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He controverts, of course, the affertion of Sir George Staunton, that there is no ftate religion in China."

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"The Abbé Grofior," fays he, " in his hiftory of China, reprefents the government, both civil and ecclefiaftical, as purely patriarchal. The Emperor is the fupreme head of church and ftate. He prefides in all the great religious festivals, fome of which are annual, and others occafional. He prefents the facrifices on these occafions, and offers up prayers to the Deity in his own name, and in the name of the people. In the ceremony, for example, of his holding the plough, the feftival is preceded by a facrifice, which the Emperor offers up to SHANG-TI; after which, he and his attendants prepare themselves, by three days fafting and continence. The SHANG-TI is afterwards invoked by the Emperor, who facrifices under the title of Sovereign Pontiff, and prays for an abundant harveft in favour of his people. He then proceeds to the field and the plough, attended by the chief perfons of his court."

This account of the religion of China we rather think confirmed by the following extract from the journal of Andrè Everard Van Braam, who accompanied the Dutch Embassador to the coaft of Pekin, in the years 1794-5.

"Shortly after came one of our court conductors to acquaint the Ambaffador and me, that we are to repair to the palace to-morrow morning, at three o'clock, in order to be prefent when his Majefty fets off for the temple to offer his annual tribute to the Almighty, in quality of Sovereign Sacrificer of the Empire. At half past seven the Emperor arrived in his habit of Sovereign Sacrificer. In this ceremony the Emperor has fome refemblance to the high-priet of the Jews, who entered once a year, dreffed with the greatest magnificence, into the holy of holies, there to offer an expiatory facritice in the name of the whole Hebrew nation."

"Hence," fays Mr. Ranken, " from whatever funds the church, the clergy, the temples, and facrifices are maintained, we cannot but conclude that there is a religious establishment in China.”

The fecond fection, which profelfes to treat of establishments of Chriflianity, is, by much, the most vulnerable part of the whole cffay, and we fhall be furprized if it do not provoke attacks, and attacks not eafily repelled, from different quarters. It begins with the hardy allertion, that

"there is no form of church government prefcribed in the New Teñament. Had it been otherwife, fays the author; had any precife form of church government been ordained, it must have impeded the fuccefs, or together, humanly fpeaking, obftructed the propagation of the goipel."

Humanly Speaking! Does Mr. Ranken, indeed, fuppose that the gofpel was propagated by human means? Or, if he

admit, as he certainly admits, the agency of divine power in the propagation of the gofpel, does he think, that, to obtain. its end, it was necellary for that power to "leave the form of church government to arife out of the times, occurrences, and circumitances of the various countries where the gospel fhould be preached?" He cannot be ignorant, that, before the end of the fecond century, there was, in fact, one precife form of church government eftablifhed through the whole Chriftian world; that this form fuffered no material change till the Bithops of Rome and Conftantinople began to ufurp a domination over their brethren; and that it was no where completely changed till about two hundred and fifty years ago, when various forms were introduced by the proteftants of France and Germany. During the earlier part of this period, he must acknowledge that the gofpel was fuccefsfully propagated; and furely he will not fay that the fuccefs would have been lefs had this permanent conftitution of the church been of divine appointment. In this fection there are some very judicious dilfertations on the duty of "fubmitting ourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's fake;" but it contains nothing to the purpose of religious establishments, except a beautiful quotation from Mr. Burke. Should a fecond edition of the effay be called for, we would advise the author, before he fends this part of it to the prefs, to ftudy carefully Mr. Hooker's Ecclefiaftical Polity, and Warburton's Alliance between the Church and State.

The third fection is of more value. It treats of religious eftablishments in America, or more properly in the fourteen united states of North America. Of thefe ftates our author fhews, from the most authentic documents, that there are but few which have no public legal faith; that there are but seven which make no legal provifion for the maintenance of the minifters of religion; that there are five ftates which formally use texts; and that there are two which seem to want nothing effential to a full eftablishment of religion. The confequences of the want of a full and univerfal establishment of religion he gives us from the correfpondence of a gentleman of rank and literature in America, on whose narrative he affures us that full dependence may be placed. The following is an extract from a letter of that gentleman's, dated June, 1798.

"In confequence of the want of a religious establishment in America, infidelity increases, and the very femblance of religion decays rapidly. The congregations are feweft where the population is greatet, and they are not likely to increafe. Many Prefbyterian minifters have been difmiffed by their congregations, without any

complaint

complaint against their life or doctrine. Every minifter in the coun try is alfo a farmer, and has more dependence on his farm than on his ftipend for his fubfiftence. For though congregations in the country fubfcribe at an average of about 90l. fterling a year for their mi. nifter, yet fubfcribing and paying are two very different things in this country. No law can oblige the fubfcribers to pay their fubfcriptions, as they fometimes afk time, and when that is expired, they plead the ftatute of limitations. There are many inftances of the fuppreffion of congregations from parfimony and indifference. I know one congregation that has been vacant feventy-five years, and another feventy-feven; yet both thefe are abundantly able to fupport a minifter, and one of them has a fund that yields zool. fterling of yearly intereft. There are no inftances of public worship being restored after being laid afide. Many large tracts of country have no worship of any kind. In many places there are few children that have been baptized; and even among the Epifcopals, in the fouthern states, this ordinance begins to be laid afide."

We recommend this detail, and, indeed, the whole of Mr. Ranken's Effay, to the ferious confideration of thofe diffenters of every denomination who are really religious, and, at the fame time, imagine that the influence of the gofpel would be promoted by the abolition of all eftablishments. We have reafon to be affured, that a fect is just now forming in ScotJand for the avowed purpose of fapping the foundation of the Prefbyterian church, as eftablished by law. At the head of that fect is the gentleman, who, in the first edition of Profeffor Robifon's Proofs of a Confpiracy, &c. was faid to have expreffed his readiness "TO WADE TO THE KNEES IN

BLOOD FOR THE PURPOSE OF OVERTURNING EVERY ES

TABLISHMENT OF RELIGION." From the postscript to the fecond edition of the Profeffor's valuable work, we learn that Mr. H❝ disclaims all fanguinary proceedings;" and we doubt not, but, before the breaking out of the French revolution, D'Alembert, Diderot, and Condorcet would have done the fame. The zeal, however, of Mr. H. against establishments, must be very ardent; for it has prompted him to fell a beautiful eftate, and to apply part of the price to the endowment of a feminary in Glasgow, for the exprefs purpose of educating itinerant preachers, who may propagate the gofpel in purity wherever it is contaminated by the baleful influence of establishments. To the pupils of that inftitute we earnestly recommend an attentive perufal of Mr. Ranken's Effay; to the heads of it, who, under the cloak of religion, have no political innovations in view, we beg leave to recommend the two works which we have already recommended to the author of the Effay; and to pious diffenters of every denomination we hesitate not to fay, in the words of that Essay, that

they

they can "gain nothing by the overthrow of the establishment, though, in the general conclufion, they may lofe much, even their own existence as religious focieties."

ART. IV. The Unfexed Females;.a Poem: addreffed to the Author of "The Purfuits of Literature," 8vo, Cadell and Davies, London. 1798.

THIS poem is written by an author, who ought, furely, to have prefixed his name, and who cannot feriously wish to have it concealed. He is one, we understand, that is well known to the public already, by his publications, both in poetry and profe. His profe is certainly excellent; yet his poetry, in our opinion, is more excellent ftill. In this he has fhone fo very bright, as to dazzle the eyes and call forth the envy of fome critics; to provoke the pretended admonitions of men who were too inert to mount on his wing of fire, and prefumed to cenfure what they could not equal. Mediocrity of genius, in a poet, always becomes malignity of envy in a critic; and nature has recently exhibited, in our ifle, what is a lively reprefentation of a true poet pursued by fuch critics: a large eagle failing, majestically, in filence, along the sky, while fome crows were attending and cla mouring about the royal bird,

The prefent poem has much of a political caft, and, therefore, comes peculiarly within our region of reviewing. It is pointed against thofe "unfexed female writers," as the author of the Pursuits of Literature calls them, who " now inftruct, or confufe us and themfelves, in the labyrinth of politics, or turn us wild with Gallic frenzy:" and it is so far written in the manner of this author, that the notes have nearly fwallowed up the text. Such a manner, however, was abfolutely neceffary to both the author and the poet; as a work that, in the text, touches a variety of characters, demands, of course, a variety of arguments, in notes, to fhew the propriety of its delineations, and to prove the juftnefs of its attitudes. We fhall felect fuch of both as will make a brief whole, for the fatisfaction of our readers :

"Thou, who with all a poet's genuine rage,*
Thy fine eye rolling o'er this aweful age,

Where

"In my opinion, the author of The Pursuits of Literature’ has difcovered, in his animated fatire, a true political genius; and

(as

The

Where polish'd life unfolds its various views,
Haft mark'd the magic influence of the mufe;*

Expos'd the Sciolift's vain-glorious claim,
And boldly thwarted innovation's aim;
Where witlings wildly think, or madly dare,+
With honour, virtue, truth, announcing war;
Survey with me what ne'er our fathers faw,
A female band defpifing NATURE's law,
As proud defiance' flathes from their arms,
And vengeance fmothers all their fofter charms."

poet

afterwards introduces to his readers one, whom he justly confiders as the leader of thefe political virages:

"See WOLLSTONECRAFT, whom no decorum checks,
Arife, the intrepid champion of her sex ;

O'er humbled man affert the fovereign claim,
And flight the timid blufh of virgin fame."

(as a writer, who had very little pretenfions to that character himself, obferves,) a true poct is a public good.' The fatire, in queftion, feems to have produced effects refembling thofe which diftinguished the poetry of Greece and Rome: for I can affert, on the best autho rities, that many in this country, whofe politics, and even religion, have been long wavering, are now fixed in their principles by The Purfuits of Literature."

"By the mufe, I mean literature in general."

Greatly think, or nobly die.' POPE.

"Nature is the grand basis of all laws, human and divine; and the woman who has no regard to nature, either in the decoration of her perfon, or the culture of her mind, will foonwalk after the flesh, in the luft of uncleannefs, and defpife government."

A troop came next, who crowns and armour bore,

And proud defiance in their looks they bore.' POPE. "The Amazonian band, the female Quixotes of the new philofophy, are here, too, justly characterifed; for, could they read, I fufpect, fome paffages in the fixth fatire of Juvenal without an uneafy fenfation--

Quam præftare poteft mulier galeata pudorem?

"I have feen in MS. Mr. W. Gifford's mafterly tranflation of this fatire. Our expectations, I hope, will foon be gratified by his entire verfion of Juvenal."

"That Mifs Wollstonecraft was a fworn enemy to blushes I need not remark. But many of my readers, perhaps, will be afto. nished to hear, that, at feveral of our boarding-fchools for young ladies, a blush incurs a penalty."

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