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words often greater than his thoughts. His best pieces are those on Consideration and a crucified Jesus.

HOPKINS. His motto aut suavitate aut vi is well answered in his works; yet he trusted not to the latter. He bends the bow till it breaks; an error greatly to be guarded against.

BOYLE has a very rough, and exceedingly obscure style. His lively similies, especially in his seraphic Love, may be very properly quoted.

SCOUGAL must be placed in the first rank, though he wrote but little. He commands a decent eloquence, suited to his subject. Noble and proper thoughts are found in every page of his writings. He seems to be the best model of all this class. His life of God, and his sermons, should be often read. He died at the age of 28, to the unspeakable loss of the world.

LAW was a recluse. His writ-ings have a severity seldom found in the present age. His language is generally just and beautiful, and very nervous, but sometimes unnatural. He was too ready to affect points of wit and strokes of satire, in which he does not equal South. Many of his characters are admirably drawn; in that he comes nearer the Jesuits, than any English writer. His treatise on Christian Perfection is very famous. But his Serious Call is much bet

ter.

FLEETWOOD, surnamed Silver Tongue, is remarkable for easy, proper expressions. He considers several cases often occurring in life, but seldom in sermons. His free politeness is

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on relative duties are good. But his four funeral sermons shew the orator much more.

ATTERBURY is the glory of our English orators. In him we find language in its purity and beauty. Nothing is dark, nothing redundant, nothing defective, nothing displaced. Trivial thoughts are avoided, uncommon ones introduced, and set in a clear, strong light in a few words. He has a few admirable similies, and some very graceful allusions to scripture. On the whole he is a model for courtly preachers. His fourth volume should be diligently read; his two last are the best. His most excellent sermons are those entitled Acquaintance with God, Religious Retirement, Lady Watts' Character, Propagation of the Gospel, Sufficiency of Revelation, Terror of Conscience, Curse of the Jews, Felix Trembling.

SECKER is so remarkable an instance of laconic style, that the few sermons which he has published deserve attentive reading; especially that on Education; which is the wisest sermon ever read, considered as a philosophical essay.

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were buried.

Hence these demons were said sometimes "to dwell among the tombs." [Mark v.] Therefore the pagans built temples over their graves. Plato says, that "they had their yearly funeral orations and other commemorations of their demons at their sepulchres." The primitive fathers often reproached the heathen, because their temples were nothing but the sepulchres of dead men. The papists very early began the worship of saints, in imitation of the demon worship among pagans. In a French treatise on the ceremonies of the year A. D. 160, it is said, that among the Greeks they annually celebrated the memory of heroes and illustrious

men, who died in defence of their country. The solemnity was performed at their graves. The Christians imitated this example, judging it would prove a means to induce others to suffer death for the gospel. Plato, speaking of the demons, says, "for we in sacrifices and assemblies honour good men, [or demons] so far as their merit shall appear, with hymns, and seats, and flesh, and full cups." Then he adds, "therefore we will consult the oracle of God, in what rank those blessed and divine men are to be placed, and with what ensigns they are to be honoured, and for the future, we will worship their shrines, as deBETA.

mons."

Selections.

THOUGHTS ON THE SCRIPTURE ACCOUNT OF THE CREATION OF THE WORLD, AND SOME OF THE OBJECTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN URGED AGAINST IT.

(From the Religious Monitor.)

If we believe that the Scriptures were written under the immediate inspiration of that God, whose creating power is owned by universal nature, we are led to expect, that nature and revelation will mutually confirm and illustrate each other. Were the Scripture supported by no other evidence than what it derives from the testimony of nature, we should certainly be entitled to compare them together with a critical eye, considering the latter as the standard of truth. Even in this case, however, sound philosophy would re

quire us to proceed with the utmost caution. It would remind us, that conclusions which seem to flow from a limited view of the phænomena of nature, are frequently contradicted by a more extended observation, and hence would argue the propriety of not hastily pronouncing revelation to be false, though its doctrines and our observations might, in a few instances, seem to be at variance. But by a still stronger barrier has God himself confined the daring spirit of man. In giv ing us a revelation of his will, he has also given us evidence of its

truth, so clear, that he who runs may read; and so complete, that he who reads without prejudice, must acknowledge the testimony of God. This evidence is wholly independent of the phenomena of nature; and in consequence of its existence, the method which true philosophy points out to fallible and short-sighted creatures, is, when nature and revelation seem to be at variance, rather to exert themselves to discover a principle on which they may be reconciled, than on such slender grounds to venture to set aside the vast body of evidence which God himself has annexed to his word.

But a very different course has too often been followed. Men, calling themselves philosophers, have compared revelation and nature together, and finding apparent inconsistencies, have considered them as sufficient grounds for denying the scripture to be the word of God. In conducting their speculations on this subject, they have fallen into two egregious errors, the one in theory, the other in practice, In theory, they have proceeded upon the grossly erroneous principle, that the truth of revelation must stand or fall with its conformity to the phenomena of nature, the reason of man being judge; forgetting the difficulty of such an inquiry, and the total unfitness of reason to conduct it. Their error in practice is more heinous. They have been guilty of drawing the most important conclusions from a partial and limited comparison of facts, while a little more extended observation would have shewn them, that all nature bears its testimony to the truth of God.

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Their speculations, in short, far from resembling the cautious inductions of an unbiassed judgment in search of truth, exhibit the most indisputable characters of the monstrous productions of a vitiated mind, wishing to persuade itself and others, that the doctrines of scripture do not rest upon the authority of God.

I have been led to these reflec-. tions, by considering some reasonings to which they apply with the greatest strictness, I mean the attempts which have been made to undermine the authority of the writings of Moses, by shewing the date he assigns to the creation of the world to be

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inconsistent with geological phenomena. The authors of these speculations have proceeded upon different grounds. shall confine myself to one of the most common, and therefore most dangerous, hoping that the subject may be prosecuted by some one better qualified for the task.

From various circumstances relating to the productions of burning mountains, it has been argued, that the world must be older than the date assigned to it in scripture; that is, than 5800 years. The facts from which this conclusion is drawn, may be reduced to four heads, which we shall consider separately.

I. From the prodigious size of the rocks of lava, observed in the neighbourhood of volcanoes, it is argued, that the Mosaic age of the world is a period within which we cannot suppose them to have been formed, and that these mountains, and consequently the world, must have existed much longer.

The force of this argument

will be completely destroyed, if we attend to the extent of those masses of lava, the date of whose formation we can ascertain with tolerable precision. Of a great variety of facts that might be brought forward, a few shall suffice.

Virgil mentions a town situated at the bottom of Mount Etna, on the side where it approaches to the sea, which was remarkable for a commodious and wellsheltered harbour, much resorted to by ships, when overtaken by a storm. Some traces of the town still remain. From its situation with regard to the mountain, it is known to be the same that Virgil describes; but it is now between 3 and 4 miles from the sea, being separated from it by a rock of lava of that extent, all of which must have been formed in little more than 1800 years. In the great eruption of Etna, which destroyed Catania in 1669, rocks of lava 100 feet high were formed at once, where lakes 50 feet deep had formerly existed. The city of Herculaneum, which was destroyed by an eruption of Vesuvius, during the reign of Vespasian, about the year 79, now lies buried under from 70 to 100 feet of volcanic matter;-at one place it forms a solid mass of lava, 100 feet thick, and of prodigious extent, on which stands the great palace of the king of Naples, surrounded by the palaces of his principal nobility. We shall mention but one instance more, which indeed might have stood instar omnium. In the Island of Iceland, there is a tract of lava 90 miles long, 42 miles broad, and from 60 to 120 feet in thickness, which is certainly known to have been formed by

a single eruption of Heckla in 1783. It dried up 12 rivers, destroyed about 20 villages, and some hills of considerable height were completely covered by it.

The vast extent of these volcanic remains will appear by no means incredible, if we recollect the well authenticated accounts of the quantities of lava poured out by the mountains during their eruptions. In the eruption of Etna in 1669, a stream of liquid lava, 6 miles broad, flowed to the distance of 14 miles, from the rent in the side of the mountain whence it had issued; filling up, in its progress, a lake 4 miles in compass, and leaving a mountain of lava in its place. In another eruption of Etna, the stream of lava is said to have been 10 miles broad. And on the whole, it seems as plain as words can make it, that no argument against the Mosaic account of the creation can be drawn from the remains of lava.

II. On the sloping sides of some of the great volcanoes, numerous smaller mountains are observed, formed entirely of volcanic ashes and vitrified stones, which have been thrown up during eruptions of the volcano. On the side of Etna, next to Catania, Sir William Hamilton counted 40 of them; and their height is from 400 to 1000 feet.*

* It is to be observed, that in eruptions of the great volcanoes, the principal discharge of volcanic matters seldom or never takes place from the great crater on the summit. The eruption begins with a discharge of smoke, flame, and ashes, and sometimes a quantity of lava from the tinued for some time, a rent is made great crater; but after this has conin the side of the mountain, often ma

From the number and size of these mountains, it is argued, as before, that we cannot suppose them to have been formed in

5800 years.

This argument is specious, but will appear, on examination, to be equally inconclusive with the former; and like it, to be founded on an unfair and partial statement of facts. For, if we can prove that several of the largest of these mountains were formed in a very short time, it will follow, that the rest may have been formed in equal times, and the whole within the period assigned in scripture for the existence of the world. Now, the date of the formation of several of the secondary mountains has been handed down to us on the most undoubted authority, and a very few instances will be sufficient to decide the question before us.

A mountain on the side of Etna, the height of which I do not find recorded, was formed in the course of a few months, in 1663. In the great eruption of 1669, a mountain, 3 miles in circumference, and nearly half a mile in perpendicular height, was formed in a few days; and, to mention but one instance more, a mountain on the side of Vesuvius, 3 miles in circumference, and a quarter of a mile perpendicular height, was thrown

ny miles below the summit. From this are discharged the streams of lava which prove so destructive; and prodigious quantities of ashes and pieces of stones, which collecting round the opening, are gradually elevated into a mountain with a crater at the top, which thus becomes a kind of distinct volcano. In this way are formed the secondary mountains mentioned above.

up in one night, in 1538. If such effects are produced by single eruptions, certainly the number of eruptions that may have taken place in 5800 years, are fully sufficient to account for the formation of all the secondary mountains on which this argu, ment is founded. The argument of course falls to the ground.

III. In several parts of the world, small islands have been met with, composed of nearly the same materials as the secondary mountains above described. Hence, some have been disposed to argue, that these islands are probably nothing else than the tops of volcanic secondary mountains, belonging to continents, or islands, which are now buried under the ocean; but which were dry land, and the seats of active volcanoes, at the time these mountains were formed. From these premises, if just, a strong presumption would arise, that the world is older than the date assigned to it by Moses; because the state of its surface, as described by him, is the same as observed in modern times. But here we can again oppose facts to hypothesis; for several of these islands have been thrown up from the ocean within the period of authentic history; and before a few facts of this kind, the whole of the above reasoning must fall to the ground. Vulcano, one of the Lipari Islands, was thrown up from the ocean in the early ages of the Roman republic, as related by Eusebius and Pliny ;-and after the great eruption of Heckla in 1783, two islands made their appearance, which continued for some time to throw out fire and ashes like

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