perour Wisdom, will ever give the leaft Occafion for the World to fay, that the very formal Reafon of my Condemnation, was my publishing a Book entituled, "A Short and Eafy Method with the Deifts, wherein "the Certainty of the Chriftian Religion is "demonftrated by infalliable Proof from four "Rules, which are incompatible to any Im"pofture that ever yet has been, or can pof"fibly be. To which was added another, in Defence of the facred and venerable Order of Bifhops, and in Defence of the Church of England, in whofe falutary Communion (by the Grace of God) I purpofe to live and die. Nor can I poffibly imagine, that this Honourable Court will give the leaft Umbrage to People for their fuppofing, that your Honours think the Juftices at the Seffions, did not put my Trial upon a right Footing; or, that their Worships fpoke unadvisedly, when they faid, The Ministers can defend themfelves! There are likewife other Things, which, in my humble Opinion, are worthy of the Notice of this Honourable Court, before Judgment is given against me. The Jury have brought in a fpecial Verdict, and have not declared the Book a Libel, that being left with your Honours, whether you will adjudge it fo or not. And that the Book may not be condemned as a Libel, I humbly beg Leave to remark thefe thefe few Things for your Honours Confideration. It's a rul'd Cafe in my Lord Coke's 4 Inftit. 235. b. That if one fhall fay of a Merchant, That he is a Bankrupt, or would be a Bankrupt within two Days; the Words contain Matter of a Libel, and are action nable. But I humbly conceive, that if the Merchant, of whom the Words were spoken, was actually declared a Bankrupt by the Laws of the Land, at the Time when the Words were spoken; the Words would not contain in them the Matter of a Libel, respecting that Man, and confequently not actionable. The Ufe I would make of it is this. The Book, now under the Confideration of the Honourable Bench, contains in it Arguments for Episcopacy, all of them laid down, from the Beginning to the End, in a Hypothetic Manner, thus,- -If Jefus Chrift inftituted Bishops, and gave to them alone the Power of sending others, then those who pretend to have Chrift's Commiffion, and have not received it, either immediately from Chrift, or immediately from these Bishops, cannot be the Minifters of Chrift according to Chrift's Inftitution. And further, that if any Perfon fhall caufelessly feparate from any found Part of the Catholick Church, he is a Schifmatic, and Excommunicate, by voluntarily cutting himfelf off from the body of Chrift. Now Now if any one fhall make the Affumption and say, thefe are the Presbyterian and the Congregational Minifters, &c. and their refpective Congregations under them. Tet, (may it please your Honours) granting it to be fo; I humbly conceive, that the faying, concerning the Diffenting Minifters, and their Congregations, that they are no Ministers, and that they are Schifmatics and Excommunicates (supposing that thefe Speeches were abfolute and not conditional); yet, I fay, I humbly hope, that this would not be actionable, nor, refpecting the Diffenters, Matter of a Libel. Why? Because, the Diffenters of all Denominations, are declared to be Schifmatics and Excommunicates by the Laws of the Land. And in order to make this appear, I beg Leave to recite the 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12th Canons of the Church of England published by his Majefty's Authority under the Great Seal of England, and now re-printed this very Year by the King's Printer, by Order of his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury. ** ****·[after reading the Ca nons. May it pleafe your Honours; There are no Expreffions in the Book at Bar, tantamount to these Cenfures of the Diffenters, in the Canons juft now recited. And I fhall humbly leave it with your Honours, if it may not be worth your Con fideration, Jideration, whether the condemning this Book, will not be a Declaration, that the Church paffed thefe Cenfures against the Dif fenters clave errante? But be that as it will, the Diffenters are affirm'd to be no Minifters, to be Schifmatics, and excommunicate by the Canons of the Church of England, which are Part of the Law of the Land; and therefore, to say the fame Things of them, I humbly hope, fhall not be deem'd a Libel. The Sentence of Court. Suffolk, Checkley adfect' Dom. Reg. At a Court of ASSISE, &c. T Nov. 27, 1724. HE Court having maturely advifed on this Special Verdict, are of Opinion that the faid JOHN CHECKLEY is guilty of publishing and felling of a falfe and Scandalous Libel. It's therefore confidered by the Court, That the faid JOHN CHECKLEY fball pay a Fine of Fifty Pounds to the King, and enter into Recognizance in the Sum of One Hundred Pounds, with two Sureties in the Sum of Fifty Pounds each, for his good Behaviour for fix Months, and also pay Cofts of Profecution, standing committed until this Sentence be performed. Att' Samuel Tyley, Clerc. FINI S. SPECIMEN Of a TRUE Diffenting CATECHISM, Upon Right TRUE-BLUE Diffenting PRINCIPLES, WITH * LEARNED NOTES, By Way of EXPLICATION. Question. Why don't the Diffenters in their Publick Worship make use of the Creeds? Answer. Why? Because they are not fet down Word for Word in the Bible. Question. Well, But why don't the Diffenters in their Publick Worship make ufe of the Lord'sPrayer? Anfwer. Oh! Word for Word in the Bible. Because that is fet down *They're fo perverse and oppofite |