"of a prince is in the multitude of his people," but experience teaches, that plenty of people is the riches and ftrength of a wife and good government; as that is, where vice is corrected, and virtue encouraged, and all taken in and fecured in civils, that have the fame civil intereft with the government.

But as the good and intereft of the whole is the rife and end of government, fo muft it fuppofe that the whole (which takes in all parties) concurs in feeking the good of the government; for the reafon of the government will not fuffer it to protect those that are enemies to its conftitution and fafety; for fo it would admit of fomething dangerous to the fociety; for the fecurity of which, government was at firft inftituted.

It will follow, that thofe that own another temporal power fuperior to the government they properly belong to, make themselves fubjects not of the government they are born under, but to that authority which they avow to be fuperior to the government of their own country, and confequently men of another intereft; because it is their intereft to pursue the advantages of that power they acknowledge to be fovereign but those that own, embrace and obey the government of their own country as their temporal fupreme authority, and whofe intereft is one and the fame with that of their own proper government, ought to be valued and protected by that government.

The principle thus far lies general: I will now bring it to our own cafe:

ENGLAND is a country populous and Proteftant; and though under fome diffents within itself, yet the civil intereft is the fame, and in fome fenfe the religious too. For, firft, all English Proteftants, whether conformists or nonconformists, agree in this, that they only owe allegiance and fubjection unto the civil government of England, and offer any fecurity in their power to give of their truth in this matter. And, in the next place, they do not only confequentially difclaim the Pope's fupremacy, and all adhesion to foreign

foreign authority under any pretence, but therewith deny and oppofe the Romish religion, as it ftands degenerated from fcripture, and the first and pureft ages of the church; which makes up a great negative union.

And it cannot be unknown to men read in the reafons of the reformation, that a proteftation made by the German reformers against the imperial edits of Charles the fifth, impofing Romish traditions, gave beginning to the word Proteftant.

In fhort, It is the intereft of the ruling or churchProteftants of England, that the Pope fhould have no claim or power in England. It is alfo the interest of the Diffenting-Proteftants, that the Pope fhould have no claim or power here in England, because they are fubject to the fame mifchiefs and fufferings in their civil and religious rights that the church-Proteftants are liable to: if then both are like to lofe by Pope and foreign authority, their intereft muft needs be one against Pope and foreign authority; and if they have but one intereft, it will follow, that the church-Proteftant cannot prejudice the diffenting-Proteftant, but he must weaken and deftroy his own intereft.

The civil intereft of English Proteftants being thus I the fame, and their religious intereft too, fo far as concerns a negative to the ufurpation and error of Rome; I do humbly afk, if it be the intereft of the government to expofe thofe to mifery, that have no other civil intereft than that of the government? Or if it be juft or equal, that the weaker fhould be profecuted by the more powerful Proteftants, whofe intereft is pofitively the fame in civils, and in religion negatively? One would think it were reasonable that they should not fuffer by Proteftants, who, if Popery have a day, are likely to fuffer with them, and that upon the fame principles. Experience tells us, that the wifeft architects lay their foundations broad and ftrong, and raise their squares and ftructure by the most exact rules of art, that the fabrick may be fecure against the violence of ftorms; but if people must be destroyed

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destroyed by thofe of the fame intereft, truly that intereft will stand but totteringly, and every breath of oppofition will be ready to fhake it.

It was the inconfutable anfwer Chrift made to the blafphemers of that power by which he wrought miracles; "A kingdom divided against itself cannot "ftand:" What he said then, let me on another occafion fay now, an intereft divided against itself muft • fall.'

I know fome men will take fire at this, and by crying The CHURCH, the CHURCH,' hope to filence all arguments of this nature: but they must excufe me, if I pay no manner of regard to their zeal, and hold their devotion both ignorant and dangerous at this time. It is not the way to fill the church, to destroy the people. A church without people is a contradiction; especially when the fcripture tells us, that it is the people that make the church.

And it is not without an appearance of reafon that fome good and wife men are apprehenfive, that the greatest fticklers for perfecuting Protestant Diffenters, in favour of the church of England, are men addicted and devoted to the church of Rome, or at least animated by fuch as are; who, defpairing of doing any great feats, if known, hide themselves under thefe pretences; but the meaning of it is to debilitate the Proteftant caufe in general, by exciting the church of England to deftroy all other Proteftant interests in thefe kingdoms, that fo nothing may remain for Popery to conflict with, but the few zealous abettors of that church.

And that this may not look difingenuous, or like a trick of mine, I will enforce it by a demonftration. It is plain fact, that the church of Rome hath, ever fince the reformation, practifed the restoration of her religion and power in these kingdoms. It is as evident, that religion is with her a word for civil intereft; that is, that the may have the rule over men, both body and foul. For it is government fhe aims at, to have

the

the reins of power in her hand, to give law, and wield the Sceptre.

To do this, the must either have a greater intereft than the Protestants that are now in poffeffion, or else divide their intereft, and fo weaken them by themselves, and make them inftruments to her ends. That her own force is inconfiderable, is clear: fhe has nothing within doors to give her hope, but the difcord of Proteftants. It follows then, that fhe muft of neceffity beftir herself, and ufe her arts to inflame the reckoning among Proteftants, and carry their diffents about religious matters to a divifion in the civil intereft. And it is the more to be feared, because whatever fhe has been to others, fhe has been ever true to herself.

If this then be the only domeftick expedient left her, we are fure fhe will ufe it; and if fo, it must needs be of great importance with all Proteftants to let fall their private animofities, and take all poffible care that their diffents about faith or worship, (which regard the other world) divide not their affection and judgment about the common and civil intereft of their country; because if that be kept intire, it equally fruftrates the designs of Rome, as if you were of one religion. For fince, as I faid before, religion, with the great men of that church, is nothing else but a fofter word for civil empire, preferve you but your civil intereft from fraction, and you are, in that fense, of one religion too; and that fuch an one, as you need not fear the temptation of Smithfield, if you will but be true to it.

This being the cafe, I would take leave to afk the zealous gentlemen of the English church, If çonformity to the fashion of their worship be dearer to them than England's intereft and the caufe of Proteftancy?" If their love to church-government be greater, than to the church and her religion, and to their country and her laws? Or, laftly, Whether in cafe they are fincere in their allegations for the church, (which, I confefs ingenuously, I am apt to fufpect) it is to be fuppofed that the prefent church-men (conformists I

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mean)

mean) are better able of themselves to fecure Protestancy, and our civil intereft, against the attempts of Rome, than in conjunction with the civil interest of all Proteftant Diffenters? If they fay, Yes;' I would have them at the fame time, for the fame reafon, to give it under their hands, that it is a standing rule in arithmetick, that ONE is more than SIX, and that hitherto we have been all mistaken in the art of numbers.

Being brought to this pitch, I conceive they must fay, that they had rather deliver up their church to the power and defigns of Popery, than fuffer Diffenters to live freely among them, though Proteftants, of one negative religion, and of the fame civil intereft; or else haften to break thofe bonds that are laid upon diffenters of truly tender (and by experience) of peaceable confciences; and by law establish the free exercise of their worship to Almighty God, that the fears, jealoufies, difaffection, and diftraction, that now affect the one common intereft of Proteftants, may be removed; for it seems impoffible to preferve a diftinct intereft from both. But to which of these they may incline, I must not determine; and yet, I hope, they will not be of the mind of a late monk of Cullen, who in his publick exercise exhorted the civil magiftrates to chufe to have their city poor and catholick, that is Popib, rather than great and opulent by the admission of trading Hereticks: but if they fhould, may our magiftrates have at least their prudence; for the Culleners gave him the hearing, but were as true to their intereft, as the monk to his fuperftition.

Under favour, the civil government is greatly concerned to discountenance fuch bigotry; for it thins the people, leffens trade, creates jealoufies, and endangers the peace and wealth of the whole. And, with fubmiffion, of what should the civil magiftrate be more tender, than of fuffering the civil intereft of a great people to be disturbed and narrowed for the humour of any one party of them? For fince the civil interest lies as large, as the people of that interest, the

people