which he had not hesitated to use. He charged them with worship ping a morsel of bread, instead of the Saviour, with subjecting the Divine Redeemer to the lowest disgrace, and with changing a God worthy of supreme adoration, into an object of scandal and contempt, unable to protect itself from the attacks of vermin. Happily he had powerful protectors, and his opponents were silenced. The restoration in 1660 of the line of Stuart to the English crown, seems to have been an event highly gratifying to the feelings of Du Bosc, and we are sorry to be compelled to say that the expression of his joy was accompanied by circumstances which exhibit his consistency of principle on the subject of ecclesiastical discipline in no very favourable light. In a letter of congratulation, address ed to Dr. Brevint, chaplain to Charles II., he availed himself of the opportunity, to launch out into an eulogium of Episcopacy which appears glaringly at variance with the habits and maxims of Presbyterianism. After having applied, with singularly bad taste, to use no harsher term, the following language to the restored monarch "Thus it may be said that your king is a stone cut out without hands, like that of Daniel; and I wish, with all my heart, that this stone, after having smitten the vain statue and horrible Colossus of that monstrous Republic which had erected itself in your kingdom, after having broken it and crushed it into dust, may become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth with its name and glory," he goes on to run a somewhat whimsical parallel between the adventures of Charles and the life of David, concluding with a flourish about the anxiety manifested by the king for the reedification of the temple of the Lord, in other words, the English Hierarchy. "I learn," he writes, "that this prince has the zeal of David, that he glows with desire to rebuild the house of God, as well as his own; and that it will be his object to place the Church in so good a condition, as that those who know the genius of Christianity will find nothing to censure. I learn that he intends to re-establish Episcopacy, but in a state so moderate and reformed, that it will present the complete aspect of the ancient discipline of the church." Did not the other portions of the letter prove that Du Bosc was perfectly serious, and were it not apparent from other passages of his life, that he had a very courtier-like reverence for the kingly character, it might be imagined that the worthy minister of the Church of Caen was here indulging himself in a little grave irony. This, however, is clearly not the case, and in the utter improbability of so complete an ignorance of the "merry monarch's" character, as to permit the supposition that these anticipations were genuine, we can only imagine that, if they were not absolute grimace, they were a "policizing manœuvre, an ingenious innuendo, intended to suggest the expediency, and beneficial character of the measures in question. But Du Bosc does not stop here; he goes on to assert roundly that We, speaking of course in the name of his breth ren, there should be found, said he, persons with reverence and obedience, I acwho refuse to respect such a hierarchy knowledge them guilty of all kinds of anathema." We are perfectly aware that Du Bosc and Calvin were not Independents, and that as Presbyterians they were not unlikely to entertain sufficiently exaggerated notions of ecclesiastical authority, yet we cannot help expressing our surprize that they should have allowed themselves in such language as this, and our suspicion that it had in it more of adulation than sincerity. Writing unofficially, and with the courteous unreserve of private and friendly intercourse, they might be anxious to push concession to its utmost limit, and to break down as much of the intervening barrier as might have the appearance of hostile separation. But this is a dangerous species of trifling; when principles are in question, it behoves to be clear and decided, and, while maintaining charity and courtesy to the very extremity of debate, to leave no ground for the imputation of hesitancy or insincerity. We regret that the great length of this very curious document prevents us from inserting it entire; it proceeds in a sort of strophe and antistrophe, at one time praising Episcopacy, at another avowing Presbyterianism; then complimenting the first as fairly claiming an antiquity of 1500 years, and anon hinting that it is entirely unscriptural. It is, however, but fair to state that the closing paragraphs are written in a very impressive strain, and with an evident anxiety to suggest such measures as should produce the effect of general conciliation. He recommends general submission to the system itself, but he urges modifications which would make its claims far more plausible. He enforces the privation of pomp and power; he would prevent the bishop from acting without the sanction of his presbytery; in the ordination and deposition of pastors, as well as in the infliction of ecclesiastical punishment, he would make the consent of that body a sine qua non; and, lastly, he would make the bishop responsible to the Synod! Alas, for Episcopacy, were it thus shorn of its honours, wealth, and influence! -we do not wonder at the little effect produced by this appeal on the minds of men eagerly engaged in indemnifying themselves for past privations, and in grasping at the coveted appendages of office, from which their Presbyterian monitor would cut them off. He concludes with strong intreaties, that the court chaplain would use his influence with his royal master to these desirable ends., Brevint's answer was courteous, cautious, general, and would, we imagine, give Du Bosc a pretty intelligible notion of the sort of moderation which it was intended to exercise. The English Presbyterians do not seem to have relished the terms of this proposed comprehension; they knew the men with whom they had to deal, and they must have been aware, that nothing was designed on the part of the leading Episcopalians, but rigorous exclusion, and harassing persecution. The letter of Du Bosc was noticed in some of their publications, in language of complaint and censure. His sentiments, in other respects, were little to the English taste. He was a thorough Frenchman in his political feelings, and permitted himself so far to depart from decency and truth as to apply to John Milton the epithet "atheist!" witness the following epigram which turns upon a miserable, if not an impious conceit. IN MILTONEM. Milto, vocat Reges paginasacra Deos. Est Atheus Milto, Regum hinc acerrimus hostis, Vellet quippe omnes tollere posse Deos. We are glad to pass from these less favourable views of the sentiments of Du Bosc, to transactions in which he exhibited at once the meekness of a Christian minister, and the firmness of a Christian confessor. In 1664, the Jesuits succeeded in procuring a lettre de cachet, separating him from his flock, and exiling him to Chalons. It seems, however, to have been sufficiently understood that this visitation was not the result of had any very heavy delinquency, since he was treated with the greatest consideration by the leading inhabitants of that city. The bishop, a nobleman of the house of De Herse Vialart, paid him particular attention, and insisted on his regularly dining twice a week at his table. On one occasion when doing the honours of his episcopal palace, and exhibiting its splendid apartments, and costly furniture, he asked his visiter what he thought of all this pomp, and whether it an apostolical appearance. Du Bosc dextrously evaded the difficulty by replying that as M. de Vialart was Count as well as Bishop of Chalons, he was entitled by his civil rank to privileges which might be unsuitable to a simple ecclesiastic-and that he saw nothing in his mansion or his domestic arrangements, which exceeded the licensed magnificence of a peer of France. His forced residence at Chalons lasted only six months, and his return to Caen was celebrated by a kind of public triumph A nobleman of the Romish religion, a notorious debauchee, but openly avowing his partiality to such of the Protestant ministers as were remarkable for ability, and holding the talents of Du Bosc in the highest admiration, determined on having a drinking-bout in honour of his release. He invited for that purpose two Cordeliers well known to him for their convivial habits, and plied them so effectually that one of them died upon the spot. He waited on Du Bosc the next morning, and informed him, that he had felt it his duty to sacrifice a monk to the public joy-that the offering would have been more complete, if it had been a Jesuit, but that he hoped the will would be taken for the deed, and that, under all the circumstances, a Cordelier would be considered as a satisfactory substitute. But greater and more harass ing difficulties than any which he had ever yet encountered were preparing for Du Bosc. The ruin of the Protestants had been determined, and a series of minor persecutions prepared the way for the final and faithless revocation of the Edict of Nantes. In the protracted struggle which the churches maintained through the medium of their deputies, this great man took the lead, and made frequent journies to Paris for the purpose of negociation. Having had frequent and successful discussions with the provincial Intendants, who commenced their attacks on the great charter of the French Protestants by endeavouring to get possession of the title-deeds of their churches, he repaired to the capital, where a general deputation had collected from the different consistories. The great object was to obtain an audience of the King, and this was so far gained, as that his majesty consented to admit one of the ministers, and fixed on Du Bosc as the individual. This interview took place on the 27th of November, 1668, and gave rise to hopes which were by no means realized. Louis was in his cabinet, alone, standing, and uncovered; and Du Bosc, advancing with the prescribed number of bows, was permitted to state his case, which he did in a very manly though respectful way. Louis replied, Du Bosc, by permission, rejoined, and the conference being closed, retired. After the audience, the King entered the Queen's apartment where the court was collected, and addressing his consort, said "Madam, I have just been listening to the best speaker in my kingdom;" then turning to those who were present, he added, "I certainly never heard any man speak so well." The Queen asking who it was, he replied, that it was Du Bosc, a minister of Caen. (To be concluded in our next.) SELF-JUDGMENT. "If we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged."-1 Cor. xi. 31.. THERE are few points of Christian duty that have been more frequently or more eloquently urged than the necessity of self-examination and self-judgment, but it is to be feared that both exhortation and remonstrance, though they may have been successful in awakening the feelings, have too often failed in the endeavour to press conviction onward to practice. Self-examination, indeed, is an exercise of which the expediency is allowed by all, and there are perhaps very few who have not at some period or other of their lives engaged in it. Affliction has forced it on them, and grief may have softened their spirits and made it welcome. The calamitous results of erroneous reasoning or criminal indulgence may have constrained the mind to look back upon itself, and to review its career. But all this falls miserably short of the severe task imposed on us in the text. Self-examination must be pushed home before it can become self-judgment, and until it reach this point it can scarcely be said to deserve a better name than self-deception. The human heart is skilful in the invention of palliatives; it shrinks from the harsh treatment on which the cure of its maladies depends, and it will run the whole circle of delusive devices before it will submit to the painful remedy. Our characters must go into the crucible, and pass through the fire of assay, before their dross can be purged away. Self-condemnation is a part of the great spiritual process through which the children of God are led by the Holy Ghost; and he will be found the wisest Christian on whom it has been most deeply wrought. That prayer will be most effectual at a throne of grace which rises from the lowest depths of humiliation. In our meditations on this important subject we shall endea vour, judgment. 2d. To exhibit some of the difficulties which interfere with its exercise. its effectual performance. 4th. By way of improvement, to set forth the advantages which should operate as motives to its faithful and persevering discharge. 1st. Let us fix our attention on the duty of judging ourselves. That we are justified in the use of this emphatic term, will appear from a twofold view. Let us then consider it, first, positively, as it regards ourselves and human character in general. It is clear, beyond the necessity for argument, that man's happiness depends, if not wholly yet to a large extent, on the knowledge of himself. Ignorance here is a ruinous defect at the very foundation of enjoyment. We may establish this by a reference to the two great features of character, the understanding and the passions. These are the main sources of human misery when unaccompanied by selfknowledge. The uncultivated mind has no basis for genuine happiness-the victim of unbridled appetite is the prey of unutterable wretchedness. Now no man will attain to intellectual eminence, until he have condemned himself of want of knowledge, and none will participate in the blessings of pure and tranquil felicity, until they are self-judged of passionate infirmity. But the most important view of this duty is to be found in its relative aspect. If we look within ourselves, and then look upwards to a holy and sin-abhorring God, what bold tongue will dare to articulate a syllable of self-acquittal? Guilt, indelible guilt, is written on the record of man's thoughts and life. The myriads who are rushing forward on the awful road to an eternal world in apparent levity of spirit, are gay only in the absence of reflection. One glance at their own hearts, one return upon their real condition, accompanied by a realizing view of the dreadful purity of Jehovah, would quench their mirth in happier sadness. Ah! if the holiest saint must tremble here, and betake himself to an atoning sacrifice and a spotless righteousness as his only confidence, what must be the terrors of those who thus awake to the conviction of their state before God, without the hope of reconciliation through the Lamb that was slain ! But these are salutary terrors, the stern discipline of the Law scourging us to Christ-the severities of self-judgment preparing us, through the divine blessing, for the renovation of our nature, the sanctification of our heart, and the glorious manifestation of the sons of God. If then it be wise in man to shun his heaviest misery, and to seek his only happiness; if it be duty to hate that which is hateful to infinite purity, and to condemn that which is alike injurious to human happiness and opposed to the Divine commands, the necessity for judging ourselves is at once placed in the strongest light. All 2. It is not, however, meant to conceal that there are great difficulties in the way of the exercise of this duty. That destructive infirmity of spirit which usurps the name of self love, is, in countless instances, a fatal obstruction. To examine ourselves is hard, but to condemn ourselves is impossible to unaided man. Remorse is too painful to be retained, unless when forced upon us by external circumstances. Conscience is a tremendous agent, and when we are dragged before its tribunal, its inflictions are so intolerable that our reluctance to present ourselves voluntarily at its bar, can excite no wonder. The influence of the world, throws another stumblingblock in the path of duty. men seek pleasure, though all are mistaken both in the object with which they identify it, and in the methods by which they propose to attain it. This agreement in the search, brings with it a disposition to combine in its pursuit, and the social principle which was given as the source of security and strength, thus becomes the element of error and destruction. We see our fellow-men joyous, and we desire to partake their joy-we follow after mirth, voluptuousness, fame, and these our infatuations keep us back from following Christ. We breathe an infectious atmosphere, and refuse to pass into a region of health; we walk in a dark place, and close our ear against the compassionate voice which calls from the realm of light-" come up hither." But we have a sterner foe, a deadlier antagonist than even ourselves or the world, in him who is the unrelenting and the indefatigable enemy of our souls. He it is who is active for our destruction when all other hostilities are suspended |