eth. And to change the emblem under which we have been contemplating charity, or more strictly love, we may well say, that it is meet that this grace should be immortal. For, when we were low and lost, it was in love, that the scheme of our redemption originated; it was love that led him, who thought it no robbery to be equal with God, to take upon him the form of a servant,' and suffer and die, that he might bring many sons unto glory. And is it not love that prompts the agency of the Holy Spirit, while he takes of the things that are Christ's, and shows them to our souls? Yes, my brother, love circulates from bosom to bosom among all the glorified family above, uniting each to other, and all to God. Be it your special care, therefore, now to cherish this divine and immortal grace. And there is nothing that can be more propitious to your doing so, than just and distinct views, in all its aspects, of the humiliating doctrine of the original depravity and guilt of our nature, in connexion with the free and boundless love of God in Christ Jesus."

"The cultivation of charity, or love to those, who hold the same sentiments with ourselves, is natural and easy. It is to be found, in some measure, even among those who, generally speaking, are "hateful and hating one another." Of this department of the duty, therefore, it is not intended to say any thing here, except simply this, that Christian love, among the most united Christians, must be of a purer, and holier, and more generous nature, than any thing that is to be found in mere human partisanship.

"But it seems appropriate to say something of the exercise of this charity towards those who differ from us, and perhaps even bear a rancorous hostility to those doctrines of the Gospel, which are the whole delight of our hearts, compassing us about with songs of deliverance, in this the house of our pilgrimage. Now here we must view the person and his opinions, as distinct from one another. With respect to the opinions, it will be profitable always to bear in mind, the exhortation of Paul to the Galatians: "But though we," says he, "or an angel from heaven, preach unto you any other Gospel, than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed," Gal. i. 8. And another apostle exhorts us, "earnestly to contend for the faith, which was once delivered unto the saints," Jude, verse 3. It is impossible not to have a feeling of loathing, and revolting of heart, on hearing opprobrious epithets unsparingly bestowed on what is so very dear and so very delightful to us; and if we possess adequate ability, it be

VOL. XXIII. NO. X.

comes our duty to repel the rude assault. But while there is to be even no limit to our abhorrence of the error and delusion, and damnable heresies," by which the wicked one plots the ruin of unwary or unstable souls, we must feel very differently toward the deluded souls themselves. We should be moved by compassion to them, led to prayer in their behalf, pleading, and truly, in the language of Jesus," Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And, in addition to our pity and our prayers, if there appear to be any prudent and probable means of reclaiming them, it becomes our duty to use them, while, at the same time, we take heed "not to give that which is holy unto the dogs, neither to cast our pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend us."

"The Christian pilgrim, who is "led by the Spirit," instead of saying to the most degraded of his fellow-creatures, "Stand aside, for I am holier than thou," will frequently say to his soul, "Who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? Now, if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it ?" Instead of exulting over the spiritual maladies of others, he commiserates them; while his heart is filled with unutterable gratitude to the great Physician, "who healeth all his own diseases, who redeemeth his life from destruction, who crowneth him with loving kindness and tender mercies."

"As the true disciple will necessarily feel interested in the honour of his Lord, and of divine truth, it may sometimes be dif ficult for him to avoid altogether a feeling of irritation, at the obloquy that is occasionally cast upon both. But, reader, whoever you are, permit me to tell you that the feeling is unreasonable. You reply, that the aspersions are false and unfounded.

And do you not rejoice that they are so ? You perhaps still own a measure of irritation, when you think, that the great fundamental truths of the Gospel, which are held, and ever have been held, by the great body of believers, as essential, are stigmatized by a very handful of men, as the

abominable tenets of orthodoxy," and who think they have said enough to discard the doctrine of original sin, which lies at the foundation of all, when they have attached to it the epithet "gloomy." Nay, they speak of their views, as if they were extensively diffused; and of the great truths held by the church of God, in every age, as losing ground. The truth of all this is readily admitted; but still it is no reason for irritation. This language had been used by them twenty years ago, and 4 z

was far from being novel then, and the repetition of it since has not made it true yet. Nay, if we are to reason about it at all, perhaps the fact of the case is, that it originated in a feeling of disappointment, and a conviction of defeat. At all events, let us rejoice in this, that true piety and evangelical truth, have, in the mean time, been rapidly gaining ground. This is matter of gratulation and thanksgiving on the part of all those who hold the Head." It is not only strikingly visible among all ranks in our native land, but in the mighty and united exertions of all denominations of Christians, in the diffusion of the sacred oracles, and the unprecedented extension of missionary labours. And the God of truth is blessing these exertions in the fulfilment of divine predictious, beyond the highest hopes of its warmest votaries. We now see the dawning glories of the latter day. The sun of righteousness has risen bright on every region on earth, with healing in his rays. While every thing is conducted by the use of means, the results, which we are daily called to contemplate, seem impossible to be accounted for, except by divine agency. And indeed we know, that such an agency alone could effect what we have seen, and what so much gladdens our heart.

Christianity, bearing in her right hand the olive branch of eternal peace to degraded and guilty man; and in her left, the germs of civilization and domestic happinesss, hath gone forth blessing every nation and tribe on earth. Her genial influence hath warmed the frozen regions of the north; and tempered the rage of a ver tical sun; hath infused the principles of brotherly love in the crowded haunts of men; and, in the lone desert, hath lifted high to heaven the song of thanksgiving and praise. Fear not, then, ye of little faith; for although iniquity and error be permitted to spread to a certain limited extent, and for reasons, that may sometimes be inscrutable by us, (and if it were not so the Scripture itself would not be true,) we know that ultimately it will contribute to the glory and the triumph of divine truth; for at a period that is evidently approaching, "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the

sometimes, perhaps, with keenness; but if that keenness arose from any other feeling, than a deep sense of the importance of divine truth, it is deeply regretted. Such of them as possess any of that candour, of which they make such large demands on others, will perceive how superabundantly contemptuous and arrogant their expressions often are in denouncing the general creed of the Christian world, as the "abominable tenets of orthodoxy." They can be abominable only to those who hate them: and well do they know, and much do we rejoice, that the number of such is exceedingly small. We return not railing for railing. Nor do we now resume argumentation. But we would just hint a single point, on which they have not hitherto entered the lists; it is the practical influence of their tenets. On this branch of the subject much has been said by them, but nothing done; and if we may judge from the bitterness of heart, in which they have written, their views must be changed, before any thing can be expected. And sincerely should we rejoice to see their views changed, and their dogmas renounced, and they themselves entering the lists in "provoking to love and to good works." But convinced as we are, of the doctrines we hold, and the danger of opposing them, it is impossible not to be deeply affected on beholding the last feeble and impotent ef. forts of the hoary antagonist of divine truth. "Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not; yea, grey hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth it not." What heart can remain unmoved, on beholding the man of many years, as he totters on his failing limbs, employing the last beatings of a heart, to which we shall attach no epithet, in reviling the system of mercy, which he so much needs, and the last faltering accents of his tongue, in contemning the offers of love, on which angels gaze with rapture! It is well known, however, that the kindest wishes are often very unkindly interpreted, and are therefore unavailing. And yet it is pleasing to indulge the last lingering ray of departing hope, in contemplating the bare possibility of those, who were far off, being brought nigh by the blood of the cross, and of their being "washed, and justified, and sanctified, in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." We conclude with the fervent wish, that all who are as sheep, going astray," may speedily return to the shepherd and bishop of souls, and that the asperities, at least of sect and party, may be done away in the universal and deep-felt influence of brotherly love and heavenly mindedness!"

On the whole, we give this volume the meed of our hearty approbation; and while we consider it as an excellent proof of our author's fitness for the discussions and

controversies of theology, we com mend it as well calculated to be useful at once to the private Christian, and the student in divinity.

SELF-BURNING OF HINDOO WIDOWS.

Communications and Correspondence relative to the Burning of Widows on the Funeral Piles of their Husbands, since March 1823.

FROM these highly interesting docu. ments, which are printed through the order of the House of Commons, we make the following extracts :

Extract of a Letter from the GovernorGeneral in Council of Bengal, &c.

It will be satisfactory to your Honourable Court to observe that the number of Suttees, reported to have taken place during the year 1820, was less than in the preceding year; and that, compared with the number which had been reported in the year 1818, it exhibits a reduction of 242. We have not sufficient means of estimating the causes which have operated in producing the more favourable results in the years 1819 and 1820, compared with those of the two preceding years.

To C. C. Hoppner, Esq. Magistrate of the 24th Pergunnahs.

SIR, Although a long protracted residence in India has served to make me acquainted with much of the manners and customs of its inhabitants, yet it has never been my lot, until yesterday evening, to witness that disgraceful ceremony which is known so commonly to prevail in Bengal, and which is so revolting to the character of its people, and to every feeling of humanity; I allude, of course, to the practice of widows immolating themselves on the funeral piles of their husbands.

Yesterday evening a report was conveyed to me that a Suttee was about to take place within a few hundred yards of my residence at this station, and that the ceremony would take place immediately; horror-struck as I felt at the thought of witnessing such a scene, I yet felt it a point of duty to repair to the spot.

"I was accompanied thither by my assistant, by the assistant-surgeon of the station, and by another medical gentleman, who happened to be here on a visit.

"At one time I was fully impressed with the belief, and such was the general impression, that I had succeeded in my object of dissuasion; but, in the end, either other sentiments, or rather, as I fear, other advice, prevailed, which strengthened her resolution to perform the sacrifice; be this as it may, the point to which I am most anxious to draw your attention is, the grossly inactive and deficient conduct of the Darogah of the Thannah, who, instead of remaining in the immediate neighbourhood of the funeral pile, with a view of taking advantage of any relapse in the resolution of the victim, at this awful moment stood aloof from the spot; and when questioned and remonstrated with on the point, replied, that he being a Mussulman, could not be permitted to remain so near; although, in the face of this assertion, he saw European gentlemen surrounding the pile; but this was not all, the ceremony was suffered by him to take place in known contravention, as I am informed, of the principles and rules which au thorize this ceremony.

"The Shaster, which sanctions burning, enjoins, I am told, the Jullut Cheetaarohun, that is, the victim mounting and throwing herself upon the funeral pile when it has burnt out into flames; this feature of the ceremony, and a remarkable one it is, from its offering a momentary incitement to shake the strongest resolutions of human nature, was wholly dispens ed with. In the case of this Suttee, the victim was laid down by the side of her deceased husband; and if she was not bound by her clothes with the deceased. yet they were so wrapped about her and the deceased, that it would have been difficult for her to disentangle herself from them; upon her was then laid logs of wood, some of them of a size and weight

such as but one man could lift and carry; a minute or two elapsed in this portion of the ceremony, (which, from the manifest meaning of the term Jullut Cheetaarohun, must have been contrary to the injunctions of the Shaster,) when the pile was set fire to, and immediately after a large green bamboo was placed across, and held down by two men on each side, so that it rendered any effort on the part of the victim to escape wholly unavailing. Scarcely had the funeral pile been lighted, when she made a most violent effort to escape from the flames, but the nature and construction of the pile rendered any immediate effort to release her from the flames, with the chance of escaping with her life, quite impracticable.

Had I noticed the bamboos at the moment they were placed across the pile, or had I been aware of all the informali. ties that were taking place, I should, at all hazards, have put a stop to the ceremony; but never having seen a Suttee before, and ignorant, until now, of the particular forms to be observed therein, I was fearful of too great a degree of interference on my part. "I have, &c.

(Signed) "R. C. PLOWDEN, Agent. "Barripore, Salt Office, June 1, 1823."

tion to the promulgated rules, and to record their remarks and orders on those of the Magistrates' statements which appear to require them.

CULCUTTA DIVISION.

Burdwan.-The Court observe, that in this district there were reported to have occurred within the last year 62 Suttees; explanations are afforded by the Magistrate in only two cases, in which it is stated, that the ages of the women could not be ascertained, in consequence of the sacrifices having been completed before the arrival of the police; from which it is inferrable, that the Officers of Government had timely information, and were present at all the rest. The establishment of this fact would evince extraordinary vigilance on the part of the police, and the Magi strate will be called upon to declare whether or not the conclusion of the Court as to this particular be well founded.

Cuttack. The Court observe, that 18 Suttees (decrease 5) are reported to have occurred in the immediate jurisdiction of the Magistrate of Cuttack during the past year; and that only one within the jurisdic tion of the Joint Magistrate stationed at Balasore is reported; but within that of the Joint Magistrate of Khoordah, nine are reported to have occurred. With respect to those cases which occurred within the places immediately subordinate to the Magistrate of Cuttack, only two explanations have been afforded, one of which exhibits illegality on the score of ren-age. In the case of Mussumaut Kumlah,* it was clearly competent to the magistrate to have punished, as for a misdemeanour, the washerman Rajeb, who pushed the woman into the fiery pit, as assisting at a sacrifice not wholly voluntary; and that it would have been preferable to have omitted entering into an investigation rather than to have released the offender without punishment, after he had been convicted of the offence. The Court conclude that no legal impediment existed to any of the rest; but the magistrate will be in