ANECDOTE OF A HIGHWAYMAN. 275 



The divine, somewhat recovered from his embarrassment, now 

 ventured to speak. 



" I cannot by any means be prevailed on to agree to your 

 positions, nor can I, as a minister of the gospel, refrain from 

 warning you against the fatal conclusions you draw from them ; 

 such is the discriminating sense, such the enlightened philan- 

 thropic spirit, and such the persevering benevolence of the times, 

 that I am convinced there is no species of distress, however it 

 may recede from public view, or bury itself in obscurity, that 

 can escape the sharp sighted optics of English humanity. Not 

 content with conferring favours on humble applicants, it is one 

 of the most prominent features of the present day to form socie- 

 ties, for the express purpose of exploring the darkest recesses of 

 human misery ; no grievance properly explained and well au- 

 thenticated, is suffered to go unredressed; — remove all possi- 

 bility of imposition ; and to know calamity in England is to 

 remove it. But allowing for arguments' sake that the case was 

 otherwise, on what principle of religion or right reason, are you 

 authorised, rash and mistaken man, to desert the post at which 

 Providence placed you, and at the first appearance of difficulty 

 or disaster, forgetting duty, interest, friendship, and every social 

 tie, insolently to rush into the presence of your Creator, your 

 hands reeking with your own blood; and murder most foul, 

 vile, and unnatural, branded on your cheeks, in defiance of 

 divine precepts, and in direct violation of that principle, which 

 he has so wisely and so mercifully implanted in your breast." 

 The good man would have proceeded, but his companion seeing, 

 as the moonlight shone through the parting clouds, a post-chaise 

 ascending the hill, thus interrupted him : — 



" To know calamity is to relieve it, if I rightly understood you, 

 is one of your positions?" — "It is." "An opportunity for 

 putting to the test the truth of your assertion now offiers itself," 

 'TSaid the stranger; *' the carriage which is coming, is, in fiict, 

 what I have several hours been expecting. The owner of it is a 

 rich man, and if my information be correct, has a considerable 

 sum of money with him : I will without exaggeration or reserve 

 explain my situation to him; according to your honourable, but 

 in my mind, romantic and unfounded doctrine, I will endeavour 

 to prevail on his reason to acknowledge the justness of my claims, 

 and try to interest his feeling to relieve my distress." 



The trier of this dangerous and unlawful experiment, imiiie- 

 diately turned his horse, and descending the hill, in a few min- 



