self, and that there was then established no general authority, to which all men might look up, for the true exposition of the doctrines of Christianity, as handed down from the period of the Apostles. This supposition was the immediate offspring of the personal arrogance of Luther-an arrogance that was nurtured by superficial learning, and the depraved habits of his life. It is a supposition founded in a false claim of human reason, affecting to set itself up as a judge in matters above its comprehension, to raise itself to an equality with the God who came on earth to establish his church, and even to dictate to Him, by declaring that He should not call upon men to believe in mysteries which they could not comprehend as if it were possible that the link which binds us to the Creator, could be fabricated altogether by human hands! If it had been, how could it reach HIM?

We have already, on several occasions, exposed the absurdities and impostures which Mr. Irving has succeeded to a certain extent in palming upon his hearers, under the shelter of this right of private interpretation. It was no difficult task for us to exhibit his follies and falsehoods to the world, even from the appearance which they assumed in the face of his congregations. But of the trickery that was carried on behind the curtain, of the preparations that were made for the specious representation afterwards to be enacted on the stage, though we entertained abundant suspicion, we have not had any distinct evidence, until we received Mr. Pilkington's pamphlet. The reader may remember the promises which Irving gave to his disciples, that although the tongue in which the gifted spoke was at present unknown, a tribe of interpreters would arise in his church, who would be inspired with a knowledge of that tongue, and reveal its meaning to the world. Mr. Pilkington, it seems, was persuaded into the belief that he was one of these destined interpreters. He informs us, that he regularly attended the prayer-meeting at the Caledonian Chapel at half-past six every morning in the months of July, August, and September last; that during that period he frequently heard exhortations from two individuals in what he calls the "Tongue," and which he did not at first comprehend; because, from one, the brother, it burst forth in a crash, from the other, the sister, in a chaunt. Of the sound that issued from the former we may have some idea if we suppose the words cras-cran-cra-crash to be uttered with a sudden and rapid vociferation. As these voices were during the period in question always heard in the morning services, and not on the Sabbath, or before the general congregation, the author for some time thought they were nothing more than the effusions of a high religious feeling in the persons who gave vent to it. On one occasion, however, the brother, after holding forth in the "tongue," concluded, without pausing, in English, "Oh, Britain! thou anointed of the Lord, thy destruction is at hand! Fear not, ye people of God." On another occasion the sister prophecied the approach of a pestilence.

Uniformly after these bursts of inspiration there was a solemn silence, when Irving rose and commented upon the manifestation of the Spirit which had taken place.

It is necessary to explain, that these morning prayers consisted of three services, each of about half an hour's duration, the first of which was conducted by the president, Irving; the second, by any person present who chose to undertake the office; and the third, again, by the president. The person thus officiating was called for the time, the "mouth" of the congregation; he gave out a psalm, which the congregation, usually consisting of about seventy disciples, joined in singing; he next read a chapter from the Bible, and ended with an extempore prayer.

A day or two after the utterance of his prophecy of the destruction of Great Britain, the brother was called on to be the "mouth” of the congregation, when a "crash of tongue" came from him, at the conclusion of which he asked in English, "Where are the witnesses?" adding, "There are no witnesses." Irving, upon this, exclaimed that the disciples present were the witnesses, that it was their duty to bear testimony to the world of the prophecies which they had heard, and that they would be committing a sin if they did not forewarn all men of the destruction which was predicted. This solemn injunction had its intended effect upon Mr. Pilkington, who now began to think more seriously of the gift. Nothing material occurred until the 8th of October, when Irving, correcting a mistake that was made by his assistant, the missionary, during his (Irving's) short absence from town, who took it upon him to silence the sister, proclaimed that women might also obtain the gift; and straight three sisters, one after another, astonished the brethren by their proficiency in the "tongue." In order to give time for these displays, the second service was now dispensed with, and the half hour allotted to it was devoted to the manifestation of the Spirit.

No permission was yet given for the utterance of the tongue before the congregation at large on the Sundays; in consequence of which, one of the sisters, feeling herself moved on Sunday the 9th of October, was obliged to run into the vestry to vent the inspiration of which she was full. The voice was heard by the congregation, and great confusion ensued. Upon the sister's return from the vestry, Irving addressed her in an affectionate tone from the pulpit, saying, "Console yourself, sister! Console yourself." In the evening of the same day he advised the congregation to be tranquil if such an occurrence should take place again, and to listen to the voice with attention. Mr. Pilkington proceeds:

All went on quietly till the end of the sermon, when the Brother was moved, and suddenly burst out the crash of Tongue, followed by these words in English, "God is amongst us, and if you fly from him now, where will you fly in the day of judgment?" The confusion was greater than that of the morning; several persons were very much alarmed, and one young lady near me screamed and fell in a fit upon her mother's lap.

This created a noise, and some exclaimed "Order! Silence! Order! Many stood on the seats, and several on the tops of the pews, whilst others left the church; but great as the tumult was, the Brother's voice was still audible. Order being at length restored, after some expostulation from Mr. Irving the service was concluded.'—pp. 11, 12.

Mr. Pilkington was now caught with the contagion. He seriously believed every thing that Irving said about the gift being derived from the Holy Spirit; and observing the ridicule with which it was treated by some of the congregation, he in turn became a prophet, foreseeing that this difference of opinion would necessarily give rise to dissension. His narrative of what followed, is naive, and really curious.

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Being thus interested, when I attended prayers on Monday morning, my devotional meditation-during the solemn and imposing silence which as usual occurred after some of the "gifted persons" had spoken, and which never failed to fill me, as if by sympathy, with a holy sensation—was occupied with a visionary figure of contention, and I was strongly excited by a very powerful feeling which I am unable to describe, to exhort and forewarn them of impending difficulty; but I resisted it until Mr. Irving in his discourse said it was sinful to suppress such movements.—I could no longer restrain, and, with a sudden burst of utterance, used the following detached sentences;-" The second sword is now drawn in this church."" Combat with love and unity."- Deny me no more.""Peace be with you." Mr. Irving praised God for having opened" another mouth" in the church, and said "we heard the voice of the Shepherd." He then offered a solemn prayer for me. I now concluded that the excitement I felt was the same as that which influenced the "gifted persons," but that they experienced it in a higher degree, which produced the utterance of Tongue. When the service closed, Mr. Irving begged that the dear Brother who had spoken would remain, that he might confer with him after the meeting had dispersed. I did not expect this invitation: I complied, however, with his desire, and on entering the vestry with him and the Missionary, Mr. Irving introduced me to the foriner, who observed," I have not the pleasure of knowing the Brother." I said I was a stranger in their church. Mr. Irving's behaviour was kind and affable-that of the Missionary more reserved. In reply to a question as to the regularity of my attendance at Divine Worship, I said that I had attended their morning service for nearly three months, during which time I was once only absent -that prior to this period, having heard that Mr. Irving was preaching and publishing a false doctrine, I was afraid to comply with the recommendations of my friends to hear him preach, because, having been but a few years converted from Deism to a belief in Our Lord Jesus Christ, I felt myself not sufficiently established in doctrine to resist the power of his eloquence -that an accidental circumstance obliged me to hear him one Sunday evening, when, in the course of his Sermon, he declared that he never intended to introduce the doctrine which persons attributed to him, by perverting the meaning of his words-that I was satisfied I was misinformed, and ventured to hear him the following Sunday evening, when I was much gratified by his discourse, and pleased when I heard him announce that Prayer Meetings were held at half-past six o'clock every morning; from

attending which I derived much comfort and consolation. Mr. Irving praised God for this; and having asked the Missionary if he had any more questions to put to me, and received a negative, he requested him to pray for me; which, being done, we parted with a request from Mr. Irving that I would meet him the following day at ten o'clock in the Church.'-pp. 12-14.

Irving, it seems, was rather fearful of this gifted novice. He was particularly anxious to know how he was influenced to speak, saying that the power which compelled the favoured brethren and sisters to speak, was felt by them "on the end of their tongues!" Pilkington answered, that it all arose from an irresistible impulse of feeling, and that he moreover thought that he understood the "tongue," and could interpret it; that the words which he had heard went generally to convey the idea of love and solicitude; and that the literal meaning of those which last struck his ear were "Pour out your soul and I will hear." Upon this Irving exclaimed, "God be praised!" and used other words, which expressed a hope that God was answering the prayer for an interpreter.'

He then requested,' continues the 'author, that I would attend a Prayer Meeting in the evening, at which I would meet the "Gifted Persons ;" and if I should then understand any of the Tongues, he begged I would acquaint him of it immediately. I explained, that, as I understood several languages, I might have heard some familiar sounds; but that if he, whose knowledge of the Classics must be greater that mine, agreed with me, I should be more confident. To this he replied, he had not the least idea of the meaning of the "TONGUES," and he "aspired to be no more than the humble Pastor of the flock." This humility in such a talented man, by which he seemed to confess an inferiority to me, filled my heart with a mixture of love and admiration for him during the whole time he was closetted with others, who were in attendance; for he had requested me to wait in the body of the church until he ministered to them.

'He now took me to his private residence, and on the way remarked that he observed I was deficient in Theological Knowledge, but that I had a deep sense of my duty to God. To this I assented; and he said he would instruct me in Theology. On arriving at his house he conducted me to his library, and introduced me to a person (whom I shall in future call Mr. A*), who was writing at his desk, and who, I concluded, was either in his employ or one of his assistants in the church, to whom he said, "Our Brother fancied he understood the Tongues." The stranger replied, "Such an occurrence happened in Scotland; and the gentleman who interpreted, spoke by the power of the Spirit, without the agency of his own understanding." "This was not as it occurred to me," said I. Mr. Irving said, "I knew a man who heard in English what others heard in Tongue"- "Neither was it thus with me," said 1-" and I knew a per

* 'I do not wish to publish the name of this individual, who has not as yet been so placed before the public, particularly as his inconsistency (to say the least of it) becomes an essential part of this narrative.'

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son who heard sounds like words, which he understood in other languages." This was my idea," said I. Mr. Irving, after a pause, said, "Let us pray." He then offered prayer to the effect, that the Lord would perfect the gift of Interpretation in me, if He had begun the work; that he would not leave it unfinished. Thus finding myself in a very awful situation, I fervently prayed for the Gift; and knowing what a devout minister of the gospel was the mouth of the little group, as also that I understood a portion of what I already heard, I prayed, with a most undoubting belief that my petition would be granted, for the benefit of the Church. Mr. Irving requested I would call again at his house, about three o'clock, to meet the "Gifted Persons" and others; also at the Vestry at four, where there would be a larger meeting of the congregation. I left him about one o'clock, and spent the interval in prayer and meditation-so abstracted from all secular considerations, that my mind was exclusively with God; and if importunate in any one point more than another, it was, that He would give such proof that I really did interpret, as to render it impossible that I could be considered an impostor.'-pp. 15, 16.

It is difficult to repress laughter while we read this passage. Here is the principal impostor acknowledging that he had not the least idea of the meaning of the Tongues, which, as he represents, have been sent in answer to his prayers! We behold him first endeavouring to bring Pilkington to believe that his alleged power of interpretation was inspired, which Pilkington would not admit; next, that he heard in English, from the same voice of inspiration of course, what the gifted uttered in tongue, to which Pilkington. also objected as a matter of fact. And, finally, he is apparently contented with finding out that Pilkington had rather a secondary sort of inspiration, by hearing " sounds like words, which he understood in other languages!" To this Pilkington assents. very odd sort of inspired interpreter truly! For if sounds were uttered resembling words already contained in languages which he understood, he needed not the aid of inspiration to translate them. But let us mark what follows.

A

'I attended according to appointment at Mr. Irving's residence at three o'clock, and was shewn into the library, where I saw about nine or ten persons, of whom I knew none except the Missionary, Mr. Irving (to whom I had previously been slightly introduced), and Mr. A. They took no particular notice of me, except that of requesting me to sit down, and I found myself directly in front of the "Gifted Sisters," who appeared to be interesting, lady-like, and exceedingly intelligent. The GIFTED BROTHER, was on my right, as was also Mr. A., and the Missionary took the chair. After praying, the chairman addressed the meeting thus:"We thought it prudent to assemble in this private manner, to take your opinion, prior to going to the meeting at four o'clock, as to the propriety of permitting the manifestation of the Spirit in the congregation on Sundays, to which there is great opposition, or merely to confine it to the prayermeetings, and invite the congregation to attend; so that it should be

* Misses Hall, Cardale, and Smith.

+ Mr. Tuplin.