A Sabbath school having been opened near Hereford, a labouring man, who had a large family, sent his children there for the benefit of instruction; the good effects of which soon appeared. It happened that, very near to this man's house, a place was opened for the worship of God, where service was performed every Sabbath evening at seven o'clock; and this man and part of his family were in the habit of attending regularly. One Sabbath evening, the weather being very snowy, the man thought it prudent to leave his children at home, and went alone. Some of these young ones, doubtless, were much disappointed in not being permitted to accompany their father, and thought they would have a meeting amongst themselves. The father, on his return home, was surprised at seeing a light' up stairs in his cottage, and thought that the children must be retiring to bed. He opened the door of the cottage, and went softly up stairs, when, to his astonishment, he heard his youngest daughter, a child not more than six years old, in humble strains pouring forth her prayers to that God, through whose tender mercy it was that she had been taught to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." When she had finished her prayer, she called upon one of her little brothers to pray, (for they were met together for that purpose,) and thus they finished this blessed day; experiencing, it is hoped, the blessedness of that promise," Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there will I be in the midst of them."

Chap. xxii. ver. 11.-And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment.

A person who had been for some time labouring under mental dejection, having dressed himself one Sabbath morning for church, and finding he had a few minutes to spend previous to leaving the house, took up his Bible with the view of reading a portion of Scripture. The first passage that caught his eye, was the above," And when the king came in to see the guests," &c. The words strongly impressed his mind, particularly as connected with the design he had of observing the ordinance of the Lord's Supper that day. When leaving his pew to go to the communion table, they recurred with such discouraging

force to his recollection, as to prevent his going forward, and led him to return to his seat. He afterwards considered it as wrong, in having yielded so far to groundless apprehensions, and that a comparison of our state and character with the word of God, is the rational and proper way of ascertaining our fitness or unfitness to approach the table of the Lord.

Chap. xxii. ver. 21.-Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Cæsar the things which are Cæsar's; and unto God the things that are God's.

A boy about nine years of age, who attended a Sabbath School at Sunderland, requested his mother not to allow his brother to bring home any thing that was smuggled when he went to sea. "Why do you wish that, my child ?" said the mother. He answered, "Because my catechism says it is wrong." The mother replied, "But that is only the word of a man." He said, "Mother, is

it the word of a man which said, 'Render unto Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's ?' This reply entirely silenced the mother; but his father, still attempting to defend the practice of sinuggling, the boy said to him, "Father, whether is it worse to rob one or to rob many ?" By these questions and answers, the boy silenced both his parents on the subject of smuggling.

Chap. xxiii. ver. 13.-Ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

A child of nine years old, in St Giles's, London, had gone for a long time to a school, in which the children of Roman Catholics are taught by Protestants to read the Bible. The little girl was taken very ill, and when there seemed no hope of her getting better, her parents sent for a Popish Priest. When he came, he thus spoke to her :

Child, you are in an awful state; you are just going to die. I beg you, before you départ, to make your dying request to your father and mother, that they will not send your brothers and sisters to the school that you went

C

to." The little girl raised herself up in bed, and said, "My dear father and mother, I make it my dying re quest, that you WILL send my brothers and sisters to that school; for there I was first taught that I was a sinner, and that I must depend alone upon Jesus Christ for salva, tion." She then laid her head back, and expired.

Chap. xxiii. ver. 24.-Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

A Neapolitan shepherd came in anguish to his priest: "Father, have mercy on a miserable sinner! It is the holy season of lent; and while I was busy at work, some whey spurting from the cheese-press, flew into my mouth, and, wretched man! I swallowed it. Free my distressed conscience from its agonies, by absolving me from my guilt!" "Have you no other sins to confess ?" said his spiritual guide. "No; I do not know that I have committed any other." "There are," said the priest, "many robberies and murders from time to time committed on your mountains, and I have reason to believe you are one of the persons concerned in them." "Yes," he replied, "I am; but these are never accounted a crime: it is a thing practised by us all, and there needs no confession on that account."

Chap. xxiv. ver. 36.-But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

At a village not many miles from London, a woman was endeavouring to vend some printed trash, which she said contained a prophecy, that on the approaching Whitmonday, the world would be at an end. On hearing this,

a girl about seven years of age, standing at the door of her father's house, ran in somewhat alarmed, and telling her mother what the woman had been saying, asked her whether she believed it? A sister of the little girl, between nine and ten years of age, who had been educated in a Sabbath school, happening to be present, could not refrain from speaking: "Ann," said she, "you must not mind what the woman has been saying; she, I am sure, cannot know when the world is to be at an end; for,

don't you remember what the word of God says,

Of that

day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of hea ven, but my Father only ?" "

Chap. xxiv. ver. 46.-Blessed is that servant whom his lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing.

For some time previous to his decease, Bishop Jewel had a presage of its near approach, which excited in him greater diligence in the duties of his office, admonishing and exhorting the people committed to his charge more strictly, and preaching more frequently. By which restless labour and watchful cares he brought his feeble body so low, that as he rode to preach at Lacock, in Wiltshire, a gentleman kindly admonished him to return home, for his health and strength's sake; saying, that such fatigue might bring him in danger of his life; assuring him it was better the people should want one sermon than be altogether deprived of such a preacher. To whom he replied, "It best becomes a bishop to die preaching in the pulpit;" seriously thinking upon the words of his Master, "Happy is the servant whom the Lord shall find, when he cometh, so doing.' Wherefore, that he might not disappoint his people, he ascended the pulpit, and took for his text Galatians v. 16. "Walk in the Spirit."

Chap. xxv. ver. 13.-Watch therefore; for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

The following striking fact is taken from the Edinburgh Advertiser, Dec. 7, 1810. Died at Waterford, Nov. 4, the Rev. B. Dickinson, minister of the Baptist congregation in that city, while zealously employed in the discharge of his functions. Mr Dickinson had taken for his text 2 Cor. v. 10. "We must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ ;" and had advanced but a short way in its illustration, when he fell down in his pulpit, and instantly expired! What an impressive lesson to those who preach, and to those who hear the everlasting gospel! Be ye therefore ready also, for at such an hour as ye know

not the Son of Man cometh. "Blessed is that servant whom his lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing."

Chap. xxv. ver. 36.-Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

On one occasion, as the Rev. Edmund Jones was returning home over the mountains, from places where he had been dispensing the word of life, he accidentally met a poor creature, almost naked, and perishing with cold. Such an object could not fail to work upon the tender sympathies of his heart. Having no money, he actually stripped himself of his shirt, and what other clothes he could spare, and gave them to him; and after conversing with him about the state of his soul, and commending the miserable creature to God in prayer, he pursued his journey. As soon as he entered his house, Mrs Jones was alarmed at his extraordinary appearance, and hastily inquired if any thing disastrous had happened to him. The good man soon quieted her fears by relating the particulars of what had occurred. "You did well, my dear," said she;" you have other clothes to put on; let us be thank. ful to God that we are not in the poor man's circumstances."

Chap. xxvi. ver. 14, 15, 16.—Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver. him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

During Monmouth's rebellion, in the reign of James II. a certain person, knowing the humane disposition of one Mrs Gaunt, whose life was one continued exercise of beneficence, fled to her house, where he was concealed and maintained for some time. Hearing, however, of the proclamation which promised an indemnity and reward to those who discovered such as harboured the rebels, he be trayed his benefactress; and such was the spirit of justice