other. Nothing, however, could be more dissimilar than the spirit and conduct of these original poets; for while Wolcott, better known by his assumed appellation of Peter Pindar, employed his pen in wanton malignity, careless of truth, and wholly regardless of feeling; Gifford, on the contrary, directed his shafts only against the grubs of literature. The one held up to ridicule the personal defects, or peculiar circumstances, of eminent individuals, for the sole purpose of getting money; the other, though severe enough upon those deformities which tended to mislead the public, did not meddle with private character, and through all his productions there breathes an ardent love of morality and religion.

It was impossible that a man who felt for the best interests of society, could avoid being disgusted with the gross abuse of wit, uniformly displayed in the writings of Wolcott; and however much the risible faculties might be excited by the drollery of some of his stories, the moral mind revolted at the pruriency and impudence which this poet so profusely scattered through all his writings, in utter contempt of private virtue, public order, and good manners. Mr. Gifford, therefore, who well knew the man, his story, and his habits, sent against him one of his sharpest arrows, in the form of an epistle. Peter, for so we shall call him, though a lampooner of others, could not bear to be satirized himself; and therefore, being stung to the very soul by this attack, he determined upon revenge. Instead, however, of applying, in the first place, to his most powerful weapon, 'the grey goose quill,' he assumed the argumentum baculinum, and sallied forth in quest of his adversary. Watching his opportunity, and seeing Gifford enter the shop of Wright, now Hatchard's, in Piccadilly, he rushed in after him, and aimed a blow on his sconce, with the cudgel which he had provided for the occasion. Fortunately, a gentleman standing by, saw the movement in time to seize the arm of the enraged poet, who was then bundled out into the street, and rolled in the mud, to the great amusement of the gathered crowd. Nothing farther ensued at that time; but the disappointed satirist went home, and penned one of his worst pieces, which he published with this title, "A Cut at a Cobbler;" as, however, there was more passion than either poetry or wit in this performance, the author only excited a laugh against himself.

At this period, Mr. Gifford was employed in a warfare of greater moment, being engaged with Mr. Canning, Dr.

Ireland, the late George Ellis, and other men of talent, in conducting a weekly paper, called the "Anti-Jacobin," the object of which was to vindicate social order and religion, by exposing the enemies of both to ridicule. Some of the ablest articles in this Journal were written by Mr. Gifford, who was encouraged a few years afterwards to undertake, in conjunction with some of his old coadjutors, the Quarterly Review, in direet opposition to that published at Edinburgh. How well he succeeded in this department of public censorship, it is not for us to say. The effect produced by the new Journal was electric, for the formidable band of northern lights, after glaring portentously, and claiming a right to dogmatize in all questions of science, literature, and politics, began to descend rapidly to a horizontal level, and Edinburgh was no longer allowed to be the "Athens of Britain." Of the Quarterly Review, Mr. Gifford continued to be the editor till within a year of his death.

Besides the works here mentioned, Mr. Gifford superintended valuable editions of Ben Jonson, Massinger, Shirley, and Ford, with Biographies and Notes.

In private life, no man was more amiable, modest, and unassuming than Mr. Gifford. His morals were correct, his manners gentlemanly, and in his religious principles he always acted with a steady adherence to the established church. Perhaps we could not adduce a better proof of a liberal disposition, than what appears in the following inscription on a tombstone in the buryingground of Grosvenor Chapel, South Audley Street:

Here lies the Body of

ANN DAVIES,

(for more than xx Years)
Servant to WILLIAM GIFFORD.

She died February 6th, MDCCCXV, in
the XXXXIII Year of her Age,
Of a tedious and painful Malady,
which she bore

With exemplary patience and resignation
Her deeply afflicted Master
erected this Stone to her Memory,
as a painful testimony of
her uncommon worth,
and of his perpetual gratitude,
respect, and affection,

for her long and meritorious services. Though here unknown, dear Ann, thy ashes rest,

Still lives thy memory in one grateful breast, That trac'd thy course thro' many a painfu

THE doctrine of the salvation of the heathen by the law of nature, is heteredox in the extreme. We readily admit that the judgment and condemnation of the heathen shall be proceeded with according to the law of nature, and not by the principles of the gospel; but, that the heathen can be saved by the light or law of nature, is denied in the most unqualified terms. Had it been possible that men could be saved by the light of nature, it would have quite superseded the necessity of a written revelation, and of the expiatory atonement of Christ; and we, consequently, should never have heard of the one or the other. The law of nature requires perfect, constant, and universal obedience; and were it possible that men could uniformly think, and speak, and act, according to its dictates, we would then unhesitatingly admit the doctrine of their salvation independently of the gospel; but this it is morally impossible for them to do. The heathen themselves are duly aware of this. That faithful monitor which exists in their bosoms, as well as in the bosoms of others, admonishes them of their repeated transgressions, and intimates to them their consequent amenability to future punishment. Hence all the painful sacrifices and penances to which they submit, from a half-persuasion that the merited punishment of their sins may be averted. Now, as in the law of revelation, so in the law of nature, he who offendeth in one point is guilty of all; for every sin committed against God involves interminable consequences; and hence, even on the principle of what the light of nature requires in order to eternal life, we conclude, with the apostle Paul, that the gentiles, or heathen, as well as the Jews, are all under sin; and if under

See a beautiful Poem, called "The Missionary,". under the initials M. R. in the" Sacred Lyre," 100.-VOL. IX.

sin, they must of necessity be liable to the punishment due to sin.

To suppose the heathen can be saved by the light afforded them by the volume of nature, is to admit the unscriptural doctrine of another Saviour and way of salvation than Christ Jesus. He is represented, in the oracles of God, to be the way, the truth, and the life; but, according to the hypothesis against which the writer contends, he can only with propriety be said to be a way of salvation. He further assures us, himself, that no man cometh unto the Father but by him; but if the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen, by the light of nature, be correct, many come to the Father entirely by their own doings; and, consequently, there can be no truth in the sentiment generally understood to be implied in the declaration of the apostle, "There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved," but the name of Jesus.

The ransomed in glory are represented, in the Revelation of the apostle John, as being unanimously engaged in ascribing praise, and honour, and glory to the Lamb who was slain, and who hath redeemed them to God by his blood. But, according to the hypothesis of the salvation of the heathen by the law of nature, the regions of bliss shall be populated with beings who have not been, in the slightest degree, indebted to him for their felicity; and they, therefore, cannot unite with those who have been saved by the blood of Emmanuel, in ascribing to him the glory of their salvation: Without the presence of Christ, those who have been redeemed by his blood could hardly derive the smallest degree of felicity from the other sources of bliss in heaven; but, if any of the heathen shall be saved by the law of nature, the presence of the Saviour, considered as such, might as well be dispensed with, so far as they are concerned. In one word, if the heathen are to be admitted into heaven by the law of nature, they must constitute a separate society; for it does not appear how they can engage in many of the exercises, and enjoy many of the pleasures, of those who believed in Christ, and openly professed him in the world.

The doctrine of the salvation of the heathen by the law of nature, is quite incompatible with the excellency and interests of Christianity. We have always been disposed to regard Christianity as a system of religion incomparably more excellent than any other, not merely as it respects the influence it exerts on human character in the present life, but also as it regards the

X

eircumstances of rational intelligencies in a future state of existence. We have been inclined to regard the religion of Jesus as the only system of theology consistent with the character and glory of God, and as suited to the circumstances of fallen and responsible creatures-as the only religious system which discloses to sinners the way by which peace and reconciliation may be effected betwixt the offended Majesty of heaven and offending creatures-and as opening the only way by which sinners can be made full participants of all the felicity of the upper sanctuary. But, the moment we admit the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen, in their present state, we feel ourselves compelled to lower our conceptions of its superlative excellency, and to consider it as approaching to a level with those other theological systems which exist in the world. If, by regulating our conduct according to the principles of another religion, men can avoid everlasting misery, and be introduced to the full and eternal possession of the happiness of heaven, in a manner glorifying to the attributes of Deity, (and we are certain that no sinner can be saved in any other way,) the Christian religion can do nothing more; and, consequently, as it respects the immortal interests of man, it possesses no claims to peculiar excellence.

But the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen by the law of nature, if universally embraced, would, likewise, be quite incompatible with the interests of Christianity. The spiritual circumstances in which the heathen are situated, have always been regarded, by the overwhelming majority of Christians, as very deplorable; and, during the last quarter of a century, they have excited in the minds of the pious, in our own and other countries, emotions of the deepest commiseration. The existence and extensive operations of the British and Foreign Bible Society, and the various Missionary institutions which have been formed and are supported throughout the religious world, evince, in the most eloquent manner, the prominent situation which the spiritual necessities of the heathen hold in the sympathetic feelings of British and Foreign Christians; and they furnish us with proofs of disinterested Christian philanthropy, on which the angels of God must reflect with unqualified approbation and unmingled delight. We are aware that there are some who take an active part in the various institutions which exist for christianizing the heathen, from no other motive than the love of applause; but the great principle which actuates the overwhelming majority, is a

decided conviction that they are, thereby, administering to the moral wants of the heathen world, and placing within their reach those means of salvation, of which they were heretofore destitute. It is a profound and abiding persuasion, alone, that there is no other way, than by the experimental knowledge of Christianity, by which the heathen can be saved, that induces the Christian, in his orisons to the Most High, to plead with such earnestness and frequency, for the spread of the gospel among them--that disposes him to make urgent appeals to his fellow-men in their behalf, amid the sarcastic sneers and pointed ridicule of those, who, as they are wholly indifferent about their own salvation, cannot be expected to feel any interest in that of others—and that induces him to submit, perhaps, to some severe privation, in order that, by his pecuniary contribution, he may assist in sending a Bible or missionary among them.

Now, let the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen, independently of Christianity, be universally assented to, and it will immediately be attended with the most painful consequences to its interests. Those who were, heretofore, the most zealous supporters of Bible and Missionary Societies, would withdraw their contributions, under the impression that it were useless to feel intèrested about the progress of the Christian religion, when any other system is sufficient for the salvation of men. Thus, the friends and supporters of those hallowed and salutary institutions, would leave the heathen to walk according to the imaginations of their own minds; the good effects which have already been produced by these grand engines of moral renovation, would, in a great measure, be counteracted; and, after the expiration of a few years, we should, instead of contemplating these heaven-born institutions as objects which have a tangible existence, have to regard them only as matters of historical recollection.

Nor is it merely as it respects the influences which the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen would exert on the minds of those who contribute of their pecuniary substance, to transmit the gospel to the dark places of the earth, that it would prove detrimental to the best interests of Christianity: it would also have the same pernicious effects on those who are now the most devoted champions of the cross, in regard of personal labour. We know not an individual, in the recorded history of nations, whose conduct is more entitled to our cordial approbation, than the missionary who goes forth into a foreign clime, for the

express purpose of proclaiming the glad tidings of salvation to perishing sinners. The man must be deeply imbued with the noblest principles, and possess, to a great extent, the better feelings and sympathies of our nature, who can project, and carry into execution, the philanthropic resolution of spending his time and talents, his intellectual and bodily vigour, in endeavouring to propagate the doctrines of the gospel among heathen nations. We have heard of the fatiguing exertions, the severe privations, and imminent dangers, to which men, who were actuated by no such principles, have submitted, in foreign countries; but these men are encouraged to submit to many hardships and dangers, from the hope of reaping immediate, or future, affluence and respectability, as the fruits of their labours, and of being, thereby, enabled to return to their native land with honour and independence. But the Christian legate has no such motives to stimulate him, amidst his discouragements and laborious exertions. His soul is filled with the most devoted affection towards God, and fired with the most ardent zeal for the eternal welfare of his fellow-men; and these are the noble and powerful considerations which prompt him to strenuous exertion. He does, indeed, anticipate, with the highest delight, a future state, in which he shall enjoy all that happiness, of which his enlarged capacities shall be susceptible; but this he expects as the free gift of God, not as the meritorious reward of his own doings.

Nor is his mind encouraged, amid the dangers and difficulties which surround his path, by the pleasing prospect of returning, after a few years of laborious exercises, to his native country, to enjoy the delights resulting from the society of his former friends; he wishes and resolves, if agreeable to the Divine will, to spend the last moment of his being in the service of God, and to recommend, with his expiring breath, faith in Christ as the great way of salvation for guilty creatures. Yes! it is a profound and permanent persuasion, that he is fully placing the means of salvation within the reach of those who, without its influence, must otherwise have been the subjects of everlasting wo, that propels him to adopt and execute the grand resolution of preaching Christ crucified among heathen nations. It is an abiding conviction, that he may be the instrument of saving those who would, otherwise, have eternally perished in their sins, that animates his zeal, and consoles his mind, amid all the fatigues, and discouragements, and dangers, to which he is exposed from the nature of the climate,

the country, and the frequently ferocious character of those to whom his messages of mercy are addressed. It is fortunate for the heathen, and the interests of Christianity, that the doctrine which we are now endeavouring to confute, has not yet been em braced by those Christian heralds who are labouring in the dark places of the earth; otherwise their zeal would become languid, their pious exertions would cease, and they would betake themselves, to secular employments, or return to the scenes of their juvenile years, and the society of their former friends, leaving the heathen to their former revolting principles, and appalling practices.

It is a circumstance which we cannot sufficiently regret, that the doctrine of the salvation of the heathen, in their present state, has acquired so great a prevalency in our day, that those who formerly contemplated their spiritual condition with emotions of the deepest commiseration, can now behold it with an apparent apathy; and, if it should be unanimously embraced by the religious world, we shall no more hear of the Christian missionary's repairing to heathen shores, to preach the doctrines of the cross, of the smallest contribution's being made, nor of a single prayer's being offered to Heaven in their behalf. And, consequently, we cannot conceive how, without the miraculous interposition of the Most High, the promises and prophecies interspersed throughout the scriptures, regarding the universal diffusion of Divine truth, can be accomplished. Christianity, instead of progressively advancing in the world, would gradually lose its hold on the attention and affections of mankind, until it would wholly disappear from the earth.

Indeed, had the doctrine in question been entertained by those to whom the risen Saviour committed the important trust of spreading his religion through all nations of the earth, they would have relinquished their heavenly undertaking, and Christianity had never acquired any permanent footing in the world. It was an immoveable persuasion, that there was no other way of salvation for Jew or Gentile, than by that grace which is communicated through faith in Christ, that stimulated the apostles and immediate disciples of Jesus, to go forth into all the world to preach his gospel, amid the reproaches, and persecutions, and toils, and dangers, and appalling deaths, that stared them in the face. It was the same conviction that excited those who first preached the gospel in our country, to brave the dangers of the ocean which intervened betwixt us and them, and to