Ossian Collection > Gentleman's magazine, and historical chronicle > Volume 66, Part 2

554 Places of JVorJhlp of DiJJinUrs from the Church EJlohllJhment. [July,
rior to Mr. R. in learning, or charac-
ter, or any other refpeft, to whom no
fuch offers have been made, I com-
plain that fuch a preference ftould be
.given ; and that prefernient fhould go
begging, which would be (o accept-
able >to hundreds, who, /rom princi-
ple, free from the tcmptiion of a
bribe, are already zealoufly engaged
in the fervice of our Chujch. The
Doflor has, no doubt, good grounds
<or what he advances ; and he will
oblige, together with myfelf, many
other of your readers if he will be fo
good as to fay who thefe dignitaries
were. We often read, in accounts of
the lives of Nonconformifts, that fuch
offers were made, and, of courfe, with
much fiimnefs refifled ; but they have
been either at too remote a period to
call for proofs, or the publick have
not thought it wonli v\hi!eto difpuie
a point which, like the machinery of
the epic poeqi, foj-n)s a past \r\ the
life. of every eminent DjiTenting teach-
er ; but, in the pr^fe|it cafe, the fub-
jefit and circumftan/.es are io recent
that the faft may be, fafily proved. i
and the Do£tor's ch^ra£ler ftands too
high with the publjck to ativ^nce any
thing which he is not able to make
good. J.E. L,
Mr. UREAtj, . June^, .
IN p, 34, Quf,\%fus, exprefTes a wiih,
" that an account o| the.pIaces:of
public worlhip, bejaeg.iBg.to- the Dif-
ienters from liie C^iurdK-i-riabiifliment,
in London, with tlieir pivacljers, and
tirries of fe/vjcej be- cuTifnur.icated b.y
the fafije hafl(js,,^^d^t,hrough the fan>e
channels, as had bc,ferp communica-
.,ied to you a lift of; tJi^-e London, and
country bookfellers, vyup. had publifii-
e.d catalogues of their reipcdiTe hina-
liti-.'' ..'.;,." '
^ Cutiofus at ih* .ia n^e.tinae informed
,Vou, "that he trufied he ihould b,e
able to.furnllh you'iwitb.a curious lift,
of the fame kiniij, of pJapes of public
woriliip throughout the kingdom,
from tlic papers of the liitc learned
and ingenious j\lr. Kobinlon, author
of the KifLory of jjrpiilin, A'c." .
On- reading the above ar:icis. Sir,
I .was fomewhai iurprized ; knowing
xt.at the pipers uf the late Mr. Robin-
.I'on were entrnfud to iny cart, as a
guide t» me in detailing his h Uory ;
and knowing, at the laine time, that,
.agreeably t4> a promile made to tl^e
'faoiiiy, f had never comiiiunicatcd,
3
nor meant to communicate, any papers
either to individuals or publications j
I requeft the favour of you to permit
me to make this declaration in your
Magazine, and to place that matter
in a true light.
Now, Sir, in the Memoirs of Mr.
Robinfon, lately publ'.fhed, there is
certainly a general 'vie-uu of the Hate of
the Proiffinnt Dijfenting inter tji in Eng-
land and Wales in 1775 ; ^* ** '^^ ^^
the /ate of Noncoiiformitj tn Cambridge'
fbire. One contains only a hit of the
counties, number of churches, and
denominations; the other contains a
lift of the towns, denominations, paf-
tors, or miniftcrs. The former may,
1 doubt not, be depended on for ac-
curacy ; having been difiwn cut by a
gentleman well know n for his minute
attention to the DiiTsnteis' hiftory ;
the latter was made by Mr. Robin-
fon, from documents procured from
the pallors of the refpeftive congrega-
tions.
Thefe lifts, if I recolleft rightly, I
cxtradled from the Diflenters' church-
book at Cambridge. The general
view of the number of churches, de-
nominations, and counties, in England
and Wales, is Eiot fo minute as the
other; and the latter is more de-
feSive, from what caufe I am igno-
norant, than Mr. Robinfon originally
■ iirtended it. If, therefore, your cor-
-r^fpondent realiv poifelTes any addi-
tional papers of Mr. Robinfon, whicii
could fupply that deficiency, he would
dblige luch as are cuiious in thofe
matters by communicating them to
your Magazine. In lupprelfing them,
he recedes, in fome meafure, from an
engagemeni, and fcarcely performs liis
duiy to the publick.
- But, if Curiofus meant only to ac-
quaint you tiiat he had been inform-
ed, eirher from myfelf -or fome of my
fiienc's, that fuch l;Iis, extraited from
Mr. Robnfon's papers, would appear
in his Memoirs, and that he would
copy them for jour Magazine, fiill
he has not abided by his intentions j
and, as his letter is lb expreUed a» to
leave me undtr an iinpioper imputa-
. tion, VIZ. that 1 had been unf.»uhful
10 a iruft, 1 have troub.ed you wuh
thefe lines.
1 ftiil farther requefl you to allow
metodojuftice to ir;y(cif, in an ar-
ticle which relates to me in.tl.e Re-
vie.vv of the Aicmoirs of Robinlon,
that appeared in the Magazine for