could persuade myself that it would not fall in pieces. In our par of the world, such certainly would have been its fate; but the nature of the country in Wallachia is suitable even for such a mode of conveyance.

Wallachia exactly answers the description of those extensive regions known to the ancients under the name of Scythia, and to us, by that of Tartary-perfectly level, without an inclosure, without cultivation, every where presenting the picture of an immense and luxuriant meadow, terminated only by the horizon. Ovid describes the place of his banishment, (probably not very far removed from Kalarash.)—" Aspiceres nudos sine fronde sine arbore campos.' No tree or shrub is to be seen upon the level plain, no stone that I could see, not even a pebble. The traveller may mark the bounds of his horizon, and when he arrives there, he will find the view in no degree varied. Persons who have never been in a very level country, such as Holland or Wallachia, are apt to believe that the horizon must, in them, be very distant-on the contrary, it is very seldom possible to see two miles ahead. Over such a country, except upon a beaten track, a compass seems as necessary as at sea, in order to be able to steer a course. The Tartar, however, has no compass, but experience has taught him to distinguish and discover the points. In clear weather, the sun by day, and the stars by night serve him as guides. In the fogs, which so often obscure the sky in this climate, nature has afforded him another director, which might have escaped observation in a more polished state of society. The whole extent of the Tartar plains are dotted with small tumuli, about six or eight feet in perpendicular height, and perhaps ten times as many in base: they are perfectly conical, and so numerous, that one or more are always in view.-It seems very difficult to conjecture their origin. Their regularity seems to declare that they are not natural, and their number, that they cannot be artificial. The Tartar, doubtful of his way, alights at one of these heaps, and by the difference of vegetation, distinguishes the north from the south aspect. By day, he judges by his eye-in the darkest night, he can be equally certain by feeling with his hands.

On considering the fertility of these countries, one at first supposes that they should abound with millions of inhabitants; but our surprise at their depopulation ceases, when we find them almost destitute of the two most necessary elements of human comfort, fire and water. How difficult must it be to support a fire where there is neither wood, coal, or turf!-how difficult to obtain a sufficiency of water, where there are no streams or natural springs, and where none is to be had, but from wells dug to a great depth. Vast herds of cattle we ourselves saw wandering through the meadows; but we very seldom met with an inhabitant. During a journey of one hundred miles, I saw but two small villages, and not a single insulated house, except such as were built for the service of the post.

After galloping for three hours, we arrived at the first of these,

where we found abundance of horses tied together by the legs, and waiting for our arrival. Peasants, who were to serve as postillions, were also collected. We gave those who had conducted us so far, about four shillings among them all; and I cannot describe their delight and gratitude on receiving it so easy is it, in some countries, to make men happy, George Postelnitselo shook his head, and said it was a great deal too much; but we watched him also, that he should not take it from them. He always spoke in the roughest manner to them, and they seemed terribly afraid of him. They did not know that they were protected from him; but we afterwards learned, that he had received directions at court, previous to taking leave, not to beat any of them before us, unless it was necessary, as we, being Englishmen, did not like to see men struck. Yet the Wallachians value themselves upon their constitution and their privileges. Their pride, however, stands on no other foundation than that they are the slaves of a Greek, and not of a Turk. They might even deplore the privilege, as, until very lately, circumstances obliged that Greek to be more rapacious and tyrannical than any Turk in the empire.

In the dusk of the evening we arrived at Bucharest, the capital of the province."

REVIEW.

A Memoir of the Rev. Legh Richmond, A. M. of Trinity College, Cambridge; Rector of Turvey, Bedfordshire; and Chaplain to His Royal Highness the late Duke of Kent. By the Rev. T. S. Grimshawe, A. M. Rector of Burton-Latimer, Northamptonshire; and Vicar of Biddenham, Bedfordshire. Second Edition. Seeley nnd Burnside, London, 1828.

(Concluded from Page 376.)

In our last Number we concluded by giving some extracts relative to those popular tracts of Mr. Richmond, which conduced so much to his eminence in public estimation as a writer. We now proceed to bring forward somewhat concerning that other well-known work, his "Fathers of the English Church." The circumstance to which Mr. R. was indebted for his superior information about the writings of the Reformers, is singular, and is related as follows:

.

"While he resided in the Isle of Wight, and shortly after his perusal of Wilberforce's Practical View,' which had effected so striking a change in his own sentiments and character, a grocer at Newport sent him some trifling article wrapped up in a leaf of Bishop Jewell's Apology. His attention was directed to the wrapper by one of his family, who jocosely remarked, this looks as if it would suit you, Legb.' He read the leaf, and instantly set off for Newport, to enquire after the remaining pages. The grocer, smiling at the anxiety of his clerical customer, replied, 'O yes, Sir, here they are, and I have a whole hogshead of these worthies; they are much at your service, for two-pence a pound.' The treasure was speedily and joyully secured; and to this incident, trivial as it may appear, Mr. Richmond owed his extensive and profound acquaintance with the authors of the Reformation.

"It is, indeed, a humiliating consideration, that works like these should lose the veneration of posterity, and be treated with the contempt due only to the meanest productions of the day. It was an honour reserved for Mr. Richmond, to draw from obscurity the writings of those eminent men, who had shaken empires by their discussions, overthrown systems which centuries had struggled to uphold, and, sealing their testimony with their blood, bequeathed a sacred legacy of pure doctrine to the Protestant Church.

"At the urgent and repeated entreaties of several clerical friends, Mr. Richmond was induced to engage in this important undertaking. A prospectus of his plan was laid before the public in the year 1806; and shortly after he commenced the publi» cation of the work in numbers, and ultimately completed it in eight volumes. It is impossible to contemplate the execution of so laborious a task, and not to assign to the Editor the praise of unwearied diligence, discriminating judgment and acknow ledged impartiality. The substance of the writings of Tindal, Ridley, Latimer, Cranmer, Hooper, Bradford, Jewell, and others, was thus rendered accessible to the theological student, at a time when the spirit of controversy was gone forth, and when a standard of unquestionable authority, and free from the bias of modern prejudices, became a desideratum of the very first importance. Since the above period, a considerable change of sentiment has taken place among us; and we have no hesitation in ascribing much of that perceptible return to the doctrines of the Reformation, which characterizes the present state of our Church, to the influence of this publication. It has been repeatedly referred to, and largely quoted in the various subjects of popular discussion; and if sound doctrine be to the soul what nutricious food is to the body, and the stream be purest as we approach nearest to its source, it is to the perusal of the Reformers, and of their immediate successors, next to that of the Bible, that we are to look, under the Divine blessing, for the revial of national piety aud religion."

This work, which certainly was one of much importance, and which consequently should have received a corresponding support, failed to meet with it, even from a quarter where Mr. Richmond had a positive right to look for it. It was at the suggestion of a respectable body of the clergy, that the publication in question was undertaken, they distinctly promising him aid. How the matter issued let Mr. Grimshawe state in his own words.

"In yielding to the wishes of his clerical brethren, amongst whom was the late Mr. Robinson, of Leicester, and Dr. Gilbee, the rector of Barby, in Northamptonshire, he considered the whole body of his advisers as responsible for the expenses, and pledged to carry him through the hazard of the undertaking: and with this idea he announced the proposed work, under the sanction of a joint editorship. The selection, was, however, left to his own discretion; and trusting too implicitly to the reputation and merits of the Reformers, and judging of the public mind by his own estimation of their writings, he extended the work to eight volumes. Admitting the value of his materials, we still question the propriety of increasing the size of the publication; not only because the risk was doubled, but also, because the purchase was rendered too expensive for the generality of theological readers.— Whatever might be the cause, the sale was comparatively slow. It neither fulfilled the expectations of Mr. Richmond and his friends, nor was it in any way commensurate with the sterling value of the work. The spirit of the age was not sufficiently advanced to appreciate the importance of such an undertaking, though its merits are now generally admitted, and it has become a book of acknowledged reference. And yet it was allowed by competent judges that the editor had performed his office

of selection with great fidelity; including the sentiments of all, and excluding none, mingling with them no comments of his own, but leaving the reader to the free and unfettered exercise of his judgment.

"Worldly policy, however, was not one of the qualifications of the subject of this Memoir he was by no means fitted for transactions of a secular nature. None possessed more of the harmlessness of the dove-few had less of the cautious prudence of the serpent.

"The sale of The Fathers' was insufficient to defray the expenses of publication; and in the summer of 1814, on a balance of accounts, it appeared that Mr. Richmond was indebted to his publisher in the sum of £2000; and that he had no means of defraying this large amount, but by the stock in hand.

"These pecuniary embarrasments lay heavy on the mind of Mr. Richmond, and deeply affected his spirits. His depression was observed by his friends; but it was not without difficulty he was prevailed on to disclose the cause. He was a man of most delicate feeling, and shrunk from the idea of calling on others for relief. "The knowledge of these facts induced many of his friends to exert themselves in the sale of the Fathers;' and by their exertions, in the course of about fifteen months, the whole debt was discharged."-pp. 345–347.

Here indeed was another item added to the already long list of works which, while they were a benefit to the public, were a cause of anxiety and embarrassment to the authors. 'Sic vos non vobis,' was the lament of one of the first writers of the Augustan age, we believe that but too many have had reason to reiterate the complaint down to our own time.

The account given of Mr. Richmond's interview with the Emperor of Russia at the dock-yard at Portsmouth, and of his subsequent communications by letter with that high personage, and with the Princess Sophia Metstchersky, we cannot introduce, however interesting, want of space preventing us. We hasten therefore to give some extracts tending to throw light on Mr. Richmond's private walk and conversation, and then conclude with a few remarks upon the memoir in general. We shall first give a letter written to his eldest daughter, while employed himself in one of his northern tours for the religious Societies.

"Dear Mary,

"I wrote to you on my own birth-day, and now I do the same on yours. There is a time to be born, and a time to die.' So says Solomon; and it is the memento of a truly wise man. But I may add, there is an interval between these two times, of infinite importance.

"Does my beloved child duly appreciate this ? Not all the charms of nature, either Scottish or English, can for a moment compare with those of grace: and when can we better contemplate the real value of life, the vanity of the world, the worth of a soul, and the need of a Saviour, than when the lapse of time brings round the anniversary day of our birth? It seems to concentrate all the experience and feeling of past days, and to unite them with the anticipations of those which are yet to come: it speaks to youth and age alike, and summons both to prayer and meditation. Soon will eternity overwhelm all the concerns of time, but will infallibly take its character from them. I sincerely hope that you are systematically improving time, with a view to that eternity. Your opportunities have been many and valuable; your privileges great-may every ensuing day prove that they are not lost upon you. Religious parentage and social connexions alone cannot save: per..

sonal religion in the heart is every thing. Our dear friend Mrs. S

appears to

enjoy it in deed and in truth. Prize such a friend; not only because she is kind and agreeable, and worthy, but because she is a child of God, a member of Christ, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven; and as such, may be the ordained instrument of God, for establishing the same principle in you. Think of us all, not for the mere love's sake of earthly kindred, but for the love of Jesus, as connected with the family of heaven. This alone gives to charity itself its value.

"Farewell, my dear child; and while you pray for yourself, forget not
Your affectionate father,

LEGH RICHMOND."

The next is a letter addressed to Mrs. Richmond, and which is illustrative of his happy tendency to spiritualise earthly things: it is written from Iona or Icolumbkill, one of the Scottish Hebrides, a place well known to the antiquarian, as the site of a once celebrated abbey, and the burying place of some of the greatest persons of the olden time.

"I am persuaded that my dearest Mary wili not only allow me to express the strong sensations of my own heart, as connected with the remote and magnificent scenes, in which a kind Providence is at present placing me, but will sympathize and share them with me. Had I not sent off a letter two days since to Wilberforce, I would on this day have written to him, as it is his birth-day; which has been the subject of my early and earnest morning prayer, on a sabbath spent in this extraordinary and interesting island. You are not altogether unaware of the peculiar feelings and wishes which, for many years, I have cherished in regard to these islands; and now the desire has been fully answered. You can form little idea of the characteristics of every thing, and every body around me. The novelty, simplicity, singularity, the tout ensemble is indescribable. I have been obliged to wait a whole week for suitable weather, and almost despaired of success, but I regret it not now. 'God waits upon the waiters,' and we experience it. No one can visit these islands without allotting from a week to a fortnight of disposable time for the purpose. You have seen my prints of Staffa; but you have not seen them large and solid as the original. The sublimity, beauty, magnificence, singularities, wildness, and overwhelming influence of the whole, quite stop my pen and my breath, when I attempt either to write or speak on the subject. I have made two separate visits to Staffa, and seen it within and without, with every possible advantage. My travelling friend, Mr. P., is of a truly congenial mind, and we have mutual pleasure in using the scenes of nature as means of grace.

"Iona is delightful in another way. Here, amid the ruins of ancient grandeur, piety, and literature-surrounded by the graves and mouldering gravestones of kings, chieftains, lords of the isles, bishops, priests, abbesses, nuns, and friars-the scene decorated with the fine and romantic remains of cathedral, colleges, nunnery, chapels and oratories, with views of islands, seas, rocks, mountains, interspersed with the humble huts of these poor islanders ;—I am just preparing to preach to as many of them as can understand English, in the open air. A rock my pulpit, and heaven my sounding-board; may the echo resound to their hearts. In the evening, I expect to preach by a Gaelic interpreter, to the whole company of islanders, sentence after sentence being translated as I utter them. I trust I am following up the spiritual example and wishes of my friend C., and that some good will result from this visit. This will more than repay the delay occasioned in my journey, by this most interesting excursion to the Hebrides. It will somewhat lengthen my