Purchase in the Church. By "Promotion by Merit." (Simpkin and
Marshall.)—This volume consists of letters reprinted from the Man- chester Examiner. It must be allowed that they are very amusing and effective, though the writer does not " extenuate " anything, and some- times, it may be said, puts down something in "malice." It is scarcely fair, for instance, to conclude that when you have deducted the five thousand odd livings that their patrons cannot sell from the number of the whole, the balance represents the " saleable livings." They are " saleable " in the sense that they can be legally sold, but a very large portion are practically never sold. About two thousand is probably the number of advowsens actually made the subject of buying and selling. This is not so bad as the author would make oat, but it is quite bad enough to deserve all the satire which ho can pour upon the
system. This satire is often very smart. The writer has made him- self acquainted with the circumstances of livings which he has seen advertised for sale, and he does not scruple to state them. Happily the results are not so bad as might be expected, and a writer who was not a hostile advocate, but an inquirer after truth, would state as much. But this is more than could be expected. Meanwhile, till we can amend our ways in this matter, ire must expect hard things to be said of us.
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