imagine any man holding such insane and incendiary language, to a mixed audience in the country, without running a great risk of being hooted and pelted for his pains. The Major too asserts, forming his opinion, perhaps, from his intercourse of soldiers, or the customs of the sister country, that you ought to make allowances for a man, who says foolish or violent things under the inspiration of malt liquors; and laugh as long as you can at the idle speeches of a half-drunken blockhead, although the necessity of a revolution in Church and State should be the exordium, the narration, the confirmation, and the peroration. But here the greater part of the Council is not exactly of the same opinion as the Major.

The doctrines, my dear Squire, which you have inculcated into your tenant, are, without doubt, excellent in themselves

but you must not wonder, if, in the present state of the country, they fail in producing their due effect. Suffering and poverty are no slight palliations of peevishness and ill-temper. How wayward, how splenetic, how deaf to reason, is every individual in private life, when afflicted by the scourge of such heavy visitations! The agricultural distress, which prevails in foreign kingdoms, is indeed an "experimentum crucis "to demonstrate that taxation cannot be the only, or the principal, cause; but this is not, perhaps, the argument most calculated to settle the minds, or remove the irritation, of the labouring uneducated classes, who are, on all occasions, influenced chiefly by their first, and as it were instinctive, emotions. At best we can only say with Shakspeare,

It easeth some, tho' none it ever cur'd,

To think their dolour others have endur'd.

Some of us, however, imagine, as they have often told you before, that you carry your horror of innovation too far; and suffer a prudent and useful feeling to degenerate into a prejudice. They are not content with your sweeping deprecations of reform: they profess to discover in them a jealous, exclusive, aristocratic spirit. They believe not only that there are many abuses; but that there are some which will admit of a safe, and certain remedy. We should thank you, therefore, to enlarge upon

this point, when you next write; that we may know what difference of opinion exists, and whether it is irreconcilable; as we are peculiarly anxious to draw up as a body, a declaration of our common sentiments upon perhaps the most important subject, which can ever be agitated by the inhabitants of a free country.

On the whole, our counsel is this. Do not vex or trouble yourself too much about this radical usurper of your seignorial rights. Watch and observe; but avoid appearing personally in the business, or honouring him by such an avowed and open opposition, as must reduce the matter to a trial of strength. Be sure, above all things, to do nothing rash, and give him no advantage over you by hasty, violent, and inconsiderate measures. Either behave exactly as usual to your tenants; or express surprise and sorrow, rather than displeasure and resentment. Maintain a kind, accessible demeanour towards them: and suppress every word, every emotion, of acrimony or harshness. Continue to merit, as you now do, their respect and attachment; and establish your influence on that esteem and love from your inferiors, which is the only sure basis of authority, whether public or private, in an empire or on an estate. Attend to them rather than to their disturber; take care that they shall have no just cause of complaint, and leave the rest in the hands of time and fortune.

It appears to us, my dear Squire, that the latter part of your letter deserves the most serious attention, as connected with a complete and regular system, of which the real object is to undermine the very foundations of our Church establishment. Whether an established Church be, or be not, in itself, and from the nature of men and things, a wise and profitable institution, is a question which we are not called upon to determine: but wherever there is an established Church, we must deeply lament, and earnestly deprecate, any schisms and divisions in it, any rents and secessions from it, except in cases of the most urgent and evident necessity. Indeed, the state and prospects of the Church of England form a subject of the most intense interest, as well as the most curious speculation, whether we regard it in a moral, or philosophical, or

political, or religious, light. Hereafter, we shall sift the whole matter to the bottom, in all its bearings and ramifications. In this discussion will naturally be included the inquiry, in what manner and by what arts, the friends and frequenters of the established Church have been seduced from it by the Dissenters. We can afford, therefore, to say very little in answer to your letter; and must confine our remarks, almost entirely, to the particular case.

Although displeasure and concern are on your part intelligible and rational feelings; your observations, as you must be aware, have more reference to spiritual than temporal concerns; and the business belongs rather to the present incumbent of the living, than to yourself. There is not one of us who has a distinct recollection of this gentleman; and our remarks, therefore, cannot contain any personal reflections: but we are bound to say, that the single and simple circumstance, that part of his flock leaves him, is in itself a proof of the negligence and unfitness of the shepherd. Nor, when we consider the subject of it, are we altogether charmed and delighted with your description. We can make no objection to the character of the man but "an honest hearty fellow," or "a pleasant companion " is not, after all, the best possible delineation of a Minister of the Gospel. An exemplary clergyman must be something more than an agreeable acquaintance. Your rector, perhaps,-for we speak merely upon suppositionis a good rider, or a good shot, or a man who will not spoil company by passing the bottle without pouring some wine into his glass. But it must be a very different person who can preserve the authority of the Church, and save the number of its members from diminution. Negative merits are here nothing, and worse than nothing: we might almost affirm, that they are a positive non-performance of prescribed duties. We require men of active energy and unwearied perseverance; men, who will mix with their parishioners; who will enter the houses of the poor; who will direct and instruct, console and advise, not only from the pulpit, and in the Church, but at all times and places where such labours can be of use, and by every method which they can possibly devise.

Long possession begets carelessness: and carelessness is invariably attended or followed by losses and misfortunes. And how can any man expect to retain that which another covets, if he will not give himself the trouble of holding it fast? Here we perceive at once both the cause and effect of the laziness, luke-warmness, and slumbering security of the Church, contrasted with the sleepless vigilance, the unremitting industry, the incessant exertions of its avowed enemies, and its secret ill-wishers. But you

are sensible of these truths; and they are indeed obvious and notorious.

Little things also have their weight: and self-love is the strongest and most universal of the passions. Many, therefore, are inveigled from the establishment by finding not only that the dissenting Minister is more emphatic, energetic, and indefatigable; but that there is greater attention paid to them at the Chapel; that they have a more comfortable seat; and that strangers are admitted, as long as there is room, without the inconvenience of waiting in the aisles, or the necessity of handing a fee to the pew-opener for the liberty of assisting at the service of God.

If the preacher, who has lately introduced himself into your village, be really such as you portray him, we think it can hardly be infested by a more dangerous and pernicious nuisance. The cause of Christianity has never been endangered, but by the faults and follies of its professors. These have always been the ground-work of every argument against its beneficial influence in the world, which has carried with it any real force or effect. Infidelity is impotent of itself: superstition and fanaticism, hypocrisy and spiritual pride, have been the bane of the Christian religion. That religion, if we may use an illustration, which, in the intention at least, is not irreverent, has been injured by the semblance of excessive regard; as its divine founder was betrayed by a kiss.

We imagine, therefore, that the mild spirit of Christianity hardly forbids us to feel contempt and detestation for the man, who, bloated with dissimulation, and swollen with arrogance, converts our sublime and merciful faith

into an object of ridicule or terror; and almost makes religion a weapon against itself. But in general we would say to you and to all, beware of intolerance and uncharitableness. From the deceit and absurdities of an individual you appear willing to cast reflections upon the whole mass of Dissenters, without considering, that, however their tenets may be mistaken, and their schism mischievous, they are most respectable as a body; and that many, very many, among them are in their own characters most strictly moral, and most conscientiously devout.

We believe the Church of England to be in danger. She is surrounded by insidious foes, and open, loud, intemperate maligners of the whole system by which she is supported. At this moment she is almost on the verge of a precipice. In a short time, the ground on which she stands may sink from under her. Yet pride will not rescue her; bigotry will not save her; intolerance will not assist her. These are not the means by which her fall can be averted. She must rely upon the individual members of her establishment; and trust for her deliverance and wellbeing, to their purer and more rational religion, their juster and more profound learning; the more unblemished virtue of their lives, and their superior zeal and watchfulness in the discharge of their sacred functions.

To return to your private affairs, it seems improbable, in the present state of things, that you will be able to get fairly rid of the Methodist divine, who has introduced himself into your village; but his powers of mischief may be diminished, and his influence perhaps destroyed, if you can animate the holder of the church-living to exert himself as he ought, and gird himself with the ardour, activity, and vigilance requisite for an encounter with such an adversary. The contents of your letter, my dear Squire, deserve a longer and more distinct reply; but we have so much pressing matter upon our hands, that we can only add our hope, that matters will appear in a fairer light, when you have recovered from the first shock of disappointment; and the assurance of our best wishes for your future tranquillity.