brings some of these upon the aged, yet neither are the young secure. Diseases which generally attack youth are more fierce and formidable; they start as it were from ambushment, like a hidden foe, and take them by surprise; while to the aged they give warning before they strike. But when we come to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven, mortality shall be swallowed up of life. There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body; it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory." PP 132-134. vol. ii.

The discourse on the Holy Spirit is throughout so important and interesting, that we must leave it entire to the perusal of our readers. The same cause must be an apology for passing over others not less deserving their attention, to which we sincerely recommend these valuable volumes. Our final extract is from the sermon "The End of Time," Rev. x. 5, 6.

on

"Nothing strikes us more than the perpetual changes that are taking place in life, and in the state of things around us. The customs and habits of mankind are ever fluctuating, and the fashion of this world passeth away; like a mournful procession it moves on slowly, but never stands, still. How changed also are our views and feelings in the course only of a few years: our friendships, our connections in early life, where are they? They are fled, and nothing remains of those who were once our most intimate companions. Many young persons who were entering upon the most interesting pros pects, and anticipating many happy years to come, have retired from the ranks of the living, to join the congregation of the dead. Many families have lost their principal constituents, or sunk into pos verty and neglect. He who acquires wealth soon finds that riches make themselves wings and fly away, or death gives the summons to leave them all behind. What changes take place in our congregations, and in our immediate neighbour hood. The place in which we worship may remain the same, but the auditors are new; churches are bereaved of their most active and valuable members, and houses are filled with new inhabitants. Creation itself is undergoing a perpetual change; the destruction and decay of te me parts of it are made subservie it to, e support of the rest, and the face of

The

nature does not long wear the same aspect. Our corporeal structure is constantly though insensibly undergoing a material change, and we should start from ourselves, were we presented with an accurate description of all the alterations which take place in the system, from infancy to manhood, and to maturer years. mortal tenement which we inhabit, after undergoing innumerable declensions and repairs, must be dissolved, and returned to its native dust. The earthly tabernacle must be taken down, and give place to a house not made with hauds, eternal in the heavens; or be succeeded by an envelope of darkness more horrid than imagination can conceive.

"Nothing is stationary but the moral qualities of mankind, and these shall remain the same when time shall be no more. Then he that is unjust shall be unjust still, he that is filthy shall be filthy still, he that is righteous shall be righteous still, and he that is holy shall be holy still. In the world to come there will be

no room for change; eternal justice will have arranged every thing in order, and The wicked will have no invitation to leave their abodes of darkness; the righteous shall enter into everlasting habitations, and shall go out no more. The present scene is for ever closed, an impassable gulph is fixed between the world of bliss and woe; all is final, immutable, and irrevocable.

there will be no revision of its decree.

"Intelligence of such momentous import is worthy of being proclaimed by him who planted his foot upon the sea and upon the earth. Who else could give it a reality? Who else could destroy this world, and from its destruction produce such a new order of things, but God only? The dissolution of the world, and of the present state, is a grand preparatory operation, a sort of magnificent porch, through which we are to enter into eternity. It is only the prelude to what is to follow; and when the curtain of time shall drop, nothing will be present to our view but the realities of an unseen world.

"When our attention is called to this awful subject we are apt to be looking forward to the enjoyments of the present life, and to banish from our minds the annunciation of the angel, That time shall be no longer. But let us remember, that though the day of judgment may not be near, yet death may be near, very near at hand and if on your pillow you were sinking into the arms of death, would not that affect you. Such an hour must come :> then why not contemplate it with deep so lemnity? Nothing can in reality be interesting but one concern, and that is our moral state, and how it will be with us when time shall be no longer. How many will shortly be numbered with the dead:

and are we prepared to meet that awful crisis with composure? Can it ever be to reflect upon a state into which you must soon enter? The prospect you now take of eternity may prevent your everlasting ruin, since the perpetual recollection of the present state, with its succes

matter of regret, that you are now called

sive series of actions and events, will give a complexion to eternity. The little interstice of time we now occupy, will be ever fresh in our recollection, and will present in vivid colours the moral quality

of all our actions. Like the rich man in the parable, we shall remember, and remember to all eternity, the good things we enjoyed, and the part we acted in the present life.

"Seeing it is of infinite importance to ascertain our real state, let us look well to our moral principles, and see what aspect our characters bear. If in a state of doubt and hesitation, make your calling and election sure; repent of sin, seek forgiveness through the blood of the atonement, ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit, watch and pray, and give up yourselves unreservedly to the Lord. In this changing and transitory world our moral condition may be changed, all beyond it is permanent and immutable, and the things that belong to our peace will be for ever hidden from our eyes. The change must be effected now, or not at all; and while time continues, no one need despair; he that is afar off may be brought nigh, and be reconciled through the blood of the cross. But there is no room for hesitation or delay; the Judge standeth at the door, and in a little while, time with us shall be no longer."--pp. 234--237. vol. ii.

་་་་་་་་་་་་

Memoirs and Poetical Remains

of the late Jane Taylor; with Extracts from her Correspondence. By Isaac Taylor. In two volumes.-Londson: Holdsworth.

1826.

It has been the distinction of our native land, to produce many females of superior mental endow ments, and considerable literary attainments. Such names as those of Carter and Smith, not to mention others, have confirmed the fact, that those properties and talents which are more immediately domestic, are not necessarily allied to the absence of a taste for intellectual pleasures; and the lords of the creation may safely dispense

with the Rabbinical refinement in gratitude, of giving thanks for having been born men, under the appre

hension that women have no souls. We are not, indeed, very great advocates for learned ladies, as such, nor should we be disposed to admire the brilliancy of the basbleu, who would sacrifice to literary reputation any portion of the qualities which are appropriately feminine, and the unobtrusive virtues of domestic life. We should certainly join in the general panic, and consider it for once a wellfounded alarm, if Greek primitives and Hebrew roots were to take place of more substantial realities; if domestic order and superintendence were to be quite deserted for the habitual employment of cultivating acquaintance among the stars, or discovering cities in the moon-the nursery to become a depository for acids and alkalies, and a scene of chemical experiments; or the labours of the needle to be neglected for the superior attractions of Virgil's Georgics, or the satisfaction of having crossed the asses' bridge. But these revolutions in the social world are not consequent upon the proper cultivation of the female mind, and there are many happy instances which prove that its being imbued with a knowledge in general, or making progress in particular departments, is by no means necessarily detrimental to the exercise of its appropriate virtues, but quite the contrary. A taste for literature and poetry, and some acquaintance with the elements of science, if these pursuits be under the regulation of principle and duty, will tend, in both sexes, to the more effectual discharge of all the ordinary functions of life; nor will the aphorism of Lord Bacon be inapplicable even here, that "knowledge is power." Miss Smith was> not less of a proficient in the "words of king Lemuel," because she had

taste for

taught herself to read Virgil; nor was she less apt in the mysteries of the culinary art, in consequence of her acquaintance with Kepler's laws, and her having sufficient industry and attention to enable her to apply them.

The influence of women of mental superiority and worth, on the taste and habits of society in general, is undoubtedly calculated to be very great. If ever reason and religion shall so far prevail in all orders of society, as to cause a general improvement in the estimate of what is most truly valuable and excellent in female education, and if it should become a principle to sacrifice to the acquisition of real mental and moral worth-the ruinous passion for display will then be abated; coxcombry, fashionable impertinence, and distinctions chiefly adventitious, will cease to be the passport to the female heart; the influence of the sex will be increased in the most salutary manner; whatever is most praiseworthy in the character of man, will be encouraged and advanced; and the virtue and welfare of society greatly promoted.

If in the annals of orthodox nonconformity, from the days of Mrs. Rowe till the present, we find but few celebrated female names, this can only be attributed, like many other evils, to the exclusive spirit of an established religion, which infallibly sets a mark on whatever does not bend to its shrine. The talents of a Carter and a Smith were fostered and stimulated by the elegant and highly cultivated society in which they moved, and the access they had to various mental advantages connected with this distinction. From many of these sources, Dissenters, especially those who adhere to the religious sentiments of their forefathers, are almost wholly excluded. It is the tax they have to pay for their principles, and their adherence to unfashionable truth;

nor is it probable that on the whole they are disposed to regret it, since even this exclusion is not without its own advantages. The circumstance, however, to which we have above referred, may be very much regarded as among the results of that destitution of literary patrónage, which is connected with being out of the pale of the established church, and the consequent absence of some of the stimulants which give an impulse to exertion. This evil, however, will probably decrease every day.

Under this disadvantage as a writer, if in the present case it is so to be regarded, the lamented person laboured, whose memoirs are before us. But if her correspondents were not among the great, or the literary, like those of her predecessors, yet her name is not destined to be forgotten. We need not hesitate to say, that her writings are far more directly calculated to be beneficial to society, than those of either of the illustrious names we have mentioned above, though her literary acquirements were much more limited than theirs, and perhaps on this very account, that her sole aim was to do good. She possesses the enviable distinction, not always awarded to authors of talent, even in the female world, of having lived and written to promote the welfare of her species. The temptation which so easily besets those who tread the flowery paths of literature, she resisted-the temptation of living to herself.-We trust none of our fair readers are unacquainted with her writings; since, on her own sex, she and her excellent relatives have conferred, without doubt, very considerable obligations. The basis of their system is utility, and scarcely any class of readers can peruse their writings without profit. They contain the substratum of moral and domestic excellence, on which either the plainest or the most re

fined superstructure may be reared, as, on a solid and stable foundation, you may erect a pillar of any architectural order, tuscan, doric, composite, or corinthian. This worthy family, by the principles on which they have proceeded, and the tact they have evinced, have contributed probably more than any other authors on education in the present day, to elevate the tone of real domestic worth, and to form such wives, and husbands, sisters, mothers, sons, and daughters, as all who value social happiness would wish to possess. Especially will many a young person of her own sex, we doubt not, be indebted to JANE TAYLOR for the formation of her mind to much that is excellent and useful in knowledge and moral taste; and for having imbibed from her character and her writings, (less voluminous, indeed, than we could have wished,) some of the most important elements of happiness and usefulness. We have perused her life and poetical remains, together with the extracts from her correspondence, with much interest, though she was to us personally unknown. For this gratification we are indebted to her brother, who well preserves, in his conduct of the work, the aim which has, as already remarked, so eminently characterized all the productions of this valuable family, we mean usefulness, to which they have laudably sacrificed every other consideration, and especially "display."

When not more than three or four years of age, the subject of these memoirs gave striking indications, it appears, of great acuteness and quickness of apprehension, and of that vivacity of spirit, which, though in after life it was veiled by the fuller development of a more pensive disposition, was never lost. At this early age, she was, it seems, a very amusing companion, and would entertain

her friends and visiters, by reciting, preaching, and narrating, to the no small gratification of her audience. Yet, at the same time, she was prone to reverie; appearing to have internal resources of her own that were remarkable for so infantile an age, and she lived, as it were, in a world of her own. "It was evident," says her biographer, "to those who observed her, that the little girl inhabited a fairy land, and was perpetually occupied with the imaginary interests of her teeming fancy." She early manifested a delicate sensibility and refinement of feeling, which afterwards ripened into generous friendship. Her efforts in verse were of an early date, and we think the first specimen that is preserved, which was written in her tenth year, is worthy of record, as indicating a refinement of thought, approaching to wit, far from common at so early an age. The following is a stanza, which occurs in lines intended by her, we are informed, to be the preface to a book:

"I laugh and talk, and preach a sermon well;

Go about begging, and your fortune tell;
As to my poetry, indeed 'tis all,
As good and worse by far than none at all."

The judicious parental care and tenderness it was her happiness to experience, tended, no doubt, early to promote that correctness and delicacy of moral taste which she evinced through life, and which is characteristic of all her productions. Her sense of attachment and friendship was quite in unison with these indications. This was discovered in her domestic affections, and in her earliest intimacies. The artless and beautiful lines, written in her eleventh year to a young friend of her own Christian name, who was about to leave England for America, cannot, we think, be read without emotion. They bespeak a high susceptibility of strong and refined affec

tion, and are in the first style of simple and pathetic tenderness: to select any part of these exquisite lines, would be to do injustice to the rest; in order to feel their effect, they must be read as a whole.

As it regards her religious feelings her mind appears to have been, through life, not a little impressed with some remarkable instances of the loss of early friends. Among these were the four daughters of a respectable physician at Colchester, who, in a few years, successively fell victims to the same malady. Some circumstances relating to these young ladies are so interesting and important, that we shall insert the whole narrative, which is given in the memoirs as a digression. It exemplifies the unhappy reflex effect which is often produced on the minds of others, and especially of young persons, by a dereliction from the practice of the Gospel, in its professors; and it exposes, at the same time, the incapability of Socinianism to support the mind, and afford relief in a dying hour. We acknowledge, indeed, that those who have once decidedly imbibed what we do not think it improper to denominate evangelical views of Christianity, are not unfrequently, from a variety of causes, subject to doubts, and painful disquietudes, in the immediate prospect of death; but when do we hear of their doubting their principles? We think the instance must be rare. It is one thing to doubt whether we have built on the right foundation, and quite another to doubt of the solidity of the foundation itself. Those who have always entertained evangelical views, have often, at this awful period, felt much solicitude, with regard to the infinitely momentous question, whether, as individuals, they were really Christians; but we do not know, we confess, of any instance of such persons

having been agitated with the question, Have I not been deceiving myself as to the sentiments I have held, relative to what Christianity is? Even the distressed, though excellent Cowper, does not appear to have prevailingly doubted the efficacy of the Atonement of the Cross-his fear was, lest he should not partake of its benefits. Now we have repeatedly heard of those who have maintained Socinian tenets being dissatisfied with their principles at this searching crisis ; and a happy dissatisfaction we think it, provided it be timely, and produce a change. Socinianism, during life-time, may wear the mask of an angel of light, for it has a thousand plausibilities; but the dart of the king of terrors, like Ithuriel's spear, has a touch of such" celestial temper," that, by its means, things return of force to their own likeness," and this glozing sprite may at once be converted into his real shape,-a demon of darkness-a denier of the Father and the Son, an enemy to the truth of God, and the happiness of mankind. The interesting narrative we allude to is the following:

66

"In the new circle of friends to which

the family was introduced at Colchester, were some persons of superior education

and intelligence; and among the many young persons with whom my sisters presently became acquainted, Jane soon found a friend, with whom, until death intervened, she maintained an affectionate inti

macy. Peculiarly formed for friendship, she was peculiarly happy in her friends except in having several, most dear to her,

torn from her by early death :-such was the case in the present instance. Jane's lovely daughters of Dr. S., a physician, new friend was the youngest of the four esteemed for the excellence of his private character, as well as for his professional ability. He died about the time of which I am speaking; leaving a widow, four daughters, and a son, who alone survives. The intercourse of this family with ours, during several years, was so intimate and frequent, as to claim mention in this memoir, especially as they are frequently referred to in the correspondence.

"Those who may still remember Mira S. will allow that they have rarely seen