UNIFORMITY. 



the doSrines and fpirit of Chrittianity, and injurious to the 

 rights and claims of peaceable and loyal fubjccls. Thofe 

 perfons to whom we now refer objed to' the fundamental 

 principle and profefTed defign of the A& of Uniformity, and 

 they concur with many others in difapproving and con- 

 demning the mode and time of its introduftion, its per- 

 nicious influence in caufing a fchifm or feparation among 

 Britifh Proteilants, and the indigence and diftrefs to which 

 it reduced a great number of meritorious perfons, whofe 

 confcientious fcruples, exemplary charafter, and ufeful fer- 

 vices, entitled them to proteAion and encouragement. To 

 this purpofe it has been faid, that the conditions of exer- 

 cifino- the ChriHian miniftry, which the Aft of Uniformity 

 impofed, are fuch as no civil authority can juflifiably enjoin ; 

 and that it requires fubfcription to articles of faith, which 

 Ghrift, who, as they fay, is the fupreme head of the 

 Chriftian church, never eftablilhed ; and unfeigned aflent 

 and confent to rites and forms of worlhip, which neither he 

 nor his apoftles ever ordained. Befides, this Aft required 

 the clergy to fubfcribe and declare, " that it is not lawful, 

 upon any pretence whatfoever, to take arms againft the 

 king, or any commiffioned by him ;" a pofition, as it has 

 been conceived, abfolutely fubverfive of the Britifh confti- 

 tution, and which the nation, foon after the aft of king 

 Charles 11., openly acknowledged to be traitorous, de- 

 tellable, fcandalous, and falfe ; and which, if admitted, 

 would have precluded us from enjoying the benefits of the 

 glorious revolution, and our prefent happy government. 

 By tliis Aft the Puritans, extolled even by Hume as a feft, 

 though their principles appear, in his view of them, fo fri- 

 volous, and habits fo ridiculous, to which the Enghfh owe 

 the whole freedom of their conilitution, were lamentably 

 feparated from the Englifh church ; and many of them were 

 thus recompenfed by Charles II. for their aftivity and zeal 

 in rpftoring him to the Britilb throne. 



When Charles II. came to Scotland, fays lord Clarendon, 

 (Hift.of the Rebellion, vol. vi. p. 374, 375. 733, 734.) 

 expcfting force from that kingdom to reftore him " to his 

 father's throne, and the parliament of England refolved to 

 fend an army againft him, all the Prefbyterian party greatly 

 oppofed it : they were bold in contradifting Cromwell in 

 the houfe, and croffing all his defigns in the city." See 

 Rapin's Hift. of England, vol. xiii. p. 227. 241, 242. 



Bifhop Burnet fays, " thefe five following perfons, all 

 Prcfbyterians, had the chief hand in the relloration : fir 

 Ant. A Alley Cooper, afterwards earl of Shiiftefbury ; 

 fir Arthur Amiefley, afterwards earl of Anglcfey ; Denzil 

 HoUis, created lord Holhs ; the earl of Mancheftcr ; and 

 lord Roberts." — " The Preftyterians and the Royalills," 

 fays Hume, " being united, formed the voice of the nation, 

 which called for the king's reftoration." 



Moreover, the Prelhyterians, (whom the king, with too 

 much truth perhaps, ufed to call Gocfsjilly people, ) trufting 

 to his declaration from Breda, folemnly promifing " liberty 

 to tender confciences, and that no man (liould be difquieted 

 for diffei-ences of opinion in matters of religion, which did 

 not difturb the peace of the kingdom ;" and, relying upon 

 the fair fpeeches and alFurances of his friends, and fome of 

 them perhaps duped by the low cunning of the king, who 

 (a committee of their minifters being fent to him at Breda) 

 ordered them to be in waiting whilft he hypocritically with- 

 drew to perform his private devotions, in which his heart 

 was fo enlarged, that his voice was dillinftly heard, as he 

 intended it fhould be, by the minifters in the ante-chamber, de- 

 voutly thanking God that he was a covenanted king, (allud- 

 ing to the folemn league and covenant, to which he had bound 



12 



himfclf by the moll facrcd of oaths, ) and that he hoped the 

 Lord would give him a humble, meek, and forgiving fpirit. 

 Whether the Prefbyterians were deluded by the fair promifes 

 of the king and his treacherous friends, or were preffed by 

 the civil difcord which at that time fubfifted, and alarmed at 

 the dreadful diforders into which they apprehended the na- 

 tion was again running, — be this as it may, they were fo in- 

 fatuated as to truft to the honour of Charles II., and, vrithout 

 previoufly fettling any conditions, they were highly inftru- 

 mental in relloring him to the throne. Their folly was only 

 equalled by the bafe ingratitude with which he requited them. 

 Two years had fcarcely elapfed before the Aft of Uni- 

 formity was, by a fmall majority, paffed into a law, which 

 not only caft out of their livings two thoufand minifters, 

 fome of whom had helped forward his reftoration, but ex- 

 pofed them and their diftrcfied families to numerous fuf- 

 ferings. The gaols were foon filled with the unhappy 

 reftorers of this ungrateful king ; their houfes were pillaged ; 

 their families reduced to beggary and want. An eftimate 

 was publiflied of near eight thoufand Proteftant diftenters, 

 who periftied in prifon by their fufferings on a rehgious ac- 

 count, in the reign of this perjured, perfidious prince ; and, 

 by the fevere penalties inflifted on tliem, for no other crime 

 but that of affembling to worihip God, they fuffered ia 

 their trades and eftates, in the compafs of a few years, at 

 leaft, it is faid, two millions. Crit. Hift. of England. 

 Neal's Hill, of tlie Puritans, vol. iv. 



This was thp king who had himfelf three feveral times 

 taken the Scots covenant, declared folemnly his deteftation 

 of Popery and Prelacy, vowed never to tolerate them in any 

 part of his dominions, and, in the moll folemn manner, 

 fwore, by the eternal and almighty God, who liveth and 

 reigneth for ever, that he would not only enjoin the cove- 

 nant, but fully eftablifli Preftjytcrian government, and their 

 direftory for wordiip, and obferve them in his own praftice 

 and family, and never oppofe them, nor endeavour any 

 change. 



Befides, we may here adduce the hiftorical faft, that the 

 Puritan or Prefbyterian clergy were the only body of men 

 in the whole kingdom, who had the courage to oppofe and 

 to protcft openly againtl the trial and condemnation of 

 Charles I. Their long and fpiritcd proteft was figned by 

 above fifty of the principal Prefbyterian minifters in and 

 about London, and prefented Jan. 18, 1648-9. See Bur- 

 net's Hift. of his own Times, vol. ii. p. 31. Echard's 

 Hift. of England, p. 654. 708. See alfo the hiftories of 

 Clarendon, Rapin, &c. &c. 



" Bartholomew day," fays Mr. Locke, " was fatal to our 

 church and rehgion, by throwing out a very great number 

 (about two thoufand) of worthy, learned, pious, or'*hodox 

 divines, who could not come up to this oath, and other 

 things in that aft. And fo great was the zeal in carrying 

 on this church affair, and fo bhnd in the obedience required, 

 that if you compute the time of palling this aft with that 

 allowed for the clergy to fubfcribe the book of Common 

 Prayer thereby eftabliflied, you will find it could not be 

 printed and diftributed fo as that one man in forty could 

 have feen and read the book they did fo perfeftly affent and 

 confent to." — " The matter was driven on," fays bifliop 

 Burnet ( Hift of his Times, vol. i. p. 21 2, 8vo. ) " with fo 

 much precipitation, that it feemed expefted the ckrgy 

 fliould fubfcribe implicitly to a book they had never feen. 

 This was done by too many, as the bifhops themfelves in- 

 formed me." Among thefe were feveral, who, according 

 to Mr. Locke's defcription of them, were " taught rather to 

 obey than to underftand." 



It 



