and my arguments. I thankt him for not so much as once taking notice of my corollaries (where the summe of my book was drawn up in a close demonstrative way) more than by meerly calling them pretty corollaries; which shews what fools he esteems his readers; and if they be wise, what esteem they must have of him, who can imagine that a slight jeer or flout is sufficient to answer demonstrations. I thankt him for dividing his book into two parts, the former of which (which was the chief point) pretended to shew that tradition was not a competent, that is a certain rule, to convey down Christ's doctrine, if followed the latter to prove we had not followed that rule, and spending 50 pages to shew tradition was not a fit rule; and when he had trifled away so much time to shew it was not a good rule, in the close of his discourse he plainly con fessed it had all the properties of a Rule, and was a very good Rule of Faith, and qualified both with certainty and evidence to do that work. Particularly I thankt him, that when he came to prove the other part, and to shew we had not followed that rule, he had falsified my words most egregiously, and, which was worse, built his whole impugnation of my book, upon those very significant words which himself had added: which I shewed to the eye of the reader. I thankt him for taking pains to bring so many testimonies to prove that scripture was held by the fathers to be the only Rule of Faith; and yet not one of them came home to the purpose, which was to evidence that the fathers taught people not to believe the Church delivering them their faith, but sent them, when they came to years of discretion, to learn it out of the scripture by their own private interpretation. Lastly, I thankt him for committing so many sins of omission, avoydances, and playing the witty buffoon, whenever he came to a hard point. Also, for his affected mistakes, his imposing 20 false tenets I never held, and other such crafty wiles, many of which I

layd open by detail. All which I told him layd very great obligations on me, that he would thus expose himself to shame, and to an ease confute, by giving me so many advantages against him, beyond my wish or expectation. And thus ended my Letter of Thanks, which (as I said) was very slightly penned; but yet it omitted never a main point, and I am sure was past his answering, for he never attempted it: for I shall not call a few slight cavils in a Preface an answer to a book.

49. Dr. Stillingfleet had subjoyn→ ed an Appendix to his book: so when this spruce piece was out, in which there wanted no art, craft, nor fine language, they kept the impression from publishing till they had got many books finely bound to present to the King, Privy Counsellors, Chancellor, some Bishops, and other Gentlemen. Meanwhile having got (as I sayd) one of them in quires, as soon as ever it was printed, I was answer ing it all the while; and I made such haste, that in less than 3 weeks after their book was published, came out my answer. This was interpreted such a piece of insolence, and was so shocking, that they saw it was to no purpose to write against me. So a more effectual way was resolved on, The fire of London happening not long after, they got one Oldham, a bookseller's man in Paul's Churchyard, who knew me, to swear before a justice of peace, that he saw me throw fire-balls in the fire-time to carry on the burning of London; and Sir Orlando Bridgman, then as I take it Lord Keeper, told Bishop Russel that he heard there was a sworn witness against me,and that therefore I must either appear with my witnesses, to shew where I was at that time, or else, the people being in such a ferment, they must look upon me as guilty; of which Dr. Godden sent me word. I desir'd Sir Orlando would appoint the fellow a precise time to be before him, and I would appear with my witnesses, in number eight, who were all ready to swear, that I was in such a dying condition all the

fire-time, that I could not stand alone, but two helped me up, and set me down in a chair twice a day, till my bed was made. It seems Sir Orlando had blabb'd it to some of their gang with how many witnesses I was ready to appear: for the fellow durst not come, but ran away, and was not heard of in a year and a half after, I may bless God's mercy for that seasonable sickness; for had I bin able to walk abroad, and lend what assistance I could, it would in likelyhood have cost me my life.

50. Having to a pretty degree recovered my health and strength, I resolved to follow on my blow, and overthrow all his book from the very foundation. Giving it therefore a review, I observed that that whole book was nicknamed, and was a meer banter, and that his pretended Rule of Faith (as he call'd it) was so far from ascertaining faith, that it brought it all into uncertainty. For in his page 118 he has these words, speak ing of the letter of Scripture, his Rule: we are not infallibly certain that any book is so ancient as it pretends to be; or that it was written by the person whose name it bears (that is, the divinely-inspired Apostles and Evangelists) nor that this is the sense of such and such passages in it. All this may possibly be otherwise (that is, false). Is not this a rare Rule, which leaves all Christian faith in such a pickle, that it may be all a lying story for any thing any man living knows? However he subjoins immediately some good words, if they have but good sense. But, says he, we are well assured it is otherwise. Let us see how he comes to have this good assurance! Not by infallible certainty; he disclaimed that. He must mean then, be thus well assured by fallible certainty: for all certainty or assurance either must have fallible or infallible grounds. And what sense is there in these words (fallible certainty) which is such a chimera and against common sense, that never did man since the creation say I am fallibly certain of such a thing: so that his good assurance he fool'd the

reader with is a piece of non-sense; and, which is worse, his Rule of Faith, and all his faith that relies on it, is grounded on such an assurance as is meer non-sense and contradiction. This made me see that I was to vindicate Christian faith from such a scandal, and to prove evidently beyond all possible reply, that it could not be false, and therefore must have such a Rule, as is impossible to be false likewise, or, which is all one, infallibly certain. Which done, the title of his book (Rule of Faith) will be shown to be a meer mockery and nickname. The rule he sets up in opposition to ours, being confest by himself to leave Christian Faith in a possibility of being otherwise, that is, in a possibility to be false. I resolved therefore to lay the axe to the root, and give this speeding blow to his dwindling Rule of Faith, and set myself to write that treatise entituled (Faith vindicated from Possibility of Falsehood.)

12th Treatise.

In which I prove, by near 40 demonstrations fetched from logick, ethicks, metaphysicks, and the language and practice of Christianity, that the Rule which is to deduce down to us Christ's doctrine from the beginning, must be infallibly or absolutely certain. To not so much as one of these demonstrations has he ever to this day attempted to give the least answer. At the end of the book I applyed what I had there de. monstrated against Dr. Tillotson's Rule of Faith, and shewed how he miscalled that book of his, and that from his own words (cited above) it had nothing in it that could give it any resemblance of being either a Rule to Faith or to any thing else; but it was in reality nothing but a meer sham, and this whole book a palpable prevarication.

51. About that time, a worthy and virtuous lady, my Lady Throckmorton, now in Paris, had some scru ples about religion. Wherefore having had some thoughts of drawing all our controversy into a shorter method, I writ a short but pithy little

piece, which I entituled (A Method to arrive at Satisfaction in Religion) which I dedicated to her, tho' I transpos'd the two first letters of her name, because, being not yet a Catholick, I fear'd she would be unwilling to own a book of that naturé. I dare affirm it contained a perfect demonstration of the infallible grounds, on which (as to our knowledge of it) Catholick Religion was built In the Dedication civilly challenged all learned men, of whatever other profession, to attempt the same I had there perform'd, that is, to settle by a connected discourse the grounds of their faith. This being the only, at least the very best way to decide all controversies, ending with these words: The maintainers of all errors are, as experience teaches, very free of opposition; but they only who have certain truth on their side, will think fit to settle. But none appeared, unless Dr. Stillingfleet's unfortunate boldness may be call'd such an attempt, of which hereafter.

52. Yet this discourse, how evident soever, did not satisfy that good Ladies' scrupulous sincerity: perhaps she lookt upon it as something too speculative for one of her pitch. I had converted and reconciled her husband already; which might have become a motive and inducement to some other wife to become a Catholick herself. But with her perfectest sincerity it had a contrary effect. She wisely considered she must answer for her own conscience, and was afraid lest the dear love she bore her husband should byass her reason. Hereupon three learned Catholicks, one of whom was an Ecclesiastick, offer'd their service to meet Dr. Stillingflect and Dr. Tillotson in a dispute before her. The controversy was manag'd in a testimonial way. Both sides alledg'd citations out of Fathers; both gloss'd them to shew them or make them favourable to their tenet. The upshot was, the Drs. got no advantage, but lost much, the Catholicks being acute men: yet she was not at all the more satisfy'd, being so judicious as to discern that

that way of disputation was both endless and undecisive. Being in this perplexity, she begg'd of me earnestly to write some clear and short discourse, which was decisive of the whole controversy; and after examining that, and the answer that the other party could give it, she was resolved either to become a Catholick, or to remain where she was. I desired her to take pen, ink and paper, aud I dictated to her this short dis

Course:

1. God has left us some way or some means to know what Christ taught. 2. Therefore this way or this means must be such, that they who follow it, shall by it arrive at the end, or know what Christ taught. 3. Scripture privately interpreted is not such way, since we experience that Protestants and Socinians do both of them follow that way to their power; and yet contradict one another in such fundamental points, as are the Trinity and the Divinity of Christ. 4. Therefore they who follow only this way cannot by it arrive at the end, the knowledge of Christ's Faith, nor can they conse quently have true faith. 5. Therefore a Congregation of such is not a Congregation of Faithful, or a true. Church. 6. Therefore their communion ought to be deserted. These last words came up to the Ladie's purpose: for she made no doubt, but that if the Protestant Church were not the true Church, the Roman Catholick Church must be it.

53. This short discourse was sent to Dr. Stillingfleet, with a letter requesting him to give a punctual answer to it as soon as he could. As I remember, more than three weeks past; yet, tho' no importunity was wanting to hasten him, no answer came. At length came a reply, such as it was; for it consisted of a plausible discourse of his own, but not one proposition of mine did he speak to in particular. The Lady was sensible of this prevarication; yet she made all the excuses for him she could. For having a very high opinion of him, she judg'd it impossible a man of his learning should not be

able to answer 12 lines, in so long time, had he not bin taken up wholly with some other most important thoughts and busines; which both bred this delay, and also hindered him from attending to the tenure of this discourse he was to speak to. Whereupon she resolved to send to him again, with a request that he would consider it well, and give a pertinent and particular answer to every proposition as it lay. But ere she writ her letter, she fell in labour, and had the small pox at the same time. Yet tho' in iminent danger of death, she would not yield to become a Catholick; but told me that God Almighty knew her sincere intention to follow truth, when she was fully satisfyed; that the very rule of tradition taught her she was to remain as she was, till she saw evident reason to be otherwise. In the meantime she would trust her soul in his merciful hands, who saw her heart, and knew it was not any worldly motive that detain'd her, or made her back. wards, but a sincere desire to be first fully satisfyed that she was not in the true Church. It pleased God she recovered, and as soon as she was able writ again to the Dr. conjuring him by all that was friendly, holy, honourable and Christian, to give a more satisfactory answer, which she declared this was not. She begged of him as he regarded the good of her soul, his own honour, and the glory of the Protestant Church, which, if that discourse held good, must be convicted of having no true faith, and consequently of being no Church at all that he would take this discourse eadways, speak to each proposition in order, either denying or granting it: or if there wanted coherence in the discourse to shew where the consequence was slack or loose, declaring candidly that his answer should determine her continuing a Protestant, or her becoming a Roman Catholick. The letter was sent, and her request was pursued and solicited with sufficient importunity. At length as I remember, about three weeks after, an answer was sent, in which he had

neglected all that she had so conjured him to do; and it was judged to be rather worse than the former: hereupon that Dr. being judged by the common voyce of England to be their best controvertist, and herself having a most high esteem of his learning above any other, she became satysfyed, that after using her best endeavour, she could not find any solid ground of faith among Protestants. Wherefore without needing any to perswade her, she voluntarily and immediately became a Catholick.

54. I believe that no man who reads this, but will confess there was never any person in the world converted to the Catholic faith, who was, I will not say only more unbyast, but so timorously and scrupulously sincere, as was this good Lady, till she was satysfyed, by the clearest verdict of reason, that after all her most industrious endeavours, she could find no firm or sure footing for her faith to rest on, but in Catholick grounds: insomuch as I doubt not, that some indiscreet zealot may think she was to some degree blameably obstinate. But as St. Thomas his unbelief, and his perfect satisfaction afterwards, was of force to settle firmly the faith of future Christians, as to the resurrection of our Saviour; so her incredible wariness and backwardness, till she could hold out no longer with a safe conscience, will, E hope, convince all unbelieving Protestants; I am sure it will all that know her clear honour and virtue; that only the invincible force of truth could subdue her candid resistance, and withall will let them see, that let them be as backward as they will, so they be but sincere and ingenuous, Catholic grounds are so clear and solid, if rightly represented, that they do not need any good-natured easines to make them yield their assent; but that they are able to conquer all rational opposition, and that nothing can withstand their victorious strength but either a careless neglect of heeding or considering them, or a self-blinding obstinacy. I do not relate here to how many Parsons this