effect of fome fuch diforder, yet did he regain his liberty. When he found himself pretty well, as he thought, he fell a writing to great men, and to his old friends; and infifted on the truth of his notions, and pretended that the reports of his diforders arose only from the inability the learned were under to confute them. Nay, at length, he wrote feveral pamphlets to prove, that the following the literal fenfe of the Old Teftament was no better than Antichriftianifm, tho', in the mean time, he fometimes infinuated, that Jefus Chrift's own miracles were no other than allegorical miracles, and not real facts, and expofed those miracles, taken in the literal fenfe, after fuch a manner, and with fuch a mixture of wit and fcoffing, as if he in earneft intended to abuse and oppofe the chriftian religion. Which defign, however, he utterly denyed; and seemed to wonder that any should impute fuch a thing to him; and about the fame time he wrote another pamphlet against some of the unbelievers, which was by no means a contemptible one. Things being in this state, and the unbelievers thinking to make use of his folly to lay a blot upon chriftianity, encouraged him to go on; bought his pamphlets at an high price, and fent them abroad, as far as the Weft-Indies, to do mifchief there.

Now during the time when the college and his friends thought his cafe to be pitiable, and owing in part to a bodily distemper, and, upon that account, the college allowed him the revenues of his fellowship for his fupport; he came of his own accord to the college, to fhew that he was not under any diforder. Whereupon he was called to refidence, according to the college ftatutes, which allow to the fellows, if in health, but eighty days absence in the year. But he abfolutely refufed to refide, and fo loft his fellowship: tho' I did all I could to fave it for him, by writing to the college on his behalf.

N 4

But

But the clamor ran fo high against him there, that no interceffion could prevail for him.

After this, the government fell upon him, and had him indicted in Westminster-Hall, for blafphemy and profanenefs. At which time I went to Sir Philip York, the then attorney-general, but now lord chancellor, and gave him an account of poor Mr. Woolton, and how he came into his allegorical notions and told him, that their common lawyers would not know what fuch an allegorical caufe could mean; offering to come myfelf into the court, and explain it to them, in cafe they proceeded but ftill rather defiring they would not proceed any farther against him. He promised he would not proceed, unless the then fecretary of ftate, the lord Townshend, fent him an order fo to do. I then went to Dr. Clarke, to perfuade him to go with me to the lord Townshend; but he refufed; alledging that the report would then go abroad, that the king fupported blafphemy. However, no farther progrefs was made in Mr. Woolfton's trial, till he had published another pamphlet, againft our Saviour's miracles, and that with fuch reproachful words, that tho' I pitied his cafe, and looked upon it as partly a diforder of mind, I did not think it became me to be farther concerned for him in any publick manner, tho' he had dedicated a pamphlet to me, and came himself to me. I told him, that had not my reputation, as a firm believer of the chriftian religion, been very good, he had done me great harm by his dedication. I farther told him, that what he now afferted seemed to me nearer to the fin againft the Holy Ghoft, than what had ever been afferted by any fince the first times of the gofpel. I withall afked him, why he did not affert that our Saviour was no more than an allegorical perfon, fince then he might naturally work allegorical miracles? He replyed no:

There

There was fuch a perfon as Jefus Chrift. So I took my final leave of him, and prayed God to forgive him. At length the court proceeded against him to a fine and imprisonment. In fhort, he feemed to me to have fo confounded himself with his allegories, and fo pleafed himself when he found one gentleman, Mr. Anthony Collins, to affirm nearly as he did, tho' with a quite different defign, that Jefus Chrift dealt in allegorical prohecies, though not in allegorical miracles; that before he died he feems hardly to have known himself whether he really believed the chriftian religion or not.

This is a true account of this unhappy man, with his unhappy allegories: and ought to be a caution to all fuch as ftudy the original books of our religion, how they follow Philo and Origen, and the like allegorifts, of which hardly the least traces appear among either the Jewish or Gentile chriftians, till after the deftruction of Jerufalem; which was thirty-eight years after the death of our Saviour and to which the fatal introduction of the impure book of Canticles into the canon of the Old Teftament, foon after that time, may moft probably be ascribed.

On Feb. 21, 1714, being Lord's-Day, I baptized Mr. John and Mrs. Elizabeth Shelfwell, with the trine immerfion, &c. according to the form published by myself in the forementioned Liturgy of the Church of England, reduc'd nearer to the Primitive Standard; and adminifter'd to them both Confirmation and the Eucharift; about feventeen communicants prefent.

Not long afterward, the fame year, 1714, Mr. Hauk fbee and myself published A Courfe of Mechanical, Optical, Hydroftatical, and Pneumatical Experiments, as performed by us; in twenty copper plates, briefly explained. This has been feveral times printed, and belongs to the course itself. 4to. Price 5s.

The

The fame year, 1714, Mr. Humphrey Ditton and myfelf published, A new Method of Discovering the Longitude by fignals. 8vo. The fecond edition is far the most compleat; and was printed the next year, 1715. Price 2 s.

In this last year, 1715, I published A Vindication of the Sibylline Oracles, with the genuine oracles themfelves, and the ancient citations from them, in their originals, and in English: befides a few brief notes. 8vo. Price 25.

N. B. On Eafter-Day, 1715, we began to have a folemn affembly for worship, and the Eucharift, at my houfe in Cross-Street, Hatton - Garden: according to the form in my liturgy, (about fifteen communicants prefent.) On Whitsunday the fame year, we had a fecond folemn affembly for the fame purpose: which was continued feveral years, at least three times in a year: at Eafter, Whitfuntide, and Christmas.

N. B. In pursuance of my proposals for erecting Societies for Promoting Primitive Chriftianity, fuch a fociety was erected about this time: and met weekly at the primitive library, which was at my houfe in Cross-Street, Hatton Garden (in which house I have heard the famous Mr. Flamfteed once alfo lived.) It lafted about two years, from July 3, 1715, to June 28, 1717. Of which fociety, its chairmen, and fecretary, and rules, fee Dr. Clarke's life, ift edition, page 86-91.

However, I will here add one particular circumftance, not related elsewhere, which concerns this fociety. When we first met, and were very defirous no bar fhould be laid in the way of any that pretended to be chriftians, from joining with us. Mr. Jofiah Martin, the most learned of all the ple called quakers that I ever knew, offered himfelf

peo

to

to be a member, and was readily received as fuch. I then propofed, that we fhould use fome fhort collects, taken out of our Common-Prayer-Book, before we began, and after we ended every meeting, to implore the bleffing of God upon our enquiries. To which propofal all readily agreed but Mr. Martin, who intirely scrupled joining with us in fuch prayers, unless when the spirit moved him. Which Occafioned a good deal of difficulty to the fociety. Yet at last we agreed to leave him to himself, to stay either with his hat on or off, as he pleased; and he gave us leave to fay our prayers ourselves; nor did he ever disturb us: nor was he afterward an unuseful member, when he came to the fociety. Only I cannot but obferve, that when after many years intermiffion, an attempt was made for reviving that fociety, and he was defired to return to it, he commended the defign, but feemed unwilling to join in it. I fufpect the refult of fome of his former enquires made him fenfible, that examination would not turn out to the advantage of his friends, and he had not courage enough to think of leaving them. However, I must do him the juftice to fay, that he it was who firft put me upon writing the fheet I lately published, for reconciling the four evangelifts, as to their feveral narrations about our Saviour's refurrection.

The fame year, 1715, I published feveral papers relating to my caufe before the court of delegates,

viz.

I. Mr. Whifton's Reafons against that procedure, already mentioned.

II. The Articles exhibited against him by Dr. Pelling in that cause.

III. Mr. Whifton's Defence of himself from those Articles.

To which was added,

IV. His Letter to Dr. Sacheverel.