politic within itself as to ecclesiasticals. But the whole church, say they, composes such a body, and Christ is the head of it. But Christ's headship makes Christians no more one body politic with respect to ecclesiasticals than to civils." Here we must show the reason and necessity of the church being a corporation all over the world to avoid heresies, and preserve fundamentals, and hinder the corrupting of Scripture, &c. But there are no such necessities in government to be the same everywhere, &c. It is something like the colleges in a university; they are all independent, yet joined are one body. So a general council consisteth of many persons independent of one another, &c.

However, there is such a thing as jus gentium, &c. And he that is doctor of physic or law is so in any university of Europe, like the Respublica Literaria. Nor to me does there seem anything contradicting or improper in this notion of the Catholic church; and for want of such a communion religion is so much corrupted, and would be more if there were not more communion in this than in civils. It is of no import to mankind how nations are governed; but the preserving the purity of religion is best held up by endeavoring to make it one body over the world. Something like as there is in trade. So to be able to communicate with all Christians we come among, is at least to be wished and aimed at as much as

we can.

Page 384. "In a word, if the bishops are not supreme," &c. Here he reassumes his arguments for popery, that there cannot be a body politic of the church through the whole world without a visible head to have recourse to. These were formerly writ to advance popery, and now to put an absurdity upon the hypothesis of a Catholic church. As they say in Ireland, in king James's time they built mass-houses which we make very good barns of.

Page 388. "Bishops are under a premunire obliged to confirm and consecrate the person named in the congé d'élire." This perhaps is complained of. He is permitted to do it. We allow the legislature may hinder if they please: as they may turn out Christianity if they think fit.

Page 389. "It is the magistrate who empowers them to do more for other bishops than they can for themselves, since they cannot appoint their own successors." Yes they could if the magistrate would let them. Here is an endless splutter and a parcel of perplexed distinctions upon no occasion. All that the clergy pretend to is a right of qualifying men for the ministry, something like what a university doth with degrees. This power they claim from God.

and that the civil power cannot do it as pleasing to God without them; but they may choose whether they will suffer it or not. A religion cannot be crammed down a nation's throat againit their will; but when they receive a religion, it is supposed they receive it as their converters give it; and upon that foot they cannot justly mingle their own methods that contradict that religion, &c.

Page 390. "With us the bishops act only ministerially and by virtue of the regal commission, by which the prince firmly enjoins and commands them to proceed in choosing, confirming, and consecrating, &c." Suppose we held it unlawful to do so: how can we help it? But does that make it rightful if it be not so? Suppose the author lived in a heathen country, where a law would be made to call Christianity idolatrous; would that be a topic for him to prove it so by, &c.? And why do the clergy incur a premunire? to frighten them? Because the law understandeth that if they refuse the chosen cannot be a bishop. But, if the clergy had an order to do it otherwise than they have prescribed, they ought and would incur a hundred rather.

Page 402. "I believe the Catholic church," &c. Here he ridicules the Apostles' Creed. Another part of his scheme. By what he says in these pages it is certain his design is either to run down Christianity or set up popery; the latter it is more charitable to think, and from his past life, highly probable.

Page 405. "That which gave the papists so great advantage was, clergymen's talking so very inconsistent with themselves," &c. State the difference here between our separation from Rome and the dissenters from us, and show the falseness of what he says. I wish he would tell us what he leaves for a clergyman to do, if he may not instruct the people in religion, and if they should not receive his instructions.

Page 411. "The restraint of the press a badge of popery.". Why is that a badge of popery? why not restrain the press to those who would confound religion as in civil matters? But this toucheth himself. He would starve perhaps, &c. Let him get some honester livelihood then. It is plain all his arguments against constraint, &c. favor the papists as much as dissenters; for both have opinions that may affect the peace of the state.

Page 413. "Since this discourse," &c. And must we have another volume on this one subject of independency? or is it to fright us? I am not of Dr. Hickes's mind, Qu'il vienne. I pity the readers and the clergy that must answer it, be it ever so insipid. Reflect on this sarcastic conclusion, &c.

MR. COLLINS'S DISCOURSE ON FREE

THINKING;

PUT INTO PLAIN ENGLISH, BY WAY OF ABSTRACT, FOR THE USE OF THE POOR.

BY A FRIEND OF THE AUTHOR.

INTRODUCTION.

OUR party having failed by all their political arguments to reestablish their power, the wise leaders have determined that the last and principal remedy should be made use of for opening the eyes of this blinded nation; and that a short but perfect system of their divinity should be published, to which we are all of us ready to subscribe, and which we lay down as a model, bearing a close analogy to our schemes in religion. Crafty, designing men, that they might keep the world in awe, have, in their several forms of government, placed a Supreme Power on earth to keep human-kind in fear of being hanged, and a Supreme Power in heaven for fear of being damned. In order to cure men's apprehensions of the former, several of our learned members have written many profound treatises on anarchy; but a brief complete body of atheology seemed yet wanting till this irrefragable discourse appeared. However, it so happens that our ablest brethren, in their elaborate disquisitions upon this subject, have written with so much caution that ignorant unbelievers have edified very little by them. I grant that those daring spirits who first adventured to write against the direct rules of the gospel, the current of antiquity, the religion of the magistrate, and the laws of the land, had some measures to keep; and particularly where they railed at religion, were in the right to use little artful disguises, by which a jury could only find them guilty of abusing heathenism or popery. But the mystery is now revealed, that there is no such thing as mystery or revelation; and though our friends are out of place and power, yet we may have so much confidence in the present ministry to be secure that those who suffer so many free speeches against their sovereign and themselves to pass unpunished

will never resent our expressing the freest thoughts against their religion; but think with Tiberius, that, if there be a God, he is able enough to revenge any injuries done to himself, without expecting the civil power to interpose.

By these reflections I was brought to think that the most ingenious author of the Discourse upon Freethinking, in a letter to Somebody, esq., although he has used less reserve than any of his predecessors, might yet have been more free and open. I considered that several well-willers to infidelity might be discouraged by a show of logic and a multiplicity of quotations scattered through his book, which to understandings of that size might carry an appearance of something like book-learning, and consequently fright them from reading for their improvement. I could see no reason why these great discoveries should be hid from our youth of quality who frequent White's and Tom's; why they should not be adapted to the capacities of the Kitcat and Hanover clubs, who might then be able to read lectures on them to their several toasts: and it will be allowed on all hands that nothing can sooner help to restore our abdicated cause than a firm universal belief of the principles laid down by this sublime author: for I am sensible that nothing would more contribute to "the continuance of the war" and the restoration of the late ministry than to have the doctrines delivered in this treatise well infused into the people. I have therefore compiled them into the following abstract, wherein I have adhered to the very words of our author, only adding some few explanations of my own where the terms happen to be too learned, and consequently a little beyond the comprehension of those for whom the work was principally intended — I mean the nobility and gentry of our party: after which I hope it will be impossible for the malice of a Jacobite, high-flying, priest-ridden faction to misrepresent us. The few additions I have made are for no other use than to help the transition, which could not otherwise be kept in an abstract: but I have not presumed to advance anything of my own; which, besides, would be needless to an author who has so fully handled and demonstrated every particular. I shall only add that, though this writer, when he speaks of priests, desires chiefly to be understood to mean the English clergy, yet he includes all priests whatsoever, except the ancient and modern heathens, the Turks, Quakers, and Socinians.

THE LETTER.

SIR, I send you this apology for freethinking without the least hopes of doing good, but purely to comply with your request; for those truths which nobody can deny will do no good to those who deny them. The clergy who are so impudent to teach the people the doctrines of faith, are all either cunning knaves or mad fools; for none but artificial, designing men, and crack-brained enthusiasts, presume to be guides to others in matters of speculation, which all the doctrines of Christianity are; and whoever has a mind to learn the Christian religion naturally, chooses such knaves and fools to teach them. Now the Bible, which contains the precepts of the priests' religion, is the most difficult book in the world to be understood it requires a thorough knowledge in natural, civil, ecclesiastical history, law, husbandry, sailing, physic, pharmacy, mathematics, metaphysics, ethics, and everything else that can be named: and everybody who believes it ought to understand it, and must do so by force of his own freethinking without any guide or instructor. How can a man think at all if he does not think freely? A man who does not eat and drink freely, does not eat and drink at all. Why may not I be denied the liberty of free-seeing as well as freethinking? Yet nobody pretends that the first is unlawful, for a cat may look on a king; though you be near-sighted, or have weak or sore eyes, or are blind, you may be a free-seer; you ought to see for yourself, and not trust to a guide to choose the color of your stockings or save you from falling into a ditch.

In like manner, there ought to be no restraint at all on thinking freely upon any proposition, however impious or absurd. There is not the least hurt in the wickedest thoughts, provided they be free; nor in telling those thoughts to everybody, and endeavoring to convince the world of them; for all this is included in the doctrine of freethinking, as I shall plainly show you in what follows; and therefore you are all along to understand the word freethinking in this

sense.

If you are apt to be afraid of the devil, think freely of him and you destroy him and his kingdom. Freethinking has done him more mischief than all the clergy in the world ever could do: they believe in the devil, they have an interest in him, and therefore are the great supports of his kingdom. The devil was in the statesgeneral before they began to be freethinkers; for England and Holland were formerly the Christian territories of the devil. I