LETTERS BETWEEN DR. BEATTIE AND BISHOP

PORTEUS.

[From Sir William Forbes's Life of Dr. Beattie.]

DR. BEATTIE TO THE REV. DR. PORTEUS. Peterhead, 4th August, 1774. HAVE made many efforts to express, in something like adequate language, my grateful sense of the honour done me by the Right Reverend Prelate* who makes me offer conveyed to me in your most friendly letter of the 24th July. But every new effort serves only to convince me, more and more, how unequal I am to the task.

When I consider the extraordinary reception which my weák endeavours in the cause of truth have met with, and compare the greatness of my success, with the insignificance of my merit, what reasons have I not to be thankful and humble! to be ashamed that I have done so little public service, and to regret that so little is in my power! to rouse every power of my nature to purposes of benevolent tendency, in order to justify, by my intentions at least, the unexampled generosity of my benefac

tors!

My religious opinions would, no doubt, if I were to declare them, sufficiently account for, and vindicate, my becoming a member of the Church of England; and I Hatter myself, that my studies, way of life, and habits of thinking, have always been such as would not disqualify me for an ecclesiastical profession. If I were to become a clergyman, the Church of England would certainly be my choice, as I think, that, in regard to church-government and church-service, it has many great and peculiar advantages. And I am so far from having any natural disinclination to holy orders, that I have several times, at different periods of my life, been disposed to enter into them, and have directed my studies accordingly. Va

* Dr. Thomas, then Bishop of Winchester, had offered Dr. Beattie, through Dr. Porteus, a living of 500l. a year, if he chose to enter into the ministry of the Church of England. A similar offer had before been made to him by Dr. Drummond, Archbishop of York, which, for the reasons stated in the above letter, he declined."

rious accidents however prevented me; some of them pretty remarkable, and such as I think I might, without presumption, ascribe to a particular interposition of Providence."

The offer, now made me, is great and generous beyond all expectation. I am well aware of all the advantages and honours that would attend my accepting, and yet, I find myself obliged, in conscience, to decline it; as I lately did another of the same kind, (though not so considerable) that was made me on the part of another English gentleman. The reasons which did then, and do now, determine me, I beg leave, Sir, briefly to lay before you.

I wrote the "Essay on Truth" with the certain prospect of raising many enemies, with very faint hopes of attracting the publicattention, and without any views of advancing my fortune. I published it, however, because I thought it might probably do a little good, bringing to nought, or at least lessening the reputation of that wretched system of sceptical philosophy, which had made a most alarming progress, and done incredible mishief to this country. My enemies have been at great pains to represent my views, in that publication, as very different: and that my principal, or only motive was, to make a book, and if possible, to raise myself higher in the world. So that, if I were now to accept preferment in the church, I should be apprehensive, that I might strengthen the hands of the gainsayer, and give the world some ground to believe, that my love of truth was not quite so ardent, or so pure, as I had pretended.

Besides, might it not have the appearance of levity and insincerity, and by some, be construed into a want of principle, if I were at these years (for I am now thirtyeight) to make such an important change in my way of life, and to quit, with no other apparent motive, than that of bettering my circumstances, that church of which I have hitherto been a member? If my book has any tendency to do good, as I flatter myself it has, I would not for the wealth of the Indies, do any thing to counteract that tenderey; and I am afraid that tendency might in some measure be counteracted, (at least in this country) if I were to give the adversary the least ground to charge me with inconsistency. It is truc, that the force of my reasonings cannot be really affected by my character; truth is truth, whoever be the speaker: Vol. XI. Churchm. Mag. Oct. 1806. Pp but

but even truth itself becomes less respectable, when spoken, or supposed to be spoken, by insincere lips.

It has also been hinted to ine, by several persons of very sound judgment, that what I have written, or may here after write, in favour of religion, has a chance of being more attended to, if I continue a layman, than if I were to become a clergyman. Nor am I without apprehensions, (though some of my friends think them ill-founded) that, from entering so late in life, and from so remote a province, into the Church of England, some degree of ungracefulness, particularly in pronunciation, might adhere to my performances in public, sufficient to render them less pleasing, and consequently less useful.

Most of these reasons were repeatedly urged upon me during my stay in England, last summer; and I freely own, that the more I consider them, the more weight they seem to have. And from the peculiar manner in which the King has been graciously pleased to distinguish me, and from other circumstances, I have some ground to presume that it is Majesty's pleasure, that I should continue where I am, and employ my leisure hours in prosecuting the studies I have begun. This I can find time to do more effectually in Scotland than in England, and in Aberdeen than in Edinburgh; which by the bye, was one of my chief reasons for declining the Edinburgh Professorship. The business of my professorship here, is indeed toilsome: but, I have, by fourteen years practice, made myself so much master of it, that it now requires little mental labour; and our long summer vacation of seven months, leaves me at my own disposal, for the greatest and best part of the year a situation favourable to literary projects, and now become necessary to my health.

Soon after my return home in autumn last, I had occasion to write to the Archbishop of York, on this subject. I specified my reasons for giving up all thoughts of church-preferment; and his Grace was pleased to approve of them; nay he condescended so far as to say, they did me honour. I told his Grace, moreover, that I had already given a great deal of trouble to my oble and generous patrons in England, and could not think of being. any longer a burden to them, now that his Majesty had so graciously and so generously made for me a provision equal to my wishes, and such as puts it in my power to obtain, in Scotland, every convenience of life, to which I have any title, or any inclination to aspire.

you

I must, therefore, make it my request to you, that would present my humble respects, and most thankful acknowledgments to the eminent person, at whose desire you wrote your last letter, (whose name I hope you will not be under the necessity of concealing from me) and assure him, that, though I have taken the liberty to decline his generous offer, I shall, to the last hour of my life, preserve a most grateful remembrance of the honour he has condescended to confer upon me; and, to prove myself not altogether unworthy of his goodness, shall employ that health and leisure which Providence may hereafter afford me, in opposing infidelity, heresy, and error, and in promoting sound literature and christian truth to the utmost of my power.

THE BISHOP OF CHESTER (DR. PORTEUS) TO DR.

BEATTIE.

Hunton, November 28th, 1777.

DURING our stay here, Dr. Robertson's "History of America" has been part of our evening's amusement. He is, without dispute, a very judicious compiler, and very elegant writer, and seems to have taken great pains in this work to collect all the information that could possibly be obtained from books and manuscripts, of which he has 'consulted a considerable number. Of these, some of the most curious were communicated to him by my friend Lord Grantham, Ambassador at Madrid, and his chaplain, Mr. Waddilove. But still the grand source of original information was not opened to him; I mean the letters and papers written to the Spanish Court by the first conquerors of America, and all the authentic documents relative to that transaction, which were collected by Philip the second, and deposited amongst the archives of the Spanish monarchy, at a place called Simanca, near Valladolid, above a hundred miles from Madrid. To these he could obtain no access; and till these are produced to the world, I shall never suppose that we have any history of South America, that can be absolutely relied upon. As far, however, as Dr. Robertson's materials go, he has set them off to the best advantage, and has enlightened them by many ingenious and useful observations on the natural and moral history of the Aborigines of that country. He

has, however, I think missed some opportunities, which this part of his work threw in his way, of drawing a comparison between the state of the savage and of the Christian world. He attributes the difference between them solely to the improvements of civil society. I am of opinion, that the gospel has had a large share in this happy change; and it would have been of infinite service to religion, to have had all its beneficial consequences set forth by so fine a pen as Dr. Robertson's. Such incidental arguments, in favour of religion, interspersed occasionally in works of acknowledged merit and reputation, are perhaps of more general use than professed defences of it. The enemies of Christianity have long taken this method of undermining it; and its friends therefore should not be backward in taking the same means to recommend it. Mr. Gibbon and the Abbé Raynal have more especially distinguished themselves by this species of hostility; for which reason I am sorry that Dr. Røbertson has paid them both such high compliments as he

has done.

I hear of nothing new and important in the literary world, that is likely to make its appearance this winter, except a new translation of Isaiah, by Bishop Lowth; of which the public has raised its expectations very high, from the known abilities and learning of the author.. This, I believe, is in very great forwardness. There is also an edition of "Strabo," by Mr. Falkner, a gentleman of Chester, every way equal to the undertaking, which is pretty far advanced. Archbishop Markham shewed me the other day, a collation for him, of a mauuscript in the Escurial, made under the direction of Canonico Bayer, and procured by the assistance of Lord Grantham.

VE

JOSEPH MEDE,

ERY remarkable and characteristic, though quaint, is the epitaph on this acute and learned divine, in the chapel of Christ's College Cambridge. It is as follows:

"Effare