to have our names connected in every possible method. I hope they will be for ever inseparable. I have now nearly printed some Observations on the Increase of Infidelity, and I will send them, the first opportunity. I hardly ever wrote more than I do now, at least with a view to publication. I read nothing for amusement. What I chiefly attend to now is my Church History, which I have composed and transcribed, as far as the taking of Jerusalem by the Crusaders. Two periods more will, I think, bring me to the Reformation. As Fleury contains all the facts in the order in which they took place, I begin with abridging and re-arranging his materials, with my own reflections and colouring, and, for the middle ages, this appears to me to be almost all that is wanting. It is very laborious, but without some serious business my time would be intolerably heavy on my hands. I have only one room for my books and instruments, and therefore I cannot do much ; but I make some experiments every day, and shall soon draw up a paper for the Philosophical Society at Philadelphia, being a continuation of my last experiments in England. Two or three hours I always work in the fields, along with my son. The weather beginning to be hot, I do this early and late; but I am at my History between five and six every morning. Before next winter I hope to have two more volumes ready for the press. I hope it will be a seasonable and useful well-nigh extinguished the revelation which the benevolent Creator had made of his will to them, and of the way to his favour for ever. "Still actuated by the same desires, and engaged in the same pursuits, to serve others; driven now from his native land, by a revival of those highchurch, persecuting principles, which peopled the deserts of America in the days of the Stuarts, he has found an asylum, and been welcomed with honour into that country, which had lately to contend for its own liberty and independence; and which is glad and able to receive into its capacious bosom all the sufferers from religious or civil tyranny throughout the world." "the "When I was employed in the garden," says Mr. Bakewell, Doctor would give me a little assistance, ask me for instruction, and say he would be the under-gardener.' As we were one day thus employed, I said, 'Doctor, the Bible would appear to be the most contradictory book in the world, from the contrariety of the opinions that are drawn from it!''True,' he said; and yet it is a plain book; but if men will not use the faculty of reason in understanding it, as they do when reading other books, it becomes no rule of faith to them, as they only form opinions as their fancy or their prejudice directs.' It was seldom that he said much, unless I work. On the subject of the prophecies I think a good deal, and write a little; but whether I shall ever publish I cannot tell. I do not understand the eleventh chapter of Daniel, nor the prophesying of the witnesses in the Revelation. I thank you for Brothers,* and other curiosities in that way. The English newspapers interest me much. I shall never feel otherwise than as an Englishman. Here I feel, and always shall, as a stranger, and indeed have no intention to be naturalized. The present governing powers have shewn a ridiculous jealousy of democratical emigrants, and, from a dread of them, as Mr. Adams acknowledges to me,t they have, in the last congress, made naturalization more difficult than before. I have just heard from Mr. Toulmin. He is engaged for another year at Lexington; and after that I have some hope that we may get him hither. This will be a central and most agreeable place, though, perhaps, not so much as the Athens of America. I long for the society of rational Christians; and I hope in time to form some here; but no friends are like old ones. asked him a question. He observed one day, when we were talking about the strength of religious prejudices, In these things I was once a slave.' "I always found him up and writing, when I went to the house, which seldom exceeded six o'clock in the morning. He usually took a walk after breakfast, and employed the remainder of his time in writing till noon. In the after-part of the day he would frequently come to me in the garden, or visit the people employed in building his house, and then return to his study. After tea, he and Mrs. Priestley frequently took a walk in the town, or elsewhere, till the evening, which was generally spent in reading, and concluded with family prayer." M. R I. 506, 507. • Who published, (1794,) "A Revealed Knowledge of the Prophecies and Times," and, (1795,) Exposition of the Trinity." Brothers had been described as a successor of Swedenborg, in "A Revealed Knowledge of some Things that will speedily be fulfilled in the World, communicated to a Number of Christians, brought together at Avignon, by the Power of the Spirit of God from all Nations; now published by his Divine Command, for the Good of all Men, by John Wright, his Servant, and one of the Brethren." See N. A. Reg. XV. [184]; XVI. [202, 207, 208]. Richard Brothers, who died a few years since, "was confined" at Fisher House, Islington, "until liberated by the authority of the Lord Chancellor Erskine, in 1806." See "History of Islington," (1829,) p. 356, note. + See supra, p. 304. Orig. MS. DEAR SIR, TO REV. T. BELSHAM.* Northumberland, Aug. 3, 1795. YOUR letters and Mr. Lindsey's give me greater satisfaction in this reinote part of the world than I can well give you an idea of, and you are both very kind in writing to me, as you do. I wish it was as easy to convey parcels as it is letters; but if I believe a thing I much wish to see will come some time or other, I am now tolerably easy. At Hackney, we had the newspapers once or twice every day, and while fresh. Here we have the post only once a week, and European news, which is all that interests us, two or three months after you have it but to this I am now reconciled. I carefully preserve all the Morning Chronicles, and the Cambridge Intelligencer, which I neglected when I was with you. They are now all in good order, and frequently referred to. I hope soon to receive the Annual Register, which will be another feast for me. Though this country, and the government of it, are really almost every thing that I can wish from them, I shall always feel as a stranger; but my sons will be at home soon. What I want chiefly is the employment I had at Hackney, but for this I am finding a substitute. I apply very closely to my Church History. A year more, applying to it as I now do, will enable me to complete the whole. However, as I shall have interruptions, and shall take a good deal of time to revise and compare different accounts, I shall hardly go to press before two years. Mr. Brookes, one of your Sunday pupils, has been so good as to send me the heads of some of your lectures to the young people, which makes me very desirous of seeing the rest, especially on the Revelation. Could you by any means favour me with a sight of them? I am thinking much on the subject, but cannot by any means arrive at the satisfaction I wish for. I am more and more dissatisfied with Mr. Evanson's and Mr. Garnham's principles of interpretation. Antichrist and the beasts, &c., &c., must be visible powers or governments, and not opinions or superstitious practices. In Hackney College. the Revelation, I am most puzzled with the witnesses, their death and resurrection, and the earthquake that followed it. I think with you, neither their death nor resurrection have yet taken place, and therefore we cannot expect to understand them.* TO REV. T. LINDSEY.† DEAR FRIEND, Northumberland, Aug. 12, 1795. I BEGIN to think it rather long since I have heard from you; but I hear the ship Molly, after a long passage of more than ten weeks, is arrived, and I hope will bring letters from Mr. Belsham and you. Thus, at least, I flatter myself. We are, however, better situated in that respect in this place than Mr. Toulmin, in Kentucky. I heard from him lately. He has engaged for another year in their college, which, however, by his account, is hardly a grammar school, nor likely at present to be much more. What will be done here I cannot tell; but I hope better things; but not so much better as to afford ground to expect such society as that of his, or any other friends from England. Of late I have not heard any thing about the scheme. § However, I shall do what I can, and leave the event to Providence. I never before found such aid from a sense of religion as in my present circumstances, and a persuasion that both in coming to this country, and settling here, I acted from the best views, as things appeared at the time; nor could I have subsisted any where else without being too burdensome to my friends, or engaged in some employment for which I am growing every day more unfit, and which would have taken up all my time, which I can now give to useful pursuits. As to society, I do well enough without it. I feel myself too old to enjoy new acquaintance, and those I could enjoy cannot be had. I believe we shall have several English settle in this neighbourhood; but I expect nothing from them in that respect. To drive off ennui I was never more fully employed, especially about my Church History, in which I am writing the history of the war with the Albigenses. In experiments I can • Orig. MS. + Essex Street. not do very much, till I get my laboratory built, and then my time may be but short. be but short. But the will of God be done. I am going to draw up an account of what I have done, for the Philosophical Society at Philadelphia. The only thing that I repent of here, is my undertaking to build a house, not foreseeing the difficulty and expense of it. In all other respects I have every thing that I wish for on this side the grave, at least all that this country can give me. We have the great blessing of peace, which I earnestly wish you had also. Mr. Jay's treaty is almost universally condemned, so that many think the President will not ratify it. We have had a very fine mild spring, and as yet but little hot weather. I have not disliked the hottest. It is now a long time since we have had any European news of consequence, which makes me hope that the contending powers are inclined to peace. This would be a most desirable event indeed, but I fear a greater blessing than the state of the world will authorize us to expect. I cannot help being sensibly impressed with the language of prophecy, though happily we cannot tell how long the evil day may be delayed or (for the elects' sake) shortened. It will be happy if we be found always ready. How I long to confer with some intelligent and learned Christian on this and other interesting subjects! At present I can only indulge my own private thoughts, and in this case they are too apt to become particular and odd, as we used to think was the case with Mr. Cappe. In hopes of better times, yours, Mrs. Lindsey's and Mrs. Rayner's most affectionately.† DEAR SIR, TO REV. T. BELSHAM. Northumberland, Aug. 30, 1795. I HAVE this day received yours of June 14, and I cannot express the satisfaction I receive from all your letters, and those of Mr. Lindsey. The distance, and other circumstances, give them the effect of letters from the dead. How happy I should be to enjoy once more such an interview as we used to have after walking together from Hackney Hackney College. * See supra, p. 267, ad fin. + Orig. MS. |