tion to Newton, and afterwards Sir, Bofion, Sept. 14, 1804. ANTHOLOGY. IN looking over the Gentleman's to Leibnitz. Name occafionally To THE EDITOR OF THE MONTHLY the authors of all new difcoveries. Let your journal be a faithful register of the glory of great men. In expofing opinions, in fupporting, in combating them, carefully avoid injurious expreffions, which irritate an author, and frequently a whole nation, without enlightening any one. Nothing of animofity, nothing of irony. What would you fay of an advocate-general, who, in fumming up a caufe, fhould outrage, by poignant expreffions, the party whom he condemns? The office of a journaliit is not fo refpecta- Magazine for June 1791, I found the following dialogue, faid to have happened between the memorable Dr. Johnfon and Mrs Knowles. I believe it has appeared of late in fome of the weekly papers in the Commonwealth; but I have a particular wish that you would preferve it in your pleafing collection, and publish it with the introductory remarks, as made in the abovementioned Magazine. Yours, &c. Mr. Urban, BOOK-WORM. I HAVE been favoured by Mrs. Knowles, with the perufal of the following dialogue, or converfation. Very friking is the mild fortitude of modeft Truth; and it is finely contrafted with the boisterous violence of bigoted Sophiftry, fo long accustomed to victory over feigned or flight refiftance, and, in a certain circle, to timid and implicit fubmiffion. I have obtained permiffion to publifh the dialogue; and I with it to appear in your excellent Magazine. A Child of Candour. - AN INTERESTING DIALOGUE BE- Mrs. K. Thy friend Jenny Hd fends her kinds refpects to thee, Doctor. Dr. J. To me !--tell me not of her! I hate the odious wench for her apoftacy: and it is you, madam, who have feduced her from the Christian religion. Mrs. K. This is a heavy charge, indeed. I must beg leave to be heard in my own defence: and I entreat the attention of the prefent learned and candid company, defiring they will judge how far I am able to clear myself of fo cruel an accufation. Dr. J. (much disturbed at this unexpected challenge faid,) You are a woman, and I give you quar ter. Mrs. K. I will not take quarter. There is no fex in fouls; and in the prefent cause I fear not even Dr. Johnson himself. ("Bravo!" was repeated by the company, and filence enfued.) Dr. J. Well then, madam, I perfift in my charge, that you have feduced Mifs H-- from the christian religion. ·Mrs. K. If thou really knewest what were the principles of the Friends, thou wouldst not fay fhe had departed from chriftianity. But, waving that difcuffion for the prefent, I will take the liberty to obferve, that she had an undoubted right to examine and to change her educational tenets whenever fhe fuppofed fhe had found them erroneous: as an accountable creature, it was her duty fo to do. Dr. J. Pihaw! pfhaw-an accountable creature !-girls accountable creatures !-It was her duty to remain with the Church wherein fhe was educated; fhe had no bufinefs to leave it. Mrs. K. What! not for that which fhe apprehended to be better? According to this rule, Doctor, hadst thou been born in Turkey, it had been thy duty to have remained a Mahometan, notwithstanding Chriftian evidence might have wrought in thy mind the clearest conviction; and, if so, then, let me afk, how would thy confcience have anfwered for fuch obftinacy at the great and last tribunal ? Dr. J. My confcience would not have been answerable. Mrs. K. Whofe then would? Dr. J. Why the State, to be fure. In adhering to the religion of the state, as by law established, our implicit obedience therein becomes our duty. Mrs. K. A nation, or state, having a confcience, is a doctrine entirely new to me, and, indeed, a very curious piece of intelligence; for I have always underftood that a government, or state, is a creature of time only; beyond which it diffolves, and becomes a nonentity. Now, gentlemen, can your imaginations body forth this monftrous individual, or being, called a state, compofed of millions of people? Can you behold it stalking forth into the next world, loaded with its mighty confcience, there to be rewarded, or punished, for the faith, opinions, and conduct of its constituent machines called men? Surely the teeming brain of poetry never held up to the fancy fo wondrous a perfonage! (When the laugh occafioned by this perfonification was fubfided, the Doctor very angrily replied,) I regard not what you fay as to that matter. I hate the arrogance of the wench, in fuppofing herself a more competent judge of religion than thofe who educated her. She imitated you, no doubt; but fhe ought not to have prefumed to determine for herself in fo important an affair. Mrs. K. True, Doctor, I grant it, if, as thou feemeft to imply, a wench of 20 years be not a moral agent. Dr. J. I doubt it would be difficult to prove thofe deferve that character who turn Quakers. Mrs. K. This fevere retort, Doctor, induces me charitably to hope that thou must be totally unacquainted with the principles of the people against whom thou art fo exceedingly prejudiced, and that thou fuppofeft us a fet of Infidels or Deifts. Dr. J. Certainly I do think you little better than Deifts. Mrs. K. This is indeed ftrange; 'tis paffing range, that a man of fuch univerfal reading and refearch has not thought it at leaft expedient to look into the caufe of diffent of a fociety fo long eftablithed, and fo confpicuoully fingular! Dr. J. Not I, indeed! I have not read your Barclay's Apology; and for this plain realon-I never thought it worth my while. You are upfart fectaries, perhaps the belt fubdued by a filent contempt. Mrs. K. This reminds me of the language of the Rabbies of old, when their hierarchy was alarmed by the increating influence, force, and fimplicity of dawning truth,in their high day of worldly dominion. We meekly truft, our principles ftand on the fame folid foundation of fimple truth, and we invite the acuteft inveftigation. The reason thou givet for not having read Barclay's Apology is furely a very improper one for a man whom the world looks up to as a moral philofopher of the fift rank; a teacher from whom they think they have a right to expect much information. To this expecting, inquiring world, how can Dr. Johnfon acquit Limfelf for remaining un acquainted with a book tranflated. into five or fix different languages, and which has been admitted into the libraries of almost every Court and Univerfity in Christendom ! (Here the Doctor grew very angry, fill more fo at the space of time the gentlemen infifted on allowing his antagonist wherein to make ber defence, and his impatience excited on: of the company, in a whisper, to say, "I never faw this mighty lion fo chafed before !") The Doctor again repeated, that he did not think the Quakers deferved the name of chriftians. Mrs. K. Give me leave then to endeavour to convince thee of thy error, which I will do by making before thee, and this refpectable company, a confeffion of our faith. Creeds, or confeffions of faith, are admitted by all to be the ftandard whereby we judge of every denomination of profeffors. (To this, every one prefent agreed; end even the Doctor grumbled out his offent.) Mrs. K. Well then, I take upon me to declare, that the people called Quakers do verily believe in the Holy Scriptures, and rejoice with the most full and reverential acceptance of the divine hiftory of facts, as recorded in the New Teftament. That we, confequently, fully believe thofe hiftorical articles fummed up in what is called The Apoftle's Creed, with these two exceptions only, to wit, our Saviour's defcent into hell, and the refurrection of the body. Thefe myíteries we humbly leave juít as they fland in the holy text, there being, from that ground, no authority for fuch affertion as is drawn up 1 in the Creed. And now, Doctor, canft thou ftill deny to us the honourable title of christians? Dr. J. Well !-I must own I did not at all fuppofe you had fo much to fay for yourself. However, I cannot forgive that little flut, for prefuming to take upon herself as fhe has done. Mrs. K. I hope, Doctor, thou wilt not remain unforgiving; and that you will renew your friendship, and joyfully meet at laft in thofe bright regions where pride and prejudice can never enter ! Dr. J. Meet her! I never defire to meet fools any where. (This farcaflick turn of wit was fo pleasantly received, that the Doctor joined in the laugh; his Spleen was diffipated; he took his coffee, and became, for the remainder of the evening, very cheerful and entertaining.) BIOGRAPHIA AMERICANA ; R MEMOIRS OF PROFESSIONAL, LEARNED, OR DISTINGUISHED CHARACTERS IN UNITED STATES. [Continued from p. 460.] Communications for this article will be extremely acceptable to the Editor. 66 the affent of Virginia to the conftitution which he has now fworn to fupport, is well known; as are the truly republican and generous fentiments, which he then delivered.--Dining with a confiderable number of the members of the convention, who had fupported him in his oppofition, and hearing feveral of them exprefs their' mortification and difappointment in terms which he thought unbecoming, and throwing out infinuations of roufing the people to oppofe the work which had been of Virginia," (fee Month. Anth. Vol. I. p. 459. art. 3. Biog. Amer.) oppofed, with the utmoft of his abilities, the conftitution of the United States, as fubmitted to the state convention, because he thought it defective in fome parts. The moment however it was adopted by a majority of his countrymen, he, like a good citizen, and a man of a great and magnanimous mind, moft peaceably, and quietly acquiefced. At the then enfuing affembly, he pro-done-he filenced them by a few pofed, and readily carried, certain concife obfervations, to which, I amendments to be added to the poffefs not the capacity to do jufconftitution: they were added, tice; but they were of the followbeing approved by a majority of ing import : No, my friends, the itates, as provided for by the we must not do fo. Nor fhould conftitution. Soon after this he we fhew any ill nature or refenttook, in the circuit court of the ment at what has happened. United States, the oath to fup-. We are one great family emport the conftitution thereof. His barked in the fame veffel. With liberal and noble deportment, on all our united wifdom and that important day, which gave VOL. I. No. 11. Ooo ftrength, it may perhaps not be eafy for us to keep clear of the rocks and quickfands to which the may be expofed; or to preserve her fafe, in tempeftuous feafons. Let us not, then, add to our danger, by bickerings or jealoufies among ourfelves; but join hand in hand with our brethren of the other states, to keep the national veffel right, and to use our utmost endeavours to make her more perfect, in the way pointed out by the workmen, from whofe hands we have received her. But to drop the allegory, my friends, 1 have oppofed the conftitution from a confcious fense of duty, I may be wrong in thinking it too defective for our happiness and welfare. I hope and trust in God, it will be proved that I am wrong. Men whom I know to poffefs great talents and publick virtue, have differed from me on this important occafion. It has been ably, fully, and fairly difcuffed. majority of our countrymen, having equal interefts and equal ftakes with ourselves, have thought it their duty to accept of the inftrument. It therefore becomes our duty, as we value the characters of orderly, good citizens, and as true republicans, to acquiefce and fubmit to a decifion fo legally and fo fairly taken.For my part, I mean not to complain of the defeat we have fuftained; but on the contrary, I will go home, and ufe my poor influence in fuppreffing every thing like difcontent, whenfoever I fhall fee it appear: trufting that thofe amendments which I deem neceffary to the inftrument, will be obtained." N.H. Ora. A IV. THOMAS CHITTENDEN. "TO preferve from oblivion fuch characters as have been eminently useful to fociety, ought to be the bufinefs of a biographer. And we fhould be happy if the limits we are reftricted to in the prefent effay, did not too narrowly circumfcribe us in our attempt to draw the outlines of the character of our late governour-we hope fome abler pencil will add all the fine ftrokes to the portrait which it juftly merits; and when newfpaper-paragraphs fhall be forgotten, the impartial page of history fhall place his honoured name among the lift of heroes, philofophers, and ftatefmen, who adorned the American revolution, and dignified human nature. Thomas Chittenden defcended from a refpectable family, who were among the first fettlers in the then colony of New-Haven. His mother was filter to the late Rev. Dr. Johnson, father to prefident Johnson, of Columbia College, New-York. He was born at East Guilford, ftate of Connecticut, in the year 1730, and received a common fchool education in his native town, which in thofe times was but indifferent. Agreeably to the custom of New-England, he married early in life, viz. when in his 20th year, into a reputable family by the name of Meigs, and removed withhis young fpoufe to Salisbury, in the county of Litchfield. Here, as he advanced in years his opening worth attracted pub lick attention, and by a regular advance he paffed through the feveral grades in the militia, te |