Part 111. Reverend Mr. Richard Baxter. 73 He wrote againft me a Pamphlet fo full of Untruths and Spleen, and fo littleperti- nent to the Caufe, as , that I never met witha Man that called for an Anfwerto it But yet the ill Principles of it made me think, that it needed in . Anfwer, which I wrote. But I found that Party grown fo tender, expecting little but to be applau- ded for their Godlinefs, and tobe flattered, while they expeted that others fhould be molt fharply dealt with, and indeed to be foutterly impatient ofthat Language ill a Confutation which had any fuitablenefs to the defect oftheir Writings, that f purpofed to give over all Controverfial Writingswith them, or any other, without great necefhty : And the rather, becaufe myownStile isapt to be guiltyof toomuch freedom and fharpnefs inDifputings. § 157. The next to Mr. Bagfham (now againin Prifon for not taking the Oath of Allegiance it felf, ) who behind my_Back didmolt revile my Bock, was Dr. Omen ; whether out of Defign or Judgement, I capnot tell; but ordinarilyhe fpake very bitterly ofit ; but never wrote to me aWordagainst it : Healfo divulged his diffent from thePropofals for Concord, which I offered him, though he woiíld By no more against them to my felf, thanwhat Ihave before expreffed. $ r 5s. At this time alfo one Hinkleyof Norfield, near WorceferJNre, defining to be taken noticeof, wrote a virulent Book against the Nonconformists, andparticular- ly fome Falfhoeds against me, and a vehement Invitation tome topublish the Reafons of my Nonconformity ; when he could not be fo utterly ignorantas notto know, that I could never get filch an Apology Licenfed, and that the Law forbad me to Print it unlicenfed, and that he himfelf taketh it for a Sin to break that Law. But tech im- pudent Perfons were Rill clamouring againft us. § 159. By this timemy own old Flock at Xiderminfter began (fome of them) to Censure me: For when theBifhop, and Deans, and manyof their Curates, had preached long to make the People think me a Deceiver :, as if thishad been theonly way to their Salvation, the People were hereby fo much alienatedfrom them, that they took them for Men unreafonable, and little better thanmad ; infomuch as that they grew more alienated from Prelacy than ever. Alfo, while they continued to repeat Sermons in their Houses together, many of them were laid long in Jayle, (amongThieves and common Malefafors; which increafed their Exasperations yet more. They continued their Meetings whilst their Goods wereSeifedon, andthey wereFinedandPunilhed again and again. ThefeSufferings fo increafed their Aver- fation, that my Book againft Church-Divifions coming out at fach a time, anda Pre- facewhich I put before a Book of Dr. Bryan's, in which I do but excufe his Speaking againftSeparation, they were many of them offended atit as unfeafonable ; and judg- ing by feeling IntereJf and P«ion, were angry with mefor ftrengthening theHands of Perfecutors, as they call it ; whereas if I had called the Bishopsall that'snought, Iam confident they would not have blamedme. And theythat fell out withthe Bi- fhops for calling me out, and fpeaking ill of me, were (fome ofthem) readyto fpeak ill of me, if not to caft me off, becaufe I did but perfuade them of the Lawfulnefs ofCommunicating in their Parish-Church, with a Conformable Miniffer in the Li- turgy., § i6o. At this time, as is laid, the old reading Vicar dying it was call on use to chufe the next : But the Religious People (who were the main Body of the Town; and Parilh) would not fo much as chufe a Man, when they might have had their choice ; no, nor fo much as write or fend one word to oneabout it, left they fhould teem to confent to his Conformity, or to be obliged to him in his Office. Whereupon I alto refufed to meddle in the Choice and therather becaufe fome of the malignant slanderous Prelatifts who write ofme, as Pure', L'' trange, and many othershave done, would in likelyhood have laid, that I con= tra$ed for fomeCommodity to my felf ; and becaufe Mr. Foley thePatron was a, truly honél Religious Man, who, I knew would' make the belt choice he could. § 16 i. Whenhe hadchosen them a Minder (whonithey theinfelves conineñd- ed for an honeR Man and a good. Preacher, and rather wilhed him than another) I wrote a Letter to them to advife them to join with the Bid Minder in Pray- ers and Sacrament becaufe I had before advifed them not to own the Mini- ttryof Mr. Dances for his utter incapacity and iifuificieiscy, bet if ever they had z, K k k k tnlvìable
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