Lutheran Synergism, and Remonstrant Humanism furnished the second. With these elements the Reformed theology was thrown into the crucible in all Europe, but the ordeal was severest of all on English ground.

"It belongs to the very essence of the situation that an enunciation of the elements of the gospel, springing out of such conditions, should be supremely well guarded from the sides of both its most obdurate foes. . . . No wonder, then, that even the most cursory reader of the Westminster Standards is impressed with the exquisite precision and balance of their statements, with the clearness and purity with which they bring out just the essence of the gospel, and the drastic thoroughness with which they separate from it every remainder of sacerdotal and humanitarian leaven."

In the last place the Standards are considered from the point of view of vital religion. It resulted from the conditions governing their origin that they should be also notable monuments of religious life. "Creeds have been given to the Church, not by philosophers but by the shepherds of the flock, who loved the sheep; not in a speculative but in a practical interest; not to advance or safeguard what we speak of as merely intellectual, but distinctively spiritual needs." "Of no creed is this more true than of the Westminster Standards." "It results, therefore, from the very nature of the case, that it is above everything else a religious document which they have given us . . . a document transfused with the very spirit of the age of religious revival which gave it birth, and bearing to every age which will receive it the spirit of devotion enshrined in its bosom." This is the crowning glory of the Standards. It is what has made them so precious to the holiest of men. It seemed so natural that the author should quote in this connection the estimate of Dr. Thornwell. To his students, and indeed to all who knew him, he was the embodiment of that clearness of view and glowing piety which are blended in our Standards.

It is refreshing in this age, when so many are growing restive under the authority of creeds, and others are claiming a broad license under them, to read this address of Dr. Warfield. It is a good tonic. He loves the Westminster Standards because of what they are, what they have accomplished, and what they are destined to accomplish in the future. As long as he occupies the chair of theology Princeton will remain true to its noble traditions. Let us close by joining in the author's fervent prayer which contains the last words of the address:

"Surely blessed are the churches which feed upon this meat! Surely the very possession of Standards like these differentiates the fortunate churches which have inherited them as those best furnished for the word and work of the Christian proclamation and Christian life. May God Almighty infuse their strength into our bones and their beauty into our flesh, and enable us to justify our inheritance by unfolding into life, in all its completeness and richness and divinity, the precious gospel which they have unfolded for us in their protecting envelope of sound words!" W. T. HALL.

Columbia, S. C.

KENT'S HISTORY OF THE HEBREW PEOPLE.

A HISTORY OF THE HEBREW PEOPLE. From the Settlement in Canaan to the Division of the Kingdom. By Charles Foster Kent, Associate Professor of Biblical Literature and History, Brown University. With Maps and Plans. 12mo, pp. xxii., 220. $1.25. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1896.

A HISTORY OF THE HEBREW PEOPLE. to the Fall of Jerusalem in 586 B. C. publishers. 1897.

From the Division of the Kingdom
With Maps and Charts. The same

These two handy volumes, beautifully printed, beautifully arranged, and attractively written, are among the most readable of all the publications recently issued covering the same general subject. The apparatus of learning is carefully hidden. Even foot-notes are discarded. The authorities followed and the bibliography of the subject are relegated to an appendix in each volume. The style is clear and the method of treatment popular and effective, and both style and method so well sustained that the book almost "reads itself."

The first volume covers the history of the Hebrew People from their settlement in Canaan to the rupture of the kingdom in Rehoboam's day. Introductory to this perhaps one-third of the volume is devoted to such matters as the scope and importance of Hebrew history, its sources, the land to be occupied and its original inhabitants, and the genesis of the Hebrew people. The second volume divides the history into the pre-Assyrian period of the Hebrews, the Assyrian period of Israel, the Assyrian period of Judah, and the Babylonian period of Judah, with such preliminary matter to each as the study of the historical sources and chronology of the period.

The governing principle of the author's work is the adjustment of the history to the so-called findings of modern criticism. He calls it "the new history" of the Hebrew people, and characterizes it as likely to impress the reader at first as "quite different from that to which we were introduced by our parents." It is in the chapters containing introductory and preliminary matters chiefly that one finds the lines along which the history will be "constructed," though the author nowhere goes into any elaborate discussion of the methods of the critics whose results he accepts. Having accepted these results or findings, so-called, he adjusts the history to them so naturally and pleasantly that one forgets that they are only of the nature of unverified hypotheses. Indeed, the very clearness, simplicity, and popularity of the style make the book the more dangerous. Its assumptions are taken and argued from with all the reality and seriousness of actual facts. As usual with this class of writers, hypotheses are adroitly converted into facts. The careless or untrained reader is borne along with the author in utter unconsciousness of the fact that he has accepted and passed on from utterly unwarranted positions, and has built upon mere hypotheses that have been given with all the assurance of postulates.

As specimens of the author's position, the following may be noted. Hav

ing asserted that the prophet regarded events in themselves as of little importance, he adds that the prophet

"Was as ready to employ a late tradition as an early narrative. . . . If he had had the data at his command whereby he could determine which of the two was the older, and, therefore, the more authentic record, he probably would not have deemed it worthy of his attention. . . . His historic knowledge also was that of his age. Historic accuracy they did not claim. One's respect, however, for the Old Testament and the work of the prophets deepens when it is perceived that they were subject to all the limitations of an era when scientific methods of investigation were unknown and the exact historic spirit still unborn. . . It is obvious that if the modern student is to become acquainted with the real facts of Hebrew history, he must do that for which the prophets had neither the desire nor the equipment." (Vol. i., p. 12.) Poor prophets! Even in their nearness to the events, and even with the solemn duty upon them of telling the people the truth and not enforcing their proclamations with lies, they knew less than modern day critics blessed with the "historic spirit." And the only palliation of their lying is that they did not know any better, or that they did not regard the truth as of any importance in connection with their declaration of God's will!

And the poor priests were as bad. They felt the necessity of codifying the law, and of reforming the people committed to their spiritual guidance; and to induce them to accept the law, or Deuteronomy, they surreptitiously brought out and paraded as the law of Moses laws which they themselves prepared and "planted" in the rubbish of the Temple!

"The circumstances of the reign of Manasseh and of his son Amon, who pursued the policy of his father, were unfavorable for the promulgation of this new code; and hence it was laid aside in the Temple until it was discovered-actually or perhaps ostensibly in accordance with a plan known to the few most interested in it-and made the programme of the great reformation of Josiah." "They developed their plans at first in secret, awaiting a favorable occasion to raise openly the standard of reform." "The Book of Deuteronomy was . . . the result of a noble effort to replace the popular religion with a new system in accord with the new prophetic revelation." (Vol. ii., pp. 164, 173, 179).

Passages such as these, to which might be added numerous others in which the author accounts for many of the facts and incidents in the career of the Hebrews on purely naturalistic grounds, and in which the Biblical records are treated and even spoken of as "the Old Testament traditions," show very clearly that in the author's judgment we have in the Bible something worse than no history, that we have an actual imposition and fraud. 'Twere better, if he be right, that we should utterly discard it. Its traditions, its pious frauds, its "noble" deceptions, its disregard of the modern "exact or historic spirit" and of the modern "scientific methods of investigation," make it utterly unworthy of the confidence of honest men or honest seekers after truth. The possessors of the "historic spirit," and the adepts in “scientific methods of investigation," make it utterly unworthy of the confidence of honest men or honest seekers after truth. The possessors of the "historic spirit," and the adepts in "scientific methods of investigation," can give us a very much better Bible than these Old Testament prophets or the New Testament writers, including Christ himself, who quoted them! GEORGE SUMMEY.

Clarksville, Tenn.

PEERY'S GIST OF JAPAN: THE ISLANDS, THEIR PEOPLE, AND MISSIONS. THE GIST OF JAPAN: THE ISLANDS, THEIR PEOPLE, AND MISSIONS. By the Rev. R. B. Peery, A. M., Ph. D., of the Lutheran Mission, Saga, Japan. With Illustrations. New York, Chicago, Toronto: Fleming H. Revell Company. 1897. 12mo., pp. 317. $1.25.

Book-makers and book-writers have not failed to take advantage of the interest the American people particularly feel in the keen, intelligent and plucky little Islanders of the North Pacific. So that during the last few years quite a number of books about Japan have claimed our attention. The Gist of Japan can hardly be considered as a book prepared in order to profit by our interest; it has a higher end. Its title is well chosen ; the expectation awakened is realized. It is a good compendium on Japan in its manifold aspect. The author, besides being evidently a scholarly and accurate observer for four years of residence in "The Land of the Rising Sun,” has made use of the best works on the subject by others. We commend the book to those wishing information in compact and thoroughly readable form.

Our interest in Japan is destined to be not merely temporary. She already ranks among the important nations of earth; she must be counted as an important factor in the movements among the nations, a vastly more important factor than her ponderous and unwieldy neighbor across the channel, or sea as you may choose to call it. She seems destined to take and occupy the same position on her side of the globe as Great Britain does on hers. Indeed, there are several points of resemblance between the two, besides their being both island empires. They have about the same area, about the same population; their climate largely agrees; both are naval powers by necessity; each has a constitutional monarchy; the same boastful patriotism; the same native ability of the people, especially commercial ability; both races are mixed. The one great difference is in religion and this appeals profoundly to the Christian. Dr. Peery has given us a timely contribution in a most important field.

The book shows familiarity, intelligent appreciation and close observation. It corrects a number of erroneous impressions prevalent over here as that Japanese flowers have no odor, that Japanese birds do not sing; geographical mistakes; and the story about Com. Perry's peaceable conquest. The author employs, in some cases, spellings different from those to which we have been used, but this is natural, as the transliteration of Japanese sounds has not become fixed as yet. We don't know quite enough Japanese to decide which is right! The book is a series of monographs or studies, each complete in itself but part of a larger unit, as the lenses in an insect's eye. Perhaps the best conception we can give of the volume is by giving the titles of the several chapters with a brief estimate of each: (1) "The Land of Japan;" a concise account of the geography, physical characteristics and natural history of the country—about what one will carry with him. (2) "A Brief History of the Japanese People;" instructive though necessarily sketchy. (3) “Japanese Characteristics;" quite interesting, with well-balanced conclusions. (4) "Manners and Customs;" very entertaining. (5) "Japanese Civiliza

tion;" shows intelligent appreciation of the subject. According to the best definition of "civilization." the Japanese are a civilized people is the conclusion. (6) "Japanese Morality;" useful view. (7) "Religions of Japan ;" instructive despite its brevity. (8) "First Introduction of Christianity.” (9) "Modern Roman and Greek Missions;" impartial and appreciative. (10) "A Brief History of Protestant Missions in Japan;" compact but comprehensive. (11) "Qualifications for Mission Work in Japan;" some very sensible ideas. (12) "Private Life of the Missionary ;" on the whole, good; lays considerable, perhaps not too much, stress on the money question. (13) "Methods of Work ;" views judicious and fairly well maintained. (14) "Hindrances ;" an excellent chapter. (15) "Special Problems;" shows intelligent acquaintance with the subject. (16) "The Outlook;" fairly good. The author has very decided views as to qualifications for mission work in Japan. He places physical qualifications first, a man must, first and foremost, have a vigorous physique. Then spiritual qualifications, then mental. All must be of a high order. He opposes educational efforts in that particular field as not worth the cost, and makes it look very much that way. He does well, in our judgment, in emphasizing the catechetical method of instruction. His idea about the organization of the native church is that they should be left to determine their own polity, inasmuch as no special form of church polity has divine sanction, it is a mere matter of expediency. Presbyterians, generally, will scarcely accept this statement as to its being a matter of indifference; and certainly three large and influential denominations take their names from their form of polity.

The work comes to us in a good, compact, substantially bound, attractive volume, on excellent paper, in clear type, with eight full-page photogravure illustrations; a book that the bibliophile loves to handle and con; and withal cheap.

The arrangement of the work scarcely dispenses with the need of an index.
Columbia, S. C.
D. J. BRIMM.

LEAVITT'S CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACY.

THE CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACY: A History of its Suppression and Revival. By John McDowell Leavitt, D. D., LL.D. 12 mo., pp. 391. $1.50. New York, Cincinnati: Eaton & Mains, Curts & Jennings. 1896.

I have read this book of about 400 pages, straight along. It required no effort to do it. After laying it down I would return to it with an appetite. I write this notice to commend more especially its historical value. And I do it more willingly because there is so much failure in Historiography. Poets are rare, and it is an egregious blunder, if not something worse, for one who is not a born poet to attempt to invoke the Muses. Writers of history are also rare. In proof of which I point to the many intolerably dull histories which we are forced to read. Not so is Dr. Leavitt's book.

The Christian Republic, instead of The Christian Democracy, might be preferred by some as the title for the theme, and to which the material might have been adjusted. But the history is the great value of the book