,,memoirs                               
,,of                    ,,joseph        
,,priestley1 ,l4 ,l4 ,d4 ,f4 ,r4 ,s4 c4 
,,memoirs                               
,,of                             ,dr4   
,joseph ,priestley1                     
,,to ,,the ,,year #agie1                
,,written ,,by ,,himself3               
,,with ,a ,,continuation1 ,,to ,,the    
,,time ,,of ,,his ,,decease1            
,,by ,,his ,,son1 ,,joseph ,,priestley3 
,,and ,,observations ,,on ,,his         
,,writings1                    ,,by     
,,thomas ,,cooper1 ,,president ,,judge  
,,of ,,the                     #d,,th4  
,,district ,,of ,,pennsylvania3 ,,and   
,,the                             ,,rev4
 ,,william ,,christie4                  
,,northumberland3                       
,,printed ,,by ,,john ,,binns4          
#ahjf4          ,district of            
,pennsylvania1 to wit3      ,be it      
remembered1 that on the twenty-eighth of
 ,december in the  thirtieth year of the
 ,independence of the ,united ,states of

 ,america1 ,a4  ,d4 #ahje1 ,joseph      
,priestley1 of the said district1 hath  
deposited in this  ,office the ,title of
 a ,book1 the right whereof he claims as
 ,proprietor1  in the ,words following1 
to wit3     8,memoirs of ,dr4 ,joseph   
,priestley1 to the year #agie1 written  
by   himself1 with a continuation1 to   
the time of his decease1 by his ,son    
,joseph ,priestley1 and observations on 
his writings1 by ,thomas ,cooper1       
,president ,judge of the #dth district  
of ,pennsylvania1 and the ,rev4         
,william ,christie40    ,in conformity  
to the ,act of the ,congress of the     
,united ,states1 intitled  8,an ,act for
 the encouragement of learning by       
securing the copies of  ,maps1 ,charts1 
and ,books to the authors and           
proprietors of such copies  during the  
times therein mentioned40 ,and also to  
the ,act entitled 8,an  ,act            
supplementary to an ,act entitled 8,an  
,act for the encouragement  of learning 
by securing the copies of ,maps1        

,charts1 and ,books to  the authors and 
proprietors of such copies during the   
times therein  mentioned400 ,and        
extending the benefits1 thereof to the  
,arts of  designing1 engraving1 and     
etching1 historical and other prints4   
,d4 ,,caldwell1                         
,clerk of the ,district                 
of ,pennsylvania4                       
,,table ,,of ,,contents1                
,,of                                    
,,volume ,i4      ,,preface1            
,,page i    ,memoirs with ,notes1       
#a    ,continuation of the ,memoirs1    
#abi    ,appendix ,no4 ,i4 ,an ,account 
of ,dr4 ,priestley's ,discoveries in    
,chemistry1  and of his writings on     
that1 and other ,scientific subjects1   
#bbc    -- -- ,no4 #b ,an ,account of   
his ,metaphysical writings1             
#bid                                    
,,preface4      ,my father1 ,dr4        
,priestley1 having taken the trouble of 
writing down the  principal occurrences 
of his life1 to the period of his       

arrival in this  country1 that account  
is now presented to the public in the   
state in  which he left it1 one or two  
trifling alterations excepted4 ,the     
simple  unaffected manner in which it is
 written1 will be deemed1 ,i have no    
doubt1 far more interesting1 than if the
 narrative itself had been made  the    
text of a more laboured composition4    
,independent of the desire1 so universal
 among mankind1 to know somewhat  of the
 private as well as the public history  
of those who have made  themselves      
eminent among their fellow citizens1 the
 life of my father  is likely to be more
 useful as well as more interesting than
 those of  the generality of literary   
men2 not only as it is an account of    
great  industry combined with great     
abilities1 successfully exerted for the 
extension of human improvement1 but     
because it affords a striking proof  of 
the value of rational ,christianity1    
adopted upon mature reflection  and     
practiced with habitual perseverance4   

,few men have had to struggle for so    
many years with circumstances more      
straitened and precarious than my       
father2 few men have ventured to  attack
 so many or such inveterate prejudices  
respecting the prevalent  religion of   
his country1 or have advanced bolder or 
more important  opinions in opposition  
to the courtly politics of the powers   
that be2  few have had to encounter more
 able opponents in his literary career1 
or have been exposed to such incessant  
and vindictive obloquy1 from  men of    
every description1 in return for his    
unremitting exertions  in the cause of  
truth2 yet none have more uniformly     
proceeded with  a single eye1 regardless
 of consequences1 to act as his         
conviction  impelled him1 and his       
conscience dictated4 ,his conduct       
brought with it  its own reward1        
reputation and respect from the most    
eminent of his  contemporaries1 the     
affectionate attachment of most valuable
 friends1  and a cheerfulness of        

disposition arising in part from        
conscious  rectitude which no           
misfortunes could long repress4 ,but to 
me it seems1  that conscious rectitude  
alone would hardly1 of itself1 have been
  able to support him under some of the 
afflictions he was doomed to  bear4 ,he 
had a farther resource1 to him never    
failing and invaluable1  a firm         
persuasion of the benevolence of the    
,almighty towards all his  creatures1   
and the conviction that every part of   
his own life1 like  every part of the   
whole system1 was preordained for the   
best upon the  whole of existence4 ,had 
he entertained the gloomy notions of    
,calvinism  in which he was brought up1 
this cheering source of contentment  and
 resignation would probably have failed 
him1 and irritation and  despondency    
would have gained an unhappy ascendancy4
 ,but by him the  deity was not regarded
 as an avenging tyrant1 punishing1 for  
the sake  of punishing his weak and     
imperfect creatures1 but as a wise and  

kind  parent1 inflicting those          
corrections only that are necessary to  
bring  our dispositions to the proper   
temper1 and to fit us for the highest   
state of happiness of which our natures 
are ultimately capable4    ,with these  
views of the present and the future1 it 
is no wonder that he  submitted with    
perfect resignation to the inevitable   
vicissitudes of  human life1 and looked 
forward to futurity1 as a period of     
existence  when his capacity for        
receiving happiness would be greater    
because his  capacity for communicating 
it would be enlarged4    ,my father's   
narrative closing with his arrival in   
this country1 where  he has done so much
 for the promotion of useful knowledge  
of all  kinds1 ,i have compleated the   
account of his life from that period to 
the termination of it4 ,the ,notes have 
been added to the narrative as          
desireable illustrations of the passages
 to which they refer4    ,i have        
likewise thought it proper to add a     

review of my father's  literary labours1
 in order to give the reader a knowledge
 of his  opinions on many important     
subjects1 likewise1 of the share in  the
 increase of human knowledge1 which may 
be justly ascribed to  his exertions4   
,the ,appendices giving an account of   
his ,chemical1  ,philosophical1         
,metaphysical1 ,political and           
,miscellaneous writings1 as  well as the
 ,summary of his religious opinions1 are
 written by my friend  ,judge ,cooper1  
formerly of ,manchester in ,england4    
,for the ,appendix  containing an       
analysis of my father's ,theological    
writings1 ,i am  indebted to the ,rev4  
,w4 ,christie1 formerly of ,montrose in 
,scotland4    ,the work might have been 
made more interesting as well as        
entertaining1  had ,i deemed myself at  
liberty to have published letters       
addressed  to my father by persons of   
eminence in this country1 as well as in 
,europe4 ,but those communications that 
were intended to be private1  shall     

remain so2 as ,i do not think ,i have a 
right to amuse the public  either       
against1 or without1 the inclinations of
 those who confided  their              
correspondence to his care4    ,i       
regret1 that more of the present work is
 not the production of  my father's pen2
 and ,i hope the reader will make       
allowance for the  imperfection of that 
portion of it1 for which ,i have made   
myself  responsible4                    
,,joseph ,,priestley4                   
,,northumberland1 ,,pennsylvania1       
,may #ast1 #ahje4                       
,,memoirs                               
,,of                             ,,dr4  
,,joseph ,,priestley4                   
,,written ,,by ,,himself4      ,having  
thought it right to leave behind me some
 account of my friends  and benefactors1
 it is in a manner necessary that ,i    
also give some  account of myself2 and  
as the like has been done by many       
persons1 and  for reasons which         
posterity has approved1 ,i make no      

farther apology for  following their    
example4 ,if my writings in general have
 been useful  to my cotemporaries1 ,i   
hope that this account of myself will   
not be  without its use to those who may
 come after me1 and especially in       
promoting virtue and piety1 which ,i    
hope ,i may say it has been my care  to 
practice myself1 as it has been my      
business to inculcate them upon  others4
    ,my father1 ,jonas ,priestley1 was  
the youngest son of ,joseph ,priestley1 
a  maker and dresser of woollen cloth4  
,his first wife1 my mother1 was the     
only child of ,joseph ,swift1 a farmer  
at ,shafton1 a village about six  miles 
south east of ,wakefield4 ,by this wife 
he had six children1 four  sons and two 
daughters4 ,i1 the oldest1 was born on  
the thirteenth of  ,march1 old style    
#agcc1 at ,fieldhead about six miles    
south west of ,leeds  in ,yorkshire4 ,my
 mother dying in #agdj1 my father       
married again in #agde1  and by his     
second wife had three daughters4    ,my 

mother having children so fast1 ,i was  
very soon committed to the  care of her 
father1 and with him ,i continued with  
little interruption  till my mother's   
death4    ,it is but little that ,i can 
recollect of my mother4 ,i remember1    
however1 that she was careful to teach  
me the ,assembly's ,catechism1 and  to  
give me the best instructions the little
 time that ,i was at home4  ,once in    
particular1 when ,i was playing with a  
pin1 she asked me where  ,i got it2 and 
on telling her that ,i found it at my   
uncle's1 who lived  very near to my     
father1 and where ,i had been playing   
with my cousins1  she made me carry it  
back again2 no doubt to impress my mind1
 as it  could not fail to do1 with a    
clear idea of the distinction of        
property1  and of the importance of     
attending to it4 ,she died in the hard  
winter  of #agci1 not long after being  
delivered of my youngest brother2 and   
having dreamed a little before her death
 that she was in a delightful  place1   

which she particularly described1 and   
imagined to be heaven1 the  last words  
she spake1 as my aunt informed me1 were 
8,let me go to that  fine place40    ,on
 the death of my mother ,i was taken    
home1 my brothers taking my  place1 and 
was sent to school in the neighbourhood4
 ,but being without  a mother1 and my   
father incumbered with a large family1 a
 sister of my  father's1 in the year    
#agdb1 relieved him of all care of me1  
by taking  me entirely to herself1 and  
considering me as her child1 having none
 of  her own4 ,from this time she was   
truly a parent to me till her death in  
#agfd4    ,my aunt was married to a ,mr4
 ,keighly1 a man who had distinguished  
himself for his zeal for religion and   
for his public spirit4 ,he was  also a  
man of considerable property1 and dying 
soon after ,i went to  them1 left the   
greatest part of his fortune to my aunt 
for life1 and  much of it at her        
disposal after her death4    ,by this   
truly pious and excellent woman1 who    

knew no other use of  wealth1 or of     
talents of any kind1 than to do good1   
and who never  spared herself for this  
purpose1 ,i was sent to several schools 
in the  neighbourhood1 especially to a  
large free school1 under the care of a  
clergyman1 ,mr4 ,hague1 under whom1 at  
the age of twelve or fifteen1 ,i  first 
began to make any progress in the ,latin
 ,tongue1 and acquired the  elements of 
,greek4 ,but about the same time that ,i
 began to learn ,greek  at this public  
school1 ,i learned ,hebrew on holidays  
of the dissenting  minister of the      
place1 ,mr4 ,kirkby1 and upon the       
removal of ,mr4 ,hague  from the free   
school1 ,mr4 ,kirkby opening a school of
 his own1 ,i was  wholly under his care4
 ,with this instruction ,i had acquired 
a pretty  good knowledge of the learned 
languages at the age of sixteen4 ,but   
from  this time ,mr4 ,kirkby's          
increasing infirmities obliged him to   
relinquish  his school1 and beginning to
 be of a weakly consumptive habit1 so   

that it was not thought adviseable to   
send me to any other place of           
education1 ,i was left to conduct my    
studies as well as ,i could till ,i     
went to the academy at ,daventry in the 
year #ageb4    ,from the time ,i        
discovered any fondness for books my    
aunt entertained  hopes of my being a   
minister1 and ,i readily entered into   
her views4  ,but my ill health obliged  
me to turn my thoughts another way1 and 
with  a view to trade1 ,i learned the   
modern languages1 ,french1 ,italian1    
and ,high ,dutch without a master2 and  
in the first and last of them ,i        
translated1 and wrote letters1 for an   
uncle of mine who was a merchant1  and  
who intended to put me into a counting  
house in ,lisbon4 ,a house was  actually
 engaged to receive me there1 and every 
thing was nearly ready  for my          
undertaking the voyage4 ,but getting    
better health my former  destination for
 the ministry was resumed1 and ,i was   
sent to ,daventry1  to study under ,mr4 

,ashworth1 afterwards ,dr4 ,ashworth4   
,looking back1 as ,i often do1 upon this
 period of my life1 ,i see the  greatest
 reason to be thankful to ,god for the  
pious care of my parents  and friends1  
in giving me religious instruction4 ,my 
mother was a woman  of exemplary piety1 
and my father also had a strong sense of
 religion1  praying with his family     
morning and evening1 and carefully      
teaching  his children and servants the 
,assembly's ,catechism1 which was all   
the  system of which he had any         
knowledge4 ,in the latter part of his   
life  he became very fond of ,mr4       
,whitfield's writings1 and other works  
of a  similar kind1 having been brought 
up in the principles of ,calvinism1  and
 adopting them1 but without ever giving 
much attention to matters  of           
speculation1 and entertaining no        
bigotted aversion to those who  differed
 from him on the subject4    ,the same  
was the case with my excellent aunt1 she
 was truly ,calvinistic  in principle1  

but was far from confining salvation to 
those who thought  as she did on        
religious subjects4 ,being left in good 
circumstances1  her home was the resort 
of all the dissenting ministers in the  
neighbourhood without distinction1 and  
those who were the most  obnoxious on   
account of their heresy were almost as  
welcome to her1 if  she thought them    
honest and good men1 7which she was not 
unwilling to  do7 as any others4    ,the
 most heretical ministers in the        
neighbourhood were ,mr4 ,graham of      
,halifax1 and ,mr4 ,walker of ,leeds1   
but they were frequently my ,aunt's     
guests4 ,with the former of these my    
intimacy grew with my years1  but       
chiefly after ,i became a preacher4 ,we 
kept up a correspondence  to the last1  
thinking alike on most subjects4 ,to him
 ,i dedicated my  ,disquisitions on     
,matter and ,spirit1 and when he died1  
he left me his  manuscripts1 his        
,polyglot bible1 and two hundred pounds4
 ,besides being  a rational ,christian1 

he was an excellent classical scholar1  
and wrote  ,latin with great facility   
and elegance4 ,he frequently wrote to me
 in  that language4    ,thus ,i was     
brought up with sentiments of piety1 but
 without bigotry1  and having from my   
earliest years given much attention to  
the subject  of religion1 ,i was as much
 confirmed as ,i well could be in the   
principles of ,calvinism1 all the books 
that came in my way having that         
tendency4    ,the weakness of my        
constitution1 which often led me to     
think that ,i  should not be long lived1
 contributed to give my mind a still    
more  serious turn1 and having read many
 books of experiences1 and in           
consequence believing that a new birth  
produced by the immediate  agency of the
 ,spirit of ,god1 was necessary to      
salvation1 and not  being able to       
satisfy myself that ,i had experienced  
any thing of  the kind1 ,i felt         
occasionally such distress of mind as it
 is not in  my power to describe1 and   

which ,i still look back upon with      
horror4  ,notwithstanding ,i had nothing
 very material to reproach myself with1 
,i often concluded that ,god had        
forsaken me1 and that mine was like  the
 case of ,francis ,spira1 to whom1 as he
 imagined1 repentance and  salvation    
were denied4 ,in that state of mind ,i  
remember reading the  account of the man
 in the iron cage in the ,pilgrim's     
,progress with the  greatest            
perturbation4    ,i imagine that even   
these conflicts of mind were not without
 their  use1 as they led me to think    
habitually of ,god and a future state4  
,and though my feelings were then1 no   
doubt1 too full of terror1 what         
remained of them was a deep reverence   
for divine things1 and in time  a       
pleasing satisfaction which can never be
 effaced1 and ,i hope1 was  strengthened
 as ,i have advanced in life1 and       
acquired more rational  notions of      
religion4 ,the remembrance1 however1 of 
what ,i sometimes felt  in that state of

 ignorance and darkness gives me a      
peculiar sense of  the value of rational
 principles of religion1 and of which ,i
 can give  but an imperfect description 
to others4    ,as truth1 we cannot      
doubt1 must have an advantage over      
error1 we  may conclude that the want of
 these peculiar feelings is compensated 
by something of greater value1 which    
arises to others from always  having    
seen things in a just and pleasing      
light2 from having always  considered   
the ,supreme ,being as the kind parent  
of all his offspring4  ,this1 however1  
not having been my case1 ,i cannot be so
 good a judge of  the effects of it4 ,at
 all events1 we ought always to         
inculcate just  views of things1        
assuring ourselves that proper feelings 
and right  conduct will be the          
consequence of them4    ,in the latter  
part of the interval between my leaving 
the grammar  school and going to the    
academy1 which was something more than  
two  years1 ,i attended two days in the 

week upon ,mr4 ,haggerstone1 a          
dissenting minister in the              
neighbourhood1 who had been educated    
under  ,mr4 ,maclaurin4 ,of him ,i      
learned ,geometry1 ,algebra and various 
branches  of ,mathematics1 theoretical  
and practical4 ,and at the same time ,i 
read1  but with little assistance from  
him1 ,gravesend's ,elements of ,natural 
,philosophy1 ,watt's ,logic1 ,locke's   
,essay on the ,human ,understanding1 c1 
and made such a proficiency in other    
branches of learning1 that when ,i  was 
admitted at the academy 7which was on   
,coward's foundation7 ,i was  excused   
all the studies of the first year1 and a
 great part of those  of the second4    
,in the same interval ,i spent the      
latter part of every week with ,mr4     
,thomas1 a baptist minister now of      
,bristol but then of ,gildersome1  a    
village about four miles from ,leeds1   
who had had no learned  education4 ,him 
,i instructed in ,hebrew1 and by that   
means made myself a  considerable       

proficient in that language4 ,at the    
same time ,i learned  ,chaldee and      
,syriac1 and just began to read ,arabic4
 ,upon the whole1  going to the academy 
later than is usual1 and being thereby  
better  furnished1 ,i was qualified to  
appear there with greater advantage4    
,before ,i went from home ,i was very   
desirous of being admitted a            
communicant in the congregation which ,i
 had always attended1 and the  old      
minister1 as well as my ,aunt1 were as  
desirous of it as myself1  but the      
elders of the ,church1 who had the      
government of it1 refused  me1 because1 
when they interrogated me on the subject
 of the sin of  ,adam1 ,i appeared not  
to be quite orthodox1 not thinking that 
all the  human race 7supposing them not 
to have any sin of their own7 were      
liable to the wrath of ,god1 and the    
pains of hell for ever1 on account  of  
that sin only2 for such was the question
 that was put to me4 ,some  time before1
 having then no doubt of the truth of   

the doctrine1 ,i  well remember being   
much distressed that ,i could not feel a
 proper  repentance for the sin of      
,adam2 taking it for granted that       
without  this it could not be forgiven  
me4 ,mr4 ,haggerstone above mentioned1  
was a little more liberal than the      
members of the congregation in  which ,i
 was brought up1 being what is called a 
,baxterian2#a and  his general          
conversation had a liberal turn1 and    
such as tended to  undermine my         
prejudices4 ,but what contributed to    
open my eyes still  more was the        
conversation of a ,mr4 ,walker1 from    
,ashton under line1 who  preached as a  
candidate when our old minister was     
superannuated4 ,he was  an avowed       
,baxterian1 and being rejected on that  
account his opinions  were much         
canvassed1 and he being a guest at the  
house of my ,aunt1 we  soon became very 
intimate1 and ,i thought ,i saw much of 
reason in his  sentiments4 ,thinking    
farther on these subjects1 ,i was1      

before ,i went to  the academy1 an      
,arminian1 but had by no means rejected 
the doctrine of  the trinity1 or that of
 atonement4    #a ,,baxterians1 ,the    
famous ,non-conformist ,richard ,baxter 
who flourished  about the middle of the 
last ,century1 attempted a ,coalition   
between the  doctrines of ,calvin and   
,arminius4 ,the former of these held    
that ,god  from the beginning had       
elected a few of the human race to be   
saved1  without reference to their good 
actions in this life1 and had left the  
rest of mankind in a state of final and 
inevitable reprobation4 ,the  latter was
 of opinion that the ,christian         
dispensation furnished the  means of    
final ,salvation to all men1 though the 
merits of the death  of ,christ would be
 ultimately advantageous to believers   
only4 ,baxter1  thought with ,calvin    
that some among mankind were from the   
beginning  elected unto eternal life1   
and gifted from above with the saving   
grace  necessary in the first instance  

to the several steps of a believer's    
christian character2 but he thought also
 with ,arminius that all men  had common
 grace imparted to them1 sufficient to  
enable them if they  chose1 to attain   
unto final ,salvation by using the means
 ordained by  ,christ and his ,apostles4
 ,calvin also held the final            
perseverance of the  ,saints1 or as it  
has since been expressed that a believer
 might fall  foully but not finally1    
whereas ,baxter seems to have thought   
that not  every one who had saving grace
 imparted to him would persevere to the 
end1 or as the ,arminian ,methodists    
quaintly express it1 he held that a     
believer may fall both foully and       
finally4 ,the compromising doctrine of  
,baxter may be seen in his very learned 
and unintelligible work entitled        
,catholick ,theology4 ,he used to be an 
annual communicant in the ,church  of   
,england by way of exemplying his       
accommodating opinions4                 
,t4 ,c4      ,though after ,i saw reason

 to change my opinions ,i found myself  
incommoded by the rigour of the         
congregation with which ,i was          
connected1 ,i shall always acknowledge  
with great gratitude that ,i owe  much  
to it4 ,the business of religion was    
effectually attended to in  it4 ,we were
 all catechized in public 'till we were 
grown up1 servants  as well as others3  
the minister always expounded the       
scriptures with  as much regularity as  
he preached1 and there was hardly a day 
in the  week1 in which there was not    
some meeting of one or other part of the
  congregation4 ,on one evening there   
was a meeting of the young men for      
conversation and prayer4 ,this ,i       
constantly attended1 praying extempore  
with others when called upon4    ,at my 
,aunt's there was a monthly meeting of  
women1 who acquitted  themselves in     
prayer as well as any of the men        
belonging to the  congregation4 ,being  
at first a child in the family1 ,i was  
permitted to  attend their meetings1 and

 growing up insensibly1 heard them after
 ,i  was capable of judging4 ,my ,aunt  
after the death of her husband1 prayed  
every morning and evening in her family1
 until ,i was about seventeen1  when    
that duty devolved upon me4    ,the     
,lord's day was kept with peculiar      
strictness4 ,no victuals were  dressed  
on that day in any family4 ,no member of
 it was permitted to  walk out for      
recreation1 but the whole of the day was
 spent at the  public meeting1 or at    
home in reading1 meditation1 and prayer1
 in the  family or the closet4    ,it   
was my custom at that time to recollect 
as much as ,i could of the  sermons ,i  
heard1 and to commit it to writing4     
,this practice ,i began  very early1 and
 continued it until ,i was able from the
 heads of a  discourse to supply the    
rest myself4 ,for not troubling myself  
to commit  to memory much of the        
amplification1 and writing at home      
almost as  much as ,i had heard1 ,i     
insensibly acquired a habit of composing

 with  great readiness2 and from this   
practice ,i believe ,i have derived     
great  advantage through life2          
composition seldom employing so much    
time as  would be necessary to write in 
long hand any thing ,i have published4  
,by these means1 not being disgusted    
with these strict forms of  religion as 
many persons of better health and       
spirits probably might  have been 7and  
on which account ,i am far from         
recommending the same  strictness to    
others7 ,i acquired in early life a     
serious turn of mind4  ,among other     
things ,i had at this time a great      
aversion to ,plays  and ,romances1 so   
that ,i never read any works of this    
kind except  ,robinson ,crusoe1 until ,i
 went to the academy4 ,i well remember  
seeing  my brother ,timothy reading a   
book of ,knight ,errantry1 and with     
great  indignation ,i snatched it out of
 his hands1 and threw it away4 ,this    
brother afterwards1 when he had for some
 time followed my father's  business    

7which was that of a ,cloth-dresser7    
became1 if possible1 more  serious than 
,i had been2 and after an imperfect     
education1 took up  the profession of a 
minister among the ,independents1 in    
which he now  continues4    ,while ,i   
was at the ,grammar ,school ,i learned  
,mr4 ,annet's ,short hand1  and thinking
 ,i could suggest some improvements in  
it1 ,i wrote to  the ,author1 and this  
was the beginning of a correspondence   
which  lasted several years4 ,he was1 as
 ,i ever perceived1 an unbeliever in    
,christianity and a necessarian4 ,on    
this subject several letters1  written  
with care on both sides1 passed between 
us1 and these ,mr4  ,annet often pressed
 me to give him leave to publish1 but ,i
 constantly  refused4 ,i had undertaken 
the defence of ,philosophical ,liberty1 
and  the correspondence was closed      
without my being convinced of the       
fallacy of my arguments1 though upon    
studying the subject regularly1  in the 
course of my academical education       

afterwards1 ,i became a  confirmed      
,necessarian1 and ,i have through life  
derived1 as ,i imagine1  the greatest   
advantage from my full persuasion of the
 truth of that  doctrine4    ,my ,aunt1 
and all my relations1 being strict      
,calvinists1 it was their  intention to 
send me to the academy at ,mile-end1    
then under the  care of ,dr4 ,cawder4   
,but1 being at that time an ,arminian1  
,i resolutely  opposed it1 especially   
upon finding that if ,i went thither1   
besides  giving an experience1 ,i must  
subscribe my assent to ten printed      
articles of the strictest calvinistic   
faith1 and repeat it every six  months4 
,my opposition1 however1 would probable 
have been to no purpose1  and ,i must   
have adopted some other mode of life1 if
 ,mr4 ,kirkby above  mentioned had not  
interposed1 and strongly recommended the
 academy of  ,dr4 ,doddridge1 on the    
idea that ,i should have a better chance
 of being  made a scholar4 ,he had      
received a good education himself1 was a

 good  classical scholar1 and had no    
opinion of the mode of education among  
the very orthodox ,dissenters1 and being
 fond of me1 he was desirous  of my     
having every advantage that could be    
procured for me4 ,my good  ,aunt1 not   
being a bigotted ,calvinist1 entered    
into his views1 and ,dr4  ,doddridge    
being dead1 ,i was sent to ,daventry1   
and was the first pupil  that entered   
there4 ,my ,step-mother also1 who was a 
woman of good sense1  as well as of     
religion1 had a high opinion of ,dr4    
,doddridge1 having  been sometime       
housekeeper in his family4 ,she had     
always recommended his  ,academy1 but   
died before ,i went thither4    ,three  
years1 viz4 from ,september #ageb to    
#agee1 ,i spent at ,daventry with  that 
peculiar satisfaction with which young  
persons of generous minds  usually go   
through a course of liberal study1 in   
the society of others  engaged in the   
same pursuits1 and free from the cares  
and anxieties  which seldom fail to lay 

hold on them when they come out into the
 world4    ,in my time1 the academy was 
in a state peculiarly favorable to the  
serious pursuit of truth1 as the        
students were about equally divided     
upon every question of much importance1 
such as ,liberty and ,necessity1  the   
,sleep of the soul1 and all the articles
 of theological orthodoxy  and heresy2  
in consequence of which all these topics
 were the subject  of continual         
discussion4 ,our tutors also were of    
different opinions2  ,dr4 ,ashworth     
taking the orthodox side of every       
question1 and ,mr4 ,clark1  the         
sub-tutor1 that of heresy1 though always
 with the greatest modesty4    ,both of 
our tutors being young1 at least as     
tutors1 and some of the  senior students
 excelling more than they could pretend 
to do in  several branches of study1    
they indulged us in the greatest        
freedoms1  so that our lectures had     
often the air of friendly conversations 
on  the subjects to which they related4 

,we were permitted to ask whatever      
questions1 and to make whatever remarks1
 we pleased2 and we did it with  the    
greatest1 but without any offensive1    
freedom4 ,the general plan of  our      
studies1 which may be seen in ,dr4      
,doddridge's published lectures1  was   
exceedingly favourable to free enquiry1 
as we were referred to  authors on both 
sides of every question1 and were even  
required to give  an account of them4   
,it was also expected that we should    
abridge the  most important of them for 
our future use4 ,the public library     
contained  all the books to which we    
were referred4    ,it was a reference to
 ,dr4 ,hartley's ,observations on ,man  
in the  course of our ,lectures1 that   
first brought me acquainted with that   
performance1 which immediately engaged  
my closest attention1 and  produced the 
greatest1 and in my opinion the most    
favourable effect  on my general turn of
 thinking thro' life4 ,it established me
 in the  belief of the doctrine of      

,necessity1 which ,i first learned from 
,collins2 it greatly improved that      
disposition to piety which ,i brought   
to the academy1 and freed it from that  
rigour with which it had been           
tinctured4 ,indeed1 ,i do not know      
whether the consideration of ,dr4       
,hartley's theory contributes more to   
enlighten the mind1 or improve the      
heart2 it effects both in so            
super-eminent a degree4    ,in this     
situation1 ,i saw reason to embrace what
 is generally called  the heterodox side
 of almost every question4#b ,but       
notwithstanding  this1 and though ,dr4  
,ashworth was earnestly desirous to make
 me as  orthodox as possible1 yet1 as my
 behaviour was unexceptionable1 and as  
,i generally took his part in some      
little things by which he often drew    
upon himself the ill-will of many of the
 students1 ,i was upon the whole  a     
favourite with him4 ,i kept up more or  
less of a correspondence with  ,dr4     
,ashworth till the time of his death1   

though much more so with ,mr4  ,clark4  
,this continued till the very week of   
his melancholy death by a  fall from his
 horse at ,birmingham1 where he was     
minister4    #b ,it will be seen in the 
course of these memoirs that from time  
to  time as deeper reflection and more  
extensive reading incited him1  he saw  
reason to give up almost all the        
peculiar theological and  metaphysical  
opinions which he had imbibed in early  
youth2 some of them  with considerable  
difficulty1 and all of them at the      
evident risk of  considerable obloquy   
from those whom he highly respected1 as 
well as  from those on whom his interest
 appeared to depend4                    
,t4 ,c4      ,notwithstanding the great 
freedom of our speculations and debates1
 the  extreme of heresy among us was    
,arianism2 and all of us1 ,i believe1   
left  the academy with a belief1 more or
 less qualified1 of the doctrine of     
atonement4    ,warm friendships never   
fail to be contracted at places of      

liberal  education2 and when they are   
well chosen are of singular use2 ,such  
was  mine with ,mr4 ,alexander of       
,birmingham4 ,we were in the same class1
 and  during the first year occupied the
 same room4 ,by engagements between     
ourselves we rose early1 and dispatched 
many articles of business  every day4   
,one of them1 which continued all the   
time we were at the  academy1 was to    
read every day ten folio pages in some  
,greek author1  and generally a ,greek  
play in the course of the week besides4 
,by this  means we became very well     
acquainted with that language1 and with 
the  most valuable authors in it4 ,this 
exercise we continued long after we     
left the academy1 communicating to each 
other by letter an account of  what we  
read4 ,my life becoming more occupied   
than his1 he continued  his application 
to ,greek longer than ,i did1 so that   
before his death  he was1 ,i imagine1   
one of the best ,greek scholars in this 
or any  other country4 ,my attention was

 always more drawn to mathematical and  
philosophical studies than his was4     
,these voluntary engagements were the   
more necessary1 in the course  of our   
academical studies1 as there was then no
 provision made for  teaching the       
learned languages4 ,we had even no      
compositions1 or  orations1 in ,latin4  
,our course of lectures was also        
defective in  containing no lectures on 
the scriptures1 or on ecclesiastical    
history1  and by the students in general
 7and ,mr4 ,alexander and myself were no
  exceptions7 commentators in general   
and ecclesiastical history also1  were  
held in contempt4 ,on leaving the       
academy he went to study under  his     
uncle ,dr4 ,benson1 and with him learned
 to value the critical study  of the    
scriptures so much1 that at length he   
almost confined his  attention to them4 
,my other particular friends among my   
fellow students were ,mr4 ,henry        
,holland1 of my own class1 ,messrs4     
,whitehead1 ,smithson1 ,rotherham1 and  

,scholefield in that above me1 and ,mr4 
,taylor in that below me4 ,with all     
these ,i kept up more or less of a      
correspondence1 and our friendship  was 
terminated only by the death of those   
who are now dead1 viz4 the  three first 
named of these six1 and ,i hope it will 
subsist to the same  period with those  
who now survive4    ,all the while ,i   
was at the academy ,i never lost sight  
of the great  object of my studies1     
which was the duties of a christian     
minister1  and there it was that ,i laid
 the general plan which ,i have executed
  since4 ,particularly ,i there composed
 the first copy of my ,institutes  of   
,natural and ,revealed ,religion1 ,mr4  
,clark1 to whom ,i communicated my      
scheme1 carefully perusing every section
 of it1 and talking over the  subject of
 it with me4    ,but ,i was much        
discouraged even then with the          
impediment in my  speech1 which ,i      
inherited from my family1 and which     
still attends  me4 ,sometimes ,i        

absolutely stammered1 and my anxiety    
about it was the  cause of much distress
 to me4 ,however1 like ,st4 ,paul's     
thorn in the  flesh1 ,i hope it has not 
been without its use4 ,without some such
 check  as this1 ,i might have been     
disputatious in company1 or might have  
been seduced by the love of popular     
applause as a preacher3 whereas  my     
conversation and my delivery in the     
pulpit having nothing in them  that was 
generally striking1 ,i hope ,i have been
 more attentive to  qualifications of a 
superior kind4    ,it is not1 ,i        
believe1 usual for young persons in     
dissenting academies  to think much of  
their future situations in life4        
,indeed1 we are  happily precluded from 
that by the impossibility of succeeding 
in any  application for particular      
places4 ,we often1 indeed1 amused       
ourselves  with the idea of our         
dispersion in all parts of the kingdom  
after  living so happily together2 and  
used to propose plans of meeting at     

certain times1 and smile at the         
different appearance we should probably 
make after being ten or twenty years    
settled in the world4 ,but nothing  of  
this kind was ever seriously resolved   
upon by us4 ,for my own part1  ,i can   
truly say ,i had very little ambition1  
except to distinguish  myself by my     
application to the studies proper to my 
profession2 and ,i  cheerfully listened 
to the first proposal that my tutor made
 to me1 in  consequence of an           
application made to him1 to provide a   
minister for  the people of ,needham    
,market in ,suffolk1 though it was very 
remote from  my friends in ,yorkshire1  
and a very inconsiderable place4        
,when ,i went to preach at ,needham as a
 candidate1 ,i found a small            
congregation1 about an hundred people2  
under a ,mr4 ,meadows1 who was          
superannuated4 ,they had been without a 
minister the preceding year1  on account
 of the smallness of the salary2 but    
there being some  respectable and       

agreeable families among them1 ,i       
flattered myself that  ,i should be     
useful and happy in the place1 and      
therefore accepted the  unanimous       
invitation to be assistant to ,mr4      
,meadows1 with a view to  succeed him   
when he died4 ,he was a man of some     
fortune4    ,this congregation had been 
used to receive assistance from both the
  ,presbyterian and ,independent funds2 
but upon my telling them that ,i  did   
not chuse to have any thing to do with  
the ,independents1 and  asking them     
whether they were able to make up the   
salary they promised  me 7which was     
forty pounds per annum7 without any aid 
from the latter  fund1 they assured me  
they could4 ,i soon1 however1 found that
 they  deceived themselves2 for the most
 that ,i ever received from them was in 
the proportion of about thirty pounds   
per annum1 when the expence of my  board
 exceeded twenty pounds4                
,notwithstanding this1 every thing else 
for the first half year appeared  very  

promising1 and ,i was happy in the      
success of my schemes for  promoting the
 interest of religion in the place4 ,i  
catechised the  children1 though there  
were not many1 using ,dr4 ,watt's       
,catechism2 and  ,i opened my lectures  
on the theory of religion from the      
institutes1  which ,i had composed at   
the academy1 admitting all persons to   
attend  them without distinction of sex 
or age2 but in this ,i soon found that  
,i had acted imprudently4 ,a minister in
 that neighbourhood had been  obliged to
 leave his place on account of          
,arianism1 and though nothing  had been 
said to me on the subject1 and from the 
people so readily  consenting to give up
 the independent fund1 ,i thought they  
could not  have much bigotry among them1
 ,i found that when ,i came to treat of 
the ,unity of ,god1 merely as an article
 of religion1 several of my  audience   
were attentive to nothing but the       
soundness of my faith in the  doctrine  
of the ,trinity4    ,also1 though ,i had

 made it a rule to myself to introduce  
nothing that  could lead to controversy 
into the pulpit2 yet making no secret of
 my  real opinions in conversation1 it  
was soon found that ,i was an ,arian4   
,from the time of this discovery my     
hearers fell off apace1 especially  as  
the old minister took a decided part    
against me4 ,the principal  families1   
however1 still continued with me2 but   
notwithstanding this1  my salary fell   
far short of thirty pounds per annum1   
and if it had not  been for ,dr4 ,benson
 and ,dr4 ,kippis1 especially the       
former1 procuring  me now and then an   
extraordinary five pounds from different
 charities1  ,i do not believe that ,i  
could have subsisted4 ,i shall always   
remember  their kindness to me1 at a    
time when ,i stood in so much need of   
it4    ,when ,i was in this situation1 a
 neighbouring minister whose intimate   
friend had conformed to the church of   
,england1 talked to me on that  subject4
 ,he himself1 ,i perceived1 had no great

 objection to it1 but  rejecting the    
proposal1 as a thing that ,i could not  
think of1 he never  mentioned it to me  
any more4    ,to these difficulties1    
arising from the sentiments of my       
congregation1  was added that of the    
failure of all remittances from my aunt1
 owing in  part to the ill offices of my
 orthodox relations2 but chiefly to her 
being exhausted by her liberality to    
others1 and thinking that when ,i  was  
settled in the world1 ,i ought to be no 
longer burdensome to her4  ,together    
with me she had brought up a niece1 who 
was almost her only  companion1 and     
being deformed1 could not have subsisted
 without the  greatest part1 at least1  
of all she had to bequeath4 ,in         
consequence  of these circumstances1    
tho' my aunt had always assured me that1
  if ,i chose to be a minister1 she     
would leave me independent of the       
profession1 ,i was satisfied she was not
 able to perform her promise1  and      
freely consented to her leaving all she 

had to my cousin2 ,i had  only a silver 
tankard as a token of her remembrance4  
,she had spared no  expence in my       
education1 and that was doing more for  
me than giving me  an estate4    ,but   
what contributed greatly to my distress 
was the impediment in my  speech1 which 
had increased so much as to make        
preaching very painful1  and took from  
me all chance of recommending myself to 
any better place4  ,in this state1      
hearing of the proposal of one ,mr4     
,angier to cure  all defects of speech1 
,i prevailed upon my aunt to enable me  
to pay  his price1 which was twenty     
guineas2 and this was the first occasion
  of my visiting ,london4 ,accordingly1 
,i attended him about a month1  taking  
an oath not to reveal his method1 and ,i
 received some temporary  benefit2 but  
soon relapsed again1 and spoke worse    
than ever4 ,when ,i  went to ,london it 
was in company with ,mr4 ,smithson1 who 
was settled at  ,harlestown in ,norfolk4
 ,by him ,i was introduced to ,dr4      

,kippis and ,dr4  ,benson1 and by the   
latter to ,dr4 ,price1 but not at that  
time4    ,at ,needham ,i felt the effect
 of a low despised situation1 together  
with that arising from the want of      
popular talents4 ,there were several    
vacancies in congregations in that      
neighbourhood1 where my sentiments      
would have been no objection to me1 but 
,i was never thought of4 ,even my  next 
neighbours1 whose sentiments were as    
free as my own1 and known to  be so1    
declined making exchanges with me1      
which1 when ,i left that part  of the   
country1 he acknowledged was not owing  
to any dislike his people  had to me as 
heretical1 but for other reasons1 the   
more genteel part  of his hearers always
 absenting themselves when they heard ,i
 was to  preach for him4 ,but visiting  
that country some years afterwards1 when
  ,i had raised myself to some degree of
 notice in the world1 and being  invited
 to preach in that very pulpit1 the same
 people crowded to hear  me1 though my  

elocution was not much improved1 and    
they professed to  admire one of the    
same discourses they had formerly       
despised4    ,notwithstanding these     
unfavorable circumstances1 ,i was far   
from being  unhappy at ,needham4 ,i was 
boarded in a family from which ,i       
received  much satisfaction1 ,i firmly  
believed that a wise providence was     
disposing every thing for the best1 and 
,i applied with great assiduity  to my  
studies1 which were classical1          
mathematical and theological4  ,these   
required but few books4 ,as to          
,experimental ,philosophy1 ,i had       
always cultivated an acquaintance with  
it1 but ,i had not the means of         
prosecuting it4    ,with respect to     
miscellaneous reading1 ,i was pretty    
well supplied by  means of a library    
belonging to ,mr4 ,s4 ,alexander1 a     
quaker1#c to which  ,i had the freest   
access4 ,here it was that ,i was first  
acquainted with  any person of that     
persuasion2 and ,i must acknowledge my  

obligation  to many of them in every    
future stage of my life4 ,i have met    
with the  noblest instances of          
liberality of sentiment and the truest  
generosity  among them4    #c ,,quakers4
 ,that instances of liberality of       
sentiment with respect to  religious    
opinion are frequently to be found among
 the ,quakers there  can be no doubt1   
but this is certainly no part of their  
character as a  ,sect4 ,thomas          
,letchworth one of the most acute and   
ingenious of their  preachers at        
,wandsworth near ,london1 who from the  
writings of ,dr4  ,priestley had become 
a firm convert to his ,unitarian        
opinions1 informed  me that the         
expression of those opinions would be   
attended with certain  expulsion from   
the ,society4 ,very lately ,hannah      
,bernard1 a female public  friend who   
went from ,america to ,england1 was     
prohibited from preaching  by the       
,society1 on account of her ,unitarian  
doctrines4    ,thomas ,letchworth has   

been dead many years4 ,in the short     
contest on the  question of liberty and 
necessity which was occasioned by       
,toplady's  life of ,jerome ,zanchius1  
he wrote a good defence of the doctrine 
of necessity signed ,philaretes in      
answer to one from a disciple of        
,fletcher's of ,madely1 under the       
signature of ,philaleutheros4 ,there is 
a trifling account of him containing no 
information1 by one ,william  ,matthews4
                                        
,t4 ,c4      ,my studies however1 were  
chiefly theological4 ,having left the   
academy1  as ,i have observed1 with a   
qualified belief of the doctrine of     
,atonement1 such as is found in ,mr4    
,tomkin's book1 entitled1 ,jesus        
,christ the ,mediator1 ,i was desirous  
of getting some more definite  ideas on 
the subject1 and with that view set     
myself to peruse the  whole of the old  
and new testament1 and to collect from  
them all the  texts that appeared to me 
to have any relation to the subject4    

,this  ,i therefore did with the        
greatest care1 arranging them under a   
great  variety of heads4 ,at the same   
time ,i did not fail to note such       
general  considerations as occurred to  
me while ,i was thus employed4 ,the     
consequence of this was1 what ,i had no 
apprehension of when ,i began the  work1
 viz4 a full persuasion that the        
doctrine of ,atonement1 even in  its    
most qualified sense1 had no countenance
 either from scripture or  reason4      
,satisfied of this1 ,i proceeded to     
digest my observations into a  regular  
treatise1 which a friend of mine1       
without mentioning my name1  submitted  
to the perusal of ,dr4 ,fleming and ,dr4
 ,lardner4 ,in consequence  of this1 ,i 
was urged by them to publish the greater
 part of what ,i had  written4 ,but     
being then about to leave ,needham1 ,i  
desired them to do  whatever they       
thought proper with respect to it1 and  
they published  about half of my piece1 
under the title of the ,doctrine of     

,remission1  c4    ,this circumstance   
introduced me to the acquaintance of    
,dr4 ,lardner1  whom ,i always called   
upon when ,i visited ,london4 ,the last 
time ,i saw  him1 which was little more 
than a year before his death1 having by 
letter requested him to give me some    
assistance with respect to the  history 
,i then prepared to write of the        
,corruptions of ,christianity1  and     
especially that article of it1 he took  
down a large bundle of  pamphlets1 and  
turning them over at length shewing me  
my own2 said1  8,this contains my       
sentiments on the subject40 ,he had then
 forgot that  ,i wrote it1 and on my    
remarking it1 he shook his head1 and    
said that  his memory began to fail him2
 and that he had taken me for another   
person4 ,he was then at the advanced age
 of ninety one4 ,this anecdote is       
trifling in itself1 but it relates to a 
great and good man4    ,i have observed 
that ,dr4 ,lardner only wished to       
publish a part of  the treatise which my

 friend put into his hand4 ,the other   
part of it  contained remarks on the    
reasoning of the apostle of ,paul1 which
 he  could not by any means approve4    
,they were1 therefore1 omitted in this  
publication4 ,but the attention which ,i
 gave to the writings of this  apostle  
at the time that ,i examined them1 in   
order to collect passages  relating to  
the doctrine of atonement1 satisfied me 
that his reasoning  was in many places  
far from being conclusive2 and in a     
separate work  ,i examined every passage
 in which his reasoning appeared to me  
to be  defective1 or his conclusions ill
 supported2 and ,i thought them to be   
pretty numerous4    ,at that time ,i had
 not read any commentary on the         
scriptures1 except  that of ,mr4 ,henry 
when ,i was young4 ,however1 seeing so  
much reason  to be dissatisfied with the
 apostle ,paul as a reasoner1 ,i read   
,dr4  ,taylor's paraphrase on the       
epistle to the ,romans2 but it gave me  
no  sort of satisfaction2 and his       

general ,key to the epistles still less4
  ,i therefore at that time wrote some  
remarks on it1 which were a long  time  
after published in the ,theological     
,repository ,vol4 #d4    ,as ,i found   
that ,dr4 ,lardner did not at all relish
 any of my  observations on the         
imperfections of the sacred writers1 ,i 
did not put  this treatise into his     
hands2 but ,i shewed it to some of my   
younger  friends1 and also to ,dr4      
,kippis2 and he advised me to publish it
 under  the character of an unbeliever1 
in order to draw the more attention  to 
it4 ,this ,i did not chuse1 having      
always had a great aversion to  assume  
any character that was not my own1 even 
so much as disputing  for the sake of   
discovering truth4 ,i cannot ever say   
that ,i was quite  reconciled to the    
idea of writing to a fictitious person1 
as in my  letters to a philosophical    
unbeliever1 though nothing can be more  
innocent1 or sometimes more proper2 our 
,saviour's parables implying  a much    

greater departure from strict truth than
 those letters do4  ,i therefore wrote  
the book with great freedom1 indeed1 but
 as a  christian1 and an admirer of the 
apostle ,paul1 as ,i always was in other
  respects4    ,when ,i was at ,nantwich
 ,i sent this treatise to the press2 but
 when nine  sheets were printed off1    
,dr4 ,kippis dissuaded me from          
proceeding1 or  from publishing any     
thing of the kind1 until ,i should be   
more known1  and my character better    
established4 ,i therefore desisted2 but 
when  ,i opened the theological         
,repository1 ,i inserted in that work   
every  thing that was of much           
consequence in the other1 in order to   
its being  submitted to the examination 
of learned christians4 ,accordingly     
these  communications were particularly 
animadverted upon by ,mr4 ,willet of    
,newcastle1 under the signature of ,w4  
,w4 ,but ,i cannot say that his  remarks
 gave me much satisfaction4    ,when ,i 
was at ,needham ,i likewise drew up a   

treatise on the doctrine  of divine     
influence1 having collected a number of 
texts for that  purpose1 and arranged   
them under proper heads1 as ,i had done 
those  relating to the doctrine of      
atonement4 ,but ,i published nothing    
relating  to it until ,i made use of    
some of the observations in my sermon on
  that subject1 delivered at an         
ordination1 and published many years    
afterwards4    ,while ,i was in this    
retired situation1 ,i had1 in           
consequence of much  pains and thought1 
become persuaded of the falsity of the  
doctrine of  atonement1 of the          
inspiration of the authors of the books 
of scripture  as writers1 and of all    
idea of supernatural influence1 except  
for the  purpose of miracles4 ,but ,i   
was still an ,arian1 having never turned
 my  attention to the ,socinian         
doctrine1 and contenting myself with    
seeing  the absurdity of the trinitarian
 system4    ,another task that ,i       
imposed on myself1 and in part executed 

at ,needham1  was an accurate comparison
 of the ,hebrew text of the hagiographa 
and the prophets with the version of the
 ,septuagint1 noting all  the           
variations1 c4 ,this ,i had about half  
finished before ,i left  that place2 and
 ,i never resumed it1 except to do that 
occasionally  for particular passages1  
which ,i then began1 though with many   
disadvantages1 with a design to go      
through the whole4 ,i had no ,polyglot  
,bible1 and could have little help from 
the labours of others4    ,the most     
learned of my acquaintance in this      
situation was ,mr4 ,scott of  ,ipswich1 
who was well versed in the ,oriental    
languages1 especially the  ,arabic4 ,but
 though he was far from being           
,calvinistical1 he gave me no           
encouragement in the very free enquiries
 which ,i then entered upon4  ,being    
excluded from all communication with the
 more orthodox ministers  in that part  
of the country1 all my acquaintance     
among the dissenting  ministers1 besides

 ,mr4 ,scott1 were ,mr4 ,taylor of      
,stow-market1 ,mr4  ,dickinson of ,diss1
 and ,mr4 ,smithson of ,harlestone2 and 
it is rather  remarkable1 that we all   
left that country in the course of the  
same  year2 ,mr4 ,taylor removing to    
,carter's lane in ,london1 ,mr4         
,dickinson to  ,sheffield1 and ,mr4     
,smithson to ,nottingham4    ,but ,i was
 very happy in a great degree of        
intimacy with ,mr4 ,chauvet1  the rector
 of ,stow-market4 ,he was descended of  
,french parents2 and  ,i think was not  
born in ,england4 ,whilst he lived we   
were never long  without seeing each    
other4 ,but he was subject to great     
unevenness of  spirits1 sometimes the   
most chearful man living1 and at other  
times  most deplorably low4 ,in one of  
these fits he at length put an end to   
his life4 ,i heard afterwards that he   
had at one time been confined for       
insanity1 and had even made the same    
attempt some time before4    ,like most 
other young men of a liberal education1 

,i had conceived  a great aversion to   
the business of a schoolmaster1 and had 
often  said1 that ,i would have recourse
 to any thing else for a maintenance  in
 preference to it4 ,but having no other 
resource1 ,i was at length  compelled by
 necessity to make some attempt in that 
way2 and for  this purpose ,i printed   
and distributed ,proposals1 but without 
any  effect4 ,not that ,i was thought to
 be unqualified for this employment1    
but because ,i was not orthodox4 ,i had 
proposed to teach the classics1         
mathematics1 c4 for half a guinea per   
quarter1 and to board the pupils  in the
 house with myself for twelve guineas   
per annum4    ,finding this scheme not  
to answer1 ,i proposed to give lectures 
to  grown persons in such branches of   
science as ,i could conveniently        
procure the means of doing2 and ,i began
 with reading about twelve  lectures on 
the use of the ,globes1 at half a       
guinea4 ,i had one course  of ten       
hearers1 which did something more than  

pay for my globes2 and ,i  should have  
proceeded in this way1 adding to my     
apparatus as ,i should  have been able  
to afford it1 if ,i had not left that   
place1 which was in  the following      
manner4    ,my situation being well     
known to my friends1 ,mr4 ,gill1 a      
distant  relation by my mother1 who had 
taken much notice of me before ,i  went 
to the academy1 and had often lent me   
books1 procured me an  invitation to    
preach as a candidate at ,sheffield1 on 
the resignation  of ,mr4 ,wadsworth4    
,accordingly ,i did preach as a         
candidate1 but though  my opinions were 
no objection to me there1 ,i was not    
approved4 ,but  ,mr4 ,haynes1 the other 
minister1 perceiving that ,i had no     
chance at  ,sheffield1 told me that he  
could recommend me to a congregation at 
,nantwich in ,cheshire1 where he himself
 had been settled2 and as it was  at a  
great distance from ,needham1 he would  
endeavour to procure me  an invitation  
to preach there for a year certain4     

,this he did1 and ,i  gladly accepting  
of it1 removed from ,needham1 going     
thence to ,london  by sea1 to save      
expence4 ,this was in #ageh1 after      
having been at ,needham  just three     
years4#d    #d ,it is about sixty miles 
from ,needham to ,london1 so that the   
roads  must have been in a bad state to 
render a water passage more eligible    
than by land4 ,the first turnpike in    
,england was authorized by an act  of   
,ch4 ,,ii4 #affc but the system was not 
adopted with spirit until  near the     
middle of the last century4 ,the        
manufacturing inland towns  of ,great   
,britain1 such as ,manchester1 ,leeds1  
,halifax1 c4 chiefly  carried on their  
business through the medium of          
travelling pedlars1 and  afterwards on  
pack horses4 ,the journey in this manner
 from ,manchester  to ,london occupied a
 fortnight2 and it was not unusual for a
 trader  going the first time himself on
 this expedition to take the prudent    
precaution of making his will4 ,at      

present the mail stage performs the     
journey in about a day and a half4 ,in  
the beginning of this century  7as ,dr4 
,aikin in his history of ,manchester    
observes7 it was thought  a most arduous
 undertaking to make a public road over 
the hills that  separate ,yorkshire and 
,lancashire2 now1 they are pierced by   
three  navigable canals4 ,indeed the    
prosperous state of ,british            
manufactures  and commerce1 seems to    
have originated and progressed with the 
adoption  of turnpikes and canals4 ,they
 facilitate not merely the carriage and 
interchange of heavy materials necessary
 to machinery1 but they make  personal  
intercourse cheap1 speedy and universal2
 they thus furnish  the means of seeing 
and communicating improvements1 and of  
observing  in what way one manufacture  
may be brought to bear upon another     
widely  different in its kind4 ,we are  
not yet sufficiently aware of their     
importance in ,america1 even to the     
interests of agriculture4               

,t4 ,c4      ,at ,nantwich ,i found a   
good natured friendly people1 with whom 
,i lived  three years very happily2 and 
in this situation ,i heard nothing  of  
those controversies which had been the  
topics of almost every  conversation in 
,suffolk2 and the consequence was that  
,i gave little  attention to them       
myself4 ,indeed it was hardly in my     
power to do it1  on account of my       
engagement with a school1 which ,i was  
soon able  to establish1 and to which ,i
 gave almost all my attention2 and in   
this employment1 contrary to my         
expectations1 ,i found the greatest     
satisfaction1 notwithstanding the       
confinement and labour attending it4    
,my school generally consisted of about 
thirty boys1 and ,i had a  separate room
 for about half a dozen young ladies4   
,thus ,i was employed  from seven in the
 morning untill four in the afternoon1  
without any  interval except one hour   
for dinner1 and ,i never gave a holiday 
on  any consideration1 the red letter   

days1 as they are called1 excepted4     
,immediately after this employment in my
 own school rooms1 ,i went to  teach in 
the family of ,mr4 ,tomkinson1 an       
eminent attorney1 and a man of  large   
fortune1 whose recommendation was of the
 greatest service to me2  and here ,i   
continued until seven in the evening4 ,i
 had therefore but  little leisure for  
reading or for improving myself in any  
way1 except  what necessarily arose from
 my employment4    ,being engaged in the
 business of a schoolmaster1 ,i made it 
my study  to regulate it in the best    
manner1 and ,i think ,i may say with    
truth1  that in no school was more      
business done1 or with more             
satisfaction1  either to the master1 or 
the scholars1 than in this of mine4     
,many of my  scholars are probably      
living and ,i am confident that they    
will say that  this is no vain boast4   
,at ,needham ,i was barely able with the
 greatest economy to keep out of  debt  
7though this ,i always made a point of  

doing at all events7 but at  ,nantwich  
my school soon enabled me to purchase a 
few books1 and some  philosophical      
instruments1 as a small air pump1 an    
electrical machine1  c4 ,these ,i taught
 my scholars in the highest class to    
keep in order1  and make use of1 and by 
entertaining their parents and friends  
with  experiments1 in which the scholars
 were generally the operators1 and      
sometimes the lecturers too1 ,i         
considerably extended the reputation of 
my school2 though ,i had no other object
 originally than gratifying my  own     
taste4 ,i had no leisure1 however1 to   
make any original experiments  until    
many years after this time4    ,as there
 were few children in the congregation  
7which did not consist  of more than    
sixty persons1 and a great proportion of
 them travelling  scotchmen7 there was  
no scope for exertion with respect to my
 duty as  a minister4 ,i therefore      
contented myself with giving the people 
what  assistance ,i could at their own  

houses1 where there were young persons2 
and ,i added very few sermons to these  
which ,i had composed at ,needham1      
where ,i never failed to make at least  
one every week4    ,being boarded with  
,mr4 ,eddowes1 a very sociable and      
sensible man1  and at the same time the 
person of the greatest property in the  
congregation1 and who was fond of music1
 ,i was induced to learn to play  a     
little on the ,english flute1 as the    
easiest instrument2 and though ,i  was  
never a proficient in it1 my playing    
contributed more or less to my          
amusement many years of my life4 ,i     
would recommend the knowledge and       
practice of music to all studious       
persons2 and it will be better for      
them1 if1 like myself1 they should have 
no very fine ear1 or exquisite  taste2  
as by this means they will be more      
easily pleased1 and be less  apt to be  
offended when the performances they hear
 are but indifferent4    ,at ,nantwich  
,i had hardly any literary acquaintance 

besides ,mr4  ,brereton1 a clergyman in 
the neighbourhood1 who had a taste for  
astronomy1 philosophy1 and literature in
 general4 ,i often slept at his  house1 
in a room to which he gave my name4 ,but
 his conduct afterwards  was unworthy of
 his profession4    ,of dissenting      
ministers ,i saw most of ,mr4 ,keay of  
,whitchurch1 and ,dr4  ,harwood1 who    
lived and had a school at ,congleton1   
preaching alternately  at ,leek and     
,wheelock1 the latter place about ten   
miles from ,nantwich4  ,being both of us
 schoolmasters1 and having in some      
respect the same  pursuits1 we made     
exchanges for the sake of spending a    
,sunday evening  together every six     
weeks in the summer time4 ,he was a good
 classical  scholar1 and a very         
entertaining companion4    ,in my       
congregation there was 7out of the house
 in which ,i was boarded7  hardly more  
than one family in which ,i could spend 
a leisure hour with  much satisfaction1 
and that was ,mr4 ,james ,caldwall's1 a 

scotchman4  ,indeed1 several of the     
travelling ,scotchmen who frequented the
 place1  but made no long stay at any   
time1 were men of very good sense2 and  
what ,i thought extraordinary1 not one  
of them was at all ,calvinistical4      
,my engagements in teaching allowed me  
but little time for composing  any thing
 while ,i was at ,nantwich4 ,there1     
however1 ,i recomposed my  ,observations
 on the character and reasoning of the  
apostle ,paul1 as  mentioned before4    
,for the use of my school ,i then wrote 
an ,english  grammar#e on a new plan1   
leaving out all such technical terms as 
were  borrowed from other languages1 and
 had no corresponding modifications  in 
ours1 as the future tense1 c4 and to    
this ,i afterwards subjoined            
,observations for the use of proficients
 in the language1#f from  the notes     
which ,i collected at ,warrington2      
where1 being tutor in the  languages and
 ,belles ,letters1 ,i gave particular   
attention to the  ,english language1 and

 intended to have composed a large      
treatise on  the structure and present  
state of it4 ,but dropping the scheme in
  another situation1 ,i lately gave such
 parts of my collection as ,i had  made 
no use of to ,mr4 ,herbert ,croft of    
,oxford1 on his communicating to  me his
 design of compiling a ,dictionary and  
,grammar of our language4    #e ,printed
 in #agfa4    #f ,printed in #aggb at   
,london4 ,his lectures on the ,theory of
 ,language  and ,universal ,grammar were
 printed the same year at ,warrington4  
,david  ,hume was made sensible of the  
,gallicisms and ,peculiarities of his   
stile by reading this ,grammar2 ,he     
acknowledged it to ,mr4 ,griffith the   
,bookseller1 who mentioned it to my     
father4    ,the academy at ,warrington  
was instituted when ,i was at ,needham1 
and ,mr4  ,clark knowing the attention  
that ,i had given to the learned        
languages  when ,i was at ,daventry1 had
 then joined with ,dr4 ,benson and ,dr4 
,taylor  in recommending me as tutor in 

the languages4 ,but ,mr4 7afterward     
,dr47  ,aikin1 whose qualifications were
 superior to mine1 was justly preferred 
to me4 ,however1 on the death of ,dr4   
,taylor1 and the advancement of  ,mr4   
,aikin to be tutor in divinity1 ,i was  
invited to succeed him4 ,this  ,i       
accepted1 though my school promised to  
be more gainful to me4 ,but  my         
employment at ,warrington would be more 
liberal1 and less painful4  ,it was also
 a means of extending my connections4   
,but1 as ,i told  the persons who       
brought me the invitation1 viz4 ,mr4    
,seddon and ,mr4  ,holland of ,bolton1  
,i should have preferred the office of  
teaching the  mathematics and natural   
philosophy1 for which ,i had at that    
time a  great predilection4    ,my      
removal to ,warrington was in           
,september1 #agfa1 after a residence  of
 just three years at ,nantwich4 ,in this
 new situation ,i continued  six years1 
and in the second year ,i married a     
daughter of ,mr4 ,isaac  ,wilkinson1 an 

,ironmaster near ,wrexham in ,wales1    
with whose family  ,i had became        
acquainted in consequence of having the 
youngest son1  ,william1 at my school at
 ,nantwich4 ,this proved a very suitable
 and  happy connection1 my wife being a 
woman of an excellent understanding1    
much improved by reading1 of great      
fortitude and strength of mind1 and  of 
a temper in the highest degree          
affectionate and generous2 feeling      
strongly for others1 and little for     
herself4 ,also1 greatly excelling  in   
every thing relating to household       
affairs1 she entirely relieved  me of   
all concern of that kind1 which allowed 
me to give all my time  to the          
prosecution of my studies1 and the other
 duties of my station4  ,and though1 in 
consequence of her father becoming      
impoverished1 and  wholly dependent on  
his children1 in the latter part of his 
life1 ,i had  little fortune with her1  
,i unexpectedly found a great resource  
in her  two brothers1 who had become    

wealthy1 especially the elder of them4  
,at  ,warrington ,i had a daughter1     
,sarah1 who was afterwards married to   
,mr4  ,william ,finch of ,heath-forge   
near ,dudley4    ,though at the time of 
my removal to ,warrington ,i had no     
particular  fondness for the studies    
relating to my profession then1 ,i      
applied to  them with great assiduity2  
and besides composing courses of        
,lectures  on the theory of ,language1  
and on ,oratory and ,criticism1 on which
  my predecessor had lectured1 ,i       
introduced lectures on history and      
general policy1 on the laws and         
constitutions of ,england1 and on  the  
history of ,england4 ,this ,i did in    
consequence of observing that1  though  
most of our pupils were young men       
designed for situations in  civil and   
active life1 every article in the plan  
of their education was  adapted to the  
learned professions4    ,in order to    
recommend such studies as ,i introduced1
 ,i composed an  essay on a course of   

liberal education for civil and active  
life1  with syllabuses of my three new  
courses of lectures2 and ,dr4 ,brown    
having just then published a plan of    
education1 in which he recommended  it  
to be undertaken by the state1 ,i added 
some remarks on his  treatise1 shewing  
how inimical it was to liberty1 and the 
natural  rights of parents4 ,this       
leading me to consider the subject of   
civil  and political liberty1 ,i        
published my thoughts on it1 in an essay
 on  government1 which in a second      
edition ,i much enlarged1 including in  
it  what ,i wrote in answer to ,dr4     
,balguy1 on church authority1 as well as
  my animadversions on ,dr4 ,brown4     
,my ,lectures on the theory of language 
and universal grammar were  printed for 
the use of the students1 but they were  
not published4 ,those  on ,oratory and  
,criticism ,i published when ,i was with
 ,lord ,shelburne1  and those on        
,history and general policy are now     
printed1 and about to  be published4#g  

#g ,this work has been reprinted in     
,philadelphia with additions1           
particularly of a chapter on the        
government of the ,united ,states4      
,finding no public exercises at         
,warrington1 ,i introduced them there1  
so that afterwards every ,saturday the  
tutors1 all the students1 and  often    
strangers1 were assembled to hear       
,english and ,latin compositions1  and  
sometimes to hear the delivery of       
speeches1 and the exhibition of  scenes 
in plays4 ,it was my province to teach  
elocution1 and also ,logic1  and        
,hebrew4 ,the first of these ,i         
retained2 but after a year or two ,i    
exchanged the two last articles with    
,dr4 ,aikin for the civil law1 and  one 
year ,i gave a course of lectures in    
anatomy4    ,with a view to lead the    
students to a facility in writing       
,english1 ,i  encouraged them to write  
in verse4 ,this ,i did not with any     
design to  make them poets1 but to give 
them a greater facility in writing      

prose1  and this method ,i would        
recommend to all tutors4 ,i was myself  
far from  having any pretension to the  
character of a poet2 but in the early   
part  of my life ,i was a great         
versifier1 and this1 ,i believe1 as well
 as my  custom of writing after         
preachers1 mentioned before1 contributed
 to the  ease with which ,i always wrote
 prose4 ,mrs4 ,barbauld has told me that
 it  was the perusal of some verses of  
mine that first induced her to write    
any thing in verse1 so that this country
 is in some measure indebted  to me for 
one of the best poets it can boast of4  
,several of her first  poems were       
written when she was in my house1 on    
occasions that occurred  while she was  
there4    ,it was while ,i was at       
,warrington that ,i published my ,chart 
of  ,biography1 though ,i had begun to  
construct it at ,nantwich4 ,lord        
,willoughby of ,parham1 who lived in    
,lancashire1 being pleased with the     
idea of it1 ,i1 with his consent1       

inscribed it to him2 but he died  before
 the publication of it3 ,the ,chart of  
,history1 corresponding to  it1 ,i drew 
up some time after at ,leeds4    ,i was 
in this situation when1 going to        
,london1#h and being introduced  to ,dr4
 ,price1 ,mr4 ,canton1 ,dr4 ,watson1    
7the ,physician17 and ,dr4  ,franklin1  
,i was led to attend to the subject of  
experimental philosophy  more than ,i   
had done before2 and having composed all
 the ,lectures  ,i had occasion to      
deliver and finding myself at liberty   
for any  undertaking1 ,i mentioned to   
,dr4 ,franklin an idea that had occurred
 to  me of writing the history of       
discoveries in ,electricity1 which had  
been his favourite study4 ,this ,i told 
him might be an useful work1 and  that  
,i would willingly undertake it1        
provided ,i could be furnished  with the
 books necessary for the purpose4 ,this 
he readily undertook1  and my other     
friends assisting him in it1 ,i set     
about the work1  without having the     

least idea of doing any thing more than 
writing a  distinct and methodical      
account of all that had been done by    
others4  ,having1 however1 a pretty good
 machine1 ,i was led1 in the course of  
my  writing the history1 to endeavour to
 ascertain several facts which were     
disputed2 and this led me by degrees    
into a large field of original          
experiments1 in which ,i spared no      
expence that ,i could possibly furnish4 
#h ,he always spent one month in every  
year in ,london which was of  great use 
to him4 ,he saw and heard a great deal4 
,he generally made  additions to his    
library and his chemical apparatus4 ,a  
new turn was  frequently given to his   
ideas4 ,new and useful acquaintances    
were  formed1 and old ones confirmed4   
,these experiments employed a great     
proportion of my leisure time2 and  yet 
before the complete expiration of the   
year in which ,i gave the plan  of my   
work to ,dr4 ,franklin1 ,i sent him a   
copy of it in print4 ,in the  same year 

five hours of every day were employed in
 lectures1 public or  private1 and one  
two months vacation ,i spent chiefly at 
,bristol1 on a  visit to my             
father-in-law4    ,this ,i do not       
mention as a subject of boasting4 ,for  
many persons have  done more in the same
 time2 but as an answer to those who    
have objected  to some of my later      
writings1 as hasty performances4 ,for   
none of my  publications were better    
received than this ,history of          
,electricity1  which was the most hasty 
of them all4 ,however1 whether my       
publications  have taken up more or less
 time1 ,i am confident that more would  
not  have contributed to their          
perfection1 in any essential particular2
 and  about anything farther ,i have    
never been very solicitous4 ,my object  
was  not to acquire the character of a  
fine writer1 but of an useful one4 ,i   
can also truly say that gain was never  
the chief object of any of my           
publications4 ,several of them were     

written with the prospect of certain    
loss4    ,during the course of my       
electrical experiments in this year ,i  
kept  up a constant correspondence with 
,dr4 ,franklin1 and the rest of my      
philosophical friends in ,london2 and my
 letters circulated among them  all1 as 
also every part of my ,history as it was
 transcribed4 ,this  correspondence     
would have made a considerable volume1  
and it took up  much time2 but it was of
 great use with respect to the accuracy 
of my  experiments1 and the perfection  
of my work4    ,after the publication of
 my ,chart of ,biography1 ,dr4 ,percival
 of  ,manchester1 then a student at     
,edinburgh1 procured me the title of    
,doctor of laws from that university2   
and not long after my new  experiments  
in electricity were the means of        
introducing me into the  ,royal         
,society1 with the recommendation of    
,dr4 ,franklin1 ,dr4 ,watson1 ,mr4      
,canton1 and ,dr4 ,price4    ,in the    
whole time of my being at ,warrington ,i

 was singularly happy in  the society of
 my fellow tutors1#i and of ,mr4        
,seddon1 the minister of  the place4 ,we
 drank tea together every ,saturday1 and
 our conversation  was equally          
instructive and pleasing4 ,i often      
thought it not a little  extraordinary1 
that four persons1 who had no previous  
knowledge of each  other1 should have   
been brought to unite in conducting such
 a scheme as  this1 and all be zealous  
necessarians1 as we were4 ,we were      
likewise all  ,arians1 and the only     
subject of much consequence on which we 
differed  respected the doctrine of     
atonement1 concerning which ,dr4 ,aikin 
held  some obscure notions4             
,accordingly1 this was frequently the   
topic of our  friendly conversations4   
,the only ,socinian in the neighbourhood
 was ,mr4  ,seddon of ,manchester2 and  
we all wondered at him4 ,but then we    
never  entered into any particular      
examination of the subject4    #i ,at   
,warrington he had for colleagues and   

successors1 ,dr4 ,john  ,taylor1 author 
of the ,hebrew ,concordance and of      
several other works1 on  ,original ,sin1
 ,atonement1 c4 ,dr4 ,aikin the ,elder1 
,dr4 ,reinhold ,forster  the ,naturalist
 and traveller1 ,dr4 ,enfield and ,mr4  
,walker4    ,receiving some of the      
pupils into my own house1 ,i was by this
 means  led to form some valuable       
friendships1 but especially with ,mr4   
,samuel  ,vaughan1 a friendship which   
has continued hitherto1 has in a manner 
connected our families1 and will1 ,i    
doubt not1 continue through life4  ,the 
two eldest of his sons were boarded with
 me4    ,the tutors having sufficient   
society among themselves1 we had not    
much acquaintance out of the academy4   
,sometimes1 however1 ,i made an         
excursion to the towns in the           
neighbourhood4 ,at ,liverpool ,i was    
always  received by ,mr4 ,bentley1      
afterwards partner with ,mr4 ,wedgwood1 
a man of  excellent taste1 improved     
understanding1 and a good disposition1  

but an  unbeliever in christianity1     
which was therefore often the subject of
  our conversation4 ,he was then a      
widower1 and we generally1 and contrary 
to my usual custom1 sat up late4 ,at    
,manchester ,i was always the guest  of 
,mr4 ,potter1 whose son ,thomas was     
boarded with me4 ,he was one of  the    
worthiest men that ever lived4 ,at      
,chowbent ,i was much acquainted  with  
,mr4 ,mort1 a man equally distinguished 
by his chearfulness and  liberality of  
sentiment4    ,of the ministers in the  
neighbourhood1 ,i recollect with much   
satisfaction the interviews ,i had with 
,mr4 ,godwin of ,gataker1 ,mr4  ,holland
 of ,bolton1 and ,dr4 ,enfield of       
,liverpool1 afterwards tutor at         
,warrington4    ,though all the tutors  
in my time lived in the most perfect    
harmony1  though we all exerted         
ourselves to the utmost1 and there was  
no  complaint of want of discipline1 the
 academy did not flourish4 ,there  had  
been an unhappy difference between ,dr4 

,taylor and the trustees1  in           
consequence of which all his friends1   
who were numerous1 were our  enemies2   
and too many of the subscribers1 being  
probably weary of the  subscription1    
were willing to lay hold of any pretence
 for dropping it1  and of justifying    
their conduct afterwards4    ,it is     
possible that in time we might have     
overcome the prejudices  we laboured    
under1 but there being no prospect of   
things being any  better1 and my wife   
having very bad health1 on her account  
chiefly ,i  wished for a removal1 though
 nothing could be more agreeable to me  
at  the time than the whole of my       
employment1 and all the laborious part  
of it was over4 ,the terms also on which
 we took boarders1 viz4 #ae 4  per      
annum1 and my salary being only #ajj 4  
per annum with a house1  it was not     
possible1 even living with the greatest 
frugality1 to make  any provision for a 
family4 ,i was there six years1 most    
laboriously  employed1 for nothing more 

than a bare subsistence4 ,i therefore   
listened to an invitation to take the   
charge of the congregation of           
,mill-hill chapel at ,leeds1 where ,i   
was pretty well known1 and thither ,i   
removed in ,september #agfg4    ,though 
while ,i was at ,warrington it was no   
part of my duty to preach1  ,i had from 
choice continued the practice2 and      
wishing to keep up the  character of a  
dissenting minister1 ,i chose to be     
ordained while ,i  was there2 and though
 ,i was far from having conquered my    
tendency to  stammer1 and probably never
 shall be able to do it effectually1 ,i 
had1  by taking much pains1 improved my 
pronunciation some time before ,i left  
,nantwich2 where for the two first years
 this impediment had increased  so much1
 that ,i once informed the people1 that 
,i must give up the  business of        
preaching1 and confine myself to my     
school4 ,however1 by  making a practice 
of reading very loud and very slow every
 day1 ,i at  length succeeded in getting

 in some measure the better of this     
defect1  but ,i am still obliged        
occasionally to have recourse to the    
same  expedient4    ,at ,leeds ,i       
continued six years very happy with a   
liberal1 friendly1  and harmonious      
congregation1 to whom my services 7of   
which ,i was not  sparing7 were very    
acceptable4 ,here ,i had no unreasonable
 prejudices  to contend with1 so that ,i
 had full scope for every kind of       
exertion2  and ,i can truly say that ,i 
always considered the office of a       
christian  minister as the most         
honourable of any upon earth1 and in the
 studies  proper to it ,i always took   
the greatest pleasure4    ,in this      
situation ,i naturally resumed my       
application to speculative  theology1   
which had occupied me at ,needham1 and  
which had been  interrupted by the      
business of teaching at ,nantwich and   
,warrington4 ,by  reading with care ,dr4
 ,lardner's letter on the logos1 ,i     
became what is  called a ,socinian soon 

after my settlement at ,leeds2 and after
 giving  the closest attention to the   
subject1 ,i have seen more and more     
reason  to be satisfied with that       
opinion to this day1 and likewise to be 
more  impressed with the idea of its    
importance4    ,on reading ,mr4 ,mann's 
,dissertation on the times of the birth 
and death  of ,christ1 ,i was convinced 
that he was right in his opinion of our 
,saviour's ministry having continued    
little more than one year1 and  on this 
plan ,i drew out a ,harmony of the      
gospels1 the outline of  which ,i first 
published in the ,theological           
,repository1 and afterwards  separately 
and at large1 both in ,greek and        
,english1 with ,notes1 and  an          
occasional ,paraphrase4 ,in the same    
work ,i published my ,essay on  the     
doctrine of ,atonement1 improved from   
the tract published by ,dr4  ,lardner1  
and also my animadversions on the       
reasoning of the apostle  ,paul4    ,the
 plan of this ,repository occurred to me

 on seeing some notes that  ,mr4 ,turner
 of ,wakefield had drawn up on several  
passages of scripture1  which ,i was    
concerned to think should be lost4 ,he  
very much approved of  my proposal of an
 occasional publication1 for the purpose
 of preserving  such original           
observations as could otherwise probably
 never see the  light4 ,of this work ,i 
published three volumes while ,i was at 
,leeds1 and  he never failed to give me 
an article for every number of which    
they  were composed4    ,giving         
particular attention to the duties of my
 office1 ,i wrote  several tracts for   
the use of my congregation1 as two      
,catechisms1 an  ,address to masters of 
families on the subject of family       
prayer1  a discourse on the ,lord's     
,supper1 and on ,church discipline1 and 
,institutes of ,natural and ,revealed   
religion4 ,here ,i formed three  classes
 of ,catechumens1 and took great        
pleasure in instructing them in  the    
principles of religion4 ,in this respect

 ,i hope my example has been  of use in 
other congregations4    ,the first of my
 controversial treatises was written    
here in reply  to some angry remarks on 
my discourse on the ,lord's ,supper by  
,mr4  ,venn1 a clergyman in the         
neighbourhood4 ,i also wrote remarks on 
,dr4  ,balguy's sermon on ,church       
authority1 and on some paragraphs in    
,judge ,blackstone's ,commentaries      
relating to the dissenters4 ,to the  two
 former no reply was made2 but to the   
last the judge replied in  a small      
pamphlet2 on which ,i addressed a letter
 to him in the ,st4  ,james's           
,chronicle4 ,this controversy led me to 
print another pamphlet1  entitled ,the  
,principles and ,conduct of the         
,dissenters with respect to  the civil  
and ecclesiastical constitution of this 
country4 ,with the  encouragement of    
,dr4 ,price and ,dr4 ,kippis1 ,i also   
wrote an ,address to  ,protestant       
,dissenters as such2 but without my     
name4 ,several of these  pamphlets      

having been animadverted upon by an     
anonymous acquaintance1  who thought ,i 
had laid too much stress on the         
principles of the  ,dissenters1 ,i wrote
 a defence of my conduct in ,letters    
addressed to  him4    ,the methodists   
being very numerous in ,leeds1 and many 
of the lower sort  of my own hearers    
listening to them1 ,i wrote an ,appeal  
to the serious  professors of           
,christianity1 an ,illustration of      
particular texts1 and  republished the  
,trial of ,elwall1 all in the cheapest  
manner possible4  ,those small tracts   
had a great effect in establishing my   
hearers in  liberal principles of       
religion1 and in a short time had a far 
more  extensive influence than ,i could 
have imagined4 ,by this time more than  
thirty thousand copies of the ,appeal   
have been dispersed4    ,besides these  
theoretical and controversial pieces1 ,i
 wrote while  ,i was at ,leeds my ,essay
 on ,government mentioned before1 my    
,english ,grammar enlarged1 a familiar  

introduction to the study of            
electricity1 a treatise on perspective1 
and my ,chart of ,history1  and also    
some anonymous pieces in favour of civil
 liberty during the  persecution of ,mr4
 ,wilkes1 the principal of which was ,an
 ,address to  ,dissenters on the subject
 of the difference with ,america1 which 
,i  wrote at the request of ,dr4        
,franklin1 and ,dr4 ,fothergil4    ,but 
nothing of a nature foreign to the      
duties of my profession engaged  my     
attention while ,i was at ,leeds so much
 as the prosecution of my  experiments  
relating to electricity1 and especially 
the doctrine of  air4 ,the last ,i was  
led into in consequence of inhabiting a 
house  adjoining to a public brewery1   
where ,i at first amused myself with    
making experiments on the fixed air     
which ,i found ready made in the        
process of fermentation4 ,when ,i       
removed from that house1 ,i was under   
the necessity of making the fixed air   
for myself2 and one experiment  leading 

to another1 as ,i have distinctly and   
faithfully noted in  my various         
publications on the subject1 ,i by      
degrees contrived a  convenient         
apparatus for the purpose1 but of the   
cheapest kind4    ,when ,i began these  
experiments ,i knew very little of      
chemistry1 and  had in a manner no idea 
on the subject before ,i attended a     
course  of chemical lectures delivered  
in the academy at ,warrington by ,dr4   
,turner#aj of ,liverpool4 ,but ,i have  
often thought that upon the whole1  this
 circumstance was no disadvantage to me2
 as in this situation ,i  was led to    
devise an apparatus1 and processes of my
 own1 adapted to  my peculiar views4    
,whereas1 if ,i had been previously     
accustomed to  the usual chemical       
processes1 ,i should not have so easily 
thought of  any other2 and without new  
modes of operation ,i should hardly have
  discovered any thing materially       
new4#aa    #aj ,dr4 ,,turner was a      
,physician at ,liverpool3 among his     

friends a  professed ,atheist4 ,it was  
,dr4 ,turner who wrote the reply to ,dr4
  ,priestley's letters to a             
philosophical unbeliever under the      
feigned  name of ,hammon4 ,he was in his
 day a good practical chemist4 ,i       
believe  it was ,dr4 ,turner who first  
invented1 or at least brought to        
tolerable  perfection1 the art of       
copying prints upon glass1 by striking  
off  impressions with a coloured        
solution of silver and fixing them on   
the  glass by baking on an iron plate in
 a heat sufficient to incorporate  the  
solution with the glass4 ,some of them  
are very neatly performed1  producing   
transparent copies in a bright yellow   
upon the clear glass4    ,dr4 ,turner   
was not merely a whig but a republican4 
,in a friendly  debating society at     
,liverpool about the close of the       
,american war1 he  observed in reply to 
a speaker who had been descanting on the
 honour  ,great ,britain had gained     
during the reign of his present         

,majesty1 that  it was true1 we had lost
 the ,terra firma of the thirteen       
colonies in  ,america1 but we ought to  
be satisfied with having gained in      
return1  by the generalship of ,dr4     
,herschel1 a terra incognita of much    
greater  extent in nubibus4             
,t4 ,c4      #aa ,this necessary        
attention to economy also aided the     
simplicity  of his apparatus1 and was   
the means in some degree of improving it
  in this important respect4 ,this      
plainness of his apparatus rendered  his
 experiments easy to be repeated1 and   
gave them accuracy4 ,in this  respect he
 was like his great ,cotemporary        
,scheele1 whose discoveries  were made  
by means easy to be procured and at     
small expence4 ,the ,french  ,chemists  
have adopted a practice quite the       
reverse4                                
,t4 ,c4      ,my first publication on   
the subject of air was in #aggb4 ,it was
 a small  pamphlet1 on the method of    
impregnating water with fixed air2 which

  being immediately translated into     
,french1 excited a great degree  of     
attention to the subject1 and this was  
much increased by the  publication of my
 first paper of experiments in a large  
article of the  ,philosophical          
,transactions the year following1 for   
which ,i received the  gold medal of the
 society4 ,my method of impregnating    
water with fixed  air was considered at 
a meeting of the ,college of            
,physicians1 before  whom ,i made the   
experiments1 and by them it was         
recommended to the  ,lords of the       
,admiral 7by whom they had been summoned
 for the purpose7  as likely to be of   
use in the sea scurvy4    ,the only     
person in ,leeds who gave much attention
 to my experiments  was ,mr4 ,hay1 a    
surgeon4 ,he was a zealous methodist1   
and wrote answers  to some of my        
theological tracts2 but we always       
conversed with the  greatest freedom on 
philosophical subjects1 without         
mentioning any  thing relating to       

theology4 ,when ,i left ,leeds1 he      
begged of me the  earthen trough in     
which ,i had made all my experiments on 
air while ,i  was there4 ,it was such an
 one as is there commonly used for      
washing  linnen4    ,having succeeded so
 well in the ,history of ,electricity1  
,i was  induced to undertake the history
 of all the brandies of experimental    
philosophy2 and at ,leeds ,i gave out   
proposals for that purpose1  and        
published the ,history of discoveries   
relating to vision light  and colours4  
,this work1 also1 ,i believe ,i executed
 to general  satisfaction1 and being an 
undertaking of great expence1 ,i was    
under  the necessity of publishing it by
 subscription4 ,the sale1 however1 was  
not such as to encourage me to proceed  
with a work of so much labour  and      
expence2 so that after purchasing a     
great number of books1 to  enable me to 
finish my undertaking1 ,i was obliged to
 abandon it1 and to  apply wholly to    
original experiments4#ab    #ab ,many of

 the subscriptions remained unpaid4     
,in writing the ,history of discoveries 
relating to vision1 ,i was  much        
assisted by ,mr4 ,michell1 the          
discoverer of the method of making      
artificial magnets4 ,living at          
,thornhill1 not very far from ,leeds1 ,i
  frequently visited him1 and was very  
happy in his society1 as ,i also  was in
 that of ,mr4 ,smeaton1 who lived still 
nearer to me4 ,he made me a  present of 
his excellent air pump1 which ,i        
constantly use to this day4  ,having    
strongly recommended his construction of
 this instrument1 it is  now generally  
used2 whereas before that hardly any had
 been made during  the twenty years     
which had elapsed after the account that
 he had given  of it in the             
,philosophical ,transactions4    ,i was 
also instrumental in reviving the use of
 large electrical  machines1 and        
batteries1 in electricity1 the          
generality of electrical  machines being
 little more than play things at the    

time that ,i began  my experiments4 ,the
 first very large electrical machine was
 made by  ,mr4 ,nairne in consequence of
 a request made to me by the ,grand     
,duke of  ,tuscany1 to get him the best 
machine that we could make in ,england4 
,this1 and another that he made for ,mr4
 ,vaughan1 were constituted on a  plan  
of my own4 ,but afterwards ,mr4 ,nairne 
made large machines on a more  simple   
and improved construction2 and in       
consideration of the service  which ,i  
had rendered him1 he made me a present  
of a pretty large  machine of the same  
kind4    ,the review of my history of   
electricity by ,mr4 ,bewley1 who was    
acquainted with ,mr4 ,michell1 was the  
means of opening a correspondence       
between us1 which was the source of much
 satisfaction to me as long  as he      
lived4 ,i instantly communicated to him 
an account of every new  experiment that
 ,i made1 and1 in return1 was favoured  
with his remarks  upon them4 ,all that  
he published of his own were articles in

 the  ,appendixes to my volumes on air1 
all of which are ingenious and          
valuable4 ,always publishing in this    
manner1 he used to call himself my      
satellite4 ,there was a vein of pleasant
 wit and humour in all his              
correspondence1 which added greatly to  
the value of it4 ,his letters  to me    
would have made several volumes1 and    
mine to him still more4  ,when he found 
himself dangerously ill1 he made a point
 of paying me a  visit before he died2  
and he made a journey from ,norfolk to  
,birmingham1  accompanied by ,mrs4      
,bewley1 for that purpose2 and after    
spending about  a week with me1 he went 
to his friend ,dr4 ,burney1 and at his  
house he  died4    ,while ,i was at     
,leeds a proposal was made to me to     
accompany ,captain  ,cook in his second 
voyage to the south seas4 ,as the terms 
were very  advantageous1 ,i consented to
 it1 and the heads of my congregation   
had  agreed to keep an assistant to     
supply my place during my absence4 ,but 

,mr4 ,banks informed me that ,i was     
objected to by some clergymen in the    
board of longitude1 who had the         
direction of this business1 on account  
of my religious principles2 and         
presently after ,i heard that ,dr4      
,forster1 a person far better qualified 
for the purpose1 had got the            
appointment4 ,as ,i had barely          
acquiesced in the proposal1 this was no 
disappointment to me1 and ,i was much   
better employed at home1 even with      
respect to my philosophical pursuits4   
,my knowledge of natural history  was   
not sufficient for the undertaking2 but 
at that time ,i should by  application  
have been able to supply my deficiency1 
though now ,i am  sensible ,i could not 
do it4    ,at ,leeds ,i was particularly
 happy in my intercourse with ,mr4      
,turner of  ,wakefield1 and             
occasionally1 with ,mr4 ,cappe of ,york1
 and ,mr4 ,graham  of ,halifax4 ,and    
here it was that1 in consequence of a   
visit which in  company with ,mr4       

,turner ,i made to the ,archdeacon      
,blackburne at ,richmond  7with whom ,i 
had kept up a correspondence from the   
time that his son  was under my care at 
,warrington7 ,i first met with ,mr4     
,lindsey1 then of  ,catterick1 and a    
correspondence and intimacy commenced1  
which has been  the source of more real 
satisfaction to me than any other       
circumstance  in my whole life4 ,he soon
 discovered to me that he was uneasy in 
his  situation1 and had thoughts of     
quitting it4 ,at first ,i was not       
forward  to encourage him in it1 but    
rather advised him to make what         
alteration  he thought proper in the    
offices of the church1 and leave it to  
his  superiors to dismiss him if they   
chose4 ,but his better judgment1  and   
greater fortitude1 led him to give up   
all connexion with the  established     
church of his own accord4    ,this took 
place about the time of my leaving      
,leeds1 and it was not  until long after
 this that ,i was apprized of all the   

difficulties  he had to struggle with   
before he could accomplish his purpose4 
,but  the opposition made to it by his  
nearest friends1 and those who  might   
have been expected to approve of the    
step that he took1 and to  have         
endeavoured to make it easy to him1 was 
one of the greatest4  ,notwithstanding  
this he left ,catterick1 where he had   
lived in  affluence idolized by his     
parish1 and went to ,london without any 
certain prospect2 where he lived in two 
rooms of a ground floor1 until  by the  
assistance of his friends1 he was able  
to pay for the use of the  upper        
apartments1 which the state of his      
health rendered necessary4 ,in  this    
humble situation have ,i passed some of 
the most pleasing hours of  my life1    
when1 in consequence of living with     
,lord ,shelburne1 ,i spent my  winters  
in ,london4    ,on this occasion it was 
that my intimacy with ,mr4 ,lindsey was 
much  improved1 and an entire           
concurrence in every thing that we      

thought  to be for the interest of      
christianity gave fresh warmth to our   
friendship4 ,to his society ,i owe much 
of my zeal for the doctrine of  the     
divine unity1 for which he made so great
 sacrifices1 and in the  defence of     
which he so much distinguished himself1 
so as to occasion a  new ra in the      
history of religion in this country4    
,as we became more intimate1 confiding  
in his better taste and judgment1  and  
also in that of ,mrs4 ,lindsey1 a woman 
of the same spirit and views1  and in   
all respects a help meet for him1 ,i    
never chose to publish  any thing of    
moment relating to ,theology without    
consulting him2 and  hardly ever        
ventured to insert any thing that they  
disapproved1 being  sensible that my    
disposition led to precipitancy1 to     
which their  coolness was a seasonable  
check4    ,at ,leeds began my           
intercourse with ,mr4 ,lee of ,lincoln's
 ,inn4 ,he was a  native of the place1  
and exactly one week older than myself4 

,at that  time he was particularly      
connected with the congregation1 and    
before he  was married spent his        
vacations with us4 ,his friendship was a
 source of  much greater satisfaction   
and advantage to me after ,i came to    
reside in  ,london1 and especially at   
the time of my leaving ,lord ,shelburne1
 when  my prospects wore rather a cloudy
 aspect4    ,when ,i visited ,london1   
during my residence at ,leeds1 commenced
 my  particular friendship for ,dr4     
,price1 to whom ,i had been introduced  
several years before by ,dr4 ,benson2   
our first interview having been  at ,mr4
 ,brownsword's at ,newington1 where they
 were members of a small  literary      
society1 in which they read various     
compositions4 ,at that time  ,dr4       
,benson read a paper which afterwards   
made a section in his ,life  of ,christ4
 ,for the most amiable simplicity of    
character1 equalled  only by that of    
,mr4 ,lindsey1 a truly christian spirit1
 disinterested  patriotism1 and true    

candour1 no man in my opinion ever      
exceeded ,dr4  ,price4 ,his candour will
 appear the more extraordinary1         
considering  his warm attachments to the
 theological sentiments which he        
embraced  in very early life4 ,i shall  
ever reflect upon our friendship as  a  
circumstance highly honourable1 as it   
was a source of peculiar  satisfaction1 
to me4    ,i had two sons born to me at 
,leeds1 ,joseph and ,william1 and though
 ,i  was very happy there1 ,i was       
tempted to leave it after continuing    
there  six years1 to go into the family 
of the ,earl of ,shelburne1 now the     
,marquis of ,lansdowne2 he stipulating  
to give me #bej 4 per annum1 a  house to
 live in1 and a certainty for life in   
case of his death1 or of  my separation 
from him2 whereas at ,leeds my salary   
was only one hundred  guineas per annum1
 and a house1 which was not quite       
sufficient for the  subsistence of my   
family1 without a possibility of making 
a provision  for them after my death4   

,i had been recommended to ,lord        
,shelburne by ,dr4 ,price1 as a person  
qualified to be a literary companion to 
him4 ,in this situation1 my  family     
being at ,calne in ,wiltshire1 near to  
his ,lordship's seat at  ,bowood1 ,i    
continued seven years1 spending the     
summer with my family1  and a great part
 of the winter in his ,lordship's house 
in ,london4 ,my  office was nominally   
that of librarian1 but ,i had little    
employment  as such1 besides arranging  
his books1 taking a catalogue of them1  
and  of his manuscripts1 which were     
numerous1 and making an index to his    
collection of private papers4 ,in fact  
,i was with him as a friend1  and the   
second year made with him the tour of   
,flanders1 ,holland1 and  ,germany1 as  
far as ,strasburgh2 and after spending a
 month at ,paris1  returned to ,england4
 ,this was in the year #aggd4    ,this  
little excursion made me more sensible  
than ,i should otherwise  have been of  
the benefit of foreign travel1 even     

without the  advantage of much          
conversation with foreigners4 ,the very 
sight of new  countries1 new buildings1 
new customs1 c4 and the very hearing of 
an  unintelligible new language1 gives  
new ideas1 and tends to enlarge the     
mind4 ,to me this little time was       
extremely pleasing1 especially as ,i    
saw every thing to the greatest         
advantage1 and without any anxiety or   
trouble1 and had an opportunity of      
seeing and conversing with every  person
 of eminence wherever we came2 the      
political characters by  his ,lordship's
 connections1 and the literary ones by  
my own4 ,i was  soon1 however1 tired of 
,paris1 and chose to spend my evenings  
at the  hotel1 in company with a few    
literary friends4 ,fortunately for me1  
,mr4 ,magellan#ac being at ,paris1 at   
the same time1 spent most of the        
evenings with me2 and as ,i chose to    
return before his ,lordship1 he         
accompanied me to ,london1 and made the 
journey very pleasing to me2 he  being  

used to the country1 the language1 and  
the manners of it1 which  ,i was not4   
,he had seen much of the world1 and his 
conversation during  our journey was    
particularly interesting to me4 ,indeed1
 in ,london1  both before and after this
 time1 ,i always found him very         
friendly1  especially in every thing    
that related to my philosophical        
pursuits4    #ac ,,john ,,hyacinth ,,de 
,,magellan a descendant of the famous   
,navigator  ,magellan1 was a ,portuguese
 ,jesuit1 but far more attached to      
,philosophy  than ,christianity4 ,he was
 much employed by his rich and noble    
correspondents abroad to procure        
philosophical ,instruments from the     
,artists of ,great ,britain4 ,he was a  
good judge of these1 and being  of a    
mechanical turn as well as a man of     
,science1 he improved their             
construction in many instances4 ,he was 
member of and attendant on  almost all  
the philosophical ,clubs and ,meetings  
in ,london1 and  was generally furnished

 with early intelligence of             
philosophical  discoveries from the     
continent4 ,on the #agth of ,september  
#aghe he made  a donation of #bjj       
guineas to the ,american ,philosophical 
,society1 the  interest whereof was to  
be appropriated annually as a premium   
for  the most useful discoveries or     
improvements in navigation or natural   
philosophy1 but to the exclusion of mere
 natural history4 ,he died a  few years 
ago1 leaving ,mr4 ,nicholson and the    
late ,dr4 ,crawford his  ,executors4 ,t4
 ,c4    ,as ,i was sufficiently apprized
 of the fact1 ,i did not wonder1 as ,i  
otherwise should have done1 to find all 
the philosophical persons  to whom ,i   
was introduced at ,paris unbelievers in 
christianity1 and  even professed       
,atheists4 ,as ,i chose on all occasions
 to appear as a  christian1 ,i was told 
by some of them1 that ,i was the only   
person they  had ever met with1 of whose
 understanding they had any opinion1 who
  professed to believe christianity4    

,but on interrogating them on the       
subject1 ,i soon found that they had    
given no proper attention to it1  and   
did not really know what christianity   
was4 ,this was also the case  with a    
great part of the company that ,i saw at
 ,lord ,shelburne's4 ,but  ,i hope that 
my always avowing myself to be a        
christian1 and holding  myself ready on 
all occasions to defend the genuine     
principles of it1  was not without its  
use4 ,having conversed so much with     
unbelievers at  home and abroad1 ,i     
thought ,i should be able to combat     
their prejudices  with some advantage1  
and with this view ,i wrote1 while ,i   
was with  ,lord ,shelburne1 the first   
part of my ,letters to a philosophical  
unbeliever1 in proof of the doctrines of
 a ,god and a providence1 and  to this  
,i have added during my residence at    
,birmingham1 a second part1  in defence 
of the evidences of christianity4 ,the  
first part being  replied to by a person
 who called himself ,mr4 ,hammon1 ,i    

wrote a reply  to his piece1 which has  
hitherto remained unanswered4 ,i am     
happy to  find that this work of mine   
has done some good1 and ,i hope that in 
due  time it will do more4 ,i can truly 
say that the greatest satisfaction  ,i  
receive from the success of my          
philosophical pursuits1 arises from  the
 weight it may give to my attempts to   
defend christianity1 and  to free it    
from those corruptions which prevent its
 reception with  philosophical and      
thinking persons1 whose influence with  
the vulgar1  and the unthinking1 is very
 great4    ,with ,lord ,shelburne ,i saw
 a great variety of characters1 but1 of 
our  neighbours in ,wiltshire1 the      
person ,i had the most frequent         
opportunity  of seeing was ,dr4         
,frampton1 a clergyman1 whose history   
may serve as a  lesson to many4 ,no man 
perhaps was ever better qualified to    
please in a  convivial hour1 or had     
greater talents for conversation and    
repartee2  in consequence of which1     

though there were several things very   
disgusting about him1 his society was   
much courted1 and many promises  of     
preferment were made to him4 ,to these1 
notwithstanding his knowledge  of the   
world1 and of high life1 he gave too    
much credit2 so that he  spared no      
expence to gratify his taste and        
appetite1 until he was  universally     
involved in debt2 and though his friends
 made some efforts  to relieve him1 he  
was confined a year in the county prison
 at a time  when his bodily infirmities 
required the greatest indulgences2 and  
he  obtained his release but a short    
time before his death on condition of   
his living on a scanty allowance2 the   
income of his livings 7amounting  to    
more than #djj 4 per annum7 being in the
 hands of his creditors4  ,such was the 
end of a man who kept the table in a    
roar4    ,dr4 ,frampton being a high    
churchman1 he could not at first conceal
  his aversion to me1 and endeavoured to
 do me some ill offices4 ,but  being a  

man of letters1 and despising the clergy
 in his neighbourhood1  he became at    
last much attached to me2 and in his    
distresses was  satisfied1 ,i believe1  
that ,i was one of his most sincere     
friends4 ,with  some great defects he   
had some considerable virtues1 and      
uncommon  abilities1 which appeared more
 particularly in extempore speaking4    
,he always preached without notes1 and  
when1 on some occasions1 he  composed   
his sermons1 he could1 if he chose to do
 it1 repeat the whole  verbatim4 ,he    
frequently extemporized in verse1 in a  
great variety of  measures4    ,in ,lord
 ,shelburne's family was ,lady ,arabella
 ,denny1 who is well known  by her      
extensive charities4 ,she is 7for she is
 still living7 a woman of  good         
understanding1 and great piety4 ,she had
 the care of his ,lordship's  two sons  
until they came under the care of ,mr4  
,jervis1 who was their  tutor during my 
continuance in the family4 ,his         
,lordship's younger son1  who died      

suddenly1 had made astonishing          
attainments both in knowledge  and      
piety1 while very young1 far beyond any 
thing that ,i had an  opportunity of    
observing in my life4    ,when ,i went  
to his ,lordship1 ,i had materials for  
one volume of  experiments on air1 which
 ,i soon after published1 and inscribed 
to  him2 and before ,i left him ,i      
published three volumes more1 and had   
materials for a fourth1 which ,i        
published immediately on my settling in 
,birmingham4 ,he encouraged me in the   
prosecution of my philosophical         
enquiries1 and allowed me #dj 4 per     
annum for expences of that kind1  and   
was pleased to see me make experiments  
to entertain his guests1 and  especially
 foreigners4    ,notwithstanding the    
attention that ,i gave to philosophy in 
this  situation1 ,i did not discontinue 
my other studies1 especially in         
theology and metaphysics4 ,here ,i wrote
 my ,miscellaneous ,observations        
relating to education1 and published my 

,lectures on ,oratory and  ,criticism1  
which ,i dedicated to ,lord             
,fitzmaurice1 ,lord ,shelburne's  eldest
 son4 ,here also ,i published the third 
and last part of my  ,institutes of     
,natural and ,revealed religion2 and    
having in the  ,preface attacked the    
principles of ,dr4 ,reid1 ,dr4 ,beattie1
 and ,dr4  ,oswald1 with respect to     
their doctrine of ,common ,sense1 which 
they  made to supercede all rational    
inquiry into the subject of religion1   
,i was led to consider their system in a
 separate work1 which1 though  written  
in a manner that ,i do not intirely     
approve1 has1 ,i hope1 upon  the whole  
been of service to the cause of free    
inquiry and truth4#ad    #ad ,this reply
 of ,dr4 ,priestley to the ,scotch      
,doctors1 though not  written in a      
manner that his maturer reflection      
approved1 compleatly  set at rest the   
question of ,common ,sense as denoting  
the intuitive  evidence of a class of   
moral and religious propositions capable

 of  satisfactory proof1 or of high     
probability from considerations ab      
extra4 ,but ,dr4 ,reid ought hardly to  
be classed with coadjutors so  inferior 
as the ,drs4 ,oswald and ,beattie4 ,the 
latter wrote something  which he meant  
as a defence of the christian religion2 
but such  defenders of christianity as  
,dr4 ,beattie and ,soame ,jenyns1 are   
well  calculated to bring it into       
contempt with men of reason and         
reflection4                             
,t4 ,c4      ,in the preface ,i had     
expressed my belief of the doctrine of  
,philosophical ,necessity1 but without  
any design to pursue the  subject1 and  
also my great admiration of ,dr4        
,hartley's theory of  the human mind1 as
 indeed ,i had taken many opportunities 
of doing  before4 ,this led me to       
publish that part of his observations on
  man which related to the doctrine of  
association of ideas1 detached  from the
 doctrine of vibrations1 prefixing three
 dissertations1  explanatory of his     

general system4 ,in one of these ,i     
expressed some  doubt of the            
immateriality of the sentient principle 
in man2 and the  outcry that was made on
 what ,i casually expressed on that     
subject can  hardly be imagined4 ,in all
 the newspapers1 and most of the        
periodical  publications1 ,i was        
represented as an unbeliever in         
revelation1 and no  better than an      
,atheist4    ,this led me to give the   
closest attention to the subject1 and   
the  consequence was the firmest        
persuasion that man is wholly material1 
and  that our only prospect of          
immortality is from the christian       
doctrine  of a resurrection4 ,i         
therefore digested my thoughts on the   
subject1  and published my              
,disquisitions relating to matter and   
spirit1 also  the subjects of           
,socinianism and necessity being nearly 
connected  with the doctrine of the     
materiality of man1 ,i advanced several 
considerations from the state of        

opinions in antient times in favour  of 
the former2 and in a separate volume    
discussed more at large what  related to
 the latter1 dedicating the first volume
 of this work to ,mr4  ,graham1 and the 
second to ,dr4 ,jebb4    ,it being      
probable that this publication would be 
unpopular1 and might  be a means of     
bringing odium on my patron1 several    
attempts were made  by his friends1     
though none by himself1 to dissuade me  
from persisting  in it4 ,but being1 as  
,i thought1 engaged in the cause of     
important  truth1 ,i proceeded without  
regard to any consequences1 assuring    
them  that this publication should not  
be injurious to his ,lordship4    ,in   
order1 however1 to proceed with the     
greatest caution1 in a business  of such
 moment1 ,i desired some of my learned  
friends1 and especially  ,dr4 ,price1 to
 peruse the work before it was          
published2 and the remarks  that he made
 upon it led to a free and friendly     
discussion of the  several subjects of  

it1 which we afterwards published       
jointly2 and it  remains a proof of the 
possibility of discussing subjects      
mutually  considered as of the greatest 
importance1 with the most perfect good  
temper1 and without the least diminution
 of friendship4 ,this work ,i  dedicated
 to our common friend ,mr4 ,lee4    ,in 
this situation ,i published my ,harmony 
of the gospels1 on the idea  of the     
public ministry of ,jesus having        
continued little more than one  year1 a 
scheme which ,i first proposed in the   
,theological ,repository2  and the      
,bishop of ,waterford having in his     
,harmony published a defence  of the    
common hypothesis1 viz4 that of its     
having been three years1 ,i  addressed a
 letter to him on the subject1 and to   
this he made a reply  in a separate     
work4 ,the controversy proceeded to     
several publications  on both sides1 in 
the most amicable manner1 and the last  
,postscript  was published jointly by us
 both4 ,though my side of the question  

was  without any advocates that ,i know 
of1 and had only been adopted by  ,mr4  
,mann1 who seemed to have had no        
followers1 there are few persons1  ,i   
believe1 who have attended to our       
discussion of the subject1 who are  not 
satisfied that ,i have sufficiently     
proved what ,i had advanced4 ,this      
controversy was not finished until after
 my removal to ,birmingham4             
,reflecting on the time that ,i spent   
with ,lord ,shelburne1 being as a  guest
 in the family1 ,i can truly say that ,i
 was not at all fascinated  with that   
mode of life4 ,instead of looking back  
upon it with regret1  one of the        
greatest subjects of my present         
thankfulness is the change  of that     
situation for the one in which ,i am now
 placed2 and yet ,i was  far from being 
unhappy there1 much less so than those  
who are born  to such a state1 and pass 
all their lives in it4 ,these are       
generally  unhappy from the want of     
necessary employment1 on which account  

chiefly there appears to be much more   
happiness in the middle classes  of     
life1 who are above the fear of want1   
and yet have a sufficient  motive for a 
constant exertion of their faculties2   
and who have always  some other object  
besides amusement4    ,i used to make no
 scruple of maintaining1 that there is  
not only  most virtue1 and most         
happiness1 but even most true politeness
 in the  middle classes of life4 ,for in
 proportion as men pass more of their   
time in the society of their equals1    
they get a better established  habit of 
governing their tempers2 they attend    
more to the feelings  of others1 and are
 more disposed to accommodate themselves
 to them4  ,on the other hand1 the      
passions of persons in higher life1     
having  been less controlled1 are more  
apt to be inflamed2 the idea of their   
rank and superiority to others seldom   
quits them2 and though they  are in the 
habit of concealing their feelings1 and 
disguising their  passions1 it is not   

always so well done1 but that persons of
 ordinary  discernment may perceive what
 they inwardly suffer4 ,on this account1
  they are really intitled to           
compassion1 it being the almost         
unavoidable  consequence of their       
education and mode of life4 ,but when   
the mind is  not hurt in such a         
situation1 when a person born to        
affluence can lose  sight of himself1   
and truly feel and act for others1 the  
character is  so godlike1 as shews that 
this inequality of condition is not     
without  its use4 ,like the general     
discipline of life1 it is for the       
present  lost on the great mass1 but on 
a few it produces what no other state   
of things could do4#ae    #ae ,the      
account here given of ,dr4 ,priestley's 
connection with ,lord  ,shelburne must  
be gratifying to every friend of science
 and literature1  notwithstanding the   
subsequent separation4 ,to such persons 
the  character of a nobleman who like   
,lord ,shelburne1 devotes so much of    

his time1 and so much of his income to  
the pursuits of knowledge1  and the     
encouragement of those who eminently    
contribute to enlighten  mankind1 cannot
 but be interesting4 ,had he behaved    
dishonourably  or disrespectfully to a  
man of ,dr4 ,priestley's high station in
 the  literary world1 it would have been
 an argument that science and           
literature were ineffectual to soften   
the pride of titled opulence and        
hereditary rank4 ,but ,ovid has observed
 justly1 7ingenuas didicisse  fideliter 
,artes1 emollit mores nec sinit esse    
feros47    ,it is right to mention an   
anecdote highly honourable to ,lord     
,shelburne1  on the authority of ,dr4   
,priestley4 ,at the conclusion of the   
treaty  of peace in #aghc1 negotiated by
 ,lord ,shelburne while he was in the   
ministry1 a strong opposition was       
expected1 particularly from his  former 
coadjutors who soon after the death of  
,lord ,rockingham had  seceded from     
,lord ,shelburne's administration4 ,it  

was suggested to this  nobleman1 that it
 was customary for the minister for the 
time being  to let it be understood     
among the mutes of the ministerial      
members1  that they might expect the    
usual douceur for their votes on such an
  occasion4 ,some light might be thrown 
on the nature and quantum of  this      
douceur1 by the list of ministerial     
rewards distributed at the  close of    
each session1 as stated publicly to the 
house of ,commons  by the late ,sir     
,george ,saville4 ,lord ,shelburne      
without hesitation  refused compliance2 
and declared that if his peace could not
 obtain  the unbought approbation of the
 house1 it might take its chance4 ,the  
consequence was that although the       
address was carried in the ,lords by    
#gb to #ei it was lost in the ,commons  
by #bbd to #bjh4                        
,t4 ,c4      ,the greatest part of the  
time that ,i spent with ,lord ,shelburne
 ,i passed  with much satisfaction1 his 
,lordship always behaving to me with    

uniform  politeness1 and his guests with
 respect4 ,but about two years before ,i
  left him1 ,i perceived evident marks  
of dissatisfaction1 though ,i never     
understood the cause of it2 and until   
that time he had been even lavish  on   
all occasions in expressing his         
satisfaction in my society to our       
common friends4 ,when ,i left him1 ,i   
asked him whether he had any fault  to  
find with my conduct1 and he said none4 
,at length1 however1 he intimated to    
,dr4 ,price1 that he wished to give  me 
an establishment in ,ireland1 where he  
had large property4 ,this gave  me an   
opportunity of acquainting him1 that if 
he chose to dissolve the  connexion1 it 
should be on the terms expressed in the 
writings which we  mutually signed when 
it was formed1 in consequence of which  
,i should  be entitled to an annuity of 
an hundred and fifty pounds1 and then   
,i would provide for myself1 and to this
 he readily acceded4 ,he told  ,dr4     
,price that he wished our separation to 

be amicable1 and ,i assured  him that   
nothing should be wanting on my part to 
make it truly so4  ,accordingly1 ,i     
expected that he would receive my visits
 when ,i should  be occasionally in     
,london1 but he declined them4          
,however1 when ,i had been some years   
settled at ,birmingham1 he sent  an     
especial messenger1 and common friend1  
to engage me again in his  service1     
having1 as that friend assured me1 a    
deep sense of the loss  of ,lord        
,ashburton 7,mr4 ,dunning7 by death1 and
 of ,colonel ,barre by  his becoming    
almost blind1 and his want of some able 
and faithful  friend1 such as he had    
experienced in me2 with other           
expressions more  flattering than those4
 ,i did not chuse1 however1 on any      
consideration1  to leave the very       
eligible situation in which ,i now am1  
but expressed  my readiness to do him   
any service in my power4 ,his           
,lordship's  enemies have insinuated    
that he was not punctual in the payment 

of my  annuity2 but the contrary is     
true3 ,hitherto nothing could have been 
more punctual1 and ,i have no reason to 
suppose that it will ever be  otherwise4
    ,at ,calne ,i had another son born  
to me1 whom1 at ,lord ,shelburne's      
request1 ,i called ,henry4    ,it was at
 the time of my leaving ,lord ,shelburne
 that ,i found the  great value of ,mr4 
and ,mrs4 ,lindsey's friendship1 in such
 a manner as  ,i certainly had no       
expectation of when our acquaintance    
commenced2  especially by their         
introducing me to the notice of ,mrs4   
,rayner1 one of  his hearers1 and most  
zealous friends4    ,notwithstanding my 
allowance from ,lord ,shelburne was     
larger than that  which ,i had at       
,leeds1 yet my family growing up1 and my
 expences1 on  this and other accounts1 
increasing more than in proportion1 ,i  
was  barely able to support my removal4 
,but my situation being intimated to    
,mrs4 ,rayner1 besides smaller sums1    
with which she occasionally assisted    

me1 she gave me an hundred guineas to   
defray the expence of my removal1  and  
deposited with ,mrs4 ,lindsey1 which she
 soon after gave up to me1  four hundred
 guineas1 and to this day has never     
failed giving me every  year marks of   
her friendship4 ,her's is1 indeed1 ,i   
seriously think1  one of the first      
christian characters that ,i was ever   
acquainted  with1 having a cultivated   
comprehensive mind1 equal to any subject
  of theology or metaphysics1 intrepid  
in the cause of truth1 and most         
rationally pious4    ,spending so much  
of my time in ,london was the means of  
increasing my  intimacy with both ,mr4  
,lindsey and ,mr4 ,lee1 our common      
friend2 who  amidst the bustle of       
politics1 always preserved his          
attachment to  theology1 and the cause  
of truth4 ,the ,sunday ,i always spent  
with ,mr4  ,lindsey1 attending the      
service of his chapel1 and sometimes    
officiating  for him2 and with him and  
,mrs4 ,lindsey ,i generally spent the   

evening of  that day at ,mr4 ,lee's who 
then admitted no other company1 and     
seldom  have ,i enjoyed society with    
more relish4    ,my winter's residence  
in ,london was the means of improving my
  acquaintance with ,dr4 ,franklin4 ,i  
was seldom many days without seeing     
him1 and being members of the same club1
 we constantly returned  together4 ,the 
difference with ,america breaking out at
 this time1 our  conversation was       
chiefly of a political nature2 and ,i   
can bear witness1  that he was so far   
from promoting1 as was generally        
supposed1 that  he took every method in 
his power to prevent a rupture between  
the  two countries4 ,he urged so much   
the doctrine of forbearance1 that for   
some time he was unpopular with the     
,americans on that account1 as too  much
 a friend to ,great ,britain4 ,his      
advice to them was to bear every  thing 
for the present1 as they were sure in   
time to out grow all their  grievances2 
as it could not be in the power of the  

mother country to  oppress them long4   
,he dreaded the war1 and often said     
that1 if the difference should come  to 
an open rupture1 it would be a war of   
ten years1 and he should  not live to   
see the end of it4 ,in reality the war  
lasted near eight  years but he did live
 to see the happy termination of it4    
,that the  issue would be favorable to  
,america1 he never doubted4 ,the        
,english1  he used to say1 may take all 
our great towns1 but that will not give 
them possession of the country4 ,the    
last day that he spent in ,england1     
having given out that he should leave   
,london the day before1 we passed       
together1 without any other company2 and
 much of the time was employed  in      
reading ,american newspapers1 especially
 accounts of the reception  which the   
,boston port bill met with in ,america2 
and as he read  the addresses to the    
inhabitants of ,boston from the places  
in the  neighbourhood1 the tears        
trickled down his cheeks4#af    ,it is  

much to be lamented1 that a man of ,dr4 
,franklin's general good  character1 and
 great influence1 should have been an   
unbeliever in  christianity1 and also   
have done so much as he did to make     
others  unbelievers4 ,to me1 however1 he
 acknowledged that he had not given  so 
much attention as he ought to have done 
to the evidences of  christianity1 and  
desired me to recommend to him a few    
treatises on  the subject1 such as ,i   
thought most deserving of his notice1   
but not  of great length1 promising to  
read them1 and give me his sentiments   
on them4 ,accordingly1 ,i recommended to
 him ,hartley's evidences of            
christianity in his ,observations on    
,man1 and what ,i had then written  on  
the subject in my ,institutes of natural
 and revealed religion4 ,but  the       
,american war breaking out soon after1  
,i do not believe that he ever  found   
himself sufficiently at leisure for the 
discussion4 ,i have kept  up a          
correspondence with him occasionally    

ever since1 and three of his  letters to
 me were1 with his consent1 published in
 his ,miscellaneous  ,works1 in quarto4 
,the first of them1 written immediately 
on his landing  in ,america1 is very    
striking4    #af ,for two letters       
written by my father relating to ,dr4   
,franklin and  ,mr4 ,burke see appendix 
,no4 #d4    ,about three years before   
the dissolution of my connection with   
,lord  ,shelburne1 ,dr4 ,fothergill1    
with whom ,i had always lived on terms  
of  much intimacy1 having observed1 as  
he said1 that many of my experiments    
had not been carried to their proper    
extent on account of the expence  that  
would have attended them1 proposed to me
 a subscription from  himself and some  
of his friends1 to supply me with       
whatever sums ,i  should want for that  
purpose1 and named a hundred pounds per 
annum4  ,this large subscription ,i     
declined1 lest the discovery of it 7by  
the  use that ,i should1 of course1 make
 of it7 should give umbrage to ,lord    

,shelburne1 but ,i consented to accept  
of #dj 4 per annum1 which from  that    
time he regularly paid me1 from the     
contribution of himself1 ,sir  ,theodore
 ,jansen1 ,mr4 ,constable1 and ,sir     
,george ,saville4    ,on my leaving     
,lord ,shelburne1 which was attended    
with the loss of  one half of my income1
 ,dr4 ,fothergill proposed an           
enlargement of my  allowance for my     
experiments1 and likewise for my        
maintenance1 without  being under the   
necessity of giving my time to pupils1  
which ,i must  otherwise have done4     
,and1 considering the generosity with   
which this  voluntary offer was made by 
persons who could well afford it1 and   
who  thought me qualified to serve the  
interests of science1 ,i thought it     
right to accept of it2 and ,i preferred 
it to any pension from the  court1      
offers of which were more than once made
 by persons who thought  they could have
 procured one for me4    ,as it was my  
wish to do what might be in my power to 

shew my gratitude  to my friends and    
benefactors that suggested the idea of  
writing  these ,memoirs1 ,i shall       
subjoin a list of their names4 ,some of 
the  subscriptions were made with a view
 to defray the expence of my            
experiments only2 but the greater part  
of the subscribers were persons  who    
were equally friends to my theological  
studies4    ,the persons who made me    
this regular annual allowance were ,dr4 
,watson  and his son1 ,mr4 ,wedgwood1   
,mr4 ,moseley1 ,mr4 ,s4 ,salte1 ,mr4    
,jeffries1 ,mr4  ,radcliffe1 ,mr4       
,remington1 ,mr4 ,strutt of ,derby1 ,mr4
 ,shore1 ,mr4 ,reynolds  of ,paxton1    
,messrs4 ,galton1 father and son1 and   
the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,simpson4    ,besides the
 persons whose names appear in this     
list1 as regular  subscribers1 there    
were other persons who1 without chusing 
to be known  as such1 contributed no    
less to my support1 and some            
considerably more4    ,my chief         
benefactress was ,mrs4 ,rayner1 and next

 to her ,dr4 ,heberden1  equally        
distinguished for his love of religious 
truth1 and his zeal  to promote science4
 ,such also is the character of ,mr4    
,tayleur of  ,shrewsbury1 who has at    
different times remitted me considerable
 sums1  chiefly to defray the expences  
incurred by my theological inquiries and
  publications4    ,mr4 ,parker of      
,fleet street very generously supplied  
me with every  instrument that ,i wanted
 in glass1 particularly a capital       
burning  lens1#ag sixteen inches in     
diameter4 ,all his benefactions in this 
way  would have amounted to a           
considerable sum4 ,mr4 ,wedgwood also1  
besides  his annual benefaction1        
supplied me with every thing that ,i    
wanted  made of pottery1 such as        
retorts1 tubes1 c4 which the account of 
my  experiments will shew to have been  
of great use to me4    #ag ,though his  
sight was not much worse than before    
during the last ten  years of his life  
it had been much injured by his         

experiments with the  burning ,lens of  
which he made much use in summer time4  
,on my removal to ,birmingham commenced 
my intimacy with ,mr4 ,william          
,russell1 whose public spirit1 and zeal 
in every good cause1 can hardly  be     
exceeded4 ,my obligations to him were   
various and constant1 so as not  to be  
estimated by sums of money4 ,at his     
proposal ,i doubt not1 some of  the     
heads of the congregation made me a     
present of two hundred pounds1  to      
assist me in my theological             
publications4    ,mr4 ,lee shewed       
himself particularly my friend at the   
time that ,i left  ,lord ,shelburne1    
assisting me in the difficulties with   
which ,i was  then pressed1 and         
continuing to befriend me afterwards by 
seasonable  benefactions4 ,by him it was
 hinted to me during the administration 
of  ,lord ,rockingham1 with whom he had 
great influence1 that ,i might have  a  
pension from the government1 to assist  
in defraying the expence of  my         

experiments4 ,another hint of the same  
kind was given me in the  beginning of  
,mr4 ,pitt's administration by a ,bishop
 in whose power  it was to have procured
 it from him4 ,but in both cases ,i     
declined  the overture1 wishing to      
preserve myself independent of every    
thing  connected with the court1 and    
preferring the assistance of generous   
and  opulent individuals1 lovers of     
science1 and also lovers of liberty4    
,without assistance ,i could not have   
carried on my experiments at all1       
except on a very small scale1 and under 
great disadvantages4    ,mr4 ,galton1   
before ,i had any opportunity of being  
personally  acquainted with him1 had1 on
 the death of ,dr4 ,fothergill1 taken up
 his  subscription4 ,his son did the    
same1 and the friendship of the latter  
has added much to the happiness of my   
situation here4#ah ,seldom1 if  ever1   
have ,i known two persons of such       
cultivated minds1 pleasing  manners1 and
 liberal dispositions1 as he and ,mrs4  

,galton4 ,the latter  had the greatest  
attachment imaginable to my wife4    #ah
 ,birmingham4    ,mr4 ,salte was zealous
 in promoting the subscriptions to my   
experiments1  and moreover proposed to  
take one of my sons as an apprentice    
without  any fee4 ,but my brother-in-law
 making the same offer1 ,i gave it the  
preference3 ,mr4 ,wedgwood1 who has     
distinguished himself by his            
application to philosophical pursuits1  
as well as by his great success  in the 
improvement of his manufactory1 was very
 zealous to serve me1  and urged me to  
accept of a much larger allowance than  
,i chose4    ,the favours that ,i       
received from my two brothers-in-law    
deserve my most  grateful               
acknowledgments4 ,they acted the part of
 kind and generous  relations1          
especially at the time when ,i most     
wanted assistance4 ,it was  in          
consequence of ,mr4 ,john ,wilkinson's  
proposal1 who wished to have us  nearer 
to him1 that1 being undetermined where  

to settle1 ,i fixed upon  ,birmingham1  
where he soon provided a house for me4  
,my apology for accepting of these large
 benefactions is1 that besides  the     
great expence of my philosophical and   
even my theological studies1  and the   
education of three sons and a daughter1 
the reputation ,i had1  justly or       
unjustly1 acquired brought on me a train
 of expences not  easy to describe1 to  
avoid or to estimate2 so that without so
 much as  keeping a horse 7which the    
kindness of ,mr4 ,russel made           
unnecessary7 the  expence of            
housekeeping1 c4 was more than double   
the amount of any  regular income that  
,i had4    ,i consider my settlement at 
,birmingham as the happiest event in  my
 life1 being highly favorable to every  
object ,i had in view1  philosophical or
 theological4 ,in the former respect ,i 
had the  convenience of good workmen of 
every kind1 and the society of persons  
eminent for their knowledge of          
chemistry1 particularly ,mr4 ,watt1 ,mr4

  ,keir1 and ,dr4 ,withering4 ,these    
with ,mr4 ,boulton1 and ,dr4 ,darwin1   
who  soon left us by removing from      
,litchfield to ,derby1 ,mr4 ,galton1 and
  afterwards ,mr4 ,johnson of           
,kenelworth and myself dined together   
every  month1 calling ourselves the     
lunar society1 because the time of our  
meeting was near the full moon4    ,with
 respect to theology1 ,i had the society
 of ,mr4 ,hawkes1 ,mr4 ,blyth1  and ,mr4
 ,scholefield1 and his assistant ,mr4   
,coates1 and1 while he lived  ,mr4      
,palmer1 before of ,macclesfield4 ,we   
met and drank tea together1  every      
fortnight4 ,at this meeting we read all 
the papers that were sent  for the      
,theological ,repository1 which ,i      
revived some time after my  coming      
hither1 and in general our conversation 
was of the same cast as  that with my   
fellow tutors at ,warrington4    ,within
 a quarter of a year of my coming to    
reside at ,birmingham1  ,mr4 ,hawkes    
resigned1 and ,i had an unanimous       

invitation to succeed  him1 as colleague
 with ,mr4 ,blyth1 a man of a truly     
christian temper4  ,the congregation we 
serve is the most liberal1 ,i believe1  
of any in  ,england2 and to this freedom
 the unwearied labours of ,mr4 ,bourne  
had  eminently contributed4    ,with    
this congregation ,i greatly improved my
 plan of catechizing  and lecturing1 and
 my classes have been well attended4 ,i 
have also  introduced the custom of     
expounding the scriptures as ,i read    
them1  which ,i had never done before1  
but which ,i would earnestly recommend  
to  all ministers4 ,my time being much  
taken up with my philosophical and      
other studies1 ,i agreed with the       
congregation to leave the business  of  
baptizing1 and visiting the sick1 to    
,mr4 ,blyth1 and to confine my  services
 to the ,sundays4 ,i have been minister 
here between seven and  eight years1    
without any interruption of my          
happiness2 and for this ,i  am sensible 
,i am in a great measure indebted to the

 friendship of ,mr4  ,russell4    ,here 
,i have never long intermitted my       
philosophical pursuits1 and ,i  have    
published two volumes of experiments1   
besides communications to  the ,royal   
,society4    ,in theology ,i have       
completed my friendly controversy with  
the ,bishop  of ,waterford on the       
duration of ,christ's ministry1 ,i have 
published a  variety of single sermons1 
which1 with the addition of a few       
others1  ,i have lately collected1 and  
published in one volume1 and ,i am now  
engaged in a controversy of great       
extent1 and which promises to be of     
considerable consequence1 relating to   
the person of ,christ4    ,this was     
occasioned by my ,history of the        
,corruptions of ,christianity1  which ,i
 composed and published presently after 
my settlement at  ,birmingham1 the first
 section of which being rudely attacked 
in  the ,monthly ,review1#ai then by    
,dr4 ,horsely1 and afterwards by ,mr4   
,howes1 and other particular opponents1 

,i undertook to collect from  the       
original writers the state of opinions  
on the subject in the age  succeeding   
that of the apostles1 and ,i have       
published the result  of my             
investigation in my ,history of early   
opinions concerning  ,jesus ,christ1 in 
four volumes octavo4 ,this work has     
brought me more  antagonists1 and ,i now
 write a pamphlet annually in defence of
 the  unitarian doctrine against all my 
opponents4    #ai ,written by ,mr4      
,badcock4 ,mr4 ,badcock was originally a
 dissenting  minister4 ,he came to pay  
his respects to my father at ,calne1 at 
which  time he agreed with him upon most
 subjects4 ,he afterwards found reason  
to change his opinions1 or at least his 
conduct1 connecting himself  with the   
,clergy of the ,church of ,england1 and 
became my father's bitter  enemy4    ,my
 only ,arian antagonist is ,dr4 ,price1 
with whom the discussion of the         
question has proceeded with perfect     
amity4 ,but no ,arian has as yet        

appeared upon the ground to which ,i    
wish to confine the controversy1  viz4  
the state of opinions in the primitive  
times1 as one means of  collecting what 
was the doctrine of the apostles1 and   
the true sense of  scripture on the     
subject4    ,some years ago ,i resumed  
the ,theological ,repository in which ,i
 first  advanced my objections to the   
doctrine of the miraculous conception of
  ,jesus1 and his natural fallibility   
and peccability4 ,these opinions gave   
at first great alarm1 even to my best   
friends2 but that is now in a  great    
measure subsided4 ,for want of          
sufficient sale1 ,i shall be obliged  to
 discontinue this ,repository for some  
time4    ,at present ,i thank ,god ,i   
can say that my prospects are better    
than they  have ever been before1 and my
 own health1 and that of my wife1 better
  established1 and my hopes as to the   
dispositions and future settlement  of  
my children satisfactory4    ,i shall   
now close this account of myself with   

some observations of a  general nature1 
but chiefly an account of those         
circumstances for which  ,i have more   
particular reason to be thankful to that
 good being who has  brought me         
hitherto1 and to whom ,i trust ,i       
habitually ascribe whatever  my partial 
friends think the world indebted to me  
for1    ,i4 ,not to enlarge again on    
what has been mentioned already1 on the 
fundamental blessings of a religious and
 liberal education1 ,i have  particular 
reason to be thankful for a happy       
temperament of body and  mind1 both     
derived from my parents4 ,my father1    
grand father1 and  several branches of  
the family1 were remarkably healthy1 and
 long  lived2 and though my constitution
 has been far from robust1 and was  much
 injured by a consumptive tendency1 or  
rather an ulcer in my lungs1  the       
consequence of improper conduct of      
myself when ,i was at school  7being    
often violently heated with exercise1   
and as often imprudently  chilled by    

bathing1 c47 from which with great      
difficulty ,i recovered1  it has been   
excellently adapted to that studious    
life which has fallen  to my lot4    ,i 
have never been subject to head-achs1 or
 any other complaints that  are         
peculiarly unfavourable to study4 ,i    
have never found myself less  disposed1 
or less qualified1 for mental exertions 
of any kind at one  time of the day more
 than another2 but all seasons have been
 equal to  me1 early or late1 before    
dinner or after1 c4 ,and so far have ,i 
been  from suffering by my application  
to study1 7which however has never  been
 so close or intense as some have       
imagined7 that ,i have found my  health 
improving from the age of eighteen to   
the present time2 and  never have ,i    
found myself more free from any disorder
 than at present4  ,i must1 however1    
except a short time preceding and       
following my leaving  ,lord ,shelburne1 
when ,i laboured under a bilious        
complaint1 in which ,i  was troubled    

with gall stones1 which sometimes gave  
me exquisite pain4  ,but by confining   
myself to a vegetable diet1 ,i perfectly
 recovered2  and ,i have now been so    
long free from the disorder that ,i am  
under no  apprehension of its return4   
,it has been a singular happiness to me1
 and a proof1 ,i believe1 of a          
radically good constitution1 that ,i    
have always slept well1 and have  awaked
 with my faculties perfectly vigorous1  
without any disposition  to drowsiness4 
,also1 whenever ,i have been fatigued   
with any kind of  exertion1 ,i could at 
any time sit down and sleep2 and        
whatever cause of  anxiety ,i may have  
had1 ,i have almost always lost sight of
 it when ,i  have got to bed2 and ,i    
have generally fallen asleep as soon as 
,i have  been warm4#bj    ,i even think 
it an advantage to me1 and am truly     
thankful for it1 that  my health        
received the check that it did when ,i  
was young2 since a  muscular habit from 
high health1 and strong spirits1 are    

not1 ,i think1  in general accompanied  
with that sensibility of mind1 which is 
both  favourable to piety1 and to       
speculative pursuits4#ba    #bj ,my     
father was an early riser4 ,he never    
slept more than six hours4  ,he said he 
did not remember having lost a whole    
night's sleep but once1  though when    
awake he often had to suffer much from  
pain and sickness as  well as from other
 circumstances of a very afflictive     
nature4    #ba ,though not a muscular   
man he went through great exertion at   
various times of his life with activity4
 ,he walked very firmly1 and            
expeditiously4    ,to a fundamentally   
good constitution of body1 and the being
 who gave  it me1 ,i owe an even        
chearfulness of temper1 which has had   
but few  interruptions4 ,this ,i inherit
 from my father1 who had uniformly      
better  spirits than any man that ,i    
ever knew1 and by this means was as     
happy  towards the close of life1 when  
reduced to poverty1 and dependent upon  

others1 as in his best days2 and who1 ,i
 am confident1 would not have  been     
unhappy1 as ,i have frequently heard him
 say1 in a workhouse4    ,though my     
readers will easily suppose that1 in the
 course of a life so  full of           
vicissitude as mine has been1 many      
things must have occurred to  mortify   
and discompose me1 nothing has ever     
depressed my mind beyond  a very short  
period4 ,my spirits have never failed to
 recover their  natural level1 and ,i   
have frequently observed1 and at first  
with some  surprize1 that the most      
perfect satisfaction ,i have ever felt  
has been  a day or two after an event   
that afflicted me the most1 and without 
any  change having taken place in the   
state of things4 ,having found this to  
be the case after many of my troubles1  
the persuasion that it would  be so1    
after a new cause of uneasiness1 has    
never failed to lessen the  effect of   
its first impression1 and together with 
my firm belief of  the doctrine of      

necessity1 7and consequently that of    
every thing being  ordered for the best7
 has contributed to that degree of      
composure  which ,i have enjoyed through
 life1 so that ,i have always considered
  myself as one of the happiest of men4 
,when ,i was a young author1 7though ,i 
did not publish any thing until ,i  was 
about thirty7 strictures on my writings 
gave me some disturbance1  though ,i    
believe even then less than they do most
 others2 but after  some time1 things of
 that kind hardly affected me at all1   
and on  this account ,i may be said to  
have been well formed for public        
controversy4#bb ,but what has always    
made me easy in any controversy  in     
which ,i have been engaged1 has been my 
fixed resolution frankly  to acknowledge
 any mistake that ,i might perceive ,i  
had fallen into4  ,that ,i have never   
been in the least backward to do this in
 matters of  philosophy1 can never be   
denied4    #bb ,though ,dr4 ,priestley  
has been considered as fond of          

controversy  and that his chief delight 
consisted in it1 yet it is far from     
being  true4 ,he was more frequently the
 defendant than the assailant4 ,his     
controversies as far as it depended upon
 himself were carried to with  temper   
and decency4 ,he was never malicious nor
 even sarcastic or  indignant unless    
provoked4                               
,t4 ,c4      ,as ,i have not failed to  
attend to the phenomena of my own mind1 
as  well as to those of other parts of  
nature1 ,i have not been insensible  of 
some great defects1 as well as some     
advantages1 attending its  constitution2
 having from an early period been       
subject to a most  humbling failure of  
recollection1 so that ,i have sometimes 
lost all  ideas of both persons and     
things1 that ,i have been conversant    
with4  ,i have so completely forgotten  
what ,i have myself published1 that in  
reading my own writings1 what ,i find in
 them often appears perfectly  new to   
me1 and ,i have more than once made     

experiments the results of  which had   
been published by me4    ,i shall       
particularly mention one fact of this   
kind2 as it alarmed  me much at the     
time1 as a symptom of all my mental     
powers totally  failing me1 until ,i was
 relieved by the recollection of things 
of a  similar nature having happened to 
me before4 ,when ,i was composing the   
,dissertations which are prefixed to my 
,harmony of the gospels1  ,i had to     
ascertain something which had been the  
subject of much  discussion relating to 
the ,jewish passover 7,i have now       
forgotten what  it was7 and for that    
purpose had to consult1 and compare     
several  writers4 ,this ,i accordingly  
did1 and digested the result in the     
compass  of a few paragraphs1 which ,i  
wrote in short hand4 ,but having mislaid
  the paper1 and my attention having    
been drawn off to other things1 in  the 
space of a fortnight1 ,i did the same   
thing over again2 and should  never have
 discovered that ,i had done it twice1  

if1 after the second  paper was         
transcribed for the press1 ,i had not   
accidentally found the  former1 which ,i
 viewed with a degree of terror4        
,apprized of this defect1 ,i never fail 
to note down as soon as possible  every 
thing that ,i wish not to forget4 ,the  
same failing has led me to  devise1 and 
have recourse to1 a variety of          
mechanical expedients to  secure and    
arrange my thoughts1 which have been of 
the greatest use to  me in the          
composition of large and complex works2 
and what has excited  the wonder of some
 of my readers1 would only have made    
them smile if  they had seen me at work4
 ,but by simple and mechanical methods  
one man  shall do that in a month1 which
 shall cost another1 of equal ability1  
whole years to execute4 ,this methodical
 arrangement of a large work  is greatly
 facilitated by mechanical methods1 and 
nothing contributes  more to the        
perspicuity of a large work1 than a good
 arrangement of its  parts4    ,what ,i 

have known with respect to myself has   
tended much to lessen  both my          
admiration1 and my contempt1 of others4 
,could we have entered  into the mind of
 ,sir ,isaac ,newton1 and have traced   
all the steps  by which he produced his 
great works1 we might see nothing very  
extraordinary in the process4 ,and great
 powers with respect to some  things are
 generally attended with great defects  
in others2 and these  may not appear in 
a man's writings4 ,for this reason it   
seldom happens  but that our admiration 
of philosophers and writers is lessened 
by a  personal knowledge of them4    ,as
 great excellencies are often balanced  
by great1 though not apparent1  defects1
 so great and apparent defects are often
 accompanied by  great1 though not      
apparent1 excellencies4 ,thus my defect 
in point of  recollection1 which may be 
owing to a want of sufficient coherence 
in  the association of ideas formerly   
impressed1 may arise from a mental      
constitution more favourable to new     

associations2 so that what ,i have  lost
 with respect to memory1 may have been  
compensated by what is  called          
invention1 or new and original          
combinations of ideas4 ,this is  a      
subject that deserves attention1 as well
 as every thing else that  relates to   
the affections of the mind4    ,though  
,i have often composed much in a little 
time1 it by no means  follows that ,i   
could have done much in a given time4   
,for whenever ,i  have done much        
business in a short time1 it has always 
been with the  idea of having time more 
than sufficient to do it in2 so that ,i 
have  always felt myself at ease1 and ,i
 could have done nothing1 as many can1  
if ,i had been hurried4    ,knowing the 
necessity of this state of my mind to   
the dispatch of  business1 ,i have never
 put off any thing to the last moment2  
and  instead of doing that on the morrow
 which ought to be done to day1  ,i have
 often blamed myself for doing to day   
what had better have  been put off until

 to morrow2 precipitancy being more my  
fault than  procrastination4    ,it has 
been a great advantage to me that ,i    
have never been under the  necessity of 
retiring from company in order to       
compose any thing4 ,being  fond of      
domestic life1 ,i got a habit of writing
 on any subject by the  parlour fire1   
with my wife and children about me1 and 
occasionally  talking to them1 without  
experiencing any inconvenience from such
  interruptions4 ,nothing but reading1  
or speaking without interruption1  has  
been any obstruction to me4 ,for ,i     
could not help attending 7as  some can7 
when others spoke in my hearing4 ,these 
are useful habits1  which studious      
persons in general might acquire1 if    
they would2 and  many persons greatly   
distress themselves1 and others1 by the 
idea that  they can do nothing except in
 perfect solitude or silence4           
,another great subject of my            
thankfulness to a good providence is my 
perfect freedom from any embarrassment  

in my circumstances1 so that1  without  
any anxiety on the subject1 my supplies 
have always been  equal to my wants2 and
 now that my expences are increased to a
 degree  that ,i had no conception of   
some years ago1 ,i am a richer man than 
,i was1 and without laying myself out   
for the purpose4 ,what is more1  this   
indifference about an increase of       
fortune has been the means of  attaining
 it4 ,when ,i began my experiments1 ,i  
expended on them all the  money ,i could
 possibly raise1 carried on by my ardour
 in philosophical  investigations1 and  
entirely regardless of consequences1    
except so far  as never to contract any 
debt2 and if this had been without      
success1  my imprudence would have been 
manifest4 ,but having succeeded1 ,i was 
in  time more than indemnified for all  
that ,i had expended4    ,my theological
 studies1 especially those which made it
 necessary for  me to consult the       
,christian ,fathers1 c4 have also been  
expensive to  me4 ,but ,i have found my 

theological friends even more liberal   
than my  philosophical ones1 and all    
beyond my expectations4    ,in          
reflecting on my past life ,i have often
 thought of two sayings of  ,jacob4     
,when he had lost one of his sons1 and  
thought of other things  that were      
afflictions to him1 he said1 8all these 
things are against  me10 at the same    
time that they were in reality making   
for him4 ,so  the impediment in my      
speech1 and the difficulties of my      
situation at  ,needham1 ,i now see as   
much cause to be thankful for1 as for   
the most  brilliant scenes in my life4  
,i have also applied to myself what     
,jacob said on his return from ,padan   
,aram4 8,with my staff ,i went over this
 ,jordan1 and now ,i am become  two     
bands20 when ,i consider how little ,i  
carried with me to ,needham  and        
,nantwich1 how much more ,i had to carry
 to ,warrington1 how much  more still to
 ,leeds1 how much more than that to     
,calne1 and then to  ,birmingham4       

,yet1 frequently as ,i have changed my  
situation1 and always for the  better1  
,i can truly say that ,i never wished   
for any change on my own  account4 ,i   
should have been contented even at      
,needham1 if ,i could have  been        
unmolested1 and had bare necessaries4   
,this freedom from anxiety  was         
remarkable in my father1 and therefore  
is in a manner hereditary  to me2 but it
 has been much increased by reflection2 
having frequently  observed1 especially 
with respect to christian ministers1 how
 often it  has contributed to embitter  
their lives1 without being of any use to
  them4 ,some attention to the          
improvement of a man's circumstances is1
  no doubt1 right1 because no man can   
tell what occasion he may have for      
money1 especially if he have children1  
and therefore ,i do not recommend  my   
example to others4 ,but ,i am thankful  
to that good providence which  always   
took more care of me than ,i ever took  
of myself4    ,hitherto ,i have had     

great reason to be thankful with respect
 to my  children1 as they have a        
prospect of enjoying a good share of    
health1  and a sufficient capacity for  
performing the duties of their stations4
  ,they have also good dispositions1 and
 as much as could be expected  at their 
age1 a sense of religion4 ,but as ,i    
hope they will live to  see this work1  
,i say the less on this subject1 and ,i 
hope they  will consider what ,i say in 
their favour as an incitement to exert  
themselves to act a christian and useful
 part in life2 that the care  that ,i   
and their mother have taken of their    
instruction may not be lost  upon them1 
and that they may secure a happy meeting
 with us in a better  world4    ,i      
esteem it a singular happiness to have  
lived in an age and country1  in which  
,i have been at full liberty both to    
investigate1 and by  preaching and      
writing to propagate1 religious truth2  
that though the  freedom ,i have used   
for this purpose was for some time      

disadvantageous  to me1 it was not long 
so1 and that my present situation is    
such that  ,i can with the greatest     
openness urge whatever appears to me to 
be  the truth of the gospel1 not only   
without giving the least offence1  but  
with the intire approbation of those    
with whom ,i am particularly  connected4
    ,as to the dislike which ,i have    
drawn upon myself by my writings1       
whether that of the ,calvinistic party1 
in or out of the church of  ,england1   
those who rank with rational dissenters 
7but who have been  exceedingly offended
 at my carrying my inquiries farther    
than they  wished any person to do7 or  
whether they be unbelievers1 ,i am      
thankful  that it gives less disturbance
 to me than it does to themselves2 and  
that their dislike is much more than    
compensated by the cordial esteem  and  
approbation of my conduct by a few1     
whose minds are congenial to my  own1   
and especially that the number of such  
persons increases4                      

,birmingham1 #aghg4       ,a            
,continuation of the ,memoirs1 written  
at ,northumberland in ,america   in the 
beginning of the year #agie4    ,when ,i
 wrote the preceding part of these      
,memoirs ,i was happy as must  have     
appeared in the course of them1 in the  
prospect of spending the  remainder of  
my life at ,birmingham1 where ,i had    
every advantage for  pursuing my        
studies1 both philosophical and         
theological2 but it pleased  the        
sovereign disposer of all things to     
appoint for me other removals1  and the 
manner in which they were brought about 
were more painful to me  than the       
removals themselves4 ,i am far1 however1
 from questioning the  wisdom or the    
goodness of the appointments respecting 
myself or others4    ,to resume the     
account of my pursuits where the former 
part of the  ,memoirs left it1 ,i must  
observe that1 in the prosecution of my  
experiments1 ,i was led to maintain the 
doctrine of phlogiston against  ,mr4    

,lavoisier and other chemists in        
,france1 whose opinions were adopted    
not only by almost all the philosophers 
of that country1 but by those  in       
,england and ,scotland also4 ,my        
friends1 however1 of the lunar society  
were never satisfied with the           
,anti-phlogistic doctrine4 ,my          
experiments  and observations on this   
subject were published in various papers
  in the ,philosophical ,transactions4  
,at ,birmingham ,i also published a  new
 edition of my publications on the      
subject of air1 and others  connected   
with it1 reducing the six volumes to    
three1 which1 with his  consent1 ,i     
dedicated to the prince of ,wales4      
,in theology ,i continued my defences of
 ,unitarianism1 until it  appeared to   
myself and my friends that my           
antagonists produced nothing  to which  
it was of any consequence to reply4 ,but
 ,i did not1 as ,i had  proposed1       
publish any address to the bishops1 or  
to the legislature1  on the subject4    

,the former ,i wrote1 but did not       
publish4 ,i left it1  however1 in the   
hands of ,mr4 ,belsham when ,i came to  
,america1 that he  might dispose of it  
as he should think proper4    ,the pains
 that ,i took to ascertain the state of 
early opinions  concerning ,jesus       
,christ1 and the great misapprehensions 
,i perceived  in all the ecclesiastical 
historians1 led me to undertake a       
,general  ,history of the christian     
church to the fall of the ,western      
empire1  which accordingly ,i wrote in  
two volumes octavo1 and dedicated to    
,mr4  ,shore4 ,this work ,i mean to     
continue4    ,at ,birmingham ,i wrote   
the second part of my ,letters to a     
philosophical ,unbeliever1 and dedicated
 the whole to ,mr4 ,tayleur  of         
,shrewsbury1 who had afforded me most   
material assistance in the  publication 
of many of my theological works1 without
 which1 the sale  being inconsiderable1 
,i should not have been able to publish 
them at  all4    ,before ,i left        

,birmingham ,i preached a funeral sermon
 for my friend ,dr4  ,price1 and another
 for ,mr4 ,robinson of ,cambridge1 who  
died with us on a  visit to preach our  
annual charity school sermon4 ,i also   
preached the  last annual sermon to the 
friends of the college at ,hackney4 ,all
 these  three sermons were published4   
,about two years before ,i left         
,birmingham the question about the test 
act was much agitated both in and out of
 parliament4 ,this1 however1  was       
altogether without any concurrence of   
mine4 ,i only delivered1 and  published1
 a sermon on the #eth of ,november      
#aghi1 recommending the  most peaceable 
method of pursuing our object4 ,mr4     
,madan1 however1 the  most respectable  
clergyman in the town1 preaching and    
publishing a  most inflammatory sermon  
on the subject1 inveighing in the       
bitterest  manner against the           
,dissenters in general1 and myself in   
particular1  ,i addressed a number of   
familiar letters to the inhabitants of  

,birmingham in our defence4 ,this       
produced a reply from him1 and other    
letters from me4 ,all mine were written 
in an ironical and rather a  pleasant   
manner1 and in some of the last of them 
,i introduced a farther  reply to ,mr4  
,burn1 another clergyman in ,birmingham1
 who had addressed  to me letters on the
 infallibility of the testimony of the  
,apostles  concerning the person of     
,christ1 after replying to his first set
 of  ,letters1 in a separate            
publication4    ,from these small pieces
 ,i was far from expecting any serious  
consequences4 ,but the ,dissenters in   
general being very obnoxious to  the    
court1 and it being imagined1 though    
without any reason1 that ,i  had been   
the chief promoter of the measures which
 gave them offence1  the clergy1 not    
only in ,birmingham1 but through all    
,england1 seemed to  make it their      
business1 by writing in the public      
papers1 by preaching1  and other        
methods1 to inflame the minds of the    

people against me4  ,and on occasion of 
the celebration of the anniversary of   
the ,french  revolution on ,july #adth1 
#agia1 by several of my friends1 but    
with which  ,i had little to do1 a mob  
encouraged by some persons in power1    
first  burned the meeting house in which
 ,i preached1 then another meeting      
house in the town1 and then my dwelling 
house1 demolishing my library1          
apparatus1 and1 as far as they could1   
every thing belonging to me4 ,they  also
 burned1 or much damaged1 the houses of 
many ,dissenters1 chiefly  my friends2  
the particulars of which ,i need not    
recite1 as they will  be found in two   
,appeals which ,i published on the      
subject written  presently after the    
riots4    ,being in some personal danger
 on this occasion1 ,i went to ,london2  
and  so violent was the spirit of party 
which then prevailed1 that ,i believe   
,i could hardly have been safe in any   
other place4 ,there1 however1 ,i  was   
perfectly so1 though ,i continued to be 

an object of troublesome  attention     
until ,i left the country altogether4   
,it shewed no small  degree of courage  
and friendship in ,mr4 ,william ,vaughan
 to receive me  into his house1 and also
 in ,mr4 ,salte1 with whom ,i spent a   
month at  ,tottenham4 ,but it shewed    
more in ,dr4 ,price's congregation at   
,hackney1  to invite me to succeed him1 
which they did1 though not unanimously1 
some time after my arrival in ,london4  
,in this situation ,i found myself as   
happy as ,i had been at ,birmingham1    
and contrary to general expectation1 ,i 
opened my lectures to young  persons    
with great success1 being attended by   
many from ,london2 and  though ,i lost  
some of the hearers1 ,i left the        
congregation in a better  situation than
 that in which ,i found it4    ,on the  
whole1 ,i spent my time even more       
happily at ,hackney than ever  ,i had   
done before2 having every advantage for 
my philosophical and  theological       
studies1 in some respect superior to    

what ,i had enjoyed  at ,birmingham1    
especially from my easy access to ,mr4  
,lindsey1 and my  frequent intercourse  
with ,mr4 ,belsham1 professor of        
divinity in the  ,new ,college1 near    
which ,i lived4 ,never1 on this side the
 grave1 do  ,i expect to enjoy myself so
 much as ,i did by the fire side of ,mr4
  ,lindsey1 conversing with him and     
,mrs4 ,lindsey on theological and other 
subjects1 or in my frequent walks with  
,mr4 ,belsham1 whose views of most      
important subjects were1 like ,mr4      
,lindsey's1 the same with my own4    ,i 
found1 however1 my society much         
restricted with respect to my           
philosophical acquaintance2 most of the 
members of the ,royal ,society  shunning
 me on account of my religious or       
political opinions1 so that ,i  at      
length withdrew myself from them1 and   
gave my reasons for so doing  in the    
,preface to my ,observations and        
,experiments on the generation of  air  
from water1 which ,i published at       

,hackney4 ,for1 with the assistance  of 
my friends1 ,i had in a great measure   
replaced my ,apparatus1 and had  resumed
 my experiments1 though after the loss  
of near two years4    ,living in the    
neighbourhood of the ,new ,college1 ,i  
voluntarily undertook  to deliver the   
lectures to the pupils on the subject of
 ,history and  ,general policy1 which ,i
 had composed at ,warrington1 and also  
on  ,experimental ,philosophy and       
,chemistry1 the ,heads of which ,i drew 
up  for this purpose1 and afterwards    
published4 ,in being useful to this     
,institution ,i found a source of       
considerable satisfaction to myself4    
,indeed1 ,i have always had a high      
degree of enjoyment in lecturing to     
young persons1 though more on           
theological subjects than on any other4 
,after the riots in ,birmingham ,i wrote
 an ,appeal to the ,public on  the      
subject1 and that being replied to by   
the clergy of the place1 ,i  wrote a    
second part1 to which1 though they had  

pledged themselves  to do it1 they made 
no reply2 so that1 in fact the          
criminality of the  magistrates1 and    
other principal ,high-church men at     
,birmingham1 in  promoting the riot1    
remains acknowledged4 ,indeed1 many     
circumstances1  which have appeared     
since that time1 shew that the friends  
of the  court1 if not the prime         
ministers themselves1 were the favourers
 of  that riot2 having1 no doubt1       
thought to intimidate the friends of    
liberty by the measure4    ,to my       
,appeal ,i subjoined various            
,addresses#bc that were sent to me  from
 several descriptions of persons in     
,england1 and abroad2 and from  them ,i 
will not deny that ,i received much     
satisfaction1 as it appeared  that the  
friends of liberty1 civil and religious1
 were of opinion that  ,i was a sufferer
 in that cause4 ,from ,france ,i        
received a considerable  number of      
,addresses2 and when the present        
,national ,convention was  called1 ,i   

was invited by many of the departments  
to be a member of it4  ,but ,i thought  
myself more usefully employed at home1  
and that ,i was  but ill qualified for a
 business which required knowledge which
 none  but a native of the country could
 possess2 and therefore declined the    
honour that was proposed to me4    #bc  
,many of these addresses have been      
published already4 ,in the  appendix to 
the present life 7,no4 #g47 will be     
given an arranged list  of the addresses
 to ,dr4 ,priestley from various bodies 
of men at  various times of his life2   
they illustrate the following positions 
so  honourable to his character1 and so 
necessary to a just view of it4  #ast   
,that wherever he officiated as a       
dissenting minister1 he never  quitted  
his situation but with the sincere      
regrets of those among whom  he had     
resided1 and with parting testimonies of
 their affectionate  approbation of his 
conduct4 #b;dly4 ,that the riots at     
,birmingham called  forth such abundant 

testimonies in favour of his moral      
conduct and  eminent usefulness2 that   
the promoters of those riots whether in 
church  or state can have no palliation 
in the eye of a discerning public for   
their proceedings1 so far as he was the 
object of them4 ,those only use         
violence in opposition to argument who  
have no argument to use4 #c;dly4  ,that 
his quitting ,england for ,america1 was 
regarded as a national loss  to ,great  
,britain1 and the circumstances which   
induced it1 a national  disgrace4       
#dthly4 ,that his reception in this     
country was as honourable  as his       
friends had reason to expect3 ,and his  
demeanour since his  residence here1 has
 been such as to gain him encreased     
reputation and  respect1 among those who
 knew nothing of him personally before  
his  arrival4                           
,t4 ,c4      ,but no addresses gave me  
so much satisfaction as those from my   
late  congregation1 and especially of   
the young persons belonging to it1 who  

had attended my lectures4 ,they are a   
standing testimony of the zeal and      
fidelity with which ,i did my duty with 
respect to them1 and which ,i  value    
highly4    ,besides congratulatory      
addresses1 ,i received much pecuniary   
assistance  from various persons1 and   
bodies of men1 which more than          
compensated  for my pecuniary losses1   
though what was awarded me at the       
,assizes  fell two thousand pounds short
 of them4 ,but my brother-in-law1 ,mr4  
,john ,wilkinson1 from whom ,i had not  
at that time any expectation1 in        
consequence of my son's leaving his     
employment1 was the most generous  on   
the occasion4 ,without any solicitation1
 he immediately sent me  five hundred   
pounds1 and afterwards transferred to me
 ten thousand  pounds which he had      
deposited in the ,french funds1 and     
until that be  productive1 he allows me 
two hundred pounds per annum4    ,after 
the riots1 ,i published my ,letters to  
the ,swedenborgian ,society1  which ,i  

had composed1 and prepared for the press
 just before4    ,mr4 ,wakefield living 
in the neighbourhood of the ,college1   
and  publishing at this time his        
objections to public worship1 they made 
a great impression on many of our young 
men1 and in his ,preface he  reflected  
much on the character of ,dr4 ,price4   
,on both these accounts  ,i thought     
myself called upon to reply to him1     
which ,i did in a series  of ,letters to
 a young man4 ,but though he made       
several angry replies1  ,i never noticed
 any of them4 ,in this situation ,i also
 answered ,mr4  ,evanson's ,observations
 on the dissonance of the ,evangelists  
in  a second set of ,letters to a young 
man4 ,he also replied to me1  but ,i was
 satisfied with what ,i had done1 and   
did not continue the  controversy4      
,besides the sermon which ,i delivered  
on my acceptance of the  invitation to  
the meeting at ,hackney1 in the preface 
to which ,i gave a  detailed account of 
my system of catechizing1 ,i published  

two ,fast  sermons for the years #agic  
and #agid1 in the latter of which ,i    
gave my  ideas of antient prophecies    
compared with the then state of ,europe1
 and  in the preface to it ,i gave an   
account of my reasons for leaving the   
country4 ,i also published a ,farewell  
sermon4#bd    ,but the most important of
 my publications in this situation were 
a  series of ,letters to the            
,philosophers and ,politicians of       
,france on the  subject of ,religion4 ,i
 thought that the light in which ,i then
 stood  in that country gave me some    
advantage in my attempts to enforce the 
evidence of natural and revealed        
religion4 ,i also published a set of    
sermons on the evidences of revelation1 
which ,i first delivered by  public     
notice1 and the delivery of which was   
attended by great numbers4  ,they were  
printed just before ,i left ,england4   
#bd ,these reasons1 as shewing the      
progress and state of his mind that     
induced this new ra of his life1 will be

 inserted hereafter4    ,as the reasons 
for this step in my conduct are given at
 large in the  preface to my ,fast      
sermon1 ,i shall not dwell upon them    
here4 ,the  bigotry of the country in   
general made it impossible for me to    
place  my sons in it to any advantage4  
,william had been some time in ,france1 
and on the breaking out of the troubles 
in that country he had embarked  for    
,america1 where his two brothers met    
him4 ,my own situation1 if  not         
hazardous1 was become unpleasant1 so    
that ,i thought my removal  would be of 
more service to the cause of truth than 
my longer stay in  ,england4 ,at length1
 therefore1 with the approbation of all 
my friends1  without exception1 but with
 great reluctance on my own part1 ,i    
came to  that resolution2 ,i being at a 
time of life in which ,i could not      
expect  much satisfaction as to friends 
and society1 comparable to that which   
,i left1 in which the resumption of my  
philosophical pursuits must be  attended

 with great disadvantage1 and in which  
success in my still more  favourite     
pursuit1 the propagation of             
unitarianism1 was still more  uncertain4
 ,it was also painful to me to leave my 
daughter1 ,mr4 ,finch  having the       
greatest aversion to leave his relations
 and friends in  ,england4    ,at the   
time of my leaving ,england my son in   
conjunction with ,mr4  ,cooper1 and     
other ,english emigrants1 had a scheme  
for a large  settlement for the friends 
of liberty in general near the head of  
the ,susquehanna in ,pennsylvania4 ,and 
taking it for granted that it  would be 
carried into effect1 after landing at   
,new-,york1 ,i went to  ,philadelphia1  
and thence came to ,northumberland1 a   
town the nearest to  the proposed       
settlement1 thinking to reside there    
until some progress  had been made in   
it4 ,the settlement was given up2 but   
being here1 and  my wife and myself     
liking the place1 ,i have determined to 
take up my  residence here1 though      

subject to many disadvantages4          
,philadelphia  was excessively          
expensive1 and this comparatively a     
cheap place2 and  my son's1 settling in 
the neighbourhood1 will be less exposed 
to  temptation1 and more likely to form 
habits of sobriety and industry4  ,they 
will also be settled at much less       
expence than in or near a  large town4  
,we hope1 after some time1 to be joined 
by a few of our  friends from ,england1 
that a readier communication will be    
opened with  ,philadelphia1 and that the
 place will improve1 and become more    
eligible  in other respects4    ,when ,i
 was at sea1 ,i wrote some observations 
on the cause of the  present prevalence 
of infidelity1 which ,i published1 and  
prefixed to  a new edition of the       
,letters to the ,philosophers and       
,politicians of  ,france4 ,i have also  
published my ,fast and ,farewell        
sermons1 and  my small tracts in defence
 of unitarianism1 also a ,continuation  
of those ,letters1 and a third part of  

,letters to a ,philosophical            
,unbeliever1 in answer to ,mr4 ,paine's 
,age of ,reason4    ,the observations on
 the prevalence of infidelity ,i have   
much enlarged1  and intend soon to      
print2 but ,i am chiefly employed on the
 ,continuation  of my ,history of the   
christian church4    ,northumberland1   
,march #bd1 #agie1 in which ,i have     
completed the sixty  second year of my  
age4                                    
,a                                      
,,continuation                          
,,of ,,the                              
,,memoirs                               
,,of                             ,,dr4  
,,joseph ,,priestley4                   
,written by his ,son ,joseph ,priestley4
      ,thus far the narrative is from my
 father's manuscript1 and ,i regret     
extremely1 with the reader1 that it     
falls to my lot to give an account  of  
the latter period of his valuable life4 
,i entertained hopes at one time1 that  
he would have continued it  himself2 and

 he was frequently requested to do so1  
by me and many of  his friends in the   
course of the year preceding his death4 
,he had then  nearly compleated all the 
literary works he had in view1 he had   
arrived  at that period of life when1 in
 imitation of his friend ,mr4 ,lindsey1 
he had determined not to preach again in
 public1 and beyond which he  probably  
would not have ventured to publish any  
work without first  subjecting it to the
 inspection of some judicious friend4   
,he was requested also1 in imitation of 
,courayer1 to add at the close  of his  
,memoirs a summary of his religious     
opinions4 ,this would have  counteracted
 the suspicions entertained by some1    
that they had  undergone a considerable 
change since his coming to ,america2 and
 it  was thought by his friends1 that   
such a brief and simple statement  of   
all that appeared to him essential to   
the christian belief1 and  the christian
 character1 would attract the attention 
of many readers  previously indisposed  

to religion altogether1 from not        
understanding  its real nature1 and     
judging of it only from the corrupt1    
adulterated1  and complicated state1 in 
which it is professed in all countries  
called  christian4 ,unbelievers in      
general have no conception of the       
perfect  coincidence of christianity    
with rational philosophy1 of the sublime
  views it affords of the divine        
benevolence1 and how powerfully it acts 
to promote the pleasures and lessen the 
evils of the present life1 at  the same 
time that it holds out to us a certain  
prospect of a future  and endless state 
of enjoyment4 ,it was suggested to him  
also1 that as  his society through life 
had been singularly varied and          
extensive1 and  his opportunities of    
attaining a general knowledge of the    
world1 and  a particular knowledge of   
eminent political and literary          
characters1  very great1 it would       
contribute much to the instruction and  
amusement  of those into whose hands his

 ,memoirs should fall1 if they were     
accompanied with anecdotes of the       
principal characters with whom he  had  
been acquainted4 ,for he had a fund of  
anecdote which he was never  backward to
 produce for the amusement of his       
friends1 as occasions  served for       
introducing it4 ,but his relations were 
never sarcastic or  ironical1 or tended 
to disparage the characters of the      
persons spoken  of1 unless on subjects  
of manifest importance to the interests 
of  society4    ,he meant to have       
complied with the above suggestions1 but
 being at  that time very busily        
employed about his ,comparison1 and     
thinking his  ,memoirs of little value  
compared with the works about which he  
was then  engaged1 he put off the       
completion of his narrative1 until his  
other  works should be ready for the    
press4 ,unfortunately this was too late4
  ,the work he had in hand was not      
compleated until the #bb;d ,january1    
when  he was very weak and suffered     

greatly from his disorder1 and he died  
on  the #fth of ,february following3    
,the reader will therefore make         
allowance for the difference between    
what these ,memoirs might have been1 and
 what they now are2 and  particularly   
for the part which ,i venture to lay    
before the public as a  continuation of 
his own account4    ,the reasons that   
induced him to quit ,england1 and the   
progress of his  opinions and           
inclinations respecting that last       
important ra in his  life1 have been but
 briefly stated in the preceding pages  
by himself4  ,but as many may peruse    
these ,memoirs1 into whose hands his    
appeal to  the public1 occasioned by the
 riots at ,birmingham1 and his ,fast    
sermon1  in which he assigns at length  
his reasons for leaving his native      
country1 are not likely to fall2 ,i     
think it right to present to the        
readers1 in his own words the history of
 the motives that impelled him  to      
exchange his residence in ,england for  

one in this country4    ,the disgraceful
 riots at ,birmingham were certainly the
 chief cause that  first induced my     
father to think of leaving ,england1    
though at the  time of his writing the  
second part of the ,appeal1 in ,august  
#agib1 he  had not come to any          
determination on the subject4 ,this     
appears from the  following passage     
which as it shews the progress of his   
discontent1  and likewise the true state
 of his political opinions1 particularly
 in  relation to the ,english form of   
government ,i shall quote4--    8,in    
this almost universal prevalence of a   
spirit so extremely hostile  to me and  
my friends1 and which would be gratified
 by my destruction1  it cannot be any   
matter of surprise1 that a son of mine  
should wish to  abandon a country in    
which his father has been used as ,i    
have been1  especially when it is       
considered that this son was present at 
the riot  in ,birmingham1 exerting      
himself all the dreadful night of the   

#adth  of ,july1 to save what he could  
of my most valuable property2 that in   
consequence of this his life was in     
imminent danger1 and another young  man 
was nearly killed because he was        
mistaken for him4 ,this would  probably 
have been his fate1 if a friend had not 
almost perforce kept  him concealed some
 days1 so that neither myself nor his   
mother knew  what was become of him4 ,i 
had not1 however1 the ambition to court 
the  honour that has been shewn him by  
the national assembly of ,france1  and  
even declined the proposal of his       
naturalization4 ,at the most1  ,i       
supposed it would have been done without
 any eclat2 and ,i knew  nothing of its 
being done in so very honourable a way  
until ,i saw the  account in the public 
newspapers4 ,to whatever country this   
son of mine  shall choose to attach     
himself1 ,i trust that1 from the good   
principles1  and the spirit1 that he has
 hitherto shewn1 he will discharge the  
duties of a good citizen40    8,as to   

myself1 ,i cannot be supposed to feel   
much attachment to a  country in which  
,i have neither found protection1 nor   
redress4 ,but  ,i am too old1 and my    
habits too fixed1 to remove1 as ,i own  
,i should  otherwise have been disposed 
to do1 to ,france1 or ,america4 ,the    
little  that ,i am capable of doing must
 be in ,england1 where ,i shall         
therefore  continue1 as long as it shall
 please the supreme ,disposer of all    
things  to permit me#be4    #be 8,since 
this was written1 ,i have myself1       
without any solicitation on  my part1   
been made a citizen of ,france1 and     
moreover elected a member  of the       
present ,conventional ,assembly4 ,these1
 ,i scruple not to avow1 ,i  consider as
 the greatest of honours2 though1 for   
the reasons which are  now made public1 
,i have declined accepting the latter40 
,it might have been thought that1 having
 written so much in defence of          
revelation1 and of ,christianity in     
general1 more perhaps than all the      

clergy of the church of ,england now    
living2 this defence of a common  cause 
would have been received as some        
atonement for my demerits in  writing   
against civil establishments of         
christianity1 and particular  doctrines4
 ,but had ,i been an open enemy of all  
religion1 the animosity  against me     
could not have been greater than it is4 
,neither ,mr4 ,hume nor  ,mr4 ,gibbon   
was a thousandth part so obnoxious to   
the clergy as ,i am2 so  little respect 
have my enemies for christianity itself1
 compared with  what they have for their
 emoluments from it40    8,as to my     
supposed hostility to the principles of 
the civil  constitution of this country1
 there has been no pretence whatever for
  charging me with any thing of the     
kind4 ,besides that the very catalogue  
of my publications will prove that my   
life has been devoted to  literature1   
and chiefly to natural philosophy and   
theology1 which have  not left me any   
leisure for factious politics2 in the   

few things that ,i  have written of a   
political nature1 ,i have been an avowed
 advocate for  our mixed government by  
,king1 ,lords1 and ,commons2 but because
 ,i have  objected to the ecclesiastical
 part of it1 and to particular religious
  tenets1 ,i have been industriously    
represented as openly seditious1 and    
endeavouring the overthrow of every     
thing that is fixed1 the enemy of  all  
order1 and of all government40          
8,every publication which bears my name 
is in favour of our present  form of    
government4 ,but if ,i had not thought  
so highly of it1 and had  seen reason   
for preferring a more republican form1  
and had openly  advanced that opinion2  
,i do not know that the proposing to    
free  discussion a system of government 
different from that of ,england1 even   
to ,englishmen1 is any crime1 according 
to the existing laws of this  country4  
,it has always been thought1 at least1  
that our constitution  authorises the   
free proposal1 and discussion1 of all   

theoretical  principles whatever1       
political ones not excepted4 ,and though
 ,i might  now recommend a very         
different form of government to a people
 who had  no previous prejudices or     
habits1 the case is very different with 
respect to one that has2 and it is the  
duty of every good citizen  to maintain 
that government of any country which the
 majority of its  inhabitants approve1  
whether he himself should otherwise     
prefer it1 or  not40    8,this1 however1
 is all that can in reason be required  
of any man4 ,to  demand more would be as
 absurd as to oblige every man1 by the  
law of  marriage1 to maintain that his  
particular wife was absolutely the      
handsomest1 and best tempered woman in  
the world2 whereas it is surely         
sufficient if a man behave well to his  
wife1 and discharge the duties  of a    
good husband40    8,a very great        
majority of ,englishmen1 ,i am well     
persuaded1 are friends  to what are     
called high maxims of government4 ,they 

would choose to  have the power of the  
crown rather enlarged than reduced1 and 
would  rather see all the ,dissenters   
banished than any reformation made in   
the  church4 ,a dread of every thing    
tending to republicanism is manifestly  
increased of late years1 and is likely  
to increase still more4 ,the very  term 
is become one of the most opprobrious in
 the ,english language4  ,the clergy    
7whose near alliance with the court1 and
 the present royal  family1 after having
 been almost a century hostile to them1 
is a  remarkable event in the present   
reign7 have contributed not a little  to
 that leaning to arbitrary power in the 
crown which has lately been  growing    
upon us4 ,they preach up the doctrine of
 passive obedience  and non-resistance  
with as little disguise as their        
ancestors did in  the reign of the      
,stuarts1 and their adulation of the    
king and of the  minister is abject in  
the extreme4 ,both ,mr4 ,madan's sermon 
and ,mr4  ,burn's reply to my ,appeal   

discover the same spirit2 and any       
sentiment  in favour of liberty that is 
at all bold and manly1 such as1 till of 
late1 was deemed becoming ,englishmen   
and the disciples of ,mr4 ,locke1 is    
now reprobated as seditious40    8,in   
these circumstances1 it would be nothing
 less than madness  seriously to attempt
 a change in the constitution1 and ,i   
hope ,i am  not absolutely insane4 ,i   
sincerely wish my countrymen1 as part of
 the  human race 7though1 ,i own1 ,i now
 feel no particular attachment to  them 
on any other ground7 the undisturbed    
enjoyment of that form of  government   
which they so evidently approve2 and as 
,i have no favour to  ask of them1 or of
 their governors1 besides mere          
protection1 as to a  stranger1 while ,i 
violate no known law1 and have not this 
to ask for  any long term1 ,i hope it   
will be granted me4 ,if not1 ,i must1   
like many  others1 in all ages and all  
nations1 submit to whatever the supreme 
,being1 whose eye is upon us all1 and   

who ,i believe intends1 and will in  his
 own time bring about1 the good of all1 
shall appoint1 and by their  means      
execute40 ,appeal part ,,ii page #aji4  
c4    ,the rising disinclination which  
the preceding passage shews had taken   
place in my father's mind towards a     
longer residence in ,england1 became    
confirmed by various circumstances1     
particularly the determination of  his  
sons to emigrate to ,america4 ,these1   
together with other reasons1  that      
finally influenced his conduct on the   
subject of removing to this  country1   
are stated at large as ,i have before   
observed in the preface  to his ,fast   
sermon for the year #agid and ,i cannot 
so properly give them  as in his own    
words4    8,this discourse1 and those on
 the ,evidences of ,divine ,revelation1 
which will be published about the same  
time1 being the last of my  labours in  
this country1 ,i hope my friends1 and   
the public1 will  indulge me while ,i   
give the reasons of their being the     

last1 in  consequence of my having at   
length1 after much hesitation1 and now  
with reluctance1 come to a resolution to
 leave this kingdom4    ,after the riots
 in ,birmingham1 it was the expectation1
 and evidently  the wish1 of many       
persons1 that ,i should immediately fly 
to ,france1  or ,america4 ,but ,i had no
 consciousness of guilt to induce me to 
fly my country#bf4 ,on the contrary1 ,i 
came directly to ,london1 and           
instantly1 by means of my friend ,mr4   
,russell1 signified to the king's       
ministers1 that ,i was there1 and ready1
 if they thought proper1 to  be         
interrogated on the subject of the riot4
 ,but no notice was taken of  the       
message4    #bf ,if1 instead of flying  
from lawless violence1 ,i had been      
flying  from public justice1 ,i could   
not have been pursued with more rancour1
  nor could my friends have been more   
anxious for my safety4 ,one man1  who   
happened to see me on horseback on one  
of the nights in which ,i  escaped from 

,birmingham1 expressed his regret that  
he had not taken me1  expecting probably
 some considerable reward1 as he said1  
it was so easy  for him to have done it4
 ,my friends earnestly advised me to    
disguise  myself as ,i was going to     
,london4 ,but all that was done in that 
way was  taking a place for me in the   
mail coach1 which ,i entered at         
,worcester1  in another name than my    
own4 ,however1 the friend who had the   
courage to  receive me in ,london had   
thought it necessary to provide a dress 
that  should disguise me1 and also a    
method of making my escape1 in case the 
house should have been attacked on my   
account2 and for some time my  friends  
would not suffer me to appear in the    
streets4    ,ill treated as ,i thought  
,i had been1 not merely by the populace 
of  ,birmingham1 for they were the mere 
tools of their superiors1 but by  the   
country in general1 which evidently     
exulted in our sufferings1 and          
afterwards by the representatives of the

 nation1 who refused to inquire  into   
the cause of them1 ,i own ,i was not    
without deliberating upon the  subject  
of emigration2 and several flattering   
proposals were made me1  especially from
 ,france1 which was then at peace within
 itself1 and with  all the world2 and ,i
 was at one time much inclined to go    
thither1 on  account of its nearness to 
,england1 the agreeableness of its      
climate1  and my having many friends    
there4    ,but ,i likewise considered   
that1 if ,i went thither ,i should have 
no  employment of the kind to which ,i  
had been accustomed2 and the season  of 
active life not being1 according to the 
course of nature1 quite  over1 ,i wished
 to make as much use of it as ,i could4 
,i therefore  determined to continue in 
,england1 exposed as ,i was not only to 
unbounded obloquy and insult1 but to    
every kind of outrage2 and after  my    
invitation to succeed my friend ,dr4    
,price1 ,i had no hesitation  about it4 
,accordingly ,i took up my residence    

where ,i now am1 though  so prevalent   
was the idea of my insecurity1 that ,i  
was not able to  take the house in my   
own name2 and when a friend of mine took
 it in  his1 it was with much difficulty
 that1 after some time1 the landlord    
was prevailed upon to transfer the lease
 to me4 ,he expressed his               
apprehensions1 not only of the house    
that ,i occupied1 being demolished1  but
 also a capital house in which he       
himself resides1 at the distance  of no 
less than twenty miles from ,london1    
whither he supposed the  rioters would  
go next1 merely for suffering me to live
 in a house of  his4    ,but even this  
does not give such an idea of the danger
 that not only  myself1 but every       
person1 and every thing1 that had the   
slightest  connection with me1 were     
supposed to be in1 as the following4    
,the  managers of one of the principal  
charities among the ,dissenters applied 
to me to preach their annual sermon1 and
 ,i had consented4 ,but the  treasurer a

 man of fortune1 who knew nothing more  
of me than my name1  was so much alarmed
 at it1 that he declared he could not   
sleep4 ,i  therefore1 to his great      
relief1 declined preaching at all4      
,when it was known that ,i was settled  
where ,i now am1 several of my  friends1
 who lived near me1 were seriously      
advised to remove their  papers1 and    
other most valuable effects1 to some    
place of greater  safety in ,london4 ,on
 the #adth of ,july1 #agib1 it was taken
 for granted  by many of the neighbours1
 that my house was to come down1 just as
  at ,birmingham the year before4 ,when 
the ,hackney association was  formed1   
several servants in the neighbourhood   
actually removed their  goods2 and when 
there was some political meeting at the 
house of ,mr4  ,breillat1 though about  
two miles from my house1 a woman whose  
daughter  was servant in the house      
contiguous to mine1 came to her         
mistress1  to entreat that she might be 
out of the way2 and it was not without  

much difficulty that she was pacified1  
and prevailed upon to let her  continue 
in the house1 her mistress saying that  
she was as safe as  herself4    ,on     
several other occasions the             
neighbourhood has been greatly alarmed  
on account of my being so near them4    
,nor was this without apparent  reason4 
,i could name a person1 and to          
appearance a reputable tradesman1  who1 
in the company of his friends1 and in   
the hearing of one of my  late          
congregation at ,birmingham1 but without
 knowing him to be such1  declared that1
 in case of any disturbance1 they would 
immediately come  to ,hackney1          
evidently1 for the purpose of mischief4 
,in this state of  things1 it is not to 
be wondered at1 that of many servants   
who were  recommended to me1 and some   
that were actually hired1 very few      
could1  for a long time1 be prevailed   
upon to live with me4    ,these facts   
not only shew how general was the idea  
of my particular  insecurity in this    

country2 but what is of much more       
consequence1 and  highly interesting to 
the country at large1 an idea of the    
general  disposition to rioting and     
violence that prevails in it1 and that  
the  ,dissenters are the objects of it4 
,mr4 ,pitt very justly observed1 in  his
 speech on the subject of the riots at  
,birmingham1 that it was 8the           
effervescence of the public mind40      
,indeed the effervescible matter  has   
existed in this country ever since the  
civil wars in the time of  ,charles ,i4 
and it was particularly apparent in the 
reign of ,queen ,anne4  ,but the power  
of government under the former princes  
of the ,house of  ,hanover prevented its
 doing any mischief4 ,the late events   
shew that  this power is no longer      
exerted as it used to be1 but that1 on  
the  contrary there prevails an idea1   
well or ill founded1 that tumultuary    
proceedings against ,dissenters will not
 receive any effectual  discouragement4 
,after what has taken place with respect

 to ,birmingham1  all idea of much      
hazard for insulting and abusing the    
,dissenters is  entirely vanished2      
whereas the disposition to injure the   
,catholics was  effectually checked by  
the proceedings of the year #aghj4 ,from
 that time  they have been safe1 and ,i 
rejoice in it4 ,but from the year #agia1
 the  ,dissenters have been more exposed
 to insult and outrage than ever4       
,having fixed myself at ,clapton2       
unhinged as ,i had been1 and having lost
  the labour of several years2 yet      
flattering myself that ,i should end my 
days here1 ,i took a long lease of my   
house1 and expended a considerable  sum 
in improving it4 ,i also determined1    
with the assistance of my  friends1 to  
resume my philosophical and other       
pursuits2 and after an  interruption    
amounting to about two years1 it was    
with a pleasure that  ,i cannot         
describe1 that ,i entered my new        
laboratory1 and began the most  common  
preparatory processes1 with a view to   

some original inquiries4  ,with what    
success ,i have laboured1 the public has
 already in some  measure seen1 and may 
see more hereafter4    ,but though ,i   
did not choose 7notwithstanding ,i found
 myself exposed to  continual insult7 to
 leave my native country1 ,i found it   
necessary to  provide for my sons       
elsewhere4 ,my eldest son was settled in
 a business1  which promised to be very 
advantageous1 at ,manchester2 but his   
partner  though a man of liberality     
himself1 informed him1 on perceiving    
the general prevalence of the spirit    
which produced the riots in             
,birmingham1 that1 owing to his         
relationship to me1 he was under the    
necessity of proposing a separation1    
which accordingly took place4    ,on    
this he had an invitation to join       
another connexion1 in a business  in    
which the spirit of party could not have
 much affected him2 but he  declined it4
 ,and after he had been present at the  
assizes at ,warwick1  he conceived such 

an idea of this country1 that ,i do not 
believe any  proposal1 however          
advantageous1 would have induced him to 
continue in  it2 so much was he affected
 on perceiving his father treated as ,i 
had  been4    ,determining to go to     
,america1 where he had no prospect but  
that of  being a farmer1 he wished to   
spend a short time with a person who had
  greatly distinguished himself in that 
way1 and one who from his own  general  
principles1 and his friendship for      
myself1 would have given him  the best  
advice and assistance in his power4 ,he1
 however1 declined it1  and acknowledged
 some time after1 that had it been      
known1 as it must  have been1 to his    
landlord1 that he had a son of mine with
 him1 he  feared he should have been    
turned out of his farm4    ,my second   
son who was present both at the riot1   
and the assizes1 felt  more indignation 
still1 and willingly listened to a      
proposal to settle  in ,france2 and     
there his reception was but too         

flattering4 ,however1 on  the breaking  
out of the war with this country1 all   
mercantile prospects  being suspended1  
he wished to go to ,america4 ,there his 
eldest and  youngest brother have joined
 him1 and they are now looking out for a
  settlement1 having as yet no fixed    
views4    ,the necessity ,i was under of
 sending my sons out of this country1   
was my principal inducement to send the 
little property that ,i had  out of it  
too2 so that ,i had nothing in ,england 
besides my library1  apparatus1 and     
household goods4 ,by this1 ,i felt      
myself greatly  relieved1 it being of   
little consequence where a man already  
turned  sixty ends his days4 ,whatever  
good or evil ,i have been capable of1 is
  now chiefly done2 and ,i trust that   
the same consciousness of integrity1    
which has supported me hitherto1 will   
carry me through any thing that  may yet
 be reserved for me4 ,seeing1 however1  
no great prospect of doing  much good1  
or having much enjoyment1 here1 ,i am   

now preparing to follow  my sons2 hoping
 to be of some use to them in their     
present unsettled  state1 and that      
,providence may yet1 advancing in years 
as ,i am1 find me  some sphere of       
usefulness along with them4    ,as to   
the great odium that ,i have incurred1  
the charge of sedition1  or my being an 
enemy to the constitution or peace of my
 country1 is  a mere pretence for it2   
though it has been so much urged1 that  
it is  now generally believed1 and all  
attempts to undeceive the public with   
respect to it avail nothing at all4 ,the
 whole course of my studies1  from early
 life1 shews how little politics of any 
kind have been my  object4 ,indeed to   
have written so much as ,i have in      
theology1 and to  have done so much in  
experimental philosophy1 and at the same
 time  to have had my mind occupied1 as 
it is supposed to have been1 with       
factious politics1 ,i must have had     
faculties more than human4 ,let any     
person only cast his eye over the long  

list of my publications1 and he  will   
see that they relate almost wholly to   
theology1 philosophy1 or  general       
literature4    ,i did1 however1 when ,i 
was a younger man1 and before it was in 
my  power to give much attention to     
philosophical pursuits1 write a  small  
anonymous political pamphlet1 on the    
,state of ,liberty in this  ,country1   
about the time of ,mr4 ,wilkes's        
election for ,middlesex1 which  gained  
me the acquaintance1 and ,i may say the 
friendship1 of ,sir ,george  ,savile1   
and which ,i had the happiness to enjoy 
as long as he lived4    ,at the request 
also of ,dr4 ,franklin and ,dr4         
,fothergill1 ,i wrote an  address to the
 ,dissenters on the subject of the      
approaching rupture  with ,america1 a   
pamphlet which ,sir ,george ,savile1 and
 my other friends1  circulated in great 
numbers1 and it was thought with some   
effect4    ,after this ,i entirely      
ceased to write any thing on the subject
 of  politics1 except as far as the     

business of the ,test ,act1 and of      
,civil ,establishments of ,religion1 had
 a connection with politics4 ,and       
though1 at the recommendation of ,dr4   
,price1 ,i was presently after this     
taken into the family of the ,marquis of
 ,landsdowne1 and ,i entered into       
almost all his views1 as thinking them  
just and liberal1 ,i never wrote  a     
single political pamphlet1 or even a    
paragraph in a newspaper1 all  the time 
that ,i was with him1 which was seven   
years4    ,i never preached a political 
sermon in my life2 unless such as1 ,i   
believe all ,dissenters usually preach  
on the fifth of ,november1 in  favour of
 civil and religious liberty1 may be    
said to be political4  ,and on these    
occasions1 ,i am confident1 that ,i     
never advanced any  sentiment but such  
as1 until of late years1 would have     
tended to  recommend1 rather than render
 me obnoxious1 to those who direct the  
administration of this country4 ,and the
 doctrines which ,i adopted when  young1

 and which were even popular then       
7except with the clergy1 who  were at   
that time generally disaffected to the  
family on the throne7  ,i cannot        
abandon1 merely because the times are so
 changed1 that they  are now become     
unpopular1 and the expression and       
communication of them  hazardous4       
,farther1 though ,i by no means         
disapprove of societies for political   
information1 such as are now every where
 discountenanced1 and generally         
suppressed1 ,i never was a member of any
 of them2 nor1 indeed1 did ,i  ever     
attend any public meeting1 if ,i could  
decently avoid it1 owing to  habits     
acquired in studious and retired life4  
,from a mistake of my talents and       
disposition1 ,i was invited by many of  
the departments in ,france1 to represent
 them in the present ,national          
,convention1 after ,i had been made a   
citizen of ,france1 on account of my    
being considered as one who had been    
persecuted for my attachment to  the    

cause of liberty here4 ,but though the  
invitation was repeated with  the most  
flattering importunity1 ,i never        
hesitated about declining it4    ,i can 
farther say with respect to politics1   
concerning which ,i believe  every      
,englishman has some opinion or other   
7and at present1 owing to  the peculiar 
nature of the present war1 it is almost 
the only topic of  general conversation7
 that1 except in company1 ,i hardly ever
 think of  the subject1 my reading1     
meditation1 and writing1 being almost   
wholly  engrossed by theology1 and      
philosophy2 and of late1 as for many    
years  before the riots in ,birmingham1 
,i have spent a very great proportion of
  my time1 as my friends well know1 in  
my laboratory4    ,if1 then1 my real    
crime has not been sedition1 or treason1
 what  has it been8 ,for every effect   
must have some adequate cause1 and      
therefore the odium that ,i have        
incurred must have been owing to        
something in my declared sentiments1 or 

conduct1 that has exposed me to  it4 ,in
 my opinion1 it cannot have been any    
thing but my open hostility  to the     
doctrines of the established church1 and
 more especially to all  civil          
establishments of religion whatever4    
,this has brought upon me the           
implacable resentment of the great body 
of the clergy2 and they have  found     
other methods of opposing me besides    
argument1 and that use  of the press    
which is equally open to us all4 ,they  
have also found  an able ally and       
champion in ,mr4 ,burke1 who 7without   
any provocation  except that of         
answering his book on the ,french       
,revolution7 has taken  several         
opportunities of inveighing against me1 
in a place where he  knows ,i cannot    
reply to him1 and from which he also    
knows that his  accusation will reach   
every corner of the country1 and        
consequently  thousands of persons who  
will never read any writings of mine#bg4
  ,they have had another1 and still more

 effectual vehicle of their  abuse in   
what are called the treasury newspapers1
 and other popular  publications4    #bg
 ,mr4 ,burke having said in the ,house  
of ,commons1 that 8,i was made  a       
citizen of ,france on account of my     
declared hostility to the  constitution 
of this country10 ,i1 in the public     
papers1 denied the  charge1 and called  
upon him for the proofs of it4 ,as he   
made no reply1  ,i said1 in the preface 
to my ,fast ,sermon of the last year1 p4
 #i1 that  8it sufficiently appeared    
that he had neither ability to maintain 
his  charge1 nor virtue to retract it40 
,a year more of silence on his part     
having now elapsed1 this is become more 
evident than before4    ,by these and   
others means1 the same party spirit     
which was the cause  of the riots in    
,birmingham1 has been increasing ever   
since1 especially  in that              
neighbourhood4 ,a remarkable instance of
 this may be seen in  a ,letter         
addressed1 but not sent1 to me from ,mr4

 ,foley1 rector  of ,stourbridge1 who   
acknowledges the satisfaction that he   
and his  brethren have received from one
 of the grossest and coarsest pieces  of
 abuse of me that has yet appeared1     
which1 as a curious specimen of  the    
kind1 ,i inserted in the ,appendix of my
 ,appeal1 and in which ,i am            
represented as no better than ,guy      
,fawkes1 or the devil himself4 ,this    
very ,christian divine recommends to the
 members of the established  church to  
decline all commercial dealings with the
 ,dissenters1 as an  effectual method of
 exterminating them4 ,this method has   
been actually  adopted in many parts of 
,england4 ,also great numbers of the    
best  farmers and artizans in ,england  
have been dismissed because they  would 
not go to the established church4       
,defoe's ,shortest ,way with  the       
,dissenters#bh would have taught the    
friends of the church a more  effectual 
method still4 ,and yet this ,mr4 ,foley1
 whom ,i never saw1 and  who could not  

have had any particular cause of enmity 
to me1 had1 like  ,mr4 ,madan of        
,birmingham1 a character for liberality4
 ,what1 then1 have  we to expect from   
others1 when we find so much bigotry and
 rancour in  such men as these8    ,many
 times1 by the encouragement of persons 
from whom better things  might have been
 expected1 ,i have been burned in effigy
 along with ,mr4  ,paine2 and numberless
 insulting and threatening letters have 
been sent  to me from all parts of the  
kingdom4#bi ,it is not possible for any 
man to have conducted himself more      
peaceably than ,i have done all the     
time that ,i have lived at ,clapton1 yet
 it has not exempted me not only  from  
the worst suspicions1 but very gross    
insults4 ,a very friendly  and innocent 
club1 which ,i found in the place1 has  
been considered as  ,jacobin chiefly on 
my account2 and at one time there was   
cause of  apprehension that ,i should   
have been brought into danger for       
lending  one of ,mr4 ,paine's books4    

,but with some difficulty the           
neighbourhood  was satisfied that ,i was
 innocent4    #bh ,a tract written in a 
grave ironical stile1 advising to hang  
them  all4    #bi ,in one of these ,i   
was threatened with being burned alive  
before a  slow fire4    ,as nothing had 
been paid to me on account of damages in
 the riot1  when ,i published the second
 part of my ,appeal to the public on the
  subject1 it may be proper to say1 that
 it was paid some time in the  beginning
 of the year #agic1 with interest only  
from the first of  ,january of the same 
year1 though the injury was received in 
,july1 #agia2  when equity evidently    
required1 that it ought to have been    
allowed from  the time of the riot1     
especially as1 in all the cases1 the    
allowance  was far short of the loss4   
,in my case it fell short1 as ,i have   
shewn1  not less than two thousand      
pounds4 ,and the losses sustained by the
  other sufferers far exceeded mine4    
,public justice also required that1  if 

the forms of law1 local enmity or any   
other cause1 had prevented  our         
receiving full indemnification1 it      
should have been made up to us  from the
 public treasury2 the great end of all  
civil government being  protection from 
violence1 or an indemnification for it4 
,whatever we  might in equity claim1 the
 country owes us1 and1 if it be just1   
will  some time or other pay1 and with  
interest4    ,i would farther observe1  
that since1 in a variety of cases1 money
 is  allowed where the injury is not of 
a pecuniary nature1 merely because  no  
other compensation can be given1 the    
same should have been done with  respect
 to me1 on account of the destruction of
 my manuscripts1 the  interruption of my
 pursuits1 the loss of a pleasing and   
advantageous  situation1 c4 c4 and had  
the injury been sustained by a          
clergyman1  he would1 ,i doubt not1 have
 claimed1 and been allowed1 very large  
damages on this account4 ,so far1       
however1 was there from being any  idea 

of the kind in my favour1 that my       
counsel advised me to make no  mention  
of my manuscript ,lectures on the       
,constitution of ,england1  a work about
 as large as that of ,blackstone 7as may
 be seen by the  syllabus of the        
particular lectures1 sixty-three in all1
 published in  the first edition of my  
,essay on a ,course of liberal          
,education for  civil and active ,life7 
because it would be taken for granted   
that they  were of a seditious nature1  
and would therefore have been of        
disservice  to me with the jury4        
,accordingly they were1 in the account  
of my  losses1 included in the article  
of so much paper4 ,after these losses1  
had ,i had nothing but the justice of my
 country to look to1 ,i must have  sunk 
under the burden1 incapable of any      
farther exertions4 ,it was the          
seasonable generosity of my friends that
 prevented this1 and put it in  my      
power1 though with the unavoidable loss 
of near two years1 to resume  my former 

pursuits4    ,a farther proof of the    
excessive bigotry of this country is1   
that1  though the clergy of ,birmingham 
resenting what ,i advanced in the first 
part of my ,appeal1 replied to it1 and  
pledged themselves to go  through with  
the enquiry along with me1 till the     
whole truth should  be investigated1    
they have made no reply to the ,second  
,part of my  ,appeal1 in which ,i       
brought specific charges against        
themselves1 and  other persons by name1 
proving them to have been the promoters 
and  abettors of the riot2 and yet they 
have as much respect shown to them  as  
ever1 and the country at large pays no  
attention to it4 ,had the  clergy been  
the injured persons1 and ,dissenters the
 rioters1 unable to  answer the charges 
brought against them1 so great would    
have been the  general indignation at   
their conduct1 that ,i am persuaded it  
would not  have been possible for them  
to continue in the country4    ,i could1
 if ,i were so disposed1 give my readers

 many more instances of  the bigotry of 
the clergy of the church of ,england    
with respect to me1  which could not    
fail to excite1 in generous minds1 equal
 indignation  and contempt2 but ,i      
forbear4#cj ,had ,i1 however1 foreseen  
what ,i am now  witness to1 ,i certainly
 should not have made any attempt to    
replace  my library or apparatus1 and ,i
 soon repented of having done it4  ,but 
this being done1 ,i was willing to make 
some use of both before  another        
interruption of my pursuits4 ,i began to
 philosophize1 and make  experiments1   
rather late in life1 being near forty1  
for want of the  necessary means of     
doing any thing in this way2 and my     
pursuits have  been much interrupted by 
removals 7never indeed chosen by myself1
 but  rendered necessary by             
circumstances7 and my time being now    
short1 ,i  hoped to have had no occasion
 for more than one1 and that a final1   
remove4 ,but the circumstances above    
mentioned have induced me1 though  with 

great and sincere regret1 to undertake  
another1 and to a greater  distance than
 any that ,i have hitherto made4    #cj 
,at a dinner of all the ,prebendaries of
 a cathedral church1 the  conversation  
turning on the riots in ,birmingham1 and
 on a clergyman  having said that if ,i 
were mounted on a pile of my            
publications1 he  would set fire to     
them1 and burn me alive1 they all       
declared that they  would be ready to do
 the same4    ,i profess not to be      
unmoved by the aspect of things         
exhibited in this  discourse4 ,but      
notwithstanding this1 ,i should         
willingly have awaited my  fate in my   
native country1 whatever it had been1 if
 ,i had not had sons  in ,america1 and  
if ,i did not think that a field of     
public usefulness1  which is evidently  
closing upon me here1 might open to more
 advantage  there4    ,i own also that  
,i am not unaffected by such unexampled 
punishments  as those of ,mr4 ,muir and 
my friend ,mr4 ,palmer1 for offences1   

which1  if1 in the eye of reason1 they  
be any at all1 are slight1 and very     
insufficiently proved2 a measure so     
subversive of that freedom of  speaking 
and acting1 which has hitherto been the 
great pride of  ,britons4 ,but the      
sentence of ,mr4 ,winterbotham1 for     
delivering from  the pulpit what ,i am  
persuaded he never did deliver1 and     
which1  similar evidence might have     
drawn upon myself1 or any other         
dissenting  minister1 who was an object 
of general dislike1 has something in it 
still more alarming#ca4 ,but ,i trust   
that conscious innocence would  support 
me as it does him1 under whatever       
prejudiced and violent men  might do to 
me1 as well as say of me4 ,but ,i see no
 occasion to  expose myself to danger   
without any prospect of doing good1 or  
to  continue any longer in a country in 
which ,i am so unjustly become the      
object of general dislike1 and not      
retire to another1 where ,i have  reason
 to think ,i shall be better received4  

,and ,i trust that the same  good       
,providence which has attended me       
hitherto1 and made me happy in my       
present situation1 and all my former    
ones1 will attend and bless me in  what 
may still be before me4 ,in all events1 
,the will of ,god be done4    #ca ,i    
trust that the friends of liberty1      
especially among the  ,dissenters1 will 
not fail to do every thing in their     
power to make  ,mr4 ,winterbotham's     
confinement1 and also the sufferings of 
,mr4 ,palmer  and his companions1 as    
easy to them as possible4 ,having been  
assisted  in a season of persecution    
myself1 ,i should be very ill deserving 
of the favours ,i have received1 if ,i  
was not particularly desirous  of       
recommending such cases as theirs to    
general consideration4 ,here  difference
 in religious sentiment is least of all 
to be attended to4  ,on the contrary1   
let those who in this respect differ the
 most from  ,mr4 ,winterbotham1 which is
 my own case1 exert themselves the most 

in  his favour4 ,when men of            
unquestionable integrity and piety      
suffer in  consequence of acting 7as    
such persons always will do7 from a     
principle  of conscience1 they must     
command the respect even of their       
enemies1  if they also act from         
principle1 though they be thereby led to
 proceed  in an opposite direction4     
,the case of men of education and       
reflection 7and who act from the best   
intentions with respect to the          
community7 committing what only state   
policy requires to be considered as     
crimes1 but which are allowed  on all   
hands to imply no moral turpitude1 so as
 to render them unfit  for heaven and   
happiness hereafter1 is not to be       
confounded with that  of common felons4 
,there was nothing in the conduct of    
,louis ,,xiv4 and  his ministers1 that  
appeared so shocking1 so contrary to all
 ideas of  justice1 humanity and        
decency1 and that has contributed more  
to render  their memory execrated1 than 

sending such men as ,mr4 ,marolles1 and 
other eminent ,protestants1 who are now 
revered as saints and martyrs1  to the  
galleys1 along with the vilest          
miscreants4 ,compared with this1  the   
punishment of death would be mercy4 ,i  
trust that1 the ,scots in  general will 
think these measures a disgrace to their
 country4    ,i cannot refrain from     
repeating again1 that ,i leave my native
 country  with real regret1 never       
expecting to find any where else society
 so  suited to my disposition and       
habits1 such friends as ,i have here    
7whose  attachment has been more than a 
balance to all the abuse ,i have met    
with from others7 and especially to     
replace one particular ,christian       
friend1 in whose absence ,i shall1 for  
some time at least1 find all  the world 
a blank4 ,still less can ,i expect to   
resume my favourite  pursuits1 with any 
thing like the advantages ,i enjoy here4
 ,in leaving  this country ,i also      
abandon a source of maintenance1 which  

,i can but  ill bear to lose4 ,i can1   
however truly say1 that ,i leave it     
without  any resentment1 or ill-will4   
,on the contrary1 ,i sincerely wish my  
countrymen all happiness2 and when the  
time for reflection 7which my  absence  
may accelerate7 shall come1 they will1  
,i am confident1 do me  more justice4   
,they will be convinced that every      
suspicion they have  been led to        
entertain to my disadvantage has been   
ill founded1 and  that ,i have even some
 claim to their gratitude and esteem4   
,in this  case1 ,i shall look with      
satisfaction to the time when1 if my    
life be  prolonged1 ,i may visit my     
friends in this country2 and perhaps ,i 
may1  notwithstanding my removal for the
 present1 find a grave 7as ,i believe   
is naturally the wish of every man7 in  
the land that gave me birth40    ,on the
 #hth day of ,april #agid1 my father set
 sail from ,london1 and  arrived at     
,new-,york on the #dth of ,june1 where  
he staid about a  fortnight4 ,many      

persons went to meet him upon his       
landing1 and while  he staid at         
,new-,york he received addresses from   
various ,societies1 and  great attention
 from many of the most respectable      
persons in the place4  ,from thence he  
proceeded to ,philadelphia1 where he    
received an address  from the ,american 
,philosophical ,society4 ,independent of
 the above marks  of respect1 he was    
chosen by an unanimous vote of the      
,trustees of the  ,university of        
,philadelphia1 professor of ,chemistry4 
,he was likewise  invited to return and 
stay at ,new-,york1 and open an         
,unitarian place  of worship1 which was 
to have been provided for him1 and also 
to give  ,lectures on ,experimental     
,philosophy to one hundred subscribers  
at ten  dollars each4 ,these invitations
 indeed he did not receive until he had 
been settled some little time at        
,northumberland4 ,these are sufficient  
proofs that the citizens of this country
 were not insensible to his  merit as a 

,philosopher1 and that they esteemed him
 for the part he took  in the politics  
of ,europe4 ,that he was not invited    
immediately on his  arrival to preach   
either at ,new-,york or ,philadelphia1  
was not from any  want of respect for   
his character1 but because ,unitarianism
 was in a  manner unknown1 and by many  
ignorantly supposed to have some        
connection  with infidelity4 ,the proper
 evidences of christianity1 the         
corruptions  it has suffered1 the       
monstrous additions that have been      
engrafted  on its primitive simplicity1 
and the real state of the opinions of   
christians in the first ages of the     
church1 were subjects that had  hardly  
ever been discussed in this country4    
,the controversies that  had been       
carried on in ,england had not awakened 
attention here1 and  therefore though my
 father was known as having suffered in 
consequence  of his opposition to the   
established religion of his country1 yet
 his  particular opinions were little   

understood4 ,as his religious tenets    
became more known1 these prejudices wore
 away1 and independent of the  proposal 
to open a place of ,unitarian worship at
 ,new-,york1 mentioned  above1 ,i shall 
have occasion to state the great reason 
he had to be  satisfied with the        
testimonies of respect paid to him1 by  
the most  eminent persons in the        
country1 not merely in his character as 
a  ,philosopher1 but as a preacher of   
the ,gospel4    ,about the middle of    
,july #agid my father left ,philadelphia
 for  ,northumberland1 a town situated  
at the confluence of the ,north-,east   
and ,west branches of the ,susquehanna1 
and about #acj miles ,north-,west  of   
,philadelphia4 ,i1 and some other       
,english gentlemen1 had projected a     
settlement of #cjj1jjj acres of land1   
about fifty miles distant from          
,northumberland4 ,the subscription was  
filled chiefly by persons in  ,england4 
,northumberland being at that time the  
nearest town to the  proposed           

settlement1 my father wished to see the 
place1 and ascertain  what conveniencies
 it would afford should he incline      
either to fix  there permanently1 or    
only until the settlement should be     
sufficiently  advanced for his          
accommodation2 he was induced likewise  
to retreat1 at  least for the summer    
months1 into the country1 fearing the   
effects of  the hot weather in such a   
city as ,philadelphia4 ,he had not1 as  
has been  erroneously reported1 the     
least concern in the projected          
settlement4 ,he  was not consulted in   
the formation of the plan of it1 nor had
 he come  to any determination to join  
it had it been carried into effect4     
,the scheme of settlement was not       
confined to any particular class or     
character of men1 religious1 or         
political4 ,it was set on foot to be  as
 it were a rallying point for the       
,english1 who were at that time         
emigrating to ,america in great numbers1
 and who it was thought1 would  be more 

happy in society of the kind they had   
been accustomed to1 than  they would be1
 dispersed1 as they now are1 through the
 whole of the  ,united ,states4 ,it was 
farther thought1 that by the union of   
industry  and capital1 the wilderness   
would soon become cultivated and equal  
to  any other part of the country in    
every thing necessary to the enjoyment  
of life4 ,to promote this as much as    
possible1 the original projectors  of   
that scheme reserved only a few shares  
for themselves1 for which  they paid the
 same as those who had no trouble or    
expence either in  forming the plan1 or 
carrying it into execution4 ,this they  
did1 with a  view to take away all      
source of jealousy1 and to increase the 
facility  of settlement1 by increasing  
the proportion of settlers to the       
quantity  of land to be settled4        
,fortunately for the original proposers1
 the  scheme was abandoned4 ,it might   
and would have answered in a pecuniary  
point of view1 as the land now sells at 

double and treble the price  then asked 
for it1 without the advantages which    
that settlement would  have given rise  
to2 but the generality of ,englishmen   
come to this  country with such         
erroneous ideas1 and1 unless previously 
accustomed  to a life of labour1 are so 
ill qualified to commence cultivation in
 a  wilderness1 that the projectors     
would most probably have been subject   
to still more unfounded abuse than they 
have been1 for their well meant         
endeavours to promote the interests of  
their countrymen4    ,the scheme of     
settlement thus failing1 for reasons    
which it is not  necessary now to state1
 my father1 struck with the beauty of   
the  situation of ,northumberland1 which
 is universally allowed to be equal  if 
not superior to any in the state2       
believing that1 from the nature of  its 
situation1 it was likely to become a    
great thoroughfare1 and having  reason  
to consider it as healthy as it was     
pleasant1 the intermittents  to which it

 has latterly been subject being then   
unknown1 determined  to settle there4   
,before he came to this resolution      
however1 he had  the offer of the       
,professorship of ,chemistry in the     
,university of  ,pennsylvania1 before   
mentioned1 which would probably have    
yielded him  #cjjj dollars per annum1   
there being generally about #bjj        
students in  ,medicine of whom about    
#aej attend the ,chemical ,lectures2 as 
likewise  the offer of a situation as   
,unitarian ,preacher and ,lecturer in   
,natural  ,philosophy as ,i have        
likewise mentioned before4 ,at that time
 he had no  inducement to settle at     
,northumberland contrary to his         
inclination1  as his books and apparatus
 were still at ,philadelphia1 his sons  
had  not fixed upon any place of        
settlement for themselves1 and neither  
he1 nor they1 had purchased a single    
foot of land in the town or the         
neighbourhood of it4    ,the following  
reasons among others induced him to     

prefer a country to a  city life4 ,he   
thought that if he undertook the duties 
of a professor1  he should not be so    
much at liberty to follow his favourite 
pursuits  as he could wish1 and that the
 expence of living at ,philadelphia  or 
,new-,york would counterbalance the     
advantages resulting from his  salary2  
and indeed1 at that time he had no      
occasion to attend to any  pecuniary    
considerations1 as he believed his      
income1 calculating upon  his property  
in the ,french funds 7which however from
 circumstances not  necessary to be     
stated in this place1 never produced him
 any thing17  to be more than equal to  
his wants2 but what had greater weight  
with  him than any thing else was that  
my mother1 who had been harrassed in    
her mind ever since the riots at        
,birmingham1 thought that by living in  
the country1 at a distance from the     
cities1 she should be more likely  to   
obtain that quiet of which she stood so 
much in need4    ,soon after his        

settlement at ,northumberland1 many     
persons1 with a  view that his          
qualifications as an instructor of youth
 should not be  wholly lost to the      
country1 concurred in a plan for the    
establishment  of a college at          
,northumberland4 ,to this scheme several
 subscribed from  this motive alone4    
,many of the principal landholders1     
partly from the  above and partly from  
motives of interest1 contributed largely
 both  in money and land1 and there was 
a fair prospect1 from the liberal       
principles upon which it was founded1   
that it would have been of very  great  
advantage to the country4 ,my father was
 requested to draw up a  plan of the    
course of study he would recommend1 as  
well as the rules  for the internal     
management of the institution1 and he   
was appointed  ,president4 ,he however  
declined receiving any emolument1 and   
proposed  giving such lectures as he was
 best qualified for1 gratis2 in the     
same manner as he had done at ,hackney1 

and he meant to have given  to the      
institution the use of his library and  
apparatus1 until the  students could    
have been furnished with them by means  
of the funds  of the college4 ,in       
consequence of the unexpected failure of
 some of  the principal contributors1   
the scheme fell through at that time1   
and  little more was done during my     
father's life time than to raise the    
shell of a convenient building4    ,i   
shall in this place state1 though ,i    
shall anticipate1 in so doing1  that in 
the year #ahjc a vacancy occurred in the
 ,university of  ,pennsylvania1 by the  
death of ,dr4 ,euen1 ,principal of that 
institution4  ,it was intimated to my   
father by many of the ,trustees1 that in
  case he would accept of the           
appointment1 there was little doubt of  
his obtaining it2 ,mr4 ,m',kean1 the    
present governor of the ,state of       
,pennsylvania1 being among others       
particularly anxious that he should     
accept of it4 ,in addition to the       

reasons that had induced him to  decline
 the offer of the ,professorship of     
,chemistry were to be added  the weak   
state of his health1 which would have   
made the idea of his  having any serious
 engagement to fulfil1 very irksome to  
him2 he  accordingly declined it4    ,he
 had frequent intimations of other      
proposals of a similar nature that      
would have been made to him1 had it not 
become generally known1 that he  could  
not accede to them from their being     
inconsistent with the plan of  life he  
had laid down for himself4    ,i have   
been thus particular in the account of  
his reasons for settling  at            
,northumberland1 and of the different   
inducements offered to him to  fix      
elsewhere1 to do away the erroneous     
reports respecting the former1  and     
likewise to counteract the idea that has
 been so industriously  circulated in   
,england1 that his abilities were       
undervalued1 that the  bigotry and      
prejudice he had to encounter in this   

country1 were greater  than were opposed
 to him in ,england2 that his life was  
in consequence  rendered uncomfortable1 
and that if he could1 he would have been
  glad to have returned to his native   
country1 but was restrained by  a sense 
of shame4 ,some colour was given to     
these reports by many of  his countrymen
 who1 from motives best known to        
themselves1 perhaps  thinking thereby to
 excuse the inconsistency of their own  
conduct1  corroborated the accounts1    
though many of them had never seen my   
father in this country1 and had no      
authority whatever for assertions  which
 were entirely calumnies4 ,some currency
 was also given to the  statement1 by   
the false and injurious accounts        
published by the ,duke de  ,liancourt1  
whose book if ,i may judge of it by that
 part which treats of  ,pennsylvania1   
and of this neighbourhood in particular1
 is not entitled  to the least credit1  
being false in almost every particular4 
,this my  father himself has stated in a

 letter addressed to him4    ,the       
writer1 understanding the language of   
the country but very  imperfectly1 must 
necessarily have been liable to many    
mistakes2 nor  is it to be wondered at  
that a man who details all the tittle   
tattle  of every table to which he is   
invited1 and who can basely convert the 
hospitable reception he meets with in a 
strange country1 into the means  of     
turning into ridicule those who shewed  
him attention and meant to  serve him1  
should be even capable of fabricating   
and circulating gross  and injurious    
falsehoods respecting individuals4 ,i   
should disgrace  myself1 in my opinion1 
and still more should ,i disgrace the   
high  situation which my father held in 
the esteem of the public1 were ,i in    
this work to enter into any further     
consideration of his attack on  my      
father's character1 satisfied that it is
 beyond the reach of his  falsehoods and
 unprovoked malevolence4    ,my father  
would1 no doubt1 have been glad to have 

returned to ,england1  and have enjoyed 
the society of his old and much valued  
friends2 he  would have rejoiced to have
 been nearer the centre of the ,arts and
  ,sciences2 to have been joined again  
to his congregation and resumed his     
duties as a ,christian ,preacher2 he    
would have been glad at the close of    
life1 as he expresses himself1 8to have 
found a grave in the land that  gave him
 birth20 but this was impossible3 and no
 person can read the  preface to his    
,fast ,sermon1 quoted above1 but must be
 convinced of it4  ,though he raised the
 credit of his native country by the    
brilliancy1  the extent and the         
usefulness of his discoveries in        
different branches  of science2 though  
during his whole life he inculcated     
principles  of virtue and religion1     
which the government pretended at least 
to  believe were necessary to the well  
being of the state2 though in no  one   
single act of his life had he violated  
any law of his country or  encouraged   

others to do so1 what was the treatment 
he met with in that  land of boasted    
civilization1 and at the close of the   
#ahth ,century8  ,it is sufficiently    
known1 and will1 as it ought to do1     
affect the  character of the nation at  
large4 ,therefore1 though he could have 
forgotten and forgiven all that was     
past1 though the above mentioned        
motives would have had great weight in  
inducing him to return1 yet  there was  
no reason to expect that he should meet 
hereafter with better  treatment than he
 had already experienced2 and in        
consequence of this  fixed persuasion he
 never entertained the idea of returning
 to live  in ,england4 ,he frequently   
talked indeed of returning to visit his 
friends2 but when peace took place and  
he could have gone with safety1  so     
comfortably was he settled in this      
country1 and such was his opinion  of   
the state of things in ,england1 that he
 abandoned even the idea of a  temporary
 journey thither1 altogether4    ,but   

supposing the above obstacles had not   
existed to his return to his  native    
country1 he had no reason to be1 nor was
 he1 dissatisfied with  his reception   
here4 ,independent of the attentions    
paid to him upon  his first arrival in  
this country1 he continued to receive   
marks of  respect from bodies of men1   
and from individuals of various opinions
 in  religion and politics1 to whom he  
had been all his life before an utter   
stranger4 ,little reason therefore have 
his countrymen to represent  his        
reception in ,america as unequal to his 
merits1 or to calumniate  the general   
character of the people here4 ,his      
discoveries did not add  to the credit  
of ,america as they had done to that of 
,england1 yet he  was not obliged to    
withdraw his name from its              
,philosophical ,society1  disgusted with
 its illiberal treatment of himself and 
his friends4  ,the ,americans1          
comparatively speaking1 had little      
opportunity of  judging of his zeal for 

the real interests of religion1 yet he  
was  suffered to live in peace2 and this
 country has not been disgraced by  the 
destruction of a library and apparatus  
uniformly dedicated to the  promotion of
 ,science1 and the good of mankind4 ,it 
will be said that  there were not such  
interests to oppose in ,america as in   
,england4 ,it  is true1 and it proves   
that the ,americans have done well not  
to create  such interests1 and that the 
placing all the religious sects upon    
the same footing with respect to the    
government of the country1 has          
effectually secured the peace of the    
community1 at the same time that  it has
 essentially promoted the interests of  
truth and virtue4    ,being now settled 
at ,northumberland with his mind at     
peace1 and at ease  in his              
circumstances1 he seriously applied     
himself to those studies  which he had  
long been compelled to desist from1 and 
which he had but  imperfectly attended  
to while he resided at ,hackney4 ,it is 

true that  he spent his time there very 
agreeably1 in a society of highly valued
  friends2 but he did little compared to
 what he effected while he was at       
,birmingham1 or what he has done during 
his residence here1 owing to his  time  
being very much broken in upon at       
,hackney by company4 ,to prove how  much
 he did in this country it is only      
necessary to refer to the list  of the  
publications which he presented to the  
world in various branches  of science1  
in theology and general literature4     
,here as in ,england1  though more at   
leisure than formerly1 he continued to  
apportion his  time to the various      
occupations in which he was engaged1 and
 strictly  adhered to a regular plan of 
alternate study and relaxation1 from    
which  he never materially deviated4    
,it was while my father was at the      
academy that he commenced a practice    
which he continued until within three or
 four days of his death1 of  keeping a  
diary1 in which he put down the         

occurrences of the day2 what  he was    
employed about1 where he had been1 and  
particularly an exact  account of what  
he had been reading1 mentioning the     
names of the  authors1 and the number of
 pages he read1 which was generally a   
fixed  number1 previously determined    
upon in his own mind4 ,he likewise noted
  down any hints suggested by what he   
read in the course of the day4 ,it  was 
his custom at the beginning of each year
 to arrange the plan of  study that he  
meant to pursue that year1 and to review
 the general  situation of his affairs1 
and at the end of the year he took an   
account  of the progress he had made1   
how far he had executed the plan he had 
laid down1 and whether his situation    
exceeded or fell short of the           
expectations he had formed4    ,this    
practice was a source of great          
satisfaction to him through life4  ,it  
was at first adopted as a mode of       
regulating his studies1 and  afterwards 
continued from the pleasure it gave him4

 ,the greater part  of his diaries were 
destroyed at the riots at ,birmingham1  
but there  are still extant those for   
the year #aged1 #agee and several of the
  subsequent years4    ,as it will serve
 to shew the regularity with which he   
pursued his  studies1 and may possibly  
be instructive as well as amusing to the
  reader1 ,i shall give a specimen of   
the manner in which he spent a year     
while he was at the academy1 at         
,daventry1 and for that purpose shall   
select his diary for the year #agee when
 he was in his #bb;d year4 ,the  diary  
contains a particular account of what he
 read and wrote each  day1 and at       
different periods of the year he sums up
 in the following  manner1 the progress 
he had made in improvement1 which ,i    
give as  entered at the end of the      
diary4           99       99       99   
99       99    ,business done in        
,january1 ,february and ,march4         
,practical4    ,howe's blessedness of   
the righteous2 ,bennet's pastoral care2 

,norris's  letters and some sermons4    
,controversial4    ,taylor on           
,atonement2 ,hampton's ,answer2         
,sherlock's discourses ,vol4 #a2        
,christianity not founded in ,argument2 
,doddridge's ,answer2 ,warburton's      
divine legation2 ,benson on the first   
planting of ,christianity2 ,king's      
,constitution of the ,primitive ,church4
      ,classics4    ,josephus1 ,vol4 #a1
 from page #cij to #ggj2 ,ovid's        
,metamorphoses to page  #aci2 ,tacitus's
 ,history1 ,life of ,agricola1 and      
,manners of the ,germans4               
,scriptures4    ,john the ,evangelist1  
the ,acts of the ,apostles1 the         
,epistles to the  ,romans1 ,galatians1  
,ephesians1 #ast and #b;d ,corinthians1 
in ,greek2 ,isaiah  to the #hth chapter1
 in ,hebrew4      ,mathematics4         
,maclaurin's ,algebra to part #b;d4     
,entertaining4    ,irene2 ,prince       
,arthur2 ,ecclesiastical characters2    
,dryden's fables2  ,peruvian tales2     
,voyage round the world2 ,oriental      

tales2 ,massey's  travels2 ,life of ,hai
 ,ebn ,yokdam2 ,history of ,abdallah4   
,composition4    ,a ,sermon on the      
,wisdom of ,god2 ,an ,oration on the    
means of ,virtue2 #ast  ,vol4 of the    
,institutes of ,natural and ,revealed   
,religion4    ,business done from ,april
 #ast to ,june #bc;d4      ,practical4  
,watts's ,catechism1 and discourses on  
,catechizing2 ,fenelon's spiritual      
works ,vol4 #ast and half of ,vol4 #b;d2
 ,saurin's ,sermons a few2 ,thomas a    
,kempis ,book #ast to ch4 #ba2 ,cotton  
,mather's life2 ,jenning's on preaching 
,christianity4      ,controversial4     
,towgood1 ,gill and ,breckell on        
,baptism2 ,le ,clerc on ,inspiration2   
,whiston's ,historical preface2 ,emlyn's
 narrative and humble enquiry2          
,apostolical ,constitutions2 ,newton on 
the prophecies2 ,winder's ,history  of  
knowledge2 ,hoadly on the ,sacrament2   
,lowman on the ,revelation2 ,moral      
,philosopher2 ,hume's ,political        
discourses2 ,middleton's fathers of the 

four first centuries2 ,middleton and    
,waterland's controversy4 ---- on  the  
,demoniacs2 ,goodrich's display of      
,human ,nature4      ,classics4         
,cicero's #ast4 ,phillippic4            
,historical4    ,universal ,history     
,vol4 #ae and #af and to page #dhh of   
the #agth4      ,composition4    ,second
 ,vol4 of the ,institutes of ,natural   
and ,revealed ,religion2 wrote  an      
article on ,edwards's translation of the
 ,psalms for the review4      ,from     
,june #bc;d to ,september #a4           
,practical ,writers4    ,thomas a       
,kempis from ,ch4 #ba of ,book #ast2    
,hartley on ,man vol4 #b;d4 ,may's      
,prayers4 ,holland's ,sermons4          
,scriptures4    ,from the #ast ,epistle 
of ,timothy to the ,revelations1 and the
 ,gospels of  ,matthew1 ,mark1 and      
,luke1 in the ,greek ,testament2 ,the   
books of ,genesis1  ,exodus1 and        
,leviticus1 in the ,hebrew ,bible4      
,classics4    ,ovid from ,book #ith2    
,demosthenes #ast ,phillippic and #c    

,olynthiacs2  ,herodotus ,book #ast2    
,homer's ,iliad1 ,book #a1 #b1 #c2      
,sallust4      ,history4    ,universal  
,history from ,vol4 #ag p4 #dhh to the  
end of ,vol4 #ah4 ,neal's  ,history of  
the ,puritans #d ,volumes4              
,philosophy4    ,the ,anatomical        
,articles in the ,universal ,dictionary1
 several principal  ,algebraic ones1 and
 all the letter ,a4      ,composition4  
#ab ,sermons4      ,business done in    
,september4    ,practical4    ,holland's
 ,sermons1 ,vol4 #b;d2 ,doddridge's     
family ,expositor ,vol4 #a4             
,scriptures4    ,john the ,evangelist1  
in ,greek4    ,numbers1 and to the #afth
 ,chapter in ,deuteronomy in ,hebrew4   
,classics4    ,homer's ,iliad1 #ab      
books4      ,mathematical4    ,euclid1  
,lib4 #a1 #b1 #c4      ,history4        
,universal ,history1 ,vol4 #aith4       
,miscellaneous4    ,mason's ,student2   
,one of ,shakespeare's plays4           
,composition4    #d ,sermons4           
,business done in ,october4             

,practical4    ,doddridge's ,expositor  
,vol4 #b;d2 ,common ,prayer ,book2      
,fordyce's ,sermons on  public          
,institutions4      ,scriptures4        
,deuteronomy from ,ch4 #af to the end2  
,ecclesiastes and ,solomon's ,song in   
,hebrew and ,greek4      ,classics4     
,homer's ,iliad1 ,book ,p to the end4   
,mathematical4    ,euclid1 ,lib1 #d1 #e1
 #f4      ,historical4    ,universal    
,history1 ,vol4 #bjth4                  
,miscellaneous4    #e ,shakespeare's    
,plays4      ,composition4    #c        
,sermons4      ,business done in        
,november4    ,practical4               
,abernethy's ,practical ,sermons4       
,scriptures4    ,job1 in ,hebrew and the
 ,septuagint4      ,philosophy1         
,mathematics and ,chemistry4    ,euclid 
,lib4 #aa and #ab slightly2 ,boerhave's 
,theory of ,chemistry a good  part of   
,vol4 #ast2 ,rowning's ,philosophy half 
of ,vol4 #ast4      ,classics4          
,francis's ,horace1 ,odes #d books4     
,history4    ,universal ,history part of

 ,vol4 #c;d2 ,jewish ,antiquities4      
,history of the  ,council of ,trent to  
page #acc4 ,anson's voyage by ,walter4  
,plays4    #d of ,shakespeare's plays4  
,composition4    #b ,sermons4           
,business done in ,december4            
,practical4    ,abernethy's ,posthumous 
sermons ,vol4 #b;d2 ,clarke's sermons   
,vol4 #ast4  ,patric on ,ecclesiastes4  
,scriptures4    ,psalms1 in the ,hebrew 
and ,septuagint4      ,philosophy4      
,rowning's ,philosophy part #b;d and    
#c;d4      ,classics4    ,francis's     
,horace ,vol4 #b and #c4                
,miscellaneous and ,entertaining4       
,malcolm on ,music1 half2 #d            
,shakespeare's plays4    ,half of the   
#ast ,vol4 of the ,rambler4    ,popes   
,ethic ,epistles1 a few4      ,history4 
,paul's ,council of ,trent1 to page     
#dgf2 ,life of the ,duke of             
,marlborough4      ,composition4    #d  
,sermons4    ,it will be seen by this   
extract from his diary1 that his studies
 were  very varied1 which1 as he was    

always persuaded1 enabled him to do  so 
much4 ,this he constantly attended to   
through life2 his chemical  and         
philosophical pursuits serving as a kind
 of relaxation from his  theological    
studies4 ,his miscellaneous reading1    
which was at all  times very extensive1 
comprizing even novels and plays1 still 
served  to increase the variety4 ,for   
many years of his life1 he never spent  
less than two or three hours a day in   
games of amusement1 as cards and        
backgammon2 but particularly chess--at  
which he and my mother played  regularly
 three games after dinner1 and as many  
after supper4 ,as his  children grew up1
 chess was laid aside for whist or some 
round game at  cards1 which he enjoyed  
as much as any of the company4 ,it is   
hardly  necessary to state that he never
 played for money1 even for the most    
trifling sum4    ,to all these modes of 
relieving the mind1 he added bodily     
exercise4  ,independent of his          
laboratory furnishing him with a good   

deal1 as he  never employed an operator1
 and never allowed any one even to light
 a  fire1 he generally lived in         
situations which required his walking a 
good deal1 as at ,calne1 ,birmingham and
 ,hackney4 ,of that exercise he was     
very fond4 ,he walked well1 and his     
regular pace was four miles an hour4    
,in situations where the necessity of   
walking was not imposed upon him1  he   
worked in his garden as at ,calne1 when 
he had not occasion to go to  ,bowood2  
at ,northumberland in ,america1 he was  
particularly attached to  this exercise4
    ,but what principally enabled him to
 do so much was regularity1 for it  does
 not appear that at any period of his   
life he spent more than six  or eight   
hours per day in business that required 
much mental exertion4  ,i find in the   
same diary1 which ,i have quoted from   
above1 that he  laid down the following 
daily arrangement of time for a         
minister's  studies3 ,studying the      
,scriptures #a hour4 ,practical writers 

#a-b an hour4  ,philosophy and ,history 
#b hours4 ,classics #a-b an hour4       
,composition #a  hour--in all #e hours4 
,he adds below 8,all which may be       
conveniently  dispatched before dinner1 
which leaves the afternoon for visiting 
and  company1 and the evening for       
exceeding in any article if there be    
occasion4 ,six hours not too much1 nor  
seven40    ,it appears by his diary that
 he followed this plan at that period of
  his life4 ,he generally walked out in 
the afternoon or spent it in  company4  
,at that time there was a society or    
club that assembled twice  a week1 at   
which the members debated questions1 or 
took it in turn to  deliver orations1 or
 read essays of their own composition4  
,when not  attending these meetings1 he 
most generally appears to have spent the
  evening in company with some of the   
students in their chambers4    ,it was  
by the regularity and variety of his    
studies1 more than by  intenseness of   
application1 that he performed so much  

more than even  studious men generally  
do4 ,at the time he was engaged about   
the  most important works1 and when he  
was not busily employed in making       
experiments1 he always had leisure for  
company1 of which he was fond4  ,he     
never appeared hurried or behind hand4  
,he however never carried  his          
complaisance so far as to neglect the   
daily task he had imposed  upon himself2
 but as he was uniformly an early riser1
 and dispatched  his more serious       
pursuits in the morning1 it rarely      
happened but that  he could accomplish  
the labours assigned for the day1       
without having  occasion to withdraw    
from visitors at home1 or society       
abroad1 or  giving reason to suppose    
that the company of others was a        
restraint  upon his pursuits4    ,this  
habit of regularity1 extended itself to 
every thing that he read1  and every    
thing he did that was susceptible of it4
 ,he never read a  book without         
determining in his own mind when he     

would finish it4 ,had  he a work to     
transcribe1 he would fix a time for its 
completion4 ,this  habit increased upon 
him as he grew in years1 and his diary  
was kept  upon the plan ,i have before  
described1 till within a few days of his
  death4    ,to the regularity and      
variety of his studies1 must be added a 
considerable degree of ,mechanical      
contrivance1 which greatly  facilitated 
the execution of many of his            
compositions4 ,it was however  most     
apparent in his laboratory1 and         
displayed in the simplicity and         
neatness of his apparatus1 which was the
 great cause of the accuracy  of his    
experiments1 and of the fair character  
which he acquired as an  experimental   
chemist4 ,this was the result in the    
first instance of a  necessary attention
 to conomy in all his pursuits1 and was 
afterwards  continued from choice1 when 
the necessity no longer existed4 ,i     
return  from this digression which ,i   
thought necessary to give the reader a  

general view of my father's occupations1
 and his manner of spending his  time1  
to the circumstances attending the      
remaining years of his life4    ,at his 
first settling at ,northumberland1 there
 was no house to be  procured that would
 furnish him with the conveniencies of a
 library and  laboratory in addition to 
the room necessary for a family4 ,hence 
in  the beginning of the year #agie1    
being then fixed in his determination   
to move no more1 he resolved upon       
building a house convenient for his     
pursuits4 ,during the time the house was
 building1 he had no convenience  for   
making experiments more than a common   
room afforded1 and he was  thereby      
prevented from doing much in this way4  
,still1 he ascertained  several facts of
 importance in the year #agie on the    
,analysis of  ,atmospheric ,air1 and    
also some in continuation of those on   
the  generation of air from water4      
,he had however leisure and opportunity 
for his other studies and in  #agie he  

published observations on the increase  
of infidelity and he  continued his     
,church ,history from the fall of the   
,western ,empire to the  reformation4   
,in the spring of #agif he spent three  
months at ,philadelphia and  delivered  
there a set of discourses on the        
,evidences of ,revelation1  which he    
composed with a view to counteract the  
effect produced by the  writings of     
unbelievers1 which1 as might be         
expected1 was very great  in a country  
where rational opinions in religion were
 but little known1  and where the       
evidences of revelation had been but    
little attended to4  ,it was a source of
 great satisfaction to him1 and what he 
had little  previous reason to expect1  
that his lectures were attended by very 
crowded audiences1 including most of the
 members of the congress of  the ,united
 ,states at that time assembled at      
,philadelphia1 and of the  executive    
officers of the government4 ,these      
discourses which1 in a  regular and     

connected series1 placed ,christianity1 
and the evidences  of its truth1 in a   
more clear and satisfactory point of    
view than it  had been usually          
considered in this country1 attracted   
much attention1  and created an interest
 in the subject which there is reason to
 believe  has produced lasting effects4 
,my father received assurances from many
  of the most respectable persons in the
 country1 that they viewed the  subject 
in a totally different light from what  
they had before done1  and that could   
they attend places of worship1 where    
such rational  doctrines were           
inculcated1 they should do it with      
satisfaction4    ,as my father had      
through life considered the office of a 
,christian  minister as the most useful 
and honourable of any1 and had always   
derived the greatest satisfaction from  
fulfilling its duties1  particularly    
from catechizing young persons1 the     
greatest source of  uneasiness therefore
 to him at ,northumberland was1 that    

there was no  sufficient opportunity of 
being useful in that way4 ,though he was
  uniformly treated with kindness and   
respect by the people of the place1  yet
 their sentiments in religion were so   
different from his own1 and  the nature 
and tendency of his opinions were so    
little understood1 that  the            
establishment of a place of ,unitarian  
worship perfectly free from  any        
calvinistic or ,arian tenet1 was next to
 impossible4 ,all therefore  that he    
could do in that way was1 for the two or
 three first years1  to read a service  
either at his own or at my house1 at    
which a few  7perhaps a dozen7 ,english 
persons were usually present1 and in    
time1 as  their numbers increased he    
made use of a school room near his      
house1  where from twenty to thirty     
regularly attended1 and among them some 
of  the inhabitants of the place1 who by
 degrees began to divest themselves  of 
their prejudices with respect to his    
opinions4 ,however small the  number of 

persons attending1 he administered the  
,lord's supper1 a rite  upon which he   
always laid particular stress4    ,in   
the ,autumn of #agie he had the         
misfortune to lose his youngest son1  of
 whom being much younger than any of his
 other children1 and having  entertained
 the hopes of his succeeding him in his 
,theological and  ,philosophical        
pursuits he was remarkably fond4 ,he    
felt this misfortune  the more severely 
as it was the first of the kind he had  
experienced1  and particularly as it had
 a visible effect upon my mother's      
health and  spirits4 ,he was however so 
constantly in the habit of viewing the  
hand  of ,god in all things1 and of     
considering every occurrence as leading 
to good1 that his mind soon recovered   
its accustomed serenity1 and his        
journey to ,philadelphia mentioned above
 and the success which attended  his    
first exertions in the cause of1 what he
 deemed1 pure and genuine  christianity1
 led him to look forward with           

cheerfulness to the future1  and gave   
him an energy in his pursuits1 which was
 never exceeded in any  part of his     
life4 ,it was the same habit of viewing 
,god as the author of  all events1 and  
producing good out of seeming evil1 that
 enabled him  to support himself so well
 under the greatest affliction that     
could  possibly have befallen him1 viz4 
the loss of his wife1 my mother2 who    
through life had been truly a help meet 
for him2 supporting him under  all his  
trials and sufferings with a constancy  
and perseverance truly  praise worthy1  
and who as he himself1 in noting the    
event in his diary1  justly observes1   
8was of a noble and generous mind and   
cared much for  others and little for   
herself through life40    ,in the period
 between the above very afflicting      
events1 though his  conveniences for    
experimenting were not increased1 owing 
to his house1  and particularly his     
laboratory not being finished1 he wrote 
a small  treatise in defence of the     

doctrine of ,phlogiston1 addressed to   
the  ,philosophers in ,france4 ,he      
likewise composed a second set of       
discourses  of a similar kind to those  
delivered in ,philadelphia the preceding
  winter4 ,he preached and printed a    
sermon in defence of ,unitarianism1  and
 printed the first set of discourses2 he
 compleated his ,church  ,history2 he   
made additional observations on the     
increase of infidelity  chiefly in      
answer to ,mr4 ,volney2 and drew up an  
,outline of all the  ,evidences in      
favour of ,revelation4    ,in the spring
 of #agig he again spent two or three   
months in  ,philadelphia1 and delivered 
a second set of discourses1 but partly  
from  the novelty of the thing being    
done away1 partly from the prejudices   
that began to be excited against him on 
account of his supposed  political      
opinions1 7for high-toned politics began
 then to prevail in  the fashionable    
circles7 and partly owing to the        
discourses not being  so well adapted   

for a public audience1 though necessary 
to set the  comparative excellence of   
,christianity in its true light1 they   
were but  thinly attended in comparison 
to his former set4 ,this induced him to 
give up the idea of preaching any more  
regular sets of discourses4 ,he  however
 printed them1 as likewise a sermon he  
preached in favour of the  ,emigrants4  
,he also composed at this time a third  
and enlarged edition  of his            
,observations on the increase of        
infidelity1 a controversy with  ,mr4    
,volney1 a tract on the ,knowledge of a 
,future state among the  ,hebrews1      
which1 with the works he composed the   
year before1 he printed  as he found    
means and opportunity4 ,he revised his  
,church ,history1 began  his ,notes on  
the ,scriptures1 and his ,comparison of 
the ,institutions of  ,moses with those 
of the ,hindoos4    ,towards the end of 
#agig and not before1 his library and   
laboratory were  finished4 ,none but men
 devoted to literature can imagine the  

pleasure  he derived from being able to 
renew his experiments with every        
possible convenience1 and from having   
his books once more arranged4 ,his      
house was situated in a garden1         
commanding a prospect equal1 if not     
superior1 to any on the river           
,susquehanna1 so justly celebrated for  
the picturesque views its banks afford4 
,it was a singularly fortunate          
circumstance that he found at           
,northumberland several excellent       
workmen  in metals1 who could repair his
 instruments1 make all the new articles 
he wanted in the course of his          
experimenting1 as well as1 he used to   
say1 if not in some respects better     
than1 he could have got them done  in   
,birmingham2 and in the society of ,mr4 
,frederick ,antis1 the brother  of ,mr4 
,antis in ,england1 and uncle of ,mr4   
,latrobe the engineer1 he  derived great
 satisfaction4 ,mr4 ,antis was a man of 
mild and amiable  manners1 he possessed 
a very good knowledge of ,mechanics the 

result  of his own observation and      
reflection1 and a fund of knowledge of  
many things which my father frequently  
found useful to resort to4 ,the         
situation of ,northumberland became     
abundantly more convenient than it  was 
when he first came to the place4 ,from  
there being no regular public  post1    
there was now established a post twice a
 week to ,philadelphia1  and answers    
could be received to letters within a   
week1 and the  communication so much    
increased between the two places1 that  
the price  of the carriage of goods was 
reduced from #aas4-#c;d4 to #fs4 per    
,cwt4 the distance being #acb miles4    
,thus conveniently situated1 he resumed 
the same kind of life he led  at        
,birmingham1 experimenting the greater  
part of the day1 the result  of which he
 published in the ,medical repository of
 ,new-,york4 ,having  compleated his    
,church ,history1 he finished his       
,comparison of the  ,institutions of    
,moses with those of the ,hindoos4 ,he  

likewise proceeded  as far as ,leviticus
 in the design he had formed of writing 
,notes on  all the books of ,scripture1 
and made some remarks on the origin of  
all  religions by ,dupuis1 but the      
greater part of the time that he spent  
in theology this year1 was employed in  
recomposing the ,notes on the           
,new-,testament1 which were destroyed at
 the riots4    ,in the course of the    
year #agii1 he finished his ,notes on   
all the books  of ,scripture1 he        
published his ,comparison of the        
,institutions of ,moses  with those of  
the ,hindoos1 he likewise printed his   
,defence of the  doctrine of ,phlogiston
 above mentioned1 and the greater part  
of each  day in the summer was employed 
in making the additional experiments he 
had projected4    ,it was in the year   
#agii1 during ,mr4 ,adams's             
administration1 that my  father had     
occasion to write any thing on the      
subject of politics in  this country4   
,it is well known to all his friends1   

that politics were  always a subject of 
secondary importance with him4 ,he      
however took part  occasionally in the  
conversations on that subject2 which    
every person  has a right to do1 and    
which1 about the time my father left    
,england1 no  person could avoid doing1 
as the subject engrossed so large a part
 of  the conversation in almost every   
company4 ,he always argued on the side  
of liberty4 ,he was however in favour   
only of those changes that could  be    
brought about by fair argument1 and his 
speculations on the subject  of ,british
 politics did not go further than a     
reform in ,parliament1 and  no way      
tended1 in his opinion1 to affect the   
form of government1 or the  constitution
 of the kingdom1 as vested in ,kings1   
,lords and ,commons4 ,he  used          
frequently to say1 and it was said to   
him1 that though he was an  ,unitarian  
in ,religion he was in that country a   
,trinitarian in politics4    ,when he   
came to ,america1 he found reason to    

change his opinions1 and  he became a   
decided friend to the general principles
 and practice of a  compleatly          
representative government1 founded upon 
universal suffrage1  and excluding      
hereditary privileges1 as it exists in  
this country4  ,this change was         
naturally produced by observing the ease
 and happiness  with which the people   
lived1 and the unexampled prosperity of 
the  country1 of which no ,european1    
unless he has resided in it some time1  
and has observed the interior part of   
it1 can be a competent judge4  ,but with
 respect to ,england1 he still remained 
anxious for its peace  and prosperity1  
and though he had been so hardly used1  
and though he  considered the           
administration of the country1 if not   
instigating at  least conniving at the  
riots1 no resentment existed in his     
breast  against the nation4 ,in his     
feelings he was still an ,englishman4   
,though  he might speculatively consider
 that the mass of evil and misery had   

arisen to such a height in ,england1 and
 in other ,european countries1  that    
there was no longer any hope of a       
peaceable and gradual reform1  yet1     
considering at the same time that the   
great body of the people1  like the     
,negroes in the ,west-,indies1 were     
unprepared for the enjoyment  of liberty
 in its full extent1 and contemplating  
the evils necessarily  attendant upon a 
violent change1 he dreaded a revolution4
    ,with respect to ,america he had    
never interfered publicly in politics1  
and never wrote an article that could be
 considered in that light in  any       
respect1 except one published in a      
newspaper called the ,aurora1  signed a 
,quaker in ,politics1 published on the  
#bfth and #bgth of  ,february1 #agih1   
and entitled ,maxims of ,political      
,arithmetic1#cb and  so little did he   
interest himself in the politics of this
 country1  that he seldom if ever       
perused the debates in ,congress1 nor   
was he  much acquainted with any of the 

leading political characters except     
three or four1 and with these he never  
corresponded but with ,mr4 ,adams  prior
 to his being chosen president1 and ,mr4
 ,jefferson4 ,he never  was naturalized1
 nor did he take part directly or       
indirectly in any  election4 ,he        
persevered in the same sentiments even  
when he was under  reasonable           
apprehension that he should be banished 
as an ,alien3 and  though he advised his
 sons to be naturalized1 saying it was  
what was  daily done by persons who     
could not be suspected of wishing any   
ill to  their native country1 yet he    
would not2 but said1 that as he had been
  born and had lived an ,englishman1 he 
would die one let what might be  the    
consequence4    #cb ,see ,appendix1 ,no4
 ,,iv4    ,about the year #agii1 the    
friends of liberty in ,america were     
greatly  alarmed by the advancement of  
principles disgraceful to ,america1 and 
by a practice less liberal in many      
respects than under the monarchical     

form of the ,british government4        
,nothing else was the subject of        
conversation and my father who though   
never active in politics1 at  the same  
time never concealed his sentiments1    
uttered them freely in  conversation1   
and they were of course opposed to the  
proceedings of the  administration at   
the time4 ,added to this ,mr4 ,thomas   
,cooper formerly  of ,manchester1 and   
who at that time had undertaken for a   
short period1  at the request of the    
printer1 to edit a newspaper then       
printed at  ,northumberland1 had        
published some very severe strictures on
 the  conduct of the administration1    
which were soon after published in a    
pamphlet1 under the title of ,political 
,essays4    ,by many my father might be 
ignorantly supposed as the prompter on  
the  occasion1 as ,mr4 ,cooper lived at 
that time with my father1 and by those  
who knew better1 it was made the        
ostensible ground of objection to my    
father1 to conceal the real one4 ,in    

truth he saw none of the essays  until  
they were printed1 nor was he consulted 
by ,mr4 ,cooper upon any  part of them4 
,the consequence was1 that all the      
bigotry and party zeal  of that violent 
period was employed to injure him1 and  
misrepresent  his words and actions4 ,he
 was represented as intriguing for      
offices  for himself and his friend1 and
 as an enemy to the government which    
they said protected him1 while men who  
were themselves but newly  naturalized1 
or the immediate descendants of         
foreigners1 bestowed  upon him the      
epithet of ,alien1 an epithet then used 
by the government  party as a term of   
reproach1 though the country was        
principally  indebted to the capital1   
industry and enterprize of foreigners   
for the  many improvements then carrying
 on4 ,such was the effect of all these  
slanderous reports1 and such was the    
character of the administration1  that  
it was intimated to my father1 from ,mr4
 ,adams himself1 that he  wished he     

would abstain from saying any thing on  
politics1 lest he  should get into      
difficulty4 ,the ,alien law which was   
passed under that  administration1 was  
at that time in operation1 and a man    
without being  convicted of1 or even    
positively charged with1 any offence1   
might have  been sent out of the country
 at a moment's warning1 not only without
 a  trial1 but without the right of     
remonstrance4 ,it was likewise hinted   
to my father as he has himself stated1  
that he was one of the persons          
contemplated when the law was passed1 so
 little did they know of his  real      
character and disposition4 ,this        
occasioned my father to write  a set of 
letters to the inhabitants of           
,northumberland2 in which he  expressed 
his sentiments fully on all the         
political questions at that  time under 
discussion4 ,they had the effect of     
removing the unfavourable  impressions  
that had been made on the minds of the  
liberal and candid1  and procured him   

many friends4 ,fortunately however the  
violent  measures then adopted produced 
a compleat change in the minds of the   
people1 and in consequence of it in the 
representation1 proving by the          
peaceableness of it1 the excellence of  
this form of government1 and  proving   
also that my father's sentiments1 as    
well as ,mr4 ,cooper's1 were  approved  
of by nine tenths of the people of the  
,united ,states4    ,it is but justice  
however to mention that in the above    
remarks which  have been made to        
represent my father's political         
character in its true  light1 and to    
account for his writing on the subject  
of politics1 ,i do  not mean to reflect 
on all the federalists1 and that though 
my father  considered them all as in    
error1 yet he acknowledged himself      
indebted  to many of that party for the 
most sincere marks of friendship which  
he  had received in this country1 and   
that not only from his opponents in     
politics1 but likewise from many of the 

principal clergymen of various          
denominations in ,philadelphia1 and     
particularly during his severe  illness 
in that city1 when party spirit was at  
the highest1 it being at  the time of   
,mr4 ,jefferson's first election to the 
presidency4    ,as my father has given  
an account of those friends to whose    
kindness  and generosity he was         
principally indebted from the           
commencement of  his literary career1 to
 the time of his coming to ,america1 ,i 
think  it my duty to follow his example1
 and to make on his part those          
acknowledgements which had he lived1 he 
would have taken pleasure in  making    
himself4 ,to the ,revd4 ,theophilus     
,lindsey1 independent of the  many marks
 of the most sincere friendship1 which  
he was constantly  receiving1 he was    
occasionally indebted for pecuniary     
assistance at  times when it was most   
wanting4 ,independent of #ej 4 per      
annum1 which  ,mrs4 ,elizabeth ,rayner  
allowed him from the time he left       

,england1 she  left him by her will     
#bjjj in the #d per cents4 ,mr4 ,michael
 ,dodson who  is well known as the      
translator of ,isaiah left him #ejj1 and
 ,mr4 ,samuel  ,salte left him #ajj 4   
,the ,duke of ,grafton remitted him     
annually #dj  4 ,therefore though his   
expences were far greater than he       
expected1  and though his house cost him
 double the sum he had contemplated1 the
  generosity of his friends made him    
perfectly easy in his mind with  respect
 to pecuniary affairs2 and by freeing   
him from all care and  anxiety on this  
head contributed greatly to his         
happiness1 and to his  successful       
endeavours in the cause of truth4       
,besides these instances  of friendly   
attention1 the different branches of his
 family have been1  in various ways1    
benefited1 in consequence of the respect
 paid to my  father's character1 and the
 affectionate regard shewn by his       
friends to  all who were connected with 
him4    ,but what gave my father most   

real pleasure was the subscription1 set 
on foot by his friends in ,england1 to  
enable him to print his ,church         
,history1 and his ,notes on all the     
,books of ,scripture4 ,the whole was    
done without his knowledge1 and the     
first information he received on  the   
subject was1 that there was a sum raised
 sufficient to cover the  whole expence4
    ,about the time he died1 some of his
 friends in ,england understood that  he
 was likely to suffer a loss in point of
 income of 4 #bjj per annum4  ,without  
any solicitation1 about forty of them   
raised the sum of 4  #dej1 which was    
meant to have been continued annually   
while he lived4  ,he did not live to    
know of this kind exertion in his       
favour4 ,it is my  duty however to      
record this instance of generosity1 and 
,i do it with  pleasure and with        
gratitude4 ,it likewise proves that     
though my father  by the fearless avowal
 of his opinions1 created many enemies1 
yet that  the honesty and independence  

of his conduct procured him many        
friends4    ,the first year's           
subscription has been transmitted to    
,america1 to  defray the expence of     
publishing his posthumous works4    ,in 
the year #ahjj he was chiefly employed  
in experiments1 and writing  an account 
of them for various publications4 ,in   
this year also he  published his        
treatise in defence of ,phlogiston1 he  
revised his  ,church ,history1 the two  
first volumes of which are now reprinted
 with  considerable additions1 and he   
added to and improved his ,notes on the 
,scriptures4    ,he spent some time in  
the spring of #ahja in ,philadelphia1   
during  his stay there he had a violent 
attack of fever which weakened  him     
exceedingly1 and from the effects of    
which he never perfectly  recovered4    
,added to this the fever and ague       
prevailed at ,northumberland  and the   
neighbourhood1 for the first time since 
his settlement at the  place4 ,he had   
two or three attacks of this disorder2  

which though they  were not very severe1
 as he had never more than three fits at
 a time1  retarded his recovery very    
much4 ,he perceived the effect of his   
illness  in the diminution of his       
strength1 and his not being able to take
 as  much exercise as he used to do4    
,his spirits however were good1 and he  
was very assiduous in making            
experiments1 chiefly on the pile of     
,volta1  the result of which he sent an 
account of to ,nicholson's ,journal and 
the ,medical ,repository4    ,in #ahjb  
he began to print his ,church ,history1 
in consequence of the  subscription     
raised by his friends in ,england as    
before stated4  ,besides printing three 
volumes of that work1 he wrote and      
printed a  treatise on ,baptism1 chiefly
 in answer to the observations of ,mr4  
,robinson on the subject4 ,he likewise  
made some experiments1 and replied  to  
some remarks of ,mr4 ,cruikshank in     
defence of the ,antiphlogistic  theory4 
,i am now to describe the last scene of 

his life1 which deserves the  reader's  
most serious consideration1 as it shews 
the powerful effect  of his religious   
principles4 ,they made him1 not resigned
 to quit a  world in which he no longer 
had any delight1 and in which no hope of
  future enjoyment presented itself1 but
 chearful in the certainty of           
approaching dissolution1 and under      
circumstances that would by the  world  
in general have been considered as      
highly enviable4 ,they led  him to      
consider death as the labourer does     
sleep at night as being  necessary to   
renew his mental and corporeal powers1  
and fit him for a  future state of      
activity and happiness4 ,for though     
since his illness  in ,philadelphia in  
#ahja he had never recovered his former 
good state  of health1 yet he had never 
been confined to his bed a whole day by 
sickness in ,america until within two   
days of his death1 and was never        
incapacitated for any pursuit that he   
had been accustomed to4 ,he took  great 

delight in his garden1 and in viewing   
the little improvements  going forward  
in and about the town4 ,the rapidly     
increasing prosperity  of the country1  
whether as it regarded its agriculture1 
manufactures1  and commerce1 or the     
increasing taste for science and        
literature1 were  all of them to him a  
source of the purest pleasure4 ,for the 
last four  years of his life he lived   
under an administration1 the principles 
and  practice of which he perfectly     
approved1 and with ,mr4 ,jefferson1 the 
head of that administration1 he         
frequently corresponded1 and they had   
for each other a mutual regard and      
esteem4 ,he enjoyed the esteem of  the  
wisest and best men in the country1     
particularly at ,philadelphia1  where   
his religion and his politics did not   
prevent his being kindly  and cheerfully
 received by great numbers of opposite  
opinions in both1  who thus paid homage 
to his knowledge and virtue4 ,at home he
 was  beloved2 and besides the          

advantages of an excellent library1 to  
which  he was continually making        
additions1 and of a laboratory that was 
amply  provided with every thing        
necessary for an experimental chemist1  
he was perfectly freed1 as he had       
happily been through life1 in           
consequence of my mother's ability and  
attention1 from any attention to        
worldly concerns2 considering himself1  
as he used to express himself1  merely  
as a lodger1 having all his time to     
devote to his theological  and          
philosophical pursuits4 ,he had the     
satisfaction of witnessing the  gradual 
spread of his religious opinions1 and   
the fullest conviction  that he should  
prevail over his opponents in chemistry4
 ,he looked  forward with the greatest  
pleasure to future exertions in both    
these  fields1 and had within the last  
month or six weeks been projecting many 
improvements in his apparatus1 which he 
meant to make use of upon the  return of
 warm weather in the spring4            

,notwithstanding1 therefore1 the  many  
trials he underwent in this country1 he 
had still great sources of  happiness   
left1 unalloyed by any apprehension of  
any material defect  in any of his      
senses1 or any abatement of the vigour  
of his mind4  ,consistent with the above
 was his declaration that1 excepting the
 want  of the society of ,mr4 ,l1 ,mr4  
,b4 and two or three other particular   
friends1 which however was made up to   
him1 in some1 though in a small  degree 
by their regular correspondence1 he had 
never upon the whole  spent any part of 
his life more happily1 nor1 he believed1
 more  usefully4    ,the first part of  
his illness1 independent of his general 
weakness1  the result of his illness in 
,philadelphia in #ahja1 was a constant  
indigestion1 and a difficulty of        
swallowing meat or any kind of solid    
food unless previously reduced by       
mastication to a perfect pulp4 ,this    
gradually increased upon him till he    
could swallow liquids but very  slowly1 

and led him to suspect1 which he did to 
the last1 that there  must be some      
stoppage in the sophagus4 ,latterly he  
lived almost  entirely upon tea1        
chocolate1 soups1 sago1 custard         
puddings1 and the  like4 ,during all    
this time of general and increasing     
debility1 he was  busily employed in    
printing his ,church ,history1 and the  
first volume  of the ,notes on          
,scripture2 and in making new and       
original experiments1  an account of    
which he sent to the ,american          
,philosophical ,society in  two numbers1
 one in answer to ,dr4 ,darwin's        
observations on ,spontaneous            
generation1 and the other on the        
unexpected conversion of a quantity  of 
the marine acid into the nitrous4       
,during this period1 likewise1 he  wrote
 his pamphlet of ,jesus and ,socrates   
compared1 and re-printed his  ,essay on 
,phlogiston4 ,he would not suffer any   
one to do for him what he  had been     
accustomed to do himself2 nor did he    

alter his former mode of  life in any   
respect1 excepting that he no longer    
worked in his garden1  and that he read 
more books of a miscellaneous nature    
than he had been  used to do when he    
could work more in his laboratory1 which
 had always  served him as a relaxation 
from his other studies4    ,from about  
the beginning of ,november #ahjc1 to the
 middle of ,january  #ahjd1 his         
complaint grew more serious4 ,he was    
once incapable of  swallowing any thing 
for near thirty hours2 and there being  
some  symptoms of inflammation at his   
stomach1 blisters were applied1 which   
afforded him relief2 and by very great  
attention to his diet1 riding  out in a 
chair when the weather would permit1 and
 living chiefly on  the soft parts of   
oysters1 he seemed if not gaining       
ground1 at least  not getting worse2 and
 we had reason to hope that if he held  
out until  spring as he was1 the same   
attention to his diet with more         
exercise1  which it was impossible for  

him to take on account of the cold      
weather1  would restore him to health4  
,he1 however1 considered his life as    
very  precarious1 and used to tell the  
physician who attended him1 that if  he 
could but patch him up for six months   
longer he should be perfectly           
satisfied1 as he should in that time be 
able to complete printing  his works4   
,the swelling of his feet1 an alarming  
symptom of general  debility1 began     
about this time4    ,to give some idea  
of the exertions he made even at this   
time1 it is  only necessary for me to   
say1 that besides his miscellaneous     
reading1  which was at all times very   
great1 he read through all the works    
quoted  in his comparison of the        
different systems of the ,grecian       
,philosophers  with christianity1       
composed that work1 and transcribed the 
whole of  it in less than three months4 
,he took the precaution of transcribing 
one day in long hand what he had        
composed the day before in short  hand1 

that he might by that means leave the   
work complete as far as it  went1 should
 he not live to complete the whole4     
,during this period he  composed in a   
day his second reply to ,dr4 ,linn4     
,about this time he ceased performing   
divine service1 which he said he  had   
never before known himself incapable of 
performing1 notwithstanding  he had been
 a preacher so many years4 ,he likewise 
now suffered me to  rake his fire1 rub  
his feet with a flesh-brush1 and        
occasionally help  him to bed4 ,in the  
mornings likewise he had his fire made  
for him1  which he always used to do    
himself1 and generally before any of the
  family was stirring4    ,in the last  
fortnight in ,january he was troubled   
with alarming fits of  indigestion2 his 
legs swelled nearly to his knees1 and   
his weakness  increased very much4 ,i   
wrote for him1 while he dictated1 the   
concluding  section of his ,new         
,comparison1 and the ,preface and       
,dedication4 ,the  finishing this work  

was a source of great satisfaction to   
him1 as he  considered it as a work of  
as much consequence as any he had ever  
undertaken4 ,the first alarming symptom 
of approaching dissolution  was his     
being unable to speak to me upon my     
entering his room on  ,tuesday morning  
the #cast of ,january4 ,in his ,diary ,i
 find he stated his  situation as       
follows3 8,ill all day--,not able to    
speak for near three  hours40 ,when he  
was able to speak he told me he had     
slept well1 as he  uniformly had done   
through the whole of his illness2 so    
that he never  would suffer me1 though  
,i frequently requested he would do it1 
to sleep  in the same room with him2    
that he felt as well as possible2 that  
he  got up and shaved himself1 which he 
never omitted doing every morning  till 
within two days of his death2 that he   
went to his laboratory1 and  then found 
his weakness very great2 that he got    
back with difficulty2  that just        
afterward his grand-daughter1 a child of

 about six or seven  years old1 came to 
him to claim the fulfilment of a promise
 he had  made her the evening before1 to
 give her a fivepenny bit4 ,he gave her 
the money1 and was going to speak to    
her1 but found himself unable4  ,he     
informed me of this1 speaking very      
slowly a word at a time2 and  added1    
that he had never felt more pleasantly  
in his whole life than  he did during   
the time he was unable to speak4 ,after 
he had taken his  medicine1 which was   
bark and laudanum1 and drank a bason of 
strong  mutton broth1 he recovered      
surprizingly1 and talked with           
cheerfulness  to all who called upon    
him1 but as though he was fully sensible
 that  he had not long to live4 ,he     
consented for the first time that ,i    
should  sleep in the room with him4     
,on ,wednesday1 ,february #a1 he writes1
 8,i was at times much better in  the   
morning3 capable of some business3      
continued better all day40 ,he  spake   
this morning as strong as usual1 and    

took in the course of the  day a good   
deal of nourishment with pleasure4 ,he  
said1 that he felt a  return of         
strength1 and with it there was a duty  
to perform4 ,he read a  good deal in    
,newcome's ,translation of the ,new     
,testament1 and ,stevens's  ,history of 
the ,war4 ,in the afternoon he gave me  
some directions how to  proceed with the
 printing his work in case he should    
die4 ,he gave me  directions to stop the
 printing of the second volume1 and to  
begin upon  the third1 that he might see
 how it was begun1 and that it might    
serve  as a pattern to me to proceed by4
    ,on ,thursday1 the #b;d1 he wrote   
thus for the last time in his ,diary3   
8,much worse3 incapable of business3    
,mr4 ,kennedy came to receive           
instructions about printing in case of  
my death40 ,he sat up1 however1  a great
 part of the day1 was cheerful1 and gave
 ,mr4 ,cooper and myself  some          
directions1 with the same composure as  
though he had only been  about to leave 

home for a short time4 ,though it was   
fatiguing to him to  talk1 he read a    
good deal in the works above mentioned4 
,on ,friday he was much better4 ,he sat 
up a good part of the day reading       
,newcome2 ,dr4 ,disney's ,translation of
 the ,psalms2 and some chapters  in the 
,greek ,testament1 which was his daily  
practice4 ,he corrected a  proof-sheet  
of the ,notes on ,isaiah4 ,when he went 
to bed he was not so  well3 he had an   
idea he should not live another day4 ,at
 prayer-time  he wished to have the     
children kneel by his bedside1 saying1  
it gave  him great pleasure to see the  
little things kneel2 and1 thinking he   
possibly might not see them again1 he   
gave them his blessing4    ,on          
,saturday1 the #dth1 my father got up   
for about an hour while his  bed was    
made4 ,he said he felt more comfortable 
in bed than up4 ,he  read a good deal1  
and looked over the first sheet of the  
third volume  of the ,notes1 that he    
might see how we were likely to go on   

with it2  and having examined the ,greek
 and ,hebrew quotations1 and finding    
them  right1 he said he was satisfied we
 should finish the work very well4 ,in  
the course of the day1 he expressed his 
gratitude in being permitted  to die    
quietly in his family1 without pain1    
with every convenience and  comfort he  
could wish for4 ,he dwelt upon the      
peculiarly happy situation  in which it 
had pleased the ,divine ,being to place 
him in life2 and the  great advantage he
 had enjoyed in the acquaintance and    
friendship of  some of the best and     
wisest men in the age in which he lived1
 and the  satisfaction he derived from  
having led an useful as well as a happy 
life4    ,on ,sunday he was much weaker1
 and only sat up in an armed chair while
  his bed was made4 ,he desired me to   
read to him the eleventh chapter  of    
,john4 ,i was going on to read to the   
end of the chapter1 but he  stopped me  
at the #deth verse4 ,he dwelt for some  
time on the advantage  he had derived   

from reading the scriptures daily1 and  
advised me to  do the same2 saying1 that
 it would prove to me1 as it had done to
  him1 a source of the purest pleasure4 
,he desired me to reach him a  pamphlet 
which was at his bed's head1 ,simpson on
 the ,duration of  future ,punishment4  
8,it will be a source of satisfaction to
 you to read  that pamphlet10 said he1  
giving it to me4 8,it contains my       
sentiments1  and a belief in them will  
be a support to you in the most trying  
circumstances1 as it has been to me4 ,we
 shall all meet finally3 we  only       
require different degrees of discipline1
 suited to our different  tempers1 to   
prepare us for final happiness40 ,upon  
,mr4 ---- coming  into his room1 he     
said1 8,you see1 ,sir1 ,i am still      
living40 ,mr4 ----  observed1 he would  
always live4 8,yes10 said he1 8,i       
believe ,i shall2 and  we shall all meet
 again in another and a better world40  
,he said this  with great animation1    
laying hold on ,mr4 ----'s hand in both 

his4    ,before prayers he desired me to
 reach him three publications1 about    
which he would give me some directions  
next morning4 ,his weakness would  not  
permit him to do it at that time4    ,at
 prayers he had all the children brought
 to his bed-side as before4  ,after     
prayers they wished him a good night1   
and were leaving the room4  ,he desired 
them to stay1 spoke to them each        
separately4 ,he exhorted  them all to   
continue to love each other4 8,and you1 
little thing10  speaking to ,eliza1     
8remember the hymn you learned2 #8,birds
 in their  little nests agree1' c4 ,i am
 going to sleep as well as you3 for     
death  is only a good long sound sleep  
in the grave1 and we shall meet again40 
,he congratulated us on the dispositions
 of our children2 said it was  a        
satisfaction to see them likely to turn 
out well2 and continued for  some time  
to express his confidence in a happy    
immortality1 and in a  future state1    
which would afford us an ample field for

 the exertion of  our faculties4    ,on 
,monday morning1 the #fth of ,february1 
after having lain perfectly  still till 
four o'clock in the morning1 he called  
to me1 but in a  fainter tone than      
usual1 to give him some wine and        
tincture of bark4  ,i asked him how he  
felt4 ,he answered1 he had no pain1 but 
appeared  fainting away gradually4      
,about an hour after1 he asked me for   
some  chicken broth1 of which he took a 
tea-cup full4 ,his pulse was quick1     
weak1 and fluttering1 his breathing1    
though easy1 short4 ,about eight        
o'clock1 he asked me to give him some   
egg and wine4 ,after this he lay  quite 
still till ten o'clock1 when he desired 
me and ,mr4 ,cooper to  bring him the   
pamphlets we had looked out the evening 
before4 ,he then  dictated as clearly   
and distinctly as he had ever done in   
his life the  additions and alterations 
he wished to have made in each4 ,mr4    
,cooper  took down the substance of what
 he said1 which1 when he had done1 ,i   

read to him4 ,he said ,mr4 ,cooper had  
put it in his own language2 he  wished  
it to be put in his4 ,i then took a pen 
and ink to his bed-side4  ,he then      
repeated over again1 nearly word for    
word1 what he had before  said2 and when
 ,i had done1 ,i read it over to him4   
8,that is right2 ,i  have now done40    
,about half an hour after he desired1 in
 a faint voice1  that we would move him 
from the bed on which he lay to a cot1  
that he  might lie with his lower limbs 
horizontal1 and his head upright4 ,he   
died in about ten minutes after we had  
moved him1 but breathed his last  so    
easy1 that neither myself or my wife1   
who were both sitting close to  him1    
perceived it at the time4 ,he had put   
his hand to his face1 which  prevented  
our observing it4    ,the above account1
 which conveys but a very inadequate    
idea of the  composure and chearfulness 
of his last moments deserves the        
attention  of unbelievers in general1   
particularly of ,philosophical          

,unbelievers4  ,they have known him to  
be zealous and active in the pursuit of 
,philosophical truths and to be ever    
ready to acknowledge any mistakes  he   
may have fallen into4 ,by the perusal of
 these ,memoirs they have  found that he
 gradually1 and after much thought and  
reflection  abandoned all those opinions
 which disgrace what is usually called  
christianity in the eyes of rational men
 and whose inconsistency  with reason   
and common sense has most probably been 
the cause of  their infidelity and of   
their total inattention to the evidences
 of  christianity4 ,these opinions he   
abandoned1 because he could not find    
them supported either in the ,scriptures
 or in the genuine writings of  the     
early ,christians4 ,they must be        
sensible that the same desire for  truth
 and the same fearless spirit of enquiry
 and the same courage in  the open      
avowal of the most obnoxious tenets     
would have led him to have  discarded   
religion altogether had he seen reason  

so to do1 and there is  little doubt but
 that he would have been subject to less
 obloquy by so  doing than by exposing  
the various corruptions of christianity 
in the  manner he did4 ,they have seen  
however that in proportion as he        
attended  to the subject his faith in   
christianity increased and produced that
  happy disposition of mind described in
 these ,memoirs4 ,the subject is        
therefore well deserving of their       
attention and they should be induced    
from so fair an example1 and the weight 
due to my father's opinions1  to make   
themselves fully acquainted with the    
arguments in favour of  christianity    
before they reject it as an idle fable4 
,many unbelievers have1 no doubt1 borne 
with great patience severe  calamities2 
they have suffered death with great     
fortitude when engaged  in a good cause1
 and many have courted death to serve   
their friends  or their country4 ,it    
must however be allowed that there is no
 great  merit in meeting death with     

fortitude when it cannot be avoided1 and
  likewise that the above cases cannot  
be absolutely calculated upon1 as  there
 is no sufficient motive to account for 
their conduct4 ,but upon a  truly       
practical christian there is the        
greatest dependance to be placed  for   
acting well in all the situations in    
which he may be found1 his  highest     
interest being connected with the       
performance of the greatest  duties2 and
 even supposing that many persons1 who  
are not christians1  from favourable    
circumstances attendant upon their birth
 and education1  and from a naturally   
happy temperament of body and mind1 may1
 and1 it  must be allowed do acquire a  
habit of disinterested benevolence and  
may  in general be depended upon to act 
uniformly well in life1 still the       
christian has a decided advantage over  
them in the hour of death1 as  to       
consider death as necessary to his      
entering upon a new and enlarged  sphere
 of activity and enjoyment1 is a        

privilege that belongs to him  alone4   
,,appendix1 ,,no4 #a4         ,of the   
discoveries in factitious ,airs before  
the time of ,dr4                        
,priestley1 and of those made by        
himself4      ,dr4 ,priestley has given 
a general though brief account#cc of    
what  had been done by his predecessors 
in this department of experimental      
,philosophy1 and ,sir ,john ,pringle in 
his discourse before the ,royal         
,society on occasion of presenting ,dr4 
,priestley with the ,copley ,medal  in  
#aggbcd has entered expressly1 and more 
fully into the history of  pneumatic    
discoveries4 ,the same subject was taken
 up about three years  after by ,mr4    
,lavoisier still more at large1 in the  
introduction to his  first ,vol4 of     
,physical and ,chemical ,essays1 of     
which a translation was  published by   
,mr4 ,henry of ,manchester in #aggf4 ,it
 is unnecessary to  detail here what    
they have written on the history of     
these discoveries4  ,it may be observed 

that no mention is made by any of these 
gentlemen  of an experiment of ,mr4     
,john ,maud1 in ,july #agcfce1 who      
procured 7and  confined7 inflammable air
 from a solution of ,iron in the        
vitriolic  acid4 ,inflammable air had   
been procured from the ,white ,haven    
coal  mines1 and exhibited to the ,royal
 ,society by ,mr4 ,james ,lowther1 but  
,i do not recollect any notice of its   
having been collected from a  solution  
of metals in acids1 and its character   
ascertained before ,mr4  ,maud's        
experiment2 for ,hales1 though he       
procured both inflammable and  nitrous  
air1 did not examine their properties4  
,but it is much more  extraordinary that
 neither ,sir ,john ,pringle who was a  
,physician1 or  ,mr4 ,lavoisier who was 
so much occupied under government1      
respecting  the ,theory of the          
formation1 and the practice of          
manufacturing  ,saltpetre from ,nitre   
beds1 should not have known1 or have    
noticed the  five treatises of ,mayow on

 chemical1 phisiological and            
pathological  subjects1 published a     
century preceding4 ,mayow is quoted by  
,hales1#cf  by ,lemery1#cg and by       
,brownrigg1#ch but though they appear to
 have  read his work1 it is evident that
 they knew not how to appreciate1 or  to
 profit by it4 ,haller#ci also refers to
 him1 and he is respectfully  quoted by 
,blumenbach#dj3 but his book            
nevertheless long remained  in          
comparative obscurity4 ,from their time 
,mayow has been neglected  until his    
writings were noticed by ,dr4 ,forster1 
in #aghj1da and again  announced as     
almost a discovery in the chemical      
world1 by ,dr4 ,beddoes  in the year    
#agij4 ,his doctrines touch so nearly on
 the subsequent  discoveries of         
,priestley1 ,scheele1 ,lavoisier1       
,crawford1 ,goodwin1 c4  that it seems  
absolutely necessary to discuss his     
pretensions1 before  those of his       
successors can be accurately admitted4  
,as ,i am acquainted  with ,dr4         

,beddoes's pamphlet on ,mayow1 from the 
analytical review of it  only1 7,v4 vi47
 and have no opportunity here of        
consulting it1 ,i shall  take up        
,mayow's book1 and give an account of   
his tenets1 from the work  itself4      
#cc ,in the beginning of his first vol4 
of experiments3 it is an  abridgment of 
,sir ,j4 ,pringle's discourse4    #cd   
,discourses p4 #d4    #ce ,martyn's     
abridgment of the ,philosophical        
transactions v4 #i4 p4 #cif4  ,i think  
,maud's experiment in #agcf likely to   
have suggested those of ,mr4  ,cavendish
 in #agff4    #cf ,vegetable ,statics v4
 #b4 p4 #bcd4    #cg ,mem4 de l',acad4  
,royale #agag p4 #dh4 ,on ne dit        
pourtant point  trop sous quelle forme  
ce nitre se contient dans l'air1 et     
,mayou1  ,auteur ,anglois et grand      
defenseur du ,nitre-,arien voulant      
claircir  cette difficult1 suppose l'air
 impregn par tout d'une espece de  nitre
 metaphysique1 qui ne merite pas trop   
d'tre refut1 quoi-qu'il  l'it cependant 

t suffisamment par ,barchusen et par    
,schelhamer4 ,le  fondement de l'opinion
 du ,nitre arien1 c'est comme le        
rapporte ,mayou  lui mme1 qu'apres avoir
 enlev  une terre tout le ,nitre qu'elle
  contenoit1 si on l'expose ensuite     
l'air pendant un certain tems  elle en  
reprend de nouveau3 il est vrai que si  
l'observation toit  parfaitement telle  
qu'elle vient d'tre rapporte1 on auroit 
une plus  grande raison qu'on n'en a1 de
 supposer dans l'air une trs-grande     
quantite de nitre1 et de mettre sur le  
compte de ce nitre arien un  grand      
nombre d'effets auquels il n'a          
certainement aucune part4    ,the       
experiment of ,lemery mentioned in ,dr4 
,watson's ,essay on ,nitre1 is  in p4   
#ed of the ,mem4 de l'acad4 royale for  
#agag not for #agca4    ,it sometimes   
happens to men whose genius far         
transcends the level of  their day1 to  
be from that very circumstance neither  
understood nor  believed by their       
contemporaries4 ,until the discoveries  

of modern  chemistry1 who would have    
given ,sir ,isaac ,newton credit for his
  conjecture that the ,diamond was an   
inflammable substance8 ,the fact  which 
,lemery sneers at1 the reproduction of  
nitre in the earth1 is  established     
beyond contradiction by the authors     
quoted by ,dr4 ,watson  7,chem4 ,ess4 v4
 #a4 p4 #cah-cba7 and in ,bowle's       
account of the nitre  earths in ,spain1 
and in ,andreossi's memoir on the       
,saltpetre of ,egypt4  ,though it is far
 from improbable that after lixiviation 
these earths  may again become gradually
 impregnated with putrefying animal or  
vegetable matter to serve for the future
 crops of nitre4    #ch ,philosophical  
transactions v4 #ee p4 #bcb4    #ci ,dr4
 ,priestley in his preliminary account  
of the discoveries and  theories on     
respiration 7,exp4 on air v4 #c p4 #cef4
 abridged edit47  quotes ,haller's great
 work on ,physiology4 ,haller quotes    
,mayow in three  or four places2 but it 
is no wonder the quotations did not     

strike  ,dr4 ,priestley with any        
curiosity to examine ,mayow's book1 for 
,haller  certainly did not understand   
his theory4 ,for instance ,lib4 #h4     
#ac4  ,nitrum aereum4 ,si ad verum      
sensum nitri aerei hypothesis revocata  
fuisset parum utique ab e differt quam  
novissim proposuimus4  ,nitrum quidem   
ipsum incautiosius olim ,physiologi in  
aere obvolitare  scripserunt1 et ex     
pluvi et nive colligi2 idemque passim ex
 rupibus  efflorescere 7,sprat ex       
,henshaw p4 #bfd major cal4 hum47 exque 
plantis et  stercoribus educi 7,fludd   
,niewentydt1 #efc-d4 ,mayow de nitro    
aereo4 ,lower  de ,corde c4 #c4         
,thurston #eb4 #ec4 ,besse ,analyse tom 
#a et en lettre en  reponse  ,m4        
,helvet4 #aad47 id nitrum aiunt in      
pulmonibus ad sanguinem  venire1 et ab  
eo ruborem illum elegantem1 et          
fermentationem 7,mayow1  ,thurston      
penult4 ess4 ,t4 #c p4 #bfe7 et calorem 
sanguinis accedere aut  vicissim        
sanguinem condensari4    ,certainly the 

id nitrum1 is not ,mayow's4 ,m4 ,rosel  
seems first to have  ascertained the    
existence of nitre in plants4 ,a late   
experiment of ,dr4  ,priestley's1 of    
which he gave an account in a letter to 
,dr4 ,wistar1  seems to make it probable
 that there may be nitre in snow4    #dj
 ,blumenbach's ,physiology1 ,caldwell's 
translation1 ,philadelphia1  #agie4     
#afb4 ,speaking of the theories of      
animal heat1 8,but all these  hypotheses
 are embarrassed with innumerable       
difficulties2 whereas on  the other hand
 the utmost simplicity1 and an entire   
correspondence with  the phenomena of   
nature combine in recommending and      
confirming that  doctrine in which the  
lungs are considered as the focus or    
fire place  where animal heat is        
generated1 and the deplogisticated part 
of the air  which we breathe as the fuel
 that supports the vital flame4 ,that   
justly  celebrated character ,jo4 ,mayow
 sketched out formerly the leading      
traces  and the first great outlines of 

this doctrine which in our times has    
been greatly improved1 extended and     
farther elucidated by the labours  of   
the illustrious ,crawford40    ,dr4     
,darwin however is certainly right in   
supposing that heat is evolved  in many 
other processes of the animal economy1  
beside inspiration4    #da ,see the     
translation of ,scheele by ,dr4 ,john   
,reinhold ,forster #aghj p4  ,,xiii4    
,in p4 #dcg of v4 #e of the analytical  
review of ,hopson's ,chemistry1  before 
,dr4 ,beddoes's account of ,mayow in    
#agij the latter is stated as  the      
author of discoveries that might have   
given rise to the present  system of    
pneumatic ,chemistry4    ,two of        
,mayow's ,essays1 viz4 de ,respiratione 
and de ,rachitide1 appear  to have been 
published at ,leyden1 in #afga1 the     
author who died at the  age of #cd1     
being then #bf years old4 ,the          
propositions which ,i have  thought it  
necessary to extract from ,mayow's work1
 7ed4 of #afgd1  ,oxford17 and which ,i 

shall insert1 will give a concise1 but  
faithful  view of his discoveries and   
conjectures in pneumatic ,chemistry4#db 
,the abridgements of ,beddoes and       
,fourcroy1 ,i have no opportunity to    
consult1 and as ,mayow's book is far    
from being common1 ,i have deemed  it by
 no means an unnecessary labour to give 
the reader an opportunity  of judging   
for himself1 what is the precise extent 
of the claim1 which  the patrons of     
,mayow's reputation may fairly set up4  
,it is also1 of the  more importance in 
a history of this subject1 to notice the
 pretensions  of this writer1 as it     
appears that ,boyle's experiments on    
artificial  air1 in his                 
physico-mechanical experiments were not 
made until the  year #agfg et seq4      
,though the first edition of that       
treatise repeatedly  quoted by ,mayow   
was in #affa4 ,mayow's experiments      
therefore ought to  have been1 and      
probably were known to ,boyle at the    
publication of his  last edition4#dc    

#db ,i believe ,dr4 ,beddoes gives no   
more than the heads of each chapter     
and1 a brief analysis of the contents4  
,dr4 ,beddoes in his remarks on         
,fourcroy's account of ,mayow1 ,ann4 de 
,chimie4 ,no4 #he1 ,nich4 ,jour4 v4 #c  
quarto p4 #ajh states ,mayow at the time
 of his death to have been only  #bg and
 #bh3 but he was born in #afde and died 
in #agfi4 ,biog4 ,dict4 #hvo4  ed4 of   
#agih4    #dc ,i do not find that ,boyle
 quotes ,mayow1 though their labours in 
the  same field were contemporary4 ,but 
,boyle in his hidden qualities of the   
air published in #afgd has an           
observation that looks as if derived    
from  ,mayow4 8,and this undestroyed    
springiness of the air1 with the        
necessity  of fresh air to the life of  
hot animals1 suggests a great suspicion 
of  some vital substance if ,i may so   
call it1 diffused through the air1      
whether it be a volatile nitre or rather
 some anonymous substance1  sidereal or 
subterraneal1 though not improperly of  

kin to that which  seems so necessary to
 the maintenance of other flames40      
,the following is an analysis of        
,mayow's essays1 so far as relates to   
his chemical ,philosophy4    ,,chap4    
#ast4 ,of ,nitre4 ,the air is           
impregnated with a vital1 igneous1  and 
highly fermentative spirit of a         
nitro-saline nature1 p4 #a4    ,nitre is
 a salt consisting of an acid and an    
alkaline part1 as appears  by the       
,analysis1 and by the generation of     
nitre2 for if this salt be  deflagrated 
with sulphur1 the acid spirit will fly  
off1 and may be  collected by means of a
 tubulated retort and a receiver3 and so
 if it  be deflagrated with tartar1 the 
residuum will be equal in weight to the 
tartar employed1 though much of that1 is
 of a ftid oily nature4 ,this  appears  
also from the composition of nitre1 by  
the addition of spirit  of nitre to an  
alcali1 p4 #b-d4 ,the fixed part of     
nitre is obtained from  the earth2 pure 
earth being probably a compound of salt 

and sulphur4  p4 #h4    ,,chap4 #b;d4   
,on the aereal and fiery spirit of      
nitre4    ,the air seems to contain an  
acid1 as appears from the regeneration  
of vitriolic acid after the calcination 
of ,vitriol1 and from the  rusting of   
steel filings in a moist air2 p4 #aj4 ,a
 component part of  the acid of nitre1  
is derived from the air1 which evidently
 contains  something necessary to the   
support of flame4 ,but this aereal      
pabulum of  flame1 is not air itself1   
for air remains when the confined taper 
is  extinguished3 nor is it as vulgarly 
supposed1 the salt called nitre1 p4     
#ab4 ,but that these fire-air particles 
exist also in nitre is evident1  since  
this salt will support the combustion of
 sulphur in vacuo4 ,fill a  tube with   
gunpowder slightly moistened1 and it    
will burn out in vacuo1  or with its    
mouth inverted over water4 ,hence the   
aereal part of nitre1  is the same with 
the fire-air particles of the           
atmosphere1 and is one  component part  

of the acid spirit of nitre3 the other  
being 7like the  fixed part7 obtained   
from the earth1 p4 #ag4 #ah4 ,the fiery 
particles  thus common to nitre and to  
the air1 he denominates nitro-aereal4   
,it  is these that give causticity to   
spirit of nitre1 and occasion the  red  
fumes observed in distilling it1 p4 #ah4
 ,they do not take fire of  themselves  
in nitre1 because they are inveloped    
with moisture2 but when  combined with  
salt of tartar1 and thrown on the fire  
in a dry state  they inflame1 p4 #bj4   
,,chap4 #c;d4 ,of the nature of the     
nitro-aereal and fiery spirit4 ,fire  he
 conceives to consist of these          
nitro-aereal particles set in violent   
motion by means of sulphureous bodies1  
in the cases of culinary fire3  but by  
some other means1 in the cases of the   
solar rays collected by a  burning      
glass1 and of the celestial fires4 ,the 
corrosive and caustic  nature both of   
fire and nitrous acid1 seems to argue   
that it proceeds  in both from the      

nitro-aereal particles they contain1    
#bb-bd4 ,that fire  is not of a         
sulphureous nature is evident1 for nitre
 will not take fire  in an ignited      
crucible2 but oil thrown in1 takes fire 
immediately4 ,so  if a piece of metal be
 held over a candle1 the fire particles 
pass  through the metal1 but the        
sulphureous smoke adheres to the under  
side4  p4 #bg4    ,that the heat        
occasioned by a burning glass1 consists 
of these  nitro-aereal particles is     
evident1 for diaphoretic antimony may be
  made1 either first by calcination with
 a lens1 or secondly1 by the  repeated  
affusion of nitrous acid1 or thirdly1 by
 the deflagration  of nitre on the      
antimony4 ,diaphoretic antimony made by 
calcination1  increases on weight1#dd by
 means of the nitro-aereal particles    
fixed in  it by the process4 p4 #bh1    
#bi4    #dd ,it was first observed by   
,john ,rey in #afcj that metals         
calcined1  gain weight by the absorption
 of air4 ,see an account of his book by 

,m4  ,bayen ,journ4 de ,rozier #agge v4 
#a p4 #dh4 ,there are also some         
experiments  by ,boyle that shew the    
accession of weight on the calcination  
of  metals1 but he does not seem aware  
of the theory4 ,shaw's ,boyle1 ,fire    
and ,flame weighed v4 #b p4 #cid1 c4    
,,chap4 #dth4 ,on the origin of acid    
liquors1 and the earthy part of         
,spirits of nitre4 ,from p4 #cd1 it     
appears that he knew nothing of  the    
absorption and combination of his       
nitro-aereal particles in the  vitriolic
 acid1 during the combustion of sulphur1
 but explains the  whole mechanically by
 the saline portion of the sulphur being
 broken  down into minute pointed       
particles1 by the violent attrition of  
the  nitro-aereal particles1 and so     
becoming fluid and sharpened4 ,he seems 
too1 not to know that the colcothar of  
martial vitriol is no component  part of
 sulphur1 p4 #cg4 ,the same mechanical  
explanation he applies  to the formation
 of the ligneous acids1 and to the      

impregnation  of the caput mortuum or   
colcothar of vitriol1 with fresh acid by
  exposure of air4 ,in the succeeding   
paragraph1 p4 #ci1 he supposes that     
marchasite 7martial pyrites7 imbibes the
 nitro-aereal particles from  the       
atmosphere1 and thus acid is formed4 ,in
 like manner he explains the  formation 
of acids produced by fermentation1 by   
the collision between  the nitro-aereal1
 and the sulphureo-saline particles of  
the mass4 p4  #da4 ,so also he supposes 
nitrous acid to be produced by the      
detention  of his nitro-aereal particles
 by the terrene saline particles found  
in the earth1 p4 #dc4 ,hence he         
concludes generally1 p4 #dc1 that acid  
salts are formed from a saline basis    
brought into fusion or fluidity  by the 
nitro-aereal part of the air3 and sums  
up his theory of nitre1  by stating it  
to be a triple salt1 composed of        
nitro-aereal particles1  united to a    
terrene basis forming the acid1 which   
then unites to the  fixed basis1        

supplied also by the earth4    ,,chap4  
#eth4 ,on ,fermentation4 ,he gives in   
this chapter his theory  of             
fermentation1 as arising from the       
conflict of his nitro-aereal  principle 
which he thinks may be termed mercury1  
and the sulphureous  principle3         
evidently meaning by the latter1 the    
,phlogiston of ,stahl3  and he states   
broadly1 p4 #fj4 that pure sulphur can  
never admit of  accension1 but by means 
of the nitro-aereal particles obtained  
from the  atmosphere4 ,the rest of his  
reasoning in this chapter1 does not seem
  deserving of further notice4          
,,chap4 #fth4 ,on the nitro-aereal      
spirit as the cause of rigidity and     
elasticity4 ,these he explains by the   
fixation and state of his  nitro-aereal 
particles in bodies endowed with these  
properties4 ,in p4  #fi he endeavours to
 account why boiled water freezes sooner
 than that  which has not been boiled2 a
 fact which ,dr4 ,black has made the    
subject  of a paper in the #deth vol4 of

 the ,philosophical transactions4 ,but  
his  reasonings throughout this chapter 
are not calculated to add to his        
reputation1 or to the mass of knowledge 
of the present day4    ,,chap4 #gth4    
,the elastic force of the ,air depends  
on its nitro-aereal  particles4 ,in what
 way exhausted air is reimpregnated with
 them4 ,of the  elements of ,heat and   
,cold4 ,this chapter contains           
experiments to shew  that the elasticity
 of the air is owing to the nitro-aereal
 particles  contained in it3 which may  
be destroyed by the burning of a candle 
or  other combustible substances1 and   
also by the breathing of animals4  ,when
 the atmospheric air contained in a     
glass jar inverted over water1  will no 
longer support flame or animal life1 the
 water rises in the  jar1 owing to the  
diminished elasticity of the air1 not   
being able to  counteract the pressure  
of the surrounding atmosphere on the    
water p4  #ajj4 ,he finds p4 #aja that  
the diminution by burning a taper in a  

given  quantity of the air1 is about one
 thirtieth of the whole1 and by the     
breathing of mice and other animals     
about one fourteenth4 ,thence he        
concludes p4 #ajf that by means of      
respiration the elastic part of the  air
 enters into the blood1 and that the    
sole use of the lungs is not as  some   
suppose1 to break down the blood in its 
passage into very minute  particles4    
,that combustion and respiration have   
similar effects on  atmospherical air1  
he concludes1 p4 #ajh1 from the fact1   
that a candle  and a small animal       
inclosed together in a glass jar over   
water1 the one  will not burn1 nor the  
other remain alive above half the time  
that they  would if alone4 ,mayow       
however1 did not consider his           
nitro-igneous and  elastic particles to 
be either pure air1 or even a component 
part of  the common air1 as air1        
notwithstanding the ambiguity of the    
passages  in p4 #aad and #aah2 but as   
particles of a different nature1        

attached  to and fixed in the           
atmospheric particles2 and detached     
7excussas7  by the means above          
mentioned1 p4 #aah and #aba4 ,his       
explanation of  elasticity generally in 
this chap4 and of the difficulty arising
 from  the obvious resistance to the    
,atmosphere1 and the expansibility of   
the  air in which a taper has been      
extinguished1 or an animal died1 seem   
too obscure and unintelligible to merit 
transcribing4 ,it is evident  however   
upon the whole from p4 #abc compared    
with p4 #ajj and #ace that  he conceived
 the diminution of such air to arise    
from diminished  elasticity1 but he     
supposes it to be denser than common air
 #abc4 ,in a  subsequent part of this   
chapter p4 #abh et seq4 he states his   
theory  of the manner in which          
deteriorated air recovers its loss1 viz4
 that  the nitro-aereal particles being 
lighter than the atmospherical1 float   
abundantly in the higher regions2 and   
that the part of the atmosphere         

deprived of them below1 being forced    
upward by the pressure of the           
atmosphere above1 obtains a renewal of  
these particles by mixture with  the    
strata where they abound4    ,the       
element of fire1 he supposes to reside  
in the body of the ,sun1  which is no   
other than a mass of nitro-aereal       
particles driven in  perpetual gyration 
with immense velocity4 ,cold1 which he  
considers as  some thing positive 7p4   
#acj7 he thinks consists in these       
particles  assuming a pointed form1 and 
moving not in gyration but strait       
forward4  ,much of his reasoning indeed 
throughout the book1 savours greatly of 
the mechanical and corpuscular          
philosophy prevalent in his day4        
,,chap4 #hth4 ,on the nitro-aereal      
spirit as inspired by animals4          
,formerly he thought that in respiration
 the nitro-aereal particles  were rubbed
 or shaken off 7atterere1 excutere #adf7
 from the common  air by the action of  
the lungs1 at present he thinks the air 

itself  enters the mass of the blood1 is
 there deprived of these particles1  and
 of part of its elasticity4 ,to prove   
this he produces an experiment  of the  
diminution of air by the vapours from   
iron dissolved in nitrous  acid3 but the
 beautiful deductions of ,dr4 ,priestley
 from a similar  experiment1 never      
occurred to him2 on the contrary he     
expressly states  that it is an ,aura1  
but not ,air p4 #ade and though         
afterward in chap4 #i  p4 #afc1 #afd he 
inclines to doubt1 yet again in p4 #afh 
he denies it that  character4    ,in p4 
#adf he proceeds to state the uses of   
these nitro-aereal  particles1 which    
7#adg7 he considers as the principle of 
life and  motion both in animals and    
vegetables4 ,by the mutual action of the
  nitro-aereal1 with the                
sulphureo-saline particles contained in 
the  blood1 a fermentation is excited   
necessary to animal life1 and to  the   
warm fluid circulation of the blood 7ad 
sanguinis stum47 ,to  these particles   

imbibed from the air1 he attributes the 
difference  in colour between the venous
 and arterial blood2 and he shews this1 
from the numerous air bubbles arising in
 an exhausted receiver from  warm       
arterial blood3 but his experiment to   
illustrate the difference1  from the    
colour produced by the nitrous acid with
 vol4 alk4 seems very  little to the    
purpose p4 #aej4    ,to the fermentation
 arising from this mixture of           
nitro-aereal particles  with the blood1 
he ascribes animal heat1 and accounts   
satisfactorily  for the increased heat  
of the body during strong exercise1 from
 the  more frequent inspirations        
occasioned by the exertion 7p4 #aeb1    
#cjf37  but his replies to the          
objections of ,dr4 ,willis1 drawn from  
the  phenomena of fermenting mixtures1  
are very inconclusive4    ,,chap4 #ith4 
,whether air can be generated anew4 ,he 
repeats the  experiment of dissolving   
iron in dilute nitrous acid1 and finds  
that though some of the vapour be       

absorbed1 a portion still remains       
uncondensible even by severe cold4 ,on  
substituting dilute vitr4 for  nitr4    
acid he finds an aura which is hardly   
absorbed or condensed  at all4 ,hence he
 doubts whether these aur be not        
entitled to the  appellation of air1    
especially as by subsequent experiment  
he shews  that they are equally         
expansible with common air4 ,in making  
this last  experiment he exhibits the   
method of transferring air from one     
vessel  to another 7,tab4 #e4 ,fig4 #e47
 much in the manner afterwards described
  by ,mr4 ,cavendish in #agff4de ,from  
the inability of these aur to  support  
animal life 7,tab4 #e4 ,fig4 #f47 he    
concludes finally that they  are not    
air1 though not very dissimilar p4 #aga4
 ,the succeeding five  chapters do not  
seem to contain any facts or conjectures
 that can add  to ,mayow's reputation4  
,his ,hypotheses are completely         
superceded by  the more accurate        
knowledge of the present day4 ,in his   

tract on quick  lime p4 #bbe he seems to
 have forestalled the acidum pingue of  
,dr4 ,meyer  published exactly a century
 afterward4 ,it may be noted that in his
  treatise on the ,bath waters p4 #bei1 
he describes fishes as collecting  vital
 air from the water1 and respiring like 
land animals4 7,aereum  aliquod vitale  
ab aqu1 veluti alis ab aur secretum et  
in cruoris  massam trajiciatur47 ,the   
air bladder he considers rather as a    
reservoir  of air to be inspired1 than a
 receptacle for excreted air2 though the
  latter opinion is made probable by    
,dr4 ,priestley4#df    #de ,boyle had   
invented an apparatus for transferring  
air from one  receiver of an air-pump to
 another1 but not under water4    #df   
,see ,nich4 ,journ4 v4 #c p4 #aai on the
 probability of fishes  separating      
oxygen from the water they inhabit4     
,the first part of his ,treatises on    
,respiration is chiefly anatomical4  ,in
 p4 #cjj et seq4 he states more fully   
his opinion1 that vital air1  is of a   

nitro-saline nature3 that it is the     
principle of life1 both  in ,animals and
 ,vegetables3 that combined with the    
sulphureo-saline  particles in the      
blood1 it is the stimulus to the        
muscular fibre1 and  of course to the   
heart as a muscle1 p4 #cje2 but that the
 fermentation  occasioned by the        
introduction of these particles into the
 blood1 is  not confined to the left    
ventricle of the heart1 but commences1  
in the  passage of the blood through the
 lungs1 and continues in the ,arteries4 
,this evidently approaches the theory1  
advanced by ,dr4 ,goodwyn in his  tract 
on the ,connection of life with         
respiration about sixteen years  ago1   
viz4 that the pure air combined with the
 blood is the stimulus  to the left     
ventricle of the heart1 and produces the
 alternate  contraction1 and dilation on
 which the circulation depends4 ,dr4    
,lower1  in his treatise de motu        
sanguinis1 and ,fracassati1 and ,dr4    
,frederick  ,slare attributed the change

 of the colour of venous blood into a   
florid  red1 to the combination of the  
air with it4 ,lower ,i believe preceded 
,mayow1 who quotes him1 p4 #adh2 the    
date of ,fracassati's and ,dr4          
,slare's' observations ,i have not been 
able to ascertain1 but they must  have  
been near the time of ,mayow4 ,lowth4   
,ab4 v4 iii4 p4 #bcg4    ,in his third  
treatise on respiration1 he explains the
 ,animal conomy  of the ftus in utero1  
by suggesting that the ftus is supplied 
by  the placenta1 not with venous1 but  
with arterial blood brought  by the     
umbilical ,arteries2 so that the        
required stimulus of the  nitro-aereal  
particles being thus conveyed1          
supercedes the necessity  of the lungs  
for the purpose4 ,this he ingeniously   
illustrates by the  known experiment1   
that a dog into whom arterial blood is  
infused1  though respiring with great   
difficulty before1 hardly respires at   
all4  ,a similar theory he applies to   
the life of the chick in ovo4 ,this     

treatise seems to have suggested ,dr4   
,beddoes's illustration of his  theory  
of consumption from the state of        
pregnancy4    ,in a subsequent ,essay on
 animal spirits1 he conceives them to   
be1 if  not the same with the           
nitro-aereal part of the atmosphere1 yet
 to  consist of this1 so far as they are
 necessary to the production of         
muscular motion1 which he attributes    
entirely as before to nitro-aereal      
particles1 p4 #bd and #dj1 of chap4 #d1 
on the animal spirits4    ,i do not     
observe any thing else in ,mayow's book 
worth noting on the  present occasion2  
or sufficiently connected with pneumatic
 ,chemistry4    ,from the analysis thus 
given of#dg what ,mayow has advanced1 it
  appears1 that he clearly comprehended 
the atmosphere to consist of  a mixture 
of two parts1 the one the efficient     
cause of life and of  combustion1 the   
other not of itself necessary to either4
    #dg ,at the time this was written   
neither ,dr4 ,bostock's treatise on     

respiration or the books therein quoted 
p4 #bjj had arrived here4 ,nor  have ,i 
had an opportunity of consulting the    
references there made to  ,prof4        
,robinson1 ,dr4 ,thompson1 ,dr4 ,yeates1
 or ,fourcroy's account of  ,mayow4     
,that the vital part of the air1 was    
also a constituent part of nitre1  the  
effects of both being in essential      
particulars the same4#dh    ,that the   
vital part of the atmosphere entering   
the blood through the  vessels in the   
lungs1 is conveyed to the left ventricle
 of the heart1  and becomes the stimulus
 to the contractions of that muscle1 and
 is  equally essential to the whole     
system of muscular contraction4    #dh  
,mr4 ,ray wrote 8,a dissertation 7in    
#afif7 about respiration10 in  which he 
supposes the air to pass from the       
bronchia and lungs into  the substance  
of the blood1 and there 7pabuli instar7 
it foments and  maintains the vital     
flame which he supposes to be in the    
sulphureous  parts of the blood1 as the 

air foments the common flame of a       
candle1  and that the nitre has nothing 
to do with it4 ,see ,durham's collection
  of ,ray's letters4    ,that the vital 
part of the atmosphere thus combined    
with the blood  becomes also the source 
of animal heat4    ,that this vital part
 is equally necessary to the ftus in    
utero as  to the adult1 and that the use
 of the lungs in the former case is     
superceded by the functions of the      
umbilical artery and placenta2  by means
 of which1 blood already impregnated    
with the vital air1 is  conveyed to the 
ftus4    ,that the respiration of       
fishes1 is dependant on the particles of
 air  mixed with watery element they    
inhabited4    ,that heat1 flame1 and    
combustion1 depend on two universal     
principles1  and the gentleness or      
violence of their mutual conflict3 the  
one being  a principle of inflammability
 universally diffused in combustible    
bodies1 and the other the vital or      
igneous part of the atmosphere4         

,these propositions evidently touch upon
 the most brilliant of the  pneumatic   
discoveries of the authors already      
quoted2 and not a little  extraordinary 
it is1 that they should have remained so
 long unknown1  unnoticed1 and not      
understood4    ,the sulphur of ,mayow is
 decidedly the ,phlogiston of ,stahl2   
the fire  air of the former is the fire 
air of ,scheele1 the dephlogisticated   
air  of ,priestley1 and the ,oxygen of  
,lavoisier4    ,the combination of      
oxygen with the blood by means of       
respiration1 first  discovered as was   
thought by ,lavoisier1 is clearly stated
 by ,mayow2 who  has also forestalled   
the elaborate theories of ,crawford on  
animal heat1  of ,goodwyn1 on muscular  
stimulus1 and of ,beddoes on the        
succedaneum for  respiration in the     
ftus4    ,boyle1 though he must         
certainly have known of ,mayow1 neither 
quotes  him1 nor uses1 or improves on   
his experiments2 though as ,i have      
already remarked1 he seems to have had  

notions of the atmosphere much  like    
those adopted by ,mayow4 ,whether this  
neglect arose from the  pride of birth1 
or the pride of knowledge1 or the pride 
of age1 7for  ,boyle was almost twice   
the age of ,mayow7 or from jealousy of  
,mayow's  abilities1 cannot now be      
ascertained4 ,from that time until      
,hales  published his statics in #agbf1 
pneumatic experiments were neglected1   
and the mathematical philosophy which   
,newton's discoveries rendered          
fashionable1 absorbed for many years the
 attention of men of ,science1          
particularly in ,england4 ,the way in   
which ,lemery1 ,hales and ,brownrigg    
speak of ,mayow1 evidently shews that   
his theories were not understood1  nor  
his merits appreciated4    ,that ,mayow 
was unknown to ,black and ,cavendish    
until of late years1 is  highly probable
 at least1 if not absolutely certain4   
,neither these  philosophers1 nor ,dr4  
,priestley1 could have passed over      
,mayow's book1  without being struck    

with his ideas1 and publicly referring  
to them in  their chemical works4       
,that ,dr4 ,priestley was unacquainted  
with ,mayow is certain1 from the        
limited extent of his reading at the    
early period of his experiments  7from  
#aggj to #aggf or #aggg17 in books of   
chemistry and theoretic  physiology3    
from ,mayow1 not being quoted by any of 
the writers whose  works ,dr4 ,priestley
 would be likely to consult except      
,hales and  ,brownrigg1 and not by them 
in a manner to induce any farther       
curiosity3  from their being unnoticed  
by ,black1 ,cavendish1 ,sir ,john       
,pringle1  and ,lavoisier1 in           
particular3 from the custom that ,dr4   
,priestley had  of acknowledging the    
sources of his ideas in all cases where 
they  originated from the discoveries of
 others1 as in his references to        
,hales1 ,brownrigg1 ,cavendish1 c2 and  
from his making no mention of  ,mayow in
 his express account of the labours of  
his predecessors on the  subject of     

animal respiration4 ,that both he and   
,sir ,john ,pringle before  the ,royal  
,society in #aggb and #aggf should      
expressly treat the history  of         
discoveries in which ,mayow bore so     
distinguished a part1 and omit  noticing
 him altogether1 had they known of his  
works1 is incredible4 ,it  is evident   
that he was then an obscure writer1 and 
not in repute1 or  he would have        
occurred to them2 or some of their      
philosophical friends  would have       
suggested the propriety of referring to 
his publications4    ,neither is it     
likely that ,scheele would have been    
acquainted with  ,mayow's writings1     
though it is singular that he escaped   
the notice  of ,lavoisier who ,i believe
 was employed under government in the   
collection of essays on the theory and  
manufacture of saltpetre and  in the    
superintendance of the saltpetre works1 
especially as ,mayow  was mentioned     
though disrespectfully by ,lemery1 in   
his paper on nitre  before referred to4 

,but there certainly is no evidence that
 ,lavoisier  obtained his ideas of      
oxygen and its combination with the     
blood from  ,mayow1 or his theory of    
metallic calcination from ,jean ,rey1   
though his  obligations to ,dr4         
,priestley have not been always         
acknowledged with the  candour and      
liberality that men of science would    
expect from ,lavoisier4    ,mayow had   
more than ordinary discernment in       
comparing known facts1  and drawing     
conclusions from them1 but he does not  
appear to have had  the talent of       
imagining decisive experiments1 of      
varying them1 of  observing and noting  
all the natural phenomena attendant upon
 them1  or sufficient industry in       
pursuing them4 ,it is one thing to make 
a plausible conjecture1 and another to  
verify it4 ,those alone are  entitled to
 the honour of discoveries who not      
merely start the theory1  but take the  
pains of pursuing it by experiments and 
resting it on the  basis of well        

conceived and accurately ascertained    
facts1 sufficiently  numerous and varied
 to obviate the most prominent          
objections4 ,mayow  has reasoned with   
great acuteness and conjectured with    
singular  felicity1 but he added little 
to the mass of philosophical ,,knowledge
  in his day4 ,he composed and          
decomposed nitre and ascertained the    
existence of vital air in this substance
 as well as in the atmosphere1  but he  
did not collect1 exhibit1 and examine   
it4 ,he knew how to make  artificial air
 from nitrous acid and iron1 but all the
 extraordinary  properties of this gas1 
remained unobserved by him as well as by
 others  until collected and imprisoned 
by ,dr4 ,priestley1 and exposed to the  
question under his scrutinizing eye4    
,indeed as an experimentalist ,dr4      
,priestley stands unrivalled4 ,the      
multiplicity of his experiments1  their 
ingenuity1 their bearings upon the point
 in question1 their  general importance1
 and their fidelity1 were never equalled

 upon the  whole1 before or since4 ,nor 
is it any detraction from their merit   
with those who are accustomed to        
experiment1 that they hold out no       
pretensions to that suspicious accuracy1
 which has too often depended  more upon
 arithmetical calculations than upon    
actual weight and  measure4 ,the many   
kinds of aeriform fluids discovered by  
,dr4 ,priestley1  the many methods of   
procuring them1 the skilfull            
investigation of  their properties1 the 
foundation he laid for the labours of   
others1  the simplicity1 the novelty1   
the neatness1 and the cheapness of his  
apparatus1 and his unequalled industry1 
have deservedly placed him at  the head 
of pneumatic ,chemistry4 ,nor should it 
be forgotten that while  he thus        
outstripped his predecessors and        
contemporaries in the field  of         
experiment1 it formed not as with them  
the business of his life1  but 7among   
other branches of literature and        
philosophy successfully  cultivated7 the

 occupation of his leisure hours1 the   
relaxation from  what he deemed more    
important1 more laborious1 and more     
obligatory  pursuits4    ,before his    
time 7excluding ,mayow7 ,boyle had      
discovered that air  might be generated1
 fatal to animal life4 ,it was known    
that common  air would only serve a     
certain time for the purposes of        
combustion  and respiration4 ,the       
mephitic exhalations from natural       
,grottoes had  been remarked4           
,inflammable air both natural and       
artificial had been  exhibited before   
the royal society4 ,hales had           
ascertained the presence  of air in a   
great number of substances where it was 
not commonly  suspected though he had   
not the skill to examine the properties 
of  the air produced4 ,black had        
ascertained the presence of fixed air in
  limestone1 and ,brownrigg1 ,lane1 and 
,venel had illustrated the theory  of   
mineral waters4 ,but it was the paper of
 ,cavendish in #agff on fixed  and      

inflammable air produced from various   
substances by means of  acids1          
fermentation and putrefaction1 that     
first introduced a stile  of            
experimenting in pneumatic chemistry1   
more neat1 more precise1 and  scientific
 than had hitherto been known4    ,the  
attention of ,dr4 ,priestley1 however to
 these subjects was not  originally     
excited by the works of his             
predecessors1 but by the  accident of   
his proximity to a brew-house at ,leeds1
 where of course  fixed air 7a subject  
that had attracted much attention about 
that time7  would be produced in a large
 way4 ,it was thus that one experiment  
led  to another1 until the fruits of his
 amusements were the discoveries on     
which his philosophical reputation is   
principally founded4 ,it is no  more    
than justice to his character to mention
 in this place1 that of  all men living 
he was the freest from literary         
deception and the vanity  of authorship4
 ,he never claims the merit of profound 

investigation or  great foresight1 for  
discoveries that might easily have been 
so stated  as if they had been the pure 
result of those qualifications1 but     
which  were in reality the offspring of 
accident and circumstance4 ,he excites  
others to patient labour in the field of
 experiment1 from observing  that       
success does not depend so much on great
 abilities or extensive  knowledge1 as  
on patient attention1 and perseverance2 
and that much of  his own reputation was
 owing to the discovery of facts that   
arose in  the course of his pursuits1   
the result of no previous theory1       
unlooked  for and unexpected4 ,in v4 #c 
p4 #bhb of his experiments on air he    
says  8,few persons ,i believe have met 
with so much unexpected good success as 
myself in the course of my philosophical
 pursuits4 ,my narrative will  shew that
 the first hints at least of almost     
every thing that ,i have  discovered of 
much importance have occurred to me in  
this manner4 ,in  looking for one thing 

,i have general found another1 and      
sometimes a  thing of much more value   
than that which ,i was in quest of4 ,but
 none of  these unexpected discoveries  
appear to me to have been so            
extraordinary  as that ,i am about to   
relate 7viz4 the spontaneous emission of
  dephlogisticated air from water       
containing a green vegetating matter7   
and it may serve to admonish all persons
 who are engaged in similar  pursuits1  
not to overlook any circumstance        
relating to an experiment1  but to keep 
their eyes open to every new appearance 
and to give due  attention to it however
 inconsiderable it may seem40#di ,to    
this  candour of disposition1 and the   
readiness with which he acknowledged    
his mistakes and his oversights1 even   
those who opposed his opinions  bear    
honourable testimony4 8,the celebrated  
,priestley himself 7says ,m4            
,berthollet in his reply to ,kirwan on  
,phlogiston p4 #abd of the ,eng4        
translation7 often sets us the example1 

by rectifying the results of  some of   
his numerous experiments40    #di ,see  
also the #ast1 vol4 of his early edition
 of experiments on air  p4 #bi4         
,numerous indeed those experiments were 
as well as important3 far too  numerous 
to be particularised here2 though it may
 not be improper to  call to the        
recollection of the reader some of the  
more interesting  facts which we owe to 
,dr4 ,priestley1 and the times of their 
discovery  and communication4    ,the   
first of his publications on pneumatic  
chemistry was in #aggb1  announcing the 
method of impregnating water with fixed 
air1 and on  the preparation and        
medicinal uses of artificial mineral    
waters2 a  discovery that domesticated  
much of the knowledge that had          
heretofore  been disclosed only in the  
works of learned societies2 and that    
beautifully exemplified how much of the 
health and the pleasure of  common life1
 might depend on the ingenious          
researches of men of  science4 ,though  

this was the first publication of ,dr4  
,priestley on  the chemistry of the     
airs1 he had certainly commenced his    
experiments  in this branch of ,science1
 soon after his arrival at ,leeds1 and  
as  early at least1 as #agfh4 ,in the   
year #agga he had already procured good 
air from saltpetre2 he had ascertained  
the use of agitation1 and of  vegitation
 as the means employed by nature in     
purifying the atmosphere  destined to   
the support of animal life1 and that air
 vitiated by animal  respiration was a  
pabulum to vegetable life2 he had       
procured factitious  air in a much      
greater variety of ways than had been   
known before1 and  he had been in the   
habit of substituting quicksilver in    
lieu of water1  for the purpose of many 
of his experiments4 ,in his paper before
 the  ,royal ,society1 in the spring of 
#aggb1 which deservedly obtained him the
  honour of the ,copley ,medal1 he gives
 an account of these discoveries4  ,in  
the same paper he announces the         

discovery of that singular fluid        
nitrous air1#ej and its beautiful       
application as a test of the purity  or 
fitness for respiration of airs         
generally4 ,in the same paper he  shews 
the use of a burning lens in pneumatic  
experiments1 he relates  the discovery  
and properties of marine acid air2 he   
adds much to  the little of what had    
been heretofore known of the airs       
generated  by putrefactive processes1   
and by vegetable fermentations1 and he  
determines many facts relating to the   
diminution and deterioration of  air1 by
 the combustion of ,charcoal1 and the   
calcination of metals4    #ej ,honestly 
referring to ,dr4 ,hales and ,mr4       
,cavendish for any idea that  might have
 remotely led to this discovery 7,see   
,obs4 on air #ast ed4 v4 #a  p4 #ajh7   
the discovery however was completely his
 own4    ,dr4 ,priestley seems always to
 have thought nitrous air as convenient 
a substance for eudiometrical           
experiments as any of the later         

substitutes1 viz4 the liquid sulphurets 
and the combustion of  phosphorus4 ,the 
foundation of ,mr4 ,davy's substitute1  
muriat or sulphat  of iron saturated    
with nitrous air1 was as ,mr4 ,davy     
acknowledges first  discovered by ,dr4  
,priestley himself4 ,see ,nich4 ,journ4 
for ,jan4 #ahjb  p4 #da4 ,the different 
states of the solutions of iron in      
vitriolic  acid have been ingeniously   
applied to the analysis of mixed gasses 
by  ,humboldt and ,vauquelin4    ,soon  
after this1 in confirmation of ,sir     
,john ,pringle's theory of              
intermittents and low fevers being      
generally owing to moist miasma  when   
people are exposed to its influence1 he 
ascertained by means of  his nitrous    
test that the air of marshes was        
inferior in purity to the  common air of
 the atmosphere4#ea    ,he had obtained 
very good air from saltpetre in #agga1  
but his full  discovery of              
dephlogisticated air1 seems not to have 
been made until  ,june or ,july1        

#aggd1eb when he procured it from       
precipitate per se1  and from red lead4 
,this was publicly mentioned by him at  
the table  of ,mr4 and ,madame          
,lavoisier1 at ,paris1 in ,october      
#aggd1 to whom the  phenomena were until
 then unknown4 ,the experiments on the  
production of  dephlogisticated air1 he 
made before the scientific chemists at  
,paris  about the same time1 at ,mr4    
,trudaine's4 ,this hitherto secret      
source  of animal life and animal heat1 
of which ,mayow had but a faint and     
conjectural glimpse1 was certainly first
 exhibited by ,dr4 ,priestley1  and     
about the same time1 7unknown to each   
other7 by ,mr4 ,scheele of  ,sweden4    
,for the honour of science1 it were much
 to be wished that the  pretensions of  
,mr4 ,lavoisier were equally well       
founded4 ,he has done  sufficient and   
been praised sufficiently for what he   
has done1 to  satisfy a mind the most   
avaricious of fame2 he is deservedly    
placed  in the first rank among the     

philosophers of his day1 and he ought   
not  to have thrown a shade over his    
well earned reputation1 by claiming  for
 himself the honour of those discoveries
 which he had learned from  another4    
#ea ,phil4 trans4 v4 #ed p4 #ib4    #eb 
,see ,doctrine of ,phlog4 established p4
 #aai4    ,from this brief account of   
the first stage of ,dr4 ,priestley's    
chemical  labours1 it appears that      
during the short period of two years1 he
  announced to the world more facts of  
real importance1 and extensive          
application1 and more enlarged and      
extensive views of the conomy of        
nature1 than all his predecessors in    
pneumatic ,chemistry had made known     
before4    ,in #aggf his observations on
 respiration were read before the ,royal
  ,society2 in which he clearly         
discovered that the common air inspired1
  was diminished in quantity1 and       
deteriorated in quality1 by the action  
of the blood on it through the blood    
vessels of the lungs2 and that  the     

florid red colour of arterial blood1 was
 communicated by the  contact of air    
through the containing vessels4 ,his    
experiments on the  change of colour in 
blood confined in a bladder1 took away  
all doubt  of the probability of this   
mode of action4 ,i cannot help thinking 
that the circumstance of ,dr4           
,priestley's mind being so much occupied
  with the prevailing theory of         
,phlogiston1 was the reason why he did  
not observe that the diminution of the  
air1 and the florid colour of  the      
arterial blood was owing to the         
absorption of the pure part of the      
atmosphere1 rather than to any thing    
emitted from the blood itself4  ,this   
part of the theory of respiration ,mr4  
,lavoisier has certainly  established2  
though it is by no means ascertained as 
yet whether the  vital part of the      
atmosphere inspired1 is wholly and alone
 absorbed1  or whether in reality       
something is not contributed in the     
lungs to the  formation of the fixed air

 found after expiration4#ec    #ec ,that
 azote is absorbed during respiration as
 ,dr4 ,priestley supposed  contrary to  
,mr4 ,lavoisier's opinion1 is made      
extremely probable by the  experiments  
of ,mr4 ,davy1 whose accuracy is well   
known4 ,researches1  p4 #dcd4 ,the      
formation of water in this process1 is  
certainly no more  than conjecture as   
yet4 ,dr4 ,bostock has lately published 
a very useful  and laborious history of 
discoveries relating to respiration1    
both  anatomical and pneumatical4    ,in
 #aggh ,dr4 ,priestley pursued his      
experiments on the property of          
vegetables growing in the light to      
correct impure air1 and the use  of     
vegetation in this part of the conomy of
 nature4 ,a discovery  which was        
announced to several men of science in  
,england previous  to the publication of
 the same ideas by ,dr4 ,ingenhouz4#ed  
,indeed  from its having been           
communicated to ,m4 ,magellan whose     
pleasure  and whose occupation it was1  

to give information of new facts to  his
 philosophical correspondents1 and of   
this in particular to ,dr4  ,ingenhouz  
then engaged in similar researches1     
there is hardly a doubt  but the latter 
knew of the experiments then pending on 
the subject by  ,dr4 ,priestley4    #ed 
,doctrine of ,phlogiston established1 p4
 #ajg1 et4 seq4 ,the theory  of the     
amelioration of impure air by the       
absorption and excretion of  vegetables 
growing in the light1 has been doubted  
by ,dr4 ,darwin in his  ,phytologia1 and
 opposed by ,count ,rumford in a paper  
published in the  transactions of the   
,royal ,society1 for #aghg3 also by ,dr4
 ,woodhouse of  ,philadelphia1          
,nicholson's ,journal1 for ,july #ahjb1 
and by ,mr4 ,robert  ,harrup1           
,nicholson's ,journal1 for ,july #ahjc4 
,it is painful to notice these          
aberrations from propriety in the       
conduct  of men highly respectable in   
the philosophical world1 arising from an
  over anxious avarice of literary fame1

 and an improper jealousy of  the       
reputation of another4 ,not that it     
derogates from the character  of a      
philosopher to wish for the applause of 
those who know how to  appreciate his   
merit1 or who are benefited by his      
exertions2 such  an anxiety is laudable 
when it does not lead to encroachments  
on  the literary rights of others2 nor  
is it at all desireable under  the      
present circumstances of human nature1  
to expect from men of  science an       
attention to their pursuits arising from
 motives of pure  benevolence alone1 and
 excluding all views1 hopes1 and        
expectations of  the gratifying tribute 
of public approbation4 ,i believe no man
 ever  laboured with a more single eye  
to public utility than ,dr4 ,priestley4 
,but consideration in society1 and the  
respectability attendant upon  great    
talents1 and great industry1            
successfully employed for the  benefit  
of mankind1 is a motive to useful       
exertion so universal1 so  honest1 so   

laudable1 and withal so powerful1 that  
it is the common  interest1 as well as  
the duty of society1 to bestow it       
liberally where  it has been earned     
faithfully1 and to concede it to those  
only1 who  have really deserved this    
honourable reward4    ,from this period 
,dr4 ,priestley seems to have attended  
to his pneumatic  experiments as an     
occupation2 devoting to them a regular  
portion of  his time4 ,to this          
attention1 among a prodigious variety of
 facts  tending to shew the various     
substances from which the gasses may be 
procured2 the methods of producing them2
 their influence on each other1  and    
their probable composition1 we owe the  
discovery of vitriolic  acid air1 of    
fluor acid air1 of vegetable acid air1  
of alkaline air1  and of                
dephlogisticated nitrous air1 or gazeous
 oxide of azote as  it has been called1 
the subject of so many curious          
experiments by  ,mr4 ,davy4 ,to these we
 may add the production of the various  

kinds of  inflammable air by numerous   
processes that had escaped the          
observation  of ,mr4 ,cavendish2 in     
particular the formation of it by the   
electric  spark taken in oils1 in       
spirits of wine and in alkaline air2 the
  method of procuring it by passing     
steam through hot iron filings1  and the
 phenomena of that hitherto undetermined
 substance the finery  cinder1 and its  
alliance to steel4 ,to ,dr4 ,priestley  
we owe the very  fine experiment of     
reviving metallic calces in inflammable 
air and  its absorption in toto1        
apparently at least1 undecomposed4 ,he  
first  ascertained the necessity of     
water to the formation of the gasses1   
and  the endless production of air from 
water itself4    ,dr4 ,priestley's      
experiments on this subject1 to wit3 the
 generation  of air from water1 opened a
 new field for reflection1 and deserves 
more minute notice4 ,no theory has yet  
been proposed adequate to the           
explanation of the facts4 ,he had before

 remarked that water was  necessary to  
the generation of every species of air1 
but the unceasing  product of air from  
water had never been before observed4   
,in his first set of experiments he     
procured air1 by converting the  whole  
of a quantity of water into steam3 then1
 to obviate the objection  to the water 
having imbibed air from the atmosphere  
he put the water  on mercury in long    
glass tubes immersed in mercury3 in a   
third process  he used no heat1 but     
merely took off the pressure of the     
atmosphere4  ,in all these cases a      
bubble of air was extricated from the   
water1  which being separated by        
inclining the tube1 another bubble was  
again  produced on each repetition of   
the experiment4 ,that this could not be 
air imbibed from the atmosphere appeared
 from this1 that though the  first      
portions were generally purer than      
atmospheric air1 the next  became less  
pure1 and at length wholly              
phlogisticated4    ,it did not appear   

that the addition of acids1 enabled the 
water to  yield more air1 nor did he    
succeed in attempting to convert the    
whole  of a given quantity of water into
 air1 although exposing the water       
confined over mercury to heat1 and      
separating the air produced1 it  still  
continued to produce more air for twenty
 or thirty repetitions  of the          
experiments4 ,when a certain proportion 
of air was thus produced  at any one    
time1 no continuance of the experiment  
would encrease the  quantity until it   
was separated4 ,hence he concludes that 
the longest  continuance of water in the
 state of vapour would not convert it   
into air4 ,the water used was pure      
distilled water previously boiled to    
separate any adventitious air that might
 have been imbibed from the  atmosphere4
 ,the precautions he used1 and the      
replies to such objections  as he       
foresaw the experiment would be liable  
to1 are detailed in  the papers he      
published on the subject1 to wit1 a     

separate pamphlet  published in ,england
 in #agic1 and a communication in the   
,am4 ,ph4 trans1  v4 ,,iv4 p4 #aa-bj4   
,in the last mentioned paper1 he        
proceeds also to give an account of     
some experiments on the property of     
water to imbibe different kinds of  air1
 and the conversion of sp4 of wine1 into
 inflammable air4    ,this paper        
inserted in the ,american transactions1 
was read before that  society in ,feb4  
#agif4 ,in ,ap4 #ahjj another paper was 
read before the  same society on the    
production of air by the freezing of    
water ,am4 ,ph4  trans4 v4 ,v4 p4 #cf4  
,in this paper he recapitulates the     
general result  of his former           
experiments on the generation of air    
from water1 namely  8that after all air 
had been extracted from any quantity of 
water by  heat or by taking off the     
pressure of the atmosphere1 whenever any
  portion of it was converted into      
vapour1 a bubble of permanent air  was  
formed1 and this was always             

phlogisticated4 ,the process with the   
,torricellian vacuum 7he says7 ,i       
continued for some years and found the  
production of air equable to the last4  
,the necessary inference from  this     
experiment is1 that water is convertible
 into phlogisticated air1  or that it   
contains more of this air intimately    
combined with it than  can be extricated
 from these processes in any reasonable 
time40    ,he proceeds to state his     
imperfect attempts to procure air from  
water  by freezing1 until he procured   
cylindrical iron vessels seven or eight 
inches high and near three inches wide  
at the bottom1 the upper orifice  closed
 with a cork and cement1 in the centre  
of which was a glass tube  about one    
fifteenth of an inch in diameter4 ,in   
this apparatus the water  in the iron   
vessel was frozen by means of snow and  
salt1 the vessel  being immersed in     
mercury1 and the water contained over   
the mercury4  ,the quantity of water was
 about three ounces4 ,the experiment was

  repeated nine times without changing  
the water1 and the last portion of  air 
procured in this manner was as great as 
any of the preceding2 so  that there    
remained no reasonable doubt but that   
air might be produced  from the same    
water in this manner ad libitum4 ,having
 obtained near  two inches of air in the
 glass tube1 ,dr4 ,priestley put an end 
to the  experiment1 and examining the   
air found it wholly phlogisticated1 not 
being affected by nitrous air1 and      
having nothing inflammable in it4       
,the inference drawn by the ,doctor from
 those experiments is1 that  water when 
reduced by any means into the state of  
vapour1 is in part  converted into      
phlogisticated air2 and this is one of  
the methods  provided by nature for     
keeping up the equilibrium of the       
atmosphere1  as the influence of light  
on growing vegetables is the means of   
recruiting the other part2 both of them 
being subject to absorption  and        
diminution in several natural processes4

 ,and he thinks that they  strengthen   
also the opinion1 that water is the     
basis of every kind  of air1 instead of 
being itself a compound of hydrogen and 
oxygen  according to the new theory4 ,at
 all events the experiments themselves  
must be considered as extremely curious1
 as well as new4    ,the water and the  
salt thus made use of gave rise to      
another experiment  of the most         
important nature to the present theory  
of chemistry1 if it  should on future   
repetition be ultimately verified4 ,this
 experiment  related by ,dr4 ,priestley 
in a letter to ,dr4 ,wiston is in       
substance  as follows4 ,having          
repeatedly used as above mentioned a    
freezing  mixture of common salt and    
snow1 the experiment being finished1 he 
evaporated the snow water in an iron    
vessel and recovered the salt4  ,the    
salt thus recovered contained some calx 
of iron4 ,he put it by in  a bottle and 
labelled it1 according to his usual     
practice4 ,in ,october  #ahjc1 he wanted

 to procure some marine acid1 and took  
the salt thus  procured by evaporating  
the snow water1 for the purpose4 ,on    
commencing  the distillation1 he was    
surprized to find the receiver full of  
the  characteristic red fumes of the    
nitrous acid4 ,the vitriolic acid used  
for the purpose was diluted with about  
an equal quantity of water4 ,on         
finishing the process1 he took some of  
the acid in the receiver1 and  dissolved
 copper in it1 and thus procured good   
nitrous air4 ,he was  himself perfectly 
persuaded that no nitre had been used in
 the freezing  mixture1 nor had any by  
accident or design been mixed with the  
salt4  ,he was not unacquainted with the
 common mode of clearing black oil of   
vitriol by the addition of nitre4 ,so   
that no means of accounting for  this   
curious fact remained1 but the snow or  
the iron3 he seemed to  think that      
should this experiment be fully verified
 hereafter1 it would  confirm the vulgar
 hypothesis of snow containing nitre1   

and account  for the fertilizing quality
 usually attributed to snow4 ,he had no 
opportunity in that winter of repeating 
the experiment as he died in  about     
three months after1 and his previous    
illness had compelled him to  forsake   
his laboratory4    ,of the almost       
discarded theory of ,phlogiston ,dr4    
,priestley to his death  remained the   
strenuous advocate1 and almost the sole 
supporter2 ipse  ,agmen4 ,beautiful and 
elegant as the simplicity of the new    
doctrine  appears1 many facts yet remain
 to be explained1 to which the old      
system will apply1 and the ,french      
theory is inadequate4 ,these are        
collected with an ingenuity of          
arrangement1 and a force of reasoning in
  the last pamphlet published by the    
,doctor on the subject1#ee which no  man
 as yet unprejudiced can peruse1 without
 hesitating on the truth of  the        
fashionable theory of the day4    #ee   
,the doctrine of phlogiston established 
#ahjc4    ,certainly1 it has not yet    

been sufficiently explained on the new  
theory1 what becomes of the ,oxygen from
 the decomposed water in the  solution  
of metals in acids2 nor why inflammable 
air is produced  when one metal in      
solution is precipitated by another2 nor
 why  dephlogisticated air is hardly to 
be procured from finery cinder1 if at   
all2 nor why this substance so abounding
 in oxygen according to the new  theory1
 will not oxygenate the muriatic acid2  
nor why it should answer  all the       
purposes of water in the production of  
inflammable air from  charcoal2 nor why 
water in abundance should be produced   
when finery  cinder is heated in        
inflammable air1 and none when red      
precipitate is  exposed to the same     
process2 nor what becomes of the oxygen 
of the  decomposed water when steam is  
sent over red hot ,zinc1 and inflammable
  air is produced without any addition  
in weight to the ,zinc employed2  nor   
why there should be a copious production
 of inflammable air when  hot filings of

 ,zinc are added to hot mercury in a hot
 retort and  exposed to a common furnace
 heat1 which ,i believe is an unreported
  experiment of ,mr4 ,kirwan's2 nor why 
sulphur and phosphorus are formed  by   
heating their acids in inflammable air  
without our being able to  detect the   
oxygen which on the new theory ought to 
be separated1 nor  why water should be  
produced by the combustion of           
inflammable air  with 1#dg of oxygen1   
and nitrous acid when 1#ea of oxygen is 
employed1  for this experiment can now  
no more be doubted than explained2 nor  
why on the new doctrine the addition of 
phlogisticated air1 should  make no     
alteration in the quantity of acid thus 
obtained2 nor why red  hot charcoal     
slowly supplied with steam1 should      
furnish inflammable  air only and not   
fixed or carbonic acid air2 nor why     
nothing but pure  fixed air should be   
produced by heating the carbonated      
,barytes in the  same way2 nor why fixed
 air should be formed under             

circumstances when  it cannot be        
pretended that ,carbon is present1 as   
when gold1 silver1  platina1 copper1    
lead1 tin and bismuth are heated by a   
lens in common  air over lime water2 or 
why the grey and yellow calces of lead  
should  furnish carbonic acid and azote1
 and no oxygen2 nor why the residuum  of
 red lead when all its oxygen is driven 
off by heat should be either  massicot  
or glass of lead according to the degree
 of heat1 and not  lead in its metalline
 state2 nor why plumbago with steam     
should yield  inflammable and not fixed 
air2 nor why minium and precipitate per 
se  heated in inflammable air should    
produce fixed air2 nor why on the       
evaporation of a diamond in oxygen1 the 
fixed air produced should far  exceed   
the weight of the diamond employed1 if  
some of the oxygen had  not entered into
 the composition of the carbonic acid so
 formed2 nor  why there should be a     
constant residuum of phlogisticated air 
7or  azote7 after the firing of         

dephlogisticated and inflammable airs1  
if it  be not formed in the process2 nor
 why phlogisticated air if a simple     
substance1 should be so evidently formed
 in the various processes  enumerated by
 ,dr4 ,priestley in the #acth section of
 the pamphlet of  which ,i have made the
 foregoing abstract8 whether the        
doctrine of  phlogiston is still to be  
used as the key to the gate of chemical 
theory1 or whether it be properly thrown
 aside for the elegant  substitute of   
the ,french chemists1 can hardly be     
ascertained1 until the  preceding       
difficulties are cleared up on the new  
doctrine1 for on the  old theory they   
are sufficiently explicable4 ,the       
summary of arguments  in favour of      
,phlogiston1 published by ,dr4          
,priestley1 in #ahjc1 are  evidently too
 important1 and too difficult of reply1 
to be slighted by  those who adopt the  
opposite opinions4 ,non nostri est      
tantas componere  lites4 ,should the old
 theory ultimately fall1 it maybe fairly

 said of  its respectable supporter1 si 
,pergama dextra defendi potuit1 etiam   
hac  defensa fuisset4    ,this was      
almost the last of ,dr4 ,priestley's    
chemical publications1#ef  through all  
which1 his characteristic talent as an  
author has been  eminently preserved1   
that of not only adding greatly to the  
existing  stock of knowledge1 but       
exciting others to exertion and         
reflection in  the same line of pursuit4
 ,nor can ,i help thinking that much of 
the  labours of the ,french philosophers
 in this department of science would    
never have been undertaken1 if they had 
not been called forth by the  previous  
discoveries1 not of ,lemery1 ,margraaf1 
,bayen1 ,macquer1 and  ,beaum1 but of   
,hales1 ,black1 and ,macbride2 of       
,cavendish and ,priestley  and          
,scheele4#eg ,would to ,god there were  
no other object of contest  between the 
rival nations of ,great ,britain and    
,france1 but which should  add most to  
the sum of human knowledge1 and         

contribute most to the  means of human  
happiness4    #ef ,to the end of this   
,appendix will be subjoined a list of   
the  scattered papers on ,philosophical 
subjects which ,dr4 ,priestley          
published in periodical collections1    
besides those which are inserted  in the
 ,philosophical transactions4    #eg ,i 
do not mean to deny the tribute of      
praise to ,marriotte and ,venel1  any   
more than to ,brownrigg and ,lane1 and  
it is certain that ,lavoisier  was      
engaged in pneumatic experiments1       
previous to #aggd4    ,it is impossible 
to conclude the preceding account better
 than by the  following extract of a    
letter to ,mr4 ,lindsey from a man#eh   
well able  to appreciate the labours of 
,dr4 ,priestley2 and the late testimony 
in  favour of his discernment by ,dr4   
,bostock4 8,to enumerate ,dr4           
,priestley's  discoveries1 would in fact
 be to enter into a detail of most of   
those  that have been made within the   
last #ae years4 ,how many invisible     

fluids  whose existence evaded the      
sagacity of foregoing ages has he made  
known to us8 ,the very air we breathe1  
he has taught us to analyze1  to        
examine1 to improve3 a substance so     
little known1 that even the  precise    
effect of respiration was an enigma     
until he explained it4  ,he first made  
known to us the proper food of          
vegetables1 and in what  the difference 
between these and animal substances     
consisted4 ,to him  ,pharmacy is        
indebted for the method of making       
artificial mineral  waters1 as well as  
for a shorter method of preparing other 
medicines2  metallurgy for more powerful
 and cheap solvents2 and chemistry for  
such  a variety of discoveries as it    
would be tedious to recite3 discoveries 
which have new modelled that science1   
and drawn to it and to this  country1   
the attention of all ,europe4 ,it is    
certain that since the year  #aggc1 the 
eye and regards of all the learned      
bodies in ,europe have been  directed to

 this country by his means4 ,in every   
philosophical treatise1  his name is to 
be found1 and in almost every page4     
,they all own that  most of their       
discoveries are due either to the       
repetition of his  discoveries1 or to   
the hints scattered through his         
works40#ei    #eh ,richard ,kirwan1     
,esqr4    #ei ,vindici ,priestlian1 p4  
#fh4    8,this is not the only instance0
 7says ,dr4 ,bostock1#fj speaking of    
,mr4  ,jurin's opinion that azote was   
generated1 instead of being absorbed1   
in the process of respiration as ,dr4   
,priestley1 and after him ,mr4 ,davy    
had supposed17 8in which1 after the     
conclusions of ,dr4 ,priestley have     
been controverted by his contemporaries1
 a more accurate investigation  of the  
question1 has ultimately decided in his 
favour4 ,the complicated  apparatus1 and
 imposing air of minuteness which       
characterize the  operations of the     
,french chemists1 irresistibly engage   
the assent of  the reader1 and scarcely 

permit him to examine the stability of  
the  foundation upon which the structure
 is erected4 ,the simplicity of the     
processes employed by ,dr4 ,priestley1  
the apparent ease with which his        
experiments were performed1 and the     
unaffected conversational stile  in     
which they are related have1 on the     
contrary been mistaken for the  effects 
of haste and inaccuracy4 ,something must
 also be ascribed to the  theoretical   
language which pervades1 and obscures   
the chemical writings  of this          
,philosopher1 in consequence of his     
unfortunate attachment to  the doctrine 
of ,phlogiston40    #fj ,essay on       
respiration1 p4 #bjh4    ,when the      
operose experiment of the ,french       
chemists on the formation  of water1    
shall have been sufficiently repeated1  
and verified by  other experiments to   
the same point1 less complex1 less      
tedious1 less  expensive1 and easy to be
 repeated2 when the water thus supposed 
to  be formed is sufficiently           

distinguished from the water absolutely 
necessary to the generation of all airs1
 and attendant upon them#fa  both in a  
state of mixture and combination2 and   
when the difficulties  enumerated a page
 or two back1 as attendant on the modern
 theory shall  be explained on the new  
system1 as well as on that of ,stahl1   
then1 and  not until then1 will it be   
time to lament ,dr4 ,priestley's        
unfortunate  attachment to the doctrine 
of ,phlogiston4    #fa ,mr4 ,kirwan     
found that common inflammable air from  
iron1 and  vitriolic-acid1 contained    
about #b-c of its weight of water mixed 
with  it2 which might be separated from 
the air by means of concentrated        
vitriolic-acid in a watch glass over    
mercury1 without diminishing the        
quantity or altering the characteristic 
properties of the air thus  treated4    
,of ,dr4 ,priestley's other ,scientific 
,works4      ,the other philosophical   
labours of ,dr4 ,priestley consist of   
his history  of electricity1 his history

 of the discoveries relating to light   
and  colour1 and his popular            
introductions to perspective1           
electricity and  natural philosophy4    
,it appears that after the publication  
of his history of electricity1  he      
intended to have pursued the plan1 by   
composing similar histories  of every   
branch of science3 a magnificent idea1  
and which none but  a man conscious of  
uncommon powers could have contemplated4
 ,few men  indeed were so capable of    
such an undertaking as ,dr4 ,priestley2 
for  independant of his habits of       
patient and regular industry in his     
literary pursuits1 and the wide field of
 his attention to scientific  objects1  
he had a facility of perusing1          
abstracting1 and arranging the  works of
 others1 not commonly attendant even    
upon equal abilities in  other respects4
 ,this great undertaking of ,dr4        
,priestley to embrace  the various      
departments of philosophy1 appears a    
labour sufficient  for one life2 and had

 due encouragement been afforded1 this  
projected  series of histories would in 
all probability have been compleated1   
usefully to the world1 and reputably to 
himself4 ,but he proposed this          
undertaking laborious as it was1 without
 designing that it should  occupy the   
whole or the principal portion of his   
time1 but his leisure  hours only2 for  
at no period did he postpone his        
professional duties1  or his theological
 studies1 to any other object whatever4 
,the life of  ,dr4 ,priestley is almost 
a perpetual illustration of a seeming   
paradox1  respecting mental energy1 that
 men of talents1 uncommonly laborious1  
and who appear to get through more      
business than one person could be       
supposed equal to1 have usually more    
leisure time at their disposal1  than   
those who have little to do3 so much    
does the habit encrease  the power of   
exertion4 ,nor was any man less averse  
to the innocent  pleasures of social    
enjoyment than ,dr4 ,priestley1 or      

better calculated  as well as more      
inclined to contribute to the common    
stock of amusing1  and instructive      
conversation4 ,it cannot indeed be truly
 said of him1  as ,dr4 ,johnson#fb once 
related of himself1 that he had never   
refused an  invitation to dinner on     
account of business but once in his     
life1 yet  no man more readily found    
leisure for social intercourse4 ,this   
arose  from his habit of dividing his   
time into certain portions appropriated 
to his respective pursuits1 and         
determining to perform a certain        
quantity of literary duty1 within the   
assigned period4    #fb ,on that day1   
7,dr4 ,johnson said7 as it was an       
unusual deprivation1  he found himself  
disinclined1 and unable to attend       
steadily to the work  that led him to   
refuse the invitation4 ,he walked about 
his library  occasionally looking over  
first one book and then another until   
about  four o'clock when weary of       
staying within he went to a tavern to   

dine4  ,dr4 ,johnson had for a long time
 a dislike to ,dr4 ,priestley who bore  
two  of the characters most in disrepute
 with ,dr4 ,johnson1 that of a whig  and
 a dissenter4 ,dr4 ,priestley's pursuits
 also consisting so largely  of         
heterodox theology1 which ,dr4 ,johnson 
abominated1 and experimental  philosophy
 which he heartily despised1 they had   
hardly a common point  of union4 ,toward
 the latter part of ,johnson's life1    
they met2 and upon  the friendly terms  
that ought to obtain between two men1   
who1 each in  their way1 deserved so    
well of the republic of letters4    ,the
 first edition of his history of        
,electricity1 was in #agfg3 it  went    
through another edition in #agfi1 and a 
third in #agge4 ,it was  published at a 
very happy time1 when electricity was a 
favourite object  of attention to many  
respectable men of science then living1 
and it  contributed in a great degree to
 turn the public attention toward  the  
study of these phenomena4 ,very much of 

what has been done since  may be fairly 
attributed to the popularity given to   
this branch of  experimental philosophy 
by ,dr4 ,priestley4 ,nor did he confine 
himself to  a mere narration of the     
labours of others2 the second volume    
contains  many new experiments of his   
own1 and some of them form very curious 
and important additions to the stock of 
electrical knowledge4#fc  ,the          
discoveries of the last thirty years1   
particularly including  those of        
,galvanic ,electricity1 are so numerous1
 and so dispersed in  volumes difficult 
to be procured1 that a continuation of  
this history  is a desideratum in the   
scientific world2 at one time there was 
an  expectation of seeing it from the   
pen of ,mr4 ,nicholson1 whose general   
knowledge1 and industry1 as well as his 
attention to this branch of  philosophy 
in particular1 render him peculiarly    
qualified for the task4  ,but the       
proposals he communicated to ,dr4       
,priestley1 on the subject1  were not   

pursued to effect4#fd    #fc ,dr4       
,priestley among his other experiments  
on electricity first  ascertained the   
conducting power of charcoal and the    
calcination and  vitrification even of  
the most perfect metals by the electric 
spark4 ,he  seems first to have used    
large batteries1 which ,m4 ,van ,marum  
and his  associates have carried to such
 extent4    ,the solutions of the       
metals1 the gasses produced and the     
circumstances  which accelerate and     
prevent these effects in ,galvanic      
processes with  the pile of ,volta1 as  
detailed by ,dr4 ,priestley in his paper
 on this  subject in ,nich4 ,journ4 for 
,march #ahjb p4 #aih form very important
  additions to the mass of knowledge    
respecting the ,galvanic fluid4 ,nor    
are his discoveries in pneumatic        
electricity1 of the conversion of  oils1
 spirit of wine and the alkaline gass   
into inflammable air or  hydrogen of    
less moment4    #fd ,dr4 ,bostock1 who  
seems to have many requisites to qualify

 him as  the historian of particular    
branches of science1 has published a    
good  attempt toward the history of     
,galvanism in ,nicholson's ,journal4    
,these histories of detached branches of
 ,science1 would not only be  highly    
useful1 but they may be considered as in
 some measure necessary  to the accurate
 pursuit1 and advancement of science    
itself4 ,they are  not only useful for  
the purpose of shewing the discoveries  
that have  been made1 and the time of   
their publication1 the ideas that appear
 to  have suggested them1 the persons to
 whom we are indebted for them1 and     
their effect on the spirit of enquiry at
 the time1 but they prevent a  man of   
science from being led into mistakes1   
from doing what has been  already done1 
from suggesting what has been already   
published1 and  from ignorantly claiming
 to himself the merit due to the labours
 of  a predecessor4 ,books are now so   
multiplied1 in languages so various1    
obtained with so much difficulty1 and at

 an expence so far exceeding  the usual 
means of scientific men1 that those who 
like ,dr4 ,priestley  fully and         
faithfully execute a work of this       
description are real  benefactors to    
mankind4#fe    #fe ,the transactions of 
the various academies and philosophical 
societies in ,europe amount at least to 
#ajjj volumes in quarto4 ,the  royal    
society of ,england in #affe led the way
 to similar institutions4    ,the       
history of ,,electricity was composed by
 ,dr4 ,priestley in one year4  ,the     
three editions of the work in less than 
eight or nine years  sufficiently shew  
that1 in the opinion of men of science1 
it was well  composed3 otherwise the    
celerity of its composition1 would no   
doubt  derogate from1 instead of adding 
to1 the well earned reputation of  the  
author2 and rather tend to shew that he 
was too careless or too  conceited to   
take the necessary pains and employ the 
necessary time to  make it fit for      
public inspection4 ,every man owes to   

the public1 that  if he professes to    
instruct them1 he should dedicate as    
much labour as  the subject demands1 or 
at least as much time as it is in his   
power to  devote to it4 ,i fully accede 
to the ingenious correction of the nonum
  prematur in ,annum1 suggested by the  
witty ,dr4 ,byrom of ,manchester2 but   
something of the ,lim ,labor1 respect   
for the tribunal of the public  demands 
of every man who appears before them in 
the character of an  author4 ,dr4       
,priestley has in more instances than   
one1 been accused of  unnecessary if not
 of culpable rapidity in his literary   
compositions3  but he never professed to
 be a fine writer2 he never sought after
 the  beauties of stile2 and his common 
language was sufficiently neat and      
expressive1 to communicate the facts and
 the arguments upon which  it was       
employed4 ,it is also to be remarked1   
that the facility of  composition which 
he acquired from long practice1 made    
that labour  light to him1 which would  

have been too much for a less skilful   
and  a less experienced composer4 ,in   
many instances indeed of his rapid      
publications1 he had not to seek for    
arguments1 but to express in his        
unornamented and unaffected manner1 the 
ideas that forced themselves  upon him  
relating to a subject previously        
considered and upon which he  had long  
made up his mind4    ,the ,history of   
,discoveries respecting ,,light and     
,,colours published  in #aggb was a more
 difficult task1 nor did it meet with   
equal  encouragement4 ,sir ,isaac       
,newton's important labours in this     
branch  of science1 could not be fully  
comprehended without a portion of       
mathematical knowledge not even then so 
common as formerly1 among  the          
philosophers of the day4 ,mathematical  
studies seem to have in  themselves very
 little to interest1 compared with other
 literary  pursuits2 although by long   
attention and habit1 that interest may  
be  excited and kept up4 ,it was about  

this time that the popular phenomena  of
 chemistry and electricity more         
decidedly took their stand in the  field
 of science1 and irresistably seized    
hold on the attention of the  world3    
phenomena1 highly amusing in themselves1
 strongly attractive  from their        
novelty1 of evident and immediate       
application1 and that  promised an      
incalculable harvest of honourable and  
useful discovery1  to such as would     
become their votaries4 ,little had been 
done in this  department of philosophy1 
little previous knowledge was required  
to  comprehend all that was known1 and  
those who were unable to read a  page of
 ,sir ,isaac ,newton with profit1 could 
easily mix an acid and an  alkali1 or   
turn the wheel of an electrical         
apparatus4    ,by this time too1 it had 
been discovered1 that there were other  
powers  in nature that must be called in
 to explain appearances1 which the      
mechanical and corpuscular philosophy   
had endeavoured to elucidate in  vain4  

,such were magnetism1 electricity and   
chemistry4 ,it began to be  found out1  
that the science of calculation1 was but
 an aukward handmaid  to their sister   
branches of natural philosophy1 while   
physiology1  laughed outright at the    
clumsy addresses of her mathematical    
admirers1  from ,borelli to ,keill4     
,the discoveries therefore relating to  
light and colours1 at the time  when    
,dr4 ,priestley proposed his history1   
being intimately associated  with the   
study of the mathematics1 and the       
profound investigations  of ,sir ,isaac 
,newton1 were out of the beat of the    
less laborious1 but  more fashionable   
philosophy of the day2 and were not so  
generally  interesting to the ,sciolists
 and ,amateurs4 ,hence the work in      
question1  though treated in a very     
entertaining and popular manner1 and by 
no  means crouded with reference to     
,diagrams or abstruse discussions1 was  
not popular even among that class of    
readers1 who might reasonably be        

calculated on1 as the purchasers of such
 a performance4 ,the subscribers  indeed
 were sufficiently numerous1 and        
respectable1 but by far the  majority   
were defaulters in respect of payment4  
,it did not pay the  bookseller3 and of 
course still less did it recompence ,dr4
 ,priestley in  a pecuniary point of    
view1 especially as he had gone to      
considerable  expence with a view to the
 completion of his extended plan4 ,to   
him  indeed1 though pecuniary loss was a
 serious evil1 pecuniary profit  was a  
consideration of small importance3 his  
motives to literary  labour seem        
uniformly to have arranged themselves as
 follows1 utility1  reputation1 profit4 
,the work in question is certainly too  
brief1 considering the importance  of   
the subject3 many parts of it1 the      
theory of ,huygens1 ,euler1 and         
,franklin for instance1 seem to have    
merited more discussion4 ,that all  the 
phenomena of light depend on the ,sun1  
as the reservoir1 whence all  the       

emanations of that fluid to the various 
parts of the system are  supplied1 the  
lighting of a candle is alone sufficient
 to refute4 ,the  facts discovered to us
 by modern ,chemistry will suggest a    
great many  other doubts of the         
doctrines respecting light1 which were  
regarded  as well established when ,dr4 
,priestley's book was written4 ,but it  
was  a faithful account of the knowledge
 of the day1 and an unprejudiced        
tribute to the reputation of those      
philosophers who had from time to  time 
extended the boundaries of science on   
the subjects treated of4    ,not a      
little has been added to the mass of    
facts then published1 by  the subsequent
 experiments of ,dr4 ,priestley himself1
 and his fellow  labourers in the       
,chemistry of the ,gasses3 and          
notwithstanding the  experiments of ,sir
 ,isaac ,newton and his predecessors1   
the theory of  light and colours is not 
yet rested upon facts sufficiently      
numerous1  and decisive to satisfy the  

enquiries dictated by the present state 
of  knowledge4    ,but with all these   
disadvantages1 the work has nevertheless
 maintained  its ground1 for we have no 
where else so systematic1 and compleat1 
though brief an account of what had been
 made known to the world on  this       
important branch of scientific inquiry4 
,it will always remain a  valuable      
performance2 and to the author an       
honourable one1 from the  knowledge and 
ability required in its compilation1    
from the fairness  of the account it    
gives1 and the entertaining statement of
 facts and  suggestions interspersed    
through the book4    ,it is greatly     
indeed to be wished1 that these         
histories should be  continued on the   
plan which ,dr4 ,priestley has adopted4 
,so that all the  prominent facts should
 be collected in the order of their     
discovery1  and a full view be given of 
the ground already gone over4           
,abridgments1  do not answer this       
purpose2 the theories that dictated the 

experiments  are not detailed1 their    
truth or their fallacy cannot be judged 
of1 and  sufficient merit is not        
attributed to the labours of the        
discoverer1  or the bearings of his     
facts on his theory1 sufficiently       
explained4 ,to  attain gradually to the 
summit of the temple of science1 we must
 not  only build on the foundations of  
our predecessors1 but know somewhat of  
their intentions at the time of laying  
them4    ,the minor treatises of ,dr4   
,priestley on electricity1 perspective  
and  natural philosophy1 have this      
discrimination of character1 that they  
are more calculated to allure young     
people to the study of those  subjects  
than almost any of the introductions    
which have either  preceded or          
succeeded4 ,philosophy is made1 not an  
abstruse science1 but  a delightful     
amusement4 ,indeed it was the fort of   
,dr4 ,priestley to make  knowledge      
intelligible and popular1 and treat it  
in such a way1 as to  invite rather than

 deter1 those who were inclined to enter
 upon these  delightful pursuits4 ,the  
plainness and simplicity of his         
syllabus1  the amusing complexion of the
 ,phenomena1 by which he illustrates his
  doctrines1 and the facility with which
 the one can be made1 and the  other    
comprehended1 affords a very useful     
example to those who may have  the same 
object hereafter in view4 ,this was     
doubtless1 owing to his  long experience
 as a teacher3 and his success in that  
capacity among  his pupils1 with the    
electrical machine1 and the air pump1 is
 full  evidence of the practical utility
 of his plans of instruction4           
,catalogue of ,dr4 ,priestley's smaller 
pamphlets and uncollected papers  on    
philosophical subjects4    ,nicholson's 
,journal4       new series4      ,v4 #a 
p4 #aha4    ,reply to ,mr4              
,cruikshank's4  ,ibid #aih4             
,experiments on the ,pile of ,volta4    
,v4 #b p4 #bcc4    ,on the conversion of
 iron into steel4  ,v4 #c p4 #eb4       

,on air from finery cinder and charcoal4
  ,v4 #d p4 #fe4     ,farther reply to  
,mr4 ,cruikshank's4    ,amer4 ,trans4   
,v4 #d p4 #a4      ,experiments and     
observations relating                   
to the analysis of atmospherical        
air4  ,v4 #d p4 #aa4     ,farther       
experiments relating to the             
generation of air from water4  ,ibid p4 
#chb4    ,appendix to the above         
articles4    ,ib4 ,vol4 ,v4  p4 #a4     
,experiments on the transmission        
of acids and other liquors in the       
form of vapours over several substances 
in a hot earthen tube4   ,republished   
p4 #ad4 ,experiments on the change of   
place in different kinds of air         
through several interposing substances4 
#ba4 ,experiments relating to the       
absorption                  of air by   
water4                                  
#bh4 ,miscellaneous experiments relating
                  to the doctrine of    
phlogiston4  together4                  
#cf4 ,experiments on the production of  

air by the freezing of water4           
#db4 ,experiments on air exposed to     
heat in metallic tubes4    ,new-,york   
,med4 ,repos4     ,title and ,date4     
,vol4 #a p4 #bba4   ,considerations on  
the doctrine of                         
,phlog4 and the ,decomp4 of water4      
7,pamphlet7 #agif4  ,ibid p4 #eda4      
,part #b;d of do4 7,pamphlet #agig47    
,vol4 #b p4 #dh4    7,pamphlet7 to ,dr4 
,mitchell4  ,ibid p4 #afc4              
7,pamphlet7 on ,red ,precipitate of     
,mercury as favourable to the doctrine  
of ,phlogiston1 ,july #bj1 #agih4  ,ibid
 p4 #bfc4     ,experiments relating to  
the calces of                   metals  
communicated in a fifth letter          
to ,dr4 ,mitchell4 ,october #aa1        
#agih4 7,pamphlet47  ,ibid p4 #bfi4     
,of some experiments made with          
ivory black and also with diamonds4     
7,pamphlet7 #aa ,october1 #agih4        
,ibid p4 #chc4    ,on the phlogistic    
theory1 ,january #ag1                   
#agii4 7,pamphlet47    ,ibid p4 #chh4   

,on the same subject4 ,february #a1     
#agii4    ,vol4 #c p4 #aaf4  ,a reply to
 his antiphlogistian opponents1         
,no4 #a4    ,vol4 #d p4 #ag4            
,experiments on the production of       
air by the freezing of water4    ,ibid  
p4 #ace4    ,experiments on heating     
,manganese                  in          
inflammable air4    ,ibid p4 #bdg4      
,some observations relating to the      
sense of hearing4    ,vol4 #e p4 #cb4   
,remarks on the work entitled 8,a       
brief history of epidemic and           
pestilential                  diseases10
 ,may #d1 #ahja4    ,ibid p4 #abe4      
,some thoughts concerning dreams4       
,ibid p4 #bfd4    ,miscellaneous        
observations relating                   
to the doctrine of air1 ,july #cj1      
#ahja4    ,ibid p4 #cij4    ,a reply to 
,mr4 ,cruikshank's observations         
in defence of the new system            
of chemistry1 #e ,vol4 ,nicholson's     
,journal p4 #a1 c4    ,vol4 #f p4 #bd4  
,remarks on ,mr4 ,cruikshank's          

experiments                  upon finery
 cinder and                  charcoal4  
,ibid p4 #aeh4    ,observations on the  
conversion of                  iron into
 steel4    ,ibid p4 #bga4    ,additional
 remarks on ,mr4 ,cruikshank's          
experiments on finery cinder            
and charcoal1 ,november #ae             
#ahjb4                                  
,,appendix1 ,,no4 #b4                   
,of ,dr4 ,priestley's ,metaphysical     
,writings4      ,the principal source of
 objection to ,dr4 ,priestley in        
,england1  certainly arose from his     
being a dissenter2 from his opposition  
to the  hierarchy1 and to the           
preposterous alliance1 between ,church  
and ,state3  an alliance1 by which the  
contracting parties seem tacitly agreed 
to  support the pretensions of each     
other1 the one to keep the people in    
religious1 and the other in civil       
bondage4 ,his socinian doctrines in     
theology1 and the heterodoxy of his     
metaphysical opinions1 though they      

added much to the popular outcry raised 
against him1 were not less  obnoxious to
 the generality of ,dissenters1 than to 
the ,clergy of the  ,church of ,england4
 ,nor is it a slight proof of the       
integrity of his  character1 and his    
boldness in the pursuit of truth1 that  
he did not  hesitate to step forward the
 avowed advocate of opinions1 which his 
intimate and most valuable friends1 and 
the many who looked up to him  as the   
ornament of the dissenting interest1    
regarded with sentiments of  horror1 as 
equally destructive of civil society and
 true religion4    ,the extreme         
difference observable between the       
apparent properties of  animal and      
inanimate matter1 easily led to the     
opinion of something  more as necessary 
to thought1 and the phenomena of mind1  
than mere  juxta position of the        
elements1 whereof our bodies are        
composed4  ,the very antient opinion    
also of a state of existence after      
death1  prevalent in the most           

uncivilized as well as enlightened      
states of  society1 confirmed this      
opinion of a separate and immortal part 
of the  human system3 for it was        
sufficiently evident1 that no           
satisfactory  hopes of a futurity after 
death1 could be founded on the          
perishable  basis of the human body4 ,it
 is only of late days1 and from the     
extension of anatomical and             
physiological knowledge1 that the       
theory1  and the facts of animal        
organization have been at all           
understood2 and  without the conjunction
 of physiology with metaphysics1 the    
latter  would have remained to eternity1
 as it has continued for ages1 a mere   
collection of sophisms1 and a science of
 grammatical quibbling4 ,the  doctrine  
of a future state1 and that of an       
immaterial and immortal  soul1 became   
therefore mutual supports to each other2
 and herein the  civil power willingly  
joined in aid of the dogmas of          
metaphysical  theology1 from observing  

the convenience that might arise in the 
government of civil societies1 from     
inculcating a more complete  sanction of
 rewards and punishments for actions in 
this life1 by means  of the             
dispensations in a life to come4 ,other 
causes also gave an  universal          
preponderance to the theory of the human
 soul4 ,it became1  for the reasons     
above mentioned1 not only a favourite   
doctrine with  churchmen and statesmen1 
but the self delusions among the vulgar1
  respecting supposed appearances after 
death1 rendered it also a  popular      
doctrine4 ,indeed1 in every age1 and in 
every country1 the  priesthood have     
found it so powerful an engine of       
influence over the  minds of the people1
 and in too many cases1 so1 fruitful a  
source of  lucrative imposture1 that its
 prevalence is not to be wondered at1   
wherever artificial theology has been   
engrafted on the simplicity of  true    
religion1 and supported by an           
established clergy4 ,of ,popery1  which 

yet remains the prevailing system of the
 christian world1 it  is doubtless the  
corner stone2 and even under every form 
of ignorant  and idolatrous worship     
throughout the globe1 it is the main    
source  of power and profit to that     
class of society1 which regulates the   
religious opinions1 rites and ceremonies
 of the country4 ,not that  ,i would    
insinuate1 that the belief of a separate
 soul1 like some  other opinions that   
might be mentioned1 has been generally  
taught by  professors who disbelieve it2
 for plausible arguments are not        
wanting1  to give it that currency which
 it has so long received among the      
wisest  and the best of men3 nor that an
 established priesthood of any age or   
country1 or of any religion1 is a mere  
compound of fraud and imposture1  for ,i
 well know that the wise and the good   
are abundant in this class  of society1 
as well as in others4 ,but even such men
 are liable to the  common infirmities  
of human nature2 they cannot be         

indifferent to their  rank in society1  
or the means of their subsistence2 it is
 not every  college youth1 that is able 
or willing to weigh 8the difficulties   
and  discouragements attending the study
 of the ,scriptures10 so forcibly       
pointed out in the melancholy pamphlet  
of ,bishop ,hare3 nor is it  every      
professor of ,christianity1 who doubts  
of the doctrines he has  undertaken to  
teach1 that has fortitude enough to     
follow the noble  example of ,theophilus
 ,lindsey1 and ,john ,disney4 ,hence we 
may take  for granted1 that those       
opinions will be admitted the most      
readily1  and enforced the most         
willingly1 which contribute to the      
influence  of that order1 which the     
professors have been induced by choice1 
or  compelled by necessity1 to wed for  
life4 ,choice indeed1 at least that     
kind of choice1 which depends on a      
well-grounded conviction of the  object 
chosen being the means of superior      
usefulness1 has little to  do in this   

business4 ,for though the clergy of the 
church of ,england  severally declare   
that they are moved by the ,holy ,ghost 
to take upon  them the clerical         
character1 is there one among them in   
the present  day 7,bishop ,horsely      
perhaps excepted7 who would venture to  
defend this  declaration in the sense   
originally intended8 ,it is a fact      
notorious1  that the candidates for holy
 orders1 regard the profession of       
,divinity  as they would that of ,physic
 or ,law1 a fair and reputable means of 
gaining a livelihood1 by performing     
those duties which are considered  as   
necessary to the well being of society4 
,it is a fact too1 equally  notorious1  
that wherever theological opinions 7like
 that of the human  soul7 have been fit 
and liable to be made subservient to the
 temporal  profit or influence of the   
clergy1 that use has been so made of    
them  by the ambitious and designing    
part of the profession1 and the rights  
of the people have been encroached upon1

 to serve the interest of the           
,hierarchy4 ,nor is it the established  
clergy alone that some of the  preceding
 remarks will apply to3 much bigotry    
among the clergy of the  dissenting     
interest1 may fairly be ascribed to     
similar causes1 though  by no means     
operating in the same degree4    ,but   
important as this doctrine is to the    
clerical order in political  societies1 
some latitude of doubt and even of      
denial1 has been conceded  in ,england  
to the known friends and adherents of   
the established system  in that country4
 ,this is the more to be wondered at1 as
 they have  generally considered a      
dissonance of opinion among their own   
order1  more fatal to the common        
interest1 than the attacks of their     
avowed  enemies4 ,thus1 more notice was 
taken of the ,arian heterodoxy of ,dr4  
,clarke1 than of the avowed infidelity  
of ,collins1 ,tindal1 ,toland1  ,coward1
 and other writers of that class1 who   
published about the same  period4       

,the learned ,mr4 ,henry ,dodwell as he 
is usually called1 and who is  a        
pregnant instance that learning does not
 always persuade good  sense to inhabit 
the same abode1 took great pains to shew
 that the  soul was naturally mortal1   
but might be immortalized by those who  
had the gift of conferring on it this   
precious attribute4 ,this power  he     
ascribed to the ,bishops4 ,dodwell1     
though he would not at first  join the  
establishment1 changed his opinion and  
his conduct in this  respect afterward4 
,bishop ,sherlock denied that the       
existence of the  soul could be made    
evident from the light of nature4       
7,disc4 #b p4  #hf4 disc4 #c p4 #aad7   
,of the same opinion was ,dr4 ,law who  
quotes him4  ,archbishop ,tillotson     
declares 7v4 #ab serm4 #b47 that he     
cannot find  the doctrine of the        
immortality of the soul expressly       
delivered in  scripture4 ,dr4 ,warburton
 wrote his 8,divine legation0 to prove  
that  ,moses and the ,jews neither      

believed in1 nor knew of a future state4
  ,dr4 ,law1 afterward ,bishop of       
,carlisle1 in the appendix to the third 
edition of his 8,considerations on the  
theory of religion10 compleatly         
overthrows the whole doctrine of a      
separate soul as founded on the         
scripture1 by a critical examination of 
every text usually adduced in  its      
support4 ,dr4 ,watson the present       
,bishop of ,landaff in the preface  to  
his collection of theological tracts    
dedicated to young divines  for whose   
use it was compiled1 expressly declares 
that the question  respecting the       
materiality or immateriality of the     
human soul1 ranks  among those subjects 
on which the academicorum  may be       
admitted1  without injuring the         
foundations of religion4 ,it should seem
 therefore1  that it is not heterodoxy  
in mere speculative points of theology1 
that constitutes the sin against the    
holy ,ghost with an established  clergy1
 but heterodoxy on the subject of church

 authority and the grand  alliance4 ,it 
is in this spirit that the then         
,archdeacon of ,st4 ,albans1  ,dr4      
,horsely complains of ,dr4 ,priestley's 
history of the corruptions of           
christianity4 8,you will easily         
conjecture 7says the ,archdeacon in his 
animadversions on that work p4 #e7 what 
has led me to these reflections1  is the
 extraordinary attempt which has lately 
been made to unsettle  the faith and    
break up the constitution of every      
ecclesiastical  establishment in        
,christendom4 ,such is the avowed object
 of a recent  publication which bears   
the title of a history of the           
corruptions of  christianity1 among     
which the catholic doctrine of the      
trinity holds a  principal place40      
,this is an unfortunate exposure of the 
cloven foot of ,hierarchy4 ,it was  not 
the wish to detect error or to establish
 truth--it was not from  anxiety to fix 
upon a firm footing1 some great and     
leading principle  of christianity--it  

was not the benevolent design of        
communicating  useful information on a  
litigated topic of speculative          
theology--it  was not the meek and      
gentle spirit of sincere and patient    
enquiry  that dictated those            
animadversions--all these motives would 
not only  have borne with patience1 but 
would have welcomed and exulted in a    
temperate discussion of unsettled       
opinions1 before the tribunal of  the   
public2 for by such discussions alone1  
can the cause of truth be  permanently  
and essentially promoted4 ,no3 these    
were not the motives  that influenced   
the ,archdeacon of ,st4 ,albans4 ,it was
 the nefarious  and unpardonable attempt
 to unsettle the faith of established   
creeds2  however founded that faith     
might be1 on ignorance or prejudice1 on 
pardonable misapprehension1 or culpable 
misrepresentation1 on fallacy1  on      
falsehood1 or on fraud4 ,these          
8,animadversions10 proceeded from the   
morbid irritability of an expectant     

ecclesiastic2 from a prudent and  a     
prescient indulgence of the esprit de   
corps2 from a dread too  perhaps1 lest  
the tottering structure of church       
establishment1 with all  its envied     
accompaniments of sees and benefices1 of
 deaconries and  archdeaconries1 and    
canonries1 and prebendaries1 and all the
 pomp and  pride of artificial rank1 and
 all the pleasures of temporal          
authority1  and lucrative sinecure      
connected with it1 might be too rudely  
shaken  by sectarian attacks4 ,but      
enough for the present1 respecting these
  learned labours of the ,archdeacon of 
,st4 ,albans2 which like those  of      
,archdeacon ,travis may well be         
considered as having sufficiently       
answered the main purpose of their      
respective authors1 in spite of  the    
wicked replies of ,priestley and        
,porson4 ,let us say with the public1   
requiescant in pace4    ,to return      
however to the more immediate subject of
 the present section4  ,hobbes seems to 

have been the first writer of repute 7in
 ,england at  least7 who denied the     
doctrine of an immaterial and naturally 
immortal  soul4 ,this was a necessary   
consequence of his faith being          
apparently  confined to corporeal       
existence1 an opinion deducible in fact 
from  the old maxim of the antients and 
of the schools1 nil unquam fuit  in     
,intellectu1 quod non prius erat in     
,sensu4 ,hobbes's ,leviathan was        
published about #afej or #afea4 ,spinosa
 who published after ,hobbes was  rather
 an ,atheist than a ,materialist1 a     
character to which though  ,hobbes's    
opinions might lead1 he does not assume4
 ,in #afgh ,blount sent  forward to the 
public his 8,anima ,mundi01 or an       
historical narration of  the 8opinions  
of the antients concerning man's soul   
after this life  according to           
unenlightened nature10 which met with   
much opposition and  some persecution2  
as was likely1 for it is by no means    
destitute of  merit4    ,in #agjb       

appeared a book entitled 8second        
thoughts concerning the  human soul1    
demonstrating the notion of a human soul
 as believed to  be a spiritual and     
immortal substance united to a human1 to
 be an  invention of the heathens and   
not consonant to the principles of      
philosophy1 reason1 or religion by ,e4  
,p4 or ,estibius ,philalethes40 ,the    
year following a supplement was         
published entitled 8,farther ,thoughts1 
c40 ,the author1 ,dr4 ,coward1          
preoccupies a path subsequently taken by
  ,dr4 ,law and ,dr4 ,priestley1 and    
endeavours to shew at length that the   
notion of an immaterial1 immortal soul1 
is not countenanced by the  texts of    
scripture usually adduced in favour of  
that opinion4 ,these  texts he          
criticises individually with a reference
 to the original words  used4 ,the      
author appears in the character of a    
sincere ,christian4 ,a  second edition  
of this book was published #agjd4 ,in   
#agjf ,mr4 ,dodwell  before mentioned1 a

 learned and laborious but weak man1 and
 bigotted  to the hierarchy1 published  
his 8,epistolary discourse proving from 
the  scriptures and the first fathers   
that the soul is a principle naturally  
mortal1 but immortalized actually by the
 pleasure of ,god1 to punishment  or    
reward2 by its union with the divine    
baptismal spirit4 ,wherein is  proved   
that none have the power of giving this 
divine immortalizing  spirit since the  
apostles1 but only the bishops40 ,this  
gave rise to  the controversy between   
,clarke and ,collins on the immortality 
of the  soul4 ,dodwell's book was       
attacked by ,chishull1 ,norris and      
,clarke4 ,he  replied in three several  
publications1 #ast4 8,a preliminary     
defence  of the epistolary discourse    
concerning the distinction between soul 
and spirit1 #agjg4 #bnd4 ,the scripture 
account of the eternal rewards  or      
punishments of all that hear of the     
gospel1 without an immortality          
necessarily resulting from the nature of

 souls themselves that are  concerned in
 those rewards and punishments1 #agjc4  
#c;d4 ,the natural  mortality of human  
souls clearly demonstrated from the holy
 scriptures  and the concurrent         
testimonies of the primitive writers40  
#agjh4    ,about this time ,toland in   
his letters to ,serena1 7#agjd7 gives an
 8,essay  on the history of the soul's  
immortality among the ,heathens10       
deducing  that doctrine from popular    
traditions supported by poetical        
fictions1  and at length adopted and    
defended among the philosophers4        
,concluding  from hence1 7preface7 that 
divine authority was the surest anchor  
of  our hope and the best if not the    
only demonstration of the soul's        
immortality2 an indirect denial of the  
whole doctrine as coming from  ,toland1 
who was certainly no friend to          
christianity and no believer in  the    
divine authority of the scriptures4     
,in the same year 7#agjd7 but somewhat  
previous to ,toland1 ,dr4 ,coward had   

published his 8,grand ,essay1 or a      
vindication of reason and religion      
against impostures of philosophy2       
proving according to those ideas and    
conceptions of things human             
understanding is capable of forming     
itself4  #ast4 ,that the existence of an
 immaterial substance is a philosophic  
imposture and impossible to be          
conceived4 #bndly ,that all matter has  
originally created in it1 a principle of
 internal or self motion4  #crdly ,that 
matter and motion must be the foundation
 of thought in men  and brutes40        
,dodwell and ,toland had learning enough
 and so had ,blount  to throw some light
 on the history of this question1 and   
the author of  second thoughts has many 
observations well adapted to the        
question he  discusses1 but very little 
is to be gained from a perusal of       
,coward's  book4    ,dr4 ,hartley's     
great work1 7great1 not from the bulk1  
but the importance  of it7 was first    
published in #agdi4 ,the direct and     

manifest tendency of  the whole of his  
first volume is to destroy the common   
hypothesis of  an immaterial soul3 and  
this he does with a mass of fact and a  
force  of reasoning irresistible4 ,he   
shews clearly how all the faculties     
ascribed to the soul1 thought1          
reflection1 judgement1 memory1 and  all 
the passions selfish and benevolent1 may
 be resolved into one  simple undeniable
 law of animal organization1 without the
 necessity  of any hypothesis such as   
that of a separate soul4 ,yet he does   
not  appear distinctly to have seen the 
full weight and tendency of his own     
reasoning1 and he adopts a theory on the
 subject1 loaded with more  difficulties
 and absurdities1 than even the common  
hypothesis4    ,in #ageg was published a
 philosophical and scriptural inquiry   
into  the nature and constitution 8of   
mankind considered only as rational     
beings1 wherein the antient opinion     
asserting the human soul to be an       
immaterial1 immortal and thinking       

substance is found to be quite false    
and erroneous1 and the true nature state
 and manner of existence of the  power  
of thinking in mankind is evidently     
demonstrated by reason and  the sacred  
scriptures40 ,author ,j4 ,r4 ,m4 ,i4    
,who this author really was  ,i know    
not4 ,but from the perusal of his book  
it is probable that he  was a physician1
 and had been travelling4 ,the above    
work he terms the  philosophic or first 
part1 and refers to a longer work of his
 own in  manuscript which it seems he   
could not procure to be published4      
,there  is very little new in the book  
so far as ,i could judge4    ,i do not  
recollect any other treatise relating to
 the subject that  excited public       
attention in ,england4 ,in ,france and  
,holland ,la ,mettrie  began the        
controversy by his ,histoire naturelle  
de ,l',ame1 published at  the ,hague in 
#agde as a translation from the ,english
 of ,mr4 ,charp2#ff  it is a book       
containing many forcible remarks1 and   

did credit to the  side of the question 
which ,la ,mettrie had adopted4 ,soon   
after this ,la  ,mettrie published      
,l',homme machine which was burnt in    
,holland in #agdh4  ,this was an honour 
not due to the formidable character of  
the work  itself1 which though it       
contains some of the common arguments   
drawn  from the physiology and pathology
 of the human system1 is by no means  of
 first rate merit4 ,he whimsically      
attributes the fierceness of the        
,english1 to their eating their meat    
more raw than other nations4 ,this  book
 was translated and published in ,london
 in #agej4    #ff ,this is probably one 
of the innumerable instances of the     
carelessness of ,french authors in      
quoting ,english names4 ,la ,mettrie    
most likely meant to ascribe this to    
,mr4 ,sharp the ,surgeon1 with whose    
reputation he must have been acquainted4
 ,i remember ,arthur ,young  ,esq4 in   
one of his annals of agriculture        
complains that a paper of  his          

translated into ,french was given to    
,artor ,jionge ecuier4 ,some  years ago 
,mr4 ,charles ,taylor of ,manchester    
7lately secretary to the  society of    
,arts in ,london7 was requested by ,lord
 ,hawkesbury to make  some experiments  
to ascertain the value of ,east ,india  
,indigo when  compared with the         
,spanish4 ,mr4 ,taylor did ascertain    
that the former  yielded more colour for
 the same money at the current prices   
than the  latter by above one fourth4   
,in a paper ,i believe by ,m4           
,d',ijonval these  experiments are      
quoted in a note as made by ,le         
,chevalier ,charles ,tadkos  celebre    
manufacturier de ,manchester4    ,from  
,mr4 ,hallet's discoveries the last     
volume of which was published  in #agcf 
,dr4 ,priestley has extracted for       
himself and quoted what he  deemed      
necessary on this question4 ,i do not   
notice as part of the  history of the   
question ,materialism in ,england1 the  
foreign atheistical  publications1 such 

as ,le ,systeme de la nature attributed 
to ,mirabeau  the father1 ,le vrai sens 
du ,systeme de l'univers a posthumous   
work  ascribed to ,helvetius1 ,le ,bon  
,sens by ,meslier1 and others whose     
titles do not now occur to me1 because  
until within these few years1  they were
 hardly known in ,england1 and excited  
no discussion of  the subject there1    
previous to the work of ,dr4 ,priestley 
now under  consideration4    ,the       
,doctor himself says in his preface to  
the disquisitions on matter  and spirit1
 first published in #aggg1 that though  
he had entertained  occasional doubts on
 the intimate union of two substances1  
so entirely  heterogeneous as the ,soul 
and the ,body1 the objections to the    
common  hypothesis1 did not impressively
 occur to him1 until the publication  of
 his treatise against the ,scotch       
,doctors1 which was in #aggd4 ,those    
doubts indeed could hardly avoid        
occurring to any person who had         
carefully perused ,hartley's ,essay on  

,man1 first published in #agdi1 and     
,dr4 ,law's appendix before mentioned in
 #agee4    ,dr4 ,hartley has shewn with 
a weight of fact and argument amounting 
to demonstration1 that all the phenomena
 of mind1 may be accounted  for from the
 known properties and laws of animal    
organization2  and notwithstanding1 that
 for some reason or other he has so far 
accommodated his work to vulgar         
prejudice1 as to adopt the theory of  a 
separate ,soul1 though in a very        
objectionable form1 it is evidently  a  
clog upon his system1 and unnecessary to
 any part of his reasoning4  ,substitute
 ,,perception1 and his theory is        
compleat4 ,nor indeed is it  possible to
 reject this4 ,constant concomitance is 
the sole foundation  on which we build  
out2 inference of necessary connection3 
we have no  evidence of the latter1 but 
the former4 ,perception manifestly      
arises  from1 and accompanies animal    
organization2 the facts are of perpetual
  occurrence1 and the proof from        

induction is compleat4    ,hartley      
having laid a sufficient foundation to  
conclude 7as ,dr4  ,priestley has done7 
that the natural appearances of the     
human system  might be fully explained  
by means of ,perception and             
,association1  without the redundant    
introduction of the common hypothesis1  
,dr4 ,law  a few years afterward        
compleatly proved to the christian world
 that  though ,life and ,immortality    
were brought to light by the christian  
dispensation1 the common theory of a    
separate immaterial and immortal  soul1 
was not necessary to1 or countenanced by
 the christian doctrine4  ,dr4 ,law     
seems by his preface1 to have been      
fearful of the consequences  of         
expressing the whole of his opinion on  
this abstruse subject1 and  confines    
himself in his appendix to the          
examination of the passages  of         
,scripture usually referred to in favour
 of the ,soul's immortality4  ,this     
appendix ,i believe was first added to  

the third edition of his                
,considerations on the ,theory of       
,religion1 published in #agee4          
,against ,dr4 ,priestley1 any ground of 
popular obloquy would be eagerly  laid  
hold of by the ,bigots of the day4 ,the 
doubts expressed in the  examination of 
,drs4 ,reid1 ,oswald1 and ,beattie1     
excited so much obloquy1  as to render  
it necessary for ,dr4 ,priestley to     
review his opinions1 and  renounce or   
defend them4 ,the result was1 the       
disquisition on matter and  spirit1 the 
first volume containing a discussion of 
the question of  materialism1 the second
 that of liberty and necessity4    ,in  
discussing the former hypothesis1 ,dr4  
,priestley denies not only the          
existence of spirit as having no        
relation to extension or space1 but     
also the common definition of matter1 as
 a substance possessing only  the inert 
properties of extension1 and solidity or
 impenetrability4 ,the  latter he       
defines in conformity with the more     

accurate observations of  later physics1
 a substance possessing the property of 
extension and  the active powers of     
attraction and repulsion4 ,with         
,boscovich and ,mr4  ,michell1 he admits
 of the penetrability of matter1 and    
replies to the  objections that may be  
drawn from this view of the subject4    
,it must be acknowledged that highly    
curious as this preliminary             
disquisition is1 it is not only         
unnecessary to the main argument1 but   
leaves the definition of matter open to 
the question whether there be  any      
substratum or subject in which the      
essential properties or powers  of      
attracting and repelling inhere4 ,that  
these powers really belong to  matter1  
whatever else matter may be1 is evident 
from the reflection  of light1 previous 
to contact with the reflecting substance
 and its  inflection afterward from the 
electric spark1 visible along a         
suspended  chain1 from the phenomena of 
the metallic pyrometers1 from the rain  

drop on a cabbage leaf1 c4 ,and that    
matter is permeable1 at least to  light1
 is sufficiently evident from every case
 of tranparency4 ,still  however it     
cannot consist of properties alone2 a   
property must be the  property of       
something4 ,but the proper and direct   
train of argument in  favour of         
materialism is1 that every phenomenon   
from which the notion  of a soul is     
deduced1 is resolveable into some       
affection of the brain1  perceived4     
,that all thought1 reflection1 choice1  
judgment1 memory1 the  passions and     
affections1 c4 consist only of ideas or 
sensations17i4  e4 motions within that  
organ7 perceived at the time4 ,though1  
judgment1  memory1 being words1 denoting
 different kinds of internal            
perceptions1  relating only to1 and     
consisting of1 ideas and sensations4#fg 
,that  sensations and ideas themselves1 
arise only in consequence of the        
impressions of external objects on our  
senses1 which impressions are  liable to

 be recalled afterward by the recurrence
 of others with  which they were        
originally associated1 agreeably to the 
necessary and  inevitable law of the    
animal system4 ,that this is evident in 
as much as  there can be no ideas       
peculiar to any of the senses where     
there is a  want of the necessary bodily
 organ1 as of hearing1 sight1 c4        
inasmuch  as all these ideas commence   
with the body1 grow with its growth1    
and decrease with its decline4 ,that    
they can be suspended1 altered1         
destroyed1 by artificial means1 by      
accident1 by disease4 ,that all these   
properties of mind1 viz4 thought1       
judgment1 memory1 passions1 and         
affections1 are as evident in brutes as 
in men2 and though the degree  be       
different1 it is always accompanied with
 a proportionate difference  of         
organization4 ,that perception is       
clearly the result of organization1     
being always found with it1 and never   
without it3 as clearly so in  other     

animals as in the human species2 and    
probably in vegetables  though in a     
still lower degree4#fh ,that as all the 
common phenomena of  mind1 can be       
accounted for from the known facts of   
organized matter  without the souls1 and
 as none of them can possibly be        
attributed  to the soul without the     
body1 there is no necessity to recur to 
any  gratuitous theory in addition to   
the visible corporeal frame4 ,that the  
doctrine of the soul originated in      
ignorance1 and has been supported  by   
imposture2 that it involves gross       
contradictions and insuperable          
difficulties1 and is no more            
countenanced by true religion than by   
true  philosophy4    #fg ,a ,sensation  
is an impression made by some external  
object on the  ,senses2 the motion thus 
excited is propagated along the         
appropriate  nerve1 until it reaches the
 ,sensory in the ,brain1 and it is there
 and  there only1 felt or perceived4    
,an ,idea1 is a motion in the ,brain1   

excited there either by the laws  of    
association to which that organ is      
subject1 or by some accidental  state of
 the system in general1 or that organ in
 particular1 without  the intervention  
of an impression on the ,senses ab extra
 as the cause  of it4 ,such a motion    
being similar to a sensation formerly   
excited1 and  being also felt or        
perceived is the correspondent ,idea4   
#fh ,dr4 ,percival1 ,dr4 ,bell in the   
,manchester ,transactions1 and ,dr4     
,watson in the last volume of his       
essays1 have made this opinion highly   
probable4 ,many additional observations 
are to be found in ,dr4 ,darwin's       
works4 ,i consider it as a theory       
established4    ,all this has been shewn
 with great force of argument and       
ingenuity  by ,dr4 ,priestley in these  
disquisitions1 to which it may safely be
  affirmed nothing like a satisfactory  
answer has yet been given1 or is  ever  
likely to be given4 ,true metaphysics1  
like every other branch of  philosophy  

can only be founded on an accurate      
observation of facts1  and as these     
become gradually substituted for mere   
names1 our real  knowledge will improve4
 ,it is to physiology perhaps that the  
question  of the materiality of the     
human soul1 and even that of liberty and
  necessity will owe the compleatest    
elucidation4 ,until medical writers     
brought into view the facts relating to 
animal life1 the metaphysical           
disquisitions on these subjects were    
involved in an endless confusion  of    
words without precise meaning1 and      
almost always including in their        
definition a petitio principii4 ,indeed 
we are not yet fully apprized  either in
 ,law1 ,physic or ,divinity any more    
than in ,metaphysics1 that  the species 
intelligibiles of the old schoolmen1 and
 the whole class  of abstract ideas of  
the new schoolmen with ,locke at their  
head1  are not things1 but names4 ,they 
are not even either sensations or       
ideas2 they are words1 convenient indeed

 for classification1 and used           
artificially like the signs of ,algebra1
 but they have no archetype4  ,this is a
 subject which will probably be better  
understood ere long by  the labours of  
,mr4 ,horne ,tooke4    ,dr4 ,priestley  
therefore considered the question of a  
future state1  as now rested on the     
basis which to a christian is or ought  
to be  perfectly satisfactory2 on the   
promises and declarations of our        
,saviour1 exemplified by his own        
resurrection from the dead4 ,indeed the 
circumstances of the whole question of  
futurity depending on the truth  of the 
christian scriptures and on them alone1 
is calculated to give  them a peculiar  
and inestimable value in the eyes of    
those who look  forward with anxious    
hope#fi to a continued and more perfect 
state of  existence after death4 ,nor is
 it of any consequence to the christian1
  that the manner how this will be      
effected is not plainly revealed2  for  
it is sufficient that the ,being who    

first gave animation to the  human      
frame1 will at his own time and in his  
own manner for the wisest  and best of  
purposes1 again exert the same act of   
almighty power in  favour of the human  
race1 and in fulfillment of his promise 
through  ,jesus ,christ4 ,such at least 
was the view of the subject habitually  
entertained by our author4    #fi ,there
 are some persons who do not seem to    
entertain this anxious  hope4 ,mr4 ,gray
 the poet seems an instance1 from the   
following passage  in his ode ,barbaras 
des aditure mecum 7,letters ,v4 #b p4   
#dd7 though ,i do  not recollect that   
the sentiment has been noticed before4  
,oh ego felix1 vice si 7nec unquam      
,surgerem rursus7 simili cadentem       
,parca me lenis sineret quieto          
,fallere ,letho4      ,multa flagranti  
radiisque cincto      ,integris1 ah quam
 nihil inviderem1      ,cum ,dei        
ardentes medius quadrigas               
,sentit ,olympus6    ,i wonder whether  
,gray ever perused the following lines  

written by his  friend and ,biographer  
the ,revd3 ,mr4 ,mason4        #8,is    
this the ,bigot's rant8 ,away ye vain6' 
,your hopes your fears1 in doubt1 in    
dulness steep6      ,go sooth your souls
 in sickness1 grief1 or pain1      ,with
 the sad solace of1 eternal sleep4      
,yet know ye ,sceptics1 know1 the       
,almighty mind      ,who breath'd on man
 a portion of his fire1      ,bad his   
free soul by earth nor time confin'd    
,to heav'n1 to immortality aspire4      
,nor shall the pile of hope his mercy   
rear'd1      ,by vain philosophy be e'er
 destroy'd2      ,eternity6 by all or   
wish'd or fear'd1      ,shall be by all1
 or suffer'd or enjoy'd4                
,mason4    ,it is still more singular   
that ,dr4 ,beattie with all his         
professions of  christianity1 should not
 have been aware of the atheistical     
complexion  of the following passage in 
his 8,hermit40        ,nor yet for the  
ravage of winter ,i mourn1      ,kind   
nature the embryo blossom shall save2   

,but when shall spring visit the        
mouldering urn6      ,oh1 when shall it 
dawn on the night of the grave6         
,indeed1 the natural evidences of a     
future state were never conceived  by   
any reasonable defender of the doctrine1
 to be of themselves  satisfactory and  
conclusive4#gj ,they were never deemed  
of more value  than to produce a        
probable expectation of a state of      
future rewards  and punishments1 and    
they are certainly contradicted by the  
known facts  relating to the origin1 the
 growth1 and decline of the human       
faculties4  ,bishop ,porteus has        
collected these arguments1 and stated   
them with  as much force as his moderate
 abilities would permit2 but by far the 
best summary of what has been urged on  
this as well as on almost every         
important question of morals and        
metaphysics1 will be found in ,mr4      
,belsham's ,elements of the ,philosophy 
of ,mind4 ,an excellent compendium1  by 
a gentleman1 to whom next to ,mr4       

,lindsey1 ,dr4 ,priestley appears to    
have been more attached than to any     
other4    #gj ,dr4 ,priestley in his    
observations on the increase of         
infidelity  published at                
,northumberland1 has a passage which    
would seem to intimate  that a future   
state might be clearly made out by the  
light of nature  7p4 #ei1 #fj7 but this 
is certainly inadvertency1 and by no    
means  conformable to his constant1     
deliberate1 sentiments on that subject  
as  expressed particularly in his       
,institutes4    ,the ,,second part of   
the ,disquisitions on ,matter and       
,spirit1 contains a  discussion of the  
long contested and confused question of 
,liberty and  ,necessity4    ,dr4       
,priestley is right in his opinion that 
this question was not  understood by the
 ancients1 nor perhaps before the time  
of ,hobbes3 ,long  ago it appeared to   
me1 that the only writer among the      
schoolmen who  had touched upon it1 was 
,bradwardine in his ,book ,de caus ,dei1

 which  ,i regret that ,i have no       
opportunity of consulting here4 ,many of
 his  observations are extracted by     
,toplady in his treatise on ,liberty and
  ,necessity1 and in his life of        
,zanchius2 but ,toplady like ,edwards1  
did  not completely understand the      
question2 they connected the doctrine of
  necessity with all the bigotry of     
,calvinism4    ,hobbes in his           
,leviathan1 and in his reply to         
,bramhall on liberty and  necessity in  
his ,tripos1 first truly stated the     
subject1 and shewed  that the question  
was1 not whether we can do what we will1
 but whether  the will itself1 7i4 e4   
choice1 preference1 inclination1 desire1
  aversion17 is not inevitably          
determined by motives not in the power  
or  controul of the agent4    ,hartley's
 book1 however1 shews1 or rather leads  
to the conclusion1  that these motives  
are twofold1 ab extra and ab intra4 ,the
 action  depending on the compound force
 of the motives ab extra1 and the       

physical state of the animal organs at  
the moment4 ,for the latter is          
frequently of itself an immediate cause 
of voluntary action4    ,but previous to
 ,dr4 ,hartley's great work1 the        
question of liberty and  necessity had  
been discussed between ,collins and     
,clark1 and ,clark  and ,leibnitz4#ga   
,collins's ,philosophical inquiry into  
human liberty1  first published in #agae
 was the only book on the subject worth 
reading  between the times of ,hobbes   
and ,hartley1 and a masterly and        
decisive  work it is4 ,this appears to  
have been translated and repeatedly     
printed on the continent2 ,dr4          
,priestley1 who republished it in       
,london1  mentioning a second edition in
 #agef at ,paris1 and a third edition   
when  he was there in #aggd4 ,the       
controversy was kept alive in ,collins's
  life time by ,leibnitz2 but he like   
,dr4 ,edwards who afterwards wrote  in  
defence of the same side of the question
 in his treatise on ,free  will1 was too

 much given to expand his ideas1 and    
obscure the sense  by the multiplicity  
of words which he used to express it4   
,the letters  of ,theodice contain many 
passages well conceived1 but the book   
is insupportably tedious4 ,hobbes could 
condense more argument and  information 
in a page1 than would serve ,leibnitz   
for a volume4    #ga ,i do not find that
 the controversy about the ,soul        
occasioned by the  publications of      
,blount1 ,coward1 ,dodwell1 c4 involved 
the question of  ,liberty and           
,necessity1 though they touch so nearly4
 ,it escaped me a few  pages back1 that 
,dr4 ,coward1 was also the author of    
8,second ,thoughts  concerning the human
 ,soul40 7,estibius ,psycalethes7 as    
well as of the  ,grand ,essay4    ,to   
this treatise of ,collins1 plainly and  
popularly written1 no  sufficient answer
 was or could be given4 ,it must have   
satisfied the  mind of every reader     
capable of understanding the question1  
though it  omitted to notice many       

objections which were afterwards taken  
up and  fully answered by ,dr4          
,priestley4 ,collins in his preface     
takes pains to  have it understood that 
he writes in defence of moral necessity 
only1  and not of physical necessity4 ,a
 distinction without a difference1      
though taken by all who have succeeded  
him4    ,i do not dwell on the          
controversy between ,jackson on the one 
side in  defence of human liberty1 and  
,gordon and ,trenchard in ,cato's       
letters1  because little was added to   
the sum of knowledge1 on either side4   
,jackson had learning and industry1 but 
he did not understand the  question1 and
 had no pretensions to that species of  
distinguishing  acuteness1 so necessary 
to a good metaphysician4    ,dr4        
,priestley1 following the enlarged and  
cheering views of the  future happiness 
of all mankind1 first connected by      
,hartley with this  question1 shews     
completely that the doctrine under      
consideration  has nothing to do with   

the strict calvinistic hypothesis4 ,that
 it  is sufficiently conformable to     
popular opinion4 ,that it is the only   
practical doctrine which in fact is1 or 
indeed can be acted upon with  respect  
to the application of reasoning and     
argument1 reward and  punishment4 ,that 
the formation of character and          
disposition1 the actual  inferences we  
make from1 and the dependence we place  
upon them1 rest  entirely on the truth  
of this opinion4 ,that from the nature  
of cause  and effect1 every volition    
must be the necessary result of previous
  circumstances4 ,that the scientia     
contingentium1 the great and            
insuperable difficulty of ,god's        
pretended foreknowledge of uncertain    
events1 can on no other hypothesis be   
avoided1 and that the doctrine  of      
necessity is perfectly consistent with  
the great plan of divine  benevolence1  
in the present state1 and future        
destination1 of the human  race4        
,these subjects called forth remarks by 

,dr4 ,price1 ,mr4 ,palmer1 ,mr4         
,bryant1 ,dr4 ,kenrick1 ,mr4 ,whitehead1
 ,dr4 ,horsely and others2 to all of    
whom1 answers were given by ,dr4        
,priestley4    ,the controversy with    
,dr4 ,price is a pleasing specimen of   
the manner  in which an important       
subject can be amicably discussed       
between two  friends1 and made          
interesting too1 by the manner as well  
as the matter1  without any thing of    
that 8seasoning of controversy0 which   
,dr4 ,horsely  afterward thought so     
necessary to keep alive the public      
attention1 and  which he strews over his
 polemics with so unsparing a hand4 ,the
 ,bishop  had not yet however adopted   
that stile of arrogance by which he has 
since been so disgracefully             
distinguished2 and it is to be regretted
  for the sake of his own character as a
 gentleman and as a writer1  that he    
adopted it at all4 ,dr4 ,horsely should 
recollect1 that those  who emulate the  
insolence of ,warburton ought at least  

to give proofs  of equal learning and   
acuteness2 and that bigotry and         
intolerance in  defence of opinions     
which1 though a man may profess to      
believe1 he can  hardly profess to      
understand1 will do no credit to his    
religious1 his  moral1 or his literary  
character in the present state of       
knowledge4 ,but  character as a writer1 
may be a secondary consideration1 to one
 who is  determined to verify the       
saying1 that godliness is great gain4#gb
    #gb ,dr4 ,horseley's polemic        
strictures on ,dr4 ,priestley's         
writings1  exhibit a singular compound  
of insolence and absurdity4 ,but he is  
contented1 ,i presume1 if he rises in   
the church1 as he sinks in  reputation4 
,some of his opinions are truly         
diverting4 ,his theory of  divine       
generation by the ,father contemplating 
his own perfections1  and his grave     
suggestion of the three persons of the  
,godhead meeting  together in           
consultation1 stand a fair chance of    

being noticed by some  wicked wit1 who  
may wish to expose the infirmities of   
orthodoxy real or  pretended4    ,it has
 been a misfortune to this question1    
that it has seldom been  treated by     
persons who knew any thing of the       
organization or physiology  of the human
 frame2 and that it has been complicated
 with all the  prejudice arising from   
the theological tenets of those who     
opposed the  doctrine of necessity4     
,every physician knows1 though          
metaphysicians  know little about it1   
that the laws which govern the animal   
machine1  are as certain and invariable 
as those which guide the planetary      
system1 and are as little within the    
controul of the human being  who is     
subject to them4 ,every sensation       
therefore1 and every idea  dependent on1
 or resulting from the state of the     
sensory1 is the  necessary effect of the
 laws of organization by which that     
state was  produced4 ,but we neither    
have nor can have any sensation or any  

idea1  but what is so dependent1 or but 
what thus results2 for we can neither   
feel nor think without the brain4 ,the  
words we use for the ,phenomena  termed 
mental1 are mere terms of classification
 and arrangement of the  sensations and 
ideas thus produced1 and their          
combinations4 ,hence it  follows1 that  
all these phenomena depend on the laws  
which regulate  the animal system1 and  
are the necessary1 inevitable result of 
those  laws4 ,the obscurity which has   
enveloped this question1 has arisen from
  want of due attention to that state of
 mind 7or rather of body7 which  we     
call1 the will2 and from the power that 
animals seem to have over  the voluntary
 muscles4 ,but every ,physiologist knows
 that the state of  the system which    
calls into action the voluntary muscles1
 that is1 a  state of want1 desire or   
inclination1 whether to act or to       
abstain1 is  the result of previous     
circumstances to which the animal is    
exposed2  and the action of the         

voluntary muscles1 is equally the result
 of  necessary laws1 as those of the    
involuntary4    ,the great object of    
terror to the ,divines in this question 
about  ,necessity1 was the consequence  
resulting1 that ,god is the author of   
,sin4 ,many and subtile were the        
distinctions made upon this subject  by 
the necessarian theologists among the   
schoolmen1 and down to the  middle of   
the seventeenth century4 ,richard       
,baxter the peace-maker1 in  his        
,christian ,directory1 his ,catholic    
,theologie and some other works1  has   
briefly reviewed them all1 and as usual 
distinguished upon them so  acutely1    
that what was not quite clear before1 he
 has most effectually  obscured4 ,the   
prevailing opinion1 however1 seems to   
have been1 not that  ,god permitted the 
sinful act 7for the reply was           
unanswerable1 that ,god  must be        
considered1 as willing that which he    
does not prevent when he  can17 but that
 ,god1 in the common course of nature as

 pre-ordained  by him1 permitted the    
action itself to come to pass1 but not  
the  intention or quo animo of the      
actor1 in which the sin consists2 or as 
,gale expresses it in the quaint        
language of the time1 it is 8,god's     
pre-determinate concurse to the         
entitative act40    ,indeed1 ,i do not  
see with the orthodox notions then      
prevalent1 how it  was possible on the  
hypothesis of ,god's foreknowing and    
pre-ordaining  all that comes to pass1  
to avoid considering ,god ,almighty as  
the author  of ,sin2 and to feel        
repugnance toward a system1 which makes 
the deity  inflict eternal punishment on
 a creature1 whose actions he might have
  controuled1 and whose existence he    
could have prevented4 ,such manifest    
injustice might be viewed without       
horror1 by the brutal bigotry of        
,calvin1 but the tenets that drew after 
them such a consequence1 could  not be  
adopted without hesitation and regret1  
by any1 but the most  thorough going1   

unfeeling zealot4    ,origen's doctrine 
of ,universal ,restitution1 was first   
advanced in  ,england 7so far as ,i     
know7 by ,rust1 ,bishop of ,dromore1 and
 ,jeremy  ,white1 who ,i believe had    
been ,chaplain to ,cromwell4 ,since     
that1 the  labours of ,stonehouse1      
,petitpierre1 ,newton1 ,winchester1     
,chauncey  and ,simpson1 have furnished 
ground enough for us to adopt it as the 
doctrine of scripture as well as of     
common sense4 ,by connecting  this      
doctrine with that of necessity1 ,dr4   
,hartley and ,dr4 ,priestley  have been 
enabled to give a full and satisfactory 
reply to all the  objections that can be
 drawn from the theory of necessity1    
making ,god  the author of ,sin4        
,indeed1 unless ,god's foreknowledge be 
denied1 the  same difficulty must occur 
on either scheme3 for he has knowingly  
and  voluntarily adopted a system1 in   
which the existence of evil if not      
necessary1 is at least undeniable4      
,granting the goodness of ,god1 it      

follows according to ,dr4 ,priestley1   
that he has adopted that system which is
 most conducive to general1 and         
individual happiness upon the whole2 and
 that the moral evil of which  for the  
best purposes he has permitted human    
creatures to be guilty1  and the        
physical evil1 which here or hereafter  
will be the inevitable  consequence of  
that conduct1 are necessary to produce  
the greatest sum  of good to the system 
at large1 and to each human being       
individually1  considering the situation
 in which he has been necessarily placed
  in respect to the whole system4       
,indeed1 moral evil is of no farther    
consequence than as it produces physical
 evil to the agent1 or to  others4 ,and 
as we see in the system of inanimate    
nature1 that general  good is the result
 of partial and temporary evil1 and that
 though the  one follows necessarily    
from general laws as the result of the  
other1  the good manifestly             
predominates1 so in the moral system1 we

 have a  right from analogy to predict1 
that good will be the ultimate result   
of the apparent evil we observe in it3  
that we shall be the wiser for  knowing 
what is to be avoided2 the better for   
corrected dispositions2  and that the   
power1 and the wish to receive and      
communicate happiness1  will be enlarged
 through each successive stage of our   
existence1 by  the experience of those  
that have preceded4 ,so at least thought
 ,dr4  ,priestley4    ,leibnitz states  
some of these ideas with great force in 
the following  passage1 which ,i am     
tempted to transcribe entire from his   
,essais de  ,theodice2 sur la ,bont de  
,dieu1 la libert de l'homme1 et         
l'origine du  mal1 first published in   
#agaj4 7,prem4 partie ,sec4 #g1 #h1     
#i47gc    #gc ,dieu est la premiere     
,raison des choses3 car celles qui  sont
 bornes1 comme tout ce que nous voyons  
et experimentons1  sont contingentes1   
n'ont rien en elles qui rende leur      
existence  necessaire2 tant manifeste   

que le tems1 l'espace  la matire  unies 
uniformes en elles-mmes1  indifferentes 
tout1 pouvoient  recevoir de tout autres
 mouvemens  figures1  dans un autre     
ordre4  ,il faut donc chercher la raison
 de l'existence du monde1 qui est       
l'assemblage entier des choses          
contingentes2  il faut la chercher  dans
 la substance qui porte la raison de son
 existence avec elle1   laquelle par    
consequent est necessaire  ternelle4 ,il
 faut aussi  que cette cause soit       
intelligente2 car ce ,monde qui existe  
tant  contingent1  une infinit d'autres 
,mondes tant galement possibles         
galement prtendans  l'existence1 pour   
ainsi dire1 aussi bien que  lui1 il faut
 que la cause du monde ait eu gard ou   
relation  tous ces  ,mondes possibles   
pour en dterminer un4 ,et cet gard on   
rapport d'une  substance existante  de  
simples possibilits1 ne peut etre autre 
chose que l'entendement qui en a les    
ides2  en dterminer une1 ne  peut etre  
autre chose que l'acte de la volont qui 

choisit4 ,et c'est  la puissance de     
cette substance qui en rend la volont   
efficace4  ,la puissance va  l'etre1 la 
sagesse ou l'entendement au vrai1   la  
volont au bien4 ,et cette cause         
intelligente doit etre infinie  de      
toutes les manieres1  absolument        
parfaite en puissance1 en  sagesse  en  
bont1 puisqu'elle va  tout ce qui est   
possible4 ,et  comme tout est li1 il n'y
 a pas lieu d'en admettre plus d'une4   
,son  entendement est la source des     
essences1  sa volont est l'origine  des 
existances4 ,voil en peu de mots la     
preuve d'un ,dieu unique avec  ses      
perfections1  par lui l'origine des     
choses4    #h4 ,or cette suprme sagesse 
jointe  une bont qui n'est pas moins    
infinie qu'elle1 n'a pu manquer de      
choisir le meilleur4 ,car comme un      
moindre mal est une espece de bien2 de  
mme un moindre bien est une  espece de  
mal1 s'il fait obstacle  un bien plus   
grand3  il y auroit  quelque chose      
corriger dans les actions de ,dieu1 s'il

 y avoit moyen  de mieux faire4 ,et     
comme dans les ,mathmatiques1 quand il  
n'y a point  de maximum ni de minimum1  
rien enfin de distingu1 tout se fait    
galement2 ou quand cela ne se peut1 il  
ne se fait rien du tout2 on  peut dire  
de mme en matire de parfaite sagesse1   
qui n'est pas moins  regle que les      
,mathmatiques1 que s'il n'y avoit pas le
 meilleur  7optimum7 parmi tous les     
,mondes possibles1 ,dieu n'en auroit    
produit  aucun4 ,j'appelle ,monde toute 
la suite  toute la collection de toutes 
les choses existantes1 afin qu'on ne    
dire point que plusieurs ,mondes        
pouvoient exister en differens temps    
differens lieux4 ,car il faudroit  les  
compter tous ensemble pour un ,monde1 ou
 si vous voulez pour un  ,univers4 ,et  
quand on rempliroit tous les tems  tous 
les lieux2 il  demeure toujours vrai    
qu'on les auroit pu remplir d'une       
infinit de  manires1  qu'il y a une     
infinit de ,mondes possibles1 dont il   
faut  que ,dieu ait choisi le meilleur2 

puisqu'il ne fait rien sans agir        
suivant la suprme ,raison4    #i4       
,quelque adversaire ne pouvant rpondre  
cet argument1 rpondra  peut-tre  la     
conclusion par un argument contraire1 en
 disant que le  ,monde auroit pu tre    
sans le pch  sans les souffrances3 mais 
je nie  qu'alors il auroit t meilleur4  
,car il faut savoir que tout est  li    
dans chacun des mondes possibles3       
l',univers1 quel qu'il puisse  tre1 est 
tout d'une pice1 comme un ,ocan2 le     
moindre mouvement y  tend son effet     
quelque distance que ce soit1 quoique   
cet effet  devienne moins sensible      
proportion de la distance1 de sorte que 
,dieu y a tout rgl par avance une fois  
pour toutes1 ayant prvu les  prires1 les
 bonnes  les mauvaises actions1  tout le
 reste2  chaque  chose a contribu       
idalement avant son existence a la      
resolution qui  a t prise sur           
l'existence de toutes les choses4 ,de   
sorte que rien ne  peut tre chang dans  
l',univers 7non plus que dans un nombre7

 sauf son  essence1 ou si vous voulez1  
sauf son individualit numrique4 ,ainsi1 
si le moindre mal qui arrive dans le    
,monde y manquoit1 ce ne seroit  plus ce
 ,monde2 qui tout compte1 tout rabattu1 
a t trouv le meilleur  par le ,crateur  
qui l'a choisi4    ,according to this   
opinion of ,leibnitz1 the operative     
motive in the  choice of the present    
system being the attribute of           
,benevolence in the  ,almighty1 the     
existence of all that we term evil1 is  
with respect  to him1 and his           
preordination of it1 good2 for the whole
 intention  and motive of its permission
 is founded in perfect goodness guided  
by perfect wisdom4 ,with respect to the 
finite beings1 by whom evil is          
permitted to take place1 there can be no
 doubt on this scheme1 but the  balance 
of existence will be happiness even to  
them1 whenever by proper  discipline    
they are fitted to enjoy it4 ,perhaps it
 may be doubted  without infringing on  
the reverence due to the supreme        

disposer of all  events1 whether it     
would be consistent with his justice1   
knowingly and  voluntarily to bring into
 existence1 a sentient being1 destined  
to be  permanently miserable4    ,the   
question of ,materialism1 has been      
discussed since the disquisition  of    
,dr4 ,priestley1 by ,mr4 ,cooper1 who   
adopts the same side4 ,dr4 ,ferriar  of 
,manchester1 has rendered it dubious how
 far the sentient principle  ought to be
 confined to the brain1 though the facts
 he adduces1 apply  with equal force    
against the common hypothesis of a      
separate soul1  acting by means of the  
body4 ,the doctrine of ,necessity has   
been opposed  by ,dr4 ,gregory of       
,edinburgh1 but with a weakness of      
argument1 and a  petulance of language1 
that places his work in the lowest rank 
among  the writers who have adopted the 
same side of the question4 ,it hardly   
deserved the notice of so good an       
advocate as ,dr4 ,crombie1 who has been 
the latest author on the subject4       

,indeed1 the question must now be       
considered as settled2 for those who    
can resist ,collins's philosophical     
enquiry1 the section of ,dr4 ,hartley   
on the ,mechanism of the mind1 and the  
review of the subject taken by  ,dr4    
,priestley and his opponents1 are not to
 be reasoned with4 ,interest  reipublic 
ut denique sit finis litium1 is a maxim 
of technical law4  ,it will apply       
equally to the republic of letters2 and 
the time seems  to have arrived1 when   
the separate existence of the human     
soul1 the  freedom of the will1 and the 
eternal duration of future punishment1  
like the doctrines of the ,trinity1 and 
,transubstantiation1 may be  regarded as
 no longer entitled to public           
discussion4    ,it is for this reason   
that ,i have paid no attention to the   
hypothesis  of the ,scotch ,doctors1    
,reid1 ,beattie and ,oswald1 and have   
given no  detailed account of ,dr4      
,priestley's examination of their       
writings4  ,indeed the perfect oblivion 

into which these writers have fallen1   
and  the utter insufficiency of such    
young gentlemen and lady's philosophy   
as they have adopted1 has secured them  
from further animadversion4  ,the       
facility with which ignorance can refer 
all difficulties relating  to the       
phenomena of mind1 to instinctive       
principles and common sense1  might     
answer the purpose of popular           
declamation for a while1 but it  could  
not last2 and these writers have fallen 
into merited obscurity1  notwithstanding
 the national prejudice in favour of    
each other1 so  prevalent among the     
,literati of ,north ,britain4    ,some  
passages in ,dr4 ,reid1 however ought to
 exempt him from the  contempt which is 
due to the common system advanced by him
 and his  coadjutors3 and his last book 
on the ,active powers of man1 is a work 
of undeniable merit on a very important 
subject1 which has not yet  been        
discussed with half the labour it so    
eminently deserves4 ,the  ,synthesis and

 ,analysis of our ideas1 the history and
 process of their  formation1 and the   
detail of facts attending and connected 
with their  rise and progress1 is       
comparatively a new subject4 ,des       
,cartes1 ,buffier  and ,condillac among 
the ,french1 ,locke1 ,berkeley and      
,hartley among the  ,english1 and ,hume1
 ,reid1 and ,adam ,smith among the      
,scotch1 are almost  the only authors   
worth notice who have treated it        
expressly1 and most  of them only       
partially4#gd ,something may be found to
 the purpose in  ,hobbes1 and in the    
first part of ,dr4 ,priestley's         
examination of ,reid1  ,oswald and      
,beattie1 and more in the first volume  
of ,zoonomia1  #ad and  #ae4ge ,the     
common sense of ,dr4 ,reid and ,co4     
seems to have been employed  as the     
clavis universalis on this subject by   
,buffier1 in his 8,first  ,truths40     
,hutcheson's theory of the ,moral ,sense
 hardly merits notice1  nor does that of
 ,dr4 ,price promise to add much to the 

stock of real  knowledge4 ,we have had  
enough 7sat superque7 of occult         
principles1  innate principles1 and     
instinctive principles1 which illustrate
  nothing1 but the ignorance of those   
who employ them4    #gd ,dr4 ,dugal     
,stewart in ,scotland1 and the ,revd4   
,mr4 ,belsham in  ,england1 have        
published ,elements of the ,philosophy  
of the mind1 the  first inclining to the
 ,scotch ,school of ,metaphysics1 the   
latter to the  ,system of ,hartley2 both
 of them of merit in their way1         
particularly 7as  ,i think that of ,mr4 
,belsham74    #ge ,i cannot help        
thinking ,dr4 ,darwin's obligations to  
,dr4 ,hartley  and ,dr4 ,brown ought to 
have dictated more acknowledgement than 
he has  condescended to make4    ,for my
 own part1 ,i am persuaded that no      
,theory of the mind can be              
satisfactory1 which is not founded on   
the history of the ,body4 ,i  know of no
 legitimate passport to ,metaphysics but
 ,physiology4 ,hence  ,i cannot estimate

 highly the writings of the ,scotch     
,metaphysicians4  ,there is one other   
feature also common to this ,school1    
which satisfies  me of their            
incompetence to this subject2 their     
slight notice1 and  ambiguous           
approbation of a man so superior as ,dr4
 ,hartley1 and their  utter ignorance or
 neglect of the theory he has advanced4 
,on every  subject relating to the      
phenomena of mind1 ,dr4 ,hartley's book 
must be  adopted as the ground work of  
the reasoning1 or his principles must be
  previously and distinctly confuted4#gf
    #gf ,dr4 ,reid in his last work has 
given a critique on ,dr4 ,hartley's     
theory without understanding it1 or even
 touching on the important  points4     
,that theory in substance is this3 an   
external object 7a peach  for instance7 
makes an impression at once1 on our     
organs of feeling1  of sight1 and of    
taste4 ,the impression thus made on the 
extreme end  of the appropriate nerve1  
is propagated by some species of motion 

along the course of nerve up to the     
brain1 and there1 and there only1       
perceived2 for if the nerve be cut1 or  
tied1 or palsied1 in any part of  its   
course1 the impression is not perceived4
 ,motions in the brain thus  produced1  
and perceived1 are sensations3 similar  
motions arising1 or  produced without   
the impression of an external object1   
are ideas4  ,these impressions being in 
the instance given1 simultaneous or     
nearly  so1 are associated1 so that the 
sensation produced by the sight of a    
peach1 will give rise to motions in the 
brain similar to those produced  at     
first by the taste and the touch of it3 
i4 e4 it will suggest the  ideas of     
taste and touch1 and excite the         
inclination to reach and to  eat the    
object of them4 ,hence sensations1      
ideas1 and muscular motions  are        
associated together and mutually suggest
 and give rise to each  other4 ,what    
species of motion it is1 with which the 
nervous system is  affected in this     

process1 or whether ,sir ,isaac         
,newton's ther1 or its  modern          
substitute the electric fluid1 has any  
thing to do with it or  not1 is no      
essential part of the theory1 and may be
 adopted or rejected  without prejudice 
to the main system4 ,some kind of motion
 there  manifestly is2 ,i think it      
demonstrable that it is vibratory2 but  
of  whatever kind it be1 its existence  
in the brain is unquestionable2  and the
 association and catenation of          
individual motions in the brain         
according to certain laws1 is equally   
so4 ,this is matter of fact1  and it was
 ,dr4 ,reid's business if he could1 to  
shew that neither the  motions1 the     
perceptions1 or the associations took   
place in that organ4  ,the general law  
is expressed by ,hartley ,prop4 #bj4    
,cor4 #g4    ,the ,metaphysics of the   
present day require also1 a more        
accurate  attention to the ,theory of   
,grammar than has hitherto been paid by 
writers on the subject4 ,perhaps ,i do  

not assert too much in saying  that we  
have had no grammarians worth notice1   
none who have thrown  light on the      
principles of ,grammar1 but ,locke and  
,horne ,tooke4 ,what  dreadful confusion
 has arisen from treating words denoting
 what are  called abstract ideas1 as if 
they were the exponents of real         
individual  existence8 ,whereas they are
 merely signs of artificial             
classification  without any individual  
archetype4 ,for instance in relation to 
the  present subject1 what volumes of   
laboured and learned trifling have  been
 written on the ,will1 the ,judgment1   
the ,understanding and  the other       
faculties as they are called1 of the    
soul6 ,yet nothing is  more certain than
 that the will1 the judgment1 the       
understanding1  c4 have no existence3   
they are words only1 the counters       
employed in  reasoning1 convenient signs
 of arrangement1 like the plus the minus
  and the unknown quantity in ,algebra1 
but no more4 ,the time however is       

approaching1 when ,metaphysics will take
 rank among the ,sciences that  lay     
claim1 if not to absolute demonstration1
 yet to an approximation to  certainty  
sufficient for all the purposes of      
ethical reasoning1 and all  the         
practical duties of human life4         
,,errata4      ,,page1  ,,line4    #bc  
#aj from the top1   ,for deliverery1    
read delivery4    #hd   #ad  --     --  
0  ,actes1          0   ,artes    0    0
   --     --       0  pecsinit1       0 
nec sinit4    #ij      bottom line1     
0  ,no4 #f1          0   ,no4 #d4   #afj
   #b   --     --       0  ,bur1        
0   ,but4   #agb   #c   --     --       
0  ,biancount1      0   ,liancourt4     
#ahh   #a   --     --       0           
determing1      0   determining4    0   
#h   --     --       0  he              
0   her4   #bad   #a   --     --        
,for wall1          read well4   #bah   
#c  from the bottom  0  immorality1     
0   immortality4   #bbi   #b   --     --
       0  #afgi1           0   #agfg4   

#bfi   #c   --     --       0  fort1    
0   forte4   #cjd   #h  from the bottom 
after1 the ,author1  0   ,dr4 ,coward4  
0    #a  from the top1    0             
predomininates1 0   predominates4   #ccc
   #g  from the top of the note for     
disc1  0   dire4   #ceg   #ab from the  
top    ,for is1             0   it4     
,transcriber ,notes    ,obvious         
punctuation errors and ommissions have  
been corrected4    ,the errata have been
 corrected1 except for the one listed as
 on page  #ceg1 which does not exist4   
,page #d 8,my mother dying in in0       
changed to 8,my mother dying in0        
,page #bc 8my deliverery0 changed to 8my
 delivery0    ,page #be 8that           
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