Wesley Corpus

village, wherein there is not one or more earnestly athirst for salvation. Wed. 4-. I called upon an honest man, and, I hope, took him outofthe hands of an egregious quack ; who was pouring in medicines upon him, for what he called "wind in the nerves !" In the evening I preached at Louth, now as quiet as Grimsby. When shall we learn " to despair of none ?" Thur. 5. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Brackenbury again, though still exceeding weak. His chapel was thoroughly filled in the evening ; I trust, with sincere hearers. Fri. 6.-1 crossed over to Langham-Row; where the high wind would not suffer me to preach abroad. But the House tolerably contained the congregation; most of whom attended again at five in the morning. To-day I finished the second volume of Dr. Robertson's " History of America." His language is always clear and strong, and frequently elegant ; and I suppose his history is preferable to any history of America which has appeared in the English tongue. But I cannot admire, First, His intolerable prolixity in this history, as well as his " History of Charles the Fifth." He promises eight books ofthe History of America, and fills four of them with critical dissertations. True, the dissertations are sensible, but they have lost their way; they are not history : And they are swelled beyond all proportion; doubtless, for the benefit of the author and the bookseller, rather than the reader. I cannot admire, Secondly,A Christian Divine writing a history, with so very little of Christianity in it. Nay, he seems studiously to avoid saying any thing which might imply that he believes the Bible. I can still less admire, Thirdly, His speaking so honourably of a professed Infidel ; yea, and referring to his masterpiece of Infidelity, " Sketches of the History of Man;" as artful, as unfair, as disingenuous a book, as even Toland's " Nazarenus." Least of all can I admire, Fourthly, His copying after Dr. Hawkesworth, (who once professed better things,) in totally excluding the Creator from governing the world. Was it not enough, never to mention the Providence of God, where therewas the fairest occasion, without saying expressly, " The fortune of Certiz," or " chance," did thus or thus ? So far as fortune or chance governs the world, God has no place in it.