The chief arguments urged by the advocates of the British and Foreign Bible Society, are the general circulation of the Bible; and the love and harmony which an union of churchmen with dissenters must, they say, naturally inspire. It will not, however, be difficult to prove, that neither the one nor the other can be exclusively claimed by them. That they cannot appropriate the former solely to themselves; nor has the latter been at all proved by recent occurrences. To prove that the circulation of the Bible does not exclusively belong to the British and Foreign Bible Society, it needs only be said, that there is another Society for that purpose, called the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. It is asserted by some, that these two Societies will not interfere with, nor oppose, each other. But how can this be proved, when, by the strong recommendation of the one, and the total silence as to the other, subscriptions are drawn to the one, which might very materially assist and increase the powers of the other, seems inexplicable. If merely the distribution of the Bible were the sole effect to be produced, and no other consequence to be apprehended, there could be no possible objection to either, and it might not signify through which channel it was carried. For the Bible is the work of men divinely inspired, and contains every thing which a Christian ought to know and believe to his soul’s health; and therefore, no book can be more proper, nor more useful, nor deserve to be more freely nor more widely circulated. But though it is a book which is so proper, so useful, and deserves to be as freely and as widely circulated as possible, and though it contains every thing necessary for a Christian’s salvation, yet there are in it some parts which are not so easy to be understood; but require the assistance of fit and proper persons to point out to the unlearned the proper meaning of those passages. The explanation, however, of these difficult passages will vary, according to the religious notions of the person, to whom the application for assistance is made. And as it is well known, that the Socinian, the Independent, the Anabaptist, the Methodist, and other sects, all think they derive the tenets of their respective religions from the Bible, it is surely of importance, notwithstanding the ostensible object of the two Societies is the same, for a churchman to consider whom he assists in the explanation of the Bible, and what channel he authorizes for its distribution; lest, whilst the letter of the Gospel is distributed, the spirit of it should be completely altered. The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge certainly, holds forth superior advantages to a churchman: First, Because it is a Society which consists entirely of churchmen; Secondly, Because Bibles can there be procured at a cheaper rate; Thirdly, Because those Bibles are more useful; and, Fourthly, Because it furnishes Prayer Books and Religious Tracts.