It acknowledges no ecclesiastical legislation on the subject of matrimony, and is positively enraged at a vocation.”—pp. 297 98.

There are few of us who do acquaintance some men of this alas! who cannot recognize more following sketch.

not reckon among our stamp, and fewer still, than one original of the

"Supposing a creature appreciates the world more than God, according to the doctrine of St. Thomas, he has already lost the grace of God, though no other act of sin has occurred, and though he may perhaps be culpably unaware of his state.

"Alas! is such a supposition so very wild? How many a virgin soul has Paris corrupted down to the very heart's core? In that Monad world there are beings who but lately were school-girls in convents, and who are Enfants de Marie still. What has come to them that they look like daughters of Circe rather than children of the pure and holy Virgin? They have done nothing which could dishonour them but here again let us not deceive ourselves. It is a part of the illusions of the present day to feel secure as long as there has been no great evil of the kind of which the soul feels most horror even in thought. But there are other commandments beside the sixth. There are six other deadly sins, each a source of sin which may be mortal. What is worse in the eyes of God than pride? When the love of admiration and of worship rises to such a point as to make the soul reckless of giving scandal, careless of inflicting pain; when a little absurd being uses her powers of body and mind in order to be set up on high as an idol, to be worshipped and adored as a goddess, who will deny that here is vanity to a degree which is monstrous! Add to this a portentous love of ease, cruelty to inferiors, envy, jealousy, and a love of dress, rising to the dignity of a passion; here are sources of sin enough, each sufficing to shut out God. Alas! for poor human nature, that such follies should stand in the place of God; yet such is the experience of every day. When once the soul is entangled in the giddy vortex of the world, it clings with a tenacity to it which is perfectly marvellous, and the result is a character utterly spoiled, and a heart thoroughly corrupt."-p. 296.

This is very strong writing; but it is also very practical and very true. It is as faithful an instance of the general character of the book as any which could be found within its pages; marking it out as a work that even a St. Francis of Sales might take to his confessional with profit, while neither the fine lady nor the man of the world, could lay it aside because it was either dull or uninteresting.

But we must now pause; we have altogether outrun the limits prescribed to us. We cannot add anything to

VOL. LI.-No. CJ

9

what we have already said of the merits of the work. Any one who has perused it will know that our estimate falls far short of the reality. Those who have the privilege of being acquainted with the gifted author, or who have watched his career, alike generous and useful, and followed the steps by which he has gradually arrived at his present eminence, will feel no surprise at his successful accomplishment of his difficult task. It will be to them only the legitimate although gratifying complement of their fair anticipations. But there are many, probably, among our readers who have none of these advantages; and who only know Father Dalgairns as a preacher and director of great repute, and occupying the first rank in our religious literature. They may desire to know something more about him than this, something of the means which have led to this end, of the early toil and training which were, at the same time, the groundwork and the promise of such results. We do not think we can close this article more suitably than by corresponding to this desire with a brief notice of the earlier portions of our author's distinguished

career.

John Dobree Dalgairns is a native of the island of Guernsey, the son of a Scottish gentleman, an old Peninsular officer, long settled there; his mother belonged to one of the old Norman families of that island. He received his early education at Elizabeth College, Guernsey, from whence he proceeded to Exeter College, Oxford, where he obtained a scholarship, and took his degree, with high classical honours, at Michaelmas, 1839. He may be said to have been a prominent person in the party styled Puseyite, while yet an undergraduate, being even then remarkable for the asceticism of his life, and having become intimate with Mr. Newman and many others, of the same school, much older than himself. A year or two after taking his degree, he attracted much attention by a letter in the Univers on the position of Anglicans and their hopes of a re-union with the Catholic world. This letter was anonymous, but the authorship was almost immediately guessed at. This early identification with the advanced party, "Anglo-Catholic" at first, but from

* At his conversion Father Dalgairns took the Christian names of John Bernard.

about 1841, (the date of Tract No. 90), fast approximating Rome-wards, naturally hindered his establishment as fellow of any College, of which otherwise his attainments would have rendered him pretty sure. He was one of the earliest of the society which surrounded Mr. Newman at Littlemore, a sort of monastic retreat with the name of which the public was very familiar in those years. Littlemore is a village near Oxford, a dependeney on the parish of St. Mary's, of which Mr. Newman was then vicar. Here the future Father-Superior established himself with about half-a-dozen companions, and led a life, the austerities of which were remarkable. The house was a long, low building, the greater part of it divided into cells opening on a cloister, with brick floors and the scantiest furniture. They daily attended the Anglican service in the little Gothic Church hard by, designed by Mr. Newman himself, where the prayers were chaunted in the severest Gregorian tones. But besides this they daily recited the divine office in the little chapel of the monastery. The rigour of their fasting has caused permanent injury to the health of many of these excellent men, who, however, by their simplicity and zeal were preparing themselves to receive, most of them, the grace of conversion and perseverance in the Catholic Church. It is needless to say that their studies lay chiefly in the writings of the Holy Fathers and in the study of ascetical and dogmatic theology. An institution, in some measure resembling this at Littlemore, had been attempted two centuries before, by Nicholas Ferrar, at Little Gidding; but Ferrar seems to have had no leanings to Catholicism. During this part of his life Mr. Dalgairns wrote some remarkable articles in the British Critic, a Review of Rio's La Petite Chouannerie, one on the history of La Mère Angélique (the Jansenist) and a third on the poetry of Dante. He also translated a volume of the Aurea Catena of St. Thomas (that on St. Mark). But he became much more conspicuous by some biographies in the series of Lives of the British Saints, edited by Mr. Newman. Of these Mr. Dalgairns wrote a very considerable portion, including St. Stephen Harding, St. Aelred, St. Helier, St. Bartholomew, St. Gilbert, St. Richard of Chichester, St. Waltheof, and St. Robert of Newminster, with some parts in the life of St. Bettelin. Probably a more vivid and interesting account of medieval monastic life has seldom been presented than is to be

found in the first-named biography, which, in that point of view, even Milman has quoted with praise.

On Michaelmas day 1845, Mr. Dalgairns was received into the Church, by Father Dominic, at the Passionist Convent, Aston Hall. This was shortly before the conversion of Dr. Newman, which took place on October 9, the same year. Not very long afterwards, Mr. Dalgairns proceeded to France where he resided during 1846, and was ordained priest. The following year, 1847, he spent in Rome, whither Dr. Newman and others of his former companions had already proceeded; and they there studied the Oratorian Institute. Towards the close of the year they were canonically erected into a Congregation, with Father Newman as its Superior; and next year the English Oratorians were settled at Birmingham, and in 1849 in London. From this period Father Dalgairns' career is well known. He was for some time one of the principal members of the Birmingham Oratory, but afterwards passed from that house to the one in London, first in King William-street and afterwards at Brompton, where he has long been known as a distinguished preacher and director. The only works that he has published, as a Catholic, are a valuable treatise on "Devotion to the Sacred Heart," a very interesting and elaborate essay on "German Mysticism," which first appeared in these pages, and has since been published separately, and the work which we have placed at the head of this article. We may observe, that his familiarity with French has given him great command of French theology in particular. Many years ago he studied profoundly St. Thomas, and the other principal Scholastics, and is an excellent metaphysician. At that time he was, perhaps, most at home in medieval Church history; but, latterly, as our readers may have inferred even from our meagre quotations, he has gone deeply into the characteristics of modern schools, devoting much attention to the light thrown on these subjects by physical researches. One fault only can be justly imputed to him, viz: that he allows his humility to interfere too much between him and his needy fellow-men, and that he is not as liberal, as we could desire, in sharing with others the large gifts of Wisdom and Knowledge, with which the Holy Spirit has so plenteously enriched him. Let us hope, that, as years advance, this fault will diminish, and that what is now almost a hidden light will grow stronger

aud

shine more brilliantly for the edification of his fellowmen, and the satisfaction of those claims which the Church has, not on the labour only or the zeal, but on every talent which Providence has entrusted to the guardianship of so distinguished a son.

ART. V.-1. Catalogue Raisonné de MSS. Ethiopiens appartenant a Antoine d'Abbadie. 4to. Paris, a l'imprimerie Imperiale. 1859.

2. Hernia Pastor. Ethiopicé primum edidit, et Ethiopica Latine vertit Antonius d'Abbadie. (In the " Abhandlungen für die Kunde des Morgenlandes, herausgegeben von der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft.) Leipsig. Brockhaus, 1860. 3. Dr. J. A. Möhler's Patrologie; oder Christliche Literär-geschichte, Herausgegeben von Dr. F. X. Reithmayr. Regensburg, 1840. 4. Göttingische gelehrte Anzeigen unter den Aussicht der Königl. Gesellschaft der Wissenschaftem. Nos. 190-191, 192, Dec. 13. 1859.

5. Patrum Apostolicorum Opera. Edidit Carolus J. Hefele. Tubinga. 1852.

6. Göttingische gelehrte Anzeigen Nos. 141-2, Sept. 3.6. 1860.

INDE

INDEPENDENTLY of its great literary eminence, the name of M. Antoine d'Abbadie has many claims upon the notice of a journal such as ours. It is not merely that, in common with his distinguished brother Arnauld, he was for years the representative of the interests of religion and indeed of civilization itself, in a long neglected region where the traditions of the ancient faith still struggle against the barbarism and corruption by which they are obliterated or repressed-the champion of the oppressed missionary, and the defender of the Church in her hour of danger. It is not merely that in his many contributions to science and to letters and in all his intercourse with the highest celebrities of both, M. d'Abbadie has uniformly appeared as a sincere though tolerant Catholic, in whose enlightened views religion and science go hand in hand,