By G. W.

The Spirit of Life in the Soul. MYLNE. Wertheim and Co. WE like this writer, who has chosen a great subject, and dealt with it judiciously. It is a solid, instructive, and edifying disquisition upon a subject possessing somewhat of pertinence, however, to the times which are passing over us, in relation to various forms of false religion, and for this we like it all the better.

A Brief Commentary on the Epistle of James. By ALEXANDER PATTERSON, Glasgow. Houlston.

MR. PATTERSON is a worthy minister of the Free Church, Glasgow, and in the present publication he has performed a very material service to the Church of God. Though perhaps it may be less popular than some recent publications of Free Church writers, we greatly doubt if there is one that is more calculated to be useful. It is, of course, a very brief performance, compared with the masterly commentary of our own Manton; but that is one of its main recommendations. Although brief, it is by no means too brief for popular purposes. It is, in truth, the very thing that is wanted, and we do not know a better work of practical religion, within the same limits, in our language. This is not the first, but the fifth time the Author has tried his hand at the work of exposition; but good as his other productions are, none are better than this. The Epistle of James is invaluable for its practical bearing, and Mr Patterson has just done enough, without doing too much, to enable the general reader thoroughly to profit by it. He everywhere helps the reader to masticate his own food. We are not without a fear that James has always been less popular than he ought; people love privilege so much more than duty. Scripture Subjects put into Simple Verse for the Young. By EDWARD MILLER. Snow. MR. MILLER, we regret to find, has been, by bad health, compelled to desist from his pulpit labours, but he has not abandoned the field of active service, and his heart is still true to the cause he has previously been diligent in serving. The present publication is, in its way, quite an original conception. He fixes upon some important idea, or individual, or fact, on which he frames a verse, prefixing to it one or more refeFor example:

rences.

THE PRODIGAL SON. Though clothed with rags, and great his sin, When he returns he's welcomed in ; When sinners thus with shame return, They find their Father's love will burn

Wells of Baca; or, Solaces of the Christian Mourner, and other Thoughts on Bereavement. Ramsay.

A BOOK intended for a class, and to that class largely adapted to be useful. It opens with a contrast, goes on to the retrospect, then fixes upon the Man of Sorrows, to which succeeds the gourd, the furnace, the solace, the crown. It is a book much adapted as a present to a

mourner.

Some Remarkable Particulars in the Life of an Aged Christian.

AN instructive and striking narrative, interspersed with interesting facts and incidents.

A Word to the Wise; or, Hints on the Current Improprieties of Expression in Writing and Speaking. By PARRY GWYNNE. Second Edition. Grant and Griffith.

THIS book is much suited to be useful to the untaught or the ill-taught. We find no fault with any part of it but its title, since those to whom it is adapted, have little claim to be designated the "Wise," although, unfortunately, too many of them are so wise that they will not be at pains to correct their folly. They resemble too much the renowned scholar of whom Mr. Gwynne speaks, who "had done without Greek all his life, and therefore, saw no good in Greek." We very cordially commend the book, especially to all young men to whom correctness of speech and of writing is a matter of moment, and if a few thousands of our good citizens would devote to it an hour a day for a week or a fortnight they would never repent it. Leaves of the Tree of Life: a Manual for the Intervals between the Hours of Divine Service, on each Sabbath in the Year. By R. W. FRASER. Hamilton and Co.

THIS is a beautiful performance. Its only absurdity is its title. It ought to have been "Leaves of the Tree of Life: a Manual for an Invalid, or those detained from Public Service." To these, and analogous cases, the book is highly suitable; but for those who have been to church in the morning, and are going again in the afternoon, it is a work of supererogation; all such would be abundantly better employed in meditating on what they have heard, studying the Scriptures generally, and other good books, or laying themselves out in works of faith and labours of love.

Sacred History, from the Creation of the World to the Destruction of Jerusalem; for the use of Schools and Families. Edited by HENRY WHITE. Simpkin.

WE are ever glad to meet Mr. White, and thank both him and his excellent publishers for this exceedingly valuable history, which, while comprehensive and luminous, is not a mere record of dates and names, but comprises a considerable amount of substance interspersed with sap. Each chapter, moreover, is succeeded by a series of questions equally adapted to private and public instruction. The book is much suited to be useful not simply to schools, but to adult persons. Even the ripe and finished scholar will find it a most valuable aid to the revision of his historical studies, since a day or two will suffice to run it through, and to revise a multitude of memories which may have been partially obliterated.

run.

Old England: an Historic Picture of Life in Old Castles, Forests, Abbeys, Cities. By EDWIN PAXTON HOOD. Partridge and Oakey. THIS book bids fair to have a very extensive Marked by brevity, variety, and anecdotes, it possesses charm sufficient to captivate those who delight in such things-and who does not delight in them? To some extent the volume is a sort of romantic view of the ancient English life, and, in this respect, we are not sure that for many years there has been a happier literary bit, than that which has been made by Mr. Hood. It is a volume to which the moral phi. losopher himself may turn, and spend a few winter evenings with advantage.

Genius and Industry; or, The Achievements of Mind among the Cottagers. By EDWIN PAXTON HOOD. Partridge and Oakey.

WE are not sure that a higher compliment was ever paid to the Earl of Carlile than the dedication to him of such a volume as this. We like the book exceedingly, and we are satisfied that multitudes will receive it with gratification, and read it with avidity. Watt, Brindley. Herschell, Gumb, Bethune, Ludwig, Hutton, Prince, Hall, Miller, Burritt, and Elliott, all figure here. The book may well be designated "The Young Men's Book," and it may administer comfort and encouragement to thousands of hearts conscious of a kindred spirit, with the heroes of a walk desirous to contend with difficulties.

Mass Missions-Bible-Blessed Britain. By CAP-
TAIN YOUNG. Wertheim and Co.
CAPTAIN YOUNG is fond of

"Apt alliteration's artful aid."

But in this letter he has given something better than

"Puffs, powder, pastes, Bibles, and billet-doux." We are exceedingly delighted with the publication, which comprises an introductory letter addressed to the inhabitants of Woodchester, Nailsworth, and their neighbourhood. This introductory epistle comprises many hard hits at the Vatican, and very properly introduces the reader to the Rev. J.

late Passionist mis

sionary, attached to the Catholic Century at Woodchester; the book is well adapted for cottage circulation, since it will supply much useful information on the subject of Popery; furnishing no inconsiderable antidote.

Pictures of the Living Authors of Britain. By THOMAS POWELL. Partridge and Oakey. MACAULAY, Browning, Dickens, Taylor, Carlyle, Mackay, Bulwer Lytton, Bailey, Jamieson, Jerrold, Forster, and others, form the subjects of this very interesting volume of sketches, which serves to throw considerable light on the literature of the age, through the medium of a portion of the men who constitute its fountain. The book will be read with interest.

The Good Old Times of Queen Bess. By EDWIN PAXTON HOOD, Partridge and Oakey. THE days of Queen Bess were a great improvement upon those that went before, but it was after all, no joke, and a doubtful privilege, to live in them. There is no more comparison between the days of Victoria and the days of Bess, than between St. Petersburg and London. They who want to understand something about these days, may find it in all the histories of the times, and they whose pence and patience suffice not for ponderous folios, and plunges into antiquity, may find their case fully met in Mr. Hood.

Theology in the University of Erlangen. Hamilton and Co.

The translation of this goodly volume from the German, is made by a clergyman of the Church of England, and will be found such as to indicate the possession of the necessary and varied scholarship for the honourable office. It is a learned performance, and though necessarily dry, it is erudite, and if not always in our judgment correct in his conclusions, the commentator is yet generally so, and indicates throughout

an intense love of truth,-always one of the principal preparatives towards attaining it. It is not a work for the many; it is a book for ministers and learned students of the word of God, and with such it will find favour. Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Acts of the Apostles. Designed for Sabbath-school Teachers. By ALBERT BARNES. Correctly Revised by the Rev. SAMUEL GREEN. B. L. Green.

THIS volume needs no recommendation beyond the fact of its being very good and very cheap. The paper and the type and ge ting up are excellent, and the price is such as to bring it within the reach of all. It is, indeed, a volume suitable not simply to the Sunday-school Teach, ers, nor to the Cottager, but to everybody, since it is the best commentary we have within the compass of one volume, comprising as it does the principal letters of the Apostle, and the history of the first preaching of Christianity. Some Passages in the Life of a Convert from Anglo-Catholicism. A Narrative of Facts.

A SOUND Convert from a bad system is always a valuable witness, since he speaks from experience. Such a witness is a "Convert," and we thank him for the service he has rendered in these few pages, for we consider it great.

Little Things. Hamilton and Co. THIS little book is ingenious, descanting on Little Thoughts, Little Kindnesses, Little Efforts, Little Cares, Little Pleasures, and Little Sins. It will richly reward perusal, finely illustrating the phrase of Dr. Chalmers, the " power of Littles."

On Penance and the Confessional. By the Rev. J. Ross. Tract Society.

WE want more of this. For a small sum we have here much light upon a great subject. Mr. Ross has performed a very important service in the cause of truth and purity, and his publication deserves to be widely circulated.

Jubilee of the Methodist New Connexion. Cheap Edition. William Cooke.

THE New Connexion has acted a wise part in thus bringing the excellent volume on their Jubilee within the reach even of their poorest people. As it was our privilege to make the suggestion, we need hardly say with what delight we observe it carried out, and we shall be much disappointed if the demand for it be not very great.

The Young Bible Scholar's Help; or, A Short Account of the Books and Writers of the Old Testament. Groom.

THIS little book is a sort of Catechism, somewhat resembling that of Dr. Notts on the Old Testament. It is adapted to be useful.

Ellen Martin; or, The Fallen Recovered. An Affecting, but True Story. Nisbet.

A BOOK to supply solemn warning, and to draw forth compassionate tears.

Christ the Bread of Life. An Attempt to give a Profitable Direction to the Present Controversy with Popery. Hamilton and Co. A GRAVE, solid piece of Northern divinity, well working out the promise made in the title-page, and throwing much light upon the monstrous dogma of Transubstantiation,

Arvine's Cyclopædia of Moral and Religious Anecdotes. Edited by the Rev. JOHN FLESHER. Clarke.

THIS is No. I. of the republication of a most valuable book. Indeed, we do not know a more

valuable one of its class; for a small sum, when the work is complete, the reader will be possessed of 3,000 facts, incidents, narratives, examples, and testimonies, all of a religious and excellent tendency.

REV. JAMES

THE Rev. James Roberts having resigned the pastorate of the Independent Church at Truro, preached h's farewell sermon to a large and deeply-interested audience, on the evening of Sunday, the 22nd of June. Mr. Roberts' determination to retire from the ministry, in connection with the Truro church, having been the subject of very deep regret to the great majority of those who statedly worship at Bethesda Chapel, it was resolved to manifest the high respect and affection generally entertained towards him, by presenting him with some substantial token of regard.

In the course of a few days, accordingly, between £50 and £60 was raised among the members of the church and congregation; and Monday, the 23rd of June, was fixed upon for holding a meeting to take a formal farewell of Mr. Roberts. On the evening of that day, a large number of friends assembled in the school-room adjoining the chapel. The chair was occupied by William Baynard, Esq; and after singing a hymn, Mr. Tannahill rose and read an address to Mr. Roberts, assuring him of the deep attachment and respect which was felt towards him, and of the extreme pain and sorrow occasioned by the circumstances which had induced him to give up his connection with the Truro church. The address also alluded to the dignified, highminded, and Christian temper and conduct, which Mr. Roberts had exhibited under circumstances extremely trying, both to himself and to the large body who were attached to his ministry, and valued his friendship; and it concluded with an acknowledgment of the blessing which had attended his ministry, with expressions of deep sorrow at the separation which was about to take place, and with fervent wishes for his happiness and welfare, both temporal and eternal.

The purse of sovereigns was then handed to the Chairman by Mr. Barrett, and the former, in presenting it to Mr. Roberts, added a feeling expression of his own personal attachment to his reverend pastor and friend, and of the deep

ROBERTS.

sorrow which his departure excited in his mind. These feelings were obviously participated in by those present, expressions of grief being elicited at this stage of the proceedings from all parts of the assembly.

After a short pause, Mr. Roberts returned thanks for this "most gratifying and unexpected act of generosity," and in the course of a long address, entered into some details as to the circumstances which had induced him to give in his resignation.

When Mr. Roberts had concluded, several gentlemen rose and gave expression to their own personal feelings of deep sorrow, which this painful separation between pastor and people had occasioned, and to their strong dissatisfaction with the proceedings which had brought about such an event. Mr. Roberts then concluded the meeting with singing and prayer. Before the assembly dispersed, a most touching scene took place, the whole of those present pressing forward for the purpose of bidding a personal farewell to their beloved pastor, and loud expressions of grief and attachment being heard from all parts of the room.

In referring to Mr. Roberts leaving Truro, the West Briton (local paper) remarks:

"The feeling of regret at Mr. Roberts's leaving Truro is not confined to his own congregation, but extends to persons belonging to all sects and classes both in the town and neigh bourhood. Since he came to Truro he has taken an active and prominent part in the promotion of most objects of benevolence and public welfare, whether of a local, denominational, or general kind, and the service which he has rendered in all these various ways has been of the most valuable kind. Both as a preacher and as a man of business and public spirit, he has displayed very high ability; and from all that we can learn, his resignation of his charge has arisen from his high and perhaps over-acute sense of honour. It is certain that it will be extremely difficult to supply the place which he has occu pied as a public man."

THE ALLIED

WITHIN a glittering palace light and fair,
Such as in happy dream beneath the shade
Of tall and slender trees the mind may form,
A crowd of brethren meet from every clime,
To mark their progress in the arts of peace,
And each to bring into the common stock
Whate'er he has that may increase the power
Of man, and lend him power to overcome
The stubborn elements, or may refine,
Or please, or elevate the human mind,

And what a wondrous trophy of man's might
Surrounds them here! It tbrills the soul to think
Of the amount of intellect and skill
Embodied in this noble monument

In varied forms of beauty and of power,
Which, in the fruitful womb of Time have been
Maturing since the day when first our sire
The garden of the Lord in Eden kept:
For by the aid of each succeeding race
The arts have been produced; the poet's eye

Sees the foundation laid for this vast pile,
Of old, when man became a living soul.

The tide of life sets in, and like a sea
Becalmed, peaceful, yet never motionless,
But ever changing, ever beautiful,

Flows on and on. See here, the man whose cheek,
Paled at the midnight lamp, flushes with joy
To see the truths of science he has found,
Applied to useful end; and here, the man
Of brawny arm and skilful hand, who seea
The dignity and value of his toil

Made proudly manifest, shaming dull sloth-
Men of all garbs, all colours, and all tongues
Unite to form a glorious band whose like
Has never been since first the world began.

Alas! the world has seen vast gatherings When men have met with a far different aimStain'd the pure flowers with blood, and the fair sky

Disfigured with the smoke of burning homes;
Or, by oppression gall'd, have join'd in one
To claim with angry voice their rights withheld:
And then again, convened by outraged law
And justice have met to punish crime.
But now, unmoved by hatred or the lust of power,
They meet as children of a common Sire,
And fellow-trav'lers to eternity!

Resting beneath one sky their common tent.
Casting ignoble jealousy aside,
In joyful harmony the nations sound
The sacred truth, that all the good received
From God is for the good of all, nor may,
In honour or in gratitude be kept
For benefit of less than all mankind.
Louder and stronger may that strain arise,
Till earth with all her voices swell the song.

And now, oh heavenly Father, who proclaim'd
By multitude of angels, peace on earth,
Grant that the men who from this place disperse
Over the globe, may with them bear

The bands of love and concord, and all tribes
Together draw in peace and amity;
That one in faith and hope, in purpose one,
And even one in language, the whole world
With solemn voice may join to praise thy name,
Whose is the earth and all that is therein.
W. H. R.

THE ANTICIPATION OF DEATH, AND THE FINAL AUDIT.

AND may I hope, and is my hope well built,
That notwithstanding all my fearful guilt,
When death has on my flesh its office done,
God will receive me near his blissful throne ?
If I receive my just desert, I know

I must be banish'd to the realms of woe;
And shut must be my mouth, if I should be
Consign'd to hell to all eternity.

But, oh! the cross, where Jesus shed his blood!
Here, here I rest, and joy to meet my God;
To him I cheerfully my all commit,
And "found in him," my safety is "complete."*

His blest assurance quite forbids all doubt:
"Whoever comes in no wise I'll cast out;"t
"Look to my cross, and your salvation 's sure,
For I am God, while endless years endure."‡
Dear Jesus! help me to believe thy word;
Be thou my Saviour, pattern, guide, and Lord;
To thee my flesh and spirit I resign,
And, saved by thee, the praise shall all be thine.
STEPHEN DAVIS.

24, Trafalgar-square, Peckham,
July 4, 1851.

* Phil. iii. 9; Col. ii. 10. ↑ John vi. 37. Isa. xlv. 22.

THE Christian Church is called to perform a reasonable service, and her obligations should be discharged as by those who must give account. The work of Missions does not arise from superfluous virtue, and is not a righteousness of supererogation. Jesus Christ committed the duty to his disciples, and said, 'Occupy till I come." It is his commandment that the gospel of the kingdom should be preached to every

creature.

The responsibility of Christians is surely not less for home than for foreign countries; while difficulties or obstructions serve only as tests of obedience and faith. Yet there are seasons and circumstances wherein the voice of duty speaks more urgently, and when promptness in its discharge is more imperative. Is the present such a time?

Recent movements among the Anglo Romish hierarchy, and agitations connected therewith, demand the prayerful consideration of evangelical Nonconformists. A marked change has

passed upon the attitude, as well as relation, of papal votaries in England and Ireland. An organized confederacy now spreads its ramifications in both islands, under the direction of highsounding dignities and subtle hierarchs. Whatever be their hypocritical pretexts, their aim is a deadly conspiracy against the prevalence of Scriptural truth. A supple and superstitious aristocracy has lent its status and its wealth to advance the purposes of this localized propaganda, under the control of foreign mercenaries. The cardinal and his metropolitan and suffragan prelates are the princes and chiefs of an alien army, in which the Shrewsburies and Arundels, the Fieldings and Campdens, with the pageantry of barons and baronets, are willing to be the retinue and subordinate vassals. The name of the sacerdotal functionaries is legion, as from the parts of Dalmanutha; and the conventualists and menial fraternities resemble the demon spirits working miracles, "which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather

them to the battle of that great day." The numbers now reckoned, scattered over all England, adhering to the papacy, and constituting the mass of its strength, are probably equal to the entire Roman Catholic population of Ireland, and the people of both countries, whose daily existence is passed under ghostly influence, amount probably to nine millions. The consciences of this aggregate mass are ruled, darkened, and perverted by the puppet wires of an Italian Jesuit. Their home secrets; their domestic and heartfelt sympathies; the faithfulness of woman's tender love; the strong cords of masculine affection, and the tendrils of the filial heart; the bonds of the social circle and of public life among so many millions; are all exposed to the polluted and polluting touch of celibated inquisitors. While their frequent purchase of rites and sacramental ceremonies and their venal barter for indulgence or absolution constitute the profuse revenue which supports a clerical corporation, whose members, isolated and bereft of natural affection, profess to substitute their clerical relation instead of the claims of home, kindred, and country.

This pervading and animated mystery, with chamelion powers, adapts its representations to the varying phases of mankind; impersonates the intellectual and refined, the placid and contemplative, and becomes the companion of a Pascal and a Fenelon; or mums and mutters superstitious formularies, amidst genuflexions and obeisances, under the dark shadow and glimmering taper of the altar; the tinselled drapery of glaring vestments and cruciform figures, to soothe and bewilder the unthinking and unlettered, the besotted and the savage. It can, in the widest sense, and with unblanched effrontery, become all things to all men,-a bigot, or a latitudinarian; a despot, or a president; a friend of liberty, or an inquisitor; an eloquent patriot, or a muffled cardinal; a saint, or a licentious rake. It can do whatever will exalt the church; it can absolve whatever it has promised. It can make an oath and cancel it; can shed the life- blood of an innocent victim, and make the murderous crime a virtue. This is the all-devouring poison, which, with its pestilent odour, is diffused among nine millions of British subjects in England and Ireland, at our doors and in our streets, for daily intercourse. To resist the progress of this national curse, and to rescue these millions from its baneful influence, is the duty of every lover of his country, every servant of God; and for this purpose the Home Missionary and the Irish Evangelical Societies are required to redouble their energies, and extend their operations. The friends of British Missions, the congregations of Nonconformists, were never 80 imperatively called to renew their liberality and minister of their substance, and by their prayers, to invigorate the resources and agencies of these Societies. The field to be cultivated is large, and the season for action is come; but how few and feeble, in comparison, are the labourers, it is humbling to confess! Men seem to sleep, while the enemy widely sows his tares.

It is significantly required by Him who is Lord, that they should be clean who bear the vessels of the sanctuary ;" and be has recognized how truly applicable is the proverb, "Physician, heal thyself." It would be vain to expect any effective antagonism, for the overthrow of Popery, from systems, which symbolise with its corrup

tions, errors, or pretensions; and especially from such as profess to derive their orders and succes. sion through its foulest channels. An adaptation of means to the end of evangelical instrumentality for evangelizing purposes is required, and it would be delusive to place confidence in agencies which, rather than aid, impede the progress of truth and piety. Where, then, can the good soldier of Jesus Christ, whose whole armour is found in the word of God; or the suppliant wrestler, whose whole reliance, through Divine aid, is in weapons that are not carnal but spiritual; look for instruments suited to the strife, which must be maintained with the Man of Sin? In both countries will be seen an apparatus, whose pretensions are alleged to have arisen from reform; and whose tendency is frequently represented as antagonistic to the Babylonish iniquity. The Anglo-episcopal church is national by law; both countries are occupied by its functionaries. But has not the spirit of reform been neutralised, and the antagonist element repressed in that community? An assimilation of dignities and the vestiges of a forgone ritualism give an air of kindred sympathy and an aspect of congenial relationship, which throw suspicion on its assumptions of comparative puritanism; as a marble veil they obscure the Protestantism and Apostolic succession of the Anglican hierarchy. It would be difficult to prove the prelacy and priesthood of the church of Rome inconsistent with the character of the Church of Christ, without also invalidating the claims of the episcopacy and clergy of the United Church of England. The missals and common prayers; the feasts and festivals; the successions and ordinations; the saints and martyrs, of both communions have a common origin. The vestments and ritual, the functionary prerogatives and efficacious sacraments of each belong to a creature power, ab extra; incompatible with the inward and Divine grace which Scripture reveals. whatever parish Popery has obtained a locality, the people may trace, with the investiture of law, a shadowy outline; the dimensions, it may be, a little reduced; but all pretensions to antiquity tending to lengthen the figure, and throw around it the faded tinge of Roman scarlet; while the diminished representative derives its status and endurance from Legislative endowment and Government patronage. Truth and goodness do not affect the question of position.

In

But

Something which can plead Divine authority, and wield Almighty power, is needed to "consume" and "destroy" that wicked one, "who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped." this will involve more than is secured by à parochial functionary who holds his appointment from the law of man, and cannot plead the sanction or approval of Heaven's king. Canons, rubric, and articles, which are imbued with life by the decree of the civil magistrate, are powerless. Connected with these may be the influence, authority, and revenue which belong to the kingdoms of this world. But they are not as "the Spirit of the Lord's mouth," or "the brightness of his coming." The rulers of this world do not so much inquire for the highest order of piety, or the consecrated talent most adapted, as for the eandidate of most powerful influence; the utmost fitness or success in the work of God is not in