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The Library of American Biography. Conducted by JARED SPARKS. Second Series, Vol. XIII. Boston: Little & Brown. 1847. 16mo. pp. 434.

THIS volume contains two lives. The first is that of the celebrated Daniel Boone, the "Pioneer of Kentucky," who has been made a sort of hero of romance, and about whom many fabulous anecdotes have obtained currency. The present life, by John M. Peck, we have reason to believe authentic, and we commend it to the attention of those who may wish to know who the real Daniel Boone was, how he lived, and what he performed. The other life is that of Benjamin Lincoln, major-general in the army of the Revolution, by Francis Bowen, who is accustomed to do well whatever he does, and who in the present case has, without overlooking other sources of information, drawn his materials principally from the letters and private papers of General Lincoln himself, which, he informs us, "have been preserved in a state of great completeness, and which throw much light on some of the most interesting passages in the history of the American Revolution." Little use has heretofore been made of these documents.

L.

Morning and Evening Meditations, for every Day in a Month. Boston Wm. Crosby & H. P. Nichols. 1847. 16mo. pp. 294.

WE noticed the original English edition of this work in our number for November, 1845, and then expressed a hope that it would be republished in this country. We now notice its appearance from an American press, merely to call the attention of our readers to a book which they will find profitable in quickening or enriching their religious sentiments.

12.

G.

A System of Moral Philosophy, adapted to Children and Families, and especially to Common Schools. By REV. D. STEELE and A FRIEND. Boston: J. Munroe & Co. 1847. 12mo.

pp. 80.

WITHOUT stopping to comment on the title of this publication, which is a little too high-sounding to please our taste, we very cheerfully recommend it as containing many just views of the moral laws of our being, well illustrated, and expressed in language adapted to the capacity of children, without being childish.

L.

A Sermon of the Dangerous Classes in Society, preached at the Melodeon, on Sunday, January 31. By THEODORE PARKER, Minister of the XXVIII. Congregational Church in Boston. Boston: C. & J. M. Spear. 1847. 8vo. pp. 48.

Services at the Ordination of Rev. O. B. Frothingham, March, 10, 1847. Salem. 1847. 8vo. pp. 30. Brookline Jubilee. A Discourse delivered in Brookline, at the Request of its Inhabitants, on 15 March, 1847, the Day which completed Half a Century from his Ordination. By JOHN PIERCE, D. D., Fifth Minister of the First Congregational Church and Society in said Town. Boston J. Munroe & Co. 1847. 8vo. pp. 72.

The Triumphs of War. A Sermon preached on the Day of the Annual Fast, April 15, 1847. By ANDREW P. PEABODY, Pastor of the South Church, Portsmouth, N. H. Portsmouth : J. W. Foster. 1847. 8vo. pp. 20.

Pp. 19.

True Patriotism. A Discourse delivered on Fast Day, in the
Second Universalist Church, School Street. By E. H. CHA-
PIN. Boston: A. Hawkins. 1847. 8vo.
The Claims of Congregational Churches. A Centennial Ad-
dress; being a Plea in Vindication of the Rights of the
First Church in Pepperell, Mass., delivered February 9,
1847. By CHARLES BABBIDGE, Minister of the First Parish.
Boston Crosby & Nichols. 1847. 8vo.
White Slavery in the Barbary States. A Lecture before the
Boston Mercantile Library Association, February 17, 1847.
By CHARLES SUMNER. Boston: W. D. Ticknor & Co. 8vo.
Pp. 60.

pp. 44.

Letter of Joseph Richardson, Pastor of the First Church in Hingham, to his Parish, on the Subject of Exchanges of Pulpit Services with the Ministers of the other Religious Societies in said Town; the Reports of a Committee, and the Record of the Votes of the First Parish thereon; and a Correspondence with four of the other Religious Societies in said Town. Hingham. 1847. 8vo. pp. 44.

:

Pages from the Ecclesiastical History of New England, during
the Century between 1740 and 1840. Boston James B.
Dow. 1847. 12mo. pp. 126.
An Inquiry into the Original Import and Scripture Use of the
Terms Sheol, Hades, Tartaros, and Gehenna; addressed to
Elder David Millard, Professor of Biblical Antiquity, etc.,
in the Theological School of Meadville, Pa. By ISAAC C.
GOFF, Minister of the N. T. Honesdale, Pa. 1847. 8vo.
Pp. 20.

God OR Our Country. Review of Rev. Dr. Putnam's Discourse, delivered on Fast Day, entitled, God AND Our Country. Boston. 1847. 8vo. pp. 23.

Resistance to Slavery every Man's Duty. A Report on American Slavery, read to the Worcester Central Association, March 2, 1847. Boston: Crosby & Nichols. 1847. 8vo. pp. 40.

WHETHER or not some of Mr. Parker's views are a little Utopian, is a question on which different judgments will be pronounced; persons who have less hopefulness in their natures than he apparently possesses may, on reading his discourse, sometimes hesitate and doubt; but there is a Christian and humane spirit running through it with which no one who has right feelings can fail deeply to sympathize. The services at the ordination of Mr. Frothingham, including the sermon by his father, the right hand of fellowship by Mr. Stone, and the charge by Dr. Putnam, are such as might be expected from their authors. After referring to the difficulties which attend the "office of religious teaching at the present day, Dr. Frothingham proceeds to speak of what is comprehended in "rightly dividing the word of truth" (the language of his text) according to its nature and the capacity and wants of hearers, and concludes with affectionate allusions to the occasion and the place. The discourse and addresses delivered at the "Brookline Jubilee "- the latter being given in an appendix - contain much matter of local interest, reminiscences, facts, dates, and, what we regard of more value, are memorials of an occasion which presented a beautiful picture of the moral and social influences exerted by a Christian minister who, after the fashion of other days, has remained united with the same people,

"Nor e'er has changed, nor wished to change his place."

The rejoicings for our victories in Mexico Mr. Peabody condemns as inconsistent with the principles of a merciful and humane religion; our bells, he thinks, should have tolled, in token of grief, rather than have sent forth the merry peal of triumph; and our 66 praise" have lost itself in "penitential sorrow" for the savage deeds of war. His sermon is the fresh outpouring of a fervid spirit deeply moved by the tidings, which had just arrived, of the bombardment and capture of Vera Cruz. - Mr. Chapin does not engage in a violent tirade against the present war and its supporters, but calmly, yet with an unflinching independence, examines some of the motives which led to it, and the excuses which are made for prosecuting it, strongly condemning them, and urging the great moral and Christian principles on

The discourse is
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which the true patriot should take his stand. alike creditable to his ability and manliness. that Mr. Babbidge's Address can be justly charged with being, as he apprehends it may seem, either "ill-natured" or severe." The attempt to rob his church of its rightful name was an offence which, with similar offences in other cases, would be provoking, were it not for their utter futility aud absurdity. The Address is an able and thorough vindication of the claims of his church. Mr. Sumner's Lecture is mostly historical. The origin of slavery is briefly touched upon, as also its character in the Barbary States; but the great merit of the performance consists in the information it contains, collected from various sources, relating to the number of slaves in those States at different periods, the efforts made for their redemption, by peaceful or warlike measures, and the general policy pursued by the European powers, resulting in the final extinction of Christian slavery in Morocco, Tripoli, Tunis, and, lastly, in Algiers. The pamphlet is not one of mere temporary interest, but deserves to be preserved as an historical document. The proposition contained in Mr. Richardson's letter was a free exchange of pulpit services with the ministers of the other religious societies in the town, that is, two Unitarian, one Methodist, one Baptist, and one Universalist. His parish assent, and communications are made to the other societies, of which two that of the second parish, and the Universalist accept the offer, while the third Congregational Society (that of the Rev. Mr. Stearns) declines, as also the pastor of the Baptist, his people sustaining him in the decision. The pamphlet entitled "Pages from the Ecclesiastical History of New England," while it gives evidence of some diligence in collecting facts and dates, and contains a show of impartiality, perpetually violates moral truth, and does about the same justice to Unitarianism which the " pages " of Gibbon do to Christianity. Such pamphlets as that of Mr. Goff, though laying no claim to great learning, cannot fail of scattering abroad some seeds of truth, and we are not the less pleased with them on account of the quarters from which we occasionally receive them. The reviewer of Dr. Putnam's fast-day sermon not only dissents from much of the language of the discourse, but on portions of it makes some very severe, and, as we think, unwarrantable criticisms. The "Report on American Slavery," etc., is valuable chiefly, not for any new light it throws on the subject, any new facts it arrays, or arguments it embodies, but as an earnest protest of a respectable body of men against an institution involving moral wrong and fraught with incalculable misery.

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INTELLIGENCE.

RELIGIOUS INTELLIGENCE.

Ecclesiastical Record. The resignation of their pulpits by two of the ministers of this city has brought forcibly to our notice a change now going on, which may affect the stability of several of our congregations. With the increasing business of the city, and the growth of the surrounding towns, families are removing from Boston and seeking permanent residences in the country. The demand for buildings devoted to the purposes of trade, and the facility of communication between the city and the country by means of railroads, are thinning the town of its old inhabitants, and lead us to anticipate the time as not very distant when most of those who transact their business here will reside in the neighbouring places. Already the effect on our churches is very perceptible. We were told by a friend the other day, that six families of his congregation had gone into the country this spring, to remain permanently; and another of our societies, we know, has lost fourteen families in the same way within a year. The removal of other persons from the country into the city, it may be thought, will more than supply the deficiency. But such is not the fact, as we learn; at least, it is not so in the Unitarian congregations. Most of those who come into Boston come from places where Trinitarianism is the prevalent or the only form of religious belief, and they bring the opinions, if not the preju dices, in which they have been educated with them, and connect themselves with churches maintaining similar opinions here. The consequence is, not only that our congregations are changeable to an extent that would probably surprise those who are not familiar with the recent history of Boston, but that they suffer, and under present circumstances must continue to suffer, a gradual diminution. The persons to whom we referred as having given notice of an intention to close their ministries here are Rev. Mr. Smith of the New North church, and Rev. Mr. Towne of the Leyden (or Green Street) church; and both offer the same reason for this step, namely, the decrease of ability in their congregations in consequence of the removal of families from Boston. Rev. Mr. Smith's resignation, should it be accepted by his people, will take effect the next spring. Rev. Mr. Bellows of Framingham has resigned his connection with the church in that place. Rev. Mr. Tilden has closed his ministry at Concord, N. H. — Rev. Mr. Clapp of New Orleans, we learn from the public journals, has left his society on account of his health, and proposes to visit Europe. Rev. Mr. Hedge of Bangor has obtained leave of absence from his congregation for a year or more, which he will spend abroad, being now on his way to Europe. Rev. Mr. Adam, who was at Toronto, is now permanently fixed at Chicago, Ill. Rev. Mr. May, formerly of Leicester, has accepted the appointment of General Agent of the Massachusetts Antislavery Society, and has entered on the duties of his office. - Rev. Dr. Pierce of Brookline having finished a ministry of fifty years, his people have decided to hear candidates, with a view to the settlement of a colleague.

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