been drawn with great labour and care. In Plate 10 we still trace the genius of a Mackenzie, although had it been put into the hands of either of the Le Keux's, it would have been one of the finest embellishments in the work. Of the remaining Plates, some are tolerable, and a few (particularly 2, 14, and 24) we must submit to the judgment of the "liberal critic."The first portion of WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL, produced at the same time as the present volume, is executed with great skill and taste. The drawings are by Mr. E. Blore, and most of the engravings by John and H. Le Keux. We look forward to the completion of the History and Illustration of this truly interesting Cathedral with great anxiety. 10. The History of Crowland Abbey, digested from the Materials collected by Mr. Gough, and published in quarto in 1783 and 1797; including an Abstract of the Observations of Mr. Essex, respecting the antient and present State of the Abbey, and the origin and use of the Triangular Bridge; to which is added, an Appendix, concerning the Rise and Progress of the Pointed Architecture. From the Essays collected by Mr. Taylor, 8vo. pp. 182. "The principal object of the following work is to illustrate the progress of the building, and to endeavour to fix the dates at which the several parts of it were put together. It is, therefore, particularly addressed to the curious who visit the ruins, to whom the quarto volume, if we except the part which describes the West Front, is of very little use. But since this object alone would have furnished no variety, it was thought more generally interesting to preserve the principal events connected with the history of the Convent, the Abbots, the tutelary Saint, the site of the Abbey, and its various fortunes during the feudal ages. In all these particulars, the Author has frequently found occasion to differ in opinion from former writers; and he could by no means preserve many of the facts undisputed, which they had delivered with so much solemnity; he must, therefore, be answerable for his own errors, if such they are, and for giving a turn to some of the most important events in the history, entirely different from his predecessors. For these reasons he thinks it indispensible that he should sign his name to the work, lest its faults should be imputed to some other person. "BENJAMIN HOLDICH." This elegant Abridgement (for such it really is) begins with the following compliment to the Collector of the treasures he has transfused into the present volume. "Materials for the History of Croyland were collected with great pains and patience by Mr. Gough, and the voluminous authorities which he has quoted, are a proof at once of his assistance and his success. Besides collecting whatever has been preserved by the writers on Monkish Remains, he had recourse to the Societies of Antiquaries, and many public and private libraries; tracing with indefatigable industry the slightest mention of any paper relating to the subject which was thought to be extant, and following several of these with successful assiduity, step by step, until he recovered them from the dust and mould in which they had been for ages obscured. This will be sufficient to satisfy the reader as to the authenticity of the following abridgment; to obtain more materials is scarcely to be expected; and for those which we have, I conceive it is in vain to search for better authority. -Reliques such as I have mentioned were likely to be sacred in the eyes of an Antiquary; and as we are apt (says Dr. Johnson) to value our productions in proportion to the labour they cost us,' it is not surprising that he should have preserved every scrap which his unwearied search discovered. The labour we delight in physics pain.' But since he could hardly be expected to propagate this ardor delicia, his readers may be excused if they find his book wearisome in the perusal; disheartening in its length, and disgusting in its repetitions. To obviate these faults is the object of the present edition; for the quarto volume being too bulky to obtain general circulation, an abridgment of it, preserving what is interesting, and endeavouring to bring the materials into something like order and method, may be found an acquisition in this pleasing department of literature. To facilitate study, to ease the labour of research, and bring the reader to the end of his journey by the shortest road, are objects of some importance in matters of which people would rather rest in ignorance than pursue information at disproportionate cost and trouble. Another ob ject, therefore, in this edition is cheap ness; for next to the tediousness of un necessary letter-press, is the vexation of unprofitable and useless blank margin.” It is but common justice to say, that that Mr. Holdich has compiled a very entertaining narrative, which is illustrated by a neat View of the Abbey, and enriched by a pleasing Appendix on Pointed Architecture. 11. Sermons on the Epistles or Gospels for the Sundays throughout the Year, (including Christmas Day and Good Friday) for the Use of Families, and Country Congregations, and chiefly adapted to the Conditions of the Lower Classes of Society; with a Prefatory Discourse, containing Observations on Public Religious Instruction; and a Vindication of the Clergy of the Established Church, from the Charges of their attaching too much Importance to Human Learning; their exalting Reason above Faith, and their not preaching the Gospel of Christ. By the Rev. R. Warner, Curate of St. James's Parish, Bath. 2 vols. 12mo; pp. 367 and 410. Longman and Co. IN a very excellent "Preliminary Discourse," Mr. Warner observes, a "There are two points, which little knowledge of human nature, and of the antient and present state of the world, will render evident to the reflecting mind; first, that man is, naturally, a religious animal; and, secondly, that, according to the nature of the religious principles which he entertains, he either is, or is not, happy in himself and use. ful to others.-It'will be my endeavour, in the following pages, to prove, in a concise and discursive form, both these propositions to infer, from their establishment, the benefit of the Christian revelation, and the importance of its being preached to the common people' in simplicity and truth; and to shew, that the Clergy of the Established Church fulfil this high public and professional duty, by vindicating them from the charges which are too frequently levelled against them, of their worshiping human learning; their exalting reason above faith; and their not preaching the Gospel of Christ." "They are offered to the Publick, not as a model, but as an humble attempt to illustrate, by an example, the mode in which (in my conception) the public religious instruction of the common people' ought to be conducted. They are plain, that they may be easily un derstood; they are for the most part short, that their substance may be more readily remembered; and their texts are taken from the Epistles or Gospel of the day, that they may be more appropriate to each Sunday. They develope the peculiar and characteristical doctrines of the Gospel, that those to whom they are addressed may know what they ought to believe, and they are full and unequivocal on the precept, that the hearers may understand what they "must do to be saved." In some few of them the reader will recognise the language of the wise and good Bishop Wilson; who, according to my humble judgment, may be considered as one of the most perfect Gospel Preachers among and a vein of piety: a warmth of affecuninspired men. There, is a holy feeling, tion towards his hearers; a yearning for their welfare, and an earnestness to promote it; a clear and affecting display of the great Christian tenets; a solemn enunciation of its commandments; and (what is still more uncommon) a spirit of personal humility, pervading his dis courses, that give them more the tact of Scripture, than any literary productions of a similar description can boast, which have come within the range of my limited reading." has illustrated in language at once These points the worthy Preacher elegant and easy to be understood.Not only may "the common people hear him gladly;" but Christians of every degree may profit by the perusal of these Discourses in their closets The contents of the Holy Scriptures are thus distinctly analysed in the se cond Sermon: It "The book of Genesis, you know, stands at the head of the Bible. It was written (together with the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) by Moses, full three thousand two hundred years ago, far before the time of any other book in the world relates, in a short and simple, but sublime manner, the history of the creation of the universe; of the formation of man; his fall; and the change for the worse, which then took place in his nature and circumstances: but which was immediately followed by a merciful promise, from God, of a great Saviour or Deliverer, to appear in after-times, who should rescue mankind from the dreadful consequences of Adam's transgression, and finish his benefits to our race, by finally triumphing over sin, death, and hell. It relates a few particulars of Adam's family, and of the patriarchs who lived before the flood; gives a more full account of that dreadful event which the wickedness of man brought upon the world; of the confusion of languages, and dispersion of mankind, by which the whole earth became peopled; tells the history of Abraham (to whom the gracious promise of the Saviour was renewed), and of the patriarchs after him, more especially that of Jacob and Jo seph sepb, a narrative full of extraordinary and affecting adventures; and concludes with an account of the death of the latter great, good, and wise man. - Exodus, the second book in the Bible, opens with the account of the Israelites' slavery in Egypt; and of the birth and early history of Moses, the type of Jesus Christ. It then mentions his appointment, by the Almighty, to the grand office of freeing the Israelites from the cruel bondage of Pharaoh and the Egyptians; relates the awful manner in which he accomplished his commission; the institution of the Passover, an emblem of the sacrifice of Christ; the Exodus, or going out of the Israelites from Egypt; their disobedience in the wilderness, and, the adventures which befel them there; the delivery of the Ten Commandments, or moral law; the making of the tabernacle; and the appointment of Aaron to the priesthood.The book of Leviticus describes the of fice and duties of the Levites, or the persons appointed to serve in the tabernacle, and conduct the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish religion; the Jewish sacrifices and ceremonial laws; the consecration of Aaron and his sons; the impiety and punishment of the latter; and some remarkable prophecies of Moses. - -The book of Numbers, so called from the numbering or mustering of the people, contains an account of the wanderings of the children of Israel for nearly forty years in the wilderness, a punishment to which they had been condemned for their ingratitude and murmurings on their quitting Egypt; the miraculous destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, for rebelling against God; the battles and conquests of the Israelites during their wanderings; the appointment of Joshua to succeed Moses as leader of Israel; the repetition of several of God's former laws, and the delivery of new ones; and, above all, that, remarkable prophecy of Jesus Christ, by Balaam, under the image of the 'Star that should come out of Jacob, and the Sceptre that should rise out of Israel.'-The last of the books written by Moses, called Deuteronomy, or the repetition of the law, consists chiefly of solemn discourses to the Is raelites by Moses, in which he repeats the divine laws to them; recounts their backslidings, punishments, and deliverances; enters into a new covenant between God and his people; and exhorts them, in the most earnest manner, to future obedience. He delivers in the 18th, 28th, and four following chapters, several extraordinary prophecies; one of the Messiah (or Christ) who should be raised up' in after-times; and others of the destruction of the Jewish Nation by the Romans, and their dispersion through the world. The last chapter of the book (probably written by Joshua) gives an account of the death of Moses, in the one hundred and twentieth year of his age; and finishes the writings of that great man, which contain the history of the world for the first 2552 years.-The next twelve books of the Bible, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, the first and second books of Samuel, the first and second of Kings, the first and second of Chronicles, and those of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, are properly historical books, and give a most interesting account of the settlement of the Israelites in the promised land; their history while under God's government; their desire of having a king to rule over them, instead of God, and that desire being granted them; and their wars and distresses under some of their Kings; and victories and greatness under others, particularly David and Solomon; the building and dedication of the Temple under the latter Prince; the division of the Kingdom in the reign of his son Rhehoboam; the history of the two distinct nations of Judah and Israel; the entire destruction of the latter by Shalmanezar; the taking of Jerusalem, the burning of the Temple, and the captivity of the Jews, by Nebuchadnezzar; the preservation of the Nation from destruction, while in captivity, through the means of Esther; the return of the Jews from their captivity to Jerusalem; and the rebuilding of their temple :all these books contain, more or less, types and prophecies of Jesus Christ. "The book of Job comes next in order in the sacred canon, and is full of piety, grandeur, and beauty; teaching us how to behave under afflictions sent by God, and shewing what great rewards will follow a pious submission to his holy will. "The book of Psalms, written chiefly by David, is a most glorious treasure of devotion, prophecy, spiritual comfort, aud instruction; calculated at once to spiritualize the heart, console the spirit, and improve the conduct. "The book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon, were written by that wise and good King; the two former in his old age, when he was brought back, by the grace of God, from the wickedness he had unhappily fallen inte, and found by experience that every thing but holiness and virtue was vanity and vexation of spirit "The remainder of the canonical books (or those of divine authority) in the Old Testament are the writings of the Prophets. They consist of the four greater prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah (the Lamen tations tations of that prophet during the captivity), Ezekiel, and Daniel; and the twelve lesser ones-Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zacchariah, and Malachi. They are all, more or less, profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness;' and are full of wonderful prophecies respecting the Jewish Nation, the advent, and sufferings and glories, of Christ; of the establishment of his kingdom upon earth; and the future fortunes of his church. To these Scriptures which make the Old Testament, are added the books of the Apocrypha, of which one of the Articles of our Church speaks in the following terms: 'These the Church doth read for example of life and instruction of manners; but yet doth it notapplyto them toestablish anydoctrine;' and they are consequently of far less authority than those books which are properly called the Holy Scriptures, and are our rule of faith as well as our rule of conduct. The books of the New Testament, which contain the covenant in Jesus Christ, consist, first, of the four Gospels, or the history of our blessed Saviour (accompanied with that of John the Baptist, the messenger who was sent before him); of his birth, ministry, miracles, discourses, passion, crucifixion,, resurrection, and ascension: Secondly, of the Acts of the Apostles, or the history of those venerable men, more particularly of St. Paul, the great Apostle of the Gentiles, and of the early Church for about thirty years after Christ's ascension: Thirdly, of fourteen Epistles by St. Paul to particular churches, to ertain individuals, and to the Jewish converts at large: one by St. James, two by St. Peter, three by St. John, and one by St. Jude; all, except the second and third of St. John, addressed to the general body of Christians. Of all which Epistles it may be briefly observed, that they contain much sound doctrine, mo-` ral instruction, solemn admonition, and wise advice, mixed with many encouraging promises; and some passages, which, as St. Peter says, are the more 'difficult to be understood,' because they relate to questions, and heresies, and disputes among the early Christians, the history of which is now but little known. The fourth and last part of the New Testament is the book of the Revelations of St. John, filled with awful prophecies respecting the future fortunes of the Church of Christ, and of different nations of the world, from the period when it was written to the end of time." 12. Free Masonry illustrated. A Sermon preached before the Provincial Grand Lodge, in the Cathedral of Hereford, Aug. 14, 1815, by the Rev. T. D. Fosbrooke, M. A. F. A. S. Author of British Monachism, the History of Gloucestershire, Illustrations of the Townley Statues, &c. &c. Published by desire. 8vo. pp. 22, Farror, Ross. THIS is an eloquent discourse, which, from the gratification it afforded, was published to benefit a worthy brother of the Society, a printer and bookseller with a large family, Mr. William Farror of Ross. The exordium contains some curious illustrations of the properties of Deity in matter; and the following sentence will much please this antient Fraternity: "The genius of Free-masonry prohibits wrath, bitterness, clamour, and evil-speaking.. When the malignant passions are greedily feasting upon the lacerated heart; when Devils drop their foam in the milk of human kindness, it is soon envenomed with the poison of the adder. Even home, beloved home, with all its darling annexations, has no longer charms for the deeply diseased sufferer. Those beautiful pieties of nature, the fellow-feeling of the relative, the second soul of the wife, the sportive happiness of the child, the zealous fidelity of the friend, the soothing esteem of the neighbour, are not answered in the joy of his heart. He has no music in his soul. The soft refreshing green of placid good-nature is burnt up into the gloomy brown of an African desert. Amidst envy, strife, surmises, railings, and perverse disputations, as the Apostle catalogues these painful spasms, life is a tiresome journey through a dismal wilderness, haunted by the wild beasts of Passion, with only a polar twilight of reason to shew us our way, and no other fare than the sour fruit of the thorn and the briar. Free masonry then, abstracted from its preservative and sacred ceremonies, has, for its leading object, the extension and enforcement of fellow-feeling, in despite of opposing opinions, interests, and circumstances, in despite of groveling selfishness. propagates feeling, where feeling might not otherwise exist. It is an urgent counsellor, who pleads hard for Christian charity in every form, and, if it does not establish for this purpose a peculiar household of faith, only a brotherly society, it is but to enlarge the instiga tions to benevolence. Are we to blame, because, as St. Paul became all things to all men, we annex a venerable institution, perfectly harmless, to the cultivation of feeling? Humanity is the It standard standard which we unfurl as the ensign of our Order. What is a man without feeling? A Free-mason he cannot be ; a Christian he cannot be; the heir of a blessed immortality he cannot be. His mind is formed of bone only; he is a mere skeleton, of whom Nature is ashamed, because void of the grace and beauty of muscular conformation. He is a statue, without expression in the features, the hard and stony image only of that sublime and dignified being whom the Son of God honoured with his form, and enlightened with his virtues." 13. A Sermon on the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. By the Rev. James Rudge, M. A. F. R. S. Lecturer of Limehouse, and Sunday Evening Leeturer of St. Lawrence, Jewry. 12mo, PP. 47. WE are not surprised to perceive that this excellent Discourse has reached a Fifth Edition. It is well calculated to draw the attention of its Readers to the consideration of a solemn and most important subject. "It is my unfeigned desire to perform my duty both towards God and my fellow creatures; and I shall therefore, humbly endeavour to adopt the advice so energetically given by a late excellent and learned Prelate *, "to apply myself with the whole strength and power of my mind to do the work of an Evangelist; to proclaim to those who are at enmity with God, and children of bis wrath, the glad tidings of Christ's pacification:-To sound the alarm, to awaken to a life of righteousness a world lost and dead in trespasses and sins:To lift aloft the blazing torch of Revelation, to scatter its rays over them that sit in darkness, and the shadow of death; and guide the footsteps of the benighted wanderer into the paths of life and peace," beseeching the Father of Spirits that he may be pleased to crown these endeavours with success." 14. The School Boy: with other Poems. By Thomas Cromwell. 8vo pp. 98, Rivingtons. OF the little Piece which gives its title to the present volume, Mr. Cromwell observes, "Should the Poet feel disposed to mark its errors with critical severity, or the Philosopher refuse his sanction to its arguments, or the conclusions drawn Bishop Horsley. See the conclusion of his Lordship's Charge to the Clergy of the Diocese of St. Asaph, 1806. from them-in both respects, it is hoped, an apology may be founded on the cir cumstance, that the author, at the period of its composition, was but little past the age, and had enjoyed little more than the experience, of a School Boy." The Reader is afterwards told, that "The idea of the following Poem was suggested by some incidental reflections of the writer, on the opinion, by no means singular, that our school-boy years constitute the happiest period of life. "The fallacy of this notion is here attempted to be shewn :-partly by exam ples in which childhood appears to have its ills, proportioned to its powers to bear them-and partly by endeavours to prove, that as our means of happiness are greater and more solid, so our happiness itself should be more enlarged and real, in maturity than in youth. "In other words, that the fault is with men themselves, if their felicity be not, like their knowledge and their years, the improvement of their reasoning faculties, and their possible attainments in virtuous excellence-progressive." The idea is ingenious; and the young Poet, with the exception of a very few feeble lines, has performed his task well. Let the following be a specimen : "Lo! where the Oak, in stately pride that rears [years, Its branches strengthen'd by upholding Bears groaningly the blast, and braves its power: [wintry hour! Moans each left sear leaf through the And should the Sapling equal conflicts share? Droops it not even in the vernal air? And writhing, bending, all its weakness shows, [blows? Too rudely when the May-mild zephyr So weak is Childhood: and though oft appear Its ills unworth the very childish tear, Yet ills they are; and many a pang impart As keenly poignant to the youthful heart." In "Eleanor and Janet" are some good sketches for a Tale; and the "Minor Poems," of which there are eleven, deserve commendation. 15 A History of the Forest, or Chace, known by the name of Cranborn Chace, collected from authentic early Records, and continued to a late period. With a brief Description of its present State. BY what authority the misnomer of Forest has crept into this pamphlet we |