One he had among them, whose evil he turned to good, by making it an instrument of his passion, and affording an example to his church of enduring evil. His holy church being planted, so far as his bodily presence required, he suffered, died, rose again, shewing, by his passion, what we ought to sustain for the truth, by his resurrection what to hope for in eternity; and this is an additional lesson to the great mystery of redemption, by which his blood was shed for the remission of our sins. He proves that the faith of the gospel is strengthened by the dissensions of heretics; and, after some observations on Antichrist, as just as might be expected in his time, he concludes with a remark on a pagan prophecy, which affirmed that the Christian religion would only continue three hundred and sixty-five years. "What may be doing, says he, at the end of this period in other parts of the world, it may be needless to inquire. I will mention what I know: in the renowned city of Carthage, the imperial officers, in the year following the predicted extinction of Christianity, overturned the temples of the idols, and broke the images. And for the space of thirty years since that time, the falsity of the pagan divination being notorious, occasion hath been given to render the progress of the gospel still more triumphant.

The four last books describe the issues of the two states. The nineteenth deserves the studious attention of every scholar, who would accurately distinguish between theology and philosophy. He contrasts the ideas of happiness exhibited by both with great clearness, and while he does justice to all the good that is found in secular systems, he points out their fundamental errors. The principles of evangelical virtue are stated; the miseries of life are described, and both the true relief against them which the gospel proposes is exhibited, and the false consolations of philosophy are justly exposed. In fine, the reader will find here the mass of secular philosophy reduced to order, its errors detected, and the very picture of the Christian state and genius delineated.

The twentieth book undertakes to describe the last judgment. But as the vigorous and discursive genius of the author led him to handle a multitude of intricate questions, and to undertake the exposition of some of the

most difficult prophecies in the Scripture, for which the early times in which he lived were unequal, through want of the evidence of their accomplishment, almost the whole is very uninteresting.

In the two last books he gives his ideas of the punishment of the wicked, and of the happiness of the righteous in a future state. The former, though it has a mixture of curious questions, more subtile than important, will from the eleventh chapter to the end deserve a careful perusal. I have not seen, in so small a compass, a sounder answer to the objections of men against the divine justice in punishing sin eternally, than is to be found in the eleventh and twelfth chapters. It appears that the Lord's prayer was daily used by the church in his time, and though he seems to give an unsound interpretation of our Lord's words, of making FRIENDS OF THE MAMMON OF UNRIGHTEOUSNESS, yet he confesses his interpretation would be dangerous in practice; and he protests against the ideas of those who imagine they can atone for their sins by alms. He refutes various presumptions of men, who expect to escape the damnation of hell, without a sound conversion.

In the last book, which describes the eternal rest of the City of God, he thinks proper to dwell a little on the external evidences of Christianity, and in speaking of miracles, he describes, in chapter eight, some which were wrought in his own time. One of them, the healing of a disorder, seems peculiarly striking, because it was in answer to prayer. I have again to regret the scholastic and subtile taste of his times, interwoven with most important matter. The twenty-second chapter gives as striking a proof, drawn from facts, of human apostacy as I have seen. The reflections in the two next chapters are also admirable. And he closes with a delightful view of the eternal felicity of the church of God.

Should the very imperfect sketch I have given of this work, one of the greatest efforts of genius and learning in any age, induce any classical scholars to peruse it with candor and attention, and, by the blessing of God, to imbibe some portion of the heavenly spirit of the author, I shall have cause to rejoice.

The Life of St. Augustine was written by PossIDIUS,

sometimes called Passidoius, (an African) a pious priest of his diocese, afterwards Bishop of Calama.

St. Augustine lived seventy-six years, forty of which he had been a presbyter, or bishop. This holy man died in the triumph of faith, at the city of Hippo, in Africa, A. D. 430, and left his valuable library for the church of Christ.

The Epistle to Egyptius is full of charity, and describes the greatness of the Christian graces in a manner much resembling that of St. Augustine's Epistle to Theodorus.

Vigilius, an African, was of Thapsus; he was a man famous for his writings. He composed a number of treatises, under the names of the most renowned Fathers. The creed, called that of Athanasius, is ascribed to him.

Mark, the Hermit of Africa, a writer on the spiritual life and labor of man, describes the conflict truly solemn for eternity.

Rammohun Roy, the Hindoo philosopher and theologian, was a native of Bengal, and has rendered himself conspicuous both in India and Europe, by his talents and learning, and discovers a familiar and profound acquaintance with the various living languages, and is said to be well read in the Greek and Hebrew. By his writings in most of these he has proved himself to be one of the most learned and remarkable men of the present age.

Victorinus, of Africa, was a Christian historian. He wrote against the Arians, and the Manichees. In his treatise against the latter, he addresses his friend Justinius, who had been deceived by them, in this manner : "In vain do you macerate yourself with excessive mortification; for after you have worn away yourself by your austerities, your flesh will return to the devil, in darkness. I advise you to acknowledge that God Almighty created you, that you may be truly the temple of God according to the words of the Apostle. You are the temple of God; and his Spirit dwelleth in you! If you have not the honor to be the temple of God, and to receive the Holy Spirit in you, Jesus Christ is come not to save, but to destroy you."

Optatus, of Africa, wrote an able treatise against the

Donatists. He was the author of many other sensible writings.

Apollinarii father and son of Africa. The father a presbyter, and the son a reader in the Church. Both skilled in Greek Literature; the father taught Grammar, the son Rhetoric. Epiphanius, a professor of philosophy, was united with them in the closest intimacy. These men were doubtless persons of superior capacity. The son, particularly, was one of the greatest men of his time, in learning, genius, and powers of argument. His answer to Porphyry is looked on as the best defence of Christianity against Paganism. He it was who, in Julian's time, endeavored to compensate to the Christian world, the loss of the classical authors, from the study of whom they were debarred by the persecution of that Emperor. He wrote poems and dialogues in imitation of Sophocles and Plato, on scriptural subjects. His translation of the Psalms into Greek verse, which remains to this day, is highly commended.

Didymus, of Africa, may be fairly matched with Apollinarius in greatness of understanding and accomplishments, though he lost his sight at the age of five years. He became so vigorous and successful a student that he was renowned for his skill in Philosophy, Rhetoric, and Geometry. He filled the chair of the famous school at Alexandria with vast applause. Origenism was his favorite system, though, as far as appears, he continued always sound. His treatise on the Holy Spirit, the Latin translation of which, by Jerome, has only come down to us, is perhaps the best the Christian world ever saw on the subject. And whatever has been said since that time in defence of the Divinity and Personality of the Holy Ghost, seem, in substance, to be found in that book.

Theophilus, Paulinus, Alpius, Sulpicius Severus, Florentius, Isidore, Cassian, Hilary, Vincentus Primasius, Timotheus, Ælumus, Honoratus, Politian, Antony, and Faustus, learned Christian writers of Africa.

The celebrated Victor, of Africa. His history of the African persecutions is very affecting, and who himself suffered for righteousness sake, will deserve to be added to this list. Joseph Milner, A. M., has made much use

of his history in writing the history of the Church of Christ.

Jason, an African, of Cyrene, wrote five books of 2 Mac. ii, Acts ii, 10, the history of the second book of Maccabees being an abstract and breviary of the five books of Jason, a Jew, of Cyrene.

MODERN HISTORIANS.

DE VASTEY, an African, and once, we believe, a slave, an eloquent man of St. Domingo, who published several works. The following are extracts from his pen :—

"Every species of calumny and absurdity has been invented to palliate the atrocious injustice of white men, toward those whom they have tormented and persecuted for ages.

"Posterity will find it difficult to believe, that in an enlightened age like ours,there are men, who call themselves philosophers, willing to reduce human beings to an equality with brutes, merely for the sake of sanctioning the abominable privilege of oppressing a large portion of mankind. While I am now writing, I can scarcely refrain from laughter, at the absurdities which have been published on this subject. Learned authors, and skilful anatomists, have passed their lives in discussing facts as clear as daylight, and in dissecting the bodies of men and animals, in order to prove that Ĩ, who am now writing, belong to the race of Ourang-Outangs! Edward Long gravely advances, as a proof of the moral inferiority of the black man, that our vermin are black, and that we eat wild-cats. Hanneman maintains that our color originates in the curse pronounced by Noah against Canaan; others affirm that it was a mark fixed upon Cain, for the murder of his brother Abel. For myself, I see strong reasons to believe that the white men are the real descendants of Cain; for I still find in them that primitive hatred, that spirit of envy and of pride, and that passion for riches, which the Scriptures inform us led him to sacrifice his brother.

"I smile while I ask whether we are still in those ages of ignorance and superstition, which saw Copernicus and Galileo condemned as heretics and sorcerers?