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DEATH OF DAVID HUME— The Deist. ‘ Extracted from a Critique on Ritchie’a Life of JHume, as inserted in the Eclectick Review. His death, (a* the reviewer observes,) will probably be admitted, and even cited • by infidels, as an example of the noblest and most magnanimous deportment in the prospect of death, that it is possible for any of their class to maintain : an example in deed, which very few of them ever, in se rious moments, dare promise themselves to equal, though they may deem it in the high est degree enviable. It may be taken as quite their apostolick specimen, standing parallel in their history to the instance of St. Paul in the records of the Christians, “ I have fought a good fight, &c.” For a short time previous to his death,he amused himself with playing at cards, mak ing whimsical legacies, and other trifling oc cupations. As an instance of his sportive disposition, “ notwithstanding the prospect of speedy dissolution,” his biographer re lates, that, when reading Lucien's dialogues of the Dead, he diverted himself with in venting several jocular excuses which he supposed be might make to Charon, and in imagining the very surly answers which it might suit the character of Charon to re turn to them : 44 Upon further consideration, (said he) 1 thought l might say to him, * Good Charoo, l have been correcting my works for anew edition. Allow'me a little time, that I may see how the publick re ceive the alterations ?’ But Charon would answer, when you see the effect of these you will be for making other alterations.— There will be no end to such excuses, so, honest friend, please to step into the boat.’j But I might still urge, 4 Have a little pa tience, I have been endeavouring to open 1 tbe eyes of the publick. If I live a tew years longer, 1 may have the satisfaction of * xeeing the downfal of some of the prevail- j ing systems of superstition.’ But Charon would then lose all temper and decency.—; ‘ You loitering rogue, that will not happen these many hundred years. Do you fancy I wiil grant yen a lease for so long a term ? Get into the boat this instant, you lazy, loi tering rogue.” This anecdote is accompanied with the following just and striking reflections on the part of the Reviewer : 44 Ist, Supposing a < certainty of the final cessation of conscious : existence at death, this indifference to life, < if it was not affected, which indeed we sus pect it to have been in part, was an absurd I undervaluation of a possession which all i rational creatures, that have not been ex- : tremely miserable, have held most dear,and ; which is, in its own nature, mn*t precious. To be a conscious agent exerting a rich : combination of wonderful faculties, —to feel an infinite variety of pleasurable sensations i and emotions—to contemplate all nature — I to extend an intellectual presence to indefi- s nite ages of the past and future, to possess < a perennial spring of ideas—to run infinite t lengths of inquiry, with the delight of exer- i else and fleetnes®, even when not withs the satisfaction of full attainment—and to be lord over inanimate matter, compelling ( it into action and an ue altogether foreign ‘ to its nature,—to he all this, is a state so dis- t ferent from that of being simply a piece of j clay, that to be quite easy and complacent f in the immediate prospect of passing from i one to the other, i a total inversion of all i reasonable probabilities of things ; it is a 1 renunciation, we do not sav of sound philos- * ophy, but of common sense. The certain- < ty that the loss will not be felt after it has s taken place, will but little soothe a man of i unperverted mind, in considering what it i9 i that he is going to lose. < 4 2. The jocularity of the philosopher i was contrary to good taste. Supposing that i the expected loss were, not, according to i the grand law of nature, a cause for mel ancholy and desperation, but that the con- < teutaient were rational; yet the approach- i ing transformation was, at ail events, to he regarded as a very grave and very strange event; and therefore jocularity vfras totally ■ incongruous with the anticipation of such an ■ event. A grave and solemn feeling was the only one that could be in unison with i the contemplation of such a change. There wa in this instance the same incongruity which we should impute to a writer who should mingle buffoonery with the solemn crisis of the drama, or with the most mo mentous event of a history. To be in har mony with his situation, in his own view of that situation, the expressions of the dving philosopher were required to he dignified ; and if they were in any degiee vivacious, the vivacity ought to have been rendered graceful, by being accompanied with the uoblest effort of the intellect, of which the efforts were going to cease forever. The low vivacity of which we have been read ing, seems but like the quickening cor ’ ruption of a mind whose faculty of percep tion is putrifying and dissolving, even be fore the body. It is true, that good men of a high order, have been known to utter pleasantries in their last hours ; but these have been pleasantries of a fine ethereal quality—the scintillations of an animated hope,—the high pulsations of mental health —the involuntary movements of a spirit feeling .itself free even in the grasp df death—the natural springs and boundings of faculties on the point of obtaining a much higher and bonndless liberty. These had no resemblance tothe low and laboured jokes of our philosopher : jokes so laboured as to give strong cause of suspicion, after all, that they were of the same nature, and for tbe same purpose, as tbe expedient of a boy on parsing through some gloomy place iu (benight, who whistles to lessen his fear or to persuade his companions that he does not feel it. 4 3. Such a manner of meeting death was inconsistent with the skepticism to which Hume was always found to avow his adher ence ; for that skepticism necessarily ac knowledged a possibility and a chance that the religion which he has scorned might, notwithstanding, be found true, and might, l in the moment after his death, lay upon him with all its terrors. But how dread ■ ful to the reflecting mind would have been the smallest chance of meeting such a vis ion ! Yet the philosopher could be cracking his heavy jokes, and Dr. Smith could be much diverted at the sport. 4 4. To a man who solemnly believes the truth of revelation, and therefore the threatenings of divine vengeance against the despisers of it, this scene wiil present as mournful a spectacle as perhaps the sun ever shone upon. We have beheld a man of great talents and invincible persever ance, entering on his career with the pro fession of an impartial inquiry after truth, met at every stage and step by the eviden ces and expostulations of religion and the claims of his Creator, but devoting his la bours to the pursuit of fame and the pro motion of impiety, at length acquiring and accomplishing, as he declared himself all he had intended and desired, and descend ing toward the close of life amidst tranquil lity, widely extending reputation, and the homage ot the great and the learned. We behold him appointed soon to appear be fore that Judge to whom he had never alluded but with malice or contempt; yet preserving to appearance an entire com placency, idly jesting about his approaching dissolution, and mingling with the insane sport his references to the fall of “super stition —a term of which the meaning is hardly ever dubious whenever expressed by such men. We behold him at last car ried off, and we seem to hear, the following moment, from the darkness into which he vanishes, the shriek ofsurprize andterrour, and the overpowering accents of the mes senger of vengeance ! On the ivhole globe there probably was not acting, at the time, so mournful a tragedy as that of which the friends of Hume were the spectators, with out being aware that it was any tragedy at all.” RELIGION AMONGST SEAMEN. Extract from the Annual Report of the Society lor promoting the Gospel among Seamen in the Tort of iVew-York, presented June, 1821. It is more than three years since the so ciety for promoting the Gospel amongst sea men was first organized; but as circumstan ces have hitherto prevented the board of Directors from laying a formal report be fore their constituents, they conceive that it will not be uninteresting to glance at something more than the proceedings of the past year. For a year previous to the formation of this institution, the Rev. Ward Stafford, while engaged ia Christian labours among the poor of the city, had directed a part of his attention to the moral improvement of seamen. The encouraging manner in which attentions were received, led him to urge on a number of merchants and ship masters, the importance of a more exten sive effort in the promotion of this object. The first meeting look place in the month of May, 1818, when the incipient measures were adopted. The association had many difficulties to contend with, and many pre judices to overcome, and it was not tiil the fall of the same year that a commencement was made of the work, by fitting up a school room capable of accommodating 400, and by engaging the Rev. Mr. Stafford, to whose exertions in the cause so much was due, to officiate both as a pastor ami preacher for seamen. In this place publick worship was regularly maintained, till May, 1820, and it was soon perceived that sailors were not only willing to attend on the ordinances of religion, but that m my of them regarded such attendance as a privilege and a pleas ure. In the course of six months, more than 800 seamen called upon Mr. Stafford, either to converse on religions subjects, to take leave of him, or to solicit Bibles and Tracts. Their language and conduct on these occa sions, afforded a convincing proof, that the exertions thus made for their benefit, met with their cordial approbation, and drew forth their grateful acknowledgments. Stimulated by this success, notwithstanding that the general embarrassment of the coun try rendered it a very unfavourable moment for obtaining pecuniary aid, the board ven tured in February, 1819, to purchase most of the land which forms the present site of the Mariners’ Church. The limited state of the Society’s funds, however, and the difficulty of obtaining assistance, delayed the erection of the building, which was not completed till the summer of the following year, the foundation having been said in Oc tober, 1819. In the execution of this work, a grateful acknowledgement is due to ma ny individuals, whose assistance has been liberally given, either in shape of loans or donations. The institution is also much in debted to the exertions of the 44 Marine Missionary Society,” which charged itself with paying the salary of the officiating minister. An act of incorporation was obtained from the state legislature in April, 1819, giving the usual powers to the association, under the title of 44 The Society for Promo ting the Gospel amongst Seamen in the Port ofNew-York.” On the first Sabbath of June, 1820, (he building was solemnly dedicated to the ser vice of Almighty God. The day, it is trus ted, will be long remembered by the nu merous body of seafaring persons assem bled on that interesting occasion, amongst which were many, whose correct deport ment and attentive countenances, spoke a language not to be misunderstood. The dedication services were performed by ministers of the Presbyterian, Episcopal, and Methodist denominations ; and it is not one of the least interesting features of this institution, that it presents the novelty of ■ an establishment, in which all sectarian views are discarded: that it affords at least one spot of neutral ground, on which the clergy of all Christian denominations may 42 officiate, and where Christians of every name may co-operate in promoting the in terest of their Redeemer's kingdom. A9 an evidence of the reality of this circum stance, it is necessary only to allude to the united general prayer meeting for the out pouring of the Spirit, which is held on the first Tuesday of every month in the Marin ers’ Church, and which is regularly atten ded by Christians of almost every denoftiin ation in the city. j The Rev. Mr. Stafford having resigned, some time since, the charge which he held under the society,'and its want of means, precluding the further employment of a sta tedpreacher, the institution has depended ; forborne months on the Rev. Clergy of this metropolis, and those who occasionally vis it it, for a gratuitous supply of the pulpit. The board, however, being fully aware that something more is necessary for their purpose, than the mere supply of the pul pit, and having witnessed the good efi’pct of pastoral attention to the wants of seamen, a suitable person has been employed at a small expense to visit them in their houses, to lead their minds,by familiar conversation, to a knowledge of religious truth, and to a sense of its importance, and to persuade them to profit of the privileges which the institution affords them. The Rev. Henry Chase has been enga ged in the performance of these duties the last quarter. His attentions, as well as those of bis predecessors, appear to have been gratefully received, and these interviews are usually marked with that frankness and warmth of feeling so characteristick of sai lors. In his last report, he says, 44 In all these visits, with one solitary exception, 1 have been received in the most friendly &■ ! cordial manner; your object has been high ly approved, and the mariners called upon have promised to attend the church service and prayer meetings as often as possible. It was very encouraging, in some instances, when leaving these men, to be followed by repeated and pressing invitations to call again, and by their earnest wishes, that ten thousand blessings mightsettle on my head.” It has been made the duty of the same person, in his visits, to distribute Bibles and Tracts. These have in general met with a favourable reception, and the directors cannot refrain in this place from expressing their obligations to the Now York Religious Tract Society, and to the Marine Bible So ciety, for the means they have very liber ally afforded of effecting so useful a distri bution. A devotional meeting for seafaring per sons is held every Wednesday evening, in a room in the basement story of the Mari ners’ Church. These meetings are con ducted by the pastor before mentioned, and your board have the gratification to state, that the attendance on these occa- , sions is gradually increasing, and their de portment in many instances not only cor rect, but solemn and devout. The prominent object of the society be ing to provide for seamen the means of regular attendance upon the publick wor ship of God on the Sabbath, it was found necessary, in order to secure this end, to appropriate the lower floor of the church entirely to the accommodation of seafaring persons and the male friends of the institu tion, leaving the galleries for the use of the female members of the families of those for whose use the building was erected. By this arrangement a barrier is remov ed to the attendance of many, who might otherwise from diffidence or backwardness decline entering a more mixed assembly. It affords, at the same time, to the society, a better opportunity of judging themselves, and of convincing the publick, how much this class of persons avail themselves of the benefit thus afforded them. The result has surpassed the most sanguine expecta tions of the board, and satisfactory evidence has been afforded, that the arrangement made of the house is the only one which can secure to the building its peculiar char acter of a Mariners’ Church. —lt is hoped, that every reflecting person, far from being offended at this measure, will be sensible how much better it is that others should suffer a trifling inconvenience, than to risk the possibility of restraining a single sea man from taking his seat. The part of the house allotted to Mari ners is capable of containing above 600 persons. Already it has been as well filled, in proportion to its size, as the churches of the city usually are: seamen have been much more easily prevailed upon to enter this place of worship, than was at first sup posed, and the increasing interest excited amongst them, in respect to it, warrants the anticipation that the time is not far dis tant, when throngs of willing and devout worshippers shall return from their wan derings on the ocean, to give thanks, and {o renew their vows, on this spot, to the God of Heaven, whose mercies they have so often experienced. In addition to the other purposes to which the Mariners’ Church is applied, a flourishing Sunday school has been opened in it, where the children of the neighbour hood, and especially the children of those who are engaged in maritime occupations, are instructed on the Sabbath in reading and in the rudiments of the Christian reli gion.—lt is the design also of the board, when the state of their funds will admit of it, to open a weekly school for the gratuit ous instruction of adult seamen, in such branches of science as may be more pecu liarly useful to them. A periodical work, entitled 44 Christian Herald and Seamen's Magazine ,” edited by a member of the hoard, is now published under its patron age, the design of which is to afford them useful and interesting matter of contempla tion, particularly such ns relates to their moral and religious improvement. The directors hope in process of time to enter upon further plans for the advancement of this class of their fellow men, iu knowledge, piety, and virtue. * ’juilGE HAIE’S'TESTIMONY To the.invcard direction and assistance of the Spirit of God. 44 They who truly fear God, have a se cret guidance, from a higher wisdom thau what is barely human, namely, the Spirit of truth and goodness, which does really, though secretly, prevent and direct them. Any man that sincerely and truly fears Al mighty God, and calls and relies upon him j for his guidance and direction, has it as re aly as a son has the counsel and direction of his father; and though the voice be not i audible, not discernible by sense, yet it i9 , equally as real as if a man heard a voice ! saying, 44 This is the way, walk in it.” 44 Though this secret direction of Al mighty God is principally seen in matters relating to the good of the soul; yet, even in the concerns of this life, a good man fearing God and begging his direction, will very often, if not at all times, find it. 1 can call my own experience to witness that even in the temporal affairs of my whole life, 1 have never been disappointed of the best direction, when l have, in humiliiy and sincerity, implored it. 44 The observance of the secret admoni tion of this Spirit of God in the heart, is an effectual means to cleanse and sanctify us; and the more it is attended to, ihe more it will te conversant with our souls, for our instruction. In the midst of diificuties, it will be our counsellor; in (he midst of temptations, it will be our strength, and grace sufficient for us; in the midst of trou ble, it will be our light and our comfort. 44 It is impossible for us to enjoy the influ ences of this good Spirit, till we are deeply sensible of our own emptiness and nothing ness, and our minds are thereby brought down and laid in the dust. The spirit of Christ is indeed a humbling spirit; and the more we have of it, the more we shall be humbled: and it is a sign that either we j have it not, or that it is yet overpowered by our corruptions, if our heart be still haughty. “ Attend, therefore, to the secret per suasions and dissuasions of the Spirit of God, 1 and beware of quenching or grieving it. ‘■ This wind that blows where it lists, if shut i out or resisted, may never breath upon us ! again, but leave us to be hardened in oor sins. If observed and obeyed, it will, on all occasions, be our monitor and director. When we go out it will lead us; when we sleep it will keep us; and when we awake it will talk with us.” REVIVALS OF RELIGION. The General Association of the Clergy of Connecticut, held its annual session at Thompson last week. Very interesting’ accounts were given from the various as sociations, of the wonderful work of Divine . grace, which has been going on in that state during the year. We learn from a gentle-) man who was present, that it was found j that, of two hundred and seven congrega-! tional churches in the state, eighty had been visited with revivals. The whole j number received into these churches is about Five Thousand, and man}’ more still j remain as fruits of the work. And yet these 1 churches are looking forward, and expect-j ing the great blessing to be continued. l Such prosperity to the churches of Con necticut ha 9 not before been known, cer tainly for eighty years. There appears now to exist strong faith that God will pour out his spirit in answer tq prayer. The 1 labours of laymen have been remarkably i blessed, and there continues a disposition! extensively among the churches, to seqd these messengers to inquire of each other’s state, and see how they do. A friend from New Haven informs us that there, although for a while the work seemed in some mea sure to decline, Christians had recently been agaiu aroused. A union prayer meet ing had been established with great har mony, of all denominations of Christians in the city, and appearances in the college and in all the other churches were most encouraging. We have also heard from various sources, of several places where the work has recently commenced, and is going on gloriously. One thing is to be re marked of the revival in New Haven, and we believe through the state—sectarianism has been left out of the question. The ob ject has been to build up the church of Christ. If any wrong has been done in any instance, by one denomination towards ano ther, is has been overlooked. Christians have evidently felt that they were “doing a great work,” and could not “come down” to attend to little sectarian disputes. [Bost. Rec. The Methodist Magazine for June, contains a letter respecting the Revival of Religion in New-Haven, from which we gain a more explicit account of tbe additions to the Meth odist and Episcopal Churches than we have been able to gather from any other source. The letter is dated March 14. At that time, the number added to the communion of the Protestant Episcopal Church for the year was seventy, and to the Methodist one hundred and eighty. The more recent ac counts which we have published furnish the number which have been added to the Con gregational and Baptist Churches. This is one of the most remarkable revivals of re ligion which we recollect ever to have read since the days of Whitfield and Wesley. The most astonishing displays of divine power have been manifested. A Union prayer meeting has been established with great harmony in New-Haven, of all denom inations of Christians in the city, and ap pearances in the College and in all the oth er Churches, are still encouraging. The Rev. Erastas Otis, a Methodist Cler gyman, in a letter to the Editors of the Methodist Magazine, dated Milford, Conn. March 27, states that the increase to the Methodist denomination in the New-Lon don district, for the year past, is not far from one thousand, and the work is still extending among the circuits which com pose the district. We have been informed that the reports rendered to the New-Englnnd Methodist Conference, which set at Barre, Vt. last month, were highly encouraging. About two thousand have been added to the churches which compose the Conference We understand also, that there is ao unusu al attention to the interests of religion in Savannah (Geo.) [Phil. Remem. FOR THE MISSIONARY. DECISION.—No. I. Incipe : vivendi que recte prorogat horara, Rueticus expectat dum defluat amnis. Hor. Decision, in the sense in which I intend to use the term, denotes an intellectual quality. It is that perseverance, by which the mind is urged forward with constancy and vigour in the pursuit of some valuable object. It is a perseverance so resolute a8 to be unintimidated by imaginary dangers, and unchecked by ordinary difficulties. It is not a fluctuating and uncertain im pulse, like the sudden and transient emo tions of our animal nature ; but a regular and uniform principle of conduct. It gives a steadiness to the views and feelings, de termination and pursuits, that can neither be overpowered by the winds of fortune, nor diverted fropi its course by the rough storms of adversity. A man of decisive character cannot loDg doubt the general direction of his aims, and having once fixed his plans aod formed his resolution, is determined and unshaken.-- I Because decision is always directed in its I operations by reason. It takes a prospec tive view of the ground before it, surveys with accuracy the difficulties in the way, 1 and decides on that course which reason dictates. Perseverance in any course not j sanctioned by reason deserves not the name of decision. For in opinion it i9 nothing but obstinacy ; in conduct it is only rash ness. A man of decision will always yield to the authority of truth, wherever it is per ceived. Yet his correct and unbiassed judgment determines what sentiments are true, and what course bis duty requires him to pursue. And in matters of importance he will not, without compulsion, resign the office of judging ultimately for himself.— This office the Author of his being has as signed him as his prerogative, and enjoin | ed on him as his duty. The importance of decision is evident from the nature of man, and the manifest i design of his creation. Such is the indo i lehce of man, his indisposition to vigorous ! exertion, his vis inertia , that he always : sinks into comparative inaction ; unless de -1 cision in a greater or less degree counter acts this general tendency of his nature,and brings his various powers into their proper employment. In connexion with this re | mark, I observe also, that man was made | for action. The highest exertion of his powers is necessary in every sphere of life, for the accomplishment of any valuable purpose. From the constitution and situa tion of man, we learn the will of his Crea tor, and his imperious duty. We may there fore clearly infer the indispensable neces sity of decision, to give uniformity and steadiness, dignify and brilliancy to his cha racter ; and to enable him to pursue with undeviating intention, the career of duty and honour that lies before him. Os the qualities which constitute intel lectual greatness, none therefore is more essential than decision. Though it cannot supply the want of intellect, its use cannot be superseded by splendid abilities or ex tensive acquisitions. Without it, genius it self can make no considerable efforts, nor perform any important achievements. We seldom, however, discover this qual ity in its most eminent degree. But it is only in the instances where it exists in this degree, that its efficacy is the most illustri ous. A more moderate share of it may en able men in the inferiour stations of life to discharge the ordinary duties with tolera ble success. But where a great and diffi cult object is to be achieved by human en ergies, an undeviating steadiness ofpnrpose is necessary in its prosecution. History fur nishes illustration of the truth of this re mark in the national improvements effected by able politicians, and in the ’ successful enterprises of renowned generals. It seems unnecessary to prove that de cision is essential to the character of the statesman and warriour, and constitutes the greatness of the hero ; and that it is requi site in all the arduous employments and splendid achievements of mankind. Let us a few moments consider its use to parsons engaged in the private and humble employ ments of studious research. Many uuppose, that of all men, the student hag the least occasion for the exercise of a decisive cha racter. They imagine that as he has only one unvaried course to pursue, no incident ‘can occur to awaken resolution, no ob?ta~