Chapter C: Wardle (3)

And this wonderful work is to be remembered while the years of eternity roll, therefore it is "the Lamb in the midst of the throne that shall feed them, and lead them to fountains of living waters; and God shall wipe away tears from all eyes."

Shall we be among them? Let us rather ask, Are we asking Him to be our Leader now? Are we "hungering and thirsting after righteousness" now? And are we mourning over sin, and after Him? If so, our Leader in this world will be our Leader still.

"He that hath fed will feed;
He that hath blessed will bless;
He that hath led will lead;
Can He do less?"

And we shall hunger and thirst no more in that blessed fold, where "in His presence there is fulness of joy, and at His right hand are pleasures for evermore." This is the life He gives His ransomed ones. May it be ours.

Our next subject will be, _Elisha and the Shunammite_ (2 Kings iv. 8-37; viii. 1-6).

Yours affectionately,
H. S. L.

BIBLE SUBJECTS FOR EACH SUNDAY IN JUNE.

June 3. Commit to memory Prov. x. 27, June 10. Commit to memory Prov. x. 28. June 17. Commit to memory Prov. x. 29. June 24. Commit to memory Prov. x. 30.

A SANCTIFIED heart is better than a silvered tongue.

PRIZE ESSAY.

WHAT MARKS DO THE LAMBS OF JESUS CHRIST BEAR?

True Christians may be known by their walk and conversation. They are anointed ones, and they walk in the narrow way, following in Christ's footsteps. They look unto Jesus, who is "the Author and Finisher of their faith." They are a despised or persecuted people, as true Christians have been in all ages.

The lambs of Christ have always a great deal of trouble, and are tried and tempted in many ways, but it is for a token of their eternal salvation, if God sanctifies the trouble. If their affliction drives them to God, it is a sanctified affliction, and is for their souls' good.

An infallible mark of a regenerated character is, when he begins to hate evil, and where there is the Spirit's work, there is the panting after God.

A child of God looks within, and feels that there is no putting away sin but by the blood of Jesus Christ, and no pardon for poor sinners but by His sacrifice.

We cannot make ourselves clean, or walk in the right way in our own strength, but God will help us if we ask Him in the right way.

The lambs of Jesus Christ are "poor in spirit" and "pure in heart." They "hunger and thirst after righteousness." Although they are often "persecuted for righteousness' sake," yet Christ's righteousness is imputed to them, because He has atoned for their sins. In speaking of truly good men, Mr. Gadsby said--

"Life, light, and holiness divine
From Jesus they by faith receive;
The Spirit makes His graces shine,
And gives them power in Christ to live."

JANE BELL
(Aged 14 years).

_Sydney House, Sleaford, Lincolnshire._

[Very creditable Essays have been received from Eleanor Saunders, Lilly Rush, A. Pease, W. E. Cray, and Laura Creasey. We hope our young friends will follow up the various subjects, as the study of them may do them good.]

[The writer of the above Essay receives a copy of "The Dairyman's Daughter."

The subject for August will be, "Contrast the Lesson Taught by the Conduct of Solomon and of Rehoboam, at the Commencement of their Reign"; and the prize to be given for the best Essay on that subject, a copy of "The Life of George Whitfield." All competitors must give a guarantee that they are under fifteen years of age, and that the Essay is their own composition, or the papers will be passed over, as the Editor cannot undertake to write for this necessary information. Papers must be sent direct to the Editor, Mr. T. Hull, 117, High Street, Hastings, by the first of July.]

ANSWER TO BIBLE ENIGMA.

(_Page 106._)

"_Lamb of God._"--JOHN i. 29. "_Lord of all._"--ACTS x. 36.

L emue L . Proverbs xxxi. 1. A cch O . Judges i. 31. M ibza R . 1 Chronicles i. 53. B ilda D . Job ii. 11.

O n O . 1 Chronicles viii. 12. F ar of F . Ephesians ii. 13.

G abbath A . John xix. 13. O phe L . 2 Chronicles xxvii. 3. D ia L . 2 Kings xx. 11.

CLARA ELLIS
(Aged 14 years).

MANY wish to be like Christ in _bliss_ who seek not to be like Him by _grace_.

Interesting Items.

DAIRYING BY A DUCHESS.--The Duchess of Hamilton has opened a shop in Ipswich for the sale of butter, and is crowded with orders, at 1s. 7d. per pound.

TELEGRAPHING from a moving train has now become a practical success in America, and the messages have been successfully transmitted by induction through twenty feet of air.

A POWERFUL PNEUMATIC GUN.--A pneumatic gun, which is to throw a shell containing six hundred pounds of dynamite four miles, is being constructed for Italy in Philadelphia.

THE QUEEN has presented to St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, a very handsome silver gilt altar cross, in commemoration of her Jubilee. The royal gift, which has, it is said, cost about L300, was displayed upon the table next the reredos for the first time on April 1st.

THE Brighton Hotel, on Coney Island, has been successfully moved one hundred and twenty feet further inland, in order to escape the encroachments of the sea. The building was raised in one mass and rested on trucks made to run on rails. Six locomotives were then attached to the cars, and dragged the hotel for the distance named. It is intended to move it still further.

A SPANISH Protestant clergyman, Senor Vila, has been condemned to imprisonment for two years four months and one day, and to a fine of two hundred and fifty francs and the costs, by the Criminal Court at Malaga, for having discussed and condemned the dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church in a pamphlet which he published in answer to the attacks of a Catholic priest from Paris, who came to Malaga, and published a pamphlet against the Protestant religion.

THE OLDEST AND YOUNGEST.--The oldest Cabinet Minister is Viscount Cranbrook, Lord President of the Council, aged seventy-three; the youngest is Mr. Balfour, Chief Secretary for Ireland, aged thirty-nine. The oldest member of the Privy Council is Viscount Eversley, aged ninety-three, who is also the oldest peer of the realm; the youngest member is the Duke of Portland, aged thirty. The youngest duke is H.R.H. the Duke of Albany, aged three. The Right Hon. C. P. Villiers (South Wolverhampton), aged eighty-six, is the oldest member of the House of Commons; and the youngest is Lord H. Cavendish-Bentinck, aged twenty-four. Mr. Justice Manisty, aged seventy-eight, is the oldest English judge; and Mr. Justice Charles, aged forty-nine, is the youngest. The oldest bishop is Dr. Durnford, of Chichester, aged eighty-five; and the youngest is Dr. John Wordsworth, of Salisbury, aged forty-four.

A MILITARY HEROINE.--A handsome marble memorial has been erected in the cemetery at Southsea in honour of the late Mrs. Fox, whose death was, by special order of the Duke of Cambridge, signalized by a military funeral. The inscription on the memorial is as follows:--"Sacred to the memory of Mrs. George Fox, wife of Quartermaster George Fox, 2nd Connaught Rangers (94th Regiment), who died at Cambridge Barracks, Portsmouth, on January 22nd, 1888, from the effects of wounds received in the action of Bronker's Sprint, Transvaal. For her heroic and unselfish conduct on that occasion in nursing the wounded--desperately wounded though she was herself--she was decorated by Her Majesty with the Order of the Royal Cross. This monument is erected to her memory as a token of affection and esteem by the officers (past and present), non-commissioned officers, and men of the 2nd Connaught Rangers. 'Well done, thou good and faithful servant' (Matt. xxv. 21)." The inscription is surmounted by the regimental crest--a crown, an elephant, the word "Seringapatam"--and "2nd Battalion the Connaught Rangers."

A RETURN, just prepared at the War Office, of the religious profession of non-commissioned officers and men of the British European troops and Colonial Corps (exclusive of Indian troops), shows that, at the beginning of the present year, there were 158,414 Protestants of various denominations on the roll books, of whom 132,537 belonged to the Church of England, 15,072 were Presbyterians, 9,437 Wesleyans, and 1,369 belonged to one or other of the smaller Protestant bodies. The total number of Roman Catholics was 40,775; and there were 274 who were either Mahometans, Hindoos, or Jews; while the religion of 1,044 was not reported. The proportion of Church of England soldiers per thousand (not reckoning the Colonial corps) was 668; of Roman Catholics, 205; of Presbyterians, 76; of Wesleyans, 46; of men of the smaller Protestant denominations, 5; there being thus in all 795 Protestants per 1,000, to 205 Roman Catholics. The inquiry has not been so complete in the line cavalry as in other branches of the service, there being 675 men out of 17,354 whose religious profession has not been reported; whilst amongst the 129,599 men of the line infantry, only 272 were not reported.

WATCH GLASSES.--Of watch glasses, 50,000 gross, or 7,200,000, are sold annually in the United States. Most of these are imported from England.

A MEMORIAL window is to be placed in the Bristol Royal Infirmary to commemorate the heroic deed of a young surgeon, William Conner, medical officer, who lost his life in a noble and daring effort to save a poor patient who had undergone the operation of tracheotomy while suffering from diphtheria. A false membrane having formed in the throat, and the patient being in imminent danger of his life, young Conner applied his lips to the throat tube, and succeeded in removing the obstruction. The window is in three panels, representing incidents from the parable of the Good Samaritan, and healing the sick, and it will be inscribed, "To the glory of God, and in affectionate remembrance of William Conner, who was born May 7th, 1851, and died July 4th, 1887."

A GREAT LOG RAFT.--Not satisfied with the former experiment and catastrophe, the Nova Scotians are putting together another huge log raft, to be floated to New York in July or August of this year. This raft will be 650 feet long, and will have six masts, and a great spread of sail. Confidence seems to be placed in the usual fine weather of July and August; but storms are by no means unknown over the course that the raft will traverse; and should this huge area of floating timber encounter a storm, the chains which will hold the logs together will snap like packing-cord, and leave the crew to shift for their lives in their boats, or by endeavouring to cling to their logs. These experiments, like attempts to swim the rapids of Niagara, should be prevented by some law or regulations, since the common sense of those concerned is conspicuous by its absence. It is quite possible that the raft may be favoured by fine weather, and reach its destination successfully; but it is true, nevertheless, that the enterprise is hare-brained, and undertaken at great risk of life and property.

GREAT STORM AT MADAGASCAR.--Particulars have been received, _via_ the Cape of Good Hope, of a terrific hurricane which raged at Tamatave on February 22nd, which will long be remembered by the inhabitants as one of the most disastrous storms that have visited the island during this century. Eleven vessels at anchor in the harbour were totally wrecked. Some of them foundered at their anchors, others parted their cables, and were driven on the reefs. The damage done to the town was very great. Not a house escaped more or less destruction, numbers of them being utterly swept away. The British Consulate, a large new building, only erected some months ago by the British Government, was almost totally destroyed. Large fragments of this building were carried by the wind for hundreds of yards, and for acres around the ground presented an extraordinary and melancholy spectacle, being strewn with doors, windows, beams, and other pieces of twisted wood and iron, besides clothes and furniture. The Consul's wife, Mrs. Haggard (the Consul himself was at Mauritius), and those in the Consulate had a narrow escape with their lives. Most of the trees were blown down, and all were smashed to pieces. Several lives were lost on shore in addition to those drowned, but their numbers were few in comparison to the almost incredible damage done in so short a time, the hurricane only lasting seven hours. A remarkable circumstance in connection with the hurricane is, that it was not felt forty miles to the northward of Tamatave, nor its full strength sixty miles south.

THE CHINESE ALMANACK.--The great value which the Chinese attach to their almanack is shown in many ways. Recently the Chinese residents at Lhassa, in Thibet, implored the Emperor to cause arrangements to be made which would enable them to receive their copies of the almanack at the earliest possible date in each year. A writer in a recent issue of the _Chinese Recorder_ says that the most important book to the Chinese is the almanack. Its space is far too important to be occupied with the matter which fills Western almanacks. It contains astronomical information, which is useful; but its great mission is to give full and accurate information for selecting lucky places for performing all the acts, great and small, of every-day life. "And as every act of life, however trivial, depends for its success on the time in which, and the direction (_i.e._, the point of the compass) towards which it is done, it is of the utmost importance that every one should have correct information available at all times, to enable him to so order his life as to avoid bad luck and calamity, and secure good luck and prosperity. Consequently, the almanack is perhaps the most universally circulated book in China." The writer speaks of it as a terrible yoke of bondage. It is issued by the Government, and the sale of all almanacks but the authorized one is prohibited. Quite recently the new Chinese Minister to Germany refused to sail for his post on a day which the almanack declared to be unlucky, and the departure of the German mail steamer was consequently deferred at the request of the German minister to Pekin.--[What a pity but these poor deluded creatures were blessed with Bible truth and Jesus' grace!--ED.]

THE COVENANTER'S ESCAPE AND DEATH.

On the 16th of April, 1685, Peden made a narrow escape. Being then at the house of John Nisbet, of Hardhill, a little before nine o'clock in the morning, a troop of dragoons were observed by the servants, who were working in the fields, coming up to the house at full gallop, upon which the servants ran to conceal themselves. Peden, and those who were with him in the house, had fled for shelter to a moss nearly two miles distant from the place where the servants were working.

The way to this moss was by a very steep ground, and at the edge of the moss there was a morass about seven or eight yards broad, and altogether the place was well adapted for concealment, as well as for protection from military on horseback. Here, however, Peden and his companions were discovered. James, the son of John Nisbet, a young man about sixteen years of age, had been with the servants in the field when the troop of dragoons came up, and in his flight, being chased by some of the party, made his way accidentally to where Peden and about twenty more were lurking, which occasioned their being discovered. The whole party of dragoons were quickly informed of the prize within their reach, and about three hours after, they were joined by another party who aided them in the pursuit. Peden and his friends, observing the enemy dismounting their horses to take the moss on their feet, for the purpose of securing them, after some firing on both sides without effect, drew off, and kept in the midst of the moss. When the dragoons, on seeing this, mounted their horses again, and pursued by the side of the moss, the Covenanters always kept themselves on such ground as the horses could not approach.

They were pursued during the whole of that day, and ran about thirty miles without receiving any refreshment but moss-water till night, when they got a little milk. Peden then left his friends, and went away by himself.

During this year, and especially the first part of it, great numbers of the persecuted witnesses were murdered in the fields. Peden, therefore, to escape the hands of the military, after this wandered from one lurking-place to another; and from his minute acquaintance with all the tracts and haunts of the desert, of which he may be said for years to have been an inhabitant, he succeeded in eluding the enemy.

In such circumstances, we need not wonder that he was sometimes weary of life, and envied his fellow-sufferers who had gone to death before him, and were eternally at rest. At length, Peden's bodily infirmities increasing so much as to render him unable to travel, being almost worn out with fatigue, and suffering from the many hardships he had undergone, he arrived at his native parish of Sorn. He came to his brother's house, in the neighbourhood of which he caused a cave to be dug, with a willow bush covering its mouth. His persecutors getting information where he was, searched every part of the house on many occasions.

At last, one day, early in the morning, leaving the cave, he came to the door of the house. His brother's wife warned him of his danger, advising him to return to his place of concealment. He told her it was needless to do that, since it was discovered.

"But," said he, "there is no matter, for within forty-eight hours I will be beyond the reach of all the devil's temptations, and his instruments in hell and on earth, and they shall trouble me no more."

He had not been in the house above three hours when a party of soldiers visited the cave, and not finding him there, they searched first the barn, and next the house, stabbing the beds, but they did not enter the place where he lay.

Peden died on the 28th of January, 1686, being upwards of sixty years of age, and was privately buried in the church of Auchinleck, in the aisle of David Boswell, Esq., of Auchinleck. But his ashes were not allowed to repose in peace. Though he had never been condemned by any jury, yet the enemy, being informed of his death and burial, sent a troop of dragoons, who pulled his corpse out of the grave after it had lain about six weeks, and having first broken the chest, exposed his remains to contempt, and then carried them to the gallows foot at Cumnock, two miles distant, and there buried them. The design of the soldiers in lifting the body was to hang it in chains upon the gallows at Cumnock, but this they were prevented from doing. The Countess of Dumfries and the Lady Affleck, shocked at this barbarity, earnestly interceded that the body might be again buried; and when the savage commander of the dragoons, determined to have it hung in chains, proved unrelenting, they applied to the Earl of Dumfries, a Privy Councillor, then at home, who, yielding to their request, went to the gibbet and told Murray that it was erected for malefactors and murderers, and not for such men as Mr. Peden. The corpse was accordingly reinterred at the foot of the gibbet, now within the wall of the common burial-ground of Cumnock parish, and a suitable memorial erected over the remains, on which was inscribed an appropriate epitaph.

A DAY'S WORK.

The amount of work some people get through is simply enormous. Few people are harder worked than a London physician in active practice. We know a doctor who seldom gets more than four hours' sleep out of the twenty-four. He says that it is not that he couldn't do with more, but it is as much as he can get. Many busy men are constantly at work of some kind or the other from eight in the morning till past twelve at night. Some, of course, break down, but others can do this year after year, apparently without any detriment to their health. Instances are known of professional men who have not slept for five days together, and who have not been in bed for three weeks at a time. These sound almost like travellers' tales, but they are true, although, of course, they are exceptional cases. It is astonishing what interest and energy will do in enabling a man to dispense with rest. It has been said that the twenty-four hours might be advantageously divided into three equal parts--eight hours for sleep, eight for meals, exercise, recreation, &c., and eight for mental work. Few men really require more than eight hours' sleep, but the majority of us have to do considerably more than eight hours' work in the day. It is not so much that a man wishes for the work, as that it is forced upon him. He, perhaps, is the only person who can perform a certain duty, and when, as is often the case, it is a question of life and death, it is almost impossible to refuse. Many people can never force themselves to do more than a certain amount of mental work; they get nervous and headachy, and then it is all over with them. Forced work, as a rule, tells on a man much more rapidly than purely voluntary work, for in the former case it is usually associated with anxiety. Real overwork gives rise to loss of memory, a general sense of fatigue, and particularly of discomfort about the head, poorness of appetite, lowness of spirits, and other similar symptoms. It is worry that injures more than real work. Some people are so happily constituted that they never worry much about anything, whilst others are in a fever of anxiety on every trivial occasion.--_The Family Physician._

JUVENILE GEMS.

(_Concluded from page 130._)

ANN JANE.

My dear Ann Jane was an affectionate child, but naturally timid, and frequently expressed a hope that she should not be taken ill. Yet she too was destined to be borne far, far away.

On November 12th, 1851, it pleased God to indicate His intentions by placing upon her His afflicting hand. But He who "mingles mercy with His might," set His bow in the cloud, answered in the secret place of thunder, and revealed His love in the bosom of the storm.

Ann Jane gave pleasing proofs of a work of grace in her soul, the progress of which was visible to by-standers and friends.

A short time after the attack, she expressed a wish to die; and upon being asked why, she answered, "Because I believe I shall go to heaven. I believe the dear Lord has pardoned my sins." She would often say, "Pray for me, my dear mother, and I will pray for you, and myself too"; and would then address herself to God in a sweet, devout manner.

Observing me to be in great trouble, she thus spoke to me--"Do pray the dear Lord to take me to Himself." I answered, "How can I do so, seeing I cannot give you up?" She replied, "Oh, mother, put your trust in the Lord. He will provide. Do ask Him to take me out of this world. Oh, mother, there is nothing here worth living for"; and engaging sweetly in prayer, uttered, with many other sentences, the following--"Pardon all our sins, dear and precious Lord--past sins, present sins, and sins to come. Wash us in Thy precious blood, for Thou knowest how sinful we are, and Thou rememberest we are but dust. Oh, make us love Thee more! Thy love is an everlasting love. Take us, dear Lord, take us to Thyself, and then we shall love and serve Thee better."

The second Lord's Day of her affliction, she inquired what day it was. I informed her, and asked, "Would you not like to spend a Sabbath in heaven?" "Oh, yes, mother!" was the rejoinder. "That would be a Sabbath of Sabbaths."

With pleasure I remember some particular times when my precious child seemed almost overpowered by the sweetness and glories of Immanuel, who is "God with us," not only in our nature, but in our condition. At these times, with uplifted hands, she would exclaim, "Oh, my precious Jesus! Oh, my precious Christ!"

One day she said, "Mother, my pains are very great. Can you do anything to give me relief?" What an appeal to maternal tenderness! What a moment of agonizing weakness! I reminded her of the divine sufficiency, and she poured out a copious argumentative prayer, not like the prayer of a child, pleading the Lord's own Word, and the merits of Christ, as the only ground of her expectation. "I know," she would say, "I am not worthy. I am a guilty sinner. Oh, wash me in Thy precious blood! Give me patience to endure my pains, and to wait all Thy will; and take me to be where Thou art, for ever and ever. Amen."

Seeing me weep very much, on one occasion, she exclaimed, "My precious mother, I do love you! Why do you grieve about me? I am not afraid to die. I want to go to my precious Lord, and be with Him for ever." I said, "My dear child, why do you believe you shall go to heaven? Do you think you have _merited_ it?" "Oh, no, mother," was her immediate reply. "I am a guilty sinner. It is through the Lord Jesus, and for His sake, that I hope to be saved. Do you not think, dear mother, He will pardon me?" I said, "Yes, if you feel your need of Him." She answered, "I believe He has pardoned me."

After the prayer previously mentioned, and partly recorded, she said, "How good the Lord is to me! Oh, my precious Jesus," &c. "Oh, mother," she said, in reply to a question, "I know I love the Lord. Yes, I do; better than everything else in the world."

At another time she cried out, in a loud impressive tone, "Oh, mother, what is there in this world worth living for? It is all stuff and vanity--it is, mother. Oh, I do not want to live here! Pray the dear Lord to take me to Himself. Oh, how blessed to be with my precious Jesus for ever!"

When informed of the death and burial of her brother, she appeared excited, but at last said, "Dear boy! I hope I shall soon be with him, and then we shall meet to part no more." She then asked me to pray again that God would take her. How could I? "Nature has soft but powerful bands," and the ligaments were not yet severed. She seemed my earthly all. Could I surrender her to the arms of the destroyer? Could I look up and say, "Thy will be done"? What grace we need to glorify God in the fires!

Nine days after her illness she raised herself up in her bed, and, looking at her departing sister, said, "There is my dying sister. Where is she going? Where? Why, to the realms of bliss? And who of us next? Why, myself, I believe, mother. But I am not afraid of death," &c.

At another time she said, "Do read to me, dear mother"; and upon my asking her _where_, she replied, "Read about the sufferings of Christ" I did so, and she afterwards engaged in prayer.

At another time the nurse heard her, during the night, earnestly praying for both her parents and herself.

Once she requested me to read the seventeenth chapter of John, remarking at the time, "That is sweet reading." After listening for a time she fell into a short sleep, and I laid the Book down. When she awoke she exclaimed, "Won't you read to me, my dear mother?" I said, "You dropped off into a sleep, my dear." She then tried to read herself, but failing, returned the Book, immediately adding, "Give it me again and let me kiss it, for I love it very much."

At different times she expressed earnest desires to go to her brother and sister, and for her father and mother and sister to go also; and would try to sing a part of that Sabbath School hymn, chorusing--"Oh, that will be joyful," &c.

Two days before she died she exclaimed, with sweet simplicity, "Suffer the little children to come unto Me"; and shortly after, "Precious Bible! what a treasure," &c.

The night on which she died, a friend coming in, she seemed pleased, remarking that I could then take some rest. Shortly after this her voice began to fail. She called for "Hephzibah," looked at me wishfully, exclaimed, "Mother," and talked earnestly for some time; but her voice was "thick in death," and language failed as an interpreter of "the thoughts and intents of the heart." In vain she laboured to make me comprehend her ideas. The bridge had been broken down; the fortress was dismantled. Only a word or two was distinct enough to be understood, but from these I found her discourse was of a spiritual nature. Overcome by the scene, I burst into tears, and said, "My dear child, how I wish I could understand you! It almost breaks my heart." At this she looked at me so very affectionately, and exclaimed, "Heaven! heaven! heaven!"

She spoke not again, but for twelve long hours "her spirit struggled with her clay," when the conflict mercifully ceased, and all was peace, and righteousness, and quietness, and assurance for ever. She exchanged worlds on December 14th, 1851, aged eleven years and three months.

"May death conclude my toils and tears;
May death conclude my sins and fears;
May death, through Jesus, be my Friend;
May death be life when life shall end!"

Thus ends the interesting memoirs of three happy children; and as reflection should follow reading, we proceed from narrative to reflections.

REFLECTIONS.

1. From these memoirs we learn how greatly the Lord sometimes tries the righteous. In little more than a fortnight, three out of four children were borne to their long home. The father had been previously afflicted with paralysis, and was at that time unable to follow his employment, having lamed himself.

2. We learn that human affliction may consist with divine affection. Lazarus sickened and died, though Jesus loved him. "And what son is there whom the Father chasteneth not?"

3. We have another lesson upon the inscrutable providence of God. "I beheld," says Solomon, "all the works of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun; because, though a man labour to seek it out, yet shall he not find it; yea, further, though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not find it." No man knoweth divine love or hatred by the distributions of providential good and evil.

4. But if the events of life are so complicated, and if no application, however skilfully conducted, nor any human capacity, whatever its range, can fathom the "mysteries of God," then, how unseemly is immoderate grief or unmeasured joy! How premature our decisions, and how utterly senseless all those infidel cavils against a system which the most enlightened, philosophical, and Spirit-taught mind can neither understand nor deal with!

5. Nevertheless, we read that "the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God" (Eccles. ix. 1), from which we conclude that the people of God, wherever located, and however circumstanced, are protected by His power, sustained by His agency, supplied by His mercy, are under His special care, and safe in His approbation. Let this suffice. We walk by faith.

6. We see here the sovereignty of God, both in His providence and grace. We read of one being taken and another left; but here three are taken, and only one left.

7. Does not God, sometimes, put peculiar honour upon His professing people, however He sees fit to try them? If He takes one of a Gentile city, He takes two of a Christian family, and brings them to Zion.

8. We observe, too, the earliness and efficacy of His work on the minds of some, so that "out of the mouths of babes and sucklings He perfects His own praise."

9. Attention, however, may be called to the value of early and maternal instruction. These children were instructed for the most part by their mother, who watched over them with incessant care, keeping them separate from the masses, and attending to their education as an important duty.

"There is not a grand inspiring thought,
There is not a truth by wisdom taught,
There is not a feeling pure or high,
That may not be read in a mother's eye.

"There are teachings on earth, and sky, and air;
The heavens the glory of God declare;
But more loud than the voice beneath, above,
Is the voice that speaks through a mother's love."

W. P.

BROUGHT TO THE FOLD.

Louisa Ann Jeeves, of Pewsey, Wilts, died on March 24th, 1888, aged twenty-four years. She sat under the truth until she was about twenty, when she left the place for a short time. But, when taken seriously ill, it appears that the Lord laid the weight of her sins upon her, and she felt that she had slighted the means of truth, which was a trouble to her. The clergyman called, and wished to administer the Sacrament to her, but she refused, and told him she dare not, for she had not felt the pardon of her sins. From this time she sank very low, and felt her sins to be a heavy burden. She now eagerly read her Bible, in which she marked many portions. Her bodily sufferings were very great, but she bore them without a murmur. Her sins, and the state of her soul before God, seemed always uppermost.

I had known her from a child, and hoped there was some good thing in her; but when she left the place of truth, I was afraid my hope was vain.

I visited her often after my return to Pewsey, and found her in great concern about her soul. She said she knew that nothing but an application of the blood of Christ could suffice for her great sins, and this she longed to feel. She asked me to read and pray with her, which I was enabled to do, believing the Lord had given her true conviction of sin. Each time I called she was greatly distressed, and seemed without hope; and this went on until the last week of her life, when she begged me to stay with her altogether, and whenever we were alone she wished me to read and pray. She would cry out in agony, "Oh, what shall I do if I don't get to heaven?"

On the Tuesday, when she had been greatly tried, this word was brought with comfort to her mind, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." I said, "If the Lord has given you those words, He will, in His own time, bless you with pardon and peace"; and, as she was drawing near her end, I said, "When He comes, if you are unable to speak, raise your hand." But the next day the Lord was pleased to bless her soul with joy and peace. She called for her mother, and when she came, she said, her face at the time beaming with joy, "Oh, mother, I am so happy! I am going home to be with Jesus! He has put away all my sins by His own precious blood, and you will come, too." She would have us sing some hymns, herself joining in while able--among others, "How sweet the name of Jesus sounds," and "Rock of Ages." When we had finished one she named another, and said, "Beautiful! beautiful!"

She gradually sank, but the fear of death was taken away. She was quite conscious to the last, and turned her head to look at the clock several times. The enemy of souls was not permitted to harass her in her last hours, and just before she breathed her last, she raised her arms and clapped her hands three times, evidently remembering what I had said to her. It may be truly said, she died in peace. She was a constant reader of the LITTLE GLEANER.

C. G.

TO lay the salve of our services upon the wound of our sins is as if a man who is stung by a wasp should wipe his face with a nettle.

ROME PROPOSES, GOD DISPOSES.

"_For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord._"--ISAIAH lv. 8.

Father Chiniquy had been for some years lecturing on teetotalism, in addition to his usual priestly labours, and his success had been so great that he had received the title of "Apostle of Temperance" in Canada, and the gift of a splendid medal and crucifix from the Pope of Rome; and his reputation as a popular influential priest was therefore well established, when he was requested to become the leader of a great movement.

Emigrants were constantly leaving Europe and Canada for the United States, and many of them became connected, on their arrival there, with Protestant associations. Some far-seeing bishops consequently felt that, if they could divert that tide to places of their own choosing, under the direction of their own loyal priests, a splendid triumph would be gained for Popery, and in the course of time they would secretly, yet surely, rule the United States of America.

Some small colonies had been already formed, and the whole of the Mississippi valley and the adjoining country was so fertile and rich, even in its wild state, that Chiniquy's warmest hopes were kindled, as he saw that beautiful land; and, sitting down, he wrote a glowing description of it, and invited intending emigrants to come and see for themselves. The result exceeded all anticipations. In a very short time fifty families arrived at the chosen spot, and pitched their tents around his own. They soon set to work to build small, strong wooden houses under their priest's directions, then a larger one for a parsonage and school; and, as fresh emigrants were continually arriving, they soon became a flourishing, happy community, and objects of the bitter jealousy of surrounding priests. Many difficulties arose. When his wooden church was just finished, it was maliciously set on fire the very night after the first services were conducted in it. A new bishop came into power, whose tyranny and greediness were unbearable, and Father Chiniquy appealed against him to Napoleon, the French Emperor, and the Pope, getting him at length removed from the position he had so greatly abused.

But the crowning difficulty, which was designed by God to be the crowning blessing of His servant's life, was yet to come, and thus it came to pass that the Bible-loving priest forsook his false position, and "came out of Babylon."

When Rome's new doctrine, the perfect holiness of the Virgin Mary, was first published in 1854, a farmer called on Chiniquy to ask him whether the Scriptures taught such a thing, and he honestly confessed that they did not, but rather said the opposite, and that the holy fathers had not believed or taught it either, but it was with the greatest pain that he, as a priest, said this.

On another occasion, the immoral conduct of a priest caused many to ask our friend whether the Word of God really forbade the ministers of Christ to marry, and he replied, "I will put the Gospel in your hands, that you may see for yourselves what the Holy Book says about these matters." He accordingly ordered a large number of New Testaments, which had been printed by the sanction of one of their own archbishops, and soon they were being eagerly read and studied by his large congregation.

And now the decisive hour drew near. Another bishop, who had taken the oppressor's place, kindly asked and accepted Chiniquy's submission to his authority. But, as that document contained the words, "According to the Word and commandments of God, as we find them expressed in the Gospel of Christ," the Jesuits found fault. The bishop demanded the withdrawal of the words, and upon his refusal to alter them, angrily said, "If it be so, sir, you are no longer a Roman Catholic priest." "May God Almighty be for ever blessed," was the brave reply, given in a loud, determined voice.

But the wrench was a terrible one, and when alone in his hotel, the full consequences of his words came forcibly before him, and he felt alone and desolate. But God, who had thus mysteriously led him into liberty, did not forsake him now. He spoke to his heart, and confirmed him in the determination he had made; and when all his sins seemed like a mountain to rise before him, Jesus appeared as his perfect, all-sufficient Saviour, and the troubled heart was filled with joy unspeakable, so that he could and did exclaim, "O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together!" as he hastened home to tell his dear people all that he had experienced of the wrath of man and the love of God.

May we, with him, be favoured to "taste and see that the Lord is good," and we also shall say, "O Lord God of Hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee!"--_Jottings on "The Life and Work of Father Chiniquy," by Cousin Susan._

HOW TO SELECT A BOY.

A gentleman advertised for a boy, and nearly fifty applicants presented themselves to him. Out of the whole number he selected one, and dismissed the rest.

"I should like to know," said a friend, "on what ground you selected that boy, who had not a single recommendation."

"You are mistaken," said the gentleman; "he has a great many. He wiped his feet when he came in, and closed the door after him, showing that he was careful. He gave his seat instantly to that lame old man, showing that he was thoughtful. He took off his cap when he came in, and answered my questions promptly, showing that he was gentlemanly. He picked up the book which I had purposely laid on the floor, and replaced it upon the table; and he waited quietly for his turn, instead of pushing and crowding, showing that he was honourable and orderly. When I talked to him, I noticed that his clothes were brushed, his hair in order. When he wrote his name, I noticed that his finger-nails were clean. Don't you call those things letters of recommendation? I do; and I would give more for what I can tell about a boy by using my eyes ten minutes than all the letters he can bring me."

Little things show character, and frequently determine a boy's whole career. It is the boy who does the kind, polite, and thoughtful acts unconsciously that wins his way to employment and success. And success does not mean wealth and fame. A man is valued according to his faithfulness and reliability, and these chiefly determine the measure of his true usefulness.

It is not always those who are most conspicuous in the eyes of the world who are really the most useful. A man who takes money at a ferry gate is seen by thousands, but he only does what any one of a thousand could do equally well; while a thoughtful and conscientious writer, who may be personally known to very few, may have great influence for good. True success means the development of a character that is worthy of example--a character that is honest to every duty, faithful to every trust, and that is unselfish enough to find time for kindly acts that are not forced, but the simple expression of a warm and generous principle. True success is fidelity to every relation in life.

"NOTHING TO THANK GOD FOR."

"Have you nothing to thank God for?" asked the mother of a little girl named Helen.

"No," said Helen; "you and papa give me everything."

"Not for your pleasant home?" asked mother.

"It is my papa's house; he lets me live in it."

"Where did the wood come from to build it?" asked mother.

"From trees," answered Helen, "and they growed in big forests."

"Who planted the big forests? Who gave rain to water them? Who gave the sun to warm them? Who did not allow the winter to blast them? Who kept them growing from little trees to trees big enough to build houses with? Not papa, not man; it was God."

Helen looked her mother in the eye, and then said, "Papa bought nails to make it with."

"What are nails made of?" asked mamma.

"Iron," answered Helen; "and men dig iron out of the ground."

"Who put iron in the ground, and kept it there safe till the men wanted it?" asked mother. "It was God."

"We got this carpet from men," said Helen, drawing her small foot across it.

"Where did the carpet-men get the wool to make it from?" asked mother.

"From farmers," answered Helen.

"And where did the farmers get it?"

"From sheep and lambs' backs," said the little girl.

"And who clothed the lambs in dresses good enough for us? for your dress, I see, is made of nothing but lambs' wool. Where did the lambs get such good stuff?"

"God gave it to them, I suppose," said the little girl. "It is you that gives me bread, mother," said she quickly.

"But," said her mother, "the flour we got from the shop, and the shopkeeper bought it from the miller, and the miller took the wheat from the farmer, and the farmer had it from the ground, and the ground grew it all itself."

"No," cried Helen suddenly, "God grew it. The sun and the rain, the wind and the air, are His, and He sent them to the corn-field. The earth is His too. And so God is at the bottom of everything, isn't He, mother?"

"Yes," said mother; "God is the Origin of every good and perfect gift which we enjoy."

The little girl looked serious. She looked thinking. "Then, mamma," she said at last, "I can't make a prayer long enough to thank God for everything."

"Oh, that men," even as the creatures of God, "would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"

A CINGALESE ROCK FORTRESS.

For the first time for a number of years the Sigiri Rock in Ceylon has been scaled by a European, the feat on this occasion being performed by General Lennox, who commands the troops in the island. It is said, indeed, that only one European, Mr. Creasy, ever succeeded in reaching the summit. The rock is cylindrical in shape, and the bulging sides render the ascent very difficult and dangerous. There are galleries all round, a groove about four inches deep being cut in the solid rock. This rises spirally, and in it are fixed the foundation bricks, which support a platform about six feet broad, with a chunam-coated wall about nine feet high. The whole structure follows the curves and contours of the solid rock, and is cunningly constructed so as to make the most of any natural support the formation can afford. In some places the gallery has fallen completely away, but it still exhibits flights of fine marble steps. High up on the rock are several figures of Buddha; but it is a mystery how the artist got there, or how, being there, he was able to carry on his work. The fortifications consist of platforms, one above the other, supported by massive retaining walls, each commanding the other.

Owing to the falling away of the gallery, the ascent in parts had to be made up a perpendicular face of the cliff, and General Lennox and four natives were left to do the latter part of the ascent alone. The top they found to be a plateau about an acre in extent, in which were two square tanks, with sides thirty yards and fifteen feet respectively in length, cut out of the solid rock. A palace is believed to have existed on the summit at one time, although time, weather, and the jungle have obliterated all traces of it. During the descent the first comer had to guide the foot of the next into a safe fissure, but all reached the bottom safely after two and a half hours.

It is said that the amount of work expended on the galleries is incredible, and the writer of the account of the feat doubts if all the machinery of modern times could accomplish the stupendous work that was achieved here in old days by manual labour alone.

A QUEER FISHERMAN.

Monkeys and apes are (remarks a writer in _Harper's Young People_) always amusing creatures, and it is great fun to watch their tricks. But there is one ape, a native of the island of Java, who outdoes most of his relatives in the way of being ridiculous, especially when he amuses himself as a fisherman. This ape is very fond of shellfish, and there is a certain kind of sand-crab that suits his palate exactly. These crabs dig little homes for themselves deep in the sand, and thither they retire when they want a quiet rest, or when any danger threatens. When all is well, they spend their time sunning themselves at the entrance of their holes, or hopping along the water's edge in search of food. The apes know their ways, and while the crabs are looking for a dinner they also are bent on obtaining one for themselves. Apes, you know, can move very quickly. They wait until they see a party of crabs apparently unconscious of danger, and busily engaged in discussing a bit of seaweed, or devouring the insects they are so fond of. Moving stealthily forward, as close as they dare, the ape gives a sudden leap, and seizes as many as possible of the poor, unsuspecting crabs, which are speedily crunched into a shapeless mass by his strong jaws, and devoured. But the crabs are very active too, and it often happens that they will take alarm in time to scamper quickly to their holes, and so cheat the ape out of his anticipated meal. When this occurs, the ape has recourse to a stratagem which proves how intelligent he really is, and which makes him appear, as I have said, one of the most amusing and ridiculous of creatures. The ape of Java, unlike others of his species, possesses a very long tail. He moves quietly up to the hole into which he has seen the crab disappear, thrusts his tail into it, and awaits events. The crab, indignant at such an intrusion, makes a spirited attack, and fastens upon it. This is precisely what the ape wants. He gives a sudden spring forward. The crab, having no time to collect his ideas, is drawn to the surface, and in a moment the ape has him in his claws. Poor crab! victim of his anxiety to punish the invasion of his home.

One traveller tells us that "there is a comical look of suspense on the ape's face as he thrusts his tail into the hole, and waits for the crab to seize it."

SAVED BY GRACE.

Agreeably to your wishes, I send you the following account of W. B----, who had lived a dissolute life for nearly forty years.

He was notorious for drinking and Sabbath-breaking, and his general deportment was so abandoned that he was wicked even to a proverb.

On Saturday evening, March 4th, he attended a funeral, and from the place of interment he immediately betook himself to a public house, where he became so intoxicated that it was with some difficulty he reached his own habitation. No sooner was he laid down upon the bed, and composed to sleep, than the words of Eliphaz were verified in his experience--"In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon man, fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake," for he dreamed a frightful dream. He thought he saw a serpent of the hydra kind, with nine heads, ready to seize him. Whatever way he turned, a head presented itself, nor could he, by all the methods he devised, extricate himself from the baneful monster. He awoke in great distress. Though it was but a dream, it made a strong impression upon his mind, and he was afraid it portended some future evil.