• to propofals which offered profpects of rifing to wealth and • preferment: in a more advanced age, but when he was still in fuch a vigorous state of health that he might have hoped for many more years of life, he had offers made of removing him to the university of Edinburgh, to be profeffor of moral philofophy there, which might have been a more lucrative place to him, and given him better opportunities of forming connections with people of the firft rank and diftinction in this country; but he was contented with his present fituation, and difcouraged all attempts to change it.

Thele fingular accomplishments and moral endowments • rendered his converfation, especially among his friends, fo entertaining and inftructive, that it was a school of wifiom It must have to thofe who had the happiness to enjoy it. • been an undifcerning company which did not receive both < pleasure and improvement from him. A remarkable vivacity of thought and expreffion, a perpetual flow of chearfulnefs and good-will, and a visible air of inward happiness, made him the life and genius of fociety, and spread an enlivening influence every where around him. He was gay and pleasant, full of mirth and raillery, familiar and communicative to the laft degree, and utterly free from all ftateliness or affectation. No fymptoms of vanity or self-con❝ceit appeared in him: he fought not after fame, nor had he any vain complacency in the unfought poffeffion of it. While he was visibly fuperior to others about him, he was the only one that was quite infenfible of it. His own talents and en• dowments were not the objects on which his thoughts were employed; he was always carried away from attending to himself, by the exercise of kind affections, zeal for fome ⚫ public generous defigns, or keen inquiries after truth. This 'was fuch an acknowledged part of his character, that even those who were leaft difpofed to think well of him, never • infinuated that he was proud or vain; the natural modesty of his temper was heightned and refined by his religious fenti

'ments.

He had a full perfuafion and warm fenfe of the great truths of natural and revealed religion, and of the importance of juft and rational devotion to the happiness of human life, and to the ftability and purity of a virtuous character. The power of devout fentiments over his mind appeared in his converfation; in his public prelections he frequently took • occafion from many hints, which his fubject afforded him, as well as when it was the direct subject itself, to run out at great length, and with great ardor, on the reasonableness

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and advantage of habitual regard to God, and of referring all our talents, virtues, and enjoyments to his bounty. Such habitual references appeared to him the fureft means of checking thofe emotions of pride, vain complacency, and felf applaufe, which are apt to fpring up in the minds of thofe, who do not feriously and frequently reflect that they • did not make themfelves to differ from others, and that they have nothing but what they received. Such fentiments, deeply rooted in the mind, he looked upon as the proper foundation of that fimplicity of heart and life, which is the highest perfection of a virtuous character.

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Such abilities, fuch difpofitions, and fuch ftores of knowlege, as have been mentioned, accompanied with a happy talent of fpeaking with eafe, with propriety and fpirit, rendered him one of the moft mafterly and engaging teachers that has appeared in our age. He had a great fund of natural eloquence, and a perfuafive manner: he attended, indeed, much more to fenfe than expreffion, and yet his expreffion was good: he was mafter of that precifion and accuracy of language which is neceflary in philofophical inquiries. But ⚫ he did not look upon it as his duty, either in his prelections, or in his writings, upon moral and religious fubjects, to keep up ftrictly at all times to the character of the didactive teacher, by confining himself to all the precision requifite in accurate explication and ftrict argument. He apprehended that he was anfwering the defign of his office as effectually, when he dwelt in a more diffufive manner upon fuch moral confiderations as are fuited to touch the heart, and excite a relith for virtue, as when explaining, or eftablifhing any doctrine, cven of real importance, with the most philofophical exactnefs: he regarded the culture of the heart, as a main end of all moral inftruction: he kept it habitually in view; and he was extremely well qualified for fucceeding in it, fo far as human means can go. He had an • uncommon vivacity of thought, and fenfibility of temper, which rendered him quickly fufceptible of the warmest emotions upon the great fubjects of morals and religion: this gave a pleafant unct on to his difcourfes, which commanded the attention of the ftudents, and at the fame time left ftong impreffions upon their minds. He filled their hearts. with a newer and higher kind of pleafure than they had any experience of before, when he opened to their view, in his animated manner, large fields of fcience, of which hitherto they had no conception: when, for inftance, he pointed out to his pupils, in his lectures on natural theology, the numberlefs

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berlefs evidences of wonderful art and kind defign, in the ftructure of particular things; and the ftill more astonishing ' evidences of the wifeft contrivance, and of the most benign intention, in the whole material fyftem, confidered as one thing, it is easy to conceive that their tender minds, warm with the love of knowledge, would be greatly ftruck. Such views of nature were new difcoveries to them, which filled them with delight and aftonishment, and gave them, at the fame time, the most joyful and fatisfying conviction of the being and perfections of the great author of all. In like manner, when he led them from the view of the external world, to the contemplation of the internal one, the foul of man, and fhewed them like inftances of divine wisdom and benignity, in the contrivance of its moral conftitution, they were filed with fresh delight and wonder, and difcerned new and increafing proofs of the glorious perfections of the Father of our fpirits. And when he described the several vir'tues exercifed in real life, as beautiful in themselves, as the nobleft employment of our rational and moral powers, as the only fources of true dignity and happinefs to individuals, and to communities, they were charmed with the lovely forms, and panted to be what they beheld. The pleasure fpringing from the light of truth and beauty of virtue, breaking in upon ingenious and well-difpofed minds, excited fuch a keen defire for knowledge, and fuch an ardor of 'pursuing it, as fufpended for a time thofe impulfes of youthful paffions which are apt to hurry young men away, in that 'period of life. But that it may not be imagined, that these ftrong effects are entirely to be afcribed to the charms of novelty, it deferves to be taken notice of, that ftudents advanced in years and knowledge, chufed to attend his lectures on moral philofophy, for four, five, or fix years together, ftill finding fresh entertainment, tho' the fubject, in the 'main, was the fame every season.'

Mr. Leechman goes on to inform us, that it was a great addition to the usefulness of Mr. Hutchefon's leffons, that they were not confined to high fpeculations, and the peculiarities of a scheme, but frequently defcended to common life; fometimes pointing out and expofing fashionable vices and follies in the upper part of the world, departures from real justice and equity in the bufy and commercial part of it, and the dangerous rocks on which youth is apt to split and make fhipwreck both of virtue and happiness. The grand maxims he dwelt upon, and laboured to inftil into the minds of his pupils, were to rejoice above all things in the firm perfuafion of the universal providence

providence of a Being, infinitely wife and good, who loves all his works, and cannot be conceived as hating any thing he hath made this he constantly inculcated in the warmest manner, as a steady foundation of entire truft and confidence in him, and chearful fubmiffion to his will in all events.

As he had occafion every year, in the courfe of his lectures, to explain the origin of government, and compare the different forms of it, he took peculiar care, while on that fubject, to inculcate the importance of civil and religious liberty to the happiness of mankind: as a warm love of liberty, and manly zeal for promoting it, were ruling principles in his own breast, he always infifted upon it at great length, and with the greateft ftrength of argument, and earnestness of perfuafion and he had fuch fuccefs on this important point, that few, if any, of his pupils, whatever contrary prejudices they might bring along with them, ever left him without favourable notions of that fide of the question which he espoused and defended.

We are further told, that he was extremely fond of welldifpofed youth, entered into their concerns, encouraged and befriended them on all occafions, by which means he gained their efteem and affection in a very high degree. The influ ence he had over them, he employed to the excellent purposes of stamping virtuous impreffions upon their hearts, and awak ing in them a tafte for literature, fine arts, and every thing that is ornamental or useful to human life. He fpread fuch an ardor for knowledge, and fuch a fpirit of inquiry every where around him, that the converfation of the students, at their focial walks and vifits, turned with great keenness upon fubjects of learning and taste, and contributed greatly to animate and carry them forward in the most valuable purfuits. His atten tion was not confined to the pupils immediately under his care; he laid himself out to be useful to the ftudents in all the different faculties, whenever any opportunity offered: and he was especially follicitous to be ferviceable to the ftudents of divinity, endeavouring, among other important inftructions, to give them just notions of the main defign of preaching. High foeculations on difputable points, either of theology or philofophy, he looked upon as altogether improper for the pulpit; at least on all ordinary occafions. He particularly infifted up on the ufeleffness and impropriety of handling in the pulpit fuch speculative queftions, as, whether human nature is capa ble of difinterefted affections; whether the original of duty or moral obligation is from natural confcience, or moral fenfe, from law, or from rational views of intereft; and fuch like inquiries, Tho' fuch difquifitions might be proper, and even

neceflary

neceffary in a school of philofophy, yet, in his view of things, they did not fall within the province of the preacher, whofe office is not to explain the principles of the human mind, but to address himself to them, and fet them in motion.

The general plan of preaching which he recommended,' fays the very judicious author of the account of his life, was to this purpose: As mankind are weak, ignorant, guilty creatures, altogether infufficient for their own happiness, and every • moment exposed to many unavoidable calamities, let them be 'called upon to reflect upon themselves as fuch, and let those doctrines of natural and revealed religion, which will impart confolation to them under thefe humbling views of themfelves, be fet before them in the ftrongeft light: as they are apt to be feduced, both from their duty and happiness, by 'felfish and fenfual paffions, let both the awful doctrines of religion, which may ftrike a dread, and check the impulfes of bad paffions, and the joyful ones, which may excite and encourage to the practice of purity, fincerity, and all goodnefs, be displayed before them in all their force. And as they are prone to reft in the gencral knowledge of their du-. ty, without ferioufly applying it to the government of their hearts and lives, let the religious inftructor take care not to dwell too much upon fuch general topics, as the beauty,. excellency, and reafonablefs of the divine laws, but com'monly descend, in a minute and particular manner, to direct their conduct in all the relations and ftations of life,, ⚫ even the loweft, and in the ordinary bufinefs and intercourfes of it. And let all these things be done without laboured. elevation of language, in that plain and fimple manner, which touches the heart, and brings things home to the con fcience and immediate feeling af every one,

To all which it is but just to add, that he was a most valuable member of the univerfity in all other refpects, as well as that of an inftructor of youth, his great talents qualifying him and his unwearied zeal prompting him, on all occafi ons, to promote all its civil as well as literary interefts.

Such was the life of this worthy perfon, fpent in a course. of affiduous, but not painful study, in continually doing. good to the utmost of his power, and propagating truth, virtue, and religion among mankind. To conclude, he, I had uncommon abilities, uncommon virtues, and small failings, and these arifing from good qualities; if he he was at. any time too much, or too foon heated, it was owing to the quickness of his parts, and fenfibility of his temper; if his indignation was ftrong, it was only provoked by fuch bafe

nef