and fectaries innumerable were scattered over the land; by those who made the greateft profeffion of religion, religious ordinances were treated with contempt, and the facraments were moft irreverently adminiftered; it was therefore natural enough that in fuch a ftate, the preacher of a new faith, confifting wholly of inward feeling, fhould prove fuccessful in gaining followers. In fuch a foil, the rankeft weeds were moft likely to flourish.

But in this introductory eulogy on Fox we have fomething ftill more aftonishing and difgufting.

In tranfcribing what follows, we were fometimes inclined to think, that the author intended to attack the Gospel hiftory in the way that Philoftratus did, by palming upon us another Apollonius Tyanæus. But let our readers judge for themselves.

After ftating and apologizing as above for Fox's believing himself to have had a fpiritual or divine commiffion, Mr. Clark fon proceeds to affign the reafons why the disciples of Fox alfo believed in his commission.

"They had seen, like himself" says he "the extraordinary success of his ministry. They acknowledged the same internal admonitions or revelations of the same Spirit in spiritual concerns. They had been witnesses of his innocent and blameless life. There were individuals in the kingdom, who had publicly professed sights and prophecies concerning him. At an early age he had been reported, in some parts of the country, as a youth who had a discerning spirit.' It had gone abroad that he had healed many persons, who had been sick of various diseases. Some of his prophecies had come true in the life-time of those who had heard them delivered, His followers too, had seen many, who had come purposely to molest and apprehend him, depart quietly, as if their anger and their power had been providentially broken, They had seen others, who had been his chief persecutors, either falling into misfortunes, or dying a miserable or an untimely death. They had seen him frequently cast into prison, but al ways getting out again by means of his innocence. From these causes the belief was universal among them, that his commission was of Divine authority: and they looked upon him, therefore, in no other light than that of a Teacher, who had been sent to them from Heaven,"

According to this statement, George Fox, in the belief of his followers, was more than a prophet, being the bearer of a new revelation from heaven, having authority to abrogate pofitive inftitutions, and poffeffing fuper-human powers to

prove the validity of his commiffion. If all this be true, it is of the most serious importance to mankind, for a new re velation muft of neceffity be fuperior to that which preceded it and if the inftitution of Quakerifm be divine, if its author wrought miracles and delivered true prophecies, his doctrine and rule must be received with that reverence which we now conceive to be due to the precepts and ordinances of Chrift. But before we pay any regard to the pretenfions of George Fox to a divine character as a teacher fent from heaven, it is neceffary to enter into an examina tion of his story. As to his prophecies and his miracles we fhall leave them till Mr. Clarkson and his friends fhall produce the particulars with the neceffary vouchers; in the mean time, obferving that a fyftem which is founded in delufion and fraud, whatever may be its external appearance or its political economy, can have no "tendency to purity and perfection."

After having confidered Mr. Clarkfon's eulogy, we shall now proceed to a more correct and particular delineation of the real character of George Fox, drawn from his journal and other writings.

He was of a melancholy temper from his youth, and his employment as a fhepherd when he quitted fhoemaking, increased the seriousness of his difpofition. He lived, as we have seen, at a time when religious enthufiafm was carried to the most extravagant lengths, and Fox being infected with the prevailing diforder, wandered about from one fanatic to another, in queft of spiritual knowledge, till at last finding no fatisfaction from the profeffors as he called them, he fecluded himself from the world with no other companion than his bible. He frequently fat in a hollow tree all day, and rambled about the fields loft in myftical meditation all night. Such was the preparation of this felf-illuminated teacher and we have related it briefly and favourably, for the reader would be fhocked at the frightful reprefentations which Fox gives, in his journal, of his religious views, and extravagant conduct when he was under his "first awakening."

By degrees he imagined that God made known his will to Mm and "opened to him" as his phrafe is "that the light of Chrift within man" was to be his inftructor and guide in matters of religion. By the light within him, he meant, as he fays himself, the fame divinity which in the

New

New Teftament is called the Word and the Light; but of this we fhall have occafion to fpeak in another place. Having thus, as he thought, difcovered the truth, and received a divine call to propagate the fame, Fox iffued forth from his folitude, to "reftore pure Chriftianity." His learning was fo low, that through his whole life he could barely fpell his own name. What then was the illumination with which he was favoured, to make up this lack of knowledge ? all divine communications made to perfons fpecially appointed to reveal the will of heaven, must be new and important, full, clear, and adapted to the magnitude of the fubject, as well as fuitable to the majefty and holinefs of the divine author: But what were the communications made to Fox?

"As I was going to Coventry" fays he " and was entering towards the gate, a confideration arofe in me how it was faid that all Chriftians are believers, both Proteftants and Papifts, and the Lord opened to me, that if all were believers, then were all born of GOD."

This is making a special revelation of a plain fcriptural truth, which every child who had gone through the New Teltament must have known and understood.

Another "opening" revealed to Fox was that "God who made the world, did not dwell in temples made with hands, which" fays he " at first I thought a ftrange word."

Now this fanatic is reprefented as having been a man of ftrong mind, and acute difcernment, as well as being an extraordinary fcripturift; yet, according to his own account, he was ignorant till it was specially revealed to him from heaven, of this felf-evident principle that "God does not dwell in temples made with hands!"

Being led away by an imaginary fpirit of special and unerring direction, Fox took every thing that came into his head, to be a communication or an "opening" from above. The fimpleft propofitions and the plaineft paffages of holy writ which were new to him, he fancied were" opened" or revealed to his mind by the Almighty. From conceptions and opinions he proceeded to interpretations and to practice. Enthufiafm is a fort of madnefs, and all infane perfons are more or lefs proud, irritable, and impatient of authority. Fox foon felt this effect of his mania, for he fays "When the Lord fent me forth into the world, he forbad me to put off my hat to any; and I was required to thee and

thou all men."

. None

Nene but those who are far gone in the wildnefs of fanatical credulity, can fuppofe for a moment that God ever gave a command of fuch a nature as this; much less that he made a fpecial revelation to a man to alter an innocent mode of fpeech, and to behave rude and unmannerly to his fuperiors. Yet Fox exprefsly fays that he received his injunction to keep on his hat, and to thee and thou all men, from the Almighty himself. If his imagination was ever worked up to fuch a height as to make him really believe he had fuch a revelation, he was downright mad, and if he afferted what he knew was not true, he was a grofs impoftor and a blafphemer. We are difpofed from a confideration of the whole tenour of his life, to conclude that the former was the real cafe; but is it not ftrange that men of fenfe fhould be found in an enlightened age to imitate and defend the abfurd and indecent practices of a fenfelefs and crack-brained zealot?

Having inftanced the extreme ignorance and prefumption of Fox, let us follow him into the career of his pretended miffion, as the "reftorer of pure Christianity."

Inftead of being actuated by a spirit of meekness, this reformer began his work in outrage and violence. He entered the churches in the midft of divine fervice, and interrupting the minifters with his contradictions, threw the congregations into confufion. Thefe practices of course brought him into trouble; in fome places the people fell upon him with flicks and ftones; in others he was committed to "durance vile" by magiftrates, who did not think that breaking the peace was the mark of a true prophet. The fufferings which Fox endured were fometimes fevere and unjuft; but for the most part they were the confequences of his intemperate zeal.

From the beginning of his miffion to the close of it, he was always eager to difpute with minifters of various denominations, and he brags moft infufferably in his Journal of his victories in thefe combats. Mr. Clarkfon also mentions thefe frequent difputations with an intimation that the fuccefs of Fox in them is to be confidered as a proof that he was fpecially led by the Spirit of God.

On the contrary we are of opinion, and most reasonable men will be of the fame, that this love of contention, inftead of being a fign of grace, was the fign of fpiritual pride, conceit and arrogance.

The ftrifes in which Fox engaged were about myftical interpretations of words, and the perfons he had to combat

I

Vol. XIII, Churchm. Mag. for July 1807.

with

with, were for the moft part as zealous and bigotted as him. felf in behalf of notions little lefs anti-feriptural and irra tional, than his own. But when we find this man conducting himfelf towards his opponents with virulence, and applying to them the most fcurrilous epithets, accompanied with denunciations of divine vengeance, we perceive a fpirit the reverfe of that which cometh down from above. His ufual térm for professors, as he in general called thofe who did not receive the Quaker-Teftimony, were beafts, ferpents, dogs, and fwine: the clergy were conjurers, thieves, blafphemers, fcarlet-coloured beats, Babylon's merchants, whited walls, ravening wolves, and ambitious Pharifees.

That fuch a man fhould claim the victory in a dispute is no more to be wondered at, than that a profeffor of the fcience of fcolding at Billingfgate, fhould put to fi lence and flight the man of learning, and the woman of modefly,

As a fpecimen of the file and fpirit of Fox we extract one paffage from a famous book of his entituled, "The Viols of the wrath of God, by him who is called George Fox, 1655, p. 9.

The word of the Lord to all the fruitless trees; ye dry trees, ye oaks, ye tall cedars, ye fat bulls of Basan, ye thorns, ye briars, ye wild asses which snuff np your noses in the top of the moun tains, and the forests; ye high-way ground, ye stony-ground, ye goats, ye wolves, ye dogs, ye swine, ye serpents, ye vulterous ones, ye beasts, ye lions, ye strong horses neighing up and down, walking after your lusts: this is not railing, this is the Scripture language, own your names, every one in their place; with the light ye are all seen, and your names come to be known, so every one bears your name, according to these natures; ye are them that cumber the ground, ye are them that are not of the light, ye are them that are to be condemned with the light, ye that are unjust, ye cumber the ground."

Now the author of this vile, nonfenfical jargon, is reprefented by Mr. Clarkfon as having "a wonderful gift in expounding the Scriptures" and as "preaching in the demonftration of the Spirit, and with power!!"

Much has been faid about the fincerity and integrity of George Fox, which, however true, would not weigh a feather, as a proof of his being a rational man, and therefore can have nothing to do with his affumption of the character of a divine teacher.

But