And as he was a faithful fervant and fteward of the morality in Mofes's houfe, he was no lefs diligent as a fteward of the mysteries of Chrift: an Ifraelite indeed, a Christian intirely. For,

As to his faith, it was as unblemished and irreproach able as his life. He had read much, but he had lived more: he had drawn much from the pureft fountains, little from the muddy ftreams: the depofitum of his faith he kept facred, whole and intire, not retailing it by fragments and fhreds as a broken veffel or tattered garment, but as the ark in which the fafety of the whole world was embarked, as the vefture fit for the spouse of Christ, not only made of wrought gold and all gloribus within, but without feam woven from the top throughbut. He had no esteem for engineers or projectors in religion, nor for the affuming fuperficial fightfmen, whofe ftudy is confined to coffee-houses, and whose Itore confifts of fuch extemporary ftuff as will easily occur without reading or thinking. Tho' remarkable for meekness, he had no little indignation against all our modern Sadducees, not forgetting those who did mistake a fomething of Heathenifm for Chriftianity, and who are for reducing their Redeemer to the level with a Socrates or Plato at the head of a fect. This good man I propofe to trace with regard to his ftation and condition in life; to mention briefly his writings, and the controverfies he was engaged in with a few memoranda of fuch virtues and Chriftian graces, as he possess'd in an exemplary and transcendent degree.

NATHANAEL SPINCKES was born at Caftor in Northamptonshire, a few miles from Petersburgh, on the confines of Huntingdonshire, in the close of the year 1653, or the beginning of 1654. He was the eldest furviving fon of the reverend Mr. Edmund Spinckes, rector of Caftor, and Martba the eldest daughter of Thomas Elmes of Lilford in Huntingdonshire, Efq;

EDMUND, Our author's father, appears to be a native of New England, and is faid to have come from thence with Dr. Patrick, afterwards Bishop of Ely: how

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ever, he was a perfon of good literature, and fortune but my intended brevity confines me to fay tranfiently, that his discharging the relation of chaplain commendably to Mr. Elmes, introduced him to the happiness of an agreeable companion for life, with feven hundred and fifty pounds, and near an hundred pounds per ann. in terra firma at Warmington. This is manifeft from undoubted inftruments now in my poffeffion; which likewife prove, that he was enabled, with the acceffion of his own fortune, to fupport his family in a reputable manner; and, befides the liberal provifion he made for our author as first-born, to give four younger children above four hundred pounds apiece. I ought not to omit one other circumftance, which every reader is left to pass his judgment upon: Edmund liv'd in troublous times, and warp'd fo far in the great rebellion, that he took the folemn league and covenant; and was poffefs'd of the rectory of Caftor annex'd to the Bishoprick of Petersburgh, the See being vacant 1648: but I have this to say for him pleno ore, that when he was removed foon after the restoration, even before the Bartholomew act took place, he conftantly conformed to the Church of England; and feemed only to decline his ministerial function, because a man who took oppofite oaths, had the fentence of guiltiness proceeding against him. Edmund died at Warmington 1671, and Martha 1693; as I prefume from the probat of Edmund's Will, and the letters of administration granted after Martha's death.

I was much puzzled to find, where our author laid the foundation of that noble ftructure which in progrefs of time was rais'd upon it; but at laft I was informed that he was indebted, for his claffical learning, to the reverend Mr. S. Morton, rector of Haddon, who is mentioned in the father's will. • Item, I defire and constitute (fays the clofe of Edmund's will) my loving ⚫ friends Samuel Morton clerk, and rector of the parish • church of Haddon, in the county of Huntingdon, and "allo my very much refpected coufin Mr. Richard • Cowper

Cowper clerk, and rector of Long Orton and Buttolph Bridge, in the county of Huntingdon, to be the overfeers of this my laft will and testament.'

Our author's childhood was spent in every proper part of education in which religion was confider'd as the unum neceffarium, and not as an accident or matter of form. This appears from memoranda under his own hand, or an Account of remarkable paffages, wherein the good providence of GoD has more fig⚫nally fhewn itself towards me or mine, and for which I most heartily blefs and praise his holy name.'

When a child, I fell from a bell-rope in Caftor church, and bruis'd my head very much: but, I thank God, I recover'd well of it.

At fix years old I was run over by a horse, but had little hurt,

• At Warmington, when a boy, I very narrowly efcaped fhooting Robert Bond with an arrow, which I fear might have kill'd him, had it hit him.'

These things may appear as minutie to narrow and undifciplin❜d fouls; but they difcover an infancy under the reins of difcretion and the power of religion; for if these deliverances had not made a lafting impreffion upon him in his childhood, they fcarce would have been recollected when he arrived at man's eftate.

We must here leave our author, under Mr. Morton's inftruction. For,

I have not been able to recover any thing additional concerning him, till we find him at the University of Cambridge: Yet I fhall mention a paffage out of the father's codicil to his will, figned before his fon's admiffion in the Univerfity, which is convincing to me, that he was originally devoted to the altar, fo far as parental authority could direct: Item, I give all my books to my eldest fon Nathanael, if he live, and be a Master of arts, and a minifter.'- -And I conceive the following claufe will pa's for evidence that the father had a well-fraught ftudy at that time, Provided, that tho' Nathanael be Mafter of Arts,

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and a minifter yet if another behe the faid Nathanael fhall give to any that fhall be a minifter, of his three brothers, either books to the value of twenty pounds, or twenty pounds in money to buy him books, at the choice of him who is to receive ⚫ them or it.'

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Before the age of fixteen our author was admitted into the royal and much honoured foundation of Trinity college in Cambridge: it appears from the college register, that he was committed to the care of Mr. Bainbrigg, 22 March 16%. He was matriculated the July following: Nath. Spinckes Coll. Trin. quadrantarius admiffus in matriculam Acad. Cant. Jul. 9, 1670. This is copied from the public register of the Univerfity. In the year 1671, our author's circumftances were confiderably improv'd by the death of his father; for the probat pafs'd the feals of the prerogative court of Canterbury 11 Aug. in that year. He had his father's collection of books intire: he had the Warmington estate, before-mention'd, with fome incumbrance: he had one hundred pounds charged upon Lilford: he had bequeathed to him All that land in Ireland in King's County, which is now in the poffeffion of the heirs or affigns of Thomas Vincent, fome time alderman of • London, which is due to me according to a writing figned by him, &c. this I give to him and his heirs for ever. Item, I give (fays the father's will) to the faid Nathanael Spinckes, all that fifty pounds more or less, with the profits of it, that is in the iron-works in New England, acknowledged received by John Pocock, then fteward of the company, and living then in London, his acquittance bearing' date March 19, 1645. Item, I give to the faid my fon Nathanael, all that eftate, whatsoever it be, that falleth to me, or fhall fall to me, in New-England, as joint-heir, with John Naylor of Boston in Lincolnshire, to Boniface Burton now or late of Bofton in New- England, my uncle and mother's brother, and only broAnd befides all this, he had the fair expect

ther.

ance of his mother's bleffing, who, as fhe appears to be eldest daughter and coheiress of the family of the Elmes's aforefaid, was plentifully provided for.

This acceffion of fortune however did not fink or footh him into indolence, nor buoy or blow him up into profuseness, The manure was fpread upon good ground: the rich foil and found feed promife a reward to the reaper's hand. After he had pafs'd about two years and a half in Trinity, like many other generous plants, which take deeper root, and fpread the better, merely for their removal, he was tranfplanted to Jefus college in the fame univerfity. Nathanael Spinckes Northamptonienfis, filius Edmundi Spinckes clerici defuncti, annum agens decimum oƐtqvum, poftquam per duos annos commoratus eft in coll. S. Trinitatis, examinatus & appra batus, admiffus eft in commenf. inferiores, fub tutore fuo Magiftro Wroe, Octobris 12, 1672. Regr. Coll. Jef.

If we may hint at the motives which determin'd our author to change his college, I think I have heard him declare, the provifion made for him by his father rendered him incapable of preferment in Trinity college, according to the ftatutes: and he feems to be farther tempted to make this exchange by the profpect of a Ruftat fcholarship; for nine days after he was adopted into Jefus college, the learned fociety bid him welcome, by chufing him upon that foundation.

Olobris 21, 1672. Nathanael Spinckes admiffus eft probationarius ex fundatione Tobie Ruftat Armig. Maii 20, 1673. Jurat. & admi. fcholaris. Regr, Acad.

This was for his honour; for the fcholars of that foundation undergo a very ftrict examination, and afterwards are probationers for a year. And as these fcholarships are the bett, fo the fcholars are commonly the beft in college, and fo reputed,' as my much honour'd friend the reverend Mr. Thomas Baker, B. D. of St. John's college, obferves at the foot of the registers above-mentioned. Befides I understand the examination of Mr. Ruftat's scholars to be annual, fo