selves truly interesting and important; and they are rendered still more so by the clear and vivid light in which they are exhibited.

"I had no idea that the subject of your work was a man of such distinguished moral worth, and of such admirable capacity and accomplishments, having only known him in Brandt and others. You appear to have rescued him from this broken and, no doubt, prejudiced description of his character, by what I believe to be, in the main, a very fair picture of his numerous and various excellences. I always thought that the learned and eloquent controversialist who could, by one splendid speech at that celebrated synod, convert the ever-memorable John Hales from the fearful system of John Calvin, must be, beyond all question, an extraordinary man; but, I confess, I have always had, (obtained I know not how,) not, indeed, a bad, but a low, opinion of his religious character. Your readers will be glad to find that he has found at last a biographer who, in this respect, has done him ample justice.

"The case of Barneveldt is deeply affecting. Had Bilderdijk observed, that he had acted wrong, one would not have been surprised; but to say that he deserved his fate, is astonishing to me, after reading your account; unless it should appear that your authorities have grievously imposed upon you. You have done well to send for the pamphlets mentioned by Dr. Southey. They may furnish you with much fresh light upon the subject.

"Throughout the piece Episcopius stands out in honourable and triumphant contrast with his enemies. It is, perhaps, not fair to blame the Calvinian system for their conduct; but surely all impartial posterity must blame the men.

"On the whole, I think, the work does no small credit to your industry and talents. It is written in a good, clear, historic style; bold, but not at all affecting pompous and irrelevant embellishments. Every one must love the honest heartiness with which you attend to the subject rather than to the manner.

"When in after-times the humble literature of our Connexion may be considered by some ecclesiastical historian, your name will not be forgotten in the list of those who have delighted and adorned the church by such edifying though, unhappily, some times neglected labours. And, I assure you, my dear Sir, it gives me at this moment a glow of greater satisfaction than I can well express, to find that an old friend, and colleague of my

own, should, since I had the pleasure to travel with him many years ago, have so wisely improved his mind, and his opportunities for learning, as to be able to produce so excellent a work.

"You may expect, however, that very high Calvinists will treat you with severity, unless you should perchance escape with a few cold sarcastic smiles. If I were inclined to make any objections of a general-nature,-for an examination of particular parts is out of question in a brief letter,-I should say, the work is too copious, at least for the common reader. But the lover of church-history will, perhaps, think otherwise. It also discovers you to be an ultra-Arminian. Certainly, a man who is decided in his principles so far deserves respect; yet I never much approved of ultraism, either in politics or religion. As I advance in life, I find my interest in the Arminian controversy declines. There are very great difficulties on both sides. Fully to answer all objections, is a task for an archangel. One thing, you and I think, is certain,-that unconditional election and reprobation are equally unscriptural and irrational. Let us, with Mr. Fletcher, recommend our people to go to the grammar-school of faith and repentance, before they enter the university of election and reprobation. There is, after all, an immensity of good both in Calvinists and Calvinism.

“I thank you for a copy of Dr. Southey's letter: It is from the pen of a gentleman. I shall rejoice to hear of the success of your volume. My dear wife joins with me in best respects to you and Mrs. Calder and family.

"I am, dear Sir, yours affectionately,

"DAVID M‘NICOLL."

Mr. M'Nicoll's schemes and projects in prose and poetry were innumerable. Few of them, however, were accomplished. Those which have been given to the world, whilst they please and edify, must occasion regret that he did not write more. He had been engaged for twenty years in collecting testimonies, from Christian writers of all times, on the witness of the Holy Spirit, as bearing evidence to the adoption of believers. His reading and research on this subject were prodigious. After his decease, a book was found with entries regularly numbered, and a corresponding number in, at least, a thousand volumes, in his library, noting extracts to be made for his intended work, in support of the view of that doctrine entertained by the religious Body to which he

belonged. From a syllabus of his design, drawn up by himself, it appears that his purpose was to prepare an original essay on the subject of spiritual influence, and, especially, the witness of the Spirit; then, to confirm the whole by testimonies from the most approved writings of all parties and of all ages; and, finally, to apply the whole to experimental and practical uses. In this design he had proceeded no further than the developement of his scheme, and the collection of materials to fill up the outline. With him the mental exercise of composition was much more easy and pleasing than the mechanical part. Scraps, sketches, outlines, skeletons, found in abundance in his scrutoire after he had left the world, indicate the fecundity of his mind in invention; whilst the unfinished state in which they are left shows, that his industry was not equal to his genius.

His "Argument for the Bible" is the largest, as well as the most profound and elaborate, of his publications. Amongst other testimonials of approval, two may be presented from persons of unquestionable ability. In a letter from the Rev. J. J. Blunt, Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge, and himself a most able advocate for the truth of Scripture, by a species of proof somewhat similar to that of Mr. M'Nicoll, we have a most frank and honourable expression of approbation :—

"St. John's College, Cambridge, Oct. 20th, 1831. "DEAR SIR,

"I FEAR you will have thought me guilty of discourtesy in not answering your letter to me sooner. I have been returned to College, however, only a few days; and it was not till my return that your packet came to my hands. I am much gratified by the handsome terms in which you speak of my publication on the Evidences, the more so as, from your own Essay on the same subject, (which I have delayed my answer a few days longer in order that I might read,) I perceive that you have turned your thoughts to a similar line of Argument. I quite agree with you in thinking, that the fitness of the doctrines of Scripture to one another, to the nature and the wants of man, (and one SO apparently unpremeditated,) is a department of Evidence as complete as that of undesigned co-incidences in the facts of Scripture, though a less popular argument than the latter. It had occurred to me before, though I never saw it put so strongly : It is a very fertile subject, and might be expanded, I think, into

a very valuable body of Evidence. In perusing your little work, I only wished that you had developed your Argument a little more fully, and illustrated it by more numerous examples. But you have Butler with you, who often leaves it to his readers to follow up his hints, and seldom chooses to subject his reasoning to possible inconvenience or constraint, by illustrations. Short, however, as it is, it is full of excellent matter, and can scarcely fail of putting its readers into a very profitable train of thought. For myself, I can say, it belongs to a department of Evidence by far the most satisfactory of all; and, indeed, in my opinion, unanswerable.

66

Pray accept my best thanks for your valuable Essay, as well as for your good opinion; and believe me, dear Sir,

"Yours very truly,

"J. J. BLUNT."

The second is from the Rev. S. T. Sturtevant :

"DEAR SIR,

The view which though difficult; The reasoning is

"I HAVE read your admirable work, which, most certainly, places you in a very high rank as an author. you have taken of the subject is most just, and yet this difficulty you have surmounted. abstruse; but the illustrations are easy, eloquent, and appropriate. I have long thought that true religion and sound philosophy were counter-parts of each other; but the danger is, lest we should love the philosophy of religion more than the religion itself. I have also long thought, that there is an impress of religion in all the works of nature; and that the earliest ages had little besides to direct them; and this is another of those analogies which you have so powerfully developed.

"Your frequent pulpit-exercises render it impossible for you to become an extensive writer; yet it is a great pity your talents should not fall upon some of our most difficult subjects. You are at that time of life which is best fitted for such a purpose. The crudities of inexperience are, with you, fully past, and the weakness of age does not hang upon you. I shall read your work again with greater deliberation, and then shall endeavour effectually to improve myself by it.

"I am most truly yours,

"S. T. STURTEVANT."

The substance of the "Rational Inquiry concerning the Operation of the Stage on the Morals of Society," was published in letters in the "Newcastle-upon-Tyne Courant" during Mr. M'Nicoll's residence in that town. Several valuable letters of approval were found amongst his papers. It may suffice to give extracts from three; the first from the present Venerable : Archdeacon Hoare; the second from Dr. Dealtry, Chancellor of the Diocese of Winchester; and the third from the Rev. Thomas Jackson, Editor of the "Wesleyan-Methodist Magazine." The Archdeacon writes to a mutual friend, who had applied to him for his opinion :

"MY DEAR SIR,

"Hampstead, April 14th, 1825. "YOUR two letters have remained for a long time unanswered, and the reason is this, that I did not like to give an opinion of the pamphlet upon Dramatic Exhibitions till I had carefully read it; and my engagements of late, have been too pressing to enable me to give sufficient time to the perusal. I have, within these few minutes, come to the last page; and can pronounce, without hesitation, that it contains arguments and statements perfectly convincing and irresistible. For popular reading, I think it might be curtailed with advantage, especially in the earlier and later pages; and I have my doubts whether it appears in a sufficiently attractive form to secure a general perusal. Of this, however, I am a very poor judge, and fully recommend you to be guided by Mr. Dealtry's opinion, from whom I received it.

"I remain, very truly yours,

Dr. Dealtry wrote as follows::"MY DEAR FRIEND,

"SAMUEL HOARE."

"Clapham, Oct. 14th, 1825. "I AM afraid that I am very little qualified to offer any opinion which is at all worth your attention on Mr. M⭑Nicoll's publication. I lost no time, however, in reading it, and noted down, on the blank margin, two or three thoughts that occurred on the perusal, intending to send you the copy back in that state by way of St. Thomas. As, however, it is very likely that some time may elapse before you can receive it by that channel, I thought it might be better to retain the book for the present, and to write to you at once by the post.

"It appears to me, as a whole, to be a very judicious and