examining my witneffes. I defire him therefore to declare, whether he thinks the fupreme God deficient in knowledge; and whether Chrift has not exprefly declared the fecond and third perfon in the Trinity to be deficient in knowledge, by pofitively affirming, that the first perfon only, which is the Father, knows the day of judg ment ?

Dr. Trapp. That there is fuch an expreffion in holy writ, the church does not deny; and is alfo fo fair and candid as to admit, that, according to the common acceptation of words, and the most regular procefs of human reafoning, the Son and Holy Ghoft are absolutely excluded, by that knowledge being confined to the Father only But then fhe fays, that the perfon being infeparable from the effence, and the Father knowing by his effence, and not by his perfon, the Son being acknowledged by the church to be of the fame effence, he must, in refpect to his effence, neceffarily have the fame knowledge, though he had not in any other refpect; for the attributes being the fame, the powers will be the fame alfo. Though the church does hold fome tenets indeed, which are of a pretty hard digeftion; yet gentlemen will find themselves prodigiously mistaken, if they think he wants arguments for her defence.

Mr. Whifton. If the Doctor calls this arguing, he may go on indeed till domes-day; and, as he

has

has given your Lordship a fufficient fpecimen of his ridiculous trifling and folemn nonfenfe, that I may not provoke him to trouble your Lordfhip with any more of it, I will beg leave to call in my witnesses, that you may hear what they have to fay in my defence.

Dr. Trapp. Solemn nonfence, you dog! My Lord, fuch ufage is not to be bore. Shall men of my fublime character be used thus ? Shall the reprefentatives of God, and the fellowlabourers of Chrift, who have a power fuperior to angels and archangels, be exposed to the fcoffs and infults of libertines and deifts? If I cannot have justice from the court, I will have it from the people. Fire; murder; the church is in danger; down with the heretics; tear them to pieces; beat their brains out; knock

Judge. I would have you confider, Sir, that you are not at Oxford, or in convocation, but before an impartial court of juftice, which is the guardian of our liberties; which will maintain its authority, and commands decency and refpect. And let me tell you, Sir, the people are not to be moved by the bellowing of a prieft; for they know you too well, to be longer.

your tools any

Dr. Trapp. I little expected, that a man of my dignity and order fhould have been browbeaten, for ufing a peftiferous heretic as he deferves. Herefies, my Lord, are of too virulent,

obftinate,

obftinate, and exuberant a nature, to be exterminated by difputes. Such plagues are to be cured by nothing but fire and fword; for, believe me, my Lord, the unity and peace of a church depends upon its power: nor will it ever be fafe and happy, till we can crush the malignant, cruciate the obftinate, and cut off the rebellious from the face of the earth; and

Judge. Sir, you must not disturb the court with your feditious harangues: Let the prisoner proceed to call his witneffes.

Mr. Solicitor-General Codex. As there is a fresh evidence juft arrived, we must beg your Lordship's indulgence a little longer; for Mr. Shynkin ap Rees, a Welch divine, being this moment come into court, he hopes he shall not be denied the liberty of offering his teftimony and reasons against the prisoner, and the heretical dogma which is now to be tried before you.

Judge. Mr. Shynkin ap Rees, the court is very willing to hear what you have to offer.

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees. My Lort, and you shenthemens of the jury; as there was a great clamours and reports in my country, that there were great affaults making upon our holy religion in London, hur dit come in great hafte up to town, to fight for hur church.

Judge. Sir, you have fhewn a very laudable zeal; but I muft obferve to you, that the proper and natural defence of a church, that is at

tacked

tacked by arguments, is reafon, and not arms; and the only thing that is incumbent upon you here, is to inform the court of what you know in relation to Mr. William Whifton's denying or defaming the bleffed Trinity.

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees. My goot Lort, that hur fhall do in fery few words. He is a fery great rogue, and deserves to be hanged, for having lain fiolent hands upon our dear mother the church; and he is so fery wicked, as to lay his axe at the root of a great mystery: and if he be allowed to go on, the choiceft piece of our holy religion will be cut off; and, indeed, my good Lort, I muft tell you, that he has ftruck fuch a terror into the clergy of our parts, that he has frightened the goot bishop and canons of St. Dafit's out of their wits.

Judge. Sir, did you ever hear Mr. Whiston say any thing in derogation or contempt of the everbleffed Trinity?

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees. What! I hear him fay any thing, my Lort? I fcorn to be feen with fuch a fcrups there is not a poor curate in all Wales would keep fuch a fillain company.

Mr. Whifton. My Lord, fince I perceive that. this British divine knows nothing of me, but what he has heard in a barber's fhop or an alehoufe, I fhould be glad to hear what he can fay in behalf of the favourite mystery he is fo ready

to

to fight for, and to know how he came acquaint, ed with it.

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees. My Lort, that is a fery eafy thing; that is a fery eafy thing, my goot Lort: hur fucked it in with hur mother's milk; hur faith ftrengthened as hur grew up, and was daily increased with good ale and metheglin, and the wife inftructions of Mr. Davit Shones, our worthy parfon of Kerig y Druydion.

Mr. Whiston. Pray, Sir, give me leave to ask you what notion you have of your Trinity?

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees, Why my notion is, that there is one Father, and one Son, and one Holy Ghoft, who is both their fons; and that they will make one very good God between them all.

Mr. Whifien. But, with fubmiffion, Sir, according to your account, there are two Fathers and two Sons; for the Son is Father to the Holy Ghoft.

Mr. Shynkin ap Rees. Sir, you are an impudent fellow, to say that I do make two Fathers and two Sons: Do I make any more than the church makes? Sir, I will live and die by the church; and if the church fays there is but one, he is a fillain that fays there are two.

Mr. Whifton. Sir, fince I find you begin to grow hot, I fhall urge you no more upon this point, but go on to the next. You are pleased

to