the principal facts of ancient history are not less probable practically now, than ten or fifteen centuries ago; nor less so then, than in the times immediately suc ceeding, because the diminution of evi dence in each century is imperceptible. And for the same reason a large number of weak arguments prove little.

4. It appears likewise, that the inequality of the separate evidences does not produce much alteration in these remarks. In like manner, if the number of evidences, dependent or independent, be great, we may make great concessions as to the value of each. Again, a strong evidence in dependent ones can add nothing, but must weaken a little; and after a point is well settled by a number of independent ones, all that come afterwards are in one sense useless, because they do no more than remove the imperceptible remaining deficiency; on the other hand, however, as evidence produces different effects on different minds, it is of great moment in all points of general importance, to have as many satisfactory independent evidences as possible brought into view; that if one fail in its effects, from peculiar cir cumstances, another may supply its place. And it will be of great use to pursue these and such like deductions, both mathematically, and by applying them to proper instances selected from the sciences, and from common life, in order to remove certain prejudices, which the use of general terms and ways of speaking, with the va rious associations with them, is apt to introduce and fix upon the mind. It cannot but assist us, in the art of reasoning, thus to analyze, recompose, and ascer tain our evidences.

UNDULATION, in physics, a kind of tremulous motion or vibration observable in a liquid, whereby it alternately rises and falls like the waves of the sea. Thus undulatory motion, if the liquid be smooth and at rest, is propagated in concentric circles, as most people have observed upon throwing a stone, or other matter, upon the surface of a stagnant water, or even upon touching the surface of the water lightly with the finger, or the like. The reason of these circular undulations is, that by touching the surface with your finger, there is produced a depression of the water in the place of contact. By this depression, the subjacent parts are moved successively out of their place, and the other adjacent paris thrust upwards, which lying successively on the descending liquid, follow it; and thus the parts of the liquid are alternately

raised and depressed, and that circularly. When a stone is thrown into the liquid, the reciprocal vibrations are more conspicuous: here the water, in the place of immersion, rising higher by means of the impulse, or rebound, till it comes to fall again, gives an impulse to the adjoining liquid, by which means that is likewise raised about the place of the stone as about a centre, and forms the first undulous circle; this falling again, gives another impulse to the fluid next to it, further from the centre, which rises likewise in a circle; and thus successively greater and greater circles are produced.

UNGULA, in geometry, the section of a cylinder cut off by a plane passing obliquely through the plane of the base and part of the cylindric surface.

UNICORN, an animal famous among the ancients, but looked upon by the moderns as fabulous, denominated from its distinguishing characteristic of having one horn only, which is represented as five palms long, and growing in the middle of the forehead.

The unicorn is one of the supporters of the British arms. It is represented, by heralds, passant, and sometimes rampant. When in this last action, as in the British arms, it is properly said to be saillant. Argent, an unicorn sejant sable, armed and unguled, or, borne by the name of harding.

UNICORN fish. See MONODON.

UNIOLA, in botany, a genus of the Triandria Digynia class and order. Natural order of Gramina. Gramineæ, Jussieu. Essential character: calyx many valved; spikelet ovate, keeled. There are three species.

UNONA, in botany, a genus of the Poliandria Polyginia class and order. Natural order of Coadunatæ. Anonæ, Jussieu. Essential character: calyx threeleaved; petals six; berries two or threeseeded, jointed like a necklace. There are four species.

UNISON, in music, the effect of two sounds which are equal in degree of tune, or in point of gravity and acuteness.

UNITARIANS, in church history, are those who believe that there is but one God, the supreme object of religious worship; and that this God is the Father only, and not a Trinity consisting of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

The Unitarians having been frequently confounded with the old Socinians, it is but justice to observe, that a very material difference exists in some parts of the

religious faith of these two sects. The Socinians believed that Jesus Christ, though a human being, was advanced by God to the government of the whole created universe, and was, therefore, the proper object of religious worship. On account of their essential deviation from the doctrine of Socinus, in this and some other respects, the modern Unitarians disclaim the appellation Socinian, as inapplicable to their views of religious faith and worship. This term is, however, very comprehensive, and is applicable to a great variety of persons, who, notwithstanding, agree in this one common principle, that there is no distinction in the divine nature.

The appellation of Unitarian may be considered as a generic term, including in it a number of specific differences. Indeed, all those who reject the doctrine of the Trinity, and pay divine worship to the Father only, may with propriety be called Unitarians. As it is a principle among this body of Christians, that the most unbounded liberty ought to be granted to every individual to understand and explain the doctrines of the Scriptures according to his own particular views, it has long been divided into a number of parties, differing on various subjects not immediately affecting the leading doctrine of the Divine Unity. Though the ancient Arians appear never to have adopted this appellation, yet most of their successors of the present day assert, that they have a just claim to the title; because, they say, that they pay divine adoration to the one God and Father only, and not to Jesus Christ, or to the Holy Ghost. If this be admitted, it will appear that the Unitarian doctrine is of very ancient date. Indeed, they profess to derive their faith solely from the sacred Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.

Soon after the Nicene Council, when the Christian world had wearied itself with religious wars and disputes concern ing doctrines and government, and the Papal power had, apparently, converted the kingdom of Christ into a kingdom of this world, the subjects of religious controversy ceased, in a great degree, to agitate the minds of men, until the memorable period of the Reformation. Then again did the flame, which had been long smothering, burst out; and the great and leading maxim, of the right of private judgment in matters of religion, on which the Reformation was founded, once more gave liberty to the powers of

the human understanding. How far those powers were exerted against many of the doctrines of the Church of Rome, we have already described in the articles PROTESTANTS and REFORMATION. Though Luther and his adherents had done much towards effecting a complete reformation in religion, it was thought by many persons of great learning and piety, that much still remained to be cleared away, before the religion of Jesus Christ could again assume its native lustre and purity. Among the number of those who were of this opinion, was a learned and eminent physician of Spain, commonly called Michael Servetus. This gentleman, conceiving that the ideas generally maintained concerning the Trinity, and some other popular doctrines, were false and dangerous, discovered and propagated what he conceived to be a more rational theory; the leading features of which related to the doctrine of the Trinity, which he flatly denied; at least in the manner in which it was then commonly understood.

On this subject he published his famous book, entitled "De Trinitatis Erroribus;" with which, as Oecolampadius, writing to Bucer, observes, the reformers at Berne were very much offended. At the same time he remarks, that the churches would be very ill spoken of, unless their divines would make it their business to " cry it down." "We know not," he continues, "how that beast, (Servetus) came to creep in among us; he wrests all passages of Scripture to prove, that the Son is not co-eternal and consubstantial with the Father, and that the man Christ is the Son of God."

Now it was, that the fears of Melancthon began to be realized. In a letter to Joachim Cameraper, this reformer thus expresses himself: "You know that I was always afraid, that these disputes about the Trinity would break out some time or other. Good God! what tragedies will this question produce among posterity;-whether the Logos be a substance or a person." To alleviate, in some measure, these fears, this meek reformer wrote a letter to the Popish Senate at Venice, beseeching them to use their utmost endeavours to prevent the spread of the errors contained in Serve'tus's book. It was, however, reserved for the zeal of Calvin to convince the religious world, that the reformers, with all their zeal against popery, had not learned to shake off a spirit of fiery persecution against those whom they chose to account

heretics. Not content with calling Servetus "the proudest knave of the Spanish nation," "a villanous, obscene, barking dog, a blockhead and a beast," this furious bigot, with all the abominable cant with which the genius of his religious creed could amply supply him, caused the unhappy Servetus to be burnt at the stake as a heretic, after having harassed and tormented him in every possible way that the most determined villainy and artful hypocrisy could suggest. Thus died the first Unitarian martyr after the Reformation; and thus was he treated by one of the principal reformers!

It was probably from the books of Michael Servetus, that Lælius Socinus, and many other Italians, first imbibed their anti-trinitarian opinions. From the papers of Lælius Socinus, his nephew, Faustus Socinus, was afterwards led to the study of theology. He improved on the system of his uncle; and was the cause of the Unitarian doctrine spreading itself over a great part of Europe. In Poland, in particular, this sect made astonishing progress. By them was published the famous Racovian Catechism; and the writings of the Polones Fratres, in six large folio volumes, entitled "Bibliotheca Fratrum," are replete with learning and great biblical knowledge. The leading doctrines maintained by the Polonian brethren are as follow:

That the Holy Scriptures are to be understood and explained in such a manner, as that their doctrines shall be strictly agreeable to the true principles of rea

son.

In consequence of this leading point in their theology, they maintained that God, who is infinitely more perfect than man, though of a similar nature in some respects, exerted an act of that power by which he governs all things; in consequence of which, an extraordinary person was born of the Virgin Mary. That person was Jesus Christ, whom God first translated to heaven by that portion of his divine power called the Holy Ghost. Socinus and some of his followers entertain ed this notion of Christ's having been, in some unknown time of his life, taken up personally into heaven, and sent down again to the earth, by which they solved these expressions concerning him: "No man has ascended to heaven but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven," (John 13) Thus Moses, who was the type of Christ, before the promulgation of the law, as

cended to God upon Mount Sinai. So Christ, before he entered on the office assigned him by the Father, was, in consequence of the divine council and agency, translated into heaven, that he might see the things he had to announce to the world in the name of God himself. Being thus fully instructed in the knowledge of his counsels and designs, he sent him again into this sublunary world, 10 promulgate to mankind a new rule of life, more excellent than that under which they had formerly lived, to propagate divine truth by his ministry, and to confirm it by his

death.

That those who obey the voice of this divine teacher (and this obedience is in the power of every one whose will and inclination lead that way) shall one day be clothed with new bodies. and inhabit eternally those blessed regions where God himself immediately resides. Such, on the contrary, as are disobedient and rebellious, shall undergo most terrible and exquisite torments, which shall be succeeded by annihilation, or the total extinction of their being.

Faustus Socinus supposed that, in condescension to human weakness, in order that mankind might have one of their own brethren more upon a level with them, to whom they might have recourse in their straits and necessities, Almighty God, for his eminent virtues, had conferred upon Jesus Christ, the Son of Mary, some years after he was born, a high divine power, lordship, and dominion, for the government of the christian world only; and had qualified him to hear and answer the prayers of his followers in such matters as related to the cause of the gospel. The chief foundation on which Socinus founded the opinion of Christ's being an object of religious worship, was the declarations in the scriptures concerning the kingdom and power bestowed upon him. The interpretation which he put on those passages which speak of angels and heavenly powers being put under him, and worshipping him; his having a knowledge of the secret thoughts of men imparted to him, and the like, which, with some presumed instances of the fact, of prayer being actually made to him, he maintained to be a sufficient though indirect signification of the divine will, that men should invoke Christ by prayer. But he constantly acknowledg ed that there was no express precept for making him an object of religious wor ship.

Socinus allowed that the title of true God might be given to Christ; though all he meant by it was, that he had a real divine power and dominion bestowed upon him, to qualify him to take care of the concerns of christians, and to hear and answer their prayers, though he was originally nothing more than a human

creature.

There were some among the early Socinians who disapproved and rejected the worship paid to Christ, as being without any foundation in the Holy Scrip tures, the only rule of Christian faith and worship.

This is a general outline of the doctrines of the Socinians.

The Unitarians, of the present day, are principally divided into Arians and Huma. nitarians, or believers in the simple humanity of Christ. For an account of the first of these two classes, see the article ARIANS. The summary of doctrines held by modern Unitarians is as follows: The capital article in the religious system of this denomination is, that Christ was a mere man. But they consider him as the great instrument in the hands of God of reversing all the effects of the fall; as the object of all the prophecies from Moses to his own time; as the great bond of union to virtuous and good men, who, as christians, make one body in a peculiar sense; as having communications with God, and speaking and acting from God,

in such a manner as no other man ever did, and therefore, having the form of God, and being the Son of God in a manner peculiar to himself; as the mean of spreading divine and saving knowledge to all the world of mankind; as, under God, the head of all things to his church; and as the Lord of life, having power and authority from God to raise the dead, and judge the world at the last day. They suppose that the great object of the whole scheme of revelation was to teach men how to live here so as to be happy hereafter; that the particular doctrines they taught, as having a connection with this great ob ject, are those of the unity of God, his universal presence and inspection, his placability to repenting sinners, and the certainty of a life of retribution after death. They suppose, that to be a chris. tian implies nothing more than the belief that Christ and his apostles, as well as all preceding prophets, were commissioned by God to teach what they declare they received from him; the most important article of which is the VOL. VI.

doctrine of a resurrection to immortal life.

This denomination of Christians argue against the divinity and pre-existence of Christ in the following manner: the scriptures contain the clearest and most express declarations that there is but one God, without ever mentioning any exception in favour of a Trinity, or guarding us against being led into any mistake by such general and unlimited expressions. Exod. xx. 3: "Thou shalt have no other God but me." Deut. vi. 4. Mark xii. 20. 1 Cor. viii. 6. Ephes. iv. 5. It is the uniform language of the sacred books of the Old Testament, that one God, without any assistant, either equal or subordinate to himself, made the world and all things in it, and that this one God continues to direct all the affairs of men. The first book of Moses begins with reciting all the visible parts of the universe as the work and appointment of God. In the ancient prophetic accounts, which preceded the birth of Christ, he is spoken of as a man, as a human creature highly favoured of God, and gifted with extraordinary powers from him, and nothing more. He was foretold, Gen. xxii. 8. to be of "the seed of Abraham." Deut. xviii. "A prophet like unto Moses." Psal. cxxvii. 11: "Of the family of David," &c. As a man, as a prophet, though of the highest order, the Jews constantly and uniformly looked for their Messiah. Christ never claimed any honour nor respect on his own account, nor as due to himself as a person only inferior to the most high God; but such as belonged only to a prophet, an extraordinary messenger of God, to listen to the message and truths which he delivered from him. He in the most decisive terms declares the Lord God to be one person; and simply, exclusive of all others, to be the sole object of worship. He always prayed to the one God as his God and Father. He always spoke of himself as receiving his doctrine and power from him, and again and again disclaimed having any power of his own. John v. 19: Then answered Jesus and said unto them, verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself." John xiv. 10: "The words which I speak unto you, I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works." He directed men to worship the Father; and never let fall the least intimation that himself or any other person whomsoever, was the object of worship. (See Luke xi. 1, 2. Matt. iv. 3 S

10.) He says in John xvi. 23, "And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you."

Christ, they say, cannot be that God to whom prayer is to be offered, because he is the high priest of that God, to make intercession for us. (Acts vii. 25.) And if Christ be not the object of prayer, he cannot be either God, or the maker and governor of the world under God. The apostles, to the latest period of their writings, speak the same language, representing the Father as the only true God, and Christ as a man, the servant of God, who raised him from the dead, and gave him all the power of which he is possessed, as a reward for his obedience. In Acts ii. 22, the apostle Peter calls Christ "a man approved of God," &c.; and in Acts xvii. the apostle calls him "the man whom God has ordained." 1 Tim. ii. 5:

"There is one God, and one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus." Had the apostle Paul considered Christ as being any thing more than a man with respect to his nature, he could never have argued with the least propriety or effect," that as by man came death, so by man came also the resurrection of the dead;" for it might have been replied, that by man came death; but not by man, but by God, or the Creator of the world under God, came the resurrection from the dead. The apostles directed men to pray to God the Father only: Acts ¡v. 24. Rom. xvi. 27, &c.

This denomination maintain, that repentance and a good life are of themselves sufficient to recommend us to the divine favour; and that nothing is necessary to make us in all situations the objects of his favour, but such moral conduct as he has made us capable of. That Christ did nothing by his death or in any other way to render God kind and merciful to sinners; or rather, that God is of his own accord disposed to forgive men their sins, without any other condition than the sinner's repentance, is declared by the Almighty himself constantly and expressly in the Old Testament, and nener contradicted in the new. Isaiah lv. 7: "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." See also Ezek. xviii. 27. This most im portant doctrine of the efficacy of repentance alone on the part of the sinner,

as sufficient to recommend him to pardon with God, is confirmed by Christ himself, Matt. vi. 12: "If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you." But above all, the beautiful and affecting parable of the prodigal son, (Luke xv.) is most decisive, that repentance is all our heavenly Father requires to restore us to his favour.

The Unitarians of all ages have adopt. ed sentiments similar to those of Pelagius, with respect to human nature.

Of late years, the Unitarians have been very much upon the increase. They have several societies, in various parts of the country, for the promotion of their principles by the publication of books. In London they have two large and flourishing public societies-The one called "The Unitarian Society for promoting Christian Knowledge and the practice of Virtue, by the distribution of books." This society has lately published "An improved version of the New Testament upon the basis of Archbishop Newcome's new translation, with a corrected text, and notes critical aud explanatory.” Among the members of this society are to be found some men of high literary and political character. The other society, established in London, is called the "Unitarian Fund, for promoting Unitarianism by means of popular preaching." The objects of which are stated to be: "1. To enable poor Unitarian congrega tions to carry on religious worship. 2. To reimburse the travelling and other expenses of teachers who may contribute their labours to the preaching of the gospel on Unitarian principles; and 3. To relieve those Christian ministers who, by embracing Unitarianism, subject themselves to poverty." This society has now several missionaries in various parts of the united kingdom; and its funds are said to be in a flourishing state.

This denomination is now spreading itself in America. There are also some societies in France, and other parts of the Continent, of Unitarian Christians.

UNITY, in poetry. In the drama there are three unities to be observed, viz. the unity of action, that of time, and that of place. In the epic poem, the great, and almost only unity, is that of the action. Some regard, indeed, ought to be had to that of time; that of place there is no room for. The unity of character is not reckoned among the unities. The unity of the dramatic action consists of the unity of the intrigue in comedy, and that of the danger in tragedy; and this not only in the plan of the fable, but also