parts. Then faid Hopeful, Afk him; methinks he fhould not be ashamed of his name. So Chriftian came up with him again, and said, Sir, you talk as if you knew fomething more than all the world doth; and, if I take not my mark amifs, I deem I have half a guess of you. Is not your name Mr. By-ends of Fair-speech?

By-ends. This is not my real name; it is indeed a nick-name given me by fome who cannot abide me, and I must be content to bear it as a reproach, as other good men have borne theirs before me.

Chr. But did you never give occafion to men to call you by this name?

By-ends. Never, never: the worst that ever I did to give them an occafion to give me this name was, that I had always the luck in my judgment to jump in with the present way of the times, whatever it was, and my chance was to get thereby: but, if things are thus caft upon me, let me count them a bleffing; but let not the malicious load me therefore with reproach.

Chr. I thought indeed that you was the man of whom I had heard; and, to tell you plainly what I think, I fear this name belongs to you more properly than you are willing we should think it doth. By-ends. Well, if you will thus imagine, I cannot help it: you will find me a fair company-keeper, if you will still admit me your affociate.

Chr. If you will go with us, you must go against wind and tide; which, I perceive, is against your opinion:

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opinion: you must also own religion in rags as well as in filver flippers; and stand by him too, when bound in irons, as well as when he walketh the ftreets with applause.

By-ends. You must not impose, nor lord it over my faith; leave me to my liberty, and let me go with you.

Chr. Not a step farther, unless you will do, in what I propound, the fame as we.

By-ends. I fhall never defert my old principles, fince they are harmless and profitable. If I may not go with you, I must do, as I did before you

overtook me, even go by myself, until fome overtake me who will be glad of my company.

Then I saw, in my dream, that Christian and Hopeful forfook him, and kept their distance before him; but one of them, looking back, faw three men following Mr. By-ends, and behold, as they came up with him, he made them a very low congè; and they alfo gave him a compliment. The men's names were, Mr. Hold-the-World, Mr. Money-love, and Mr. Save-all; men with whom Mr. By-ends had formerly been acquainted; for, in their minority, they were school-fellows, and taught by one Mr. Gripeman, a school-master in Love-gain, a market-town, in the county of Coveting, in the north. This fchool-mafter taught them the art of getting, either by violence, cozenage, flattery, lying, or by putting on a guife of religion; and these four gentlemen had attained to a great proficiency in

the

the art of their mafter, fo that they were qualified each of them to keep fuch a school themselves.

Well, when they had, as I faid, thus faluted each other, Mr. Money-love faid to Mr. By-ends, Who are they upon the road before us? For Chriftian and Hopeful were yet within view.

By-ends. They are a couple of far country-men, who after their mode are going on pilgrimage.

Money-love. Alas! why did not they stay that we might have had their good company; for they, and we, and you, Sir, I hope, are going on pilgrimage.

By ends. We are fo indeed; but the men before us are fo rigid, and love fo much their own notions, and do alfo fo lightly esteem the opinion of others, that let a man be never fo godly, yet if he

This charge is often brought against those who love our Lord Jefus Chrift in fincerity. Because they infift upon heartfelt experience, and endeavour to fhew the danger which those are in, who have only a form of godliness, but are ftrangers to the power, therefore they are said to judge uncharitably: because they contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the faints, and endeavour to oppofe and expofe error, therefore they are called obstinate, and are said to be too strict in their principles. Pretended friends come, one after another, with fuch feemingly kind expoftulations as thefe: Why, dear Sir, will you give fuch offence to the friends of the gofpel? How much would it be for your comfort and intereft in the world, if you would be but a little more complying, and give way in fome particular points and phrafes.-Oh! what a fyren fong! May the Lord help every faithful fervant to reply, "Get thee behind me, Satan."

does

does not jump in with them, in all things, they thruft him quite out of their company.

Mr. Save-all. That's bad; but we read of fome who are righteous over-much, and fuch men's rigidness prevails with them to judge and condemn all but themselves: but I pray, what, and how many, were the things wherein you differed?

By-ends. Why they, after their head-strong manner, conclude, that it is their duty to rush on their journey in all weathers, and I am for waiting for wind and tide. They are for hazarding all for God at a clap, and I am for taking all advantages to fecure my life and estate. They are for holding their notions, though all other men be against them; but I am for religion fo far as the times and my fafety will bear it: they are for religion when in rags and contempt, but I am for him when he walks in his golden flippers, in the funfhine, and with applause.

Mr. Hold-the-world. Ay, and hold you there ftill, good Mr. By-ends: for my part, I can count him but a fool, who, having the liberty to keep what he has, fhall be fo unwife as to lose it. Let us be wife as ferpents it is best to make hay when the fun fhines; you see how the bee lieth ftill all winter, and beftirs herself only when fhe can have profit with pleasure. God fends fometimes rain, and fometimes fun-fhine: if they be fuch fools as to go through the first, yet let us be content to take fair weather along with us. For my part, I like that religion beft, which will stand with the fecurity of God's

good

good bleffings unto us: for who can imagine, who is ruled by his reason, but that God, who has beftowed upon us the good things of this life, would have us keep them for his fake. Abraham and Solomon grew rich in religion. And Job fays, that a good man fhall lay up gold as duft. Therefore, he must not be fuch as the men before us, if they be fuch as you have defcribed them.

Mr. Save-all. I think that we are all agreed in this matter, and therefore there needs no more words about it.

Mr. Money-love. No, there needs no more words about this matter indeed; for he who believes neither scripture nor reason (and you fee we have both on our fide), neither knows his own liberty, nor feeks his own fafety.

Mr. By-ends. My brethren, we are, as you fee, going all on pilgrimage; and, for our better diverfion from things that are bad, give me leave to propound unto you this question.

Suppose a man, a minifter or a tradefman, &c. should have an advantage lie before him, to get the good bleffings of this life, yet fo as that he can by no means come by them, except, in appearance at leaft, he becomes extraordinary zealous in fome points of religion that he meddled not with before: may he not use this means to attain his end, and yet be a right honest man?

Mr. Money-love. I fee the bottom of your queftion; and, with these gentlemen's good leave, I will

endeavour