undeniable arguments. Let us then examine this custom and practice by what has been said. It has been proved undeniably, that we ought not to go on in a practice that leads and exposes to sin; and rules have been laid down to judge what does thus expose and lead to it, which I think are plain and undeniable. Certainly a Christian will not be unwilling to have his practices examined and tried by the rules of reason and God's word; but will rather rejoice in it. And I desire particularly that the practice may be tried by that sure touchstone of experience. This is one of the rules of trial that have been mentioned; that any custom which the experience and observation of mankind show to be ordinarily attended with sin, may be concluded to be unlawful. And if we look abroad in the country, I doubt not but these two things will be found.

1. That as to those places, where there is most of this carried on among young people, (as there is more of it in some places than others,) it will be found, as a thing that universally holds, that the young people there are commonly a loose, vain, and irreligious generation; little regarding God, heaven, or hell, or any thing but vanity. And that commonly in those towns, where most frolicking is carried on, there are the most frequent breakings out of gross sins; fornication in particular.

2. If we go through the country, we shall, for the most part, find, that those persons who are most addicted to this practice, are the furthest from serious thought, and are the vainest and loosest upon other accounts. And whence should this be, if such a practice was not sinful, or had not a natural tendency to lead persons into sin?

Now, I appeal to those who have made pretences to serious religion and saving piety. You have formerly pretended to keep up religion in your closets, and in your own souls; now, seriously ask yourselves, whether or no you have not found, that this practice has indisposed you to serious religion, and taken off your minds from it? Has it not tended to your neglect of secret prayer? And, if you have not wholly neglected it, have you not found, that you have been abundantly more ready to turn it off in any manner, and glad to have done with it? More backward to reading and serious meditation, and such things? And, that your mind has been exceedingly diverted from religion, and that for some time? I do not send you far off to find out whether this custom be not of bad tendency-not beyond the sea, but your own breast; there let the matter be determined.

Let us now try this custom by the effect which the outpouring of the Spirit of God on a people has with respect to it. This we are under great advantage to do; because there has lately been, in this place, the most remarkable outpouring of the Spirit of God, that has ever been in New England, and,

it may be, in the world, since the apostles' days. And, it is well known, that, before then, the custom did prevail in the town; but after, the custom was altogether laid aside; and was so for several years.-No account can be given, why the Spirit of God, and the flourishing of religion, should abolish such a custom, unless that custom be either in its nature or tendency, an enemy to the Spirit of God, and to religion.The fruits of the Spirit of God are good, and, therefore, it is good that this custom should be removed; for this is plainly one of the effects. And, if so, it is because the custom is bad, either in its nature or tendency; otherwise, there would be no good in its being removed. The Spirit of God abolished this custom for this reason, because, if it had been kept up in the town, it would have had a direct tendency to hinder that work which the Spirit was about to do amongst us. This was, undeniably, the reason.

Supposing such a custom had been begun, and set up, by the young people all over the town, in the midst of the time of the late outpouring of the Spirit, all of a sudden; would any wise persons, that have truly the cause of religion at heart, rejoiced at it? Would not every one have concluded, without any hesitation, that there was great danger that it would take off people's minds from religion, and make them vain and so put an end to the flourishing of religion? Would not every considerate person have thought thus of it? And if such a custom would have had an ill tendency then, so it will now.

OBJECTION. The town is not in such circumstances now, as it was then it might have done hurt then, by putting an end to the great concern; but, now, it may do no hurt for, there is now no such great concern to be interrupted by it.

ANSWER. Though the town is not in such circumstances now, as it was then, yet there ought to be as much engagedness of mind about religion; as much concern among sinners; and as much engagedness among the godly, as then and it is to our shame that there is not. And, if such a practice would have tended to destroy such a religious concern then, it certainly tends to prevent it now. It is a rule that will hold, that what has a tendency to destroy a thing when it is, tends to prevent when it is not. And, are we not praying from Sabbath to Sabbath, and from day to day, for such a concern again? And do not those who pretend to be converted, and yet have lately set up this custom, pray for the same? Are you a convert, a saint, and yet not desire that there should be any more pouring out of the Spirit of God? The town has cause to be ashamed of such converts, if it has any such. And if ye do, why do you do what tends to prevent it?

Again; Let this practice be tried by the effect that a general decay of religion has with respect to it. Now we have a

trial it is now a time that religion is greatly decayed amongst us; and the effect is, that this custom comes in with this decay. Young people begin again to set up their old custom of frolicking, (as it is called,) and spending a great part of the night in it, to the violation of family order. What is the reason, if

this custom is not bad, either in its nature or tendency, that it did not come in before, when religion was lively? Why does it stay till it can take the advantage of the withdrawment of religion? This is a sign that it is a custom that shuns a spirit of lively religion, as darkness shuns the light, and never comes in till light withdraws.

And here, again, I would send persons to their own experience. How did this practice come in with you in particular: you, that two or three years ago, seemed to be so engaged in religion? Did it not come in, did you not begin to practise it, as the sense of religion wore off? And what is the matter! Why did you not set up the practice then, when your heart was taken up about reading, meditation, and secret prayer to God? If this do not all stand in the way of them, and is no hindrance to them, why was you not engaged in both together? What account can you give of it? Why did you leave off this practice and custom, or abstain from it? To what purpose is this changing? One while it must be avoided as evil, and, another while practised and pleaded for as good? The making such an alteration, does not look well, nor will it be for the honour of religion, in the eye of the world. For, whether the practice be lawful or not, yet such a thing will surely be improved to our disadvantage. For your avoiding it, then, has this appearance, in the eye of the country, that then you condemned it: and, therefore, your now returning to it, will appear to them as backsliding in you. Such changelings are evermore, in the eye of the world, greatly to the dishonour of their profession, let it be what it will.

Indeed, this custom, as it is practised, does not only tend to sin, but is, in itself, very disorderly, sinful, and shameful. For it is attended late in the night, and in the dead of the night, to the neglect of family prayer, and violating all family order; which is disorder and profaneness. Is it lawful to rob God of his ordinary sacrifices, for the sake of your pleasure, diversion, and jollity? Are you of that mind, that it is a decent thing, that the stated worship of the great God, should give way to your mirth, and your diversions? Is this the way of God's holy children? Those works that are commonly done in the dead of night, seem to have a black mark set upon them by the apostle, and Christians are exhorted to avoid them, Kom. xiii. 12, 13. "Let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness; not

in chambering and wantonness." The word here rendered rioting, is of far different signification from the term, as used in our laws for the forcible doing an unlawful thing, by three or more persons assembled together, for that purpose. But the word here properly signifies, a disorderly convention of persons, in order to spend their time together in pleasure and jollity. So the word is commonly used in scripture. Prov. xxiii. 20. "Be not amongst riotous eaters of flesh." Prov. xxviii. 7. "He that is a companion of riotous men, shameth his father." Luke xv. 13.-" wasted his substance with riotous living."-Again, a black mark seems to be set on such in scripture, as in I Thess. v. 5-8. "Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken, are drunken in the night."

Many of you that have lately set up this practice of frolicking and jollity, profess to be children of the light, and of the day! and not to be the children of darkness. Therefore, walk as in the day; and do not those works of darkness, that are commonly done at unseasonable hours of the night. Such things are not only condemned by the apostle, but are looked upon as infamous in all ages among sober people, as all past writings manifest. Therefore, it is a thing of bad report, and so forbidden. Phil. iv. 8. Whatsoever things are of good report: if there be any virtue-any praise, think on these things."

OBJECTION. But the wise man allows of this practice, when he says, Eccles. iii. 4, "There is a time to mourn, and a time to dance."

ANSWER. This is nothing to the purpose; for the utmost that any can pretend that it proves, is, that it may be used under some circumstances; but not at all, that dancing and other things used by our young people in their frolicks, are lawful, in those circumstances: any more than what is said in the same chapter, verse 3,-"there is a time to kill," proves that it is lawful for a man to commit murder. To deny that dancing, under any circumstances whatever, was lawful, would be absurd; for there was a religious dancing in the Jewish church, which was a way of expressing their spiritual mirth. So David danced before the Lord. And he calls upon others to praise God in the dance. So there may be other circumstances wherein dancing may not be unlawful. But all this makes nothing to the present purpose; to prove that this particular custom is not of a bad tendency. Besides, when the wise man says, "there is a time to dance," that does not prove, that the dead of the night is the time for it. The same

wise man doth not justify carnal mirth, but condemns it. Eccl. ii. 2. "I said of laughter, it is mad; and of mirth, what doth it?"

OBJECTION. If we avoid all such things, it will be the way for our young people to be ignorant how to behave themselves in company.

ANSWER. But consider what this objection comes to. It certainly comes to this, viz. That the pouring out of the Spirit of God upon a people, tends to banish all good conduct, good breeding, and decent behaviour from among them; and to sink them down into clownishness and barbarity! The Spirit of God did actually put an end to this practice among us.-But who is not ashamed to make such an objection? Will any of our young converts talk thus ? Will you, that think you were converted by the late pouring out of the Spirit of God, and are made holy persons, heirs of eternal life, talk so blasphemously of it?

If our young people are resolute still to go on notwithstanding all that has been said, I hope that those of them who call themselves converted, will first find out some rational, satisfying answer to the arguments that have been used against it. This at least may be reasonably expected of them, seeing they make such a profession. You have this day been partaking of the sacrament of the Lord's supper, and therein solemnly renewed your profession.-If after such light set before you, and such mercy given, you will go on, Be it known to you, that your eating now and at other times, will prove only an eating and drinking judgment to yourselves.

And I desire heads of families, if they have any government over their children, or any command of their own houses, would not tolerate their children in such practices, nor suffer such conventions in their houses.-1 do not desire that young people should be abridged of any lawful and proper liberties. But this custom can be of no benefit or service in the world: it tends only to mischief.-Satan doubtless would be glad to have such an interest among us as he used to have; and is therefore striving to steal in, while we are sleeping: but let us rouse up ourselves, and vigorously oppose his encroachments. I shall repeat those words of the apostle, Rom. xiii. 12-14, and leave them to the serious consideration of all persons, old and young. "The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly as in the day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof."