is impossible, say the natural philosophers, for God to manifest himself by the single act which publicly and instantaneously announces his presence,-by the act of sovereignty. Whilst the

lowest in the scale of being has the right to appear in the bosom of nature by the exercise of its proper force; whilst the grain of sand, called into the crucible of the chemist, answers to his interrogations by characteristic signs which range it in the registers of Science; to God alone it is denied to manifest his force in the personal measure that distinguishes him, and makes him a separate being. Not only, say they, must God not have manifested himself, but it must be for ever impossible for him to manifest himself, in virtue even of the order of which he is the Creator. Banished to the profound depths of his silent and obscure eternity, if we question him, if we supplicate him, if we cry to him, he can only say to us (supposing, however, that he is able to answer us), 'What would you have? I have made laws! Ask of the sun and the stars: ask of the sea and the sand upon its shores. As for me, my condition is fixed: I am nothing but repose, and the contemplative servant of the works of my own hands.""

On this it may be remarked, first, that Lacordaire's argument is addressed to the Deist of the eighteenth, not to the Theist of the nineteenth century. We do not maintain that God is nothing but repose. Few will dare to say (certainly not I) that God is unable to manifest himself in forms wholly unlike anything which we have seen. But if I admit to an old Greek or Egyptian that God is able to take the form of a bull or a swan, is that a reason for believing, as fact, somebody's tale that he was actually incarnate in a bull? Again, without denying that he might be incarnate a thousand times in the form of man, as the Hindoos say, or once, as Christians say, surely this is far enough from admitting the fact. We must have PROOF; and when it is attempted to assign proof, the idea itself vanishes as contemptible. We have to learn outward truths by experience, and among these is the question, By what means God is pleased to reveal his action and his mind? Experience replies, "Solely in the laws of the Universe, and in our inner consciousness." Our minds are a mirror for apprehending his mind, and an aid to interpret his action. What indeed would Lacordaire have ? If his demands are just, we may claim a God who will talk with us and teach us, as a human preceptor.

While I strenuously maintain, that incredulity concerning

miracles can be based logically only on experience of human credulity, and that the proper ground for rejecting the pretended miracles of the Gospels and Acts is the abundant proof of credulity in the writers, with the total absence of evidence that they saw what they presume to tell so confidently (nay, the certainty in most cases that they were repeating mere distant hearsay); yet, in the present development of Theism, another grave reason against belief in miracles seems to me to become prominent; viz., that if the laws of Nature are inseparable from Deity, they must be esteemed as a part of the Divine existence, with which it is unimaginable that he should tamper. Where we see nothing but immutability, are we to be scolded as limiting God and denying power to him, because we glorify that immutability, as essential to his perfection? Without miracles he has given us all things needful to life and godliness. We will not dictate to him how he shall be pleased to reveal himself, but are contented to take what we find.

Finally, there is a thought which I wish to drop, as a reverential conjecture only, that others may ponder over it, and give it whatever weight it deserves. That forces which I recognize as Divine, should act by fixed laws which display nothing moral, seems to me at first very paradoxical. I inquire, whether the analogy be merely fanciful, or is possibly true, which compares the divine being and the human in this further respect: namely, as Man has in him vegetative force which is wholly unmoral, besides his mind or soul which is moral but invisible; so God, whose moral part is wholly invisible, has, as another part of his being, the material and unmoral laws of the Universe, which are in some sense visible and palpable.

But all such analogies admit diversity as well as likeness in the things compared. Man is unconscious of his vegetative action, especially when it is most healthful: I suggest no such unconsciousness in the case of the Divine action. Indeed, so timidly do I write, that nothing but urgent remonstrance has withheld me from striking out this paragraph.

But I have no timidity as to our duty of borrowing from hostile schools whatever we can honestly borrow. I firmly believe, that our only way to exterminate Pantheism and Atheism, is, by learning all of truth which Pantheists or Atheists hold, and incorporating it with our Theism.

ON

THE GALLA RELIGION.

[1872.]

THE HE Gallas are a people who live to the south of Abyssinia, in a very low state of civilization. The facts concerning their religion here adduced are drawn from the writings of Lorenz Tutschek,--" Dictionary and Grammar of the Galla Language, Munich, 1844-45." Probably more has been learned concerning them in these twenty-five years past, either by new intercourse, or by studying the numerous MSS. of Karl Tutschek, who died prematurely. His brother, Lorenz, who has edited the Grammar and Dictionary, was drawn into African philology by nothing but the death of Karl; and professes (in 1844) his inability to use to advantage the large materials left in his hands. A sketch is here given of the very interesting account, in order to give the reader confidence that the documents here laid before him, however fragmentary, are authentic.

Duke Maximilian of Bavaria redeemed four young negroes at an African slave mart, and brought them to Germany for education, supposing them to be three Nubians and one Abyssinian. He secured for their tutor a young jurist, Karl Tutschek, who had been distinguished in linguistic study, and was acquainted with Sanskrit, Hebrew, and Arabic. After about ten weeks, Tutschek at length discovered that they were neither Nubian nor Abyssinian; that three of them had only been a year away from home, and were of excellent capacity. The youngest had forgotten most of his language and of his people, and was depressed in mind by the circumstance. They belonged to the four nations, Galla, Umale, Darfur, and Denka, and communicated with one another, very imperfectly, in vulgar Arabic. After a while, he excited in them the desire to impart to him all that they could tell of their homes and countries, sometimes in reply to direct questions, sometimes in connected narrative suggested by him or originated by themselves. The Tutscheks do not hesitate to ascribe to these compositions, which were wholly oral, "great solidity and elegance, as to style, contexts, and arrangement,"

notwithstanding the youth of the narrators. Lorenz accounts for this by reminding us that the art of relating is cultivated by oriental people [by illiterate people ?], and that those children of nature are from earliest childhood eminently observant of external things, and closely acquainted with the circumstances of their villages and tribes. Karl Tutschek directed his chief study first to the Galla language, spoken by Akafade, which appeared to be best vocalized and easiest; but Lorenz applies to the Yumale negro (Jalo Jordan Aré) the epithet highly gifted. Three volumes of his dictations were in Lorenz's hands when he wrote. He adds that they "deserve the praises that have been bestowed on their sterling worth as to form and contents, and bear the impression of mature judgment and critical truth." They are divided into such as are the reproduction of the excellent memory of Jalo, and such as are his own free compositions. Jalo declared himself to be nephew of Wofter Mat, hereditary king of the Yumales. But the Gallas alone here

concern us.

On January 2nd, 1841, in a sitting of the philosophical class at Munich, Karl Tutschek read a report of his investigations, and laid before it a tolerably complete dictionary of the Galla Language, a sketch of the Grammar, and many dictations, prayers, and songs. He had received from M. Jomard of Paris, a treatise on the Galla language, extracted from the bulletin of the Geographical Society, August, 1889, which in many ways confirmed his own results. He even found in it prayers of the Gallas, nearly agreeing with those dictated by Akafede. What was better still, he gained two months' intercourse with a second Galla, named Otshu Aga, who had been delivered from slavery by Mr. Pell. By him not only all that he had learned was confirmed, but materials were given for comparing two dialects of Galla, and the number of dictations, prayers, and songs was. increased. Otshu and Akafede presently became warm friends, and at Tutschek's suggestion, entered into correspondence. Hereby he got fourteen letters, valuable alike for philology and for exhibiting the mind and soul of the correspondents. Further, through Otshu, an African girl by name Bililo was introduced to Tutschek. She had been supposed Abyssinian, but was really from the Galla country Guma, and had taught Osthu Aga many of her songs, which Tutschek noted down. A fourth native Galla, Aman Gonda, who had been brought to Europe by Duke Paul of Wirtemberg, was visited by Tutschek. He had

been a magistrate under the service of his prince, had been better educated, and appeared to speak his own language correctly. For these reasons, Tutschek set much value on his communications.

The chief occupations of the Gallas are agriculture and cattletending; but subordinate to these, in their villages, are weavers, tanners, potters, leather cutters, and workers in metal, who furnish warlike instruments. The form of government is royalty; but, as separate tribes have different kings, the king seems to be not much above the Arab chieftain. The royalty is generally hereditary, but is occasionally changed by election. Their religion is a monotheism, penetrating deep into all practical life, but obscured (says Lorenz Tutschek) by many superstitions. This is only to be expected; but no superstition appears in his specimens of their prayers, which with a few verbal changes of mere English dialect, are the following:

MORNING PRAYER.

O God, thou hast brought me through the night in peace; bring thou me through the day in peace! Wherever I may go, upon my way which thou madest peaceable for me, O God, lead thou my steps! When I have spoken, keep off calumny [falsehood?] from me. When I am hungry, keep me from murmuring. When I am full, keep me from pride. Calling upon thee I pass the day, O Lord who hast no Lord.

EVENING PRAYER.

O God, thou hast brought me through the day in peace; bring thou me through the night in peace! O Lord who hast no Lord, there is no strength but in thee. Thou only hast no obligation. Under thy hand I pass the day; under thy hand I pass the night. Thou art my Mother; thou my Father.

LITURGY

After the Sufferings of a Bloody Invasion.

Good God of the earth, my Lord! thou art above me, I am below thee.

When misfortune comes to us; then, as trees keep off the sun, so mayest thou keep off misfortune. My Lord! be thou my

screen.

Calling upon thee I pass the day, calling upon thee I pass the night.