448 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1794. 



is taken from the first volume of the 

 first p St of Lardner's credibility, in 

 the same manner as a former chap- 

 ter was taken from another part; 

 with an equal openness and etjiial 

 success He stales in it forty-one 

 instances, in which the sacred his- 

 torians dipliy a minute knowledge 

 of the m:mners and customs of their 

 limes, in such a way as seems ut- 

 terly impossible to be displayed by 

 any forger. In the topic of undesigned 

 coincidences, chap. 7 h very pio- 

 perly refers to his own Horcs Pan- 

 '* lince; some of the general argu- 

 ments of which he had occ;isiona!ly 

 touched before. In chap. IX. § 2. 

 the subject of missions is most judi- 

 ciously introduced; and from the 

 Very small success of modern mis- 

 sions, ill comparison with those of 

 the apostles, under which more ad- 

 vantageous circumstances, the fol- 

 lowing souiid conclusion is deduced : 

 that the apostles " possessed means 

 of conviction v/hich we have not; 

 that they had proofs to appeal 1o, 

 which v.'e want." 



Part III. A brief consideralion 

 of some popular objections. Chap. I. 

 The discrepancies between the se- 

 veral Gospels, vol. 3. p.C)S. Chap. 

 II. Erroneous opinions imputed to 

 the apo.stles, p. 20G, The connec- 

 tion of Christianity with t!ie Jewish 

 history, p. 117- Chap. IV. Rejec- 

 tion of Christianity, p. 124. Chap. 

 V *. That the Christian miracles are 

 hot recited, or appealed to by 

 Christian writers themselves, so 

 fully or so frequently as mi^hthave 

 been e\pccted, p. 1(30. Chap. VI. 

 Want of univeisnlity in the know- 

 ledge and reception of Christ'aniiy, 

 and of greater clearness in the evi- 



dence, p. ] 82. Chap. VII. T])« J 

 supposed effects of Christianity, '\ 

 p 201. Chap. VIII. Conclusion, 

 p. 220. 



Among these topics, which are 

 all handled with .skill and luminous 

 distinctness, it is difficult to select a 

 passage for an example. The fol- 

 lowing, on the effects of Christiani- 

 ty, is peihaps as original as any 



" The influence of religion is not 

 to be .sought for, in the councils of 

 princes, in the debates or reso'utions 

 of popularas.semblies, in thecouduct 

 of governments towards their sub- 

 jects, or of stales and sovereigns to- 

 wards one another, of conquerors 

 at the head of their armies, or of 

 parties intriguing for power at home, 

 (topics which alone almost occupy 

 the attention, and fill the pages of 

 history,) but must be perceived, if 

 perceived at all, in the silent course 

 of private and domestic life. Nay 

 more, even tlurc its influence may 

 not be very obvious to observation. 

 If it check, in some degree, person- 

 al disisoluteness, if it beget a general 

 probity in thctrsnsaction of business, 

 if it produce soft aod humane man- 

 ners in tliemass of 'tfie community, 

 and occasional exertionsof laborious 

 or expensive benevolence in a few 

 individuals, it is all the effect which | 

 can otter itself to external notice. 

 The kingdom of Heaven is within 

 us. That which is the substance of 

 the religion, its hopes and consola- 

 tions, its intermixture with the 

 thoughts by day and by night, the 

 devotion of the heart, the control 

 of appetite, the steady direction of 

 the will to the commands of God, 

 is netess.^rily invisible. Yet upon 

 these depends, the virtue and • the 



* This and the remaining chapters are erroneously numbered in the first edition,; 

 chap. 4 being put twice. 



happmsss 



