though one learned and pious prefident of Cambridge college, was brought to embrace our fentiments, and to bear his teftimony in the pulpit there," against the adminiftration of baptifm "to any infant whatfoever;" for which he fuffered confiderable abuse with much of a chriftian temper § While his fucceffor, another "very "learned and godly man," (who therefore must have been well acquainted with the original) held that "baptifm ought ONLY to be by dip"ping or plunging the whole body under wa"ter: yet thefe and other honorable examples in our favor have been paffed over, and every scandalous thing that could be pick'd up, has been spread, to prejudice people's minds against our profeffion in general. And let it be remembred, that when pedobaptift minifters wanted to be favored in Providence, they declared, that they could not think of the peace and love which focieties of different modes of worship have generally entertained one another with in that government without admiration; and they experienced fo much of this from the baptists in Providence, that when fome others made a difficulty about admitting Mr. Jofiah Cotton (the first minister of the pedobaptifts there) as an inhabitant in the town, Col. Nicholas Powers (a leading member of the baptist church) became his bondfman to the town: therefore we hope that our honorable rulers and others, will be cautious about giving credit to stories of a con

trary

§ Mr. Henry Dunfter. Vide Mitchel's life. p. 67, 70.

¶ Mr. Charles Chauncy. See an account of Plymouth church, added to Mr. Robbins's Ordination-Sermon, 1760.

66

trary nature, when they are told to procure or to justify the use of force in fupporting ministers; efpecially fince minifters refufe to fhare in the reproach of fuch proceedings. For a minifter who has exerted himself very much of late, to fupport the cause of thofe called standing churches, yet favs, "It is wholly out of rule, and quite injurious, to charge the churches or their minifters "with fending men to goal for rates,-for thefe "proceedings are evidently the acts of the civil ftate, done for it's own utility. The doings "of the civil authority, and of that ALONE." || Where are the rulers that will stand alone in that practice, without either minifters or truth to support them!

CONCLUSION.

And now our dear countrymen, we beseech you seriously to confider of these things. The great importance of a general union through this country, in order to the prefervation of our liberties, has often been pleaded for with propriety; but how can fuch a union be expected fo long as that dearest of all rights, equal liberty of confcience is not allowed? Yea, how can any reasonably expect that He who has the hearts of kings in his hand, will turn the heart of our earthly fovereign to hear the pleas for liberty, of those who will not hear the cries of their fellowfubjects, under their oppreffions? Has it not

been

Mr. Jofeph Fish's late piece called, The Examiner examined. p. 56, 59A reply thereto, in which that conftitution is more diftinctly opened, may be had at Mr. Free man's in Union-street, Boston.

been plainly proved, that fo far as any man gratifies his own inclinations, without regard to the univerfal law of equity, fo far he is in bondage? fo that it is impoffible for any one to tyranize over others, without thereby becoming a miferable flave himself a flave to raging lufts, and a flave to guilty fears of what will be the confequence. We are told that the father of Cyrus, tho' a heathen, "Had often taught him to con"fider, that the prudence of men is very short, "and their views very limited; that they can"not penetrate into futurity; and that many "times what they think must needs turn to their "advantage proves their ruin; whereas the Gods "being eternal, know all things, future as well

as paft, and infpire those that love them to "undertake what is moft expedient for them; "which is a favor and protection they owe to no "man, and grant only to thofe that invoke and

confult them." And we are told by the fame author, † of another wife heathen, who faid, " "Tis obfervable, that those that fear the Deity "moft, are leaft afraid of man." And fhall not christians awake to a moft hearty reverence of HIM who has faid, (and will ever make good his word) With what measure ye meet, it shall be meajured to you again.

Suffer us a little to expoftulate with our fathers and brethren, who inhabit the land to which our ancestors fled for religious liberty. You have lately been accufed with being diforderly and rebellious, by men in power, who profefs a great

+ Rollin in his ancient history

great regard for order and the public good; and why don't you believe them, and reft eafy under their adminiftrations? You tell us you cannot, because you are taxed where you are not reprefented; and is it not really fo with us? You do not deny the right of the British parliament to impofe taxes within her own realm; only complain that the extends her taxing power beyond her proper limits; and have we not as good right to fay you do the fame thing? and fo that wherein you judge others you condemn your felves? Can three thoufand miles poffibly fix fuch limits to taxing power, as the difference between civil and facred matters has already done? One is only a distance of space,the other is fo great a difference in the nature of things, as there is between facrifices to God, and the ordinances of men. This we truft has been fully proved.

If we afk why have you not been eafy and thankful fince the parliament has taken off fo many of the taxes that they had laid upon us? you answer that they ftill claim a power to tax us, when, and as much as they pleafe; and is not that the very difficulty before us? In the year 1747, our legiflature paffed an act to free the baptifts in general from minifterial taxes for ten years: yet because they increafed confiderably, when that time was about half expired, they broke in upon the liberty they had granted, and made a new act, wherein no baptist church nor minister was allowed to have any fach exemption, till they had first obtained certificates from three other churches. By which the late Mr. John Procter observed (in a remonstrance that he

drew,

ད

drew, and which was prefented to our court) that they had as far as in them lay, " disfran"chifed, unchurched and ufurped an illegal ἐσ power over all the religious focieties of the "people in faid act called anabaptifts through"out this province :-For where is it poffible. "for the poor anabaptifts to find the first three "authenticated minifters and churches to au"thenticate the first three !" So we have now related a cafe, in which a number of our brethren were put to new coft for copies to notify others, with hope of relief to themselves, and yet in the fame feffion of court, they had a worse burden laid upon them than before, and their repeated cries, and then the petition of our united churches, were all rejected.

A very great greivance which our country.. has juftly complained of is, that by fome late proceedings a man's houfe or locks cannot fecure either his perfon or his property, from oppreffive.. officers. Pray then confider what our brethren.. have fuffered at Ashfield.

Many think it hard to be frowned upon only for.. pleading for their rights, and laying open particular acts of encroachment thereon; but what.. frowns have we met with for no other crime? and as the prefent conteft between Great-Britain. and America, is not fo much about the greatnefs of the taxes already laid, as about a fubmiffion to their taxing power; fo (though what we have already fuffered is far from being a trifle, yet) our greatest difficulty at prefent concerns the submit

ting