A DISCOURSE OF FREE-THINKING IN A LETTER то ***** Esquire. SIR, A ¿Pologies for felf-evident truths can never have any effect on those who have fo little fenfe as to deny them. They are the foundation of all reafoning, and the only just bottom on which men can proceed in convincing one another of the truth and by confequence whoever is capable of denying them, is not in a condition to be inform'd. Mere ignorant men or men deftitute of those principles of knowledg, may perhaps be capable of information: their ignorance does not exclude them from affenting to a felfevident truth when they first hear it, nor from admitting any confequences deducible from it.. But men who deny what is felf-evident, are not A only : only deftitute of the principles of knowledg, but muft in virtue of fuch their denial have principles inconfiftent with the principles of knowledg, and confiftent with the greatest abfurdities. And under that distemper'd state of mind, it remains only for them to take up with fome diforder'd fancies of their own; or, which is much more common, with the dictates of antificial defigning men, or crack-brain'd enthusiasts for as none else prefume to be guides, or to have any authority over others in matters of Speculation, fo they who think they ought to be guided in those matters very naturally have recourse to fuch for their guides. And if they ever depart from the fentiments they have once imbib'd, and from being obftinate in one fet of opinions become obftinate in another; their change muft ftill be founded on the fame motives, and their opinions be ast abfurd as at first. For as truth will never ferve the purposes of knaves, fo it will never fuit the underftandings of fools; and the latter will ever be as well pleas'd in being deceiv'd, as the former in deceiving. It is therefore without the leaft hopes of doing any good, but purely to comply with your request, that I fend you this Apology for free-thinking; which, as it is one of thofe fubjects too evident to be made plainer, and which ought to be admitted on the first propofal, fo all that can be faid in its behalf muft be built on topicks lefs evident than the thing it felf. SECT. SECT. C T. I. That I may proceed orderly, I will begin with defining the term. By free-thinking then I mean, The use of the understanding, in endeavouring to find out the meaning of any propofition whatsoever, in confidering the nature of the evidence for or against it, and in judging of it according to the feeming force or weakness of the evidence. This definition cannot, I conceive, be excepted against by the enemies of free-thinking as not including the crime with which they charge free-thinkers, in order to render them odious to unthinking people (for if there is any crime in free-thinking, that crime must be contain'd in a definition which lays no manner of reftraint upon thinking) and they must allow, that if I vindicate man's right to think freely in the full extent of my definition, I not only apologize for my felf, who profefs to think freely every day de quolibet ente, but for all the free-thinkers who ever were, or ever fhall be. To prove this right to think freely, I argue. 1ft. If the knowledg of fome truths be requir’d of us by God if the knowledg of others be useful to fociety; if the knowledg of no truth be forbidden us by God, or hurtful to us; then we have a right to know, or may lawfully know, any truth whatsoever. And if we have a right to know any truth whatsoever,we have a right to think freely or (according to my definition) to use our understandings, in endeavouring to find out the meaning A 2 1 , ning of any propofition whatsoever, in confidering the nature of the evidence for or against it and in judging of it according to the feeming force or weakness of the evidence: because there is no other way to discover the truth. 2dly. As in manual arts we do only by free trial, comparison, and experience of every thing, come to know what is beft and perfect in each art; fo in the fciences, perfection is only to be attain'd by free-thinking. Let painters be fo far confin'd in their art by the religion of their country, as to have it thought unlawful to paint any living creature; it is evident the art in that particular would be narrow'd and reftrain'd, and we fhould want many beautiful pieces, for which Pagan and Chriftian Divinity furnish the painter with matter. And if any bold and free painter should tranfgrefs the establish'd law of painting, and venture upon painting either a God or Goddess, or any paffage of the life of our bleffed Saviour; nothing is more plain than that the first draught would be as far fhort of the perfection of our beft pictures, as the painter himself must be fhort of our best painters in experience. Nay, let free painting be allow'd, perfection will never be reach'd in that art, unless futable encouragements be given to free painters for what is excellent in its kind, to the end there may be numbers of men employ'd, who by emulation may ftrive to exceed one another in their performances. Thus the Italians, by the publick encouragement given, excel us Britans in painting; tho free painting is allow'd in each country and we in all likelihood, for want of many hands being employ'd and encourag'd , Thall fhall continue for ever in our barbarous ftate, with refpect to any tolerable degree of a just tafte, or ability to perform in that art. In like manner, let men be reftrain'd from thinking on any science or any part of a science, they must be ignorant fo far as the reftraint goes. And if a few men take now and then a little liberty, and break thro the establish'd restraint, their thoughts will never be fo perfect as if all men were allow'd and encourag'd to think of that matter: but their progrefs in thinking will be only proportionate to that degree of freethinking which prevails. Thus before the reftoration of learning, when men were fubject to the impofitions of priests, a prodigious ignorance prevail'd. And when they began to think, their first notions were rude and imperfect, and time and pains were neceffary to bring them to that degree of juftnefs they are at prefent arrived to. It was by gradual progrefs in thinking, that men got fo much knowledg in Aftronomy, as to know that the earth was of an orbicular figure, and that it moves about the fun. It was by that means, that we arriv'd at a demonftration of the existence of but one God, and at that strict and philofophical notion of him, as a being deftitute of all parts and passions. And thus it has been with refpect to all our other discoveries. Befides, we are not only fo far ignorant in the fciences, as we are under any restraint from thinking about them; but we must be ignorant even in thofe Sciences whereof we pretend to think, if we refufe to think of any other fcience whatsoever. For there is a * relation, harmony, dependency, and A 3 con * Omnes artes, que ad humanitatem pertinent, habent quod dam |