ward in their simple attire, Perpetua singing psalms. The men were exposed to leopards and bears; the women were hung up naked in nets, to be gored by a furious cow. But even the excited populace shrunk with horror at the spectacle of two young and delicate women, one recently recovered from childbirth, in this state. They were recalled by acclamation, and in mercy brought forward again, clad in loose robes. Perpetua was tossed, her garment was rent; but more conscious of her wounded modesty than of pain, she drew the robe over the part of her person that was exposed. She then calmly clasped up her hair, because it did not become a martyr to suffer with dishevelled locks, the signs of sorrow. She then raised up her fainting and mortally wounded Felicitas, and the cruelty of the populace being for a time appeased, they were permitted to retire. Perpetua seemed wrapt in ecstacy, and as if awaking from sleep, inquired when she was to be exposed to the beast. She could scarcely be made to believe what had taken place; her last words tenderly admonished her brother to be stedfast in the faith. We may close the scene by intimating, that all were speedily released from their sufferings, and entered into their glory. Perpetua guided with her own hand the merciful sword of the gladiator which relieved her from her agony."-(Vol. ii. p. 225.)

We once thought it might be interesting if we selected from these volumes the most important of Mr. Milman's concessions to a liberal and rational Theology. But we abstain from what might appear an ungracious and illiberal work,—and which, if pursued in reference to all writers, trammelled by their external position, would only have the effect of keeping them within their narrowest lines, and of repressing at once the free workings and expression of their thoughts. Once more we recommend our readers to accompany Mr. Milman over the first three centuries of the developments of Christianity,-the history of its conflicts with Judaism, Paganism, Orientalism,—of its final triumph, but not without wounds, and disfigurations, that remain to this day,-of its conquest over rudeness and polytheism, not always without sinking down both in spirit and external form to some assimilation with these its foes, of its influences on Civilization, on Literature, on Art, on the softer, purer, and more catholic virtues of Humanity. All excuse for ignorance of the History of our Religion is now, for the first time in Britain, removed from the most indolent, or the most fastidious.

ART. II.-ON THE COLLEGES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE.

THE clergy of the Church of England form, at the present day, a large and powerful corporation, in which the external appearance of uniformity is attempted to be preserved both before and after ordination.

When testimonials for orders are presented to the bishop of the diocese in which the curacy conferring the title to ordination is situated, the three clergymen who sign the testimonials are required to testify, that as far as they know or believe, the candidate, whom they recommend, has not at any time, held, written, or taught anything contrary to the doctrine or discipline of the United Church of England and Ireland.

At the same time, testimonials are required from the college in which the candidate has been educated, and few candidates are allowed to be ordained at the present day, by any bishop, unless they have actually taken the degree of Bachelor of Arts, in the university to which they belong: this degree is in fact, at Cambridge, merely a proof of the possession of a certain amount of literary and scientific knowledge, but by the ingenuity of the interested parties, an ecclesiastical test has been imposed as a part of the ceremony of graduation, and the candidates for the degree of Bachelors of Arts are required to subscribe themselves "bond fide" members of the Church of England, as by law established, before they are allowed to take this secular degree.

Previous to ordination, the candidate for orders is further required to sign the following declaration in the presence of the bishop :

"I, A. B., do willingly, and from my heart, subscribe to the thirtynine articles of religion of the United Church of England and Ireland, and to the three articles in the thirty-sixth canon; and to all things therein contained."

From a comparison of these two tests for the degree of Bachelor of Arts at Cambridge, and for the more important distinction of ordination, it is manifest that to the divinity student, who intends to subscribe all the thirty-nine articles, and the three articles of the thirty-sixth canon of the Church of England, the declaration of membership with the Church of England must be a mere form, and that there cannot be much practical use in the continuance of such a form for the degree,

as a test of the doctrinal opinions of the clergy of the Church of England.

Political power is probably the main cause of the maintenance of any religious tests for literary and scientific honors at Oxford and Cambridge.

The two ancient universities of England are close boroughs under the management of a large majority of influential clergymen belonging to the Church of England, and these two educational corporations are considered as bulwarks of the church, and citadels of the church, and they seem to be supposed to be mainly supported by the divinity students, who are afterwards to be ordained as clergymen of the Church.

But whatever may be the case on this subject with respect to the smaller colleges of the University of Cambridge, proofs are quite accessible, to show that the divinity students only constitute a minority of the total number of students in the largest college of that university.

Registers are preserved, from which a very near approximation to the precise numbers required may be deduced, and the numerical superiority of the lay students over the divinity students in Trinity College, Cambridge, is thus proved.

Two corrections have been introduced into the foregoing table, first a deduction of five names per annum, from the list of admissions, as a loss of about five names is said to be generally found between the number of admissions, and the number of students admitted, who actually come up to reside at CamVOL. III. No. 11.-New Series.

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bridge; and secondly, an addition of about four names per annum is required for a small number of testimonials for orders varying from three to five, which are granted at the time of graduation, and are not included in the general list, which is formed from the testimonials granted at other times.

A few ten year men, amounting to four altogether, might be added to the list of admissions, but as these students are already in orders, and merely come up to qualify themselves for the degree of Bachelor of Divinity, they are usually out of the ordinary line of college instruction, and their number is so exceedingly small in Trinity College, that they have hardly any influence in the support of the college.

The average proportion of the admissions to the testimonials for each year, from 1831 to 1840, will consequently be as 138 to 47 nearly, or, in other words, the proportion of the total number of students to the number of divinity students is as three to one nearly, on an average of ten years. Many of the students who are admitted as members of Trinity College, do not remain to take any degree in the university: some leave the university during the first year of residence, or at the conclusion of their first years: others remain two years, others three, and a considerable number are always found to remain during the whole period of three years and a quarter, to qualify themselves for the degree of a Bachelor of Arts.

An interval of about three years and a half is required from all students who are untitled commoners, between the degree of Bachelor of Arts and the higher degree of Master of Arts : a second visit to Cambridge is also requisite in order to take the degree of Master of Arts, and various fees are expected at that period, as well as a subscription to the three articles of the thirty-sixth canon of the Church of England.

When the degree of Master of Arts is once taken, the graduate thereby becomes a member of the senate of the University of Cambridge, and it is remarkable, that the proportion of the laity to the clergy among the members of the senate, who are registered as members of Trinity College, is far greater than the same proportion among the total number of the members of the senate in the whole university, where the clergy predominate, by a large majority, over the laity.

Trinity College consists partly of members on the foundation, and partly of independent members, who are not in the receipt of money from the endowments of the college: both classes of members have an equal right to vote in the senate house of the university, and the proportion of the laymen to the clergymen among the registered electors is very nearly equal, with a slight

preponderance of about two in favour of the clergymen, from a total number of more than 900 voters.

On the occasion of the recent contested election for the honorary office of the high steward of the University of Cambridge, the total number of voters, belonging to Trinity College, who gave their votes in Cambridge, was 469, and of these, a large proportion were certainly laymen, but in the aggregate of 1461 votes, which were given by the members of the different colleges in the university, including Trinity College, it is said that 900 or 1000 were the votes of clergymen, and it is highly probable that Lord Lyndhurst would have obtained a majority from the votes of clergymen entirely independent of the support of any laymen.

There can be no doubt at all, but that the clergy of the church of England do actually hold a predominant political power in both the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and as both these universities are represented in parliament, it becomes a legitimate subject of public interest to inquire into the origin of their parliamentary influence.

Royal charters were granted to the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, in the first year of the reign of King James the First, (A. D. 1603,) for the election of Members of Parliament, of which two were allowed to each university.

Soon after these privileges had been conferred, fears were entertained lest the universities might thus lose a portion of the aristocratic patronage, which they had before enjoyed, as the duty of watching over their interests, and of protecting their rights and exclusive privileges was specially confided to their own representatives in parliament.

At the present time it is certain, that as popular power increases, and as the universities become gradually secularized, their peculiar position and their advantages will form the subject of frequent debate, and even of legislation in parliament, and the representation of their supposed interests will naturally be considered as a political advantage, while the actual possession of a majority of votes by the clergy of the Church of England will ensure, for a long time, a decidedly ecclesiastical bias to all the political proceedings of the governing body in each university.

Among the resident members of the University of Cambridge, nearly all the graduates, who are members of the senate, are also clergymen, and fellows of colleges. Indeed, the peculiarity of college statutes generally requires the taking of orders, under the penalty of expulsion from the college, which is interpreted