The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-08-09 00:00:00

LITERARY NOTICES.

Our Country and our Queen (a new song). Words by J.
C. Prince. Composed by Jesse Banning.
A patriotic song, full of nationality and good English feel-
ing. The music snits the words extremely well. This song
will make a capital after dinner lyric.
" When the soul lights the beam of truth in the eye."

A General Volume of Epitaphs, original and selected ; with
a large Selection of striking and appropriate Texts of
Scripture, and an Historical and Moral Essay on the
subject. By a Clergyman. London : J. W. Parker,
West Strand.
This is a most useful and important work, and admirably
indeed has the author, the Rev. B. Riching, made his selec-
tions. In the essay the rev. author remarks—" To relieve
his clerical brethren from the painful necessity of searching
a variety of authors for suitable inscriptions, it has been the
writer's endeavour to furnish them with a work in which will
be found epitaphs to every case of bereavement. He flatters
himself also, that this little volume will be found a valuable
addition to the Christian's library, as the contents of it can-
not fail to interest his feelings, and deepen the serious im-
pressions of his mind. It has long occupied the time and
attention of the writer, and, though far from being executed
with the ability he could have wished, for a work of such
acknowledged utility and importance, he has the happiness
of reflecting, that, instead of doing nothing but indulge in
fruitless lamentations over the epitaphs which have long dis-
graced our churchyards, he has done what he could to re-
medy the evil, which has been so long, so justly, and so uni-
versally complained of."
The subject is decidedly one of very great importance, and
one which we trust will for the future meet with more of the
serious attention of our clergy, for to them alone is commit-
ted the responsibility. "To the incumbent," says Sir Her-
bert Jenner, " belongs the superintendence of the church
and churchyard, and it is his duty to take care that no in-
scriptions be placed there, which can be made the means of
disseminating doctrines inconsistent with those of the esta-
blished religion." The churchyard is as much his freehold
as the church itself; and, with such just and legal authority,
he is unite as responsible, in the sight of God and man, for
what is taught in the one as the other; and if, through any
supineness or indifference, he suffers the dumb stone to
" teach lies," and to inculcate doctrines at variance with the
Word of God and the formularies of our church, it is impos-
sible for him to vindicate his conduct, or exculpate himself
from the evils which may follow his unfaithfulness.
Our author again most justly remarks—" Why should not
the retired cemetery, or the sequestered churchyard, be ren-
dered one of the most inviting places for devotional retire-
ment and serious meditation ? Why should not every church-
yard become a book of instruction, and every gravestone a
leaf of edification ? Why should not the monumental stone,
as well as the pulpit, direct us to behold the Lamb of God,
which taketh away the sins of the world. * *
Let the ministers of our church awake to a sense of their
responsibility in this matter, and then we may confidently
anticipate that each memorial to the dead will be a suitable
address to the living."
We can only give room to a few of the epitaphs.
" Forgive, 0 Lord ! the parents' wish,
That death had spared their son ;
And help them from their hearts to say,
' Thy will, 0 Lord I be done.'
" God bath taken away my only son from me, but he has
given his only Son for me."
" Who seeks a world of perfect bliss
• Must never fix his heart on this."
'- !' says the gardener, as he passed down the walks.
who removed that plant? who gathered that flower?' His
fellow-servant says, ' The master,' and the gardener holds
his peace."
" An aged Christian slumbers here,
Whose faith was strong—his love sincere.
Content he passed life's little span,
In fearing God and serving man."
" < Go, work to-day in my vineyard." To-morrow thy
pulse may be still, and there is " no work, nor wisdom, in
the grave."
" Let me record one single line—
' Sirners are saved by grace divine.' "
" Husband, farewell ! 'tie thou must rear
Our babes in God's most holy fear :
Oh ! teach their infant lips to pray,
And guide them in the narrow way.
So may we meet, renewed, forgiven—
No wanderer lost—a family in heaven."
The Rev. B. Ricking is also the author of that very im-
portant little work for all our schools, " The Protestant Cate-
chism, as well as the " Tent and the Altar," which we con-
sider one of the best and simplest forms of prayer for family
Worship ; and " Martyrdom of Robert Glover," and a great
number of highly useful works, nearly all of which have been
brought out at great expense and loss to himself.