230] 
The progress of my conversion 
may tend to illustrate, at least, the 
history of my own mind. Jr was 
not long since Dr. Middleton’s free 
inquiry had sounded an alarm in 
the theological world: much ink 
and much gall had been spilt in the 
defence of the primitive miracles ; 
and the two dullest of their cham- 
pions were crowned with acadeinic 
honours by the university of Ox- 
ford. The name of Middleton was 
unpopular; and his proscription 
very naturally led:me to peruse his 
writings, and those of his antago- 
mists. “Hts bold criticism, which 
approaches the precipice of infide- 
lity, produced on my mind a sin- 
golar effeét ; 2nd had I persevered 
in the communion of Rome, I should 
‘now apply to my own fortune the 
prediction of the Sybil, 
Fia prima salatis, 
Quod minimé reris, Graid  padeiur 
: ab arbe. 
The elegance of style and freedom 
of argument were repelicd by a 
shield of prejudice. I still revered 
the character, or rather the names, 
of the saints and fathers whom Jr. 
Middleton exposes ; ror could he 
destroy my implicit belief, that the 
gift of miraculous powers was con- 
tinued in the church, during the 
first four or five centuries of christi- 
anity. But J was unable to resist 
the weight of historical evidence, 
that within ‘the same period most 
of the leading doctrines of popery 
were already’ introduced in theory 
and praétice: nor was my conclu- 
sion absurd, that miracles are the 
test of truth, and that the church 
must be orthodox and pure, which 
was so often approved by the visi- 
ble interposition of the Deity. ‘The 
marvellous tales which are so boldly 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1796. 
attested by the Basils and Chry. 
sostoms, the Austins and Jeroms, 
compelled me to embrace the supe. 
rior merits of celibacy, the institu- 
tion of the monastic life, the use of 
the sign of the cross, of holy oil, 
and even of images, the invocation 
of saints, the worship of relics, the: 
rudiments of purgatory in prayers 
for the dead, and the tremendous 
mystery of the sacrifice of the body 
and blood of Christ, which insen- 
sibly swelled into the prodigy of 
transubstantiation. In these dispo- 
sitions, and already more than half 
a conyert, I formed an unlucky in. - 
timacy with a-young gentleman of 
cur college, whose name I shall 
spare. With a character less reso- 
luce, Mr, **** had imbibed the 
same religious apinions: and some 
Popish bocks, I know not through 
what channel, were conveyed into 
his possession, Tread, I applauded, 
J believed: the English tran-lations 
of two famous works of Bossuet 
bishop of Menux, the Exposition 
of the Catholic Doétrine, and the 
History of the Protestant Varia. 
tions, achieved my conversion, and 
I surely fell by a noble hand. 
No sooner had I settled my new 
religion than I resolved to profess. 
myself a catholic. Youth is sin- 
cere and impetuous; and a mo- 
mentary glow of enthusiasm had 
raised me above all temporal con. 
siderations, 
Tp my last excursion to London, 
I addressed myself to Mr. Lewis, 
a Roman catholic bookseller in 
Russel-street, Covent-garden, who 
recommended me to a priest, of 
whose name and order I am at pre- 
sent. ignorant. In our first inter- 
view he soon discovered that pers 
suasion was needless. After sound- 
ing the motives and merits of my 
conversion, 
