constant design of all my dissertations in this place. They will testify, that the intention of all my discourses was, that the form of sound words, that is, the Christian doctrine, and consequently the fear and love of God, might not only be. impressed, but also engraven, upon your hearts in lasting and indelible characters; and that you might not only admit as a truth, but also pay the highest regard to this indisputable maxim, "That piety and religion are the only real good among men." Moreover, that your minds might be the less encumbered in their application to this grand study of religion, and the more expeditious in their progress therein, I constantly endeavoured, with all possible warmth, to divert you from those barren and thorny questions and disputes that have infected the whole of theology; and this at a time when the greatest part of divines and professors, and those of no small reputation, engaging furiously in such controversies, have split into parties, and unhappily divided the whole world. It was my constant practice to establish those great and uncontroverted articles of our holy religion, which are but few and clear; some part whereof are confirmed by the common consent of nations, and of all the human race; and all the rest, by the unanimous voice of the whole Christian world. Of the first sort are those we have often advanced in treating of the being and perfections of the One Supreme and Eternal principle, and the production of all things by Him; the continual preservation and government of the world by His providence; the law of God given to mankind, and the rewards and punishments annexed to it. The other class of the grand articles of religion, are indeed peculiar to Christian philosophy, but believed in common by all the professors of that religion. These are the great foundations of our faith, and of all our hope and joy, with regard to the incarnation of the Son of God, his death and resurrection for the destruction of sin, and consequently of death; his ascension into the highest heavens with that same flesh of ours in which he died, and his exaltation there above all ranks of angels, dominions, and thrones, &c.; whence we expect he will return in great glory in that day, when he will be glorious in all his saints, and admired in those that believe. As many, therefore, as desire to receive him in this last manifestation, with joy and exultation, must of necessity be holy, and, in conformity to their most perfect and glorious Head, sober, pious, upright, and live in full contempt of this perishing transitory world, their own mortal flesh, and the sordid pleasures of both; in a word all the enjoyments which the mean and servile admire, they must trample under foot and despise. For, whoever will

strive for this victory, and strive so as at last to obtain it, the Lord will own for his servant, and the great Master will acknowledge him for his disciple. He will attain a likeness to God in this earth, and, after a short conflict, will triumph in the Divine presence for ever. These are the doctrines which it is our interest to know, and in the observation of which our happiness will be secured. To these you will turn your thoughts, young gentlemen, if you are wise; nay, to these you ought to give due attention, that you may be wise.' - pp. 554, 555.

Of Leighton's eloquence in the pulpit we have the testimony of one who heard him, and who was himself among the most eloquent and popular preachers of his day.* 'He had a sublime strain in preaching, with so grave a gesture and such a majesty of thought, of language, and pronunciation, that I never once saw a wandering eye, where he preached, and have often seen whole assemblies dissolved in tears before him.' His looks and manner in speaking are represented as expressive of the ardor and tenderness of his soul; and, 'so lasting,' says Jerment in his memoir, 'was the impression of his manner on the minds of his hearers, that one of them declared at the distance of thirty years that the image of Leighton in the pulpit was clearly before his eyes.'

Of the moderation and disinterestedness of this exemplary bishop in exercising his right of patronage, or of appointing to certain livings within his diocese, a part of the Episcopal authority too often abused to the most selfish purposes of family aggrandizement or of personal ambition, and among the most fruitful sources of complaint at the present day, we have a fine attestation in a letter written by Leighton himself to the parishioners of a church, the presentation to which was absolutely in his gift. We copy it from Jerment.

'Worthy Gentlemen and Friends,

'Being informed, that it is my duty to present a person fit for the charge of the ministry now vacant with you, I have thought of one, whose integrity and piety I am so fully persuaded of, that I dare confidently recommend him to you as

* Dr. Burnet, the Bishop of Salisbury, author of the 'History of the Reformation' and of many other valuable works.

one who, if the hand of God do bind that work upon him amongst you, is likely, through the blessing of the same hand, to be very serviceable to the building up of your souls heavenwards, but is as far from suffering himself to be obtruded, as I am from obtruding any upon you; so that, unless you invite him to preach, and after hearing him, declare your consent and desire towards his embracing of the call, you may be secure from the trouble of hearing any further concerning him, either from himself or me; and if you please to let me know your mind, your reasonable satisfaction shall be to my utmost power endeavoured by

'Your affectionate Friend
and humble Servant,

R. LEIGHTON.'

This considerate and generous conduct, so worthy of a Christian bishop, will appear the more honorable, when it is recollected, that even to the present day there are not twenty churches within the establishment of Scotland, that have the privilege of choosing their own ministers; - that the right of election, as vested in the patron or the body who holds it, whether it be the crown, the magistrate, the university, or an individual, is absolute, and may by law be enforced without reference to the people; and that not only in Leighton's troubled times, but within the memory of the present generation, instances have occurred, in which that power has been urged with so little regard, nay, in such violent opposition to the wishes of the people, that a military force has been necessary at the institution or ordination of the minister, to maintain the peace of the parish, and to give him legal possession of his place. It is, it will be observed, of the Presbyterian, or the established church of Scotland that we now speak. But whether of the kirk,' or of Episcopacy, or any other form of the religion of the Prince of Peace, we may surely say of such a resort to the arm of flesh,

'Non tali auxilio, nec defensoribus istis
Tempus eget.'

We have spoken with its deserved commendation of the memoir prefixed to this volume, excepting only, as we have said, a somewhat indiscriminate admiration of the author's subject, naturally enough inspired by contemplation of a character like Leighton's. We have not adverted to the

uncourteous reflection upon Unitarians respecting their views of the Old Testament, which probably originated in his imputing the opinions of an individual to the whole body, and which we may hope he would not have indiscriminately applied, or on second thoughts, perhaps, would prefer to see wholly expunged.

In the more copious and historical memoir of Mr. Jerment, accompanying the complete edition of Leighton's works, the title of which we have placed, with that of the Selection, at the head of this article, our readers will find a detailed narrative of the events of his troubled life. And in the sweetness and tranquillity of the spirit be maintained amidst all his trials; the fervor of his piety and the closeness of his walk with God; in his severe judgment of himself and his boundless charity for the rest, even the worst, of mankind; in his painful self-denial, and his princely benevolence, they will see for themselves with what truth and gratitude Bishop Burnet has recorded his personal obligation to Leighton's example and character, when in his treatise on the Duties of the Pastoral Care,' he says, 'I was formed to them by a Bishop, that had the greatest elevation of soul, the largest compass of knowledge, the most mortified and heavenly disposition, that I ever yet saw in mortal.'-'I can say with great truth, that in a free and frequent conversation with him for above two and twenty years, I never knew him say an idle word that had not a direct tendency to edification; and I never once saw him in any other temper, but that which I wished to be in, in the last moments of my life. For that pattern, which I saw in him, and for that conversation which I had with him, I know how much I have to answer to God.'

ART. VIII. Proceedings and Speeches at a Meeting held in the Capitol at Washington, January 13, 1832, for the Promotion of Temperance in the United States. 12mo. pp. 12.

THE holding of a public meeting in the Capitol of the United States, in the hall of the House of Representatives,

for the purpose of calling out from among the leading men of the nation a voice in favor of Temperance, is certainly one of the striking signs of the times. Time was when the question could be discussed there only incidentally, in the form of a resolution for laying duties or excise on spirits; and then legislation would have resulted, most probably, in some act, pretending to relieve the burdens of the people, by which taxes should be diminished and drunkenness increased. For such has been but too much the result of legislative policy hitherto. But it cannot continue to be so. Now that our law-makers, in the very hall of their official deliberations, are willing to assemble, and maintain in the ears of the whole nation, that the use of ardent spirits is a curse and a sin, we may hope that by and by they will have regard to the same truth in their official acts. Not that we have any expectation or desire that the cause of temperance should be urged on by the power of the law. The motto of its friends should be, we think, in the words of one of the speakers at Washington, Our object, Reform; our means, Moral Influence. The law can do little, we apprehend, till moral influence has nearly completed the work. Then it may come in, and strike the last blow, by which the monster shall be annihilated. In the mean time, we rejoice to find men like the Secretary of War, the senators Webster, Frelinghuysen, and Grundy, and the representatives Bates and Wayne, coming forward to wield their share of this moral influence, and give the weight of their arguments and eloquence to the great reform. We cannot but anticipate the best results from the open and full expression of opinion in such quarters. If it would do to say so, we should add, that it is a most happy union of the power of the state to that of the church; it is the political strength of the country joining hand in hand with the religious.

Mr. Webster very justly remarked, that perhaps the principal benefit, which may be expected from this meeting, is the united expression of opinion, by gentlemen from all parts of the country, of the effect which has been produced by societies for the promotion of temperance.' We wish to add the expression of our opinion on the subject, together with a few thoughts on the subject in general.

In the last article in which we treated of the subject of intemperance, we were occupied in striving to free the great