stood, by the right of private judgment, the neglect of Catholic consent, and the contempt of Christian antiquity. It is this, the adherence to Catholic tradition as well as to Scripture, which fits the Anglican Church to enter the lists with Romanism. Dissent will never make any head against Popery, even if it should weary of it as a political ally; for in ecclesiastical contests there must be an appeal to antiquity, to the practices and principles of the primitive Church, and this is an appeal in which Romanism, with all its abuses, must carry it over Sectarianism with all its reforms."

In speaking of the bolder front which Popery now assumes, and its confident prognostics of increasing power in these kingdoms, Mr. Melvill observes,

"Men talk as if Popery might be reformed, softened, modified; they talk of an impossibility. Ever since the Council of Trent, the falsehoods of Popery have been bound up with its existence, and consecrated by anathemas on all who disbelieve; so that by its own solemn act, Popery brought itself into such a condition that it cannot be reformed, except through being destroyed. Let us not be misunderstood. We do not mean that there never could be a reformed, a pure Church of Rome; though we confess that the acts of the Council of Trent did so much to close up the avenues to an escape from corruption, that it is hard to see where reform could begin, except in abolition. Yet even these acts could not

touch the truth of the foundation of the Church, or the apostolicity of her orders; and whilst these remain, it were too much to pronounce a case past recovery. But we do not use Popery and the Church of Rome as synonymous or convertible terms; no more than we use Protestantism and the Church of Rome as opposite or antagonist terms. The Romanist has been taught to believe that we seek the destruction of his Church; whereas we seek only the destruction of its abuses, and its restoration to its primitive state. There is much held by the Church of Rome, against which we make no protest, and as this is not counter to Protestantism we do not include it in Popery.

But we

take Popery and Protestantism as antagonist terms, understanding by the former whatever of error is denounced by the latter," &c.

With regard to the effects which this work of the Bishop of Vermont has produced on the Papal Church, Mr. Melvill observes,

"Soon after it appeared in America, an answer was put forth by a Bishop of the Church of Rome, a man every way qualified either to maintain a good cause, or give speciousness to a bad. The book was characterised throughout by courtesy and ability, but left the argument and authorities of the work, which it professed to answer, just where it found them. There is no reason to suppose that it proved satisfactory to the Roman Catholics themselves, for it could neither be said to weaken Bishop Hopkins's position, nor give strength to the opposite."

The Bishop observes, in a short preface to the American edition,

"That he has desired to confine himself rigidly to those authorities, and to that kind of argument which he thought best calculated for the candid consideration of his Roman brethren, and most becoming in every man who seeks to contend for the principles of Christian truth, without forfeiting the blessings of a Christian spirit."

His object, in fact, is to exhibit at once a simple and effective method of showing the evidence of antiquity upon the points in question. The topics he designs to discuss are those, 1st, which belong to the Pope's supremacy; 2ndly, the dominion claimed over the whole Christian world by the Church of Rome.

Having been so long detained by the interesting subject described in the preface, we have now only room to point out to our readers the plan which the author adopts, in pursuance of his design. The principle pursued is that which the Canon Law allows,-the Canon Law recognises the Scriptures as the fountain of truth,-next to them General Councils-then the writings of the Fathers. Eighteen of the Fathers are specified by name in the Canon Law. Others specified by character as approved by Jerome. The present doctrine of the Church of Rome, concerning the definition of the Holy Catholic Church, and the Pope's supremacy, set forth in the words of the Doway Catechism and the Canon Law. The Bishop then examines the Scripture texts appealed to in support of the Pope's supremacy; the other evidence of Scripture; the Apostolic Council; testimony of St. Paul. He, and not St. Peter, designated as the founder of

the Church of Rome. Testimony of the Apostolic Canons, inconsistent with the doctrine of the Pope's supremacy. Testimony of the Apostolic Constitutions, &c. The Decretal Epistles shown to be a forgery. A document forged in support of any claim becomes evidence against it. Then follow the testimonies of the Fathers, commencing with that of Clement of Rome, Irenæus, Tertullian, each in separate chapters; ending with the testimony of Isodore of Pelusium, Prosper of Aquitain, and Vincent of Lirens.

The author in a separate chapter also considers the Probable Origin of the Doctrine of Supremacy from the secular preponderance of ancient Rome. The imperial laws and councils aided in establishing it. It was probably intended for the peace and unity of Christendom; but it gave no warrant for the change by which it became a spiritual yoke, invested with the attributes of a divine right, and entitled to exact an universal homage at the peril of salvation. Then follows an account of the various opinions professed concerning the extent of the papal powers among the Roman Catholics themselves. The Transalpine doctrine, the Cisalpine doctrine, the Canon of the Council of Florence; these doctrines irreconcileable. We have next a very important chapter on the inconsistencies of the tenets maintained by the Roman Church in the form of queries:-1. Why the unity of the Catholic Church should be confined to the Church of Rome, instead of being co-extensive with the creed of the Church Universal. 2. Why a vow of true obedience to the Pope should be added to the creed, and made necessary to salvation. 3. Why the same creed obliges the professor to say that he holds all apostolic traditions and observances of the Catholic Church, when so many of these traditions and observances are done away. 4. Why the same creed exacts the promise to understand the Scriptures no otherwise than as the Fathers interpret them, when their in terpretations are so directly opposed to the present system. 5. Why all the Canons of the Councils are professed to be holden, when so many are obso

lete; and why the anathemas of the Council of Trent should be considered binding on the conscience of every individual. 6. Why the phantom of Infallibility should be retained, when the professed doctrines of the Church of Rome have undergone such a change; and when to this day there are several inconsistent theories afloat concerning the Papacy, without any acknowledged mode of deciding between them. The volume ends with an account of the attempts made in the 17th century to unite the reformed Churches with the Gallican Church of Rome-with the peril of the distracted state of Christendom, and with the author's conviction, "That a disposition to return to primitive principles, a discussion of those principles for the sake of truth and peace, with the encouraging aid of those governments which have an established religion, would probably settle every difficulty."

We have not often an opportunity of recommending a work at once so learned, and so argumentative, and at the same time so practically useful, and so clearly and happily arranged as the present; and we consider it as one holding an important place in the controversy of the great question to which it belongs.

Legend and Romance, African and European. By Richard Johns, Lieut. Royal Marines. 3 vols.

IT is not our custom, generally, to review works of fiction; but the book before us is so excellent in its kind, and possesses so much historical interest, that we think we are doing a service to such of our readers as have not perused it, in briefly recommending it to their attention. We look upon it as being, in more points of view than one, one of the most remarkable books that has been published for some years. Lieut. Johns has the true notion of what an historical romance ought to be; instead of loading his picture with antiquarian details, or creating forced situations in order to introduce this person or the other, who have no concern in the narrative, and are only brought forward to show the extent of the author's researches, he makes a simple and na

tural story, carries us through a number of striking and touching scenes without unnecessary interruptionз, although the tale abounds in beautiful descriptions; and when the reader has come to the conclusion, besides the interest which the tale itself has excited, he feels that, instead of having learnt the names and characters of a few historical individuals, of whom he never heard before, he has obtained a clear and satisfactory idea of the character of the times and the state of society. Such romances are the best companions of history.

By much the longest tale in Lieut. Johns' three volumes of Legend and Romance, is that of "Sebastian of Portugal." Few of our readers are ignorant of the doubts which, even amongst contemporaries, hung over the fate of this monarch, after the battle of Alcazarquiver, so interesting at that time to Englishmen because in it were engaged and perished the adventurous army of Stukely, who had been sent by the Pope for the invasion of Ireland. The Spanish party, and Sebastian's enemies, sedulously encouraged the belief that he had fallen in the battle, although his body was never found on the field; while others believed that he had escaped and was still living in retirement, and his friends in Portugal long afterwards nourished the expectation of seeing him return to claim the throne of his ancestors. Lieut. Johns has viewed the matter in this light; and, taking up his hero when first stricken by the pangs of true love, he works out naturally a successive series of events which bring about the fatal disaster, and leads him through many a moving accident by field and flood until at last we leave the monarch of Portugal living in quiet and happy retirement with the object of his early attachment in a tranquil valley among the Pyrenees. The narrative is full of spirit, and a great variety of characters, admirably delineated, are brought into the field. We did not intend to give any extracts, but we cannot resist the temptation of transferring to our pages a trait of the humorous father Chavès, who was addicted to making experiments on vinous liquors.

"Don't talk to me of women,' cried the Padré, in answer to some of the servitor's free jokes; I have forsaken them, treacherous minxes! I believe my niece would hand me over to the new inquisitors if she found me confessing miller's stick to wine, Nicolao,' continued the wives after hours now-a-days. Let us priest, dost know what I mean to do with thy fifty pieces? The greatest charity I can confer upon society is to explain the nature of beverages which the ingenuity of man hath concocted under the specious generical name of wine. I am certain that little is known about vinous poisons; and what is more deleterious than bad drink?'

"Here the Padré took a draught at the flagon before him, which proved his perfect confidence in the present tipple being especially good. Another and another pull at the cup succeeded, till, it is to be feared, his intended inquiry into the pernicious qualities of vinous poison was, for the present, lost in the general philosophy of drinking, on which point he became discursive.

"My son,' remarked the maudlin Padré, looking with grave aspect at Nicholao, who was fooling him to the top of his bent, drinking is an honest occupation, and injures no one. Look at the lower animals, they always enjoy a draught more than a feed. The horse snorts with de

light in his bucket; the cat purrs as she laps; the ducks lift their heads in gratitude to heaven even for a throttle-full of muddy water from a green pond. Oh! drinking is a blessed act throughout all creation; and man, being alone in the possession of reason, has invented wine : but it ought to be good, Nicolao. Even instinct teaches where the best liquor is to be found. Look at the bee,' droned the Padré, closing his eyes and shaking his head as though he were delivering a homily, for the purple draughts he had taken sadly bewildered his brain, 'look at the bee; how he goes from flower to flower, tasting and tasting the mawkish stuff till he comes to the hollyhock; and there he sticks till he swills his full, like a jolly fellow, and drops where he drank. Now for the moral, Nicolao, my son!'-and Padré Chaves opened his eyes wide in a sort of ecstasy, which made his companion roar with laughter. I will sing my moral: you may laugh, if you will; but that little insect shames man, even the wisest, who drinks bad liquor.'

"Then, fixing himself securely in his chair, he trolled forth with a deep bass voice this moral lay:

formed from a very thin plate of metal, impressed only on one side.

"Previous to the latter part of the year 1837, few bracteate coins had been found in Ireland; indeed I was not aware of any except two in the cabinet of the Dean of St. Patrick's. In Nov. 1837, however, a very large hoard of them was dug up near Fermoy, on the lands of Curragh more, near Castle-Lyons, part of the estate of John Hyde, esq. and within a few hundred yards of the place where the battle was fought by Lord Castlehaven called by Smith, vol. ii. p. 157, the battle of Castle Lyons. The quantity

found was said to amount to two or three baskets full; but it is supposed the greatest part was melted down, as not more than about sixty came into the possession of the Cork collectors. Those, however, include thirteen [at length Mr. Lindsay obtained, and has engraved, sixteen] varieties of type, but no legend is to be found on any of them; they are, from their thinness, generally in a mutilated state, and when unbroken do not weigh more than from seven to ten grains.

"A comparison of the types with those of the English coins will lead us to conclude that they have been in general copied from English coins commencing with William I. or II. and ending with John, or perhaps Henry III., and to assign as the probable period of their mintage the early part of the thirteenth century; and as the Danes had then no power over, or intercourse with Ireland, it is not likely they were struck by that people, and still less by the English, who had then a very different coinage of their own, and never appear to have struck bracteate coins in their own country; and we may therefore conclude that they are genuine and unquestionable specimens of the coins of the native Irish princes, and, although a very poor description of coin, highly interesting as forming a distinct and hitherto unknown class in the annals of the coinage of Ireland."

In the Anglo-Irish series, the only points of importance in which Mr. Lindsay has found occasion to differ from Simon, are those which relate to the arrangement of the coins assigned by that author to Henry V. and those bearing three crowns, which he attributes to Henry VI. It appears that no coins were struck in Ireland by Richard II. by Henry IV. nor by Henry V. (as Mr. Lindsay supposes),

nor until quite the latter part of the reign of Henry VI. The orders for a new coinage, made in a Parliament held at Drogheda in the thirty-eighth year of the last named sovereign, are fully recorded. These circumstances alone greatly invalidate Simon's supposition of Henry the Vth. having struck coins in Ireland; but Mr. Lindsay deduces many other more convincing arguments from the types of the coins themselves, which show that they actually belong to Henry VII. His original conclusions upon this subject were given some years ago in one of the many valuable essays on numismatics which he has commmunicated to the pages of the Gentleman's Magazine; and he has since seen additional reasons to be satisfied with the opinion thus expressed.

Under the reign of Elizabeth, Mr. Lindsay takes notice that in 1561 a coinage took place in Ireland of shillings and groats, nearly of the same fineness as the English money, and of the value of nine-pence to the shilling.

These coins bear on the reverse three harps in a shield, between the date 1561. Again in 1598 and 1601 other shillings of the same value were coined, the reverse a single harp, crowned. Mr. Lindsay does not, however, notice that these coins (in England at least) bore the familiar name of Harpers, and we are tempted to extract, from Mr. Thoms's volume of Anecdotes, just published by the Camden Society, the following story concerning them :