hitherto maintained the Protestant cause, are sinking into a desponding apathy; are getting weary of the subject, and disposed to turn their thoughts to some new thing and we are more convinced than ever, that this is a disposition to be deeply lamented and sharply reproved. It is unwise, unbelieving, unworthy of those who bear the name of Christian; who ought to think, that, when all human help hath failed and forsaken us, then God's deliverance is at hand. We are convinced, with respect to our other point, that, so far from the question being settled, there is rather need that THE CONFLICT SHOULD NOW BEGIN. We are satisfied that there is no safety to be expected, for our church or our country, except in now beginning an offensive warfare, with weapons not carnal but mighty through God, against Popery and all its allies. And if no worthier lead the way, we come forward as Christian Reviewers to commence the attack. We offer ourselves, as the forlorn hope of the Christian army, to brave all the fury of the enemy, of the legions and hosts of hell; and to set, with God's help, an example of Christian faith and courage to our Protestant brethren. And if none dare to help us in any other way, we entreat them to help us with their prayers.

An awful event has taken place. A foul blot has been fixed upon the fair fame of our Protestant country. WE HAVE BEEN UNCHRISTIANIZED BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT. We consider that this, and nothing less than this, is the true amount of the measure which has recently passed. If we have any thing of right feeling remaining-if the name of Christian and of Protestant continue in any respect or measure to be dear to us-we conceive that here is a sufficient, a loud and piercing call to deep humiliation and earnest consideration. For ourselves, we have been most deeply affected by the event. It has awakened in us the most solemn feelings. Yea-we scarcely knew, or dared to hope, that we felt such love to our Saviour and our country, as the emotions this event has excited in our bosoms have shewn us that we do. For our country, and for ourselves as members of that country, and united to it by inseparable bonds, as parts of the great body, we feel humbled and disgraced before the face of earth and heaven. We mourn inwardly over the open shame and dishonour which has been done to our Lord and Redeemer by this public declaration, that the disciples and slaves of Antichrist are as fit and worthy to govern this hitherto Protestant and Christian nation, as those who profess and maintain His truth, and are pledged to assert his honour and advance his cause. But we trust that this mourning and humiliation has brought us to the foot of the

Cross, to seek our consolation, strength, and wisdom there. We have considered more deeply than ever the origin of the evil, the true causes of our defeat and shame; and we would call upon our fellow-Christians and fellow-countrymen to consider them too.

We must look far back, and consider the whole course of events from the period of the Reformation downwards. How did the Reformation begin? By a direct and resolute attack upon Popery and its abominations. And as long as this offensive warfare continued, Protestantism prospered and increased. It was the grand design and policy of the arch-enemy of the church to divert us from it. Protestants began to contend with one another, about non-essentials. Others began to rest in their privileges, and to think it quite sufficient if they remained in the undisturbed possession of them. Discussion of the questions at issue was left to the learned; while among the great mass of the people deep ignorance, as to the real principles of the Reformation and the true character of Popery, more and more prevailed and this was especially observable in the more educated classes, who seem to have been instructed in every thing but the principles of the Protestant religion. In this state of indolence and supineness, the great enemy saw his opportunity of commencing a subtle attack upon all those barriers which the wisdom of our fathers, dearly bought in the school of experience, had opposed to the encroachments of Popery. A disposition to concession manifested itself, among those who had power and authority in the state, and who ought to have been the zealous defenders of the Protestant cause-the firm, decided opposers of Popery and all its devices. A new kind of warfare began, in which the Romish church became the assailant: and Protestants were content to stand on the defensive; raising up indeed from time to time a feeble cry against further concessions, but never rising to the full consideration of the circumstances under which they were placed, or to due inquiry into the true character and designs of their subtle and restless adversaries. Thus for a long period we have stood on the defensive; and we have been beaten, shamefully beaten: point after point has been yielded, till at length every barrier has been overthrown, and a victorious and insolent enemy, that has already arisen from an abject and conquered condition to equality, has now full liberty and every encouragement to aspire yet further, and to proceed to ascendancy and dominion. We have been shamefully defeated. And why? Because we forsook our proper station, and indolently neglected our duty and calling. Our duty was to wage inter

minable war with Amalek from generation to generation; to be always assailing Popery at home and abroad. We should never have ceased from this spiritual and scriptural warfare, till Protestantism had been established in every country of Europe, and not so much as one Romish congregation had remained among ourselves. Our duty resembled that of the Israelites, when a succession of glorious victories had settled them in Canaan. They were commanded to extirpate idolatry. Through indolence and unbelief they neglected that commandment. And what was the consequence? The Canaanites continued to be pricks in their eyes and thorns in their sides all their days; and sometimes got above them, and lorded it over them. Our duty was the same: to extirpate idolatry by all lawful means. We have, through similar indolence and unbelief, neglected this our duty, and in a similar manner we have been punished for it. And if we do not become true and zealous Protestants once again, we shall be punished more severely still: for we must be either triumphant or oppressed we cannot live on equal terms of peace and amity with Antichrist: we must not once think it for "What concord hath Christ with Belial ?—and what agreement hath the temple of God with idols?"

Very especially we have been guilty in regard to Ireland. We, a Protestant people and government, living in the clear light of the Gospel, have had dominion over the miserable slaves and victims of Papal superstition there. We have had all stations of power and authority in our hands, both in church and state. The clergy of our national church have held the offices and received the emoluments of bishops, dignitaries, parish priests, and curates in that country. Each and every one of these should have been a zealous missionary to the poor benighted Roman Catholics in Ireland. And if they had been such, would Ireland have been in its present condition? Would there now have been occasion to talk of settling the Catholic question, for fear of the Catholic Association? The question would have been settled long ago, in the only way in which it was fit it should be settled, by the conversion of the mass of the people to the Protestant faith. We are verily guilty concerning our brethren, in that we saw the darkness and blindness and idolatry in which they were sunk, and made no strenuous efforts to deliver them. Therefore is the blood of those who have perished in Popish ignorance required at our hands. And if we do not wish that increasing guilt should bring down upon our heads increasing judgments, now is the time to take warning, to repent of the past, and, with deep humiliation and contrition, to enter upon a new course.

While, then, others are disposed to give up this all-important question in disgust or in despair, we, having duly considered these things, are determined, with God's help, to come forward, and to take every opportunity of blowing the trumpet in Zion and sounding an alarm upon God's holy mountain, in the hope of awakening the true Protestant feeling in the country. And we cannot better begin than by calling the attention of our readers to FACTS. With this view we request their attention to the important and interesting work before us, containing a vast body of evidence, which, within a few years, has been laid before the two houses of parliament. When we had perused and considered it, we were more astonished than ever at the infatuation under which the legislature and government of this country have acted, in the conclusion to which they have lately come and we feel anxious that the contents of these volumes should be far more widely known than at present they seem to be.

We have long been influenced by a strong feeling of abhorrence to the Romish Church. Scripture and history combine to make us regard it as the great Mystery of Iniquity, "BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." But when a strong feeling has long had possession of the mind, it very commonly happens, that, when we come to examine into facts, we find reason to accuse ourselves of rash judgment and want of charity, and to retract some of our former opinions and declarations, under the conviction that we have gone too far, that passion and prejudice have usurped the place of reason, and that things are not quite so bad as we supposed. But, whatever experience we may have had of this kind in regard to other subjects, we find it quite otherwise with respect to the Church of Rome. The more we search into its real character, the more abominable we find it to be; and we have several times risen up from the perusal of the volumes before us under the impression that "Really these Roman Catholics are much worse than we imagined them: their system is, as it has always been, such a system of deceit and falsehood as no one could conceive possible, except by looking accurately into facts." The advocates of the Roman Catholics in the present day have, indeed, employed every argument and artifice to persuade us that a great improvement has taken place; that the Church of Rome is no longer what it was; that the progress of civilization, refinement, illumination, and liberality, in modern times, has softened down the harsher features of Popery-caused a gradual renunciation of the grosser and more horrible parts of the system, which only could belong to

it during the dark ages-and that it has now neither the disposition nor the power to re-act the horrors of which we read in history.

We hope to take occasion, from time to time, to state very fully and clearly our notions of modern Illumination and Liberality suffice it for the present to say, that we have no faith in the power or sufficiency of any such principles to produce any such effects as are here ascribed to them. Neither could we find it possible to believe that any such amelioration of Popery had taken place, while Papists themselves, Bishops of the Romish Church, are found, who openly maintain that the system is unchanged and unchangeable. We have, however, looked into evidence. We have carefully perused the volumes before us, containing a digest of all the evidence laid before Parliament only four or five years ago: we judge the Papists out of their own mouths and their own writings: and we rise from the perusal with a full conviction THAT POPERY AT THE PRESENT DAY IS WORSE THAN EVER IT WAS. It has renounced not one of its horrors and abominations, but only waits for an opportunity to renew all its atrocities: and it is more subtle, more specious and deceitful, more a mystery of falsehood, than ever. It is Satan transforming himself into an angel of light. He remains Satan still, with all his cruelty, malignity, slander, and treachery; but more dangerous than ever, because less easy to be detected. Abominations are never more abominable than when covered with fair and specious appearances: and Popery is at best but a whited sepulchre, which, however pleasing it may look to the unthinking and unwary, is yet full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness and corruption. The fair appearances which Popery now puts on, in the writings and representations of some of its advocates of the present day, should not be suffered to beguile us, but should only induce us to consider more deeply and search more accurately into what is concealed beneath them. If a man is known to be an hypocrite and an enemy, we (if we be wise) shall never be more watchful and suspicious than when he speaks us fair.

But, unfortunately, we live in a superficial age. Few, very few, will take the trouble to think deeply, and examine with care. We are content to look at the outside; and if that seems decent, we take it for granted that all is well. Or, rather, should we not say, that (generally speaking) men care for nothing but a fair outside in themselves, and therefore they cannot with any reason or justice look for more in others? Look at Regent Street, and all the new buildings in the Regent's Park. Behold a vast city, all built of stone! a city of palaces and temples, with all the