widening as it flowed on, and opening for itself a breach which it may yet require the care and prudence of ages to close. And even the pious author himself was not proof against that snare of Satan, which, through the vanity and weakness of human nature, led him in his latter years to assume the authority of an Apostle, and to establish a fraternity within the Church, to be called after his own name, and to remain a lasting monument of his activity and zeal. But over errors such as these let us cast a veil; and rather rejoice in reflecting on the many whom he reclaimed from sin and wickedness, and taught to seek for salvation through the merits of their Saviour.

"Of such, I repeat, wherever a like deficiency of religious means is found, we ought to speak not only with tenderness, but with brotherly love and esteem."

'It seems pretty obvious that Bishop Coplestone has taken his impressions from Southey's Life of the Founder of Methodism, although somewhat modified by better views of spiritual religion. The moral destitution of the country, and the negligence of the Church, are acknowledged, as well as the important effects produced by Mr. Wesley's labours, at least in their early stages; and yet these results are spoken of as somewhat of a religious calamity! The beginning of "schism," as to church order, is compared to the letting out of water; and a fearful "breach" out of the Established Church completes the picture. How little does this sensible and amiable bishop know of the facts of the case!—as for instance, 1. That the Methodist societies were in great part gathered, not out of Church-goers, but Church-neglecters. 2. That the effect was generally for many years, to increase the attendance at Church, and to lay the foundation in a great number of places, especially in the more populous towns, of large Church congregations, which have continued to this day. 3. That the still more extensive and ultimate result was, after persecution or silent contempt had been tried in vain, and when it was found that obstinate perseverance in neglect would not be any longer tolerated, that the Establishment was roused into an activity, by which it has doubtless been greatly benefited, as far as respects its moral influence, the only influence of a church which can be permanent or valuable. 4. That very few of the Methodists of the present day would in all probability have been, in any sense which Bishop Coplestone would value, Church people; and so this supposed loss of ecclesiastical members affords but an imaginary ground for the regrets with which he seems to surround it. The intimation of Mr. Wesley's ambition is imitated from Southey. But of this enough has been said in refutation. Bishop Coplestone indeed regards it mildly as an infirmity, which he would charitably cover with Mr. Wesley's numerous and eminent virtues. That is kind; but Mr. Wesley himself would have taken a severer view of this "weakness," had he been conscious of the passion of ambition, in the sense in which it is here used. One might ask this respectable prelate to review the case, and say where Mr. Wesley, allowing him his conscientious conviction that he was bound to incessant activity in doing good to the souls of men, could have stopped? how he could have disposed of his societies, in the then existing state of the Church? And whether, if he had this "ambition" to be the head of a sect, his whole life did not lay restraints

upon it, since, from nearly the very first outset of his itinerancy and success, it has been shown in this work, by extracts from the Minutes' of his first conferences, that he took views of ecclesiastical polity which then set him quite at liberty, had he chosen it, to form his societies into a regular church, to put himself at their head, and to kindle up a spirit of hostility to the Establishment, and of warm partisanship in his own favor, throughout the land? A vicious ambition would have preferred this course. But it is not necessary to anticipate the remarks which will follow on these subjects.'—pp. 268–270.

The rich reward, which awaited Mr. Wesley's later years, in the fruits of his extended ministry, and the high gratification these must have yielded his saintly and Apostolical spirit, are beautifully described in the following quotation, which contains also a most touching incident. We may premise, that Mr. Watson had just quoted Mr. Wesley's own language, on the subject of his successful labours. The extract is from his Journal of 1785, March 24; and may fairly be referred to in refutation of those who would fain deduce from his Sermon on God's Vineyard, dated October 17, 1787, that he himself had come to the painful conclusion that Methodism was a total failure. I was now considering how strangely the grain of mustard seed, planted about fifty years ago, had grown up. It has spread through all Great Britain and Ireland, the Isle of Wight, and the Isle of Man; then to America, through the whole continent, into Canada, the Leeward Islands, and Newfoundland. And the societies in all these parts walk by one rule, knowing that religion is in holy tempers, and striving to worship God, not in form only, but likewise in spirit and in truth."

'He must, indeed,' observes Mr. Watson, 'have been insensible to the emotions of a generous nature, had he not felt an honest satisfaction, that he had lived down calumnies; and that where mobs formerly awaited him, he met with the kind and cheering attentions of the most respectable persons of all religious persuasions, in every part of the country. But, more than this, he could compare the dearth and barrenness of one age with the living verdure and fertility of another. Long-forgotten truths had been made familiar ;—a neglected population had been brought within the range of Christian instruction, and the constant preaching of the word of life by faithful men ;-religious societies had been raised up through the land, generally distinguished by piety and zeal ;-by the blessing of God upon the labours of Mr. Whitefield, and others of his first associates, the old Dissenting churches had been quickened into life, and new ones multiplied; the Established Church had been awakened from her lethargy; the number of faithful ministers in her parishes greatly multiplied; the influence of religion spread into the colonies, and the United States of America; and above all, a vast multitude, the fruit of his own ministerial zeal and faithfulness, had, since the time in which he commenced his labours, departed into a better world. These thoughts must often have passed through his mind, and inspired his heart with devout thanksgivings, although

For the past,

no allusion is ever made to them in a boastful manner. he knew to whom the praise belonged; and the future he left to God, certain at least of meeting in heaven a greater number of glorified spirits, of whose salvation he had been, under God, the instrument, than any minister of modern ages. That "joyful hope" may explain an incident, which occurred toward the close of life, at the City Road chapel, London. After prayers had been read one Sunday forenoon, he ascended the pulpit; where, instead of announcing the hymn immediately, he, to the surprise of the congregation, stood silent, with his eyes closed, for the space of at least ten minutes, rapt in thought; and then, with a feeling which at once conveyed to all present the subject which had so absorbed his attention, gave out the hymn commencing with the lines,

"Come, let us join our friends above,
Who have obtain'd the prize," &c.

It was also his practice to preach on All-Saints' Day, which was with him a favorite festival, on communion with the saints in heaven; a practice probably arising out of the same delightful association of remembrances and hope.'-pp. 270, 271.

But we must close our review of a book, in which much valuable information is compressed into the smallest possible space. Though it courts no popularity by an accommodation of truth to the taste of a degenerate age, but seeks rather to elevate the judgment of its readers to the true Scriptural standard, the simplicity of its plan fits it for general usefulness, and will make it a decidedly popular volume. Utility is the obvious aim of its accomplished author; and he has left the field of a more purely literary interest still open for cultivation. His talents fitted him for either task; but he has probably chosen the more excellent way. If any apology were needed for the brevity of the work, we might adopt Dr. Whitehead's for Mr. Wesley's literary compositions:-'His object was chiefly to instruct and benefit that numerous class of people who have little learning, little money, and but little time to spare for reading. Among other meritorious performances, Mr. Watson has rendered literary justice to Mr. Charles Wesley, by rescuing many of his hymns, which, through mistake, Mr. Montgomery and others had assigned to other sources. Numerous incidents, which throw great light on Mr. Wesley's character and views, are interwoven with the narrative, which is besides enlivened by many interesting extracts from his Journals. On Mr. Wesley's personal character, the vital doctrines of Methodism, Antinomianism, the subject of revivals of religion, questions of church government, devotional poetry, the relations of Methodism to the Church of England, and various other topics, Mr. Watson has expatiated with his usual ability. His modest and sensible remarks on the progress and prospects of Methodism, which close the volume, will form a very appropriate conclusion to this article:

'Such have been the results of the labours of this great and good man. Whether they are still to diffuse a hallowing influence through the country, and convey the blessings of Christianity to Heathen lands with the same rapidity and with the same vigour, will, under the Divine blessing, depend upon those who have received from him the trust of a system of religious agency, to be employed with the same singleness of heart, the same benevolent zeal for the spiritual benefit of mankind, and the same dependence upon the Holy Spirit. I know not that it bears upon it any marks of decay, although it may require to be accommodated in a few particulars to the new circumstances with which it is surrounded. The doctrinal views which Mr. Wesley held were probably never better understood or more accurately stated in the discourses of the preachers; and the moral discipline of the body, in all its essential parts, was never more cordially approved by the people generally, or enforced with greater faithfulness by their pastors. Very numerous are the converts who are every year won from the world, brought under religious influence, and placed in the enjoyment of means and ordinances favorable to their growth in religious knowledge, and holy habits; and many are constantly passing into eternity, of whose "good hope through grace," the testimony is in the highest degree satisfactory. If Methodism continue in vigour and purity to future ages, it will still be associated with the name of its founder, and encircle his memory with increasing lustre ; and if it should fall into the formality and decays which have proved the lot of many other religious bodies, he will not lose his reward. Still a glorious harvest of saved souls is laid up in the heavenly garner, which will be his "rejoicing in the day of the Lord;" whilst the indirect influence of his labours upon the other religious bodies and institutions of the country, will justly entitle him to be considered as one of the most honored instruments of reviving and extending the influence of religion, that, since the time of the Apostles, have been raised up by the providence of God.'—pp. 322, 323.

[We will only add that this brief and comprehensive Life of Wesley by Mr. Watson, does not by any means supersede the use of the larger and very valuable Life of both John and Charles Wesley by Mr. Moore; nor was it so intended. All those, therefore, who desire to possess full and authentic biographies of these two remarkable brothers, will do well to furnish themselves with both those standard works. Their present cheapness, too, considering especially the extremely low price of that by Mr. Watson, (only fifty cents, bound and lettered,) places them, at a very moderate expense, within the reach of the public generally.]

A DEATH BED SCENE.

BY THE REV. STEPHEN L. STILLMAN.

IN the midst of life we are in death. Youth, manhood, and old age, are alike subject to the summons of that messenger whose call cannot but be heard; whose ears are deaf to entreaty; from whom the fleetest cannot flee, and from whose grasp there is no escape.

Reader, art thou a youth,-blooming in beauty and health? Do thy prospects afford a pleasing promise of the future?-and is thy fond heart panting for a draught of the crystal waters which the beguiled vision of thy fancy beholds flowing in silvery rivulets from the mountains of pleasure? How frail are thy hopes! How feeble the tenure by which they are held! Ah! how soon will the sweet become bitter; how quickly shall those streams become tasteless, or dry; and those mountains of pleasure and valleys of delight which thou beholdest overspreading the landscape of life, be stripped of their verdure, and expose their wintry barrenness! Disease, the handmaid and harbinger of death, hath already implanted in thy earthy members the seeds of destruction; and the plant of mortality is gradually (though perhaps imperceptibly) spreading its fibrous roots to absorb and poison the vital juices; and soon its devouring progress will wrinkle and discolour thy blooming countenance; and dimness of sight, and trembling of limbs, and the sluggish circulation of the purple fluid through the once elastic channels, will give timely evidence of inevitable dissolution. Or death, the ravenous destroyer, eager for his prey, may call from the dire train of relentless maladies some acute disease, to hasten thy departure, and close at once thy life and thy probation. Forbear then, dear reader; thy vain pursuit forbear; and listen to the voice of one who, though 'dead, yet speaketh.'

WILLIAM L. HIGGINS, a promising youth of eighteen, left his employer, in the city of New York, for a few days, in the hope that a little relaxation and exercise would speedily restore his usual health, which appeared declining, from too intense application to business, in a sedentary employment. His application to a physician, during one of his walks, prepared the way to his acquaintance with a fact, of the existence of which it does not appear that at that time he had entertained even a suspicion. When a faithful brother kindly informed him, as the opinion of the physician, that a speedy death must inevitably follow from the obvious symptoms in his case, it produced an expression of surprise rather than alarm; which, after a deliberation of some minutes of the most intense thoughtfulness, was followed by a reply, that if he was so soon to die, there was no time to be lost, for he had a great work to perform. My poor soul, said he, is unprepared for heaven. I am a wretched sinner, exposed to the just indignation of that holy God against whom I have most wickedly offended. He then immediately commenced his appeal to the compassion of his Saviour for mercy, as the only ground of hope for a perishing sinner; and in the most ardent and unremitting supplication for pardon, he continued to agonize in spirit, regardless of the body, until his soul was set free, his mourning was turned into joy, and his lamentations and prayers were swallowed up in effusions of gratitude and praise. During the interim of several days in which he was engaged in the struggle for pardon, he made no allusion to the morality of his