Wake's answer aroused a sensation almost as acute as the original _Letter_ of Shower.

But by far the ablest criticism it provoked was that of Francis Atterbury, then a young student of Christ Church and on the threshold of his turbulent career.

His _Rights, Powers and Privileges of an English Convocation Stated and Vindicated_ not only showed a masterly historic sense in its effort to traverse the unanswerable induction of Wake, but challenged his position more securely on the ground of right.

The historical argument, indeed, was not a safe position for the Church, and Wake's rejoinder in his _State of the Church_ (1703) is generally conceded to have proved his point, so far as the claim of prescription is concerned.

But when Atterbury moves to the deeper problem of what is involved in the nature of a church, he has a powerful plea to make.