though there was not an establishment in the world. The church is not at any loss for the want of inspiration, in that sense the apostles had it, for in that sense she does not need it: the word of God is mighty for all the purposes of edification and happiness to the church, to the end of the world.

Such carnal weapons as acts of parliament, and civil sanctions, religion does not need, nor can they be applied unto it without destroying it. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, yet mighty to pull down. The weapons of defence the apostles had, every Christian is now fully in the possession of. The decrees of councils, and the canons of the church, are also but carnal weapons, often framed through the influence of carnal policy, by men who had too great a share in the management of the kingdoms of this world to keep strictly to the rules of the kingdom of Christ. The most charitable construction that can be put upon all that ever was done by men in the way of forming laws of any kind in favour of religion, is, that they were building hay and stubble upon the foundation of the apostles. What Issachars would our church guides make us, to lay upon our shoulders. such a heavy burden of ecclesiastic constitutions, human creeds, and articles, when every man that reads his New Testament may easily see the futility of their design? If we be the disciples of men, we are not the disciples of Jesus Christ.

Civil burdens may be borne, but religious slavery is insupportable: to bear either tamely is an ass-like disposition. As to the first, when there is no remedy nor hope of redress, it is Christianlike to have patience, and be obedient to the powers that are in being: but it is stupidity to couch down and take a burden. When a burden is laid on by violence, or by the iniquity of the times, Christians should be patient sufferers, like Christ and his apostles: but when liberty can be obtained, it is meanness to couch down to slavery. If times permit, and laws allow Christians to assert their civil rights, they should not depart from them through meanness of spirit. Like Paul, they may tell such as endeavour to burden them, they are free-born. As to religious burdens, as they respect the conscience, they cannot be borne at all: the consciences of men have but one Master, and cannot yield obedience to any other. It is not only mean, but criminal, to admit a partner with the Almighty in the government of conscience. Whether they be things that God hath commanded, or not, no man has a right to impose obedience upon us by any human contrivance. If they be commanded, let them shew the authority, and rest there; for it is superfluous to add to divine authority: if they are not commanded, it is presumptuous and profane to attempt to lay a burden upon a subject, that is only accountable to the great Judge of all. Upon these principles of imposition, every man who imposes lays a snare for himself, whenever the times happen to change; for whenever the intolerant imposer loses his power, and that power falls into other hands, what

can

can he expect, but to have his own measure returned back again unto him. There is no just reason for him to complain, however unjust it may be, for any other imposer to do as he hath done; for he is but now receiving the same measure he so liberally gave out to others. Whoever insist upon having a right to oblige others to receive their religious opinions, upon the pain of any loss whatsoever, where the word of God gives no direction, must be accounted infidels towards God, and oppressors of mankind. When the word of God is given to make the man of God perfect, and is profitable for all things in religion, do they not accuse God of folly, and his word of imperfection, who make fences against error, which are accounted more fit to guard men against heresy than the Scriptures themselves? And is it not treating men like asses, to tell them the Scriptures are profitable for all things in masters of religion, and yet lay them under the necessity of receiving dogmas of human contrivance, to preserve the purity of the faith? This is a mere Penelope's web, a doing and undoing at the same time. What occasion to introduce any other system of religion either with or besides the scriptures, if they be sufficient to make men perfect in all things pertaining to godliness? Do men think they can express themselves more intelligibly than the Holy Spirit, or commend the truth more clearly to other men's consciences?

The most that can lawfully be done with any human composition, however good it may be, is to leave it to men's consideration, and to suffer them to examine it by the word of God; but if they cannot find it consistent therewith, they are at liberty to reject it.

The reason of all civil or religious impositions hath been the patural slothfulness of individuals, that could not be at pains to mind their own business and private rights. Mankind, in the several ages of the world, have been like great men who give themselves to pleasure, and commit the care of their estates to the management of stewards, who at last become masters, and make their masters their servants. Such as are by the community exalted to power and preferment, unless they be wise and virtuous, except the several individuals which advanced them to power look also to their administration, they will be ready, like Phaeton, who received the direction of his father's chariot, to set the world on fire. One cause of our present complaints, both as to civil and religious oppression, is, that we look not to ourselves, but think, as soon as we have elected civil or religious governors, we may fall asleep in pleasure, indolence, and inattention. There is no doubt but governors were designed for ease to the public; and when they do their duty, they are a public blessing: but when they degenerate into tyrants, there is as much of the blame lies upon them; for had those who employed them watched over them as they ought, and given them timely admonition, they might have prevented them from ruining both their own souls and the public interest. The indolence and sloth of a people

are

are a temptation to governors to turn usurpers. In a free country like our's, where commissioners to parliament are elected by the community, and are not to be perpetual dictators, it would be easy to make them rule with discretion, by putting them in mind of the shortness of their power. We lose our liberty by not asserting it properly. It serves no purpose to cry out against the government and the prime minister, when we are ourselves to blame. When the time of a general election comes on, it is in the power of the subjects to assert their own liberty. When these men, who rule by their wealth, and whose business it is to corrupt their fellow-subjects with bribery, and cheat them out of their liberty by flattery and corruption, come to ask your voices in their election, do you despise their offers, and say to them, Your money perish with you! Can it be supposed, that such men will take care of your interests, who want to ruin your souls, who begin with debauching your morals with drunkenness and perjury. Will that man have the least regard for your civil interest and property, who first attempts to ruin your virtue? Will he ever scruple to betray the liberties of his country, who teaches perjury, and follows bribery and corruption? It is at best a bad beginning, when men mount to preferment by means of bribery and false swearing. What better is a county, a city, or a borough, than a community of asses, that suffer themselves to be cheated out of their privileges, by any duke, knight, or 'squire, that comes to water them? When any of these, who offer themselves candidates to counties and towns, to be elected members of parliament, come to solicit votes, by making whole towns swim in drunkenness, what opinion must these gentlemen have of such drunken societies, who will do so much for a few days of riot and gluttony, as to sell their liberties, but that they are asses that want to be watered? Can that nation be accounted free, that can be so easily enslaved by drunkenness and bribery? Liberty is but a name, when it can be so easily subdued by such mean gratifications. When men are slaves to their lusts, they will never be free. Men that do so easily sell their souls will not value their country. Where there is not virtue, there can be no liberty-it is only licentiousness. Liberty is an high-sounding name in Britain; and there are, I dare say, more saves in it, according to the privileges it enjoys, than there are in Constantinople; and with this aggravation, that they know how to prevent it. What Issachars are these towns and corporations, that give their votes to a member of parliament who neither fears God nor loves them; who, by the method he pursues to obtain an election, deserves to forfeit the favour and esteem of all the lovers of virtue and honesty. Whom can they blame for their oppression but themselves? Their own hands do make the fetters by which they are bound. Can the disturbers and debauchers of cities, towns, and corporations, be fit men to sit in the great council of these nations; who, during the

drunken

drunken revels of several weeks and months, ruin more morals, and corrupt more minds, than ever their service is worth to the common-weal?

It appears something strange, that men cannot be supposed to be free to make choice of one to represent them in the high assembly of the nation, till they be made slaves to drunkenness and corruption. It were sufficient to make all good subjects abhor a man that offered such an insult to their virtue, as to attempt to overcome it before they would solicit their election. These towns, counties, and corporations, richly deserve a burden of heavy taxes upon their window lights, and other property, who give up the light of their understanding to venal corruption. Those who have laid out so much money upon an election, will endeavour to make you pay for it, by joining with some venal ministry in taxing you, for the benefit of a rich preferment. Had the several members of cities, towns, and counties, consulted their own' happiness and interest, as truly as they have sometimes made a noise about them, they might have prevented many heavy impositions that they now labour under. Had they made it their business to choose worthy and good men to represent them in parliament, with an asssurance that they would ever support them, while they made it their study to maintain their liberties; but on the other hand would despise every such person as should betray the interest of his constituents, and the welfare of his country, for any place, pension, or preferment, they might have hereby laid some restraint upon the venal disposition of such as make a trade of selling their country, for a place or pensior under an aspiring minister. The assurance that they should never again be elected by any county, city, town, or corporation, if they joined in bringing them under any burden and slavery, would be a check upon them, to hinder them from going into all the schemes of a minister to hurt their fellow-subjects. But what have men to expect from such candidates, who offer themselves to serve their country, but begin with corrupting their morals, that they may remove from their minds all sense of virtue, that they may the better make a sale of their privileges. These corrupt members of the commonwealth know how to pacify those whose interest they have betrayed in parliament. It is only to do what they do every time they are elected, to make towns and cities revel in drunkenness for so many days and weeks, and to bribe some few who have influence to lead the rest. After this they depart to their old employment, with the character of the best men in the world. It requires no more but that they occassionally water their asses, to make them true beasts of burden, and cause them to stoop down patiently and take them on. If some are more obstinate than the rest, and will not be tractable enough with an ordinary quantity of good liquor, they know how to manage such asses-they silence their noise with some gift that is suited to their disposition, Issachar's character

character is truly applicable to the inhabitants of Britain-they are strong asses, that love rest and ease, and couch down under heavy burdens,

Were not the greatest part of these kingdoms of Issachar's cha racter, could they sit easy under taxes the most unreasonable in the world? Are there, not many things fitter, for bearing taxation than the necessaries of life? The poorest man that lives cannot live without meat and drink, shoes, and light; yet he must pay heavy duty for the sun that shines in at his window, for the beer he drinks, the candle he makes use of, and for the very shoes upon his feet. Those who opposed the cider act, and obtained the repeal thereof, after it was past, were truly sons of liberty. They were like Naphtali, hinds let loose; and not like Issachar, strong asses couching down under unreasonable burdens and oppres gion. We have certainly as good right to drink beer without heavy excise, as they have to drink cider, Britons, you will soon have it in your power to enjoy the same freedom as these your fellow-subjects. When the general election comes on; choose no man for a member of parliament, who will not give you security that he will stand up for a repeal of those several laws that oppress you. If you remain still under your burdens, it must be your own fault. You will stand recorded for asses to all generations, if you do not assert your liberties when you have it in your power, It is not disloyalty to your King, nor any way injurious to the constitution and laws of your country, to give instructions. to the candidates you choose for your members of parliament, and take their obligation that they will follow these instructions. This will be more noble than taking bribes, and more profitable than, rioting a few days in gluttony and drunkenness. Members, of par liament are your servants, and the servants of their country; it is but reasonable they be made accountable for their conduct. Give them their instructions, and require them to keep by them: When any duke or lord, knight or 'squire, come with their drunken rabble of attendants, to solicit your votes by treats and entertain ments, put them in mind what they are about, and what they ought to be. Tell them that none who make attempts upon other men's virtue can be faithful to their liberties and interest. Shun them as you would do the pestilence, lest you suffer them to corrupt your virtue. Remember, that there cannot a greater plague enter a city, than such as seek to stain the virtue of the inha bitants.

Is it not strange to see a whole town and corporation flocking about a man for some private emolument to individuals, at the expence of the public welfare, each concealing from his neighbour his real intention, that he may serve or please himself with some base gratification? That same person who thus endeavours to corrupt you, and is at great expence to do it, will no doubt make! you pay for it soundly, by taxing you severely. That money he is obliged to lay out to obtain your election, he knows how to bring E back