A third Letter for Toleration.

493

as certainly that must be, which draws after it the loss of men’s eternalhappiness.

You will, it is likely, be ready to fay here again, (for a good subterfugeis never to be forsaken) that you except the “ desperately perverse and ob-“ stinate.” I desire to know for what reason you except them ? Is it becausethey cease to be faulty ? Next I ask you, who are in your sense the despe-rately perverse and obstinate ? Those that is. or 5s. or 5I. or iool. or nofine will work upon ? Those who can bear loss of estate, but not loss ofliberty ? or loss of liberty and estate, but not corporal pains and torments ?or all this, but not loss of life ? For to these degrees do men differently standout. And since there are men wrought on by the approaches of fire andfaggot, which other degrees of severity could not prevail with ; where willyou bound your desperately perverse and obstinate ? The king of France,though you will allow him not to have truth of his side, yet when he cameto dragooning, found few so desperately perverse and obstinate, as not to bewrought on. And why should truth, which in your opinion wants force,and nothing but force, to help it, not have the assistance of those degrees offorce, when less will not do to make it prevail, which are able to bring menover to false religions, which have no light and strength of their own to helpthem ? You will do well therefore to consider whether your name of seve-rities, in opposition to the moderate punishments you speak of, has or can doyou any service ; whether the distinction between compelling and coactivepower, be of any use or difference at all. For you deny the magistrate to p - 4--have power to compel; and you contend for his use of his coactive power ; p. 27.which will then be a good distinction, when you can find a way to use co-active, or, which is the same, compelling power, without compulsion. Idesire you also to consider, if in matters of religion punishments are to beemployed, because they may be useful; whether you can stop at any degreethat is ineffectual to the end which you propose, let that end be what it will.

If it be barely to gain a hearing, as in some places you seem to fay ; I thinkfor that small punishments will generally prevail, and you do well to putthat and moderate penalties together. If it be to make men consider, asin other places you speak; you cannot tell when you have obtained, thatend. But if your end be, which you seem most to insist on, to make menconsider as they ought, i. e. till they embrace ; there are many on whom allyour moderate penalties, all under those severities you condemn, are tooweak to prevail. So that you must either confess, not considering so as to" embrace the true religion, i. e. not considering as one ought,” is no faultto be punished by? the coactive force of the magistrate ; or else you must re-sume those levermes which you have renounced ; chuse you whether of thetwo you please.

Tht.refope it was not so much at random that I said, “ That thither at L.n. p. 360^" last persecution must come.” Indeed from what you had said of fallingunder the.stroke of the sword, which was nothing to the purpose; 1 added,

" That if by that you meant any thing to the business in hand, you seem to a. p. 13,

" have a reserve for greater punishments, when less are not sufficient to bring3 " men