His religion was that of a young
prince in his warm blood, whose inquiries were applied more to
discover arguments against belief than in its favour."
"The wits about the Court, who found employment in laughing at
Scripture, delighted in turning to ridicule what the preachers said in
their sermons before him, and in this way induced him to look upon the
clergy as a body of men who had compounded a religion for their own
advantage. So strongly did this feeling take root in him that he at
length resigned himself to sleep at sermon-time--not even South or
Barrow having the art to keep him awake. In one of these half-hours
of sleep, when in Chapel, he is known to have missed, doubtless with
regret, the gentle reproof of South to Lauderdale during a general
somnolency:--'My lord, my lord, you snore so loud you will wake the
King.'"
"He was altogether in favour of extempore preaching, and was unwilling
to listen to the delivery of a written sermon." (Indeed, if we had
more people like him in this day, we would hear far more of the gospel
and far less of politics and jokes which so demoralize the pulpit and
take away all sacredness.
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