The MSS. which Mr. ROBINSON hath left on this fubject are voluminous; but they are neither arranged nor finished. The following is a fketch of them:

These are all clofely written large quarto pages. It is the intention of Mr. ROBINSON's family to fubmit them to the inspection of some of his learned friends, on whose approbation the publishing of them will depend. Mr. ROBINSON had also made great collections for the Hiftories of the German and English Baptifts, which he proposed to write next winter; and

he

he had prepared fome materials for the History of the Dutch, American, and other foreign Baptists.

Mr. ROBINSON Wrote very little during the last twelve months. The whole of the present volume, except the preface and the recapitulation was finished before that time. Though the reader may wish the Author had retouched fome parts, he will still find in it an ample fund of improvement and entertainment, and the noble spirit of liberty, which it breathes, cannot fail of recommending it to the liberal men of every sect.

For the errours of the prefs the Author hath made an apology in the preface, which we trust will be accepted.

Mr. ROBINSON had engaged himself in the fpring to preach the annual fermons for the benefit of the Diffenters CharitySchool at Birmingham, and he promised himself great pleasure from an interview with Dr. PRIESTLY, and other gentlemen of that place. The physician did not disapprove of the journey, though he wished it could have been deferred a week or two longer, and his family flattered themselves that the exercise and company would have the most beneficial effects on his health and spirits. On Wednesday, June 2, he fet off from Chesterton with his fon, in an open carriage, and travelling by easy stages arrived at Birmingham on Saturday evening, apparently not at all the worse for his journey. On Sunday he preached twice, in the morning at the new meeting-house, and at the old meetinghouse in the afternoon. On Monday evening his friends were alarmed for him from an exceffive difficulty of refpiration, under which he laboured for fome time, but on Tuesday he revived,

and entertained the company the greater part of the day and the whole of the evening, with all that ease and vivacity in converfation, for which he had ever been' remarkable. He retired to rest about twelve o'clock, and probably died without a struggle foon after he got to bed, for on Wednesday morning he was found nearly cold, the bed-clothes were not discomposed, nor the features of his countenance in the least distorted. It was always his defire to die fuddenly and alone.

Mr. ROBINSON departed this life at the age of fifty-four years and eight months, in the house of WILLIAM RUSSELL, Efq. at Showell-Green, near Birmingham, and was interred by this gentleman with every poffible mark of respect in the Diffenters burying-ground. Dr. PRIESTLEY and feveral other diffenting ministers paid the due tribute of respect to the remains of our much esteemed friend.

We intend to publifh an authentick biographical account of Mr. ROBINSON in a fhort time.

CHESTERTON, CAMBRIDGE,

July 14, 1790..

PREFACE.

EFORE you perufe the following History, pardon me if I

detain you a moment to inform you of my real motive for compiling it, for I am well aware, that Baptifm, one of the chief institutes of our holy religion, hath been the innocent occafion of so many mean motives and violent difpofitions, that the subject can hardly be mentioned without exciting fufpicions of unfair treatment. I hope you will not find any thing to offend in the following fheets, at least, I can affure you that I have not allowedmyself to deal in cenforiousness, or knowingly to use the language of bitterness and wrath.

When the fubject first darted into my mind, I own; I was not thinking of Baptism, but of the evidences of Christianity. I was entering on that argument, which is taken from its rapid progress, and the multitude of its profeffors, and I was the more ftruck with it by observing that the firft ecclefiaftical historian, Luke, in the book of Acts, makes frequent use of it; but I could not help at the fame time obferving, that the fame argument is not valid now, because a profeffion of Christianity doth not now imply an exercise of reafon and affent, but is put upon infants by extrinsick force. The conduct of a multitude of wife, free, and virtuous men forms a presumption in favour of the reasonableness of their actions, but a multitude of beings of no character cannot form even the shadow of a presumption. The firft are the thousands

of whom Luke wrote, the laft are the modern profeffors of the Christian religion.

Some writers have availed themselves of the modern cafe, and fuppofing, as they have been told, that Jefus inftituted the profeffing of his name in nonage, they have ventured to reprefent Christianity and its author unworthy of such respect as Christians pay to both. Thus the objection is transferred to the gospel, and the wisdom and equity of the author of it are brought into queftion, unwarily no doubt, but the fact is true, and the reasoning, though from mistaken data, hath confiftency and weight.

Nor doth infant-baptism appear lefs incongruous with the natural rights of mankind than it is with the wisdom and equity of Christianity. Of perfonal liberty, one of the dearest branches is liberty of confcience, the liberty of choofing a religion for one's-self of which none is capable during infancy. It is the parent or the magistrate, who chooses what religion the infant shall profess, and this is depriving him of a natural birth-right.

The observation, that infants are disposed of in baptism, without their knowledge or confent, is a sort of finger pointing to the age and the kind of governments where it was first practised. It must have happened where the choice of the religion of one man was a right of feigniory exercised by another.

Full of these, and fuch-like suspicions, and loth to think Chriftianity inimical to perfonal freedom, I fet myself to examine the History of Baptifm, and the following fheets contain my obfervations. They go to prove that the Christianity, which Jefus and his primitive difciples taught and practifed, is not liable to any objections on this head, but that it is in full agreement with the perfec