supposition we are at liberty to make), it would only con'firm them in their neglect of religion !'

“If the gift of miracles, now granted as it was granted in the days of the Apostles, would only confirm the careless and the worldly in their neglect of religion, how can we acquit it of the same tendency, when those days were actually in progress? We mean not seriously to impute any such sentiments to Mr. Noel: but how much better, if, instead of first granting much that believers in the miraculous character of the Church will cordially hail, and then giving all the strength of his argument to their opponents, he had moved his syllogisms in a different line of march; employed logic, too often abused for the perversion of right, as a weapon for its defence; and bound demonstration to truth by the cast-iron chains of his many-linked arguments. But no. He has, (unwittingly, we doubt not,) produced a work which would go far-but for truth, the subverter of syllogisms-to prove that any kind of belief in the manifestation of miracles, in the present era of the Christian dispensation, is perfectly unwarrantable; and, having done this, he may appreciate the full value of the compliment, standing where it does, that he has published an excellent pamphlet *.'

A friend has favoured me with the loan of a work well known in Scotland, and entitled "Biographia Scotiana; or a brief Historical Account of the Lives, Characters, and memorable Transactions of the most eminent Scots Worthies, &c." Edinburgh. 1812. The writer, whose name is withheld, was a Mr. Howie; and the work has been considered of authority by all classes in Scotland. It contains many instances of miraculous power which deserve to be recorded and in fact every person who is at all acquainted with the history of religion in Scotland may well perceive, that Scotsmen, and professed members of the Kirk, who reject all miraculous manifestations in the Church of Christ, are, both theologically and nationally, a degenerate race, unworthy of their illustrious forefathers. Whether, of late, there have been among them, or have not been, some

spurious claims to miraculous power, is not now the question. Miraculous manifestations did certainly enter into the occasional experience of God's servants, in the best days of Scottish religion. And even false pretensions to miracles, supposing any such to have recently occurred, would not have pushed the sons of the Kirk from this confession, had they been sound in their fathers' faith.

We have already related the apprehension of WISHART, according to his own prophecy, by the machinations of his enemy the Cardinal (David Beaton). This same persecutor was present at the Martyr's death, reposing luxuriously, with other prelates, upon rich cushions laid for their accommodation in the windows of a tower, from which the execution might be seen. The following is from the ac

count of it.

Being raised up from his knees, he was bound to the stake, crying with a loud voice, O Saviour of the world, have mercy upon me! Father of heaven, I commend my spirit into thy holy hands!' Whereupon the executioner kindled the fire, and the powder that was fastened to his body blew up. The captain of the castle, perceiving that he was still alive, drew near, and bid him be of good courage: whereupon Mr. Wishart said, 'This flame hath scorched my body, yet it hath not daunted my spirit; but he who, from yonder place, beholdeth us with such pride, shall within a few days lie in the same, as ignominiously as he is now seen proudly to rest himself *.'

Not three months after, the castle was surprised, and the Cardinal put to death +. His body was afterwards suspended from the window whence he had witnessed the death of Wishart, whose prediction was thus fulfilled ‡.

Mr. JOHN SCRIMGEOUR was an eminent minister at Kinghorn in Fife, singularly distinguished by his success in prayer.

"When he was minister at Kinghorn, there was a certain godly woman under his charge, who fell sick of a very lingering disease, and was all the while assaulted with strong temptations, leading her to think that she was a cast-away, not+ p. vii.

p 19.

† p. 20.

withstanding that her whole conversation had put the reality of grace in her beyond a doubt. He often visited her while in this deep exercise; but her trouble and terrors still remained: : as her dissolution drew on, her spiritual trouble increased. He went with two of his elders to her, and began first, in their presence, to comfort her, and pray with her; but she still grew worse. He ordered his elders to pray, and afterwards prayed himself, but no relief came. Then sitting pensive for a little space, he thus broke silence: What is this! Our laying grounds of comfort before her will not do; prayer will not do. We must try another remedy. Sure I am, this is a daughter of Abraham; sure I am, she hath sent for me: and therefore, in the name of God, the Father of our Lord Jesus, who sent him to redeem sinners; in the name of Jesus Christ, who obeyed the Father, and came to save us; and in the name of the Holy and blessed Spirit, our Quickener and Sanctifier-I, the elder, command thee, a daughter of Abraham, to be loosed from these bonds.' And immediately peace and joy ensued.

"Mr. Scrimgeour had several friends and children taken away by death; and his only daughter who at that time survived, and whom he dearly loved, being seized with the king's evil, by which she was reduced to the very point of death, so that he was called up to see her die; and finding her in this condition he went out to the fields (as he himself told) in the night-time, in great grief and anxiety, and began to expostulate with the Lord, with such expressions as, for all the world, he durst not again utter. In a fit of displeasure, he said, 'Thou, O Lord, knowest that I have been serving thee in the uprightness of my heart, according to my power and measure; nor have I stood in awe to declare thy mind even unto the greatest in the time, and thou seest that I take pleasure in this child. O that I could obtain such a thing at thy hand, as to spare her!' And being in great agony of spirit, at last it was said to him from the Lord, I have heard thee at this time, but use not the like boldness in time coming, for such particulars.' When he came home the child was recovered, and, sitting up in the bed, took some meat; and when he looked at her arm, it was perfectly whole *."

pp. 89, 90.

Here, by the bye, we may remark, that the idea of high spiritual experience in believers, with no miraculous experience, seems to be little more than a modern figment. It has been devised, apparently, to keep us satisfied, in our present low standard both as to miracles and spirituality.

What would a professor of these days, fired with fanatical zeal against "modern miracles," think of giving a third of his time to prayer? Eight hours in the twentyfour! Such was the practice of that eminent minister, Mr. JOHN WELCH, Knox's son-in-law. And to such devotion, miraculous manifestations were largely granted.— First, respecting his prayers :

"His custom was, when he went to bed at night, to lay a Scots plaid above his bed-clothes, and when he went to his night-prayers, to sit up and cover himself negligently therewith, and so to continue. For from the beginning of his ministry to his death, he reckoned the day ill spent, if he stayed not seven or eight hours in prayer *.”

Sometimes, before he went to sermon, he would send for his elders, and tell them he was afraid to go to the pulpit; because he found himself sore deserted: and thereafter desire one or more of them to pray, and then he would venture to the pulpit. But, it was observed, this humbling exercise used ordinarily to be followed with a flame of extraordinary assistance: so near neighbours many times are contrary dispositions and frames. He would many times retire to the church of Ayr, which was at some distance from the town, and there spend the whole night in prayer; for he used to allow his affections full expression, and prayed not only with an audible, but sometimes a loud voice †."

"As the duty wherein Mr. Welch abounded and excelled most was in prayer, so his greatest attainments fell that way. He used to say, he wondered how a Christian could lie in bed all night, and not rise to pray; and many times he rose, and many times he watched ‡.”

Prayer, in Welch, was united with great sobriety and industry.

p. 92.

† p. 94.

1 p. 95.

"He gave himself wholly to ministerial exercises, he preached once every day, he prayed the third part of his time, was unwearied in his studies; and for a proof of this, it was found among his papers, that he had abridged Suarez's Metaphysics, when they came first to his hand, even when he was well stricken in years. By all which it appears, that he has not only been a man of great diligence, but also of a strong and robust natural constitution, otherwise he had never endured the fatigue *.”

Such was the character of the man. Now let us pass on to his miraculous experience. We observe in him, for instance, a remarkable gift of prediction and discernment.

cr

"While he was at Kirkcudbright, he met with a young man in scarlet and silver lace, (the gentleman's name was Mr. Robert Glendinning,) new come home from his travels; he much surprised the young man, by telling him, he behoved to change his garb, and way of life, and betake himself to the Scriptures, which at that time was not his business, for he should be his successor in the ministry at Kirkcudbright; which accordingly came to pass some time thereafter t."

"But when he was to leave Selkirk, he could not find a man in all the town to transport his furniture, except only Ewart, who was at that time a poor young man, but master of two horses, with which he transported Mr. Welch's goods, and so left him; but as he took his leave Mr. Welch gave him his blessing, and a piece of gold for a token, exhorting him to fear God, and promised he should never want; which promise providence made good through the whole course of the man's life, as was observed by all his neighbours ‡."

"While Mr. Welch was at Ayr, the Lord's-day was greatly profaned at a gentleman's house about eight miles distant from Ayr, by reason of great confluence of people playing at the foot-ball, and other pastime. After writing several times to him, to suppress the profanation of the Lord's-day at his house (which he slighted, not loving to be called a Puritan), Mr. Welch came one day to his gate, and called him out to tell him, that he had a message from God to shew him, that because he had slighted the advice given him from the Lord,

* pp. 93, 94.

† p. 93.

‡ p. 92.