country, I brought no recommendations to any body; not even to my Lord Marshall *. I had no other than that fincerity, I always carry with me; and with my Lord Marinall no other was neceffary. About two hours after my arrival; and while I was writing to his excellency to inform him of it, and put myself under his protection, I was interrupted by the entrance of a ftranger; who, acquainting me that he was the parfon of the parish, paid me a number of compliments; and, fining I was writing to the Lord Marfhall, offered to add a few lines at the bottom of my letter, by way of recommendation. I did not accept his offer, but fent it away; and it had its defired fuccefs without fuch addition. Not expecting, in my circumftances, to find the paftor of a church fo very obliging, I then fpoke of it, as an extraordinary example, to many perfons, and among the reft to Colonel Roguin; whofe friendship and regard had induced him to accompany me to this place. Mr. de M. continued his civilities; of which at length I began to think I ought not to lose the advantage; I therefore wrote to him, defiring to know if I might not be admitted to the enfuing communion? His anfwer, which he brought himself, was to affure me that, he was highly delighted with the step I was defirous of taking; that both he and his people thought themfelves honoured by the offer; and that he flattered himfelf fo unexpected a proceeding would afford great edification to the faithful. I must confefs to you, Sir, that I thought this moment one of the most agreeable I had ever experienced in my whole life. It is neceffary to have experienced all my misfortunes, to have undergone all the fufferings of a fufceptible mind, to be able to judge of the confolation I felt at the profpect of holding fociety with brethren, who might indemnify me for the lofles I had fuftained, and the distance of those whofe friendship I could no longer cultivate. It appeared to me that a fincere union with this little flock, in the exercife of affectionate and rational devotion, would help me to forget the malice and attempts of my enemies. With these fentiments my heart was fo greatly affected, that at firft I often used to burst into tears of complacence in the midst of the congregation. Not having lived among Proteftants, I had formed an idea of their clergy, as of a kind of angels. The purity and fimplicity of their worship appeared to be what my foul panted after; it feemed peculiarly calculated to fupport the hope and refolution of the unhappy. The communicants feemed to me as Chriftans without guile, united to each other by the tendereft ties of love and charity. How have they fince cured me of this agreeable delufion!

*This circumftance M. de Montmol'in had endeavoured to reprefent in a difadvantageous light; as he alfo did the fiendship and protection with which Mr. ho.feau was favoured by his excellency.

Mr. Rouffeau proceeds to recount the particulars of this extraordinary paftor's future conduct towards him: as that he affected on all occafions before Mr. Rouffeau, and even in the pulpit, an unneceffary zeal for religious toleration; that he admitted him to the Holy Communion, as before obferved, not only without entering into any examination concerning the particular articles of his creed; but even promifing never to concern himself about it; that he lavishly commended and appeared highly to approve of thofe very letters from the mountains, which he afterwards made the plea for perfecuting the Author; that he frequently spoke to Mr. Rouffeau about a general edition of his works, approved of the project, and would have interested himself in the property of it, had Mr. Rouffeau permitted him. This refufal on the part of Mr. R. made the pastor reflect that it would not be very consistent with his character and function to engage in fuch an undertaking: about the fame time the body of the clergy thought it incumbent on them likewife to oppofe it, and accordingly made remonftrances against it to the court.

So good an understanding fubfifted, before this, between Mr. Rouffeau and his paftor, that the latter, propofing to follicit an addition to his ftipend, defired the former to write a line or two, in his favour, to my Lord Marshall, on the subject. This Mr. Rouffeau appears willing to have done in a private letter from himself; but the paftor wanted fuch recommendation in a postscript to an epistle of his own: a method of writing to his excellency which Mr. Rouffeau thought too unbe coming and familiar. He therefore declined it, and in fo doing gave another offence to M. de Montmollin; who it feems was fo very officious about Mr. Rouffeau's house and perfon, that he wanted to know all his affairs; to become acquainted with all his correfpondents; to direct and receive his will and teftament, and in fhort to be director of his little family; all which Mr. Rouffeau objected to with all the civility he could, confifting with preferving his refolution. On these particulars feems to depend the principal motive of that zeal for the faith and that rancour against Mr. Rouffeau, which this very chriftianlike and charitable profeffor hath fince difplayed.

Mr. de Peyrou, to whom this letter appears to be addreffed, had remarked, in his fecond epiftle, that the conduct of this good paftor refembled much that of the English Quaker; who, in order to be revenged on a cur that had bit his horie's heels, did not raife the arm of the flesh to ftrike him, because it was inconfiftent with his profeffion, but contented himself with giving him a bad name, by calling out a mad dig! in confequence of which the poor animal was of course prefently knocked on the bead,

ENGLISH ARTICLE.

The fpiritual and temporal Liberty of Subjects in England, in two Parts. Part I. Of the fpiritual Liberty of Proteftants in England. Part II. Of the temporal Liberty of Subjects in England. By Anthony Ellis, D. D. late Lord Bishop of St. David's. 4to. 7s. 6d. fewed. Whifton..

OF

F the former part of this work our readers will find a general account, in the fecond number of the twenty ninth volume of our Review; in which article we entered likewife into a particular and minute examination of the two firft tracts, viz. Of the right of private judgment in all matters of religion; and, Of the liberty of publickly worshipping God: from an attentive view of which, it would be eafy to collect what was our author's general train of thinking upon thefe fubjects, and in what manner the other important and interefting questions would be treated. And upon the whole, we cannot help obferving, that the manner in which those tracts are written, is very artful and plaufible, and that whatever profeffions the learned prelate may have made to the contrary, he was not a thorough and confiftent friend to the religious liberty of Proteftants. Like many other political writers, both before and after him, he very willingly admits the natural right of men to think for themselves; he warmly afferts, and reafons with much force in favour of this principle, That God intended to give to every one a right to judge at all times ultimately for himfelf, in matters of religion; and declares againft compulfive and perfecuting measures in general, with great juftice and propriety; but when he comes to ftate the limits of toleration, to lay down cafes in which force and restraint may be ufed; and to vindicate the neceffity and policy of impofing legal tests upon fuch as may happen to depart from eftablished modes and opinions, it appears that little more is meant by liberty, than the mere hberty of thinking and judging in private: but that to speak, or publifh, or to act in confequence of fuch judgment, may in many inftances juftly draw down the power of the fword, and the interference of magiftracy, though neither the perfons, lives, reputations, properties, or any of the civil and temporal interefts of mankind be immediately affected by it.If this be all the liberties in which we are to be indulged, we cannot think ourselves under very great obligations to our lawgivers for the indulgence; for it is fcarcely in the power of tyrants or inquifitors to deprive us of it and if our right reverend author means no more than this, it will not be in our power to vindicate him from the character of a high-church man; an appellation which we have feen publicly afcribed to him.

Without pursuing these reflections any farther, we fhall now direct our readers attention to the tracts here before us, upon

the fubject of temporal liberty. In this part of his work, his lordship appears more in the character of an hiftorian and antiquarian; difcovers an extenfive knowledge of the civil laws and conftitution of his country; has handled the subject in a very agreeable manner; and, were we to judge only from these papers, we should, without the leaft fcruple, have claffed him among the friends of public liberty. But indeed, a union of the characters of a flate-whig and a church-tory in the fame perfon, hath been very common.

There are fix tracts in this volume, upon the following fubjects, viz.

1. Of the Liberty of the Subjects in Judicial proceedings, as to matters both criminal and civil.

II. Of the right and manner of impofing taxes; and of the other Privileges of the Parliament.

III. Of the Means whereby the free Conflitutions of other Nations have been impaired, while that of England has been preferved and improved.

IV. Of the Antiquities of the Commons in Parliament.

V. Of the Royal Prerogative, and the hereditary right to the Crown of Britain.

VI. Of the Dangers that may be incident to the Prefent Eftablishment, and the Profpect there is of its continuance.

We fhall felect from thefe tracts fuch paffages as fhall be moft generally inftructive and entertaining to our readers; and from which they may be able to form an adequate judgment of the spirit and manner, in which the whole is executed.

As it feems to be of the greatest importance, in order to beget in the minds of men a just value for the civil conftitution, under which it is our happiness to live, we shall begin with representing the provifions which have been made, by the laws of our country, in favour of the fubject, respecting criminal matters: and these we shall collect in the order in which they arife in the work before us.In this manner does our author introduce his subject in the first tract.-————— • In treating of the freedom of the subjects in England, the thing that comes naturally firft into view is, the fecurity we have of not being long detained in prifon, without juft caufe or due procefs of law. Our condition in this refpect, differs not a little to our advantage, from thofe of moft other fubjects in Europe. I need not inform the public, how every one in France is liable to be treated: without any charge made against him upon oath, or any examination taken of him by a magiftrate, an order or writ under the fignet royal, is fufficient to caufe him, whatever his rank or quality is, to be not only arrefted, but to be carried inftantly away to any prifon in the kingdom, and there to be kept in the clofeft confinement, without any

means of procuring his liberty, as long as the court fhall think fit to deny it however able he might be to give fuch proofs of his innocence, as would be fatisfactory to impartial judges, if his friends or agents were allowed to come to him, or he had the ufe of his papers, or knowledge of his accufers. He may be incapable of doing this when fecluded from all correfpondence, and when he is not so much as examined at all. At this rate he may continue for a number of years in doleful folitude, to the great impairment of his health, and disorder of his eftate and if at last he gets out, he has no remedy; no action of falfe imprifonment or damages. The minifters by whole procurement perhaps he was imprifoned, are safe under the royal prerogative.

There have been times when this fame power has been claimed, and with the like rigour exercifed by the kings of England; not that there was any juft ground of law for it, for the antient Saxon conftitution, allowed men to be bailed in all cafes. By the common law antiently, fays lord Coke (a), a man accused and indicted of high treafon, or of any felony whatsoever, was bailable upon good fecurity; fo that the goal was only his pledge and furety, who could find no other: for the law of England, fays the fame learned author, is a law of mercy, that the innocent fhall not be worn or wafted by long imprisonment, but fpecdily come to his trial, and that prifoners for criminal caufes be humanely dealt withal. But after the Norman conqueft it was provided, that not only in the cafe of homicide and high treafon, but in moft other criminal caufes, the offender was not bailable (b). And even when innocent persons were committed and detained in prison, they were obliged to fue out writs De odio et atia, from the court of chan cery for their relief (c). Several of our kings after this aera had little regard to the part of the common law, but on the flightest pretences, or unjuft fufpicions, imprifoned men of all ranks, and kept them in confinement as long as they pleased: The fame kind of tyranny was practifed by the ministers of king Henry II. John, &c. and even the barons in king Edward the firft's time, were very defirous of having the fame power to imprifon perfons at their will, for trefpaffes done in their parks and ponds, but the king would not grant it (d)..

In oppofition to these practices, the great charter of 9 Henry

(a) Coke's 2d Inft. p. 189.

(b) Ibid, p, 49. 186.

(c) See an account of the writs de odio et atia, in Bacon's government of England, par, I. p. 168. By the antient law of the land, villains might be imprisoned by their lords without caufe,

(d) See Stat. Merton.