would teach us to be more anxious to extract the one, than to remove the other.

“A just sense of our own imperfections, would have the desirable effect of increasing our good opinion of, and affec tion for others; and from these benevolent feelings spring our sweetest mental happiness.

“An humble and Christian temper will defend us from those poisoners of peace and comfort,-envy and competition: the first will teach us, that others are more deserving than ourselves, and the latter will enable us to rejoice in their prosperity.

"By humility, we shall be spared those turbulent feelings of ambition, and those corroding cares of anxiety, which so embitter, and distract our existence; and by humility we shall be saved from those contests about the trifling gratifications of the world, which sow discord in society.

"Humility must be the leading virtue of a Christian character; it was constantly exemplified in our Saviour's conduct, and the frequent subject of His exhortations: He promises rest and com fort to the meek and lowly, and pronounces a distinct blessing on the humble state of mind.

“A rigid examination of our actions, and their motives and springs; and, above all things, an attentive observance of the movements and thoughts of the heart, are the best incentives to humility: but here, self-love and partiality produce self-deceit; we are very apt to examine ourselves by a comparison with others, instead of searching the Scriptures, and comparing our Conduct with their precepts. We may think ourselves superior to the generality of our acquaintance, and yet be far from the way of Salvation and such a comparison may serve to excite our pride, instead of increasing our humility.

"Let us examine ourselves by the strict letter of the Christian law; and the best of us will find, that all men sin, and fall woefully short of the duties they are called on to perform.' Every one will find that he has some particular besetting sin, the enemy of his Salvation, which he must daily and hourly fight against; he will perceive, that every thing he does, is imperfect; and that the Christian life is a constant warfare and struggle with bad passions, and corrupt inclinations. We are told we must strive to enter into the kingdom of Heaven: for merely seeking it, will not attain it;t and that we must watch and pray continually. ‡

"I am well aware of one popular expression that has lately been opposed to the labours of zealous Christians, for the good of society, that all this is too strict; it cannot be attained.'-No

Matt. xi. 29.

Luke xiii. 24.

Matt. xxiv, 41.-See Bishop Huntingford's admirable Discourse en this text, Vol. I,

human

human being, I should imagine, would presume to say that the Bible is too strict, or that the precepts, contained in it, are too difficult to follow: I therefore entreat my readers, to refer to the texts of Scripture I have marked in the notes, and judge themselves, whether I have strained a single precept above its pitch.

"Then, it is urged again, we cannot attain all this; we must be short of perfection.'The knowledge of this unhappy truth, is only applied by pious Christians in one way,-to increase their humility and self-abasement; and their faith in, and gratitude for, the Great Propitation for the sins of the world.

"For such sinners, Christ died; not for the careless and worldly-minded, who, admitting the necessity of imperfection, make no stand against it.

"We are told to be perfect, even as our Father which is in Heaven, is perfect;' life is to be a constant labour to attain it; and if we use our unceasing and earnest endeavours, the merits and mediation of our Saviour will atone for the rest; the best of us, after having been sober and vigilant,' to the best of our power, mustcast all our cares and hopes on Him.'+

The fentiments contained in this pamphlet are truly evangelical, and untinged with any of the gloom of afcetic myfticifm.

AVING confidered at length the hiftory of the founder of Quakerifm, we now follow Mr. Clarkson into the view which he gives of the internal economy, and the doctrines of this remarkable feet. The remainder of the first volume is occupied with an account of the "moral edu"cation, difcipline, and peculiar customs of the Quakers,'

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The principal diftinction in the Quaker fyftem of education, confifts in prohibitions, and here our readers perhaps, will be as much furprised as ourselves, to fee claffed under this head "games of chance, the drama, and field diver"fions." That the Quakers forbid thefe things we admit, nor do we blame them for fo doing; but certainly these fubjects ought not to have been placed under the head of "moral education"; because hereby an infinuation is

conveyed

conveyed against the fyftems of other profeffors of chriflia nity, as if they encouraged thofe amusements, and in fact, made them a part of the inftruction of youth: an infinuation which has not the flighteft foundation in truth.

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Much declamation is wafted against "dancing and the fports of the field" but all the reafoning is drawn from the abuse of those diverfions, and without confidering any thing in their favour, Mr. Clarkfon enters at length into a defcription of the frivolities of the ball-room, and the brutali ties of a fox-chace.

On the fubject of mufic we fhall be more particular. Al-` lowing that "this delightful fcience has a tendency to calm "and tranquillize the paffions, and that the ideas which it "excites are of the pleafant, benevolent, and focial kind, "leading occafionally to joy, to grief, to tendernefs, to fym pathy, and never to malevolence, ingratitude, anger, cruelty, or revenge;"-After making this allowance, Mr. Clark fon proceeds to reprobate the ufe of mufic in the fol lowing wife manner :

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"But notwithstanding that music may thus be made the means both of innocent and pleasurable feeling, yet it has been the misfortune of man, as in other cases, to abuse it, and never probably more than in the present age. For the use of it, as it is at present taught, is almost inseparable from its abuse. Music has been so generally cultivated, and to such perfection, that it now ceases to delight the ear, unless it comes from the fingers of the proficient. But great proficiency cannot be obtained in this science, without great sacrifices of time. If young fem les are to be brought up to it, rather as to a profession than introduced to it as a source of occasional innocent recreation; or if their education is thought most perfect where their musical attainments are the highest, not only hours, but even years must be devoted to the pursuit. Such a devotion to this one object must, it is obvious, leave less time than is proper for others that are more important. The knowledge of domestic occupations, and the various sorts of knowledge acquired by reading, must be abridged, in proportion as this science is cultivated to professional precision. And hence, indepen dently of any arguments which the Quakers may advance against it, it must be acknowledged by the sober world, to be chargeable with a criminal waste of time."

Such is Mr. Clarkson's objection to the ftudy of mufic, fuperadded to the reafons urged against it by the Quakers themfelves. But what can poffibly be more fallacious and trifling? All that he has here advanced might be faid, with equal propriety, against the learning of algebra; and with regard to the education of females, against the inftru&ting

them in the elements of geography and astronomy; left they fhould thereby form an inordinate attachment to thefe branches of fcience, and be ambitious of becoming profound mathematicians. It is very ftrange that a man of fenfe fhould argue in a way which would apply as much against the cultivation of all the other liberal arts, and even the ftudy of fome of the dead languages as against mufic. But Mr. Clarkson had a party to plead for, and it was neceffary it feems, that even Gothic barbarism itself should be defended, if it acted in any way as a buttress to support the rotten fabric for which he is the advocate.

In opening the Quaker's own objections to music, both inftrumental and vocal, it is afferted, "that they aim at "chriftian perfection; and that it is their wish to educate "their children not as moralifts, or as philofophers, but as

chriftians." According to this fentiment, vocal and inftrumental mufic must be confidered as being in fome meafure contrary to the precepts and example of Chrift; for in aiming towards chriftian perfection, the eye must be directed fteadily to the doctrine and conduct of the founder of this religion. But where in the New Teftament do we meet with any thing against vocal or inftrumental mufic? So far to the contrary, our Lord himself, on the night that he was be trayed, and immediately after the inftitution of the facrament of the fupper, joined with his difciples in " finging a hymn." The" pfalms, hymns, and fpiritual fongs" recommended by St. Paul to the Ephefians, will hardly be denominated inward feelings, and certain rapturous flights, or elevations of the mind, even by those who refolve all religion into internal fenfations and external formalities. But what shall we fay of the "fongs and harps" with which the redeemed in hea ven are reprefented as celebrating the praises of their God and Saviour? If mufic is fo honoured as to be a celestial employment, for faints and angels above, why should it be deemed unfit for mortals here below ?*

k

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What an amiable contrast does the temper of the pious Her bert exhibit, to the sour, unsocial, and cheerless piety of the Qua kers. "His chiefest recreation, says Walton, was musick, in which "heavenly art he was a most excellent master, and did himself compose many divine hymns and anthems, which he set and sung to his lute or viol; and though he was a lover of retired. "ness, yet his love to musick was such, that he went usually twice every week, on certain appointed days, to the cathe"dral church in Salisbury, and at his return would say, that "his time spent in prayer, and cathedral musick, elevated his 444 soul

But it is argued that mufic may be and is proflituted to unworthy and immoral purposes; and fo is every thing and every faculty elfe. The study of the fciences and the learned languages, has been frittered away by some trifling pedants, into criticifms of the most trifling nature; and i fome inftances this kind of learning has been made the vehicle for conveying the most immoral and indecent difqui fitions to the public eye. What then; are we to discard the ftudy of the learned languages, left the minds of our youth fhould be vitiated by the pruriencies of fome of the Greek and Latin poets? If fo, we ought to go further, and profcribe the art of reading altogether, for we have in our own tongue, books of a worfe quality, and a more pernicious tendency than can be found among all the remains of antiquity.

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To Mr. Clarkson's view of the flage, as it now is, we cannot object; although we are far from agreeing with him and his friends, in their general condemnation of dramatic enter. tainments. That fuch exhibitions have a direct tendency injure the moral feelings of the fpectators" is a very strange affertion; and at complete variance with the fenti ments of the foundeft moral writers of every age. A perfon must be dead to all "moral feeling" if he could behold the agonies of a Lear, without being deeply affected by the pathetic scene; and he must be either ftupidly abftracted, or incorrigibly depraved, if he did not at that time feel the full force of all the tender ties of human nature. Mr. Clarkfon very gravely observes, that "were a man asked, on entering "the door of the theatre, if he went there to learn the moral "duties, he would laugh at the abfurdity of the queftion undoubtedly he would, and fo would a Quaker, if you were to ask him the like question when he is entering the ftockexchange, or about to take a pleasant ride in his chaife in the evening. The fillinefs of fuch a queftion is character. iftic of the caufe which is thus pleaded for, and also of the mind of the advocate.

When a perfon enters a theatre to fee an innocent performance, it is with the fame feeling, as when he goes to an exhibition to see a fine painting; and it would be just as

"soul, and was his heaven upon earth.' But before his return thence to Bemerton, he would usually sing and play his part, at an appointed private musick meeting: and to justify this prac ❝tice, he would often say, ' religion does not banish mirth, but only moderates and sets rules to it."