CHEAP REPOSITORY. THE Two Wealthy Farmers ; Or, the Hiftory of Mr. BRAGWELL PART II. Sold by J. MARSHALL, (Printer to the Cheap Repository for Moral and Religious Traces) No. 17, Queen- S tree t, Cheapfide, and No. 4, Aldermary Church-Yard, and R. WHITE, Piccadilly, London. By S. HAZARD, (Printer to the Cheap Repository) at Bath ; and by all Bookfellers, Newfmen, and Hawkers, in Town and Country. Great Allowance twill be made to Shopkeepers and Hawkers, Price id. or 4s. 6d. per 100 50 tor zs. 6d. 25 for is. 6d a Entered at Stationers HalL y On the ijl of June zvas publijhed, The Shepherd of Salifbury Plain. Part II. — The Beggarly Boy, a Parable, — and Wild Robert, a Ballad. I On the if of July, The good Mother's Legacy. — Daniel in the Lions' Den, — and the Newcaftle Collier, a Ballad. On the ijl Augujl, Hints on the prefent Scarcity.— -The Happy Wa- terman. — The Riot, a Ballad, ---and the Plow-* boy's Dream, a Ballad. On the \Jl of September, Noah's Flood. — Tom White, Part II ; or, the W ay to Plenty, — and Dame Andrews, a Ballad. On the ijl of Oclober, The Two Farmers, Part I.. — Harveft Home,— and the Honeft Miller, a Ballad. On the ijl of November, The Parable of the Vineyard.— The Two Far- mers, Part II.— and the African Weman's Lamentation, a Ballad. On the \Jl of December, The Troubles of Life, or, the Guinea and the Shilling, — and the Merry -Chrift mas, or Happy New Year. And other Pieces on a fimilar Plan, on the ijl of every Month. I, X H 6 Two Wealthy Farmers, &c. PART II. MY readers may remember that the fi-rft part of this hiftory concluded with a walk taken by Mr. Brag well and Mr. Wor- thy over the grounds of the latter, in which walk Mr. Bragwell, though he feemed to admire, took care to lower every thing he faw, by comparing it with fomething better which he had of his own. Soon after flip- per Mrs. Worthy left the room with her daughters, at her hufband's defire \ for it was his intention to fpeak more plainly to Bragwell than was likely to be agreeable to him before others. The two farmers being feated at their lit- tle table, each in a handfome old fafhioned great chair, Bragwell began. It is a great comfort, neighbour Worthy at a certain time of life to be got above the world; my notion is, that a man mould la- bour hard the firit part of his day s and that he may then fit down and enjoy himfelf for the remainder. Now r though I hate boaft- ing, yet as you are my oldeft friend I am about to open my heart to you. Let me tell you then I reckon I have worked as hard as any man in my time, and that I now begin to think I have a right to indugle a little. I have got my monev with a good character and I mean to fpend it with credit. I pay every one his own, I fet a good ex- ample, I keep to my chureh, I ferve God, I honour the king, and I obey the laws of the land. This is doing a great deal indeed, repli- ed Mr. Worthy, but added he, I doubt that more goes to the making up all rhefe duties than men are commonly aware of. vSuppofe then that you and I talk the matter over coolly, we have the evening before us. What if we fit down together as two friends and examine one another. Bragwell who loved an argument and who was not a little vain both of his fenfe and his morality, accepted the challenge, aiad gave his word that he would -take in good part any thing that mould be faid to him. Worthy was about to proceed when Brag- well interrupted him for a-moment, by fay- ing,— But flop friend, before we begin I wifh you would remember that we have had a long walk, and I want a little refrefli- 'nent; have you no liquor that is ftronger than this cider? I am afraid it will give me a fit of the gout. Mr. Worthy immediately produced a bot- tle of wine and another of fpirits, faying, that though he drank neither fpirits nor even . wine himfelf, yet his wife always kept a little of each as a provifion in cafe of ficknefs or accidents. ( 5 ) Farmer Bragwell preferred the brandy, and began to tafte it. Why, faid he, this is no better than Englifh, I always life fo- reign myfelf. I bought this for foreign, faid Mr. Worthy. No no, it is Englifh ipirits I aflure you, but I can put you in- to a way to get foreign nearly as cheap as Englifh. Mr. Worthy replied that he thought that was impomble. Bragwell. O no, there are ways and means— a word to the wife-— there is an ac- quaintance of mine that lives upon the fouth coaft— you are a particular friend and I will get you a gallon for a trifle. Worthy. Not if it be fmuggled Mr. Bragwell, though I mould get it for fix- pence a bottle.— Afk no queltions, faid the other, I never fay any thing to any one and who is the wufer? And fo this is your way of obeying the laws of the land, faid Mr. Worthy— here is a fine fpecimen of your morality. Bragwell. Come, come, don't make a fufs about trifles. If every one did it in- deed it would be another thing, but as to my getting a drop of good brandy cheap, why that can't hurt the revenue much. Worthy. Pray Mr. Bragwell what mould you think of a man who would dip his hand into a bag and take out a few guineas? Bragwell. Think ! why I think that he ihould be hanged to be fure. ( 6 ) Wordy. But fuppofe that bag Itood in ?he king's treafury? Bragwell. In the king's treafury! worfe iuidwerfe! What, rob the king's treafury. Well I hope the robber will be taken up and executed, for I fuppofe we fhall all be iaxed to pay the damage. Worthy. Very true. If one man takes money out of the treafury others muft be obliged to pay the more into it.; but what think you if the fellow mould be found to have flopped fome money in its way to the creafury, inftead of taking it out of the bag after it got there. Bragwell. Guilty, Mr. Worthy, it is all the fame in my opinion. If I was' a jury- man, I Ihould fay guilty, death. Worthy. Hark ye Mr. Bragwell, he that deals in fmuggled brandy, is the man who takes to himfelf the king's money in its way to the treafury, and he as much robs the government as if he dipt his hands into a bag of guineas in the treafury chamber. It comes to the fame thing exactly. Here Bragwell feemed a little offended. What Mr. Worthy; do you pretend to fay I am net an honeft man becaufe I like to cret my brandy as cheap as I can? and becaufe I like to fave a milling to my family? Sir, I repeat it, I do my duty to God and my neighbour.— I fay the Lord's prayer molt days, I go to church on Sundays, I repeat my creed and keep the ten commandments. (( f )) and though I may now and then get a Tittle brandy cheap, yet upon the whole, I will venture to lay, I do as much as can be ex = pe&ed of any man. Worthy. Come then, fmce you fay you keep the commandments, you cannot be offended if I alk you whether you under- ftand them. BragwelL To be fare I do. I dare fay f do, lookee Mr. Worthy, I don't pre- tend to much reading, I was not bred to it as you were. If my father had been a. par- fbn I fancy I fhould have made as good a figure as fome other folks, but I hope good fenfe and a good heart may teach a man his dutv without much fcholarfhip. Worthy. To come to the point let us now go through the ten command- ments, and let us take along with us thofe explanations of them which our Saviour gave us m his fcrmon on the mount. Bragwrll. Sermon on the mount ! why the ten commandments are in the a©th chap- ter of Exodus. Come, come, Mr. Worthy, I know where to find the commandments well as you do, for it happens that I am church-warden, and I can fee from the altar- piece where the ten commandments are with- out your telling me, for my pew dire&ly faces it. Worthy. But I- advife you to read the f 8 ) fermon on the mount, that you may fee the full meaning of them. Bragwell What do you want to make me believe that there are two ways of keep- wig the commandments ? Worthy. No; but there may be two ways of undemanding them. Bragwell Well ; I am not afraid to be put to the proof, I defy any man to fay I do not. keep at leaf! all the four firft that are on the left fide of the altar piece. Worthy. If you can prove that, I /hall be more ready to believe you obferve thofe of the other table, for he who does his duty to God will be likely to do his duty to his neighbour alfo. BragwelL W mat ! do you think that I ferve two Gods? Do you think then. that I make -graven images, and worfhip flocks or ftones? Do you take me for a Papift or an Idolater ? Worthy, ©on't triumph quite fo foon matter Bragwell. Pray is there nothing in the world you prefer to God, and thus make an idol of? Do you not love your money, or your lands, or your crops, or your cat- tie, or your own will, and your own way, rather better than you love God ? Do you never think of thefe with more pleafure than you think of Him, and follow them more eagerly than your religious duty? Bragwell. O there's nothing about that the 20th Chapter of Exodus. ( 9 ; Worthy, But Jefus Chrift has faid, " He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me." Now it is certainly a man's duty to love his father and mother, nay it would be wicked not to love them, and yet we inuft not love even thefe more than our Creator and our Saviour. Well I think on this principle, your heart pleads guilty to the breach of the firft and fecond commandments, let us proceed to the third. Bragwell, This is about fwearing, is it not ? Mr. Worthy, who had obferved Brag- well guilty of much profanenefs in ufing the name of nis Maker, (though all fuch offen- five words have been avoided in writing this hiftory) now told him that he had been waiting the whole day for an opportunity to reprove him, for his frequent breach of the third commandment. Good L — d, I break the third command- ment, faid Bragwell, no indeed hardly ever. I once ufed to fwear a little to be fure, but I vow to G — d I never do it now except now and then, when I happen to be in a paflion : and in fuch a cafe, why good G — d you know the fin is with thofe who provoke me and not with me, but upon my foul I don't think I have fworn an oath thefe three months, no not I faith, as I hope to be laved. Worthy. And yet you have broken this f 10 1 holy law no lefs than five or fix times in the laft fpeech you have made. Bragwell. Lord blefs me. Sure you •miftake. Good heavens Mr. Worthy, I call G — -d to witncfs I have neither curfed nor fwore fmce I have been in the houf'e. Worthy. Mr. Bragwell, this is the way -in which many who call themfelves very good fort of people deceive themfelves What! is it no profanation of the name of God to ufe it lightly, irreverently, and fa- miliarly as you have done? Our Saviour has not only told us not to fwear by the im- mediate name of God, but he has faid, fwear not at all, neither by heaven nor by the earth, and in order to prevent our inventing any other irreligious exclamations or ex- preffions, he has even added, but let your communication be yea, yea, and nay, nay, for whatfoever is more than this fimple af- firmation and denial cometh of evil. Bragwell. Well, well. I mult take a little more care I believe, I vow to heaven I did not know there had been fo much harm in it, but my daughters feldom fpeak without ufing fome of thefe words, and yet they wanted to make me believe the other day that it was monftrous vulgar to fwear. Worthy. Women, even gentlewomen, who ought to correct this evil habit in their fathers, and hufbands, and children, are too apt to encourage it by their own pra&ice. And indeed they betray the profancnefs of f 11 i their own minds alfo by it, for none who truly venerate the holy name of God, can either profane it in this manner themfelves, or hear others do fo without being exceed- ingly pained at it. Bragwell. Well, fince you are fo hard upon me I believe I muft e'en give up this point — fo let us pafs on to the next, and here I tread upon fure ground, for as fharp as you are upon me, you can't accufe me of being a fabbath-breaker, fince T go to church every Sunday of my life, unlefs on fome ve- ry extraordinary occafion. Worthy. For thofe occafions the gofpel allows, by faying, " the fabbath was made for man and not man for the fabbath." Our own ficknefs or attending on the ficknefs of others are lawful impediments. Bragwell. Yes, and I am now and then obliged to look at a drove of beafts, or to go a journey, or to take fome medicine, or perhaps fome friend may call upon me, or it may be very cold, or very hot, or very rainv. Worthy. Poor excufes Mr. Bragwell, I am afraid thefe will not pafs on the day of judgment. But how is the reft of your Sun- days fpent ? Bragwell. O why I affure you, I often go to church in the afternoon alfo, and even if I am ever fo fleepy. Worthy. And fo you finifh your nap at church I fuppofc. . X 12 ) 'Bragiml. Why as to that to be fure we do contrive to have fomething a little nicer than common for dinner on a Sunday • in confequence of which one eats you know a little more than ordinary; and having no- thing to do cr.i that day, one has more lci- fure to take a cheerful glafs; and all thefe things will make one a little heavy you know. Worthy. And don't you take a little ride in the morning, and look at your fheep when the weather is good, and fo fill your mind juil before you go to church with the thoughts of ihem, and when you come away again don't you fettle an account, or write a few letters of bufmefs ? BragwelL I can't fay but I do, but that is nothing to any body as long as I fet a good example by keeping to my church. Worthy. And how do you pafs your Sunday evenings ? BragwelL My wife .and daughters go a ^vifiting of a Sunday afternoon. My daugh- ters are glad to get out at any rate, and as to my wife, me fays, that being ready dref- fed it is a pity to lofe the opportunity, be- 'fides it faves her time on a week day; fo then you fee I have it all my own way, and when I have got rid of the ladies, who arc y\ a ftrange way of explaining tSe (Command- ments, fo you fet me down for a murderer merely becaufe I bear hatred to a man who has done me a hurt, and am glad to do him a like injury in my turn. — I am fure I mould want fpirit if I did not. Worthy. I go by the fcripture rule, which fays, " he that hateth his brother is a murderer," and again, " love your enemies, blefs them that curfe you, and pray for them that defpitefully ufe you and perfecute you. Befides, Mr. Bragwell, you made it a part of your boafh that you faid the Lord's pray- er every day, wherein you pray to God to forgive you your trefpaffes as you forgive them that trefpafs againft you. — If therefore you do not forgive them that trefpafs againft you, in that cafe, you pray daily that your own trefpaffes may never be forgiven. Bragewell. Well, come let us make hafte and get through thefe commandments. The next is, " thou fhalt not commit adultery," thank God neither I nor my family can be faid to break the feventh commandment. Worthy. Here again, remember how Chnft himfelf hath faid, whofo looketh on a woman to lull after her, hath already com- mitted adultery with her in his heart. Thefe are no far fetched exprefTions of mine, Mr. Bragwell, they are the words of [efus Chrift. I hope you will not charge him with having carried things too far, for if you do, you (, '7 ) charge him wjth being miftaken in the reli- gion he taught, and this can ' only be ac- counted for by fuppofing him an impoftor. Brag-well. Why upon my word, Mr. Worthy, I don't like thefe fayings of his, which you quote upon me fo often, and that is the truth of it, and I can't fay I feel much difpofed to believe them. Worthy. I hope you believe in Jeftis Chrift. I hope you believe that creed of vours, which you alio boafted of your re- peating (o regularly. Bragwell. Well, well. I'll believe any thing you fay rather than ftand quarrelling with you. Worthy. I hope then you will allow, that fince it is committing adultery to look at a woman with even an irregular thought, it follows from the fame rule, that all im- lnodeft drefsin your daughters, or indecent jells and double meanings in yourfelf, all loofe fongs or novels, and all diverfions alfo which have a like dangerous tendency, are forbidden by the feventh commandment; for it is mod plain from what Chrift has faid, that it takes in not only the aft but the inclination, the defire, the indulged imagi- nation ; the a& is only the lalt and higheft degree of any fin, the topmoft round as it were of a ladder, to which all the lower rounds are only as fo many fteps and ftages. BragwdL Stria indeed,. Mr. Worthy* ( »8 ) but let us get on to the next, you won't pretend to fay / Jleal. Mr. Bragwell I truft was never known to rob on the high- way, to break open his neighbour's houfe, or to ufe falfe weights or meafures. IVortby. No, nor have you ever been under any temptation to do it, and yet there arc a thoufand ways of breaking the eighth commandment befides aQual ftealing, for in- fiance, do you never hide the faults of the goods you fell, and heighten the faults of thofe you buy ? Do you never take ad- vantage of an ignorant dealer, and afk more for a thing than it is worth ? Do you ne- ver turn the di-ftreffed circumftances of a man, who has fomething to fell, to vour own unfair benefit, and thus a& as unjuftly by him as if you had flolen ? Do you never a milling from a workman's wages, under a pretence which your confeience can t juftify ? Do you never pafs off an unfound horfe, for a found one ? Do you never conceal the real rent of your eftate from the overfeers, and thereby rob the poor rates of their legal due ? Bragwell. Pooh ! thefe things are done every day. I (han't go to fet up for being better than my neighbours in thefe fort of things, thefe little matters will pafsmuffer. — I don't fet up for a reformer..— If I am as good as the reft of my neighbours, no man can call me to account; I'm not worfe I trull, and I don't pretend to be better.. ( 19 ) Worthy. You mult be tried hereafter at the bar of God, and not by a jury of your fellow-creatures ; and the fcriptures are giv- en us, in order to {hew by what rule we fhall be judged. How many or how few, do as you do, is quite afide from the quef- tion; Jcfus Chrift, has even told us to ftrive to enter in at the fir ait gate, fo that we ought rather to take fright, from our be- ing like the common run of people, than to take comfort from our being fo. Bragwell. Come, I don't like all this clofe work — it makes a. man feel I don't know how — I don't find myfelf fo happy as I did — I don't like this fifhing in troubled waters — I'm as merry as a grig when I let thefe things alone— I'm glad we are got to the ninth. But I fuppofe I fhall be lugged in there too head and moulders. Any one who did not know me, would really think I was a great (inner, by your way of put- ting things; I don't bear falfe witnefs how- ever. Worthy. You mean, I fuppofe,. you would not fwear away a man's life falfely be- fore a magiftrate, but do you take equal care not to (lander or backbite him ? Do you never reprefent a good action of a man you have quarrelled with, as if it were a bad one ? or do you never make a bad one worfe than it is, by your manner of telling it ? even when you invent nc falfe circum- ( 20 ) fiance, do you never give fuch a colour, to th@fe you relate, as to leave a falfe im- preffion on the mind of the hearers P Do you never twirl a ftory fo as to make it tell a little better for yourfelf, and a little worfe for your neighbour, than truth and juftice warrant. Bragzvell Why as to that matter, all this is only natural. Worthy. Aye much too natural to be right I doubt. Well now we are got to the laft of the commandments. BragWfilL Yes, I have run the gaunt- let finely through them all, you will bring me in guilty here I fuppofe, for the pleafure of going through with it, for you condemn without judge or jury, mafte/Worthy. Worthy. The culprit I think has hither- to pleaded guilty to the evidence brought againft him. The tenth commandment how- ever, goes to the root and principle of evil, it dives to the bottom of things, this com- mand checks the ftrff rinng of fin in the heart, teaches us to ftrangle it in the birth as it were, before it breaks out in thofe acts which are forbidden: as for inftance, every man covets before he proceeds to Heal, nay many covet who dare not Heal, left they mould fuffer for it. Bragwdl. Why lookee, Mr. Worthy, I don't underftand thefe new fafhioned ex- planations; one mould not have a grain ot ( « ) V fheer goodnefs left, if every thing one does j icred away at this rate, I am not, I own, quite fo good as I thought, but if you fay were true, I mould be fo m rable s I mould not know what to do •wit; yfelf. Why, I tell you, all the world may be {aid to break the commandments at this rate. Worthy. Very true. All the world, and I myfelf alfo, are but too apt to break them, if not in the letter at leaft in the fpi- rit of them. Why then all the world are (as the fcripture expreffes it) " guilty before God." And if guilty they fhould own they are guilty, and not Hand up and juftify ■themfelves as you do, Mr. Bragwell. Bragwell. Well, according to my no- tion, I am a very honeft man, and honefty is the fum and fubftance of all religion fay I. Worthy. All truth, honefty, juftice, or- der and obedience, grow out of the chriftian religion. The true chriftian a£ts, at all times and on all occafions, from the pure and fpiritual principle of love to God; on this principle, he is upright in his dealings, true to his word, kind to the poor, helpful to the opprefted. In fhort, if he truly " loves God," he muft " do juftice" and can't help) loving mercy. Chriftianity is a uniform confiftent thing. It does not al- low us to make up for the breach of one* part of God's law, by our ftri&nefs in ob- ( 22 ) ferving another. There is no fpunge in one duty, that can wipe out the fpot of another fin. BragwelL Well but at this rate, I fhould be always puzzling and blundering, and fhould never know for certain whether I was right or not, whereas I am now quite fatisfied with myfelf, and have no doubts to torment me. Worthy, One way of knowing whether w T e really defire to obey the whole law of God is this; when we find we have as great a regard to that part of it, the breach of which does not touch our own intereft as to that part which does. For inftance, a man fobs me ; I am in a violent pafhon with him, and when it is faid to me, 44 doeft thou well to be angry?" I anfwer, 44 I do well." Thou /halt not Jleal is a law of God, and this fellow has broken that law. Aye, but fays confeience, 'tis thy own property which is in queftion.— He has broken thy hedge- he has ftolen thy fheep— he has taken thy purfe. Art thou therefore fure whether it is his violation of thy property, or of God's law which provokes thee ? I will put a fe- cond cafe— I hear another fwear inoft grie- voufly : or I meet him coming drunk out of an alehoufe; or I find him finging a loofe, prophane fong. If I am not as much griev- ed for this blafphemer, or this drunkard, as I was for the robber; if I do not take the fame pains to bring him to a fenfe of his fin 5 which I did to bring the robber to juftice, " how dwelleth the love of God in me?" Is it not clear that I value my own fheep more than God's commandments? That I prize my purfe more than I love my Maker ? In fhort, whenever I find out that I am more jealous for my own property than for God's law; more careful about my own reputati- on than his honour, I always fufpeel I am got upon wrong ground, and that even my right notions are not proceeding from a right principle. Bragwell. Why what in the world would you have me do ? Worthy. You muft confefs that your fins are fins. You muft not merely call them fins, while you fee no guilt in them ; but you muft confefs them fo as to hate and cleteft them; fo as to be habitually humbled under the fenfe of them; fo as to truft for falvation not in your freedom from them, but in the mercy of a Saviour; and fo as to make it the chief bufinefs of your life to con- tend againft them, and in the main to for- fake them. And remember that if you feek for a deceitful gaiety, rather than a well grounded cheerfulnefs,if you a prefer a falfe fecurity to final fafety, and now go away to your cattle and your Farm, and difmifs the fubjeft from your thoughts left it fhould make you uneafy; I am not fure that this lLfJH f lRHAfiV ( H I iimple difcourfe may not appear againft you at the day of account, as a frefh proof that you " loved darknefs rather than light" and lb increafe your condemnation. Mr. Bragwell was more affe&ed than he cared to own. He went to-bed with lefs fpirits and more humility than ufual. He did not however care to let Mr. Worthy fee the impreffion which it had made upon him; but at parting next morning, he fhook him by the hand more cordially than ufual, and made him proinife to return his vifn in a JTiort time. What befel Mr. Bragwell and his family on his. going home, may perhaps make the fubjeft of a future hiftory. ■ Z. X HE E N JD.