O wise and aged scholar,

With thy crown of silver hair,
Sure no more blessèd lot than thine,
Could mortal wish to share,
Thy guileless life, thy wisdom,

Are told in court and shrine,

And when men seek a name of spotless fame,
First on their lips is thine!

"The crown of earthly honour,
GOD willeth should be mine,
And deep and exquisite the bliss,
To lay all on His shrine.
But oh! the weary waiting,
Until I meet my LORD!
Yet patient self-oblation

Worketh its own reward."

Seemeth it strange-these voices
Of mingled joy and pain?
Ah! bitter-sweet the chalice,

Each Christian soul must drain!

The sharpest cross is the sweetest,

The lightest presseth hard,

But to each and all, when the shadows fall,
He giveth a full reward.

S. E.

Reviews and Notices.

Doctrinal Revision. A Sermon preached in the Cathedral of S. Patrick, at the Visitation of his Grace the Archbishop of Dublin, Oct. 22, 1872. By the Rev. R. Travers Smith, B.D., Vicar of S. Bartholomew's, and Prebendary of S. Patrick's. Second edition. Dublin: Hodges, Foster, and Co. Sermons in Explanation and Defence of Church Doctrine.-Published separately:

1. The Rule of Faith. By the Rev. Edmund McClure, M.A., Curate of S. George's, Belfast.

2. Baptismal Regeneration. By the Rev. J. R. Brougham, M.A., Vicar of Timolin.

Churchmen in Ireland seem at length to be arousing themselves to the vital nature of the struggle that is going on within their community. We have before this called attention to the "Irish Church Journal," a cheap periodical published quarterly by Ponsonby of Dublin, which very effectively

advocates Catholic views. But this evidently is quite insufficient for the purpose of counteracting the prevailing unbelief of Irish Protestants in the Divine character of the Church. We gladly welcome therefore the increasing signs of energy which are indicated by the publications placed at the head of this review.

The Sermon of Mr. Travers Smith is one of the ablest vindications of Catholic Truth that we have ever read, in contrast with that mere Protestantism which has landed English Presbyterians in Unitarianism, the Swiss Reformed Communities in Socinianism, the French and German in denying the fact of a Revelation, and is hurrying on so many nominal English Churchmen into Theism or Pantheism. "If the cry that the Reformation must be perfected," is Mr. Smith's pertinent question, "is to be raised, to whom, think you, will the advantage come? Will it be to those who regard the Reformation as an evangelical movement imperfectly freed from Catholicity, or to those who think of it as a movement of intellectual emancipation imperfectly freed from definite religious belief? The man is blind indeed to the signs of the times who hesitates for a reply."

We specially recommend the distinctions drawn between the teaching of S. Augustine and that of Calvin, and between the latter again and that of Zwingli. The smaller sermons, which like that of Mr. Smith, are being published very cheaply, are also of great merit. Really few English theologians would have rightly explained the Rule of Faith, as Scripture interpreted by Tradition, as Mr. McClure, after Bramhall, and Thorndike, and Jebb, has done. A very few years since we heard it actually laid down at an Oxford Diocesan Conference by one who is now a Bishop, that "the Faith" was meant to be the Creed and "the Rule" the Scripture which regulates it.

Mr. Brougham's sermon is also a very seasonable and sound production,— though we think that he has gone a little too far in urging that Conversion is also a process that must subsequently be gone through by all the baptized, and especially in grounding its necessity on our LORD's words, "Except ye be converted,”—which were simply aimed as a warning against pride.

The second series of the Curate's Budget (Hodges, London) has just furnished our parish libraries with a volume containing six most excellent stories, each one inculcating some special point of Christian duty. Thoroughly sensible, practical, and at the same time really interesting, nothing can be better than these Tales for conveying needful instruction in pleasant guise. Their very titles are for the most part suggestive—“ Ragged Robin,” “Hasty Wooing bitter rueing," "A long Watch," "Widow Tom," "Peace on earth," "Millicent's Wedding." The last of these enters with great good sense on the question of Register Office Marriages. Altogether there is much reason to congratulate Mr. Michel on his successful attainment of a most useful purpose. The third volume of Mr. Baring Gould's splendid collection of the Lives of the Saints has reached us, and displays the same untiring research and deeply devotional spirit which have rendered the two earlier portions of this great

work so valuable. The author's language is strikingly good, and if he is able to complete the series as well as he has begun it, it will form a truly noble contribution to the literature of the Church.

We remember to have noticed favourably some time since a little volume in Mr. Hodges' Sixpenny Series entitled, "The Rule of Faith," which was an original practical Treatise on the Creed. Since then there have been two translations of Avrillon, which seemed scarcely suitable for general use. But now we have The Rule of Life as a companion to “The Rule of Faith”—a treatise on the Commandments. It is a meritorious manual: but we have two faults to find with it. (1) It allows controversy to peep out occasionally, whereas a treatise of this kind should be wholly and simply didactic. (2) The Christian's Rule of Life cannot be said to be complete, while it does not include the Beatitudes. This seems to us a capital defect. To the printer also we would point out that the heading of the alternate page should always give the title of the subject treated of.

Hymns for the Household of Faith, and Lays of the Better Land, (Macintosh, London.) This is both externally and internally an extremely pretty book. It is not intended for use in public worship, but is well adapted for the private meditation of those who may from illness or other causes be debarred the services of the Church. The qualities which have been sought for in choosing these poems seem to have been simply true devotional feeling and beauty of expression, without regard to the particular religious bias of the author. Thus we find side by side Faber and Bonar, Mrs. Browning and Miss Procter, with many other equally marked contrasts, the result is a work of greater average poetic merit than most of the collections of hymns we know. The volume is published for the benefit of two "Orphan Homes" near Bath, conducted on the family system. We think our readers will be interested in seeing the following sonnet taken from it, as it is a translation of one written by Michael Angelo in the eightieth year of his age.

"From a vexatious heavy load set free,

Eternal LORD! and from the world unloosed,
Wearied to Thee I turn like a frail bark

'Scaped from fierce storms into a placid sea.

The thorns, the nails, the one and the other hand,
Together with Thine aspect meek, benign,

And mangled, pledge the grace to mourning souls,
Of deep repentance and salvation's hope.
View not my sins in the condemning light
Of justice strict: avert Thine awful ear,
Nor stretch forth on me Thine avenging arm;
May Thy Blood wash my guilt and sins away
As age creeps on may it abound the more

With timely aid and full forgiveness."

We must briefly mention also the publication of Thirteen Hymns for Advent and Lent, by R. T., an esteemed contributor of our own. They are con structed for antiphonal singing and are excellent in every way.

239

Correspondence.

[The Editor is not responsible for the opinions of the Correspondents.]

To the Editor of the Churchman's Companion.

MANUAL FOR MEDITATION.

SIR,-Will you or any of your correspondents please recommend me a good book of Meditations, stating publisher and price?—Yours, &c., B. A. E.

THE UNLUCKY MONTH OF MAY.

SIR,-Why is May considered an unlucky month for marriages? and is there any legend connected with the superstition? Yours, &c., E. M.

JOURNEE D'UN MALADE.

SIR,-Is there any English translation of "Journée d'un Malade," by Henri Perreyve ?-Yours, &c., LOUISE.

66

THE CHURCHMAN'S COMPANION" FOR

A LENDING LIBRARY.

SIR,-The Sisters of S. Thomas the Martyr, Oxford, are desirous of completing a set of Churchman's Companions for the Parish Lending Library, Will any of your subscribers kindly assist by sending either bound volumes or unbound numbers for the years previous to 1860? The two volumes for 1859, which are now out of print, would be particularly acceptable. Gifts of books, new or old, and the smallest contributions in money will be thankfully received if sent to the Mother Superior, Osney House, Oxford.-Yours, &c., SISTER ELIZA.

Notices to Correspondents.

A Subscriber. S. Catherine's determined celibacy was, we believe, the reason of her being chosen as the patroness of old maids, although undoubt edly it is a qualification which she possessed in common with most of the early female Saints.

Sister Eva. We believe there is no absolute rule against the use of misletoe in the decoration of churches, but it is not generally employed for that pur pose on account of the somewhat coarse associations connected with it.

There may be a private association of clergy who wear the badge in question, but there is certainly no "order" in the Church so distinguished.

Inquirer. The text you quote has been the subject of much discussion, but it has been often proved that it does not necessarily imply the meaning you give to the words. You must take into consideration the rapid increase of the human race and the long duration of life at that period which would give ample facilities for the result apprehended.

A Subscriber. There is a very good English translation of "Le Récit d'une Sœur" entitled "A Sister's Story."

We believe that Carolines on the Continent take San Carlo Borromeo for their patron saint. We never heard of a Saint Mabel.

An Associate C. B. S. We have received your letter in reply to S. T. M., but you seem to be hardly aware how much of personal discourtesy to our correspondent is implied in it. We have however, for that reason sent it to him privately, instead of publishing it, and if he wishes it to appear along with an answer from himself in our next issue we will then print it, but we cannot do so otherwise.

Mona. A letter is awaiting you at our office which will be forwarded on receiving your address.

Accepted: "Anastasis;" "JESUS Risen;" "Mater Dolorosa."