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nearly two-thirds in 40 years; and in Stockholm, more than onethird in 67 years.

The causes of the greatest mortality in the different countries and cities of Europe have been thus pointed out. The marshy humidity of the air, especially in hot countries; the effects of privation on the lower classes of society; the scarcity of the means of subsistence, or at least their rise in price, as compared with the wages of labour; pestilential diseases: unfavourable seasons, especially abrupt changes in the temperature; the closeness, dirtiness, and unhealthiness of private houses, prisons, infirmaries, and hospitals; the excessive use of spirituous liquors, and indulgence in drunkenness; unwholesome or unremitting labour, especially in childhood and youth; lastly war-but less in consequence of battles than forced marches, and frequently the mal-administration of armies. Such are the causes assigned by M. Jonnes. But we are of opinion that all of them, with the exception of the first, climate, are irrelevant to the question as to the causes of the difference of mortality in different countries, and for a very tangible reason. Those countries in which these evils prevail to the greatest extent are amongst the healthiest. Russia may be instanced as one; and here the mortality has remained the same for forty years. The influence of these evils on human life are more applicable to individual cities than to whole states. The causes of the diminution of mortality where civilisation is progressive, are the draining of marshes, and the embanking of streams and rivers the favourable division of public wealth, which affords each individual labour and subsistence; the abundance and good quality of the food of the people; the attention bestowed on children from birth, and continued in schools, manufactories, and public establishments; vaccination, and sanitary arrangements, which prevent the importation or development of contagious diseases; the low price of the productions of industry, which places them within the reach of the poor, who can thus provide against the inclemency of seasons; and lastly, the successful measures adopted for diminishing the insalubrity of towns, and especially of colleges, hospitals, theatres, prisons, churches, and other public establishments. In many places, however, these stand in great need of improvement.

In the three great countries of Western Europe, England, France, and Germany, where we may safely assert social amelioration has advanced with the greatest rapidity during the last century, the average mortality has decreased from 1 in 30 to 1 in about 39 or 40; thus, not only is immediate comfort secured by the promotion of civilisation, but the duration of human existence itself is extended by it. What an inducement for us to proceed with vigour in the good course which we are now pursuing! What a mighty influence every generation of men exercises over that which is to follow! This reflection ought to operate as a powerful stimulus to exertion in the way of disseminating knowledge, for by that means civilisation is best promoted.

EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON THE DOMESTIC AFFECTIONS.

I PROCEED to another evil of poverty-its disastrous influence on the domestic affections. Kindle these affections in the poor man's hut, and you give him the elements of the best earthly happiness. But the more delicate sentiments find much to chill them in the abodes of indigence. A family, crowded into a single and often narrow apartment, which must answer at once the ends of parlour, kitchen, bed room, nursery, and hospital, must, without great energy and self-respect, want neatness, order, and comfort. Its members are perpetually exposed to annoying, petty interference. The decencies of life can be with difficulty observed. Woman, a drudge and in dirt, loses her attractions. The young grow up without the modest reserve and delicacy of feeling in which purity finds so much of its defence. Coarseness of manners and language, too sure a consequence of a mode of life which allows no seclusion, becomes the habit almost of childhood, and hardens the mind for vicious intercourse in future years. The want of a neat orderly home is among the chief evils of the poor. Crowded in filth, they cease to respect one another. The social affections wither amidst perpetual noise, confusion, and clashing interests. In these respects, the poor often fare worse than the uncivilised man. True, the latter has a ruder hut, but his habits and tastes lead him to live abroad. Around him is boundless, unoccupied nature, where he ranges at will, and gratifies his passion for liberty. Hardened from infancy against the elements, he lives in the bright light and pure air of heaven. In the city, the poor man must choose between his close room and the narrow street. The appropriation of almost every spot on earth to private use, and the habits of society,

do not allow him to gather his family or meet his tribe under a spreading tree. He has a home, without the comforts of a home. He cannot cheer it by inviting his neighbours to share his repast. He has few topics of conversation with his wife and children, except their common wants. Of consequence, sensual pleasures are the only means of ministering to that craving for enjoyment which can never be destroyed in human nature. These pleasures, in other dwellings, are more or less refined by taste. The table is spread with neatness and order, and a decency pervades the meal, which shows that man is more than a creature of sense. poor man's table, strewed with broken food, and seldom approached with courtesy and self-respect, serves too often to nourish only a selfish animal life, and to bring the partakers of it still nearer to the brute. I speak not of what is necessary and universal; for poverty, under sanctifying influences, may find a heaven in its narrow home; but I speak of tendencies which are strong, and which only a strong religious influence can overcome. — - Dr. Channing.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

SIR WILLIAM JAMES, BART. CHAIRMAN OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY.

The

INSTANCES of men who, by the force of their natural endowments, unaided by anything but integrity and unwearied industry, have raised themselves from poverty to wealth and honours, are frequent; but such examples cannot be too often set before our eyes. The subject of the present memoir was one of this class. His parents were of the humblest rank, and in his early years he William James was born at Milford Haven about the year 1721. himself was employed as a farmer's boy; but imbibing a desire for a seafaring life, he at the age of twelve years engaged himself on board a merchant vessel. The particulars of his youthful career have not been recorded; but in 1738 we find him serving under the gallant Sir Edward, afterwards Lord Hawke, in the West Indies: it is suspected, however, from circumstances, that he was not in the way of promotion as a midshipman, but might have acted in some other station which he had obtained rather by good behaviour than interest. Some years after, he procured the command of a ship in the Virginia trade ; but he experienced little but misfortune on that occasion. He was taken prisoner by the Spaniards, and carried into the Havannah. From a dungeon in the island of Cuba both he and his men were at length released; but it was only to experience fresh calamities. Having embarked on board a brig for the colony of South Carolina, a very hard gale of wind came on the second day after their departure, and the vessel, which does not appear to have been calculated to encounter the occasional hurricanes of those latitudes, strained so much that the most imminent danger ensued. The pumps were set to work; the people unemployed at them were occupied in baling out the water; every possible exertion was made; but the vessel could not be kept afloat.

At length, Mr. James, and seven of the crew, despairing of any other means of safety, got into the boat with a little bag of biscuits and a keg of water; soon after this, the brig, as had been foreseen, went down. They remained twenty days in the boat exposed to the wind and waves, and experiencing the slow approaches of famine. The supply of fresh water being unfortunately very scanty, was regularly distributed in equal portions from the commander's snuff box; and their bread was rendered distasteful by being wetted by the sea, which, during two whole days, made a breach over them. Being unprovided with a compass, they had no idea where they were, or towards what part they were driven : the appearance of any land, however, would have been grateful, and they at length enjoyed the delightful prospect on the twentieth day after the brig had sunk. It proved to be Cuba, the very same island whence they had set out. and the spot which they first reached was not ten miles distant from their old prison. prison had no longer any horrors for them, and they readily delivered themselves up to the Spaniards, who received them once more into captivity. Notwithstanding the severity of their sufferings, one only out of the eight perished; but all were more or less affected by the hardships they had experienced, and it was long before they recovered the perfect use of their limbs.

But a

Having at length found means to return to England, he entered into the service of the East India Company in 1747, at which period it was but a petty trading association; the merchants of Leadenhall-street were at that time the feudal tenants of the Mogul, and had not yet dreamed of being sovereigns of Hindostan. In their service he made two voyages as chief mate, and having evinced much good conduct and displayed considerable talents, he was appointed to the command of a new ship equipped for war, and called the Guardian, from the situation in which she was destined to be employed, and which led to his own future fortune and preferment. Soon after this he sailed from Bombay, with orders to protect the trade on the Malabar coast, then greatly annoyed by the depredations of Angria and other pirates.

An extensive tract, reaching nearly from Bombay to Goa, was formerly known as the "Pirate Coast." No situation can possibly be better adapted for the purposes of naval depredation; for although the general outline be apparently straight and uniform, the shore is everywhere niched with bays and recesses. The multitude of small ports afforded a secure asylum, while the elevated inland stations, being favourable to distant vision, fitted this neighbourhood to be the chosen seat of piracy. The shallowness of the harbours, and the strength of the country within, were well calculated to protect the freebooters from extirpation. During the time that the Mogul empire remained prosperous, care was taken to repress the outrages of these men, and Dunda Rajapore was the name of the harbour at which Arungzebe's fleet rendezvoused for that purpose under the command of the siddee, or high

admiral.

consorts, and a few galliots, sailed from Bombay, on an expedition from which great advantages were augured. Gheriah, the principal fortress and capital of Angria, appeared too formidable for so small a force; but Severn-droog, where his fleet often took shelter and refitted, afforded a better prospect of success, and a certainty of considerable booty to the victors. It was the second port on this coast in point of strength: batteries defended it along the whole extent of the shore, while the mouth of the harbour was protected by a castle mounting seventy pieces of

cannon.

After reconnoitring the place, the English Commodore, having the advantage of a leading wind, steered his little fleet close to the walls, and commenced a severe fire on the garrison. The Drake, stationed at a greater distance in the rear, in the mean time threw in her bombs with considerable effect; and in less than three hours, the governor, who was unaccustomed to the horrors of a regular siege, surrendered the castle and the vessels in the harbour. Fort Victoria and four others next day followed the example of Severn-droog.

The success of this expedition served greatly to facilitate another of greater magnitude. On his arrival at Bombay, the usual station of his fleet, the commodore found Rear-Admiral Watson there with a considerable force; and the government deeming this an excellent opportunity to annihilate the power of Angria, consulted that officer on the best means of effecting it; when it was determined that Commodore James should be despatched to reconnoitre Gheriah. Accordingly, he set sail and arrived in the neighbourhood about dusk; stood close in under the walls, and in the course of the night fitted out his boat, in which he himself took all the soundings, examined all the bearings, and made himself intimately acquainted with the various channels leading to this celebrated fortress.

One of the principal of these fastnesses was called Bancoote or Victoria, the latter of which names it still retains. Severn-droog, Sunderdoo, and Vingorla, are so many rocks situated in lat. 15° 22′ 30′′, six or seven miles from the shore. The chief, however, yet remains to be mentioned: this is Gheriah, nearly midway between Bombay and Goa; and it appertained to the most noted freebooter, whose name was Angria, and who lived in a kind of regal state. In short, this was the Algiers of the Indian pirate coast, and had long been the residence of a succession of Angrias, the first of whom, Conagee Angria, an adventurer in the time of Arungzebe, having been entrusted by the Mahrattas with the company's vessels before enumerated, and three line-of-battle ships, mand of the port of Severn-droog, betrayed his trust, declared himself independent of his master, extended his territories one hundred and twenty miles along the coast, and as far inwards as the Ghauts; while negroes, Mussulmans, and renegade Christians, flocking to his standard, this corsair and his successors became formidable by their power and depredations.

The nature of the service in which Captain James was now employed afforded him almost daily opportunities of ascertaining the strength, learning the habits, and even contesting the power of these marauders. During the two years occupied by him in convoying the merchant ships from Bombay and Surat to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Persia, and along the Malabar coast, from the Gulf of Cambay to Cape Comorin, he was frequently attacked by the vessels of the different piratical states. At one time, when he had nearly seventy sail under his protection, he was assailed by a large fleet of Angria's frigates and gallivats, not badly provided with guns, and, as usual, full of men. Having formed the line with his little squadron, consisting of the Guardian, Bombay Grab, and Drake Bombketch, he engaged the enemy and kept them in close action, sinking one of the largest gallivats, and obliging the rest to take shelter in Gheriah and Severn-droog, while his convoy got safe into Tellicherry.

It may easily be supposed that the fame of this action soon procured additional preferment to the commander. Accordingly, in the beginning of 1751, after a period of only four years' service, and but two from his first promotion to a ship, Captain James was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the East India Company's marine forces, and hoisted his broad pendant as Commodore, on board the Protector, a forty-four gun ship.

The depredations of pirates had rendered the navigation of single vessels extremely hazardous, and the recent capture of a Dutch fifty-gun ship, and part of her convoy, made them more than usually daring. It was resolved, therefore, to commence an immediate attack on this nest of marauders, and destroy some of their principal settlements. Accordingly, on April 2, 1755, Commodore James, on board the Protector, which was a fine stout vessel, with his old ship, the Guardian, the Bombay, and Drake, her former

*It has been reported that about this period Sir William married for the first time, and that his wife kept a public-house in Wapping called "The Red Cow;" but the truth of this story is uncertain.

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Having effected all this in the course of a few days, he returned to Bombay, and gave in his report to the English Admiral. The attack being immediately determined upon, the necessary troops, stores, &c., were embarked with all possible despatch, and Lieut.Colonel, afterwards Lord Clive, was appointed to the command of the land forces. The united squadron, consisting of the Comwith several frigates, belonging to Great Britain, arrived off the destined port on the 10th of February, 1756, and, after a very short resistance, made themselves masters of this stronghold with the loss of only twenty men.

Tullagee Angria, the last of that name, escaped a few days before the attack, of which he had received intimation; but left behind him his wife and children, who, to the honour of the English Admiral, were treated with great humanity. But if the chief was careless of his offspring and insensible to the fate of his family, he was jealous at least of his wealth, for he carried away all his immense treasure, except about the value of £100,000 sterling, and thus prevented any further contention between the army and navy, who, according to Mr. Pennant, had nearly quarrelled about the division of the spoil before they had obtained it.

After distinguishing himself on several other occasions both as a skilful and intrepid combatant, and an accomplished seaman, and having realised a considerable fortune by his share of the prizemoney of Severn-droog, Gheriah, &c., as well as by the gains resulting from his own mercantile transactions, he returned in 1759 to his native country, purchased an estate at Eltham in Kent, and soon after married Miss Goddard, a lady of a very respectable family in Wiltshire. The East India Company, in testimony of his services, presented him with a handsome goldhilted sword, on the blade of which his exploits were enumerated. He now began to interest himself in the management of the Company's affairs, and being elected as a director, was appointed, first, deputy-chairman, and then chairman; offices of great consideration, and to which considerable influence is necessarily attached. At length, on July 25th, 1778, His Majesty was pleased to confer upon him a Baronetage: he also obtained a seat for a Cornish borough; was elected one of the Elder Brethren and Deputy Master of Trinity House; a Governor of Greenwich Hospital; and whenever he was not obliged to remain out by rotation, he was re-appointed, during more than twenty years, a Director of the East India Company.

Having been accustomed from his early youth to an active life, he was always busied about schemes of general importance. When Louis XVI. took part with the American colonies, and a war in consequence ensued between this country and France, Sir William planned the annihilation of the enemy's power in India, by the capture of Pondicherry, which was accordingly taken in conse

quence of his suggestions, but restored at the Peace. The Company was so conscious of his merits upon this occasion, that he was presented with a service of plate.

His health now began to decline, and his constitution exhibited symptoms of premature decay, the consequence of the fatigues which he had endured, and the unhealthy climates in which he had resided in early life. Immediately before his daughter's marriage, some presages of apoplexy were discovered; and on the very day that ceremony, which had his full assent, took place at St. Anne's church, he fell down in a fit and expired, December 16th, 1783, aged sixty-two.

His widow erected a monument to his memory in a very conspicuous situation, on the north-west brow of Shooter's Hill.

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Four years ago, when a friend and I had studied German for some months, we were induced, out of respect for a learned German then visiting England, and from whom we had received some instructions in the language, to undertake a pilgrimage from the opposite end of London to Great Alie-street, Whitechapel, for the purpose of hearing him preach in German. On the service commencing, our ears were almost stunned, and our risible muscles in some danger of being excited, by the strange jargon uttered by the clerk, not one syllable of which did we understand, but which we afterwards learned was a portion of the Scriptures. We hoped to be more fortunate when our friend should begin his part of the duty; but though our ears were in some measure accustomed to his voice, and his discourse was delivered with all the graceful polish of an orator, unaccompanied by the nasal twang of the less educated clerk, we were forced to confess, to his no small surprise, and perhaps disappointment, on being asked by him how we liked his sermon, that we only recognised the Vater Unser (Lord's Prayer), and understood nothing correctly but the Amen!

Anxious as we were to understand German as a spoken language, we were for some time after this discouraged from again entering the walls of a German chapel, on account of our want of success in our first attempt, and in consideration of the waste of time in spending those moments which ought to be consecrated to the service of the Deity in listening to mere sound which conveyed no sense. About this time the first volume of that extraordinary but most fascinating book, "The Doctor," fell into our hands, in which the author recommends students in a foreign country wishing to acquire the language to frequent the national churches, and urging his own experience while studying at Leyden. The example of so great a writer as Southey (for he and no other can be the author of The Doctor "), seconded by the advice of a kind friend, induced us to make a new effort to understand the German service. For this purpose, having furnished ourselves with a German Bible, we sallied forth in search of the German Chapel Royal, which is situated between Marlborough House and St. James's Palace: here, being comfortably installed in a luxurious pew, we patiently awaited the commencement of the sermon; when, straining every nerve, we were enabled to distinguish the book, chapter, and verse containing the text, to our no small gratification; and having found the place, we were thus furnished at least with the subject of the discourse. As the service is according to that of the Church of England, or nearly so, we next endeavoured to procure a German prayer-book, and readily found one to our mind at Bagster's in Paternoster-row; but although translated by the clergyman himself, we soon perceived that he read from an older version, and we therefore had great difficulty in following him. Our prayer-books, however, have proved of infinite service to us, and continue in use to this day; for as we generally contrive to attend an English church once every Sunday, as well as a German one, such is our love of the language that we always prefer using our German books instead of English ones, though no longer requiring them for the purpose for which they were originally intended.

After a month or two of close attendance at this chapel, and when we were beginning to make some progress, we were surprised, on arriving one Sunday at the usual time, to find the doors closed. On inquiring of the porter, we were informed that the building was undergoing extensive repairs, and that it would not be re-opened for divine worship for some weeks. We had a vague

idea of the existence of another German chapel somewhere about the Savoy, and after a few minutes' consultation, we agreed to direct our steps thitherward. On turning down Savoy-street, leaving the elegant little church on the right, (the whole appearing as if transported by magic from the precincts of some noble mansion in the country, and deposited but yesterday in the centre of London,) we found ourselves opposite the "German Lutheran Chapel."

The service was fast drawing to a conclusion as we entered, but we heard and saw sufficient to induce us to return the following Sunday. We were struck the first day by the earnest devotion of the venerable Dr. Steinkopff, who has been for thirty-six years pastor of this church, and who is so well known for his philanthropy, charity, and benevolence. Rapid was the progress which we made under his clear and distinct delivery; and no less exuberant was our delight, a very short time after hearing him, on finding that we were able to comprehend the whole scope of his Our days of probation sermon-it happened to be on prayer. were now at an end; Sunday was hailed (as it ought always to be) as a day of calm enjoyment, and we prepared for our rather long walk, in almost every state of the weather, with increased pleasure. Here I cannot refrain from offering my tribute of praise to the friendliness and civility of the German character; and as a proof of Dr. Steinkopff's benevolence I may mention, that arriving one afternoon at the chapel an hour sooner than the service began, and finding the doors closed, we were about to retrace our steps, at the moment when the worthy Doctor was leaving his own house to visit one of his sick parishioners. Guessing our disappointment, he kindly entered into conversation with us (though not previously acquainted); informed us of the hour at which the service commenced; and on hearing that our knowledge of German was derived chiefly by our own exertions from books, kindly offered us the use of his library, and presented us, at the conclusion of the service, with a volume of his printed sermons, containing his portrait.

At all the German chapels which we have visited-and they are many-we have experienced the utmost readiness in being accommodated with a seat (generally the best in the chapel), in being supplied with hymn-books, and other marks of attention on the part of the hearers as well as officials. How well do we remember the good old sacristan at the Savoy, in the early days of our attendance, welcoming us with a smile; and if, as it did sometimes, though but rarely, happen that we were late, leading the way to our pew, singing the hymn as he went, and courteously pointing out the exact spot on his book as he left us! This cheerful old man, though upwards of 80 years of age, was as active and erect as an ordinary man of 60; and we were much grieved to hear, about two years ago, that he had been thrown down by an omnibus while crossing the Strand, and, though not much hurt at the time, expired in a few days afterwards from the united effects of the accident and the influenza, under which he had been labouring. It is of infinite advantage to the student of German to accustom his ear to different voices, and we have experienced great benefit from hearing various clergymen. For this purpose, we do not confine ourselves to one church; and though the Savoy may be considered our head-quarters, we occasionally visit the other German chapels of the metropolis, of which the Hamburg Chapel in Trinity-lane claims precedence, being undoubtedly the most ancient; and from the difficulty we experienced in finding out the different German chapels, we hope a short notice of them may not be unacceptable to our young friends.

The Hamburg Chapel was the first Protestant German chapel established in London-as early as 1618. It was rebuilt on the same site in 1774. The present minister is Mr. Weltbaum, from Hanover. There is service only once a day, (quarter to eleven A.M.,) except on sacrament days, when it commences again at three P.M.

The Savoy Church is a branch from this patriarchal stock, which emigrated westwards in 1692. It is the largest German congregation in London. The elegant chapel was built by Sir William Chambers, 1768, on the site of part of the old palace; a Jesuit's chapel belonging to which had formerly been allotted to them by William III. Morning service commences at half-past ten A.M., and at halfpast three P.M. Dr. Steinkopff (from Stuttgard) is the clergyman; and he also lectures on Friday evenings at seven o'clock.

St. George's Chapel, Whitechapel, is another branch of the Hamburg congregation; the influx of German artisans (chiefly sugar-bakers) about the middle of the last century rendering a place of worship at the East end of the town absolutely necessary.

Dr. Schwab (from Erfurt) preaches twice every Sunday. The morning service is at a quarter to eleven, and in the afternoon at three.

The German Reformed Church, which differs in some few points from the Lutheran, is situated in Hooper's-square, Goodman's Fieids. The present excellent incumbent is Dr. Tiarks, a native of Jever, in Oldenburgh, and the well-known author of a Grammar and other standard elementary works on the German language.

The Chapel Royal, St. James's, was established by Prince George of Denmark, at the instigation of his chaplain, in 1705. It is an elegant building, fitted up with great luxury. The Queen Dowager occasionally occupies a seat in the gallery appropriated to the royal family. It is under the control of the Bishop of London, and the minister is paid by the government. The present incumbent is Dr. Küper (from Hanover), who was formerly preceptor to the Princess Charlotte of Wales. The service (which is only

once a day) commences at half-past eleven o'clock.

TIME.

TIME is the most undefinable yet paradoxical of things: the past is gone, the future is not come, and the present becomes the past, even while we attempt to define it, and, like the flash of lightning, at once exists and expires. Time is the measurer of all things, but is itself immeasurable; and the grand discloser of all things, but is itself undisclosed. Like space, it is incomprehensible, because it has no limit, and it would be still more so if it had. It is more obscure in its source than the Nile, and in its termination than the Niger; and advances like the slowest tide, but retreats like the swiftest torrent. It gives wings of lightning to pleasure, but feet of lead to pain; and lends expectation a curb, but enjoyment a spur. It robs beauty of her charms, to bestow them on her picture; and builds a monument to merit, but denies it to a house: it is the transient and deceitful flatterer of falsehood, but the tried and final friend of truth. Time is the most subtle yet the most insatiable of depredators, and by appearing to take nothing, is permitted to take all; nor can it be satisfied until it has stolen the world from us, and us from the world. It constantly flies, yet overcomes all things by flight; and although it is the present ally, it will be the future conqueror of Death. Time, the cradle of hope, but the grave of ambition, is the stern corrector of fools, but the salutary counsellor of the wise-bringing all they dread to the one, and all they desire to the other; but, like Cassandra (the prophetess), it warns us with a voice that even the sagest discredit too long, and the silliest too late. Wisdom walks before it, Opportunity with it, and Repentance behind it: he that has made it his friend will have little to fear from his enemies; but he that has made it his enemy will have little to hope from his friends.

THE INFANT AND WATCH. WHAT's time to thee, my merry boy,

That thus thou feign'st to mark his measure? Thine infant hours are hours of joy,

And who would note the lapse of pleasure? What recks it where he points his finger ?

Morn, noon, or night's the same to thee; With thee, dear babe, he scarce may linger ;Then give that golden toy to me !

As yet, thou canst not know its worth,

And, idler-like, perchance may'st lose it; Or-in some freak of boisterous mirth

Some mischief-working mood-misuse it! What! would'st thou ope Time's inmost shrine, And gaze upon each secret spring? Go to !-thou might'st not then divine What stays his course, or speeds his wing!

But let a few short years depart,

Of hope and fear, of joy and woe,

And he will then, unask'd, impart

Far more than 't will be bliss to know!The hidden springs that stir mankind, That wring the heart, and rack the frame,The "fury passions" of the mind

Thou dost not even know by name !

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On the supposition that the BIBLE is not a revelation, it is the most wonderful collection of documents that the world ever saw. wherefore we receive the poems of Homer as of undoubted antiNo man who believes in the past-no man who understands quity, or believes that Alexander the Great, or Alfred the Great,

or Virgil, or Milton, or Shakspeare, once existed-can hesitate, for a moment, to receive some of the portions of the Bible as being the earliest of preserved writings. And no man can look, with a thoughtful mind, at the accumulated mass, written in successive centuries, and handed down with such extraordinary care, without being disposed to reverence the collected works, even if he considered them as mere human productions. The origin and early history of the world; the laws of Moses; the Jews; Palestine ; the life and doctrines of Christ; the actions of the apostles, and the history of the early Christian church; the varied characteristics of the different books of the Bible, and the vast amount of human intellect which has been expended on them; the wonderful events related, and the sublime doctrines taught; with all the poetry, pathos, and purity of their contents, make the books of the Bible wonderful now, as they have been wonderful in all past time; and poor and dull must that intellect be, which, even in the act of rejecting them as a revelation, does not freely admit that they are interwoven with the history, the feelings, the hopes, and prospects of MAN.

If, therefore, there be any kind of intolerance which we are disposed to tolerate, it is the indignant putting-down of some small-minded creature, who is busy nibbling at some isolated passage, and who seems to consider the Bible evidences as a house of cards-remove but one, and all fall down in ruin! Such a man

may just as well take up a straw to fell an elephant, or try to blow down St. Paul's with a pop-gun. What is an apparent discrepancy, or even a positive difficulty, to the weight of centuries and of millenniums? Objectors of the class we allude to we are always disposed (perhaps wrongly) to pass by in silent contempt. We would say to such a one, read before you talk; examine before you affirm. Some of these little objections have been answered nine hundred and ninety-nine times; and even if they never were, they no more invalidate the entire mass of evidence, than a pile of dust defaces the records themselves.

But Christians are also to blame in leading individuals to make such objections. They, also, too frequently, treat the Bible and its evidences as a house of cards-touch one, and bring down all! Nay, more they take their own received interpretations of the Bible as if they were as infallible as the Bible itself; and to substitute another interpretation, as more consonant with the original, would be, to them, equivalent to blotting out so much of the Bible itself! Now, as we have repeatedly contended, the Bible has been written for a progressive creature; and upon this fact we rest our firmest belief in it, as a revelation. Not to mention the prophecies, which must necessarily be dim and dark till their fulfilment. we may take up any portion of it, and show, that while the Bible remains the same, the interpretation of it varies from age to age, as new discoveries throw fresh light upon it, and MAN advances in capacity to understand it. Thus, the intercourse which we now enjoy with the East, our increasing familiarity with Oriental manners and customs, and our additional knowledge of the topography and antiquities of Palestine, enable us to explain many passages, which, in the time of our fathers and grandfathers, were either a riddle, or explained in an absurd and ludicrous manner.

All good but unenlightened men shrank with horror from the supposed impiety of Galileo, in affirming that the earth moved ;just as good but partially enlightened men in our day shrink from the idea, that creatures lived upon the earth ages before Adam was called into being. Yet the truths of geology will gradually pervade all current belief, just as the truths of astronomy did: as men get reconciled to the ideas which upset their previouslyconfirmed notions, they begin to examine; and, lo, it turns out that science never really contradicts the Bible, but that the revelation is a book with many seals, which are gradually unsealed, as men are able to bear it.

There was a grave, good, and very learned man, who died upwards of a century ago (in 1737), who taught that the Old Testament contained a complete system of natural history, theology, and religion. He attacked the doctrine of gravitation, expounded by Newton, as being contrary to Scripture; and having a profound acquaintance with the Hebrew Scriptures, he drew from them a very extraordinary system of philosophy, as well as religion, the adoption of which would bring us to this-that we must either reject all the discoveries of modern science, or else reject the Bible. His works were published, under the title of the "Philosophical and Theological Works of the late truly learned John Hutchinson ;" and many adopted his views, to a greater or less extent, and were called Hutchinsonians. Bishop Horne, for instance, the commentator on the Psalms, is said to have been a Hutchinsonian; and other eminent men are named as having embraced Mr. Hutchinson's views.

The idea that the Bible teaches SCIENCE, as well as RELIGION, is beginning to vanish; and as men understand that there is a twofold MORAL purpose in it,-one adapted to the capacities of those for whom the book or books were immediately written, and another for futurity, they will see a grandeur in the Bible which no idea of its fixedness can possibly convey. Take, for instance, the descriptions of heaven at the close of the Book of Revelations. Does any intelligent, pious-minded Christian believe, that heaven will actually be a city whose walls and foundations are to be of precious stones? that a river, clear as crystal, will actually flow through the midst of it? that there will be in it an actual tree of life, yielding fruit every month? No! every intelligent Christian sees in all this a phraseology adapted to the capacities of the then Orientals, to whose minds the idea of happiness or felicity would be most strikingly conveyed by images drawn from, or connected with, those things the possession of which in the East was supposed to confer happiness; such as glittering precious stones, cool crystal waters, and fruit-bearing trees, ever green, and producing whatever might be considered as most grateful to the palate. Yet we have heard poor ignorant fools laugh at those images of felicity, and sneeringly say that the Christian heaven was, after all, a very gross and literal matter; and we have seen pious Christians puzzled how to reply, because, if they did not actually believe that heaven was to be composed of precious stones, they, at least, believed in something very like it!

We could pursue this subject much farther; but we shall have future opportunities of doing so, and, meantime, we refer such of our readers as take any interest in it to an article, "Progressive Influence of Christianity," which appeared in No. II. of the "LONDON SATURDAY JOURNAL." We only repeat our belief, that the Bible is a sealed book, which is gradually unsealing as men advance in understanding and capacity; that while the poorest and most ignorant man, in any age or period, can find enough in the New Testament to make him WISE for time and eternity, the gradual and right elucidation of the Bible, as a whole, will employ the capacity of the thoughtful and the learned for many future years.

We have put together these observations, as a sort of general answer to several correspondents who have written about points connected with the Bible-such as geology, genealogy, the millennium, the Jews, &c.; not even excepting an application to decide "cases of conscience."

We give the following short extract from a long letter as a specimen :

"During a short discussion lately between a Socialist and a Christian, it was brought forward, on the part of the Socialist, that tion, said, it was clear that the evangelists Matthew and Luke the Scriptures were incorrect; and he, to substantiate his assergave different genealogies of Joseph, the supposed father of Christ; Matthew saying Joseph was the son of Jacob, and Luke that he was the son of Heli. It was replied, the genealogy in Matthew went to prove Joseph's descent from David, and that in Luke, Mary's, the mother of Jesus. The Socialist said, that if that was stated, where can be found anything in the Bible to corroborate the opinion? for, added he, both of the evangelists distinctly state they are Joseph's."

Our correspondent writes to us in an earnest and sincere spirit, but also as if he were apprehensive that the entire truth or falsehood of the entire Bible rested on this little difficulty! He will find very satisfactory explanations in the notes to the "Pictorial Bible." But supposing no explanation could be given at all, would it then necessarily follow that this apparent discrepancy Many things in the Bible should overthrow the entire BOOK? which were puzzles to our forefathers, are not puzzles to us; and many things about which we have dim, indistinct notions, will become clearer and clearer, as THOUGHT and RESEARCH, digging amongst the ruins of ideas, bring out the buried gems of TRUTH,

THE USE OF OPIUM IN THE EAST. OPIUM, which is but sparingly administered as an opiate medicine in England, is an article of great consumption in Oriental countries. This drug, the abuse of which entails misery and premature death upon those addicted to its too frequent use, has more than once threatened to cause an entire stoppage of trade between Europe and China, and thus to put an end to the annual circulation of eleven millions seven hundred thousand pounds sterling of British capital alone*.

The opium-trade with China is involved in some singular and perplexing circumstances. The Chinese government, combining the most rigid despotism with the patriarchal form, has looked upon the increasing growth of opium-smoking with great alarm. The emperor, who is considered the father of a family, (a large one, for it consists of three hundred and sixty-one million souls,) has consequently long since forbidden the importation of the pernicious drug, and imposes the most severe restrictions upon every description of foreign trade, to prevent its being smuggled into the country. But where there is an enormous and increasing demand for an article on the one hand, and a constant and ready supply to be had on the other, precautions, however elaborate or strictly enforced, are always found insufficient for effecting their object.

The opium-merchants stand in a curious predicament. The is, it is suspected, together with most of his court, an opiumemperor, although continually fulminating the most severe edicts, smoker himself; so that, if his own orders were obeyed, he, or at all events the upper classes of China, would be deprived of an enjoyment, which, vicious as it is, has become so inveterate a habit, that it would be next to impossible for them to abandon it. The evil has, however, of late become so extensive and notorious, that the wavering deceitfulness of issuing the strictest prohibitions against the importation of opium, and at the same time conniving at its introduction into China, can no longer be practised; and of late the government has appeared to be really in earnest.

By far the largest portion of the opium smuggled into China is the produce of British India: hence the exchange of commodities between the British and the Chinese exhibits a great moral injustice. We supply a drug which demoralises the Chinese populafrom which we derive a beverage so wholesome and innocuous, that tion; while they, in return, freely produce for us the tea-plant, it has almost become one of the necessaries of life. Whatever may be ur opinions about Chinese arrogance, and whatever may be the result of the open quarrel between us and the Celestial Empire, there can be no question that our opium-smuggling has

* Statements of the Canton Chamber of Commerce, making that amount to have been circulated between the 1st of July, 1837, and the 30th June, 1838; quoted in the "Bombay Times," May 25th, 1839.

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