that most glorious of human events, the Protestant Reformation. versy which produced the "Diatribe de libero Arbitrio," and its energetic, though too acrimonious, reply, we think few of our readers can doubt. The question is one of deep importance, and the discussion relating to it has been fully detailed in Mr. Milner's "History of the Church of Christ." The force of that excellent account could not be resisted; and therefore our author, with great dexterity, passes by it with the gentle imputation of "partiality," because the writer, he de clares, "evidently belongs to the Whitfieldian school!" With some persons, this insinuation may pass current, and be enough; but we are not prepared to impeach the inte grity of the historian because he possessed some opinions in common with a man who, with all his extravagancies, not only preached the essentials of Christian doctrine, but was one of the most remarkable Yet in the work before us considerable ingenuity has been displayed; and from the commencement of itin which the well-known blemish in the birth of Erasmus is so described as to reflect no disgrace, not only on him whose misfortune it was, though not his crime, but on those to whom no such extenuation could apply-down to the closing chapters, in which his services to religion and literature are balanced against the provocations of his offensive satires and ironies; we cannot but observe a series of wellplanned attempts to place him on the vantage-ground above all his contemporaries; till at length the climax is reached, in the easy but erroneous and bathological sentence of Jortin," Erasmus had the advantage over Luther in power of reason, SCRIPTURE, primitive Christianity, and the Greek Fathers!"-instruments in the hand of Divine In this decision we find it impossible, not only as Protestants and Christians, but even as mere critics, to acquiesce. In the attainments of scholastic learning and theology, as in all the beauties and delicacies of literature, Erasmus surpassed Luther he may also have exceeded him in the sophistries of argument but in the fearless prosecution of truth, to whatever consequences the discovery might lead, which is alone deserving the lofty name of "reason;" and a humble and persevering search for "the mind of the Spirit," the discovery of which alone it is that can be termed "power" in the "Scripture;" and, further, in the recovery of those essential doctrines which were the life of primitive Christianity, and constituted the chief glory of the writings of the first Fathers-in all these respects we fear not to assert, that Luther was eminently the superior of his rival. That this superiority was evinced though we are by no means prepared to justify all his arguments or opinions in the celebrated contro Providence in kindling again, in our land, that flame of true and vital religion, which appeared to have been nearly smothered beneath the embers of formality and selfindulgence, but now is shining with a brightness which, we trust, shall never be suffered again to decay. It is easy to denounce the controversy between Luther and Erasmus as one above human reason; as having engaged the attention of Greek philosophers, and afterwards of Sadducees and Pharisees; as having divided the Mohamedans into followers of Omar or Ali, and then rewarded the pains of the Reformer and his opponent with no more light than they possessed before they entered on their discussions: but it is as obvious that there are questions comprized in it which lie at the very foundation of all true religion, and on which the word of God speaks a language which cannot be misunderstood, except as perverted by the subtilties of "philosophy, falsely so called." The controversy was not so much, in fact, of freewill, as of the doctrines of original sin, and salvation by grace; and we believe that most of the errors and heresies, which have arisen in the Christian church, are to be traced up to inadequate and unscriptural views of these two elementary principles. And it is natural that it should be so it is so in all other pursuits; and he who, at first, starts but with a slight deviation from the direct line, is necessarily found wandering at every step more widely from it, and from all the other principles with which it stands connected. We scarcely know a more affecting illustration of our remark than Erasmus himself furnishes, in some of his own letters, where, as well as in his Hyperaspistes, his bitterness against Luther has led him frequently to abuse indirectly the Gospel itself, and to lead an intelligent reader to apprehend that his heart cared little for the issue of the controversy, except as it involved his own reputation. us. His Letter to Melancthon, also, was a flagrant specimen of subtle and seductive adulation. We allude to that in which he reports his conversation respecting that sincere and amiable, but sometimes timid, friend of Luther's cause, with Cardinal Compeggio; of which we hear nothing in the work before There is, indeed, but little that is new in the present Life of Erasmus. The materials were already known to the world; and the chief purpose of the author would seem to have been, to arrange in a new form some of those ma. terials, in order to present the character of that elegant scholar but versatile genius in a more attractive light. We now, however, owe it to Mr. Butler, to give our readers a short account of his work. It is dedicated to Dr. Lingard, and consists of twelve chapters. The first is occupied with historical remarks on the state of literature during the middle ages, and to the fourteenth century. The following six narrate, though in a very concise manner, the education of Erasmus, his entering the convent at Stein, and his subsequent release from monastic duty; his five visits to England, and his connection with Archbishop Wareham, Dean Colet, Tunstal, and Sir Thomas More; and a general and hurried notice of his literary works. The ninth is occupied with the history of his edition and version of the New Testament; and the remaining chapters briefly, and with a partial hand, sketch his controversy with Luther, and the circumstances attending his later years till his death. According to the old fashion in biography, his "last Will" is added. It bears date 12th Feb. 1540*, and is sealed with the god Terminus, which he declares to be his true seal! We feel a difficulty in selecting a specimen or two from Mr. Butler's book to present to our readers, on account of the rapid manner in which the events of Erasmus's history are passed over, and the paucity of those passages which are capable of being detached from the work. Those most generally interesting are to be found in the chapters which describe his visits to this country. The following contains a pleasing picture of the family of Henry VII. Seldom, we imagine, has a private residence presented a group of individuals whose after-lives were to exercise so remarkable an influence on the world, as were casually thrown together on that occasion. "Erasmus has informed us, that being, during his visit to England, at the country seat of his friend Lord Mountjoy, Mr. Thomas More, then a student in Lincoln's Inn, afterwards the celebrated chancellor, took him to the next town, probably Eltham, in which all the children of Henry VII. except Arthur his eldest son, were then brought up. ‹ All the royal children, except Arthur,' says Erasmus in one of his letters, and several children of Lord Mountjoy's family came into the great hall. Henry, who had then attained the ninth year of his age, stood in the middle, and discovered * Erasmus died 11th July, 1536. Mr. Butler has probably written 40 instead of 30. a royal disposition,-a loftiness of mind, mixed with politeness. His sister Margaret, afterwards married to James IV. of Scotland, then in the ninth year of her age, was upon his right hand; Mary, then in the fourth year of her age, was playing on his left. Edmund was in the arms of his nurse. More put some literary performance of his own composition into the hands of Henry. This, I was not aware of, and I had nothing of my own to offer; but I promised the prince, that, at some future period, I would express my duty to him. In the mean time, I was somewhat out of humour with my friend, for not apprising me of what he intended doing; and the more so, because the royal youth, by a short note, which he had sent me during his dinner, had challenged my pen, and therefore expected a specimen of its powers. I went home; and, in despite of the muses, from whom I had long before divorced myself, composed, in three days, a poem in alternate hexametres and jambics, in which I celebrated the praises of Henry VII. and his children, and the whole nation, and thus soothed my shame and sorrow.' This poem has reached us: like all the poetical effusions of Erasmus, it exhibits great ingenuity, and abounds with poetical imagery and allusions, expressed in classical language. It must have been very acceptable to the prince, to whom it was addressed. It should be added, that Erasmus afterwards performed his promise to the royal youth, by inscribing several works of importance to him, while he filled the throne." pp. 68, 69. In the midst of all his enthusiastic admiration for Erasmus, Mr. Butler cannot always suppress the regret which he feels at his ill-timed ridicule of the Church of Rome. That ridicule could assume a keenness from which his friends often experienced a wound; and many were serious when the Elector of Saxony, having pressed him in the hearing of Spalatinus to give his opinion of Luther, he made his celebrated remark: "Luther hath been guilty of two crimes; he hath touched the pope on the crown, and the monks upon the belly." The Elector smiled at the expression, and bore it in remembrance till his dying day. The pilgrimages at Canterbury provoked the wit of Erasmus, and he described with sneers the superstition at Becket's tomb. His bioCHRIST. OBSERV. No. 295. grapher is not quite easy in the recollection, and is driven to an argument of extenuation which would justify the building of a gaminghouse, or the erection of a new car for Juggernauth. "If he gives a fair representation of them, they deserved all he says of them: but let us hope that he exaggerated them, and that wit and fancy had some share in his description of them. He was very angry at the jewels and other costly ornaments, with which the tomb was decorated, and wished the value of them had been distributed among the poor. But was it not much better, both for the poor and for society, that the artisan should have been employed in the workmanship of them? Were not both art and science served by it?" pp. 96. It is curious to contrast, in Erasmus, his ready detection of the follies of the monks and the errors of superstition, with his own belief in witchcraft and the sanative power of some of the tutelary saints. Mr. Butler cannot record with a grave pen the following paragraph: - "Returning to Paris, he fell ill. He informs us, that, when his illness was at its height, he had recourse to the interposition of St. Généviéve, the titular saint of Paris, and made a solemn vow that, if he recovered his health, he would celebrate, in poetry, the praises of the saint. His vow, as he informs us, was no sooner made, than the fever left him. His physician said to him,-You no longer have any occasion for my assistance! the saint, whom you have invoked, is more powerful than the whole college of physicians.' Erasmus performed his promise to the saint, by a short and elegant ode in her praise. He was highly mentions it, with evident pleasure, more delighted with his miraculous cure, and than once, in his writings." pp. 49, 50. We agree with Mr. Butler in thinking, that unquestionably the Englishman whose friendship and attentions towards Erasmus were the most sincere was Sir Thomas More. Erasmus, by the desire of Huttenus, one of his most intimate friends, and a warm admirer of More also, wrote him a description of the celebrated Chancellor, which Mr, Butler has translated from his Epis. tles. It will, we doubt not, be acceptable to our readers. He says, that "More was not, in his stature, either tall or short; that his form was well pro3 K portioned; that his skin was extremely white; that he had little beard; had blue eyes; that his physiognomy was graceful and smiling; that he was gay without buffoonery; that his right shoulder was higher than his left, particularly when he walked-the effect rather of bad habit, than of his form; that his hands were of the country sort; that he was not very attentive to cleanliness; that he was indifferent in respect to food; that, even in his youth, he had no other drink than water; that he preferred plain dishes to delicacies, and was best pleased with vegetables, fruits, and eggs; that he was always simply drest, except on days of ceremony, when the custom of the country called for show; that it was difficult to imagine how much he disliked ceremony; that he was averse to a life at court, as he hated tyranny and loved liberty and equality; that Henry VIII. drew him to his palaces with difficulty; that although he loved ease and tranquillity, no one, when occasion required, was more earnest at work; that he seemed to be born for friendship; that he was very inattentive to his own interest, but very attentive to the interests of his friends; that he was a model of that conduct which one friend should show to another; that his society was so delightful, that however sorrowful a person might be when he first approached him, it was impossible he should not feel pleasure in his company; that, from his childhood he was fond of pleasantry, but never degenerated into ribaldry; that, when he was young, he composed comedies, and even acted in them; that he had written epigrams; that he had attachments, but none that gave offence; that he had availed himself of the opportunities of advancing himself which fell in his way, but had never ran after them; that, at an early age, he addicted himself to polite literature, to the study of Greek and to philosophy, in opposition to his father, who wished him to addict himself wholly to the study of the law, in which profession some of his ancestors had been distinguished; that, whatever repugnance he might have for this course of life, he embraced it, rather than quarrel with his family; that he acquired in it so much reputation, that there was not a lawyer in London of more extensive practice; that he gave much time to the study of the fathers; and, in his youth, had explained The City of God' of St. Augustine to a numerous audience, some of whom were priests, and some in an advanced age, but that none felt any shame at being instructed by so young a man; that he had afterwards wished to embrace the ecclesiastical state, and to consecrate himself altogether to piety and religious mortification; but that, yielding to the advice of the Apostle, he married; that, in his profession as a lawyer he was perfectly disinterested, and always recommended compromises and amicable adjustments; that he presided, during several years, in the English court of Common Pleas, and decided with great dispatch the causes brought before him; that he refused many extra gratuities which the law allowed, and gained by his refusal of them great reputation and general good-will. That King Henry VIII, hearing of his merit, employed him on several embassies; that, in all, he displayed great talents; that, on his return from them, the king sought to attach him to his court; but that More, in opposition to his fortune, resisted it to the utmost; that the monarch could not live without him, More being useful to him in his various concerns, and necessary to his amusement; that More's high elevation did not make him forget his friends, or neg lect literature; that he availed himself of his credit for nothing so much as to serve his friends; and that Colet used to say of him, that he was the greatest genius in England.” pp. 106–109. Mr. We have not space to follow Mr. Butler through his examination of the works of Erasmus. They were very numerous, and were, it must be admitted, of considerable advantage in some respects—rather in the exposure of error than in the establishment of truth;- but his wit was the annoyance of all parties, and procured for him an ill word from each. His bitter controversy with Scaliger is well known. Gibbon, in his Miscellaneous Works, has given a short and spirited account of the principles of Ciceronianism, which were the object of Erasmus's hostility: from this Mr. Butler has largely quoted. spleen of Scaliger was excessive, and he heaped on Erasmus every offensive epithet which contumely could supply; but little might Erasmus suppose that he should find among these epithets the cognomen of his opponent in another controversy; and that, after all he had written in "defence of the faith" against the Reformer of Wittemberg, he should be denounced as "a drunkard, an hangman, a parricide, a monster, a new Porphyry, a Luther, and an Infidel!” The LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL INTELLIGENCE, &c. &c. GREAT BRITAIN. PREPARING for publication:-A Translation of Llorente's History of the Inquisition; Three Letters to the Archbishop of Cashel, on the recent Apocryphal Publications of his Grace; by the Rev. John Oxlee, Curate of Stone grave;-by the same author, a Letter to the Bishop of Salisbury, relative to the Text of the Heavenly Witnesses; to shew that the testimonies lately advanced by his Lordship make not for, but against, the authority of the contested passage. In the Press :-Sacred Harmony; by J. Coggins;-Captain Parry's Third Voyage of Discovery;-A History of the Battle of Agincourt, chiefly from inedited contemporary authorities; by Mr. Ni cholas;-Letters to a Friend, containing the writer's reasons for objecting to, and withdrawing from circulation, his former work, entitled Dialogues on important Subjects, published in 1819; together with a declaration of his faith in the proper Deity of the Son of God, and the Divine Personality of the Holy Ghost; by J. H. Evans, once a Minister of the Established Church, and formerly Fellow of Wadham College, Oxford. ex In the general assembly, lately held, of the Church of Scotland, a discussion took place relative to Gretna-Green marriages. The strongest disapprobation was pressed of the conduct of those county magistrates or borough justices who allow them to be attested in their presence, and a committee was appointed to inquire into the best means of preventing them. The Birmingham Gas Company has tried with success the experiment of lighting streets in Birmingham from a gasometer at West Bromwich, distant nearly eight miles. English Essay: "The operation of human causes only will not sufficiently account for the propagation of Christianity : Rev. Thomas William Carr, B.A., of Brasenose college. The following subjects are proposed for the ensuing year: namely, For the Chancellor's Prizes :-Latin Verses, "Mexicum." For an English Essay, "The Influence of the Crusades upon the Arts and Literature of Europe." For a Latin Essay, "Lex apud Romanos Agraria."-Sir Roger Newdigate's Prize for the best composition in English Verse, not limited to fifty lines, by an Under-Graduate who has not exceeded four years from the time of his matriculation, "Pompeii."-Theological Prize, instituted June 2, 1825: “What was the object of the Reformers in maintaining the following proposition, and by what arguments did they establish it? 'Holy Scripture is the only sure foundation of any article of faith.'' Cambridge.-The Members' Prizes for the best dissertations in Latin Prose are adjudged to J. A. Jeremie, of Trinity college, and C. Dade, of Caius college. The Arabic Professor (the Rev. Dr. Lee) intends opening an Oriental Lecture in this university, for the advantage of the civil and other servants of the East-India Company proceeding to India; in order to meet the exigencies provided for in the late Act, which dispenses with the residence hitherto required at Haileybury College. FRANCE. M. About forty young Egyptians have arrived in France for education. Jomard has been requested to direct their studies. After residing a few years at Paris, they will return home, to propagate the knowledge which they will have Oxford. The prizes for the year 1826 acquired. Mahomet Ali is at the exhave been awarded as follows: pense of their education. Chevalier Drovetti has presented to the King of France a monument of antiquity, which he found at Sais in Egypt. It consists of a single piece of rosecoloured granite, eight feet (French) in height, the sides of which are ornamented with hieroglyphics, which M. Champollion expounds to mean, that this stone was dedicated to Neith, the tutelar goddess of the city of Sais; that in |