T O L 



among Chriftians of all denominations, by whom il was re- 

 garded as an attempt to overthrow revealed icligion. At 

 home and abroad it excited attention, and tlic advocates of 

 Chriftiaiiity concurred in the defence of their religion 

 againfl what they conceived to be an attack upon it. The 

 magiftrates, alfo, intruded into this controverfy, and pro- 

 cured a prefentment by tlie grand jury of Middlefex. 

 The author withdrew from the llorm wliich feemed to be 

 gathering into liis own country ; but the obnoxious cha- 

 radler of his book liad excited prejudices againfl him. 

 Toland, as we learn from the correfpondence between Mr. 

 Molyneux and Mr. Locke on the fubjeft, does not fcenMo 

 have aCied witli that moderation and prudence wliich might 

 reafonably have been expefted in his circumilanccs. His 

 manner oi defending and propagating his opinions gave juft 

 offence even to thofe who entertained fome degree of refpedl 

 for his talents and learning ; and was condemned by thofe 

 who were avowed advocates of rational liberty and enemies to 

 every kind of perfecution. From another quartsr he ex- 

 perienced a feverity of treatment, which his own mifconduil 

 had provoked, but which, in this mofe enhghtened and 

 liberal period, none, we prefume, will undertake to jollify. 

 In a reply to Toland's book, by Mr. Peter Brown, fenior 

 fellow of Trinity college, the civil magillrate was called 

 upon to interfere ; accordingly the grand jury of Dublin 

 made a prefentment of the book : the parliament of Ireland 

 voted it to be burnt by the common hangman, and iffued an 

 order tiiat the author fhould be taken into cuflody by the 

 ferjeant at arms, and profecuted by the attorney-general. 

 Toland, univcrfally fhunned by his acquaintance, and re- 

 duced to pecuniary diflrefs, left the country, and returned 

 to England. While fome difapproved the violence of this 

 proceeding, others jullified it ; and Dr. South, in particular, 

 highly commends the Irifh parliament for having, " to their 

 immortal honour, prefently fent him (Toland) packing, and, 

 without the help of a faggot, foon made the kingdom too 

 hot to hold him." On the fpirit which diftated this lan- 

 guage we make no comment. Toland, upon his arrival in 

 London, publilhed an account of his treatment in Ireland, 

 and renouncing communion with the Diffenters, declared 

 himfelf a latitudinarian, or one who would comply with the 

 religious wordiip of any clafs of Proteftants, whofe dif- 

 ferences were not, in his eilimation, of fuflicient importance 

 to juflify dillurbing the peace of a nation. He then di- 

 refted his attention to other topics ; and in 1698 he pub- 

 lifhed a pamphlet, intitled " The Militia reformed," in 

 which he propofed to fubflitute that fpecies of armament 

 to a Handing army. In the fame year he wrote a " Life of 

 Milton," to be prefixed to an edition of his profe works, 

 and which was alfo printed feparately. In this preface 

 he oppofed the notion then prevalent, that the " Icon 

 Bafihke" was written by Charles I. ; and from the con- 

 fideration of this impoflure, as he pronounced it to be, he 

 digreflcd to the confidcration of the fpurious works that had 

 been afcribed to Chrill and liis apollles. Againfl a hofl of 

 political and religious advcrfaries, he defended himfelf in a 

 treatife intitled " Amyntor ;" in which he gave a complete 

 hiflory of the " Icon Bafilike," and alfo a catalogue of 

 fuch primitive writers, who were judged by him to be fpu- 

 rious. As he was fuppofed in the difculTion of this latter 

 topic to impugn the authenticity of the received canon of 

 Scripture, he drew forth replies from foms of the ablefl 

 advocates of Chriflianity, and particularly Mr. (afterwards 

 the highly celebrated Dr.) Samuel Clarke. 



In 1699, Toland was engaged by the duke of New- 

 caflle to piiblilh " Memoirs of Dcnzil Lord Hojles ;" and 

 in the following year by Mr. Robert Harley, afterwards 

 carl of Oxford, then a Whig, to give a new edition of 



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Harrington's " Oceana." When the Aft of Saceefiion was 

 pafTed, on occalion of the death of the duke of Gloucefter 

 in 1701, he publiflied " Anglia Libera," being an ex- 

 planation and eulogy of this 3& ; and he accompanied the 

 carl of Macclesfield, who was deputed to carry it to 

 Hanover, and had the honour of prefenting his book to 

 the eleftrefs Sophia, and of kiffiiig her hand on the occafion. 

 At Berlin, which lie vilited, he held a difputo, before the 

 queen of PrufTia, with tlie learned Beaufobre, on the autho- 

 rity of the books of the New Tellament ; an account 

 of which was fent by the latter to the " Bibliotheque 

 Germanique." Upon his return to England in 1704, 

 he publiflied "Letters to Serena," (meaning the queen 

 of PrulTia,) on the origin and force of prejudices; the 

 hiflory of the foul's immortahty among the heathens ; the 

 origin of idolatry ; and remarks on Spinoza's pliilolophy. 

 Thefe letters were animadverted upon by Wotton, and by 

 the author of the Divine I..egation. In 1708 he pub- 

 lifhed at the Hague two Latin dilTertations, entitled "Adei- 

 fidxmon, five Titus Livius a Superilitione viiidicatus," 

 and " Origines .TudaicK, five Straboms de Moyfe et Reli- 

 gione Judaica Hilloria breviter illullrata." In 1718 he 

 publiflied " Nazarenus ; or Jewifh, Gentile, or Mahometan 

 Chriflianity," &c. in which he endeavours to lliew that 

 the Jewifh converts were to obferve their own law tlirough- 

 out all generations, &c. Two years afterwards appeared a 

 Latin tradl, entitled "Pantheillicon : five Formula celebranda: 

 Sodahtatis Socraticsc, &c. :" a work whicii has fubjedled 

 its author to the charge of atlieifm, and in confequc-nce of 

 whicii he was mijuflly accufed by Dr.- Hare with having 

 compofed a profane prayer to Bacchus in his cliaratte'r of 

 Pantheifl. In the fame year he publiflied his " Tetrady- 

 mus," on the pillar of cloud and fire that guided the 

 Ifraehtes; on the exoteric and efoteric philofophy of the 

 ancients ; on Hypatia, the female philofopher ; and a de- 

 fence of his Nazarenus againfl Dr. Mangey. To this work 

 he annexed an account of his condudl and fentimcats, fo- 

 lemnly profefTing his preference of the Chriflian religion, 

 pure and unmixed, to all others. 



Toland's liealth was now declining, and being in low cir- 

 cumflances, lord Molefworth afTured him that he fhould 

 never want, while he himfelf lived. However, his difeafe 

 b;iffled all remedies, and his life clofed on the nth of 

 March, 1722, in the 53d year of his age. He nuuiifefled a 

 confiderable degree of refolution and patience during the 

 progrefs of his illnefs : replying to one who allied him if lie 

 wanted any thing, " I want nothing but death ;" and after 

 taking a calm leave of his friends, faying to ihein that " he 

 was going to fleep." In an epitaph which he prepared for 

 liimfelf, he expreffes that confidence and felf-applaufe which 

 belonged to his charafter. He clofes wiih thefe words : 

 " Spiritus cum sethereo patre, a quo prodiit olini, coiijun- 

 gitur ; corpus item ; naturx cedens, in inater.io gremio 

 reponitur. Ipfe vero sternum efl refurreiilurus, at idem 

 futurus Tolandus nunquam." His poflhumous works were 

 publifhed in 2 vols. 8vo. in 1726, and again in 1747, 

 with an account of his life and writings, by Des Maizeaux. 

 Biog. Brit. 



TOLANORE, in Geogriiphy, a town of Hindooflan, in 

 the Carnatic ; 5 miles N. of Volconda. 



TOLASTRA Regio, in yJncunl Geography, a country 

 of Aila, in Galatia. Ptolemy. 



TOLBIACUM, a town of Gallia Belgica, according to 

 Tacitus ; fituated on the route from Trevari to Colonia 

 Agrippina. 



TOL-BOOTH, or T01.1.-B00TI1, a place in a city, 

 where goods are weighed, to afcertain the duties or import 

 on them. 



5 F 2 TOLCES- 



