I find, by Mr. Lindsey, you received, I wrote after my return; but as I keep no account but of the dates of my letters, I have no recollection of the subjects of them, and therefore you will often probably find repetitions, and perhaps some variations and contradictions in them, arising from my different views of things at different times.

I wish particularly to hear what you think of the Discourses which I delivered at Philadelphia. I am now composing others, to deliver the next winter, on the gospel history. As yet, I have only composed two, on the account Jesus has given of a resurrection and a future state; but I have not yet settled any general plan. I think, too, I shall give a discourse or two on the prophecies relating to the great apostacy and the latter times, having been reading and thinking much on that subject, though without having hit on any thing original respecting them.

Since my return from Philadelphia I have revised and completed my Church History, to the Reformation, and as I proceed with great regularity and assiduity, always performing the task I set myself, I have little doubt but that, in the space of a year or less, I shall have completed the whole to the present time. I am much interested in the history of Luther, as written by Beausobre; but I shall want materials for the history nearest to our own times. I shall expect some assistance from Dr. Toulmin's edition of Neale. However, the striking events in the ecclesiastical history of late years are not many, and the gradual progress of things will not require many words to describe. The great events are those we are now looking for.

We are impatient to hear news from England, having just heard of the success of the French in Italy, and have some faint hope that it may be the means of producing a general peace. Here we enjoy that great blessing, and the capital of this country is said to be prodigiously increased in consequence of the troubles in Europe. But this increase is attended with the increased price of every thing.

P. S. Give my respects to Mr. S. Palmer, and thank him

for his last letter and the heads of the Nonconformists. I shall write to him soon.*

TO REV. T. LINDSEY.†

DEAR FRIEND,

Northumberland, Sept. 11, 1796.

THE day after I wrote my last, I received your three former letters, and after that another, so that I now have them complete, and shall not despair any more.

I wish much to know how you approve of the discourses I delivered at Philadelphia, and behold I have nearly composed another set before I can know that. I want, old as I am, such advice as you used to give me. I am still apt to be too precipitate, and to overlook many circumstances that you used to remind me of. I must, however, do as well as I can. Those I am now composing are rather miscellaneous, but chiefly on the gospel history; and they all relate, directly or indirectly, to the evidences of Christianity.

One is on the moral object of the Jewish and Christian revelations; another, on the prophecies concerning Antichrist; another, on the doctrines of a resurrection and a future state, as taught by Christ himself, in which I collect and arrange every thing that he has said on the subject; and another I have nearly finished, on the great dignity of the character of Jesus, in which I go over his whole history. I hope you will think them, if you ever see them, considerably original and useful. I am planning others.

I do not know that I have more satisfaction from any thing I ever did, than from the lay Unitarian congregation I have been the means of establishing in Philadelphia. Mr. Gales (who was a printer in Sheffield) writes me word, that they increase, and that all who attend have increasing satisfaction in it. Six persons, chosen by ballot, are to direct every thing, and one of this number to administer the Lord's Supper. Mr. Russell says, that when he and Mr. Davy go to town for the winter, ↑ See I. 83, 84.

* Orig. MS.

+ Essex Street.

they must get a larger room than they now have. It is the Common Hall in the college which I had engaged for myself. In our present circumstances, a society of this kind is better than one with a minister; it both prevents superstition and is propagated without expense.

Within this week I have been made happy by the receipt of the box of books containing the Life of Lorenzo de Medicis, &c,, &c. This package has been a great treat to me. I have read Mr. Roscoe's work with much pleasure, though I did not get from it so much information as I expected. I was glad to find that so extraordinary a man was a Christian and truly pious. In that he resembled Petrarch. I have read almost the whole of the Life of Mr. Robinson. It is well written and useful; but I cannot think so highly of him as Mr. Dyer does, in any respect. I am obliged to Mr. Dyer for the book, and shall soon write to thank him for it.

I have made no experiments all this summer, one laboratory (if I can call it one) being deranged, and the other not yet built; but I hope to be in it in about a fortnight. I am thankful that I never had better health than I have in this country; but my wife is not better than she used to be in England. She has now kept her bed a week of a feverish complaint, which is pretty common in this neighbourhood, but I hope is getting better.

I had, lately, a letter from Sir John Sinclair, President of the Board of Agriculture in London, who says he hopes soon to see me in England and renew his acquaintance with me. Now, I do not remember ever to have known him. Here, too, a report is prevalent, Mr. Russell says, that I am about to return to England. This I cannot account for. Nobody, seeing what I do here, could suppose I ever meant to leave the place. Indeed, I was never more fixed in any thing than I am to end my days here; though I own, that if the aspect of things was favourable, it would give me the greatest pleasure to pay you a visit; but of that I have not the most distant expectation.

In my last I wrote to Mrs. Rayner, and, by the post, to the Duke. I hope you will always remember me gratefully to them both, and also to Dr. Heberden, whose accident gave me

much concern. Such men are the glory of our species. How greatly superior to such as Voltaire, the King of Prussia, and unbelievers in general! I hope to make some useful remarks on their correspondence, which I am reading. I want the king's posthumous works.*

DEAR FRIEND,

TO THE SAME.

Northumberland, Sept. 19, 1796. I NEVER stood in more need of friendship than I do now, and I am thankful that I am not destitute of it, here; though I could wish for a nearer communication with old, tried, and pious friends: and, after all, our chief refuge must be in God, whose providence, we cannot doubt, orders every thing for the best.

This day I bury my wife. She died on Saturday, after an illness of a fortnight. On Sunday morning she went to my son's, in whose house we have our service, but returned before we had begun, was seized with sickness, followed by a fever, which almost instantly affected her head, so that she had but little sense of any thing, and spake but very little till she died. She had, to appearance, suffered very much at some times; but died without any symptom of being in pain.

She had taken much thought in planning the new house, and now that it is far advanced, and promises to be every thing that she wished, she is removed to another. For activity in contriving and executing every thing usually done by women, and some things done by men, I do not think she ever had a superior, or in generosity and disinterestedness; always caring for others and never for herself. My loss is proportionably great, though I am thankful that she had been preserved so long. We have lived together more than thirty-four years. She, as well as myself, was much affected with the death of Harry. Though it is now near nine months since he died, he has never been long out of my thoughts; but this will affect me much more; though I have abundant sources of consolation, for which I am truly thankful.

* Orig. MS.

+ See I. 48, 49.

I read, with particular satisfaction, yesterday, to our own families, (for I admitted nobody else,) one of the discourses which I have composed for my next journey to Philadelphia, on the subject of a resurrection and a future state, as taught by Jesus. In this, as well as all the other discourses on the gospel history, I take every opportunity of illustrating the internal evidence of Christianity, which, to the truly intelligent, is as strong as the external. I have three discourses on the authority assumed by Jesus, and the dignity with which he spake and acted,† which furnishes, in my opinion, an unanswerable evidence of his divine mission. The facts cannot otherwise be accounted for.

I think that, to relieve my mind in my present situation, I will make a progress through some parts of this continent that I should not otherwise have visited; and then I shall take every opportunity of preaching such discourses as these; and, on the whole, I really believe I am in the way of doing more good, especially by promoting lay Unitarian societies, than I could by being a resident preacher. I thank God, my means will enable me to do this, though without much to spare.§

TO MR. GEORGE DYER.

DEAR SIR, Northumberland, Oct. 4, 1796. I AM very thankful for several kind notes that I have received from you, and presents of your very useful publications; and though I have not written to you before, it was not because I was unmindful of you, or for want of respect or gratitude; but because I had nothing to inform you of, but what you would learn from some of my correspondents, with whom you are well acquainted.

I am much pleased with all your publications. Your Life of Mr. Robinson, which I have just read, must be very useful as you have written it. He was certainly an extraordinary man, though I do not think quite so highly of him as you do; but

* See W. XVI. 287.

+ Ibid. 220.

A design unaccomplished. See supra, p. 281, note †.

See supra, p. 68.