part of the Credibility of the Gospel History. The subjects of this volume were, Miltiades, Theophilus of Antioch, Pantænus, St. Clement of Alexandria, Polycrates, Heraclitus, and several other writers near the end of the second century, Hermias, Serapion, Tertullian, a number of authors who required only to be shortly mentioned, and certain supposititious writings of the second century; such as the Acts of Paul and Thecla, the Sibylline Oracles, the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, the Recognitions, the Clementine Homilies, and the Clementine Epitome. Among these different articles, those which relate to St. Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian are peculiarly important, and the remarks on the apocryphal works are very curious and useful. The farther Mr. Lardner proceeded in his design, the more did he advance in esteem and reputation among learned men of all denominations. Even the adversaries to religion could not withhold their testimony to his merit. The noted Dr. Morgan, (afterwards the writer of the Moral Philosopher,' in which revelation was attacked with great virulence, and which hath received many noble and satisfactory answers,) in a letter to our author, containing some objections to the first chapter of St. Luke's gospel, compliments him highly on his integrity, impartiality, and candour. This letter, together with Mr. Lardner's sensible and judicious reply, will be found in the Appendix.o

In November 1736, our author was attacked by another severe and dangerous fever. The effects of it were such, that he did not recover his health, so far as to be able to preach, till late in the spring of 1737. In that year, he published his Counsels of Prudence for the use of young people; a discourse on the Wisdom of the Serpent and the Innocence of the Dove in which are recommended general rules of prudence; with particular directions relating to business, conversation, friendship, and usefulness.' This discourse was generally and justly admired. Indeed it contains most excellent advice to young persons; advice resulting from the union of wisdom, integrity, and knowledge of the world, and which, if followed, would be the best foundation of happiness, both here and hereafter. If, from the mention of this discourse, any single youth should be engaged so to attend to the directions it contains, as to reduce them to practice, the present Life of Dr. Lardner will have been written to a most valuable purpose.

Dr. Secker, bishop of Oxford, was highly pleased with the Counsels of Prudence. In a letter to our author he expressed • Appendix, No. IV.

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himself in the following terms: I am also in your debt for 'those excellent Counsels of Prudence, which you published some time ago, and would recommend it to you, to relieve yourself now and then from your great work, and oblige the 'world with some of these little pieces. One would hope they might do a great deal of good in it, and I am sure there ' is great need of doing every thing that can be done to pro'mote seriousness and mildness among men.' After giving this testimony to Mr. Lardner's discourse, the bishop adds, that the number of religious persons was dreadfully lessened, and that those who remained were very far from preserving a due moderation and charity one towards another. I am very sorry,' says he, for faults of this kind, which we of the establishment fall into; and too many of you, I fear, are not less faulty, though I do not take the spirit of some papers to be the spi'rit of the dissenters. May God make us all wiser and better; and may he long preserve your health, dear sir, to be ' useful to his church.' Here Dr. Secker had a reference to the controversy which was then carrying on with regard to the justice, propriety, and expediency of retaining or repealing the corporation and test acts; in which controversy, as is usual in such cases, some warm things (and perhaps warmer than was reasonable and prudent) might be advanced by several of the advocates for the dissenters, as well as by their opponents. In answer to the latter part of the bishop's letter, Mr. Lardner wrote as follows: 'I have not received any information concerning the writer or writers of the papers to which your lordship refers. But I believe your lordship to be in the right in supposing that there are many dissenters, by whom they are not approved. So far as I know, the dissenters are generally in a good temper. Some, indeed, were soured by a late disappointment. And they were chiefly of those who used to be reputed men of moderation and charity, and who were far from being disaffected to the church of England. For these, as it seems, were the men who were most earnest in the affair: though all such did not engage in it with equal earnestness. Perhaps this may deserve to be considered.'P It is hence sufficiently apparent, that our author did not approve of the refusal that had been given to the repeal of the corporation and test acts, though he has expressed himself with his usual mildness of sentiment, and gentleness of language.

In 1738, Mr. Lardner was enabled to give the world the third volume of the second part of the Credibility. This volume carried the evidence down to the year 233, and included P Memoirs, ubi supra, p. 66 to 68.

Minucius Felix, Apollonius, Caius and others, Asterius Urbanus, St. Alexander bishop of Jerusalem, St. Hippolytus, Ammonius, Julius Africanus, Origen, and St. Firmilian. Some of these articles are of great consequence, and I need not inform my readers that this must be peculiarly the case with respect to the account of Origen.

Our author, in the same year, drew up a paper, containing Remarks upon some difficulties concerning the christian doctrine.' These remarks were in answer to a friend, who had made certain objections to the excellence and usefulness of several of the precepts of our holy religion. Mr. Lardner's paper, which is inserted in the Appendix, displays his customary good sense, and sagacity of observation.

In 1739, there was only one publication by our author, which was entitled, A Caution against Conformity to this World.' It consisted of two discourses, which had been preached from Romans xii. 2, and which may justly be considered as a sequel to the Counsels of Prudence. The directions and cautions given in these sermons will be found useful at all times; and an attention to them would be highly seasonable at present; when, without indulging satirical reflections upon the age, it may too truly be asserted, that the influence of general custom and fashion, is not always favourable to those dispositions and habits which are recommended by wisdom, piety, and virtue.

Early in January, 1740, appeared the fourth volume of the second part of the Credibility. Our author began this volume with an account of various writers of less note in the former part of the third century, and then proceeded to the consideration of Noetus, and others who were called heretics at that period; such as the Valesians, the Angelics, the Apostolics, and the Origenists. But the volume was chiefly devoted to St. Gregory, bishop of Neocæsarea; Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria; and St. Cyprian, bishop of Carthage. The two last articles are very copious and curious.

On the 17th of January Mr. Lardner lost his father, who departed this life in the 87th year of his age. With his worthy parent our author had resided ever since he had quitted Lady Treby's family; and how much he was affected by his decease, will strongly be manifested from what he wrote upon the occasion. I am,' says he, 'full of grief, and find it very difficult to bear up under the affliction. I entreat the Lord Almighty to be my father and protector, to support me, and to guide me in the remaining part of my life, so as that I Appendix, No. V.

'may live to his praise and glory. I entreat and pray that he ⚫ will enable me to behave as a christian, and one persuaded ' of his fatherly care and protection; and that this affliction may be improved by me for my farther humiliation and re'pentance; for engaging in a closer dependence on God; for quickening my preparations for another and better world.' He farther writes: I find this affliction sit very heavy upon me. My dearest brother, Richard Lardner, died in April 1733, some little time before I published the first volume of the second part of the Credibility. The fourth volume of this work was but published a few days before my father 'died.'

Considering the great age of old Mr. Lardner, that he had been weakened for some years before by a paralytic disorder, and that the deafness of his son must have been some obstruction to their mutual conversation, it may perhaps be thought that the grief which our author has expressed above was rather too excessive. But whoever reflects upon the matter will be sensible, that there must have been something very excellent both in the father and son, and very engaging in their manner of living together, when a separation, which so long must have been expected, could have been thus painful to the survivor. Such parental and filial regard cannot but appear beautiful and delightful to every well-regulated mind. Dr. Lardner was finely attempered to the social affections; and he has recorded, in his Vindication of the Three Miracles, that, for his own part, he never loved stoical principles or dispositions."

A character of old Mr. Lardner was drawn up by Mr. Neal, and will be found in the Appendix. It may be observed by the way, that Mr. Richard Lardner, our author's only brother, was a counsellor at law. They had but one sister, Elizabeth, who was married to the Rev. Mr. Daniel Neal, now mentioned; a gentleman, who, not to speak of his other writings, is well known to the learned world by his History of England, and still more by his History of the Puritans.

Mr. Lardner's excellent friend Mr. Hallet, entered deeply into his feelings on the death of his father, and wrote him a letter upon that event, which was full of sympathy and piety." On the 25th of May, in this same year, our author met with another affliction, in the decease of his highly valued colleague, Dr. William Harris. On this occasion, it naturally fell upon him to preach the funeral sermon, which he did from 2 Thess. * Memoirs, ubi supra, p. 87 to 89. See vol. x. p. 45. 'Appendix, No. VI. Memoirs, ubi supra, p. 89 to 91.

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i. 10. In the discourse, which was printed, and will be found in his works, he gave a high, and, I doubt not, a just character of Dr. Harris. The Doctor was, indeed, for a great number of years, a very eminent minister among the protestant dissenters. He had been chosen pastor of the congregation at Crouched Friars, in 1698, when he was only in the 23rd year of his age, and continued in that relation to his death in 1740. It appears that he was a gentleman of various accomplishments, being a man of the world as well as a scholar. In his writings he paid a greater attention to neatness and elegance of composition than was done by some of his brethren; and his discourses on the Messiah have been held in much reputation. A funeral sermon for him was likewise preached and published by Dr. Grosvenor.

Soon after Dr. Harris's decease, Mr. Lardner had an unanimous invitation to undertake the pastoral charge of the Society at Crouched Friars, in conjunction with some other minister of whom they should make a choice. Upon receiving this invitation, he consulted with his friend Mr. Hallet, who strongly urged him to accept of it; and endeavoured to remove the difficulties he might feel on that head, and especially those arising from his deafness. Mr. Hallet wished him to acquire a larger concern in directing the affairs of a congregation than he had hitherto done, and to appear at the Fund, and other places, as one of the chief among the dissenting ministers, according to his real deserts." Whatever were Mr. Lardner's reasons, he declined taking a share in the pastoral office. It is probable that his deafness contributed, among other causes, to this determination. In November, Mr. (afterwards Dr.) George Benson was chosen sole pastor of the Society, and our author continued as assistant preacher.

It was not till the year 1743, that Mr. Lardner was enabled to give to the public the fifth volume of the second part of the Credibility. This volume comprehended St. Cornelius and St. Lucius, bishops of Rome, Novatus, Dionysius bishop of Rome, Commodian, Malchion, Anatolius, and three others, bishops of Laodicea, Theognostus, Theonas bishop of Alexandria, Pierius presbyter of the church of the same city, two Doritheuses, Victorinus bishop of Pettaw, Methodius bishop of Olympus in Lycia, Lucian presbyter of Antioch, Hesychius bishop in Egypt, Pamphilus presbyter of Cæsarea, Phileas bishop of Thmuis in Egypt, Philoromus receiver-general at Alexandria, Peter bishop of Alexandria, and the Milesians. Ibid. p. 91 to 95.