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advent of the Saviour. They are denominated :

I. Antediluvian ages, extending from the creation to the deluge, A.M. 1656, a period of 1,656 years.

II. Postdiluvian ages, extending from the deluge to the coming of Christ, A. M. 4004, a period of 2,348 years.

III. Post-advent ages, extending from the advent to the fall of Rome, A.D. 476, a period of 476 years.

The antediluvian ages are not subdivided into periods.

The postdiluvian are divisible into eight periods:

1. From the deluge, B.C. 2348, to the call of Abraham, B.C. 1921, a period of 427 years.

2. From 1921 to the exodus of the Israelites, B.C. 1491, 430 years.

3. From 1491 to the building of the Temple, B.C. 1004, 487 years.

4. From 1004 to the founding of Rome, B.C. 752, 252 years.

5. From 752 to the battle of Marathon, B.C. 490, 262 years.

6. From 490 to the reign of Alexander, B.C. 336, 154 years.

7. From 336 to the conquest of Carthage and Greece, B.C. 146, 190 years.

8. From 146 to the birth of Christ, a period of 146 years.

The post-advent ages are divided into two periods:

1. From the advent to the reign of Constantine, A.D. 306, 306 years.

2. From 306 to the fall of Rome, A.D. 476, 170 years.

Mediaval chronology is divided into five periods:

1. From A.D. 476 to the Hegira, or flight of Mahomet, A.D. 622, 146 years.

2. From 622 to the crowning of Charlemagne, A.D. 800, 178 years.

3. From 800 to the landing of William the Conqueror, 1066, 266 years.

4. From 1066 to the overthrow of the Saracens, 1258, 192 years.

5. From 1258 to the discovery of America, 1492, 234 years.

Modern chronology is divided into five periods:

1. From 1492 to the abdication of Charles V., A.D. 1556, 64 years.

2. From 1556 to the restoration of Charles II., 1660, 104 years.

3. From 1660 to the Declaration of Independence, 1776, 116 years.

4. From 1776 to the fall of Buonaparte, 1815, 39 years.

5. From the fall of Buonaparte, 1815, to the present time.

JOHN KNOX.-HIS DEATH. ON Monday, the 24th day of November, he got up in the morning, and partially dressed himself; but feeling weak, he lay down again. They asked him if he was in pain. "It is no painful pain," he answered, "but such a one as, I trust, shall put an end to the battle."

His wife sat by him, with a Bible open on her knees. He desired her to read the fifteenth of First Corinthians. He thought he was dying as she finished it. "Is not that a beautiful chapter?" he said; and then added, "Now, for the last time, I commend my spirit, soul, and body, into thy hands, O Lord!" But the crisis passed off for the moment. Towards evening he lay still for several hours, and at ten o'clock they went to their ordinary prayer, which was the longer because they thought he was sleeping." When it was over, the physician asked him if he had heard anything. "Aye," he said; "I wad to God that ye and all men heard as I have heard, and I praise God for that heavenly sound."

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"Suddenly thereafter he gave a long sigh and sob, and cried out,Now it is come!' Then Richard Bannatyne, sitting down before him, said, 'Now, sir, the time that ye have long called for, to wit, an end of your battle, is come; and seeing all natural power now fails, remember the comfortable promise which ofttime ye have shown to us of our Saviour Christ; and that we may understand and know that ye hear us, make us some sign;' and so he lifted up his hand, and incontinuent thereafter rendered up his spirit, and sleepit away without pain."

In such sacred stillness the strong spirit which had so long battled with the storm passed away to God. What he had been to those who were gathered about his deathbed, they did not require to be taught by losing him. What he had been to his country, "albeit," in his own words, "that unthankful age would not know," the after ages have experienced, if they have not confessed. His work is not to be measured by the surface changes of ecclesiastical establishments, or the substitution for the idolatry of the mass of a more subtle idolatry of formulæ. Religion with him was a thing not of forms and words, but of obedience and righteous life; and his one prayer was, that God would grant to him and all mankind "the whole and perfect hatred of sin." His power was rather over the innermost heart of his country; and we should look for the innermost traces of it among the keystones of national greatness. Little as Elizabeth knew it, that one man was among the pillars on which her throne

was held standing in the hour of its danger, when the tempest of rebellion and invasion which had gathered over her passed away without breaking. We complain of the hard destructiveness of these old reformers, and contrast complacently our modern "progressive improvement" with their intolerant iconoclasm; and we are like the agriculturists of a long-settled country, who should feed their vanity by measuring the crops which they can raise against those raised by their ancestors, forgetting that it was these last who rooted the forests off the ground, and laid the soil open to the seed.

The real work of the world is done by

Literary

How Wars are got up in India. The Origin of the Burmese War. By R. COBDEN, Esq., M.P. Fourth Edition. WE wish that this small pamphlet might run through as many editions as "Uncle Tom's Cabin" has done. It might do for the discountenancing of war, what we desiderate for slavery from the incomparable pen of the most distinguished woman on either side of the Atlantic. Mr. Cobden had occasion to read attentively the Parliamentary Papers relating to hostilities with Burmah. Of the leading facts he has made the abstract, which he now lays before the British public. The whole narrative is founded exclusively on Parlia mentary Papers, and as the case thus set forth is all founded on the ex-parte statement of British officials; and as a great many of the letters are mutilated, we must not be surprised that Mr. Cobden makes the following severe remark : -- “Remembering, that in the Affghan papers it is now known that the character of at least one of the Cabool chiefs was sacrificed by a most dishonest garbling of his language, I confess I am not without suspicions that a similar course may have been pursued in the present instance. I will only add, that bad as our case now appears, what would it be if we could have access to the Burmese Blue Books,' stating their version of the business?"

men of the Knox and Cromwell stamp. It is they who, when the old forms are worn away and will serve no longer, fuse again the rusted metal of humanity, and mould it afresh; and, by-and-by, when they are passed away, and the metal is now cold, and can be approached without danger to limb or skin, appear the enlightened liberals with file and sand-paper, and scour off the outer roughness of the casting, and say, "See what a beautiful statue we have made! Such a thing it was when we found it, and now its surface is like a mirror; we can see our own faces in every part of it." Westminster Review.

Notices.

£70. These two captains appealed to our Indian Government for redress, claiming for damages £1,920-a claim which the Government cut down to £920. It was in enforcing the payment of this sum that the Burmese war arose.

The Governor-General, Lord Dalhousie, despatched Commodore Lambert, with two ships of war, the Fox and the Serpent, with orders "to demand full reparation for the injuries and oppressions to which the above-named British subjects had been exposed." A minute by the Governor-General states that,

"For many years past complaints, from time to time, had been made of acts of oppression, and of violation of treaty, by the Burmese governors. None, however, had been brought forward of sufficient extent or significancy to call for the formal notice of this Government.”

Up to this time it is plain the Burmese authorities were quite ignorant that the British Government had any complaint against them. This it is material to notice.

Before leaving Calcutta, Commodore Lambert was instructed by Lord Dalhousie, "though there seems no reason to doubt the accuracy of the depositions, or the veracity of the deponents," to get, "in the first instance, satisfied on this head," and then to demand of the Governor of Rangoon "just pecuniary compensation in favour of the injured parties." Should that functionary refuse redress, he is to forward to the King of Burmah a letter with which he is furnished from the Governor-General, with an instruction that an early reply would be expected; undue delay in forwarding the answer being threatened to be visited by such measures as the GovernorGeneral shall think necessary. During the interval that must elapse before the King

In June, 1851, Captain Sheppard, of the British barque Monarch, was taken before the police of Rangoon, charged with having thrown overboard the pilot, a British subject. For this, and for disowning a claim on him of 500 rupees by the brother of the deceased, the captain was mulcted in fines and fees £101. In the following August, Captain Lewis, of the Champion, on charges of murder and detention of seamen's wages, was by the samic Court compelled to forfeit

of Ava's reply could be obtained, the commodore was to proceed to the Persian Gulf, whither he had previous orders to go. The instructions of Lord Dalhousie to Lambert concluded in these express words:

"It is to be distinctly understood that no act of hostility is to be committed at present, though the reply of the Governor should be unfavourable, nor until definite instructions regarding such hostilities shall be given by the Government of India."

On the Commodore's arrival at Rangoon, other complaints were made to him in writing on the 28th November; while he, on the 27th, before a written declaration was in his hands, wrote to the Rangoon Governor, informing him not only that he had come to demand redress for Captains Sheppard and Lewis, but adding:

"Since my arrival, so many more complaints have been made by persons residing at Rangoon, who have a right to claim British protection, that I have deemed it my duty to withhold my original demand until I have again made known their complaints to his Lordship (Dalhousie)."

The next step in the affair is almost incredible:

"On the very next day the Commodore commenced his diplomatic career, without credentials or authority of any kind, by setting down and writing a letter to the prime minister of the King of Ava, inclosing the letter which had been entrusted to him for use, in case the Governor had refused compliance with his demand, and adding, that owing to the accounts he had heard of the additional wrongs inflicted upon British subjects by the Governor, he passed him by, and appealed for his punishment directly to the Court of Ava.'

These letters were transmitted through the Governor of Rangoon, to whom Commodore Lambert addressed a note to the effect that he should hold the Governor responsible for an answer being transmitted from the Court of Ava within five weeks. Captains Latter and Tarlton were deputed to deliver this letter to the Governor. The Commodore then sent to the Indian Government a laconic account of his proceedings, Captain Latter taking the letter to Calcutta to offer any necessary explanation that might be required for Lambert's departure from the instructions he had received. The Secretary of the Indian Government, Mr. Halleday, replies to Commodore Lambert. That reply has been mutilated at the Board of Control, and consequently only an extract of the letter appears in the Parliamentary Papers:

"The statement contained," says the extract, "in the memorial. . must be rereived with caution. Not having been

made the subjects of complaint at the time, these additional cases cannot now be made the groundwork of an increased demand for compensation."

Instead of censuring the Commodore for departing from his instructions, in a spirit of inconsistency with the foregoing extract, Mr. Halleday continues:

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Having regard to the additional list which was delivered to you of unwarrantable and oppressive acts committed upon British subjects by order of the Governor of Rangoon... his Lordship is of opinion that you exercised a sound discretion in cutting short all discussion with the local Governor, and in transmitting at once to the King of Ava the letter addressed to his Majesty by the Government of India."

Well may Mr. Cobden say that logic of this kind resembles that addressed in the fable by the wolf to the lamb. "Heaven defend me," he justly exclaims, "from ever finding myself in the position of the Governor of Rangoon, with no other appeal but to round shot and shell against the conclusions of such logicians as the Governor-General of India and Commodore Lambert!"

Within the stipulated five weeks the reply from the Court of Ava is received, and duly notified to the Indian Government by the Commodore, who thus writes:

"The Burmese Government have dismissed the Governor of Rangoon, and pro mised to settle the demands made on them by the Government of India. I am of opinion that the King is sincere, and that his Government will fully act up to what he has promised."

The new Governor of Rangoon arrives, and manifests very friendly feelings towards the English Commodore. Mr. Edwards, clerk to Captain Latter, approaching the Governor's house with a letter, received a slight, unintentional insult from one of the Governor's suite, who, however, on the orders of the Governor, instantly received severe punishment for the act. Mr. Edwards had hastened to the Governor to inform him that Captains Fishbourne and Latter were on their way for an audience with him. Mr. Cobden shall speak himself:

"Before we accompany the deputation to the Governor's house, let it be understood that no previous arrangement had been come to for its reception. To all who are acquainted with the customs of the East, and the childlike importance which Oriental nations, and especially the Burmese, attach to the ceremonial of visits, it must be evident that the course about to be pursued was pretty certain to end unsatisfactorily. The Governor had expressed his readiness to receive a commu

nication, not a deputation, and had entreated the clerk to bring it himself. Mr. Edwards could run in and out of his house freely, as bearer of a message or letter, because for a person of his inferior rank no formal reception was necessary; but how the Governor of all the Lower Provinces from Prome to the sea, including Rangoon,' was to receive a body of officers of inferior rank, without either offending them or for ever degrading himself in the eyes of his own people, was a question of etiquette not to be settled in a day. An Englishman in such a dilemma would order his servant to tell an unbidden caller he was 'not at home.' In the East, if the unwelcome visitor present himself in the middle of the day, the answer is 'My master's asleep.""

Now occurs a scene disgraceful to British manliness, and worthy only of the offended dignity of a schoolboy of the lowest form. We have not room to give it. The "fantastic tricks" of British Jacks-in-office will be found in pp. 19, 20. The burden of the complaint against the Governor, and that on which these petty and pettish officers ring a succession of changes is, that they were "kept waiting a full quarter of an hour in the sun!" On this, and within six hours after severe punishment had been inflicted by order of the Governor upon a native for an unintentional insult to a mere clerk, Lambert, irritable as a wasp, and having no more sense than an infant, assuming the authority of the Governor-General of India, declares the rivers of Rangoon and its district in a state of blockade; and this in the teeth of his instructions, that should the demand for redress be refused no act of hostility was to be committed, "until definite instructions regarding such hostilities shall be given by the Government of India!" Lambert, who had better have been breaking stones on the high-road at ninepence a day, immediately seized the ship of the King of Ava, lying in the river. This was done before Dalhousie had received the King's letter,-which, when received, elicited from the Indian Government a highly satisfactory testimony to its pacific and conciliatory character.

"And here," writes Mr. Cobden, "I will only mention, for future comment, the fact, the almost incredible fact, that there does not appear in the whole of the papers presented to Parliament one word or syllable of remonstrance or remark on the part of the Governor-General, in vindication of his own authority,-no, not even after Commodore Lambert, as if in very derision and mockery, had in his notification declared the coast in a state of blockade, in virtue of authority from the Governor-General of British India!""

Hence arose the war. The wolfish Lam

bert and his really petty-officers outraged the Burmese notions of decorum, and then, because this was felt by the Governor of Rangoon, this representative of British majesty and dignity proceeded to hostilities! Well does Mr. Cobden add:

"Surely, Englishmen, who have the most formal court in Christendom, ought not to be the least tolerant of Asiatic ceremonies. What should we think of an American deputation, who required us to dispense with our Lord-Chamberlains, Gold-sticks, and Beef-eaters, and receive them after the simple fashion of the White House at Washington? Might we not probably doubt if they were sober?"

From this time the conduct of the British officers was an unmitigated disgrace to their country; and the subsequent conduct of Lord Dalhousie in shielding Lambert, will serve to make the working men of Britain, who have to pay the additional taxes imposed to discharge the expense of this unjust war, believe that it is time that some one else than aristocratic blockheads shall be sent out as Governors-General. Mr. Cobden, after supposing that this had occurred in a part of the United States, inquires,

"What would have been the response to this news when it reached England? Can any one doubt that one unanimous cry would have been raised for the disgrace and punishment of Commodore Lambert? And why is a different standard of justice applied in the case of Burmah? Ask your own conscience, reader, if you be an Englishman, whether any better answer can be given than that America is powerful and Burmah is weak?"

Aye, and what would America have done in similar circumstances?

The conduct of Heathen Burmese contrasts most painfully with that of British Christians in this matter. The former for temper, integrity, moderation, and a conciliatory spirit, appear for ahead of the men who have hurried us into an iniquitous and murderous war. Our limits will not allow us to proceed further. But we earnestly entreat our readers to obtain this cheap and valuable pamphlet; and when they have perused it, to ask themselves, whether there is not occasion given for the cutting sarcasm of General Cass of the United States in reference to this war: "Well does it become such a people to preach homilies to other nations upon disinterestedness and moderation!"

The Pilgrim's Progress from this World to
that which is to Come. By JOHN BUNYAN.
A new Edition. With a Memoir, by J. M.
HARE. London: Ingram, Cooke, and Co.
EVER fresh, ever delightful, and ever edify-

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ing, the immortal work of the tinker of Bedford presents fresh features of interest every time we take it into our hands. We read it again and again, with that wonder and delight known only to childhood, before we had seen the frosts of half a dozen winters; and we read it now with wonder and delight not less in degree, though differing in kind. 'Although written," says Mr. Hare, in the Life prefixed to this edition, "by a prisoner for conscience' sake, it is universally acceptable, and is conceived in so catholic a spirit, that the keenest eye cannot detect in its contents to which section of the church the author belonged. As natural as Shakspere, as familiar as Robinson Crusoe, and as idiomatic as the authorized Version, the spring and fountain of the glorious dreamer's inspiration, it has been read with avidity wherever the English language is spoken, and has been translated into more than thirty languages besides,—an honour paid to no other book, the book of God alone excepted."

The edition before us has been carefully compared with the text of those published under Bunyan's own eye, is handsomely printed on good paper, and is illustrated with numerous wood engravings, the excellence of which, both in design and execution, fully justifies the celebrity attained by the publishers for the superiority of their works in this respect. The Life, by Mr. Hare, is brief, but full of interest, and written in a spirit of deep sympathy with his subject. We would cordially recommend this edition to a familiar place amongst the favourite books of every one of our readers.

Australia and its Settlements.

Australia; its Scenery, Natural History, and Resources.

The Life of Alexander the Great. The Fountain of Living Waters; Illustrated by Facts in the Life of a Layman.

LONDON Religious Tract Society. THE three first of these are Numbers of the excellent Monthly Series, issued by the Tract Society. The issue of these two Numbers on Australia,—intended, we presume, to form one volume-is peculiarly timely. It is impossible to estimate too highly the importance of works containing reliable information on a subject of such wide-spread interest, at a price within the reach of all classes of the community. It is almost needless to add, that we recommend the little works before us as containing brief, pithy, and, for most purposes, all-sufficient information on the natural characteristics and present condition of Australia.

"The Life of Alexander the Great" is concise and interesting, and well suited for family reading.

"The Fountain of Living Waters" is a little work designed to attract the young and thoughtless, and lead them to stop and consider the importance of religion; and is rendered interesting by lifelike extracts from the author's own experience.

The Martyrs, Heroes, and Bards of the Scottish Covenant. By GEORGE GILFILLAN. London: Cockshaw.

THIS is a second edition, and the fourth thousand. We cordially recommended the first edition to the favourable notice of our readers, and not less sincerely do we hope that others will avail themselves of this issue. It is an improvement upon its predecessor, not only as the whole volume has been subjected to a careful revision, but also by the judicious omission of the introductory chapter in the former edition, on the spirit in which history should be written. The time is not far distant when the claims of ecclesiastical state establishments must be tested by truth and Scripture. Works of this class admirably pave the way for church reform.

The Juvenile Year-book: an Interesting and Instructive Miscellany for the Young. My Sunday-school Class. Twelve Lessons, designed to assist Junior Teachers in the communication of Religious Instruction to the Young. By the Rev. JOHN F. SERJEANT, Curate of Sheffield, and late Diocesan Inspector of Schools. Second Edition. London: Sunday-school Union. THE first of these works appears to be designed, notwithstanding its early appearance, as a Christmas or New Year's present for the young, and is a capital work for such a purpose. It is full of varied and interesting matter, suited to juvenile capacities, and is embellished by numerous pleasing wood engravings.

"My Sunday-school Class" is a work already favourably known amongst Sundayschool teachers, and we trust that this second edition will find its way into the house of every young teacher who does not already possess it.

The Principles of Church Government, and their Application to Wesleyan Methodism. With Appendices. By GEORGE STEWARD. London: Hamilton, Adams, and Co. WE can here simply announce the issue of this work, which constitutes a handsome octavo volume, of nearly four hundred pages. So far as we can at present judge, it appears characterised by the ability expected from its author. We hope to devote more attention to it in our next Number.

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