doubtedly written by the same person who transcribed the first part of the volume. Hence it is probable, continues the Editor, that the latter part of the MS. is a copy transcribed by Philips, and finally revised. and corrected by Mary and Deborah Milton from the dictation of their father, as many of the alterations bear a strong resemblance to the reputed hand writing of Deborah, the daughter of Milton, preserved in the library of Trinity College, Cambridge.

This work embraces all the principal points of Christian faith and duty. It is pregnant with the biblical learning of Milton, but it has one peculiarity seldom to be found in his other prose works, namely, an exemption from any appearance of polemical indignation or asperity. Nowhere has the great author shewn himself more self-possessed and unruffled by the recollections of the world. He seems absorbed in the Scriptures, and in religious logic; and his style, as far as we can judge from the translation, is unusually unambitious and unlaboured. At the same time, if the splendid eloquence which me might expect from Milton be missing, we have his accustomed and pious deference to Scripture authority, blended with his wonted acuteness of controversial powers, and with the strength of his Scripture-clad memory. Even on the grounds of argument where we like him least, we recognize his characteristic independence; for, devoted as he was to Scripture authority, no man was so hardy in interpreting the Scriptures for himself.

The most striking heresies of Milton with regard to the established

*Book I.-Of the Knowledge of God.-Of the Christian Doctrine, and the number of its Divisions. Of God. Of the Divine Decrees. Of Predestination. Of the Son of God. Of the Holy Spirit. Of the Creation. Of the Providence of God, or of his General Government of the Universe. Of the Special Government of Angels. Of the Special Government of Man before the Fall; including the institutions of the Sabbath and of Marriage. Of the Fall of our first Parents, and of Sin. Of the Punishment of Sin. Of the Death of the Body. Of Man's Restoratiou, and of Christ as Redeemer. Of the Functions of the Mediator, and of his threefold Office. Of the Ministry of Redemption. Of Man's Renovation, including his Calling. Of Regeneration. Of Repentance. Of Saving Faith. Of being planted in Christ, and its effects. Of Justification. Of Adoption. Of Union and Fellowship with Christ and his Members; wherein is considered the Mystical or Invisible Church. Of imperfect Glorification; wherein are considered the Doctrines of Assurance and Final Perseverance. Of the Manifestation of the Covenant of Grace, including the Law of God. Of the Gospel, and of Christian Liberty. Of the External Sealing of the Covenant of Grace. Of the Visible Church. Of the Holy Scriptures. Of particular Churches. Of Church Discipline. Of perfect Glorification; including the Second Advent of Christ, the Resurrection of the Dead, and the General Conflagration.

Book II. Of the Service of God.-Of Good Works. Of the Proximate Causes of Good Works. Of the Virtues belonging to the Service of God. Of External Service. Of Oaths and the Lot. Of Zeal. Of the Time for Divine Worship; wherein are considered the Sabbath, Lord's Day, and Festivals. Of our Duties towards Man, and the general Virtues belonging thereto. Of the first Class of Special Virtues connected with the Duty of Man towards himself. Of the second Class of Virtues connected with the Duty of Man towards himself. Of the Duties of Man towards his Neighbour, and the Virtues comprehended under those Duties. Of the Special Virtues or Duties which regard our Neighbour. Of the second Class of Special Duties towards our Neighbour. The second Class of Special Duties towards our Neighbour continued. Of the Reciprocal Duties of Man towards his Neighbour; and specially of Private Duties. Of the remaining Class of Private Duties. Of Public Duties towards our Neighbour.

faith are concerning the doctrine of the Trinity--Church discipline— the Sabbath, and Marriage.

In vain had the good Bishop Newton recommended Milton as in general very orthodox. Calton affirmed, with more penetration, that the poet had said nothing about the Messias in Paradise Lost which an Arian might not have said; and accordingly Milton denies in the present work, the generation of Christ from all eternity. On this mysterious point he discusses all the texts of Scripture that have ever been adduced in favour of Trinitarianism, concluding with that respecting the three witnesses, which he decidedly rejects as suppositious. the subject of the Holy Spirit, he thus concludes:

"Lest however we should be altogether ignorant who or what the Holy Spirit is, although Scripture nowhere teaches us in express terms, it may be collected from the passages quoted above, that the holy spirit, inasmuch as he is a minister of God, and therefore a creature, was created or produced of the substance of God, not by a natural necessity, but by the free will of the agent, probably before the foundations of the world were laid, but later than the Son, and far inferior to him. It will be objected, that thus the holy Spirit is not sufficiently distinguished from the Son. I reply, that the Scriptural expressions themselves, to come forth, to go out from the Father, to proceed from the Father which mean the same in the Greek, do not distinguish the Son from the Holy Spirit, inasmuch as these terms are used indiscriminately with reference to both persons, and signify their mission, not their nature There is however sufficient reason for placing the name as well as the nature of the Son above that of the Holy Spirit in the discussion of topics relative to the Deity; inasmuch as the brightness of the glory of God, and the express image of his person, are said to have been impressed on the one, and not on the other."

On the subject of the Sabbath, Milton unhesitatingly contends that the Jewish law of the Sabbath having been repealed, no particular day of worship has been appointed by divine commandment in its place. "It remains to be seen," he says, " on what they ground their opinion, who maintain that the first day of the week is to be observed as set apart for public worship by divine institution, in the nature of a new Sabbath. Whether the festival of the Lord's day (an expression which occurs only once in Scripture, Rev. i. 10) was weekly or annual, cannot be pronounced with certainty, inasmuch as there is not (as in the case of the Lord's supper) any account of its institution, or command for its celebration to be found in Scripture. If it was the day of his resurrection, why, we may ask, should this be considered as the Lord's day in any higher sense than that of his birth, or death, or ascension? why should it be held in higher consideration than the day of the descent of the Holy Spirit? and why should the celebration of the one recur weekly, whereas the commemoration of the others is not necessarily even annual, but remains at the discretion of each believer."

In noticing the text at Acts xx. 7. where it is related that the Disciples dwelling at Troas came together to break bread on the first day of the week: who, he says, shall determine with certainty whether this was a periodical meeting, or only held occasionally, and of their own accord ?

"Hence we arrive at the following conclusions: first, that under the gospel no one day is appointed for divine worship in preference to another, except such as the church may set apart of its own authority for the voluntary

assembling of its members, wherein, relinquishing all worldy affairs, we may dedicate ourselves wholly to religious services, so far as is consistent with the duties of charity; and secondly, that this may conveniently take place once every seven days, and particularly on the first day of the week; provided always that it be observed in compliance with the authority of the church, and not in obedience to the edicts of the magistrate; and likewise that a snare be not laid for the conscience by the allegation of a divine commandment, borrowed from the decalogue; an error against which Paul diligently cautions us, Col. ii. 16. Let no man therefore judge you, &e. For if we under the gospel are to regulate the time of our public worship by the prescriptions of the decalogue, it will surely be far safer to observe the seventh day, according to the express commandment of God, than on the authority of mere human conjecture to adopt the first. I perceive also that several of the best divines, as Bucer, Čalvin, Peter Martyr, Musculus, Ursinus, Gomarus, and others, concur in the opinion above expressed.”

No one acquainted with his prose works, is ignorant of Milton's notions respecting divorce.* It has been allowed, that in his tracts on that subject he makes out a strong case, and fights with arguments which are not easily to be repelled. The whole context of the Holy Scriptures, the laws of the first Christian Emperors, the opinions of some of the most eminent early reformers, and a projected statute of Edward VI. are adduced by him for the purpose of demonstrating, that by the laws of God, and by the inferences drawn from them by the most virtuous and enlightened men, the power of divorce ought not to be rigidly restricted to those causes which render the nuptial state unfruitful, or which taint it with a spurious offspring. It is singular that Napoleon, who had never heard of Milton's controversy, viewed the matter in the same light, and uttered expressions and arguments which remind us of those of Milton. At the hazard of giving offence by supporting an unpopular opinion, we hesitate not to say that we consider Milton's reasoning on the subject of divorce to be irrefragable; and the present laws respecting the indissolubility of marriage to be founded neither in Scripture nor common sense, but to be hostile both to these and to human happiness. But we say this as no prelude of our assent to the doctrine which the reader will find, with some surprise, advanced by Milton in the present work, on the subject of Polygamy. On the contrary, we regret that the champion of what we consider the most rational doctrine respecting divorce, should have bequeathed the opinions which are found in the chapter on marriage in the present work

"It appears to me sufficiently established by the above arguments that polygamy is allowed by the law of God; lest however any doubt should remain, I will subjoin abundant examples of men whose holiness renders them fit patterns for imitation, and who are among the lights of our faith. Foremost I place Abraham the father of all the faithful, and of the holy seed, Gen. xvi. 1, &c. Jacob, chap. xxx. and if I mistake not, Moses, Numb. xii. 1. for he had married (a Cushite, marginal translation, or) an Ethiopean woman. It is not likely that the wife of Moses, who had been so often spoken of before by her proper name of Zipporah, should now be called by the new title of a Cushite; or that the anger of Aaron and Miriam should at this time be suddenly kindled, because Moses forty years before had married Zipporah ; nor

Namely, the tracts entitled, The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce; The Judgment of Martin Bucer, concerning Divorce; and the tracts called Tetrachordon and Colasterion.

would they have acted thus scornfully towards one whom the whole house of Israel had gone out to meet on her arrival with her father Jethro. If then he married the Cushite during the lifetime of Zipporah, his conduct in this particular received the express approbation of God himself, who moreover punished with severity the unnatural opposition of Aaron and his sister. Next I place Gideon, that signal example of faith and piety, Judg. viii. 30, 31. and Elkanah, a rigid Levite, the father of Samuel; who was so far from believing himself less acceptable to God on account of his double marriage, that he took with him his two wives every year to the sacrifices and annual worship, into the immediate presence of God; nor was he therefore reproved, but went home blessed with Samuel, a child of excellent promise, 1 Sam. ii. 10. Passing over several other examples, though illustrious, such as Caleb, 1 Chron. ii 46, 48. vii. 1. 4. the sons of Issachar, in number six and thirty thousand men, for they had many wives and sons, contrary to the modern European practice, where in many places the land is suffered to remain uncultivated for want of population; and also Manasseh, the son of Joseph, 1 Chron. vii. 14: I come to the prophet David, whom God loved beyond all men, and who took two wives, besides Michal; and this not in a time of pride and prosperity, but when he was almost bowed down by adversity, and when, as we learn from many of the psalms, he was entirely occupied in the study of the word of God, and in the right regulation of his conduct. 1 Sam. xxv. 42, 43. and afterwards, 2 Sam. v. 12, 13. David perceived that Jehovah had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel's sake; and David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem. Such were the motives, such the honourable and holy thoughts, whereby he was influenced, namely, by the consideration of God's kindness towards him for his people's sake. His heavenly and prophetic understanding saw not in that primitive institution what we in our blindness fancy we discern so clearly; nor did he hesitate to proclaim in the supreme council of the nation the pure and honourable motives to which, as he trusted, his children born in polygamy owed their existence. 1 Chron. xxviii. 5. of all my sons, for Jehovah hath given me many sons, he hath chosen, &c I say nothing of Solomon, notwithstanding his wisdom, because he seems to have exceeded due bounds: although it is not objected to him that he had taken many wives, but that he had married strange women; 1 Kings xi. 1. Nehem. xiii. 26. His son Rehoboam desired many wives, not in the time of his iniquity, but during the three years in which he is said to have walked in the way of David. 2 Chron. xi. 17, 21.23. Of Joash mention has already been made; who was induced to take two wives, not by licentious passion, or the wanton desires incident to uncontrolled power, but by the sanction and advice of a most wise and holy man, Jehoida the priest. Who can believe, either that so many men of the highest character should have sinned through ignorance for so many ages; or that their hearts should have been so hardened; or that God should have tolerated such conduct in his people? Let therefore the rule received among theologians have the same weight here as in other cases; The practice of the saints is the best interpretation of the commandments.'"

With all deference to Milton, we cannot help thinking that the Polygamy permitted to the Patriarchs is no more an argument for its legality in the eye of reason and Christianity, than the primitive marriages of brothers and sisters is a justification of incest. From such marriages the Patriarchs themselves sprung. In compliance, however, with our object, which was simply to describe the book, we abstain from troubling the reader with dissertation.

AGRIGENTUM.

THOU relic of a mighty state !—
Thou solitary patriarch! desolate
Mid a strange generation-in our eyes
Saddening the land, the laughing paradise

That reigns around, where thou and only thou Art seen with faded greatness on thy brow, Grey ruin's wreck-column and frieze, and wall, In perish'd glory-shaft and capital

Mouldering away! Thy marble pile appears
A lone and ancient tomb o'er buried years.
And unknown men, that have all pass'd away
And left thee sole memento of the day

When the wreath'd victim to thy gate they led,
While clouds of incense hover'd overhead,
And the stoled priest and awestruck multitude,
And laurelled bard, and chief of hardihood,
Throng'd to thy unknown worship.

-There is much

To lure the wandering spirit home,
When gazing where the ground is such,
That sacred dust is spurn'd beneath
The footsteps of all things which breathe ;
When palace, temple, turret, dome,
Have left their ruins torn and bare,
And not one ancient mortal there-

One outline of his form-one shade

Of what he was flung back for fancy's aid.
Fane of dead ages! I have been

Nigh thee and heard a fragment fall

From thy riven cornices, and seen
Thy massy pillars, hewn for all

We of eternity conceive

Or can conceive, in ruin stand, Afar from my own native land, Where men thy grandeur ill believe.

The moon is like a shield of blood

Emerging from the silent wavesThe sea of splendor, the proud flood,

That many a land of history laves, The record of lost realms, the crown

Of ocean greatness, power, and fame, The grave of navies and renown

That should be link'd with many a name Sleeping a thousand fathoms down

In those blue waters. They roll'd by Long ages ere this temple rose, and now

No sign of waste or age is on their brow, They do not feel a like antiquity

Eternal youth is theirs.-Roll on, bright waves, O'er men and realms and long-forgotten graves!

Egyptian, Grecian, Roman gone,

And Carthage site no stone upon !

Nought save a few wild ruins left,

Where the owl broods in crack and cleft,

And the unsocial lizard crawls,

Trailing along the shapeless walls,

That serve to buttress ivy and green leaves.