conjointly, "the Jews sought the more to kill him, not only because he had broken the Sabbath, but because he said also, that God was his father, making himself equal with God," John v. 16, 17, 18. 8. On Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, many of the Jews who were present, and saw that extraordinary miracle, believed, indeed, on him; but some of them, it appears, did not; for they went their ways to the pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done. And the chief priests and the pharisees convened a council, to consult how they might put him to death, for working so many miracles. See John xi. 45 to 57. Nay, the chief priests were so hardened and incensed, that they even sought to put Lazarus also to death, although he had just been so miraculously raised from the grave, John xii. 10. 9. Notwithstanding all the miracles which Jesus performed before the Jews, it is said in Luke xxiii. 1, 2, that "the whole multitude of them arose, and led him unto Pilate, and began to accuse him." Pilate, however, remonstrated with them; and declaring that he found no fault in him, proposed to set him free. But "they all say unto him, Let him be crucified, Matt. xxvii. 22. Luke informs us, they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, crucify him, crucify him," Luke xxiii. 18. 21. 10. Lastly, As a plain and positive proof, that the Jews, in general, did not believe on Jesus, nor acknowledge him as a real prophet, and divinely commissioned, it is expressly said, John xii. 37, "But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him." It is true, indeed, there are various passages to be found in the gospels, which inform us, that great multitudes followed and caressed him after they had seen his miracles: but it is very evident from our Lord's own declaration concerning such persons, that they followed him, not so much from any conviction of his divine mission, wrought in their minds by the miracles which he performed, as from a principle of low and gross sensuality; for he says in plain terms, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled," John vi. 26. Agreeable hereto, it is observed in John ii. 23, 24, that although 66 many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did," yet "Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men," plainly implying, that the faith which is founded merely on miracles, is not the true and genuine faith which the Lord wishes to establish, because it resides only in the external man, and enters not into the internal, so as to form the rational christian, Miracles then avail nothing towards a rational and permanent conviction of the truth. This is likewise particularly evident in the case of the poor cripple at Lystra, who was miraculously cured by Paul. "When the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men;" and they immediately prepared to pay him divine honors, Acts xiv. 8 to 18. But in the very next verse we are informed, that "there came thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead." ELEGANT EXTRACT. THE ANGRY MAN. Every eye is directed to him-every voice hushed to silence in his presence; even children will leave off their gambols as he passes, and gaze after him more eagerly than the gaudiest equipage. The wild tossings of despair, the gnashing of hatred and revenge, the yearnings of affection, and the softened mein of love-all that language of the agitated soul, which every age and nation understand, is never addressed to the dull nor inattentive. It is not merely under the violent agitation of passions, that man so rouses and interests us; even the smallest indications of an unquiet mind, the restless eye, the muttering lip, the half-checked exclamation, and the hasty start, will set our attention as anxiously upon the watch, as the first distant flashes of a gathering storm. When some great explosion of passion bursts forth, and some consequent calastrophe happens, if we are at all acquainted with the unhappy perpetrator, how minutely will we endeavor to remember every circumstance of his past behaviour! and with what avidity will we seize upon every recollected word or gesture, that is in the smallest degree indicative of the supposed state of his mind, at the time when they took place. If we are not acquainted with him, how eagerly will we listen to similar recollections from another! Let us understand, from observation or report, that any person harbors in his breast, concealed from the world's eye, some powerful rankling passion of what kind soever it may be, we will observe every word, every motion, every look, nay, even the distant gait of such a man, with a constancy and attention bestowed upon no other. Nay, should we meet him unexpectedly on our way, a feeling will pass across our minds as though we found ourselves in the neighborhood of some secret and fearful thing. If invisible, would we not follow him into his lonely haunts, into his closet, into the midnight silence of his chamber? There is, perhaps, no employment which the human mind will with so much avidity pursue, as the discovery of concealed passion, as the tracing the varieties and progress of a perturbed soul. BOHAN UPAS, OR POISON TREE OF JAVA. At a late meeting of the Royal Society of London, the translation of a paper by M. Delille was read describing the real nature and properties of the Bohan Upas, or poison tree of Java. The author, a French physician, and a member of the National Institute of Egypt, transmitted this paper from the East-Indics to the Royal Society, by an English lady. The botanical account of the plant in question, he received from one of the French naturalists who accompanied captain Baudin, and who resided some time in Java, where he visited the interior of the country, and with much difficulty prevailed on the natives to show him the different poison plants, which they carefully conceal, for the purpose of using them in war. Hence the many fabulous accounts that have been chrculated respecting the fatal influ ence of the Upas; which in the language of the Javanese signifies vegetable poison, and is applied only to the juice of the Bohan tree, and another plant with a twisted stem. The former is a large tree, which the writer considers as a new genus; the latter, yielding an equally powerful poison, is of the woodbine family. The Upas, or juice, is extracted by an incision made in the bark by a knife, and being carefully collected, is preserved by the natives to be employed in their wars. As to its diffusing noxious effluvia in the atmosphere, and destroying vegetation to a considerable distance around it, the absurdity of these stories is sufficiently exposed by the fact, that the climbing species requires the support of other plants to attain its usual growth. Dr. Delille made several experiments with the Upas on dogs and cats. An incision was made in the thigh of a dog, inte which were dropped eight grains of the juice. The dog soon began to vomit, and continued vomiting at intervals till he became convulsed, and died in twenty minutes. Six grains were put into the thigh of another, which was seized with the same symptoms, and died in fifteen minutes. A cat was treated in like mauner, but the effects were more powerful and speedy; she expired in a few minutes. The author also made several experiments on the effects of this poison when applied internally. A grain and a half being introduced into the stomach of a dog, produced only a slight purging. To another were given four grains, which in about four hours produced the same effect, together with vomiting, and the dog died in the course of half a day. On examining the bodies of these animals after death, no very extraordinary appearances were discovered; the ventricles of the heart were full of blood, and some slight traces of inflammation appeared in the stomach; but the derangement was not so great as might have been expected from such a violent and sudden death. From this circumstance the author concluded, that the absorbents had transmitted the poison to the nerves of the stomach, and that this peculiar species of vegetable poison acts exclusively on the nerves. PROCESS FOR MAKING SYRUP OF INDIAN CORN. In a report made to the Society of Sciences, Letters, and Arts, of Montpellier, M. Figuier announces that, to proceed to the manufacture of the syrup of Indian corn, M. de Lapanousse saturates the acids which the juice of the cornstalk contains, and coagulates the vegeto-animal matter that it encloses. The author employs alternately clay, pearlashes, and lime; his experiments have inclined to give the preference to this last substance, and in the proportion of 2 ounces to 100 pounds of juice. The quantity of juice that the cornstalk have yielded him is from 45 to 50 per cent.; and this quantity of juice has furnished him from 9 1-2 to 10 pounds of syrup well boiled. He afterwards compared the produce of the sweet juice of the sugar-cane cultivated in America, with that of the Indian corn cultivated in his departiment. The result is, that the sugar-cane furnishes a double quantity of it; but in the time necessary for the sugarcane to arrive at its maturity, one can gather three crops of Indian corn, because the sugar-cane remains in the ground from fifteen to twenty months, whilst the Indian corn remains in it only three or four. This 568 MY FATHER IS AT THE HELM.....SONG ON PEACE. calculation gives the advantage to the Indian corn. One cannot too much encourage researches, the inevitable result of which will be to cause all the substances subjected to them to be better known. MY FATHER IS AT THE HELM. Behold yon ship by storms and tempests driven, The heart-sunk mariners, appail'd, aghast, Their graves expect to be the billowy sea. Playing, and perfectly compos'd, a child! So on the ocean of this mortal life, Where fiercest storms of sin and passion rage; Where reason, truth, and error are at strife, And powers of darkness the dread contest wage: Where tempests of affliction ever rise, And clouds of gloomy sadness ever roll: And floods of sorrow seem to sink the soul: 'The real christian can the scene survey, "Why should I fear-my father's at the helm."* SONG ON PEACE. RECITATIVE. Tell me, on what holy ground, may domestic peace be found AIR. In a cottaged vale she dwells, list'ning to the Sabbath bells; For Music, see next page. |