SIR,

WAS taken up this last Lent with an Exercise which did not permit me to answer a Fool according to his folly, in the Senfe that Solomon allows me to do it, Prov. 26. 5. And I hope I am ftill better employ'd, than to answer a Fool in his folly left I be like to him. Verf. 4.

I received thy familiar Letter of Nine Sheets of Paper, confifting of notorious Lyings, Slandering, Railing, Banterings, tedious Excurfions, and moft impertinent Digreflions. And to let the Kingdom know that thou haft been an old pedantick Domine, teaching Hac dat a, thou flourishes thy whole worthy Performance with Larin Sentences, fcattered almoft throughout every Page thereof.

Domine Anderfon, I declare I am fo well pleafed with it, that, were there no more Copies in the World, but what I have bought for my self, I fhould (for as low as my Circumftances are) be at Expences to reprint it; to let the World fee what manner of Spirit that Party is of, who are delighted with pedantick Domine Anderfon, as a Champion of their Cause.

The Gentleman who firft told me of it, faid, Truly, he thought the Author was mad. I faid, (perhaps) it was too much Learning that made him fo: But when I once read it, I found it verified, That Scolding is no Scholarfhip. I found a Stone weight of Railing for an Ounce weight of Reasoning: I could not but compare it to a large Pock-pudding, made up of fix Dozen of rotten Eggs, half a Dozen of Raifins, and all the reft Dirt, Dockens and Draff. We have a true, tho' nafty Scotif Proverb, That a Spoonful of Sr will poll a Potful of Skink: No wonder then, that a Potful fpoil a Spoonful.

Domine, thou writes as if thou hadft been bred at the College of Billingsgate; or as if thou hadft been Son or Grandfon to Jannie Geddes, a Kail-wife at Edinburgh, who is famous for her Talent in Scolding to this very Day.

I fhall in this Sheet take notice of fome of thy Lying, Railing and Banter, tho' not of the hundredth part; for that were almost to tranfcribe thy fnarling pitiful Pamphlet. As for thy Reasoning, a Quarter of a Sheet may anfwer all; and is already answered in my Book, for all that thou haft faid against it. Howbeit, whatever has any fhew of Reason I fhall answer.

Your familiar Letter, Page 1. begins thus:

I am not much for Ceremonies, as indeed few Whigs are. Domine, you ought to have added, Nor for Reverence to God, Unity and Uniformity, Order and Decency in Worship, Obedience to Superiors, nor for Civilities or good Manners to Men, as your Pamphlet demonftrates.

Page 2. your Words are of my Answer: Your Book confifts of Lies, Impertinencies, Profeffions of Kindnesses for Popery, Ignorance, Nonfenfe, Blundering, and to crown all, of a Spice of Blafphemy.

Domine, it were an easy thing to give thee true Names and Characters, and that very juftly from the Spirit of thy barking Eloquence, and to call thee John Fop, John Fool, John Goofe, John Gouk, John of Bedlam, The Kailwife of the Whiggish Kirk, The Merry-Andrew of the Presbyterian Stage. But in a Word, John, Thou'rt a Liar.

damn that

If I call'd thee a Beast, I should be far in the wrong to thee; my Reason is, because thou art capable of being damn'd: This Reason I learn'd from a Brother and Name's fake of thine, in P---h, who, taking his Recreation on a Week Day, went by fome who were playing at Gouf, where one chanc'd to cry out, Gouf-Ball! Thy Coufin the next Lord's Day took occafion to reprove this from Pulpit, in thefe Words, O Sirs, you are a curs'd Pack here in the T. of P. I was going by you the laft Day, when you were playing at Gouf, and one of you cry'd out, God damn that Gouf-ball. A bonnie Tale indeed, to bid God damn a brute Beaft!

And that thou art in the State of Damnation I could easily prove; because thou art a Schifmatick, and has gone against thy own Light, and holds the Truth in Unrighteousness, and that thou fins for a Morfel of Bread, and to ferve thy own Belly. For all thy Acquaintances that I know, declare, that thou was averfe to the Sect in which thou lives; and do think, that thou does not believe thy felf in what thou says. I told them, It is not fafe playing with Sin; it may be a Sport in the beginning, but it will turn Natural in the end: Let a Liar tell a Lie ofttimes over, he'll believe it at last himself.

The first Lie (fo called) which you charge me with, is Page 2. That I write, that your Dialogue fuppos'd a Weft Countryman to be civil to Curates. Whereas, they are generally taught by their Leaders to hate them as Monsters, and not to treat them with the common Civilities of Mankind.

To this thou fays, Have I attempted to prove it? And, for every person of Fame, that I'll get to fubfcribe to my Affertion, you'll get a Score to yours; viz. That the Weft Countrymen are taught by their Leaders, to be civil and courteous to all Men, Curates not excepted.

Domine, thou mightest well understand, if thou were not refolved to be contentious, (which is the nature of every one that is proud and paffionate, and of those that conceal the Truth upon a political and worldly Confideration) that I meant the Generality of the Commons, who are blindfolded by falfe and uncivil Teachers like Dom. And. For if any of them be civil, I am fure they have not learn'd that of thee: So that the words of the Prophet are verified, Hof. 4. 9. Like People, like Prieft.

I do not reckon all the Presbyterians, nor all the West Countrymen alike; because I know the contrary. But this I fay, that many of them owe their good Behaviour to their Complexion; and others to a civil Education; and not to the furly, foure and dark Principles, and morofe Converfation of fome of their Teachers, nor to the uncivil Example of Dom. Anderf.

Our Saviour discountenanc'd the fchifmatical Church of Samaria, when he faid to the Woman, John 4.22. Salvation is of the Jews; yet He fuppofed Luke 10. 30. c. that there might be fome better men there, than either a Priest or a Levite who was in the true Church. Nevertheless our Saviour would not fend the Samaritan Leper to that fchifmatical Kirk, to get a Declaration of his being cleanfed; but fent him to Jerufalem: And yet he was the only civilPerfon of the Ten that returned to giveChrift Thanks.

Our Saviour commended the Woman of Canaan for her Faith; and the Centurion, for his; and upbraided those that were in the true Church: Yet this does not fay, that it is indifferent whether we should be in a true Church or not; or that we are fure of Salvation any way. Some Turks may be far better Men, than many who go under the Name of Chriftian; and perhaps I may truft a Turk's Word fooner than fome Chriftian's Oath: Yet this will not fay, that the Turks are in a fafe Way to Salvation; but that it tends more to the Chriftian's Condemnation, who is not the Perfon that he should be, according to his Profeffion.

Thus when I fay, that the Commons in the Weft are generally taught to hate the Curates as Monsters; that is as true, as that the Arabians are Thieves, and that all the Cretians are Liars.

Now in proving fuch Affertions, there is no Obligation upon me to go through every Individual. For there are fome National Sins, and peculiar to one Corner of a Country more than to another. That the Weft Country Commons are generally taught to hate the Clergy as Monsters, is true and morally certain; witness the rabbling out of Three hundred Minifters in the dead of Winter, In the beginning of this Revolution. And as for dumb Dogs, it was a Word was never out of their Mouths, A when

when they spoke of Curates. When young Children ask'd their Parents, What is a Curate? The Answer was, they're dumb Dogs (honey) they cannot bark. By this, the young ones had no other Idea or Notion of a Curate, than that of a real Dog. I have heard a Story to this purpose of a ServantMaid, who returning with Water to her Mafter's Houfe, told when he came in, Here is the Curate riding by. At which the Children run out to fee the Curate; and taking inspection of his Perfon, they came running in to their Parents, and told, O Father, O Mother, he has Face, Hands and Feet like a Man.

The right Honourable Charles Earl of Lauderdale, were he in Life, could tell, how, at his Return from BothwelBridge, in his Converfe with fome of the Commons, they told him before Witneffes, that their Teachers made them believe that the Bishops were all cloven-footed.

The fecond thing thou impeaches me for as a Lie, P. 4. is, That John Knox, in his Book of Common Prayer, appoints the Lord's Supper to be given at least twelve times in a Year: But that most Parochins in Scotland will not give it once in twelve Years. And to this you fay, That the Communion has been oftner given these last twelve Years bypast, than the whole twentyeight Years preceeding the Revolution. And you give me a Challenge to put it to a Trial; O Heaven! O Earth! hear the Impudence of this Rafcal, to affert a thing which any Man may fwear, he never put to a Trial, and confequently was impoffible for him to know. But this he muft fay to ferve a Turn; an evil Cause must have ill Means to fupport it. Whatever may Whatever may be of late in a small Corner of the West, What is this to the most of the Nation? How many could I libel, who, for that space of time, never catechis'd, vifited the Sick, nor gave Communion.

I must here put thy Challenge to a Trial, and fend an Advertisement throughout the Kingdom for Information; and I am fure, Dom. Anderf. will come off with Difgrace.

I confefs the People are better wanting it, for God will not profper the Labours of an ufurp'd and unordain'd Miniftry. Jer. 23. 30, 31, .

I add to this the fcandalous manner of giving and receiving it, making it no more than the faying of a Grace to a piece of Bread and Cup of Sack; and uttering fuch Expreffions as this: Drink your Service to Chrift Sirs. This I undertake to prove upon the peril of the Cause.

Thirdly, You charge me with another Lie, in these Words that I fay, The Epifcopalians have the good things that the Papifts have; and Presbyterians have their worst things: And that Mr. Robertson, once a Dissenter and now a Conformift, did make a Parallel betwixt the Presbyterians and the Jesuits.

This thou denies, becaufe (as thou fays) Presbyterians are not guilty of Idolatry, and that Mr. Robertfon a Renegado's Judgment is not to be valued.

To this I return, That your Party is guilty of Rebellion by Principle and Practice; and this is as the sin of Witchcraft, and of Schifm also, which the Ancients fay, The Blood of Martyrdom could not wash away.

The Infallibility which you deny to the Pope, the Abfolute Power which you deny to the King, the Lordship which you deny to the Bishops, and the Spirit which you deny to the Quakers, every petty Teacher of you affumes to himself: And if you be not guilty of Idolatry by Images, you are guilty of it in your Imaginations, preferring your own extemporary Rhapsodies and blaf phemous Trash to the Form of found Words retained by the Church in all Ages; faying your own extemporary Prayers, aud neglecting Chrift's Form, neglecting the Apoftles Creed, and fetting up the Idol of your own Solemn League and Covenant, taking more Pains to make the People fulfil the Terms thereof, than making them to understand the Terms of the Covenant of Grace, ftudying to make them Presbyterians rather than Chriftians, I add, that your Godly greedy Folk are generally guilty of Covetousness, which is the flyeft and most dangerous kind of Idolatry.

Befides I add, that the learn'deft of your Presbyterians averr, that the Idolatry of Rome does not unchurch her: Her Ordinations and Sacraments are valid, but fo

are not yours.

Thou calls Mr. Robertfon a Renegado, for his coming out of the damnable State of Schifm and Enthufiafm, into the Bofom of the Church, where there is a Titie to Salvation; whereas it is well known, that Place and Preferment was never a Motive of his Converfion, and 'tis notour that thou left the Church and went into the Schifm, meerly for thy daily Bread, which thou dare not ask from God in Chrift's Words, fearing to give Offence to the Godly.

A Fourth Lie you fay I am guilty of is, That the Prefbyterians promifed Moderation to the Papifts, and particularly to the Chancellor of Scotland, not to preach againft Popery, when Proteftancy was at the Stake. This you fay is a Lie, and thou must not take it on my bare Word. And to confute me, you inftance Dr. Hardie.

Herein I affirm that thou art an impudent Liar, and tho' I be fparing to name Perfons, yet herein I bring in a Gentleman of unquestionable Reputation, and that is Blair-Drummond, who well knew your Goodwill to fink the establish'd Church, and will mantain what I have faid to be true, in fpight of what impudent Dom. Anderf. can fay or write. And as for Dr. Hardie, (which is the only Inftance thou can give) it is well known, that when he was made Prifoner for his plainnefs, that his brethren at their vifiting of him took occafion to rebuke him of Rafhnefs and Imprudence, particularly Mr. H. K. the Moderator, who in his zealous Repetitions, (whether vain or not let Dom. Anderf. judge) told, Brother, Brother, unfeasonable Truths, unfeafonable Truths.

A Fifth Lie thou endeavours to brand me with, is, That I faid, That Presbyterians do not read the Scriptures in publick, unless it be for a fhort Text to a long Sermon, or for a long Text to a fhort one.

Is not this generally known throughout the Kingdom, that you do not read Scriptures unlefs an immediate Expofition follow thereon, which was the Error that Mr. Robert Baillie Profeffor of Divinity at Glasgow, charg'd the Independents with, when Presbytery and they were by the Ears in former Times. See his Diffuafive from the Errors of the Times. And dare thou fay, that the Hundredth part of Scriptures are read in your Congregations by Preaching and Lecturing,as are read in Liturgical Congregations throughout the Year? And now, Domine, tell me, Why do ye omit the plainReading of theScriptures? Have you any better Reason for omitting this Ordinance,than a Presbyterian Ruling Elder once gave, viz. That they were fworn by the Covenant not to read Scriptures in publick: For the Bible had many Chapters, and they were fworn against Arch-Bishops, Bishops, Deans and Chapters.

When will Dom. Anderf. fall upon fuch a Knack as that? That's above bis Thumb.

A Sixth thing in my Anfwer, which thou calls a Lie is, That Ifay that there is not a trifling Objection in the Dialogue, but has been answered an Hundred times by the Ritualists, and that more than an Hundred Years ago, particularly by Tho

mas Hutton.

Thou answers to this very learndly, That Thomas Hutton has not answered the laft Objection against the Rubrick for finding out Eafter, I tell thee, He answer'd all the Objections that came in his way; and that of Eafter is no Objection against the Book of Common Prayer, but against the Calendar, or the right Enumeration of Time, which does not marr the Duty and Order of obferving the Solemnity of our Saviour's Refurrection, even tho they go wrong as to the Rule.

The laft Lie thou challenges, is, that I fay, That Pref byterians leave no stone unturn'd, no Method untry'd, to prevent the spreading of the Book of Common Prayer; for if Lies and Calumnies, and concealing the Truth from their Followers, can do them fervice they don't ask a Question for Confcience fake.

For the Truth of this I appeal to the common Experience of the three Nations. I could write as many Sheets as Dom. Anderf. has done to prove the Truth of this, how by Ignorance, and (which is worfe) by Malice you have traduc'd the Liturgy in Preachments, perhaps it may be done by another Hand.

When I have added, Not asking a Question for Confcience fake, thou tells, that the Countryman in the Dialogue

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