“ His

Lord beautifully illustrates this by the confusion of his enemies, and a well-known instance in the na- the comfort of his believing people. tural world : “ Verily, verily, I “Christ being raised from the say unto you, except a corn of dead, dieth no more; death hath wheat fall into the ground and die, no more dominion over him. For it abideth alone: but if it die, it in that he died, he died unto sin bringeth forth much fruit.” John, once: but in that he liveth, he xii. 24. As many seeds of corn liveth unto God.” Rom. vi. 9, 10, spring from one seed, when it is "I am he (says the glorified Sasown in the ground, and as that viour) that liveth and was dead; which is sown must first die before and behold, I am alive for everit can bring forth fruit; so a nu- more, Amen; and have the keys merous race of true believers, in of hell and of death.” Rev. i. 18. successive

ages

of the world, were It was foretold, that the King to be the fruits of Christ's bitter Messiah should have his days prosufferings and death upon the cross; longed to all eternity; “He asked “ A seed shall serve him; it shall life of thee, and thou gavest it be accounted to the Lord for a ge- him, even length of days for ever neration.” Psalm xxii, 30. The and ever.” Psalm xxi. 4. promise was fulfilled, when on the name shall endure for ever: his day of Pentecost about three thou- ' name shall be continued as long as sand souls were added to the the sun; and men shall be blessed church, and when the number con- in him: all nations shall call him tinued to increase, and we trust blessed.” Psalm lxxii. 17. He shall increase more and more,

was to have

“ dominion, and Every soul that is truly converted glory, and a kingdom that all to God, is one of Christ's spiritual people, nations, and languages seed; one of “ the children which should serve him: his dominion God hath given him.” Heb. ii. 13. is an everlasting dominion which One of those “ who are born, not shall not pass away, and his of blood, nor of the will of the kingdom that which shall not be flesh, nor of the will of man, but destroyed.” Dan. vii. 14. He is of God.” John, i. 13. Christ's to “ reign over the house of Jacob people, his spiritual seed, are re- for ever; and of his kingdom there generate; “ being born again, not shall be no end.” Luke, i. 33. of corruptible seed, but of incor- Lastly, “ The pleasure of the ruptible, by the word of God which Lord shall prosper in his hand.” liveth and abideth for ever.” 1 Pet. The pleasure of the Lord is exi. 23. They are the fruits of Christ's plained by St. Paul to be, the elecsufferings, the recompence of his tion and adoption of his spiritual pains. • He shall see his seed;" family in Christ; 5 having preand how glorious will the sight be, destinated us unto the adoption of when all his spiritual seed are ga- children by Jesus Christ to himself, thered together," a great multitude according to the good pleasure of which no man can number.”

his will."

Eph. i. 5. Correspond“ He shall prolong his days.”- ing with this, our Lord said, “ I When the enemies of Christ put came down from heaven, not to do him to death, they thought that mine own will, but the will of Him they had cut short his days for that sent me; and this is the Faever, and the language of their ther's will which hath sent me, that

“ When shall he die, of all which he hath given me, I and his name perish?" Psalm xli. should lose nothing, but should 5. But the attempt was vain : soon raise it up again at the last day ; he rose again, his days were pro- and this is the will of Him that longed, and now he ever liveth, to sent me, that every one that seeth

the Son, and believeth on him, may children of God, that Christ will have everlasting life; and I will look upon them as his spiritual raise him up at the last day.” John, seed, or that he will own them for vi. 38-40. Here we are taught, his people in the great day of his apthat the conversion and salvation of pearing and glory. Nor is this all; souls shall prosper in the Saviour's they cannot, without a change of hand: his word shall not be pub- heart and life, escape that awful lished in vain; the Lord has en- punishment which will fall upon

his gaged to bless it, and he will fulfil enemies: for if it pleased the Lord his promise, and send down his to bruise his well-beloved Son Spirit to make it effectual. All when he stood in the place of sinsuccess must come from him; and ners, how fearfully will he bruise indeed it is an unspeakable bless- unconverted sinners, when they ing, that to give success is in the appear before him with their sins Lord's hands, and not in ours. upon

their

heads! Even Our feeble efforts can no more Christ himself “ shall break them cause a spiritual seed to arise to with a rod of iron, and dash them the glory of God, than they can in pieces like a potter's vessel.” produce a single grain of wheat Psalm ii. 9. Let every convinced from that which is sown in the sinner, therefore, make haste to earth: without him, we can do no- fee from the wrath to come; and let thing.

those in whose hearts the good This consideration should teach seed of eternal life has been sown, those who are sowing the good look up to the Lord to cause it to seed of God's word, as well as increase. Let them remember, that those who hear it, to be earnest in it is his hand that must give it sucprayer for his Holy Spirit to make cess; and let them seek the dethat word effectual. It is a painful sired blessing in the use of all the sight when but little effect seems to appointed means of grace; praying, follow the ministration of the word that the pleasure of the Lord in the of God; when it does not appear salvation of their own souls, and in to take root in the heart, and so bringing many others to the saving brings forth no fruit to perfection. knowledge of Christ crucified, may Where this is the case, such per- prosper more and more in his alsons cannot with any shadow of mighty hand. truth suppose that they are the

LITOREUS.

MY BROTHER'S GRAVE.-Aged 15.
Beneath the chancel's hallow'd stone,

Expos’d to ev'ry rustic tread,
To few, save rustic mourners, known,

My brother, is thy lowly bed.
Few words upon the rough stone graven,

Thy name, thy birth, thy youth declare,
Thy innocence, thy hopes of heaven,

In simplest phrase recorded there ;
No 'scutcheons shine, no banners wave
In mockery o'er my brother's grave.

The place is silent;-rarely sound
Is heard those ancient walks around;
No sound of human toil or strife
To Death's lone dwelling speaks of life;
Nor breaks the silence still and deep,

Where thou, beneath thy burial stone,

Art laid, in that unstartled sleep

The living eye hath never known!
The lonely Sexton's footstep falls
In dismal echoes on the walls,
As slowly pacing through the aisle

He sweeps the unholy dust away,
And cobwebs, which must not defile

Those windows on a sabbath day;
And passing through the central nave,
Treads lightly on my brother's grave.
But, when the sweet-ton'd sabbath chime,

Pouring its music on the breeze,
Proclaims the well-known holy time

Of prayer, and thanks, and bended knees; When rustic crowds devoutly meet,

And lips and hearts to God are given,
And souls enjoy oblivion sweet

Of earthly ills in thoughts of heaven;
What voice of calm and solemn tone
Is heard above thy burial stone?
What form in priestly meek array
Beside the altar kneels to pray ?
What holy hands are lifted up
To bless the sacramental cup?
Full well I know that reverend form:

And, if a voice could reach the dead,
Those tones would reach thee ;-but the worm,

My brother, makes thy heart his bed;
That Sire who thy existence gave,
Now stands beside thy lowly grave.
It is not long since thou wert wont

Within these sacred walls to kneel;
This altar, that baptismal font,

These stones which now thy dust conceal, The sweet tones of the sabbath bell,

Were holiest objects to thy soul ; On these thy spirit lov'd to dwell,

Untainted by the world's control. My brother, those were happy days

When thou and I were children yet;
How fondly memory still surveys

Those scenes the heart can ne'er forget.
How blithly then we hail'd the ray
Which usher'd in the sabbath-day ;
How lightly then our footsteps trod
Yon pathway to the house of God.
I feel not now as then I felt,

The sunshine of my heart is o’er;
The spirit now is chang'd, which dwelt

Within me in the days before.
But thou wert snatch’d, my brother, hence
In all thy guileless innocence;
One sabbath saw thee bend the knee
In reverential piety,
For childish faults forgiveness crave ;
The next beam'd brightly on thy grave.
The crowd, of which thou late wert one,
Now throng'd across thy burial stone;
Rude footsteps trampled on the spot
Where thou liest mould'ring and forgot;

While some few gentler bosoms wept
In silence, where my brother slept.
I stood not by thy feverish bed,

I look'd not on thy glazing eye,
Nor gently lull'd thy aching head,

Nor view'd thy dying agony; I felt not what my parents felt,

The doubt, the terror, the distress,
Nor vainly for my brother knelt;

My heart was spar'd that wretchedness.
One sentence told me in a breath
My brother's illness and his death!
The days of mourning glided by,
And brought me back my gaiety;
For soon to childhood's wayward heart
Does crush'd affection cease to smart;
Again I join'd the playful crowd
Of boyish playmates, wild and loud;
I learnt to view with careless eye
My sable garb of misery;
No more I wept my brother's lot,
His image was almost forgot,
And ev'ry deeper shade of pain
Had vanish'd from my soul again.
The well-known morn I used to greet

With boyhood's joy, at length was beaming,
And thoughts of home, and raptures sweet,

In ev'ry eye, but mine, were gleaming. But I, amidst that youthful band

Of beating hearts and beaming eyes,
Nor smil'd, nor spoke, at joy's command,

Nor felt those wonted ecstacies.
I lov’d my home, but trembled now
To viéw my father's alter'd brow;
I fear'd to meet my mother's eye,
And hear her voice of agony;
I fear'd to view my native spot,
Where he who lov'd it, now was not!
The pleasures of my home were fled,
My brother slumber'd with the dead !
Pensive I reach'd my father's gate,

No smiling faces met me now;
I enter'd, -all was desolate,

Grief sat upon my mother's brow;
I heard her, as she kiss'd me, sigh;
A tear was in my father's eye;
My little brothers round me press'd,
In

gay unthinking childhood blest:-
Long, long, that hour is past; but when
Shall I forget the mournful scene !
The sabbath came; with mournful pace
I sought my brother's burial place.
I gaz'd around with fearful eye,
All things repos’d in sanctity ;
One hurried glance I downward gave,-
My foot was on my brother's grave!

J. MOULTRIE.

ON FREQUENTING FAIRS. DEAR SIR,

or stop longer than they are allowed, The religious public of the me they squander away time which is tropolis are very much obliged to not their own. Again, by freyour correspondent Anti-Bartholo- quenting pleasure fairs, money is mæus, for the caution about that generally uselessly and foolishly expestilential evil Bartholomew fair. pended. Many sights are to be Though my residence is not in the seen; shows, low theatrical exhicapital, yet business has many bitions are displayed; all manner times in my life called me into the of vain and foolish ways are conimmediate vicinity of Smithfield trived to empty the pockets of the during the fair time, which renders unthinking and inexperienced; and me in some measure acquainted by this means many shillings are with it. All classes of society who expended which might be well emare visitors of that riotous assembly ployed. If these servants or young must, if their presence is a matter persons belong to pious families, of choice, expose themselves to they will know that money is a tadanger. But there are, doubtless, lent which ought to be better emsome people who are liable to re- ployed, than to support a parcel of ceive more injury there than others. vain and wicked people, who live Your correspondent has noticed upon the weakness and credulity of a female servant, who lost her others, instead of labouring in place in consequence of spending some honest business and vocation. a night there; and also, that it is And sometimes even females go an evident means of increasing the into houses where intoxicating lialready too lamentable multitude quors are sold, and spend money of prostitutes. It appears, then, there. A moment's reflection will that this fair is peculiarly injurious show how_improper must be such to female virtue. It is of but little conduct. Frequenting these places use to open asylums for the reco- is productive of loss of character, very of these unhappy creatures to even when nothing criminal, in the the path of virtue, while so little is full sense of the term, is committed; done to prevent the first steps to yet, if a young female visits such vice. One unavoidable consequence places as Bartholomew er Greenof frequenting these assemblies is, wich fair, her friends can hardly the loss of precious time. It is think so well of her for the time to a divine command to redeem the come. Her employers will be led time, and especially because the to fear she has formed improper days are evil. This injunction connexions, and will for the future extends to the young as well as to not be able to repose much confithe aged. Female servants have dence in her; and will hardly be generally plenty of work to occupy able to give her a strong and unhemost of their time; and it is a great sitating recommendation. -pity that they should inconsiderate- Loss of character is notithe worst ly devote any of their leisure hours effect produced by frequenting to vanity and folly, and, instead of pleasure fairs; but the loss of feemploying their precious moments male virtue is many times to be in the study of God's word and use- dated at such places. Importunity ful improvement, waste it away in and opportunity here so unite, one a manner completely unprofitable. folly and vanity after another so It is frequently a loss of time to drive out every thought of a sedate their employers as 'well as them- and wary character, till the unhapselves, and therefore a theft; be- py, deluded votary becomes robcause when they go without leave, bed and spoiled of what ought to