against the Roman Catholicks, and specifying their future privileges; the other for raising the pecuniary qualification for the elective franchise of freeholders in Ireland, from forty shillings to ten pounds. Mr. Peel's speech on this occasion, continued for four hours; and to such perfection is stenography and printing carried in London, that in less than an hour after he finished, a complete copy, from the press, was put into his hands, while yet in the house. We have carefully perused the whole of this speech. It is certainly able and convincing; but it is heavy in the reading, and far inferior in perspicuity and point, and indeed in every other attribute of a masterly speech, to that of Mr. Cook in the Synod of Ulster, the conclusion of which is inserted in our present number.

On the 17th and 18th of March, when the second reading of what was now denominated The Catholick Relief Bill, was moved by Mr. Peel, a very animated and protracted debate took place. The King's attorney general came out against the bill, in a speech of great length and great acrimony. He doubted whether he could consider himself as the King's attorney general or not; as it was known by the speech from the throne, as well as from the ministry in Parliament, that his Majesty was in favour of the bill. But he avowed his opposition, be the consequences what they might, to the whole of "this atrocious bill." He declared that he had refused to draft it, and that he should consider himself as having violated his official oath, if he had penned a sin. gle line of it; and he broadly intimated that, in his judgment, the King would violate bis coronation oath, if he should approve the bill. The applause of the attorney general, by his side of the house, at the close of his speech, was long and loud; and when Mr. Peel rose to reply, the cheering of his party chimed in with that of their opponents, so that for some time the respondent could not proceed; and the house of Parliament must have very much resembled what takes place when two of our op posing street mobs happen to meet and hurra, one for Adams, and the other for Jackson. We hope that this hurraing, or cheering, (c'est le meme chose,) will always be confined to our streets, if it must exist any where, and never be admitted into our halls of legislation. It is a disgrace to any grave assembly. The Catholick relief bill was carried for the second reading, by a majority of 180-Ayes, 353-Noes, 173. The next evening, the second reading of the elective franchise bill was carried by a majority of 206-Ayes, 222-Noes, 16. The noted Mr. Huskisson refused to give any vote on this bill. There is not a doubt that both these bills will be carried most triumphantly through the Commons House of Parliament. We believe they will also pass though with great opposition, the House of Lords. In that house the Duke of Wellington has already defended the first with considerable ability, and explicitly declared that it has the cordial approbation of the King. The Duke, doubtless, understands fighting better than debating; but his talents seem to be versatile, and he appears with great advantage as a statesman, as well as a warrior. We extremely regret that he has lent his example to countenance the detestable and murderous practice of duelling. It appears that the Earl of Winchelsea and Nottingham addressed a note on the 14th of March, to the Secretary of the Committee for establishing the King's College, London, and caused it to be published, in which he charges the Duke with having played the hypocrite, in a speech which he made about a year ago, in relation to this college, and in which he spoke with earnestness in favour of religion, and of the English established church. He did this, says the Earl, that "he might the more effectually, under the cloak of some outward show of zeal for the Protestant religion, carry on his insidious designs for the infringement of our liberties, and the introduction of Popery into every department of the state." This certainly was a high charge, and deserved to be noticed; and if the Duke had prosecuted the Earl for slander, he would probably have recovered some fifty or a hundred thousand pounds sterling, which he might have presented to the languishing funds of King's College; and surely no one would have imputed this proceeding to cowardice, in the Duke of Wellington. But, no-nothing but a duel could settle this affair of honour. The Earl appears to have been sensible, before he fought the Duke, that he had done wrong; for he carried in his pocket his written acknowledgment to this effect, when he went to the combat. He received the Duke's fire, and narrowly escaped with his life; the ball discharged at him having struck the lappel of his coat. Then he fired his pis tol in the air, drew out his written acknowledgment, and sent it by his second to the Duke, who accepted it as sufficient, and thus the matter ended.-What a contemptible farce!! If schoolboys should thus egregiously and wickedly play the fool, they would receive both scorn and chastisement. The Duke of Wellington forgot that in fighting this duel, he gave far greater evidence that he had no sincere regard to religion, than was to be derived from the Earl of Winchelsea's charge, although he had never retracted it.—A rush, indeed, for the religion of any duellist!

Meetings have taken place in Scotland, to express their approbation of the determination of the British ministry to remove the disabilities of the Catholicks. At one

of these in Edinburgh, Dr. Chalmers is stated to have made a speech which outdid all his former outdoings. He considered the subject, however, only under its reli. gious aspect, and endeavoured to show-and from what we have seen of his speech we think he did show most conclusively—that the abominations of Popery will be met and corrected with unspeakably greater advantage and effect, when the State abstains from persecution, than they ever were, or could be, while that persecution lasted. The bill in question places the Roman Catholics, in regard to civil rights and privileges, entirely on equal ground with the Protestants, saving only some provisions intended to secure the Protestant succession to the crown, and the claims of the established church. The Jesuits are to be registered, and no accession to the number now in the kingdom is to be permitted.

We have allowed ourselves to go into more than usual detail on this subject, because it accords with the nature of our work, and because we thought it would be gratify. ing to those of our readers-and we understand they are not a few-who seldom peruse secular newspapers. For ourselves, we sincerely rejoice in the prospect that the Papists in Britain are hereafter to be free from persecution. We rejoice in it because we think that all persecution for religious opinions is wrong in itself, and directly hostile to the entire spirit of the Gospel: and we rejoice in it too, because we firmly believe, with Dr. Chalmers, that the errors of Popery will be combatted with tenfold effect, when those who hold them are not led to defend them as a matter of pride, and from a spirit of resistance to a force to which it would be cowardly and disgraceful to yield, and from dreading the imputation of being influenced, in changing their religion, by a regard to worldly emolument. True Christianity has always best retained its purity, and flourished most, when worldly power and policy have had nothing to do with it. The infidels of our country are trying to propagate an opinion that the church to which we belong is seeking to obtain a secular establishment. But we can tell them, and all who have been so far misled as to believe them, that if such an establishment were offered to our church, we should consider its acceptance as the greatest calamity and curse that could befall her.-Yes, and we solemnly believe our church would spurn any such offer with the utmost abhorrence, convinced that its acceptance would work her ruin instead of advancing her interest. We shall risk being thought to assume unduly, so far as to say, that from age and good means of observation, we know as much of the Presbyterian Church as any other individual in it, or out of it; and we explicitly and unequivocally declare, that we do not know of an individual in this church who wishes that the State should do more for her than for any other church in the land; nor do more for any, or all, than consists in protecting the rights of conscience, and not infringing those sacred institutions which are equally beneficial to all denominations, and essential to the preservation of civil liberty, and the happiness and prosperity of the whole community.

Since writing the above, an arrival from London brings intelligence to the 31st of March. It states that "the Roman Catholick Relief Bill was taken up on the third reading in the House of Commons on the 30th, and after a long and warm debate, was passed by a vote of 320 to 142-majority, 178, and sent to the House of Lords for concurrence.-The Irish forty shillings Disfranchisement Bill was also read a third time, and passed."

FRANCE is tranquil; the speech of the Monarch at the late opening of the Legislative Chambers, is greatly lauded, and the measures he recommended are, we suppose, likely to be adopted. Among other things the King promised to punish the Algerines; and it is now stated that he is making arrangements with other European courts, especially with England, to obtain the consent of the Grand Turk to suppress all the Barbary powers.-Time only can show how this will eventuate. We were glad to observe an article in the publick papers, saying that all the private theatres in Paris are suppressed by authority, on account of their unfriendly influence on morals. Such is notoriously the influence of all theatres, both publick and private, and it were well for the world if they were all closed, and never again to be opened.

SPAIN.-Cadiz, by a decree of the King, is declared to be a free port; and the inhabitants, as an expression of gratitude, have agreed to present to their monarch, what he very much needed, a large sum of money, as an acknowledgment for the boon.

PORTUGAL is still subject to the tyranny and oppression of the usurper Don Miguel; whose sanguinary thirst seems to be insatiable. The country, however, is not quiet, and Don Pedro, it is said, is determined yet to make good his claim to the European possessions of his ancestors.

ROME.-Pope Leo XII. has paid the debt of nature. The Cardinals, at the last accounts, were in conclave, but no election of a successor to Leo had been made. As

usual, the courts of Austria and France were intriguing, each for its favourite candidate -a Pope who shall favour the nation that secured his election. What sort of infallibility in spiritual concern must that be, which is obtained in this manner! Some insurrectionary movements in Rome are announced as having occurred on the death of the late Pontiff, but they were easily put down.

GREECE is slowly advancing to order, and, we hope, to happiness; but we have nothing of much interest to report, that could be esteemed novel. Education is encou raged; many captives, carried away by the Turks, have returned; piracy is nearly at an end; and there appears at present, a real disposition in the Allied Powers to render Greece an independent country.

RUSSIA, it appears, is fully bent on prosecuting the war against Turkey; and a treaty is said to have been negotiated with Prussia, not merely for neutrality, but for aid, to the amount of some twenty or thirty thousand troops, if they shall be needed. Two Turkish fortresses, of considerable importance, have been compelled to capitulate during the winter; a Turkish flotilla has also been captured, and some other advantages have been obtained on the shores of the Black Sea. Count Wittgenstein, at his own request, and, as he states, solely on account of his advanced age, has resigned the chief command of the army employed against the Turks. He published his farewell address at his head quarters, at Jassy, on the 27th of February. He tells his fellow soldiers that he had served in the Russian armies forty years, extols their bravery, speaks highly of the services rendered and the conquests made in the last campaign, and recommends his successor to their confidence and support. That successor, Count Diebitsch, published his address on the same day. He speaks in warm commendatory language of his predecessor, remarks of himself that he had been "brought up in the ranks" of the Russian army, and in reference to the chief command, says "I feel the importance of this trust, and hope to execute it successfully, with the aid of Divine Providence." He concludes his address in these words:"May God aid us, and we will then prove that nothing is impossible to the brave soldiers of the Russian army, when that army is contending for the faith, the Emperor, and the country." Whence does it happen that the Russian generals, and monarchs too, more frequently and explicitly acknowledge their dependence on the God of Providence, than any others of whom we have knowledge? Is the marked success of the Russian arms attributable, in any measure, to this? We leave these questions for the consideration of our readers.

TURKEY.-The Sultan perseveres in preparing for war, with the utmost activity and energy; and yet we gather from what transpires, that he is really alarmed at his situ ation, and desirous of peace, if he could obtain it without making sacrifices wounding to his pride, and perhaps hazardous to his throne and his life. The Russians seem likely to succeed in cutting off supplies of provisions to Constantinople, by water conveyance. It is said that a severe scarcity is already experienced; and as not only the capital, but other towns and regions of the Turkish Empire in Europe, have heretofore been dependent on foreign supplies, especially on the bread stuffs that came from Egypt and the Crimea, if these sources fail, as it seems probable at present that they will, the suffering must be intense, and at length intolerable. A bloody conflict, however, seems unavoidable in the opening campaign, and He who ruleth in the heavens alone knows how he will award the issue.

From ASIA and AFRICA We have, at present, no communications to make.

AMERICA.

BUENOS AIRES.-The civil war which is now carried on in the United Provinces, of which Buenos Ayres is considered as the chief, is occasioned by a difference of opinion in regard to the form of government. Heretofore the system established has been, like our own, a federal government. To this form the present dominant party in Buenos Ayres, of which General Lavalle is the head, are decisively opposed. It is maintained that one and the same government ought to be extended over all the provinces;-that there should be but one legislative body, and one set of executive officers, for the whole. Lavalle is triumphant in Buenos Ayres, which is represented as tranquil since the death of the late governor Dorrego, mentioned in our last number. Some of the other provinces, however, particularly Santa Fe, are decidedly opposed to the Unitarians, as the party of Lavalle are denominated. Lopez is the governor of Santa Fe, and the opponent of Lavalle. The latter, however, seems likely to prevail, and we fear, from his proceeding in the case of Dorrego, that he is a man of blood. Some overtures for negotiation have been made, but it is to be apprehended that the sword alone will decide the controversy.-The paper currency of Buenos Ayres is greatly depreciated.

BRAZIL.-The Emperor Don Pedro has the prospect of a war with Portugal, for which he seems but badly prepared. His finances are very low, occasioned, it is said, 'not only by his late war with Buenos Ayres, but chiefly by the exportation of the precious metals, in carrying on the horrible slave trade. The number of slaves brought from Africa has nearly doubled within a few years-in 1828 it amounted to forty-four thousand. Will a just God award prosperity to such a nation as this!

COLOMBIA.-The Gaceta de Cartagena of the 22d of March, says: "We have the satisfaction to state that Colombia is perfectly tranquil, and that there is nothing now to apprehend from internal enemies. The province of Pasto is entirely under the protection of the Liberator; and according to letters from Bogota, even Obando had repented and followed the commissioners of the Liberator, who were charged with settling the terms of pardon granted in Popayan to the revolutionists. Every body has yielded to the generosity of the Liberator, and Colombia now exists by her magnanimity, wisdom and prudence, and by her constant watchfulness."

The same paper of the 8th, says, that official information had at length been received from Bolivia and the South of Peru, that the inhabitants had come out openly against the faction directed by Gen. Lamar, and that peace would be the inevitable consequence,

We learn that Gen. Santander still remained in confinement at Boca Chica.

The foregoing article, containing the most recent intelligence from Colombia, is from a New York paper of the 16th of April.

MEXICO. We extract the following article from Poulson's American Daily Advertiser, of the 28th of April.-"The British Packet Skylark, sailed from Vera Cruz on the 8th of March, bound to England, having on board Gomez Pedraza, who was recently elected President of the Republick of Mexico, but had been compelled to leave the country, by Gen. Guerrero. He had leave of absence for four years, the sum of $40,000 was given to him, and he is to be entitled to pay as commander of four regiments of cavalry. The day after Pedraza's leaving the country, Gen. St. Anna entered Vera Cruz, amid the shouts of the multitude. Com. Porter was invited to meet him, but refused, giving as a reason that St. Anna had been declared an outlaw, and until that law was annulled, he must look upon him as an outlaw. Vera Cruz was healthy on the 23d March."

UNITED STATES.-Every look which we cast toward the southern part of our continent, or indeed on the world at large, is calculated to impress our minds with a grateful sense of the Divine goodness to our favoured land. Where do we find another people enjoying, in an equal degree with ourselves, the blessings of civil and religious liberty, domestick peace and quiet, an abundance of the fruits of the earth, a healthful climate, and all the means and opportunities that can reasonably be desired for agricultural, commercial, and mechanical improvement and enterprise, and for advancement in useful knowledge of every kind. Take the aggregate of these blessings, and compare it with that to which any other people can lay claim, and our decided superiority must at once be admitted. Do we say this for the purpose of boasting? We say it for the purpose of producing shame and humiliation before God, for our base ingratitude to him as a nation. While he has thus distinguished us by his goodness, we have in certain respects distinguished ourselves by our sins-by sins which raise a fearful cry to heaven against us as a people-Slavery, Intemperance, and Sabbath breaking, are among the abominations to which we particularly refer. We do not say that any one of these is as yet carried to as great an extent among us, as it is in some other states. But we do say, that considering the light and privileges against which these sins with us are committed, our guilt in the commission, however less in quantity, so to speak, is awfully aggravated, and lies upon our nation with greater weight, we fear, than that, proceeding from the same causes, which burdens any other nation under heaven. The vices we have mentioned, with many others, are cherished by a large part of our population, and some of them are openly defended. Sabbath breaking, especially, is in the strictest sense a national sin, because it is not only allowed, but enjoined, by the national legislature. In these circumstances, it is some relief to the minds of the pious and reflecting, to observe the exertions that are making by colonization societies, temperance societies, and associations for promoting the better observance of the Sabbath, to correct the evils to which we have referred. Let the friends of these institutions know, that they are labouring to save their country, as well as to serve their God. Let them know that they are acting both as patriots and as Christians. Let nothing discourage or dishearten them. Let them unite, and labour, and pray; and then they will have reason to hope that, under the Divine blessing, the population of this heaven favoured land will be turned to the Lord, and his displeasure be turned away from them.

THE

CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE.

JUNE, 1829.

Keligious Communications.