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chanical, but is a thing with refpect to which I can make no fort of calculation, and againft which I can make no provifion. Even the longeft continued feries of proper actions will form no habit that can be depended upon; and therefore, after all my labour and anxiety, my object is quite precarious and uncertain.

If we fuppofe that B is in fome degree determined by motives, in that very degree, and no other, is he a proper fubject of difcipline; and he can never become wholly so, till his felfdetermining power be entirely difcharged, and he comes to be the fame kind of being with A, on whom motives of all kinds have a certain and neceffary influence. Had I the making of my own children, they fhould certainly be all constituted like A, and none of them like B.

• Befides, the difcipline of A will have a fuitable influence on all that are conftituted like him, fo that for their fakes, as well as on the account of A himself, I ought to bring him under this falutary treatment. And thus all the ends of difcipline are anfwered, and rewards and punishments have the greatest propriety; because they have the fulleft effect upon the doctrine of neceffity; whereas it is evident they are abfolutely loft, having no effect whatever, upon the oppofite fcheme.

This appears to me to be the fairest and the most unexceptionable view of the fubject, by which it appears that the Divine Being, the father of us all, in order to make us the proper fubjects of difcipline, and thereby fecure our greatest happiness, (which is all that, philofophically fpeaking, is really meant by making us accountable creatures) muft conftitute us in fuch a manner, as that motives fhall have a certain and neceffary influence upon our minds, and muft not leave us at liberty to be influenced by them or not, at our arbitrary pleasure.'

From this view of the fubject it is not easy to fee, how motives have a certain and neceffary influence on the mind. For "the motives, which influence A have no effect upon B ; confequently both of them are left at liberty to be influenced or not, as their caprice may direct.

It is commonly alledged, that the doctrine of neceffity makes God the author of fin. Dr. Prieftley endeavours to obviate the objection in this manner:

• Our fuppofing that God is the author of fin (as, upon the fcheme of neceffity, he muft, in fact, be the author of all things) by no means implies that he is a finful being, for it is the dif pofition of mind, and the defign that conftitutes the finfulness of an action. If, therefore, his difpofition and defign be good, what he does is morally good. It was wicked in Jofeph's brethren to fell him into Egypt, because they acted from envy, ́hatred, and covetousness; but it was not wicked in God, to ordain it to be fo; because in appointing it he was not ac

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tuated by any fuch principle.. In him it was gracious and good, because he did it, as we read, to preserve life, and to an fwer other great and excellent purposes in the extenfive plan of his providence.'

This is by no means fatisfactory. We cannot fuppofe, without the groffeft and most impious abfurdity, that an all-perfect being can lay any of his creatures under an invincible neceffity of finning, on any account whatever: fince he earnestly admonishes them to fly from fin, on pain of the feverest pu nishment.

Our author proceeds:

If any perfon, notwithstanding this reprefentation, should be alarmed at the idea of God's being the proper cause of all evil, natural and moral, he should confider that, upon any fcheme that admits of the divine prescience, the fame confequences follow. For ftill God is fuppofed to forefee, and permit, what it was in his power to have prevented, which is the very fame thing as willing and directly causing it. If I certainly know that my child, if left to his liberty, will fall into a river, and be drowned, and I do not reftrain him, I certainly mean that he fhould be drowned; and my conduct cannot admit of any other conftruction. Upon all schemes, therefore, that admit of the divine prescience, and confequently the permission of evil, natural and moral, the fuppofition of God's virtually willing and caufing it is unavoidable, fo that upon any fcheme, the origin and exiftence of evil can only be accounted for on the fuppofition of its being ultimately fubfervient 10 good, which is a more immediate confequence of the fyftem of neceffity, than of any other.'

There is a wide difference between permitting fin, and caufing it. In the former cafe man is the agent, and is fuffered to tafte the bitter fruits of his folly, which may have a happy effect on his future conduct. In the latter cafe, he is punished for what he cannot avoid; which is unjust.

The author proceeds to fhew, how far his hypothefis is favoured by the fcriptures. The facred writers, it is true, have afcribed all actions to God, both good and bad. But it should likewise be observed, that they have also afcribed the latter to the devil for the Son of God was manifefted, that he might deftroy the works of the devil. No weight therefore can be laid on this argument.

Thefe extracts and obfervations may be fufficient to give our readers a general idea of this writer's hypothefis. We do not pretend to have stated it in its full force, or to have produced every argument, which the learned author has advanced in its defence. On the other hand, we have not attempted to Vol. XLVI. Sept. 1778.

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alledge all the objections against it, which have occurred We leave the merits of the controverfy to be determined by thofe, who are difpofed to enter farther into the unfathomable depths of metaphyfics.

The Chronicle of England. Vol. II. From the Acceffion of Egbert to the Norman Conqueft. By Jofeph Strutt. 4to. 155. in boards. Shropshire.

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N our Review of the former volume of this work, we took notice of fome improprieties in the ftyle, which were equally inconfiftent with perfpicuity, and the elevation of hiftorical narrative; but in that now before us, it appears that Mr. Strutt has been confiderably more attentive to correctness. This volume, like the preceding, is divided into three general parts; the first of which contains the civil and military hif tory of the Anglo-Saxons, from the acceffion of Egbert to the Norman conqueft; the fecond comprifes the ecclefiaftical hiftory of the fame period; and the third delivers an account of the government, manners, &c. of the people.

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As a fpecimen of the compofition, we fhall present our readers with a fhort extract from the history of Edward the Elder. • Soon after the coronation of Edward, Ethelwald, an ambitious young nobleman, laid a claim to the crown of Weffex, and, being affifted by a ftrong party of discontents, broke out into open rebellion, and seized upon the town of Winbourne, near Bath, which he made his place of refidence. This young man, it seems, was fon to Ethelbryht, the fecond fon of Ethelwulf, and brother to Ælfred; fo that king Edward was his firft coufin. He was too young, upon the decease of his father, to take the charge of the government, and was afterwards withheld by his uncles; however, by afferting his claim at this time, he proved a dangerous enemy to his coufin Edward. Being lodged with his party at Winbourne, he declared to them, that he was refolved to defend himself there against the affaults of Edward, or die in the attempt.-Edward, in the mean time, hearing of this rebellion, marched with his army towards Winbourne, and arriving at Banbury, in the neighbourhood of Winbourne, he encamped before the city.

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Ethelwald, fearful of the event, notwithstanding his former boaftings, ftole out privately by night, and fled into Northumberland, where he joined the Danish army, which lay encamped on that fide of the Humber. After the departure of Ethelwald, the city of Winbourne was furrendered up to Ed

* See Crit. Rev. vol. xliii. p. 366.

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ward, who entering in amongst other perfons, found the wife of Ethelwald, a woman whom he had forced from a convent (where she had taken the veil) and married, contrary to the ftrict commands of the church; but he was reftored to her former fituation, by the command of Edward. As foon as the flight of Ethelwald was made known to the king, he sent out a party of his troops in purfuit of him, but all their endeavours to take him proved unfuccefsful.

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Ethelwald, after he had joined the Danish army, made known to them the occafion of his flight from England, and the claim which he had to the crown of Weffex. They received him with great demonftrations of friendship, and promifed him to efpoufe his caufe, no doubt being glad of fuch a plaufible pretext for the violation of the peace which yet exifted between them and the Saxons; moreover, they might expect that, whilft the claim of Ethelwald was fupported, a divifion might thereby be made in the Saxon ftate in favour of him, which could not fail of terminating to their advantage.Three years after they went, under his conduct, into the East Angles, where they were joined by the Danes, who inhabited that kingdom; and the year following (905) they broke the league of peace, and entered Mercia with their army, pillaging and destroying the country as far as Creckland, where they paffed the Thames, and entering Wiltshire, proceeded to Bafingftoke; after which they returned back into the kingdom of the East Angles, loaden with spoils.-Edward, hearing of thefe dangerous proceedings, marched with his army after them, and entering the kingdom of the Eaft Angles, laid the country wafte between the Dyke and the Oufe, and northward as far as the Fenns; when, being defirous of returning, he began his march, firft ftrictly ordering that his whole army fhould follow closely after him: but the Kentish-men, who formed a confiderable body, for fome cause or other disobeyed his orders, and staid behind, notwithstanding seven meffengers were dispatched to them, from the king, to defire them to follow immediately.-In the mean time, the Danes, who had watched their opportunity, finding that the king was departed with the greater part of his army, fell upon those who staid behind, and a bloody battle enfued. The Kentish-men made a valiant refiftance; and though, after great carnage on both fides, they were obliged to quit the field, yet it was not before they had fo far reduced the power of the Danes, that they had but little caufe to boast of the victory. Besides the great number of common men the Saxons loft in this battle, the two earls Sigewulf and Sigelm, Eadwold, one of the king's minifters, Cenwulf an abbot, and many other perfons of dif

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tinction were found among the flain.

On the fide of the

Danes, were killed Eohric, king of the Eaft Angles, who had fucceeded Godrun in the year 890, and Ethelwald, the feditious author of the war, as alfo feveral noble men, and a prodigious number of private foldiers.

What fteps were taken immediately after this important battle, either by Edward or the Danes, do not appear; the latter, however, feem to have fuffered fo feverely by this dearbought victory, that they were not defirous of renewing the war; and the Saxons, on the other hand, were no less inclined to peace. Accordingly, two years after, a peace was concluded between the Danes, as well in Northumberland as in the kingdom of the Eaft Angles, and the Saxons, which was ratified by king Edward and his nobles.

This truce continued three years unviolated, at which period the war was again renewed: but what provocation was given, or to which party the infringement of the treaty was owing, is not recorded. However, at this time king Edward caused a powerful army to be raised in Weffex and Mercia, which he fent beyond the Humber, against the Danes who refided in Northumberland. The Saxon forces entered Northumberland with fire and fword, and after staying there five weeks, during which time they made prodigious flaughter amongst the Danes, they returned home, laden with the spoils of their enemies.

The following year, the Danes, rejecting all offers of peace, entered Mercia, and retaliated the injuries which they had received; but being met by a ftrong party of the Saxons, at Tetnal in Staffordshire, they were overthrown in a set battle. In the mean time king Edward was in Kent, and had collected about an hundred fail of fhips, and was met by others which had been cruifing upon the fouthern coasts. The Danes (hearing how Edward was employed, and imagining the greatest part of his army was fent on board the veffels) collected all the forces they could, and advancing beyond the Severn into Weffex, plundered every part of the country they paffed through. The king, hearing of their proceedings, marched against them with all expedition, and came up with them, unexpectedly, at a place called Wodensfield, in Staffordshire, as they were returning home: a bloody battle enfued, in which the Danes, after a defperate refistance, were totally overcome, with the lofs of fome thousands of their army, together with Ecwils their king, and feveral others of their chief roblemen and leaders.

This important victory was of great confequence to Edward, for at the fame time that it damped the fpirits of his

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