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Stone, the primate of Ireland, to proceed in com pleting his work, he plucked up courage, and refolved to persevere.

As our author acknowledges, and had ferious reasons to regret, the cold neglect and languid fale which his History met with, one is rather surprised to find him employing, in the narrative of his Own Life, a language calculated to deceive us into an opinion, that his performance burst on the world with uncommon attraction, and that it was the general and fole topic of public difcuffion. Speaking of the applaufe, which he expected from his hiftorical labours, he adds-" but miferable was my disappointment: I was affailed by one cry of reproach, difapprobation, and even deteftation. English, Scotch, and Irish, whig and tory, churchman and fectary, free-thinker and religionist, patriot and courtier, united in their rage against "the man who had prefumed to fhed a generous

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tear for the fate of Charles I. and the Earl of "Strafford; and after the firft ebullitions of their fury were over, what was still more mortifying, "the book feemed to fink into oblivion."

Janfenism and the Bull Unigenitus did not excite a greater flame, than the awful description, given in the preceding quotation, might lead us to infer to have been produced by the first volume of his History. Yet it is not eafy to conceive, how a work could engage universal notice, and meet with fuch ardent and general reprehenfion, without being

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Mr. Hume, however,

in the hands of every one. difclofes a fecret fatal to the warm reprefentation, which he has given of the tremendous tempeft he had raised; for in the very next fentence he tells us, that Millar fold only forty-five copies of it in a twelve-month.

In the mean time a ftorm of a more alarming tendency threatened the fpiritual and temporal interests of our hiftorian. It is in vain to conceal, that deifm, or a religious creed approximating to it, had begun to fpread among the literary circles at Edinburgh; and Lord Kames and Mr. Hume, being the only perfons who had ventured to commit their philofophical tenets to writing, were confidered as the grand apoftles of infidelity. What rendered this more dangerous in the opinion of the puritanical party was, that both these authors were men of great amenity of manners; and not only was their acquaintance valued and fought by most of the eminent characters in their neighbourhood, but they lived in habits of the ftricteft intimacy with the more refpectable clergymen of the city.

The rigid notions of Calvin and John Knox were not yet in difrepute, and the prevalence of fcience had not altogether effaced the ancient intolerant spirit of the clerical profeffion. In the General Affembly, which is the fupreme ecclesiastical judicature of the Scottish church, two great parties had long fubfifted, the one profeffing more liberal

and

and moderate principles than the other. The zealots, in the warmth of oppofition, affected to take great offence at many of their opponents for cultivating the friendship of Kames and Hume, in whofe writings they now began to difcover the most noxious doctrines; and finally refolved, by attacking thefe, to expofe their enemies to popular obloquy, if not to defeat.

In taking this ftep they were encouraged by event, which had lately happened in England. Towards the end of the year 1754, the learned world beheld with astonishment, indignation, and difmay, the prefentment of Lord Bolingbroke's philofophical works, and of David Mallet, their editor, by the Grand Jury of Middlefex. The fingularity of this precious relic of intolerance will apologize for its infertion here; after which will be related the powerful attempt made by the puritans in Scotland to imitate, in reference to Mr. Hume and Lord Kames, the difgraceful conduct of the high-church faction in England.

The prefentment was as follows: "We the grand jurors of the liberty of the Dean and Chapter of the collegiate church of St. Peter, Weftminster, the city, borough, and town of Weftminfter, &c. being impannelled and fworn at this prefent general quarter-feflions of the peace, held at the town-court houfe near Weftminster-hall, on Wednesday the 16th day of October, before Thomas,

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Lediard Efq. chairman, &c. and alfo to hear and determine divers felonies, trefpaffes, and other mifdeeds done and committed within the faid liberty: Being fenfible that every infult upon the religion is a violation of the laws of our country; and that though the liberty of the prefs is the dif tinguished character of British freedom, yet it becomes a nuisance when it is employed in propagating licentiousness of principles: Having within our own breasts the cleareft conviction, that the credibility of all evidence in our courts of justice depends upon the belief of the truths of Chriftianity and a future ftate; and that every attempt (whether made by writing, or by debating in publick affemblies, which are equally impious as they are illegal) to unfettle that belief in the minds of the people, tends to fubvert every principle of regulated government and of civil fociety: Alarmed likewife, as we are, by the prevailing degeneracy of morals, which is encouraged, nay defended from the prefs; and convinced that the more celebrated the name of an author is, the more extenfive is the mischief which his writings may effect, when employed to the purposes of irreligion we are defirous to give this teftimony of our abhorrence of an infult upon the majesty of God, in a country where the majefty of the King is held fo defervedly facred. We are fenfible that liberty is never fo much endangered as when it is abufed; and that whatever private opinions any man may entertain, fuch opinions ought not to be

carried

carried into an open contempt and avowed infringement of the established religion, that is, the establifhed laws of his country.

"Moved by thefe and many other confiderations, while we cenfure the indecency, we affert the dignity, of the prefs; and by curbing its licentiousness, we vindicate its liberty. Nor can we discharge our confciences of the high truft repofed in us, without prefenting to the cenfure of this court, for the fake of prevention as well as example, and we hereby do humbly present, a book published in this city and liberty, entitled, The Philofophical Works of the late Right Honourable Henry St. John, Lord Vifcount Bolingbroke, in five volumes; tending, by the general scope of feveral pieces therein contained, as well as many particular expreflions which have been laid before us, to the fubverfion of religion, government, and morality, and being against his Majefty's peace. And we do farther present David Mallet Efq. as the editor, and Dr. Morris of Stable-yard, Rider-street, Weftminster, as publifher of the faid book."

The proceedings against our two Scottish au thors were carried on in the church judicatories. The General Affembly having convened at Edinburgh on the 22d of May, 1755, under the prefidency of Lord Cathcart as his Majefty's commiffioner, and of the Rev. Mr. George Reid, minifter of St. Quivox, as moderator, a pamphlet, the author of which is unknown, appeared on the following

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