five of them are such dissenters of all sorts who never come to the public services of the national church.

Two parts who hold communion with the national Church and with their own particular sect at the same time, as occasion or opportunity offers. These are a foolish and inconsiderate people, who are little valued by either side by reason of their inconsistency and prevarication with God and man, especially if it appears to be done upon a selfish and temporal

account.

Three parts are these who being in constant communion with the Church of England, seldom or never joining openly with any other, seem nevertheless somewhat displeased with the Church, and the only reason they continue in it is because they are more displeased with every sect of the dissenters from it for they acknowledge this to be the best form of religion in the country; but this they (having new schemes in their heads) would reform or refine.

The most understanding of this sort of men have a political thirst after such a reformation, in hope by that means to comprehend many of the more moderate dissenters, and to bring them into communion with the national Church; and such a design was set on foot in the beginning of this government in convocation, where all things of that nature are first to be debated; but few of the dissenters at that time showing any willingness to be so comprehended, and some of the heads of them counselling ingeniously that all such attempts would prove successless, without quite dissolving our frame of church government, the whole business fell.

And instead thereof, all Protestant dissenters from the Church (except the Antitrinitarians) are tolerated so long as they live peaceably and conformably in the state, and every man in England doth now enjoy a free liberty of conscience and use of what religion best pleases him.

The dissenters from the Church of England are of these five sorts: Libertines, Papists, Anabaptists, Independents, and Presbyterians.

First, By Libertines we mean those that live ad libitum, whether they be Atheists, Sceptics, Deists, and the like; of these there are not many amongst us, at leastwise professedly so, and those that be, are a vain, fanatic, unthinking people, some of whom having a little smattering of learning, are troublesome with it to themselves and the rest of mankind. These men have some superficial knowledge in second causes, but, for want of due consideration, they are al

together ignorant of the first Mover and of his revealed will...

The number of Jews and Socinians amongst us is still more inconsiderable.

Secondly, Papists we have many, yet not so many but that in the late government, when they all appeared publicly, it was, and is, a wonder how the designs of that handful of men could put the whole nation into such convulsions...

3. Anabaptists are of two sorts: First, those who go vulgarly by that name; and, secondly, those who are distinguished by the name of Quakers.

The Anabaptists which go by that name are a more reasonable sort here in England that those of Flanders and Germany; very few of ours are so wild, extravagant, and enthusiastical as those abroad. These submit themselves to civil government; and the chief article of their dissent in religion, is concerning Pædobaptism, which they hold unreasonable. Yet there is in many other things some of the Flemish leaven still among them, as accounting themselves the only pure church; are envious at the Established Church; abhor paying of tithes, and affect parity: but that which is worst of all, some of them have strange notions concerning our blessed Saviour and his Incarnation, the Holy Trinity, the soul of man, etc. Some of them, as well as Quakers, are great admirers of Jacob Behmen and his sort of cant; and many of them are closely wrapped up in Rosicrusian Divinity; they look upon all liturgy and ceremonies as popish, allow that laymen may administer sacraments, expect an universal monarchy of Christ here on earth. Some of them are called Brownists, from Robert Brown of Northamptonshire, but there are some Brownists who allow of Pædobaptism. Familists, or the Family of Love, we have scarce any remaining: Adamites none. But here are some Antimonians who hold that no trangression is sin in the "children of God": Traskitts, now called Seventh-day men, who keep the Jewish Sabbath: Antisabbatarians, who keep none at all; and the Muggletonians are scarce extinct, who say that God the Father, leaving the government of Heaven to Elias, came down on Earth and suffered in human form; these deny the Holy Trinity, the creation of earth and water, the immortality of the soul, religious ministry, and, some of them, magistratual authority.

Quakers. The other sort of Anabaptists are called Quakers or Shakers, from the trembling and quaking caused in them

by vapors in their ecstatic fits, especially after long fasting, an exercise very much practised by the first disciples of this sect here in England, but of late almost wholly disused...

They reject ministerial ordinances, and place religion wholly in the inward light of every man's private spirit; and how different soever the impulses of one man's spirit are from another, and how different notions soever they create, they account it all the same light infused by the Spirit of God in different measures and degrees. They agree with other Anabaptists against infant baptism, and go far beyond them, even to the neglecting of all baptism, and the other sacrament of the Eucharist, all human learning, appropriate places and times of worship, and abhor paying of tithes. They practised formerly abstinence and self-denial, but now of late none are prouder or more luxurious than the generality of them: they formerly wore plain and coarse clothes, now the men wear very fine cloth, and are distinguished from others only by a particular shaping of their coats, a little pleated cravat, and a slender hat-band; the women nevertheless wear flowered, or striped, or damask silks, and the finest linen cut and pleated in imitation of lace, but they wear no lace or superfluous ribbons; however, they are extremely nice in their choice of tailors, seamstresses, and laundresses. Those of the men who wear periwigs have them of genteel hair and shape, tho' not long. They are as curious in their meats, and as cheerful in their drink, and as soft in their amours, and as much in the enjoyment of life as others.

They have generally denied the Trinity of Persons in the one Godhead, the resurrection of the body, the Incarnation of Christ (which they seem to look upon as a figure) the locality of heaven and hell, and many other Catholic tenets.

Independents. Independents are a sect lately sprung up from the Brownists. These have no general church government, but each particular congregation is ruled by their own laws and methods without dependence on one another: look upon tithes as superstitious and Judaical; are against all set form of prayer, even the Lord's Prayer. They give power to private men to erect and gather churches, elect, ordain, depose, excommunicate, and determine finally in all church-causes. Laity sometimes administer the sacraments, and magistrates administer the office of matrimony. They are most of them Millenaries, and commence the last thousand

years of Christ's kingdom from the beginning of Independency. All those of the laity they account "gifted men," are permitted to preach, and pray, and to catechise the preacher concerning the doctrine he has preached. They communicate frequently, sitting at a table or without a table. Presbyterians. Presbyterians maintain that there is only a nominal difference between bishop, presbyter, and pastor; and that priest is not a gospel word, but belongs only to sacrifices. They will not allow deacons to preach, but only to collect for and administer to the poor. In every church they appoint lay-readers and rulers, who are to inspect men's manners and to bear a part in the government of the church. They acknowledge a priority of order ought to be amongst church-governours, but not a priority of jurisdiction. They deny the civil magistrate any authority in church government, making the king mere Laicus, and subject to the censures of parochial church-governours. They have two church judicatories, the classical assembly and the general assembly, to which there lies an appeal from the classical.

When we speak of any of these sectaries indiscriminately, we call them dissenters and nonconformists; and they that speak more freely term them fanatics and enthusiasts. It must be confessed that in all these sects there are some good moral men, nay, some of them zealous towards God, but in such a zeal as is not according to knowledge. Neither are they all equally blameable in all respects. The Presbyterians come nearest to the Church; the Quakers are the most peaceable; the Papists are the most mannerly, and the like;...

(Angliæ Notitia, E. Chamberlayne, Lond. 20th, ed. 1703.)

CHAPTER XXV

UNION BETWEEN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND

193. The Queen's Speeches on Union of England and Scotland

Oldmixon

The strife of centuries was brought to a close by the union of England and Scotland. Queen Anne publicly expressed the hope that the two peoples would become firmly united into one great nation, and Professor GREEN, in his History of the English People, thus comments upon her words: "Time has more than answered these hopes. The two nations whom the Union brought together have ever since remained one. England gained in the removal of a constant danger of treason and war. To Scotland the Union opened up new avenues of wealth which the energy of the people turned to wonderful account. The farms of Lothian have become models of agricultural skill. A fishing-town on the Clyde has grown into the rich and populous Glasgow. Peace and culture have changed the wild clansmen of the Highlands into herdsmen and farmers. Nor was the change followed by any loss of national spirit. The world has hardly seen a mightier and more rapid development of national energy than that of Scotland after the Union. All that passed away was the jealousy which had parted since the days of Edward the First two peoples whom a common blood and common speech proclaimed to be one. The Union between Scotland and England has been real and stable simply because it was the legislative acknowledgment and enforcement of a national fact."

(Jan. 28th, 1707.)

My Lords and Gentlemen,

Having acquainted you at the opening of this session, that the treaty for an Union between England and Scotland, which had been concluded here by the commissioners appointed for that purpose, in pursuance of the powers given by the Parliaments of both kingdoms, was then under the consideration of the Parliament of Scotland, I can now, with great satisfaction, inform you that the said treaty has been ratified by Act of Parliament in Scotland with some alterations and additions.