Loveg. It seems he hummed, and hawed, and stuttered, and stammered; took out his handkerchief and wiped his face, again and a gain; turned over two or three leaves at a time, but found it all just as bad: got out of the pulpit as fast as he could, and swore he would tell the Archdeacon, what a trick that sanctified fellow, old Reader, had put upon him.

Wor. How in the world could he face his parishioners after this?

Loveg. Oh Sir, he has but few of them to face. Men of this cast are sure to empty their churches; but it should seem, all his comrades had something to say to him; one asked him, Who made his sermon for him? Another wondered, how he came so dreadfully to quarrel with himself? A third asked him, if his great-grandfather was not an old Puritan, and whether he was not so much in a hurry as to take up some of the leaves of one of his old longwinded sermons? It seems, poor Bob laughed it off as well as he could. And thus ended this most disgraceful farce.

Mrs. Wor. Could Mr. Fribble approve of the conduct of Bob, and the Archdeacon?

Loveg. Madam, he confessed, that Mr. Archdeacon Wildblood went rather a little too far, but that the clergy were flesh and blood as well as others; and that one of his best sermons was written upon this text: "We also are men of like passions with you." And when I told him, how dangerous it was to interpret the Scriptures according to the coarse, vulgar sound of words, as we might thereby entirely pervert them from their original most holy sense, and design; he cried, "I beg your pardon Sir, but why may not my notions of that text, be as good as yours ?"

Wor. Could he then be so weak as to suppose, that our Lord's first Apostles might be as wicked as a set of heathens, by having the like corrupted passions with others; and especially, when they came to preach the pure, and holy dispensation of the gospel, which directs and enables us, to lay aside all our im

instructive. So he hung up his fiddle, and left off skipping about the room, and sat down.

Wor. I fear he was set upon a hard task, if he was only to talk about that which was rational, and instructive.

Loveg. Why directly upon this, he began complimenting me upon the supposed powers of my oratory, because I had persuaded Mrs. Chipman, though once so bad a woman, to renounce her connexion with Sir Charles; and how much the curiosity of the people was raised; and what a fine sermon they expected from me; and that there was one great orator about those parts, called Dr. Puff; and that he himself had done all in his power to make himself such an orator, by reading over Shakespeare's plays, and by studying Mr. Garrick's directions for reading the Common Prayer; yet he never could come up to the Doctor : and when I began telling him, that the change accomplished was not done by my oratory, but by the grace of God, he directly, with a great deal of complaisance, replied, "O surely Sir ! it was by the grace of God, and your oratory put together."

Wor. I dare say he would have chattered with you upon any subject you chose.

Loveg. I suppose he would; for Mr. Reader says, the poor, vain thing, is very good tempered. However, he entertained us for a while with the history of Sir Charles Dash; that he was once in company with him, but that he was not in the habit of telling those great people, what was their duty; that his mother, Lady Dash, was still living; and that she was a great church-goer; and how mad the minister of the parish was at her, for being almost the only one who came to Wednesday, and Friday prayers, when he wanted to drop them that she scarce ever missed the sacrament, and that she was much stricter in her religion than people are now-a-days. Then all at once, he burst out, and observed, "The clergy of our day, seem to differ about how strict we should be in our religion ;

pray, what are your notions on that point?" And when I began to tell him of St. Paul's account of the Christian minister, and the Christian ministry; he again immediately interrupted me by crying, "Upon my word and honor Sir, I confess I do not pretend to understand St. Paul; and I know some of the clergy who are of opinion, that people would have been quite wise enough in their religion, if we had only the four Gospels, without any of the Epistles."

Wor. I remember some years ago, that a vehement, anonymous pamphlet, made its appearance against the writings and character of St. Paul, recommending to the bishops, that all the New Testament should be suppressed, excepting the four Gospels; as all the Epistles, especially those of St. Paul, had a tendency to promote a spirit of enthusiasm, and methodism as he called it, throughout the land; and this book he dedicated to one of our bishops.*

*

Wor. How could you answer such a mere rattle? Loveg. Really Sir, he saved me all that trouble; for he had no sooner said one thing, but without waiting for an answer, he would start something else, quite foreign to the subject. All at once he cried,

Oh Sir! as you come from near Mapleton, perhaps you may know Mr. Jackadandy. He is my first cousin our mothers were two sisters, the two Miss Prattles, that lived somewhere about those parts before they were married." I gravely said, Yes, I have heard there is such a young clergyman who lives in the next parish to Dr. Orderly. Mr. Fribble immediately cried, "Dr. Orderly! aye, Dr. Orderly! what a queer old quiz of a fellow he is! he always puts me in mind of old square toes. I suppose he would not put his foot into a ball-room for all the world; and I am told, that he will not speak to my cousin, because he loves a little harmless mirth, he is such a precise old codger and they say his Curate, Mr. Sedate, is just such ano

* I remember this horrid production made its appearance about forty years ago, and was dedicated to Dr. Hinchcliffe, a late bishop of Peterborough.

ther. Now you do not think it necessary that we should be so strict as all that: and I have a notion Sir, you are a little strict in your way; though I can assure you, such strict notions in religion will not do for the people of our town."

Wor. How could you bear to hear this frothy chap run on at such a rate?

Loveg. Really Sir, I could not bear it, I therefore only spoke a few words in vindication of the respectable old Doctor, and turned him over to Mr. Reader.

Wor. And how did Mr. Reader deal with him?

Loveg. Sir, he talked to him far beyond my expec tation, in a very serious and appropriate manner indeed. And glad enough we both were, after having been pestered with his nonsense for near an hour and an half, to make our escape.

Wor. I suppose Mr. Reader's views of such ministers are completely altered.

Loveg. Altered indeed! He wonders at his ignorance, that such miserable bits of vanity should ever have been esteemed by him, as ministers of the word of God! and how he laments the pitiable state of that town, so awfully deprived of all that is necessary to their spiritual good!

Wor. And what a pitiable state the Church must be in, when such miserable creatures are appointed as her spiritual guides, and are afterwards permitted to continue in that office! Who in the world, with conscience, and common sense, could continue under such a ministry! Many an application have I lately received, requesting my assistance towards building Dissenting Chapels in different places; and however I may love the Church, I shall begin to think my money better spent than ever, for such purposes, if a set of better ministers can but be provided in another line, for the general good. Should any event in Providence remove you from us, a circumstance we should have greatly to lament: and were we to meet with such a successor as Mr. Fribble of Locksbury, I

could now never submit to a double starvation, both of body and soul,within the stone walls of our deserted parish church, as was the case while Mr. Deadman was our parish minister, when there were scarcely any to hear, and nothing to be heard. But let me not interrupt you in your story.

Loveg. Blessed be God, all this produced good, notwithstanding; for I urged seriously on Mr. Reader, the necessity of considering the lamentable state of the town, and to open his school-room, at least on the Sunday evening, for family worship, to which all his neighbours might have free access: and on those occasions, that he would offer up a prayer himself, or read a part of our excellent church service, together with a chapter from the Bible; and then read some of the homilies, together with other books of good, ancient divinity, once universally preached in the church of England, but till of late, almost as universally laid aside; a plenty of which should be immediately transmitted to his hands.

Wor. Did he seem to acquiesce?

Loveg. Sir, he promised me to exert himself to the utmost of his power, but that he did not know how he could venture to undertake such a solemn charge.

Wor. I hope he will. This will prove a much more profitable way for people to spend their Sunday evenings, than in idle visits, and foolish chat.

Loveg. Why Sir, I believe I have in a measure, pinned him down to the work, by telling him, with his leave, I would make a beginning on the Sunday evening, after the services of the Church; and that if he knew any of his neighbours who were of a serious turn; he might invite them as to family prayer: however, if he undertakes the work, it will be with much "fear and trembling."

Wor. The better for that. In all religious engagements, diffidence and success are constant attendants on each other. But must be not take out a licence for his school-room?