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430 a Church as that of England." Another Clergyman was charged with having circulated superstitious and erroneous books, among which were The Whole Duty of Man and Scougall's Catechism. At the opening of the Assembly, the Preacher drew a parallel between Presbytery and the cleansing of the Temple of the Buyers and Sellers: and at one of their sessions the presiding minister, after recognizing Christ as Supreme Head of the Church, added in his Prayer; "Thou knowest, O Lord, that when we own any other it is only for decency's sake." On another occasion, the minister who officiated, after praying for moderation, added, "O Lord, to be free it would be better to make a clean house." At some of their special meetings for Prayer, eight or ten individuals prayed in succession, which, coupled with their actions in removing so many exemplary Clergymen, led some persons to observe that they were practising what our Lord condemns in the Sixth Chapter of St. Matthew, and others, that they were imitating the Popish Masses.

This account of the Assembly is confirmed by the admissions of writers, who usually speak favourably of the Presbyterians. "The truth was, that the Presbyterians, by their violence, and other absurd practices, were rendering both odious and contemptible. They had formed a General Assembly at the end of the former year, in which they very much exposed themselves by the violence of their conduct. Little learning or prudence appeared among them: poor preaching, and wretched haranguing: partialities to one another, and violence and injustice to those who differed from them, appeared in all their meetings. And these so much sunk their reputation, that they