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he fixed the heads of the gods upon unworthy shoulders, he profaned them and made himself ridiculous. I there, fore, says he, made no more conscience to separate Homer's verses from this poem, than the thief did who stole the silver head from the brazen body in Westminster abbey."

FREDERIC MOREL.

Whilst this eminent scholar was employed on his edition of Libanius, one day he was told that his wife was suddenly taken ill. "I have only two or three sentences to transcribe, and then I will come and see her." A second message informed him that she was dying. "I have only two words to write, and I will be there as soon as you," replied Morel. At length he was told that his wife was dead. "I am sorry for it, indeed: she was a good woman."

BODLEIAN LIBRARY.

The late learned librarian, Dr. Hudson, gives this account of the Bodleian: "Sir Thomas Bodley asked permission to furnish Duke Humphrey's library once more; which being granted, he procured benefactors from very many of the nobility and gentry, both in books and money. He sent over men on purpose to buy books in France, Italy, and Germany: besides this, he made an agreement with the stationer's company to give one copy of every book which they should print from thence forward. Lastly, by his will, he left a considerable estate; though this was afterwards much diminished by the civil wars, and fire of London; and now scarcely supplies the librarians with salaries, &c."

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Pointer's Oxon. Acad. 1747.

PHILOSOPHICAL SERMON.

An Augustine monk expounding that passage in the New Testament where the evangelist describes the seryants of the high priest, warming themselves by the fireside, he addressed his audience very solemnly, observing: My brethren, ye are to notice, that the evangelist is not content to mention this circumstance merely as an historian would, by the words, calefaciebant se,' they warmed themselves; but adds, in the spirit of a philosopher, the reason of their conduct, quia frigus erat,' because it was cold."

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REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS.

Demonstration of the Existence of God, from the won der ful Works of Nature. Translated from the French of "Francois Chateaubriand; and dedicated by Permission to the Lord BISHOP of LANDAFF. By FREDERIC SHQBERL. 12mo. pp. 102.

O the character of this little volume given by the in

cated, we most cordially give our assent. The bishop of Landaff observes that "the work is not calculated for the instruction of philosophers, but it will enlarge the views of the ignorant, it will arrest the attention of the thoughtless, and it will give an impulse to the piety of sober-minded men: there are passages in it which emulate the eloquence of BosSUET."

It appears that the work, from which this is an extract, entitled "The Genius of Christianity," has obtained a very high reputation on the Continent, although it drew from the "philosophical party in France, all the efforts of ridicule, irony, and misrepresentation to depreciate M. Chateaubriand in the public opinion." It is satisfactory to perceive, that religion still holds its degree of respect in the general sentiments of mankind, notwithstanding the infamous attempts of the philosophists to destroy its influence. The reign of Atheism cannot be long, though for a period it may be violent.

Its effects in France have been dreadful, but afford a most important lesson to all nations, and to every individual. We have seen a great empire publicly renounce God, and the natural consequence was universal anarchy ending in abject slavery aud superstition.

The original of the work before us we have not seen, but from correct information we learn that it is the production of an ardent mind, and abounds with singular flights of imagination upon doctrines of the first importance. One instance we have in the present tract, where the author gives the following very extraordinary illus, tration of the mystery of the Trinity, "Every

"Every moment of the day," says he," the sun is rising, glowing at his zenith, and setting on the world; or rather our senses deceive us, and there is no real sun-rise, noon, or sunset. The whole is reduced to a fixed point from which the orb of day emits, at one and the same time, three lights from one single substance. This triple splendor is perhaps the most beautiful incident in Nature; for while it affords an idea of the perpetual magnificence and omnipresence of God, it exhibits a most striking image of bis glorious Trinity,"

The famous Hutchinsonian symbol of fire, light, and spirit, which is said to have confounded even Dr. Clarke, is nothing to this; though to speak the plain truth, our faculties are too obtuse to be satisfied with such modes of explaining, or bringing level to the senses, a doctrine of mere revelation.

With the exception of this passage; which, by the bye, the translator would do well to omit in another edition, this little piece is truly excellent, and must be read with equal profit and pleasure.

The author proceeds through animate and inanimate nature, and evinces the existence of a Supreme Intelligence from every part, in a charming strain of argument and eloquence.

The opening is very fine:

"There is a GOD: the humble plants of the valley, and the cedars of the mountains bless him; the insect hums his praise; the elephant salutes him with the rising day; the bird chaunts him among the foliage; the lightning proclaims his power, and the ocean declares his immensity. Man alone has said: "There is no God."

What the author aptly calls the "Instinct of Country," is beautifully elucidated, and urged as an evidence of a divine ordination.

"Among civilized nations, the love of country," he says, "has performed prodigies. In the plans of God there is always an end he has grounded upon Nature, this affection for the place of our nativity; the animal partakes, in a certain degree, of this instinct with man; but man carries it farther, and transforms into a virtue what was only a sentiment of universal conformity: thus the physical and moral laws of the universe are linked together in an admirable chain. We even doubt whether it be possible to possess one genuine virtue, one real talent, without the love of country. In war this passion performs prodigies; "in literature it produced a Homer and a Virgil, The blind bard delineates

delineates in preference the manners of Ionia, where he drew his first breath, and the Mantuan swain feasted on the remembrance of his native place. Born in a cottage, and expelled from the inheritance of his ancestors, these circumstances seem to have had an extraordinary influence on his genius; they gave it that melancholy tint which is one of its principal charms. His memory is continually recalling these events, and you perceive that he never forgot that Argos, where he passed the years of his youth:

Et dulces moriens reminiscitur Argos.

But it is the Christian religion which has imparted to the love of country its proper measure and its real beauty. This sentiment produced crimes among the ancients, because it was carried to excess. Christianity has made it a principal love, and not an exclusive love; it enjoins us above all things to be just; it commands us to cherish the whole family of Adam, since we ourselves belong to it, though our countrymen have the first claim to our attachment. This morality was unknown before the mission of the legislator of Christians, who has been unjustly accused of attempting to extirpate the passions: God destroys not his own work. The Gospel is not the death of the heart, but its rule. It is to our sentiments, what taste is to the fine arts; it retrenches all that is exaggerated, false, common, and trivial ; it leaves them all that is fair, and good, and true.

"The Christian religion, rightly understood, is only primitive nature washed from original pollution."

The translation is extremely well done: and we have no hesitation in recommending the book, especially for the edification of young persons.

An Historical View of the Rise and Progress of Infidelity, with a Refutation of its Principles and Reasonings In a Series of Sermons preached for the Lecture founded by the Hon. Mr. Boyle, in the Parish Church of St. Maryle-Bow from the Year 1802 to 1805. By the Rev. WILLIAM VAN MILDERT, M. A. Rector of Mary-le-Bow. Two Volumes 8vo, pp. 990.

WR

E cannot introduce these interesting volumes better than by extracting part of the preface.

"More than a century has now elapsed," says the author,

," since

"since the foundation of Mr. Boyle's lecture: and it is gratifying to reflect on the substantial benefit which appears to have arisen from it to the cause of Revealed Religion. Mr. Boyle lived in an age abounding with open and declared Infidels, men of active spirit, and indefatigable in their exertions to build up a system of Libertinism on the ruins of Christianity. He saw that to stem the torrent of impiety, it was necessary to call in the joint efforts of the friends of Truth: and as the seeds of error had been widely scattered, he was careful to provide the means of destroying those pernicious fruits, which, in after times, they might be expected to produce. With that zeal, therefore, for the honour of God, and the best interests of man, which, on every occasion, marked the character of this exemplary and truly illustrious person, he laid the foundation of a plan calculated to meet future, no less than present exigencies, and to supply an effectual antidote for that which might otherwise become an increasing and irremediable malady."

"During a course of nearly fifty years, the publication of the Discourses preached for this Lecture, was continued with little intermission; and such was the accumulation of these labours, that in the year 1739 they were collected into three large folio Volumes, comprizing a most valuable body of Divinity. Since that period, although it appears that the Lecture has been constantly preached, few only of its productions have been submitted to the public eye; but among them are some of distin guished excellence. The last of these was published in the year 1783.

"A desire to revive an attention to this eminently useful Institution, has been one motive for hazarding the publication of the present Volumes. Although the noble Founder of the Lecture did not expressly direct that the Discourses should be printed, yet as the design of it could not otherwise be effectually answered, it is hardly to be doubted; that such was his intention; and since in these days of licentiousness, and irreligion, they who hate the truth" are many in number," this is surely not a time to be backward in shewing an attachment to its cause.

"Many persons have indeed regretted, that this and some other Institutions of a similar kind, have been suffered to become almost extinct. If they were only of a temporary nature, or were calculated to revive old and fruitless controversies, which might otherwise cease to disturb and perplex mankind, their discontinuance would be a matter of satisfaction rather than of concern. But since the reasons which gave birth to them, still, unhappily, remain in full force; since Infidelity, Irreligion, and Error, in one shape or other, continue unceasingly to assail us; is there not the same occasion, as heretofore, for calling upon the Advocates of our Faith, to stand forth in its defence? That the pre

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