they made a schism, they did not make a party; for of none of the common sectarian practices have they even been accused. They submmitted humbly to the decrees of Providence; and what was said by Sancroft of himself, within a few hours of his death, may be applied, without hesitation, to the general body with which he acted. "What I have done, I have done in the integrity of my heart, indeed! Yea, in the great integrity of my heart."

Our limits forbid us to dwell upon this interesting subject, or to say more of the last scenes of the Archbishop's life, than that they were worthy of all that preceded them. Dr. D'Oyly has given us copious extracts from his correspondence, after he was settled in Norfolk; and

he writes with good humour, seriousness, and piety. He was unremitting in his attention to the claims of religion; and died the death of the righteous. And no person, we should think, can peruse this and other memoirs of his life, without subscribing heartily to the sentence, which, in spite of mutual dislike, and perhaps of mutual unkindness, was pronounced upon him at last by Burnet: "Archbishop Sancroft is at rest, and is, I am confident, in heaven*."

* Bishop of Surum's Vindication, p. 95. Compare also p. 79. of the same tract with Wharton's Journal, pp. 149 and 150, for a proof of Sancroft's personal dislike to Burnet, and of Burnet's suspicions on the subject.

Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

BARTLETT'S BUILDINGS, Thursday, April 3, 1821. At a General Meeting of the SOCIETY for PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE,

The LORD BISHOP of LONDON in the Chair,

THE Lord Bishop of London addressed the Board, on occasion of his presenting to the Society, in behalf of many of the Members, a Portrait of the Secretary, the Rev. Dr. Gaskin, which, at their desire, and charge, had lately been painted by William Owen, Esq. R.A. for this purpose.

The Secretary then addressed the Board, on this occasion.

It was afterwards moved, by the Lord Bishop of Llandaff, and seconded by the Lord Bishop of Killaloe, that his Lordship of London be respectfully requested to furnish a copy of his Address, in order to its being entered on the minutes of the Society; and that the Secretary be desired to furnish a copy of his Address, for the same purpose.

LORD BISHOP OF LONDON. Before we proceed to the ordinary business of the day, I beg leave to state to the Board, that I am charged with a commission, which I shall execute with peculiar satisfaction. A number of the most distinguished Members of the Society, among whom are both the Archbishops and most of those individuals who take the warmest interest in its concerns, have

long been desirous of publicly expressing their respect and esteem for our excellent Secretary, and transmitting to posterity some lasting memorial of their high esti mation of his personal character, and bis long and faithful services. With this ob ject in view, they have prevailed on him portrait being now completed-completed to sit to a painter of eminence, and, the I have the pleasure to say, in a very masterly style-they have deputed to me the agree

able office of presenting it to this venerable Society, who, they are confident, would set a high value on the picture, though it had no other recommendation, than the acknowledged worth of the original. Of that worth, as exhibited in the public capacity, which has almost incorpo⚫ rated his name with the very idea of our Society, you will better be enabled to judge, when you consider the tenfold increase of our means and expenditure, and the extension of our connections by means of District Committees, which have multiplied the labours of correspondence in proportion, and thrown on the Secretary a much heavier burden than could have been possibly contemplated, at the time of his entering on his office. This burden he has cheerfully borne without any adequate recompence, except indeed that, which a mind like his will duly appreciate, the increase of public esteem, and the internal satisfaction arising from the conscientious discharge of duty. On his personal and professional excellence I should be restrained, by obvious motives of delicacy, from touching on the present occason, if I were not aware, that, whatever may be the wishes of our Secretary, the feelings of his friends would be disappointed, if I passed without notice the unblemished integrity, and amiable virtues, which adorn his private life, his assiduous and affectionate zeal in the discharge of his pastoral functions as the Clergyman of an extensive parish, and the soundness of doctrine and reverence for ecclesiastical authority, which distinguish him as an orthodox Divine, On these topics, however, I will not enlarge, and will only add, in conclusion, that though there are many whose powers langnage would have given greater effeet to the intentions of those whom I have the honour to represent, there is no man who more entirely concurs in the sentiments, which they have taken this mode of expressing and I have further the satisfaction of knowing, that if I have failed in any particular, I am speaking in the presence of those, whose recollections and feelings will more than supply any deficiencies or omissions of mine.

ADDRESS OF THE SECRETARY.

guage with which this has been done, by our Right Reverend and revered Diocesau, from the Society's chair, is flattering to me beyond measure, and claims my humble, but most cordial thanks. I am much, too much honoured: and yet I cannot fail to be exquisitely gratified. Five and thirty years have now elapsed, since I became Secretary to the Society; and, during that period of time, I have witnessed the gradual advancement of its means, and its exertions, towards promoting the glory of God, the enlargement of the Church of Christ, and the spiritual edification of Christians, till the whole has reached to more than a tenfold increase.

At my present period of life, which is fast approaching towards the age man, I am less equal to active exertions than heretofore I have been; and ere long, most probably, I shall be altogether unequal to any. It cannot fail, however, to be my consolatory recollection, during the little remnant of life, which God Almighty may yet allot me, that in addition to the discharge of my pastoral duties, I have been permitted to be a chief agent in the transaction of this truly Christian Society; and that as such, my name and my por trait will probably be here handed down to distant posterity, associated with those of my invaluable predecessor and fatherin-law, the late Rev. Mr. Broughton. I beg leave to repeat my thanks to your Lordship, and to the Board at large, for this mark of affectionate and flattering at tention to me; and for all those kind attentions, which I have uniformly received from this Society, during the long period of my Secretaryship.

Extract from Report of the Manchester and Salford District Committee, for 1821.

"A STATEMENT of the proceedings of the Manchester and Salford District Committee of the Society for promoting Christian Knowledge for the past year, will, it is confidently presumed, afford high satisfaction to all the friends of pure religion; because, in the primary object of its institution, the dispersion of books and tracts of the soundest orthodoxy, its exertions have been crowned with unexampled success. The number issued within this period, amounts to 1086 Bibles, 358 New Testaments, 1509 Prayer Books and Psalters, 1797 other bound books, and 4772 unbound tracts, exclusive of some thousands of the Society's anti-infidel publica

tions.

"These exertions have not been made

but at a considerable expence, which the present subscriptions of the district could by no means support. They have, how ever, in this instance, been assisted by a liberal grant of 50%. from the occasional fund of the Society, and by additional benefactions from some residents in the district.

"With respect to those Tracts which the special Committee of the Society have published to counteract the blasphemous and infidel tenets of the times, the circulation has not been so general as could have been wished. The seducing properties of the poison, well adapted as it was to the vitiated taste of those amongst whom it has been administered, obtained for it a ready introduction; whilst the less palateable ingredients of the antidote have been contemptuously rejected: yet every legitimate and becoming means have been used to abate the influence of this prejudice, till it was apprehended that the facility of obtaining the Tracts, and the earnestness with which the perusal of them has been pressed, might, in some instances, tend rather to continue, than to diminish, the disinclination to receive them. But the distribution is still in progress, and though not rapid, is perhaps not the less effectual. "Another object of the Society's attention, the establishment of Parochial Libraries, has not been neglected by this committee. On the receipt of the circular announcing the plan, a special meeting was summoned to consider of the best mode of carrying it into effect; and though the plan seemed excellently well calculated for parishes of moderate extent, yet for the parish of Manchester, extending over thirty distinct townships, with an aggregate population of about 150,000, it appeared that much more was requisite. It was therefore proposed to the society, under the sanction of the Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of the diocese, and of the worshipful and rev. the warden of the collegiate and parish church, that the minister of each church and chapel, twenty-four in number, should be permitted to avail himself of the benefit of the Society's plan, with a special view to the establishment of a Lending Library in the district or town ship contiguons to his church. To this proposal the Society most readily acceded; and the result has been communicated, by letter, to the clergy of the parish, who have been invited to avail themselves of the privilege. In one district of the town, that surrounding St. George's free church, inhabited for the most part by those who depend entirely upon their daily labour for their support, there seemed little pro

bability of obtaining any subscription to purchase the books. A representation was therefore made of these facts, upon which a special committee of the Society unanimously agreed to grant the sum of 12l. for establishing a lending library for the use of this district, and the books are now in cir. culation."

National School at Bath.

A NUMEROUS Company, of all ranks, assembled at the National School room, Weymouth-house, in this city, on Thurs day, May 10, to witness the annual public examination of the boys educated in that institution. The examination took place in the presence of the venerable the archdeacon of Bath, the right worshipful the mayor and corporation of the city, the very rev. the dean of Winchester, &c. &c.; attended by the gentlemen of the commit. tee, and the ladies visitors of the girls' school. The classes examined went through the different branches of their in struction in the most satisfactory manner, and afforded an admirable exemplification of the great distinguishing features of the National System, viz. solidity in the acquirements, and readiness in the execution of knowledge. In the grand fundamental article of religious instruction, the answers of the children to numerous questions on the principles and duties of Christianity were, from their general pertinency and readiness, highly gratifying to the anditory; and it must have afforded our worthy chief magistrate (John Wiltshire, esq. of Shockerwick) peculiar pleasure to attest the care which had been taken to impress their youthful minds with the great dutiss of civil obedience, and of reverence for an oath. The number of children present, including the girls' school, (which was not examined) amounted to near 700. The interest of the scene was much increased by the modest and decent appear ance of twenty young females, expressly trained and educated for servants, in an excellent institution, yet in its infancy, cal led the Female Asylum, some of whom had received their early instruction in the girls' school,

The examination being concluded, most of the children, both boys and girls (including several who had left the school for service), were regaled with a substantial dinner of beef and pudding; and to add to the general hilarity, the parents were admitted to witness the enjoyment of their little ones. An appropriate finale was put to this gratifying entertainment, by the "untaught barmony" of so many

youthful voices uniting in our grand national anthem, "God save the King;" after which the party broke up, and dis+ persed with mutual feelings of gratification and good-will. Bath.

The following Speech delivered by the Bishop of St. David's on the second reading of the Catholic Bill, was omitted in our last number; it will be found more correct than the reports which have appeared in the Newspapers:

The Bishop of St. David's said, my Lords, though I am wholly unable to do justice either to the great importance of the subject before the house, or to my own convictions, yet I am unwilling to give the vote which I shall do this night against the second reading of the bill, without endeavouring at least to state the grounds of my objections to it. But, before I state those grounds, I wish to make a single observation on what fell from the noble earl, whose eloquent speech closed the debate of last night. The noble earl observed, that the constitution of this country "is essentially Protestant, but not exclusively so." My Lords, the history of the constitution, if I mistake not, requires both terms. From the Constitutions of Clarendon, downwards, its Protestant character was forming. It was forming by the variety of checks which were given to the intrusive authority of the Pope by the laws of Edwards I, and III. Richard II. and others. It was formed, and in great measure completed, by the laws of Henry VIII. It was finally completed by the statute of the 30th of Charles II. and the act of settlement. It was completed, my Lords, by the entire exclusion of the Pope and his jurisdiction from the constitution. Excinsion is therefore of the very essence of our Protestant constitution. The constitation is not only essentially Protestant, bat exclusively so,-exclusive of the Pope and his jurisdiction. I object to the bill, because it appears to me contrary to the very end for which your Lordships are here assembled. The writ of summons convened parliament expressly to consult for the defence of the Church of England; super rebus quibusdem arduis defensionem regni Anglia et Ecclesia Anglicane concernentibus. But the Church of England never can be defended by giving political power to her greatest enemy, the Church of Rome.. I object to the bill, because it appears to me contrary to the oath which

I took at at the commencement of the present parliament. The bill recognizes the foreign jurisdiction, which I then swore does not exist, and ought not to exist within this realm. The oath expressed my real sentiments. I took it without the smallest mental reservation whatsover: and at the time I was resolved to fulfil the

tenor of the oath. It seems to me, therefore, if I were to vote for the bill, I should falsify my oath and my declaration. I ob. ject to the bill, because it appears to me contrary to one of the highest prerogatives The king is head of the of the crown. Church of England by common law, as well as by statute. But if this bill were to pass into a law, it would be a great encouragement to the papal power; that power which the Roman Catholics hold to be superior to the sovereignty of the realm. Every encouragement, therefore, of the papal power, is a diminution of the authority of the crown. My Lords, there are many other objections to the bill. I object to it, because it appears to me a most pernicious anomaly to permit the members of a foreign church, and subjects of a foreign sovereign, to sit in either house of parliament without renouncing their foreign allegiance; and especially to legislate for the Church of England, against which they are united by principles of conscientious hostility. I object to the bill, because it offers to the Church of England false securities. It proposes, by way of security to the Church, an oath to be taken by the Roman Catholic Clergy, which no conscientious Roman Catholic Clergyman can take or can keep. It is contrary to their religion, or what they call their religion, to swear, that they will enter into no communications with the Pope for the disturbance or the overthrow of the Church of England; their creeds and oaths, their preaching, writing, and ministering, having all a tendency, directly or indirectly, to the overthrow of the Protestant Church, as every body knows, who knows any thing of the decrees of the Council of Trent, and as we have been lately informed by a Roman Catholic Bishop, who stated it as his objection to the oath proposed by the bill. I object to the hill, because it is contrary to the acts of union, by which the Protestant Religion was declared to be inviolable, But this bill abrogates the securities which were intended to preserve it inviolate, and has provided no equivalent. My Lords, the objections to the bill are endless. They may, perhaps, be comprised in a few words its utter inconsistency even with the religion of that foreign Church, which it was intended to serve; its ruinous neg.