would require the greatest caution, and holy wisdom such as I dare not look for in man. The religious Establishment of our country has been for ages wrought into the connexions and habits of the nation. To break its manifest connection with our civil institutions, in any other way than by the gentle operation of conviction in the minds of its own members, would be venturing upon a dark, and perhaps very perilous course. My ardent wish and prayer is, that the Establishment may be improved, delivered from evils and defects of every kind, and meliorated, honoured, and blessed to the highest perfection of conformity to the requirements of the holy Scriptures. **** When that time arrives, the Episcopal Church will have a power immensely greater than that of any other denomination of Christians. Her venerable edifices, her hold upon the affections of Englishmen in general, her endowments equitably distributed, (for I trust that no spoliation will ever be suffered,) and the unfettered activity of her ministers upon a system of freedom in worshipping and preaching in any barn, or hovel, or field-will be likely, under the blessing of heavenly grace, to produce effects of the most glorious kind in the advancement of genuine religion. There will be joy in heaven; God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.'"-Appendix, p. 29.

To the sentiments of Dr. Smith, whom we take great pleasure in personally knowing and greatly respecting, we only add those of the Wesleyan Methodists of England, given by the Editor of their Magazine in 1834, under appointment for that purpose, by the conference :-

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Rising above the influence of mere sectarian feelings, they (the Methodists) are anxious that the religious wants of the nation should be fully met; and comparing the utmost of what the Dissenters and themselves have done, (observe Methodists do not call themselves Dissenters,) or are able to do, with what yet remains to be done in the land, they are persuaded that the cause of our common Christianity so needs the extensive provision of means made by the Established Church, that, were she overthrown, a vast proportion of our teeming population must be left in utter destitution, even of the outward ordinances of religion. By the overthrow of the Church, we do not intend her ceasing to exist as a Church, but her being removed from the foundation of a state-religion. Let the Establishment be subverted-let her be stripped of her wealth, and let the religious necessities of the nation be made to depend henceforth for supply exclusively on the voluntary principle,' and what must be the result? We confess that our Christian and patriotic feelings are so excited on this point that we cannot steadily contemplate what we think must be the inevitable consequences," &c.

The Wesleyan Methodists in Ireland, in their address to the Queen, have just expressed the same opinions.

With all this before us; remembering, too, that only one nation, (unless the reign of Atheism in France be an exception,) has ever yet attempted to do without a formal connection between Church and State; that in this one case the experiment is but a few years old, and in circumstances peculiar to a new country and government; considering, moreover, that in the history of Christianity, such a revolution in the religious habits and institutions of a country as that which Dissenters in England are seeking, is an untried experiment, a new thing under the sun, except we go again to the infidelity of France for an example; we cannot but express anew the opinion, decidedly but very kindly and respectfully, with all the feelings and preferences of Americans, but all the affections and interests of Protestant Christians, that the effort to overturn the Established Church of England involves a most fearful responsibility, and cannot be successful without sadly putting back the cause of religion in Great Britain, and, therefore, in the world. Infidelity would rejoice; Popery would rejoice; the poor and ignorant would lament; pious Dissenters would soon unite their unavailing sorrows; and, when too late to recover from the blow, all the Protestantism of the kingdom would bewail it. The tempest of opposition is beating hard upon the noblest ship of the sea; sink her, nothing can; but she may be dismasted and crippled, and compelled to put back into port, and to lose much that is precious in the voyage. If our dissenting brethren wonder at our looking upon them with concern, we beg them to remember that we, as part of the whole world, have an interest in that voyage. The commission of that stately vessel, equipped out of the stores of all climes and ages, is to carry the Gospel to every creature. We have seen her fast preparing for the work; and brave and noble spirits enlisting for the enterprise. The wind of heaven now breathes upon her sails; and the hearts of all that love the Gospel, had never such reason to rejoice in her prospects. And is this the set time to require that her whole equipment, except what resides in the hearts of those who have embarked in her, be taken away?

What will be done, we know not. The Laity of the Church are certainly aroused, and making themselves felt in the House of Commons. But we trust the Clergy know how to "count all things but loss" for Christ. "I am confident (says the Bishop of London) that I speak the fixed and deliberate purpose of the great body of my brethren in the ministry, of whatever degree, or whatever the advantages they may possess, when I say, that if

the question were ever to arise between an abandonment of the Church's principles and the sacrifice of its endowments, it will be found that their choice has been made beforehand: they would take, if not joyfully, yet resignedly, the spoiling of their goods, in the strength of that confidence which hath great recompense of reward."

If our Dissenting brethren would permit us to say a kind word to them, we should entreat them, instead of endeavouring to dismantle the Church in such times as these, to concentrate their energies and zeal more and more upon those good works which they have begun for the supply of all those vast wastes in the population of their cities and elsewhere, which the united influence of Church and Dissent have not yet furnished with the public means of religion. But if their views of duty will not permit them to remain at peace with the Established Church, we would remind them of the words of one of their most learned and excellent divines :

“Let our words and our works bear witness that we have no sinister designs; and that we abhor every form of partiality in statement, or unfairness in argument,—all that is flippant, contemptuous, sarcastic, unjust, ungenerous, unkind, in sentiment or in expression. *** Let us most rigidly observe accuracy in stating facts, and Christian kindness in our animadversions. Mr. (Archdeacon) Hodson protests with mildness and dignity against the wild exaggerations which have been thrown abroad (chiefly, I be lieve, by anonymous writers) upon the wealth of the Establishment; and he produces striking instances of the presuming ignorance or malevolent falsifications of certain industriously circulated statements. If any men should persist in disseminating falsehoods, let us prove, by every means in our power, how much we abhor such proceedings, in form and under any pretext." any Dr. Pye Smith's

Sermon, App. p. 38.

And if our Brethren of the Church of England would permit us a word of kind and affectionate suggestion to them, we should say over again all that Dr. Smith in the above quotation has said to his brethren; and then we should add: See that your Christian brotherhood with the religious Dissenters be remembered, no matter what be done against you; see that full credit be given for their talent, learning, piety, and usefulness; if Christ be preached by them, rejoice, and determine that you will, in all circumstances, rejoice. Summon the voluntary ef forts of the members of the Church to further and further measures of bounty and labour, for the increase of churches, and ministers, and missionaries, and all good works at home and abroad. Nobly you have begun in these efforts. Nobly must

you increase. Above all, arise and shine more perfectly, more clearly, in every feature and member, in the light and glory of Christ the Lord. The world looks to you. Millions on millions of the perishing wait for you. That the revival of genuine piety, active benevolence, faithful preaching among her ministry, and earnest effort for the interests of religion among all her members, which has been seen in the Church of England in late years, may be carried on wider and wider, till every corner of England is made to feel that her Church is a dispenser as well as depository of the truth; this should be the earnest prayer of all her children; this is life, health, stability, beauty, and glory. So do the several eminent and excellent men, of whose charges we now respectfully take leave, most earnestly testify and exhort.

ART. II.-History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic. By WILLIAM H. PRESCOTT. Boston: American Stationers' Company. 1838. 3 Vols. 8vo.

THE language and literature, as well as the history of Spain, have, till within a few years past, attracted little attention in the United States-a neglect which would be a subject of the greater reproach to us, if we could not find some apology for it in the less pardonable indifference of other nations, who have more leisure to indulge themselves in the pleasures of literature than falls to the lot of the ever-busy inhabitants of the United States. Even in France-the genial soil of elegant learningthat learning which constitutes the last finish of a gentleman-even in France, and in our own day too, Sismondi complains that "Spanish printed books are rare and difficult to be procured; that hardly any of them have been translated, and scarcely any one, that has a reputation throughout Europe." The same able writer, notwithstanding his national bias, then adds, with equal candour and justice towards the illustrious scholars of that nation which now holds the first rank in general literature—“ It is the Germans alone who have employed themselves with zeal in the literary history of Spain; and, notwithstanding the efforts I have made to procure original works, even in the most celebrated libraries of the Italian States in which Spanish princes have reigned, yet I have been obliged, more than once, to rest my opinions upon the faith of

the German writers, Bouterwek, Dieze, and Schlegel ;" the truth of which acknowledgment will be obvious upon the slightest comparison of his work with those of the learned Germans to whom he refers. Indeed, a severe judge might find some grounds for charging him with appropriating to himself more of their labours than his general admission would fairly lead his readers to suppose; for it will be seen that he has copied page after page from some of his German authorities. But it is not our object, at this time, to adjust the account between this intelligent writer and his German neighbours. We have introduced his remarks on the extraordinary degree of ignorance prevailing in relation to the language and literature of Spain, both in France and other parts of Europe-not even excepting England, although the writers of that country, as Mr. Prescott justly observes, have done more for the illustration of Spanish history than for that of any other except their own*-that, as Americans, we may stand justified in some degree for being guilty of the same neglect of the literature and history of that distinguished nation. Indeed, we may apply to the case of the Spanish language the just and beautiful remarks of that accomplished scholar, Sir William Jones, in which he feelingly laments the utter indifference so long manifested by his countrymen to the cultivation of the beautiful language of Persia. "It must seem strange," says he, "that the study of this language should be so little cultivated at a time when a taste for general and diffusive learning seems universally to prevail; and that the fine productions of a celebrated nation should remain in manuscript upon the shelves of our public libraries, without a single admirer, who might open their treasures to his countrymen, and display their beauties to the light." This elegant writer then states very briefly the causes which, in England and other parts of Europe, have obstructed the progress of the literature of Persia and the East; and here again his remarks are so applicable to the present case, that we cannot forbear quoting a part of them: "Some men," says he, "never heard of the Asiatic writings, and others will not be convinced that there is any thing valuable in them; some pretend to be busy, and others are really idle; some detest the Persians because they believe in Mahommed, and others despise their language because they do not understand it. We all love to excuse or to conceal our ignorance, and are seldom willing to allow any excellence beyond the limits of our own attainments; like the savages, who thought that the sun

* Preface, p. 5.

NO. IV.-VOL. II.

+ Persian Grammar, Preface, p. 1 and seq.

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