duties of which he confined his attention chiefly to the controversies between the Protestants and Catholics. At the convocation of the Irish clergy in 1615, when they determined to assert their independence as a national church, the articles drawn up on the occasion emanated chiefly from his pen; and by asserting in them the Calvinistic doctrines of election and reprobation in their broadest aspect, as well as by his advocacy of the rigorous observance of the Sabbath, and his known opinion that bishops were not a distinct order in the church, but only superior in degree to presbyters, he exposed himself to the charge of being a favourer of Puritanism. Having been accused as such to the king, he went over to England in 16:9, and, in a conference with his majesty, so fully cleared himself, that he was ere long appointed to the see of Meath, and in 1624 to the archbishopric of Armagh

During the political agitation of Charles's reign, Usher, in a treatise entitled The Power of the Prince, and Obedience of the Subject,' maintained the absolute unlawfulness of taking up arms against the king. The Irish rebellion, in 1641, drove him to England, where he settled at Oxford, then the residence of Charles. Subsequently, the Civil War caused him repeatedly to change his abode, which was finally the Countess of Peterborough's seat at Ryegate, where he died in 1656, at the age of seventy-five. Most of his writings relate to ecclesiastical history and antiquities, and were mainly intended to furnish arguments against the Catholics; but the production for which he is chiefly celebrated is a great chronological work, entitled‘ Annales,' or 'Annals,' the first part of which was published in 1650, and the second in 1654. It is a chronological digest of universal history, from the creation of the world to the dispersion of the Jews in Vespasian's reign. The author intended to add a third part, but died before accomplishing his design. In this work, which was received with great applause by the learned throughout Europe, and has been several times reprinted on the continent, the author, by fixing the three epochs of the deluge, the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, and their return from Babylon, reconciled the chronologies of sacred and profane history; and down to the present time, his chronological system is that which is generally received. Usher conformed strictly to the Hebrew chronology in scriptural dates; the Septuagint version and the Samaritan Pentateuch differ greatly from it; and the most judicious inquirers into ancient history,' according to Hallam, 'have of late been coming to the opinion, that, with certain exceptions, there are no means of establishing an entire accuracy in dates before the Olympiads. A posthumous work, which Usher left unfinished, was printed in 1660, under the title of Chronologia Sacra;' it is considered a valuable production, as a guide to the study of sacred history, and as shewing the grounds and calculations of the principal epochs of the 'Annals.'

JOHN HALES.

JOHN HALES (1584-1656), surnamed 'the Ever-memorable,' is usually classed with Chillingworth, as a prominent defender of rational and tolerant principles in religion. He was highly distinguished for his knowledge of the Greek language, of which he was appointed professor at Oxford in 1612. Six years afterwards, he went to Holland as chaplain to Sir Dudley Carleton, ambassador at the Hague; and on this occasion he attended the meetings of the famous Synod of Dort, the proceedings of which are recorded in his published letters to Sir Dudley. Till this time, he held the Calvinistic opinions in which he had been educated; but the arguments of the Arminian champion Episcopius, urged before the synod, made him, according to his own expression,bid John Calvin good-night.' His letters from Dort are characterised by Lord Clarendon as the best memorial of the ignorance, and passion, and animosity, and injustice of that convention' Although the eminent learning and abilities of Hales would certainly have led to high preferment in the church, he chose rather to live in studious retirement, and accordingly withdrew to Eton College, where he had a private fellowship under his friend Sir Henry Saville as provost. Of this, after the defeat of the royal party, he was deprived for refusing to take the 'engagement,' or oath of fidelity to the Commonwealth of England, as then established without a king or House of Lords. By cutting off the means of subsistence, his ejection reduced him to such straits, that at length he was under the necessity of selling the greater part of his library, on which he had expended £2500, for less than a third of that sum. This he did from a spirit of independence which refused to accept the pecuniary bounty liberally offered by his friends. Besides sermons and miscellanies-the former of which compose the chief portion of his works-he wrote a famous 'Tract concerning Schism and Schismatics,' (1628), in which the causes of religious disunion, and in particular the bad effects of episcopal ambition, are freely discussed.

This tract having come to the hands of Archbishop Laud,who was an old acquaintance of the author, Hales addressed a letter in defence of it to the primate, who, having invited him to a conference, was so well satisfied, that he forced, though not without difficulty, a prebendal stall of Windsor on the acceptance of the needy but contented scholar. The learning, abilities, and amiable disposition of John Hales are spoken of in the highest terms, not only by Clarendon, but by Bishop Pearson, Dr. Heylin, Andrew Marvel, and Bishop Stillingfleet. He is styled by Anthony à Wood‘a walking library;' and Pearson considered him to be a man of as great a sharpness, quickness, and subtility of wit, as ever this or perhaps any nation bred. His industry did strive, if it were possible, to equal the largeness of his capacity, whereby he became as great a master of polite,

various, and universal learning, as ever yet conversed with books.'* His extensive knowledge he cheerfully communicated to others; and his disposition being liberal, obliging, and charitable, made him, in religious matters, a determined foe to intolerance, and, in society, a highly agreeable companion. Lord Clarendon says that'nothing troubled him more than the brawls which were grown from religion; and he therefore exceedingly detested the tyranny of the Church of Rome, more for their imposing uncharitably upon the consciences of other men, than for the errors in their own opinions.' Aubrey, who saw him at Eton after his sequestration, describes him as a pretty little man, sanguine, of a cheerful countenance, very gentle and courteous.'

The style of his sermons is clear, simple, and in general correct; and the subjects are frequently illustrated with quotations from the ancient philosophers and Christian Fathers.† The subjoined extracts are from a sermon, 'Of Inquiry and Private Judgment in Religion: '

Private Judgment in Religion.

It were a thing worth looking into, to know the reason why men are so generally willing, in point of religion, to cast themselves into other men's arms, and, leaving their own reason, rely so much upon another man's. Is it because it is modesty and humility to think another man's reason better than our own? Indeed, I know not how it comes to pass, we account it a vice, a part of envy, to think another man's goods, or another man's fortunes, to be better than our own; and yet we account it a singular virtue to esteem our reason and wit meaner than other men's. Let us not mistake ourselves; to contemn the advice and help of others, in love and admiration to our own conceits, to depress and disgrace other men's, this is the foul vice of pride; on the contrary, thankfully to entertain the advice of others, to give it its due, and ingenuously to prefer it before our own, if it deserve it, this is that gracions virtue of modesty: but altogether to mistrust and relinquish our own faculties, and commend ourselves to others, this is nothing but poverty of spirit and indiscretion. I will not forbear to open unto you what I conceive to be the causes of this so general an error amongst men. First, peradventure the dregs of the Church of Rome are not yet sufficiently washed from the hearts of many men. We know it is the principal stay and supporter of that church, to suffer nothing to be inquired into which is once concluded by them. Look through Spain and Italy; they are not men, but beasts, and. Issachar-like, patiently couch down under every burden their superiors lay upon them. Secondly, a fault or two may be in our own ministry; thus, to advise men, as I have done, to search into the reasons and grounds of religion, opens a way to dispute and quarrel, and this might breed us some trouble and disquiet in our cures, more than we are willing to undergo; there fore, to purchase our own quiet, and to banish all contention, we are content to nourish this still humour in our hearers; as the Sybarites, to procure their ease, banished the smiths, because their trade was full of noise. In the meantime, we do not see that peace, which ariseth out of ignorance, is but a kind of sloth, or moral lethargy, seeming quiet because it hath no power to move. Again, maybe the portion of knowledge in the minister himself is not over-great; it may be, therefore, good

*Preface to The Golden Remains of the Ever-memorable Mr. John Hales, 1659, In the year 1765, an edition of his works was published by Lord Hailes, who took the unwarrantable liberty of modernising the language according to his own taste. This, we learn from Boswell, met the strong disapprobation of Dr. Johnson. An author's language, sir,' said he, is a characteristical part of his composition, and is also characteristical of the age in which he writes. Besides, sir, when the language is changed, we are not sure that the sense is the same. No, sir: I am sorry Lord Hailes has done this.'

policy for him to suppress all busy inquiry in his auditory, that so increase of knowledge in them might not at length discover some ignorance in him. Last of all, the fault may be in the people themselves, who, because they are loath to take painsand search into the ground of knowledge is evermore painful-are well content to take their ease, to gild their vice with goodly names, and to call their sloth, modesty, and their neglect of inquiry, filial obedience. These reasous, beloved, or some of kin to these, may be the motives unto this easiness of the people, of entertaining their religion upon trust, and of the neglect of the inquiry into the grounds of it.

To return, therefore, and proceed in the refutation of this gross neglect in men of their own reason, and casting themselves upon other wits. Hath God given you eyes to see, and legs to support you, that so yourselves might lie still, or sleep, and require the use of other men's eyes and legs? That faculty of reason which is in every one of you, even in the meanest that hears me this day, next to the help of God, is your eyes to direct you, and your legs to support you, in your course of integrity and sanctity; you may no more refuse or neglect the use of it, and rest yourselves upon the use or other men's reason, than neglect your own, and call for the use of other men's eyes and legs. The man in the gospel, who had bought a farm, excuses himself from going to the marriage-supper, because himself would go and see it; but we have taken an easier course; we can buy our farm, and go to supper too, and that only by saving our pains to see it: we profess ourselves to have made a great purchase of heavenly doctrine, yet we refuse to sec it and survey it ourselves, but trust to other men's eyes, and our surveyors and wot you to what end? I know not, except it be that so we may with the better leisure go to the marriage-supper; that, with Haman, we may the more merrily go in to the banquet provided for us; that so we may the more freely betake ourselves to our pleasures, to our profits, to our trades, to our preferments and ambition. . . .

Would you see how ridiculously we abuse ourselves when we thus neglect our own knowledge, and securely hazard ourselves upon others' skill? Give me leave, then, to shew you a perfect pattern of it, and to report to you what I find in Seneca the philosopher, recorded of a gentleman in Rome, who, being purely ignorant, yet greatly desirous to seem learned, procured himself many servants, of which some he caused to study the poets, some the orators, some the historians, some the philosophers, and, iu a strange kind of fancy, all their learning he verily thought to be his own, and persuaded himself that he knew all that his servants understood; yea, he grew to that height of madness in this kind, that, being weak in body and diseased in his feet, he provided himself of wrestlers and runners, and proclaimed games and races, and performed them by his servants; still applauding himself, as if himself had done them. Beloved, you are this man. When you neglect to try the spirits, to study the means of salvation yourselves, but content yourselves to take them upon trust, and repose yourselves altogether on the wit and knowledge of us that are your teachers, what is this in a manner but to account with yourselves, that our knowledge is yours, that you know all that we know, who are but your servants in Jesus Christ?

Reverence for Ancient Opinions.

Antiquity, what is it else-God only excepted-but man's authority born some ages before us?// Now, for the truth of things, time makes no alteration; things are still the same they are, let the time be past, present, or to come. Those things which we reverence for antiquity, what were they at their first birth? Were they false ?-time cannot make them true. Were they true ?-Time cannot make them more true. The circumstance, therefore, of time, in respect of truth and error, is merely impertinent.

Prevalence of an Opinion no Argument for its Truth.

Universality is such a proof of truth as truth itself is ashamed of; for universality is nothing but a quainter and a trimmer name to signify the multitude. Now, human authority at the strongest is but weak, but the multitude is the weakest part of human authority: it is the great patron of error, most easily abused, and most hardly disabused. The beginning of error may be, and mostly is, from private persons; but the maintainer and continuer of error is the ultitude.

WILLIAM CHILLINGWORTH.

The

WILLIAM CHILLINGWORTH (1602-1644), a famous polernic, was born at Oxford, and was distinguished as a student there. An early love of disputation, in which he possessed eminent skill, brought upon him such a habit of doubting, that his opinions became unsettled on all subjects. A Jesuit named Fisher converted him to the Roman faith-uis chief argument being the necessity of an infallible living guide in matters of faith, to which character the Roman Catholic Church appeared to him to be best entitled. For some time after this, he studied at the Jesuits' College at Douay; but his friends induced him to return to Oxford, where, after additional study of the points of difference, he declared in favour of the Protestant laith. He was patronised by Laud. His change of creed drew him into several controversies, in which he employed the arguments that were afterwards methodically stated in his famous work, entitled The Religion of the Protestants a safe Way to Salvation,' published in 1637. This treatise, which has placed its author in the first rank of religious controversialists, is considered a model of perspicuous reasoning, and one of the ablest defences of the Protestant faith. The author maintains that the Scripture is the only rule to which appeal ought to be made in theological disputes; that no church is infallible; and that the Apostles' Creed embraces all the necessary points of faith. Arminian opinions of Chillingworth brought upon him the charge of latitudinarianism; and his character for orthodoxy was still further shaken by his refusal to accept of preferment on condition of subscribing the thirty-nine articles. His scruples having, however, been overcome, he was promoted, in 1638, to the chancellorship of Salisbury. During the Civil War, he zealously adhered to the royal party, and even acted as engineer at the siege of Gloucester in 1643. He died in the succeeding year. Lord Clarendon, who was one of his intimate friends, has drawn the following character of this minent divine: 'He was a man of so great a subtilty of understanding, and so rare a temper in debate, that, as it was impossible to provoke him into any passion, so it was very difficult to keep a man's self from being a little discomposed by his sharpness and quickness of argument, and instances, in which he had a rare facility, and a great advantage over all the men I ever new.' Writing to a Catholic, in allusion to the changes of his own faith, Chillingworth says: 'I know a man, that of a moderate Protestant turned a Papist, and the day that he did so, was convicted in conscience that his yesterday's opinion was an error. The same man afterwards, upon better consideration, became a doubting Papist, and of a doubting Papist a confirmed Protestant And yet this man thinks himself no more to blame for all these changes, than a traveller who, using all diligence to find the right way to some remote city, did yet mistake it, and after find his error and amend it. Nay, he stands upon his justification so far, as to main