lute religion" is latent in them all! What differences might they not consider minor who think Hindooism and Mahometanism tolerable! And what a delightful exhibition of charity would it be to find Mr. D-declaring that, as Christians all agreed in subscribing to the Bible Society, though they were not quite unanimous in the interpretation of the Bible, so he was willing to support the great "Parent Deism-Propagation Society," and cheerfully waive his opinions on the trivial points of a future life, and the immortality of the soul, in which he did not coincide with his "brethren"! Mr. T—————, humbly hoping that he should never allow his heart to be divided from his co-religionists by such a dubious thing as the doctrine of man's responsibility, of which he had strong doubts! Mr. W nobly giving to the winds his peculiar sentiments on the subject of a special Providence; and Mr. P—————, in a similar strain, saying that, though he thinks all men will be saved at last, yet, conscious of the noble projects of his benevolent friends for the amelioration of the human race, he will cheerfully contribute his annual guinea as a homage to the spirit of Deistical philanthropy! "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!"

Nay, I am by no means sure, if you cordially set to work on such a magnanimous project, carefully and honestly excluding the Bible, that you might not easily get a portion of your funds from Christians themselves. They are so provokingly convinced of their power, and of your impotence, that I verily believe they would absolutely rejoice in what they would regard as a valuable negative experiment, and would be quite willing to give you the money, if you will but find the system and the men! I am myself so far a sharer in their confidence, or impudence, whichever you may please to consider it, that if you will but make the experiment (promising to steer clear of all that is characteristic of Christianity, and confining yourselves to such a system as that of Lord Herbert), I will, if you can but get the men, promise you my annual guinea for at least ten years to come.

Now if, while thus partly waging the war at your enemies' cost, you cannot find men to undertake a nice, snug, little experi

ment of this kind, — when — when, my dear friend, may we expect you to regenerate the world?

Let me remind you that there are still many islands in the Pacific quite at the service of the "Deism-Propagation Society." Or what say you to the African tribes? Plenty of them still living in a complete state of Troglodytish simplicity; as St. Clair says, "not many notions to eradicate ;" all in a fair condition to receive the new doctrines! Only think of the triumph of having to say that the group of the "Taboo" islands, recently inhabited by a set of idolatrous cannibals, or that the tribe of "Quashee Caffres," in a similar condition, had been converted to a pure Deism, their language analysed and reduced to alphabetical notation, a grammar and dictionary constructed, and the great Herbert's writings translated, by the indefatigable and self-denying labours of the agents of the "Herbert Society!" Who knows what further efforts this might lead to, if you did not become weary in well-doing? At all events, you are quite welcome to my subscription.

Finally, if the Deism you have embraced is ever to be worth anything, it must cease to talk so much; it must cease to be contented with merely writing books; it must act. You will tell me perhaps that Christians, too, talk more than they act; God knows the taunt is well deserved. Still Christianity, the inferior system, does something at all events; surely the higher and the better ought to do more. If you tell me, that you cannot agree sufficiently or that those who do agree are too few, and will ever be too few to undertake the work or that you are unwilling to do anything, or that men will not listen to you

or

;

will not be converted, - it is tantamount to a confession either that your system is not, practically, the system for this world that it is not the truth, or that it is not truth worth a sacrifice or all these together. In any case, it condemns you to the continued insignificance in which you have as yet lingered on in the world. Confute these surmises, my dear friend; and that you may do so, once more I say "Devise liberal things."

Such are a few of the hints which I would venture to give you

– not for the resuscitation of Deism (for it has never been fairly awake yet), but just to give it a chance of becoming so. To these hints I really think you would do well to take heed, as to a "light shining in a dark" - a very dark-"place."

You see I have kept my word as to not "boring" you with the old tale of the "Evidences of Christianity." So far from that, I have shown you how to demolish Christianity altogether. All, I am persuaded, that you have to do, is to publish a book which shall plainly transcend the Bible; organise a system of worship which shall command the sympathies and secure the co-operation of men, and successfully compete with Christianity in its attacks on Paganism.

You have heard, as every one else, of Dr. Hassall's discoveries with his great microscope. Who will not wish that he may go on and prosper, in thus unearthing human iniquity from its subtle retreats in infinitesimal atoms, where it thought to lie perdu as securely as in its own invisible thought? He has certainly shown that the solar microscope takes no heed to the maxim, “De non apparentibus et non existentibus eadem est ratio.” "There is nothing hidden," by adroit manipulation and cunning intermixture, that "shall not be made known," and the lying labels and quackish advertisements shall "be put to silence" by this incorruptible witness.

I am told that several " Houses" have threatened this "peeping Tom" with a prosecution, for disintegrating their abominations,

BB

and revealing in precise proportions the per-centage of villany in their adulteration. The only answer, it is said, which he condescends to make is, an invitation to come and have a look, gratis, at their own handiwork through his microscope! It is also said that none of them will accept his challenge! Wisely, no doubt, for they have the advantage even of Dr. Hassall; they know beforehand; they have anticipated all that he can tell them! Mrs. Macleuchar (in dialogue with the wrathful "Antiquary") put on her spectacles to discover what she well knew was not to be found, and exclaimed in well-feigned astonishment, "Saw onie body the like o' that?" These ingenious artists need no solar microscope to tell them what is to be found, though we may well indulge in the old lady's exclamation when we have found it, "Saw onie body the like o' that?"

This microscope shows the intimate structure and organisation of the most carefully manipulated composites. Though the component particles may have been subdivided into the most attenuated forms, or equably strewed through the most deceptive medium, the structure of the foreign intruder, whether laminated, fibrous, or what not, stands unmasked among the heterogeneous particles with which it claims relationship, and confesses its roguery under the glare of this stupendous eye. The minutest particle of sand, by the side of the minutest particle of sugar, is as plainly distinguished as if each were as big as a mountain; the atom proclaims itself silex, and is seen to be as unlike the speck of saccharine crystal it would fain be thought, as a square is unlike a circle. Success to the microscope, say I, and to the exorcist who wields it; I know not when I have heard of a scientific application which has so much amused me.

It has come in good time too; for to such an extent had fraud gone that there seemed some chance of our soon finding the last trace of pepper, coffee, and sugar disappearing from the simulated compounds called by these lying names; at least, these articles would soon have been administered only in homœopathic doses.

At one of Dr. Hassall's discoveries, by the way (of which I am reminded by those last words), you must have been much

amused. He declares that he does not find the genuine "Homœopathic Cocoa" differing at all from the other adulterated specimens of the same article, except by its having less cocoa in it! But surely the defence is easy; its venders would say that they were acting in accordance with the maxims of Hahnemann, and giving their patient customers homeopathic doses !

Even drugs, it seems, are not safe from these odious adulterators, and the physician hardly knows whether he may not be giving poison, otherwise than secundum artem. Must we not allow then that here, at least, the homoeopathist has the best of it? for who would think it worth while to adulterate the millionth of a grain of Belladonna? Yet I know not let not the homœopathist be too sure; for human cupidity, I fear, would adulterate even the decillionth of a grain, if the decillionth of a farthing per cent. is to be got by it. "Well," it may be said, "any how in such a case it cannot much matter;" but that is mere allopathic ignorance. The homoeopathist would doubtless be in agony to think that the trecillionth of his grain of aconite might possibly be defrauded of a decillionth of that fraction. At all events, none will deny that the patient had a right to his fair and full 66 trecillionth,”—if he could but be ever sure that he had got it!

There is one improvement still required on Dr. Hassall's instrument. One would like to see a "moral solar microscope," that should lay bare, in similar manner, all the "foreign ingredients" -the adulterate mixtures - which enter into the composition of spurious virtue. How amusing the Report of "Analyses" into these would read! How should we find, on examination, a hundred pound donation to Hospital, by Alderman prompted by only two per cent. of charity combined with ninetyeight per cent. of vanity and ostentation: a fine specimen, apparently, of devotion, turning out, on being closely inspected, little else than chips of rites and ceremonies, and the sawdust of formality, with scarcely one per cent. of genuine devotion in it : a parcel of zeal of the true vermilion dye to all appearance plainly consisting, when subjected to a high power, of the vulgar