lasted long must continue to last. But history assures us that men have often indulged this easy faith at great cost.

The Influence of Aristocracies on the Revolutions of Nations, considered in relation to the present circumstances of the British Empire. By JAMES J. MACINTYRE. 8vo, pp. 448. Fisher and Jackson, London.

Mr. Macintyre is not an impartial man, and his book is by no means an impartial book; nevertheless, this volume on the evil genius of Aristocracies, is a work of substantial truth, so far as it goes, and contains a large accumulation of facts well worthy of attention, and on which the honest and good man will not fail to meditate as he reads.

The Witch of Endor, and other Poems. By R. A. VAUGHAN, B.A. 12mo, pp. 71. London: Jackson and Walford.

Poetry-poetry in a youth, the bare mention of it is sufficient to conjure up to the sage fancies of some men, every image of vanity and idleness. But these sage persons profess to admire the poetry of Doddrige and Watts, of Young and Montgomery, and seem to forget that old poets were not always old. It is well for us that those who took up the note of censure during the youth of such men, against any indulgence of tastes of this sort, were not heeded. Need we remind these persons that poetry is not something restricted to rhyme, or to metre of any kind? It consists in those forms of thought in which we trace not only the operation of the intellect, but the colour, and clothing, and soul, which are given to thought by imagination and feeling as in the hymns of David and the odes of Isaiah. Our verses, accordingly, may be miserably wanting in poetry, while our prose may be filled with its truest elements. Hence the men who have written with the greatest effect on moral and religious subjects, have all possessed something of the poetic temperament, and most of them have had their season in which they have evinced some passion towards poesy in its more received form. Some of our readers may wonder that we should deem it necessary to set forth this mere alphabet of knowledge in respect to such things. But it is well to teach even this alphabet, so long as there are many who have even this to learn. Evangelical nonconformity has been damaged greatly by the narrowness and prejudice which have so commonly slighted aids of this nature.

The man who attempts to write poetry without any vocation that way may be safely left to himself. The evil will soon bring its own cure and the man who has anything of the genius which that art requires, will not be deterred from giving it exercise because there are some men who do not know what it means. To which of these classes the author of The Witch of Endor' belongs, we shall not take upon us to decide. The Spectator' describes the poem as marked by 'force of diction and elevation of style,' and as possessing a poetical and even a dramatic spirit.' The Athenæum' speaks of it as being

'too classical for popularity,' but as the production of an educated and polished mind,' and as including evidences of sound judgment, and of a command of diction, seldom met with in so young an author.' We might cite authorities which have spoken in terms of much higher praise, but if these should suffice to dispose the reader to procure the book, and to read for himself, then a judgment more important to him than any other-his own-may be duly formed.

Strauss, Hegel, and their Opinions. By the Rev. J. R. BEARD, D.D., 8vo, pp. 50.

A Reply to the Life of Jesus, by Dr. Strauss, from the French of Professor Quinet, and the Rev. Pastuer A. Coquerel. Translated by the Rev. J. R. BEARD, D.D. 8vo, pp. 66.

Illustrations of the Moral Argument for the Credibility of the Gospels. By the Rev. J. R. BEARD, D.D. 8vo., pp. 101. Chapman: London.

In the first of these pamphlets, Dr. Beard has furnished an able view of the doctrine of Strauss and Hegel; in the second he has translated two admirable papers in reply to the former of these writers; and in the third he has presented a still more powerful reply from his own pen. We think that Dr. Beard concedes somewhat more than is necessary or expedient to the theory of the rationalist, in his account of the probable origin of the gospels, and on some other points; but we cannot speak too strongly in commendation of the clearness, justice, and force with which his general argument is conducted. Such of our educated young men as are in danger of being allured from the right path by the antichristian philosophy of Germany, as set forth in the cloudy laudations of certain popular writers, will do well to place themselves for a while under the guidance of Dr. Beard. By so doing, they will soon be satisfied, if we mistake not, that the renowned polemics adverted to, have a great deal more of master reynard than of the giant in them-certainly, they seem to dwindle into something very much of that order when a real man comes to deal with them.

We earnestly hope that Dr. Beard will be encouraged to proceed, both with his translations and his original compositions, so as to furnish to the English reader a sufficient view of the controversy in regard to Christian evidence which has been assuming so much peculiarity in Germany and France of late years. Such a service should be appreciated by every divinity student, and by every intelligent Christian.

6

German Anti-Supernaturalism. Six Lectures on Strauss' Life of Jesus.' By PHILIP HARWOOD. 8vo, pp. 107. Fox, London. In these lectures Mr. Harwood professes to give the substance or argument of the book to which they relate. Their object, accordingly, is to show that there is no more of the supernatural or divine in the mission of Jesus than in the mission of Mohammed. Both men were the creation, the embodiment, and the want of their times. So far as

this was true of them, there was truth in them, but no further. Such is the purport of the six lectures delivered in the Chapel,' in South Place, Finsbury. We are happy in being able to oppose Dr. Beard's Unitarian defence of Christian evidence, to this second-hand attempt on the part of Mr. Harwood to destroy it. It is by not merely an unfriendly, but an unjust method of proceeding,' says Dr. Beard, 'that Strauss often gains the appearance of succeeding to display va'riations and discordances between the Evangelists.' But of this unfriendliness, injustice, and something even worse, the reader will learn nothing from the pages of the philosophical and truth-loving Mr. Harwood.

The Fathers and Founders of the London Missionary Society. A Jubilee Memorial. Including a Sketch of the Origin and Progress of the Institution. By the Rev. JOHN MORISON, D.D. London. 8vo, pp. 580.

All the portraits in this gallery of personages have some fine elements in common-but the variety in them is as remarkable as the identity. The juncture with which their lives were connected was peculiar; but while they were men in part formed by the state of things about them, such was the constant and combined action of their varied power, that they gave a strong impress to their times. We hope soon to invite the attention of our readers to a critical estimate of the religious movement with which the names of these able and worthy men are allied and shall then avail ourselves freely of the information collected by Dr. Morison. In the meantime we remind our readers, that this edition of the Fathers and Founders is meant as a kind of jubilee memorial; that the two volumes of the former editions are here published as one; and we have only further to express our conviction that Dr. Morison has done important service, not only to the cause of missions, but to the cause of Christianity, by his labour in this department of our history.

The Natural History of Animals; being the Substance of Three Courses of Lectures, delivered before the Royal Institution of Great Britain. By THOMAS RYMER JONES, F.R.S., F.Z.Š. London. Vol. I. 12mo, pp. 362.

This volume is beautifully printed, and its subjects are illustrated by more than a hundred excellent engravings. The substance of the work has been delivered as lectures at different scientific institutions. The knowledge of this circumstance may not recommend the publication to some readers; but those who know Mr. Jones, and those who have heard him lecture even to the most popular auditories, will be well assured that there is nothing of the charlatan, or of the mere surface-man, in him. In the present work he exhibits the knowledge, judgment, and taste, which always mark his treatment of the subjects that belong to his department of science.

Sympathy; or the Mourner Advised and Consoled. By the REV. JOHN BRUCE, Minister of Necropolis, or Low Hill General Cemetery, Liverpool. 12mo, pp. 280. London. Liverpool. The Third Edition.

A book of this nature, which has reached its third edition, must possess some decided qualities of adaptation to its object. To administer consolation to the mourning is a department of duty preferring a large demand on the judgment, and equally on the tenderness and fidelity, of those who apply themselves to that office. These requisites Mr. Bruce possesses in an unusual degree, and we will recommend his book, not only as a most suitable offering to the bereft, but as a volume which the Christian minister, as the man expected to address his word in season to such sufferers, will do well to read once and again.*

Foreign Literary Entelligence.

UNDER this head it is intended to give, in every number of the BRITISH QUARTERLY REVIEW, a concise general account of the progress of Literature on the Continent, and more especially in Germany and France, for the past quarter, down to a period as late as the arrival of foreign works and lists will permit. This quarterly notice of foreign literature will contain the titles of most of the important works published on the Continent, brief critical remarks on the most interesting of them, and biographical notices of foreign theologians and scholars, together with university and miscellaneous intelligence. In the present number it is thought advisable to extend these notices over a wider space of time than the limits of the quarter; but, on the other hand, it has been found impossible to make them so complete as we trust they will be found in future numbers.

1. Encyclopædias and Collections of General Literature.

The Great German Encyklopädie, edited by Ersch and Gruber, proceeds slowly. It is, perhaps, two-thirds finished, and consists of upwards of seventy quarto volumes. A new edition (the ninth) of the Conversations-Lexicon, one of the best cyclopædias in existence, is in progress, and new works under a similar title, in various departments of literature, are more or less advanced, such as the Conversations-Lexicon der neuesten Literatur, (ConversationLexicon of recent Literature,) and the Conversations Lexicon für bildeude Kunst, (Conversation-Lexicon for the Fine Arts.) A daily paper, containing a mixture of light and more serious compositions, is published, under the title of the Morgenblatt, with special supplements on literature-the Litteraturblatt, and art-the Kunstblatt. The enterprising publisher, Cotta, of Stuttgart and Tübingen, has been for some time publishing a series of excellent reprints of the best German works, and somewhat similar collections of the French classics are publishing in Paris. In addition to the old standard periodicals of

* Many books which we should have noticed in this department are omitted in consequence of their not being sent sufficiently early. They will not be forgotten in our second number.

Germany, such as the Studien und Kritiken for theology, the Rheinisches Museum and Zeitschrift für die Alterthumswissenschaft for classical literature, the three Jahrbücher for general literature, namely, the Berliner, Heidelberger, and Wiener, and others, a new monthly journal, devoted to historical science, and supported by some of the most eminent scholars and historians at Berlin, has been regularly published during the present year, under the title of Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft.

2. Theology, Ecclesiastical History, and Editions of the Fathers.

Meier, G. A., Die Lehre von der Trinität in ihrer histor. Entwickelung, 8vo, vol. 1. (The Doctrines of the Trinity in its historical development.)

Nitzsch, System der Christlichen Lehre. 8vo. (System of Christian Doctrine.)-(London: Williams and Norgate.) This work, by one of the most learned and eminent evangelical divines of Germany, is reputed one of the best outlines of systematic theology in existence.

Origenis Opera Omnia, Edid. C. et C. V. De la Rue, denuo recens. C. H. E. Lommatzch. 8vo. Of this work twenty volumes have appeared.

Saintes, Amand, Histoire Critique du Rationalisme en Allemagne, depuis son origine jusqu'à nos jours. Second edition, 8vo. (Critical History of Rationalism in Germany, from its rise to the present time.)—This work has the reputation of being the best on the subject.

Tholuck, A., Predigten über Hauptstücke des Christlichen Glaubens und Lebens. 4 vols. 8vo. (Sermons on the Chief Points of the Christian Faith and Life.) The name of the author is a sufficient recommendation.

Uhden, H. F., Die Zustände der Anglikanischen Kirche, mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der Verfassung und des Cultus dargestellt. 8vo. (The State of the English Church described with special reference to its Constitution and Worship.)-We have not seen this work, but we presume that it is the fruit of the author's mission into England to inquire into our ecclesiastical affairs.

Wieseler, R., Chronologische Synopse der 4 Evangelien. 8vo. (Chronological Synopsis of the Four Gospels.)

Wiltsch Atlas sacer sive Ecclesiasticus. Folio.-An Attempt to represent the Geographical distribution of Christianity, from the earliest age.

Winer, D. G. B., De Verborum cum præpositionibus compositorum in Novo Testamento usu. Fasc. I. 4to.

Corpus Reformatorum. Ed. C. G. Bretschneider. Vol. XI. Philippi Melanthonis Opera quæ supersunt omnia. Vol. XI. 4to.

Hengstenberg, Dr. E. W., Commentar über die Psalmen. 2 vols. 8vo. (Commentary on the Psalms.)-The author is one of the most learned biblical scholars, and one of the chief pillars of orthodoxy in Germany.

Justini, S., Opera. Ed. J. C. T. Otto. 2 vols. 8vo.

Neander, Dr. A., Allgemeine Geschichte der Christlichen Religion und Kirche. 2 Aufl. 1 Abth.-This is the first part of a new edition of Neander's justly celebrated Ecclesiastical History.

Umbreit, C. F., Commentar über die Propheten des Alten Bundes. 3rd vol. Hesekiel. 8vo.-The author of this commentary on Ezekiel is one of the most eminent theologians in Germany, and is known to English readers by the translation of his commentary on Job, in Clarke's Biblical Cabinet.

Bibliotheca Patrum Eccles. Lat., Cur. E. G. Gersdorf. Vol. XI. Firmiani Lactantii Opera. Part II., 8vo. The series of the Latin Fathers to which this volume belongs, deșerves the highest commendation for its cheapness, elegance, and accuracy.