One of the most prominent "signs of the times"—to borrow a theological expression is the formation of Societies. There seems no fad, or craze, or hobby, the victims of which do not immediately or eventually develope gregarious tendencies, and club together for its corporate indulgence. Both the Saturday and Pall Mall notice this phenomenon. The latter contents itself with a brief paragraph saying that if we must have a Society for everything, we might well have a worse than that just about to be formed for the suppression of juvenile smoking. The best thing this benevolent association can do, thinks the writer, is to back up heartily every effort to increase the number of recreation grounds for the children of the poor, who are chief among precocious amokers, A very successful public play-ound was opened two years ago in whitechapel, and the movement ought to be extended.' The Saturday takes of course more comic of the Society mania "Me. Spurgeon," it says, "has recently complained in his Farm Sermons that we suffer from a scarcity of men and a superjundance of malluses. So morally inverted brate does Mr. Spurgeon find his fellow-creatures that he cris, Give us your hand, old fellow," when he is introduced to a good old-fashioned bigot. We do seem indeed.... a feeble folk and a molluscous. No one can do anything for himself. Every one falls back on the aid and comfort of society. There are Early Rising Societies, the members pledging themselves by avrful oaths not to breakfast Tater than ten o'clock. 'There are Reading ies, favoured by conscientious young Other Societies exist for th king knots in reeds, and read. ing queer m war eventually ings into plain poetry." 'The suggests the institution of an Antic' John-Inglesant" Society. The publication of this book appears to have lot loose a flood of boredom. There fu no escaping it. At every dinner a moment comes when some one says Have you read John Inglesant?" Even in church there is no refuge, Preachers ask in their sermons whether their ave read John Inglesant, in me way as they ask whether hearers have found peace.—By this time we know from the expression of a Lady's face when she is going to ask this for the enquiry, "No, we have not read question, and we reply, without waiting
John Inglesant.'" The writer therefore suggosta that a Society should be got up, the mootings of which might be thus described:—" The Anti-John-Inglesant Society mot under the presidency of Mr. Smith, No papers were read on any subject, but the Society passed an evening of friendly intercourse, the conversation chiefly turning on Ascot."—Another interesting and more solid article in the Satur-y is entitled © A Sketch of Cardinal New-From this we make the following selection, thinking with the reviewer that are probably many, both within and without his own communion, who will b interested in learning Cardinal Newman's views on one of the vexed questions of modern theological controversy jou on the part of the church that Scripture la inspired.
It is defined that Almighty God is actor utriusque Testamenti. I do not know of any GeGiuition that he ie actor ommnium librorum which belong to each Testament.
But it is not to be supposed that, because there is no definition on the part of the church that Scripture pired, therefore we are at liberty at once to deny it, Aa to the extent of its inspiration, I do not ave that the Council of Trent speaks of it as the matters than faith and morals; but besides the four c rations above down, T would hazardous process to attempt to euuacinte faith and morals out of the sacred text which contains them. It is not a work for in. dividuals. At inst it has ben f divine spirit did expressions of Scripture which imply does not, rather that He did not mean ey that notion Ido not seo any thi ture which consider the six days of Genesis days, ciple, viz., to be expected. I that iron, om a lightness of wood, any case to work of Jonah and the whale, I feel the \dditioual grave and awful hazard how to attempt to deny the history without irreence toward the express teaching of the incarnate God. 2
Perhaps the wittiest article in this number of the Saturday is that headed 'Uncommon Nonsense about Many Things,' which deals with Mr. i book Common Son good deal of real fun i 1, pa cularly where the writer amuses and his readers with Mr. Higginson's proposition that the House of Lords or the Saturday Review contributors should be set upon a hand-to-hand fight agaiustan equal number wf navvies or costermongers, when cians would have about "8 much ry entertaining article. We only stay to recommend to our readers the article on 'Tndian Outfits' on page 738, and pass on to the Athenaeum. thie opens with review 'Animi Figura.' Of thi wer says that the author was "evidently born to meditate." He elsewhere says that Mr, Symonds seems born meditator, and circum:
The followin, are entitled "The Thought of Deal!
Will not the large life of the Universe Fulfil ite chi Haply "twere enough Like April snakes to cast the treacherous slough Of fleshly stupors that the soul immerse. Who knows if Death, miscalled the primal 2 Stern and one, Is form, not matter; nay, what we soe, Hath form; blank latter name or nought.
Shall then each point of vital unity Or shall uew webs of life be spun pit quivering in the skein of thought These questions all men ask; but none can er fur thulr anguish here below. The howling whirlwinds of existence blow ard for ever o'er an endless lake We watch the struggling barks around us take Whoir fated course, and that is all we know 5 hey sail, "they sink 5 no sign the waters show While straining myriads follow in our wake. The force that speeds our flight we cannot No voice of man or God survives the storm Nor wid the weltering waves hath any form Risen to fill the vast vacuity Nay, if at times there stream athwart the Dome-forked flame, it dazzles but to blight.
We must find space, too, for one other, part of a poem on ' Personality':—I know not what I am—Oh dreadful thought Nor know I what my fellow creatures are z Between me and the world without, a bar Impalpable of adamant ie wrought, Each self, from its own self concealed, caught Thus in @ cage of sense, sequestered far From comradeship, calling as calleth afar To star acroes blank intermediate naught, Big own self no man sees, and none bath een self, Nay, lovers, though tween Our blended souls in city,"
Startling from sleep, shall find a double screen Built "twixt two sundered selvea—and both must die, Farther on we find an obituary notice of Mr. Scott Russell, the eminent engineer and ship-builder, The writer says of him that is private life Me. Russell was greatly valued. He was generous to a fault, and always endeavoured to contrive that his friends should share whatever success he himself enjoyed, His mind was essentially original on all points monest subjects of every-day life were regarded by him from quite now points.of lew. A temperament more unsuited to and commercial transactions never existed." We may add to this that he wa one of the handsomest and geniallest speci mens of an elderly gentleman we oven remember to have met.—The Spectator writes rather a shrewd though bold article on the 'Charm of Garibaldi,' Wheroin did it lie? Ho failed as a legislator on-tirely. As a general, he was far froma great conqueror. He was beaten at Rome and at Montana, and was utterly unsuccossfal in France. Ho was a bad writer, and no great thinker. His utterances were characterised by a feminine screaminess which to Northern Europeansis detestable. Maz-zine thought him an inspired idiot, while -to Eng]
jhmen he appeared as a grand child, 'There was nothing in either his religious or political creed to attract the sympathies of England. "Wherein, then, lay the charm? Wo think it lay in the two word: unselfishness' and heroism,' which, when found together under circumstances in which both can be fully perceived, exert over the masses of mankind a sort of supervatural charm, till they are content to believe without either seeing or knowing." The following paragraph embodies a very speculative idea:
Te seems a strange and even absurd thing to say, but we have never been able to resist impression that circumstances, and, porhiaps, the age, spoiled Garibaldi's career, His character would have fitted him boat for the part of a now religious leader. With a little more knowledge and a faith, that royal nature of his would have made of converts would have founded sect which might have made Italy Christian, or have changed the whole character of the jeaumntry of France, feeling he excited In hiv followers was precisely that evoked by great teachers, and like that, appeared to be independent of any alteration From events, Meutaua no more broke hia influence than Ohod broke the influence of Mahommed, and he was as fully believed to bea democrat after he had crowned Victor Emanuel, as Mr, Wesley was bolivved to be Churchman after he began ordaining hie own preachers, We can controlling a vast rel alunout without orders, raying out de sionaries to the ends of the earth, and anfu hew fervour into them in arrange, Lalf-unintelligible epistles, w! after all, resemble nothing so much, in their half-poetic, half-angry screaminess, as some of Mahommed's Suras, That he would have boon greater i that capacity we cannot say, perhaps it enough to have enfeanchised eleven million: But he certainly would have been more intel-eligible to posterity, which will be sorely puzzled to account for " man apparently
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.