the Neo Catolicos (the Reforming Catholics) can have no other interpretation. It is not less glorious for our nation to see the enthusiasm with which the students press forward to clean away the blemish that the eternal enemies of science and liberty of thought have desired to impress upon them. The students of Barcelona have been the first to raise the voice against the stupid machinations of the priestly enemies of Neo Catolicos, directing their cry to the other scientific establishments of Spain, and to the whole nation. This ry has already been repeated by the students of the ever-heroic Saragossa and immortal Gerona, and shortly will spread through the entire Peninsula. The students of Seville could not be the last in responding to this call, protesting loudly, as they do, by means of this manifestation, against the species of theological restoration contemplated in respect to the teaching of the univer. sities. No, a thousand times, No! We do not wish that those who brutalised, debased, and degraded our ancestors, after the heroic struggle which they sustained in order to attain liberty, again should come to brutalise, debase, and degrade us and our sons. Back! declared enemies of science and of civilisation, and persecutors of men who have distinguished themselves by propagating them! Back! sextons of human intelligence, who would desire to fabricate an immense extinguisher with which to cover the head of all humanity. This protest is sufficient for our part against the well-known attempts of certain perFor the rest we adhere to the learned manifestation of our compa sons. nions of Barcelona.'" Here come four columns of the signatures of the students. April 30, 1864. This was published in Las Novedades, on April 30th, and since then the remaining universities of Spain have brought up the rear. MADAGASCAR.-The following extract from the Overland Commercial Gazette, published at Port Louis, Mauritius, 6th May, 1864, and just received here, will doubtless prove interesting to numerous readers of the Repository: "Madagascar.-(From our owu Correspondent.)-Tamatave, Feb. 1864.A curious act of intolerance on the part of a sect which in common with others has only been tolerated itself since the death of Queen Ranavalo, took place on Sunday last. It seems that a follower of Swedenborg has arrived here from Mauritius, and has endeavoured to hold forth in public respecting the tenets of his sect, and had procured several children (whose parents withdrew them from the charity school of the priests, the only school in Tamatave) to act as a nucleus to a new school; and on Sunday last, the priest, after divine service in the new Roman Catholic church, denounced the new comer as a mercenary, &c. &c., and warned parents to be on their guard with respect to their children; and though the more moderate Catholics disapproved this discourse, the immediate effect has been to break up the school of the 'Swedenborgian,' the parents withdrawing their children; and if the teacher depends upon teaching for a living, he is thus prevented from earning his daily bread. The incident is the more regrettable as the conduct of the only religious sect in Tamatave (the Roman Catholics) has hitherto been so irreproachable, and has presented such a favourable contrast to the intolerance of some of the Protestant missionaries at the capital. "The following is the substance of the sermon of the Roman Catholic priest preached on Sunday last, in the Roman Catholic church, in the French language, from St. John x. 19, alluded to above, and related to me by several persons present:-Keep steady, brethren, and shun that shuffling fellow! Flee from that mercenary-that atheist! who is endeavouring to mar the whole flock that are in the sheep-fold! Keep from him as from a scabby sheep, and have nothing to do with him! Do not harbour him, or give him any assistance whatsoever! He is a wolf in sheep's clothing-guard yourselves!" CANADA.-Toronto.-It may not be uninteresting to some of the many readers of the Repository to hear of the commencement and organisation of a New Church Society in Toronto, Canada West. On the 8th of August, last year, the New Church friends, only eight in number, met by appointmeut to devise some means for meeting together for public worship. They agreed to take a room in the Mechanics' Institute, and Mr. Parker, recently from London, England, was requested to conduct the services. After advertising it in the daily newspapers, our first congregation numbered thirteen persons. Since then the attendance has gradually increased, and now we have the pleasure of seeing our meeting-house filled with interested and devout worshippers. Shortly after opening our place of worship, we commenced a weekly reading meeting, held alternately at the houses of a few friends, in order that we might read and converse on the doctrines of the church for our mutual benefit, and also as a means of spreading the New Church truths. These meetings have been very successful, and have been well attended throughout the winter. On the 3rd of April, the friends met together to organise themselves into a society; a set of rules and by-laws were adopted, and twentyfour signified their intention of becoming members. On the 12th, we held a social meeting in our place of worship, when about forty persons were present. Immediately after tea, Mr. Hancock, of Berlin, who had just arrived in the city, and hearing of our meeting, came down, and in the course of the evening gave us an excellent address. Four others joined the society, so that we now number twenty-eight. A subscription was opened for the purpose of procuring a library of the writings of the church; over thirty dollars were subscribed by those present. Mr. Parker has been indefatigable in his labours to promote the interests of the society. He has preached to us every Sunday morning since our services commenced, and many who were entire strangers to the doctrines have become so much interested in them, that we feel the want of books to put into the hands of inquirers. On the whole, the prospects of the church here are most promising; and we hope and trust, that as the heavenly doctrines become better known here, they will win their way to the understandings and hearts of many, conveying light, and love, and peace into many a dark and doubting mind. M. RICHARDSON, Sec. Montreal. Some kind correspondent has sent us a Montreal Herald, which contains the following interesting bit of news:-" Acknowledgment: The Library Committee of the Mechanics' Institute of Montreal beg gratefully to acknowledge having received as a donation to the institute, from a member, the theological works of the Hon. E. Swedenborg, nineteen volumes; Rendell's Peculiarities of ADELAIDE.-A friend in London writes: "In my father's letter from Adelaide, South Australia, dated March 26th, 1864, is the following little item of church news, which is at your service:—' We have excellent sermons every Sabbath, and the lectures are better than ever. The present course, on the Spiritual World, brings crowded audiences. Last Sunday evening we had nearly ninety persons present; the place was packed full, with four or five in the porch. They seem to hear the truth with joy. I distribute twenty or thirty tracts of an evening; but never give one without being requested, or asking the applicants if they would like to read one, and getting an affirmative answer.' This little fact from the antipodes speaks for itself. Your readers will remember the society is under the leadership of Mr. Day, whose energetic love, and clear and deep perception of truth, renders him well worthy and able to build up the first society in the Southern Hemisphere. With all respect, believe me, yours truly, J. S. A report for the last year of the committee of the Adelaide society has been received. We learn from it that the society has undergone little change during the period to which it relates. The Sunday services have been conducted without interruption, and there has been a more regular if not a more numerous attendance than during any previous year. Nine infants have been baptised, and five persons have signed the Declaration of Faith. The Bible class has been regularly held, but regret is expressed that the attendance of the young people has not been all that could be desired. We hope they will enable us to report more favourably of them next year. The circulation of books from the library has been very limited, but this is ascribed to the growth of domestic libraries. The society has a building fund, which seems to be accumulating steadily, £30. having been added to it during the past year. The leader seems to labour gratuitously, so that the support of the place of worship is the only expense. 344 Obituary. MISCELLANEOUS. At Southport, April 19th, aged 69, Mrs. Eliza Strange, relict of Henry Strange, Esq., of Demerara, West Indies. The departed was a much esteemed member of the Bedford-street Society, Liverpool. Highly educated and accomplished, she was a most pleasing and instructive companion to all ages and classes. Possessing superior conversational powers, she never failed to make a powerful and lasting impression on all who heard her. She passed through many severe trials, but at last was brought into a wealthy place-the holy city, New Jerusalem. She quitted this world of trials and changes without regret, in full assurance of meeting with kindred spirits in those happy realms where "light is sown for the righteous and goodness for the upright in heart." The New Church Society in Embsay has sustained a severe loss by the removal into the spiritual world of Mr. Thomas H. Shacklock. Our friend was connected with the society here from its commencement, 32 years ago. During the whole of that time he has been uninterruptedly engaged in various offices that have tended to the growth and support of the church. Nothing was ever permitted to withdraw him from his duties in this respect. His main characteristics were extreme quietness, combined with a steadiness and regularity in the discharge of duty. His whole demeanour was such as impressed every one who came into connection with him with the beauty and loveliness and reality of the Christian character. His last illness was borne with unusual patience and calmness, and although he had suffered from it for several years, yet he was never heard to complain. He was able to attend church until within a very short time of his death. He was lost to us in the prime of life and usefulness, at the age of 47 years. His departure took place on the 24th of December, 1863. TO READERS AND CORRESPONDENTS. All communications to be sent to the Editor, the Rev. W. BRUCE, 43, Kensington Gardens Square, London, W. To ensure insertion in the forthcoming Number, communications must be received not later than the 15th of the month, except recent intelligence, which will be received till the 18th. General Conference of the New Church.-The ensuing General Conference will be held in the New Jerusalem Church, Summer-lane, Birmingham, and will commence on the 9th of August next. Societies desirous of becoming connected with the Conference, or having information to convey, should take an early opportunity of communicating with the Secretary. Each of the Secretaries of the various Committees which were appointed with a view of reporting to the next Conference, is requested to forward his report at an early period to F. PITMAN, Secretary. Conference in Birmingham.-The Committee of the Birmingham Society being desirous of providing accommodation, as far as possible, for the Ministers and Representatives during Conference week, respectfully request each Society intending to send Representatives to inform the Secretary, as early as possible, how many it is likely to send.-Address Mr. S. BARNETT, 7, Edgmond-terrace, Lozelis, Birmingham. National Missionary Institution, and Students and Ministers' Aid Fund.-The Committee meet on the fourth Monday in each month, at 36, Bloomsburystreet, at 6-30 p.m. Missionary and Tract Society.-New address of Mr. Sandy, the secretary-Louisa Villa, Allwyn Park, London, S. "A Voice from Heaven (on the removal of the Rev. J. H. Smithson)," turns out to be "A Voice from Heaven for the Bereaved," published by the London Book Society. It was received by Mrs. Smithson (in manuscript) on the morning of the funeral, and that lady, under the very natural impression it was original, sent it for insertion in the Repository. Received "Inspiration and Interpretation," No. VII., by the Rev. Augustus Clissold. Communication respecting the Hymn Book received. Several Articles postponed for want of space will appear next month. Cave and SeveER, Printers by Steam Power, Hunt's Bank, Manchester. IN Macmillan's Magazine, No. 85, p. 74 seq., the opinions which Kant entertained respecting Swedenborg are discussed, under the impression that Kant's letter to Miss Knobloch, published in Archbishop Borowsky's Life of Kant, was written before his anonymous pamphlet of 1766"Dreams of a Seer of Spirits elucidated by Metaphysical Dreaming." The false date given to that letter having been sufficiently corrected by Dr. Emanuel Tafel, in his "Supplement to the Life of Kant, Stuttgard, 1845," it is to be regretted that the author of the article "Kant and Swedenborg" in the magazine, should have remained ignorant of that critical Supplement, and that he has not even attended to the remarks of Professor M. Matter, in his "Emanuel Swedenborg, sa Vie, ses Ecrits, et sa Doctrine," Paris, Didier and Co., 1863, who quotes the right dates. And as the pamphlet of 1766 speaks generally in a disparaging tone about Swedenborg, intimating that his visions might rather be derived from an insane mind, and that the current stories are founded only on vague hear-say, while the letter, contrariwise, altogether speaks in favour of Swedenborg, and affirms the entire truthfulness of the identical three stories which, according to the pamphlet, appear unreliable, it would, if the letter had really been written in 1758 (as being the year assigned to it in Borowsky's Life of Kant), naturally be inferred that Kant at that time had entertained a favourable opinion about Swedenborg, which he at a later period, after having been better informed, in his pamphlet of 1766, distinctly retracted. The author regrets that this article was not inserted in "Macmillan's," where it ought by all means to have found a place; it was politely declined by the editor. As, however, the followers of Swedenborg are found to reverse the argument, by supposing the disparaging pamphlet to have been written before the laudatory letter, and by giving it as their opinion that the illustrious writer, who in his pamphlet had abused .Swedenborg, when better informed, thought and spoke quite otherwise about him, it becomes rather important definitely to settle the question about the dates, however indifferent it may be in itself whether Kant thought highly of Swedenborg or otherwise. The good faith and respect for truth of those followers of Swedenborg is at stake. It is by no means an indifferent question whether the defendants of a truly reformed New Christian Church should, in order to draw favourable inferences from the views of the great rationalist, Kant, have resorted to an inversion of the real dates in the original documents. I am happy, on the authority of Dr. Tafel, and with the aid of some few new arguments, to state that such is not the case, and that the solution the learned, truth-seeking Dr. Tafel, in his Supplement of 1845, and subsequently in numerous treatises, has given to the question about these dates is altogether incontrovertible. First of all, it is important to state that the date given to the letter, viz., the 10th of August, 1758, is a false date. Each of the three facts on which this letter comments, is notoriously of a later date; there is not the least doubt about that. In the one story, Swedenborg is said to have conversed with the spirit of Mr. Marteville, minister at the Swedish Court at Stockholm, who is known to have died at Stockholm on April 25th, 1760. His widow's second husband states explicitly that the inquiry about the hidden receipt had taken place one year later. It is thus evident that Kant could not in 1758 write a letter in which this fact was mentioned, of which he probably was not apprised till a long time after. One other fact, the great fire at Stockholm, of which Swedenborg had simultaneously reported in Gothenburg, took place in 1759; and the third principal fact, the conversation in the spirit-world with the Prince Augustus William of Prussia, the brother of the Queen Louisa Ulrica, and of Frederick the Great, and grandfather of the present king, is by Kant himself in his "Dreams," &c., attributed to the year 1761, while his first inquiry, according to the letter itself, was made only in 1762 or 1763. The date 1758, which thus is proved to be a falsity, is tantamount to no date at all. Only, as some date is pretty sure to have been affixed to the letter, the easiest way of explaining the false date would be found in the supposition, that the original date had been 1768, and that, by changing the 6 into a 5, either through error or intentionally, the erroneous date has been introduced. Dr. Tafel thinks that the |