"Falfe opinions rooted in the mind,
"Hoodwink the foul and keep our reafon blind.
"In controverted points can reason sway,

"When paffion or conceit hurries us away

Hitherto I had not frequented the methodist meetings by the confent or knowledge of my mafter and miftrefs; nor had my zeal been fo great as to make me openly violate their commands. But as my zeal increased much faster than my knowledge, I soon difregarded their orders, and without hesitation ran away to hear a methodistical fermon as often as I could find opportunity. One Sunday morning at eight o'clock my mistress feeing her fons fet off, and knowing that they were gone to a methodist meeting, determined to prevent me from doing the fame by locking the door, which the accordingly did; on which in a superstitious mood, I opened the Bible for direction what to do (ignorant methodists often practise the fame superstitious method) and the first words I read were thefe, He has given his angels charge concerning thee, left at any time thou shouldest dafh

F.2

dafh thy foot against a stone." This was enough for me; fo without a moment's hesitation, I ran up two pair of stairs to my own room, and out of the window I leaped, to the great terror of my poor miftrefs. 1 got up immediately, and ran about two or three hundred yards, towards the meeting-house; but alas! I could run no farther; my feet and ancles were most intolerably bruised, fo that I was obliged to be carried back and put to bed; and it was more than a month before I recovered the ufe of my limbs. I was ignorant enough to think that the Lord had not used me very well, and refolved not to put fo much trust in him for the future.

This my rafh adventure made a great noise in the town, and was talked of many miles round. Some few admired my amazing ftrength of faith, but the major part pitied me, as a poor ignorant, deluded and infatuated boy; which did not at all please,

Dear Friend,

Yours, &c.

LETTER IX.

"One makes the rugged paths fo fmooth and even,
"None but an ill-bred man can mifs of heaven.
"Another quits his ftockings, breeches, shirt,
Because he fancies virtue dwells in dirt :

"While all concur to take away the stress,
"From weightier points, and lay it on the less."

STILLINGFLEET on Converfation.

"Gad I've a thriving traffic in my eye,

"Near the mad manfions of Moorfields I'll bawl;
"Friends, fathers, mothers, fifters, fons and all,
"Shut up your shops, and liften to my call.

FOOTEL

DEAR FRIEND,

IN the fourth

year of my ap

prenticeship, my master died; now although he was a good husband, a good father, and a good mafter, &c. yet as he had not the methodistical faith, and could not pronounce the Shibboleth of that fect, I piously feared that he was gone to hell.

My mistress thought that his death was haftened by his uneafy reflections on the

bad behaviour of his fons, after they commenced methodists, as before they were converted each was dutiful and attended to his trade, but after they became faints they attended so much to their spiritual concerns that they acted as though they supposed they were to be fed and cloathed by miracles, like Mr. Huntingdon, who informs us in his book called "The Bank of Faith," that the Lord fent him a pair of breeches, that a dog brought him mutton to eat, fish died at night in a pond on purpofe to be eaten by him in the morning; money, and in short every thing he could defire he obtained by prayer, Thus as Foote says,

"With labour, toil, all fecond means dispense,
"And live a rent-charge upon providence,

To give you a better idea of methodistical ignorance and neglect of ordinary means of living, &c. I will relate one inftance more. Mary Hubbard (an old woman of Mr. Wefley's fociety) would often wash her linen, hang it out to dry, go away to work in the fields, or to

and

Taunton

Taunton market, four miles from her houfe; and when blamed, fhe would anfwer "that the Lord watched over her, and all that fhe had, and that he would prevent any person from ftealing her two old fmocks, or if he permitted them to be ftolen, he would fend her two new in their ftead." And I feriously affure you, fir, that there are many thousand Mary Hubbards amongst the methodists.

As I had been bound to my mistress as well as my mafter, I was of course an apprentice ftill. But after my mafter's death I obtained more liberty of conscience (as I called it) so that I not only went to hear the methodist fermons, but was alfo admitted into their fociety; and I believe they never had a more devout enthufiaftical member; for feveral years I regularly attended every fermon and all their private meetings.

As you are probably unacquainted with the nature of these private meetings, a fhort account of them may perhaps afford you fome amusement.