Yet all this is but friendly dealing, in comparison with what he affords the clergy upon the same article.  He supposes[33] all that reverend body, who differ from him in principles of church or state, so far from disliking Popery, upon the above-mentioned motives of perjury, “quitting their wives, or burning their relations;” that the hopes of “enjoying the abbey lands” would soon bear down all such considerations, and be an effectual incitement to their perversion; and so he goes gravely on, as with the only argument which he thinks can have any force, to assure them, that “the parochial priests in Roman Catholic countries are much poorer than in ours, the several orders of regulars, and the magnificence of their church, devouring all their treasure,” and by consequence “their hopes are vain of expecting to be richer after the introduction of Popery.”

[Footnote 33:  Page 46.]

But after all, his Lordship despairs, that even this argument will have any force with our abominable clergy, because, to use his own words, “They are an insensible and degenerate race, who are thinking of nothing but their present advantages; and so that they may now support a luxurious and brutal course of irregular and voluptuous practices, they are easily hired to betray their religion, to sell their country, and give up that liberty and those properties, which are the present felicities and glories of this nation."[34] He seems to reckon all these evils as matters fully determined on, and therefore falls into the last usual form of despair, by threatening the authors of these miseries with “lasting infamy, and the curses of posterity upon perfidious betrayers of their trust."[35]

[Footnote 34:  Page 47.]

[Footnote 35:  Page 47.]

Let me turn this paragraph into vulgar language for the use of the poor, and strictly adhere to the sense of the words.  I believe it may be faithfully translated in the following manner:  “The bulk of the clergy, and one-third of the bishops, are stupid sons of whores, who think of nothing but getting money as soon as they can:  If they may but produce enough to supply them in gluttony, drunkenness, and whoring, they are ready to turn traitors to God and their country, and make their fellow-subjects slaves.”  The rest of the period, about threatening “infamy,” and “the curses of posterity upon such dogs and villains,” may stand as it does in the Bishop’s own phrase, and so make the paragraph all of a piece.

I will engage, on the other side, to paraphrase all the rogues and rascals in the Englishman, so as to bring them up exactly to his Lordship’s style:  But, for my own part, I much prefer the plain Billingsgate way of calling names, because it expresses our meaning full as well, and would save abundance of time which is lost by circumlocution; so, for instance, John Dunton,[36] who is retained on the same side with the Bishop, calls my Lord-treasurer and Lord Bolingbroke, traitors, whoremasters, and Jacobites, which three words cost our right reverend author thrice as many lines to define them; and I hope his Lordship does not think there is any difference in point of morality, whether a man calls me traitor in one word, or says I am one “hired to betray my religion and sell my country."[37]