sion from the same source. In that noble hymn, "My God, the spring of all my joys," how much better is it to read with Wesley, "Run up with joy the shining way, To see and praise my Lord," than to retain the fondling expressions of the original:"To embrace my dearest Lord." But it is high time to turn the attention of our readers to the Congregational Hymn Book, which has originated these remarks upon hymnology. Soon after Watts was introduced into the dissenting congregations, he became the privileged poet of the sanctuary, and he alone was permitted to tread its courts; but as the wants of the church increased, owing to the extension of its borders, an impression was pretty generally entertained, that he enjoyed an undesirable monopoly-a monopoly which he himself never expected, and would have modestly refused. To meet, therefore, the demands of the revived spirit of religion, various collections of hymns have appeared, either embodying a selection from Watts, with the contributions of other writers, or consisting entirely of new compositions. Of the latter class, Rippon's Selection, Burder's Supplement, Russel's Supplement, and the New Baptist Selection, have gained the widest circulation. Among the designs entertained by the Congregational Union of England and Wales, that of forming a supplemental collection was conceived at an early period of its existence, and a resolution, to carry it into effect, was passed at the annual meeting held in May, 1833. The task was confided to a committee of compilation, consisting of Mr. Josiah Conder, and several ministers, but that gifted gentleman was the chief collector and responsible editor. The result of his labours has been for some time in the hands of the public, and the introduction of it into many of our most influential congregations, with the sale of nearly thirty thousand copies, may be regarded as a substantial token of public approbation. The Congregational Hymn Book contains 620 hymns, 500 being devoted to the purposes of public worship, and the remaining 120 being intended for domestic and private use. We wish that domestic psalmody was more cultivated than it is; the melody of sacred song would be greatly improved in the public exercises of religion if it was more frequently introduced in its social engagements. Tertullian refers to the practice of private singing in the family, as a reason why Christians should marry among themselves, in order to perform the duty more harmoniously. To show the industry of the editor, the numerous streams of sanctified poetry and feeling he has visited, we subjoin below an analysis of the collection, the names of the authors from whom the hymns have been selected, with the number each has contributed.* * Dr. Watts, 4; Doddridge, 48; C. Wesley, 36; Wesley's Collection, 15; Newton, 33; Cowper, 28; Toplady, or his Collection, 15; Mrs. Steele, 10; Bishop Kenn, 3; Mason, 2; Tate and Brady, 3; Moravian, 4; Madan, 3; A hymn is defined by Gregory, of Nyssa, to be a thanksgiving offered to God for the blessings we enjoy, ὕμνος ἐστὶν ἡ ἐπὶ τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν ἡμῖν ἀγαθοῖς ἀνατιθεμένη τῷ Θεῷ ἐυφημία : and the principle by which the editor and his coadjutors have been guided in their selection, seems to have been to introduce as many hymns of adoration and praise as possible. We do not go so far as to object, with some, to the use of compositions of a descriptive, sentimental, or didactic character; but, assuredly, the great and primary object which we should have in view in praise, is to magnify the divine perfections, and to honour God for the out-pourings of his love and goodness. This is the character of the songs of heaven; as, for instance, that of the seraphim, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts;"-that of the multitude of the heavenly host, "Glory to God in the highest ;"—and that of the elders before the throne, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power." In the present selection 112 hymns are of this specific character. There are many hymns of another cast, which we are glad to meet with in this selection, which shine as stars of the first magnitude in the heaven of devotional poetry; we allude to such compositions as "Give to the winds thy fears;" "Behold a stranger at the door;" "Come, let us join our friends above ;" and particularly "The God of Abraham praise." In a review of Keble's Christian Year, sometime ago, in Blackwood's Magazine, this hymn is pronounced to be one of the noblest odes in the language; the writer did not know that its author was one of the early methodist preachers, originally a shoe-maker. But why has Mr. Conder not given the whole of this almost inspired production? There are four or five verses omitted, all fine gold, not a particle of which should have been rejected. The hymns adapted to our missionary services, amounting to between fifty and sixty, which breathe a spirit of ardent love to the Saviour and to the souls he died to redeem-hymns which nobly express those high principles of duty by which the church should be governed in all its aggressive movements — hymns which set in beautiful array before us the pictures of a renovated world, drawn by the prophet poets of past ages, is an interesting and important feature of the volume. Some of the psalms of Dr. Watts, as the 19th, the 72nd, and the 117th, "The heavens declare thy glory, Lord;" "Jesus shall reign where'er the sun;" "From all that dwell below the skies," refer to the prospects of the church, and to the final triumphs of the Hart, 4; Cennick, 6; Faucett, 6; Gregg, 3; Stennett, 3; Beddome, 4; Addison, 3; Oliver, 3; Logan, 2; Heginbotham, 2; Hammond, 2; Heber, 10; Montgomery, 73; Conder, 63; Mrs. Conder, 4; Kelly, 23; Bathurst, 11; Lyte, 11; Wardlaw, 2; Morell, 2; March, 3; Bulmer, 3; Collyer, 3; Noel, 2; Lord Glenelg, 2; Humphries, Gibbons, and Ryland, 2 each; single hymns by Milton, Sandys, and various writers, 36; anonymous, and from different collections, 124. gospel over those systems of error, which are holding a vast portion of the human race in bondage, and, generally speaking, the couplets are worthy of their theme. They are, therefore, adapted to our missionary occasions, nor do we wish to see them ever falling into disuse; there is a fine glow of impassioned feeling, of yearning charity, and of entire unfearing confidence about them, which render them peculiarly fitted to be allied with our "work of faith and labour of love;" but though rare in quality, they are but few in number, and by no means adequately represent that grand scale of operations, which christian benevolence has put in motion in our day. This has been successfully attempted in the Congregational Hymn Book; under the head of Christian Missions," and " Missionary Prayer Meetings," there is a selection of hymns for the purpose, sufficiently numerous, and some of them of great vigour and beauty; the chief contributors being the accomplished editor, and especially Mr. Montgomery, who, both in poetry and prose, by voice and pen, has eloquently pleaded the cause of those who "sit in darkness." Mr. M.'s "Let there be light! thus spake the word;"" Fall down, ye nations, and adore;" and "Hail to the Lord's anointed!" need not the recommendation of our praise. We are truly grateful to Mr. Conder's good sense and taste, that he has not been seduced by its popularity, at once extraordinary and undeserved, to inflict upon us as a denominational missionary hymn, the well-known farrago "O'er the gloomy hill of darkness, Look, my soul, be still, and gaze; Let thy glorious morning dawn." What a collection of images and of unmusical terminations in one verse; "gloomy hills of darkness;" "promises travailing;" "glorious day;" "blessed jubilee;" and "glorious morning;" enough in all conscience, without any additional fillip, to make the most apethetic soul, "look, be still, and gaze." Then comes the adjuration, bold and heroic, which it has often been our lot to hear sung and quoted, with no inconsiderable enthusiasm, and proportionate exercise of lung— Yet this unpoetical jingle is a standing favourite, not only with the multitude, but with "potent, grave, and reverend seignors," although, as a metrical composition, it no more deserves the honour than the most doggrel ditty that boys and ballad-singers have ever chaunted through our streets. There have been many attempts to render this hymn, in some degree, respectable; that by the late Mr. Catterrill, of Sheffield, is, perhaps, the best; but we are glad that Mr. Conder, though somewhat smitten with a passion for re-modelling and re casting, has not ventured upon the "high endeavour," of rescuing it from the oblivion which it merits. One difficult and very delicate part of Mr. Conder's labours, was that of altering and abridging the compositions of others; a task which, whenever practicable, should be especially eschewed by all who have the fear of that stern censor, the public, before their eyes, but still one which, in many instances, is necessarily forced upon a conscientious editor. There are many hymns, which are admirably adapted to the uses of public worship, as to their general tenor and structure, which yet offend the ear occasionally by an obscure reference, an inelegant phrase, or an inaccurate rhythm. To remove blemishes of this kind obviously falls within an editor's legitimate province, and there are not a few hymns in this collection, which have been materially benefited by the critical ordeal through which they have been constrained to pass. We like such alterations as "Jesus, refuge of my soul," instead of the old amatory style, "Jesus, lover of my soul." and no injustice is here done to the author of the hymn, because no liberty is taken with the composition which at all affects the integrity of its character, and renders it less his own. But while we approve most cordially of many of Mr. Conder's alterations, we feel that the license to alter, requires a very sound discretion and a correct taste in its exercise, lest, a licentious use should be made of the liberty allowed, and lest, in our endeavours to strengthen and to polish a lame or dim stanza, we should overleap the mark, and only impair and obscure. Now we are free to confess, that liberally as we felt inclined to place at our friend's disposal all necessary editorial implements, he has been somewhat too prodigal in their use for our notions-that wide as was the range, which we, in our confidence in his unquestionable skill and ability, allotted unto him, he has in some instances gone beyond its bounds; in a few of the hymns of our fathers, he has nibbled, and spliced, and dovetailed, and taken out, and put in, where we, more timorous, or less fastidious, should have been content to say, "Let it alone.' There are various considerations, which would have led us to tolerate even what we might feel to be an infirmity in a hymn, and only to have interfered under circumstances of imperious necessity, where there was some gross defect to be removed. Be it remembered, that it is with the property of others that we are dealing the property of the respective writers, and of the public to whom it has been bequeathed; and that, therefore, a strong case must be made out, before any interference of ours will be deemed justifiable. Even where there is a manifest necessity for alteration, in order to render a hymn capable of fulfilling its high destiny, that of being sung in the congregation, great care should be observed, that we neither add to, nor take away anything, but what is indispensably requisite. This is what literary justice seems to require, and that higher code of morals, which tells us, " to do unto others, as we would that they should do unto us.' For our own part, we should not feel inclined to touch a hymn which is really good, unless there is a plain and marked blot upon it; because, if for any considerable period the popular mind has been familiar with it, it is prepared to excuse trifling inaccuracies for "auld acquaintance" sake. Besides, we think it a matter of no small importance, that nothing should be done, when it can be avoided, to weaken the hold which devotional poetry has obtained upon the memories of the people. Now every measure of change in a composition destroys some measure of its identity-it interferes with the association of ideas-it causes an old familiar face to come to us in "questionable guise"-it makes us to stop and pause, in doubt as to whether these are really the strains we repeated in our youth, by our mother's side, in the green fields, or in the wellremembered pew-the new words do not glide off the tongue so smartly, so imperceptibly, so naturally as the old ones-and though by all the known laws of versification and taste, we are compelled to own an improvement, we are conscious that it does not compensate us for the violence done to our thoughts and feelings. powerful is the influence of association over us, that it is perfectly possible to become so enamoured of what is very tame and trite, providing it is not repulsive, as to object to its being supplanted by what is evidently of goodlier form and brighter colouring. This feeling is universal with reference to objects to which we have been long accustomed; we do not thank the man for removing from our gaze, the moss-grown, ivy-clad wall, even though a little awry, by the side of which we played in our childhood; we find no adequate remuneration in his parapets and turrets, however gay with plaster and stucco-he has jarred the strings of thought and feeling within us, and if no plain necessity can be pleaded, we hold him guilty of assault and battery. So Our meaning will be easily seen in these remarks; they are made not so much in reference to Mr. Conder, as to the smaller fry of hymn-book makers, who are continually intruding their tinkerings upon us, as improvements of the fine old songs of our fathers. Again, we say, that alterations as to incorrect rhythm and obscene or vulgar phraseology, we think, fall properly within the sphere of editorial duty; though we object decidedly to those sweeping changes, which so alter the character of the hymn, that even its composer would have some difficulty in recognising his own productions. Instances of this kind are rare in the Congregational HymnBook. There is, however, one composition which is pretty generally endeared to the pious part of the community, which appears in almost an entirely new dress. We allude to the hymn beginning "Guide me, O thou great Jehovah," which in the new version commences "O thou great Jehovah leads us." This hymn, though a very indifferent one, has long been a favourite |