What time against their ancient foes
Dark Afric's race like Dæmons rose,
Past wrongs with present strength conspiring,
And memory all their passions firing,
Till mad, and madd'ning all the throng,
Freedom, a Fury, raved along,

With garments roll'd in blood; with hand
Grasping the desolating brand :-

What voice but thine alone, could dare
Breathe the forbidden word-to spare?
From glens and caves the fugitive
Could look to thee alone, and live :
Whose shelt'ring arms, a rampart spread,
Stood 'twixt the living and the dead,
With angel eloquence to stay
The carnage of that direful day.

And when the shield that sav'd before,
From power incens'd could save no more,
Thou gav'st the meed of years of toil,
To waft them to a kindlier soil.
Vain were the dungeon's terrors*—vain
The threaten'd scaffold's penal stain-
Ah vain those fonder thoughts, that prest
For mastery in thy manly breast,
And bade thee pause, nor forfeit now
The nuptial torch, the mutual vow,
The social hall, the festal dome,

The comforts of the hearth and home!
O happy in the sacrifice!

For what the suffering to the prize?
What, loss of all that earth holds dear,
In such a high and proud career?
Let faith, prophetic faith, portray
The glories of thy rising day,

When grateful thousands shall proclaim,
Their kind deliverer's honour'd name;
Sires hail him, who from direst rage
Rescued the filial props of age;

And mothers bless the arm that stay'd
From infant hearts the ruthless blade;
While, from before the mystic throne
Erst to the Seer of Patmos shown,
Sublimest welcome shall accord
Thy great Exemplar and thy Lord!
Who onward to his own abode

Through sacrifice and suffering trode.

* Mr. M'Intosh was twice imprisoned, and narrowly escaped death by his efforts in this cause.

Endur'd each earthly--heavenly loss,
Renounc'd a kingdom for a cross,
Cheerful, himself for others gave,
And liv'd to bless, and died to save!

[The following Hymn, written by a Lady of the society, was sung at the ordination of Rev. Charles Brooks, to the pastoral charge of the third church and society in Hingham, Jan. 15th 1821.],

Keep silence all-'tis hallow'd ground,
The Saviour's presence shines around.
Say, will not God vouchsafe to hear
The prayer of those who worship here?

Not as on Sinai's awful brow,

We view thy glorious brightness now;
But as on Bethlehem's flowery plains,
When angels chanted heavenly strains.

May Peace within these borders reign,
May gentle Love and all her train,
Sweet Charity and holy fire
Thy humble votaries here inspire.

Thou chosen Watchman of this band,

Oh! lead them with a Shepherd's hand :
Cement their hearts with Truth and Love,
And join them to the Lamb above.

REVIEW.

The Natural History of the Bible; or, a Description of all the Quadrupeds, Birds, Fishes, Reptiles and Insects, Trees, Plants, Flowers, Gums, and Precious Stones, mentioned in the sacred Scriptures. Collected from the best authorities, and alphabetically arranged. By THADDEUS MASON HARRIS, D.D. Boston: Wells and Lilly, 1820. pp. 476. 8vo. price bound, three

dollars.

THE public are already sufficiently informed of the claims,

with which this work offers itself to their notice: that it is the

fruit of many years study, gathered with unwearied diligence,

New Series-vol. IH.

7

and from a wide search. We have to thank the learned author for presenting us with a book, containing such a variety of information on so many subjects; of easy reference, and on a new plan. We feel indebted to him for having brought together from many rare, and many cumbrous volumes, the materials, which we might not very willingly have else sought for; and for disposing these materials in so skilful an arrangement and under so agreeable a form, that they may be enjoyed by those who are not conversant with studies of this nature, while they afford aid to the professed biblical scholar. The work is not, however, a mere compilation: illustrations are suggested not unfrequently by the author, and some of the best belong fairly to him. Indeed we were left to regret from the beginning to the end, that there was not more of this kind; that he has quoted from others, when he would have spoken better himself; that he has given us so many of their opinions, and no greater number of his own. He has endeavoured to make his subjects engaging by frequent allusions to classical and modern writers, and by interspersing such remarks as the occasion happened to furnish. His articles are consequently sometimes of a very miscellaneous character; but this is perfectly consistent with his design, and it is no small praise to supply a manual for the learned, and at the same interest the common reader. Whether this object has been perfectly accomplished remains to be seen. We will not anticipate the judgment of the public. We will only say, that the investigations are generally laboured; and that many of the observations on particular passages of the sacred writings cannot but be universally acceptable.

The subjects of natural history which are found in the Bible have called out at different times a great deal of learning; and we cannot help thinking, a great deal of tedious and useless learning. We have had all sorts of minute questions and laborious trifles respecting them; and theories and assertions have been as various and opposite as they are unimportant. We are not prepared to say that an extravagant value has of late years been attached to this branch of inquiry; though we confess we are astonished, when we think how small is the advantage that has been derived, compared with the zeal that has been shown how little true light has been thrown on the pages of scripture by all that has been said and written and done. In the middle of the last century, great preparations were made for exploring the East, especially Palestine; that its natural productions might be accurately ascertained, with reference to the illustration of the Scriptures. "A mission of learned men" was dispatched, by the munificent patronage of the king of Denmark, at the instance of professor Michaelis, and with in

structions from that celebrated scholar. We have never heard, however, that any great good followed the enterprize. A book from Niebuhr, one of the expedition, was given to the public; which, as Dr. Harris tells us in his preface, "is valuable for a few incidental remarks, and as giving the names, by which animals and plants are now called in those regions." A few years before this, Dr. Hasselquist, a pupil of Linnæus, employed himself a long time in Egypt and the Holy Land collecting specimens with a similar view. His papers were published by Linnæus, and translated into English: but we are unable to perceive how the student of the Bible can owe any considerable obligation to them. The first half is a mere journal, even more wandering and heavily particular than writings of this kind commonly are: the latter part has indeed a distinct object; but its utility, however great it may be to the inquisitive naturalist, is of a very humble kind so far as the Bible is concerned. We do not mean that the natural history of the East is not important to the accurate understanding of many passages of the Scriptures. We do not mean to deny that something valuable has been accomplished in this service, by means of it. But we think, that beyond that general acquaintance with the subject, which is easily obtained and understood, it is rather curious than useful, and deserves no great rank among our biblical studies. It appears to us that the important questions in it, which have been fairly and fully settled, are extremely few; and that the minutiæ, into which it is perpetually extending itself, are to the last degree, barren and wearisome. We confess that there is no subject, on which we have been made so heartily tired with far fetched analogies, and fanciful derivations, and long drawn discussions, and conjectures which would not be of the least consequence if they were demonstrations. What is still worse than this, it has given occasion to a great many pretended elucidations of holy writ; and one is continually disgusted with the trifling remarks that lay claim to this title, and the tasteless pedantry that is brought up to disfigure and spoil the beautiful simplicity of the Scriptures. We shall find opportunity to present our readers with some specimens of this, before we dismiss the present article; and will say no more here of those, who have written expressly and merely on the natural productions of the East.

But there is another class of writings, closely kindred to this, relating to the same object, and full of the same faults, on which we will briefly offer our opinion. We mean those, which treat in general of what is to be seen in Palestine and the neighbouring countries; whether in the form of voyages and

travels, or of collected observations, fragments, &c. Authori ties in this kind have become very numerous; and the diligent author of the work before us has availed himself very freely of their researches. We must acknowledge, however, for ourselves, that their value seems to us to have been much overrated, considered as helps to the understanding of the Bible. Learned they often are, and occasionally serviceable; and among the great variety of them from Dr. Shaw to Dr. Adam Clarke, it would be wonderful indeed if many valuable facts had not been collected. But what a multitude of words have we for a little profit! How much of what is to no purpose compared with what is truly instructive! Among the most recent and celebrated of these productions is Dr. Clarke's edition of Harmer's "Observations on various passages of Scripture:" a book which has been a great deal quoted and praised. For our own part, we are inclined to set it at small value. It abounds with insipid and dull things; and the portions that deserve and reward attention are hidden in a crowd of remarks of an opposite description. One cannot contain his surprize, that four full volumes, collected under such advantages and from so many sources, published by one distinguished scholar, and after a number of years enlarged and edited by another, should con-. tain so small a portion of what is worth remembering. Our author has made pretty copious extracts from an anonymous publication called "Scripture illustrated;" which appeared as an appendix to Calmet's dictionary, and was "conducted principally," as the title page tells us, "by the English editor of that work." It is really a very trifling book, flippantly written, and out of meagre materials; with more fancy than knowledge; at a good half of which we should laugh if it were not for vexation. The composer of it seems equally at home in Niebuhr and L'Allegro; and illustrates the Bible now from the Rabbins and now "the ludicrous Butler," who would not, we think, feel much complimented by the epithet. Plainly, we account it good for almost nothing, notwithstanding all the pretensions of engravings and quarto; and think it goes to disgrace those venerable writings, which it presumes to call " emanations. from the Divine Mind." We shall be obliged to take further notice of this writer, when we come to examine more particularly the contents of the volume under review: from which we fear we have already detained our readers too long.

The excellent author prefixes to his main work three dissertions; the last of which, and the only one that is of considerable length, is an able account of the "Mosaical distinction of animals into clean and unclean." His familiarity with writings.