teach they mock, and endeavour to render ineffectual. The facred caufe, which as a Clergyman of the Church of England, I have fworn to ferve and fupport, (and which, with the beft talents I have, I will fupport, as long as I have my life,) they hold up to fcorn and abuse with hard names and jeers. They vilify my character, as a fervant of the Moft Highest, and fet me forth to the world, as a dishonest man. Now, were I, my Lord, allured by your Lordship's invitation, and tempted by the found of what you call the liberal basis of your establishment;" (the sense of which I have not yet apprehended :) fhould I be induced, I fay, to venture myfelf into the company of men, of whom I have hitherto always been horribly afraid, being frightened at the idea of having the National Establifhment blown up, as one of them said, clergy and all: can your Lordship afford me protection and fafety? Can your Lordship fhew me, that our days are fo evangelical, that the lamb may now dwell with the wolf in fafety? I fee your Lordship is ready kindly to allay my fears; and to demand, if perfons affociating for the fimple and pure purpose of diffeminating the Scriptures, ought to be fufpected of fuch views and projects? My Lord, fince I have been a fhepherd, I have feen fo many wolves, and have undergone fuch terrors for my poor fheep, that you must have the charity to pity my weakness, and excufe my unconquerable fears. Those who are old in the bufinefs, have a right to be attended to, in matters which concern their experience. Wolves, my Lord, our great Master has warned us, fometimes put on fheep's clothing; and we find, I affure you, much harder work with these crafty beafts, than with those, which, without difguife, prowl about in their proper character. But have I not too good reafon to be afraid of thofe who openly, and fairly avow, that their object is to eat us up, both sheep and fhepherd too? In plain terms, if your Lordship can demonftrate to us, that thofe perfons with whom you invite me to affociate, under pretence of doing God fervice, have at any time really revoked their hoftility to the church and miniftry, which they have fo frequently, and fo fully avowed; fhew us the time when, and the place where, they have deliberately recanted their well-known threats and projects, repented of their numerous flanders and calumnies, and have as folemnly fworn peace with the church and clergy, as before they have fworn and purfued their enmity. Nay, my Lord, I ask no unreasonable thing; if you can only fhew, that upon this prefent occafion alone, they have explicitly and folemnly put off their old man of hoftility and hatred, and have put on the new man of peace, and love, and concord-I am filent, I request your fecretary will pleafe to infert my name, and accept my donation. But, my good Lord, if the enmity of these men has never been revoked; if their hoftility, and deftructive refolutions have never been cancelled; if no proof to the contrary can be adduced, but we are ftill left in poffeffion of the thoufand well-known proofs; nay, in many places, of the open confufion of their intentions of undermining and deftroying both church establishment and clergy too: I then will leave it to any perion of fane intellect to determine, whether it be prudent, whether it be upright, whether it be safe, to accept your Lordship's propofal."

For our part, we are fimple enough to defcry much folidity in thefe objections, and to partake of these apprehenfions. But not fo, our Sub-urban Clergyman, whom, from the appellation which has been affumed, we, at firft, miftook for the Rev. Rowland Hill, for the

round,

round-houfe in Black Friar's Road is, properly, in the fuburbs of the metropolis, while the church of Fulham, cannot, by any flight of imagination, be placed in fuch a ftate of approximation to London, as to juftify the denomination of Sub-urban. He, clad, no doubt, in the ftrong armour of faith, and fortified, as it were, with the confidence of an experienced elect, confiders fuch objections as the mere chimeras of a vifionary brain, and fuch apprehenfions as the diftorted offspring of a childish imagination. Ridicule is the very appropriate weapon which he has felected for the purpofe of attack upon his reverend adverfary, and, it cannot be admitted that he has difplayed as much skill in the ufe of it, as judgment in the choice. The Country Clergyman having obferved that Lord Teignmouth, by accepting the prefidency of this motley Society, had "bestowed his patronage and protection upon every defcription of the Church's Enemies," his opponent takes advantage of this broad accufation, and, after fome pert and flippant remarks, by way of proemium, thus begins his attack.

men of

"Now here I doubt the accuracy of your reprefentation: I am strongly inclined to think that you do not mean to affirm quite fo much as you fay. The church's enemies are fo numerous, and fome of them fo little known, that I think it very probable many defcriptions could be mentioned, which have never obtained a place in your enumeration. I have your authority for fetting down all the individuals who diffent from the church's communion as her decided enemies, for they wish a man to blow up the national eftablifhment, clergy and all:' you know they do one of them faid' fo. Such evidence as this, to be fure, muft not for a moment be queftioned; though I should have thought better of it, if your informer had fhewn his inftructions for faying fo much in the name of the reft. But if I concede to you that these are the church's enemies, I cannot admit, what I fufpect you wish to imply, that these are the only enemies with which she has to contend. What think you of those men of influence and confideration, who continue to revile the church, and ftill think proper to remain nominal members of her community? Into what clafs do you throw those the world, who in their fober moments, think it more creditable to be accounted members of our venerable church, than a fubfcriber to the meeting-house?' And lastly, where do you place thofe partifans, whether priests or laymen, who, while they contend for the church as the spouse of Chrift,' confound moft unwittingly both her pretenfions and her character, with thofe by which that fpiritual harlot is known, who has committed fornication with the kings of the earth? For my part, I recognife among fuch falfe friends as the two firft defcriptions, and fuch injudicious advocates as the laft, fome of those enemies, from which the church has moft to fear. But I think I do you no injuftice when I fay, that it does not feem to have been your intention to include fuch characters as these within those defcriptions of the church's enemies,' upon which his Lordship is blameable for having bestowed his patronage and protection." There certainly is an appearance of dishonesty at the beginning of this paffage, when the author fays, in allufion to the general charge, comprehending every defcription of the Church's enemies, ftrongly inclined to think that you do not mean to affirm quite so much

chafte

" I am

as you fay;" because he must have pofitively known that the Country Clergyman did not mean to go fo far; fince, in the 11th page of his pamphlet, he exprefsly fays, "Your Society is composed of not only many fecret foes, and treacherous familiar friends, but of a very large proportion of fworn enemies of the Church;" thus modifying and limiting his previous remark, which modification and limitation, an honeft adversary was bound to adopt, as his true meaning. Our rea-"" ders will decide, with both paffages before them, what authority this Sub-urban gentleman has for his fubfequent remarks. The Country Clergyman has no where faid that all the diffenters to a man wish to blow up the national establishment " Clergy and all" becaufe" one of them faid fo." But he had very good reafon for fufpecting that fome of the members of this new Society entertained fuch a wifh, particularly when the brother of the man who publicly proclaimed it to the world is one of them. On what the Sub-urban Clergyman founds his fufpicion that his adversary means to imply that the profeffed diffenters are the only enemies of the Church, when he exprefsly ftates the contrary, when he speaks of her "many fecret foes, and treacherous. familiar friends," we are at a lofs to conceive. Certainly on nothing. which his addrefs contains. And, if it were not an invidious task to mention names, we could, in anfwer to his pert interrogatories, answer, that fuch enemies as those whom he describes are to be found in the Society's lift.

The Rhapfody of the Sub-urban Clergyman, continued from p. 7, to p. 12, is almoft undeferving of notice. He garbles the quotations from his adverfary's book, and, in a most unwarrantable manner, afcribes to him fentiments which he does not entertain. Of this a notable inftance occurs in p. 11, where he makes the Country Clergyman fay, that the prefent intentions of all the members of the Society are good; that he does not even fufpect them of being wilfully nefarious and that if his Lordship can give him the fecurity which he requires, for the maintenance of its original intentions, he thinks the Society will be what it propofes, and that he fhall be proud to rank his name, and make exertions under his Lordship's protection. This is a moft grofs and fcandalous mifreprefentation of his adverfary's fentiments, as will be feen from the paffage from which he draws his inference, and which, being fhort, we fhall lay before our readers.

"My Lord, give me leave to fay, you cannot answer for the real object of any affociation, but by being able to answer for the real principles and purfuits of its individual members; you may heartily with, and fincerely endeavour to promote the avowed object of this fociety; (and I know no man more likely to do both than your Lordship.) Secure thofe principles, be able to controul thofe purfuits, and no man who knows your Lordship's high character, would hefitate a moment to believe that your fociety will be what it propofes. If Lord T. will pledge himself that the fix hundred members of his fociety are, like himself, honourable and upright men, who speak what they mean, and practife what they profefs; who abhor duplicity and deceit, and know no difcordance between the object they

profess

profefs, and the object they pursue;-if Lord T. can affure me this, I fhall be proud to rank my name and make exertions under his protection. If this he cannot do, at least let him tell me where is my fecurity that my contribution to the inftitution, will not be turned to fupport fome object, which I never intend to fupport; and to promote not the object propofed to me in the letter, but another, and perhaps a detefted one? Your prefidency, my Lord, is not exactly of the fort to which you have been accustomed, and which you have fo much adorned. But far be it from me to fay, that you prefide over an affociation of men, combined for defigns altogether bad; that you patronize, and protect a fociety, whofe objects and principles are wilfully nefarious: All that I here affert, is this; that your Lordfhip, for whofe head and heart I have the highest respect, appears to have undertaken the patronage of you know not whom or what; and, confident in your own good intentions, you have recommended me to do the fame."

The next objection of the Country Clergyman appears to us lefs folid than most of his other objections. It goes to establish this point, that as Bibles diftributed by Papifts and by Sectarifts, will be employed to fanction the peculiar tenets of the refpective donors, they ought, not therefore to be fo circulated at all. Though we admit the premifes, we cannot adopt the conclufion; we cannot wish to reftrain the circulation of Bibles, because their fenfe may be perverted or their doctrine mifapplied. It is like an argument ex abufu ad ufum. Let Papifts, Socinians, Baptifts, and Quakers, circulate the Scriptures as they will among their refpective followers, but let not the Prelates, Divines, and found Members of the Church of England, affociate with men of fuch difcordant principles, for the attainment of an object, which can be better attained by other means, without giving encouragement to the Enemies, or offence to the Friends of the Church.. On this point, we think the Sub-urban Clergyman has the advantage. of his opponent. But in every other point, notwithstanding his felffufficient tone of triumph and exultation, he completely fails.

The Country Clergyman proceeds to confider the rules and internal conftruction of the New Society, which he proves to be highly fa vourable to the adverfaries of the Church, who can scarcely fail to have a conftant preponderance, and to enfure a majority on every queftion fubmitted to the difcuffion of the members. He then makes' the following remarks on this motley affociation, which, to be fure, exhibits as complete a piece of patch-work as Harlequin's jacket.

"Nor is the Church more likely to gain any thing to her dignity by her new affociates, than to her intereft. It is prophefied in Scripture, as a comfort to the Church, that one day fhe fhould have Kings for her nurfing Fathers, and Queens for her nurfing Mothers.' Your Lordship holds out nothing of this fort in your Society. It cannot be denied that a few nobility are found in your lift, and fome other folk of high rank, but of fuch a defcription as we should not have expected to find there. But, my Lord, as it is not the mere prefence of a nobleman that can make the company which he honours with his prefence, either creditable or polite, fo1 prefume at once, that I am not required to confider your Affociation as a creditable one, merely because I find at its head your Lordship, and a

few

1

few other refpectable names. For when I caft my eye downwards to the motley lift of Subfcribers, I find fuch names as can certainly reflect no credit upon the Church. There I recognize the diffenting teacher, the methodíft preacher, the preaching blackfmith, &e, who can make but awkward nurfes of the Church. But one thing is plain, that although our credit will be no gainer by the company you propofe, it is not fo with them. If we may take their account of themselves, their doctrines and communications have hitherto been confined chiefly to the inferior ranks. If your Society fucceeds, it will be a Society for bettering their condition; a thing to them, it may be prefumed, by no means unpleasant or ineligible. The Scriptures promife to none called Chriftians but in the Church; and hiftory proves that none but the Church have enjoyed the fplendor and favour of Princes. If, therefore, these feveral denominations have not, and cannot procure the nurfing of Kings and Queens, is it to be wondered at that they fhould be glad to fhare the partiality of a Nobleman or two? the benign influence of fome wandering star?”

The Author of the Address having declared his inability to comprehend the meaning of a liberal bafis;' his Sub-urban opponent affects to be witty and pleafant, (and his wit and pleafantry, be it remembered, is truly sub-urban), and favours us with the following expofition and illuftration of the epithet objected to:

"I am really forry, Sir, you were fo much at a lofs to interpret the meaning of that liberal bafis,' upon which his Lordship recommended the Society to your notice. The terms broad bottom,' which you fubftitute in their place, would have expreffed well enough his Lordship's intention; but as he was writing to a Country Clergyman, and not to a preaching blacksmith,' he would not fail in the refpe&t' that is due to a gentleman and a Chriftian.'' Thofe who are used to good company (you fay) know how to behave.' What then is his Lordship to think of you, when you tell him, that you have not been educated on liberal-bafis'd or broad-bottomed principles,' but that either you have not put on your prettieft behaviour, or that you would feel' lefs uneafy, than you pretend, in that clafs of company to which, as a member of the Bible Society, you would expect to be introduced?

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"But were there no other authorities to which you could have recourse, when the lexicographer failed you, than the mouths of the vulgar?' I have an authority before me, which throws fo much more light upon his Lordship's liberal bafis,' than either the fynonyms of the lexicographer,' the flang of the vulgar,' or the etymological quirks of the Country Clergyman,' that I fhall make no apology for producing it : "Give us all grace, to put away from us all rancour of religious diffenfion, that they who agree in the effentials of our most holy faith, and look for pardon through the merits and interceffion of the Saviour, may, notwithflanding the differences upon points of doubtful opinion, and in the forms of external worship, still be united in the bonds of Christian charity, and fulfil thy bleffed Son's commandment, of loving one another as he hath loved them.'-Form of Prayer for the Faft, October, 19, 1803.

Now here, Sir, I found that liberal bafis' upon which the Society is erected, and I am furprized you did not think of looking for it in the fame place. But perhaps the liberal basis of the Prayer, like that of the Society,

has