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hall, when the King and Queen came in from an airing, and as they passed through the hail, the King called me by name, and asked how long it was since I came from town. I answered him about an hour. "I shall see you," says he, "in a little." The doctor and I waited a considerable time, (for the King was busy) and then we were called into a large room, furnished as a library, where the King was walking about, and the Queen sitting in a chair. We were received in the most gracious mauner possible, by both their Majesties. I had the honour of a conversation with them (nobody else being present, but Dr. Majendie) for upwards of an hour, on a great variety of topics, in which both the King and Queen joined, with a degree of cheerfulness, affability, and ease, that was to me surprising, and soon dissipated the embarrassment which I felt at the beginning of the conference. They both complimented me in the highest terms on my "Essay," which they said was a book they always kept by them and the King said he had one copy of it at Kew, and another in town, and immediately went and took it down from a shelf. I found it was the second edition. "I never stole a book but one," said his Majesty, and that was yours" (speaking to me); " I stole it from the Queen, to give it to Lord Hertford, to read.” He had heard that the sale of Hume's Essays had failed since my book was published: and I told him what Mr. Strahan had told me in regard to that matter. He had even heard of my being at Edinburgh, last summer, and how Mr. Hume was offended on the score of my book. He asked many questions about the second part of the "Essay," and when it would be ready for the press. I gave him, in a short speech, an account of the plan of it; and said, my health was so precarious, I could not tell when it might be ready, as I had many books to consult before I could finish it; but, that if my health was good, I thought I might bring it to a conclusion in two or three years. He asked how long I had been in composing my "Essay?" praised the caution with which it was written; and said that he did not wonder that it had employed me five or six years. He asked about my poems. I said there was only one poem of my own, on which I set any value (meaning the Minstrel), and that it was first published about the same time with the Essay. My other poems, I said were incorrect, being but juvenile pieces, and of little consequence, even in my own opinion. We

had

had much conversation on moral subjects; from which both their Majesties let it appear, that they were warm friends to Christianity; and so little inclined to infidelity, that they could hardly believe that any thinking man. could really be an atheist, unless he could bring himself to believe, that he had made himself; a thought which pleased the King exceedingly, and he repeated it several times to the Queen. He asked whether any thing had been written against me. I spoke of the late pamphlet, of which I gave an account, telling him that I never had met with any man that had read it, except one Quaker. This brought on some discourse about the Quakers, whose moderation and mild behaviour, the King and Queen commended. I was asked many questions about the Scots Universities, the revenues of the Scots Clergy, their mode of praying and preaching, the medical college of Edinburgh, Dr. Gregory (of whom I gave a particular. character), and Dr. Cullen; the length of our vacation at Aberdeen, and the closeness of our attendance during the winter; the number of students that attend my lectures, my mode of lecturing, whether from notes, or completely written lectures; about Mr. Hume, and Dr. Robertson, and Lord Kinnoul, and the Archbishop of York, &c. &c. &c. His Majesty asked what I thought of my new acquaintance, Lord Dartmouth? I said, there was something in his air and manner, which I thought not only agreeable, but enchanting, and that he seemed to me to be one of the best of men; a sentiment in which both their Majesties heartily joined. "They say, that Lord Dartmouth is an enthusiast," said the King, "but surely he says nothing on the subject of religion, but what every Christian may and ought to say."

He asked, whether I did not think the English language on the decline at present? I answered in the affirmative; and the King agreed, and named the Spectatator as one of the best standards of the language. When I told him that the Scots clergy sometimes prayed a quar-; ter, or even half an hour at a time, he asked, whether that did not lead them into repetitions? I said it often did. "That," said he, "I don't like in prayers; and excellent as our Liturgy is, I think it somewhat faulty in that respect." "Your Majesty knows," said I, "that three services are joined in one, in the ordinary church service, which is one cause of those repetitions." "True," he replied," and that circumstance also makes the service too long." From

this, he took occasion to speak of the composition of the church-liturgy; on which he very justly bestowed the highest commendation. "Observe," his Majesty said, "how flat those occasional prayers are, that are now composed, in comparison with the old ones." When I mentioned the smallness of the church livings in Scotland, he said, "he wondered how men of liberal education would chuse to become clergymen there," and asked, "Whether in the remote parts of the country, the clergy, in general, were not very ignorant?" I answered, "No, for that education was cheap in Scotland, and that the clergy, in general, were men of good sense, and compe tent learning." He asked, whether we had any good preachers in Aberdeen? I said yes, and named Campbell and Gerard, with whose names, however, I did not find that he was acquainted. Dr. Majendie mentioned Dr. Oswald's appeal, with commendation; I praised it too; and the Queen took down the name with a view to send for it. I was asked whether I knew Dr. Oswald? I answered, I did not; and said that my book was published before I read his; that Dr. O. was well known to Lord Kinnoul, who had often proposed to make us acquainted. We discussed a great many other topics; for the conversation, as before observed, lasted for upwards of an hour, without any intermission. The Queen bore a large share in it. Both the King and her Majesty shewed a great deal of good sense, acuteness, and knowledge, as well as of good nature and affability. At last the King took out his watch, (for it was now almost three o'clock, his hour of dinner) which Dr. Majendie and I took as a signal to withdraw. We accordingly bowed to their Majesties, and I addressed the king in these words:" I hope, Sir, your Majesty will pardon me, if I take this opportunity to return you my humble and most grateful acknowledgements for the honour you have been pleased to confer upon me." He immediately answered, " I think I could do no less for a man, who has done so much service for the cause of Christianity. I shall always be glad of an opportunity to shew the good opinion I have of you.".

The Queen sat all the while, and the King stood, sometimes walking about a little. Her Majesty speaks the English language with surprising elegance, and little or nothing of a foreign manner, so that if she were only of the rank of a private gentlewoman, one could not help taking Vol. XI. Churchm. Mag. for Sept. 1806. Ff notice

notice of her, as one of the most agreeable women in the world. Her face is much more pleasing than any of her pictures; and in the expression of her eyes, and in her smile, there is something peculiarly engaging. When the Doctor and I came out," Pray," said I" how did I behave? Tell me honestly, for I am not accustomed to conversations of this kind." "Why perfectly well," answered he," and just as you ought to do." "Are you sure of that?" said I. "As sure," he replied, " as of my own existence; and you may be assured of it too, when I tell you, that if there had been any thing in your manner and conversation, which was not perfectly agreeable, your conference would have been at an end in eight or ten minutes at most." The Doctor afterwards told me, that it was a most uncommon thing for a private man, and a commoner, to be honoured with so long an audience. I dined with Dr. and Mrs. Majendie, and their family, and returned to town in the evening, very much pleased with the occurrences of the day.

ACADEMIANA.

BISHOP LATIMER.

ERY excellent and worthy of observation, was the

VER answer of this venerable prelate, who had, at a

controversial conference, been out-talked by younger divines, and out-argued by those who were more studied in the fathers; "I cannot talk for my religion, but I am ready to die for it."

DR. SOAMS.

This divine, who was master of Peter-house, in Cambridge, at the close of the sixteenth century, deprived his college of a handsome estate by a singular kind of perverseness. It seems that Mary, the widow of Thomas Ramsey, Lord Mayor of London, in 1577, after conferring several favours on that foundation, actually proffered to settle five hundred pounds a year (a very large income at that period) upon the house, provided that it might be called, "The College of Peter and Mary."

"No!"

"No!" said the capricious master, "Peter, who has lived so long single, is too old, now, for a female partner."--A dear jest (says Dr. Fuller) to lose so good a benefactress: for the lady, disgusted at the doctor's fantastic scruple, turned the stream of her benevolence to the benefit of other public foundations.

THE HON. ROBERT BOYLE.

In the life of this illustrious man, drawn up by himself, we are informed, that "curiosity led him to those wild mountains, where the first and chiefest of the Carthusian abbies does stand seated; where the devil, taking advantage of that deep raving melancholy, so sad a place, his humour, and the strange stories and pictures he found there of Bruno, the father of that order, suggested such strange and hideous thoughts, and such distracting doubts of some of the fundamentals of christianity, that, though his looks did little betray his thoughts, nothing but the forbiddenness of self-dispatch, hindered his acting it. But, after a tedious languishment of many months, in this tedious perplexity; at last it pleased God, one day he had received the sacrament, to restore unto him the withdrawn sense of his favour."-Boyle's Works, 4to. I. p. 23.

MR. ADDISON.

The following story is told by a gentleman of great veracity, who, a few years since, was well known in Gray's-Inn:

A certain author was introduced, by a friend, to Mr. Addison, who was desired to peruse and correct a copy of English verses, which were then presented to him. Mr. Addison took the verses, which he afterwards found very stupid; and observing that above twelve lines from Homer were prefixed to them by way of motto, he only erased the Greek lines, but did not make any amendments in the poem, and returned it. The author seeing this, desired his friend who had introduced him, to enquire of Mr. Addison the reason of his doing it; expecting, however, to hear that his poem was so beautiful, that it had no occasion for any foreign embellishment. But his friend putting the question to Mr. Addison, he said, “that whilst the statues of Caligula remained all of a piece, they were little regarded by the people; but that when

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