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Sirs, good People,

HE words of my text will be found in a book, which but few read, and fewer reverence, I mean the BIBLE; a wonderful and horrible thing is cominitted in the land, the prophets prophely falfely, and the priests bear rule by their means, and the people love to have it fo: But what will ye do in the end thereof ?*. Now, it is obfervable, that numbers of prophets have been rulers, law-givers and princes. Such as the patriarchs Mofes, Joshua, Samuel, David, and Solomon new rulers and law-givers, whether princes or minifters, prophefy falfely whenever they purfue meafures deftructive to the people, and take every method in their power to bribe, enchant, and infatuate. When they perfuade them to think, that peace is in every poffible circumftance better than war; even though it gives the enemy all the advantage he could wish to obtain, and though he is, a fubdued and conquered enemy. When they perfuade the people, that all the channels of trade and commerce may be fafely fhut up, and when to effect this they burden the fubject in diftant territories with oppreffive taxes on commerce, though the confequence of thefe impofitions must be hunger, nakednefs and want to thousands of artificers and manufacturers at home who ufed to have full employ.

They prophely falfely when they would perfuade the people, that however they are oppreffed, they ought to be flent, and truft to providence to work miracles for them; fince Elijah was fed by ravens.And if upon an apprehenfion, that the laws are violated and the liberty of the fubject facrificed to the refentment of a minifter of ftate, the people affemble in great numbers, though unarmed, to gratify their defire of feeing the oppreffed. They are lying prophets when they tell us it was a wife meafure to order the defenceless multitude to be fired upon; fince this was a legal way of bringing the too inquifitive to justice; and would effectually put an end to their further curiofity. Or that when a reprefentative of a county is to be chofen, the best fcheme of excluding fuch candidate difapproved by the my, is to hire ruffians to murder as many as they think fit of the friends of the conftitution who are in oppofition to a bad a, and

Jer, v. 30, 31.

when the most impartial court of judica ture, had determined the guilt of thofe ruffians to be capital, they prophefy falfe-, ly in faying it was wifdom or found policy to reverie the judicial fentence, and inftead of a brand of infomy, to do honours to the affaflins,-and furnish an unexampled inftance of reverfing the currency of justice. Again, prophets prophefy falfely, when they perfuade the people, that the best fubjects of government are over turning the conftitution, when none but themfelves have any hand at all in that fubverfion-and when they delude great numbers to imagine, that flattering ing addreffes infefting the throne, are more feafonable than a redress of grievances.

-Not

Another delution is, when the people are, by the forceries of minifterial influ ence, perfuaded that their most invaluable privileges are fecure, merely because they have an houfe of reprefentatives :withstanding it is, as it was under Charles V. viz. The name of Cortes remains,' and its formalities are continued; though its authority and jurifdiction is reduced to nothing; fince it is become a junto of the fervants of the crown, rather than an af fembly of the reprefentatives of the people."-To what purpofe a national reprefentative when the PR can give us a lift of two hundred and twenty one favourite toafts at Cn Houfe, at Bloomsbury fquare, and Edinburgh?-the delufion is flagrant, if the people place any dependance on fuch an houte of reprefen tatives, they might as well hope for a decreafe made of the national debt by an increafe of placemen and penfioners.

Secondly, the priests bear rule by their means. All ecclefiaftical ufurpations have been always fupported by a proftitution of civil power: an affected feigned alliance between church and ftate, has constantly been the fource of fpiritual tyranny, exercifed by men, who lay claim to the most facred characters. Thefe fons of Levi, or rather of Eli, have more concern about the roaft of fat livings, and lordly endow ments, than about the ark of God, or any thing that can be deemed religion. A new bishoprick will create them a new empire, yet, the people love to have it fo What people do? Why, thofe who are fo depraved, as to love flavery, and court

their

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their own ruin. A people who idly dream of the jure divino of defpotic princes, and who alfo moft devoutly reverence the prieft, because he affumes the air and power of admitting or excluding whom he pleafes from the church; of confirm ing thofe whom he initiates, and of abfolving the moft vicious and licentious. Here fies the infatuation; and thus it is that a people are confenting to falfehood in any national adminiftration. But here arifes an alarming queftion, what will they do in the end thereof?- This is truly an extremely difficult queftion. Nor

am I able to imagine who it is that can give the folution.Affured however we inay be, that a fyftem of fubverfion, in its finifhing, can have in it nothing defirable. When our religion, laws, liberties, and all that can render human life either comfortable or tolérable, is gone---the scene muft clofe with thick, with palpable darknefs, and all the horrors of contufion! ---It cannot be otherwife, because it is a thing both wonderful and horrible!-Confi der what has been faid, and have more underftanding. THE PREACHER.

The college af without the caft HE college of St. Mary Magdagate of the city, on the borders of the river Cherwell. A Doric portal, decorated with a statue of the founder, introduces us to the weft front of the college, which is a ftriking fpecimen of the Gothic manner. The gate under the weft window of the chapel demands a minute examination. It is adorned with five fmall, but elegant, figures; that on the right represents the founder, the next is William of Wykeham, in whole college at Winchester the founder was fchoolmafter; the third is St. Mary Magdalene, to whom the college is dedicated; the fourth is Henry III. who founded the hofpital, fince converted into this college; and the laft St. John the Baptift, by whofe name the faid hofpital was called.

On the left are the lodgings of the prefident. Nearly contiguous to thefe is a fately gate-way, the original entrance into the college, but fince difufed, formed in a tower, whofe fides are adorned with ftatues of four of the perfons abovementioned. It has been obferved that the fender arches, feparate and diftinct from the other curve mouldings, in this and the chapel gate-way, were formerly ef teemed curious mafonry; but it fhould be remembered, that curious mafonry was more common three centuries ago than at prefent. It muit, however, be allowed that they relieve the work, and have an elegant effect.

From this area we pafs into a cloister which furrounds a venerable quadrangle. On the fouth are the chapel and hall. We enter the chapel on the right-hand at entering the cloiter. The anti-chapel is fpacious, fupported with two staff

moulded pillars, extremely light. In the weft window are fome fine remains of glafs painted in claro obfcuro. The subject Is the Refurrection. The defign is after one invented and executed by Schwartz, for the wife of William duke of Bavaria, more than 200 years fince, which was afterwards engraved by Sadeler. The choir is folemn, and handsomely decorated. The windows, each of which contains fix figures, amoft as large as life, of primitive fathers, faints, martyrs, and apoftles, are finely painted in the tafte, and about the time, of that juft defcribed. Thefe windows formerly belonged to the anti-chapel, the two near the altar excepted, which were lately done, being all removed hither, A. D. 1741. In the confufion of the civil wars, the original choir windows were taken down and concealed. They did not, however, efcape the rage of fanaticifm and ignorance: they were unluckily difcovered by a party of Cromwell's troopers, who fpreading them along the cloifters, jumped through them in their jack-boots, with the utmoft fatisfaction, and entirely deftroyed them. The altar-piece was performed by Ifaac Fuller, about ninety years ago. It reprefents the Refurrection, and, I fufpect, never received the laft finishing. It evidently wants grace and compofition, and has too much of the Flemish colouring and expreffion. Many of the figures are, however, finely drawn. This painting is elegantly celebrated by Mr. Addifon, formerly a ftudent of this houfe, in a Latin poem, printed in the Mufe Anglicane. Under this piece is another admirable picture of our Lord bearing the crofs, fuppofed to be the work of Guido. It was taken at Vigo; and

being

Engravd for the Oxford Magazine

View of Magdalen College Oxford from the Eastside of the Makerwalk.