a double bleffing in his hand. If MESSRS. EDITORS, courfe his influence among his neighbors increafed, he began to imbibe doubts of the reality of religion and the truth of the fcripSav-tures, and his fenfe of obligation to God and of refponfibility and rewards in an other world was loft. These fentiments he often expreffed before Diphormia, who was his favorite child; and indeed in many refpects, her natural character refembled the father. Her pub-good, which joined to a confiderpowers of understanding were able degree of vivacity, made her company fought by the young of 111-723 IN your propofals to the lic, you defire biographical sketches of perfons eminent for piety. If the lives and deaths of fuch are ufeful to encourage others to virtue, it is conceived that examples of the contrary, which are real facts, will deter from vice and fhow the danger of falfe opinions. The writer is one whofe eyes were opened from the dream of falfe pleaf ures, by witnefling the death of Diphormia. The real name of this unhappy woman is meant to be concealed. You will publish or fupprefs as you think beft. D A. C. both fexes. and She foon appeared to have too much understanding to be a female rake; but at the fame time to have fo little fenfe of moral obligaof her intimacy. With fome the tion, that the virtuous were afraid diverted herfelf; others whofe worldly circumftances were good, the, in vain, attempted to pleafe; of the many young and incautious fhe poifoned by her infinuations against religion, piety and the ferious people, as the called them. In doing this the only adminiftered the poifon fhe had received from a father. She often intimated that the believed not in religion-that it would be agreeable enough to vifit the church, if the could hear things that she loved IPHORMIA was one of two daughters, who were the only children of their parents. The elder daughter was a perfon of weak understanding, and early married an indolent man, with whom fhe now lives, without ambition of a better state, at a great diftance -and that her only concern about from the place of her birth. The another world was, left fhe fhould parents began life in poverty. The at death perifh like the beasts of mother hath been induftrious to an the field, never to exift again.-In extreme, and is generally called an this conduct Diphormia was infenhoneft, good woman; but with-fible that fhe was ruining her own out refolution to advife her hufband, or to reprove and control her children. The father was a man of strong reafon, great art, and an infatiable love of the In the number of her acquaintworld. Hard labor and parfimo-ance was the writer of Diphorny foon made him an affluent far- mia's life, for at this time he wishAs his property, and of led to disbelieve; but trembled in Bier. reputation, for even the most vicious of mankind are afraid of a female, who appears to have no fenfe of moral obligation. i to me for they know I never loved them?" When exhorted pray, by a great finner who was alarmed by her cafe, fhe faid, "There is no pleafare in praying, but if I could know I should be happy, then I would pray." An aged and pious aunt came in and requested, that the minifter might be called to pray; when the quickly replied, "My father always faid that minifters are more dangerous in fickness than at oth view of the confequences of a lofs of moral principle. Having giv en the chief features of her character and principles, he will pafs over many circumftances, which might be mentioned, illuftrating the danger of falle opinions, and come to the awful fcene which opened his own eyes, and was bieffed as the means of fnatching him as a brand from the burning. Nearly at the age of 6 twentyeight, Diphormia was taken with a flow fever, which on the forty-er times, but this is not the worst, fecond day clofed her eyes, and for when I fee him it makes me ufhered her into eternity. The 'think of his texts, and fome of firft twenty days of her fickness 'them were dreadful enough, and her mind was eafy, for the enter- I think I never felt fo unhappy tained no apprehenfion of the if- 'before this fickness, as when I fue; but at this time, was alarmed heard him take for his text, It by overhearing fome words between is appointed unto man once to die, confulting Phyficians. From this but after desth comes the judgment. moment an anxiety of mind began, I had rather you should fend- to which continued to the moment of • Mr. to pray for me, for death. The writer was often in it feems as tho' if he came, I her company, and will relate noth- muft certainly die, and who ing but what was heard by his own knows but Doctor if he ears. At one time fhe faid, "I arrives will think of fomething new for my cafe." 6 6 begin to think I muft die, but it looks like cruelty in God to take When the ferious aunt requested me away fo foon." Being anof the father, that public prayer fwered, will it not be better to might be made for his fick daughfleep forever than to endure fuchter, he faid, "She is very fick, 6 painful days?" "Ah, faid fhe, ⚫ but I do not love to gratify fome it will be terrible enough to wake 'folks." The good woman wept, no more, but I fear, I fhall, for went to a fecret apartment and tho' my body is failing, my mind was feen on her knees, and over'doth not feel like ceafing to ex- heard praying for the foul of her • ift." On being exhorted to look fick niece. At another time, Di to God for help and grace, fhe re- phormia was heard whifpering, "It plied, "I have never heard of fuch a God as I could love, and if the God, of whom I have heard in the church, be the true one, he and I are certainly ene• mics." At another time fhe faid, "I cannot yet love thefe fe rious people; two or three of them have come in to fee me; they took my hand and wept; but what made them weep for 1 is my father hath ruined me, had I never feen him I fhould have 'been like other people, I hope I 'fhall not fee him in the other ' world." In her last days, altho her reafon appeared to be found, fhe was principally funk in a deep flumber, and when death actually attacked her, the laft words fhe was heard to fay, were thefe, "O miferable The writer was awfully alarmed for himself, and the pains of a convinced confcience continued for feveral years; but now, altho' the chief of finners, he calmly hopes in the mercy of God. The father of Diphormia hath funk into a ftate difficult to defcribe. Poffeffed of confiderable property, but without an heir that he can truft to grafp and fave like himself, he is only anxious about his lands and his bonds. A gradual decline is carrying him downward, without any great fenfe of his own decay -without any love of religion or weanednefs from the world, or perceiving the danger of his fentiments. He foon muft mect that daughter, who wished never to fee him in eternity. ' me." She died and was buried,, his anfwers! Such empire over his and where the opened her eyes paffions! Where is the man, cr God only knows. the philofopher, that knows how to act, to fuffer, and to die without weakness, or oftentation? Plato, in his picture of the imaginary just man, covered with all the opprobriousness of guilt, and worthy of every reward of virtue, gives us an exact reprefentation of Chrift; fo ftriking is the refemblance, that all the fathers faw it, and indeed there is no poffibility of miftaking it. What prejudice, what blindness, to compare the offspring of Sophronisca to the fon of Mary? How immenfe the difference between thofe two! Socrates dying without pain, and without ignominy, found it eafy to fupport his character to the very laft; and if his life had not been honored by fo gentle a death, we might have doubted whether Socrates, with all his understanding, was any thing more than a SophiftYou will fay, he invented a fyftem of moral philofophy. Others had practifed it before his time; he only related what they had performed, and drew lectures from their example. Ariftides had been juft before Socrates told us what juftice was; Leonidas had facrificed his life for his country, before Socrates had made the love of our country a duty; Sparta was fober, before Socrates commended fobriety; before he had given a definition of virtue, Greece abounded in virtuous men. But of whom did Chrift borrow that fublime and pure morality, which he, and he only, taught both by word and example !* From the centre of the moft extravagant fanaticifm the higheft wifdom made itself heard, The confeffion of the Freethinker JOHN JAMES ROSSEAU, Citizen of Geneva. I ture. ACKNOWLEDGE to you that the majesty of the fcriptures astonishes me, and the fanctity of the gospel fills me with rapLook into the writings of the philofophers, with all their pomp and parade; how trivial they appear, when compared to this facred volume. Is it poffible, that a book fo fimple and yet fo fublime, fhould be the work of man ? Is it poffible, that he, whofe hiftory it contains, should himself be a mere man? Is the ftyle that of an enthusiast or of a fectary inflated with ambition? What fweetnefs, what purity in his morals! What force, what perfuafion in his inftructions! His maxims how fublime! His difcourfes how wife and profound! Such prefence of mind, fuch beauty and precifion in and the vileft of nations was honored with the fimplicity of the * Matt. v. 21, &c. moft heroic virtues. The death | natural tafte, he faw the evidence and was forced to confefs the excellence of thofe fcriptures, which his heart wifhed to difcredit; and the amiablenefs of that divine character and religion, which the current of his writings tend to debafe. O truth, how great is thy power, of Socrates philofophifing coolly with his friends, is the eafieft that can be defired; that of Chrift expiring in the midst of torments, abused, fcorned, detefted by a whole people, is the most dreadful that can be apprehended. Socrates taking the poifonous draught, returns thanks to the perfon, who with tears in his eyes prefents it to him; Chrift, in the midst of the moft exquifite torture, prays for his bloody executioners. Yes, if Socrates lived and died like a philofopher, Chrift lived and died like a God. Shall we fay that the evangelical hiftory was invented at pleasure? My friend, inventions are not made after this manner, and Socrates's hiftory, of which no body entertains any doubt, is not fo well attefted as that of Chrift. Upon the whole, it is removing the difficulty further back, without folving it; for it would be much harder to conceive, that a number of men fhould have joined together to fabricate this book, than a fingle perfon fhould furnish out the fubject to its authors. Jewish writers would never have fallen into that ftyle, or that system of morality; and the gospel hath fuch ftrong and fuch inimitable marks of truth, that the inventor would be more furprising than the hero. Remarks on the above. THERE are times in which the moft fceptical and vicious are forced to confefs the truth. It was fuch a moment with Roffeau when he wrote the above. It is unquef tionable that he was in the number of thofe infidels, who prepared the way for that lofs of moral principle to which the prefent convulfions of Europe, may be in part attributed; but infinite wifdom ordered that through the power of confcience and an elegant and correct even over the wicked and doubting! If Roffeau remained a difbeliever to the laft, the conviction he hath acknowledged, and the pangs of an accufing confcience will form a ftate of future misery, equal to the highest descriptions of the Chriftian fcriptures. Sketches of the Life and Death of THOMAS CRANMER, Archbishop of Canterbury, martyr, burnt at Oxford, for the confeffion of Chrift's true doctrine, under Queen Mary, March 21, 1556. HOMAS CRANMER, was of TH an ancient family in the county of Northamptonshire, in from his infancy, and received his England. He was kept at school first degrees in the univerfity of Cambridge. Having by marrying loft his fellowship in Jefus College, he became a reader in Bucking. ham College, where he first difcovered his piety, attachment to the pure doctrines of the fcripture, and eminent theological knowledge. His wife dying prematurely, he was again chofen fellow of Jefus College, and made doctor of divinity, reader of the principal divinity lecture, and one of the learned examiners, on whofe opinion the university gave its highest degrees, which were then bestowed on ftrict principles of merit. In this high ftation he arrived to great and eminent reputation, both for learning and religion. At this time the great caufe of divorce between Henry the VIII. and Catharine of Spain his wife, was a Jane was declared queen, through the influence of the Proteftant party, but the commons prevailed and Mary actually came to reign. Cranmer, in faithfulness to the oath he had taken, at first was on the fide of Mary, but through the influence of cafuifts had confented that Jane fhould be proclaimed; ftill he never oppofed Mary's actual acceffion to the throne. In this whole affair he acted like a man eminently confcientious, but Mary never forgave him, and being in principal fubject both of civil and religious difcuffion. The inconftancy of the capricious monarch, and the oppofition he met in the papal court (by whom divorces were then granted) through the influence of the court of Spain became the political caufe of the reformation in England. Henry had in anger difmiffed Campeius and Cardinal Wolfey, the pope's legates, for their tardy proceeding in the matter of the feparation. It was now that Cranmer was accidentally introduced to Dr. Gardi-principles a Papist did from the first ner and Dr. Foxe, the king's principal managers in this important affair. To these he gave the first hints of denying the Papal supremacy, and committing the caufe to be judged, to the principal and learned men in England and the univerfities of Cambridge and Oxford. Cranmer wrote a book vindicating the principles of the divorce, which actually took place, and went on an embaffy to the pope and the principal parts of Europe, by which he gained the eternal enmity of all the popifh party. Being thus introduced to the king's favor he was foon made Archbishop of Canterbury, and principal prelate of the realm. He was a good man, eminently pious, and faithful in the high office he fuf tained. Henry while he lived, protected him against all the machinations of a wicked court and the popish party. In the fhort reign of young Edward the VI. he was refpected as a good man and a fer vant of the Lord. After the death of Edward a controverfy arofe concerning the fucceffion; whether it should be Lady Mary, the daughter of Henry, and nearest by blood to the throne, but a papift; or Lady Jane his niece, but a proteftant. VOL. I. No. 2. determine his deftruction. The whole papal party, knowing him to be a principal obstacle to the accomplishment of their defign, and an object of bitter vengeance in the mother court of Rome, levelled their fhafts against his reputation and life. Many were the attempts made to destroy him and many to gain him to the popish party, but he generally was inflexible to his faith and his own underftanding of the fcriptures. Having been for a long time. perfecuted by his enemies, in an unguarded moment, he was influenced by thofe who called themfelves his friends, to fet his name to a recantation in which he renounced the doctrines of the reformation and declared, his belief in the principles of popery. His having made this recantation affords a striking proof of this truth, that the firmeft men may at times be fhaken in their refolution, when not guarded against temptation from their worldly interefts. From the time of figning this paper the good Archbishop relented, He felt that he had done wrong, and he never after enjoyed that peace and quietnefs of confcience with which a full confidence in his own integrity had before this infped him. And while this act gave K |