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solemnity, so that the congregation mortal souls of those committed were enabled to prepare themselves thus solemnly to their care; they to join in the service with intelli- would indeed be guilty of the basest gence, devout sympathy, and earnest perjury, and might expect every prayer. The Bishop had delivered individual present to be a swift a charge, which, judging from the witness against them. ample report of it, in the publication I have just mentioned, must have been singularly appropriate and impressive. The beneficial effect of the whole upon the public mind; the effect, not only upon the candidates, and the laity of our own church, who in general know nothing of the solemn nature of our ordination and consecration services, but upon pious and candid Dissenters, who take ample care that their own solemnities shall not be performed "in a corner," may be inferred from the following remarks of "The Pulpit." I quote them with the more pleasure, as the writer, I presume, is a Dissenter, and his testimony therefore, the more honourable both to himself and to our church.

"We have not often been present at a more impressive service. Thirty-seven well-educated men, in the bloom of life, were solemnly set apart to an office, the important duties of which were powerfully urged upon their consciences; while each individual declared before the listening multitude his firm belief in the truths of Revelation, and bound himself at the altar of God diligently to study those truths, and faithfully to teach them to his flock; to make himself a wholesome example and pattern; and to promote, to the full extent of his power, quietness, peace, and love among all Christians then uniting with his fellows in prayer for the illuminating, the consoling, the purifying, the strengthening influences of the Holy Spirit, that all these vows might be fulfilled, that all these duties might be performed. If these young men could engage in such a service with thoughtlessness, or if they could retire from it unimpressed, or if they could enter on their duties as mere hirelings, regardless of the im

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"We regarded the services of the day with more than ordinary attention, because we had a short time before been perusing some remarks on the Ordination Service, made by the editor of a certain weekly newspaper (the World), supposed, by many, to be the organ of the Dissenting body. In the article to which we refer, the writer accuses this very bishop of arrogating to himself the power of communicating the Holy Spirit to the individuals whom he ordains: he then points us to a well-known reverend infidel, and asks, Where are the fruits of this power?' and again, Who is the greatest blasphemer, Mr. Taylor, or the Bishop who pretended to cominunicate to him the Holy Ghost?' And again, he asserts, Power is assumed by lords spiritual to bestow the Holy Spirit of God on whom they will.' We knew, indeed, that all this was gratuitous; and we were quite sure that the sentiments expressed by this writer would be indignantly disowned by enlightened Dissenters at the very earliest opportunity-as the event has provedyet we were highly pleased to hear the Bishop himself most solemnly disclaim all such power, both on his own behalf and on the behalf of that church of which he is a mem. ber and an ornament. The Church of England,' he says, never pretends that her bishops can give the Holy Spirit in this ordinance; nor even that it is always given in answer to their prayers.' We know of what strange anomalies human nature is capable: a man may make the most solemn professions of faith, and the most solemn vows of fidelity, and diligence, and purity, and perseverance; and then prove recreant to his avowed principles, and basely injure the good cause he has sworn to advance. But, where does the

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blame attach ?—to the minister who faithfully set before him the duties of his office; and who assured him, in the presence of congregated thousands, that his best professions would be solemn mockery if there were laxity of conduct or practical infidelity; and who affectionately urged him to implore the Divine influence, which alone could enlighten his mind, and fortify his heart, and make him exemplary and useful; and who set before him the salvation of his own soul and the salvation of his hearers as the bright recompence of his fidelity ;-or does it not rather attach to him who recklessly takes all these vows upon him, and then goes forth a votary of the world, an apostle of infidelity? Let common sense, let candour, be the judge."

Nothing can be further from my intention, and nothing, I am sure, would be more justly offensive to any Right Reverend prelate, than either eulogy, disparagement, or comparison; but the subject to which I have alluded is of considerable importance, especially in the present day, and may justly demand the attention of the Right Reverend bench; so that, except in special cases, which plead their own apology, the ordinations of our clergy may be always celebrated (as I trust in the great majority of instances they at present are) with due publicity, and at convenient hours, and in suitable places, where a full congregation may be gathered together to witness and share in the sacred service. The remark applies even more, if possible, to the consecration of bishops. The Dissenters reproach us with our "hole-and-corner" consecrations, as the Papists did our fathers with the Nag's-head fablelet us shew that we do not fear the face of day, but that all our services are such as may be publicly solemnized, as their founders intended, to the glory of God, the edification of the church, and the refutation of the gainsayer. Every friend of our ecclesiastical establish

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A CORRESPONDENT points out to us a singular attack upon the Christian Observer in a late number of the Edinburgh Christian Instructor, in an article entitled Review of the "Negro-English Testament." That version was printed by the Bible Society, upon the representation of Mr. Latrobe, and the Moravian missionaries at Surinam, that this dialect is spoken by fifty or sixty thousand persons who understand no other. Mr. Latrobe admits that it is "a strange, and to an English ear an almost offensive, mixture;" being partly Dutch, partly English, partly Portuguese, and partly African: but he adds, that it is the spoken language of almost the entire population of the country, and was so long before the present or the last generation; and that it has so far acquired the character of a fixed dialect as to make it desirable that those who know no other should read in their own tongue, barbarous as it is, the wonderful works of God. The committee of the Bible Society, concurring in this view of the question, have printed the version, and the Moravian missionaries in Surinam state that it has been received "with great joy."

Still the previous question arises, whether the missionaries, who have had stations in Guiana for nearly a century, would not have done better to teach their converts a regular language-either, for example, Dutch or English-than to encourage their speaking a patois which to European ears, as Mr. Latrobe himself admits, is not a little offensive. The missionaries reply, that they did not go out to

mend the people's language, but to preach to them the Gospel in a language they understood; and the Bible Society, having no power to change the actual dialect, thought it better that the people should read the word of life in this than in none. There is, however, another question, which bears upon the peculiar circumstances of the Negro population in the European colonies: namely, that the Africans, being foreigners, must of necessity speak any European language imperfectly; and that those who befriend their cause should beware of exposing them to ridicule, and perpetuating their degradation, by calling the jargon acquired in their slavery their language. So far from disagreeing with the Edinburgh Instructor in this matter, we have ourselves always urged this view of the subject; and even in noticing missionary reports have objected to, and generally refused to quote, the broken English of the Negro converts. The man who is made to say "Massa, me tink," would in his own tongue have spoken as correctly as an Englishman who says "Sir, I think :" and it has done much mischief to the poor slave, and tended greatly to disparage his intellect in the popular estimation, that he has been made to speak gibberish, instead of giving his meaning in proper words, as would have been done in any other instance. Our missionary friends say that this jargon adds pathos to their statements; but they do not reflect that it tends, in another view, to injure their clients. Let them consider what would be the effect in any similar case. Suppose, for example, that a French ambassador were thus caricatured, and that, instead of his diplomatic statements being written and printed orthographically, they were accommodated to his foreign accent: would not this be an insult? Would the most eloquent linguist speaking a foreign tongue escape ridicule? And if the practice were systematic, would not the

ridicule tend to disparage himself and his countrymen? Yet why not as justly write, in an official document, "Den de French ambassador say to de Duk de Wellanton," as introduce a Negro's broken language into a missionary report? Unthinking persons will not easily believe that a man who speaks mangled English can be fit for liberty. An African, with the port and dignity and intellect of a man, is thus degraded by the puerilities put into his lips. He is a foreigner: if you repeat his sentiments, either translate them into good Soosoo or Mandingo, or do him the justice to put them into English.

Such being our long-formed and well-known sentiments, our readers will judge of our surprise in perusing the following passage in the Edinburgh Instructor's review of the English-Negro Testament; where, after alleging that "to give the Negroes the Bible in such a form as that in which the Brethren have given it to the outcasts of Surinam, is to put upon them additional mockery, and another badge of humiliation, and a stronger fetter still to bind them down to their unhappy fate," the Instructor adds, "The Christian Observer has lauded the measure.

But what will the Editor of the Christian Observer not laud, if it only form a part of the proceedings in Earl Street? All his zeal for the Bible cause, and all his reputation as an advocate for the poor slaves, must be sacrificed at the shrine of the London Committee. For shame! But what could be expected of a writer who brought himself to the low level of supporting the adulterators of God's word, and actually bepraising them for their conduct in the case of Haffner's infidel preface?"

We might retort upon the Edinburgh Instructor, What would that periodical not write, if it would write the above? As regards our own readers we need enter upon no explanation or defence: our pages are before them, and we are per

fectly sure that they will not for a moment think it credible, whatever may be our faults, that we have become abettors either of Negro slavery or of a Neologian or Infidel preface: or, if they should consider the charges worth inquiring into, they can refer to our volumes for evidence on the subject. Nor is it necessary, we presume, to offer any explanation even to the readers of the Edinburgh Instructor; for they must long since have discovered that they cannot rely implicitly upon a statement merely because they find it strongly asserted in that publication otherwise, what more than ordinary monsters of villainy must be all the friends of the Bible Society, and most other of our religious institutions! But, in truth, no expla nation is necessary: for, so far from "lauding the measure" of printing the Negro-English Testament-be that measure good or bad-we absolutely knew nothing either of the merits or demerits of that version; we had never heard, spoken, or perused a syllable respecting them; the question had never come before us; and our pages are to this moment blank paper as respects it. On looking back, the only place in which we can discover that we even so much as alluded to the NegroEnglish Testament occurs in the last page of our Number for last April; where, in our usual monthly notice of the Correspondence of the Bible Society, is given, in one single line, the statement of the Moravian missionaries, that "the Negro-English Testament had been received with great joy by the Black and Coloured population of Surinam." Of the translation itself, or of its merits or expediency, we said nothing; indeed, we knew nothing, and had never heard any thing. The Instructor's assertion is therefore a mere fabrication, and seems inserted only for the sake of the notable comment; "But what will the Editor of the Christian Observer not laud, if it only form a part of the proceedings [of the Bible Society] in Earl Street?

All his zeal for the Bible cause, and all his reputation for the poor slaves, must be sacrificed at the London committee." For ourselves or our readers we need ask no explanations of the charge, for the matter is before them; but some of our Northern contemporary's own readers may think that their Instructor owes them more than mere assertions; and that it is due to himself and to them to give proofs of his alleged facts. They may fairly say, "We have repeated after you, that the Christian Observer has lauded the measure of translating the Scriptures into a dialect called the Negro-English; will you in your next Number name the volume and page in which he has so done, that we may shew it to those who tell us we have asserted what is untrue? It might do for us, your admirers, to say that you took it for granted that the Christian Observer committed this atrocity, on the presumptive evidence that he is leagued with the London Bible Society in committing so many other atrocities, and is always ready to sacrifice both his anti-Neological and antislavery principles at their shrine ; but to the public a stronger proof may be requisite: lauding is a positive act, and you had better give the positive evidence: it will not do to say you inferred it, or surmised it.

With regard to the measure itself, of printing the Scriptures in the dialect called Negro-English, it would be unjust in us either to laud it or to blame it, as we know nothing of the particulars of the case. We do, however, heartily laud the Bible-Society committee, for their truly Christian zeal in giving to the nations of the earth the word of God, so far as practicable, in every language under heaven. The necessity for any particular translation, or its merits, are questions of detail, which it behoves the committee carefully to examine: and we doubt not they did so in this case, and acted to the best of their

judgment. We are quite sure that in printing the version objected to they considered they were benefiting the persons for whom it was designed. The same tribute of gratitude attaches to the missionaries who have undertaken and completed the irksome labour of making the version; for what motive could they have for their toil, but to benefit the people among whom they so zealously labour? And even were it proved that they have in this instance not acted judiciously, in descending to the language of their converts, instead of endeavouring to elevate their converts to theirs-a point on which we have no specific information, and therefore can offer no opinion--there is still no sufficient ground for the violent attack made upon them in the Edinburgh Instructor. With the best of motives, they might err in judgment. The propriety of embodying the popular jargon of Surinam as a written language, instead of teaching the people to read and speak English or Dutch, must depend upon the peculiar circumstances of the case, which we are not willing to prejudge: though we could earnestly wish that the Moravian missionaries would at least try the experiment of raising the mental, as well as the spiritual, character of their converts; and thus assist to "qualify" them, as it is called, for that freedom which all admit they ought in due time to enjoy; and which we are bold enough to hope they will be permitted to enjoy before long, whether their masters may judge them qualified or not. We respectfully submit to these revered agents of Christian mercy, whether, in their honourable solicitude to benefit the souls of the slaves, and their laudable caution of avoiding inflammatory topics, they have always dealt with the faithfulness and boldness which became a Christian missionary in a country where Sabbath-breaking, licentious habits, and every evil work, are fearfully prevalent. Does the slave-master duly

feel, that, while they abstain from irritating the mind of his unhappy bondman, they are at the same time utter enemies to slavery, and most anxious for its abolition; and that, as ministers of Christ, they know no distinction of persons in matters which relate to the Decalogue or religion? They have a difficult office assigned to them by the Great Shepherd and Bishop of souls; and they have discharged it with much meekness, patience, and prudence; and their labours have been abundantly blessed, and we are very far from discouraging them: but, knowing as we do the instinctive sagacity and pertinacity with which the great majority of West Indians oppose every thing that can really elevate the minds of their wretched bondsmen, and remembering the persecutions of faithful missionaries of other denominations, from the martyred Smith of the London Missionary Society to the late and present atrocities against the Wesleyan Methodists, we feel anxious that our Moravian brethren should be able to shew that their West-Indian popularity has not been earned by any undue concession.

We ought, in justice both to the missionaries and the Bible Society, to add, that the test which the Edinburgh Instructor has chosen, in order to prove that the NegroEnglish is gibberish, by interlining it with other languages, is not altogether a correct one, since the cognate relation of many languages is so close that even an acknowledged tongue will often appear ludicrous when subjected to this test. To go no further than the very first line of the specimen quoted by the Edinburgh Instructor: the regular Dutch version of "This is Jesus the prophet," is to English ears quite as much a jargon as the NegroEnglish: nay, the ear might even prefer the alleged gibberish, " Hem da Jesus da prophet" (He is Jesus the prophet), to the classical Dutch, "Dese is Jesus de prophect." We say not this to prove that the lan

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