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 Modest remarks upon the Bishop of 
 London's letter concerning the late 
 earthquakes
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 MODEST 
 
 R B M A R K S 
 
 UPON THE 
 
 t 
 
 RiSHopof LONDON'S 
 
 LETTER 
 
 Co n c z r n i k g the late 
 
 'EARTHQUAKES. 
 
 [ Price Six pence. J
 
 X 
 
 MODEST 
 
 REMARKS 
 
 UPON THE 
 
 Bishop of L NDON's 
 
 LETTER 
 
 Concerning the late 
 
 EARTHQUAKES. 
 
 By One of the People called Q^U A K E R S. 
 
 And now, O ye Priefls, this Commandment is for you. 
 If ye will not bear, and if ye will not lay it f 
 Heart, to give Glory unto my Name, faith the 
 Lord of Hojls, I will even fend a Curfe upon you, 
 And I will curfe your Eleffings : Tea, I have curfed 
 
 them already becaufe ye do not lay it to Heart. 
 
 therefore I aljo made you contemptible and bafe be- 
 fore all the People, as ye have not kept my Way, 
 but have been parti al in the Law. 
 
 Malachi, ii. 1fi.2d.and 3d. Verfes, 
 
 L N D N: 
 
 Printed for T. Howard, at the Pamphlet Shop in the 
 Temple- Exchang t Coffee Houfe , Flcttjlrttt. 1750.
 
 A 
 
 T f 
 
 
 
 V 
 
 J 
 
 

 
 3y 
 
 TO THE 53 - . £ _ z 
 
 B I S H O P 
 
 OF 
 
 I N D N. 
 
 Friend Thomas, 
 
 that Work. 
 
 E.RI.LY I have perufed thy Letter 
 AddrefTed to the Clergy and Inhabitants 
 of the Cities of Ltndtn and fVeJlminjUr 
 with great Attention, and muft ac- 
 knowledge to thee with Concern, that 
 I am exceedingly difappointed in the 
 Expectation I had raifed to myfelf from 
 The Solemnity, Friend, of the Occafion, 
 the Scriousnefs and Confluence of the Subject treated of, 
 and the Relation thou pretended to Hand in to the Inhabi- 
 tants of thefe Cities, made me believe, that Nothing 
 would be omitted, that was NecefTary to awaken the 
 Conicience, and inform the Understandings of all Degrees 
 of People, within thy Charge. But how vain is human 
 Wifdom, and how infinitely fhort-fighted are its Re- 
 fearches, when it relics upon itfelf, and is unaffifted by 
 that Spirit, to whom all Events are known, who fearch- 
 
 •th 
 
 869811
 
 ( 6) 
 
 «th the Hearts and trycth the Reins of the Children o f 
 Men ! 
 
 Thy Letter, Friend, inftead of awakening the Con- 
 fcience of th- hardened Sinner, or confirming the Faith 
 of the daggering Believer, has confounded their Under- 
 ftaniinga, and led them into a Labyrinth, out of which 
 it is impoflible they mould ever extricate themfelvcs by the 
 Strength of the mere natural Man. 
 
 Thou halt without any Authority, (for thou difclaim- 
 eft all inspiration from the Holy Spirit) reprefented the 
 two Shocks of an Earthquake, lately felt, as a fuperna- 
 tural Event ; and magifterially pronounced them tlie Ef- 
 fects of a fpecial Providence, thrcatning Vengeance up- 
 on a wicked and profligate Generation. Who knoweth 
 the Council* of the Almighty ? Strange and wonderful 
 are all his Works, and his Ways paft finding out. What 
 is Man, that he Should dive into the Secrets of his Pro- 
 vidence, or the Son of Man, that he mould deal out his 
 Judgments according to his vain Imaginations? Verily, 
 Friend, Thou waft under no Temptation to make fuch 
 anufe of that Difpenfation of his Providence; and thou 
 mighreft have found Sufficient Matter from a natural Ef- 
 fect (asthofe, for aught we know to the contrary, cer- 
 tainly were) to have excited thy Readers to a fincere Re- 
 pentance, without arrogating tothyfelfa Knowledge to 
 which thou haft not the fmalleft Claim, or furnishing the 
 Ungodly, in the firft Line of thy Work, with Matter of 
 Piejudicc againft all that t ; .ou couldft fay ; fince they 
 couid plainly difcover by their natural UnderPanding, 
 that without the Gift of the Holy Spirit, thou couldft not, 
 and oughteft not to have afcribed to a fpecial Providence, 
 what may be rationally explained by the general Laws 
 that govern Matter and Motion. Thefc Laws are, no 
 doubt, in the Hands of the Almighty : and the Sovereign 
 D'fpofer of all Things may, for the wife Purpofes of his 
 Providence, flop, alter, or eontroul them at his Pleafure. 
 But, hecaufe we believe and are aflured, that he hath re- 
 ferved the Power to himfelf, mull we,weak-fightedMor- 
 tals, have the Arrogance to conclude, that, on every Oc- 
 currence,
 
 ( 7 ) 
 
 currence, which appears in the leaft fmgular and unutual, 
 this fpecial Power is exerted ; and that the Order of Na- 
 ture isinvcrted, as often as our gloomy imagination is 
 pleafcd to think that it ought to be fa? 
 
 We are taught from Holy Writ, that Cities and whole 
 Nations have been deftroyed by the efpecial Vengeance of 
 God for thei r heinous Tranfgreffions. But except we had 
 beenib told by an infallible Spirit, and who could not 
 deceive us. by falfe Con jt&ures, we hadnoRi»ht, nay, 
 it would be impious in us fo much as tofufpt£t tlatfuch 
 Cities fuffered for their Sins by the Handsxd" a fpeciil 
 Providence, 'judge not, lejl ye be judged \ -is a Precept cf 
 univerfal Kxtent, and ftrongly inculcated by the foun- 
 der of our Holy Religion, who in a particular Manner 
 checked the Jews, who of all Nations were the apreit to 
 explain eveiy Occurrence into a fp*cial and revengeful 
 Providence. " There were prefent 2t that>Seafbn fome, 
 " that told him of the Galile«ns, whofe Blood Pilate had" 
 " mingled with the Sacrifices ; and Je/us aniwering faid 
 " unto them, fuppofe \e, that thefe Galileans were Sin-' 
 " ners above all the Galihans, becaufe they fuffered 
 " fuch things ? I tell you Nay, but except you repent 
 ** ye {hall all likewife periih. Or thofe Eighteen, upon 
 ** whom the Tower in Stic/ fell, and flew them, think 
 ** ye thatthey were Sinners above all Men that dwelt 
 " in Jerufalem? I tell you Nay, but except yo H repent, 
 " ye fli^lL likewife periflj." Luke Ch. xiii. ver. i, 2 
 3, 4, and 5. 
 
 This, Friend, iatheSenfeof the Son of God upon a 
 Cafe almoft AmiUf.tq what your Sul jecl; led you to treat 
 of ; and how different is it from the Senfe you wbufb put 
 upon a very natural Occurrence ? How much more 
 amiable is the Picture he gives us of the Father in that 
 Parable that immediately followeth the above Verfes. 
 Verle 6, He fpeaks alfothis Parable. " A certain Man 
 " had a Fig-tree planted in .his Vineyard, and he came 
 ** and fought Fruit thereon, and found non<». Ti>en faid 
 ** he unto the Drefler of his Vineyard, behold thefe three 
 " y?SffT c<>mc fce^Mig En"* on this Fig-tree, and find 
 
 ** none :
 
 ( «) 
 
 •' none ; cut it down, why cumbereth it the Ground f 
 u and he anfwering faid unto him, Lord, let it alone this 
 " Year alfo, till I (hall dig abaut it, and dung it: And 
 " if it bear Fruit, well; and if not, then after thou fhalt 
 cut it down." How much more amiable, 1 fav, is f. he 
 Doctrine our Bleffed Redeemer woulJ inculcate by this 
 fliort Parable, than the Idea we conceive from explain- 
 ing; every natural Accident as the Manifeftition of the 
 Wrath of an angry* incenfed, and avenging God '.The 
 yewr/h Doctors, like you, Friend, were willing to ex- 
 plain the Sufferings of the Galileans into a fpecial A£rof 
 Divine Vengeance for their Sins ; which they certainly 
 believed very heinous, as thefe People differed With them 
 in fome religious Points ; and, 'no doubt, might from 
 thence take fome Occafion to preach up Repentance to 
 the reft of the Jewijh Nation. But he, who could notcrr, 
 whole Knowledge was infinite, checked their uncharita- 
 ble Preemption, teaches them* that thev are not ro judge 
 of the Sins of a People by the natural Calamities that t.iH 
 upon them ; nor to paint the Deity as ready on every Oc- 
 cafion to execute Vengeance againft Sinners. tk As I 
 **■ live, (aith the Lord, i take no Pleafure in the -Death 
 '* of a Sinner, but rather that they (hould repent and 
 *' turn from their Evil Wavs." 
 
 Now, Friend, without fuppofing the Shocks we fHt any 
 other than the Refult of Natural Caufes^thou m/gbtft from 
 thence have found fuflkientMatter to have roufed themoft 
 harj-ned Sinner from the Lethargy of Sin and Death,' by 
 obferving, that, befides the many infinite Cafdalties to 
 which Life is expofed, there are ytt more terrible Acci- 
 dents that may fweep them off without a moments Warn- 
 ing, and plunge them into Eternity, loaded with the Weight 
 or their Iniquities. By fuppofing fuch Events never to hap- 
 pen, but as particular Inftances of God's Vengeahceagainfl 
 Sinners, the atrocious Sinner is rather led into Defpair, 
 than Repentance. Whereas, when we believe them tit 
 Refult of a natural Caufe, that may take Effect every mo- 
 n.ent of our Lives, of which we can have no Foreknow- 
 ledge, nor the ltaft poffille Means of Prevention, a ra- 
 tional
 
 (9) 
 
 tional Creature, whofe Underftanding is not intlrely 
 blinded, or whofe Confcience is not judicially feared, 
 muft be awakenedto Repentance, and prepare himfelf for 
 the great Change, by bis forfaklng evillVays, and turning 
 to the Lord bis G,d with all his Heart and Strength. Thou 
 mighteft from thence have availed thyfelf of all the In- 
 ftances, that Hiftory, facred and prophane, furnifhes thee 
 with, of Cities and wholeNations, being deftroyed by dread- 
 ful Calamities, without teaching thy Flock that uncharit- 
 able Doctrine, that fuch natural Diafters were the Effect 
 of the peculiar Sins of thefe unhappy People. A very 
 dreadful Earthquake happened in Jamaica^ in the Year 
 92, that deftroyed a great part of that Colony, and almoft 
 totally ruined the City of Port -Royal. Another within thefe 
 few years f wallowed up the greateft Part of the Capital of 
 Peru ; and fcarce a Year partes, but we hear of the dread- 
 ful Effects of Earthquakes in Italy. Doft thou, like the 
 Jewiih Doctors above-mentioned, think, that thefe People 
 were Sinners above all others that efcaped that dreadful 
 Vifitation ? And yet, by fuppofing the two flight Shocks 
 we have lately felt the Effects of a fpecial Providence, that 
 uncharitable Doctrine is fairly inferred ; a Doctrine d'm T 
 metrically oppofite to the Spirit of our Holy Religion. 
 But I have faid enough to convince thee, that, in thus 
 explaining that Event, thou haft followed too much the 
 Devices of worldly Wifdom ; and that thou thyfelf haft 
 fallen into a greater Error than thofe Philofophers, whofe 
 little Knowledge thou takeft upon thee to defpife. 
 
 But thou haft not only, Friend, miftaken the proper Ufe 
 of thy Text, but in the Improvement of it thou haft left 
 unfaid many things that ought naturally to have occurred 
 to thee, whether thou fuppofedft the Shocks to be the 
 Effect of a fpecial or a general Providence. Verily, Friend, 
 on fuch an awful Occafion, I expected, that thou wouldeft 
 have enumerated, without any palliation or difguife, the 
 many heinous Sins, that in this wicked Age are even a Dif- 
 grace to Human Nature, and, after fuch an Enumeration, 
 thou wouldeft candidly, and without Refpect of Perfons, 
 have pointed out the real Source of all thefe Iniquities that 
 B overwhelm
 
 ( io V 
 
 Overwhelm the Land, and have directed thy Flock to the 
 natural Mrans of freeing themfclves from the Thraldom 
 of Sin and peath. But in ail this verily thou halt fallen 
 (hort : Tor in the Lift of tlr- Crimes, with which thou hall 
 charged the People, thou haft forgot the mod atrocious, 
 and tiken notice of the molt trivial of our Tran grefli ns, 
 and haft miiTetl intircly ot the true Source of our growing 
 Impiety, and le!t us altogether in the dark as to the Prac- 
 tical Ma hod ol amending cur zuays, an J turning again unta 
 the God f our Fo r e fathers. 
 
 The Firft Sjn thou takeft Not'ce of, and what, hy 
 the Order in which thou haft placed it, and the Gmclu- 
 f»on ihou haft drawn from it, would appear in thy Senfe 
 the Source of all our publick and private Tranfgreflions, 
 is the Number of bad Books with which the Town 
 fwarm-. ThU indeed is a crying Sin, and much to be 
 lamented : but, great as it is, it does not deferve to 
 lead tfre Van in a Lift of National Sins, capable of 
 drawing dowji the fpecia! Vepgeance of the Almighty 
 upon a whole People. N>>r is its Influence fo great, as 
 U) a rrupt the Morals of the Generality of the Nation. 
 Nme Parts in fen never read Books of any Sort ; and 
 tho'e, that do, would make but a Tmall Proficiency in 
 Vice, if t!cy had no other School to learn it in, but 
 Bo- ks and unclean Pictures, It is true, Friend, there 
 area great man, impi us Boo s, niid indecent Prints, 
 puhlickly fold in our Streets j and they may have their 
 Share in debauching the Morals of the People: but I 
 would have thee to reflect, that there have been Periods 
 of Time, when that Evil was more to be complained of 
 than at prefenr. I verily believe, that there are not the 
 Hundredth Part of irreligious Books now printed, as 
 were in the Reign <i Charles II. There is fo little of 
 the Spirit ol Rihgion now prevailing that the Subject, 
 even when ipoken of in ridicule, h di (agreeable to the Po- 
 lite of the p r f nt Age. But when thou waft fpcaking 
 of bad Books., there is one thing thou mightcft have 
 mention d with an much Propriety as Part of the Sins 
 ie 1 iin jj, j that is, the Want of good Books, the 
 
 only
 
 ( M ) 
 
 bhiy proper Antidote againft the Venom of thofe thou fd 
 bitterly complaineft againft ; The Age has not only pro- 
 duced fewer bad Books* than fome former; but it has 
 b.en likewife remarkably defic/ent in producing any 
 ti.ing fit to improve the Morals or Understanding of 
 the People. And this is not owing to the want of En- 
 couragement for fueh Labours: For, bad and wicked as 
 the Age is, I never heard of a good Book, either of 
 Science, Religion, or Morality, but what met with 
 proper Encouragement from the Publick: but a Spirit of 
 Lukewarmnefs, in Matter of Religion and Devotion* in 
 thofe, who are well paid for being its Guardians, pre- 
 vails fo much, that they cannot bs induced to enter the 
 Lifts with Error and Infidelity; but iatisfy themselves 
 with exclaiming, in general Terms, againft the immo- 
 ral Writings of others, without giving themftlves the 
 Trouble to impugn their Errors, or to furnifh the Pecu 
 pie with Prefeivatives againft their mifchievous Effects. 
 And if, at any Time, they are tempted to take up the 
 Pen in Defence of fome favourite Doctrine, the Con- 
 troverfy is handled with fo little Charity or Decency, 
 that an honeft, well-meaning, Christian, throws afide tt e 
 Book, difgufted at a Spirit (o unbecoming: the Followers 
 of Chrift Jefus. In a Word, Friend 'Thomas, 1 think 
 this Lazinels in thofe* endued with all the Advantages 
 of Light and Knowledge, and whofe Time ought to be 
 uhieflv employed in fuch Labours, to be a much greater 
 Grievance* and a more infallible Sign of the total Decay 
 of the true Spirit of Chriftianity, and a greater Rcafori 
 for the Lncreafe of Infidelity and Prophanenefs, than all 
 the bad Books* obfeene Prints, and Hiftories of Profii- 
 tutes, that have been puoliihed for this Century pa ft. 
 And to (hew thee, chat if good Books are eompi) d* 
 these is no fear of Encouragement even from this profli- 
 gate Generation, Thou needft only recollecl, that thy 
 little Letter has brought more Monev to thy Bookfelk-r, 
 than all the Impreffiuns of prophane Books, ofariv Kind,- 
 have brought to the whole Trade for this Twelvemontu 
 pa ft. 
 
 B 2 After
 
 ( I* ) 
 
 After that thou haft finifhed thy melancholy Decla. 
 mation againft prophane Books and Prints, the Excels of 
 our pubhek Diversions takes the next Place in the Lift 
 of deadly Sins. 7'bis is exaggerated by an Inftance of 
 fifteen or fixteen Advcrtifcments, even in the Holy Sea- 
 Ion of Lent ; and thou goeft pioufly on to mention Idle- 
 nefs, Gaming, &c. Thefe are terrible Crimes indeed, 
 Friend. But does not thee think, that there are many 
 others of a deeper Dye, and of which thefe are only 
 trivial Confequences ? Yes, thou knoweft there are; 
 thou couldft not forget them, being too glaring to have 
 escaped thv Pcnotration. Yet, thou haft skipped them 
 over, or taken but very flight Notice of them. For thou 
 hookeft in but one Crime more, before thou feemeft to 
 finifh thy grand Charge, and to begin thy Application. 
 Vcrilv, I could have wifhed in Charity* th it thou hadft 
 left tb>u one Crime out of thy Lift on this Occafion. 
 The Ciime, I mean, is the Mention thou makeft of the 
 lncreafe of Popery. Thou art to renumber, Friend, 
 that thou haft ftjppofed the Almighty jufrv offended at the 
 Number and Hetnoufnels of our National TranfgreJficms, 
 and that thou art giving a Lift of the Tranfgreffions, 
 th t thou thinkeft capable of drawing down upon us the 
 fpecial Judgment! ot the Divine Being. Now. canft 
 thou in Charity, as a Chriltian, think, that Popery 
 could he numbered amongft thefe deadly Sins ? The Er- 
 rors ol that fuperftitious Church are many j but God 
 r^-. bid, that we fhould imagine, th.tt their Errors, in 
 Point of Faith, are inch, as to merit thefe fpecial Marks 
 of the Divine Wrath? Had that been the Cafe, this 
 Ifland, and all Europe, muff many Centuries ago, have 
 felt the moft dreadful Effects of thefe Calamities. If 
 thou meaneff in that Paragraph thofe, who continue ob- 
 ffinate in Error, in fpitc of Conviclion, and the Dic- 
 tates of their own Confcience, thou fayefl right, and 
 jinahtfl have mentioned all fuch of every Pcrfunfion 
 . lfiand. But, if thou meaneft the erols Body of 
 the C»tholicks, whom we arc bound in Charity to be- 
 lieve to ;.ct from Principle and Conviction, (and, indeed, 
 
 they
 
 ( 13) 
 
 they muft be ftr&ngely infatuated if they do not ;) thou 
 haft verily been exceedingly to blame, to mention them 
 on this Occafion. For remember, that from a Princi- 
 ple common to all Proteftants, if they a£l from rational 
 Conviction, or what appears to them as fuch, they arc 
 as much entitled to the gracious Mercies of a good God, 
 as thee, or I, isj and, confequently, the hicreafe of 
 their Tenets, however erroneous they may appear to 
 us, cannot, with any Colour of Juftice, be reckoned 
 amongft the Lift of Sins, capable of drawing down fpe- 
 cial Judgments upon this Land. 
 
 The Divifions, that are amongft the Followers of 
 Chrifl Jefus, is indeed Part of the enormous Wicked - 
 nefs of this Age. Thefe we ought to lament in general; 
 but its being greatly wanting to that Charity, which is 
 the diftinguiftiing Badge of Chriftianity, to mark out anv 
 one of the feveral Seers, that profefs the fame eflential 
 Doctrines, with fuch a dreadful Distinction. But thou 
 haft not only placed the Catholicks as the imme- 
 diate Objects of God\>< avenging Judgments, but thou 
 haft reprefented fome of their'Doctrines in a Light which 
 they do not deferve. Thou wouldft intiituate, that the 
 Cordial, as thou called it, of Abfolution, is believed 
 by the Catholicks, to be of Effect, without a thorough 
 and fincere Repentance. We ought, thou knoweft, 
 Friend, ever to ("peak Truth ; which Truth never ftands 
 in need of the Aids of Falfhood. Now, the Catholicks, 
 in all their Writings, lay it down, and teach it as a 
 Tenet of their Church, that Abfolution, however Co. 
 lemn, or by whomfoever pronounced, is fo far from 
 being of any Effect without Repentance, Amendment, 
 and Retribution, if in their Power, that the thus accept- 
 ing it is adding the heinous Sin ef Sacrilege to all their 
 other Sins. Now, by what Means canft thou fuppofe, 
 that this Cordial of Abfolution, however ineffectual 
 thou and I may think it, could be greedily fwallowed 
 by Perfcns avcrfe to the wholefom Food of Repentance, 
 by which their fpiritual Condition might be gradually 
 m«nded ? If they fwallow it, they muft already have di- 
 
 gefted
 
 ( *4) 
 
 gcfted die Food of Repentance j if they have not, they 
 know, as' well as thee, that they have fwalhvved a Poiforf 
 iutlead of a Cordial. If thou muft need;, at a Time 
 when thou oughteft, inftead of awakening Chriftian Divi- 
 lion.-;, to have done all in thy Power to unite all it* Fol- 
 lowers in one Bond of Peace and charitable Union ; if 
 thou nmft need?, I &}', -t fuch a Time, employ thy 
 Rhetoric agiinfr. the Errors of chat Crmrch, fure thou 
 mighift have pitched upon fime one founded in Truth* 
 and not have mentioned as Fact a Thing fo eafily red- 
 argued. At other Times Zeal for the Gaufe of Truch 
 may, tho' prepqfterpufly enough, prompt a Man to 
 blacken his Advcrfafy With imaginary Crimes, in order, 
 by a kind of pious Fraud, to prepofiefs the People a- 
 gainft the Errors in his Doctrine and Practice. 
 
 But on fuch an Occafion as this, and from fo diftin- 
 guifhed a Hand, we had Reafon to expeel, Friend, that 
 every Fact advanced fhould have been literally and mani- 
 icftly true. I remember an Inftance known all over 
 Europe, that might have fet thee right, if thou wert really 
 ignorant of the Nature of Romijh Abfoljtion. That is* 
 that, notwithstanding the great Power* of that defpotic 
 JCing, Lewis the XlVth, all his Authority could not 
 prevail over any one Prieft in his Dominions to give hint 
 Abfolution, or adminifter to him the Sacrament whiltt he 
 lived in a (late of Uncleannefs with Madam Maintenon. He 
 was fo far from rcfenting their fupporting an Authority, 
 he dioughtthem legally pofleiTed of, that, for the fa'thral 
 Diflharge of their Duty, he loaded his ConfeiTjrs with 
 Bilhopncks, and at laft at their Inftances privately married 
 his Miftrcfs; and then, and not till then, received Abfolu- 
 tion. !, fur my part, Friend, think the Abfolution pro- 
 nounced by thy Church, and that by the Church of Rome, 
 or by any human Creature alive, to b» vain and ufelefs, and 
 the Product of fpi ritual Piideand Vanity. Bit the Spirit 
 of Truth, that is within me, would not permit me to 
 paf. over fo grofs a Mifieprefcntation of Fact, without a 
 proper Reprehenfion. 
 
 This, with a very gent leTouch upon the want of a duo 
 Execution of the Law?, f*or which thou doit not forget
 
 ( 'S) 
 
 fo ask Pardon) finishes the Bead-roll of Natioral Sins, 
 that a^e to draw down the immediate Vengeance of the 
 m>»* High. Thou then proceeded to hint that a due 
 Execution of the Laws already in Being, and the parti- 
 cular Care of M.tfrers of Families, may bring about a 
 Reformation, and avert tl.ofe Judgments thou ruppofett 
 to be threatened by the two very ten ible Shocks of an 
 Earthquake. Strange Chimaera, to think that Wicked- 
 nefs, grown to fuch a height as to meiit the fecial No- 
 tice of the Divine Being, and interwoven as it were 
 with our veiy Nature, mould be rooted out by fuch weak 
 Means ! How amazing is it, that a Phyfician fhould 
 pretend to cure a complicated Malady, without once 
 touching at the Source of the Diforder, by flightly tick- 
 ling the outwards Parts, arid leaving the Vitals to perifh, 
 under a mortal Gangrene. 
 
 Every Man's Knowledge, yea, verily, every old Wo- 
 man's Knowledge, in this Kingdom, might have picked 
 out a Multitude of Inftances, and thofe much more fla- 
 grant than any thou haft mentioned, of the general 
 Wickednefs and Depravity of the Age we live in. That 
 was no Secret j and we needed neither Biftiop, Prophet, 
 nor Earthquake, to remind us, that the Cup of our Ini- 
 quity is near full, and that nothing but the fupera- 
 bundant Mercy und long lufFering Patience of the Al- 
 mighty, could hinder us from falling a c acrifice to his 
 offended Juftice. For it is one of the Sins peculiar to 
 this Age, that we have been induftrious in finding out 
 new Species of Wickednefs, and that we never commit 
 an old Fault, but for want of Invention to diversify the 
 Crime, and heighten the Relifh of Iniquity by the honid 
 Novelty of it; and that we are fo far from pretending to 
 a£r. thro' Ignorance or want of Knowledge of our Duty, 
 that the greateft Pleafure of our Iniquities conflfts in our 
 Knowledge of their being prohibited by God, and de~ 
 flrudtive of our future and eternal Happinefs. An' 
 uniyerfal Depravation of Manners reigns thro' all Sorts 
 of People in this finful Land ; and an utter Abhorrence 
 and Deteflation of every Thing, that bcafs but the 
 
 fmalleft
 
 ( '6 ) 
 
 fraalleft Refemblance of Virtue and Piety, have poiTefTed 
 the Hearts and Minds of this profligate Generation. 
 The Kingdom of God is not among the wicked Inhabi- 
 tants of this Ifland. The Kingdom of Satan prevails 
 and reigns triumphant in our debauched Streets. Our 
 Nobles frequent anti-chriftian Diverfions, and forget the 
 Lord their God, and walk every Man according to the 
 Devices of his own Heart : While a venal Contagion 
 has fcized the whole Body of the People, who worfhip 
 Money as their God, and have faid unto Silver and 
 Gold, ye are our Deliverers, and our fure Help in Time 
 of Need. There is nothing fo facred, but what they 
 willingly barter for filthy Lucre. Juftice, Honefty, 
 Right and Wrong, are no longer underftood in this fin- 
 ful Land ; but every thing is weighed in the Scales of 
 Gain. Their very Souls they bring to the Account of 
 Profit and Lofs, making light of Futurity, and laughing 
 at Hell Torments, as the Invention of Priefts and Statef- 
 men. Whoredom, Adulteries, Fornications, and all 
 manner of beaftly Uncleannefs, are openly avowed ; and 
 he who does not plunge himfelf into all the Debaucheries 
 of the Stew*, with a high and open Hand, is looked 
 upon at a poor narrow-fpirited Creature unworthy of the 
 Company of Men of a noble and exalted Genius. Luxury, 
 Drunkennefs, and Gluttony, have overfpread the Ta- 
 bles and Dwellings of all Degrees of People. We feek 
 the BoweU of the Earth for Jewels to adorn us, and tra- 
 vel to the mod diftant Quarters of the World in Queft 
 of whatevrr may gratify our vicious Appetites, and yet 
 never think of the God, that furnifhes our unnatural 
 Wants. Our Women are afhamed of Modefty. They deck 
 themfelves in gorgeous Apparel, and cxpofe half their 
 Pcrfons naked to allure the Eyes of the Wicked. Mur- 
 der, Robberies, and the moft barefaced Perjuri s, are 
 every Day to be met with in our Streets ; even Crimes 
 that would (hock Modefty but to mention are as com- 
 mon as Petty Larceny. Yet we are fpared, and the fin- 
 ful Land (lands a Monument of the long-fuffering Pa- 
 tience of the Almighty. 
 
 This,
 
 (t7) 
 
 This, Friend, is a- Supplement to the Lift of thy 
 deadly Sins ; and doft not thee think, that it makes a 
 moft dreadful Appearance, and that fomc of them me- 
 : riled to be mentioned in a more ferious Manner than 
 thou haft done ? And yet there is one Evil under th« 
 $#n, which -I have not hitherto defcanted on j and 
 -'tha-t Evil is as great, perhaps, as all the rell put to- 
 gether-': And the opirit moveth me to think, and de- 
 liver unto- -thee, that this Evil, I am now going to ex- 
 •pofe, 'is the Spring, Source, and Fountain-Head, of all 
 • the braek Crimes I have rehearfed, and of many more, 
 "that could not com- within the Compafs of my Know- 
 ledge.- 
 
 t would willingly, if I durft, prevaricate, and conceal 
 this fatal Evil ; but as the Eyes of the People are Upon us, 
 as their Fears are awakened* and they feem in fome 
 Meafure willing to find out a Way to rid them of thi« 
 Load of Sin, that ftands as a Wall of Brafs between 
 them and the Mercy of their God, it is neceiTary, fince 
 we have pointed out the Malady, that we fhould difplay 
 the Source, in order to direct them to a Cure. 
 
 Thou wouldft have a Reformation begin in Private 
 Families : but alas ! thou art fatally miftaken. The 
 Thing is impoffible. It is building downwards. A great 
 many People in this Ifhnd are fo unhappily fituated, 
 that they muft continue to be wicked, and to adminifter 
 to Vice, or ceafe to eat. In (hort, their Circumftances 
 are fo connected with the prevailing Vices, that they 
 have no other Choice left, but either to ftarve here, or 
 fubmit to be damned nereafter. This is a dreadful Cafe, 
 Friend, and hardly credible : yet a little Knowledge of 
 the World, and Acquaintance with the prefent Times, 
 wiil futniih innumerable Inftances of Wretches in this 
 unhappy Dilemma. What muft fuch People do ? Doit 
 think a Sermon, or a Paftoral Letter, can perfuade them 
 to ftarve litre for the fake of an happy Hereafter ? No ! 
 Appetites are ftrong ; and as this Oafs of Men have 
 many great Examples to follow, they are no wavs inti- 
 midated by what either Thou haft, or I could utter unto 
 
 C t-. . ■
 
 ( i8 ) 
 
 them on this tremendous Occaiion. Before then the 
 body of the People can be reformed without a Mir-cle, 
 it is neceflary, that thefe Publick Vices fhould be plucked 
 up by the Roots ; and that the Reformation fhould 
 begin amongit thofe of higher Rank, amongft our Ru- 
 lers, and the Grandees of the Land : but more efpecially, 
 amongft that Order of Men, the worldly and diflblute 
 Example of fome of whom have moft contributed to 
 taint the Morals, and pervert the Judgment of the Com- 
 munity. I mean, Friend, thy Brethren, the Clergy. 
 Start not, my Brother ! I am not going to bring a rail- 
 ing Accufation againft thee in Perfon, or to Accufe thy 
 Fraternity in a Lump. 1 verily believe there may be a 
 great Number of thy Profcflion, who make a Conscience 
 of their Duty j and as much as lye<h in their Power, 
 both by Precept and Example, endeavour to ftcm the 
 Torrent ol Vice and Immorality. But thou knoweft as 
 well as I, that there are many in the World, who are 
 Wolves in Sheepb Cloathing, who deftroy the Flock they 
 fhould feed, and poifun by their Example the pure Streams 
 ot the Gofpel, with which they ought to water the Vine- 
 yard of the L«rH. Its not to be concealed, nor palliated, 
 that tl>tic is no Vice, however odious, pra&ifed by the 
 blind Laity, but what is likewife committed by fome of 
 more enlightened Teachers : This, Friend, is the 
 pre;it Evil I hinted -t above. This is the S»urcc of all 
 our Vv ceb, and here, and no where elfe, the Reforma- 
 tion mull begin. 
 
 How is it pcflible for diet to think, that though the 
 Clergv were to preach as with the Voice of Angels, that 
 their Difcdurfes fhould have any Effeft upon the Minds 
 or Morals of the People, as long a» they lee thefe very 
 Clergy, or a great Number of them, acting diametri- 
 cally oppofite to the Do&rines they teach ; and living in 
 fuch a Manner, as if tliev the mfe Ives did not believe one 
 Word of the l-cred Truths they are inculcating. 
 
 An inordinate Love of Money is a reigning Sin of the 
 Age. Now, let sll the Clergv of this Jfland join with 
 enc Vcice in the Pulp.: io pieach it down, deft thee 
 
 think
 
 ( '9 ) 
 
 think the Playing of their Lungs would be of any Signi- 
 ficancy, as long as the People fee, that thefe Men fet as 
 great a Value upon the ungodly Mammon, as the meaneft 
 of thern can poffibly do ? When they fee thefe pretended 
 pious Preachen, like Simon Magus, purchafing and felling 
 the Holy GhbfV for Money j fwallowing Oaths for the 
 Sake of Preferments, that for Years they had declared to 
 be againft their Consciences ; hunting eargerly after fat 
 I/ivings, Tithes, and Pigs, and heaping up Pluralities, 
 and Commendams, to gratify their Pride and Avarice : 
 When at the fame Time they grudge the lead Indulgence 
 to the Drudges, to whofe Care they commit the Souls of 
 the People. With what Face can they preach againft 
 Luxury, and Senfuality, when they themfelves 
 wallow in the Fat of the Land, and loll about in their 
 Leathern Conveniencies, in fadly unedifying Pomp* Pride, 
 and Vanity ? Chaftity, Sobriety, and Temperance, are 
 Virtues, perhaps as much Strangers in the Tents of Levi, 
 as in the Tabernacles of the Tribe of Nepthali. But 
 Pride, Spiritual Pride, the worft of Pride, and the Itch 
 of Domination have taken full Poffeffion of the Caffock, 
 and left the Laity but a faint Mimickry of that ugly 
 Habit of the Soul ; And as for Charity, and Chriftian 
 Benevolence, thofe feem to be no Part of the Creed of a 
 modern Prieft. Tnftead of healing the Divifions amongft 
 Chriftians, bearing with the Weaknefs and Infirmities 
 of their Brethren, and, like the Apoftle, becoming ail 
 Things to all Men, that by all Means fame may bt faved ; 
 inftead of yielding in Matters of Indifference, and en- 
 deavouring to bring about a Chriftian Coalition, they are 
 obftinate in Trifles, tenacious of the Rags, Fringes, and 
 Patches of Religion, and damn all that won't go to Hea- 
 ven by the direct Path that they have marked out for 
 them, but which they themfelves feem refolved by their 
 daily Practice never to travel. 
 
 When the People, Friend, obferve, (and their Eyes 
 are quicker than their Underftanding) that the Parfon of 
 the Parifti winks at the Immorality of his Patron, be- 
 eaufe he has great Livings in his Gift - t when they fee 
 
 C 2 him
 
 ( H) 
 
 him join in his fenfual Exccfles,.and admin'fter to him 
 the moft Holy R.tes of tlicir Religion, tho* he. knows 
 liim to live in open Unclcancfi, perhaps in Adultery, and 
 to betrav, fell, and rum bis Country, 1 fay, Friend, 
 when a Flock fees this Shepherd thus proflltuting his Pro,-, 
 feffion, and carting holy Things before Swine, and this, 
 only tor the Hopes of a Plurality, or Commendam, or. 
 Diiinity to feed his fpiri'tual Pride with, is it poffihle foe 
 them to conclude thofe Sins fo heinous? Doe* not his 
 Example influence thofe of his Family, and the Ex- 
 amples of thefe thofe of the Village, nil the dreadful, 
 black, Contagion fpreads, like a Peft, over a whole 
 County ? Who th n arc tj blame for this? Why, ve- 
 rily, none but the profligate venal Clcrg\rmn. For it he 
 exerted hisEcclefiaftical Power, with as much Zeal againfj; 
 Vice and hrophanenefs, as.'hedoes in the RccSvdry of his 
 Tvthes, the Great would be obliged to quit their open 
 Sins, and the little ones would not be ltd afhay by his 
 fcandalous Example. 
 
 But, it is time, my Friend Thomas, to draw towards a 
 Conclufion. A Reformation is certainly necefLry. tor 
 whether we are punifhed by an Earthquake or not, the 
 natural Tendency of Vice is fuch, that a few Years 
 longer Continuance of it rauft bring aldng with it 
 Plagues enow to punifh us grievoufly here, as we fhalj 
 eeiumljr meet a dreadful Reward hereafter. Let me ad- 
 vi.cthy Brethren, the Clergy, in all Charity and Meekr 
 nefs, to begin the grc.t Work thesnfelvcs. Purge and 
 make clean the Houle of the Lord, and drive all Pollu- 
 tion fiom his hap&uary. Let the Pnefthood that are 
 proud become humble, meek, and lowly, even as was 
 Jt/us, whof; Servants they are. Let them put away the 
 tkifc Gods from amongtt them, and deftroy the Idol 
 they have fet up in their Hearts; that is, let thtm ba- 
 niOi the Love of Money, the Itch of Power and Domi- 
 nion, cither over the Minds or Temporalities of the Peo- 
 ple. Let him, that his two Livings, give one to his poor 
 Brother; let him, that pciformeth the Labour of the 
 V,ncy*rd, icccivc alfp the Wa^cs j and let not the 
 
 Drone
 
 ( 21 ) 
 
 Drone eat up the Meat of the Induflrious Servant. Let 
 them exeit their Power without rcfped of Perfons, yet 
 with all Humility and Meeknefs, not out of Malice, or 
 to gratify their Spleen, but for the Love of Truth and 
 Puiity, In a Word, Friend, when they believe what they 
 havefworn at their Ordination to believe, and maintain; 
 when they teach only what they believe, and a£t as they 
 teach, then without the Gift of Prophecy I can foretell, 
 that this Land will return to the Lord, and his Wrath 
 will be turned from this Generation, and his Bleflings 
 multiplied upon our Childrens' Children, even unto the 
 latcftAgesof the World. But, Friend, till either thy 
 Brethren do this of themfelves, or are compelled to it by 
 their Superiours, nothing lefs than a divine Miracle can 
 redeem this Land from the Slavery of Sin. May Some- 
 body begin a thorough Reformation fomewhere, that 
 we may have Peace in our Days. The God of Peace be 
 with thee, Friend ! Amen. 
 
 FINIS.
 
 
 . I 
 
 . 
 
 . 
 
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