14. Industry is enjoined. The Sauds, like the Quakers, take great care of their poor and infirm people. To receive assistance out of the punt or tribe, would be reckoned disgraceful, and render the offender liable to excommunication.

15. All parade of worship is forbidden. Secret prayer is commended; alms should be unostentatious; they are not to be done that they should be seen of men.

18. The due regulation of the tongue is a principal duty.

17. The chief seats of the Saud sect, are Dehli, Agra, Jypoor, and Furrukhabad, but there are several of the sect scattered over the country. An annual meeting takes place at one or other of the cities above mentioned, at which the concerns of the sect are settled.

18. The magistrate of Furrukhabad informed me, that he had found the Sauds, an orderly and well conducted people; they are chiefly engaged in trade.

You are half inclined to disclaim the fraternity of the pope, and say, that he is rather a brother of mine, because he wishes to deprive mankind of the Bible. I must set you right here Sir, as you have totally mistaken my identity, for want of reading my publications. Your wish Sir, is not more ardent than mine, that every human being should possess a Bible, and be fully capable of reading and understanding it. I have no wish to make proselytes, unless it be from those who have considered well the Bible, and have weighed well the christian religion. When a Bible is to be found in every distinct family and every member of that family capable of reading it, I hope to see the superstitions of the christian mythology fly off the earth much faster than they came on it. I rejoice at the institution of Bible Societies, and would willingly put down my annual guinea to support them, if it would be accepted. The great misfortune is, that we have so many persons who are not capable of reading. Depend on it, Sir, that the pope is wiser than you are with respect to the progress of the Bible.

You charge me with rashly accusing you of falsehood, in what you said of Paine's ignorance of the Bible; I as rashly repeat that' accusation, and tell you, that you spoke without any foundation for what you said. I have been acquainted with two gentlemen, who were the intimate friends of Paine, both in France and England, and I have heard them both say, that he was a perfect master of the contents of the Bible, and could refer, extempore, to the most minute circumstances related in it. He was a man of an extraordinary memory, and retained nearly all his own writings, so as to relate them without reference to the volume.

I have now, I believe, picked up every observation of your's that required an answer, save one, which I have reserved, that I might close my letter in a good humour with you: It is as follows; and I fancy that I see you writing it with an air of importance !—“ I shall now, by one question, place you in a dilemma, out of which you will find it impossible to escape. Were the writers of the Old and New Testaments good or bad men? If good, is it to be supposed that they have concurred in palming an imposture on mankind? if bad, VOL. III. No. 8.

how are we to account for the good and holy tendency of their writings?"-Hem! Hem! Hah! What shall I say? I have no one here to ask for advice! This is a greater puzzle than Samson's riddle, and more difficult than the interpretations of the dreams of Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar. What shall I do to be saved from this dilemma? Hark! What's that? An angel!! Yes, now I have it. Listen, Sir, and be all attention; my voice is the voice of truth; I speak by inspiration! The book called the Bible, comprising what are called both Old and New Testaments, is a compila. tion of traditionary tales, in which falschood greatly preponderates. Its contents are both moral and immoral, pious and profane, pure and obscene, serious and enthusiastic. The names of their authors are not now known. They consisted of moral men, madmen, liars, and indecent and unmanly blackguards. Magna est veritas et prevalebit.

I have passed over your observation, which spoke of prophecy re lating to the Jews, as in what I now send you, you will have an opportunity of reading my sentiments on the supposed prophecies of the Bible. It is a complete set of the Republican, not with an expectation of making any alteration in your opinions, but because I deem it proper, that before you write again to me, you should fully understand what my opinions and sentiments are. If, after having read it, you should think that you can offer me any opinion of your own, or of any other person, which you may consider calculated to shew me that I am in error, I shall be most happy to enter into a respectful correspondence with you. I say respectful, because I do not consider that our correspondence has hitherto been such. I trust that I know how to treat every individual with that respect which is due to him. I consider that you, Sir, have assumed too much, and have put me to hard words as absolutely necessary in self-defence, 1 flatter myself, that my disposition is not naturally rude, rough, nor obtrusive, but I never will pocket an insult from any human being, where I have the means and the power of retort. I bow to no man, if I have an idea that he is as liable to be in error as myself. As the Jewish Deity is very fond of sacrifices of all kinds, I have earnestly to intreat that you will not make a burnt offering of the copy of the Republican which I sent to you. There is one thing to be recollected-it will not afford him that sweet and savoury smell which he has expressed himself fond of, therefore, I do not wish you to offer it to him; but if you cannot read such profane sentiments, be as good to return them; and as I have obtruded them on your notice, I shall cheerfully pay the porter.

I am, Sir, with all que respect,
Your fellow-man,

RICHARD CARLILE.

P. S. I must caution you, that should you attempt to read the Republican, you will stumble over a multitude of typographical errors, which have crept in, and remained uncorrected, in conse

quence of my distance from London, where it has been printed; and its being a periodical work, would not admit of the delay of my correcting the proof sheets.

MORALITY OF PRIESTS.-A Coroner's Inquest was taken last week, at a public house, in John Street, Oxford Street, on the body of a clergyman, 73 years of age, who died of an apoplectic fit, in a brothel, in that neighbourhood. It appears ed, that he was a beneficed clergyman, from some part of Norfolk, holding a living worth £400 per year, that he had lately come to town, and had yielded to the solicitations of a female, in Oxford Street, to accompany her to her dwelling. It is rather unfortunate for the fraternity, that their aberrations should be so often brought to light.-A few years back, when the Key, a brothel in Chandos Street, Covent Garden, was destroyed by fire, a clergyman was then burnt to death; and the last person who saw him, said he was laying on the carpet, dead drunk. Yet these are the men who would fain guide us to heaven, by teaching us religion and morality. These are the men who would destroy every man that conscientiously dissents from the opinions they inculcate, on matters of religion. We embrace this incident to illustrate the character of priests, by the following quotation from the writings of Thomas Gordon :-" But such is the power of a na"tural or an habitual affected gravity, that a man, by use,

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may seem to be serious, while he is cutting another man's "throat, or persuading him to cut his own. But to spoil "this damned and damnable trade, I would here let the over46 scrupulous and conscientious man into a secret, which is

this-that all human creeds, in matters of divine faith, all "state subscriptions to orthodoxy and true religion, are no"thing but ecclesiastical tricks, and a spiritual hocus pocus, "to get money. You ought to consider yourselves, therefore, "with these men, as in a state of war, and as having no "more right to your faith than to your property. One man "comes up to you with a pistol pointed at your breast, and "demands your money; another with a creed, to demand "your faith, by which he means nothing but money. "these are equally robbers, you ought to treat them both alike, and to stand upon honour and conscience just as "much with one, as you would with the other. These eccle"siastical robbers always think that other men have some con"science, when they have none themselves; whereas, no mani

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As

"can be obliged, upon any principle of justice or morality, "to treat them otherwise than as common enemies in a state "of war, i. e. to treat them as they really are."

For our own parts, we have some reasons to say that they are robbers and enemies: but it is not exactly on this head, that we complain. It is the common cant of the priesthood of all sects to say, that morality cannot exist in that bosom which does not feel the influence of religion. Against such an assertion we enter our protest, and reply, that religion stands related to morality, like oil to water. It will swim upon, and render the latter impure, but will not amalgamate with it. On our own behalf, we go on to say, that we have thoroughly purged our bosoms of every thing that is connected with, or appertaineth to the common cant and notions of religion, and still, in point of morality, humanity, or honesty of dealing, between man and man, we are not inclined to confess ourselves inferior to any man or class of men. We venerate and admire the works of nature, so far as we comprehend them; what we do not comprehend, we pass by as improper for any adoration. Experience daily convinces us, that morality and religion are distinct, and necessarily distinct rules of action. The former may exist in the human bosom pure, and independent of the latter; but wherever they are attempted to be united, the latter forms only an alloy with the pure metal, which might hypocritically facilitate its workings, but still remains impure when worked and acted upon.

EDITOR.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

The letter to, and speech of Charles Phillips are received and shall both appear next week with a few additional observations from the Editor. T. R. Bayley Potts letter is alse received, and shall appear next week.

As the subject of the Queen and her treatment is the prevailing topic of discussion, we thought it useless or superfluous to meddle with any other political question this week. Nothing particular has occurred at home, but France bids fair to excite the attention of the political world.

SEASONABLE MAXIMS.

"HE that is without Sin, let HIM cast the first Stone at HER."-Jesus Christ.

"THOU that teacheth that another shall not Commit ADULTERY, dost THOU Commit ADULTERY?”— Paul.

"THE MAN (whether of Royal or Common Brood,) who Seeks to Divorce His Wife, must come into this Court with CLEAN HANDS."-Ecclesiastical Judge.

Oh! C-tle-r-gh, what shall we do with the above maxims, and query, for they are quoted by, even our own Bishops and Judges?—

C-tle-r-gh; do?—why turn Harry the Eighth.

Ah! but the times are altered, if I do that, I shall very soon be like the Good Woman.

"Do unto others, as you would, that they should do unto you." Teach Virtue by Example."

This Subscription is presented to Mr. Carlile as a gratuitous acknowledgment of the purity of his intentions, the integrity of his heart, the soundness of his judgment, and the nobleness of his spirit-who dared alone to step forth as Truth's bold champion, in opposition to this dark age of wicked malevolence, superstition and hypocrisy, and we do think, and much more do hope, he will yet live to see the downfall of tyrannical rule, despotic power, and priestly arrogance; yes, these shall fall at the shrine of the eternal truth, justice, and humanity, which he has so nobly, disseminated amongst mankind.

The subscription of U. L. 1. in No. 12, Vol. 2. should have been W. L.