were not idle, but improved their time in praying and hearing, and were ready to re ceive instruction, and were strangely borne up against the fears of the disease and death, every day so familiar to the view. But at last we were visited, and the plague came in dreadfully upon us. The cup was put into our hand to drink, after a neighbouring family had tasted it, with whom we had much sweet society in this time of sorrow. And first our maid was smitten. It began with a shivering and trembling in her flesh, and quickly seized on her spirits. It was a sad day, which I believe I shall never forget. I had been abroad to see a friend in the city, whose husband was newly dead of the plague, and she herself visited with it. I came back to see another whose wife was dead of the plague, and he himself under apprehensions that he should die within a few hours. I came home, and the maid was on her deathbed; and another crying out for help, being left alone in a sweating fainting fit. What was an interest in Christ worth then! What a privilege to have a title to the kingdom of heaven!" "Ministers now had awakening calls to seriousness and fervour in their ministerial work; to preach on the side and brink of the pit, into which thousands were falling; to pray under such near views of eternity, into which many were daily passing, might be a means to stir up the spirit more than ordinary.

"Now there is such a vast concourse of people in the churches where the ministers are to be found, that they cannot many times come near the pulpit doors for the press, but are forced to climb over the pews to them and such a face is now seen in the assemblies as seldom was seen before in London-such eager looks, such open ears, such greedy attention, as if every word would be eaten which dropped from the mouths of the ministers.

"If you ever saw a drowning man catch at a rope, you may guess how eagerly many people did catch at the word when they were ready to be overwhelmed by this overflowing scourge which was passing through the city; when death was knocking at so many doors, and God was crying aloud by his judgments; and ministers were now sent to knock, cry aloud, and lift up your voice like a trumpet.' Then the people began to open the ear and the heart, which were fast shut and barred before. How did they then hearken, as for their lives: as if every sermon were their last: as if death stood at the door of the church, and would seize upon them so soon as they came forth; as if the arrows which flew so thick in the city would strike them before they could get to their houses; as if they wère immediately to appear before the bar of that God, who, by his ministers, was now speaking unto them. Great were the impressions which the word then made upon many hearts, beyond the power of man to effect, and beyond what the people before ever felt; as some of them have declared. When sin is ripped up and reproved, O the tears that slide down from the eyes! when the judgments of God are denounced, O the tremblings which are upon the conscience! when the Lord Jesus Christ is made known and proffered, O the longing desires and openings of heart unto him! when the richness of the Gospel are displayed, and the promises of the covenant of grace are set forth and applied, O the inward burnings and sweet flames which were in the affections! Now the net is cast, and many fishes are taken; the pool is moved by the angel, and many leprous spirits and sin-sick souls are cured. A strange moving there was upon the hearts of multitudes in the city; and I am persuaded that many were brought over effectually unto a closure with Jesus Christ; whereof some died by the plague with willingness and peace, and others remain stedfast in God's ways unto this day. But convictions, I believe, many hundreds had, if not thousands, which I wish that none may have stifled, and with the dog returned to their vomit,' and with the sow, have wallowed again in the mire' of their former sins. The work was the more great, because the instruments were most obscure and unlikely; whom the Lord did make choice of the rather, that the glory by ministers and people might be ascribed in full unto himself.

"About the beginning of these ministers' preaching, especially after the first fast together, the Lord begins to remit, and turn his hand, and cause some abatement of the disease."

"Now the citizens, who had dispersed themselves abroad into the countries, because of the contagion, think of their old houses and trades, and begin to return, though with fearfulness and trembling, lest some of the after drops of the storm should fall upon them. And O that many of them had not brought back their old hearts and their old sins, which they had carried away with them! O that there had been a general repentance and reformation, and returning to the Lord that had smitten the city! The Lord gave them leisure and vacation from their trades; had they improved the opportunity, and generally mourned for sin, which brought the plague upon the city; had they humbly and earnestly besought the Lord to turn from his fierce anger, which was kindled against London; it might have prevented the desolating judgment by fire which followed. But, alas! how many spent their time of leisure in toys and trifles, at best about feeding and preserving their bodies, but no time in serious minding the salvation of their souls! and, if some were a little awakened with fear whilst the plague raged so greatly, and they looked upon themselves to be in such danger; yet, when they apprehended the danger to be over, they dropped asleep faster than

before. Still they are the same, or worse than formerly; they that were drunken are drunken still; they that were filthy are filthy still; and they that were unjust, and covetous, do still persevere in their sinful course. Cozening, and lying, and swearing, and cursing, and Sabbath-breaking, and pride, and envy, and flesh-pleasing, and the like sins, offensive and provoking to God, do abound in London, as if there were no signification in God's judgments by the plague. Some return to their houses, and follow their worldly business, and work as hard as they can to fetch up the time they have lost, without minding and labouring to improve by the judgment, and God's wonderful preservation of them. Others return, and sin as hard as they can, having been taken off for a while from those opportunities and free liberties for sin, which they had before. Most began now to sit down at rest in their houses when summer was come and the plague did not return; and they bring back all their goods, which they had carried into the country because of the plague. They did not ima gine they should be forced to remove them again so soon by the great fire."

Our allusion to Vincent's work would be very unjust, if, after the above notice of its historical details, we laid it down without copying a portion of his faithful and striking exhortations. They are seasonable at all times, but more especially at the present moment.

"The first sin of London is slighting of the Gospel. The Gospel in England hath above this hundred years shined forth out of the clouds of Popery and Antichristianism, which before did overspread the land; and in no place of England hath the Gospel been preached with greater power and purity than in London; and what entertainment hath it found; hath it been valued according to its worth and excellency; hath it been received as if it had come down from the God of heaven, expressing his love and good-will towards the children of men, as if it had brought such good news and tidings, as salvation by Jesus Christ?

"Read the eulogium which the Apostle Peter gives of the salvation made known by the Gospel, 1 Pet. i. 10-12. Of which salvation the Prophets have inquired, and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you; searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them, did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow; unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us, they did minister the things which are now reported unto you, by them that have preached the Gospel unto you, with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, which things the angels desire to look into.' The Prophets of old did inquire and search, but did not so clearly understand the Gospel, as now it is revealed: our Saviour tells his disciples, Luke x. 24, that many prophets and kings had desired to see the things which they saw, and had not seen them; and to hear the things which they did hear, and have not heard them for indeed this mystery was hid from ages and generations, which God then made manifest unto the saints.' Col. i. 26. And the Apostle Paul tells us, that though the ministration of the law were glorious, insomuch that it made the face of Moses to shine,' unto whom the law was revealed upon the Mount, yet that it had no glory in comparison with the ministration of the Gospel, whose glory did so far excel,' 2 Cor. iii. 7-10: the mysteries of God's wisdom and love revealed in the Gospel, being so glorious, surely are worthy of acceptation and esteem, especially when the angels, who are not so much concerned, desire to look into these things, unto whom it is said, Eph. iii. 10, Is made known by the church, the manifold wisdom of God.' And yet these great things, which have been reported by them, who have preached the Gospel, with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, have been undervalued in London. The Gospel hath been slighted in London; and though some have been more notoriously guilty, yet who can altogether excuse themselves from this sin?"

"All these persons have been slighters of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the ignorant, the profane, the hypocrite, and the erroneous; and if you place them all in one company, how few will there remain in London, that have sincerely and heartily embraced the truth as it is in Jesus, and upon whom the Gospel hath made a powerful and saving impression! And even amongst those that have been affected and converted by the preaching of the Gospel, and had it greatly in esteem at first hearing and believing; how was their esteem of the Gospel fallen, and their affection cooled! Did not Gospel-ordinances begin to lose their worth and excellency, and grow tedious and wearisome unto them? O, how generally unthankful was London for Gospel privileges and liberties! Yea, many began to be very nice and wanton, and the Gospel was not relished, unless it was served up with such neatnesses and dressings, in which some ministers possibly did too much endeavour to please themselves and the people; and then the sauce was more relished than the food itself, and the appetite of many was so spoiled, that plain, wholesome, soul-saving truths, would not go down with them. Londoners began to be glutted with the Gospel; and, like the Israelites in the wilderness, their souls began to loath the manna which came down from heaven. A strange curiosity there was in spiritual palates which in many turned to a loathing

of the food, insomuch that the Gospel became a burden unto them, and thence it was that many turned away their ears from the truth, and were turned unto errors; and they could not endure to hear sound doctrine, but having itching ears, heaped up unto themselves teachers according to their lusts.' 2 Tim. iv. 3, 4.

"And those that continued stedfast in the truth, did not duly prize the Gospel,

none of them according to its dignity and worth."

"If London do not repent ere long, and labour to recover its relish and esteem of the Gospel, and make more evident demonstrations of it, I fear the Lord will quite remove the Gospel from them; and then nothing is like to follow but desolation and woe."

"The second sin of London is unfruitfulness in such a fertile soil. This sin hath been an attendant upon, and a consequent of the former.

"London was not only a Goshen, but an Eden; God chose out London to be bis garden, he hath hedged it, planted, watered, pruned, and manured it; no place in the world hath had more plenty of the means of grace; God hath given the former and the latter rain; and sweet dews of heaven, both morning and evening did fall upon this place in the morning seed was sown, and in the evening the hand was not withdrawn: plentiful and powerful hath preaching been in London, in season and out of season, on the Sabbath-day and on the week day; but hath London answered all God's care and cost? Hath not God come for many years together, seeking fruit, and found nothing but the leaves of profession? Hath he not often threatened to cut down the unfruitful trees, and not suffer them to cumber his ground any longer? and when, through the intercession of the vine-dresser, he hath spared them this year, and another year, hath not the same unfruitfulness still remained? What could the Lord have done more to his vineyard than he hath done? wherefore then, when he looked for grapes, brought it forth only leaves or wild grapes? And is it then to be wondered at, if the Lord pluck down the hedge thereof, that it might be eaten by the wild boar and beast of the field, if he break down the wall thereof, and make it waste and desolate? Is it to be wondered at, if he withold the clouds that they rain not on it, and suffer briars and thorns to spring up in it, where the plants did grow?

"Those who have not abounded in the grosser works of the flesh, very few of them have been very fruitful in good works. London hath had the means of grace, and yet most of them without grace, few of them have much grace. London hath had powerful ordinances, but what powerful effect have they produced? What have they to shew of all their prayers, and sermons, and sacraments? Have they attained unto a great measure of mortification? Is grace grown up to a great height? what evidences, what experiences have the best got, which they might have got, had they been more diligent?

"Give me leave a little more particularly to instance the unfruitfulness of London in regard of repentance, faith, love, and new obedience, the fruit which God so much looketh for, and so much delighteth in."

"Alas! how formal hath London been, especially of late in God's worship; they have prayed, but what kind of prayers have they been? Could they deserve the name of prayers? Were those prayers likely to prevent judgment, or turn away wrath? Some confessions of sin have been made, but so general and formal, that they have been very unlikely to work up the heart to sorrow and repentance; and where some have been more particular, hath not much formality cleaved to them? Where hath hearty grief for sin, and sorrow been to be found? Would not a small vial hold all the tears that have dropped from the eyes of great assemblies, even in the day of their solemn humiliations? Hath not sin been rolled under the tongue when con fession of sin hath been at the end of it? Have not the confessions of many been such, as if they came to ask leave to commit sin, rather than humbly to bewail it? At least, have they not taken leave, whatever their confessions have been? Petitions have been made for pardon, and grace, and sanctification; but hath it not been lipprayer, without hearty desire? Hath it not been in such a manner, as if they did not much care whether they did speed or no? As if they could make shift well enough without a pardon? As if they had no need of grace and holiness: but they must say something for form and custom. Hath there not been an enmity in the hearts of many against that which they have seemed to desire with their lips? Who have stirred up themselves to lay hold on God? Who have wrestled in prayer, with fervent desires, with faith, and importunity? Hearing there hath been in London, but how little believing; how little relishing the word, and receiving it with love! Singing there hath been, but how little joy and melody of the heart in the Lord. O how formal and luke-warm have Londoners been; how much of the Laodicean temper have they had in all ordinances! And may not God say to London as he did of old to Jerusalem, Isa. i. 11, 12, 13, 14."

"Another sin of London is division amongst professors. Different persuasions have made wide breaches and divisions in London; and through divisions have arisen great animosities and contentions, unto the shame of Christianity and the Protestant religion; and hath not God been provoked to anger hereby? Hath not he contended

with professors, and by the common scourge he hath brought upon them, called aloud unto them for a union, and more hearty accord and affection than formerly they have had? And hath not he given them liberty and opportunity, had they minded and cared to make use of it, for meeting together in order unto healing? But have professors of different parties been sensible of God's meaning in the scourge upon their backs? Have they hearkened unto God's call? Have they laid hold of and improved opportunities for closing up their wide breaches? I hope some closing in affection there hath been amongst some; but how rarely hath it been to be found; and when there are such breaches still amongst us, is it not just with God to make further breaches upon us, as he hath done by his judgments?"

We should regret that any reader should think the foregoing passages too long or out of place, or should fail to read them with deep humility, personal and national appropriation, and earnest prayer.

Having entered so far into the subject of the plague of 1665, and the publications respecting it, we must not pass over the work before alluded to, lately reprinted by Mr. Scott; "Preparations for the Plague, as well for Soul as Body." We confess that some of the stories in it appear to us so much in the De-Foe style, that however probable, the work being anonymous and unauthenticated, we cannot appeal to them as facts. We are the more careful to notice this, lest the circumstances related should be quoted as documentary evidence to decide facts; as for example, whether the plague is contagious whether it can be taken several times by the same persons, the best methods of guarding against it, and a variety of other questions. We copy the concluding passage of the narrative portion of the work as an illustration of our remark.

"Thus, next to the protection of God's Providence, a complete retirement from the street, and from conversing on any account whatever with the rest of the people; separating from them, and having, as we may say, nothing to do with them, neither to buy, or sell, or speak, or sit with them or near them, was proved to be capable of effectually preserving a man or a family, in the time of the direst infection.

"I will not suppose this man or his family, who were so severe in fasting and humbling themselves before God, all the time they were under apprehensions of the distemper, and surrounded with daily experience of the dreadful calamity that lay upon the city, could so far forget themselves now, as not to give God thanks in the most solemn manner possible for their deliverance. That part I take for granted. They could not be rational creatures, much less Christians, and retain no sense of such a signal preservation. I will therefore, I say, take that for granted, and suggest that the master of the family with the utmost seriousness of devotion performed this part, and that he obliged all his family to do the like.

"I am also to observe that, whereas this gentleman laid in a magazine of stores sufficient for his family for a whole year; and as he was not shut up above seven months or thereabouts, he had a quantity of various articles remaining: and these you are to understand that he brought out when the markets were open, and provisions came in plenty again, and might be procured without danger, and made a thankoffering of them to the poor, namely,

1500 lbs. of biscuit
300 lbs. of cheese

5 hogsheads of beer

5 flitches of bacon

2 barrels and more of salted beef."

We cannot prove that this passage was written by De Foe: but it is very much in his style, especially the tabular enumeration of provisions at the end; which no person we presume will suppose to describe an exact matter of fact. There were other writers of that day besides De Foe, who knew how to give to fiction the colour of truth. Need we name the unknown author of Mademoiselle de St. Phale, (which has often been attributed, but erroneously, to De Foe), or the well-known author of the inimitable Pilgrim's Progress. But be this as it may, the conversations in the narrative before us are highly interesting and instructive, and amply justify Mr. Scott's re-publication of the work at the present moment. The fiction is chiefly a peg for the notes, and we do not object to it because it is fiction, any more than we object to the Pilgrim's Progress,

but because it is so mixed up with a portion of truth that we cannot tell where the one ends and the other begins.

The following is a portion of the first conversation between the members of the family supposed to be shut up during the visitation :—

"Mother. I cannot look back, child, without horror of mind, upon the dreadful time in the year 1625. I was but newly married and settled in the world; and we were all full of mirth as you are now: and on a sudden the distemper broke out, and all our smiles were turned into lamentations and tears.

"Son. It came suddenly it may be, without any warning.

"M.

:

No, no people had warning too: but we that were young people then, just as you are now, would take no notice of it: we were marrying and giving in marriage to the very day that it came upon us; and, when good people spoke to us of repenting, and preparing to meet the Lord in his day of wrath, and humbling ourselves under his mighty hand, we thought them, just as you do now, too melancholy and phlegmatic; that they did not do well to alarm the public, and put families and cities into fright and disorder: and thus we went on.

"S. Well, madam, and yet, for all that, it may be you thought as seriously of it when it came as they did.

"M.

Ay, son, but they that had thought seriously of it so long before had a great advantage of us, and were so much before us in their preparations.

"S. They had so much more indeed to answer for if they were not better prepared.

"M. I think, son, it should be rather said, we had so much the more to answer for if we were worse prepared.

"S. But, madam, what can we do in the case as it stands now? every one ought to prepare for death whether there be a plague in the town or not: death comes in many other shapes than that of a pestilence.

"M. That is true, child, and I do not speak against daily preparatian for death: God forbid that I should: but, when an infection comes, child, death seems to come with more terrors about him, cuts down swifter, and we have less time to think of what is to follow.

"S. Some reflect upon the severity of the judgment, on that very score; in that people are swept away with a stroke, and have scarce time to look up.

"M. No, son, let none say so; for I affirm that God's mercies are so interspersed with his judgments, that we have abundant cause to acknowledge them, and ought to keep our eye upon them in this particular, namely, that God always gives people more time to prepare for death in the case of a plague than of an ordinary distemper.

"S. How, madam? That cannot be, for in the plague people often die in twelve hours after they are taken; whereas in fevers and other distempers they generally lie as many days, or more.

"M.

Ay, son, but then you do not consider that the plague generally approaches a country by slow degrees, and you have many months' warning of it before it comes; so that, if it swept all away in a day, there is no room to call it sudden, for every one had warning of it beforehand.

"S. But people do not look on the judgment as particular, till it touches them personally, or points to them in a family capacity; that is to say, till it has gotten into the house.

"M. That people do not take warning is their folly and fault; but that God gives them warning is their mercy, if they knew how to make use of it.

"S. Every body is willing to hope he shall escape.

"M. But every body ought to provide as if he were not to escape. Every soldier in the army hopes to escape being killed, but each soldier puts on his head-piece, that he may fare the better if he is hit.

"S.

We should prepare, no doubt: but to be apprehensive continually, as if we were sure to have the distemper, is even to fright ourselves into it. All physicians agree that we should keep our minds easy and calm; that the passions of fear and anger prepare the constitution to receive and nourish the infection; at least to dispirit and debilitate us, so that we are not duly fortified to resist the enemy which we have to struggle with.

"M. You greatly mistake the thing, child, and mistake my meaning: I am of the same mind, and say as the doctors do, though upon other grounds. The mind should be kept calm and unencumbered, that nature may be assisted to repulse the enemy that attacks her: but then I say, that nothing can animate and encourage the mind like a firm resignation to the will of God, and a comfortable hope that it shall be well with us beyond the present life. This is certainly the best preparation for the distemper."

It seems that in those days, as in ours, there were some who objected to the appointment of seasons of fasting and humiliation, with the same CHRIST. OBSERV. No. 365.

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