regard of personal and practical duties. If the word of God be neglected, the mind is left an easy prey to an evil influence from without; and in such a case, it is quite hopeless to expect that the relative duties incumbent on us as Christians will be kept in their due harmony and consistence.

2. The state of political feeling in the country, for the last few years, may also have tended not a little to foster a spirit of independence and a dislike for all subordination and control. The levelling spirit which has now set in-unless Divine Providence avert-threatens to hurry us on headlong into the wildest vortex of democracy. In the effort to escape what was deemed the Scylla of undue aristocratical influence, we we are in no small danger of dashing against the Charybdis of democratical violence; which, if experience is to be trusted, is infinitely more to be dreaded than the exposure to any evils resulting from the control of a few. That the professors of religion should, in such a period of excitement, have escaped unscathed from this collision of opinion and party feeling was hardly to be expected. The minds of men are now bent on change. The prevalent idea seems to be, "any change for the better; our ancestors were all in the wrong-their notions have become obsolete. All our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, must be new-modelled; all who oppose such views are the enemies of improvement, and should be treated as such."

If there be any two principles for the regulation of conduct in our holy religion more distinctly marked than others, they will perhaps be found in these:-1. "Meddle not with them who are given to change;" "be content with such things as ye have." -2. The second is, the duty of subordination as applied to every relation of life. Our Almighty Parent has in his wisdom ordained that the welfare of his human family shall depend on the maintenance of a due subordination between its various portions and members. To enumerate scripture authorities in illustration of this position would be to quote no inconsiderable portion of the sacred volume. A desire, therefore, of change, for the sake of change, and an impatience of control, are at direct variance with the spirit and design of the gospel.

3. Another cause of the diminution of respect from the people to their ministers may be found in the obstacles presented, especially in large towns, to a constant system of pastoral visitation. The preaching "from house to house," which St. Paul recommended, not only by precept, but by example, is second only (if indeed it be second), in importance, to the regular public ministration of the word; but in towns so densely populated as Liverpool, the practice to any considerable extent is clogged with serious difficulties; so that, a preacher, however anxious to perform every part of his pastoral office, can, in this instance only, hope to arrive at something like an approximation to it. The difficulty, too, is enhanced by the onerous duties connected with an attention on the part of the preacher to the outworks and the practical application of the machinery of the Methodist economy. A cruel necessity this! If any plan could be devised to exonerate them in part from this responsibility, and afford them more time for the pastoral work of visiting the members at their own houses, a most important end would be gained, and the spiritual profit of the people greatly promoted.

Such, Mr. Editor, are the views that have presented themselves to me in attempting to trace the causes of our unhappy divisions. In the present heated state of the minds of those who have mixed themselves up with this agitation, there is little hope that calm and dispassionate reasoning will obtain much attention. Reflection, however, will, I trust, in time come to the aid of not a few who now think that in promoting strife they are doing God service. As to the ultimate result of the present discussions, I have no fear. Storms serve to clear the atmosphere; and Divine Providence will ultimately make even "the wrath of man to praise Him." The tempest may produce temporary devastation; and the violence of misguided men may, for a time, be attended with consequences injurious to themselves and others; but peace and harmony will succeed both, and the apparently untoward events which we now witness, be overruled for a more extended diffusion of the gospel of our Redeemer among men.-I am, Sir, yours, &c., A WESLEYAN METHODIST LAYMAN

Liverpool, 1st July, 1835.

DIVISION OR NO DIVISION ?-THAT IS THE QUESTION.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ILLUMINATOR.

Sir-The article in the Lantern with the above title is well worthy of its pages, and is fully entitled to the commendation of Sir Andrew Ague Cheek's challenge,

"Exceeding good sense less."'

"There shall not be a division." Why? Because, " adhesion to the body is the first principle of the Association." But there are other first principles, as well as the boasted

one of the Association. For instance, the first principle of house-breakers, pickpockets, and other depredators is "adhesion to the body" politic; and they, equally with the Association, evince their "sincerity," by evading the grasp of the constablethe durance of the jail-and the salubrious air of New South Wales-as long as they can; endeavouring to prevent a "division" of themselves from their more honest countrymen, who heartily wish to get rid of them, by every means in their power, by forged "fac-similes," &c. Now, the "first principle" of good order is, that such persons shall not adhere to the community, however sincere their intention of so doing may appear; but that "there shall be a division," and if "the means used" by the police and other good subjects are not sufficient to ensure the transportation of these rogues," it is because of the superior skill (not a word about honesty) of their opponents, the rogues, in preventing it. The following dialogue is in point:

Judge-Prisoner, what have you to say, as your crime is notorious, and has been proved, why sentence of transportation should not be passed upon you?

Prisoner My Lord, there shall be no division-there need be no division." I am sure there need not, and I am sincere in saying it; for I belong to an Association of persons like myself; and the first principle of that Association is, that none of us, for any offence are to be transported; but are to continue adhering to British society.

Judge-I am to be regulated, in my decisions, by the law, which knows nothing of your Association or its first principles; and, therefore, there "shall be a division of your person from well-ordered society, for the term of 14 years, or for life, as the case may be.

In like manner, the preachers cannot, ought not, to regard the first principles of the redoubted, anti-Methodistical, and inconsistent Association. The Associates may be pledged to them; but the preachers are no parties to them; nor will they ever be. They are bound to attend to the first principles of Methodistical law and usage; both of which say, "there must be-there is a division !"

Again. In a large ship, suppose an Association were formed among some of the crew, with the "Doctor" at their head, to oppose all discipline-to disobey ordersto demolish the rigging-to throw the guns and ammunition into the sea-and to scuttle the vessel-declaring that their only object was the safety of the crew. As soon as such an Association was discovered, the "first principle" of those who had the charge of the ship, would be to get all its members overboard, either into the water, on the nearest land, or, if the Association could make one, upon a raft of boards hired for six months. Nor would the plea avail-our first principle is to stay on board, come what will. No! Common sense, and the first principle of nature, self preservation, would cause its instant rejection; and it would be carried by the acclamation of all honest seamen-" there shall be a division ;" or there will be a wreck. And are the preachers who are left in charge of the interests of Methodism tamely to allow the Association to revolutionize and "ruin" those interests ?-Certainly not! They say, and they ought to say to such persons-" there shall be a division ;" and there is no question about it.

Or, a number of persons profess to be British soldiers; but they will not submit to the established discipline of the army-they lavish systematic, foul, and false abuse on their officers, calling them "Tyrants, and endeavour, in every way, to excite mutiny; and all this on pretence of reforming the army and making it more effective. Well, as a matter of course, and as the most con amore proceeding, they get turned, perhaps drummed, out of the barrack. This done, they instantly set up a shout"there is no division, and there shall be no division." Our first principle is, adhesion to the army; and, as a proof of our sincerity, we have built a wooden tabernacle, and our uniform is the same as that worn by our old comrades, "in order that in appearance there shall be no more difference than cannot be avoided." Rare honesty to be sure! But with such a set, what upright or sensible man would march through Coventry?

An individual is afflicted with a painful and dangerous complaint; or, perhaps, a corn on his toe, or a decayed tooth. He sends for his medical attendant, and they agree, that as the "first principle" of the ailment is "adhesion to the body," so that is the strongest reason why powerful medicine or surgical aid should instantly be resorted to, that the evil may be eradicated before it undermines, irreparably injures, or brings the constitution to the verge of ruin." That there must be a division if health is to be restored, is a settled matter; and if either the patient or his attendant were to cry out doubtingly, "Division or no division?-That is the question," the other would instantly pronounce, that the querist and common sense had dissolved partnership. Has not the highest legal authority declared, that the present commotion affected the eristence of the Methodist connexion? And, if so, was it not imperative upon the guar

dians of the system to say, "there shall be a division ?"-Certainly! And no person but one labouring under the Warren mania, will come to any other conclusion.

In a word, the whole article is at variance with common sense and honesty; under the influence of which valuable qualifications "the Conference party have declared in favour of a division; what has produced the infatuation" of the Association which dictates the whole of their Quixotic course, I shall not stop to inquire; I mention the fact, and your readers may draw their own conclusions; but do not suffer these dividers and destroyers of the Lord's people to saddle the awful responsibility on other shoulders." OMEGA.

HORSE JOCKEYISM; OR, "MEN SINGULARLY FITTED FOR GREAT ACTIONS."

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ILLUMINATOR.

Mr. Editor-Perceiving that one of the most splendid pages of your admirable periodical, is that which records the valorous deeds of the illustrious worthies to whom your motto refers, I send the following facts as peculiarly deserving illumination; and if, when you have heard his exploits, you think my hero deserves so exalted an honour, pray do him the justice to place him at the head of your select list. I will quote the words of my informant, that you may be assured of the correctness of the statement. It is another specimen of that want of rectitude of principle and conduct, which so markedly characterises that most distinguished junto-that fractious fraternity—the "Association."

'If you have no objection, I will give you a specimen of the spirit by which the Agitators in this part of the country (Camelford, Cornwall), are actuated. They have been for some time endeavouring to get the circuit-horse from the preacher (Mr. Barber). The horse was subscribed for by nineteen individuals; one not a hundred miles from Barn Park, Boscastle, and two in Camelford, sent a written demand to Mr. Barber for the horse. Mr. B., of course, paid no attention to it; when a message was sent from the Boscastle gentleman to this effect; that as Mr. B. had committed himself to the law, the law should take its course, if he did not surrender the horse. Poor Mr. B. was at a loss to know how he had committed himself, and disregarded the threat. By and bye, however, the secret was out. It appears that by some mistake or other, the pastoral address of the Rev. Thos. Martin to the Camelford society was issued without the printer's name. There is a penalty of £20 per copy to be exacted from all who shall publish or distribute any papers under such circumstances. Mr. B., ignorant of this fact, distributed the address as freely as possible. Last week, a message was sent him from the "great man" to the effect, that if he did not give up the horse, an information would be laid against him for having distributed four copies within the last four months, and a penalty of £80 inflicted."

This is certainly a very novel and brief mode of unhorsing a man! One really would not suppose that a poor circuit-horse could be so very enviable a possession, for we know that, like his brother in the mill, he can, in general, but just manage to go his round, leaving his rider ample opportunity to indulge his meditations; or, if he choose by way of amusement, to pluck blackberries from the hedges. To be sure, we did once hear of a worn-out hunter who came in his old age to ecclesiastical preferment, suddenly galloping off at the sound of the horn, and joining in the chase with a pair of huge saddle-bags banging his bare sides, to the indiscribable merriment of the huntsmen, and the utter dismay and confusion of the preacher, who cut as ludicrous a figure as John Gilpin himself, whose reasons for his appearance he might aptly have adopted, "I came, because my horse would come;" but this is a solitary instance of spirit in a circuit-horse, and is only an illustration of the "ruling passion strong in death."But let us not mistake the capabilities of the Camelford steed. Little did our hero think, as he vaulted triumphantly on the back of this poor Rosinante, that he had mounted a Pegasus which would convey him in a trice from Land's End to Liverpool. We premise that this gentleman has never before been beyond his own locality. Now we know, Mr. Editor, that there is nothing like travelling to give expansion to the mind; and, since he is arrived, I hope you will do your utmost to illuminate him; and give him more just, liberal, and comprehensive views of things; and, above all, advise him to attempt no more feats of horsemanship, seeing that he may be carried farther and faster than he intends, to the hazard of wind and limb; or, in other words, if he wish to maintain any respectability of character, to abstain, for the future, from a course of procedure so mean and dishonourable, as will only serve to procure him a disgraceful notoriety. Apologizing for the liberty of these suggestions, I am, yours, &c. Y. Z.

Liverpool, June 30.

DR. CLARKE AND WESLEYAN METHODISM AS IT IS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ILLUMINATOR.

Sir-It will be in the recollection of many of your readers that the venerable Dr. Clarke was scarcely gathered to his fathers, when a certain party scattered his ashes to the winds of heaven, for the purpose of spreading pestilence among that body to which he was so long, so honourably, and so affectionately attached. That party, it seems, is not dead; and as they profess so much veneration for his opinions and conduct, I thought that, at the present moment, it might serve a cause on which, were he living, he would not be silent, to send for insertion in your very needful periodical a few of his opinions, which are of a somewhat better authority than those on which the men that "love darkness rather than light”—whether in a Lantern or out of it-seem disposed to lay more stress than the Doctor would approve. Indeed, those who have read the preface to his “ Life," published by his family, cannot but know that nothing is more severely denounced, both by him and his biographers, than collecting his deliberate opinions on any subject even from his ordinary written correspondence, much less from the baseless stories on which it has been attempted to erect an anti-Wesleyan batteringram under the sanction of his authority.

66

Great horror has been excited, and much noise is made, about the dominion of a few eminent men in a Theological Institution; and the better to answer the effect intended to be produced, they have been "supposed to be possessed of certain episcopal propensities,” and classed with the most arbitrary of the prelates of modern times, and the Popes, and even the Jesuits of the darkest ages. Sir, I heartily despise this rhetorical special pleading, whether it appear in Sir C. W. in a Court of Chancery, or in the demagogues of the "Grand Central Association." Misery," by the bye, "makes strange bed-fellows." Uncharitable suppositions, hard names, and special pleading, were not the weapons with which Wesley fought his battles; and that Dr. Clarke was not to be terrified by mere names, is evident from the following extract from his letter to "Messrs. Dr. Emory and others, of the Methodist Episcopal church," under date of the 6th of February 1832. In this letter he remarks, "I respect, I wish well to your state, and I love your church. As far as I can discern, you are close imitators of the original Methodists (than whom a greater blessing has not been given to the British nation since the reformation)-holding the same doctrines, and acting under the same discipline; therefore have you prospered as we have prospered."-Life, vol. 3, p. 363. The Doctor then urges them to abide by their characteristic simplicity; and that this would not be risked in Theological Institutions, in his estimation, is evident from the fact that he knew they had long had such institutions among them, and that he directed their attention to the cultivation of "learning," as well as of simplicity. This is also evident from his letter to Mr. Butterworth, in favour of such an establishment among the English Methodists, as long since as 1806. Dr. Clarke, therefore, was not horrified at the bare idea of "certain episcopal propensities," the mere creations of his own fancy; he actually "loved" an existing "Methodist Episcopal Church ;" and in this church he saw "the close imitators of the original Methodists."

Again; let us hear him as to the purity and efficiency of modern English Methodism. In one of his visits to the land of his birth, while he was president, he found some heart-burnings in Belfast; and the following entry is made in his journal :

"In the evening, I had a meeting with the preachers, stewards, and several of our principal friends, together with almost all the leaders, male and female; and endeavoured to set them right on matters on which they had got very uneasy. It was a very solemn and affecting time; and I believe all were determined to leave minor matters and considerations, and strive together for the hope of the gospel-laying themselves out more abundantly to bring sinners to God. On one proposing the question to me- Is Methodism what it has been?'-I answered it in a way very different from what was, I believe, expected and intended by it. No! it is more rational-more stable-more consistent-more holy-more useful to the community-and a greater blessing to the world at large.' And all this I found no difficulty in proving."-pp. 50, 51.

Lastly; let us consider the testimonies given of his latest intercourse with the " and "tyrants popes " of modern Methodism, in his last interview with them as a Conference, but a few weeks before his lamented decease. His "Life" sufficiently proves that he went to the Conference of 1832 under the influence of feelings powerfully excited by his appointment of the preceding year; but the result of his intercourse with his brethren is thus stated by his son in his Appendix to his Life. They were taking a walk together, and he remarks-" Having nothing particularly gratifying in the surrounding prospect to engage his thoughts, he seemed to turn with the greater delight to recollections of past scenes-dwelling with great pleasure and much affection on the universally kind feeling shown him by his brethren at the Conference. This was a subject to which he often recurred, and expressed his thankfulness to God that he had been enabled to meet the preachers, and that the meeting was such as to be remem

bered with the utmost gratification; indeed, he several times abruptly introduced a mention of the joy he felt, which clearly proved what great hold the circumstance possessed in his mind."-P. 461.

It was at this Conference that he wrote in an album, presented to him by the Rev. R. Newstead, the following deliberate testimony of his sincere attachment to both the doctrines and discipline of Methodism, as at present administered:-" From a long and thorough knowledge of the subject, I am led most conscientiously to conclude, that Christianity itself as existing among those called Wesleyan Methodists, is the purest, the safest, that which is most for God's glory, and the benefit of mankind; and that both as to the creed there professed, the form of discipline there established, and the consequent moral practice there vindicated. And I believe, that among them is found the best form and body of divinity that has ever existed in the church of Christ, from the promulgation of Christianity to the present day." And as though he were determined to put it out of the power of any one to slander his memory, and quote his authority against the Conference, he wrote the following brief letter "on the back of a copy of the stations which he sent from Liverpool to a friend in London:"

"THE CONFERENCE IS GREAT AND GLORIOUS, has done its work almost, and cannot exist longer than Monday. See what a roving commission they have given me !--I am, my dear friend, "Yours affectionately,

"August 5th, 1832."

ADAM CLARKE.

I met with this letter accidentally in an odd number of a defunct periodical for September 8th, 1832, where it may be found at page 343, with the autograph imitated. I would advise those who plead the Doctor's opinion against the Conference, and spare no pains to obtain it, to inquire diligently after the original letter; to get it lithographed, framed, and glazed, and hung up in their houses, and to look at it until it has shamed them into common honesty on the subject. After this, Sir, let us hear no more posthumous slander from the admirers of Dr. Adam Clarke.

PHILAGATHOS.

FUTILE ATTEMPT OF THE CENTRAL ASSOCIATION AT WIGAN.

"Parturiunt montes; nascetur ridiculus mus."

They who are vainly attempting to turn the Methodist part of the world upside down, have thought proper to send forth an agent to inflict a visit on the peaceable Wigan circuit; and we shall not hesitate to inform our readers of the honourable means employed to effect their purpose, and also of the issue of their scheme. Although Wigan is in the immediate vicinity of the two leading dissentient towns, it has remained unaffected, in any material degree, by their levelling and unconstitutional proceedings. A few weeks ago a sapient Solon arrived from Manchester, as we understand, in order to get up a public meeting in the above-mentioned town; to enlighten the Wesleyan Methodists in regard to their wrongs; to exhibit to their astonishment the iron chains which they had been long unconsciously wearing; and to bid them, with irresistible eloquence, make themselves free! This agent of the Association being, as it would appear, unacquainted with the Wigan Methodists, thought it advisable to pay a visit to the postmaster to inquire whether there were any persons who took in the Christian Advocate, concluding, no doubt, that if he could only meet with some readers of that notorious paper, they would have imbibed its principles, and be ready to second his plans. Having received the necessary information, he directed his steps to the house of a political radical close by, one of whose characteristics is a dislike to Methodism as it is, though he himself is neither a member of society, an attendant at the chapel, nor so far as we can learn, even a professor of religion. To the congratulations, the smiles, and the delights manifested at the meeting of these two patriots we are, of course, perfect strangers; but the effect was soon apparent in a visitation of those individuals to such as might possibly be induced to come forward to take the chair, and defend their endangered constitution. Alas! strange to tell, the proffered honor was universally declined! The leaders, the stewards, the trustees, the local preachers, were unwilling to patronise such a meeting; and it cannot be ascertained either that a single member has been secured to the Association, or that any encouragement was given to the friends of liberty, as they choose to be called. The scheme evinced a serpent-like sagacity; but it availed not against the bulwark of Christian principle. The sympathising visitor went from house to house to feel the pulse of the leading characters in the church, but finding the beat was healthy and vigorous, he was unable to pass off his potent medicines. What subsequently became of this Doctor of a broken constitution we cannot learn-whether he returned, as Dr. Warren might perhaps facetiously say, to "his own place," and determined to remain quietly at home-or whether he