and thought it quite unfitting, that, when angels descended to instruct, mortal man should presume to undertake their office.

Accordingly the following gross, libellous, and profanely indecent letter is addressed by one of the ladies to Mrs. Lachlan.

"MY DEAREST FRIEND,

Among other occurrences in which you feel interested, I now call your attention to the following. On our first arrival at Leicester, we were not aware that it was customary to inform the chaplain of any intentions of visiting the jail, in order to speak the truth as it is in Jesus, to such poor famishing souls therein, as might feel desirous of the same; otherwise it is probable, all due attention to such form, would have been paid; as I hope I am ever willing where religion is concerned, that such passages as the following should obtain the consideration they deserve. Let all things be done in order; render therefore to all their dues: honour to whom honour.'

"When we next visited Leicester, the above information was given by a gentleman, for our consideration, to whom we mutually replied, that as we meant to act with decision, and EITHER WITH OR WITHOUT OPPOSITION, should continue to visit the poor prisoner as long as by so doing we could afford him benefit, it would be hypocritical in us to call on Dr. Fancourt, merely to ask his permission; whilst, at the same time, we agreed to conform to the established rules by making him acquainted with our intentions, more especially as we had a favour to ask in behalf of the prisoner. We accordingly went; but, alas! instead of beholding the calm and unruffled meekness which shone forth so brilliantly in the character of our great pattern of all excellence, we were ushered into the presence of one whose age might have commanded respect, but whose irritability of temper was strikingly perceptible, even after a few words only had escaped our lips. I began thus, Understanding, Dr. Fancourt, that it is a ceremony due to your situation as chaplain of the gaol, to inform you of our intentions of visiting the prison, I have called to tell you that it is our wish to do so.' This seemed quite sufficient to produce displeasure, although ultered with mildness and every necessary respect. You know well, that whilst I would not bow with fawning submission to any individual in existence, I am willing, from the peasant to the prince, practically to obey this most important law, 'Do unto others as you would that others should do unto you,' and as I before said, 'to render honour to whom honour is due.' Dr. Fancourt, in reply, begged to know, in rather a peremptory tone of voice, the names of the ladies he was addressing, which were given; and on seating himself at a little distance, he said, it was not his intention to have the prisoner interfered with by any one; that his mind would only be in a labyrinth, if it were allowed. One of us answered, 'Surely, Dr. Fancourt, that cannot be the case, if we advance no doctrines contrary to the Gospel of Christ; and as we are interested in the soul of this poor sinner, we are anxious to benefit him in every way in our power.' He then sarcastically said, 'I suppose, Madam, you are not MORE interested in him, than in other sinners?' I replied, 'Yes, I am, inasmuch as his days may be said to be numbered; consequently more immediate and strenuous efforts appear necessary, that his repentance and conversion

may previously take place.' He then told us that he considered his soul committed to his charge, which occasioned the following observation on my part,—'Are you quite sure, Dr. Fancourt, that his soul is committed to your care?' He answered, 'Yes.' To which I added, 'I am not quite so sure of that, for I believe we are THE INSTRUMENTS CHOSEN BY GOD for his conversion! This enraged him, and he at once peremptorily prohibited any farther ingress into that prison, at which I rose, saying, The prohibition of man was nothing in my estimation, when my DUTY TO GOD taught me TO ACT CONTRARY to the same,' observing, 'That as we could not obtain his consent, it would be hypocritical in us not to assure him, that WE SHOULD ACT IN OPPOSITION TO HIS WISHES. He seemed to insinuate that we were Dissenters. I replied, 'We belong to the Church, which we love, as we do also every Minister of the Gospel, when we see them influenced by the Spirit of God.' By this time we had arrived at the garden gate. Before parting I said, We candidly assure you that it is our intention to use every effort to gain admission into that jail; should we not succeed the sin will lie at your door.' Having said which, we wished him good morning, and hastened off. Would that I could say Dr. Fancourt's countenance, at this moment, was expressive of either love, joy, peace, long-suffering,' or gentleness; but enough: may God, in his infinite mercy, bestow on him that' NEW BIRTH UNTO RIGHTEOUSNESS,' without which no man can see the Lord,' AND WHICH IT IS EVIDENT HAS NOT TAKEN PLACE IN HIS SOUL; but since, even at the eleventh hour, there is hope, and we are scripturally assured that the first shall be last, and the last first ;' it is possible HE may even yet obtain a brighter crown in heaven than MYSELF!!! Oh! that the Lord would graciously make us, in like manner, instruments for HIS salvation! Grieved indeed should we be, had we any feelings towards him which Christianity did not justify!

66 Yours, &c. &c."

We

To vindicate Dr. Fancourt from representations like these would be to offer him an insult scarcely less revolting than that which they record. His adversaries are judged out of their own mouth. shall shortly perceive, from the style of letter which Dr. Fancourt on a subsequent occasion addressed to them, how far the charge of uncourteous behaviour can be substantiated. But certainly the worthy Doctor's courtesy was tested in a manner that would have put to trial the temper of the gentle Sir Calidore himself. It is rarely that a poacher has the impudence to take credit for courtesy in addressing a gentleman (though uttering it "with mildness and every necessary respect,") "Understanding, Sir, that it is a ceremony due to you, to inform you of my intention of sporting over your manor, I have called to tell you that it is my wish to do so. But as I mean to

act with decision, and, either with or without opposition, to shoot there, it would be hypocritical in me to call on you merely to ask your permission: whilst, at the same time, I conform to the established rules by making you acquainted with my intentions." We apprehend the chaplain of a jail has at least as much right to determine who shall give spiritual instruction to those committed to his

Miss

+ Dr. Fancourt.

How charitable!

charge as any gentleman has to the arrangement of his estate. And when a clergyman, deeply cognisant of his infinite responsibilities, is addressed in this style by persons who actually take credit for courtesy in the very perpetration of the affront,-who tell him they are "not quite sure" that he has any such responsibilities, that they are divinely chosen to supersede him,-that they are determined to act in opposition to his wishes, and that he is evidently unregenerate, we confess we do not think a slight expression of indignation would have proved any thing worse than that a clergyman is not a stone.

The ladies succeeded in effecting an entrance to the prison. After what had occurred, indeed, much opposition was not to be expected from the jailer.*

The effect of this extraordinary proceeding on a mind like that of Cook may be readily anticipated. "He takes the Bible," says the visitor, "and astonishes us with his beautiful childlike remarks." These "remarks" have been recorded, and will, we doubt not, “astonish" most of those who read them, but not so much with the folly of the silly creature who uttered them, as with the blasphemy of the fanatics who applauded them. Had Paine and Carlile taxed their ingenuity to its utmost to produce a disgusting and insolent ridicule of the Holy Scriptures, they could not have succeeded more effectually than Payne and Jenkins. We will not offend our readers with more of this trash than will enable them to judge for themselves of the quality of Mrs. Lachlan's book and the pretensions of our heroines. One text shall suffice:

The majestic declaration of incarnate God:

"I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." The "beautifully childish," or childishly beautiful" comment

hereon of Cook the murderer :

66

"Eh, dear! that's capital!! that's grand!!!"

Some of the most awful, sublime, and impressive texts of holy writ are actually transcribed at length, and then immediately followed by such observations as these, "Eh, dear! there's pleasant words!! that's beautiful!!!""Eh, that's pretty!" "that's beautiful-very pretty!" "Eh, that's true!""Eh, dear! that's very beautiful!" We shudder in reading the words of divine truth in combination with such remarks, and we spare ourselves and our readers the pain of the transcription. From this time Cook conceived a disgust for Dr. Fancourt, whom he had formerly declared he "loved." According to the account of the ladies, he said, "he takes me to hell, and there he leaves me; I wish, after he has taken me to hell, he would take me to heaven before he leaves me." The ladies, indeed, never led the " "interesting

It would be a curious and not unimportant inquiry, had we leisure to prosecute it, "Whether there be no appeal from the manifest injustice of a jailer in admitting persons to spiritual conversation with prisoners against the Chaplain's consent?" It is evident, as the case now stands, that the most ignorant and abandoned may set up as spiritual teachers. Against the Leicester ladies we know nothing worse than folly, conceit, presumption and fanaticism, of all which they stand self-convicted. But we are credibly informed that adultery, fraud, deliberate acts of resentful malignity, and conduct which absolves children from filial obligations, are not held, under the present system, disqualifications for spiritual intrusion into prisons.

looking youth" so disagreeable a journey, but carried him to Paradise at once by the shortest cut, which Dr. Fancourt, perhaps, thought it not wise or safe to do. And truly the pupil disliked neither the journey nor the fellow-travellers. When they were going, he would say, "Don't go,-do stop with me, pray do,-don't go." Miss Owston was no longer exclusively saluted with the endearing epithet, my. "Cook used to say," says one of the ladies, "I wonder when MY LADIES (Miss -'s own capitals) will come !" To borrow the language of" his ladies" once more,

"He often assured us how much he loved us, saying, 'I love you dearly, for Christ's sake.—I wish you could be ALWAYS with me!'

Cook's ladies improved their advantage. And as though their taste of the "m"'s society, the limited time which was allowed them to improve it, and the successful issue of their former exertions emboldened and excited them to still more monstrous violations of modesty and decorum, they now discovered that they had a divine appointment, not only to visit Cook, but to receive with him the holy sacrament of the Lord's Supper. Accordingly the following dialogue is recorded by Mrs. Lachlan :

"Lady. Should you like us to receive the Sacrament with you?" "Prisoner.-O, I should LOVE to receive it with you!!!"

"Lady. We will try to obtain the chaplain, Dr. Fancourt's permission."

"Prisoner. I feel very much hurt by the Doctor's displeasure, when any persons desire to come and give me religious instruction and comfort. But it is not a right spirit in Doctor F."

The pretence, however, of deference to the chaplain's permission was a mere hypocrisy, as might be anticipated, and as will be seen by the following account, which we transcribe from Mrs. Lachlan's book. "One of the ladies addressed the following letter to the chaplainthe reply is annexed.

"LETTER.(As nearly as can be recollected.)

666 TO THE REV. DR. FANCOUrt.

"SIR-Hearing that it is your intention to administer the Holy Sacrament to poor Cook, on Thursday next, I cannot resist the inclination I feel to beg as a great favour, that you will indulgently allow my friend and myself to partake of the same. May that God, whose name is love, graciously incline your heart to grant this request for his dear Son's sake. "I am Sir, yours, &c.'"

" REPLY.

"MADAM-I REGRET that I cannot comply with your request. My DUTY, as chaplain, allows me to admit no one, save the inmates of the jail. Your obedient humble servant, "W. L. FANCOURT.

66 6

"The Newarks, July 31, 1832."

Here, it might be thought, was an answer at once courteous and decisive-courteous, for the worthy chaplain expresses his REGRET at

The following are some of the expressions of this enormous criminal as given by Mrs. Lachlan; "O, I am so happy! I cannot express how happy I am!" "I am SUREI shall go to heaven: I am quite SURE of it!" "I COULDN'T despair, bless you! I COULDN'T!" There is much more to the same effect which we forbear to quote.

the necessity of refusing the applicant's request; decisive, inasmuch as the refusal was grounded on DUTY.

But the ladies were not to be so lightly daunted. It will easily be conceived that "the great favour" and "indulgence" (as they hypocritically called it) was only requested in conformity to those "established rules" with which these ladies seem so conversant, and the spirit of which is to entreat as a boon what the suppliant intends to take by force rules established no where, so far as we know, except on "the road." That, under Mr. Owston, the ladies found small impediments in contravening the chaplain's wishes, wishes grounded upon duty, our readers will readily credit. They appeared at the chapel; and in the midst of the sermon shouted aloud, "He is certain, certain to be saved!" Whether they received the sacrament from Dr. Fancourt's hands we have not learned. We should, however, conjecture that the Doctor would not so far have sanctioned this indecent intrusion; and that, in consequence, he still further excited the wrath of his malicious persecutors. Be this as it may, he is never mentioned without a considerable proportion of rancour, and even accused of having violated his promise to Cook to deliver him some tracts: an accusation which every reader of Mrs. Lachlan's chronicle will know how to estimate. Miss Owston was favoured to the utmost ambition of her rivals. She received the sacrament with Cook, and even prevailed on him to record the circumstance with his own hand in her album, or some other book. To the latter privilege one of the other ladies was, however, afterwards happily admitted. Still, however, Miss Owston, apparently, alone had the honour of sharing "the happiest morning of his life." "You must not leave me to-day," (!!!) he said, "we have been so blessed to-day!"*

When Cook was ordered by Mr. Justice Park to be removed to the county jail, the ladies were, of course, desirous of pursuing him thither. But the law is not to be treated so unceremoniously as the church, in these liberal days; the Judge refused the permission, and the refusal was peremptory, and could not be eluded or resisted. That the acrimony of the ladies was personal towards Dr. Fancourt is placed beyond a doubt by the excessive contrast between their language regarding him and what they say of Mr. Justice Park, who, as they state, “received them very civilly," although he did but the same with Dr. Fancourt, and did not experience at their hands the choice treatment they reserved for the worthy chaplain.

The scene of the change of prison, &c. must be given in the words of one of the ladies.

"When about to have his chains taken off, he said, 'I wish I was now going to suffer before you all; to which my friend replied, That's not a very kind wish as far as we are concerned.' He, looking at her, smiled, and said, 'Bless you.'

"To describe the scene that followed, would be quite impossible; it must have been beheld to be believed. Every one at parting with him seemed deeply affected; he clung about Mrs. Owston's neck,† with indescribable agony, calling her his dear mother, sobbing and praying

Mrs. Lachlan's Narrative, p. 198.

+ Mr. Owston, if not present, must feel gratified by this intelligence.