AUTHOR OF THE WHOLE DUTY OF MAN, BELIEVED THE RESTORATION. SIR, IN N your Mifcellany for the month of March laft, you inferted a piece I fent you, containing "Extracts on the Restoration," in which I promised some further extracts from different authors on the fame fubject, and in particular, an extract from an author which had been read as much as any; though perhaps it was seldom obferved that he had written any thing which favoured the Doctrine of God's Univerfal Love. The author I then alluded to, was the perfon who wrote that well known book entitled "The Whole of Duty of Man," which I conceive I was juftified in faying, “had been read perhaps as much as any author."-This book was in fo much repute about the beginning of the prefent century, that a celebrated Divine who wrote about that period, fpeaking of it, fays, "This book is prodigiously admired and doated upon even to fuperftition. The generality of people unmeasurably esteem it, and seem to prefer it before the Bible: they having been taught by one of our Divines to fay, It is the best of books, and every parishioner muft have one of them almoft upon pain of damnation; and even in the prefent day I believe, Sir, there is scarcely a house without one of them. Whoever the author of this book was, it is evident that he believed in the Doctrine of "the Universal Restoration or Reconciliation of all lapsed intelligences." For in the prayer for the Peace of the Church (inferted in that work) there are those words, "Vouchsafe to caft thy countenance on thy well-beloved spouse the church, but let it be that amiable and merciful countenance whereby thou pacifieft all things in heaven and in earth, and whatfoever is above heaven and UNDER THE EARTH," by which I underftand the author, that God had two countenances, (if I may fo exprefs myself) with which he looked upon mankind: the one an 66 angry countenance,” and the other “an amiable and merciful countenanee;" that he has the former when he looks upon man as finful man, or when he views fin feparate from the finner, and the latter when he furveys the whole creation as the purchase of his fon's blood. And that either he conceived God does na look upon the whole whole world (on the ground of what he intends to do for them) with an amiable and merciful countenance," or that there is a time coming when he will look upon all (his once lapsed) intelligences with the fame "amiable and merciful countenance" which he now does upon his Church. Those ideas I think are included in the foregoing expreffions of this author. And the learned Dr. John Edwards in his reflections on the above book, conftrues the paffage before felected in the fame manner, and charges it home upon the author, that he held the before mentioned fentiments, for the Doctor in the Third Volume of his book entitled "The Preacher," Page 325, after inferting fome ftrictures on part of the aforefaid prayer "For the peace of the Church," proceeds to fhew his disapprobation of another part of the fame prayer in the following words: "There is a very odd and fufpicious paffage in the fame prayer, Vouchsafe to caft thy countenance on thy well beloved Spouse, the Church, but let it be that amiable and merciful countenance whereby thou pacifieft all things in Heaven and in Earth, and whatever is above Heaven and under the Earth. That God pacifieth all things in Heaven and in Earth" (fays the Doctor)" is eafy to be understood, for this is according to what the Apoftle faith, namely, that by Christ all things are reconciled to the Father, whether they be things in Earth or things in Heaven, Col. i. 20. But how doth God pacify what is above Heaven, and what doth he mean by whatfoever is under the Earth. This must fignify either the bodies of the Saints, or of the wicked that are in their graves, or the Devils and damned fouls in Hell, or, he fuppofes, other fouls in purgatory. He cannot mean the bodies of the deceased, for there is no need of pacifying them, they being still and quiet, AND THEREFORE HE MUST MEAN THE INFERNAL SPIRITS AND SOULS THAT ARE DAMNED, and then the fenfe is this; that God cafts or will caft his amiable and merciful countenance ON THE DAMNED IN HELL, yea, on the DEVILS themselves, he will vouchfafe them the fame merciful countenance that he cafts on his well beloved fpoufe the Church. This is a flight above purgatory, and furely is not any part of that devotion which Proteftants are concerned in; or if he means by thofe under the Earth the fouls in purgatory, then we know whereabouts he is, and what church he hath a good opinion of." I adduce the quotation from the Doctor to corroborate my affertion, that the Author of the Whole Duty of Man believed believed in the Univerfal Reftoration," as I do not wish it to reft on my private judgment. I think we may fafely rank this writer among the abettors of this glorious truth, and it is no fmall credit to the cause to have fo confiderable an author among its advocates. I fhall only add, that I am extremely forry the Doctor could not fee a little further into the meaning of Col. i. 20. which he quotes. I wish he had lived to hear the fermon you preached from those words, in the month of December, 1794, at Parliament Court Chapel; perhaps he might have had his eyes a little opened. For if he had confidered, that by things in Heaven and in Earth, the Apoftle meant things of Heavenly original, viz. the fallen ANGELS, and things of Earthly original, i. e. fallen MEN, (as I think you clearly made it appear in that fermon) he would have feen there was a great affinity between the Apoftle's reafoning in that verfe, and the reason- · ing of the Author of the Whole Duty of Man in the above paffage. I need not tell your readers that that great and good man, Archbishop Tillotfon, wrote in favour of this doctrine. The above Dr. Edwards alfo lafhed him for fo doing. Speaking of the Archbishop, he says, "His declaring that there is no fuch thing as the eternity of Hell torments purchased him a wonderful repute among a great party of men.”. Alas, Sir, if this was a fact it is far otherwife in our day, for thofe who now declare the fame thing purchase thereby nothing but contempt from the majority of profeffing men. If you infert the above, I will fend you a Piece containing an Anecdote from Hiflory, to fhew the evil tendency of Miffionaries preaching endless punishment; and in the meantime, am Your's, with due respect, No. 8. Drake Street, Red Lyon Square, 9th Dec. 1798. J. H. PRINCE. MAHOMET AND JESUS CHRIST. To the Editor of the Univerfalift's Mifcellany. SIR, TH HE ferious enquirer after truth, undetermined in his religious fentiments, would pay no fmall attention to the life of a man profeffing hindelf a Prophet fent from God, and and fhould he find it diametrically oppofite to those plain and felf-evident principles of morality which the kind hand of nature has ftamped on the breaft of every man-fure he could not conclude, that this man was a prophet of God. Such a prophet was Mahomet. Then to what cause must it be attributed that fo great a part of mankind have believed on him? That he has fo many followers in the prefent day, may be greatly owing to the prejudices of education-and it is not only in Turkey that men profefs without examination the faith of their forefathers. Thofe nations that firft profeffed the Mahometan faith, were compelled to it, by fire and fword. Strange arguments to convince reasonable beings of the truth of Revelation! The contraft between Mahomet and Jefus Chrift is finely depicted by Bishop Sherlock;" Go" fays he, "to your Natural Religion; lay before her Mahomet, and his difciples, arrayed in armour and blood, riding in triumph over the fpoils of thousands who fell by his victorious fword. Shew her the cities which he fet in flames, the countries which he ravaged and deftroyed, and the miferable diftrefs of all the inhabitants of the earth. When he has viewed him in this fcene, carry her to his retirement; fhew her the prophet's chamber; his concubines and wives; and let her hear him alledge revelation, and a Divine commiffion to justify his adultery and luft. When the is tired with this profpect, then fhew her the bleffed Jefus, humble and meek, doing good to all the fons of men. Let her fee him in his moft, retired privacies; let her follow him to the mount, and hear his devotions and fupplications to God. Carry her to his table, view his poor fare, and hear his heavenly difcourfe. Let her attend him to the tribunal, and confider the patience with which he endured the fcoffs and reproaches of his enemies. Lead her to his crofs, let her view him in the agony of death, and hear his laft prayer for his perfecutors; Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do! When Natural Religion has thus viewed both, afk her, Which is the prophet of God? But her anfwer we have already had, when the faw part of this fcene through the eyes of the Centurion who attended at the crofs. By him the spoke, and said, Truly this man was the Son of God." I truft many of your conftant readers as well as myself, will admire the animated manner in which the good Bishop defcribes our Lord.. I remain with refpect, Your's, Oct. 14, 1728... 3 C CLIO. FUR . FURTHER ACCOUNT OF JOHN HENDERSON. SIR, Obferving in your 2 1ft Number of refpectable Mifcellany, fome account of the celebrated John Henderson, I have endeavoured to collect fome farther particulars of that great man, which are at your service, if you deem them worthy of infertion. O. OЯ. 16, 1798. HENDERSONiarities. The following remarkable cuftom was frequently obferved by him before he retired to repose:He used to ftrip himself naked as low as the waift, and taking his ftation at a pump near his rooms, would completely fluice his head and the upper part of his body; after which he would pump over his fhirt fo as to make it perfectly wet, and putting it on in that condition, would immediately go to bed. This he Jocularly termed "an excellent cold bath. The latter part of this ceremony, however, he did not practife with fuch frequency as the former. ENDERSON, like many other great characters, had There is great reafon to think that he materially injured a good natural conftitution by the capriciousness of his conduct, and particularly by the bold and ftrange experiments which he was accustomed to be always making upon himself. He ufed to swallow large quantities of noxious drugs, and quickfilver; and what feemed very rafh, fuch dozes of opium (like the famous Pfalmanazar) as were apparently fufficient to fend a dozen men to the grave. His external appearance was as fingular as his habits of life. He would never fuffer his hair to be ftrewed with white duft (to use his own expreffion) daubed with pomatum, or distorted by the curling irons of the frifeur, Though under two and thirty years of age at his death, he walked when he appeared in public, with as much apparent caution and folemnity as if he had been enfeebled by the co-operation of age and difeafe. His learning was truly aftonifhing: fcarcely a book, however obfcure, could be mentioned, but he could give fome account of it; nor any fubject started, but he could engage in the difcuffion of it. He had a very deep and extenfive knowledge of the learned languages the Arabic and Perfian were tamiliar to him. He delighted much in paradoxes, and his intimate acquaintance with the schoolmen brought him much |