twelve o'clock the church-bell began to toll, and the friends of Mr Blair were seen walking slowly in twos and threes along the green lanes which lead towards the Church and Manse; while the rest, assembling in the burying ground, awaited the forthcoming of the mournful procession. Such as had been particularly invited, entered the house. One by one they were ushered into the parlour of the Manse, and not one approached it without something like a feeling of fear. But that feeling was dispelled in a moment; Mr Blair stood in the midst of the apartment with a face of such calmness and composure as if he had been the only man there that day whose business it was not to receive comfort, but to give it. To each of the guests who entered the room he went up separately, and extended his hand in silence. Not one word was uttered by any one. "Each took his station; and then a salver of wine having been handed round, Mr Blair himself called upon the eldest of his brother clergymen present to ask a blessing. It is in that form, that the funeral prayer of the Scottish ceremonial is announced and uttered. The person called upon to pronounce it on this occasion, was by no means one who had lived on any very particular terms of intimacy with Mr Blair; neither was he any great favourite among the country people of the neighbourhood. He bore, in general, the character of a dry, sarcastic sort of man, and, being very old, was personally little known, except among the immediate circle of his own friends and connexions. Yet not one that heard Dr Muir pray that day, would have wished the duty to have fallen into other hands. The old man had himself experienced the sorrows of life, and he spake like one who was about to go down into the grave, leaning on the only arm in which strength lies. "It was a touching spectacle to see the church-yard when the procession entered it. Old and young stood around unbonnetted, and few dry eyes were turned on Mr Blair when he took his station at the head of the opened grave. The clods, as they rattled down, sent a shudder to every bosom, and when the spade was heard clapping the replaced sod into its form, every one turned away his eyes, lest his presence should be felt as an intrusion on the anguish of the minister. He, on his part, endured it wonderfully; but the dead mother had been laid down by the side of her dead children, and perhaps, at that moment, he was too humble to repine at their re-union. He uncovered and bowed himself over the grave when the last turf was beat down, and then, leaning on the arm of John Maxwell, walked back slowly through the silent rows of his people to the solitude of his Manse. "After he was out of sight, not a few of them drew near to contemplate the newmade grave, and the old were not slow to retrace the memory of those of the same family who had heretofore been committed to the same dust. On the wall of the church, immediately adjoining, a large marble ta blet had been affixed, to record the pious labours of Mr Blair's father, who preceded him in the charge of that parish; and most of those who were present could still recall with distinctness the image of the good old man, and the grave tones of his voice in exhortation. But there was a green headstone there, rudely fashioned, and most rudely sculptured, to which their fingers were pointed with feelings of yet loftier veneration. That stone marked the spot where Mr Blair's grandfather was laid—a simple peasant of the parish-one whose time on earth had been abridged in conse quence of what he had done and suffered in days when God's chosen race, and the true patriots of our country, were hunted up and down like the beasts of the field-when the citizens of a Christian land durst not sing a psalm in the wilderness, without the risk of being hewn into pieces by the sword of some godless slave. They who are acquainted with Scotland-above all, with the west of Scotland-cannot be ignorant of the reverence which is still cherished for the seed of the martyrs. Such feelings, I am sorry to say, were more widely spread, and more intensely felt, in former times than they are now. It was to them, in no small degree, that Adam Blair was indebted for the deep affection with which his person and all his concerns were, and always had been, regarded by the people of his parish. To their love he had" titles manifold," but not the least was his being the grandson and namesake of old Adam Blair, who had fought against bloody Clavers and the butcher Dalyell, at Bothwell-bridge, and endured torture, without shrinking, in the presence of false Lauderdale." Our next quotation shall be the scene before the Presbytery, and we must give it entire. "When the clergymen composing the Presbytery found themselves assembled that day, it would have been evident to any one who might have been present, that their minds were occupied with something very different from the ordinary routine of their ecclesiastical business. The clerk read his minutes without being listened to by any body; and while many little matters were being arranged in the usual manner, among the usual functionaries, the different members of the court were seen forming themselves into knots, and whispering together low and anxiously in various corners of the Chapter-house. At length one of the members, a tall, thin, elderly person of very formal aspect, moved that the court 2 Y should be cleared, as he had to call the attention of his brethren to a subject, which, in its present state, ought to be discussed with closed doors. "When this clergyman, by name Stevenston, was satisfied that all strangers had retired, he addressed the chair in a long and elaborate speech, for the tenor of which almost all who heard him were sufficiently prepared before he opened his lips. He expatiated at great length on his own unwillingness at all times to open his ears to scandal, more particularly against the character of any of his hitherto respected brethren ;—explained, however, that, under certain circumstances, it was every man's duty to overcome his private feelings;-and then entered into a serious, circumstantial detail of the many rumours which had been for some time afloat, concerning the conduct of Mr Blair of Cross-Meikle. He concluded with moving a string of resolutions, which he held written out on a card in his hand-the general purport of which was, that the scandal concerning this member of their court had already amounted to what, in the ecclesiastical phraseology of Scotland, goes under the name of a Fama Clamosa; and that, therefore, it was the bounden duty of the Presbytery to take up the matter quam primum, and appoint a committee, with powers to commence a precognition and that such and such persons ought to constitute the committee in question. His motion was instantly seconded by another person on the same side of the house, who, however, in doing so, expressed his own firm belief that there was no foundation whatever for the foul allegations too publicly circulated against Mr Blair, and that, on a proper investigation (which, for the sake of Mr Blair himself, ought to take place without any further delay) it would become manifest to all, that a few casual imprudencies, misinterpreted by the malicious, were all that could be laid to his charge. He concluded with a eulogium on Mr Blair's previous character and conduet, both of which, he said, had always been regarded with the deepest respect, even by those who differed most widely from him in opinion as to matters of inferior moment -and by none more so than himself. "When this speaker sat down, there ensued a pause of some moments, during which, those on the opposite side of the room (the same among whom Mr Blair himself usually sat) were seen consulting among themselves, as if anxious, and yet hesitating, to make some reply. Dr Muir, who happened to be the Moderator of the Presbytery, and of course had his seat apart from any of the other clergymen, continued for some time looking towards them, and at last he rose up, and requested one of their number to relieve him, for a moment, from the duties of the chair. “As soon as he had quitted the desk, the old man, still standing in the open space in the centre of the room, threw his eyes eagerly round him, and began to speak of the matter which had been brought before their notice, characterizing as rash and imprudent, in the highest degree, the conduct of those who had broached such a subject in the absence of the person most immediately concerned in it, and fervidly expressing his own utter contempt of the rumours they had heard of, and his most. sincere conviction, (for such it was) that the pure and stainless character of Mr Blair had been assailed in consequence of nothing but the malice of one individual, whose name need only be mentioned in order to satisfy the Presbytery with how much caution they ought to proceed upon this occasion. He then sunk into a lower but not a less serious tone, and-after desiring his brethren, with the authority which years and superior talents alone can bestow, to banish all thoughts of party in considering an assault which might have been made with equal success, as well as, he firmly believed, with equal justice, against any one of all who heard him-the old man proceeded to relate the substance of the conversation he had himself held with Mr Blair the night before he left Cross-Meikle, and the solemn denial of the alleged guilt which he had then received from the lips of his young friend. Dr Muir himself felt, as he went on, that what he said was producing a powerful effect, and he therefore opened himself more and more freely, and reviewing the whole course of Adam Blair's existence, dared any one present to avow his belief, that even if he had been capable of offending in the manner imputed to him, he could have been so of telling a deliberate and an uncalled-for LIE. 'Sirs,' said he, I put to all of you, whether you do not feel and know that Adam Blair is innocent; and is it thus, that while we are ourselves convinced of his innocence, we are rashly, hastily, sinfully to injure our brother, by countenancing the clamours of the ignorant, and the malicious, and the ungodly, in his absence? Would to God that he were present with us this day, that he might have done for himself effectually, what a feeble old man has rather the will than the power to do for him!' "Dr Muir was speaking fervently in this strain, and the visible emotion of a man who generally controlled and concealed his more ardent feelings, was kindling even the coldest who listened into the same congenial warmth, when the door of the Chapter-house opened, and in walked Adam Blair himself. Every eye being fixed stedfastly upon the impassioned speaker, the entrance of a stranger was not for a few moments observed by a single person there; and indeed Dr Muir himself never suspected what had happened, until the pale and altered man was standing at the distance of three or four paces right in front of him. He stopped in the midst of the sentence, and gazed for a moment in silence, first upon him, and then upon the audience and then suddenly resuming all the fervour of his tone, said these words, 'I thank my God!-Adam Blair, speak, look up, let them hear your voice. Speak solemnly, in the hearing of God and your brethren! -Adam, are you guilty, or not guilty, of this uncleanness ?' "The unhappy Blair, laying his hand upon his breast, answered quickly and clearly, Call me no more your brother I am a fallen man-I am guilty.' "Every pulse shook beneath the tone of that voice but Dr Muir groaned aloud, ere he made answer. Fallen, indeed, Adam Blair,-woe is me-doubly, trebly fallen! Do you remember the words you said to me when I spake with you in pri vate ?' "The old man covered his face with his hands, and flung himself backwards upon his seat, while all the rest continued silent, speechless, staring upon the countenance of Blair. "It was he himself who broke once more the silence of their assembly: I call you no longer my brethren-let me still call you, though unworthy, my friends : let me still partake your prayers.-Pray for me-I dare not pray for myself. The God that hath abandoned me will hear your prayers.' "At these words Dr Muir uncovered his face, and fixing his eyes once more on the unfortunate, continued, for some moments, to regard him in silence, like all the rest. A big tear rolled over his cheeks, but he brushed it hastily away ere he said, Adam Blair, you have been ill. You have been ill in the body. But a few days ago your hair was black, and now it is as grey as mine; your cheek is white, your strength is gone. He started to his feet as he continued Our brother has been visited with much sickness. Perchance his mind also has been shaken.' "It has, it has,' muttered several voices. ' "Mr Blair looked all around him, and, for the first time, the water stood in his eye, as he replied, Body and mind have been shaken, but it is not as you would too kindly persuade yourselves. Oh, sirs!-I have spoken the truth. I came hither to speak it. What hope of peace or mercy could I have until I had spoken the truth, and resigned my office into the hands of God's servants? I do now resign it.-My ancestors were peasants, and I return to their lot would I were worthy of them! Once more, I demand your prayers. Refuse not my parting request.'" "The whole assembly remained, once more, fixed in silence. Dr Muir, still erect in front of Blair, surveyed them all round and round; and then saying, Brethren, I read your thoughts,' fell down upon his knees. They all knelt at the same moment and Blair, weeping like an infant, knelt also in the midst of them, and stooped his forehead to the dust." We find that we can afford only one short extract more. "Mr Blair discharged the duty bequeathed to him by this venerable man's parting breath, amidst a numerous assemblage of the neighbouring gentry, and of the whole. members of the Presbytery, to which the parishes of Cambuslee and Cross-Meikle belonged. He received their salutations with modesty, but without any apparent awkwardness; and parting from them at the churchyard, walked home to his cottage. "His daughter and he were sitting together quietly by the fireside the same evening, when a knock came to the door. Sarah rose and opened it, and in a few moments, the cottage was quite filled with the same clergymen who had been présent at the funeral. Mr Blair stood up to receive them; but he had not time to ask them the purpose of their visit ere the eldest of those who had come, addressed him in these words : "Mr Blair, your brethren have come to speak with you on a very solemn subject; but there is no occasion why your daughter should not hear what we have to say. It appears that our departed father, Dr Muir, had expressed a strong wish, that you, being reinstated in the ministry, should succeed him at Cambuslee,-and that the family who have the patronage of that parish, were exceedingly anxious that his dying request to this effect might be complied with. You, however, have declined to accede to their wishes. We, your brethren, have this day held a conference with the family at Semplehaugh; and another arrangement is now proposed to you by them through us. If Mr Jamieson becomes Minister of Cambuslee, will you return to your own old place? Will you once more set your hand to God's work here at Cross-Meikle?" "Mr Blair's daughter turned aside and wept when she heard these words; but he himself stood for a moment in silence before them. It was then that John Maxwell, who had been bed-rid for three years, was borne in a chair into the midst of the assembly, and said, Mr Blair, we, the Elders of Cross-Meikle, are all present. We are all of the same mind. Oh, sir, fear not! we have all witnessed the purification! let me not die until I have seen you once more in your father's place!' "The tears at length gushed over a face that had been long too calm for tears; and Mr Blair, altogether overpowered, submitted himself to the will of his brethren. His friends perceived that he would fain be left alone, and they all departed. Sarah rush ed into his arms and wept, but not bitterly. "A moment afterwards she also withdrew, and Blair was left alone to meditate upon his pillow concerning all these things, and concerning more than these." We have probably said enough, and given sufficient extracts from the "Life of Adam Blair," to enable our readers to understand its spirit and character. Were we to enter into a formal criticism of its merits and demerits, we should be unavoidably led upon some debateable ground. But, for the present, we decline this. One objection to the book which we have heard and seen made to it, is, that no clergyman could in Scotland have been taken back into the bosom of the church, after he had been so guilty, and so degraded as Adam Blair. That objection is removed at once by an extract from the Acts of Assembly, with which we have been favoured by a clerical friend, and which we give below. It was upon that fact, we should rather imagine, that the present narrative was founded. Another objection is, to the manner in which Adam Blair's guilt is accounted for and described. That part, we think, might have been better managed, and a few paragraphs omittedaltogether. But candour, truth, and justice, require us to affirm that this author is entirely free from the sin of wishing to draw vice in alluring colours. Blair and Charlotte sin, and they are direfully punished. If there that they will, on no account, admit are any minds so fastidiously delicate, that such frailties ought ever to form the subject of works of imagination, with them there is an end of the matter do not read Adam Blair, or read and abuse it to your heart's content. But the author writes of human nature, which he well understands, and his book will offend neither the truly moral nor the truly religious ; but on the contrary, its whole ruling spirit is consonant with the purest morality, and the highest religion; and we believe that the book is the greatest favourite with those who know best the character of our people, and the spirit of our institutions. It is necessary, indeed, to know these thoroughly to feel and understand the Passages in the Life of Adam Blair; but it is also necessary to know something of human nature in general, and none who do so will object to a history of human life, that it is a history of weakness, temptation, guilt, remorse, and penitence that in it those who sin are brought to the grave untimeously, and in all their youthful beauty, or survive through years of humiliation and anguish, and are restored to peace, credit, and usefulness, at last, only when purified by the fire of affliction. "A Committee appointed to consider a reference from the Presbytery of Glasgow to the Assembly, for advice and determination in the case of Mr George Adam, late minister of Cathcart, who had judicially acknowledged his guilt of fornication with one Isobel Gemmel, his servant, and who was deposed from the office of the ministry, and did thereafter undergo a course of discipline before the congregation in Cathcart, on which occasion, as well as since that time, he has given great evidence of his penitence, in so much, that, upon the application of the whole elders of that parish, the Presbytery did take off the sentence of deposition, being all satisfied of his unfeigned sorrow and deep concern for his sin, as well as his edifying conversation. That since his being reponed, the patron, the whole heritors and elders, and other parishioners, have signified their earnest desire to have him restored to the exercise of his ministry in the said parish, as formerly." PRINTED ACTS OF ASSEMBLY, May 16, Session 4th, 1748. "The report of the committee named to have under consideration the case of Mr George Adam, late minister at Cathcart, brought in, and the Assembly having fully heard and considered the representation and reference concerning him, with what was verbally laid before them by several members of the Presbytery at Glasgow, and Synod of Glasgow and Air, and other reverend ministers of this Assembly, resolved, that this case, in its so favourable circumstances, deserved to be distinguished from others; and, therefore, without derogating from force and general obligation of the laws and regu lations of this church, in her acts and form of process, whereby Presbyteries are bound up from reponing ministers deposed for immoralities, to their former charge, but expressly ratifying and confirming them, did specially allow and authorise the Presbytery of Glasgow again to settle Mr George Adam in the parish of Cathcart, in case proper application be hereafter made to them for that effect; they always proceeding according to the rules of that church, in the same form as would have been done in case Mr Adam had not been settled in that church before. At the same time, it is declared, that no minister deposed for immorality shall be capable of being restored to his former charge, in any circumstance whatsoever, without the special authority of the General Assembly appointing it." May 18th, Session 6th, 1748. 5 A LETTER TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE LORD NUGENT, Containing some Remarks on his Lordship's Letter to the Electors of Aylesbury, MY LORD, FROM A PROTESTANT LAYMAN. I HAVE not till lately had an opportunity of seeing your Lordship's letter to the Electors of Aylesbury, although it has been long since published, and gone through more than one edition. The public attention being thus manifestly directed towards this address is a sufficient reason for lay-i ing these remarks before your Lordship, and offering them to the notice of others who feel an interest in the subject, notwithstanding the decision of the House of Lords may seem to make such a discussion less necessary. The pertinacity evinced by the advocates for the Roman Catholic claims forbids us to hope that the question ean long remain at rest; it may not, therefore, be entirely useless for a spectator of the struggle to submit to the public such arguments as may oc eur to his mind, and thus endeavour, if I may be allowed an expression which a great poet has used in speaking of a much higher authority, to justify to the country the vote of the Peers. This attempt is the more necessary as the representatives of the people, in examining the question, have come to a different conclusion. The widely diffused pages of Blackwood's Magazine appear to me as good a vehicle for conveying these thoughts to the public eye as any other; and it may in this way have as fair a chance of gaining your Lordship's attention. There is something conciliating in the manly sentiments avowed by your Lordship in the outset of the Address, asserting that claim to which every honest, independent member of Parliament ought to adhere, viz. to exercise his best judgment freely upon all great national questions, unfettered by the instructions, and even unbiassed by the opinions of his constituents. I rejoice, nevertheless, to find that the Electors of Aylesbury, and, I trust, the great majority of the Electors of the United Kingdom, do not coincide in opinion with your Lordship on the subject before us. I purpose examining briefly the most prominent topics contained in the letter. You profess to decline all controversy with an anonymous antagonist. I am not ambitious of prolonging the contest; but having entered the lists, although I do not "wear my vizor up," I will not shiver my lance with a less degree of courtesy. Your Lordship begins by stating that other religious sects, differing from the established Church, have constitutional advantages which are denied to Roman Catholics, because "their spiritual opinions are rendered the active, immediate, and sole instrument of their disfranchisement ;" and, in a note you add, "Religious liberty is either a universal principle, or it is no principle at all." I will endeavour to defend the distinction which the English laws have made, and to dispute the supposed axiom you have laid down on the subject of religious liberty. Although it is an acknowledged principle, that man has an imprescriptible right to worship his Creator in the manner he thinks most acceptable, yet even this obvious truth may admit of some limitations. It must depend on the peculiar nature of the tenets and practices of each particular religious sect, differing from that of the state, whether it shall be entitled to full and free toleration. To illustrate this position, if indeed it require any elucidation, let us suppose an extreme case. The most ancient religion known in this island is that of which the Druids were the officiating ministers. In this age, so prolific in the eccentricities of the human mind, it is not quite impossible but that some wild spirits might conceive a fancy to revive a form of worship, sanctioned by such high and venerable antiquity. We have already heard of a society, supposed to be convivial, the ceremonies of which are, however, only known to the initiated, which has assumed this antique appellation. But if religious rites were the acknowledged purpose of their meeting, and they were to declare themselves the only true worshippers of the Deity, the wreaths of oak and boughs of misseltoe would too much remind us of the |