loft his wits, when he left his honefty; and fo fhortly after, <died miferable and neglected; and deferves to be forgotten.

Edmund Waller was born to a very fair eftate, by the parfimony, or frugality, of a wife father and mother; and he thought it fo commendable an advantage, that he refolved to improve it with his utmost care, upon which in his na⚫ture he was too much intent; and in order to that, he was fo much referved and retired, that he was scarce ever heard of, till by his addrefs and dexterity he had gotten a very rich wife in the city, against all the recommendation,, and countenance, and authority of the court, which was thoroughly engaged on the behalf of Mr. Crofts; and which ufed to be fuccefsful in that age, against any oppofition. He had the good fortune to have an alliance and friendship with Dr. Morley, who had affifted, and inftructed him in the reading many good books, to which his natural parts and promptitude inclined him; efpecially the poets; and at the age when other men ufed to give over writing verses· (for he was near thirty years of age, when he firft engaged himself in that exercile, at leaft, that he was known to do • fo) he furprized the town with two or three pieces of that kind; as if a tenth mufe had been newly born, to cherish drooping poetry. The doctor at that time brought him into that company, which was moft celebrated for good < converfation; where he was received, and esteemed, with great applaufe, and refpect. He was a very pleasant difcourfer, in earneft, and in jeft, and therefore very grateful to all kind of company, where he was not the less esteemed for being very rich.

He had been even nurfed in parliaments, where he fate when he was very young; and fo when they were refumed again (after a long intermiffion) he appeared in thofe affemblies with great advantage; having a graceful way of speaking, and by thinking much upon feveral arguments (which his temper and complexion, that had much of melancholick, inclined him to) he feemed often to speak upon the fudden, when the occafion had only adminiftred the opportunity of faying, what he had thoroughly confidered, which gave a great luftre to all he faid; which yet was rather of delight, than weight. There needs no more be said to extol the excellence and power of his wit, and pleasantness of his converfation, than that it was of magnitude enough, to <cover a world of very great faults; that is, so to cover them, that they were not taken notice of to his reproach; viz. a narrowness in his nature to the lowest degree; an abjectnefs, and want of courage to fupport him in any virtuous un

dertaking; an infinuation, and fervile flattery to the heiglit, the vaineft, and-moft imperious nature could be contented with; that it preferved and won his life from thofe, who were moft refolved to take it; and in an occafion in which he ought to have been ambitious to have loft it; and then 6 preferved him again, from the reproach and contempt that was due to him, for fo preferving it, and for vindicating it at fuch a price; that it had power to reconcile him to those whom he had most offended and provoked; and continued to his age with that rare felicity, that his company was acceptable, where his fpirit was odious; and he was at leaft pitied, where he was most detefted.''

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Mr. Chillingworth was a man of fo great a fubtilty ofunderstanding, and fo rare a temper in debate; that as it was impoffible to provoke him into any paffion, fo it was very difficult to keep a man's felf from being a little difcompofed by his fharpnefs, and quicknefs of argument, and inftances, in which he had a rare facility, and a great advantage over all the men I ever knew. He had spent all his younger time in difputation; and had arrived to fo great. a maftery, as he was inferior to no man in those skirmishes; but he had, with his notable perfection in this exercife, contracted fuch an irrefolution, and habit of doubting, that by degrees he grew confident of nothing, and a fceptick at least, in the greatest myfteries of faith.

This made him from first wavering in religion, and indulging to fcruples, to reconcile himself too foon, and too eafily to the church of Rome; and carrying ftill his own inquifitivenefs about him, without any refignation to their authority (which is the only temper can make that church fure of its profelytes) having made a journey to St. Omers, purely to perfect his converfion, by the converfation of thofe who had the greatest name, he found as little fatisfaction there; and returned with as much hafte from them; with a belief that an entire exemption from error, was neither <inherent in, nor neceflary to any church: which occafioned that war, which was carried on by the jefuits with fo great afperity, and reproaches against him, and in which he defended himfelf, by fuch an admirable eloquence of language, and clear, and incomparable power of reafon, that he not only made them appear unequal adverfaries, but carried the into their own quarters; and made the pope's infallibility to be as much fhaken, and declined by their own. doctors (and as great an acrimony amongst themfelves upon that fubject) and to be at least as much doubted, as in the

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⚫ reformed or proteftant; and forced them fince, to defend and ⚫ maintain those unhappy controverfies in religion, with arms $ and weapons of another nature, than were ufed, or known in the church of Rome, when Bellarmine died; and which probably will in time undermine the very foundation that ' fupports it.

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Such a levity, and propenfity to change, is commonly attended with great infirmities in, and no lefs reproach, and prejudice to the perfon; but the fincerity of his heart was fo confpicuous, and without the leaft temptation of any corrupt end; and the innocence, and candour in his nature fo evident, and without any perverfenefs; that all who knew him, clearly difcerned, that all thofe reftlefs motions and fluctuations, procceded only from the warmth and jealousy of his own thoughts, in a too nice inquifition for truth. Neither 'the books of the adverfary, nor any of their perfons, though he was acquainted with the belt of both, had ever made great impreffion upon him; all his doubts grew out of himself, when he affifted his fcruples with all the ftrength of his own reason, and was then too hard for himself; but finding as little quiet and repofe in thofe victories, he quickly recovered, by a new appeal to his own judgment; fo that he was in truth, upon the matter, in all his fallies, and retreats, his own convert; though he was not fo totally divefted of all thoughts of this world, but that when he was ready for it, he admitted fome great and confiderable churchmen, to be fharers with him in his public converfion.

Whilst he was in perplexity, or rather fome paffionate difinclination to the religion he had been educated in, he had the misfortune to have much acquaintance with one Mr. Lugar, a minifter of that church; a man of a competency of learning, in thofe points moft controverted with the Romanifts, but of no acute parts of wit, or judgment; and wrought fo far upon him, by weakening, and enervating thofe arguments, by which he found he was governed (as he had all the logick, and all the rhetoric, that was neceffary to perfuade very powerfully men of the greatest talents) that the poor man, not able to live long in doubt, too haftily ⚫ deferted his own church, and betook himfelf to the Roman: nor could all the arguments, and reafons of Mr. Chilling'worth make him paufe in the expedition he was ufing; or 'reduce him from that church after he had given himself to it; but he had always a great animofity against him, for having (as he faid) unkindly betrayed him, and carried him ⚫ into another religion, and there left him. So unfit are fome REV. July 1759• confti

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⚫ conftitutions to be troubled with doubts, after they are once • fixed.

He diu really believe all war to be unlawful; and did not think that the parliament (whofe proceedings he perfectly abhorred) did in truth intend to involve the nation in a civil war, till after the battle of Edgehill; and then he thought. any expedient, or ftratagem that was like to put a speedy end to it, to be the most commendable: and fo having too mathematically conceived an engine, that should move fo lightly, as to be a breaftwork in all encounters, and affaults in the field; he carried it, to make the experiment, into that part of his majefty's army, which was only in that winter feafon in the field, under the command of the Lord Hopton, in Hampshire, upon the borders of Suflex; where he was fhut up in the caftle of Arundel; which was forced, after a short, fharp fiege, to yield for want of victual; and poor Mr. Chillingworth with it, falling into the rebels hands; and being moft barbaroufly treated by them, efpecially by that clergy which followed them; and being broken with ficknefs, contracted by the ill accommodation, and ⚫ want of meat, and fire during the fiege, which was in a terrible feafon of froft and fnow, he died shortly after in pri fon. He was a man of excellent parts, and of a chearful • difpofition; void of all kind of vice, and endued with many ⚫ notable virtues; of a very public heart, and an indefatigable defire to do good; his only unhappiness proceeded from his fleeping too little, and thinking too much; which sometimes threw him into violent fevers.'

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Mr. Hyde's acquaintance among perfons of his own profeffion, were Mr. Lanc, Mr. Geoffrey Palmer, Mr. John Maynard, and Bulftrode Whitlock.

His great talents, and the reputation he had acquired, foon procured him a feat in the houfe of commons. Being chofen for two places, for the borough of Wotton-Baffet in Wilts, and the borough of Shaftefbury in Dorfetfhire, he chafe to ferve for the former. From the beginning of the parliament, he had laid afide his gown, and confequently his practice; giving himself up entirely to public bufinefs. Of his conduct in the houfe we fhall take occafion to enlarge hereafter.

[To be continued.}

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Moral

Moral and Political Dialogues: being the Subftance of feverat Converfations between divers eminent Perfons of the past and prefent Age; digefted by the parties themselves, and now first publifhed from the original manufcripts. With critical and explana tory notes by the Editor. 8vo. 5s. Millar, &c.

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HE method of writing by way of dialogue, is, perhaps, if well managed, of all others, beft calculated to illuftrate truth, obviate objections, and enforce conviction. Tedious didactic difcourfes, where the Author himself is the only fpeaker, are apt to tire and difguft Readers of lively conception, and impatient tempers. As they go on, doubts arife in their minds, and they start objections, of which they are eager to obtain a folution before they proceed further in the argument. Their eagerness anticipates conclufions, and a long chain of reafoning only distracts their attention, and bewilders their ideas.

But the way of dialogue, favours the impetuofity of these volatile ftudents. The frequent interruptions from alternate fpeakers, relieve them from the drudgery of too clofe an attention, without breaking in upon the connection. In thefe frequent paufes likewife, they have the fatisfaction to find objections urged and anfwered progreffively: and the appearance of controversy helps to enliven the subject.

Thefe colloquial compofitions, however, are attended with great difficulty, and fome danger. It is no eafy talk to preferve the familiar ftile of dialogue, without dropping into the trite and common turns of converfation. It often happens, that many questions and answers occur, which only ferve to fill up space, and which are extremely irkfome to those who regard matter more than words.

It is to be apprehended likewife that, by ill management, Authors may fometimes prove the direct contrary to what they intend to demonftrate. By placing objections in a very forcible light, and not being happy in removing them by a clear and fuitable reply, they may make ill impreflions on the Reader's mind, not eafily to be effaced. Firft impreffions are difficult to be taken off, and it has been the cafe with many colloquial Writers, either to prove nothing, or conclude against their own intentions.

It is, perhaps, owing to the obvious difficulty attending it, that fo few have attempted this manner of writing. The greatest among the antients who have adopted it, even Plato and Cicero themfelves, had no reafon to boast of their fuc

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