inheritance. Then shall we behold the glory of the Divine countenance, not as it is now dimly seen by reflection, as from a glass, but face to face, and not for a season, or occasionally, as in this life, but through the day of eternity.

66

Mr. Gibbs, grant me the right hand of fellowship, while I close my remarks in the words of Milton:

Nor love thy life, nor hate, but what thou livest,

Live well-how long or short, permit to heaven.'

To

E. Downe, Esq. then proposed, and Mr. Harris seconded, a resolution of thanks to the ladies who had favoured the meeting, with their presence, and to whose kind and efficient preparations the meeting was so agreeably indebted. which Mr. Ryder, on behalf of the ladies, replied.—Mr. Sloggett proposed a vote of thanks to the Stewards, who had also kindly and efficiently lent their assistance to the service of the party; to which, on behalf of the Stewards, Mr. Elworthy responded.

Isaac Nichols, Esq. then proposed, in a few words of deserved compliment, a vote of thanks to the excellent Chairman of the meeting, who not only then, but formerly, had acted in such capacity to the great satisfaction of all, and who in various ways had contributed much to the promotion of the pure and true religion of Christ. The Rev. Mr. Odgers having seconded this motion, which was unanimously hailed, Mr. Norman returned thanks in a suitable address, declaring his long and cordial attachment to those principles, in the maintenance of which they had met together, the beneficial effects of which he had experienced and observed; and hoped to experience throughout his future career, as well as witness more abundantly, a larger extension of the sound and practical Christian doctrine, which they maintained.

The proceedings of the evening began and ended with an anthem, sung by the choir of the Chapel in an effective style. The party broke up at eleven o'clock, highly delighted with the proceedings, and glad at having spent together a few hours in so social and agreeable a manner,while expressing the respect and gratitude which all felt to the common object of attraction, Mr. Gibbs, whose pleasure, it is trusted, will not be less than that of his friends, in recalling the memory of this delightful meeting.

BIRMINGHAM UNITARIAN DOMESTIC MISSION SOCIETY.The Anniversary Sermons in aid of the funds of this Institution, were delivered, on Sunday 24th January, by the Rev. Charles Wicksteed of Leeds-in the morning at the Old Meeting-house, Birmingham, and in the evening at the New

Unitarian Chapel, Newhall-Hill,-the use of those places of worship having been kindly granted for the occasion. The discourses were marked throughout by great talent, and were replete with truly Christian benevolence; and were, moreover, beautifully appropriate, and evidently made a deep impression on all present. That in the morning, was founded on the words of our Saviour, contained in the latter part of the 40th verse of the 25th chapter of Matthew; that in the evening, on the words of the prophet Nehemiah, in the 8th chapter and the first clause of the 10th verse. The collections after the services, amounted to upwards of £ 30.

On the evening of Tuesday, 26th January, a numerous and highly respectable party, composed of members of the different Unitarian Congregations, and other friends of the Society, took tea in the Old Meeting upper school-room; after which, Thomas Eyre Lee, Esq. President, was called to the chair. After having, in a few appropriate remarks, expressed his delight in the cheering prospects of the Society, and the pleasure with which he obeyed the call of the meeting, the Chairman called on Mr. Earl, one of the Secretaries, to read the Report of the Committee for the past year. The reading of the Report, which evidently created a deep sensation in the meeting, having been concluded, Edward Martin, Esq. rose to move the first resolution, and spoke as follows::-"The Report, Sir, which has been read, presents so many features of interest, and so much cause of satisfaction to this meeting, that it seems difficult to separate any portion of it as the subject of particular remark, where the whole is so excellent; for, whether we look at the discriminating judgment of the Committee in adapting good means to good ends, or the untiring zeal of the Missionary in carrying out the views of the Committee, I think, Sir, you will agree with me, that the Report affords cause, I had almost said, of unmingled satisfaction. As a means of usefulness, the Committee endeavoured, at the outset of the Mission, to establish a Sunday-school at the Chapel in Thorp-street; in this they were assisted, with great energy and earnestness, by the Missionary; and from a most unpromising locality, has a very promising school been collected. Having, Sir, been a frequent visitor on a Sunday morning, I have with much pleasure seen it gradually increasing from thirty or forty to upwards of one hundred and fifty; but the most gratifying subject connected with this School, and which is alike creditable to the Managers and to the parents of the children, is the fact, that a more cleanly, decent, and orderly set of children are scarcely to be met with, and, in my judgment, this School is, in these particulars, second to very few either in Birming

ham or elsewhere; and I am quite sure that an occasional visit from the friends of the Mission, will prove that I do not use the language of exaggeration. I repeat, Sir, that the clean and decent order in which the children are sent to school from such a locality, speaks strongly in favour, not only of the management of the Schools, but also of the general usefulness of the Mission. I may here take leave to say, that I have had occasional glimpses of the Missionary's diary, from which some very interesting extracts have been embodied in the Report; but, if all that is interesting and important in that diary had been read to you, this meeting could not have separated before midnight. I will however say, that I consider what has been selected, to be a fair sample of the whole. It is not necessary, Sir, for me to take up more time, either in advocating the principles of the Mission, or the Report of the Committee; I shall therefore conclude, by moving the resolution which has been placed in my hands: "That this meeting, viewing with satisfaction the success which has attended the operations of this Society during the past year, do receive and adopt the Report now read; and that the same be printed, and distributed, at the discretion of the Committee."-Mr. Edmund Rodgers, in a neat and appropriate speech, seconded the resolution.

The Rev. Hugh Hutton, in moving the next resolution, said that he felt the highest gratification in calling upon the meeting to perform an act of justice to their Rev. friend, for the very able and efficient manner in which he had advocated that cause which, he trusted, they all had at heartthe cause of suffering humanity. He (Mr. H.) certainly expected that the claims of that Society would, by his friend Mr. Wicksteed, be powerfully supported; but, he must say, he was not prepared for that overwhelming combination of talent and Christian benevolence, which characterised the discourses they had had the privilege of hearing on Sunday last. The resolution described those discourses as "able, impressive, and appropriate," and surely they were correctly described. After expressing his delight in witnessing the increasing prosperity of the Society, Mr. Hutton concluded a forcible speech by moving, "That the cordial thanks of this meeting be presented to the Rev. Charles Wicksteed, for the very able, impressive, and appropriate discourses, delivered on Sunday last, in aid of the funds of this Institution."

Mr. Gittins rose to second the resolution, and spoke as follows:-I have known Mr. Wicksteed from his boyhood, and well remember him, while at Shrewsbury School, passing my house, day after day, "with his satchel and his shining

face," not "creeping like a snail unwillingly to school," but with firm and steady step, as though he had a purpose in view; and so he had, a noble purpose-the purpose of a thirsty soul, pressing forward to take its daily draught at the fountain of knowledge. I have no doubt that, could he have shook off those non-conformist principles impressed on his mind by his late excellent father, he might, under the patronage of his late tutor, Dr. Butler, have reaped some of those honours and emoluments which are often bestowed on less talented individuals. But no; he chose to labour in the more free and liberal field of Protestant Dissent, to soar in the purer atmosphere of Christian Unitarianism. I cannot help contrasting, in my own mind, Mr. Wicksteed and another of Dr. Butler's pupils, now at the head of that institution in which they were once school-fellows. That gentleman had said, sometime ago, in preaching for the benefit of the National School, that if the Government plan of education were carried into effect, "we should have a nation of intelligent fiends." There was one of the worthy Bishop's pupils, thwarting the efforts of a liberal Administration to dispense the blessings of knowledge among the people; here is another, the eloquent and impressive advocate of the ignorant and the destitute-" the friendless, houseless objects of despair." I beg, Sir, to second the resolution, which I do with great pleasure.

The Rev. Charles Wicksteed, after returning thanks to the Rev. H. Hutton, and to his old fellow-townsman Mr. Gittins, for the kind manner in which they had noticed his services, said, "I never was more anxious, Mr. President, to do justice to any subject, than I was to that with which I was entrusted on Sunday last, and I do assure you, it is a real relief to my mind, to find, by the assurances of this meeting, that your high, and glorious, and holy cause has not, in your estimation, suffered during the few hours in which you generously confided it to my care. During my preparation for the services of Sunday, I was naturally led to review the progress of the Domestic Mission in this country: I say, its progress in this country; for its rise, you remember, was in another. To America, we owe the dawn of this new aspect of the Christian Ministry. That truly excellent man, Dr. Tuckerman, having resigned the charge of a congregation in the city of Boston, did not long remain with his Christian affections slumbering, but, roused by the condition of the poor and neglected of that city, commenced a new era in the ministration of Christianity, and, like his great Master, preached the Gospel to the poor. He was looked upon as one whose enthusiastic benevolence it was delightful to ad

mire, but scarcely possible to imitate. This devoted, selfsacrificing man was regarded as a kind of nonpareil-a paragon of excellence-a man who surely must have been born within the very Tropics of Benevolence. When he came, laden with his reputation, but depressed with his exertions, to this country, he was welcomed with a degree of cordiality, especially in our own denomination, which showed how he had laid hold of the heart's best feelings. I remember, when he landed at Liverpool, going with others to pay, I may say, my homage to him. We entered immediately on the great topic; and while expressing the deep impression which I had of the gloriousness of the undertaking, I could not help expressing also the fear, at that time so commonly felt, of the difficulty of obtaining men suitable for so great a work, and benevolent enough to undertake a labour so self-denying and self-sacrificing as the Mission to the Poor: but I never shall forget, Sir, the torrent of indignant zeal with which he overwhelmed me. He spoke of the impossibility of there ever being an unwillingness to engage in such a work among true-hearted Christians; and, least of all, among true-hearted Christian ministers. And afterwards, turning round to a friend, he said, Sir, Christian love is omnipotent -I believe I could subdue the Devil himself by it.' Mr. W. then alluded to the establishment of the Domestic Mis-. sion in London, under the auspices of the Unitarian Association, and said, our denomination seemed to be content with gazing upon this metropolitan effort, and too long Mr. Philp shone the sole constellation in this hemisphere of Unitarian benevolence. At length the large towns took up the cause. Manchester and Liverpool established their Missions, and now Birmingham has fairly entered on the same career; and, trust me, Birmingham will never look back. The Mission in this town is no longer an experiment, it is an established institution; it has met with, and will continue, increasingly to meet with, a support which will sustain it in undying vigour, prosperity, and usefulness. For a long time, it was thought impossible to establish a Mission in towns having but one congregation, but Bristol has shown us a better example; and though Leeds cannot boast of so large a society as that at Lewin's Mead, yet an attempt has been made there too, and though, from peculiar circumstances, it has not been completed, it was successful to such a degree, as to guarantee its entire success at, I hope, no distant period.' Mr. W., after passing a warm eulogium on the choirs of the two Chapels, and the manner in which that important part of public worship, the psalmody, was conducted, sat down amidst loud cheers."