ceive or discover those deluded or deluding perfons, who hope or pretend, it is only a short madness in the vulgar, from which they may foon recover; whereas, I believe, it will appear to be very different in its caufes, its fymptoms, and its confequences; and prove a great example to illuftrate the maxim I lately mentioned, That truth (however, fometimes late) will at last prevail. No. 15. Thursday, November 16. 1 medisque ut limite curras, THE BIBLIO Icare, ait, moneo: ne fi demiffior ibis, OLETAN IT must be avowed, that, for fome years paft, there have been few things more wanted in England than fuch a paper, as this ought to be, and fuch as I will endeavour to make it, as long as it fhall be found of any ufe, without entering into the violences of either party. Confidering the many grievous mifreprefentations of perfons and things, it is highly requifite at this juncture, that the people throughout the kingdom should, if poffible, be fet right in their opinions by fome impartial hand; which hath never been yet attempted; those who have hitherto undertaken it, being, upon every account, the leaft qualified of all humankind for fuch a work. We live here under a limited monarchy, and under the doctrine and difcipline of an excellent church. We are unhappily divided into two parties, both which pretend a mighty zeal for our religion and government, only they disagree about the means. means. The evils we muft fence againft, are on one fide fanaticifm and infidelity in religion, and anarchy, under the name of a commonwealth, in government; on the other fide, Popery, flavery, and the pretender from France. Now, to inform and direct us in our fentiments upon thefe weighty points, here are on one fide two ftupid illiterate fcribblers, both of them fanatics by profeffion, I mean the Review and Obfervator; on the other fide, we have an open Non-juror *, whofe character and perfon, as well as learning and good fenfe, difcovered upon other fubjects, do indeed deserve refpect and esteem; but his Rehearsal, and the rest of his political papers, are yet more pernicious than thofe of the former two. If the generality of the people know not how to talk or think, until they have read their leffon in the papers of the week, what a misförtune is it, that their duty fhould be conveyed to them through fuch vehicles as thofe? For, let fome gentlemen think what they pleafe, I cannot but fufpect, that the two worthies I first mentioned have, in a degree, done mifchief among us; the mock authoritative manner of the one, and the infipid mirth of the other, however infupportable to reasonable ears, being of a level with great num bers among the loweft part of mankind. Neither was the author of the Rehearsal, while he continued that paper, lefs infectious to many perfons of better figure, who perhaps were as well qualified, and much lefs prejudiced, to judge for themselves. It was this reafon that moved me to take the matter out of thofe rough, as well as thofe dirty hands; to let the remote and uninftructed part of the nation fee, that they have been mifled on both fides by mad ridiculous extremes, at a wide distance on each fide from the truth; while the right path. The Rev. Mr. Charles Leslie. Сса is fo broad and plain as to be eafily kept, if they were once put into it. Further, I had lately entered on a refolution to take very little notice of other papers, unless it were fuch, where the malice and falfehood had fo great a mixture of wit and fpirit, as would make them dangerous: which, in the prefent circle of fcribblers, from twelve-pence to a halfpenny, I could eafily forefee would not very frequently occur. But here again I am forced to difpenfe with my refolution, although it be only to tell my reader, what measures I am like to take on fuch occafions for the future. I was told that the paper called The Obfervator was twice filled laft week with remarks upon a late Examiner. Thefe I read with the firft opportunity, and, to fpeak in the news-writers phrafe, they give me occafion for many speculations. I obferved with fingular pleafure the nature of thofe things which the owners of them ufually call Anfwers, and with what dexterity this matchlefs author had fallen into the whole art and cant of them. To tranfcribe here and there three or four detached lines of leaft weight in a difcourfe, and by a foolish comment mistake every fyllable of the meaning, is what I have known many of a fuperior clafs to this formidable adverfary, intitle, An Answer. This is what he hath exactly done in about thrice as many words as my whole difcourfe; which is fo mighty an advantage over me, that I fhall by no means engage in fo unequal a combat; but, as far as I can judge of my own temper, entirely difmifs him for the future; heartily wishing he had a match exactly of his own fize to meddle with, who fhould only have the odds of truth and honefty, which, as I take it, would be an effectual way to filence him for ever. Upon this occafion I cannot forbear a fhort story of a fanatic farmer, who lived in my neighbourhood, and was fo great a difputant in reli gion, that the fervants in all the families thereabouts reported, reported, how he had confuted the bishop and all his clergy. I had then a footman, who was fond of reading the Bible; and I borrowed a comment for him, which he studied so close, that in a month or two I thought him a match for the farmer. They difputed at several houfes with a ring of fervants and other people always about them; where Ned explained his texts fo full and clear to the capacity of his audience, and fhewed the infignificancy of his adverfary's cant to the meaneft understanding, that he got the whole country of his fide, and the farmer was cured of his itch of difputation for ever after. The worst of it is, that this fort of outrageous party-writers I have fpoken of above, are like a couple of make-bates, who inflame finall quarrels: by a thousand ftories, and by keeping friends at a diftance, hinder them from coming to a good understanding; as they certainly would, if they were fuffered to meet and debate between themfelves.. For, let any one examine a reasonable honeft man of either fide upon thofe opinions in religion and government, which both parties daily buffet each other about; he fhall hardly find one material point in difference between them. I would be glad to ask a question about two great men of the late miniftry, how they came to be Whigs? and by what figure of speech half a dozen others, lately put into great employments, can be called Tories? I'doubt whoever would fuit the definition to the perfons, must make it directly contrary to what we understood it at the time of the revolution. In order to remove thefe mifapprehenfions among us, I believe, it will be neceffary, upon occafion, to detect the malice and falfehood of fome popular maxims, which thofe idiots fcatter from the prefstwice a-week, and draw an hundred abfurd confequences from them. For example: I have heard it often objected as a great piece of infolence in the clergy and others to fay or hint, that the church was in danger, when it was voted otherwife in parliament fome years ago; and the Queen herfelf, in her laft fpeech, did openly condemn all fuch infinuations. Notwith ftanding which, I did then, and do still, believe the church hath, fince that vote, been in very imminent danger; and I think I might then have faid fo without the leaft offence to her Majefty, or either of the two houfes. The Queen's words, as near as I can remember, mentioned the church being in danger from her adminiftration; and whoever fays or thinks that, deferves, in my opinion, to be hanged for a traitor: but that the church and state may be both in danger under the best princes that ever reigned, and without the leaft guilt of theirs, is fuch a truth as a man must be a great ftranger to history and common fenfe to doubt. The wifeft prince on earth may be forced by the neceffity of his affairs, and the prefent power of an unruly faction, or deceived by the craft of ill-defigning men. One or two minifters, moft in his confidence, may at firft have good intentions, but grow corrupted by time, by avarice, by love, by ambi tion, and have fairer terms offered them to gratify their paffions or interefts from one jet of men than another, until they are too far involved for a retreat; and fo be forced to take seven spirits more wicked than themfelves. This is a very poffible cafe; and will not the last state of fuch men be worfe than the first? that is to fay, will not the public, which was fafe at firft, grow in danger by fuch proceedings as thefe? And fhall a faithful fubject, who forefees and trembles at the confequences, be called di affected, because he delivers his opinion, although the prince declares, as he juftly may, that the danger is not owing to his administration? Or fhall the prince himself be blamed, when, in fuch a juncture, he puts his affairs into other hands with the |