and Geneva, we intend to take an early opportunity of commenting more at large than it is possible for us to do in the present article, and we shall therefore defer any farther remarks on that subject.

We need not follow our travellers in their tour to the Glaciers and the valley of Chamouny, nor to the monastery of St. Bernard, the Simpłon, the city of Milan, and the Boromean Isles,-scenes familiar to every traveller, and so often described by our best tourists. The most interesting feature of the last mentioned scene, to Mr. Wilson, seems to have been the bronze colossal statue of the Cardinal Borromeo; not, however, because it is of gigantic dimensions, being seventytwo feet high, but because the cardinal was a man of devout habits, and perhaps the first founder of Sunday schools, which still exist in Milan; and whose character of enlightened zeal it is delightful to trace, in the midst of Popish error and darkness. The gross corrup tions and superstitious ceremonies of the Milan cathedral, must in some degree have been relieved and contrasted by the catechising of the children, which took place there in the after-part of the day, and for which the cause of religion is indebted to this distinguished ecclesiastic. This practice, formerly confined to the children of Milan and its vicinity, has of late been extended much more widely in Roman Catholic countries; and it is now no unusual spectacle on the Continent to see numbers of children collected in the churches, at the end of the afternoon service, and receiving catechetical instruction from the priests. Mr. Wilson remarks, that if the Archbishop was not the Luther or Zuingle, he was at least the Fenelon of Italy.

A visit which Mr. Wilson paid also to Lyons, gave him an opportunity, besides witnessing its natural beauties and secular curiosities, of visiting the ampitheatre where, in the reign of the Emperor Severus,

a "whole army of martyrs" fought their good fight of faith. The form of the amphitheatre still remains, after a lapse of sixteen centuries. Some traces may be discovered of the rising seats of turf; and several dilapidated brick vaults are stated to indicate the places where the wild beasts, and perhaps the holy martyrs, were guarded. A peaceful vineyard now flourishes where these scenes of horror were once displayed.

From Lyons Mr. Wilson returned to Geneva, with a view of forwarding an object about which he is very solicitous, the translation into French of the Commentary of the Rev. Thomas Scott. We confess that we should have been apprehensive that this work, however excellent, would prove somewhat too ponderous, in the present state of religious knowledge and feeling among them, for the taste of French readers; and that works of a less repulsive bulk, and more attractive style, might have at least preceded it with advantage. We should rejoice to witness the institution of a society, conducted by persons well acquainted with the peculiar literary tastes, as well as the religious aberrations and wants, of our different continental neighbours, who would employ themselves either in reprinting some of those admirable works of piety which have proceeded from foreign writers of eminence but have fallen into disuse, or in translating into the continental languages a judicious selection of some of our best and most suitable productions. Among these we should give a high place to Milner's Church History. Mr. Wilson has done well in having excited the attention of the public to the subject.-While at Geneva, Mr. Wilson heard two preachers— the one French, the other Englishwho formed so striking a contrast to each other, that we are tempted to extract his account of them, particulary as it may convey a useful hint to our own clerical countrymen.

"I went this morning at ten, to hear a celebrated preacher of this town. I

was grieved. Talent mis-employed, zeal wasted, arguments false or insufficient— all fundamentally wrong. A sermon on affliction, leaving out almost all the main topics, and grossly mistaking others. The church was full-congregation attentivedelivery good-matter ably arranged-all right, except the entire doctrine of the discourse. After the sermon, I had a conference with a pious, amiable, aged minister, who mourns over the state of religion here, and prays and hopes for a gradual improvement in the body of pastors. He tells me, that subscription to the Helvetic Confession, which resembles our Thirty-nine Articles, was abolished about a hundred years since, by the Council of State, in consequence of the vehement disputes of the pastors amongst themselves. The catechism was set aside only in 1788; the règlement followed. At twelve o'clock, I went to the English church, and heard an excellent sermon from the resident chaplain. It did me good. The matter of it was as much superior to that which I had heard earlier in the morning, as the manner, composition, and delivery, were inferior. The contrast was striking: the French sermon, able, well-arranged, forcibledelivered with the whole soul of the preacher; the English, feeble, careless, unimpressive-delivered with the indifference of a school-boy." Wilson, vol. ii. pp. 201, 202.

From Geneva Mr. Wilson returned to England, through Dijon, Fontainebleau, Paris, and Boulogne. We were glad to find the Catholics at the latter place gladly receiving the religious tracts which our travellers distributed.

The Letters conclude with a series of remarks on some of the most prominent of those circumstances which attracted the attention of this Christian traveller-such as the desolating judgments which have visited the fairest scenes of the Continent; the debasing character of the Catholic superstitions, which have been revived since the close of the revolutionary struggle with all their absurdities and corruptions; and the state of religious coldness and indifference which distinguish some of the Protestant churches, and the bitter enmity to vital ChrisCHRIST. OBSERV. No. 272.

tianity which is visible in others. These remarks we commend to the reader's attention.

the churches of Christ, whether at All the corruptions, however, of home or abroad, are capable of being purified by that same Power which, in the ages of Reformation, raised up those men of simplicity, and zeal, and learning, and Christian affection, who triumphed over the stubborn heresies and bitter malice of all their opponents; and the means which are yet in the possession of Christians to hasten a return of such triumphs, are those which Mr. Wilson notices such as imbibing the spirit of the Reformers; cultivating the feelings of charity and love; and activity in the improvement of every opportunity, in our intercourse with the Continent, for doing good, and bearing witness to the truth and power of religion. Mr. Wilson urges Christian travellers, and even invalids, not to suffer the hurry of their movements, the novelty of their circumstances, the imperfection of their knowledge of the continental tongues, nor even the infirmity of their health, to deter them from attempting whatever good is in their power; and he subjoins to these suggestions some encouraging anecdotes, intended to stimulate their efforts, in the certain hope of some fruit from them. At the same time, we would have travellers to be aware that a headlong, undistinguishing, uninformed zeal, which is regardless of times and circumstances, and overlooks the force of prejudice and the established habits of social intercourse, may possibly be productive of much evil, instead of good; and may serve to mar, not only their own benevolent intentions, but the more wisely directed labours of others. The concluding admonition of Mr. Wilson, in which we cordially concur, is, that Christians should abound more in earnest prayer for the influences of the Holy Spirit of God, the first moving cause of all that is good.

3 U

We must now give our readers a brief account of the other volume placed at the head of this article. It contains a short memoir of the life of Alexander Leith Ross, a young man of considerable talent and piety, who was cut off at the age of four-and-twenty; extinguishing all the hopes, that the admirers of his genius or the attachments of his friends were indulging, of his future usefulness in the church of Christ. From the diary of his studies, and the several literary performances, attached to this memoir, it appears that these hopes, sanguine as they were, had a sufficient foundation in the principles and mental powers of Mr. Ross. He was the son of the Rev. Dr. James Ross, senior minister of Aberdeen, and was one among the many individuals who have to trace up all their best pleasures on earth, and all their joys in another world, instrumentally, to that gentle but powerful cause, which is like the dews of the morning on the tender grass,-the early instructions of a pious mother. Mr. Ross's mother appears to have been taken from him by a premature death, while he was yet young; but not so young as to have been uninfluenced by some of those tender and affecting counsels, the impression of which he never lost to his dying day. The value of such an example is too great to be wholly passed over, even in the short notice which it is in our power to take of this work; and we extract the following passage from the Memoir, as shewing the foundation on which so much may be built,

"There seems to be an idea unhappily too prevalent, that religion is a matter so far above the comprehension of a child, as to make it a hopeless undertaking to convey religious impressions to the heart, till the faculties have acquired a considerable degree of maturity and strength. Religious instruction is therefore too often deferred, and the young mind allowed to grow up in habits of carelessness, till a settled repugnance is formed to a subject distasteful to the perverseness of human

nature. The golden opportunity is thus lost, when the mind is most susceptible, and when the seeds of folly, that exist in the heart from the very commencement of life itself, have not yet begun to spring up. Religion, indeed, if presented in a technical form, and as a mere exercise of memory, must be above the comprehension of a very young child, and unsuitable to the weakness of the opening faculties. It can then be regarded only as a task, by which the tender mind must be oppressed, and to which the infant pupil will almost unavoidably contract a dislike. But nothing surely can be conceived more engaging and attractive to a child than religion, when presented as an exercise of the heart and feelings-when the mind, just beginning to expand, and to look upon every surrounding object with curiosity and wonder, is led by an affectionate parent to some little knowledge of the Great Being by whom these objects were made, and brought to regard Him as its and reverence-when it is made acquainted Heavenly Father with sentiments of love with the character of Jesus as the benevolent Saviour, who came to bestow the greatest blessings on mankind, and who displayed such condescension and kindness to little children—and when it is taught that there is another home in heaven for all good and obedient children, more under the paternal roof. Such was the beautiful and delightful than that enjoyed plan of religious education pursued by Alexander's mother, and it appears to have left a deep impression on his heart; for, after her death, there was nothing of which he so much delighted to hear, as about the beautiful and happy place, as he expressed it, to which his mother was gone. The effect of this judicious early discipline was to produce a habit of observation and thoughtfulness unusual for his years, and to form a taste for the beauties of nature that was throughout his life a striking feature of his mental character.

"The following circumstance illustrates, in a very pleasing manner, the early display of this aptitude to observation and reflection, and the good effects of the instructions which he had received, Soon after his mother's death, his attention was powerfully attracted by a beautiful sky, in a summer evening. He continued to gaze upon it with silent admiration, and it was with difficulty that he could be prevailed upon to quit the spot. When repeatedly reminded that it was time to go to bed, he requested permission to remain a little

longer, adding, in language natural to a child, that he supposed that God had sent down that beautiful sky, to shew what a beautiful and happy place heaven was; but heaven, said he, is far prettier

than that. The idea of his mother being there seems to have then occurred to his mind; for, a day or two after, he appeared to be very pensive and dejected; and, on being asked the reason, he burst into tears, and expressed his apprehensions, in such terms as a child might be supposed to use, that he was not good enough to be admitted into that beautiful and happy place where his mother was.

"Another evidence of the success of

her pious care in impressing his infant mind with devotional feelings, was, that he very early felt a peculiar pleasure in the return of every Sabbath; and often on that day, the expression of his countenance and his gesture would indicate an earnest expectation and great anxiety to hear more than he heard on other days about God and heaven, with which the idea of his mother was always associated. Nor was the Sabbath at any time a weariness to him, but was always esteemed by him as the holy of the Lord and honourable; as affording an admirable opportunity of occupying the mind in the noblest exercises of a rational being." Ross, pp.

x.-xiv.

Mr. Ross's studies seem to have been particularly in Oriental literature; and had he lived, we might in all probability have added his name to the list of those who have distinguished themselves in this fruitful field of Biblical learningfor all his pursuits partook of a religious character, and all his researches were directed to the illustration of Divine truth. He contends, in a paper which he drew up on the Persian language, that the fondness of scholars for the Arabic had led them too often to overlook the beauties of the Persian, and its power of illustrating the sacred volume. We could gladly extract some of his remarks, did our limits allow. But it was chiefly on account of the tours which this young man made to the Continent, .and the journals of which occupy more than half of the volume, that we notice it in connexion with Mr. Wilson's publication. Mr. Ross, in

It

general, gives a more detailed and scholarlike description of the objects and circumstances which occurred in his journey. He copies most of the inscriptions with fidelity and care, quotes from the classics, and writes evidently more in the style of a professed tourist. Mr. Wilson's object, we have already stated, was different. Besides this, Mr. Ross traversed a much wider extent of territory, and over nearly the whole of Italy, the classic's own soil. is interesting to read the two journals together. Mr. Wilson's, being in the form of letters to a sister, gives the "English" of every thing; Mr. Ross transcribes the Roman records and the Papal bulls. In almost every fact and description of importance the two travellers confirm, corroborate, and illustrate. each other. Sometimes a slight discrepancy appears; as in the account of Costa, or Jean Baptiste de Coster, Buonaparte's guide on the field of Waterloo-" an elderly man, full of enthusiasm," as Mr. Wilson describes him; who appears to have interested him much in the hour which he spent with him in shewing him the field of battle-but of whom Mr. Ross writes, that "he tells a new and marvellous story to every fresh party; and that his information is not to be depended upon; and that therefore he declined his services." But there is one point in which a delightful resemblance is found in the characters and habits of these two travellers: they travelled as Christians ought to do-they both agree in deploring the superstitions of the Catholic church, and particularly the Popish desecration of the Sabbath-day, which almost universally characterizes the Christianity of the Continent, and which makes it no longer the Lord's-day, but the day of the "god of this world ;" and their own example seems to have presented habitually a striking contrast to the unresting dissipations and unhallowed practices of the professing Christians around them. Every where we meet with memoranda

such as these throughout their journals:

"This day, being Sunday, was devoted to repose. The want of religious ordinances is the greatest of all privations. May I henceforth duly estimate the privileges of my native land." Ross, p. 379.

It is in this spirit alone, that visiters to the Continent from Eng

land or Scotland can expect to conclude their journey without injury to others, or even to themselves. A time-serving, conforming, accommodating spirit undermines every safe and useful principle; and leaves the religionist a stumbling-block to his fellow-Christians, and a prey to every declension himself.

The QUARTERLY REVIEW on

COWPER'S LETTERS. OUR readers are doubtless aware that a new series of letters from the pen of the poet Cowper was lately given to the world, by his correspondent and kinsman Dr. Johnson. The letters are addressed to nearly the same persons as those before published, and were equally submitted to the selecting hand of his biographer, Hayley. It is not easy in every instance to account for Hayley's suppressions. Some letters, perhaps, were rejected by him as too trifling; some, as too local, or as relating to temporary events or politics; some, as little more than duplicates of others inserted; some, because the editor considered that he had already admitted as many letters as his narrative would fairly allow; and, lastly, some as too seriously religious to please Hayley's taste, or from their containing painful references to the unhappy state of Cowper's mind. The present volumes, however, furnish various letters, and many more detached passages, of great interest; and, in the opinion of so competent an authority as the Rev. Robert. Hall, " they are of a superior description to the former, possess ing as much beauty with more piety and pathos."

These volumes we had just perused, for the purpose of reviewing them, when a critique upon them in a contemporary publication, the Quarterly Review, attracted our

attention, and seemed to us in limine to demand a few observations. We shall therefore for the present address ourselves to this particular object, reserving to a future opportunity the privilege of making a few extracts from the Letters themselves. On the general subject of Cowper's depression of mind, we know not that we could add much to what we have remarked long since on various occasions, and especially in our review of Hayley's Memoirs of him, in our volumes for 1803 and 1805. All that has since transpired on the subject only confirms the opinions there expressed.

The evils of religious controversy have been long and universally regretted, by all who have had the interests of religion sincerely at heart. The collision of opinions to which it gives rise, though undoubtedly conducive in the end to the discovery of truth, is too often of so rude a character as to destroy for a time that harmony of feeling which would at first sight appear inseparable from its votaries. So bitter, indeed, is the spirit that has often been witnessed in religious disputants, that the odium theologicum has long since passed into a proverb. And though the violence of these alleged sacred wars has always been deplored by those who have not yet unsheathed their swords, yet. no sooner have they appeared themselves as combatants on the field, than, too often, they also, like their