the memory of Robinfon, who can read fuch a collection of incoherent and defultory matter, without pity for the man who could fit down to write fuch fenfelefs jargon, and contempt for the character of a perfon, who, in fo elevated a ftation as that to which the kindnefs of his friends, co-ope rating with his own ambition, had raifed him, could ftoop thus to employ his time. But why does Mr. Dyer infert this paper? he tells us himfelf, with the hon ft bluntnefs which feems to mark his character and writings, " to rally usclefs priefts, idle and unprofitable profeffors of religion, and pompous fcribblers about nothing, fruges confumere natos, men, who feem only born to confume the fruits of the earthan honeft induftrious day-labourer may be worth a score of them." P. 213. If Mr. Dyer, by this burst of fpleenful fatire and ill-placed merriment, means to rally any lazy drones among the clafs of men with whofe writings and character he feems to be fo generally well-acquainted, we cannot poflibly have any objection; but if, as we fufpect by the doubtful term fruges confumere, he aims the fhaft at the regular clergy of this kingdom, we firmly hope there is not to be found one who, having the important concerns of a parish, and other profeffional duties, to attend to, would thus grofsly mil-fpend his time and degrade his character.

ART. VII. Sacred Hiftory, feleted from the Scriptures, with Annotations and Reflections, particularly calculated to facilitate the Study of the Holy Scriptures in Schools and Families. Third Edition. By Mrs. Trimmer. 6 Vols. l. 45 Rivingtons. 1796.

12mo.

THE zeal of this benevolent writer in the caufe of young people, is as amiable as it is perfevering. Already has fhe produced a number of publications for their ufe, which, we do not doubt, have all tended to the accomplishment of the end propofed, namely, a fuitable impreffion of religious duty in the minds of youth. We moft unaffectedly recommend thefe volumes to ali upon whom profeflion, fituation, or connection, impofe the arduous office of inftruction. The fubjects felected are of all others the most important, the mode of illuftrating them is very judicious, and the language throughout is plain, fimple, and perfpicuous. Mrs. Trimmer is undoubtedly entitled not only to our praife, but to the thanks of the public in general; and we truft that, in fome form or other, fhe has re

ceived the remuneration fhe fo well deferves. The following is a fpecimen of the form and fubftance of the present work. After giving the chapter, on the fubject of Abraham's trial, literally from the Bible, Mrs. T. fubjoins these annotations and reflections.

"It is faid, that " God did tempt Abraham," by which we are to understand no more than that he tried him; for it appears from the fequel, that the Lord had no defign of leading him into fin. God cannot be tempted to do evil, neither doth he tempt men in this sense of the word.

"The mountain on which Abraham was commanded to offer his fon Ifaac, was certainly the fame on which the temple of Solomon was afterwards built, and on which Chrift fuffered.

"A greater trial could not have been propofed, for any human being, than to require an affectionate father to facrifice as beafts were facrificed, a fon in whom the hopes of his family's becoming a great nation were centered; yet we find Abraham, with the utmost compofure, making every requifite preparation for this purpose.

"The good patriarch had fo long been accustomed to trust in God, that faith in the divine promises had become a fettled habit, and a fixed principle in his nature. The repeated affurances which the Lord had given him, that in "Ifaac his feed fhould be called," left him no room to fear that he fhould eventually be deprived of him. It is impoffible to tell what paffed in Abraham's mind, while he purfued his journey but there is reafon to think from what he faid to his young men, and from his anfwer to Ifaac, that Faith produced Hope, and that he regarded God's command as a trial not as a temptation,

"When arrived at the place to which he was directed to go, he faw no lamb provided, as he feems to have expected: the command of the Lord was exprefs, Take now thy fon, thine only fon, Ifaac, whom thou loveft, and offer him for a burnt offering. A painful conflict no doubt arofe in Abraham's bofom. There were a thousand confiderations to deter him from killing his fon. How could he bear to part with his darling child? What would his poor afflicted mother fay? In what light would the world regard this inhuman action! And what would become of the hopes of a numerous feed, if the branch that was to produce them fhould be cut off by his own unnatural hand? In oppofition to these weighty reafons, the promifes of God presented themselves to his mind, with a thankful remembrance of the numberlefs bleflings that had been conferred on him.

"Could he difobey fuch a gracious being? Gratitude forbade this. Did he not know the power of God was infinite? Could he then dare to offend him. He at first received Ifaac as a gift from God, out of the common courfe of nature. Who could tell but the Lord would fhow forth his power by raifing his fon from the dead? At all events it was his indifpenfable duty to obey; for, befides the natural claim which the Creator has to the obedience of his creatures, Abraham had entered into a folemn covenant to fulfill the divine will, trufting to the infinite mercy of God to fave him from the miferies that threatened him. Animated by piety, and fupported by the hope that his

fon

fon, who was now devoted to God, would be given to him again even from the dead, he forbore to expoftulate, or to entreat the Lord to alter his divine purposes, but took the knife in his hand, and lifted up his arm to give the fatal ftroke. This God regarded as an evident proof that his faith was an active principle, not refting in the inward belief of his own mind, but ready to fhow itself to the world in fuck works as were neceffary to prove his fear of God, and reliance on thofe divine promifes which had been vouchfafed to him. The purpofe was now fully anfwered for which the divine command had been given, and the Lord fhowed that he was far from wishing for the death of Ifaac, by defiring Abraham not to do any thing with him.

"What a tranfport of joy muft this good man have felt, when he heard the Angel of the Lord calling to him, and faw a ram (agreeably to the wishes, and perhaps the prayers of his heart) ready to fupply, on the altar, the place of his dear fon! And how muft his joy have been redoubled, when the invifible God, in an audible voice, fpeaking by his Angel or image, confirmed in Heaven with an oath, the promifes he had before made on earth, that they might endure when this perifhing world fhould be no more! We cannot fuppofe that the Angel of the Lord who called to Abraham, was a created being; for why fhould God, who had repeatedly converfed with Abraham in his own divine perfon on this occafion alone, employ a miniftering fpitit? To prevent his thinking fo, Abraham was affured that He who now fpake was the fame God who had commanded him to offer up his fon; the fame Lord he had been accustomed to converse with, ftilĺ manifefting the Deity to his outward fenfes, though with more folemnity than he had ever done before.

"The Apostle to the Hebrews confirms the opinion that it was the Supreme Being who took the oath; for, he fays, because God could fwear by no greater, he fware by himself. Willing more abundantly to fhow to the heirs of promife, the immutability of his counfel, He confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things (his Promife and his Oath) thofe who fled for refuge to the hope fet before them, might have a ftrong confolation.

"It is to be obferved, that God pledged himself by this oath, to make good his promifes not only to Abraham, and his immediate pofterity, but to all the nations of the earth.

"It has been a queftion of difpute, whether Ifaac confented to the offering which his father made. Moft likely he did, for, according to his age, which is fuppofed to have been at least twenty-four or twentyfive years, he must have been more powerful and active than fo old a man as Abraham, and could eafily have wrefted the facrificial knife from his hand, or prevented his binding him, by fleeing away, and it appears that there was as good an understanding between him and his father afterwards as before.

"From the example of Abraham we learn, that faith is not complete without the works of obedience; and that it is our duty to fubmit, without murmuring, to all the difpenfations of God. None of us will be called to fo fevere a trial as Abraham was: we shall not be required to offer up our fons as burnt offerings: but God may fee fit to take our children to himself, and deprive us of them. In this cafe

let

let us call to mind the divine promises which teach Chriftians to look forward with joyful expectation to a refurrection from the dead, when all who, like Abraham, have believed and obeyed his will, his feed will be blefied with immortal lite and everlafting happinefs."

ART. VIII. A Plan for a general Commutation of Tithes; addreffed to the Members of both Houses of Parliament. 8vo. 26 pp. IS. Faulder. 1795.

To fupport a plan of this nature, writers generally profess to enter into the proof of the two following propofitions; that tithes are an invidious and impolitic provifion for the clergy; and that fome other mode of providing for them is better. As the first propofition, with its proof, occupies no more than the three firft lines of the pamphlet, we fhall transcribe the whole of the demonftration there given: "this has long been a general and JUST complaint."

The propofal of this writer is, that a fixed corn-rent fhould be paid for ever, by every parifh, in lieu of tithes. This project he confiders as new; but we must inform him, that it has, of late years, been repeatedly advanced. We have now lying before us, and lately have noticed, three other works on tithe, in every one of which it is mentioned. But as it is the exclufive fubject of his tract, we fhall here propofe two objections to it; which he ought not to have paffed by without confideration.

We admit to him that a corn-rent is, in the lapfe of many centuries, better than a fixed perpetual annuity. It is unneceffary to enter into the question, whether it is better than the grant of eftates in land, in lieu of tithe: becaufe, on the following reafons, among others, we are induced to think it bad. Firft, if fuch grants had been made to the clergy, instead of the predial tithes, at the time of their original inftitution in England, the order would either have been, at this day annihilated; or the great majority of the individuals thereof, been taken from the loweft uneducated claffes of the people. For the predial tithes, confifting of the prime neceffaries of life, and the confumption of thefe by an equal number of perfons in every age being nearly the fame; the quantity of thofe neceffaries produced in a country, in two different ages, will be as its population at thofe periods refpectively. That is, if the population be doubled, the titheable product of the land muft be doubled; or each will increase and decrease, in the fame proportion. The population of England at the Conqueft is, by all writers fince Mr. Gregory King's time, fixed at two

millions.

millions. The practice of tithing commenced in the time of Offa; perhaps our population was fomewhat increased before William the Norman; but as we had an export trade for corn, in the time of Offa, let it be taken, that the product of the land in his age, would have fufficed for the confumption of the number of people stated above, or two millions: it now fupports eight millions; it is therefore four times greater than in the age of Offa. The titheable productions of the first period were only thofe of the latter and if a perpetual cornrent had been fixed then, ftrictly equal in value to that of the tenth of the titheable product, it would have been in value now only one-fourth part thereof, or one-fortieth of that product. The prefent amount of the tithe, at the highest computation, if equally divided among all the clergy, would amount to 881. 10s. each; as we have shown in a preceding article. If, therefore, it be fairly paid, as is contended by many; their average income, if determined by a corn-rent given in the reign of Offa, would be only 221. 2s. 6d. If not, the proportional defalcation of their rights, would not have less than has taken place; as their relative ability to defend them, would have been perpetually diminishing. Seven fhillings a week, or 181. 2s. a year, will hardly keep a labourer from the parith: how far the breaking up of new lands, the augmentation to be expected on the produce of the old; and the increafe of the proportion of the quantity of commodities, not of prime neceffity, which takes place in every rank, acting upon the income of the clergy as a counterbalance to the two former, affect this conclufion, we have not here time to difcufs.

This applauded plan, in the lapfe of ages, would not only have depreffed the clergy into the very lowest rank of fociety; but if it had taken place, even at the commencement of this century, it would, before the middle of it, have involved the whole body in a feries of calamities, almost unprecedented. For fuppefe the commutation to have been established in the beginning of 1701, and at that time, let the income of a clergyman have been fixed at the quantity of wheat, which would have fold for 100l. according to the average price of the preceding ten years and further, let the first half of the century be divided into three periods; the firft of thirty, and the two latter of ten years each, and the average value of the fame quantity of corn, according to Dr. A. Smith's table, he affigned for those terms, it is evident, that thefe values will be the fucceffive incomes of this living. Again, as it is certain a great advance has taken place, on the price of all commodities, on an average and conjointly; let it be admitted, that when this century is completed, that average, in the courfe thereof, shall have increased