Presentation, Annunciation, Visitation, Purification, Assump tion, and Dolours, together with Reflections on her Dolours and her Virtues, and an enumeration of various practices of devotion in her honour. The third part is composed of miscellaneous examples, meditations, sermons, novenas, rosaries, and prayers. Prefixed is the Translator's Preface, of which the following extract is a sufficient specimen :

'The name of S. Alphonsus de' Liguori is dear to all Catholics; and the sweet odour of his virtues has been everywhere disseminated by his works, in which the blessed saint has planted them, as in a garden of delights. But in the midst of this garden, beloved reader, one bed of choicest flowers is seen, whose fragrance attracts the traveller from afar; and which, as he approaches, ravishes his soul. It is "love for Mary" which composes the flower-bed of which we speak; for though in this garden flowers of every kind abound, yet "love for Mary" is the rose whose scent has been wafted by the breeze on every side; it is "love for Mary" which more especially adorns the saint's eternal crown, and which has become, in a manner, identified with himself, so that the very mention of Alphonsus' name recals the love of Mary to each Christian heart. The cold North wind, and the warm and balmy breezes of the South, have alike blown through this garden of delights the cold North wind, I say, which chills devotion in the Church of God, which would induce men to refuse to Mary that love and honour which God Himself has given her, and which, under specious pretexts of reverence, would at length drive from amongst us her sweet name. Yes, indeed, this wind has blown through the beautiful bed of roses which is now presented to you. . . . But the sweet zephyrs of the South have also blown through this garden, and friendly souls, the true children of Mary, have inhaled these delicious perfumes, and thereby have become as pillars of smoke of aromatical spices, and ascended to the throne of God. Oh, how many have been delivered from hell by this sweet devotion! How many have thus become illustrious in the Christian warfare, and at length have been placed on the altars of the Church! But enough! this sweet flower is now in the reach of all, so that each may, while perusing this little work, enjoy its delicious scent. I will, therefore, only premise a few remarks, which may help to increase the confidence of its readers in all that they will find advanced, as to the greatness and the power of this Mother of God, as also as to her love and tender mercy for us. In a Protestant country, and breathing a Protestant atmosphere, it is difficult to have those tender feelings of love and confidence which all true Catholics should entertain towards Mary; but as the difficulty is great, so also should our efforts be great to obtain and nourish in our souls that tender devotion towards her which is looked upon by the saints and spiritual writers as a pledge of eternal salvation.-P. iv.

At the end of the Preface we find the usual sentence, which sounds as much like a threat as an assurance: 'Remember, that 'it has been strictly examined by the authority which is 'charged by God Himself to instruct you, and that that 'authority has delared that it contains NOTHING (sic) worthy of censure.' (P. xviii.) In spite, however, of its entirely unobjectionable nature, the Editor, or Censor, (Cardinal Wiseman,) has thought it necessary to omit two of the Examples; though why others should have been allowed to pass, and these alone struck out, it passes our comprehension to conceive. Cer

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tainly, they are immoral and incredible, but they only share these characteristics with nine-tenths of the other examples. We quote them as they are given in Duffy's edition of the work-an edition which, although it does not omit these two cases, is, in other respects, far more cleverly cooked for the English market, as we shall presently have occasion to point

out.

'Our advocate has shown her great mercy towards sinners, in favour of a religious called Beatrix, in the monastery of Fonte Eraldo.-Cæsarius, 1, 7, c. 35, P. Rho. in Ex. This unhappy religious devised a plan of flying off from the convent. She went one day before an image of Mary, and at its feet deposited the keys of the monastery, for she was portress, and left the convent. Having reached a certain town, she there lived in the miserable state of sin for a considerable time. She happened one day to meet the agent of the monastery, and believing that in consequence of her change of dress he would not recognise her, she asked him if he knew sister Beatrix? “I know her well," replied the agent; "she is a holy nun, and is at present mistress of novices." At this answer she was confounded and stunned, not knowing how she could be mistress of novices. To ascertain the truth, she put on another dress and went to the monastery. She sent for sister Beatrix, and behold the most holy Virgin appears in the form of the image before which sister Beatrix left the keys and her habit at her departure from the monastery. The Divine Mother then said, "Know that, to prevent your disgrace, I have taken your form, and have performed for you the duties of your office since your flight from the monastery. My child, return, do penance, my Son still waits for you; and endeavour, by a holy life, to preserve the good name which I have here acquired for you." After these words the Virgin disappeared. Beatrix entered again into the monastery, resumed the religious habit, and, grateful for Mary's great mercy, she lived a saint, and at death disclosed all, to the glory of this great queen.'P. 284.

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2

'Cæsarius relates (lib. 7, Dial. cap. 3) that a Cistercian monk, who was greatly devoted to the Blessed Virgin, desired a visit from his beloved lady, and prayed for it continually. He went one night into the garden, and while he was looking up towards heaven, sending forth ardent sighs to his queen, through a desire of seeing her, behold! he sees a beautiful and luminous virgin descending from on high. She said to him, "Thomas, would you wish to hear me sing ?" Certainly," replied the monk. The virgin sang so sweetly, that the devout religious thought he was in Paradise. She disappeared, leaving to him a strong desire to know who she was. Another most beautiful virgin appears and begins to sing. He could not refrain from asking her name. The virgin answered: "The person you saw first was Catherine-I am Agnes; we are both martyrs of Jesus Christ, and have been sent by our Lady to console you. Thank Mary, and prepare to receive a greater favour." She then disappeared. The religious began to entertain greater hopes of seeing his queen. Nor was he disappointed; for soon after he beholds a great light, feels his heart filled with a new joy, and in the midst of that light he sees the Mother of God, surrounded by angels, and far surpassing in beauty the two virgins who had first appeared. She said to him, "My dear servant and child, I have accepted the service

1 This is softened by Mr. Duffy. The American translation, approved by Archbishop Hughes, is, 'She led the miserable life of a prostitute for fifteen years.'

P. 224.

2 Substituted in place of 'for the fifteen years that thou hast lived far from the monastery and from God.'-American Edition, p. 225.

you have rendered to me, and have heard your prayers. You have desired to see me; I wish also to allow you to hear me sing." The most holy Virgin began to sing; and such was the melody and sweetness of her voice, that he lost his senses, and fell prostrate on the ground. The bell rang for matins, the monks assembled; but not seeing Thomas, they went to look for him in his cell, and in other parts of the convent; at length they found him in the garden-he appeared to be dead. The superior commanded him to tell what had happened to him; he instantly recovered his faculties, and through obedience related all the favours of the divine Mother.'-P. 345.

We will now extract some of the theological statements contained in the work before us, and point out the manner in which they are enforced. The first title given to S. Mary is that of

Queen, Mother, and Spouse of the King: to her belongs dominion and power over all creatures.-P. 12.

'She is Queen of Mercy, as Jesus Christ is King of Justice.'-P. 13. 'If Jesus is the Father of souls, Mary is also their Mother. On two occasions, according to the holy Fathers, Mary became our spiritual Mother. The first, according to blessed Albert the Great, was when she merited to conceive in her virginal womb the Son of God. This was revealed by our Lord to S. Gertrude, who was one day reading the above text, and was perplexed, and could not understand how Mary, being only the Mother of Jesus, could be said to have brought forth her first-born. God explained it to her, saying that Jesus was Mary's first-born according to the flesh, but that all mankind were her second-born according to the Spirit. . . . The second occasion on which Mary became our spiritual mother, and brought us forth to the life of grace, was when she offered to the Eternal Father the life of her beloved Son on Mount Calvary with such bitter sorrow and suffering.-P. 23.

'Thus it is that in every engagement with the infernal powers we shall always certainly conquer by having recourse to the Mother of God, who is also our Mother, saying and repeating again and again: "We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God: we fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God!" Oh, how many victories have not the faithful gained over hell by having recourse to Mary with this short, but most powerful prayer! Thus it was that that great servant of God, sister Mary, the crucified, of the Order of S. Benedict, always overcame the devils.'-P. 26.

""Since the very tigers," says our most loving Mother Mary, "cannot forget their young, how can I forget to love you, my children ?"-P. 30.

'Our Blessed Lady herself revealed to sister Mary the crucified, that the fire of love with which she was inflamed towards God was such, that if the heavens and earth were placed in it, they would be instantly consumed; so that the ardours of the Seraphim, in comparison with it, were but as fresh breezes.'-P. 31.

'Let us love her like a S. Francis Solano, who, maddened as it were (but with holy madness) with love for Mary, would sing before her picture, and accompany himself on a musical instrument, saying that, like worldly lovers, he serenaded his most sweet Queen.'-P. 38.

'Let us love her as so many of her servants have loved her, and who never could do enough to show their love. Father Jerome of Texo, of the Society of Jesus, rejoiced in the name of slave of Mary; and, as a mark of servitude, went often to visit her in some church dedicated in her honour. On reaching the church, he poured out abundant tears of tenderness and love for Mary; then prostrating, he licked and rubbed the pavement with his tongue and face, kissing it a thousand times, because it was the house of his beloved Lady.'-P. 38.

'Mary is the Mother of repentant sinners.'-P. 42.

'When Mary sees a sinner at her feet imploring her mercy, she does not consider the crimes with which he is loaded, but the intention with which he comes; and if this is good, even should he have committed all possible sins, the most loving Mother embraces him, and does not disdain to heal the wounds of his soul.'-P. 45.

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"My God," she says, “I had two sons-Jesus and man; man took the life of my Jesus on the cross, and now thy justice would condemn the guilty one. O Lord! my Jesus is already dead, have pity on me; and if I have lost the one, do not make me lose the other also!" And most certainly God will not condemn those sinners who have recourse to Mary, and for whom she prays, since He Himself commended them to her as her children.'-P. 47.

These passages we have taken almost at random from the first chapter, which is a paraphrase of the words, Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy! They are very moderate as compared with what follow, but we have not passed them over, in order that our readers may see the general tone of the book, as well as certain specific statements contained in it. The manner adopted by S. Alfonso for especially enforcing the truth of his doctrines, is that of giving Examples, which profess (like the two given above) to be real historical facts, illustrative of the principles which he has been laying down. The scene of this Example, which is to prove that Mary is the mother of repentant sinners, is laid in England.' There was, we are told, a young nobleman, named Ernest, who had a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin. Twice she spoke to him: once from an altar, the second time from an image in a corridor; but as 'he cooled in his devotions towards Mary,' and 'neglected to recommend himself to her,' he fell into sin, fled from his monastery, and ended with being a highwayman and assassin. Just before he was taken by the officers of justice, a young nobleman, whom he was going to murder, was suddenly changed into a bleeding crucifix. Filled with confusion, he set off to his monastery to do penance; but being arrested on the way, he was condemned to be hung, without having even time given him for confession. The rest of the story we will give in S. Alfonso's own words :

'He recommended himself to Mary, and was thrown from the ladder; but the Blessed Virgin preserved his life, and she herself loosened the rope, and then addressed him, saying, "Go, return to thy monastery, do penance, and when thou seest a paper in my hands announcing the pardon of thy sins, prepare for death." Ernest returned, related all to his abbot, and did great penance. After many years he saw the paper in the hands of Mary,

''In an English city,' say the Redemptorist and Cardinal Wiseman. 'In a certain city in England,' says Mr. Duffy. In the city of Ridolf,' says a French edition, published by Gauthier, in Paris, in 1835. 'In Ridolio, a city of England,' say Mr. Dunigan and Archbishop Hughes. The reason why the Redemptorist, the Cardinal, and Mr. Duffy, omitted the name, is clear. Ridolio is not an English sounding name. But is this honest? In a French edition, published at Lyons in 1835, and approved by the Archbishop of Paris, the whole story is left out.

which announced his pardon; he immediately prepared for death, and in a most holy manner breathed forth his soul.-P. 50.

The next chapter is a comment on the words Our Life-our Sweetness, as applied to S. Mary. It opens thus:—

'To understand why the holy Church makes us call Mary our life, we must know that as the soul gives life to the body, so does Divine grace give life to the soul. To have recourse to Mary, is the same thing as to find the grace of God.'-P. 52.

'S. Bridget heard an angel say that the holy prophets rejoiced in knowing that God, by the humility and purity of Mary, was to be reconciled with sinners, and to raise those who had offended Him to favour.'-P. 56.

Mary is our Life because she obtains us the pardon of our sins, (p. 52.) and also because she obtains us perseverance.'-P. 59.

'We shall obtain the greatest of all graces, perseverance, most certainly, if we always seek it through Mary.'-Ibid.

'Blessed Allan was one day assaulted by a violent temptation, and was on the point of yielding, for he had not recommended himself to Mary; when this most Blessed Virgin appeared to him, and in order that another time he might remember to invoke her aid, she gave him a blow, saying, "If thou hadst recommended thyself to me, thou wouldst not have run into such danger."'—P. 62.

'Bernardine de Busto relates that a bird was taught to say, Hail, Mary! A hawk was on the point of seizing it, when the bird cried out Hail, Mary! In an instant the hawk fell dead.'-P. 64.

'We, says S. Thomas of Villanova, need only, when tempted by the devil, imitate little chickens which, as soon as they perceive the approach of a bird of prey, run under the wings of their mother for protection. This is exactly what we should do whenever we are assaulted by temptation: we should not stay to reason with it, but immediately fly and place ourselves under the mantle of Mary.'-P. 65.

We may notice here how this metaphor, applied by our Lord to Himself, is transferred from Him to S. Mary.

'Mary renders death sweet to her clients.'-P. 68.

'If at the hour of our death we have only the protection of Mary, what need we fear the whole of our infernal enemies? David, fearing the horrors of death, encouraged himself by placing his reliance in the death of the coming Redeemer, and in the intercession of the Virgin Mother. “For though,” he says, "I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, thy rod and thy staff, they have comforted me." Cardinal Hugo, explaining these words of the royal prophet, says that the staff signifies the cross, and the rod is the intercession of Mary; for she is the rod foretold by the prophet Isaias, "And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root." "This Divine Mother," says S. Peter Damian, "is that powerful rod with which this violence of the infernal enemies is conjured;" and therefore does S. Antoninus encourage us, saying, “If Mary is for us, who shall be against us ?"-P. 71.

The third chapter enlarges on the words our Hope :

'Mary is the Hope of all.'-P. 79.

'S. Thomas of Villanova repeats the same thing, calling her our only refuge, help, and asylum.'—P. 81,

In the book of Exodus, we read that God commanded Moses to make a mercy-seat of the purest gold, because it was thence that He would speak to him: "Thou shalt make also a propitiatory of the purest gold. Thence will I give orders and will speak to thee." S. Andrew of Crete says that