provided the due exercises of the faculties are institued. Then, when any subject is presented to us in the garb of religion, we ought carefully to investigate it, and compare it with the standard which should be our rule of faith and practice. The divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon, is the question now before us. Is it presented to us, accompanied with such conclusive testimony as entitles it to our implicit credit, and such as we should be willing to risk our eternal all upon? If any doubts hang over the subject, it is reasonable that a scrupulous search, and a critical enquiry be instituted by us.
Permit us to examine in what way the two above named chapters of Isaiah, became introduced in the modern version. The translation of King James is the one used. We believe the translation to be a correct one, and that the translators were guided by truth as far as human frailty would permit ; but, at the same time, they were governed by the then existing rules of the English language, which now vary considerably. The rules which governed at the time the translation was made, are so far lost, that we presume a new one made at this period under our present rules, would vary the diction and phraseology very considerably, but not the true sense. We suppose that the object of the sacred writings, is to convey a definite meaning to the reader in his own language, without regard to words or phrases, and, consequently, if we were to receive a translation from the hand of the Lord at this time, we might rationally expect that it would appear in our own language, and not in that of King James' time, any more than in that of William the Conqueror. It is a remarkable coincidence that the author of our book should be able to give us an exact copy of those two chapters, reading them in a stone placed in a hat! We are truly inclined to accuse him of plagiarism, not only from the above circumstance, but be-
