cate directly pronounced this one of the most valuable and important works of the time. Now, the Monthly Repository has put forth an article called "Church-craft," in which are many quotations from the pamphlet of a mechanic, making out a most pathetic case, to shew that that great divine Porson was driven to intemperance by having the Athanasian Creed inflicted on him by the cruel church. The Monthly Repository, as learned as the un-Christian Advocate, admires and retails this learning. "These be thy gods, oh! Israel!"

The Rev. T. Williams, late Independent minister at Pembroke Dock, has left the dissenting interest, and entered himself at St. David's College, under the auspices of the Bishop of St. David's. He has published a declaration, and gives the following as among the many reasons for the step he has taken :

"1. I believe the doctrines of the church of England to be purely scriptural, built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.

"2. I believe it to be unjustifiable and sinful to dissent in practice from that vast body of the church with which I agree in principle.

"3. I believe that the divided state of that church, which should be one, as the Father and Son are one, and which must be one in heaven, is one great cause why Christianity has not prospered more than it has.

"4. I believe that the established clergy have a better opportunity to declare 'the whole counsel of God' than dissenting ministers."-Evening Paper.

CHURCH RATES.-We have often stated the law on this head, viz. that if a vestry, duly convened, refuses to make a church rate, it is the duty of the church-wardens to make one, and, if in order to evade the payment of the requisite rate, the vestry chooses to make an illusory and almost nominal rate (for example, a rate of one penny in the pound, where the church wardens have shewn fourpence in the pound to be necessary), it would be the duty of such church-wardens to counteract what is a mere mockery, and to make a rate for the residue themselves, or they would be liable to prosecution in the Ecclesiastical Court.-Bell's Messenger.

DOCUMENTS.

BISHOPS IN THE WEST INDIES.

THE following valuable testimony to the essential benefit conferred on the West India Islands, by the establishment of Bishops amongst them, is given in the evidence of Mr. Henry Loving, of Antigua, before the Select Committee of the House of Commons, on the subject of the extinction of slavery in the British dominions. Questions 1933-1939, p. 146. After having mentioned that a decided moral improvement had taken place in Antigua in late years, he is asked to what he attributed it. His answer is-" I attribute it to the increased advance in education, as well as in spiritual knowledge."-" Has any remarkable improvement taken place lately in the education of the free population of Antigua?" "It has."-"Has a corresponding improvement taken place in the knowledge of the slave population?" "Unquestionably it has, and I can easily account for it. It must be well known to persons who have given the subject any attention, that since the earliest history of the colonies, the labours of the missionaries there have been most incessant and most indefatigable in

instructing and enlightening the minds of all their congregation, both free and slaves; the slaves especially, being the largest number, they have paid particular attention to." [At that time the exertions of the established church slept.]

"What were the establishments from which they derived instruction?" "The Moravian and Wesleyan. This uniform degree of perseverance on the part of the sectarians has advanced the slaves considerably in moral and religious knowledge; but I am happy to say, that since that quarter of the world has been erected into a bishopric, the Bishop of Barbadoes has used the most indefatigable exertions which could possibly have been expected from him, to assist in further advancing that knowledge which had become so prevalent by the exertions of the Wesleyan and Moravian missionaries. I can speak particularly of the island of Antigua; there the Bishop is represented by the Rev. Mr. Parry, the archdeacon, who is most powerfully aided by the Rev. Robert Holbarton, the rector of the parish of St. John's. That gentleman has, by his conduct, earned the good-will, the approbation, and the thanks of the whole community of every description, for the very indefatigable and laborious exertions he has used in giving religious knowledge to the slave population to the utmost of his ability. Schools have sprung up in the islands, in various parts, in consequence of that; and there seems to be an unity of feeling between the sectarians and the church establishment in that island, which promises now to be very beneficial to all classes. I attribute the sudden advance in the education of the lower orders to the erection of those schools of the establishment there; because, notwithstanding the very great disposition which the sectarians had to do the utmost in their power, yet the want of pecuniary means frequently prevented them from extending that knowledge in the way they would otherwise have done; but the Bishop having been furnished with ample means for the purpose of erecting schools, he has done so; and the ministers of the gospel there, being under the direction of a most able man, the archdeacon, aided as he is by the rector of the parish of St. John's, I think that matters are now going on in a scale of religious education most cheeringly indeed."

"Having, from your earliest infancy, known the slave population of Antigua, and having watched the progress of knowledge among them, what has been the effect upon the morals of the slave population? Has marriage increased as religious knowledge has been diffused among them?" "Marriage has certainly increased very considerably since the erection of a bishopric there; and the rector of St. John's has used his utmost endeavours to impress upon the slaves the necessity of being married, in preference to leading the lives they have formerly done. He has succeeded, I believe, to a very considerable extent. Had I been aware that I should have been brought before this committee, I had a great deal of documentary evidence in my possession, which, since I have been in England, I sent back, from which I could speak very positively upon these points; but I know that couples are frequently married now in various parishes. I have myself always been attached to the established church, and I have had an opportunity of hearing, from Sunday to Sunday, a number of marriages given out a slave belonging to such a plantation, owned by such a person, to be married to a slave belonging to another plantation, owned by such a person. There are, perhaps, five or six every Sunday."

The American Almanac for 1831 contains a list of all the theological establishments in the United States, with the number of students at each seminary, and of the volumes contained in its library. According to this document, the whole number of theological students is 657. The combined aggregate of volumes in possession of all the institutions is 43,450. The best furnished library in the list is that of the theological department of Yale College, which contains 8000 volumes. None of the others approach nearly to this amount.

The institution of New Hampton possesses only 100 volumes, and is attended by 14 students. Calculating each book to consist, on the average, of three volumes, the New Hampton library contains 33 works on theology. But this is not all: seven of these establishments possess no libraries at all,so that the learning of the students must come by inspiration! Until the year 1803, no seminaries for religious instruction appear to have existed in the United States. One was founded in that year, another in 1812; but the majority are of far more recent origin.-(Hamilton's Men and Manners in America.)

-ON NATIONAL AND OTHER SCHOOLS FOR POOR CHILDREN, (Continued from page 570.)

III. CHILDREN'S CLOTHING FUNDS, SOCIETIES, ETC.

1. The children pay 1d. weekly towards the clothing fund; sometimes a por tion of the price is made up by the school or by voluntary subscriptions, to purchase certain articles.

2. Clothing (1.) sold to children at half price-(1) The money to be paid at once; (2) or by instalments of 2d. or 6d. ; (3) or by regular weekly payments.

(2.) Children pay one-third of price, and ladies two-thirds.

(3.) Shoes, &c., sold at two-thirds of the price to the deserving.

3. Materials for stockings found by the school; they are knit by the children who may purchase them for 6d., 7d., 8d., or 9d. a pair.

4. Sometimes the clothing fund is doubled by the ladies, annually.

(1.) If a girl does not behave well, she gets back her own money only.

(2.) The children choose their articles according to a list.

(3.) All the clothing is made in the school.

5. The girls are provided with an uniform dress, which is worn on Sundays only. This is purchased out of the earnings from the work.

6. Weekly pence and weekly clothing money are put together, and laid out in clothing.

IV. EARNINGS (CHIEFLY IN GIRLS' SCHOOLS) AND WORK.

1. (1) What is earned is applied to the funds of the school; or (2) towards prizes, to which ladies, &c. sometimes contribute; (3) for purchasing needles, tape, worsted, &c. as rewards; and (4) calico, &c., for teaching younger girls to work.

2..(1) Laid out half yearly, by treasurer, in clothing; (2) Sunday uniform dresses, worn on that day only, and kept during the week in the school. 3. Earnings distributed to workers half yearly.

4. Half of the earnings paid to the workers, and half to the school funds. 5. One-third of them given to the mistress, and two-thirds to the school funds. 6. Boys' school of industry and instruction. Printing. (1) The workers

are found clothes from the profits they earn; e. g. if 58. be received a jacket is given; (2) whatever is given to the workers weekly is doubled, and paid to them on leaving school.

7. Girls' school of industry (Blue coat.)

(1.) Make their own dresses, the bedding, &c.

(2.) Make boys' shirts and stockings, &c.; mend and renew old ones, &c.

(3.) Wash, and assist in the house department, scour, clean, &c. (4.) (1) In all work begin with the coarser and easier things; and when they can be well done, advance to what is finer aud VOL. IV.-Dec. 1833.

4 T

more difficult.

(2) Girls are placed in registers of work of every kind, according to their daily performance. These registers are kept on a slate, and the weekly average entered in a book, which is examined monthly, when rewards, &c. are distributed. The girls sit also in the class according to the excellence of their knitting, sewing, &c.

(3.) In the house work, each girl has a book registering her own doings every day, which is both an account of her work, and a record of her behaviour. The servant who is immediately over her, or the matron, makes the entry as to the ill or well doing.

8. The following is the plan of the Register of work done in school, examined monthly; the best rewarded :—

9. Work is commonly taken in from the public; when in want of work, (1.) The Rector supplies; and then these articles are sold to the children at half price;

(2.) Or the subscribers send work; for whom the work is sometimes done a little cheaper.

10. The charity-work of the lying-in and other institutions &c. is done gratuitously.

V. ABSENTEES.

1. When a boy has been absent without leave, the parents must attend, or send a written explanation.

2. (1) As soon as a boy is absent without leave, a note is sent by the master to the parent; (2) if no satisfactory answer be returned, the boy is suspended; and (3) he is not admitted again unless on the usual recommendation of a new scholar, and by paying the sum of 18., &c.

3. (1) The fine for being absent half a day is d. (2) Teachers, when absent, forfeit 1d., or 2d., daily to their substitutes.

4. If reason of absence be not satisfactory, the privilege of writing is withheld.

5. For very irregular attendance, the last resource is expulsion. (1.) It is a general rule, agreed upon by the schoolmasters, that a child who has left, or has been expelled, shall not be received into another school, without a note from his former master. (2.) If the conduct of the child has been unsatisfactory, he is not received.

6. The following is the average attendance of 49 schools.

In 11 Boys' Schools there were from 1 in 6 to 1 in 9 absent.

In 12 Girls' Schools there were from 1 in 3 to 1 in absent.

VI. SUNDAY; CHURCH; RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION.

1. (1) The course of daily instruction in national schools is religious. (2.) Their books are chiefly selected from the excellent publications of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

(3.) Catechism, the lessons, church service, with scripture references, are the chief employments before they go to church on Sundays.

(4.) The clergy attend and examine the children both during the week and on Sundays.

2. (1) The clergyman delivers a lecture to the children and their parents in the afternoon on Sundays.

(2.) The methodist ministers address them on the Sabbaths, and on every Wednesday.

(3.) The superintendent (a layman) explains the Scriptures (in a church school) on Fridays and on Sundays.

(4.) Religious instruction with an address by one of the adult teachers. (5.) Every evening the master delivers an extemporary prayer, which is repeated by the children.

(6.) One of the gentlemen attends to address the girls on Sunday
afternoons. Methodists.

(7.) Persons on Sundays address the children "without inculcating
any peculiar doctrines" "on the broad basis of Christianity.'
(1.) Sunday process in such schools: (1) Learn a hymn,
which is repeated from memory.

(2) Read a lesson in the Scriptures, (Selections.) (3) Are
I examined upon that lesson by the visitor. (4) Then ad-
dressed by the visitor. Visitors take it in turns to ad-
dress the children.

(2.) In other Unitarian schools, the visitors sometimes hear the children read "the Scriptures without note or comment." (1) The meaning of words, and the sense of what is read, are attended to in the weekly instruction of Unitarian schools more rigidly than in others.

3. "In all denomination schools:"

(1.) Children go to their respective places of worship at a given hour. (2.) The master goes with the largest body, whether he be of the same profession or not.

(3.) They whose parents make no profession are, it is said, required to attend the established church.

4. The children who attend Methodist schools during the week are compelled to come on the Sunday, under the penalty of dismissal, which is frequently put into execution.

5. Protestant children who go to Roman catholic schools, may attend their own churches or chapels, but must come to the Roman catholic schoolroom before the time of service. Some Roman catholic children attend the "All-denomination schools" during the week, but keep to their own religious instructions, and places of worship, &c.

6. Sunday schools taught (1) by congregations, (2) visitors, (3) children themselves.

7. (1) Every boy ordered by the master to shut his eyes during prayers in school; or (2) at a signal all the children put their hands before their - eyes. OBS. Very little is done in national schools on Sundays, except preparing for the peformance of Divine Service. In one or two instances, the clergyman, or some one of his congregation, addresses the children and their parents, in the school-room; but this practice is universally followed by the dissenters. I do not wish to judge uncharitably, but the matter is