Moreover we conceive that the requiring notice of intended Communion to be given on the Saturday, instead of at latest, on the Sunday morning, made as it was (though at the suggestion of the Presbyterians) by Cosin, Gunning, and Morley, may have been designed to afford opportunity for such conference and exhortation, and to enable persons to be duly prepared for Communion. Certainly such a use might well be made of it, and this would not be the only instance of our Divines turning the Puritan suggestions to a Catholic use. In reading this part of Mr. Wordsworth's address, we ought to remember that it was written by the author of the "Sermon on Repentance," which told so deeply on the consciences of many persons some years ago, and also the statements of his opinion in pp. 14, 15, 19. Perhaps also some qualification ought to be understood in connection with the statement that the Church "has given to all her Priests the power to remit sins, in order that it may be faithfully administered twice a day to all them that truly repent, and unfeignedly believe God's Holy Gospel."

tise now.

Such a statement needs much explanation, as respects the character of the sins supposed to be remitted, and the nature and duration of the penitence required, in order to secure it against misleading persons who have gone far wrong. Again, we may be allowed to say that we do not think Bishop Bull's preference of the form of absolution in the Communion office ought to be regarded as of weight, being only the judgment of an individual, however learned, in opposition to the clear decision of our Church. This is one of the difficulties of trying, by our own wits to decide, not merely what the Church did practise, in the early ages, but what she would or ought to pracIt may also be observed, that Mr. Wordsworth disapproves of the appellants' strong reprobation of the term "Protestant, which Mr. W. says, "the holiest and most learned Doctors and Bishops of our Church have held as dear to them as life itself," (p. 16.) But surely we ought to remember that these Doctors and Bishops understood by the word something widely different from what it means at this day; when, as too often used, it is simply equivalent to a profession of the formal principle of heresy. We may also not inappropriately take this opportunity of noticing an error into which we ourselves, as well as others, have fallen, with respect to an authority often referred to in the discussion of Church doctrines, we mean the MSS. notes on the Book of Common Prayer, commonly called Overal's Collections. They were so called, because they were written "by a friend or Chaplain of Overal's," who was unknown, and, as was supposed, were made from his collections. We believe there is no ground whatever for this supposition. The notes, it now appears, were written by Bishop Cosin, who was indeed librarian to Bishop Overal, and refers, with deference, to his judgment and practice. But they were probably written long after Overal's death; and the collections of authorities, as well as the original portions of the notes, appear to have been entirely the work of Cosin himself, that most learned and laborious Divine.*

We cannot agree with Mr. Wordsworth in thinking that these notes

*The account of this matter may be found in the notes to the first volume of "Hickes' Christian Priesthood," published in the Anglo-Catholic series, and in a fly leaf of corrections at the end of that volume.

are a compilation from different quarters, such as any student might transcribe "without, by so doing, adopting the sentiment as his own :" on the contrary, we conceive that an examination of the notes will show that the design of the collector was to exhibit the harmony of the Anglican with other branches of the Catholic Church, in important points of doctrine and practice. It is somewhat remarkable that it should not have been known who the writer of the annotations was, as Bishop Hickes was anxious to discover it; and as it appears that the hand is clearly Cosin's, and that this annotated Prayer-book, and another also in the Library at Durham, recognised as his by Nicholls, are both entered as his own in a catalogue of that library, which was made under his own eye. A third interleaved and annotated Prayer-book of his, is preserved in the British Museum. This has never been printed, and it is of much less value than those at Durham, which perhaps more than any writings of our old Divines call for republication in an unmutilated form as it seems that Nicholls did not print them quite entire. We must conclude by expressing the pleasure we have had in reading Mr. Wordsworth's most interesting Address and Letter, so fresh, animated, and eloquent in style, and containing so much of able argument: and whilst we must regret for our own branch of the Church his removal from England, we can well rejoice that the Scottish Church has acquired so accomplished and right-minded a scholar as an adopted son. And we trust that in respect to this point, as in so many others, the Church of England may benefit in point of doctrine and discipline from the existence and life of a sister, who has so long and so greatly aided the cause of Catholic truth by the exhibition of a truly "great fact," the being and active energy of a Church unestablished, independent-nay, persecuted and oppressed-by the exhibition of her inherent powers of continuance, government, and legislative and doctrinal determinations.

A Memoir of the Life of Bishop Mant. By his sometime Brother Fellow Archdeacon BERENS. 12mo. pp. 174. Rivingtons.

THIS is an affectionate tribute to the memory of an early friend; who, if not one whose name is destined to occupy, hereafter, a very high nitch in the Temple of fame, was in his day a ready, and consistent, and laborious champion of the Truth, and who, we think, may justly be considered, though his biographer gives no hint to that effect, the last in a long line of spiritual descent, deriving his first views of Christian doctrine from the non-jurors. Archdeacon Berens does not presume to criticise the actions of his friend; he simply records and approves them; and in doing this, the line which he follows is so narrow, as to admit neither of remark upon the affairs of the Church generally, nor of detail as to the Bishop's personal habits. The most interesting portions of the volume, it may therefore be imagined, are those in which this rule is of necessity, in some measure, departed from. Thus, we learn, that before Bishop Mant's consecration to the See of Down and Connor, there had not been any Confirmation in the Diocese for fourteen years; and in his previous Diocese of Killaloe, there were a very few years before he

went there, but four Glebe Houses. We notice one practice in Dr. Mant's Diocesan Administration, which, as far as we know, was peculiar to himself, the employment of a surveyor to inspect and report upon the condition of Parsonage Houses, with the view to prevent their falling into a ruinous state of dilapidation. It would be interesting to know how the system worked.

MR. ISAAC WILLIAMS' " Altar" is probably, ere this, in the hands of most of that class of readers who can appreciate his high excellencies. To such our praises will perhaps seem almost a repetita exaudire. The idea of meditations on the several acts of the liturgy is, as Mr. Williams sets forth in his preface, one familiar to most readers of foreign works of devotion. Our own Communion office has, however, so far as we know, never been illustrated in this way. And though, of course, there could not be that fulness which the ancient liturgy affords, there is nothing wanting to supply the great outlines of thought concerning the blessed sacrifice of the Eucharist. There is, probably, no poet of our age, save Mr. Williams, who could appreciate and do justice to the plan of connected meditative poems on this theme. We anticipate a criticism which might be made, to the effect that the poems are not sufficiently dogmatic, by the observation, that the title of Meditations in verse on the great Christian Sacrifice," renders it nugatory; since, though of course the meditations of any Christian depend strictly on dogmas, it by no means follows that they should be expressed-rather it would follow, that the more deeply they were held the less they would find conscious expression. We cannot, of course, illustrate the truth of our estimate of this work without very large quotations, which we cannot here give, but we may mention one poem, that on the Blessed Virgin and S. John, as beautifully illustrative of the fact, that when a mind is possessed by an idea, the poesy of unconscious expression is its fullest and most fitting exponent. The poem alluded to breathes throughout of the doctrine of the Incarnation in its fullest consequences, yet without one direct or explicit statement. It is a most cheering thought that such meditations as these find a ready place and correlative in the minds of a large class of readers. Meditation, says the wisest of doctors, is the very life of life, and the essence of holiness: may such works as these promote it among us.

By some accident, we have omitted to notice a very remarkable Sermon, which has been published in the form of a Tract, by Dr. PU SEY, Do all to the LORD JESUS. (Masters.) If any one doubts at this time of day whether there is reality in the preaching of High Churchmen, let him read this little Tract.

Having lately had occasion to speak so much at length upon the great importance of studying the early Liturgies of the Church, we need only announce the publication of Mr. NEALE's very valuable Tetralogia Liturgica. (Leslie.) The volume contains the Liturgies of SS. Chrysostom, James, and Mark, together with the Mozarabic, in parallel columns; and in the Notes and Preface bears marks of a very high degree of learning, and of great care.

Steps to the Cross, Nine Sermons, preached at S. Mary's, Bideford, by T. N. HARPER, Evening Lecturer, (Cleaver,) are a favourable instance of that devout manner of contemplating the actions of our blessed LORD'S humanity, which has lately grown up among us. The Sermons unite a very considerable degree of eloquence and earnestness; and are dedicated "without permission " to Dr. Pusey.

Another Volume of Sermons, by a Priest, from the same Diocese, (Rev. J. M. CHANTER,) is also deserving of praise. The style is plainer, and the subjects more directly practical than in Mr. Harper's volume.

The Rev. W. E. EVANS, author of the "Songs of the Birds," has just published a series of Sermons on the first chapters of Genesis, entitled First Revelations of GOD to Man. (Rivingtons.) It is a work of very unequal merit. The passages which touch on the province of Natural History are many of them singularly beautiful: the theological part however is less successful, the author having trusted too much to his own judgment. Mr. Evans is confident that revelation has nothing to fear from the boldest investigations of science.

Visits to Monasteries in the Levant, by the HoN. ROBERT CURZON, Jun. (Murray.) There is perhaps no sadder instance of the miserable state of feeling into which we are fallen, than the praise that has been bestowed upon this book from the " Quarterly" down to every Review we have met with. As Englishmen abroad usually shock the right-minded of other nations by their irreverence and immorality, we were scarcely surprised to find instances of irreverence, in many cases bordering upon profaneness, in almost every page. But we must confess that we were not prepared to find an English gentleman of noble family boast of having made religious men drunk, with "cups of the sweet pink rosoglio," for the purpose of inveigling them out of MSS. of the Holy Scriptures, and other sacred books. We never read a more disgusting outrage upon every feeling of common decency and honesty, than the scene which this honourable gentleman enacted in the convent of Souriani. And yet we find a critic contrasting, and that favourably, the "visits" of Mr. Curzon, with the "Letters and Journal" of Mr. Allies. For our own part we can only say, that we would rather believe all the fables of the Koran, than possess the sceptical mind of a man who can act as Mr. Curzon delights to tell us he has acted. Anyhow superstition is preferable to infidelity.

We have looked with much anxiety, and, we admit, with but feeble hope to Bishop Lonsdale's and Archdeacon Hale's Annotations on the Four Gospels, (Rivingtons); but the result we are forced to confess is even more disappointing than we could possibly have apprehended. Doctrinal expositions are eschewed as being the fruit of "party bias ;" and "personal application" of the Sacred Scripture, these annotators consider beyond their province. The "Notes in fact consist of very little more than the quotation at length of the passages referred to in the margin of the authorized version. As a whole, the work must be pronounced in every sense inferior to Doyley and Mant's Commentary.

A Volume, that will be useful to many, has just appeared from the Oxford Press, (J. H. Parker,) containing the " Daily Lessons" throughout the year. Those from the Old Testamentjare given in the order in which they occur; and the New Testament in full. A table of reference shows where the proper lessons for Sundays are to be found; and the two from Ezekiel, (the 20th and 24th,) which, by some chance, are only appointed for Sundays, are printed by themselves.

Mr. HEURTLEY has published a volume of Parish Sermons, of which, judging by the one on Public Worship, which has been printed separately as a Tract, we cannot speak very favourably. The writer has quite missed the Catholic idea of the Church's Services. Of. course what Mr. Heurtley writes is earnest.

We gladly welcome an Abridgment of Taylor's Life of Christ. (Mozleys.) The original was a work that brought out all Taylor's great excellencies; and the present abridgment seems carefully to have preserved them. The volume is included, we believe, in the Practical

Christian's Library.

Three more very pleasingly written allegories, The Revellers, &c., (Masters,) bear testimony to the surprising energy of Mr. MONRO. We are, perhaps, a little too old to be good judges of this kind of literature; but it strikes us that the meaning is scarcely sufficiently veiled.

We desire to call the attention of persons interested in Church music, to a series of Anthems by Eminent Composers of the English Church, (Olivier,) which has been just commenced under the able Editorship of Mr. COPE, of Westminster Abbey. The first monthly Part contains two by Adrian Batten, which, we believe, have been never before published, and one by Dr. Byrde, which is only to be met with in Aldrich's edition of his collected works. Mr. Cope has ascertained that there is a great deal of excellent music existing in Cathedrals and Public Libraries.

In connection with this subject, we may also mention a charming little book, entitled The Devout Chorister, Thoughts on his vocation, and a manual of devotions for his use. (Masters.) By T. F. SMITH, M.A., Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford, and Curate of Sneinton, Nottingham. At the end are some brief notices of eminent individuals, who began life as Choristers at one of our Cathedrals.

Mr. T. K. ARNOLD, who has done so much for the improvement of our educational books, in conjunction with Mr. Paul has just published a Handbook of Ancient Geography and History. (Rivingtons.) With the exception of the chapter on the history of the Jews, it is a translation from the German of Wilhelm Pütz; and is to be followed by two other portions of the same author's work on Mediæval and Modern History. Such manuals are very much wanted; and if the editors will boldly correct where correction is needed, the series will be of great value.

The Christian's Converse, (Masters,) a short practical treatise, translated and adapted by the Bishop of Brechin, seems well suited to aid in forming a religious habit of mind.