18O0.] Remarks on Mr. Ppcha* l>ictionar;p: 



431 



bim on tJie throne, on his offering to re- 

 ceive his kingdom from tlie pope'* 

 hands, as a iict' from the holy fee. 



This new fabric of government was 

 now extended as fa.r as it was deftined to 

 be : lionie hud now for the fecond time 

 plundered tlie world ; not, as formei'ly, 

 widi armed legions, but by holts in frycks 

 and cowls ; not with the edge of the 

 fword, but with bulls aiid decretals, with 

 interdict and excommuijication. Again 

 was Rome niillrefs of the world ; but flie 

 had CKchanged the throne for a bifliop's 

 chaii', and the fceptre for a pailonil itati ; 

 inllead of armies to execute her abfolute 

 .decrees, tl»e performance of them was 

 equally enfnred by the alternate, applica- 

 tion of cuifes find benedictions. 



While all C'hriftendom lay in quiet 

 fubmiffion at his feet, his yoke was more 

 grievous to be borne than that of any 

 C)ricntal defpot ; yet from the great 

 niafs of the public no complaint or 

 remotjftrance was heard. If here and 

 tJiere the deep voice of an heretic raifed 

 itfclf againll him, and broke through th« 

 terrilic filence, the holy father fooa 

 hurled the anathema at his head ; the 

 heretic and his hercfy expired togetlier ; 

 and a general filence again pervaded the 

 whole of Chrifteadom. 



Political and religious freedom fell to- 

 gether. The liberty of thinking, of in- 

 quiry, and of private judgment, were 

 reftriittcd to fophiftical defences of the 

 exiting tyranny, or giving a colour of 

 fight to its ufurpation, Ou every otlier 

 fubjett the holy fee faved them tha 

 trouble of thinking : articles of faith a^nd 

 rules of life were there determined : the 

 rights of the churcli, and the duties of 

 its fubjects, afcertained ; and heaven it- 

 felf declared to be only attainable by 

 die purchafed favour of the i'uccellor to 

 St. Peter's kcv. 



\N'as the Church embroiled? the bi- 

 fliop put on his helmet and cuirafs, and 

 rudied into - the conteft : at home he 

 preached duties and enjoined penances, 

 which he forgot in his chamber. The 



i)aiif)»-prieft lat in his confefliunal, and 

 aid a contribution on the lius of his pa- 

 riihioners, for the benefit of the cloiiler's 

 ilroiig-box ; and biihop, prieil, and lay- 

 brother, in their turn, fleeced the Hock 

 connnitted to their care. The monk, in 

 his Voluntary feclufion from the world, 

 haid aijjured all worldly concerns, and 

 left to the lay-brother the management 

 of all tempoial affairs ; but the enjoy- 

 «icat3 puj-ckaliud by vAcalUi vycic not of 



too temporal a nature for him. The lay- 

 man might count his beads, and induJc« 

 in all the fenfual gratifications ; and 

 wlien the meafure of his hns was full, h» 

 hallened to the cowfeihonal to get rid of 

 the load. Was he poor, his body mult 

 pay tlie penalty ; was he ricli, his pude. 

 The holy father thought not alone for iiu 

 children here below ; but thole who wcr« 

 well endowed with worldly polfelhons, 

 might, through him, fecure then- liappi- 

 nefs for time and for eternity. 



The greateft part therefore of the 

 confufion and error both in the politics 

 and rehgion of the middle ages, — a coa- 

 fufioa which beggars all defcriptioii, — 

 was the work of the clergy during their 

 ufurpation of temporal authority. la 

 every connexion in which we confider 

 them, in conne^ion with the church or 

 the ftate, being in the folc pollt'lliou of 

 all the learning of the time, their whole 

 labours tended to tlie deterioration of 

 fociety. 



T» the Editor of the Monthli/ Magazim, 



SIR, 



IN addition to the ingenious and judi- 

 cious communications on the anoma- 

 lous orthography of our language that 

 Iwve been made to Mr. Pytches, through 

 the medium of your v.aluablo mifcellanv, 

 permit an obfcure individual to contri- 

 bute fome remarks that he has made on 

 the fame fubject. 



It has long appeared to me a matter 

 of aftonifliment, that no writer in the 

 Englifli language, fo far as I have ob- 

 ferved, has attempted to adjufc the or- 

 thography (Jf three words, exceed, pro- 

 ceed a.a6jucceed, to the analogy of the 

 otlier Latin derivatives from ccdo, which 

 in our language are ever written concede^ 

 intercede f precede, recede, and kcede: 

 the only change the original words have 

 undergone is that of changing the o into 

 e, as concedo to concede, &c. ; but for 

 what reafon the other three compounds 

 Ihould not fall in with this rule, and be 

 fpelled e\cedc, proceie, and iaccede, I 

 have not been able to difcover. This 

 anomaly has not, perhaps, efcaped th* 

 fcrutinizing eye of our lexicographer. 

 The other compounds of cedo, which are 

 antecedo, decedo, dif'-edo, and retioccdc, 

 do not appear to be transferred to our 

 language, at Icaft in the verijnl fonn. 



A regard to the fatne ajialouiy would 

 intluce us to fpell concele and ;<"<'f/<?(frora 

 cwKelo aod revelo), uot uonteal and re- 

 veal. 



