not attend to this he shall die: " even that man shall die, and thou shalt put away evil from Israel." Now, Sir, here is some addition to the written word;-hereby was some authority assigned to explain the meaning of that word;-whatever that authority might be, it was something in addition to the mere letter of Scripture. The people of Israel were told that if any difficulty or controversy should arise, they were to go to the judges and to the priests. In another portion of Scripture there is a still clearer testimony on this subject; to shew what were the points upon which the judges had to decide, and those upon which the priests had to decide. It is in the 2nd of Chronicles, or Paralipomenon, chap. xix. verse 8:

"Moreover in Jerusalem did Jehoshaphat set of the Levites, and of the priests, and of the chief of the fathers of Israel, for the judgment of the Lord, and for controversies, when they returned from Jerusalem. And he charged them, saying, Thus shall ye do in the fear of the Lord, faithfully, and with a perfect heart. And what cause soever shall come to you of your brethren that dwell in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, statutes and judgments, ye shall even warn them that they trespass not against the Lord And behold Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the Lord; and Zebediah the son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, for all the King's matters."

This is an explanation of the part the judges and priests respectively were required to act in the case mentioned in the 17th chap. of Deuteronomy. In both passages does the Scripture admit that some difficulty may arise respecting the meaning of the divine word; and in those difficulties the people were not to be satisfied with their own conjectures, but there was appointed an authority to assist them in learning the true meaning of the divine word.

We are told, that if a person needs any assistance, and if he prays, he will then receive the Spirit of God, and be infallibly led to the truth. Now, Sir, my friends and myself have been praying for the Spirit of God this day; and I certainly feel that I (and for them also I do not fear to answer) have prayed with the same sincerity as if eternity depended on the success of our prayers. It is not for me to deny that Mr. Tottenham has done the like, nor is it for Mr. Tottenham to say that we have not so prayed; yet we come to quite different conclusions. It is very certain that we are not all infallible; yet, says Mr. Tottenham, those who ask for the Spirit of God shall receive it, and be infallibly led to the truth. Here does he substitute for the in

fallibility of the Church, the infallibility of each private individual; and in fact he is bound by his principle, that the rule of faith which God has given, the mere letter of the sacred volume,-must be interpreted by each man's individual judgment, he is bound to come to this conclusion, that every individual is infallible. Yes; he who has a difficulty in believing that the whole assembled body of the Church of God, assembled under the promise of the guidance of the Spirit of God, with the promise of the perpetual presence of the Son of God, he who denies that the persons thus solemnly assembled, and reposing in the promises of Christ, shall be infallibly led to the truth; yet says that every individual shall be infallible, if he applies for the Spirit of God; for he says that every one who sincerely prays for the Spirit of God, shall receive it, and by it he shall be led to the truth.

Mr. Tottenham, after having cleared the body of Protestants from that very troublesome class called Unitarians, says that as to all the rest, their differences are on nonessentials. Now this is really extraordinary, for a person who has read something, undoubtedly, of the history of the changes in religion which took place in the 16th century, (I do not like to say the history of Protestants, because I wish not to give offence to any one by using that term in connection with those extraordinary events, upon which I am sure Mr. Tottenham must look back with shame,) when, in the name of religion, all Europe was devastated and deluged with blood,-when those scenes were enacted in this country, which have laid waste so many of the fair edifices that heretofore dignified and beautified England, and which indeed terminated by the shedding of the blood of the monarch on the scaffold. Will Mr. Tottenham tell me that these things were matters of no importance? Will he now tell me that; or come to the disgraceful subterfuge, that it is a matter of little consequence what you believe, provided you do not believe certain errors which the Catholic believes, nor such as the poor Unitarian believes, for which he is excluded from Christianity?

I suppose Mr. Tottenham believes the Thirty-nine Articles; at least his Church professes to believe them; though we have been told, indeed, that the clergy sign them with a smile or a sigh. The Church, I say, of which he is a minister, is committed to the Thirty-nine Articles. Now (to say nothing of the inconsistency of adding those

Thirty-nine Articles, when the people have got the Bible without them), according to these Articles, do they not believe in the necessity of baptism? Does not the Quaker, on the other hand, declare the reverse? Rather, I will first go to the Anabaptist. The Anabaptist declares that it is not necessary at a certain time of life, for which, according to him, Christ has made no provision. The Quaker says it is not necessary at all, but, on the contrary, is a superstition. Now I ask Mr. Tottenham, if baptism be necessary to salvation, is it not of some importance that persons differ on these points? Do you not differ on points of importance with other classes, and their respective ministers? I wish to call your attention to a former organ of the Reformation Society. They are perpetually changing their opinions; but I suppose they are always right. Mr. Gordon said, "We give the Bible to destroy Methodism and Fanaticism, to destroy Socinianism and Infidelity." Here the application of the rule was, that it was to destroy systems whose errors in religion, according to Mr. Tottenham, are of no consequence. See how perpetually these persons are misleading you. They tell you one thing to-day, and another to-morrow. They pay you such a wretched compliment, as to say to-day, you must believe that 2 and 2 make 4, and the next day, that 2 and 2 make 5.

In the next place, I ask if Mr. Tottenham believes that any person ever made out his religion solely from the Bible? Sir, I am speaking now to parents: I am speaking to those persons who consider themselves, and justly consider themselves, as appointed by Almighty God to conduct their little ones to everlasting salvation: I am addressing those who must be impressed with the importance of the charge committed to them, who must feel horror at the idea of leading those little ones to perdition, by allowing them to offend God: I ask those parents whether, in the discharge of their duty, they would wait until their children were capable of reading, and then, putting the Bible into their hands, say: "I have nothing more to do with you on the subject of religion?" Would they venture to do this? There is not a person present who would be guilty of such an atrocious act. No! You answer the demands of those little ones who cry out for bread; and at the moment their infant minds expand, and they begin to lisp the name of God, you instil into their

minds the beginnings of the knowledge of God, distilling, as I may say, drops of celestial dew: gradually you teach the beautiful truths of the Christian religion, the ineffable love of that blessed Saviour, who, being in the form of God, thought it no robbery to be equal with God, but descended on the earth, and became as a mere servant to satisfy his love for those little ones. Parents teach these truths; and the clergy also teach them catechisms, which parents send them to church to learn: but for all this there is no need, if Scripture alone is sufficient; there is no need for parents to send their children to church to hear the Thirty-nine Articles read and expounded, if Scripture alone is sufficient. Therefore, I say, no person does make out his religion, or ever did, by the Bible alone. Oh! if they did, we should have been spared many a scene over which we have wept very lately; and where would have been the necessity of this Society at all? They tell us that they only wish the Catholics to exercise private judgment, and that they never wish to force their judgment. I cannot charge Mr. Tottenham personally with any inconsistency of conduct on this head; but it is not in this neighbourhood that such an assertion should be made. It is cruelly true that the consciences of Catholics in this neighbourhood would have been forced, if they had not been strengthened by power from on high, which defies the efforts of ingenious malice. Catholics are excluded from the charities of certain members of the Established Church in this neighbourhood; they are excluded from the charities of others in every neighbourhood; they are excluded at Cheltenham constantly; they are excluded at Birmingham, where they are perpetually persecuted in domestic life. Sometimes members of the same family are told they must never speak to their relatives; they must not be identified with them. All this is not forcing the consciences of Catholics! It is not, indeed, forcing them to exercise private judgment: no! it is forcing them to violate private judgment; it is forcing them to go against the dictates of conscience. How many a pang has a poor widow felt, when her little child, deprived of sustenance, must starve, or she must purchase food for it at the expense of its soul! And these scenes are perpetually occurring.

Again, if the principle of these gentlemen had been consistently maintained, we should not have had to weep

over those slaughters which sully every page of the history of poor Ireland. We should never have wept over the battles and murders of Skibbereen, Newton Barry, and Moncoin. There have been more murders committed, more horrible slaughters

The CHAIRMAN here intimated that the Reverend Gentleman's time had expired.

THE REV. JOHN LYONS.

I HAVE been listening, Sir, with some attention to all parts of the Reverend Gentleman's declaration, but more especially to the latter clause of it, and may I be permitted to ask him what have the miseries of Ireland- what have the sorrows of mine own native land, to do with the rule of faith? I could weep over the sorrows and miseries of that country, and, were it necessary, (but it forms no part of the present discussion,) I might trace them to their source. But thus much I may say, that so far from Roman Catholics being excluded from the charities of that country, I do assert, that all the charities throughout it, or the greater number at least, are supported by Protestant liberality. I will speak no more on this subject, but betake myself to the consideration of some of the assertions which the Reverend Gentleman has made regarding the rule of faith.

I also feel, as he does, that I must answer to the God of heaven and earth for what I may teach to my people. I would desire to feel that truth strongly impressed on my soul from day to day, as I walk through the district that hath been allotted to me wherein to preach the Gospel, and to distribute the word from house to house. I feel that every day that passeth over me is only adding a new day of responsibility to my existence in this world; and being one of those who must give account for souls entrusted to their charge, I desire to speak as the Apostle Peter saith: "Let him that speaketh, speak as the oracles of God."