongest of any in his Book, as I fhall further remark when I find them in my way. There is one circumftance in his titlepage, which I take to be not amifs, where he calleth his book, Part the Firft. This is a project to fright away anfwerers, and. make the poor advocates for religion believe, he ftill keepeth further vengeance in petto. It must be allowed, he hath not wholely loft time, while he was of the Romish Communion. This very trick he he learned from his old father, the pope; whofe cuftom it is to lift up his hand, and threaten to fulminate, when he never meant to fhoot his bolts; because the princes of Christendom had learned the fecret to avoid or despise them. Dr. Hicks knew this very well, and therefore, in his Anfwer to this Book of the Rights, where a fecond Part is threatened, like a rafh perfon he desperately crieth, Let it come. But I, who have not too much flame to provoke angry wits of his ftandard, muft tell the author, that the doctor plays the wag, as if he were fure, it were all grimace. For my part, I declare, if he writeth a second part, I will not write another answer; or, if I do, it shall be published, before the other part cometh out. There may have been another motive, although it be hardly credible, both for publishing this work, and threatening a fecond part: It is not foon conceived how far the fenfe of a man's vanity will tranfport him. This man must have somewhere heard, that dangerous enemies have been often bribed to filence with money or or preferment: And, therefore,. to fhew how formidable he is, he hath published his firft effay; and, in hopes of hire to be quiet, hath frighted us with his defign of another. What muft the clergy do in thefe unhappy circumstances? If they fhould beftow this man bread enough to ftop his mouth, it will but open those of a hundred more, who are every whit as well qualified to rail as he. And truly, when I compare the former enemies to Christianity, fuch as Socinus, Hobbes, and Spinofa, with fuch of their fucceffors, as Toland, Afgil, Coward, Gildon, this author of the Rights, and fome others; the church appeareth to me like the fick old lion in the fable, who, after having his perfon outraged by the bull, the elephant, the horse, and the bear, took nothing fo much to heart, as to find himself at last infulted by the spurn of an ass. I will now add a few words to give the reader-some general notion of the nature and tendency of the work itself. I think I may affert, without the leaft partiality, that it is a treatife wholely devoid of wit or learning, under the most violent violent and weak endeavours and pretences to both. That it is replenished throughout with bold, rude, improbable falfhoods, and grofs mifinterpretations; and fupported by the moft impudent fophiftry and false logic I have any where obferved. To this he hath added a paultry, traditional cant of prief-rid and prief-craft, without reafon or pretext as he applieth it. And when he raileth at those doctrines in popery (which no proteftant was ever fuppofed to believe) he leads the reader, however, by the hand, to make applications against the English clergy, and then he never faileth to triumph, as if he had made a very shrewd and notable ftroke. And because the court and kingdom feemeth disposed to moderation with regard to diffenters, more perhaps than is agreeable to the hot unreasonable temper of fome mistaken men among us; therefore under the fhelter of that popular opinion, he ridiculeth all that is found in religion, even Chriftianity itself, under the Names of Jacobite, Tackers, High-Church, and other terms of factious jargon. All which, if |