fifting fpirit required it-no other means could be found-no cafuiftry-no fophiftry could fupport the abolition and diftruction of earthly Monarchy; but the denial of heavenly Supremacy.

I fhall conclude with affuring you of my inviolable attachment to our good old principles; trufting that you, Thomas, will commune with, and advife all your neighbours to think and stedfastly act in the same way; bid them remember the Fables of "the old Man and his Sons with the bundle of "Sticks;" and of " the Houfe divided againft itfelf." Bid them, "Set their hearts and minds against innovatiors and levelling plunderers:" those profeft foes to the bleffed doctrine of "peace and good will to all, -So faying,

THANK you over and over again for your very kind let

heartily agree with what you fay. It was very thoughtful of you to caution me against the fnares that evil minded men were laying for me, for you know very well that I am too plain, too honeft, and too open hearted; and too apt to believe every body like myself---fincere, juft, and true: though I must own, that I have been fo often tricked (both by Englih, as well as by foreign fharpers) that I begin to look sharp now, therefore not fo easy to be taken in: befides, as I fear God and love my King and Country, and always pray to the Lord to deliver me from the crafts and fubtleties that the Devil or man worketh against me, I trust that he will give me grace to refift the temptations of the Devil; and power to overcome wicked men, which are his IMPS. I am amazed to hear that we are to learn every thing from thofe French Tigers (for they are not Monkies now) as they have changed their mimicking and chattering, into clawing and biting. But what are

we

we to learn from 'em? To cut innocent folk's heads off, and carry 'em about the ftreets fixed on a pole, marching to their hellish tune of Ca ira and other cruelties too fhocking to mention. You fay we must believe out of the French bibles; but I say that I never will: for the words of bad men must give way to the word of God. If it begins with faying that men are all equal, it begins with a lye; and as lying is the work of the Devil, it must have been wrote by his direction. They may as well fay that Brutes are equal; but we know better; for the Mule is not equal to the Elephant; the Afs to the. Horfe, or the Pig to the Lion; neither in ftrength nor wisdom. This fhews that the Almighty maker of the world thought proper in his infinite wifdom) to make diftinctions: and he faw that all this was good. But let us fuppofe that men are born equal (because they all come into the world without a fhirt) do you think they can remain fo long? No; because the . honeft, fober, induftrious faving man will encrease his property; while the lazy, fculking, drunken rafcal, will remain poor and miferable. Here begins the alteration of equality; a thing that has always been, and always will be as long as the world ftands therefore the only way to be equal, is to be virtuous. Some nights ago I went to finoke a pipe with your old friend, David Trufty, (Sir John Blunt's steward) a sensible worthy old man, who has never done an unfair thing towards any one. He gave us a fhort hiftory of the French Revolution, by way of letting us know what we must expect if we tried to make one here; for it is eafy to begin, but very hard to end.

When the National Affembly, faid Trufty, began to pull down religion, it was plain that they wanted to make themselves masters; and they were cunning enough to know, that if the people continued to fear God, they never would confent to murder and plunder their neighbours: therefore they told them religion was all a hum, and that they would live as happy if they worked or danced, or got drunk of a Sunday, as they would be if they went to church morning and afternoon As it is more easy to perfuade people to do evil than to do good, they foon made them of their way of thinking, fo they all became Atheists, that is to fay, they neither feared God nor Devil. Now, my good friends, we all know very well that when man forfakes God, God forfakes him; fo he is left intirely to the will of Satan, who gives him work enough to do. No wonder that they joined with fuch good wills in robbing the Church and Clergy, and in butchering and banishing the great for the fake of their property. Can such a nation stand long? will not the fire of Heaven fall upon

it and confume it like Sodom and Gomorrah? Who, and what are the men, said I, that have accepted the Devil's commiffion to do all that mifchief? Why, faid he, the most active of their leaders were the most wicked, the most profligate, and the most villanous rascals in the kingdom; juft like the men with whom they are linked in this country: fellows that have no honefty, no property, nor no credit: over-head and ears in debt; afraid of going to prifon, and ready to undertake any thing, no matter what! away they go, neck or nothing, fink or fwim, 'tis all one to them: they know that they can't change for the worse, and that makes them willing to try what luck will bring,

When I asked him who began to put fuch bad thoughts in the heads of Englifhmen, who are noted all over the world for the love of their country? He answered, it must have been the Devil in the fhape of Thomas Paine: for no man could be malicious enough to disturb the peace of his fellow creatures without provocation. Pray have you ever heard of the life of Mad Tom the writer of the Rights of Rogues; No, faid I; then I'll tell it you. To his shame, be it faid, he was born in England; by trade a Stay-maker; and he was too idle to earn his bread. He fold the goods of his ready-furnished lodging, and ran away with the money. He married two wives at once; one of them died of a broken heart from his ill ufage; and the other he left to starve, if fhe liked it. He was in the Excife; but was kicked out for roguery. Then he went to America; and there he betrayed his country by helping the Americans to stab their old mother, who had brought them up fo tenderly; but finding that he is almost recovered of the wound, and likely to live comfortably and creditably for many years, he is gone over to France, to prevail upon them, if he can, to come over and give her the death blow, as he is in hopes of getting part of her eftates. As the French are deterinined to banish all honeft men, and to encourage vagabonds, they have made him one of their members: fo Tom is raifed from the thopboard to the parliament houfe; and inftead of making stays for three fhillings a day, he gets fifteen for making laws: and you may judge how good they will be from the goodness of his actions." "Can a poor mad wretch," faid I,“ who ought to be chained in Bedlam or Newgate, boaft of making laws for the world; and in particular a conftitution for old Englynd, who is as found and as fresh as a four-year old? Does he and his brothers think that we shall be as easily gulled as the French? and that Britons, who enjoy more liberty

and

and property, than any nation under Heaven, will change it for their foolish equality?

But how can people be all equal? If every body was fo, how fhould I get a man to go to plough, a boy to tend the cows, and a maid to mind the dairy? If men were all made equal, very few would work; fo we should foon be as they are in Franee---half starved, Dont you think this equality fcheme was invented by fome jail-bird, as a new way to pay off old debts?" " When I look at what paffes in their convention," faid Trufty, "I hardly fee any thing but complaints that make my heart ache. In one place they have no bread, and are obliged to eat bran boiled with garden-ftuff; in another their poor foldiers are ftarving for want of food and cloaths; forced to march barefooted upon flints, because they have neither fhoes nor stockiugs. In one town there's five thousand men out of work; in another, ten; and at Lyons thirty thoufand filk-weavers are dying with hunger, because their looms are all stopped: and all this owing to their banishing and plundering the rich, which are the only people that can afford to encourage trade. How would the numerous family of the Bulls (who have been admired by foreigners for their fat, jolly rofy faces and round bellies) like to change roast beef aud plumb pudding for bran and garden-stuff; and to be all made equal by changing their round faces and paunches for thin jaws and lank guts?" "Not at all," said I: "but is that their equality?" "They are equal in nothing," faid he, "but in appearance; and that is half ragged and half famished." "They were always very poor," faid a man who had lived there; " for I remember falt was fo dear that they could scarcely get a bit to eat with their meat.' "And do you think them better off now, faid Trusty, "that they have no meat to eat with their falt ?"

After hearing of fo many miferies brought upon the poor of that unhappy country by a fet of wicked, felfifh men, can you fuppofe, my dear Thomas, that I could be fuch a noodle as to believe any of the wretches (although they be Englishmen) they may fend into the country to deceive me? No; thank God and good friends I know better; and if they expect to make a fool of me, they'll be mistaken; and they may find, to their coft, that they took hold of the wrong fow by the ear. An ill looking dog (but well dreffed) came to the house where I was with Mr. Trufty, and asked leave to join us; and after calling for his bottle, he began talking about Liberty and Equality, Rights of Man, and fo forth: at last he finished by faying that he wondered why the people would not do as the French, join hand in hand to pull down the great, for this was

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the

the right time, and if they did not fucceed they had nothing to lofe. What an impudent lie," faid I: "do you know an Englishman (except he is a lazy fellow, a drunkard, or a vagabond) that has nothing to lofe? Suppofe that a journeyman carpenter lofes his cheft of tools; will that be nothing? if that poor labourer lofes four weeks labour in helping you, will that be nothing? How is his wife and family to live? by the parish, you'll fay; but how is the parish to keep them when the rich are become poor, and their wealth divided among thieves who will remain to pay the poor's rates? you mean, (though you don't dare fay it) that he may get a good booty, but if he does, it won't do him any good, becaufe he won't come by it honeftly, so he may ftand a chance at laft, of dying like a thief at the gallows, in a jail, or in a ditch for few of them die in their beds. "Well," faid he, as we cannot agree, I'll go: fo here's Tom Paine, Liberty and Equality." "You rafcal," faid an old foldier, "if you speak another word I'll break your head; the king is my mafter; and what is more, a good hufband, a good father, and a good man. I have eat his bread a many years, and would lofe my life to fave his: and fooner than lift my hand against the man that feeds me, I would chop it off! Is there a man here, that would not do the fame?" "God forbid," said I, we fhould be worfe than dogs, if we had no gratitude, for they always lick the hand that gives them food."

:

"Thefe villains," faid Trufty, "are hired to go about in this manner to preach the hellish doctrines of their employers, who know, (by what has been done in France) that they can't dethrone the King; put his Family in Prifon; overturn_the Church and murder its Minifters; banish the Nobility and Gentry; and make themselves masters of the Kingdom, without the help of working men; for that reafon these rafcals are sent to make the people diffatisfied, and to have them ready to join in a Mob: Beware of thefe Wolves in Sheep's cloathing: for they lock full of meeknefs and fanctity, and by their canting and whining, will perfuade you that they are harmless as lambs: but that's all pretence: for their hearts are full of felfifhne's and deceit : therefore keep in mind the mifchief they have done, and guard against what they would do! If these men are not ashamed of taking the natural enemies of this Country and Reiigion by the hand, and offer their service to them; if they are not afhamed of fending a Briton, to be changed into a French Citizen, I have no reason to be afhamed of faying that fuch actions don't become a good Pro

as

testant,