H f ory ofthe Puritans, examin'd. 3 in his frft I/olume of the Hiftory of the Puritans ; been at leifure to have favoui'd us with his Animad- verfions upon the Second, I doubt not, but his La-. bours would have been attended with equal Credit to himfelf, and Advantage to his Readers : and Mr. Neal from thence would have been directed to a proper Method of new modellinghis Hiftory. But fince that is a Pleafure we are not to expe&, T will give Mr. Neal the belt afiftance I am able, towards the making his Hiftory a more Impartial one at leaft, than at prefent it appears to be. The Second Volume now under confederation, takes in the Reign of King lames I. and a good Part of King Charles's. And how unjuftly he has treated the Memory of thofe two Monarchs, the Reader, I believe, from his own Fa&s fairlyRated, and compared with better Authorities, will be rea- dily convinced. King lames feems to be reprefented under two difadvantageous, but very diffèrent Characters, ,of a Puritan, and a Paps; but how he can reconcile thefe two Charaders, without owning too near a Refemblance of their Principles, I am not able to guefs. The Royal Martyr did not fuffer enough from his Rebel Subjeas, the Ax which feparated his Head from his Body, was not keen enough, but his Memory muff fuffer a fecond Martyrdom, or Per- fecution at leaft, from the much keener Pen of our Learned H ftorian. He is ftigmatized as a Favour- er of Popery, and Arbitrary Principles, as a Prince not true to his Word and Promife ; which Accufi- tions from the Pen of Milton, 7. Goodwin, Lud low, the Author of the lare Hittory of England during the Reigns of the Royal Houle of Stuart, or any profeffed Republican, might have appear'd with a tolerable good Grace ; but how far they B z become
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