"4. Mrs. Wesley lived long enough to deplore the extravagance of her two sons, John and Charles; considering them as under strong delusions to believe a lie.' By vile misrepresentations she was deceived for a time. But she no sooner heard them speak for themselves, than she was thoroughly convinced they were in no delusion; but spoke the words of truth and soberness. She afterwards lived with me several years, and died rejoicing and praising God. "5. I was born in June 1708, and was between six and seven years old, when I was left alone in my father's house, being then all in flames, till I was taken out of the nursery window, by a man strangely standing on the shoulders of another. Those words in the picture, Is not this a brand plucked out of the burning? chiefly allude to this. "6. He had early a very strong impression of his designation to some extraordinary work.' Indeed not I: I never said so. I never thought so: I am guiltless in this matter. The strongest impression I had till I was three or four and twenty was, Inter sylvas Academi quærere verum :-and afterwards (while I was my father's curate), to save my own soul, and those that heard me. When I returned to Oxford, it was my full resolve to live and die there; the reasons for which I gave in a long letter to my father, since printed in one of my Journals. In this purpose I continued, till Dr. Burton, one of the trustees for Georgia, pressed me to go over with General Oglethorpe (who is still alive, and well knows the whole transaction), in order to preach to the Indians. With great diffi culty I was prevailed upon to go, and spend upwards of two years abroad. At my return, I was more than ever determined to lay my bones at Oxford. But I was insensibly led, without any previous plan or design, to preach, first in many of the churches in London, then in more public places; afterwards in Bristol, Kingswood, Newcastle, and throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Therefore all that Mr. Badcock adds, of the the incidents that gave an additional force,' to an impression that never existed, is very ingenious; yet is in truth a castle in the air. "7. It is true, that for a while I admired the mystic writers. But I dropped them, even before I went to Georgia; long before I knew or suspected any such thing as justification by faith. Therefore all that follows, of my making my system of divinity more commodious for general use; and of 'employing myself to search for some common bond, whereby the most dissonant sects might have a centre of union,' having no foundation to stand upon, falls to the ground at once. I had quite other work while I was at Oxford, being fully engaged, partly with my pupils, and partly with my little offices, being Greek lecturer, and moderator of both the classes. "8. His dexterity in debate has been so long known, that it is almost become proverbial.' It has been my first care, for many years, to see that my cause was good: and never, either in jest or earnest, to defend the wrong side of a question. And shame on me if I cannot defend the right, after so much practice, and after having been so early accustomed to separate truth from falsehood, how artfully soever they were twisted together! "9. If the poem on Religious Discourse delineates the disposition and character of the author,' it does not delineate mine; for I was not the author, but Mr. John Gambold. What becomes then of that good-natured remark?-The wonder is not, that John Wesley should have shewn an inclination to insult the memory of a sober Divine; but that Samuel Wesley should have been disposed to shew lenity to a Whig of the Revolution.' Mistake upon mistake! 1. Those marginal notes were not wrote by Samuel, but Charles Wesley. He told me so this very day. 2. Both my father and all his sons have always praised God for the happy Revolution. I let Bishop Warburton alone. He is gone to rest! I well hope, in Abraham's bosom. "10. Mr. 10. Mr. Wesley had a very important end in view'What end, but to save sinners? What other end could I possibly have in view? or can have at this day?-Deep projects of a subtle mind.' Nay, I am not subtle, but the veriest fool under the sun, if I have any earthly project at all now! For what do I want which this world can give? And, after the labour of fourscore years, No foot of land do I possess, The preceding Letter from Mr. Wesley, transplanted into the Magazine, was thus answered: “MR. URBAN, South Molton, May 10, 1785. "As Mr. John Wesley hath done me the honour of publicly noticing my paper respecting his family, I think it a piece of civility due to him, to notice his strictures in return. "I am pleased that any publications' of mine should be esteemed ingenious and useful,' by a man so well qualified to judge of their merits. For his acquaintance with my name, as the author of the publications which I suppose he had in his eye, I am indebted to certain writers, who took the liberty of proclaiming it in pamphlets, letters, reviews, and advertisements, with the very generous intention (for they are all benevolent men) of injuring its credit. The attempt, however, hath operated contrary to their wishes; and, if I needed a testimony, Mr. Wesley's would serve instead of a thousand. "My paper was drawn up in great haste; but it was drawn up under the impression of sentiments not hastily adopted. An opinion of Mr. Wesley's great abilities, and an esteem for qualities which he possesses of still greater account, have long been familiar to my mind. I have been conversant with his writings from my earliest youth; and, though never his disciple, have been always his admirer. "I have already informed the publick by what means I became acquainted with some papers which relate to the more secret history of his family. Had they been papers of a merely family or personal concern, I would never have communicated any account of them to the publick. Had they tended to fix any reproach on the private characters of individuals, I would have suppressed them and I was not conscious of doing an injury to the memory of Mr. Samuel Wesley when I called him a Jacobite. I called him, indeed, by a title which in politicks I abhor: but I have learnt to separate political from moral character; and have no doubt but a Jacobite may be as good a man, and as perfect a Christian, as even a Whig or a Presbyterian. I judge of no man merely by his opinions or prejudices; nor at all times would I judge of him by any improper bias, or influence, that they may give to his conduct. If I know the cause, I can account for the effect; and if I can excuse the former, surely I cannot want an apology for the latter. "There are certain fundamental principles of conduct, in which all good men, with all their prejudices and partialities, are united. They are the common bands of society: the universal laws, which are independent of custom or country, sects and parties; and may be said to know no distinction between 'Greek or Jew; Scythian, barbarian, bond or free.' "I have now given my creed of charity; which, for a Calvinist *, as I have been denominated, is * "A denomination I should not blush to acknowledge, if I thought myself fairly entitled to it; though a very silly writer, following at an immense distance the great leader of a late controversy, hath brought it forwards in the shape of an accusation; as if to be a Calvinist were as disgraceful as to be a mumper, or as infamous as to be a cheat." somewhat somewhat free: and I would risk the credit of my orthodoxy rather than recal it. "I esteem Mr. Wesley for the zeal he hath discovered in vindicating his brother from the imputation of Jacobitism; but, till I am convinced, I cannot retract: and my conviction of Mr. Samuel Wesley's antipathy to the House of Brunswick is founded on evidence too strong to be overcome by mere general assertions to the contrary. . "However, if there be an error in my account, let me be wholly answerable for it. Mr. Wesley should not have coupled Mr. Maty's name with mine; especially in such uncivil language. If I cannot prove what I have advanced, let the blame rest on my own head alone: he is guiltless. 66 And, were I convinced that I had been guilty of a false accusation, no man would be more ready to acknowledge it. But as I cannot, in justice to my own persuasions, revoke what I have written, it is certainly due, both to the publick and to myself, to give some reason for what I have asserted. "I would first, in general, observe, that when I called Mr. Samuel Wesley 'a noted Jacobite,' I only echoed back the voice of popular fame. His brother cannot be ignorant that he always bore this character; and his greatest friends, and most intimate associates in this part of the kingdom, made no scruple of applying to him a title, to which, I really believe, he had no dislike. "His daughter often assured me, that he was strongly attached to the exiled family; and she once shewed me a small print of the Pretender, which, she said, had been presented to her father, and which he esteemed as a sort of a precious memorial. A late excellent and ever-honoured friend of mine, who was the pupil of Mr. Samuel Wesley, and who in his earlier days had imbibed a tincture from politicks of the same colour and quality (though his maturer wisdom dictated far different sentiments), frequently called his old master a Jacobite; and appeared to entertain no conception, that any one would |