Christianity and Common Sense. By Sir Willoughby Jones, Bart., MA.
(Long,mans.)— This very handsomely printed volume contains a warm defence against the attacks which, in the opinion of its author have recently been made upon the Christian religion and the Bible. Like the great majority of writers on his side of the question, Sir W. Jones appears to us to mistake the real point at issue. Ho takes it for granted that Bishop Colenso and the Essayists and Reviewers are in- fidels, because such is. in his opinion, the logical consequence of their doubts and speculations ; and accordingly he proceeds to argue, at great length and with some ability, against infidelity. He holds that every statement contained in the Bible is literally true, and answers Colenso's objections by asserting the miraculous nature of all the circumstances attending the exodus from Egypt. On the subject of verbal inspiration, which is, after all, the main point at issue, he says absolutely nothing at all. Although Sir W. Jones's tone is not always unexceptionable, still it is, on the whole, more moderate than that of most of his colleagues ; and he writes like an educated man, who is acquainted with most of the recent discoveries of modern science. We should like, however, to know the authority for the statement that pure olive oil is merely a peculiar form of carbon—an assertion which must, we fancy, rest upon evidence that is not generally known to the chemical world.
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