which the providing against it might otherwise involve them in. And as, in the order of the world, it was neceffary, for the support of magiftracy and government, and for preferving its efteem, that some state be used, (though it is a happiness when great men have philofophical minds to defpife the pageantry of it,) fo the plentiful fupply of the clergy, if well used and applied by them, will certainly turn to the advantage of religion. And, if fome men either through ambition or covetousness used indirect means, or fervile compliances, to aspire to fuch dignities, and, being poffeffed of them, applied their wealth either to luxury or vain pomp, or made great fortunes out of it for their families, thefe were perfonal failings, in which the doctrine of Chrift was not concerned.

He upon that told me plainly, there was nothing that gave him, and many others, a more fecret encouragement in their ill ways, than that thofe, who pretended to believe, lived fo that they could not be thought to be in earnest when they faid it: for he was fure religion was either a mere contrivance, or the most important thing that could be; fo that, if he once believed, he would fet himself in great earneft to live fuitably to it. The afpirings that he had obferved at court of fome of the clergy, with the fervile ways they took to attain to preferment, and the animofities among thofe of feveral parties,

about

about trifles, made him often think they fufpected the things were not true, which in their fermons and difcourfes they fo earneftly recommended. Of this he had gathered many inftances; I knew fome of them were mistakes and calumnies; yet I could not deny but fomething of them might be too true : and I publish this the more freely, to put all that pretend to religion, chiefly thofe that are dedicated to holy functions, in mind of the great obligation that lies on them to live fuitable to their profeffion; fince otherwise a great deal of the irreligion and atheism, that are among us, may too juftly be charged on them: for wicked men are delighted out of measure when they difcover ill things in them, and conclude, from thence, not only that they are hypocrites, but that religion itself is a cheat.

But I faid to him upon this head, that, though no good man could continue in the practice of any known fin, yet such might, by the violence or furprise of a temptation, to which they are liable as much as others, be on a fudden overcome to do an ill thing, to their great grief all their life after; and then it was a very unjust inference, upon fome few failings, to conclude that fuch men do not believe themselves. But, how bad foever many are, it cannot be denied but there are alfo many, both of the clergy and laity, who give great and real demon

Ꭰ 3

demonftrations of the power religion has over them, in their contempt of the world, the strictness of their lives, their readiness to forgive injuries, to relieve the poor, and to do good on all occafions; and yet even these may have their failings, either in fuch things in which their conftitutions are weak, or their temptations ftrong and fudden; and in all fuch cafes we are to judge of men rather by the course of their lives than by the errors that they, through infirmity or surprise, may have flipt into.

These were the chief heads we have difcourfed on; and, as far as I can remember, I have faithfully repeated the fubftance of our arguments.. I have not concealed the strongest things he faid to me; but, though I have not enlarged on all the excurfions of his wit in fetting them off, yet I have given them their full ftrength, as he expreffed them, and, as far as I could recollect, have used his own words; `fo that I am afraid fome may cenfure me for setting down these things fo largely, which impious men may make an ill use of, and gather together to encourage and defend themselves in their vices: but, if they will compare them with the anfwers made to them, and the fenfe that fo great and refined a wit had of them afterwards, I hope they may, through the bleffing God, be not altogether ineffectual

The iffue of all our difcourfe was this; he told

me,

me, he faw vice and impiety were as contrary to human fociety as wild beafts let loose would be; and therefore he firmly refolved to change the whole method of his life, to become ftrictly juft and true, to be chafte and temperate, to forbear fwearing and irreligious difcourfe, to worfhip and pray to his Maker; and that, though he was not arrived at a full perfuafion of Chriftianity, he would never employ his wit more to run it down, or to corrupt

others.

Of which I have fince a farther affurance from a perfon of quality who converfed much with him the laft year of his life; to whom he would often fay, that he was happy if he did believe, and that he would never endeavour to draw him from it.

To all this I answered, that a virtuous life would be very uneafy to him unlefs vicious inclinations were removed, it would otherwife be a perpetual constraint. Nor could it be effected without an inward principle to change him; and that was only to be had by applying himself to God for it in frequent and earneft prayer: and, I was fure, if his mind was once cleared of thefe diforders, and cured of those diftempers, which vice brought on it, fo great an understanding would foon fee through all thofe flights of wit that do feed atheifm and irreligion, which have a falfe glittering in them, that dazzle fome weak-fighted minds, who have not ca

pacity enough to penetrate farther than the furfaces of things; and fo they ftick in thefe toils, which the ftrength of his mind would foon break through, if it were once freed from those things that depreffed and darkened it.

At this pass he was when he went from London about the beginning of April: he had not been long in the country, when he thought he was fo well, that, being to go to his eftate in Somerfetfhire, he rode thither poft. This heat and violent motion did fo inflame an ulcer that was in his bladder, that it raised a very great pain in those parts; yet he with much difficulty came back by coach to the lodge at Woodstock park. He was then wounded both in body and mind; he understood phyfic and his own conftitution and diftemper fo well, that he concluded he could hardly recover; for the ulcer broke, and vast quantities of purulent matter paffed with his urine. But now the hand of God touched him, and, as he told me, it was not only a general dark melancholy over his mind, fuch as he had formerly felt, but a most penetrating, cutting forrow. that, though in his body he fuffered extreme pain for fome weeks, yet the agonies of his mind sometimes swallowed up the sense of what he felt in his body. He told me, and gave it me in charge to tell it to one for whom he was much concerned, that, though there were nothing to come after this life,

So

yet