woe to the temple! woe to the people!" and at last, one day, he called out, "Woe to myself!" when, immediately, a stone from one of the Roman engines struck him, and dashed him to pieces. HARRIETTE. Well, that was very curious, indeed. Pray go on. What happened next? ANNE. Many other strange things are said to have happened previously to the war, which are, perhaps, not true. Among those prodigies, it is said that the gate on the east side of the temple, which was of brass, and so heavy that twenty men could hardly move it, opened of itself in the night; and that, at the feast of Pentecost, while the priests were offering sacrifices in the temple, they first heard a rushing sound, and then a distinct voice, saying, "Let us go hence." And now I am coming to the time when the Jews, unable to bear the Roman yoke any longer, broke out into open rebellion, and the whole city was such a scene of discord and bloodshed, that our Saviour advises his followers (in the chapter you have been reading) who may happen to be in Judea, to fly to the mountains for safety; and if they are on the housetop, not even to stop to go down and take any thing out of the house. HARRIETTE. On the housetop! That is a very unlikely place for anybody to be on, and I cannot see either how they could escape without coming down into the house. ANNE. That is because you do not know the manner in which houses are built in that country. They have all flat roofs, and communicate with each other, so that a person there might easily proceed to the city-walls, and escape into the country, without coming down into the street. HARRIETTE. Oh! that quite explains it. Go on. ANNE. The Jews, as I told you just now, unable to keep terms with the Romans any longer, broke out into open rebellion. Agrippa, the grandson of the king, Herod, who is men tioned in the New Testament, having been sent to rule over Judea, by the Romans, did all he could to bring the Jews back to reason, but finding they would not mind him, he thought proper to leave Jerusalem. The Jews, now left to themselves, committed all sorts of excesses, and killed all the Romans they could find. About the same time that these things happened in Jerusalem, the Jews who lived in Cæsarea had a dispute with the inhabitants, who rose up against them, and to revenge themselves killed more than twenty thousand Jews and took the rest prisoners. HARRIETTE. Indeed! I suppose that made the Jews at Jerusalem very angry. ANNE. It did. They were so provoked that they took up arms in all parts of the country, and attacking every place where there were any Romans, they burnt several towns and killed a great many people. The Romans destroyed all the Jews they could, in return. HARRIETTE. Ah, our Saviour might well advise every one that could, to escape out of the country at such a time! What a sad thing it must have been for all the poor women and children! Will you tell me some more? ANNE. The dinner-bell is ringing, and here comes Ellen to see what has become of us. I can tell you some more, perhaps, after dinner. Now let us go down stairs. CONTINUATION OF THE DESTRUC TION OF JERUSALEM. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side.> LUKE xix. 43. HARRIETTE. Now, Anne, if you please, will you tell me some more about what happened before Jerusalem was destroyed? ANNE. Very willingly-I hope you have not forgotten what I told you before dinner. HARRIETTE. Oh, no, no, indeed! I recollect any thing twice as well when I hear it told as when I read it in a book. You left off about the Jews and Romans quarrelling, and fighting, |