14 SONNET-TO SHAKSPEARE. competition, was the strongest proof of talent he could give. At the age of twenty-three years, he had vanquished an opposing majority in the House of Commons, led by Fox, and Sheridan, and Burke-had won the nation to his side-and was wielding the destinies of the British empire. "See! with united wonder, cried The experienced and the sage, With all the skill of age! The oratory of Fox and Pitt was very unlike that of the great Triumvir already described. Their scene of glory was the arena of debate. Theirs was the skill and power acquired by the breaking of lances, by the parrying and giving of blows, in many a "passage of arms." More dexterous or powerful combatants never engaged in political warfare; a warfare maintained by them with scarce an intermission for more than twenty years. The question of their comparative great ness it would be difficult to settle, but we can easily perceive that they were very unlike. Fox was persuasive, impetuous, powerful. To strong argument and vehement appeal, he could add the lighter, but often more effective weapons of ridicule and wit. Before his rushing charge nothing, for the moment, could stand. But he was often incautious, and generally lacked that higher power, which is necessary to turn even victory to account. His antagonist had far more dignity, vigilance, and prudence. He could never be thrown from his guard. He was lofty and fluent, but not impassioned; sarcastic, but not witty. The conflict of these rival statesmen was often that of Roderick Dhu and Snowdown's knight. The giant strength and fiery valor of the highland chief are wasted on the air. But "Fitz James' blade is sword and shield." Even the personal qualities of the two men influenced, probably, in some degree the judgments which were formed of their eloquence. Who can doubt that Mr. Fox would have been even more admired, and trusted, and beloved, if to his winning manners, and brilliant powers, he had added the virtuous circumspection of his illustrious rival? Associated with Burke and Fox in their long career of opposition, was the renowned, unhappy Sheridan. If not, as he has been called, "the worthy rival," he might doubtless in many respects have been the rival "Of the wondrous three, Whose words were sparks of immortality." Sheridan had not the classical attainments, nor the political and general information of his great contemporaries. He could not generalize with Burke, nor debate with Pitt and Fox. But his flow of wit was inexhaustible. On great occasions, and with sufficient preparation, he could put forth the highest powers of oratory. A richer tribute was perhaps never paid to eloquence, than was universally accorded to him after his great speech on the Begum charge in the trial of Hastings: "In whose acclaim the loftiest voices vied, The praised, the proud, who made his praise their pride." Ah! what availed those coruscations of wit and eloquence, but to cast a melancholy splendor around his tarnished fame! Ah! why did he rise to such heights of renown, only to fall with wider ruin! More than a quarter of a century has elapsed since the tongues of Burke, and Fox, and Pitt became silent in death. But on none of their successors does the mantle of their high commission seem to have fallen. England has had, indeed, and still has, able statesmen, respectable orators. Grattan was ardent and patriotic; Wilberforce was as pleasing as he was good; Canning was classical, witty, and felicitous; Mackintosh was sage and dignified, and Brougham is learned, logical, and sarcastic. But though we might go on still farther in our enumeration, we must still assert in regard to them all, as was said of King David's thirty captains-none of them "attain unto the first three." THE SCOTCH COVENANT. BY IMOGEN MERCEIN. "The real and exclusive Kingship of Jesus Christ, by virtue of which the Church is independent of any earthly king or magistrate, is the theorem, the Palladium, as it were, of the Church of Scotland."-D'AUBIGNE. To every attentive reader of the history of the Church of Christ, two facts are most remarkably prominent. The one is, that at some period of her existence, each of her cardinal truths has seemed to be in danger of utter extinction, either by outward oppression or inward corruption; the other, that just at the juncture when, to human eye, the truth was buried beneath a load of ceremonies so deep that life seemed certainly extinct, the God of Zion interposed, and proved that though at times he saw fit to delay that aid which alone could foil the world and the devil, yet He "neither slumbered nor slept;" but in due time, by the right arm of his power, raised up individuals, or churches, or nations, to rescue and uphold his unchanging truth. The Church of Rome seems at one time to have corrupted every doctrine. Repentance, justification by faith, absolution from sin by God alone, were almost banished from the church. The Pope was elected to Christ's prophetic office, for he alone was recognized as the infallible teacher; and penance, mass, and good works shared the glory of his atoning sacrifice, and robbed his Priesthood of its highest crown. And during the period of its greatest sway, when kings and emperors bowed prostrate at her feet, the Pope was publicly acknowledged as "Head of the Church," -King of kings, and Lord of lords. In our republican country, where "freedom to worship God" is our inheritance and our birthright, and where the civil and religious powers are entirely distinct in their nature and their exercise, it is difficult for us to realize the situation of those pious hearts who, while rejoicing in the "liberty wherewith Christ makes his people free,” were outwardly bound by kingly power or priestly craft. Their struggles for freedom were in some instances glorious beyond expression, and picture forth a series of acts of moral grandeur to which naught on earth's records can compare. Amidst the nations of the earth, Scotland stands most conspicuous for such struggles. For three hundred years, with only intervals of rest, she has maintained a resolute and unceasing conflict to uphold the kingly office of Christ. This truth, of course, embraces others; but it is this, that "Christ is King over his church to the exclusion of every earthly ruler," which the Scottish Kirk, above all others, has rescued from corrup. tion-has maintained by the sacrifice of her noblest sons, her fairest daughters, and her quiet. To secure this, she has spurned wealth and worldly honor, and now stands a glorious spectacle for men to admire and imitate, for God to bless and prosper; and we believe with D'Aubigné, that "Scotland has a vocation from God, which vocation she is now fulfilling." We purpose to give a slight outline of some of these struggles, but inust, of course, be very brief; the detail would fill volumes. We shall commence with the arrival of John Knox in Edinburgh, in 1559. He had been long in Geneva, enjoying all the comforts of a calm Christian life, when he received letters informing him of the extremity to which his brethren in Scotland were reduced, and inviting him to return to his own country. He resolved to repair thither, and devote his life to the cause. At the time of his arrival at Edinburgh, a number of the evangelical ministers of Scotland had been summoned before the Justiciary Court, and in eight days they were to take their trial for having taught heresy to, and excited tumults among the people. Their enemies, preparing a treacherous scheme to get rid of them by death, had met for several days in the monastery of Grey Friars, at Edinburgh, when, on the morning of the third of May, while the priests were maturing their plots, a monk, who had probably been begging about the town, rushed into the monastery, and run breathless and pale with terror, into the room where the clergy were assembled, exclaimed, "John Knox! John Knox is come! He is here! He slept last night in Edinburgh!" If a thunder-bolt had fallen in the midst, the priests could not have felt more alarm 16 THE SCOTCH COVENANT. These They rose hastily, left the hall and convent, and dispersed, some one way and some another, in great confusion and dismay. Such was the effect produced in Scotland by the arrival of the refugee from Geneva. He lost no time, and his preaching quickly excited every mind. His friends, for his sake, feared the effects of his courage, but he remained unmoved. He determined to remain in St. Andrews, the See of the Primate, for well he knew it was at the centre of an army that the strongest blows should be dealt. On the 16th of June, he ascended the pulpit and preached before a numerous auditory, among whom were many of the clergy and armed retainers of the Bishop, who had been prepared to take the Reformer's life. Previous to the powerful preaching of Knox, the Bishop of St. Andrews fled in alarm to Edinburgh, to the Queen Regent, to inform her of the triumph of the Reformation. That princess immediately sent an army against the "lords and the people of the congregation," who then determined upon resistance. courageous Scots, animated by the love of Christ, successively entered Perth, Sterling, and Edinburgh. The Romish worship was soon abolished throughout almost the whole of Scotland; and in June, 1560, Mary Stuart, now Queen of Scotland, and Elizabeth, Queen of England, stipulated an amnesty and an early convocation of Parliament. This Parliament, which met in August, accepted the confession of faith drawn up by Knox and his friends, and definitely abolished the Papal jurisdiction, without, however, bestowing upon the new church the yoke of the State." This liberty was soon invaded by Mary Stuart. She declared that she would remain steadfast to the Romish faith, and yet maintain within the Presbyterian church her claim of patronage; that is the privilege of appointing ministers to certain parishes, &c. The Council of Trent had lately passed a decree for the extirpation of the Protes tant faith; and the Guises of France, the uncles of Mary Stuart, had invited their niece to join in the league of Bayonne formed for that purpose. Mary hesitated not to do so. She appointed a meeting of Parliament, in which the Romish prelates were to resume their places, and ordered Popish altars to be set up in the Cathedral of Edinburgh. The restoration of Popery was about to be accomplished--it was arrested by the hand of God. Mary Stuart was dethroned, and the Earl of Murray succeeded as Regent. During his reign the Protestant church was recognized by the government, and to all appearance was fully established. James VI., the son of Mary, succeeded at the age of twelve; he was soon surrounded by parasites and flatterers, who spared no pains to bias and corrupt his mind. For a while he remained true to Protestantism, but soon his flatterers succeeded, and then those acts were passed, famous in the history of Scotland, and known by the name of "The Black Acts," which annihilated the church, and left her neither liberty nor independence. These acts decreed that the king and his council were judges competent in all matters; that "all judgment, spiritual or temporal, which had not been approved by the king and his Parliament, should be of no force; and that the bishops and ecclesiastical commissioners appointed by the king might rule in all that concerns the church." James believed in the divine right of kings to its fullest extent, and was despotic in the extreme. Opposition, therefore, on this point, touched him to the quick, and except at intervals, when selfish or political purposes led to apparent concessions to the Presbyterian church, his opposition was severe and unrelenting. Act after act was passed, prohibiting their assemblies, curtailing their privileges, banishing their most learned and devoted ministers, and substituting in their places corrupt and persecuting hirelings, until prelacy, in its worst form, was established throughout the realm. His reign abounds in incidents of moral courage within that persecuted church. The prisons in which they were confined rung with the sound of prayer and praise, and the brutal keepers stood astonished to see the captives exulting in their chains, and glorying in their anticipated martyrdom. Among the most eminent of these ministers was John Welsh, son-in-law to John Knox. His wife proved herself worthy of her father and husband. We relate a little incident as strangely characteristic of the woman and her times. Mrs. Welsh obtained an audience of the king, and entreated him to save her husband's life by granting him permission to return to his country. "Who was your father?" asked the king. "Mr. Knox," replied she. "John Knox and John Welsh!" exclaimed the king. "The devil never made such a match as that!" "It's right like, sir," she replied, "for we never asked his advice." The daughter of Knox again urging her request, that her dying husband might once more breathe his native air, the king told her he would grant it only on condition that she should persuade Welsh to submit to the bishops. "Please your Majesty," replied the heroic woman, taking up her apron by the corners, and holding it out as if to receive the head of her husband, "I would rather receive his head here." THE SCOTCH COVENANT. 17 church-yard, and spread out on a large tomb-stone, to receive on this expressive table the signature of the Church. Scotland had never beheld a day like that. The heads of the people then said, as Joshua once said, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord;" and the people answered and said, "God forbid that we should forsake the Lord." They rushed to the tomb which covered one of Caledonia's sons, and on which was spread that charter by which the nation, in signing it, became witnesses against themselves, that they "chose the Lord to serve him." Some sobbed, some shouted, some after their names added "till death," and others, opening a vein, wrote their names with their blood. There was no confusion, no tumult. After these hours of strong emotions, this immense multitude dispersed quietly, and each man returned to his own home in peace. On the fol In 1625 James died, and was succeeded by Charles the First, who inherited his father's despotic temper, with far more firmness of character to execute what he designed. The banishment of the pious clergy, and the impious conduct of their successors, had caused a dearth of pure preaching throughout the land, the blighting influence of which was soon felt and seen. Profanation of the Lord's day, vice and profligacy of every kind, increased rapidly, and the outward aspect of the Scottish community in the cities and villages became fearfully changed. But in the mountain fastnesses and quiet valleys, peopled by men of stern integrity, and deep, intelligent piety, the word of the kingdom remained uncorrupted; and when Charles, after a series of oppressive acts, ordered the introduction of the Popish missal into all the churches, a cry deep and loud thrilled Scotland from the extremities to the centre, and led to the perform-lowing day the parchment, to which it became ance of an act which, for solemnity, pathos, and moral effect, stands unsurpassed in the history of the church-it was the signing of the Covenant. A solemn fast was proclaimed, to confess the sins of the church; and then gathering into one document the old Covenant of 1581, which James himself, the father of the reigning monarch, had signed, and all the acts condemnatory of Popery, with an addition applying them to present circumstances, the Scotch laid hold of these legitimate charters of their nation, and presented them before Heaven. On the 28th of February, 1638, a great crowd filled the church of Greyfriars in Edinburgh, and in the burial ground 60,000 Presbyterians had assembled. Henderson, the minister, fervently invoked the Divine blessing on this vast meeting, and the Earl of Loudon stated the motives which had brought them together. Johnstone unrolled the parchment on which these Scottish charters were inscribed, and read them in a clear, calm voice. When he had finished there was a deep and solemn silence, a few explanations were demanded and given; then again all was silent as the grave. But the silence was soon broken. An aged man of noble air was seen advancing; it was the Earl of Sutherland, one of the most considerable of the Scottish barons, whose possessions included all the northern part of the British Isles. He came forward slowly, and deep emotion was visible in his features. He took up the pen with a trembling hand, and signed the document. A general movement now took place. All the Presbyterians within the church pressed forward to the Covenant and signed their names. But this was not enough: a whole nation was waiting; the immense parchment was carried into the necessary to add many more sheets, was carried to different parts of the town, that the inhabitants of the respective districts might affix their signatures. Crowds accompanied it from place to place, shedding tears, and imploring the Divine blessing on these acts. At the same time a remarkable improvement became visible in the life and manners of those who bad signed. With the exception of one instance of trifling importance, no injury was anywhere done either to the prelates or their partisans. The Covenant then began to make the circuit of Scotland. John Livingston was at Lanark, his father's parish, when it was read and sworn to by the minister, elders, and people. Livingston, yet a young minister, having been called upon to preach in the church of Shotts, in the year 1630, on a communion day, had passed the whole night in prayer. In the morning, standing on a tomb-stone, he preached to a great multitude from "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you," &c. The pouring out of the Spirit of God was such, that 500 persons could date their conversion from that day. Soon after, on a similar occasion, a thousand persons were either converted or reclaimed. The Covenant now arrived at Lanark, and the servant of the Most High again witnessed those powerful emotions which the Spirit of God had formerly excited in the churchyards of Shotts and Holyrood. Thousands of reformed Christians were standing with their hands uplifted, and tears falling from their eyes, while with one consent they all "devoted themselves to the Lord." Such was the commencement of that important affair of the Covenant, which the Scottish Church was soon called to ratify with her blood. PERSONAL CHARACTER OF DR. CHALMERS.* THE fame of the late lamented Dr. Chalmers was as pure and beautiful, if not so immediately commanding, in this country as in his native Scotland. Well do we remember the profound sensa tion which was produced many years ago, in almost every circle of religious readers, by the republication of his celebrated Astronomical Discourses. Their appearance seemed almost to introduce a new epoch in theological literature. Within a limited sphere, it is true, but one of great influence and importance, the surprise, and curiosity, and enthusiasm which they called forth were scarcely surpassed by the rapidly successive productions of the gifted author of Waverley. No one could read these bold and glowing discourses without feeling that he was in the presence of a man of mark; the sparks that flew so thick on every side showed that the anvil was struck by a stalwart workman-"a workman that needed not to be ashamed." There was an air of selfpossession, of conscious mastery of the subject, of genial ease, which was too robust to be altogether graceful, and of intense enthusiasm for his theme, that betrayed a gigantic intellect and a sinewy arm which Providence had "clothed with nerves and fenced in with muscles," to do valiant service in the armies of the Lord of Hosts. The freshness and vigor of style, the breadth of scientific insight, the sublime conceptions of the universe, and the tone of lofty, masculine piety, which were so conspicuous in the Discourses, attracted the attention of men of taste, no less than of those who perused them for purposes of religious edification, and at once established the reputation of the author as the most prominent champion and representative of the intellectual aspects of Christianity. The character and genius of Chalmers, which burst so like a meteor on the world, proved to be no transient coruscation of the "evening time," but a calm, deep, perennial luminary, which, "shining brighter and brighter until the perfect day," was destined to shed a brilliant, healthful, and saving light, not only on his own nation and age, but on numberless unborn generations of the world. Who can estimate the extent and duration of his power? Who can fix a Memoirs of the Life and Writings of Thomas Chalmers, D.D., LL.D. By his Son-in-law, Rev. William Hanna, LL. D. In Three Volumes. Vol. I. New York: Harper & Brothers, limit to the influence of those burning and scorching words, which were poured forth, often with the force and impetuosity of red-hot lava, from the kindling depths of his volcanic nature? A truly spoken word is a thing of life. The hosts of error cannot crush it; no mortal sophistry can exhaust its vitality; it defies the "effacing fingers" of Time himself. But the purpose of the present article is not to discuss the intellectual position and achievements of this brave soldier of the cross. Following the steps of his genial and eloquent biographer, who is allied with the illustrious subject of his Memoir, both by the ties of affinity and the attractions of a kindred nature, we wish to lay before our readers a simple narrative of some portions of his life, which show the secret of his power, the original tendency of his natural endowments, and the singular and winning loveliness of his personal character. Dr. Chalmers was born on the 17th of March, 1780, at Anstruther, a small sea-port town on the southeast coast of Fife county, in Scotland. His father, John Chalmers, was descended from respectable and pious ancestors, many of whom had been eminent ministers in their day of the Scottish National Church. Thomas was his sixth child, and as one of a crowded household, was forced to put up with a scanty share of personal attention from either of his parents. When only two years old, he was entrusted to the care of a hireling nurse, who, proving faithless and malicious, left an impression of cruelty and injustice on his tender mind, which did not cease to haunt his memory through life. From the bondage of this inhuman tyranny he was glad to take refuge in the parish school of his native village. He was but three years of age when he sought admission to this, of his own accord, in order to escape the petty persecutions to which he was daily exposed. The school, at that time, was in charge of an old man who had seen his best days, but whose love of flogging had survived his loss of sight. After he had become totally blind, he would creep behind a row of his juvenile victims, ready to deal an effectual blow on the slightest symptom of an offence. The cunning urchins soon became too wise for their master, and learned to dodge his best-aimed blows, which thus fell on the uncomplaining desk. The few school-fellows who survive Dr, Chal |