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serving of little credit; -Wright was in terested, since he hoped to gain payment of his till by the prosecution;-and Wright's brother might be supposed to have some leaning to his relation, who was also his employer, though on the whole a very fit and competent witness. Col. Wardle, on the other hand, was no less interested than Wright-Major Dodd's testimony, or at least his general character, was in some measure impaired by the circumstance of his being private secretary to the Duke of Sussex at the very time when he was extracting from the Duke of York's mistress anecdotes to the prejudice of his Royal Highness. There is something undoubtedly extremely revolting to the feelings of respectable men, in the idea of a person's enjoying the confidence, and passing continually into the company, of one son of his Sovereign, and being busily occupied, at that very period, in detecting the faults of another son of the same Sovereign, through the medium of a cast-off mistress, with whom he condescended to travel for that purpose. We cannot wonder that Major Dodd has lust his office, and the emoluments of it: he ought himself to have resigned it, antecedently to his taking the path which he has pursued. Col. Glennie's testimony does not appear to us, on the face of the trial, to have been liable to any particular exception. It should, however, be remembered, that his evidence, as well indeed as that of Major Dodd, must necessarily be somewhat less conclusive in its nature than that of the other party, inasmuch as they were brought to prove a negative. The words, or something like the words, affirmed to have been spoken, might have been uttered, and though heard by the one set of witnesses, might not have been equally adverted to by some of the others. We say, therefore, that here was nearly a balance of testimonies; and if it was a balance, we incline to think, that, both from the nature of the trial, and from the circumstance of an antecedent verdict being to be overthrown, the proper course might have been to re-affirm the former decision. Such also seems to have been the opinion of the judge. But a new witness was brought; and his testimony appears to us to have so completely established the propriety of acquitting the persons charged with a conspiracy, that we are not at all sarprited at the readiness with which the jury proceeded to their verdict of acquittal. Mr. Stokes, solicitor to Mrs. Clarke-a man of good character, as far as appears, and well acquainted with Mr. Alley, counsel for

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the prosecutor-swore, that, he being about to be called up as an evidence before the House of Commons on the part of Col. Wardle, had suggested to the Colonel himself, that it would be better not to call him, inasmuch as he should perhaps be obliged to disclose what he knew of " Mrs. Clarke's being to derive considerable advantages for coming forward upon the investigation;" and that he had also dissuaded the calling of Wright for the same reason. Some of his words, given on oath in the trial, are as follow: -"Col. Wardle said,This is Wright the upholsterer: he is come to be examined by me.' I said, 'You surely do not mean to call Wright; for he will, if possible, do you more mischief than myself, as in that case your furnishing Mrs. Clarke's house, and sending him to me, to bring an action against the Duke of York, will certainly come out.? He said, Then you think I ought not to call him;'" &c. &c. On the production of this unexpected evidence, Col. Wardle was again called, and he gave a testimony in flat contradiction to that of Mr. Stokes. It is impossible, however, to allow this new evidence of Mr. Stokes, and this superadded testimony of Colonel Wardle, to pair off together. Here are now four witnesses against three; and the new witness is a man not at all interested, as we conceive, in the question at issue. He is also remarkably specific, as well as confident, in all that he says.--There is a further circumstance to be considered. It came out, in this and in the former trial, that Colonel Wardle, who is indig nant at the idea of his being suspected to have bribed Mrs. Clarke to give her testimony, by engaging to pay her upholsterer's bill for about 1000l., had paid her 100l. at one time, and 90l. at another; and had procured for her 500l. at another; for which last transaction he had been guarantee. Why, then, are we to assume that the man who would supply above 600l. would not supply a further 1000l.? Where is the great difference between the principle of furnishing the one sum and the other? More over, it is observable, that pains were taken to conceal the grant of 500l., another name being interposed for this very purpose. . On the whole, then, we may congratulate our selves, that in this case an English jury has done its duty; and it is important that our countrymen should attend to questious of this description, since the interests both of morality and civil liberty are deeply concerned. It is of great moment that the fountains of justice should be as pure as possible. The due administration of the

law is, after all, the grand security to our. freedom; and if witnesses may be bribed to give their evidence, and the bribe given concealed, who can doubt that abundant testimony to almost any point may be purchased? And which of us will then be safe, either in his reputation, his property, his liberty, or even his life? Lord Ellenborough observed, at the close of this trial, that if only the gift of the 100l. to Mrs. Clarke had appeared, it would have impeached her testimony before the house; and that if it had appeared before a court of justice, and Mrs. Clarke had sworn untruly, the party giving it would have been subjected to an accusation of subornation of perjury. We cannot do a better service to the community, than by disseminating the knowledge of this wholesome doctrine of the law of England.

A public subscription, in aid of Col. War dle's expenses in the general prosecution of the affair of the Duke of York, has been opened, and between one and two thousand pounds have already been subscribed. We cannot help deeming this extremely objectionable, on the ground of its being applicable to the purpose of indemnifying Col.

Wardle for the payment of all those sums to Mrs. Clarke of which we have spoken. Surely the watchful guardians o. our constitution ought at least to have provided against this use of the sum supplied by the sons of liberty over the kingdom: it ought to have been advertised to be a subscrip fion for inden.litying Col. Wafle for all charges, save and except those which were bribes to Mrs. Clarke for her testimony. Subscriptions for the payment of the expenses of favoucite candidates at elections, are commonly declared to be applicable only to the legal charges. We are not of the party of the Duke of York in this business: our opinion, inat respect, stands almost exactly as it did. But we deprecate violence on every side, as well fairness and injustice. We are again all crooked means of pursuing even a right end. The interests, neither of religion, nor of morality, no of true liberty, are ever served by such a course; and we hope that our readers will not accuse us of deviating too much into politics, by the length to which we have carried our observations on this important topic.

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ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

A FRIEND TO THE ESTABLISHMENT, BUT NOT AN ENEMY TO THE CANDID DisSENTER; ANTIPAPA; INQUISITOR; J. S.; PHILOMEL; R. O. S. G., O. S. G, G.; HISTORICUS; and DELTA; have been received, and are under consideration.

Mr. JOSEPH Fox, secretary to the London Society for promoting the Conversion of the Jews, has requested us to convey the thanks of the Committee of that Society to the Gentleman styling himself " A Well-wisher to Israel," for his Manuscript, being a Reply to David Levi's Dissertation on the Prophecies; and to inform that Gentleman, that the Committee have resolved to publish the same, and have adjudged the Premium of Thirty Guineas to the Author, who is requested to make known to Mr. Fox in what manner he wishes the same to be remitted.

We have received Mr. IVIMEY's paper. He will probably think that his answer ought to be directed rather to the paper on Infant Baptism in our present number, than to that in our number for November,

Mr. Mudford's notice caine too late..

ERRATUM.

In the present number: p. 13, col. 2, L. 4 from the bottom: After before, read God.

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'When I peruse the writings of my younger years, I find the footsteps of an unfurnished mind, of emptiness, and insufficiency; yet, of those points which I then thoroughly studied, my judgment is the same now as then, and therefore in the substance of my religion, and in such controversies as I then searched into with some extraordinary diligence, I find not my mind disposed to change. But in divers points that I studied slightly, and in many things which I took upon trust from others, I have since found my apprehensions either erroneous or very defective: and those things which I was orthodox in, I had either insufficient reasons for, or a mixture of some sound and some insufficient ones; or else an insufficient apprehension of those reasons; that I scarcely knew what I seemed to know: and one common armity I perceive in my writings, namely, that I put forth matters with some kind of confidence, as if I had done something new or more than ordinary in them, when, upon my mature review, I find that I said Bot one half which the subject reCHAIST. OBSERVv. No. 98.

quired; and the reason was, that I had not read any of the fuller sort of books that are written on the

with those that knew more than myself; and so all those things were either new or great to me, which were common, and perhaps small, to others: and, because they all came in by my own study of the naked matter, and not from books, they were apt to affect my mind the more, and to seem greater than they were. And another token of weakness is discernible, in my early works, namely, that I was very apt to start controversies in my practical writings, and also more desirous to acquaint the world with all I took to be truth, and to assault those books by name which I thought unsound: and the reason of all this was, that I was then in the vigour of my youthful apprehensions, and the new appearance of any sacred truth was more apt to affect me, and to be more valued, than afterwards, when com monness had dulled my delight; and I did not then sufficiently discern how much of controversy is verbal, and upon mutual mistakes. And withal I knew not how impatient divines were of being contradicted; and how it would stir up all their power to defend what they had once said, and rise against the truth which is thus thrust upon them, as the mortal enemy of their honour: and I have perceived that nothing so much hindereth the reception of the truth, as urging it on men with too harsh importunity, and falling too heavily upon their errors; for hereby you engage their credit in the business, and they de fend their errors as themselves. In

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controversies, it is opposition which kindles a resisting zeal; whereas, if they be neglected, and their opinions lie awhile neglected, they usually cool and come again to themselves: though this holds not when a sectary is animated by the greediness and increase of his followers. Men are so loth to be drenched with the truth, that I am more for going that way to work; and, to confess the truth, am lately much prone to the contrary extreme, so as to be too indifferent what men hold, and to keep my judgment to myself; and I find this effect is mixed according to its causes, which are some good and some bad; the bad ones are, 1. An impatience of men's weakness and mistaking frowardness and self-conceit; 2. An abatement of my sensible esteem of truth, through the long abode of it on my mind. The better causes are, 1. That I am more sensible than ever of the necessity of living upon the principles of religion which we are all agreed in, and uniting these; and how much mischief men that over-value their own opinions have done the church; how some have destroyed charity, and others caused schism, and most have hindered serious godliness in themselves and others, and used controversy to divert men from seriously following a holy life. 2. And I find that it is much more for most men's good, to converse with them only in that way of godliness where all are agreed, and not touching upon differences to stir up their corruptions; and to tell them of little more of your knowledge than you find them willing to receive from you as mere learners; and therefore to stay till they crave information of you; as Musculus did with the anabaptists, when he visited them in prison, conversing kindly with them, and shewing them all the love he could, and never talking about their opinions, till at last, they, who used to call him a deceiver, entreated him to teach them, and received his instruction. We mistake men's diseases when we think

there needs nothing to cure their errors, but only to bring them the evidence of truth. Alas! there are many distempers of mind to be removed, before men are able to receive that evidence. In a learning way men are ready to receive truth, but in a disputing way they come armed against it with prejudice and animosity. In my youth I was quickly past my fundamentals, and greatly delighted with metaphysics (though my preaching was still on the necessary points); but the older I grew, the smaller stress I laid upon matters of controversy, as finding far greater uncertainties in them than I at first saw; and now it is the plain doctrines of the Catechism which I most value, and daily think of, and find most useful to myself and others. The Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Commandments, do find me now the most plentiful and acceptable matter for all my meditations: they are to me as my daily bread; and as I can speak and write of them over and over again, so I had rather hear or read of them, than of any of the school niceties, which once so much pleased me. And thus I observed it was with old Bishop Usher, and with many others; and I conjecture that this effect also is mixed of good and bad according to its causes. The bad cause may perhaps be some natural infirmity. As trees in the spring shoot vigorously, but in autumn the life retires to the root; so possibly, my nature, conscious of its infirmity, may find itself insufficient for great things, and so my mind may descend to the root of Chris tian principles: and also I have often been afraid lest ill-rooting at first, and many temptations afterwards, have made it more necessary for me than many others to secure my fundamentals. But upon much observation, I am afraid lest most others are in no better a case and that at first they take it for granted that Christ is the Saviour the world, that the soul is immortal and that there is a heaven and hell, &c. while they are studying

abundance of scholastic superstructures, and at last will find cause to study more soundly their religion itself, as well as I have done. The better causes are these: 1. I value all things according to their use and end; and I find by my daily experience, that the knowledge of God, and Christ, and the Holy Spirit, and of a holy life, is of more use than all speculation. 2. I know that every man must grow (as trees) downwards and upwards at once; and that the roots increase as the trunk and branches do. 3. Being the nearer eternity, I the more regard those things which my everlasting life or death depends on. 4. Having most to do with ignorant, miserable people, I am commanded, by my charity and reason, to treat with them of that which their salvation lieth on, and not to dispute with them of niceties, when the question is presently to be determined, whether they shall dwell for ever in heaven or in hell. In a word, my meditations must be upon the matters of my interest; and as the seeking after eternal life is the matter of my interest, so must it be of my meditation. That is the best study which makes men better, and tends to make them happy. I abhor the folly of those unlearned persons, who revile learning because they know not what it is; and I take not any piece of true learning to be useless; and yet my soul approves the resolution of St. Paul, who determined to know nothing among his hearers (that is, comparatively to value and exhibit no other wisdom) but Christ crucified. I would persuade my reader to live upon the essential doctrines of Christianity; and that he may know that my testimony is somewhat regardable, I presume to say, that in this I gainSay my natural inclination to subtilty; and I think that if he lived among infidels, he would find that to make good the doctrine of faith aud life eternal, were not only his Tost useful study, but also that In my younger years my trouble which would require the exercise of for sin was most about my actual

all his parts, and the utmost of his diligence to manage it skilfully. I add therefore, that whereas in my younger days I was never tempted to doubt the truth of the Scripture, but all my fear was exercised at home, about my own sincerity, and this was it which I called unbelief; since that time my worst assaults have been on the other side; and such they were, that had I been void of inward experience, and had I not discerned more reason for my religion than I did before, I had certainly apostatised to infidelity. I am now, therefore, much more apprehensive of the necessity of well grounding men in their religion, and especially of the witness of the in-dwelling Spirit; for I more sensibly perceive that the Spirit is the great witness of Christ in the world. And though the folly of fanatics tempted me long to overlook the strength of this testimony of the Spirit, while they placed it in a certain internal assertion, or enthusiastic inspiration, yet I now see that the Holy Ghost in another manner is the witness of Christ, and his agent in the world. The Spirit, by the sanctification and consolation assimilating the soul to Christ, is the continued witness to all true believers. There is many a one that hideth his temptations to infidelity, because he thinketh it a shame to open them, and because it may create doubts in others; but I fear the imperfection of most men's care of their salvation, and of their diligence in a holy life, comes from the imperfection of their belief in a life to come. For my part I must confess, that when my belief of things eternal is most clear, all goeth accordingly in my soul; and all temptations to sinful compliances with the world and flesh signify worse to me than an invitation to the stocks or Bedlam: and no petition seems more necessary to me than, "Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief.”

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