ing their houfes. However, I infinitely prefer what I feel from the spoiling of my goods to the difpofition of those who have mifled you.

You have deftroyed the most truly valuable and useful apparatus of philo. fophical inftruments that perhaps any individual, in this or any other country, was ever poffeffed of, in my ufe of which I annually spent large fums, with no pecuniary view whatever, but only in the advancement of fcience, for the benefit of my country, and of mankind. You have destroyed a library correfponding to that apparatus, which no money can re-purchase, except in a courfe of time. But what I feel far more, you have destroyed manuscripts, which have been the refult of the laborious ftudy of many years, and which I fhall never be able to re-compofe; and this has been done to one who never did, or imagined, you any harm.

I know nothing more of the handbill, which is faid to have enraged you fo much, than any of yourselves; and I difapprove of it as much; though it has been made the oftenfible handle of doing infinitely more mischief than any thing of that nature could poffibly have done. In the celebration of the French Revolution, at which I did not attend, the company affembled on the occafion only expreffed their joy in the emancipation of a neighbouring nation from tyranny, without intimating a defire of any thing more than fuch an improvement of our own Conftitution as all fober citizens, of every perfuafion, have long wished for. And though, in anfwer to the grofs and unprovoked calumnies of Mr. Madan and others, I publicly vindicated my principles as a Diffenter, it was only with plain and fober argument, and with perfect good humour. We are better inftructed in the mild and forbearing fpirit of Chrif tianity than ever to think of having recourse to violence; and can you think fuch conduct as yours any recommendation of your religious principles in preference to ours?

You are fill more mistaken, if you imagine that this conduct of yours has any tendency to ferve your caufe, or to prejudice ours. It is nothing but reafon and argument that can ever fupport any fyftem of religion. Anfwer our arguments, and your bufinefs is done; but your having recourse to violence is only a proof that you have nothing better to produce. Should you deftroy myself, as well as my house, library, and appa

ratus, ten more perfons, of equal or fuperior fpirit and ability, would inftantly rife up. If thofe ten were deftroyed, an hundred would appear; and, believe me, the Church of England, which you now think you are fupporting, has received a greater blow by this conduct of yours, than I and all my friends have ever aimed at it.

Befides, to abuse those who have no power of making refiftance is equally cowardly and brutal, peculiarly unwor thy of Englishmen, to fay nothing of Christianity, which teaches us to do as we would be done by. In this bufinefs we are the sheep, and you the wolves. We will preferve our character, and hope you will change yours. At all events, we return you bleflings for curfes; and pray that you may foon return to that industry, and those fober manners, for which the inhabitants of Birmingham were formerly diftinguished. I am, your fincere well-wisher,

London, July 19. J. PRIESTLEY. P. S. The account of the first toast at the Revolution dinner, in "The Times" of this morning, can be nothing less than a malicious lie. To prove this, a lift of the toafts, with an account of all the proceedings of the day, will foon be published. The first of them was,

The King and the Conftitution;" and they were all fuch as the friends of Liberty, and of the true principles of the Conftitution, would approve.

**We are particularly requested to give place to the following answer to the preceding letter; but bave no wish to continue a controversy on the subject. Friends, Countrymen, and Britons,

A

LETTER, figned J. PRIESTLEY,

has appeared in many of the public prints. Its manifeft tendency is beyond the exculpation of an individual from a charge amounting to nothing short of high treason; for, befides the denial of this charge in terms calculated to imprefs on your minds a full perfuafion of its fincerity by its b.evity, whereby it affumes the femblance of innocence, it recriminates with a degree of perfonality unworthy a gentleman, a fcholar, and a Chriftian. It pleads the immenfe iofs of property, compared to which life itfelf is nothing, and the deftruction of a philofophical apparatus, and a collection of MSS, from whofe liberal fource the world was to have been re-pbilofophized, re-policted, and re-Chrijliañized,

Without

Without infifting on the weakness of a defence founded on recrimination and perfonality, let us try the truth of fome affertions contained in it.

Dr. P. fets out with a panegyrick on "his peaceful behaviour in his attention to the quiet ftudies of his profeffion, and thofe of philofophy." How quiet his ftudies have been, or how fuitable to his profefion, his various publications for the last ten years can beft declare. Every inhabitant, not only of Birmingbam, but of Great Britain, may judge him out of his own mouth; and, when he denies the thought of having recourfe to violence, he forgets that, however remote that thought is from the body of Diffenters, HE, as far as fpecious reafoning, ftudied mifreprefentation, and fturdy claims, have fuch a tendency, has been taking every method to excite it. If his virulent reflexions on the Religion and Government of his country, and the Ministers of both, were not calculated to inflame men's minds, it is difficult to fay what was their tendency; for truth is not promoted by violence of any kind.

No one can deny that the outrages of a mob, reftrainable only by a military force, are unworthy both of Englishmen and Chriftians. But who can juftify the outrages of invective and mifreprefentation, which violate the golden rule of Chriftian charity, and the quiet character of a teacher of Chriftianity, and must be expected, as in the prefent in ftance has too unfortunately been the cafe, to recoil on the heads of the first promoters of difcord? No one can avoid lamenting the catastrophe, and pitying the fufferers; but if the fpirit in which fome of the fufferers fpeak of themfelves, and those whom they are pleased to call their enemies, provoke fevere reflexions, they have none to blame but themfelves. We are next told, the lofs to the community in the fingle houfe of Dr. P. is irreparable; whereas, had the Doctor himself been demolished, a flight of phoenixes would have arifen out of his athes, for the eternal benefit of mankind at large, with fuperior zeal and abilities. If he can thus arife again invigorated an hundred fold, the prefent catastrophe is not worth a regret.Perhaps, however, the world, wearied with the round of infidel, unitarian, feditious, leveling argumentation, will no more lament the lofs of future fermons, pamphlets, letters, and hiftories, than of the miftaken and falfe fyftem of

chemistry and natural philofophy already defeated and detected.

To pafs by the perfonalities against individuals, and the unhandsome reflexions on whole bodies of men, con. tained in them, his writings, addreffed to the nation at large, fufficiently declare "what manner of spirit he is of." While his worthy coadjutor exults in the profpect of bringing royalty once more to the block, his sport is hunting down epifcopacy, and leveling every rank in fociety that favours of fubordination of mind or body. In praifing the French Revolution before it is half completed, he wishes for an IMPROVE MENT in the Conflitution of his own country, though he takes care to keep out of fight the many murders that must be hazarded in the exchange, and compliments his countrymen on their humanity. We try him not on any count to which he does not plead guilty, but on what he avows and glories in when fcarcely "efcaped with the skin of his teeth." The English people, in their plain understandings, have light fufficient to guide them through this world to the next, without involving themfelves in metaphyfical and abstract reafonings, which have no place among the fimple truths of the Gofpel. The beafted number of converts, augmented by the followers of every new enthufiaft, will have no influence on the national faith: fill lefs will upbraiding the people or their rulers with Bigotry, Idolatry, Folly, and Knavery, with Priest craft or Kingeraft, induce them to change their principles or their party.

The people of England have had too fatal and repeated experience of the fpirit which actuates too many among the Diffenters. The quibbles of tender confciences, which firft began to disturb the glorious reign of Elizabeth, broke out into dreadful overt-acts of violence under that of the unfortunate Charles. Alarmed into concurrence with the measures of William, they no fooner recovered from their fright, than they made a merit of their acquiefcence to bring forward demands, and have been rifing in their claims ever fince. When the language of Petition failed, that of Remonftrance was affumed, and menaces, unworthy of men who wished to be accounted loyal or faithful subjects, were reforted to. If thefe facts can be denied or vindicated, Dr. P's letter will deferve attention. If, on the contrary, it should appear that the leaders

have fuffered themfelves to be tranfported to lengths which reflect difgrace and odium on their party, it behoves the body of Diffenters to come forward with that public avowal of their difapprobation of these measures, which so many respectable individuals among them have long declared in the freedom of private converfation.

The prefent Apology for the Diffent ers, or rather the Unitarian Diffenters, is little calculated to do away the reproach which the effervescence of the writer of it has drawn upon them. Impartiality and candour will confider it as the hafty effufion of disappointment, refentment, vexation, and ftoical forti. tude, the offspring of an aspiring, overbearing mind, or the ftubborn pride of human-nature, or of a fpirit which actuated too many of the Puritans in the laft century, and too much to be la mented-has found a metempsycholis in the prefent.

Till, therefore, the nation can forget thefe ftubborn facts (and it will require no fhort period to bury them in obli vion, or calm the public mind), it would be better to reflect in filent forJow on the madness of the people, and on the caufes which urged it.

A LOVER OF HIS COUNTRY AND
ITS EXCELLENT CONSTITUTION,

moft atrocious calumny that was ever Jaid before the publick, I feel it my duty immediately to contradict it in the moft pointed terms. I do therefore declare, that the narrative of the proceedings of the Birmingham Conftitutional Dinner is materially untrue; and that the account given of the first toaft is a moft flagrant falfhood: it was, "The King and Conftitution."

The meeting broke-up without the leaft riot or disturbance. That the publick may judge whether the proceedings of the day, and the toafts, were or were not reprehenfible, the following true narrative is now produced, the authenticity and truth of which I will vouch for.

The proceedings of the day were preceded by an advertisement in the Birmingham Chronicle. (See it p_674).

In the morning, however, after this was published, many rumours of the probability of a riot were brought to the friends of the meeting; and, as there

was too much reason to think that means had been used to promote one, they determined to poftpone the intended dinner, and accordingly agreed to put it off, and prepared a hand-bill for that purpose. (See this also in p. 675).

This was fent to the printer; but, be fore he had compofed it, Mr. Dadley, the matter of the hotel, attended, in confequence of having the dinner countermanded, and reprefented, that he was fure there was no danger of any tumult, and recommended that the dinner might be had as was intended; only propofing, that the gentlemen fhould take care to break up early, and then all danger would be avoided. This measure was then adopted, and orders given to the printer to fupprefs the hand-bill. Accordingly, there was a meeting of 81 gentlemen, inhabitants of the town and neighbourhood, at the Great Room in the hotel, where they dined, and paffed the afternoon with that focial, temperate, and benevolent feftivity, which the confideration of the great event, that has diffufed liberty and happinefs among a large portion of the human race, infpired.

The following tuafls were drunk, and were agreeably intermixed with fongs, compofed and fung by fome of the company:

1. The King and Conftitution.

2. The National Affembly and Patriots of France, whofe virtue and wifdom have twenty fix millions from met

condition of fubjects of defpotifm to the digty and happinets of freemen.

3. The Majefty of the People.

4. May the New Conftitution of France

be rendered perfect and perpetual!

5. May Great Britain, Ireland, and France, unite in perpetual friendship! and may their only rivalship be the extenfion of Peace and Liberty, Wifdom and Virtue!

6. The Rights of Man. May all nations have the wisdom to understand, and the courage to affert and defend them!

7. The true Friends of the Constitution of this Country, who wish to preferve its fpirit by correcting its abu ́es.

8. May the People of England never cease to remonstrate till their Parliament becomes a true National Reprefentation! 9. The Frince of Wales.

May

10. The United States of America. they for ever enjoy the Liberty which they have fo honourably acquired!

11. May the Late Revolution in Poland prove the harbinger of a more perfect fyftem of Liberty extending to that great kingdom!

12. May the Nations of Europe become fɔ enlightened as never more to be deluded into