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of the earth that to which they naturally owed allegiance should be found submitting to God and to his Christ, they rejected the cosmopolitan creed that would have sent them to spread the light of divine truth elsewhere, and preferred that the soil which bore them should drink up their blood, in humble, yet confident hope that it would prove the seed of the church; not merely of the church in general, but specially of England's church-her little persecuted flock, delivered over to slaughter every day. It was no visionary, no new thing that our beloved, our gifted brother advocated: the listening thousands who hung upon his words bore each a living testimony to the reality, to the antiquity of that glorious principle. They were all plants that had peacefully sprung up from the sowing of our martyrs' blood in England-for England.

One exception there was; one, who carefully conveyed himself, under the Lord's guidance, to a foreign shore: it was Tindal, with his precious freight of a translated Bible. He fled, that he might prepare, and pour out upon the shores of his native land, a stream of divine knowledge. He endured a living martyrdom of peril and distress; and thus the Lord placed upon his brow the martyr's crown, of which He had made him worthy. Tindal was first strangled, then burnt, far from his native land, though altogether through the treacherous machinations of those. who were spoiling her; and when the cord was tightening round his throat, when the last breath was struggling through its compressed passage, what was its latest articulate sound? LORD, OPEN THE KING OF ENGLAND'S EYES!"

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And John Bradford-the holiest, the most spiritualized, we may almost say, of all God's precious witnesses here—a man whose writings breathe all the melting tenderness, all the unbounded reach of a love that embraced every soul in every corner of the earth for Christ's sake-when he was brought to the stake, what was his last apostrophe, even while the flames rose around him? "Oh ENGLAND, ENGLAND, repent thee!"

Are we better than they? are we wiser, more spiritual, more enlarged in faith and feeling than those of whom the world was not worthy? Do we pity the narrowness of their nationalism, or do we betake ourselves to the fashionable expedient of attempting to explain away what is too literal to be otherwise evaded? Let the most diligent worker measure his doings with Tindal's, let the deepest divine take up the volume of Bradford's letters and discourses, and draw the comparison. Surely, if for no other cause, our country and our country's church ought to be dear to us as the bequest of such men. They might have borne the lamp of divine truth to other lands, and gathered into the fold of Christ the lost sheep of other families; but they preferred to hazard, yea, to sacrifice their lives among all the torments that diabolical

malice could invent, provided they might fix it in the isle of their birth. They did so fix it, and here it has remained, and shone to this hour. Hostile bands approach; the enemies of God menace us with its extinction; and too many of his children look listlessly on, regarding as a matter of small importance the locality of what they well know must exist somewhere. Oh that a heart may be given us to rally round the lamp of our dear country, and regarding her as she has for three centuries been, the chosen and faithful depository of God's word, resolve to guard what our martyred fathers gave, addressing her in the glowing language of the patriot king: "Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces: For my brethren and companions' sakes I will now say, Peace be within thee: Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek thy good."

POPISH HIGH SHERIFFS. ·

THE entire repugnancy of the spirit of popery to the Christian character of the British constitution has been strikingly manifested in the recent conduct of the high-sheriffs of the counties of York and Dorset. It is well known to be the ancient and established usage for the judges of assize to attend divine worship in the principal church or cathedral of the place before they proceed to open the royal commission. The high-sheriffs above-mentioned refused to attend the eminent legal authorities who were about to administer justice in the name of their Sovereign, in the performance of this portion of their duty. In both cases they turned round on arriving at the church door, and went away to their mass-houses, in one of which, namely York, it is said that the assize sermon was preached. And further, in open defiance of an *act of parliament, the high-sheriff of Yorkshire placed his popish chaplain dressed in the full insignia of his office, in the same carriage with the judges to accompany them as far as to the Minster. Thus we see our holy religion treated with contempt, the judges of the land insulted, and laws which were framed for the preservation of our civil and religious institutions trampled on and set at nought. Does not every day's experience convince us more deeply of the urgent necessity of the repeal of that pernicious measure called the Emancipation Act, which arms the papist with the power of destroying our protestant faith and protestant constitution?

Roman-catholic Relief Act, sect. 25 and 26.

NATIONAL EDUCATION.

By the time this number of the Protestant Magazine appears, we fear that the whole system of national education will be changed. Up to the present time our readers may be aware that there has been an annual grant of £20,000, which has been distributed between the national schools and the British and Foreign schools, in proportion to the sums contributed by the public to the support of those establishments. The former schools were

conducted on the principles of the church of England, and in consequence of their being far better supported than the others, received the greater proportion of the grant. Accordingly the present ministry has broached a totally new plan, by which £30,000 is to be granted annually by parliament to a certain board, composed entirely of laymen, of which the Marquis of Lansdowne, a Socinian, is chairman. This board is to establish a school for the education of schoolmasters; and support out of the £30,000 is to be granted to those schools only that will submit to the management of this board. In this manner the national support will be withdrawn from nearly every national church in the country; and the rising generation will be educated by men whose only warrant will be the sanction of a board which does not possess the confidence of the religious portion of the people.

Moreover, there are some other peculiarities in this new "liberal" system which are equally alarming. Let our readers, for instance, consider the following important extract from a very able document drawn up by the Lay Union for the defence of the established church:

"A chaplain is to be appointed for such children as belong to the church of England. But every other child may be visited by the licensed minister of his own persuasion; and where such children are sufficiently numerous, such licensed minister is to receive a permanent appointment in the school. Thus, in the first, or model school at present projected, with 450 children, there would probably be, besides the chaplain, a Romish priest, a Socinian minister, a Jewish rabbi, a Baptist or other dissenting minister, as permanent religious teachers; and, in addition to these, as many other "licensed ministers," of every variety of sect and belief, as the parents of any of the children might choose to introduce. There is nothing whatever to prevent the introduction of any number of such teachers at one and the same time. But whether anything deserving the name of religious instruction' could be carried on amid such confusion as this, is a question which every man's common sense will answer in the negative.

"The next proviso is, if possible, still more alarming. The scriptures are to be read daily in the school, but Roman-catholic

children are to be allowed to use their own version. Of course it would be impossible to deny to the Socinians the use of theirs.

Thus, then, with perhaps eight or ten different teachers of religion, distracting the school weekly, there would also be the daily use of three different books, each professing to be the word of God! And different, also, be it remembered, not in a few words merely, but in whole chapters, and whole books: fundamentally different, too, both in the doctrines they contain, and in the precepts they inculcate. Nothing can be clearer, than that the inevitable effect of the establishment of such a system as this throughout the country, would be to spread widely amongst the humbler classes, the fatal belief, that no certainty whatever exists with regard to religion; and that the truth is altogether undiscoverable, amidst such endless contradictions.

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Lastly, over the whole school an officer called a 'rector' is to be appointed; who is to 'regulate,' to 'determine,' and to 'superintend' the entire establishment. But not one syllable is said as to the religious character and qualifications of this individual; who, while the general character of the school must mainly depend upon him, may be a Socinian, a Romanist, or even a disguised infidel."

Now such is the unhappy system of education which this Protestant nation is now compelled to adopt and support. Are Protestants content with it? Are they disposed to sanction the ministers who proposed the scheme? Are they willing to leave their children to the tender mercies of a board in which the church of England is unrepresented, and which can give no security whatever for its disposition to supply more than intellectual culture to its pupils? We trust not; but, at any rate, it is right that we should thus place before them the facts of the case, and appeal to them for their opinion on a matter which we sincerely believe to be one of the most vital that has occurred since the passing of the popish relief bill in 1829.

INTELLIGENCE.

RECENT PROTESTANT MEETINGS.-Since the publication of the last Protestant Magazine, several most important Protestant meetings have been held. The first, held in Exeter Hall on the 8th of May, was the Anniversary Meeting of the Protestant Association, when there was by far the largest assemblage that ever yet was obtained on such an occasion. The number of persons present was estimated at considerably more than four thousand. Most able and spirit-stirring speeches were made by the Earl of Winchelsea; J. P. Plumptre, Esq. M.P.; the Rev. William Marsh of Birmingham; John Hardy, Esq. late M.P. for Bradford; General Latter; the Rev. Hugh McNeile; the Rev. Hobart Seymour; the Hon. Wm. Duncombe, M.P.;

and W. S. Blackstone, Esq.M.P. The collection at the doors together with the sum obtained on the platform exceeded £ 150. On the day following, the Rev. Mr. McNeile and the Rev. R. J. McGhee proceeded to Hertford, where a meeting was held to form a County Protestant and Reformation Society. The meeting was addressed with great effect by the Chairman, A. Smith, Esq. M.P.; Lord Verulam; the reverend gentlemen we have named; the Rev. E. Bickersteth; Lord Grimstone, M.P.; the Hon. G. D. Ryder, &c.

On the 10th, the Rev. Hugh McNeile preached the anniversary sermon for the Protestant Association, at St. Clement Danes. The congregation was exceedingly large; and we trust that the impressive discourse delivered was made useful to many. The collection at the doors was upwards of £98.

Other meetings have since been held at Derby and Hertford, but at too late a period to admit of our giving any particulars.

POPERY ABROAD.-We regret to state that the accounts of popery's proceedings abroad, continue as alarming as ever. The state to which the island of Newfoundland has been reduced by the machinations of the priests, appears from a petition presented by the Earl of Aberdeen, to be distressing in the extreme. And in Tahiti, in the South Seas, it appears that a French man of war has been disturbing and oppressing an English missionary settlement, under some pretence of ill treatment sustained by popish missionaries.

THE AYRSHIRE ELECTION.-At a recent election for this important county, at which Lord Kelburne, the Conservative candidate, was returned, a circular, requesting his vote, was sent to Mr. Cuninghame, of Lainshaw, a gentleman whose works on popery are doubtless known to many of our readers. He replied by stating that he would not give his vote as required unless he understood distinctly that Lord Kelburne, if returned, would oppose all the encroachments of popery, and especially the grant to Maynooth College. In reply, the chairman of his lordship's committee, Sir J. Dalrymple Ferguson, stated that such certainly was Lord Kelburne's fixed determination. This, we trust, is a sign of the times, which will, if a general election occur, be visible in many portions of the kingdom.

THE PRISONS BILL AND THE COLLEGE OF MAYNOOTH.-Recent political and ministerial changes, to which we need not here particularly allude, have delayed considerably both the 14th clause in the Prisons Bill, which authorizes under certain circumstances the appointment of popish priests to English prisons; and the vote to Maynooth College. Our readers will therefore observe that there is still time to petition parliament on these important subjects.

NEW POPISH CATHEDRAL.-By a paragraph in the daily organ of the papists, the Morning Chronicle, the public on the 2nd of May were informed, that it was intended to erect at the west end of the town, a grand Romish cathedral, to cost £150,000. The journalist added, that his holiness the pope was coming over to consecrate it. This, however, is a little too much for belief, even in these wonderful days.

BEQUESTS TO POPERY.-Our readers are aware of the great exertions used by the popish priests to extort bequests to their church from dying persons. Last year Mr. Blundell, of Lancashire, was thus induced to bequeath £200,000 to the popish Bishop of London; and recently we have heard that the late Lady Throckmorton left in her will £ 6000 to build a popish chapel in Yorkshire. It is with munificence of this kind Protestants have to compete.

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