on the Sacrament and Mystery of the Mass;" "Exposition of the Ave Maria," &c., and various others of lesser note. His great work, entitled "The Triumph of the Cross," made its appearance at this time, from which we extract the following, in order to show that, while he taught the truths on such fundamental doctrines as the Trinity, the Fall of Man, the Incarnation of Christ, he still clung to union with Rome-because her teaching was the same as that of the first century, when St. Paul affirmed in her praise: "Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world." (Rom. i. 8.) Hence Savonarola concludes with defining and defending the Church Militant on this wise:

"It is one and has a single head, like unto the Church triumphant, of which it ought to offer the image, and which is governed in heaven by Jesus Christ. St. John has said there shall be one sheepfold and one Shepherd; therefore, although Christ in heaven be the true and sole Head of the Church, He has, however, left St. Peter to represent Him on earth, saying, Thou art Pietro, and upon this pietra (rock) shall I build my Church, and I shall give thee the keys of heaven,' &c. Now, this is not to be understood as addressed to Peter only, for God promised that the Church should endure unto the end of the world; therefore, it is to be interpreted as to Peter and his successors. Hence it is manifest, that all the faithful ought to rally round the Holy Father, as supreme head of the Roman Church, mistress of all other Churches; that whosoever departs from the doctrine of the Church of Rome departs from Christ." (Vol. ii. p. 228.)

The Lent Sermons of 1498 were the last which Savonarola preached on earth. He had continued labouring in Florence for eight years, without any other interruption than a short stay at Bologna, and some excursions of a few days to Pisa and other places, where he went to preach. He was every day in the pulpit during Advent and Lent, and in the intervals he preached on festival days, so that three thick volumes of sermons appeared every year. He had thus spent his life and wasted his bodily strength for the moral, political, material, and eternal benefit of that same Florentine people, who had now handed him over to the "tender mercies" of the cruel and infamous Borgia.

A most extraordinary event unexpectedly occurred about this time. The Dominican party had published certain propositions: That the Church of God needs a reformation; that it will be reformed; that the Papal excommunication of Savonarola is null, and that those who pay no regard to it do not sin. A Franciscan friar of Puglia, when preaching in the Church of Santa Croce, made a violent attack upon Savonarola in consequence of these propositions, terming him "heretic," "schismatic;" "pretended prophet;" and not content with that,

he challenged him to the ordeal of fire. Similar challenges had been made on other occasions, to which Savonarola had paid no more attention than they deserved. But, as it happened, Frà Domenico, one of his most ardent followers, being present on the occasion, took up the challenge; and notwithstanding the reproof which his over-excessive zeal drew forth from Savonarola, it eventuated in a contest which is perhaps unparalleled in the history of the world. Enthusiasts appeared on both sides; many priests amongst the Dominicans and Franciscans, and even women and children, more especially on the side of Savonarola, earnestly requested to be allowed to take part in the ordeal of fire. The magistrates, however, decided that two monks only, Frà Domenico and Francis de Puglia, should be permitted to devote themselves for their respective orders, and directed the pile to be prepared.

On the 7th of April, 1498, a scaffold was erected in the public square of Florence; two piles of large pieces of wood, mixed with faggots and broom, which would quickly take fire, extended each eighty feet long. Every window was full, every roof covered with spectators; almost the whole population of the republic was collected around the place. The Dominicans arrived at their station chanting hymns. Some persons suspected that one or other of the friars, or perhaps both, had concealed charms under their gowns, and they were therefore ordered to pull off their clothes and take others. Francis de Puglia agreed to this, and even offered to enter the fire undressed. Frà Domenico would not enter the fire without a crucifix, which was granted him; his opponent observing, that the crucifix being of wood would necessarily be burnt with him. The latter then demanded that he might be allowed to enter the fire with the consecrated host. Here a violent dispute arose, the Franciscans declaring that he wished to burn it. Domenico then began to lose all patience and would not yield; maintaining, together with Savonarola, that at all events the accidental accompaniments would alone be burned, that the substance of the Sacrament would be untouched-and in support of this they quoted many doctors. Several hours were thus passed in disputing. The multitude began to grow impatient; a deluge of rain fell upon the city; the piles were so wet that they could no longer be lighted; and the crowd separated with a feeling of disappointment that they had lost the miracle they so impatiently looked for. The Franciscans, however, boasted of having obtained the victory, and in this they were upheld by the Signory at Florence and the Pope at Rome. The former awarded them an annual pension of sixty lire for twenty years, as a reward for the services they had rendered." The latter issued two briefs, one to the Minorite friars, praising "the holy zeal and the evangelical charity

shown in a work which the holy Father will keep in eternal remembrance;" the other to Francis de Puglia, whom the Pope most warmly congratulated, recommending him, in his own name and in that of the Cardinals, "to persevere in so good and pious a work until the whole evil should be extirpated.”

The enemies of Savonarola took courage. His convent was besieged by the Arrabiati, and with his friends Frà Domenico and Frà Salvestro, he was arrested and sent to prison. A criminal prosecution was commenced against them; Borgia despatched judges from Rome, with orders to condemn the accused to death. We cannot afford space to dwell on the mock trial that ensued; the tortures inflicted upon Savonarola, "fourteen times in one day," according to the testimony of an eyewitness; the falsification of the answers of the accused by the notary Ceccone; and all the other steps of this unjust process. Savonarola, who from early youth was of a delicate and sensitive frame, was too weak to support the torture. His mind soon began to wander; his answers were incoherent; and at last, as if despairing of himself, he cried out, in a voice enough to melt a heart of stone, but not those of the cruel judges,"O Lord, take, O take my life!" The three friends sealed their testimony with their blood, after forty days of imprisonment and indescribable tortures, on the 23rd of May 1498, in the same square where, a few weeks before, a pile had been raised to prepare them a triumph.

Villari relates a remarkable incident connected with the martyrdom of Savonarola, which deserves to be mentioned :

"The executioner had scarcely come down from the ladder than the pile was set on fire; a man who had been standing from an early hour with a lighted torch, and had set the wood on fire, called out, 'At length I am able to burn him who would have burned me.' A blast of wind diverted the flames for some time from the three bodies, upon which many fell back in terror, exclaiming, 'A miracle, a miracle!' But the wind soon ceased, the bodies of the three friars were enveloped in fire, and the people again closed round them. The flames had caught the cords by which the arms of Savonarola were pinioned, and the heat caused the hand to move; so that, in the eyes of the faithful, he seemed to raise his right hand in the midst of the mass of flame to bless the people who were burning him.” (Vol. ii. pp. 362, 363.)

Such was the tragical end of this remarkable man, at the comparatively early age of forty-five. The impartial Roman Catholic historian, Natalis Alexander, has briefly, but emphatically, summed up the whole case in the following words: "Savonarola was persecuted by Alexander VI., and condemned by an unjust anathema." No one who considers the awfully corrupt state of the Church at the time, can question the necessity of the reform which Savonarola advocated with such

zeal. Had his efforts been crowned with success, had the Roman hierarchy been gifted with ordinary prudence, the Reformation might have been diverted, or at least delayed. But they were blind to the rising storm. The men who professed infallibility could not, or would not, see that the whole Papal system was held in detestation by all who had any regard for religion. The cup of Rome's abuses was full. The profligate sale of indulgences by Leo X. was the last drop which made it overflow.

We cannot conclude without quoting the testimony of an eloquent voice from the same convent in Florence which was once governed by Savonarola; that of Father Vincent Marchese, of the Order of Dominicans, who joined to a mind imbued with sentiments of truth and liberty an impassioned admiration for the martyred Savonarola :-"But though his enemies destroyed his body, they could not destroy his memory, which has been honourably recorded by every writer who does not shrink from stating truth. For more than two centuries, on the anniversary of his death, the ground that drank his blood was covered with garlands; and this fact attests the veneration in which Savonarola was held, and proved that his precepts did not perish from the memory of the Florentines."

ON THE USEFULNESS AT THE PRESENT DAY OF CERTAIN PARTS OF THE ANCIENT SCRIPTURES.

We have heard with surprise educated men, and some, too, well read in theological subjects, asking "What is the use of particular parts of the Bible;" and regarding the existence of such parts as a difficulty in the way of recognizing the Divine origin of Scripture.

This objection was made with especial reference to the latter part of the Book of Exodus, the Book of Leviticus, and the historical books of the Old Testament. It seems singular that it should extend so far. These historical books are among the most interesting writings, as well as the most instructive. They are the personal narratives which come home to our hearts, setting clearly before us the wants and feelings, fears and hopes, disappointments and success of men like ourselves, but all viewed in connection with God's approval or condemnation, His providence and His blessing. The Bible is written for all mankind; and marvellous it is how a peasant in England, at the distance of 4000 years, is immersed in interest in the story of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, is warned by their errors, and comforted by the great promise made to them, and sus

tained by God's providence, exhibited in their trials as well as in their prosperity. Such multitudes are thus daily fed with the bread of life, that we can only wonder that the historical books are not the delight of all; or at any rate, that their value is ever doubted.

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As to other specified passages, the objection takes this turn: If they be of value in themselves, yet is their value so great as to leave no room for the observation that they occupy too large a portion of the small volume which contains the whole revelation vouchsafed by God to man? This is the in which it is fair to state the difficulty. But surely it ought to be remembered, that the Bible was never intended for the present generation alone, nor even for the men of the last 1800 years; but also for the whole Jewish nation, as far as from time to time it was given. But as to ourselves, even in the oldest institutions of 4000 years ago, (and who can forget the promise to Abraham, that in him and his seed all nations should be blessed?) we have a prosent interest; and they are now valuable to us, as enabling us the better to enter into and appreciate the condition of a religion which is even now exhibited by a people still existing among us, and which has peculiarly led to our own.

To take, then, the Book of Leviticus, and the twelve out of the fifteen last chapters of Exodus (omitting chapters xxxii., xxxiii., and xxxiv.,) which, indeed, as already noticed, were referred to as being examples of this difficulty-they may fairly be considered as passages not very promising for an answer such as is required of us, as to their usefulness to the present readers of the Bible. The true test of the propriety of their presence is, as we think, the glory of God, in the worship and institutions of the Jews; but being invited to deal with them on the ground of their usefulness to Man at the present time, we will grapple with this subject, hoping thus to show how the glory of God will be exhibited by them all.

On turning to these twelve chapters at the end of Exodus, we find they contain elaborate directions concerning the various matters enunciated ch. xxxv. 11 to 19; of which the most important are the tabernacle, the ark with the mercy-seat and veil, the table, the shew-bread, the candlestick for the light (from heaven), the incense altar, the altar for burntoffering, the holy garments for Aaron and his sons, with many smaller items connected with these, which are the chief. Now, we suppose it will be admitted to be a matter of no small moment, that the Jewish services should, after the return from the seventy years' captivity, be restored and continued till the time of our Saviour. Omitting the ark, which we will consider presently, it appears that none of the holy things mentioned above, except perhaps the golden candlestick, returned from