lent of all, arose at this period; and therefore it is no wonder, that before the breath of calm and sedate discussion, such as that adopted by Oliver Cromwell, junior, Esq., many of them vanish at once, like So many threatening, but empty, clouds before the breeze of morn. His political character and proceedings stand, where they will ever remain, engraven on the massy column of veritable history. His moral, and even his religious, character may perhaps eventually shift to about the same level with many of the most respectable of his compeers.

To begin then with Cromwell's early history-The eighth chapter of this work, with some ambitious nicety, transforms this son of the Huntingdon Brewer,

"contaminate, base,

And misbegotten blood," into the member of a family descended from the Cromwells of the reigns of king Henry VII. and VIII. numbering the illustrious house of St. John amongst its collateral branches, and making Oliver himself, by maternal descent, a cousin of James, and consequently, strange playfulness of fortune! of Charles the First.

Cromwell's first years are here also redeemed, on the whole successfully, from the charge of a rude profligacy, fit characteristic of a future Catiline or Robespierre, which his good-natured enemies have laboured to fix upon him. His claims, indeed, to a very liberal education are ill made out; though of his Latinity, we have the testimony of a Dutch Deputy, in after life, who says, "I had a discourse with his Excellency Cromwell of two hours: his Excellency spoke his own language so distinctly, that I could understand him. I answer ed again in Latin." His knowledge and love of the fine arts seem to have been of about the same date in life, the same worth, and the same origin, as those of Napoleon Bonaparte. Three cir

cumstances, however, very much diminish the main authority on which all his juvenile pranks are made to rest. One is, that the scene of many of them is laid in' Lincoln's Inn, which it is proved he never entered. Another is, that' he was educated at Sidney College, Cambridge, noted in the diary of the wise Archbishop Laud with P. for puritanicial strictness and severity of manners. The third is, that he was married at one-andtwenty; and the goodly sequel of august portraits which follow that statement must greatly belie the father and the husband, if they do not bespeak a somewhat more than usual power of family decorum, and even demure solemnity of conver→ sation and life.

The following letter-written to his cousin, Mrs. St. John, at the age of thirty-eight, and containing' a reference to what, we presume, would be called his conversion at some preceding period-may throw light on the early part of his history; and is altogether curious, introduced as it shall be by the pertinent observations of the author of the Memoirs.

"A letter is referred to by some of the writers anxious to establish the fact

of supposed irregularities: it is the first letter in Thurloe's state papers; it is dated, Ely, 13th of October, 1638, and

is addressed to his beloved cousin Mrs. St. John. In it he says, 'You know what my manner of life hath bine. O, I lived in and loved darkness, and hated the light: I was a chief, the chief of sinners. This is true, I hated godliness, yet God had mercy on me.' This is only a part of a letter. The writers that wish to establish this charge of irregularity deem this passage a strong proof of its truth: they say the words un doubtedly imply some personal vice to which he (Cromwell) had been addicted. But by a strictly religious person, either of those times or of these times, they would not, it is conceived, be so con strued. His living in, and loving darkness, he means to say, Mrs. St. John knew to have been the manner of his life, and that his hatred of godliness rendered him the chief of sinners.

after the fearful termination of them in the murder of King Charles, we are tempted to give, as a singular exbibition of domestic and kindly feelings at such periods of such a career; but shall content ourselves with the letter dated 13th August, 1649.

"To my beloved daughter Dorothye Cromwell (Richard Cromwell's wife) at Hurslye, theise.

"My deere Daughter;

"Your letter was very welcome to mee. I like to see any thinge from your hand, because indeed I stick not to say I doe intirelye love you, and therefore I hope a word of advise will not be unwelcom nor unacceptable to thee; I de

sire you both to make itt above all thinges your businesse to seeke the Lord, to be frequently calling upon him that Hee would manifest himselfe to you in his Sonn and bee listninge what returnes Hee makes to you, for Hee will be speaking in your eare and in your hart, if you attend thereunto: I desire you to provoake your husband likewise thereunto. As for the pleasures of this life and outward businesse lett that bee upon thee by; bee above all theise thinges by fayth in Christ, and then you shall have the trewe use and comfort of them, and not otherwise. I have much satisfaction in hope your spirit is this way sett, and I desire you may growe in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord

and Saviour Jesus Christ, and that I may heere thereof. The Lord is very near which wee see by his wonderful workes, and therefore Hee lookes that wee of this generation draw neare him; this late great mercy of Ireland is a great manifestation thereof. Your husband will acquaint you with itt, we should bee much stirred up in our spirits to thankfulnesse, we much need the Spirit of Christ to enable us to praise God for soe admirable a mercye: the Lord blesse thee, my deere daughter.

"I rest thy lovinge father,

O. CROMWELL." "I heere thou didst lately miscarrie; prithee take heede of a coach by all means; borrowe thy father's nagg when thou intendest to goe abroad." pp. 41,42.

But we slide cursorily over this part of his character, to come, thirdly, to that inquiry which more particularly respects his character as a religionist.-That Cromwell

made a religious profession, is a fact clearly established in history. That he made this profession consist with the most reprehensible political conduct, is equally clear: but so also did many reputedly good men, such as even Baxter, Owen, Howe, &c. &c.; a circumstance we reserve for consideration to the close of this article. But respecting Cromwell himself, the great question at issue is this, whether his religious profession was sincerely made; or whether he only pretended credence in certain truths, which he did not at heart believe, for the sake of carrying certain political ends. Now, knowing well how easily a religious profession may be hypocritically assumed, and having much disposition to give Cromwell his full share of actual de merit, we are yet constrained, by facts and very fair reasonings adduced by our worthy author, to admit, that enthusiasm rather than hypocrisy was the predominant and distinctive mark of Cromwell's mind. It is true, his dutiful kinsman labours hard, with something very like Quixotism of his own, to acquit his ancestor even of the charge of enthusiasm. But whoever adverts with the attention we have done, either to his facts or his reasonings will come, we are persuaded, at the very best, to the necessity of sacrificing totally Cromwell's sobriety, in order to preserve, in any measure, his sincerity. At the very outset of his career, a circumstance occurs which curiously exhibits, if not some dissimulation, at least open enthusiasm in Cromwell's character; and this circumstance, if not strictly of a religious kind, only shews the same features to have run through the whole man. It was on occasion of the debate respecting the Remonstrance on the kingdom in 1642.

There would not have been time enough; for sure it would take some debate.' The other replied, "A very sorry one; they supposing, by the computation they had made, that very few would oppose it. But, adds his lordship (Lord Clarendon), he quickly found he was mistaken; for that the next morning, the debate being entered upon about nine of the clock, (Rush worth says three o'clock in the afternoon), continued all that day; and candles being called for when it grew dark, (neither side being very desirous to adjourn it till the next day, though it was evident very many withdrew themselves 'out of pure faintness and inability to attend the conclusion), the debate continued till it was after twelve of the Clock,(Rushworth says till three o'clock), with much passion; and the House be ing then divided upon the passing or not passing, it was carried in the affirmative by nine voices only. And that, npon quitting the House, the Lord Falk. land asked Oliver Cromwell, whether there had been any debate, to which he answered, He would take his word 'another time;' and whispered him in the ear, with some asseveration, That if the Remonstrance had been rejected, he would kave sold all he had the next morning, and never have seen England more; and that he knew there were many honest men of the same resolution." p. 85.

That Cromwell's political enthusiasm would really have led him to execute this resolution, we have no doubt. Hume, we think, gives us reason to believe, that, but for one eventful order in council, it would -actually have been executed. And his religious enthusiasm, we must say, seems to have been throughout very much of the same stamp. In the documental proofs adduced by his kinsman, we cannot really see any thing, from the beginning to the end of his career, that raises a well-grounded doubt of his sincere belief of the religious doctrines he -professed. And when those doctrines embraced some of the most truly enthusiastic opinions which have ever been known in the history of religion, we can as little doubt his religious faith, to have been of a strong enthusiastic order. The general, and almost universal, cha

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racteristics of the Puritan creed, were, more or less, a belief in direct miraculous inspiration, and an expectation of particular answers in kind to prayer, when uttered in true faith. These Cromwell shared in all their extent. And so far from his not sincerely believing them, it must be allowed that many things happened in his most remarkable career strongly to have confirmed him in the full conviction of their truth, if he had even at first wavered in his belief. We have

That the Puritans at large believed more or less these doctrines is past a question. Baxter's "Life and Times,” without going any further, affords us sufficient proof of this position. After an enumeration of several direct answers to prayer, Baxter thus proceeds in his 81st page, (fol. ed. 1696): "I the rather mentioned these passages of the force of prayer, because not being one in any of them myself, nor being present with them, there is not matter of appearing ostentations; they being a few poor humble weavers and other tradesmen, and no minister with them, whose prayers God hath thus frequently heard for others, and for me, (though at this present some of the chief of them lie in prison only for praying, singing psalms, repeating sermons together when they come from the public conturn to the recital of my own infirmities.” gregation. But now," he adds, "I reHe then recites divers accidents, "from all which, upon earnest prayer, he was delivered :" not one of the least of which we may readily believe, must have been a circumstance which should be ennmerated amongst the dangers to which the scholar is subject; namely, that, "as he satin his study, the weight of his greatest folio books brake down three or four of the highest shelves, he sitting just under, and receiving right over his head

the sixth vol. of Dr. Walton's Oriental 'Bible, and all Austin's works, (10 vols. fol.!) and the Bibliotheca Patrum, and Marlorate, &c. It was a wonder,” he justly adds, that they had not beaten out his brains." But without wishing to smile too much on the edge of serious subjects, we are still at a loss to coplanche the worthy divine offered that ceive at what period of this biblical ava petition which availed directly for his delivery.