yard of St. Leonard's, near Exeter. His funeral sermon was preached by Joseph Hallett (1691?–1744) [q. v.], who had followed his father as Peirce's colleague. Thomas Emlyn was invited to succeed him, but declined. He left a widow and family.
Avery gives a long Latin inscription (reprinted by Murch) which was intended for his tombstone. The cutting of it was nearly finished when Richard Gay (Avery misspells the name Gey), rector of St. Leonard's, interposed with a prohibition. It was proposed to substitute the words, ‘Here lies the reverend, learned and pious Mr. James Peirce.’ Gay objected that Peirce could not be ‘reverend,’ because not lawfully ordained; nor ‘pious,’ since he taught errors. Finally the inscription took this form: ‘Mr. James Peirce's Tomb, 1726.’ A mural monument, erected to his memory in the Mint Meeting, is now in the vestry of George's Meeting, Exeter.
He published, besides single sermons (1714–23); 1. ‘Exercitatio Philosophica de Homœomeria Anaxagorea,’ Utrecht, 1692, 4to. 2. ‘Remarks on Dr. Wells's Letters,’ &c., 1706–8, 8vo, eight parts; 3rd edition, 1711, 8vo. 3. ‘Some Considerations on … a Vindication of the Office of Baptism, and … the Sign of the Cross,’ &c., 1708, 8vo. 4. ‘Vindiciæ Fratrum Dissentientium in Anglia adversus … Nicholsii … Defensionem Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ,’ &c. 1710, 8vo; in English, ‘A Vindication of the Dissenters,’ &c., 1717, 8vo; the translation, though otherwise augmented, omits a considerable portion of the ‘second part,’ among the omissions being a chapter on the charge of Socinianism brought against Anglican divines, in which Peirce contends that dissenters are free from this taint; 2nd edition, 1718, 8vo; pt. iii. chapter 3 of the English edition, was reprinted as ‘A Tractate on Church Music,’ &c., 1786, 8vo. 5. ‘An Enquiry into the present Duty of a Low-Churchman,’ &c., 1711, 8vo; anon. 1712, 8vo. 6. ‘A Letter to Dr. Bennet … concerning the Nonjurors' Separation,’ &c., 1717, 8vo; two editions same year [see Bennet, Thomas, D.D.]. 7. ‘A Defence of the Dissenting Ministry and Presbyterian Ordination,’ &c. 1717, 8vo (two parts). 8. ‘The Dissenters' Reasons for not Writing in the behalf of Persecution,’ &c., 1718, 8vo; three editions same year, addressed to Andrew Snape, D.D. 9. ‘Some Reflections upon Dean Sherlock's Vindication of the Corporation and Test Acts,’ &c., 1718, 8vo; two editions same year. 10. ‘The Interest of the Whigs with relation to the Test Act,’ &c., 1718, 8vo (anon.); two editions same year. 11. ‘The Loyalty … of High Church and the Dissenters compar'd,’ &c., 1719, 8vo (in reply to J. Jackman). 12. ‘The Case of the Ministers Ejected at Exon,’ &c., 1719, 8vo; four editions same year. 13. ‘The Charge of Misrepresentations maintain'd against … Sherlock,’ &c., 1719, 8vo. 14. ‘A Defence of the Case of the Ministers,’ &c., 1719, 8vo. 15. ‘A Justification of the Case of the Ministers,’ &c., 1719, 8vo. 16. ‘A Letter to Mr. Josiah Eveleigh,’ &c., Exeter, 1719, 8vo (Eveleigh was minister at Crediton, Devonshire, from 1702, and died on 9 Sept. 1736). 17. ‘Animadversions upon … A True Relation of … Proceedings at Salters-Hall,’ &c., 1719, 8vo; another edition, same year, has reprint of No. 16 appended. 18. ‘A Letter … in Defence of the Animadversions,’ &c., 1719, 8vo. 19. ‘A Second Letter to … Eveleigh,’ &c., Exeter, 1719, 8vo. 20. ‘Remarks upon the Account of what was transacted in the Assembly at Exon,’ &c., 1719, 8vo; second edition, same year, has a ‘Postscript.’ 21. ‘An Answer to Mr. Enty's Defence … of the Assembly,’ &c., 1719, 8vo [see Enty, John]. 22. ‘The Western Inquisition,’ &c., 1720, 8vo. 23. ‘The Security of Truth without … Persecution,’ &c., 1721, 8vo (against Enty). 24. ‘Inquisition Honesty display'd,’ &c. 1722, 8vo (a defence of No. 22). 25. ‘A Paraphrase and Notes on … Colossians,’ &c., 1725, 4to (anon.); reprinted, with name, 1727, 4to; 1733, 4to. 26. ‘A Paraphrase and Notes on … Philippians,’ &c., 1725, 4to (anon.); reprinted, with name, 1727, 4to; 1733, 4to. Posthumous were: 27. ‘A Paraphrase and Notes on … Hebrews,’ &c., 1727, 4to (edited by Hallett, his successor); also in Latin, ‘J. Peircii Paraphrasis et Notæ … in Epistolam ad Hebræos,’ &c., 1747, 4to. 28. ‘Dissertations on Six Texts,’ &c., 1727, 4to. 29. ‘An Essay in favour of … giving the Eucharist to Children,’ &c., 1728, 8vo. 30. ‘Fifteen Sermons … To which is added A Scripture Catechism,’ &c., 1728, 8vo (edited, with a memorial preface, by Benjamin Avery, LL.D. [q. v.]; contains all the single sermons printed in his lifetime, and eight others. His funeral sermon for Mrs. Hallett is reprinted in the ‘Practical Preacher,’ 1762, 8vo, vol. iii.). Nos. 5 and 10 above are doubtful. Several anonymous pamphlets in the paper war at Exeter were freely ascribed to Peirce, and have been catalogued and referred to as his, apparently without ground; of these the most important is ‘The Innocent vindicated,’ &c., 1718; 2nd edition, 1719, 8vo, which, Peirce says, he never read, and supposed to be by a lay hand (West. Inquis. pp. 143–46); an appendix to the second edition has ‘Thirteen Queries’ on
