The Press.
London, England, 1853-06-18 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

Brat be reconstructed and we suspeet that
its advocates will find some trouble itt framing
their plan.

: What is it to h .' u•luft is
it to do .0 By Thomas Willia►us, NI.A., Areh-
deacon of Handal. London : J. W. Parker
and Son, \Vest Strand.

AIIeIIDECON WILLIAMS appreciates but slight-
ingly the arguments in favour of vont-ova-
tions' resuscitation, which rest solely upon
analogy. Neither ill the Synods to be found
among other religious communities, nor in
the assemblies by whielt laymen tramsaet
their political and secular business, eon be
recognise any valid reason for restoring
Convocation to the Church. He turns, ac-
cordingly, with most interest to the jsisitire
phase of the question. Ho inquires, as into
by far the most important problem, for a
solution of these two queries : If the Angli
can Synod were again assembled, what is it.
to be ? what is it to do? Is it to revive under
its ancient form, as a purely spiritual assem-
blage? or is it to be reformed by ant infusion
of the lay element? Is it to be a judicial, an
administrative, or simply a deliberatt ive
body? is it to have control over questions of
property, of doctrine, or of discipline ? one, or
more, or all together of these ?
Replying to these queries, the Archdeacon
contends that, if the constitution of the Synod
were to be strengthened and its powers en-
hanced, at virtual separation of Church anal
State—to the serious peril of both—must be
the consequence. If they remain as they
were, the action of the Synod would be inetii-
eient for any purpose worthy of its elaborate
organisation and the dignity of its members.
If questions of law come under its jurisdiction.
the Royal supremacy would be infringed—if
questions of doctrine, the unity of the Church
imperilled—and if questions of property. the
interposition, and therefore the sympathy and
support. of Parliament would be lost to the
Church. Admitting, as beyond a doubt, the
right of the Church to synodical action, the
author argues that the proper functions of at
Synod are only oveasional—that it is at tri
banal which should only be elated into activity
upon rare and important exigencies. Coun-
cils, he declares, should he, not the normal,
but merely the exceptional. condition of the
Church ; since from their decisions are to be
anticipated no other results than " stricter
definitions ; narrower symbols of communion
exclusion rather than comprehension."

3. Church and Stale, and Cmmwation. By ti.
Hailey Prentice, M.A., Barrister-at-1 saw. Lon-
don : H. Parker, Stnind.
Ntlt. PRENTICE sums up, with much terse-
ness and lucidity, the principal arguments
heretofore urged by the advocates of Convoca-
tion. Ancient prescription ; inherent rights ;
royal charters ; legislative ,unctions ; the actual
existence still permitted to the Synod, which
lives on after so long an interval of dormancy;
are all arrayed with much skill in behalf of the
plea for rehabilitating synodical action. The
author affirms, however, that Convocation, to
be useful, must be refformed, and concedes
almost everything that even Archdeacon
Williams would demand, by consenting to
remove questions of law and doctrine from
its jurisdiction, and proposing to confine the
powers of a renovated Convocation to minor
points of discipline, to the settlement of eon-
' troversies respecting church musk, intoned
prayers. surplices, schools. and pews.

/.ei►yrr Exercises iel Latin l'rerge Composition
by .1. W. Donnldiom, 1).1).
actin►! firanitilitiiiv But

By the Same,

London : J. W. Parker and Son.
THEM.: exe►cises are intended fin• the use of
those students who wish to possess the
faculty of writing easy and perspicuous Latin.
Few have ever succeeded in this practice, and
the present disuse of laatin as the language of
scholarship and philology n►akes its revival
less probable. In England there are two►
additional difficulties : the over-preeiseness of
our Latinists, which almost confines them to
topics already handled by Cicero ; and the

163

unfortunate habit, which has lately sprung up
in our public schools, of teaehing boys to write
t ;reek before they eau possibly have attained
and• mastery of Latin eomposition. We have
not room to enter upon the question w►•hether
this revival, if suecessful, would be advan-
tageous. But these exercises appear to be
interesting and well chosen.

The work, however, is not free from 1)r.
Donaldson's usual fault of abasing his rivals.
Mr. George Long and Professor Key are two
of our best Latin scholar —perhaps the two
most distinguished teachers of Roman law
and Latin philology respectively. Dr. Donald
son thinks proper to speak of them in the
following manner :
Ur, ocorse Long, who . . . . has returned at
the eleventh hour to the Lahti litukttm.e.ze. whieh he hail
newt. propvrly learned. or had tittirely forgotten."—Prr•
fate, p. 17.
A Slr. K. . . . . 1 learn front the l'hutsieul
Ntusentn. for I haw not seen his hook, that he loot pub.
lished a Latin grrilllllllll'.--Preftwe, r. 41.
The impudent affectation of the latter ex
traet is remarkable. Dr. Donaldson decides
that a now Latin 011111111 HE IIeVeSSIIVy : he
writes and abridges it ; he praises himself for
the originality of his views,—all this without
stooping to look at the work of a really original
writer.

The abridged grammar has isonsidemble
merits: in its best parts it agrees with its
neglected rival. Dr. Donaldson might im-
prove several pa sages by condescending to
study—" A Mr. Key."

The Dublin l'airerxity Maya:ine, Ns). flit, for June,
: Metilashati.
Tor entrent number of this periodical contains an
article specially worth the attention of all interested
in the Lapilli discoveries at Ninewli. It is a review
of Mr. Layard's new work, and while allowing him
his laurels as a discoverer, and an ClttliValiltl'. it rails.
iu question his competence as a translator, and inti
mates, with some pungency, that \lr. Layard has
jumped to his conclusions. The reviewer says :
Indeed, if we 14111111 114-11.11111111' 1111141'h es that the readings
of w • newly-discio ova ittscriptisons given in this volatile
clash' lie depended on 1114 Ipmnille tlillll4lllloll/4, we would
give it the palm for intero.st, not only over the find
volume, lan irs's any 11I111.1' Wllll Of S. 'tar scope in our
own gencrat ion ; fi.r, it' these inseriptions have been rightly
deciphered, ae sirs' introthwed directly into the hulls and
temples of Sentiacherili, the ciattempiorary of Iletckiali,
*we befiore us the %IT) ilto. Assyrian inionarelt, and
read iu detail the Tative of his Wars Mid 141111111194 a
PIItTIOI.II 1111 the Willis 111111 tllll,ll't4 tot his palace. It is trite
we ea 111 l lot loving ourselvi s to rely implicitly ion those read.
Mgt:, lint many of our readers may ; and, in either case.
the work is one which challenges attention, and west
revei%e it moire 111' iv,. accouglauied by admiral Mu, as
Wl' accept it with Ol' Within(' I'lllll'lll'e ill this particular."
Elsewhere lie plainly intimates his opinion on the
mode in which Mr. Layard has entitled his various
tratitslations. Ile 11.1notits
" Beading in the table of 1.111111.1111.—' I vi. I tiscoovery
of the I :rand Entrance to the Palms. 11f lionyttujik --of the
name of Settnacherili int the Inseriptioass--the Records of
that King 1111 the Ilitteliptiolis awl 1111 the
Abridged Trinislittion oil them—Name of Ilezekiali--
Account of Seimucherib's With ell'W/1-16411Aery
id Sculptures at lionyttMil., representing the ,siege tit'
Lulsish--Clllll6lllllltislis Of Ilistoorieal Records of the Bible'
—one feels a tiatitral and praisewoolthy &sir,e to hr in II
position to write, 'I x librim ll N ' in the flyleaf Of 1441
retnark id ole a volume. Tito demise would, we need sesreelSs
remark. lie 1411114/11.11114 rettneeil in intensity, it' the alibir
inserted the word 'supposed' befoir• the name of ' 4iglllll-
- the Worst Isetion•
the WIWI! 'lll'llllOllV 'lo.llll'/' • I'llllllllllW inn: 'andiatr eer•
11111 tautly. W/I 11E011114 the hitter coimie---eonnuervial.instinot
is 1111111. its favour 1.4 the
This article is, itialotiliteillv. an 11,14 i. OW, and ex.
Whits the knowledge of an llrientuhist. We have
heard rumours of a fortheoming work in which the
whole subject of Mr. lAv aril's translations will be
discussed, and until then we w ill reserve the full
expression of our sentiments on the degree of ac-
ceptance which '4llOlllll i.e given to the interpretations
offered in the last work Of our fle.4oryetily famous

Iffirrk:r(,oftx Maga...lite, for .1 tine. 1,4 onolon : 'nark •

wood and Sons.
Ebony. for the cataent mouth, piesents us with a
gt•od !errl imitilrer,witieb staffers only from comparison
with it proslece,siars. We miss l'isistratus Caxton—
there is no den) log it, and wait, hut atiently perhaps,
for the avatar of some new series from the same or
other üble hands. But " Blackwood," in this it start.
June, is CCCCLI I. numbers old, and 'a still the best
magazine going ; whit more need to said?