disposed to suffer the whole will of God, with cheerfulness.

The face of the question is, therefore, a little changed, and amounts to this, What are the best means to increase and strengthen our faith? The reason for my thus changing the question is, that many who speak well of a life of faith in general, seem to understand it as if faith could be produced, or at least increased, by sudden efforts of our own power and will; whereas I apprehend that the growth of faith is gradual, and ordinarily effected in the use of appointed means, not arbitrary, but appointed by Him who knows our frame, and therefore works in us in a way suited to those faculties and capacities with which he has endued us.

1st. If it arises from a knowledge of Christ, it follows that a frequent perusal of the Scriptures, which testify of Him, is a fit and necessary means of increasing our faith.

2d. If also there must be a revelation of the Spirit of God, whose office it is to take of the things of Jesus, and show them to the soul,* and if this Spirit is promised and limited to those who ask it, it likewise follows, that secret prayer is another necessary means of strengthening faith.

3d. Another means to this purpose is, faithfulness to light already received. It is worth observation, that faith and fidelity are expressed in the Greek by the same word. Though the power is of God, yet, if there is any secret reserve, any allowed evil connived at, in heart or life, it will shut up the avenues to comfort, and check the growth of faith. The experience of past years has taught me to distinguish between ignorance and disobedience; the Lord is gracious to the weakness of his people, he pities their infir

* John xvi. 14. 2 Cor. iii. 18. † John xiv. 15-26.

mity, and teaches them to do better. Wilful sin sadly perplexes our progress-may the Lord keep us from it! It raises a dark cloud, and hides the Sun of Righteousness from our view, and till he is pleased to shine forth again, we can do nothing; and for this, perhaps, he will make us wait, and cry often out, "How long, O Lord, how long!"

Thus by reading the word of God, by frequent prayer, and by a simple attention to the Lord's will, together with the use of public ordinances, the Lord watering and blessing by the influence of his Holy Spirit, may we grow in grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, be more humbled in our own eyes, more weaned from self, and more fixed on Him, as All in All, till at last we shall meet before his throne to celebrate his eternal praises. VIGIL.

ON THE REMOVAL OF MEMBERS FROM ONE CHURCH TO ANOTHER.

IN the economy of those religious Societies with whose peculiar views the Congregational Magazine is more particularly in unison, probably we should, in, general scarcely find any thing so irregular as what occurs in the removal of members from one church to another. It is quite natural, and perfectly right, that persons should feel a strong regard for that minister by whose labours they have been greatly benefitted, and for that Christian church in whose communion they have enjoyed much happiness. It is not, therefore, a matter of wonder that such persons, upon their removing to a distance, should feel a reluctance in dissolving their former connexions, and should wish still to continue members where their thoughts and their affections must ever delight to dwell.

But it should be remembered, that connexions of this kind de

rive all their importance from certain ends which they are calculated to accomplish or facilitate; and that those objects are not attainable, nor are they at all likely to be promoted, where there are no opportunities for intercourse and association. Indeed, it is manifestly wrong, and destructive of that order and regularity which the New Testament recommends, for persons to remain members where they cannot communicate, or to communicate long with any church without being dismissed from their former connexions. Christian societies are formed for the discharge of reciprocal duties; but these duties cannot be discharged where there is no intercourse, and where the members have no opportunities of observing one another's spirit and conduct.

Owing to the irregularity which forms the subject of this paper, a difficulty sometimes occurs in case of a removal to a third situation. Suppose Phoebe, who was a servant of the church of Cenchrea, had remained at Rome* for a considerable length of time, without becoming a member of the church there, and had afterwards, upon removing to Corinth, requested a recommendatory dismission. In that case, the church at Rome could not have dismissed her, because she was not a member at that city; and the church at Cenchrea could not recommend her with the same degree of affectionate confidence, with which they might have recommended her formerly, not having had recent opportunities of observing her conduct. Those who are much conversant with our churches, will admit at once that this is not supposing an uncommon case.

Upon the whole, it may be remarked, by way of conclusion, that the general rule, "let all things be done decently and in

* Romans, xvi. 1.

order," as well as some of the objects in forming Christian societies, very clearly require that church members, upon removing from one place to another, should unite themselves where they have an opportunity of regularly attending. To wish to remain members where we can neither enjoy the privileges, nor discharge the duties which belong to this important connexion, may evince the steadiness of our attachment, but it shows also some degree of inattention to the nature and design of a Christian church. AMOS.

IMITATION AND PLAGIARISM.

(To the Editors.)

AMONG the literary varieties inserted in your Magazine last month, there is a whimsical epitaph ascribed to the late Benjamin Franklin, and supposed to have been written on himself. Your readers will be, perhaps, surprized to learn, that much of the originality and humour displayed in that jeu d'esprit, is borrowed from a work of Cotton Mather, published while Franklin was yet in his infancy. If they will compare the following lines with the epitaph alluded to, they will immediately see the truth of my assertion, and I have no doubt, will own with me, that Franklin can be only entitled to the merit of having carried out the original idea to a greater length, and to have illustrated it with more vigour, than he who first conceived it. My remarks more particularly allude to the last four lines.

"A living, breathing Bible, tables where Both covenants, at large, engraven were; Gospel and law, in's heart, had each its column;

His head an index to the sacred volume;

His very name a title-page; and next,
His life a commentary on the text.
O, what a monument of glorious worth,
When, in a new edition he comes forth;
Without erratas, may we think he'll be,
In leaves and covers of eternity.'

These verses are part of an elegy written by Benjamin Woodbridge, on the apostolic John Cotton, first pastor of the congregational church of Boston, in New England; they are printed in Cotton Mather's Magnalia Christi Americana, folio, 1702, book iii. p. 31. When we consider that this ecclesiastical his. tory of Franklin's native country was greatly esteemed in that sphere where his energies were first called forth, that his parents, being strict puritans, in all probability possessed a copy of it, in which case, we are sure, that the young philosopher's ardour after knowledge would never leave it unperused; and finally, that we have his own acknowledgment (in a letter written to Dr. Samuel Mather) of an early acquaintance with the writings, and person of Cotton Mather, we shall be at no loss to account for the remarkable similarity existing between these two pieces. The fact has long been familiar to me, but the recent appearance of Franklin's epitaph in your pages, has determined me to make it more generally known through the medium of your Miscellany. Now I am upon this subject, perhaps you will allow me to fill a spare page or two, with a few more facts of the same nature; for, being a book-worm, and my taste leading me generally among the old books, you will easily believe that many such incidents may have come to my knowledge.

Those who are acquainted with the works of Warburton, will remember how unceasing a subject of invective that great man derived from the character and writings of Milton. In his letters particularly, when no other means of gratifying his love of abuse and scurrility presents itself, the very name of Milton seems at once to awaken all his latent powers. How strange then it is, that Warburton should condescend to commit the most flagrant plagiarism

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Excepting Burton's "Anatomy of Melancholie," I know few books that have been more useful to the commonwealth of letters, than those of Fuller; at least, if the usefulness of books to the literary commonwealth, like that of subjects to the political commonwealth, increase in proportion to the number of their offspring. Fuller himself was not guiltless in this way; his "Holy State" has all the features of "Bacon's Essays," though softened down, and deprived of their masculine vigour; but he was more sinned against than sinning." At some future time, perhaps, I may enter more particularly on a detection of several gross instances of plagiarism from Fuller; at present I shall only mention the following. A tract, which has attained great celebrity in our days, commences with rather an interesting account of a conversation between a gentleman and an aged shepherd, whose residence on Salisbury plain gives a name to the pamphlet in which this conversation is recorded. The same conversation, however, is to be met with in Fuller's " Holy State," p. 184. "I have heard how a gentleman, travelling in a misty morning, asked of a shepherd, (such men being generally skilled in the physiognomie of the heavens,) what weather it would be? will be, said the shepherd, what weather shall please me and being courteously requested to express his meaning, Sir, (saith he,) it shall be what weather pleaseth God, and what weather pleaseth God,

It

Perhaps you will also allow me to ask of some of your discursive correspondents, whether there be any account existing of Richard Brocklesby, who seceded from the Church of England shortly after the Revolution? Whether after his secession he exercised his ministry among the Dissenters? and what are the general opinions entertained respecting his " Gospel theism ?" folio, 1706, I should recommend the latter work to the notice of some one of those able writers, who contribute to your department, entitled "Literaria Rediviva." Perhaps, some of your readers may also be able to inform me, whether John Willis, who published a work entitled "Mnemonica," 8vo. 1661, was the same

ERRORS IN BIBLES.

(To the Editors.) As Mr. D'Israeli has thought proper to attack the Dissenters on this subject, I am happy to find that he has been noticed by your Correspondent B., whose able remarks have, I doubt not, been

The Old Testament contains The New ditto

We insert the passages from Warburton and Milton, to which our correspondent alludes.

"Methinks I see her, like the mighty eagle, renewing her immortal youth, and purging her opening sight, at the unobstructed beams of our benign meridian Sun; which some pretend to say had been dazled and abused by an inglorious pestilential Meteor; while the ill-affected birds of night wou'd, with their envious hootings, prognosticate a length of darkness and decay."-Warburton's Enquiry into Prodigies and Miracles, pp. 136, 137.

"Methinks, I see in my mind, a noble and puissant nation, rousing herself like a strong man after sleep, and shaking her invincible locks: methinks, I see her as an eagle renewing her mighty youth, and kindling her undazzled eyes at the full mid-day beam; purging and fountain itself of heavenly radiance; unscaling her long abused sight at the while the whole noise of timorous and flocking birds, with those also that love the twilight, flutter about, amazed at what she means, and in their envious gabble, would prognosticate a year of sects and schisms."-Milton's Areopagitica, vol. i. p. 324.

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It is readily acknowledged that many of these errors are trivial in themselves; but mistakes, even of

this kind, ought not to be found in Bibles which bear the imprimatur of an University. If accu