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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 observed, not only without entering into any examination concerning the particular articles of his creed; but even promising 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 himfelf in the property of it, had Mr. Rouffeau permitted him. This refufal on the part of Mr. R. made the paftor reflect that it would not be very confiftent with his character and function to engage in fuch an undertaking: about the fame time the body of the clergy thought it incum-, bent 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 epiftle of his own: a method of writing to his excellency which Mr. Rouffeau thought too unbecoming 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 houfe 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 christianlike and charitable profeffor hath fince displayed.

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 horse's heels, did not raise the arm of the flesh to strike him, because it was inconfiftent with his profeffion, but contented himself with giving him a bad name, by calling out a mad dog! in confequence of which the poor animal was of course presently knocked on the head,

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ENGLISH ARTICLE.

The fpiritual and temporal Liberty of Subjects in England, in two. Parts. Part I. Of the fpiritual Liberty of Proteflants 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.

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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 first 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 these subjects, 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 himself, in matters of religion;' and declares against compulsive and perfecuting meafures 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 used; and to vindicate the neceffity and policy of impofing legal tefts upon fuch as may happen to depart from eftablished modes and opinions, it appears that little more is meant by liberty, than the mere liberty of thinking and judging in private but that to speak, or publish, 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 libert 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 purfuing thefe reflections any farther, we shall 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 state-whig and a church-tory in the same perfon, hath been very common.

There are fix tracts in this volume, upon the following fub. jects, 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 Conftitutions 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 Establishment, and the Profpect there is of its continuance.

We fhall felect from these 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 seems to be of the greateft importance, in order to beget in the minds of men a juft 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 fhall 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 fubjects in England, the thing that comes naturally firft into view is, the fecurity we have of not being long detained in prifon, without juft cause or due procefs of law. Our condition in this respect, differs not a little to our advantage, from those of most other subjects 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 cause him, whatever his rank or quality is, to be not only arrested, but to be carried inftantly away to any prifon in the kingdom, and there to be kept in the clofeft confinement, without any

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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 use 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 fo much as examined at all. this rate he may continue for a number of years in doleful folitude, to the great impairment of his health, and diforder of his eftate and if at laft he gets out, he has no remedy; no action of false imprisonment or damages. The minifters by: whole procurement perhaps he was imprifoned, are fafe 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 whatfpever, was bailable upon good fecurity; fo that the gil ab 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 shall not be worn or wafted by long imprisonment, but fpeedily 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 treason, but in most 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 chaneery for their relief (c). Several of our kings after this aera had little regard to the part of the common law, but on the flighteft pretences, or unjuft fufpicions, imprisoned men of all ranks, and kept them, in confinement as long as they pleafed 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 imprison perfons at their will, for trespasses done in their parks and ponds, but the king would not grant it (d)..

"In oppofition to thefe practices, the great charter of 9 Henry

(a) Coke's ad 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 imprifoned by their lords without caufe.

(d) See Stat. Merton.

III. provided, "that no free man fhould be taken or imprisoned. Neither, fays the king (e), will we go, or fend upon him, unlefs by the legal judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land." But how folemn foever this charter was granted and confirmed, yet in a little time there were frequent breaches made upon it, which plainly appears from a fpeech made in parliament by the archbishop of Canterbury, 18 Edward I. (f); among other grievances he reprefented, "That very many freemen of the kingdom, had without any guilt on their part, been committed by the king's minifters to divers prifons, as if they had been flaves of the meanest degree, therein to be kept; of whom fome died in prifon of hunger or grief, and the weight of their chains. From others they extorted infinite fums of money for their ransoms (g)." This fpeech, with the notoriety of the facts, had fuch an influence upon the parliament, that they inflicted severe punishments upon fome of the minifters and others.

In the fifth year of the reign of Edward III. chap. 9. it was enacted, "That no man from henceforth fhall be attacked by any accufation, nor fore-judged of his life or limb; nor his lands, tenements, goods nor chattels, feized into the king's hands, againft the form of the great charter, and law of the land."And again, in the 25th of the fame reign, there was another act made more full and expreffive, for it fays, "That from henceforth none fhall be taken by petition or fuggeftion, made to our lord the king, or his council, unless it be by indictment or prefentment of his good and lawful people of the fame neighbourhood, where fuch deeds be done, in due manner, or by prócefs made by writ original at the common law: and that if any thing be done againft the fame, it fhall be holden for none (h)."Again, in the 28th of the fame reign, it is enacted. “That no man, of what ftate or condition that he be, fhall be put out of land or tenement, nor taken, nor imprisoned, nor difinherited, nor put to death, without being brought in answer by due procefs of law (i).".

Alfo in 38th Edward III. ch. 18, it is enacted, that when fuggeftions are made by any perfons against others, the former fhall find furetics before the king's grand council," to pursue

(e) • Nullus liber homo capiatur, vel imprifme:ur-nec fuper eum ibimus, nec fupra eum mittamus, nifi per legale judicium parium fuorum, aut "per legem terræ. Mag. Char. Coke's 2d Inft. p. 45.

(f) See Echard's history, Vol. I. p. 309.

(g) Petyt. Mifc. Parliament. Lond. 1680, in the appendix.

(h) Sir Robert Cotton, pofth. p. 227, fays, That this law was made upon the commitment of divers perfons to the tower, no man yet knoweth for what.'

(i) 3d Buktrode 47. Hale's hift. R. C. ch. 13. b. ii.

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