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that this country has "neither intereft nor juftice" in the conteft; and of -imputing the high price of provifions, and every other poflible evil, to the encrease of the circulating medium, and that to the war. These paltry manœuvres of faction are beneath Mr. Fox; he fhould leave them to Cit zen Waithman, and other Whigs of inferior note, and confine himself to the higher and bolder flights of Whiggism, fuch as those which remain to be noticed. Adverting to the Irish Re bellion, and the means taken for its fuppreflion, he tells us, From what has happened in a neighbouring country, it appears ftil more clearly, that there is a fixed and fyftematic plan for depreffing the cause of liberty, and enflaving the people."-Anglicé, for crushing rebellion, and compelling fubjects to obey the laws. "Tumults were excited by the most unjustifiable meafures, and afterwards were quelled by means of the most dreadful atrocities. Villages were fet on fire; torture, in its most horrid forms, was employed to gain discoveries, and military power was freed of all controul from civil authority." We fhould have fuppofed that Mr. Fox was here drawing an accurate picture of the French Republic, had not Ireland been fpecifically mentioned in the next line. He would not dare to utter fuch atrocious falfhoods, to pronounce fo grofs a libel on the loyal proteftants of Ireland, in his feat in the Houfe, where he would now meet with men, who, having a perfonal knowledge of all the facts of the Rebellion, would not fuffer him to pass fo fcandalous an impofition on the public unanfwered nor unexpofed. In one thing only is Mr. Fox confiftent, in his uniform fupport of rebellion. He fupported the American rebels, he has supported the French rebels, and he has fupport d the Irifh rebels-but to poceed. "I must say, that in every country, the legitimate fovereign is the people; and that only in proportion as governments are the genuine reprefentatives of that fovereign they are legitimate." As this neither is, nor poffibly can be, the cafe in any monarchy, however limited or modified, or indeed in any conceivable ftate but a perfect democracy, which never did nor never can exift, it follows of neceffity, that our gracious Monarch is not the legitimate fovereign of thefe realms. This is fomething more than faction, it borders fo closely upon treafon, that had it been uttered by another, and Mr. Fox had been in power, he would, we are perfuaded, have made it the fubject of an impeachment. If fuch indeed were the genuine Whig creed, as Mr. Fox maintains, if fuch, indeed, were "the Whig principles," as he afferts, "which brought about the Revolution of 1688, and which alone could juftify it," it would be a neceffary and inevitable confequence, that Whigs and Rebels, Revolution and Rebellion, are fynonimous terms. But, as we fhould look in vain, we conceive, for any fuch principles as these in the public proceedings of that period, we must follow Mr. Fox up to his conclufion, that "the Revolution of 1688 could not be juftified." We leave his partizans of the Whig Club to extricate him from this pitiable dilemma.

As a good thing cannot be too often repeated, the orator again brings forward his political creed, at the conclufion of his speech.'

** I shall

"I fhall ever maintain that the bafis of all conftitutions is the sove REIGNTY OF THE PEOPLE; and that from the people alone, Kings, Parliaments, Judges, and Magittrates, derive all their authority."!!! If this Whig leader and his Whig affociates ever went to Church, they would there acquire, from the regular fervice of the fabbath, a more accurate idea of their King by learning "whofe minifter he is" and "whofe authority he has." They would be taught. alfo, that it is an old trick of the Devil to tempt men to distrust God, and place his truft in the people. But this, perhaps, is too much to expect from them, Sonie other means therefore fhould be reforted to for producing a renunciation, or rather to prevent the publication, of do trines, of which it is difficult to fay whether impiety or folly be the leading characteristic.-The newly created vereignty of fubjects and fubjection of fovereigns, has fomething fo truly prepofterous in it, that, were it not for the habits of infubor dination which it is calculated, and, generally, intended to encourage, it might fafely be left for the amufement of fuckling Whigs. The Chief Magiftrate of the city of London-ftrange to fay-was prefent at this meeting, and exprefsly fanctioned all the principles and declarations of Mr. Fox. To fay that Mr. Erfkine was there, is to fay that he spoke, and about bimfelf. But he did more, for, mirabile dictu! he loft himfelf for a moment, in the extravagant compliments which he lavifhed on his fecond-fe, Mr. Fox.-He let the cat out of the bag, however, by admitting that the object of the Whigs was to roufe the dormant energies of an infatuated people; a phrafe which, we fufpect, he pilfered from the debates of the French Convention, after the 10th of Auguft, 1792.-He pledged himself for the fincerity of the First Conful in his offers of peace ;and obferved that Mr. Fox had "retired from public labours to the repofe of domeftic life."-Who that heard or read this account of the reclufe of St. Ann's Hill, would not fuppofe that he had actually retired to enjoy the otium cum dignitate, the fruits of a well-spent life, an honourable independence, and the focial converfe of a virtuous wife and an amiable family!-And who will not reprobate this hypocritical cant, that knows, that this leader of the Whigs has bafely deferted his parliamentary duty, folely because his voice has not prevailed in the houfe, and his opinions have not been adopted by the cabinet ;—and that he now fubfifts on the produce of an eleemofynary contribution, in the conftant commiffion of fin, without the excufe of youth or the temptation of paffion, furrounded by the partner of his illicit amours, and a spurious offspring!

After reading this pamplet, every man muft implicitly fubfcribe to the juftice of Mr. Fox's affertion that " dreadful encroachments have been made on the liberty of the prefs," and that "now the moft flavish and intolerable filence is impofed!" Our readers, we apprehend, will radily acknowledge that the pamphlet required particular notice; and that had we paffed it over without fuch notice, we thould have been guilty of a fhameful breach of duty. But the Monthly Reviewers feem to entertain a different idea of the

objec

bject of criticism and the duties of a critic. In their Number for November laft, they gave a review of the pamphlet, which we fhall extract in toto.

"With a fong and penetrating mind, Mr. Fox here reviews the circumftances of the war; makes an open and undiftinguished avowal of his political principles; and declares, that, in his opis nion, the war is the principal cause of the high price of provifions," We have taught thefe reviewers the policy of caution, at least, they were aware any thing they might fay on this hopeful publica tion, would not elude our vigilance, nor escape our animadverfions; and, therefore, they have forborne to commit themselves on the fubject, and are contented to give an indirect ftimulus to the circulation of the mifchief, by ftating it to be the production of afrong and penetrating mind. If this be accepted by their readers, for criticism, we fhall only congratulate them on having readers fo little faftidious, and so easily satisfied.

The Diffusion of Divine Tratb. A Sermon, preached before the Re ligious Tract Society, on the Lord's Day, May 18. 1800, and publifbed at their Request. By David Bogue. Svo. 6d. Williams. London. 1800.

A Sermon preached in the Chapel of Hanover Square, Newcastle, for the Support of the New College, Manchefter. By William Turner Svo. 1s. Johnfon. London. 1800.

IVINITY being my profeflion, I turn with peculiar ins head of religion, fonie account of the fingle fermons of the day. I have paid particular attention to this department of the Critical Review for November laft. It commences with a pair of critiques on fermons by authors who ftile themfelves, the one David Bogue, the other William Turner. No title of Rev. precedes the name of either, and there is no mark of any degree which follows. Their discourses, however, are fo excellent in the eyes of Critical Reviewers, that no less than one hundred and five lines are occupied by their praises, and the extracts which have been drawn from themi The two next fermons are publications of clergymen of the Church of England. But, though it is acknowledged of the one, that the language is chafte, the fentiments liberal, the arrangement neat and luminous; and though it is predicated of the oth r, that it is a dif ourfe elegantly written, and the argument well fupported; yet are we indulged with no extract from either, and ten jolitary lines contain all the notice which can be afforded to both. Such diftin&tion and preference being given to the two preachers without degrees, and (if we may judge from their ftile and title) without ordination allo, our curiofity is naturally excited to know who they are, and of what their fuperior excellence confifts. The first, it feems, is well known for bis attachment to the missionary preachers who attempted to

eltablish

eftablifh themfelves in the Friendly Iflands; and, if report err not, was at one time on the point of deferting his own extenfive and reputable congregation at Gofport, and uniting himfelf with them. The other fwells his difcourfe with a liberal hiftory of non-conformity; and his object is to promote the caufe of a religious expiring feminary of nonconformits. Par nobile fratrum.

With refpect to doctrine, the former of thefe preachers is parti cularly impreffive to the Critical Reviewers, because he laughs at the progrefs of atheism. Some, fays he, are dreadfully afraid of infidelity. The alarm bas far exceeded real ty. In conformity to this fentiment, while his colleague William Turner unluckily complains (fuch barmony is in diffenting fouls!) of the deluge of infidelity, David Bogue maintains that there never was a country where one tenth part of the people were Atheists. Such doctrine, Mr. Editor, could not fail to please critics, who wifh us to confider jacobins as mere phantoms of the minifterial brain. The latter, I have already noticed, it is their plan non credendo corroborare; and the former they well know to be characters fo strictly and infeparably allied with jacobins, that it may be juftly difputed whether they are not always one and the fame. They, therefore, who question the exiftence of the one, will naturally plead for the non-existence of the other. Hence the doubts, which the Critical Reviewers have attached to Mr. Reid's Rife and Diffolution of the Infidel Societies; on which they remark, our readers had no idea that infidelity bad been fo organised in this metropol's. But, Mr. Editor, are not writers, who betray fuch a determined difpofttion to be fceptical,* themselves a ftrong proof that infidelity really does exift? Nemo repentè fuit turpiffimus: the progrefs to depravity of every kind is gradual. The laft thing a man difbelieves is the truth of revelation. He begins firft to be an infidel in matters of lefs moment. He perhaps doubts of the existence of Troy: he fancies, with the Jefuit Hardouin, that the works of the ancient profane and ecclefiaftical writers are, with a few exceptions, mere forgeries. If a philofopher, he does not believe in the exiftence of matter; if a politician, he difcredits every report of confpiracy, and will not allow that any man can have had wicked defigns, who has been difmiffed from the bar without being found guilty. So far have the Critical Reviewers certainly advanced into infidelity, that they venture, in the face of pofitive evidence, to deny what nothing but ocular demonftration can make more certain. Men, endued with fuch a difpofition of mind, are much nearer than they imagine to complete and perfe& infidelity. He who doubts, like Jln Hardouin, the veracity of Homer, will foon difpute the truth of Mofes; and difbelief in Mofes will be naturally followed by fufpicion of the reft of the sacred writers. So again, he who can difpute the existence of matter,

* The Critical Reviewers are very inconfiftent. In their Re view for December, P. 462, they admit that infidelity is inceffantly endeavouring to undermine the boly truths of our religion.

will foon explode every idea of fpirit; and, being blind to visible effect, he cannot be long expected to admit of an invisible cause. In the fame manner, they who ftill maintain the innocence of certain unconvicted members of the Correfpondiug Society; and who, till he confeffed his guilt, were infidels as to the atrocious defigns of Mr. Arthur O'Connor and his affociates; they who declare jacobins and infidels to be airy nothing, to which timidity and alarm have given a local babitation and a name, are not far from difputing the existence of more auguft perfonages, angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven. For it is an argument, which has been applied with wonderful force by the author of our falvation, that if we believe not earthly things of which we are told, when the evidence is fufficient and the veracity of the reporter unimpeachable; it is impoffible that we can believe beavenly things, be the announcer of them whom he may. Religious faith is the evidence of things not feen; which, of course, cannot long dwell in a bofon already difpofed to doubt of things that are feen, however they may be teftified.

The doctrine of the fecond of these preachers, namely, William Turner, is equally well adapted to the tafte of the Critical Reviewers. He addreffes his auditors as proteftant Diffenters; and proposes, in laying down the plan of his fermon (yes, Mr. Editor, the plan of his fermon) to give a short biftory of the English non-conformists. His profeffed object is to encourage a due fupply of public inftructors, for one clafs at least of these non-conformists, the clafs of the defunct academy at Warrington. In profecuting this edifying fubject, the author feelingly laments, that it should have fuited the policy of the civil power, to adopt the Chriftian profeffion as an engine of fate. He infinuates that it has been made a convenient bandle to ferve political purposes, even in our own country: but he forbears to mention, that the Diffenters of the feventeenth century were, of all Chriftians, the most notorious, in making it an engine of state and a bandle for political purposes. From the time when it became an engine of ftate, the author affirms that the great apoftacy began; that the fpirit and principles of the Gospel were gradually adulterated; that its teachers degenerated into worldly-minded priests, caballing and intriguing for power; and that the people at large grew every day more ignorant and corrupt. Such the author would have his audience understand to be the natural confequence of ecclefiaftical establishments, and the uncontroulable refult of the union of church and ftate. We may, perhaps, Mr. Editor, with greater juftice attribute fuch evils, to that inordinate luft of diffention, which poured in upon us at the reformation. Men were not contented with moderate and rational reform; but, like the political innovators of France, they were for rejecting whatever had the flightest favour of the ancient regime, whether good or bad. The wisdom as well as the folly of papacy, the found doctrines as well as the errors of the church of Rome, were by fome hot-headed zealots impugned and condemned; and the very garments of the priesthood, the very arnas ments of their perfons and their places of worship, became heterodox.

NO. XXXII. VOL. VIII.

P

Freedom