A26865:719
An apology for the nonconformists ministry containing I. the reasons of their preaching, II.…
An apology for the nonconformists ministry containing I. the reasons of their preaching, II. an answer to the accusations urged as reasons for the silencing of about 2000 by Bishop Morley ..., III. reasons proving it the duty and interest of the bishops and conformists to endeavour earnestly their restoration : with a postscript upon oral debates with Mr. H. Dodwell, against his reasons for their silence ... : written in 1668 and 1669, for the most of it, and now published as an addition to the defence against Dr. Stillingfleet, and as an account to the silencers of the reasons of our practice / by Richard Baxter.
London: printed for T. Parkhurst and D. Newman, 1681
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
2. You will wrong the King and Kingdom by depopulation, and weaken it so, that it may become not only the scorn of our common enemies, but their prey. For ought I can discern, you that have despised my predictions of that kind, have increased the number already manifold of those that dislike you and your way. ⟨p. 209⟩And if your self-conceitedness and unskilfulness shall first make most of the Kings subjects distaste you, and then your cruelty shall suggest that they must be punished till they love you, or be destroyed for disliking you, this will be but like the work of unhappy Surgeons, that must cut off the limb, because they have themselves made the wound uncurable. Believe it, the hanging or banishing of a few hundreds or thousands, will not do your business, but make it worse (I told you so long ago as to silencing, and you would not believe it); nay, it will make it incomparably worse: And if you banish or kill all that are against you, Land will be very cheap, and Houses cheaper; and others will call that Solitude, which you call concord, uniformity, and peace. And our unity will be like theirs in Moldavia and Wallachia. And who shall compensate the Kings damage?
2. You will wrong the King and Kingdom by depopulation, and weaken it so, that it may become not only the scorn of our common enemies, but their prey. For ought I can discern, you that have despised my predictions of that kind, have encreased the number already manifold of those that dislike you and your way. ⟨p. 209⟩And if your self-conceitedness and unskilfulness shall first make most of the Kings subjects distast you, and then your cruelty shall suggest that they must be punished till they love you, or be destroyed for disliking you, this will be but like the work of unhappy Surgeons, that must cut off the limb, because they have themselves made the wound uncurable. Believe it, the hanging or banishing of a few hundreds or thousands, will not do your business, but make it worse (I told you so long ago as to silencing, and you would not believe it); nay, it will make it incomparably worse: And if you banish or kill all that are against you, Land will be very cheap, and Houses cheaper; and others will call that Solitude, which you call concord, uniformity, and peace. And our unity will be like theirs in Moldavia and VValachia. And who shall compensate the Kings damage?