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Be this as it may, his treatife is written with temper, perfpicuity, and force of reafoning; and may be read with pleasure and fatisfaction by any one, who wishes to make himself master of the fubject.

Having explained the meaning of phyfical and moral neceffity, and the different kinds of certainty, which arife from them, he proceeds to examine the arguments of his opponent.

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"It was neceffary, fays Mr Toplady, 1, That the Meffiah fbould be invariably holy in all his ways, and righteous in all his works." Anfwer. When we confider that Chrift was poffeffed of the spirit of truth and holiness without measure, we. must say, he was under the fame neceffity of being holy in all his ways, and righteous in all his works, that God is to keep his promife, in not deftroying the world again by water. This is manifeftly a moral, not a phyfical neceffity; yet in a perfect being this will rife to a perfect infallible certainty of the event, though in phyfics it be no neceffity at all. This alfo fecures a liberty of choice; fo that Chrift determined himself to act in all things according to the re&titude of his pure nature. And in his ftate of rectitude and purity, it was infallibly certain, that he would do fo: and there was the greatest degree of a mo. ral impoffibility that he fhould do otherwife. But if we fuppofe Chrift under a phyfical neceffity in all that he did, then, we fuppofe him to move by the compelling, neceffitating influence of fome fuperior power: and in this cafe to fay, that Christ either acted freely, or that he acted at all, is the fame contradiction as to fay, that he moved himself (which would have been freedom of action,) but yet he could not move, but by the necef tating influence of fome fuperior power; (which is neceffity), and that paffively fuffering fuch a compelling influence was performing an action: the abfurdity of which is vifible to every one.

We are told that, "Upon the Arminian fcheme it invin cibly follows, that it was poffible for Chrift himself to have fallen from grace by fin, and to have perifhed everlastingly." I anfwer. There was no other poffibility of that, than there is that God may break his promife and again drown the world: which has the greatest degree of a moral impoffibility attending it, and admits of an infallible certainty of the contrary.

42. "It was neceffary that the Meffiah fhould die for the fins of the people; and though he could not avoid being put to death as a facrifice for fin, yet he died freely." This has in effect been answered already, and the inconfiftency, of an abfolute neceffity with freedom, has often been proved. I fhall only therefore juft obferve here, that there was no neceffity, arifing from the abfolute nature of things, that Chrift fhould die as a facrifice for fin. For no one can say, that God had not a 'power after man's tranfgreffion, to have cut him off at once; or even by his own glorious power, that he could not immediately have deb

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deftroyed all evil, and have reftored all nature to its original rec titude. Befides, if there was a phyfical neceffity that Chrift fhould die for the fins of the people, i. e. if the neceffity of Christ's death, was founded in the abfolute nature of God and of creatures: then he was not the free gift of God, which the Scriptures conftantly affert. I therefore conclude, that God freely appointed Chrift to be our mediator, in whom alone there fhould be falvation for loft finners. And as the divine Wisdom always chooses and appoints that which is beft, we may there fore fay, that fuch a method of falvation, is moft agreeable to the divine attributes, and the best adapted to display the divine glory that it beft fuited to God's government of the world, and to the nature and state of man. But all this is a moral neceffity, which leaves room for the freedom of choice; and not a phyfical neceffity which abfolutely destroys it.

"Though he could not avoid being put to death."—It is no wonder that this man fhould contradict John Wesley, (against whom he feems to indulge a mortal antipathy,) or any other perfon; when he has the confidence to contradict Chrift himfelf. Suppofe this bold conjecturer had been on the awful night, when our bleffed Lord, in obedience to the divine decree, gave himself up to the malice of his enemies, would he not have said, "Thinkeft thou, Auguftus Toplady, that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he fhall presently give more than twelve les gions of angels." Our author would doubtless have answered, "I am confident thou can't do no fuch thing. Thou art quite miftaken in this matter. Thou vainly thinkeft thou canst pray to thy Father, but thou haft no fuch power. Thou art fait bound in the adamantine chains of fate,

• Vis ut nulla virum, non ipfi exfcindere ferro
• Cœlicolæ valeant.
Virg. Æneid. 6.

Bars, which no force of men, nor heavenly power itself, can e'er demolish.

So would Auguftus Toplady, if confiftent with himself, have dared to inftru& his heavenly mafter-On the contrary, I would rather modeftly fay, that Chrift was under no phyfical neceffity to fuffer death, of which his own words are a fufficient proof; but that, through the whole of this awful affair, he was under a moral neceffity. A neceffity, which the fitnefs and order of things, (in confequence of the divine appointment,) and an amazing love for the happiness of mankind, laid upon his holy nature. And this was neceffity enough, to bring about every circumftance of this important business, with infallible certainty.'

Mr. Toplady having cited many paffages of Scripture, in which he thinks the doctrine of neceffity invincibly afferted, our author examines them with critical attention; and fhews, that many of them might as well have been produced, as proofs of the eternity of the world, as of the abfolute neceffity of hu man actions.

MISCELLANEOUS.

49. Defcription of the County of Middlefex. 8vo. 35. 6d. Snagg. Those who are defirous of being introduced to the most remarkable objects within the fphere of this defcription, may here meet with a general account of the subject, illuftrated with a map of the county of Middlefex, a plan of London, Weftminster, and Southwark; and a few other plates.

50. Memoirs of Maitre Jacques, of Savoy. Vol. I. 25. fered. Owen.

The hero of these Memoirs is the fon of a poor Savoyard, and was born in a folitary cottage on the top of Mount Cenis; where he paffed his youth with his parents, in fuch rural occupations as could procure them the means of fubfiftence. He afterwards entered into the fervice of an old, infirm, German baron, whose name was Grengrengraaphen, and who dying in a fhort time, bequeathed his whole fortune to the young Savoyard. Immediately on this event Maitre Jacques commences the man of fashion; and we are prefented with an account of his journey to the caftle of Grengrengraaphen. It would appear from the conclufion of the volume, that Maitre Jacques has an intention of continuing his Memoirs to a later period; and as he is a lively, terfe, excentric kind of biographer, we doubt not of his furnishing amufement to a particular clafs of readers. 51. Memoirs of that celebrated Comedian, and very fingular Genius Thomas Wefton. 8vo. 15. 6d. Bladon,

The life of a comedian, for the most part, is spent in fcenes of focial diffipation; and we therefore find nothing particularly worthy of being remarked in that of Mr. Wefton. 52. Obfervations on the Cafe of Mifs Butterfield, calculated to her

the Hardships he has unjustly fuftained, and the Neceffity of profecuting her Right in a Court of Justice. In a Letter to one of

ber Friends. 8vo. 15. Williams.

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The author of this Letter, after a feries of appofite and natural remarks on the cafe of Mifs Butterfield, fpeaks of the hardships he has fuftained, in the following terms: Every perfon, who has any degree of fenfibility, muft be concerned for the fufferings of this unfortunate young woman. Perfectly innocent of the crime laid to her charge, he is thrown into pri fon, involved in ruinous expences, abandoned to the most excruciating anxiety, expofed to the hazard of an ignominious death, and, at laft, deprived of her whole dependence and fupport.

The humane and generous reader will be pleased to find, that this young woman, who appears to have been exceedingly illtreated, has fo able an advocate to plead her caufe before the public; but at the fame time he will be concerned to think that an innocent perfon has been known, in this age and nation, suffer fuch hardships as thefe WITHOUT REDRESS!

53.

To the Authors of the Critical Review.

Gentlemen,

You have a juft claim to thanks, and even commendation, for the candid and ingenuous manner in which the criticifm on my Trea-* tife on Affurencies and Annuities on Lives, is ufhered to the public in your Review. The intimation that it is BY A CORRESPONDENT, evidently fhews, you not only difdain to follow the example of fome other Reviewers, in prefumptuously deciding on the merits of books which you have never seen, but wish to disclaim all criticifms which do not in fome degree comprise thofe effential requifites of your profeffion, candour and impartiality, joined with a knowledge of the fubject. Your CORRESPONDENT having fhewn himfelf egregioufly deficient in all these requifites, I claim of you, under one of them (viz. impartiality) the privilege of doing myfelf juftice through the fame channel in which I have been injured, and more efpecially as I do not (like your CORRESPONDENT) lurk in the dark for the purposes of falfhood and affaffination, but come forth in open day, with no worfe intention than that of defending my reputation against the attacks of a contemptible punfter. But I cry him mercy; perhaps the notable pan with which he winds up his criticifm may, on account of its quaintnefs, be confidered as the most valuable and erudite part of it. Yet as to his erudition the learned amongst your readers will most probably infift, that it has been more glaringly if not more wittingly displayed by his " hinc illa lacrymæ.” If it should chance to come out that this very learned and witty advocate for Dr. Price is the very identical Dr. himself, or even fome other perfon equally decked with DEGREES and "blushing honours," I hope I may be allowed, without any greater imputation of pedantry or abortive wit than what falls to your correfpondent's fhare, to return the smile be endeavours to make ready for me, rifi successus poffe carere dulos.

A critic of very flender abilities may be capable of fubftituting ridicule instead of argument, and with still lefs difficulty, confuse what he cannot comprehend. A few fneering expreffions, no matter how infipid, confident affertions properly interlarded with falfhood and mifreprefentation, mutilated extracts, with remarks upon them equally partial and ignorant, and the bufinefs is done. Your CORRESPONDENT appears to be an adept in this kind of criticism, and has availed himself of all thefe advantages accordingly.

The injuries which are done by a fcribbler of this complexion, are fimilar to fuch as we are liable to receive from a scavenger or a chimney-fweeper, and if we happen to be befpattered with dirt by the one, or incommoded by the too near approach of the other, prudence, and the contempt with which it is natural to treat fuch delinquents, induces us to be more follicitous to free ourselves from the filth we have received than to chaftife the aggreffor. It is upon this principle alone that I now trouble you and the public (a).

Dr. Price tells us in page 121 of his " Obfervations on reverfonary payments, &c." that "the 10th problem has been given with a parricular view to the corporation of the Amicable Society, &c." I have not any doubt but he was well aware that the making his "view** LESS"particular," by extending it to his "juffly filed Equitable So

ciety"

(a) Mr. B. certainly draws felf-likeness with a clear looking glafs 'before him: thofe who examine feveral lines in this letter, and in another, published 22d of Auguft, in the Gazetteer, may be furprifed at the ready knack he has of taking the most perfect refemblance in fuch fituation. Let it be given to the public at full length.

ciety," would have been much more prejudicial to the latter than to the former, especially as he has cautiously, forborne through his whole volume to glance at any matter which might affect his fociety. -Such caution muft undoubtedly appear to be pregnant with EQUITY (b).

Your CORRESPONDENT gives us Mr. De Moivre's 6th and Mr. Simpfon's 26th problems in order to fupport this fame tottering 10th queftion, and fo far as it refpects the first part of that question it is admiffible; but the latter part (which is intended as a calculation of "what annual payment during life ought a perfon of a given age to pay for an affurance of any given fum on his life," is that which I have alluded to, and which refpects the manufactured part of the folution I have objected againft. It feems this penetrating critic not only acquiefces with the Dr.,because his abilities "would or could not comprehend" where the Dr's. error lies, but, injurious to the reputation of two eminent mathematicians, joins them in triumvirate with his Dr. merely for the purpose of conftructing and fupporting what HE is pleased to call the incontrovertible anfwer of three eminent mathematicians (c), against which I have (as he afferts) amufed my readers with a fantastical objection." Whether my objections are "fantastical" or fubftantial, may perhaps appear upon a further examination of his criticifin.

Dr. Halley's table will not I apprehend be much more ferviceable to your correfpondent (as he applies it) in fupporting his Dr. than what is contained in page 133* of Mr. Dale's calculations, for although by that table out of 481 aged 36 more than one half live 24 years. Yet it does not appear that those then living die in the fame proportion afterwards as they do before (d). From this proportion

As to the arguments contained in that page, they are only the words copied from Dr. Price, which I have already.objected to.

(b) The Society for EQUITABLE Affurances requires payments in proportion to the AGE as well as to the fum affured-Age 20 to pay 31.5s. age 36 to pay 41. 5s. 41d. age 45 to pay 51. 185. 41d. annually for the affurance of 150l. thefe payments to increase yearly with age, or otherwife the age to pay one equal, confequently greater, annual payment during life.-The fociety in Serjeant's Inn requires always the fame annual payment of 51. for the fame, fum af 1501. be the AGE what it will.It requires neither much time, nor deep tudy, nor perufal of many volumes to enable an impartial perfon to determine which is the mot EQUITABLE plan; yet how Mr. B. raves against Dr. Price and others, because they prefer the plan of the former to that of the latter !

(c) Mr. B. fhould read and read again, until he could compre hend that the fame anfwer to the fame queffion is obtained from Mr. De Moivre and Mr. Simpfon; and that fame answer is only reduced by Dr. P. in proportion as fo4: 100 :: 44.684: 43. to be paid for 100l. affurance. Mr. B. himfelf may understand, if he reflect profoundly, that tool. to be received at a given time, is not worth fo much as 41. rent, annuity, or interest for ever, to be received at the fame given time. Thefe include the fum, but the sum only to be received, muft wait another year for 41: rent, &c.!

(d) Is it not known to every one that the term of duration of life is naturally different at every age? No table fuppofes otherwife; this, fpoken of here, allows 9 to die out of 481 aged 36, and 9 out of 472 aged 37; which is a different proportion, for 9 die out of a lefs number of the last age than of the firit. So by De M›ivre's hypothefis one is fuppofed to die out of 50 aged 36, and one out of VOL. XLI. Feb. 1766.

M

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