Behold the traveller on his way, Eying each scene around; View him beset by beasts of prey, Aloof from human aid; How was the conquest made? And gain each toilsome hill, Bid him his source of strength declare? Have gathered up their wearied feet, Ask whence his calm and chastened air? Go see him on his dying bed! Witness bis gasping breath, He talks of blood on Calvary shed, Miscellaneous. THE BIBLE." A single book has saved me; but that book is not of human origin. Long had I despised it; long had I deemed it a class-book for the credulous and ignorant; until, having investigated the gospel of Christ, with an ardent desire to ascer tain its truth or falsity, its pages proffered to my inquiries the sublimest knowledge of man and nature, and the simplest, and at the same time, the most exalted system of moral ethics. Faith, hope, and charity were enkindled in my bosom; and every advancing step strengthened me in the conviction, that the morals of this book are as superior to human morals, as its oracles are superior to human opinions."-M. L. Bautain. DISCOURAGEMENTS. We are too soon discouraged in our application to the throne of grace and mercy; if our prayers are not immediately and obviously answered, we begin to think that they are not, and that they will not be heard. We little know the workings of divine goodness, mercy, and wisdom; the very circumstances we deplore, and which are exciting hopelessness and despair in our hearts, may be bringing forth the fruits we seek for, and by the trials of our faith leading to such a confirmation and establishment of it, that when the clouds and darkness, which for the time bewilder our mortal vision, pass away, we shall see it to be founded upon a rock from whence it shall never again be moved, and the wisdom which we sought for will be given at the same moment.-Brenton's Hope of the Navy. THE EAST.-The Christian, when he thinks of the East, remembers "the Man of sorrows who was acquainted with grief"-follows him in his wanderings in the Holy Land-gazes on that bright star of Bethelem, which led the Eastern sages and the Eastern shepherds to a stable and an infant-listens to the sayings of him "who spake as never man spake," on the sea of Galilee, on the lake of Gen nesaret, on the mount of Olives, and in the temple of Jerusalem-weeps at the cross of Calvary, and in the garden of Gethsemane, and treads with hallowed awe those plains, or ascends with sacred rapture those mountains, which were once gazed on by that eye which ever beamed love and mercy, and which was itself moistened with tears, when he wept at the grave of Lazarus, or over the then future fate of the Holy City. The pious Jew when he thinks of the East, remembers that there the first man was created-that there dwelt the first long-lived patriarchs, and the descendants of Noah till long after the deluge-and that there the great monarchies of Assyria, Babylon, and Persia, were founded and flourished. He remembers the land of Judea or Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Chaldea, Assyria, Arabia, and Egypt. Palestine is pre-eminently dear to him. There the kingdoms of Israel and Judah flourished-there the temple of God was erected by king Solomon-there most of the inspired scriptures were written-and there, in after ages, One arose who accomplished the all-important work of human redemption, and the apostles of the Saviour were supernaturally qualified to go forth among all nations to preach the gospel of eternal salvation to a lost and ruined world. In the East, also, lay the land of Canaan, the land of promise to Abraham and his family, the land of Palestine, named after the Philistines, and that land of Judea, from the tribe of Judah possessing its most fertile division, now more commonly called the Holy Land, as there the ministry of Christ was exercised and there the obedience, and death, and resurrection and ascension of our Redeemer took place for our eternal salvation. What Christian can hear of The East, and think of Antioch, now Antachia, without remembering that it was there that the Christians were first so called after their divine Master? There were the mighty Babylon, the humble Bethany, the celebrated Bethsaida, the hill of Calvary, the Cana in Galilee, the well-remembered Capernaum, the rivulet Kedron, the lamented Chorazin, the distinguished Corinth, the famous Damascus, the cities of Decapolis, the beloved Emmaus, the awful Golgotha, the destroyed Gomorrah, the often mentioned Jericho, the four-hilled Jerusalem, the dear and worshipped Nazareth, the ancient and venerable Nineveh, the Patmos, so interesting to our earliest astonishment, the Samaria, whose daughter's history has so often been perused with delight, the Sarepta, with whose widow we are so fa miliar, the Siloam, whose healing waters we have heard of from our infancy, the Sheba, whose Queen has surprised us by her unbounded riches, the Sinai and the Horeb of another dispensation, the Zion, whose children's songs shall constitute the music of heaven, the Sodom, whose destruction we mourn over, the Tarsus, whose Saul afterwards became the glorious apostle of the Gentiles, and the mount Tabor of Palestine, on which, in very deed, transpired the scene of the transfiguration. The philosopher whether natural or moral, the poet, the linguist, the lover of arts and sciences, the antiquarian, the painter, the sculptor, the historian of ancient days and of bygone centuries, all seek in the records, monuments, and recollections of the East, materials for their minds, tastes, and occupations; and drawing from those vast storehouses of knowledge and of facts, they enrich our libraries, adorn our galleries, and excite a livelier piety in our houses and in our temples.-Blackwood's Magazine: July, 1839. London: Published by JAMES BURNS, 17 Portman Street, Portman Spuare; W. EDWARDS, 12 Ave-Maria Lane, St. Paul's; and to be procured, by order, of all Booksellers in Town and Country. PRINTED BY JOSEPH ROGERSON, 24 NORFOLK STREET, STRAND, LONDON. ENVY, AND ITS CONSEQUENCES. BY THE REV. EDWARD HANSON, M.A. Ashdon, near Saffron Walden. No. II. IN a former essay on this subject, I dwelt chiefly on those cases which we find recorded in Holy Writ; I shall now resume the subject with respect to what we have constantly presented to our consideration-for it is no chimerical principle of which we are treating, but one which is exemplified by daily experience. We see it prevailing in families, in neighbourhoods, and in whole nations. What is it which so frequently disturbs and destroys domestic harmony and happiness? Is it not, in some instances, the same which destroyed the happiness of Jacob's family? An unwise partiality and preference of the parents to one of their children excites the envy and malice of the rest, and they wreak their vengeance upon the object of their parents' love; or the proud and contentious tempers of some, or of all the members of the family, create ill-will and dissension. If, instead of endeavouring to please and assist each other, they expose and censure every little weakness-if, instead of pardoning some unintentional offence, and overlooking some neglect of attention, they resent every undesigned affront, and quarrel with every unguarded action-if, instead of submitting their opinions to the sentiments and experience of their elders, they set up their own experience in opposition, and ridicule every opinion not coinciding with their own, no wonder if the ties of affection, which ought to bind them together in peace and love, be broken-no wonder if they look upon each other with a jealous eye, and their VOL. VIII.-NO. CCXIII. PRICE 1d. hearts become alienated from each other through envy and strife! And then, when the heads of the family-those beings who have solemnly vowed at the altar of God to cherish each other through life, in prosperity and in adversity, in sickness and in healthare led by proud and angry passions to behold each other with hatred and enmity, the consequences are not only ruinous to themselves, but most injurious to those children whom God hath given them, and whom they are admonished to bring up in the nurture and admonitions of the Lord. They naturally imbibe the dispositions and enter into the quarrels of the parents; some take the father's part and some defend the mother, and the whole house thus becomes a daily scene of strife, confusion, and wretchedness. In such cases the character of the whole family suffers; its temporal interests go to ruin, for "a house divided against itself cannot stand." But this injury, bad as it is, cannot be compared to the injury done to their eternal interests; their minds have become so corrupted and depraved by base and malignant passions, as to be "like the troubled sea, which cannot rest, but throws up mire and dirt;" they have lost that internal tranquility, the testimony of a good conscience, the greatest blessing and sweetest enjoyment man can have; and, having lost that, they have no check upon their dispositions, but run riot in every evil work; and they "who do such things shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Again, a neighbourhood being composed of families of various gradations may be considered as one family, since they are connected with each other through the common business and intercourse of life. Owing, therefore, to this providential connection, it is the duty of [London: Joseph Rogerson, 24, Norfolk-street, Strand.] N 162 each to contribute to the support and comfort | malice, but also slander, disrespect, abuse, and of the community, by the faithful discharge every evil work. of the duties of his own station; and, if all would endeavour to act up to this principle, they would live in peace and unity. But it often happens that there is a collision of interests, or a competition for honours among those of the same station, and this begets the success of one envy and strife; other, and the disparty annoys the appointment leads him to depreciate his opponent's worth, and, if possible, to reduce him in the estimation of his neighbours: then if any misfortune should happen, and he should fall from his eminence to, or below, his former station, we much fear his enemy would exult over his fall-he might express it in some pretended words of pity, such as "I am sorry for the poor man," qualified with "but pride must have a fall," or something similar. The shallowness of such pity is easily fathomed, and the professor of it is contemptible in the eyes of a right-thinking world. Often, too, disputes arise from such trifling causes between two families who have lived for years on terms of intimacy and friendship, that, were it not so lamentable, it would be laughable to account for them. The daughter of one, perhaps, surpasses the daughter of the other in beauty, which is so generally admired, or in accomplishments, which are so much sought after, or may meet with greater success in marriage; or the son of the latter may surpass the son of the former in manly deportment, or in mental qualifications, or in success in business-they may still put on the garb of candour, and friendship, while their hearts are full of envy and hatred; their words may come smooth from the tongue, and fall fair into each other's but "the poison of asps is under ear, apart their lips," and their words "cut like a twoedged sword." This bad feeling may have originated with the younger branches of the families, but it cannot be confined to them, for as are the children, so will the parents be. And what was the foundation of this? It had none other than pride which was wounded, or self-importance which was lowered. But this odious principle is not confined to families and neighbourhoods-it often takes a more extensive range, and involves whole nations in "confusion and every evil work." Whence arose all the intestine and bloody wars which we read of in the history of our own, and in that of other countries? Such as the wars between the houses of York and Lancaster? What is the usual cause of war, with all its evil consequences, between different states and kingdoms? Pride, the envy of kings and princes, or the interested views of the leading or commercial men. The history of past ages abounds with the disputes of contending empires-we read of war after war in successive generations, of armies destroyed, of cities and towns reduced to ashes, of crimes and cruelties committed, and of sufferings endured. We do not assert that war is always avoidable; there have been times when it was necessary to take up arms in defence of our country and of our property, but still the cause was the same-pride and envy were the sources which produced the aggression. The annals of every country contain abundant proofs of the miseries occasioned by internal envy and strife. In every state there are, and there must be, men to administer the government, and conduct the affairs of the nation; they are placed in situations of high dignity and extensive power, and thereBut honours, fore ought to be men of sound judgment and unimpeachable integrity. riches, and power being universally coveted, for these situations there is generally great contention, and the leading men of the kingdom form themselves into parties to obtain them-we do not wish to be misunderstood, we do not say there should be no difference of opinion on public matters, we think it necessary for good government that there should; but when we see the angry feelings which exist, and the rancorous spirit with which they oppose each other, we cannot help fearing, that envy and self-interest are too often attempted to be concealed under the un-cloak of patriotism and the public good. I doubt whether this spirit was ever higher in our own country, than it is at this present time. Those who enjoy these situations do all they can to retain them, even though they must be well aware their opinions are contrary to those of the community at large, and that they have not the confidence of their country-there is no name sufficiently insulting and opprobious for their opponents. On the other side their adversaries seek to mount into their seats, by opposing all their designs, finding fault with all their ac And there is another case, and not an frequent one, which we must deplore. The higher ranks of society sometimes treat their inferiors with so much neglect, and scorn, as to cause discontent and dissatisfaction among their poorer brethren; they forget their duty to condescend to men of low estate, to be kind and charitable to the poor, to visit the sick, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked; they forget they are but stewards of the talents they possess, which are to be used to God's honour and glory, and thus they not only bring upon themselves envy, hatred, tions, representing them as the oppressors | of the poor and the destroyers of the constitution. And what are the consequences of this party spirit? look at the confusion, the tumults, the riots which have lately arisen in our once prosperous and happy land. Can they not be traced to envy as the source? Artful and designing men, taking advantage of this, if not in some instances encouraged by high authorities, have overrun the kingdom, making seditious and angry speeches, inflaming the minds of the people, imposing upon the ignorant and misguided labourers and mechanics; the liberty of the press has been abused to disperse amongst them licentious writings and rebellious opinions, calculated to weaken their obedience both to the laws of God and man: these rebels, for we can look upon them in no other light, have been allowed to proceed in their career, inviting the people to resistance and revolution, under the plea of obtaining what they call their rights, till the consequences have fallen upon the head of those whose duty it was to have suppressed them in the first instance by the strong arm of the law. We need not dwell upon Chartism-who has not heard of of the calamitous outbreaks in Birmingham, in the North of England, and lately at Newport, in Wales, and the plunder of property and the shedding of blood which have followed the meetings of these deluded men? We will proceed to the consideration of what is the predominant temper of men's minds in general. In the city and in the country, in public bodies and private companies, politics form the chief subject of conversation; and their arguments are not carried on with a rational and friendly spirit, willing to be instructed and convinced, but with anger, hatred, and self-confidence. In these days, when there is an election to any office of public trust, the question is not who is the most competent by his integrity and influence, but who is on my side, who?"-never mind his fitness for the office, what are his politics? is he Tory, Whig, or Radical? It is lamentable that our envious passions should carry us to such lengths; I know not where it will end, the prospect is dark, and I fear portends a storm; we should beware of the consequences. Our Lord, when rebuking the blasphemous Jews who accused him of casting out devils through Beelzebub the chief of devils, said "If a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand"-" Every kingdom divided against itself, is brought to desolation." These words are very applicable to us at this time. When St. James wrote his epistle, the Jews were divided into parties and factions. The mutinies and insurrections which the unbelieving Jews raised 66 brought the Romans upon them with their armies, who destroyed Jerusalem, and scattered the inhabitants thereof over the whole face of the earth. And the Romans, in their turn, fell, and became, comparatively speaking, an insignificant people. And the same with other nations of the earth-and shall we hope to escape? God will not allow either our individual or our national sins to go unpunished; "if we turn not he will whet his sword, he hath bent his bow and made it ready." We are certainly a powerful nation, but is it not under God's favour that we have risen to such eminence? and what will our own power and eminence avail us if God turn against us? Dare we set ourselves in array against him? Cannot the King of kings and Lord of lords do what he will with his own?" Instead of continuing in our factious and envious spirits, in angry and malignant passions, should it not rather be proclaimed and published through the land, by a decree of the queen and her nobles, as it was through the land of Nineveh, "Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything, let them not feed nor drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God; yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands; who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not?" Who can tell indeed whether God might not forgive us and continue his favour to us as a nation, if as a nation we would repent and turn unto him? No one can tell what judgments this odious principle may bring upon us, but we may be sure that God will not allow us to indulge in it with impunity, for in envying another, we do in fact condemn him; let us then, all and each of us, in whatever station it hath pleased him to place us, learn therewith to be content; and if it should have pleased the Giver of all good to bestow upon us honour, or riches, or power, let us not make an unnecessary display of them, or be proud, or arrogate to ourselves the praise, but rather humble ourselves, be courteous and charitable, and give God the praise; and by so doing we shall not offend our neighbour, nor bring envy upon ourselves. What can be more contrary to Christ and his gospel than this principle of envy which Solomon says "is the rottenness of the bones?" The gospel teaches us to consider each other as brethren, to love one another with pure hearts fervently, to follow peace with all men, and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord; but envy is the contrary to all these, it depraves the very soul and renders it one mass of corruption; it is hatred in its most dangerous 164 shape, and "whosoever hateth his brother is resent any envious feelings against us, but ESAU'S PENITENCE.* sold his birth-right. For ye know how that, after- In this last respect, Esau's repentance is an image of that despair which will seize the wicked when they shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven, and themselves thrust out. Then they, repenting and groaning for anguish, shall bitterly lament their folly for having forfeited that blessed inheritance which was entailed upon them in the baptismal covenant, for the vain pomps and momentary pleasures ing of teeth, what great and exceeding bitter cries, In contrast to this, and as a fair light to so dark a shade, the Gospel for this day presents us with a most comfortable and encouraging example, in the history of the Canaanitish woman, to assure our hope that our sincere, if persevering, endeavours and prayers shall never fail to prevail for mercy, if we seek it while it may be found. And our holy Church, as a tender and loving mother, advertises us by her appointment of the Lenten season, that "now is the accepted time; that this is the day of salvation." THE ZULUS.* IN Esau, she (the Church) represents to us the nature and unhappy issue of a false and ill-grounded repentEnglish Church Missionary Association :-Cape Town. ance. Esau, we find, sued for the blessing with more earnestness than his brother; for he cried with a great-At the general meeting of this association, held on and exceeding bitter cry, but obtained it not, because his sorrow wanted all the ingredients of a sincere repentance. In the first place, he had sold his birth-right for a most contemptible price; for one poor morsel making away the inestimable privilege settled on him in virtue of primogeniture, as heir of the promises made to Abraham. This plainly argued him to be a most profane and irreligious person, a slave to appetite and sense, quite destitute of faith in the merits of the promised Redeemer; therefore unqualified for receiving a spiritual blessing. Secondly, although his brother had fairly bought his birth-right, and with it the blessing annexed, yet he hated Jacob, even because of the blessing wherewith his father had blessed him; nay, comforted himself for the disappointment with the horrible thought of murdering his own brother: consequently he must needs be void of charity. Thirdly and fourthly, he repented indeed, and that with a deep and exceedingly bitter sorrow, when he found himself in danger of losing his father's blessing; but as he took that blessing in a temporal sense only, and consequently felt no remorse for the loss of the better part, the one thing needful, and grieved only that he was like to fare the worse in his worldly interests, it is evident his repentance wanted two other essential ingredients, faith and sincerity. In all these four respects, Esau is a lively emblem of a false penitent; and is therefore set here as a monument to warn us of the danger of a carnal and profane mind; that we may (as St. Paul exhorts) "look diligently, lest any man fail of the grace of God" (which grace was typified by Isaac's blessing): "lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled: lest there be any fornicator or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat • From "Wogan." the 5th inst., the following statements were made by the Rev. Mr. Owen, late missionary to the Zulus : My Christian friends,-As this meeting will expect some account of my past proceedings, independently of the notice of them contained in the report, and as it is reasonable that such an account should be rendered on this occasion, I cheerfully address myself to the work. I will not take up your time in making apologies for not doing the subject justice,-I do not profess to be a good workman, but I have a good foundation to build upon. The impressions left on my mind by my temporary sojourn in the Zulu country have been various; one of the deepest is, thankfulness that I am the subject of a free government, under the mild rule of the Queen of England, and not living under a despot. Christo despotism. It is impossible to conceive the despotic tianity has done much for mankind in putting an end character of Dingaan's government, without living on the spot: he is, as Captain Gardiner says in his book on the Zulu country, the great idol of the nation. Some of the attributes of Jehovah, are applied to him; and if the natives were instructed in them, I verily believe they would apply them all to Dingaan. They array him with immortality, allowing him to have neither beginning of days nor end of years. They will not admit that his reign ever had a beginning; if you ask them when he began to reign, they will say hundreds and hundreds of years ago; nor will they allow that he can die, saying that he is yet young,-a child, a babe. I have been present at their meals, morning and evening, when flesh is distributed amongst them; they rise up, and making a hissing noise, at the same time raising and shaking their fingers, say, with evident allusion to Dingaan, "Thou that art greater Extracted from the "South African Commercial AdverWe would remind our friends tiser," kindly forwarded to us. that foreign and colonial newspapers are peculiarly acceptable, |