civilised men and savages,-blessings for which we ought heartily to thank God. It will be a long time, I fear, before we shall get out of some of our 'vulgar errors,' which have become rooted in people's minds. Take, for instance, the commonly received opinion, that there must needs be violence and dishonesty at elections: this is a national prejudice of some standing. Now, of all political duties, perhaps the most grave and important is the election of members who shall represent us in parliament, in order 'to consult for the advancement of God's glory, the good of his Church, the safety, honour, and welfare of our sovereign and her dominions,' and exercise a most important influence on the welfare both of ourselves and our children. If any duty more than another requires calm and serious deliberation, and honesty of purpose-if any duty ought to be unobstructed by violence, and unimpeded by falsehoods and deception, it is surely this; and yet, instead of this being the character of elections, every practicable species of force and intimidation, bribery and corruption, calumny and misrepresentation, not only is practised, but is palliated, if not defended, as inseparable from elections; and this in the nineteenth century. Connected with this subject, there is a remarkable popular prejudice, which has always struck me as most absurd, namely, with regard to the non-admission of the presence of soldiers at elections. Formerly, the soldiers were very properly excluded, in order that the Crown might not influence or impede voters; and this was a sensible reason. But now that there is not the most remote danger of this sort, the military surely ought to be employed where needful, as being a disinterested body, in order to protect voters from mob-violence. Of all scenes, one of the most laughable (if one ought to laugh at such things), is to see a body of respectable

freeholders, as they go up to vote, running the gauntlet through a set of boys and idle vagabonds who infest our towns; and all this from the vulgar error' that it is contrary to liberty to have a military force to keep the peace at elections. If ever they are

wanted, surely it is then."

"We have plenty of 'vulgar errors' in religion, as well as our social system," said Mr. Hammond. "I talked the other day with a respectable dissenter, who is teacher of a considerable congregation, and he affirmed, that all before the Reformation was popery. He had no idea of there ever having been a pure catholic Church. This is the common notion of a large body of religionists. Even amongst educated Churchmen, how frequently you will hear persons who divide professing Christians into two classes, Catholics and Protestants. What a strange confusion of ideas, and obscuration of truth, arises from the popular mode of speaking. The catholic Church, rightly speaking, is, we know, the true Church. We profess that we believe one catholic and apostolic Church;' and we pray, 'above all, for the good estate of this catholic Church.' Why, therefore, do we concede to papists the advantage of this appellation? And why, in the name of all that is true and scriptural, do we lump ourselves up with the Babel crew of Protestants; who may be Socinians, Irvingites, or any thing else? We shall never get over these vulgar errors until we reform our phraseology, and maintain the Church of England in her true position as a branch of the one only Church, and as being utterly unconnected with any other which will not communicate with her, and being the only religious body which in these realms it is safe or lawful to join. Is it possible to conceive, in the apostolic age, two bodies of Christians in one

town who should refuse to hold communion with each other, or to obey the same pastors? Something of the sort indeed took place at Corinth, but St. Paul immediately put a stop to it. Another vulgar error is, that fasting and penance are remnants of popery;' and again that the object of going to church is to hear sermons; and that it is only necessary to receive the holy communion thrice in a-year. I might soon set you down a list almost as long as Sir Thomas Browne's."

"We have a great many truths to learn," said Mr. Walton," and a great many 'vulgar errors' to unlearn ; and many of the latter are, I fear, far more pernicious than the notion of the brock or badger going on two legs, or the sun dancing on Easter-day. But I do confess that I have great hopes of improvement; I believe that the schoolmaster is at last abroad in earnest, and he is teaching men truths which they who sent him forth little dreamed of in their philosophy. Human society has gone through a process of fermentation, and, after much conflict of opinion, and jarring together of crude and ill-digested theories, there are symptoms of a gradual settling down into truth. The Church seems ordained to be the chief instrument in the diffusion of right principles; she has made a great step in advance,—or rather back to her ancient ground. The same energy and spirit of investigation which, in arts and science, has produced so wonderful an advancement, has sent the Church to the true principles of her creed; and, discarding the unsatisfactory views of the last superficial generation, she has learned to vindicate her claim to the reverence and obedience of those who call themselves her sons, as being no mere human device, but Christ's own holy institution. Doctrines like these, widely preached, are beginning

to pervade the body of society; and, springing naturally from these, loyalty and right feeling are, let us hope, again becoming the characteristics of the English nation. And we are at last learning the sound and true principles of ancient days, that reverence for authority is a mark of the highest wisdom, and that the truest liberty is submission to the laws."

CHAPTER VIII.

SKETCH OF MR. HAMMOND'S SERMON - PECULIAR SOCIAL DUTIES OF MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.

There is one only bond in the wide earth
Of lawful use to join the earth in one.

Lyra Apostolica.

MR. WALTON's house was situated between the church and the young clergyman's lodgings; and it soon became a pretty regular custom with Mr. Hammond to drink tea with his worthy friend on his way home after the evening service, and converse on subjects suited to the occasion.

Not long after his arrival at Churchover, Mr. Hammond preached a very interesting and impressive sermon on the position of churchmen; setting forth, in a plain and forcible manner, that Christians ought not to consider themselves as isolated beings, nor as members of a mere human society, but as bound up together in a mysterious union in one sacred body: a condition which brought with it many duties and responsibilities, as well as many blessings and privileges.

His text was Acts ii. 41, 42, where St. Peter begins to preach the Gospel on the memorable feast of Pentecost: "Then they that gladly received his word were baptised: and the same day there were added unto them three thousand souls; and they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread and prayer." From these words he took occasion to shew, first, what was the nature and constitution of the ancient apostolic Church; namely, that it was a holy fellowship or