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describes to France, "whose boast it was to set up a standard of depravity to the rest of Europe." In speaking of Britain as the chosen and the honoured instrument of Providence to sustain the righteous cause, he has this fine allusion, which must have appeared peculiarly beautiful and appropriate at the time when it was delivered:

"Our progress in this world should be like the march of the Israelites in the wilderness, and whether God appears in the illumination of his obvious interposition, or surrounded in the cloudy pillar of his darker purposes, still we should be confident that God is with us of a truth. On this spirit, therefore, which sees good in all things, and good of an higher power and character than mere natural things can bestow, I congratulate you my brethren. My Christian brethren, it is our privilege, and the more freely we exercise it, the more richly shall we feel its consolations: it secures us from all things by which the world loves to agitate its vapid energies, and make to itself matter of pain and of importance; it secures us from the importunity of selfish hope, the disappointment of querulous sagacity, and the dejection of unbelieving despondency; it accompanies us through life, divesting calamity of danger, and prosperity of presumption, giving to the individual strength to resist the shock that has shaken nations, and to believe and hope where nature trembles and despairs: nor shall its influence be limited to these elements-it shall not desert us in the hour of death, nor in the day of judgment." pp. 61, 62.

Of Lord Nelson he thus speaks: "Blessed be God, who hath given such power to men!-not in the cloister, nor in the cell, nor in those retired and shaded walks of human life that seemed formed for knowledge and converse with divine things it may be found in the blaze of a battle, and in the life of a hero.

"I speak of the great person whose death has, as on this day, clouded the enjoyment of victory. God only knoweth the heart; but if there be any dependence on those modes by which man makes his thoughts and feelings known to man, he appears to have furnished an example of this spirit unequalled in the history of human nature to have considered himself as called and commissioned for a great purpose, not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts; and to have fulfilled it with that uniform and unmixed ascription of glory to God, which became him who was conscious of his high destination." pp. 69, 70.

VOL. VII.

We have now a charity sermon for the children of St Audeon's school; the text is taken from Titus iii. 4,— "The kindness and love of God our Saviour towards man hath appeared." After having shown that the kindness and love of God is manifested in all his procedure to man, and especially in the plan of salvation by Christ, and applied the subject to the occasion of the assembly and of the sermon, he closes with this artful and eloquent peroration:

"Beloved, I would speak one word more; I would speak of a man, who, had he thus pleaded before you, would have made you alike profuse of your wealth and your tears. In pleading for a public charity, I will speak of him; for did I not, the very stones would cry out '-I speak not of his zeal, his labours; I speak of that eloquence, at the sound of which, as of a mighty rushing wind, the spirit of charity has descended, and sat upon each of the assembly. Let not the decorum of this place be violated, when I add the name of Kirwan. Had he addressed you to-day, guilt would have trembled, and pe nitence would have wept-every eye had poured forth tears, and every hand been lavish of gold. Beloved, is it the advo cate or the cause that moves you? I have not sought to work on your feelings-1 have stated to you the terrors of the Lord; knowing, that if one soul be brought to repentance, there will be more joy than if mountains of gold were heaped in that aisle.-I have laboured to lay before you those principles which can alone make us turn from dead works to serve the living God; because I know, that at the last day, not actions but motives will be weighed, and that no works are good but those which are the works of love. I have not sought to move you by eloquence, or by passion; for the former I do not possess, and the latter I despise; but I have sought to commend myself to you by manifesta tion of the truth.'

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"I will not add another word. May the Almighty bless the seed that is sown, that it may bring forth fruit to everlasting life."" pp. 94, 95.

The next sermon in order is on the influence of the Holy Spirit; the text from St John iii. 8. From this discourse we select the following ex

tract:

"If it be demanded, how shall a man know whether he is under the influence of divine power, or only a perilous illusion of the imagination, I answer, not by a single act, however good and laudable-not by a strain of feeling, however intense and vivid

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-not by any series of devotional acts, however regular and consolatory-but by a conscious change of heart and mind, producing a corresponding change of lifeby a heart dead to the world, and alive to God:-by the whole course and current of life flowing in a new channel, no longer wearing itself in a fretful struggle against the rocks of life, but a placid, steady, onward course to eternity."

pp. 110, 111. From these samples of this volume of Sermons, our readers will be enabled to judge for themselves of their merit; and, as the extracts are taken nearly at random from the discourses as they stand arranged in the volume, they may be regarded as fair specimens of the author's manner of writing and preaching.

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The subjects of the other discourses are-The New Year, 1817-On Male and Female Education-On the Love of God-On the New Creation-A Charity Sermon-On Sincerity of Re. ligion -On Christian PerfectionFast-day, February 5, 1812-On the Example of Christ-On the Atonement On the Promise of the Life which now is-On the Parable of the Prodigal Son-Reasons for Preferring Communion with the Church of England-On the Spirituality of Christianity-On the Offence of the Crossand on the Importance of Searching the Scriptures.

These are topics both various and important, and, though none of them be handled in the manner of a thesis, with an array of arguments, illustra tions, objections, and answers, yet many pertinent things are said on each of them. In the sermon on Education much hostility is manifested to classical learning. We are the more surprised at this, as the author, in some of his former works, has shown

an extensive and intimate acquaintance with the writers of Greece and Rome. To be sure, he has a singular habit at times of alluding to some of the most disgusting passages of their writings; but, if his own imagination has been disagree ably affected by these, we believe the world in general have derived from the great writers of antiquity no other influences except such as have been favourable both to good taste and sound morality,

REMARKS ON CRAWFURD'S HISTORY OF THE INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. THE fine enthusiasm of Sir William Jones, associated, as it was, with profound scholarship and cultivated taste, gave an impulse to the literary exertion of our countrymen in India, which, in the course of its operation, has produced the most important effects. The researches of the Asiatic Society, instituted under the auspices of that distinguished individual, have shed a tide of light and interest both on man and nature" as they exist, or have existed in Asia. This institution has been the means of inducing many persons to observe, and to record their observations, who would otherwise have permitted the favourable circumstances in which they were placed for extending the limits of our knowledge, to pass altogether unimproved.

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But the valuable papers, which compose the now numerous volumes of the Transactions of the Society in Bengal, do not comprise the whole of what has thereby been done for the cause of literature and science. It has become the parent of a similar association, which has also begun to publish its Transactions; and it is not too much to assert that it has inspired individuals with the literary ambition, and the confidence requisite for appearing before the world in the character of authors: and hence we have soldiers, and sailors, and merchants, who have spent a portion of their life in the East, claiming our attention from time to time, not merely in regard to their conduct in the discharge of the duties of their respective professions, but chiefly as antiquaries, historians, naturalists, and travellers.

The author before us belongs to this class: Having, like multitudes of others, gone out to India at an early period of life, his first attempts at authorship were made in the pages of the Transactions of the Asiatic Society; and having been stationed first in Prince of Wales' Island, and afterwards in the Island of Java, in situa

Containing an Account of the Manners, Arts, Languages, Religions, Institutions, and Commerce of its Inhabitants.

By John Crawfurd, F. R. S. late British

Resident at the Court of the Sultan of Jaya. With Maps and Engravings. In 3 vols Edinburgh. Constable and Co. 1820,

tions highly favourable for observation and inquiry, he employed himself in collecting the materials, which he has embodied in the volumes on our table, and which he has entitled the History of the Indian Archipelago. It is not, however, a chronological arrangement of events, or a series of disquisitions on the politics of these islands, that constitute the sole, or, indeed, the chief subjects, which that title includes. On the contrary, the "character of the Indian islanders," the arts and sciences they practise or cultivate, together with their language and religion, are treated of under distinct heads, as well as what is more properly termed their history and political institutions. On all of these, and some other topics, a great deal of valuable information is adduced, and in a sufficiently attractive form; except that we think the matter, in many instances, might have been advantageously condensed; and that the author would have done well to have avoided many of the speculations in which he has thought proper to indulge.

The Indian Archipelago contains three islands of the first rank in point of size, namely, Borneo, New Guinea, and Sumatra of the second rank, Java, and the Malayan Peninsula; of the third rank, Celebes, Luzon, and Mindanao; and of a size still inferior upwards of sixteen. But the relative importance of these islands does not depend on their territorial magnitude, but on their situation, and productions. "The whole Archipelago is situated within the tropics." The grouping of the islands gives rise to numerous intricate straits and passages, which would be of dangerous navigation, were it not for the pacific nature of the seas, and the uniformity of the winds and currents. These islands are inhabited by two distinct races of the human speciesa brown complexioned race, and an aboriginal negro race. The first in person are short, squat, and robust. The hair of their heads is long, lank, harsh, and invariably black: the face round, the mouth wide, the cheek bones high, the nose, though never prominent, is never flat, and the eyes are so uniformly black, that any de

New Holland is excluded, being regarded as a Continent.

viation from that colour is regarded as a striking singularity. This race is found throughout the whole extent of the Archipelago, but abounds chiefly in Sumatra, Java, and indeed whereever civilization has made some progress. Their notions of beauty are nearly the same as among ourselves. "The man that is considered handsome, and the woman that is pointed out as beautiful by an European, are the same that are allowed to be so by their own countrymen.”

"The East Insular negro" (the other race) is a distinct variety of the human species, and evidently a very inferior one. Their puny statures, and feeble frames, cannot be ascribed to the poverty of their food, or the hardships of their condition, for the lank-haired races, living under circumstances equally precarious, have vigorous constitutions. Some islands they enjoy almost exclusively to themselves, yet they have in no instance risen above the most abject barbarism. Whenever they are encountered by the fairer races, they are hunted down like the wild animals of the forest, and driven to the mountains or fastnesses incapable of resistance." Vol. I. pp. 25, 26.

The Indian islanders are defective in personal cleanliness, though they are fond of bathing. In point of diet they are temperate, and even abstemious. Rice, spiceries, and a small portion of animal food, frequently fish, constitute their ordinary fare. Drunkenness is very uncommon among them, though at their feasts they occasionally drink to inebriety. They are industrious, or indolent, in proportion to their civilization or barbarity; possess a high degree of fortitude, and are generally superior to the fear of death. They are slow of comprehension, but have cars of remarkable delicacy for musical sounds. They have no capacity for intrigue, and have a sacred regard for truth. In their external deportment they are grave and courteous. Though tenacious of their rights, they are neither litigious, avaricious, nor rapacious. Hospitality is universal among them. These virtues, however, are contaminated by their belief in dreams, omens, sorcery, charms, philtres, and relics. Revenge is one of the most common of their vices: a blow will not for a moment be tolerated: the kris is at hand ready to avenge the insult. "The exercise of the right of private revenge, and the law which acknowledges it, de

mand life for life, but both accept a pecuniary commutation; so that every man's life has its price, and that too not a very high one.'

The husband invariably pays a price for his wife among all the tribes. Women are not immured, but associate with the men on terms of equality; and in the island of Celebes women are eligible, and are sometimes raised to the sovereign authority. In Java the women are secluded among the better classes, but not very rigidly. Polygamy and concubinage are tolerated, but looked upon as a vicious luxury of the great. No man will give his daughter for a second or third wife to a person of his own rank. Parental authority is exercised to the latest periods of life, and filial duty willingly returned. Fraternal affection, particularly between children of the same mother, is warm and active. The Javanese have a strong attachment to the place of their birth, and nothing will induce them to quit the tombs of their fathers. Yet the author tells us they have not a word in any of their languages to express friendship.

The houses in some of the islands are raised on posts, and are constructed chiefly of bamboo, rattan, palmetto leaf, and wild grass. Houses are generally grouped into villages, and a town is merely an aggregation of villages, distinguished by the size of the public mosque, and the palace of the Prince. The inhabitants sit, and eat on the ground; their food is served on trays of wood or brass; and their beds are benches of bamboo, furnished with a mat and pillow. In cooking they use shallow pans, or pots imported from China. There is not a bridge in the whole island of Java, no sluice of durable materials, no artificial canals or wells, and no tanks or other public works of irrigation. The art of turning an arch is not understood at present, though it is discovered in the ruins of every ancient temple. Their manufactures of the loom are of a coarse texture, which they dye blue or red. The raw materials of their silk stuffs are brought from China. They work well in metals, and the filagree of the Sumatrans is highly curious. The kris is fabricated into a great variety of shapes, and a great deal of ornament is occasionally lavished both on the blade

and the handle. Betel boxes are also curiously carved. Their shipping consists of vessels, from small canoes hollowed out of the trunk of a tree, to those of 50 tons burden, but as they increase in size, they become unsafe. The materials of ship-building are abundant.

Most of the savage tribes of the Archipelago go in a state of perfect nakedness, with the exception of a slight covering suggested by modesty. Children of both sexes go entirely naked till the age of six or seven years, The habit of those who are clothed is a sort of medium between the tight dress of the Europeans, and the flowing robe of the continental Asiatics. It is nearly the same in both sexes, The Sarung, or envelope, used in the manner of a Scots Highlander's plaid, is universal: below this many wear drawers, or pantaloons, and both are fastened by a zone, generally of silk. The second general piece of dress is the coat made in various forms, but which, in the greatest proportion of cases, may be described as a frock with sleeves. The legs and feet are bare, and a slight species of turban is wrapped round the head. Flowers, ornaments of gold, and of diamonds, are worn on festive occasions. The kris, or dagger, the betel box, and the umbrella, are constant appendages of the dress. With the view of improving the beauty of their persons, it is customary to file and blacken their teeth, an operation which is performed about the age of puberty. A coloured cosmetic to improve the complexion is also in use among the civilized tribes. On festive occasions, many portions of the dress are laid aside," and we may truly say of the Javanese, that when in full dress they are almost naked." From the age of puberty to death, every man is armed to protect himself, so that these islanders are strictly an armed population. Besides the kris, the weapons of war used by them are the club, the bow and arrow, the tube for discharging arrows (which are sometimes poisoned with vegetable juice) and fire-arms.

We must content ourselves with referring our readers to what is said by Mr Crawfurd on the Arithmetic the Calendar-the Navigation and Geography-the Medicine and the Music of these islanders, that we may leave ourselves room to be some

Two descriptions of rice are cultivated throughout the islands, the plants of the one of which require immersion in water, the other not. The latter kind is sown in the middle of the dry season by dibbling or broadcast; that which requires submersion is sown when the season permits. When the land is watered by artificial means, it is sown at the pleasure of the cultivator, so that, in one little field, or rather compartment, the husbandman is ploughing or harrowing; in a second he is sowing; in a fourth the grain, is beginning to flower; in a fifth it is yellow; and in a sixth, the women, children, and old men, are busy reaping." The rapid growth of the grain has enabled the Javanese husbandman, in a few happy situations, to urge the culture to the amount of six crops in two years and a half.

what particular on the subject of their agriculture, which we regard as highly curious and important. The rainy season of the year may be denominated the spring, and the dry season the autumn, of these tropical countries. The diversified character of the surface affords abundance of land of a low and marshy, and of an elevated and dry, quality. The perennial streams, which pour down the sides of the high mountains, charged with the debris of rocks and the decay of vegetation, shed a fertilizing influence throughout the whole extent of their course. The alluvial soils of the valleys are from ten to fifty feet in thickness, and are too rich to need the aid of manure. The degree and the variety of the temperature are circumstances, in like manner, highly favourable for the most valuable as well as the most luxuriant vegetation, A fugitive crop of rice is sometimes, taken from patches cleared in the forests; this land pays no rent. The uplands constantly under culture pay, as rent, a third part of the produce. The lands which are flooded in the course of the periodical rains, and those which can be watered by artificial irrigation, yield two crops in the year, and pay a rent in proportion to their value. The buffalo and the ox are the cattle commonly employed in the labours of agriculture. A plough, a harrow, a hoe, a large knife, and a sickle, are almost the whole stock of implements that is required. The brooks are dammed to cause them to overflow the fields; the slopes of the mountains are formed into terraces to intercept and retain the beneficial moisture; and valleys are rendered almost impassable, from the frequency of the water courses.

"Not an accessible spot is to be seen in the season that is not covered with a rich harvest; and if we take into account the brilliant tints of an equatorial sky, the vicinity of mountains of ten thousand feet high, the more elevated portions of which are covered with forests of perpetual ver dure, valleys thickly strewed with groves of fruit trees, hiding the cottages of the peasantry, together with the peculiar richness of the rice crop itself, which far excels that of all the other Cercal gramina, we may imagine that rural industry cannot well be contemplated, in any portion of the globe, to greater advantage."

Vol, I. pp. 352, 353.

The stubble is burned, after the ground has been a short time pastured with cattle. In some places rice is grown during the wet season; and, in the dry half of the year, some species of pulse, farinaceous root, or an nual cotton, is cultivated. But the richer lands are scourged by the everlasting succession of a double harvest of rice.

After rice, maize, which seems an indigenous plant, is most extensively cultivated, and, as an article of food, has in the islands the same relation to rice that oats and barley have to wheat in Europe. It is a sure crop, as it grows well in every clime of the Archipelago; it is also very productive, four or five hundred fold not being an unfrequent return. Millet, and other small grains, are not raised in great quantities; but pulses form an important article of husbandry in the western islands of the Archipelago: they are cultivated chiefly as The pulse green crops after rice. whence soy is manufactured is raised to a considerable extent, and requires skill in the culture. Nutritive roots, such as the yam, sweet potatoe, Java potatoe, arrow-root, and the common potatoe, are also extensively cultivated. The varieties of the yam are numerous, and it sometimes grows to the weight of forty or fifty pounds. The sweet potatoe follows rice as a green crop, and grows to a large size. The manioc of South America has. been introduced, and may be seen

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