again restored it. By the days of Abraham the fatal disease of idolatry had almost overspread the human frame. Nothing could have preserved it from destruction but the interference of the Almighty to form a church for himself, out of the world, in which his pure worship would be maintained. Again, Satan had nearly prevailed in overspreading the world with darkness, which is the certain forerunner of death, when the people of Israel were in Egypt; but Jehovah, by most signally manifesting himself as the God of that people, rescued it from ruin. Error, ignorance, misery, again, under the power of the prince of darkness, threatened destruction to mankind, when the Son of the Highest appeared to support a sinking world; and hereafter, in the midst of all the downward tendencies of sin, and the untiring efforts of Satan's children, the enemies of God shall, by a new manifestation of the Divine Saviour, be trodden under foot, and the perfect restoration of the world shall be secured.

It is singular to perceive how the enemies of Revelation have now changed their mode of attack. For hundreds of years the whole earth was leagued against the Jews and the Jewish Scriptures, for maintaining the unity of the Godhead, and all the

wise men and philosophers of the world supported the populace in their superstitions. Now, the doctrine of God's Word has so approved itself to the understanding of all intelligent men in Christian countries, that this ancient plague-spot of the earth has, in them, nearly disappeared. The record, so long hidden in the depths of the earth, now sends forth so clear and strong a verdict in favour of the doctrine so long maintained by the light of Scripture against the world, that our author is ready to run to the opposite extreme, and to assert, not only that there is only one God, but that the whole work of creation was only one act. His misfortune is, that he has ventured upon a wide ocean without ballast, and with too great a press of sail; he is thus 'carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the artifice and cunning craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.' The same want of steadiness of judgment led him to push to its extreme, and indeed far beyond it, a principle of high importance, the operation of which may be traced in almost all departments of organic creation. The external forms, and, to some extent, the internal structure of each race of plants and animals, are considerably modified by the circumstances in which

it is placed. The form, size, colour of dogs, horses, and even of men, vary considerably with the difference of climate, food, training, &c. Plants and trees also undergo great changes by soil, climate, and culture; but so far is it from being the law of nature that there should be an intercommunion between different tribes of plants and animals, that the obvious law is, that each should be kept perfectly distinct. Anything approaching promiscuous intercourse among animals would cause their destruction.

We cannot conclude this letter without remarking that, while Christians generally look upon the Jews to have been the centre of the world's light and civilization, and their existence in the midst of the nations as the means employed by the Almighty to prevent darkness and wickedness from overwhelming the world in ruin, they are often surprised that so little is said of them by the philosophers of antiquity. Their perfect law, glorious temple, most imposing religious observances, and the regular congregation of all their males three times a year, were displayed before the civilized world for many hundred years; and yet, historians and men of science make little mention of them. They were silently diffusing Divine knowledge over the world,

To those

maintaining a noble testimony for the unity of the Godhead, and against all idolatry, yet the learned men of the world gave no heed to them. who have been perplexed with this apparently strange fact, the difficulty will perhaps be solved by our author. Here is an individual living, if report says true, in one of the most Christian cities in the world, who has heard the bells of churches ringing in his ears from his youth; in a land of Bibles, and encompassed with enlightened and talented Christian ministers, and who, if the light of Scripture truth had not shone in upon the land, would yet have been a roving, and, perhaps, naked barbarian, appears as ignorant of Christianity as if born in the heart of the land of Hottentots. Surely God is far from the thoughts of the wise men of this world.

W. C.

87

LETTER XIII.

PRINCIPLES OF MORALITY.

SIR, There is, perhaps, nothing in all the history of the Vestiges either more dangerous or more foolish than the author's remarks on man's moral constitution. It is to be feared that he is not singular in his views. To his geological opinions and speculations the scientific world are, by his own admission, almost all opposed; but it is not so with many of his views of morality, and this renders it the more necessary to make some observations on the subject. We shall compress them into the briefest possible space, and, to do so, we shall throw the discussion into the form of a conversation between a Philosopher and the Bible. Let the subject be a piece of land lying in its natural state, and covered with thorns, wild bushes, and weeds.

Philos.-This land is part of the earth which was formed by God, and its produce is all his workmanship.

Bible. The land was formed by God, but is not