And let us believe as well as, without offering Violence to our Reafon, we can of all Men; and chuse much rather in our Judging, and in our Reports of Men, to offend on the Right than on the Left hand. I am certain, thus much is implied in those two Precepts of our Lord, viz. Judg not that ye be not Judged; for with what Judgment ye Judge ye shall be Judged, and with what Measure je mete, it shall be meted to you again. Matth. 7. 1, 2. And Judge not according to the appearance, but judg Righteous Judgment, John 7.24.

2. Ought the Slandering of our Neighbour to be fo detefted by us, then what an Abominable thing is it, to Slander, and injure the GoodName and Reputation of the Kings Majefty, and of those that under Him have Authority over us! 'Tis an exprefs Law of God, Exod. 22. 28. & repeated by St. Paul, viz. Thou shalt not revile the Gods, nor Curfe (or fpeak evil of) the Ru ler of thy People. And as to the King, 'tis fo great a wickedness to defame Him, or fay any thing to the leffening of his Honour, that the Wife Man thus chargech us, Ecclef. 10. 20. Curfe not the King, no not in thy thought.

And

And 'tis as much the Peoples intereft, as it is the Kings, that He be not Slandered, or Spoken Evil of. For Seditious and Rebellious Practices do ufually arise from Mens first taking this Wicked Liberty; as we have all known by ve ry woeful Experience. And we know by the like experience, that the King fuffers not more by thofe leud Practices,than the People neceffarily muft.

It was a good saying, as I remember, of Ariftotle, ὁ τὸν Ἄρχοντα κακηγορᾶ τὴν πόλιν ißeila, VVhofoever defames the Prince, is Injurious to the Common-VVealth; or Mischiefs his Subjects.

And as for thofe that take liberty to Invent or Tell Stories reflecting upon their Ecclefiaftical Governours, Paftors, or Teachers, they are in: a fpecial manner injurious to the Souls of Men. For nothing fo tends to the prejudicing of their People against their Doctrine, as their having an Evil Opinion of their Perfons. And for this Reafon, I think none are fo much concerned to keep their Good-Names as unfpotted as they can, and to clear themselves of whatsoever Af persions are cast upon them, as They are.

The

The Conclufion.

ANd now I will take this Occafion to inform

you, That Some having greatly concerned themselves of late, to carry Tales of Scandalous Paffages which they pretend to have heard from the Pulpits of divers of my Brethren in this City, there are Others who have very lately done the like good Office for My felf. I am too well aware Who they are, I will tell you who they are Not; I am very confident, they are not Papists, at least not Profeffed ones. But

you of this Parifh may have a fhrewd guess within a very few; for you must needs know fome to have long expreffed as bitter and implacable enmity against me, as if we had been of two Churches and Contrary Religions: And that without the leaft provocation on My part. And i I doubt not there are many of the Roman Religion, from whom I should have had much more Juft, Fair, and Chriftian Treatment. As filent as I have been hitherto, this is not the first nor fecond time neither, that I have been in the felf fame manner most vilely abused by These People, as in due time, I trust in God will be made

manifeft.

manifeft. My laft Accufation was this, (or at least the last I have heard of) That I vent ed in this Pulpit, on All-Saints-Day, viz. This day Fortnight, a Bitter Curfe against the Papifts, together with all thofe (for which I trust to the Memory of an Extraordinary Person) who give them encouragement. And the Curfe I understand was worded to this Effect; I wish their Names and Memories may Rot Eternally. Whatsoever the Exprefs Words were, I hear they perfectly Agreed in the self-fame, which is fo far from Evidence of their telling Truth of me, that 'tis a much stronger Argu ment of their being Confpirators against me. But may this Curfe, instead of falling upon the Papifts, or those that Encourage them, light upon my Own Name and Memory, if I either Pronounced It, or any Curse like it against either the One or the other, or any Curfe at all against either. And as I folemnly Appeal to God Almighty, fo I Appeal to You my Auditors, Whether there were the leaft Appearance of Shadow of an Occafion given by me, for fuch an Information as this against me. I Appeal to You allo, Whether you can think it Poffible, that fuch an Accufation as this could arife from meer Miftake. I am Confident, That All who

minded

minded my Sermon, will pronounce, that neither this Charge, nor any Charge that hath the leaft likeness to it, be it Worded how it will, must be nothing better than pure Invention; which we have fhewn is the moft Horrible way of Slandering.

I prevailed with a moft Worthy Prelate to hear that Sermon read out of my Notes word for word, and I cannot call to mind my having faid above three or four Words more than are in my Notes, and thofe I acquainted his Lordfhip with, meerly that I might truly fay, That He had nothing of the Sermon Concealed from Him. And after it was read, not one Bit of a Sentence could be fixed upon, that might put my Enemies in mind to Invent such a Slander as this of me, unless it were this, viz. If we do not justify to all the World (meaning, as before was expreffed, we Divines of the Church of England) the Reprefentations we have made of that Religion (viz. the Roman) to our People, let our Names ftink, and our Memories be covered with Eternal shame. And thefe words next follow, Tis a moft wicked thing to Slander a particular Perfon, and much more to Slander and Belye a whole Church, and that fo Excellent and Famous a Church, as that of Rome once E

was.