An Account of the Society lately Erected for the Relief of Poor Converts from the Church of Rome.

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FTER the Revocation of the perpetual Edi&t of Nantz,

eftablish'd by Henry IV. of France, and fo folemnly renewed by the Son and Grandfon of that great King, whereby the free Exercife of the Proteftant or Reform'd Religion, became part of the Rights of all Frenchmen profeffing the fame; and after the most dreadful Perfecution that ever was rais'd by Christians against their Brethren, begun, and I had almoft faid, ended by the late King Lewit, it pleas'd God to move the Heart of that great Affertor of the Religious and Civil Rights of Mankind, King William, of immortal Memory, to confent, that the Sum of Fifteen Thousand Pounds per Annum fhould be charged upon the Royal Revenue, and appropriated by A& of Parliament, towards the Relief and Support of the vaft Number of French Proteftants of all Degrees and Conditions, Ages and Sexes, that have been flying hither for Refuge from the Year 1684. that fatal Epocha, to this Day. And for the rendring more effectual the aforefaid charitable Benevolence of our King and Nation, the faid King was pleas'd to appoint fome of the great Officers of the Kingdom, Privy-Councellors and others, to fuperintend the Diftribution of the faid Sum of 15000 1. and by the Advice and Affiftance of feveral worthy Gentlemen chofen from among the French Clergy and Laity, that Sum has been managed with fuch Oeconomy and Prudence, that not only all the poor diftreffed Proteftants, or Refugees, as they are commonly call'd, have been affifted from Year to Year, but even many Converts from Popery, of the fame Nation. For as in the Times of the old Roman Perfecutions, it pleas'd God to excite many of the wifeft and most virtuous Heathens to enquire into the Nature of that Religion, which they faw the Chriftians feal with their Blood, fo likewife in our Days, and upon these new Roman Perfecutions, divers fober and ferious Perfons, both Ecclefiaftical and Laymen, both Learned and Unlearned, throughout all France, were moved to examine what might be the Caufe that fuch Shoals of their Fellow-Subjects, and of the most peaceable part too (Men that had never been concern'd in the Affaffination of Kings, in Holy Leagues and the like) fhould be fo cruelly and inhumanly treated, and, Jike Sheep, driven away by their Bloody Butchers from their Paftures without opening their Mouths, nay, voluntarily forfaking their Fathers, their Children, their Poffeffions, their dear Country, rather than betray their Confciences.

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Part I. God has been pleas'd to blefs their Enquiries, to open their Eyes, and to fill their Hearts with the juft Notions of Chriftianity founded only upon his holy Word; and accordingly we have feen from Time to Time, feveral worthy Perfons of the Church of Rome, who in the hotteft of the French Perfecution, have had the Courage to abandon good Establishments in their own Country, and without regarding the Hatred of even their Friends and Relations whom they fled from, or the Contempt; Neglect and Sufpicions of Strangers to whom they fly for Succour (which Circumftances render the Cafe of honeft Profelytes harder, if poflible, than of the Refugees themfelves) have been contented to come and beg their Bread of us. This has greatly increa'd the Objects of English Charities; and the French Proteftants having been fatisfy'd to fhare with them part of that which was wholly appropriated to the faid Refugees, his Majefty has been gracioufly pleas'd to allow, that the Paymaster of the Pentions for the time being, fhall issue the Sum of 400 1. per Annum in fuch manner, and according to fuch Directions as the Lord Arch- Bishop of Canterbury, &c. fhall give, for and towards the Relief of poor Converts from the Church of Rome; by Virtue of which Powers, the Arch-Bifhop of Canterbury, the Bifhop of London, the Lord Chief Juftice of the King's-Bench, and the Lord Chief Juftice of the Common-Pleas, have agreed to appoint feveral eminent Perfons (whofe Names will be found among the following Lifts) to be Commiffioners for the Relief of poor Profelytes, and not only to receive and diftribute the abovemention'd 400 l. but also all fuch Sums of Money as fhall be rais'd by the Annual Subfcriptions, or prefent and immediate Benefactions of pious and charitable Perfons, among fuch of the poor Profelytes; as well Ecclefiaftics, as Lay Perfons, who, upon the ftricteft Enquiry, fhall be found to need, and beft deferve the fame.

In pursuance of this Appointment, the Commiffioners have had frequent Meetings, and agreed upon Rules and Orders for the better Diftribution of the Royal Bounty, and their own and other private Contributions, fome of which Rules are, That none fhall partake of the Charity, but fuch as have come into England since the Revocation of the Edi&t of Nantz; nor none but thofe who produce Authentic Certificate, of having abjured the Popish Religion, nor none but those that have taken the Oaths to the Government, nor none but thofe that can give a good Account of the Motives of their embracing our Religion, nor none but thofe of whom the Commiffioners fhall have receiv'd a fatisfactory Relation from their own Catechift, and from their Correfpondents in France, Italy Spain Germany, &c. concerning the good Life and Behaviour of every Profelyte; for which the Catechift has a competent Salary from the Society, and fo has alfo a Schoolmafter for inftructing

inftructing them in the English Tongue, which is alfo one of the first Cares of the Commiffioners; nor are the Profelytes admitted to any Dividend of the Bounty, but only to a Weekly Allowance, till the Board has receiv'd full Satiffaction upon the Premifes; after which, according to the feveral Circumftances of the Profelytes, they are relieved either by a kind of a Half-yearly Penfion, namely Minifters, Women, old Perfons, Sick and Infirm; which Penfions are alfo vary'd, that is, increa'd or diminish'd in Proportion to the Change of their Conditions, or to the Stock and Fund of the Society; befides this, there is a Phyfician one of the Members of the Society, who Vifits the Sick Gratis, and an Apothecary that gives his Medicines as cheap at leaft as the Difpenfary. But as for all the reft of the Profelytes, the Society makes it their Bufinefs to put them out to fome good Trade, by which they may Support both themselves and Families, or to fend them Abroad to fome of his Majefty's Plantations, allowing them a Sum of Money for that Purpose, once for all; of both which Ways of difpofing of 'em, especially of the former, there might be given many Inftances, notwithstanding that there have been but two Diftributions yet made, notwithstanding that the Societies whole yearly Income does not much exceed 500 l. and that the Number of the Profelytes to be reliev'd, amounts to about 130 Perfons.

The End of the First Part.

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DESCRIPTION

OF

SCOTLAND

In GENERAL.

CHAP. I.

Its Name, Climate, Dimenfions and Divifion.

Name,

HE Ancient Monks, who relifh'd no Antiquities but what were Fabulous, derive the Name Scot from one Scotta, Daughter of Pharaoh King of Egypt, Married to Gathelus, Son of Cecrops, King of Athens: It is moft probable, that Scot and Scythian are derivable from the fame Root: From fomething analogous to the Saxon Seytan, which fignifies to Shoot, in which Exercife all these Northern Nations were Excellent. This is certain, that the Names of Scot and Scotland, were at firft only proper to thofe People, who in their own Language call themselves Albanians ftill, fuch as the Scoto Brigantes mention'd by Seneca, and Scoto-deni by Ptolemy, which (by a Corruption ufual in MSS, where the Initial Letters of Sentences were left out at firft, and never filled up afterwards)

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