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ANECDOTE OF DR. DÖDDRIDGE.

To the Editor.

SIR, Perfuaded that the name of Doddridge will create no common degree of intereft in the minds of those who fofter the orphan memory of departed worth; I have selected, for the gratification of your numerous readers, the following interefting Anecdote, recorded by the Rev. Job Orton, in his "Memoirs of the late Rev. Philip Doddridge, D. D." The early infertion of it will oblige,

Bonner's Hall,

Jan. 2d, 1801.

Your's refpectfully,

MINIMUS.

was particularly concerned, deN event of a public uncommon nature, (fays Mr.

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terves to be related, as an evidence of his great benevolence, and for the fake of the useful reflections he makes upon it: April 5th, 1741. At our affize laft month, one Bryan Connell, an Irish Papift was convicted of the murder of Richard Brymley, of Weedon, about two years ago. The evidence against him at his trial feemed full and ftrong; but it chiefly depended on the credit of an infamous woman, who owned the had lived with him in adultery fome years. There were fonie remarkable cicumftances in the courfe of the trial, in which I thought the Providence of GOD wonderfully appeared. The pri foner told a long ftory of himself; but it was fo ill fupported, that I imagine no one perfon in court believed it." 1 vifred him after his conviction, with a compaffionate view to his eternal concerns; but inftead of being able, by any remonftrances, to perfuade him to confefs the fact, I found him fixed in a moft refolute denial of it. He continued to deny it the next day with fuch folemn, calm, but earncit, appeals to heaven, and fervent cries that GOD would intpire fome with the belief of his innocence, that I was much impressed. As he defired to leave with me, at the time of his execution, a paper, in which he would give an account of the places where, and the perfons with whom he was, when the murder was committed, I was fo ftruck with the affair, that I obtained time of the UnderSheriff to make enquiry into the truth of what he had told

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me. Having fent a wife and faithful friend to Whitchurch and Chester, to examine the evidence he appealed to, I found every circumftance which the convict had afferted, proved; and the concurrent teftimony of five credible perfons attefted, that he was in Chefhire, when the murder was committed. Thefe teftimonies I laid before the Judge by whom he was condemned, for the deliverance of what, in my conscience I believed, and do ftill believe, to be innocent blood. But the Judge did not think himself warranted to reprieve him; as the evidence given against him by the wicked woman was materially confirmed by two other witneffes; and becaufe he thought the most dangerous confequences might attend fuch an examination of the affair as I propofed. The Convict was accordingly executed! I had laboured with unwearied pains and zeal, both for the deliverance of his life and the falvation of his foul. What made the cafe more affecting to me was, that nothing could be more tender than his expreffions of gratitude, and nothing more chearful than his hope of deliverance had been. Among other other things I remember he faid, Every drop of my blood thanks you.' He wished he might, before he died, have leave to kneel at the threshold of my door, to pray for me and mine. You," faith he, are my Redeemer in one fenfe, (a poor, impotent redeemer !) and you have a right to me. If I live I am your property, and I will be a faithful fubject." The manner in which he spoke of what he promised himself from my friendship, if he had been fpared, was exceeding natural and touching. Upon the whole, I never paffed through a more ftriking fcene. I defire it may teach me the following leffons: Ift, to adore the awful juftice of GOD in caufing this unhappy creature tbus infamoufly to fall by her whom he had fo fcandalously finned, to the ruin of a very loving and virtuous wife. Thus GOD made his own law effectual, that the adulterer fhould die. 2dly, To acknowledge the depths of the divine counfels; which in this affair, when I think on all the circumftances of it, are to me impenetrable. 3dly, To continue refolute in welldoing, though I fhould be, as in this inftance, I have been, reproached and reviled for it. Some have faid, that I am an Irish Papift; others have used very contemptuous language, and thrown out base cenfures for my interpofing in this affair; though I am in my confcience perfuaded, that to have neglected that interpofition, in the view I then had of things, would have been the most criminal part in my

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whole life. 4thly, May I not learn from it gratitude to Him, who hath redeemed and delivered me? In which, alas! how far fhort do I fall of this poor creature! How eagerly did he receive the news of a reprieve for a few days! How tenderly did he exprefs his gratitude, that he fhould be mine; that I might do what I pleafed with him; that I had bought him; fpoke of the delight with which he fhould fee and ferve me: that he would come once a year from one end of the kingdom to the other, to fee and thank me, and fhould be glad never to go out of my fight. O why do not our hearts overflow with fuch fentiments on an occafion infinitely greater! We are all dead men. Execution would foon have been done upon us: But Chrift has redeemed us to God by his blood. We are not merely reprieved but pardoned; not merely pardoned but adopted; made heirs of eternal glory and near the borders of it. In confequence of all this we are not our own, but bought with a price. May we glorify God in our bodies and fpirits which are his !

VILLAGE DIALOGUES.

DIALOGUE I. Between Farmer LITTLEWORTH and his Servant THOMAS NEWMAN.

The Farmer goes after his labourers, and finds THOMAS at his work, finging.

Farmer.

ELL, Thomas, you feem very merry, what are you finging?

WEL

Thomas, Why I am finging one of the fongs of Zion. F. What fort of fongs are they?

T. I am finging his praises, who hath redeemed me by his blood, fanctified me by his Spirit, and leads me to his glory; and while I am finging I am chearful, and then I can work the better; befides, thefe good fongs keep bad thoughts out of my heart; and you know, mafter, bad thoughts are bad things, and bring about bad actions.

F. Why, Thomas, I wonder how you can be fo happy in these hard times.

T. Hard mafter, why we never mind hard times, while we can but live with a joyful hope of a happy eternity. "We need be careful for nothing, while with prayer and thanksgiving we make our requests known unto God."

F. I am fure my wife and I have care enough, what between my fon, who is lately gone to fea, and my three : VOL, IX.

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daughters, whom I can never keep at home, unless they have twenty goffips, and fine miffes with them. Though I have fuch a good farm, yet it all goes as fast as it comes in.

T. Oh, mafter! you want a proper house-keeper.

F. Nay, Thomas, you fhould not fay fo; for my old dame is as good a houfe-keeper as any in the parish, if my children did not turn out fo untowardly.

T. The house-keeper I mean is Mr. Godly fear: and I truft, by the bleffing of God, I know the worth of that gentleman very well; he has lived in my houfe almost ever fince Mr. Lovegood has been Vicar of our parish: and Mr. Godlyfear charges nothing for his wages, though he provides us with more bread and cheese in these hard times, than ever we had when times were better and master, if fo be I may be plain with you, had you and madam had the fame houfe-keeper, he might have kept your fon from running into wickednefs, and then he need not have gone to fea; and he would have made your daughters keep at home, and mind the business of the house.

F. Why, Thomas, you are not the worse for hearing your parfon; I confefs he has made you a better man, than when you came home drunk with me from Mapleton fair.

T. Á thoufand, and a thousand times, I have thought that we were worse than the hogs we went to buy, and which I drove home the next day.

F. Ah! Thomas, that was partly my fault.

T. But, mafter, if you think I am the better for hearing our minifter, why won't you come and hear him too.

F.

Why if I did, I fhould be jeer'd at all the market over; you know, Thomas, your cottage is not in our parish, and what would our Rector fay, if I was to leave our church to hear Mr. Lovegood; for you know he hates him mortally; calls him all forts of names; fays he is a Thufiaft; but what he means by it I cannot tell: and I should have as good a peal about my ears from my wife and daughters, as ever I fhould have from the parfon.

T. And what of all that, mafter, if you can but get good to your foul? for there is no good like it.

F. Ah! Thomas this is fine talk; for if I was to quarrel with our parfon, I fhould never have any peace in the parish, and he would raife my tithes directly.

T. Why fince I have been blefs'd with the fear of God, I have been kept from the fear of man; and it has been a thousand times better with me ever fince. Now I am a poor man, and had need fear every body; and you have a

good

good farm, and need fear nobody. If Mr. Godly fear had lived in your houfe, he would have kept from you, far enough, fuch fears as thefe.

F. I confefs at times, I fhould be glad of fuch a guest; for he seems to have kept your houle very well. How many children have you?

T. Thank God I have fix, and another a coming.

F Why, how do you provide for them all?

T. By prayer and patience.

F. I am fure you muit have fomething better than that. T. Better! mafter, I am directed to pray for my daily bread, and wait with patience 'till it comes; and the Lord is as good as his promife; for if we "feck firft the kingdom of God and his righteoufnefs, all these things fhall be added unto us." If I am poor, and a little pinched at one time, I have plenty at another. To be fure, it was to admiration what a fight of things were fent us, when my wife, the fourth time the lay in, was brought to bed of twins. Juft as we began to miftruft what we fhould do when the children came fo faft, in came Madam Trufty, Squire Worthy's houfe-keeper, with fucif a nice bundle of babylinnen, and other things for my wife, that the and the children were foon dreffed like gentlefolks; and I am told the Mifs Worthys made thefe nice clothes with their own hands; and two days afterwards, two of the young ladies came themselves to our cottage, and gave my wife half a crown a-piece; and then the fame day, Mrs. Traffick, of the fhop, fent her fuch a large pitcher-full of nice fmoaking-hot caudle, it would have done your heart good only to have smelt it; and faid that when the pitcher was empty, we were to fend it back, and fhe would fill it again; and our dear minifter went about and got us money enough to buy coals to ferve us all the winter; and at the chriftening he gave us five fhillings to help us on: fo that I was never better off in all my life; for the fafter the children, came, the better we were provided for. I'll promise you mafter, we had enough, and enough to do, to praife God for his mercies on this occafion : and, tho' I fay it that fhould not, our poor children look as decent, and as healthy as any children in our parish, or the next to it.

F. Well, Thomas, you had need mind your hits to breed them all up.

T. Why, mafter, you know the old proverb, God helps them that help themselves; for firit, I always put the children to work as foon as they are able: they either spin or

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