we have already given too many. The reader of the volume, (and we trust that all our readers will be such,) will be surprised that we have been so sparing. We indulge only in one more, which contains, in conclusion, a sublime appeal on the worth of the soul. "The awful ruins of imperial Rome, the still more defaced vestiges of learned Athens, present a deeply touching spectacle of departed glory. Still more affecting is it to contemplate in the volume of history the destruction of Carthage, of Babylon, of Memphis, whose very ruins are no longer to be found! How affecting to meditate on ancient Troy, whose very site can no longer be determined! Yet here no wonder mixes with our solemn feelings. All these noble monuments of human grandeur were made of destructible materials; they could not, from their very nature, last for ever. But, to a deeply reflecting mind, what is the ruin of temples, towers, palaces, and cities; what is the ruin of the great globe itself,' compared with the destruction of one soul meant for immortality a soul furnished by its bountiful Creator with all the means for its instruction, sanctification, redemption, and eternal bliss? And what presents the most mournful picture to us, and is in itself the most dreadful aggravation, is, that its consciousness cannot be extinguished; the thought of what he might have been, will magnify the misery of what he isa reflection which will accompany and torment the inextinguishable memory through a miserable eternity."-[pp. 511-513.] We now bid this interesting writer farewell. She has been associated with the first impressions of our childhood in her "Sacred Dramas." She has been our monitor and companion in all the subsequent scenes of our lives, as parents, as Christians, as men of the world. She forms a link with departed intellectual greatness, with the Johnsons, the Cumberlands, the Cowpers, of other days. She has left us, as a legacy, this last treasure, which proves not only all her mental faculties unimpaired, but her Christian charity burning brighter as the evening shadows thicken around her. We watch her departing steps with unceasing interest; and shall mourn for ourselves, but not for her, when the chariot of immortality shall descend to bear her out of our sight. Then she will" cease from her labours," and "enter on her rest;" but neither will her memory nor her usefulness perish with her in the grave. She has devoted to the best purposes the talents with which she has been gifted: and her works will do more than follow her to the land of spirits; for they will be instrumental in training for its enjoyments many a probationer, who has yet, and ages hence will still have to enter on his journey through this vale of tears. The Life of Andrew Melville; containing Illustrations of the Ecclesiastical and Literary History of Scotland, during the latter Part of the Sixteenth and Beginning of the Seventeenth Century: with an Appendix, consisting of Original Papers. By Thomas M'Crie, D.D., Minister of the Gospel, Edinburgh. 2 vols. 8vo. Edinburgh. 1819. pp. 501, 549. Blackwood. THE era of the Reformation is one of the most interesting in the page of history. The change which then took place in religious opinions was the necessary result of various concurring causes, which gradually developed themselves. as mankind advanced in knowledge. The effects which it produced were almost instantaneously felt in every country of Europe, and still continue to maintain a sensible influence upon the religion, the policy, the literature, and the science of many nations. At that era new energies were excited in the human mind; and a spirit of inquiry, and in general an independence of character was elicited, to which the history of the species affords no parallel. This elevation of sentiment was not confined to a few individuals, to one district of country, or to one nation. In Germany, in France, in England, and even in Scotland, a similar tone of temper and the same fervid zeal almost simultaneously appeared; and the united power of the ecclesiastical and civil authorities was unable to repress them. Dr. M'Crie's labours, in illustrating the origin and progress of the Reformation in Scotland, have already received no ordinary share of approbation; and we are informed by him, that "the life of Melville may be viewed as a continuation of the account of ecclesiastical transactions in Scotland which he some years ago laid before the public in the life of John Knox." Every person who reads the work with attention, and who is acquainted with the author's former publication, must admit that it forms a very interesting continuation of the history of a period, in which events of the utmost importance to the happiness, the prosperity, and the most momentous concerns of the Scottish nation are unfolded. Nor must it be conceived that the narration of these events can afford pleasure or instruction but to the inhabitants of the country where the transactions actually happened, or to the descendants of those who acted a part in the drama: on the contrary, the Christian and the philosopher, the man of enlarged and comprehensive views, will contemplate such authentic memorials of affairs, though relating to a country comparatively obscure, as valuable documents, by which the history of man is illustrated, and from which the most instructive lessons of wisdom may be derived. Though the Reformation, whose history this author has so ably detailed, was not attended with such splendid circumstances, nor conducted upon so extensive a scale, as that of several of the other European states, yet the moving power was the same with that which actuated the whole body. It was the struggle of reason against long established prejudices; of liberty against tyranny; of religion against a haughty, tyrannical, and superstitious priesthood. One of the most distinguished of Knox's successors in this warfare, was Mr. Andrew Melville. He was born on the 1st of August, 1545, at Baldovy, about a mile from the town. of Montrose, in the county of Forfar. He was the youngest of nine sons, all of whom arrived at the state of manhood, and appear to have been distinguished by a more than ordinary share of talent. Young Melville was, at a very tender age, deprived of both his parents. His father fell at the battle of Pinkie, in 1547; and his mother died in the course of the same year. The want of these natural guardians was, however, amply supplied by the kindness and affectionate regard of his eldest brother, who treated him as one of his own family- a labour of love in which he was warmly seconded by his wife, who vied with him in cherishing the young orphan thus committed to their care. - Melville was of a delicate constitution; but he very early discovered a taste for learning, which his brother resolved to gratify. He was accordingly sent to the grammar school of Montrose, and placed under the care of Thomas Anderson, who instructed him in the principles of the Latin language; and, if we are to judge of the ability of the teacher from the proficiency of the scholar, we may infer that he was well fitted for his office. The study of Greek had not as yet been generally introduced into Scotland, and there were few professors in the universities who possessed even a tolerable acquaintance with it. By means of the liberality and public spirit of John Erskine, of Dun, a Greek school had, however, been established at Montrose, and Pierre de Marsilliers, a native of France, was the teacher. When Melville had finished his course of Latin at the grammar school, instead of repairing to the university, he remained under the care of this learned Frenchman for two years. The French language was at this time generally taught in Scotland along with the Latin. Melville, who had already acquired some knowledge of French, had an excellent opportunity of improvement under Marsilliers, of which he eagerly availed himself. Thus grounded in the rudiments of Latin, Greek, and French, Melville, at the age of fourteen, was sent to the University of St. Andrew's, and entered the College of St. Mary, or, as it was sometimes called, the New College. The method of teaching, as well as the books which were then taught in the European seminaries, are well known. Though Dr. M'Crie has not mentioned the circumstance, it does not admit of a doubt, that the Scottish universities closely imitated the university of Paris. The text book was Aristotle; and, enthusiastic as their admiration of the Stagyrite might be, it appears that the professors at St. Andrew's were incapable of perusing his works in the original, and were therefore obliged to be contented with a Latin translation. The superiority of Melville's acquirements in Grecian literature above his teachers could not fail to be felt by them. We are informed, however, that it excited no mean jealousies; but that, on the contrary, they held out to him every encouragement to prosecute his studies. In consequence of his industry and talents, it may be conjectured that he was distinguished for his early proficiency in learning. He accordingly left St. Andrew's, with the character of being "the best philosopher, poet, and Grecian, of any young master in the land." About this time, he was patronized by Buchanan, to whom he addressed a copy of verses. An intimacy was contracted between these two eminent men, which continued uninterrupted till they were separated by death. Their taste for classical literature was similar; their independence of character and many other circumstances constituted a bond of union, which both have recorded in a manner that leaves no doubt of their sincerity. In 1564, Melville, with the consent of his brothers, set out for Paris, and entered himself a member of its celebrated university. Here he applied, with his usual ardour, to the study of the Greek language, under the celebrated Turnebus; and also attended the lectures of Mercerus and Quinquarboreus, who were conjunct royal professors of Hebrew and Chaldee. He had no opportunity of obtaining an acquaintance with these languages in his native country. It was at Paris, therefore, that his taste for oriental literature was formed, and he ever after prosecuted it with much zeal and success. Peter Ramus, the avowed opponent of Aristotle, was professor of Roman eloquence, and in the zenith of his reputation. The eloquence of his lectures, the boldness and energy of his declamation against the Aristotelian. philosophy, made converts of the most distinguished scholars of the age; and Melville, his passionate admirer, afterwards introduced his system of philosophy into the universities of Scotland. There was as yet no professorship of civil law in the university of Paris; and Melville, whose thirst for general knowledge seems to have been excessive, determined to repair to Poictiers, and study Roman jurisprudence there. Upon his arrival in that city, so great reputation had he already acquired, although only twenty-one years of age, that he was made a regent in the College of St. Marceon. The renewal of the civil war in 1567, interrupted, however, his labours in this capacity; and in 1568, when Poictiers was besieged, he became tutor to the son of a counsellor of the parliament, a promising youth, unfortunately killed by a cannon ball during the siege. The unsettled state of France, together with the high reputation of the academy of Geneva, made him resolve to undertake a journey thither. That small republic was at this time the centre of attraction to the whole Protestant world. Here the most celebrated champions of the new faith resided; and here their admirers could enjoy that liberty of conscience and personal_freedom which were denied to them in almost every other European state. Our young literary adventurer had procured in France. letters of introduction to Beza, who was so pleased with him at their first interview, that, after being examined on Virgil and Homer, he was, with the concurrence of his colleagues, admitted professor of humanity. His acquaintance with the learned languages, it may be supposed, was already very considerable, but he did not on that account relax his diligence. He considered it no degradation to the station which he held in the academy, to enrol himself as a pupil under some of his celebrated associates. He studied Hebrew and Syriac under that great oriental scholar, Bertram, the author of the work "De Republica Ebræorum," and Greek under Franciscus Portus, a native of the island of Candia, and the master of Isaac Casaubon, the first Greek scholar of the age. The literary society with which he mixed at Geneva, afforded many charms to one of his taste and VOL. I. NO. I. L |