come; those of Waterford, Cork, Limerick, and Cashel excepted; and that no man should be presented, unless of full age, and in orders; and could read and speak English; and would reside." In the same parliament an act was passed for dividing the kingdom into shires; and in the next session of parliament, which took place in May, the same year, it was enacted, "That Schools should be erected in the Shire-town of every diocese, whereof the schoolmaster should be English." But as it was desirable that such of the inhabitants of Ireland as did not understand English, should, nevertheless, be favoured with opportunities of religious information, a Printing Press, with a Fount of IRISH Types, was provided by the queen, at her own expense, "in hope that God in mercy would raise up some to translate the New Testament into their mother tongue;" and sent them over to Mr. NICHOLAS WALSH, chancellor, and Mr. JOHN KERNEY, treasurer of St. Patrick's, Dublin. It was then ordered, that the Prayers of the Church should be printed in the Irish language and character; and that a church should be set apart in the chief town of every diocese, in which they were to be read, and a sermon to be preached to the common people in their vernacular tongue, "which was instrumental," says Sir J. Ware, "to convert many of the ignorant sort in those days."50

Mr. Kerney commenced his labours by composing a CATECHISM in IRISH, which was the first book printed in Ireland in that character, and was printed about A. D. 1577. Afterwards, he and Chancellor Walsh, assisted by Nehemiah Donellan, translated the whole, or a considerable part of the NEW TESTAMENT into IRISH, probably from the English, since Sir J. Ware distinguishes this from a subsequent translation, which was (50) Ware's Annals, pp. 14, 15.

Anderson's Memorial, p. 16.

"done out of Greek, by W. Daniel, archbishop of Tuam;" and says their translation was extant in MS.51

JOHN KFRNEY, or KEARNEY, treasurer of St. Patrick's church, Dublin, was educated at Cambridge, as was also his friend and contemporary Nicholas Walsh. He died about A. D. 1600; and was buried in the cathedral of which he was treasurer.5

NICHOLAS WALSH, chancellor of St. Patrick's, Dublin, son of Patrick Walsh, sometime bishop of Waterford and Lismore, was consecrated bishop of Ossory, in the beginning of February, 1577. He was prevented from completing the translation of the New Testament, by being inhumanly murdered. The assassin was one James Dullard, a wicked fellow, whom the bishop had cited for adultery. He stabbed him in his own house, with a skeine, or short sword; but was soon afterwards brought to justice. The bishop was killed December 14th, 1585; and his body brought to Kilkenny, and buried in the cathedral.53

NEHEMIAM DONELLAN was born in the county of Galway, in Ireland, and educated at Cambridge, in England. On his return home, he was made coadjutor, for awhile, to W. Laly, archbishop of Tuam, and afterwards, by the recommendation of Thomas, earl of Ormond, was appointed his successor, by Queen Elizabeth, in 1595. He resigned in 1609, and soon after died at Tuam, and was buried in the cathedral church.54

The last important act of Queen Elizabeth's reign, for the promotion of the Reformation, and of Sacred literature in Ireland, was the erection of the UNIVERSITY of DUBLIN. The charter for its foundation was dated

(51) Ware's Commentary of the Prelates of Ireland, p. 35. Dublin, 1704, fol.

Anderson's Memorial, p. 17.

(52) Ware's Two Books of the Writers of Ireland, B. i. pp. 25, 26. (53) Ware's Commentary of the Prelates of Ireland, p. 35.

(54) Ibid. p. 7.

March 30th, 1592. Sir William Cecil, baron Burleigh, lord high treasurer of England, was the first chancellor; Adam Loftus, archbishop of Dublin, the first provost; Lucas Challoner, William Daniel, James Fullerton, and James Hamilton, the first fellows; and Abel Walsh, James Usher, and James Lee, the first scholars of the university.55

In the sister kingdom of SCOTLAND, the progress of the Reformation was for many years slow and uncertain; but the decided and persevering character of the advocates of the Bible finally triumphed over all opposition, and rendered that kingdom eminent for its Biblical knowledge. The act passed in 1542-3, in favour of reading the Bible, prior to the abjuration of the earl of Arran, has been already * mentioned, but as it was the first public act of the government in behalf of the circulation of the Scriptures, the reader will not be displeased to have the following copy of it.

"ANENT the writting gevin in be ROBERT Lord Maxwell, in presens of my lord governour and lordis of articklis, to be avisit by theim gif the samin be resonable or not, of the quhilk the tenor followis: It is statute and ordanit, that it sal be lefull to all our soverane ladyis lieges to haif the haly Writ, to wit the NEW TESTAMENT and the AULD, in the vulgar tourg, in INGLIS or SCOTTIS, of ane gude and trew translation, and that thai sal incur na crimes for the hefing and reding of the samin, providing alwayis that nae man dispute or hald oppinzeonis under the painis contenit in the actis of parliament. The lordis of articklis beand avisit with the said writting, finds the samin resonable, and therefore thinkis that the samin may be usit amangis all the leiges of this realme, in oure vulgar toung, of ane gude, trew, and just translatioun, because there was na law shewin, nor (55) Ware's Annals, ch. xxxv. pp. 45, 46:

* See vol. II. p. 429 of this work.

producit in the contrair; and that nane of our soverane ladyis leiges incur ony crimes for haifing or reding of the samin, in form as said is, nor sall be accusit therefore in time coming; and that na personis dispute, argou, or hald oppinionis of the samin, under the saidis painis contenit in the foresaid actis of parliament."

This act was proposed by the Lord Maxwell, on the 15th day of March, 1542–3, and passed in the first parliament holden after the death of James V. by James, earl of Arran, tutor of the queen, and governor of her kingdom.56

The unsettled state of the kingdom after the apostacy of the earl of Arran, and the opposition of the popish bishops and clergy to the general dissemination of the Scriptures, particularly in the vulgar tongue, greatly retarded that spread of Sacred knowledge which would otherwise have been occasioned by the above-mentioned act. But the friends of the Reformation, though opposed by difficulties, never relinquished their object; a meeting of the nobles and barons attached to that cause, was, therefore, held at Edinburgh, in December, 1557, at which two resolutions were adopted for regulating their con duct in their critical situation. In the first place, it was agreed "that they should rest satisfied for the present, with requiring that the Prayers, and the LESSONS of the OLD and NEW TESTAMENT, should be read in English, in every parish, on Sundays and festival-days, by the curates of the respective parishes, or, if they were unable or unwilling, by such persons as were best qualified in the bounds:" and secondly, "that the reformed preachers should teach in private houses only, till the government should allow preaching in public."" These resolutions were accordingly reduced to practice in many parishes

(56) Keith's Hist. of the Affairs of Church and State in Scotland, I, B. i. ch. iv. p. 36. Edinb. 1734, fol.

(57) M'Crio's Life of John Knox, I, pp. 230, 231

where the protestant barons resided, and where the people were disposed to follow their example. The formal bond of agreement into which these eminent persons now entered, to defend and promote the principles which they had embraced, obtained the name of the First Covenant; the reformed themselves were distinguished as the Congre gation of Christ; and the nobility who had entered into the covenant were called, the Lords of the Congregation. Agreeably to the resolutions framed by the advocates of the Covenant, a petition was presented to the queen dowager, in the name of the Protestants, by Sir James Sandilands, which included these articles. "1. It shall be lawful to the reformed to peruse the Scriptures in the vulgar tongue; and to employ also their native language in prayer, publicly and in private." 2. "It shall be permitted to any person qualified by knowledge, to interpret and explain the difficult passages in the Scriptures." But the petition was slighted, and the kingdom thrown into civil commotions; which, however, on the death of the queen regent, in 1560, happily terminated in the acknowledgment of the Reformation, by the government ; though obstacles continued to be presented to the general diffusion of Scriptural truth, by the ill-advised Queen Mary, whose wit and beauty, imprudence, misfortunes, and death, will always create an interest in the feeling mind, and call forth expressions of sympathy and regret.

5819

During the unsettled state of the Scottish church, a provincial synod of the clergy was held at Edinburgh, in January, 1551-2, in which an order was made for publishing a Catechism in the mother tongue; of which the curates should be enjoined to read a part, every Sunday and holiday, to the people. John Hamilton, archbishop of St. Andrews, undertook the work; and seems to have induced some of the ablest of his clergy to compile it.

(58) Keith's Hist, of the Affairs of Ch. and State of Scotland, I. p. 80. Encyc. Perth. XX. p. 172.