King Charles II. once faid to that great man Mr. John Milton, "Do not you think your blindness is a judgment upon you, for having written in defence of my father's murder?"-Sir, anfwered the poet, it is true, I have loft my eyes; but, if all calamitous providences are to be confidered as judgments, your majefty fould remember that your royal father loft his head. That excellent man the late Rev. Mr. Jofeph Hart, made it his inviolable rule, not to let an Arian, an Arminian, or any unfound preacher, occupy his pulpit, fo much as once. His ufual faying, on those occafions, was, I will keep my pulpit as chafte as my bed. Monfieur de Voltaire forgets all his infidelity, on two occafions; viz. when he is fick, and when it thunders and lightens. He is fo particularly afraid of ftormy weather, that, if he happens to be writing when the "clouds pour down their torrents, the air thunders, and the arrows of the Almighty flash abroad," he will call out, in an agony of horror, for a bottle of holy water, and fprinkle himself with it from head to foot, and plentifully bedew the floors and walls of his apartments into the bargain. Immediately after which precaution, he orders mass to be faid in his chapel; and the maffes go on brifkly, one after another, until the thunder and lightening cease. But no fooner is the tempeft hufhed, than a clear fky and placid elements fettle him into à laughing Infidel again; and, refuming his pen, he writes against Christianity with as much acrimony, zeal, and want of argument, as ever.-This behaviour reminds me of an old proverb: "When the devil was fick, The devil a monk would be; A fuort A fhort time before the demife of queen Anne, as bishop Burnet was riding flowly in his coach, round that part of Smithfield, from whence fo many bleffed martyrs afcended to heaven, he obferved a gentleman, ftanding on the diftinguifhed fpot, in a mufing, penfive attitude, and, feemingly, quite abforbed in thought. His lordship ordered the carriage to ftop, and fent his fervant to the person, with a requeft that he would come to his coach fide. He did fo, and proved to be Dr. Evans, a very eminent diffenting minifter, of whom the bishop had fome knowledge; Brother Evans" faid the prelate, "give me your hand, and come up hither, I want to ask you a question." The doctor being feated, and the coachman ordered to continue driving round, as before, the bishop asked the doctor, what it was that directed his fteps to Smithfield? And what he was thinking of, while ftanding there ?"" I was thinking," answered the other," of the "of the many fervants of Chrift, who fealed the truth of their lives, in this place. I came purposely, to feast my eyes, once more, with a view of that precious fpot of ground. And as public matters have, at prefent, a very threatening afpect, I was examining myfelf, whether I had grace and ftrength enough, to fuffer for the gofpel, if I fhould be called to it, and was praying to God, that he would make me faithful even to death, if it fhould be his pleasure to let the old times come over again."-" I myself came hither," replied the prelate," on the fame bufinefs; I am perfuaded, that, if God's providence do not interpofe, very fpeedily, and almoft miraculously, thefe times will, and mùft, fhortly return. In which cafe, you and I fhall probably be two of the first victims that are to fuffer death at that place," pointing to the paved centre. But it pleased God to disappoint their fears, by giving a fudden turn to national affairs; within a few weeks weeks queen Anne was gathered to her fathers, and king George I. was proclaimed. King William being once advifed to take more care of his fafety, and not to hazard his perfon too much in the field of battle, anfwered, " Every bullet has its billet; meaning, that not a bullet flew at random, but was directed, by a particular providence, whom to injure, and whom to fpare. So the preaching of the gofpel is equally under divine direction. God's fpirit takes care that the word of truth fhall be a favour of life unto life, to this man; and a favour of death unto death, to that. An ingenious foreigner was, this week, obferving to me, That, "of all the nations of Europe, in which he had been, the English were the most afraid of death," I fear, the reafon is, because the English have lefs religion than other nations. Archbishop Potter wrote a letter to lady Huntingdon, to this effect: and, as nearly as he can remember (for he repeated it to me by memory), in these terms: "Dear Madam, "I have been very ill, fince I laft faw you. I hope foon to hear, from you, that your health is better for your being at Bath. Continue to pray for me, until we meet in that place, where our joy fhall be complete. I am, as ever, Your affectionate Friend, John Cant." After the good prelate had written the above letter, he was walking with it to his fcrutore, and (as his fon, Mr. Potter, acquainted lady Huntingdon), being feized with a fudden fyncope, dropped upon the floor, and expired with the letter in his hand. A very A very remarkable circumftance is related, concerning Monfieur Huet, the learned bishop of Avranches. During the latter years of his life, his genius and memory gradually failed: but, two or three hours before his death, being then in the ninety-first year of his age, his genius revived, his memory returned, and he enjoyed all his intellectual faculties in their original vigour.-So, with the people of God, faith, hope, love, joy, and other gracious fruits of the fpirit, may feem to decline: but, before a faint expires, they all flourish again, in as great or greater liveliness than ever. God does not take away his children, until he has given them a lightening before death. Thales, the Miletian, one of the feven Sages of Greece, while he refided in Egypt, measured the exact height of the pyramids there, by the fhadows they caft. So, one way of attaining to the knowledge of doctrinal truths, is, by confidering the confequences of the oppofite errors. Some gentlemen and ladies were, a Sunday or two ago, refused admittance into the Magdalen Chapel, though they fhewed their tickets. On afking the door-keeper, "Why he objected to their going in?" he answered, that he had orders to admit no perfons, but fuch as were in full drefs.-Surely, this is a very ridiculous regulation. There is, however, a church, where this regulation is indifpenfable, and moft ftrictly right. I mean, the Church above. No admittance there, for any fouls that are not in full drefs. You must put on Chrift for your wedding garment, and wear his refplended righteoufnefs, by imputation; if ever you mean to shine at God's right-hand, and to have a feat in the Church triumphant. The The late king of Sweden was, it feems, under great impreffions of fpiritual religion, for fome time before his death. A peasant being once, on a particular occafion, admitted to his prefence, the king, knowing him to be a perfon of fingular piety, afked him, "what he took to be the true nature of faith?" The peafant entered deeply into the fubject, and much to the king's comfort and fatisfaction.-The king, at laft, lying on his death-bed, had a return of his doubts and fears, as to the fafety of his foul; and still the fame queftion was perpetually in his mouth, to those about him, "What is real faith ?" His attendants advised him to fend for the archbishop of Upfall: who, coming to the king's bedfide, began, in a learned, logical manner, to enter into the fcholaftic definition of faith. The prelate's difquifition lafted an hour. When he had done, the king faid, with much energy, "All this is ingenious; but not comfortable: it is not what I want. Nothing, after all, but the farmer's faith will do for me." Told me by Mrs. Gallatin, Oct. 1769. I had the following anecdote from the late worthy Mr. Davis of Hatton Garden, London; whose fa ther had it from one who lived during the plague, and who was well acquainted with the nobleman to whom it refers. Lord Craven lived in London, when that fad calamity raged. His houfe was in that part of the town, fince called (from the circumftance of Craven House being fituated there) Craven Buildings. On the plague growing epidemic, his lordship, to avoid the danger, refolved to go to his feat in the country. His coach and fix were accordingly at the door, his baggage put up, and all things in readinefs for the journey. As he was walking through the hall, with his hat on, his cane under his arm, and putting on |