ing the yoke which their forefathers had cast off, gradually being reimposed upon them. The Protestant policy inaugurated by Mr. Disraeli, has, so far, been a great success. Under the former régime it had been painfully manifest that the Church of England was given over to ruin itself through internal strife, for which no remedy would be permitted. The hearts of godly men were being alienated, and their aspirations after purity of worship were hopelessly discouraged. After the accession of our present Premier to power, our Archbishops plucked up courage, and by the passage of the " Public Worship Regulation Bill" an advance was made towards the settlement of Ecclesiastical questions, the importance of which can be best gauged by the frantic efforts which are being made to paralyse the operation of it. To say that the Church of England is yet safe from the treacherous efforts of unfaithful sons within her pale, would be most premature; but a heavy blow and sore discouragement has been inflicted upon them. It has been our endeavour, by the publication of important contributious on the serious questions at issue, to inform as well as to awaken the public mind. Among these we may be perhaps permitted to notice the papers on "the North Side of the Table" as documents of permanent value. In other questions affecting the general welfare of the nation, the year has been comparatively barren of incident; the circumstances under which the present Ministry succeeded to office furnish an ample justification for a condition in which, to use the language of an eminent statesman, the nation has had an opportunity "to rest and be thankful."

The state of the Continent during the past year may be, perhaps, aptly enough described as a "troubled sea casting up mire and dirt." There has been no war, unless the brigandage carried on unintermittingly in Spain can be characterised by that title; but there have been conspicuous heart-burnings and jealousies from which, in due season, wars crop up. Disquiet and unrest in all the chief continental nations, fomented without hardly the trouble of disguise by the adherents of the Papacy, have filled rulers with anxiety, and have prompted ominous utterances, revealing the desperate intrigues which have compelled silence to be broken. These are the first mutterings of a storm which may, ere long, break in ruin, but which God's gracious interposition may yet dispel. It is quite im

possible, however, to look over the political horizon surcharged with dangerous elements, without many solemn thoughts and much earnest prayer that "He who sitteth between the cherubim, be the earth never so unquiet," may be better to us than our fears. Meanwhile nation after nation is breaking off its thraldom to the Papacy, and gradually, even in the most benighted nations, liberty of conscience and religious freedom are making progress. The exception to this is unhappy France, which seems incapable of distinguishing between liberty and license; a retrograde policy in religious toleration may be noticed in her political administration, provoked by the wild excesses of the Communists during their brief but horrible sway in Paris, and stimulated by antagonism to the policy of Germany seeking to repress Ultramontanism. The serious apprehensions of famine in our Indian empire have ceased to alarm, and, whatever distress did exist, has been relieved by the prompt and energetic action of Lord Northbrook's Government.

In the midst of all these causes of anxiety for the future, it is a satisfaction to believe that the religion of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ is making substantial progress. There are, it is true, many adversaries, and so there ever have been. Many and fierce assaults are made upon the Word of God; but this is no new thing. The rapid dissemination of the Bible, unparalleled in any former age, would alone serve to stimulate antagonism. The more it is brought into collision with the "carnal mind, which is enmity against God," the more severe will be the resistance offered by unregenerate hearts and consciences. It is not to be wondered at, therefore, that during the past year Christians have been shocked and pained by extravagant speculations and fierce assaults even upon the existence of a God, and upon the revelation of His will. These conflicts should be anticipated; in faith and patience men should possess their souls, feeling assured that these "oppositions of science" are but for a moment. The promise is, that when the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. He has done so in the ages that are past, and He is the same "yesterday, to-day, and for ever." Meanwhile, in the increase of morality, in thronged churches, in habits of family devotion, in philanthropic exertion-the fruits of faith in Christ, in the extension of

Christian missions, there is what the soul can rest upon with satisfaction, notwithstanding grievous national and individual shortcomings. One fact here may be deserving of notice. When the Christian Observer was originated, the income of the Church Missionary Society was £373, and the Church of England had not a single Missionary of its own to the heathen. At the last Anniversary, the income of that great Society was a quarter of a million, and more than 2500 clergy were enrolled in the ranks of its labourers, a goodly proportion of whom are Christian natives preaching to their heathen fellow-countrymen the unsearchable riches of Christ.

One matter important to ourselves remains to be noticed. In the year ensuing, should we, by Divine permission, be enabled to enter upon it, the title of the "Christian Observer" will be altered to that of the "Christian Observer and Advocate." It will imply amalgamation with the periodical so ably edited by the Rev. Edward Garbett, who, amidst a multitude of increasing labours, feels himself constrained to resign a position which he has filled with so much judgment and advantage to the cause of Evangelical truth. It will be a satisfaction to our readers to feel assured that his help, as leisure may permit, will confer additional strength upon the united serial, and that many of his able coadjutors, who in some instances have been our own, will concentrate their strength upon one periodical, making it a more adequate exponent of the views of Evangelical men. This amalgamation has been much desired by many Christian friends; we trust it will redound to the glory of God and to the maintenance amongst us of true religion and virtue. Union is strength; and there never was a period when it was more essential that Evangelical men should stand shoulder to shoulder against the fierce assaults of unscrupulous adversaries. We can only acknowledge, in the most unreserved manner, the frank and cordial manner in which, with the utmost delicacy and consideration, the details of this negotiation have been carried out. The property in the periodical will remain in Evangelical hands, where it has ever been, with the addition of some of the most conspicuous and honoured names in the Church of England. We re-echo the sentiments of the Editor of the "Christian Advocate," when we affirm that there has been in this important transaction but one aim,-that there may be "Deo soli gloria."