Intelligence, French Protestants, friends of civil and religious liberty in England. Morn. Chron., Feb. 7. A letter from Switzerland contains the following particulars: "During the last three months we have had here several persons, who had left Nismes on account of the persecutions to which they were exposed. Among others, I have conversed with four or five ministers; they all agree in painting their situations as extremely critical; they declare most solemnly that the present evils are not the result of any political misconduct on their part, but arise solely from the hatred and jealousy of their Catholic brethren; that they are so surrounded by enemies, and all their actions so misrepresented, that they are afraid to take any steps, lest, on their proving insufficient, they should be exposed to an increase of malice and persecution; they are therefore quite at a loss to know how their miseries are to be remedied. On a late occasion, when the Duke d'Angouleme visited Nismes, a memorial was drawn up, beseeching him, in the humblest manner, to grant them his protection, and to accept their assurances of loyalty; but though not a single complaint was made of all they were actually suffering, their bitter enemies, who surrounded the Duke, intercepted the memorial, and threatened tenfold vengeance on its authors. "The persons here are most anxious for the fullest investigation, but they deeline furnishing any details in writing, lest they should commit their unfortunate companions. Such is the state of terror and alarm. "Last week a letter was received here from a Protestant Minister in France, where he had officiated for twenty-five years, informing his friends that the French government had decreed that none but natives should continue in its offices, and that himself and many other Swiss ministers must leave their churches and throw themselves upon charity. This respectable man, between 50 and 60 years of age, is anxious to obtain bread for his children." MISCELLANEOUS. Rev. O. Desmond. Williams's Library, Redcross Street, 'SIR, Dec. 9, 1815. While the correspondence of every 179 day accumulates the proofs of a desolating persecution in the southern provinces of France, it is a duty as grateful as indispensable, to prevent all unnecessary agitation and distress. I embrace, therefore, the earliest moment, through your Magazine, to allay public apprehension as to the fate of the Rev. O. Desmond, President of the Consistory of Nismes. From a letter received this day, the following paragraph is extracted: "I render a sad homage to truth, by confirming the frighful accounts of the massacres in the South. How many widows inconsolable! How many orphans wanting bread!! Notwith standing the number of Protestants who have been assassinated is great, we cannot count among the victims the venerable Olivier Desmond, President of the Consistory." Having been informed by another correspondent that the reformed churches have sustained a great loss by the death of the Rev. Mr. Armond, one of the pastors of Nismes, it ap pears probable, in the distracted state of the country, that the event has occasioned an erroneous report to obtain considerable circulation. By order of the Committee, T. MORGAN, Secretary. Assassin of Gen. Lagarde. The following paragraph from the French papers proves, what we suspected, that the military employed at Nismes to protect the liberties of the Protestants, are the volunteers, or national guard of the town, who swore, when the Protestants some months ago wished to shew their loyalty by joining that corps, that they would have no Protestant rascal among them.' "A notice, published by order of the Prefect of Vaucluse, says, that the assassin of Gen. Lagarde is a man of the name of Boissin, a grenadier of the national guard of that city.” The Times. The most decent part of society must feel so instiuctively and strongly, that any remarks of ours on the scurrilous language of The Times may be well omitted. We need only record the fact, that that Journal had the indecency (to say no worse)to describe the ministers of religion, who preside over the Dissenting congregations in the metropolis of the British empire, and any individual of whom would, we presume, incalculably outweigh that Journal in public confidence, as "the treble faced rogues." What must be the character of that cause which dictates such abuse and employs such means? We wish the Bourbons joy, with their agent in the Journal Department of this country; he may give articulation to their malignity, and display their taste as legitimate gentlemen, though he will precisely fail where they especially need his aid; that is, in deterring the honourable and benevolent inhabitants of this kingdom from bringing to light, and resisting the shameful persecutions which have marked the short periods of their first and second reign. The Times is exceedingly delighted at having disposed so soon of the company, called The Protestant Society,' and of course equal pleasure will be experienced at the Thuilleries. The task, by the bye, appeared so easy, that it was hardly worth the celebration indeed we were always at a loss to discover what the Protestant or Penitent Society had done to excite the rage of the Bourbons and The Times. It certainly could only arise from neglect of a little explanation. Whether intentionally or not, its operations seemed calculated to secure their cause, and now it is evident that it is only anxious to make its peace, by preventing the excrtions of others. We suspect, however, that the Bourbons and their Editor will find, that the respectable persons whom they now vituperate with all their might, are made of more genuine and sterner stuff, and that a threefold cord will not easily be broken. The contributions they cannot endure, but they cannot prevent them, and The Times may be assured that not a farthing of them will be given to it for hush money, nor will the advice, nor the consent of the French police be asked as to its disposal. Europe will know, and history will record, that wise, upright, and charitable Christians in England assisted to relieve the sufferings of persecuted Protestants in France-in the second reign of LOUIS THE DESIRED. M.Chron., Jan. 31. Mr. Marron. When Mr. Marron's letter was published by the Bourbon Journals in this country, we stated as a fact which was before the public, that the respectable editor of a periodical work had mentioned, that Mr. Marron had written to this country in strains of high commendation of those who took an interest in the affairs of French Protestants; and the fact is precisely as we stated it. Mr. Marron now, it appears, sends another letter, in which he acknowledges that he wrote to the Rev. R. A. and with a profligacy of expression, unworthy of a minister of religion, and especially when connected with the calamities of his brethren, he says -“he might have gilded the pill, and have softened the crudity of his refusal." That pill still exists, but the gold has disappeared. If Mr. Marron feels sore at the gratuitous abuse of the "self-styled Protectors," he has much reason to bless the forbearance of the Committee at Williams's Library-but forbearance may have its limit; and in the letter itself, which we hope will be published, the public may learn how to estimate the President's talents for pill making and pill gilding. No one need "be inclined to asperse him," for he takes care what with odes and pills, effectually to asperse himself. As to the dictation of the police, we know the history of that business too well to assist Mr. Marron in his justification.-M. Chron., Feb. S. SIR, CHRONICLE. Without entering at all into the consideration of the conduct of the Protestant Society for the Protection of Religious Liberty, in regard to the letter of the Duke of Wellington, I have thought it proper to address you, on purpose to distinguish the Society in question from the great mass of Dissenters in this country. It is the more necessary because paragraphs have appeared in many of the papers, and, I believe, in your respectable Journal, assuming that this Society defeated Lord Sidmouth, obtained the enlargement of the Act of Toleration, and is composed of many members of the Church of England, and represents all the Dissenters of England and Wales. Now, Sir, this assumption deserves the severest reprobation. Intelligence.-Wahabees, Mahometan Reformers. 181 On the occasion of Lord Sidmouth's been in existence since 1732, a Com. Bill, all that worshiped under the mittee of Deputies appointed by alAct of Toleration, made an instant most all the regular Dissenting churchmovement; the Methodists in the es in Loudon, to protect and repreconnexion of the late Rev. John Wes- sent them in all matters respecting ley, particularly distinguished them their religious freedom, and from an selves, and a great proportion of the interesting volume lately published, petitions was from that numerous bo- containing the Proceedings of this dy. A great many Dissenters also body, it appears, that as long ago as came forward at that time, who have 1745, they addressed a circular letter not acted with any public body since. to the Dissenters throughout En Some of the persons who were active gland to raise forces against the Prein that affair formed a Society, and tender. They have also come to recalled it the Protestant Society; but solutions on the present question. others retired, and have neither contributed to the Society or been members of its Committee; it cannot, therefore, be said with truth that this Society defeated Lord Sidmouth, for it was not formed till after that eveut, and many who took part then have no connexion with it whatever. With respect to the enlargement of the Act of Toleration, the Methodists, also, were particularly employed to obtain that measure. The solicitor to that body, and Mr. Butterworth, M. P. I, myself, know to have been very active. It is further stated, that the Committee is composed of several members of the Established Church. Now, Sir, the names of that Committee are published, I suppose officially, in a work called the Evangelical Miscellany; it appears that there are fifteen ministers and fifteen gentlemen-all the ministers are Dissenters, and I perceive the others are tradesmen in the Metropolis, and may therefore be easily known; and out of the fifteen I only see one to whom any doubt can attach of his being a Dissenter and that is the individual whose name generally appears as Chairman, Mr. Mills. He does, I understand, receive the sacrament at the church occasionally-but all his family are Dis senters. He was brought up to attend a meeting in Spitalfields, and now attends himself principally at that in East Cheap, where the Rev. Mr. Clayton preaches he is further a manager of a Dissenting Academy in Hoxton, for educating persons for the ministry among Dissenters. It seems to me therefore to be deceiving the public, to hold out that the Committee is composed of members of the Established Church. As to its representing all the Dissenters in England and Wales-there is and has the London Dissenters, belong to this I learn, in fact, that very few of society, which assumes to represent all England and Wales. They represent none of the Methodists-the Quakers have a Committee of Sufferings-and indeed they only represent, according to their own plan, those congregations who subscribe annually a certain sum. Society, it appears, was to protect The design of the the persons so subscribing in their freedom, under the acts of toleration as existing from time to time, and to &c. Very important objects, no doubt, afford legal assistance in assault, riot, tlemen, thus appointed from year to but how this Committee of thirty genDissenters, on the subject of a peryear, can assume to represent all the secution in France, is to me inexplicable. AN OLD CITIZEN AND DISSENTER. Letters from Egypt state, that Mo- DOMESTIC. The first Annual Meeting of the Southern Unitarian Fund Society will be held General Baptist Chapel, Thomas Street, on Wednesday, 17th April, 1816, at the Portsmouth. The Rev. W. J. Fox is expected to preach. Manchester College, York. The following benefactions have been received on account of this Institution. Wm. Brodhurst, Jun., Esq., 1. 8. d. of Mansfield Rev. Mr. Anstis, Bridport Mrs. Markham, Shaw Hill, 5 5 0 50 0 5 0 105 0 Wm. Shore, Esq. Tapton Grove, Rev. John Holland, Bolton 0 £172 10 0 5 13 0 The following Congregational Collections have been likewise received. KENDAL-Rev. John Harrison CHESTERFIELD-After a mon preached by the Rev. Wm. Parkinson ser 12 12 0 £18 5 GEO. WM. WOOD, Treasurer. Unitarian Chapel, Thorne, Yorkshire. (See pp. 120, 121.) The Rev. James Gilchrist, of Newington Green, has issued the following Prospectus of a Rational Grammar and Dictionary of the English Language. The foregoing title is not pre-occupied and not merited by any system of grammar and lexicography already published. That of Dr. Johnson has been pronounced a disphilosophic philologer of modern times. It grace to the English language by the most is not however the intention of this Prospectus to point out the demerits of the philological works which already exist: that which is now offered to the public has nothing in common with them. The Grammar is introductory to the Dictionary and contains, 1. The nature and origin of alphabetic signs explained. 2. A canon of etymology established. 3. The elements of speech; or, the few simple words collected into one view of which all the numerous compound words are formed. 4. The manner of their formation. 5. The common system of grammar examined and its absurdities exposed. 6. A standard of Subscriptions at the Meeting at Elland, orthography established. announced, p. 121. Obituary.—Mrs. Ann Marsom. these different forms of the same word is clearly and concisely given; showing that while the same word has many applications both literal and metaphoric, it has uniformly one unvarying meaning. 3. The Dictionary here proposed being intended as a handmaid to philosophy rather than a mere Vocabulary, those words which are fittest for the purposes of speech are recommended to the choice of clear thinkers; and obscure, indefinite, equivocal, unintelligible, unmeaning and false-meaning words or uses of them are proscribed. A leading object of the work is to promote clear and definite expression to dissipate mysticism and jargon and put down sophistry. 4. The German, Italian, French, Spanish and Latin forms or spellings of the same word are presented to view with its English form or spelling. Thus the work is intended to serve as an easy introduction to universal lexicography. 5. All the words etymologically related are brought together and arranged according to their degrees of proximity all the branches of the same stock or members of the same family are 188 clustered around the primitive stem or parent word. Competent judges will admit this to be the most philosophic plan of lexicography. It is attended however with one disadvantage the difficulty of finding any word that may be wanted. To obviate this difficulty an Index will be given-all the words of the Dictionary will be alphabetically arranged, with the page referred to where each may be found in its proper etymological connexion. The pronunciation of all those words which deviate from analogy will be marked and indicated in the manner of Mr. Walker's Dictionary; which shall be taken as the standard of English pronunciation. Thus with the principles and rules laid down in the grammar, the present work will serve as a guide to provincialists and foreigners for pronouncing the English language. 6. It is intended to publish the whole work in Five Parts, at 6s. each, to Subscribers ; 8s. to Non-subscribers; but the Author means to wait the decision of the public respecting the Grammar before he send any part of the Dictionary to the press. OBITUARY. Died, Wednesday, March 13, 1816, in the 69th year of her age, Mrs. ANN MARSOM, wife of the Rev. John Marsom. She was born in the year 1747, received a religious education from her mother, and at an early age made a public profession of Christianity by baptism and an association with a church of the Calvinistic persuasion. She afterwards embraced the Unitarian doctrine, and in the year 1774 addressed a letter on that subject to the pastor of the church of which she was then a member, avowing and defending her sentiments, in consequence of which she was separated from their communion. This letter has been lately printed in the first number of the Christian Reformer. On some disputed points she could never fully make up her mind, but her views in ge neral were rational and free from enthusiasm, and she entertained the most friendly sentiments towards those from whom she differed in opinion. On this subject she often repeated the words of the Apostle Peter, as containing a declaration which gave great satisfaction to her mind, In every nation he that feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted of him. On the subject of the Divine Unity she frequently meationed the 3rd verse of the 17th of John as having been decidedly convincing to the mind of her mother as well as herself. This is life eternal that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. In her disposition she was remarkably affectionate and sympathizing; strongly affected by the sufferings of others and anxious for their relief. This temper continued with her even when the decay of her faculties rendered her incapable of the active exertion for which she had before been distinguished, and which had made her eminently useful in her family connexions, among whom her memory will long be cherished with tender and grateful recollection. With respect to her hope of acceptance with God she always expressed it to be founded distinctly and solely on the mercy of God as revealed in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and professed to derive all her comfort from the promises of God contained in his word. She often repeated those two lines of Dr. Watts's, "The voice that rolls the stars along Speaks all the promises !" She was often heard to say, "I never had a voice from heaven to tell me that I was a child of God; but I trust I can say, I know in whom I have believed." She disclaimed all confidence in herself, and her mind seemed to rest for support on such declarations as these, There is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, and in those that hope in his mercy. It was remarkable that in the latter years of her life, when she was in a state of |