AND RELIGION 



all their arts and all their cruelties. He was exceedingly shocked ; 

 but was glad, at any rate to know the truth. 



430. When I was, last winter, in the neighbourhood of Harris- 

 burgh in Pennsylvania, I saw some hop -planters. They grow 

 prodigious quantities of hops. They are obliged to put their 

 hills so wide apart, that they can have only four hundred hills 

 upon an acre ; and yet they grow three thousand pounds of hops 

 upon an acre, with no manure and with once ploughing in the 

 year. When I told them about the price of hops in England and 

 about the difficulty of raising them, they were greatly surprised ; 

 but, what was their astonishment, when I told them about the 

 hop-poles of CHALCRAFT at Curbridge ! The hop is naturally a 

 weed in England as well as in America. Two or three vines had 

 come up out of Chalcraft s garden hedge, a few years ago. 

 Chalcraft put poles to them ; and, there might be a pound or 

 two of hops on these poles. Just before the time of gathering, 

 one of the spies called Excisemen called on Chalcraft and asked 

 him why he did not enter his hops. Chalcraft did not under 

 stand ; but, answered, he meant to take them in shortly, though 

 he did not think they were yet quite ripe. &quot; Aye,&quot; said the 

 Exciseman, &quot; but I mean, when do you mean to enter them at 

 * the excise office ? &quot; Chalcraft did not know (not living in a hop- 

 country), that he had already incurred & penalty for not reporting 

 to the tyrants that he had hops growing in his garden hedge ! 

 He did not know, that he could not gather them and put them by 

 without giving notice, under a penalty of fifty pounds. He did 

 not know, that he could not receive this little gift of God without 

 paying money to the Boroughmongers in the shape of tax ; 

 and, to the Parson in the shape of tithe, or, to give a tenth of the 

 hops to the Parson, and not dare pick a single hop till he had sent 

 notice to the Parson ! What he did, upon this occasion, I have 

 forgotten ; but, it is likely that he let the hops stand and rot, or 

 cut them down and flung them away as weeds. Now, poor men 

 in England are told to be content with rags and hungry bellies, 

 for that is their lot : that &quot; it has pleased Divine Providence to* 

 &quot; place them in that state.&quot; But, here is a striking instance of 

 the falsehood and blasphemy of this Doctrine ; for, Providence 

 had sent Chalcraft the hops, and he had put poles to them. 

 Providence had brought the hops to perfection ; but then came 

 the Boroughmongers and the Parson to take from this poor man 

 this boon of a benevolent Maker. What, did God order a tax 

 with all its vexatious regulations, to be imposed upon what he 

 had freely given to this poor man ? Did God ordain that, in 

 addition to this tax, a tenth should be yielded to a Parson, who had 

 solemnly vowed at his ordination, that he believed himself called, 

 not by the love of tithes, but by &quot; the Holy Ghost, to take on him 

 &quot; the cure of souls,&quot; and to &quot; bring stray sheep into the fold of the 

 &quot; Lord ? &quot; Did God ordain these things ? Had it phased God 

 to do this ? What impunity, what blasphemy, then, to ascribe 



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