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AN 


HISTORICAL  ACCOUNT 


OF 

MY  OWN    LIFE, 

WITH    SOME 

REFLECTIONS  ON  THE  TIMES  I  HAVE  LIVED  IN. 

(1671—1731.) 
BY  EDMUND  CALAMY,  D.D. 


NOW  FIRST  PRINTED. 


EDITED   AND    ILLUSTRATED 

WITH  NOTES,  HISTORICAL  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL, 
BY  JOHN  TOWILL  RUTT. 

IN  TWO  VOLUMES. 
VOL.  I. 


LONDON: 

HENRY  COLBURN  AND  RICHARD  BENTLEY, 

NEW  BURLINGTON  STREET. 

1829. 


LONDON  I 
PRINTED    BY    SAMUEL    BENTLEY, 

Dorsr t  Strcpt.  Fleet  Street. 


19MAR'84 


PREFACE. 


DR.  CALAMY  has  been  long  distinguished  by  his 
Defences  of  English  Protestant  Nonconformity,  and 
by  his  very  interesting  biographies  of  Nonconformists. 
The  Historical  Account  of  his  Life  and  Times,  now 
first  printed,  is  taken  from  a  copy  of  his  autograph 
which  had  remained  in  the  family  of  Sir  Walter 
Stirling,  Bart,  for  more  than  half  a  century. 

Of  the  existence  of  another  copy,  in  the  possession 
of  the  Author's  immediate  family,  I  was  informed, 
several  years  since,  by  the  late  Edmund  Calamy, 
Esq.  whose  son,  the  Rev.  Michael  Calamy,  at  my  re 
quest,  has  favoured  me  with  the  use  of  it ;  though  he 
is  not,  in  the  least,  responsible  for  this  publication. 

Both  MSS.  were,  no  doubt,  correct  and  early 
copies  of  the  Author's  autograph.  Mr.  Calamy's 
MS.  (which  is  in  complete  preservation,)  was  col 
lated  with  the  original  by  the  Author's  son,  the 
Rev.  Edmund  Calamy,  who  died  in  1755.  Sir 
Walter  Stirling's  MS.  has  every  appearance  of  hav 
ing  been  as  early  a  copy. 


IV  PREFACE. 

After  a  minute  comparison  of  these  MSS.  I  have 
found  a  very  exact  verbal  agreement.  Yet  I  am 
greatly  indebted  to  the  liberal  courtesy  of  Mr. 
Calamy,  whose  copy  has  enabled  me  to  supply  seve 
ral  deficiencies  ;  and  thus  to  complete  the  Histori 
cal  Account,  as  left,  in  1731,  by  his  pious  and  learn 
ed  ancestor. 

In  fulfilling  what  may  be  not  unjustly  regarded 
as  Dr.  Calamy's  purpose,  I  have  endeavoured  to  ex 
ercise  a  discretion  peculiarly  requisite  on  a  work 
of  so  much  variety,  and  which  concludes  abruptly, 
when  the  author's  rapidly  declining  health  forbade 
the  obvious  advantage  of  his  revisal.  I  have,  in  the 
notes,  (while  occasionally  correcting,  though  more 
frequently  confirming  and  illustrating  the  Historical 
Account,)  availed  myself  of  that  "  true  liberty,"  to 
the  exercise  of  which,  all  the  great  interests  of  man 
kind  have  been  largely  indebted,  and  which  Milton, 
after  Euripides,  has  asserted  for  "  free-born  men," 
that  they  "  may  speak  free :"  yet  I  have  not,  I 
trust,  in  any  instance,  designedly  separated  those 
congenial  associates,  Truth  and  Freedom. 

J.  T.  R. 

Clapton,  Oct.  22,  1829. 


CONTENTS 
OF  THE  FIRST  VOLUME. 


INTRODUCTION.— 1—51 . 

EPISTLES.  Erasmus.  Melancthon.  Grotius  Thuanus.  Ca- 
saubon.  Calvin.  Lives.  Father  Paul.  Christian  Fathers. 
Forgeries.  Tacitus.  Agricola.  Caesar.  Britain.  Augustus. 
Tiberius.  Marcus  Antoninus.  Josephus.  Gregory.  Austin. 
Cardan.  Vanini.  Thuanus.  -ZEneas  Sylvius.  Scaligers. 
Francis  Junius.  Schultetus.  Synod  of  Dort.  John  Hales. 
Huetius.  Bochart.  Bassompierre.  Rohan.  Montluc.  Mon 
taigne.  Bayle.  Giraldus.  Castalio.  Machiavel.  Commines. 
Buchanan.  Melviil.  Bishop  Hall.  Forbes.  Bishop  Parker. 
Baxter.  Burnet.  Hearne.  Bodley.  Wallis.  Temple.  Scorn- 
berg.  Author's  Autobiography. 

CHAPTER  I. 

1671—1686. 

OF  my  family  and  parentage  ;  birth  and  education  ;  until 
the  time  of  my  entrance  upon  academical  studies ;  with 
an  addition  of  some  passages  relating  to  the  court  and 
ministry,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  reign  of  King 
Charles  II.  52—132. 

Family  from  Normandy.  Edmund  Calamy.  Declines  the 
Bishopric  of  Coventry.  Silenced.  Imprisoned.  Benjamin 
Calamy.  Jeffreys.  Delaune.  Cornish.  James  Calamy.  John. 
Edmund,  the  author's  father.  Fire  of  London.  Author's  birth, 


VI  CONTENTS. 

1671.  Duchess  of  Orleans.  Cabal.  Triple  League.  Duchess 
of  York.  Charles  and  Louis.  James  and  Louis.  King's  De 
claration.  Solemn  League  and  Covenant.  Kidder.  Sampson. 
Busby.  Exchequer  shut  up.  Sale  of  Dunkirk.  Et  ceetera 
Oath.  Marriage  of  Princess  Mary.  Prince  of  Orange.  Popish 
Plot.  Test  Act.  Sir  E.  Godfrey.  Black  Sunday.  Executions. 
Mock  processions.  Danby.  Protestant  Plot.  Oxford  Parlia 
ment.  Ministers  confined  in  Newgate.  Meetings  shut  up. 

Three  last  Parliaments  of  Charles.  Declaration.  Ba- 
rillon.  Exclusion  Bill.  Scottish  Act.  Lauderdale.  Samuel 
Johnson.  Hobbes.  Dauphin.  League  of  Augsbuigh.  Lord 
Shaftsbury.  Locke.  Lord  Clifford.  Test  Act.  Bucking 
ham.  Rochester.  Wilkins.  Arlington.  Lauderdale  and 
Baxter.  Danby.  King's  revenue.  Doolittle.  Emlyn.  Boyse. 
Old  Mr.  Case.  Charles  II.  a  covenanted  King.  Lord  William 
Russel.  Earl  of  Essex.  Tillotson.  Sidney.  Oxford  Decree. 
Prince  of  Denmark.  Lady  Ann.  Hard  Frost.  Vienna.  Turks. 
Tangier.  Death  of  Charles  II.  Inscriptions  at  Rome. 

James  II.  proclaimed.  Dr.  Sharpe.  Charles  II.  a  papist. 
Oates.  Cornish.  Edict  of  Nantz  revoked.  Vaudois.  Au 
thor's  Father  dies.  Merchant  Taylor's  school.  Annual  elec 
tion  for  Oxford.  Matriculation.  Morton.  Cradock. 

CHAPTER  II. 

1686—1691. 

OF  my  academical  education  under  Mr.  Cradock,  in  Suf 
folk  ;  my  crossing  the  sea,  afterwards,  to  Holland ; 
course  of  life  and  remarks  there ;  and  return  from 
thence,  back  again,  into  England.  Together  with  some 
touches  relating  to  the  reign  of  King  James  II. ;  and  the 
Revolution  under  King  William  and  its  consequences. 
132—220. 

Course  of  education.  Associates.  Goodwin.  Author's  first 
communion.  Vice- Provost  Gearing.  Argyle.  Monmouth.  Wes 
tern  Inquisition.  Howe.  Author  sails  for  Holland.  Rotter- 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

dam.  Captain  Bowles  an  Origenist.  Utrecht.  English  Stu 
dents.  Exiles.  Professors.  Grevius.  Leusden.  English 
Church.  French  Church.  Martin.  Saurin.  Lord's-days  un- 
sabbatical.  Calvin.  Prince  of  Orange.  Preparations  for  In 
vasion  of  England.  A  Quaker's  dream.  States-general.  Wil 
liam  I.  of  Orange.  The  Prince's  Declaration.  Prince  of 
Wales.  Forces  embark.  Prayers  for  a  north-east  wind.  The 
Protestant  wind,  The  Prince  driven  back.  Lands  at  Tor- 
bay.  Rejoicing  all  over  Holland.  Convention.  Louis  XIV. 

Studies  at  Utrecht.  Lord  Spencer.  Earl  of  Sunder- 
land.  Bishop  Trimnel.  De  Vries.  Witsius.  Cocceians  and 
Voetians.  Bishop  Marsh.  Descartes.  Lord's  prayer.  Dr. 
Voet.  Pope  Adrian.  His  epitaph.  Anna  Maria  Schurman. 
Leydekker.  City  of  Utrecht.  Manners.  English  gentlemen. 
Scottish  students.  Carstairs.  Leyden.  Spanheim.  Grono- 
vius.  Trigland.  Le  Moyne.  Travelling  on  the  ice.  Author's 
extraordinary  preservation.  Amsterdam.  English  exiles.  Par 
tridge  the  astrologer.  Le  Clerc.  Jurieu.  Bayle.  Excursion. 
North  Holland.  Friesland.  Language.  Molquerum.  School. 
Leuwarden.  Zutphen.  King  William.  Hague.  Mr.  King.  Facio. 

Author  sails  for  England.  Loss  of  his  MSS.  Prince  of 
Wales.  Burnet  and  the  Clergy  at  Exeter.  King  James's 
Declaration  for  Liberty  of  Conscience.  Refusal  to  read  it. 
Dilemma  of  the  English  Clergy.  Tillotson  succeeds  San- 
croft.  Design  of  comprehension.  Dr.  Nicols.  Parliamentary 
Religion.  Reflection  on  the  Dissenters.  Baxter.  Dr.  Jane, 
Prolocutor.  Act  of  Toleration.  Consequences  of  the  Revo 
lution.  Vaudois.  M.  Arnold.  Dr.  Bates.  Pronunciation  of 
Latin.  Sorbiere.  Scotland.  Presbytery  established.  Test. 
The  Assurance. 

CHAPTER  III. 

1691—1692. 

OF  my  spending  a  year  at  Oxford ;  my  conversation  and 
studies  there ;  my  beginning  to  preach  in  the  country, 
and  return  afterwards  to  London.  220 — 310. 


y]U  CONTENTS. 

Introduction  to  the  University.  Pococke.  Bernard,  Bod 
leian  Library.  Old  field.  Conformity  or  non -conformity. 
Worship  of  dissenters.  Church  history.  Ignatius.  Pearson. 
Daille.  Larroque.  Dioceses.  Lord  King's  Enquiry.  Selden. 
Grotius.  Chillingworth.  His  letter  to  Sheldon.  His  subscrip 
tion.  Hooker.  Hoadley.  Milton.  Calvin.  Geneva.  Bishop 
Taylor.  Fathers  and  Councils.  Sherlock.  Charles  II.  and 
Burnet.  Church  Authority.  Hoadley.  Leo.  Nazianzen. 
Peter  Martyr.  Schism.  Dodwell.  Articles,  Liturgy,  &c. 

Determination  for  non-conformity.  Father  Paul.  Pope 
Adrian  VI.  Bernard  Gilpin.  Smalridge.  Archbishop  Leigh- 
ton  on  the  Church  of  England.  Burnet.  A  refusal  of  prefer 
ment.  Dr.  Clarke.  The  author's  first  sermon.  Mr.  Gilbert, 
an  ancient  divine.  Bishop  Hall.  Bathurst.  Wallis.  His 
deciphering.  Dr.  Jane.  His  lectures  against  the  Socinians. 
South  and  Gilbert.  Remarkable  preservation.  The  author's 
preaching  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Oxford.  Professor  Bernard. 
His  Josephus.  Dean  Levet.  Dodwell,  a  nonjuror.  His 
odd  hypothesis.  Hoadley.  Stillingfleet.  Usher.  Sander 
son.  Defence  of  moderate  non -conformity.  Latitudinarian 
Brethren.  Whiston  on  Ignatius.  General  Ginckle.  Limerick. 
Molyneux  on  Sherlock.  Monthly  fasts.  Author's  visit  to  An- 
dover.  Death  of  his  sister.  He  leaves  Oxford. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

1692—1695. 

OF  my  journey  to  Bristol.  Settlement  in  London  with  Mr. 
Matthew  Sylvester,  as  his  assistant,  and  public  ordina 
tion  to  the  ministry ;  with  some  account  of  the  debates 
which  there  were,  about  that  time,  among  the  dissenting 
ministers  in  and  near  the  city,  with  respect  to  Antino- 
mianism.  311 — 359. 

Bath.  Reception  at  Bristol.  Return.  Mr.  Sylvester.  De 
sign  against  the  King  and  Queen.  Rymer's  Fcedera.  Rapin. 
Le  Clerc.  Antinomianism.  Dr.  Crisp.  Mr.  Williams. 


CONTENTS.  IX 

Weekly  meeting  for  amicable  conversation.  Members.  Lori- 
mer.  Weekly  meeting  of  ministers.  Earthquake.  Doctri 
nal  articles.  Robert  Boyle.  Judge  Hale.  Witchcraft.  So 
cieties  for  reformation  of  manners.  Massacre  of  Glencoe. 
Kin'g  William,  Nonjurors.  Magistrate's  power  in  ecclesias 
tical  matters.  Passive  obedience.  Leslie.  Archbishop 
Wake's  project.  Commons.  Committees  of  Religion.  Dr. 
Coward.  Bancroft.  Ellis  Correspondence.  Contest  among 
dissenting  ministers.  Mr.  Howe,  Smyrna  Fleet.  Battle  of 
Lauden. 

Author  proposes  to  be  ordained.  Lord  Sommers  and 
Mr.  Howe.  Mr.  Mead.  Dr.  Bates.  Ordination.  The  first 
public  one  among  Non-conformists,  Breach  in  the  Lecture 
at  Pinner's  Hall.  Salter's  Hall  Lecture.  Author's  Sermon 
preached  by  a  young  clergyman.  Deaths  of  Tillotson  and 
the  Queen.  Dissenting  ministers  address  the  King.  Heats 
among  the  dissenters.  Mr.  Williams  vindicated. 

CHAPTER  V. 
1695-1702. 

OF  my  becoming  assistant  to  Mr.  Williams  at  Hand-alley, 
in  Bishopsgate-street ;  and  the  exercise  of  my  ministry 
among  the  people  who  there  statedly  worshipped  God. 
359—508. 

Author's  removal  from  Blackfriars.  His  discourse  concerning 
vows.  Lancashire  plot.  Bribery  in  Parliament.  Namur 
taken.  Author's  marriage.  Story  of  his  wife's  father.  En 
quiry  on  the  Glencoe  massacre.  New  Parliament.  Clipping 
money.  Executions.  Trading  Companies.  Assassination 
Plot.  Association.  New  clamour  against  Mr.  Williams.  Doc 
trine  of  satisfaction.  Mr.  Humphrey.  Stillingfleet.  Lobb  the 
Jacobite  Independent.  Dr.  Nichols.  Mr.  Peirce.  Baxter's 
Narrative.  Baxter  and  Owen.  Wallingford  House.  Madam 
Owen.  Manton.  Sherlock  and  South.  Disputes  on  the 
Trinity.  The  King's  Directions.  Executions.  Absolution 
from  a  nonjuror.  Lord  Ashley's  speech.  Fenwick.  Tennison. 


X  CONTENTS. 

Scotch  India  Company.  Loss  of  public  credit,  Bank 
notes  depreciated.  Dr.  Annesley.  Mr.  Hampden's  derange 
ment  and  suicide.  Father  Simon.  Design  of  a  critical  Poly 
glot  Bible.  Mezeray.  Ancient  freedom  of  France.  Ho- 
toman's  Franco-Gallia.  Lord  Molesworth.  Williams.  Stil- 
lingfleet  and  Lobb.  Dr.  Edwards.  Rights  of  the  Convocation. 
Charles  XII.  Peace  of  Ryswick.  A  present  of  diamonds. 
Sir  Humphrey  Edwin.  City- sword  in  a  conventicle.  Lord 
Mansfield,  on  the  Toleration  Act.  Debates  on  the  number  of 
land-forces.  Restraints  on  dissenting  academies.  Czar  Peter 
in  England.  Evelyn.  Firmin.  Whitehall  burned.  Wake  on 
the  King's  supremacy.  Earl  of  Portland's  costly  embassy  to 
Paris.  Persecution  of  French  Protestants  revived.  Treaty  of 
Partition.  Negotiators  impeached  by  the  Commons.  Scotch 
India  Company.  Lobb's  death.  Reformation  of  manners. 

Reduction  of  land-forces.  Dutch  Guards  dismissed.  Ireland. 
Forfeited  estates.  Royal  Grants  questioned  by  the  Commons. 
Lady  Villiers.  The  King's  conjugal  character.  Poetical  exag 
geration.  Dr.  Covell.  Lords  and  Commons  disagree.  Author 
writes  on  Cathedral  worship.  Affair  of  Darien.  Duke  of 
Gloucester  dies.  Deprived  Bishop  of  Ely.  Dread  of  Papists. 
Czar  Peter  at  Narva.  New  Parliament.  Crown  settled  on 
the  Princess  Sophia.  Toland.  Queen  of  Prussia.  Dryden's 
death.  Louis  XIV.  to  Philip  V.  Partition-Treaty.  King 
James  dies.  French  proclaim  the  Pretender.,  King.  Sir  Tho 
mas  Abney.  Common  Council  address  King  William.  Nu 
merous  addresses.  Origin  of  that  ceremony.  New  parliament. 
Act  for  abjuring  the  Pretender.  Louis's  promise  to  James  on 
his  death  bed.  King  William's  speech  printed  with  decora 
tions.  His  death.  Fondly  admired  by  non-conformists.  His 
character  in  authentic  history.  Abridgment  of  Baxter's  life. 

Author  revisits  Oxford.  Enquiry  at  the  press.  Clarendon's 
history.  State  of  the  copy.  Dean  Aldrich.  Oldmixon.  At- 
terbury.  Title  page  to  Clarendon's  history.  His  hatred  to 
the  Presbyterians  Explained.  Author's  Abridgment  censured. 
Dr.  Nichols.  Wesley.  Queen\accession.  Dissenters  insulted. 


CONTENTS.  XI 

Address  the  Queen.  Coronation.  Scottish  Parliament. 
Union  projected.  War.  Marlborough.  Occasional  conform 
ity.  De  Foe.  Howe.  Tennison.  Author's  interviews  with 
Eurnet.  His  opinion  of  Baxter.  Exposition  of  the  Articles. 
Middle  way.  Baxterianism.  Milton.  Davenant.  Remon 
strants.  Predeterminants.  Baxter  and  Bates,  occasional  con 
formists.  Sir  David  Hamilton.  Author's  sermon  at  Salter's 
Hall.  Chosen  lecturer.  Emlyn.  Toland.  Christianity  not 
Mysterious.  Story's  narrative.  A  young  criminal.  His  exe 
cution,  &c.  A  young  convert.  Dr.  Kerr,  &c. 


AN 

HISTORICAL  ACCOUNT 


OF 


MY  OWN    LIFE, 

WITH  SOME  REFLECTIONS  ON  THE  TIMES  I  HAVE  LIVED  IN. 


THE  INTRODUCTION. 

FROM  my  younger  years,  and  ever  since  I  have 
had  a  capacity  of  making  remarks,  or  passing  a  judg 
ment  either  on  persons  or  things,  I  have  taken  a  par 
ticular  pleasure  in  reading  the  published  epistles  and 
lives  of  such  as  came  into  the  world  either  before,  or 
since  my  own  appearing  in  it ;  and  I  have,  in  both  of 
them,  observed  many  things,  and  some  of  them  curi 
ous  and  instructive,  that  do  not  occur  elsewhere. 

As  to  epistles,  I  have  found  that  many  of  them 
discover  secrets,  and  contain  facts  and  passages,  that 
would  in  all  likelihood  have  been  entirely  buried  in 
oblivion,  if  not  this  way  preserved.  The  writers  of 
them,  very  often,  draw  their  own  native  characters, 

VOL.  i.  T? 


2  LIFE    OF    CAT-AMY. 

without  at  all  designing  it ;  and  generally  touch, 
and  sometimes  dilate  upon,  a  variety  of  things  out 
of  the  common  road. 

Many  of  them  I  have  read,  and  some  I  greatly 
admire  and  value  ;  particularly  those  of  Erasmus,* 
Melancthon,f  and  Grotius4  It  has  been  the  com- 

*  Of  these  Epistles,  Dr.  Knight  largely  availed  himself,  in  1726, 
to  the  entertainment  and  instruction  of  his  readers,  in  his  "  Life 
of  Erasmus  ;  more  particularly  that  part  of  it,  which  he  spent  in 
England."  His  later  English  biographer  says  : — 

"  Le  Clerc,  whilst  he  was  concerned  in  publishing  an  edition  of 
the  works  of  Erasmus,  at  Leyden,  drew  up  his  life  in  French, 
collected  principally  from  his  letters,  and  inserted  in  the  Eiblio- 
theque  Choisie." 

This  Dr.  Jortin  took  "  as  aground-work  to  build  upon,  trans 
lated,  not  superstitiously,  but  with  much  freedom,  and  with  more 
attention  to  things  than  to  words." — Preface  to  "  Life  of  Eras 
mus,"  1758. 

"  The  author  hath  interspersed,"  says  Dr.  Disney,  's  many 
valuable  remarks,  which  are  made  with  such  pointed  force  to 
certain  circumstances  which  remained  the  same  in  his  own  time, 
as  in  the  days  of  Erasmus,  that  he  hath  deeply  interested  his 
contemporaries  of  his  own  country,  and,  indeed,  until  the  scene 
of  things  shall  be  changed,  they  will  continue  to  interest  every 
succeeding  generation."  See  "  Memoirs  of  the  Life  and  Writings 
of  John  Jortin,  D.D."  (1792)  p.  235  ;  "  A  Collection  of  Letters 
and  Essays  in  favour  of  public  liberty,"  iii.  261,  Ibid — ED. 

f  From  one  of  these,  to  Erasmus,  in  1524,  I  cannot  forbear 
to  give  the  following  passage,  ("alight  shining  in  a  dark  place,") 
which  Dr,  Jortin  quotes,  con  amore. 

"  It  would  be  mere  tyranny  to  hinder  any  man  from  giving 
his  opinion  in  the  church  of  Christ,  concerning  any  points  of  reli 
gion.  This  ought  to  be  free  to  every  one,  who  will  deliver  his 
sentiments  without  passion  and  partiality.  You  know  that  we 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY.  3 

mon  opinion  of  the  learned,  that  there  are  no  perfor 
mances,  either  of  antients  or  moderns,  of  that  kind, 
that  are  preferable  to  Monsieur  de  Thou's  Epistle, 
before  his  History  ;*  Casaubon's  before  his  Commen 
taries  upon  Polybius  5^  and  Calvin's  before  his  In- 

ought  to  examine,  and  not  to  despise  prophecies."  See  "  Life 
of  Erasmus,"  pp.  343,  344. 

Yet  Melancthon  could  excuse,  what  probably,  he  could  never 
have  resolved  to  perpetrate,  the  betraying  of  Servetus  to  the 
prison  and  the  stake.  When, however,  one  appeared  "  in  conversa 
tion  to  deny  the  existence  of  the  devil,"  he  "  threatened  to  de 
late  the  man  to  the  magistrates,  to  have  him  put  in  prison ;  Se 
effccturum  apud  Magistratum,  ut  statim  in  vincula  conjiceretur." 
See  "  Histoire  de  Michel  Servet,"  in  Bib.  Angloise,  (1719)  ii.'87, 
88.  "  Life  of  Servetus,"  (1771),  pp.  199,  200. — ED. 

|  "His  letters,"  says  M.  de  Burigny,  "  may  be  regarded  as  a 
treasure,  not  only  of  public,  but  of  literary  history,  always  accom 
panied  with  instructing  reflections."  See  "  Life  of  Grotius/' 
(1754)  pp.  279,  280. 

The  learned  and  liberal-minded  lawyer,  Mr.  Solom  Emlyn,in 
the  preface  to  his  edition  of  the  State-Trials,  in  1730,  refers  to 
"  Grotius's  Letters,  (Let.  693,)  wherein  he  approves  the  omission 
of  the  practice  of  torture  in  England."  State  Trials,  (1776,) 
i.  p.  3.  note  k. —  ED. 

*  Dedicated  to  Henry  IV.  in  1601.  "My  Epistle,"  says 
Thuanus,  "  concludes  with  a  prayer — that  liberty,  fidelity,  and 
truth,  may  be  manifested  in  my  writings,  to  the  present  and  fu 
ture  generations  ;  and  may  they  be  as  free  from  the  suspicion,  as 
they  are  exempt  from  the  necessity  of  flattery  and  malevolence." 
See  Collinson's  "  Life  of  Thuanus,"  (1807,)  pp.  389-443.— ED. 

t  Dr.  Calamy  must  refer  to  Isaac  Casaubon's  "  Dedication  to 
Henry  IV."  in  1609,  described  as  a  "  master-piece  of  the  kind," 
in  which  "he  praises  without  low  servility,  and  in  a  manner  re 
mote  from  flattery. "—Biog.  Brit.  (1784,jiii.  304.— ED. 

B  2 


4  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

stitutions.*  And  whereas,  there  is  a  vast  multitude 
of  volumes  extant,  (even  enow  to  make  a  tolerable 
library)  of  the  epistles  of  men  of  letters,  it  is  easy  to 
observe,  that  they  have,  very  generally,  been  as  much 
esteemed  as  any  part  of  their  works. 

As  to  lives,  I  have  not  only  read  those  written  by 
Plutarch,  Diogenes  Laertius,  and  Cornelius  Nepos, 
among  the  antients  ;  but  have  run  over  the  his 
torical  account  given  by  several,  both  of  the  antients 
and  moderns,  of  their  own  lives,  intermixed  with 
the  occurrences  of  their  several  times,  with  no  small 
satisfaction  ;  and  have  been  often  tempted  to  wish, 
that  I  could  have  met  with  many  more  writings  of 
the  same  kind. 

I  should,  particularly,  have  been  extremely  pleased 
to  have  had  the  lives  of  those  two  great  men, 
Erasmus  of  Rotterdam,  and  Father  Paul  of  Venice, 
fully  drawn  up  by  their  own  hands.f  The  former 

*  A  prefatory  dedication  to  Francis  I c,  from  Basil,  Aug.  1, 
1536,  which  has.,  I  believe,  been  generally  admired,  among  other 
merits,  for  the  purity  of  the  Latin. 

A  Catholic  biographer  of  Calvin  says ;  "  II  composa  cet  ou- 
vrage  fameux  pour  servir  d'apologie  aux  Reformes,  condamnes 
aux  flammes  par  Francois  I. ;"  to  whom  he  describes  it  as  dedi 
cated,  "  avec  une  preface  pleine  d'eloquence  d'addresse  et  d'ar- 
tifice."— Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  (1789,)  ii.  355. 

Bayle  says,  "  the  dedication  to  Francis  I.,  is  one  of  the  three 
that  have  been  highly  admired.  That  of  Thuanus  to  his  His 
tory,  and  Casaubon's  to  Polybius,  are  the  two  others." — Gen. 
Biog.Dict.(l7S4>,)  iii.  101.— ED. 

t  There  is  a  short  Life  of  Erasmus,  prefixed  to  the  Elzevir 
edition  of  his  Colloquies,  of  which  he  himself  is  said  of  have 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  5 

could  not  have  railed  of  being  very  entertaining,  be 
cause  of  his  great  concern  in  the  revival  of  learning, 
in  these  western  parts,  and  the  remarks  which,  from 
his  Colloquies  and  Epistles,  and  his  other  works,  it 
appears  he  had  made  on  the  wretched  ignorance, 
foolish  superstition,  and  abominable  frauds,  of  the 
monks  and  friars  in  the  age  he  lived  in,  as  well  as 
on  the  weaknesses  and  follies  of  the  ages  foregoing. 
He  that  detected  a  knave,  whose  ordinary  practice 
it  was  to  lay  his  eggs  in  another  man's  nest,  putting 
his  own  fooleries  upon  St.  Hierorne,  St.  Augustine, 
and  St.  Ambrose,*  would,  without  all  question,  have 
been  able  to  have  made  many  other  noble  and 
glorious  discoveries,  if  he  durst  but  have  ventured 
to  have  committed  the  particulars  of  his  studies  and 
works,  and  the  transactions  of  his  life  to  writing. 
Nor  could  the  latterf  well  be  supposed  to  have 

been  the  author ;  but  I  find  it  has  been  questioned  by  the 
learned,  whether  it  was  so  or  not. — C. 

Dr.  Knight  refers  to  "  the  Breviate  of  the  Life  of  Erasmus, 
said  to  be  composed  by  himself,"  and  to  "  the  Life  before  his 
Colloquies,"  without  determining  this  question. — See  "  Life  of 
Erasmus,"  (1726)  pp.  5.  8.— ED. 

*  Erasm.  Prefat,  in  Op.  Hieron. — C 

f  Of  whom  Sir  W.  Temple  sa,ys,  that  "  he  must  be  allowed 
for  the  greatest  genius  of  his  age,  and,  perhaps,  of  all  the 
moderns."— Miscellanea,  P.  III.  (1701)  p.  250.— C. 

Baptists  Porta  had,  long  before,  "left  this  honourable  testi 
mony  of  his  universal  knowledge  ;  '  eo  doctiorem,  subtiliorem, 
quotquot  adhuc  vidcre  contigerit,  neminem  cognovimus.'  " 

*'  There  is,"  adds  Mr.  Hayley,  "  a  singular  beauty  in  the 
character  of  Father  Paul,  which  is  rarely  found.  Though  he 


6  LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY. 

afforded  less  satisfaction,  because  of  the  opportunity 
which,  from  his  noble  History  of  the  Council  of 
Trent,*  he  appears  to  have  had,  of  being  well  ac 
quainted  with  the  most  subtle  politics,  and  deepest 
intrigues  of  the  Court  of  Rome.  And  notwithstand 
ing  the  subtle  Cardinal  Perron  declared  he  could  see 
little  in  him,f  and  "  Maffeo  Barbarino,  the  Pope's 
Nuncio  at  the  Court  of  France,  was  for  ever  crying 
aloud,  that  Father  Paul  was  a  worse  wretch  than 
either  Luther  or  Calvin,''^  yet  he  was,  most  cer- 

passed  a  long  life  in  controversy  of  the  most  exasperating  kind, 
and  was  continually  attacked  in  every  manner  that  malignity 
could  suggest,  both  his  writings  and  his  heart  appeared  per 
fectly  free  from  a  vindictive  spirit."—  Works,  (1785)  ii.  186, 
187,  193,  194.— ED. 

*  Of  which  there  was  an  English  translation  in  1676.  In 
1736,  Father  Courayer  published  a  translation  in  French,  an 
nexing  notes,  justly  described  as  "  encore  plus  hardies  que  le 
texte."— Now.  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  321.— ED. 

f  Vid.  Perroniana. — C. 

This  work,  published  by  Isaac  Vossius,  in  1669,  fifty  years 
after  the  author's  decease,  was  the  result  of  communications 
from  a  Boswell  of  that  age,  who  had  been  about  the  Cardinal, 
and  watched  and  chronicled  his  most  unstudied  conversation. 

His  biographer  fairly  says  :  "  il  seroit  injuste  de  juger  d'un 
homme  celebre  par  ce  qu'il  dira  dans  une  socicte  familiere,  ou  il 
ne  se  montre  qu'en  deshabille." — Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  vii.  152.  See 
Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  x.  274-278 — ED. 

+  Life  of  Father  Paul,  prefixed  to  his  works,  p.  Ixxxi.     C. 

This  Life  "  by  Mr.  Lockman,"  is  prefixed  to  the  "  Treatise 
on  Ecclesiastical  Benefices  and  Revenues,"  published  in  1 736,  as 
"  translated  from  the  Italian,  by  Tobias  Jenkins,  Lord  Mayor 
of  York."— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  7 

tainly,  one  of  great  sagacity,  and  a  most  excellent 
person.* 

To  me,  also,  it  would  have  been  very  agreeable, 
if  some  I  could  name  that  have  lived  in  our  own 
time,  and  had  peculiar  advantages,  by  their  conver 
sation  and  correspondence,  to  gain  an  uncommon 
knowledge  of  the  world  ;  and  even  some  with  whom 
I  have,  myself,  been  personally  acquainted,  might 
have  been  prevailed  with,  to  have  benefited  man 
kind  in  the  same  way  and  manner.  Nay,  so  far 
has  my  wish  gone,  that  I  must  own  I  should  have 
been  heartily  glad,  that  the  lives  of  many  valuable 
persons,  of  different  nations,  ages,  characters  and 
professions,  and  even  religions  too,  had  been  drawn 
up  with  faithfulness  and  care,  either  by  themselves 
or  others,  and  preserved  down  to  our  times.  I  am 
not  ashamed  to  acknowledge,  I  should  have  esteemed 
such  writings  a  noble  treasure,  that  would  have  con 
tributed,  considerably,  to  the  promoting  and  in 
creasing  the  knowledge  of  mankind,  the  great  use 
fulness  of  which  is  owned  universally. 

The  learned  Morhofius,  in  his  "  Polyhistor  sive 
de  notitia  auctorum  et  rerum,"f  has  made  some  free 

*  There  was  published,  in  1651,  a  "Life  of  Father  Paul, 
translated  out  of  the  Italian  by  a  Person  of  Quality."  also,  in 
1693,  a  translation  of  his  "Letters  to  M.  Del  Isle  Groslot,  M. 
Gillot,  and  others,  in  a  correspondence  of  divers  years." — ED, 

f  Lib.  i.  Cap.  ix. — "  De  vitarum  Scriptoribus." — C. 

MorhofF,  who  died  in  1691,  aged  53,  had  been  professor  of 
eloquence,  poetry  and  history,  at  Kiel,  and  librarian  of  the 
University.  He  indulged  the  credulity  of  admitting  a  miracu- 


8  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

reflections  upon  the  writers  of  Lives  ;  but  whoso 
ever  casts  his  eyes  upon  them  with  any  care,  will 
very  easily  see,  that  they  are  all  capable  of  being 
considerably  enlarged  and  improved. 

It  cannot,  indeed,  be  pretended  that  this  branch 
or  part  of  history  has  been  managed  among  the 
antients,  and,  particularly,  among  those  called  Fa 
thers  in  the  Christian  church,  with  all  the  care  and 
caution  that  was  to  have  been  desired.  Nay,  to 
speak  the  real  truth,  it  is  justly  chargeable  with 
shameful  defects  and  faults.  They  have  drawn  up  a 
variety  of  Lives  that  are  full  of  forgeries,  and  contain 
many  strange  stories,  which  none  can  tell  what  to 
make  of,  taking  delight,  as  Hierome  has  expressed 
it,*  in  feigning  great  combats  which  they  have  had 
with  devils  in  deserts. 

The  Life  of  St.  Antony,  the  father  of  the  monks, 
which  we  meet  with  in  the  works  of  St.  Athanasius, 
has  many  things  in  it  so  incredible,  that  the  learned 
Rivetf  and  others  rejected  it,  as  a  mere  supersti 
tious  forgery4  And  the  best  thing  that  Dupin 

lous  power  of  healing  by  the  royal  touch,  in  the  kings  of  France 
and  England." — Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  vi.  3 81. —ED. 

*  Hieron.  Ep.  ad  Rustic. — C. 

f  Professor  of  Divinity  at  Ley  den.  Died  1651,  aged  78. 
Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  126.— ED. 

I  Yet  St.  Athanasius,  as  quoted  by  Dr.  Middleton,  declares, 
"  that  he  had  inserted  nothing  but  what  he  either  knew  to  be  true, 
having  often  seen  the  Saint  himself,  or  what  he  had  learned 
from  one  who  had  long  ministered  to  him,  and  poured  water 
upon  his  hands."— Middleton's  "  Free  Inquiry,"  s.  6.;  Works 
(1752)  i.  p.  118. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  9 

himself*  could  drop  in  its  favour  was,  that  some 
things  in  it  might  be  added  or  altered  ;  which  often 
happened  to  works  of  that  sort.f 

St.  Hierome  also  has,  with  great  delicacy  and 
artifice,  described  the  Life  of  Malchus,  and  some 
others  ;  but  seems  to  have  designed  to  show  his 
wit  and  eloquence,  rather  than  to  confine  himself  to 
matters  of  fact.  Though  several  of  his  works  are 
greatly  applauded,  and  that  deservedly,  yet  no 
sooner  did  he  attempt  an  account  of  the  first  foun 
ders  of  the  monastic  life,:]:  than  he  quitted  his  cha 
racter  of  a  grave  writer,  and  drew  up  a  sort  of  spi 
ritual  romance,  full  of  errant  fictions. 

*  Introd.  ad  Hist.  Nov.  Test.  s.  iii.  p.  332.— C. 

f  And  the  learned  Spanheim  says  of  Gregory  of  Neocesa- 
raea,  called  the  wonder-worker,  who  flourished  about  the  year 
254,  that  "  many  deservedly  doubt  about  the  canonical  epistle 
that  is  said  to  be  his  ;  and  much  more  about  the  prodigies  and 
miracles  which  are  (almost  without  end)  ascribed  to  him  by 
Nyssen,  in  his  Life."  He  freely  says,  that  "  many  things  that 
there  occur  savour  of  the  credulity  even  of  an  old  wife." — C. 

"  Eusebius,  who  makes  honourable  mention  of  him,  says  not 
a  word  concerning  them,  which,"  says  Dr.  Jortin,  "  is  remark 
able  ;  and  some  of  them  are  of  a  very  suspicious  kind,  as  his 
writing  laconic  epistles  to  Satan,  and  laying  commands  upon 
him,  which  were  punctually  obeyed.  The  relators  of  Gregory's 
miracles  lived  when  romancing  was  much  in  fashion." — Remarks, 
(1752)  ii.  246.  See  Middletont\.  13,  121, 122.  Lardner's  Works. 
(1788)  iii.  30,  34,  35.— ED. 

t  As  to  which  he  declares  "  the  societies  of  monks  and  nuns 
(monachorum  et  virginvm)  to  be  the  very  flower,  and  most  pre 
cious  stone,  among  all  the  ornaments  of  the  Church." — Middle- 
Ion,  i.  p.  xxxvii. — ED. 


10  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Sulpicius  Severus  also,  who  flourished  about  the 
year  of  Christ  401,  and  was  a  polite,  but  very  cre 
dulous  writer,  in  his  Life  of  St.  Martin  of  Tours, 
(a  man  of  note,  and  a  mighty  patron  of  monkery 
in  France,  which  was  his  own  country,  and  a 
spreader  of  it  in  the  British  Isles,)  and  in  his  Epis 
tles  and  Dialogues,  (which  are  his  only  remaining 
works,  beside  that  Life,)  has  a  variety  of  passages, 
which,  how  much  soever  they  might  be  to  the  gust 
of  his  contemporaries,  will  not  go  down  with  the 
readers  of  the  present  age.*  For,  though  it  may  be 
easily  allowed,  that  the  power  of  miracles  did  in  some 
measure  continue  in  the  Christian  church  for  awhile 
after  the  death  of  the  apostles,|  especially  in  places 
in  which  our  holy  religion  was  not  firmly  settled 
during  the  continuance  of  their  lives,  and  though 

*  In  1727,  when  this  work  commenced. — See  infra. — ED. 

f  Twenty  years  after  Dr.  Calamy  wrote,  there  was  a 
learned  and  somewhat  eager  discussion  of  this  subject ;  by  the 
publication,  in  1747,  of  Dr.  Middleton's  "Introductory  Dis 
course,  concerning  the  miraculous  powers  which  are  supposed 
to  have  subsisted  in  the  Christian  church,  from  the  earliest  ages, 
through  several  successive  centuries ;  tending  to  show  that  we 
have  no  sufficient  reason  to  believe,  upon  the  authority  of  the 
primitive  fathers,  that  any  such  powers  were  continued  to  the 
church  after  the  days  of  the  apostles." 

Dr.  Middleton,  in  1749,  published  "  A  Free  Inquiry  into  the 
miraculous  powers,"  &c.  \  and  left  for  publication,  on  his  decease 
in  1750,  "A  vindication  of  the  free  Inquiry,  from  the  objec 
tions  of  Dr.  Dodwell  and  Dr.  Church."  His  other  opponent 
was  Archdeacon  Chapman. — See  Dr.  Middleton's  Works,  i.  p. 
1,  383.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  11 

St.  Martin,  being  eminent  for  piety,  might  possibly, 
for  the  honour  of  Christianity,  in  opposition  to  Pa 
ganism,  (which  still  prevailed  in  many  parts  to  which 
that  good  man  came,)  be  enabled  to  work  some 
wonderful  cures*  of  persons  that  were  sickly,  and 
greatly  disordered,  to  save  upon  occasion  from  some 
threatening  dangers,  to  command  birds  and  beasts, 
check  devouring  flames,  and  even  tame  the  fiercest 
and  most  unruly  mortals,  that  had  the  insolence 
openly  to  oppose  him,  and  defy  the  God  he  served, 
yet  am  I  well  satisfied  that  but  few  in  our  days  can 
be  persuaded  to  believe  that  even  St.  Martin  should, 
with  such  frequency  and  familiarity,  converse  with 

*  Thus  Grotius,  as  quoted  by  Middleton  (i.  p,  xv.)  says  :  "  if 
any  person  were  employed,  in  the  conversion  of  the  heathen,  at 
this  day,  in  a  manner  agreeable  to  the  will  of  our  Lord,  he 
would  find  himself  endued  with  the  power  of  working  miracles." 

Dr.  Aikin,  divinity  tutor,  at  Warrington,  in  1779,  is  des 
cribed  by  his  colleague,  Gilbert  Wakefield,  as  having  enter 
tained  "  one  opinion  of  great  singularity,  that  sincere  and  zeal 
ous  preachers  of  the  gospel,  among  unenlightened  nations, 
would  be  favoured  with  the  gift  of  tongues  and  other  miraculous 
powers,  which  attended  the  first  teachers  of  Christianity." — 
Wakefield's  Memoirs  (1804)  i.  p.  221. 

Thus  Mr.  Lemoine  maintains  that  "  Christ's  promise  is  with 
out  any  limitation  of  time." — See  his  "  Treatise  on  Miracles" 
(1747)  p.  515. 

Against  such  expectations,  Dr.  Middleton  reasonably  alleges 
"  that  though  all  the  different  Churches  and  sects  of  Christians 
have  sent  abroad  their  several  missionaries — yet  none  of  them 
have  been  able  to  work  a  single  miracle  in  confirmation  of  their 
mission." — ED. 


12  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  Devil  in  a  human  shape.  Or  that,  upon  that 
fiend's  presenting  himself  before  him,  in  the  form  of 
Jupiter,  Minerva,  Mercury,  Venus,  or  other  Pagan 
deities,  he  should  call  them  by  their  names,  bring  a 
railing  accusation  against  them,  (a  thing  so  contrary 
to  the  practice  of  Michael  the  Archangel)  fall  out 
with  Mercury,  run  down  Jupiter  as  a  brute  and  a 
dunce,  and  take  so  much  upon  him,  and  use  so 
much  authority  in  contending  with  them. 

Though,  as  matters  at  that  time  stood,  God 
might,  perhaps,  upon  some  accounts,  think  fit  to 
own  that  good  man  in  some  few  things  a  little  out 
of  the  common  road,  yet  it  is  not  thereupon  a 
thing  presently  credible,  that,  according  to  the  ac 
count  of  Sulpicius  Severus,  he  should  have  such 
visible  intercourse  with,  and  assistance  from,  angels, 
who  are  a  superior  rank  of  beings  to  us,  or  that 
he  should  freely  converse  with  them  from  day  to 
day,  and  receive  from  them  a  relation  of  the  par 
ticulars  that  passed  in  an  Ecclesiastical  Synod  that 
Avas  held  at  a  distance,  which  he  much  desired  to  be 
acquainted  with. 

And,  though  the  dead  were  sometimes  raised  by 
our  Saviour,  and  his  apostles,  and  perhaps  by  some 
few  of  their  immediate  followers ;  yet  that  one  that 
lived  so  late  as  St.  Martin,  when  Christianity  was 
so  well  settled  in  the  world,  and  had  received  such 
ample  confirmation,  should  be  able  to  raise  so  many 
persons  from  the  dead,  or  have  conversation  with  so 
many  after  their  decease,  as  this  writer  mentions, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  13 

(as  with  the  malefactor  that  had  been  executed, 
who,  through  a  gross  mistake,  was  celebrated  as  a 
martyr,  with  Agnes,  Thecla,  and  Mary,)  so  as  to  be 
able  to  give  a  particular  description  of  their  coun 
tenances  and  habits;  nay,  even  with  St.  Peter  and 
St.  Paul  the  apostles,  among  the  rest,  upon  their 
frequently  appearing  to  him,  (as  is  by  this  writer 
reported,)  will  not,  to  many,  appear  very  likely  or 
credible. 

These  things  are  carried  much  too  far,  and  some 
of  them  have  a  very  ridiculous  aspect.  Sulpicius, 
from  whom  we  have  them,  appears  so  intent  upon 
gaining  the  preference  for  St.  Martin  before  the 
Eastern  monks,  as  to  be  strongly  tempted  to  strain 
a  point.  Great  was  his  fondness  for  a  monastic  life, 
and  such  an  admirer  was  he  of  it,  that  he  seems 
to  have  taken  any  thing,  be  it  what  it  would,  for 
lawful,  that  he  thought  was  capable  of  advancing 
it.  And  when  picking  up  and  putting  together 
a  strange  parcel  of  stories,  he  complains  so  freely 
of  men's  backwardness  to  believe,  he,  in  the  opinion 
of  most  sensible  persons,  rather  exposes  himself  than 
those  whom  he  inveighs  against.* 

*  "  His  accounts  of  Martin  of  Tours,  are  reckoned  by  some  a 
remarkable  instance  of  credulity.  Dupin  says,  he  was  very  cre 
dulous  in  point  of  miracles,  but  Tillemont  believes  every  word  ; 
though  the  accounts  which  Sulpicius  gave  of  Martin,  were  not 
believed  by  all  in  his  own  time." — See  Lardner,  v.  163. 

I  add  a  redeeming  passage,  which  may  also  serve  to  show 
how  enlightened  on  another  question,  were  these  credulous,  or 
fabling  early  Christians,  compared  with  some  in  the  nineteenth 


14  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

There  is,  also,  another  Life,  viz.  that  of  St.  Hilarion, 
who  was  the  famous  anchorite  of  Palestine,*  that 
equals  in  impertinence  the  Golden  Legend  of  Jacobus 
de  Voragine  himself.f  That  one  single  saint,  if  the 
account  given  of  him  he  credited,  wrought  more 
miracles  than  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself,  or  his 
apostles  ;  £  may,  I  think,  well  be  allowed  to  surprize 

century,  who  would  still  seek  to  protect  their  faith  by  the  aid  of 
the  magistrate. 

"  Martin  said,  '  it  was  sufficient,  and  more  than  sufficient,  that 
heing  convicted  of  heresy  by  the  bishops,  the  Priscillianists 
should  be  turned  out  of  the  church.' 

"  And  when  that  was  done,"  adds  Lardner,  "  I  presume  they 
ought  to  have  been  allowed  to  live  quietly  in  the  world,  and  to 
worship  in  their  own  way,  under  the  protection  of  the  civil 
government. 

"  It  seems,  neither  Martin,  nor  his  disciple  and  historian,  Sul- 
picius,  approved  that  magistrates  should  interpose  in  things  of 
religion.  They,  therefore,  did  not  like  that  civil  penalties  should 
be  inflicted  upon  erroneous  Christians." — Ibid.  iv.  480. — ED. 

*  Where  he  founded  Monachism.  "  Necdum,"  says  Jerome, 
"  enim  tune  Monasteria  erant  in  Palestina,  nee  quisquam  Mona- 
chum  ante  sanctum  Hilarionem  in  Syria  noverat," — Middleton, 
iii.  14.— ED. 

t  "  C'est  le  triomphe  de  rimbecillite  et  de  1'extravagance.  Le 
peu  de  verites  qui  se  trouvent  dans  ce  recueil,  y  est  defigun*  par 
des  contes  absurdes,  et  par  une  foule  de  miracles  bizarres."  The 
author,  a  Dominican,  who  died  in  1298,  aged  68,  became  Provin 
cial  of  his  Order,  and  at  length  Bishop  of  Genoa.  Nouv.  Diet. 
Hist.  iv.  635.  ED. 

J  "  Jerome  wrote  the  lives  of  two  celebrated  monks,  the  one 
called  Paul,  and  the  other  Hilarion ;  in  which,  after  be  has  in 
voked  '  tbat  same  Holy  Spirit,  which  inspired  the  said  monks, 
to  inspire  him  also  with  language  equal  to  the  wonderous  acts 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  15 

any  man.  But  it  by  no  means  follows  from  hence, 
or  from  any  thing  of  this  nature  that  can  be  alleged, 
but  that  biography,  when  managed  with  care  and 
fidelity,  with  a  due  mixture  of  prudence,  may  be  ex 
ceeding  useful. 

And  though  there  have  -been  some  that  have  been 
apt  to  raise  objections  against  persons  becoming  the 
writers  of  their  own  lives,  yet  I  find  the  doing  so 
was  no  uncommon  thing  among  the  old  Greeks  and 
Romans.  That  celebrated  orator  and  historian,  Caius 
Cornelius  Tacitus,  in  the  beginning  of  his  account  of 
the  life  of  his  father-in-law,  Julius  Agricola,  (who 
was  the  General  of  Domitian  the  Emperor,  here  in 
Britain,  and  the  first  that  made  the  Roman  part  of 
Britain  a  Praesidial  province,*)  excuses  this  practice 

which  he  was  going  to  relate;'  he  has  inserted  a  number  of 
tales  and  miracles,  so  grossly  fabulous  as  not  to  admit  the  least 
doubt  of  their  being  absolute  forgeries. 

"  Nor  are  they  considered  at  this  day  in  any  other  charac 
ter,  or  mentioned  by  the  learned  on  any  other  account,  than  as 
proofs  of  that  passion  for  fiction  and  imposture,  which  possessed 
the  Fathers  of  the  fourth  century;  (quam  fucrint  quarti  seculi 
scriptures  fabulis  dediti,)  whether  Jerome  forged  these  tales  him 
self,  or  propagated  what  he  knew  to  be  forged  by  others,  or 
whether  he  really  believed  them,  and  published  only  what  he 
took  to  be  true," — Middleton,  i,  p.  Ixxxviii.  See  Ibid.  pp.  61, 
72,  73.  iii.  U,  126.— ED. 

*  Camden's  Britannia,  p.  43. — C. 

"  This  tide  of  Roman  invasion,"  says  Nathaniel  Bacon, 
"  however  it  represented  to  the  world  little  other  than  a  tumour 
of  vain  glory  in  the  Romans,  that  must  needs  be  fatal  to  the 
Britons'  liberty  and  welfare,  yet  by  overruling  Providence  it 


16  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

from  carrying  in  it  any  thing  of  arrogance.  He  par 
ticularly  instances  in  J£milius  Scaurus,  and  Rutilius 

conduced  so  much  to  the  Britons'  future  glory,  as  it  must  be 
acknowledged  one  of  the  chief  master-pieces  of  supernatural 
moderatorship,  that  ever  this  poor  island  met  with. 

"  It  brought  into  Britain  the  knowledge  of  arts  and  civility, 
and  questionless,  it  was  a  wise  policy  of  Agricola  to  go  that 
way  to  work.  For  it  is  an  easy  and  royal  work,  to  govern  wise 
men,  but  to  govern  fools  or  madmen  is  a  continual  slavery/' — 
See  "  Semper  eadem,  or  the  Uniforme  Government  of  England," 
(1647)  pp.  5,  6. 

"  The  inhabitants,  rude  and  scattered,"  says  Milton,  "  and 
by  that  the  proner  to  war,  Agricola  persuaded  to  build 
houses,  temples,  and  seats  of  justice  ;  and  by  praising  the  for 
ward,  quickening  the  slow,  assisting  all,  turned  the  name  of 
necessity  into  an  emulation.  He  caused,  moreover,  the  noble 
men's  sons  to  be  bred  up  in  liberal  arts  ;  and  by  preferring  the 
wits  of  Britain,  before  the  studies  of  Gallia,  brought  them  to  af 
fect  the  Latin  eloquence,  who  before,  hated  the  language. 

"  Then  were  the  Roman  fashions  imitated,  and  the  gown  ; 
after  a  while,  the  incitements,  also,  and  materials  of  vice  and  vo 
luptuous  life ;  proud  building,  baths,  and  the  elegance  of  ban- 
quetting ;  which  the  foolisher  sort  called  civility,  but  was  indeed 
a  secret  art  to  prepare  them  for  bondage."  See  "  The  History 
of  Britain,"  (181 8,)  p.  59. 

"  Agricola/'  says  Rapin,  "  donna  le  dernier  coup  a  la  liberte 
de  la  Bretagne.  Les  Bretons  eussent  souffert  un  tort  qui  parois- 
soit  irreparable.  II  fut  pourtant  compense,  en  quelque  maniere, 
par  le  changement  avantageux  que  se  fit  dans  leurs  mceurs,  et 
dans  leurs  coutumes. 

"  En  peu  de  temps,  on  leur  vit  quitter  leurs  manieres  rudes  et 
grossieres,  et  prendre  la  politesse  de  leurs  conqucrans.  Les  arts 
et  les  sciences,  dont  on  faisoit  peu  de  cas,  en  Bretagne,  avant 
cette  revolution,  y  fleurirent  autant  qu'en  aucune  autre  partie  de 
1'Empire  Romain." — Histoire,  (1724-,)  i.  53. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY.  17 

Rufus.*  The  former  of  them  was  Consul,  639  years 
after  Rome  was  founded,  and  wrote  three  books 
concerning  his  own  life  to  Lucius  Fusidius.  This 
writer  is  much  commended  by  Cicero.f  The  latter 
was  Consul  ten  years  after 4 

Caius  Julius  Caesar,  also,  the  first  of  the  Roman 
Emperors,  who,  by  a  late  writer,  §  is  said  to  be  taken 
notice  of  by  the  critics,  as  the  only  author  that  ever 
wrote  of  himself  with  a  good  grace,  in  his  Commen 
taries,  a  work  generally  applauded,  gives  us  the  par 
ticulars  of  his  own  actions.  But,  then,  it  has  been 
often  observed,  that  there  are  some  of  them,  and 
those  of  consequence  too,  that  he  passes  wholly 

^  II 

Thus,  when  a  good  part  of  his  forces  had  crossed 
the  sea  from  Italy  to  the  coast  of  Epire,  expecting 
the  rest  to  follow,  with  great  impatience  he  exposed 
himself  in  a  small  vessel  alone  to  go  back  and  seek 
them,  though  he  himself  has  said  nothing  of  it. 
And,  in  like  manner,  he  has  been  wholly  silent  as  to 
another  action  of  his,  that  is  taken  notice  of  by  Sue 
tonius,  by  which  he  exposed  himself  no  less ;  when 
upon  the  besieging  of  his  legions  in  Germany,  he,  in 

*  "  Ac  plerique  suam  ipsi  vitam  narrare,  fiduciam  potius  mo- 
rum,  quam  arrogantiam  arbitrati  sunt.  Nee  id  Rutilio  et  Scauro 
citra  fidem,  aut  obtrectationi  fuit." — Ed. 

f  In  Eruto. — C. 

}  Vossius  De  Histor.  Greeds,  1. 1,  c.  22.— -C. 

§  See  "  Collection  of  Letters  and  Essays  on  several  subjects," 
published  in  the  Dublin  Journal,  ii.  15. — C. 

||  See  Vossius,  De  Hist.  Lat.  1.  i.  c.  13.— C. 
VOL.  I.  C 


IS  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  disguise  of  a  Gallic  habit,  ventured  through  the 
whole  army  of  his  enemies  to  his  own  camp.*  And 
it  has  been  an  observation  of  several  of  cur  country 
men,  that  upon  his  visiting  this  island  of  Britain, 
rvered  than  subdued,  he  appears, 
to  have  been  sometimes 


by  the  inhabitants,  than  he  could  find 


Smet.  *.  l*m.     ED. 
t  -HaTi^ae.aodsalBted^a.d  played  hi 

oocY  o*  coB^Btst  of  some  few  IxHrxsoips, 
to  die  Belgkk  dwre."     X.  &OM,  p.  5. 
«  Ai  b»  reonra  to  Rome,"  aeeorfiB^  to  Plicy,  3T«rf.  Hist.," 

be  ouCfs  to  V  ems,  tne  ujfiuuess  of 


9BDUR  tBflIK  IB 


I  .".  i  '  -.  -      i:      .   L~.      ^.   - .  7  -  : 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  19 

But  anv  instances  of  this  kind  that  occur,  rather 
how  strongly  even  the  greatest  mtmme  apt  to 
be  wMliMMJ^Ip  najli  ilil  i  in  their  accounts  of  them 
selves,  than  amount  to  a  real  proof  that  writings  of 
this  kind,  as  far  as  they  go.  are  not  of  great  use,  and 
to  be  esteemed  accordingly . 

Augustus,  who  succeeded  his  node  Jnlios,  wrote 


It  must  hare  been  several  yean 
when  FMBTIT^  in  a  courageous  mood,  would  Tencure  \L.  BL  OdL 
4.)  even  to  li  liaii  lliMi  tiMiiailii«i 


.:  i   :  :?:r  .::.:i  : :" 


i  a  ku«ed  Iia&L&pniate,  eariy  in  the  1 7th  ceoiny,  (as  if 
JairllM^ iW  jpiiiirri fcaliailir •  nf  * ihr  ••iili ••  11  ••_*  ••!  •!• 


aiKi  cruelty  which  Britiiii 


20  LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY. 

thirteen  books  concerning  his  own  life,*  and  Tibe 
rius,  that  came  after  him,  did  the  same.f  Several 
others  also  of  their  Emperors  wrote  Ephemerises,  or 
Diaries.  And  the  same  thing  was  done  by  divers 
persons  of  distinction,  as  well  as  those  of  an  inferior 
rank  and  meaner  figure,  who  lived  and  acted  in  a 
more  private  sphere.  Marcus  Antoninus,  in  the  re 
marks  he  has  made  upon  himself,:):  has  really  given 
us  a  master-piece. 

We  have  yet  extant,  the  Life  of  Flavius  Jose- 
phus,  the  learned  Jew,  (who  was  a  priest,  and  de 
scended  from  those  of  the  first  rank  of  the  four-and- 
twenty,  which  was  reckoned  honourable  among  those 
of  their  nation,)  which  was  drawn  up  by  himself 
when  he  was  fifty-six  years  old,  (which  was  exactly 
my  own  age  at  the  time  when  the  narrative  ensuing 
was  first  begun, )§  and  the  reading  of  it  helps  us 
to  understand  both  his  History  and  Antiquities  the 
better. 

St.  Gregory  of  Nazianzum,  who  was  as  eminent 
a  divine  as  any  among  all  the  Fathers,  (whom  St. 
Hierome  calls  his  master,  saying  that  it  was  of  him 
that  he  learned  to  explain  the  Scriptures,)  wrote  his 
own  Life,  in  a  poem,  which  remains  in  his  works 
to  this  day.  In  the  first  part  of  it,  he  gives  an  ac- 

*   Fossius,l.  i.e.  18.— C. 

f  Ibid.  1.  i.  c.  24.— C. 

I  Which  now  form  the  first  Book  of  his  Meditations, — ED. 

§  In  1727.     The  author  was  born  in  1671.      See  infra. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  21 

count  of  public  transactions,  from  the  time  of  his 
birth  to  his  quitting  the  city  of  Constantinople, 
which  account  is  both  natural  and  elegant.  He 
therein  relates  his  public  and  most  notable  actions, 
and  drops  many  things  that  help  to  explain  to  us 
the  History  of  the  Cons  tan  tinopolitan  Council,  An. 
381,*  and  the  division  between  the  Eastern  and  West 
ern  churches ;  and  with  freedom  inveighs  against 
the  ignorance,  pride,  and  corrupt  manners  of  the 
bishops  of  that  age.f  And,  in  the  second  part,  he 
describes  his  own  inward  disposition,  and  touches 
upon  morality.  The  first  is  in  iambics,  and  the 
second  in  hexameter  verses. 

St.  Austin,  also,  the  famous  bishop  of  Hippo,  in 
Africa,  in  the  ten  first  of  his  thirteen  books  of  Con 
fessions,  gives  us  an  admirable  narrative  of  his  own 
life,  which  has  been,  generally,  as  much  valued  as 
any  part  of  his  work. 

And,  among  those  who  have  lived  in  more  modern 
times,  there  have  been  several  in  foreign  parts,  that 
have  gratified  such  as  came  after  them  in  the  same 
way. 

Cardan's  Tract,  De  Vila  Proprld\  has  many  things 
in  it  that  are  fantastical,  others  lewd,  and  some 

*  See  "The  Lives  of  the  Primitive  Fathers,  by  Le  Clerc, 
done  into  English."— (1701)  pp.  260—267. — ED. 

f  Whom,  in  his  "Carmen  de  Vita,"  (p.  28)  he  called 
"  Xpig-  e'propoi,  Mercatores  Christi." — Ibid.  p.  272. — ED. 

}  First  published  1654,  and  again  1663,  among  the  author's 
works,  in  10  vols.  fol.— ED. 


22  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

profane,  and  yet  a  great  deal  may  be  learned  from 
it.*     As  for  his  horoscope  of  our  blessed  Saviour, 

*  "  La  nature  lui  accorda  un  esprit  penetrant,  accompagne 
(Tun  caractere  beaucoup  moins  heureux.  Bizarre,  inconstant, 
opinionatre,  il  se  piquoit  comme  Socrate,  d'avoir  un  demon 
familier;  mais  son  demon,  s'il  en  eut  uri,  fut  moins  sage  que 
celui  de  Philosophe  Grec. 

"  Dans  1'histoire  de  sa  vie,  il  avoue  egalement  ses  bonnes,  et 
ses  mauvaises  qualites,  avec  une  franchise,  peu  commune.  II 
attribuoit  a  son  etoile  ses  impietes,  ses  mechancetes,  ses  deregle- 
mens."  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.ii.  395,  396. 

"  He  lias  collected,"  says  Mr.  Gi  anger,  "  all  the  testimonies 
of  his  contemporaries  relating  to  his  own  character,  and  has 
placed  at  the  head  of  them,  Testimonia  de  me."  Biog.  Hist. 
(1775,)  i.  151. 

In  his  Vita  Propria,  Cardan  has  given  an  interesting  character  of 
Edw.  VI.,  written  "after  his  death,  when  nothing  was  to  be  got 
by  flattering."  Burriet  quotes  the  passage,  which  he  has  thus 
introduced: — 

"  This  year  (1552,)  Cardan,  the  great  philosopher  of  that  age, 
passed  through  England,  as  he  returned  from  Scotland.  The 
Archbishop  of  St.  Andrew's  had  sent  for  him  out  of  Italy,  to 
cure  him  of  a  dropsy ;  in  which  he  had  good  success.  But  being 
much  conversant  in  astrology  and  magic,  he  told  him  he  could 
not  change  his  fate,  and  that  he  was  to  be  hanged,"  (which 
happened  in  1571.) 

"  He  waited  on  king  Edward,  as  he  returned,  and  was  so 
charmed  with  his  great  knowledge,  and  rare  qualities,  that  he 
always  spake  of  him  as  the  rarest  person  he  had  ever  seen." 
Hist,  of  Reform.  (1758)  ii.  167. 

Dr.  Robertson  remarks,  that  "  the  Archbishop,  it  is  probable, 
considered  him  as  a  powerful  magician,  when  he  applied  to  him 
for  relief;  but  it  was  his  knowledge  as  a  philosopher,  which 
enabled  him  to  cure  the  disease." 

From  "  a  calculation  of  the  Archbishop's  nativity,"  (as  he  is 
said,  also,  to  have  calculated  king  Edward's,)  "he  pretends  both  to 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  23 

of  which  the  giddy-headed  Vanini*  had  so  great  a 
fondness,  it  was  to  the  full  as  weak,  as  it  was  auda 
cious;  and  his  remarks  upon  it,  and  the  inferences 
he  draws  from  it,  are  perfectly  ridiculous.  And  they 
must  needs  be  so,  not  only  because  nothing  can  be 
more  precarious  than  the  principles  of  judicial  astro- 
have  predicted  his  disease,  and  to  have  effected  his  cure.  He 
received  a  reward  of  1800  crowns."  See  "  History  of  Scot 
land,"  (1776)  i.  136.— ED. 

*  Who  is  said  to  have  "  studied  Cardan  very  much,  and 
given  him  the  character  of  a  man  of  great  sense,  and  not  at  all 
affected  with  superstition/' — Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  xii.  307. 

Lucilio  Vanini,  a  native  of  Italy  was  burnt,  after  his  tongue 
had  been  cut  out,  at  Tholouse,  in  1619,  at  the  age  of  34,  under 
a  charge  of  Atheism.  He  had  been  imprisoned  for  a  short  time 
in  London,  in  1614,  apparently  on  the  same  account. 

The  deportment  of  this  victim  to  a  barbarous  zeal,  unworthy 
of  theism,  has  been  very  differently  represented. 

Bayle  says  that  "  Vanini,  was,  all  along,  exact  enough  in  his 
conduct ;  and  whoever  had  brought  an  action  against  him  for 
any  crime  except  his  doctrine,  had  run  a  great  risque  of  being 
convicted  of  slander." — Misc.  Ref.  ii.  356,  376. 

On  the  other  hand,  from  passages  in  his  Dialogues,  De  admi- 
randis  Nature*,  arcanis,  it  has  been  inferred,  "  que  Vannini  etoit 
aussi  licencieux  dans  ses  moeurs  que  dans  ses  ecrits." — Nouv. 
Diet.  Hist.  ix.  286,  287. 

It  has  been  maintained,  with  much  plausibility,  that  Vanini, 
though  not  always  "  exact  enough  in  his  conduct,"  thus  cruelly 
suffered,  under  an  unjust  imputation.  He  had  the  misfortune 
to  live  at  a  period,  when  "  quiconque  avait  un  secret  dans  un 
art,  courait  risque  de  passer  pour  un  sorcier,  et  tout  philoso- 
phe  qui  s'ecartait  du  jargon  de  1'ecole,  etait  accuse  d'Atheisme, 
par  les  fanatiques  et  par  les  frippons,  et  condamne  par  les 
sots."— See  "  Questions  sur  1'Encyclopedie,"  (1771)  ii.  207-212. 
—ED. 


24  LIFE    OF   CALAMY. 

logy;*  but  also,  because  we  neither  have,  nor  can 
have,  any  certain  knowledge  either  of  the  day,  or 
hour  of  our  Saviour's  birth,  the  knowledge  of 
which  is  supposed,  in  the  horoscope  drawn  up.f 
And,  withall,  it  was,  most  certainly  a  very  affected 
thing  in  Cardan,  to  give  so  nice  and  exact  an  ac 
count  of  his  own  writings. 

There  are  six  books  of  Commentaries  of  the  life 
of  the  celebrated  historian,  Jacobus  Augustus  Thua- 
nus,  which  are  added  at  the  end  of  his  history; 
but  they  seem  not  to  have  been  so  properly  drawn 
up  by  himself,  as  to  have  been  extracted  out  of  such 
papers  as  he  left  behind  hirn.J  They  are  filled  with 

*  See  the  Theological  Works  of  Dr.  Henry  More,  pp.  240, 
241,  &c. ;  M.  Bayle's  "  Miscellaneous  Reflections,  occasioned 
by  the  Comet  which  appeared  in  December  1680,"  i.  27-29, 
&C.—C. 

These  pages  form  S.  xvii.  which  proposes  to  show  "  that 
astrology,  which  is  the  foundation  of  particular  predictions  from 
the  comets  is  most  ridiculous."  The  "  Reflections,  chiefly 
tending  to  explode  popular  superstitions,  written  to  a  Doctor  of 
the  Sorbonne,"  were  published  in  1708,  as  "  translated  from  the 
French." — ED. 

f  Cardan  died  Sept.  21,  1576,  aged  75,  and  is  said  to  have 
abstained  from  food,  "  pour  accomplir  son  horoscope." — Nouv. 
Diet.  Hist.  ii.  395. 

"  3.  C.  Scaliger  affirms,  that  Cardan  having  fixed  the  time 
of  his  death  abstained  from  food,  that  his  prediction  might  be 
fulfilled,  and  that  his  continuance  to  live  might  not  discredit  his 
art."  Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  iii.  145. — ED. 

t  Mr.  Collinson  (see  supra,  p.  3,  note  f)  at  the  beginning 
of  his  "  Life  of  Thuanus,"  mentions  his  "  chief  materials"  as 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  25 

a  great  variety  of  particulars  not  mentioned  in  his 
general  history,  the  memory  of  which  it  is,  how 
ever,  very  fit  should  be  preserved.  They  bear  pro 
per  signatures  of  the  person  whose  name  is  upon 
them.  An  uncommon  vein  of  generosity  and  good- 
humour  runs  through  them ;  and  the  reading  them 
with  observation  and  care,  will  much  help  to  pro 
mote  the  knowledge  of  the  world. 

jEneas  Sylvius,  who  was  secretary  to  the  Council 
of  Basil,*  and  afterwards  Pope  Pius  II.,  wrote  twelve 
books  of  Commentaries,  of  things  done  by  himself, 
and  began  a  thirteenth ;  but,  though  I  have  seen,  I 
cannot  say  I  have  read  them.  But  there  is  one 
thing  that  is  well  known  of  him,  viz.  :  that  though 
at  his  first  setting  out  in  the  world  he  was  a  most 
zealous  defender  of  the  liberties  of  the  Church,  yet 
he  was  no  sooner  chosen  Pope,  than  he  saw  things 
in  a  very  different  light  from  what  he  did  before, 
and  did  his  utmost  to  abolish  the  Pragmatic  Sanc 
tion,  which  was  an  edict  made  in  France,f  contain 
ing  the  decrees  that  passed  at  Basil  concerning 
elections,  and  other  ecclesiastical  matters.  He  re 
tracted  all  his  former  writings,  but  never  answered 
them.  He  was  so  barefaced  in  setting  himself  to 
sale,  that  when  he  was  reproached  for  changing 
sides,  he  answered,  the  Popes  gave  dignities,  abbeys, 

"  taken  from  the  Latin  Memoirs,  first  published  with  some 
immaterial  additions,  by  his  friends  and  executors,  Rigaltius 
and  Du  Puy."— ED. 

*  In  1431 — ED. 

t  In  1438.— See  Dr.  Machine's  note,  Mosheim's  Eccl.  Hist. 
(1758)  iii.  246.— ED. 


26  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

bishopricks  and  red  hats  to  their  creatures ;  but  he 
asked,  how  many  such  good  things  did  the  Council 
give.* 

We  have  it  from  Mr.  Colomies,j-  that  he  saw  in 
the  library  of  the  learned  Vossius,  a  large  Latin 
MS.  in  folio,  which  contained  an  account  of  all  that 
was  done,  every  day,  by  Pope  Leo  X.  (who  was  in 
the  papal  chair,  at  the  beginning  of  the  Reforma 
tion)  in  the  whole  time  of  his  papacy,  in  which 
there  were  many  things  no  where  else  to  be  met 
withal.  And  he  adds,  that  he  thinks  the  famous 
Monsieur  de  Peiresc,  whose  Life  was  written  by 
Gassendus,  had  the  very  same  book ;  because  he 
remembered  he  had  seen,  in  the  catalogue  of  his 
MSS.  one  with  the  title  of  "  Diarium  Pontificates 
Leonis  X."J 

The  great  Julius  Scaliger,  than  whom  there  was 
scarce  a  man  better  known,  in  his  time,  in  Europe, 
wrote  a  letter  to  the  learned  Ferrerius,  in  which  he 
sketches  the  encomium  of  himself  and  his  family,  as 
far  as  words  can  well  go.§  And  his  son  Joseph  was 
not  willing  to  come,  at  all,  behind  him.  Bishop 
Walton,  the  celebrated  editor  of  our  English  Poiy- 

*  Burnet's  "  Hist,  of  the  Ref."  P.  iii.  p.  54.— C. 

t  Paul  Colomies,  a  native  of  Rochelle  where  his  father  was  a 
Protestant  physician.  He  died  in  London  in  1692,  aged  54. 

Among  his  several  publications,  Dr.  Calamy  probably  refers 
to  his  Melanges  Historiques,  described  as  "  un  recueil  de  plu- 
sieurs  petits  traits  curieux  et  agreable,  sur  quelques  gens-de- 
lettres."— Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  iii.  22. — ED. 

*  See  "  Ouvres  Melees  de  M.  Le  St.  Evremond,"  vi.  262.— C. 
§  See  Lipsiit  Cent,  2,  Epist.  46.     Ed.  Antwerp. — C. 


LIFE    OF    GALA  MY.  27 

glot,  says  of  this  latter,*  that  "  his  overweening  con 
ceit  of  his  own  abilities,  would  hardly  permit  him  to 
speak  well  of  any."  He,  in  a  letter  to  Janus  Dousa, 
to  be  met  with  in  the  printed  volumes  of  his 
epistles,  gives  a  very  particular  account  of  his  father, 
Julius  Caesar  Scaliger  and  himself,  showing  upon 
what  their  claim  to  nobility  was  founded.  And 
though  he  there  gives  positive  assurance,  with  a 
great  appearance  of  solemnity,  that  he  did  it  without 
the  least  tincture  of  vanity ;  yet,  I  believe,  there  are 
very  few  that  read  it  but  what  are  of  opinion  there 
is  no  bringing  him  off,  in  that  case,  without  the 
help  of  a  pretty  strong  figure. 

That  remarkable  divine,  Francis  Junius,  who  was 
so  warm  and  active  in  the  last  century  against  the 
Spaniards  in  the  Netherlands,  has  given  the  world  a 
particular  account  of  his  own  life,  in  which  there 
are  several  surprising  passages.  It  is  to  be  found 
in  the  volume  of  his  works  in  folio.  Among  other 
things  he  there  gives  us  to  understand,  that  in  his 
younger  years  he  was  carried  away  by  bad  company, 
and  at  length  strongly  tempted  to  Atheism,  in  which 
he  was  in  no  small  danger  of  being  swallowed  up  ; 
but  that  one  day  opening  the  Bible,  and  setting  him 
self  to  read  the  first  chapter  of  St.  John's  Gospel,  he 
was  fully  convinced  of  the  majesty,  authority,  and 
divinity  of  the  scriptures ;  and  found  that  in  them, 
that  he  was  satisfied  was  beyond  all  human  eloquence. 
And,  he  intimates,  not  only  that  he  fell  under  a  sud- 

*  "  Considerator  Considered,"'  p.  115. — C. 


28  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

den  astonishment,  but  his  conviction  was  attended 
with  such  power,  that  his  very  body  trembled,  and 
he  was  filled  with  a  surprizing  and  marvellous  light ; 
and  he  declares,  that  from  that  day  forward,  he 
became  truly  serious  arid  in  earnest  with  religion.* 

Abraham  Schultetus,  also,  the  celebrated  Profes 
sor  at  Heidelberg,  Court  Preacher  to  Frederic,  Elec 
tor  Palatine,  (who  married  the  Princess  Elizabeth, 
a  daughter  of  England,  and  was  chosen  King  of 
Bohemia ;  into  which  country,  Schultetus  attended 
him,  in  the  capacity  of  chaplain,  and  was,  in  1618, 
one  of  the  divines  deputed  from  the  Palatinate  to  the 
Synod  of  Dort,)f  wrote  and  published  a  discourse, 
entitled :  Narratio  Apologetica  de  curricula  vitce  su<z, 

*  "  Francis  Junius,  Professor  of  Divinity  at  Leyden,  died  of 
the  plague  in  1602,  being  in  his  57th  year.  He  promoted  with 
great  zeal  the  Reformation  in  the  Low  Countries."  Yet,  "  he 
treated  the  Roman  Catholics  in  his  writings,  with  more  gentle 
ness  and  moderation,  than  the  Protestants,  generally  speaking, 
treat  one  another. 

"  Some  Divines  asked  him  one  day,  which  was  his  favourite 
work  ?  *  My  Irenicon,'  said  he  :  '  for  I  have  writ  my  other  books 
as  a  divine,  but  I  have  written  that  as  a  Christian.'  This  is  a 
remarkable  distinction." — See  "  History  of  the  Reformation  in 
the  Low  Countries,"  abridged  from  G.  Brandt,  by  Michael  de  la 
Roche,  (1725,)  i.  265,  266.— ED. 

f  Where  John  Hales  heard  from  him  "  a  pious  and  pathetical 
sermon."  Afterwards,  "  my  lord  Bishop  Carleton  and  Schulte 
tus"  were  appointed  "  to  conceive  a  form  of  public  confession." 

At  another  session,  "  Schultetus  spake  at  large,  de  ctrtitudine 
gratice  ct  salutis,  that  it  was  necessary  for  every  man  to  be  assur 
ed  of  his  salvation.  The  manner  of  his  discourse  was  oratorial, 
the  same  that  he  uses  in  his  sermons,  not  scholastical,  and  ac- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  29 

in  which  he  gives  an  account  of  his  conversation 
with  several  princes,  and  wipes  off  a  great  many 
aspersions  that  were  cast  upon  him,  and  touches 
upon  several  things  that  give  light  as  to  the  state  of 
the  reformed  churches  at  that  time, 
cording  to  the  fashion  of  disputation  in  schools.  For  this  cause, 
the  question  was  neither  deeply  searched  into,  nor  strongly 
proved." 

The  following  passages  describing  the  manner  and  spirit  of  an 
assembly  thus  absurdly  squandering  their  time  and  talents  in  the 
unprofitable  fabrication  of  compulsory  creeds,  are  worthy  of 
being  quoted,  from  a  very  intelligent  observer,  and  a  reporter 
highly  credible.  The  first  paragraph  may  also  serve  to  show, 
that,  "  reserved  seats  for  ladies"  are  no  innovation  ;  though  it 
were  to  be  wished  that  the  learned  reporter  had  not  imbibed  so 
much  of  the  caustic  spirit  of  "  Old  Sibrandus/'  but  had  rather 
referred  with  more  complaisance  to  the  ladies  of  Dort ;  who,  on 
a  question  so  momentous,  were  not  satisfied  to  "  ask  their  hus 
bands  at  home,"  though,  once,  an  apostolic  precept. 

"  They  questioned  whether  they  should  admit  of  hearers,  or 
do  all  in  private.  Old  Sibrandus  was  very  hot  against  the  audi 
tory,  and  thought  it  not  fit  that  any  care  should  be  had  of 
them,  as  being  only  ?nulierculce,  et  pauculi  Juvenes  incauti. 
There  is  some  reason  for  this  complaint  of  his  ;  for  many  youths, 
yea,  and  artificers,  and  I  know  not  what  rabble  besides,  thrust 
in,  and  trouble  the  place.  As  for  women,  whole  troops  of  them 
have  been  seen  there,  and  the  best  places  for  spectators  re 
served  for  them.  Which  things  must  needs  expose  the  Synod 
to  the  scorn  of  those  who  lie  in  wait  to  take  exceptions  against 
it.  But  the  Synod  hath  determined  in  favour  of  their  auditory, 
that  sessions  consultatory  and  provisional  shall  be  private,  but 
sessions  wherein  they  discuss  and  conclude  shall  be  public. 

"The  most  partial  spectator  of  our  synodal  acts,  cannot  but 
confess,  that  in  the  late  dismission  of  the  remonstrants,  with  so 
much  choler  and  heat,  there  was  a  great  oversight  committed  ; 


30  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

The  learned  Huetius,*  who  published  Demon- 
stratio  Evangelica,  a  book  full  of  eloquence  and 
erudition,  wrote  also  six  books  of  Commentaries  of 
the  things  concerning  himself,f  which  are  certainly 
worth  any  man's  perusing.  They  give  that  account 
of  his  several  works,  some  of  which  are  very  va 
luable  ;  his  friendship  and  correspondence  with  men 
of  learning  in  the  several  parts  of  Europe,  and  of 
such  particulars  concerning  them,  as  cannot  but  yield 
great  pleasure  to  those  that  have  any  tincture  of 
curiosity ;  though,  at  the  same  time,  it  must  be 
owned  his  treatment  of  the  great  Bochart,  (who  is 
by  Mr.  Peter  Bayle  in  his  Historical  and  Critical 
Dictionary,  said  to  have  been  one  of  the  most  learn 
ed  men  in  the  world,  to  whom  he  owns  himself  to 

and  that,  whether  we  respect  our  common  profession  of  Christi 
anity,  quce  nil  nisi  justum  suadet  et  lene ;  or  the  quality  of  this 
people,  apt  to  mutiny,  by  reason  of  long  liberty,  and  not  having 
learnt  to  be  imperiously  commanded,  in  which  argument  the 
clergy,  above  all  men,  ought  not  to  have  read  their  first  lesson." 
— See  "  Letters  from  the  Synod  of  Dort?  to  Sir  Dudley  Carle- 
ton,  by  Mr.  John  Hales."  (1765,)  pp.  76,  130,  135,  145.— ED. 

*  "  Peter  Daniel  Huet,  bishop  of  Av ranches  in  France,  was 
born  at  Caen,  16,30.  He  died  1721,  in  his  91st  year.  Olivet, 
in  his  Eloge  Historique,  says,  that  for  two  or  three  hours  before 
his  death,  he  recovered  all  the  vigour  of  his  genius  and  me 
mory."  Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  vii.  266—273.  See  Biog.  Gallica, 
(1752)  ii.  234—248. 

Dr.  Aikin,  a  few  years  since,  published  in  2  vols.  8vo.  a  Life 
of  Huet.— ED. 

f  "  Pet.  Dan.  Huetii  Episcopi  Abrincensis,  Commentarius 
de  rebus  ad  eum  pertinentibus.  Amstelod,  12mo.  1718." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  31 

have  been  under  singular  obligations,)  does  not  dis 
cover  either  that  generosity  or  gratitude  that  might 
have  reasonably  been  expected,  from  a  scholar  and  a 
gentleman,  or  even  from  one  of  common  ingenuity.* 
Among  a  great  many  others  whom  that  writer 
takes  notice  of,  he  mentions  a  contemporary  whom 
he  calls  Roger  Rabutin  Bussius,f  who  wrote  a  Com 
mentary  concerning  his  own  affairs  ;t  in  which  all 
that  he  seemed  to  aim  at  was  to  publish  his  own 
praises,  and  raise  himself  above  the  rest  of  man 
kind  :  as  thinking  it  much  below  him  to  stand  upon 

*  "  While  he  was  employed  upon  his  Origenis  Commentaria, 
published  in  1668,  Bochart  desiring  one  day  a  sight  of  his  MS. 
for  the  sake  of  consulting  some  passages  about  the  Eucharist, 
discovered  an  hiatus,  which  seemed  to  determine  the  sense  in 
favour  of  the  Papists,  and  reproached  Huet  with  being  th£  con 
triver  of  it. 

"  Huet,  at  first,  thought  that  it  was  a  defect  in  the  original 
MS.,  but  upon  consulting  another  very  ancient  MS.,  he  found 
that  he  had  omitted  some  words  in  the  hurry  of  transcribing,  as 
he  says,  and  that  the  mistake  was  his  own.  Bochart,  still  sup 
posing  that  this  was  a  pious  fraud  in  Huet,  alarmed  the  Pro 
testants  every  where,  as  if  Origen's  Commenlaria  were  going  to 
be  very  unfairly  published;  and  by  that  means  dissolved  the 
friendship  which  had  long  subsisted  between  Huet  and  hiaiself." 
Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  vii.  268.  ED. 

f  Huet,  lib.  v.— C. 

t  "  Memoires.  1693.  Pour  quelques  fails  vrais  et  inter- 
ressans  on  y  trouve  cent  particulahtes  dont  on  ne  se  set  ucie  pas." 

A  more  favourable  character  is  given  of  his  "  Discours  a  ses 
enfans,  sur  le  bon  usage  des  adversites,  et  Sur  les  divers  eve- 
nemens  de  sa  vie,  1694."  Now.  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  6-8.  See 
Biog.  Gallica,  ii.  32— 47.— ED. 


32  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

a  level  with  his  neighbours.  In  which  he  observes, 
(and  I  cannot  see  how  any  other  could  reasonably  be 
expected)  he  missed  of  his  aim.  All  will  readily 
agree  that  this  was  perfectly  ridiculous  ;  and  yet 
it  has  been  too  much  the  way  of  the  gentlemen  of 
the  French  nation,  who  abound  in  written  memoirs 
above  the  inhabitants  of  any  other  country.  It  has 
been  very  commonly  observed  concerning  them,  that 
they  have  herein  been  strangely  apt  to  over-do,  and 
run  too  far.  By  many  of  their  performances  of  this 
kind,  one  would  be  apt  to  think  that  there  was  not 
a  country  in  Europe  that  produced  men  of  so  much 
eminence,  courage  and  capacity,  as  theirs.  Whereas, 
in  reality,  they,  in  these  respects,  as  far  as  I  can 
discern,  are  much  the  same  with  those  who  live  in 
other  climates,  and  have  their  imperfections,  weak 
nesses  and  defects,  in  common  with  the  rest  of  man 
kind. 

Looking  into  the  Memoirs  of  Bassompierre,*  we 
meet  with  much  such  a  picture,  as  a  man  that  was 
very  full  of  himself,  and  well  skilled  in  painting, 
.would  be  apt  to  draw  of  his  own  countenance. 
Every  good  feature  that  appeared,  or  was  taken  for 
such,  is  placed  in  the  best  light  that  could  be ;  and 
his  several  blemishes,  if  it  could  be  allowed  there 

*  Marshal  of  France,  who  appears  to  have  been  highly  ac 
complished  as  a  linguist.  "  II  parloit  toutes  les  langues  de 
1'Europe  aussi  facilement  que  celle  de  son  pays."  The  period 
of  his  Memoirs  extends  from  1598  to  1631.  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist. 
i.  494,  495.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  33 

were  any  such,  are  touched  so  exceeding  well,  that 
they  look  just  like  the  patches  the  ladies  stick  upon 
their  faces,  with  a  design  to  set  off  their  beauty.* 
When  gentlemen  of  this  temper  sit  themselves  down 
in  their  closets  to  write  their  own  lives  or  rnemoirs,t 
they,  with  all  the  ease  in  the  world,  are  able  to  make 
just  what  they  please  of  themselves.  They  do  not 
find  the  least  difficulty  in  making  such  actions  as 
were  really  trivial  pass  for  heroical ;  or  in  giving  such 
a  turn  to  what  was  dropped  freely  in  conversation, 
and  so  setting  it  off  with  art  and  rhetoric,  as  to 
make  it  contribute  considerably  to  their  embellish 
ment.  This  makes  it  not  so  easy  to  depend  on  their 
accounts,  for  fear  lest,  with  a  little  history,  there 
should  be  a  great  deal  of  romance  intermixed. 
Even  the  Duke  of  Rohan  himself,  as  much  a 

*  There  is  a  record  "  1650,  June  7,"  that  "  a  Bill  was  ordered 
to  be  read  against  the  vice  of  painting,  wearing  black  patches, 
&c.  but  no  mention  is  made  of  it  in  the  journal  of  that  day,  nor 
in  Scobel's  Acts."  Par/.  Hist.  (1 763)  xix.  263.  See  Spectator, 
No.  81.— ED. 

f  The  closet  in  which  the  Memoires  were  written?  was  ^n 
apartment  in  the  Bastille.  The  writer,  for  some  offence  against 
Richelieu,  "  qui  avoit  se  plaindre  de  sa  langue  caustique,  et 
qui  craignoit  tous  ceux  qui  pouvoient  1'obscurcir,"  endured  an 
imprisonment  of  twelve  years,  closed  only  with  the  life  of  the 
Cardinal. 

"  Apres  la  sortie  de  la  Bastille,  la  duchesse  d'Aiguillon,  niece 
du  Cardinal  de  Richelieu,  lui  offrit  cinq  cens  mille  livres  pour 
en  disposer  comme  il  lui  plairoit.  l  Madame/  lui  dit  Bassom- 
pierre,  en  la  remerciant,  *  votre  oncle  m'a  trop  de  mal,  pour  rece- 
voir  de  vous  tent  de  bien.' "  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  i.  495.— ED. 

VOL.    I.  D 


34  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

hero*  as  he  was  in  the  last  age,  does  not,  in  this 
respect,  appear  to  have  been  wholly  free  from  guile. 
For,  though  one  of  our  English  writers  that  is  no 
way  contemptible,  says  that  "  his  honour  and  vera 
city  even  his  very  enemies  never  called  in  ques 
tion,"!  yet  his  having  a  Bible  carried  pompously 
before  him  when  he  entered  into  any  city,  and  his 
alighting  continually  from  his  horse  at  the  church- 
door,  wherever  he  came,  and  falling  to  his  prayers, 
upon  both  his  knees,  before  he  spoke  of  business  to 
any  body,  which  were  things  that  had  a  peculiar 
aspect,  did  not  much  recommend  him  to  the  most 
wise  and  considerate.  And,  whosoever  is  at  the 
pains  carefully  to  run  over  what  he  has  left  behind 
him  in  writing,  will,  without  much  difficulty,  be  able 
to  observe  that  the  jealousy  of  the  Duke  of  Bouillon, 
and  resentment  of  the  loss  of  the  government  of 
Poictou,  were  the  springs  that  acted  him  in  those 
parts  of  his  life,  in  which  the  patriot  and  the  Protes 
tant  seemed  to  shine  the  brightest. 

But  there  is  hardly  any  one  can  be  mentioned 
that  has  gone  beyond  all  bounds  more  remarkably 
than  the  poor  wretched  Marshal  Montluc,^:  who  has 
also  left  Commentaries  behind  him,  or  an  history  of 

*  See  Voltaire's  Panegyric. — Nouv,  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  160. — 
ED. 

f  Dr.  Wei  wood's  <l  Memoirs  for  the  last  Hundred  Years  pre 
ceding  1688,"  p.  87.— C. 

t  \Vho  died  in  1577,  aged  77.— Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  vi.  324- 
326.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  35 

his  own  actions.  Of  him  it  is  generally  said,  that 
he  did  much,  but  wrote  more.t  I  verily  think,  that 
the  whole  world  hardly  affords  a  book  fuller  of 
impertinent  vanity  than  his.  He  is  continually, 
almost,  rhodomantading  about  his  own  glorious 
exploits,  with  which  he  seems  perfectly  enamoured  ; 
calling  upon  the  gentlemen  of  his  profession  to  ob 
serve  them  with  the  greatest  care  and  niceness,  and 
to  take  them  for  their  model.  Nor  does  he  go  about 
to  conceal,  or  make  a  secret,  even  of  his  own  horrid 
brutishness  and  barbarity,  And  the  famous  French 
historian  M.  de  Mezeray,  in  his  Reign  of  Charles  IX., 
freely  says  of  him,  that  he  exceeded  the  bounds  of 
severity  itself  against  the  Huguenots. 

The  Essays  of  Montaigne,  with  which  many  have 
been  much  delighted,  are  a  very  peculiar  rhapsody, 
full  of  an  amazing  variety  of  particulars,  that  are 
very  whimsically  put  together,  and  strangely  hu- 
moursome.  M.  de  Crouzas  very  justly  represents  this 
writer  as  a  complete  humourist,^  full  of  fire,  and 
that  could  bear  no  bounds  or  limits  ;  and  says  that 
he  runs  on,  furiously,  whatsoever  subject  he  falls 
on,  without  regard  to  consequences ;  many  times 
agreeing  as  little  with  himself  as  with  other  writers. 

*  Written  at  the  age  of  75.  "  Henri  IV.  Tappeloit  la  Bible 
des  Soldats," — Ibid.  p.  325. — ED. 

t  "  Multa  fecit,  plura  scripsit."-— Ibid.— ED. 

J  Voyez  sa  Logiquc,  torn.  1.  r\  1.  ch.  vii.  pp.  213.  250, 
251 C. 

D  2 


36  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

And  the  same  learned  man  says  of  him,  elsewhere,* 
that  as  truth  is  not  a  thing  he  has  much  at  heart,  so 
it  is  no  pain  to  him  to  overthrow  in  one  line,  what 
he  has  just  been  advancing  in  another.  If  you  will 
believe  him,  he  speaks  that  he  may  speak,  rather 
than  persuade  ;  and  yet,  that  he  may  obtain  a  thing, 
he  demands  more  than  he  mentions,  and  makes  use 
of  expressions  that  say  more  than  he  thinks.  Such 
a  writer  as  this,  as  much  as  some  admire  him,  is 
wholly  unaccountable.  It  must  be  owned  he  has 
some  fine  remarks  ;  but  they  have  neither  head 
nor  tail,  and  lie  in  the  utmost  disorder  and  confu 
sion. 

I  have,  indeed,  read  in  the  Life  of  the  ingenious 
Mr.  Peter  Bayle,  of  Rotterdam,!  that  "  he  used  to 
tell  his  friends  $  that,  if  all  the  copies  of  Montaigne's 
Essays  were  lost  to  the  world,  he  could  retrieve 
them  to  a  tittle ;  so  often  had  he  read  them  over." 
But,  notwithstanding  that  learned  man  had  a  happy 
memory,  and  this  was  one  of  his  favourite  authors, 
as  the  writer  of  his  Life  declares, §  yet,  I  believe, 
there  are  few  that  have  run  over  Montaigne  ever 
so  curiously,  but  what  will  readily  agree,  that  such  a 
saying  as  this  must  be  figuratively  understood,  and 
that,  among  other  reasons,  because,  as  has  been  ob 
served  long  since,  it  would  be  no  easy  thing  to  find 

*  Voyez  sa  Logique,  torn.  i.  s.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  897. — C. 
t  P.  8.— C.         %  "  In  mirth,"  Dr.  Calamy  has  omitted. — ED. 
§  "  Plutarch    and  Montaigne    were    his   favourite    authors." 
Ibid ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  37 

so  much  as  any  one  single  chapter,  in  all  the  three 
books  of  Essays,  where  the  contents  answer  the  title 
that  stands  at  the  head  of  it.  It  would,  however, 
have  no  great  difficulty  attending  it  to  pick  out  an 
account  of  the  most  memorable  particulars  of  the 
life  and  character  of  the  author,  from  passages  scat 
tered  up  and  down,  here  and  there,  if  a  man  thought 
it  worth  his  while  to  be  at  that  pains. 

But,  among  a  great  many  other  historical  mat 
ters  there  occurring,  some  of  which  are  memorable 
enough  I  must  own,  I  could  not,  myself,  help  be 
ing  affected  at  the  notice  he  takes  of  two  learned 
men  ;  viz.  Lilius  Gregorius  Giraldus,  in  Italy ;  and, 
Sebastian  Castalio,  in  Germany  ;*  who  miserably 
perished  for  want  of  food,  and  other  necessaries. 
And  he,  at  the  same  time  adds,  that  he  verily  be 
lieved  there  were  many  thousands,  that,  had  they 
known  or  understood  their  wants,  would  either  have 
sent  for  them,  and  with  large  stipends  entertained 
them,  or  have  conveyed  them  succour,  wherever 
they  had  been. 

This,  it  must  be  confessed,  is  a  very  mortifying 

*  Mont.  Ess.  b.  i.  ch.  xxxiv. — C.  "  J'entens  avec  une 
grande  honte  de  nostre  siecle,  qu'a  nostre  veue,  deux  tres-ex- 
cellens  personnages  en  scavoir,  sont  mort  en  estat  de  n'avoir 
pas  leur  saoul  &  manger  :  Lilius  Gregorius  Giraldus  en  Italie, 
et  Sebastianus  Castalio  en  Allemagne  :  et  croy  qu'il  y  a  mil' 
hommes  qui  les  essent  appellez  avec  tres-advantageuses  condi 
tions,  oa  secours  ou  ils  estoient,  s'ils  1'eussent  sfeu." — Essais, 
(1724)  i.  227.— On  Castalio,  see  "  The  Diary  of  Thomas  Bur 
ton,"  iii.  206,  n.— ED. 


38  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

story.*  And  yet,  after  all,  that  whole  work,  where 
in  this  passage  occurs,  is  full  of  a  great  deal  of 
unpardonable  vanity.  Nor  can  I  say  that  Father 
Malebranche  does  this  writer  the  least  wrong  when 
he  says  of  him,  that  he  neither  has  any  principles 
whereon  to  bottom  his  reasonings,  nor  any  method 
to  make  deductions  from  his  principles ;  and  that  his 
Essays  are  a  contexture  of  scraps  of  history,  little 
relations,  good  words,  distichs,  and  apophthegms.f 

*  And  the  account,  that  passes  for  current  in  the  world,  of 
Machiavel,  the  famous  master  of  our  modern  politicians,  is  a 
little  like  it,  viz.  that  after  all  his  subtle  politics,  he  died  in  gaol, 
for  want  of  bread. 

Bishop  Burnet  also  says,  of  the  Earl  of  Traquair,  that  had 
been  Lord  Treasurer  of  Scotland,  that  he  "  saw  him  so  low  that 
he  wanted  bread,  and  was  forced  to  beg ;  and  it  was  believed 
died  of  hunger."  See  "  Hist,  of  his  own  Time."  i.  24.— C. 

Machiavel  is  said  to  have  died  poor,  in  1527,  aged  58,  in  con 
sequence  of  some  improper  application  of  medicine  ;  "  d'un  re- 
mede  pris  h  contre-temps."  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  v.  462.  I  am 
not  aware  of  Dr.  Calamy's  authority  for  his  having  "  died  in  gaol, 
for  want  of  bread."  As  to  the  "  subtle  politics,"  for  which  his  name 
has  long  been  proverbial,  among  others,  Lord  Bacon  ( De  augm. 
Scient,  1.  vii.  c.  2.)  and  Lord  Clarendon  (Hist.  iii.  110.)  have 
described  Machiavel  as  designing  to  expose,  rather  than  to  re 
commend,  an  insidious  policy. 

In  "Some  account  of  H.Neville,"  prefixed  to  his  Plato  Redivivus, 
in  1763,  he  is  said  (p.  7.)  to  have  "first  published  and  translated 
a  Letter  of  the  much-aspersed  Nicolo  Machiavelli,  to  Zanobio 
Buondelmonti,  in  vindication  of  himself  and  his  writings,  brought 
by  him  from  Italy  in  1645,  on  his  return  from  his  travels. '"'  For 
this  translation  see  "Pillars  of  Priestcraft,"  (1768,)  iv.  245  ; 
"  Harleian  Miscellany,'*  (1808,)  i.  78.— ED. 

•\  "  Search  after  Truth,"  b.  ii.  p.  iii.  ch.  5.—C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  39 

M.  Pascal,  also,  is  severe  upon  him  ;  and,  I  cannot 
say,  undeservedly,  for  his  horrid  notions  concerning 
death  and  self-murder.* 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  another  French 
writer,  viz.  Philip  de  Commines,  (who  tells  us,  that 
he  would  relate  nothing  that  was  foreign  to  truth, 
nothing  which  he  had  not  either  seen  himself,  or  re 
ceived  from  persons  worthy  of  credit,)  that  is  emi 
nently  remarkable  for  his  great  modesty.  His  Me 
moirs,  together  with  a  variety  of  particulars  relating 
to  himself,  contain  the  history  of  Louis  the  Eleventh, 
and  Charles  the  Eighth  of  France ;  and  of  Charles 
the  Bold,  Duke  of  Burgundy,  and  the  Princes  their 
neighbours  and  contemporaries^ 

For  my  part,  I  must  freely  own,  that  I  know  of 
no  book  of  the  kind  that  may  be  read  with  more 
pleasure  and  profit  at  once,  notwithstanding  that,  in 
some  things,  he  seems  to  be  too  severe,  and  to  bear 
a  little  too  hard  upon  our  countrymen.  Nor  has 
any  history  been  more  commended.  And  yet  even 
he  is  reflected  on  by  the  celebrated  M.  de  Meze- 
ray,  who,  speaking  of  his  quitting  the  Duke  of  Bur 
gundy,  to  whose  family  he  belonged,  in  the  year 
1472,  to  go  into  the  service  of  the  king  his  sovereign 
lord,  adds  these  words :  "  If  the  motive  thereto  had 

*Pensees  de  M.  Pascal,  p.  171.— C. 

t  See  a  great  character  of  this  writer  in  Dr.  Wotton's  "  Re 
flections  upon  Antient  and  Modern  Learning."  Ch.  3. — C. 

See  Reflections  (1697)  pp.  42,  43  ;  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii. 
125-127,  n.— ED. 


40  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

been  honest,  no  doubt  but  it  would  have  been  ex 
plained  by  him  who  hath  reasoned  so  well  on  every 
thing  else.*  And  this  being  granted,  rnethinks  that 
single  fault  might  easily  have  been  forgiven." 

But  our  English  historian,  Mr.  Daniel,  is  yet  more 
severe  in  his  censure,  when  he  represents  him  as  happy 
indeed  in  writing  many  cunning  particulars  of  the 
Princes  he  served,  but  rude  in  the  art  of  history, 
and  ever  blemishing  the  glory  of  our  nation. f 

Sir  William  Temple,  though  he  discovers  a  value 
for  this  writer,  "  for  his  great  truth  of  relation,  and 
simplicity  of  style,"  yet  could  not  find  in  his  heart  to 
own  his  work  "an  history." :f 

But  Mr.  Dryden  is  of  another  mind,  and  in  his 
Life  of  Plutarch,  of  all  the  histories  among  the 
Grecians,  recommends  Thucydides,  and  after  him, 
Polybius ;  and,  among  the  Romans,  Livy,  though 
not  free  from  superstition;  and  Tacitus,  though  not 
free  from  ill-nature.  Among  the  modern  Italians, 
he  fixes  upon  Guicciardini  and  D'Avila,  if  not  par 
tial.  But,  above  all  men,  he  declares,  that  in  his 
opinion,  the  plain,  sincere,  unaffected  and  most  in 
structive  Philip  de  Comrnines,  is  to  be  esteemed 
amongst  the  French,  though  he  only  gives  his  his- 

*  He  is  said  to  have  been  driven  away  by  the  disgraceful 
mode  in  which  the  Duke  had  resented  an  unseasonable  fami 
liarity;  which  became  "  la  fable  de  la  cour."  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist. 
iii.  32;  Burton,  iii.  126,  n. — ED. 

t  See  his  Life  and  Reign  of  Edw.  IV.     An.  1473.— C. 

t  See  his  "  Defence  of  the  Essay  upon  Ancient  and  Modern 
Learning/'  in  his  Miscellanea,  part  iii.  pp.  251,  2528 — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  41 

tory  the  humble  name  of  Commentaries.  And  he 
adds,  that  he  is  sorry  that  he  could  not  find  in  our 
own  nation,  though  it  has  produced  some  com 
mendable  historians,  any  that  were  proper  to  be 
ranked  with  him. 

But  yet  several  natives  of  our  British  Isles  have 
also  written  their  own  lives,  as  well  as  the  inhabit 
ants  of  other  countries.  The  learned  George  Bu 
chanan  was  one  of  them.  A  celebrated  author* 
says  of  him,  that  the  talent  of  writing  history  hath 
not  been  found  on  this  side  of  the  Alps,  in  any  save 
in  Buchanan,  who  hath  written  the  History  of  Scot 
land  better  than  Livy  did  that  of  Rome.  And  Mr. 
Dryden  preferred  him  to  all  the  historians  that  ever 
wrote  in  Britain. f  Though  some  party-men  have 
taken  the  liberty  to  reflect  on  him  with  great 
severity,  j:  yet  there  are  few  that  read  his  History 
of  Scotland,  with  any  consideration,  but  what  own 
him  to  have  been  as  considerable  a  man  as  most  that 
have  been  born  in  Britain.  This  learned  man  has 
given  an  account  of  himself,  which  is  prefixed  to  his 
political  works,  but  it  being  short  and  contracted,^ 

*  Wicquefort  "  Memoires  des  Ambassadeurs." — C. 

t  Pref.  to  the  new  Translation  of  Plutarch's  Lives. — C. 

J  Thus  for  his  Detectio  Maries  Regince  and  his  dialogue  De 
JureRegniapud  Scotos,  Father  D'Orleans  denounces  this  "  homme 
de  rien,"  though  allowed  to  be  "  homme  d'esprit."  See  "  Revo 
lutions  d'Angleterre,"  (1694)  iii.  14. — ED. 

§  Into  four  pages,  prefixed  to  his  Historia.  It  is  in  the  third 
person,  and  purports  to  have  been  written  in  1580,  two  years 
before  Buchanan's  death. — ED. 


42  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

we  may  do  well  to  add  to  it  the  farther  account  that 
is  given  of  him  by  Archbishop  Spotswood,  in  his  His 
tory  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,*  Sir  William  Temple, 
and  Sir  James  Melvill  of  Halhill,  in  his  Memoirs. f 

And  as  to  that  Sir  James  Melvill,  he  has  drawn 
up,  and  left  behind  him,  a  particular  account  of  him 
self  and  his  conduct  from  his  younger  years,  with 
Memoirs  of  affairs  relating  both  to  England  and 
Scotland,  under  the  reign  of  Elizabeth  of  England, 
Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  and  King  James  the  First  of 
England,  and  the  Sixth  of  Scotland,  which  are  very 
nice  and  curious,  and  carry  with  them  that  air  of 
impartiality  that  extremely  recomnlends  them.  And 
I  believe  there  are  hardly  any  to  be  met  with,  that 
have  been  at  the  pains  to  read  them,  but  what  have 
wished  that  we  had  had  them  more  entire ;  and 
been  ready  to  concur  with  me  in  regretting  that  any 
part  of  them  should  be  lost,  which  is  so  justly  com 
plained  of  by  Mr.  George  Scott,  the  Editor,  in  his 
Epistle  to  the  Reader  that  is  prefixed. 

Bishop  Joseph  Hall's  "  Specialities  of  Divine  Pro 
vidence,"  in  his  Life,  noted  by  his  own  hand,  are 
both  instructive  and  affecting ;  though  I  cannot  help 
thinking  it  were  much  to  have  been  wished,  that  he 
had  been  as  particular  in  the  former  part  of  his  life, 
(in  which  Bishop  Laud,  with  whom  he  was  several 
ways  concerned,  had  the  ascendant,  and  fell  out 
with  the  good  man,  among  other  things,  for  holding 

*  Lib.  vi.  p.  325. — C.     Biog.  Brit.  ii.  685. — ED. 
f  P.  125.— C.     Mem.  (1735)  p.  250.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  43 

the  Pope  to  be  Antichrist,)  as  he  has  been  in  the 
latter  part  of  it,  when  the  nation  ran  into  confusion; 
and  that  excellent  person  had  such  "  hard  measure," 
as  that  the  bare  reading  the  narrative  of  it*  that  he 
has  left  behind  him,  is  enough  to  make  any  one  me 
lancholy,  that  has  the  least  sense  either  of  humanity 
or  Christianity  in  him. 

And  in  the  works  of  the  famous  Dr.  John  Forbes, 
published  by  Dr.  Garden,  in  two  volumes  in  folio, 
An.  1703,  we  have  not  only  his  outward  life,  written 
by  the  said  Dr.  Garden,  but  also  his  inward  life,  or 
his  spiritual  exercises  drawn  up  by  himself,  very 
largely  and  particularly. 

More  lately  also,  there  has  been  published  a  sort 
of  an  History  drawn  up  by  Dr.  Samuel  Parker, 
made  Bishop  of  Oxford  by  King  James  II.  t  which 
is  intituled  "  Commentariorum  de  rebus  sui  temporis 
Libri  Quatuor  ;"£  in  which,  besides  his  heat  against 
all  those  in  general  that  were  of  a  different  way  of 
thinking  from  himself,  (without  considering  that  they 
had  as  good  a  right  to  differ  from  him,  as  he  had  to 
differ  from  them,)  he  plainly  shows  his  weakness  in 
inveighing  so  much  against  Andrew  Marvell,  Esq.  || 
and  Dr.  John  Owen,  who  had  both  of  them  written 
against  him  to  so  good  purpose  in  the  opinion  of  the 
generality  of  readers,  both  at  that  time  and  since. 

*  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  328,  n. — ED. 

t  See  Brit.  Biog.  (1770)  vi.  296.— ED. 

%  Of  which  there  is  a  translation. — ED. 

||  Who  amply  retaliated  in  "  The  Rehearsal  Transposed." — ED. 


44  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Mr.  Richard  Baxter's  Narrative  of  the  most  me 
morable  passages  of  his  Life  and  Times,*  is  drawn 
up  in  a  very  natural,  though  not  in  an  artful  way. 
It  has  been  slighted  and  reflected  on  by  warm  and 
angry  men  of  several  sorts,  and  particularly  written 
against  with  great  vehemence  by  Dr.  Long,  of  Exe 
ter,  and  Mr.  Young,  that  came  hither  from  Ply 
mouth  ;  and  yet  it  has  generally  met  with  a  good 
reception,  and  is  likely  to  be  of  good  use  to  those 
that  come  after  us. 

And  as  to  Bishop  Burnet  of  Sarum's  "  History  of 
his  own  Time,"  though  a  late  author  gives  a  very 
high  eulogium  of  it,-f  saying  that  "  it  is  incompara 
ble,  and  that  for  its  noble  impartiality  and  sincerity 
it  never  was  equalled  but  by  Polybius  and  Philip  de 
Commines;"  and  that  "it  does  honour  to  the  language 
it  is  written  in,  and  will  for  ever  make  the  name  of 
Burnet  sacred  and  venerable,  to  all  who  prefer  an 
empire  of  reason  and  laws  to  that  of  blind  passion 
and  unbridled  will  and  pleasure  ;"  yet  have  others 
been  very  free  in  their  censures  upon  it. 

For  my  part,  I  am  in  this,  as  in  other  cases,  for 
the  middle  way  between  extremes.  Though  I  think 
that  part  of  it  that  is  already  published^  of  which 
only  the  world  can  judge,  not  altogether  free  from 
defects  and  blemishes  ;  yet,  as  it  was  long  expected 
with  great  impatience  before  it  appeared,  so  has  it 

*  Which  appeared  in  1696.  Dr.  Calamy  published  an  Abridg 
ment  and  Continuation. — ED.  f  Hibernicus's  Letters, 
i.  190, 191.— C.  I  In  1724,  part  ii.  1734.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  45 

been  read  with  as  much  eagerness  as  any  book  pub 
lished  in  the  present  age  ;  and,  as  to  the  main  of 
it,  for  any  thing  I  can  perceive,  it  is  likely  enough 
to  keep  its  credit,*  notwithstanding  all  the  ill-na 
tured  and  spiteful  reflections  of  Dr.  Cockburn,  Mr. 
Salmon,  and  Mr.  Ben.  Higgons. 

Among  other  modern  collectors,  there  is  a  certain 
ingenious  gentleman,  that  has  published  a  great 
many  curiosities,  in  which  he  has  generally  met  with 
good  acceptance,  who  freely  declares,!  that  "  he  la 
ments  that  some  others  of  our  ancient  worthies  had 
not  left  us  memoirs  of  their  lives.  But  this,"  says 
he,  "  it  may  be,  was  neglected  by  them,  as  disagree 
able  to  the  rules  of  modesty,  which,  notwithstand 
ing,  was  a  false  notion,  especially  if  they  took  care 
to  conceal  what  they  committed  to  writing  of  that 
kind  till  after  their  death,  and  put  it  into  the  hands 
of  some  faithful  friends,  that  might  make  use  of  it 
in  defence  of  their  posthumous  fame  against  mali 
cious  enemies."  And  then,  he  adds,  that  "  some  of 
the  greatest  men  did  not  look  upon  it  as  immodest 
to  do  themselves  this  piece  of  justice,  not  excepting 
that  good  man,  venerable  Bede.  Thence  Sir  Thomas 
Bodley  was  pleased,  also,  to  leave  behind  him  an 
account  written  by  himself  of  his  own  life,  which 
was  published  first  in  4to,  at  Oxford  in  1647,  and 

*  It  was  not  long  since  republished  at  Oxford,  with  valuable 
notes,  by  various  contributors. — ED. 

t  See  Mr.  Thomas  Hearne's  Preface  to  Peter  Langtoff  's  Chro 
nicle,  p.  xlv.  &c.  — C. 


46  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

afterwards  at  the  beginning  of  lldiqum  Bodleiance, 
at  London,  in  8vo,  An.  1703.  And,  to  name  no 
others  since  his  time,  the  learned  Dr.  John  Wallis," 
says  he,  "  writ  an  account  of  some  passages  in  his 
own  life,  by  way  of  letter  to  the  learned  Dr.  Thomas 
Smith."  And,  from  his  papers  the  editor  published 
it,  in  his  Appendix  to  Peter  LangtofTs  Chronicle. 

Should  what  I  have  been  at  the  pains  here  to  put 
together,  concerning  my  own  life,  the  times  I  have 
passed  through,  the  works  I  have  published,  the 
disputes  I  have  been  engaged  in.,  the  treatment  I 
have  met  with  on  all  hands,  ever  come  to  be  pub 
lished  to  the  world,  I  have  not  the  vanity  to  ima 
gine,  or  suppose,  it  will  be  free  from  objections, 
to  which  writings  of  this  kind  seem  peculiarly  ex 
posed. 

It  will  be  no  strange  thing  at  all  for  some  to 
dislike  the  matter  of  this  work,  and  others  to  be 
displeased  with  the  manner  and  method  of  it. 
Easily  can  I  foresee  that  my  account  will  be  too 
long  and  tedious  for  some,  while  others,  perhaps, 
may  be  apt  to  complain  of  its  being  too  short  and 
concise.  By  some  it  will  be  thought  to  bear  rather 
too  hard  on  the  Established  Church,  while  others 
will  think  it  too  much  lays  open  the  weakness  of  the 
Dissenters.  No  other  can  reasonably  be  expected 
than  that  it  should  be  differently  censured  upon 
different  accounts. 

But  if  I  leave  it  as  my  opinion,  that  this  plain, 
inartificial  and  unpolished,  but,  I  hope,  faithful  rela- 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY.  47 

tion  of  facts,  with  suitable  reflections,  as  occasions 
offered,  may  be  agreeable,  and,  in  some  measure,  use 
ful,  not  only  to  my  own  children,  other  relations, 
and  particular  friends  and  acquaintance,  but,  also,  to 
a  good  number  among  the  Dissenters,  and  especially 
those  in  the  ministry  among  them,  and  also  to  some 
other  persons  that  are  inquisitive  and  curious,  though 
of  different  sentiments  and  persuasions,  I  cannot 
perceive  that  it  could  be  justly  charged  as  an  undue 
assuming. 

I  am  fully  satisfied  that  my  speaking  well  or  in 
differently  of  my  own  performance  would  be  to  but 
little  purpose,  for,  let  me  say  what  I  will,  I  am 
sensible  the  world  will  judge  as  they  see  fit.  And 
I  am  far  from  envying  them  this  liberty,  or  offering 
at  any  thing  that  should  look  like  a  desire  to  abridge 
it.  I  desire  no  more  than  neighbour's  fare. 

I  dare  not  promise  much  for  myself,  nor  shall  I 
seek  to  bias  the  reader  in  my  own  favour  ;  and  yet 
I  cannot  see  any  occasion  I  have  to  hector  him 
neither,  or  bid  him  defiance.  I  can  safely  say,  I 
seek  not  to  advance  my  own  fame,  by  bringing  in 
charges  against  others.  I  shall  not  boast  too  much 
of  my  impartiality  and  sincerity,  which  is  apt  to 
create  suspicion.  I  cannot,  with  Josephus,  under 
take,  neither  to  omit  any  thing  through  ignorance, 
nor  to  bury  any  thing  in  forgetfulness.  I  cannot 
pretend  that  no  man  shall  here  meet  with  any  thing 
that  may  create  him  uneasiness. 

All  that  I  pretend  to  is,  to  trace  Divine   Provi- 


48  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

. 

dence,  in  the  several  parts  of  its  conduct  towards 
me ;  to  relate  facts  that  occurred  within  my  com 
pass,  and  to  give  an  account  of  passages  in  conver 
sation,  and  events  that  I  was  able  to  recollect  as 
they  presented  themselves  to  my  thoughts,  or  as 
they  appeared  to  me  upon  the  strictest  inquiry  I 
could  make. 

I  have  been  an  admirer,  ever  since  I  read  it,  of 
the  wise  maxim  of  Archbishop  Tillotson,  that  "  there 
is  no  readier  way  for  a  man  to  bring  his  own 
worth  into  question,  than  by  endeavouring  to  de 
tract  from  the  worth  of  other  men."*  And,  there 
fore,  whereas  I  shall  often  have  occasion  to  mention 
many  other  persons  in  the  course  of  my  remarks 
and  observations,  I  shall  only  say,  that  the  doing 
any  of  them  the  least  injury  was  very  remote  from 
rny  intention.  What  I  relate  is  according  to  the 
best  of  my  knowledge  and  information.  And  when 
any  thing  is  taken  notice  of  that  was  amiss,  and  is, 
accordingly,  blamed,  I  hope  it  will  be  found  to  be 
with  that  tenderness  that  becomes  one  that  is  sen 
sible  of  our  common  liableness  to  mistakes  and  mis 
carriages,  and  unwilling  and  uninclined  to  make  the 
worst  of  things. 

I  may  be  very  likely,  for  any  thing  I  know  to  the 
contrary,  to  continue  and  carry  on  this  work  as  long 
as  God  is  pleased  to  continue  my  life,  which  I  leave 
to  His  disposal.  And  though  that  polite  writer,  Sir 
William  Temple,  in  his  agreeable  Memoirs,  men- 

*  See  his  Preface  to  Bishop  Wilkins'  volume  of  Sermons. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  49 

tions,  with  great  applause,  the  saying  of  Mynheer 
Hooft,  of  Amsterdam,  that  that  man  was  a  sorry 
wight,  who  desired  to  live  after  threescore;  and  that 
for  his  part,  after  that  age,  he  should  be  glad  of  the 
first  good  occasion  to  die  ;  yet  I  shall  not  stick  to 
own,  that,  if  it  so  please  God,  I  can  be  very  well  con 
tent  to  live  beyond  that  age,  in  hope  of  seeing  man 
kind  in  general,  and  myself  also  in  particular,  grow 
wiser  and  better.  And  I  perceive,  also,  that  Sir 
William  himself,  who  lived  to  his  seventieth  year, 
did  afterwards  see  occasion  a  little  to  vary  in  his 
sentiments  from  his  Dutch  friend,  as  much  as  he 
valued  him,  and  did  not  attempt  to  carry  the  point 
any  farther  than  to  this  length,*  that  a  man  that 
was  past  sixty  ought  to  conclude  himself  no  longer 
of  use  in  the  world,  but  to  himself  and  his  friends. 

And  this  was  certainly  far  enough ;  since  we 
have  various  instances  of  persons,  to  whose  lives 
the  great  Arbiter  of  Providence  is  pleased  to  give  a 
much  longer  date,  whose  usefulness  is  in  a  great 
measure  continued,  even  to  their  lives'  utmost  period. 
Thus  the  noble  Duke  of  Scornberg  was  fit  to  appear 
at  the  head  of  an  army  when  he  was  turned  of 
eighty  ;  and  when  particular  notice  was  taken  of 
his  vivacity,  by  some  that  were  surprized  at  it,  at 
his  advanced  age,  he  made  answer,  that  a  good  ge 
neral  makes  his  retreat  as  late  as  he  can.f 

*  See  "The  Life  and  Character  of  Sir  William  Temple,  Bart." 
printed  in  folio,  in  1728. — C. 

t  "  Life  of  King  William  III."  iii.  190.— C. 
VOL.    I.  E 


50  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

But,  whether  my  life  be  longer  or  shorter,  and  be 
the  time  of  my  decease,  and  quitting  this  earthly 
stage,  sooner  or  later,  I  am  for  leaving  the  narrative 
that  here  ensues,  as  a  legacy  to  those  that  come  after 
me,  to  be  received  and  disposed  of  as  they  think  fit. 
And,  notwithstanding  that  the  fore-cited  Sir  Wil 
liam  Temple,  in  the  close  of  his  "Essay  upon  Ancient 
and  Modern  Learning,"  in  a  way  of  pleasantry,  gives 
it  as  the  sense  of  the  wise  Alphonsus,  King  of  Arra- 
gon,  "  That  among  so  many  things  as  are  by  man 
possessed  or  pursued,  in  the  course  of  their  lives,  all 
the  rest  are  but  baubles,  besides  old  wood  to  burn, 
old  wine  to  drink,  old  friends  to  converse  with,  and 
old  books  to  read,"  I  cannot  help  being  of  opinion, 
that  such  as  think  fit  to  be  at  the  pains  to  read  over 
what  is  here  put  into  their  hands,  if  it  should  ever 
be  published,  will  find  somewhat,  not  only  to  amuse 
them,  and  give  them  a  transient,  hasty  entertain 
ment,  but  somewhat,  also,  that  may  improve  them, 
and  do  them  some  service  either  by  way  of  instruc 
tion  or  caution. 

And  in  that  hope  I  proceed  to  give  what  account 
I  am  able  of  the  most  noted  passages  of  my  life,  the 
Providence  of  God  towards  me,  the  times  I  have 
lived  in,  and  the  remarks  I  have  made  on  what  oc 
curred,  as  far  as  it  fell  under  my  notice.  And  as  I 
have  reason  to  think  the  reflections  I  have  been  led 
into  while  I  was  drawing  up  these  papers,  have 
heightened  my  own  thankfulness  to  the  Great  Ruler 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  51 

of  the  world  and  Disposer  of  all  events,  so  it  is  my 
hearty  wish  that  others  may  find  their  reading  them 
has  a  like  effect  upon  them  also,  stirring  them  up 
to  give  glory  to  Him  to  whom  all  glory  belongs,  and 
to  whom  all  mankind  are  strictly  accountable. 


E 


52  LIFE    OF    CALAJMY. 


CHAPTER   I. 
1671—1686. 

Of  my  Family  and  Parentage  ;  Birth  and  Education ;  until  the 
time  of  my  Entrance  upon  Academical  Studies ;  with  an 
addition  of  some  passages  relating  to  the  Court  and  Ministry, 
in  the  latter  part  of  the  Reign  of  King  Charles  II. 

I  SHALL  begin  with  the  family  and  stock  that  I 
came  of,  (for  which  I  think  I  may  be  allowed  to  have 
some  value,  since  God  has  been  pleased  to  honour  it,) 
though  I  am  not  able  to  carry  my  account  far  back. 

I  have  been  informed  that  my  grandfather  was  a 
reputable  tradesman  in  Walbrook,  in  the  city  of 
London,  who  came  from  the  Isle  of  Guernsey,  and 
settled  here.  It  is  not  unlikely  but  his  father  came 
originally  from  Normandy  in  France,  being  driven 
into  that  island  which  lies  upon  their  coast,  that  he 
might  be  sheltered  from  persecution,  about  the  time 
of  Charles  IX.  I  have  been  so  informed  by  some  of 
the  oldest  of  my  relations,  that  I  have  known  and 
conversed  with  ;  who  told  me  that  my  grandfather, 
applying  to  the  Heralds'  Office,  about  his  coat-of- 
arms,*  was  there  certified  that  there  was  an  old 

*  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  456  n.  ad  Jin. —ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  53 

town  and  castle  that  bore  his  name,)  on  the  Norman 
coast,)  which  belonged  to  his  ancestors. 

I  never  could  get  any  intelligence  that  my  great 
grandfather  jiad  any  more  sons  than  my  grandfa 
ther,  whose  Christian  name  I  bear.  He  was  bred  to 
learning,  a  Cambridge  man,  admitted  of  Pembroke- 
Hall,  July  4,  1616  ;*  of  the  Puritan  stamp,  and 
at  length  chaplain  to  bishop  Felton,  of  Norwich, 
who  is  said  by  Archdeacon  Echard,f  to  have  been 
"  happy  in  the  wise  choice  of  all  his  curates  and 
chaplains."  He  lived  in  his  family,  and  was  much 
esteemed  and  cherished  by  him.  But  when  he 
afterwards  fell  into  the  hands  of  his  successor,  bishop 
Wren,  (who  is  even  by  Lord  Clarendon  himself,!: 
owned  to  have  been  "a  man  of  a  severe  sour  na 
ture,"  and  by  Echard,§  to  have  been  "  a  person  of  no 
little  severity,  especially  against  the  Puritan  party, 
towards  whom  he  used  so  high  a  hand,  that  many 
of  them  in  his  diocese  of  Norwich  left  the  nation 
and  settled  in  foreign  parts :")  he,  as  well  as  many 
others,  was  much  molested  and  worried. 

After  having  been  long  a  celebrated  preacher  in 
the  country,  first  at  Swaif ham,  two  churches  in  the 
county  of  Cambridge,  then  at  St.  Edmund's  Bury, 
in  Suffolk,  (where  my  father  was  born,  and  in  which 

*  Dr.  Calamy  says  "  he  was  born  in  Feb.  1600." — Account, 
(17 13)  p.  4.— ED. 

t  "  History  of  England,"  ii.  55. — C. 

t  "  History  of  the  Rebellion,"  i.  103.— C. 

§  "  History  of  England,"  iii.  207.— C. 


54  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

town  my  grandfather  continued  ten  years,)*  and 
afterwards  at  Rochford,  in  the  Hundreds  of  Essex, 
under  the  protection  of  the  old  Earl  of  Warwick,f 
he  was  at  length,  about  the  year  1639?  chosen  to 
succeed  Dr.  Stoughton,  by  the  parishioners  of  St. 
Mary,  Aldermanbury,  in  London.  Here  his  house 
was  a  receptacle  for  all  Presbyterian  ministers,  and 
the  place  in  which  the  Remonstrance  was  framed 
against  the  prelates,:},  for  which  some  bore  him  no 
great  good  will.  However,  he  continued  there  for 
many  years,  as  eminent  a  preacher,  and  as  much 
followed,  as  any  divine  in  those  times. 

In  some  "  Historical  Observation s,"§  printed  in 
1643,  it  was  charged  "that  he  complied  with  Bishop 
Wren,  the  Diocesan."  But  in  his  "  Just  and  neces 
sary  Apology  against  an  unjust  Invective,  published  by 
Mr.  Henry  Burton,"  in  1646,  he  positively  declared 
that  "  he  never  bowed  to,  or  towards  the  altar;  never 
read  the  Book  of  Sports ;  never  read  prayers  at  the 
high  altar ;  and  that  he  preached  against  innova 
tions,"  &c. 

*  "  Till  Bishop  Wren's  articles  and  the  Book  of  Sports  drove 
him,  and  thirty  more  worthy  ministers  out  of  the  diocese." — Ac 
count,  p.  5. — ED. 

t  Who  died  in  1658.  He  was  a  favourite  courtier  of  the 
Lord  Protector  Oliver.  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  356.  535, 
536  n. — ED. 

|  "  The  London  Petition  against  bishops,  presented  to  the 
Commons,  Dec.  11,  1640."— Rushworth,  (1706)  iii.  309.— ED. 

§  "  Upon  the  proceedings,  pretences  and  design  of  a  prevail 
ing  party  in  both  Houses  of  Parliament." — Athen.  Oxon.  (1691) 
i.  898.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  55 

He  had  considerable  reputation  at  court  as  well  as 
in  the  city,  was  very  active  in  the  Restoration  of 
King  Charles  II.,  in  1660,*  and  reckoned  so  emi 
nent  for  his  prudence,  that  few  ministers  were  ever 
known  to  have  a  greater,  or  more  extensive  influ 
ence.     He   was  not  a  little  courted  by  persons  of 
distinction  to  come  into  the  national  church,  upon 
its  new  establishment  in   1662,  and  could  he  but 
have  complied,  might  have  had  his  own  terms,  and 
any  preferment  he  had  desired,  and  an  opportunity 
of   making  and  enriching  his  family,  as  they  did 
who  were  then  dignified  and  distinguished,  by  the 
renewal  of  church  leases,  which  were  at  that  time 
generally  expired,  which  brought  in  immense  sums 
to  those  then  made  bishops.     Had  he  accepted  the 
bishoprick  of  Coventry  and  Litchfield  (that  was  a 
good  while  kept  vacant  for  him),  he  might  as  easily 
have  had  20,000/.  to  leave  to  his  family,  or  expend 
for  pious  uses,  as  Dr.  Hacket  (who  had  that  bishop- 
rick  on  his  refusal)  had  that  sum  to  lay  out  in  re 
pairing  or  rebuilding  his  cathedral.f 

But  all  things  being  considered,  he  could  not  be 
satisfied  to  conform,  unless  that  healing  declaration, 
which  the  King  then  published,;*;  that  was  so  much 

*  And,  too  soon,  was  recompensed,  as  might  reasonably  have 
been  expected  from  such  a  Restoration.  See  "  Diary  of  Burton," 
ii.  320,  321w.— ED. 

t  Echard's  "  History  of  England,"  iii.  263.— C. 

t  Oct.  25,  1660.  See  Reliq.  Baxt.  p.  259  ;  Calamy's  Abridg. 
p.  151.— ED. 


56  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

applauded,  might  be  allowed  to  pass  into  a  law. 
This  had  been  proposed  and  promised,  and  he  was, 
by  great  men  at  court,  for  a  good  while  encouraged 
to  expect  and  hope  for  it.  But  he  was  disappointed 
in  the  issue,  and  so  was  among  the  silenced  and 
ejected  ministers,  and  the  very  first  of  them  that 
suffered,  upon  his  preaching  occasionally  in  that 
that  had  been  his  own  church,*  after  the  taking 
place  of  the  Act  for  Uniformity  ,t  for  which  he  on 
January  6th  following  was  imprisoned  in  Newgate4 
His  confinement  at  that  time  made  no  small  noise, 
and  Dr.  Wilde  published  a  copy  of  verses  upon  the 
occasion,  which  was  spread  through  all  parts  of  the 
kingdom. $  I  have  also  been  informed,  that  a  cer 
tain  popish  lady,  happening  then  to  pass  through  the 
city,  had  much  ado  to  get  along  Newgate-street,  by 
reason  of  the  many  coaches  that  attended  there,  at 
which  she  was  not  a  little  surprised.  Curiosity  led 
her  to  inquire  into  the  occasion  of  the  stoppage,  and 
the  appearance  of  such  a  number  of  coaches,  in  a 

*  "  On  a  Sunday,  Dec.  28,  when,  among  other  dangerous 
passages,  he  said,  '  the  ark  of  God  was  lost,  and  the  glory  was 
departed  from  Israel/  "  -Athen.  Oxon.  i.  899. — ED. 

f  Aug.  24,  1662.— ED. 

I  No  inequitable  retribution  for  the  vindictive  persecuting 
spirit,  indulged  by  the  English  Presbyterians,,  (among  whom  the 
prisoner  had  been  a  leader)  during  the  short  day  of  their  politi 
cal  ascendancy. — See  "  Diary  of  Burton/'  iii.  206-208  n.  -Eo. 

§  "  Dr.  Rob.  Wild,  the  Presbyterian  poet,  made  and  pub 
lished  a  poem  on  his  imprisonment,  as  did  the  author  called 
Hudibras." — Athen.  Oxon.  i.  899. — ED. 


LIFE    OF   CALAMY.  57 

place  where  she  thought  nothing  of  that  kind  was  to 
be  looked  for.  The  standers-by,  informed  her  that 
one  Mr.  Calarny,  a  person  generally  beloved  and  res 
pected,  was  imprisoned  there  for  a  single  sermon,  at 
which  they  seemed  greatly  disturbed  and  concerned. 
This  so  moved  the  lady,  that  taking  the  first  oppor 
tunity  of  waiting  upon  the  King  at  Whitehall,  she 
frankly  told  his  Majesty  the  whole  passage,  express 
ing  her  fear  that  if  such  steps  as  these  were  taken, 
he  would  lose  the  affections  of  the  city,  which  might 
be  of  very  ill  consequence.  Upon  this  account,  and 
some  others,  my  grandfather  was  in  a  little  time  dis 
charged,  by  the  express  order  of  his  Majesty. 

The  old  gentleman  had  four  sons,  and  sent  them 
all  to  Cambridge  for  an  academical  education.  My 
father,  who  was  by  some  years  the  eldest,  bore  his 
father's  name,  and  adhered  to  his  principles,  though 
with  abundance  of  moderation.  The  two  next, 
whose  names  were  Benjamin  and  James,  being  at 
the  University  at  the  time  of  the  Restoration,  were 
carried  away  with  the  tide,  and  swam  with  the 
stream,  which  was  the  way  to  preferment,  and  be 
came  clergymen  in  the  Established  Church. 

My  uncle  Benjamin  was  educated  first  in  St.  Paul's 
School,  London,  and  then  in  Catherine  Hall  in  Cam 
bridge,  where  he  was  a  Fellow,  and,  says  Echard,* 
"an  ornament  to  the  College."  He  was  a  cele 
brated  tutor  there,  and  had  a  good  number  of  pupils, 

*  Appendix  to  his  three  volumes,  p.  21. — C. 


58  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

of  which  James  Bonnel,  Esq.  was  one.*  He  was 
admired  as  a  preacher  in  the  University,  where  he 
commenced  D.  D.  At  length,  in  1677,  he  settled  in 
the  City  of  London,  and  was  beneficed  first  in 
Aldermanbury,  and  then  in  the  Church  of  St.  Law 
rence  Jewry,  with  that  of  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  Milk 
Street,  annexed,  to  which  he  was  collated  by  the 
Dean  and  Chapter  of  St.  Paul's,  as  patrons  of  the 
latter,  in  1683 ;  and  the  prebend  of  Harleston  was 
conferred  on  him  by  the  Bishop  of  London,  f 

He  was  as  celebrated  a  preacher  as  any  one  at 
that  time  in  the  City.:j:  After  his  death,  a  volume 
of  his  sermons  was  printed,  which  are,  to  this  day, 
as  generally  esteemed  as  any  thing  of  that  kind. 
One  edition  of  that  volume  has  his  funeral  sermon 
annexed  to  it,  preached  by  Dr.  William  Sherlock, 
Dean  of  St.  Paul's,  where,  in  his  character  of  him, 
he  says  that  he  "  had  taken  care  to  inform  himself, 
and  to  furnish  his  own  mind  with  all  useful  know 
ledge  ;  and  his  constant  preaching,  though  without 
any  vain  affectation  of  learning,  which  serves  only 
to  amuse,  not  to  instruct,  did  sufficiently  discover 
both  his  natural  and  acquired  abilities.  He  had  a 
clear  and  distinct  apprehension  of  things,  an  easy 
and  manly  rhetoric,  strong  sense  conveyed  to  the 
mind  in  familiar  words,  good  reasons  inspired  with 

*  See  his  "  Exemplary  Life  and  Character,"  p.  10. — C. 
f  Newcourt's  Repertorium  Eccles.  i.  155. — C. 
I    Some  account  of  him  may  be  met  with  in   Dr.  Knight's 
"Life  of  Dr.  John  Colet,"  p.  412.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  59 

a  decent  passion,  which  did  not  only  teach,  but  move 
and  transport  the  hearers,  and  at  the  same  time 
gave  light  and  heat." 

The  publisher  of  the  "  Critical  Works  of  Mon 
sieur  Rapin,"  speaking  in  his  preface  of  the  preach 
ers  that  have  been  celebrated  among  us  since  the 
Restoration,  takes  particular  notice  of  "the  clear 
vein  of  argument  and  excellent  spirit  of  Dr.  Cala- 
my."  Mr.  Wood  says  of  him,  that  he  was  "  a  loyal 
person,  excellent  preacher,  and  a  zealous  man  for 
the  Church  of  England."*  Even  Bishop  Burnet  f 
brings  him  in  among  those  whom  he  represents  as 
"  an  honour  both  to  the  Church,  and  to  the  age  in 
which  they  lived."  Archdeacon  Echard,  in  the  place 
before  cited,  says  that,  "  his  sermons  seemed  to  have 
been  composed  for  the  generality  of  mankind,  in 
which  there  is  both  strength  and  perspicuity ;  and 
they  discover  a  genius  able  to  penetrate  into  the 
secret  recesses  of  human  nature,  for  which  he  was 
particularly  observed  by  King  Charles's  Court,  when 
he  preached  at  Newmarket.  And  therefore,"  he 
adds,  "  it  is  pity  that  we  have  no  more  of  them  in 
print." 

At  his  first  appearing  in  the  world  he  was  high 
for  Conformity,  and  very  great  with  Sir  George 
Jeffreys,  when  Common  Serjeant  and  Recorder  of 
London ;  and  afterwards,  he  dedicated  to  him  his 
sermon,  that  made  such  a  noise  concerning  a  scrupu 
lous  conscience,  and  ascribed  to  him  his  settlement 

*  Atken.  Oxon,  i.  899. — ED.  f  Own  Ti?ne,i.  462 — C. 


60  LIFE   OF   CALAMY. 

and  encouragement  in  the  parish  of  Aldermanbury, 
of  which  he  was  a  noted  inhabitant.  But  his  great 
ness  with  him  did  not  in  the  sequel  turn  to  his 
honour  or  advantage,  and  rather  drew  him  into  a 
snare. 

When  he  published  that  sermon,  to  which  JefFreys's 
name  was  prefixed,  he  gave  a  challenge  to  any  man 
to  answer  it.  An  answer  was  returned  by  Delaune,* 
who  was  a  man  of  learning  with  a  good  deal  of 
smartness,  though,  in  my  opinion,  with  too  much 
heat.  For  this  answer,  that  poor  man,  whose  cir 
cumstances  were  but  low  and  strait,  was  a  great 
sufferer,  by  a  tedious  and  expensive  imprisonment, 
of  which  he  made  great  complaints  ;  and  I  am  of 
opinion,  there  are  but  few  to  be  met  with,  but  what, 
were  it  their  own  case,  would  think  it  hard  and  un 
generous,  upon  accepting  a  public  challenge  from  the 
press,  to  be  answered  by  a  prison.f  But  I  have 

*  "  A  Plea  for  the  Nonconformists.  In  a  Letter  to  Dr.  Ben 
jamin  Calamy.  By  Thomas  Delaune,  1683."  Republished 
1706,  with  a  Preface  by  Daniel  De  Foe.  There  was  an  18th 
ed.  in  1720. 

Delaune  also  published,  in  1681,  a  small  volume,  now  very 
scarce,  entitled  "  The  present  State  of  London,"  where  "  he 
kept  a  Grammar  School."  Ed. 

f  Where  he  was  detained  fifteen  months,  from  inability  to  pay 
a  fine  of  100  marks,  till  husband,  wife,  and  two  children  died  in 
Newgate.  The  story  of  Thomas  Delaune  is  "  a  disgrace  to  the 
general  spirit  of  the  times  ;  but  casts/'  adds  Dr.  Kippis,  "  pe 
culiar  dishonour  on  the  Nonconformists  of  that  period."  Biog. 
Brit.  iii.  140.  See  Neale's  "  History  of  the  Puritans/'  by  Dr. 
Toulmin  (1822)  iv.  485-487.  ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  61 

this  to  say  for  my  uncle,  that  though  he  did  not  an 
swer  Delaune's  letters,  which  were  afterwards  print 
ed,  yet  lie  took  pains  with  Jeffreys  to  get  him 
released,  but  could  not  prevail,  which  was  no  small 
trouble  to  him. 

It  must  be  owned,  however,  that  this  uncle  of 
mine  was  a  good  while  very  warm  for  all  the  mea 
sures  of  the  Court,  where  he  was  the  King's  chap 
lain  ;  and  so  caressed,  that  he  had  a  fair  prospect  of 
the  utmost  preferment,  had  his  life  been  prolonged. 
But  he  died  when  a  little  turned  of  forty  years  of  age, 
which  was  a  disappointment  to  many.  I  must  yet 
own,  that  I  took  him  for  a  very  good-tempered  gen 
tleman  ;  for  he  kept  up  a  very  friendly  correspon 
dence  with  my  father,  notwithstanding  the  difference 
of  their  sentiments,  and  was  exceeding  kind  to  me 
after  my  father's  death  ;  and  much  for  my  being  a 
scholar,  though  earnest  for  my  having  my  education 
at  Cambridge,  where  he  offered  me  his  utmost  in 
terest  :  and  Dr.  John  Echard,  (then  Master  of  Ca 
therine  Hall,)  who  being  in  town,  lodged  in  his 
house,  being  present  once  when  we  were  talking 
upon  the  subject,  assured  me  that  I  should  find  my 
uncle's  interest  considerable,  and  kindly  offered  me 
that  for  his  sake,  if  I  would  be  of  their  house,  he 
would  treat  me  as  if  I  were  his  own  child. 

But  it  was  the  observation  of  all  that  had  any 
acquaintance  with  him,  that  he  was  in  a  very  par 
ticular  manner  affected  with  the  treatment  of  Al 
derman  Cornish,  who  was  his  parishioner  at  St. 


62  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Lawrence,  and  for  whom  he  appeared  in  Court  at 
the  time  of  his  trial.  The  hard  usage  that  poor 
gentleman  met  with,  struck  him  to  that  degree,  that 
it  seemed  to  give  his  thoughts  a  quite  different  turn 
from  what  they  had  had  before.  He  often  visited  him 
in  Newgate,  and  being  earnestly  pressed  to  go  along 
with  him  to  the  place  of  execution,  was  not  able  to 
do  it ;  but  freely  told  him,  "  he  could  as  well  die 
with  him,  as  bear  the  sight  of  his  death  in  such 
circumstances  as  he  was  in."* 

I  cannot  say  I  had  it  directly  from  himself,  yet  I 
have  been  credibly  informed  by  others  that  heard  him 
say,  that  pressing  Jeffreys  to  use  his  interest  in  Mr. 
Cornish's  behalf,  that  his  life  might  be  spared,  and  oft 
renewing  his  application,  an  answer  was  at  length 
returned  him  in  such  words  as  these:  "Dear  Doctor, 
set  your  heart  at  rest,  and  give  yourself  no  farther 
trouble,  for  I  can  assure  you  that  if  you  could  offer  a 
mine  of  gold  as  deep  as  the  monument  is  high,  and 
a  bunch  of  pearls  as  big  as  the  flames  at  top  of  it, 
it  would  not  purchase  his  life."  A*  plain  evidence 
the  Court  was  implacable  !  I  myself  met  him  in 
Milk  Street,  the  very  morning  Mr.  Cornish  was  exe 
cuted,  just  as  he  came  from  paying  him  the  last 
office  of  respect  in  his  prison,  and  I  was  afraid  he 
would  have  sunk  down  as  he  was  speaking  to  me, 
and  telling  me  what  he  had  been  doing. 

It  was  not  very  long  after,  that  he  himself  was 

*  Echard's  Appendix  to  the  three  volumes  of  his  History  of 
England,  p.  21. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  63 

seized  with  a  pleurisy,  which  carried  him  off.  I  vi 
sited  him  a  few  days  before  he  died,  and  found  him 
composed  but  much  sunk ;  and  could  then  perceive 
he  had  Mr.  Cornish's  treatment  much  at  heart. 
He  was  buried  at  St.  Lawrence.  Ned  Millington, 
the  celebrated  auctioneer,  who  set  a  value  upon  his 
library,  told  me  that  no  books  in  his  study  appeared 
to  have  been  so  much  used  as  the  works  of  Mr. 
William  Perkins,*  and  particularly  his  "  Cases  of 
Conscience,"  which  were  full  of  marks  and  scores. 

The  next  brother,  my  uncle  James,  was  also  of 
Cambridge  ;  but  he,  though  a  man  of  good  learning, 
never  made  such  a  figure  as  the  former.  He  also  is 
taken  notice  of  with  respect,  in  the  printed  life  of 
James  Bonnel,  Esq.  as  one  of  his  great  friends  and 
companions.  He  succeeded  Dr.  Edward  Fowler f  in 
his  living  of  Northill  in  Bedfordshire,  upon  his  re 
moval  to  St.  Giles  Cripplegate  in  London  ;  and  there 
he  continued  well  respected  and  beloved  by  his  pa 
rishioners,  till  Dr.  Offspring  Blackall,  that  had  been 
his  chum  in  the  University,  became  Bishop  of  Exe 
ter,  when  he  removed  into  the  West,  upon  his  Lord 
ship's  giving  him  the  living  of  Cheriton  Bishop,  a 
few  miles  from  Exeter,  and  making  him  a  dignitary 

*  A  Puritan  who  died  in  1602,  aged  44.  "Many  of  his 
works  were  translated  into  Dutch,  Spanish,  French,  and  Italian." 
Neale,  i.  464,  465.  See  Heylin's  Laud,  p.  139. — ED. 

t  Bishop  of  Gloucester,  1691,  the  intimate  friend  of  the  phi 
lanthropic  Thomas  Firmin,  whose  last  hours  he  attended  in  1697. 
See  Dr.  Birch's  "Life  of  Tillotson,"  (1753)  p.  294.— ED. 


64  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

in  his  Cathedral.  I  visited  him  there  in  1713,  and 
he  promised  to  return  my  visit,  but  he  died  the  year 
following.  There  is  nothing  of  his  in  print,  but  a 
very  short  preface  to  the  Sermons  of  my  other 
uncle,  Dr.  Benjamin,  to  which  he  was  not  to  be  pre 
vailed  with  to  add  another  volume,  though  he  was 
often  urged  and  pressed  to  it. 

The  youngest  of  my  grandfather's  sons,  whose 
name  was  John,  was  also  for  some  time  at  Cam 
bridge.  He  died  a  number  of  years  ago,  having 
been  twice  married,  and  leaving  two  children.  The 
eldest  was  a  son,  who  did  not  long  survive  him.  The 
younger  was  a  daughter  yet  living  ;  so  that  though 
my  grandfather  had  four  sons,  yet  the  keeping  up 
my  name  and  family,  providentially  devolved  upon 
me,  and  such  as  should  spring  from  me.  God  was 
pleased  to  bless  me  also,  by  my  two  wives,  with  four 
sons.  Losing  the  second  of  them  soon  after  his 
arrival  at  the  estate  of  manhood,  the  other  three  are 
left  to  the  care  of  the  same  Providence,  as  I,  and 
those  that  have  gone  before  me,  have  depended  on. 

My  father  was  the  eldest  son  by  several  years. 
My  grandfather's  first  wife  was  a  Snelling,  of  a 
good  family  in  Suffolk,  and  by  her  he  had  only  rny 
father,  and  a  daughter  (Mrs.  Bayly),  that  survived 
him.  His  second  wife  was  a  Leaver,  of  a  reputa 
ble  family  in  the  County  Palatine  of  Lancaster,  by 
whom  he  had  the  three  sons  before-mentioned,  and 
four  daughters,  who  were  well  disposed  of,  and  their 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  65 

children   and  grand-children  are  generally  in  good 
circumstances  in  the  world. 

My  father,  in  the  year  1662,  when  my  grand 
father  quitted  Aldermanbury,  was  for  his  noncon 
formity  ejected  from  a  good  living  at  Moreton,  in 
Essex,*  near  Chipping  Ongar.  Afterwards,  he  was 
sometimes  in  the  country,  and  sometimes  in  the  city 
with  his  father.  When  the  plague  raged  in  the 
City,  in  1665,  he  was  at  Sir  Samuel  Barnardiston's, 
in  Suffolk.  But  in  1666,  when  the  City  was  con 
sumed  by  fire,  he  was  again  with  his  father,  and 
soon  after  lost  him.f 

In  the  year  1669,  my  father  was  married  to  the 
eldest  daughter  of  Mr.  Joshua  Gearing,  who  was 
the  youngest  son  of  Mr.  John  Gearing,  of  Black- 
friars,  treasurer  to  the  Feoffees  for  buying  in  im- 
propriations  all  through  the  kingdom,  in  the  reign 
of  Charles  I.,  whose  good  and  useful  design  was 
about  the  year  1630,  overthrown  by  Attorney-gene 
ral  Noy4  at  the  instigation,  and  with  the  encou- 

*  To  which  he  had  been  presented,  in  1659,  by  the  Earl  of 
Manchester,  &c.  feoffees  in  trust  of  Robert  Earl  of  Warwick,  de 
ceased.  See  Dr.  Calamy's  Continuation  (1727),  p.  461. — ED. 

f  Dr.  Calamy  says,  that  his  grandfather  "  Was  driven  through 
the  ruins  in  a  coach,  and  seeing  the  desolate  condition  of  so 
flourishing  a  city,  for  which  he  had  so  great  an  affection,  his 
tender  spirit  received  such  impressions,  as  he  could  never  wear 
off.  He  went  home,  and  never  came  out  of  his  chamber  more, 
but  died  within  a  month."  Account,  p.  7. — ED. 

J  Of  whom  see  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  444—446,  n. — ED. 

VOL.   I.  F 


66  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

ragernent  of  Archbishop  Laud.*  This  Mr.  Joshua 
Gearing,  having  been  many  years  a  reputable  trader 
in  the  City,  had  quittled  business,  and  lived  retiredly 
at  a  little  village  called  Tooting,  in  Surry.  After 
marriage,  my  father  lived  in  the  parish  of  Alder- 
manbury,  in  a  little  house  just  over  against  the  Con 
duit,  in  which  I  was  born,  April  5,  1671?  being  the 
first-born  child  of  my  father  and  mother. 

I  have  sometimes  thought  that  I  came  into  the 
world  in  a  very  critical  juncture,  with  respect  to 
public  affairs  and  transactions ;  for  I  was  born  eleven 
years  after  King  Charles  was  restored,  without  any 
terms  or  treaty,  which  some  so  much  rejoiced  at, 
and  which  the  Lord  Clarendon  says,f  was  u  Such  a 
prodigious  act  of  Providence,  as  God  hath  scarce 
vouchsafed  to  any  nation,  since  He  led  His  own 
chosen  people  through  the  Red  Sea."  The  impres 
sions  that  this  surprising  change  had  made  upon  the 
nation  were  not  then  quite  worn  out.  Yet  jealou 
sies  and  fears  (such  as  were  not  groundless),  were 
by  that  time  pretty  generally  revived,  the  King 
appearing  eagerly  bent  upon  freeing  himself  from 
shackles,  and  setting  up  for  arbitrary  government. 

It  was  much  about  this  time  that  our  Court,  in 
compliance  with  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans,  (the  King's  sister),:]:  Monsieur  Colbert,  and 

*  See  "  Fuller's  Church  History  of  Britain,"  ii.  136,  143.— C. 
Heylin's  Laud,  p.  198.    State  Trials,  i.  913,  935. — ED. 
\  "  Hist,  of  the  Rebellion,"  vi.  691.— C. 
}  She   arrived  in  England,  May   16,   1670,   with  her  dame 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  67 

the  Marquis  De  Bellefonds,*  (who  was  sent  hither 
from  France,  after  the  death  of  the  duchess,)f  came 
entirely  into  the  French  interest,  which  was  after 
wards  so  great  a  matter  of  complaint,  and  so  heavy 
a  grievance,  not  only  to  this  kingdom,  but  to  all 
Europe;  for  the  consequences  of  which  we  have 
paid  since  so  very  dear.|  And  it  was  under  the 
ministry  of  these  five  lords,  the  first  letters  of  whose 
names  §  made  up  the  word  CABAL,  who  (after  the 
Earl  of  Clarendon  had  lost  his  influence,  and  was 
wholly  laid  aside,  and  banished,) ||  undertook  to  ad 
vance  the  King's  greatness  to  his  heart's  content, 
make  him  absolute,  and  introduce  an  arbitrary  go 
vernment,  by  entering  into  the  French  alliance, 
carrying  on  a  war  for  humbling  the  Dutch,  our 
rivals  in  trade,  and  breaking  and  pouring  contempt 
upon  the  Triple  League, ^f  concluded  in  1668,  that 

d'honneur,  M.  de  Queroualle,  whom  Charles  soon  created  Duchess 
of  Portsmouth. — ED. 

*  Bernardin  Gigault,  Marshal  of  France.      Died,  1694. — ED. 

f  At  St.  Cloud,  June  20,  aged  26,  probably  a  sacrifice  to  the 
Duke's  jealousy  of  her  conduct  while  in  England.  "  The  cause 
of  her  death,"  says  R.  Coke,  "  was  as  dark  as  the  design  she 
came  for."  Detection  (1697),  p.  474.  See  "  Secret  History  of 
King  Charles  II."  (1690),  pp.  49,  50.  Burnet's  Own  Time, 
i.  301.— ED. 

I  See  the  account  given  by  Abbot  Premei  in  the  "  State 
Tracts,  in  the  Reign  of  King  William,"  vol.  i.  See  also  Bishop 
Burnet's  Own  Time,  i.  301.— C. 

§  Clifford,  Ashley,  Buckingham,  Arlington,  Lauderdale. 

||  Dec.  1667.     He  died  at  Rouen,  in  Dec.  1674.— ED. 

1T  Between  England,  Holland,  and  Sweden. — ED. 

F    2 


68  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  Sir  William  Temple's  masterpiece,*  and  Eng 
land's  glory ;  by  which  the  body  of  the  nation  at 
home,  and  our  best  allies  abroad,  were  so  well 
pleased,  and  put  in  such  hope  of  being  provided  with 
an  effectual  means  of  checking  the  growing  power  of 
Louis  XIV. 

It  was  also  much  about  the  time  of  the  Duchess 
of  York  dying  a  Romish  convert,  t  and  of  the  Duke's 
abjuring  the  Protestant  religion,  before  Father 
Simons,  an  English  Jesuit,^:  (in  order  to  the  prevent 
ing  his  brother  King  Charles's  design,  that  he  had 
for  some  time  entertained,  of  being  divorced  from 
Queen  Catharine,)  which  coming  to  be  afterwards 
known,  was  attended  with  considerable  consequences. 

As  things  have  fallen  out,  my  days  have  been 
spent  in  a  season  that  has  been  very  remarkable  for 
the  endeavours  of  two  opposite  parties,  and  the  con 
tinued  struggle  there  has  been  for  liberty  on  one 
hand,  and  Popery  and  slavery  on  the  other.  But 
the  former  have  carried  the  point  hitherto,  and  it  is 
to  be  hoped  will  go  on  to  do  so. 

The  alliance  with  France  was  most  certainly 
the  grand  step  of  this  reign.  And  the  fore-men- 

*  "  Brought  to  an  issue  in  five  days." — ED. 

f  March  31,  1672,  ascribing  her  conversion,  principally,  to 
Heylin's  "  History  of  the  Reformation."  See  "  A  Letter  from 
the  Earl  of  Clarendon  to  his  daughter  Anne,  Duchess  of  York, 
on  her  turning  Roman  Catholic  ;"  in  "  Speeches,"  &c.  annexed 
to  Sedley's  "  Poetical  Works"  (1707),  p.  92;  Burnet's  Own 
Time,\.  309,  310 ;  "  Monthly  Repos."  (1815),  x.  294— 296.— ED. 

t  See  Echard's  "  History  of  England,"  iii.  277.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  69 

tioned  French  writer,*  in  his  "  History  of  the  Dutch 
War,"  positively  assures  us,  that  at  the  earnest  soli 
citation  of  Colbert  de  Croissy,  their  ambassador  here 
in  England,  King  Charles  did  sign  a  private  treaty 
with  France,  and  that  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  cross 
ing  to  England,  in  1670,  proposed  to  her  brother* 
from  the  King  of  France,  the  insuring  to  him  an 
absolute  authority  over  his  Parliament,  and  the  re 
establishing  the  Catholic  religion  in  the  three  king 
doms  of  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland,  in  order 
to  which  she  intimated  there  was  absolute  necessity 
of  lowering  the  pride  and  power  of  the  Dutch,  &c. 

Many  have  stiffly  denied  the  league  between  King 
Charles  and  Louis  XIV.,  and  it  must  be  owned  it 
was  long  kept  more  secret  than  could  reasonably 
have  been  expected.  But  it  was  plainly  set  forth 
in  a  paper  found  in  Lord  Tyrconnel's  closet  in  Ire 
land,  that  is  mentioned  by  Dr.  King,  Archbishop  of 
Dublin,  in  a  thanksgiving  sermon,  preached  before 
the  lords  justices,  in  St. Patrick's  Church,  upon  the 
reduction  of  that  kingdom.  It  bears  date,  July 
1,  1670;  and  by  it  both  kings  oblige  themselves  to 
suppress  the  insolence  of  the  Dutch,  to  establish 
Popery  in  England,  and  make  the  king  absolute 
master  of  his  subjects.f 

*  Abbot  Primei. — ED. 

f  "If  any  thing,"  says  Fox,  "  can  add  to  our  disgust  at  the 
meanness  with  which  he  solicited  a  dependance  upon  Louis  XIV. 
it  is  the  hypocritical  pretence  upon  which  he  was  continually 
pressing  that  monarch.  After  having  passed  a  law,  making  it 


70  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

As  to  the  treaty  between  King  James  II.  and 
Louis  XIV.,  it  was  owned  by  the  Count  d'Avaux, 
French  ambassador  in  Holland,  just  before  the 
Prince  of  Orange's  sailing  for  England.  That  am 
bassador  presenting  a  memorial  to  the  States,  de 
clared,  "  There  was  a  strict  alliance  between  his 
master  and  the  King  of  England,"  and  that  "  he 
would  look  on  every  thing  done  against  England  as 
an  invasion  of  his  own  crown.  And  the  French 
ambassador  at  Constantinople,  at  the  time  of  the 
Revolution,  showed  Sir  William  Trumbull,  the 
English  ambassador  in  that  Court,  a  letter  to  him 
from  a  minister  of  state  in  France  (M.  de  Croissy,) 
importing,  that  now  an  alliance  was  concluded  be 
tween  the  two  kings."* 

But  to  return  to  family  matters :  my  father  was 
universally  known,  and  generally  well  respected,  in 
Aldermanbury  parish,  where  his  father  had  been 
minister,  and  where  he  himself  also  had  a  few  of  his 
relations,  friends,  and  particular  acquaintance,  who 
were  desirous  to  sit  under  his  ministry,  that  came 
and  worshipped  God  with  him  every  Lord's  Day,  in 
his  own  hired  house. 

penal  to  affirm  (what  was  true)  that  he  was  a  Papist,  he  pre 
tended  (what  was  not  true,)  to  be  a  zealous  and  bigoted  Papist ; 
and  the  uneasiness  of  his  conscience  at  so  long  delaying  a  public 
avowal  of  his  conversion,  was  more  than  once  urged  by  him 
as  an  argument  to  increase  the  pension,  and  accelerate  the  as 
sistance  he  was  to  receive  from  France."  History,  p.  24. — ED. 
*  See  Bishop  Burnet's  Own  Time,  i.  768,  769.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  71 

The  king  soon  after  published  a  Declaration,* 
that  gave  liberty  to  the  Dissenters  to  worship  God 
in  their  own  way,  without  any  molestation.  He,  as 
that  Declaration  directed,  took  out  a  licence,  and 
held  on  in  the  exercise  of  his  ministry  more  publicly 
in  Curriers'-hall,  near  Cripplegate,  where,  though 
he  had  not  any  large  or  crowded  auditory,  he  yet 
had  a  number  of  serious  Christians,  some  of  them 
of  good  substance  and  credit,  that  waited  upon  God 
in  all  Gospel  Ordinances  under  his  conduct ;  and  he 
was  useful  among  them,  and  valued  by  them. 

This  Declaration  of  the  King's  was  opposed 
by  the  two  Houses,  who  pleaded  that  it  tended 
to  the  "  altering  of  the  legislative  power,  which 
had  always  been  acknowledged  to  reside  in  his 
Majesty,  and  the  two  Houses  of  Parliament." 
It  was  thereupon  revoked,  without  the  passing 
of  the  bill  that  was  brought  into  the  House  of 
Commons,  "  For  the  Ease  of  his  Majesty's  Pro 
testant  Subjects  that  were  Dissenters  in  matters  of 
Religion  from  the  Church  of  England,"  the  latter  of 
which  the  Court  was  as  much  against  the  passing  of, 
as  the  House  of  Commons  was  against  the  passing  of 
the  former.  Yet  the  liberty  which  they  this  way 

*  Upon  his  entering  into  a  second  war  with  Holland,  con 
trary  to  the  interest  and  inclination  of  the  nation,  and  without 
the  advice  and  consent  of  his  Parliament. — C. 

Sir  W.  Temple  says,  "  No  clap  of  thunder  in  a  fair  frosty 
day,  could  more  astonish  the  world  than  our  declaration  of  war 
against  Holland,  in  1672.3'  Memoirs  (1692,)  p.  17. — ED. 


72  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

obtained  did,  in  a  measure,  continue  for  several 
years,  till  1681. 

As  to  myself,  I  was  baptized  by  my  own  father, 
soon  after  my  birth,  and  trained  up  under  his  minis 
try,  as  well  as  his  paternal  instruction  ;  so  that  it 
canot  be  said  of  me,  as  of  several  others,  that  I  left 
the  Established  Church,  because  I  was  never  joined 
to  it,  either  by  myself  or  my  immediate  parents. 
However,  as  I  was  from  my  infancy  carefully  in 
structed  in  the  common  Christian  principles  of  truth 
and  duty,  so  in  matters  of  difference  among  profess 
ing  Christians,  I  had  moderation  instilled  into  me 
from  my  very  cradle.  Never  did  I  hear  my  father 
inveigh  against  those  that  officiated  in  the  public 
churches,  nor  did  he  attempt  to  create  in  me  any 
prejudices  against  them,  or  their  way ;  but  he  took 
all  occasions  that  offered  to  declare  against  heat 
and  rancour  on  all  sides,  and  for  loving  all  such 
as  were  truly  pious,  and  bore  the  image  of  God 
upon  them,  whatsoever  their  particular  sentiments 
might  be. 

He  himself  never  took  the  "  Solemn  League  and 
Covenant,"  that  was  at  first  so  warmly  insisted  on, 
on  the  side  of  the  Parliament,  and  the  renouncing  of 
which  was  the  occasion  of  such  warm  debates  after 
the  Restoration.  And  though  he  could  not  but 
count  them  very  lax  casuists,  that  could,  by  way  of 
renunciation,  solemnly  declare,  that  they  looked 
upon  none  that  took  the  Covenant,  to  be  bound  by 
it,  to  be  the  more  careful  as  to  what  was  matter  of 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  73 

real  duty  ;  yet  have  I  often  heard  him  say,  that  he 
did  not  look  upon  himself  as  obliged  by  his  father's 
taking  it,  (as  great  a  respect  as  he  had  for  him,)  to 
any  further  opposition  to  the  church  by  law  estab 
lished,  than  he  should  have  thought  himself  to  have 
been  bound  to,  upon  the  supposition  that  his  father 
had  never  been  concerned  with,  or  taken  it.    For  he 
could  not  see  how  parents  could  pretend  to  oblige 
their  children  to  act  any  otherwise  in  religious  mat 
ters  than  according  to  the  best  light  they  could  get ; 
and  he  always  used  to  tell  me,  that   when  I  was 
grown   up,  he  would  freely  leave  me  to  judge  for 
myself.      And  though  the  taking    a  different  way 
from  this  may  produce  a  race  of  bigots,  yet  I  am  to 
this  day,  very  much  of  the  opinion,  that  neither  re 
ligion,  nor    any  party  or  denomination    they  may 
fall  in  with,  are  likely  to  receive  any  great  credit 
from  them. 

My  good  mother,  I  well  remember,  took  a  great 
deal  of  pains  with  me  in  my  infancy  and  childhood; 
as  it  was  she  chiefly  that  taught  me  to  read,  so  did  she 
teach  me  also  my  catechism.  And  when  I  had  learnt 
it,  she  carried  me  in  her  hands  and  delivered  me  to 
the  care  of  good  old  Mr.  Thomas  Lye,  to  be  publicly 
catechised  by  him  on  Saturday  afternoons  at  DyerV 
hall,  having  been  herself  catechized  by  him  in  her 
younger  years,  which  she  seemed  to  mention  with 
abundance  of  pleasure.  That  old  gentleman  was 
remarkable  for  his  particular  talent  in  dealing  with 
children  upon  the  first  principles  of  religion ;  and 


74  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

some  were  observed  to  retain  the  good  impressions 
then  made  upon  them  all  their  days  after. * 

When  my  uncle,  Dr.  Benjamin,  came  and  settled 
in  town,  in  our  neighbourhood,  in  Aldermanbury, 
he  was  frequently  at  our  house,  and  we  at  his,  and 
there  was  a  very  friendly  correspondence  between 
the  two  families.  Several  other  ministers,  also,  of 
the  Established  Church,  as  Dr.  Anthony  Walker, 
Dr.  Kidder,f  Dr.  Lewis,  &c.  came  to  visit  there  occa 
sionally  ;  and  I  could  not  perceive  but  that  my 
father  was  as  truly  respected  by  them,  as  he  was  by 
the  ministers  among  the  Dissenters,  which  I  remem 
ber  was  a  thing  very  pleasing  to  me  from  my  child 
hood. 

However,  when  I  was  a  child,  I  spoke,  and 
thought,  and  acted  as  a  child  ;  nor  have  I  forgotten 
several  childish  sallies  of  corruption,  which  I  cannot 
particularly  reflect  upon  without  concern  and  shame. 
I  can  say  with  Solomon,  that  "  childhood  and  youth 
are  vanity."  However,  I  was  betimes  inclined  to 
learning,  a  lover  of  my  book,  and  eagerly  bent  upon 
being  a  scholar  ;  and  though  this  inclination  of  mine 
had  at  first  more  in  it  of  curiosity,  pride,  and  vanity, 
than  of  real  judgment  or  desire  to  answer  the  end 
of  my  being,  in  glorifying  God,  and  being  useful  to 

*  See  Dr.  Calamy's  Account,  p.  24 ED. 

t  He  became  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells  in  1691.  In  1703, 
he  was  "  killed  in  his  bed,  with  his  lady,  by  the  fall  of  a  stack 
of  chimneys,  in  the  great  storm."  Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  viii.  10 — 12. 
—Bo. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  75 

others;  yet  I  hope,  I  by  degrees  came  to  have 
nobler  and  higher  views.  I  have  since  been  very  sen 
sible,  that  as  the  providence  of  God  is  particularly 
discernible  in  fixing  the  bounds  of  men's  habitations, 
so  is  it  also  in  governing  their  inclinations,  as  to  the 
choice  of  business  and  employment  for  life,  and  dis 
posing  of  things  in  order  to  their  being  suitably 
fitted  and  qualified  for  it.  I  have  reason,  with  great 
thankfulness,  to  take  notice  of  the  particular  con 
duct  of  Divine  providence  towards  me  in  this 
respect. 

Among  other  things,  it  was  a  great  trouble  to  my 
tender  parents,  that  though  I  was  bent  upon  improve 
ment  in  knowledge,  yet  I  had  naturally  but  a  weak 
constitution  of  body.  Though  I  got  safely  through 
the  small-pox  and  measles,  when  I  was  about  four 
years  of  age,  yet  I  was  afterwards  very  subject  to 
frequent  returns  of  fevers  and  agues,  which  were 
great  hinderances  and  discouragements,  and  would 
have  been  more  so  had  they  continued.  But,  thanks 
be  to  God,  my  constitution  mended  afterwards  very 
considerably,  through  the  help  of  the  kind  and  friend 
ly  advice  of  Dr.  Henry  Sampson,*  who  so  effectually 

*  Formerly  "  Fellow  of  Pembroke  Hall,"  Cambridge,  whence 
he  had  "  the  living  of  Framlingham,"  till  "  upon  the  Restoration, 
not  being  satisfied  to  conform,  he  applied  to  the  study  of  physic," 
in  France,  at  Padua  and  at  Leyden  ;  and  settled  as  a  physician 
in  London.  Account,  pp.  85,  86. 

Dr.  Calamy  further  says,  that  Dr.  Sampson  "  had  taken  a  great 
deal  of  pains,  in  collecting  materials  for  an  Essay  on  the  History 
of  Puritanism  and  Nonconformity,  declaring  what  the  men  of 


76  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

delivered  me  from  a  troublesome  ague,  that  I  used  to 
have  every  spring  and  fall,  that  it  returned  no  more. 

When  I  could  read  well,  my  first  schoolmaster 
was  Mr.  Nelson,  the  curate  of  Aldermanbury,  who 
kept  school  in  the  vestry  of  the  church  of  St. 
Alphage.  Under  him,  I  learnt  the  accidence  and 
grammar,  and  I  found  him  very  indulgent ;  and 
yet  I  cannot  say  I  made  any  great  advancement 
with  him.  Afterwards,  for  the  benefit  of  the  air,  I 
was  sent  to  Mr.  Yewel's,  at  Epsom,  in  Surrey,  who 
was  a  very  serious  and  pious  man,  and  a  strict 
dissenter,  though  no  great  scholar.  He  was  very 
indulgent  to  his  young  ones,  and  exceeding  careful 
of  them,  and  took  abundance  of  pains  in  constantly 
praying  with  them,  and  giving  them  good  instruc 
tions.  He  was  a  sort  of  Fifth  Monarchy  man,  and 
would  rather  have  exposed  himself  to  the  utmost 
hardship  than  be  prevailed  with  to  take  the  Oath  of 
Allegiance.  But  at  the  same  time,  a  more  harmless, 
conscientious,  and  inoffensive  man  was  rarely  to 
be  met  with. 

This  good  man  had  a  considerable  number  of  boys 

those  characters  have  done  and  suffered,  since  the  Reformation 
of  religion  in  England."  The  contents  of  his  twenty-six  chapters 
follow  in  "  the  Preface,"  to  the  "  Abridgment  of  Baxter's  Life 
and  Times." 

Among  the  MSS.  in  the  British  Museum  are  several  respect 
ing  the  Nonconformists,  ascribed  to  Dr.  Sampson.  They  are, 
probably,  copied  from  some  "  of  his  papers,"  of  which  Dr.  Ca- 
lamy  acknowledges  the  use.  Those  I  have  seen,  appeared,  by 
comparison  with  original  letters  of  Mr.  Ralph  Thoresby,  to  be 
in  his  handwriting. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  77 

under  his  care ;  but  they  fared  so  well,  and  the 
rates  he  had  with  them  were  so  low,  and  he  was  at 
the  same  time  at  so  great  an  expense  to  keep  up  a 
Meeting  on  the  Lord's  Day,  in  his  school-house,  to 
which  ministers  came  down  every  week  from  Lon 
don,  that  he  got  very  little  for  all  his  pains,  and  he 
was  often  in  trouble.  And  it  was  observed,  that  he 
proved  at  last  but  unhappy  in  some  of  his  own  chil 
dren,  who  discredited  their  strict  religious  education. 
My  being  there  increased  and  confirmed  my  health, 
though  it  did  not  much  advance  me  in  learning. 

I  went  afterwards  to  Mr.  Tatnal's,  who  was  the 
silenced  minister  of  St.  John  Evangelist,  and  kept 
his  school  in  Winchester-street,  near  Pinner's  Hall,* 
He  was  a  good  scholar,  and  had  been  bred  up  under 
Dr.  Busby,  the  celebrated  schoolmaster  of  West 
minster,  of  whom  he  would  often  tell  us  pleasant  sto 
ries.  He  had  himself  also  made  and  sent  forth  some 
good  scholars,  and  took  pains  with  his  boys.  Under 
him,  I  made  a  pretty  tolerable  improvement,  conti 
nuing  with  him  till  I  had  for  some  time  been  his 
uppermost  scholar;  and  have  sometimes  said  by  heart 
a  satire  in  Juvenal,  for  my  part,  in  a  morning.f 

I  remember,  that  in  these  my  early  years,  there 
was  a  great  and  very  general  discontent  and  uneasi- 

*  See  Account,  p.  31. — ED. 

t  As  I  was  going  to  school  I  often  conversed  with  a  poor  old 
man,  of  above  120  years  of  age,  who  assured  me,  he,  when  a 
child,  saw  Queen  Elizabeth  make  her  entry  into  the  city,  when 
she  came  from  Hatfield — C. 


78  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

at  the  Exchequer's  being  shut  up*  with  140,000/. 
in  it,  by  which  the  King  publicly  became  a  bank 
rupt,  multitudes  of  widows  and  orphans  being  beg 
gared  and  undone ;  as  also  at  the  growing  power  of 
France,  and  to  see  our  Councils  here  in  England 
so  much  influenced  from  thence ;  Dunkirk  sold  for 
500,000/.f  (by  which  step  we,  as  it  were,  quitted 
our  interest  upon  the  Continent,)  and  our  own  true 
interest  in  all  respects,  so  visibly  neglected  and  weak 
ened.  Sir  William  Temple,  who  was  at  that  time  a 
very  active  man,  and  no  friend  to  French  councils,  or 
measures,  in  his  "  Memoirs  of  what  passed  in  Chris 
tendom,  from  the  War,  begun  1672,  to  the  Peace 
concluded  1679, "i  gives  a  very  handsome  and  enter 
taining  account  of  public  matters  in  that  interval  ;$ 
and  whosoever  reads  that  with  care,  will  see  great 
reason  to  be  thankful,  that  our  civil  and  religious 
interests  both,  were  not  entirely  and  irrecoverably 
ruined  by  the  transactions  of  that  time,  and  the  me 
thods  that  were  pursued. 

*  Jan.  6,  1672.— ED. 

f  On  the  royal  disbursement  of  this  sum,  and  the  principal 
recipient  the  "  ravenous  Mistress  Palmer,"  See  "  Diary  of 
Burton,"  iii.  448.  n. — ED. 

%  Addressed  to  his  son,  1683.  See  "  Memoirs  of  the  Life  and 
Negotiations  of  Sir  W.  Temple,  Bart."  (1714,)  p.  381.— ED. 

§  He  that  would  see  these  matters  particularly  and  distinctly 
laid  open  and  dilated  on,  would  do  well  to  consult  the  "  State 
Tracts,  temp.  Car.  ii.:'  being  a  collection  of  several  Treatises 
relating  to  the  Government,  privately  printed  in  the  reign  of 
King  Charles  II.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  79 

Most  frightful,  certainly,  was  the  aspect  of  the  at 
tempt  that  was  made  in  1675,  with  respect  to  the 
Oath,  that  was  intended  to  prevent  the  taking  up 
arms  upon  any  occasion  whatsoever,  and  were  things 
ever  so  pressing,  or  the  consenting  to  any  alteration 
either  in  Church  or  State,  &c.  Never  was  a  matter 
more  closely  debated  than  this  now  was  in  the  House 
of  Peers  ;  "  nor,"  as  one  as  well  expressed  it,  "  could 
any  Conveyancer  have  drawn  up  a  dissettlement  of 
the  whole  birthright  of  England  in  more  compendi 
ous  terms,  than  would  have  been  done  by  this  Oath, 
had  it  taken  place."  The  debate  lasted  five  several 
days  in  the  House  of  Lords,  before  the  Bill  was  com 
mitted  to  a  Committee  of  the  whole  House,  and 
eleven  or  twelve  days  afterwards.  The  House  sat 
many  days  till  eight  or  nine  at  night,  and  sometimes 
till  midnight.^  Though  the  major  vote  carried  the 
question,  as  the  Court  and  bishops  would  have  it ;  yet 
the  business  of  privilege  between  the  two  houses, 
gave  such  an  interruption,  that  the  Bill  was  never 
reported  from  the  Committee  to  the  House,  which 
was  a  most  happy  escape ;  and  there  never  was  a 
strength  in  the  Court  to  raise  the  debate  of  this  Test 
in  any  subsequent  session. f 

*  The  best  account  of  this  matter  is  given  by  Mr.  Locke  in  the 
"  State  Tracts,  temp.  Car.  ii.  1,  41."  printed  in  1689,  in  "  a  Let 
ter  from  a  person  of  quality  to  his  Friend  in  the  Country." — C. 

See  Locke's  Pieces,  (1739)  pp.  17—44.  Proceedings  of  the 
Lords,  i.  129—160.  This  Piece  was  ordered  by  the  Privy 
Council  to  be  burnt. — ED. 

f  Bishop  Burnet's  Own  Time,  i.  385. — C. 


80  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Dr.  Sherlock,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Bangor,  in  his 
"  Test  Act  vindicated,"  published  An.  1718,  tells  us 
that  "in  the  year  1676,  upon  a  calculation  that 
was  made,  the  Nonconformists  of  all  sorts,  includ 
ing  Papists  as  well  as  others,  were  found  to  be  in 
proportion  to  the  Members  of  the  Church  of  Eng 
land,  as  one  to  twenty,"  which,  he  says,  "was  a 
number  too  small  to  hurt  the  Constitution."  And 
it  was  observed  by  many,  that  when  King  Charles 
attacked  the  Dutch  in  conjunction  with  France,  and 
the  Parliament  gave  him  two  millions  and  a  half 
to  maintain  the  war ;  he  with  part  of  that  money, 
raised  about  12,000  men,  which  were  called  the 
Blackheath  Army,  of  which  Marshal  Schombergh 
was  General,  and  Fitzgerald  an  Irish  Papist,  Lieu 
tenant-general  ;  and  they  were  said  to  be  raised 
against  Holland,  but  instead  of  using  them  for  that 
purpose,  the  King  kept  them  encamped  on  Black- 
heath,  hovering  over  the  City  of  London,  which  put 
both  Parliament  and  City  into  such  confusion,  that 
he  was  forced  at  last  to  disband  them. 

November  4th,  1677.  The  best  step  that  could 
be  for  England's  welfare,  and  the  security  of  Eu 
rope,  was  taken  in  the  marriage  of  the  Princess 
Mary,  with  his  Highness  William  Henry  Prince  of 
Orange,  in  which  the  Lord  Danby,  (afterwards  Duke 
of  Leeds')  had  a  main  hand ;  and  it  may  well  be 
reckoned  the  best  action  of  his  life,  to  contribute  to  it. 
This  Prince  came  to  visit  his  uncle  King  Charles  in 
the  winter  1669,  to  discourse  him  about  the  money 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  81 

he  owed  him,  and  about  other  political  matters.  And 
now  he  came  again,  to  discourse  about  the  peace 
depending ;  and  he  carried  back  a  wife,  who  was 
a  great  blessing  both  on  the  other  side  of  the  water 
and  this. 

But  for  my  own  part,  I  must  own,  that  the  first 
public  matter  I  can  remember  I  took  any  distinct 
notice  of,  was  the  discovery  of  the  Popish  Plot,  a 
year  after  the  marriage  aforesaid,  and  just  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  treaty  at  Nimmeguen,*  which 
gave  the  nation  a  mighty  turn,  and  was  a  great 
occasion  of  the  dissolution  of  a  Parliament  that 
had  sat  eighteen  years ;  and  might,  perhaps,  have 
continued  through  all  King  Charles's  reign,  if  they 
had  not  first  broke  into  heats,  upon  the  French 
alliances,  and  the  management  of  them,  and  at  last 
into  flames  upon  the  business  of  the  Plot.  This 
Parliament  was  now  grown  very  different  from  what 
it  was  at  the  beginning  ;  and  it  had  done  the  King  so 
much  service,  that  hardly  any  thing  could  have  pre 
vailed  with  him  to  have  dismissed  it;  but  that  he 
could  not  expect  any  farther  benefit  from  it. 

The  ingenious  Dr.  Wellwood  sticks  not  to  give  his 
opinion,!  tnat  " tne  discovery  of  the  Popish  Plot  be 
gan  that  open  struggle  between  King  Charles  and 
his  people,  that  occasioned  him,  not  only  to  dissolve 
his  first  favourite  Parliament,  and  three  others  that 
succeeded,  but  likewise  to  call  no  more  during  the 

*  August,  1678,  between  France  and  Holland. — ED. 
t  See  his  Memoirs,  page  129. — C. 
VOL.    I.  G 


82  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

rest  of  his  reign."  And  yet  we  have  had  a  number 
among  us,  besides  Sir  Roger  L'Estrange,  that  have 
made  a  perfect  jest  of  the  whole  and  every  part  of 
this  Plot;  notwithstanding,  that  in  so  doing,  they 
have  arraigned  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  the  whole 
nation  in  the  highest  degree  that  it  could  possibly 
be  done  by  any  man. 

A  real  popish  plot  appears  very  plain  from  Cole- 
man's  Letters.*  And  though  it  is  evident  from 
many  things  that  fell  out,  and  particularly  from 
divers  addresses  of  the  House  of  Commons,  pre 
sented  to  his  Majesty  at  several  very  different  times, 
and  upon  a  variety  of  occasions,  and  from  the  Test 
Act  in  1673,  in  which  the  two  Houses  were  so 
unanimous,  that  the  nation  had  for  some  time  been 
under  no  small  apprehension  of  the  growth  of  po 
pery,  and  the  danger  we  were  in,  in  that  respect  ;f 
yet  the  discovery  of  this  plot,  put  the  whole  king- 

*  However  these  Letters  may  have  served  to  confirm  the  be 
lief  in  "  a  real  Popish  Plot, "  at  that  period  of  intrigue  and 
irritation  ;  yet  few,  if  any,  at  all  competent  to  an  inquiry  on 
the  subject,  will  now  admit  the  reality.  They  will  rather  agree 
with  Fox,  that  this  presumed  plot,  with  its  sanguinary  conse 
quences,  has  fixed  "  an  indelible  disgrace  upon  the  English  na 
tion,  in  which  King,  Parliament,  judges,  juries,  witnesses,  prose 
cutors,  have  all  their  respective,  though  certainly  not  equal 
shares."  History,  pp.  33,  34.  See  Mr.  Charles  Butler's  "  His 
torical  Memorials,"  (1819,)  ii.  35.— ED. 

f  See  "  An  Account  of  the  growth  of  Popery  and  arbitrary 
Government  in  England,"  by  Andrew  Marvel,  Esq.  printed  in 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  83 

dom  into   a   new    fermentation,   and   filled   people 
universally  with  unspeakable  terror. 

To  see  the  posts  and  chains  put  up  in  all  parts  of 
the  city,  and  a  considerable  number  of  the  Trained 
Bands  drawn  out,  night  after  night,  well  armed,  and 
watching  with  as  much  care,  as  if  a  considerable  insur 
rection  was  expected  before  morning;  and  to  be  enter 
tained  from  day  to  day  with  the  talk  of  massacres 
designed,  and  a  number  of  bloody  assassins  ready  to 
serve  such  purposes,  and  recruits  from  abroad  to  sup 
port  and  assist  them  (which  things  were  the  general 
subjects  of  all  conversation,)  was  very  surprising.  The 
murder  of  Sir  Edmund  Bury  Godfrey,*  (who  had 
taken  Oates's  deposition,  and  had  afterwards  had  free 
conversation  with  Coleman  in  private,)  with  the 
black  Sunday  that  followed  soon  after  it,f  when  it 
grew  so  dark  on  a  sudden,  about  eleven  in  the  morn 
ing,  that  ministers  could  not  read  their  notes  in 
their  pulpits,  without  the  help  of  candles ;  together 
with  the  frequent  execution  of  traitors  that  ensued, 
and  the  many  dismal  stories  handed  about  continu 
ally,  made  the  hearts,  not  only  of  younger,  but 
elder  persons  to  quake  for  fear.  Not  so  much  as  a 
house  was  at  that  time  to  be  met  with,  but  what 
was  provided  with  arms ;  nor  did  any  go  to  rest 
at  night  without  apprehensions  of  somewhat  that 

Oct.  12,  1678.    See  R.  Tuke's  Memoirs,  (1682)  p.  65,  £c. 
Granger,  iii.  400. — ED. 

t  Jan.  12,  1678-9.     Chron.   Hist.  (1744)  i.  212.— ED. 

G    2 


84  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  very  tragical  that  might  happen  before  morn 
ing.  And  this  was  then  the  case,  not  for  a  few  weeks 
or  months  only,  but  for  a  great  while  together. 

Though  I  was  at  that  time  but  young,  yet  can  I 
not  forget  how  much  I  was  affected  with  seeing 
several  that  were  condemned  for  this  plot,  such  as 
Pickering,  Ireland,  and  Grove,  &c.  go  to  be  executed 
at  Tyburn ;  and  at  the  pageantry  of  the  mock 
processions,  on  the  17th  of  November.*  Roger 
L'Estrange,  (who  used  to  be  called  Oliver's  Fidler,) 
formerly  in  danger  of  being  hanged  for  a  spy,  and 
about  this  time  the  admired  buffoon  of  high-church, 
called  them  "  hobby-horsing  processions." 

In  one  of  them,  in  the  midst  of  vast  crowds 
of  spectators,  that  made  great  acclamations,  and 
showed  abundance  of  satisfaction,  there  were  car 
ried  in  pageants  upon  men's  shoulders  through  the 
chief  streets  of  the  city,  the  effigies  of  the  Pope, 
with  the  representative  of  the  Devil  behind  him, 
whispering  in  his  ear,  and  wonderfully  soothing 
and  caressing  him,  (though  he  afterwards  deserted 
him,  and  left  him  to  shift  for  himself,  before  he 
was  committed  to  the  flames,)  together  with  the 
likeness  of  the  dead  body  of  Sir  Edmund  Bury 
Godfrey,  carried  before  him  by  one  that  rode  on 
horseback,  designed  to  remind  the  people  of  his 
execrable  murder.  And  a  great  number  of  dignita 
ries,  in  their  copes,  with  crosses,  monks,  friars,  and 

*  "  Queen  Elizabeth's  birth-day."    These  processions  were  in 
1679  and  1680.    Chron.  Hist.  215,  218.-— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  85 

Jesuits,  and  Popish  Bishops  in  their  mitres,  and 
with  all  their  trinkets  and  appurtenances.  Such 
things  as  these  very  discernibly  heightened  and  in 
flamed  the  general  aversion  of  the  nation  from  Po 
pery  ;  but  it  is  to  be  feared  on  the  other  hand,  they 
put  some  people,  by  way  of  revulsion,  upon  such  des 
perate  experiments,  as  brought  us  even  within  an  ace 
of  ruin. 

The  Parliament  that  was  sitting  when  the  Plot 
was  discovered,  was  zealous  for  prosecuting  such  as 
appeared  concerned  in  it ;  and  that  which  succeeded 
the  next  year  was  for  treading  in  their  steps,  or 
rather  for  going  farther,  in  order  to  the  effectual 
securing  the  nation  from  the  designs  of  the  Papists. 
Father  D'Orleans,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Revolutions 
in  England,"  under  the  family  of  the  Stuarts,  says, 
that  the  Parliament  that  "  was  appointed  to  meet  in 
March  16795  was  filled  with  Presbyterians  ;"*  and  it 
was  much  the  same  with  those  that  followed.  That 
which  he  meant  was,  that  they  were  not  high-church, 
or  for  favouring  the  Papists.  The  aim  of  the  Earl  of 
Danby,  who  was  then  Chief  Minister,  in  pushing  on, 
in  1678,  the  dissolution  of  the  Parliament  in  which  he 
had  so  many  pensioners,  was  to  screen  himself  from 
prosecution ;  for  his  prosecution  was  the  point  on 
which  the  Parliament  was  broken. 

"  The  Dissenters  were  then  caressed,  and  endea 
voured  to  be  drawn  in  to  subserve  some  Court  de- 

*  P.  252. — C.     "  Shaftesbury  prit  si   bien  ses  mesures,  qu'il 
le  remplit  de  Presbyteriens."     Rev.  iii.  422.— ED. 


86  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

signs  in  the  election  of  Parliaments  that  followed." 
But,  as  Mr.  Howe  observes,*  at  the  time  when  these 
things  were  fresh  in  memory,  "  they  every  where 
entirely  and  unanimously  fell  in  with  the  sober  part 
of  the  nation,  in  the  choice  of  such  persons  for  the 
three  Parliaments  that  next  succeeded,  as  it  was 
known  would,  and  who  did,  most  generously  assert 
the  liberties  of  the  nation  and  the  Protestant  re 
ligion." 

For  this  reason,  I  must  confess  I  can  see  no  great 
reason  to  wonder,  that  the  Commons  in  one  of  these 
Parliaments  should  pass  a  vote,  that  "  the  prosecu 
tion  of  Protestant  Dissenters  upon  the  Penal  Laws 
was  grievous  to  the  subject,  a  weakening  of  the 
Protestant  interest',  an  encouragement  to  Popery, 
and  dangerous  to  the  peace  of  the  kingdom."  And 
though  it  was  said  by  some,  that  a  vote  of  that 
kind  was  a  sort  of  suspending  Acts  of  Parliament, 
which  was  a  thing  that  could  not  be  allowed  even  to 
the  King  himself;  yet,  as  circumstances  then  stood, 
this  was  an  invidious  representation.  For  as  either 
House  had  an  evident  right  to  pass  a  vote  in  any 
case,  where  they  were  disposed  to  have  passed  a  bill, 
had  they  but  had  scope  for  it ;  so  is  there  no  reason 
to  doubt  but  that  a  bill  would  readily  have  passed 
the  same  House  of  Commons,  to  repeal  the  Acts 
then  in  force  against  the  Dissenters,  had  not  a  sud 
den  dissolution  prevented  it. 

*  See  his  "  Case  of  the  Protestant  Dissenters  represented  and 
argued,"  in  1689.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  87 

The  Whigs  were  very  brisk  and  mightily  elevated 
all  the  while  there  was  a  run  upon  the  Papists ;  but 
when  the  tide  turned,  and  the  court  trumped  up 
a  Protestant  Plot,  in  one  form  after  another,*  to 
divert  the  scent,  they  became  jealous  and  uneasy, 
and  much  disheartened.  The  Dissenters  were  then 
very  rigorously  dealt  with,  and  that  not  only  in  and 
about  the  city,  but  all  the  nation  over.  They  were 
so  indeed,  for  the  greatest  part  of  this  reign ;  and 
the  restraining  them  in  their  worship,  was  by  many 
represented  not  so  much  as  a  matter  of  religion,  as 
of  safety  to  the  Government.  And  this  reproach 
was  taken  up,  on  purpose  to  justify  premeditated 
designs  of  oppressing  them  :  according  to  the  way  of 
the  soldier,  who  said  the  countryman  whistled  trea 
son,  when  he  had  resolved  to  plunder  him. 

Sometimes  they  were  for  a  while  forborn,  and 
liberty  of  conscience  was  in  vogue :  but,  as  Dr.  Burnet 
expressed  the  matter  in  his  answer  to  Parliamentum 
Paci/icum,  printed  in  King  James's  reign,  "  when  a 
Session  of  Parliament  came,  and  the  King  wanted 
money,  then  a  severe  law  against  the  Dissenters  was 
offered  to  the  angry  men  of  the  Church  Party  as  the 
price  of  it,  and  this  seldom  failed  to  have  its  effect ; 
so  that  they  were  like  the  jewels  of  the  Crown, 
pawned  when  the  King  needed  money,  and  redeemed 
at  the  next  prorogation."  But  after  the  dissolution 
of  the  Oxford  Parliament,  (in  which  there  was  a 
warm  complaint,  that  a  Bill  designed  for  their  relief, 

*  In  1681,  and  afterwards.— C. 


88  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

by  repealing  an  Act  of  the  35th  of  Elizabeth,  was 
stolen  out  of  the  House  of  Lords,  though  nothing 
was  done  by  way  of  remedy,)  they  were  generally 
run  down,  and  treated  with  severity.  "  Their  steadi 
ness  drew  upon  them,"  (as  Mr.  Howe  expressed 
it  in  the  paper  forernentioned,)  "  a  dreadful  storm  of 
persecution,  that  destroyed  not  a  small  number  of 
lives  in  gaols,  and  ruined  multitudes  of  families."* 

Often  was  I  (as  young  as  I  was,)  sent  in  those 
days  to  Newgate,  New  Prison,  and  other  places  of 
confinement,  with  small  presents  of  money,  to  such 
Dissenting  Ministers  as  were  clapped  up,  such  as 
Mr.  Richard  Stretton,  Mr.  Robert  Franklin,  &c. 
who  used  to  talk  freely  with  me,  and  give  me  some 
serious  advice,  and  their  blessing  at  parting,  with 
thanks  to  their  benefactors.  My  own  father  was 
never  cast  into  prison,  but  often  had  warrants  out 
against  him,  and  was  forced  to  disguise  himself,  and 
skulk  in  private  holes  and  corners,  and  frequently 
change  his  lodgings.  And  he  and  Mr.  Watson,  and 
Mr.  Cooper,  and  several  other  ministers,  were  put 
into  the  Crown  Office,  and  kept  there  a  good  while 
together,  which  they  found  very  chargeable. 

I  used  at  that  time,  I  well  remember,  to  think 
it  very  strange,  that  such  men  as  prayed  very 
heartily  for  the  King  and  Government,  and  gave  their 

*  They  were  not  only  kept  out  of  their  own  places  of  wor 
ship,  but  laid  in  gaols,  wherever  they  could  be  met  with :  and 
they  were  dealt  with  as  if  they  were  the  only  enemies  of  the 
public  peace. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  89 

neighbours  no  disturbance,  could  not  be  suffered  to 
live  in  quiet.  Often  was  I  at  their  most  private  meet 
ings  for  worship,  and  never  did  I  hear  them  inveigh 
against  those  in  power,  though  they  were  commonly 
run  down  as  enemies  of  royalty.  But  I  never  was 
at  a  meeting,  when  disturbance  was  given  by  justices, 
informers,  constables,  and  soldiers,  more  than  twice. 
One  time  was  at  Mr.  Jenkyn's,  in  Jewen-street,  and 
the  other  at  Mr.  Franklin's,  in  Bunhill-fields  ;  and 
in  both  places  they  were  fierce  and  noisy,  and  made 
great  havoc. 

When  the  meetings  were  shut  up,  I  frequented  the 
public  churches,  heard  Dr.  Horneck,  Dr.  Lucas,  Dr. 
Merit  on,  &c.  and  wrote  after  them,  and  gave  my 
father  an  account  of  their  sermons.     And  being  often 
in    summer-time,   at    rny  grandfather    Gearing's    at 
Tooting,  where  there  was  at  that  time  no  meeting  of 
Dissenters,  the  family  went  to  the  public  church.* 
And  we  were  often  visited  by  Mr.  Bickley  the  minister 
of  the  place,  (brother  to  Sir  Francis  Bickley,  of  Nor 
folk,)  who  was  as  free  at  my  grandfather's  as  at  any 
house  in  his  parish.    While  I  was  one  summer  there, 
I  had  a  very  threatening   fever    and  lethargy,  and 
my  case  was  hazardous  ;  but  I  was  wonderfully  pre 
served  by  the  blessing  of  God  on  the  prescriptions 
of  Dr.  Daniel  Cox,f  who  coming  down  there   to 

*  But  I  remember  the  preaching  of  the  Dissenters  used  even 
then  to  be  more  agreeable  to  me,  and  I  thought  it  came  most 
home  to  the  conscience,  and  had  the  greatest  tendency  to  do 
good,— C.  f  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  52,  w.— ED. 


90  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

his  wife's  relations,  was  an  instrument  in  the  hand 
of  God  of  saving  my  life.  And  I  most  heartily 
wish  that  that  life  had  been  spent  to  much  better 
purpose. 

Should  I  ever  so  much  endeavour  it,  I  could  not 
be  able  to  forget  the  heats  there  were  both  in  city 
and  country,  about  the  three  last  Parliaments  of  this 
reign  of  King  Charles,  which  were  called  together 
and  dissolved  within  the  compass  of  two  years  ;  the 
longest  of  which  was  not  of  eight  months  continu 
ance,  and  the  last  of  them  (which  met  at  Oxford,) 
did  not  continue  sitting  above  seven  days.  Petitions 
and  abhorrences  which  were  very  warm,  came  then 
from  different  quarters ;  people  were  not  only  amused 
with  them  but  enraged ;  and  things  looked  very 
generally  as  if  the  nation  was  running  into  a  new 
Civil  War. 

His  Majesty  published  to  the  world  his  "  Reasons 
for  dissolving  the  two  last  of  these  Parliaments,"  in 
a  Declaration,  which  gave  matter  of  great  grief  and 
uneasiness,  not  only  to  the  body  of  the  Dissenters, 
but  also  to  those  of  all  denominations  that  were  in  the 
true  interest  of  their  country.  The  amazement  that 
was  occasioned  by  the  dissolution  of  two  Parliaments, 
within  the  space  of  three  months,  was  not  greater, 
than  it  caused  to  see  the  reasons  with  which  such  ex 
traordinary  proceedings  were  sought  to  be  justified.* 

*  See  "  A  just  and  modest  Vindication  of  the  Proceedings  of 
the  two  last  Parliaments  of  King  Charles  II. ;"  and  "  a  Letter 
from  a  person  of  Quality  to  his  friend  concerning  his  Majesty's 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  91 

It  was  observed  as  to  this  Declaration,  that  it  was 
sooner  known  by  M.  Barillon,  the  French  Ambassa 
dor,  and  by  the  Duchess  of  Mazarine,  than  by  the 
King's  own  Council ;  and  that  it  was  evidenced  to 
be  of  French  extraction,  by  the  Gallicisms  in  it ; 
and  withal  it  had  no  broad  seal  to  it,  and  was  only 
signed  by  a  clerk  of  the  Council. 

It  was  no  small  additional  grievance,  that  when 
this  Declaration,  that  was  published  in  1681,  passed 
at  the  Council  Board,  it  was  moved  by  Archbishop 
Sancroft,  that  an  order  might  be  added,  requiring  the 
clergy  to  publish  it  in  all  the  churches  in  England. 
"  This,"  says  Bishop  Burnet,*  "  was  looked  on  as  a 
most  pernicious  precedent,  by  which  the  clergy  were 
made  the  heralds  to  publish  the  King's  Declarations, 
which,  in  some  instances,  might  come  to  be  not  only 
indecent,  but  mischievous."  And  he  afterwards 
takes  notice  of  the  bad  effects  and  consequences  of 
it.t 

The  grand  thing  at  this  time  under  debate  was 
"  the  Bill  of  Exclusion."  It  was  the  opinion  of 
three  subsequent  Houses  of  Commons,  that  nothing 
could  secure  the  nation  from  Popery,  but  the  shut 
ting  out  the  Duke  of  York  from  the  succession  to 
the  crown.  The  King  seemed  free  to  any  thing  that 
could  be  desired,  in  order  to  the  common  security, 
provided  this  was  but  waved.  Expedients  were 

late  Declarations,"  in  a  "  Collection  of  State  Tracts,"  printed  in 
1689,  pp.  165.  187.—-C. 

*  "Own  Time,"  i.  p.  500.— C.         t  Ibid.  p.  736 — .C. 


92  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

offered,  and  limitations  to  the  successor  proposed, 
some  of  which  were  more  dreaded  by  the  Duke,  even 
than  the  exclusion  itself:  but  none  of  them  would 
give  satisfaction.  We  are  told  that  "  in  lieu  of  the 
Excluding  Bill,  the  King  more  than  once  offered 
such  ample  concessions  to  both  Houses,  as,  if  ac 
cepted  of,  must  have  diminished  the  monarchy,  and 
might  have  left  the  crown  for  ever  in  shackles."* 
But  the  party  that  were  for  the  exclusion,  were 
fully  of  opinion,  that  there  could  be  no  security 
against  the  Duke  and  his  principles  and  designs,  if 
he  once  sat  on  the  throne,  and  got  possession  of  the 
crown.  One  said,  that  "  they  might  as  well  think 
to  catch  a  lion  with  a  mouse-trap,  as  to  be  secure 
against  Popery  without  the  Exclusion  Bill."  And 
another,  that  6(  to  accept  expedients  to  secure  the 
Protestant  religion,  after  a  Popish  king  had  mounted 
the  throne,  would  be  as  strange  as  their  voting,  if 
there  were  a  lion  in  the  lobby,  that  they  would 
rather  secure  themselves  by  letting  him  in  and 
chaining  him,  than  by  keeping  him  out."  And  the 
event  proved  this  sentiment  to  be  just  and  right. 

Great  and  earnest  was  the  struggle  through  this 
whole  reign,  in  England  and  Scotland  both,  to 
secure  our  civil  and  religious  liberty.  Among  other 
things,  the  body  of  both  nations  were  greatly  alarm 
ed  at  the  Scottish  Act,  which  granted  the  King 
22,000  men,  with  six  weeks  pay  and  provisions,  to 
serve  him  in  any  part  of  the  three  kingdoms, 

*  Echard's  "  History  of  the  Revolution,"  pp.  50.  57. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  93 

*in  any  case  wherein  the  King's  honour,  authority 
and  greatness,  might  be  concerned ;  who  were  to 
obey  such  orders  and  directions,  as  they  should  from 
time  to  time  receive  from  the  Scottish  Privy  Coun 
cil.  This  was  Lauderdale's  grand  device  for  the 
enslaving  of  Britain.  It  was  long  in  forming,  and 
contrived  with  subtlety  enough ;  and  in  all  appear 
ance  our  recovery  had  been  desperate,  had  this  Act 
been  put  in  execution.  But  many  opposed  him, 
and  laid  rubs  in  his  way  ;  the  Commons  of  England, 
frequently,  with  great  earnestness,  petitioned  against 
him  ;  and  he  was  at  last  cut  off  *  by  the  hand  of  pro 
vidence,  before  he  could  bring  his  design  to  bear. 

It  must  indeed  be  said,  for  the  honour  of  the 
English  Whigs,  that  they  omitted  nothing  within 
their  reach,  to  guard  against  the  introducing  arbi 
trary  government,  both  amongst  themselves  and 
their  neighbours.  And  no  man  signalized  himself 
more  in  this  contest,  than  that  truly  glorious  per 
son,  Mr.  Samuel  Johnson,  the  clergyman,  who  was 
domestic  chaplain  to  the  noble  William  Lord  Rus- 
sel,  though  not  a  little  opposed  by  Mr.  John  Ket- 
tlewell,  who  was  at  the  same  time  chaplain  to  that 
lord's  mother,f  and  proved  a  nonjuror  after  the 
Revolution. 

This  Mr.  Johnson,  who  was  Lord  Russel's  particu 
lar  favourite,  wrote  (1682)  a  book  entitled,  "  Julian, 
the  Apostate  ;  being  a  short  account  of  his  Life, 

*  See  infra,  p.  104. — ED. 

f  See  "  the  Life  of  Mr.  John  Kettlewell,"  pp.  56,  57.— C. 


94  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

together  with  a  comparison  of  Popery  and  Paganism." 
There  was  a  parallel  artfully  drawn,  between  the 
Emperor  Julian  and  the  Duke  of  York.  This  book 
met  with  a  general  applause ;  but  the  author  was  a 
great  sufferer  for  it,  many  ways.  By  this  and  his 
other  writings,  and  particularly  his  "  Address  to  the 
English  Protestants  in  King  James's  army,"  this 
brave  man  was  by  many  thought  to  have  done  more 
towards  paving  the  way  for  King  William's  Revolu 
tion,  than  any  man  in  England  besides.  But  who 
soever  is  at  the  pains  to  read  the  account  of  him, 
that  was  drawn  up  by  a  very  honest  gentleman,* 
will  readily,  I  believe,  acknowledge,  that  after  all  he 
had  but  poor  returns  for  his  pains.  Bishop  Burnet, 
in  his  History,  does  not  so  much  as  once  mention 
his  name,  which  is,  by  many,  counted  an  unpardon 
able  omission.  This  is  a  thing  that  can  be  ascribed 
to  nothing  but  pique  and  resentment,  which  is  not 
to  be  excused  in  that  writer,  as  celebrated  as  he  was. 
Mr.  Johnson,  it  is  true,  might  have  his  foibles  as 
well  as  others.  He  might  be  too  warm  about  the 
bishop's  "  Pastoral  Letter,"^  carry  some  things  too 
far,  and  be  sometimes  too  keen  in  his  resentments ; 
but,  after  all,  certainly  such  distinguished  merit  as 
his  was,  deserved  better  treatment. 

December  4,  1679,  died  Mr.  Thomas  Hobbes,  of 
Malmesbury,  who   was  a  domestic  of  the  Earl    of 

*  See  the  "  Memorials  of  Mr.  Samuel  Johnson,"  prefixed  to 
his  Works  in  folio. — C. 

f  1689,  asserting  King  William's  right  by  conquest.-  -£D. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  95 

Devonshire.  He  died  at  the  age  of  91,  after  six 
weeks'  illness ;  and  his  Life*  was  published  in 
1681.  He  was  a  learned,  though  a  very  timorous 
and  fanciful  man,  and  of  a  peculiar  make.  He  made 
the  King's  conscience  the  standard  for  the  con 
sciences  of  all  his  subjects ;  just  as  the  great  clock 
rules  all  the  lesser  clocks  in  the  town. 

In  1680,  the  Dauphin  of  France  was  married  to 
the  Princess  of  Bavaria,  sister  of  the  Elector  of  that 
name ;  and  the  French  went  on  pursuing  their  de 
sign  of  an  universal  monarchy.  Great  complaints 
were  made  by  the  Germans,  that  in  a  variety  of  in 
stances,  they  violated  the  Articles  of  the  Peace  made 
at  Nimmeguen.  They  also  made  new  pretensions 
to  several  places  in  Flanders,  and  disturbed  Italy,  by 
getting  into  their  hands,  Casal,  that  belonged  to  the 
Duke  of  Mantua ;  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  Lea 
gue  of  Ausburgh,  in  1683,  it  is  hard  to  say  how 
far  their  rapacious  disposition  might  have  carried 
them.  But  he  that  prescribes  to  the  raging  sea, 
was  pleased  here  also  to  fix  bounds  that  could  not  be 
exceeded. 

He  did  the  same,  very  remarkably,  to  the  ministry 
of  the  Cabal,  here  in  England,  that  bid  fair  to  ruin 
us  beyond  recovery ;  and  the  observing  particulars 
may  help  to  excite  thankfulness. 

The  Lord  Shaftesbury,  who  reckoned  his  merits 
considerable,  upon  account  of  his  concern  in  the 

*  "  Thomae  Hobbes,  Angli  Malmesburiensis  Philosophi  Vita," 
written  by  himself. — ED. 


96  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Restoration,*  had  as  strong  a  head,  and  as  much 
craft,  as  any  that  were  engaged  in  the  design,  that 
would  have  ruined  their  native  country.  Though 
he  was  at  first  deep  in  the  French  intrigues,  yet  he 
was  at  length  brought  to  oppose  King  Charles's 
measures,  and  thereupon  run  down,  and  in  danger 
of  losing  his  head,  could  but  the  Court  have  found 
a  jury  to  their  purpose ;  for  a  bill  of  high  treason 
was  preferred  against  him  in  1681  :  but  the  grand 
jury  brought  in  the  matter,  ignoramus.  And  when 
in  the  great  contest  in  the  city  about  sheriffs,  the 
Tories  carried  the  point,  this  lord  in  1682  fled  into 
Holland,  with  his  heart  almost  broken,  and  his  spirit 
sunk  to  that  degree  when  there,  notwithstanding  his 
great  activity  here,  that  in  about  six  weeks'  time 
he  breathed  his  last. 

Mr.  Locke,  who  was  his  secretary,  while  he  was 
Lord  Chancellor,  was  his  great  friend,  and  has  pub 
lished  short  Memoirs  of  him  ;t  and  it  is  pity  they 
should  have  been  so  curtailed.  Bishop  Burnet  re 
presents  him  as  one  that  had  a  great  fondness  for 
judicial  astrology,  though  thereby  imposed  upon  like 
others.:]:  It  was  he  that  was  the  real  projector  of 
King  Charles's  shutting  up  the  Exchequer  in  1672, 
though  he  was  cheated  of  the  prize  he  aimed  at,  by 

*  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iv.  pp.  50,  51.  287,  288,  n. — ED. 
t  See  "  the  Posthumous  Works  of  Mr.  John  Locke." — C. 
"  Diary  of  Burton,"  iv.  pp.  50,  51,  n. — ED. 
J  "  Own  Time,"  i.  p.  96.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMF.  97 

Lord  Clifford,*  who  got  the  white  staff,  and  was 
made  Lord  Treasurer,  while  he  was  forced  to  be 
satisfied  with  being  made  Lord  Chancellor,  in  the 
room  of  Sir  Orlando  Bridgman,  who  had  been 
some  time  Lord  Keeper,  though  he  was  at  length 
turned  out  of  that  place  also,  to  make  way  for  Sir 
Heneage  Finch. 

It  was  this  Lord  Shaftesbury  that  was  the  first  of 
the  Cabal  that  broke  with  the  Court :  and  he  hap 
pened  at  the  same  time  to  fall  under  the  displeasure 
of  the  House  of  Commons,  and  be  in  danger  of 
their  impeaching  him,  for  his  issuing  writs  for  elect 
ing  members  of  their  house  in  the  intervals  of  Par 
liament.  But  he  found  an  admirable  way  to  escape, 
by  buying  off  Sir  Robert  Howard,  who  was  the  most 
zealous  against  him,f  and  at  length  he  proved  too 
hard  for  Lord  Clifford  too.  For  when  that  lord 
made  a  speech  in  the  House  of  Peers,  in  which  he 
moved  for  a  perpetual  fund,  to  render  Parliaments 
useless,  and  the  House  seemed  to  be  greatly  amazed 
at  the  proposal,  Shaftesbury  answered  him,  and 
showed  that  his  propositions  were  extravagant,  and 
that  what  he  aimed  at  would  end  in  confusion,  and 
the  ruin  of  the  government ;  and  that  the  method 
he  was  for,  might  be  likely  to  send  the  royal  family 
abroad  again,  to  spend  their  lives  in  exile,  without 
hopes  of  return.  Upon  which  Clifford  very  nar- 

*  Echard's  "  History  of  England,"  iii.  288,  289. — C. 
t  Oldmixon's  "  History  of  England,  during  the  Reigns  of 
the  Royal  House  of  Stuart,"  p.  571. — C. 
VOL.    I.  H 


98  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

rowly  escaped  being  sent  to  the  Tower,  and  was 
given  up  by  the  King,  and  wholly  lost.* 

In  1673,  Shaftesbury  was  the  contriver  and  mana 
ger  of  the  Test  Act ;  and,  by  a  good  token,  he  and 
the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  and  the  other  great  men 
that  pushed  that  Act  forward,  assured  the  Dissenters 
that  they  should  have  a  clause  inserted  in  their 
favour,  in  some  other  Act  the  same  session,  though 
it  was  unhappily  omitted.  In  1679,  he  was  made 
President  of  the  Privy  Council,  and  was  very  active 
in  opposition  to  the  Papists.  But  such  disgust  he 
gave  by  eagerly  prosecuting  their  plot,  that  he  never 
could  recover  himself  afterwards.  He  died  at  Am 
sterdam  in  1682  ;  and  the  same  year  carried  off 
Prince  Rupert,  Count  Palatine  of  the  Rhine,  the 
Duke  of  Lauderdale,  and  Lord  Chancellor  Finch. f 

The  Duke  of  Buckingham  was  a  man  of  no  reli 
gion  at  all,  and  that  gloried  in  his  debaucheries.  He 
was  so  addicted  and  abandoned  to  the  most  criminal 
pleasures,  that  he  and  his  true  associate,  the  Earl 
of  Rochester,  (whose  Life  was  written  by  Burnet) 
seemed  capable  of  corrupting  any  court  in  the 
world.  He  would,  however,  have  been  a  great  man, 
had  he  had  any  thing  of  steadiness  or  consistency  in 
him  ;  but  he  was  of  as  mercurial  a  make  as  ever 
was  known.  After  the  fall  of  Lord  Clarendon  in 
1667,  he  became  a  sort  of  first  minister,  and  showed 

*  Bishop  Burnet's  "  Own  Time,"  i.  350.— C. 
f  See  his  hiter  adhonores  :  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  425,  433, 
iv.  121,  w. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  99 

himself  openly  for  toleration,  setting  up  for  a  patron 
of  liberty  of  conscience.*  And  the  See  of  Chester 
happening  soon  after  to  fall  vacant,  Dr.  Wilkins,  of 
whom  Bishop  Burnet  says,  that  he  was  "  the  wisest 
clergyman  he  ever  knew,"f  was  by  his  means  pro 
moted  to  that  See.  Though  he  that  in  that  case 
compassed  preferment  was  a  most  excellent  person, 
it  was  a  disadvantage  to  him  to  be  recommended 
by  so  bad  a  man.  Yet  he  endeavoured  to  do  all  the 
good  he  could. 

But  Buckingham  could  stick  close  to  nothing 
long ;  and  was  so  open,  that  he  disclosed  almost 
every  thing  he  knew.  He  was  sent  to  France  in 
1671,  to  finish  the  treaty  there,  after  the  death  of 
the  Duchess  of  Orleans.^  Bishop  Burnet  tells  us,$ 
"  he  had  a  great  liveliness  of  wit,  and  a  peculiar 
faculty  of  turning  all  things  into  ridicule,  but 
had  no  conduct.  He  could  never  fix  his  thoughts, 
nor  govern  his  estate,  though  then  the  greatest  in 
England.  He  at  length  ruined  both  body  and  mind, 
fortune  and  reputation  equally.  The  madness  of 
vice  appeared  in  his  person,  in  very  eminent  in 
stances,  since  at  last  he  became  contemptible,  and 
poor,  sickly,  and  sunk  in  his  parts,  as  well  as  in 
all  other  respects ;  so  that  his  conversation  was  as 
much  avoided,  as  ever  it  had  been  courted."  Being 
at  length  grown  as  weary  of  the  world  as  the  world 

*  See  his  "  Speech  167-5."     Works  (1752)  p.  164.— ED. 
t  "  Own  Time,"  i.  187.  253.— C. 

t  See  supra,  p.  67.— ED.         §  "  Own  Time,"  i.  100.— C. 
II  2 


100  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  of  him,  he  retired  to  his  castle  of  Helmeley,  in 
the  north  of  Yorkshire,  and  continued  there  a  year 
and  a  quarter,  leading  a  most  dissolute  life  in  all  re 
spects.  Being  engaged  in  hunting  near  Kirby  More- 
side,  he  was  taken  ill,  and  called  at  a  public  house 
in  that  neighbourhood,  where  he  expired  in  the  year 
1687,*  being  about  threescore  years  of  age.  A 
clergyman  being  sent  for  to  him,  as  his  end  drew 
near,  he  asked  him  what  religion  he  was  of?  The 
Duke  told  him  that  was  an  insignificant  question  ; 
for  that  he  had  been  a  shame  and  disgrace  to  all  re 
ligions,  but  if  he  could  do  him  any  good,  he  bid  him 
do  it  ;t  though  I  doubt  it  was  past  his  skill :  that 
should  have  been  minded  before  he  came  into 
extremity.:): 

Lord  Arlington  no  sooner  appeared  at  Court,  than 
he  opposed  Lord  Clarendon,  who  used  to  complain 
that  he  found  his  interest  decline  from  the  beginning 
of  his  advancement.  His  Majesty  gave  10,000/.  to 
bring  him  in,  Secretary  of  State,  in  the  room  of  Ni 
colas,  in  1663 ;  and  yet  Clarendon  himself  observes 
(in  his  humble  petition  and  address  to  the  Lords  in 
Parliament  when  he  went  into  banishment,  $)  that 
"  from  the  time  that  Mr.  Secretary  Nicolas  was  re- 

*  A  scene  which  Pope  has  described  in  those  well-known 
couplets  : — "  In  the  worst  inn's  worst  room,"  &c. — ED. 

f  Echard's  "  History  of  England,"  iii.  842. — C. 

J  On  the  Duke's  epistolary  intercourse  with  William  Penn, 
see  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  48,  n. — ED. 

§  "  State  Tracts,"  printed  in  1689,  pp.  377,  378.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  101 

moved  from  his  place,  there  were  great  alterations  at 
Court,    and   whosoever  knew  any  thing  either   of 
Court  or  Council,  knew  well  how  much  his  credit 
from  that  time   was  diminished."     He  was  a  con 
cealed  Papist,  but  "  all  cunning  and  artifice."*     Yet 
his  management  was  such,  that  he  entirely  lost  the 
Duke  of  York,  and  afterwards  the  King  too,  in  a 
great  measure.     From  the  Secretary's  office,  he  was 
advanced  to  be  Lord  Chamberlain.     He  went  over 
to  Holland  in  1674,  to   fix  a  good  understanding 
between  King  Charles  and  the   Prince  of  Orange ; 
but  he  missed  of  his  aim,  and  instead  of  prevailing 
with  the  Prince  to  follow  his  advice,  he,  by  his  as 
suming  airs,  so  entirely  lost  him,  that  all  his  endea 
vours  afterwards  could  never  recover  any  confidence 
in   him   towards    him.f     He    afterwards  withdrew 
from  business  by  degrees  ;  but  made  himself  as  easy 
as  he  could  to  the  King,  who  married  one  of  his  na 
tural  sons  to  his  daughter,  and    continued  kind  to 
him,  for  he  suffered  him  to  keep  his  Lord  Chamber 
lain's  place  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

Lord  Clifford  was  the  son  of  a  clergyman,  born  to 
a  small  fortune,  but  was  a  man  of  great  vivacity, 
and  made  "  a  great  figure  in  the  House  of  Com 
mons."^:  He  was  reconciled  to  the  Church  of  Rome 
before  the  Restoration,  and  became  afterwards  "a 
sort  of  an  enthusiast  for  Popery.  "$  He  outwitted 
Lord  Shaftesbury,  and  got  the  white  staff  from  him, 

*  Burnet's  "  Own  Time,"  p.  65.— C.         f  Ibid.  p.  378.— C. 
$  Ibid.  p.  225.— C.  §  Ibid.  p.  308.— C. 


102  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

by  being  the  first  that  made  the  proposal  of  shutting 
up  the  Exchequer,*  as  the  way  for  the  King  to  get 
money  to  carry  on  the  second  war  with  Holland. 
And  he  was  afterwards  outwitted  by  him,  by  being 
prevailed  with  strenuously  to  defend  the  King's  De 
claration  for  liberty,  when  he  dropped  it.  He  ap 
pears  to  have  been  as  deeply  engaged  as  any  of  the 
ministers  of  State,  in  the  secret  alliance  with  France, 
which  was  the  source  of  all  our  fears  and  troubles. 
He  left  the  Treasury  upon  the  passing  of  the  Test 
Act  in  1673?  and  so  abandoned  his  post,  to  own 
himself  a  Papist ;  and  he  declared  himself  such  at 
his  death.  He  was  succeeded  by  Sir  Thomas  Os- 
born,  who  was  soon  after  made  Earl  of  Danby. 
Lord  Clifford  retired  into  his  own  country  of  Devon, 
where  he  died  of  the  stone,  before  the  expiring  of 
1673.  He  went  off  the  stage  in  great  discontent. 

Lord  Lauderdale,  though  at  first  he  seemed  mighty 
religious  fi  and  was  a  warm  Presbyterian,  and  zealous 

*     See  supra,  p.  78. — ED. 

f  Among  Richard  Baxter's  MSS,  in  Dr.  Williams's  library, 
are  several  original  Letters  from  Lauderdale,  chiefly  on  the 
questions  between  Catholics  and  Protestants.  They  are  dated 
1658  and  1659,  from  Windsor  Castle,  whence  the  writer  was 
released,  just  before  the  Restoration ;  having  been^detaineu  a 
prisoner,  in  different  places,  ever  since  the  battle  of1  Worcester 
in  1651.  See  "  Monthly  Repos."  (1823)  xviii.  259-262,  813- 
319. 

That  "  Lord  Lauderdale  had  sometimes  "  seemed  mighty  re 
ligious,"  may  be  inferred  from  the  following  passage  to  Baxter  : 

"Windsor  Castle,  Dec.  14,  1658.     I  wish  I  knew  any  were 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  103 

for  the  covenant,  yet  after  his  being  engaged  in  pub 
lic  affairs,  he  grew  very  scandalous  in  his  life  and 
morals.  He  valued  himself  not  a  little  upon  find 
ing  out  that  which  he  called  the  true  way  to  make 
Scotland  serviceable  to  the  King's  designs  in  Eng 
land  ;  which  he  fancied  he  fixed  most  effectually, 
when  he,  in  the  Scottish  Parliament,  got  the  Act  for 
the  militia  passed  ;  according  to  which,  20,000  foot 
and  2000  horse,  sufficiently  armed,  and  furnished 
with  forty  days'  provision,  were  to  be  in  readiness 
upon  his  Majesty's  call,  to  march  to  any  part  of  his 
dominions  of  Scotland,  England,  or  Ireland,  for  sup 
pressing  any  foreign  invasion,  intestine  trouble  or 
insurrection,  or  for  any  other  service,  wherein  his 
Majesty's  honour,  authority,  or  greatness  might  be 
concerned.*  When  this  was  brought  to  bear,  he 
wrote  the  King  word  that  all  the  kingdom  was  now 
in  his  power,  and  here  was  an  army  ready  upon  call, 
adding  several  other  very  ill  insinuations. 

The  English  House  of  Commons  being  very  sen 
sible  of  the  pernicious  tendency  of  his  grand  design, 
was  much  against  him,  and  often  addressed  the  King 
to  remove  him  from  his  presence  and  councils  for 
ever.  They  began  with  him  in  l674«t  Three  se 
veral  addresses  were  presented  against  him  in  the 

fit  to  translate  your  books.  I  am  sure  they  would  take  hugely 
abroad ;  and  I  think  it  were  not  amiss  to  begin  with  the  '  Call  to 
the  Unconverted.' "  Ibid.  p.  315.— ED. 

*  Burnet's,  "  Own  Time,"  i.  265. 

t  Ibid.  p.  365.— C. 


104  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

sessions  of  16?  5,*  and  others  in  I678.t  The  truth 
of  it  is,  his  administration  was  full  of  violence,  inso 
lence,  and  tyranny.  Bishop  Burnet  says,  that  "  by 
the  fury  of  his  behaviour  he  heightened  the  severity 
of  his  ministry,  which  was  liker  the  cruelty  of  an 
inquisition,  than  the  legality  of  justice."  ^  He  was 
at  length  made  a  Duke,  and  carried  it  in  North 
Britain  more  like  a  sovereign  prince  than  a  subject. 
But  at  length  tfiis  great  man  sunk  both  in  body  and 
mind,  and  died  in  the  summer  of  1682.  "  His  heart," 
it  is  said,  "  seemed  quite  spent :  there  was  not  left 
above  the  bigness  of  a  walnut  of  firm  substance. 
The  rest  was  spongy,  liker  the  lungs  than  the 
heart.  "§ 

As  the  Cabal  declined  in  favour,  Sir  Thomas  Os- 
born  increased,  who  was  made  Earl  of  Danby.  He 
succeeded  the  Lord  Clifford  in  the  Treasury,  which 
was  the  ambition  of  Lord  Arlington,  who  had  an 
implacable  envy  and  hatred  against  Lord  Danby, 
which  no  offices  of  friends  could  ever  allay,  ||  And 
when  Duke  Lauderdale  ran  into  that  height  of  ex 
travagance  in  his  management  of  the  Government 
of  Scotland,  that  his  head  was  thought  to  be  turned, 
the  Lord  Danby  supported  him  to  the  heightening 
the  prejudices  that  he  himself  happened  to  lie  un- 
der.^f  Soon  after,  thinking  he  had  the  majority  of 

*  Ibid.  p.  382—  C.  f  Ibid.  p.  421.— C. 

J  Ibid.  p.  102.— C.  §  Ibid.  p.  523.— C. 

||  "  Life  of  King  William  HI."  i.  67.— C. 

1F  Ibid.  p.  420.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  105 

the  Parliament  at  his  beck,  he  got  the  King  to  send 
a  message  to  the  House  of  Commons,  desiring  an 
additional  revenue  of  300,000/.  per  annum  during 
life,  which  set  the  House  in  a  flame.  The  Court 
party  thought  such  a  gift  would  make  them  useless, 
and  leave  no  need  of  Parliaments.  So  the  motion, 
upon  one  single  debate,  wTas  rejected  without  a  divi 
sion,*  and  Danby  was  much  run  down.  He  became 
the  most  hated  minister  that  had  fever  been  about 
the  King  ;  yet  he  found  ways  and  means  to  recover 
afterwards.  He  run  the  gauntlet,  in  process  of  time 
through  two  Parliamentary  impeachments,  but  was 
generally  caressed  by  the  Court,  longer  than  any 
one  of  the  favourites  in  King  Charles's  reign. 

In  the  reign  of  King  James,  Lord  Danby  lived 
retiredly,  but  heartily  fell  in  with  the  Revolution, 
promoted  it  to  his  utmost,  and  was  afterwards  made 
Duke  of  Leeds.  Though  even  then  many  were 
much  inclined  to  call  him  to  account,  yet  he  ma 
naged  so  artfully  as  to  stand  his  ground  ;  and  at  last 
he  died  in  peace,  July  26,  1712,  in  the  81st  year  of 
his  age,  transmitting  his  titles  and  estates  to  his  de 
scendants  after  him,  which,  all  things  being  consi 
dered,  was  a  little  strange, 

As  to  myself,  in  1682,  I  lived  at  Mr.  Doolittle's,t 

*  "  Life  of  King  William  III."  i.  p.  421.— C. 

t  Whose  meeting-house  in  Monk  well-street  was  the  first 
opened  by  the  Nonconformists,  after  the  royal  indulgence.  The 
original  licence  for  "  a  certain  roome  adjoining  the  dwelling- 
house  of  Thomas  Doolittle,  in  Mugwell-street,"  used  to  hang 


106  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

who  dwelt  then  at  Islington,  and  had  a  considerable 
academy  in  his  house.  He  had  a  good  number  at 
that  time  with  him,  that  were  students  of  philosophy. 
Those  that  I  particularly  remember,  are  Mr.  Samuel 
Bury,  who  was  afterwards  very  useful  in  the  minis 
try  among  the  Dissenters  at  St.  Edmund's  Bury  in 
Suffolk,  and  in  the  City  of  Bristol ;  Mr.  Henry 
Chandler,*  who  died  several  years  ago  at  Bath  ;  Mr. 
Clifford,  who  afterwards  settled  at  East  Knoyle,  not 
far  from  Shaftesbury  ;  Mr.  Lamb,  who  died  young ; 
Mr.  Samuel  Clarke,  son  of  Mr.  Samuel  Clarke,  the 
Annotator,  who,  after  beginning  to  preach,  diverted 
to  secular  matters,  who  lived  also  to  have  a  son  that 
was  carried  off  by  death,  soon  after  his  entrance  upon 
ministerial  service,  in  which  he  appeared  likely  to  be 
very  useful ;  Mr.  Chantry,  who  has  for  many  years 
kept  up  a  small  meeting  of  Dissenters  at  Staines,  in 
Middlesex ;  Mr.  John  Mottershed,  who  had  a  con 
siderable  estate,  and  settled  with  a  Dissenting  con 
gregation  at  Ratcliffe,  whose  funeral  sermon  I  preach 
ed  and  published  many  years  after;  Mr.  Samuel 
Hall,  who  settled  afterwards  at  Tiverton,  in  the 
county  of  Devon,  where  he  died  in  1730,  leaving  a 
son  behind  him  in  the  ministry  among  the  Dissenters  ; 
and  Mr.  Benson,  who  has  been  many  years  a  Dis- 

up  in  the  vestry.  It  is  dated,  "  Whitehall,  2nd  April,  1672," 
&c.  and  signed  "  Arlington."  See  it  copied,  verbatim,  in  Priest 
ley's  Works,  x.  413,  n. — ED. 

*  Father  of  Dr.  Sam.  Chandler.     Biog.  Brit.  iii.  430.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  107 

senting  minister  in  Sandwich,  in  the  county  of  Kent, 
and  has  a  son  also  in  the  ministry*  at  Chertsey,  in 
Surrey. 

He  had  several  also  that  were  at  that  time  stu 
dents  of  divinity ;  as,  Mr.  James  Waters,  who  was 
afterwards  useful  in  the  ministry  at  Uxbridge,  whose 
funeral  sermon  was  preached  and  printed  by  Mr. 
Daniel  Mayo;  Mr.  Thomas  Emlyn,^  who  went 
afterwards  to  Dublin,  in  Ireland,  where  fixing  in  the 
Arian  scheme,  he  was  cast  off  by  that  society,  that 
was  under  the  care  of  Mr.  Joseph  Boyse,  with  whom 
he  was  fellow  labourer  $  Mr.  Samuel  Wells,  who 

*  Dr.  Benson,  well  known  for  his  learned  theological  writings, 
who  died  1762,  aged  62.  In  early  life,  he  received  from  Dr. 
Calamy,  "great  kindness  and  friendship."  Biog.  Brit.  ii.  201, 
206.— ED. 

f  Mr.  Sollom  Emlyn,  in  "  Memoirs  of  his  Father's  life"  (pp.  vi. 
vii*)  says,  "In  1682,  he  removed  to  Mr.  Doolittle's  academy. 
Here  he  was  near  the  public  scene,  and  had  the  opportunity  of 
perusing  variety  of  books,  and  of  conversing  with  learned  men 
of  all  sorts,  by  which,  and  the  strength  of  his  own  genius,  he 
made  much  greater  improvements  than  by  the  instructions  of 
his  tutor,  who,  though  a  very  worthy  and  diligent  divine,  yet 
was  not  eminent  for  compass  of  knowledge  or  depth  of  thought." 
—ED. 

%  Dr.  Calamy  should  not  have  passed',  unnoticed  and  uncen- 
sured,  the  cruel  prosecution  of  Mr.  Emlyn,  in  1703,  and  his  im 
prisonment  of  more  than  two  years ;  nor  the  illiberality  of  his 
"  fellow-labourer,"  of  which  the  learned  and  exemplary  Chris 
tian  confessor  thus  complains. 

"  While  I  was  under  prosecution,  expecting  my  trial  at  hand, 
Mr.  Boyse's  answer  to  my  book  was  published,  and  presented 


108  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  afterwards  chaplain  in  the  family  of  Squire 
Grove,  at  Fern,  in  Wiltshire  ;  and  Mr.  Shewel,  a 
grandson  of  old  Mr.  Case,*  who  was  afterwards  so 
discouraged,  as  to  turn  off  to  the  law. 

I  being  at  that  time  but  eleven  years  of  age,  ap 
plied  only  to  grammar  learning,  under  the  instruc 
tion  of  Mr.  Thomas  Doolittle  and  his  son,  Mr. 
Samuel  Doolittle,  who  died  some  years  since,  pastor 
of  a  congregation  of  Dissenters,  at  Reading,  in  Berk- 

to  the  Lord  Chief  Justice,  which  I  thought  very  unseasonable, 
from  a  long  esteemed  friend,  who  pleaded  the  people's  impatience 
of  delay.  But  the  worst  was,  that  his  preface  contained  very 
inflaming  expressions.  I  thought  there  was  no  need  of  tragical 
excitations  to  a  zeal  that  was  already  so  outrageous."  See  "A 
Narrative  of  the  proceedings  against  Mr.  Thomas  Emlyn." 
Works  (1746)  p.  25. 

Sir  Richard  Steele  sarcastically  refers  to  this  prosecution  in 
his  Dedication  to  the  Pope,  prefixed  to  his  "  Account  of  the  State 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion."  See  "  Memoirs  of  Emlyn, " 
p.  xxxvii. — ED. 

*  Who  died  1682,  aged  84,  "the  longest  liver  of  the  mem 
bers  of  the  Assembly  of  Divines,  that  continued  among  the  Dis 
senters."  Mr.  Case  "  was  one  of  the  ministers  deputed  to  wait 
upon  the  King  at  the  Hague,  in  1660,  to  congratulate  his  Re 
storation."  Account,  p.  13  ;  Cont.p.  16. 

"His  Majesty,"  says  Oldmixon,  "contrived  it  so,  that  the 
ministers  should  be  placed  in  a  chamber  as  by  accident,  which 
joined  to  a  closet  where  the  King  was  to  be-  at  prayers,  and  he 
thanked  God  for  his  being  a  covenanted  king. 

"  Those  who  were  imposed  upon,  wrote  home,  that '  the  King 
of  the  Covenant  was  coming;'  but  others  of  them  heard  such 
accounts  of  his  morals  and  principles,  that  they  began  to  raise 
fear  in  the  breasts  of  the  most  sanguine."  Stuarts  (1730)  p. 
468.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  109 

shire.  My  only  companion  was  Mr.  Ebenezer 
Chandler,  who  has  for  a  good  many  years  been 
pastor  of  a  congregation  in  the  town  of  Bedford. 
It  was  some  advantage  to  both  of  us,  to  have,  from 
day  to  day,  free  liberty  of  conversing  with  those 
who  in  age  and  knowledge  were  so  much  our  supe 
riors.  Mr.  Doolittle  was  forced  by  the  disturbance 
he  met  with,  to  break  up  house  at  Islington,  and 
remove  to  Battersea,  in  Surrey,  whither  I  did  not 
follow  him. 

July  21,  1683,  my  Lord  William  Russel  was  be 
headed,*  which  occasioned  a  general  consternation, 
and  no  man  of  worth  or  eminence  that  did  not  fall 
in  with  the  measures  of  the  Court,  could  from  that 
time  forward  have  any  reason  to  think  himself  safe 
and  secure.  The  utmost  that  was  alleged  against 
this  lord  at  his  trial  amounted  to  no  more  than  mis- 
prision  of  treason  ;  but  it  was  thought  he  was  the 
more  hardly  dealt  with  in  the  public  court,  on  the  ac 
count  of  the  Earl  of  Essex's  death  in  the  Tower,  on 
the  very  morning  of  the  day  in  which  he  took  his 
trial,^  which  was  by  the  King's  council  insinuated 
and  urged,  to  exasperate  his  jury  against  him. 

*  In  Lincoln's-inh-fields.  Mr.  Emlyn,  who  resided  there  as 
"  chaplain  to  the  Countess  of  Donegal,"  and  who  witnessed  the 
execution,  says,  "  There  were  very  few  spectators,  even  of  the 
guards  themselves,  whose  melancholy  and  dejected  countenances 

did  not  discover  great  concern  and  grief."  Memoirs,  p.  vii. 

ED. 

t  July  13,  at  the  Old  Bailey.— ED. 


110  LIFE    OF    CALAMI Y. 

Though  the  Earl's  murdering  himself  was  generally 
believed  at  that  time,  yet  M.  Rapin*  declares  that 
the  Earl  of  Essex,  his  son,  was  of  another  opinion ; 
and  that  he  heard  him  say  himself,  that  he  believed 
his  father  was  murdered ;  and  that  a  French  foot 
man,  who  then  served  his  father,  was  strongly  sus 
pected,  and  disappeared  immediately  after  the  fact.f 
Never  was  any  one  known  to  be  more  universally 
beloved  than  this  lord,  who,  as  he  was  a  person  of 
great  honour  and  integrity,  and  full  of  zeal  for  his 
country,  so  was  he  also  noted  for  his  general  benignity 
to  all  mankind.  It  is  observed,  however,  of  this 
great  man,t  (and  perhaps  not  without  reason,)  that 
though  his  zeal  for  the  religion  and  liberties  of  his 
country  was  certainly  very  great,  yet  he  had  no  very 
favourable  opinion  of  the  English  clergy  in  general, 
as  thinking  them  for  the  most  part  a  set  of  men  too 
much  bigoted  to  slavish  principles,  and  not  zealous 
enough  for  the  Protestant  religion,  or  the  common 

*  In  his  "  Hist,  of  England,"  B.  23— C. 

f  "  Je  sai  tres  certainement,  que  le  dernier  Comte  d'Essex 
son  fils  etoit  d'une  autre  opinion,  et  je  lui  ai  oui  dire  a  lui-meme, 
qu'il  croyoit  veritablement,  que  le  Comte  son  pere  avoit  etc  as- 
sassine,  et  il  soup£onnoit  beaucoup  un  valet-de-chambre  Fran- 
(?ois  qui  servoit  alors  le  defunt,  et  qui  disparut  apres  le  coup. 
Quoiqu'il  en  soit,  Topinion  generale  fut  et  est  encore,  que  ce 
malheureux  Seigneur  fut  sacrifie  a  la  vengeance  du  Roi  et  du 
Due."  Histoire,  ix.  545. — ED. 

J  By  the  writer  of  "  The  Life  of  Mr.  John  Kettlewell,"  pp. 
57,  58.- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  Ill 

interest  of  a  free  nation.  But,  in  the  mean  time,  it 
is  so  certain  that  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  of 
the  truth  of  it,  that  this  lord's  vigorous  and  resolute 
opposition  to  the  Court  in  the  business  of  the  Bill 
of  Exclusion,*  was  the  thing  that  so  much  enraged 
them  against  him,  that  no  offers  that  could  be  made, 
(though  as  Mr.  Echard  says,f  they  rose  to  no  less 
than  100,000/.,  which  must  be  owned  to  be  a  con 
siderable  sum,)  could  prevail  to  obtain  his  pardon. 

The  letter  of  Dr.  Tillotson  to  Lord  Russel  against 
all  resistance,  at  the  time  when  his  end  drew  near, 
(which  is  preserved  by  so  many  of  our  historians,)! 
I  take  for  a  flagrant  proof  that  the  greatest  and  best 
of  men  have  their  weaknesses.  I  have  heard  of  a 
worthy  gentleman  related  to  that  Doctor,  who  upon 
other  accounts  valued  him  highly,  that  could  not 
satisfy  himself  to  keep  up  a  correspondence  with 
him  in  the  time  of  his  advancement  afterwards,  on 
the  account  of  his  never  publicly  recanting  that 
letter,  which  he  apprehended  to  be  of  most  perni 
cious  consequence.  And  I  am  well  satisfied  it  has 
been  the  opinion  of  many,  that  a  public  attempt  to 

*  April  27,  1679,  Lord  Russel  had  carried  up  to  the  Lords, 
by  order  of  the  Commons,  their  vote  against  the  Duke  of  York's 
"  succeeding  to  the  crown."  Nov.  1680.  "  The  Commons 
having  passed  the  Exclusion  Bill,  it  was  carried  up  to  the  Lords, 
by  the  Lord  Russel."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  213,  218. — ED. 

f  "  Hist,  of  England,"  iii.  691. — C.  See  Rapin,  ix.  545.—- 
ED. 

|  See  Dr.  Birch's  "  Life  of  Tillotson,"  p.  102.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

prevent  any  further  mischief  by  such  a  letter,  was 
a  debt  due  to  the  world.* 

The  death  of  this  lord  in  such  a  manner,  was  a 
heavy  stroke  upon  the  noble  Bedford  family,  that 
has  been  so  remarkable  for  adhering  to  the  true 
civil  and  religious  interest  of  England,  from  the 
time  of  the  Reformation.  Though  the  loss  of  the 
eldest  branch  of  it,  in  a  way  and  manner  so  affect 
ing,  must  be  owned  a  very  dark  and  melancholy 
Providence,  yet  many  have  thought  this  lord's 
father's  matching  with  Lady  Ann,  daughter  of  the 
famous  Robert  Carr,  Earl  of  Somerset,  (which  Earl 
was  such  a  prodigy  of  wickedness  in  the  reign  of 
King  James  I.,)  when  he  might  have  had  his  choice 
of  any  lady  almost  in  the  kingdom,  might  some 
what  help  to  account  for  it.  But  when  this  noble 
sacrifice  was  once  dispatched,f  it  was  soon  followed 
with  that  of  Algernon  Sidney,  Esq.  (brother  of  the 
Earl  of  Leicester,)  and  other  valuable  persons,  who 
were  destroyed  by  packed  juries  and  strained  laws, 
against  which  there  was  no  fencing. 

On  the  very  day  of  Lord  Russet's  execution,  there 

*  See  a  remarkable  passage  concerning  this  matter  from  Dr. 
Tillotson's  own  mouth.  Echard's  App.  to  his  Third  Vol.  pp. 
19,  20.  And  the  letter  to  him  that  is  inserted  in  "  The  Life  of 
Mr.  John  Kettlewell,"  pps  233,  234,  deserves  remark. — C. 
On  Echard,  see  Birch,  p.  110. — ED. 

f  He  was  no  sooner  cut  off  than  the  Dissenters  were  brought 
under  a  general  odium,  being  more  bitterly  inveighed  against, 
and  more  terribly  harassed  than  ever ;  and  this  continued  for 
all  the  remainder  of  King  Charles's  life. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  113 

passed  a  wild  decree  in  the  University  of  Oxford,*' 
in  the  Convocation  there,  which  was  said  to  be 
"  against  certain  pernicious  books,  and  damnable 
doctrines,  destructive  to  the  sacred  persons  of 
princes,  their  state,  and  government,  and  of  all 
human  society."  But  Bishop  Burnet  observes,  that 
this  Decree  "  laid  together  a  set  of  such  high-flown 
maxims  as  must  establish  an  uncontrollable  tyranny ."f 
And  it  is  a  very  just  remark  that  is  made  upon  it 
by  the  compiler  of  "  The  Complete  History  of  Eng 
land,'^  that  "  there  was  this  justice  due  to  it  at  the 
Revolution,  that  it  should  then  have  been  openly 
adhered  to,  or  as  openly  retracted  and  condemned. 
Whereas  the  makers  and  chief  promoters  of  it  did 
evidently  contradict  it  in  their  avowed  principles, 
and  apparent  practice,  without  any  reversal  of  it,  or 
any  other  sign  of  confession,  but  only  a  tacit  con 
demnation  of  it,  by  privately  ordering  the  printed 
copies  of  it  to  be  taken  away  from  the  walls,  and 
other  public  places,  where  they  had  before  hung  in 
triumph."  And  I  must  own,  that  for  my  part,  I 
cannot  see  why  the  very  same  may  not  be  said 
(mutatis  mutandis)  as  to  the  before-mentioned  let 
ter  of  Dr.  Tillotson,  which  stands  upon  the  same 
bottom.  As  to  this  famous  Decree,  it  may  be  added, 
that  it  had  justice  done  it,  at  length,  by  its  being,  by 

*  See  the  account  of  this  decree  in  "  The  Life  of  Mr.  John 
Kettlewell,"  p.  69,  &c.— C.     "Abridg.  of  Baxter,"  p.  360.— ED. 
t  "  Own  Time,"  i.  699.— C.  J  Vol.  iii.  p.  421.— C. 

VOL.    I  I 


114  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  order   of  authority,  committed  to  the  flames,* 
when  Dr.  Sacheverel's  trial  was  over. 

In  this  year,  (1683)  Prince  George  of  Denmark, 
who  had  made  a  short  visit  in  England  in  1669, 
came  over  hither  again,  and  was  married  to  Lady 
Ann,  the  Duke  of  York's  second  daughter,  with 
King  Charles's  full  consent.  His  thus  matching  both 
his  nieces  to  Protestants,  against  the  advice  of  the 
Duke,  and  in  opposition  to  all  the  solicitations  made 
him  from  abroad,  to  marry  them  to  Popish  princes, 
were  by  many  esteemed  the  best  actions  of  his  reign. 

December. — There  was  a  very  hard  and  severe 
frost,  that  lasted  from  the  beginning  of  that  month 
to  the  5th  of  February  following.  During  this 
time  the  roads  in  all  parts  of  England  were  as  good 
and  firm  as  they  used  to  be  at  midsummer,  and 
the  river  of  Thames  was  so  frozen  over,  and  the  ice 
so  firm  and  strong,  that  there  were  several  hundreds 
of  booths  and  shops  upon  it.  Coaches  plied  as 
freely  from  the  Temple-stairs  to  Westminster,  as  if 
they  had  gone  upon  the  land.  There  were  also  con 
veniences  provided  for  several  diversions,  such  as 
bull-baiting,  fox-hunting,  billiards,  and  nine-pins,  &c. 
Even  an  ox  was  roasted  whole  on  the  river,  over 
against  Whitehall,  which  I  myself  saw  at  a  distance, 
but  had  no  inclination  to  attempt  to  come  near,  be 
cause  so  great  a  fire  was  kindled  for  that  purpose,  and 
that  so  melted  the  ice  all  round,  that  there  was  no 

*  "  By  the  hangman,"  March  25,  1710,  "  as  ordered  by  the 
House  of  Lords."     Chron.  Hist.  i.  367.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  115 

coming  at  it  without  being  pretty  deep  in  the  water, 
upon  which  account  I  was  apprehensive  of  danger. 
It  was  pretty  generally  feared,  that  when  the  thaw 
came,  much  mischief  would  be  done  ;  but  Provi 
dence  so  ordered  the  matter,  that  the  thaw  was 
very  sudden  and  safe ;  and  not  only  did  the  bridge 
escape  any  damage,  but  the  ice  disappeared  and 
sunk  at  once,  and  not  so  much  as  a  life  was  lost.  I 
have  seen  the  Thames  frozen  over  twice  since,  but 
never  so  remarkably  as  in  this  year.  The  frost  we 
had  in  1 709,  lasted  longer,  but  had  more  intervals 
of  thaws,  and  the  ice  was  not  so  firm  and  smooth  as 
in  1683  and  1684. 

About  this  time,  the  city  of  Vienna,  the  capital  of 
Austria,  and  place  of  the  Emperor's  usual  residence, 
was  besieged  by  the  Turks,  with  an  army  of  150,000 
men,  and  relieved  by  the  King  of  Poland  and  other 
princes.  Tangier,  in  Africa,*  which  had  been  so 
very  chargeable  to  us,  was  abandoned  ;  the  mole 
being  demolished,  the  haven  choked  up,  and  the 
people  brought  away,  to  the  augmentation  of  our 
military  force  at  home,  which  did  but  heighten  the 
common  uneasiness. 

On  February  6, 1684-5,  King  Charles  died;  some 
apprehended  that  the  Popish  Plot  was  executed 
upon  him,  and  that  he  perished  by  violent  means. 
They  said  he  was  carried  off  by  poisoned  chocolate,  t 
to  make  way  for  his  brother,  and  it  was  owned  in 

*  Ceded  by  Portugal,  in  1662,  as  part  of  the  Infanta's  por 
tion.— ED.  f  See  Fox,  p.  61. — ED. 

I  2 


116  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

one  of  the  inscriptions  at  Rome,  to  King  James, 
upon  occasion  of  the  reception  of  the  Earl  of  Castle- 
main  as  his  ambassador  there,  that,  "  Being  to 
succeed  him,  he  gave  wings  to  Charles ;  and  that 
he  might  make  choice  of  an  ambassador  worthy 
of  Heaven  and  himself,  he  sent  his  brother."*  But 
whether  or  no  it  was  in  a  natural  way  that  King 
Charles  came  by  his  death  ;  or  how  far,  and  by 
what  particular  means  it  might  be  hastened  is,  what 
I  conceive  it  to  be,  to  little  purpose  to  inquire  now. 
The  character  given  of  this  prince  by  the  Duke  of 
Buckingham  and  Bishop  Burnet  is  very  different, 
and  yet,  as  to  many  particulars,  there  is  a  great 
agreement. 

Never  did  I  see  so  universal  a  concern  as  was  vi 
sible  in  all  men's  countenances,  at  that  time.  I  was 
present  upon  the  spot,  at  the  proclaiming  King 
James  II.  at  the  upper  end  of  Wood-street,  in  Cheap- 
side,  (which  is  one  of  those  places  where  proclama 
tion  is  usually  made  upon  such  occasions,)  and  my 
heart  ached  within  me  at  the  acclamations  made 
upon  that  occasion,  which,  as  far  as  I  could  observe, 
were  very  general.  And  it  is  to  me  a  good  evidence, 
that  all  the  histories  that  fall  into  our  hands  are  to 
be  read  with  caution,  to  observe  that  Bishop  Bur- 
net  positively  affirms,  that  "  few  tears  were  shed  for 
the  former,  nor  were  there  any  shouts  of  joy  for  the 
present  King!"f  Whereas  I,  who  was  at  that  time 

*  Welwood's  "  Memoirs,"  p.  191.— C. 

t  "  Own  Time,"  i.  620 — C.     "  It  was  a  heavy  solemnity  :  a 
dead  silence  followed  it  through  the  streets."     Ibid. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  117 

actually  present,  can  bear  witness  to  the  contrary. 
The  Bishop,  indeed,  who  was  then  abroad,*  might 
easily  be  misinformed ;  but  methinks  he  should  not 
have  been  so  positive  in  a  matter  of  that  nature, 
when  he  was  at  a  distance. 

The  new  King  was  elevated,  and  some  of  his  sub 
jects  transported  ;  but  nothing  can  be  truer,  than 
that  there  were  great  numbers  of  them  that  had 
very  terrifying  apprehensions  as  to  what  was  to  be 
expected.  To  me,  I  must  own,  it  in  a  very  sensible 
manner  discovers  the  great  changeableness  of  this 
world,  that  King  James  should  at  this  time  so  quiet 
ly  succeed  his  brother,  without  any  thing  like  a  dis 
pute  or  contest,  when,  but  five  years  before,  a  ma 
jority  of  three  Houses  of  Commons  were  so  bent 
upon  excluding  him,  that  nothing  could  satisfy  them 
if  this  was  not  compassed. 

Upon  his  accession,  he  assured  the  Church  of  Eng 
land  of  his  favour,  and  declared  before  his  Council, 
that  though  he  was  himself  of  a  different  religion, 
yet  they  should  remain  in  the  unmolested  possession 
of  all  their  legal  rights  and  privileges.  Bishop 
Burnet  tells  us,  that  in  his  first  speech  to  his  privy 
counsellors,  which  was  afterwards  repeated  to  the 
Parliament,  "  he  promised  that  he  wrould  maintain 
the  liberty  and  property  of  the  subject ;  would  de 
fend  and  maintain  the  Church ;  and  would  preserve 
the  Government  in  Church  and  State,  as  it  was  esta- 

*  Where,  after  his  travels,  he  remained,  carrying  on  the  intri 
gues  which  ended  in  the  Revolution,  till  1G88,  when  he  returned 
to  England  as  Chaplain  to  the  Prince  of  Orange. — ED. 


118  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

blished  by  law."  And  he  adds,  "  This  gave  great 
content,  and  the  pulpits  of  England  were  full  of  it, 
and  of  thanksgivings  for  it.  It  was  magnified  as  a 
security  far  greater  than  any  that  laws  could  give. 
The  common  phrase  was,  6  we  have  now  the  word  of 
a  king,  and  a  word  never  yet  broken.'  "* 

In  confirmation  of  this,  I  shall  add  a  passage 
which  I  had  from  a  person  of  character  and  worth, 
that  was  an  ear- witness,  relating  to  Dr.  Sharp,  after 
wards  Archbishop  of  York,  who  is,  by  Bishop  Bur- 
net^  said  to  have  been  "one  of  the  most  popular 
preachers  of  the  age."  He,  at  the  time  when  King 
James  gave  the  assurance  forementioned,  preaching 
at  St.  Lawrence  Jewry,  so  far  forgot  himself  as  to 
use  an  expression  to  this  purpose — "  As  to  our  reli 
gion,  we  have  the  word  of  the  King,  which  (with 
reverence  be  it  spoken)  is  as  sacred  as  my  text.'' 
This  high  flight  was  much  noticed  even  then,  and 
often  remembered  afterwards.  The  Doctor,  without 
doubt,  reflected  upon  it  with  regret,  when,  on  preach 
ing  against  Popery,  in  his  own  parish  church  of  St. 
Giles,  he  was  the  first  of  the  clergy  that  fell  under 
the  King's  displeasure,  and  felt  the  pressure  of  his 
arbitrary  power.J  The  truth  is,  this  "  word  of  a 
King  said  never  to  be  broken,"  and  esteemed  so  sa 
cred,  proved  but  a  wretched  security,  and  did  but 
expose  those  most  inclined  to  rely  upon  it. 

Nor  was  King  James  more  true  to  his  engage- 

*  «  Own  Time,"  i.  620.— C.  t  Ibid.  p.  674.— C. 

I  See  Evelyn,  iii.  211,  215;  "  Ellis  Correspondence,"  i.  136, 
160,  164.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  119 

merits  about  other  things,  than  about  religion.  He 
promised  his  Council,  when  he  met  them  first,  that 
he  would  rule  according  to  law.  Yet,  within  two 
or  three  days,  he,  by  proclamation,  commanded  the 
payment  of  customs,  before  they  were  given  by  Par 
liament,  which  was  directly  contrary  to  law.  From 
that  time,  he  proceeded  in  the  same  way,  going  pub 
licly  to  mass  the  very  first  Lord's  day,*  thereby  openly 
declaring  himself  a  Papist,  though  some  had  been 
considerable  sufferers  for  offering  to  say  he  was.  He 
declared  his  brother  also  to  have  been  of  the  same 
religion,  and  published  to  the  world  the  papers  taken 
out  of  his  strong  box  ;f  and,  from  the  beginning 
of  his  administration,  showed  it  to  be  his  fixed 
design  to  entail  Popery  and  slavery  upon  the  nation. 
In  short,  he  in  a  little  time  made  so  bold  both  in 
church  and  state,  as  to  show  that  the  apprehen 
sions  of  those  that  were  for  excluding  him  from  the 
throne,  were  rather  prophetic  of  what  he  would  be 
and  do,  than  groundless  conjectures. 

*  "  In  the  little  Oratorie  at  the  Duke's  lodgings,  the  doors 
being  set  wide  open."  Evelyn,  iii.  139. — ED. 

t  See  "  A  True  Relation  of  the  late  King's  Death  ;"  also, 
"  Copies  of  two  papers  written  by  the  late  King  Charles  II.  of 
blessed  memory,  and  found  in  the  strong-box."  Phenix,  (1707.,) 
i.  566. 

In  April  1660,  had  been  published,  with  a  design  sufficiently 
obvious,  "  Certain  Letters  evidencing  King  Charles  II. 's  stead 
fastness  in  the  Protestant  religion,  sent  from  the  Princess  of 
Turenne,  and  the  Ministers  of  Charenton,  to  some  persons  of 
quality  in  London."  Ibid.  p.  554. — ED. 


120  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

I  this  year  (1685),  saw  Dr.  Gates  whipped  at  the 
cart's  tail  the  second  time,*  while  his  back,  miser 
ably  swelled  with  his  first  whipping,  looked  as  if  it 
had  been  flayed.  I  also  saw  Alderman  Cornish  ex 
ecuted,')"  and  was  much  affected  with  both.  Dr. 
Gates  was  a  man  of  invincible  courage  and  resolu 
tion,  and  endured  what  would  have  killed  a  great 
many  others.  He  occasioned  a  strange  turn  in  the 
nation,  after  a  general  lethargy  that  had  been  of 
some  years  continuance.  By  awakening  us  out  of 
sleep,  he  was  an  instrument  in  the  hand  of  God  for 
our  preservation  4  Yet,  after  all,  he  was  but  a  sorry 
foul-mouthed  wretch,  as  I  can  testify,  from  what  I 
once  heard  from  him  in  company. 

I  have  been  informed  at  Westminster,  that  Dr. 
Oates  was  a  frequent  auditor  of  my  predecessor  Mr. 
Alsop,  and  moved  for  leave  to  come  to  the  Lord's 
table  with  his  society,  but  that  an  honest  man  of  the 
congregation  upon  that  occasion  spoke  freely  against 
him,  as  one  so  irregular  in  his  life,  as  to  be  very 
unfit  for  church  communion.  The  Doctor  after 
wards  meeting  Mr.  Alsop,  told  him  that  man  had 

*  May  1685,  "from  Newgate  to  Tyburn."  Two  days  be 
fore,  "  from  Aldgate  to  Newgate."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  235.  "  Aug. 
13,  1687,  Oates  showed  in  the  pillory,  last  Wednesday  and 
Friday,  but  the  mob  was  not  at  all  uncivil  to  him."  See  "  Ellis 
Correspondence,"!.  340. — ED. 

t  October  23,  1685,  in  Cheapsicle.  See  supra,  p.  62. ~ 
ED. 

J  Yet  see  supra,  p,  82,  n.  * — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

sadly  abused  him,  and  upon  that  account  he  vehe 
mently  complained  as  one  that  was  injuriously  dealt 
with.  Mr.  Alsop  cried  out,  "  Prove  him  a  liar,  Doc 
tor,  prove  him  a  liar  !"  which  it  would  have  been 
well  for  him  if  he  could  have  done.  But  he  really 
bore  a  very  indifferent  character  at  Westminster; 
and  notwithstanding  all  the  service  he  had  done, 
there  were  so  many  things  concurring  to  lessen  his 
credit,  as  makes  it  very  hard  to  distinguish  between 
what  was  true  and  what  was  false  in  his  deposition. 
For  which  reason,  I  must  own  that  I  am  the  less 
surprised  that  the  Parliament,  after  the  Revolution, 
should  leave  him  under  a  brand,  and  incapacitate 
him  for  being  a  witness  for  the  future. 

As  to  Alderman  Cornish,  I  was  so  near  him  at  the 
time  of  his  execution  in  Cheapside,  between  King- 
street  and  Queen-street,  with  his  face  turned  towards 
Guildhall,  where  he  not  long  before  had  made  such 
a  figure,  (I  then  standing  upon  a  shop-board  at  the 
corner  of  King- street,)  that  I  heard  a  great  many 
passages  very  distinctly.  He  appeared  to  me  to  be 
in  a  constant  agony  from  the  very  time  of  his  com 
ing  to  the  gibbet.  He  was  not  very  long  at  his  de 
votions  before  he  was  turned  off,  but  was  rudely 
interrupted  by  the  Sheriff,  at  which  the  standers-by 
generally  exclaimed.  There  were,  indeed,  few  that 
attended,  but  what  discovered  some  way  or  other 
their  apprehensions,  that  he  had  very  hard  measure 
from  the  Government. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

This  year,  among  many  other  things,  was  me 
morable  for  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantz, 
in  the  kingdom  of  France,  which  was  an  heavy 
stroke  upon  the  reformed  interest,  and  much  affected 
it  all  over  Europe.  This  Edict  was  granted  by  King 
Henry  IV.*  (the  first  of  the  House  of  Bourbon  that 
possessed  the  throne)  to  the  Protestants  of  his  king 
dom  as  a  security  for  the  free  exercise  of  their  reli 
gion  ;  and  Louis  XIII.  his  son  and  successor,  and 
Louis  XIV.  his  grandson,  had  both  of  them  sworn 
to  maintain  it.  It  must  be  owned  they  did  so  in 
the  main,  though  not  without  divers  infringements, 
which  were  much  complained  of. 

It  was  reckoned  but  prudent  for  us  in  England 
to  keep  up  a  good  and  close  correspondence  with  the 
French  Protestants  that  were  supported  by  this 
Edict,  and  we  did  so,  from  one  reign  to  another, 
and  this  was  found  to  be  attended  with  many  ad 
vantages,  and  was  therefore  recommended  by  our 
wisest  statesmen.  My  Lord  Clarendon  is  pretty 
singular,  in  saying  that  our  crown  "  kept  too  much 
correspondence"  with  them  ;f  and  has  by  many 
been  thought  to  have  been  most  wofully  out  in  his 
politics,  when  he  so  freely  owns,J  that  he  himself 
used  his  interest  in  his  master,  Charles  II.  to  keep 

*  In  1598.  See  "  Recueil  des  Edits,"  (1659,)  pp.  1.— 52. 
Renault,  ii.  607  ;  Voltaire's  Siecle,  &c.  iii.  123.— ED. 

t  "  Hist,  of  the  Rebellion."  ii.  95. — C.  Lord  Clarendon  has, 
however,  interposed  a  qualifying  "  it  may  be." — ED. 

J  Ibid,  iii.  444.—C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  123 

him,  when  he  was  at  Paris,  from  owning  them,  by 
going  to  their  church  at  Charenton,*  to  which  he 
was  so  much  pressed.^ 

It  at  length  became  evident  enough  that  the 
French  Court  was  bent  upon  overthrowing  this  Edict, 
though,  for  many  years  before  they  proceeded  to  a 
final  repeal  of  it,  they  made  use  of  a  variety  of  ar 
tifices  to  destroy  the  poor  people  that  were  support 
ed  by  it,  whose  only  crime  was  their  having  different 
religious  notions  and  practices  from  the  Church  of 
Rome,  that  had  the  ascendant  in  that  kingdom.  They 
proceeded,  at  last,  to  make  use  of  dragoons,  exile, 
dungeons,  fire  and  sword,  and  a  thousand  unheard- 
of  cruelties,  to  force  them  to  embrace  a  worship 
which  they  looked  upon  not  only  as  superstitious 
but  idolatrous ;  and  after  all  had  the  front  to  de 
clare  in  all  quarters,  that  no  other  methods  but 
those  of  gentleness  and  love  had  been  made  use  of 
towards  the  Reformed,^  and  that  those  conversions 

*  Yet  see  supra,  p.  119,  note. — ED. 

t  Particularly  by  "  the  Lord  Jermyn,"  supposed  to  have  been 
married  to  the  Queen  Dowager. — ED. 

%  See  Mons.  Claudes  "  Short  Account  of  the  Complaints  and 
cruel  Persecutions  of  the  Protestants  in  the  Kingdom  of  France," 
printed  in  12rno.  1707.— C. 

"  This  Book  was  first  published  in  French,  in  1686,  and  then 
translated  into  English.  A  copy  whereof  a  merchant  of  London 
sent  to  one  of  his  brothers  in  France ;  and  some  time  after,  ac 
quainted  him  that,  upon  the  instances  of  the  French  ambassador 
at  this  Court,  the  same  had  been  ordered  to  be  burnt,  and  the 
translator  and  printer  almost  ruined  by  imprisonments  ami 
fines."  Pref.  1707.  See  Evelyn,  (May  5,  1686,)  iii.  208.— ED- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

that  were  extorted  were  all  of  them  free  and  volun 
tary. 

An  almost  infinite  variety  of  writings  were  pub 
lished,  the  continued  burden  of  which  were,  the  im 
mortal  glory  that  Louis  the  Great  had  gained  by 
rooting   out   heresy,    and    making  France   entirely 
Catholic.     But  the  base  practices  of  buying  a  great 
number  of  the  new  converts  with  pensions,  and  of 
driving  others  away  with  perpetual  ill  usage,  and 
the  acts  of  the  highest  injustice  and  violence,  toge 
ther  with  the  vile  artifices  made  use  of  in  bringing 
on  and  carrying  so  many  of  the  processes  against 
their   churches,   as    not    comprehended   within   the 
edict,   of  which   we   have  many  evidences,  were   a 
flagrant  reproach  both  to  the  greatness  of  their  King 
and  to  the  justice  of  their  courts.     In  reality,  nothing 
could  be  more  ridiculous  than  to  have  edicts  almost 
every  day  coming  out  against  the  Protestants,  con 
tradicting  the  Edict  of  Nantz    in    the   most   plain 
and  express  words  that  could  possibly  be  used,  and 
yet  to  have  this  strange  clause  added  to  them  all, 
that  "  the  King  did  not  intend  by  them  to  recall, 
nor  to  go  against  any  article  of  that  edict,  which 
he  would  maintain  inviolable."* 

*  Henault  mentions,  "  Edit  du  21  Janvier,  1669,  qui  supprime 
les  Chambres  del'Edit;  etablies  par  1'Edit  de  Nantes,  en  faveur 
des  Protestans."  Ahrege  Chron.  (1780,)  iii.  786. 

While  the  French  Court  was  thus  displaying  "  the  voice  of 
Jacob"  and  "  the  hands  of  Esau,"  there  was  published  at  Paris> 
in  1671,  "  Les  Delices  de  la  France."  The  31st  chapter  is  enti 
tled,  "  La  France  est  un  pais  de  libertc  pour  toutes  sortes  des 
personnes." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  125 

But  Bishop  Burnet,  who  was  actually  at  Paris  at 
the  time  when  the  Edict  was  recalled,*  tells  us  that, 
"as  far  as  he  could  judge,  the  affairs  of  England 
gave  the  last  stroke  to  that  matter."f  And  a  letter 
has  been  preserved,  that  was  written  by  a  great  fo 
reign  minister  to  an  ambassador  in  England,  in 
which  there  are  these  remarkable  words ,  "  There 
is  a  great  matter  in  dependence,  with  relation  to  the 
Edict  of  Nantz,  which  must  not  be  declared  till 
that  King's  inclinations  be  fully  known.  And  yet 
there  is  nothing  in  the  world  the  King  desires  more 
eagerly  to  see  done  than  it,  if  once  it  might  be  done 
safely."; 

Bishop  Burnet,  in  the  place  I  but  now  cited, 
observes  that  this  year,  1685,  was  memorable 
"as  the  most  fatal  to  the  Protestant  religion.  In 
February,  a  King  of  England  declared  himself  a 
Papist.  In  June,  Charles,  the  Elector  Palatine, 
dying  without  issue,  the  Electoral  dignity  went  to 
the  House  of  Newburgh,  a  most  bigoted  Popish 
family.  In  October,  the  King  of  France  recalled 
and  vacated  the  Edict  of  Nantz ;  and  in  December, 

*  October  22,  1685.  Henault,  iii.  839.  See  Evelyn,  iii.  191. 
On  the  31st,  died  the  old  Chancellor  Tellier,  who  had  officially 
executed  the  Edict  of  Revocation. 

"  En  signant  1'Edit,"  says  Voltaire,  "  s'ecria,  plein  de  joie  : 
nunc  dimittis  servum  tuum>  Domine,  quiet  viderunt  oculi  mei  salu-    • 
tare  tuum.    II  ne  savait  pas  qu'il  signait  un  des  grands  malheurs 
de  la  France."     Siecle,  &c.  iii.  139. — ED. 

t  "  Own  Time,"  i.  655.— C. 

J  See  Dr.  Wellwood's  "  Memoirs,"  pp.  164,  372.— C. 


126  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  Duke  of  Savoy  being  brought  to  it,  not  only  by 
the  persuasion,  but  even  by  the  threatenings  of  the 
Court  of  France,  recalled  the  Edict  that  his  father 
had  granted  to  the  Vaudois."* 

In  May  this  year  my  father  died,  not  long  after 
a  wonderful  recovery  of  mine  from  a  very  threaten 
ing  fever,  with  which  he  was  much  affected.  My 
mother  was  left  a  sorrowful  widow,  but  God  took 
care  of  her  and  hers.  My  father  had  been  for  some 
years  declining  in  a  consumptive  way,  and  though 
he  had  the  advice  of  divers  physicians,  as  Dr.  Samp 
son,  Dr.  Morton,  Dr.  Needham,  and  Dr.  Short,  yet 
he  received  but  little  benefit  from  their  prescriptions. 
He  died  suddenly  in  the  night,  at  Totteridge,  near 
Barnet,  at  the  house  of  Edward  Haynes,  Esq. 
F.R.S.  who  was  a  member  of  his  congregation,  he 
making  a  visit  there  for  the  benefit  of  the  air.  His 
corpse  was  brought  to  London,  and  buried  in  Alder- 
manbury  Church,  near  his  father,  just  under  the 
pulpit,  where  several  others  of  our  family  have  been 
buried  since. 

Upon  my  father's  decease,  with  my  uncle  the 
doctor's  advice,  I  removed  to  Merchant-Taylors' 
School,  in  order  to  my  farther  improvement ;  Mr. 
Hartcliff  being  Master,  and  by  him  I  was  not  a 
little  favoured.  He  at  first  placed  me  in  the  upper 
rank  of  the  fifth  form  ;  and  after  a  little  while,  I 
was  removed,  with  others,  into  the  sixth,  or  upper 
form.  I  here  had  several  for  my  companions  who 
*  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  354,  355  «.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

have  since  made  a  figure  in  the  world.  Dr.  Boulter, 
Archbishop  of  Armagh,  was  below  me  in  the  fifth 
form  ;  and  in  the  sixth  form,  there  was  Mr.  Tor- 
riano,  chaplain  to  the  Duke  of  Manchester,  who 
died  some  years  ago,  Mr.  Blechingdon,  Mr.  Zinzan, 
Mr.  Bisse,  and  Mr.  Lardner,  that  were  all  after 
wards,  I  think,  of  St.  John's  College,  in  Oxon,  to 
which  there  is  an  yearly  election  from  that  school. 
There  was  also  Mr.  Dawes,  then  a  younger  brother, 
who  became  afterwards  Sir  William  Dawes,  Bishop  of 
Chester  and  Archbishop  of  York.  He  was  two  or 
three  lads  above  me  ;  but  he  and  I  were  pretty 
great,  and  I  frequently  visited  him  at  Dr.  Kidder's, 
where  he  lodged. 

At  an  annual  election  here,  when  some  of  the 
upper  scholars  used  to  be  chosen  for  Oxford,*  ac 
cording  to  the  number  of  vacancies  there  were  to 
be  filled  up  there,  Mr.  Joseph  Kentish,  afterwards 
my  particular  friend,  met  with  a  considerable  hard 
ship.  He  was  captain  of  the  school,  and  in  com 
pliance  with  his  father,  stood  at  this  time  as  one 
desirous  of  going  to  the  University,  for  which  he 
was  generally  reckoned  as  fit  as  any  one  in  the 
school.  All  in  the  upper  form  were  then  examined 
by  Bishop  Mew,  of  Winchester,  the  President  of 
St.  John's,  Dr.  Kidder,  and  other  divines,  who  gave 
their  presence  upon  the  occasion.  The  upper  scho- 

*  Where  "  Sir  Thomas  White,  Lord  Mayor,  1553,  founded  St. 
John's  College,  and  appointed  this  school  as  a  seminary  for 
it."  See  "  View  of  London,"  (1708,)  ii.  701.— ED. 


128  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

lars  were  examined  with  a  peculiar  strictness,  and 
none  more  critically  than  this  Mr.  Kentish,  who 
gave  great  satisfaction.  But  the  examiners  being 
informed  that  his  father  was  a  Dissenting  minister, 
after  they  had  gone  over  several  parts  of  learning, 
according  to  custom,  thought  fit  to  ask  him  some 
questions  about  conformity  to  the  Church.  Among 
other  things,  they  inquired  whether  he  had  ever 
received  the  Sacrament  according  to  the  Church  of 
England  ?  He  returning  a  negative  answer,  they 
seemed  surprised,  and  blamed  the  master  for  not 
obliging  the  upper  lads  that  intended  to  stand  at  the 
election  for  the  University,  to  receive  the  Sacrament 
before  they  did  so ;  desiring  that  this  might  be  care 
fully  minded  for  the  future.  They  asked  Mr.  Kent 
ish  whether  he  was  free  to  receive  the  Sacrament  in 
the  Established  Church  ?  telling  him  that,  without 
that,  nay,  without  yielding  to  an  entire  conformity, 
he  had  better  not  think  of  the  University,  which 
would  be  a  giving  himself  and  others  much  needless 
trouble.*  He  modestly  made  answer,  that  he  had 

*  This  was  very  friendly  advice,  and  it  is  surprising  that  Dr. 
Calamy,  who  had,  by  favour,  studied  at  Oxford,  though  not  a 
member  of  the  University,  should  have  supposed  such  a  non 
conformist  as  Mr.  Kentish,  had  been  capable  of  admission. 

Then,  as  at  present,  the  student,  if  aged  16,  could  matricu 
late,  only  by  a  subscription  to  the  39  Articles,  (not  required 
from  under-graduates  at  Cambridge,)  and  taking  the  oaths  of 
supremacy  ;  and  of  obedience  to  the  statutes  of  the  University. 

If  above  the  age  of  12,  and  under  16,  he  matriculates  by  merely 
subscribing  the  39  Articles ;  being  excused  from  taking  the 
oaths,  till  the  completion  of  his  16th  year.  See  "  Excerpta  e 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  129 

not,  as  yet,  received  the  Sacrament  any  where ;  not 
being  satisfied  as  to  his  being  fit  or  qualified  for  so 
solemn  an  ordinance :  and5  he  added,  that  as  to  con 
formity  in  all  things  to  the  Church  of  England,  it 
was  a  thing  of  weight,  and  that  he  could  not  but 
think  it  would  be  a  great  weakness  in  him  to  pre 
tend  to  determine  or  promise  it,  without  mature  and 
close  consideration. 

One  of  the  members  of  the  Company  of  Mer 
chant-Taylors,  a  warm  man,  then  present,  cried  out, 
that  he  should  not  wonder  to  hear,  that  one  that 
canted  at  that  rate  at  eighteen,  should  be  ready  to 
rebel  by  that  time  he  was  thirty.  Conferring  among 
themselves,  though  the  examiners  could  not  but 
applaud  his  learning,  they  yet  agreed  to  set  him  by, 
and  take  another  in  his  room.  It  was  wondered  at  by 
many,  that  Mr.  Kentish's  father,  who  was  reckoned 
a  prudent  man,  should  be  for  his  standing.  But  the 
true  reason  of  it  was,  the  apprehension  he  had,  that 
should  there  come  a  turn  of  the  times,  there  would 
have  been  room  for  a  claim  of  a  standing  in  the  Col 
lege  and  University,  as  from  that  time,  upon  proof 
given  that  the  repulse  he  met  with  was  in  such  a 
way,  and  upon  such  an  account.  It  would  have 
baulked  some  young  scholars  to  have  met  with  such 
treatment :  but  I  could  not  perceive  he  was  at  all 
discouraged  at  it. 

corpore  Statutorum.  Oxon.  (1771)  pp.  4,  5;  "Old  Whig," 
(1739)  i.  391-401;  Terras  Films,  No.  xxxi.  (1754)  p.  167. — 
ED. 

VOL.  I.  K 


130  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

I  should  be  very  ungrateful,  should  I  not  readily 
own  my  master  Hartcliff's  kindness,  and  the  coun 
tenance  he  gave  me  while  I  was  under  his  care. 
Often  would  he  carry  me  into  his  study,  and  talk 
with  me  alone,  about  the  improvement  of  my  leisure 
time.     He  lent  me  Greek  authors,  which  I  found 
great  pleasure  in  reading ;  often  wondering  at  St. 
Augustine's  acknowledgment,  that  "  in  the  begin 
ning  of  his  studies,  he  hated  Greek  learning."*    My 
master  also  furnished  me  with  other  books,  putting 
me  upon  making  references  and  remarks,  in  a  sort 
of  common-place  book  ;  inquired  how  I  went  on,  and 
gave  me  particular  directions  and  advice  as  he  saw 
occasion.     When  I  was  leaving  him,  he  offered  me 
any  service  he  could  do  me  at  the  University,  if  I 
looked  that  way  ;  and  when  he  was  afterwards  made 
one    of   the  Canons  of  Windsor,  and  heard  I  was 
come  abroad  into  the  world,  he  would  often  speak 
of  me  with  respect,  upon  occasion,  and  when  I  came 
in  his  way,  ever  treated  me  with  the  utmost  civility. 

When  I  left  that  school,  it  was  with  a  design  of 
entering  upon  academical  learning,  as  soon  as  a 
convenient  opportunity  offered.  But  I  first  spent  a 
few  months  with  Mr.  Walton,  at  Bethnal  Green, 
(who  was  an  ejected  Essexf  minister,)  with  whom  I 
had  been  for  a  little  while,  some  years  before,  when 
upon  his  breaking  up  school  I  was  forced  to  remove 
with  the  rest.  He  now  had  but  a  very  few  board  - 

*  Confess.  1.  i.  c.  13.— C. 

f  Westham.     Account,  p,  302. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  131 

ing  with  him.  I  and  another  young  gentleman 
about  my  age  and  pitch,  followed  our  studies  by 
ourselves,  had  free  access  to  the  old  gentleman's 
library,  and  were  admitted  to  familiar  conversation 
with  him,  who  spent  some  time  with  us  every  morn 
ing  and  afternoon,  in  reading  Thucydides  and  Taci 
tus,  on  both  which  he  would  make  pleasant  remarks 
as  we  went  along,  This  I  found  both  agreeable  and 
profitable. 

During  the  time  of  my  short  continuance  here, 
Mr.  Charles  Morton,  who  had  been  eminent  for 
training  up  young  gentlemen  in  an  academical  way, 
at  Newington  Green,  made  a  visit  to  a  friend  in 
that  neighbourhood,  to  take  his  leave,  before  his 
going  into  America.  Hearing  of  my  being  at  Mr. 
Walton's,  he  sent  for  me,  and  told  me  he  was  going 
to  New  England,*  and  should  take  some  young 
ones  with  him ;  offering  that  if  I  was  willing  to  it, 
I  should  be  one,  and  promising  me  he  would  be  as 
kind  to  me  as  if  I  was  his  own  child.  I  was 
presently  inclined  to  it,  and  undertook  to  acquaint 
my  friends  with  the  proposal.  When  my  mother 
heard  it,  she  presently  told  me,  she  would  not  part 
with  me  so  far  upon  any  terms,  but  I  must  be  con- 

*  He  "  was  chosen  pastor  of  a  church  at  Charlestown,  over 
against  Boston,  where  he  died,  being  nearly  fourscore."  Ac 
count,  p.  145.  For  his  "  Vindication  of  himself  for  teaching 
University  Learning,"  and  his  "  Advice  to  Candidates  for  the 
Ministry,"  See  Continuation,  pp.  177-210  ;  Dr.  Toulmin's 
"  Historical  View,"  (1814)  pp.  232-235.  570-574.—ED. 

K    2 


132  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

tent  with  such  instruction  as  was  necessary  in  my 
case,  who  all  along  designed  for  divinity,  somewhere 
nearer  home.  Hereupon  I  laid  aside  all  thoughts  of 
such  a  long  voyage. 

Soon  after  this,  I  heard  of  Mr.  Samuel  Cradock, 
who  kept  a  private  academy  in  the  county  of  Suf 
folk,  and  had  a  number  of  young  gentlemen  under 
his  tuition,  in  a  house  of  his  own,  at  Wickham- 
brook,  that  lies  between  the  towns  of  Newmarket, 
Clare,  and  Bury.  He  being  in  town,  my  mother 
and  I  made  him  a  visit,  and  upon  discourse,  agreed 
upon  terms  with  him,  and  I  went  down  after  him 
into  the  country,  and  continued  with  him  two  years. 


CHAPTER  II. 
1686—1691. 

Of  my  Academical  Education  under  Mr.  Cradock,  in  Suffolk ; 
my  crossing  the  Sea  afterwards  into  Holland ;  course  of  Life 
and  Remarks  there ;  and  return  from  thence  back  again  into 
England.  Together  with  some  touches  relating  to  the  Reign  of 
King  James  II. ;  and  the  Revolution  under  King  William, 
and  its  consequences. 

WHILE  I  continued  under  this  good  man's  roof,  I 
went  through  logic,  natural  and  moral  philosophy, 
and  metaphysics.  He  read  upon  systems  that  were 
of  his  own  extracting  out  of  a  variety  of  writers, 
and  all  the  young  gentlemen  with  him  were  obliged 
to  copy  them  out  for  their  own  use,  which  they  used 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  133 

to  think  a  great  drudgery.  But  I  have  sometimes 
thought  that  the  benefit  which  this  had  attending  it, 
was  beyond  the  inconvenience  and  damage. 

This  Mr.  Samuel  Cradock  had  been  Fellow  of 
Emanuel  College,  in  Cambridge,  was  a  noted  tutor 
there,  and  had  many  pupils.  He  was  afterwards 
ejected  from  a  considerable  living  in  the  county  of 
Somerset,  and  having  an  estate  left  him  by  a  relation 
in  Suffolk,  he  there  set  up  a  private  academy.  Being 
upon  that  account  reflected  on,  and  represented  by 
some  as  breaking  an  oath  he  had  taken  at  the 
University,  he  drew  up  a  paper  in  his  own  de 
fence,  which  I  have  since  published,  that  it  might 
not  be  lost  to  posterity.* 

He,  in  this  way,  had  bred  up  some  few  divines 
before  I  was  with  him,  as  Mr.  Robert  Billio,  who 
immediately  succeeded  Dr.  Bates  at  Hackney,  and 
Mr.  Porter,  who  was  a  minister  among  the  Dis 
senters  at  Nayland,  in  Suffolk,  where  he  was  useful 
to  many.  He  had  also  bred  up  several  gentlemen, 
as  Sir  Francis  Bickley,  of  Attleborough,  in  the 
county  of  Norfolk,  Baronet ;  Mr.  Pagit ;  Warner, 
of  Bansfield,  in  Suffolk,  Esq. ;  Roger  Rant,  of  Swaff- 
ham,  in  Cambridgeshire,  Esq.  At  the  time  when  I 
was  in  his  house,  there  was  Charles  Lord  Fitz- 
walter,  of  Moulsham-hall,  near  Chelmsford,  in  Essex  ; 
Mr.  Henry  Martin  ;  Mr.  Corbet,  of  Shropshire,  who 
afterwards  died  Student  at  Law  in  London  ;  Henry 

*  See  my  "  Continuation  of  the  Account  of  the  Ministers,  &c. 
ejected  and  silenced  after  the  Restoration,  in  1660,  at  or  before 
the  Act  for  Uniformity,"  ii.  731 — 735.— C. 


134  LIFE    OF    CALAM\r. 

Ashurst,  Esq.  son  of  Sir  William  Ashurst,  who  was 
afterwards  town  clerk  of  London ;  Mr.  John  God 
frey  ;  Mr.  George  Mayo,  only  son  of  Israel  Mayo,  of 
Beyford,  in  the  county  of  Hertford,  Esq.  ;  Mr. 
(afterwards  Captain)  Rolt ;  William  Ellys,  Esq. 
eldest  son  of  Sir  William  Ellys,  of  Nocton,  in  Lin 
colnshire,  who  afterwards  died  in  Holland,  and  seve 
ral  others  of  good  families. 

Another  of  my  fellow  students  there  was  Mr. 
Timothy  Goodwin,  who  then  designed  for  physic, 
but  afterwards  ch anged  his  mind.  He  was  a  good 
Grecian,  and  we  two  (who  were  pretty  intimate) 
often  spent  our  winter  evenings  together,  in  reading 
over  some  or  other  Greek  author.  I  kept  up  my  ac 
quaintance  with  him  after  his  coming  to  London, 
when  he  lodged  in  the  house  of  old  Dr.  Hulse,  of 
Aldermanbury,  in  order  to  his  improvement  in  that 
for  which  he  at  that  time  designed ;  but  turning  his 
thoughts  afterwards  to  divinity,  he  entered  into 
orders  in  the  Church  of  England,  travelled  abroad 
with  Lord  Shrewsbury,  was  his  chaplain  when  he 
went  as  Lord  Lieutenant  into  Ireland,  and  got  the 
Bishopric  of  Kilmore  and  Ardagh,  (which  was  for 
merly  Bishop  Bedell's,)  and  was  from  thence  trans 
lated  to  the  Archbishopric  of  Cashel,  in  which  he 
died,  in  December,  1729. 

There  were  several,  also,  who  were  at  the  same 
time  with  me  at  Mr.  Cradock's,  who  were  fully  fixed 
for  divinity  :  as  Mr.  Joseph  Kentish,  (the  son  of  Mr. 
Thomas  Kentish,)  my  old  schoolfellow  at  Merchant 
Taylors' ;  Mr.  Thomas  Bantoft  (nephew  to  Mr. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  135 

Bantoft,  an  ejected  Essex  minister,)  that  afterwards 
died  distracted ;  and  Mr.  John  Keeling,  afterwards 
dissenting  minister  at  New  Sarum,  in  Wilts,  and  at 
Cirencester,  in  Gloucestershire,  in  which  last  place 
he  died,  An.  1726. 

Mr.  Cradock  treated  us  in  a  gentlemanlike  man 
ner.  He  lived  upon  his  own  estate,  kept  a  good 
house,  and  was  much  respected  by  the  gentlemen 
all  round  the  country,  preached  in  his  own  dwelling, 
twice  every  Lord's-day,  and  such  of  his  neighbours 
as  were  inclined  to  it  were  his  auditors,  and  his 
ministry  was  of  use,  though  he  had  nothing  for  his 
pains.  He  had  a  good  correspondence  with  old 
Mr.  Cowper,  the  minister  of  the  parish,  who  was  a 
worthy  man  and  a  good  preacher. 

It  was  when  I  lived  here,  and  was  sixteen  years 
of  age,  that  I  first  went  to  the  Lord's  table.  My 
tutor  put  me  upon  it,  and  discoursed  with  me  very 
seriously  on  the  occasion,  endeavouring  to  raise  in 
me  a  due  sense  of  the  great  importance  and  solem 
nity  of  the  duty,  and  the  benefits  that  would  attend 
the  right  discharge  of  it,  adding  suitable  advice 
about  the  properest  preparation  for  it ;  and  he  did 
the  same  by  several  others.  This  I  the  rather  men 
tion,  because,  in  the  "  Life  of  James  Bonel,  Esq." 
printed  in  1707,  I  find  it  taken  notice  of  (p.  9,)  that 
when  that  gentleman  was  in  his  younger  years  at  a 
private  academy,  at  Mr.  Thomas  Cole's,  in  Oxford 
shire,  "  it  was  his  unhappiness  that  there  was  no 
receiving  the  Sacrament  in  that  place."  I  am  sure 
it  was  otherwise  at  Mr.  Cradock's,  and  at  other 


136  LIFE    OF    CALAJMY. 

private  academies  that  I  have  known.  Mr.  Bonel 
adds,  that  where  he  was,  "  it  was  all  debauchery  ;" 
but  I  thank  God,  it  was  not  so  where  I  was.  We 
had  indeed  our  innocent  diversions,  and  used  to 
ride  and  visit  any  acquaintance  we  had,  at  Bury, 
Clare,  Sudbury,  Newmarket,  Cambridge,  and  other 
places  in  the  neighbourhood  ;  but  I  never  knew  of 
any  thing  like  debauchery  among  Mr.  Cradock's  do 
mestics  in  my  time.  And  whereas,  Mr.  Bonel  further 
adds,  that  he  "  could  not  with  comfort  reflect  upon 
the  time  spent  in  that  place,"  I,  on  the  contrary, 
must  freely  own,  that  I  can  look  back  upon  the 
time  I  spent  in  Mr.  Cradock's  private  academy  with 
comfort  and  pleasure,  blessing  God  for  the  benefit  I 
there  received.  As  it  was  no  small  encouragement 
to  me,  to  have  this  good  old  gentleman,  upon  his 
hearing  me  preach,  a  good  many  years  after,  come 
and  embrace  me  in  his  arms,  thanking  God  for  the 
hand  he  had  in  my  education  ;  so  I  think  I  should 
be  very  ungrateful  to  his  memory,  should  I  not  rea 
dily  thank  God  for  the  benefit  I  received  under  his 
tuition. 

While  I  continued  in  Suffolk,  rny  grandfather 
Gearing,  visiting  his  only  brother,  Mr.  Thomas  Gear 
ing,  Vice-provost  of  King's  College,  in  Cambridge, 
sent  to  me  to  come  thither  to  him  ;  and  this  was  the 
only  time  of  my  ever  seeing  that  my  great  uncle. 
He  was  then  well  advanced  in  years,  and  had  con 
tinued  in  the  College,  a  hard  student  from  his 
youth,  having  the  reputation  of  being  a  great  scho- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  137 

lar ;  but  such  had  been  his  application  to  learning, 
and  the  affairs  of  his  college,  that  he  never  affected 
a  settlement  in  business  ;  and  most  that  knew  him 
reckoned  his  but  an  odd  way  of  living.  He  was, 
as  it  were,  immured  in  a  cell,  and  out  of  the  world, 
while  he  was  in  it ;  or  rather,  he  never  was  in  it,  for 
want  of  free  conversation.  It  was  but  very  rarely 
that  he  visited  my  grandfather,  or  much  cared  to  be 
visited  by  him  ;  and  but  a  little  time  could  be  allow 
ed  for  either.  When  I  at  this  time  waited  on  him, 
as  summoned  by  my  grandfather,  he  was  very  civil, 
asked  me  many  questions,  and  spoke  respectfully  of 
my  tutor,  Cradock,  but  never  once  pressed  for  my 
living  at  Cambridge,  where  he  owned  the  youth 
were  grown  more  corrupt  than  ever.  By  his  private 
way  of  living  he  hoarded  up  abundance  of  money, 
which  at  length  (except  an  handsome  legacy  to  the 
college)  fell  to  my  grandfather  ;  and  it  would  have 
amounted  to  a  much  greater  sum,  had  he  not  been 
abused  by  such  as  borrowed  and  never  paid,  and  by 
bad  mortgages.  He  left  most  of  his  books  to  the 
college  ;  but  several  of  his  manuscripts,  and  particu 
larly  his  chapel  and  college  exercises,  fell  into  my 
hands,  and  they  show  him  to  have  been  a  very  consi 
derable  man. 

King  James,  who  for  a  good  while  carried  his 
point  to  his  heart's  desire,  easily  enough  got  through 
the  two  rebellions  in  Scotland  and  England,  that 
were  headed  by  Argyle  and  Monmouth,  which  were 
but  ill  concerted  and  soon  over.  The  latter  of  the 


138  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

two  was  followed  with  such  outrages  and  cruel 
rigours,  in  Jeffrey s's  Western  Inquisition,  as  were 
without  example.*  That  wretch  of  a  Lord  Chief 
Justice  was  said  to  have  made  it  the  matter  of  his 
boast,  when  he  returned  from  the  West,  that  he 
had  hanged  more  men  than  ah1  the  judges  of  Eng 
land,  since  William  the  Conqueror.  So  infatuated 
were  the  Whigs,  that  for  a  great  while  after 
Monmouth  (of  whom  they  were  generally  extrava 
gantly  fond)  was  beheaded,  and  his  followers  mise 
rably  butchered,  they  were  not  to  be  persuaded  but 
he  was  still  living,  and  would  yet  appear  at  their 
head.  But  this  fancy  wore  off  in  time,  and  Divine 
Providence  brought  about  the  deliverance  of  the  na 
tion  in  another  and  much  better  way,  which  I  think 
ought  to  be  noted  with  great  thankfulness. 

When  I  had  gone  through  a  course  of  philosophy 
with  Mr.  Cradock,  I  returned  to  London ;  and  that 
my  studies  might  not  be  discontinued,  (while  the 
method  I  should  farther  pursue  was  under  consider 
ation,)  I  spent  some  months  at  Mr.  Doolittle's,  who 
had  long  kept  a  private  academy,  f  and  then  lived  in 
St.  John's-court,  near  Clerkenwell,  and  had  much 
conversation  with  the  Dissenting  ministers  about  the 
town,  who  had  free  liberty  allowed  them,  and  held 
public  assemblies  for  divine  worship  without  molest- 

*  They  are   detailed    in    "  The    Western    Martyrology,  or 
Bloody  Assizes,"  5th  Ed.  1705.— ED. 
f  See  Supra,  pp.  105,  106.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  139 

ation.  Waiting,  among  others,  upon  Mr.  John 
Howe,  who  came  from  Holland  about  that  time,  he 
earnestly  pressed  me  to  cross  the  sea,  and  carry  on 
my  studies  at  Utrecht,  where  he  assured  me  I  might 
do  it  with  much  more  advantage  than  I  could  do 
here  in  my  own  country,  in  a  private  way.  I  was 
herein  confirmed  by  Mr.  John  Shower,  and  Mr.  Na 
thaniel  Taylor,  who  were  then  also  lately  come  from 
Holland. 

I  listened  to  their  advice,  and,  having  my  good 
mother's  consent,  though  not  without  some  difficulty, 
I,  in  the  middle  of  March,  1687-8,  sailed  for  Hol 
land,  in  the  packet-boat  from  Harwich,  landing  at  the 
Brill,  and  going  up  the  Maes,  in  a  sloop  to  Rotter 
dam.  I  had  a  pleasant  passage,  and  was  free  from 
sickness  all  the  way,  though  the  only  one  in  the 
company  that  was  so.  Mr.  Kentish,  and  Mr.  Ban- 
toft,  my  old  acquaintance,  went  with  me. 

There  was,  in  our  company,  among  several  others, 
an  everlasting  talker,  who  was  at  the  same  time  a 
great  reader,  called  Captain  Bowles,  whom  I  after 
wards  often  met  in  London.  He  was  a  leading 
member  of  the  congregation  that  belonged  to  Mr. 
Walter  Cross,  and,  afterwards,  to  Mr.  William 
Nokes.  He  took  pleasure  in  raising  scruples,  and 
starting  difficulties,  to  the  unhinging  men  as  to  their 
principles,  in  all  the  company  he  conversed  with. 
He,  in  our  company,  at  this  time,  discoursed  much, 
to  but  little  purpose.  He  had  an  odd  mixture  in 


140  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

his  composition,  and  was  a  real  Origenist,*  and,  if 
such  a  thing  was  possible,  an  Arminian  and  Anti- 
nomian  both.  When  I  afterwards  came  to  be  free 
with  him,  I  have  sometimes  told  him,  that  he  went 
about  doing  the  devil's  work,  by  unsettling  people, 
and  raising  difficulties  not  easily  to  be  solved.  His 
reply  was,  that  he  thought,  he  rather  did  them  a 
kindness,  by  guarding  them  against  taking  their 
principles  upon  trust. 

When  we  were  at  Rotterdam,  we  applied  to  old 
Mr.  Joseph  Hill,  Mr.  John  Spademan,  and  Mr.  Boer- 
man,  who  treated  us  civilly,  and  advised  us  to  go  di 
rectly  for  Utrecht,  by  the  Wind-Schuyt,  rather  than 
by  the  way  of  Tergow,  which  they  told  us  would  be 
troublesome  to  us,  that  were  perfect  strangers.  Not 

*  See  "  A  Letter  of  Resolution  concerning  Origen  and  the 
chief  of  his  opinions."  Phemx,i.  I — 85.  It  was  first  printed, 
1661,  and  is  attributed  to  Dr.  Rust,  Bishop  of  Dromore,  who 
died  in  1670.  Among  the  dogmata  ascribed  to  this  Father,  is, 
the  final  Restoration  of  all  fallen  intelligences  ;  an  opinion  ably 
advocated  by  Christians  of  various  communions  since  the  time 
of  Origen. 

This  was  probably,  that  opinion  of  Origen,  to  which  Dr.  Ca- 
lamy  refers.     Thus,  his  contemporay  Young  begins  a  gay  lady's 
advocacy  of  pleasure  with  the  following    reference  to    a   pas 
sage  in  the  Sermons  of  Tillotson,  which  has  deservedly  placed 
him,  with  Bp.  Rust,  among  the  merciful  Doctors. 
"  Dear  T — 1 — n !  be  sure  the  best  of  men, 
Nor  thought  he  more,  than  thought  great  Origen ; 
Though  once  upon  a  time  he  misbehav'd, 
Poor  Satan !  doubtless  he'll  at  length  be  sav'd." 
See  "  Love  of  Fame,"  Sat.  vi.  (1728,)  p.  148. — ED. 


LIFE    OF   CALAMY.  141 

knowing  the  difference,  we  fell  in  with  the  proposal, 
and  sailed  from  Rotterdam,  with  a  pretty  brisk  gale, 
and  a  strong  tide  up  the  river.  But  the  wind  fail 
ed,  and  the  tide  turned  against  us,  by  the  way,  and 
we  were  forced  to  lie  all  night  on  the  river.  Some 
of  our  company  went  ashore  and  had  beds  to  lie  in ; 
but  we,  that  were  strangers  to  the  language  and 
manners  of  the  country,  continued  in  the  vessel,  and 
had  the  hard  boards  for  our  bed  and  bolster,  which 
we  thought  but  indifferent  treatment,  upon  our  first 
coming  into  foreign  parts  ;  though,  having  sufficient 
provision  left  of  what  we  brought  with  us  in  the 
packet-boat,  we  wanted  not  for  support. 

The  next  morning,  the  sky  was  very  bright  and 
the  weather  inviting,  though  the  vessel  sailed  so 
slowly  that  it  was  likely  to  be  several  hours  be 
fore  we  reached  Utrecht :  on  which  account,  we 
landed,  and  walked,  several  of  the  passengers  walk 
ing  with  us,  and  showing  us  the  way. 

In  this  walk,  I  was  uncomfortably  cumbered  with 
money,  which  I  had  never  found  burdensome  before. 
For,  having  with  me  a  letter  of  credit  drawn  upon 
the  Edenses  of  Rotterdam,  (mother  and  sons,)  by  Mr. 
John  Hester,  merchant  in  London,  for  what  money 
I  might  have  occasion,  while  I  continued  in  those 
parts,  I  called  upon  them,  while  I  was  in  their  city, 
and  received  to  the  value  of  20/.  sterling,  in  that 
which  was  the  heaviest  of  the  Dutch  money,  viz.  28 
stiver  pieces,  which  so  loaded  my  pockets,  as  to 
make  my  walk  unpleasant.  Hereupon,  I  prevailed 


142  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

upon  my  two  companions,  Mr.  Kentish  and  Mr. 
Bantoft,  out  of  pure  compassion,  to  ease  me  of  some 
part  of  my  burthen. 

At  length,  on  reaching  Utrecht,  we  went  to  the 
English  coffee-house,  and  sent  for  some  of  our  coun 
trymen  to  whom  we  were  recommended,  who  re 
ceived  us  with  great  frankness,  assisted  us  in  getting 
lodgings,  and  afterwards  accompanied  us  in  visits  to 
the  professors,  and  introduced  us  into  the  usual  ways 
and  methods  of  the  place. 

We  found  a  good  number  of  our  countrymen,  at 
that  time,  there.  Among  the  students,  there  were  Mr. 
Robert  Bragge,  who  has  for  many  years  been  pastor 
of  a  Dissenting  congregation  in  London  ;  Mr.  Thomas 
Reynolds,  well  known,  also,  in  London;  Mr.  Samuel 
Mead,  (son  of  Mr.  Mead,  of  Stepney,)  who  has 
many  years  been  a  practitioner  in  the  Court  of 
Chancery ;  Mr.  Thomas  Collins,  colleague  to  Mr. 
Bragge ;  Mr.  Wollaston,  who  afterwards  took  his 
degree  in  physic;  Mr.  Samuel  Moreland,  who  died 
in  the  school  at  Bethnal  Green  ;  Mr.  Peter  DAronda, 
afterwards  a  clergyman  in  the  Established  Church, 
and  Mr.  William  Nokes,  who,  some  years  after 
wards,  was  a  minister  among  the  Dissenters  in  Lon 
don,  and  at  length  conformed  in  Suffolk :  and  more 
came  there  afterwards. 

There  was,  also,  in  the  town,  Sir  Patience  Ward,* 

*  See  his  case,  in  short,  Burnet's  "  Own  Time,"  i.  536. — C. 
State  Trials,  iii.  661 ;  "Ellis  Corespondence,"  i.  191,  335.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  143 

who  had  been  Lord  Mayor  of  London,  Mr.  Papillon, 
about  whose  being  admitted  Sheriff  there  had  been 
so  great  a  stir,*  who  was  fined  ten  thousand  pounds 
upon  an  action  of  Sir  William  Pritchard's,f  for 
arresting  him  on  account  of  his  not  doing  him  justice, 
Mr.  Wilmer,  foreman  of  the  Grand  Jury,  when  a 
bill  of  Indictment  for  High  Treason  was  brought 
against  Stephen  College,  and  found  ignoramus  ;\ 
upon  which  he  was  forced  to  fly.  Mr.  Hunt,  that 
wrote  the  famous  fct  Postscript,"^  who  died  and  was 
buried  at  Utrecht;  Sir  John  Guise,  and  several 
others,  that  had  left  England,  on  account  of  the  dif 
ficulties  of  the  times,  and  returned  with  the  Prince 
of  Orange,  at  the  Revolution. 

The  professors  of  philosophy  in  the  University,  were, 
M.  De  Vries,  and  M.  Luyts,  that  had  been  his  scholar : 
of  divinity,  M.  Wittsius,  M.  Leydekker,  M.  Van  Ha- 
len  and  M.  Mastricht.  The  great  man  for  the  civil 
law  was,  M.  Van  der  Muyden.  The  professors  for 
physic  or  medicine  were,  M.  Vallon  and  M.  Munnicks 

*  See  Evelyn,  (June  18,  1683,)  iii.  83,— ED. 

f  Nov.  6,  1684,  State  Trials,  iii.  1071— ED. 

J  July  8,  1681,  at  the  Old  Bailey.  Chron.  Hist.  i.  222. 
College  was  removed  for  trial  to  Oxford,  the  scene  of  the 
alleged  treason,  and  where  he  had  less  chance  of  escape.  There 
he  was  convicted  Aug.  17,  and  executed  the  31st.  Ibid.  See 
State  Trials,  iii.  341  ;  "  Life  of  A.  Wood,"  pp.  307,  308. — ED. 

§  "  For  rectifying  some  mistakes  in  some  of  the  inferior  clergy, 
mischievous  to  our  government  and  religion.  1682." — ED. 


144  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

and  the  celebrated  man  for  history  and  eloquence  was 
M.  Grevius,*  who  was  generally  reckoned  to  exceed 
all  the  men  in  the  age,  for  the  purity  of  the  Latin 
tongue.  He,  in  1686,  publicly  delivered,  and  after 
wards  printed,  an  Oration,  at  the  order  of  the  Ma 
gistrates  of  the  city,  upon  that  University's  reach 
ing  its  fiftieth  year,  it  being  founded  An.  1636.  But 
the  oldest  of  them  all  was  M.  Leusden,  the  pro 
fessor  of  the  Hebrew  tongue,  who  was  noted  for 
many  things  he  had  published  to  the  world.  He 
particularly  took  care  of  two  editions  of  the  Hebrew 
Bible  at  Amsterdam,  one  of  which  came  out  in  1661, 
and  the  other  in  1667,  where  the  latter  distinctions 
are  added  in  the  margin.  Of  the  last  edition,  our 
Dr.  Prideaux  gives  it  as  his  judgment,  that  it  is 
the  most  correct,  as  well  as  the  most  convenient, 
and  best  fitted  for  use  of  any  that  has  been  as  yet 
set  forth.f 

The  minister  of  the  English  church,  at  that  time, 
was  Mr.  Best,  a  Dutchman,  who  spoke  English  very 
brokenly,  and  though  an  honest  good  man,  yet  a 
very  indifferent  preacher.  It  was  no  small  disad 
vantage  to  the  English  students  then  at  Utrecht, 
that  they  were  not  better  entertained  on  the  Lord's 

*  Professor  during  thirty  years,  till  his  death  in  1703.  Among 
his  pupils,  besides  Mr.  Samuel  Mead,  was  his  brother  the  famous 
physician,  who  is  said  to  have  been  u  possessed  of  a  collection  of 
original  MS.  letters,  written  to  Grevius  by  the  most  eminent 
scholars."  Among  these  was  Locke. — ED. 

f  Connection,  part  i.  b.  v.  p.  342,  8vo. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  145 

day.  Two  others  preached  to  them,  now  and  then 
viz.  Mr.  John  Nisbet,  (well  known  afterwards  in  the 
City  of  London,  where  he  had  a  flourishing  congre 
gation,)  who  commonly  went  by  the  name  of  White, 
to  conceal  himself,  he  having  fallen  under  the  dis 
pleasure  of  the  English  Government ;  and  Mr.  Ca 
meron  a  Scottish  man,  who  was  afterwards  minis 
ter  of  Kircudbright  in  Galloway,  where  he  died  some 
years  since. 

In  the  French  Church  at  Utrecht,  there  were  at 
that  time  three  ministers  of  different  characters,  M. 
Martin,  who  afterwards  wrote  so  well  on  the  Bible.* 
He  was  a  very  serious  preacher,  and  his  way  was 
like  that  of  our  old  Puritans.  There  was,  also, 
M.  Saurin,  against  whom  M.  Jurieu  was  so  much 
incensed;  a  very  grave  man,  and  one  of  great  depth 
of  thought ;  who  was  for  going  to  the  bottom  of  a 
subject,  and  when  he  had  doctrinally  opened  it,  had 
a  marvellous  way  of  touching  the  passions.  Often 
have  I  heard  him  discourse,  most  admirably,  upon 
moral  subjects,  f 

The  third  was  Monsieur  Jennison,  who  came  from 

*  He  maintained  against  Father  Simon  and  Mr.  Emlyn  the 
authenticity  of  that  passage,  (1  John  v.  7,)  on  the  heavenly  wit 
nesses. — ED. 

t  Elias  Saurin  died  at  Utrecht,  in  1703,  aged  sixty-four. 
Among  his  published  works  are,  "Examen  de  la  Th^ologie  de 
Jurieu,"  and  "  Des  Reflexions  sur  les  Droits  de  la  Conscience," 
against  Jurieu,  and  against  Bayle's  "  Commentaire  Philoso- 
phique."  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  335. — ED. 
VOL.  I.  L 


146  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Blois,  in  France,  a  place  eminent  for  purity  of 
language :  and  he  was  reckoned  to  speak  the  best 
French  of  any  of  them.  It  was  his  way  to  put  a 
great  many  fine  words  together,  and  use  much 
action  in  the  pulpit ;  but  it  was  hard  to  bring  any 
thing  away  that  was  material,  or  give  a  tolerable 
account  of  his  sermons  afterwards. 

These  were  attended  on  by  many  of  the  English 
gentlemen  :  but  neither  French  nor  Dutch  used  to 
confine  themselves  on  the  Lord's  days,  except  in 
time  of  public  worship  ;*  and  the  English  were  too 
apt  to  grow  like  them.  As  to  the  students,  I  can 
not  but  reckon  it  a  disadvantage  to  them,  that  they 
were  left  to  their  own  way,  without  any  one  to  in 
spect  their  manners.  They  might,  indeed,  be  as  good 
as  they  would,  study  hard,  in  their  several  lodgings, 
and  live  soberly  and  virtuously,  if  they  were  that 
way  inclined  ;  but  if  it  were  otherwise,  and  they 
mispent  their  time,  and  neither  attended  the  pro 
fessors  nor  studied  in  their  own  quarters,  they  had 
none  calling  them  to  an  account :  and  I  cannot  but 
say,  I  reckon  the  collegiate  way  of  living  in  our 
English  Universities,  where  lads  have  their  particu 
lar  tutors,  as  well  as  each  house  has  a  separate  mas 
ter,  empowered  to  keep  in  order  his  own  society, 
much  to  be  preferred  to  the  living  so  at  large. 

*  This  unsabbatical  occupation  of  "  the  Lord's  day/'  the 
well-known  practice  of  Calvin,  he  has  ably  defended  as  a 
Christian,  in  opposition  to  a  Judaical  observance.  See  Calvini 
Institutiot  1.  ii.  c.  viii.  s.  32-34. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  147 

I  must,  however,  own,  most  of  my  countrymen 
that  were  students  at  Utrecht,  in  my  time,  lived 
soberly  and  regularly ;  and  yet  the  way  of  living 
there  was,  with  respect  to  religion,  so  different  from 
what  it  was  in  England,*  that  I  found  reason  to 
be  thankful,  afterwards,  that  any  serious  impressions 
were  kept  up. 

It  was  in  March  1688,  that  I  settled  at  Utrecht, 
and  with  regard  to  the  public,  I  found  things  in 
that  country  come  to  a  plain  crisis.  Their  leading 
men  were  generally  satisfied  that  there  was  no 
saving  the  United  Provinces  from  ruin,  keeping  the 
Protestant  interest  from  sinking,  or  hindering  the 
French  power  from  swallowing  up  all,  but  a  Revo 
lution  in  England.  The  Dutch  were  generally 
inclined  to  assist  the  Prince  of  Orange  with  their 
forces,  and  enable  him  to  make  head  against  King 
James,  and  relieve  the  English,  who  now  cried  to 
him  for  help,  as  the  Dutch  did  to  Queen  Elizabeth, 
a  hundred  years  before. 

The  measures  taken  in  order  to  this  were,  at  first, 
very  secret ;  but  the  design  was  at  length  so  ge 
nerally  known  in  Holland,  and  that  a  good  while 
before  the  sailing  of  the  forces,  that  it  is  really 

*  The  foreign  Calvinists  of  the  seventeenth  century,  with 
whom  agreed  the  Lutherans,  objected  to  their  English  breth 
ren's  "  doctrines  of  the  Sabbath/'  which  "  sundry  divines  of 
the  United  Provinces"  entitled,  Jigmentum  Anglicanum,  as  re 
lated  by  Cotton  Mather,  in  his  "  Life  of  Elliot,"  (1694,)  p.  29. 
See  "Monthly  Repository,"  (1819,)  xiv.  425.  488.  553.  665; 
"  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  262-268.— ED. 

L    2 


148  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

amazing,  King  James  was  not  sooner  certified  about 
it,  and  better  provided  against  it. 

But  there  was  one  thing  relating  to  the  matter 
which  at  that  time  made  a  noise  in  Holland,  which 
was  the  dream  of  a  certain  Quaker,  that  was  pub 
lished  that  year,  a  few  months  after  my  settlement 
amongst  them.  He  said  he  dreamt,  that  the  Prince 
of  Orange,  with  a  good  naval  and  land  force,  sailed 
from  Holland  towards  England,  and  was  shattered, 
and  driven  back  by  storm  ;  and  that,  being  in  a 
little  time  refitted,  he  sailed  again,  landed  in  Eng 
land,  met  with  little  opposition,  was  crowned  King, 
and  the  nation  flourished  exceedingly  under  him. 
This  printed  dream  being  shown  to  the  Prince,  it 
was  said,  that  he  should  reply  that  the  man  knew 
more  than  he ;  but,  when  the  event  proved  answer 
able,  great  notice  was  takeii  of  it. 

The  election  they  were  this  year  upon,  of  a  new 
Bishop  of  Cologne  and  Liege,  which  was  of  great 
concern  to  the  Dutch,  together  with  the  death  of 
the  brave  Frederic  William,  Elector  of  Branden- 
burgh,*  made  the  marching  their  land  forces,  to  and 
fro,  about  this  time,  the  less  taken  notice  of ;  but, 
their  naval  preparations  occasioned  great  specula 
tions  among  their  neighbours. 

The  States  General,  at  the  request  of  the  Prince, 
(who  had  now  been  their  Stadholder  about  sixteen 
years,)  had  ventured  to  leave  the  disposal  of  all  their 

*  After  a  reign  of  forty-eight  years.  On  his  Amity  with  the 
Lord  Protector  Oliver,  see  t(  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  356  n. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  149 

forces,  by  land  and  sea,  to  him,  and  a  few  deputies,* 
notwithstanding  that  they  risked  their  all,  by  not 
consulting  their  principals.  Yet,  if  they  had,  the  de 
sign  would  have  been  known  so  universally,  that  it 
could  hardly  have  been  brought  to  bear. 

It  may  not  be  amiss  here  to  recollect  that  Sir 
William  Temple,  in  his  "  Observations  upon  the 
United  Provinces,"!  savs»  that,  "  As  the  States  Ge 
neral  cannot  make  war  or  peace,  or  any  new  alliance 
or  levies  of  money,  without  the  consent  of  every 
province,  so  cannot  the  States  Provincial  conclude  of 
any  of  those  points,  without  the  consent  of  each  of 
the  cities,  that  by  their  constitution  has  a  voice  in 
that  assembly."  Matters  were  thus  settled  from  the 
first ;  and  Bishop  Burnett  freely  represents  it  as  an 
error  of  "  William  I.  Prince  of  Orange,"  (who  "  was 
one  of  the  greatest  men  in  story,"  and  of  whom  it 
was  observed,  that  he  made  more  noise  in  the  world 
than  all  the  crowned  heads  of  his  time,)$  in  his 
forming  the  Dutch  Republic,  "  the  settling  a  nega 
tive  in  every  one  of  the  towns  in  Holland,  in  the 

*  "  A  Dictator's  Power  given  to  the  Prince  of  Orange  in 
Holland  for  a  year,"  is  mentioned  in  "  Ellis  Correspondence," 
ii.  83.-ED. 

f  See  Ch.  ii.  C.— Ed.  7  (1705,)  pp.  91,  92.— ED. 

J  "  Own  Time,"  i.  314. — C. 

§  William  I.  was  assassinated  in  1584,  aged  fifty-one.  "Be 
fore  he  died,  he  had  in  a  great  measure  lost  the  affections  of  the 
clergy,  because  he  was  very  earnest  for  the  toleration  of  Papists* 
judging  that  necessary  for  the  engaging  men  of  all  persuasions 
in  the  common  concerns  of  liberty."  Ibid. — ED. 


150  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

matters  of  religion,  of  taxes,  and  of  peace  and  war  ;" 
and  seems  to  intimate  that  nothing  could  excuse  it, 
"  unless  he  was  forced  to  it  by  the  necessity  of  his 
affairs."  For,  according  to  this  settlement,  "  the 
corruption  of  any  one  small  town  may  put  all  the 
affairs  of  Holland  in  great  disorder." 

Sir  William  Temple  gives  us  to  understand,  that 
the  Constitution  was  never  broke  in  upon  till  1668, 
when  he  concluded  "  three  treaties"  with  the  States 
"  in  five  days,  and  signed  the  several  instruments, 
without  passing  the  essential  forms  of  their  govern 
ment,  by  any  recourse  to  their  provinces,  which 
must  likewise  have  had  it  to  the  several  cities.  It 
is  true,"  he  says,  "  that  in  concluding  these  alliances, 
without  commission  from  their  principals,  the  de 
puties  of  the  States  General  ventured  their  heads,  if 
they  had  been  disowned  by  their  provinces.  But, 
being  all  unanimous,  and  led  by  the  clear  evi 
dence  of  so  direct  and  so  important  an  interest,  they 
all  agreed  to  run  the  hazard,  and  were  so  far  from 
being  disowned,  that  they  were  applauded  by  all  the 
members  of  every  province."*  The  case  was  the 
same  when  the  States  ventured  upon  consenting  to 
the  Prince's  expedition  into  England  this  year,  which 
must,  upon  that  account,  be  owned  to  have  been  the 
more  remarkable. 

It  was  strange,  however,  that  this  design  was  not 
sooner  discovered,  both  by  the  French  and  their  ad 
herents  in  England,  when  it  had  been  so  commonly 

*  Observations,  pp.  115,  116. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  151 

talked  of  in  Holland,  long  before  it  was  brought  to 
bear.  The  Prince's  Declaration*  was  printed  there 
in  English,  French,  and  Dutch,  before  the  sailing  of 
the  forces ;  and  I  myself  sent  an  account  of  the  sub 
stance  of  it,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  in  London,  by  the 
mail,  without  any  name  to  it,  before  any  such  thing 
had  been  commonly  seen  there,  and  it  went  safe. 

I  have  been  credibly  informed,  that  of  all  the 
English,  who  about  that  time  crossed  the  sea  into 
Holland  in  great  numbers,  the  persons  most  con 
fided  in  by  the  Prince,  were  Mr.  Russel,  afterwards 
Earl  of  Orford,  and  Mr.  Sydney,  afterwards  Vis 
count  of  Sheppey  and  Earl  of  Romney.j"  Though 
many  were  concerned  in  the  undertaking,  and  did 
what  they  could  to  encourage  it,  these  were  the 
persons  that  carried  over  papers,  subscribed  by  the 
great  men  of  England,  which  prevailed  with  the 
Prince  to  engage  in  that  expedition. 

I  could  not  help  being  full  of  thoughts  upon  this 
occasion,  and,  among  many  others,  went  to  Rotter 
dam,  and  saw  some  of  the  forces  actually  embark 

*  Oct.  10,  1688.  See  Burnet's  "Own  Time,"  i.  776.  The 
assigned  "  reasons  of  his  intended  expedition  to  England,"  were 
"  to  facilitate  the  calling  a  free  Parliament,  and  to  inquire  into 
the  birth  of  the  Prince  of  Wales."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  246. 

Notwithstanding  the  gossips'  tales  gravely  recorded  as  history, 
by  Bishop  Burnet  and  other  early  advocates  of  the  Revolution, 
all  persons  capable  of  the  inquiry,  have  long  ceased  to  entertain 
any  doubts  as  to  "  the  birth  of  the  Prince  of  Wales."  See 
"  Ellis  Correspondence,"  i.  348  n\. — ED. 

f  See  Ibid.  i.  142  ;  ii.  228,  320.— ED. 


152  LIFE   OF    CALAMY. 

for  England.*  And  there  was  a  great  concern 
visible  in  the  countenance  of  every  one  that  was  to 
be  met  with,  about  their  success.  They  had  public 
prayers  in  all  the  churches  in  Holland  every  day, 
for  a  good  while  together,  which  was  an  unusual 
thing  in  that  country;  and  I  observed  the  minis 
ters  prayed  for  a  north-east  wind,  by  name,  which 
would  bring  the  forces  from  thence  hither  to  the 
best  advantage.f 

There  was  an  universal  consternation  when  the 
Prince  was  driven  back  by  the  storm,  though  the 
damage  done  was  soon  repaired,  it  not  being  so 
great  as  it  had  at  first  been  represented.  But  when 
they  got  out  to  sea  again,  with  a  fair  wind,  and 
especially  when  we  had  an  account  of  their  safe 
landing  at  Torbay,  in  England,  the  rejoicing  and 
satisfaction  that  appeared  all  over  Holland  was  be 
yond  what  words  could  express  :  and  yet,  if  it  was 
possible,  the  joy  and  transport  was  still  greater  when 
an  account  came  of  the  Convention's  meeting  at 
Westminster,  Jan.  22,  1688-9,  and  declaring  the 
throne  vacant ;  and  then  on  Feb.  7,  following,  filling 
it  with  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Orange,:]:  together 
with  the  meeting  of  the  Convention  of  Estates  in 

*  "  Oct.  19.  The  Prince  of  Orange  set  sail  with  about  50 
men-of-war,  300  transports,  and  about  14,322  land  forces." 
Chron.  Hist.  i.  246.— ED. 

f  Burnet  says :  "  the  Church  party"  in  England,  "  wished 
for  an  East  wind,  which,  on  that  occasion,  was  called  the  Protes 
tant  wind."  "  Own  Time/'  i.  784.— ED. 

t  See  "  Proceedings  of  the  Lords,"  i.  336-342  ;  Grey's 
"  Debates,"  ix.  7-84  ;  Evelyn,  iii.  264,  270.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  153 

Scotland,  at  Edinburgh,  March  14,  who  took  pattern 
from  them  and  did  the  same,  so  that  on  one  and  the 
same  day,  they  were  proclaimed  King  and  Queen 
of  Scotland,  and  crowned  King  and  Queen  of  Eng 
land.* 

It  may  well  enough  be  reckoned  another  special 
providence  which  this  great  affair  had  attending  it, 
that,  at  the  same  time  that  Louis  XIV.  of  France 
declared  war  against  Holland,  in  order  to  the  sup 
porting  King  James,  whom  he  had  precipitated  into 
great  misfortunes,  he  should  send  an  army  into  the 
empire  under  the  command  of  his  son,  the  Dauphin, 
and  begin  hostilities  there,  with  the  siege  of  Phil- 
lipsburgh.  It  was  reckoned  a  false  step  of  France 
thus  to  divide  their  forces  ;  and  it  helped  to  save 
the  Dutch,  who,  in  all  probability,  must  have  been 
forced  to  have  called  back  their  troops,  which  they 
lent  the  Prince  of  Orange,  for  his  expedition  into 
England,  had  they  been  directly  attacked.  And  it 
was  commonly  said,  that  this  being  the  advice  of  the 
Marquis  de  Louvois,  he,  some  time  after,  fell  into 
disgrace  upon  the  account.  But  the  great  Ruler  of 
the  world  is  never  at  a  loss  for  ways  and  means  to 
serve  his  purposes. 

France,  though  ever  disposed  for  new  quarrels,  as 
opportunity  offered,  had  continued  in  peace  with  her 

*  This  is  not  quite  correct.  The  proclamation,  Feb.  13,  was 
only  for  England.  "  The  Deputies  from  the  Convention  of 
Scotland,  made  a  formal  offer  of  that  Crown,  in  the  Banquetting 
House,  May  11."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  255.  See  Fasti  Gulielmi 
Tertii,  1697  ;  "  Monthly  Repos."  (1822)  xvii.  70.— ED. 


154  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

neighbours,  from  the  treaty  of  Nimeguen,  in  1678, 
excepting  the  taking  of  Luxembourg  from  the  Spa 
niards,  under  frivolous  pretences,  in  1684,  and 
some  few  other  things,  till  the  war  that  now  com 
menced,  upon  the  Upper  Rhine.  The  interest  of 
Prince  Clement,  of  Bavaria,  was  espoused  by  the 
Empire,  and  that  of  Cardinal  Furstemberg,  by 
France.  But  though  the  former  carried  the  elec 
tion,  Germany  paid  dear  for  it. 

This  was,  indeed,  the  Dauphin's  maiden  campaign, 
and  he  had  a  fine  one  of  it;  for  in  two  months' 
time  he  took  Phillipsburg,  Manheim,  Frankendal, 
and  several  other  places.  But  then,  there  were  such 
burnings,  devastations,  and  cruelties,  as  were  really 
shameful  and  scandalous ;  and  such  as,  it  was  said, 
that  Prince  himself  much  regretted,  but  could  not 
remedy.  Manheim,  Spire,  Mentz,  Creutznach,  Bac- 
charack,  Heidelberg,  and  several  other  places  as  far 
as  Hailbron,  were  great  part  of  them  laid  in  ashes  ; 
and,  at  the  same  time,  his  father  and  he  lost  their 
best  ally,  the  King  of  England,  and  that  irre 
trievably. 

Being  fixed  at  Utrecht  for  study,  I,  in  a  little 
time  returned  back  thither,  from  Rotterdam,  and 
again  went  over  a  course  of  Philosophy  under  De 
Vries  ;  had  two  or  three  colleges  of  civil  law  under 
Vander  Muyden  ;  one  upon  Sophocles,  under  Gre- 
vius,  and  another  under  the  same,  upon  Puffendorf  's 
Introduction  to  History,  which  lasted  a  whole  year. 
At  these  two  latter  colleges  I  had  from  day  to  day 
the  company  of  Lord  Spencer,  afterwards  Earl  of 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  155 

Sunderland,  and  principal  Secretary  of  State  in  the 
reign  of  Queen  Anne.  His  father,  the  old  Earl  of 
Sunderland,  had  been  Secretary  of  State  in  the  reign 
of  Charles  II.,  and  appeared  then  very  zealous  for 
the  Bill  of  Exclusion ;  and  yet,  within  two  years 
after,  when  the  tide  began  to  turn,  as  Archdeacon 
Echard  observes,*  he  artfully  wrought  himself  into 
all  favour,  and  made  the  Duke  of  York  sensible  that 
every  thing  he  had  done  in  Parliament,  that  seemed 
to  be  against  his  interest,  was  much  for  his  advan 
tage.  He  satisfied  him,  that  the  reason  why  he  ap 
peared  for  his  exclusion,  which  he  knew  would  not 
pass,  was  to  prevent  the  limitations,  which,  he  was 
sure,  would  have  passed,  if  not  opposed  by  him  and 
others,  and  would  have  made  him  a  Doge  of  Venice 
rather  than  a  monarch. 

Upon  the  Duke's  succeeding  his  brother,  Lord 
Sunderland  was  President  of  the  Council,  one  of  the 
High  Commission  Court,  and  Chief  Minister,  and  at 
length  reconciled  to  the  Church  of  Rome.  And  yet, 
even  in  that  reign,  it  was  said  that  he  was  the  per 
son  that  prevailed  with  King  James  to  refuse  the 
30,000  men  offered  him  by  France,f  against  the 
Prince  of  Orange ;  and  for  that  reason,  among  others, 
laid  aside,  turned  out  of  all  his  offices,  and  excepted 
from  pardon  by  that  prince,  in  several  declarations. 
He  was  also  excepted  by  King  William,  out  of  his 
pardon,  and  yet  was  afterwards  again  in  the  minis- 

*  "  Hist,  of  the  Revolution/'  pp.  60,  61.— C. 
t  Sept.  10, 1688,  Ckron.  Hist.  i.  245.    See  Burnet's  Own  Time, 
\.  767,— ED. 


156  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

try,  and  in  1697,  made  Lord  Chamberlain,  and  one 
of  the  Lords  Justices  in  the  King's  absence.  There 
seems  to  have  been  somewhat  very  singular  in  this 
Lord's  character,  that  he  should  have  been  so  owned 
and  disowned,  so  favoured  and  slighted,  on  both 
sides.  His  conduct  was  much  blamed  at  the  Revo 
lution,  when  he  fled  into  Holland,  and  published  a 
Letter  ia  his  own  vindication.* 

Bishop  Burnetf  says,  that  "  Lord  Sunderland  was 
a  man  of  a  clear  and  ready  apprehension,  and  a 
quick  decision  in  business,"  and  that  "  he  had  the 
dexterity  of  insinuating  himself  so  entirely  into  the 
greatest  degree  of  confidence  with  three  succeeding 
princes,  who  set  up  on  very  different  interests,  that 
he  came  by  this  to  lose  himself  so  much,  that  even 
those  who  esteemed  his  parts,  depended  little  on  his 
firmness."  At  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  King 
William,  he  lived  privately  and  retiredly  at  Utrecht, 
and  was  an  auditor  at  the  French  church  where  I 
often  saw  him. 

In  that  place  young  Spencer:),  then  followed  his 
studies,  conversed  freely  with  his  countrymen,  and 
laid  the  foundation  of  his  glorious  library,^  which  was 
in  time  so  much  improved.  His  Lordship  had  Mr. 
Trimnel  then  with  him  as  his  governor,  who  was 
Chaplain  in  the  family,  and  afterwards  D.D.  and 

*  See  Appendix  to  King  William's  Life,  i.  316. — C. 

t  "  Own  Time,"  i.  354.— C. 

J  See  Evelyn,  iii.  250.— ED. 

§  Now  at  Blenheim,     Ibid.  p.  369. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  157 

Bishop  of  Winchester,*  with  whom  I,  in  those  days, 
conversed  with  great  freedom :  and  I  did  not  drop 
the  acquaintance  there  begun,  either  with  my  Lord 
or  him,  as  long  as  either  of  them  lived. 

Besides  the  private  lectures  mentioned,  I  attend 
ed  also  the  public  lectures  of  De  Vries,  which  were 
political  and  miscellaneous ;  together  with  those  of 
Greviusf  that  were  historical,  concerning  the  Rise  of 
Prelacy,  and  of  the  Papacy ;  and  those  of  Witsius, 
which  were  purely  theological ;  and  sometimes  also, 
those  of  the  other  three  Professors  of  Divinity.  The 
main  differences  then  in  the  University  were  about 
the  old  philosophy  and  the  new,  and  between  the 
Cocceians  and  the  Voetians4  The  old  philosophy 
was  chiefly  adhered  to  by  De  Vries,  who  was  a  great 
enemy  to  the  distinguishing  principles  of  Descartes, 
and  particularly  his  innate  ideas ;  and  one  thesis  of 

*  He  "  died  at  Farnham-Castle,  1 723,  aged  sixty.  This  pre 
late,"  adds  the  Rev.  Mark  Noble,  "  became  from  conviction  a 
steady  partizan  of  the  Revolution,  which  he  strenuously  defended 
by  his  pen.  His  political  opinions,  perhaps,  greatly  aided  him  in 
obtaining  the  lawn  sleeves,  which  he  wore  with  the  utmost  cre 
dit."  Cont.  of  Granger,  (1806,)  iii.  74,  75. — See  Burnet's  "  Own 
Time,"  ii.  544.— ED. 

f  See  some  account  of  that  learned  man  in  "  Petr.  Dan.  Huet. 
Comment,  des  rebus  adeurn  pertinentibus,"  lib.  iii.  148.  and  lib. 
v.  229 — C. 

I  Cocceius  was  Professor  of  Theology,  at  Leyden,  where  he 
died  1669,  aged  sixty-six.  Voetius  died  1677,  aged  eighty-seven, 
at  Utrecht,  where  he  was  Professor  of  Theology,  and  the  Oriental 
languages.  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  ii.  693.  ix.  393. — ED. 


158  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

his  upon  that  subject,  I,  at  his  desire,  publicly  defen 
ded  in  the  schools.  And  though  Cocceius  was  gene 
rally  spoken  of  with  respect  by  the  several  Profes 
sors  of  Divinity,  yet  his  notions  did  not  obtain  there, 
so  much  as  in  other  parts  of  the  United  Provinces. 
However,  I  remember,  I  once  heard  a  Lecture  read 
by  Professor  Van  Halen,  who  owned  himself  a 
Cocceian,  in  which  he  mentioned  one  hundred  and 
twenty  particulars,  in  which  Joseph  was  a  type  of 
Christ.*  For  my  part,  I  could  not  see  either  then, 
or  since,  why  he  might  not  with  as  much  reason 
have  made  them  up  three  or  four  hundred. 

M.  De  Vries,  the  chief  philosophy  professor,  was 
very  civil  to  the  English,  and  free  in  conversing 
with  them.  He  was  no  great  lover  of  the  Prince  of 
Orange,  but  a  mighty  friend  to  the  Louvestein  fac 
tion,  and  yet  was  far  from  falling  in  with  the  Re 
monstrants  in  matters  theological.  He  was  preju 
diced  against  the  Dissenters  in  England,  of  whom 

*  "  Leur  principes  sont,  qu'il  faut  dormer  aux  paroles  du  texte 
sacre  1'energie  possible,  que  tout  est  mysterieux  et  allegorique, 
et  que  1'histoire  de  1'Eglise  Chretienne  y  est  entierement  ren- 
fermee." — Ibid-,  ii.  693. 

"  Towards  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century,"  says  Bishop 
Marsh,  "  an  effort  was  made  by  Cocceius  at  Leyden,  and  by 
some  German  divines  at  Berlin  and  Halle,  to  restore  the  manifold 
interpretation  of  Scripture,  which  the  Reformation  had  banished. 
During  a  period  of  many  years,  their  efforts  were  attended  with 
success ;  but  good  sense  and  good  taste  gradually  restored  the 
Scriptures  to  the  same  mode  of  interpretation,  which  is  applied 
to  classic  authors."  See  a  review  of  "  Bishop  Marsh's  Two 
Lectures"  in  "  Monthly  Repository,"  (1829,)  N.  s.  iii.  252. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  159 

he  had  wrong  notions.  But  the  conversation  of 
some  of  our  countrymen  helped  to  produce  in  him  a 
better  opinion  of  them.  I  once  heard  him  run  them 
down  with  great  vehemence  as  unaccountably  weak, 
in  differing  from  most  churches  of  Christ  there  had 
been  in  the  world,  and  from  the  body  of  the  Re 
formed  churches  too,  merely  that  they  might  be  said 
to  differ  from  the  Church  of  England  with  respect 
to  the  Lord's  Prayer,  which  he  was  informed  many 
of  them  were  not  for  using.  I  told  him,  "  he  wrong 
ed  the  English  Dissenters  if  he  apprehended  the 
generality  of  them  were  against  the  Lord's  Prayer ; 
that  the  assembly  of  divines  at  Westminster  had  in 
their  Directory  recommended  the  use  of  it  in  all 
worshipping  societies;*  that  many  among  the  pre 
sent  Dissenters  did  use  it  generally,  and  others  fre 
quently  ;  and  that  though  it  could  not  be  denied, 
but  that  some  among  them  were  of  opinion  that  it 
was  rather  designed  for  a  directory  in  prayer,  than 
to  be  used  as  a  form  ;  yet  their  number  compara 
tively  was  but  small,  and  they  were  not  generally 
reckoned  the  most  judicious.  That  it  would  be 
hard  to  find  anywhere  a  large  body  of  men  that 
had  not  some  weak  people  mixed  among  them ;  and 
that  it  was  not  reasonable  that  a  considerable  num 
ber  of  worthy  persons  should  suffer  for  the  weak- 

*  "  Because  the  prayer  which  Christ  taught  his  disciples  is  not 
only  a  pattern  for  prayer,  but  itself  a  most  comprehensive  prayer, 
we  recommend  it  also  to  be  used  in  the  prayers  of  the  Church." 
See  "The  Confession  of  Faith,"  &c.  (1753)  p.  487.— ED. 


160  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

ness  of  a  few."  This  helped  to  silence  him  ;  though 
at  the  same  time  it  was  an  inducement  to  me  to 
take  up  a  resolution,  that  if  I  ever  lived  to  come 
out  into  the  ministry,  I  would  ordinarily  make  use 
of  the  Lord's  Prayer  in  public  as  far  as  I  was  con 
cerned  ;  and  so  do  what  in  me  lay  to  obviate  such 
an  objection  as  that,  which  I  thought  so  difficult  to 
answer ;  and  I  have,  all  along,  acted  accordingly. 

This  Professor,  in  all  his  lectures,  whether  public 
or  private,  was  used  to  intermix  a  variety  of  histo 
rical  passages  that  were  entertaining,  and  would 
many  times  give  us  advice  and  directions  about  the 
management  of  ourselves,  in  order  to  the  promoting 
of  our  health,  which  he  would  ever  particularly 
recommend  to  the  care  of  students,  who  were  to 
lead  a  sedentary  life.  He  was  very  much  for  being 
clothed  alike,  both  in  hot  weather  and  cold,,  and 
against  varying  in  the  number  and  heaviness  of  gar 
ments  in  summer  and  winter  ;  and  to  support  his 
opinion,  he  would  often  mention  the  experience  of 
his  own  father,  who  was  in  one  of  the  first  of 
those  ships  that  sailed  from  Holland  to  the  East  In 
dies,  and  lived  afterwards  to  a  great  age. 

He  told  us  the  Dutch  aboard  these  vessels,  being 
at  that  time  utter  strangers  to  those  voyages,  to 
which  they  have  been  since  so  much  accustomed, 
found  themselves  greatly  incommoded,  upon  crossing 
the  line,  by  the  sudden  changes  of  the  weather  from 
hot  to  cold,  and  cold  to  hot.  They  found  the  days 
exceeding  hot,  and  would  then  throw  off  all  their 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  161 

clothes,  and  go  almost  naked  ;  and  in  the  night  they 
had  cold  breezes  of  wind,  during  which  they  were 
so  chilled,  that  they  thought  it  needful  to  throw  on 
all  the  clothes  they  could  get,  to  keep  them  warm. 
And  by  these  frequent  sudden  changes  they  were 
much  affected.  But  there  were  about  half  a  dozen 
in  the  ship  who  took  up  a  resolution  to  bear  the  in 
convenience  of  both  extremes,  and  the  sudden  change 
from  one  to  the  other,  and  to  be  clothed  alike  both 
night  and  day  without  any  alteration.  And  the 
event,  he  told  us,  showed  how  much  they  that  took 
this  method  were  in  the  right ;  for  whereas  the  rest 
of  the  company  generally  died  in  the  course  of  the 
voyage,  these  six  (of  which  his  father  was  one)  sur 
vived,  and  returned  ;  and  had  it  not  been  for  them, 
there  were  scarce  enough  of  the  ship's  crew  remain 
ing  to  furnish  hands  to  work  the  ship,  and  bring 
her  home. 

Such  of  us  as  had  weak  eyes,  he  would  oft  advise 
to  the  use  of  green  spectacles  that  did  not  at  all 
magnify,  which  he  recommended  as  refreshing  to  the 
sight,  and  what,  with  use,  would  help  to  strength 
en  it.  This  he  confirmed  from  the  experience  of 
old  Dr.  Gisbert  Voet,  a  divine  that  was  well  known 
and  much  celebrated  in  the  City  of  Utrecht,  who 
was  the  first  professor  of  theology  in  that  University, 
and  the  longest  liver  of  the  members  of  the  Synod  of 
Dort,  which  was  held  in  1618,  and  he  died  not  till 
1676.  He,  finding  his  eyes  weak  while  he  was 
young,  took  up  the  custom  of  green  spectacles,  and 

VOL.  i.  M 


162  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

commonly  used  them  ;  and  when  he  came  to  ex 
treme  old  age,  he  found  his  sight  so  strengthened, 
that  he  could  read  in  the  small  Plantin  edition  of 
the  Hebrew  Bible,  that  has  no  points,  without  any 
spectacles  at  all. 

There  were  also  two  other  persons  that  had  made 
no  little  noise  in  the  world,  the  one  of  which  was 
born  in  this  city  of  Utrecht,  an.  1459,  and  the  other 
resided  here  many  years,  and  this  professor  readily 
took  what  occasions  came  in  his  way  to  mention  either 
of  them  ;  and  he  seemed  to  do  it  with  a  singular 
pleasure.  The  first  of  these  was  Adrian,  who,  after 
having  been  the  preceptor  of  the  Emperor  Charles 
V.,  was,  on  Jan.  8,  1522,  chosen  Pope  of  Rome,  by 
the  help  and  interest  of  his  scholar,  who  then  had 
the  ball  at  his  feet.  He  continued  Pope  about  a 
year  and  eight  months,  and  died  in  Sept.  1523.* 

Under  his  picture,  in  a  way  of  allusion  to  1  Cor. 
iii.  6.  "I  have  planted,  Apollos  watered,  but  God 
gave  the  increase,"  it  was  written  thus,  "  Ultrajec- 
tum  plantavit ;"  that  is,  Utrecht  planted  me,  where 
he  was  born,  and  where  the  house  he  was  born  in 
is  yet  to  be  seen  :  "  Louvanium  rigavit,"  that  is, 
Louvain  watered  me,  which  was  the  university  in 
which  he  had  his  education.  "  Sed  Caesar  incre- 
mentum  dedit."  It  was  the  Emperor  that  gave  the 

*  "  La  qualite  de  reformateur,  jointe  a  celle  d'etranger,  et 
surtout  son  aversion  pour  le  luxe,  le  firent  hair  des  Remains. 
A  sa  raort,  ils  £criverent  sur  la  porte  de  son  medecin  :  '  Au  Libe- 
rateur  de  la  Patrie*'  "  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  i.  58.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  163 

increase ;  for  to  him  were  his  great  church  prefer 
ments,  and  his  advancement  at  last  to  the  Popedom, 
owing.  One  wrote  at  the  bottom  of  all,  "  Hie  Deus 
nihil  fecit :"  God  had  no  hand  in  all  this :  when 
yet  to  him,  and  his  powerful  agency,  and  rich  rnercy 
and  grace,  all  is  ascribed  in  Scripture.  His  epitaph 
deserves  particular  notice,  which  was  this :  "  Adria- 
nus  Sextus  hie  situs  est,  qui  nihil  sibi  infelicius  in 
vita,  quam  quod  imperaverat,  duxit :"  Here  lies 
Adrian  VI.  who  thought  he  had  no  greater  mis 
fortune  in  life,  than  to  be  advanced  to  the  Papal 
government.  * 

The  other  person  was  Mrs.  Anna  Maria  Schur- 
man,f  a  lady  that  was  much  celebrated  for  her  learn 
ing,  and  her  great  ingenuity  and  virtue,  who  held 
correspondence  by  letter  with  a  number  of  the  most 
learned  men  in  .Europe,  was  much  applauded  by 
the  great  Salmasius,  and  has  herself  published  some 
things  that  are  well  esteemed  of.  She  lived  after 
wards  in  Friesland,  with  M.  TAbadie,  retired  from 
the  world,  where  she  was  visited  by  W.  Penn  and 
other  Quakers,  an.  1677,  when  she  was  above  sixty 
years  of  age.i 

*  Jovius  in  Vit.  Adr.  p.  129. — C.  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  i.  58. — 
ED. 

f  Of  this  gentlewoman,  see  "  Dan.  Huet.  Comment,  de  rebus 
ad  eum  pertinentibus."  L.  Hi.  122. — C. 

J  "  This  Anna  Maria  Schurman,"  says  Penn,  "  is  of  great 
note  and  fame  for  learning,  in  languages  and  philosophy,  and 
hath  obtained  a  considerable  place  among  the  most  learned  men 

M  2 


164  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

One  story  that  he  used  to  tell  us  of  this  lady, 
was  particularly  memorable.  It  seems,  that  among 
many  other  excellencies,  she  was  famous  for  a  pecu 
liar  dexterity  in  painting  upon  glass,  which  was  an 
art  that  was  reckoned  lost,  in  comparison  of  what 
it  had  been  formerly.  She  kept  several  of  her  per 
formances  in  that  way  by  her  ;  and  among  others, 
had  a  drinking-glass,  which  she  had  painted  with 
the  utmost  curiosity,  which  had  been  a  long  time  in 
finishing,  she  only  giving  now  and  then  a  stroke,  as 
she  found  herself  that  way  inclined ;  and  it  was 
reckoned  the  completest  specimen  of  the  art,  in 
modern  times,  that  could  be  any  where  met  with. 
Any  gentlemen  who  travelled  this  way  used  to  wait 
on  this  lady,  as  the  greatest  curiosity  the  place  af 
forded,  and  to  pay  their  respects  to  her  with  a  great 
deal  of  complaisance  ;  and  she  treated  them  with 
abundance  of  civility,  and  readily  showed  them  any 
thing  she  had  that  was  agreeable,  and  amongst  the 
rest,  this  glass,  and  would  entertain  them  with  a 
great  deal  of  polite  and  ingenious  discourse. 

Receiving  once  a  visit  from  a  lady,  she,  out  of 
a  particular  respect,  would  needs  have  her  drink  in 
this  glass,  and  in  order  to  it,  it  was  delivered  to  the 
maid  to  get  it  washed,  and  in  washing,  she  somehow 
or  other  happened  to  break  it.  The  poor  wench 
knowing  what  a  value  was  set  upon  this  glass,  when 

of  this  age."  Travails,  (1694-,)  p.  174.  There  is  in  the  British 
Museum  a  volume  of  drawings  by  this  lady,  beautifully  coloured, 
to  illustrate  the  natural  history  of  Surinam. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 


165 


it  was  broke,  went  and  hid  herself,  not  daring  to 
make  her  appearance.  The  mistress  having  stayed  a 
great  while,  wondered  much  at  her  servant's  delay, 
and  called  for  her,  but  received  no  answer.  She 
went  out  of  one  room  into  another,  to  search  for  her, 
but  could  not  find  her.  At  length  she  goes  into  the 
place  where  her  drink  stood,  and  found  her  there, 
hid  in  a  hole.  She  asked  her  what  she  meant  by 
serving  her  at  this  rate,  and  exposing  her  before 
her  friend,  that  did  her  the  honour  of  a  visit.  The 
wench  begged  her  pardon,  but  cried  out,  over  and 
over,  "  Indeed,  Madam,  I  could  riot  help  it ;  upon 
my  word,  Madam,  I  could  not  help  it."  She  asked 
her  what  it  was  she  had  done,  that  she  could  not 
help  ?  and  whether  she  had  broke  her  glass,  which 
she  now  began  to  suspect?  And  thereupon  she 
produced  the  pieces  of  it,  and  said,  "  Here  it  is,  but 
in  very  truth,  Madam,  I  could  not  help  it ;  the 
weight  of  the  water  broke  it ;  and  finding  what  was 
done,  I  durst  not  show  my  face."  The  good  lady 
perceiving  the  loss  admitted  no  remedy,  carried  it 
like  a  heroine  ;  and  upon  her  return  to  the  gentle 
woman  that  sat  waiting  for  her,  only  made  this  wise 
reflection :  "  I  hope,"  says  she,  "  I  shall  learn  from 
this  passage,  to  set  more  value  upon  my  time  for 
the  future,  than  to  throw  away  so  much  upon  so 
brittle  a  trifle ;"  and  discovered  no  farther  commo 
tion.  He  told  us,  upon  occasion,  many  other  pretty 
passages  of  this  lady,  but  this  was  so  remarkable, 
that  I  knew  not  how  to  pass  it  by. 


166  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

This  M.  De  Vries  had  an  agreeable  way  of  teach 
ing  his  scholars.  He  made  things  very  plain,  even 
in  his  metaphysical  and  pneumatical  lectures,  which 
he  read  upon  his  "  Determinationes  Rationales,"  and 
"  Pneurnatologicae."  A  number  of  his  English  scho 
lars  invited  him  to  make  us  a  visit  in  our  own 
country,  and  I  did  it  among  the  rest ;  and  I  be 
lieve,  if  he  had  come,  we  should  have  treated  him 
very  civilly.  But  he  was  not  to  be  prevailed  with 
to  cross  the  sea. 

Professor  Witsius  was  a  very  neat  man,  not  only 
in  his  habit  and  dress,  but  in  all  his  composures  ; 
and  some  of  them,  it  might  easily  be  discerned, 
cost  him  a  good  deal  of  pains.  The  chief  things 
he  had  printed  when  I  was  at  Utrecht,  were  his 
"  (Economia  Foederum,  Tractatus  in  Symbolum 
Apostolicum,"  and  his  "  JEgyptiaca."*  But  he  pub 
lished  several  other  things  afterwards,  both  while 
he  continued  at  Utrecht,  and  when  he  removed  to 
Leyden,  where  he  finished  his  earthly  course,  some 
years  after.f  He  was  always  very  civil  to  the  Eng 
lish,  and  carried  it  with  abundance  of  respect  to 
them,  and  spake  also  very  respectfully  of  our  divines 
and  other  writers,  with  whose  works  he  had  been 
very  conversant,  as  he  well  enough  might,  by  reason 
of  his  understanding  English  well. 

*  To  which  is  annexed,  "  Diatriba  de  legione  fulminitrace 
Christianorum."  See  Moyle's  "  Letters  concerning  the  Thun 
dering  Legion."  Works,  (1726,)  ii.  81. — ED, 

t  In  1708,  aged  eighty-two. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  167 

.  He  was  also  a  man  of  great  piety,  and  managed 
his  family  with  greater  strictness  as  to  religion,  than 
was  usual  and  common,  even  with  the  divines,  in  that 
country.  He  was  an  excellent  preacher.  Sometimes 
he  would  fall  into  the  common-place  way,  which 
prevailed  much  among  the  Dutch  divines:  but  I  have 
heard  him,  at  other  times,  run  out  in  excellent  moral 
reflections,  pressing  particular  duties,  and  reproving 
prevailing  sins  and  disorders,  with  more  freedom  and 
particularity,  than  (to  say  the  least,)  was  usual  and 
common  in  that  country.  And  I  must  own,  I  count 
it  an  happiness,  to  have  sat  so  long  as  I  did  under 
his  instruction. 

Professor  Leydekker  was  a  warm  man,  that  had 
read  much,  but  was  not  reckoned,  by  most,  to  be 
over  judicious.  His  lectures  were  mostly  disputa 
tious,  and  he  very  readily  took  all  occasions  that 
came  in  his  way  to  inveigh  against  the  Neotericks,* 
and  in  that  it  was  that  he  mainly  delighted.  When 
the  students  desired  to  have  any  thing  explained  to 
them,  out  of  the  usual  course,  he  would  be  commonly 
in  a  passion.  His  "  Synopsis  Theologiae,"  must,  how 
ever,  be  owned  to  be  as  good  a  book  as  most  of  the 
kind:  and  the  better,  for  bringing  all  the  modern 
questions  in  their  proper  places :  nor  is  his  History 
of  the  Churches  of  Africa  contemptible.  He  died  a 
few  years  since  at  an  advanced  age.f 

*  The  Moderns.— ED. 

t  In  1721,  aged  sixty-nine.    Now.  Diet.  Hist.  v.  265. — ED. 


168  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Professor  Luyts*  not  only  read  upon  philosophy, 
but  also  upon  astronomy ;  and  when  there  were 
eclipses,  or  any  thing  remarkable  and  deserving  ob 
servation  in  the  heavens,  he  would  invite  the  stu 
dents  to  the  astronomy  tower  that  stood  upon  the 
wall  of  the  city,  and  was  a  convenient  place,  erected 
for  that  purpose  at  the  public  expense ;  and  he  would 
read  lectures,  and  make  observations  there.  Leusden 
was  a  pleasant  old  gentleman.f 

But  he  that  in  my  time  was  the  great  ornament  of 
this  University,  was  Johannes  Georgius  Grevius,^: 
who  was  a  very  slovenly  good-humoured  man,  and  is 
well  known  by  what  he  has  published  to  the  world, 
and  particularly  his  collection  of  Roman  antiquities.^ 
He  was  counted  the  most  eminent  person  of  his  age 
for  the  purity  of  his  Latin  style.  He  was,  also,  a 
good  Grecian ;  and  indeed  not  defective  in  any  part 
of  polite  learning.  He  was  well  known  to  receive  a 
yearly  pension  from  the  King  of  France,  who  was 

*  Died  1721,  aged  sixty-six. — Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  v.  438. — ED. 

t  He  was  a  native  of  Utrecht,  where  he  died  1699,  aged 
seventy- five.  Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  v.  263. — ED. 

t  See  supra,  p.  1,  n.  f. — ED. 

§  "Thesaurus  antiquitatum  Romanarum,"  in  twelve  large 
volumes,  folio.  To  these  he  added  "  Thesaurus  antiquitatum 
Italicarum,"  in  six  volumes  folio;  "continue  par  1'infatigable 
Burman  jusqu'au,"  forty-five  volumes :  "  compilation  enorme, 
sans  choix  et  sans  ordre.  Elle  est  pourtant  necessaire  dans  une 
grande  bibliotheque."  Grevius  died  1703,  aged  seventy-one. — 
Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  iv.  189,  190. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  169 

for  encouraging  great  scholars,  and  persons  eminent 
for  their  knowledge,  in  all  parts  of  Europe. 

Grevius  was  of  a  very  free  and  communicative 
temper ;  and  both  his  private  colleges  and  public 
lectures,  were  well  attended,  and  much  frequented. 
There  was  a  general  good  correspondence  observable 
between  the  professors  and  the  magistrates ;  and  it 
could  not  be  justly  said,  that  any  thing  that  could 
reasonably  be  thought  necessary  to  the  going  on  in  a 
course  of  study  with  pleasure,  was  at  this  time 
wanting  in  that  place. 

As  to  the  City  of  Utrecht,  it  appears  to  have  been 
of  considerable  antiquity,  and  was  celebrated  in  for 
mer  days,  for  the  union  that  was  here  made  in  1579? 
which  is  the  foundation  of  the  Belgic  Republic ;  and 
in  later  times  for  the  Peace  that  was  here  made  with 
the  French,  in  1713,  by  which  the  confederates  lost 
the  benefits  they  had  obtained  in  a  successful  war, 
that  had  been  continued  for  many  years. 

The  mall,  and  the  walks  about  Utrecht,  without 
the  gates  of  the  city,  are  very  pleasant,  and  upon 
that  account,  were  spared  in  1672,  by  the  special 
command  of  Louis  XIV.,  when  his  troops  ravaged 
ah1  the  country  round  about.  It  has  been  observ 
ed,  that  there  are  no  less  than  forty-eight  towns, 
within  the  reach  of  a  day's  journey  from  this  city,  to 
which  a  man  might  go  and  come  back  again  in  the 
same  day.  The  schools  are  but  ordinary  structures, 
but  the  Dome  or  Cathedral  Church  appears  to  have 
been  an  ancient  and  a  very  noble  building,  when  it 


170  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  entire.  It  continued  so  till  1674,  when  in  a 
violent  storm,  (that  was  attended  with  whirlwinds, 
thunder  and  lightnings  that  were  very  terrible,  and 
hail-stones  of  a  prodigious  bigness,)  a  good  deal  of  it 
was  thrown  down,  and  the  vast  pillars  of  stone  that 
supported  a  great  part  of  it,  were  wreathed  like  a 
twisted  club,  having  been  so  strongly  cemented,  as 
rather  to  suffer  such  a  change  of  figure,  than  break  in 
pieces. 

As  to  the  manners  of  the  people,  they  are  much 
the  same  as  in  the  neighbouring  provinces  of  Hol 
land  and  Zealand.  The  chief  remarks  I  made  while 
I  was  among  them,  were  these.  They  too  com 
monly  looked  upon  religion  as  lying  mostly  in  at 
tending  public  worship,  without  much  minding  it  in 
private,  or  appearing  under  any  concern,  to  take  the 
measures  of  conduct  and  practice  from  it.  Very  few 
knew  what  belonged  to  joint  family  worship,  or  so 
much  as  sought  a  blessing  at  their  meals,  with  any 
gravity  or  concern;  it  being  their  common  way  to 
employ  their  young  children  before  they  sat  down 
at  table,  to  recite  the  Lord's  Prayer.  Their  way  of 
living  was  sparing  and  thrifty,  and  they  had  none  of 
that  luxury  at  their  tables,  which  it  is  commonly 
reported  has  prevailed  among  them  since,  and  espe 
cially  of  late  years. 

They  were  great  lovers  of  their  Vaderland,  which 
was  the  name  which  they  commonly  gave  to  their 
native  country.  Those  in  public  stations  were 
reckoned  very  honest,  and  bribery  was  far  from 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  171 

being  common ;  I  could  wish  it  was  so  at  this  day, 
though  I  hear  it  is  otherwise.  Justice  was  adminis 
tered  with  impartiality;  and  the  public  executions 
managed  with  great  solemnity.  The  Papists  were 
thought  to  be  as  much  in  the  interest  of  their  coun 
try  as  the  Protestants  themselves,  and  I  have  con 
versed  with  some  of  the  Romanists,  who  are  of  the 
Jansenistical  sort,  that  appeared  to  me  to  have  as 
good  notions  of  many  points  in  religion,  and  to  be 
as  sober  in  their  lives  and  conversations,  as  any  of 
the  Protestants.  The  common  housekeepers  at 
Utrecht,  with  whom  the  students  take  up  their 
lodgings,  did  not  use  generally  to  make  any  con 
science  of  being  strictly  just  to  them,  but  would  very 
commonly  exact  upon  them,  and  had  private  ways  of 
injuring  them  as  to  their  property,  which  was  grown 
so  common  a  thing  that  it  was  very  little  scrupled. 
Though  this  was  well  known  to  their  ministers,  yet 
was  it  but  very  seldom  that  we  could  find  they  took 
any  notice  of  it  in  their  sermons,  or  cautioned  them 
against  it.  As  to  the  people  in  general,  I  must  say, 
I  found  Sir  William  Temple's  account*  of  them  to 
be  very  true  and  just. 

Such  English  gentlemen  as  were  in  my  tune  at 
Utrecht,  were  very  civil  and  obliging  to  their  coun 
trymen  that  were  students  there.  As  for  them,  they 
had  a  pretty  fair  correspondence  among  themselves, 
and  were  reckoned  (generally  speaking,)  to  be  as 
sober  and  diligent  as  any  in  the  university.  There 

*  Obscrv.  c.  iv.  pp.  158 — 188. — Eu. 


172  LIFE    OF    CALAMI. 

was  a  great  number  of  Scottish  students  there  also : 
as  Lord  Cardross,  afterwards  Earl  of  Buchan ;  Mr. 
James  Haddow,  since  principal  of  one  of  the  colleges 
in  St.  Andrew's ;  Mr.  Linnen,  afterwards  minister  of 
Lismehaguen,  &c.  There  were  several  gentlemen 
from  that  country,  that  studied  the  civil  law,  and 
others  that  applied  to  divinity,  that  have  since  been 
very  useful  both  in  Church  and  State. 

After  the  Revolution,  Mr.  William  Car  stairs,  (who 
has  since  shined  so  bright  in  the  world,  both  as  chap 
lain  to  King  William,*  and  as  principal  of  the  Col 
lege  of  Edinburgh,)  came  into  that  country,  and 
continued  there  some  time ;  and  one  of  his  principal 
aims  was,  to  pick  up  some  that  might  be  fit  and 
qualified  to  make  masters  of  in  the  several  Colleges 
of  Scotland,  which  had  been  before  either  too  much 
neglected,  or  filled  with  improper  persons.  Here  it 
was  that  I  had  my  first  acquaintance  with  that  ex 
cellent  person,  whose  friendship  I  had  afterwards 
so  much  reason  to  value  myself  upon.  He  found  me 
pretty  studious  and  retired,  and  was  pleased  to  enter 
into  considerable  freedom  with  me,  which  was  after 
wards  improved  both  in  England  and  Scotland.  He 
then  several  times  told  me,  that  if  when  the  course  of 
my  studies  was  finished,  I  would  look  towards  North 
Britain,  and  could  like  a  professor's  life  among  them, 
he  would  readily  give  me  his  utmost  interest  towards 
my  obtaining  as  good  encouragement,  as  I  reason- 

*  And  "  Confidential  Secretary."     Biog.  Brit.  iii.  236,  n.  h. — 
ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  173 

ably  could  desire :  and  he  pressed  me  much,  at  least 
to  make  them  a  visit  in  Scotland,  as  I  actually  did 
several  years  afterwards. 

It  was  a  common  thing  with  the  English,  who 
were  at  that  time  at  Utrecht,  in  vacation  times,  to 
make  excursions,  in  order  to  their  diversion,  and  the 
gratifying  their  curiosity  by  seeing  other  places. 
Thus  I  remember,  I  with  some  others  took  such  an 
occasion  to  visit  the  University  of  Leyden,  where  I 
spent  some  days,  and  saw  what  was  most  curious, 
and  heard  public  lectures  read  by  the  learned  Span- 
heim  and  Gronovius,  and  saw  Triglandius,  and  Le 
Moyne,  who  were  all  very  considerable  men. 

Dr.  Frederick  Spanheim,  the  son  of  Frederick,  is 
generally  acknowledged  to  have  written  as  well,  and 
to  as  good  a  purpose  upon  Ecclesiastical  History, 
as  any  one  that  has  appeared  in  the  Protestant 
Churches.  He  was  born  at  Geneva,  An.  1632, 
and  accompanied  his  father  in  1642,  when  he  was 
called  from  his  professorship  of  divinity  in  that  city, 
to  a  more  eminent  station  of  the  same  kind  at  Ley- 
den.  There  he  had  a  most  advantageous  education 
in  all  the  parts  of  useful  learning.  At  twenty-three 
years  of  age,  he  in  1655  was  fixed  on  by  Charles 
Louis  Elector  Palatine,  for  one  of  his  professors  of 
theology  in  his  University  of  Heidelbergh,  where  he 
was  a  great  instrument  of  recovering  that  seat  of 
the  Muses  from  its  languishing  state,  and  was  re 
markably  useful,  till  in  1670  he  was  called  to  Ley- 
den,  where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life,  con- 


174  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

tinuing  primary  professor  there,  till  the  seventieth 
year  of  his  age,  in  which  on  May  18,  1701,  he 
breathed  his  last.*  His  works  have  been  since  pub 
lished  in  three  tomes  in  folio. 

This  Dr.  Spanheim  was  one  of  those  divines  to 
whom  the  Bishop  of  London f  wrote, £  for  his  senti 
ments  about  the  Established  Church  of  England,  and 
conformity  to  it,  at  the  very  same  time  that  he  wrote 
to  Monsieur  le  Moyne,  and  Monsieur  de  FAngle, 
upon  the  same  subject;  whose  letters  are  printed  by 
Dr.  Stillingfleet  at  the  end  of  his  Mischief  of  Sepa 
ration.^  Spanheim's  answer  was  not  printed  among 
the  rest,  not  being  thought  enough  in  favour  of  the 
Church  of  England ;  and  yet  he ,  was  charged  by 
some  of  his  friends  and  neighbours  as  being  too  fa 
vourable  to  that  Church,  from  which  charge  he  vin 
dicates  himself  at  large.  ||  He  afterwards  published  a 
Tract  entitled,  "  Frid.  Spanhemii  expetitum  Judi- 
cium,  super  Dissidio  Anglicano,  et  Capitibus  quae 
ad  Unionem  seu  Comprehensionem  faciunt  :"^[  which 

*  See  "  Laudat.  fun.  eel.  atque  sapientissimi  Viri  Frid.  Span 
hemii,  F.  F.  dicta  a  Jac.  Triglandio,  mensis  Junii  die  Sexto. 
An.  Vulg.  MDCCI."— C. 

t  Compton. — ED.  j  In  1680. — ED. 

§  Biog.  Brit.  iv.  54.  M.  Claude  "  in  a  letter  dated  at  Paris, 
1681,"  says  with  evident  disapprobation,,  "  that  he  was  astonished 
to  see  his  letter  printed."  Life,  by  R.  Robinson,  prefixed  to 
Claude's  Essay,  (1779,)  p.  66  ;  Neat,  iv.  464,  n. — ED. 

||  Vid.  Op.  ejus,  II.  p.  1111,  &c.  &c.— C. 

IF  Ibid,  p.  1262,  &c.  &c.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  175 

Tract  well  deserves  to  be  read  and  considered,  though 
it  had  no  effect. 

M.  Jacobus  Gronovius  was  another  celebrated 
Leyden  professor  at  that  time.  Of  him  Bishop  Bur- 
net  gives  this  character,  "that  he  seemed  to  be  such 
a  master  of  all  the  ancient  learning,  as  if  he  had  the 
authors  lying  always  open  before  him."*  He  is  much 
celebrated  for  his  collection  of  Greek  Antiquities. 
Trigland  was  a  noted  divine,  though  he  has  not  pub 
lished  so  many  writings  as  others  of  their  professors. 
Le  Moyne  was  a  great  and  learned  man,  of  which  he 
has  given  good  proof,  in  his  "  Varia  Sacra,  seu  Sylloge 
variorum  Opuscularum  Grsecorum,  ad  Rem  Ecclesi- 
asticum  spectantium,"  with  his  Notes  and  Observa 
tions,  in  two  volumes  in  quarto.  I  cannot  help  upon 
this  occasion  recollecting  a  passage  of  a  worthy 
English  divine,  who  was  speaking  of  a  letter  of  this 
Monsieur  le  Moyne,  relating  to  our  contests  here  in 
England,  of  which  he  had  made  much  use.  He  says 
that  he  "had  certain  knowledge  that  M.  le  Moyne 
had  both  with  his  tongue  and  pen  declared,  that  Mr. 
Durellt  had  much  abused  him,  in  leaving  out  sundry 
passages  in  his  letter,  wherein  he  did  moderate  and 
regulate  the  episcopal  power,  which  if  they  had  been 
inserted,  the  letter  would  not  at  all  have  fitted  his 
design." 

*  See  Burnet's  Letters,  p.  209. — C. 

t  "  Bonasus  Vapulans,  or  some  Castigations  given  to  Mr. 
John  Durell,"  &c.,  p.  80. — C. 


176  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

In  a  visit  that  I  made  to  Leyden  some  time  after 
wards,  I  met  with  somewhat  that  might  have  been 
fatal  to  me,  if  a  kind  providence  had  not  favoured  me, 
which  I  have  reason  to  remember  with  great  thank 
fulness.  The  case,  in  short,  was  this.  At  that  time 
it  froze  very  hard,  and  some  of  my  countrymen  that 
could  skate  well  upon  the  ice,  were  for  taking  that 
opportunity  of  travelling  to  Leyden,  Haerlem,  and 
other  towns  in  Holland,  and  they  were  very  pressing 
upon  me  to  bear  them  company.  I  desired  to  be  ex 
cused,  because  I  was  not  able  to  skate  with  them; 
and,  therefore,  told  them,  that  I  should  both  lose 
the  pleasure  of  the  journey,  which  they  had  a  pros 
pect  of,  and  that  the  hiring  a  conveyance  for  myself 
upon  the  ice,  would  be  expensive.  They  offered  to 
bring  the  expense  of  my  conveyance  into  the  com 
mon  charges  of  the  journey,  and  thereupon  I  yield 
ed  ;  and  had  a  sledge  upon  the  ice,  and  was  driven 
forward  by  one  that  stood  behind  me,  and  was  a 
good  skater,  and  I  travelled  that  way  pleasantly 
enough. 

It  so  happened,  that  while  we  were  abroad,  there 
fell  a  deep  and  heavy  snow  for  a  whole  night  to 
gether,  and  we  were  to  return  the  very  next  day 
from  Leyden  to  Utrecht.  We  moved  forward  to 
gether  in  the  morning,  and  though  there  was  a  path 
that  was  swept  for  the  skaters,  yet  there  had  not 
been  time  to  make  any  provision  for  the  passing 
of  the  sledges,  which  was  the  occasion  of  my  moving 
along  very  heavily,  and  being  often  overthrown,  by 


LIFE    OF    CALAMI Y.  177 

the  clots  of  snow  that  lay  in  the  way.  The  wea 
ther  was  extremely  cold,  and  though  I  was  pretty 
well  provided  at  setting  out,  having  a  warm  cloak  to 
wrap  close  about  me,  and  a  stove  of  fire  under  me, 
yet  being  often  thrown  down  in  the  snow,  I  lost  my 
fire  from  my  stove,  and  was  in  no  small  danger  of 
being  benumbed  all  over  my  body.  My  countrymen 
seemed  to  pity,  but  could  not  help  me.  They  seated 
on  before,  and  left  me  to  come  after,  as  well  as  I 
could,  which  was  indeed  but  very  indifferently. 

By  that  time  I  got  to  the  Half-way-house  between 
Leyden  and  Utrecht,  I  was  grown  so  cold  and  stiff, 
that  I  could  not  stand  upon  my  feet ;  nor  could  I 
feel  my  way  into  my  pocket,  to  give  him  that  at 
tended  me  the  money  for  which  I  had  agreed.  I  was 
forced  to  creep  upon  all  four  into  the  public  house, 
where  all  that  travelled  that  way  were  used  to  bait ; 
and  when  I  entered,  the  people  were  all  frightened 
at  me,  and  said  I  looked  like  a  dead  man,  and  seem 
ed  to  think  me  frozen  beyond  all  hopes  of  a  recovery 
They  were,  however,  very  ready  to  assist  me,  in  theu 
way,  and  earnestly  bent  upon  carrying  me  to  the 
great  fire,  which  according  to  custom  they  had  in 
their  common  room  ;  but  I  as  earnestly  opposed  it, 
fearing  the  consequence,  if  I  had  gone  too  hastily  to 
the  fire  in  the  condition  in  which  I  then  was,  and 
rather  chose  the  part  most  distant  from  it.  They 
brought  me  a  quartern  of  brandy ;  and  so  weak 
was  I,  that  I  could  not  lift  it  to  my  mouth :  but 
they  held  the  glass  to  me,  and  I  drank  it  up,  and  it 

VOL.  I.  N 


178  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

went  into  my  stomach  like  so  much  cold  water.  I 
desired  them  to  fill  and  light  a  pipe  for  me,  which 
they  did  and  held  it  in  my  mouth,  (I  not  being  able 
to  hold  it  myself,)  and  I  smoked  it  freely ;  the  people 
talking  and  making  remarks  at  their  own  pleasure, 
all  the  while,  though  I  talked  but  little.  When  I 
had  smoked  my  pipe  about  half  through,  they  brought 
me  another  quartern  of  brandy,  and  prevailed  with 
me  to  drink  that  also,  representing  it  as  the  most 
likely  method  that  could  be  taken  to  preserve  and 
recover  me.  I  did  not  perceive  the  strength  of  it 
any  more  than  before ;  but  it  seemed  to  be  like  cold 
water,  just  as  did  the  other.  But  not  long  after 
I  had  taken  it,  I  felt  a  glowing  and  tingling  at  the 
end  of  all  my  fingers  and  toes,  by  which  I  plainly  per 
ceived  I  was  coming  to  myself.  I  then  desired  them 
to  lay  me  down  upon  a  bed,  and  wrap  me  up  very 
warm,  which  they  presently  did,  and  I  fell  into  a 
sweat,  and  had  some  comfortable  sleep,  and  when  I 
awaked,  through  the  great  mercy  of  God,  found 
myself  wonderfully  well,  though  weak.  Upon  this, 
I  cooled  myself  gradually,  and  got  a  horse  sledge 
which  drove  swift,  the  bottom  being  covered  with 
straw,  and  my  clothes  wrapped  about  me.  I  arrived 
safe  that  evening  at  Utrecht,  and  I  bless  God  did 
not  find  any  ill  consequence;  but  had  such  a  sense 
of  what  had  passed,  that  it  would  not  have  been  an 
easy  thing  to  have  drawn  me  in  haste  into  such 
another  frolic. 

Going  another  time  to  Amsterdam  for  a  few  days, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  179 

I  had  there,  at  the  English  ordinary,  opportunity  for 
free  conversation  with  rnany  of  my  countrymen  who 
were  at  that  time  there.  One  of  them  was  Sir  Ro 
bert  Peyton,*  who  was  at  the  head  of  a  regiment  in 
the  service  of  the  Prince  of  Orange  at  the  Revolu 
tion,  and  was  by  name  excepted  out  of  King  James's 
general  pardon  in  1688.  Another  was  Slingsby 
Bethel,  Esq.f  who  was  Sheriff  of  London  at  the  same 
time  with  Mr.  Cornish,:):  and  who  had  thought  fit  to 
get  out  of  the  way  of  danger,  which  Mr.  Cornish 
could  not  be  prevailed  with  to  do,  though  he  was 
earnestly  solicited  and  pressed.  This  Mr.  Bethel 
had  been  found  guilty  of  a  riot,  when  he  was  not 
upon  the  place,  and  without  evidence  that  he  was  so 
much  as  there,  he  having  had  four  witnesses  to  prove 
he  was  elsewhere  at  that  time,  who  could  not  be 
called.^  And  though  the  sentence  passed  against 
him  was  afterwards  reversed  by  the  House  of 
Lords,  as  unjust,  yet  he  and  his  fellow-sufferers 
were  still  left  unrelievable  by  King  William's  Act  of 
Grace,  except  by  process  against  his  Majesty  for 
their  fines  paid  into  the  Exchequer,  which  must  have 
been  very  tedious  and  chargeable.  He  has  left  be 
hind  him  a  certain  Tract,  in  titled,  "  The  Providences 
of  God  observed  through  several  ages  towards  this 
nation,  in  introducing  the  true  religion  ;  and  then 

*  See  "Ellis  Correspondence,"  i.  176. — ED. 

f  See  Ibid.  p.  191  ;  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii,  11.  63.— ED. 

t  In  1680,— ED. 

§  Slate  Trials,  iii.  413-418.— ED. 

N    2 


180  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

in  the  defence  of  that,  preserving  the  people  in  their 
rights  and  liberties,  whilst  other  kingdoms  are  ra 
vished  of  theirs,  as  our  Counsellors  designed  for  us ;" 
which  book  well  deserves  to  be  read  and  considered. 

I  expected  also  to  have  fallen  into  the  company  of 
Mr.  Robert  Ferguson,  who  was  commonly  reckoned 
a  man  by  himself,  and  of  as  odd  a  make  and  mix 
ture  as  any  man  of  the  age.*  But  I  missed  him, 
and  never  was  in  his  company.  He  had  run  through 
several  scenes  in  England,  and  at  last  took  shelter 
in  Holland.  I  could  not  find  that  there,  any  more 
than  here,  he  had  any  great  character  as  to  his 
honour  or  virtue,  probity  or  veracity.  A  true  his 
tory  of  his  life  would  have  discovered  a  great  many 
secrets. 

There  was  another  person  very  famous  in  his  way, 
and  that  was  Mr.  Partridge,  the  astrologer,  f  with 
whom  I  was  twice  or  thrice  in  company.  He  va 
lued  himself  not  a  little  upon  his  astrological  remarks 
in  his  almanack  for  the  year  1688,  which  he  intimated 
would  be  fatal  to  King  James.  Many  told  him  after- 
terwards  that  he  was  much  out,  because  King  James 

*  Bishop  Burnet  ("  Own  Time,"  i.  542)  says  of  him,  that  he 
"  was  a  hot  and  a  bold  man,  whose  spirit  was  naturally  turned  to 
plotting.  He  was  always  unquiet,  and  setting  people  on  to 
some  mischief."— C.  See  "Ellis  Correspondence,"  ii.  298 ED. 

f  Created  M.D.  at  Leyden.  Mr.  Granger  says,  from  Aubrey, 
that  Partridge,  who  had  "  acquired  Latin,  Greek,  and  Hebrew, 
and  studied  physic,  was  in  1680,  a  shoemaker  in  Covent-Garden. 
Not  long  after,  he  was  sworn  physician  to  Charles  II."  Biog. 
Hist.  (1775)  iv.  104, 105.  See  Tatters.—- ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  181 

was  not  dead ;  to  which  he  replied,  that  he  was  dead 
in  law,  which  was  to  all  intents  and  purposes  suffi 
cient. 

While  I  was  at  this  time  at  Amsterdam,  I  was 
very  civilly  treated  by  Mr.  Paul  D'Aranda,  then  a 
merchant  in  that  city,  who  afterwards  returning  into 
England,  bought  an  estate  in  the  county  of  Kent, 
and  was  brother  to  my  particular  friend,  Mr.  Ben 
jamin  D'Aranda,  one  of  my  fellow-students  at  Utrecht. 
I  dined  also  with  Mr.  Gouge,  who  was  then  minister 
of  the  English  church  in  that  city,  who  was  (at  that 
time  at  least)  very  great  with  Mr.  Partridge.  He 
in  conversation  told  me  very  freely,  that  Mr.  Par 
tridge  and  he  had  with  great  exactness  calculated 
the  year,  the  month,  the  day,  and  the  very  hour, 
when  the  city  of  Rome  was  to  be  burnt  and  de 
stroyed,  so  as  never  to  be  rebuilt  any  more.  I  de 
sired  him,  if  he  thought  fit,  to  tell  me  about  what 
time  this  was  to  be.  He  desired  to  be  excused  as  to 
that ;  but  at  the  same  time  assured  me,  that  accord 
ing  to  the  course  of  nature,  I  might  live  to  see  that 
time.*  This  gentleman  afterwards  died  pastor  to  a 
congregation  in  the  City  of  London,  and  was  suc 
ceeded  by  Mr.  Ridgeley. 

I  endeavoured  also  to  have  seen  Monsieur  John 
Le  Clerc,  who  was  at  that  time,  as  he  has  been  by 
many  since,  reckoned  as  great  a  curiosity  as  any  in 

*  There  had  been  published,  in  1656,  a  prediction  of  Rome's 
burning  in  exactly  ten  years,  the  foreteller  little  designing  to 
prognosticate  the  fire  of  London.  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  i. 
c.  xlvii.  n. — ED. 


182  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  place  ;  but  he  was  from  home,  and  I  could  not 
meet  with  him.  He  is  one  of  the  professors  of  the 
Remonstrants  in  this  city,  and  has  taken  as  much 
pains,  and  published  as  many  books,  as  most  men 
of  the  present  age.  And  he  is  remarkable  for  this, 
among  a  number  of  other  things,  that  his  life  is 
published*  before  he  is  dead.  Nor  did  I  see,  ail  the 
while  I  was  in  this  country,  the  Apocalyptical  Mon 
sieur  Jurieu,  which  I  have  oft  been  troubled  at. 
He  had  contests  with  many  in  his  time,  but  I  do  not 
know  whether  any  one  of  them  was  so  remarkable 
as  that  with  Monsieur  Bayle,  his  countryman,  who 
was  a  refugee  as  well  as  himself. f 

But  my  chief  excursion,  while  I  was  in  these 
parts,  was  in  the  company  of  five  of  my  country 
men.  We  went  into  North  Holland,  crossed  the 
Zuyder  Zee,  and  passed  into  Friesland.  Landing  at 
Staveren,  (of  which  town  Huetius  tells  us  a'  memo 
rable  story, i)  we  went  to  Leu  warden,  Franequer, 
and  Groninguen  ;  and  so  by  Deventer,  Zutphen,  and 
Harderwick,  returned  to  Utrecht,  seeing  King  Wil- 

*  See  "  Joannis  Clerici  Vita  et  Opera,  ad  annum  MDCCXI." 
written  by  himself,  as  "  Amici  ejus  opusculum,  philosophicis 
Clerici  operibus  subjiciendum."  AmsteL  1711.— ED. 

f  An  Account  of  the  particulars  of  his  contest  with  him, 
(though  it  is  a  pretty  severe  one)  may  be  seen  in  "  The  Life  of 
Mr.  Bayle,  in  a  Letter  to  a  Peer  of  Great  Britain/'  printed  at  the 
end  of  his  "  Miscellaneous  Reflections,  occasioned  by  the  Comet 
which  appeared  in  December  1680,"  printed  in  two  volumes  in 
8vo.  1708,  and  "  translated  from  the  French."— C. 

I  "  Comment,  de  rebus  ad  se  pertinentibus,"  L.  iii. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  183 

Ham's  houses  at  Dieren  and  Looe,  by  the  way, 
which  journey  was  very  diverting.  We  found  the 
towns  in  North  Holland  exceedingly  neat,  and  the 
ground  which  they  had  in  those  parts  recovered  from 
the  sea,  very  rich  and  pleasant. 

When  we  were  come  into  Friesland,  (which  coun 
try,  together  with  the  parts  adjacent,  was  in  all  pro 
bability  the  seat  of  the  old  Saxons,  who,  about  the 
year  450,  came  over  hither  and  filled  this  island 
by  degrees,  upon  the  desertion  of  the  Roman  forces, 
and  the  incursions  of  the  cruel  Picts,  supported  and 
assisted  by  the  Scots,)  we  made  what  inquiries  we 
could  as  we  were  travelling,  into  the  language  of 
the  native  Frizons,  which,  as  Sir  William  Temple* 
has  observed,  has  "  still  so  great  affinity  with  our  old 
English,  as  to  appear  easily  to  have  been  the  same ; 
most  of  their  words  still  retaining  the  same  signi 
fication  and  sound,  very  different  from  the  language 
of  the  Hollanders."  We  particularly  observed  this 
at  Molquerum,  a  town  near  the  Zuyder  Zee,  not  far 
from  Staveren,  where  we  heard  one  of  the  natives 
pronounce  the  Lord's  Prayer,  which  we  all  observed 
to  be  very  like  our  old  English. 

This  little  town  of  Molquerum  very  much  diverted 
us.  It  is  built  after  the  fashion  of  the  old  German 
villages  described  by  Tacitus,  without  any  use  or 
observation  of  lines  or  angles,  but  as  if  every  man 
had  built  in  a  common  field  just  where  he  had  a 
mind ;  so  that  when  a  stranger  goes  in,  he  must 

*  Observations,  c.  ii.  p.  141. — C. 


184  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

have  a  guide  to  find  his  way  out  again,  or  he  would 
be  much  puzzled.  Wherever  we  came  as  we  passed 
along,  after  we  had  gone  a  few  steps,  we  came  di 
rectly  against  some  house  ;  and  whether  we  turned 
to  the  right  or  left,  after  a  few  steps  more  we  came 
against  another  house  ;  and  if  we  then  turned  either 
to  the  left  or  the  right,  it  was  still  the  same  again. 
As  we  were  thus  walking  about,  we  dropped  into  a 
school,  where  the  master  sat  in  an  advanced  place 
with  a  desk  before  him,  having  a  blue  waistcoat  on 
and  trowsers  down  to  his  heels,  with  a  seaman's  cap 
on  his  head,  and  a  small  cane  in  his  hand  ;  the 
young  ones  sitting  in  rank  and  order  upon  forms 
before  him,  in  the  very  same  garb  and  dress.  Both 
master  and  scholars  seemed  surprised  to  see  a  parcel 
of  strangers  coming  in  upon  them  on  a  sudden  ;  but 
we  were  not  a  little  diverted.  The  scholars  might 
be  about  eighty  in  number.  We  heard  them  say 
their  lessons,  and  then  begged  them  a  play,  and  left 
the  young  ones  very  merry. 

We  were  afterwards  at  the  Court  at  Leuwarden, 
where  we  saw  the  young  prince  of  Friesland,  John 
William  Casimir,  whom  King  William  III.  made 
his  sole  and  universal  heir  of  all  his  estates,  both 
feudal  and  allodial.  He  was  then  young ;  but  after 
wards  married  the  daughter  of  the  Landgrave  of 
Hesse  Cassel,  and  having  behaved  with  great  boldness 
and  bravery  in  the  army,  where  he  was  Lieutenant- 
general,  so  as  to  give  raised  hopes  of  equalling  his 
glorious  ancestors,  was,  in  1711,  unhappily  drowned 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY.  185 

at  Moordyke,  as  he  was  ferrying  over  the  Arner,  in 
his  passage  from  Flanders  towards  the  Hague,  there 
to  meet  the  King  of  Prussia. 

When  we  came  to  Franequer  and  Groeninguen,  it 
being  vacation  time,  we  missed  seeing  the  Professors, 
on  whom  we  would  have  gladly  waited,  and  could 
only  see  the  schools  and  the  libraries,  and  the  curio 
sities  of  private  gentlemen,  whom  we  found  exceed 
ing  civil  to  strangers.  At  Zutphen,  we  dropped  a 
sigh  over  our  glorious  countryman,  Sir  Philip  Sid 
ney,  who  there  lost  his  life  in  the  war  against  the 
Spaniards.  And  when  we  came  into  Guelderland, 
it  pleased  us  to  find  that  province  so  like  to  our 
own  country.  We  admired  the  situation  of  Looe  ; 
but  I  have  been  informed  that  that  palace  has  been 
since  greatly  improved. 

I  continued  in  Holland  till  the  year  1691,  at  which 
time  our  glorious  King  William  the  First,  revisited 
his  native  country.  After  his  quitting  it,  he  had 
most  happily  succeeded  in  bringing  about  a  revolu 
tion  in  England,  and  reducing  of  Ireland.  And  in 
this  latter  undertaking,  a  special  Divine  Providence 
evidently  attended  him,  as  well  as  in  the  former : 
for  King  James  made  a  great  opposition,  with  a 
considerable  number  of  French  forces  by  land,  and 
got  that  whole  kingdom  into  his  possession,  except 
Londonderry,  (which  was  reduced  to  the  last  ex 
tremity,  and  then  relieved  in  a  surprising  manner,* 

*  See  "  Life  and  Reign  of  King  William  III."  ii,  60,  61,  69. 
— C. 


186  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

though  the  inhabitants,  on  the  account  of  their  being 
Dissenters,  were  not  rewarded  as  they  deserved;) 
and  Inniskilling,  the  inhabitants  of  which  town  did 
more  than  could  be  expected  from  any  mortals. 
The  French  fleet  rode  masters  in  the  Channel,  and 
(which  was  a  thing  before  unheard-of,)  insulted  the 
English  coasts,*  and  matters  had  been  desperate, 
had  it  not  been  for  the  victory  at  the  Boyne,  July  1, 
1690,  which  was  as  seasonable  as  it  was  glorious. 

At  the  King's  first  coining  to  the  Hague  after 
these  things,  being  attended  by  a  good  number  of 
English  noblemen  that  made  a  splendid  appearance, 
he  was  received  by  the  States  with  abundance  of 
pomp  and  solemnity,  and  as  great  acclamations  as 
ever  were  known.  Upon  this  occasion  there  was  a 
mighty  resort  thither  from  all  parts,  and  my  curio 
sity  led  me  also  to  be  a  spectator.  The  triumphal 
arches  that  were  erected  at  the  public  charge,  were 
very  stately  and  magnificent,  and  represented  his 
Majesty's  great  achievements.  The  burghers  ap 
peared  in  arms,  adorned  in  an  unusual  manner  ;  and 
in  the  evening  there  were  very  noble  fire-works. 
The  great  number  of  sovereign  princes  and  poten 
tates,  together  with  ambassadors,  and  other  illus 
trious  persons,  who  came  to  attend  his  Majesty  in 
the  Congress,  at  that  time  when  they  were  to  settle 
the  grand  alliance  against  France,  (whose  power 

*  "  After  their  victory  at  sea,  June  30,  they  hovered  about 
upon  the  coasts,  as  if  they  intended  a  descent,  which  put  the 
kingdom  into  a  great  consternation."  Chron,  Hist.  i.  260. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  187 

was  so  formidable  to  all  Europe,)  was  a  most  glo 
rious  sight,  the  like  to  which  has  been  but  seldom 
met  with.  Yet  the  French  soon  after  these  con 
sultations  were  over,  besieged  and  took  Mons,  in 
Hainault ;  and  the  King  could  do  little  with  his 
forces,  in  the  remainder  of  that  campaign.  But  I, 
for  my  part,  having  seen  the  noble  sight  fore-men 
tioned  at  the  Hague,  in  the  month  of  February,  re 
turned  for  Utrecht ;  and  when  the  lectures  of  the 
professors  were  over,  in  the  month  of  May  came 
back  to  England,  blessing  God  for  his  great  goodness 
to  me  for  the  three  years  I  continued  in  Holland, 
and  the  advantages  I  enjoyed  there  in  order  to  my 
improvement  in  the  knowledge  of  men  and  things. 

I  had,  indeed,  great  reason  to  be  very  thankful, 
all  circumstances  being  considered.  I  had  not,  it 
is  true,  in  all  this  time  received  the  Lord's  Sup 
per,  which  I  could  not,  upon  reflection,  but  blame 
myself  for  ;  nor  do  I  know  that  it  was  done  by  any 
of  my  countrymen  that  were  students  there  in  my 
time :  and  yet  I  was  very  sensible  that  their  neglect 
would  not  excuse  mine.  I  cannot  say  that  I  kept 
up  that  seriousness  of  spirit  that  I  ought  to  have 
done,  which  I  lamented  at  my  coming  away,  and 
have  oft  done  since.  I  was  too  apt  to  be  influenced 
by  common  examples,  as  to  iny  conduct  on  the 
Lord's-day,*  and  in  some  other  things,  which  the 
sense  of  my  strict  education,  and  the  design  I  had 
of  devoting  myself  to  the  special  service  of  God,  in 

*  See  Supra,  pp.  14G,  147.     ED. 


188  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  work  and  office  of  the  ministry,  should  have 
preserved  me  from. 

I  have  often  thought  it  very  unhappy,  that  when 
there  were  so  many  at  that  time  in  Utrecht,  who 
designed  for  the  ministry,  we  should  have  no  meet 
ings  among  ourselves,  in  order  to  praying  together, 
and  Christian  conversation,  that  so  we  might  have 
warned,  and  quickened,  and  watched  over  one  ano 
ther  as  there  was  occasion,  which  might  have  had 
good  effects.     I  had,  however,  a  considerable  num 
ber  of  good  practical  books  of  English  divinity  with 
me,  which  I  read  frequently  with  delight  and  plea 
sure  ;  and  had  I  not  in  that  respect  been  well  pro 
vided,  I  doubt  it  would  have  been  worse  with  me 
than   it   was.     I   can,   from    my    own    experience, 
heartily  recommend  it  to  all  students  of  theology,  at 
the  same  time  that  they  are  endeavouring  to  lay  in  a 
stock  of  knowledge  and  learning,  in  a  speculative 
way,  to  converse  with  freedom  with  the  writings  of 
our  practical  divines,  on  purpose  that  they  may  have 
the  warmer  sense  of  the  things  of  God  upon  their 
minds  and  hearts. 

There  were  several  of  our  countrymen  that  came 
to  pursue  their  studies  at  Utrecht  in  the  latter  part 
of  my  time  there  :  as  Mr.  Thomas  Foley,  now  Lord 
Foley  ;  Henry  Ashurst,  Esq.  now  Sir  Henry  Ashurst, 
of  Waterstock,  in  Oxfordshire,  Bart.  ;  Mr.  Richard 
(now  Dr.)  Mead;*  Mr.  Henry,  of  Lyme,  in  Dorset 
shire  ;  Mr.  Safford,  of  Taunton  ;  Mr.  Fern,  of  Lon- 

*  See  Supra,  p.  144,  note. — En. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  189 

don ;  and  Mr.  Halsey,  of  Cornwall,  who  all  three 
afterwards  took  their  degrees  in  physic  ;  Mr.  King, 
son  of  Sir  John  King,  and  others  ;  and  I  cannot  say 
but  we  were  all  friendly  one  to  another,  and  careful 
of  the  honour  of  our  country. 

The  person  I  last  mentioned  was  a  prodigy  of 
learning  and  knowledge  for  his  age.  He  was  not 
much  more  than  twenty,  and  yet  had  read  law, 
physic,  and  divinity,  and  had  gone  over  the  ancient 
classics  and  historians,  and  most  of  the  fathers  of 
the  three  first  centuries,  together  with  the  Popish 
controversies,  and  got  a  good  insight  into  the  ma 
thematics  too.  The  truth  of  it  is,  he  had  overdone 
it,  and  his  mind  was  overstocked,  and  his  body  too 
weak  to  bear  the  weight  of  it.  He  took  no  diver 
sion,  but  was  always  at  his  book.  It  was  far  from 
issuing  well,  for  he  died  before  he  was  thirty ;  and 
for  some  time  before  his  death  he  was  distracted. 

The  celebrated  Mons.  Nic.  Facio  also,  who  was 
afterwards  so  famous  for  his  concern  with  the  French 
Prophets,  resided  for  some  time  here  as  tutor  to  Mr. 
Ellys  and  Mr.  Thornton,  and  conversed  pretty  freely 
with  the  English.  But  though  he  was  a  good 
mathematician,*  yet  he  was  generally  reckoned  a 

*  Burnet  to  Boyle,  1685,  mentions  an  "  observation  of  that 
incomparable  mathematician  and  philosopher,  Nicholas  Fatio 
Duilier,  who,  at  twenty-two  years  of  age,  is  already  one  of  the 
greatest  men  of  this  age,  and  seems  born  to  carry  learning  some 
sizes  beyond  what  it  has  yet  attained."  Travels,  (1737,)  p.  12. 
See  Biog.  Brit.  iii.  143,  144.— ED. 


190  LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY. 

Spinozist,  and  his  discourse  very  much  looked  that 
way. 

As  to  myself,  through  the  great  goodness  of  God, 
I  enjoyed  my  health  well  all  the  while  I  was  in 
Holland,  till  towards  the  latter  end  of  my  stay 
there,  when  I  grew  a  little  melancholy  and  listless. 
I  had  followed  my  studies  pretty  closely,  and  used 
commonly  to  sit  up  one  night  in  a  week,  that  I 
might  redeem  the  more  time.  Though  I  did  riot 
presently  discern  that  this  was  attended  with  any  ill 
consequence,  yet  I  am  inclinable  to  think  I  was  not 
the  better  for  it  afterwards.  I  found  such  an  indis 
position  growing  upon  me  at  length,  that  I  was  for 
hastening  back  into  my  native  country. 

After  taking  my  leave  of  the  professors,  and  of 
my  countrymen,  I,  in  the  month  of  May,  1691,  re 
turned  by  the  way  of  Helvoetsluys,  to  Harwich. 
As  I  was  taking  boat,  I  met  with  an  accident  that 
greatly  troubled  me.  While  I  was  at  Helvoetsluys, 
the  wind  was  against  us,  and  we  were  forced  to  stay 
some  time  for  its  changing.  That  happened  in  the 
night,  and  we  that  were  waiting  for  a  passage,  were 
called  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  went  in  a  great 
hurry  to  the  packet-boat.  I  thought  I  was  very  care 
ful  of  my  things,  having  one  to  attend  me  to  carry 
them  to  the  water-side,  and  there  my  portmanteau 
was  set  down,  with  a  rye  sack  as  they  call  it,  (which 
was  like  one  of  our  school  boys'  satchels,  made  of 
wrought  stuff,  and  lined  with  leather,)  which  is  a 
sort  of  convenience  much  used  among  the  Dutch  to 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  191 

carry  necessaries,  as  they  travel  in  their  track 
schuyts.  Several  of  us  were  hurrying  into  the  pac 
ket-boat  at  once,  and  I  among  the  rest  was  en 
deavouring  to  secure  myself  a  convenient  cabin,  and 
our  baggage  was  brought  on  board  after  us.  I  saw 
my  portmanteau  in  the  vessel,  and  thought  my  rye- 
sack  had  been  by  it,  though  it  proved  otherwise. 
We  set  sail  in  haste,  that  we  might  have  the  benefit 
of  the  present  gale,  and  not  have  the  wind  turn 
upon  us,  before  we  got  out  to  sea.  Some  time  after 
we  had  sailed,  I  missed  my  rye-sack,  and  carefully 
inquired  for  it,  but  it  was  not  to  be  found;  and, 
therefore,  I  concluded  it  was  left  ashore,  in  the 
hurry  in  which  we  came  on  board ;  and  might  per 
haps  be  overlooked  undesignedly  in  the  dark. 

The  master  of  that  packet-boat,  Capt.  Stephens, 
was  one  of  a  very  good  reputation.  He  lived  at  Har 
wich,  where  he  was  well  known,  and  much  respect 
ed,  and  was  particularly  famous  for  as  eminent  a 
preservation  as  ever  was  heard  of  in  a  voyage  be 
tween  Holland  and  England.  He  sprang  a  leak, 
the  water  poured  in  upon  the  vessel  in  great 
abundance,  and  all  that  were  on  board  concluded 
themselves  lost.  But  on  a  sudden,  there  was  a 
check,  and  no  more  water  came  in,  though  they  at 
that  time  knew  not  to  what  it  was  to  be  ascribed. 
They  pumped  out  the  water  that  had  flowed  in  upon 
them,  with  abundance  of  pleasure,  and  when  they 
came  ashore,  found  that  the  leak  was  stopped  by  a 
fish  got  into  it,  and  that  was  so  fast  wedged  in,  that 


192  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

they  could  hardly  get  it  out  without  breaking  it  to 
pieces.  The  captain  preserved  the  fish  in  spirits,  as 
a  memorandum  of  his  wonderful  deliverance ;  and  I 
am  informed  it  remains  preserved  in  that  way  even 
to  this  day. 

I  earnestly  desired  the  captain  when  he  return 
ed  back  to  Helvoetsluys,  after  our  passage  over,  to 
search  for  my  lost  goods,  and  allowed  him  to  offer  a 
good  reward  to  any  one  that  would  discover  them, 
so  that  they  might  be  had  again ;  and  he  pro 
mised  me  to  do  his  utmost,  and  I  believe  did  so  : 
but  after  some  time  he  sent  me  word  that  he  could 
make  no  discovery.  In  this  bag,  besides  a  few 
necessaries,  (of  no  great  value,)  I  lost  a  number  of 
MSS.,  which  contained  notes  that  I  had  taken  after 
Grevius  and  Witsius,  in  their  public  and  private 
lectures,  and  collections  in  the  course  of  my  own 
reading,  which  had  cost  me  a  good  deal  of  time  and 
pains.  This  was  a  great  loss  for  a  young  student 
just  setting  out  in  the  world :  I  lamented  it  much, 
but  could  not  help  myself.  Whoever  it  was  that 
got  these  MSS.,  their  gain  was  not  comparable  to 
my  loss.  In  all  probability  they  would  have  pre 
ferred  a  little  money,  before  what  they  got,  had  my 
offer  come  to  their  ears.  But  I  was  so  thankful 
when  I  once  got  ashore  in  my  own  country,  that  the 
sense  of  my  loss  wore  off,  and  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
my  friends  again,  after  three  years'  absence  from 
them,  made  me  forget  it,  though  I  would  willingly 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  193 

have  given  what  was  pretty  considerable,  to  have 
recovered  my  papers,  which  I  lost  in  this  case. 

Upon  my  return  home,  I  found  things  much  al 
tered,  from  the  state  in  which  I  left  them.  When  I 
went  away,  all  people  in  general,  of  one  sort  and 
another,  were  full  of  fears  of  approaching  ruin. 
Neither  they  that  were  in  the  Established  Church, 
nor  they  that  were  out  of  it,  could  see  how  to  es 
cape  Popery  and  slavery,  if  King  James's  reign  con 
tinued.  The  obliging  the  clergy  in  all  parts  to  read 
the  prayers  and  thanksgivings  that  were  published 
upon  occasion  of  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales,*  was 
justly  reckoned  a  great  hardship  at  that  time,  and 
was  likely  enough  to  be  followed  with  yet  greater,  f 
And  though  the  Dissenters  were  not  cramped  in 
that  respect,  (their  avowed  principles  being  allowed 
to  excuse  them  from  the  use  of  any  such  forms,) 
yet  were  they  not  without  their  difficulties. 

King  James  the  First  tried  all    the  methods  he 

*  See  supra,  p.  151  note.  Father  Orleans  says  :  "  Tant  de 
temoins  irreprochables  avoient  vu  naitre  le  Prince  de  Galles, 
tant  de  gens  1'avoient  vu  des  qu'il  fut  ne,  que  la  fable  a  paru  insou- 
tenable  a  ceux  monies,  qui  auroient  eu  le  plus  d'interest  a  la  sou- 
tenir."  Rev.  iii.  499.  See  "  Ellis  Correspondence,"  ii.  372. — ED. 

f  "  Nov.  9,  1688.  Dr.  Burnet  was  sent  to  the  cathedral  of 
Exeter,  to  order  the  priests  and  vicars  not  to  pray  for  the  pre 
tended  Prince  of  Wales.  The  same  day,  his  Highness  went  to 
the  said  cathedral,  and  was  present  at  the  singing  Te  Deum, 
after  which  his  Declaration  was  read  to  th?  people.  But  the 
ministers  rushed  out  of  the  church."  Fasti  Gulielmi  Tertii. 

"  After  the  collects  were  ended,  Dr.  Burnet  began  to  read  his 

VOL.  I.  O 


194  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

could  think  of  to  bring  the  Church  into  his  mea 
sures,  and  twice  offered  (as  has  been  said,)  to  make 
a  sacrifice  of  all  the  Dissenters  in  the  kingdom  to 
them,  if  they  would  but  have  complied  with  him. 
Failing  in  his  design  on  that  side,  and  finding  them 
steady  to  the  Constitution,  he  faced  about  to  the 
Dissenters,  and  offered  them  a  like  sacrifice  of  the 
Church,  hoping  by  gratifying  their  revenge,  to  gain 
their  help  in  his  design  of  mastering  the  laws,  break 
ing  in  upon  the  Constitution,  and  ruining  the  Pro 
testant  religion.  Upon  this  occasion  the  Lord  Hali 
fax's  "  Letter  to  a  Dissenter"*  came  out  very  sea 
sonably,  and  was  of  use. 

But  while  I  was  abroad,  some  things  fell  out  here 
at  home,  which  I  think  it  very  proper  to  take 

Highness's  Declaration,  at  which  the  ministers  of  the  church, 
there  present,  were  so  surprised,  that  they  immediately  left  their 
seats  and  went  out.  However,  the  Doctor  continued  reading, 
and  the  Declaration  being  ended,  he  said,  '  God  save  the  Prince 
of  Orange  !'  to  which  the  major  part  of  the  congregation 
answered,  amen."  See  "  Hist,  of  William,  III."  (1702)  p.  240. 

The  prelate  and  the  historian  would  scarcely  desire  to  recol 
lect,  or  to  record  this  attempt  of  the  Prince's  chaplain  on  the 
consciences  of  his  clerical  brethren,  "  the  priests  and  vicars." 
Bishop  Burnet  says  : — 

"  Both  the  clergy  and  magistrates  were  very  fearful,  and  very 
backward.  The  bishop  and  the  dean  ran  away.  Yet  care  was 
taken  to  protect  the  clergy  and  their  houses,  every  where.  The 
Prince  gave  me  full  authority  to  do  this."  "  Own  Time,"  i. 
790.  See  "  Ellis  Correspondence/'  ii.  290,  296,  333. — ED. 

*  "  Upon  occasion  of  his  Majesty's  late  gracious  declaration 
of  Indulgence."  Republished,  1700. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  195 

some  notice  of.  In  the  end  of  April,  1688,  King 
James  published  his  second  Declaration  for  liberty 
of  conscience  ;  and  a  little  after,  an  Order  passed  in 
the  Council,  requiring  the  Bishops  to  send  copies  of 
it  to  all  their  Clergy,  and  to  insist  upon  their  read 
ing  it  on  two  several  Sundays  in  time  of  Divine 
Service.  This  was  flatly  refused  by  the  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  and  a  number  of  his  brethren  ;*  and 
this  refusal  of  theirs  caused  an  open  rupture  between 
the  King  and  them,  and  helped  very  much  to  pave 
the  way  for  the  Revolution,  though  it  does  not  seem 
to  have  been  designed  to  produce  any  such  effect,  by 
the  agents  on  either  side.  The  Providence  of  God 
was  in  this  case  very  remarkable.  Father  D'Or- 
leans  says :  that  "  it  was  originally  a  contrivance  of 
the  English  Presbyterians,  or  rather  of  their  par 
sons."!  If  it  was  so,  I  think  verily,  it  was  a  hap 
py  one.  But  I  cannot  help  being  of  opinion,  that 
whoever  maturely  considers  it,  will  see  cause  to 
ascribe  it  to  a  higher  hand.  That  this  may  the 
better  be  discerned,  I  shall  here  take  the  pains  to 
transcribe  a  paper,  which  I  received  from  Mr.  Ar 
cher,  of  Tunbridge,  when  in  the  summer  of  the 
year  1724,  I  spent  some  time  there  in  drinking 
the  water.  He  gave  me  assurance,  that  he  found 

*  See  "  Diary  of  Lord  Clarendon,"   Correspondence,   ii.    171. 

—ED. 

t  See  his  "  History  of  Revolutions/'  &c.  p.  299. — C. 

"  Ce  fut  originairement  une  intrigue  des  Presbyteriens  d'An- 
gleterre,  ou,  pour  mieux  dire,  de  leurs  Ministres."  Rev.  iii.  500. 
-ED. 

O  2 


196  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

it  among  the  MSS.  of  worthy  Mr.  Francis  Tallents 
of  Shrewsbury ;  *  several  of  which  were  given 
him  by  the  executor  of  the  said  Mr.  Tallents. 
The  paper,  which  was  in  Mr.  Tallents'  own  hand 
writing,  was  in  the  words  following : — 

"  In  the  beginning  of  the  year  1694,  three  ser 
mons  preached  by  Dr.  Bancroft  were  reprinted,  with 
an  account  of  his  life  and  death  in  Suffolk,  after  his 
deprivation  and  removal  from  Lambeth.  The  ac 
count  of  his  life  is  florid,  but  only  a  general  encomi 
um,  and  very  imperfect. 

"  The  first  of  the  sermons  was  at  the  Consecration 
of  Dr.  Cosin,  Bishop  of  Durham,  (whose  chaplain  he 
then  was,  and  to  whom  he  makes  a  stately  pane 
gyric  and  dedication  before  it,)  and  five  other  bis 
hops,  the  first  Sunday  in  Advent,  1660,  from  Tit.  i. 
5.  '  For  this  cause  left  I  thee  in  Crete,  to  set  in  or 
der  the  things  that  are  wanting,  and  ordain  elders, 
in  every  city,  as  I  have  appointed  thee.'  And  ap 
plies  this  to  the  then  present  condition  of  the  Bis 
hops  in  England,  which  how  fitly,  all  unbiassed  per 
sons,  especially  after  so  long  a  time,  may  judge. 

"  It  is  a  florid  piece,  filled  with  handsome  touches 
of  wit  and  learning,  and  suited  greatly  to  the  hu 
mour  and  interest  that  then  reigned. 

*  Where  "he  died,  1708,  aged  88.  Mr.  Dawes  who  read  the 
burial  service  over  this  good  man's  grave,  would  not  presume  to 
read  over  him,  in  sure  and  certain  hope,  but  only  in  hope."  See 
Account,  p.  551  ;  Cont.  p.  722. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  197 

"  Makes  Titus  a  Metropolitan,  a  fixed  bishop  in 
Crete  (who  had  been  his  host  at  Corinth,  Acts  xviii. 
7.)  Titus  the  son  of  Justus,  and  his  interpreter  to 
the  Grecians,  because  St.  Paul  did  not  pronounce 
the  Greek  well :  so  Hitr.  on  2!  Cor.  vii.  6.  and  Ba 
ron,  ad  an.  45.  n.  32.  Two  fond  guesses. 

"  '  To  set  things  right,  and  ordain  Presbyters  ;' 
that  is,  bishops  :  and  '  in  every  city  ;'  not  in  lesser 
towns  ;  6  as  Paul  had  appointed  him  ;'  i.  e.  according 
to  the  universal  practice  of  the  ancient  church,  handed 
to  us  by  tradition,  and  conformity  of  practice,  and 
by  degrees  inserted  into  the  Canons  of  the  old  Coun 
cils  ;  and  to  be  seen  in  the  grave,  solemn,  pious, 
devout,  primitive,  and  apostolical  action  that  was  to 
follow,  coming  up  so  exactly  to  the  letter  of  his  text. 
But  how  wide  from  it  these  things  are,  though  it 
passed  bravely  then,  men  will  judge  and  see. 

"  He  extols  King  Charles  as  the  repairer  of  the 
breach,  and  nursing  father  of  the  Church  :  speaks  of 
the  bishops'  great  work  and  labour  to  rectify  things  ; 
i.  e.  to  let  leases,*  grow  rich,  turning  out  Dissenters, 
&c. 

"  The  account  of  his  life  says,  he  was  a  constant 
attender  on  our  Liturgy,  both^in  private  and  public, 
mighty  devout  in  it,  and  died  immediately  after  the 

*  Almost  all  the  leases  of  the  Church's  Estates  over  England 
were  fallen  in,  there  having  been  no  renewal  for  twenty  years. 
And  the  fines  that  were  raised  by  the  renewal  of  those  leases, 
rose  to  about  a  million  and  a  half. — C. 


198  LIFE  OF  CALAMY. 

Recommendatory  Prayer  in  the  Service  for  the  Visi 
tation  of  the  Sick  was  read  to  him  :  and  was  much 
concerned,  (i.  e.  had  a  great  hand,)  in  the  alteration 
of  it  upon  the  King's  Restoration. 

"  This  appears  ;  for,  as  I  have  been  told,  Bishop 
Cosin  had  an  old  Common  Prayer  Book  with  all 
the  alterations  then  made,  in  the  margin,  with  the 
names  of  those  that  caused  them  to  be  made.  Dr. 
Sancroft  altered  the  rubric,  where  it  was  said  no 
thing  is  to  be  read  in  churches  *  but  by  the  Bishop's 
order ;'  to  which  the  Doctor  added,  (  or  the  King's 
order.'  And  in  the  year  16879  when  King  James 
ordered  all  Ministers  to  read  his  Grant  for  Indul 
gence  as  to  religion,  and  the  Bishops  and  Ministers 
generally  refused  to  read  it,  Dr.  Cartwright,  the 
Bishop  of  Chester,  brought  the  book  (which  the 
Bishop  had  given  to  the  library  of  Durham,  of 
which  the  Bishop  of  Chester  had  been  one  of  the 
Prebendaries,)  and  showed  that  passage  to  the 
King  ;  and  that  the  Archbishop,  who  then  opposed 
it,  was  the  person  who  had  put  in  that  very  clause, 
that  Ministers  were  to  read  what  the  King  ordered 
them." 

In  confirmation  of  this,  it  deserves  observation 
that  in  the  "  Address  of  the  Clergy  of  the  county 
palatine  of  Chester,"  (presented  to  the  King  in  1688) 
who  published  the  Declaration  for  Liberty  of  Con 
science  in  their  churches,  there  is  a  clause  in  these 
words :  "  and  we  are  required  by  what  is  statute 
law,  the  rubric  of  our  liturgy,  to  publish  what  is 


LIFE    OF   CALAMY.  199 

enjoined  by  the   King,  or  our  Bishop,  as  much  as 
what  is  prescribed  in  the  rules  of  this  book."* 

It  from  hence  very  plainly  appears,  that  what 
ever  Dr.  Sancroft  thought  fit  to  do,  when  he  was 
called  upon  by  King  James,  as  Archbishop  of  Can 
terbury,  to  cause  the  publication  of  his  Declaration 
for  Liberty  in  all  the  churches  of  his  clergy,  it  was 
his  original  principle  that  the  clergy  were  obliged  to 
read  in  the  public  churches,  whatsoever  was  ordered 
to  be  so  read  by  the  King  as  well  as  by  the  Bishops. 
There  is  good  evidence  that  he  acted  upon  this  prin 
ciple  in  the  reign  of  King  Charles,  whatever  he 
might  think  fit  to  do  in  the  time  of  King  James. 
For  this  I  refer  to  Bishop  Burnet,  who  (as  has  been 
before  observed)  tells  us  that  when  King  Charles,  in 
the  year  1681,  "  set  out  a  declaration  for  satisfying 
his  people,"  about  dissolving  his  late  Parliaments, 
"  and  set  out  their  undutiful  behaviour  to  him  in 
many  instances,  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  moved 
in  Council,  that  an  order  should  be  added  to  it 
requiring  the  clergy  to  publish  it  in  all  the  churches 
of  England."  He  says,  that  "  this  was  looked  on 
as  a  most  pernicious  precedent,  by  which  the  clergy 
were  made  the  heralds  to  publish  the  King's  decla 
rations,  which  in  some  instances  might  come  to  be 
not  only  indecent  but  mischievous."!  This  was  the 

*  See  "  Compleat  History  of  England,"  iii.  521.— C.    "  Hist. 
of  Addresses,"  by  De  Foe.  (1709)  p.  175.— ED. 
t  "  Own  Time/'  i.  500 C. 


200  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

more  remarkable,  because  the  declaration  which  he 
was  for  having  read  in  all  the  churches,  had  a  very 
threatening  aspect  upon  the  liberty  of  the  nation. 
And  yet,  though  the  Archbishop  was  at  that  time 
for  the  King's  prescribing  the  reading  of  such  a 
threatening  declaration,  when  King  James  came  to 
order  a  declaration  in  favour  of  the  Dissenters  to  be 
read  in  all  the  churches,  he  was  for  stopping  short 
and  refusing  at  once. 

Bishop  Burnet,  therefore,  speaking  of  the  year 
1 688,  says  that  "  now  it  appeared  what  bad  effects 
were  like  to  follow  on  that  officious  motion  that 
Bancroft  had  made,  for  obliging  the  clergy  to  read 
the  Declaration  that  King  Charles  set  out  in  the 
year  1681,  after  the  dissolution  of  the  Oxford  Par 
liament."*  Whereas  others  think  that  it  rather 
from  hence  appeared,  how  different  a  thing  it  was 
in  the  esteem  of  some  men,  for  a  King  to  strain  his 
prerogative,  in  opposition  to  the  liberty  of  his  sub 
jects  in  general,  and  in  opposition  to  the  power  of 
the  church,  in  a  way  of  favour  to  the  Dissenters  in 
particular.  And  perhaps  it  was  with  a  design  to 
have  this  the  better  covered,  and  the  less  taken 
notice  of,  that  the  Archbishop  in  his  defence  of  him 
self  for  his  noncompliance  with  King  James,  after 
he  had  been  so  complaisant  to  King  Charles,  signi 
fied  that  his  refusing  to  order  the  Declaration  of  King 
James  to  be  read  in  the  churches  as  was  required, 

*  Ibid.  p.  736.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  201 

was  "  not  for  want  of  tenderness  to  the  Dissenters," 
to  whom  I  could  never  hear  of  any  great  tenderness 
of  his  till  then — but  better  late  than  never  ! 

During  the  struggle  between  King  James  and  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  the  body  of  the  English  clergy, 
though  they  favoured  the  attempt  of  the  latter, 
yet  were  obliged  to  pray  for  King  James,  begging 
in  the  words  of  the  liturgy,  that  "God  would  confound 
the  devices  of  his  enemies,"  which  was  hard  both 
on  them  and  on  the  public  :  on  them,  because  they 
were  this  way  forced  to  pray  against  the  sense  of 
their  own  minds;  and  on  the  public,  because  the 
nation  had  been  ruined  had  their  prayers  been  heard 
and  answered. 

But  when  the  Revolution  was  over,  and  the  case 
of  the  Dissenters  came  to  be  considered,  notwith 
standing  all  the  fair  promises  that  were  given  them 
before,  there  appeared  to  be  no  small  fear  stirring, 
among  a  considerable  party  in  the  Church,  of  doing 
too  much  in  their  favour.  This  by  some  was  carried 
so  far,  as  to  convince  such  as  observed  their  pro 
ceedings,  that  too  many  of  them  were  the  same  men 
as  they  had  showed  themselves  before  ;  and  would 
readily  embrace  the  first  opportunity  of  repeating 
former  severities.  The  Bishop  of  London,  indeed, 
did  in  a  speech  to  the  Convocation  very  frankly  tell 
them,  that  it  was  their  duty  to  show  the  same  in 
dulgence  and  charity  to  the  Dissenters  under  King 
William,  as  some  of  the  bishops  and  clergy  had  pro- 


202  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

raised  them  in  their  addresses  to  King  James.*  Yet 
many  who  at  that  time  had  the  benefits  and  emolu 
ments  of  the  establishment  in  their  hands,  really 
acted  as  if  faith  was  no  more  to  be  kept  with  those 
to  whom  they  gave  the  hard  and  unkind  name  of 
schismatics,  than  the  Papists  are  for  doing  with  re 
spect  to  those  to  whom  they  give  the  harsh  name  of 
heretics.f 

Dr.  Tillotson,  indeed,  who  succeeded  Dr.  Bancroft, 
was  not  of  this  temper,  but  hoped  that  the  Church 
would  have  been  really  disposed  to  make  good  their 
solemn  and  repeated  promises.  Being  himself  a 
gentleman  of  great  integrity,  he  thought  that  any 
thing  opposite  to  this  would  be  so  ungenerous,  that 
he  could  not  admit  a  suspicion  of  it  in  the  body  of  the 

*  "Life  of  King  William  III."  in  three  volumes,  ii.  p.  155. 
— C.  Biog.  Brit.  iv.  57.— ED. 

f  This  calumny,  considered  by  the  author,  no  doubt,  as  a  just 
imputation,  (though  the  uniform  refusal  of  Catholics  to  qualify 
as  Protestants,  for  stations  of  power  or  profit,  might  have  cor 
rected  his  judgment,)  has  been  since  frequently  and  fully  exposed. 
See  Lord  Petre's  "  Letter  to  Bishop  Horsley ;"  (1790)  pp.  9, 
10,  12,  and  especially  the  folio  wing,  occasioned,  I  believe,  by  the 
suggestions  of  Mr.  Pitt. 

"  The  queries  submitted  to,  and  the  answers  received  from, 
the  faculties  of  Divinity  in  the  Catholic  Universities  of  Paris, 
Douay,  Lou  vain,  Alcala,  Valladolid,  and  Salamanca,  in  1789, 
touching  the  doctrines  imputed  to  Catholics,  respecting  the  keep 
ing  of  faith  with  heretics,  and  the  power  of  the  Pope  to  absolve 
them  from  allegiance  to  Protestant  Princes."  Appendix  to  "  Im 
partial  detail  of  Debates,  1805,  upon  the  Catholic  petition." — 
ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  203 

dignified  clergy,  but  thought  we  were,  on  that  hand, 
safe  enough.  Knowing,  at  the  same  time,  that  the 
Papists  had  objected  against  the  English  Protestants, 
that  their  religion  was  Parliamentary,*  being  mostly 
settled  by  our  Parliaments,  without  any  great  acti 
vity  of  the  clergy  in  promoting  it,  or  much  concern 
of  convocations  about  it,  he,  aiming  at  a  comprehen 
sion,  and  being  for  bringing  the  Dissenters  into  the 
church,  by  taking  away  the  things  that  hindered 
their  entering,  was  zealous  for  having  the  Convoca 
tion  to  be  active  in  the  affair,  which  he  apprehended 
would  render  the  alterations  that  should  be  made,  the 
more  agreeable  to  the  body  of  the  people.  This,  he 
thought,  might  be  compassed  without  much  diffi 
culty  by  the  influence  of  King  William  and  Queen 
Mary  upon  the  dignified  clergy,  especially  so  soon 
after  the  Revolution,  for  which  they  appeared  to  be 
so  very  thankful,  and  not  without  good  reason.  But 
this  unhappy  step  of  this  great  and  good  man  had 
such  consequences,  as  we  have  reason  to  lament  to 
this  day. 

Some  years  after,  having  occasion  to  say  some 
what  in  print  about  the  passages  of  these  times, 
having  mentioned  the  act  for  the  liberty  of  the  Dis 
senters,  which  passed  in  1689,  I  took  notice,  that  at 
the  time  when  that  act  passed,  "  there  was  a  bill 
depending  in  Parliament "  for  the  taking  them  "  into 

*  Osborn,  ("  Memoirs  of  Queen  Elizabeth,")  says,  "  the  doc 
trine  professed  most  generally  in  England,  bore  in  foreign  nations 
the  name  of  Parliament-faith."  Works,  (1673)  p.  450.— ED. 


204  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  national  establishment."*  And  I  cited  Dr. 
Nicols,  with  respect  to  Dr.  Tillotson's  advice  to  King 
William,  (to  whom  he  was  at  that  time  clerk  of 
the  closet,)  upon  that  occasion.  Dr.  Nicols  says, 
that  that  worthy  person  "  reminded  the  King  of  the 
unhappy  jest  often  cast  upon  the  Reformation  by 
the  Romanists,  because  it  was  owing  to  a  parlia 
mentary  authority ;  and  moved  that  no  farther  oc 
casion  might  be  given  to  a  charge  of  that  nature- 
He  intimated  that  that  matter  was  fitter  to  be  re 
ferred  to  an  ecclesiastical  synod,  whose  determina 
tions  in  the  case  would  be  more  agreeable  to  the 
clergy,  and  be  more  religiously  observed  by  the 
people  too."  Adding,  that  "  for  fear  of  delay,  if 
such  an  affair  should  be  put  into  too  many  hands, 
it  would  be  best,  (as  had  been  practised  formerly,) 
for  the  King,  by  his  letters  patent,  to  authorize  a 
select  number  of  learned  divines  to  meet  together 
and  debate,  and  consult  about  the  properest  methods 
of  healing  the  wounds  of  the  Church,  and  fixing  a 
durable  peace  ;  that  so  what  they  agreed  upon,  being 
laid  before  a  synod,  might  first  have  their  approba 
tion,  and  then  have  a  parliamentary  sanction."  And 
he  says,  that  it  was  "  upon  his  advice,  that  the 
King  summoned  a  convocation,  and  issued  out  also 
a  commission  to  thirty  divines,  to  prepare  matters  to 
be  laid  before  them."f  And  having  thus  far  cited 

*  Abridgment,  p.  445,  446.— C. 

f  Nicolsii  Apparat.  et  Def.  Ecclesise  Anglic,  p.  93.— -C.     De 
fence,  (1730,)  pp.  109,  110.    See  Birch,  pp.  165-168.— ED, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  205 

Dr.  Nicols,  I,  in  the  place  fore-mentioned,  added 
the  words  following :  "  I  doubt,  however,  that  he," 
that  is  Dr.  Tillotson,  "  afterwards  saw  occasion  to 
repent  of  this  advice  ;  and  am  well  assured  that  it 
is  the  wish  of  many,  (not  to  say  it  was  afterwards 
his,)  that  when  the  next  fit  opportunity  arrives  for 
such  an  healing  attempt,  (the  proper  method  for 
which  is  plain  enough,  whenever  persons  are  really 
willing  to  pursue  it,)  it  may  be  taken  with  more 
vigour  and  less  formality.  The  Reformation  had 
never  been  brought  about,  had  it  been  left  to  a  Con 
vocation  ;  nor  will  our  breaches  be  ever  healed,  but 
by  a  true  English  Parliament  ;  and  let  them  but  set 
about  it  in  earnest,  and  they  will  do  it  with  ease,  as 
far  as  is  necessary,  still  leaving  men  a  liberty  to 
judge  for  themselves,  without  being  liable  to  any 
hardship  or  severity." 

I  cannot  help,  to  this  day,  being  of  opinion,  that 
this  of  mine  will,  by  the  more  sensible  and  unpre 
judiced  part  of  mankind,  be  allowed  to  be  no  very 
offensive  passage.  And  yet  it  seems  greatly  to  have 
raised  the  spleen  of  the  author  of  that  part  of  "  The 
Life  of  Archbishop  Tillotson,"*  who  speaking  of  the 
same  account  given  by  Dr.  Nicols,  of  the  advice 
given  by  Dr.  Tillotson  to  King  William,  says,  that, 
"  This  was  certainly  very  reasonable  advice,  and  of 
no  small  moment  to  the  Church,  as  it  took  off  the 
objection  of  a  parliamentary  religion,  an  objection 
which  the  Papists  have  urged  with  all  their  force  of 

*  Pp.  84,  85.— C. 


206  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

argument  and  wit.  This  prudent  course,  which  Dr. 
Tillotson  advised,  seemed  the  most  probable  of  any 
to  take  effect,  as  not  irritating  the  spirits  of  men,  by 
lessening  their  authority  on  either  side,  the  eccle 
siastical  and  civil  powers  being  both  preserved  in 
their  rights,  and  exercising  their  distinct  provinces, 
by  this  method  which  he  prescribed.  How  much 
controversy  and  contention  do  we  here  see  vanish 
into  nothing  !  only  by  putting  business  in  the  pro 
per  channel  it  should  flow  in,  which  a  less  warm 
head  might  have  easily  confounded,  and  got  a  repu 
tation,  too,  for  doing  either  party  so  considerable  a 
service,  as  engaging  them  in  a  quarrel.  But  I  be 
lieve,"  says  he,  "  I  need  not  urge  the  wise  manage 
ment  of  this  worthy  person  any  farther,  as  an  argu 
ment  of  his  respect  to  the  Church,  or  his  tender 
regard  to  her  authority.  Dr.  Calamy,"  pursues  he, 
"  (and  sure  the  words  of  an  enemy  may  be  useful) 
says,  that  '  it  was  a  very  bad  piece  of  advice,'  and 
would  insinuate  to  his  readers,  as  if  the  adviser 
himself  repented  it  afterwards.  But  till  he  can  find 
a  better  reason  for  it  than  his  bare  conjecture,  we 
ought  to  believe  that  the  man  who  was  honest 
enough  to  give  such  good  counsel,  had  before  con 
sidered  the  matter  so  well,  as  to  take  care  that  it 
should  never  give  him  any  other  uneasiness  than 
what  arose  from  its  want  of  success." 

Such  a  passage,  as  this  of  that  author's,*  would  na 
turally  lead  into  a  variety  of  reflections.     He  calls 

*  Whose  work,  published  1717,  is  said  to  be  "  compiled  from 
the  Minutes  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Young,  late  Dean  of  Salisbury,'' 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  207 

me  "  an  enemy ;"  but  he  does  not  say  to  whom  or 
what.  I  think  I  should  know  myself  best ;  and  as 
far  as  I  do  so,  I  can  say  with  safety,  that  I  never 
durst  allow  myself  to  be  an  enemy  to  any  good  per 
sons,  or  any  designs  that  appeared  to  me  good,  as 
far  as  they  had  that  appearance,  or  any  suitable  evi 
dence  to  support  it.  I  am  sure  I  was  no  enemy  to 
Archbishop  Tillotson,  whom  I  heartily  admired  and 
honoured.  Yet  I  cannot  pretend  to  go  so  far  as 
to  declare  every  thing  that  he  said  to  be  therefore 
right,  or  that  nothing  came  from  him  but  what  was 
to  be  applauded  and  approved  of.  Nor  was  I  any 
enemy  to  the  Church,  especially  while  he  was  at 
the  head  of  it.  I  thought  it  then  in  the  fairest 
way  to^  receive  that  farther  Reformation  which 
it  so  much  needed,  and  which  has  been  so  long 
desired ;  and  to  have  that  discipline  restored  which 
obtained  in  the  primitive  Church,  which  has  to 
so  little  purpose  been  wished  for  from  year  to 
year,  that  it  has  been  known  to  be  in,  either  be 
fore  or  since.  I  was  one  of  those  that  was  very 
well  disposed  towards  falling  in  with  the  establish 
ment,  could  his  scheme  have  taken  place. 

The  main  thing  I  was  an  enemy  to,  that  I  can  con 
ceive  that  author  could  have  in  his  eye,  was  proper 
Church  power,  and  to  that,  I  believe,  I  always  shall 
be  an  enemy.  And  I  am  very  much  mistaken  in 
Dr.  Tillotson's  true  character,  if  he  was  not  so  too  ; 
and  I  take  that  to  be  the  real  reason  why  the  con- 

(father  of  the  poet,)  "  with  many  curious  Memoirs,"  from  Bishop 
Burnet.     Yet  see  Dr.  Birch's  "  Life  of  Tillotson,"  p.  2  n.—Eo. 


208  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

vocation  whom  he  advised  King  William  to  consult 
with,  about  what  was  then  designed,  were  for  the 
greatest  part  of  them  his  enemies,  and  continued  so 
to  the  last. 

This  author  charges  me  also  with  certain  words 
which  I  did  not  actually  use,  how  much  soever  I 
might  be  inclined  that  way.  He  tells  the  world 
that  I  said,  that  "  it  was  a  very  bad  piece  of  ad 
vice,"  that  was  given  by  Dr.  Tillotson,  and  puts 
those  words  as  mine,  in  a  different  character ;  where 
as,  no  such  words  appear,  which  is  but  an  indifferent 
way  of  quoting.  And  yet  I  shall  not  stick  to  own, 
being  he  will  have  have  it  so,  that  I  do  look  upon 
it  to  have  been  "  a  very  bad  piece  of  advice,"  as  cir 
cumstances  then  stood,  though  given  with  great  in 
tegrity,  and  a  good  intention. 

He  farther  commends  the  advice  given,  as  likely 
to  silence  the  Papists,  and  the  most  probable  method 
of  any  to  take  effect.  Whereas,  as  for  silencing  the 
Papists,  it  is  not  to  be  done,  unless  you  will  yield 
them  the  cause  entirely.  If  fair  reasoning  would 
have  taken  off  "  the  objection  of  a  parliamentary 
religion,"  it  had  been  done  before,  by  what  was 
offered  by  Bishop  Burnet*  and  others.  And  if  this 
method  would  not  do  it,  it  is  hard  to  say  why 
Dr.  Tillotson  or  others  should  study  to  please  them. 
But  whether  or  no  the  advice  given,  pointed  to  "  the 
most  probable  way  of  any  to  take  effect,"  is  the 

*  See  the  Preface  to  Vol.  ii.  of  his  "  History  of  the  Reforma 
tion.''-^. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  209 

thing  questioned.  He  gives  this  as  a  reason  why  it 
was  the  most  probable  way  of  any,  "  because  it  did 
not  irritate  the  spirits  of  men."  Whereas,  we  find 
they  were  so  irritated,  that  it  was  very  hard  to  keep 
them  quiet.  If  "  business"  was  this  way  "  put  into 
the  proper  channel,"  it  yet  was  so  far  from  causing 
"  controversy  and  contention  to  vanish  into  nothing," 
that  it  rather  increased  and  inflamed  it,  as  that  ex 
cellent  person  found  to  his  sorrow.  It  engaged  the 
clergy  in  a  quarrel,  which  he  did  not  live  to  see  the 
end  of. 

This  author  owns  at  last,  "  want  of  success," 
which  was  indeed  notorious.  Whereas,  the  opposite 
method  succeeded  wonderfully  in  former  days ;  and 
for  that  reason  many  could  have  wished  it  had  been 
tried  again.  King  Henry  VIII.  aiming  at  the 
bringing  his  people  to  shake  off  the  Papal  power, 
carried  his  point,  not  by  the  major  part  of  the 
bishops  and  clergy  first  met  in  convocation,  but  by  a 
few  select  bishops  and  divines,  who  being  supported 
by  the  King's  authority,  met  freely  among  them 
selves,  and,  afterwards,  by  their  interest  at  court, 
carried  the  matter  first  in  Parliament,  and  then  got 
the  consent  of  the  Convocation  to  what  was  done. 
But  King  William  III.,  though  he  would  willingly 
have  brought  the  Dissenters  within  the  pale  of  the 
national  establishment,  missed  of  his  aim,  because, 
following  Dr.  Tillotson's  advice,  he  began  with  the 
Convocation. 

The  author  referred  to,  doubts  not  but  that  excel- 

VOL.  i.  p 


210  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

lent  person,  had  "  before  considered  the  matter  so 
well,  as  to  take  care  it  should  give  him  no  other  un 
easiness  than  what  arose  from  its  want  of  success," 
That  was  indeed  sufficient.  There  needed  nothing 
else  to  give  uneasiness,  but  the  unhappy  losing  so 
seasonable  an  opportunity  of  uniting  the  Church 
within  itself,  and  both  widening  and  strengthening 
its  foundations.  Though  our  author  seemed  in  pain 
for  "  a  better  reason"  than  my  "  bare  conjecture," 
yet  is  it  no  hard  matter,  I  should  think,  to  ease  any 
that  are  of  that  mind. 

Dr.  Tillotson  did  advise  King  William  to  begin 
with  the  Convocation.  Yet  when  he  found  Dr.  Jane 
with  a  high  hand,  made  Prolocutor  of  the  Lower 
House  instead  of  himself,*  who  had  a  great  deal 
of  reason  to  expect  it,  on  the  account  of  his  place 
and  station  in  the  Church ;  (which  election  the  com 
piler  of  the  Compleat  History  of  England  owns,f 
was  made  on  purpose  to  oppose  the  accommoda 
tion  proposed,)  and  took  notice  with  what  resolu 
tion  the  body  of  them,  from  the  very  first,  declared 
against  any  alterations,  and  how  they  fortified  and 
strengthened  their  confederacies  and  combinations, 
he  was  convinced  that  the  method  he  had  been 
for,  was  really  impracticable,  as  things  then  stood, 
and  therefore  was  not  for  repeating  the  "  dangerous 
experiment,"  or  having  any  thing  more  to  do  with 

*  Nov.  20,   1689,   "  by  great  odds."     See  "Diary  of  Lord 
Clarendon,"  Correspondence,  ii.  295. — ED. 
t  Vol.  iii.  797.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

convocations  all  the  while  he  continued  archbishop. 
This,  I  must  confess,  I  take  for  a  full  and  sufficient 
proof,  that  what  I  offered  was  not  a  "  bare  conjec 
ture  ;"  but  a  real  reason,  and  one  that  is  so  con 
vincing  and  satisfying,  that  it  will  not  admit  of  an 
answer.  And  for  the  confirmation  of  this,  I  refer 
my  reader  to  Bishop  Biirnet.* 

There  is  another  reflection  on  the  Dissenters, 
which  I  think  it  not  improper  here  to  take  notice  of, 
and  it  is  to  be  met  with  in  the  Life  of  King  Wil 
liam,  in  three  volumes,  and  reprinted  in  the  Life 
of  Dr.  Henry  Compton,  Bishop  of  London,f  and  also 
in  "  the  Compleat  History  of  England.''^  The  for 
mer  of  these  authors,  in  his  account  of  the  year  1689, 
says,  that  "  the  Presbyterians  did  not  a  little  contri 
bute  to  exasperate  the  Convocation  against  them."§ 
Which  is  a  suggestion,  that  (all  circumstances  being 
considered,)  I  should  have  thought  might  very  well 
have  been  spared.  A  majority  in  that  Convocation 
were  determined  against  any  sort  of  condescension, 
that  might  pave  the  way  for  a  coalition.  This  was 
so  notorious,  that  this  very  author  but  a  few  pages 
before, ||  owns  in  so  many  words,  that  "  the  Bishop 
of  London  was  sensible  that  the  majority  of  the  Low 
er  House  were  resolved  to  oppose  the  intended  union 
with  the  Dissenters."  They  resolved  to  oppose  it,  as 

*  See  his  Reflections  on  a  book,  "  concerning  the  Rights  of  an 
English  Convocation,"  published  in  the  year  1700. — C. 
tP.  57.— C.        j  Vol.  iii.  555.— C.        §  Vol.  ii.  158.— C. 
II  Vol.  ii.  p.  155.— C. 

P  2 


LIFE    OF    CALAMV, 

a  thing  needless  and  useless,  dishonourable  to  the 
Church,  and  against  the  common  interest.  This 
being  the  true  state  of  the  case,  this  being  the  known 
prevailing  temper  of  the  Convocation,  to  talk  of  their 
being  "  exasperated  by  the  Presbyterians,"  at  that 
particular  juncture  of  time,  is  a  perfect  jest.  Alas ! 
the  gentlemen  of  the  Convocation  did  not  like  the 
tempers  of  these  Dissenters,  to  whom  the  King  desired 
they  should  be  united,  nor  did  they  approve  of  their 
principles.  They  rather  chose  their  room  than  their 
company ;  and  to  keep  them  out,  than  to  let  them 
into  the  Church.  They  were  against  uniting  with 
them  at  any  time  ;  and  much  more  at  that  time, 
when  churchmen  were  so  divided  among  themselves 
with  respect  to  the  Civil  Government.  To  talk 
therefore,  in  such  a  case,  of  their  being  "  exasperated 
by  the  Presbyterians"  is  perfectly  trifling,  and  only 
looks  as  if  a  man  willingly  would  find  some  apology 
for  these  gentlemen,  did  he  but  know  how. 

But  what  are  the  things  that  so  much  "  exaspe 
rated  them  ?"  He  mentions  three  :  that  "  they  at 
this  very  time  gave  orders  to  near  fifty  young  stu 
dents  ;"  which  was  but  a  very  small  number,  consi 
dering  how  many  they  wanted  to  carry  on  the  minis 
terial  service  among  them.  They  had  waited  long 
to  but  little  purpose  ;  and  seeing  the  prevailing  part 
of  the  Convocation  appeared  still  intent  upon  keep 
ing  up  the  impositions  on  all  that  should  be  admitted 
into  Orders,  they  might  very  well  think  it  high  time 
to  shift  for  themselves.  Since,  at  this  very  time,  the 
help  of  more  ministers  was  wanted  among  them,  it 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  213 

was  but  fit  some  should  be  ordained  to  officiate 
among  them.  And  had  the  number  of  them  been 
three  times  as  great,  there  would  have  been  reason 
enough  for  ordaining  them. 

He  says  farther,  that  "  Mr.  Baxter,  the  head  of 
their  party,  published  a  book  reflecting  on  the  Church 
of  England."  That  Mr.  Baxter  was  a  man  of  in 
terest  and  influence  among  them,  I  freely  own  ;  but 
that  he  was  any  thing  of  a  proper  head,  I  know  not. 
He  did  however,  "  publish  a  book  reflecting  on  the 
Church  of  England,"  as  he  had  done  several  before. 
I  suppose  the  book  meant,  was  "  the  English  Non 
conformity,  as  under  King  Charles  the  Second,  and 
King  James  the  Second,  stated  and  argued,"  in 
quarto,  printed  in  1689.  This  book  Mr.  Baxter  in 
timates,  had  been  long  called  for  and  demanded,  by 
many  of  the  churchmen  themselves,  who  wanted  to 
know  the  utmost  that  could  be  said  against  their  ad 
mired  Constitution :  and  if,  after  all,  the  publishing 
of  such  a  book  exasperated  the  Convocation,  and 
this  is  pleadable  as  an  excuse,  it  is  much  the  same 
as  if  it  should  be  pleaded  on  the  behalf  of  physicians, 
that  they  were  exasperated  at  the  description  of  the 
sad  case  of  their  patients ;  or  on  the  behalf  of  gen 
tlemen  of  the  long  robe,  that  they  were  exaspe 
rated  at  having  the  sad  case  of  their  clients  laid  open, 
which  I  should  think  could  not,  to  wise  men,  appear 
any  great  recommendation  of  them. 

It  is  added  to  crown  the  whole,  that  "it  was  reported 
that  the  Presbyterians  of  Scotland  were  the  authors 
of  a  sham  plot,  which  they  fathered  upon  the  Pro- 


214  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

testants  of  Glasgow,  that  they  might  have  a  pretence 
to  disarm  them,  as  they  did  in  effect."  But  this, 
methinks,  is  running  a  great  way  to  fetch  matter  of 
uneasiness  and  disturbance.  If  such  a  thing  as  this 
was  reported,  it  does  not  therefore  follow  it  was 
true.  If  it  was  false,  it  was  most  certainly  a  great 
weakness,  for  these  gentlemen  to  be  exasperated  by 
such  a  rumour  that  had  no  solid  grounds.  This  was 
to  be  blamed  in  them,  and  not  excused,  or  pleaded 
for.  If  they  were  exasperated  at  such  things  as 
these,  they  were  very  touchy,  and  more  nice  than 
wise,  and  not  fit  to  be  "  healers  of  breaches,"  or 
"  restorers  of  paths  to  dwell  in." 

And  yet  exasperated  they  were,  and  that  to  a 
great  degree*  And,  therefore,  when  Dr.  Jane  was 
chosen  prolocutor  of  the  Lower  House  in  preference  to 
Dr.  Tillotson,  and  had  in  a  Latin  speech  extolled  the 
excellency  of  the  Church  of  England,  above  all  other 
Christian  Communities,  and  concluded  with  these 
words,  Nolumus  Leges  Anglice  mutari;  the  Bishop 
of  London  on  the  other  part,  being  at  the  head  of 
the  Upper  House,  in  the  absence  of  the  Archbishop, 
who  did  not  think  fit  to  appear,  made  a  discourse  in 
the  same  language  importing,  that  "  they  ought  to 
endeavour  to  come  to  a  temper  in  those  things 
that  were  not  essential  in  religion,  thereby,  to  open 
a  door  of  salvation  to  abundance  of  straying  Chris 
tians  :  and  that  it  was  their  duty  to  show  the  same 
indulgence  and  charity  to  the  Dissenters  under  King 
William  as  some  of  the  Bishops  and  Clergy  had  pro- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  215 

mised  to  them  under  King  James."  And  he  closed 
his  speech  with  these  words  of  Joseph  to  his  bre 
thren,  ne  tumultuamini  in  consiliis  vestris;  thereby 
exhorting  them  to  unanimity  and  concord.*  This 
was  truly  noble  and  generous  in  that  Bishop,  and 
serves,  I  think,  to  show  that  if  he  had  to  do  in  this 
case  with  exasperated  persons,  it  is  they  must  bear 
the  blame  of  not  doing  what  they  easily  might  have 
done,  in  order  to  the  promoting  peace  and  union  at 
so  seasonable  a  juncture ;  and  that  the  throwing  the 
blame  on  others,  is  a  direct  flying  in  his  face.  And 
it  is  observable,  that  it  is  owned  by  the  compiler  of 
the  third  volume  of  "  the  Compleat  History  of  En- 
gland,"-j*  that  this  Bishop  could  do  nothing  in  the 
matter,  but  connive  at  their  treating  him  with  some 
indignity,  which  he  did  not  deserve  from  them. 

However,  the  Act  of  Toleration  passed  in  1689. 
The  meetings  of  the  commissioners  were  over,  and 
the  results  as  well  as  the  process  of  their  consulta 
tions  and  debates  were  not  thought  fit  to  be  publish 
ed,  but  were  deposited  in  the  Library  of  Lambeth, 
where  (unless  the  Archbishop  has  thought  fit  to  put 
them  into  any  particular  hands,)  they  yet  remain, 
though,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  that  some  time  or  other 
they  may  see  the  light.  All  thoughts  of  a  compre 
hension  were,  from  thenceforward,  laid  aside,  among 
such  as  were  at  the  head  of  affairs  in  the  Church. 

*  See  the  "  Life  of  Bishop  Compton,"  pp.  52,  53.— C.     Biog. 
Brit.  iv.  57  ;  Toulmin's  "  Hist.  View,"  pp.  53-57.— ED. 
t  P.  797.— C. 


216  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

These  things  past  while  I  was  abroad,  though  I 
thought  it  concerned  me  to  enquire  into  them  at 
my  return ;  and  I  must  own,  that  I  thought  they 
helped  to  make  my  way  the  clearer,  as  to  my 
own  practice,  of  which  I  shall  say  more  in  the  next 
Chapter. 

But  before  I  proceed,  I  think  it  not  improper  to 
add,  that  the  Revolution  in  England  drew  consider 
able  consequences  after  it  all  over  Europe.  It  kept 
the  Reformed  Interest  from  sinking,  secured  the 
liberty  of  the  British  Dominions,  and  the  Nether 
lands,  and  disappointed  the  French  of  that  universal 
monarchy,  which  they  had  been  eagerly  expecting, 
and  had  great  hopes  of  reaching.  Among  other 
happy  fruits  of  it,  it  was  not  the  least  considerable 
that  it  was  the  means  of  saving  the  poor  Vaudois  of 
Piedmont,  (those  remains  of  the  primitive  Christians, 
who  were  never  tainted  with  the  Papal  corruptions 
and  impurities,)  from  utter  ruin,  and  of  their  re- 
establishment  in  their  own  country. 

In  the  year  1686,  King  Louis  XIV.  (as  has  be 
fore  been  hinted,)  pushed  on  the  Duke  of  Savoy  to 
compel  the  Vaudois  that  remained,  to  forsake  their 
religion,  and  to  take  the  same  measure  he  had  taken 
against  the  Protestants  of  France ;  and  they  were 
forced  out  of  the  valleys,  and  driven  from  their 
houses  and  possessions  upon  their  refusal,  and  obliged 
to  take  shelter  among  the  Switzers,  and  others  that 
would  give  them  entertainment.  But  in  September, 
1689,  eight  or  nine  hundred  of  them  assembled  to- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  217 

gether  in  the  Wood  of  Nion,  not  far  from  Geneva, 
crossed  the  Lake  Leman  in  the  night,  and  entered 
Savoy,  (under  the  conduct  of  M.  Arnold  a  minister,) 
and  marched  through  that  country,  which  was  four 
teen  or  fifteen  days'  journey.  In  which  march  they 
were  obliged  to  climb  up  high  mountains,  and  force 
divers  strait  passes,  well  guarded  with  soldiers, 
with  their  swords  in  their  hands,  till  at  length  they 
reached  their  own  valleys,  of  which  they  took  pos 
session,  and  in  which  they  have  (through  a  special 
providence  attending  them,)  maintained  themselves 
ever  since,  successfully  encountering  their  enemies 
that  have  at  any  time  assaulted  them.  I  was  told 
several  remarkable  things  concerning  this  march  of 
theirs,  and  the  state  of  the  Vaudois  afterwards  in  their 
valleys,  by  Monsieur  Arnold,  when  he  came  after 
wards  into  England,  and  applied  to  King  William 
for  assistance. 

This  worthy  person,  (among  divers  other  things) 
told  me,  that  when  those  Vaudois  that  had  him  at 
their  head  were  come  pretty  near  their  valleys,  and 
had  a  number  of  their  enemies  closely  pursuing  them, 
they  were  in  such  straits  for  provisions,  that  they 
were  in  great  fear  of  starving.  But  that  there  came 
a  sudden  thaw,  which  in  a  night's  time  melted  the 
snow,  upon  which  they  discovered  in  the  morning  a 
considerable  quantity  of  wheat,  standing  in  the  earth, 
ready  for  the  sickle,  which  had  been  left  there 
from  the  summer  foregoing,  and  was  covered  all  the 
winter  by  snow,  the  sudden  fall  of  which  had  hin- 


218  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

dered  the  proprietors  from  reaping  it  at  the  proper 
season,  which  these  poor  destitute  people  beheld 
with  admiration  and  thankfulness,  and  reaped  with 
joy,  and  were*  supported  by  it  after  their  return  into 
their  valleys,  where  without  such  an  help  they  might 
have  perished.  He  added,  that  whereas  they  were 
so  plentifully  supplied  in  the  valleys,  by  the  large 
collection  that  was  made  for  them  in  England, 
during  the  protectorship  of  Oliver,*  that  they  at 
that  time  desired  no  more;  a  part  of  what  remained 
was  put  into  the  hands  of  the  magistrates  of  Geneva 
upon  their  entering  into  an  obligation  to  make  them 
such  an  allowance  from  year  to  year  as  was  agreed 
on :  and  that  this  annual  allowance  was  paid  them 
to  this  day,  and  was  so  much  needed^  that  their 
ministers  and  schoolmasters  without  it,  had  been 
destitute  of  suitable  support.  I  heard  him  deliver  a 
plain  serious  sermon  at  the  French  Church,  in 
Threadneedle-street,  on  a  lecture  day ;  and  he  seem 
ed  to  be  a  very  pious  man,  and  was  a  warm  and 
serious  preacher.  One  thing  I  shall  add  that  was 
a  little  diverting. 

Dr.  Bates  being  desirous  to  see  this  person  at 
Hackney,  sent  a  request  to  me  to  bring  him  over 
thither  on  a  day  appointed,  to  dine  with  him  at  the 
house  of  a  friend  of  his,  whom  he  was  to  be  with  at 
that  time.  I  complied  ;  and  bringing  him  into  the 
room,  up  to  the  doctor,  I  told  him  that  was  the 
worthy  person  we  had  been  talking  of;  at  the  same 
*  40,000/.,  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  854.— -ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  219 

time  as  I  told  the  doctor  that  that  was  Monsieur 
Arnold.  Upon  this,  M.  Arnold  made  a  very  hand 
some  speech  to  the  doctor  in  Latin  ;  and  when  he 
had  done,  the  doctor  asked  me  what  he  said,  for  that 
he  could  not  understand  him.  Upon  which  I  gave 
him  an  account  of  the  substance  of  his  speech,  and 
the  doctor,  after  a  little  pause,  made  him  a  very 
gentleman  and  Christian-like  answer  in  Latin  too. 
Then  I  was  called  on  to  do  the  same  office  again  to 
M.  Arnold,  who  assured  me  he  did  not  understand 
a  word  of  what  had  been  said  by  the  good  doctor. 
This  with  a  great  many  other  instances  that  are 
well  known,  shows  the  inconvenience  of  our  using  a 
different  pronunciation  of  the  Latin  tongue,  from 
what  is  common  among  foreigners.  It  hinders  free 
dom  of  conversation  at  such  times  as  opportunities 
for  it  offer.  This  brought  to  my  mind  one  of  M. 
Sorbiere's  Reflections  on  the  English,  which  is  this : 
that  "  they  speak  Latin  with  such  an  accent  and 
way  of  pronunciation,  that  they  are  as  hard  to  be 
understood,  as  if  they  spoke  their  own  language." 

In  Scotland  also,  in  1689,  the  Parliament  re 
pealed  the  Act  of  Supremacy,  and  established  Pres 
bytery,*  as  suited  most  to  the  inclinations  of  the 
people,  and  fixedf  a  test,  called  "  The  Assurance," 
by  which  all  that  should  be  elected  to  fill  any  vacan 
cies  that  should  happen  in  Parliament,  were  obliged 

*  "  July  22.     An  Act  for  abolishing  Episcopacy  in  Scotland, 
received  the  royal  assent."     Chron.  Hist.  \.  256. — ED. 
t  Not  till  1693.     See  Biog.  Brit.  iii.  258.— ED. 


220  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

to  declare  before  God,  that  they  believed  William 
and  Mary  to  be  King  and  Queen,  de  jure  as  well  as 
de  facto,  and  engaged  to  defend  their  title  as  such. 
The  same,  (together  with  the  Oath  of  Allegiance) 
was  required  to  be  signed  by  all  in  any  public  trust 
or  office,  civil,  military,  or  ecclesiastical. 


CHAPTER   III. 
1691,  1692. 

Of  my  spending  a  Year  at  Oxford;  my  Conversation  and 
Studies  there  ;  my  beginning  to  preach  in  the  Country,  and 
return  afterwards  to  London. 

I  HAVE  before  intimated  that  I  came  back  to 
England  in  1691.  I  was  well  received  by  my 
friends,  and  visited  several  of  our  most  eminent 
ministers  in  and  about  the  city,  who  treated  me 
with  respect.  I  particularly  waited  on  Mr.  Baxter, 
who  talked  freely  with  me  about  my  good  old  grand 
father,  for  whom  he  declared  a  particular  esteem. 
He  made  several  inquiries  about  Holland,  the  state 
of  things,  and  behaviour  of  my  fellow  students 
there,  and  gave  me  good  advice  about  my  own  future 
studies  and  conduct.  I  several  times  heard  him 
preach,  which  I  remembered  not  to  have  done  be 
fore.  He  talked  in  the  pulpit  with  great  freedom 
Qbout  another  world,  like  one  that  had  been  there, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  221 

and  was  come  as  a  sort  of  an  express  from  thence 
to  make  a  report  concerning  it.*  He  was  well  ad 
vanced  in  years,  but  delivered  himself  in  public,  as 
well  as  in  private,  with  great  vivacity  and  freedom, 
and  his  thoughts  had  a  peculiar  edge.  I  told  him 
of  my  design  of  going  to  Oxford,  and  staying  some 
time  there,  in  which  he  encouraged  me:  and  to 
wards  the  end  of  the  year,  (Dec.  8,)  when  I  was 
actually  there,  he  died ;  so  that  I  should  never  have 
had  an  opportunity  of  seeing,  hearing,  or  conversing 
with  him,  had  I  not  done  it  now. 

I  went  to  Oxford  a  little  after  Midsummer,  and 
took  a  private  lodging  in  the  parish  of  St.  Ebbs, 
where  my  room  looked  into  Paradise  Garden.  I 
had  brought  letters  with  me  from  Utrecht,  from 
Professor  Grevius,  which  I  thought  might  do  me  no 
disservice  there.  That  Professor  hearing  that  I  de 
signed  for  Oxford,  had  offered  them  to  me  of  his 
own  accord  ;  and  so  far  was  I  from  slighting  his 
kindness,  that  I  thankfully  accepted  it ;  hoping  that 

*  Waller  concluded  his  Divine  Poems,  "  written  when  he  was 
about  eighty  years  of  age,"  with  this  couplet : 

"  Leaving  the  old,  both  worlds,  at  once,  they  view, 
That  stand  upon  the  threshold  of  the  new." 

On  which  Dryden  thus  addressed  him  : 

**  Still  here  remain,  still  on  the  threshold  stand, 
Still  at  this  distance  view  the  promised  land  ; 
That  thou  may'st  seem,  so  heavenly  is  thy  sense, 
Not  going  thither,  but  new  come  from  thence." 
This  address  was  now,  probably,  in  Dr.  Calamy's  recollec 
tion. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAJMY.  - 

his  dropping  a  word  in  my  favour,  might  give  me 
somewhat  of  a  character  among  the  great  men  there. 
I  had  one  letter  from  him  to  Dr.  Edward  Pococke, 
canon  of  Christ  Church,  (upon  which  dignity  he 
first  entered  in  the  year  1648)  and  Regius  Professor 
of  the  Hebrew  Tongue  in  that  University  ;*  and 
another  to  Dr.  Edward  Bernard,  public  Professor  of 
Astronomy. t  When  I  delivered  the  former,  I  found 
the  good  doctor  wrorn  out  with  age  and  infirmity. 
He  received  me  civilly,  and  had  his  life  been  pro 
longed,  I  thought  I  might  promise  myself  consider 
able  benefit  by  being  admitted  to  freedom  with  so 
great  a  man.  But  he  was  then  confined  to  his 
lodgings,  as  he  had  been  for  some  time,  and  soon 
after  (September  10,)  he  died,:f  and  I  heard  his 
funeral  oration  delivered  in  Christ  Church,  where  he 
was  interred. 

Dr.  Bernard,  who  was  a  singularly  good  tempered 
gentleman,  upon  my  delivering  Professor  Grevius's 
letter  to  him,  frankly  embraced  me,  and  promised 
me  all  the  civilities  he  was  capable  of  showing  me, 
and  I  must  own  that  he  amply  made  good  his  pro 
mise,  during  the  whole  of  my  stay  at  Oxford.  I  told 
him  of  my  desire  to  obtain  leave  to  study  in  the 

*  See  Dr.  Twell's  "  Life  of  Pocock."  Lives,  (1816)  i.  106, 
107.— ED. 

-j-  See  a  Character  of  him  in  Huetius. — C.  He  was  admitted, 
1673,  Savilian  Professor  of  Astronomy,  on  the  resignation  of 
Sir  Christopher  Wren.  A  then.  Oxon.  ii.  895. — ED. 

$  Aged  86.     Lives,  i.  342.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  223 

Bodleian  Library,  and  he  undertook  to  procure  it  for 
me.  He  applied  to  the  Regent  masters  in  convo 
cation  on  my  behalf,  and  produced  Grevius's  letter 
to  him ;  upon  which,  I  obtained  leave  without  any 
demur,  upon  condition  only  of  my  taking  one  of  Dr. 
Hyde's  catalogues  of  the  library  at  his  own  price, 
and  paying  somewhat  to  the  under  library  keeper. 
Dr.  Bernard  introduced  me  to  him,  and  my  name 
was  entered,  and  I  afterwards,  most  days,  spent  some 
hours  there  in  each  day,  with  great  pleasure,  and 
much  to  my  satisfaction  and  benefit. 

Mr.  (afterwards  Dr.)  Joshua  Oldfield,  was  at  that 
time  the  minister  of  the  Dissenting  congregation  at 
Oxford,*  and  he  was  then  in  his  prime.  He  had  but 
a  small  auditory  and  very  slender  encouragement, 
but  took  a  great  deal  of  pains.  He  had  little  con 
versation  with  the  scholars,  nor  did  he  affect  it ;  and 
yet  often  had  a  number  of  them  for  his  auditors.  I 
have  sometimes  thought  that  if  he  had  been  less  shy, 
and  more  free  in  conversing  with  them,  it  might 
have  been  better.  It  confirmed  me  in  that  opinion, 
when  I  observed  that  upon  my  sometimes  prevailing 
with  him  to  go  to  the  coffee-house,  and  there  con 
verse  with  such  scholars  as  he  met  with  by  accident, 
they  afterwards  freely  said,  that  they  found  he  had 
a  great  deal  more  in  him  than  they  imagined.  With 
him  I  conversed  daily  ;  and  though  I  did  not  lodge 

*  He  became,  in  1700,  "pastor  of  a  congregation  in  South- 
wark."     Cont.  p.  233  ;    Toulmin's  "  Hist.  View,"  pp.  245,  246. 
ED. 


224  MFC    OF    CALAMY" 

under  his  roof,  yet  I  was  continually,  almost,  at  his 
house  as  one  of  his  domestics.  I  had  acquaintance 
with  him  before,  while  he  had  the  small  congregation 
of  Dissenters  at  Tooting  in  Surrey  under  his  care, 
of  which  my  grandfather  Gearing  was  a  prime  mem 
ber  ;  and  now  I  not  only  renewed  my  acquaintance, 
but  fell  into  the  utmost  freedom  with  him,  and  have 
reason  to  be  thankful  for  it. 

I  had  it  now  particularly  under  consideration  whe 
ther  I  should  determine  for  conformity  or  noncon 
formity.  I  thought  Oxford  no  unfit  place  to  pursue 
this  matter  in.  I  was  not  likely  to  be  there  pre 
judiced  in  favour  of  the  Dissenters,  who  were  com 
monly  run  down  and  ill  spoken  of.  I  was  enter 
tained  from  day  to  day  with  what  tended  to  give 
any  man  the  best  opinion  of  the  church  by  law  esta 
blished.  I  was  a  witness  of  her  learning,  wealth, 
grandeur,  and  splendour.  I  was  treated  by  the  gen 
tlemen  of  the  University  with  all  imaginable  civility. 
I  heard  their  sermons,  and  frequently  attended  their 
public  lectures  and  academical  exercises.  I  was  free 
in  conversation  as  opportunities  offered ;  and  was 
often  argued  with  about  consorting  with  such  a  des 
picable,  such  an  unsociable  sort  of  people  as  the 
Nonconformists  were  represented.  But  I  took  all 
occasions  to  express  rny  hearty  respect  and  value  for 
real  worth,  wherever  I  could  meet  with  it. 

I  carefully  studied  my  Bible,  and  particularly  the 
New  Testament,  and  found  the  plain  worship  of  the 
Dissenters,  as  far  as  I  could  judge,  more  agreeable  to 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY  225 

that,  than  the  pompous  way  of  the  Church  of  Eng 
land.     I  read  Church  history,  and  could  not  help  ob 
serving,  with  many  others  that  have  gone  before  me, 
that  as  the  fondness  for  church  power  and  pomp  in 
creased,  the  spirit  of  serious  piety  declined  and  de 
cayed  among  those  that  bore  the  name  of  Christians. 
I  read  several  of  the  Fathers,  and,  among  the  rest, 
Ignatius's  six  Epistles,  of  Bishop  Usher's  Latin  and 
Isaac  Vossius's  Florentine,  Greek  editions,*  of  which 
Mr.  Dodwel  gives  it  as  his  judgment,!  that  "  the  Pres 
byterians  questioned  them  only  out  of  interest."     But 
I  doubt  there  would  be  more  reason  to  think  the 
Episcopalians  favour  them  out  of  interest.     I  read 
also  Bishop  Pearson  in  defence  of  these  Epistles,  as 
well  as  Monsieur  Daille  and  Larroque  in  opposition 
to  them ;  and  I  so  well  liked  the  way  of  arguing 
used  by  the  latter  of  them,  who  was  some  time  mi 
nister  of  the   Protestant  church   at  Quevilly,   near 
Rouen,  that   I  could  not  help  being  troubled,  that 
when  he  had  drawn  up  a  reply  to  what  had  been 
advanced  against  him,   and  had  carried  that  so  far 
(as  appeared  from  his  manuscripts, |)  he  should  be 
unhappily  diverted  from  finishing  it,  by  the  persua 
sion  of  such  as  were  inclined  to  the  Episcopalians. 

*  See  Jortin's  Remarks,  i.  61-67,  355-361  ;  Lardner's  Wor/fo,  iis 
68-70;  Dr.  Lloyd,  in  "  Correspondence  of  Clarendon,"  i.  9. — ED. 

f  "Two  Letters  of  Advice,"  p.  110.— C.      See  Biog.  Brit. 
v.  320.— ED. 

I  See  the  "  Nouvelles  de  la  Republique  des  Lettres,  pour  le 
Mois  de  Mars,"  1684,  p.  56. — C. 
VOL.  I.  Q 


226  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

However,  I  must  own  that  with  all  the  eyes  I  had, 

I  could  not  discover  any  more  in  those  that  go  under 
the  name  of  Ignatius's  Epistles,  than  a  pastoral  epis 
copacy,   set  off  and  adorned  with  high  flights  and 
strong  figures,  which  to  me,  I  confess,  showed  more 
of  the  warm  affection  and  strong  passion  than  of 
the  judgment  of  the  writer. 

No  one  thing  is  more  evident  as  to  the  primitive 
times,  than  that  a  bishopric  and  a  parish  were  the 
same  thing;  a  bishop  having  one  altar  or  church 
belonging  to  him,*  so  that  he  could  daily  inspect  all 
under  his  care,  and  administer  the  eucharist  to  his 
whole  flock  at  one  time ;  baptize  such  as  needed 
baptism,  and  personally  relieve  and  succour  all  the 
poor  and  indigent,  administer  church  censures,  and 
restore  offenders,  and  manage  all  church  affairs  that 
were  of  consequence,  all  the  people  being  present. 

Even  afterwards,  their  dioceses  were  but  small. 
In  that  part  of  Africa  which  belonged  to  the  Chris 
tians,  St.  Austin  reckons  no  fewer  than  nine  hundred 
bishops;  and  Baroniusf  says  that  as  low  down  as 

*  Mr.  King,  afterwards  Lord  Chancellor,  (in  a  work,  dis 
covering  uncommon  theological  attainments,  at  twenty-two,) 

II  demonstrated"  from  a  large  collection  of  the  earliest   autho 
rities,  quoted  in  the  originals,  that  as  there  was  "  but  one  bishop 
to  a  church,  so  but  one  church  to  a  bishop,"  and  his  "  cure 
never  called  a  diocese,  but  usually  a  parish."    See  "  An  Enquiry 
into  the  Constitution,  &c.  of  the  Primitive  Church.     By  an  Im 
partial  hand."  (1691)  pp.  14-42.— ED. 

f  "  Tom.  vii.  de  Gestis  cum  Emeric." — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

1145,  there  were  a  thousand  in  Armenia.  I  could 
not  tell  how  to  conceive  that  their  bishoprics  could 
be  like  ours  in  England.  I  observed  also,  that  the 
great  Selden,  in  his  notes  upon  Eutychius,  proved 
that  Bishops  no  otherwise  differed  from  the  rest  of 
the  Presbyters,  than  the  master  of  a  college  does 
from  the  fellows,  and  by  consequence  differed  only 
in  degree,  and  not  in  order.  If  that  be  the  case, 
there  can  be  no  reason  given  why  episcopacy  should 
be  so  magnified  and  extolled  as  it  has  been  by  some. 

I  find  that  the  learned  Grotius,  in  his  Epistle  to 
Bignonius,*  proves  the  celebrated  Epistle  of  St.  Cle 
ment  to  the  Corinthians  to  be  of  undoubted  anti 
quity,  because  he  no  where  in  it  makes  mention  of 
that  paramount  or  peculiar  authority  of  bishops, 
which  by  ecclesiastical  custom  began  after  the  death 
of  St.  Mark  to  be  introduced  at  Alexandria,  and 
from  that  precedent  into  other  places  ;  but  he  plainly 
shows,  as  the  Apostle  Paul  had  done,  that  the 
churches  were  governed  by  the  common  council  of 
the  Presbyters,  who  are  all  called  bishops  both  by 
him  and  Paul. 

I  read  over  Chillingworth's  "  Religion  of  Protes 
tants,  a  safe  way  to  Salvation,"  and  came  to  an  issue 
with  him,  that  "the  Bible"  was  "the  religion  of 
Protestants."  To  that,  therefore,  I  determined  firmly 
and  inviolably  to  adhere.  But  this  celebrated  work 
of  the  greatest  champion  the  Protestant  cause  ever 

*  See  Burigny's  "  Life  of  Grotius,"  pp.  297,  298.— ED. 

Q    2 


228  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

had,  Mr.  Chillingworth,  being  very  commonly  repre 
sented  by  persons  of  distinction  in  the  Established 
Church,  as  a  model  of  clear,  strong,  and  fair  reason 
ing  ;  a  book  very  fit  to  form  a  man's  mind,  give  him 
a  right  ply,  and  put  him  upon  a  true  scent,  I  for 
that  reason  dwelt  the  more  upon  it,  and  shall  be  at 
the  pains  of  here  transcribing  some  of  the  remarks 
I  made. 

I  could  not  help  admiring  a  great  many  of  the 
principles  which  he  lays  down  :  as  this  particularly,* 
that  "  if  a  church  supposed  to  want  nothing  neces 
sary,  require  me  to  profess  against  my  conscience, 
that  I  believe  some  error,  though  never  so  small  and 
innocent,  which  I  do  not  believe,  and  will  not  allow 
me  her  communion  but  upon  this  condition,  in  this 
case  the  church,  for  requiring  this  condition,  is  schis- 
matical,  and  not  I,  for  separating  from  the  church." 
And  this  alsof  deserves  to  be  written  in  letters  of 
gold,  that  "if  men  would  be  themselves,  and  be 
content  that  others  should  be,  in  the  choice  of  their 
religion,  the  servants  of  God  and  not  of  men  ;  if 
they  would  allow  that  the  way  to  Heaven  is  no  nar 
rower  now  than  Christ  left  it,  his  yoke  no  heavier 
than  he  made  it ;  that  the  belief  of  no  more  diffi 
culties  is  required  now  to  salvation  than  was  in  the 
primitive  church  ;  that  no  error  is  in  itself  destruc 
tive  and  exclusive  from  salvation  now,  which  was 
not  then ;  if  instead  of  being  earnest  Calvinists, 
rigid  Lutherans,"  (or  zealous  Churchmen)  "  they 
would  become  themselves,  and  be  content  that  others 

*  Pref.  s.  4-4— C.  t  Pp.  172,  173.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  229 

should  be,  plain  and  honest  Christians  ;  if  all  men 
would  believe  the  Scripture,  and  freeing  themselves 
from  prejudice  and  passion,  would  sincerely  endea 
vour  to  find  the  true  sense  of  it,  and  live  according 
to  it,  and  require  no  more  of  others,  but  to  do  so ; 
nor  denying  their  communion  to  any  that  do  so, 
would  so  order  their  public  service  of  God,  that  all 
which  do  so  may  without  scruple  or  hypocrisy,  or 
protestation  against  any  part  of  it,  join  with  them 
in  it ;  who  doth  not  see  that,  seeing  all  necessary 
truths  are  plainly  and  evidently  set  down  in  Scrip 
ture,  there  would  of  necessity  be  among  all  men,  in 
all  things  necessary,  unity  of  opinion  ? — and,  not 
withstanding  any  other  differences  that  are  or  could 
be,  unity  of  communion,  and  charity,  and  mutual 
toleration  ?  By  which  means  all  schism  and  heresy 
would  be  banished  the  world,  and  those  wretched 
contentions  which  now  rend  and  tear  in  pieces,  not 
the  coat,  but  the  members  and  bowels  of  Christ ; 
which  mutual  pride  and  tyranny,  and  cursing  and 
killing,  and  damning,  would  fain  make  immortal, 
should  speedily  receive  a  most  blessed  catastrophe." 

Nor  could  I  help  readily  falling  in  with  him,  when 
he  so  frankly  declares,*  that  "  the  presumptuous  im 
posing  of  the  senses  of  men  upon  the  words  of  God, 
the  special  senses  of  men  upon  the  general  words  of 
God,  and  laying  them  upon  men's  consciences  toge 
ther,  under  the  equal  penalty  of  death  and  damnation ; 
this  vain  conceit  that  we  can  speak  of  the  things  of 
God,  better  than  in  the  words  of  God ;  this  deifying 

*  P.  190.— C. 


230  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

our  own  interpretations,  and  tyrannous  enforcing 
them  upon  others ;  this  restraining  of  the  word  of 
God  from  that  latitude  and  generality,  and  the  un 
derstandings  of  men  from  that  liberty,  wherein  Christ 
and  the  Apostles  left  them,  is  and  hath  been  the 
only  fountain  of  all  the  schisms  of  the  Church,  and 
that  which  makes  them  immortal :  the  common  in 
cendiary  of  Christendom,  and  that  which  (as  I  said 
before)  tears  in  pieces,  not  the  coat  but  the  bowels 
and  members  of  Christ;  Ridente  Turcd  nee  dolente 
Judceo. 

"  Take  away  these  walls  of  separation,  and  all  will 
quickly  be  one.  Take  away  this  persecuting,  burn 
ing,  cursing,  damning  of  men  for  not  subscribing  to 
the  words  of  men  as  the  words  of  God.  Require  of 
Christians  only  to  believe  Christ,  and  to  call  no  man 
master  but  him  only.  Let  those  leave  claiming 
infallibility  that  have  no  title  to  it,  and  let  them  that 
in  their  words  disclaim  it,  disclaim  it  likewise  in 
their  actions.  In  a  word,  take  away  tyranny  which 
is  the  Devil's  instrument  to  support  errors,  and  su 
perstitions,  and  impieties,  in  the  several  parts  of  the 
world,  which  could  not  otherwise  long  withstand  the 
power  of  truth.  I  say,  take  away  tyranny  and  re 
store  Christians  to  their  just  and  full  liberty  of  cap 
tivating  their  understanding  to  Scripture  only,  and 
as  rivers,  when  they  have  a  free  passage,  run  all 
to  the  ocean,  so  it  may  well  be  hoped  by  God's  bless 
ing,  that  universal  liberty,  thus  moderated,  may 
quickly  reduce  Christendom  to  truth  and  unity.'' 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  231 

As  also,  when  he  declares,*  that  "  to  reduce  Chris 
tians  to  unity  of  communion,  there  are  but  two 
ways  that  may  be  conceived  probable.  The  one,  by 
taking  away  the  diversity  of  opinions,  touching  mat 
ters  of  religion.  The  other,  by  showing  that  the 
diversity  of  opinions  which  is  among  the  several 
sects  of  Christians,  ought  to  be  no  hindrance  to  their 
unity  in  communion. 

"  The  former  of  these  is  not  be  hoped  for  without 
a  miracle.  What  then  remains,  but  that  the  other 
way  must  be  taken,  and  Christians  must  be  taught 
to  set  a  higher  value  upon  these  high  points  of  faith 
and  obedience  wherein  they  agree,  than  upon  these 
matters  of  less  moment  wherein  they  differ;  and 
understand,  that  agreement  in  those,  ought  to  be 
more  effectual  to  join  them  in  one  communion,  than 
their  difference  in  other  things  of  less  moment  to 
divide  them.  When  I  say,  in  one  communion,  I 
mean  in  a  common  profession  of  those  articles  of 
faith  wherein  all  consent ;  a  joint  worship  of  God, 
after  such  a  way  as  all  esteem  lawful ;  and  a  mutual 
performance  of  all  those  works  of  charity,  which 
Christians  owe  to  one  another.  And  to  such  a 
communion,  what  better  inducement  could  be 
thought  of,  than  to  demonstrate  that  what  was  uni 
versally  believed  of  all  Christians,  if  it  were  joined 
with  a  love  of  truth,  and  with  holy  obedience,  was 
sufficient  to  bring  men  to  Heaven  ?  For  why  should 
men  be  more  rigid  than  God?  Why  should  any 

*  P.  201 —C 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

error  exclude  any  man  from  the  Church's  com 
munion,  which  will  not  deprive  him  of  eternal  sal 
vation  ?" 

I   am    entirely    of  his    mind,    when   he    says,* 
"if  there  were  any  society  of  Christians   that  held 
there  were  no  Antipodes,  notwithstanding  this  error, 
I  might  communicate  with  them.     But  if  I  could 
not  do  so,  without  professing  myself  of  their  belief  in 
this  matter,  then  I  suppose  I  should  be  excused  from 
schism,  if  I  should  forsake  their  communion,  rather 
than  profess  myself  to  believe  that  which  I  do  not 
believe."     And,  above  all,  in  that  glorious  passage, 
"  When  I  say  to  Mr.  Knot,f  the  Religion  of  Pro 
testants  is  in  prudence  to  be  preferred  before  yours, 
as  on  the  one  side  I  do  not  understand  by  your  re 
ligion,  the  doctrine  of  Bellarmine  or  Baronius,  or 
any  other  private  man  amongst  you,  nor  the  doc 
trine  of  the  Sorbonne,  or  of  the  Jesuits,  or  of  the 
Dominicans,  or  of  any  other  particular  company  among 
you,  but  that  wherein  you  all  agree,  or  profess  to 
agree,  the  doctrine  of  the  Council  of  Trent ;  so,  ac 
cordingly,  on  the  other  side,  by  the  religion  of  Pro 
testants,  I  do  not  understand  the  doctrine  of  Luther, 
or  Calvin,   or  Melancthon ;    nor  the  Confession  of 
Augusta,  or  Geneva;  nor  the  Catechism  of  Heidel- 
burgh ;  nor  the  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England ; 
no,  nor  the  harmony  of  Protestant  Confessions  ;  but 
that  wherein  they  all  agree,  and  which  they  all  sub 
scribe  with  a  greater  harmony,  as  a  perfect  rule  of 

*  P.  264.— C.  t  P,  357,  358.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  233 

their  faith  and  actions,  that  is,  the  Bible.  The  Bible, 
I  say,  the  Bible  only  is  the  religion  of  Protestants. 
Whatsoever  else  they  believe  besides  it,  and  the 
plain,  irrefragable,  indubitable  consequences  of  it, 
well  may  they  hold  it  as  a  matter  of  opinion.  But 
as  matter  of  faith  and  religion,  neither  can  they 
with  coherence  to  their  own  grounds  believe  it  them 
selves,  nor  require  the  belief  of  it  of  others,  without 
most  high  and  most  schismatical  presumption. 

"  I,  for  my  part,  after  a  long,  (and  as  I  verily  be 
lieve  and  hope,)  impartial  search,  of  the  true  way  to 
eternal  happiness,  do  profess  plainly,  that  I  cannot 
find  any  rest  for  the  sole  of  my  foot,  but  upon  this 
rock  only.  I  see  plainly,  and  with  mine  own  eyes, 
that  there  are  popes  against  popes,  councils  against 
councils,  some  fathers  against  others,  the  same 
fathers  against  themselves,  a  consent  of  fathers  of 
one  age  against  a  consent  of  fathers  of  another  age, 
the  Church  of  one  age  against  the  Church  of  another 
age.  Traditive  interpretations  of  Scripture  are 
pretended,  but  there  are  few  or  none  to  be  found. 
No  tradition  but  only  of  Scripture  can  derive  itself 
from  the  fountain,  but  may  be  plainly  proved,  either 
to  have  been  brought  in  in  such  an  age  after  Christ, 
or  that  in  such  an  age  it  was  not  in. 

"  In  a  word,  there  is  no  sufficient  certainty  but 
of  Scripture  only,  for  any  considering  man  to  build 
upon.  This,  therefore,  and  this  only,  I  have  reason 
to  believe.  This  I  will  profess.  According  to  this, 
I  will  live,  and  for  this,  if  there  be  occasion,  I  will 


234  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

not  only  willingly,  but  even  gladly,  lose  my  life, 
though  I  should  be  sorry  that  Christians  should 
take  it  from  me.  Propose  me  any  thing  out  of  this 
book,  and  require  whether  I  believe  or  no,  and  seem 
it  never  so  incomprehensible  to  human  reason,  I  will 
subscribe  it  with  hand  and  heart,  as  knowing  no  de 
monstration  can  be  stronger  than  this,  God  has  said 
so,  therefore  it  is  true.  In  other  things  I  will  take 
no  man's  liberty  of  judgment  from  him,  neither  shall 
any  man  take  mine  from  me.  I  will  think  no  man 
the  worse  man,  nor  the  worse  Christian  :  I  will  love 
no  man  the  less  for  differing  in  opinion  from  me. 
And  what  measure  I  mete  to  others,  I  expect  from 
them  again.  I  am  fully  assured  that  God  does  not, 
and  therefore  that  men  ought  not,  to  require  any 
more  of  any  man  than  this,  to  believe  the  Scripture 
to  be  God's  word,  to  endeavour  to  find  the  true 
sense  of  it,  and  to  live  according  to  it."* 

Such  principles  as  these,  advanced  by  one  that 
had  the  reputation  of  being  such  a  model  of  clear, 
strong,  and  fair  reasoning,  and  that  was  approved 
even  by  the  great  men  of  the  University  of  Oxford, 
appeared  to  me  to  go  a  great  way  towards  the  justi 
fying  of  moderate  nonconformity.! 

*  See  Des  Maizeaux's  "  Life  of  Chillingsworth,"  (1725,) 
pp.  192— 200.— ED. 

t  Dr.  Calamy  might  have  suitably  adduced  Chillingworth's 
remarkable  letter  to  his  friend  Dr.  Sheldon.  It  is  dated,  1635, 
and  contains  the  following  determined  resolution  against  sub 
scription  to  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  : — «'  Now  1  plainly  see,  if  I 
will  not  juggle  with  my  conscience,  and  play  with  God  Almighty, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMI.  235 

I  farther  read  the  Eight  Books  of  <e  Ecclesiastical 
Polity,"  written  by  Mr.  Hooker,  who  is  generally 
styled  "  the  judicious ;"  and  I  read  them  with  some 
care,  disposed  to  receive  all  the  light  that  I  could 
get  from  them.  But  I  found  him  rather  a  verbose, 
than  a  convincing  writer. 

As  to  his  First  Book,  which  relates  to  "  Laws  in 
general,"  I  could  not  perceive  any  great  difference 
between  the  Established  Church  and  the  Dissenters. 
Nor  could  I  see  why  we  might  not  as  readily  own  as 
they,  that  as  the  actions  of  men  are  of  sundry  dis 
tinct  kinds,  so  the  laws  thereof  must  accordingly  be 
distinguished,  which  is  the  thing  that  he  therein 
mainly  aims  at  clearing.  But  then,  whereas,  he  in 
sinuates,  that  where  authority  gives  laws,  they  must 
be  obeyed,  unless  there  be  reason  shown  which  may 
necessarily  enforce,  that  the  law  of  Reason  or  of 
God  doth  enjoin  the  contrary  ;  and  that  without 
this  we  take  away  all  possibility  of  sociable  life  in  the 
world ;  I  think  he  has  gone  too  far.  I  cannot  see 
how  we  can  be  under  an  obligation  to  obedience,  if 
the  pretended  lawgivers  exceed  the  bounds  of  their 
commission.  To  pretend  to  go  farther,  is  to  take 

I  must  forbear."  Yet,  on  accepting  ecclesiastical  preferment,  in 
1638,  "  he  complied  with  the  usual  subscription."  This  fully  ap 
pears  from  the  records  of  the  Church  of  Sarurn ;  though  Bishop 
Hoadley  seems  to  have  supposed  that  Chillingworth  had  been 
excused  by  "  the  particular  favour,  which  the  great  churchmen 
of  those  clays  had  for  him,  as  a  convert  from  the  Church  of 
Rome."  Ibid.  pp.  8.9,  265 — 271  ??. ;  See  "  Mem.  of  Wakefield," 
(1804,)  i.  172— 174.  — ED. 


236  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

away  that  liberty  to  which  God  has  given  us  a  natu 
ral  right ;  and  without  retaining  it,  a  social  life  loses 
its  true  relish,  and  becomes  a  real  slavery.  If  the 
Church  has  a  proper  legislative  authority,  she  must 
not  only  be  the  proper  judge  of  the  bounds  of  her 
own  authority,  but  others  must  be  bound  to  acqui 
esce  in  her  judgment.  If  that  be  once  owned,  a 
man  must  not  pretend  to  judge  for  himself,  but  will 
be  obliged  to  give  up  himself  bound  hand  and  foot, 
to  be  managed  and  used  at  pleasure,  which  is  a  sort 
of  tameness  that  some  can,  difficultly,  be  brought 
to  think  rational,  and  that  is  fitter  for  Turkey  than 
Christendom. 

In  his  Second  Book,  Mr.  Hooker  inquires,  "  whe 
ther  Scripture  is  the  only  rule  of  all  things,  which 
in  this  life  may  be  done  by  men  ?"  This  he  readily 
grants  upon  these  two  conditions  ;  viz.  first,  That 
by  the  things  that  may  be  done  by  men,  we  do  not 
understand  mean  and  trivial  actions,  but  keep  our 
selves  within  the  compass  of  moral  actions ;  actions 
which  have  in  them  either  vice  or  virtue.  And  se 
condly,  That  we  do  not  exact  for  every  action,  the 
knowledge  of  some  place  of  Scripture,  out  of  which 
it  may  particularly  be  deduced ;  but  that  we  are 
satisfied  if  our  actions  are  framed  according  to  the 
law  of  reason,  (the  general  axioms,  rules,  and  prin 
ciples  of  which,  are  frequent  in  the  Holy  Scripture,) 
leaving  room  for  particular  deductions  by  conse 
quence.  And  herein,  also,  I  can  freely  concur  with 
him.  It  is  possible  some  of  the  old  Puritans,  who 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  237 

asserted,  "  that  the  Scripture  of  God  is  in  such  sort 
the  rule  of  human  actions,  that  simply  whatsoever 
we  do,  and  are  not  by  it  directed  thereunto,  the 
same  is  sin/'  may  have  overshot  themselves ;  yet, 
still  as  exact  a  conformity  to  Scripture  in  our  ac 
tions,  and  particularly  in  our  worship,  as  may  be,  is 
desirable.  Un scriptural  impositions  are  not  to  be 
encouraged  by  such  as  would  approve  themselves  to 
the  Lord  Jesus,  who  is  king  and  head  of  his  Church, 
and  jealous  of  his  honour. 

Of  his  Third  Book,  the  main  design  is  to  show 
that  the  Scripture  does  not  contain  any  particular 
"  form  of  Church  Polity,  the  laws  whereof  may  in 
no  wise  be  altered."  And  I  heartily  concur  with 
him,  when  he  asserts,  that  "  no  complete  particular 
form  of  Church  Polity  is  fixed  ;"  and  that,  "  if  there 
were,  we  should  be  in  great  confusion  upon  many 
accounts."  I  am  entirely  of  his  mind,  that,  "  for 
men  to  venture  to  argue  that  God  must  needs  have 
done  the  thing  which  they  imagine  was  to  be  done,  is 
very  odd  and  unaccountable;"  and  that,  "  in  matters 
which  concern  the  actions  of  God,  the  most  dutiful 
way  on  our  part,  is  to  search  what  God  has  done, 
and  with  meekness  to  admire,  rather  than  to  dispute 
what  he,  in  congruity  of  reason,  ought  to  do." 

His  Fourth  Book  runs  upon  the  "  form  of  church 
polity''  established  here  in  England,  and  the  general 
exceptions  that  have  been  made  against  it.  He 
pleads  for  ceremonies  as  of  "great  use,"  without 
seeming  duly  to  consider  how  prejudical  they  have 


238  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

been  to  that  spirituality,  in  which  a  main  glory  of 
religion  lies.  It  being  objected  that  "  our  ceremo 
nies  are  not  like  those  in  the  Apostolical  times,"  he 
queries  "what  reason  there  is,  in  those  things,  to 
urge  the  state  of  one  only  age,  as  a  pattern  for  all  to 
follow?"  which  does  not,  methinks,  discover  a  due 
respect  to  those  with  whom  the  care  of  first  settling 
the  Church  was  intrusted  by  an  immediate  divine 
commission. 

To  the  objection,  that  our  ceremonies  "  are  the 
same  which  the  Church  of  Rome  useth,"  he  answers 
that  "  all  things  that  are  Popish,  are  not  necessarily 
to  be  abrogated ;"  and  that  "  the  ceremonies  re 
tained  are  godly,  comely,  decent,  and  profitable  for 
the  Church.  They  are  not  things  to  belong  to  this 
or  that  sect,  but  they  are  the  ancient  rites  and  cus 
toms  of  the  Church  of  Christ."  But  I  cannot  per 
ceive,  from  any  thing  he  has  offered,  that  the  Church 
has  gained  near  so  much  as  she  has  lost  by  them. 

It  being  further  objected  that  "  some  of  the  cere 
monies  have  been  plainly  abused  by  the  Church  of 
Rome,  and  are  in  that  respect  scandalous  and  offen 
sive  ;"  he  answers  that  "  we  are  not  to  look  that  the 
Church  should  change  the  public  laws  and  ordinances, 
made  according  to  that  which  is  judged  ordinarily 
and  commonly  fittest  for  the  whole,  although  it 
chance  that  for  some  particular  men,  the  same  be 
found  inconvenient ;  especially  when  there  may  be 
other  remedy  also  against  the  sores  of  particular  in 
conveniences."  And  whereas  "  the  Church  of  Eng- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  239 

land  had  been  grievously  charged  with  forgetfulness 
of  her  duty,  which  had  been  to  have  framed  herself 
unto  the  pattern  of  their  example  that  went  before 
her  in  the  work  of  reformation  ;"  he  replies  that 
"  ceremonies  are  left  of  God  to  the  judgment  of  the 
Church  ;"  and  that "  every  Church,  the  state  whereof 
is  independent  upon  any  other,  hath  authority  to 
appoint  orders  for  itself,  in  things  indifferent :"  and 
that  "  all  Churches  are  not  bound  to  the  self  same 
indifferent  ceremonies,  which  it  liketh  sundry  to 
use:  but  that  the  spirit  of  singularity  in  a  few, 
ought  to  give  place  unto  public  judgment."  Several 
of  which  assertions  need,  as  far  as  I  can  judge, 
better  proof  than  he  hath  alleged  to  support  them. 

In  the  Fifth  Book  he  comes  to  the  specialities  of 
the  cause  in  controversy  ;  and  examines  the  reasons 
why  the  public  duties  of  the  Christian  religion, 
prayers,  and  sacraments,  &c.,  should  not  be  ordered 
in  such  sort  as  they  are  in  the  Church  of  England ; 
and  why  that  power  whereby  the  persons  of  men 
are  consecrated  to  the  ministry,  should  not  be  dis 
posed  of,  according  to  the  laws  of  this  Church, 
Here,  after  a  long  proem,  concerning  Religion  and 
Atheism,  and  Superstition,  and  the  redress  thereof, 
he  lays  down  certain  general  rules. 

I.  It  may  "cause  approbation  with  good  con 
science  towards  such  customs  or  rites  as  publicly  are 
established,  when  there  ariseth  from  the  due  con 
sideration  of  those  customs  and  rites  in  themselves, 
apparent  reason,  although  not  always  to  prove  them 


240  LIFE    OF    CALAMV. 

better  than  any  other  that  might  possibly  be  de 
vised,  yet  competent  to  show  their  conveniency  and 
fitness,  in  regard  of  the  use  for  which  they  should 
serve.  II.  Neither  may  we  in  this  case,  lightly 
esteem  what  hath  been  allowed  as  fit  in  the  judg 
ment  of  antiquity,  and  by  the  long  continued  prac 
tice  of  the  whole  Church  ;  from  which  unnecessarily 
to  swerve,  experience  never  as  yet  hath  found  it 
safe.  III.  The  Church  being  a  body  which  dieth 
not,  hath  always  power,  as  occasion  requireth,  no 
less  to  ordain  that  which  never  was,  than  to  ratify 
what  hath  been  before.  IV.  It  need  not  seem 
hard,  if  in  some  cases  of  necessity,  or  for  common 
utility's  sake,  certain  profitable  ordinances  some 
times  be  released,  rather  than  all  men,  always, 
strictly  bound  to  the  general  rigour  thereof.  And 
then  he  asserts,  that  "  in  these  cases  it  is  not  safe  for 
men  to  follow  their  private  judgments ;"  but  does 
not  so  much  as  attempt  to  show  how  they  can  be 
hereafter  answerable  for  their  actions  at  the  present, 
wherein  they  are  not  allowed  to  be  proper  judges  for 
themselves. 

Coming  afterwards  to  particulars,  he  speaks  of 
places  for  the  public  service  of  God,  and  the  dedica 
tion  of  them,  and  the  names  by  which  they  are  dis 
tinguished,  the  fashion  of  them,  their  sumptuous- 
ness,  and  their  holiness  and  virtue,  and  makes  a 
great  variety  of  reflections,  several  of  which  leave 
room  for  more  objections  than  can  easily  be  an 
swered. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  241 

From  places  of  worship,  he  passes  to  the  employ 
ment  of  Christians,  and  treats  of  public  teaching 
or  preaching.  First,  of  catechizing  ;  then  of  reading 
and  explaining  the  books  of  holy  Scripture ;  then  of 
prayer,  and  "  of  the  form  of  Common  Prayer,"  where 
he  positively  asserts,  "  that  the  Church  had  evermore 
held  a  prescript  form  of  Common  Prayer,"*  (more, 
I  think,  than  any  mortal  can  prove  ;)  of  "  the  attire 
belonging  to  the  service  of  God  ;"  of  "  saying  service 
in  the  chancel,"  and  bowing  at  the  name  of  Jesus ; 
of  Lessons  intermingled  with  the  Prayers  of  the 
Church  ;  of  the  people's  saying  after  the  minister ;  of 
often  repeating  the  Psalms,  and  of  music  with  them ; 
"  of  the  Magnificat,  Benedictus,  and  Nunc  dimittis : 
of  the  Litany,  Athanasian  Creed,  Gloria  Patri,  &c," 

He  afterwards  proceeds  to  the  Sacraments,  which 
are  "  means  of  God's  ordaining,  for  our  reaching  life 
through  Christ."  First,  he  treats  of  baptism,  and 
the  baptizing  of  infants ;  then  of  the  cross  in  bap 
tism,  and  of  confirmation.  Then  he  comes  to  the 
Eucharist,  the  Sacrament  of  the  body  and  blood  of 
Christ ;  festival  days,  and  fasts,  the  celebration  of 
matrimony,  churching  of  women,  and  the  rites  of 
burial.  Then  he  proceeds  to  consider  "  that  func 
tion  which  undertaketh  the  ministry  of  holy  things 
among  Christians,  and  ordination  to  it ;"  and  dis 
courses  of  Presbyters,  and  deacons,  apostles,  pro 
phets,  evangelists,  and  pastors  ;  of  oblations,  foun- 

*  Thus   Dr.  Bennefs  "Brief  History,   1708."      Biog.  Diet. 
ii.  149.     See  "  Selection  from  Gent.'s  Mag."  iii.  50,  51. — ED. 
VOL.    I.  K 


242  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

dations,  endowments,  and  tithes,  &c.  the  learning, 
of  ministers,  their  residence,  and  the  number  of 
their  livings,  &c. 

Though  some  of  this  author's  remarks  upon  these 
several  heads  are  judicious,  and  cost  him  much 
pains,  and  may  be  of  use  ;  and  others  of  them  may 
be  just  enough,  in  opposition  to  some  certain  persons 
whom  he  might  have  particularly  in  his  eye  ;  yet 
are  there  others  of  them  that  appear  not  agreeable 
either  to  sober  reason,  or  the  writings  of  the  New 
Testament.  All  of  them  put  together,  are  not  suf 
ficient  in  my  opinion,  to  produce  a  rational  convic 
tion,  that  either  conformity  to  the  present  Ecclesias 
tical  settlement  is  a  duty,  or  that  a  more  scriptural 
settlement  ought  not  to  be  desired  and  laboured  for. 

In  his  sixth  book,  according  to  the  title  of  it,  he 
should  have  discoursed  of  "  Lay  Elders,5'  and  their 
"  Power  of  Ecclesiastical  Jurisdiction."  But,  in 
reality,  he  there  only  treateth  of  penitence,  disci 
pline,  satisfaction,  and  the  absolution  of  penitents, 
without  taking  the  least  notice  of  Lay  Elders.  As 
for  the  things  he  does  go  upon,  he  discourses  of  them 
in  such  a  way,  as  that  it  would  be  hard  to  say,  how 
the  debate  as  to  conformity  and  nonconformity,  can 
therein  have  any  concern  at  all. 

In  his  Seventh  Book  he  treats  of  "  the  authority 
and  honour  of  bishops  :"  where  he  asserts  it  for  "  a 
most  infallible  truth,"  that  "  the  Church  of  Christ  is 
at  this  day  lawfully,  and  so  hath  been  from  the  first 
beginning,  governed  by  bishops,  having  permanent 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  243 

superiority  and  ruling  power,  over  other  ministers  of 
the  word  and  Sacraments  :"  and  that  "  such  bishops 
have  not  more  power  nor  honour  than  they  ought  to 
have."  In  this  book  also,  he  discovers  great  zeal  for 
church  lands  :  but,  as  for  the  divine  right  of  diocesan 
considered  as  distinct  from  pastoral  episcopacy,* 
the  proof  appears  very  defective. 

The  Eighth  Book  treats  of  "  such  power  of  Ec 
clesiastical  Dominion,  as  by  the  law  of  this  land 
belongeth  to  the  supreme  Regent  thereof/'  Here  he 
shows  that  "  Christian  Kings  have  a  supremacy  in 
Ecclesiastical  affairs ;  but  it  is  under  the  direction 
of  the  law.  The  highest  governor  in  these  lands 
has  universal  dominion  :"  but  then  it  is  with  depend- 
ance  upon  the  whole  entire  body,  over  the  several 
parts  whereof  he  hath  dominion.  He  hath  power 
to  call  and  dissolve  all  solemn  assemblies,  about  the 
public  affairs  of  the  Church ;  to  make  laws  and  in- 
force  them,  &c.  But  the  author  is  here  broken  and 
imperfect.f  And  though  there  is  a  power  of  legis- 

*  See  supra,  p.  226. — ED. 

f  Having  granted  what  Bishop  Hoadley,  long  after,  satisfac 
torily  proved,  in  his  "  Kingdom  of  Christ  not  of  this  World," 
that  "  a  church  and  a  commonwealth  are  things  in  nature,  one 
distinguished  from  the  other,"  he,  presently,  assumes  that  "  there 
is  not  any  man  of  the  Church  of  England,  but  the  same  man  is 
also  a  member  of  the  Commonwealth,  nor  any  member  of  the 
Commonwealth,  which  is  not  also  of  the  Church  of  England." 

On  the  authority  of  this  assumption,  the  learned  writer  con 
troverts  those  who  maintain  "  that  in  a  Christian  kingdom, 
he  whose  power  is  greatest  over  the  Commonwealth,  may 

R  2 


244  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

lation  about  ecclesiatical  matters,  yet  if  the  law 
givers  have  granted  a  toleration  to  all  such  as 
scruple  subjection  to  the  laws  enacted,  persons  are 
plainly  at  liberty  to  take  their  own  way,  provided 
they  act  so  as  to  be  able  to  give  an  account  of  them 
selves  to  God,  of  which  it  most  certainly  highly  be 
comes  all  to  be  much  more  careful,  than  of  avoiding 
the  displeasure,  or  compassing  the  favour,  of  poor 
fallible  mortals  like  themselves. 

Upon  the  whole,  though  I  had  often  heard  it  as 
serted,  that  the  reading  of  Hooker's  "  Ecclesiastical 
Polity,"  would  make  any  man  an  admirer  of  the 
Established  Church,  yet  I  cannot  say  it  had  any 

not  lawfully  have  supremacy  of  power,  also,  over  the  Church, 
so  far  as  to  order  and  dispose  of  spiritual  affairs." — Works, 
(1705)  pp.  438.  442. 

The  following  passage,  in  which  Milton  defines  the  distinct 
purposes  of  civil  and  religious  association,  and  the  serious  and 
sanguinary  consequences  of  their  having  been  confounded,  may 
here  not  unsuitably  be  adduced  as  an  illustration  by  contrast. 

"  Primo  homines  ut  tuto  ac  libere,  sine  vi  atque  injuriis  vitam 
agerent,  convenere  in  civitatem ;  ut  sancte  et  religiose  in  Eccle- 
siam.  Ilia  leges,  haec  disciplinam  habet  suam,  plane  diversam. 
Hinc,  toto  orbe  Christiano,  per  tot  annos,  bello  ex  bello  seritur, 
quod  Magistratus  et  Ecclesia  inter  se  officia  confundunt."  See 
"  Pro  Populo  Anglicano  Defensio,"  (1651)  Prcef.  p.  19. 

(Men  first  united  in  a  civil  convention  to  avoid  mutual  aggres 
sion,  and  thus  to  live  in  freedom  and  security.  They  formed  a 
Church,  to  pass  their  lives  in  religious  sanctity.  The  one  has 
laws,  the  other  has  her  discipline,  each  plainly  distinct.  Hence, 
for  how  many  years  have  wars  been  perpetuated,  because  the 
Magistrate  and  the  Church  had  intruded  on  each  other's  pro 
vince.) — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  245 

such  effect  upon  me.  I  not  only  observed,  that  that 
author  commended  Calvin  for  establishing  Presby 
tery  at  Geneva,*  and  questioned  the  divine  right  of 
Episcopacy,-)"  ^u^  must  confess,  that  when  I  had 
gone  through  his  whole  work  with  some  care,  I 

*  After  describing  Calvin  as  "  Incomparably  the  wisest  man 
that  ever  the  French  church  did  enjoy,  since  the  hour  it  enjoyed 
him,"  Hooker  says  :  "  His  bringing  up  was  in  the  study  of  civil 
law.  Divine  knowledge  he  gathered  not  by  hearing  or  reading, 
so  much  as  by  teaching  others.  For,  though  thousands  were 
debtors  to  him,  as  touching  knowledge  in  that  kind,  yet  he  to 
none,  but  only  to  God,  the  author  of  that  most  blessed  fountain, 
the  Book  of  Life,  and  of  the  admirable  dexterity  of  wit,  together 
with  the  helps  of  other  learning." 

Hooker  then  details  the  circumstances  under  which  Calvin,  on 
his  return  from  exile,  in  1541,  contrived  for  the  Gcnevese  "a 
complete  form  of  discipline,  which  both  they  and  their  pasfors 
should  be  solemnly  sworn  to  observe  for  ever  after."  This  he 
placed  under  the  authority  of  "  a  standing  ecclesiastical  court," 
with  "perpetual  judges,"  consisting  of  "  their  ministers/'  and 
"  others  of  the  people,  annually  chosen,  twice  so  many  in  num 
ber  as  they;"  an  establishment,  which  Hooker  thus  commends  : 

"  This  device,  I  see  not  how  the  wisest  at  that  time  living 
could  have  bettered,  if  we  duly  consider  what  the  present  state 
of  Geneva  did  then  require.  For  their  bishop,  and  his  clergy, 
being,  as  it  is  said,  departed  from  them  by  moon-light ;  or,  how 
soever,  being  departed,  to  choose  in  his  room  any  other  bishop, 
had  been  a  thing  altogether  impossible.  And  for  their  ministers 
to  seek,  that  themselves  alone  might  have  coercive  power  over 
the  whole  Church,  would  perhaps  have  been  hardly  construed  at 
that  time."  Pref.  pp.  44,  4,5.  See  Spon's  "  Hist,  de  Geneve," 
(1685)  p.  250.— ED. 

t  Satisfied  to  represent  "  the  sacred  regiment  of  bishops  to 
have  been  ordained  of  God,  as  any  kind  of  government  in  the 
world,  whatsoever,  is  of  God."  Workst  p.  373. — ED. 


246  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

rather  found  myself  more  dissatisfied  to  fall  in  with 
our  national  way  and  method  than  before,  because 
of  the  weakness  of  many  of  the  reasons  produced, 
by  so  celebrated  a  supporter  of  it.* 

Since  that  time  I  have  read  over  Bishop  Jeremy 
Taylor's  Ductor  T)ubitantium,\  which  is  another  work 
generally  applauded.  That  author  is  by  Archdeacon 
Echard  said  to  be  "  admired  by  all  learned  men,  and 
signally  distinguished  for  the  strength  and  clearness 
of  his  head  and  judgment ;  and  esteemed  the  most 
knowing  casuist  that  the  nation  ever  produced.":): 
It  must  be  owned  that  when  he  treats  of  Church 
power,  he  carries  it  high  enough  ;  yet  he  makes 
such  concessions,  as  go  a  great  way  towards  jus- 

*  The  following,  is,  perhaps,  as  weak  as  any,  and  may  serve 
to  show  how  a  learned  Christian,  like  "  the  judicious  Hooker," 
could,  upon  occasion,  be  content  to  judaize. 

"  If  Joash  was  commended  for  his  care  and  provision,  con 
cerning  so  small  a  part  of  religion  as  the  church  treasure,  it 
must  needs  be  unto  Christian  kings  themselves  greater  honour, 
and  to  Christianity  a  larger  benefit  when  the  custody  of  religion, 
and  the  worship  of  God,  in  general  is  their  charge."  Works, 
p.  447.— ED. 

f  "  Or  the  role  of  conscience,  in  all  her  general  measures  ; 
serving  as  an  instrument  for  the  determination  of  conscience. 
1660."— ED. 

:  "  Hist,  of  England,"  iii.  94.— C. 

"  His  skill  was  great,"  says  Bishop  Rust,  "  both  in  the  civil 
and  canon  law,  and  casuistical  divinity  ;  and  he  was  a  rare  con 
ductor  of  souls,  and  knew  how  to  counsel,  and  to  advise ;  to 
solve  difficulties,  and  determine  cases  and  quiet  consciences." 
See  "  Funeral  Sermon,"  (1668)  p.  19.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  247 

tifying    nonconformity    to    the    English    establish 
ment. 

He  owns*  that  "  the  Apostolical  power  and  com 
mission  was  wholly  ministerial,  and  without  domi 
nation  or  proper  jurisdiction  and  co-action.  They 
were  to  govern  by  arguments  and  reason,  by  fear 
and  hope,  and  by  preaching  of  rewards  and  punish 
ments."  And  that  f  "  they  who  by  Christ's  appoint 
ment,  or  by  the  Apostles',  were  authorized  to  govern 
the  Church,  stand  on  the  same  foot.":]:  And  declares 
that  "  it  is  not  reasonable  to  think,  that  God  would 
give  Church  rulers  his  authority  for  trifling  and 
needless  purposes."^  And  though  I  know  not  how 
to  say  with  him,  that  "  it  is  a  part  of  our  obedience 
not  to  judge  their  sentence,  nor  to  give  judgment 
against  them  in  a  question  of  difficulty,  but  to  stand 
to*  their  sentence  ;"||  (which  must  needs  grate  ex 
ceedingly,  and  appear  very  hard,  where  a  man  of 
sense,  according  to  the  best  of  his  judgment,  has 
overbearing  reasons  to  the  contrary  ;)  and  can  by  no 
means  agree  with  him  in  his  asserting,  that  "  it  is 
necessary  that  in  matters  of  decency  and  order  they 
should  be  perpetual  judges  and  dictators;"^  yet 
when  he  declares  against  "  turning  fathers  into 
princes,  and  the  Church  into  an  empire,"**  I  most 
entirely  agree  with  him  :  as  also,  when  he  asserts 

*  B.  iii.  C.  4.  Rule  1.  sec.  4.  p.  212,  &c. — C. 

t  Sec.  5.  — C.  |  Rule  ii.  sec.  3.— C. 

§  Rule  iii.  sec.  2~ C.  ||  Sec.  4. — C. 

IF  Sec.  19,  p.  94.— C.  **  Sec.  27 C. 


248  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

that  "  no  man  is  to  be  separated  from  the  Church  of 
God,  but  he  that  separates  himself  from  God,  and 
has  left  his  duty  ;"*  and  that  "  for  a  trifling  cause  to 
cut  a  man  off  from  the  communion  of  the  Church, 
is  to  do  as  the  man  in  the  Fable,  that  espying  a  fly 
on  his  neighbour's  forehead,  went  to  put  it  off  with 
a  hatchet,  and  struck  out  his  brains."t 

He  says,  that  "  Christ  only  is  our  lawgiver,  and 
what  he  said  was  to  last  for  ever ;"  that,  "  in  all 
things  which  he  said  not,  the  Apostles  could  not  be 
lawgivers ;  Jhey  had  no  such  authority  :  and,  there 
fore,  whatsoever  they  ordered  by  their  own  wisdom, 
was  to  abide  as  long  as  the  reason  did  abide ;  but 
still  with  the  same  liberty  with  which  they  appointed 
it:  for,  of  all  men  in  the  world,  they  would  least 
put  a  snare  on  the  disciples,  or  tie  fetters  upon 
Christian  liberty.":):  Herein  also,  I  heartily  concur 
with  him. 

Though  I  have  not  so  great  an  esteem  as  he,  of 
the  Canons  of  the  ancient  Councils,  yet  when  he  as 
serts  that  "  ecclesiastical  laws  that  are  merely  such, 
cannot  be  universal  and  perpetual,''  §  I  readily  agree. 
When  he  says,  "  Christ  had  made  us  free  from 
the  law  of  ceremonies,  which  God  appointed  to  the 
Jewish  nation,  and  to  which  all  other  nations  were 
bound  if  they  came  into  that  communion,  it  would 
be  intolerable  that  the  churches  who  rejoiced  in 
their  freedom  from  that  yoke  which  God  had  im- 

*   Rule  ix.  sec.  3. — C.  f  Sec.  6. C. 

t  Rule  xii. — 0.  $  Rule  xvii. — C. 


LIFE    OP    CALAMY.  249 

posed,  should  submit  themselves  to  a  yoke  of  or 
dinances  which  men  should  make ;  for,  though 
before  they  could  not,  yet  now  they  may  exercise 
communion,  and  use  the  same  religion,  without  com 
municating  in  rites  and  ordinances  ;"*  I  take  this  for 
very  good  reasoning.  And  when  he  says,  that  "  ec 
clesiastical  laws,  when  they  are  made,  should  be  rela 
tive  to  time  and  place,  subject  to  changes,  fitted  for 
use,  and  the  advantage  of  Churches,  ministering  to 
edification,  and  complying  with  charity,"  I  freely 
agree,  that  if  there  are  any  ecclesiastical  laws  at  all 
made,  they  should  be  of  this  sort,  and  no  other  :  as 
also,  in  what  he  adds,  viz.  that  "  whatsoever  ecclesi 
astical  law  hath  not  these  conditions,  the  Churches 
ought  not  to  receive,  because  they  are  impediments, 
not  advantages  to  the  service  of  God :  they  are  the 
laws  of  tyrants,  not  of  spiritual  fathers  :"f  though  I 
am  afraid  there  are  but  few  national  Churches  can 
be  found,  on  whom  this  would  not  fall  heavy. 

Speaking  of  the  laws  of  fasting  imposed  by  the 
Church  of  Rome,  he  says,  "  they  make  an  ecclesi 
astical  law  which  is  of  a  relative  use  and  nature,  to 
be  periodical  and  perpetual,  which  is  unreasonable, 
and  may  be  sometimes  unjust,  and  very  often  un 
charitable,  and  therefore,  not  the  fit  matter  of  an 
ecclesiastical  law.  For  this  is,  certainly,  the  greatest 
deletery  of  the  liberty  of  Christian  Churches,  and  a 
snare  to  consciences  ;  and  is  of  itself  apt  to  introduce 
superstition,  and  the  opinion  of  direct  religion  into 

*  Sec.  iv.— C.  fSec.  vii.— C. 


250  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  discipline."*  He  then  adds,  that  "a  law  of  bur 
then  being  intended  to  minister  to  things  contingent 
and  infinitely  alterable,  if  the  law  be  not  so  too,  it 
must  pass  into  an  opinion  of  being  a  Divine  worship 
and  religion,  or  else  into  more  than  an  opinion  and 
imagination  of  tyranny."  And  "  laws  of  burden  are 
always  against  charity,  if  they  be  not  done  in  great 
necessity,  or  not  effective  of  a  good  greater  than  the 
evil.  Therefore,  to  impose  such  lawsxwlth>aj)erpe- 
tual  obligation  upon  Churches,  when  it  cannot  be)  of 

^^^^^i^^J»         ^^^^^ 

perpetual  use,  and  at  all  times  good,  or,  j^stTM  such 
times,  necessary,  is  against  the  equity  and  charity  of 
that  power  which  Christ  intrusted  in  the  hands  of 
them  whom  he  made  stewards  of  his  household,  feed 
ers  of  his  flock,  and  fathers  of  his  family. "f  He  in 
all  this  has  my  most  hearty  concurrence. 

He  owns  also  that  "  ceremonies,  and  rituals,  and 
gestures,  and  manners  of  doing  outward  actions, 
cannot  be  made  to  be  any  thing  but  obedience. 
They  are  neither  fitted  by  God  as  Counsels  Evange 
lical,  nor  yet  by  nature,  as  the  outward  actions  of 
virtue  to  become  religion ;  nay,  they  are  separated 
from  being  religion,  by  the  Word  of  God,  by  the 
coming  of  Christ,  and  by  his  death  upon  the  cross  ; 
and  days,  and  meats,  and  drinks,  and  carnal  purities, 
and  external  observances,  are  now  both  by  God,  and 
by  nature,  removed  far  from  being  any  thing  of  the 
Christian,  that  is  of  the  spiritual  religion. "^  There 
fore,  the  laying  that  mighty  stress  on  them,  as  some 
have  done,  cannot  be  reasonable. 
*  Sec.  xxii.*—  C,  f  Sec,  xxiii. — C.  %  Rule  xviii.  sec,  5. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  251 

He  is  for  having  "  ecclesiastical  laws  easy  and  cha 
ritable  ;"  and  when  they  are  not  so,  declares  "  they 
oblige  not.*  He  says,  Jthat  "  an  injunction  of  the 
Church  must  be  such  as  is  fit  to  be  persuaded,  such 
which  men  can  be  willing  to,  and  easy  under,  and  of 
which  they  shall  have  no  cause  to  complain  :  for, 
unless  the  law  of  the  Church  be  such,  that  good  men 
may  willingly  obey  it,  it  cannot  be  enjoined  by  the 
Church,  ancfthe  Church  ought  not  to  desire  the  civil 
po^er,  to  do,it^for  her.  For,  since  she  has  no  power 
to  cojjmujjid  in  such  things  where  the  Divine  autho 
rity  does  -not  intervene,  all  the  rest  is  but  persuasion; 
and  he  that  hath  power  only  to  persuade,  cannot  be 
supposed  to  persuade  against  our  will  ;  and,  there 
fore,  matters  of  intolerable  burden  are  not  the  mat 
ter  of  ecclesiastical  laws,  because  they  certainly  are 
against  the  will  of  all  men,  who  can  serve  God,  and 
go  to  Heaven  without  them."  Such  a  passage  is 
fully  agreeable  to  my  sentiments ;  but,  I  cannot  help 
thinking,  that  had  it  been  dropped  by  some  men,  it 
would  have  been  reckoned  a  warm  invective  against 
our  Established  Church. 

"  Ecclesiastical  laws,"  he  says, "  must  ever  promote 
the  service  of  God,  and  the  good  of  souls,f  but  must 
never  put  a  snare  or  stumbling-block  to  conscience ;" 
and  freely  declares,  that  "  if  the  Church  makes  laws 
which  are  not  for  edification,  she  does  amiss;  she 
obliges  not,  her  laws  are  null,  and  do  not  bind  the 
conscience.'1  Speaking  of  "  significant  ceremonies,"  he 

*  Rulexix.  sec.  1.— C.  t  Rule  xx.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

says,  "  it  is  to  be  considered  whether  the  introducing 
of  such  things  doth  not  destroy  the  Church,  not  only 
in  her  Christian  liberty,  but  in  the  simplicity,  and 
purity,  and  spirituality  of  her  religion,  by  insen 
sibly  changing  it  into  a  ceremonial  and  external  ser 
vice." 

He  adds  afterward?,  "  when  we  speak  of  rituals 
or  ceremonies,  that  is,  exterior  actions  or  things,  be 
sides  the  institution  or  command  of  Christ,  either 
we  intend  them  as  a  part  of  divine  service,  and  then 
they  are  unlawful  and  intolerable ;  or  if  only  for^igni- 
fication,  that  is  so  little  a  thing  and  of  so  inconsider 
able  use  in  the  fulness  and  charity  of  the  Revelations 
evangelical,  that  besides  that  it  keeps  Christians  still 
in  the  state  of  infancy  and  minority,  and  supposes 
them  always  learning,  and  never  coming  to  the  know 
ledge  of  the  truth,  it  ought  not  to  stand  against  any 
danger  or  offence  that  can  by  them  be  brought  to 
any  wise  and  good  Christians."*  Adhering  to  such 
principles  as  these,  I  could  not  help  being  a  Dissen 
ter  from  the  English  establishment. 

I  found  that  the  Church  party  in  arguing  with 
Dissenters,  generally  laid  much  stress  upon  the  Fa 
thers,  as  if  their  authority  was  of  great  weight. 
Yet  nothing  can  be  more  easy  to  be  observed,  or 
more  safely  affirmed,  than  that  these  Fathers  often 
contradict  themselves,  and  one  another.  And  when 
their  variations  from  their  own  opinions  and  prac 
tices  are  set  before  their  seeming  admirers,  in  mani 
fold  instances,  they  commonly  pay  them  but  very 
*  Section  vi. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  253 

little  regard.  So,  as  Mr.  Chillingworth  told  Mr. 
Knot,  they  "  account  them  fathers  when  they  are  for 
them,  and  children  when  they  are  against  them  ;"* 
which  has  but  an  odd  aspect,  and  is  not  fair  and 
equal  dealing. 

Dr.  Sherlock  freely  tells  us,  that  "the  Scripture  is 
all  of  a  piece,  and  every  part  of  it  agrees  with  the 
rest ;  whereas  the  Fathers  many  times  contradict 
themselves  and  each  other."  He  confesses  that  it 
"has  often  made  him  smile,  with  a  mixture  of  pity 
and  indignation,  to  see  what  a  great  noise  the  Roman 
disputants  made  among  women  and  children,  and 
the  meanest  sort  of  people,  with  quotations  out  of 
Fathers  and  Councils,  whom  they  pretend  to  be  all 
on  their  side.''t  The  case  is  very  much  the  same 
between  the  Church  and  Dissenters.  The  Fathers 
are  as  much  boasted  of  by  the  former  against  the 
latter,  as  ever  they  were  by  the  Papists  against  the 
former ;  and,  for  any  thing  I  could  ever  perceive, 
with  as  little  reason,  and  to  as  little  purpose. 

The  way  of  authority  in  religion  has  been  much 
used  by  some  for  many  ages  ;  but  for  my  part  I 
never  could  relish  it,  and  the  more  I  considered  and 
weighed  it,  the  more  liable  did  I  find  it  to  unanswer 
able  objections.  I  make  no  scruple  to  give  it  as  my 
opinion,  that  the  King  (Charles  II.)  was  much  in  the 
right,  in  bringing  it  as  an  objection  to  Bishop  Bur- 
net,  J  that  those  in  his  scheme,  "  made  much  of  the 

*  P.  324.— C. 

f  "  Preservative  against  Popery."     Part  I.  chap.  ii.  sect.  3. 
— C.  I  «  Own  Time,"  i.  356.— C. 


254  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

authority  of  the  Church"  in  their  "  disputes  with  the 
Dissenters,  and  then  took  it  all  away  when  they 
dealt  with  the  Papists."* 

Reasoning  in  religious  matters  from  Church  autho 
rity,  appeared  to  me  upon  the  strictest  search  to  be 
sophistical,  unless  the  Church  could  be  proved  infal 
lible  ;f  and  I  could  not  find  the  Church  had  any 
authority  at  all,  farther  than  she  agreed  with,  and 
was  warranted  by  Scripture.  The  following  au 
thority  blindly  would  most  certainly  have  been  de 
structive  to  religion  under  the  Jewish  Church  ;  nor 
could  I  perceive  it  to  be  a  jot  more  safe  under 
Christianity, 

As  to  the  Church,  in  all  that  she  teaches  as  mat 
ter  of  faith,  or  commands  the  conscience  to  submit 
to,  she  ought  to  show  us  plain  characters  of  truth 

*  "  I  saw  plainly,"  adds  Burnet,  "  what  he  aimed  at  in  this, 
and  1  quickly  convinced  him  that  there  was  a  great  difference 
between  an  authority  of  Government  in  things  indifferent,  and  a 
pretence  to  infallibility.  He  complained  heavily  of  the  bishops, 
for  neglecting  the  true  concerns  of  the  Church,  and  following 
courts  so  much,  and  being  so  engaged  in  parties."  Ibid. 

During  this  convincing  conversation,  Burnet  appears  to  have 
forgotten,  or,  at  least,  argued  as  if  he  had  never  read,  though 
he  had  subscribed,  (ex  animo,)  his  Church's  assumption  of  "  au 
thority  in  controversies  of  faith,"  (not  "  things?  indifferent,")  in 
her  20th  article.  See  infra,  pp.  258,  259. — ED. 

f  It  was,  I  believe,  Sir  Richard  Steele,  who  demurred  to  the 
alleged  "  great  difference"  between  the  pretensions  of  the  rival 
episcopal  corporations ;  describing  "  the  Church  of  Rome"  as 
" infallible,"  and  "the  Church  of  England"  as  "never  in  the 
wrong." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  255 

and  fitness  in  the  things  themselves,  or  else  give 
proof  of  their  divinity.  When  she  fails  in  that,  I 
cannot  see  how  she  can  supply  that  defect  by  her 
authority,  which  in  that  case  is  purely  human,  and 
not  sufficient  either  for  faith  or  for  the  conscience. 
Every  man  is  obliged,  and  has  a  right,  to  judge  for 
himself  in  religious  matters.  It  cannot  indeed  be 
pretended,  but  that  this  may  in  some  cases  have  its 
inconveniences ;  and  what  is  there  not  liable  to  the 
same  objection  ?  It  is  hard  to  mention  any  thing, 
just,  reasonable,  or  necessary,  that  may  not  be  abused 
by  the  weakness  or  malice  of  men. 

Bishop  Hoadly  has  since  dropped  something  so 
strong  upon  this  head,  that  I  cannot  help  citing  it 
on  this  occasion.  "Authority,"  says  he,*  "is  in 
deed  the  greatest  and  most  irreconcilable  enemy  to 
truth  and  argument,  that  this  world  ever  furnished 
out.  All  the  sophistry,  all  the  colour  of  plausibility, 
all  the  artifice  and  cunning  of  the  subtlest  disputer 
in  the  world  may  be  laid  open,  and  turned  to  the 
advantage  of  that  very  truth  which  they  are  de 
signed  to  hide,  or  to  depress  :  but  against  authority 
there  is  no  defence." 

He  shows  that  "  it  was  authority  which  crushed 
the  noble  sentiments  of  Socrates  and  others ;"  and 
that  by  authority  the  Jews  and  Heathens  combated 

*  "  An  Answer  to  the  Representations  drawn  up  by  the  Com 
mittee  of  the  Lower  House  of  Convocation,  concerning  several 
dangerous  positions  and  doctrines,  contained  in  the  Bishop  of 
Bangor's  Preservative  and  Sermons."  (1717)  pp.  312-315. — C. 


256  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  truth  of  the  Gospel  ;  and  then  adds,  "  when 
Christians  increased  into  a  majority,  and  came  to 
think  the  same  method  to  be  the  only  proper  one 
for  the  advantage  of  their  cause,  which  had  been 
the  enemy  and  destroyer  of  it ;  then  it  was  the  au 
thority  of  Christians  which,  by  degrees,  not  only  laid 
waste  the  honour  of  Christianity,  but  well  nigh  ex 
tinguished  it  amongst  men.  It  was  authority  which 
would  have  prevented  all  reformation  where  it  is, 
and  which  has  put  a  barrier  against  it  wherever  it 
is  not.  How,  indeed,  can  it  be  expected  that  the 
same  thing  which  has  in  all  ages,  and  in  all  countries, 
been  hurtful  to  truth  and  true  religion,  amongst  men, 
should  in  any  age  or  in  any  country  become  a  friend 
and  guardian  of  them." 

In  answer  to  an  objection  foreseen,  he  had  before 
said,  "  it  was  authority  which  hindered  the  voice  of 
the  Son  of  God  himself  from  being  heard,  and  which 
alone  stood  in  opposition  to  his  powerful  arguments 
and  his  divine  doctrine.  Where  truth  happens  to 
be  received  for  the  sake  of  authority,  there  is  just  so 
much  diminished  from  the  love  of  truth,  and  the 
glory  of  reason,  and  the  acceptableness  of  men  to 
God,  as  there  is  attributed  to  authority." 

Great  stir  has  been  made  about  Councils,  by 
which  the  Church  endeavoured  to  exercise  autho 
rity,  but  what  has  been  offered  upon  that  head 
moves  me  but  little.  Leo  says,*  that  "  the  Nicene 
Canons  were  dictated  by  the  Spirit  of  God."  That 

*  Ad  Martian  Aug.  epist.  Ixxviii.  c.  3. — O 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  257 

to  me  wants  proof:  the  meeting  of  the  clergy,  in 
Synods  or  Councils,  Nazianzen*  used  to  observe, 
was,  therefore,  the  less  to  be  wished  for,  or  valued, 
because  it  was  apt  to  fill  their  heads  with  elevated 
notions,  and  put  them  upon  exerting  authority, 
which  as  men  are  made,  and  generally  disposed, 
has  a  natural  aptness  to  create  contests.  It  is  a  re 
mark  of  the  celebrated  Peter  Martyr,f  that  votes  in 
Councils  were  not  weighed  but  numbered ;  by  which 
means,  the  smaller  and  better  part  was  frequently 
evercome  by  the  greater  and  worse.  The  fondness 
of  some,  for  such  assemblies,  purely  human,  has  so 
transported  them,  that  they  have  been  brought  to 
admire  that,  which  to  others  appeared  a  perfect  galli- 
matia,  and  to  look  upon  debates  and  cabals  as  the 
effects  of  a  pious  zeal,  that  they  would  have  con 
demned  in  others  as  manifest  fruits  of  fury  and 
ambition. 

St.  Paul's  rules  and  maxims,  "  let  every  man  be 
fully  persuaded  in  his  own  mind,"  and  "  whatsoever 
is  not  of  faith  is  sin,"  appeared  to  me  capable  of 
being  very  naturally  and  fairly  extended  to  the 
several  points  in  difference  between  the  Established 
Church  and  Protestant  Dissenters.  After  all  the 
noise  and  stir  about  the  sin  of  schism,  by  Mr.  Dod- 
well  and  others,  I  could  not  conceive  of  any  thing 
clearer  than,  that  "  if  things  be  imposed  under  the 
notion  of  indifferent,  which  a  number  think  sinful, 

*  See  Supra,  p.  21.— ED. 
f  In  1  Lib.  Reg.  Cap.  xii.  p.  97-— C. 
VOL.    I.  S 


258  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

and  a  schism  follow  thereupon,  the  im posers  are 
the  schismatics."  And  if  any  Church  shall  require, 
in  order  to  a  communion,  that  a  man  make  a 
profession  to  believe  that  which  he  does  not  really 
believe,  (we  may  here  take  for  instance  that  one 
celebrated  article,  "  the  Church  hath  power  to  decree 
rites  and  ceremonies,  and  authority  in  matters  of 
faith,")*  his  submission  is  unwarrantable,  and  he 
may  separate  without  being  a  schismatic. 

Though  some  had  argued  strenuously  for  impo 
sitions  in  matters  of  religion,  yet,  after  the  utmost 
search,  I  could  not  find  that  any  had  proved  them  ne 
cessary,  which  was  the  limit  or  boundary  fixed  by  the 
Council  at  Jerusalem,  (Acts  xv.  28.)  Nor  is  there 
any  thing  of  this  nature  to  be  found  in  the  days  of 
Christ  and  his  Apostles.  Ecclesiastical  impositions,  as 
far  as  I  could  perceive,  were  contrary  to  the  spirit  and 
design  of  the  Gospel,  and  what  God  never  blessed  to 
any  good  purpose  in  his  Church ;  nor  can  it  reason 
ably  be  expected  he  ever  will.-  The  more  I  thought, 
the  more  I  was  convinced,  that  the  spirit  of  imposi 
tion  was  a  spiteful  and  mischievous  part  of  Popery ; 
and,  therefore,  instead  of  being  cherished  and  encou 
raged,  was  to  be  cast  off  with  detestation. 

I  with  care  read  over  the  Articles,  Liturgy,  Homi 
lies,  and  Canons  of  the  Church  of  England,  which 
contain  the  English  impositions,  and  weighed  the 
terms  of  conformity  as  the  law  had  settled  them, 
and  found  several  things  required,  which,  after  the 

*  See  Supra,  p.  254 n. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  259 

strictest  search  and  enquiry  I  was  able  to  make,  I 
could  not  perceive  God  had  given  any  men  power  or 
commission  to  impose  upon  others,  or  discern  how 
my  compliance  could  be  proved  a  proper  duty.  I 
could  not  see  but  that  in  such  things,  God  had  left 
me  full  liberty  to  act  as  most  inclined.  Since  man 
had  done  so  too,  by  the  Act  passed  in  Parliament  for 
toleration,  I  apprehended  it  would  be  my  best  way, 
to  use  the  liberty  given  me  both  by  God  and  man,  and 
without  condemning  others,  (whom  I  was  free  to  leave 
to  stand  or  fall  to  their  own  master,)  to  keep  at  as 
good  a  distance  as  I  could,  from  human  impositions, 
and  while  I  endeavoured  to  preserve  both  my  doc 
trinal  scheme,  and  the  way  of  worship  I  fell  in  with, 
as  agreeable  to  the  sacred  Scripture  as  I  was  able,  to 
wait  and  see  if  any  alterations  might,  in  my  time,  be 
made  in  the  public  settlement  which  I  could  fall  in 
with,  without  doing  violence  to,  or  disturbing  the 
peace  of  my  own  mind  and  conscience. 

Finding  the  peace  of  the  Church,  the  grand  argu 
ment  for  compliance  with  the  impositions  prescribed, 
I  maturely  considered  that  also,  and  found  that,  if 
carried  too  far,  it  would  infallibly  bring  a  sort  of 
spiritual  slavery  into  the  Church,  which  I  could  not 
perceive  I  was  any  more  obliged  to  encourage,  coun 
tenance,  or  support,  than  civil  slavery  in  the  State. 

Upon  this  foot,  I  determined  for  Nonconformity. 
I,  at  the  same  time,  resolved  that  I  would  ever 
study  the  things  that  made  for  peace  and  mutual 
edification,  and  do  all  that  in  me  lay  to  promote  a 

s  2 


260  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Catholic  spirit,  and  brotherly  love ;  and  avoid,  as 
much  as  I  was  able,  narrowness,  bitterness,  wrath, 
clamour,  and  evil  speaking,  and  other  such  like 
fruits  of  the  flesh  ;  together  with  giving  offence  to 
any  in  the  use  of  my  liberty :  "  keeping  the  unity 
of  the  spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace."  Thus  doing,  I 
thought  I  could  never  be  justly  charged  with  that 
uncharitableness  and  disaffection,  which  passes  in 
Scripture  under  the  name  of  Schism. 

To,  and  in,  this  course,  I  had  a  variety  of  things 
concurring  to  encourage  and  hearten  me.  I  could 
not  help  thinking  it  an  offensive  reflection  upon  our 
Established  Church  that  came  from  the  Archbishop 
of  Spalato,*  that  "  he  saw  nothing  reformed  among 
us  but  our  doctrine:"f  which  observation  I  found 
considerably  strengthened  by  several  things  that 
have  occurred  since  his  time.  Though  many  that 
had  been  under  the  Establishment,  had  for  a  long 
time  with  freedom  made  complaints  of  the  want  of 
discipline  in  the  Church,  the  irregularities  of  the 
ecclesiastical  courts,  pluralities,  non-residence,  and 
other  things  that  were  much  amiss  in  the  adminis 
tration  ;  yet  I  saw  no  reason  to  expect  any  consi 
derable  alterations,  if  they  that  had  got  the  ascendant 
could  be  able  to  prevent  them.  I  found  that  some 
of  the  greatest  friends  of  the  Church  had  little  or 

*  Marcus  Antonius  de  Dominis,  who  came  into  England  in 
1616.  See  Heylin's  "  Life  of  Laud,"  (1671,)  pp.  102,  103. 
-ED. 

f   Epist.  ad  Joseph.  Hall.—C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

nothing  to  say  in  favour  of  the  ecclesiastical  courts. 
Lord  Clarendon  himself,  with  all  his  zeal,  comparing 
the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  courts  together,  asserts  it 
to  be  more  eligible  for  a  man,  "  in  the  respect  of 
his  trouble,  charge,  and  satisfaction  to  his  under 
standing,"  to  u  have  three  suits  depending  in  West 
minster-hall,  than  one  in  the  Arches,  or  any  eccle 
siastical  court."* 

I  remembered  that  Father  Paul,  in  his  "  History 
of  the  Council  of  Trent,"  speaking  of  Pope  Adrian 
VI.,  who  was  pretty  much  inclined  to  rectify  several 
abuses,  particularly  mentions  the  advice  of  Cardinal 
Sodorinus,  who  told  him  that  the  people,  who  always 
judge  by  the  events,  being  assured  by  some  amend 
ments  that  the  Pope's  government  was  justly  repre 
hended,  would  persuade  themselves  that  other  inno 
vations  proposed  had  good  foundations,  and  the  arch- 
heretics  overcoming  in  one  part,  would  be  encou 
raged  to  find  fault  with  other  things.  For  this  rea 
son  he  was  for  stopping  at  first.  In  another  place, 
the  same  writer  takes  notice  of  Cardinal  Mattheo 
Langi,  Archbishop  of  Salsburg,  who  gave  it  as  his 
opinion,  that  the  reformation  of  the  mass  was  honest, 
the  liberty  of  meats  convenient,  and  the  demand 
just,  to  be  disburthened  of  many  commandments  of 
men  ;  but  that  a  poor  monk  should  reform  all  was 
not  to  be  endured. 

I  remember,  also,  that  in  the  life   of  the  famous 
and  primitive  Bernard  Gilpin,  written  by  Dr.  Carlton, 

*  '«  Hist,  of  the  Rebellion,"  b.  iv.  306.— C. 


262  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Bishop  of  Chichester,  there  is  a  letter  of  that  good 
man,  to  his  brother  George,  in  which,  speaking  of 
the  times  of  Queen  Mary,  he   says,  "  I  often  con 
versed  with  learned  men,  my  very  loving  friends  and 
kindred.      I  demanded   how  it  came  to  pass  that 
there  was  no  reformation  of  so  many  abuses,  touching 
images,    relics,    pilgrimages,  buying  and    selling   of 
masses  and  trentals,  with  many  other  errors,  which 
in  the  time  of  King  Edward,  the  Papists  had  not 
only  confessed  to  be  superstitious,  but  had  promised 
reformation  of  them  ;  and  professed  that  it  was  meet 
the  Church  should  be  purged  of  them,  which  thing, 
they  said,  they  would  gladly  do,  if  ever  the  power 
came  into  their  hands  again.     When  asked  of  them 
in  which  of  these  points  reformation  should  begin, 
in  expectation  of  which  thing  I  returned  from  Paris 
the  more  willingly,  answer  made  unto  me  was,  that 
no  way  must  be  given  to  the  ignorant  multitude. 
'  If,'  say  they,  e  we  once  confess  any  errors   at   all, 
they  will  straightway  cry  out  that  many  other  things 
also  are  worthy  to  be  reformed,  besides  those  which 
we  shall  yield  unto  them,  and  so  they  will  be  still 
growing  upon  us,  that  we  shall  never  have  done  re 
forming.'*    Many  members  of  the  Established  Church 
of  England,  indeed  the  major  part,  seemed  to  me 
of  the  same  temper.^ 

*  "  Life  of  Bernard  Gilpin,"  (1727,)  pp.  55,  56.— ED. 

f  According  to  Whiston,  when  he  urged  on  Bishop  Smalridge, 
"  a  fair  and  impartial  review  of  Christian  antiquity,"  his  Lord 
ship  answered,  "  Mr.  Whiston,  I  dare  not  examine ;  for  if 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  263 

Nor  could  I  avoid  taking  notice  of  another  thing, 
viz.  that  as  even  Popish  countries  reap  considerable 
advantages  from  the  division  there  is  between  the 
Protestants  and  the  Papists,  which  keeps  the  Papal 
power  within  some  bounds  ;  so  may  the  Protestant 
Dissenters  there  are  among  us  in  England,  be  said  to 
be  a  security  both  for  our  civil  and  religious  liberty, 
which  would  both  of  them  be  greatly  endangered, 
and  liable  to  be  many  ways  broken  in  upon,  if  they 
were  wanting.  Such  things  as  these,  I  was  inclin 
ed  to  think,  were  not  without  their  weight ;  and 
I  was  from  thence  not  a  little  confirmed  in  rny  in 
clination  to  Nonconformity. 

Nor  did  it  at  all  dishearten  me,  to  find  it  asserted 
by  several  that  were  friends  of  the  Establishment, 
that  the  Church  of  England  was  "  the  best  consti 
tuted  Church  in  the  world  ;"  nor  was  there  any  oc 
casion  for  it,  for  I  find  it  declared  by  Bishop  Bur- 
net,  as  to  the  great  hero  of  the  "  History  of  his 
Time,"  Archbishop  Leighton,  that  "  he  looked 
on  the  state  the  Church  of  England  was  in  with 
very  melancholy  reflections,  and  was  very  uneasy  at 
an  expression  then  much  used,  that  it  was  '  the 
best  constituted  Church  in  the  world.'  He  thought 
it  was  truly  so  with  relation  to  the  doctrine,  the 
worship,  and  the  main  part  of  government.  But  as 

we  should  examine,  and  find  that  you  are  in  the  right,  the 
Church  has  been  in  an  error  so  many  hundred  years  !"  See 
"  Historical  Memoirs  of  Dr.  Samuel  Clarke,"  (1748,)  p.  14,2. 
—ED. 


264  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

to  the  administration,  both  with  relation  to  the  ec 
clesiastical  courts,*  and  the  pastoral  care,  he  looked 
on  it  as  one  of  the  most  corrupt  he  had  ever  seen. 
He  thought  we  looked  like  the  fair  carcase  of  a 
body  without  a  spirit ;  without  that  zeal,  that  strict 
ness  of  life,  and  that  laboriousness  in  the  clergy,  that 
became  us."f 

Conferring  about  such  matters  with  Mr.  Old- 
field,  with  whom  I  had  daily  conversation,  he  told 
me  of  a  certain  occurrence,  which  a  little  struck  me. 
Being  chaplain  in  the  family  of  Sir  Philip  Gell,  in 
Derbyshire,  he  had  great  familiarity  with  a  clergy 
man  in  the  neighbourhood,  that  was  much  in  the 

*  See  Warburton  to  Hurd,  1755.  Lttters,  (1809,)  pp.  192, 
193.— ED. 

t  Bishop  Burnet  appears  to  sanction,  from  his  own  observa 
tion,  these  severe  animadversions,  when  delivering,  in  his  "  seven 
tieth  year/'  his  last  thoughts  on  "  the  pastoral  care."  Having 
described  the  "  Ember-weeks  "  as  his  "  burthen  and  grief,"  be 
cause  "  the  much  greater  part  of  those  who  come  to  be  or 
dained  are  ignorant  of  the  plainest  part  of  the  Scriptures/'  he 
says,  "  the  case  is  not  much  better  in  many  who  come  for  insti 
tution."  The  Bishop  then  complains  of  those  who  were  content 
to  "  dwell  in  decencies,"  after  having  been  inducted  to  a  cure 
of  souls. 

"  Clamours  of  scandal,  in  any  of  the  clergy,  are  not  frequent, 
God  be  thanked  for  it  f  But  a  remiss,  unthinking  course  of  life, 
with  little  or  no  application  to  study,  and  the  bare  performing  of 
that,  which,  if  not  done,  would  draw  censures,  when  complained 
of,  without  ever  pursuing  the  duties  of  the  pastoral  care  in  any 
suitable  degree,  is  but  too  common,  as  well  as  too  evident."  See 
"  Discourse  of  the  Pastoral  Care,"  (1713.)  Pref.  to  3rd  Ed. 
ad  init. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  265 

family.  A  good  living  becoming  vacant,  in  Sir 
Philip's  gift,  he  freely  made  the  offer  of  it  to  Mr. 
Oldfield,  if  he  would  conform,  and  he  was  desired 
to  consider  things  afresh,  before  he  gave  a  refusal. 
After  consideration,  he  thanked  Sir  Philip  for  his 
kind  offer,  but  told  him  he  could  not  be  satisfied  to 
conform  for  that,  or  even  a  greater  living. 

Sir  Philip  pressed  him  to  a  reconsideration,  and 
at  the  same  time  put  the  neighbouring  clergyman, 
that  was  his  acquaintance,  upon  urging  him  to  a 
compliance.  The  clergyman  kindly  tried  to  help 
Mr.  Oldfield  over  his  difficulties ;  but  after  abun 
dance  of  arguing,  he  gave  the  clergyman  his  final 
resolution  to  continue  a  Nonconformist,  not  finding 
any  satisfaction  could  be  given  him,  that  conformity 
to  the  Church  would  in  him  be  lawful,  whatsoever 
it  might  be  in  the  case  of  others.  Upon  this,  he  set 
upon  this  friendly  clergyman  in  his  turn,  and  sug 
gesting  to  him  how  much  better  this  living  was,  than 
that  wherein  he  was  the  incumbent,  and  how  it  might 
help  him  in  providing  for  his  family,  and  how  little  he 
would  have  to  do  upon  changing  his  living,  no  more 
being  required  of  him  in  that  case  than  to  declare 
his  assent  and  consent  in  public  as  he  had  already 
done,  he  frankly  offered  him,  if  agreeable,  that  at 
the  time  he  gave  Sir  Philip  his  final  refusal  of  the 
vacant  living  he  would  request  that  it  might  be 
bestowed  upon  him,  and  use  his  utmost  interest  for 
that  purpose. 

The  clergyman  thanked  him  most  heartily  for  his 


266  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

kindness  and  good-will,  yet  earnestly  begged  of  him  not 
to  mention  any  thing  of  that  nature  ;  for  though  he 
should  have  been  glad  to  have  drawn  him  into  the 
Church,  in  hope  of  his  doing  good,  and  being  more 
useful  than  he  could  have  any  prospect  of  being 
in  the  state  he  was  in  ;  yet,  as  for  the  changing  of 
his  living,  he  must  be  excused  ;  adding,  that  though 
he  had  no  scruple  remaining,  when  he  took  posses 
sion  of  his  living,  against  giving  his  assent  and  con 
sent,  and  was  not  willing  to  lose  the  capacity  of  ser 
vice  he  was  in  by  that  means,  yet  as  to  giving  his 
assent  and  consent  anew,  he  had  such  objections 
against  it  as  he  could  not  get  over.*  Therefore, 
he  earnestly  begged  that  nothing  more  might  be 
said  about  it.  The  passage  was  instructive  to  me. 

I  was  now  between  twenty  and  twenty-one 
years  of  age,  in  good  health,  studied  pretty  hard, 
and  was  both  in  judgment  and  inclination  against 
entering  upon  preaching  so  young;  and  the  ra 
ther,  because  I  had  heard  that  Dr.  Mantonf  and 
several  others,  who  began  ministerial  service  as 
candidates  about  that  age,  repented  afterwards. 

*  Such  was  the  case  of  Dr.  Samuel  Clarke.  He  could  be 
satisfied  to  remain  Rector  of  St.  James's,  after  becoming  an 
Anti-trinitarian  ;  though  of  further  preferment  "  he  would  take 
nothing,"  as  he  assured  Mr.  Emlyn,  "  which  required  his 
subscription  to  the  Thirty-nine  Articles."  Whiston's  Hist.  Mem. 
See  Appendix,  p.  27. — ED. 

f  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  89,  311,  312  n. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  267 

Mr.  Oldfield  and  I  debated  that  matter  often, 
but  though  I,  both  then  and  since,  thought  myself 
in  the  right,  yet  he  at  length  proved  too  hard  for 
me.  He  agreed  with  me,  that  engaging  speedily 
in  a  stated  course  of  preaching,  was  not  in  my 
case  to  be  desired,  because  it  would  hinder  my 
studiesj  and  be  a  bar  to  that  farther  improvement 
which  I  might  very  allowably  aim  at.  But  then  he 
at  the  same  time  much  pressed  my  drawing  up  two 
or  three  discourses  of  the  nature  of  college  exer 
cises  upon  some  useful  subjects,  which  he  advised  to, 
as  a  thing  that  would  help  to  point  my  future  stu 
dies  more  directly  to  preaching  work,  which  was  to 
be  the  business  of  rny  life,  and  assist  me  in  laying  in 
suitable  materials  with  the  more  advantage. 

In  compliance  with  his  motion,  I  drew  up  a  dis 
course  or  two,  and  then  he  would  not  let  me  rest  till  I 
had  delivered  one  of  them  on  a  Lord's  day  evening  to 
a  select  company  in  his  dwelling-house,  he  being  pre 
sent  ;  after  which,  he  earnestly  pressed  me  to  appear 
in  public,  which  I  for  some  time  forebore.  At  length 
he  was  carried  to  London  upon  some  necessary 
business,  and  was  obliged  to  be  for  a  Lord's  day  ab 
sent.  He  urged  me  to  supply  for  him,  which  I  was 
shy  of  undertaking,  but  he  would  take  no  denial. 
He  told  me  plainly,  that  being  under  a  necessity  of 
going,  and  unable  to  get  help,  he  devolved  the  care 
of  his  people  for  one  Lord's  day  upon  me,  and  that 
if  I  would  not  preach  to  them  they  must  be  destitute. 


268  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

He  was  no  sooner  gone  than  the  people  came  upon 
me,  earnestly  importuning  me  not  to  let  the  doors 
of  their  place  of  worship  be  shut  up,  but  to  help 
them  in  this  exigence.  Though  I  had  many  ob 
jections  to  make  against  appearing  first  in  pub 
lic  in  such  a  place,  yet  their  earnestness  prevail 
ed,  and  I  gave  them  two  discourses  the  Lord's 
day  following.  A  rumour  of  my  doing  it  being 
spread  about  beforehand,  there  was  a  greater 
number  of  the  scholars  present  than  usual,  espe 
cially  in  the  afternoon,  who  were  brought  by  their 
curiosity.  I  bless  God,  however,  I  was  not  dashed, 
but  came  off  pretty  well.  I  discoursed  both  parts  of 
the  day,  from  Heb.  ii.  3,  "  How  shall  we  escape  if 
we  neglect  so  great  salvation  ?" 

I  had  occasion,  as  I  was  speaking  of  the  great  sal 
vation  of  the  Gospel,  to  touch  upon  the  satisfaction 
that  our  blessed  Saviour  made  for  sin  by  offering  up 
himself  as  a  sacrifice,  the  necessity  of  which  satisfac 
tion  I  asserted,  according  to  the  common  way  of  our 
Protestant  writers.  Mr.  Thomas  Gilbert,  an  an 
cient  divine,*  who  then  lived  privately  in  Oxford, 

*  On  the  Declaration  of  Indulgence,  1671,  "Thomas  Gil 
bert  was  one  of  four  appointed  by  the  principal  heads  of  the 
brethren,  to  carry  on  the  work  of  preaching  within  the  city." 

The  'Marge  inscription"  on  Dr.  Goodwin's  monument,  (1679) 
in  the  "  new  burial  place  for  Dissenters,  by  Bunhill  Fields,  near 
London,"  Wood  also  says,  was  "  made  by  the  common  epitaph- 
maker  for  Dissenters,  called  Thomas  Gilbert,  Batchelor  of  Di 
vinity."  Athen.  Oxon.  ii.  511.  783.  See  Ibid,  by  Bliss,  (1820) 
iv.  406-409;  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  1,  M,— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMV. 

being  my  auditor,  took  special  notice  of  what  I 
offered  upon  that  head.  He  had  written  a  small 
Latin  tract  about  the  possibility  of  pardon  without  a 
satisfaction,  in  answer  to  a  "Diatribe,"*  drawn  up 
by  Dr.  Owen,  though  till  that  time  I  neither  knew 
nor  had  heard  any  thing  of  it. 

Visiting  me  the  next  morning,  he  was  pleased  to 
drop  some  handsome  and  kind  things,  upon  the  pas 
sages  of  the  day  foregoing,  and  added,  that  though 
he  differed  from  me,  as  to  what  I  advanced  about 
the  necessity  of  satisfaction,  yet  he  did  not  come  with 
any  design  to  dispute  that  matter  with  me.  He 
said,  he  was  very  sensible,  that  which  I  took  was 
the  most  common  way  with  our  Divines,  but  he 
could  not  help  being  of  another  opinion,  though  he 
could  freely  leave  every  man  to  his  liberty,  to  think 
upon  that  matter,  as  he,  upon  consideration,  found 
himself  most  inclined.  He  asked  me,  whether  I  had 
seen  what  he  had  published  upon  that  subject,  in  re 
turn  to  Dr.  Owen  ?  And  I,  giving  him  an  answer  in 
the  negative,  he  put  the  tract  into  my  hands,  and  I 
promised  to  read  and  consider  it,  and  give  him  the 
result  of  my  thoughts. 

Returning  his  visit  about  a  week  after,  I  told  him 

*  "  Diatriba  de  justitia  divina,  seu  justitiae  vindicatricis  vindi- 
ciae."  Oxon.  1653.  Athen.  Oxon.  ii.  560. 

Gilbert's  Tract,  is  intitled,  "  Vindiciae  supremi  Dei  Dominii 
(cum  Deo)  Initae :  sive  Theses  aliquot,  et  Thesium  Instantiae  op- 
positae  nuper  Doct.  Audoeni  Diatribae  de  Justitia  Peccati  Vindi- 
catrice,  &c.  Lond.  1655,  8vo." — Bliss,  iv.  407.— ED. 


270  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

I  had  read  over  what  he  had  lent  me,  and  though 
what  was  offered  appeared  very  subtle,  and  more 
than  I  thought  could  have  been  said  on  that  side  of  the 
argument ;  yet,  upon  mature  consideration,  I  appre 
hended  it  to  be  best  and  safest,  most  for  the  honour 
of  God  and  his  government,  and  most  for  the  ad 
vancement  of  Gospel  holiness,  to  adhere  to  the  com 
mon  way  of  our  Divines.  He  declared  against  any 
farther  debate,  and  said  he  had  put  together  in  that 
tract  all  that  he  had  to  say  upon  that  subject ;  and 
if  what  was  there  offered  was  not  sufficient  for  con 
viction,  he  could  not  apprehend  that  any  thing  he 
could  add  to  it,  would  be  able  to  satisfy.  He  de 
sired,  therefore,  that  he  and  I  might  have  no  farther 
discourse  upon  that  subject ;  nor  had  we ;  though 
we  had  frequent  altercations  about  another  notion  of 
his,  of  which  he  was  very  fond,  and  upon  which 
also  he  had  somewhat  in  print  :*  viz.  that  all  sins, 
past,  present,  and  to  come,  were  pardoned  at  once, 
which  I  must  own  I  never  could  tell  how  to  digest. 

*  Dr.  Calamy,  most  probably,  refers  to  the  following  publica 
tion,  \vhich  does  not  appear  to  have  been  printed,  till  1708. 

"  A  learned  and  accurate  Discouse  concerning  the  guilt  of 
sin,  pardon  for  that  guilt,  and  prayer  for  that  pardon,  now  pub 
lished  from  the  Author's  manuscript,  left  by  him  some  years  be 
fore  his  death,  with  a  friend  in  London." 

Dr.  Rawlinson  says ;  "  This  piece  has  passed  up  and  down  (as 
the  preface  informs  us)  in  MS.  above  thirty  years,  and  a  learned 
person  said  to  the  author  of  it,  '  that  it  was  worth  a  man's  living 
a  great  while,  though  he  did  nothing  else,  but  bring  forth  such  a 
composure.'  " — Btiss.  iv.  409. — ED. 


LIFE    OF   CALAMY. 

This  Mr.  Gilbert  had  a  nice  metaphysical  head, 
and  was  the  completest  schoolman  I  ever  was  ac 
quainted  with.  He  was  then  of  a  great  age,  had  all 
his  distinctions  at  his  fingers'  ends,  was  a  good  Latin 
poet,*  and  very  pleasant  in  company.  He  was 
ejected  after  the  Restoration,  first  from  Edgmond,  in 
Salop,  and  afterwards,  from  Upper  Winchington,  in 
Bucks  ;f  and  spent  the  latter  part  of  his  life  at  Ox 
ford,  where  he  died,  July  15,  1694,  an.  aetat.  81. 

He  was  much  respected  by  several  persons  of  emi 
nence  in  the  University,  as  Dr.  Hall,  Bishop  of 
Bristol,  and  Master  of  Pembroke  ;  Dr.  Bathurst,  of 
Trinity  ;  Dr,  Aldrich,  of  Christ  Church ;  Dr.  Wallis, 
and  Dr.  Jane,  the  Professors  ;  and  used  to  be  much 
in  conversation  with  them.  Being  himself  in  but 
indifferent  circumstances  in  his  declining  years,  his 
children  having  drained  him,  he  sometimes  received 
from  some  of  those  gentlemen  handsome  presents  on 
account  of  his  known  worth  and  learning. 

He  statedly  attended  the  preaching  of  Dr.  Hall, 
Bishop  of  Bristol,  (of  whom  he  was  a  great  admirer, 
and  who,  he  commonly  used  to  say,  preached  like 
Dr.  Preston,  the  famous  Puritan,)  one  part  of  the 

*  He  published,  in  1690,  Carmen  Gratulaiorium,  on  King  Wil 
liam's  return  after  subduing  the  adherents  of  King  James  in  Ire 
land  ;   and  left  "a  manuscript  poem,"  now   "  in  the  Bodleian," 
addressed  to  the  same  Prince,  "  super  descensu  in  Angliam."- 
Ibid.  pp.  408,  409.— ED. 

f  See  Account,  p.  109,  Cont.ip.  146.  Of  this  living,  Lord  Whar- 
ton  was  the  patron. — ED. 


272  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Lord's  day,  as  he  did  on  Mr.  Oldfield,  at  the  Meet 
ing,  the  other.  Some  fe\v  of  the  Dissenters  in 
Oxford,  used  to  do  so  too.  This  Bishop  Hall  was 
one  of  eminent  piety,  but  not  much  esteemed  by  the 
young  wits  of  the  University.  He  catechised  at  St. 
Toll's,  near  his  College  every  Lord's  day  evening, 
and  I  sometimes  heard  him.  He  could  bring  all  the 
Catechism  of  the  Westminster  Assembly,  out  of  the 
Catechism  of  the  Church  of  England.  I  never 
heard  Mr.  Gilbert  applaud  any  one  more  than  this 
bishop  ;  a  letter  of  whose,  to  Mr.  Risley,  the  Non 
conformist,  which  I  have  inserted  in  my  "  Account 
of  the  ejected  Ministers,"*  plainly  shows  him  to  have 
been  of  an  excellent  spirit. 

Mr.  Gilbert  was  also  very  great  with  Dr.  Bathurst, 
whom  he  would  often  speak  of,  as  a  very  polite  ca 
tholic  spirited  person,  and  of  great  generosity,  f  Dr. 
Aldrich  ever  treated  Mr.  Gilbert  very  civilly,  and 
applauded  his  learning.  He  told  me,  as  to  Dr.  Wal- 
lis,  that,  preaching  before  the  University  at  St. 
Mary's,  upon  the  Doctrine  of  Regeneration,  which 
that  auditory  was  not  much  used  to  hear  of,  and 
stating  and  proving  it  out  of  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
the  scholars  stared  at  one  another,  laughed  at  the 
preacher,  and  ridiculed  the  sermon,  and  seemed  not 
to  know  what  to  make  of  it.  Being  informed  of 
this,  when  it  came  to  his  turn  to  preach  there  next, 

*  Cont.  pp.  100,  101.— ED. 

t  His  "  Life  and  Literary  Remains,"  were  published  in  1761, 
by  Thomas  Warton,  M.A.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  2? 3 

he  insisted  upon  the  very  same  doctrine  ;  but  instead 
of  endeavouring  to  clear  and  illustrate  it  from  Scrip 
ture,  he  supported  it  from  the  Articles,  the  Service 
Book,  and  the  Homilies  of  the  Church  of  England,  to 
gether  with  the  writings  of  eminent  English  divines. 
Then  it  was  much  approved,  and  passed  off  very  well. 

This  Dr.  Wallis  was  an  old-fashioned  divine,  but 
a  great  ornament  to  that  University.  He  was  a 
Member  of  the  Assembly  of  Divines  at  Westminster, 
and  one  of  their  Secretaries,  not  from  their  first 
sitting,  but  some  time  after,  and  thenceforth,  during 
their  sitting.  He  hath  owned  under  his  hand,  in  the 
account  he  left  in  MS.  of  his  own  Life,  that  he 
received  much  advantage  by  the  conversation  and 
learned  debates  of  so  many  grave,  reverend,  and 
learned  divines,  on  all  points  of  divinity,  while 
they  were  compiling  the  Confession  of  Faith,  and 
the  larger  and  lesser  Catechism. 

I  have  often  been  sorry  since,  that  I  did  not  take 
the  opportunity  while  I  was  at  Oxford,  of  waiting 
upon  this  great  man,  in  Mr.  Gilbert's  company,  as 
I  might  easily  have  done.  A  short  Abstract  of  his 
Life  drawn  up  by  his  own  hand,  may  be  met  with 
in  a  Preface  of  Mr.  Thomas  Hearne's,  to  Peter 
Langtoft's  Chronicle.*  There  are  some  things  to 
be  met  with  in  it,  that  are  very  curious.  Among 
others,  there  is  one  passage  of  which  I  could  not  but 
take  special  notice,  which  I  shall  here  transcribe. 

*  Printed  at  Oxford,  an.  1725,  from  a  MS.  in  the  library  of 
the  Inner  Temple. — C. 

VOL.    1.  T 


274  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

The  Doctor  speaking  of  himself,  expresses  himself  in 
these  words  :  — 

"  It  hath  been  my  lot  to  live  in  a  time  wherein 
have  been  many  great  changes  and  alterations.  It 
hath  been  my  endeavour  all  along  to  act  by  mode 
rate  principles,  between  the  extremities  on  either 
hand,  in  a  moderate  compliance  with  the  powers  in 
being,  in  those  places  where  it  has  been  my  lot  to 
live,  without  the  fierce  and  violent  animosities  usual 
in  such  cases,  against  all  that  did  not  act  just  as  I 
did,  knowing  that  there  were  many  worthy  persons 
engaged  on  either  side  ;  and  willing,  whatever  side 
was  upmost  to  promote  (as  I  was  "able)  any  good  de 
sign  for  the  true  interest  of  religion,  of  learning,  and 
the  public  good,  and  ready  so  to  do  good  offices  as 
there  was  opportunity  ;  and  if  things  could  not  be 
just  as  I  could  wish,  to  make  the  best  of  what  is : 
and  hereby,  through  God's  gracious  providence,  have 
been  able  to  live  easy,  and  useful,  though  not  great." 

Had  but  the  same  method  been  taken  by  a  num 
ber  of  others,  whom  God  had  distinguished  by  their 
abilities  or  their  stations,  our  differences  might  long 
ere  this  have  been  melted  down  and  gone.  But 
even  this  exposed  the  Doctor  to  the  censures  of 
many,  and  among  the  rest,  of  Wood,  the  Historiogra 
pher,  who  gives  this  senseless  character  of  him,  that 
he  could  "  at  any  time  make  black,  white,  and  white, 
black,  for  his  own  ends ;"  and  that  he  had  "  a  ready 
knack  of  sophistical  evasion."*  Which  severe  cen- 

*  At/ten.  Oxon.  ii.  8 1C.     See  B/iss,  iii.  1074. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  275 

sure  has  some  reference  to  a  report  industriously 
spread  about,  of  the  Doctor's  decyphering  the  let 
ters  of  King  Charles  the  First ;  viz.  those  taken  in 
his  cabinet  at  Naseby  fight  :*  which  character,  Mr, 
Wood  afterwards  enlarged,  though  it  does  not  appear 
in  the  last  edition  of  his  "  Athense  Oxonienses ;"  in 
which  he  is  made  to  have  written  things  transacted 
after  his  death. f 

Dr.  Jane,  Regius  professor  of  Divinity  in  the  Uni 
versity,^  was  another  great  acquaintance  of  Mr. 
Gilbert's.  Though  fond  of  the  rites  and  ceremonies 
of  the  Church,  he  was  a  Calvinist  with  respect  to 
doctrine.  He  plainly  showed  this  in  his  public  lec 
tures,  which  (notwithstanding  he  was  a  man  of  great 
learning,)  were  little  frequented.  He  read  admi 
rably  against  the  Socinians,  but  it  was  sometimes 
difficult  to  get  a  statutable  auditory.  He  could  not 
have  been  obliged  to  have  held  on,  many  times, 
when  he  had  begun  to  read,  had  one  or  two  persons 
withdrawn. 

I  have  also  been  told  by  Mr.  Gilbert,  that  being 

*  Wood  says  ;  he  "deposited  the  originals  with  the  decypher 
ing,  in  the  public  library  at  Oxford,  Ibid,  415.  See  Bliss  iii. 
1072  ;  "Life  of  Dr.  Barwick,"  (1724)  pp.  61,  251,  510. 

Wood  also  says,  1695,  "  that  the  Duke  of  Brandenburgh  had 
lately  sent  Dr.  Wallis  a  medal,  for  decyphering  certain  letters." 
Life,  p.  392.— ED. 

fSee  Mr.  Hearne's  preface  to  Langtoft's  Chronicle,  p.  47. — C. 

J  Admitted  1688,  in  the  place  of  Dr.  Allestry,"  Athen.  Oxon. 
by  Bliss,  iv.  643. — ED. 

T  2 


276  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

once  in  the  company  of  the  learned  but  ill-natured 
Dr.  South,  and  others  of  note  in  the  University,  he 
was  drawn  into  a  dispute  with  the  Doctor  about  the 
Arminian  points.  Mr.  Gilbert  boldly  asserted  that 
the  predestination  of  the  Calvin  ists  necessarily  fol 
lowed  the  prescience  of  the  Arminians.  Upon  which 
the  Doctor  readily  promised,  that  if  Mr.  Gilbert 
could  make  that  out,  he  would  never  be  an  Arminian 
as  long  as  he  lived.  Mr.  Gilbert  readily  undertook 
it,  and  made  good  his  assertion,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
the  company  present,  and  of  the  Doctor  in  parti 
cular,  who  from  that  time  ever  after  owned  himself 
a  Calvinist.* 

Mr.  Gilbert  lived  very  privately  in  a  little  house, 
where  he  had  a  number  of  the  schoolmen  always 
about  him.  Though  he  appeared  to  be  in  his  ele 
ment  when  dealing  with  those  crabbed  writers,  he 
would  sometimes  be  very  facetious  and  pleasant 
in  conversation.  He  was  very  purblind,  and  yet  I 
have  called  in  upon  him  in  an  evening,  and  found 
him  at  supper  upon  a  dish  of  buttered  onions,  on 
which  he  fed  as  savourily,  as  if  he  had  been  feast 
ing  the  greatest  dainties.  Expressing  my  wonder,  he 
told  me  he  never  found  his  sight  in  the  least  affected 
with  food  of  that  sort. 

One  very  remarkable  story  of  his  I  shall  mention, 
which  I  took  the  more  notice  of,  because  he  de 
clared  he  knew  the  party  concerned.  A  young 

*  See  Cont.  p.  146.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  277 

gentleman  of  a  good  family,  and  an  only  son,  who 
lived  in  the  time  of  the  civil  war,  could  not  be  satis 
fied  without  going  into  the  army  on  the  Parliament 
side.  All  his  relations  were  against  it,  especially  his 
parents :  but  so  resolutely  was  he  bent  upon  it,  that 
they  found  he  would  go  without  their  consent,  if 
they  did  not  gratify  him.  Therefore  they  yielded  : 
committing  him  to  the  care  of  a  general  officer,  who 
promised  he  would  have  an  eye  to  him  as  if  he  was 
his  own. 

The  young  gentleman  was  bold  and  brave,  and  in 
a  certain  engagement  (I  have  forgot  where,)  received 
a  slight  wound,  which  at  first  neglected,  afterwards 
grew  so  bad,  that  the  general  officer  who  took  charge 
of  him,  employed  the  best  surgeons  the  army  afford 
ed,  to  look  after  him.  Notwithstanding  all  their 
care,  there  was  a  mortification,  and  no  hope  of 
saving  life,  but  by  cutting  off  a  limb,  to  which  opera 
tion  it  was,  in  consultation,  determined  to  proceed 
the  very  next  day.  The  evening  before,  the  surgeon 
that  had  him  under  his  stated  care,  taking  his  leave 
of  him,  placed  two  bottles  by  his  bed  side,  both 
within  his  reach.  One  was  a  cordial,  of  which  he 
was  to  drink,  when  he  found  his  spirits  low,  and 
he  needed  refreshment.  The  other  was  a  caute 
rizing  liquor  to  stanch  the  blood  when  the  limb  was 
cut  off. 

So  indifferently  was  he  nursed,  that,  waking  in 
the  night,  and  wanting  his  cordial,  and  taking  a 


278  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

bottle  that  stood  by  him,  he  by  mistake  took  the 
wrong,  and  drank  off  the  cauterizing  styptick  li 
quor,  and,  as  it  happened,  pretty  deep.  It  was  no 
sooner  down,  than  he  found  his  bowels  in  a  flame, 
roared  out  through  the  vehemence  of  his  pain,  and 
was,  as  it  were,  in  the  agonies  of  death.  They  that 
came  the  next  morning  found  him  a  most  miserable 
spectacle,  and  the  surgeons  were  surprised  to  see 
how  his  body  was  parched,  his  eyes  being  ready  to 
drop  out  of  his  head.  They  lamented  the  mistake, 
and  the  heedlessness  of  those  about  him,  but  con 
cluded  that  in  his  unhappy  case  it  was  needless  to 
torment  and  terrify,  by  proceeding  to  dismember 
him.  A  motion  was  however  made,  to  see  what 
could  be  discovered.  When  he  was  laid  open,  to 
their  no  small  surprise  they  found  the  mortification 
stopped,  and  the  danger  in  that  respect  quite  over. 
Upon  which  the  physicians  did  their  utmost  to  allay 
his  vehement  inward  heat,  with  suitable  cooling 
methods.  In  a  little  time,  to  the  surprise  and  asto 
nishment  of  all  that  heard  of  it,  he  was  finely  re 
cruited,  and  lived  to  be  a  comfort  to  his  family.  I 
should  not  have  related  such  a  passage  as  this  from 
every  man,  but  having  it  from  Mr.  Gilbert,  I 
thought  I  might  depend  upon  it. 

When  I  had  once  preached  at  Oxford,  and  that 
came  to  be  known,  I  was  pressed  to  do  the  same  in 
several  places  in  the  neighbourhood.  Mr.  Cornish 
particularly,  who  in  the  Parliament  times  had  been 
a  canon  of  Christ  Christ,  and  a  preacher  at  Carfax, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  279 

whom  I  conversed  with,  when  he  visited  his  friends 
at  Oxford,  much  desired  a  sermon  of  me.  He  lived 
then  at  Bicester,  a  market  town  in  that  county, 
about  ten  miles  from  Oxford,  where  he  had  a  small, 
but  intelligent  and  sober  people,  with  whom  he  lived 
very  lovingly,  being  much  respected  in  his  advanced 
age.*  His  allowance  from  them  was  small ;  but  he 
had  some  estate  of  his  own :  and  though  he  did  not 
live  great,  yet  neither  did  he  live  contemptibly. 
His  flock  were  to  him  as  his  family,  of  which  he 
was  the  tender  and  affectionate  head.  When  I 
complied  with  the  old  gentleman's  motion,  it  greatly 
pleased  me  to  see  how  lovingly  they  lived  together ; 
which  induced  me  to  be  often  among  them  after 
wards,  preaching  sometimes,  once  a  Lord's  day,  and 
sometimes  twice,  as  there  was  occasion. 

I  was  also   sometimes  invited  by Southby, 

of  Carswel,  Esq.,  to  his  house  near  Faringdon,  in 
Berks,  where  I  was  always  well  received  and  enter 
tained.  He  usually  went  to  the  Meeting  at  Buck- 
land,  where  Mr.  Brice,  that  was  chaplain  to  Sir  Ro 
bert  Pye,  was  then  the  fixed  preacher.  When  he 
was  absent,  Mr.  Southby  used  to  send  a  man  and 
horse  for  me  to  Oxford,  on  Saturday,  and  I  went  over 
in  the  afternoon,  spent  the  Lord's  day  there,  and  re 
turned  back  on  Monday  morning.  This  was  some 
times  pretty  frequent.  I  helped  Mr.  Dawson,  at 
Abingdon,  and  Mr.  Nott,  at  Tame,  when  they  were 

*  He  died,  1698,  aged  88.     Account,??.  67,  68.— ED. 


280  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

indisposed :  and  I  once  spent  a  Lord's  day  at  New- 
bery,  and  another  at  Wantage,  in  Berks.  There 
was  scarce  a  minister  about  that  part  of  the  country, 
that  was  either  ill,  or  forced  to  be  absent  on  the 
account  of  business,  but  I  was  sent  to. 

This  exercise  promoted  my  health,  and  fitted  me 
for  study  ;  and  this  preaching  now  and  then,  (doing 
which  I  sometimes  found  reason  to  hope  I  might  do 
some  good)  especially  without  having  occasion  con 
stantly  to  make  new  sermons,  helped  to  make  the 
course  of  my  study  the  more  subservient  to  preach 
ing  work.  From  my  own  experience  in  the  case  I 
have  often  thought,  that  it  is  a  good  way  to  initiate  a 
young  preacher,  for  him  to  reside  in  some  chief  town 
in  a  county,  and  give  help  to  places  round,  as  it  is 
needed,  on  the  account  of  the  illness  or  necessary 
absence  of  the  fixed  ministers.  It  is  a  way  that  I 
am  apt  to  think  would  be  attended  with  many  good 
consequences. 

Though  it  was  well  known  at  Oxford  that  I 
sometimes  preached  in  the  meeting  there,  and  at 
other  places  round  the  country,  yet  I  must  own  I 
generally  met  with  great  civility  from  the  gentlemen 
of  the  University,  both  in  the  schools,  at  St.  Mary's, 
and  at  the  coffee-houses.  Some  would  visit  me 
at  my  own  quarters.  I  had  that  honour  from  Dr. 
Edward  Bernard,  the  Professor  of  Astronomy, 
pretty  frequently.  He  had  been  abroad,  seen  the 
world,  and  loved  much  to  talk  of  Holland,  and  the 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  281 

libraries  and  learned  men  there.  He  is  taken  notice 
of,  with  great  respect,  by  the  learned  Huetius.* 
Readily  would  he  lend  me  any  books,  though  ever 
so  curious ;  and  often  did  we  converse  together 
about  his  Josephus,  which  I  was  truly  sorry  he  was 
discouraged  from  finishing.  Often  have  I  lamented, 
that  not  only  the  labour  and  pains  which  Scaliger,  Cu- 
nseus,  Petit,  Bosius,  and  Le  Moyne,  as  well  as  other 
learned  persons  had  bestowed  upon  that  author  should 
be  lost  to  the  world,  but  that  this  good  doctor's  noble 
edition  should  miscarry.  He  died  Jan.  9,  1696.| 
I  was  also  visited  by  Dr.  Levet,  the  dean  of  Bristol, 
and  head  of  Magdalen  Hall,  brother  to  Sir  Richard 
Levet,  then  alderman  of  London,  and  not  long  after J 
Lord  Mayor. 

I  had,  also,  while  at  Oxford,  frequent  and  fami 
liar  conversation  with  the  celebrated  Mr.  Henry 
Dodwell,  the  Camdenian  Professor  of  History  in 
that  University,  certainly  as  great  a  master  of  the 
historical  part  of  learning,  as  most  men.  Falling 
accidentally  into  his  company,  I  soon  perceived  he 
loved  to  ingross  to  himself  the  discourse  of  such  as 
he  conversed  with,  which  was  what  few  could  bear, 
or  admit  of  without  uneasiness  :  but  it  suited  my 
purpose  well  enough,  who  aimed  at  nothing  by  being 
in  his  company,  but  the  getting  some  benefit  from 

*  See  Comment,  de  rebus  suis,  L.  v. — C. 

f  His  Life  was  published  in  Latin,  by  Dr.  Thomas  Smith,  in 
Octavo,  An.  1704.— C.  t   1699.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.. 

his  great  reading.  He  was  turned  out  of  his  Pro 
fessorship,  in  November,  this  very  year,  (1691)  for 
not  taking  the  oaths  to  King  William  and  Queen 
Mary,  but  he  continued  in  Oxford  some  time  after. 
I  soon  discovered  his  usual  time  of  being  at  the 
coffee-house,  and  would  often  contrive  to  be  there, 
that  I  might  have  his  company. 

Nothing  pleased  him  better  than  to  have  a  ques 
tion  proposed  to  him,  upon  a  difficulty  in  chronology, 
a  piece  of  History,  either  civil,  or  ecclesiastical,  or 
about  ancient  customs.  Upon  the  starting  any  thing 
of  this  kind,  he  would  pour  out  a  flood  of  learning, 
with  great  freedom.  I  carefully  forbore  contradict 
ing  him,  which  he  could  not  bear  from  any  one,  and 
this  made  him  the  more  free  and  open  in  conversing 
with  me.  I  have  come  into  a  room  where  he  has 
been  sitting  at  a  table  filled  with  academics  belong 
ing  to  several  different  colleges,  who  took  pleasure 
in  disputing  with,  contradicting  and  thwarting  him, 
and  he  has  left  them  all  and  applied  to  me,  while 
sitting  at  a  table  by  myself :  and  he  was  no  sooner 
come,  than  he  would  ask  me  if  I  had  any  questions 
to  propose  to  him,  with  which  I  usually  took  care 
not  to  be  unprovided. 

He  would,  on  a  sudden,  and  off-hand,  make 
returns  that  would  sometimes  be  very  surprising, 
though  not  always  equally  satisfactory.  In  order  to 
the  proof  of  a  point  that  he  laid  stress  upon,  he 
used  to  lay  down  a  chain  of  principles,  and  if  they 
were  all  granted  him,  his  proof  would  be  good :  but 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  283 

if  any  one  link  in  the  chain  failed,  his  whole  scheme 
came  to  nothing.  He  was  no  great  reasoner,  nor  at 
all  remarkable  for  his  management  of  an  argument, 
nor  have  I  met  with  any  one  less  able  to  bear  being 
contradicted.  Upon  his  afterwards  leaving  Oxford, 
he  removed  to  Cookham,  a  village  near  Maidenhead, 
and  died  at  Shottesbrooke,  June  7,  1711,  in  the  70th 
year  of  his  age.* 

His  odd  Hypothesis,  as  to  the  immortality  of  the 
soul,  much  impaired  his  credit  in  the  latter  part  of 
his  life.  "  In  order  to  exalt  the  power  and  dignity 
of  the  priesthood,  in  that  one  communion,  which  he 
imagined  to  be  the  peculium  of  God,  he  endeavoured 
to  prove,  with  his  usual  perplexity  of  learning,  that  the 
doctrine  of  the  soul's  natural  mortality  was  the  true 
and  original  doctrine  ;  and  that  immortality  was  only 
at  baptism  conferred  upon  the  soul,  by  the  gift  of  God, 
through  the  hands  of  one  set  of  regularly  ordained 
clergy .'yf  This  coming  from  some  persons,  would 
have  been  looked  upon  as  a  designed  banter  and 
ridicule,  both  upon  natural  and  instituted  religion. 
An  answer  to  it  was  published  by  Mr.  (afterwards 
Dr.)  Samuel  Clarke,  which  gave  general  satisfac 
tion.^: 

The  most  celebrated  book  that  Mr.  Dodwell  print 
ed,  (1679,)  bore  this  title  :  "  Separation  of  Churches 

*  His  Life,  together  with  an  Account  of  his  printed  Works 
and  MSS.'  in  2  vols.  in  8vo.  was  published  by  Mr.  Francis 
Brokesby,  in  1715.— C. 

f  Biog.  Brit.  v.  324.-- ED.  J  Ibid.  iii.  599,-  ED. 


284  1JFE    OF    CALAMV. 

from  Episcopal  Government,  as  practised  by  the 
present  Nonconformists,  proved  schism atical  from 
such  principles  as  are  least  controverted,  and  do 
withal  most  popularly  explain  the  sinfulness  and 
mischief  of  Schism."  I  have  often  wondered  how 
any  man,  that  had  run  over  the  short  but  full  dis 
course  of  Mr.  Hales,  upon  Schism,  could  ever  draw 
up  such  a  volume  as  this  upon  that  subject. 

Mr.  Dodwell  sets  himself  to  show,  "  the  mischief 
of  divisions  ;  the  reasonableness  of  yielding  to  the 
judgment  of  superiors  ;  that  separation  from  Epis 
copal  Communion  renders  persons  insecure  of  their 
eternal  salvation,  which  is  ordinarily  to  be  expected 
only  from  the  participation  of  the  Sacraments,  the 
validity  whereof  depends  upon  the  authority  of  those 
that  administer  them,  God  not  being  obliged  to  be 
stow  spiritual  benefits  on  any  that  receive  them 
from  persons  not  authorized :  that  authority  in  this 
case  must  be  derived  from  God,  by  the  mediation  of 
the  apostles,  to  whom  it  was  at  first  committed  ;  and 
cannot  be  conveyed  without  a  continued  succession 
of  persons  orderly  receiving  authority  from  those 
who,  from  the  first,  had  authority  to  give  it  them ; 
and  that  this  is  not  any  where  to  be  expected  but 
in  the  Episcopal  Communion,"  &c.* 

This  is  a  scheme,  that  (take  it  altogether)  appears 
to  me,  upon  a  narrow  inspection,  to  be  as  destitute 
of  real  support,  as  it  is  destructive  of  Christian  cha 
rity.  I  must  own,  that  that  one  assertion  of  this 

*  Ibid.  v.  321. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY.  285 

writer,  that  "  the  power  actually  received  by  ordained 
ministers  must  not  be  measured  by  the  true  sense  of 
Scripture,  but  by  that  wherein  the  ordainers  under 
stood  it,"*  would,  in  my  apprehension,  hardly  have 
been  encouraged,  or  so  much  as  borne  with,  in  any 
Reformed  Church,  except  our  own.  But  the  time 
has  been  when  any  thing  would  pass,  that  was  le 
velled  at  the  Dissenters,  and  would  but  send  them 
headlong  into  the  pit  of  destruction.  However,  that 
divisions  in  the  Church  are  mischievous,  is  freely 
owned ;  and  for  that  reason,  they  that  by  unneces 
sary  impositions,  either  lay  a  foundation  for,  or  keep 
up  such  divisions,  are  the  more  to  blame.  As  for 
"  yielding  to  the  judgment  of  superiors,"  I  cannot, 
for  my  life,  see  how  that  either  is,  or  can  be,  rea 
sonable,  any  farther  than  God  has  made  such  yield 
ing  to  be  a  duty,  and  given  a  commission  to  such  as 
insist  upon  being  yielded  to  in  their  taking  upon 
them  to  act  authoritatively. 

The  apostles  had  a  commission  to  teach  those 
things  that  Christ  had  commanded ;  but  neither 
they,  nor  any  others,  had  any  commission  from  him, 
to  add  to  such  things,  or  alter  them  purely  at  their 
own  pleasure.  It  is  as  much  a  rule  of  Christ  for 
his  servants  to  act  as  they  were  persuaded  in  their 
own  minds,  as  to  obey  them  that  had  the  rule  over 
them.  Then,  as  to  "  eternal  salvation,"  that  is  made 
as  sure  as  the  New  Testament  can  make  it,  to  all 
such  as  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  love 

*  "  Separation  of  Churches,"  p.  542 C. 


286  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

him  sincerely  and  superlatively.  In  this,  it  cannot 
from  the  Scripture  be  made  appear,  that  falling 
in  with  "  Episcopal  Communion,"  or  "  Separation" 
from  it,  has  any  concern  above  and  beyond  commu 
nion  with,  or  separation  from,  serious  Christians  and 
sincere  believers  of  any  other  sort.  That  salvation, 
indeed,  "  is  ordinarily  to  be  expected  from  the  par 
ticipation  of  the  Sacraments,"  is  an  undoubted  truth, 
since  they  are  means  which  God  has  appointed  for 
that  purpose.  All,  therefore,  without  exception,  that 
would  have  their  hopes  of  salvation  warranted  by 
the  Scriptures,  ought  to  use  and  keep  up  both  the 
Sacraments  that  he  has  appointed  to  be  celebrated 
in  his  Church,  and  that  in  the  way  and  manner  that 
he  has  fixed  and  settled  them ;  but  that  those  Sa 
craments  can  in  no  case  be  administered  warrant- 
ably,  but  by  persons  ordained  in  one  way  only,  is 
not  so  evident. 

Bishop  Hoadly  afterwards  wrote  so  well  upon 
this  subject,  that  I  cannot  think  it  amiss  to  recollect 
some  passages  of  his  upon  this  head.  He  says,* 
that,  "  As  far  as  we  can  judge  of  things,  God's 
Providence  never  yet  in  fact  kept  up  a  regular 
uninterrupted  succession  of  rightful  bishops."  *  And 

*  "  Preservative  against  the  Principles  and  Practices  of  the 
Nonjurors,  both  in  Church  and  State,"  Ed.  4,  p.  47. — C. 

For  this  book,  and  his  sermon  on  "  The  Nature  of  the  King 
dom,  or  Church  of  Christ,"  the  author  was  denounced  by  the 
Convocation.  See  "  A  Report,"  and  "  An  Answer,"  1717. 
—ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  287 

again,*  "  God  is  just,  and  equal,  and  good :  and  as 
sure  as  he  is  so,  he  cannot  put  the  salvation  and 
happiness  of  any  man  upon  what  he  himself  hath 
put  it  out  of  the  power  of  any  man  upon  earth 
to  be  entirely  satisfied  in.  It  hath  not  pleased 
God  in  his  Providence  to  keep  up  any  proof  of 
the  least  probability,  or  moral  possibility,  of  a 
regular  uninterrupted  succession ;  but  there  is  a 
great  appearance,  and  humanly  speaking,  a  cer 
tainty  of  the  contrary,  that  this  succession  hath 
been  often  interrupted.  It  is  highly  absurd  to  put 
so  important  a  point  as  God's  favour  and  eternal 
happiness,  upon  what  no  man  living  can  ever  be 
acquainted  with  to  his  satisfaction.  But  still  more 
absurd  to  put  it  on  a  matter,  the  contrary  to  which 
appears  to  be  true,  which  is  the  case  here.  For  this 
regular  uninterrupted  succession  of  persons  quali 
fied  and  regularly  ordained,  is  a  matter  impossible 
to  be  proved.  Nay,  the  contrary  is  more  than  pro 
bable  upon  all  historical  evidence,  which  we  receive 
in  other  cases. 

"  If  a  line  of  uninterrupted  succession  be  necessary 
to  a  true  ministerial  mission,  then  must  a  man  be 
able  to  give  good  proof,  that  the  bishop  that  ordained 
the  minister  that  was  his  converter,  was  ordained  by 
another  bishop,  and  he  by  another,  and  so  up  to  the 
Apostles  themselves.  Since  no  man  here  in  Britain, 
or  any  other  country  that  can  be  mentioned,  can  give 

*  Preservative,  p.  50. — C. 


288  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

good  proof  of  this,  it  cannot  be  possible,  upon  this 
scheme,  for  any  man  to  know  he  is  a  true  believer. 

Bishop  Stillingfleet  (who  perhaps  went  as  far  as 
any  man  can  pretend  to  go,  in  searching  into  this 
matter)  says,  "We  have  reason  to  presume  a  suc 
cession  of  bishops  here  in  Britain  from  the  first ;" 
and  yet  he  frankly  owns,  that  "  by  the  loss  of  the 
records  of  the  British  Churches,  we  cannot  draw 
down  the  succession  of  bishops  from  the  Apostles' 
times  ;  that  of  the  Bishops  of  London,  by  Jocelyn, 
of  Furnes,  not  being  worth  mentioning."* 

When  Archbishop  Usher  had  canvassed  the 
matter  pretty  thoroughly,  and  cited  all  the  ancient 
authorities  he  was  able  to  pick  up,  he  very  frankly 
refers  f  to  a  celebrated  author  Giraldus,  who  de 
clares,  that  "  the  accounts  given  of  British  bishops, 
which  stand  at  the  head  of  the  succession,  were 
rather  agreeable  to  common  fame  and  opinion,  than 
any  certainty  of  history."  If  so,  it  is  but  very  little 
regard  that  they  can  deserve ;  and,  therefore,  for 
any  to  cry,  "  If  no  bishops,  then  no  ministers,  then 
no  sacraments,  then  no  church,  then  no  salvation,'' 
is,  with  unaccountable  weakness,  and  gross  uncha- 
ritableness,  to  make  the  salvation  of  men  to  depend 
upon  a  nicety,  which  can  never  be  pleasing  to  God, 
who  has  declared,  that  he  "  will  have  mercy,  and 
not  sacrifice." 

That  man  must,  certainly,  have  a  very  mean  opi- 

*  Stillingfleet's  Works,  ii.  48.— C. 

+  Brittanic.  Eccles.  Ant.  c.  v.  p.  51.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  289 

nion,  both  of  God  and  religion,  and  the  happiness  of 
Heaven,  that  can  imagine  Christianity  and  salvation 
wholly  to  depend  upon  Episcopal  Ordination.  No 
thing  can  well  be  conceived  more  uncharitable,  than 
to  say  with  this  Mr.  Dodwell,  that  "  there  is  no 
communicating  with  the  Father  or  the  Son,  but 
by  communion  with  the  bishops."  And  his  expli 
cation  is  as  bad  as  his  assertion,  when  he  says,  "  It 
is  one  of  the  most  dreadful  aggravations  of  the  con 
dition  of  the  damned,  that  they  are  banished  from 
the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and  the  glory  of  his  power. 
The  same  is  their  condition,  also,  who  are  disunited 
from  Christ,  by  being  disunited  from  his  visible  re 
presentative,  the  bishop."*  Though  he  talks  of  the 
uncovenanted  mercies  of  God,  yet  he  has  taken  care 
to  shut  up  even  that  cranny,  which  might  have  let 
in  some  small  ray  of  hope,  against  all  the  world  but 
Episcopalians  alone,  by  declaring  in  the  same  place, 
that  "  it  is  extremely  uncertain,  and,  at  least,  infi 
nitely  hazardous,''  (and  what  can  be  beyond  infi 
nite  ?)  "  that  ever  they  shall  share  in  them." 

However,  that  some  regard  should  be  had  to  "  the 
authority  of  the  persons  administering  the  Sacra 
ments"  is  owned  to  be  fitting.  But  that  the  validity 
of  those  sacred  institutions  should  absolutely  depend 
upon  that  authority,  is  a  thing  by  no  means  to  be 
supposed.  For  though  "  God  is  not,"  it  is  true, 
"  obliged  to  bestow  spiritual  benefits  on  any  that  re 
ceive  the  Sacraments  from  persons  not  authorized," 
*  See  his  «'  One  Priesthood,"  c.  xiii.  sect.  14 — C. 

VOL.   I.  IT 


290  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

(nor,  indeed,  on  any  others,  farther  than  his  own 
gracious  nature  and  promises  warrant  hope  and  ex 
pectation  ;)  yet  if  the  receivers  wait  on  God  in  the 
integrity  of  their  hearts,  and  are  prevailingly  acted 
by  a  true  Christian  faith  and  love,  it  is  hard,  it  is 
unreasonable,  and  senseless,  to  suppose  that  an  infi 
nitely  gracious  God  should  deny  them  his  blessing 
for  a  failure  in  a  nicety  or  punctilio. 

Supposing,  then,  (though  not  granting,)  that  we 
Dissenters  are  in  an  error,  I  think  we  have  good 
reason  to  believe,  that  the  God  we  have  to  do  with, 
is  so  merciful,  that  he  will  not  judge  or  condemn  us, 
or  exclude  us  from  his  favour,  for  any  errors  of 
judgment  or  practice  which  are  consistent  with  true 
love  to  him  ;  but  will  graciously  accept  us,  upon  a 
general  repentance  of  all  our  sins  and  errors.  With 
out  taking  in  this  principle,  we  must  send  all  our 
forefathers  that  lived  before  the  Reformation,  down 
to  hell,  without  any  relief,  even  though  they  acted  in 
the  integrity  of  their  hearts,  which  would  be  hard. 

Bishop  Sanderson  himself  (as  fond  as  he  was  of 
Church  authority)  would  never  have  gone  this 
length.  His  casuistical  skill  has  been  much  ap 
plauded  ;  and  yet  he  has  declared  himself  frankly 
enough  upon  this  head.  And  we  may  say  as  he,* 
"  If  charity  doth  teach  us  to  hope  of  our  forefathers, 
who  lived  and  died  in  the  performance  of  idolatrous 
acts  of  worship,  why  should  any  of  those  who  are 
commanded  to  be  merciful  as  their  heavenly  Father 

*  Serm.  6.  ad  Pop.  part  i.  p.  335,  336.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  291 

is  merciful,  and  to  put  on  bowels  of  compassion 
as  the  elect  of  God,  pretend  to  reject,  censure,  or 
condemn  those  whom  God  will  receive  ?  Or  why 
should  the  sufferers  be  dejected,  when  their  being  so 
unmercifully  dealt  with,  is  so  directly  contrary  to 
the  rules  of  the  Gospel  ?" 

That  authority  in  this  case,  (and  others  like  it,) 
"  must  be  derived  from  God  by  the  mediation  of  the 
apostles,  to  whom  it  was  first  committed,"  is  freely 
yielded ;  but  that  "  it  cannot  be  derived  without  a 
continued  succession  of  persons  orderly  receiving  au 
thority  from  those,  who,  from  the  first,  had  autho 
rity  to  give  it  them,"  was  never,  I  conceive,  proved 
as  yet,  and  would,  as  has  been  already  hinted,  in 
volve  people  in  inextricable  doubts  and  most  per 
plexing  difficulties,  about  the  grand  concern  of  their 
salvation.  To  pretend  to  say,  or  insinuate,  that  as 
good  satisfaction  as  is  in  this  case  needful,  "  is  not 
to  be  had  but  in  the  Episcopal  Communion,"  is  an 
assertion  that  is  altogether  groundless,  and  that 
draws  such  absurdities  after  it  as  deserve  the  abhor 
rence  of  every  wise  and  good  man. 

I  cannot,  for  my  part,  at  all  wonder  that  Mr. 
Dodwell,  that  was  for  running  down  such  a  man  as 
Dr.  Tillotson  as  an  arch  schismatic  for  succeeding 
Dr.  Bancroft  in  the  Archbishoprick,  by  virtue  of  the 
act  of  Parliament  after  the  Revolution,*  should  by 

*  Mr.  Dodwell  wrote  to  Tillotson,  May  12,  1691,  to  dissuade 
him  from  being  "  the  aggressor  in  the  new  designed  schism. 
This  letter,"  adds  Dr.  Birch,  <c  was  written  with  much  greater 

u  2 


292  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  rigour  of  his  whimsical  notions  be  led  to  con 
demn  both  the  body  of  Dissenters  at  home,  and  the 
greatest  part  of  the  Protestants  abroad,  as  schisma 
tics  also,  for  not  falling  in  with  him  in  admiring  and 
laying  stress  upon  the  episcopal  pre-eminence. 

Though  this  gentleman  must  by  all  that  knew 
him,  or  have  conversed  with  his  writings,  be  owned 
to  have  been  a  man  of  singular  learning,  and  well 
versed  in  matters  of  antiquity;  yet  such  was  the 
warmth  of  his  spirit,  that  though  he  was  always 
civil  to  me  when  I  was  in  his  company,  yet  I  could 
not  think  I  had  any  occasion  to  be  at  all  surprised, 
that,  among  a  multitude  of  others,  I  should  fall  un 
der  his  censure,  when  I  happened  at  any  time  to 
come  in  his  way  in  the  heat  of  dispute,  as  it  should 
seem  I  once  did,  which  fell  out  thus  : 

In  that  part  of  my  "  Defence  of  Moderate  Non 
conformity,"  which  was  published  in  1703,  speaking 
of  Ignatius  and  his  celebrated  Epistles,  about  which 
there  have  been  such  warm  debates,  I  had  said,  "  for 
what  I  know,  he  might  magnify  the  power  of  a 
bishop  above  that  of  a  Presbyter,  as  divine,  in  oppo 
sition  to  those  who  might  perhaps  represent  any  such 
difference  in  degree,  fixed  by  human  prudence,  to 
promote  peace  and  order,  as  unlawful.  If,"  said  I, 
"  this  was  his  view,  I  am  as  much  of  his  mind  as 

mildness  and  moderation  than  another  which  was  sent  to  the 
Archbishop's  lady,  and  a  copy  of  it  to  the  Countess  of  Derby, 
for  the  Queen,  and  published  in  print  soon  after."  See  "  Life  of 
Tillotson,"  pp.  246,  247.— -En. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  293 

many  that  are  zealous  for  his  Epistles  :  but  if  some 
such  way  be  not  taken  to  soften  him,  I  envy  no  man 
the  honour  of  defending  him,  and  his  Epistles  ; 
for  I  could  not  help  reckoning  a  modern,  that 
should  use  such  language  as  is  sometimes  to  be 
found  in  him,  either  for  one  out  of  his  wits,  or  a 
blasphemer."  * 

Mr.  Dodwell  in  1705,  printing  a  Discourse  inti 
tuled  "  Occasional  Communion  fundamentally  de 
structive  of  the  discipline  of  the  primitive  Catholic 
church,  and  contrary  to  the  doctrine  of  the  latest 
Scriptures,  concerning  Church  Communion,"  fastens 
upon  my  last  words,  and  having  (with  his  wonted 
charity)  asserted  that  "  such  as  were  of  any  other 
than  the  orthodox  communion,  were  in  communion 
with  the  devil,"  he,  to  support  it  the  better,  cites  a 
passage  out  of  Ignatius  in  these  very  words.  "  He 
that  does  any  thing  without  the  privity  of  the  bishop 
worships  the  devil  ;"f  and  then  he  goes  on  thus  : — 
"  Whether  Mr.  Calamy  had  this  place  in  his  view, 
when  he  took  upon  him  to  censure  this  holy  person 
as  out  of  his  wits  and  blasphemous,  I  know  not."^: 
Nor  was  it  indeed  very  material  whether  he  did 
or  not. 

In  return,  I  shall  venture  to  say,  that  even  Igna 
tius,  though  an  apostolical  person,  was  not  altoge- 

'  "  Defence  of  Moderate  Nonconformity,"  Part  i.  pp.  151, 
152.— C. 

f  Ep.  ad  Smyrn.  sec.  9  — C. 

I  Dodwell  "  Of  Occasional  Communion,"  pp.  127,  128.— C. 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  MY. 

ther  free  from  mistakes.  And  in  this  I  happen  to 
have  Mr.  Dodwell  himself  freely  concurring  with 
me  ;  for  he  in  so  many  words  owns  that  "  that  holy 
martyr  did  not  cautiously  enough  distinguish  be 
twixt  the  genuine  gospel  of  St.  Matthew,  and  the 
interpolated  one  which  the  Ebionite  heretics  raging 
in  Asia  used.''*  This  was  most  certainly  a  great 
blunder ;  and  he  that  trips  once,  may  do  it  often. 
Nay,  I  am  not  afraid  to  add,  that  I  cannot  perceive 
any  thing  like  a  necessity  in  the  case  that  I  should 
have  that  place  particularly  referred  to  in  my  view  ; 
because  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius,  much  as  some 
have  extolled  them,  afford  a  number  of  passages  of 
the  like  nature,  equally  obnoxious,  and  liable  to 
censure. 

Thus,  he  says,  in  one  place,  that  "  whatsoever 
the  bishop  approves  is  acceptable  to  God."f  Would 
he  have  said  so  in  the  case  of  a  successor  of  his  at 
Antioch,  if  he  had  lived  to  his  time  ?  I  mean  Paul 
of  Samosatum,  who  was  remarkable  for  his  pride 
and  lasciviousness^  as  well  as  his  erroneousness  ? 
He  adds  also  this  expression,  "  My  soul  for  such  as 
obey  the  bishops,  Presbyters,  and  deacons  ;"  certain 
ly  an  unguarded  passage,  and  an  encouragement  to 
that  implicit  faith  that  would,  in  the  consequence, 
have  brought  in  Popery.  How  could  it  be  pious 

*  Par&n.  ad  Ext.  sect,  xxiii.  p.  98. — C. 
t  Ep>  ad  Smyrn.  sec.  viii. — C. 

J  If  not   unjustly    described  by  Eusebius.     See  Lardner  on 
these  serious  charges  :    Works,  iii.  81,  82  notes. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  295 

prudent,  or  safe,  in  this  writer,  to  offer  his  soul  in 
pledge  for  the  security  of  such  as  followed  any  mor 
tals  blindly  ? 

In  another  place  he  says,  that  "  if  any  one  keep 
Sundays'  or  Saturdays'  fasts,  (one  only  Saturday  in 
the  year   excepted)   that    man    is   no    better   than 
a  murderer  of  Christ."*     This  is   mere   rant  and 
bluster,  and  deservedly  so  represented  by  Monsieur 
Daille,  to  whom  I  referred.f     "  Who,"  says  that  in 
genious  writer,  "would  not  think,  hearing  these  so 
tragical   expressions  of  his,  that   certainly  he   was 
speaking  of  the  very  foundation  of  the  whole  Chris 
tian  religion  ?     And  yet  the  business  he  there  speaks 
of,  was  only  the  observation  of  a  certain  part  of  a 
positive  law,  and  which  yet  (as  most  are  of  opinion) 
was  at  that  time  received  but  by  a  part  only  of  the 
Church ;  the  belief  and  observation  whereof  was  so 
far  from  being  reckoned  among   those  things  that 
were  necessary,  that   it  was  scarcely  placed  in  the 
first  degree  of  probability,  and   is  now  at  length 
utterly  abolished  too."     Nor  would  it  be  a  difficult 
thing  to  pick   up  out  of  these  famous  Epistles,  a 
number  of  other  passages  of   the  same  nature,   as 
about  "  not  marrying  without  the  advice  or  consent 
of  the  bishop,"  &c. 

After  all,  suppose  I  owned  that  I  had  the  place, 
Mr.  Dodvveli  mentions,  in  view,  I  cannot  see  but  I 

*  Ep.  ad  Philip.— C. 

t  "  Of  the  right  use  of  the  Fathers,"  ch.  viii.  p.  133. — C. 

On  Daille,  see  "  Monthly  Repos."  N.S.  (1829)  iii.  95.— ED. 


296  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

had  reason  enough  to  take  upon  me  to  pass  the  cen 
sure  I  did  ;  nor  has  he,  by  any  thing  he  has  offered, 
proved  it  unjustifiable.  For,  though  it  must  be 
owned  that  this  Ignatius  was  "  an  holy  man,"  yet 
still  his  style  might  be  much  too  swelling  and  affect 
ed,  his  flights  too  bold,  his  figures  too  strong,  and 
his  hyperboles  enormous  ;  and  so  I  verily  think  they 
were  in  many  cases. 

Though  he  "  had  conversed  with  the  Apostles," 
he  might  forget  what  they  taught  him,  and,  being 
heated  upon  occasion,  be  too  forgetful  of  their  mild 
and  condescending  temper,  and  apt  to  lay  more 
stress  upon  little  things  than  they  deserved.  I  can 
not  see  upon  what  grounds  the  taking  notice  of  any 
thing  of  this  nature,  upon  a  proper  occasion,  can  be 
represented  as  a  pieee  of  blameable  "  confidence." 
Such  a  censure  as  this,  to  me,  I  confess,  looks  a  little 
like  that  "  unmortified  passion,"  to  which  that  writer 
in  words  declared  himself  an  enemy.  After  all,  I 
cannot  but  hope  that  I  and  my  "  Latitudinarian 
Brethren,"  as  he  calls  us,  (who  are  for  leaving  every 
one  to  stand  or  fall  to  his  own  Master,)  though  we 
are  not  within  his  peculium,  may  at  last,  in  the 
future  day  of  account,  appear  to  have  been  to  the 
full  as  willing  to  "  receive  the  truth  in  the  love  of 
it,"  as  they  that  out  of  the  abundance  of  their  flam 
ing  zeal,  are  so  forward  to  condemn  their  brethren, 
who  differ  from  them,  and  send  them  straight  to  the 
devil. 

Having  this  occasion  once  more  to  touch  on  Igna- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  297 

tius  and  his  Epistles,  I  shall  add  a  few  more  remarks 
and  then  dismiss  them  altogether,  that  their  fond 
admirers  may  make  the  very  best  of  them  they  are 
able. 

It  well  deserves  our  notice,  that  after  the  many 
and  long-continued  debates  among  the  learned  about 
these  Epistles,  of  which  there  had  been  two  sets  pub 
lished,  one  longer,  and  the  other  more  concise,  the 
latter  of  which  had  been  approved  of,  with  great 
applause,  by  the  generality,  Mr.  Whiston  should  at 
last  start  up,  and  with  great  vehemence  and  eager 
ness  declare,  "  the  larger  Epistles,"  commonly  reck 
oned  "the  interpolated  ones,"  the  only  "genuine  and 
original  ones ;"  while  he  slights  and  rejects  "  the 
smaller,"  with  the  utmost  contempt,  as  only  "later 
extracts  made  out  of  the  larger,"  probably  made 
about  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century,  and  argues  as 
strenuously  upon  the  head,  as  if  the  whole  of  religion 
were  depending.*  Methinks  it  is  apt  to  create  a 
smile,  to  find  him  declaring  that  the  Medicean  copy 
of  these  Epistles,  with  which  Vossius  and  other 

*  See  his  "  Dissertation  upon  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius," 
p.  1,  £c.— C. 

"  I  am,"  says  Whiston,  "  so  fully  satisfied  of  their  certain  and 
undoubted  truth,  and  divine  authority,  that  I  am  willing  and 
ready  to  hazard  all  I  have,  or  hope  for,  in  this  world,  for  their 
reception  and  establishment;  and  do  hope  that,  if  violence  and 
persecution  should  be  my  lot,  on  this  account,  God  would  afford 
me  grace  and  courage  to  resist  even  unto  blood,  with  patience 
and  submission,  in  so  good,  and  glorious,  and  Christian  a  cause." 
Hist.  Pref.  (1711)  p.  86.— ED. 


298  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

learned  men  were  so  well  pleased,  is  the  very  worst 
in  the  world  ;*  and  complaining  of  the  insuperable 
power  of  prejudice  in  the  case  of  Archbishop  Usher 
and  Bishop  Pearson  ;f  and  making  his  boast  that  he 
knew  his  papers  about  Ignatius  were  unanswerable.^: 
Whosoever  observes  this  well,  one  would  hardly 
think  could  be  of  opinion  that  these  Epistles  deserve 
all  the  stress  laid  upon  them. 

To  this  it  may  be  added,  that  the  same  Mr.  Whis- 
ton,  taking  notice  in  the  smaller  Epistle  to  the  Mag- 
nesians,  of  Christ's  being  said  to  be  the  Eternal  Word, 
not  proceeding  from  Silence,  that  famous  female  ori 
gin  of  things,  so  much  alluded  to  by  Marcellus  in  the 
fourth  century,  but  taken  at  first  from  the  old  here 
tic  Valentinus  of  the  second,  on  which  passage  the 
learned  Daille  laid  so  great  a  stress,  and  from  whence 
he  drew  such  strong  arguments,  vents  himself  with 
great  freedom  in  such  memorable  words  as  these  : 
"  This  allusion,"  says  he,  "  at  the  highest  to  the  Va- 
lentinian  2/y??,  is  so  plain  at  the  first  sight,  that  the 
greatest  patrons  of  the  smaller  Epistles  are  ashamed 
directly  to  deny  it,  though  it  be  so  very  strong,  and 
indeed  almost  an  undeniable  argument  against  them. 
One  cannot  but  pity  the  mistakes  and  prejudices  of 
the  greatest  men,  when  one  sees  no  less  a  man  than 
Bishop  Pearson  himself  labouring,  in  four  several 

*  Diss.  p.  20.— C.  f  Ibid.  p.  34.— C. 

t  "  Historical  Preface,"  (1711)  p.  86 — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  299 

most  learned  chapters,  to  assail  this  grand  objection, 
and  yet  with  so  little  success,"  &c.*  Mr.  Whiston 
is  not  singular  in  this  point,  but  has  the  learned  M. 
Larroque  fully  concurring  with  him.j- 

As  to  public  affairs,  the  remainder  of  Ireland  was 
this  year  reduced  by  General  Ginckle,  who  after  a 
signal  victory  gained  at  Athlone,|  reduced  the  cities  of 
Galloway  and  Limerick,  and  was  rewarded  accord 
ing  to  his  desert,  being  made  Earl  of  Athlone,  by 
which  the  honour  of  his  achievements  was  entailed 
upon  his  family.  As  to  the  last  of  these  Irish  sieges, 
the  very  mentioning  it  brings  to  rny  mind  a  passage 
in  a  letter  from  Mr.  William  Molyneux  to  Mr.  John 
Locke,  where  he  speaks  of  "  a  master  of  the  Tem 
ple,  $  who,  during  the  siege  of  Limerick,  writ  over 
to  a  certain  prelate,  to  be  sure  to  let  him  know 

*  "Dissertation  on  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius,"  p.  16. — C. 

t  See  his  "  Observationes  in  Ignatianas  Pearsonii  Vindicias," 
pp.  157,  158,  &c.  &c.— C. 

On  Ignatius,  see  Jortin's  Remarks,  i.  361  ;  Lardner.  ii.  68-70  ; 
"  Monthly  Repos."  N.  S.  iii.  95.— ED. 

I  Taken  by  storm,  July  1,  1691.  According  to  a  "  news  letter 
from  Ireland,"  in  November,  1685,  "Athlone"  was  "as  Whig- 
gish  a  little  town  as  any  in  Ireland.  They  burnt  the  Pope  (that 
is,  a  block  that  they  fixed  horns  upon,)  en  the  23d  of  October, 
in  memory  of  the  Irish  rebellion,  which  was  fatal  to  the  Irish, 
but  beneficial  enough  to  the  English  Whigs,  who  got  large  pos 
sessions  by  it.  Indeed,  they  are  obliged  to  celebrate  that  day 
with  joy  and  thanksgiving."  See  '*  Correspondence  of  Henry 
Earl  of  Clarendon."  (1828)  i.  1!)0.~  ED. 

*  Dr.  Sherlock.— ED. 


300  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

by  the  first  opportunity,  whenever  it  came  to  be 
surrendered,*  which  was  done  accordingly ;  and 
immediately  the  good  Doctor's  eyes  were  opened, 
and  he  plainly  saw  the  oaths  to  King  William  and 
Queen  Mary  were  not  only  expedient,  but  lawful 
and  our  duty."  j  So  that  he  observes,  "  a  good 
roaring  train  of  artillery  is  not  only  the  ratio  ultima 
regum,  but  of  other  men  besides." 

There  were,  at  this  time,  monthly  fasts  appointed 
by  authority,  and,  generally  speaking,  observed  very 
regularly,  to  implore  the  divine  blessing  in  order  to 
the  success  of  our  forces.  At  one  of  those  fasts,  I 
was  at  Bicester,  and  assisted  old  Mr.  Cornish,  who 

*  The  treaty  on  the  surrender,  Oct.  3,  1691,  which  has  been  a 
recent  subject  of  discussion,  King  William  grossly  violated  by 
his  subsequent  unjust  and  cruel  treatment  of  the  Catholics.  The 
massacre  of  Glencoe,  of  which  there  will  be  further  notice,  is 
sufficient  to  show  that  of  cruelty  and  injustice,  "  the  hero 
William"  was  not  incapable. — ED. 

i  See  "  some  familiar  Letters  between  Mr.  Locke  and  several 
of  his  friends/'  (1708)  p.  184.— C. 

King  James,  "  Feb.  1685-6,"  writing  to  "  the  Earl  of  Claren 
don,"  classes  this  now  hesitating  divine  with  "  some  of  the 
Church  of  England  clergy,"  who  had  been  "  inveighing  very 
much  against  Popery  ;"  and  adds,  "  upon  that  account,  I  made 
your  brother  give  Dr.  Sherlock  a  severe  reprimand,  and  stopped 
a  pension  he  had."  Correspondence,  i.  258. 

"  William  Sherlock,  D.D.  Master  of  the  Temple,"  appears 
among  the  divines  "in  the  presence,  and  with  the  consent"  of 
whom  "  a  petition  to  the  King  was  formed  at  Lambeth,  May  18, 
1688,''  by  "  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  several  suffra 
gan  bishops,  against  distributing  and  reading  his  Declaration  for 
liberty  of  conscience."  Ibid.  ii.  478. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    C  A  LA  MY.  301 

was  indisposed,  at  his  meeting-house  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  afterwards  walked  over  to  Casfield,  at  a 
mile  distance,  the  Dissenters  in  a  body  bearing  me 
company.  There  I  preached  in  the  public  church 
in  the  afternoon,  and  had  a  crowded  auditory  from 
the  country  round. 

Mr.  Michael  Harrison,  who  died  not  long  since 
pastor  of  a  Dissenting  congregation  at  St.  Ives,  in 
the  county  of  Huntingdon,  at  that  time  usually 
preached  in  the  church  at  Casfield,  of  which  Mr. 
Beard  was  patron,  and  he  lived  in  the  house  ad 
joining.  But  Mr.  Harrison  was  now  at  a  distance 
from  home  in  Northamptonshire,  where  he  was  ga 
thering  a  congregation  of  Dissenters,  about  Potters- 
pury,  not  far  from  Stony  Stratford,  designing  to 
quit  the  Church,  and  settle  among  them.  The  people 
about  Potterspury  were  building  him  a  meeting 
house,  with  a  dwelling-house  adjoining.  When  it 
was  finished,  I,  at  their  request,  preached  the  first 
Lord's  day,  and  had  a  numerous  auditory.  I  was, 
sometimes,  there,  afterwards.  At  length,  I  came  to 
be  so  much  employed,  one  where  or  other,  about  the 
country,  that  I  could  seldom  keep  an  whole  Lord's 
day  out  of  the  pulpit.  But  I  was  more  at  Bicester 
than  at  any  one  place  besides.  So  singularly  was  I 
pleased  with  the  great  piety  and  worth  of  good  Mr. 
Cornish,  who  was  now  almost  worn  out,  and  the 
Christian  disposition  and  good  temper  of  his  little 
flock,  that  I  could  have  been  well  contented  to  have 
continued  there  for  some  time  as  assistant.  We 


302  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

were  parleying  about  it,  and  pretty  near  coming  to 
an  agreement,  when  He  to  whom  it  belongs  to 
fix  the  bounds  of  our  habitations,  unexpectedly  di 
verted  it. 

The  case  stood  thus: — I  received  a  letter  at 
Oxford  from  Mr.  Pointer  of  Whitchurch,  a  small 
market-town  in  Hampshire,  where  the  Dissenters  at 
that  time  were  destitute  of  a  minister,  and  looking 
out  for  a  supply.  They  had  heard  there  of  my 
preaching  frequently  about  the  country,  and  desired 
me  to  spend  two  or  three  Lord's  days  among  them, 
promising  to  treat  me  with  great  civility  and  respect, 
furnish  me  with  a  horse  to  carry  me  to  any  place 
worth  seeing  in  their  part  of  the  country,  and  after 
wards  to  take  care  of  my  conveyance  back  again  to 
Oxford.  I  listened  to  the  motion,  sent  the  messen 
ger  who  brought  the  letter  on  horseback,  home  again 
on  foot,  and  soon  after  followed  him. 

They  treated  me  respectfully,  and  I  had  a  very 
tolerable  audience  the  first  Lord's  day.  Among 
others,  Mr.  Bradband  came  over  from  Andover,  a 
market-town  five  miles  distant,  where  he  was  a  very 
substantial  shop-keeper.  He  earnestly  invited  me  to 
visit  him  at  Andover,  while  I  continued  in  those 
parts,  and  I  promised  him.  Accordingly,  on  the 
Thursday  following,  my  landlord  Pointer  conducted 
me  to  his  house,  where  I  seemed  to  be  very  wel 
come.  During  the  time  of  dinner,  Mr.  Bradband 
very  pleasantly  told  me,  that  my  visit  was  very  well 
taken,  and  that  he  believed  I  might  depend  upon  a 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  303 

very  good  auditory  there  that  evening.  I  was  sur 
prised  at  any  hint  of  this  nature,  and  desired  him  to 
explain  himself,  not  having  the  least  notion  of  preach 
ing  there,  nothing  of  that  kind  having  been  once  pro 
posed  to  me.  Upon  which  he  told  me  that  he  took 
it  for  granted  that  I  would  give  them  a  sermon, 
which  would  be  very  agreeable;  aud  that  he  had, 
therefore,  presently,  upon  my  alighting  from  my 
horse,  sent  notice  all  the  town  over,  that  there  would 
be  a  sermon  there  that  evening,  and  he  did  not 
doubt  but  I  should  have  a  good  deal  of  company, 
and  he  hoped  no  occasion  to  repent  my  pains.  I 
told  him  in  return,  that  I  should  have  thought  he 
might  have  given  me  some  notice  of  his  intention, 
that  so  I  might  have  taken  care  to  come  provided. 
He  replied,  that  he  did  not  doubt  of  my  being  pro 
vided  ;  and  he  was  well  satisfied  I  would  not  disap 
point  the  expectation  of  the  people ;  and  he  hoped 
some  good  would  be  done.  Though  I  thought  this 
sort  of  management  pretty  particular,  yet,  not  well 
knowing  how  to  help  myself,  all  things  being  con 
sidered,  I  kept  silence,  and  not  being  able  to  say  I 
had  brought  no  notes  with  me,  I  complied. 

By  conversation  that  afternoon,  I  found  that  there 
were  two  several  parties  among  the  Dissenters  at 
Andover,  and  two  several  congregations,  though  they 
at  that  time  had  but  one  place  of  worship.  One 
party  were  called  Presbyterians,  and  old  Mr.  Sprint* 

*  Ejected,  in  1662,  from4' South  Tidworth  in  Hampshire." 
Afterwards,  "  some  of  the  neighbouring  clergy  were  so  severe  and 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

was  their  pastor.  He  preached  in  that  town  every 
other  Lord's  day ;  and  on  the  Lord's  day,  when  not 
employed  there,  he  went  to  Winchester  and  preach 
ed.  The  other  party  were  pretty  warmly  congre 
gational,  and  Dr.  Isaac  Chauncy*  had  been  their 
pastor,  though  he  had  for  some  time  left  them,  (for 
what  reasons  I  cannot  say,)  and  they  were  destitute. 
When  the  evening  came,  I  had  a  numerous  audi 
tory,  as  they  had  encouraged  me  to  expect,  and  the 
people  seemed  to  be  very  attentive. 

The  meeting-house  was,  at  that  time,  in  Mr. 
Bradband's  back  yard,  through  which  I  passed  upon 
my  coming  out  of  the  pulpit,  the  people  making  a 
lane  for  me,  and  thanking  me  for  my  good  sermon,  as 
I  moved  along  towards  the  parlour,  which,  to  my  no 
small  surprise,  I  found  when  I  came  to  it,  to  be  full 

violent  in  prosecuting  him,  that  he  was  to  be  excommunicated, 
for  not  receiving  the  sacrament,  in  his  parish-church  at  Christ 
mas,  notwithstanding  that  his  wife  then  lay  upon  her  death-bed." 
But  "  the  prosecution  was  stopped,"  on  his  application  to  Bishop 
Morley. 

"  The  Bishop  made  him  stay  and  dine  with  him,  and  discoursed 
with  him  about  his  nonconformity ;"  saying  "  he  must  not  philo 
sophize  upon  the  words  assent  and  consent.  Therefore,  if  he 
would  make  the  declaration  prescribed  in  the  act,  and  then  say, 
that  thereby  he  meant  no  more  than  that  he  would  read  the 
Common  Prayer,  he  would  admit  him  to  a  living.  Mr.  Sprint 
thanked  his  Lordship,  but  could  not  think  that  expedient  warrant 
able."  Account,  pp.  341,  342. — ED. 

*  "  Pastor  of  the  church  meeting  at  Mark-lane,  London," 
whom  Dr.  Watts  succeeded  in  1702.  See  Dr.  Gibbons's  "  Mem. 
of  Watts,"  (1780,)  pp.  96,  97.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  305 

of  men,  women,  and  children.  I  was  no  sooner  sat 
down  than  I  was  in  the  name  of  all  the  company 
applied  to  by  a  grave  old  woman  in  a  high-crowned 
hat,  who,  thanking  me  very  civilly  for  my  pains, 
told  me,  that  she  verily  believed  it  was  a  special 
providence  that  sent  me  thither  at  that  time,  among 
a  people  that  were  unhappily  destitute,  but  who 
thirsted  for  the  Word  of  God,  and  were  disposed, 
according  to  their  ability,  to  be  very  kind  to  a  mi 
nister  that  would  settle  with  them,  and  break  the 
bread  of  life  among  them,  which  she  hoped  I  might 
be  prevailed  upon  to  do. 

It  was  with  some  difficulty  that  I  kept  my  coun 
tenance,  and  forbore  smiling  at  this  sort  of  treat 
ment,  that  was  so  little  expected.  But,  composing 
myself,  I  told  her  that  I  was  very  young,  and  by 
no  means  for  engaging  in  any  pastoral  work  as  yet, 
but  was  determined,  and  that  upon  the  weightiest 
reasons,  and  with  the  best  advice,  to  continue  for 
some  time  preaching  only  occasionally,  and  pursuing 
my  studies  closely,  in  order  to  laying  in  a  good  stock 
of  useful  knowledge,  by  which  I  might  hope  to  be 
fitted  for  the  greater  and  more  extensive  service  in 
the  Church  of  God.  To  this  I  added,  that  the  peo 
ple  of  Andover  and  I  were  utter  strangers  to  each 
other,  and  neither  did  they  know  me,  nor  I  them  ; 
and,  therefore,  I  could  not  think  such  a  hasty  mo 
tion  to  be  at  all  proper.  Finally,  I  told  her,  that 
though  that  single  sermon  of  mine  had  happened  to 
please  them,  (at  which  I  was  heartily  glad,)  yet  that, 

VOL.  i.  x 


306  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

for  any  thing  that  either  they  or  I  knew,  my  senti 
ments  and  theirs  might  be  so  different,  as  that  my 
stated  preaching  might  not  be  at  all  acceptable  to 
them,  and  my  settling  with  them  might  be  wholly 
improper  and  un advisable. 

The  old  woman  replied,  "  that  my  character 
was  known  to  them,  and  they  had  now  had  a 
taste  of  my  ministerial  gifts,  and  could  trust  God 
as  to  the  rest."  As  for  them,  she  said,  "  it  was 
well  known  they  were  a  very  serious,  united  and 
harmonious  people,  and  much  inclined  to  love  their 
ministers ;  and  I  might  be  very  happy  with  them, 
as  she  believed  they  did  not  doubt  but  they  might 
be  with  me."  She  said,  "  that  one  argument  she 
had  to  induce  me  to  listen  to  the  motion  that 
she  made,  was  this.  They  had  a  good  number  of 
promising  young  Christians  in  that  town  and  about 
it/  that  were  just  in  their  bloom,  who  she  verily 
believed  would  flourish  in  religion  exceedingly,  if 
they  were  but  under  the  inspection  and  conduct  of 
such  an  one  as  I  was.  There  was,  indeed,  a  sprink 
ling  of  old  Christians  among  them,  who  it  was  to  be 
hoped,  had  something  in  them  that  was  good.  But 
they  were,  many  of  them  sadly  declined,  and  grown 
lukewarm,  and  religion  had  no  great  credit  from 
them,  nor  could  a  minister  reasonably  promise  him 
self  much  comfort  in  them." 

These  young  Christians  she  greatly  applauded,* 

*  I  have  been  informed  by  one,  who,  since  this  passage,  spent 
some  years  in  Andover,  that  several  of  these  persons  who  were 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  307 

and  then  expressed  herself  in  this  manner.  "  Sir, 
I  perceive  you  have  great  prospects,  and  I  cannot  say 
but  according  to  human  views  you  may  have  reason 
for  them :  but  I  beseech  you  do  not  despise  the 
earnest  request  of  the  people  of  God  in  this  place. 
You  must  allow  me  to  say  to  you,  as  old  Farel  did 
to  young  Calvin,  when  he  had  him  at  Geneva,  and 
was  endeavouring  to  prevail  with  him  to  stay  there, 
that  if  you  offer  to  go  any  farther,  the  blessing  of 
God  will  not  follow  you." 

Upon  this,  an  aged  man  that  was  present,  not 
being  pleased  with  her  reflections  on  the  old  Chris 
tians  at  Andover,  cried  out,  "  Come,  come,  mother, 
do  not  bear  so  hard  on  the  old  Christians  among  us. 
We  have  stood  to  our  principles  in  a  time  of  trial, 
and  have  suffered  for  the  sake  of  our  consciences,  and 
kept  our  ground ;  and  I  hope  some  of  us  do  bring 
forth  fruit  even  in  old  age  :  whereas  these  young 
ones  that  you  so  much  applaud,  have  not  yet  been 
tried,  and  there  is  no  knowing  what  they  will  prove. 
Though  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  some  of  them  may 
answer  expectations,  yet  it  is  to  be  feared  that  a  num 
ber  of  them  who  now  promise  fair,  if  new  troubles 
upon  the  account  of  religion  should  arise,  would  drop 
off  like  rotten  leaves  in  autumn." 

I  had  never  before  been  engaged  in  such  conver 
sation,  and,  therefore,  was  much  at  a  loss  what  to 
say,  or  how  to  behave.  I  was  not  willing  to  drop 

at  that  time  young,  whom  the  good  woman  referred  to,  did 
prove  exemplary  Christians. — C. 

X    2 


308  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

any  thing  affronting,  and  yet  hardly  knew  how  to 
avoid  it.  At  length,  having  recollected  myself  a  little, 
I  made  the  good  old  woman  this  return  :  "  Mother," 
said  I,  "  you  were  just  now  telling  me  what  an  har 
mony  and  good  agreement  there  is  amongst  you  here 
at  Andover ;  whereas,  I  find  by  what  has  been  offer 
ed  since,  that  you  cannot  agree  among  yourselves, 
which  are  best,  the  old  Christians,  or  the  young. 
But  leaving  it  to  you  to  determine  that,  at  your 
leisure,  allow  me,  who  heartily  wish  well  both  to 
young  and  old,  to  make  one  motion,  your  falling  in 
with  which,  would  (in  my  apprehension)  add  not  a 
little  to  your  flourishing,  and  to  harmony  and  good 
agreement.  I  understand  that  there  is  an  old  gen 
tleman  in  your  neighbourhood,  an  eminent  divine, 
(whose  books  I  am  not  worthy  to  carry  after  him,) 
who  preaches  to  you  in  this  town  every  other  Lord's 
day.  Fix  him  wholly  amongst  you,  and  ease  him 
of  the  trouble  of  going  in  his  advanced  age  to  preach 
at  Winchester  once  a  fortnight ;  and  as  you  will 
this  way  pay  but  a  decent  respect  to  one  of  his 
great  worth,  so  I  should  think  you  would  take  a 
step  that  would  much  promote  the  interest  of  piety 
and  charity." 

The  old  woman  seemed  perfectly  astonished  at 
my  proposal,  and  cried  out,  "  What,  Mr.  Sprint !  old 
Mr.  Sprint !  Alas,  he  is  a  Baxterian  !  he  is  a  middle 
way  man !  he  is  an  occasional  Conformist !  he  is 
neither  fish  nor  flesh,  nor  good  red  herring !"  Upon 
this  I  could  not  forbear  smiling,  and  said,  "  Mother, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  309 

mother,  he  is  a  good  man  and  great !  he  is  moving 
apace  towards  Heaven  himself,  and  helping  others 
thither  too  ;  and  he  is  well  fitted  for  it.  You  do  not 
to  me  discover  your  wisdom  in  reflecting  on  a  man 
of  his  worth  and  eminence.  However,"  said  I,  (who 
was  willing  to  be  a  little  plain  before  parting,  and  to 
leave  something  with  her  in  her  own  vulgar  language 
that  might  stick  and  abide  by  her,)  "  such  carriage 
to  him  would  never,  while  the  world  stands,  induce 
me  to  listen  to  such  a  motion  as  yours.  For  the 
very  same  names  as  you  give  to  him  now,  would  you 
in  a  little  time  give  to  me,  and,  perhaps,  yet  worse  ; 
crying  that  you  had  got  out  of  the  frying-pan  into 
the  fire." 

With  this  our  discourse  broke  off,  and  she  only 
said  farther,  "  Nay,  Sir,  if  it  be  so,  then  I  wish  you  a 
good  night,"  and  she  dropped  me  a  courtesy,  and 
went  off.  The  rest  soon  followed  her,  and  left  me 
alone,  and  gave  me  no  farther  disturbance.  The 
next  morning  I  waited  on  Mr.  Sprint  at  Clatford, 
where  he  lived,*  and  gave  him  an  account  of  what 
had  passed  the  night  before.  I  found  him  a  very 
venerable  old  gentleman,  and  very  frank  and  plea 
sant  in  conversation.  He  was  much  diverted  with 
my  relation,  and  gave  me  an  account  what  difficul- 

*  "  In  that  obscure  village"  he  died,  about  1695.  "  On  his  death 
bed  he  declared  his  full  satisfaction  in  the  cause  of  nonconfor 
mity.  He  had  but  a  very  inconsiderable  allowance  from  his 
people,  but  was  used  to  say,  if  the  bottle  and  satchel  held  but  out 
to  the  journey's  end,  it  was  sufficient."  Account,  p.  342. — ED. 


310  I-IFE    OF    CALAMY. 

ties  he  had  met  with  among  that  people,  but  without 
any  heat  or  passion.  I  returned  the  same  evening 
to  Whitchurch,  and  when  I  had  spent  three  Lord's 
days  there,  I  went  back  again  to  Oxford. 

I  found  by  a  letter  from  my  mother,  that  my 
second  sister,  who  had,  for  some  time,  been  con 
sumptive,  grew  worse,  and  that  if  I  was  desirous  to 
see  her  alive,  I  must  hasten  to  London.  Whereupon 
in  a  few  days,  I  rode  up  to  the  city,  after  packing  up 
my  books  and  goods,  which  I  committed  to  the  care 
of  my  landlady  ;  and  by  this  time,  we  were  in  the 
year  1692. 

I  found  my  sister  brought  very  low,  and  she  did 
not  live  many  days.  She  was  very  composed  ;  wil 
ling,  and,  I  hope,  fit  to  die.  I  endeavoured  to  give 
her  what  assistance  I  was  able  in  the  close  of  her 
life,  and  yet  was  so  solicited,  that  I  could  not  keep 
from  preaching,  the  very  next  Lord's  day,  at  the 
evening  lecture,  at  Crosby  Square.  The  week  fol 
lowing,  my  sister  died,  with  these  words  in  her 
mouth,  "  God  is  good ;  God  is  good."  On  the  suc 
ceeding  Lord's  day,  I,  upon  the  occasion  of  her 
decease,  preached  at  Mr.  Shower's,  in  Jewin-street, 
from  Eccl.  vii.  4.  "  The  heart  of  the  wise  is  in  the 
house  of  mourning  ;  but  the  heart  of  fools  is  in  the 
house  of  mirth."  I  afterwards  preached  frequently, 
as  desired,  and  was  generally  persuaded  both  by 
Ministers  and  friends  to  continue  about  the  City, 
until  Providence  opened  a  way  to  some  fixed  and 
settled  work.  And  I  sent  for  my  things  from  Oxford. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  311 

CHAPTER  IV. 
1692—1695. 

Of  my  Journey  to  Bristol. — Settlement  in  London  with  Mr. 
Matthew  Sylvester  as  his  Assistant,  and  Public  Ordination  to 
the  Ministry  ;  with  some  Account  of  the  Debates  which  there 
were  about  that  time,  among  the  Dissenting  Ministers  in  and 
near  the  City  with  respect  to  Antinomianism. 

I  HAD  not  been  long  in  town  before  there  came 
some  gentlemen  from  Bristol,  deputed  by  the  largest 
congregation  of  Dissenters  in  that  city,  then  under 
the  pastoral  care  of  Mr.  Weeks,*  to  advise  with  the 
Ministers  of  London  about  a  proper  person  to  be  his 
assistant.  He  was  now  growing  in  years,  and  in 
need  of  constant  help,  and  had  not  long  before  lost 
one  that  had  been  his  assistant  several  years,  viz. 
Mr.  Sinclair,  who  was  called  to  take  the  pastoral 
charge  of  a  Dissenting  Congregation  at  Dublin. 
They  first  applied  to  Dr.  Annesley,  who  mentioned 
Mr.  Samuel  Stephens,  who  died  in  the  city  some 
time  after,  and  for  whom  I  preached  a  Funeral 
Sermon,  and  me.  They  went,  afterwards,  to  Mr. 
John  Howe,  who  recommended  Mr.  Joseph  Kentish 
and  me.  Being  named  by  both,  they  heard  me 
preach  at  the  Morning  Lecture,  |  though  I  had  no 
notice  of  it,  and  afterwards  made  me  a  motion  to 

*Who  died,    1698,    aged   65.     He  had  been  ejected   from 
"  Buckland-Newton,  in  Dorset."     Account,  p.  262.— ED. 
t  See  Neale's  "  Puritans,"  ii.  506. — ED, 


312  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

come  down  to  Bristol,  and  I  promised  to  consider 
of  it. 

A  day  or  two  after,  both  Mr.  Kentish  and  I  had 
an  invitation  to  dine  with  Mr.  Howe,  at  the  house 
of  a  friend  of  his,  where  the  gentlemen  from  Bristol 
had  promised  to  give  their  company,  after  dinner,  in 
order  to  converse  with  us  together  upon  the  subject 
afterward.  We  had  a  great  deal  of  free  discourse. 
The  state  of  the  congregation  was  represented  very 
distinctly.  Either  of  us  was  invited  to  go  down  and 
make  trial  of  the  place  and  people,  with  the  encou 
raging  prospect  of  great  respect  and  considerable 
usefulness.  Mr.  Kentish  was  not  at  that  time  to  be 
prevailed  with  to  parley  upon  the  matter,  or  at  all 
to  take  it  into  consideration.  I  was  for  making  a 
trial,  that  I  might  better  judge  of  particulars,  in 
which  Mr.  Howe  much  encouraged  me.  In  a  few 
days  I  promised,  I  would  soon  follow  them  to  Bristol. 

The  day  before  I  set  out  on  that  journey,  I  was 
applied  to  by  some  members  of  the  congregation 
belonging  to  Mr.  Matthew  Sylvester,  who  informed 
me,  that  Society  had  unanimously  made  choice  of 
me  to  be  Mr.  Sylvester's  assistant,  for  whom  they 
had  lately  erected  a  place  of  worship  in  Black- 
friars.  This  was  a  great  surprise,  and  a  thing  of 
which  I  had  not  the  least  notice,  or  forethought.  I 
had  a  very  great  respect  for  Mr.  Sylvester,  with 
whom  I  had  been  as  free  as  with  any  of  our  City  mi 
nisters,  and  had  received  great  civilities  from  him. 
I  knew  his  people  were  about  choosing  him  an  assis- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  313 

tant,  and  heard  that  several  had  preached  as  candi 
dates  ;  but  none  had  ever  signified  to  me  that  I  was 
in  their  thoughts. 

I  told  the  gentlemen,  I  could  not  but  be  very 
thankful  for  their  respect,  but  was  the  very  next 
day  setting  forward  on  a  journey  to  Bristol.  I  could 
not  indeed  well  judge  what  the  result  might  be ; 
yet  I  could  not  so  much  as  desire  that  they  should 
continue  in  uncertainty  until  my  return.  They  told 
me,  they  knew  of  my  designed  journey  to  Bristol, 
which  was  the  reason  of  their  coming  to  an  election 
so  soon.  They  added,  they  were  very  sensible  of 
their  inability  to  propose  such  advantageous  terms 
as  might  probably  be  offered  at  Bristol  ;  yet,  as  I 
had  friends  in  town,  that  were  loth  I  should  go  so 
far  for  a  settlement,  so  they  hoped  they  would  fall 
in  with  and  strengthen  their  motion.  They  did  not 
insist  upon  any  present  answer ;  arid  would  content 
edly  wait  till  my  return.  As  this  was  exceeding 
respectful  and  obliging,  I  promised  I  would  give 
their  proposal  due  consideration  ;  and  whatever  the 
issue  might  be,  should  always  retain  a  grateful  sense 
of  their  kindness. 

I  went  forwards  towards  Bristol  the  next  morn 
ing,  and  in  three  days'  time  got  to  Bath.  There  I 
conversed  with  good  old  Mr.  Creez,  who  lived  then 
in  that  city,*  a  worthy  man,  though  of  a  melancholy 
disposition.  I  was  met  there  by  a  couple  of  gentle- 

"  And  preached  in  all  the  obscure  corners  of  the  country. 
He  died  in  his  76ih  year."     Account,  p.  600. — ED. 


314  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

men  from  Bristol,  with  a  man  and  horse  to  conduct 
me  thither ;  and  upon  the  road  from  thence,  was 
met  by  several  others,  and  brought  into  Bristol  in  a 
manner  very  respectful ;  and,  during  my  whole  stay 
there,  was  most  civilly  used  both  by  Mr.  Weeks  and 
his  congregation. 

I  found  Mr.  Weeks  a  very  frank,  sincere,  plain- 
hearted  man,  and  as  popular  a  preacher  as  most  in 
England.  He  had  an  unwieldy  body,  broken  with  in 
firmities  ;  but  a  mighty  voice,  and  a  great  spirit.  He 
had  a  most  affecting  way  of  pleading  for  God  with 
sinners,  and  of  setting  forth  the  odiousness  of  sin,  to 
make  it  detested.  He  had  a  wonderful  interest  in 
the  affections  of  his  people,  to  whom  God  had  made 
him  exceeding  useful ;  and  he  was  of  such  a  temper, 
that  I  had  a  fair  prospect  of  much  satisfaction  and 
comfort,  in  being  his  fellow-labourer.  The  people 
under  his  care  were  numerous*  and  wealthy,  and  in 
all  appearance,  disposed  to  be  very  kind  to  him  that 
should  fix  among  them,  if  generally  agreeable.  They 
appeared  well-pleased  with  my  preaching,  and  very 
desirous  I  should  stay  with  them ;  and  pressed  me 
with  great  earnestness. 

There  were  other  ministers  among  the  Dissenters 
at  that  time,  in  and  about  that  city.  Old  Mr.  Win- 
neyt  was  almost  superannuated;  and  Mr.  Thomas, 

*  "  1500,  all  of  his  own  gathering."     Cont.  p.  416. — I?D. 

t  Who  had  been  ejected  from  Glastonbury.  "  He  had  a  small 
congregation  in  Bristol,  where  he  also  taught  grammar  learning 
with  good  success.  When  some  were  disposed  to  have  dealt  as 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  315 

the  Welshman,*  was  a  good  honest  quiet  man  ;  but 
Mr.  Isaac   Noble,  I  looked  upon   to  have  as  good 
pulpit  gifts  and  talents  as  most  ministers  in  England. 
These  all   appeared   desirous   of   my    settlement 
there,  and  were  very  pressing  in  conversation.     But 
my  good  mother,  by  her  frequent  letters,  most  ear 
nestly  dissuaded  me  from  listening  to  any  proposals 
of  fixing  there.     She  told  me,  that  my  being  at  such 
a  distance  from  her,  would  to  her  be  just  like  bury 
ing  me,  without  any  prospect  of  farther  comfort  in 
me:  that  she  could  neither  come  thither  to  see  rne 
with  any  satisfaction,  nor  have  any  pleasure  in  visits 
I  might  make  her  at  London,  if  my  settled  dwelling 
was  so  remote  ;    that  in  return  for  all  her  care  and 
tenderness,  and  self-denial,  in  the  course  of  my  edu 
cation,  she  thought  I  might  study  to  prove  a  comfort 
to  her,  and  ease  her  of  family  cares  as  she  advanced 
in  years,  which  my  living  at  Bristol  would  effectu 
ally  prevent ;  and  that  being  chosen  at  Mr.  Sylves 
ter's,  I  was  not  likely  to  be  wholly  without  honour  in 
the  place  of  my  nativity,  where  I  had  also  several 
relations  and  good  friends,  that  might  justly  expect 
some  regard.     In  short,  she  urged  all  the  arguments 
that  motherly  affection  could  dictate,  to  divert  me 

severely  with  him  as  with  other  Dissenters  ;"  others  "  used  to 
ask  whether  they  would  have  their  children  dunces,  declaring  he 
was  the  best  schoolmaster  they  had."  He  died  in  1700.  Account, 
p.  165.  Cont.  p.  754. — ED. 

"  Minister  and  Schoolmaster,  in  Oliver's  time  and  afterwards, 
though  he  had  no  fixed  place.  He  was  educated  in  Oxford,  and 
died  at  Bristol,  1693."  Account,  p.  610. — ED. 


316  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

from  listening  to  the  proposals  at  Bristol,   which  I 
must  own  to  have  been  very  kind  and  generous. 

They  offered  me  an  hundred  pounds  a  year,  a 
house  rent  free,  that  my  mother  might  come  and  live 
with  me,  and  the  keeping  of  a  horse.  At  the  same 
time  there  was  an  evident  likelihood  of  much  greater 
and  more  extensive  usefulness,  if  I  continued  there, 
than  I  could  have  at  Mr.  Sylvester's.  These  consi 
derations  would  have  swayed  me,  had  it  not  been  for 
my  mother's  incurable  aversion.  I  must  own  I  have 
sometimes  been  apt  to  question,  whether  that  did 
not  influence  me  rather  more  than  it  ought  to  have 
done,  in  a  case  of  this  nature  ;  and  whether  I  might 
not  have  better  answered  the  great  ends  of  my  mi 
nistry  by  yielding  to  the  persuasions  of  the  people  of 
Bristol,  than  by  settling  at  London  in  compliance 
with  my  mother.  But  without  all  doubt,  Divine 
Providence  had  considerable  purposes  to  serve  this 
way. 

That  I  might  the  better  get  clear  of  my  difficulty, 
I  wrote  to  Mr.  Howe,  laid  the  case  before  him,  and 
desired  his  advice.  He  was  for  compromising  the 
matter  for  the  present,  without  coming  to  any  pe 
remptory  determination  or  issue,  till  we  saw  the 
openings  of  Divine  Providence.  He  proposed,  that 
Mr.  Kentish  and  I  should  for  some  time  spend  half 
a  year  alternately  between  Bristol  and  London ; 
and  afterwards  determine  as  to  our  settlement,  as 
Providence  might  direct,  and  we  might  incline. 
With  this,  I  could,  for  my  part,  have  been  well  sa- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  31? 

tisfied.  But  Mr.  Kentish  did  not  at  all  relish  it ; 
nor  could  Mr.  Howe  prevail  with  my  mother  to  con 
sent  to  it. 

Whereupon,  I  wrote  with  great  freedom  to  my 
friend,  Mr.  Kentish,  that  I  thought  such  a  city  as 
Bristol  was  not  by  any  means  to  be  neglected :  that 
I  was  obliged  speedily  to  return  to  London,  but  that 
a  present  supply  must  be  provided ;  and  that  I 
could  not  see  why  he  should  refuse  to  be  that  supply, 
when  he  was  wholly  unemployed  :  that  though  he 
rejected  Mr.  Howe's  proposal,  because  it  would  leave 
things  in  uncertainty  till  he  knew  not  when,  yet  I 
could  not  see  that  his  present  corning  down  to  Bris 
tol,  (where  I  could  assure  him  he  would  be  as  civilly 
used  as  he  could  desire,)  and  spending  there  a  month 
or  two,  was  liable  to  any  just  exception  :  that, 
perhaps,  he  might,  upon  trial,  find  it  a  more  proper 
place  to  settle  in  than  he  could  imagine  at  a  dis 
tance  ;  but  that  if,  after  all,  he  should  think  other 
wise,  he  would  remain  as  free  to  give  the  people 
there  a  denial  at  the  last,  as  at  first ;  and  might 
have  an  opportunity  of  recommending  and  intro 
ducing  some  person,  to  whom  he  might  see  reason  to 
think  it  would  be  more  agreeable,  and  who  might 
prove  a  blessing  to  that  place.  At  length,  I,  with 
much  difficulty,  prevailed  with  him  to  spend  a 
month  or  two  at  Bristol,  where  he  met  with  univer 
sal  acceptance,  as  I  could  easily  foresee  he  would. 

Upon  my  return  to  London,  I  accepted  the  offer 
of  Mr.  Sylvester's  people,  with  whom  I  had  the  pros- 


318  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

pect  of  bare  40/.  a-year.  Mr.  Kentish  at  first  by  no 
means  liked  a  continuance  at  Bristol,  but  was  recon 
ciled  to  it  by  degrees  ;  and  he  proved  a  great  bless 
ing  to  that  city.  He  continued  assisting  good  Mr. 
Weeks  for  the  remainder  of  his  life,  and  then  suc 
ceeded  him  as  pastor  of  his  flock,  continuing  such 
to  his  death  ;  and  he  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Michael 
Pope,  who  in  some  time  also  died,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Mr.  Bury,  who  after  being  several  years  greatly 
useful  there,  died  in  1730,  being  succeeded  by  Mr. 
Diaper.  I  desire  to  be  suitably  affected  with  the 
thoughts  of  these  changes,  whilst  I  survive,  and  am 
through  mercy  yet  in  a  capacity  of  some  service. 

Mr.  Sylvester's  people,  among  whom  I  statedly 
laboured,  were  not  numerous,  but  very  kind,  accord 
ing  to  their  ability.  I  had  the  benefit  of  the  utmost 
freedoms  with  Mr.  Sylvester,  who  was  a  very  consi 
derable  and  valuable  man,  though  not  popular,  and 
always  treated  me  with  great  respect.  I  preached 
also  occasionally  for  other  ministers,  and  I  hope  was 
not  altogether  unuseful. 

As  to  the  public,  a  design  was  this  year  formed 
for  assassinating  King  William  in  Flanders,  and  for 
an  invasion  here  afterwards,  in  order  to  the  surpriz 
ing  and  seizing  Queen  Mary,  and  carrying  her  into 
France  ;  but  the  Divine  Providence  prevented  both. 
And  though  the  French  King  took  Namur,  and  the 
Duke  of  Luxembourgh  had  rather  the  better  of  King 
William  at  the  battle  of  Steenkirk,*  yet  the  French 

*  Aug.  3,  1692.— ED. 


LIVE    OF    CALAMY.  319 

fleet  was  beaten  at  sea  by  Admiral  Russel,*  and 
many  of  their  men-of-warf  were  burnt  at  Cherburgh 
and  La  Hogue,  together  with  a  good  number  of 
their  transport  ships.  This  was  so  heavy  a  blow  to 
King  James,  that  his  spirits  sunk  to  that  degree 
that  he  hardly  ever  wore  off  the  impression.  The 
Chevalier  de  Granvale  also,  who  had  undertaken  the 
assassination  of  King  William,  was  discovered,  con 
victed,  and  executed,  in  Flanders.l  He  seemed 
very  penitent,  though  he  freely  reflected  (as  it  was 
said)  upon  the  French  ministers  of  state,  and  par 
ticularly  upon  Monsieur  de  Barbesieux,  son  of  the 
Marquis  of  Louvois,  who  succeeded  the  Marquis  in 
the  management  of  affairs. 

At  this  very  troublesome  time  was  a  foundation 
laid  for  the  noble  collection  of  Rymer's  Fcedera,§  a 
work  so  useful  to  the  English  History,  containing  a 
collection  of  all  the  leagues,  treaties,  alliances,  capi 
tulations,  and  confederacies  at  any  time  made  be 
tween  the  Crown  of  England,  and  any  other  king 
doms,  princes,  and  states,  &c.  For  the  perfecting 
which,  Queen  Mary  signed  an  order,  bearing  date 
August  26,  1693,  which  gave  him  free  access  to 
search  the  Records  in  the  Tower,  the  Rolls,  the 
Augmentation  Office,  the  Exchequer,  the  Journals 

*  May  19,  1692.  — ED. 

t  "  Twenty-one  of  their  largest."     Chron.  Hut.  i.  266.— ED. 
I  Aug.  4,  1692.     Ibid.    -ED. 

§  "  Conventions  et  cujuscunque  generis  Acta  Publica." — 
ED. 


320  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

of  Parliament,  and  the  Paper  Office,  and  to  tran 
scribe  what  was  for  his  purpose,  without  paying  any 
fees,  &c. 

Of  this  noble  work,*  as  well  as  that  of  digesting 
the  Records  and  Archives  of  the  kingdom,  that 
would  otherwise  have  lain  in  dust  and  oblivion,  into 
a  proper  order,  the  first  promoter  was  Charles  Earl 
of  Halifax.  Upon  that  account,  as  well  as  several 
others,  his  name  is  to  be  mentioned  with  honour. 
This  work  is  generally  admired.  And  yet  Mr. 
Earbery  observes,!  that  "  Rapin,  the  historian,^: 
has  been  more  than  once  led  into  mistakes  by  it." 
For  that  "  that  gentleman  was  inaccurate  in  his 
collections,  especially  as  to  the  dates  of  his  Records." 

*  Of  which,  seventeen  vols.  folio,  appeared  1704,  &c.  con 
tinued,  after  the  Compiler's  death,  in  1713,  to  twenty  volumes. 
In  1714,  appeared  his  Letter  "  of  the  Antiquity,  Power,  and 
Decay  of  Parliaments." 

In  1693,  was  published,  "  A  Short  View  of  Tragedy;  with 
some  Reflections  on  Shakspeare,  and  other  Practitioners  for  the 
Stage.  By  Mr.  Rymer,  Servant  to  their  Majesties."  He  had 
"  succeeded  Mr.  Shadwell,  as  Historiographer-royal." 

The  author  here  proposed,  what,  happily,  for  his  literary  fame 
he  never  accomplished,  to  print  "  some  Reflections  on  that  Para 
dise  Lost,  of  Milton,  which  some  are  pleased  to  call  a  poem."- 
ED. 

f  "  Occasional  Historian,"  No.  i.  p.  23. — C. 

J  Who  acknowledges  his  singular  obligations  to  the  Fadera, 
and  to  Le  Clerc,  through  whose  attention  he  had  the  free  use  of 
each  volume,  as  soon  as  it  appeared.  An  abridged  translation 
of  the  work  was  carried  on  through  several  volumes,  "  De  la 
Bibliotheque  Choisie,  et  de  la  Bibliotheque  Ancienne  et  Mo- 
derne,"  by  Rapin.  See  Pref.  to  his  Histoire,  pp.  xvii.  xviii. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Great  were  the  contests  at  this  time  among  the 
Dissenting  ministers  with  respect  to  Antinomianism. 
We  may  say  with  the  Apostle,  "  Behold  how  great 
a  matter  a  little  fire  kindleth."  The  first  occasion 
of  those  differences,  which  rose  at  length  to  a  consi 
derable  height,  and  lasted  for  several  years,  was  the 
printing  of  some  sermons  of  Dr.  Tobias  Crisp,  by 
his  son,  Mr.  Samuel  Crisp.*  Sundry  sermons  of 
his,  under  the  title  of  "  Christ  alone  Exalted,"  had 
been  printed  in  three  volumes,  in  1643,  1644,  &c. ; 
and  Mr.  Samuel  Crisp  had,  in  1683,  published  two 
sermons  more  of  his  father's,  which  he  found  among 
several  other  of  his  writings,  under  his  own  hand. 

At  length,  other  writings  of  his  were  published 
by  the  same  gentleman,  about  the  year  1690,  to 
which  the  names  of  several  ministers  were  prefixed, 
who  testified  their  belief  that  the  writings  so  printed 

*  Whose  "  great  civility/'  in  communicating  information, 
Wood  acknowledges.  Dr.  Crisp,  (whose  father,  "  an  alderman, 
died  in  his  shrievalty,  1625,")  was  "  educated  in  grammatical" 
at  Eaton,  and  "  in  academicals"  at  Cambridge,  whence,  "  for  the 
accomplishment  of  certain  parts  of  learning,  he  retired  to  Ox 
ford.  In  1627,  he  became  Rector  of  Brinkworth,  in  Wiltshire, 
where  he  was  much  followed  for  his  edifying  way  of  preaching, 
and  for  his  great  hospitality. 

"  In  August,  1642,  to  avoid  the  insolencies  of  the  soldiers, 
especially  of  the  Cavaliers,  he  did  retire  to  London,  where,  his 
opinions  being  soon  discovered,  he  was  bated  by  fifty-two 
opponents,  in  a  grand  dispute  concerning  '  the  freeness  of  the 
grace  of  God  to  poor  sinners;'  an  encounter  which  was  eagerly 
managed  on  his  part."  Dr.  Crisp  died  in  Feb.  1642-3,  aged 
forty-two.  Athcn.  Oxon.  ii.  13  ;  Bliss,  iii.  50,  51.— ED. 
VOL.  I.  Y 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

were  genuine.  But  their  lending  their  names  upon 
that  occasion,  was  by  some  taken  to  intimate  their 
approbation  of  the  notions  therein  contained,  some  of 
which  were  very  weak,  and  others  of  dangerous  im 
port.  It  was,  most  certainly,  weakness  in  the  pub 
lisher,  to  desire  ministers  to  prefix  their  names,  who, 
he  knew,  detested  many  of  the  notions  contained  in 
the  writings  published.  Nor  was  it,  certainly,  the 
wisest  thing  in  the  world,  for  ministers,  convinced 
that  the  Antiriornian  scheme  overthrew  the  whole 
Gospel,  to  comply  with  his  desire.  This  was  a  sort 
of  complaisance  not  easy  to  be  accounted  for. 

Many  standers  by  were  uneasy  at  this  step,  and 
thought  it  might  betray  the  unwary  into  error. 
But  some  that  had  allowed  the  use  of  their  names, 
pleaded  that  those  people  must  be  weak  indeed,  that 
could  not  distinguish  between  their  certifying  that 
the  discourses  printed  were  genuine,  and  their  ap 
proving  the  notions  they  contained.  Some  of  them 
were  not  to  be  convinced  they  had  done  any  thing 
blameable  :  but  others  freely  signified,  in  conversation, 
that  were  the  thing  to  do  again,  they  would  not 
allow  the  use  of  their  name. 

There  was  some  danger  of  a  contest  upon  this 
head  between  Mr.  Baxter,  and  Mr.  Howe.  Mr. 
Baxter,  always  very  warm  and  zealous  against  the 
Antinomian  notions,  had  written  against  Dr.  Crisp 
before,  and  was  much  disturbed  that  his  opinions, 
which  he  looked  upon  as  peculiarly  dangerous,  should 
so  much  as  seem  to  be  countenanced  by  such  names. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  323 

Hereupon,  he  with  some  warmth  drew  up  a  paper 
against  a  practice  which  he  thought  had  a  very  perni 
cious  tendency,  and  I  have  been  informed  it  was  print 
ed,  though  I  must  own  I  never  saw  it.  Mr.  Howe, 
waiting  on  him,  prevailed  with  him  to  stop  it,  before 
it  was  published  and  dispersed,  upon  his  promising 
to  prefix  a  declaration  with  reference  to  the  names 
before  Dr.  Crisp's  sermons,  (which  declaration  also 
should  have  several  names  to  it)  before  a  book  of 
Mr.  Flavel's,  then  going  to  the  press,  intituled  "  a 
Blow  at  the  Root,  or  the  Causes  and  Cures  of  Mental 
Errors."  This  was  accordingly  done ;  and  yet  many 
remained  still  dissatisfied.* 

This  year,  (1692)  Mr.  (afterwards  Dr.)  Daniel 
Williams,  published  a  small  Tract,  in  Svo.,  intituled, 
"  Gospel  Truth  stated  and  vindicated  ;"|  a  book  that 
was  by  many  much  carped  at,  and  inveighed  against, 
but  never  distinctly  answered  to  this  day.  About 
twenty  of  Dr.  Crisp's  opinions  are  therein  consider 
ed,  and  the  opposite  truths  plainly  stated  and  con 
firmed.  This  also  had  several  names  prefixed  to  it. 
Dr.  Chauncey  wrote  in  vindication  of  Dr.  Crisp,  and 
Mr.  Nathaniel  Mather  published  a  sermon  about 

*  "  Heads  of  Agreement"  were  in  1691  assented  to  by  the 
body  of  the  United  Ministers  in  London,  in  order  to  accommo 
date  matters  between  the  Presbyterians  and  Independents :  but 
doctrinal  differences  remained,  and  were  warmly  agitated,  both 
in  the  pulpits,  and  in  conversation. — C. 

t  See  of  this  Book,  Bibliotkeque  Universelle,  Tom.  xxiii. 
505.— C. 

Y    2 


324  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Justification,  on  the  same  side.  Mr.  Williams  an 
swered  in  "  a  Defence  of  Gospel  Truth,"  and  by  a 
book  called  "Man  made  Righteous."  Mr.  George 
Griffyth,  and  others  of  the  congregational  ministers, 
drew  up  and  signed  a  paper  of  exceptions  against 
several  passages  in  "  Gospel  Truth  stated,"  &c. ;  and 
Mr.  Williams  replied  in  a  Postscript  to  his  third 
edition.  Mr.  Robert  Trail  published  an  angry  let 
ter,  intituled,  "  A  Vindication  of  the  Protestant  Doc 
trine  concerning  Justification,  and  of  its  Preachers 
and  Professors,  from  the  unjust  charge  of  Antinomi- 
anism."  These  debates  filled  the  town  with  noise 
and  heat ;  and  the  Dissenters  grew  too  like  the  Primi 
tive  Christians,  in  that  for  which  they  are  deservedly 
censured  by  Eusebius  :  for  "  they  were  no  sooner 
delivered  from  the  hands  of  their  enemies,  than  they 
began  to  fall  foul  on  one  another." 

There  was  at  this  time  a  weekly  meeting  that 
was  very  comfortable  and  beneficial,  and  I  reckon  it 
no  small  happiness  that  I  ordinarily  attended  it.  It 
was  purely  for  amicable  conversation,  upon  matters 
civil  or  religious,  the  passages  of  the  town,  or  any 
thing  that  offered.  It  was  held  at  the  house  of  Dr. 
Upton,  in  Warwick-court,  where  I  spent  many  an 
evening  both  with  pleasure  and  profit.  None  was  to 
bring  any  one  thither,  without  leave  first  obtained  : 
and  we  were  at  no  other  charge,  but  that  of  giving 
somewhat  now  and  then  to  the  servants.  The  per 
sons  that  met  there,  were  Mr.  Sylvester,  and  Mr. 
Lorimer,  Mr.  John  Shower,  Mr.  Nathaniel  Taylor, 
Mr.  Thomas  Kentish,  Mr.  Nathaniel  Oldfield,  Dr. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  325 

Upton,  and  myself,  who  only  survive  of  all  the 
company. 

In  this  society  and  conversation  we  had  no  jealou 
sies  or  suspicions,  (it  had  been  well  if  we  had  kept  as 
free  from  any  thing  of  that  kind  afterwards,)  but  we 
talked  with  great  freedom  of  persons  and  things, 
kept  what  passed  to  ourselves,  and  I  do  not  remem 
ber  that  for  some  years  together,  while  this  meeting 
continued,  there  was  ever  any  jarring  or  clashing 
among  us.  It  was  at  this  meeting  that  we  put  Mr. 
Lorimer  upon  writing  his  "  Defence  of  the  Subscri 
bers  to  Mr.  Williams's  Gospel  Truth,"  &c.,  and  his 
Discourse  against  Mr.  Thomas  Goodwin,  of  Pinner,* 
about  the  Gospels  being  a  law.  He  read  them  both 
distinctly  over  to  us,  and  made  such  alterations  in 
them  as  were  desired:  and  those  two  pieces  did 
good  service.  Mr.  Lorimer's  circumstances  were 
but  low  :  and  thereupon  we,  among  ourselves  and 
friends,  made  a  purse  for  him,  and  presented  him 
with  forty  guineas,  as  a  token  of  respect. 

There  were  also  weekly  meetings  of  ministers  in  a 
body,  kept  up  at  this  time  at  Dr.  Annesley's  vestry, 
at  Little  St.  Helen 's,f  in  Bishopsgate-street.  Once 

*  Where  he  "  was  pastor  of  a  congregation  and  kept  a  private 
academy,  and  lived  usefully  upon  his  estate  for  many  years."  His 
father  was  the  celebrated  Independent,  Dr.  Goodwin,  of  whom, 
see  "Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  1.  n. 

"  Mr.  Thomas  Goodwin,"  Dr.  Calamy  further  describes  as 
"  a  person  of  great  and  universal  literature,  and  of  a  most  genteel 
and  obliging  temper,  who,  besides  some  theological  tracts,  has 
published  the  Life  of  King  Henry  V."  Cont.  p.  90. — ED. 

t  Now  St.  Helen's  Place.— ED. 


326  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

a  month,  there  were  Latin  disputations  upon  such 
heads  of  divinity  as  were  agreed  upon.  These  were 
declined,  and  at  length  wholly  dropped,  as  the  heats 
and  debates  among  the  ministers  advanced  and  grew 
warmer. 

On  September  8th,  this  year,  (1692)  there  was  an 
earthquake  in  and  about  the  city  of  London,  at  mid 
day,  which  was  sensibly  perceived  by  most  people. 
I  was,  at  that  time,  at  dinner  at  Sir  Richard  Levet's, 
and  all  in  the  room  felt  it,  though  I  was  not  sensible 
of  it  to  the  same  degree  with  some  others.  It  was 
generally  thought  that  had  it  continued  much  longer 
it  would  have  done  a  great  deal  of  damage  to  the 
City.*  King  William  was  then  in  his  camp  in 
Flanders,  at  dinner,  in  an  old  decayed  house,  which 
shaking  very  much,  and  every  one  apprehending  it 
ready  to  fall,  his  Majesty,  with  much  ado,  was  pre 
vailed  with  to  rise  from  the  table  and  go  out  of  the 
house  :  but  the  surprise  was  soon  over.  There  had 
the  very  same  year  been  a  very  terrible  earthquake 
in  Jamaica,  which  almost  ruined  the  town  of  Port 
Royal,  which  was  the  best  of  our  English  planta 
tions  in  that  island,  and  1,500  persons  perished  in 
it.  It  might  have  been  the  like  with  us  here  in 
England,  had  not  God  in  his  merciful  providence 
been  pleased  to  make  a  difference. 

In  December  this  year,  after  much  pains  taken, 
certain  "Doctrinal  Articles"  of  religion  were  fixed 
upon,  which  were  agreed  to  by  the  Dissenting  minis- 

"  It  did  not  last  above  a  minute,  and  was  attended  with  no 
ill  accident."     Chron.  Hut.  i.  266. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  327 

ters  that  had  been  contending  with  each  other,  and 
subscribed  and  published  to  the  world,  vinder  the 
title  of  "  the  Agreement  in  Doctrine  among  the  Dis 
senting  Ministers  in  London,"  by  which  it  was  hoped 
farther  differences  might  have  been  prevented.  But 
a  right  healing  spirit  was  wanting.  Opposite  weekly 
meetings  were  kept  up,  and  some  seemed  desirous 
to  be  thought  to  differ  from  their  brethren,  whether 
they  really  did  so  or  no ;  or  at  least  fancied  that 
they  did  so,  more  than  they  did  in  reality  ;  and  this 
had  ill  effects  and  consequences. 

This  year,  also,  died  the  truly  Hon.  Robert  Boyle, 
Esq.,  whose  funeral  sermon  was  preached  by  Bishop 
Burnet.*  This  Mr.  Robert  Boyle  was  the  youngest 
son  of  the  Earl  of  Cork.  He  was  a  very  serious 
devout  Christian,  and  a  great  philosopher.  This 
gentleman,  and  Sir  Matthew  Hale,f  were  the  two 
great  ornaments  of  King  Charles's  Reign4 

*  See  Evelyn,  in.  311,  312  ;  Budgell's  "  Mem.  of  the  Boyles" 
(1737)  Appendix.  Dr.  Birch  published  in  1744,  "  The  Life  of 
the  Honourable  Robert  Boyle." — ED. 

t  Who  died  1676,  aged  sixty-seven.  His  "Life  and  Death," 
or  rather  his  unqualified  eulogy,  was  published  by  Burnet,  in 
1682,  and  has  been  often  reprinted.  The  biographer  is  politicly 
silent  on  that  discreditable  transaction,  when  this  great  lawyer 
betrayed  an  utter  want  of  consideration  and  discernment,  and 
the  judge  degraded  himself  into  a  witch-finder. 

"  His  piety  and  theological  reading,"  as  was  well  remarked, 
(Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  v.  11.)  "  seemed  to  have  the  effect  of  render 
ing  him  credulous  and  unrelenting."  See  "  A  Tryal  of  witches, 
at  the  Assizes,  held  at  Bury,  March  10,  1664.  Before  Sir 
Matthew  Hale,  Kt.,  Lord  Chief  Baron,  1682."  -Eo. 

I  The  foundation  of  the  Societies  for  reformation  of  manners 


328  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

In  February  1692-3,  thirty-eight  of  the  inhabi 
tants  of  Glencoe,  a  town  in  the  north  of  Scotland, 
after  they  had  laid  down  their  arras,  were  inhumanly 
butchered  in  their  beds,  their  houses  plundered,  and 
their  cattle  carried  away  ;  which  piece  of  barbarity 
gave  the  King's  enemies  an  occasion  of  reflecting  on 
his  Government :  and,  therefore,  that  matter  was  in 
quired  into  in  the  Scottish  Parliament  in  1695.* 

In  1693,  the  Church  of  England  was  miserably 
divided,  and  the  contest  among  the  Dissenting  minis 
ters  went  on,  and  rose  yet  higher.  As  to  the  Church 
party,  from  the  time  of  the  Revolution  in  1688,  a 
number  of  them  scrupled  the  oathsf  to  King  Wil 
liam  and  Queen  Mary,  and  could  not  heartily  fall  in 
with  the  Government.  The  author  of  "  the  Heredi 
tary  Right  of  the  Crown  of  England,":):  says  that, 
"about  1689,  near  400  clergymen  were  deprived  of 
their  livings  for  being  non-jurors :  and  they  that 
were  thus  ejected  made  a  new  separation,  and  re 
fused  to  hold  communion  with  those  that  took  the 
oaths."§  A  great  majority,  indeed,  of  the  church- 
was  laid  this  year,  and  the  Dissenters  were,  from  the  first,  as 
ready  to  encourage  and  assist  in  it  as  any. — C. 

*  See  Burnet's  "Own Time,"  ii.  88-90. 156,  157.  162  ;  Chron. 
Hist.  i.  277,  278  ;  "  Monthly  Repos."  (1822)  xvii.  73.— ED. 

f  This  matter  of  the  oaths  that  were  in  force  after  the  Re 
volution,  is  very  distinctly  handled  and  considered  in  a  variety 
oi  Discourses  in  King  William's  State  Tracts,  vol.  i. — C. 

I  Pp.  71,  72.— C. 

§  See  the  Particular  account  that  is  given  of  this  matter,  in 
"  the  Life  of  Mr.  John  Kettlewell,"  pp.  196,  197,  &c.~C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  329 

men  did  swear  allegiance  to  the  King  :  some  as  their 
lawful  and  rightful  King ;  others  as  King,  de  facto, 
only.  A  third  party  stood  out  wholly,  and  would 
not  swear  at  all,  nor  in  any  sense.  They  that  took 
the  oaths  charged  those  that  refused  them,  with 
needless  niceness  and  scrupulosity.  They,  on  the 
other  side,  charged  their  brethren  who  swore  alle 
giance  to  the  Government,  with  perjury  and  apos- 
tacy. 

Some  that  were  dissatisfied  with  the  oaths  and  re 
fused  them,  continued  preaching  after  the  time  fixed 
by  the  Act  of  Parliament,  for  their  compliance,  was 
elapsed,  and  held  on  when  they  were  legally  silenced, 
and  so  were  guilty  of  the  very  thing  which  they  had 
before  charged  as  such  a  crime  on  their  noncon- 
forming  brethren  ;  though  they  did  not  suffer  at  the 
rate  they  did  upon  that  account.  But  a  great  num 
ber  of  those  who  continued  in  their  refusal,  at  length 
quitted  their  preferments,  and  made  a  new  separa 
tion,  and  refused  to  hold  communion  with  those  who 
had  taken  the  oaths  to  the  new  Government. 

It  well  deserved  observation,  that  whereas  two 
main  principles  were  zealously  espoused  by  the  high 
men  of  the  Established  Church,  in  the  reign  of  King 
Charles,  viz.,  "  the  power  of  the  magistrate  in  eccle 
siastical  matters,"  and  "  passive  obedience  without  li 
mitations,"  they  were  both  of  them  now  opposed  by 
some  among  themselves.  An  unlimited  passive  obe 
dience  was  superseded  by  those  who  deserted  King 
James,  and  fell  in  with  King  William  :  and  "  the 


330  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

power  of  the  magistrate  in  measures  Ecclesiastical," 
was  no  longer  owned  by  those  that  fell  under  the 
displeasure  of  the  Government.  They  were  for  set 
ting  up  an  inherent  right  in  the  Church  to  manage 
itself.  Some  of  them  went  as  far  as  the  Kirk  of 
Scotland  to  borrow  new  principles,  and  made  use  of 
the  pleas  formerly  urged  by  Dissenters,  in  order  to 
defend  themselves  against  the  charge  of  schism. 

In  1691,  the  bishopricks  and  dignities  that  were 
legally  vacant,  were  filled  up :  and  in  that  and  the 
following  year,  the  two  contending  parties  continued 
writing  against  each  other  with  great  warmth  and 
vehemence.  The  chief  writers  on  the  Jacobite  side, 
were  Mr.  Dodwell,  Dr.  Wagstaff,  Mr.  Spinks,  Mr. 
Kettlewell,  Mr.  Samuel  Grascome,  Mr.  Charles  Lesly, 
and  Dr.  Hickes.  The  chief  writers  on  the  opposite 
side,  were  Dr.  Stillingfleet,  Dr.  Hody,  Mr.  Samuel 
Johnson,  Dr.  Wake,  Dr.  Burnet,  Dr.  Williams,  and 
at  last  Mr.  Hoadly,  who  was  by  most  reckoned  to 
exceed  all  that  went  before  him. 

A  main  book,  written  in  this  controversy,  though 
it  was  not  published  till  some  years  after,*  was  drawn 
up  by  Mr.  Leslie,  intituled  "  The  case  of  the  Re 
gale  and  of  the  Pontificat  stated ;  in  the  relation  of 
a  Conference  concerning  the  Independency  of  the 
Church,  as  to  her  purely  spiritual  power  and  autho 
rity.'1  This  book  was  written  with  the  utmost 
assurance,  and  not  without  some  smartness,  upon  the 
Ignatian  and  Dodwellian  principles  of  High  Church ; 

*  '«  New  Year's  Day,  MDCC."-~En. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  331 

but  the  author  was  so  zealous  for  a  communion 
between  the  Church  of  England  and  the  Galilean 
Church,*  a  close  correspondence  between  our  na 
tional  councils,  and  particularly  the  Convocation, 
which  was  about  that  time  much  heated,  and  the 
general  assembly  of  the  Gallican  bishops  and  clergy, 
that  he  was  frowned  on  and  ridiculed,  and  not  with 
out  good  reason  .f 

*  Of  which  he  says,  (p.  286)  "  They  have  limited,  in  France, 
the  supremacy  of  the  Pope  to  the  constitutions  of  their  own 
national  Church."  On  Archbishop  Wake's  "  project  of  peace 
and  union  between  the  English  and  Gallican  churches"  in  1717. 
See  Confessional  (1 7  70}  pp.  Ixxxvi.-xciii.  ;  Dr.  Maclaine's  Notes 
and  Appendix  to  Mosheim,  v.  95,  117-179;  Nuuv.  Diet.  Hist. 
iii.  373,  374. — ED. 

f  Yet  Dr.  Calamy  had  scarcely  discovered  any  "  good  reason" 
to  have  "  frowned  on  and  ridiculed"  this  writer  for  the  following 
passages,  which  appear  to  offer  no  inconsiderable  arguments  for 
his  favourite  Nonconformity. 

"  When  the  people  see  bishops  made  by  the  Court,  they  are 
apt  to  imagine,  that  they  speak  to  them  the  Court-language. 
Hence  they  are  inclined  to  resolve  all  into  priest-craft,  managed 
by  a  superior  state-craft."  Case,  p.  23. 

"Nothing  can  be  believed  to  be  religion,  by  any  people,  but 
what  they  think  to  be  divine  ;  and  they  can  think  nothing  to  be 
so,  that  is  in  the  power  of  man  to  alter.  Therefore  the  people 
look  upon  the  Church  of  England  as  a  parliamentary  religion 
[see  supra,  p.  203]  and  establishment  of  the  State."  Ibid.  p.  25. 

The  author,  then  referring  to  the  unscrupulous  Gibbons  among 
the  Commons  of  that  age,  adds,  "  The  Deists,  when  they  find 
themselves  in  committees  of  religion,  can  never  think  that  there 
is  any  thing  divine  in  that  which  they  see  stand  and  fall  by  their 
vote."  Ibid. 

Dr.  Coward,  a  learned  physician,  was  brought  before  the  Com- 


332  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Some  of  King  James's  bishops  much  confirmed 
that  part  of  the  clergy  and  laity  of  the  Established 
Church  that  were  against  heartily  falling  in  with 
King  William  and  his  Government.  This  is  parti 
cularly  taken  notice  of  (among  others)  by  the  writer 
of  the  Life  of  that  zealous  nonjuror,  Mr.  John  Ket- 
tlewell,  who  tells  Us,*  that  Dr.  William  Thomas, 
Bishop  of  Worcester,  who  died  before  the  expira 
tion  of  the  term  that  was  allowed  by  Act  of  Par 
liament  for  the  taking  of  the  new  oath,  did  on  June 
23,  1689,  declare  to  Dr.  Hickes,  his  Dean,  that  "it 
was  time  for  him  to  die,  having  outlived  the  honour 
of  his  religion,  and  the  liberties  of  his  country ;" 
adding  withal,  that  "  he  had  read  all  the  books  writ 
ten  for  taking  the  oath,  in  which  he  found  the  au 
thors  more  Jesuits  than  the  Jesuits  themselves,"  and 
that  "  if  his  heart  deceived  him  not,  and  the  grace  of 
God  did  not  fail  him,  he  thought  he  could  burn  at  a 
stake  before  he  could  take  the  new  oath  :"  and  "  he 
departed  in  peace  two  days  after,  June  25. "f 

mons  in  1704,  under  the  accusation  of  having  published  his 
"  Second  thoughts  concerning  human  souls,"  by  which  he  appears 
to  have  been  a  Christian  materialist.  The  House,  in  the  religious 
exercise  of  their  "  cure  of  souls,"  appointed  a  committee  to  exa 
mine  and  censure  the  book,  among  whom  was  "  Mr.  St.  John," 
afterwards  Lord  Bolingbroke.  Biog.  Brit.  iv.  360. — ED. 

*  P.  199,  &c.— C. 

f  Henry  Earl  of  Clarendon,  records  in  his  Diary,  "  1689, 
July  14.  The  Bishop  of  Kildare  told  me  of  the  Bishop  of  Wor 
cester's  death,  and  of  the  charge  he  left  with  his  clergy  not  to 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

The  same  writer  takes  notice,*  that  Dr.  Arthur 
Lake,  the  Bishop  of  Chichester,  who  died  the  Au 
gust  following,  did  upon  his  death-bed  declare,  that 
"  he  had  been  brought  up  in,  and  had  also  taught 
others,  that  great  doctrine  of  passive  obedience, 
which  he  looked  upon  as  the  distinguishing  charac 
ter  of  the  Church  of  England ;  and  that  he  would 
not  have  taken  the  oath,  though  the  penalty  had 
been  loss  of  life."  Also,  that  "  he  found  great  satis 
faction  and  consolation  in  his  mind,  because  he  had 
not  taken  it ;  and  this  declaration  he  with  great 
earnestness  desired  might  be  looked  upon  as  the 
words  of  a  man  going  to  appear  before  God."'|~ 

Such  things  as  these  heartened  those  that  stood 
out,  and  made  them  the  more  bold  and  assuming. 

November  1693,  the  late  Archbishop  Bancroft 
died,  at  Fresingfield,  in  Suffolk^  the  place  of  his 

take  the  new  oaths,  and  to  persevere  in  their  allegiance  to  King 
James/'  Correspondence,  &c.  ii.  282.  See  Ibid.  p.  480. — ED. 

*  P.  203.— C. 

f  Jan.  29,  1688-9,  on  "the  vote  from  the  Commons,  that  the 
throne  was  vacant,  a  regency,  under  the  style  of  James  II."  was 
proposed  to  the  Lords.  "  After  a  long  debate,  the  negative  was 
carried  by  two  votes,"  (51  to  49).  Among  the  "  Lords  who  were 
for  a  regency,"  was  "  the  Bishop  of  Chichester."  Diary,  in  Lord 
Clarendon's  Correspondence,  &c.  ii.  256.  See  Ibid.  pp.  478, 
479,  481.— ED. 

I  Aged  seventy-six.  He  had  been  promoted,  on  the  death 
of  Sheldon,  from  the  Deanery  of  St.  Paul's  to  the  Primacy. 
Wood  thus  relates  the  circumstances  of  his  rapid  elevation  :  of 


334  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

birth,  whither  he  had  retired  after  his  being  deprived.* 
I  cannot  but  take  notice  of  the  character  given  of 
him  in  the  Life  of  King  William,  which  says,f  that 
"  he  wanted  not  tenderness  towards  the  Dissenters, 
but  he  had  not  that  latitude  of  principle,  to  break 
down  what  he  conscientiously  believed  to  be  the 
mounds  and  fences  of  the  Church,  in  order  to  let  in 
the  straggling  sheep,  which  he  thought  might  as 
well  have  entered  at  the  right  door." 

This  character  of  that  great  man,  (who  was  of  a 
very  different  spirit  and  temper  from  his  successor, 

which,  only  his  immediate  successor  has,  I  believe,  supplied 
another  example. 

"  1677.  Dec.  29.  Conge  d'elire  went  to  Canterbury  to  elect  Dr. 
Sancroft  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  set  up  by  the  Duke  of  York 
against  London,  (Dr.  Compton)  and  York,  put  on  by  the  Papists. 
York  doth  not  care  for  London,  because  he  showed  himself  an 
enemy  to  the  Papists  at  the  Council-board/'  Life,  p.  271.  Bliss. 
Ixxix. 

A  writer,  lately  quoted,  attaches  a  very  serious  responsibility 
to  this  exercise  of  ecclesiastical  supremacy,  asserting"  that  kings 
will  stand  chargeable  with  all  the  miscarriages  in  the  Church, 
occasioned  by  those  bishops  and  clergy  whom  they  advance ;" 
and  that  *«  the  cure  of  souls  will  be  required  at  their  hands,  since 
they  have  taken  it  upon  themselves."  Case,  &c.  p.  1 70. 

fe  Where  "  he  is  said  to  have  cultivated  his  garden  with  his 
own  hand  ;  enjoying,  though  with  the  sacrifice  of  greatness  and 
splendour,  the  peace  of  conscious  rectitude."  See  Toulmin's 
"  Hist.  View,"  p.  77  ;  Granger,  iv.  281.  n. 

For  numerous  notices  of  Archbishop  Sancroft,  both  before 
and  after  the  Revolution,  see  "  Memoirs  of  Evelyn,"  and  "  Cor 
respondence  of  Henry  Earl  of  Clarendon."  Indexes. — ED. 

f  Vol.ii.  p.  385.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  335 

Dr.  Tillotson)  would  bear  a  variety  of  reflections. 
I  shall  only  say  that  as  for  "his  tenderness  to  the 
Dissenters,"  (particularly  mentioned)  I  verily  think, 
that  was  not  much  to  be  boasted  of.  He  did  indeed 
express  somewhat  that  looked  that  way,  in  the  con 
test  with  King  James,  just  at  the  close  of  his  reign  ;* 

*  Among  the  original  letters  from  which  the  Hon.  Agar  Ellis 
has  lately  illustrated  the  period  of  English  history  immediately 
preceding  the  Revolution,  is  one,  addressed  to  "  John  Ellis,  Esq. 
Dublin/'  and  dated  "  London,  July  21,  1688."  The  anonymous 
writer  says  : — 

"  The  Archbishop  and  the  clergy  of  London  are  said  to  have 
had  several  conferences  with  the  chief  of  the  Dissenting  minis 
ters,  in  order  to  agree  such  points  of  ceremonies  as  are  indif 
ferent  between  them,  and  to  take  their  measures  for  what  is  to 
be  proposed  about  religion  at  next  Parliament."  See  "  Ellis 
Correspondence,"  ii.  63. 

The  "  Lord  Chief  Justice  Herbert,"  on  the  circuit  had  been 
declaring  the  intention  of  "  the  King,"  to  "  call  a  Parliament 
in  November  at  farthest,"  and  recommending  "  the  choice  of 
such  members,  as  would  comply  with  the  King  in  repealing  the 
penal  laws  and  the  tests."  Ibid.  p.  61. 

In  another  anonymous  letter,  dated  "  London,  Sept.  18,  1688," 
it  is  reported  from  the  Weekly  Occurrencer,  "  that  the  Dissenters 
had  offered  to  lend  his  Majesty  a  considerable  sum  of  money." 
On  this  report,  "  some  allege  that  their  practice  in  past  times 
makes  it  now  hard  of  belief,  and  very  improbable."  Ibid. 
p.  175. 

The  following  passages  from  the  letter,  "July  21,"  describe 
a  laudable  competition  between  the  rival  episcopal  churches, 
such  as  may  now  be  fairly  expected,  since  to  British  and  Irish 
Catholics  has  been  secured  by  law,  with  a  few  exceptions,  (con 
ceded  to  policy  rather  than  demanded  by  justice)  a  too  long 


336  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

arid  for  that  (as  it  has  been  before  observed,)  there 
was  this  good  reason,  that  the  reading  a  declaration 
in  favour  of  the  Dissenters  in  the  public  churches 
was  the  thing  about  which  the  Church  was  then 
breaking  with  the  King,  which  very  order  he  had 
himself  encouraged  by  his  former  proceedings.  But, 
had  he  not  been  that  way  cramped,  contrary  to  his 
expectations,  we  have  no  great  reason  to  believe 
he  would  have  expressed  any  regard  to  the  Dissen 
ters  at  all  at  that  time,  any  more  than  he  did  before. 
He  would,  in  all  probability,  have  contentedly  left 
them  under  the  very  same  hardships  and  severities 
as  formerly :  and  have  suffered  "  the  straggling 
sheep"  to  have  straggled  on,  without  bating  an  ace  in 

withheld  community  with  Protestants,  in  the  use  and  enjoyment 
of  common  rights. 

"  The  bishops  that  were  lately  in  the  Tower,  are  gone  to  their 
respective  bishopricks,  and  have  resolved  to  hold  frequent  cate- 
chisings  and  confirmations  ;  and  last  week  the  Archbishop  began 
at  Lambeth,  and  at  Croydon  in  Surrey,  where  the  Bishop  of 
Gloucester  assisted  him  in  confirming  several  thousands  of  child 
ren,  that  were  brought  to  them. 

"  This  good  example  is  followed,  also,  by  the  Roman  clergy 
about  the  town  ;  and  last  week  Bishop  Ellis,  assisted  by  Father 
Poulton,  the  Jesuit,  confirmed  some  hundreds  of  youth,  (some 
of  them  were  new  converts)  at  the  new  chapel  in  the  Savoy.'' 
IfoW.pp.  61,  62. 

The  next  letter,  dated  "  July  24,"  reports  that,  "  the  French 
King"  is  "  inviting  back  his  subjects  from  all  parts,  especially 
the  handicraft  part  of  them,  whose  departure  is  said  to  have 
much  prejudiced  his  revenue."  Ibid.  p.  66.  See  Voltaire, 
supra,  p.  125,  w.  *. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  337 

the  rigour  of  the  Ecclesiastical  administration.  He 
seems  to  have  been  of  the  mind  of  "  Rosse  and  Pater- 
son,"  and  other  Scottish  bishops,  who,  we  are  told  by 
Bishop  Burnet,*  "  signed  an  address,"  in  1686,  "offer 
ing  to  concur  with  the  King"  (James)  "in  all  that 
he  desired  with  relation  to  those  of  his  own  religion, 
provided  the  laws  might  still  continue  in  force,  and 
be  executed  against  the  Presbyterians." 

The  contest  among  the  Dissenting  ministers  went 
on  this  year,  and  rose  higher  instead  of  abating. 
Several  papers  were  successively  drawn  up  in  order 
to  an  accommodation,  but  to  little  purpose.  They 
only  created  fresh  debates,  one  side  being  very 
ready  to  suspect  their  brethren  of  verging  towards 
Arminianism,  or  even  Socinianism  ;  and  they  on  the 
other  side  being  extremely  tender  of  any  thing  that 
might  be  capable  of  giving  encouragement  to  Anti- 
nomianismu 

Mr.  Howe,  this  year,  preached  at  the  merchants' 
lecture  at  Pinner's-hall  (and  afterwards  published,) 
two  admirable  sermons  upon  "  the  Carnality  of 
Religious  Contention."  And  though  Mr.  Williams, 
who  was  at  all  times  very  zealous  against  the  Anti- 
noniians,  and  all  their  open  or  secret  abettors,  had  a 
considerable  majority  of  the  ministers  concurring 
with  him,  and  adhering  to  him,  and  approving  his 
"  Gospel  Truth,"  &c.  yet  there  appeared  plainly 
enough,  in  some  of  the  papers  that  were  drawn  up 
about  this  time,  a  mighty  inclination  to  cast  a  slur 
*  "  Own  Time,"  i.  680— C. 

VOL.    I.  Z 


338  LIFE    OF    CALAJMY. 

upon  him,  as  carrying  some  things  at  least  too  far, 
(particularly  in  his  sense  of  Phil.  iii.  9,  where  the 
Apostle  speaks  of  "  his  own  righteousness  which  is 
of  the  law,  and  the  righteousness  which  is  of  God 
by  faith.") 

This  made  others  the  more  jealous,  especially 
when  they  found  some  prevailed  with  to  abet  a 
design  of  that  nature,  who  they  were  convinced  were 
as  much  against  Antinomianism  as  any  persons 
whatsoever.  This  tended  to  an  unhappy  confusion, 
which  will  appear  to  any  one  that  reads  the  "  Re 
port  of  the  Present  State  of  the  Differences  in  Doc- 
trinals  between  some  Dissenting  Ministers  in  Lon 
don  ;"  the  "  Faithful  Rebuke  to  a  False  Report ;" 
the  "  Defence  of  the  Report ;"  and  the  "  Vindication 
of  the  Faithful  Rebuke  to  a  False  Report ;"  a  "  View 
of  an  Ecclesiastic  in  his  Locks  and  Buskins,"  (said 
to  be  written  by  Mr.  Ferguson,)  and  other  things 
that  were  afterwards  published. 

As  to  the  public,  there  was  this  year  a  great 
miscarriage  of  the  Smyrna  fleet,  wherein  we  sus 
tained  a  loss  that  was  very  considerable.  There 
was,  also,  a  battle  at  Lauden,  in  Flanders,  in  which, 
though  King  William  did  all  that  could  be  desir 
ed  or  expected  from  a  valiant  general,  he  yet  was 
worsted,  and  lost  sixty  pieces  of  cannon  and  nine 
mortars.  It  is  hard  to  say  whether  the  confederates 
or  the  French  lost  the  most  men.  Before  the  end 
of  the  campaign,  our  enemies  besieged  Charleroy, 
and  took  it  from  the  Allies. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  339 

I  continued  (1694)  preaching  with  good  Mr.  Syl 
vester  at  Blackfriars,  and  living  in  Hoxton-square  ; 
Mr.  Thomas  Reynolds  and  I  lodging  together, 
under  one  roof.  We  chose  to  live  there  for  greater 
retirement,  and  that  we  might  have  more  leisure 
and  conveniency  for  study.  He  was  assistant  to 
Mr.  John  Howe,  as  I  was  to  Mr.  Matthew  Sylvester, 
and  there  was  an  uninterrupted  harmony  between  us. 

We  thought  it  requisite  to  be  ordained,  and  this 
year  took  measures  in  order  to  it.  We  had  both 
made  sufficient  trial  of  the  ministry,  to  be  able  to 
form  a  judgment,  and  were  both  determined  to 
choose  it  for  the  business  and  employment  of  our 
lives.  Therefore,  we  thought  our  continuing  any 
longer  to  preach  as  probationers  only,  was  not  regu 
lar.  Withal,  we  were,  ever  and  anon,  called  upon 
to  baptize  children,  which  we  could  not  do  while  un- 
ordained  ;  and  found  it  would  be  agreeable  to  those 
to  whom  we  were  assistants,  that,  by  being  ordained, 
we  might  be  in  a  capacity  of  giving  them  yet  far 
ther  assistance,  by  administering  either  of  the  Sacra 
ments,  as  there  might  be  occasion,  either  by  reason 
of  their  absence  or  indisposition.  We  talked,  also, 
with  Mr.  Joseph  Bennet,  who,  after  having  been  for 
a  number  of  years  an  acceptable  and  useful  occa 
sional  preacher  in  divers  places,  was  at  that  time 
settling  with  a  congregation  that  had  chosen  him 
pastor  at  Newington-green  ;  and  we  found  him  de 
sirous  to  be  ordained  at  the  same  time. 

Providence  having  cast  our  lot  in,  or  near  the 
z  2 


340  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

great  city,  the  metropolis  of  the  nation,  we  jointly 
inclined  to  move  for  a  public  ordination,  (though 
there  had  been  nothing  of  that  nature  since  the  act 
for  Uniformity,  in  1662,)  in  hope  that  it  might  do 
no  disservice  to  the  Dissenting  interest  in  general, 
for  the  management  of  a  solemnity  of  that  kind,  in 
our  way  to  be  brought  out  of  private  corners  into 
the  open  light,  that  all  might  see  and  know  what 
methods  we  took  upon  those  occasions,  and  what 
solemn  promises  and  obligations  ministers  among  us 
were  brought  under,  when  they  were  ordained,  with 
out  the  addition  of  any  ensnaring  bond  on  them 
selves,  or  uncharitable  censure  upon  others.  We 
were  also  inclined  to  apprehend,  that  it  might  have 
some  tendency  to  promote  our  own  particular  use 
fulness,  for  our  friends  to  be  witnesses  of  the  solem 
nity  of  our  separation  to  that  sacred  office,  to  which 
we  were  free  and  willing  to  dedicate  ourselves. 
But,  this  being  then  a  new  thing  among  us,  we 
found  some  difficulty. 

Mr.  Reynolds  and  I  applied  first  to  Mr.  Howe, 
who  appeared  much  pleased  with  the  motion,  and 
greatly  encouraged  us.  When  I  told  him  that  my 
father  and  grandfather,  also,  (of  whom  he  used  to 
speak  with  a  singular  respect,)  having  been  City  mi 
nisters,  it  would  be  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  to 
have  the  concurring  prayers  of  some  good  old  Chris 
tians,  who  had  sat  under  the  ministry  of  both,  upon 
such  an  occasion,  and  that  this  I  could  not  have  if 
it  was  managed  in  private,  he  appeared  to  concur, 
and  said  he  had  no  objection  against  our  being  pub- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  341 

licly  ordained,  and  that  he  did  not  see  but  that  it 
would  be  better  so,  than  in  private.  Upon  our  mo 
tion  that  he  would  give  us  a  sermon  on  the  occasion, 
he  said  he  would  not  refuse  it,  but  that  since  there 
were  "  heads  of  agreement"  entered  into  between 
the  ministers  of  the  two  denominations,  Presbyterian 
and  Congregational,*  he  thought  it  would  look  more 
harmonious,  if  Mr.  Matthew  Mead,  of  Stepney,f 
could  be  prevailed  on  to  be  the  preacher. 

I  told  him,  with  freedom,  that  I  a  little  ques 
tioned  whether  Mr.  Mead  would  engage  in  an  affair 
of  that  kind  upon  our  principles ;  for  though  we 
thought  we  were  sufficiently  furnished  with  titles, 
and  we  hoped  none  could  object  against  being  con 
cerned  in  our  ordination,  that  there  was  any  danger 
of  our  being  burthens  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  yet 
we  insisted  upon  being  ordained  ministers  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  without  any  confinement  to  par 
ticular  flocks,  or  any  one  denomination,  &c.  Mr. 
Howe  intimated  that  he  did  not  question  but  Mr. 
Mead  might  be  prevailed  with  to  concur  upon  that 
bottom,  and  signified  his  readiness  to  make  a  motion 
to  him  about  it,  when  an  opportunity  offered  of 
being  in  his  company.  But  to  show  our  readiness 
to  comply  with  Mr.  Howe,  without  being  drawn 
into  delays,  I,  in  order  to  the  greater  expedition, 
proposed  to  write  to  the  son  of  Mr.  Matthew  Mead, 

*  See  these  "  Heads  of  Agreement,'*  in  my  abridgment  of 
the  Life  of  Mr.  Richard  Baxter,  476— 483.— C. 

f  Who  died,  1699,  aged  seventy.  Cont.  p.  614.  See  Peirce's 
"  Vindication  of  the  Dissenters,"  (1718,)  p.  258.— ED. 


342  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Mr.  Samuel  Mead,  (our  fellow  student  at  Utrecht,* 
who  was  at  that  time  a  preacher  as  a  candidate,  and 
had  a  Lord's  day  evening  lecture  at  Salter's-hall,) 
desiring  him  to  make  the  proposal  to  his  father,  and 
I  promised  to  produce  the  answer  when  I  re 
ceived  it. 

I  wrote,  accordingly,  an  account  of  our  design, 
and  what  Mr.  Howe  proposed  about  his  father, 
and  begged  he  would  convey  our  request  to  him. 
But,  then,  I  laid  down  the  principles  we  went  upon 
distinctly,  to  be  ordained  ministers  of  the  Catholic 
Church  of  Christ  without  any  confinement ;  and 
begged  he  would  expressly  mention  that,  and  sig 
nify  that  if  any  narrow,  confining,  cramping  notions 
were  intermixed  in  the  management,  I  should  drop 
the  matter,  and  take  the  liberty  to  withdraw,  even 
though  the  work  of  the  day  were  begun,  or  consi 
derably  advanced. 

I  thought  it  the  more  requisite  to  be  thus  par 
ticular,  because  I  had  been  present  at  a  day  of 
prayer,  kept  in  Curriers'-hall,  upon  Mr.  Shower's 
accepting!  a  call  from  the  remainder  of  my 
father's  congregation,  that  had  been  after  his  de 
cease  under  the  care  of  Mr.  Samuel  Borfet.  At 
which  time,  Mr.  Mead,  to  whom  the  chief  manage 
ment  of  the  solemnity  had  been  committed,  as  it 
were,  married  Mr.  Shower  to  that  congregation, 
and  carried  things  so  far  as  to  represent  it  as  a  sort 

*  See  Supra,  p.  142.— ED. 

t  In  1691.     "Mem,  of  Shower,"  (1716,)  p.  62.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  343 

of  spiritual  adultery,  if,  upon  any  occasion,  he  should 
leave  them,  and  go  to  spend  his  pains  statedly  in 
another  worshipping  society ;  a  sort  of  management 
not  at  all  to  my  edification.  I  added,  also,  in  my 
letter,  that  if  his  father  would  comply  with  the  mo 
tion  on  our  bottom,  I  could  not  but  hope  it  might 
do  good  service,  and  promote  a  Catholic  spirit,  and 
therefore  I  was  for  his  urging  it  as  far  as  he  could 
with  decency ;  arid  that  if  he  also  himself  would 
concur,  and  be  ordained  with  us,  (which  I  thought 
might  be  agreeable  enough  to  his  own  sentiments 
and  apprehensions,)  it  might  do  very  well,  and  I 
hoped  he  would  have  no  occasion  to  repent  it. 

In  a  few  days  I  received  an  answer,  in  which  he 
told  me  he  had  proposed  the  matter  to  his  father, 
but  that  he  desired  to  be  excused.  He  owned,  in 
deed,  that  he  found  by  discourse,  that  he  had  lati 
tude  enough  to  give  us  a  sermon,  and  concur  in 
ordaining  us  upon  our  bottom  ;  but  that  he  was 
fearful  some  would  be  offended,  and  for  that  reason 
rather  chose  to  forbear.  As  to  his  own  being  or 
dained  to  the  ministry,  he  intimated  that  he  would 
freely  discourse  me  at  a  time  and  place  that  he 
appointed.  When  we  afterwards  met,  he  told  me, 
with  a  great  deal  of  frankness,  that  he  was  far  from 
designing  the  ministry  for  the  business  of  his  life. 
Though  he  had  been  for  some  time  a  preacher,  to 
please  his  father,  and  some  other  friends,  yet  he 
found  he  could  not  continue  such  without  cramping 
himself,  to  avoid  giving  disgust,  and  therefore  was 


344  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

resolved  in  a  little  time  to  turn  to  the  law,  and  he 
accordingly  did  so. 

When  I  gave  Mr.  Howe  an  account  of  Mr. 
Mead's  refusal,  and  showed  him  his  son's  letter,  and 
renewed  the  motion  for  him  to  give  us  an  ordination 
sermon,  I  could  not  perceive  he  was  at  all  more 
ready  to  comply  now  than  before.  Nay,  he  began 
to  call  in  question  the  advisableness  of  our  being 
ordained  in  public,  and  gave  it  as  his  advice  that 
we  should  rather  be  contented  with  a  private  ordi 
nation  that  would  make  no  noise.  But  we,  insisting 
upon  having  it  public,  (and  that  among  other  rea 
sons,  to  show  the  world  that  we  were  neither  afraid 
nor  ashamed  to  own  our  principles,)  he  told  us,  be 
fore  he  could  agree  to  it,  he  thought  it  requisite  to 
go  up  to  Court,  and  wait  upon  my  Lord  Sommers,* 
and  inquire  of  his  lordship,  whether  such  a  proceed 
ing  on  our  part  would  not  be  ill  taken,  and  might 
not  draw  ill  consequences  after  it. 

What  passed  between  my  Lord  Sommers  and  Mr. 
Howe  upon  this  occasion,  I  pretend  not  to  say. 
But  a  day  or  two  before  we  were  actually  ordained, 
he  told  Mr.  Reynolds  and  rne,  that  he  was  not  satis 
fied  to  have  any  concern  in  that  matter,  if  there 
were  any  present,  besides  the  ordainers  and  the 
ordained.  This  troubled  us,  yet  as  circumstances 
stood,  and  after  there  had  been  so  much  discourse 
about  it,  we  rather  chose  to  go  without  his  presence 

*  Lord  Keeper ;  advanced  from  Attorney-General,  1693. 
Evelyn,  iii.  322,  323.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  345 

and  assistance,  than  wave  the  publickness  of  that 
transaction. 

I  waited  also  upon  Dr.  Bates,  and  told  him  that 
several  of  us  had  a  design  shortly  to  be  ordained. 
He  appeared  very  well  pleased ;  and  said  many  kind 
things,  with  abundance  of  freedom.  But  when  I 
moved  that  he  would  bear  a  part  in  the  work  of  the 
day,  and  join  in  laying  on  hands,  he  desired  to  be 
excused ;  and  told  me  that  he  had  such  a  respect  for 
my  grandfather,  (whom  he  always  admired  as  an 
excellent  person,)  that  he  would  as  soon  do  such  an 
office  for  me,  as  for  any  person  whatsoever,  yet  that, 
having  forborn  any  concern  in  ordinations  hitherto, 
he  was  not  for  engaging  in  them  now.  He  added, 
that  this  need  not  be  the  least  hinderance  or  discou 
ragement  to  us  ;  for  there  were  ministers  enough 
that  would  readily  join  in  so  good  a  work. 

This,  I  confess,  a  little  startled  me,  and  was  the 
occasion,  perhaps,  of  my  using  more  warmth  than 
was  decent  in  one  of  my  age,  towards  one  of  the 
Doctor's  gravity.  I  told  him,  frankly,  that  I  did 
not  understand  his  proceedings ;  and  must  desire  he 
would  give  me  satisfaction  as  to  the  grounds  he  went 
upon.  I  took  upon  me  to  give  him  to  understand, 
that  his  encouraging  such  as  I  was,  while  we  were 
prosecuting  our  studies  in  order  to  the  ministry,  and 
giving  us  a  good  word  and  recommending  us  to  the 
people  when  we  had  finished  our  studies  and  began 
to  preach,  did  indeed  look  kind.  But,  after  all,  if 
when  we  offered  with  solemnity  to  enter  upon  the 


346  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

ministerial  office,  we  must  be  left  to  shift  for  our 
selves,  and  such  as  he,  refused  to  lay  hands  upon  us, 
it  looked  as  if  either  regularity  in  such  matters  was 
little  set  by,  or  accounted  of,  or  as  if  he  was  under 
some  doubt  as  to  the  lawfulness  or  sufficiency  of 
ordination  by  Presbyters.  I  added,  that  for  my  part, 
I  was  so  shocked  with  this  treatment,  that  unless 
he  gave  me  some  light  in  this  matter,  I  should  be 
tempted  to  lay  aside  all  thoughts  of  being  ordained, 
(notwithstanding,  that  most  things  relating  to  the 
matter  were  settled,)  and  he  must  excuse  me,  if  I 
gave  Dr.  Bates's  so  positively  refusing  to  be  concern 
ed  in  any  ordination,  as  my  reason  for  so  doing. 

At  this  the  good  Doctor  was  nettled,  and  rising 
from  his  seat,  he  went  to  the  door,  called  his  servant, 
and  gave  orders  that  care  might  be  taken  not  to  give 
him  disturbance  upon  any  account  whatever,  until 
he  opened  the  door  again,  which  he  now  shut  fast, 
that  we  might  have  freedom  of  discourse,  without 
interruption.  Then  sitting  down  again  in  his  chair, 
he  enterred  into  a  long  discourse  in  order  to  my 
satisfaction.  He  assured  me,  he  was  himself  fully 
satisfied  as  to  the  sufficiency  of  ordination  by  Pres 
byters,  and  its  agreeableness  both  to  Scripture  and 
primitive  antiquity.  He  was  therein  entirely  of  the 
mind  of  Bishop  Usher.*  He  had  often  argued  with 
persons  that  were  of  different  sentiments ;  and  was 

*  Who  according  to  Whitlock,  (1641,)  "offered  an  expe 
dient,  that  Episcopal  and  Presbyterial  government  might  not  be 
at  a  great  distance."  Memorials,  p.  46.  See  Dr.  Aikins,  "  Selden 
and  Usher,"  pp.  251,  252.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  347 

at  any  time  ready  to  do  it,  when  he  saw  reason  to 
think  it  might  answer  a  good  end,  &c.  I,  on  the 
other  hand,  urged  the  strongest  arguments  I  could 
recollect,  (and  having  just  then  studied  the  point,  I 
was  pretty  ready  upon  the  subject,)  that  were  used 
by  the  Episcopal  party  to  prove  the  necessity  of  the 
concern  and  agency  of  a  superior  Bishop,  in  order  to 
a  valid,  or  at  least  a  regular  ordination,  and  enforced 
them  as  much  as  I  was  able  ;  to  which  he  gave  me 
a  very  frank  and  ready  answer. 

From  the  whole  strain  and  connexion  of  his  dis 
course  I  could  easily  perceive  that  he  had  not  any 
scruple  as  to  Presbyterian  ordination.  He  affirmed, 
moreover,  that  he  took  our  separation  from  the 
Established  Church,  to  be  not  only  justifiable,  but 
necessary,  as  circumstances  stood ;  and  declared  that 
our  having  ministers  ordained  among  us  was  neces 
sary  too.  He  taught  that  we  that  were  free,  and 
willing,  to  enter  into  the  ministry  among  the  Dis 
senters,  in  their  discouraging  circumstances,  deserved 
all  the  respect  that  could  be  showed  us.  Yet,  after 
all  this,  I  insisted  upon  it,  that  his  absolute  refusal 
to  be  concerned  in  any  ordinations  was  very  dis 
couraging,  and  the  more  so  because  upon  the  prin 
ciples  he  laid  down,  it  appeared  to  be  a  thing  not 
to  be  accounted  for.  Upon  this  he  was  pleased  to 
enter  into  freedoms  with  rne,  at  the  same  time  oblig 
ing  me  to  secrecy,  which  I  have  observed  religiously ; 
never  discovering  to  any  one  what  was  communi 
cated.  I  shall  only  say,  that  the  Doctor's  hindrance 
was  peculiar  to  himself.  I  cannot  pretend,  upon  the 


348  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

whole,  that  he  gave  me  all  the  satisfaction  I  could 
have  desired,  yet  I  thought  he  must  answer  for 
himself  and  his  own  proceedings,  and  so  must  I  for 
mine.  This  I  could  not  see  that  I  could  be  able  to 
do,  should  I  wave  being  ordained,  merely  because  a 
particular  person,  whose  help  upon  that  occasion  was 
very  desirable,  refused  to  assist. 

At  length,  after  a  good  deal  of  trouble  and  diffi 
culty,  June  22,  this  year  (1694,)  seven  of  us  were 
ordained,  in  the  face  of  a  public  assembly,  at  Dr. 
Annesley's  meeting-house,  Bishops-gate  Within,  near 
Little  St.  Helen's.  The  persons  ordained  were,  Mr. 
Joseph  Bennet,*  (then  of  Newington,  afterwards 
fellow-labourer  at  the  Old  Jewry,  first  with  Mr. 
John  Shower,  and  then  with  Mr.  Simon  Brown  ;f 
Mr.  Thomas  Reynolds,:):  then  assistant  to  Mr.  Howe, 
and  afterwards  successor  to  Mr.  Thomas  Kentish  the 
elder,  Canon-street ;  whose  congregation  built  him  a 
handsome  place  of  worship  over  the  King's  Weigh 
House,  in  Eastcheap :  Mr.  Joseph  Hill,  of  Rotter 
dam  in  Holland,  and  afterwards  successor  to  Mr. 
Richard  Stretton,  who  ordinarily  worshipped  God 
with  his  congregation  in  a  part  of  Haberdashers 
Hall  in  the  City ; J  Mr.  William  King  of  Rumford 

*  Who  died,  Feb.  21,  1726,  An.  Mtat,  61.— C. 

f  This  learned  and  exemplary  Christian  minister  died  1732, 
aged  fifty-one.  During  the  last  nine  years  of  his  life  he  had  suf 
fered  under  mental  derangement,  of  a  kind  almost  singular.  See 
Adventurer,  No.  88  ;  Biog.  Brit.  ii.  643 — 646 — ED. 

J   Who  died  August  25,  1727,  An.  Mtat.  60.— C. 

§  He  died  Jan.  21,  1729,  An.  Mtat.  61.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  349 

in  Essex,  who  had  been  bred  up  to  the  ministry 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Alsop,  of  whose  con 
gregation  both  his  mother  and  he  were  members  ;* 
Mr.  Ebenezer  Bradshaw,  son  of  the  ejected  minister 
of  Hindley  in  the  County  Palatine  of  Lancaster,  f 
pastor  of  a  congregation  of  Dissenters,  in  the  town  of 
Ramsgate,  in  the  Isle  of  Thanet  in  the  County  of 
Kent ;  Mr.  Joshua  Bayes,  first  of  Hemstead  in  the 
County  of  Hertford,  but  afterwards  of  Hatton  Gar 
den  in  London,  where  he  succeeded  Mr.  Christopher 
Taylor ;  and  myself,  who  was  the  assistant  to  Mr. 
Sylvester,  and  soon  after  stood  in  the  same  relation 
to  Mr.  Williams,  and  then  removed  to  Westminster 
to  succeed  Mr.  Alsop. 

The  ordainers  were  Dr.  Samuel  Annesley,  Mr. 
Vincent  Alsop,  Mr.  Daniel  Williams,  Mr.  Richard 
Stretton,  Mr.  Matthew  Sylvester,  and  Mr.  Thomas 
Kentish. 

The  manner  of  that  day's  proceeding  was  this. 
First,  Dr.  Annesley  began  with  prayer ;  then  Mr. 
Alsop  preached,  from  1  Pet.  v.  1,  2,  3.  Then  Mr. 
Williams  prayed,  and  made  a  discourse  concerning 
the  nature  of  Ordination.  Then  he  mentioned  the 
names  of  the  persons  to  be  ordained,  read  their  seve 
ral  testimonials,  that  were  signed  by  such  ministers 
as  were  well  acquainted  with  them,  and  took  notice 

*  He  died  September,  1695.— C. 

f  One  of  the  outwitted  and  ill-requited  Presbyterian  royalists. 
"  He  had  a  concern  in  the  rising  of  Booth,  to  make  way  for  the 
Restoration."  Cont.  p.  568. — ED. 


350  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

what  places  they  were  severally  employed  in  as 
preachers.  Then  he  called  for  Mr.  Ben  net's  confes 
sion  of  faith,  put  the  usual  questions  to  him  out 
of  the  Directory  of  the  Westminster  Assembly,*  and 
prayed  over  his  head.  Then  Mr.  Thomas  Kentish 
did  the  same  by  Mr.  Reynolds, ;  Dr.  Annesley  did 
the  like  by  me  ;  Mr.  Alsop,  by  Mr.  Hill  and  Mr. 
King ;  Mr.  Stretton  by  Mr.  Bradshaw  ;  and  Mr. 
Williams  again  by  Mr.  Bayes.  After  all,  Mr.  Syl 
vester  concluded  with  a  solemn  charge,  a  psalm,  and 
prayer.  The  whole  took  up  all  the  day,  from  before 
ten  to  past  six  o'clock. 

Before  our  being  thus  ordained,  we  were  strictly 
examined,  both  in  Philosophy  and  Divinity,  and 
made  and  defended  a  Thesis  each  of  us,  upon  a  theo 
logical  question,  being  warmly  opposed  by  the  seve 
ral  ministers  present. 

Mr.  Bennet's  question  was,  "  An  Resurrectio  Cor- 
poris  sit  Articulus  Fidei  fundamental  ?'' — Aff.  Mr. 
Reynolds's  was,  "  An  Resipiscentia  sit  necessaria  ad 
Peccatorum  Remissionem  ?" — Aff.  My  question 
was,  "  An  Christus  Officio  sacerdotali  fungatur  in 
Coelis  tantum  ?" —  Neg.  Mr.  Bayes's  question  was, 
"  An  Deus  sit  Essentia  sua  omnipresens  ?" — Aff. 
Mr.  Hill's,  "  An  omne  Peccatum  sit  mortale?"— Aff. 
Mr.  Bradshaw's,  "  An  datur  Notitia  Dei  Lumine 
Naturae  ?" — Aff.  Mr.  King's  I  am  not  able  to  recover. 

This  year  (1694)  died  the   pious    Philip,    Lord 

*  See  "  The  Confession,  &c.  of  Public  Authority  in  the 
Church  of  Scotland/'  (1753)  p.  536.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  351 

Wharton,  who  left  large  sums  in  his  will  to  religious 
and  charitable  uses,  some  of  which  were  generally 
said  to  have  been  afterwards  applied  by  his  trus 
tees,  to  serve  the  purposes  of  elections  of  members  to 
serve  in  Parliament.  He  left  also  some  thousands  of 
pounds  to  be  laid  out  in  Bibles,  and  other  religious 
books,  and  distributed  among  the  poor,  the  manage 
ment  whereof  was  reckoned  much  more  unexcep 
tionable. 

There  was,  also,  this  year,  a  breach  in  the  Lec 
ture  at  Pinner's  Hall,  where  there  had  been  frequent 
clashing  in  the  pulpit,  and  warm  reflections  made  by 
the  contending  parties  on  both  sides.  The  aversion 
of  some  hot  men  to  Mr.  Williams  on  account  of  his 
warm  opposition  to  Antinomianism,  rose  to  a  great 
height.  At  length,  nothing  would  content  them  but 
his  being  dropped  in  the  Tuesday's  Lecture,  and  the 
having  another  chosen  in  his  room.  This  was  such 
an  assuming,  as  a  good  number  of  ministers  and 
citizens  were  by  no  means  for  bearing  or  submitting 
to.  A  new  lecture  was  hereupon  set  up,  on  the  same 
day,  at  Baiter's  Hall,  which  was  begun  with  a  fast, 
by  way  of  humiliation  for  those  heats  which  had 
made  so  great  a  noise,  and  were  really  very  scanda 
lous.  This  new  Lecture  was  carried  on  by  four  of 
the  stated  preachers  at  the  old  lecture,  viz..  Dr. 
Bates,  Mr.  Howe,  Mr.  Alsop,  and  Mr.  Williams,  to 
whom  Dr.  Annesley  and  Mr.  Richard  Mayo  were 
added  :  and  Mr.  Mead  and  Mr.  Cole,  (to  whom  four 
more  were  added)  continued  the  lecture  at  Pinner's 


352  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Hall.  I  have  published  a  letter  about  this  rupture, 
written  to  Mr.  Spilsbury,  of  Broorasgrove,  by  Mr. 
Howe,  in  the  account  I  have  given  of  his  Life.* 
There  were  endeavours  afterwards  used  to  bring 
these  two  lectures  into  one  ;  but  it  could  not  be 
compassed. 

As  to  the  public,  there  were  no  great  matters 
done  this  year  in  Flanders.  Yet  a  stop  was  put  to 
the  progress  of  the  French  arms.  The  death  of  the 
Duke  of  Luxemburgh  of  an  apoplexy,  deprived  them 
of  the  best  general  they  had  to  command  their 
forces.  It  has  by  some  been  reckoned  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  things  in  the  course  of  King  Wil 
liam's  reign,  that  after  the  French  King  had  ap 
peared  with  such  a  strength  at  sea,  the  English  fleet 
now  rode  triumphantly  and  uncontrolled  in  the 
Mediterranean,  whereby  not  only  there  was  a  stop 
put  to  their  conquering  arms  in  Catalonia,  but  all  the 
Italian  princes  were  kept  in  awe.  Conditions  of 
peace  were  at  this  time  proposed  in  Sweden,  by  the 
Count  D'Avaux,  but  rejected.! 

I,  this  year,  (1694)  preached  a  funeral  sermon  for 

*  P.  195,  &c.— C.  See  "  Abridg.  of  Baxter,"  p.  537 ;  Toul- 
min's  Hist.  View,  p.  213.  "  The  Lecture  at  Pinner's  Hall"  has 
been  removed  to  Broad-street;  and  that  "at  Baiter's  Hall,"  for 
several  years  discontinued. — ED. 

f  See  the  reflections  on  these  conditions  of  peace  offered  by 
France,  in  the  State  Tracts  of  King  William's  reign,  &c.  ii. 
p.  412.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  353 

Mr.  Samuel  Stephens,  a  young  candidate  for  the 
ministry,  well  known  about  the  City.  He  appeared 
to  be  very  hale,  and  of  a  good  constitution,  but  was 
soon  carried  off  by  a  malignant  fever.  I  endea 
voured  to  improve  such  an  affecting  providence,  by 
a  suitable  discourse,  from  John  ix.  4.  "  I  must  work 
the  works  of  Him  that  sent  me  while  it  is  day  :  the 
night  cometh  when  no  man  can  work."  I  ventured 
upon  one  thing  which  had  not  been  usual  among 
Dissenters,  to  have  the  corpse  present  in  the  place  of 
worship  while  I  was  preaching,  which  was  at  Mr. 
Richard  Taylor's  meeting-house,  in  Moorfields,  and 
the  people,  when  sermon  was  over,  followed  the 
corpse  to  the  burial-ground,  in  Bunhill-fields.  I  was 
prevailed  with  to  print  the  sermon  ;  and  that  had  an 
odd  consequence,  which  no  man  could  foresee. 

Some  years  after,  a  young  clergyman  in  the  City, 
incumbent  at  Crooked-lane,  had  a  fancy  to  preach 
this  sermon,  in  his  own  pulpit,  at  the  funeral  of  one 
of  his  parishioners ;  and  if  I,  who  was  invited  to 
the  funeral,  had  not  happened  at  that  time  to  be  out 
of  town,  I  should  have  been  one  of  his  auditors.  It 
so  fell  out,  that  a  particular  friend  of  mine  had  mar 
ried  the  daughter  of  the  deceased,  which  was  the 
occasion  of  my  being  invited.  My  friend  had  the 
printed  sermon  by  him,  and  had  been  reading  it  a 
little  before,  which  was  the  occasion  of  the  discovery. 
This  clergyman  had  none  of  the  best  characters 
amongst  his  neighbours  ;  and  my  friend,  who  was 

VOL.  i.  2  A 


354  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  son-in-law  of  the  deceased,  had  intimated  as 
much  as  that  came  to,  to  two  other  clergymen,  rela 
tions  of  the  deceased  who  were  at  the  funeral. 

These  gentlemen,  at  their  return  from  the  funeral 
to  the  house  of  the  deceased,  spake  to  my  friend  in 
commendation   of  the  sermon  they  had  heard,  and 
told  him  they  hoped  his  parson  was  misrepresented 
by  his  neighbours.     My  friend  told  them,  he  agreed 
with   them  in  approving  the   sermon,   but  he  be 
lieved    he    could    show  it  them   in    print,    and    he 
did  so,  and  they  read  it  over,  and  frankly  owned 
it  was  the  very  sermon  that  they  had  heard,  word 
for  word,  excepting  only  the  character,  which  be 
ing   given    to  a  young  probationer  for   the  minis 
try,   could   not  by  any  means  have    been   applied 
to  an  elderly  tradesman.     And  whereas  I  had  pre 
fixed  an  introduction  before  the  reciting  my  text, 
which  was  a  little  peculiar,  this  gentleman  had  made 
use   of  that  too,  without    variation,  which  made  it 
more  remarkable.      The  widow  sent  the  parson  half 
a  guinea   instead   of  an  whole    one,  thinking  that 
enough  for  reading  another  man's  sermon,  at  her 
husband's  funeral ;  and  he,  thinking  himself  affronted, 
and  discovering  his  resentment,  the  thing  came  to  be 
talked  of,  all  over  the  parish,  and  was  the  occasion  of 
the  people's  buying  up  all  the  remaining  copies  of  my 
sermon.    The  parson,  declaring  over  and  over,  that  he 
had  never  seen  my  sermon,  suffered  much  in  his  repu 
tation  ;  which  I  can  truly  say  I  was  heartily  sorry  for. 
An  Act  of  Parliament  passed  this  year  in  Scot- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  355 

land,  to  form  a  company  for  Africa  and  the  Indies, 
which  was  endowed  with  many  considerable  immu 
nities,  and  made  a  great  noise  afterwards.* 

The  same  year  (1694)  was  remarkable  for  the 
death  of  Archbishop  Tillotson,  Nov.  22,  and  of  our 
excellent  Queen  Mary,  Dec.  28,  unspeakable  public 
losses.  I,  at  that  time,  looked  upon  all  hopes  of 
accommodation,  between  the  Church  and  Dissen 
ters,  for  the  present  age,  to  have  been  buried  in  their 
graves.  The  archbishop,  (whatever  he  had  of  the 
foible  in  him,  through  the  tirnorousness  of  his  na 
tural  temper)  was  a  truly  excellent  person.  No 
man  ever  understood  human  nature  better,  or  was 
fuller  of  an  un dissembled  benignity  to  it.  He  evi 
dently  reckoned  himself  advanced  to  do  good,  and 
loved  true  goodness  wherever  he  saw  it. 

He  was  succeeded  in  his  archbishopric  by  Dr. 
Tennison,  who  was  also  a  great  blessing  to  the  times 
he  lived  in.  I  heard  Bishop  Burnet  preach  the 
funeral  sermon  for  Archbishop  Tillotson,  at  St.  Law 
rence  Jewry,  where  he  had  been  the  Tuesday  lec 
turer  for  many  years.  No  one  was  more  opposed 
and  traduced  by  the  Jacobite  writers  than  he.  He 
bundled  up  many  of  their  papers  and  pamphlets 
with  this  inscription  :  "  I  pray  God  forgive  the  au 
thors  of  them:  I  do."f 

I  afterwards  went  up  with  the  Dissenting  Minis- 

*  In  1695,  in  England,  "  both  Houses  addressed  the  King," 
against  this  act.     Chron.  Hist.  i.  280-81. — ED. 
f  See  Birch's  "  Life  of  Tillotson,"  p.  412.     ED. 
2  A  2 


356  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

ters  to  wait  upon  the  King,  when  Dr.  Bates  made 
that  affecting  speech,  by  way  of  condolence,  which  I 
have  printed.*  They,  as  well  as  those  of  the  Es 
tablished  Church,  very  generally  preached  funeral 
sermons,  with  an  affectionate  and  tender  concern  at 
so  great  a  loss  ;  and  many  published  them.  I  was 
one  that  endeavoured  to  improve  that  melancholy 
providence,  at  Blackfriars,  and  was  pressed  to  print 
my  sermon,  but  refused,  because  of  the  number 
printed,  upon  that  occasion.  I  afterwards  (Mar.  5,) 
saw  her  Majesty's  funeral  procession,  which  was  very 
pompous  and  stately,  and  attended  by  both  Houses 
of  Parliament.t 

In  1695,  the  heats  among  the  Dissenters  grew  per 
fectly  scandalous.  Mr.  Williams  had  before  been  free 
ly  charged  by  an  angry  party,  as  unsound  and  heter 
odox,  in  his  doctrinal  principles,  but  was,  at  length, 
accused  of  immoral  practices  ;  first  whispered  about 
to  his  defamation.  Then  there  was  an  open  attack 
upon  his  character,  so  peculiar,  as  scarcely  to  admit  of 
any  precedent.  A  thousand  false  stories  being  spread 
about  to  his  disadvantage,  he  laid  the  matter  before 

*  "  Abridgement  of  Baxter,"  539,  540.— C. 
Dr.  CaJamy  adds  :  "  I  well  remember  that,  upon  this  speech, 
I  saw  tears  trickle  down  the  cheeks  of  that  great  Prince,  who  so 
often  appeared  undaunted  in  the  field  of  battle." 
"  Some  weep  in  perfect  justice  to  the  dead, 

As  conscious  all  their  love  is  in  arrear." — Young. 
See  Dr.  Covell,  infra.— ED. 

t  "  The  great  bell  in  every  Church  in  England  was  ordered 
to  toll  three  hours  that  day."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  274.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  357 

the  body  of  Dissenting  Ministers  in  and  about  the 
City,  making  it  his  earnest  request,  that  they  would 
enquire  into  all  particulars,  hear  whatever  charges 
were  brought  against  him,  and  impartially  give  their 
judgment. 

Upon  this,  the  angry  party  came  upon  him  with 
open  mouths ;  summoned  witnesses  from  Dan  to 
Beersheba,  made  the  strictest  search  and  inquiry 
that  was  possible,  into  his  words,  actions,  and  beha 
viour  in  all  the  places  where  he  had  lived,  and  from 
all  the  servants,  that  were  within  reach,  that  had 
lived  with  him ;  and  appeared  as  zealously  intent 
upon  finding  somewhat  wherewith  to  blacken  him, 
as  if  they  hoped  thereby  to  make  atonement  for  their 
own  sins  and  miscarriages,  and  merit  Heaven  for 
themselves.  But  it  so  fell  out,  that  this  zeal  of 
theirs  was  so  far  from  doing  Mr.  Williams  any  real 
damage,  that,  contrary  to  the  designs  of  his  enemies, 
it  made  his  innocence  the  more  conspicuous.  I  am 
very  much  of  the  opinion,  that  but  few  could  have 
been  found  that,  if  the  actions  of  their  whole  lives 
were  to  have  been  scanned  and  sifted  as  his  were, 
would  have  come  off  so  clear. 

After  about  eight  weeks  spent  in  a  strict  inquiry 
by  a  committee  of  ministers,  who  received  and  heard 
all  manner  of  complaints  and  accusations  that  could 
be  offered,  and  afterwards  heard  and  weighed  what 
he  had  to  offer  in  his  own  defence  and  vindication, 
they  declared  their  satisfaction  as  to  his  innocence. 
Nothing  could  be  fastened  on  him  to  lessen  his  re 
putation,  or  hinder  his  future  usefulness  ;  so  that 


358  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

though  his  exercise  was  very  great,  yet  he  in  the 
issue  triumphed  over  his  adversaries.  I  can  with 
more  freedom  assert  this,  because  I  was  distinctly 
and  fully  acquainted  with  the  particulars  of  this 
process  :  and,  attending  from  day  to  day  at  Little 
St.  Helens,  where  this  remarkable  and  peculiar  trial 
was  carried  on,  I  was  an  ear-witness  of  the  mali 
cious,  spiteful,  railing  invectives  which  his  enemies 
were  continually  pouring  out  upon  him,  (the  like  to 
which  I  never  heard  before,  and  I  am  sure  I  never 
desire  to  hear  again);  and  could  easily  perceive  how 
sadly  they  were  mortified  at  their  disappointment. 

I  had  endeavoured  to  do  Mr.  Williams  some  ser 
vice,  while  this  affair  was  depending,  and  had  parti 
cularly  prevailed  with  one  that  was  very  conversant 
with  the  angry  party  to  come  before  the  ministers 
and  give  evidence,  about  a  matter  that  had  been 
wretchedly  misrepresented,  which  he  was  the  best 
acquainted  with  of  any  one.  Though  he  was  an 
honest  man,  yet  I  found  some  difficulty  in  prevailing 
with  him  to  declare  what  he  knew,  for  fear  of  in 
curring  the  displeasure  of  some  particular  friends 
and  acquaintance.  But  I  took  the  freedom  to  lay 
things  home  to  his  conscience,  telling  him,  that  if 
when  a  person  was  falsely  accused,  in  a  matter  that 
none  but  he  was  able  to  clear  up,  and  he  had  an 
opportunity  of  declaring  the  truth  to  this  person's 
vindication,  he  refused  to  do  it,  the  false  accusation 
would  lay  at  his  door,  and  he  must  answer  for  it 
to  God  another  day.  This  struck  him,  and  brought 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  359 

him  to  declare  what  he  knew  before  the  ministers 
at  St.  Helens,  and  it  was  of  use.  I  was  afterwards 
present  when  he  was  miserably  insulted  by  the 
angry  zealots  for  his  pains. 

Mr.  Williams  was  very  thankful  for  this  season 
able  service  ;  and  in  return  for  it,  made  me  an  offer 
of  being  his  assistant,  and  preaching  one  part  of  the 
Lord's  day  with  him,  he  undertaking  I  should  be 
supported  to  my  satisfaction,  and  declaring  that  he 
should  be  glad  of  my  company  and  help.  So  this 
proved  the  occasion  of  my  removal,  as  to  the  ex 
ercise  of  my  ministry,  from  Blackfriars  to  Hand 
Alley  in  Bishopsgate-street. 


CHAPTER  V. 
1695—1702. 

Of  my  becoming  Assistant  to  Mr.  Williams,  at  Hand  Alley  in 
Bishopsgate-street ;  and  the  exercise  of  my  ministry  among 
the  people  who  there  statedly  worshipped  God. 

I  WAS  the  more  inclined  to  listen  to  this  motion, 
because  I  found  good  Mr.  Sylvester,  to  whom  I  had 
hitherto  continued  assistant,  who  was  a  very  meek- 
spirited,  silent,  and  inactive  man,  was  straitened  as 
to  his  maintenance,  and  his  congregation  was  unable 
to  support  two  ministers.  Upon  my  coming  to  them, 


360  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

there  was   a  distinct  subscription  made  of  40/.  per 
annum  for  me,  besides  what  they  allowed  Mr.  Syl 
vester  before,  and  I  often  experienced  the  kindness 
of  the  people  in  private  presents  which  they  made 
me ;  but  at  length  the  income  fell  considerably  short. 
It  was  the  way  of  that  people  to  carry  what  they 
allowed   both  to  one  and  the  other,  directly  to  Mr. 
Sylvester,  who  duly  paid  me  my  ten  pounds,  each 
quarter,  out  of  the  first  money  he  received.     But 
I  found,  upon  inquiry,  that  he  had  not,  sometimes, 
at   the   end   of    the   quarter,  a    like  sum  left   for 
himself,  which  I  could  not  but  think    hard,  and  it 
made  me  uneasy.     I,  therefore,  took  occasion  to  tell 
him,  that  I  found  I  was  rather  a  burden   than  an 
help  to  him  ;  and  that  if  he  could  be  content  to 
preach  twice  a  day,  I  would  readily  use  my  interest 
in  his  congregation,  to  engage  them  to  continue  to 
him   the  additional  subscription  they  had  made  for 
me,  and  would  throw   myself  upon  the  providence 
of  God,  in  some  other  station  to  which  I  might  find 
my  way  open.     He   was  at  first  averse,  and  would 
not  yield  to  my  removal.     But  when  I  told  him  of 
the  offer  made  me  by  Mr.  Williams,  he  readily  came 
in  to  that ;  and  measures  were  fixed  among  them  as 
I   had  proposed,  before  I   left  them,  which   was  at 
Midsummer  this  year  (1695),  to  mutual  satisfaction. 
Mr.  Williams  told  me,  that  when  he  accepted  the 
call  of  the  people  at  Hand  Alley,  he,  being  in  good 
health  and  strength,  signified  to  them,  that  he  was 
free  to  do  the  whole  work  of  a  minister  among  them, 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  361 

and  desired  no  assistant ;  and  promised  that  if  the 
time  should  come  that  he  needed  one,  he  would  take 
care  to  provide  one  not  disagreeable  to  them,  and 
would  also  take  care  of  his  maintenance  without 
any  additional  burden  upon  them.  He  added,  that 
being  now  in  a  broken  state  of  health,  if  I  would  be 
come  his  stated  assistant,  he  would  allow  me  three 
score  pounds  a  year  without  troubling  the  people;  and 
if  any  of  them  thought  fit  privately  to  give  me  any 
tokens  of  their  good  will,  I  was  free  to  accept  them, 
without  being  accountable. 

I  could  not  but  be  thankful  for  this  expression  of 
his  great  kindness,  yet  told  him  I  could  not  be  satis 
fied  to  preach  statedly  to  any  people,  without  good 
evidence  of  the  acceptableness  of  my  ministry  to 
the  generality  of  them,  and  therefore  moved  his 
proposing  me  to  his  people,  upon  whose  choosing  me 
I  should  readily  comply.  He  queried  what  then 
should  be  done  about  my  maintenance,  with  respect 
to  which  he  could  easily  foresee  a  difficulty  would 
arise  from  his  former  promise  ?  Upon  which  I  told 
him,  I  could  be  content  to  throw  myself  upon  the 
people,  not  doubting  but  that  if  they  saw  fit  to 
choose  me,  they  would  be  ready  to  support  me.  This 
he  would  by  no  means  agree  to,  saying,  that  I  should 
that  way  be  a  loser  beyond  what  I  could  imagine. 

Hereupon,  I  left  it  to  him  to  take  what  way  he 
pleased  as  to  my  maintenance,  if  his  congregation 
thought  fit  to  choose  me.  He  soon  caUed  them  to 
gether,  and  they  chose  me  with  great  unanimity ; 


362  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

and  signified  this  their  choice  to  me,  by  some  of  their 
number  deputed  for  that  purpose.  I  accepted  their 
call,  and  removed  from  Blackfriars,  after  I  had  spent 
some  years  there  with  a  great  deal  of  comfort  and 
satisfaction,  among  a  kind  people,  of  sober  princi 
ples,  and  I  hope  not  altogether  without  success. 

At  Hand  Alley,  I  had  a  much  larger  auditory  than 
I  was  used  to  before,  and  I  found  the  people  very 
kind  and  friendly.  I  never  heard  of  above  two 
among  them  that  were  at  all  dissatisfied.  The  one 
would  not  for  a  good  while  be  my  hearer.  Mr.  Wil 
liams  endeavoured  to  make  him  easy,  by  some  ser 
mons  of  his  ;  after  which  he  kept  quiet,  and  at  length 
was  so  much  altered,  that  whereas  he  was  my  con 
stant  hearer,  he  was  difficultly  persuaded  to  attend 
the  preaching  of  Mr.  Williams.  The  other  at  first 
thought  my  preaching  not  so  profitable  as  that  of 
some  others  ;  yet  in  a  few  years'  time,  was  so  much 
changed,  as  to  follow  me  on  the  Lord's  days  from  the 
City  to  Westminster,  when  health  would  allow. 

Soon  after  my  settlement  here,  I  preached  a  set 
of  sermons  upon  the  subject  of  Vows,  on  sacrament 
days  in  the  afternoon.  When  I  had  gone  through 
them,  I,  at  the  general  request  of  those  that  heard 
them,  sent  them  to  the  press,  dedicating  them  to 
Mr.  Williams's  congregation,  with  the  title  of  "  A 
Practical  Discourse  concerning  Vows,  with  a  spe 
cial  reference  to  Baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper." 
They  subscribed  for  five  hundred  of  them,  and  so  I 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  363 

printed  seven  hundred  and  fifty  at  my  own  charge, 
which  were  soon  disposed  of. 

I  have  reason  to  hope,  and  it  is  with  great  thank 
fulness  to  God  that  I  mention  it,  that  this  book  was 
of  use  to  several  persons,  and  that  both  younger  and 
elder,  in  city  and  country.  Many  years  after,  in  a 
letter  I  received  from  a  worthy  minister  in  Ireland, 
who  is  very  useful  there,  there  were  these  expres 
sions  : — 

"  If  ever  any  saving  impressions  have  been  made 
on  my  soul,  your  treatise  of  Vows  was  the  great 
instrument.  This  I  read  when  I  was  about  seven 
teen  years  of  age,  and  as  it  put  me  upon  very  serious 
and  solemn  thoughts,  concerning  a  personal  renewal 
of  my  baptismal  covenant,  so  I  hope  I  never  shall 
forget  the  strong  and  lively  influence  it  had  upon 
me.  May  the  Lord  continue  to  bless  your  labours ; 
and  may  every  such  instance  encourage  and  strength 
en  your  hands  in  your  work,  giving  the  glory  to 
Divine  grace,"  &c. 

This  book  I  printed  again  in  1704,  in  a  smaller 
form,  on  purpose  that  it  might  spread  the  farther, 
and  come  into  the  more  hands. 

This  year  (1695,)  there  was  a  great  stir  in  the 
Parliament,  first  about  the  Lancashire  Plot,  in  pro 
secuting  of  which  the  Government  had  been  sadly 
baffled.*  And  afterwards  about  bribery,  with  re- 

*  By  the  acquittal  "  for  want  of  evidence"  of  "  seven  gentle 
men  of  Lancashire,  tried  at  Manchester."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  274. — ED. 


364  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

spect  to  the  Orphans'  Bill,*  and  the  affairs  of  the 
East  India  Cornpany.f 

In  the  course  of  the  campaign  abroad',  King  Wil 
liam  besieged  Namur,  the  strongest  town  in  all  the 
Low  Countries,  which  had  in  it  a  garrison  of  15,000 
men,  most  of  which  were  the  best  troops  in  France. 
He  invested  it  July  3,  N.  S.,  and  the  town  was  sur 
rendered  August  4,  and  the  Castle  September  2. 
The  King's  surmounting  all  the  difficulties  that  at 
tended  this  important  siege,  was  to  his  own  immor 
tal  glory,  the  astonishment  of  his  enemies,  and  the 
admiration  of  all  Europe.  It  was  to  the  French 
King  a  most  bitter  mortification,  which  was  the 
greater,  because  the  capitulation  for  the  Castle  was 
signed  by  a  Marshal  of  France,  and  that  fortress 

*  "  On  passing"  which,  "  Sir  John  Trevor,  the  Speaker  of  the 
Commons,  was  found  to  have  received  one  thousand  guineas  of 
the  City  of  London.  Whereupon  he  was  expelled  the  House." 
Ibid.  p.  275.  *'  He  was  a  bold  and  dextrous  man,  but  corrupt 
and  unprincipled."  See  "  Ellis  Correspondence,"  i.  264-. — ED. 

f  See  the  "  exact  collection  of  the  Debates  and  Proceedings 
in  Parliament,  in  1694  and  1695,"  in  the  "  Collection  of  State 
Tracts,"  published  during  the  reign  of  King  William,  ii.  476. — C. 

"  March  26.  Ordered  by  the  Commons,  that  Sir  Thomas 
Cook,  a  Member  of  the  House,  and  Governor  of  the  East  India 
Company,  having  refused  to  give  an  account  of  the  money  of 
the  Company,  by  him  distributed  in  bribes,  be  committed  to  the 
Tower." 

"  May  9.  A  proclamation  for  apprehending  John  Roberts, 
servant  to  the  Duke  of  Leeds,  who  was  charged  with  receiving 
5000  guineas,  for  promoting  charters  for  the  East  India  Com 
pany."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  275 — 277. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  365 

thought  impregnable,  was  taken  in  the  sight  of  ano 
ther  Marshal  of  France,  who  was  advanced  to  re 
lieve  it  with  100,000  men,  but  was  only  the  spec 
tator  of  the  bravery  of  the  allies,  and  their  forces. 

In  the  latter  end  of  this  year,  (December  19>)  I 
married  Mrs.  Mary  Watts,  daughter  to  Mr.  Michael 
Watts,  who  dealt  in  Yorkshire  clothes  and  kersys, 
and  had  as  good  a  reputation  as  most  tradesmen  in 
the  City.  She  had  universally  a  good  character,  was 
a  member  of  Mr.  John  Shower's  congregation,  of  a 
singular  good  temper,  and  one  of  my  own  mother's 
recommending;  and  our  match  was  generally  ap 
plauded.  We  lived  together  seventeen  years.  After 
my  marriage,  Mr.  Reynolds  and  I  continued  to 
gether,  for  a  good  while  at  Hoxton,  with  an  entire 
harmony  and  brotherly  correspondence. 

Her  father  was  of  a  very  frank  and  generous 
temper,  and  I  loved  and  honoured  him  as  much  as  if 
he  had  been  my  own  father.  No  man  was  more 
agreeable  in  conversation,  in  which  he  recommended 
himself  by  a  variety  of  pleasant  stories,  which  he 
related  with  as  good  a  grace  as  any  man.  One 
passage  relating  to  him  I  take  to  have  been  pretty 
remarkable. 

With  many  others,  he  was  often  in  trouble  about 
Nonconformity,  in  the  reign  of  King  Charles  II. 
He  was  proceeded  against  in  Doctors'  Commons,  for 
not  going  to  his  parish  church.  An  excommunica 
tion  determined,  and  was  to  be  published  on  such  a 
Sunday  as  was  fixed.  The  afternoon  before,  going 


366  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

down  to  the  Commons,  and  inquiring  for  Dr.  Pinfold, 
who  was  the  active  man  at  that  time  in  those  mea 
sures,  he  met  with  him,  but  he  told  him  he  was  very 
busy.  Father  Watts  desired  the  favour  of  a  bottle 
of  wine  with  him,  and  a  little  discourse  about  a 
measure  of  consequence  he  had  to  lay  before  him. 
The  Doctor  was  for  deferring  the  measure  to  some 
other  time,  but  father  Watts  intimated  that  there 
was  no  time  like  the  present ;  and  backed  it  with  a 
merry  story  or  two,  with  which  the  Doctor  was  so 
pleased,  that  he  told  him  if  he  would  go  to  the  Horn 
Tavern  in  that  neighbourhood,  and  wait  a  little  there, 
he  would  be  with  him  as  soon  as  business  would 
allow  him.  Father  Watts  complied,  and  had  his 
company  in  about  half  an  hour. 

The  Doctor  was  no  sooner  entered,  than  he  was 
for  inquiring  of  father  Watts  about  his  business  : 
but  he  told  him  two  or  three  merry  stories,  and  di 
verted  him  from  being  too  quick  upon  him,  being 
willing  to  see  him  somewhat  of  a  gay  humour,  be 
fore  he  came  to  the  business  he  designed  to  talk 
about.  Being  once  got  in,  he  so  plyed  the  Doctor 
with  stories,  one  after  another,  that  he  laughed 
heartily,  and  declared  that  of  a  long  time  he  had  not 
been  diverted  so  agreeably. 

At  length,  he  cried  out,  "  good  Sir,  let  us  now 
come  to  business."  "By  no  means,"  cries  father 
Watts,  "good  Doctor,  with  an  empty  bottle."  They 
therefore  had  another  filled,  and  father  Watts  still 
went  on  with  his  stories,  till  at  length  the  Doctor 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  367 

told  him,  he  thought  him  the  merriest  man  he  ever 
met  with.  Father  Watts  thinking  that  now  was 
his  time  to  come  to  the  point  he  had  in  his  eye,  de 
sired  him  to  look  in  his  face,  and  frankly  tell  him 
what  he  could  see  there  so  offensive,  as  that  he 
might  not  be  suffered  to  live  in  quiet.  The  Doc 
tor  told  him  he  did  not  understand  his  meaning, 
and  thought  it  would  be  very  strange  if  any  one 
should  go  about  to  give  so  pleasant  a  gentleman  as 
he  was,  any  disturbance.  His  reply  was,  that  he 
wanted  not  for  respect  among  his  neighbours,  paid 
all  men  their  own,  endeavoured  to  be  useful  as  he 
was  able,  was  an  hearty  lover  of  the  King,  and 
could  as  cheerfully  take  a  glass  with  his  friend  as 
any  man,  and  yet  had  a  great  deal  of  trouble  from 
their  Court,  which  he  could  not  but  be  surprised  at. 
The  Doctor  asked  his  name  which  he  told  him 
was  Michael  Watts,  and  added,  that  he  understood 
he  was,  the  next  day,  to  be  excommunicated,  and 
that  he  came  thither  on  purpose  to  reason  with  him 
in  a  friendly  way  about  that  measure.  The  Doctor 
told  him  he  could  not  have  thought  that  the  Fanatics 
had  so  merry  a  man  amongst  them,  for  they  were 
generally  morose,  sullen,  and  ill-tempered ;  but  since 
he  found  him  to  be  one  of  a  very  different  character, 
and  he  had  thrown  himself  upon  him,  he  might  go 
home  and  be  easy,  and  need  not  fear  any  such  thing 
as  an  excommunication.  Says  he,  "Mr.  Watts,  if  any 
of  our  officers  should  hereafter  go  about  to  give  you 
disturbance,  do  but  come  and  take  a  bottle  with  me, 


368  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

and  tell  me  some  more  of  your  merry  stories,  and  I 
will  take  effectual  care  to  screen  you."  And  he  re 
mained  unmolested  from  the  time  forward. 

The  slaughter  of  the  Glencoe  men,  in  February, 
1693,  was,  at  this  time,  inquired  into,  in  the  Scot 
tish  Parliament,  and  voted  a  murder,*  which  was 
improved  by  malcontents  in  North  Britain,  to  the 
heightening  the  dissatisfaction  of  such  as  were  be 
fore  uneasy  there. 

In  October,  this  year,  (1695,)  the  English  Parlia 
ment  was  dissolved,  and  a  new  one  called  to  sit  in 
November.  When  they  met,  the  Commons  chose 
Paul  Foley,  Esq.  Speaker.  This  Parliament,  among 
other  things,  took  into  consideration  the  state  of  the 
coin  of  the  nation,  which  was  so  miserably  debased, 
that  it  threatened  a  general  ruin.  Our  money  was 
so  far  diminished  through  the  means  of  clippers  and 
coiners,  that  51.  in  silver  specie  was  scarce  worth 
forty  shillings,  according  to  the  standard,!  and  there 
was  not  one  piece  in  four  that  was  not  either  iron, 
brass,  or  copper,  washed  over  or  plated.  The  na 
tion  suffered  unspeakably  by  this  evil,  both  in  carry 
ing  on  the  war,  and  in  its  trade. 

This  matter  was  maturely  considered,  and  it  was 
at  length  resolved,  (notwithstanding  it  was  a  time 

*  See  Supra,  p.  328. 

f  "  1694,  July  13.  Many  executed  at  London  for  clipping 
money,  now  done  to  that  intolerable  extent,  that  there  was 
hardly  any  money  that  was  worth  above  half  the  nominal  value." 
Evelyn,  iii.  335. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  369 

of  war,)  to  call  in  and  recoin  the  silver  money  ;*  for 
they  chose  rather  to  run  the  hazard  of  some  great 
inconveniences,!  by  attempting  the  cure  of  the  dis 
ease,  than  by  any  longer  neglect,  to  expose  the  king 
dom  to  the  many  mischievous  consequences  it  might 
be  easily  foreseen  would  from  thence  arise.  It  was 
at  the  same  time  resolved  to  recoin  the  clipped 
money,  according  to  the  established  standard  of 
the  Mint,  both  as  to  weight  and  fineness.  This  was 
a  great  undertaking,  and  Mr.  Charles  Montague, 
Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer,  (afterwards  Lord 
Halifax,)  was  herein  the  chief  manager.  He  hap 
pily  accomplished  the  matter,  though  not  without 
considerable  difficulty.^  In  this  great  aifair,  he  had 
considerable  assistance  from  that  great  man,  Sir 
Isaac  Newton,  whom  he  got  made  Warden  of  the 
Mint,§  arid  Mr.  Locke,  who  wrote  admirably  well 
on  the  subject.  1 1 

Great  complaints  were  also  made  by  both  Houses, 

*  "  1695,  Dec.  23.  The  Parliament  wonderous  intent  on 
ways  to  reform  the  coin ;  setting  out  a  proclamation  prohibiting 
the  currency  of  half-crowns,  &c."  Evelyn,  iii.  p.  347. — ED. 

f  "  1696,  May  13.  Money  still  continuing  exceeding  scarce, 
so  that  none  was  paid  or  received,  but  all  was  on  trust,  the 
Mint  not  supplying  for  common  necessaries — even  for  daily  pro 
visions  in  the  markets."  Ibid.  pp.  348,  352,  353. — ED. 

|  See  "  The  Works  and  Writings  of  Charles  Earl  of  Halifax," 
pp.  30,  31,  &c. — C. 

§  Brit.  Biog.  vii.  151 — ED. 

||   In    his    "  Considerations"  and    "  Further  Considerations, 
concerning  Raising  the  Value  of  Money."— ED. 
VOL.  I.  2    B 


370  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

of  an  act  lately  passed  in  the  Parliament  of  Scot 
land,  for  the  erecting  a  trading  company  to  Africa 
and  the  East  Indies,  to  the  damage  of  trade  in  Eng 
land.  An  address  being  presented  to  the  King,*  he 
made  answer  "that  he  had  been  ill  served  in  Scotland, 
but  he  hoped  some  remedies  might  be  found  to  prevent 
the  inconveniences  that  might  arise  by  that  act." 

Not  long  after,f  a  plot  was  discovered  to  assassi 
nate  his  Majesty,  at  Turnham-green,;  as  he  return 
ed  from  hunting  at  Richmond.  The  discovery  was 
made  by  Messieurs  Pendergrass  and  De  la  Rue,  &c. 
and  several  concerned  in  it  were  executed.  King 
James  waited  at  Calais  with  a  considerable  force,  in 
order  to  have  landed  upon  us  when  the  assassination 
was  accomplished. §  This  occasioned  an  association,  || 
which  was  first  signed  by  the  two  Houses  of  Parlia 
ment,  and  afterwards  by  all  the  corporations  in  the 
nation. 

Sept.  6,  1695,  died  Mr.  Richard  Mayo,  of  Sal- 
ters'-hall,  who  was  succeeded,  both  in  his  congre- 

*  Dec,  17,  1695.     Chron.  Hist.  i.  280.— ED. 

f  "  Feb.  14,  1695-6."     Ibid.  p.  281.— ED. 

J  See  the  "  True  and  Impartial  History  of  the  Conspiracy 
against  the  Person  and  Government  of  King  William  III.  in  the 
Year  1695,"  by  Sir  Richard  Blackmore.  Printed  in  1723, 
octavo. — C. 

§  On  which,  "  signal  of  fire"  was  "  to  be  given  from  Dover 
to  Calais  ;  the  Duke  of  Berwick  having  secretly  come  to  London, 
to  head  a  general  insurrection."  Evelyn,  iii.  348. — ED. 

l|  "  To  empower  the  Parliament  to  sit,  on  any  such  accident, 
till  the  Crown  should  be  disposed  of,  according  to  the  late  settle 
ment  of  the  Revolution."  Ibid.  p.  348. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  371 

gation,  and  his  lectureship  there  on  Tuesdays,  by 
Mr.  Nathaniel  Taylor. 

In  1696,  the  heats  among  the  Dissenters  con 
tinued.  A  new  clamour  against  Mr.  Williams  was 
now  studiously  spread  about.  He  was  charged  with 
denying  that  "  change  of  person"  between  Christ 
and  believers,  that  was  necessary  to  the  stating 
the  Doctrine  of  Satisfaction  against  the  Socinians. 
Hereupon,  he  wrote  a  letter  to  the  aged  Mr.  John 
Humphrey*  about  that  matter  ;f  and  Mr,  Stephen 

*  Ejected,  in  1662,  from  Frome.  To  Dr.  Calamy's  Second 
Edition  of  the  Account,  in  1713,  Mr.  Humphrey  communicated 
some  particulars  of  his  various  publications,  and  of  their  ill  re 
ception.  They  were,  perhaps,  especially  "  The  Free  Estate  of 
England,"  too  friendly  to  popular  rights,  to  suit  the  courtiers  of 
the  Revolution. 

"  He  seldom  missed  a  Session  of  Parliament,  but  he  came  out 
with  something."  Such,  however,  was  the  rara  tempormn  feli- 
citas,  that  "  he  was  committed  to  the  Gate-house,  and  one 
of  these  papers,  *  The  Sacramental  Test/  was  voted  to  be  burnt, 
and  he  was  forced  to  appear  before  a  Committee  of  Parliament, 
but  they  soon  dismissed  him. 

"  This  good  man,"  adds  Dr.  Calamy,  "has  never  been  able 
to  be  of  the  rising  side.  He  hath  followed  his  own  genius,  and 
fallen  in  with  no  party.  Hereupon,  some  of  all  sides  have 
slighted  him,  and,  at  the  same  time,  some  of  all  parties  have  re 
spected  him.  Liberty,  and  peace,  and  union,  and  moderation,  have 
been  the  things  he  has,  all  along,  been  pursuing  ;  and  how  little 
soever  the  success  has  been,  this  affords  him  comfort  in  his  ad 
vanced  age."  Account,  pp.  621—623. — ED. 

f  This  letter,  dated  "  Sept.  2,  1696,"  is  among  the  MSS.  in 
the  British  Museum,  (Ayscortgh,  4276.)  The  writer  says, 

*'  As  to  my  use  of  the  term,  '  change  of  person,'  it  was  not  a 

2  B  2 


372  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Lobb  wrote  another  to  Dr.  Bates,  arguing  that  either 
Mr.  Williams  was  not  sound  in  the  point  foremen- 
tioned,  or  else  the  Doctor  had  not  given  a  right  re 
presentation  of  it,  in  his  "  Harmony  of  the  Divine 
Attributes,"  &c.  printed  many  years  before.  But 
neither  would  this  answer  the  end  designed. 

The  Established  Church,  indeed,  laughed  at  the 
Dissenters  about  their  squabbles  with  Mr.  Davis,* 

word  of  my  choosing,  but  of  Dr.  Crisp's.  [See  Supra,  p.  323.] 
I  being  opposed  to  him,  I  must  use  his  terms  in  his  sense  ,and 
deny  what  he  affirmed,  or  I  argued  not  fairly.  He  coined  the 
phrase  for  my  negation." 

"  One  point  of  debate  which  was  started  in  the  disputes  of 
the  day,"  says  Dr.  Toulmin,  "  related  to  a  commutation  of  per 
sons  between  Christ  and  believers.  This,  it  was  alleged,  Dr. 
Stillingfleet,  (Bishop  of  Worcester,)  had  asserted  and  supported 
in  his  answer  to  Grotius,  on  the  doctrine  of  Christ's  satisfaction  ; 
and  this,  Dr.  Williams  was  charged  with  denying,  because  he 
had  denied  what  Dr.  Crisp  called  a  change  of  person,  i.  e.  a 
change  of  condition  and  state  between  Christ  and  a  sinner  ;  Christ 
thereby  becoming  as  sinful  as  we,  and  we  as  righteous  as  he." 
See  "  Hist.  View,"  p.  207. 

It  is  remarkable  that  the  Treatise  of  Grotius,  which  Bishop 
Stillingfleet  controverted,  is  entitled,  "  Defensio  fidei  Catholicse, 
de  Satisfactione  Christi,  adversus  Faustum  Socinum  Senensem." 
According  to  Burigny,  "  it  was  approved  by  several  learned  men 
in  Germany  and  England,  particularly  the  famous  Overall, 
Bishop  of  Litchfield  and  Coventry."  Yet,  "  the  Gomarists  took 
occasion  to  accuse  the  author  of  semi-Pelagianism."  See  "  Life 
of  Grotius/'  pp.  86,  365. — ED. 

*  In  1692.  See  "  Abridg.  of  Baxter,"  pp.  512—514;  Toul- 
min's  "  Hist.  View,"  pp.  189 — 192. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  3?3 

and  others  among  them  that  were  either  Antino- 
mians,  or  desirous  to  protect  and  screen  such  as 
were  so,  and  yet  they  held  on.  Bishop  Stillingfleet 
in  particular,  in  a  discourse  to  his  clergy,  at  a  visi 
tation  at  Worcester,  Oct.  21,  this  year,  speaking  of 
the  advantage  of  the  "  parochial"  way  as  to  "  dis 
cipline,"  says,  "  If  among  the  teachers  they  are 
under  no  bonds,  nor  subjection  to  a  superior  autho 
rity,  it  is  very  easy  to  avoid  any  kind  of  censure 
for  the  most  corrupt  doctrines  or  practices.  We," 
says  he,  "  cannot  boast  much  of  the  strict  exercise 
of  discipline  among  us  ;"  which  is  a  very  frank  con 
fession,  for  which  there  most  certainly  is  reason 
enough,  in  the  case  of  a  church  that  rests  satisfied 
in  a  yearly  lamentation  of  the  want  of  the  "  Primi 
tive  Discipline,"  without  doing  any  thing  to  restore 
and  revive  it. 

But,  with  a  design  to  show  that  it  was  yet  worse 
among  the  Dissenters,  that  learned  man  supposes 
"  the  teachers  should  fall  out  among  themselves  ;*' 
and  "  to  give  a  fresh  and  late  remarkable  instance," 
he  supposes  "some  set  up  Antinomianism,  and  preach 
such  doctrine  to  the  people,  or  flocks  they  go  to, 
as  others  think  of  dangerous  consequence.  What," 
says  he,  "  is  to  be  done  in  such  a  case  ?  They  may 
send  some  brethren  to  inquire,  whether  the  matters 
of  fact  be  true.  Suppose  they  find  them  true,  what 
then  ?  What  is  to  be  done  next  ?  It  may  be,  some 
would  have  them  come  up  to  their  brethren,  and 
answer  to  the  accusations  brought  against  them. 


374  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

But  suppose  they  will  not,  and  others  of  their  bre 
thren  say  they  ought  not,  and  so  fall  into  heats  and 
disputes  among  themselves,  and  make  new  parties 
and  divisions,  is  not  this  an  admirable  way  of  pre 
serving  peace  and  order,  and  discipline,  in  a  Church?"* 

He,  herein,  directly  refers  to  the  debates  among 
the  Dissenters  about  Mr.  Richard  Davis,  and  what 
followed  thereupon.  But  they  were  not  disposed  to 
make  use  of  the  hint  given  in  the  debates  about 
Mr.  Williams,  and  his  sentiments.  A  second  ac 
commodating  paper  was  now  drawn  up  among  them, 
which  created  fresh  debates.  Some  people  showed 
a  wonderful  talent  in  sowing  discord,  under  the  pre 
tence  of  seeking  peace,  and  being  zealous  for  truth. 
It  is  unhappy  that  this  temper  continued  working  so 
long,  and  prevailed  so  far ! 

It  has  been  suggested  since  that  time,  (and  there 
may  perhaps  have  been  something  in  it,|)  that  this 
controversy  was  set  on  foot  among  the  Dissenters, 
out  of  pure  good  will  to  the  Jacobite  interest.  It  is 
said  that  the  character  of  the  person  who  led  the  way 
in  the  dispute,  his  obligations  to  the  late  King  James, 
and  the  season  he  chose  for  this  piece  of  service, 
all  concur  in  strengthening  such  a  suspicion.  The 
wiser  part  of  the  Dissenters  had  long  wished  to  see 
a  closer  union  established  among  themselves,  in  order 

*  See  Stillingfleet's  Works,  iii.  p.  652,  653.— C.  Dr.  Toul- 
min's  "  Hist.  View/'  p.  212.— ED. 

t  See  a  Letter  of  Advice  to  the  Dissenters,  in  octavo,  1720, 
p.  34.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  375 

the  better  to  support  the  interest  of  the  Revolution. 
Several  attempts  had  been  made  towards  this  design, 
but  without  success.  At  length  they  seemed  to  be 
more  for  it  than  ever,  and  there  wanted  little  more 
than  the  concurrence  of  one  or  two  leading  ministers 
in  London,  to  put  the  last  hand  to  it. 

At  this  juncture,  when  an  union  among  Dissen 
ters,  which  would  have  defeated  all  the  hopes  of  the 
Jacobites  from  them  was  upon  the  point  of  perfec 
tion,  Mr.  Lobb,  who  had  vehemently  opposed  the 
union,  and  had  written  a  pamphlet  on  purpose  to 
frighten  the  Dissenters  out  of  it,  thought  fit  to  start 
the  Antinomian  controversy,  which,  with  proper  ma 
nagement,  did  so  effectually  divide  the  Dissenters, 
that  the  design  of  a  closer  union  was  laid  aside,  and 
many  of  them  were  even  cooled  in  their  affections  to 
King  William  and  his  government.  Mr.  Lobb  could 
not  hope  to  engage  any  Dissenters  avowedly  in  his 
master's  interest.  If  he  could  only  break  a  design, 
which  tended  to  unite  them  more  against  him,  and 
at  the  same  time  could  be  so  lucky  as  to  damp 
their  zeal  for  King  William  and  his  government,  the 
pains  he  took  in  that  service  were  amply  rewarded.* 

*  Mr.  Stephen  Lobb,  to  whom  Dr,  Calamy  refers  with  no 
kind  recollections,  died  in  1699,  (see  infra.)  He  was  minister  of 
a  congregation  in  Fetter-lane,  and  called  the  Jaeobite  Inde 
pendent,  from  the  intimacy  he  had  with  King  James  II."  See 
"  Protestant  Dissenters'  Magazine,"  (1799)  vi.  301. 

Dr.  Nichols  says, "  Mr.  Lobb,"  whom  he  inaccurately  calls 
"  a  Presbyterian  minister,  and  Mr.  Penn,  the  chief  of  the  Qua- 


376  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

And  the  gentleman  from  whom  this  comes,  intimates 
that  there  was  a  suspicion  of  somewhat  of  the  like 
nature  in  the  contests  there  were  among  the  Dissen 
ters  afterwards,  on  another  head,  in  the  reign  of 
King  George. 

Mr.  Baxter's  Narrative  of  his  Life  and  Times, 
left  in  MS.  under  his  own  hand,  was  this  year  pub 
lished  in  folio.*  Having  had  some  concern  about 
that  matter,  I  can  speak  with  the  more  freedom  and 
certainty.  This  work  was  much  expected,  and  had 
been  long  earnestly  desired.-j-  Mr.  Baxter  left  it 
with  his  other  MSS.  to  the  care  of  his  beloved  friend 
Mr.  Sylvester,  who  was  chary  of  it  in  the  last  de- 

kers,  were  so  great  counsellors  and  favourites  of  the  King,  that 
those  who  would  request  any  favour  of  the  Crown,  or  beg  off 
any  penalty,  would  make  use  of  their  interest  to  obtain  their 
desire."  See  "Defence  of  the  Church  of  England,"  (1730) 
p.  103. 

On  this  Mr.  Peirce  remarks  :  "  Mr.  Lobb  had  free  access  to 
King  James,  and  endeavoured  to  use  what  interest  he  had,  for 
the  advantage  of  the  Dissenters  :  wherein  he  seems  to  me  to 
deserve  much  commendation,  unless  our  adversaries  can  tax 
him,  upon  good  evidence,  with  any  thing  done  amiss."  See 
"  Vindication  of  the  Dissenters,"  (1718)  p.  265. — ED. 

*  "  Reliquice  Baxteriance  ;  or  Mr.  Richard  Baxter's  Narrative 
of  the  most  memorable  passages  of  his  Life  and  Times,  faith 
fully  published  from  his  own  original  manuscript.  By  Matthew 
Sylvester.  London,  MDCXCVI."— ED. 

f  Baxter  died  Dec.  1691.  Among  the  occasions  of  delay 
Mr.  Sylvester  mentions,  the  time  occupied  in  "  the  orderly  dis 
posal  of  his  bequeathed  library  to  young  poor  students,  accord 
ing  to  his  injunctions."  Pref. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  377 

gree,  and  not  very  forward  to  let  it  be  seen  ;  yet 
had  not  leisure  enough  to  peruse  and  publish  it. 
After  some  time,  I  obtained  the  favour  of  the  MS. 
and  read  it  over,  and  discoursed  with  him  about  the 
contents,  with  all  imaginable  freedom.  I  found  the 
good  man  counted  it  a  sort  of  a  sacred  thing,  to 
have  any  hand  in  making  alterations  of  any  sort,  in 
which  I  could  not  but  apprehend  he  went  too  far, 
and  was  cramped  by  a  sort  of  superstition. 

Of  this  I  was  the  more  fully  convinced,  upon  my 
seeing  several  passages  in  the  MS.  that  I  could  per 
ceive  likely  to  do  more  hurt  than  good  ;  and  being  in 
formed,  upon  inquiry  made,  that  he  had  a  discretion 
ary  power  left  him  by  his  deceased  friend,  I  freely 
told  him  some  things  must  be  left  out,  or  he  would 
be  charged  with  great  weakness.  He  asked  for  in 
stances  :  and  I  began  with  Mr.  Sylvester's  own  cha 
racter,  and  told  him  I  could  not  see  how  he  could 
with  decency  let  that  stand,  (though  it  was  an  in 
stance  of  the  author's  kindness  to  him)  when  he 
himself  was  to  be  the  publisher.  He  seemed  sur 
prised  and  struck,  and  upon  my  turning  to  it,  and 
reading  it  to  him,  owned  that  that  should  be  altered, 
and  empowered  me  to  do  it.* 

I  farther  mentioned  to  him,  some  few  reflections 

*  After  the  alteration,  Mr,  Sylvester  still  appears,  and,  no 
doubt,  deservedly,  "a  man  of  excellent  meekness,  temper, 
sound  and  peaceable  principles,  godly  life,  and  great  ability  in 
the  ministerial  work."  Reliq.  Baxt.  P.  iii.  96.  See  Cont.  p. 
451. —ED. 


378  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

on  persons  and  families  of  distinction,  which  would 
be  offensive,  though  the  matters  related  were  true 
enough.  These,  also,  he  suffered  me  to  blot  out.  I 
then  fastened  on  some  other  things  relating  to  Mr. 
Baxter  himself,  about  a  dream  of  his,  and  his  bodily 
disorders,  and  physical  management  of  himself,  and 
some  other  things  that  were  too  mean,  the  publish 
ing  of  which,  I  told  him,  would  expose  him  to  cen 
sure.  After  a  good  deal  of  discourse,  he  suffered 
these  also  to  be  expunged. 

But  our  greatest  difficulty  was,  with  relation  to 
Dr.  Owen,  upon  whom  there  were  several  reflections. 
Some  of  these,  (after  frequent  debates)  he  did  allow 
me  to  blot  out,  and  I  did  it,  cheerfully,  with  my 
own  hand.  But,  as  to  the  main  reflection  upon  him, 
with  regard  to  the  affair  of  Wallingford  House,  and 
his  concern  in  it,*  on  which  Mr.  Baxter  laid  a  con 
siderable  stress,  (and  which  Mr.  Sylvester  had  often 
heard  Mr.  Baxter  discourse  of  with  great  freedom,) 
he  would  not  by  any  means  give  his  consent  to  have 
that  left  out.  As  to  this,  he  in  his  Preface  to  the 
reader  before  the  Narrative,  expresses  himself  in 
these  words. 

*  "  Dr.  Owen,  and  his  assistants,  did  the  main  work.  He 
gathereth  a  church,  at  Lieutenant-General  Fleetwood's  quarters, 
at  Wallingford  House,  consisting  of  the  active  officers  of  the 
army.  In  this  assembly,  it  was  determined  that  Richard's  Par 
liament  must  be  dissolved,  and  then  he  quickly  fell,  himself." 
Reliq.  Baxt.  P.  1.  101.  See  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  iv.  482.  485, 
486.  n.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  379 

"  I  wrote  (with  tender  and  affectionate  respect 
and  reverence  to  the  doctor's  name  and  memory)  to 
Madam  Owen,  to  desire  her  to  send  me  what  she 
could,  well  attested,  in  favour  of  the  doctor,  that  I 
might  insert  it  in  the  margent,  where  he  is  mention 
ed  as  having  a  hand  in  that  affair  at  Wallingford 
House  ;  or  that  I  might  expunge  the  passage.  But 
this  offer  being  rejected  with  more  contemptuous- 
ness  and  smartness  than  my  civility  deserved,  I  had 
no  more  to  do  than  to  let  that  pass  upon  record ; 
and  to  rely  upon  Mr.  Baxter's  report,  and  the  con 
current  testimonies  of  such  as  knew  the  intrigues 
of  those  times." 

Of  this  I  am  well  able  to  attest  the  truth,  having 
not  only  seen  and  read  Mr.  Sylvester's  letter  to  Mrs. 
Owen,  but  it  was  put  into  my  hands,  that  I  might 
give  it  to  my  friend  the  Lady  Levet,*  with  a  desire 
that  she  would  not  only  deliver  it  to  Mrs.  Owen,  but 
back  it  with  her  persuasion,  which  was  thought  very 
proper,  upon  the  account  of  her  being  well  acquaint 
ed  with  her,  and  having  an  interest  in  her.  But 
Lady  Levet  could  not  prevail.  Mrs.  Owen  resented 
the  motion,  and  was  free  in  her  reflections. 

As  to  the  concurrent  testimonies  mentioned  by 
Mr.  Sylvester,  he  therein  refers  (among  others)  to 
Dr.  Manton,  who  was  summoned  to  the  meeting  at 
Wallingford  House,  and  as  he  was  passing  into  the 
room  in  which  the  company  met,  heard  Dr.  Owen 
give  his  sense  with  great  warmth,  about  the  matter 

*  Wife  of  Sir  Richard  Levet,  supra,  p.  281.— ED. 


380  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

that  was  the  occasion  of  the  summons  given.*  Of 
which  Mr.  Sylvester  had  a  distinct  account  both 
from  Mr.  Richard  Stretton,  and  Mr.  Wm.  Taylor, 
(who  had  it  directly  from  Dr.  Manton)  as  well  as 
several  others.  Therefore  the  publishers  of  Dr. 
Owen's  Life,  prefixed  to  the  last  volume  of  his  works, 
might  (I  should  have  thought)  very  well  have  spared 
their  warm  reflections  upon  this  occasion. 

The  contents  prefixed  to  Mr.  Baxter's  Narrative, 
and  the  Index  at  the  end,  were  of  my  drawing  up. 
For  my  pains,  I  had  from  the  booksellers  the  present 
of  a  copy. 

There  were  now  great  disputes  between  Dr.  Sher 
lock  and  Dr.  South,  about  the  doctrine  of  the 
Trinity,!  but  they  abated,  upon  the  directions  sent 

*  "  Dr.  Owen,"  says  Neal,  "  went  to  prayer  before  they  en 
tered  on  business,  but  Dr.  Manton,  being  late  before  he  came, 
heard  a  loud  voice  from  within  saying,  '  he  must  down,  and  he 
shall  down.'  Manton  knew  the  voice  to  be  Dr.  Owen's,  and  un 
derstood  him  to  mean  the  deposing  Richard,  and  therefore 
would  not  go  in."  See  "  Hist,  of  Puritans,"  iv.  191. 

The  Rev.  W.  Orme,  Owen's  latest  biographer,  remarks,  that 
the  words  "  might  allude  to  the  Pope,  or  the  grand  Turk,  as 
well  as  to  Richard  Cromwell,"  and  that  "  it  is  not  like  Owen's 
usual  prudence  to  vociferate  sedition,  at  a  private  meeting  so 
loudly  as  to  be  heard  outside  the  door,  and  that,  before  the 
council  had  deliberated."  Besides,  "  it  is  acknowledged  that  Dr. 
Manton  did  not  so  understand  the  words  of  Owen,  till  after 
Richard's  deposition."  See  '*  Mem.  of  the  Life,  Writings  and 
religious  Connections  of  John  Owen,  D.D."  &c.,  prefixed  to  his 
Works  (1820,)  p.  276.— ED. 

f  In  1693,  Dr.  Sherlock,  Dean  of  St.  Paul's,  published  "a 
Vindication  of  the  holy  and  ever-blessed  Trinity."  Hence,  "he 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  381 

by  his  Majesty  to  the  Archbishops  and  Bishops  con 
cerning  this  matter,*  which  were  printed. 

This  year  several  of  the  conspirators  in  the  Assas 
sination  Plot,  fell  victims  to  public  justice.  Char- 
nock,  King,  and  Keyes,  were  first  tried,  condemned 
and  executed  ;f  and  afterwards,  Sir  John  Friend 
and  Sir  William  Perkins.  The  two  last  received 
absolution  from  Mr.  Collier,  the  Nonjuror,  before 

was  charged  with  proving  three  distinct  Gods  :  having  asserted 
that  there  were  in  the  Godhead,  three  minds,  three  beings,  and 
three  intelligences." 

Dr.  South,  Prebendary  of  Westminster,  "  published,  without 
his  name,  'Animadversions  on  Dr.  Sherlock's  book.'  In  1695, 
Dr.  Sherlock  published  a  defence,  to  which  Dr.  South  replied, 
(incog,  as  before,)  in  a  treatise  entitled,  *  Tritheism  charged 
upon  Dr.  Sherlock's  new  notion  of  the  Trinity  ;  and  the  charge 
made  good.'  " 

A  clergyman  of  Oxford  having  ie  asserted  Dr.  Sherlock's  no 
tions  in  a  sermon  before  the  University,"  they  were  "  censured 
by  a  solemn  decree,"  as  "  false,  impious  and  heretical,  contrary 
to  the  doctrine  of  the  Church  of  England,  publicly  received." 

On  this  occasion  appeared  "  a  witty  ballad"  on  "  A  Dean  and 

Prebendary,"  which  was  "  translated  into  several  languages,  and 

presents  made  to  the  author  by  the  nobility  and   gentry."     See 

1  '  Mem.  of  South,"  prefixed  to  his  "  Posthumous  Works,"  (1717) 

pp.  118-130  ;  Toulmin's  "Hist.  View,"  pp.  176-186.— ED. 

*  "That  no  preacher  should  presume  to  deliver  any  other 
doctrine  concerning  the  blessed  Trinity,  than  what  was  contained 
in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  was  agreeable  to  the  three  Creeds, 
and  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  Religion."  See  "  Mem.  of 
South,"  p.  128. — ED. 

f  Mar.  18,  1695-6.  "  They  acknowledged  their  intention, 
but  acquitted  King  James  of  inciting  them."  Evelyn,  iii.  350. — 
ED. 


382  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

their  execution,*  with  imposition  of  hands,  against 
which  practice  fourteen  bishops  published  a  declara- 
tion.f  These  were  followed  by  Rookwood,  Lowick, 
and  Cranburn4  &c. 

Some  time  after,  there  was  a  great  stir  about  Sir 
John  Fenwick,$  who  was  concerned  both  in  the  as 
sassination  and  invasion  plot.  He  had  spirited  away 
one  of  the  witnesses  that  swore  against  him,  and 

*  April  3,  1696.  "  The  quarters  of  Sir  William  Perkins  and 
Sir  John  Friend,  with  Perkins's  head,  were  set  up  at  Temple 
Bar  ;  a  dismal  sight,  which  many  pitied."  Evelyn,  iii.  350. — ED. 

f  "  Much  altercation,  as  to  the  canonicalness  of  the  action, 
and  pamphlets  written  pro  and  con."  Ibid,  p,  351. — ED. 

|  "  Executed  at  Tyburn,  April  29.  These  were  the  first 
prisoners,  that  had  the  benefit  of  the  Act  which  allows  counsel." 
Chron,  Hist.  i.  283. 

This  chronicler  must  refer  to  all  the  "  prisoners"  for  the  As 
sassination-plot,  as  the  Act  had  passed  "Jan.  21,  1695-»6,  for  re 
gulating  trials,  in  cases  of  treason,  and  misprision  of  treason." 
It  assured  to  the  accused,  "  a  copy  of  his  indictment,  a  copy  of 
the  pannel,  and  counsel  assigned  him."  Ibid.  p.  281. 

While  this  bill  was  passing  the  Commons,  Lord  Ashley,  after 
wards  Earl  of  Shaftesbury,  thus  happily  argued,  in  its  support, 
on  resuming  his  speech  after  a  temporary  embarrassment. 

"  If  I,  Sir,  who  rise,  only  to  give  my  opinion  on  the  bill  now 
depending,  am  so  confounded,  that  I  am  unable  to  express  the 
least  of  what  I  proposed  to  say,  what  must  the  condition  of 
that  man  be,  who,  without  any  assistance,  is  pleading  for  his 
life,  and  under  apprehensions  of  being  deprived  of  it."  Biog. 
Brit.  iv.  *267.— ED. 

§  He  was  apprehended,  June  1696.  See  his  "  Letter  to  his 
Lady  upon  his  being  taken  in  Kent;"  annexed  to  "  the  Pro 
ceedings  against  Sir  John  Fenwick  upon  a  Bill  of  Attainder  for 
High  Treason,  printed  1702;"  Evelyn,  iii.  353. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  383 

charged  some  of  the  best  friends  of  the  Government 
with  being  in  the  plot ;  and  trifled  with  his  Ma 
jesty  and  the  Parliament  too,  in  hopes  of  escaping. 
In  order  to  the  preventing  it,  a  Bill  of  Attainder 
was  brought  in  against  him,  which  after  warm  de 
bates,  passed  both  Houses,*  and  he  was  beheaded  on 
Tower-hill.f 

It  is  not  unworthy  of  observation,  that  this  Sir 
John  Fenwick  was  all  along  an  open  declared  enemy 
of  the  Government.  He  had  not  only  taken  several 
opportunities  of  affronting  Queen  Mary  in  places  of 
public  resort,  but  had  persisted  in  repeated  insolen- 
cies  arid  riots  in  disturbance  of  the  reign  of  her  sur 
viving  consort ;  and  therefore,  when  Robert  Nelson, 
Esq.  who  was  a  particular  friend  of  Archbishop 
Tennison,  made  his  Grace  a  visit,  in  order  to  the  ob 
taining  his  vote  against  the  Bill,  for  attainting  Sir 

*  See  the  Account  given  of  the  affair  of  Sir  John  Fenwick, 
in  the  Life  of  Charles,  Earl  of  Halifax,  p.  44,  &c.— C. 

In  the  Commons  "  the  House  divided,  ayes,  189;  noes,  156. 
In  the  Lords,  contents,  68  ;  non-contents,  61."  Chron.  Hist.  i. 
286  ;  "  Proceedings,"  p.  348.— ED. 

|  Jan.  28,  1696-7.  See  "  A  Copy  of  the  Paper  he  delivered 
to  the  Sheriffs,"  in  the  "  Proceedings,"  ad  Jin, 

Sir  John  Fenwick  escaped  that  unmanly  vengeance  on  the 
dead,  now  justly  exploded,  but  which  disgraced  alike  the  Resto 
ration  and  the  Revolution,  and  had  been  lately  executed  on 
Friend  and  Perkins.  He  was  immediately  buried  next  to  three 
of  his  sons  in  St.  Martin's  Church.  A  "  monumental  pillar" 
was  erected  to  his  memory,  in  York  Minster,  by  his  lady,  a 
daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Carlisle.  See  "  The  History  of  the 
Cathedral  of  York,"  (1755)  p.  96.— ED. 


384  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

John,*  he  in  answer  to  his  request,  expressed  him 
self  in  these  words  : — 

"  My  very  good  friend,  give  me  leave  to  tell  you, 
that  you  know  not  what  spirit  that  man  nor  I  am 
of.  I  wish  for  his,  nor  no  man's  blood ;  but  how 
can  I  do  my  duty  to  God  and  my  King,  should  I  de 
clare  a  man  innocent,  (for  my  not  being  of  the  side 
of  the  Bill  will  convince  the  world  that  I  think  him 
so,)  when  I  am  satisfied  in  my  conscience,  not  only 
from  Goodman's  evidence,  but  all  the  convincing  tes 
timonies  in  the  world,  that  he  is  guilty."! 

This  year  there  were  books  opened  at  Edinburgh 
for  subscriptions  to  the  Scotch  India  Company,:):  and 
£400,000  was  subscribed  in  a  few  days,  and  pay 
ments  followed  accordingly.  At  the  same  time  the 
loss  of  public  credit  in  England  was  much  lamented, 
and  it  seemed  irretrievable.  Bank  notes  were  com 
monly  discounted  at  20,  and  Tallies  at  40,  60,  and 
60,  per  cent,  &c.§  But  Mr.  Montague  found  a  way 

*  In  his  "  Letter  to  his  lady,"  having  said,  "  all  friends  must 
be  made,"  he  instances  "  Mr.  Nelson  by  the  Bishop  of  Canter 
bury/'  the  names  probably  reversed,  by  an  error  of  the  press. — 
ED. 

f  See  "Memoirs  of  the  Life  and  Times  of  Dr. Thomas  Tennison, 
late  Archbishopof  Canterbury, "p.  61-2.  Also  "Collection  of  State 
Tracts,  published  in  the  Life  of  King  William. "ii.  551,  &c. — C. 
t  See  supra,  p.  370.— ED. 

§"  1696,  Aug.  3.  The  bank  lending  the  200,000/.  to  pay 
the  army  in  Flanders,  had  so  exhausted  the  treasure  of  the  nation 
that  one  could  not  have  borrowed  money  under  14  or  15  per 
cent. on  bills,  or  on  Exchequer  tallies  under  30  percent."  Evelyn, 
iii.  358.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  385 

to  set  this  matter  also  to  rights.*  And  the  com 
mon  capital  stock  of  the  Bank  of  England,  was 
augmented  by  admitting  new  subscriptions. 

Nothing  of  importance  was  done  this  year  in 
Flanders.  The  French,  however,  by  this  time  be 
ginning  to  grow  weary  of  the  war,  preliminaries  for 
a  peace  were  proposed  by  Monsieur  Calliere  at  the 
Hague,  and  a  treaty  was  entered  upon  about  them. 
No  great  advance  was  made  in  it  at  the  present ; 
but  a  separate  peace  was  concluded  between  France 
and  Savoy.  John  Sobieski,  the  King  of  Poland, 
who  was  so  famous  for  his  concern  in  raising  the 
Siege  of  Vienna,  died  June  17,  this  year,  N.  s.  in 
the  70th  year  of  his  age. 

Dec.  31,  this  year  pious  Dr.  Annesley,  departed 
this  life.f  His  funeral  sermon  was  preached  and 
published  by  Mr.  Daniel  Williams.  He  was  suc 
ceeded  in  his  congregation  at  Little  St.  Helens  in 
Bishopsgate-street  within,  by  Mr.  John  Wodehouse, 
(who  came  to  town  from  Sherif-Hailes,  Leicester 
shire,  where  he  had  kept  a  private  academy,;)  and 
in  his  place  in  the  Tuesday  Lecture,  at  Salters' 
Hall,  by  Mr.  John  Shower. 

*  See  Life  of  Charles,  Earl  of  Halifax,  pp.  36,  37,  &c C. 

t  In  his  77th  year.  He  was  Chaplain  to  the  ship  of  "  the 
Earl  of  Warwick,  Lord  High  Admiral,  in  1644;  afterwards  one 
of  the  Lecturers  at  St.  Paul's  and  Rector  of  Cripplegate,  whence 
he  was  ejected  in  1662."  Account,  pp.  47 — 49;  Cont.  pp.' 65 — 
73  ;  Toulmin's  "  Hist.  View,"  pp.  520—522. — ED. 

I  Ibid,  pp.  225—230  ;  559— 567.— ED. 
VOL.    I.  2    C 


386  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

In  the  same  month,  John  Hampden,  Esq.  the 
grandson  of  him  that  had  pleaded  the  cause  of 
England,  in  the  point  of  the  ship-money,  with  King 
Charles  the  First,  greatly  exposed  himself  and  his 
family.  His  father  was  a  very  eminent  man  and 
had  been  zealous  in  the  exclusion,*  and  he  also  had 
been  generally  esteemed  and  respected  ;  but  he  now 
came  to  a  most  unhappy  end,  destroying  himself 
with  his  own  hands,  to  the  grief  of  all  the  friends  of 
that  honourable  family,  and  the  no  small  concern  of 
the  lovers  of  serious  religion  among  us  ;  who  were 
apt  to  think  they  had  an  interest  in  him,  upon  the 
account  of  the  strictness  of  his  education,  and  his 
great  hopefulness  in  his  younger  years,  as  well  as 
his  great  friendliness  to  them,  after  his  appearance 
upon  the  stage  of  business.  This  gentleman  was 
reckoned  one  of  as  bright  parts  and  eminent  ac- 
complishments,f  as  any  in  the  kingdom.  But,  in 
his  travels,  falling  into  temptations,  he  grew  loose 
in  his  principles,  and  after  his  return,  meeting  with 
a  great  many  vexations  and  disappointments,  his 
brain  was  affected,  and  there  were  various  signs 
and  symptoms  of  an  extraordinary  discomposure, 
before  he  came  to  such  a  tragical  end.  He  left 
a  paper,  drawn  up  by  himself,  (April  15,  1688,) 
which  has  fallen  into  my  hands.  As  I  have  not  the 
least  reason  to  question  its  genuineness,!  I  cannot 

*See  supra*  p.  Ill  ;   Grey's  Debates,  vii.  421. — ED. 

f  "  A  scholar  and  a  fine  gentleman,"  Evelyn  iii.  326. — ED. 

J  Mr.  John  Hampden  gave  this  paper  to  Dr.  Allix,  and  he  to 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  387 

but  think  it  a  piece  of  service,  to  posterity  to  trans 
mit  it  to  them,  as  a  warning  to  others.  It  is  in  the 
words  following : — 

"  Having  long  been  in  a  most  eminent  manner, 
under  God's  afflicting  hand,  I  think  myself  obliged 
to  examine  my  conscience,  concerning  the  causes 
for  which  it  has  pleased  his  Divine  wisdom  to  in 
flict  so  many  signal  judgments  upon  me,  for  some 
years  last  past.  And  I  do  freely  confess,  that  among 
many  other  heinous  sins  whereof  I  am  guilty,  there 
is  one  especially,  which  causes  me  great  trouble, 
and  to  which  I  was  principally  drawn  by  that  va 
nity  and  desire  of  vain-glory,  which  is  so  natural  to 
the  corrupted  hearts  of  men. 

"  The  particular  is  this.  Notwithstanding  my 
education,  which  was  very  pious  and  religious,  and 
the  knowledge  I  had  of  the  certainty  of  the  truths 
of  the  Christian  religion,  yet  to  obtain  the  reputa 
tion  of  wit  and  learning,  (which  is  so  much  esteemed 

Dr.  Patrick,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Ely,  April  25,  1688.  The 
Doctor  signified  as  much  under  his  own  hand,  adding  these 
words ;  "  This  paper,  if  I  die,  I  desire  and  charge  my  executors 
to  deliver  as  it  is  thus  sealed  up,  (without  looking  into  it)  unto 
the  said  Mr.  John  Hampden,  or  his  father,  if  alive,  or  to  some  of 
his  nearest  and  best  relations  or  friends.  Simon  Patrick." 

The  Bishop  gave  a  copy  of  it  to  Mr.  Edward  Millington, 
bookseller,  who  gave  copies  of  it  to  many.  Not  long  after  Mr. 
Hampden's  death,  his  mother  sent  a  copy  of  it  to  Mr.  Tallents, 
of  Shrewsbury,  (see  supra,  p.  196)  as  I  saw  it  attested  by  his  hand, 
in  the  month  of  August,  1724,  at  Tunbridge  Wells,  in  a  paper 
that  is  in  the  custody  of  Mr.  Archer  of  that  place. — C. 

2    C    2 


388  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

in  the  world)  I  was  so  unhappy  as  to  engage  my 
self  in  the  sentiments  and  principles  of  the  author  of 
the  "  Critical  History  of  the  Old  Testament,*  which 
yet  I  plainly  perceived  did  directly  tend  to  overthrow 
all  the  belief  which  Christians  have  of  the  truth  and 
authority  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  under  the  pretence 
of  giving  a  great  authority  to  tradition ,f  which  after 
ward  is  easily  turned  and  accommodated,as  best  suits 
the  interest  of  those  who  take  upon  them  to  cry  it  up. 
"I  do  likewise  acknowledge,  that  though  I  had 
but  very  weak  arguments  to  support  my  libertine 
opinions,  and  such  as,  I  believe,  I  could  have  easily 
answered,  and  as  could  not  make  any  impression 
but  upon  those  who  are  willing  to  cast  off  the  yoke 
of  their  duty,  and  the  obligation  we  are  all  under  to 
live  in  the  fear  of  God  ;  yet  I  was  so  rash  and  fool 
ish  as  to  pretend  I  thought  there  was  great  strength 

*  "I/Histoire  Critique  du  Vieux  Testament,"  1685.  The  au 
thor,  Richard  Simon,  priest  of  the  Oratory,  died  1712,  aged  74. 
Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  viii.  471. — ED. 

t  There  was  an  English  translation  in  1689,  of  Father  Simon's 
"  Histoire  Critique  du  texte  du  Nouveau-Testament."  In  the 
Preface  the  author  thus  discovers  the  place  he  assigned  to  tra 
ditionary  evidence* 

"  I  propose  truth  alone  to  myself  in  this  work,  without  any 
deference  to  any  master  in  particular.  A  true  Christian,  who 
professes  to  believe  the  Catholic  faith,  ought  not  to  style  himself 
a  disciple  of  St.  Austin,  St.  Jerome,  or  any  other  particular 
Father,  since  his  faith  is  founded  on  the  word  of  Jesus  Christ, 
contained  in  the  writings  of  the  Apostles,  and  constant  tradition 
of  the  Catholic  churches." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  389 

in  them,  when  I  insinuated  rather  than  opened  them 
to  some  of  rny  familiar  acquaintance.  And  I  am 
afraid  I  have  contributed  thereby  to  cast  some  of 
them  into  opinions,  and  perhaps,  practices,  contrary 
both  to  the  truths  and  commandments  of  the  Christian 
religion. 

"  I  do  also  acknowledge,  that  having  discoursed 
freely  with  the  author  of  the  Critical  History,  and 
having  heard  from  his  own  mouth  that  he  allowed 
yet  less  the  authority  of  the  Books  of  the  New 
Testament,  than  those  of  the  Old,  which  should 
naturally  have  obliged  me  to  avoid  all  communica 
tion  with  him,  yet  I  furnished  him  with  money  to 
execute  a  design  which  he  had  framed  of  a  Criti 
cal  Polyglot  Bible  :  which,  after  the  declaration  he 
made  to  me,  I  think  I  ought  to  have  considered  as  a 
design  which  tended  to  destroy  the  certainty  of  the 
books  of  the  New  Testament,  as  well  as  the  Old. 

"  I  believe  this  project  of  a  Polyglot  Bible  was  in 
nocent  enough  in  itself,  and  might  have  been  like 
wise  considerably  useful  in  the  manner  that  it  was 
agreed  upon  between  Father  Simon,  a  friend  of 
mine,  and  myself.  But,  however  that  may  be,  I 
cannot  forgive  myself,  after  what  I  knew  of  that 
father's  opinion  concerning  the  authority  of  the 
Scripture,  for  embarking  myself  with  a  man  who 
had  so  plainly  declared  his  thoughts  to  me  in  that 
matter,  and  so  much  the  rather,  because  upon  con 
sideration,  I  see  well  enough  how  the  execution  of 
this  design  would  have  increased  in  me  those  loose 


390  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

principles  which  I  had  already  received  from  the 
reading  of  his  Critical  History. 

"  This  confession  I  make  with  all  possible  sin 
cerity,  and  with  much  grief  for  having  offended 
God  by  so  great  a  sin,  for  which  I  heartily  beg  par 
don  of  him  :  and  I  do  earnestly  beseech  all  those 
who  may  to  any  degree  have  been  seduced,  either 
by  my  discourses  or  example,  that  they  would  se 
riously  reflect  upon  the  danger  they  are  in,  that  they 
may  be  delivered  from  it  in  time,  and  from  such 
judgments  of  God  as  he  has  been  pleased  to  lay 
upon  me. 

"  This  confession  I  have  written,  and  signed  with 
my  hand,  to  the  end  that  if  I  should  die  before  I 
can  speak  with  those  whom  I  have  perverted  by  my 
example,  they  may  return  to  themselves,  and  to 
God,  as  I  do  by  this  solemn  protestation  which  I 
make  to  them,  that  the  opinions  which  I  may  have 
taught  them,  were  nothing  but  the  effect  of  my 
pride  and  vanity,  which  I  unfeignedly  condemn : 
desiring  to  live  and  die  in  those  which  are  contained 
in  this  paper.  J.  HAMPDEN." 

Mr.  Hampden  had  been  a  very  active  man. 
Bishop  Burnet*  says :  "  he  was  a  young  man  of 
great  parts,  one  of  the  learnedest  gentlemen  I  have 
ever  known  ;  for  he  was  a  critic  both  in  Latin, 
Greek,  and  Hebrew.  He  was  a  man  of  great  heat 

*  "  Own  Time,"  i.  539.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  391 

and  vivacity,  but  too  unequl  in  his  temper.  He  had 
once  great  principles  of  religion ;  but  he  was  much 
corrupted  by  P.  Simon's  conversation  at  Paris." 

At  the  latter  end  of  King  Charles's  reign,  (1684) 
he  was  tried  before  Jeffreys  for  a  misdemeanour, 
and  cast,  and  fined  40,000/.*  He  was  tried  again  in 
King  James's  reign  in  1685,  and  "was  told  that  he 
must  expect  no  favour  unless  he  would  plead  guilty ; 
and  he,  knowing  that  legal  evidence  would  be 
brought  against  him,  submitted  to  this ;  and  begged 
his  Iife4  with  a  meanness,  of  which  he  himself  was 
so  ashamed  afterwards,  that  it  gave  his  spirits  a 
depression  and  disorder  that  he  could  never  quite 
master,  and  that  had  a  terrible  conclusion ;  for, 
about  ten  years  after,  he  cut  his  own  throat,  "f 

He  was  thought  to  be  the  person  that  prevailed 
with  the  Duke  of  Monmouth,  to  demand  from  his 
father,  King  Charles  II.,  the  acknowledgment  he  had 
left  in  his  hands,  &c.  He  was  zealous  in  forward 
ing  the  Revolution, $  and  had  a  hand  in  drawing  up 
several  of  those  learned  tracts  that  were  published 

*  State  Trials,  iii.  823—856;  Burnet,  i.  576.— ED. 

f  Burnet,  i.  pp.  646,  647. — C. 

J  "  The  Earl  of  Clarendon  to  the  Earl  of  Rochester,  Dublin 
Castle,  Jan.  23,  1685-6. — As  I  was  surprised  to  find  Mr. 
Hampden  plead  guilty,  which  I  take  to  be  much  for  the  King's 
advantage,  so  his  Majesty's  extending  mercy  to  him,  will  con 
tribute  no  less  to  his  service."  Correspondence,  i.  220,  221. — ED. 

§  "  The  message  from  the  Commons,"  was  brought  up  "  by 
Mr.  Hampden."  See  supra,  p.  333,  note  f. — ED. 


392  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

in  the  defence  of  it :  as  "  a  Defence  of  the  Proceed 
ings  of  the  late  Parliament  of  England,"  (1689*)  ; 
"  Some  Considerations  about  the  most  proper  way  of 
raising  Money  at  the  present  conjuncture,"  (I692f ). 
Therein  we,  (among  others)  meet  with  this  memo 
rable  passage. — 

"  To  this  purpose,  I  cannot  but  mention  what 
was  said  to  me  at  Paris,  ten  years  ago,  (1682,)  by 
the  great  historian,  Monsieur  de  Mezeray,  whom  I 
knew  very  particularly,  and  who  was  a  man  of  great 
worth  and  virtue,  and  therefore  very  ill-used  by  the 
ministry  of  France.  Discoursing  with  him  about 
the  difference  of  the  government  in  France  and 
England,  he  broke  out  into  this  expression,  '  O  for- 
tunati  nlmium  bona  si  sua  norint  Angligence  I  We 
had  once  in  France  the  same  happiness,  and  the 
same  privileges  which  you  have.  Our  laws  were 
made  by  representatives  of  our  own  choosing  ;  our 
money  was  not  taken  from  us,  but  by  our  own  con 
sent  ;  our  kings  were  subject  to  the  rules  of  law  and 
reason,5^:  (with  many  other  things  of  that  kind, 

*  King  William's  State  Tracts,  i.  209. — C. 

t  Ibid.  p.  309. — C. 

J  "  Our  ancestors,"  says  Hotoman,  "  decreed  that  the  public 
affairs  should  be  managed  by  the  joint  advice  and  counsel  of  all 
the  estates  of  the  kingdom.  To  which  purpose  the  King,  the 
nobles,  and  the  representatives  of  the  Commons,  were  obliged  to 
meet  every  year,  on  the  calends  of  May. 

"  Furthermore,"  he  adds,  "  we  find  the  very  same  form  of 
administration  of  the  kingdom  of  England."  For  this  opinion, 
he  quotes  Polydore  Virgil,  who  died  in  1555,  and  whose  History 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  393 

which  he  added;)  '  but  now,  alas  !  we  are  miserable, 
and  all  is  lost.  Think  nothing,  Sir,  too  dear  to 
maintain  these  precious  advantages ;  and  if  ever 
there  be  occasion,  venture  your  life,  your  estate,  and 
all  you  have,  rather  than  submit  to  the  miserable 
condition  to  which  you  see  us  reduced.'  These 
words,"  says  Mr.  Harnpden,  "  with  what  I  actually 

of  England  ends  with  the  reign  of  Henry  VII.  That  learned  ec 
clesiastic,  who  had  been  promoted  in  England,  by  Henry  VIII., 
thus  describes  the  general  rule  of  the  English  Government.  He 
must,  indeed,  have  seen  too  many  sanguinary  exceptions ;  such 
as  Buchanan  witnessed,  in  1539,  when  "  Eodem  die  ac  eodem 
igne  utriusque  factionis  homines  cremarentur,"  (men  of  the  dif 
ferent  religions  were  burnt  on  the  same  day,  and  in  the  same  fire.) 
Polydore  Virgil  says  : — 

"  Whatever  related  to  the  well-governing  or  conservation  of 
the  Commonwealth,  ought  to  be  debated  and  determined  by  the 
great  Council.  And  if  either  the  King  or  the  people  should  act 
any  thing  alone,  it  should  be  esteemed  invalid  and  as  nothing, 
unless  it  were  first  approved  and  established  by  the  authority  of 
that  Council." 

See  "  Franco-Gallia,  or  an  Account  of  the  Ancient  Free  State 
of  France,  and  most  other  parts  of  Europe,  before  the  loss  of 
their  Liberties.  Written  in  Latin,  (1574,)  by  the  famous  Civi 
lian,  Francis  Hotoman."  Translated  by  Lord  Molesworth, 
2d  Ed.  (1721,)  pp.  66—70  ;  "  Monthly  Repos."  (1815,)  x.  355 
—358. 

The  translator's  "  New  Preface,"  (not  in  the  1st  Ed.  1711.)  is 
a  free  and  able  essay  on  Government.  The  following  passages, 
written  more  than  a  century  ago,  may  now  be  read  as  peculiarly 
appropriate. 

Having  asserted  that  "  no  man  can  be  a  sincere  lover  of  liber 
ty,  that  is  not  for  increasing  and  communicating  that  blessing 


394  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

saw  of  the  misery  of  that  country,  made  an  impres 
sion  on  me  which  nothing  can  efface."* 

1697,  Mr.  Williams,  in  order  to  clear  up  the 
new  controversial  mist  raised  against  him,  wrote  to 
Bishop  Stillingfleet,  to  know  his  lordship's  sense  of 
"  commutation  of  persons,"  whether  the  author  of 
"  Gospel  Truth  Stated,"  was  chargeable  with  So- 
cinianism  ;  and  Dr.  Crisp's  sense  concerning  the 
"  Change  of  Person,"  or  persons  true  or  false ;  inti 
mating  that  he  desired  an  answer,  because  his  lord 
ship's  book,  concerning  "  the  Sufferings  of  Christ," 
was  pleaded  against  him.  The  Bishop  returned  an 
answer  with  great  frankness,  and  plainly  charged  his 
(Mr.  Williams's)  accusers,  with  want  either  of  know 
ledge  or  ingenuity  ;  and  as  not  very  deeply  skilled 
in  the  controversy  between  the  Orthodox  and  So- 

to  all  people,"  Lord  Molesworth  recommends  "  the  ease  and  ad 
vantage  which  would  be  gained  by  uniting  our  own  three  king 
doms  upon  equal  terms,  for  upon  unequal,  it  would  be  no 
union ;"  adding,  that  "  the  rich  and  opulent  country  to  which 
such  an  addition  is  made,  would  be  the  greater  gainer/' 

His  Lordship  proceeds  to  describe  it  as  "  much  more  de 
sirable  and  secure  to  govern  by  love  than  by  force,  to  expect 
comfort  and  assistance,  in  times  of  danger,  from  our  next  neigh 
bours,  than  to  find  them  a  heavy  clog  upon  the  wheels  of  go 
vernment,  and  be  in  dread  lest  they  should  take  that  occasion 
to  shake  off  an  uneasy  yoke ;  or  to  have  as  much  need  of  en 
tertaining  a  standing  army  against  our  brethren,  as  against  our 
inveterate  enemies."  Pref.  pp.  xx,  xxi. — ED. 

*  He  wrote,  also  "  Some  short  considerations  concerning  the 
State  of  the  Nation,"  (1692).  See  "  King  William's  State  Tracts/' 
p.  320,— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  395 

cinians,  &c.  This  letter  of  the  Bishop's  was  printed 
in  the  "  Answer  to  the  Report,"  drawn  up  by  the 
committee  of  the  united  ministers. 

Mr.  Stephen  Lobb  wrote  also  to  the  Bishop  upon 
the  same  subject.  He,  in  return,  referred  him  to 
his  letter  to  Mr.  Williams,  in  which  he  intimates, 
he  had  given  his  sense  with  great  freedom  and  im 
partiality  ;  adding,  that  by  what  he  could  observe 
from  the  several  papers  he  had  seen,  he  thought  that 
a  fondness  for  Dr.  Crisp's  notions  lay  at  the  bottom 
of  all  their  heats.  Mr.  Lobb  wrote  again  to  the 
Bishop,  and  signified  his  not  being  fully  satisfied 
with  what  his  Lordship  had  offered,  and  his  writing 
an  Appeal,  of  which  he  offered  his  Lordship  a  sight. 
The  Bishop,  in  his  answer,  intimated,  he  would  wait 
for  it  from  the  press. 

When  the  Bishop  had  read  it,  he  determined  to 
draw  up  and  publish  a  full  answer,  and  had  actually 
begun,  though  he  did  not  live  to  finish  it.*  How 
ever,  the  part  found  among  his  papers,  was  published 
after  his  death,  and  is  to  be  met  with  in  his  works.f 
He  therein  declares  his  opinion,  that  a  fondness  for 
Dr.  Crisp's  notions  lay  at  the  bottom  of  all  the  heats 
among  the  Dissenters,  was  not  altered  by  Mr.  Lobb's 
Appeal :  that  those  heats  were  occasioned  only  by 
a  mistaken  apprehension  of  the  true  state  of  the 
controversy  ;  and  that  there  was  no  cause  for  any 
real  difference  among  those  who  were  not  Antino- 

*  He  died,  March  27,  1699.— ED. 
t  Vol.  iii.  Part  ii.  p.  372,  &c.— C. 


396  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

mians,  either  in  the  principles,  or  in  the  conse 
quences  which  follow  from  them. 

Dr.  Jonathan  Edwards,  principal  of  Jesus  College, 
in  Oxon,  was  also  written  to  upon  this  occasion, 
Mr.  William  s's  opinion  concerning  a  "  commutation 
of  person,"  being  said  to  be  condemned  in  that 
learned  man's  "  Preservative  against  Socinianism."* 
In  a  letter  to  Mr.  Williams,  he  acquitted  him  from 
giving  any  countenance  to  the  errors  of  Sociniaiis, 
and  told  him  that  he  had  very  rightly,  and  in  an 
orthodox  manner,  stated  the  doctrine  of  Christ's 
Satisfaction. 

As  to  the  doctrine  of  Dr.  Crisp,  and  others  of  that 
sect,  concerning  the  "  permutation  of  person,"  be 
tween  Christ  and  the  sinner,  he  could  not  but  look 
upon  it  to  be,  "  not  only  false,  absurd,  and  impos 
sible,  but  also  an  impious  and  blasphemous  opinion, 
as  being  highly  dishonourable  to  our  Saviour,  re 
pugnant  to  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  God,  and 
tending  plainly  to  subvert  the  whole  design  of  Chris 
tianity." 

So  that  Mr.  Williams  was  fully  vindicated  against 
the  charge  of  his  adversaries,  by  the  learned  men 
that  were  appealed  to.  This,  among  other  things, 
helped  to  make  those  who  had  been  noisy  and  cla 
morous,  the  more  quiet  for  the  future. 

One  of  the  last  things  printed  in  this  contest,  was 

*  "  Showing  the  direct  and  plain  opposition  between  it  and 
the  religion  revealed  by  God,  in  the  Holy  Scripture."  2  Parts, 
Oxon,  1693  and  1694.  At  hen.  Oxon.  by  Bliss,  iv.  722. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  397 

a  tract  of  Mr.  Benjamin  Robinson's,*  entitled  "  A 
Plea  for  the  Late  Accurate  and  Excellent  Mr.  Bax 
ter,  and  those  that  speak  of  the  Sufferings  of  Christ 
as  he  does,  in  answer  to  Mr.  Lobb's  insinuated 
Charge  of  Socinianism  against  them  in  his  late  Ap 
peal  to  the  Bishop  of  Worcester  and  Dr.  Edwards. 
With  a  Preface  directed  to  persons  of  all  persua 
sions,  to  call  them  from  frivolous  and  over-eager 
contentions  about  words,  on  all  sides." 

This  year,  (1697,)  was  published,  "  A  Letter  to  a 
Convocation  Man,  concerning  the  Rights,  Powers, 
and  Privileges  of  that  Body,"  (said  to  be  written  by 
Dr.  Binks,)  which  laid  the  foundation  of  a  long  and 
warm  controversy  among  the  members  of  the  Es 
tablished  Church  about  Convocations.  Their  contro 
versy  was  not  managed  with  less  heat  or  scandal 
than  that  among  the  Dissenters.  I  have  given  some 
account  of  the  chief  writings  on  both  sides,  in  my 
"  Abridgement."! 

*  Who,  also,  published,  in  1710,  "A  Review  of  the  Case  of 
Liturgies  and  their  Imposition,"  in  answer  to  Dr.  Bennet.  In 
the  Preface,  the  author  questions  the  authority  for  "  the  con 
tents  of  the  149th  Psalm,"  on  "  power  given  to  the  Church,  to 
rule  the  consciences  of  men,"  and  of  the  clause  in  the  20th  Ar 
ticle,  on  "  authority  in  controversies  of  faith."  See  supra, 
p.  254,  n. 

Mr.  Benjamin  Robinson  died  in  1724.  Even  after  the  Revo 
lution,  he  was  vexed  by  the  Ecclesiastical  Courts  for  having 
engaged  in  tuition,  but  protected  by  the  Bishops  Lloyd  and 
Burnet,  in  whose  dioceses  he  had  resided.  See  Toulmin's  "  Hist. 
Vie\v,"  pp.  251—  253.—  ED. 

f  Vol  i.  pp.  554--560,— C. 


398  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

April  5,  O.  S.  died  Charles  XL  King  of  Sweden, 
in  the  forty-second  year  of  his  age,  and  the  thirty- 
seventh  of  his  reign,  leaving  his  crown  to  his  son 
Charles  XII.  then  scarce  fifteen  years  old,  who  after 
wards  made  a  great  noise  in  Europe.* 

In  July,  the  Elector  of  Saxony  was  chosen  King 
of  Poland.f  Not  long  after,  (Sept.  20,  N.  S.)  the 
peace  was  concluded  between  the  French  and  us 
at  Ryswick,:j:  one  of  King  William's  palaces  in 
Holland,  which  was  no  small  mortification  to  the 
Jacobites,  who  saw  their  admired  monarch  forced 
to  abandon  his  dependant,  King  James,  notwith 
standing  his  having  openly  declared,  more  than  once, 
that  he  would  never  lay  down  his  arms  till  he  had 
restored  him  to  his  throne. 

This  Ryswick  peace  was  not  at  first  much  relished 
in  France  by  the  populace,  nor,  indeed,  by  any  that 
did  not  enter  into  the  views  of  their  Grand  Monarch. 

*  Till  1718,  when  he  was  killed,  while  reconnoitering  the 
works,  at  the  siege  of  Fredericshall,  in  Norway.  See  Voltaire's 
Histoire,  (1764,)  ii.  179. 

"  His  fall  was  destined  to  a  barren  strand, 
A  petty  fortress,  and  a  dubious  hand  : 
He  left  the  name,  at  which  the  world  grew  pale, 
To  point  a  moral,  or  adorn  a  tale."     Johnson. — ED. 
f  To  secure  his  election,  he  had  embraced  the  Roman  Catho 
lic  religion,  a  thing  that  many  were  startled  at  ;  but  his  crown 
never  sat  easy  on  his  head. — C. 

I  Soon  after  which,  the  King  sent  the  Earl  of  Portland  Am 
bassador  Extraordinary  into  France.  This,  some  said,  was  an 
embassy  of  splendour. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  399 

They  thought  that  too  much  was  yielded,  and  the 
courage,  resolution,  and  wisdom  of  King  William 
were  celebrated  and  admired  ;  but,  as  for  the  steadi 
ness  of  the  great  Louis,  they  could  not  tell  what  was 
become  of  it. 

They  found  that  by  this  peace  he  restored  to  his 
neighbours  the  conquests  he  had  made  upon  them 
since  the  treaty  of  Nimeguen  ;  but  they  did  not  as 
yet  know,  that  he  did  it  in  hope  that  having  dis 
armed  and  broken  the  confederacy,  he  might  get  all 
again  at  the  death  of  the  King  of  Spain,  who  having 
been,  for  many  years,  in  bad  health,  was  now  in  so 
sinking  a  condition,  that  many  thought  he  could 
hardly  live  a  month  to  an  end.  When  this  was 
once  discovered,  they  greatly  applauded  the  very 
step  that  before  filled  them  with  chagrin. 

The  Marquis  de  Langallarey,  in  his  Memoirs,  men 
tions  a  present  of  diamonds,  of  the  value  of  half  a 
million,*  which  he,  being  sent  from  Paris,  delivered 
with  his  own  hands  to  a  certain  Lady  Ambassadress 
at  the  Hague ;  which  facilitated  this  peace,  that 
really  gave  the  French  King  the  advantageous  oppor 
tunity  of  securing  to  his  family  the  Spanish  succes 
sion,  and  which  he  did  not  fail  of  improving  ac 
cordingly. 

To  us,  in  England,  though  this  Eyswick  treaty 
was  not  so  advantageous  as  could  have  been  wished, 
yet  it  seems  to  have  been  prudently  concluded,  since 
the  contentions  then  rising  that  afterwards  grew  to 

*  Of  livres;  above  20001.— ED. 


400  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

an  height  between  the  two  Houses  of  Parliament, 
might  have  made  it  less  beneficial,  had  not  the  pre 
sent  opportunity  been  improved. 

Care  was  taken  that  the  supplies  for  this  year 
should  be  raised  within  the  year.*  It  was  observed 
that  Mr.  Prior,  who  afterwards  had  such  a  hand  in 
the  peace  with  France,  in  1713,  was  first  engaged 
in  public  business  by  his  being  recommended  by 
Lord  Halifax  to  the  Earls  of  Pembroke  and  Jersey, 
and  Sir  Joseph  Williamson,  his  Majesty's  Ambas 
sadors  extraordinary  for  negotiating  the  peace  of 
Ryswick,  as  a  fit  person  to  be  their  secretary  at 
the  conferences  with  the  French,  and  also  to  the 
Earl  of  Portland  when  he  went  in  the  same  charac 
ter  to  the  French  Court. 

When  King  William  returned  from  abroad,  he 
passed  through  the  City  of  London  in  great  pomp.f 
Sir  Humphrey  Edwin,  Lord  Mayor  this  year,  car 
ried  the  sword  before  him,  (according  to  custom)  in 
a  gown  of  crimson  velvet. 

This  gentleman  not  only  worshipped  God  public 
ly  with  the  Dissenters,  according  to  his  usual  custom, 
but  carried  the  regalia  with  him,  which  very  much 
disgusted  many  of  the  Church  of  England.  Tra 
gical  were  the  exclamations  and  complaints  made 
upon  this  occasion.  Among  others,  Dr.  Nichols  tells 
the  world,J  that  "  to  the  great  reproach  of  the  laws, 

*  See  the  Life  of  Charles,  late  Earl  of  Halifax,  p.  41,  &c.— C. 
f  "  1697,  Nov.  16  ;  but  in  nothing  approaching  that  of  King 
Charles  II."     Evelyn,  iii.  362.— ED. 

J  <(  Apparat.  ad  Defens.  Eccles.  Anglic."  p.  108. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  401 

and  of  the  City  magistracy,  he  carried  the  sword  with 
him  to  a  nasty  conventicle,  that  was  kept  in  one  of 
the  City  halls,*  which  horrid  crime  f  one  of  his  own 
party  defended,  by  giving  this  arrogant  reason  for  it, 
that  by  the  Act  of  Parliament  by  which  they  have 
their  liberty,  their  religion  was  as  much  established 
as  ours." 

Many  heartily  wished,  that  this  action  had  been 
waived,  as  tending  to  enrage ;  yet  were  utterly  to 
seek  for  the  horridness  of  the  crime.  Nor  could 
they  discern  the  great  arrogance  of  the  plea,  when 
the  religion  owned  in  churches  and  meetings,  having 
the  same  object  of  worship,  the  same  rule  of  faith 
and  life,  the  same  essential  principles,  and  the  same 
aim  and  end,  cannot  differ  in  any  capital  matter. 
The  allowance  of  the  law  is  of  necessity  a  sufficient 
establishment.^.  However,  this  measure  drew  un 
happy  consequences  after  it,  both  in  this  reign,  and 
in  that  which  succeeded. 

*  "  A  hall  belonging  to  one  of  the  mean,  mechanical  com 
panies."  Defence,  p.  127. — ED. 

f  "  Atrox  facinus." — C. 

"  Bold  action."     Defence,  p.  127. — ED. 

J  Thus  Lord  Mansfield,  in  his  speech  to  the  Lords  (1767) 
"  in  the  cause  between  the  City  of  London  and  the  Dissenters," 
on  the  nomination  of  Sheriffs  : 

"  The  Toleration-act  renders  that  which  was  illegal  before, 
now  legal.  The  P-ssenters'  way  of  worship  is  permitted  and 
allowed  by  this  act.  It  is  not  only  exempted  from  punishment, 
but  rendered  innocent  and  lawful.  It  is  established."  See  Dr. 
Furneaux'  "  Letters  to  Blackstone,"  Appendix.— ED. 
VOL.  I,  2  D 


402  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

No  sooner  was  the  King  returned  with  peace, 
than  there  were  warm  debates  in  Parliament  about 
the  number  of  the  forces  that  should  be  kept  on  foot 
among  us ;  and  a  variety  of  pamphlets  were  pub 
lished  on  that  subject.* 

The  King  freely  told  his  Parliament  that,  for  the 
present,  England  could  not  be  safe  without  a  land 
force.  He  hoped  they  would  not  give  those  who 
meant  them  ill  the  opportunity  of  effecting  that, 
under  the  notion  of  a  peace,  which  they  could  not 
bring  to  pass  by  a  war.  This  set  the  members 
upon  arguing  strenuously  on  one  side  and  the  other, 
and  when  they  had  finished  the  argument,  it  was 
determined  by  the  Commons,  that  all  the  land  forces 
of  this  kingdom,  raised  since  September  29,  1680, 
should  be  paid  and  disbanded.  The  King,  finding 
the  stream  run  very  strong,  wisely  consented  to  the 
Act  for  that  purpose,  though  not  without  a  discerni 
ble  regret. 

The  war  being  now  at  an  end  abroad,  some  dis 
covered  an  inclination  to  give  disturbance  to  the 
Dissenters  at  home,  particularly  about  their  engaging 
in  the  instructing  of  youth ;  of  which  I  have  given 
an  instance  in  my  abridgment.f 

*  The  chief  of  which  may  be  met  with  in  the  "  Collection  of 
State  Tracts,"  during  the  reign  of  King  William  III.  vol.  ii. 
— C. 

f  Vol.  i.pp.  551-553.— C. 

This  was  the  case  of  "  Mr.  Joshua  Oldfield,  pastor  of  a  con 
gregation  of  Dissenters  in  Coventry.     Upon  a  suspicion  of  his 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  403 

The  Czar  of  Muscovy  soon  followed  his  Majes 
ty  to  England,  but  during  his  whole  continuance 
here,  he  remained  incognito >,  among  the  ambassadors, 
whom,  to  cover  his  journey,  he  ordered  into  Holland 
and  England.  Many  were  the  speculations  occa 
sioned  by  this  peculiar  progress  of  so  great  a  prince, 
in  order  to  his  own  improvement  in  knowledge,  that 
he  might  be  the  better  able  afterwards  to  improve 
his  subjects.*  But  he  did  not  live  long  enough  to 
finish  many  of  the  projects  with  which  his  head  was 
filled. 

The  Duke  of  Burgundy  was  at  this  time  married 
to  the  Princess  of  Savoy,  the  prospect  of  which  was 
the  great  inducement  that  prevailed  with  the  Duke, 
her  father,  to  listen  to  the  French,  and  cast  off  the 
confederates.  But  though  this  great  match  was 

instructing  youth,  he  was  cited  to  appear  in  the  Ecclesiastical 
Court  at  Coventry,  Oct.  14,  1697. 

"  The  defendant  obtained  a  stay  of  the  proceedings,  and 
brought  up  the  matter  to  the  King's  Bench,  where  it  was  de 
pending  three  or  four  terms,  to  his  great  trouble  and  charge. 
A  prohibition  was  at  length  obtained,"  and  "  the  Ecclesiastical 
Court  thought  fit  to  let  the  cause  fall ;  not  without  intimation 
from  his  Majesty  that  he  was  not  pleased  with  such  prosecu 
tions." — ED. 

*  "  1698.  The  Czar  of  Muscovy  being  come  to  England,  and 
having  a  mind  to  see  the  building  of  ships,  hired  my  house  at  Say's 
Court,  and  made  it  his  court  and  palace,  new  furnished  for  him 
by  the  King. 

"  June  9.  To  Deptford,  to  see  how  miserably  the  Czar  had 
left  my  house,  after  three  months  making  it  his  court."  Evelyn, 
iii.  364,  365.— ED. 

2  D    2 


404  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

compassed,  many  things  hindered  it  from  answering 
the  ends  of  the  agents  and  projectors. 

December  20,  this  year  (1697)  died  Mr  Thomas 
Firmin,*  so  noted  for  his  acts  of  charity,  by  which 
he  did  much  good.  But  it  was  feared  by  many,  that 
the  opportunity  this  gave  him  of  spreading  the  So- 
cinian  notions,  of  which  he  was  a  zealous  admirer, 
at  the  same  time  did  so  much  hurt,  that  it  might  be 
justly  questioned  which  of  the  two  was  the  greater. 
The  next  year  his  Life  was  published,  with  a  ser 
mon  on  Luke  x.  36,  37,  upon  occasion  of  his  death  :f 
and  an  account  of  his  religion,  and  of  the  state  of 
the  Unitarian  controversy. 

*  In  his  sixty-sixth  year.  See  supra,  p.  63,  note-^.  "He 
had  often  signified  his  desire  to  be  buried  in  Christ-Church 
Hospital,  the  care  of  which  had  been  so  much  upon  his  heart. 
His  relatives  have  interred  him  in  the  cloisters  there ;  and 
placed  in  the  wall  adjoining,  a  marble,  with  an  inscription  to  his 
memory."  Life,  (1698)  p.  89. ED. 

f  "Preached  in  the  country."  After  showing  how  desirable 
that  "  our  faith  be  right,  as  well  as  works  good/'  the  preacher, 
who  does  not  appear  to  have  entertained  any  apprehensions  as 
to  the  beneficial  influence  on  society  of  such  a  distinguished 
Christian  philanthropist  as  Thomas  Firmin,  thus  practically 
concludes  : 

"  I  may  err,  and  yet  be  saved.  In  the  dark  and  intricate 
walks  of  controversy,  I  may  make  false  steps,  without  being  at 
all  the  more  out  of  my  way  to  blessedness.  But,  if  I  am  not  a 
Samaritan,  a  doer  of  good,  either  in  fact  or  in  inclination,  and 
spirit,  I  neither  have  a  right  to  be  loved  by  my  neighbour, 
nor  to  be  accepted  by  God.  No,  not  though  I  be  a  son  of  the 
Church,  by  an  orthodox  faith  and  doctrine  ;  or  even  a  father  in 
the  Church,  a  priest  or  levite."  Life,  &c.  p.  117. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  405 

The  palace  of  Whitehall  was  burnt  down  Jan.  8, 
1698,  through  the  carelessness  of  a  laundress,  and 
has  never  been  rebuilt.  It  had  nothing  of  state  be 
longing  to  it,  yet  it  was  reckoned  one  of  the  most 
convenient  palaces  in  Europe. 

Dr.  Wake  published  "  An  Appeal  to  all  the  true 
Members  of  the  Church  of  England,  on  behalf  of 
the  King's  Ecclesiastical  Supremacy,"  wherein  he 
made  this  frank  declaration  among  others ;  that 
"  nothing  preserved  them,"  that  is,  those  of  the 
Established  Church,  "  from  ruin  and  desolation,  but 
their  not  having  power  of  themselves  to  do  the 
Church  a  mischief,  and  to  throw  all  into  confusion, 
in  such  times  of  faction  and  discontent,  heats  and 
animosities,  to  the  certain  scandal  and  division  of 
the  Church,  and  it  may  be  to  a  new  confusion  of  all 
things  in  the  state  too."  Though  the  Dissenters 
were  not  so  wise  or  good  as  they  should  be,  yet  there 
appeared  (thanks  be  to  God)  no  such  danger  from 
that  quarter. 

I  published,  (1698)  a  funeral  sermon  for  Mrs.  s 
Elizabeth  Williams,  unhappily  overset  with  the 
news  of  the  death  of  her  sister,  the  Countess  of 
Montrath,  in  Ireland,  too  hastily  reported  to  her. 
Though  she  continued  ill  for  some  time,  she  never 
thoroughly  recovered  her  senses.  In  her  I  lost  a 
very  good  friend.  Yet,  Mr.  Joseph  Boyse  who  had 
been  Mr.  Williams's  assistant  in  Dublin,  being  at  that 
time  in  London,  and  he  having  been  much  longer 
acquainted  with  her,  I  was  for  his  preaching  the 


406  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

funeral  sermon,  but  could  not  prevent  its  being 
devolved  upon  me.  When  I  had  preached  it  with 
tolerable  acceptance,  Mr.  Williams  insisted  on  my 
sending  it  to  the  press,  and  would  have  been  apt  to 
have  resented  it,  had  I  not  readily  complied. 

The  Earl  of  Portland's  public  entry  at  Paris,*  was 
very  magnificent,  and  he  received  peculiar  honours. 
The  French  King  opened  to  him  the  subtle  pro 
ject  of  dividing  the  Spanish  monarchy.  It  was 
thought  he  had  more  marks  of  esteem  and  affection 
given  him,  that  his  eyes  might  be  dazzled,  and  he 
the  better  drawn  into  the  snare,  and  possess  his 
master  with  raised  apprehensions,  of  the  entire  con 
fidence  and  amity  which  the  King  of  France  was 
disposed  to  live  in  with  him.  It  has  been  saidf  that 
this  famous  embassy  cost  King  William  80,000/.  to 
little  purpose  ;  and  that  no  ambassador  was  ever 
more  honoured  or  less  successful,  who  could  obtain 
nothing,  either  as  to  the  removal  of  King  James,  or 
in  favour  of  the  Protestants  of  France,  against  whom 
the  persecution,  in  many  places  interrupted  during 
the  war,  began  to  rage  afresh,  with  redoubled  vio 
lence. 

When  King  William  was  afterwards  at  the  Hague, 
Count  Tallard  by  his  master's  order  reminded  him 
of  the  agreement  concerning  the  succession  of  the 
Crown  of  Spain  ;  and  on  Aug.  19,  the  first  treaty 
of  Partition  was  adjusted  and  concluded.  Had  this 

*  See  supra,  p.  400,  note. — ED. 

t  Life  of  King  William  III.,  in  3  vols.  iii.  340. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  407 

Treaty  been  communicated  to  the  English  Parlia 
ment,  or  managed  with  their  approbation,  some  ill 
consequences  had  been  prevented  ;  or,  had  it  been 
duly  complied  with,  and  executed  by  the  French, 
that  were  so  eager  and  forward  for  it,  it  would  have 
prevented  that  vast  effusion  of  blood  and  treasure  in 
the  prosecution  of  the  war  with  France  and  Spain. 
But  nothing  can  be  more  evident,  than  that  this 
Treaty  of  Partition  was  contrived  only  to  procure  a 
will  in  favour  of  the  Infants  of  France. 

The  persons  whom  the  King  entrusted  to  trans 
act  this  affair  were  Lord  Sornmers,  the  Earls  of 
Portland,  Orford,  and  Jersey,  Mr.  Charles  Montague, 
and  Mr.  Secretary  Vernon.  All  but  the  Earl  of 
Jersey  and  Mr.  Vernon,  were  impeached  by  the 
House  of  Commons  of  high  crimes  and  misdemean 
ours,  and  the  King  was  addressed  to  remove  them 
from  his  presence  and  councils  for  ever. 

A  petition  was  this  year  presented  to  the  Parlia 
ment  of  Scotland  from  the  general  council  of  their 
India  Company,*  complaining  of  the  opposition  they 
met  with  from  the  Parliament  of  England,  and  the 
English  Ministers  at  Hamburgh,  by  which  subscrip 
tions  were  discouraged,  &c.  intimating  that  the  ho 
nour  and  independence  of  their  nation,  as  well  as  the 
credit  and  authority  of  their  Parliament  was  struck 
at  through  their  sides.  The  Scotch  Parliament 
hereupon  made  an  address  to  the  King.  In  Novem 
ber  this  year  the  Scots  landed  with  their  ships  on 

*  See  supra,  p.  384. — ED. 


408  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  north  side  of  the  Isthmus  of  Darien  in  America, 
designing  there  to  settle  a  colony. 

About  this  time  the  method  of  a  better  correspon 
dence  among  the  Dissenters,  through  the  kingdom, 
was  under  consideration,  as  it  had  been  some  time 
before.  Had  it  taken  effect  it  might  have  prevent 
ed  several  disorders  and  inconveniences  afterwards 
complained  of;  but  an  unaccountable  sort  of  timo- 
rousness  and  indolence  prevented  it.  A  letter  from 
Mr.  William  Taylor,  of  Newberry,  to  Mr.  Sanders, 
at  that  time  a  Dissenting  Minister  at  Oxford,  falling 
into  a  wrong  hand,  it  was  published  in  a  pamphlet 
with  remarks  ;  and  again  inserted  by  Dr.  Atter- 
bury  in  his  Appendix*  to  a  tract  of  his,  concern 
ing  "  the  Rights,  Powers,  and  Privileges  of  an  Eng 
lish  Convocation."  But  that  writer  much  overdid  it, 
in  say  ing,  t  that  "  they  of  the  presbyterial  congrega 
tional  way,  have  their  convocation  in  as  regular  arid 
full,  though  not  in  so  open  a  manner  as  the  members 
of  the  Church  of  England  desire  to  have,  as  appears 
from  that  circular  summons  which  about  eighteen 
months  ago  was  issued  out,  and  casually  came  into 
a  hand  that  it  did  not  belong  to." 

A  peace  was  concluded  at  Carlowitz,  between  the 
Emperor  of  Germany  and  the  Turks,  of  which  the 
Lord  Pagit,  Ambassador  from  England,  and  the 
Heer  Collier,  from  Holland,  were  the  mediators. 

King  William  returned  from  Holland  in  Decem 
ber.  On  the  6th  of  that  month,  a  new  Parliament 

*  No.  ii. — C.  f  p.  xxvi, — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  409 

met,  and  the  Commons  chose  Sir  Thomas  Littleton 
Speaker.  The  King,  in  his  speech,  discovered  a 
desire  to  have  a  good  body  of  land  forces  kept  on 
foot,  as  well  as  a  good  navy  maintained  at  sea.  For 
though  he  had  taken  measures  to  secure  the  Spa 
nish  succession,  and  preserve  the  tranquillity  of 
Europe,  yet  he  was  apprehensive,  that  if  England 
was  too  much  disarmed,  it  would  be  too  great  a 
temptation  to  the  ambition  of  France  to  break 
through  all  treaties,  in  order  to  invade  the  monarchy 
of  Spain,  when  the  drooping  King  there  made  a 
demise.  But  it  soon  appeared  that  the  Parliament 
had  other  views,  which  gave  the  King  no  small  un 
easiness. 

May  30,  this  year,  (1698,)  Dr.  Thomas  White, 
the  deprived  Bishop  of  Peterborough,  died  in  Lon 
don,  and  was  buried  at  St.  Gregory's,  by  St.  Paul's, 
June  4.* 

1699.  The  body  of  the  Dissenters  being  now 
grown  cooler,  and  such  as  were  the  hottest  among 
them  seeming  to  be  come  a  little  to  themselves,  Mr. 
Williams  published  a  treatise,  entitled  *4  An  End  to 
Discord ;"  wherein  he  stated  the  Orthodox,  together 
with  the  Socinian  and  Antinomian  notions,  as  to 
the  Satisfaction  of  Christ,  and  represented  the  Con- 

*  "  His  hearse  was  accompanied  by  two  non-juring  bishops, 
Turner  and  Lloyd,  with  forty  other  non-juror  clergymen,  who 
would  not  stay  the  office  of  the  burial,  because  the  Dean  of  St. 
Paul's  had  appointed  a  conforming  clergyman  to  read  the  office." 
Evelyn,  iii.  365. — ED. 


410  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

fession,  published  by  the  Congregational  Brethren, 
in  order  to  the  clearing  themselves  of  the  most  dan 
gerous  of  Dr.  Crisp's  opinions,  as  sufficient  to  answer 
the  end  proposed. 

It  so  fell  out  that  Mr.  Stephen  Lobb*  died  very 
suddenly  about  this  time.  He  came  to  town  from 
Hampstead,  (for  some  years  the  place  of  his  abode,) 
and  going  to  dine  with  Mr.  George  Griffyth,  his 
blood  stagnated  as  he  sat  at  the  table,  and  he  fell 
down  from  his  chair.  A  surgeon  was  sent  for,  who 
pricked  him  with  his  lancet  in  more  places  than  one, 
but  no  blood  could  be  gotten  from  him,  though  it 
was  said  it  came,  some  time  afterwards,  in  great 
plenty,  as  he  lay  in  his  coffin.  He  was  conveyed  to 
a  public  hall,  and  there  continued  till  the  time  of 
his  interment.  It  was  the  opinion  of  many,  that 
had  he  been  put  into  a  warm  bed  immediately,  and 
there  chafed  and  rubbed,  and  had  suitable  methods 
taken  with  him,  there  might  have  been  some  hopes 
of  his  being  recovered.  After  these  things,  the  con 
test  that  had  so  long  continued  among  our  minis 
ters,  and  so  much  prejudiced  the  Dissenting  interest, 
came  to  an  end. 

I  this  year  preached  and  printed  a  sermon  to  the 
"  Society  for  Reformation  of  Manners,"  at  their 
common  desire,  and  dedicated  it  to  Sir  Richard 
Levet.  It  deserves  observation,  that  in  this  society, 
the  Dissenters,  from  the  first  erection  of  it,  were  as 
heartily  concerned  as  the  Established  Church,  not- 

*  See  supra,  p.  375. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  411 

withstanding  some  have,  upon  occasion,  shown  they 
were  not  well  pleased  that  it  should  be  so. 

It  was  at  length,  after  repeated  debates,  enacted 
that  the  land  forces  in  England  should  be  reduced 
to  7000  men/  and  those  in  Ireland  to  12,000,  all 
natives.  It  thus  became  necessary  for  the  King  to 
part  even  with  his  Dutch  regiment  of  Guards,  who 
came  over  with  him  to  help  to  save  this  nation  from 
ruin,  and  had  constantly  attended  him  in  all  the 
actions  in  which  he  had  been  engaged  abroad ; 
which,  as  it  was  a  very  tender  point  to  his  Majesty, 
so  it  did  not  look  like  so  grateful  a  return  to  their 
glorious  deliverer,  as  the  professions  and  declarations 
of  several  Parliaments  had  encouraged  him  to  ex 
pect.  When  the  King  passed  the  bill,  it  was  his 
judgment  that  the  nation  was  left  too  much  exposed. 
At  the  same  time,  he  intimated,  that  he  gave  his 
consent,  because  it  was  his  fixed  opinion,  that  no 
thing  could  be  so  fatal  to  them  as  any  distrust  or 
jealousy  between  him  and  his  people. 

Besides  the  interest  privately  made  by  sundry 
persons  of  distinction,  (among  whom  Lord  Halifax 
was  a  principal  person,)  who  would  gladly  have  had 
his  Majesty  made  easy,  in  a  particular  which  it  was 
apprehended  went  very  near  him,  he  sent  a  "  mes 
sage  to  the  Commons,  written  with  his  own  hand," 

"  1G98,  9  Jan.  The  House  of  Commons  persist  in  re 
fusing  more  than  7000  men  to  be  a  standing  army,  and  no  stran 
gers  to  be  in  the  number.  This  displeased  the  court  party." 
Evelyn,  iii.  367. — ED. 


412  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

about  these  Dutch  Guards,  (a  regiment  who  had 
faithfully  attended  his  person  from  his  youth,  follow 
ed  his  fortune  every  where,  and  to  whom,  besides  in 
numerable  other  signal  services,  he  owed  his  victory 
at  the  famous  battle  of  the  Boyne,)  and  therein  told 
them,  "  that  he  intends  to  send  them  away  imme 
diately,  unless  out  of  a  consideration  to  him,  the 
House  be  disposed  to  find  a  way  for  continuing 
them  longer  in  his  service,  which  his  Majesty  should 
take  very  kindly."  But  so  firmly  were  they  resolved 
upon  the  point,  that  even  such  a  message  as  this  had 
not  the  least  effect* 

The  House  made  no  other  return  to  him  in  their 
address  than  that  the  punctual  execution  of  the  late 
act,  would  prevent  all  occasions  of  distrust  or  jea 
lousy  .f  His  great  soul  bore  even  this  repulse  cou 
rageously  ;  but  such  treatment  was  looked  upon  by 
many  to  be  very  hard.  Some  that  were  observed  to 
be  active  in  their  endeavours  to  keep  the  Commons 
from  complying  with  this  motion,  made  by  one 
that  they  themselves  could  not  but  own  had  saved 
the  nation  from  Popery  and  slavery,  could  never 
after  recover  the  good  opinion  of  the  King,  or  a 
number  of  his  most  dutiful  and  loyal  subjects. 

This  was  not  the  only  thing  that  this  saviour  of 
our  country  had  to  give  him  uneasiness,  in  the  latter 

*  Burnet,  ii.  219.  "  1699,  May  4.  The  Court  party  have 
little  influence  in  this  session."  Evelyn,  iii.  369. — ED. 

f  They  declared,  "  the  keeping  up  foreign  troops  not  con 
sistent  with  the  Constitution."  Chron.  Hist.  i.  295. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    C  ALA  Mr.  413 

part  of  his  reign.  He  had  also  much  fatigue  about 
the  Scotch  India  Company.  They,  being  very  much 
dissatisfied,  wrote  to  Lord  Seafield,  (as  they  had  done 
before,)  reminding  him  of  his  promise  concerning 
their  affair,  and  the  address  of  their  Parliament  to 
his  Majesty.  He  sent  them  word,  that  he  had  pre 
sented  their  petition  to  the  King,  and  was  com 
manded  to  let  them  know,  that  there  being  accounts 
that  the  ships  belonging  to  them  were  arrived  on 
the  coasts  of  America,  and  their  particular  design 
not  being  communicated  to  his  Majesty,  he  delayed 
to  give  any  answer  until  he  received  certain  in 
formation  of  their  settlement.  Upon  which,  their 
council-general  soon  after  gave  his  Majesty  an  ac 
count,  by  letter,  of  their  settlement  at  Darien,  and 
intimated  that,  with  all  humility,  they  confidently 
expected  his  royal  favour  and  protection. 

This  was  a  matter  that  had  no  small  difficulty 
attending  it.  Such  a  settlement  alarmed  most  of  the 
nations  in  Europe.  The  Spanish  Ambassador  in 
England  soon  presented  an  angry  memorial,*  and 
signified  that  his  master  received  the  advice  of  the 
attempt  of  the  Scots  to  make  a  settlement  at  Darien, 
as  a  rupture  of  the  alliance  between  the  two  crowns. 
The  Scots  took  pains  to  justify  the  legality  of  their 
settlement,  but  could  not  satisfy  our  Court  by  any 
thing  they  could  offer.  Therefore,  Sir  William 
Beeston,  Governor  of  Jamaica,  by  order  from  Eng- 

*  See  "  State  Tracts  in  the  reign  of  King  William,"  iii.  495, 
where  it  is  considered  distinctly. — C. 


414  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

land,  published  a  proclamation  against  those  con 
cerned  in  it,  strictly  commanding  his  Majesty's  sub 
jects  in  those  parts  to  have  no  correspondence  with 
them,  nor  to  give  them  any  assistance.  Like  pro 
clamations  were  issued  out  by  the  governors  of  Bar- 
badoes,  New  York,  and  New  England.* 

This  proceeding  was  thought  necessary  to  prevent 
a  rupture  between  England  and  Spain  ;  but  the 
Scotch  were  enraged.  The  council  of  Caledonia  ad 
dressed  the  King.  The  Spanish  Ambassador  pre 
sented  a  second  memorial,  and  the  French  Ambas 
sador  a  memorial  about  a  ship  that  was  cast  away 
near  Caledonia  Harbour.  The  Scots  petitioned  his 
Majesty  to  take  off  the  force  and  effects  of  the  pro 
clamations,  and  to  signify  his  royal  pleasure  that 
they  be  supplied  with  necessaries  in  the  common 
and  ordinary  way ;  and  that  their  Parliament  be 
suffered  to  meet  about  this  weighty  matter,  at  the 
day  appointed  in  November.  The  King  directed 
Lord  Seafield  to  answer  that  he  would  protect  and 
encourage  their  trade,  and  take  care  they  should 
have  the  same  freedom  of  trade  and  commerce  with 
the  English  plantations  as  ever.  As  to  the  Parlia 
ment,  they  were  adjourned  to  the  5th  of  March  en 
suing  ;  and  he  would  cause  them  to  meet  when  he 
judged  the  good  of  the  nation  required  it. 

There  was  also  an  uneasiness  in  the  English  Par 
liament  this  year,  about  the  Irish  forfeitures.  The 

*  See  Dr.  Holmes's  American  Annals,"  (1808,)  ii.  35,36.— 
ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  415 

Commons,  who  had  often  touched  on  this  matter  be 
fore,  voted  a  resumption  of  all  the  forfeited  estates 
in  that  kingdom,  for  the  use  of  the  public.  They 
resolved,  "  That  the  advising,  procuring,  and  pass 
ing  the  said  grants  of  the  forfeited  and  other  estates 
in  Ireland,  had  been  the  occasion  of  contracting 
great  debts  upon  the  nation,  and  levying  heavy 
taxes  upon  the  people  :  that  the  advising  and  pass 
ing  the  said  grants  was  highly  reflecting  on  the 
King's  honour;  and  that  the  officers  and  instru 
ments  concerned  in  the  procuring  and  passing  these 
grants,  had  highly  failed  in  the  performance  of  their 
trust  and  duty."*  That  the  bill  for  the  Irish  for- 

*  Chron.  Hist.  i.  298.  Besides  356,598  acres  in  unequal  por 
tions  to  the  Earls  of  Romney,  Albemarle,  Portland,  Athlone,  and 
Galway,  "  95,649  acres,  being  the  private  estate  of  King  James, 
had  been  granted  to  the  Lady  Elizabeth  Villiers,  Countess  of 
Orkney,  a  she-favourite  of  King  William's."  Ibid. 

Whiston,  on  the  authority  of  his  "  patron,  Bishop  Moor," 
mentions  "  the  Lady  Villiers,  with  whom  it  was  well-known  King 
William  had  been  too  familiar,  and  had  given  her  great  endow 
ments.  Upon  the  Queen's  death,  the  Archbishop  (Tennison) 
took  the  freedom  to  represent  to  him  the  great  injury  he  had 
done  that  excellent  wife,  by  his  adultery  with  the  Lady  Villiers. 
The  King  took  it  well,  and  did  not  deny  his  crime,  but  faith 
fully  promised  the  Archbishop,  he  would  have  no  more  to  do 
with  her."  Memoirs,  (1753,)  i.  100. 

Such  was  "  the  man  of  wondrous  soul,"  celebrated  by  a  grate 
ful  Nonconformist  poet,  "  the  monarch"  that  could  "  be  shown" 
to  the  disordered  mental  vision  of  his  fond  admirers  ; — 
"  Under  no  shape  but  angels',  or  his  own, 
Gabriel,  or  William,  on  the  British  throne." 

A  bathos 


416  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

feitures  might  the  more  effectually  be  secured,  it  was 
agreed  to  tack  it  to  a  money  bill,  which  gave  the 
King  and  Court  no  small  disgust. 

Seven  Commissioners  (the  Earl  of  Drogheda, 
Francis  Annesly,  John  Trenchard,  James  Hamilton, 
and  Henry  Langford,  Esqrs.,  Sir  Richard  Leving, 
and  Sir  Francis  Brewster,)  were  appointed  by  the 
Commons  for  taking  an  account  of  these  forfeited 
estates.  They  acted  with  great  resolution,  and  their 
report  had  several  things  in  it  reflecting  on  the  King, 
his  ministers,  and  favourites.  The  Lords,  partly  out 
of  complaisance  to  his  Majesty,  and  partly  also,  out 
of  their  dislike  of  the  innovation  of  tacking  one  bill 
to  another,  were  against  the  Bill,  and  made  great 
A  bathos  which  brings  to  recollection, 

•'  Dalhousie  !  the  great  God  of  War, 

Lieutenant-colonel  of  the  Earl  of  Marr." 

William,  before  he  had  the  wealth  of  kingdoms  to  bestow 
on  favourites,  is  said  to  have  exceeded  Charles  II.  by  adding 
cruelty  to  conjugal  injustice.  Burnet  has  a  mysterious  sentence 
on  the  King's  "  one  vice  ;"  but  there  is  the  following  represen 
tation  by  "  Dr.  Covell/'  the  Princess's  chaplain,  written  in  1685, 
"  from  Dieren/'  the  Court  of  the  Prince. 

"  The  Princess's  heart  is  ready  to  break,  and  yet  she,  every 
day,  counterfeits  the  greatest  joy.  We  dare  no  more  speak  to 
her.  The  Prince  hath  infallibly  made  her  his  absolute  slave. 
None  but  pimps  and  bawds  must  expect  any  tolerable  usage 
here."  See  "Correspondence  of  Lord  Clarendon,"  &c.  i.  165. 
and  Mr.  Singer's  note. 

This  letter  the  Prince  intercepted,  having  suspected,  as  he 
tells  Lord  Rochester,  "  que  le  Doctor  Covell,  n'estoit  pas  honest 
homme  ny  un  fidel  domestique."  Ibid.  p.  163.  The  reader  will 
decide  for  himself  the  question  of  credibility  here  at  issue  be 
tween  the  Prince  and  the  Chaplain. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  417 

amendments.  The  Commons  disapproved,  and  de 
sired  a  conference,  which  was  held  accordingly.  The 
Lords  warmly  insisted  on  their  amendments ;  and 
the  Commons  as  vehemently  maintained  their  dis 
agreement.  There  were  also  two  farther  conferences 
on  the  same  subject,  without  success. 

At  length,  the  Commons  were  so  exasperated  as  to 
order  the  lobby  to  be  cleared,  the  back  doors  of  the 
Speaker's  chamber  locked,  the  Sergeant  to  keep  the 
Members  from  going  forth,  and  to  proceed  to  the  con 
sideration  of  the  particulars  of  the  report  of  the  Com 
missioners  of  the  Forfeitures,  with  a  list  of  the  mem 
bers  of  the  Privy  Council  before  them.  His  Majesty 
being  informed  of  the  ferment  they  were  in,  and 
apprehending  the  consequences,  privately  sent  to  the 
Lords  to  pass  the  Bill  without  amendments  ;  which 
they  accordingly  did.  There  were  some  not  even 
yet  satisfied.  They  complained  of  the  persons  in 
trusted  in  the  Commissions  of  Peace  and  Lieute 
nancy,  &c.  But  the  King  bore  all  in  a  manner  that 
was  surprising. 

The  Earl  of  Manchester  about  this  time  succeeded 
the  Earl  of  Jersey,  in  the  embassy  at  the  Court  of 
France,  after  his  return  from  Venice.  This  was  an 
embassy  of  business,  and  the  negotiation  was  carried 
on  with  that  watchfulness,  caution,  and  address,  that 
the  ill  effects  of  the  Spanish  King's  will,  and  the 
Partition  Treaty,  and  the  power  of  France,  kept  at  a 
stand,  till  the  Allies  and  confederates  were  capable  of 
doing  something  to  stop  its  career. 

VOL.  I.  2  E 


418  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

I,  this  year  (1699,)  printed  without  my  name,  "A 
Discourse  concerning  the  Rise  and  Antiquity  of 
Cathedral  Worship,"  in  a  Letter  to  a  friend.  It  was 
afterwards  inserted  in  the  Phoenix,  and  also  taken 
notice  of  by  Dr.  Sherlock,  Dean  of  St.  Paul's. 

July  14,  died  Dr.  William  Bates,*  whose  funeral 
sermon  was  preached  by  Mr.  John  Howe.  He  was 
succeeded  in  his  congregation  at  Hackney,  by  Mr. 
Robert  Billio;  and  in  his  Lectureship  at  Salters' 
Hall,  by  Mr.  George  Hammond. 

September  4,  died,  in  the  53d  year  of  his  age, 
Christian  V.  King  of  Denmark  and  Norway,  after  a 
long  sickness,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Fre 
deric  IV. 

The  affair  of  Darien  gave  yet  farther  disturbance. 
The  Lords  framed  and  passed  an  Act  for  authorizing 
certain  commissioners  of  England  to  treat  with  com 
missioners  of  Scotland,  for  the  weal  of  both  kingdoms; 
but  the  Commons  would  not  concur.  A  proclama 
tion  was  published,  offering  500/.  to  any  that  should 
discover  the  author,  and  200/.  to  any  that  should 
discover  the  printer  of  a  false,  scandalous,  and  trai 
torous  libel,  intituled  "  An  Inquiry  into  the  Causes 
of  the  miscarriages  of  the  Scotch  colony  at  Darien  ; 
or,  an  Answer  to  a  libel  intituled  '  A  Defence  of  the 
Scots  abdicating  Darien.'"t  The  design,  it  was 

*  See  supra,  pp.  345— 348.— ED. 

f  State  Tracts  in  the  reign  of  William  III.  iii.  p.  520. — C. 


.   LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  419 

said,  was  to  create  a  misunderstanding  between 
England  and  Scotland,  and  to  stir  up  sedition  and 
rebellion. 

The  Scots,  by  the  Marquis  of  Tweedale,  presented 
a  national  address  for  the  sitting  of  their  Parliament 
as  soon  as  possible.  One  of  the  commissioners  sig 
nified  to  the  King,  that  it  was  hoped  his  Majesty 
would  be  pleased  to  look  upon  it,  not  only  as  a 
petition  for  allowing  their  Parliament  to  sit,  but 
likewise  as  a  testimony  of  the  nation's  concern  for 
the  interest  of  the  Indian  and  African  Company. 
The  King  made  answer,  that  it  would  be  best  known 
in  Parliament ;  and  that  the  Parliament  could  not 
sit  before  the  14th  of  May,  but  would  then. 

Feb.  6.  N.  s.  died  the  Electoral  Prince  of  Bava 
ria,  grandson  of  a  daughter  of  Spain,  on  whom 
King  Charles  II.  had  by  will  settled  the  succession 
of  the  Spanish  monarchy.  Upon  his  death,  (which 
whether  it  was  natural  or  violent  I  inquire  not)  it 
appeared  necessary  to  England,  France,  and  Hol 
land,  to  enter  into  a  new  partition  treaty,  allotting 
to  Archduke  Charles  of  Austria,  the  portion  de 
signed  for  that  Electoral  prince.  The  aim  of  the 
treaty  was  to  secure  the  peace  and  balance  of  Eu 
rope.  Yet  it  so  fell  out,  that  it  was  really  the  occa 
sion  of  new  troubles  and  difficulties.  The  ministers 
of  France  in  the  Spanish  Court  used  this  very  de 
signed  partition  to  incense  the  Grandees  against  the 
indignity  of  rending  their  monarchy  in  pieces,  and 


420  .      LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

made  it  a  convincing  and  prevalent  argument  to  ob 
tain  a  will,  declaring  the  Duke  of  Anjou,  the  second 
grandson  of  France,  universal  heir. 

The  Marquis  of  Langallarie  *  was  sent  into  Spain 
some  time  before  the  King's  death,  with  the  project 
of  a  will,  whereby  the  Duke  of  Anjou  was  to  be  de 
clared  heir  of  that  whole  monarchy.  This  he  de 
livered  to  Cardinal  Portocarero,  who,  in  concert  with 
the  Marquis  D'Harcourt,  who  was  upon  the  spot, 
(after  some  alterations  and  amendments  made  at  the 
Spanish  Court,)  got  it  signed  October  2,  and  the 
Marquis  de  Langallerie  carried  back  a  copy  of  it  so 
signed  to  Paris.  From  that  time,  the  French  Court 
was  big  with  expectations  of  the  change  approach 
ing,  and  very  busy  in  making  all  possible  provision 
for  it.  It  was  said  by  many,  (among  others,  by  Fa 
ther  De  las  Torres,  King  Charles's  confessor,)  that 
his  Majesty  assured  him  on  his  death-bed,  that  those 
who  were  about  him  had  forced  him  to  sign  that 
will. 

An  affecting  change  happened  first  in  our  Court. 
On  July  29,  the  Duke  of  Gloucester,  only  son  of  the 
Princess  of  Denmark,  died  of  a  fever,  at  eleven 
years  of  age,f  which  made  a  further  provision  for  the 
crown,  after  the  demise  of  King  William,  necessary. 

1700.  The  Scotch,  however,  did  not  settle  the  suc 
cession  of  their  crown  at  the  same  time  ;  which  was 
thought  to  arise,  not  so  much  from  any  dislike  to  the 

*  See  his  Memoirs,  p.  82,  &c. — C. 

f  See  Burnet's  "Own  Time,"  ii,  210,  211,  245,  246.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  421 

family  of  Hanover,  as  from  a  desire  first  to  prevail 
with  the  English  to  comply  with  some  demands  they 
were  disposed  to  make,  about  trade  and  other  things, 
before  they  came  to  an  agreement  to  have  one  and 
the  same  sovereign,  with  them  for  time  to  come. 
They  were  also  not  a  little  incensed  on  account  of 
what  had  lately  happened  about  their  company  at 
Darien,  as  to  which  they  made  loud  complaints. 

Nor  was  it  long  after  the  Duke  of  Gloucester's 
death,  that  Charles  II.  King  of  Spain  departed  this 
life,  (Nov.  1,  1700)  having  been  a  great  while  in 
a  weak  and  declining  state.  As  it  was  highly  pro 
bable  that  the  prospect  of  his  approaching  decease 
made  the  King  of  France  so  forward  for  a  peace  in 
1697,  so  had  he  this  way  no  small  advantage  for 
kindling  a  new  war  in  all  these  parts,  by  the  ad 
vancement  of  his  grandson  Philip  to  the  Spanish 
throne.  And  he  now  had  his  heart's  desire,  and 
the  completion  of  his  wishes.  This  was  reckoned 
the  masterpiece  of  the  French  politics,  under  the 
consequences  of  which  all  Europe  groans  to  this 
day,  and  is  like  to  do  so  yet  a  good  while. 

One  of  the  first  visible  effects  of  this  proceeding 
was  the  Elector  of  Bavaria's  quitting  the  English 
and  Dutch,  with  whom  he  was  closely  joined  in  the 
last  war,  and  falling  in  with  France  and  Spain. 
The  English  and  Dutch,  exasperated  with  such 
treatment,  armed  afresh,  hired  foreign  troops,  and 
formed  new  alliances.  But  the  bringing  their  de 
signs  to  bear  was  necessarily  a  work  of  time,  and 


422  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

they  were  hard  put  to  it,  before  they  could  get  an 
opportunity  to  act  with  freedom  ;  for  the  French 
soon  broke  in  upon  the  Spanish  Netherlands,  and  by 
stratagem  seized  several  strong  towns,  partly  garri 
soned  by  the  Dutch,  whereby  the  States  were  brought 
under  a  necessity  of  acknowledging  the  Duke  of 
Anjou's  title  to  Spain,  to  get  their  soldiers  again, 
who  nevertheless  were  not  without  difficulty  suffered 
to  return. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  uneasiness  in  Scotland  not 
only  continued,  but  rather  increased  than  abated. 
Their  Parliament  met  May  21,  and  the  Duke  of 
Queensbury  was  High  Commissioner.  A  motion 
was  made  and  pressed,  that  the  Parliament  should 
resolve,  that  the  Colony  of  Caledonia  in  Darien,  was 
a  legal  and  rightful  Settlement,  in  the  terms  of  the 
Act  of  Parliament,  in  1695 ;  and  that  the  Parlia 
ment  would  maintain  and  support  the  same.  But 
the  Commissioners  immediately  adjourned  the  Parlia 
ment  for  three  days ;  and  afterwards  for  twenty 
days  more.  They  were  yet  farther  adjourned  by 
proclamation,  on  the  King's  necessary  absence 
abroad. 

The  King  returned  to  England  in  September,  and 
by  a  letter  to  Scotland  from  Loe,  had  allowed  the 
Parliament  to  sit  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  that 
month.  He  told  them  he  had  considered  their 
address,  on  behalf  of  their  African  Company,  and 
assured  them  of  his  great  concern  for  not  being  able 
to  assert  their  right  of  establishing  a  Colony  at 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

Darien,  without  disturbing  the  peace  of  Christendom, 
and  bringing  that  kingdom  into  an  inevitable  war 
without  hopes  of  assistance,  and  with  this  seemed  to 
promise  himself  they  would  be  satisfied. 

During  the  interval  of  the  second  sessions  of  Par 
liament,  came  the  melancholy  news  to  Scotland,  of 
their  people's  having  abandoned,  or  rather  surrender 
ed  their  new  Settlement  at  Darien.  This  occasioned 
another  national  address  to  his  Majesty,  which  was 
warm  and  close.  The  King  made  answer,  that  he 
hoped  his  faithful  subjects  would  be  satisfied  with 
the  declaration  he  had  made  of  his  mind  already. 
After  all,  the  Scotch  Parliament  came  to  this  pru 
dent  resolution,  "  that  in  consequence  of  their  great 
deliverance  by  his  Majesty,  and  in  that  next  under 
God,  their  safety  and  happiness  depended  wholly  on 
his  preservation,  and  that  of  his  Government,  they 
would  support  both  to  the  utmost  of  their  power," 
&c. 

It  was  the  opinion  of  many,  that  it  would  have 
been  very  happy,  if  the  English  Parliament  could 
have  been  prevailed  with  to  imitate  their  example. 
But  they  seemed  to  have  other  views.  Therefore, 
the  King,  who  landed  in  England  from  Holland, 
September  18,  1700,  thought  fit,  December  19,  to 
dissolve  that  Parliament,*  and  call  another  to  meet 
on  February  6,  following. 

This  year   Mr.  Williams  went  to  visit   his  old 

*  "  Because  the  Commons  had  not  been  so  complaisant  as  he 
desired."  C/iron.  Hist.  i.  302.— ED. 


424  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

friends,  and  look  after  his  concerns  in  Ireland,  and 
was  absent  from  his  congregation  in  London  several 
months,  leaving  the  care  of  it  wholly  to  me.  He, 
and  several  leading  members  of  the  society,  were 
earnest  with  me  to  be  chosen  joint  pastor  with  him ; 
which  I  was  not  free  to  give  way  to :  though  as  to 
the  care  of  the  congregation  during  his  absence,  I 
took  that  cheerfully  upon  me,  arid  had  no  reason  to 
repent  it. 

Sept.  7,  died  the  old  Duke  of  Bedford,  father  of 
William,  Lord  Russel,  who  was  the  honour  of  his 
age. 

Nov.  2,  died  Dr.  Francis  Turner,  the  deprived 
Bishop  of  Ely,  at  Tharfield  * 

*  Herts,  of  which  he  was  rector.  Burnet  represents  this 
Bishop  as  engaged,  in  1690,  with  "the  Earl  of  Clarendon,  Lord 
Preston,  Penn,  the  famous  Quaker,  &c.  to  bring  a  revolution 
about"  in  favour  of  King  James. 

"  The  Bishop  of  Ely's  letters  were  writ  in  a  very  particular 
style.  He  undertook  both  for  his  elder  brother,  and  the  rest  of 
the  family,  which  was  plainly  meant  of  Bancroft,  and  the  other 
deprived  bishops.  In  his  letter  to  King  James's  queen,  he  as 
sured  her  of  his  and  all  their  zeal  for  the  Prince  of  Wales  ;  and 
that  they  would  no  more  part  with  that  than  with  their  hopes  of 
heaven."  See  "  Own  Time,"  ii.  69 ;  "  Diary  of  Lord  Clarendon," 
Correspondence,  &c.  ii.  319. 

While  imprisoned  in  the  Tower  under  this  accusation,  the  Earl 
of  Clarendon  writes : 

"  1690.  Aug.  9.  Lord  Lucas,  (Governor,)  was  to  see  me. 
I  asked  him  to  have  Rotier  the  graver  come  to  me.  He  said, 
Mr.  Dod  should  come  with  him  at  any  time ;  but  he  must  not  be 
alone  with  me,  because  he  was  a  Papist.  Very  pleasant!"  Ibid. 

p.  327. 

Equally 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  425 

Nov.  23,  Clement  XL  was  advanced  to  the  Pa 
pacy,*  after  the  decease  of  Innocent  XILf 

This  year  also  the  Czar  of  Muscovy,  and  the 
Kings  of  Denmark  and  Poland,  formed  a  league 
against  the  King  of  Sweden,  and  fell  upon  him  after 
wards  with  all  their  forces.  The  Czar  sat  down  before 
Narva  with  100,000  men,]:  the  King  of  Poland  enter 
ing  Livonia  besieged  Riga  ;  and  the  King  of  Denmark 
attacked  the  Dutchy  of  Holstein, 

Equally  pleasant  was  the  following  ordinance  of  the  Commons, 
passed  during  this  hey-dey  of  Protestant  ascendancy. 

"1690.  Dec.  10.  Ordered,  that  no  Papists  do  presume  to 
come  into  Westminster  Hall,  the  Court  of  Requests,  or  Lobby 
of  this  House,  during  the  sitting  of  Parliament ;  and  this  order 
to  be  pasted  up  at  Westminster  Hall  gate,  and  in  the  Lobby  of 
this  House,  and  that  the  Serjeant-at-arms,  attending  this  House, 
do  take  into  custody  all  such  persons  as  shall  offend  against  the 
said  order."  See  "  Orders  collected  out  of  the  Journals,"  (1756) 
pp.  9,  10.— ED. 

*  Which  he  retained  more  than  twenty  years,  dying  in  1721. 
Nouv.  Diet.  Hist.  ii.  662,  663.— ED. 

f  Who  died  Sept.  27,  preceding,  aged  eighty-six ;  "  comble 
de  benedictions,"  for  his  attention  to  the  necessities  of  the  poor. 
"II  les  appeloit  ses  nei'eux.  II  repandit  sur  eux  tous  les  biens 
que  le  plupart  de  ses  predecesseurs  prodiguoient  &  leur  parents." 
This  Pope  condemned  Fenelon's  "  Maximes  des  Saints."  Ibid. 
iv.  596. — ED. 

£  Oct.  1,  1700.  At  this  siege  the  Czar  served  in  the  humble 
capacity  of  a  lieutenant,  giving  the  command  of  the  army  to  the 
Duke  de  Croy,  a  German,  and  an  able  general. 

"  II  n'etoit  pas  etonnant,"  says  Voltaire,  "  que  celui  qui  s'etoit 
charpentier  a  Amsterdam,  pour  avoir  des  flottes,  fut  lieutenant  a 
Narva,  pour  enseigner  a  sa  nation  1'art  de  la  guerre."  See 
"  Hist,  de  Charles  XII."  i.  50 — ED. 


426  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

1701.  In  February,  the  new  Parliament  met,  and 
Mr.  Harley  was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  Commons. 
The  King,  in  his  speech  to  the  two  Houses,  told 
them,  that  "the  death  of  the  Duke  of  Gloucester 
having  made  it  absolutely  necessary  there  should  be 
a  farther  provision  for  the  succession  in  the  Protes 
tant  line,  on  which  the  happiness  of  the  nation  and 
the  security  of  its  religion  so  much  depended,  he  could 
not  but  recommend  it  to  their  early  and  effectual 
consideration ;  and  he  advised  them  to  consider  the 
state  of  affairs,  embroiled  by  the  late  King  of  Spain's 
death,  and  the  declaration  of  his  successor,  and  to  en 
deavour  to  prevent  the  ill  consequences  thereof,"  &c. 

The  Commons  soon  came  to  an  unanimous  reso 
lution,  "  to  stand  by  and  support  his  Majesty  and  his 
government ;  and  to  take  such  effectual  measures 
as  may  best  conduce  to  the  interest  and  safety  of 
England,  preservation  of  the  Protestant  religion, 
and  the  peace  of  Europe."  And  the  Lords  harmo 
nized.  An  Alliance  was  concluded  between  Eng 
land,  Holland,  and  the  Emperor,  to  maintain  the 
pretensions  of  the  latter  to  the  Spanish  Monarchy. 

The  Commons,  March  3,  resolved  that  a  farther- 
provision  should  be  made  for  the  limitation  and  suc 
cession  of  the  Crown  in  the  Protestant  line,  after  his 
Majesty,  and  the  Princess,  and  their  heirs  respec 
tively.  The  Duchess  of  Savoy  (daughter  of  the 
Duchess  of  Orleans,*  and  grand-daughter  to  King 
Charles  I.)  ordered  her  minister,  Count  Mafei,  to 

*  See  supra,  pp.  66,  67. — ED. 


LIFE    OF  CALAMY.  427 

represent  her  right  to  the  succession  of  England,  as 
prior  to  any  others,  after  the  King  and  Princess: 
but  little  notice  was  taken  of  it.  And  the  crown 
was  settled  on  the  Princess  Sophia,  Electoress  Dow 
ager  of  Hanover,  and  her  heirs,  being  Protestants. 
Thus  all  the  Popish  branches  of  the  royal  family 
were  set  aside,  by  the  whole  legislature,  for  the 
common  safety  of  the  nation. 

This,  to  the  putting  an  end  to  our  fears  as  to  time 
to  come,  had  been  stickled  for  by  most  of  the  Lords, 
and  a  good  number  of  the  Commons  in  1689,  soon 
after  the  Revolution,*  but  could  not  then  be  com 
passed,  because  there  was  a  strong  party  that 
alleged,  that  a  Parliament  of  England  had  never 
determined  the  degrees  of  the  succession  beyond  two 
or  three  persons  ;  that  the  mentioning  the  House  of 
Hanover  would  give  an  opportunity  to  foreigners  of 
intermeddling  too  far  in  the  affairs  of  this  nation  ; 
and  that  before  the  crown  should  devolve  on  the 
Princess  Sophia,  some  of  the  Catholic  Princes,  who 
were  nearest  in  blood,  and  who  would  this  way  be 
excluded,  might  turn  Protestants. 

But  such  thoughts  and  suggestions  as  these  had 
no  influence,  when  King  William  visibly  declined, 
and  had  none  to  come  after  him  in  the  throne  but 
Papists,  who  were  utterly  incapable  of  answering 
the  ends  of  Government  in  this  nation  ;  except  the 
Princess  of  Denmark,  who  had  now  none  to  succeed 
her.  The  Duchess  Dowager  of  Hanover,  youngest 

*  See  "  Life  of  King  William,"  in  3  vols.  ii.  117,  &C.—C. 


428  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

daughter  of  the  Queen  of  Bohemia,  only  daughter 
of  King  James  I.,  was  the  very  next  in  the  royal 
line,  after  those  whose  government  was,  morally 
speaking,  inconsistent  with  the  possibility  of  the 
public  safety. 

Though  some  were  against  this  settlement,  to  the 
last,  and  complained  of  it  after  it  was  fixed,  as  bear 
ing  hard  on  the  Popish  branches  of  the  royal  line 
that  were  excluded,  yet  was  it  esteemed  matter  of 
great  joy  by  the  main  body  of  the  nation  ;  and 
none  were  more  thankful  to  God  for  it,  or  more 
zealous  in  supporting  it,  afterwards,  till  it  came  ac 
tually  to  take  place,  than  the  Protestant  Dissenters. 

When  the  Act  was  passed,  the  Earl  of  Maccles- 
field  was  pitched  upon  to  carry  it  to  the  Court  of 
Hanover,  and  he  took  the  Lord  Mohun,  who  was 
his  relation  by  marriage,  to  bear  him  company ;  and 
they  were  nobly  received.  Mr.  John  Toland,  also, 
who  was  a  very  pushing  man,  insinuated  himself  so 
far  into  their  good  opinion,  as  to  be  admitted  to  go 
along  with  them.  He  published  a  Tract  upon  this 
occasion,  which  he  entitled  "  Anglia  Libera,  or  the 
Limitation  and  Succession  of  the  Crown  of  England 
explained  and  asserted ;  as  grounded  on  his  Majesty's 
Speech ;  the  Proceedings  in  Parliament ;  the  Desires 
of  the  People ;  the  Safety  of  our  Religion ;  the 
Nature  of  our  Constitution  ;  the  Balance  of  Europe  ; 
and  the  Rights  of  Mankind."  Being  recommended 
to  her  Electoral  Highness  the  Princess  Sophia, 
by  the  Earl  of  Macclesfield,  he  presented  Jier  with 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  429 

that  book  of  his,  and  received  civilities  from  her  ;* 
though  it  was  the  opinion  of  many  that  the  thus 
countenancing  one  of  his  character,')"  had  better  been 
waved. 

*  See  "  Memoirs  of  the  Life  and  Writings  of  Mr.  John  Toland," 
prefixed  to  a  collection  of  several  of  his  pieces,  p.  50,  &c. — C. 

Toland  was  now  introduced  to  the  accomplished  Sophia  Char 
lotte,  Queen  of  Prussia,  (see  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  356, n.)  be 
fore  whom  "  he  had  a  remarkable  conversation  on  religion  with 
Mr.  Beausobre,"  one  of  her  chaplains.  This  was  printed  in  the 
"  Bibliotheque  Germanique."  Gen.  Biog.  Diet.  xii.  242. — ED. 

f  Toland  had  written  at  Oxford  in  1695,  and  "  printed  in 
1696,"  at  London,  without  a  publisher's  name,  a  short  treatise 
to  show  "  that  no  Christian  doctrine  can  be  properly  called  a 
mystery  ;"  affording,  however,  no  pretence  for  placing  the  au 
thor  among  Deistical  writers,  for  he  argues  much  in  the  manner 
of  Sir  R.  Howard's  "  History  of  Religion,"  and  Dr.  James 
Fosster's  sermon  on  Mystery. 

This  book  and  the  author  were  presented  at  Dublin  in  1697, 
by  a  Grand  Jury,  of  whom,  Mr.  Molyneaux  says  to  Locke,  "  I  am 
persuaded  not  one  ever  read  one  leaf  in  '  Christianity  not  Mys 
terious.'  "  He  adds,  "  the  Dissenters  were  the  chief  promoters 
of  this  matter."  Then  "  the  Parliament  fell  on  his  book,  voted 
it  to  be  burnt  by  the  common  hangman,  and  the  author  to  be 
taken  into  custody  of  the  Serjeant-at-Arrns,  and  to  be  prosecuted 
by  the  Attorney-General.  Let  the  Sorbonne  for  ever  now  be 
silent.  A  learned  grand  jury,  directed  by  as  learned  a  judge, 
does  the  business  much  better."  Fam.  Let.  (1708)  p.  228. 

"  Toland,"  says  Archdeacon  Blackburne,  "was  a  man  of  great 
genius  and  learning,  a  staunch  assertor  of  liberty,  and  wrote, 
notably,  the  life  of  that  arch-defender  of  liberty,  John  Milton. 
In  a  strait  age  of  religion,  he  was  guilty  of  some  unguard- 
nesses;  and  in  a  party-age  of  principles,  of  some  heats;  which, 
with  a  scantiness  of  circumstances  and  no  economy,  drew  on 


430  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

March  21,  the  Commons  laid  before  his  Majesty 
the  ill  consequences  of  the  treaty  of  partition  (pass 
ed  under  the  great  Seal  of  England,  during  the  sit 
ting  of  Parliament,  and  without  the  advice  of  the 
same,)  to  this  kingdom  and  the  peace  of  Europe,* 
whereby  such  large  Territories  of  the  King  of  Spain's 
Dominions  were  to  be  delivered  up  to  the  French 
King.  The  Lords  also  were  warm  in  their  own 
House,-)-  and  addressed  the  King  against  the  said 
treaty :  and  his  Majesty  was  pretty  hard  put  to  it. 

This  year,:]:  died  Mr.  John  Dry  den,  "the  great  mas 
ter  of  dramatic  poesy."  After  having  with  great  free 
dom  ridiculed  Popery,  in  his  tragic  comedy  called 
the  Spanish  Fryar,§  he  within  the  compass  of  a  few 
years  turned  Papist,  ||  and  died  of  that  religion ;  and 
is  represented  by  Bishop  Burnet,^[  as  a  "  monster  of 
immodesty  and  impurity  of  all  sorts."** 

This  year,  1701  the  new  King  of  Spain  went  from 
Paris  to  Madrid  to  take  possession  of  his  throne.ft  A 

him,  in  the  after-part  of  life,  many  difficulties."  See  "  Mem. 
of  John  Hollis,"  i.  236.— ED. 

*  Chron.  Hist.  i.  304.— ED. 

t  "  They  loudly  expressed  their  disapprobation  thereon,  which 
they  wholly  laid  at  the  Earl  of  Portland's  door."  See  "  Pro 
ceedings  of  the  Lords/'  ii.  22. — ED. 

J  May  1,  1701,  aged  sixty-nine. — ED. 

§  In  1681.— ED. 

j|  "  1685-6.  Jan.  19,  Dryden,  the  famous  play-writer,  and  his 
two  sons,  were  said  to  go  to  mass."  Evelyn,  iii.  200. — ED. 

1F  "Own  Time,"  i.  269.— C. 

**  See  this  character  disputed.     Biog.  Brit.  v.  384. — ED. 

tt  On  this  occasion,  according  to  Voltaire,  Louis  said  to  his 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  431 

particular  account  of  his  progress  and  reception  is 
given  by  the  Marquis  of  Langallerie  in  his  Memoirs. 

The  Dutch  determined  to  do  nothing  with  the 
French,  though  much  solicited  to  it,  but  in  concert 
with  King  William.  The  French  Ambassador  at 
the  Hague,  demurred  upon  treating  with  the  Dutch 
and  King  William  together.  His  Majesty  signified 
this  to  the  Commons,  who  gave  it  as  their  advice,  to 
negotiate  in  concert  with  the  States  General,  and 
take  such  measures  as  might  most  conduce  to  their 
security.  His  Majesty  thought  it  prudent  (as  cir 
cumstances  stood,)  to  keep  the  French  at  bay,  by  a 
faint  negotiation  :  and  for  that  reason,  owned  the 
Duke  of  Anjou  for  King  of  Spain,  f  But  the  French 
much  straitened  the  Dutch. 

The  Commons  declaimed  with  great  vehemence 
against  the  partition  treaty,  and  proceeded  to  im 
peach  the  Earl  of  Portland  the  chief  manager  of  it ; 
together  with  the  Lords  Sommers,  Orford,  and  Hali 
fax  ;  and  addressed  his  Majesty  to  remove  them  all 

grandson,  "  pour  marquer  1'union  qui  allait  desormais  joindre 
les  deux  nations  :  '  II  n'y  a  plus  de  Pyrenees.'"  Siecle  ii.  230. 

Among  the  "  instructions  to  Philip  V."  which  have  been  at 
tributed  to  Louis,  "  when  that  Prince  was  setting  out  for  Madrid,' 
is  the  following  : — 

"  Ne  quittez  jamais  vos  affaires  pour  votre  plaisir ;  mais 
faites-vous  une  sorte  de  regie  qui  vous  donne  des  temps  de 
liberte  et  de  divertissement."  Ibid.  p.  234. 

"  Never  neglect  your  business  for  the  sake  of  your  diversions  ; 
but  lay  out  your  time  so  that  you  may  have  a  separate  portion 
allotted  to  both."  See  "Mem.  of  Louis  XIV."  (1806)  ii.  155.— ED. 

t  By  a  "  letter  congratulating  his  accession." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

from  his  presence  and  Council  for  ever.  The  Xing 
told  them  he  would  employ  none  in  his  service,  but 
such  as  should  be  thought  most  likely  to  improve 
the  mutual  trust  and  confidence  between  them.  But 
the  House  of  Lords  addressed  the  King,  that  he 
would  pass  no  censure  upon  the  four  Lords,  till 
judgment  was  given  against  them. 

The  Dutch,  finding  the  French  press  on  them, 
more  and  more,  hired  troops  of  the  King  of  Prussia 
and  the  Elector  of  Hanover,  and  stood  carefully 
on  their  guard.  But  the  French  multiplying  forts 
and  lines  upon  their  very  borders,  making  great 
magazines  in  Guelderland,  and  other  parts  of  the 
Spanish  Netherlands,  and  raising  new  fortifications 
almost  within  cannon-shot  of  their  frontiers,  the 
Dutch  applied  to  King  William,  desiring  that  Eng 
lish  forces  might  be  sent  to  their  relief,  as  stipulated 
by  treaty,  in  1677.  The  King  sent  a  message  to 
the  Commons,  who  unanimously  resolved,  that  they 
would  effectually  assist  his  Majesty  to  support  his 
allies  in  maintaining  the  liberties  of  Europe,  and 
would  immediately  provide  succours  for  the  States 
General.  Yet  there  was  a  great  ferment  in  the 
nation,  as  appeared  from  the  Kentish  petition,  which 
being  voted  seditious  and  scandalous,  and  some  of 
the  subscribers  to  it  taken  into  custody,  there  was 
a  memorial  published,  called  Legion,*  which  was 
sent  to  the  Commons. 

*  Asserting  "  that  the  Commons  have  no  right  to  imprison 
any  but  their  own  members."  Chron.  Hut.  i.  306. —  ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  433 

Articles  were  exhibited  against  the  Lords  Somers 
and  Orford,  who  had  been  impeached ;  and  they 
were  severally  answered. 

The  Commons  delaying  the  trial,  the  Upper  House 
appointed  a  day.  The  Commons  alleging  that  they 
were  not  ready,  the  Lords  acquitted  those  two  noble 
peers,  and  the  Commons  protested  against  their  pro 
ceedings.  The  Lord  Haversham,  by  a  passage*  in 
a  free  conference  between  the  Lords  and  Commons, 
so  incensed  the  Lower  House,  that  they  refused  to 
proceed  till  reparation  was  made  for  the  affront 
offered  by  that  Lord.  So  that  the  correspondence 
between  the  two  Houses  was  broken,  and  the  Com 
mons  not  making  good  their  impeachments  against 
the  Lord  Halifax,  or  charge  against  the  Lord  Haver- 
sham,  nor  having  exhibited  any  articles  against  the 
Lord  Portland,  their  Lordships  at  once,  June  24, 
dismissed  all  the  impeachments  and  the  charge,  and 
together  with  them,  an  impeachment  of  an  old 
standing  against  the  Duke  of  Leeds. 

June  12,  the  very  day  that  the  act  passed  for  the 
farther  limitation  of  the  Crown,  the  King,  in  a  speech 
to  his  Parliament,  thanked  them  for  the  care  they 
had  taken  to  establish  the  succession  to  the  crown  in 
the  Protestant  line. 

June  18,  his  Electoral  Highness  of  Hanover,  and 
the  Duke  of  Queensbury  were  elected  Knights  Com 
panions  of  the  Order  of  the  Garter. 

*  Declaring  "  that  the  Commons  themselves  thought  the  im 
peached  Lords  innocent."     Chron.  Hist.  i.  307. — ED. 
VOL.    I.  2    F 


484  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

July  1,  the  King  embarked  at  Margate  for  Hol 
land,  and  arrived  at  the  Hague,  (where  his  presence 
was  very  necessary,)  July  14,  N.  s.  and  the  Dutch 
went  on  to  make  all  the  provision  they  were  able  for 
their  own  defence. 

September  16,  N.  s.  King  James  died*  an  exile 
in  France,  where  he  that  might  have  lived  as  hap 
pily  upon  a  throne  as  any  Prince  in  Europe  (had  it 
not  been  his  choice  to  act  the  mean  part  of  a  tool  to 
France  and  Rome,  instead  of  behaving  himself  like 
a  British  Sovereign,)  had  now  for  twelve  years  and 
upwards  been  a  poor  pensioner.  Upon  this,  the 
French  King  took  upon  him  to  proclaim  the  Pre 
tender  King  of  Great  Britain,  which,  as  it  was  a 
direct  violation  of  the  peace,  so  was  also  the  highest 

*  In  a  letter  from  Madame  de  Maintenon  to  Philip  V.  she 
thus  writes, 

"  Even  the  most  profligate  about  the  Court  have  not  beheld 
the  King  of  England,  at  this  awful  period,  without  surprize  and 
admiration.  All  that  he  said,  evinced  a  presence  of  mind,  a 
peaceful  serenity,  a  zeal  and  fortitude,  which  all  were  truly 
charmed  in  beholding.  On  his  body  being  opened,  the  physi 
cians  and  surgeons  all  took  some  particle  of  it  to  keep  as  a  relic. 
His  attendants  dipped  their  handkerchiefs  in  his  blood,  others 
their  chaplets."  See  "Mem.  of  Louis  XIV."  ii.  184.  "  The 
mockery  of  woe,"  thus  succeeds,  to  amuse  the  Court  of  London. 

"  Whitehall,  20th  Sept.  1701.  The  King  has  declared  his 
intentions  of  going  into  mourning.  The  King's  coaches  and 
liveries  are  to  be  in  black,  but  not  the  King's  lodgings ;  and  it 
is  not  expected  that  any  of  the  peers  should  put  their  coaches 
or  liveries  into  mourning."  See  "  Correspondence  of  Lord 
Clarendon,"  &c.  ii.  389,  390. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  435 

affront  that  could  have  been  put  upon  King  Wil 
liam,  and  it  was  accordingly  resented  by  him  and 
all  his  good  subjects. 

The  King  immediately  sent  orders  to  the  Earl 
of  Manchester,  his  ambassador  in  France,  to  come 
away  directly,  without  taking  any  audience  of  leave  :* 
and  a  new  war  was  looked  upon  as  unavoidable. 
The  King,  by  way  of  precaution,  entered  into  a  new 
alliance,  offensive  and  defensive,  with  Holland,  and 
with  the  Emperor,  who  laid  claim  to  the  dominions 
of  Spain,  as  descending  to  him  by  the  death  of 
Charles  II.  and  was  actually  now  sending  a  great 
army  into  Italy  to  enforce  his  claim. 

Worthy  Sir  Thomas  Abney,  being  at  that  time 
Lord  Mayor  of  London,  had  the  courage  and  reso 
lution  to  propose  an  address  from  the  Common 
Council  to  his  Majesty,  (who  was  then  abroad,) 
though  much  opposed  by  a  number  of  his  brethren, 
to  signify  their  resolution  and  readiness  to  stand  by 
his  Majesty ,t  in  opposition  to  France  arid  the  Pre 
tender.  And,  by  his  great  pains  and  prudence,  he 
surmounted  all  the  difficulties  that  his  adversaries  in 

*  He  was  directed  "  to  give  M.  Torcy  notice,"  according  to 
this  prescribed  form  : — 

"  Monsieur,  Le  Roymon  maitre  etant  inform^  que  sa  Majeste 
tres  Chretienne  a  reconnue  un  autre  Roy  de  la  Grande  Bretagne 
— m'aenvoye  ordre  de  me  retirerincessamment."  Ibid.  p.  389. 
—ED. 

t  "  They  were  modest  and  we  believe  sincere,  because  there 
is  no  flattery,  nor  exaggeration  in  their  Address."  See  "  Hist, 
of  Addresses,"  i.  218. — ED. 

2  F   2 


436  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

this  case  threw  in   his  way,  and  carried  his  point 
with  remarkable  success. 

This  address  was  transmitted  to  the  King  beyond 
the  seas,  and  his  Majesty  gave  special  directions  to 
the  Lords  Justices  to  acquaint  his  loyal  City  of 
London  with  the  great  satisfaction  he  had  upon  re 
ceiving  it.  This  helped  to  animate  the  King's  affairs, 
and  give  new  life  to  the  Whig  interest  at  home  and 
abroad.  A  considerable  person  complimenting  Sir 
Thomas  upon  this  occasion,  told  him  he  had  done 
the  King  more  service,  than  if  he  had  given  him 
thousands,  or  raised  him  a  million  of  money. 

This  leading  example  of  the  capital  city,  greatly 
spirited  the  whole  nation,  and  was  followed  by 
addresses  of  the  like  nature  from  most  corpora 
tions  in  the  kingdom.*  The  King  returned  from 
abroad,  Nov.  5,  and  on  the  llth  dissolved  the  Par 
liament  that  had  been  so  disjointed  (and  which  he 
was  told  by  some  illustrious  persons,  would  never  do 
his  Majesty's  business,  nor  the  nation's),  and  called 
another,  which  quickly  formed  an  Act  for  abjur 
ing  the  Pretender,  and  farther  establishing  the  Pro 
testant  succession,  which  was  highly  needful.  For, 

*  See  "  Hist,  of  Addresses/'  i.  218-244.  "  This  insignificant 
ceremony  was  brought  in,  in  Cromwell's  time,  and  has  ever  since 
continued,  with  offers  of  life  and  fortune  to  whoever  happened 
to  have  the  power."  Evelyn,  iii.  362. 

Lord  Orford  has  since  justly  appreciated  "  those  emanations 
of  loyalty,  that  attend  all  princes  in  possession,  and  had  not 
been  wanting  to  Richard  Cromwell."  Works,  ii.  345.  See 
"  Diary  of  Burton,"  iii.  pp.  v.  vi. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  437 

though  the  succession  was,  by  the  Parliament  fore 
going,  declared  to  belong  to  the  House  of  Brunswick, 
yet  it  was  reckoned  by  wise  men  to  stand  upon  too 
feeble  and  hazardous  a  foot,  till  it  was  guarded  and 
secured  by  a  subsequent  law  against  all  opposers. 

Among  a  great  many  other  addresses,  after  the 
King's  return,  his  Majesty  was  soon  attended  with 
one  from  the  Protestant  Dissenting  ministers,  in  and 
about  the  City  of  London,  presented  by  Mr.  Howe, 
introduced  by  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Devonshire, 
and  the  Right  Honourable  the  Earl  of  Essex,  in  these 
words : — 

"  We  your  Majesty's  most  loyal  and  dutiful  sub 
jects,  do  with  all  possible  joy,  congratulate  your  Ma 
jesty's  safe  and  happy  return,  after  your  having  en 
dured  a  new  fatigue  abroad,  (not  without  hazard  to 
your  royal  person)  for  the  common  security. 

"  And  we  beg  leave,  with  the  rest  of  the  nation, 
to  express  our  deep  resentment  of  the  great  injury 
done  your  Majesty  by  the  French  King,  in  asserting 
the  imaginary  title  of  the  pretended  Prince  of 
Wales  to  these  your  Majesty's  dominions.* 

*  "The  Presbyterians  of  Kingston  upon  Hull"  are  less  cere 
monious.  They  declare  "  their  detestation  and  abhorrence  of  the 
insolent  and  treacherous  proceedings  of  that  infamous  violator 
of  treaties,  persecutor  of  Protestants,  and  oppressor  of  coun 
tries,  the  French  King," 

De  Foe  adds,  "  We  know  several  doctors  who  would  reprove 
these  gentlemen,  for  want  of  manners.  They  would  cry  out 
*  a  crowned  head/  But  we  must  join  with  the  honest  Presby 
terians  of  Hull ;  for  such  a  head  is  rather  the  worse  than  the 


438  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

"  Upon  which  occasion  we  do  unanimously  and 
with  great  sincerity  acknowledge  your  Majesty  our 
only  rightful  and  lawful  King  ;  as  we  have  done  ever 
since  your  happy  accession  to  the  throne. 

"  And,  as  we  cannot  but  adore  the  wisdom  and 
kindness  of  Providence,  in  directing  your  Majesty 
and  your  two  Houses  of  Parliament,  the  last  session, 
so  seasonably  to  settle  the  succession  in  the  Protes 
tant  line,  so  we  shall  at  all  times  use  our  utmost  en 
deavours  (in  our  several  stations)  to  maintain  your 
Majesty's  title,  and  that  of  your  successors  as  by  law 
established.  Adding  our  most  fervent  prayers,  that 
God  would  long  preserve  your  Majesty,  for  the  sup 
port  of  the  Protestant  religion,  and  succeed  your 
continued  endeavours  to  preserve  the  liberties,  and 
reform  the  manners  of  your  people." 

The  King  met  his  new  Parliament,  (in  which  Mr. 
Harley  was  again  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House  of 
Commons,)  Dec.  30,  and  made  a  noble  speech  to 
them,  wherein  he  told  them,  that  "  the  owning  and 
setting  up  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales,  for  King 
of  England,*  was  not  only  the  highest  indignity  to 

better  for  having  a  crown  upon  it."     See  "  Hist,  of  Addresses," 
i.  238.— ED. 

*  "  Louis,"  says  Mrs.  Macauley,  **  rashly  and  unadvisedly 
promised  his  dying  friend,  that  his  demise  should  be  followed 
with  the  open  acknowledgment  of  his  son,  as  heir  of  all  the 
British  dominions.  Though  in  the  last  agonies,  James  lifted 
himself  up  in  the  bed,  to  thank  his  benefactor  for  this  unexpect 
ed  favour;  and  died,  it  is  said,  in  a  transport  of  joy."  See 
«  Hist,  of  England,  in  Letters,"  (1779)  p.  61.  -Eo. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  439 

himself  and  the  whole  nation,  but  nearly  concerned 
every  man  who  had  regard  to  the  Protestant  reli 
gion,  or  the  present  and  future  happiness  of  his 
country." 

He  conjured  them  to  disappoint  the  only  hopes  of 
their  enemies,  by  their  unanimity.  "  I,"  says  he, 
"  have  shown,  and  will  always  show,  how  desirous  I 
am  to  be  the  common  father  of  all  my  people.  Do 
you  in  like  manner  lay  aside  all  parties  and  divisions. 
Let  there  be  no  other  distinction  heard  among  us 
for  the  future,  but  of  those  who  are  for  the  Protes 
tant  religion,  and  the  present  establishment,  and  of 
those  who  mean  a  Popish  prince,  and  a  French  go 
vernment,"  &c.* 

Things  were  now  likely  to  go  on  according  to  the 
King's  wishes,  and  he  had  formed  very  considerable 
projects  for  reducing  the  power  of  France ;  but 
Divine  Providence  interposed  with  a  check.  The 
King  fell  from  his  horse  soon  after,  and  died  March  8, 
following.f  Before  his  death,  he  (by  commission) 
passed  an  Act,  for  the  farther  security  of  the  Crown 
in  the  Protestant  line.  The  oath  of  abjuration  was 

*  This  speech  "  was  received  with  universal  applause  ;  and 
was  so  greatly  admired  by  the  Whigs,  that  they  printed  it,  with 
decorations,  in  the  English,  French  and  Dutch  languages.  They 
placed  it  as  a  piece  of  rare  furniture  in  their  houses,  and  called 
it  the  King's  last  legacy  to  his  own  and  to  all  Protestant 
people."  Ibid.  p.  65. — ED. 

f  1702,  "  having  been  much  indisposed  before,  and  aguish, 
with  a  long  cough  and  other  weakness."  Evelyn,  iii.  393.  See 
Burnet,  ii.  301-304. -En. 


440  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

now  first  imposed,  which  was  thought  the  best  expe 
dient  to  disappoint  such  as  were  in  hope,  by  the  as 
sistance  of  France,  to  make  way  for  the  Pretender, 
and  by  that  means  to  accomplish  the  old  design  of 
introducing  arbitrary  power,  and  restoring  Popery 
among  us. 

It  was  observed  of  King  William,  the  great  de 
liverer  of  these  nations,  and  assertor  of  the  liberties 
of  Europe,  that  though  he  was  a  prince  whose  he- 
roical  actions  filled  the  world  with  admiration,  yet, 
during  the  whole  time  of  his  reign,  there  was  a 
party  that  hung  always  like  a  dead  weight  upon  the 
wheels  of  his  Government.  They  embarrassed  his 
affairs,  perplexed  his  counsels,  reproached  his  con 
duct,  and  made  it  their  constant  business  to  thwart, 
disturb,  and  vex  him.  And  when  he  was  gone, 
though  there  were  some  that  were  very  sensible 
what  a  loss  the  nation  sustained  by  his  death,  who 
had  so  often  ventured  his  life  for  the  preservation  of 
an  ungrateful  people,  there  were  yet  others  that  were 
for  tarnishing  and  sullying  his  memory.* 

*  Nonconformists,  in  the  age  of  Dr.  Calamy,  lately  rescued 
from  their  suffering  condition  under  the  Stuarts,  were  ready  almost 
to  idolize  any  prince,  of  whatever  moral  or  political  complexions, 
who  would  be  content  to  persecute  only  Catholics,  and  those 
Christians  who  worshipped  *'  after  the  manner  which  they  called 
heresy ;"  as  if  they  had  forgotten  the  characteristic,  comprehen 
sive  precept  of  their  religion  :  "  Whatsoever  ye  would  that  men 
should  do  unto  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them." 

Yet,  unhappily  for  "  the  glorious  and  immortal  memory,"  the 
"  tarnishing  and  sullying"  is  effected  by  too  easy  a  process.  It 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  441 

This  year,  Mr.  Vincent  Alsop,  of  Westminster, 
resigned  his  place  in  the  Tuesday  lecture  at  S alters* 
Hall,  (though  he  lived  some  time  afterward,)  and 
was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Robert  Flemming.* 

is  only  required,  after  ascertaining  the  conduct  and  deportment 
of  the  man,  (see  supra,  p.  415,  «.)  to  collect  and  consider  the  facts 
which  form  the  history  of  the  monarch. 

Beside^  the  reflections  excited  whenever  Limerick  is  recol 
lected,  Glencoe  has  fixed  an  indelible  stigma  on  the  posthumous 
reputation  of  "  the  hero  William." 

Even  his  friend,  and  general  eulogist,  Bishop  Burnet,  refer 
ring  to  the  massacre,  acknowledges  that  "  the  King  seemed  too 
remiss  in  inquiring  into  it,"  and  that  "  the  libellers"  (as  im- 
pugners  of  "  wickedness  in  high  places,"  have  been  too  often 
described)  were  "  furnished,  with  some  colours  in  aspersing  the 
King,  as  if  he  must  have  been  willing  to  suffer  it  to  be  executed 
since  he  seemed  so  unwilling  to  let  it  be  punished."  See 
"Own  Time,"  ii.  156.  162. 

As  to  the  general  conduct  of  the  King's  government,  his  in 
clination  to  encourage  in  the  popular  branch  of  the  legislature  a 
corrupt,  courtly  influence,  that  fruitful  source  of  misrule  and 
oppression,  has  been  detected  and  exposed  by  an  able  and 
liberal-minded  political  writer. 

"  A  Dutchman,"  says  Mr.  Burgh,  "  comes  over  to  Britain,  on 
pretence  of  delivering  us  from  slavery  ;  and  makes  it  one  of  his 
first  works  to  plunge  us  into  the  very  vice  which  has  enslaved 
all  the  nations  of  the  world,  that  have  ever  lost  their  liberties. 

"  When  the  Parliament  passed  a  bill  for  incapacitating  cer 
tain  persons,  who  might  be  supposed  obvious  to  Court  influence, 
from  sitting  in  Parliament,  our  glorious  Deliverer  refused  the 
royal  assent."  See  "Political  Disquisitions,"  (1774)  i.  403; 
Oldmixon's  Stuarts,  (1735)  p.  89;  also,  "Monthly  Repos." 
xvii.  70-73  ;  "  Diary  of  Burton,"  ii.  452.— ED. 

*  Whose  sermons  on  the  probable  decline  and  fall  of  the  Papal 


442  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

j 

I  this  year  (1702)  published  the  first  edition  of 
my  Abridgment  of  Mr.  Baxter's  Life,  with  an 
Essay  towards  a  list  of  the  ministers  who  were 
ejected,  as  Nonconformists,  by  the  Act  of  Uniformity, 
(1662) ;  and  an  account  of  the  reasons  they  gave 
for  their  conduct,  with  respect  both  to  Noncon 
formity  and  occasional  Conformity  ;  and  added  a 
Continuation  of  their  History  till  the  year  1691.* 
I  dedicated  it  to  the  Lord  Marquis  of  Hartington, 
who,  upon  his  father's  death,  became  the  noble  Duke 
of  Devonshire,  having  first  obtained  his  leave. 
Waiting  upon  his  Lordship  with  a  copy,  he  received 
me  with  great  civility,  and  my  present  seemed  not 
disagreeable. 

But  before  I  ventured  into  the  press  with  a  work 
that  seemed  not  unlikely  to  draw  some  consequences 
after  it,  upon  hearing  that  my  Lord  Clarendon's  His 
tory  was  printing  at  Oxford,  I  was  desirous,  if  it  could 
be  compassed,  to  get  a  sight  of  that  long  expected 
work,  that  if  I  found  it  at  all  clashed  with  Mr.  Bax 
ter's  Historical  Account  I  had  abridged,  I  might 
either  soften  matters  by  marginal  notes,  or  provide 
myself  with  what  vouchers  I  could  get  in  support 
of  the  particulars  of  Mr.  Baxter's  Narrative. 

Happening,  about  this  time,  to  go  down  as  far  as 

power  were  republished,  and  attracted  much  attention  thirty 
years  since.  Mr.  Fleming  wrote  a  treatise  against  the  absurd 
claims  of  hereditary  rights,  in  defence  of  the  Revolution. — ED. 

*  "  By  Edmund  Calamy,  Edm.  Fil.  et  Nepos.    London,  1702." 
—ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  443 

Newbury,  with  some  friends  who  were  travelling  to 
the  Bath,  I  turned  off  to  Oxford,  designing  to  keep 
myself  as  private  there  as  I  was  able.  I  took  up 
my  lodging  at  an  inn  where  I  was  wholly  unknown, 
kept  out  of  sight  of  my  acquaintance  both  in  the 
town  and  University,  and  went  the  next  morning 
early  to  a  coffee-house  near  the  theatre,*  where  I 
was  a  perfect  stranger,  and  inquired  whether  any 
person  that  worked  in  the  printing  press  under  the 
theatre  frequented  the  house.  I  was  told  some  of 
them  did  drop  in  there  now  and  then,  but  their 
coming  was  wholly  uncertain.  I  begged  that  if  any 
such  person  lodged  in  the  neighbourhood  they  would 
send  to  him  and  let  him  know  that  one  at  their 
house  would  willingly  give  him  his  morning's 
draught  there,  if  he  would  come  and  give  him  some 
account  what  books  they  had  lately  printed  and 
were  now  upon.  They  sent  accordingly,  and  a 
workman  presently  came. 

Discoursing  with  him  about  their  press,  he,  though 
very  particular  in  other  respects,  said  not  a  word 
of  the  work  of  my  Lord  Clarendon's  which  I  was  so 
desirous  to  see.  Whereupon,  I  inquired  if  Lord 
Chancellor  Hyde's  Flistory  of  the  Civil  War,  pre 
sented  to  the  University  of  Oxford  by  his  son,  the 
Lord  Clarendon,  when,  in  the  reign  of  King  James, 
he  was  made  their  high  steward,  was  not  at  that 

*  "  Founded  at  the  sole  expense  (15,000/.)  of  Archbishop 
Sheldon,  in  1669."  He  "gave  2000/.  more  for  keeping  it  in 
repair."  Oxon.  Ac,ad.  (1749,)  p.  151.— ED. 


444  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

time  printing  there  ?  He  told  me  it  was,  and  they 
had  made  a  good  advance  in  printing  it,  but  it  was 
managed  with  all  imaginable  secrecy.  I  asked  the 
reason  of  that  great  secrecy,  and  inquired  whether 
it  was  not  a  possible  thing  to  prevail  with  some  of 
the  workmen  concerned,  for  a  piece  of  money,  to  let 
a  person,  that  out  of  curiosity  was  desirous  to  see 
what  was  printed,  have  a  sight  of  the  sheets  printed 
off,  and  of  some  of  the  copy  ;  and  intimated  I  should 
not  be  ungrateful  if  he  would  help  me  to  such  a 
man's  company. 

He  replied,  that  he  knew  no  other  reason  of  the 
secrecy,  but  the  fear  of  those  concerned,  lest  some 
intriguing  London  bookseller,  getting  the  sheets  into 
his  hands,  should  print  it  in  a  smaller  form,  to  their 
damage  who  were  engaged  in  the  expensive  and 
pompous  edition  in  their  theatre.  My  answer  was, 
that  though  perhaps  there  might  be  occasion  for  a 
fear  of  that  nature,  could  such  a  person  get  all  the 
sheets  into  his  hands  as  they  were  printed,  yet  I 
could  not  see  what  danger  could  attend  the  grati 
fying  any  that  were  curious,  with  the  sight  of  the 
sheets,  in  the  presence  of  a  workman. 

He  told  me  that  no  such  thing  could  be  obtained 
without  the  leave  of  the  Dean  of  Christ  Church  ;* 
and  that  no  one  could  venture  to  give  a  sight  of  any 
of  it  without  hazarding  the  loss  of  his  place,  which 
he  was  not  willing  to  do  himself,  nor  did  he  know 

*  Dr.  Aldrich.  He  died,  1710,  aged  sixty-three.  Toulmin's 
"  Hist.  View,"  pp.  32,  33 ;  Athcn.  Oxon.  (Bliss,)  iv.  652. — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  445 

any  one  that  was.  I  pressed  no  farther,  but  he 
withdrew,  and  I  returned  to  my  inn,  and  kept  pri 
vate  there,  considering  with  myself  what  step  to 
take  next. 

At  length,  I  sent  for  a  periwig-maker,  with  whom 
I  had  formerly  had  some  acquaintance,  and  told 
him  my  design  in  coming  at  that  time  to  Oxford, 
which  I  desired  him  to  keep  to  himself,  and  inquired 
of  him  whether  he  could  not  find  me  out  a  work 
man  among  those  in  the  theatre,  whose  circum 
stances  were  low  and  strait,  and  who  found  it  hard 
to  provide  for  his  wife  and  children,  and  to  keep  the 
wolf,  as  we  say,  from  the  door,  that  upon  the  pros 
pect  of  a  little  good  eating  and  drinking,  and  a  piece 
of  money  in  his  pocket,  might  be  prevailed  with  to 
help  me  to  the  sight  of  the  printed  sheets  of  Lord 
Clarendon,  &c. 

After  a  little  pause,  he  told  me,  he  believed  he 
could  find  such  a  person  as  I  described,  would  seek 
for  him,  and  soon  let  me  know  with  certainty  whe 
ther  I  might  not  depend  upon  him  to  answer  my  end, 
and  so  withdrew.  When  he  returned,  he  brought 
me  a  Dutchman,  that  was  a  daily  workman  at  the 
press  there,  whose  straits  were  great ;  and  upon 
discoursing  with  him,  I  soon  found  I  should  have 
no  difficulty  in  prevailing  with  him  to  help  me  to 
the  sight  of  any  thing  that  I  desired  that  was  within 
his  reach. 

This  person  told  me  he  supposed  I  was  the  Lon 
don  bookseller,  who  had  betimes  that  morning  sent 


446  LIFE    OF    CALAMV. 

for  one  of  their  servants  to  the  Coffee-house,  and 
made  such  particular  enquiries  about  Lord  Claren 
don's  History,  earnestly  desiring  a  sight  of  it.  Withal, 
he  intimated,  that  that  fellow,  at  his  return,  had 
given  a  very  particular  account  of  what  had  passed, 
seeming  to  think  he  had  merited  by  his  good  con 
duct.  I  gave  him  to  understand  I  was  no  bookseller, 
but  was  desirous  to  see  what  of  Lord  Clarendon's 
work  was  printed,  if  I  could  compass  it,  because  I 
had  an  historical  work  that  was  just  ready  for  the 
press,  relating  to  the  very  times  which  my  Lord 
gave  an  account  of;  and  therefore  should  be  con 
firmed  if  I  found  Lord  Clarendon's  account  of  par 
ticulars  agreed  with  mine.  Whereas,  if  I  found  a 
clashing  in  any  thing  material,  it  would  be  requisite 
for  me  to  be  provided  with  vouchers,  (the  best  I 
could  get)  in  order  to  my  support :  and  I  promised 
him  if  he  would  comply  with  my  desire,  and  tarry 
with  me  while  I  was  running  over  what  he  brought 
me,  I  would  give  him  meat  and  drink  to  his  satis 
faction,  and  a  piece  of  money  at  last,  to  carry  home 
to  his  poor  wife  and  children. 

He  told  me,  he  both  could  and  would  answer  my 
desires,  but  insisted  on  it,  that  I  should  keep  myself 
still  private  ;  and  that  if  I  this  way  discovered  any 
thing  of  which  I  made  public  use,  I  should  conceal 
his  name,  who  helped  me  to  the  sight  of  any  sheets, 
before  the  work  was  published.  Hereupon  he  re 
tired,  promising  to  be  with  me  again  in  two  hours 
time ;  and  when  he  returned,  he  brought  with  him 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  447 

some  part  of  the  copy,  and  all  the  sheets  that  were 
at  that  time  printed  off. 

As  to  the  copy  of  this  celebrated  work,  in  what  of 
it  I  saw,  I  observed  a  good  number  of  alterations,  and 
interlineations,  which  were  very  discernibly  made  by 
several  hands,  one  of  which  he  told  me  was  the  hand 
of  Dr.  Aldrich,  the  Dean  of  Christ  Church.  Some 
times  whole  paragraphs  were  scratched  or  blotted 
out,  and  others  added  in  their  room.  A  late  writer* 
says:  "it  is  suspected  that  the  Lord  Clarendon's 
History  was  very  much  altered  by  the  editors  at 
Oxford.  That  the  original  manuscript  is  interpo 
lated,  and  rased  in  several  places,  I  believe  I  have 
good  reason  to  suspect."f  From  what  I  saw,  I  am 
very  much  inclined  to  be  of  the  same  thoughts. :(: 

*  See  "Clarendon  and  Whitlock  compared,"  (1727)  Pref. 
p.  vi.— C. 

f  "  Whether  there  are  really  any  such  rasures  and  interpola 
tions,  or  not,  it  is  certain  the  bent  of  the  History  was,  originally, 
the  same  as  it  is  now  ;  and  the  noble  historian  wrote  it  with  a 
design  to  vindicate  all  the  mal-administration  in  the  reign  of 
King  Charles  I.,  in  the  most  effectual  manner,  by  allowing  in 
part,  and  then  explaining  that  part  away  ;  by  supporting  the 
tyranny  of  the  priesthood,  as  the  right  of  the  Church  ;  and 
arbitrary  power,  as  the  prerogative  of  the  Crown."  "  Hist. 
View/'  pp.  32,  33.— ED. 

|  These  "  thoughts"  Dr.  Calamy  appears  to  have  fully  and 
freely  communicated  to  his  literary  acquaintance  ;  for  it  can 
be  scarcely  doubted  that  he  was  the  "  reverend  Doctor"  men 
tioned  in  the  following  passage. 

Oldmixon  alleging  "  the  great  reason  there  is  to  suspect  that 
'  The  History  of  the  Rebellion/  as  it  was  published  at  Oxford, 
was  not  entirely  the  work  of  the  Lord  Clarendon,  who  did,  in- 


448  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

The  Dutchman  told  me,  that  as  soon  as  a  sheet 
was  printed,  the  first  proof  was  carried  to  Dr. 
Aldrich ;  and  when  he  had  corrected  it,  the  next 
proof  was  sent  to  the  Earl  of  Rochester,  who  was 
the  last  corrector  of  it.  When  it  came  from  him  it 
was  wrought  off.  I  cannot  indeed  say  that  that 
which  I  saw  was  the  original  Manuscript,  but  rather 
a  transcript.*  Yet,  passing  through  divers  hands 

deed,  write  a  History  of  those  times,"  adds  :  "  I  speak  this  by 
hearsay ;  but  hearsay  from  a  person  superior  to  all  suspicion, 
and  too  illustrious  to  be  named  without  leave. 

"  I,  also,  humbly  refer  it  to  the  decision  of  another  very 
honourable  person,  whether  there  is  not,  to  his  knowledge,  such 
a  History  in  manuscript  still  extant ;  and  to  a  reverend  doctor 
now  living,  whether  he  did  not  see  the  Oxford  copy,  by  which 
the  book  was  printed,  altered  and  interpolated,  and  the  proofs  of 
the  printed  copy,  and  even  the  revises  of  those  proofs,  altered 
and  interpolated  while  it  was  at  the  press."  See  "  Hist,  of  Eng 
land,"  (1730)  Pref.  p.  viii.— ED. 

*  In  1826,  appeared  from  <f  the  Clarendon  Press,"  in  eight 
finely  printed  volumes,  Svo,  "  the  History  of  the  Rebellion  and 
Civil  Wars  in  England ;  to  which  is  added,  an  Historical  View 
of  the  affairs  of  Ireland,  by  Edward,  Earl  of  Clarendon.  A 
new  edition,  exhibiting  a  faithful  collation  of  the  original  MS., 
with  all  the  suppressed  passages  ;  also  the  unpublished  notes 
of  Bishop  Warburton."  The  "  Life  and  Continuation"  thus 
collated,  are  now,  I  believe,  reprinting  at  Oxford. 

From  an  "  advertisement"  by  Mr.  Bandinel,  keeper  of  the 
"  Bodleian  Library,"  it  appears  "  that  not  the  original  manu 
script  of  Lord  Clarendon,"  but  a  "  transcript,"  made  by  "  his 
secretary,  Mr.  Shaw,"  was  "  employed  by  the  sons  of  the  noble 
historian,  in  printing  the  first  edition." 

As  "  the  original  manuscript  was  not  completed  till  1673,  and 
his  lordship  died  in  the  following  year,  it  is  natural,"  says  Mr. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  449 

before  the  sheets  were  printed  off,  it  may  well 
enough  be  supposed,  that  before  it  saw  the  light  it 
might,  as  to  a  great  many  particulars,  be  very  dif 
ferent,  both  from  the  transcript,  and  the  original 
manuscript.*  So  that,  notwithstanding  that  formal 
expression  in  the  Preface  to  the  first  volume  of  this 
work,  in  these  words,  "  they  who  put  forth  this  his 
tory  dare  not  take  upon  them  to  make  any  alter 
ations  in  a  work  of  this  kind,  solemnly  left  with 

Bandinel,  "  to  suppose  that  the  transcript  was  never  revised  by 
the  author." 

On  account  of  "  inaccuracies"  detected  in  Mr.  Shaw's  tran 
script,  "  the  first  editors"  determined  to  "  procure  a  more  cor 
rect  copy  of  their  father's  work,"  and  "  under  the  direction  of 
Bishop  Sprat,  the  first  five  books  were  transcribed  by  a  West 
minster  scholar,  and  the  remainder  by  the  bishop's  secretary." — 
ED. 

*  On  the  judgment  of  Sancroft  and  Morley,  to  whom  "  Lord 
Clarendon  had  in  his  will"  referred  his  editors,  they  omitted 
"  some  parts  of  the  history  which,  for  many  reasons,  were  at  that 
moment  unfit  for  publication." 

As  to  alterations,  ^they  allowed  themselves  "  somewhat  to 
soften  even  the  merited  severity  of  the  historian/'  Thus 
"  Bishop  Williams,"  was  left  "  generally  unacceptable,"  though 
Lord  Clarendon  had  made  him  "  the  most  generally  abomi 
nated  ;"  and  "  his  sons"  omitted  "  the  vermin"  where  his  Lord 
ship  had  so  denominated  "  the  Scottish  nation,"  though  "  the 
noble  editors  have  in  no  one  instance  added,  suppressed,  or 
altered  any  historical  fact." 

Mr.  Bandinel  concludes  that  "  besides  satisfying  the  curious 
by  the  insertion  of  the  suppressed  passages,  this  collation  will 
establish  the  genuineness  of  the  history  beyond  the  reach  of 
cavil."  Ibid. — ED. 

VOL.    I.  2    G 


450  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

them  to  be  published,*  whenever  it  should  be  pub 
lished,  as  it  was  delivered  to  them,"  I  yet  cannot  see 
how  we  can  have  any  great  dependence,  as  to  the 
genuineness  of  many  passages  in  it.f 

*  Dr.  Cockburn  (in  "  his  Specimen  of  some  free  and  impar 
tial  Remarks  on  public  Affairs,"  &c.  p.  8.)  assures  us,  that  dis 
coursing  with  the  Earl  of  Clarendon  about  his  father's  History, 
and  wishing  him  to  publish  it,  he  told  him  that  "  he  knew  not 
how  to  do  it,  seeing  his  father  forbade  him  expressly  to  do  it, 
without  leave  from  King  Charles  II.,  which  he  never  had."  Nor 
did  he  seem  satisfied  with  the  Doctor's  resolution  of  his  scruple. 
But  the  property  of  the  History  being  now  in  the  University, 
they  made  no  scruple  of  publishing  it. — C. 

f  See  the  late  Bishop  of  Rochester's  "  Vindication  of  Bishop 
Smalridge,  Dr.  Aldrich,  and  himself,  from  the  scandalous  re 
flections  of  Oldmixon  relating  to  the  publication  of  Lord  Cla 
rendon's  History,"  in  two  sheets,  1731. — C. 

Oldmixon,  in  his  "  History,"  (p.  227)  had  charged  the  Doc_ 
tors  Aldrich,  Atterbury  and  Smalridge,  with  having  employed 
Smith,  the  author  of  "  Phsedra  and  Hippolitus,"  to  interpolate 
the  Clarendon  MS.,  especially  as  to  the  character  of  Cinna 
applied  to  Hampden.  In  his  Preface  (p.  ix.)  he  sustained  this 
charge,  by  an  anonymous  letter,  since  known  to  have  been 
written  by  Colonel  Duckett,  at  whose  seat  Smith  had  died,  in 
1710. 

Bishop  Atterbury,  replying  from  his  place  of  exile,  says  :  "I 
never  saw  my  Lord  Clarendon's  History  in  manuscript,  either 
before,  or  since  the  edition  of  it ;  nor  ever  read  a  line  of  it,  but 
in  print.  It  was  impossible,  therefore,  that  I  should  deal  with 
Mr.  Smith  in  the  manner  represented. 

"As  to  Dr.  Smalridge,  the  late  Bishop  of  Bristol,  no  suspi 
cion  of  this  kind  can  possibly  rest  on  his  memory,  because  he 
was  not  any  ways  concerned  in  preparing  that  history  for  the 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  451 

The  printed  sheets  brought  to  me,  went  almost  to 
the  end  of  the  first  volume,  in  folio.  I  ran  them, 
cursorily,  over  by  the  next  morning,  so  as  to  have 
good  satisfaction  that,  as  far  as  the  work  was  then 
carried,  there  was  no  great  difference  in  matters  of 
fact,  between  my  Lord  and  Mr/Baxter. 

My  Dutchman  seemed  not  ill-pleased  with  the  en 
tertainment  I  gave  him,  and  with  what  I  put  into 
his  hands  at  parting.  And  my  booksellers,  on  ac 
quainting  them  with  what  I  had  done,  made  no 
difficulty  of  reimbursing  me.  This  passage,  among 
several  others  in  my  Life,  fully  convinced  me,  that  a 

press,  but  as  much  a  stranger  to  the  contents  of  it,  as  I,  myself, 
was  till  it  came  forth  in  print. 

"  The  revising  of  the  manuscript,  (written,  as  I  have  heard, 
not  very  correctly,)  was  committed  to  the  care  of  Bishop  Sprat, 
and  Dean  Aldrich,  by  the  late  Earl  of  Rochester ;  who,  him 
self,  also  assisted  in  that  re  visa],  from  the  beginning  to  the  end 
of  the  work."  See  "  The  Clarendon  Family  vindicated," 
(1732)  pp.  11,  12;  Biog.  Brit.  i.  343,  347,  348;  Dr.  Johnson's 
Lives,  (1783)ii.  247-249. 

The  author  of  the  "  History  of  England"  immediately  re 
turned  to  the  charge.  The  same  year,  (1732)  appeared  "Mr. 
Oldmixon's  '  reply  to  the  late  Bishop  of  Rochester's  vindication 
of  Bishop  Smalridge,  Dr.  Aldrich  and  himself,'  examined,  prov 
ing  that  the  application  of  Cinna's  character  to  Mr.  Hampden,  is 
in  the  late  Earl  of  Clarendon's  Life,  wrote  in  1669,  and  in  his 
Lordship's  own  hand." 

This  examiner  retaliates  by  "  an  account  of  numerous  alter 
ations  in  Daniel's  History,"  in  "  the  Complete  History  of  Eng 
land,  of  which  Mr.  Oldmixon  has  declared  himself  the  sole 
Editor."— ED. 

2  G  2 


452  LIFE    OF    CALAMY, 

silver  key  rightly  applied,  would  let  into  such  things 
as  people,  at  the  first  view,  were  apt  to  think  could 
not  be  come  at. 

Being  thus  fallen  upon  that  work  which  has  since 
made  so  great  a  noise  in  the  world,  intitled  my  Lord 
Clarendon's  "  History  of  the  Rebellion  and  Civil 
Wars  in  England,''  I  think  it  may  not  be  amiss  to 
add  somewhat  more  concerning  it.  It  is  observed 
by  a  late  writer,*  that  "  it  was  injurious  to  fix  on 
that  History,  the  title  of  '  the  Grand  Rebellion,'  and 
date  the  commencement  of  it  in  the  year  1641. 
For,"  says  he,  "in  so  doing,  the  very  condition  and 
seals  of  the  Restoration  are  violated,  because  his 
master,  for  a  valuable  consideration,  viz.,  for  his 
restitution  to  the  regal  dignity  and  government, 
had  solemnly  contracted  and  engaged,  that  the  two 
estates  of  Lords  and  Commons,  or  those  who  acted 
by  their  orders,  or  their  families,  should  never  be  en- 
damaged  or  prejudiced  in  their  reputation,  by  any 
reproach  or  term  of  distinction .  Without  which  sti 
pulation  King  Charles  II.  had  not  been  restored, 
nor  the  historian  so  greatly  advanced,  enriched,  and 
dignified.  Therefore  it  may  with  great  justice  be 
repeated,  that  the  historian,  (who  knew  all  this)  if  it 
was  really  he  that  affixed  that  title,  was  injurious, 
or  at  least  inconsistent  with  himself.  For  the  Ox 
ford  Preface  to  his  History,  asserts  with  gi  eat  truth* 
that  his  Lordship  at  the  Restoration,  in  1660,  '  had 
the  happiness  to  have  the  greatest  share  in  preserv- 

*  Mr.  Acherley's  "  Britannick  Constitution,"  p.  566. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  453 

. 

ing  the  constitution  of  our  Government  entire,  when 
the  then  present  temper  of  the  people  was  but  too 
ready  to  have  gone  into  any  undue  compliance  with 
the  Crown.'  And  that  his  Lordship  '  had  the  happi 
ness  to  have  the  greatest  share  in  compassing  and 
perfecting  the  Act  of  Oblivion  and  Indemnity,' 
which  had  placed  the  King's  officers  and  his  forces, 
in  point  of  offences  against  the  Constitution,  on  an 
equal  foot  with  the  Parliament  officers  and  their 
forces."  He  adds,  that  "  doubtless  this  assertion  is 
equally  true  with  the  other  undoubted  British  asser 
tions  in  that  venerable  preface." 

This  work  has,  indeed,  one  plain  character  of 
being  genuine  ;  which  is  that  contempt  and  animo 
sity  which  run  through  it,  against  the  English  Pres 
byterians  and  the  Scots,*  even  in  such  places  as  do 
not  seem  at  all  to  require  or  justify  it.  Any  thing 
of  this  kind,  we,  from  the  disposition  of  the  author, 
may  conclude,  came  from  his  heart.  His  passion 
against  the  Presbyterians,  which  rose  to  that  height 
that  he  scarce  knew  how  to  drop  a  word  in  their 
favour,  was  most  certainly  the  weak  side  of  that 
great  man.  He  seems  to  have  thought  it  for  his 
honour  to  hate  thern,f  and  all  that  belonged  to 
them ;  and  it  may  be,  was  the  very  man  that  con- 

*  See  snpra,  p.  449,  note. — ED. 

f  "  In  proof  of  the  rancorous  hatred  borne  by  Clarendon  to 
the  Presbyterians,"  says  the  Hon.  G.  A.  Ellis,  "it  is  only  neces 
sary  to  refer  to  various  passages  in  his  History,  and  in  his  Life." 
See  "  Historical  Inquiries,"  &c.  (1827)  p.  115. — ED. 


454  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

tributed  more  than  any  other,  to  the  raising  of  that 
ill-will  against  them,  which  ever  and  anon  discovers 
itself,  even  to  this  day,  among  those  that  follow  his 
maxim  and  principles.* 

I  believe  few,  if  any,  have  read  this  History,  but 
take  notice  how  much  the  author,  in  the  main,  re 
sented  it,  that  he  was  one  of  those  evil  counsellors 
fixed  on  by  the  Parliament  to  be  exempted  out  of  a 
general  pardon,  in  the  directions  they  gave  to  the 
Earl  of  Essex,  their  general,!  about  that  matter. 
This  is  by  many  thought  the  true  reason  why  the 
Parliament  are  so  coarsely  treated,  from  the  begin 
ning  to  the  end  of  his  Narrative.  He  knew  not  how 
to  forgive  them,  because  they  would  not  forgive  him. 

But,  methinks,  wise  historians  should  be  cautious 
how  they  give  characters  of  such  persons  as  have 
slighted  or  condemned  them,  or  given  them  marks 
of  ill-will  in  any  other  way.  What  prejudiced  men 
say,  (and  who  more  likely  to  be  prejudiced,  than  a 
man  that  knew  all  pardon  was  forbidden  him)  lies 
always  under  suspicion.  Yet  this  author  seems  not 
to  have  used  the  least  caution  to  conceal  his  pre 
judice,  but  has  left  it  so  open  and  glaring,  that  it 

*  "  The  History  of  the  Rebellion,"  says  Oldmixon,  "  its  De 
dication  and  Prefaces,  and  the  preachments  that  were  made  upon 
it,  in  a  great  measure  raised  that  wicked  spirit,  which  threw  the 
kingdom  into  distraction  and  confusion  in  the  time  of  Sacheve- 
rell."  Pref.  p.  ix.— ED. 

t  September  21,  1642.     ParL  Hist.  (1762)  xi.  431.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  455 

stares  every  reader  in  the  face.  Though  it  is  hard 
to  say  where  lies  the  wisdom  of  this,  yet  is  it,  many 
times,  less  mischievous  than  more  secret  and  refined 
malice. 

But  notwithstanding  the  boasts  of  the  high  party, 
of  that  part  of  Lord  Clarendon's  History  that  is 
published,  ever  since  it  came  out,  I  cannot  help  con 
curring  with  Archdeacon  Echard*  in  concern,  that 
the  other  part,  from  the  King's  restoration  to  the 
author's  disgrace  and  banishment,  is  still  wanting, 
and  likely  to  remain  so.f  This,  I  must  own,  I 
reckon  a  thing  to  be  lamented,  because  of  the  dis 
coveries  we  might  hope  to  make  in  several  parti 
culars. 

My  Abridgment,  which  I  sent  to  the  press  soon 
after  my  return  from  Oxford,  did  not  stay  long 
there.  The  impression  was  soon  sold  off,  and  ano 
ther  desired,  with  amendments  and  farther  improve 
ments,  with  great  earnestness.  This  work,  which 
cost  me  no  little  pains,  was  more  taken  notice  of 
in  the  world,  and  got  me  more  friends  and  enemies 
too,  than  I  could  have  expected  or  imagined.  I  had 
the  thanks  of  several  in  the  Established  Church,  as 

*  "  Hist,  of  England,"  iii.  369.— C. 

t  In  1759,  was  published,  from  "  the  Clarendon  Printing- 
house,  Oxford,"  in  2  vols.  fol.  and  3  vols.  8vo.,  "  The  Life  of 
Edward  Earl  of  Clarendon,  to  1660,"  with  "  A  Continuation  of 
the  same,  and  of  his  History,  to  his  Banishment,  in  1667." 
See  supra,  p.  448  note. — ED. 


456  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

well  as  of  a  great  number  out  of  it.  Many  also 
were  displeased,  and  some  went  so  far  as  to  threaten 
my  Abridgment  with  the  public  censure  of  the 
Convocation.  A  dignified  clergyman  discoursing  to 
that  purpose  with  one  of  my  booksellers  that  had  a 
concern  in  the  work,  and  telling  him  what  he  had 
heard  from  several,  that  there  was  a  design  of  that 
nature  on  foot,  the  bookseller  requested  him  to  be  so 
kind  as  to  tell  any  members  of  Convocation,  that  if 
they  would  pursue  that  design,  and  bring  it  to  bear, 
he  would  willingly  present  such  as  were  active  in  it 
with  a  purse  of  guineas,  and  did  not  doubt  but  the 
consequence  would  turn  to  a  good  account  to  him 
in  the  way  of  his  business.  This  being  reported, 
there  was  no  more  talk  heard  of  that  nature. 

Among  other  censurers,  Dr.  William  Nichols,  some 
time  after  publishing  a  Latin  Defence  of  the  Doc 
trine  and  Discipline  of  the  Church  of  England, 
charges  me,  in  his  historical  "  Apparatus,"  with 
"  hard  and  severe  reflections  running  through  my 
work."*  For  my  part,  I  can  with  truth  declare,  it 
was  my  fixed  intention  to  be  upon  my  guard  ;  and 
a  good  number  of  reflections  were  designedly  waved, 
for  which,  according  to  the  best  judgment  I  could 
form,  sufficient  grounds  were  not  wanting.  The 
Doctor  adds,  that  "  I  treated  some  eminent  persons 
of  their  communion,  and  the  Church  itself,  with  less 
reverence  than  was  becoming."  As  to  the  "  emi 
nent  persons  of  their  communion,"  I  suppose  he 

*  "  Apparat.  ad  Defens.  Eccl.  Angl."  p.  1 10.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CAT-AMY.  457 

meant  the  managers  of  the  conference  at  the  Savoy, 
on  the  Church  side,  of  some  of  whom  I  had  given 
characters,  with  freedom,  from  Mr.  Baxter. 

But,  whoever  will  be  at  the  pains  to  look  into 
Bishop  Burnet's  "  History  of  his  Own  Time,"  will, 
I  think,  verily  find  characters  given  of  the  same 
persons,  with  as  little  "  reverence,"  to  the  full.  Sup 
pose  I  had  not  spoken  with  all  the  deference  and  re 
spect  of  Archbishop  Sheldon  as  the  good  Doctor  might 
have  wished,  I  yet  did  not  speak  quite  so  irreve 
rently  of  him  as  Bishop  Burnet,  who  says,  that  "  he 
seemed  not  to  have  a  deep  sense  of  religion,  if 
any  at  all ;  and  spoke  of  it  most  commonly  as  of  an 
engine  of  Government,  and  a  matter  of  policy.  By 
this  means  the  King  came  to  look  on  him  as  a  wise 
and  honest  clergyman."*  If  I,  from  Mr.  Baxter, 
said  of  Bishop  Morley,  of  Winchester,  that  "  he  was 
unwilling  to  yield  to  any  thing  that  might  look  like 
moderation,"!  Bishop  Burnet  comes  pretty  near  me, 
in  saying,  that  "  he  was  extreme  passionate,  and  very 
obstinate."  $ 

If  my  saying,  from  Mr.  Baxter,  of  Bishop  Gun 
ning,  who  was  a  great  speaker  in  the  Conference? 
that  "  he  stuck  at  nothing,"  $  was  free,  and  not  so 
reverend  as  might  have  been  desired  by  such  as 
greatly  respect  his  memory,  I  think  Bishop  Burnet 
does  not  fall  short  of  me,  when  he  says  of  the  same 
person,  that  "  he  was  unweariedly  active  to  very 

*  "  Own  Time,"  i.  177.— C.  f  Abridg.  p.  172.— C. 

I  "  Own  Time,"  i.  177.— C.  §  Abridg.  p,  175.— C. 


458  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

little  purpose."*  If  it  was  a  reflection  for  me  to 
say  of  Bishop  Steam,  that  he  "  wanted  charity,"f  it 
was  certainly  yet  much  worse  for  Bishop  Burnet  to 
say  of  him,  that  "  he  was  a  sour,  ill-tempered  man, 
and  minded  chiefly  the  enriching  his  family.";]: 

As  to  other  eminent  persons  of  the  Church  of 
England,  of  whom  I  have  given  less  favourable  cha 
racters,  I  think  I  may  very  safely  say,  that  Bishop 
Burnet  has  gone  beyond  me.  Nor  does  he,  upon  a 
great  many  occasions,  speak  of  the  Church  itself 
with  much  more  reverence  than  I. 

The  Doctor  adds,  that  "  when  I  gave  the  reasons  of 
Nonconformity,  I  accused  the  Church  in  a  manner 
that  not  a  little  disturbed  some  of  the  gravest  men." 
But,  in  that  part  of  my  work,  I  was  only  acting  as 
an  historian,  and  if  the  account  I  gave  be  really 
true,  and  those  that  I  mentioned  as  such,  were  the 
reasons  they  actually  gave  for  Nonconformity,  (as  to 
which  any  one  may  pass  a  judgment  that  consults 
their  writings  that  I  quoted,)  it  was  but  a  piece  of 
faithfulness  in  rne  to  represent  them  so,  when  I  had 
undertaken  it,  and  their  being  disturbed  was  un 
reasonable. 

My  work  was  also  warmly  reflected  on,  in  a 
pamphlet,  intitled,  "  A  Case  of  Present  Concern,  in 
a  Letter  to  a  Member  of  the  House  of  Commons  ;" 
in  Mr.  Wesley's  "  Defence  of  his  Letter  concerning 
the  Education  of  Dissenters  in  their  Private  Acade- 

*  "  Own  Time/'  i.  181.™ C.  f  Abridg.  p.  174.— C. 

|  "  Own  Time,"  i.  590.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  459 

mies  ;"*  in  a  sermon  of  Mr.  Stubbs's,  in  titled,  "  For 
God  or  for  Baal,  or  no  Neutrality  in  Religion ;"  and 
in  almost  all  the  warm  and  angry  pamphlets  which 
at  that  time  swarmed  from  the  press  in  great  plenty. 
"  Animadversions "  were  published  upon  me  in  a 
dialogue,!  an(^  my  Abridgment  was  said  to  "de 
serve  to  be  condemned  by  public  authority,  and  to 
undergo  the  fiery  trial ;"  and  there  came  out  "  A 
Rebuke  to  Mr.  Edmund  Calamy,  Author  of  the 
Abridgment  of  Mr.  Baxter's  Life,  by  Thomas  Long, 
B.D."  But  he  was  a  man  of  such  a  temper,  and 
the  spirit  that  ran  through  these  writings  was  so 
bitter,  and  had  such  a  mixture  of  weakness  with 
fury,  that  it  seemed  to  little  purpose  to  offer  at 
pursuing  the  argument,  and  therefore  I  forbore. 

Soon  after  the  beginning  of  this  year,  (1702,) 
Queen  Anne  had  an  easy  admission  to  the  vacant 

*  Samuel  Wesley,  rector  of  Epworth,  father  of  the  cele 
brated  founder  of  the  Methodists,  and  an  intimate  friend  of 
Sacheverel,  published,  in  1703,  "  A  Letter  concerning  the 
Education  of  the  Dissenters  in  their  Private  Academies,"  one  of 
which  he  had  entered,  but  left  it,  at  eighteen,  to  become  a  servi 
tor  in  Exeter  College,  Oxford. 

"  The  author,"  says  Calamy,  "  brings  heavy  charges  against 
the  management,  and  particularly  the  dangerous  political  prin 
ciples  there  instilled."  See  "  Abridg.  of  Baxter/'  p.  660. 

Mr.  Samuel  Palmer  published  "  A  Defence  of  Dissenting 
Academies,"  to  which  "  Mr.  Wesley's  Defence"  was  a  reply. 
Samuel  Wesley  died,  1735,  aged  sixty-nine.  Gen.  Biog.  Diet,  xii 
466.— ED. 

t  "  Between  a  Churchman  and  a  peaceable  Dissenter,  1704." 
— ED. 


460  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

throne,  and  the  Court  was  frequented  by  a  good 
number  that  were  not  very  welcome,  nor  could  find 
much  pleasure  there  in  the  reign  foregoing.  The 
high  party  soon  grew  triumphant,  and  thought  of 
nothing  less  than  carrying  all  before  them.  The 
poor  Dissenters  having  lost  their  firm  friend,  were 
presently  insulted,  of  which  I  have  already  given 
some  proof.*  They  had  but  cloudy  apprehensions, 
and  yet  bore  several  instances  of  rudeness  with 
patience  ;  and  were  not  without  hope  of  being  be 
friended  by  such  as  were  in  the  true  interest  of  their 
country,  to  which  they  had  always  adhered. 

They  made  an  address  to  her  Majesty,  in  a  large 
body,  made  up  of  the  three  denominations  of  Pres 
byterians,  Independents,  and  Antipsedobaptists  ;f 
and  this  being  the  first  time  of  their  joining  together 
in  an  address  at  Court,  it  was  much  taken  notice  of, 
and  several  were  surprized,  and  commended  their 
prudence.  There  being  now  a  necessity  of  a  new  war 
with  France,  which  had  declared  for  the  Pretender, 
this,  together  with  the  good  correspondence  there 
was  between  her  Majesty  and  her  two  Houses  of 
Parliament,  helped  to  baffle  the  hopes  of  that  party, 

*  In  my  Abridg.  i.  620.— C. 

"  In  several  parts  of  the  country,  they  talked  of  pulling  down 
the  meeting-houses,  as  places  not  fit  to  be  suffered-  In  one 
town,  (Newcastle-under-Line,)  they  actually  went  to  work  as  soon 
as  ever  the  tidings  of  the  King's  death  reached  them."  Ibid. — 
ED. 

f  See  the  Address  in  my  Abridg.  p.  621. — C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  461 

who,  upon  the  late  King's  death,  expected  disorder 
and  confusion. 

The  Lords  and  Commons,  in  their  congratulatory 
addresses  to  the  Queen,  declared  their  adherence  to 
the  measures  already  entered  into,  to  reduce  the 
exorbitant  power  of  France,  and  their  resolution  to 
exert  themselves  with  the  utmost  vigour  and  union, 
for  obtaining  such  a  balance  of  power  and  interest, 
as  might  effectually  secure  the  liberties  of  Europe ; 
and  desired  this  might  be  communicated  to  her  allies 
for  their  encouragement. 

Her  Majesty,  in  her  speech  to  the  two  Houses, 
(March  11,)  declared  her  concurrence,  and  desired 
them  to  consider  of  proper  methods  towards  attain 
ing  an  union  between  England  and  Scotland,  which 
had  been  lately  recommended  to  them,  as  a  matter 
that  nearly  concerned  the  peace  and  security  of  both 
kingdoms.  She,  a  little  after,  declared  the  Earl  of 
Marlborough  captain-general  of  all  her  forces  in  Eng 
land,  and  of  those  employed  abroad  in  conjunction 
with  her  allies  ;  and  sent  him  to  Holland  as  Ambas 
sador  Extraordinary  and  Plenipotentiary. 

King  William  being  buried  privately,  April  12,* 
her  Majesty  was  crowned  at  Westminster  with  great 
pomp  and  splendour,  the  23rd.  The  sermon  was 


*  "  A  noble  monument  and  an  equestrian  statue  were  ordered. 
Some  years  must  show  whether  these  things  were  really  intended, 
or  if  they  were  only  spoke  of  to  excuse  the  privacy  of  his  fune 
ral,  which  was  scarce  decent."  Burnet,  ii.  307. — ED. 


462  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

preached  by  the  Archbishop  of  York,  (Sharp)  from 
Isai.  xlix.  23. 

A  report  having  been  spread  about  by  some  that 
seemed  to  be  making  their  court  to  the  Queen,  by 
aspersing  the  memory  of  the  deceased  King,  that 
there  was  among  his  Majesty's  papers  somewhat 
found  in  prejudice  of  her  succession,  the  Lords, 
(after  a  narrow  search  had  been  made  by  persons 
deputed  for  that  purpose,)  declared  this  report  false 
and  scandalous ;  and  ordered  the  authors  or  pub 
lishers  to  be  punished  with  the  utmost  severity,  as 
they  well  deserved.  The  Earls  of  Carlise  and  Hali 
fax  were  particularly  zealous  in  this  affair. 

The  Queen,  in  a  letter  to  the  Scottish  Parliament, 
(in  answer  to  one  they  had  written  to  the  late  King,) 
moved  for  an  union  of  the  two  kingdoms,  and  inti 
mated  that  she  did  heartily  regret  the  losses  and 
disappointments  the  Company  trading  to  Africa  and 
the  Indies  had  sustained,  in  carrying  on  their  de 
signs  for  settling  a  colony  in  America,  which  also 
had  been  a  great  prejudice  and  loss  to  the  whole 
kingdom.  Therefore,  she  would  concur  in  any 
thing  that  could  reasonably  be  proposed  for  their  re 
paration  and  assistance ;  and  do  every  thing  in  her 
power  for  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  her  people. 
They  were  not  a  little  pleased,  as  appeared  by  the 
effect,  in  the  act  passed  for  enabling  her  Majesty  to 
appoint  commissioners  for  an  union,  but  the  treaty 
did  not  succeed.* 

*  An  account  of  their  proceedings  may  be  seen  in  the  "  Annals 
of  Queen  Anne,"  i.  155,  156.— C. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  463 

May  6,  her  Majesty  made  Lord  Godolphin  Lord 
High  Treasurer  of  England.  On  the  15th,  war  was 
declared  against  France  and  Spain,  with  the  unani 
mous  concurrence  of  Lords  and  Commons.  It  was 
observed,  that  this  war  was  declared  by  the  Em 
peror,  the  States  General,  and  our  Queen,  on  the 
very  same  day.*  Her  Majesty  had  such  a  series  of 
successes,  for  a  number  of  campaigns,  under  the 
conduct  of  the  great  Marlborough,  as  no  history 
can  parallel.  Her  conquests  were  extended,  year 
after  year,  and  the  French  Monarch  was  at  length 
reduced  to  the  condition  of  begging  peace.  The 
consequences  had  been  most  glorious,  had  not  a 
party  among  ourselves  risen  up  and  obstructed  them. 

The  most  remarkable  event  of  this  year,  was  the 
success  under  the  Duke  of  Ormond,  at  Vigo  in 
Spain,  after  an  attempt  had  been  made  upon  Cadiz 
without  success.  Our  fleet  returning  homeward  got 
intelligence  that  Monsieur  de  Chateaurenaud,  with  a 
number  of  French  men-of-war  and  the  Spanish  flota 
were  arrived  at  Vigo.  Thither  our  fleet  sailed,  and 
fell  foul  on  and  mastered  them,  and  gained  a  great 
victory.  Not  only  were  great  riches  taken  from  the 
enemy,  but  the  naval  power  of  France  was  almost 
irreparably  broken. 

The  Allies  besieged  and  took  Keyserswaert,  and 
disappointed  the  French  in  their  attempt  to  surprize 
Nimeguen.  Afterwards  the  Earl  of  Marlborough, 
(who  upon  going  into  Holland  was  made  general  of 

*  See  "  Marquis  of  Langallerie's  Memoirs,"  p.  1 74,  &c. — C. 


464  LIFE    OF    CAJLAMY. 

the  confederate  army)  took  Venlo,  Ruremond,  and 
Stevenswaert,  together  with  the  city  and  citadel 
of  Liege.  For  these  successes,  there  was  a  public 
thanksgiving,  Nov.  12.  The  Queen  went  in  great 
state  to  St.  Paul's,  and  a  sermon  was  preached  by 
the  Bishop  of  Exeter,  from  Joshua  xxiii.  8,  9.  The 
Earl  was  soon  after  made  a  Duke,  and  had  a  pension 
of  5000/.  per  annum  out  of  the  Post-office.  Prince 
Eugene,  also,  this  year  opened  the  new  war  in  Italy, 
his  entrance  into  which  country  with  an  army  under 
such  difficulties  and  obstructions  as  lay  in  his  way, 
was  looked  upon  as  having  somewhat  in  it  of  a  pro 
digy.  Landau  was  taken  by  the  Prince  of  Baden. 

July  2.  King  William's  last  Parliament,  sitting  at 
the  time  of  his  death,  was  dissolved  by  proclamation. 
Another  was  called  to  meet  on  August  20  following, 
though  it  did  not  meet  till  October.  The  elections 
were  carried  on,  in  most  parts  of  the  country,  with 
great  warmth  and  contention.  The  high  party  ge 
nerally  carried  it  by  a  considerable  majority  ;  and  Mr. 
Harley  was  yet  a  third  time  chosen  Speaker  of  the 
Commons.  October  29,  her  Majesty  was  nobly 
entertained  in  the  City  at  the  Lord  Mayor's  feast. 

This  year  (1702)  began  the  debate  about  Occa 
sional  Conformity,  a  subject  upon  which  there  was 
much  written,  on  one  side  and  the  other.  A  certain 
warm  person,*  who  thought  himself  well  qualified 
for  the  management  of  any  argument,  though  not 
always  apt  to  consider  consequences,  had  published 

*   Daniel  De  Foe.     Biog.  Brit.  v.  57.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  465 

(1701)  "An  Inquiry  into  the  Occasional  Conformity 
of  Dissenters  in  cases  of  Preferment."*  In  which 
he,  with  great  bitterness,  inveighed  against  that 
practice,  as  perfectly  scandalous,  and  altogether  un 
justifiable  :  but  I  have  said  enough  of  this  in  my 
Abridgment.! 

November  (1702),  the  "Bill  for  preventing  Occa 
sional  Conformity,"  after  making  a  great  noise  with 
out  doors,  was  brought  into  the  Commons  by  Mr. 
Bromley,  Mr.  St.  John,  and  Mr.  Annesley.  On  the 
17th,  it  was  read  a  second  time,  and  committed. 
Having  passed  the  House,  it  was  sent  up  to  the 
Lords,  who  made  several  amendments.  Lord  Hali 
fax  apprehending  the  Commons  would  not  concur, 
but  (as  on  another  occcasion)  have  been  for  tacking 
their  Bill  to  some  money  bill,  obtained  a  vote,  "  that 

*  "  With  a  Preface  to  Mr.  Howe  :"  because  the  "  then  Lord 
Mayor,"  (Sir  Thomas  Abney)  "  was  of  his  congregation."  The 
author  calls  upon  Mr.  Howe,  "  either  to  defend  this  practice  of 
occasional  conformity,  or  to  declare  against  it ;  lest  the  world 
should  believe  that  Dissenters  allowed  themselves  in  what  they 
could  not  defend." 

This  call  produced  "  Some  Considerations  of  a  Preface  to 
an  inquiry  concerning  the  Occasional  Conformity."  De  Foe's 
"  reply  to  Mr.  Howe  is  warm,  and  charges  him  with  mistaking 
the  person,  temper,  profession,  and  intention  of  the  author  of 
the  Inquiry,  and,  with  some  angry  reflections,  drops  the  debate. 

'{  It  was  wished  by  several  of  both  sides,  at  that  time,  that 
Mr.  Hovpe  might  have  been  prevailed  with  to  have  entered  into 
the  merits  of  the  cause."  See  "  Abridgment  of  Baxter,"  pp. 
577,  578.  ED. 

t  Pp.  576-582.— C. 
VOL.    I.  2    H 


466  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

the  annexing  any  clause  to  a  Money  Bill,  was  con 
trary  to  the  Constitution,  and  the  usage  of  Parlia 
ments."  After  some  conferences,  the  Lords  still  ad 
hering  to  their  amendments,  the  Bill  miscarried. 

It  was  observed,  that  Prince  George  of  Denmark 
gave  a  constant  attendance  upon  the  Bill ;  and  gene 
rally  taken  -for  an  indication  that  her  Majesty  was 
very  desirous  of  its  passing.  It  was  also  observed, 
that  Lord  Feversham,  a  known  Papist,  and  a  great 
favourite  of  King  James  II.  was  against  the  Bill, 
though  his  countryman  Duke  Schomberg,  who  was  a 
Protestant,  was  for  it.  The  writer  of  "the  Life  of  Dr. 
Tennison,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,"  takes  notice,* 
that  "  his  Grace  strenuously  opposed  this  celebrated 
Bill,  and  caused  such  amendments  to  be  made 
that  it  was  lost  for  this  session. "f  The  writer  also 
of  the  life  of  Charles  Earl  of  Halifax,  says,:]:  that 
"  none  contributed  more  to  the  nonpassage  of  this 
Bill  into  an  Act,  by  his  interest  with  the  Peers,  and 
strength  of  argument,  than  that  noble  Lord." 

The  night  before  the  grand  conference  between 
the  two  Houses,  Mr.  Benjamin  Robinson, $  and  I, 
waited  on  Bishop  Burnet,  who  was  one  of  the  mana- 

*  P.  102.— C. 

f-  "  Had  the  bill  passed,"  says  Bishop  Burnet,  "  we  had  been 
all  in  confusion,  and  our  enemies  had  made  the  advantage.  A 
very  small  majority  in  the  House  of  Peers  saved  all,  wherein  the 
most  part  of  the  Bishops,  to  their  great  honour,  showed  themselves 
wise  and  moderate."  See  "  A  Memorial  (1703)  to  the  Princess 
Sophia,"  (1815)  pp.  91,  92.— ED.  J  P.  98.— C. 

§  See  Supra,  p.  397,  w.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  467 

gers  for  the  Lords,  at  his  lodgings  in  St.  James's 
house,  in  order  to  some  free  discourse  about  that 
matter,  which  was  like  to  draw  very  considerable 
consequences  after  it.  We  were  encouraged  to  move 
for  this,  by  his  Lordship's  former  civilities. 

Mr.  Robinson  had  sometimes  waited  upon  him  as 
he  was  visiting  his  diocese,  and  was  always  well  re 
ceived.  And  I  having  been  this  very  year  at  Sarum, 
had  a  sort  of  invitation  to  wait  on  my  Lord,  given 
by  his  steward  to  a  particular  acquaintance  of  mine, 
(and  known  to  be  so)  to  whom  he  intimated  that 
his  Lordship  had  heard  I  was  in  town,  and  expected 
I  should  call  upon  him. 

I  waited,  one  morning,  on  his  Lordship,  was  re 
ceived  with  great  frankness,  and  spent  some  hours  in 
free  conversation,  in  his  study.  He  was  pleased  to 
thank  me  for  my  Abridgment  of  Mr.  Baxter's  Life, 
which  he  told  me  he  had  read  with  pleasure,  and 
added  that  as  I  had  set  the  case  of  the  Dissenters  in 
a  better  light  than  he  had  ever  seen  it  set  in  before, 
so  he  thought  it  would  be  very  unworthy  of  them 
for  whose  sake  I  had  taken  so  much  pains,  if  they 
were  not  very  grateful  to  me. 

I  told  his  Lordship,  that  though  it  was  the  interest 
of  truth  and  charity  I  endeavoured  to  promote,  ra 
ther  than  to  serve  a  party,  yet  I  was  far  from  having 
any  reason  to  complain  of  our  friends,  whom  I  found 
very  ready  to  show  me  all  the  respect  I  could  expect 
or  desire.  He  then  spake  very  handsome  things  of 
Mr.  Baxter  and  his  writings,  only  he  with  freedom 

2!  H  2 


468  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

discovered  his  great  dislike  of  the  multitude  of  his 
distinctions,  which,  he  said,  created  confusion,  instead 
of  giving  light. 

His  practical  works  he  much  extolled,  and  told  me, 
he  must  own,  that,  if  he  had  any  acquaintance  with 
serious  vital  religion,  it  was  owing  to  his  reading 
them  in  his  younger  days,  which  I  heard,  I  must  own, 
with  pleasure.  In  return,  I  told  him  that  Mr.  Bax 
ter  himself  had  owned  that  his  first  sense  of  religion 
was  occasioned  by  reading  "  Parsons,  of  Resolution," 
corrected  by  Bunny,*  which  he  acknowledged  he 
had  not  taken  notice  of. 

Among  other  discourse,  he  asked  me,  what  appre 
hensions  we  Dissenters  commonly  had  of  his  "  Expo 
sition  of  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  the  Church  of 
England,"!  particularly  of  his  Explication  of  the  se- 

*  "  Robbing  an  orchard  or  two,  with  rude  boys,  and  being 
under  some  more  conviction  than  before  for  my  sin,  a  poor  day- 
labourer  in  the  town  (that  was  wont  to  read  in  the  church  for  the 
old  parson,)  had  an  old  torn  book  which  he  lent  my  father,  which 
was  called  '  Bunney's  Resolution,'  being  written  by  Parsons,  the 
Jesuit,  and  corrected  by  Edmund  Bunney. 

"  In  the  reading  of  this  book  (when  I  was  about  fifteen  years 
of  age,)  it  pleased  God  to  awaken  my  soul  and  show  me  the  folly 
of  sinning,  and  the  misery  of  the  wicked,  and  the  unexpressible 
weight  of  things  eternal,  and  the  necessity  of  resolving  on  a  holy 
life,  more  than  I  was  ever  acquainted  with  before."— Reliq.  Baxt. 
Part  i.  3.  Abridg.  p.  6.— ED. 

f  First  published  in  1700,  with  a  dedication  to  King  William 
as  "  Defender  of  the  Faith,"  a  "  title,"  adds  the  Bishop,  "  that 
has  received  new  lustre  by  your  Majesty's  carrying  it." — See 
supra,  p.  331,  note  t. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  469 

venteenth  Article,  which  had  cost  him  a  great  deal 
of  pains.  I  replied,  that  as  to  things  of  that  nature, 
there  was  a  variety  of  sentiments  amongst  those  out 
of  the  Establishment,  as  well  as  those  under  it.  He 
said,  he  was  very  sensible  of  it ;  but  as  he  knew 

"  By  a  singular  felicity  in  the  wording  of  the  title,"  says  Lord 
Orford,  "  it  suited  Henry  equally  well,  when  he  burned  papists 
or  protestants  ;  it  suited  each  of  his  daughters,  Mary  and  Eliza 
beth  ;  it  fitted  the  martyr  Charles,  and  the  profligate  Charles, 
the  Romish  James,  and  the  Calvinistic  William,  and,  at  last, 
seemed  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  weak  head  of  high-church 
Anne."— See  "  Royal  and  Noble  Authors,"  (1759)  i.  p.  10. 

The  Exposition  was  undertaken  at  the  desire  of  the  Queen, 
who  is  affectionately  recollected  in  the  preface,  and  of  Arch 
bishop  Tillotson,  who  after  a  perusal  of  the  MS.  thus  writes, 
"  Oct.  23, 1694,"  a  very  few  weeks  before  his  decease : — 

"  In  the  article  of  the  Trinity,  you  have  said  all  that  I  think 
can  be  said  upon  so  obscure  and  difficult  an  argument.  The 
negative  articles  against  the  Church  of  Rome  you  have  very  fully 
explained,  and  with  great  learning  and  judgment.  In  the  points 
in  difference,  between  the  Calvinists  and  Remonstrants,  you  have 
shown  not  only  great  skill  and  moderation,  but  great  prudence, 
in  contenting  yourself  to  represent  both  sides,  impartially,  with 
out  any  positive  declaration  of  your  own  judgment.  The  ac 
count  given  of  Athanasius's  creed,  seems  to  me  no-wise  satisfac 
tory.  I  wish  we  were  well  rid  of  it."  See  "  Life  of  Burnet/' 
by  his  son  ;  "  Own  Time,"  ii.  789  ;  Birch,  p.  314. 

The  Archbishop's  concluding  sentence  subjected  his  memory 
to  no  small  obloquy.  A  severe  censor  asks,  "  Why  he  should 
be  angry  at  this  excellent  epitome  of  the  Christian  Faith,  unless 
it  be,  that  he  did  not  like  the  doctrine  contained  in  it  ?  But  how 
came  he  then  to  use  it  so  often  as  he  did,  and  to  subscribe  it  so 
frequently,  for  obtaining  his  many  preferments  ?"  See  "  Remarks 
on  the  Life  of  Archbishop  Tillotson,"  (1754)  p.  54.— ED. 


470  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

those  whom  I  was  most  conversant  with,  were  the 
more  moderate  sort  of  Dissenters,  he  was  particularly 
desirous  to  know  their  sentiments. 

I  told  his  Lordship,  that  as  for  those  whom  he  par 
ticularly  enquired  after,  though  they  were  very  thank 
ful  to  his  Lordship  for  his  pains,  and  for  his  charity 
to  those  of  different  sentiments  ;  yet,  on  the  head 
of  Predestination,  which  he  had  so  laboured,  they 
could  not  but  be  surprised,  to  find  that  when  he  had 
been  at  such  pains  nicely  to  state  the  two  extremes, 
he  should  quite  overlook  the  middle  way,*  where  truth 

*  Burnet  says  "  the  17th  Article"  is  "  framed  according  to  St. 
Austin's  doctrine,"  and  "  directly  against  the  supralapsarian  doc 
trine.  Nor  does  it  mention  reprobation,  no  not  in  a  hint."  He 
shows  how  "  the  Remonstrants  may  subscribe  this  article," 
though  "  the  Calvinists  have  jless  occasion  for  scruple  5  since 
the  Article  does  seem  more  plainly  to  favour  them."  Expos. 
(1720,)  p.  165.  Yet  these  representations,  it  seems,  had  not 
satisfied  Dr.  Calamy. 

His  "  middle  way,"  is,  I  apprehend,  the  theological  system 
called  Baxterianism  ;  which,  says  Dr.  Kippis,  "  strikes  into  a 
middle  path,  between  Calvinism  and  Arminianism,  endeavour 
ing,  in  some  degree,  though  perhaps  not  very  consistently,  to 
avoid  the  errors  of  each." — Biog.  Brit.  ii.  22. 

Milton  describes  this  system,  where  he  introduces,  "  the  great 
Creator,"  thus  distinguishing  among  his  human  creatures  : — 
"  Some  I  have  chosen  of  peculiar  grace, 
Elect  above  the  rest :  so  is  my  will. 
The  rest  shall  hear  me  call,  and  oft  be  warn'd 
Their  sinful  state,  and  to  appease  betimes 
Th'  incensed  Deity,  while  offer'd  grace 
Invites."— P.  L.  iii.  184-88.— ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  471 

commonly  lies.  He  told  me,  that  the  true  reason 
of  that  was,  because  he  could  not  see  how  that  call 
ed  the  middle  way  differed  from  one  of  the  extremes. 
I  freely  told  him  this  seemed  more  strange  to  several 
among  us,  because  the  learned  Davenant,  one  of  his 
Lordship's  predecessors  in  the  See  of  Sarum,*  had 
not  only  vigorously  asserted  and  defended  that  mid 
dle  way  in  the  Synod  of  Dort,  in  opposition  to  Re 
monstrants,  and  Supralapsarians,  but  had  also  been 
at  no  small  pains  to  support  it  in  several  of  his 
writings,  of  which  his  Lordship  took  not  the  least 
notice. 

This  led  into  a  pretty  close  discourse  of  two  hours' 
length,  in  which  his  Lordship  endeavoured  to  con 
vince  me  that  such  as  declared  for  the  middle  way, 
must  at  last,  when  pressed,  fall  into  the  Arminian 
scheme ;  while  I,  on  the  contrary,  asserted  and  en 
deavoured  to  prove,  that  such  as  were  in  that  way  of 
thinking,  were  no  more  obliged  to  fall  in  with  the 
Remonstrants  than  with  the  rigid  Predeterminants. 
Though  many  things  were  offered  with  great  free 
dom  and  without  heat  on  both  sides,  yet,  upon  the 
whole,  as  I  cannot  say  that  any  thing  suggested 
by  his  Lordship  gave  me  satisfaction,  so  neither 
could  I  perceive  that  any  thing  I  offered  made  any 
great  impression.  We,  at  the  conclusion  of  our  dis 
course,  as  much  differed  as  at  the  beginning. 

We  had  also  a  great  deal  of  free  discourse  upon 
the  obligation  that  Christians  may  be  under  to  com- 

*  In  1621.      He  died,  1641,  aged  71.— ED. 


472  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

pliance  for  the  sake  of  peace,  in  things  that  cannot 
be  proved  absolutely  unwarrantable.  His  Lordship 
declared  it  for  his  principle,  that  in  such  things,  a 
regard  to  peace  should  carry  it,  and  strenuously  en 
deavoured  to  support  it.  I,  on  the  contrary,  endea 
voured  to  prove,  that  if  this  was  carried  too  far,  it 
would  as  inevitably  bring  in  slavery  into  the  Church, 
as  the  doctrine  of  passive  obedience  and  nonresist- 
ance  would  do  into  the  State.  So  that  on  this  point 
also,  his  Lordship  and  I  could  by  no  means  agree. 
But  his  frankness  and  openness  were  very  pleasing. 
He  invited  me  to  come  and  see  him  when  he  was  at 
Westminster,  and  told  me  he  should  be  glad  to  talk 
over  such  things  as  these  more  freely  and  fully,  and 
discourse  with  me  sometimes  upon  public  occur 
rences,  which  might  be  no  way  disadvantageous : 
and  I  must  own  the  motion  was  not  disagreeable. 

Accordingly,  the  very  evening  before  the  famous 
conference  about  the  Occasional  Bill,  Mr.  Robin 
son  and  I  waiting  on  his  Lordship  together  at  St. 
James's,  he  received  us  with  very  great  civility,  and 
when  we  signified  our  particular  design  in  giving 
him  that  trouble,  he  appeared  to  take  it  well,  and 
gave  us  all  imaginable  encouragement  to  be  frank 
and  open  with  him.  He  told  us  he  could  not  see 
how  such  a  practice  as  that  of  coming  to  the  Sacra 
ment  according  to  the  Church  of  England,  merely  to 
qualify  for  a  place,  could  possibly  be  justified ;  but 
should  be  very  willing  to  hear  any  thing  that  could 
be  offered. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

We  told  his  Lordship,  that  the  communicating 
with  the  Church  of  England,  was  no  new  practice 
among  the  Dissenters,  nor  of  a  late  date,  but  had 
been  used  by  some  of  the  most  eminent  of  our 
ministers  ever  since  1662,  with  a  design  to  show 
their  charity  towards  that  Church,  notwithstanding 
they  apprehended  themselves  bound  in  conscience, 
ordinarily  to  separate  from  it ;  and  that  it  had  been 
also  practised  by  a  number  of  the  most  understand 
ing  people  among  them,  before  the  so  doing  was 
necessary  to  qualify  for  a  place.  We  reminded  him, 
that  Mr.  Baxter  and  Dr.  Bates  had  done  it  all 
along,  and  been  much  reflected  on  by  several  of  their 
own  friends  on  this  account ;  and  added,  that  should 
the  bill  then  depending  pass  into  a  law,  it  would  not 
only  give  great  disturbance  to  a  number  of  her 
Majesty's  most  loyal  subjects,  contrary  to  all  rules  of 
policy,  which  required  to  keep  all  quiet  and  easy 
at  home,  when  there  was  such  an  hazardous  and  ex 
pensive  war  to  be  carried  on  abroad  ;  but  would  bid 
fair  for  destroying  that  little  charity  yet  remaining 
among  us,  and  make  the  breach  between  the  two 
parties  wider  than  ever. 

His  lordship  heard  with  great  attention  what  we 
at  that  time  offered  upon  these  and  other  heads,  and 
by  his  speech  afterwards  in  the  conference,  we  had 
the  satisfaction  to  see  that  our  labour  was  not  wholly 
lost.  I,  for  my  part,  by  what  I  observed  upon  this 
occasion,  was  fully  convinced,  that  it  might  answer 
very  good  ends,  for  some  of  us  sometimes  to  wait  on 


474  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

great  men,  that  would  admit  us  to  freedom  of  dis 
course  upon  critical  exigencies. 

In  April  this  year,  (1702)  the  Dissenters  in  the 
city  had  a  very  great  loss  in  the  sudden  death  of 
Mr.  Nathaniel  Taylor,  of  Salters'  Hall.  I,  also,  in 
him,  lost  a  particular  friend,  with  whom  I  had  an 
uncommon  intimacy.  He  was  an  excellent  preacher, 
one  of  a  very  Catholic  spirit,  and  of  great  sincerity. 
He  had  for  a  number  of  years  been  greatly  afflicted 
with  the  gout,  which  at  length  was  attended  also 
with  the  stone,  so  that  his  constitution  was  greatly 
impaired,  and  his  spirits  sunk.  The  loss  of  his  wife 
some  time  before  his  death,  affected  him  in  that  de 
gree  that  he  never  fully  recovered  it.  He  also  much 
laid  to  heart  the  treatment  he  met  with  from  some 
from  whom  he  thought  he  might  very  well  have  ex 
pected  another  sort  of  carriage,  who  instead  of 
thanking  him  for  the  service  he  did  the  Dissenters 
in  his  answer  to  Dr.  Sherlock,  represented  that  per 
formance  of  his  as  very  unseasonable  in  the  circum 
stances  that  things  were  then  in. 

I  have  good  reason  to  remember  how  much  this 
was  resented  by  him,  by  the  discourse  he  had  with 
me  about  my  Abridgment,  which  he  much  approved 
upon  a  distinct  perusing  of  the  manuscript,  and  yet 
made  me  a  visit  at  Hoxton,  on  purpose  to  dissuade 
me  from  printing  it :  telling  me  that  though  I  had 
taken  a  great  deal  of  pains,  and  that  as  he  thought 
to  very  good  purpose,  yet  I  should  find  myself  as 
saulted,  with  back  strokes  from  friends,  as  well  as 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  475 

fore  strokes  from  adversaries,  which  would  be  hard  to 
bear,  and  contribute  to  the  rendering  my  future  life 
uncomfortable.  These  back  strokes  from  friends  he 
very  much  complained  of,  and  advised  me  with  no 
small  earnestness  to  take  warning  by  him,  how  I  ex 
posed  myself  to  them.  I  did  what  I  was  able  to 
abate  his  concern,  and  freely  told  him,  that  he  had  the 
hearty  thanks  of  far  the  most  of  his  brethren,  for  the 
good  service  he  had  done,  and  if  any  discovered  an 
inclination  to  lessen  his  performance,  they  stood 
alone,  and  for  that  reason  deserved  the  less  regard. 

As  to  myself,  I  told  him  I  had  determined  to 
venture  the  consequence,  and  if  it  should  fall  out  as 
he  apprehended,  should  satisfy  myself  with  having 
endeavoured,  honestly,  to  support  a  just  and  honest 
cause,  which,  in  my  apprehension,  needed  no  other 
justification,  than  to  be  set  in  a  right  and  true  light. 

He  soon  after  died,  and  was  generally  lamented, 
and  his  being  so  suddenly  carried  off  was  the  more 
affecting,  because  it  was  attended  with  this  unhappy 
circumstance,  that  it  was  occasioned  by  his  servants 
giving  him  through  a  mistake,  too  great  a  quantity  of 
laudanum,  which  he  had  been  much  accustomed  to 
take  under  his  illness. 

His  funeral  sermon  was  preached  by  his  old  friend 
and  acquaintance,  Mr.  John  Shower,  who  sent  to 
me  (who  he  knew  had  been  particularly  intimate 
with  him  in  later  years)  for  some  hints  and  remarks 
as  to  the  history  and  character  of  the  deceased ;  as 
he  had  often  done  before,  upon  like  occasions,  as  to 


476  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

persons  with  whom  he  knew  I  was  well  acquainted, 
as  my  cousin,  Mr.  Henry  Gearing,  my  grandfather 
Mr.  Joshua  Gearing,  Mr.  Nathaniel  Byfield,  &c. 

I  sent  him  a  few  written  memoranda,  wherein 
I  among  other  things  took  notice,  of  Mr.  Taylor's 
being  excellently  qualified  for  the  several  parts  of 
ministerial  service,  and  particularly  of  the  judicious 
ness  of  his  prayers,  which  I  represented  as  very 
much  owing  to  his  careful  using  of  distinct  preme 
ditation,  when  he  was  called  upon  to  offer  up  re 
quests  to  God  upon  any  particular  occasions.  This 
going  before,  I  intimated,  that  he  thought  he  might 
with  the  more  safety  depend  upon  such  help  of  the 
Spirit  in  prayer,  as  was  the  matter  of  several  pro 
mises  that  occur  in  the  New  Testament.  I  added, 
that  he  was  for  such  a  religion  as  might  be  a  reason 
able  service,  and  not  for  living  upon,  or  being 
governed  by  mere  spiritual  sensations,  sudden  trans 
ports,  and  the  variable  workings  of  affections,  which 
might  easily  lead  into  unhappy  mistakes,  &c.  I  was 
not  aware  of  the  use  that  would  afterwards  be  made 
of  these  hints,  to  my  disadvantage  :  but  he  showing 
the  whole  character  I  gave  him  of  our  deceased 
friend  to  Sir  David  Hamilton,  it  proved  the  un 
happy  occasion  of  considerable  disturbance  both  to 
himself  and  me. 

It  so  fell  out,  that  several  of  the  congregation  at 
Salter's-hall  had  some  thoughts  of  my  filling  up  their 
pulpit,  but  Sir  David  was  vehemently  against  it,  and 
determined,  from  the  first,  to  his  utmost  to  oppose  it. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  477 

Though  I  had  no  personal  acquaintance  with  that 
gentleman,  yet  he  was  disgusted  with  me,  on  the 
account  of  my  free  declaring,  upon  several  occasions, 
against  the  principles  he  had  advanced  in  a  book  he 
had  published,  intitled,  "  The  Private  Christian's 
Witness  to  the  Truth  of  Christianity."  In  that 
book  he  had  represented  it  as  the  matter  of  his 
frequent  experience,  that  future  events  were  pointed 
out  to  him  in  the  course  of  his  praying,  in  such  a 
manner  as  that  he  could  judge  as  to  the  success  he 
should  have  in  his  undertakings,  not  only  by  the 
frame  he  was  in  when  he  addressed  himself  to  God 
about  such  matters  as  were  then  depending,  but  also 
by  the  very  expressions  he  was  carried  out  into,  upon 
such  occasions. 

However,  being  invited  by  the  managers  of  the 
Tuesday  lecture  at  Salter's-hall  to  preach  a  single 
sermon  in  Mr.  Taylor's  turn,  (October  20,)  I  readily 
complied,  and  discoursed  from  Rom.  ix.  16.  "  So 
then  it  is  not  of  him  that  willeth,  nor  of  him  that 
runneth,  but  of  God  that  showeth  mercy,"  which  I 
afterwards  printed  at  their  request,  entitling  it, 
"  Divine  Mercy  Exalted ;  or,  Free  Grace  in  its 
Glory," *  and  was  unanimously  chosen  one  of  the 
lecturers  there  in  his  room.  I  have  continued  in 
that  lecture,  endeavouring  to  do  some  service,  not 

*  "  By  E.  Calamy,  E.F.  and  N.  Published  at  the  request  of 
many  encouragers  of  the  lecture,  1 703." 

In  his  Preface,  the  author  complains,  that  "  some  have 
given  themselves  a  liberty  to  reflect  on  their  brethren  who  ad- 


478  LIFE    OF    C ALA  MY. 

only  till  they  that  were  before  me  (my  seniors  and 
superiors)  are  laid  in  the  dust,  but  also  till  I  have 
seen  a  considerable  number  who  have  come  in  since 
I  was  chosen,  carried  off  by  death. 

About  this  time,  Mr.  Hoadly  published  his  Vin 
dication  of  Dr.  Sherlock,  Dean  of  St.  Paul's,  in 
answer  to  Mr.  Taylor's  Treatise  against  him  about 

here  to  the  suffrage  of  the  British  divines  in  the  Synod  of  Dort." 
He  recommends  those  "  that  wourd  see  the  doctrine  of  particu 
lar  election  maintained,  consistently  with  a  general  love  of  God 
to  the  world,  to  consult  the  learned  and  peaceable  Bishop  Dave- 
nant's  '  Animadversions/  (upon  Hoard's  Treatise,)  a  book  not 
valued  according  to  its  worth."  Pref.  pp.  iii.  iv.  (See  supra, 
p.  471.) 

These  "  Animadversions"  were  "  upon  '  God's  Love  to  Man 
kind,  manifested  by  disproving  his  absolute  Decree  for  their 
Damnation/  Camb.  1641." 

After  censuring  "  some,''  who,  "  in  doctrine,  worship,  or  dis 
cipline,  run  all  things  to  the  utmost  height,"  and  representing 
"  even  a  neutrality  in  religion  preferable  to  such  uncharitable 
bigotry  and  bitter  zeal,"  the  author  introduces  this  conciliatory 
passage  : — 

*'  For  my  part,  the  praying  with  a  form  or  without  one  ;  the 
management  of  Church  Government  by  Bishops  or  Presbyters  ; 
alone  or  in  conjunction  with  some  of  the  wiser  sort  from  among 
the  people  ;  and  the  mode  of  Divine  worship  as  to  mere  exter 
nal  circumstances,  are  with  me  very  little  things,  comparatively 
to  the  prevalency  of  serious  piety  and  brotherly  love  among 
us ;  for  which,  whatever  becomes  of  other  things,  we  have,  all 
of  us,  I  am  well  assured,  great  reason  to  be  heartily  concerned." 
Ibid.  pp.  iv — vi. 

In  the  Sermon,  (p.  22,)  referring  to  the  comparatively  narrow 
extent  of  Christendom,  it  is  computed  on  the  authority  of  "some 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  479 

Church  Communion,*  wherein  he  treated  that 
worthy  person  with  more  severity  than  was  ex 
pected.  But,  in  process  of  time,  that  learned  man 
was  abundantly  tried  how  he  himself  could  bear 
such  treatment. 

Sept.  28,  died  the  old  Earl  of  Sunderland,  the 
great  politician  of  the  age,  of  whom  some  account 
has  been  given  before.  He  was  succeeded  in  his 
honour  and  estate  by  his  only  son,  Charles  Lord 
Spencer,  who  was  my  fellow  student  at  Utrecht.')' 

This  year,  (1702,)  Mr.  Thomas  Emlyn  met,  in 
the  city  of  Dublin,  with  that  treatment  for  his 
"  Humble  Inquiry  into  the  Scripture  Account  of  the 
Deity  of  Jesus  Christ,"  of  which  he  gives  a  rela- 

that  pretend  to  have  made  an  exact  calculation,  that  if  the 
earth,  as  far  as  it  is  known,  were  divided  into  thirty  equal 
parts,  nineteen  of  them  are  Pagan,  six  Mahometan,  and  but 
five  Christian." 

This  anonymous  authority  was,  no  doubt,  that  of  the  learned 
Gresham  Professor,  Edward  Brerewood,  who  wrote  in  1614, 
and  has  thus  prefaced  this  enumeration  : — 

"  It  will  be  found  upon  suppositions,  which  the  best  geogra 
phy  e  and  histories  doe  perswade  mee  to  be  true,  that  Christians 
possesse  neere  about  a  sixt  part  of  the  knowne  inhabited  earth ; 
Mahumetans  a  fift  part,  (not,  as  some  have  exceedingly  over- 
lashed,  half  the  world  or  more,)  and  Idolaters  two-thirds,  or 
but  little  less."  See  "  Enquiries  touching  the  Diversity  of  Lan 
guages  and  Religions,  through  the  Chief  Parts  of  the  World," 
(1622,)  p.  118.— ED. 

*  "  Dr.  Sherlock's  Cases  and  Letter  on  Communion  consi 
dered,  1702."— ED. 

f  See  Supra,  pp.  154-157. — ED. 


480  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

tion  *  in  the  beginning  of  his  "  Collection  of  Tracts," 
printed  in  1719.  It  was  also  about  this  time,  that 
the  Lower  House  of  Convocation,  in  England,  ap 
pointed  a  committee  to  examine  books  lately  pub 
lished  against  the  Christian  religion,  or  the  Estab 
lished  Church.  Among  others,  they  had  under  their 
consideration,  two  tracts  of  Mr.  John  Toland  ;  viz. 
"  Christianity  not  Mysterious/'^  and  "  Amyntor."J 
They  came  to  some  formal  resolutions  against  the 
former,  as  tending  to  subvert  fundamental  articles  of 
the  Christian  faith,  &c. ;  and  sent  up  a  representa 
tion  to  the  bishops,  desiring  their  advice  and  con 
currence.  They  also  appointed  a  committee  to  exa 
mine  the  book,  and  found  several  positions  which 
they  conceived  of  dangerous  consequence ;  but,  on 
consulting  counsel  learned  in  the  law,  the  Upper 
House  of  Convocation  declared  they  did  not  find 
how,  without  a  licence  from  the  King,  they  could 
censure  any  such  books  judicially  :  and  that  they 
were  advised,  that  by  so  doing  both  Houses  might 
incur  the  penalties  of  the  Statute  25  H.  8.  Here 
upon,  farther  proceedings  were  stopped. 

Before  I  conclude  this  chapter,  it  may  not  be  amiss 
to  recollect  passages,  singular  in  their  kinds,  that 
happened  while  I  continued  in  the  exercise  of  my 
ministry  in  Bishopsgate-street,  before  I  removed  to 
Westminster.  Not  knowing  how  to  fix  their  dates 

*  See  supra,  p.  lOJnotel. — ED. 

f  See  supra,  notes. — ED. 

I  "  Or  a  Defence  of  Milton's  Life,  1699." — ED. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  481 

I  shall  put  them  together,  that  they  may  not  be  quite 
forgotten. 

Spending  a  Lord's  Day  at  Highgate,  (I  think  it 
was  while  Mr.  Rathband  was  the  minister  there, 
though  I  have  no  conjecture  in  what  year,)  in  the 
evening  I  fell  into  the  company  of  Mr.  Story,  of 
whom  I  had  before  no  knowledge,  who  generally 
bore  the  character  of  an  honest  man.  His  family 
was  then  at  Highgate,  and  he  with  them,  when  bu 
siness  would  allow  it.  But  his  usual  residence  was 
in  the  City,  at  the  African  house,  where  he  was 
housekeeper. 

The  company  when  he  came  in,  were  familiarly 
discoursing  upon  the  Providence  of  God,  and  the  re- 
markableness  of  many  steps  of  it  towards  particular 
persons  and  families,  that  well  deserved  to  be  re 
garded  and  recorded  ;  and  some  instances  were  given 
by  several  present.  At  length,  Mr.  Story  told  us,  if 
we  had  the  patience  to  give  him  the  hearing,  he  would 
acquaint  us  with  some  as  remarkable  passages  re 
lating  to  himself  as  we  should  ordinarily  hear  of,  the 
impressions  whereof  he  hoped  would  not  wear  out  to 
his  dying  day. 

We  all  listened  with  attention,  and  he,  appearing 
considerably  affected,  gave  us  to  understand  that,  in 
1685,  he  was  with  Monmouth  in  the  West,  and 
pretty  active  in  that  company,  and  was  afterwards 
shut  up  in  a  close  prison,  none  having  liberty  to  come 
to  him,  to  administer  any  refreshment.  His  thoughts 
were  in  the  mean  time  busily  employed  in  contriving 

VOL.  i.  2  i 


482  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

means  to  compass  a  deliverance.  Among  others  who 
he  thought  capable  of  doing  him  service,  he  pitched 
upon  Mr.  Robert  Brough,  a  linen-draper,  well  known 
in  Cheapside,  who  had  often  drank  a  cheerful  glass 
with  Jeffreys,  when  he  was  Common  Sergeant  and 
Recorder ;  Mr.  Story  himself  being  sometimes  in 
their  company. 

He  wrote  letter  upon  letter  to  him,  pressing  him 
with  the  most  moving  arguments  he  could  think 
of,  to  pity  his  great  distress,  and  to  make  use  of 
his  interest  in  Jeffreys,  (who,  it  was  generally  said, 
was  to  go  the  Western  circuit  as  Lord  Chief  Jus 
tice)  for  his  relief,  if  it  could  be  obtained.  Among 
other  things  he  told  him,  that  if  this  were  done,  he 
should  be  able  and  ready  to  pay  him  a  consider 
able  debt,  of  which  he  could,  otherwise,  have  no 
hopes,  by  reason  that  what  he  had,  would  be  liable 
to  be  seized. 

Mr.  Brough,  to  help  him  in  his  trouble,  waited 
on  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  one  morning  at  his  levee, 
and  stood  in  the  hall  among  a  good  number  of  wai 
ters,  who  were  attending  there  upon  different  ac 
counts.  At  length  a  pair  of  folding  doors  flew  open, 
and  my  Lord  appeared,  and  took  a  general  view  of 
the  waiting  crowd,  and  soon  spied  Mr.  Brough,  who 
was  taller  than  any  near  him,  and  was  by  the  rest 
of  the  company  thought  a  much  happier  man  than 
they,  in  that,  though  he  was  at  a  considerable  dis 
tance,  he  was  yet  singled  out  from  among  them, 


LIFE    OF    CAT-AMY.  483 

particularly  called  to,  saluted  with  great  familiarity, 
and  taken  into  the  drawing-room,  upon  which  the 
folding-doors  were  again  fast  closed. 

They  were  no  sooner  alone,  than  my  Lord  fell  to 
questioning  Mr.  Brough,  saying,  "  I  prithee,  Robin, 
to  what  is  it  that  I  must  ascribe  this  morning's 
visit  ?"  Mr.  Brough  made  answer,  that  he  had  bu 
siness  that  way,  and  was  willing  to  take  the  oppor 
tunity  of  inquiring  after  his  Lordship's  welfare. 
"  No,  no,  Robin,"  said  my  Lord,  "  I  am  not  to  be 
put  off  with  such  flams  as  that.  I  '11  venture  an 
even  wager  thy  business  is  with  me,  and  thou  art 
come  to  solicit  on  behalf  of  some  snivelling  Whig 
or  fanatic  that  is  got  into  Lob's  pound  yonder  in  the 
West.  But  I  can  tell  thee  beforehand,  for  thy  com 
fort,  as  I  have  done  several  others,  that  it  will  be  to 
no  purpose,  and  therefore  thou  mightest  as  well  have 
spared  thy  labour." 

"  But  pray,  why  so,  my  Lord  ?"  said  Mr.  Brough. 
"  Supposing  that  should  be  the  case,  I  hope  as  they 
have  not  been  all  alike  guilty,  and  some  may  have 
been  drawn  in  by  others,  it  is  not  designed  that  all 
shall  fare  alike." 

"  Yes,  yes,  Robin,"  says  my  Lord,  "they  are  all 
villains  and  rebels  alike,  all  unfit  for  mercy,  and  they 
must  be  alike  hanged  up,  that  the  nation  may  be 
clear  of  such  vermin  ;  or  else,1'  said  he,  "  we  should 
find  now  they  are  worsted  and  clapped  up,  that  they 
were  all  drawn  in,  and  we  shall  have  none  to  make 

2  i  2 


484  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

examples  of  justice  to  the  terrifying  of  others.  But, 
I  prithee,  Robin,"  said  my  Lord,  "who  art  thou 
come  to  solicit  for  ?  Let  me  know  in  a  word." 

Says  he,  "  My  Lord,  it  is  an  honest  fellow,  with 
whom  I  have  been  a  considerable  dealer ;  one  with 
whom  your  Lordship  and  I  have  taken  many  a  bot 
tle  when  time  was  ;  and  one  that  besides  is  so  much 
in  my  debt,  that  if  he  is  not  somehow  or  other 
brought  off,  I  am  like  to  be  several  hundred  pounds 
the  worse.  It  is  Story,  my  Lord,  whom  your  Lord 
ship  cannot  but  remember.'' 

"  Ah,  poor  Story  !''  said  my  Lord,  "  he  is  caught 
in  the  field,  and  put  in  the  pound.  Right  enough 
served :  he  should  have  kept  farther  off ;  and  you 
should  have  taken  care  not  to  have  dealt  with  such 
wretches.  But  he  must  have  his  due  among  the 
rest,''  said  my  Lord  ;  "  and  you  must  thank  yourself 
for  the  loss  you  sustain." 

"Well,  but  I  hope  your  Lordship,"  said  Mr. 
Brough,  "  will  find  some  way  to  bring  him  off,  and 
help  hirn  to  a  share  in  the  Royal  clemency,  for 
which  there  will  doubtless  be  some  scope,  that  so  I 
mayn't  suifer  for  his  fault.  I  intend  my  Lord,"  said 
he,  "  to  go  the  circuit  with  you,  and  we  '11  drink  a 
bottle  and  be  merry  together  every  night,  if  you  11 
be  so  good  as  to  give  me  a  little  encouragement." 

"  Nay  now,  friend  Robin,"  said  my  Lord,  "  I  am 
sure  thou  art  most  wofully  out  in  thy  scheme, 
for  that  would  spoil  all.  Shouldst  thou  take  that 
method,  thou  shouldst  certainly  see  thy  friend  Story 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

hung  upon  a  gibbet  some  feet  higher  than  his  neigh 
bours,  and  there  could  be  no  room  for  showing 
mercy.  But  take  my  advice  for  once,  and  go  thy 
ways  home,  and  take  not  the  least  notice  to  any  one 
of  what  has  passed.  Particularly  take  care  to  give 
no  hint  to  Story  himself,  or  to  any  one  capable  of 
conveying  it  to  him,  that  there  has  been  any  appli 
cation  to  me  concerning  him  ;  and  though  he  should 
write  never  so  often,  give  him  no  answer,  either 
directly  or  indirectly.  If  any  notice  was  given  him, 
I  should  certainly  find  it  out,  and  be  forced  to  resent 
it ;  and  the  consequence  would  be,  that  I  should  be 
under  a  necessity  of  using  him  with  more  severity, 
than  I  might  of  myself  be  inclined  to.  But  keep 
counsel,  say  nothing  to  any  one,  and  leave  me  to 
take  my  own  way,  and  I  '11  see  what  can  be  done." 

Mr.  Brough  followed  orders,  kept  all  that  had 
passed  entirely  to  himself,  and  never  made  Mr.  Story 
any  reply.  He  concluded  either  that  his  letters  mis 
carried,  and  never  came  to  hand  ;  or  that  no  mercy 
could  be  had,  and  therefore  lived  in  expectation  of 
the  utmost  severity.  He  dreaded  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  Chief  Justice,  and  the  sight  of  him  when  he 
was  come  ;  and  when  he  appeared  before  him,  he 
was  treated  with  that  peculiar  roughness,  that  he 
was  rather  more  dispirited  than  before. 

When  Jeffreys  cast  his  eyes  upon  him  from 
the  bench,  he  knew  him  well  enough ;  and  he 
(poor  wretch)  stood  bowing  and  cringing  before 
him  in  so  suppliant  a  manner  as  that  he  thought 


486  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

it  might  have  moved  any  thing  but  a  stone,  and 
looked  at  him  with  a  piercing  earnestness,  to  try  if 
he  could  meet  with  any  thing  that  had  the  least 
appearance  of  remaining  compassion ;  he  was,  as  it 
were,  thunderstruck  to  hear  him,  upon  pointing  to 
him,  cry  out  in  the  sternest  manner  that  could  be 
conceived,  "What  forlorn  creature  is  that  that  stands 
there  ?  It  is  certainly  the  ugliest  creature  my  eyes 
ever  beheld  !  What  for  a  monster  art  thou  ?"  Poor 
Story  continuing  his  bows  and  cringes,  cried  out, 
"  Forlorn  enough,  my  Lord,  I  am  very  sensible !  But 
my  name  is  Story,  and  I  thought  your  Lordship 
had  not  been  wholly  ignorant  of  me."  "  Ay,  Story ,'' 
said  my  Lord ;  "  I  confess  I  have  heard  enough  of 
thee.  Thou  art  a  sanctified  rogue !  a  double-dyed 
villain  !  Thou  wert  a  Commissary  !  and  must  make 
speeches  forsooth !  and  now,  who  so  humble  and 
mortified  as  poor  Story.  The  common  punishment 
is  not  bad  enough  for  thee !  But  a  double  and  treble 
vengeance  awaits  thee!  I'll  give  thee  thy  desert, 
I'll  warrant  thee;  and  thou  shalt  have  thy  belly 
ful  of  treason  and  rebellion  before  I  have  done  with 
thee." 

The  poor  man  concluded  the  very  worst  against 
himself  that  could  be,  and  became  inconsolable.  My 
Lord's  carriage  was  much  of  the  same  kind,  upon 
his  trial  afterwards.  He  railed  at  him  until  he 
foamed  at  the  mouth,  and  gave  him  the  foulest  lan 
guage,  called  the  hardest  names,  and  used  the  most 


LIFE    OF    CALAMI.  487 

cutting  reproaches,  that  were  observed  in  the  case  of 
any  one  that  came  before  him  in  that  place.  Yet  when 
others  were  executed,  he  was  respited,  being,  as  was 
said,  reserved  for  some  severer  vengeance.  When 
my  Lord  left  town,  his  chains  were  doubled  and 
trebled  by  order,  but  his  life  was  left  him  as  a  prey : 
and  so  great  was  the  misery  he  endured,  that  he 
could  hardly  think  of  any  thing  worse,  or  imagine 
what  that  was  which  was  said  to  be  reserved  for 
him. 

When  he  had  continued  thus  for  a  great  while,  at 
length  there  came  orders  for  the  transferring  him, 
with  a  good  guard  attending  him,  to  another  prison 
that  was  somewhat  nearer  London ;  and  from  thence 
he,  after  some  time,  was  with  great  care  transferred 
to  another,  and  so  to  another,  still  all  the  while 
laden  with  irons,  until  at  length  he  was  brought  up 
to,  and  lodged  safe  in  Newgate,  where  he  continued 
for  a  great  while,  confined  to  a  miserable  dark  hole, 
not  being  able  to  distinguish  well  between  night  and 
day,  except  towards  noon,  when  by  a  little  crevice 
of  light  as  he  stood  on  a  chest,  with  his  hands 
extended  to  the  utmost  length  that  his  eyes  could 
reach  to,  he  made  a  shift  to  read  a  few  verses  in  an 
old  Bible  he  had  in  his  pocket,  which  was  his  great 
est  remaining  comfort. 

In  this  miserable  plight,  his  keeper  came  running 
to  him  one  day,  with  abundance  of  eagerness,  saying 
"  Mr.  Story,  I  have  just  now  gotten  orders  to  bring 


488  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

you  up  immediately  before  the  King  and  Council." 
Mr.  Story,  being  greatly  surprised,  begged  with  the 
utmost  earnestness,  that  he  would  so  far  befriend 
him,  as  to  let  him  send  to  his  relations  for  some 
suitable  apparel,  and  have  a  barber  to  trim  him,  that 
he  might  not  appear  in  such  a  presence  in  so  miserable 
a  plight.  The  keeper  declared  that  his  orders  were 
positive,  to  bring  him  in  all  respects  as  he  was,  with 
out  any  alteration,  and  that  he  durst  not  presume  to 
disobey  them.  Wherefore  he  clapped  him  into  a 
coach  as  he  was,  and  drove  to  Whitehall. 

As  they  were  driving  thither,  and  talking  about  the 
particulars  of  his  case,  the  keeper  told  him  he  had  only 
one  hint  to  give  him,  which  was  this,  that  if  he  saw 
the  King  at  the  head  of  the  table  in  Council,  and  he 
should  think  fit  to  put  any  questions  to  him,  which 
it  was  not  improbable  might  be  his  case,  it  would  be 
his  best  and  wisest  way  to  return  a  plain  and  direct 
answer  without  attempting  to  hide,  conceal,  or  lessen 
any  thing.  He  thanked  him  for  the  advice  given, 
and  promised  to  follow  it. 

When  he  was  brought  into  the  Council  Chamber, 
he  made  so  sad  and  sorrowful  a  figure,  that  all  pre 
sent  were  surprised  and  frightened ;  and  he  had  so 
strong  a  smell  by  being  so  long  confined,  that  it  was 
very  offensive.  When  the  King  first  cast  his  eyes 
upon  him,  he  cried  out,  "  Is  that  a  man  ?  or  what 
else  is  it  ?"  Chancellor  Jeffreys  told  his  Majesty  that 
that  was  Story,  of  whom  he  had  given  his  Majesty  so 
distinct  an  account.  "Oh!  Story,"  says  the  King; 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  489 

"  I  remember  him.  That  is  a  rare  fellow,  indeed!" 
Then  turning  towards  him,  he  talked  to  him  very 
freely  and  familiarly. 

"  Pray,  Mr.  Story,"  says  he,  "  you  were  in  Mon- 
mouth's  army  in  the  West,  were  you  not  ?"  He,  ac 
cording  to  the  advice  given  him,  made  answer  pre 
sently,  "Yes,  an't  please  your  Majesty."  "And 
you,"  said  he,  "  was  a  commissary  there,  were  you 
not  ?"  And  he  again  replied,  "  Yes,  an't  please  your 
Majesty."  "  And  you,"  said  he,  "  made  a  speech 
before  great  crowds  of  people,  did  you  not?"  He 
again  very  readily  answered,  f(  Yes,  an't  please  your 
Majesty."  "  Pray,"  says  the  King  to  him,  "  if  you 
haven't  forgot  what  you  said,  let  us  have  some  taste 
of  your  fine  florid  speech.  Let  us  have  a  specimen 
of  some  of  the  flowers  of  your  rhetoric,  and  a  few 
of  the  main  things  on  which  you  insisted." 

Whereupon  Mr.  Story  told  us  that  he  readily 
made  answer,  "I  told  them,  and  it  please  your  Ma 
jesty,  that  it  was  you  that  fired  the  City  of  London." 
"  A  rare  rogue,  upon  my  word !"  said  the  King. 
"  And  pray  what  else  did  you  tell  them  ?"  "  I  told 
them,"  said  he,  "  and  it  please  your  Majesty,  that 
you  poisoned  your  brother."  "  Impudence  in  the 
utmost  height  of  it !"  said  the  King.  "  Pray  let  us 
have  something  farther,  if  your  memory  serves  you." 
"  I  farther  told  them,"  said  Mr.  Story,  "  that  your 
Majesty  appeared  to  be  fully  determined  to  make 
the  nation  both  Papists  and  slaves." 

By  this    time  the  King  seemed  to    have   heard 


490  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

enough  of  the  prisoner's  speech,  and  therefore  cry 
ing  out,  "  a  rogue  with  a  witness  !"  and  cutting  off 
short,  he  said  "  to  all  this  I  doubt  not  but  a  thou 
sand  other  villainous  things  were  added  :  but  what 
would  you  say,  Story,  if  after  all  this,  I  should  grant 
you  your  life  ?"  To  which  he,  without  any  demur 
made  answer,  that  he  should  pray  heartily  for  his 
Majesty  as  long  as  he  lived.  "  Why  then,"  says  the 
King,  "I  freely  pardon  all  that  is  past,  and  hope 
you  will  not,  for  the  future,  represent  your  King  as 
inexorable." 

Any  one  may  easily  conclude,  that  the  poor  man 
was  overjoyed  at  the  sudden  alteration  of  his  case. 
He  was  in  perfect  raptures  and  transports  when  he 
was  giving  us  this  brief  account  of  it  a  great  many 
years  after.  He  told  us  freely,  that  he  not  only  was 
at  a  loss  how  to  express  his  gratitude  to  Mr.  Brough, 
who  had  been  so  active  in  this  affair,  but  that  he 
had  that  grateful  sense  of  the  kindness  even  of 
Chancellor  Jeffreys  in  saving  his  life,  (notwithstand 
ing  the  odd  peculiarity  of  the  way  and  method  of  his 
doing  it,)  that  had  he,  when  he  came  to  be  in  extre 
mity,  and  in  the  utmost  danger  from  the  enraged 
mob,  instead  of  flying  to  Wapping,  applied  to  him 
for  shelter,  at  the  time  of  King  James's  flying  away, 
he  would  rather  have  exposed  himself,  than  not  have 
screened  him  to  his  utmost. 

I  could  not  help  being  affected  with  this  singular 
passage  ;  and  the  rather,  because  I  very  much  ques 
tion  whether  many  such  acts  of  mercy  and  kindness 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  491 

can  be  placed  to  Jeffrey's  account.  Yet  I  do  not 
know  but  that  there  may  be  several  who  would  ra 
ther  have  made  it  their  choice  to  have  died  once  for 
all  than  to  have  done  such  very  severe  penance,  for 
so  long  a  time  together,  and  have  passed  through  so 
many  deaths  to  a  continued  life  at  last,  which  at  his 
years  could  not  be  expected  to  last  very  long. 

Another  memorable  passage  relates  to  the  family 
of  poor  Mr.  Mart,  the  most  unhappy  of  any  that  I 
ever  was  acquainted  with.  He  had  a  very  melan 
choly  wife,  and  a  most  miserable  wicked  creature  for 
his  eldest  son,  who  by  that  time  he  arrived  at  man 
hood,  had  run  through  an  unusual  course  of  villany 
and  impiety. 

My  friend,  Mr.  Thomas  Reynolds,  and  I,  lodged 
together  in  the  family  for  some  time,  when  we  lived 
at  Hoxton-square,  before  we  were  housekeepers. 
The  wretch  of  a  son  was  at  that  time  confined,  and 
the  letters  that  came  from  him  were  shown  us. 
They  had  often  in  them  high  strains  of  seeming 
penitence,  that  rather  appeared  forced  and  affected 
than  natural  and  genuine,  and  signified  very  little, 
because  he  presently  returned  into  like  wickedness  as 
before,  as  soon  as  he  had  capacity  and  opportunity. 

This  son  had  been  the  darling  both  of  father  and 
mother,  and  the  latter  had  set  her  affections  upon 
him  to  that  degree,  that  when  she  found  him  instead 
of  a  comfort  prove  an  heart-breaking  cross,  and  a 
monster  of  wickedness,  it  overset  her,  and  was  the 
occasion  of  a  melancholy  madness,  in  the  height  of 


492  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

which  she  frequently  attempted  to  dispatch  herself. 
More  than  once  was  I  a  witness  to  affecting  passages 
of  that  kind,  that  proved  troublesome  both  to  Mr. 
Reynolds  and  rne  ;  and  were  at  length  the  occasion 
of  our  removal  together  out  of  the  family. 

Some  time  after,  the  poor  woman  actually  did 
dispatch  herself.  The  wretched  son,  though  he  well 
knew  he  was  the  original  occasion  of  it,  was  not  at 
all  suitably  affected,  but  rather  ran  into  greater 
heights  of  wickedness.  At  length,  having  a  great 
fancy  once  more  to  go  to  sea,  he,  on  purpose  to  get 
money  out  of  his  father,  seemed  inclined  to  become 
very  sober,  and  applied  himself  to  Mr.  Samuel  Pom- 
fret,  the  minister,  with  whom  his  father  was  well 
acquainted,  and  so  insinuated  himself  into  that  good 
man,  that  he  began  to  have  great  hopes  of  him,  per 
suaded  the  father  to  rig  him  out  for  a  sea  voyage, 
and  in  the  mean  time  lodged  him  in  his  own  house, 
was  exceeding  kind  to  him,  and  took  abundance  of 
pains  with  him  in  a  way  of  instruction  and  good 
advice.  But  the  poor  unhappy  youth,  being  en- 
gaged  in  a  gang  of  ill  company,  upon  their  instiga 
tion,  the  very  night  before  he  was  to  set  sail,  made 
poor  Mr.  Pomfret  a  sorrowful  requital  for  all  his 
kindness,  and  robbed  him  and  ran  away,  and  was 
pursued  and  taken,  and  committed  to  Newgate,  and 
in  a  little  time  convicted  and  condemned. 

The  Lord's  Day  after  his  condemnation,  when  he 
was  to  die  on  the  Wednesday  following,  the  father 
came  crying  to  rne  as  I  came  out  of  the  pulpit,  ear- 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  493 

nestly  requesting  that  I  would  go  along  with  him 
that  evening,  to  see  and  discourse  with  his  unhappy 
son  in  Newgate,  that  I  might  afterwards  be  the 
better  able  to  judge  how  far  it  might  be  advisable 
for  him  to  interpose  to  get  him  a  pardon  ;  nay,  whe 
ther  he  might  do  it  allowably,  and  with  a  safe  con 
science.  This  was  far  from  being  a  desirable  office ; 
and  yet  being  much  urged  and  pressed,  I  knew  not 
how  to  refuse  it,  and  accordingly  went,  without  any 
one  but  the  father  in  company. 

When  we  came  to  Newgate,  we  were  carried  into 
the  chapel,  and  the  young  man  was  brought  to  us, 
in  a  chain,  and  the  father  and  son,  and  I,  sat  down 
together.  I  found  the  young  man  very  stiff  and 
sullen,  exceeding  captious  with  his  father,  and  ready 
to  snarl  at  him  at  every  turn,  and  warm  in  his  re 
sentment  of  several  things  that  had  passed. 

I  freely  told  him  that  this  was  very  unaccountable 
and  unbecoming ;  and  that  I  was  heartily  sorry  that 
he  was  not  better  disposed,  and  otherwise  employed, 
when  his  condition  was  so  very  lamentable,  and  he 
had  such  melancholy  prospects  before  him.  He  told 
me  it  was  entirely  owing  to  his  father  that  he  was 
so  unhappy  ;  for  that  he  might  easily  get  him  a 
pardon,  if  he  would  but  part  with  a  little  money  : 
but  he  said  that  was  his  God ;  and  that  he  cared 
not  what  became  of  any  that  belonged  to  him,  so 
his  money  was,  but  secured.  I  told  him  that  sort  of 
carriage  was  in  my  apprehension,  far  from  being 
likely  to  encourage  his,  father  to  do  any  thing  for 


494  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

him  ;  and  that  I  had  not  the  least  word  to  drop  in 
his  favour  if  he  held  on  in  that  strain :  but,  that  if 
on  the  contrary,  he  would  freely  humble  himself  and 
fall  upon  his  knees  before  his  father,  earnestly  and 
importunately  beseeching  him  to  forgive  all  his  past 
provocations,  and  also  to  beg  of  God  to  forgive  him ; 
and  would  solemnly  promise  that  if  his  life  was  but 
spared,  he  would  make  it  his  endeavour  to  live  to 
some  good  purpose,  and  in  such  a  manner  as  that  he 
might  be  a  comfort  and  blessing  to  the  family  ;  upon 
these  conditions,  I  took  upon  me  to  engage  he  should 
have  a  reprieve  on  the  Wednesday  following ;  and 
did  not  know  but  that  if  he  behaved  himself  well 
afterwards,  that  reprieve  might  be  followed  with  a 
pardon. 

He  returned  me  an  answer  that  perfectly  amazed 
me,  in  these  words :  "  Sir,  I  scorn  any  thing  of  that 
nature  ;  and  had  rather  die  with  my  company." 
This,  I  must  confess,  raised  my  indignation,  and  I 
freely  told  him,  that  such  sort  of  talk  fully  con 
vinced  me  that  he  had  not  duly  considered  what 
death  was,  nor  was  aware  of  the  consequences 
which,  in  his  case,  would  follow  upon  it.  I  asked 
him  if  he  really  believed  that  his  soul  would  survive 
his  body,  and  that  if  he  left  this  world  without  true 
repentance,  he  must  as  certainly  be  for  ever  miserable 
as  he  was  then  living ;  and  that  the  wrath  of  God 
was  as  intolerable,  as  it  was  inevitable.  He  told  me 
with  tears  trickling  down  his  cheeks,  that  he  most 
firmly  believed  all  this,  and  yet  found  his  heart  so 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  495 

hard  and  unaffected,  that  nothing   of   this   nature 
would  move  it. 

His  carriage  plainly  discovered  a  peculiar  sense 
lessness.  For  in  the  midst  of  this  serious  discourse 
between  him  and  me,  he  on  a  sudden  turned  to  his 
father,  and  said,  "Sir,  won't  you  come  and  see  me 
at  the  tree  ?"  At  which  the  old  man  was  so  much 
moved,  that  he  broke  out  into  a  flood  of  tears,  and 
ran  to  the  other  end  of  the  chapel,  wringing  his 
hands,  and  taking  on  most  lamentably,  at  his  wretch 
ed  stupidity. 

Hereupon  I  fell  to  talking  with  the  poor  unhappy 
youth,  as  movingly  as  I  was  able,  in  order  to  the  set 
ting  his  great  and  abominable  wickedness,  as  far  as  the 
particulars  of  it  had  come  to  my  knowledge,  as  dis 
tinctly  before  his  eyes,  as  might  be.  I  told  him  I  could 
upon  good  grounds  lay  to  his  charge  the  death  of  his 
unhappy  mother,  that  bore  him  and  brought  him  into 
the  world,  and  afterwards  brought  him  up  with  so 
much  tenderness  and  affection.  I  mentioned  to  him 
the  blood  of  some  other  persons,  which  he  had  himself 
actually  shed  w^hile  he  was  abroad,  which  cried  to  Hea 
ven  for  vengeance  against  him  ;  as  well  as  abominable 
crimes  of  another  nature,  which  he  had  been  charged 
with,  and  from  which  he  could  not  clear  himself: 
and  dilated  on  the  heaviness  of  that  punishment  he 
had  all  the  reason  in  the  world  to  expect,  if  he  re 
mained  without  a  change  made  by  the  grace  of  God, 
until  his  entrance  upon  another  life ;  and  desired 
him  to  think  closely  of  the  account  he  had  to  give 


496  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

to  the  great  Judge  of  all.  He  seemed  to  make  but 
light  of  any  thing  of  this  kind  that  was  offered  to 
his  thoughts. 

I  then  told  him  that  his  father  had  desired  me  to 
give  him  my  advice,  whether  or  no  he  had  best  in 
terpose  on  his  behalf;  and  added,  that  there  was  one 
thing  that  would  go  a  good  way  in  determining  me 
as  to  that  matter,  if  he  would  but  open  himself  to 
me  with  freedom  about  it.  He  desiring  to  know 
what  that  was,  I  told  him,  there  had  been  a  report 
that  he  had  formed  a  design  with  a  company  of  ruffians 
like  himself,  to  break  in  upon  his  father  by  night, 
and  rob  and  plunder,  and  afterwards  murder  him. 
He  returned  me  this  answer  ;  that  as  to  robbing  his 
father,  and  breaking  in  upon  him  by  night,  he  must 
own  the  design  was  formed,  and  it  could  not  be  de 
nied  ;  but  that  this  was  with  an  intention  to  get 
money.  What  the  consequence  might  have  been,  if 
the  old  man  had  been  cross  and  sullen,  or  passion 
ate,  and  refused  to  let  them  know  where  the  money 
might  be  found  ;  or  should  have  been  obstreperous 
and  clamorous,  and  made  resistance,  he  could  not 
tell :  but,  without  somewhat  of  that  kind,  he  told 
me  there  was  no  thought  of  using  the  old  man  with 
any  violence. 

I  further  told  him,  that  I  could  not  see  how  his 
father  could  interpose  in  order  to  his  being  spared, 
unless  he  discerned  some  ground  to  hope,  that  if  he 
was  spared  he  would  grow  better.  He  told  me 
frankly,  that  for  his  part  he  had  no  hope  of  it :  nay, 


LIFE    OF    CAJLAMY.  497 

that  he  was  rather  satisfied  he  should  grow  worse  and 
worse,  which  was  but  small  encouragement.  After 
a  great  deal  of  such  sort  of  discourse,  I  put  up  a 
serious  prayer  with  him,  and  came  away  with  the 
father,  who,  upon  the  whole,  demanded  my  advice  in 
the  case. 

I  told  him  he  must  judge  for  himself,  and  I  could 
not  see  how  another  could  determine  for  him.  I 
insinuated,  that  though  the  unfitness  of  his  unhappy 
son  to  launch  into  eternity  was  very  evident,  yet,  if 
upon  his  being  spared,  he  should  be  guilty  of  other 
gross  acts  of  villany  and  wickedness,  it  might  be 
questioned  whether  or  not  his  concern  and  endea 
vours  to  procure  the  continuance  of  his  forfeited  life, 
though  he  was  his  own  child,  would  not  make  him 
in  a  measure  responsible  before  God,  for  having  a 
hand  in  them,  and  contributing  to  them.  I  com 
mitted  him  to  the  Divine  direction  and  conduct,  but 
was  sorry  I  could  give  him  no  more  encouragement 
vigorously  to  interpose  for  his  son's  preservation.  I 
added,  that  were  I  in  his  case,  I  should  have  a  great 
regard  to  the  advice  of  his  uncle  Dr.  Jekyl,  (who 
was  his  mother's  brother,)  who,  I  understood,  was  to 
be  with  him  the  next  morning. 

That  gentleman,  as  I  was  afterwards  informed, 
was  actually  with  him  at  that  time,  as  he  designed, 
and  among  a  great  many  other  questions  proposed, 
asked  him  whether  or  not,  in  all  the  time  he  had 
been  confined  in  Newgate,  he  had  ever  bowed  his 
knees  to  the  great  God,  making  it  his  earnest  request 

VOL.  I.  2  K 


498  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

to  him  to  give  him  a  sight  and  sense  of  his  sins,  and 
to  work  in  him  a  soft  and  tender  heart,  in  order  to 
his  living  better,  if  his  life  should  be  prolonged,  and 
he  delivered  out  of  the  danger  he  was  in.  Upon 
which,  he  freely  owned  that  he  had  not,  and  that  he 
thought  it  to  no  purpose  to  attempt  any  thing  of 
that  kind. 

He  afterwards  made  him  an  offer,  that  if  he  would 
but  make  him  a  promise,  that  he  would  every  morn 
ing  and  evening  duly  pray  to  God  to  give  him  his 
grace,  in  order  to  his  leading  a  new  life,  he  would 
interpose  for  his  reprieve,  and  did  not  doubt  of  pro 
curing  it,  and  would  endeavour  that  it  might  be 
followed  with  a  pardon.  But  he  positively  refused 
to  come  under  any  such  engagement.  Upon  which, 
the  poor  gentleman  retired  with  great  concern,  and 
did  not  think  fit  to  give  himself  any  farther  trouble 
about  him,  but  declared  he  was  very  much  of  the 
opinion,  that  if  he  was  any  longer  spared,  he  would 
be  very  likely  to  prove  a  yet  farther  and  greater 
curse  than  ever. 

On  the  day  upon  which  this  peculiarly  unhappy 
youth*  was  executed,  I  spent  several  hours  with  the 

*  Thus  left  to  close  his  short  earthly  probation,  by  the 
hands  of  an  executioner,  after  several  sober-minded,  benevo 
lent,  and  considerate  persons,  had  been  attracted  to  his  miserable 
condition,  yet  deliberately  resolved  to  withhold  those  efforts 
for  his  pardon,  or  at  least,  for  a  mitigation  of  punishment,  which 
they  evidently  expected  to  have  been  successful.  To  this  sad 
conclusion  they  unhappily  arrived,  because,  in  the  absence  of  all 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  499 

father  and  the  rest  of  the  children  in  his  chamber. 
A  very  melancholy  day  it  was,  though  an  instruc 
tive  one.  I  went  to  them  about  eleven  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  coming  into  the  chamber,  found  the  fa 
ther  lying  upon  his  bed,  and  the  children  sitting 
round  him.  After  some  discourse  both  to  the  father 
and  the  children,  I  put  up  a  prayer  with  them,  suit 
able  to  the  awful  occasion,  begging  that  so  start 
ling  a  dispensation  of  Divine  Providence  as  that 
was,  might  be  remarkably  sanctified,  and  that  all  of 
us  might  have  wisdom  and  grace  from  Heaven  to 
make  a  right  improvement  of  it.  Nor  did  I  forget 
that  poor  creature  that  was  then  to  make  his  exit ; 
begging  that  He  that  had  all  hearts  within  his  reach 
would  in  such  a  manner  work  upon  him  that  was 
near  his  end,  as  that  he  who  had  taken  so  much 
pains  to  sin  himself  out  of  the  reach  of  the  Divine 
mercy,  might  be  touched  with  such  contrition  that 

mental  discipline,  and  amidst  the  unfavourable  associations  of 
a  prison,  they  could  not  immediately  soften  the  young  criminal's 
heart  to  penitence,  nor  draw  from  his  insensibility  the  exacted 
promise  of  amendment. 

In  that  age,  destruction  of  criminals,  the  summary  expedient 
of  unenlightened,  or  indolent  legislation,  was  deemed  almost 
essential  to  the  suppression  of  crime.  Nor  has  a  later  and  more 
favoured  age  made  due  advances  in  the  practical  consideration 
of  this  highly  important  subject.  Though  "  the  school-master 
is  abroad,"  legislators  are  to  be  rarely  expected  among  his 
earliest  pupils.  Like  the  "  whining  school-boy"  of  Shakspeare, 
they  may  be  too  often  discovered,  "  creeping  like  snail  un 
willingly  to  school." — ED. 


500  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

he  might  give  glory  to  God.  Both  father  and  chil 
dren  seemed  not  a  little  affected.  I  still  continued 
with  them,  talking  one  while  to  the  poor  father,  and 
another  while  to  the  children,  doing  what  in  me  lay 
to  promote  some  good  impression  from  so  melan 
choly  a  Providence  as  this,  both  on  the  one  and  on 
the  other. 

At  length,  between  one  and  two  o'clock,  the  father 
on  a  sudden  broke  out  into  a  violent  fit  of  crying, 
and  all  the  children,  as  it  were  with  one  common 
consent,  fell  to  crying  and  roaring  in  a  manner  that 
was  affecting.  I  sat  still  on  my  chair  by  the  bed 
side,  without  attempting  to  stop  or  check  it,  and 
in  some  time  it  a  little  abated.  But  upon  my  be 
ginning  to  speak,  it  broke  out  afresh.  Therefore,  I 
made  a  further  pause,  till  they  began  to  be  composed. 
Then  I  asked  the  father  what  the  occasion  might 
be,  of  the  agony  I  observed  he  was  in  ?  I  made 
it  my  request  he  would  give  me  satisfaction,  whe 
ther  the  consideration  of  the  case  of  his  unhappy 
son,  who  he  might  reasonably  suppose  was  about 
that  very  time  launching  into  eternity,  was  the  sole 
ground  and  occasion  of  it,  or  whether  any  particular 
passage  coming  then  into  his  mind,  might  contribute 
to  it  ?  Upon  which,  fetching  a  deep  sigh,  he  told 
me  the  following  memorable  story : — 

"  Sir,"  said  he,  "  when  this  wretched  creature, 
that  I  now  count  myself  a  miserable  man  that  I 
ever  was  a  father  to,  was  a  very  young  child,  and 
our  only  child,  my  wife  and  I  were  so  fond,  as  even 


LIFE   OF    CALAMY.  501 

to  dote  upon  him.  It  pleased  God  then  to  visit  him 
with  a  fever,  and  we  were  not  satisfied  with  using 
such  means  as  were  within  our  reach  in  order  to 
his  relief,  looking  upwards  for  a  blessing  upon  them, 
but  we  thought  that  our  lives  were  bound  up  in  his, 
and  were  apt  to  imagine  we  should  be  perfectly 
undone,  if  we  should  lose  him ;  upon  which  I  was 
earnest  with  God  to  spare  him.  One  evening,  par 
ticularly,  as  I  was  praying  in  my  family,  I  was  more 
than  ordinarily  importunate  with  God  to  continue 
him  to  us,  and  ran  into  some  expressions  that  dis 
covered  an  indecent  earnestness." 

He  added,  that  a  good  Christian  woman,  a  country 
friend,  then  in  the  family,  came  to  visit  them  in 
their  affliction,  and  took  particular  notice  of  it,  and 
freely  reasoned  with  him ;  and  as  he  was,  one  time, 
rising  from  his  knees,  charged  him  home  with  an 
immoderate  vehemence  of  spirit,  and  told  him  that 
he  seemed  to  carry  the  matter  so  far,  that  she 
dreaded  the  consequence.  Whereupon  he  told  her 
that  it  was  not  possible  for  him  to  help  it.  She  gave 
it  him  as  her  judgment,  that  it  was  better  and  safer, 
and  much  more  becoming,  to  leave  the  matter  to  an 
infinitely  wise  God,  who  knows  the  end  from  the 
beginning,  than  for  such  weak  creatures  as  we,  so 
much  to  seek  as  to  futurities,  to  pretend  to  be  posi 
tive  and  peremptory,  as  to  any  events  that  fall  out 
that  we  have  concern  in.  His  answer  was,  that  he 
could  not  bear  the  thoughts  of  losing  his  child, 
of  which  he  apprehended  there  was  great  danger. 


502  LIFE    OF   CALAMY. 

She  desired  him  to  consider  how  little  he  knew  what 
that  child  might  prove  if  he  should  live  to  be  a 
man  :  and  how  unreasonable  therefore  it  was  in  him 
to  pretend  to  say,  that  he  could  not  bear  the 
thoughts  of  losing  him.  The  poor  father,  in  the 
agony  of  his  spirit,  made  answer,  let  him  prove  what 
he  will,  so  he  is  but  spared,  I  shall  be  satisfied. 

"  This,"  said  he,  "I  now  see  to  have  been  my 
folly.  For  through  the  just  hand  of  God,  I  have 
lived  to  see  this  wretched  son  of  mine,  a  heart 
breaking  cross  to  them  that  loved  him  with  the 
greatest  tenderness,  a  disgrace  to  my  whole  family, 
and  likely  to  bring  down  my  grey  hairs  with  sorrow 
to  my  grave.  I  read  my  sin  very  distinctly  in  my 
punishment :  but  must  own  that  God  is  righteous  in 
all  his  ways,  and  holy  in  all  his  works." 

As  I  could  not  but  be  much  affected  with  such  a 
passage  as  this,  myself,  so  have  I  often  told  it,  very 
particularly,  at  such  times  as  I  have  been  called,  in 
the  way  of  my  function,  to  visit  parents  that  were  in 
sore  affliction  and  distress  of  spirit,  for  the  loss  of 
their  children,  while  they  were  yet  young.  I  have 
several  times  observed  that  the  telling  it,  has  had  a 
good  effect,  and  helped  to  compose,  silence,  and  quiet, 
notwithstanding  the  aptness  of  most  parents  to  hope 
well  as  to  their  own  children,  what  wretched  crosses 
soever  they  many  times  find  the  children  of  others 
prove  to  them. 

I  do  not,  however,  think  it  needful  to  dilate  upon 
the  little  effect,  for  any  good  purpose,  that  such  an 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  503 

awful  dispensation  of  providence  as  this  was,  taken 
in  all  its  circumstances,  had  on  the  other  children 
who  survived,  or  even  upon  the  father  himself.  The 
judgments  of  God  are  sometimes  unsearchable,  and 
"  his  ways  past  finding  out,"  and  I  think  it  sufficient 
to  add,  that  this  proved,  afterwards,  in  the  several 
parts  and  members  of  it,  as  unhappy  and  miserable 
a  family  as  any  I  ever  knew,  which  was  generally 
observed  by  all  their  friends  and  acquaintance,  and 
which,  I  think,  should  be  a  warning  to  all  who  know 
or  hear  of  it,  "  to  take  heed  lest  their  hearts  be 
hardened  by  the  deceitfulness  of  sin." 

Another  passage  I  thought  remarkable.  Having 
preached  at  Hand  Alley  upon  a  New  Year's-day, 
(which  fell  on  the  Lord's  Day,)  it  pleased  God  in 
such  a  manner  to  accompany  his  own  word  with 
power,  that  it  was  the  means  of  the  strong  convic 
tion,  and  I  hope  of  the  true  conversion,  of  a  young 
fellow,  a  currier  by  trade,  who  had  been  very  wild 
and  loose,  that  was  providentially  brought  to  the 
hearing  my  discourse,  from  2  Cor.  v.  17,  "If  any 
man  be  in  Christ  he  is  a  new  creature." 

I  could  not  help  taking  the  more  notice  of  this 
matter,  because  of  what  afterwards  happened.  This 
sermon  upon  the  "  New  Creature,"  I,  not  long  after, 
delivered  a  second  time,  on  preaching,  one  afternoon, 
for  old  Mr.  Hammond,  at  Armourers'  Hall  in  Cole- 
man-street. 

Dr.  Kerr,  a  gentleman  of  considerable  learning, 
and  celebrated  as  a  tutor,  (having  bred  up  a  good 


504  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

number  of  pupils,  who  have  been  and  still  are  very 
useful  in  the  world,)  but  who  was  very  particular 
in  his  temper,  was  at  that  time  my  auditor,  and 
being  critically  disposed,  entertained  very  indifferent 
thoughts  of  my  discourse.  In  the  week  following, 
the  Doctor  happened  to  meet  my  good  friend  Mr. 
Nathaniel  Taylor,  accidentally  in  the  street,  and 
stopped  him,  and  talked  with  him  about  my  sermon, 
and  spake  of  it  with  abundance  of  contempt.  He 
went  so  far  as  to  declare,  that  if  any  one  of  his 
pupils,  that  had  but  read  over  a  body  of  divinity, 
could  not  as  well,  or  better,  discourse  upon  such  a 
subject  off  hand,  and  without  any  previous  study,  he 
should  think  he  deserved  very  severe  correction. 

Mr.  Taylor  appeared  concerned,  discovered  his  sur 
prise,  and  told  the  Doctor  very  freely,  that  he  did  not 
know  but  the  hearer,  in  that  case,  might  be  as  much 
out  of  the  way  as  the  preacher ;  and  added,  that  he 
was,  therefore,  the  more  inclined  to  suspect  it,  be 
cause  he  was  well  satisfied  that  his  friend  did  not 
use  to  perform  so  very  meanly  :  but  he  said  he  could 
not  tell  what  he  might  have  to  put  him  out  of  his 
bias  at  that  particular  time,  and  would  make  en 
quiry,  as  opportunity  offered ;  and  so  they  parted. 

Not  long  after,  that  having  a  visit  from  Mr. 
Taylor  (than  whom  no  man  was  more  candid,)  he 
soon  took  occasion  pleasantly  to  ask  me,  whether 
I  did  not  preach  on  such  a  day  for  old  Father  Ham 
mond  ?  I  freely  told  him  I  did.  He  then  enquired  what 
subject  I  was  upon  ?  And  I  gave  him  an  account. 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  505 

He  desired  me  to  lend  him  my  notes,  and  allow  him 
the  perusal  of  the  sermon.  I  desired  to  know  the 
reason  of  his  particular  curiosity.  But  he  desired  to 
be  excused  from  saying  any  more  at  that  time ;  and 
told  me  when  he  had  read  the  sermon  over,  he 
would  return  it,  and  give  me  an  account  of  parti 
culars.  I  very  readily  put  it  into  his  hands. 

After  some  time  he  renewed  his  visit,  and  return 
ed  me  my  notes,  and  told  me  all  that  had  passed  be 
tween  Dr.  Kerr  and  him,  about  that  sermon.  I 
asked  him  what  his  thoughts  were  upon  his  own 
perusing  it.  He  very  frankly  told  me  that  though 
he  had  both  read  and  heard  several  sermons  of  mine 
that  he  thought  to  be  deeper,  and  more  laboured, 
yet  he  was  far  from  thinking  so  meanly  of  it  as  Dr. 
Kerr,  whom  he  took  to  be  over  nice  and  critical,  and 
that  he  would  signify  the  same  to  him,  when  he  saw 
him  next.  He  added,  that  as  it  was  serious  and 
searching,  so  he  looked  upon  it  to  be  a  discourse 
well  suited  to  a  common  auditory,  and  calculated  to 
do  good,  which  he  took  to  be  the  end  of  preaching. 

Hereupon  I  gave  him  an  account  of  the  good 
effect  I  had  some  reason  to  hope  that  sermon  of 
mine  had  upon  the  young  currier,  and  desired  him 
if  he  had  any  farther  discourse  with  the  Doctor  upon 
that  subject,  he  would  let  him  know  of  that  also. 
Then,  if  he  pleased,  he  might,  together  with  my 
service  to  the  Doctor,  tell  him  from  me,  that  I  could 
be  very  well  content,  and  easily  bear  it,  that  every 
sermon  I  made  or  preached  should  be  as  contempti- 

VOL.  i.  2  L 


506  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

bly  thought  and  spoken  of  as  that  had  been  by  him, 
provided  I  had  but  like  evidence  of  God's  being 
pleased  to  own  it  to  as  good  a  purpose.  Mr.  Taylor 
appeared  not  a  little  pleased  at  this  latter  passage, 
and  at  my  return  to  the  Doctor,  and  assured  me 
he  would  take  care  as  to  the  conveyance  of  both 
to  him,  and  did  not  doubt  of  its  having  a  good 
effect. 

I  think  it  highly  proper  to  add  the  sequel,  which 
was  far  from  being  to  the  Doctor's  dishonour.  Hap 
pening  to  meet  him  not  long  after  in  the  street, 
he  crossed  directly  over  to  me,  saluted  me  with 
all  the  respect  imaginable,  asked  my  pardon,  and 
censured  and  condemned  himself  most  freely  and 
liberally,  and  gave  himself  a  number  of  harder 
names  than  I  was  ever  disposed  or  inclined  to  have 
given  him,  that  he  should  so  much  give  way  to  a 
carping  cavilling  spirit,  as  to  run  down  as  con 
temptible,  a  discourse  that  a  gracious  God  was  pleased 
to  make  use  of  as  the  means  of  converting  a  soul. 

The  Doctor  overdid  it,  and  ran  now  into  the  other 
extreme,  (no  uncommon  thing  in  such  a  case,)  and 
yet,  considering  his  natural  temper,  his  carriage 
showed  that  serious  regard  to  God,  and  that  awful 
sense  of  the  peculiar  value  of  serious  vital  religion, 
that  I  couJd  not  but  think  very  worthy  of  imitation. 

Another  passage  that  occurs  to  my  memory,  re 
lates  to  a  servant  that  came  to  me  in  Hoxton- square 
under  great  horrors,  and  with  all  imaginable  marks 
of  a  very  deep  concern.  Enquiring  into  the  rise  of 


LIFE    OF    CALAMY.  507 

her  great  concern,  she  ascribed  it,  under  God,  to 
some  sermons  of  mine  she  had  heard,  in  Bishopsgate- 
street.  I  discoursed  with  her  about  sorrow  for  sin, 
and  warned  her  to  make  it  her  daily  request  to  God, 
that  her  concern  might  not  abate  nor  wear  off,  till  a 
saving  change  was  produced. 

She  seemed  willing  to  bear  or  endure  any  thing,  so 
she  might  but  have  a  share  in  the  divine  mercy,  of 
which  she  appeared  very  sensible  she  was  wholly  un 
worthy.  She  was  pressed  with  a  sense  of  guilt,  which 
lay  like  a  load  upon  her  conscience ;  and  I  cannot 
say  but  there  was  reason  for  it.  She  was  very  free 
in  owning  her  wickedness.  I  told  her,  there  was  no 
occasion  for  her  opening  the  particulars  of  her  guilt 
to  any.  It  was  sufficient  to  confess  them  to  God, 
earnestly  begging  a  share  in  his  pardoning  mercy 
through  Christ's  mediation. 

She  told  me  there  was,  in  her  apprehension,  a  real 
necessity  of  her  acquainting  me  with  some  particu 
larities  of  her  guilt,  that  I  might  the  better  advise 
her  what  might  be  her  duty  with  respect  to  some 
that  had  been  partners  with  her  in  acts  of  folly. 
Thus  I  came  to  know  more  of  the  wickedness  of 
families  of  distinction,  that  had  a  great  number  of 
servants,  than,  in  all  probability,  I  might,  otherwise, 
have  ever  known. 

I  drew  up  letters,  which  she  sent  under  her  own 
hand,  to  some  that  had  been  her  accomplices  in 
wickedness,  signifying  the  different  apprehensions 
she  now  had,  of  the  actions  in  which  they  had  a 


508  LIFE    OF    CALAMY. 

concern  together,  and  warning  them  to  take  heed  of 
persisting  in  folly  which  would  prove  bitterness  in 
the  latter  end,  either  here  or  hereafter. 

The  truth  is,  she  was  very  ready  to  listen  to, 
and  follow  the  advice  I  gave  her ;  and  read  such 
books  as  I  put  into  her  hands,  and,  I  hope,  became 
a  serious  penitent.  Having  laid  up  money,  and 
having  good  friends  in  the  country,  I  advised  her  to 
go  and  live  privately  and  retiredly  among  them,  and 
sitting  under  a  serious  ministry  to  walk  humbly  with 
God  all  her  days;  which  she  promised  me  she  would. 

Another  brought  me  a  bag  of  money,  which  he 
had  wronged  his  master  of  in  his  apprenticeship,  and 
desired  me  to  return  it ;  leaving  it  to  me,  to  let  him 
know  from  whom  it  came,  or  to  conceal  his  name. 
Some  other  like  good  effects  I  remember,  with  which 
it  pleased  God  to  honour  my  ministry  in  those  days. 
I  acknowledge  them  to  his  praise. 


END    OF    THE    FIltST    VOLUME. 


LONDON: 

I'ftlXTEU   BY    SAMUEL  BHNTLKY, 
Do;  it  l  Street,  t'lctt  .St.ct-.t. 


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