of age, the junior clerk in another cotton mill, sold 460 within a similar time; and, in a note, now before me, writes, "Our mill has been in a commotion to-day with the people coming to order books." Two young ladies, Collectors of a Bible Association, who had considered their district supplied, furnished themselves with baskets of Bibles and Testaments; and going forth among the inhabitants of the same district, have, for several weeks, disposed of from 20 to 25 copies daily. Passing over many other interesting illustrations of the subject, I will only add, that the superintendent, teachers, and senior children of the Sunday Schools attached to one place of worship, have not only sold, within a fortnight, 600 Bibles and Testaments to the scholars, but have actually disposed of 4000 copies in the various factories in which these children are employed. In almost every instance the sales have been in single copies; the few exceptions being those made to individuals for other members of their respective families.

Such, my dear friend, is a hasty and very imperfect sketch of this mighty moral movement-a scene surpassing any I have ever yet witnessed, or hope to witness. I will not, at present, attempt to trace it in its origin and history; nor will I incur the risk of grieving one valued friend, who, with the members of his family, has taken a prominent part in these proceedings, by mentioning his name; but I do not hesitate for a moment in expressing the deep and solemn conviction, that this extraordinary manifestation is to be ascribed to the especial blessing of Almighty God. It is true, we shall find many co-operating accessories in helping forward this movement; and, among others, may be instanced the present commercial and manufacturing prosperity; the general employment of the labouring classes; the unprecedented low prices, and attractive appearance of the books; the Scriptural instruction of more than 40,000 children in the Sunday Schools; the patient and persevering labours of the agents of the Town Mission; the

re-action on, or rather the revulsion of, the public mind from the absurdities and degrading influence of miscalled "Socialism"; and last, though by no means least, the example and public and private instructions of numerous faithful ministers of the Gospel of salvation; all these have prepared the way, and accelerated the advance, but the impulse has come from above. It is, I firmly believe, an answer to the prayers of faith-faith in the word of God-in the promises of God-and in the atonement, merits, and intercession of that adorable Redeemer whom that word reveals, and in whom these promises centre.

I have still much to say on this truly interesting subject, and hope to find an opportunity for resuming it next week. But you now know sufficient of the facts of the case not to wonder at my continuance in the North. At the close of by far the most arduous year of my life, both mind and body do indeed require a season of rest in the bosom of my family; but I dare not leave a post so unexpectedly visited, and which every hour proves to be the post of duty.

From the same.-Manchester, Nov. 29, 1845.-I have just returned from the Depository, and find that the issues, from the 1st of November to this day, have been 20,525 Bibles and Testaments.

From the same.— -Manchester, Dec. 3, 1845.-How often has our want of faith been rebuked by the renewed mercies of our God! I have this morning received a letter, of which the following is a copy, from the Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of Ches

thankful to have such confidence in the divine word, that I can look upon the present movement with unmixed and unfeigned gratification!

"Very faithfully yours,

"J. B. CHESTER.

"To C. S. Dudley, Esq."

I do indeed feel thankful for such a close of such a month.

The following cheering account is given of the circulation of the Scriptures in Blackpool.

"The success which has attended the labours of himself and coadjutors in the work was astonishing. They had visited every dwelling in Blackpool, and had made a commencement of Colportage, by loading one of the donkeys used for riding on the sands, and by this means had disposed of near 100 Bibles in a short time. He expected that before he left he should have succeeded in placing a copy of the Sacred Volume in every lodginghouse and inn, and to all the female servants in the place, and also the boys who attend upon the donkeys on the sands in that delightful bathing place. **** When I inform you that 600* Bibles and Testaments will have been disposed of in little more than a week, you will think we have reason to hope that much good may be the result; and it shows what may be accomplished by Christian exertion."

We conclude with an account from the parish of Halifax.

Halifax, with twenty-two townships and a chapelry, contained, at the last census, a population of 292,552 souls. After stating that the issues in the year, from the depôt of the Auxiliary, had amounted to 4705 copies—the largest number probably ever issued in a single year-the Report goes on,

"Your Committee have to detail steps taken to secure a more effectual distribution of the Scriptures in those parts of the parish where no effective Ladies' Association existed. It was surmised, that if, in Sowerby Bridge, copies to the amount in value of £514, had been circulated by the Ladies,

* Nearly 1000 copies have been sent to Blackpool in less than three weeks.

there might be considerable destitution in Greetland, Stainland, and other parts, where none had ever been so circulated; as well as in Elland, South Owram, and Ovenden, where only a very limited circulation had ever taken place, and where that distribution had, for several years, entirely ceased. The plan pursued in France and Belgium seemed the only one capable of meeting the exigencies of the case; for though the Committee would have greatly preferred active Ladies' Associations, as involving much less cost to the Society, they would not, after the stirring appeals made by the Ladies' Committee year after year were allowed to go unanswered, cherish any reasonable hope that such an Agency would be raised up. Feeling, therefore, that the time is short, and souls fast passing into eternity, the Committee directed a representation to be laid before the Parent Committee.

"Out of several candidates who offered themselves, Mr. J. Thompson was selected by unanimous vote as apparently best qualified for the duties of a Bible Agent. Instructed to commence in the township of Stainland, to go from house to house, to receive orders of such as might be anxious to purchase Bibles or Testaments at cost prices; to keep a careful record of every family visited; and at a subsequent period to deliver the copies ordered; Mr. Thompson entered upon his work May 6th, and has since visited Stainland, Greetland, Elland, South Owram, and part of Ovenden, devoting eighty-nine days. In this time 4058 families, or 20,290 souls, were visited. To these, 932 Bibles and 1137 Testaments have been delivered, and paid for: 576 Bibles, in addition, having been ordered, but not yet delivered; making the entire number of copies 2705. Of these families, 226 were entirely destitute of the sacred volume; 43 had only fragments; 181 only Testaments. Reckoning those with fragments among the destitute, one family in every fifteen was found unprovided. Mr. Thompson observes, It is most heartrending to see the wretchedness

of those families who are without the word of God. I found one couple who had been married six years, and never possessed a Bible: another married twenty-two years, with a goodly number of children, and had never had a Bible: a third couple married twenty-three years, with a large family, and never in possession of either Bible or Testament." "

Who could have thought it possible that, in a parish containing not fewer than thirty clergymen, such an appalling want of Bibles should have been discovered! But who does not see, at the same time, what abundant ground there still is for the Bible Society to occupy in England as well as abroad? and where is the Christian who, with such facts before him, can do otherwise than wish such an Institution good luck in the name of the Lord?

CHRISTIAN UNION.

ABERDEEN.

Extract from the minutes of a Meeting of Clergymen of the United Church of England and Ireland, officiating in Scotland apart from the Scottish Episcopal Church, under the provisions of an Act of Parliament of 10th Queen Anne, together with some Lay Members of their respective congregations, held at Edinburgh, on Wednesday and Thursday, the 14th and 15th days of May,

1845.

1. That at all times, and under all circumstances, it is the sacred duty of all who profess the Christian faith, to cultivate peace, order, and brotherly love, on the common basis of our Lord's command.

2. That, as Ministers and Members of that branch of the Church of Christ which is superintended by Bishops, and which is at present by law established in England and Ireland, together with others attached to that Communion, it is incumbent on us, not only to labour to maintain brotherly regards towards other Protestant Churches, but especially to

cultivate a firm and undeviating attachment to the doctrines and formularies of the United Church of England and Ireland.

3. That, as Ministers and Members of the Protestant Church of Christ, established by law in England and Ireland, together with others who are attached to that Communion, we express our deep regret, that the doctrines, the spirit, and the discipline of the Scottish Episcopal Church have been recently proved to be of a nature so distinct from the principles of the United Church of England and Ireland, as to forbid our having any connexion with the Scottish Episcopate; inasmuch as such connexion would involve a dereliction of our duty to the English Church, and a compromise of Protestant principles, thus doing violence to our perceptions of truth, and to our consciences.

4. That, as in a recent document put forth by Bishop Low, of the Scottish Episcopal Church, a hope is expressed, which had been previously implied in similar documents by Bishops Skinner and Russell, that no Bishop of the United Church of England and Ireland, or of the Protestant Episcopal Church in America, will receive any clergymen who have officiated in Scotland, without letters testimonial from the Bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church; and as such an expression seems intended to convey the idea that the Scottish Bishops have some measure of jurisdiction over English Episcopalians, in Scotland, we hereby declare that the idea is utterly fallacious, and that such an assumption on the part of the Scottish Bishops has no authority, either in Statute, Common, Ecclesiastical, or Divine Law.

5. That, although at present we have not the full advantages of Episcopal superintendence, yet as our position has arisen from necessity, and not from choice-a necessity, however, which does not in the least invalidate our standing as Episcopal Ministers and Members of the English Church-we desire to express deliberately our sense of the benefit of such superintendence, and our readiness to receive and acknowledge it,

whenever, in the providence of God, an opportunity for its proper exercise may arise.

6. That we enter with heart-felt sympathy into the painful cases of our beloved and faithful brethren, who, in their steadfastness to the Truth as it is in Jesus, have been subjected to contumely and attempted excommunication by the Scottish Bishops and the majority of their clergy.

Lastly, That, relying on the aid of the Spirit of our Heavenly Master, we resolve to cultivate forbearance

towards those from whom we are constrained to stand apart, and by whom we have been reproached; and at the same time to pursue, with unswerving fidelity, a steadfast and onward course towards the enlargement, the purifying, the edification, and future glory of the Church of God.

And that we may be strengthened in this holy resolution, we entreat the prayers and the aid of all, who, in love to Christ, are desirous to seek His glory, and the present and future welfare of our fellow-men,

BIG with importance as the general politics of the world must unquestionably be, yet there is so much that is perplexing and inexplicable, that we gladly turn from them to say a few words, in the little space that remains, on the subject of the newly formed Evangelical Alliance. readers will expect that we should declare our opinion, and if we have been amongst the earliest to join it, we can have no difficulty in doing so. There

Our

is no valid ground for regretting the conflicting opinions and varying lines of conduct which Christians are pursuing with reference to this movement. Herein we are reminded, that everything in our present militant state falls out to us to form a condition of discipline and trial, and thus to be a constant call to the exercises of moderation and forbearance towards each other; while the demur, or even protest, which may come from some quarters, turns to advantage as leading all to a more patient and dispassionate consideration of the subject. On this ground, we cannot regret the avowal of opposing sentiments from the least expected quarters. A counter opinion demands and finds a due consideration in proportion to the general sympathy and accordance with the individual from whom it comes. Only let Christian principle and grace be in exercise, and we doubt not, though we may not all start together, or run with equal

speed along one common road, all the faithful will pursue their respective courses in that way which will eventually conduce the most effectually to the common good, which all have at heart.

It is, doubtless, sometimes an immense advantage on any question at issue to have the objections of those whom we hold in the highest esteem and confidence; because if their arguments fail to convince us, we are satisfied of the non-existence of valid objections, and are only the more thankfully confirmed in the propriety of our own convictions.

Precisely such a course are things taking with regard to the Evangelical Alliance. It could not be expected that all the faithful should see such a singular and anomalous movement with the same eyes. Giving all credit for the same Christian desires and longings, here was a movement in which, less than on any other occasion, men could not all at once jump to the same conclusion. Hence there are those amongst the wisest and the most experienced and devoted, who as yet stand aloof and avow their objections. They are entitled to all possible consideration; and difference of sentiment must not lead to alienation of heart or estrangement of Christian sympathy.

As for ourselves, we can only say that we have pondered over these objections, we trust impartially, and

that they entirely fail to produce conviction. We never, in the first place, can allow that any interpretation of prophecy with reference to this or any other consummation of blessing to the Church of Christ, is to be the rule of our conduct. It may be that Christian union will not be perfected until the Lord come; but does it therefore follow, that Christians are not to be putting forth every effort to advance à blessedness on which so largely depends the glory of Christ in the world and the prosperity of his Church, and which is so clearly and inseparably connected with obedience to precepts so frequently enforced, on the faithful, in holy writ. Many of us believe that the conversion of the world, as a body, will not take place before the developement of entirely new and most important events; that the Jews must first be converted, and become the instruments of bringing in the fulness of the Gentiles; but who amongst us will dare to make this conviction the rule of his missionary efforts!

2. But the Evangelical Alliance, it is stated, must do, and is doing, great mischief. Is it the differences of opinion which it engenders, that are referred to? We only ask what great and important institution was ever free from such a charge? Not because it contained of necessity the elements and materials of mischief, but because it was let down into the midst of fallible men of evil passions, party spirits, perverted judgment, and selfish influences; but such a charge of "mischief," would at once check any vigorous effort for the Church's or the world's amelioration.

We do not suppose that the mischief is apprehended to the Church from the union with Dissenters. If it is, we can only express our conviction that our Church would suffer infinitely more in the estimation of the world, from presenting an entire absence of sympathy with such a move

ment.

3. It is further objected, that there can be no co-operation in this union. Now we hesitate not to say, that we have formed the alliance because of the beneficial co-operation, as well as

union, which we are expecting from it. We do not exactly understand the precise meaning of this objection; but all that we can say is this: we desire to bless God that we have a heart to pant for that better state of things in Christ's professing Church on earth, in regard to brotherly love, which the Scriptures speak of as so essential. In pursuance of such feelings, we have clung with warm and increasing affection to the British and Foreign Bible Society; not only witnessing its wonderful achievements throughout the world, but also the blessed harmony and love with which it has been conducted, now for more than 40 years.

The same feelings led us to exult in the operations of the Anti-Maynooth conferences, manifesting, as they did a spirit of mutual forbearance and Christian union, far, far beyond anything that even the most sanguine could have anticipated. Encouraged by this blessed discovery, we eagerly catch at the prospect of good proposed by the Evangelical Alliance and even if we should live to see our hopes frustrated, and the predictions of our opponents ever so fully verified, we shall never regret that we had eagerly caught at all or any proposals which had for their object so blessed and desirable a benefit. We can submissively yield to what evidently presents itself as the will of God in the frustration of our wishes; but we could not be content to be without a yearning and longing of soul for Christian union, and a readiness to follow after the things which seem to make for it.

And if it be said that the Evangelical Alliance proposes no adequate object as in the case of the Anti-Maynooth movements, we reply that in our opinion it invites to a co-operation and a union for the furtherance of the most important objects. There may be many projects and many practical and substantial and tangible results to which it cannot lead. The various sections of the Church of Christ may still be constrained in many respects to keep close quarters within their own distinct enclosures; and we are not sanguine enough to