Warner (as appears

autograph of which is now before me. from an almost illegible and very imperfect draught of his answer on the back) expressed himself, perhaps with reason, still unsatisfied; and refused to revise a work, which, in fact, was a reinforcement of the previous offensive position. The offer, however, is at least an evidence, that, if Taylor were wrong, he was not unwilling to be instructed, and that the error of his opinions was not rendered more offensive by a self-confident and dogmatical temper. With such a disposition, he might err, but he could hardly be an heretic. The letter is as follows:

"RIGHT REVEREND FATHER IN GOD,

"MY VERY GOOD LORD,-I wrote to your Lor3. about a fortnight or three weekes since, to wh. letter, although I believe an answer is upon the road, yet I thought fitt to prevent the arrival of by this addresse; together with which I send up to Royston a little tract, giving a further account of that doctrine which some of my brethren were lesse pleased with. And although I find, by the letters of my friends from thence, that the storme is over, and many of the contradictors professe themselves of my opinion, and pretend that they were so before, but thought it not fit to owne it, yet I have sent up these papers, by which (according to that counsel which your Lor?. in your prudence and charity was pleased to give me) I doe intend, and I hope they will effect it, [to] give satisfaction to the church and to my jealous brethren besides, possibly, they may prevent a trouble to me, if peradventure any man should be tam otiose negotiosus as to write against me. For I am very desirous to be permitted quietly to my studies, that I may seasonably publish the first three books of my Cases of Conscience, which I am now preparing to the presse, and by which, as I hope to serve God and the church, so I doe designe to doe some honour to your LorP., to whose charity and noblenesse I and my relatives are so much obliged. I have given order to Royston to consigne these papers into your Lorp.'s hands, to peruse, censure, acquit, or condemne, as your Lor3. pleases. If the written copy be too troublesome to read, your Lor3. may receive them from the presse, and yet suppresse them before the publication, si minus probentur. But if, by your

Lorp.'s letters, which I suppose are coming to mee, I find any permission or counsel from your Loro. that may cause me to alter or adde to what is sent up, I will obey it, and give Royston order not to post so fast, but that I may overtake him before these come abroad. But I was upon any termes willing to be quit of these, that I might no longer suffer or looke upon any thing that may retard my more beloved intendment.

"My Lord, I humbly begge your blessing upon

"Your Lorp.'s most obliged and most affectionate and thankful Servant,

"Mandinam, November 17, 1655."

"JER. TAYLOR."

From this letter it appears that he was already released from prison, and at his wife's house of Mandinam. And since, from his published answer to Warner, annexed to the "Deus Justificatus," it is certain that he was still in Chepstow Castle about the middle of September, we may, probably enough, state the duration of his confinement from May to October inclusive. Nor is this the only interesting fact which this letter gives us to understand. It represents him as already considerably advanced in the composition of his "Ductor Dubitantium;" and proves to us, through how many years of his life, and with what a devoted earnestness, he was employed on the work to which he looked forward as the surest pledge of his future celebrity. Nor, when we recollect the far greater popularity enjoyed by his devotional works over this favourite product of his genius and industry, can we avoid some painful reflections on the short-sighted estimate often formed by the best and wisest of mankind, as to the celebrity and utility of their different labours.

The following letter to Evelyn, which has been published by Dr. Bray, was, probably, also written from Mandinam. The letters to which it is an answer do not appear.

“TO JOHN EVELYN, ESQUIRE.

"HONOUR'D AND DEARE S',- Not long after my coming from my prison, I met with your kind and friendly letters, of which I was very glad, not onely because they were a testimony of your kindnesse and affections to mee,

but that they gave mee a most welcome account of your health, and (which now-a-dayes is a great matter) of your liberty, and of that progression in piety in which I doe really rejoyce. But there could not be given to mee a greater and more persuasive testimony of the reality of your piety and care, than that you passe to greater degrees of caution and the love of God. It is the worke of your life, and I perceive you betake yourselfe heartily to it. The God of heaven and earth prosper you and accept you!

"I am well pleased that you have reade over my last booke: and give God thanks that I have reason to believe that it is accepted by God and by some good men. As for the censure of unconsenting persons, I expected it, and hope that themselves will be their owne reproovers, and truth will be assisted by God, and shall prevaile, when all noises and prejudices shall be ashamed. My comfort is, that I have the honour to be an advocate for God's justice and goodnesse, and that y consequent of my doctrine is that men may speake honour of God, and meanely of themselves. But I have also this last weeke sent up some papers, in which I make it appeare that the doctrine which I now have published was taught by the fathers within the first 400 years; and have vindicated it both from novelty and singularity. I have also prepared some other papers concerning this question, which I once had some thoughts to have published. But what I have already said, and now further explicated and justified, I hope may be sufficient to satisfy pious and prudent persons, who doe not love to goe quà itur, but quà eundum est. Sr, you see how good a husband I am of my paper and inke, that I make so short returnes to your most friendly letters. I pray be confident, that, if there be any defect here, I will make it up in my prayers for you and my great esteeme of you, which shall ever be expressed in my readinesse to serve you with all the earnestnesse and powers of,

DEARE S',

"Your most affectionate friend and servant,

"November 21, 1655."

"JER. TAYLOR."

This is a pious and eloquent letter; but there are some parts of it which should serve as a caution to all religious disputants. Whatever may be thought of his peculiar opinions, there are few who will venture to assert that such a man as Taylor either embraced them rashly, or professed them without sincerity, or was negligent in his applications to the throne of grace for celestial light and assistance. The doctrines, however, are, it will be readily allowed by most men in the present day, (as it was seen and deplored by the wisest and most learned theologians of the age in which Taylor lived,) irreconcilable with the articles of the church which he loved and honoured, and contrary to the plain sense of those Scriptures which were his consolation and his guide. It is even probable that he would never have entertained them, had it not been for the monstrous and dangerous glosses with which the truth had been obscured by Augustine and his followers; by which our nature, instead of being "very far gone from original righteousness," is represented as become utterly diabolical, and the gracious remedy provided for the disease of all mankind is confined to a few favoured individuals.

Yet these doctrines, which appear to most of us, as they doubtless appeared to Taylor, so offensive to reason, and so unworthy of the Deity, were maintained by men as wise, perhaps, and certainly as holy, as Taylor himself, who, on their parts, regarded with horror his denial of absolute predestination, and of the doctrine that infants unbaptized were immediate objects of God's anger. Such considerations should not only lead us to think charitably of the persons with whom we differ, but should warn us against a too hasty condemnation of their opinions. They should warn us against supposing the reverse of wrong to be right; and should endear to us still more the moderation, the discretion, and the humility, with which, on these awful and most mysterious subjects, our own excellent and apostolic church has expressed herself. There is yet one caution more. Taylor, as the reader will have seen, was confident in the truth of his hypothesis, from the persuasion that it manifested the goodness and justice of God, and taught men to "speake honour of God, and meanely of themselves." It is probable that, on these very same grounds, the most

vehement of his adversaries were prejudiced in favour of Calvinism. The inference is plain, that, though it be sufficient cause to reconsider most diligently and most jealously whatever opinion appears to us or to others to militate against our natural notions of fitness and general analogy of the Divine perfections,—yet, is it wise, in all such cases, to suspect that our own perceptions may be erroneous, our own reasoning inconsequent; and that it becomes us to believe of God, not so much what we may think worthy of him, as what he has himself revealed concerning his nature and his actions.-As a commentator on Scripture, as a guide to the interpretation of Scripture, our reason is most useful and most necessary; but Scripture, and Scripture only, is the rule of faith; and that is the perfection of reason which leads us to adhere most closely to the only guide which, in all necessary points of belief, is infallible.

It appears that Evelyn, during the early part of the winter, renewed his application to Taylor, that he should undertake some work adapted to the use of Christians when deprived of a regular ministry, and the sacraments which a regular ministry only can, ordinarily, dispense with efficacy. It appears, indeed, that the former letter had been overlooked by Taylor, in the pressure of his troubles and his studies, till now a second time recalled to his mind, since "the distich on the departed saint" is plainly that which is given in Evelyn's letter of May, 1655.

Some other correspondence, besides that which has been already noticed, and to which Taylor alludes, as containing the "vile distich on the departed saint," must, at all events, have passed, since Taylor, in the following letter, speaks of Evelyn's apologies for troubling him, and his offers of pecuniary assistance. The Birkenhead whose repartee he mentions, was, probably, John Birkenhead, author of the "Mercurius Aulicus." The letter is now first given to the public.

"TO JOHN EVELYN, ESQUIRE.

"St. Paul's Convers. 5.

"DEARE S',-I perceive by your symptoms how the spirits of pious men are affected in this sad catalysis: it is an evil time, and we ought not to hold our peace; but now the question is, who shall speake? Yet I am highly per