instruction, communicated to the youthful memory, is deposited in the keeping of a power, which may sometimes slumber, but can never die. It may long be unproductive; it may remain for years without giving signs of vivification, and of an operative influence; and yet it may be only waiting for some more favorable and important moment, when it shall come forth suddenly and prominently to view." The importance, in this view, of correct speculative opinions, and of a knowledge of the Supreme Being, and of religious truth generally, as insisted on by Mr. Upham, will be distinctly seen. THE WILL. The Treatise on the Will, as it may be important for the reader to recollect, is philosophical and practical, rather than theological. It appears in a separate volume, and is sold separately; but it is bound uniformly with the volumes on the Intellect and the Sensibilities, and seems to be necessary to a complete view of this great subject. The first part of this treatise is chiefly occupied with a classification of mental powers, and with the relation of the intellect and the sensibilities to the will. The student who has examined the other volumes, will probably not regret this circumstance, as it affords substantial aid in reviewing and fixing principles more firmly in the mind. And to those, who had not this preparatory training, this course seemed absolutely necessary. There is, however, one other important topic, which is discussed in Part I. of this Treatise, on the Distinction between Desires and Volitions. Edwards, Brown, and some other writers appear to regard them as identical. The writer of these volumes, reasoning at some length, endeavors to show that they are not so. The reader will naturally pay close attention to the various arguments which are adduced on this topic; because if there is a failure here, it necessarily vitiates the whole book. If desire and volition are identical, what need of a philosophy of the Will? Does not the philosophy of the Desires cover the whole ground? Part II. is occupied with the difficult subject of the Laws of the Will. In entering on this topic, our Author seems duly impressed with the importance of the subject in hand, considered not only in its inherent and intrinsic worth, but in view of the great difference of opinion which has prevailed, and the controversies thence arising in relation to the Laws and the Freedom of the Will. Whether the will has Laws, he considers as an inquiry preliminary to that of its freedom; and the method, taken to establish the general fact of the Will's being reached by Law, may be considered one of the most thorough specimens of cumulative argument to be found in the compass of moral reasoning. Our limits, however, will not permit us to give an analysis of it. We merely quote one or two of his concluding remarks. It is in this simple proposition of the Will's subjection to Law, that we find the golden link, which binds us to the throne of God. If my Will is not subject to Law, then God is not my master. And what is more, he is not only not so in fact, but it is impossible that he should be so. But on the other hand, if my will is not independent, in the sense of being beyond the reach of law, then the hand of the Almighty is upon me, and I cannot escape even if I would. The searching eye of the great Author of all things ever attends my path; and, whether I love or hate, obey or rebel, I can never annul his authority, or evade his jurisdiction. The subject of Part III. is the Freedom of the Will.-The leading topics in this part of the Work are the Nature of Mental Freedom; Mental Harmony the basis or occasion of Mental Freedom; the Freedom of the Will in distinction from the mere general idea of mental freedom, sustained in a number of successive chapters by various arguments and illustrations; the consistency of Law and Freedom, and the Enthralment or Slavery of the Will. In connection with this last named topic a note is appended at the end of the volume, which is designed to throw light upon its Theological bearings. The leading subject of Part IV. is the Power of the Will. The writer makes a distinction,-which some will perhaps regard as novel, but which if true will aid in the understanding of the nature of the Will,-between freedom and power. The titles of the chapters, as they appear in this part of the Work, are as follows: Nature of Mental Power, The Power of the Will, Self-determining Power of the Will, Differences of Voluntary Power, and Consistency of Character; followed by a chapter, which concludes the whole work, on the Discipline of the Will. The views previously unfolded prepare the way for a chapter on this important topic; and the question arises spontaneously, Why in systems of mental philosophy, in treatises on education, in schools and in all processes of education, has the education of the Voluntary Power been so generally overlooked? We stop not to consider or comment upon the inquiry. The importance of the subject seems to be duly estimated in the Treatise we are examining, as will appear by a mere reference to the topics discussed. The titles of the sections which are embraced in the chapter on the Discipline of the Will are as follows: A due balance of all the powers, the most favourable state of things to the just exercise of the Will, Of the culture of the appetites, propensities, and passions as auxiliary to the discipline of the Will, Instances in proof of the necessity of this culture, Importance of repressing the outward signs of the passions, Of enlightening the intellect in connexion with the discipline of the Will, Of aiding the Will by a reference to the regard of others, Of aiding the Will by a reference to the conscience, Of the aids furnished by the principle of Imitation, Aiding the Will by placing ourselves in circumstances which do not admit of a retreat, Effects of habit in giving strength to the Will, Of strengthening the Will by religious considerations. We cannot forbear quoting at the close of this examination the closing part of the paragraph on the influence of religious considerations. Other considerations may undoubtedly give strength, but those of religion give more; mere worldly motives may impart a considerable degree of strength, but the ennobling incentives, drawn from the character and government of God, inspire an energy far more intense as well as more elevated and pure. How many have been able to say with Pellico in the miseries of his ten years imprisonment: "Religion taught me to experience a sort of pleasure in my troubles, to resist and to vanquish in the battle appointed me by heaven." How many in a yet higher strain have been able to say with the three pious friends of the Prophet Daniel: "We are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace." How many in all ages of the world have been sustained by such unspeakable energy, extracted from the quickening elements of religion, that they could truly exclaim with the poor and suffering Waldenses, when encircled with fire and sword in their Alpine fastnesses, and hurled "mother and infant down the rocks :" "Yet better were this mountain wilderness, And pay the impious rite thy laws condemn." We have thus, with as much brevity as the nature of the subject seemed to allow, followed the investigations of the author in his analysis and classification of the various mental powers and operations. Whether his classification is in all respects just, or not, it is certainly a great convenience to find an attempt of this nature. The outlines of a system, the several parts of which are adapted to each other, as they seem to be in the three volumes which we have noticed, afford, at least, a fair starting point for future inquiries in this department of study. We shall have failed in the design of preparing this analysis, if it shall not have the effect to draw attention to the works themselves, and to aid to some extent in entering upon their thorough study. They deserve to be studied. ARTICLE XII. CRITICAL NOTICES. 1.-The Correspondence of William Wilberforce. Edited by his sons, Robert Isaac Wilberforce, M. A., Vicar of East Farleigh, late Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford; and Samuel Wilberforce, M. A., Archdeacon of Surrey, Rector of Brighstone, revised and enlarged from the London edition: in two volumes. Philadelphia: Henry Perkins. 1841. pp. 336, 332. THOSE who have read the life of Wilberforce will be anxious to know more of this venerable man. We have never closed a biographical work, with greater respect for the subject, or greater reverence for that religion, which could so appropriate genius, wealth and influence, and make them habitually subservient to the interests of truth and humanity. It would be difficult to find an instance of such winning gentleness, such untiring benevolence, and such uniform consistency, in times and amid events which held out the strongest temp tations to unfaithfulness, as well as the best apologies for occasional deviations from the path of Christian rectitude. In some respects, the Correspondence of Wilberforce is less interesting than his Life. In the memoir which his sons have given us, we see him in the family and the closet; here we obtain access to the inmost workings of his heart; here we discover his humility, his submission, his forbearance, his purity; here, in short, we behold the hidden springs of that machinery, the outward results of which are destined to be so benign and lasting. But the Correspondence is by no means devoid of interest. It covers a most eventful period-from 1783 to 1833-and brings before us the chief actors, both in the political and moral world, during that era of commotion and change. It contains the familiar letters of Pitt, Fox, Canning, Brougham; also the gentler and more disinterested effusions of Newton, Cecil, Venn, Milner, Thornton and Hannah More. But the letters of Wilberforce are the great attraction of the work. These are always written without affectation and without effort; he had no time, indeed, to devote to mere beauties of style. The writer, therefore, is seen in his genuine character-the affectionate father, the steadfast friend, the advocate of the wronged and the hater of oppression, the ardent lover of domestic quiet, and yet the willing servant of his country, the church and the world. 2.-The Works of W. Chillingworth, M. A., containing his book, entitled The Religion of the Protestants a Safe Way to Salvation, together with his Sermons, Letters, Discourses, Controversies, etc. First American from the twelfth English edition, with Life by Birch. Philadel phia: Herman Hooker. 1840. pp. 764. It augurs well for American literature, that the solid learning and masculine logic of the seventeenth century are receiving so much attention in this country. And it augurs well for the American church, that ministers and laymen are becoming familiar with the English divines of that stirring period. It is healthful and invigorating to go back, and mingle, occasionally, with those intellectual giants. They were men of profound and accurate thought, and, though deficient in symmetry of learning, as well as of character, they grasped many subjects with a power which has never been surpassed. It is hardly necessary, at the present day, to commend the Works of Chillingworth. Archbishop Tillotson pronounced him "incomparable, the glory of his age and nation." Locke |