reflections and emotions. The important subject of the education of the poor has thoroughly seized the public attention. The good and intelligent of all ranks concur in its utility and importance. Great have been the efforts of benevolence. In the course of five years, provision has been effectually made for the education of no less than two hundred thousand children, who otherwise might have grown up in ignorance and vice. The survey, indeed, does not afford unmingled pleasure. The base and malignant arts, that were at first employed to retard its progress, and the interests and passions that now conspire to unfold and brighten it, are subjects of humiliation and regret. But though many of the agents have little claim to pure benevolence, there is reason to adore that wisdom which turns the bad passions of men to the advantage of society, and to rejoice that the poor are likely to reap, through faction and interest, benefits which they might have despaired of from charity. Some impart instruction out of contention not sincerity; others of good will.' That it is imparted, is to us a matter of joy. Scotland, by means of its parochial schools, bas, for ages, been the most religious and virtuous of nations. England, and even Ireland, are now rising to the same elevation; and the patriotic wish of our venerable and afflicted Sovereign, that "he hoped to see the day when every poor child in his dominions should be able to read his Bible," is now on the eve of being realized. A new era dawns upon us. The stream of human science enriched with divine wisdom, as it flows through the land, takes every cottage in its way, and its track is adorned with order, industry, devotion, and happiness.

(To be concluded in our next Number.)

Art. VIII. On the Discouragements and Supports of the Christian Minister. A Discourse, delivered to the Rev. James Robertson, at his Ordination over the Independent Church, at Stretton, Warwickshire. By Robert Hall. 8vo. pp. 57. Button. 1812.

IN bestowing more than ordinary attention upon this discourse, we shall only yield to sentiments of admiration in which all its readers will partake, and pay a merited though humble tribute to its rare and distinguished excellence. If any other justification were necessary, it would be found in the well-earned celebrity of the author. Although a dissenter, and a divine, circumstances little calculated to attract the favour of the literary world, his name has already been enrolled, by the common consent of all parties, among the ornaments of the age. By the commanding superiority of his talents, prejudices the most hostile and inveterate have

been reduced to submission; and even the bigoted, the sceptical, and the licentious have done homage to the genius of a man, at whose principles they felt nothing but disgust. To a power of thought, that strikes at once, as if with the wand of an enchanter, to the bottom of a subject, and lets in a flood of light upon its recesses, he has united a soundness of judgement that never embraces the heterogeneous, never, omits the essential, nor is misled by a passion for originality. His imagination, ready to supply him, like an attendant spirit with treasures from every corner of the universe, is under the controul of an exquisite taste. A few short compositions, resulting from the exercise of such faculties on no ordinary acquisitions both in science and literature, and invested in a style that unites the ease and atticism of Addison, the splendour and animation of Taylor, and the energy and harmony of South, have been sufficient to rank him with the classics of the language. It is delightful to behold talents which command so general an admiration, devoted to the cause of religion and virtue. In exposing the deceits and atrocities of infidelity which once threatened to overwhelm our country, in rebuking its sins, unmasking its fashionable errors, exciting a patriotic zeal for its defence, and urging the instruction of its poor, he has discharged some of the most important obligations, of a literary nature, which are annexed to the possession of pre-eminent abilities. His performance of these duties, as they involve no peculiarities of religious opinion, has attracted general attention, and secured him a high degree not only of the admiration of the public, but a high degree of its gratitude and esteem. *

*Lest the justness of this praise should be suspected by any who may happen to be unacquainted with the compositions to which we allude, we venture to deviate so far from our usual practice, as to insert the conclusion of a Fast Sermon ("The sentiments proper to the present crisis") which was delivered in Oct. 1803, when apprehensions of invasion were very prevalent, and before the commencement of the Eclectic Review, If there is, in any language, a passage of the same length and equal eloquence, we can only profess, with all humility, we have never heard of it.

To form an adequate idea of the duties of this crisis, it will be neces sary to raise your minds to a level with your station, to extend your views to a distant futurity, and to consequences the most certain though most remote. By a series of criminal enterprises, by the successes of guilty ambition, the liberties of Europe have been gradually extinguished: the subjugation of Holland, Switzerland, and the free towns of Germany, has completed the catastrophe; and we are the only people in the Eastern

The literary services, however, in which Mr. Hall has hitherto engaged, though highly appropriate to the office of a Christian minister, and requiring talents rarely found in any station, were not strictly of a religious complexion. If this has occur

hemisphere, who are in possession of equal laws and a free constitution. Freedom, driven from every spot on the continent, has sought an asylum in a country which she always chose for her favourite abode: but she is pursued even here, and threatened with destruction. The inundation of lawless power, after covering the whole earth, threatens to follow us here; and we are most exactly, most critically placed, in the only aperture where it can be successfully repelled; in the Thermopyla of the universe. As far as the interests of freedom are concerned, the most important by far of sublunary interests, you, my countrymen, stand in the capacity of thn fœderal representatives of the human race: for with you it is to deter mine (under God) in what condition the latest posterity shall be born: their fortunes are entrusted to your care, and on your conduct at this moment, depends the colour and complexion of their destiny. If liberty, after being extinguished on the continent, is suffered to expire here, whence, is it ever to emerge, in the midst of that thick night that will invest it. It remains with you, then, to decide, whether that freedom at whose voice the kingdoms of Europe awoke from the sleep of ages, to run a career of virtuous emulation in every thing great and good; the freedom which dispelled the mists of superstition, and invited the nations to behold their God; whose magic touch kindled the rays of genius, the enthusiasm of poetry, and the flame of eloquence; the freedom which poured into our lap opulence and arts, and embellished life with innumerable institutions and improvements, till it became a theatre of wonders; it is for you to decide, whether this freedom shall yet survive, or be covered with a funeral pall, and wrapt in eternal gloom. It is not necessary to await your determination. In the solicitude you feel to approve yourselves worthy of such a trust, every thought of what is afflicting in warfare, every apprehension of danger must vanish, and you are impatient to mingle in the battle of the civilized world. Go then, ye defenders of your country, accompanied with every auspicious omen; advance with alacrity into the field, where God himself musters the hosts to war. Religion is too much interested in your success not to lend her aid. She will shed over this enterprise her selectest influence. While you are engaged in the field many will repair to the closet, many to the sanctuary: the faithful of every name, will employ that prayer which has power with God; the feeble hands which are unequal to any other weapon, will grasp the sword of the spirit; and from myriads of humble and contrite hearts, the voice of intercession, supplication and weeping, will mingle in its ascent to heaven with the shouts of battle, and the shock of arms.

66 While you have every thing to fear from the success of the enemy, you have every means of preventing that success; so that it is next to impossible for victory not to crown your exertions. The extent of your resources, under God, is equal to the justness of your cause. But should

el to any of his readers as a subject of regret, or censure, we must be allowed to observe, not only that the ordinary duties of a profession are less in want of extraordinary faculties, but that in performing services of a more general nature, he has contributed invaluable assistance to the specific object of the Christian ministry. The propagation of principles peculiar to Christianity, distinguishing it from all human systems, creating its transcendant value, and affording the only rational hope of happiness, he has indirectly advanced to a greater extent, perhaps, than if it had formed the precise purpose of his labours. Imputations of ignorance, vulgarity, and folly, derived from the uncouth peculiarities of the lower classes, and disingenuously attached to every class who manifest a regard for religious truth, constitute one of the most considerable trials of its intelligent and susceptible adherents; and the prejudices, which they naturally extend and perpetuate, are among the most serious obstacles to its admission into refined and cultivated minds. Nothing can be done by producing arguments on behalf of a system, which under an odium of this nature is condemned without a hearing;

Providence determine otherwise, should you fall in this struggle, you will have the satisfaction (the purest allotted to man) of having performed your part your names will be enrolled with the most illustrious dead; while posterity, to the end of time, as often as they revolve the events of this period (and they will incessantly revolve them) will turn to you a reverential eye, while they mourn over the freedom which is entombed in. your sepulchre. I cannot but imagine the virtuous heroes, legislators, and patriots of every age and country, are bending from their elevated seats, to witness this contest, as if they were incapable, till it be brought' to a favourable issue, of enjoying their eternal repose. Enjoy that repose illustrious immortals! your mantle fell when you ascended; and thousands,' inflamed with your spirit and impatient to tread in your steps, are ready to swear by him that sitteth upon the throne, and liveth for ever and ever, they will protect freedom in her last asylum, and never desert that cause which you sustained by your labours, and cemented with your blood. And thou sole ruler among the children of men, to whom the shields of the earth belong, gird on thy sword, thou Most Mighty; go forth with our hosts in the day of battle. Impart, in addition to their hereditary valour, that confidence of success which springs from thy presence; pour into their hearts the spirit of departed heroes, inspire them with thine own; and while led by thine hand, and fighting under thy banners, open thou their eyes to behold in every valley, and in every plain, what the prophet beheld, by the same illumination, chariots of fire and horses of fire.' Then shall the strong man be as low, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them."

and indeed, argument has probably less immediate weight than any thing else, in determining the opinions and condition of men. The advantage of citing such an authority, as the writer of this discourse, is incalculable. The reputation he has acquired, by his successes in a popular cause, sheds a lustre on the profession of principles, less favourably regarded by the public, but to which he is known to be cordially attached it gives a pledge that they are not incompatible with genius, philosophy, and learning and proves they are in no danger of wanting a champion, if assailed by any enemy worthy of

his arm.

Every testimony, however, to the power of that arm has been accompanied with a lamentation of its inactivity. While we defend the direction of its public services, their suspension appears to admit of no excuse. The fugitive nature of human life, the circumstances of the age, and the singular qualifications of the individual, imperiously call upon him, by a public defence and illustration of religious truth, to follow up his victory and complete his triumph over the pre. judices of the learned and polite. We, therefore, accept with extreme satisfaction, the first discourse he has committed to the press, on a subject strictly religious and cannot but regard it, like the shout of Achilles from the trenches, as announcing his return to the field, inflamed with new ardour, and secure of a more splendid success, in a cause peculiarly his own.

In a preface to this discourse, referring to the occasion on which it was originally preached, and recommending an academical institution, lately established among the dissenters, before which it was subsequently delivered, the author bespeaks indulgence for introducing common and familiar sentiments; observing that originality is the last quality we seek for in advice. So far from this apology being necessary, we ⚫ think there is hardly a remark or an admonition in the whole course of it, which is not, at least in the form and colouring, the result of his own observation and reflection. For this reason, as well as to justify our opinion of the author, and more effectually secure the public attention, we shall present the reader with a more extended view of it, than an ordinary case would demand.

After a few prefatory sentences, remarkable only for a peculiar case and simplicity, the preacher proceeds to mention the several sources of discouragement and consolation which belong to the office of the Christian ministry. Among those which regard the object of it, the preparation of human beings