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REASONS

Againft Repealing the

OccaJio7tal,^ndTeJl ABsy '\

And Admitting the

DISSENTERS*

To PLACES of

Truft and Powen

OCCASIONED

By Reading the dtli Chap, of a

'pamphlet called. The State-Anatomy of Great Britain.

To which is added

An ANSWER to the mod material Arguments brought by the Diffenteis and their Friends for their Admiffion into Offices,

LONDON,

Printed by H. P. for J. Morphew, near StatiQuers-Hali MDCCXVIII.

(Price Six-Pence.)

A

REASONS

A§ainft Repealing the

Occafional, and Tefl Ads.

Dear Sir.

E pleafed to accept of my hearty Thanks for the Pamphlets you were fo kind to fend me ; I cannot return youc Favour in the fame manner, without

writing one on purpofe for you, which

you will find, by the length of what follows, I have done : Meanly I confefs, without much Time or Thought employ 'd upon the Subjeft; yetfuch as it is, I know your Goodnefs will excufe it. I defire you would look upon the whole, as what would drop from me in Converfation, had I an Op^ portunity to kifs your Hands at - — — which my prefent Indifpofition will not permit.

A a ^

[4]

I am pretty well pleafed with the State-Ana- tomy oi Great Bntuin. I cannot under/land how the Tones will be able to reply to his Charge a- gainfl them, which is no lefs True than Severe. Yet the Vehemence and Rapidity of his Stile difco- ver a Man ot a very warm Temper ,• and this State- Chirurgeon, m fome Particulars at leaft, gives him- felf the Air of a mere Quack. I have no more Faith in his irrefragable Demonftration, than in the Catholicon, or Univerfal Medicine of fome of his Brother Doftors. I cannot by any means clofe with ^'^ '^n F^""^^^ ""^ repeahng the Occaftonal and Tefl AEls. h you remember, I long fince hinted to you, that this was upon the Anvil, and as it is now probable It will be attempted by fome Favourers of the Diflentiiig Partj-, give me leave to Ihoot my Jbolt agamit them. ^

You (mow I have hitherto been in no jrreat ?:i{n for the Church : Imaginary Dangers ^iw^ me no Di- Iturbance, nor am I eafily moved with popular Noife and Clamour. But when fuch Projefts as thefc are on Foot, out of the regard I have to Decency Or- der, and good Stnk; I cannot forbear lookin"- with fome little ;caloufy upon the Difoters, who fcem m fo peculiar a Manner to be the happy Mi- nions ot this Author.

This Dodor irrcfragabilis begins his Demon- llration, or Prefcriprion (call it which you pleafe) in a very Magifterial Tone, Page 30. Let the Na- tional Church, &c. But I am not convinced that tills Gentleman s FJat will fecure the National Church from the Inva/lons of the Diffenters, uniefs lie can Demonflrate alfo, chat the Ddfenting Preach- ers

f 5]

ers will divefl themfelves of their ufual Ambition: That they will not caft a longing Eye after that Ecclefiallical Preheminence he mentions, which (as it is moft apparent ) where ever they have been Eilabhfted, they are as fond of as any Priefts whatfoever, carry it to as high a Pitch, and execute their Decrees with as much Rigour. If I am right'y informed, Ecclefiaftical Tyranny is ascom- £ka.t m our Neighbouring Kirk of Scotland, as in thofe Slaviih Regions on the other fide of the^/dj- He mufl Demonilrate alfo, that thefe felf-denyin^ Preachers will not be gJad of a feafonable Opportu- nity to creep into the Dignities (tho' perhaps un- . der lome other Denominations ) as well as the Im- munities and Poileffions of the National Cler^^v As human Nauire is ftill the fame ; and as it is >fo- torious that our Neighbouring Kirkmen have Ef- feded this already : As it is well known that thefe meek and humble Preachers had ingrofsM all Pow- er, and Profit Ecclefiaftical into their own Hands cv^en m our own Country, during the late unhappy Troubles,- how can we rely upon his whimfical Security of an Irrevocable Laio to make them all He- I lots, or Slaves if they attempt it? Or what Law I can be Irrevocable, when the Diifenters by thofe I very means he propofes, will have a Power to re- voke it? For by being equally admitted into all Plaees of Trufl, and Profit, and in almofl all ref- pe&supon a Par with the National Church, they will have an Opportunity to promote their Intereff

bny of} the Knaves of our Commiuiion, till at laft they grow too Big for Piuufhment. How eaHe

kJrlnt ^ Helots or Slaves? lam well aflured It mil be much more eafy for the Diiienters to

break

1^1

bteak through all his Cobweb Laws, and overturff all his impotent Schemes.

I cannot but think it will be allowed me, that it is as Neceflary to fecure the EftabliOi'd Church, againft the Encroachments of the Diftenters, as to fecure the Diflenters againft the Perfecutions of the Eftablilh'd Church: If this is granted, I cannot help inferring that the OccaJionaUnd TeftABs ought to be as Sacred and inviolable as the Aft oiToUra- tion; becaufe every good Church-man (and offuch I know this Parliament is Compofed) ought to be as Solicitous at leaft for the fecurity of his owrt Religion, as for that of his Diflenting Neighbours.

It is Reafonable, and I very heartily agree with this Author, that Proteflant Diffenters of all Denomi- nations, ftiould Worfhip God according to their Confciences, with all imaginable freedom : And as this is all they can with Modefty ask, fo we Good Church-men lliould be too Complaifant ( you fee I give it the mildeft Epithet) fhould we for their fakes who are already as eafy as they ought to wifh, give into any Projefts that might poffibly weaken the Security of the Eftablilhed Church.

I fhall take the Liberty to affirmj that the exclu- ding Dijfenters from Places of Truft in the Govern- ment, has been theftanding Opinion of the WSi^g^, as well as the T o R I e s. In a Conference between the two Houfes about the Occafional Bill, the Lord HaUjfax (no inconfiderable Manager for the Peers) Speaks thus.

Gen-

[7]

Gentlemen,

*' T)je main Dejign of this Bill ts to fecure the Church .^ of England. In this the Lords do /"rfeSily agree with *' you. Both fides of the Houfe joyn in it with equal *' Zeal. And the main Point being the Excluding of *' all Perfons from EMployments ofTruft, whojoyn them-- " felves tff any other Bodies for Religious Wbr(hipy The *' Lords dp agree with you intirely likewife in this. *' And again, the Lords look upon the fixing Qualifica- " tionsfcr Places of Trui? to he aWxw^fo intirely lodgd *' with the Legiflaturej that without giving any Reafon " for it J upon any apprehenficn of Danger (how remote /;' f0ev>er) every Government may put fuch Rulesy f^ -Rejlraints and Ccnditiins on All ivho Jerve in any " Place ofT'ruflyas they jhall fee Caufe for. In that yery Houfe oi Commons which Profecuted Dr. Sar chevereLf one Humphreys, a Nonconformift Minifter, Addrefs'd to them, a Paper containing Reafons foe abolifliing the I'efi Acl, and admitting the Diflfenter's jnto.a Share of the Govarnment: But even this very Houfe of Commons exprefs'd their . Refentments againft this infolent Propofal, and ordered his Paper to be burnt by th§ . Haiids o{ the Common Hang-inan.

Thefe liiAances I conceiive are fuiEcient to prove, that not many Years paft, it w;is the unanimous Opinion of the whole Reprefentative of the Na- tion, of all th^ Members of the Church both Whjgs and' Tories, that the Diflenters ought to be exclu- dc^d^from Places. I mull own I cannot difcoverj how they have fince merited a greater Ihare in ouc Favour, or what fhould induce us to alter our Senti- ftjents. If indeed you will believe their own exfra- Vjftg^nt Boafts, they alone ^re ^h<? ^iipport of;he j^rer

fent

[8]

fent Eftablifliment. The Members of the Church of England are all either declared Enemies, or in- iignificant Cyphers. I (hall not pretend to weigh Men s Merits in a Balance, but am very well fatis- fied the Dijfemers would in all regards appear light enough. We of the Church I hope underftand our felves too well to Trumpet our own Praifes. And I (hall beg leave to tell thefe very Meritorious Saints, thefe Confeflbrs, and Martyrs for the Government, that their Sufferings have been abundantly Recom- penfed, and that the mofl Loyal, mofl Deferving of them all have only done their Duty.

But their Boafls are not more Ridiculous, than their Menaces are Infolent. In many of the little Papers they have Publifhed upon this Occafion, they threaten their ^!)ij= jfrietlUlS in the Houfe, with the feverefl Marks of their Difpleafure. They accufe them with want of Honour, with Breach of their Promifes, and -in fine tell them very plainly, that if they will not repeal thofe Laws, which are a Bar to their Preferments, they will defert fuch Un- grateful Perfons, and joyn with the 'Tm-ies at the next Eledions ,* which, being interpreted, is, that if their WSmSi'$tiVXQ^ which arc now in Power, wi.l not admit them into a fliare of the Beneficial Places, they ^oneft 5ptn will do thebeft they can, to overturn both them and the Government.

I know Sir you will be under fome Surprife, to find that the boafted Loyalty of thefe Pillars of the State, is dwindled into mere Self-Interefl and Sor- did Gain.

■ - 1 want Faith to believe that any Minifters of State will make an Attempt fo ridiculous as to

Copy

[9]

Copy after King James, by Repealing the 7c/?- AEi, which mult make them ociious to the People. For they will find that the boafted Numbers and Power of the DUfcnters will be very little able to fupport them. It mufl llirink into a mere Shadow, when oppofed to the Bulk of the Natio ^

'The Dijfenters themfelves mufl in the End be effedually ruined by it. For fmce they will grafp at more Power than is their Due, the Oppofite Party, who will undoubtedly have their turn to be a Majority, will very naturally withdraw the Con- ceflions they have already made, as from Men that know no Moderation, and cannot be content to be Happy, without being Great. And how can they who have invaded tYi^lefi-AEi, comp'ain, if they Ihould hereafter lo(e the T'okration, of which by their ambitious Deiigns they have ren- dered tliemfelves unworthy ? 1 cannot but be con- vinced that this muft be the Confequence of their giving new Jealouiles to the Eflablifh'd Church : And that every Attempt of this Kind \s not only in the hieheft demxc unijrateful, but intirelv fub- verfive ot their own InterelT:. I am confident eve- ry unprejudiced Man amongfl them, who has no felf-interefted Views, mufl agree with me, that no- thing can become them fo well as to fit flill, and enjoy with thankful Hearts that ample Toleration which the good Nature of their Fellow-Subjefts has given them.

By the Aft of Settlement it is provided, that whoever hereafter fhall come to this Crown, fhall joyn in Comm.union with the Church of England, as by Law eflablifiied. With what Modefliy then can the Dijfemers ask to be free from 4 Reilrainc

B to

[ lO ]

to which the King hiitifelf is fubjeft? Shall they b^ releas'd from tlicfe legal Fetters (as they t:rni them) and the King himfeU^ for whom they ex- prefs fo great a Zeal, remain bound ? May we not with greater Reafon conclude, wlicn thefe Laws are re| ealed in favour of the Diffenters, that it will be but common Decency to repeal that Claufe ill the A6t of Settlement ? And will the Church be faf.', fhould we hereafter have a King ■who wiUr.o: join in her Communion ? TheLegi- {lature were not of that Opinion when the Ad of Settlement was pafs'd, nor I hope ever will. The many weighty Rcafons for laying this Reftraint upon the King, who is the Fountain of all Offices and Honours, will certainly hold good if applied to thole Perfons who derive the Offices and Ho- nours from him : at lead will differ as to Magis and M.nm only. In both Cafes the Wifdom of the Kation thought thefe Precautions necefl'ary for the Security of the Church, which has run no lels hazards in times paft from Diflcnting Brethren, than fi'om Popifn Princes. It is true, there is a wide Diflerence as to the State, between Dijfemers ^nd Papifls. Thefe are declared Enemies, the o- ther 25calOll0 jf jittlUJi. But are they not both Ene- mies to the Eftablifh'd Church ? Turn over (Sir,) our Hiilories, and find me one luflance if you can, where the Dijfemers let flip any one Opportunity to ufe the Church dcfpightfully, when they had it in their Power. On the contrary, fo irreconcileablc their Hatred, chat you will evidently difcover tH'^e? had once folemnly Sworn to Extirpate and De- stroy her. Their' III Defigns and Our Fears are of equal Date, which the Afpiring Temper that now appears amongfl them, will by no means allay. It is in vain therefore they plead thgt they have e-

qiial

["]

qual Abilities to ferve the Government with the Members ot the Church, for (o a-fo h^ive the Pa- fifls. However it wou'd better become thefe ?mek Saints to let other Men Praife them, and not their own Lips. The World indeed is every Day convinced of tiieir vafl Capacity to Govern ; but this happens unluckily to be a little bei'ide the Qiieftion j for we do not except againfl: them for want of Capacity, but on the contrary conclude, the greater their Abilities, the more they are to be feared. ^

The mod malicious of our Enemies cannot find out a more Effectual v^ay to make the Government Unpopular, than the Repealing thefe Laws, which are the Bulwark of the Eflablifh'd Church ; The very Sound of whofe Name can raife a Zeal in the Multitude little lefs than Diftraftion. You, Sir, who convers'd among the People during the late Rebellicn, that you might do the Government all the good Offices you were able, can tell the mighty Influence of the word Cinircb. It is plani that Calumny of the Danger of the Church, had taken deep Root: It was by this alone that the Enemies of the Go- vernment gain'd upon the People, and raifed that Ferment againfl the Dijftntersy the Fore-runner of the' late Rebellion. You, Sir, and many other honeft Gentlemen, labour'd with the utmoft Application to wipe off that Dire call in fo plentiful a manner upon the King and his Friends. Upon thefe Occa- lions you have given repeated affuranccs that the Church was fafej you have Demonftrated that it was Inconfiftent with the Honour of the Govern- ment, and with all good Policy, to take any Step to the Prejudice of the Eftablifli'd Church. You have ridiculed thofe Fears, as vaiii Chimjeras, ot

B 2 riiallow

C i^ ]

fhallow Artifices of Friends to the Pretender : The juftnefs of your Reafonings has prevailed, the People have been afham'd of their ealie Credulity, have awak'd from thofe idle Dreams, and conclu- ded with you, that nothing could efteftually Sup- port the Church, but their firm Adherence to a Wife, Proteftant King. But how unfortunate aro- the Friends of the prefent Eflablifliment ? See at once. Sir, all this hopeful Fabrick falling to the Ground. The Dijfenters, if they repeal thefe Ads, fwill triumph in their Succefs \ their foolilli Hopes will be contained within no Bounds, they will in- fult without Mercy, the Converts you have made ; and you with all your honefl Zeal, and the clearefl Reafon on your lide, will be efteemed little lefs than a very weak Man, or a very falfe Deceiver. Thus, Sir, are you delivcr'd up to Infamy and Re- proach by thofe who out of your Reputation, pay the Debt they ov/e to their Dijfenting Voters.

A Difl'enter can by no means be faid to be Op- prefled becaufe he is not admitted into Places of Truft, and Power; fince no Man has a natural Right to an OfHce, for that is owing folely to the Grace and Favour of the Prince. As the Mem- bers of the Eflablifh'd Church feem to have the befl Title to thofe Favours of their Prince who is Supreme Head of that Church, fo it will be his Intereft to employ Men of the fame Principles in Religion, if he experts Secrecy, Difpatch, or a- ny good Underftanding in his Affairs. For how- ever calm Men's Minds may be in other Countries, they are in too great a Ferment in England, and we are too great Bigots on all fides, for a wife King to employ Men of different Perfwafions. The Church-man ( I am afraid ) would look with

Envy

c ^n

Envy and Diftruft upon the Promotion of a DiT- fenter, v/ho in his Opinion can jaflly claim no- thing more of his Prince than Indemnity and Pro- teftion. And would there not be fomc Ground for hisunealinefs ? Since the Diifenter who is ge- nerally Opinionative, Infinuating, and Ambitious, if he is once made Great, will afpire to be Grea- ter-: And by the fame Law that he is admitted in- to any fhare cf Power, is in a PoOObility of the higheft Promotions. And fliould the moil Sanguine ot us all think the Church entirely out of Danger, were the Dijjenters admitted into the Adminiftra- tion ? In a Cafe that i'o nearly concerns us, let us provide even againft Polfibilitits.

I car not think the Body of the Dijfenters are very uneafy at being excluded from Oifices; It is the Covetous, and Ambitious only, that gape after Places ; the Pious Man will be content to ferve God in his own wayj Temporal Preferments are Trifles he will eafily forego i an eager Delire to be Great, and to make a Figure in the World, favours very Untie of Religion : And I cannot fee of whac great National Advantage it will be, to admit the very worft of the Dijjinters into Place and Power.

The Dijfenters will for their own fakes, do all they can to Support the prefent Eltablifhmerxt, their Hands, their Purfes (and that is all we want ) will not fail of being ready, upon every Occalion, againft the Pretender and his Adherents, becaufe they mufl know, that their being even but Neuters i\\ this Quarrel, is to them immediate Ruin. Where their own Prefervatjon is fo nearly concerned, it is Ridiculous to flifpect their Zeal. Let us therefore make ufe of cheir AffilUnce to do us Good, but

let

[ H]

let us be careful we do not put ft into their Power to do us Harm. We live now as Brethren, but the Time may come when they may difpute our Birth-right, and fcruggle with us fcr Superiority. The DiJfenterSi like two very ufeful, but unruly E- lements, are the bed Servants, but the very wcril Mafters.

The Toleration i% indeed the Glory of the Church of England, becaufe in this llie raifes her ielfto the higheil Pitch oiChnjiianity ; (lie Bleflcs them, who would Perfecute her. But as Ihe knows they want not the Will j fhe would Ad the pare of a Lunatick, or an Idiot, Ihould Ihe tamely givq them the Power.

I muft confefs I cannot fee how the Repealing- thefe Ads will greatly advantage the Generality of Djffemers, whofe Genius feemis mofl; inclined to Trade, and for wliich they are much better qualifi- ed, than for Places at Court. His Majefty, if he has not already, may foon have with a little to- lerable Condud in his Miniftry, many hearty Sub- jects of the Church of England to fill the more in- ferior Polls. There remains nothing now, but to reconcile the deluded Populace to the beft King that ever Reign'd ; a Task one would imagine no way difficult to a Wife,- Steady, and Uncorrupt Adminiftration. But on the Contrary, the ver3» Attempt to Repeal thefe Ads will be attended with the worft Confequences to the prefent Efta- blifhment. How many were terriiied into Tory- meafures by that Ridiculous Cry of the DAN- GER OF THE CHURCH .? Many of whom were very Well-meaning Men, and have fince had the Grace to acknowledge their Errors, are per-

tcdly

tin

kdily recovered from that ridiculous Fright, and are now as hearty Subjeds as any in the King s Dominions. But all thefe and many others who are jufi: coming over, and want only an Excufe for their paft Follies, when an Attempt fhall be made to Repeal thefe Ads, will immediately relapfe, and the fhaking Fit will feize them once more with redoubled Violence. But are We aflured this In- fedion will creep no further? Will not fuch an Attempt Ihock many hearty Advocates for the Government? Gentlemen who feiTe their King and Country upon Principles of Confcience and Honour, without any fervile Dependance upon Miniilers of State, or Expedation of any other Reward than the Satisfadtion of having done their Duty : And v/ho I will take the Liberty to fay are the Beft and mod: Reputable Friends to the prefent happy Eflablifhment.

If this Author ghcs us thefe bold flrokes, as his own private Opinion and fecret Wifh only, he might have faved himfelf the trouble : For I am very well fatisfied that the Gentlemen now at the Helm underhand the State of the Nation too well, to follow his Advice. But if he has the Infolence to divulge thefe things, as Schemes already agreed upon by the leading Men in the Government, He deferves little lefs than the Pillory for fo vile a Refledion. . ^

Upon the whole ; I am as fully pcrfwaded as e- ver 1 was of any thing, that an Endeavour at this time to Repeal the Occaficnal and T'eft-ABs, will give a mighty Handle to the Difaffeded, Breath to the Clamorous, plaufible Reafons to thofe, who are now reduced to the laft Dregs of

Kon-

[ 1(5 ]

Non-fence and Abfurdity, and \vill in the 'end prove both a nesdleft, and dangerous Experiment.

I anty

Dear Sir,

Tuiirs mojlfincerelyy &:c.

'T?h. 1 0th, i-JiC.

THE

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The Second

LETTER

Dear S iRj

OUR Zeal for the true Intereft of our Gracious King, and for the true Proteflant Religiin as profefsM in the Church of England^ will readily excufe my giving you the trouble of a fecond

in '■I /

Letter. I have had the Honour of your Approba- tion of the former; if I can be fo Fortunate in this, I Ihall very little regard the Cenfures of thofe, whofe Intereft in is to Condemn it. I fhall endeavour to Anfwer the moft material P.eafons given by the Diffenters and their Advocates for their Admiflion into Places. What I find in the Bifliop of Bangor's Anfwer to Dr SnaPe^ and to the Reprefentation of the Committee ought in juftfce to firft be Confidered.

" Men ought not to be deprived of their Natural " Rights,

A natural Right «f Civil Offices feems to me a very wild Notion. In a mere Stat« of Nature

C ^^

[ 18]

there was no fuch Right, becaufe there were th<?rt no fiich ORices. And when Men enter'd into Po- litical Societies, the greatefl part of their Natu- ral Rights were of Courfe depofited in the Hands of their Civil Governours, the more effedually to enable them to anfwer the Ends of Society, and protect the Properties and Pcrfons of their Subjeds : Of which Number this Right (if it may, tho* improperly, be called Natural ) mufl be prefum'd to be one. For Men once incorporated into Ci- vil Society, to. pretend a Natural Right to carve for themfelves, and alTiime what Offices and Em- ployments they think lit, is indeed to Subvert that Society, and return again into a ftate of Nature and Corifulion. It muft therefore be left to the Ciul Governour to appoint fubbrdinate Officers; forwithout this Right he cam ot Govern. He is ui- doubtedly rojudgeof the Qiialirications of the feveral Candidates tor an Office : And . he cannot in any thing more Evidently abufe the great Truft repofed in him, than by conferring Offices on thofe Men, whofe Principles, or Pra6tices have been found dt- flrudive to the Community. The DiJJcnters there- fore may thank their pail Pradices, if they are not in this Particular, upon an equal Foot with the re/l of their Fellow-Subjefits. They have juflly render'd themfelves fufpected Loth' to Church and State; and ought to think they are kindly ufed, if enjoying in Common all the otliCr Benefits of Society, they are reftrained only from the Power ol doing Mifchief. It does not become Men in tlieir Circumfiances to infult the Lenity of the Government,- and to claim a Natural - Right in- confiftent with tlie Commbn Safety^ to which all •Ri^^hts of wliat kind foever muft givQ place. This claim of a Natural Right to Offices, would make

a very ridiculous Figure in WeflmwJley-HJL Thev would there focn convince a BDiffcutUlg p^Ctenl)cr, that he had the fame Natural Right ro a Man s Eftate, as to his Office ; and that no Pcrion here in Ea^land has any other Right to an Office, than by the Fayour of the Prince, under the Direaion of the Law.

'' It is equally Reafranhleto incapadtate'Di^cnXQX^ *' jyom exercifmg any honefl Trade, as to mca- « facitate them jnm exenifing Offices oj State.

To which I am almoft afliamed to give any Aii- fxver at all : I Ihail only therefore obferve that lVillia?n Perm, a Privy Counfeller and Minifter ot State, may poffibly appear a more dangerous Ene- my to the Church, than the faid J^dham Penn, it coniinMco'Bulk m Fleet- Street, or even li ftrumng with more Grandeur behind a Counter in Cheaf- Sid^ The naked Truth is, Diffcnting Tradefmen are, and may be ufcful, but Diflenting Stacel-men muft be Dangerous.

*' Jt is equally reafcmhle to admit Dijfenters info " Offices of State, as to make ufe of their Af- f' fifiance in a Critical JnnHure, uhen the Soci- ". ety muft even he undone ivithout it.

I blufli to give an Anfwer to this ^^^<^'''^^^'l fiiall therefore only obferve, that Cafes of Neceffuy have been of great ufe to his Lordfiiip ot Bangor, and us other l)Onett mt}lgS, upon very important Occafions , but that k is not very Logical in us to infer wha; may be done in Cafes ot no Neceflfity, from what muft be done in Cafes ot Neccffity.

[ao]

" F/very one of m ivould think it unreafonahle to " be excluded Places, were it his owjz Cafe.

To doy as- rue would be done by, is a very Excellent Rule ; But Selt-Love makes it a little difficult in the Practice. For as a Merry Bard obferves

Ni) Alan turns

*The Point upon his own Concerns.^

It muft alfo be obferved, that however true this Rule may be in a Moral, yet it does not always hold in a Political Senfc. It is indeed the Foun- dation of Jufiice and Charity between Man and Man. But in Political Cafes there is a third Par- ty concerned, I mean the P U B L I C K, to which all private Confiderations muft fubmit. Publick Offices are a Publick Truft : And it may be rea- lonable for me to exclude fome People from Offi- ces, tho' I would ftot be excluded my felf, becaufc the Publick Good may neceflarily require it. And this is certainly much more juftifiable, where the true Caufe of fuch Exclulion arjfes from the Party himfelf who is excluded. This I take to be the Cafe of the Diffcnters, who, if they may feem to be hardly ufed in this Particular, ought to thank themfelvcs -, but can neither with Reafon complain of the Unkiadncfs of Private Perfons, or of the Publick Juftice. However, for once, I will make the Cafe my own, and fuppofe my fclf a Dijjeu" ter-. And in thefe Circumftances cannqt think it very abfurd to reafon thus. I have already a full Liberty to VVorfliip God in my own way ; thi^ was formerly the utmoft of our Demands. A Place may gratiii(? my Avarice or Ambition, but ■ ■■■> nci-

either make me a happier Man, or better Chri- {lian. The Variablenefs of Human Affairs, the Uncertain Tenure ot a Place : The la's and Out's I have pbferved of late, give me no very Advan- tageous Idea of a Place-Monger. It is a frail Fe- licity, and not worth my feeking. As the Primi- tive Chriilians are the beft Patterns a good Man can follow. To I am verily perfuaded, had they h^tn happy in fuch an ample Indulgence as we now enjoy, they would not have fet their Hearts {o much upon this World, as to give Jealoufies to thofe about them, by attempting to wreft out of their Hands the Places and Preferments of the State. Could they have efcaped the Bar, they would never have afpir'd to the Bench,- but would have been content to have left the Reins of Government in the Hands even of their Heathen Magiflrates. While the Church of England is upper- moft, I am fecure of its Indulgence : But fhould any one Seft of the DiJJenters by being admitted into Places, in time gam an Eftablifhment, if I fhould not happen to be of that Sed, and if I may judge of the Prcfent by the Paft, I have great reafon to apprehend the utmoft Severity of Perfecution. Many Thoufands of his Majefty's good Subjeds, both Churchmen and DilTenters, neither have, nor defire Places,- why fnould I diftinguifh my felf from the common Herd, and by my Pride and Suf- ficiency make my felf Ridiculous ? It is tme I am excluded from fome Beneficial Places ; but by this I efcape many Others both troublefome and ex- peniive. I am content therefore with my own Lot ; I fubmit to the Judgment of my Superiors, and will readily Sacrifice my own little Private Jntcreft to the Publick Peace and Safety-. I can- not

tjot conceive fuch Sentiments as thcfe would at all Hiil-bccome an honeft and Confcientious Diflenter.

f' "The Tefl-Avl Qiight to be repealed ; becaufe by it " the holiefi Infiitution of our Religion^ the " moFi Sacred Thing in the Worlds is delafed into a Political Tooly and Engine of State.

I leave it to th^ jDivines to determine whether this Ad; defcrves this fevere Charge ; as I leave it to tile World to judge whether this Earneflnefs of the Dijfenters to repeal it, be out of Zeal for the. Honour ot that holy Inftitution, cr whether the true Motive be not? their own Dear 9elf-|nterefl ? The Repealing thatj part of the Act will giwQ me no great Unealinefs, provided an efteclual Method be found out to Anfwer clearly the fame End, and exclude tlie Dijjenters from Offices^ and Power. I mufl own, I was in fome hope of a fubftantial E- quivalent for the Tefi-AEi, fince his Lqrdfnip affures us in his Anfwer to Dr. Sndpe^ p. 47. X^:at other le/ls might be thought on agreeable to Ch,ifiianity and Humanity^ "which might be a truer Security to the £- fiablijlied Church than the Prefcnt is. Bat when I read his Lordfhip's Anfwer to the Comjnittee of Convoca- tion, p. ip3. Where he informs us that every Security uhich djlars Alenfrom their Civil Rightly is an unjufi andfalfe Security ; I plainly difcover'd what fort of Equivalent we were to expedt. For thefe Civil Rights are the fame, which iiis Lordfhip in another Place calls Natural Righas, viz. The Rights of the Dijjenters to Civil Offices^ tho excluded by the Civil Power. This Notion of a Civil Right to an Office, diredly in Oppolition to the Crvil Authority^ feems tome another Paradox, which I mufl own I cannot eafily 'comprehend. And what Security that can

be

[^5]

be to the Church, which admits Dijfenters into Place and Power, and puts them into a Capacity to deftroy it, is to me equally unintelligible. I dcfpair therefore of any fair Equivalent for the I'efi-AB : And I hope the Wifdom of our Legifla- . tors will permit it to continue as it now ilands ; and not fiifier themfclves and the Nation they re- prcfent, to be deceived with any treacherous, delu- iive Equivalents. ..,.;.

I am the more encouraged to hope this, becaufc this very Parliament in the Ad for the further Se- curity of his Majefty's Perfon and Government, Anno I. Georgij, p. 328. in Affirmance of thcTefi- AB continue to obJig-e all Perfons in Office to re- Ceive the Sacrament according to the Ufage of the Church of England. As I cannot therefore fuppofe they will fo foon deftroy the V/ork of their own Hands, To I may have leave' to preflime they will not think themfelves treated with any great De- cency, when they are thus charged with 'making the holieft Inftitution of our Religion, the moft Sacred Thing in the World, a Political Tool, and Engine of State. " •'"o'u ^

Thus far the Right Reverend Bifhop. Of whofe writings you know, 6'/V, I have been a fedulous Reader. And m many pailages of thofe very Wri- tings I have learnt to pay no manner of regard to the Authority of Great ^ameiS. I hope therefore his Lord(hip will cxcufe me, ii I cannot Submit to luch Weak and frivolous Reafons in a Cafe not ve- ry becoming his Sacred Character.

I fhall now, Sir, trouble you with feme fiiorc Remarks upon a l^te Pamphlet, which is cileem'd

fo

[ H ]

fo Confiderable by the Dijfemers, that it has ap- peared already in a Tecond Edition. The Title of it is, " An equal Capacity in tiie Subjecis of Great Britutn fir Civil Bmployments, the befl Security of the Government.

To prove this equal Capacity to be the beft Security to the Government, he gives us thefe four Reafons.

" 1. It adds to thi Peiver ef the Crozuju ■ ^jv^-'.^it^-^ecures the EfiMJh'd Church.

cc

g. It would Recpncik cind kring in many of the DiflmtsYS.

;/ ,v 4, T'he AEis pfade to the Contrary, have never " leen the Produce of Mature Delihration^ ■** but of Party-ZeaL

ifl. It adds to the Power of the Crown. To Support this Propofition he Reafons thus. " "That " itwot4d add to the, Power oftheCrowfiy and flrengthen

the Confiitutiofi, it js hutnbly prefumd your Lord-' " Jhips, (for you mufl know. Sir, this Pamphlet was "writ for the Bdijication of certain Prelates ) wi Hallow; " betaufe fuch Power and fuch Strength is always in ** .proportion to the Number, who Support it. All fuch " Ails therefore which deveft a Part of the Community " of their Share in fuch Support by Difqual/fications, ** are equally Prejudicial to the withdrawing fo many " from the Community, or diminijlnng the Wliole by fa " many as are under thefe Dtf qualifications.

Upon

[215]

Upon which I fliall venture to make the follow- ihg Obfervations. Firft, that adding to the Pov/- er ot" the Crown, and ftrengthening tiie Conftitii- tion, are quite different Things 5 becaufe adding to the Power of the Crown may, and often does weaken the Conftitution. As our Conftitution is a MixM or limited Monarchy, adding to the Pow- er of the Crown May alter the Balance, and tend direftly to Subvert it. Secondly, That tho' the Power and Strength of the Crown may be fup- pofed in Proportion to the Number of thofe who Support it, yet it does not from thence ncceflarily toUov/, that thofe Numbers Ihould all be capable of Offices i becaufe a Sub/ed: who is incapable of OiSces, m^y yet have his Share in the Sup- port of the Crown. Thirdly, that Afts which difqualify Men for Offices, are not eqaally prejudi- cial to the withdrawing fo many form the Commu- nity, becaufe there is a wide difference between ex- cluding Men from Ofilces, and excluding them from being Members of the Community. He who is no Officer, is as much a Member of the Com- munity, as he who is; neither does it diminilhthe Whole, becaufe fome part are not Officers*

He next proceeds to inform us, " T'fjat there are '* great Complaints from the Lieutenancy of the Tower- ** Hamlets, and divers other PlaceSy that they cannot *' Officer their Companies by reafon of Parliamentary *^ Difqiialifications. In fine, he would have us un- derfland that the prefent Officers of the Militia, ^re as defeftive in their Loyalty as in their Mili- tary Skill; and that the iD/^^-zy^^rj- out 6f their pub- flick Zeal for theit Country, and for the Honour of hofc ufeful Bands of Domeilick Janiz.ariesy will gracioufly fupply thofe Defers, and furuiih us with

[Id]

Crfarsy and Alexanders from the ^Ctting'-I^oaft. But it fcems their AfTiflance is no lefs wanted in a Civil, than in a Military Capacity. The Com- mon Council of the City, of London invoke their Aid. " ]\^ny Wards cannot find the Number it is ** their Pri'viledge to be reprefented by^ that are Quali- *' fied for fuch a Ti'iiji, by their Natural and acqui- " red Endowments. For my part, I fhall not pre- tend to ilate the Natural and acquired Endow- ments of a Common Council-Man, but I may ven- triie to fay, that we our felves fliould be void of all E'lidowmentSj both Natural and Acquired, i^ we fiiould permit thefe worthy Loyalills to carry once more the Regalia of the City to a Conventicle. But this Author goes on, and allures us, " T'hat ** great Grievances arife in the Comrnijftin of the Peace " by Yeafon of the Difqualifcaticns. Many Places in " the Country have not Perjons ft and Skillful to aSi *' in fuch an Office. In fhort, that the Bench will noc be decently tilled without admitting the Dijfenters; and that the Toleration is not perftft, till they arc allowed to wreft the Law, as they do the Gofpe'. But to be a little more ferious with this Pamphle- teer. I delire he would confider that thi<-Suppo- ficion upon which all thefe Reafonings are found- ed, is by no means True. That the Government is not reduced to fuch Ncccllity for faithflil Officers either Civil, or Military. That fuch an Infinuati- on is a vile Calumny, and is in Effed nothing Icf* than calling Three parts in Four of the Gentlemen of England ^QY]m'<i Villains. That he does no great Honour to the Government, by reducing its Friends -into fo narrow a Compafs. That if it were thus deferted (which is apparently falfe in Fad) yet applying to the Difftnters, and putting Weapons in- to th«ir Hands, would not be the proper Method of

curing

[^7]

curing this Evil. That it is the In^reft of any Go- vernment to reign in the Affedions ot the P.ople. That Nothing can be fo difagreeable to the Bulk of the Nation, as to fee xht Dijf enters at the Head of Aftairs. That ever fince the Church and Mo- narchy which they dejftroyed, have been happily Reftored 5 every fucceffive Reign has carried on the Publick Affairs without their Help.' That it will be very difficult to perfwade the Members of the Church, that their Affiftance is mere neceflary in this Reign, than any other ; or that they will now in good Earneft fnpport what they (o lately over- turn'd. That giving the Eftablilh'd Church any Caufe for nev/ Jealoufies, will neceflarily create Fa- aions, and Animofities, and may be attended with the worft Confequences. And laftly. That nothing can be properly faid to flrengthen any Government, which, to oblige a few, will give a lading Uneafi- ncfs to the Body of the People.

" Secondly, It adds to the Security ofths Church.

This is at firll fight fo grofs a Paradox, that I Ciould not have troubled you with it here, had not the Author before-mention'd Brav'd the World with it, and with a peculiar Confidence affirm'd that his Reafonings upon his Head amount in a true ^nd proper Senfe to a Demondration. After having with great accuracy ( as he imagines) ex- plained to thofe Learned Prelates, the true Mean- mg of the Word Church, he further proceeds to m- ftrua their Lordftip's in a Doftrine, which muft cectainly appear very new and furprizing. Be plea- fed to take it in his own Words. " Ihis Under- " taking then, is only to offer it viith all Humility to your « Lor dihips, that the Church will hrmder'd much jnore *' D 2 " Secure

[ i8 ]

*^ Sauve by everything thai is an Addition to the Power ** of the Crown ; becaufe upon fuch an Eflablijhment, it ^** is fo interwcven and made apart of the Civil Conjii*- " tutioNy that one cannot Subfflbut by the other : And that " therefore the Security or Danger of the Church will '* always be^ as is the Security or Danger of the State, ** becaufe they are Infeparable. And he afterwards ** adds, In a true, therefore, and proper Senfe it will ** amount even to Demonftratitn, that every Addition to " the Power of the Crown, mufl be an Addition to " the Security of the Church, Upon all which I fhall obferve,

Firft, That notwithftanding his Nicety about the Term CHURCH, he is pleafed to nfe the Words Crown, and Civil Conjiitution in the fame Scnfe J tho' without the help of Second-fight, it is eafy to difcover the DiflFerence. Secondly, That not having proved under his firft Head, that a Ca- pacity in. the Dijfenters for Civil Employments does add to the Power of the Crown, this Foundation failing, his Super- ftirufture muft of Courfe fall to the Ground. Thirdly, I muft deny that theC/jz/rcA is fo interwoven with the Civil Conftitution, that One cannot fubfift but by the Other : For before the Church was incoporated with the Stare, or Ci- vil Conftitution, it did for many Ages fubfift, and if deferted and thrown oft' by the State, it may a- gain fubfift j as it actually did in Qiieen Mary*s Reign, and in CromtDcU's ^flirpation, tho' Perfe- cuted by the State. I muft add alfo, that there is in fach Cafes Authority enough left in the Church to prefcribe fuch Rules and Orders as are neceffa- ry to its Beinc. Fourthly, If the Church be (as he exprefles it; fo interwoven with the Civil Con- ftitution, it is by Confequence the Duty of the Civil Conftitution to protcft, ^nd M^nd. it. From

whence

whence I fliall beg leave to infer, that the Civil Coaftiturion fhould by no means admit of a Repeal of thofe Laws which are the Fences and Barriers of the Church againft its worft Enemies. Fifthly, That his Maxim with which he is To much de- lighted, is fo far from being true, that an Addi- tion to the Crown may often diminifh the Secu- rity of the Church : Was not the Doftrine of Paf- /ive Obedience an Addition to the Power of the Crown? But did not this very Doftrine in the Reign before the Re-jolution endanger both Church and State ? Repealing the feveral Limitations in the Ad of Settlement, or even making the Prince Abfolute, muft certainly add to the Power of the Crown -y but will it in any Senfe add to the Secu- rity ot the Church ? He muft therefore permit me to believe, tlut any Excefs of Power in the Crown will be equally dangerous to Church and Stare. Nothing can be more entertaining than to fee a Dilfemer fo zealous for the Prerogative j and Men that are upon Record for jantimonarcljical and iKc* publican Principles, value therafelves upon the high- eft flights of Tory-Loyalty.

I cannot here omit taking fome Notice of what he calls a Memorable and ever to be lamented Li- ftance, ot the Union of the Church with the State, in the unhappy Reign of King Charles I. One would imagine the Dijfenters Ihould not be very fond of mentioning that Reign upon this Occafion. *^ But {fays he) as the Croivn Jhook, the Church trem- ^ied, tiUat lafl they both fell into the fame Gra-ie. Had he been fo kind to have informed us who were the Grave-Diggers, it had faved me fome trou- ble, and had been an eftedual Anfwer ro his whole Book.

But

*if^

C P ]

But he goes on, " And for that deftr able Endy i. e. '^ the Security of the Church, the IVatton has not only *' all the Security and AJfurances imaginable from the ** Nature of the 'things, and the very Genim and Tex- " ture of the Conjlitution, but from the repeated moft " Graciom Promijes from the 'throne. I know riOt indeed what the Genius of our Conllitution may do; but the Nature of Things at prefent does not afford us a very pleafing Profpcd of Securicy to the Church. We pay ( as it is our Duty ) all pofTible Deference to his Majefly's moft Gra- cious Promifes. But muft the Church for this rea- fon depart from its legal Securities? His Majefty has alfo Gracioufly Promifed He will defend our Liberties : We are perfedly fatisfied he will. But muft we therefore Repeal Magna Ghana ? Since we are upon this Head of the Security of the Church,, it may not be improper to hear the whole Body of the DiJJenters themfelvcs in their Humble Suppli^ cation to Her late Majefty in relation to the Bill to prevent Schifm, Printed for A.Bell, 1714- ^ ^^> 19. Whofe kind Conceffions may polTibly give fome light into this. " Even thofe People (fay they) lulx^. " we are reproached with fevving, and for adhering to " whom in Civil Affairs, we have been mifreprefented * to Tour Majefiy, have on all occafions afffted cur E- *' nemies to take from m all Power oj ?nakmg our f elves " Ccnfiderable in Gvil Affairs, by entirely dtfabling m *' to appear in Publick Matters, removing m fom aU the *• Advantages of Magiflraay intowns, or Offices in the " Court, whereby we might be capable by our Numbers " to ?ive any Weigh en one Side, or on the Other. In " do^ng which, however they have ( tho perhaps agatnfi « their mil) done m this Favour, that being fo entire- « ly under their Foot, withrefpeElto Power; the Charge *' of beinz Dangerom either to Church or State can^ never

[ 31 ]

'* more be brought again fi m. From which PafTagc it is very natural to infer : Firfl, if ferving thofc People, (i.e. the tKSl)ig!ti, ) is here called by" the whole Body of the Dijfenters z Mifreprefentatioii and Reproach, they would do well to confider, how fincere a Part they have Aded by their OT!)ig* 5f;itntig» Secondly, If the faid Wi^i%^ alfifted fheir Enemies in raking from them all Power of makir.g themfelves coniiderable in Civil Affairs, by entiiely Difabling, &c. Thofe very ©iHlHgJJ I hope will remember, iince the Cafe is not in the leaft altered, and fince the fame good Reafons remain in full force, to aft Confiffently with themfelres. Thirdly, If being under Foot with refped to Pow- er, is a good Reafon why the Charge of being DangercHi either to Church or State cannot be brought againft them i do not the whole Body of the Dijjenters fecm to allow, that if they were not under Foot with refpeft to Pov/er, the Charge of being Dangerous to Church or State might be brought againft them ? As the t(il|)ig!3 therefore have dene them the Favour to acquit them from this odious Charge, I hope they will always conti- nue in the fame good Difpofition to their ^ID 5f|tEntiSl» For as the Toleration is a Right no good naturM Chrifiian will ever deny; fo fuch unreafo- rable Demands of Place, Power, and Autluority from Perfons fo juftly fufpeded, is a Favour no Good Churchman will ever grant.

** T'hirdlyy It would reconcik and bring in Many ** of the Dijfenters.

As this Author h^s now drop'd all Pretence to Argument, and is content to fwell the remain- ing Pages of his Book with hypocritical Com- plements,

[ 3^ ]

f)lements, wit-lefs Raillery, and mif-applied Hi- ftory, I fhall trouble yen, Sir, with fome few ftiort Remark only upon the choicefl Flowers in this his wonderful Performance. " Lenity and *' Humanity ( fays he) are certainly the bejl Mnhod " of making Profelytes. And again, the EJiablijhed ** Church never got Ground by any Oppreffions or Un- ** kindnejfes ruhatfoever over thofe not in her Co?nmunion, This may be all very True; but with what Face can it be applied to the Point in Hand ? How can that Church be charged with want of Lenity and Humanity, who fo freely Tolerates her weak Brethren, and refer ves only that Power to her felf, which (he knows the Dijjenters would turn againft her/* Is Indulgence Unkindnefs? Is Self-Defence Perfecution ? If they are now treated Hardly , When will they allow they are kindly ufed? where will their Demands end ? What Limits will they fix to their reftlcfs Importunity ? A Connivance was once all they ask'd. In a Toleration they were as happy as they could wifh. Now they grafp at Place and Power, and to deny them this new Demand of Civil Preferments^ is the utmoft ftretch of Severity. But will they ask no more ? Will they fit down Content when they have gained this Point ? Will they not caft a longing Eye after fome other Emoluments, which have formerly yeilded a very plentiful Harveft to their Fore-Fathers ? Thus, Sir, like flurdy Beggars, they grow Infolent if we deny; and if we grant, each new Conceffion is an Encouragement to ask more. They gain ground upon the Good Nature and Eafinefs of their Church-Friends, and have now the Modefly to perfwade us to dif-arm our felves, and truft our valuable Bleffings in their Hands. This Author with his Demonflrations can eaiily Convince us

that

[33 3

that tliey will renounce what they Covet, that they will Support what they hate.

In the next Page he makes a very awkward Ex- cufe for his Friends in the l^ellclUon of 5fOJt^ £Dne. *' ^be Ml [chiefs ( fays he ) which enfued, how grievous *' feevey, are rather to be deem'd the Efis^s of Refent- " ment than Principle. Not of Principle ? Read, Sir, their Sermons, and their feVeral Public Acts in thofe Times, where they jufliry their Proceedings before Gcd and Man. But is their Refentm.ent fo terrible <" Could nothing facisiy it in thofe Days till it ended in a Tragedy, wnich no Hiftory can Parallel? And fliall tiie Church negleft to Guard her felf now againft their future Vengence ? Believe me , Sir, when they are once inveiled with Place and Power, they will never want Matter for Re- fentment ; but to give a Loofe to it in fach horrid Inftances, is by no means a Proof of very Chriflian •Principles. When we Ihall fenfibly feel fuch Effeds of their Vengeance, it will be a poor Confolation to the Sufterers, that their Principles are lefs wick- 'jed than their Actions.

In the following Page he has the .Confidence to

ijoafl; of the iirmnefs of the Diffenters in the Reign

of the late King yames, " to the true Liter efl of their

" Country^ and that they generoufly fell in with all pro-

*^ per Meafures for prefer'ving the Church. And he hopes

" we will Remember it with the utmoft Gratitude. We

do indeed Remember it ; but one would imagine

this Author thought our Memorys ver>' Ihort, or

that we could noc Read : But we know very well

•who were Carefs'd in that Reign, who were the

-Tools of Popery, and v/ho were the Favourites

of that Court, when the Church was forfaken by

E thef<P

[ 34 ]

thcfe iier pretended Friends, infuitcd and triufti-* phed over by her Enemies, and lay Difconfolate and Forlorn under the Frowns of her Sovereign. Be pleafed, Sir, to hear an Hiftorian, who was never thought a Friend to Perfecution. They ( i. e. The Dijfeuters were not content with a fUent Ac- ceptance of this Liberty, but were drawn in, to make Infiilts of Joy for it, and prefented Addrefles of Thanks, fo flattering, and fo fulfome, that fome of them were thought Oftenfive to the very Ears of the King himfelK Compleat Hifl. ofEng.p. 4^5.

** Fourthly^ The ABs for Difqualifications have " never been the Produce of Mature Delibera- ** tion, but ef Pa*-t/-ZeaL

Under this Head, Sir, you might very juftly ex- ped to find , fome Obfervations upon the Time when thofe Ads were made ; upon the Perfons who promoted their Paffing : Upon the true De- (ign and Intent of the Law-giver5, and the extent and confequences of the Laws themfelves. But not one word of ail this. Our 'Author is pleafed to fly from his. Text, and put us off only with his ufual Railing, and fome few general Reflexions. As therefore there is nothing proved, you will not require I fhould give any Anfwer.

I cannot forbear mentioning one happy Bifco^' very he has made, that the ilireft Expedient t6 prevent the fatal Confequences of a /landing Army, is admitting the Dijfenters into Civil Employments, which will be entirely ufelefs, if his Majefty fliall commit the Defence of his Kingdoms to their Zeal and Capacity. ** Frr they (itfeems) are the on- J* ly Loyal i the only abk Msnt ''tis they akm are fur-

nijh*'d

C 35 ]

**■ nijl*d -with natural, acquired Endow7nents, T'hey are '' the BettsY'-Half of the Kingdom. 'The greatefi part ** cf his Majefties Sukjecis. Were thej^ unbound, releas'd from thcfc legal Fetters, not only the Church, but his Majefties Throne Ihould be founded on a Rock.

It is very Merry in the DiJJenters and their Friends, to inform us of their Great Numbers, their Influence, and their Abilities, and to plead thefe as Reafons why we ihould truft theih in Offices, which are certainly very good ones why we Ihould not. Their Name, it feems, is Legion j they are a Great and Numerous Body; and they make only this one modeft Requeft that the Mem- bers of the Church would arm them with Power. It is worth our while to obferve how dextroufly they can (hift the Scene, and appear Confiderably, or very Inconflderable as it ferves their prefent Turn. This Author who has Charitably given his Advice to feveral Rt. Reverend Prelates how they Ihould behave themfelves when this Affair comes before their Houfe, is pleafed to call the DilTenters, •^ a great Part of his Majefties Subjecls^ half the Sub- ** jecis of the liingdom, with many other pompous Expreffions to recommend his Friends, and place them in the bell Light. But when they appeared as humble Supplicants to her late Majefly in the Affair of the Schifm BUI, in what- different Figure do they reprefent themfelves ? " We are ( fays they) *' not federated from, but promifiwujly fcattered among ** all your Majefties SubjeRs, and in all parts of yovr " Do7?iinions lue have no Public Heads, Public Stock, " or Public Strength, nor do ^ive ever feek any, but are " intirely Naked and Defencelefs, Difccncertsd, Divided ** ji-Qin one antther, and too much uneafy with one another. E 3 ** The

13^1

'* The Scandal of fo much as thinking onr fehes Powerful, *' muchlefs of being fo in realUty, •will not lie againfl us, " even our Enemies themfehes being fudges. Vid.' Humb. Supplicat. before cited, (7c.

'Tis now, Sir^ high time to relieve you from this Author: Your Good Nature (I know) will pardon me, for the Perfccution you have fliffered. Had not this Piece been thought oF Tome Moment not only by the Dijjenters themfeives, but by O- thers, who I am fure ought to know better, I had not troubled you or my felf, with a Book which carries in the very Title-page fo many palpable Abfurdities. I muft only now beg your Patience while I confider two or three Arguments on that Side, which I have met with m their Pamphlets, or in Common Converfation.

** T'hey "who are equally fewiceahle to any Govern- " ment Jljould be equally intitled to the Favours " oftt.

This cannot be true of thofe, who by their Profeffions or Pradices have forfeited their Rights to thofe Favours. It is with a very ill Grace They can make any new Demands of Power, who in the Memory of many now living, over-turned both Church and State. To ask it, is fomethiiig more than a Modefl Reque^, to grant it an Unpardo- nable Folly.

" 'The Tefi-AB by oUiging Men to receive the Sar " crament ai a Qualification for an Office na- *' turally tends to -make Men Hypocrites.

It muft here be obferved, that neither the Ma- kers of that Acr, nor the Ad it Cdt'y nor the P^r-

fon

[37]

fon who Adminifters the Sacrament to an hypocri- tical Receiver, are the efficient Caufe of his Hy- pocrify ; but that muft be looked for in another Place, I'Jz.. in the vicious Difpofition of the Re- ceiver. It were eafy to fhew that other Ads of Religion may give an accidental Occafion of Sin- ing to a Perfon of evil Inclinations. But to ftick more ciofely to this Point of Hypocrify, let us fuppofe it a Rule (as it is in fome Parilhes) that none of the Poor fliall receive the Benefit of the Sacramental Charity, but tho% who actually receive the Sacranient at that time. (/ ivijh this may efcaPa tJ}e Cenfure of adding Jeffiporal SanBions to Chrifi's Laws.) Let us then fuppofe, that fome of the Poor People have no other View in Receiving the Sa- crament, but to get the Money. Shall we f:iy that the Minifter who prefcribes this pious Rule in his Church, is the Efficient Caufe of the Hypocrifie of thofe Perfons ? Will any of their Guilt flick up- on him ? Does not this Rule more naturally tend to create true Piety than Hypocrify ? And if ir fhould accidentally in fome Inftances be the unhap- py Occafion of the Lafl, mull the ufe of this good Rule be laid aiide becaufe fome wicked Perfons to whom it was applied abufed it ? May not this pi- ous incentive to fo holy a Duty, be a Means to create a better Difpofition in thofe Minds which before were little affected with Religion ? May not the Horror of that Guilt which mufl neccflarily arife in the Mind of an Hypocritical Receiver, bring him in time to a more ferious Temper ? May not that Solemn Occafion revive in him a Senfe of his Duty, and make him who before was an Hypocrite, for the time to come fincerely Reli- gious ? But be that as it will ; nothing can be more evident than that the Guilt of his Sin is to be im- puted to himfelf alone, " fVl^^if

[38]

• ^' M^jen the DifaffeBion of fo many in the Church is " fo very apparent, it is unreafonable to deprive " the Government of the Jjfifiance of the DiffeMrr " ters, itf l/efi Friends.

I beg leave a Pari to Reafoii thus. The Difaf- feftion of many of our own Country-men is very apparent. It is equally plain, that many Foreign^ crs amongft us, are very good Friends to the pre-» fent Eftablifliment, and tne Government may fome time or other want their AlTiflance : muft we there* fore Repeal tlie Claufe in the Ad of Settlement, that excludes them from OiEces? I hope we are not yet ripe for this, tho' the Inference is equally good in both Cafes. We ought certainly to have at leaft the fame Care for our Religious, as for our Civil Rights. Our Zeal for the Government will by no Meai:s excufe our making a Sacrifice of the Church, not will our Excefs of Loyalty attone for our want of Religion. The Government is not wholly deprived of the Aflifiance of the Diffenters^ becaufe they are excluded from Offices i they have Hill Liberty to Support it with their Purfes, an4 Arm in its Defence when it fhall be in Danger. The Queftion is about the COMMAND only. We are indeed jealous of their Power, but fiiall gratefully receive their Affiflancc, and fhall never be angry with any laudable Zeal they fhew for the prefent happy Eftablifhment. Yet we cannot be- lieve that there is fo great a Dearth of Loyal Church-men, but that there may be enough found to fill all vacant Places. I may pofTibly allow that fome Church-men are Difafted:ed to the Govern- ment J but I mufl deny with all my Might that the Diffenters are its befl: Friends. I have not yet for- got the feafonable Loyalty of fo many of My

Lords

[ 39 ]

Lords the Bifiiops, and that well-tim'd Declaration which To effeftiiaily reconciled the AfFedions of the Common-People. Neither will it be very impro- per to remember here, that the Deputy-Lieute- nants, Jiiftices, and all other Officers who ferved his Majefty faithfully &, at their own Expence in that Critical Jundure, were every one of them Members of the Eilablifh'd Church. They ex- pofe the Weaknefs of the Government who fup- pofe it cancot fublift without the Dijfemers being in Offices. A Rebellion profperoufly defeated, has never yet failed of Strengthening the Intereft of the Conqueror, of gaining Converts to his Party, and lellenning the Number of his Enemies. We mufl not therefore prefume that his Majefty's Friends are aecreafed lince the Rebellion : And I will take the Liberty to fay that Popular Schemes mufl daily augment them. So that we have no reafon to doubt but fiich Multitudes of Loyal Church-men will be ready to fupport the Govern- ment under any Exigency, as will render the ufelefs whom we know to be Dmigeroui. The Dijfemers ( I hope) will pardon me this ExprefTion, fince I borrowed it from their Fore-fathers ; and cannot think it an improper Caution here to that Noble ■Houfe who were no longer admitted to be Peers, when thefe State-Afpirers were dignified with Of- fices, and enrich'd with Preferments.

't\j

To conclude. If admitting the Dijfenters into Military Employmepts will be a Nurflery to breed up 3rttoni3j> and €romto£UjSi : If the only Improve- ment that can be made to the Miferies of a Stand- ing Army, is to have that Army compofed of Dif- fenting Officers : If a Diflenting Juftice will be as Odious to the Comraoa People,, ^nd as troublefome

t»

to all about him as a Committee-Man Tif thcit being admitted into the Magiftracy, will .add a Weight to their Errors, and if the true Secret of this Attempt (let them pretend what they will) is to Model Corporations, to Augment their Num- bers, to Strengthen their Intereli, and by thefc ^Means to gain a Majority of their own Creatures 'in the Hou/c of Commons, which may hereafLer as ef- 'fedually as heretofore, fubmit bocii t!ie Church and Crown to their Mercy ; I will leave k to yoj, or any impartial • Man to judge, whether we ought not to be very well advifed, and very. -fee Lire of , their good Faith and Sincerity before we admit fo great an Alteration in our Conflitution, and throw up thofe Fences which the Vv^ifdom of our Fathers thought fo neceflary, both againft our Popifh, and C'DilVenting Adverfaries ; fmcc we and our Pofterity cmay repent too late of any inconfiderable Eafinefs in an Affaic or this Moment. And now ( Sir,) I ;hope you will believe me^ when I allure you, that •I neither, writ this, or my former Letter, out of any perfonal Prejudice to the Dijjenters^ whofe juft and reafonable Claims J fliall never oppofe , but out of thatfincere regard which every good Briton ought to exprefs to the true and lafting Intereft of his King, to the Peace and Qiiiet of his Country, and to the. Security of that Religion, whofe Dodrines the i)///£';/ife'rj.themfelves approve j and whofe Dif- cipline comes the nearell; of any to the Primitive .Times.

/ amy StYy &c.

'Jan. 2]d, 1 71 7-8,

\ \ F I N. J S,

CORPO RATION & TEST ACTS.

^

The Lonflon Society of Deputirs of the Three Denominations of Dissenters — Presbyterian, Independent, and Baptist, — liaving-, witli Deputations from the General Body of Ministers, and other Bodies or Societies, representing the various leading Denominations of Protestant Dissenters, lately met, and formed a Li NiTEi) Committee for the purpose of seeking relief from their legal disabilities, they have thoiiglit it expedient to state brietiy their present legal position, and some of the reasons on which they urge their claim to be restored to equal rights in the community.

IT can hardly be thought extraordinary that Protestant Dis- senters should come forward to claim for themselves the benefit of the principles of civil and religious liberty, and to aid in their enforcement and practical application, at a time when the sub- ject is on all hands eaoeriy discussed ; when profound peace and the oblivion of many onTanimosities and parly prejudices anovv_j;^opjp3_J]or jmjwU^^ and when even that

body of Christians, v/lio' have ever been the most prominent objects of exclusion, have on more than one occasion obtained the favourable sanction of a majority of the House of Commons.

The origin of the proscription of Protestant Dissenters from the free enjoy ujent of the common rights of citizenship, is singular ' when contrasted witli the moral and political importance of the iTieasure, and the pertinacity with which it has been subsequentlv maintained. It seems to have arisen from no maturely weighed consideration even of political differences — from no acknow- ledged or even openly asserted demerit on the part of the pro- scribed. In its principal features it was, in fact, accidental; she effect of a remarkable concurrence of parties and circumstances, — in which it was not thought safe to trust even the Sovereign with the discretion of choosing his own servants, — by which even the sufferers were, by intrigue or delusion, made instru- mental to their own and their children's degradation, to the imposition of a test highly objectionable in a religious poiiit of view, and not even necessary to the end avowedly proposed — that of excluding the Roman Catholics from office. The raea- h sure, however, once carried, has been perseveringl}?^ maintained li and defended; and enactments, arising out of the animosities,' fears, i»l-ii^es^ and jealousies of a turbulent reign, have been preserver! aiTcl extolle^as the ^utwarks raised by deliberate/ ^visdom for the permanent protection of the constitution. I

The civil proscription of Protestant Dissenters arises solely) from the Sacramental Test ininosed by two statutes; the second) of them directly and positively aimed , against the Romanj Catholics; and the other apparently connected as little, in itsl ofiginai object, with the permanent exclusion of Protestant Dissenters. These statutes are commonly called the Corporation j and Test Acts.

The first of these Acts, which was passed in 1G61 (1:3 Car. ^I. Stat; 2. 0,1,) arose from the temporary design of expelling from

corporate ofHcts llie adheicnts ot Uie Inic <;ovciriiiiotit, vvilli a view to the safety (rf the newly rfistored d) nasty. In all its clauses but one, it looks to t!ie uhject ot settling hy autliorily who were ihe unoj^jectioiiabio holders ol these othces, to which there weie of course, at such a ptiiod, rival pretcnsious. Coui- inissioners were by the Act a|>pointecl for the settlement of a'l questions of this sort, and they were directed to administer io those whom they should esiabiish as the proper possessors of oftices, the oatlis of Allegiance and Supremacy, toj>ether with an oath against taking arms against the King, and a declaration, disavowing the " Solemn League and Coveiuuit;" which two last requisitions have been since repealed by an act passed 5 Geo. I. «. G. No Sacramental Test was imposed upon these persons; but, nearly at the end of the statute, there is a clause which pro- vided that, after the commission had expired, (1633,) no person should be placed in any ofHce of magistracy, or place or employment in the government of a corporation, who had not, within the previous year, taken the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper according to the rites of the Church of England, and who will not, when elected, take the oaths of Supreniacy and Allegi- ance, and the further oath and declaration above mentioned. The flection of any one not so qualified is declared void. It is worthy of observation, that the Sacramental Test was not im- posed on those against whom the act was doubtlessly intended by the original frainers to be directed, namely, the then holders of otHces who were not friendly to the court: — -and, as a key to '^^ I the whole, it may be added, that this clause was no provision ' ,' / made or contemplated by the constitutional party in the Com- ; j raons, but was an after-thought of the House of Lords, assented - I to by the Commons only by way of compromise, to get rid of y \ what the most ardent admirer of the constitutional precedents of/

\' this reign will hardly now justify, a proposal by the Lords to vest in the crown the perpetujil nmninaJdtui^tOL_coriKjj[a^t^e.Qftice&.

The second of the statutes aflecting Protestant Dissenters is the Test Act, by which they are excluded from all civil and military trusts and oflices. This Act was passed in 1672 (25 Car. IL c. '2.) and is entille<l, " An Act for preventing Danger which may happen from Popish Recusants." It pro- vides, that every person admitted into oflice, or receiving pay from his Majesty, or holding any command or place of trust under him or in his household, shall, within six months, receive the Sacrament according to the usage of the Chuich of England, ^ and produce a certificate thereof, under the penalty of inca- pacity ; and, in case of acting without compliance, of being- subject, on conviction, to disqualification from serving in anj' court of law, or acting as a guardian, executor, or administrator, "** ■ or receiving a legacy, or beariiig any othce in England or Wales, and to the j^ayment of a fine of 500t'., the whole of which goes to the informer.

At the time of passing this Act, k is obvious that a ditTerent state of parties and of moving causes existed; the constitutional

3

parly's distrust was (Ureotod to a Hiffc-iTnt qurvitor; axid tho jKJsitioti of political aftairs, with a kiiii^ whom the nation conid not trust", and an arniy under the comtnand of the Duke of York, raised without the sanction of Parliament, and filled with foreigners, may excuse the alarm and eagerness of self- preservation which existed on all sides. The Act, it is to be observed, did not exchide Nonconformists from Parliament, ■ in which stren<ilh was at that time wanted for the purpose of controlling the King- and the Court, not the Dissenters, who made comn)on cause with the constitutional party. The statute which was passed five years afterwards (30 Car. II.) furnishes a clue to discover the feeling which dictated the Test Act. It recites that the previous Act "had not had the desired efiect, by reason of the free access such Popish recusants have had to his Majesty," and extends the exclusion to Members of Parliament, but in such a way as not to include the Dissenters in its operation. It droi)s the Sacramental 'I'est, and prescribes a Declaration against Catholicism, to be signed as the quali- fication for filling a seat in Parliament, and also for acting as a sworn servant of his Majesty, which last provision has been since repealed : the Act now, therefore, only operates to excludo Catholics from Parliament,

It may be further added, that a Bill for the relief of tho Protestant Dissenters passed the Commons, end was enter- taine<l by the Lords in the very same Session in which the Test Act passed, that a motion for incapacitating them to sit as Members of Parliament was lost by a great majority; and that several other measures pointing to their relief were only] friistrat(>d by the manoeuvres one while of the Court, and at other times of its opponc'uts, each jealous of the otiicr's inten tioDS, and apparently considering that the wish of one party was at any time a sufficient reason for the distrust and opposition of the oth.er.

These details are referred to merely for the purpose of meeting (he argument of antiquity and authority (if such an one should be resorted to), by shewing that in these events no one ought to see a deliberate unprejudicgjl. constitutional inteiUion T^t-rwrn- nentluUt excTuTIe Protestant Dissenters from civil ofiices or iTusTsT and that the fair historical conclusion is, that the Test Laws (enacted under fears at one time of the personal adhe- rents of a disbanded government, and at another of a distrusted

.'^.■-•^>^--<5.:^'

Court) originated in emergencies unconnected with any permii^ nent apprehensions by the constitutional party of the ProtestanP Dissenters, and that their original enactment^^jiresents as iit'ie solid ground for the present distiifctjonsTSetween nenibers of th(' community, as wouhl the alleged adherence of tiu^ir ancestors to the Red or White Hose.

By these laws, however, a great and infiuciuial body of t!ie community were and have continued to be humbled and oppressed. All corporate, magisterial, jiidicini, and public appointments, were thenceforth by law niouo|M>hzed by the

nioiiiUeis of llie Established Chuicli, and it was not to he

wondered at tl»at tlie appetite for perseoution i^ould £iow wjlji

its iiididgence-^ ' . " ~'

Tlie legal situation of Protestant Dissenters has, since the Kevolution, been one of gradual iniprovejuent, so far at least as regards the free exercise of their religious worship, under the operation of Acts of Toleration, which have, for the most part, been fairly and liberally administered. Tlio registration of iheir places of worship, and the qualification of their ministers, are now regulated in asuthciently convenient manner, and they have little to complain of on this head, with the exception of a few particulars, —such as the want of provision for ihe registration of their births — the refusal of the rites of burial to unbaptized persons, which has not unfrecpiently been persisted in — the enforcement of marriage according lo the ritfs of the Cliurch-— and the rerpiiring of a licence or (pialiGcalion from Dissenting 8choolmaste;s, whicii seems tt> impose (ui them an unnecessary burthen, and v.iiicU may sometimes occasion great annoyance and inconvenience.

Their situation, however, as to legal capacity lor civil oihccs, has remained the same, or nearly so, aldiough their relief was recommended by \V'iIlinin the Third, in one of his earliest speeches to Faniament; was distinctly sanctioned by George ihe First on the accessiojj of the House of Brunswick; has been repeatedly approved anorecommended by several of the most erdightened Ministers of the Crown and Prelates of the Church, and has been the subject of repeated discussions in Parliament; on one of the latest of which occasions (1789), a Bill for their relief, by the repeal of the Sacramental 'fest, was rejected only by a majority of twenty votes. '."

Many circumstances have, for several years past, combined to induce Protestant Dissenters to abstain from tirging their just claims, for a restitution of their civil rights, further than by re- peated Petitions to the Legislature on the subject. While nnable to see a prospect of successful exertion, they have not been clamorous in their importunities, nor active in keeping up the memory of former animosities. Having now, however, in reliance upon the increasing "lights which reason, juslic£^.^nd --- policy have thrown upon these subjects, determined that the time is come for no longer pursuing a passive course; they feel

(^'

that they shail be wanting to themselves, to their children, and to the cause of true religion, of peace, of charity, and freedom, , if they do not boldly and unremittingly urge those claims, the justice of which they can hardly persuade themselves will be denied, and so far at least raise their protest against a sustem which they believe to be founded in imijolicy and ii^uiitic^

They have this advantage, at least, in (ITscussing the question since the passing of the Toleration Acts, that all degree of legal offence which was supposed to belong to Noncoidormity has been removed. They have the authority of Lord Chief Justice ^Villes for asserting, that their toleration " is grounded

on natural rights ;-~tliat the highest natural rij^^t \?, that of /^ , couscionce ; and (!!jaJJj_j2ii^5lll^_tlia:iiloxej_t^^ — ■

liberal construction;" and of Lord liianstield, that their \v<»r- sTnp"is~uo\v"''Tr(iT(jTrR'^ erannpted fVoin punishment, but rendered innocent and lawful — that it is established.''

In the exercise of the rijj,ht of private judgment, which even positive law thus allows them freely to avow and act upon, and under the influence of that spirit of nformation, on wincli the founders of the Church of England rested and defended their separation from that of Rome, the English Nonconformij^ts pro- fess, and openly declare, and act upon their dissent from the Church now established by Law. They cannot, therefore,! \vitbout a violation of theij^ sincere con victjons, offer that con-j formity ^vvluchrTsT'as they submit, unnecessarily and unjiigtlyl required, to enable them to exercise the rights, an<l enjoy orj aspire to the honour of citizenship in a free country ; and io far I the profession of their opinions is, notwithstanding the Tolera- J tion Acts, fettered and made the subject of legal persecution,} and, what perhaps is worse, a spirit of party distinction and' exclusion js established,! and spreads itself over the whole/ coramu nit}'. ' ^

It is true, that to avoid the shame of open intolerance, and iu order to avert the many and serious evils vrhicli would result from the general enforcement of the Corporation and Test Acts, (if indeed such an attempt were practicable in the present state of society and public opinion,) laws have, for a period of g/j %j, upwards of eighty years, been from year to year passed for the '

purpose of indemnifying, under certain conditions, those who oflend against the provisions of these penal statutes. Such laws may surel}' be taken as a confession by the legislature, i; / /^ c that the practic;' 1 eai'qrc^niSJit. XlJAhe -jLeiialtifis, Vthich tliey sus- l^/^^, pend, is not necessary to the safety either of the Chnrcii or the ^"^ State; but the Dissenter maybe allowed to observe, l.That *jj j**^^ these laws do not appear upon the face of them to have any J>v« /«- relation to conscientiGiis nonconformity. They recite the omis- sion, contemplated by them as the subject of relief, to be " through ignorance of the law, absence, or unavoidable acci- dent." They profess, therefore, to shelter the careless or in- different, but not the conscientious ; and they proceed, so far as regards Dissenters, (if they relate to them at all), upon the assumption, in itself unauthorised and untrue, of inad.vertefll. omission and consecmeiU iiitention pnthe part of the person, who claimT llieTTenefit ot then», to qualify within the period granted by the indulgence of the Legislature. 2. Wliere previous con- formity is actually called f(»r, they are useless; and, for in- stance, no Dissenter can be elected into an oftice for which there is a rival candidate, on whose behalf any one chooses to give previous notice of his opponent's disqualification : and thus is left in the hands of any single individual the arbitrary power of wantonly, and at his own caprice, preventing not merely a Dissenter, but an inadvertent Churchman, from filling a situation

CO-,

6

to whidi hi? station, talent**, or the good opinion of his country- men, may entitle him to aspire. 3, "^rheir legal etiiciency is, in many respects, imperfect; and it is, in particular, considered ' doubttiii, whether these IndeiDnily Acts prevent an action and judgment tor the unniitigable penalty of 4.500, if the party offend- ing should refuse or neglect to take the Sacrament for six months alter the passing of each annual act, or if he commit the ofl'ence after the passing of one annual act before the enactment of another, and if in the meantime judgment be obtained. 4. They place the most important liberties on a tenure of mere sufi'erance, on a [yearly charter, of which accident or caprice may prevent the renewal. Precarious liberty is a contradiction in terms; and it should be recollected, that liberty wl.ich depends upon

f suspensive acts of this sort is at all times so far precarious, that it is at the mercy not of the united legislature of the country, but of any one branch; which may, without ihe concurrence, J^^and it may be in opposition to the wishes, of th.e other, retnse its assent. If liberty were the rule, and exclusion were the ex- ception, the sufferers would at all events have the consolation of iTiiowmg that the sentence passed upon thernniust receive the sanction of all the branches of the legislature.'^^

Finally, Dissenters see i!i such concessions, no relaxation, but rather a conlirmation of the obnoxious principle of ex- clusion ; — the Indemnity Acts suspend but do not remove (hose harsher enactments, the enforcement of which would be dangerous to the rights of properly^and outrageous to pnblic_ opinion; — they are a licence given, not a TilToriy recDgnrzecF; — they'tfe'at as matter of offence what Dissenters consider as the exercise of the unalienable right and the undoubted duty of an accountable being;— they recognize, in fine, ffre principle, ati1<e~ oppressive and impolitic, by which a vast number of deserving members of the cnmmunity are shut out from the general blessings of good government, and subjected to degradation,

/'which no conduct on their part has merited, and which they

( cannot be expected patiently to endure. - The Dissenters are, they conceive, warranted, by the following resolutions of the House of Commons, in the assertion that laws of exclusion and disability, es|)cciaily such as are levelled against opinion, impose on tlipse who seek their continuance, the per- petual duty of proving at every moment their necessity, and of pointing out the social and civil demerits of those who are subjected to their operation ;—',' That all citizens of the same /state, living under the same government, are entitled * prima Ifacie' to equal political rights and privileges." — " That it is at 'all times desirable to create and maintain the most perfect identity of interest and feeling among all the members of the same community." Otherreasons, it is plain, must, in this case, be sf>ught to justify the continuance of the statutes in question, than those which entered into their original formation; but the Dissenters, feeling that the burthen of proof does not lie with them, at the same time that they shrink from no examination, do

7

not feel Uicmselve* culU-d u[}o\i U) teiRU-r any viridication of their CDiitlnct in society, ami still loss any justitication of their ^ reli'jious princiules, for wliicli tliey hold theiustlves accountable to no earthly tribunal.

They claim as their right, inasmuch as it is tlieir dati/, as moral and intellectual beings, in common with all their tellow-men, to exercise and act upon their best judgment and the diclates of| their consciences in matters of religion, neither influenced byj favour on the one hand, nor exposed to proscn[)tion or humiliation | . on the other, riiey deem actions, not principles or opinious, ' •^'' the safe and legitimate subjects of the civil magislrate's juris- /. m'« diction. They deny the title of the professors of any particular ^ ^^^ form of religion, on account of njimericaljmi_jori{y, to inoiippolize' ' to themselves, oroidy dole out by favour, the common privileges! of society; and they consider the assumption of authority, whether to punish or tolerate another in the perforruance of his religious duties, an unwarrantable pretension to infallibility, a cruel injustice towards individuals, and, iinally, a grievous insult and injury to religion itself. As friends to the purity and sim- plicity of religion, they feel, in cominon, as they have reason to believe, with many pious and consistent Churchmen, that the Test selected for effecting their exclusion, is peculiarly objection^ able. They believe that this country is the only one in which such a connexion has been formed between the most solemn ' ■^*'' religious ordinance and the qualilication for secular employment, ''''^ often necessarily conferred on persons who.m the Church, in the unfettered administration of her ortlinances, would receive with caution ;" andTtiey eHeenj such a connexion a profanation, against which, as Christians, they would, under any circumstances, be bouiid to protest.

In point o^i policy and expediency, they urge the ai)andoniJiei)t of restraints upon conscience, as the fruitful sources of division, weakness, and discord in the State ; as encouragements only to' insincerity and dishonesty ; as exclusions of the conscientious j man, not of the iudiiferent_orj.inprinciplod. While, on the one hand, tlie allurements of patronage offer, or ought to offer, no/ facility lor the addition of converts of any worth to an established/ faith, proscription tends to blend with conscientious dissent the' appearance of piTlUjcal 'disaffection. " Conscience," to quote once more the words of Lord ftransfield, " is uot controllable by human laws, nor amenable to human tribunals. Persecution, or attempts to force conscience* will never produce conviction ; they are only calculated to mal/e hypocrites or martyrs."

They ajjpeal, further, to experience. They point to other countries, where the principle of free and equal indulgence to conflicting opinions lias been avowed and acted upon to its fullest extent. I'hey know uo instance where it has not prodi;ceil results equally cheering to the Christian, the philosopher, and the politician ; — they know none where exclusion has uot been productive of evil,-^lri their own country, they ask whether any one measure of concession has led to mischievous results; whether the public prospfrityhas been woakeu^d by the rwuoval/

8

of causes of division ; whether, on the other hand, justice and hberahty have not always produced tlie hitj)[>y fruits of con- fidence, union, charity, ant! Christian afi'ection ? If Dissenters are admitted to have been h)yal siiljjects and useful menil)er9 of the community, while marked with the brand of degradation, ihey are surely not likely to sink in character by being- treated with confidence and justice.

They would ask the Legislature to have regard to consis- tcncrj. tn Scotland no such laws are found necessary to protect an Establisliment. In Ireland, where, if an}' where, the Esta- blished Church would seem to need a more especial defence, no Corporation Act ever existed : the SacranieiUal Test, existed not till 1703, and was repealed in 1780. Yet an Irish Dissenter, on coming: to this country, linds himself prosciibc<{ by the law> as does also a membor of tlie Scotch Estahlishment, m whose case the anomaly is still more striking. Tiso!,i<;h de- clared on the statute book of England unworthy to till the most petty civil otiice. Dissenters are allowed, withont any test, as Members of Parliament, to propose and enact laws which they are represented as unworthy in a?)y way to execute, but they are n;oreover debarred from aiming at those higher honours to which parliamentary eminence would under other circumstances naturally lead. Public attention has been directed to the revision oT our code ; — anomalies and absurdi- ties Jhaye bi^»::n_s33iepLjaiiiay ;---and what can be a more suitable time for relieving it from the odious traces of religions pro- jicription ? Why, if penal laws are really thought necessary to the protection of the Church or the State, shotdd their enforce- ment be left to the cajiricejof an individual Z Why, in fine, if

the answer to the coniplauiis of the Dissenters be the virtual suspension of her penal eiiHclments, should not England have the credit of their annihilaUon^;, and free her statute book from ^dle (IIsTiTicTToiis arKfTiarassing restrictions and disqualifications, -■-which exist only by the mere naloedjngh^ qf4)ossession,---of which no one ventures to advocate the application,— -and which would be expelled with igiiominv or contejiipt by enlightened renovators of the law?

Thus feeling, —and believing that, in advocating, to the best of their ability their own particular claims, they are serving the ge- neral causf of freedom and iil)erality,— the Frote.Ntftnt Dissenters of England respectfully, but earnestly, call upon the Legislature to take the obnoxious statutes before referred to, into its con- sideration; — to relieve this country from the reproach, which belongs to her alone, of profaning (as they humbly conceive) the holy ordinances of Christianity fyr secnlaF ends ; — and to declare and act upon those great principles of religious liberty, v\ hich in so many other countries have been already recognized, and which are, in their judgment, essential to the peace and virtue and happiness of mankind.

ROBERT ^VIlSTEIl, Searlar!/. U>, Bedford Row.

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