To his Mother Date: CHRIST CHURCH, November 22, 1725. DEAR MOTHER, I must beg leave to assure you that before I received yours I was fully convinced of two things,-first, that Mr. Berkeley's George Berkeley, D.D. (1685-1753), Bishop of Cloyne 1734. He published his Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous in 1713. The reference is to the early part of the Second Dialogue. notion, which at first sight appeared very plausible as, indeed, an ingenious disputant will make almost anything appear was utterly groundless; and that he either advanced a palpable falsehood, or said nothing at all: and, secondly, that I had been under a mistake in adhering to that definition of Faith which Dr. Fiddes Richard Fiddes (1671 July 8, 1725). A critical account of him is given by Hearne in his diary for July 15 of this year. He was author of A Body of Divinity (2 vols. folio, 1718-20) and other works. He and his school defined faith as 'an assent to a proposition on reasonable (or rational) grounds.' sets down as the only true one. Mr. Berkeley's reasons on a second reading I found to be mere fallacy, though very artfully disguised. From one or two you may easily judge of what kind his other arguments are. He introduces Hylas charging Philonous with skepticism for denying the existence of sensible things: to which Philonous replies that, if denying the existence of sensible things constitute a skeptic, he will prove those to be such who assert sensible things to be material; for if all sensible things are material, then, if it be proved that nothing material exists, it will follow that no sensible thing exists; and that nothing material can exist he undertakes to demonstrate. Matter, says he (by which you must mean something sensible, or rise how came you to know of it), you define a solid extended substance, the existence of which is exterior to the mind and does in no ways depend on its being perceived; but if it appear that no sensible thing is exterior to the mind, your supposition of a sensible substance independent on it is a plain inconsistency.

Sensible things are those which are perceived by the senses; everything perceived by the senses is immediately perceived (for the senses make no inferences, that is the province of reason); everything immediately perceived is a sensation; no sensation can exist but in a mind: ergo no sensible thing can exist but in a mind, which was to be proved. Another of his arguments to the same purpose is this: Nothing can exist in fact the very notion of which implies a contradiction; nothing is impossible to conceive, unless the notion of it imply a contradiction. But 'tis absolutely impossible to conceive anything existing otherwise than in some mind, because whatever any one conceives is at that instant in his mind. Wherefore as matter is supposed to be a substance exterior to all minds, and as 'tis evident nothing can be even conceived exterior to all minds, 'tis equally evident there can be no such thing in being as matter. Or thus: Everything conceived is a conception, every conception is a thought, and every thought is in some mind; wherefore to say you can conceive a thing which exists in no mind is to say you conceive what is not conceived at all. The flaws in his arguments, which do not appear at a distance, may be easily seen on a nearer inspection. He says, artfully enough in the preface, in order to give his proofs their full force, it will be necessary to place them in as many different lights as possible. By this means the object grows too big for the eye; whereas, had he contracted it into a narrower compass, the mind might readily have taken it in at one view and discerned where the failing lay. How miserably does he play with the words 'idea' and 'sensation'! Everything immediately perceived is a sensation. Why Because a sensation is what is immediately perceived by the senses that is, in plain English, everything immediately perceived is immediately perceived; a most admirable discovery, the glory of which I dare say no one will envy him. And again: all sensible qualities are ideas, and no idea exists but in some mind that is, all sensible qualities are objects of the mind in thinking, and no image of an external object painted on a mind exists otherwise than in some mind. And what then

Fiddes' definition of faith I perceived on reflection to trespass against the very first law of defining, as not being adequate to the thing defined, which is but a part of the definition. An assent grounded both on testimony and reason takes in science as well as faith, which is on all hands allowed to be distinct from it. I am, therefore, at length come over entirely to your opinion, that saving faith (including practice) is an assent to what God has revealed because He has revealed it and not because the truth of it may be evinced by reason. Affairs in Poland grow worse and worse. Instead of answering the remonstrances from the Protestant Powers, the Poles remonstrate themselves against their listing troops and meddling with what does not concern them. It seems above fifty schools and near as many churches have been taken from the Protestants in Poland and Lithuania since the treaty of Oliva; so that the guarantees of it would have had reason to interpose though the persecution at Thorn had never happened. See letter of July 29, 1725. The late Bishop of Chester Francis Gastrell (1662-1725), Bishop of Chester x 7x4-25,and Canon of Christ Church. Hearne, recording his death (Nov. 1725), describes him as 'the very best of the bishops excepting Dr. Hooker of Bath, and had many excenent qualities, among some bad ones.' He was educated at Westminster School. John Wesley went to his funeral, and his Diary says, ' Made a copy of alcaicks on Bishop Gastrell.' Samuel Wesley, jun., included a glowing eulogy of him in his Poems of 1736 (p: 125). Samuel Peploe 'succeeded him as Bishop. See letter of Sept. 23, 1723,n. was buried on Friday last, five days alter his death, which was occasioned by the dead palsy and gout in the head and stomach; he was in the sixty-third year of his age. 'Tis said he will be succeeded either by Dr. Foulkes Peter Foulkes (1676-1747), Canon and Sub-Dean of Exeter. or Dr. Ganner, Chancellor of Norwich, one whom all parties speak well of. I have only time to beg yours and my father's blessing on Your dutiful Son. Pray remember .me to my sisters, who, I hope, are well. If I knew when my sister Emly would be at home, I would write. November 23.