Parkiuson enumerates 26,680; namely, the bones of the pelvis, 20; six bones in each of the ten arms, 60; forty in each of the twenty fingers, 800; thirty tentacula proceeding from each of the six bones in each of the ten arms, 1800; thirty tentacula from each of the 800 bones of the fingers, 24,000. In all these ossiculæ, Rosinus detected foramina or sinuses fitted for the reception of nerves or vessels, and all of them are nearly tubular, through which perhaps muscles might pass. Be this as it may, the animal must have been capable of a very varied motion in many directions; and provision is wisely made at the articulations, to prevent dislocation. The remains of this order of zoophytes are very numerous in many places, and are always contained in limestone, but commonly in a very shattered and mutilated state. Besides the stone lily, there are numerous other species, most of which are found in England. By far the best account of them is to be found in Miller's Natural History of the Crinoidea, lately published. Mr. Miller has given a new arrangement of the genera and species, part of which Mr. Parkinson has inserted.

Our limits will not admit of our following the Author through his observations on the higher species of fossil remains. Those of birds and insects are very rare ; fossil fish are much more numerous. Among the quadrupeds, the sauri (lizard order) are very frequently occurring. On the recognised law laid down by Geologists, that few or none of the fossil species have any recent analogue, it might have been inferred, that no remains of man would be found petrified or embedded in rocks or strata. The bones formerly talked of as those of giants, are, by the more accurate researches of modern anatomy, found to belong to the mammoth, the rhinoceros, the elephant, &c. of the antediluvian world.

There are only two genuine human fossils at present known to exist, both from the Island of Guadaloupe. The one is in the British Museum, and is thought to be that of a female. The other has been received at Paris within the last few months. At the Peace, M. Donzelot, the Governor, was directed by the French Minister of the Marine to send this interesting fossil, which is, according to the description of Cuvier, more perfect than the one in the British Museum. It wants the cranium, but the greater part of the upper jaw, with some teeth, is preserved. The rest of the skeleton is in a bent position,--almost that of a semi-circle. It was quite hidden in the calcareous stone; but the bones had suffered no change, possessing their gelatinous animal matter and their inflammability. The stone

. contains besides, well preserved specimens of both sea and

a

and shells still common in the island, a fact which proves that the skeleton is recent.

The fossil bones found in caverns, form a distinct class of phenomena. The discovery of a den of hyenas at Kirkdale near Kirby Moorside in Yorkshire, in the summer of 1821, has given rise to a controversy between Professor Buckland and Mr. Penn, to which we shall probably have occasion to advert in a future Number. The present work keeps clear of theoretic speculation, the Author's object being to furnish a useful vade-mecum for the student who is desirous of being able to detect the specific character of fossil substances, and to arrange them under their appropriate genera. Mr. Parkinson concludes his interesting little work with the following most appropriate and pious reflections :

• We cannot quit these monuments of former worlds without alluding to the incontrovertible evidence they present, of the exercise of Almighty Power and of the perpetual influence of a Divine Providence. The world is seen, in its formation and continuance, constantly under the Providence of Almighty God, without whose knowledge not one sparrow falls to the ground.

• Under these impressions, we view the results of these several changes and creations as manifesting the prescience, the power, and the benevolence of our great Creator. The general form of the earth's surface, varied by the distribution of hills and valleys, and of land and water ; the prodigious accumulations of coal derived from the vegetables of a former creation, with the accompanying slates and schists; the useful, durable, and often beautiful, encrinital and shelly limestones ; the immense formations of chalk and flint, and the various series of clays; all demonstrate a careful provision for the wants of man. The several breaks and faults in the stratified masses, and the various inclinations of the strata, as well as the vast abruptions by which these several substances are brought to the hand of man, may be regarded as most beneficent provisions resulting from catastrophes too vast and tremendous for human intellect to comprehend,

• From these several creations, it appears that beings have proceeded, gradually increasing in superiority, from testaceous animals to reptiles, marine and fresh water amphibia, quadrupeds, and lastly to man, who, in his turn, is destined, with the earth he inhabits, to pass away, and be succeeded by a new heaven and a new earth.'

pp. 335–7.

Art IV. Lectures on the Pleasures of Religion. By H. F. Burder,

M. A. 8vo. pp. 253. Price 7s. 6d. London. 1823. 1 T affords us pleasure to find that the very judicions Author of these Lectures is able, amid his numerous oflicial engagements, so frequently, and with so much credit to bimself, to occupy the attention of the reading public. Circumstanced as he is, this bespeaks a diligence in every way commendable. The series of subjects which the present volume embraces, is at once well selected and well arranged. The title of the work reminds us of the venerable Matthew Henry, whose former sphere the Author now fills, and who, it will be remembered, wrote a very useful treatise on the pleasures of a reli

a gious life. The dedication of the volume to the young of his Hock sufficiently marks the Author's views of his own performance; and seldom has it fallen to our lot to peruse a work, in which there was more to arrest the attention, and to improve the character of the rising generation. We speak not at random when we affirm, that we have not seen, as yet, a volume directly on the subject of religion, more likely than the present, to waken in the bosom of an intelligent and ingenuous youth a decidedly Christian feeling. Mr. Burder has furnished a portraiture of the happiness which results from the service of Christ, for which we tender him our sincere thanks, and for which, we doubt not, thousands will be grateful. There is no attempt in these Lectures, to catch, by unfair means, the popular feeling of the moment; all is solid and scriptural, and in a high degree indicative of the “ workman that needeth “not to be ashamed.” We could wish to the full amount of our influence, to hold up Mr. Burder's habit of preaching in a series, to the imitation of the rising ministry; and we cannot but persuade ourselves that his example will be regarded and followed in that useful seminary where, for so many years, his labours as a tutor have been enjoyed. We like this relic of a nonconforming age, and shall rejoice to find a taste so wholesome, superseding the crudities of a less connected, and therefore less useful mode of instruction. We cannot conceive of these lectures being heard with inattention. They carry their own power of impression along with t'iem; and, although it is with God alone permanently to change the heart, yet, if we are not much mistaken, such discourses as these-so full of perspicuous instructionlively illustration, and affectionate appeal, were not heard from the pulpit either with listlessness or indifference. The chief characteristics of Mr. Burder's theological system are,-a uniform and zealous recognition of what, for distinction's sake, may be called the doctrines of grace; a very copious reference to the agency of the Holy Ghost, in all his promised manifestations; a running, and we were going to say irresistible appeal to the conscience; and withal, a simplicity in the

a

whole of his views of Christian truth, seldom equalled, and perhaps in modern times never surpassed.

With regard to the manner in which these Lectures are written, it is but justice to state, that the arrangement is clear, natural, and to every useful extent, analytical ; that the style is chaste, devotional, and always appropriate to the subject; and that there is a completeness in each' discourse, separately considered, which, while it does not destroy the series, leaves upon the mind the impression of an unbroken unity of design in the production.

The volume consists of twelve Lectures, ranged under the following titles. I. The pleasures which constitute true happiness. II. The pleasures of a good conscience. III. The pleasures of an enlightened intellect. IV. The pleasures arising from the exercise of the affections in religion.' V. The pleasures of obedience to the will of God. VI. The pleasures of prayer and of praise. VII. The pleasures of the Sabbath. VIII. The pleasures arising from the doctrine of Divine Providence. IX. The pleasures of hope. X. The pleasures of doing good. XI. The pleasures of the heavenly state. XII. The pleasures of early piety.

We are at a loss, after a very careful perusal, to determine from what part of this volume to furnish' a sample to the publie. This difficulty does not arise from any inequality of thought and expression pervading these Lectures, but, on the contrary, from the uniformity of its character, and the inti. mate connexion of one part with another. Under these circumstances, however, we feel that we have one advantage with the public, that of not being able to select a single paragraph in these Lectures, which, by any fair interpretation, can be viewed as an unduly favourable representation of the Author's talents for the illustration and enforcement of scriptural truth.

The first Lecture, which contains an enumeration of the pleasures which constitute true happiness, is very comprehensive in its plan, and very impressive in its various illustrations. It is founded on Isaiah İV. 2. The Preacher states with emphasis his belief in the attainableness of happiness even in the present state, and represents it as springing from four sources. First, the removal of evils which are incompatible with happiness,' --the curse attaching to guilt, and the incapacity for true enjoyment which arises from a depraved heart. Secondly, the pursuit of the greatest good which we can attain or desire ;-including the favour of God on earth, and the enjoyment of him in heaven. Thirdly, the temperate enjoyment of the inferior pleasures provided for man in his present state of existence. Here

the Author contemplates man in a threefold light, as a sensitive, an intellectual, and a social being, and points out the limits of the gratifications appropriate to him in each character, separately considered. Fourthly, the cultivation of those habits which are most conducive to enjoyment; such as thankfulnesscheerfulness-contentment-the spirit of dependence-the spirit of activity--and the spirit of benevolence. On the last of these, Mr. B. observes:

'If a man can find no enjoyment except when directly engaged in seeking his own happiness, his pleasures must be necessarily limited, as well as selfish. But if, with the love of God and the love of man reigning in his heart, he take delight in rendering others happy, his sources of pleasure must be abundant and perpetual. To cultivate a spirit of benevolence is at once then our interest and our duty. "Look not every man on his own things," says the benevolent apostle," but every man also on the things of others.-Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, it is more blessed to give than to receive." Remember the exigencies of the poor, of the friendless, of the afflicted, and of the ignorant; and connect with their miseries, their claims; their claims on your commiseration, your time, and your property. Think how many of your fellow-creatures, with natural susceptibilities of delight not inferior to your own, are altogether strangers to your happiness, and destitute of the moral and divinely prescribed means of discovering the way to its attainment! Are not myriads perishing for lack of knowledge? Are you not in possession of the treasures of Divine truth, by which they may become "wise unto salvation," and happy through an unchanging eternity? Remember that "he who winneth souls" to the paths of peace and glory, is, by the highest authority," wise;" he is wise in seeking for himself and for others the happiness of immortality; for they who are thus wise "shall hereafter shine with the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever.” p. 22.

The second discourse relates to the pleasures of a good conscience, which Mr. Burder considers as consisting in the relief enjoyed; the communications received; the habits induced; the testimony obtained; which testimony he considers as inspiring the most delightful confidence in approaching God, as inducing a noble superiority both to the applause and to the censure of the undiscerning world, as increasing the capacity of enjoying all the lawful pleasures of life, and as administering the most desirable support in the time of trouble and in the prospect of death. With an extract from Mr. Burder's appeal on the last of these particulars, we must take leave of his present work.

Its efficacy' (speaking of conscience) is attested by the Apostle in the words connected with the text. "We would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble, which came upon us in Asia, that