in some cases the direct teachings, of foreign Protestant missionaries, they appeared to be extremely ignorant of foreign nations. Canton was known to them as the seat of a great foreign commerce; but Shanghae (which has indeed sprung into importance during the few years they have been fighting in the west) was found to be quite unknown to several of their leading men. It is gratifying to learn that, under these circumstances, the existence of a common religious belief disposes them to regard their foreign brethren' with a frank friendliness which past experience renders it difficult to comprehend in a Chinese, but which, we earnestly trust, every effort will be made to cultivate and estab lish in their minds. It would, to speak of nothing else, do more for our commercial interests, should the insurgents succeed, than hundreds of ships and regiments. We understand that during a long ride of ten or twelve miles into the city of Nankin and back, along what may at present be called one of the streets of a large camp, Mr. Meadows did not hear one of those abusive and derogatory epithets applied to himself or companions which have always been so liberally bestowed on passing foreigners by the heathen Chinese. There was also the fullest evidence that the obscene expressions with which the latter garnish all their conversations are prohibited and almost banished from the language of the Christians."

We are further informed, that Mr. Meadows, on landing, had an interview with the Secretary of State, and one who is called "The new or rebel sovereign," but who, for reasons already stated, we strongly suppose, was only the principal of the five chiefs. Mr. M. was excused prostrating himself before the chief, on explaining that it was not an Englishman's custom to do so. A variety of questions were put to him, and answered satisfactorily; he was requested to repeat the Ten Commandments, and was shown a complete translation of the Protestant edition of the Bible, which, he was informed, was the only holy book amongst them.* They had been unsparing in their work of demolishing the idols, broken fragments of which, with pieces of their temples, were floating like accumulations of wreck or seaweed on the waters of the Yang-tse-Kiang.

But from recent accounts it would seem that the religious views of the "patriots," as they are now called, are not quite so "Protestant" as the visitors on board the Hermes had been led to suppose.

It does not appear

that the Bible is circulated, or in common use, amongst the insurgents; but that a set of books have been prepared-by whom we know not-containing a strange admixture of law and Gospel, moral precepts, and (if translated aright) blasphemous assumptions. Some of these have been translated by Dr. Medhurst. The first is called "The Book of Religious Precepts of the T'hae-ping Dynasty," and commences with a statement of the prevalency and evils of sin, and earnest calls to repentance. The writer then proceeds to say, that "those whose minds have been deluded by the devil object and say, that the great God is only to be worshipped by sovereign princes. But we wish you to know that the great God is the universal Father of all men throughout the world. Sovereigns are those of his children whom he clothes with power, but the good are those of his children who most resemble him; while the common mass are still his children, though steeped in ignorance; and the violent and oppressive are his disobedient children. If you still think that sovereigns alone are allowed to

*One bit of information, given by an officer on board the Hermes, is both curious and interesting, as pointing out the existence of the Christianity formerly planted in China by the Nestorians, among the unsubdued mountaineers of the province of Quangsi:

"On our re-passing Chin-kiang-foo they fired on us, and in consequence of our returning it the General came down with a letter of apology, and sent it off. A Maoutsee, one of the aborigines that have never been conquered, and who live in the mountainous districts of Quangsi, came off for the answer. This man stated that his people had had the Scriptures for two hundred years, and on questioning him through an interpreter, stated that these Scriptures had come down from Heaven about two thousand years before, and were the same as those the remainder of the insurgents had; that they had been taken to Pekin about one thousand years ago; and that it was thence his people got a copy, which they had multiplied."

1orship the great God, we beg to ask you, whether the parents of one amily regard only their eldest son; and whether they require filial respect and obedience from him alone?"

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Next we have the objection answered,—" that to worship the great God is to imitate foreigners ;" and the sum of the argument is, that "according to the histories both of the Chinese and foreign nations, the important duty of worshipping the great God, in the early ages of the world, several thousand years ago, was alike practised both by Chinese and foreigners." Then follows a "form (of prayer) to be observed in seeking the forgiveness of sins;" then, "a prayer for a penitent sinner,"*—the most evangelical in the list ; this is followed by "a prayer to God for morning or evening," expressed in similar words to the preceding one; next, " Thanksgiving to be offered at meals," and "a prayer in time of sickness and affliction." After this the precepts seem to partake more of a Chinese mixture. "On occasions of birthdays, thanksgiving of women after childbirth, bringing home a wife, or marrying out a daughter, with all such fortunate occurrences, presentations of animals, wine, tea, and rice should be offered up to the great God, accompanied by the following prayer" (which is then given). Also, "On occasion of constructing a hearth, building a house, piling up stones, or opening up ground, presentations of animals, wine, &c., should be offered up to the great God." On funeral occasions "no Buddhistic ceremonies are to be employed," but the above "presentations" are also to be used, accompanied by a prayer. The keeping of the Sabbath is then enjoined, and next we have a form of praise to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—“ the three Persons, who, united, constitute one true Spirit" (God). ten celestial commands" are then given, each followed by a short commentary and a hymn. †

“The

There is also a long poetical piece, called, from its structure, a "trimetrical classic ;" each line contains three words, and each verse four lines. It is evidently a sort of confession of faith, but one which we would most

*I, thine unworthy son or daughter, kneeling down upon the ground, with a true heart repent of my sins, and pray thee, the great God our Heavenly Father, of thine infinite goodness and mercy, to forgive my former ignorance and frequent transgressions of the divine commands; earnestly beseech thee, of thy great favour, to pardon all my former sins, and enable me to repent, and lead a new life, so that my soul may ascend to heaven; may I from henceforth sincerely repent and forsake my evil ways, not worshipping corrupt spirits (gods), nor practising perverse things, but obey the divine commands. I also earnestly pray thee, the great God our Heavenly Father, constantly to bestow on me thy Holy Spirit, and change my wicked heart; never more allow me to be deceived by malignant demons, but perpetually regard me with favour; for ever deliver me from the evil one; and every day bestowing upon me food and clothing, exempt me from calamity and woe, granting me tranquillity in the present world, and enjoyment of endless happiness in Heaven through the merits of our Saviour and Heavenly brother, the Lord Jesus, who redeemed us from sin. I also pray the great God, our Father, who is in Heaven, that his will may be done on earth as it is done in Heaven. That thou wouldest look down and grant this my request, is my heart's sincere desire.

After this, follows what are called "a few verses:

"Repent, and believe in the great God, our Heavenly Father, and you will in the end obtain happiness.

Rebel, and resist the great God, our Heavenly Father, and you will surely weep for it. Those who obey Heaven's commands, and worship the true Spirit (God) when they part with the present world, will forthwith ascend to Heaven.

Those who follow the world's customs comply with the Devil's wishes; when they come to their end they will find it hard to escape from hell.

Those who believe in depraved spirits, will at last become the slaves of depraved spirits. Those who in life get involved in the Devil's meshes, will, when they die, be taken in the Devil's clutches.

Those who worship God are his sons and daughters; Having derived their origin from Heaven, they will finally ascend to Heaven."

gladly see displaced by our own more prosaic Confession of the Westminster Assembly. This document is a singular production, and tends to cast more suspicion on the religious views of the leader of the movement than anything that has yet transpired. Whether he will prove a religious impostor, a dupe of the Jesuits, another Mahomet, a John of Leyden, or a man as yet misunderstood, and after all seeking his way to the light, time alone will show. There is much in this Confession borrowed from the Scriptures (no religious impostor ever yet succeeded without doing this); but the revealed truths are mingled with scraps of Chinese history, traditions, and still more with novelties and pretensions of the writer's own. It commences with an account of the Creation, and institution of the Sabbath: then mention is made of Israel, "a foreign nation," and of the twelve tribes the migration into Egypt-Pharaoh-the bondage- Moses and Aaron-the miracles-the Exodus-the pillar of cloud and fire—the Red Sea, and overthrow-the manna and quails-the giving of the Law— the Ten Commandments, and the apostasy. Then follows an account of the birth and crucifixion of Christ, his resurrection, ascension, and the sending forth his disciples to preach the Gospel to all the world. Thus far (about one third of the document), it is evidently taken from the history of Scripture; but here its character suddenly changes, and becomes Chinese. The writer states that "from the time of Pwan-Koo"-the first man spoken of by the Chinese-"down to the three dynasties"—about 220 years before Christ-one God was worshipped in China and all other foreign States; but the Chinese rulers went astray, were "infatuated by the genii," and for the last 2,000 years "the nation has been deluded by the Devil." As will partly be seen from the extracts given below, this modern Mahomet not only sets himself up as the regenerator of his country, but as the son of God,* who has been instructed by Jehovah in person, fought and vanquished the Devil, is to endure for ever, govern the world, and at last to judge the righteous and the wicked! Here, then, it appears that this Chinese rebel is pretending to supersede the Lord Jesus in his kingly office, and assuming the dominion which alone is His.

There is another document, which we shall briefly notice, called an "Ode for Youth," each line of which contains five words, and each verse four lines. The first passage is " On the Worship of God;" the next Оп Reverence for Jesus ;" and then follows twenty-seven verses on the various

*The great God displays

Liberality deep as the sea;
But the Devil has injured man
In a most outrageous manner.
God is therefore displeased,

And has sent his son, [the leader of the
insurrection]

With orders to come down into the world.
Having first studied the classics.
In the Ting-yew year [1837]
He was received up into Heaven,
Where the affairs of Heaven
Were clearly pointed out to him.
The great God

Personally instructed him.

Gave him odes and documents,

And communicated to him the true doc-
trine,

God also gave him a seal,

And conferred upon him a sword,
Connected with authority,

And majesty irresistible.

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duties of social and domestic life,* and altogether free from the blasphemous assumptions which appear in the "Classic" already named.

With the amount of information we at present possess, it would perhaps be unfair to judge the author of these productions too severely, especially as we have no particulars of how they were obtained, or to what extent the doctrines are enforced among the insurgents. From concurrent accounts we are led to suppose that some of the leaders were instructed in Christianity by Protestant missionaries ;t but even if this were the case, the amount of instruction must have been limited; which, if taken into account with the taste of Chinese writers for figurative language, and the possibility that portions of the "classic" may yet be misunderstood, would incline us to suspend our fears as well as our hopes, until further light is thrown upon the subject.

On the 18th of May, Amoy, the city in which our own brethren are labouring, fell into the hands of the "patriots" but as an interesting account of it has been furnished by Dr. Young, which appears in another part of our columns, we shall not here dwell upon the subject. To this letter, "On the Duties of Daughters-in-law. "On the Duties of Elder Brothers. "Elder brothers, instruct your juniors,

"Ye that are espoused into other families,
Be gentle and yielding, and your duty is Remember well your common parentage;
Should they commit a trifling fault,
Bear with it and treat them indulgently."

fulfilled;

Do not quarrel with your sisters-in-law,
And thereby vex the old father and mother."

The Rev. I. J. Roberts, an American missionary, who went to China in 1837, says, that in October last year, when at Hong-Kong, he was enabled to examine written accounts in the possession of a missionary there, which he received from one of the leading insurgents, Of the chief-leader, TIEN-TEH, this man said that he "studied books from his early youth, was intelligent beyond comparison, and having read all kinds of books, he went to the examinations at fifteen or sixteen years of age. At one of the examinations in Canton he met an extraordinary looking man, with large sleeves, and long beard, who gave him a book entitled, 'Huen Sci Leong Quen,''good words exhorting the age.' In this book it was taught that men ought truly to believe in God, on Jesus, obey the Ten Commandments, and not worship devils. Afterwards, when sick, he had a vision in which he received instructions corresponding with those doctrines taught in the book, and therefore he immediately commenced speaking and acting according to the instructions of the book received. Then he travelled in Kwangsi province, and made several books, exhorting men to forsake the false and turn to the true. Some time after he received the religious book referred to above, he went to the chapel in Canton, where he continued for several months memorizing the Scriptures, and studying the doctrines. After which he went to Kwangsi and published them." My informant goes on to say, "it was not the original design to raise a rebellion; but from the encroachments and injuries inflicted by the officers and soldiers, to which we could not submit, there was no alternative left us."

Mr. Roberts then supplies the narrator's account of himself; and then makes the following statement, which he in some measure confirms in a subsequent letter:-"Some time in 1846, or the year following, two Chinese gentlemen came to my house in Canton professing a desire to be taught the Christian religion. One of them soon returned home, but the other continued with us two months or more, during which time he studied the Scriptures and received instruction, and maintained a blameless deportment. That one seems to be this HUNG Sau-Chuen, the chief; and the narrator was perhaps the gentleman who came with him, but soon returned home. When the chief first came to us he presented a paper written by himself, giving a minute account of having received the book of which his friend speaks in his narrative; of his being taken sick, during which he professed to see a vision, and gave the details of what he saw, which he said confirmed him in the belief of what he read in the book. And he told some things in the account of his vision which I confess I was then at a loss, and still am, to know whence he got them, without a more extensive knowledge of the Scriptures. He requested to be baptized, but left for Kwangsi before we were fully satisfied of his fitness; but what had become of him I knew not until now."

The following account given by an officer on board the Hermes, confirms the above account of the cause of the outbreak :

"On inquiring of an Imperialist belonging to the gun-boats above Nankin the cause of the outbreak, he said that a number of them were in the habit of meeting at Quangsi for the worship of Jesu, and that the mandarins prohibited them, stating that they allowed no societies for the propagation of depraved doctrine; and as they persisted in meeting they had some of them beheaded. The remainder took up arms in their own defence, commencing with 200 men. They now state they have a million adherents. I have no doubt they have several hundred thousand at Nankin, Chinkiang foo, Yang-Chow, and Kwa-Chow."

and others from Mr. Burns, we beg to invite special attention; and as our dear brethren may be in deaths oft, not knowing what a day may bring forth, let us supplicate the Lord with greater earnestness that he may "surround them with his favour as with a shield," and make them the means of much blessing to the benighted inhabitants.*

From the portions of information we have imperfectly given it is evident, that whatever light the leaders of this movement may possess, great changes will speedily take place in China. We also may expect tat not only Europe, but the whole civilized world will feel the effects of them. And not a few are now weighing the balances. The trader will calculate on his gains, the politician on the balances of power; and shall the friends of the Redeemer be behind in seeking that these overturnings should aid in the extension of his kingdom, and the glory of his name? Shall we not bestir ourselves more earnestly to send the Gospel to that troubled land? and, encompassing the throne of grace, cry unto Him whose "way is in the whirlwind and in the storm,” that He would make THIS the time when, through the length and breadth of China, his Word shall run and be glorified; when its "jubilee reveil shall echo through the sleep of her enchanted ages-its omnipotent blast dispel the nightmare of her supine and uneasy years; and her millenium of misery end in the vision of a Saviour present and Divine !"

In one of Mr. Burns' le'ters an account is given of an interesting visit he lately made to Chang-chow, but no mention is made of the dangers to which it would appear he had been exposed. We gather this from an article in the "Friend of China," of 23d June. Speaking of Amoy, the writer says:-" Although the so-called 'Small Knife Society,' in possession of Amoy, are not in direct connexion with that larger body of revolutionists who, for distinction's sake, must in future be called the Christian army, still their conduct and promises are of such commendable character, that we should feel great regret at seeing them displaced by the Tartars, whose antecedents leave us nothing to hope in the way of progress, and much to fear from the impression now generally entertained by the friends of Hieng-fung, that, had the entrance of Christianity been opposed, things would never have arrived at the present pass. An instance of this kind of opposition was recently experienced at Chang-chow, whence a request was received by an English missionary, that he would come and preach the Word of Life-that Word under which insurgents in the north were fighting and conquering. Responding to the call, two Chinese preachers were sent from one of the American Societies (Mr. Burns went also we believe), but, unfortunately, whilst they were there a riot occurred, and, with twelve others, one of the Chinese Christian preachers was captured by the Tartars (who still maintain some show of government in the place), and, with very little form of trial, all of them were inmediately decapitated-the preacher suffering, it is alleged, because he was a Christian."

It is just possible that Mr. Burns did not accompany the party alluded to, but the incident illustrates the dangers of our brethren, and shows the increasing call upon us for earnest prayer on their behalf.

Biography.

EDMUND CALAMY, D.D.

Ir a high interest attaches to the history of the first generation of Presbyterian Nonconformists, represented by the names of Baxter, Howe, and Bates, an interest, inferior in some respects, yet true and real, attaches to the history

of the second generation, who, after the Toleration Act became law, carried forward the work of Nonconformity. In the foremost rank of this second generation was Edmund Calamy. His Life, written at considerable length by himself,