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Show The AuTHOR's LIFE. VoL. I. 1.3, ' K' His Government, and even the 1688• ' quentiaUy and effeOually Ifl?ardsh t~! N~t~~n: 1 inueat you therefore to ' Peace and Settlement of this": 0 . M er to give fomewhat more ~ ' bear with me, if I endeavour m thl~d ban.~ a Tranfient Difcourfe, and 'Weight unto .my Words t~ab·~uthat ~e~uires your retired Confider:t' leave them wtth you as a u J .. ' tion. p ou have been fuppofed to have had • 'You are not ignorant that the ~rt yh without either the Tltle, or Ho- ' of late Years in Publrck .Affazrsb~ aug d that efpecially your avowed En~ • nour, or Profi.t of any Publrck. P·'~· :n General and ]nviolable Lrberry of ' deavours to mtroduce aj.fngft:R 01 have occafioned the JUijlakes of ' Confcunce in Matters of eer f zg't/'' 5 and in the End have r:ufed a~ ' fome Men, provoked theMaltct o ot er , have unworthily defamed you ' gainft you a Mult!tude of Enemru, who~ abhor. This I know you h.ave ' wnh fuch Imput~nons as Ilmhf~ri loubt you have not made fufficu:nt ' been fuffi.ctently. mformed 0 , t 0 f onr own lnnoctnce feems to me • Refleaion upon 1t: The C.nfetoufnefl o t y f fuch unjuft ond ill-grounded ' to have given you too great a C?n;emp d oReafonable for a truly virtuous ' Slanders: For _however G!on~mf,.tt tsd dn pon that Rock of Innocenu, to ' Mind whofe mward Peace ts oun e u h et even that Sublmnty of ' defpife the Empty Noife of Popular Re)loa£' 1 To be fteady and 1m· ' Spmt may fornenmrt fw.ell tof awer~d Hon~ft R~Joluttonr, by all honeft ' moveable in the Pro ~cu_tiOned .D ~ that admits of no Excepuon: But ' and prudent Means, IS mde . a 11 Y at the fame Time, there be alfo ' neverthelefs it oughtpno~ to.~md£.\tt;t:puta/lon. .A good Name, fays the ' a due Care raken of re ervmg a a a I It is a Perfume that recom' Wtfe Man, u better than. Preczom ''!tnJe:h~t procures him every where ' mends the Perfon who~ t~a~'t;~il\~:r~~sthe Succefs of all his Entcrprrzts : ' an eafie .AccepR.nc~, an though there were no other, I intreat you obferve, ' And fTobt t~at .~a o,A1 ti': Reputauon u an e§enrral Part of tbat veryflm~t ' that e are 0J a a b Pu .r. .r ~worthy Dejign. ' Duty that engages bzm zn t. e rJuzt.:~ ~nDeclamauon upon this General ·, ~~~~: I ~~ik;fi:Jsn::rt~~~P~~fen~~o yoe~f. ~~r~r~~~ti~~~~rz,m~~~e ;hc:i~ ' Imputattons whtch are call: upon your fi :na g thereb mo,·e you to la' Ev1dent Con1quendes; TtarS~~r~~ff~~~~illarifc~ ftom tle Ordrnary .Accefs ' bout after a erne Y• c C d" fuppofed to bave with Htm, : i~~ ;~evD~;;o,;~1~,:;Je"~h:~efo~~ Pe~~~eahea:re conce1ved of ~i:s ~~~enn~~ : f~~tl: ~;~e,;ei~et~Yss~~fi~~: .;,h~~~!t~~:!f~~~f~~£~'tf~1;o~~~~~~ ' in a Predomrnatrng uperrorrty over Part in the Couno/s of thts ' th~ Inferenfie fol~ob~ p!;;fo;:;;a~;/.r ~~~ ~~~t to have fa great a Part tn : Rezgn, ~u o~e:re\aid to have had, ~an happ_en to none but an Ahfolutt c ~ej; 3 Thar is the dl[ea Charge; but that IS not enough, your P.oft Jt & t~~~c~nfiderable for a Papift of an .ordinary ~arm, ftb! therefore ~ad ~~h , b Jefu1t. Nay to confirm that Suggefbon tt mu .. accompantc 1 ' all ~he Ctrcumfta~ces that may be~ gtve it an Au of Prob~btllty; as 1t 1~,~ ' you have beeo bred at St. Omers 1n the Jef;~ttt Colledge, th~~ you 13 d 'taken Orders at Rome, and there obtain~d a Difpe'f.(a~n.to I (/rg{e~~a~ ' that you have fince then frequently oftktate~ as~ rp~ , tn t~e d thiS be· 'tionofthe Mafl':tt Whltelhtll, Sr. Jame.s's, :tn oftt er aces. WI foever ' · dmitted nothing can be too black to be ca upon you. tat , ' ~~~~~ou ht a~ifs either in Church or State, tho' never fo contr:try to)~~! ' Ad ·ce gis boldly attributed to a, and if other Proofs f:ul, the Sen~ r , it felf ~uft be brought in to confirm, That whofr;ever offcnd~s tn on(j01(0~~ , (in a p0101 efpec1ally fo elfentiat as that of our too much :tffeS:cd f Pope .. ' mny) u Gutlry of the Breacb of aU our Lavu. Thus the Cha1g~ o1 • ' r draws after it a Taillike the EtCetera Oath, and by _endle s n'F~~~ ~ fo's, prejudicates you as guilty of whatfoever Malice c:J.n tm•ent: b:he\'t/: VoL. I. 'Ihe AUTHOR's LI FE. ' believe: Bur that Charge therefore being removed, the Inferences that are 1688. ' drawn from it will vanifh, and your Reputation will eafily remrn tofts ~ ' former Brightnefs. ' Now thor I mly the more cffetlually perf wade you to opply fome Re' medy to this Difeafe, I befeech you, Sir, (uffer tne to lay befor~ you fome ' of irs pernicious Confequences. It is not a trifling Matter for a Perfon ' raifed, as you are, above the common Level, to lie under the frej11dict ~ of fo Genera/a .Mi/l.a.Re, in fo important a Matter. The General and the ' Long Prevalency of any Opinion gives it a Strength, efpecially among the ' Vulgar, that is not eafily (haken. And as it happens that you have alfo ' :Enemies of an higher Rank, who will be ready to improve fuch Popular ' lHiflukes, by all Sons of MaliciotH .Artifices: It mufl be taken for Grant' ed that thofe F.rrors will be thereby fiill more confirmed, and the Incon· ' venicncies that may arife from thence no lefs increafed. This, Sir, I 'alfure you, is a melancholy Profpect to_your Friends, for we kuow you ' have fuch Enemies. The Defign of fo Univerfal a Liberty of ConJcience ' as your Principles have led you to promote, has offended many of rhofe ' whofe lnterefr is to crofs it: I need not tell you how many and how Pow~ ' erful they are: Nor can I tell you, either how far, or by wh.at Ways and ' Means they may endeavour to execute their Revenge. But this however ' I mutt needs te11 you, that in your prefent Circumftances, there is fuffici· ' enr Ground for fo much ]et~!oufie at leaft, as ought to excite you to ufe : t~~ Pre~a111ion of fome PublicA: Vindication. This the Tendernifs of lnendjhrp prompts fOUr Frl~nds to defire of you ; and this the Jufl : Se11fe of your Honour, which true Religion does not extinguilb, requires , you to execute. ' P.ardon, I entreat you. Sir, the Earneftmifs of thefe Expreffions 5 nay,~ ' fuffer me, without Offence, to expoitulate wlth you yet a little farther. ' I am fearful left thefe Perfonal Conjiderations lhoqld not have their due ' Weight with you, and therefore I cannot omit to refl.e8:: alfo upon forne ' more general Ccnfequences of your P11rticu!ar Reproach. I have faid it ' alrea.dy1 That the King, His Honour, His Government, and even the ' Peace and Settlement of this whole Nation, either are, or have been con· ' cerned in this Ma~ter: Your Rtplltation, as you are faid to have rncdled in ' Publick Affairs, has been of Publick Concernment. The promoting a ' General Liberty of Confcienu having been your Particular Province; the ' Afperfion of Popery and ]efuirifm, that has- ~en caft upon you, has re· ' fleeted upon His M~zjejly, for having made ufe, in that Affair of fo dif- ' guifed a Perfonage as you are fupP.ofi:d to have been. It ha~ weakened ' the Force of a11 your Endeavours, obfiruEl:ed their Effea, and contributed ' greatly to difappoint this poor Nation of that inefiirnable Happinefs, and ' fecure Eftabli(})ment, which I am perf waded you defigried, and which ' all Good and Wife Men agree, that a juft and inviolable Liberty of Con- ' fcience would infal1ibly produce. I heartily wi(h this Confideration h:1d ' been fooner laid to Heart, and that fome dcmonfirative Evidence of your ' Sincerity in the Profeffion you make, had accompanied all your Ende_a .. ' vours for Liberty. ' But what do I fay, or what do I wi(h for? I confers that I am now ' firuck with Aftonilhment at that abundant Evidence wltich I know you ' have,conftantly given, of the Oppofition of your Principles to thofe of ' the Rom~fh Cburcb, and at the little Regard there has been had to it. If ' an open P_rofeffion of the diretl;efi Oppojirion agail)ft Popqy, that has ever ' app~a~ed. In the World, ftqce Popery was firfi: diftinguifhed from Common ' Cbrijltamty, would ferve the Turn ; this cannot be denied to ::tll thofe of ' that Society, with which you are joyned in the Duties of Rt!tgioTH Wor' jhip. If to ha~re. tnaiotained the Pri,nciplcs of that Socie,ry, by frequent ' an_d fervent D1fcourfes, by many elaborate Writings, by fuffering Igno· ' mmy, Imprifonmenr, ;tnd other manifold Difadvamages 10 Defence there .. ' of, c::~n be admitted as any Proof of your Sincere Adherence thereun~o ~ ' this, it is evident to the World vou have done already: Nay farther, if · :to |
