But to return.

Mr. Jay, owing no doubt to his uncommon maturity of intellect, and the adaptedness of his mind for public speaking, commenced preaching at the early age of sixteen. His first efforts in the pulpit excited great attention, insomuch that he is said, at a very early period, to have been advertised (we must suppose by some indiscreet and injudicious friend) as "the prodigy." It spoke much for the strength of his character, that a mind so youthful as his, should have been every where greeted with so much of the incense of praise, and yet should not have suffered by it; but the desire which he had to please his Master and to save the souls of his fellow men, seems to have absorbed to a great extent every other; and if he was distinguished by the splendor of his gifts, he was equally so by his modesty, humility, and all the more unobtrusive of the christian virtues. It is remarkable, too, that the popularity which he acquired in such circumstances, and of course without a large stock of theological furniture, should have been enduring; but the native vigor and versatility of his mind, in connection with his intense application, enabled him constantly to maintain himself in his public efforts, insomuch that his popularity, great as it was in the beginning, never subsequently declined. He had not been long in the ministry when he was settled at Bath, and has had for many years one of the most respectable and flourishing congregations in England. The liberality of his views has conspired with the superiority of his talents to render him a favorite, not only among the different dissenting denominations, but also with many of the most respected and venerable men of the Church of England; and at home, as well as in our own country, his works are regarded, to a great extent, as the common property of all evangelical denominations.

Mr. Jay's manner in the pulpit, (we happen to have it in our power to write from actual observation,) is exceedingly well adapted to give effect to his impressive and eloquent thoughts. His person is uncommonly good, his voice flexible and melodious, his countenance singularly expressive, his gesture natural and graceful; in short, he has every thing apart from the actual merit of his discourses, to render him an attractive and popular preacher. No one would expect him, indeed, like Hall, or Chalmers, or Mason, to overpower his audience by the burning energy of his thoughts, or the almost terrific boldness of his manner; his power lies rather in winning them to their duty by the gentle arts of suasion. His manner is a fine compound of dignity and familiarity; while he never lets himself down to anything that even approaches the vulgar on the one hand, he is almost always level to the comprehension of the lowest class of his hearers, on the other. Though he is distinguished for the originality of his conceptions, and the beauty and propriety of his language, yet his thoughts are

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so clear in his own mind, and are expressed with such entire perspicuity, that the most intelligent and most illiterate may be alike benefited and delighted. Nothwithstanding he has been so long upon the stage, and is now several years past sixty, his popularity is not at all upon the wane; and scarcely any other minister attracts so large a congregation, whether at home or abroad.

Mr. Jay has been before the world as a writer upwards of thirty years. His earliest publications excited a high degree of interest, both in England and this country; and almost every thing from his pen-we believe every work of any magnitude-has gone through several editions. We have placed at the head of this article the titles of his most important publications, though we know of many other smaller works of his, which, in point of excellence, are not behind those we have enumerated. All that he has written may be considered as belonging to the same general class of publications, though several of them are sufficiently distinct in their character from each other, to justify a separate notice. We intend to offer a few remarks upon them in the same order in which we have given their titles, and then illustrate briefly the general influence which the writings of this author are fitted to exert upon the religious character of the age.

The two volumes of sermons which we believe are the earliest of Mr. Jay's larger publications, as they have been long before the world, have acquired a character which can be claimed by comparatively few sermons at the present day. They were manifestly written with more labor than characterizes his recent productions; and we think have less of that graceful ease of manner which belongs to the character of his mind, and which constitutes in a high degree, the charm of all his writings. These sermons, like every thing from his pen, are strictly practical; exhibiting the truth just as it lies in God's word, and its bearing upon the relations, the conduct, the destiny of men. They show a fertile invention, a most intimate acquaintance with the springs of human conduct, the power of reasoning with great effect upon common sense principles, and of bringing men to consider the truth in its application to their own circumstances. These discourses (and we think the same remark will apply to most of Mr. Jay's writings,) seem better fitted to edify and quicken and comfort the christian, than to arrest and convince the careless sinner; though several of them contain very close and pungent appeals to the conscience, and all are adapted to make men reflect on the solemnities of an eternal retribution.

Next in order are the four volumes of short discourses designed for the use of families. While these have the same general characteristics with those already mentioned, they have the additional advantage (considering the object for which they are designed) of being more familiar and better adapted to persons of humble capaci

ties and acquirements. They well deserve to make part of the reading of every christian family. They are so short as to be heard and read without uneasiness; so plain as to be level to every comprehension; so attractive as to enchain the attention even of the young; and so thoroughly practical that none can attentively read them without finding some new instruction or encouragement in respect to his duty. We know of no better help of the same kind than these sermons afford, to the cause of family religion. If it were the practice of every christian family in the land, to have these discourses read in their hearing from time to time as an occasional and stated religious exercise, we cannot doubt that the effect of it would be greatly to elevate the standard of piety, and especially to bring our youth more extensively under the hallowed influences of the gospel.

"The domestic minister's assistant, and prayers for the use of families" though not one of Mr. Jay's earliest works, had reached the ninth edition in England several years ago, and has passed through several (we know not how many) editions in this country. This work is by no means designed to take the place of extemporaneous prayer in any ordinary circumstances: it is intended rather to aid in the cultivation of the gift of prayer; and in some extreme cases to take away apologies for the neglect of this duty. It has been extensively adopted, and has no doubt exerted a most beneficial influence in promoting family religion, both in this country and in England. The prayers are characterized by great simplicity, by a happy variety, by an uncommon adaptation to the circumstances of a family, and it is scarcely necessary to add, by a spirit of rational and sublime devotion. We would not be understood as recommending the adoption of these or any other forms of prayer for stated use, especially where there is the common gift of extemporaneous speaking: but we would urge it upon every christian head of a family, before he attempts to excuse himself from this duty on the ground of inability, to bear in mind that there are excellent forms of prayer made out to his hands; and if he is unwilling to use them, he may very reasonably suspect not only the sincerity of his plea, but the grounds of his claim to be regarded a disciple of Christ. Let any intelligent christian begin by reading prayers in his family reverently and devoutly, and we may expect in most cases, that at no distant period his feelings will lead him to throw away his form, and cast himself upon the resources of his own mind and heart; but even if he should continue in the way in which he begins, though we might not think it the best way, yet we should not dare to make it a ground for questioning the depth of his devotion, much less the genuineness of his. piety.

One of the most interesting and valuable of all Mr. Jay's publi

cations is his "Christian contemplated." The design of this work is to exhibit the christian in all his various relations, and in every variety of condition, from the hour of his first being "in Christ," until he is safely landed "in heaven." There is in this work throughout, a constant repast both for the intellect and the heart. The plan of it is not more beautiful, comprehensive and original, than the execution is just, tasteful, and even sublime. As it professedly contemplates the christian under a great variety of circumstances, so it furnishes him instruction, encouragement, and assistance, adapted to every exigency of the religious life. Whether he is in the church, or the family, or the world; whether he is assailed by temptation, or buffeted by adversity, or cheered by the light of God's favor; whether he has the prospect of a long course of service in the cause of Christ, or is admonished that his course must speedily be finished, or that he is sinking even now into the arms of death; there are pages of this work which will come home to his heart with a delightful aptitude, and will by God's blessing yield him the light, or hope, or strength, which any exigency, even the most calamitous, can require. We scarcely know of any uninspired book which the christian may more safely and properly take as "a lamp to his paths" than this; and while it is eminently fitted to assist him in keeping his heart and walking humbly with God, it is not less adapted to quicken and exalt the intellect by bringing it into communion with the conceptions of a highly gifted and original mind, on the most interesting of all subjects. We must not omit to say that the preface to this work, which is unusually long, and might at first be considered as somewhat disproportionately so, is one of the author's happiest efforts. The subjects which he introduces are all of them touched with a master hand, and in a manner which shows that he can be at home as well in the more lofty and abstract regions of thought, as amidst the common sense realities of life.

The next in order of publication was the "Morning Exercises for the closet;" of which there is the less occasion that we should speak particularly, because the work has already been judged of from actual reading, by a large part of the intelligent christians in our country. We may say, however, for the benefit of any whom it has not reached, that each exercise generally consists of two or three pages of reflections upon some passage of scripture; regard being had in the selection, so far as may be, to seasons and events. For instance, the reflections for the first day of January are appropriate to the beginning of the year; the reflections for the 25th of December relate to the birth of the Savior; not, as we presume, because the author believed that was the actual day of our Lord's nativity, but because it is so regarded by some denominations, and he was willing that his reflections for that day should be in keeping

with their views, especially as no violence could thereby be done to his own, or those of other sects. These exercises are in fact skeletons of sermons; and if we mistake not many of them were used as such by the author, before their publication. In this point of view they are particularly deserving the attention of ministers and theological students: not that we would recommend any thing like close imitation, much less connive at the appearance of plagiarism; but there are certain general qualities belonging to these exercises, which any preacher might study to advantage; and though he should never attempt to incorporate them distinctly into his own discourses, the frequent contemplation of them could scarcely fail to increase the interest of his preaching. The private christian will of course study this work for a different purpose. He will here find many passages of scripture elucidated, which he had always before regarded as obscure; many new beauties unfolding themselves from the sacred word, which had before escaped his observation. If he proceeds in the study of this work with a humble and devout spirit, his love of the bible will constantly increase, his resolutions of holy living will grow stronger, he will have more of the unction of true piety, will be better girded for a conflict with himself and the world, and in short will be going forward not only regularly but rapidly in a state of sanctification. We are aware that several other books, and good books too, have been written upon the same general plan with this; but they are comparatively little known, and, it must be acknowledged, will not bear a comparison with this in point of real merit.

The "Evening Exercises for the closet," is the last of Mr. Jay's publications at least the latest which has reached this country. It is on the same general plan with the "Morning Exercises," and is designed to be a companion for that in every christian's closet. The interest of this last publication is sustained throughout, and is, we think, in every respect equal to its predecessor. One is surprized, in reading these two works, at the exuberance of the author's invention: they contain no less than seven hundred and thirty short discourses; and yet he has wonderfully contrived to avoid even the appearance of sameness. His expositions of scripture are so simple and natural, and yet in some respects so strongly marked by originality, that in reading them one can scarcely resist the impression that the author has certainly found the very mind of the Spirit, and that he has been little indebted to any human helps for the discovery. We have no doubt that both the Morning and Evening Exercises will become more and more a kind of text book for the christian's closet, and that generations yet unborn will admire the fertility of the mind, as well as the piety of the heart, which originated them.

If the estimate which we have formed of the character of Mr.