Part 7

I esteem it a singular happiness to have lived in an age and country, in which I have been at full liberty both to investigate, and by preaching and writing to propagate, religious truth; that though the freedom I have used for this purpose was for some time disadvantageous to me, it was not long so, and that my present situation is such that I can with the greatest openness urge whatever appears to me to be the truth of the gospel, not only without giving the least offence, but with the intire approbation of those with whom I am particularly connected.

As to the dislike which I have drawn upon myself by my writings, whether that of the Calvinistic party, in or out of the church of England, those who rank with rational dissenters (but who have been exceedingly offended at my carrying my inquiries farther than they wished any person to do) or whether they be unbelievers, I am thankful that it gives less disturbance to me than it does to themselves; and that their dislike is much more than compensated by the cordial esteem and approbation of my conduct by a few, whose minds are congenial to my own, and especially that the number of such persons increases.

[_Birmingham_, 1787.

_A Continuation of the Memoirs, written at Northumberland in America in the beginning of the year 1795._

When I wrote the preceding part of these Memoirs I was happy as must have appeared in the course of them, in the prospect of spending the remainder of my life at Birmingham, where I had every advantage for pursuing my studies, both philosophical and theological; but it pleased the sovereign disposer of all things to appoint for me other removals, and the manner in which they were brought about were more painful to me than the removals themselves. I am far, however, from questioning the wisdom or the goodness of the appointments respecting myself or others.

To resume the account of my pursuits where the former part of the Memoirs left it, I must observe that, in the prosecution of my _experiments_, I was led to maintain the doctrine of phlogiston against Mr. Lavoisier and other chemists in France, whose opinions were adopted not only by almost all the philosophers of that country, but by those in England and Scotland also. My friends, however, of the lunar society were never satisfied with the Anti-phlogistic doctrine. My experiments and observations on this subject were published in various papers in the Philosophical Transactions. At Birmingham I also published a new edition of my publications on the subject of _air_, and others connected with it, reducing the six volumes to three, which, with his consent, I dedicated to the prince of Wales.

In theology I continued my _defences of Unitarianism_, until it appeared to myself and my friends that my antagonists produced nothing to which it was of any consequence to reply. But I did not, as I had proposed, publish any address to the bishops, or to the legislature, on the subject. The former I wrote, but did not publish. I left it, however, in the hands of Mr. Belsham when I came to America, that he might dispose of it as he should think proper.

The pains that I took to ascertain the state of early opinions concerning Jesus Christ, and the great misapprehensions I perceived in all the ecclesiastical historians, led me to undertake a _General History of the christian church to the fall of the Western empire_, which accordingly I wrote in two volumes octavo, and dedicated to Mr. Shore. This work I mean to continue.

At Birmingham I wrote the _second_ part of my _Letters to a philosophical Unbeliever_, and dedicated the whole to Mr. Tayleur of Shrewsbury, who had afforded me most material assistance in the publication of many of my theological works, without which, the sale being inconsiderable, I should not have been able to publish them at all.

Before I left Birmingham I preached a funeral sermon for my friend Dr. Price, and another for Mr. Robinson of Cambridge, who died with us on a visit to preach our annual charity school sermon. I also preached the last annual sermon to the friends of the college at Hackney. All these three sermons were published.

About two years before I left Birmingham the question about the _test act_ was much agitated both in and out of parliament. This, however, was altogether without any concurrence of mine. I only delivered, and published, a sermon on the 5th of November 1789, recommending the most peaceable method of pursuing our object. Mr. Madan, however, the most respectable clergyman in the town, preaching and publishing a most inflammatory sermon on the subject, inveighing in the bitterest manner against the Dissenters in general, and myself in particular, I addressed a number of _familiar letters to the inhabitants of Birmingham_ in our defence. This produced a reply from him, and other letters from me. All mine were written in an ironical and rather a pleasant manner, and in some of the last of them I introduced a farther reply to Mr. Burn, another clergyman in Birmingham, who had addressed to me _letters on the infallibility of the testimony of the Apostles concerning the person of Christ_, after replying to his first set of Letters, in a separate publication.

From these small pieces I was far from expecting any serious consequences. But the Dissenters in general being very obnoxious to the court, and it being imagined, though without any reason, that I had been the chief promoter of the measures which gave them offence, the clergy, not only in Birmingham, but through all England, seemed to make it their business, by writing in the public papers, by preaching, and other methods, to inflame the minds of the people against me. And on occasion of the celebration of the anniversary of the French revolution on July 14th, 1791, by several of my friends, but with which I had little to do, a mob encouraged by some persons in power, first burned the meeting house in which I preached, then another meeting house in the town, and then my dwelling house, demolishing my library, apparatus, and, as far as they could, every thing belonging to me. They also burned, or much damaged, the houses of many Dissenters, chiefly my friends; the particulars of which I need not recite, as they will be found in two _Appeals_ which I published on the subject written presently after the riots.

Being in some personal danger on this occasion, I went to London; and so violent was the spirit of party which then prevailed, that I believe I could hardly have been safe in any other place. There, however, I was perfectly so, though I continued to be an object of troublesome attention until I left the country altogether. It shewed no small degree of courage and friendship in Mr. William Vaughan to receive me into his house, and also in Mr. Salte, with whom I spent a month at Tottenham. But it shewed more in Dr. Price’s congregation at Hackney, to invite me to succeed him, which they did, though not unanimously, some time after my arrival in London.

In this situation I found myself as happy as I had been at Birmingham, and contrary to general expectation, I opened my lectures to young persons with great success, being attended by many from London; and though I lost some of the hearers, I left the congregation in a better situation than that in which I found it.

On the whole, I spent my time even more happily at Hackney than ever I had done before; having every advantage for my philosophical and theological studies, in some respect superior to what I had enjoyed at Birmingham, especially from my easy access to Mr. Lindsey, and my frequent intercourse with Mr. Belsham, professor of divinity in the New College, near which I lived. Never, on this side the grave, do I expect to enjoy myself so much as I did by the fire side of Mr. Lindsey, conversing with him and Mrs. Lindsey on theological and other subjects, or in my frequent walks with Mr. Belsham, whose views of most important subjects were, like Mr. Lindsey’s, the same with my own.

I found, however, my society much restricted with respect to my philosophical acquaintance; most of the members of the Royal Society shunning me on account of my religious or political opinions, so that I at length withdrew myself from them, and gave my reasons for so doing in the Preface to my _Observations and Experiments on the generation of air from water_, which I published at Hackney. For, with the assistance of my friends, I had in a great measure replaced my Apparatus, and had resumed my experiments, though after the loss of near two years.

Living in the neighbourhood of the New College, I voluntarily undertook to deliver the lectures to the pupils on the subject of _History and General policy_, which I had composed at Warrington, and also on _Experimental Philosophy and Chemistry_, the _Heads_ of which I drew up for this purpose, and afterwards published. In being useful to this Institution I found a source of considerable satisfaction to myself. Indeed, I have always had a high degree of enjoyment in lecturing to young persons, though more on theological subjects than on any other.

After the riots in Birmingham I wrote _an Appeal to the Public_ on the subject, and that being replied to by the clergy of the place, I wrote a _second part_, to which, though they had pledged themselves to do it, they made no reply; so that, in fact the criminality of the magistrates, and other principal High-church men at Birmingham, in promoting the riot, remains acknowledged. Indeed, many circumstances, which have appeared since that time, shew that the friends of the court, if not the prime ministers themselves, were the favourers of that riot; having, no doubt, thought to intimidate the friends of liberty by the measure.

To my Appeal I subjoined various _Addresses_[23] that were sent to me from several descriptions of persons in England, and abroad; and from them I will not deny that I received much satisfaction, as it appeared that the friends of liberty, civil and religious, were of opinion that I was a sufferer in that cause. From France I received a considerable number of Addresses; and when the present _National Convention_ was called, I was invited by many of the departments to be a member of it. But I thought myself more usefully employed at home, and that I was but ill qualified for a business which required knowledge which none but a native of the country could possess; and therefore declined the honour that was proposed to me.

[23] Many of these addresses have been published already. In the appendix to the present life (No. 7.) will be given an arranged list of the addresses to Dr. Priestley from various bodies of men at various times of his life; they illustrate the following positions so honourable to his character, and so necessary to a just view of it. 1st That wherever he officiated as a dissenting minister, he never quitted his situation but with the sincere regrets of those among whom he had resided, and with parting testimonies of their affectionate approbation of his conduct. 2dly. That the riots at Birmingham called forth such abundant testimonies in favour of his moral conduct and eminent usefulness; that the promoters of those riots whether in church or state can have no palliation in the eye of a discerning public for their proceedings, so far as he was the object of them. Those only use violence in opposition to argument who have no argument to use. 3dly. That his quitting England for America, was regarded as a national loss to Great Britain, and the circumstances which induced it, a national disgrace. 4thly. That his reception in this country was as honourable as his friends had reason to expect: And his demeanour since his residence here, has been such as to gain him encreased reputation and respect, among those who knew nothing of him personally before his arrival.

T. C.

But no addresses gave me so much satisfaction as those from my late congregation, and especially of the young persons belonging to it, who had attended my lectures. They are a standing testimony of the zeal and fidelity with which I did my duty with respect to them, and which I value highly.

Besides congratulatory addresses, I received much pecuniary assistance from various persons, and bodies of men, which more than compensated for my pecuniary losses, though what was awarded me at the Assizes fell two thousand pounds short of them. But my brother-in-law, Mr. John Wilkinson, from whom I had not at that time any expectation, in consequence of my son’s leaving his employment, was the most generous on the occasion. Without any solicitation, he immediately sent me five hundred pounds, and afterwards transferred to me ten thousand pounds which he had deposited in the French funds, and until that be productive, he allows me two hundred pounds per annum.

After the riots, I published my _Letters to the Swedenborgian Society_, which I had composed, and prepared for the press just before.

Mr. Wakefield living in the neighbourhood of the College, and publishing at this time his objections to _public worship_, they made a great impression on many of our young men, and in his Preface he reflected much on the character of Dr. Price. On both these accounts I thought myself called upon to reply to him, which I did in a series of _Letters to a young man_. But though he made several angry replies, I never noticed any of them. In this situation I also answered Mr. Evanson’s _Observations on the dissonance of the Evangelists_ in a _second set of Letters to a young man_. He also replied to me, but I was satisfied with what I had done, and did not continue the controversy.

Besides the _sermon_ which I delivered on my acceptance of the invitation to the meeting at Hackney, in the preface to which I gave a detailed account of my _system of catechizing_, I published two _Fast sermons_ for the years 1793 and 1794, in the latter of which I gave my ideas of antient prophecies compared with the then state of Europe, and in the preface to it I gave an account of my reasons for leaving the country. I also published a _Farewell sermon_.[24]

But the most important of my publications in this situation were a series of _Letters to the Philosophers and Politicians of France on the subject of Religion_. I thought that the light in which I then stood in that country gave me some advantage in my attempts to enforce the evidence of natural and revealed religion. I also published a set of _sermons on the evidences of revelation_, which I first delivered by public notice, and the delivery of which was attended by great numbers. They were printed just before I left England.

[24] These reasons, as shewing the progress and state of his mind that induced this new æra of his life, will be inserted hereafter.

As the reasons for this step in my conduct are given at large in the preface to my Fast sermon, I shall not dwell upon them here. The bigotry of the country in general made it impossible for me to place my sons in it to any advantage. William had been some time in France, and on the breaking out of the troubles in that country he had embarked for America, where his two brothers met him. My own situation, if not hazardous, was become unpleasant, so that I thought my removal would be of more service to the cause of truth than my longer stay in England. At length, therefore, with the approbation of all my friends, without exception, but with great reluctance on my own part, I came to that resolution; I being at a time of life in which I could not expect much satisfaction as to friends and society, comparable to that which I left, in which the resumption of my philosophical pursuits must be attended with great disadvantage, and in which success in my still more favourite pursuit, the propagation of unitarianism, was still more uncertain. It was also painful to me to leave my daughter, Mr. Finch having the greatest aversion to leave his relations and friends in England.

At the time of my leaving England my son in conjunction with Mr. Cooper, and other English emigrants, had a scheme for a large settlement for the friends of liberty in general near the head of the Susquehanna in Pennsylvania. And taking it for granted that it would be carried into effect, after landing at New-York, I went to Philadelphia, and thence came to Northumberland, a town the nearest to the proposed settlement, thinking to reside there until some progress had been made in it. The settlement was given up; but being here, and my wife and myself liking the place, I have determined to take up my residence here, though subject to many disadvantages. Philadelphia was excessively expensive, and this comparatively a cheap place; and my son’s, settling in the neighbourhood, will be less exposed to temptation, and more likely to form habits of sobriety and industry. They will also be settled at much less expence than in or near a large town. We hope, after some time, to be joined by a few of our friends from England, that a readier communication will be opened with Philadelphia, and that the place will improve, and become more eligible in other respects.

When I was at sea, I wrote _some observations on the cause of the present prevalence of infidelity_, which I published, and prefixed to a new edition of the _Letters to the Philosophers and Politicians of France_. I have also published my _Fast and Farewell sermons_, and my _small tracts_ in defence of unitarianism, also a _Continuation of those Letters_, and a _third part of Letters to a Philosophical Unbeliever_, in answer to _Mr. Paine’s Age of Reason_.

The observations on the prevalence of infidelity I have much enlarged, and intend soon to print; but I am chiefly employed on the Continuation of my History of the christian church.

Northumberland, March 24, 1795, in which I have completed the sixty second year of my age.

A

CONTINUATION

OF THE

_MEMOIRS_

OF

DR. JOSEPH PRIESTLEY.

[_Written by his Son Joseph Priestley._]

Thus far the narrative is from my father’s manuscript, and I regret extremely, with the reader, that it falls to my lot to give an account of the latter period of his valuable life.

I entertained hopes at one time, that he would have continued it himself; and he was frequently requested to do so, by me and many of his friends in the course of the year preceding his death. He had then nearly compleated all the literary works he had in view, he had arrived at that period of life when, in imitation of his friend Mr. Lindsey, he had determined not to preach again in public, and beyond which he probably would not have ventured to publish any work without first subjecting it to the inspection of some judicious friend.

He was requested also, in imitation of Courayer, to add at the close of his Memoirs a summary of his religious opinions. This would have counteracted the suspicions entertained by some, that they had undergone a considerable change since his coming to America; and it was thought by his friends, that such a brief and simple statement of all that appeared to him essential to the christian belief, and the christian character, would attract the attention of many readers previously indisposed to religion altogether, from not understanding its real nature, and judging of it only from the corrupt, adulterated, and complicated state, in which it is professed in all countries called christian. Unbelievers in general have no conception of the perfect coincidence of christianity with rational philosophy, of the sublime views it affords of the divine benevolence, and how powerfully it acts to promote the pleasures and lessen the evils of the present life, at the same time that it holds out to us a certain prospect of a future and endless state of enjoyment. It was suggested to him also, that as his society through life had been singularly varied and extensive, and his opportunities of attaining a general knowledge of the world, and a particular knowledge of eminent political and literary characters, very great, it would contribute much to the instruction and amusement of those into whose hands his Memoirs should fall, if they were accompanied with anecdotes of the principal characters with whom he had been acquainted. For he had a fund of anecdote which he was never backward to produce for the amusement of his friends, as occasions served for introducing it. But his relations were never sarcastic or ironical, or tended to disparage the characters of the persons spoken of, unless on subjects of manifest importance to the interests of society.

He meant to have complied with the above suggestions, but being at that time very busily employed about his Comparison, and thinking his Memoirs of little value compared with the works about which he was then engaged, he put off the completion of his narrative, until his other works should be ready for the press. Unfortunately this was too late. The work he had in hand was not compleated until the 22d January, when he was very weak and suffered greatly from his disorder, and he died on the 6th of February following:

The reader will therefore make allowance for the difference between what these Memoirs might have been, and what they now are; and particularly for the part which I venture to lay before the public as a continuation of his own account.

The reasons that induced him to quit England, and the progress of his opinions and inclinations respecting that last important æra in his life, have been but briefly stated in the preceding pages by himself. But as many may peruse these Memoirs, into whose hands his appeal to the public, occasioned by the riots at Birmingham, and his Fast sermon, in which he assigns at length his reasons for leaving his native country, are not likely to fall; I think it right to present to the readers, in his own words the history of the motives that impelled him to exchange his residence in England for one in this country.

The disgraceful riots at Birmingham were certainly the chief cause that first induced my father to think of leaving England, though at the time of his writing the second part of the Appeal, in August 1792, he had not come to any determination on the subject. This appears from the following passage which as it shews the progress of his discontent, and likewise the true state of his political opinions, particularly in relation to the English form of government I shall quote.--

“In this almost universal prevalence of a spirit so extremely hostile to me and my friends, and which would be gratified by my destruction, it cannot be any matter of surprise, that a son of mine should wish to abandon a country in which his father has been used as I have been, especially when it is considered that this son was present at the riot in Birmingham, exerting himself all the dreadful night of the 14th of July, to save what he could of my most valuable property; that in consequence of this his life was in imminent danger, and another young man was nearly killed because he was mistaken for him. This would probably have been his fate, if a friend had not almost perforce kept him concealed some days, so that neither myself nor his mother knew what was become of him. I had not, however, the ambition to court the honour that has been shewn him by the national assembly of France, and even declined the proposal of his naturalization. At the most, I supposed it would have been done without any _eclat_; and I knew nothing of its being done in so very honourable a way until I saw the account in the public newspapers. To whatever country this son of mine shall choose to attach himself, I trust that, from the good principles, and the spirit, that he has hitherto shewn, he will discharge the duties of a good citizen.”