242 Monthly Review of Literature. [FEB. 



frequently on his head ! How devoutly should we pray for the time when the 

 world will be turned upside down! 



" Then shall the reign of mind commence on earth." 



We must object, however, and strongly too, against most of the metaphysics 

 of the first few pages of this little work, and particularly some unjust censures 

 on Dr. Priestley, a man who, great as his errors may have been, has deserved 

 :oo well of society by his scientific research and unflinching spirit of inquiry, to 

 be made the butt of the ignorant. " The opinions of Priestley," says the author, 

 " can only escape the stigma of being supposed to favour the doctrine of annihi- 

 lation, by believing that he adopted the system of the ancients who recognised in 

 man three great principles, O-W^M, ^x^ an d vouj, &c." p. 7. No person who has 

 ever read the singular " Essay on Matter and Spirit" can suppose that the 

 opinions of Priestley favoured the doctrine of annihilation ; and we are the more 

 surprised at this statement, since the author alludes immediately below to the 

 arguments of Paley on the resurrection of the body, which are almost the same 

 as those employed by Priestley in the Essay. We can inform the author also 

 that Dr. Priestley makes no sophistical distinction between the soul and mind. 

 We may also hint to our readers in an aside, that the commonly received con- 

 tradistinctive explanations of -^vyn and vov; are not so well grounded as many 

 suppose.* The distinction of mind and soul, by which the soul is described as a 

 mere existing substance, devoid of perception or reason, is one which involves 

 more absurdities than we should feel comfortable in being bound to defend. 

 Waiving these reservations, we recommend the work to all dreamers, whether of 

 night- dreams or day-dreams, excepting, however, all young ladies who have not 

 yet passed the ordeal of the wedding-cake and ring mystery. 



THEOLOGICAL LIBRARY. VOL. I. THE LIFE OF WICLIF, BY C. WEBB LE 

 BAS, M.A., PROFESSOR IN THE E. I. COLL. HERTS, AND LATE FELLOW 

 OF TRIN. COLL., CAMBRIDGE. 



AT the rate that the secular " Libraries" and " Miscellanies" have lately been 

 lading our book-shelves, scarcely a niche would soon remain for clerical authors 

 to figure in, and clerical booksellers to fill ; the pastoral advice of the clergy would 

 not be heard beyond their parish-churches, and Messrs. Rivington might strike 

 their church-militant colours in Waterloo Place and Paternoster Row. To prevent 

 this, a strong clerical corps have lately taken the field under Archdeacon Lyall and 

 the Rev. Hugh James Rose, and the first symptom of their activity is seen in the 

 present volume. Wiclif must be venerated not only by those who prize the 

 blessings of a reformed religion, but by all who glory in mental emancipation 

 and freedom of inquiry ; and they will, no doubt, be glad to read his history by 

 as good a writer as Le Bas, or perhaps a better. We have perused the present 

 life with great interest, and recommend all our friends who are not well ac- 

 quainted with the noble old reformer to seize the present opportunity of increas- 

 ing their intimacy with him. The work is prefaced with a long introduction on 

 the corruption and subsequent reform of Christianity : of the style of this we 

 cannot find it in our consciences to speak so favourably. We are afraid for the 

 sake of Mr. Le Bas that the ears of the present generation are too " Ciceronian," 

 and that in these days "the graces of a classical style are too much cultivated" 

 for language with which Mr. Irving's readily amalgamates (vid. p. 23), to be 



* The nice distinctions (if so they can be called) between those apparent syno- 

 nymes, dv^o;, <j>p>iv, ^VW) V0l/ ?i & Ct were not invented till the sophists began to in- 

 fuse their subtleties into the verv elements of learning language. In attempting 

 to explain away the tautology or Homer, Hesiod, &c. in these words, great igno- 

 rance of the customs of those authors is exhibited. A striking instance of this tau- 

 tology may be seen in the Theogony of Hesiod, lin. 549554, and the sophistical 

 explanation, in Plutarch's Tract, on the " Face of the Moon." See also xpaoi and 

 jrop, lin. 764, " mentem animumque" Virgil. " Mens cm regnum totius animi a natura 

 tributum est." Cicero. 



