DR. Sherlock having, more especially of late, since his taking the Oaths, made so great a Noise in the World, and greater since the Publication of his Fa­mous Book, or Reasons in Justification of his doing it, and there being already some, and like to be many more grave and serious An­swers to him, 'tis hop'd it may prove not a little divertive to give the true Character of a Sherlockian, whereby he may see how he looks himself, and others, how they like him.

There are three Ingredients then that goe to the making up of a true Sherlockian, viz. Pride, Obstinacy and Hipocrisie; to which may be added a fourth, viz. Enthusiasm, which may be not a little admir'd at in one, who accounted every one an Enthusiast that had more Sanctity than himself; or that had any measure of the Holy Spirit, to whose Operation he was a Stranger, and so derided at it in others. As for his Pride, it proceeds from a Self-conceit of his Parts, which boyls up to such a height, that at length it breaks forth into the Itch after Po­pularity, a Disease almost incurable among some of the Clergy. As for his Obstinacy, it will in a short time dissolve in a sufficient quan­tity of Aurum Fulminans, and in the true Aqua [...]egalis of Self-Interest and Convenience. And [...]hen to conceal the suddenness of the unex­ [...]ected Dissolution, Hypocrisie is ready at hand [...]ith an Expedient to instruct him how to steer [...]etween Scylla and Carybdis, with the Ballast of a [...]illiamite in Tongue and a Jacobite in Heart. [...]ut then for his Enthusiasm, 'tis apparent, in [...]at he resolves all into God Almighty's imme­ [...]ate Act; that he sets up Kings, and pulls down [...]ings, without any hand of the People in it; [...]at Kings are Jure Divino, immediately from [...]od, without the Choice or Consent of the Peo­ [...]e; and that when we have a Wicked Prince, [...]o breaks the Law and subverts the Govern­ [...]ent, we must not resist him, for he is settled [...] God's Authority; but tho' we have a mind to [...] rid of him and free our selves, we must not [...] the Means that God has put into our Hands [...] do it, but must leave it all to Providence; [...] which to Expect, is an Enthusiasm beyond Ven­ner's, who relyed upon One's chasing a Thou­sand, &c. but He will not allow so much as one to stir, or resist, tho' the Knife is at their Throat, upon pain of Damnation: O the migh­ty Charm of Sherlockian Enthusiasm! And in this Luxuriancy of his Exalted Soul, He takes plea­sure to claw his Itch after Popularity by affecta­tion of a Name, like that of Loyola, St. Fran­cis or St. Dominick. And now we talk of Loyola, the Sherlockian and the Jesuite may shake Hands together, in regard they both are well-skill'd in Double-dealing, and both pretend to the Stating of Questions between Sovereign Princes: Only there wants the Contrivance of a Monthly-Meeting, to see the whole Gang of his Admi­ers walk Chicken-a-Chicken-a-train-tro, by Couples, first to a Sermon, and then to a Feast at Merchant-Taylors-Hall, for the Honour of their Leader.

A Sherlockian may be said to [...]e like a wicked Chyrurgeon, that with one Hand pours Balsom into a tender Wound, and with the other strews Euphorbium upon it, to fester it, and prolong the Cure: And thus he refuses the Oath to King William to heal King James's wounded Claim; and then takes the Oath, to the end he may have a plausible Pretence to wound King Willi­am's Lawfull Right. Thus, as our Watermen, he looks one Way and Rows another, and is like the Serjeant in Q. Mary's days, Tam pro Que­rente, tam pro Defendente; but he so Orders the Matter, that he may lose the Cause he seems to plead for; and so you may compare him to some Seas that by the Shoar at a distance seem to have good bottom, but when you come to faddom 'em, there is no Anchor-hold.

A thorough-pac'd Sherlockian will swear to a Popish Prince the first Minute of his Accession to the Throne, and is one of the first that will lend his hand to lead the Idolater up the Steps to it; though he cannot but know that by the Law a Papist ought not to inherit the Crown of Eng­land, and that therefore as good a House of Com­mons as we have had in England, Voted his Ex­clusion. And when this Popish King is settled, [...] [Page 2] couch and lye down like Issachar under the bur­then of a severe Bondage, Preaching up and Practising Passive Obedience and Non-Resistance, tho' he acts never so Arbitrarily, and Infring­es Liberty and Property; nay, and the Pro­testant Religion too never so much: He is the Lords Anointed, and must not be touch'd or resisted upon Pain of Damnation. Yet for all this Do­ctrine, this Politick Sherlockian has so much Cunning amidst his Bigottry, as not to assist his Popish King, when oppos'd by our Deli­verer: Tho' that we are deliver'd is no thanks to him, since he wou'd not resist the Oppressor, nor assist our Deliverer. When this Protestant Prince, and our gracious Protector is acknow­ledg'd by the Nation in general, represented in full Convention and Parliament, this proud and conceited Sherlockian will not own him; but gives it as his Opinion not to be over hasty (in doing ones duty as he accounts it now) in taking the New Oath of Aliegiance to him: and good reason for his delay, because his late Master K. James had a formidable Army in the Field, and he knew not on which side Provi­dence wou'd cast the success: But when he sees his late K. James's Army broken by his Ma­jesty King William's Victory at the Boyn, then he wonders how any one can refuse it, and strait becomes as pure a Williamite by being dipt in those Waters, as any Jew is a Christian after dipping in Jordan. And thus 'tis apparent what will open the eyes of a true Sherlockian, the Waters of the Boyn are the only Waters that could have this effectual Operation upon his Sight: They are beyond the Womans Urine that never knew any Man but her own Husband, which cur'd the blind Egyptian King, as He­rodotus tells the Story. The Waters of Jordan were never more effectual to cure Naaman's Di­stemper, than the Waters of the Boin to wash away the Leprosie of a Jacobite Conscience. O! the Power and Efficacy of the Waters of the Boin. He was secretly concern'd, that is to say, vex'd in his Heart, that some, not many, of his old intimate Cronies had taken the Oaths: And tho he refus'd to take 'em, he never engag'd in any Faction against it; nor ever made it his Business to disswade men from it, any more than when his Opinion was ask'd, to declare his own Thoughts, viz. That all were perjur'd who took 'em: Which I be­lieve few doubt had greater Influence on his Admirers, (who were none of the wisest, see­ing they could be influenc'd by him, in oppo­sition to the great Body of the Nation, Lords and Commons, and the greatest and best part of the Bishops and Clergy, &c.) to hinder 'em from taking the Oaths then, than all his Rea­sons, grounded on such absurd Principles, can have on 'em to take 'em now, especially when this Declaration of his own Thoughts, was back'd and confirm'd by his own Example of re­fusing 'em for above a year together.

A genuine Sherlockian has the Arrogance to think himself wiser and Honester than any of his Brethren; for he proudly declares, That he does not know, that he has given any just Occasion to the World, to mark him out for a Dishonest Man or a Fool: Tho how he can be excus'd from be­ing both, I can't see, when he does in effect call all those Rebels who resisted the late King James, and Assisted in bringing in his present Majesty King William. And how he can be Wise or Honest, that renounces not the Principles of that Foolish, Knavish, and Enslaving Do­ctrine of Passive Obedience and Non-Resistance, I can't understand: A Doctrine, which if it had been Preach'd and practis'd by others, as much as by the Sherlockians, wou'd have impe­ded our Happy Revolution, more than all the King's Forces cou'd have forwarded it; and so left us groaning under the Tyrannical Yoak of Popery and Sherlocism.

To summ up all, a right Sherlockain will live in every Air, side with every Government, and conform to all sorts of Revolutions: He will be an Advocate for the Great Mogul, the Grand Seignior, the French King, Count Teckley, or any other Prince or Potentate whatsoever; without respect to his Title, if he gets but once into possession: He believes that Oliver was as well settled in his Protectorship, as King Wil­liam on his Throne, by Gods Authority: and so he blames his Loyal Ancestors for not swear­ing Allegiance then, as much as he does those who refuse to do it to King William now; by which he looks asquint on our present Govern­ment under his Majesty King William, as if i [...] had no more Legal Foundation than that. I [...] short, as the Heathens, and looser sort of Pr [...] tenders to Christianity, adore good Fortune [...] the Female Sex; so our Sherlockian, because h [...] would not seem to make his Courtship to [...] Harlot, worships her in the Male Sex, by th [...] name of the Prince in Possession: and inded [...] 'tis no wonder that a Disciple of the Master [...] the Temple shou'd admire eleven Points of t [...] Law, and resolve to be Vicar of Bray stil [...] But upon the whole matter, 'tis apparent th [...] the Complyance of a Sherlockian is only forc [...] by the necessity of self Interest, and comfor [...] ble Importance; and therefore we may co [...] clude with Hudibras,