such as may fill the most capacious mind. The minister's object should be to secure fixed and interested attention, and to make a deep and lasting impression on the mind. In order to do this: 1. Avoid common-place remarks in the introduction. The first sentence uttered should present fresh and valuable thoughts. It is of the utmost importance to set every hearer to thinking within the first five minutes. 2. Get into the subject quickly. Avoid everything extraneous in the introduction. The exposition of the text is often the best introduction. 3. Avoid speaking slowly and with hesitation at the commencement. A slow, hesitating utterance, makes the impression that the preacher does not understand his subject, or that he feels but little interest in it. 4. Avoid a preaching tone. The naturalness of common conversation is best for the pulpit." Inquiry has been lately made as to the paternity of the familiar line, "Like angels' visits, few and far between." Norton's Literary Gazette contains an answer, substantially, as follows: "Blair's Grave" has this stanza, viz. : The good he scorn'd; Stalk'd off reluctant, like an ill-used ghost, Like those of angels, short and far between." Campbell appropriates the simile in the "Pleasures of Hope," with a verbal alteration, which is not an amendment, thus : "What though my winged hours of bliss have been, Like angel visits, few and far between." The original of both is thought to be in the older "Parting," of Norris, of Bemrston, (1657-1711,) thus: "How fading are the joys we dote upon! But those who soonest take their flight, Are the most exquisite and strong, Like angels' visits, short and bright: THE DEVIL WORSHIPERS.-At a late meeting in London of the Syro-Egyptian Society, Mr. Ainsworth read a very interesting paper on the Yezidis, or Devil Worshipers, giving a summary of the most authentic information respecting that curious people. He detailed the geographical distribution of the tribes, and remarked that the residence of their spiritual head, as also their chief place of worship and of pilgrimage, and their chief place of burial, are in the neighborhood of Nineveh. Their villages are distinguished by tombs built in the form of a fluted cone or pyramid, elevated upon a quadrangular base, which rises in steps like the Assyrian and Babylonian temples. Their walls are sometimes hung with the horns of sheep slain in sacrifice. They venerate and sacrifice at certain springs, like the Assyrians of old, the chief being at Shaikh Adi, close to the holy well of the Assyrians at Bavian. The features of the Yezidis have generally a manifest resemblance to those of the Assyrians on the monuments, and, like them, they wear their hair in ringlets. They reverence the Evil Spirit, and invoke Satan, as the chief of the archangels, by the name of Lord. Satan is not, however, with the Yezidis, as with the Parsis, a personification of the evil principle, as in Ahriman; nor have they Ormusd, or the good principle, in opposition. They pay particular homage to the figure of a cock, called Malik Taus, or King Cock. This sacred bird, which resembles the Jynges, or demon-birds of the Assyrians, is supported on a pedestal, like the analogous symbols of a bull's head, ram's head, and cone-the sacred and royal symbols of the Assyrians-sculptured upon the rocks of Bavian, close to where the Malik Taus is so religiously preserved. They also reverence the serpent, the symbol of Hera and Rhea; the lion, a common Assyrian myth; and the ax, the attribute of Baal. They have a temple dedicated to Shaikh Sherus, or "the Sun," to whom, like the Assyrians, they sacrifice oxen or bulls. They bow in adoration before the rising sun, and kiss his first rays when they strike on an object near them. When the holy lamps are lit at their festivals, they pass their hands through the flames, and anoint their eyebrows, or those of their children, or devoutly carry the purified member to their lips. Haji Khalfah describes Shaikh Adi as one of the Mirwanian Khalifs, and says the Yezidis were originally Sufites. Assemanni traces the origin of their name to the Persian Yezid-God. Others identify it with Ized, the evil spirit; and others again with Ized Ferfer, one of the attendants, according to the Parsis, upon the evil spirit. A more commonly received opinion is that they are descendants of Yezid, the son of Mu'awiyah, and the destroyer of the house of Ali. Colonel Rawlinson and Mr. Layard both observe that the name must be sought for elsewhere, as it was used long before the introduction of Muhammadanism. A date of their own-1550— would countenance an identity between Shaikh Adi and Adde, one of the teachers of the Manichean doctrines. Mr. Layard traces their origin to the Chaldeans of the Lower Euphrates. Dr. Grant believed them to be descendants of the lost ten tribes. Baron Haxthausen thinks that they are Gnostic Christians. Mr. Ainsworth argued that the discovery by Mr. Rouet of the remarkable sculptures at Bavian, close to Shaikh Adi, and of holy symbols analogous to the Malik Taus, as well as the reverence paid to the same demon-bird by the ancient Assyrians, with the other analogies of the reverence of holy springs, in the same neighborhood; the worship of the sun and fire-the latter introduced among the Assyrians after the time of Zoroaster-the practice of sacrifices; the reverence paid to other Assyrian symbolic animals and objects; and the physical aspect of the people-the men wearing ringlets, the women adorning themselves with the engraved stones and cylinders of the Assyrians of old-and their preserving their chief place of residence close to Nineveh, their most holy place being in actual juxtaposition to the great national sanctuary of the Assyrians, would tend to establish strong presumptive evidence in favor of an Assyrian origin to these remarkable people. A beautiful and touching history might be written of the toils, so devoted, so blessed, of the Moravian Brethren since the days when, in 1731, the missionaries Dober and Nitschmann embarked to preach Jesus Christ to the poor negroes of St. Thomas's, while Stach and Boehnisch set out for the icebergs of Greenland. And in such a history, the simplicity, the out- tion of the missionaries. These stations are "As A letter-writer in the Evangelist describes Krummacher as the most talented pulpit-orator he ever heard in any country. He says: a general thing, England, Scotland, and the United States, have a greater proportion of eloquent preachers than the Churches on the continent of Europe. But Krummacher unites, perhaps, more natural endowments for an orator than any living man, except it be Kossuth, who, however, is so different from him, as hardly to admit of any comparison. He has a commanding figure, a lion-like mien, a mild and genial eye, a powerful voice, expressive gesticulation, absolute command of language, and an inexhaustible imagination. He would have made the best personator of heroic characters, if he had devoted himself to the stage." CHARACTERISTICS OF ROWLAND HILL.-Dr. Sprague describes this celebrated preacher and humorist by a few apt facts : "I went," says the doctor, "and spent an hour or two with him, much to my satisfaction. When he introduced me to Mrs. Hill, who seemed to be a fine, genial old lady, I could not but think of the anecdote of her falling asleep in church, under her husband's preaching, and his calling out to somebody to wake up that man, lest his snoring should wake up Mrs. Hill. It is said he always took sides with us, during our Revolution; A "MATTER OF-FACT" MAN.-When Doctor Bradon was Rector of Eltham, in Kent, (England,) the text he one day took to preach from was, Who art thou?" After reading the text, he made, as was his custom, a pause for the congregation to reflect upon the words, when a gentleman in military dress, marching very sedately up the middle aisle of the church, supposing it to be a question addressed to him, to the surprise of all present, replied, "I am, sir, an officer of the 17th foot, on a recruiting party here; and having brought my wife and family with me, I wish to be acquainted with the neighboring gentry and clergy." ook Notices. Redfield, New-York, has done a valuable service to the "reading public," by issuing the various productions of Richard Chenevix Trench. His "Study of Words," ""Lessons in Proverbs," and "Synonyms of the New Testament," have given him a determinate and high rank among those authors who write because they have something to make known-something that has not been made known-or, at least, not as well made known before. His last work, English, Past and Present, has been published by the same house in its usual good style. This volume consists of five lectures on the "Composite Nature," the "Gains," the "Diminutions," the "Changes in Meaning," and the "Changes in Spelling" of the English language. Its verbal criticisms are remarkable for their sagacity, its general appreciation of the language is philosophic, and there are not a few passages unique for their originality and suggestiveness. The phonographists will find him a formidable opponent. We are indebted to the tireless press of Carter & Brother, New-York, for the reproduction, in a stout octavo, with liberal type, of an old standard in religious literature, Fleetwood's History of the Bible. It traces and illustrates the Biblical narratives from the creation to the incarnation. It is illustrated by maps and other engravings. A very considerable portion of the volume is made up of notes; they are mostly from the old authorities-Poole, Patrick, Stackhouse, Le Clerc, Calmet, &c. Of course the new expositions of Moses, required by geology, and now generally admitted by theologians, are not alluded to. We miss also a good table of contents. Otherwise, this is a capital edition of a capital old work. Readers who wish a good estimate of the life and opinions of Senator Seward, can find the data for such a judgment very conveniently presented in Baker's Life of William H. Seward, with Selections from his Works, issued in a substantial duodecimo, by Redfield, New-York. Independently of his characteristic opinions, Senator Seward ranks, by his knowledge of public affairs, bis thoroughness on great questions, and his moral dignity, at the head of the actual statesmanship of the country. His style as a writer is, however, somewhat in contrast with this reputation. It is florid—almost sophomorean. The abundant and accurate information of his speeches is their chief excellence. The present biography is quite interesting as a chapter in the late and current political history of the country. The selections are from most of his speeches, orations, forensic arguments, and executive messages. Rev. Dr. Tyng delivered, during the past winter, a very popular course of lectures to the young people of his parish, on the "History of Ruth, the Moabitess." Carter & Brothers, NewYork, have issued them in a neat volume, under the title of the Rich Kinsman. It comprises nineteen parts, in which are presented the chief incidents of that beautiful history; these in cidents are woven into general discourses of unusual beauty and pertinency. The fervid piety and rich style of the author characterize the volume throughout. The American Baptist Publication Society has added to its juvenile catalogue a very interesting little volume, entitled Grace and Rosabel; or, the Grafted Fruit. This society not only gets up good books, but gets them up in good stylea sina qua non with books for children. Ivison & Phinney, New-York, have published Alexander Dumas's Life of Napoleon, in French, for the use of colleges and schools. It accompanied with explanatory notes, conversational exercises, and references to the "New French Method," on the plan of "Fasquelle's Colloquial French Reader." The work is edited by Dr. Fasquelle, of the Michigan University. There could hardly be a better text-book for learners of the language. The narrative of Dumas is itself exceedingly interesting, and the accompaniments, in this volume, for the study of French, are excellent. Carlton & Phillips, New-York, have issued A Guide-Book in the Administration of the Dicipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church. It is from the pen of Rev. Bishop Baker. Almost every question respecting the administration of the Methodist economy is here answered; and all the necessary formulas for trials, proceedings of business meetings, annual returns, and even wills for benevolent purposes, are given. And not only these, but nearly every established rule of parliamentary order, is laid down. The book is a complete manual, and will, doubtless, at once become the standard in conference and other Methodist proceedings. It is accompanied with a portrait of the bishop. The same house has published a duodecimo of three hundred and twenty-nine pages, entitled The Young Man Advised; or, Illustrations and Confirmations of some of the Chief Historical Facts of the Bible, by E. O. Haven, D. D., of Michigan University. The title is not a good one, as it will tend to limit the book to young men, whereas it is appropriate to readers of any age, and is precisely of the class of books most needed in this day of skeptical caviling. It contains eighteen chapters, in which are discussed the most important facts of the Biblical record the Creation, Deluge, Confusion of Tongues, Unity of the Race, Call of Abrahanı, Sodom and Gomorrah, Prophecies, Miracles, History of Christ, &c. On these and the like topics, history and science are consulted, and their confirmatory testimony given. There are several able standards of this kind in our religious literature, but none in which so much information is given in so small a compass and with such point and power. The only fault we have to find with it is that its condensation is so extreme. This, however, is an admirable defect now-a-days. Dr. Haven's volume should be scattered everywhere among our youth. It is a book to tell on the times. LITERARY RECORD. Rev. Dr. Sprague of Albany has given to the public, through the Boston house of Gould & Lincoln, a very entertaining volume of "autographs and sketches of European character, under the title of Visits to European Celebrities. The doctor's visits were in 1828 and 1836 the sketches are therefore somewhat old, but Matthew Henry's Miscellaneous Works have It is A small but good review of the chief infidel objections to the Bible, has been published by Higgins & Perkinpine, Philadelphia. entitled The Bible Defended, by Rev. W. H. Brisbane, and examines the scientific, historical, chronological, and other difficulties alleged against the Scriptures. It is especially adapted to meet the wants of Sunday school and Bible class teachers. the reader a better and a stronger man, and Ashton Cottage is the title of another beautiful Brothers, New-York. It is "a Sunday tale," in a manner at once clear and entertaining. A Long Look Ahead, &c., is the title of a new volume, of no ordinary merit, by James Mountjoy, from the press of Derby, New-York. It is quite superior to our usual native works of the same class; its characters are skillfully delineated, its style good, and its moral tone healthful: its domestic scenes are especially fine. Rev. Mr. Mattison has issued another and an enlarged edition of his Spiritual Rapping Unveiled. He thrashes us, along with some other worthies-but with such flattering courtesy that we cannot, with a good grace, retaliate. His humor and sarcasm is quite relevant against the delusions of the new mania; but we still think, as heretofore, that his solution of the problem is unsatisfactory. The reader will find, in the last North American Quarterly Review, an elaborate article, in which the theory we have We had hoped advocated is fully endorsed. that the extravagant popular abuses of this The good pastor Oberlin has been re-sent out, in a new dress, by Carter & Brothers, New-York, under the title of Memoirs of him, compiled from authentic sources, chiefly French and German, with a dedication and translations by Rev. L. Halsey. Oberlin has lived on the earth more effectually since his death than before. His Memoirs cannot be read without making | New-York. Literary Record. In all the extra-Parisian libraries of France James Montgomery, the poet, left an estate A new edition of Barrow's works is preparing for publication, revised and enlarged by Rev. A. Napier. Borrow, the Gipsy-lover, is about to publish a continuation of Lavengro. Lepsius has just completed an alphabet containing the sounds and letters of all the languages in the world. The London Athenæum announces the death of the venerable Rev. Julius Hare, Archdeacon of Lewis, at the age of fifty-nine. He was the He also wrote a joint translator, with Bishop Thirlwall, of Niebuhr's "History of Rome." "Life of John Sterling," which brought down upon him the anger of Mr. Carlyle. His other productions were chiefly ecclesiastical. The London Gazette accuses the Victoria Regia of Mr. John Fisk Allen as a plagiarism from Sir William Hooker's book on the subject. The Gazette says: "With plagiarism we can hold no terms; and when we find a work, as in the case before us, presented in America as an original scientific memoir, when it is in reality nothing but a mangled reproduction of one published three years before in England, it is only natural that we should feel, if not indignant, a little riled.' In 1851, when ་ the great Victoria water lily of the Central American rivers had been introduced into this country, and cultivated with success at Chatsworth, at Syon, and at Kew, Sir William Hooker, the director of the royal gardens, resolved to publish a memoir of its history, with illustrations of the plant in various stages of flowering, and with dissections, all of the natural size. It required a fasciculus of elephant folio dimensions, and no expense was spared to make the work worthy of its subject. It was not expected to be remunerative either to author, artist, or publisher; but all worked for it con amore-and the memoir was in every respect one of original research. A work of similar colossal dimensions, type, and style of illustration, has just been published in Boston, United States, dedicated with great pomp to the president of the Horticultural Society of that city, by a Mr. John Fisk Allen; and the following, from the opening page, is an example of the use made of Sir William Hooker's text." It then proceeds to quote examples. Dr. Phillimore, recently deceased, was a ripe scholar, being Professor of Civil Law in the University of Oxford. He also held various other high offices. His last work, on the assumption of the title of Archbishop of Westminster by Cardinal Wiseman, attracted much attention, and was considered the ablest exposition of canon law on that subject. A Parisian correspondent of the New-York Post says: "There are lots of Americans here this winter, although report says fewer than usual. Among them are Donald Mitchell, (Ik Marvel,) who is working away at his History of Venice, and intends to return home in the spring. I saw Dumas the other day. He is living at No. 77 Rue d'Amsterdam, on the very confines of civilization. He is working, as usual, with that energy which induced one of his cotemporaries to call him one of the forces of nature.' He complains that nobody reads books now, and that he only gets six or seven hundred francs for what. used to bring him three or four times as much. Thackeray has been here, looking ill and dispirited. He will return to America, I fancy, before very long." Punch, after several condemnations from the Prussian courts of law, has been prohibited throughout the whole kingdom of Prussia, by an order from the Minister of the Interior, Count Westphalen. It turns out that a book published in this country, called Tit for Tat, in which some virulent abuse is lavished upon England, is the work of an Englishman. M. de Maubreuil, who has long since changed his name, is, says the Paris correspondent of the Illustrated News, about to come to the United States for the purpose of bringing out the work in this country. Lord Brougham is about to print in the edition of his works, now in course of publication, the whole of the correspondence of George III. with his minister, (Lord North,) on the subject of the American war. The original letters were lent by Lord Glenbervie to George IV., and never returned. The belief is, that "the first gentleman in Europe destroyed them. Lord Brougham will print them from copies made from the originals by Sir James Mackintosh. The last catalogue of Fairfield Seminary, N. Y., shows a total of students amounting to more than four hundred. The faculty-presided over by Rev. Mr. Van Petten-is unusually numerous and efficient, and the location and terms of the school unusually favorable. Cardinal Mezzofanti, the son of a Bolognese carpenter, born in 1774, and who died a cardinal at Rome in 1849, spoke fluently seventyeight languages. He possessed the faculty of thinking directly in those languages which he learned. When a schoolboy he used to repeat, after a single reading, a folio page of Chrysostom, which he had never before seen. Autograph collectors are on the increase. Rev. Dr. Sprague, of Albany, has the best collection in this country. Rev. Dr. Smyth, of Charleston, S. C., E. H. Leffingwell, of New-Haven, Lewis J. Cist, of Cincinnati, Mrs. Z. Allen, of Providence, B. Perley Poore, Mellen Chamberlain, of Chelsea, and Charles H. Moore, of NewYork, have also large and valuable collections. Thackeray proposes a second visit to this country within the twelvemonth. The oldest living English poet is Rogers, now in his ninetieth year. Hallam, now seventyfour, is their oldest historian. William Croker, now in his seventy-fifth year, is their oldest critic. Lady Morgan, age unmentionable, is their oldest novelist. Westmacott, the sculptor, is their oldest artist. At a late sale of manuscripts, autographs, and son's, London, many interesting articles were literary curiosities, at Messrs. Sotheby and Wilkinpresented. A letter of Robert Burns, with the original of the "Cotter's Saturday Night," was sold for more than $100; another letter of Burns to Dr. Moore, containing his own life, $65; the autobiography of Robert Burns, in "Small on Ploughs," $20; Thomas Moore's "Last Rose of Summer" brought $10; Field A work of great and singular interest, relat-ing's assignment of copyright of " Tom Jones," ing to the events of the last half century, is $40; the manuscript of Sir Walter Scott's Kenilworth" sold for $205. about to appear from the American press, its contents rendering its publication in France, or even in any of the adjacent nations, impossible. This is the Memoirs of M. de Maubreuil, who played so strange a part at the fall of the Emperor Napoleon, and who publicly struck M. de Talleyrand for having disowned him. These volumes are, it is said, to contain an undisguised statement of all the events of the time-events in most of which the author took a part, and all of which he witnessed. Norton's Gazette reports the death of Dr. Eckermann, the well-known friend and amanuensis of Goethe. The attachment to his great master; the deep and quick intelligence to which we owe his celebrated "Conversations with Goethe;" the active part he took in the editorship of Goethe's works; the integrity of his character; and the honesty of his literary endeavors, are certain to secure him an honorable memory. Eckermann was born in 1792, at |