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ceeded to his doctor's degree. In this important station he remained till the sudden death of his learned predecessor, who had been successively removed to Bangor and London, occasioned a vacancy in the last mentioned see. A case had not occurred since the Revolution, wherein the episcopal chair of the metropolis had been filled without a translation; but in the present instance, the pre-eminent ability, services, and worth of Dr. Howley, set aside all regard to the formality of precedent, and he was accordingly consecrated, in 1813, to that dignity in the chapel at Lambeth, where the late queen Charlotte and the princesses attended to witness the solemn ceremony.

In 1814, the bishop of London, having completed the primary visitation of his diocess, at the request of his clergy, sent the charge which he had delivered, to the press. Though this pastoral address contained nothing that justly could give offence to any description of persons, yet such is the restless disposition of some men, that they seem, as it were, to lie in wait for the sole purpose of endeavouring to obtain a little celebrity, by attacking public characters. To that motive only can be ascribed the conduct of the late Mr. Thomas Belsham, the Unitarian controvertist,who, soon after the appearance of the charge, published a letter to the bishop, in which, among other things, he abused the Prelate for saying of the Unitarians, that "loving to question rather than to learn, they approached the oracles of divine truth without that humble docility, that prostration of the understanding and will, which are indispensable to proficiency in christian instruction." This position, the Socinian leader represented as being no better than popery, and a slavish principle tending to establish an arbitrary authority over the mind. On the contrary, the meaning of the bishop amounted only to this, in which he rested upon scriptural ground, that reason and revelation have distinct provinces, that what the one could not discover by its own power, and the exercise of its own faculties, must be implicitly received on the authority of our divine teacher, otherwise we undervalue his mission, and render the gospel nugatory. It is required of all Christ's disciples that they become, in regard to the understanding, as little children, submitting their minds to a heavenly instructor, from whom alone the knowledge of God, and of the terms of our acceptance with him, is to be obtained. While our Lord was upon earth, this knowledge was received immediately from himself, or through the instrumentality of persons specially commis

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sioned by him for the purpose. then, the only inerrable light is contained in the written word; and this we must consult and follow without setting up our own judgment either as paramount, or a concurrent authority.

Such is the fair and sound construction of the learned Prelate's assertion, in which he is supported by the whole code of revelation, and by the uniform decision of the Christian church, with the exception of the Tridentine council, and the equally arrogant usurpation of the Socinian school: the one placing all authority in a supposed infallible chair, and the other in every man's private judgment.

Since the publication of his first charge, the bishop printed another, of great merit, and particularly applicable to the state of the times; but without adverting to the coarse and illiberal treatment which he had experienced from the Unitarian Coryphoeus, and the whole tribe of infidels, who, either in sheer ignorance or wilful malice, reechoed the virulent misrepresentation.

When the late lamented Duke of York lay confined by the malady which terminated his valuable life, he derived great consolation from the ministry of the Bishop of London, who was much affected by the meek and resigned deportment of the royal sufferer, than whom, he has been heard to say, he never witnessed a more sincere and humble penitent,

The elevation of this excellent prelate to the Primacy, was the meet reward of his diligence and moderation. Indeed,without disparagement, it may safely be affirmed, that, out of the whole episcopal bench, there was not one upon whom that dignity could more properly have been conferred, at a time when the interests of the established church demanded the greatest vigilance, circumspection, and liberality on the part of her rulers. In all the stormy debates on the momentous question of admitting the Roman Catholics to the right of legislation and the exercise of nearly every civil office in the state, the Archbishop steadily, but temperately, approved himself an uncompromising defender of the constitution as the same was settled at the revolution.

ON THE ABUSE OF THE HUMAN FACULTIES.

MAN is of all created beings the most noble and exalted, both in his coporeal and mental constitution. In the former, the erect attitude he is capable of supporting, gives him a superiority both of form and stature over other animals of commensurate bulk,

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and declares him the lord of the creation; but even independent of this advantage, there are other peculiarities in his anatomical structure, habits, and natural powers, that are unknown to any other creature.

The economy of his digestive organs qualifies him to be omnivorous, for though the structure of his teeth would lead us to conclude, pulse, fruit, and vegetables to constitute his natural food, yet the gastric juice is an adequate solvent for animal substances of every kind, and in every state of preparation; while the powerful action of the muscular fibres of the stomach, is capable of promoting digestion in materials, which would produce serious, if not fatal consequences on the health of any animal, either herbivorous or carnivorous.

Man is the only animal gifted with the power of speech, the use of which appears inseparably connected with the reasoning faculty, as monkeys possess all the requisite organs; but the sounds produced even from this identity of structure are confined to a guttural scream or squeak, or a dental chatter. The most persevering and assiduous attention has never been able to cause animals to utter an articulate sound; and hence we are led to conclude, that the exercise of the faculty of speech is the result of mental associations acting through the media of appropriate organs, and thus producing a sensible effect. Mental energy in continuous action is then the cause; mechanism is the medium; and articulate sound is the effect.-Speech may thus be considered as the connecting link between mind and matter, possessing the essential attributes of the one, and the most refined arrangement of the other.

Other faculties of organic action may be produced by contrivance and reiterated practice, as peculiar positions of the limbs; but speech appears to result from an inherent faculty of the rational mind, and its development in some modus operandi is found in every nation, and in every clime; while its absence is occasioned by a defect, either in the articulative organs themselves, those of hearing, through which the communication of individuals is sustained, or in the mechanism of the brain, whose delicate but incomprehensible structure must be admitted to have its share in some unknown manner in the economy of thought.

Man is partially a material being, all his powers and all his faculties are exercised through the instrumentality of organic structure; and though the moving principle be immaterial, its sensible development depends on the perfect and healthy state of

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those organs through which it operates; and thus we may safely allow to the secret operation of organic structure in the brain the retention and combination of ideas, though not their original formation, without either impugning the immateriality and immortality of the soul, or running into the fantastic reveries of Drs. Gall and Spurzheim.

We might thus travel through the whole of the human frame, in proof of man's superiority; but the present instances will abundantly establish the fact, and lead to the conclusion, that the design of the Almighty in his formation was, to produce a being capable of his worship, and of obedience to his laws; furnished with faculties which might qualify him for intercourse with his mind, fit him to assume the subordinate government of the lower animals, and make the productions of the earth he inhabited subservient to his existence and comfort.

We have now to inquire how far man has fulfilled these evident designs of his existence? Alas! what a lamentable picture does the contemplation present to the view of the Christian. Let us, however, take a short survey of some of these various particulars.

1. His animal powers. Man is, for his bulk, the strongest of all animals. This is owing to the peculiarity of his osseous and muscular systems, the first forming two perfect arches, united by a continuous but flexible column, which, by the regular curves it is capable of assuming, makes the chord the centre of gravity; and thus both the arches acting on the same centre, and | mutually aiding each other; the support of surprising weights is the consequence. The muscles, from the erect position of the body, and the various motions it is capable of performing, are longer, firmer, and more elastic than those of quadrupeds, and in their number, form, combination, and insertion, adapted to the motions of the several articulations to which they are attached. Hence, man is capable of enduring more exercise than the horse, both in time and distance, witness the Barclay match, which no horse could equal. to what base ends does he prostitute these invaluable powers! Behold him dressed in the fantastic garb of a buffoon, performing the most difficult but disgusting feats both of strength and agility, and twisting his manly form into the resemblance of a hoop, or, as is exhibited by a modern artiste, dislocating his limbs for the amusement of the gaping multitude. We might pursue this revolting subject through all the various acts of horsemanship, rope dancing, swat

But

lowing swords, &c.; but the nauseous catalogue of these abuses may be closed with the presumptuous, nay almost impious feats of the celebrated exhibitor, who allows him. self to bake with rumpsteaks, and swallows phosphorus with daring impunity.

2. His mental faculties. These, the noblest attributes of man, which raise him above the brute, and fit him for rational intercourse with the God who created him, are made subservient to his follies, and become the agents of his crimes. What are his pursuits, but gain or ambition? What his most desired pleasures, but the gratification of his passions? What his most coveted rewards, but the empty applause of man, or the immediate feeling arising from the indulgence of sensual appetite? Such are the general outlines of the human character, and if we descend to particulars, we shall find ample room for illustration. His talents are but too frequently applied to unworthy, if not vicious purposes, and he whose abilities might have qualified him to support the principles of religion, is found foremost in the ranks of infidelity. Thought the most profound, and deductions the most specious, drawn from arguments equally ingenious and fallacious, are employed to poison the minds of the ignorant and prejudiced, and sap the foundations of divine revelation. Even science itself is made the engine of moral deterioration, and to its undivided cultivation is sacrificed every principle of religion; while the mind is deprived of those salutary checks, which can alone place morality of conduct on the only basis which can secure it from the attacks of temptation, and preserve it untainted from the contaminating breath of vice.

This has been termed the age of improvement, and we are loudly congratulated on the march of intellect. Certainly science has arrived at a high degree of excellence, both in theory and practice; indeed it appears to form the prominent theme of public speculation and inquiry. Mechanism, and the several branches of mechanical science, absorb the attention of the artisan; while our publications are devoted to abstract science and philosophical research. The weighty subjects of history or biography, which once occupied the bulky folio, are condensed by the literary chemist into the portable and elegant duodecimo, and the more minute details of our national annals are suffered to sleep undisturbed on the shelves of our public libraries.

The great events of time, and the awful concerns of eternity, are the appropriate objects of human contemplation, and pro

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portionably engage the reflecting part of mankind in the present day; and let us fervently hope, that the labours of the Christian philosopher, while contemplating the wonderful machinery of Divine Providence in the great theatre of the universe, and looking through them, sees in the vista of time the bright regions of a never-ending eternity. E. G. B.

ANTIQUATED EXPOSITION. Extract from an Antiquated Exposition on the Fourteen first Chapters of Genesis, by way of Questions and Answers, by Abraham Ross, of Aberdeen, bearing date 1626, and dedicated to Lord Verulam, Lord High Chancellor of England.

On Creation.

Quest. Was the world created, or eternal ?

Ans. Created. 1. There can bee but one eternal. 2. Almost all the Philosophers are against the eternitie of the world. 3. They that hold it eternal, can bring no sound reason. 4. The most ancient monuments of records amongst the heathen, are not so old as the Flood of Noah.

Quest. Could God make more worlds than one? Ans. Yes: for he is Almighty, and hee made it not of any matter: for that should have bin exhausted: but more he would not, because hee being one, delights in unitie.

Quest. Why in Hebrew saith Moses, Gods created? joining the noune plurall, with the verbe singular? Ans. To signify the mystery of the Trinitie, one essence in three persons. It is the property of the Hebrew phrase.

Quest. Why in the beginning of this booke, speaketh Moses only of heaven and earth? Ans. Because by the name of heaven, he comprehends all celestial bodies, and by the name of earth the elements for water is in the earth, and fire and aire, as witnesse the springs and exhalations, in earthquakes, and burning mountains, or hote waters.

Quest. Did God create the earth moveable or not? Ans. Immoveable. Job 38. Psal. 39, and 104; this is understood, in respect of the whole earth: yet it moved in respect of parts, by earthquakes, Job 9.

Quest. Of what figure is the earth? Ans. Round, this figure is most perfect, capable, ancient.

Quest. Is the earth under the water or not? Ans. Vndere, because heaviest : yet Exod. 20. Psal. 24, and 136. it seems the water is vnder the earth; but it is to be vnderstood, that a great part of the earth was made higher than the waters, for man's habitation.

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Quest. Why cannot the whole earth move? Ans. Because hee is in his naturall state, which if it should move, it should ascend: and this is against the nature of the earth!"

On the Serpent.

Quest. What is meant by the Serpent? Ans. Not the diuell: for so these words should be metaphorically vnderstood but this is a misterie, and no allegory: nor the image of a Serpent, for it was not a picture, but a real Serpent that was cursed, neither was it a naturall Serpent that did speake: for speech and reasoning alone naturally belong to men, not to beasts: for they neither have reasonable soules, nor the instruments of speech but it was the deuill that spake in the Serpent, vsing the same as his instrument to deceive. So then, there was both a Serpent, which is proved both by the speech of Moses, and the punishment inflicted on the Serpent; and besides, the diuell, which is knowne both by his speech and reasoning with Eua, as also by the testimonie of Christ, calling the deuil a man-slayer from the beiginning, John 8.

Quest. Why was the diuell so earnest to tempt Eue? Ans. Because he hated God, and would not have man to glorifie, but to anger him; because of his pride and enuy: for he could not abide that man should be in such happiness, himself being in misery. Quest. Why did Adam eat of this fruit? Ans. Partly through the instigation of his wife; partly, through curiosity, desiring to try what kind of fruit this should be, which God did prohibit. Quest. Was the sin of Adam and Eua the greatest sinne that ever was committed? Ans. If we do consider

one sinne with another, then wee say, that Adam's sinne was not the greatest, for the sin against the Holy Ghost is greater; but if we respect the circumstances of Adam's sinne; to wit, the place, Paradise, where no occasion of sinne was; the time when he sinned, immediately after his creation, at the first encounter yeelding to his enemy, the excellence of the person that sinned, Adam being created in God's owne Image: if we regard also that infinite hurt and misery that hath falne vpon mankinde, by that sin of Adam; we must confess, that it is the greatest sin that euer man committed.

Expulsion from Paradise.

Quest. Why did God say, that Adam was like to him? Ans. By these words,

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God would shew how worthie Adam was to be scorned, who thought to be like to any of the three Persons in the Trinitie, for eating of the forbidden fruit so this word (vs) doth not signify angels, but the three Persons of the Trinitie. Quest. Why did God driue Adam out of the Garden? Ans. To let him see how foolishly he had done, in guing more credit to his wife, than to him; to keepe the tree of Life from him, lest he should abuse it, by thinking to haue life by it, seeing he had

now violated God's Law; for altho this tree was a sign of life before his Fall, now it is none, that by driuing him from this Tree of Life, he might seek for a better life than this Tree could yeeld, euen that heauenly life which is hid with Christ in God. Quest. When was Adam cast out of Paradise? Ans. That same day he sinned for he being now a sinner, and rebellious against God, was not fit to stay any longer in that holy place: but what day of the weeke he was cast out, is uncertaine; yet it is thought the eighth day after his creation, he was cast out, in the euening of that day; for Satan did not suffer him to stay long therein vntempted! yet I do not hold that he was cast out that same day that he was created for so many things as fell out betweene his creation and casting out of Paradise could not be done all in such a short space as a piece of a day; for the beasts were created the sixth day, before man was in such a short time Adam could not have perceived therefore he was not cast out that same day the pleasures and happiness of that place;

hee was created.

Quest. Why would God have Adam to till the ground? Ans. Because now the ground was cursed, and would not yeeld fruite without hard labour: by this seruill worke hee would put him in remembrance of his sinne, which brought him to this misery: yet afterwards God mitigated his hard labour, in freeing euery seuenth yeare from his tillage, to put them in mind of that ease they lost by sin, which was restored again spiritually by Christ.

The Cherubims and Flaming Sword.

Quest. What is meant here by the Cherubins and the fiery Sword? Ans. Not fearful visions, nor the torrid zone, nor a fire compassing Paradise like a wall, neither the fire of Purgatory, as Theodorotus, Aquincio, Lyranus, and Ambronus doe imagine, but by the Cherubins we vnderstand the Angels, which did appeare often times with wings, as Dani

i. 9. and the figures of these were wrought in the tabernacle, Exod. 25. By the fiery sword we vnderstand most sharpe and two-edged swords which the Angels in the forme of men did shake, by the which shaking and swift motion the swords did seem to Adam to glister like firee, for more terror, lest he should attempt reentrance there; the Angels also have appeared at other times with swords in their hands, as we read, Numbers 22, of the Angel that met Balaam; and of that Angel that Daniel did observe with a sword in his hand, 1 Chron. 21. 16.

Quest. Why are these Angels called Cherubins? Ans. Because they did appeare with wings in the Tabernacle and the Temple, they were wrought with two wings; they appeared to Esay, seraphims, because they are inflamed with the love of God! they appeare with wings, to signifie their swiftnesse and diligence in executing God's commandments.

HINTS ON EDUCATION.

AMONG the numerous subjects, that have for their object the good of mankind, none can be of greater importance than that of education, since it equally affects them, whether viewed as a community, a family, or as individuals. That these premises, on which the following remarks will be founded, are correct, the history of all the nations of the world will abundantly prove; for we invariably find, while sweeping our eye over the historic page, that in an exact proportion to the care which was exercised in the education of their youth-the nation whose history we may be reading, was prosperous or otherwise; and hence all wise lawgivers have bent their chief attention to this important subject.

It is not intended, in the survey we attempt to take of education in the present day, to examine its various branches, but to confine ourselves to its most important end, i. e. the manner in which it can be brought to bear on the moral and religious state of mankind, and in this view there is great cause for censure and lamentation.

No man who is accustomed to watch the ever-stirring and fertile working of his mind, the feelings that are most easily excited, and the train of ideas for which it appears to possess the greatest aptitude and delight, but must be astonished in how many instances he can trace their source to the early impressions of youth, connected with the circumstances in which he was then placed; and few are the instances of

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good men, who have not to bless the wise and affectionate care of their parents, for that peace and pleasure, which virtue ever ensures to her votaries. If this be the case, of what vast importance is it, that every aid which care can bestow, and every help that experience or wisdom can suggest, should be brought into requisition, to form the youthful mind, and render it capable of resisting those torrents of temptations, with which the individual is sure to be assailed, so soon as he shall be called to start into active life.

Laxity of rule is an evil so notorious, that every one not buried in total seclusion, must have noticed and lamented it. It may appear to many, provided they are careful to instil into the minds of their children moral principles and religious truths, that this laxity, as it regards their immediate rule over them in minor concerns, cannot affect their moral or religious state. The fallacy of such an opinion will be clearly illustrated by the following reasons.

No sooner does a child begin to evince active signs of thought and reflection, than he instantly needs the guidance of his parents. His inclinations in childhood (as they are in after life) would constantly be leading him into danger and misfortunes, if they were not as constantly checked by parental interference. The commands of his parent appear all alike to him, since he can no more perceive why he should not be permitted to play on the brink of danger, than he can understand the reason for a prohibition merely relative to decorum or propriety. Now the great evil of the present day is, that whilst parents enforce commands of a momentous kind, they easily give up to their children, out of mere indulgence to their caprices, in affairs which they consider of little importance, but which are of the utmost consequence when viewed in connexion with the habit such a laxity of rule will form in the mind.

A child brought up by parents who feel it their duty from his earliest infancy to impress his mind with pure maxims of morality; and, so far as they are able, imbue it with the holy feelings which our blessed religion is so calculated to inspire, yet who in ordinary affairs frequently permit their commands to be successfully opposed, and so far overlook this opposition, as to visit it with no proper mark of their displeasure, insensibly acquires a habit of making the dictates of his own will the guide of his actions. A child, on the contrary, where the parents, equally alive to the importance of moral and religious instruction, in an affectionate yet decided manner