s on every Thing that was not
well season'd, and might any ways obstruct the Sale of their own Hops
and Barley. Those at_ Helm, _when they acted in Publick, shew'd
themselves on all Accounts exempt and wholly divested from Thirst; made
several Laws to prevent the Growth of it, and punish the Wicked who
openly dared to quench it. If you examin'd them in their private
Persons, and pry'd narrowly into their Lives and Conversations, they
seem'd to be more fond, or at least drank larger Draughts of Small Beer
than others, but always under Pretence that the Mending of Complexions
required greater Quantities of Liquor in them, than it did in those
they ruled over; and that what they had chiefly at Heart, without any
Regard to themselves, was to procure great Plenty of Small Beer among
the Subjects in general, and a great Demand for their Hops and Barley._

_As No body was debarr'd from Small Beer, the Clergy made use of it as
well as the Laity, and some of them very plentifully; yet all of them
desired to be thought less Thirsty by their Function than others, and
never would own, that they drank any, but to mend their Complexions. In
their Religious Assemblies they were more sincere; for as soon as they
came there, they all openly confess'd, the Clergy as well as the Laity,
from the highest to the lowest, that they were Thirsty; that Mending
their Complexions was what they minded the least, and that all their
Hearts were set upon Small Beer and Quenching their Thirst, whatever
they might pretend to the Contrary. What was remarkable is, that to
have laid Hold of those Truths to any one's Prejudice, and made use of
those Confessions afterwards out of their Temples, would have been
counted very impertinent; and Every body thought it a heinous Affront
to be call'd_ Thirsty, _tho' you had seen him drink Small Beer by whole
Gallons. The chief Topicks of their Preachers was the great Evil of
Thirst, and the Folly there was in quenching it. They exhorted their
Hearers to resist the Temptations of it, inveigh'd against Small Beer,
and often told them it was Poyson, if they drank it with Pleasure, or
any other Design than to mend their Complexions._

_In their Acknowledgments to the Gods, they thank'd them for the Plenty
of comfortable Small Beer they had received from them, notwithstanding
they had so little deserv'd it, and continually quench'd their Thirst
with it; whereas they were so thorowly satisfy'd, that it was given
them for