SYMPATHY.

How subtil and mysterious is this power; how difficult to analyze and comprehend! It is the electric chain, which binds, in one universal brotherhood, the whole family of man; it is the great power of cohesive attraction, which holds in one mighty mass the shifting elements of humanity. In union is strength: how insignificant and powerless is a single drop of water-bind together, by the principle of cohesive attraction, myriad of drops, and the broad ocean rolls its mountain waves, lifts up its voice of power, and tosses gallant fleets like playthings on its stormy bosom! And man, isolated man, how puny his efforts, how trifling his performances-link man with man, and pyramids and temples rise in lofty proportions, cities spring up in lonely places, the very elements become his slaves to do his bidding: he sails upon the bosom of the air, controls the forked lightning, and makes the great sea a highway for the nations. It is not merely sympathy, however, that thus binds man with man; other causes contribute to this effect, which it is foreign to our purpose now to examine.

Sympathy is displayed in one of its most striking manifestations in the vast assembly, when the mighty mass of human life is permeated by one and the same feeling is swayed and controlled by the thrilling eloquence of the orator. He has struck the key-note of sympathy, and the great instrument of the human heart discourses most excellent music. He can tune to lightsome strains, or draw forth notes of the deepest pathos, as the varied tones of harmony burst forth at his bidding. As the trees of the forest bow their lofty heads, when the strong wind passes over them in its might, and as the rustling foliage dances and quivers in the summer breeze, so are the hearts of the people now bowed by the overwhelming power of eloquence, and now gently stirred and agitated by the less impassioned words of the orator.

Sympathy is the handmaid of benevolence, and many are the kindly offices of love performed by her promptings. Her gentle touch opens the heart, and the hand opens the purse, and pours forth its treasures to the destitute. Other treasures, too, are freely bestowed at the bidding of sympathy-sometimes of greater price than thousands of gold and silver. She unlocks the fountains of tears which fall like rain drops on a parched land; she has soothing, soul-calming words, as well as an eloquent silence, "more rich than words," for the grieved and stricken in spirit, while for the happy and hopeful, she has bright smiles even "when other quests are in her eyes," and words of gladness and joy. She has all things for all men, and none are sent empty

away.

There are those among men who remain apart, it may be, in the solitude of their own greatness. They stand aside and let the great tide of human life rush past them, without seeking to color its waters, or to VOL. VI.-2

9

change their current: no one draws near them in the intimacy of confiding affection; no long pent up sorrows gush forth in their presence, neither does the heart in its gladness expand in beauty before them. Good sense, judgment, intelligence, and virtue, they may possess, but none seek from them aid, counsel, or guidance: they are inclosed in the icy palace of their own greatness, and its crystal walls are not to be melted by the breeze of emotion, or the tears of sorrow. They cannot marry the hopes and fears of others, or "look into happiness through another's eyes," or realize the desolation of other hearts. They rejoice not with them who do rejoice, neither weep they with them who weep. They have not the "open sesame" of the human heart, which, with all its treasures of thought and feeling, remains closed in their presence.

Others there are, whose characters firm and cold as marble have here and there rich veinings of sympathy. I have seen the vault of heaven obscured by lowering clouds, when at some opening, the purest azure gleamed out from between the torn masses, and the bright sunlight dazzled us with its unexpected and momentary radiance. It is thus that some characters, generally cold and impenetrable, will, when we least expect it, reveal some kindling beam of sympathy, and open to us a glimpse of pure and healthful feeling, ere the character closes up as before, and the short-lived radiance disappears.

A constant reference to this principle, will solve many of the mysteries which perplex us in the varied intercourse of life. With some spirits we at once feel that the chord of sympathy is struck, and thoughts and words blend in a continuous strain of harmony. There is no fear, no restraint, but a beautiful "unwithholding trust"-the wave of thought breaks upon the shore, regardless whether it bestow grains of sand or seed pearl. Each mind receives a new impulse-its dormant energies awake-things hidden within the folding of the heart come forth in life and beauty, and the secret fountains of the soul, struck by the rod of sympathy, pour forth, in gushing streams, their limpid waters. One, but yesterday a stranger, already enjoys more of the "intimacy of the mind "-knows more of the wishes and aspirations of the soul-has obtained a clearer insight into the movements of the inner life than the known and the recognized of years. And why is this? The magic word will unfold the mystery. With those whom we have met again and again upon our daily paths, whose intelligence and moral worth command our esteem and admiration, we may not pass the threshold of an acquaintance: "Thus far canst thou go and no farther;" and the wave of thought may dash for years against that iron-girt coast without making any progress. There is no sympathy-thought springeth not to thought, neither does deep call unto deep. Our paths may lie side by side throughout life, but

how rapid may be the exchange of thought! how the book of the soul's history may be opened, and the light in darkness-the transition from the land of mists to the region bathed in the soft light of hopethe bright beams of promise may be dwelt upon with joyous recollection, till those hearts are united by the golden chain of sympathy, and they are made one! In the social meeting, too, how great is its influence! A band of Christians assemble at stated periods to set up their way-marks in their pilgrimage-to speak words of mutual encouragement-to tell one another how fast and how far they have traveled toward their heavenly inheritance, and what they think about their title to it, and what messages they have received from it, and what glimpses they have had, through the telescope of faith, of that blessed land. Or they meet to pray together, that they may agree as touching one thing-together to bow before the eternal throne-together to lift the voice of praise and thanksgiving to Him whose hand has "taken them out of the crowd of this world," and has "made them which were no people," mere atoms in existence, driven hither and thither, the sport of the winds of life, "to be the people of God"-to be carried forward in the great movement which is controlled by God's providence, and which aims at the most lofty and glorious results. The incense of prayer rises as a great cloud-the words of praise } come forth rejoicingly from the lips-the great deep of the heart is broken up, and the mighty waters rush on in one full stream. Time was when

"Each in its hidden sphere of joy or woe,

Their hermit spirits lived and ranged apart;"

but the soft voice of sympathy has called them forth,

ing to the glorified Savior amid the sanctities of heaven; for our great High Priest is as ready to heal and bless as when "the cry of the human" sounded in the ears of God manifest in the flesh. SPERANZA.

DIVINE PROTECTION.

Ar the suggestion of the then missionary to the Wyandotts, I send you an account of Divine protection at the Wyandott camp meeting, June 21, 1834.

The Wyandott Reservation not being under the jurisdiction of the state of Ohio, the inhabitants were not under the protection of its laws. The usual remedy against the aggressions of lawless disturbers, was application to the "Indian Agent," who had jurisdiction in such cases. At the time of the camp meeting, it so happened that the Agent was absent: consequently, the property and persons of all on the Reservation were unprotected by law. The encampment was situated in a grove on the east side of the prairie, some three miles south of the "battle ground," and southeast from where Crawford was burnt, after the Muskingum massa

cre.*

In the early part of the meeting, information came that certain "rowdies" from Tiffin and Lower Sandusky had combined, and threatened to break up the camp meeting. The alarm of the peaceful worshipers increased as these reports became more and more confirmed, and much anxiety was apparent. On Saturday morning, the superintendent exhorted the Wyandotts, as their protector, the Agent, had left his post at a time when, of all others, they most needed his presence, to throw themselves completely under the Divine protection-relating some striking instances of answers to prayer, especially the providential manner in which disturbers were quelled at a camp meeting in 1828. This had the desired effect. The day was clear-the services went on. After dinner it became evident there was more truth than fiction in the report: the "rowdies" appeared. Individuals who would blush to see their names here strolled through the encampment in disguised cloth

There is a sympathy higher than that of earth, deeper than aught of which we have spoken-the feeling of one touched with our infirmities-one who knoweth the manifold burdens that rest upon the heart; for He dwelt amid the sight and sounds of human misery. He felt, in the lowly home of his childhood, the discomforts and the petty grievances of life he had sorrow for his companion in that pilgrimage during which he was often seen to weep, but never to smile, and as he looked down the long vista of earthly woe, he saw and understood it all; so that no form of sadness need shrink from appeal

one hundred and six years in the Philadelphia Almshouse, who, when asked if she loved the Lord Jesus, replied with warmth, "Be sure I do: I've nobody else to love!" so the Wyandott worshipers looked to the Lord; for they had "nobody else" to whom to look. "Rowdies" became insolent, as their numbers increased, and night drew near. Complaints of outrages multiplied, and the worshipers increased the fervor of their prayers for help. Just then the thunder murmured in the distance. eyes were turned to that quarter. The sun, in

* See Heckwelder's Narrative.

All

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HOMEWARD bound! Homeward bound!

O'er a long and hostile ground,
With a weary step and slow,
Onward still I go I go.

Gloomy pitfalls snare my way;
Quicksands lure but to betray;
Noontide heat, and midnight chill,
Storm and tempest work their will;
Yet one precious view of home
Cheers me on where'er I roam.
Oft my wand'ring feet have stray'd
From the path my Father made:
Oft some mirage passing fair
Prov'd as false as empty air,
While the bitter fruit of sin
Only poisons if I win:

Then with shame I sadly mourn
That I should so rashly turn;
And again, by blessed grace,
Once more homeward set my face.
Homeward bound! afar-afar
Gleams my precious guiding star,
Giving forth no borrow'd light,
Yet for ever pure and bright.
Night may throw her sable shroud;
Wintry winds may whistle loud;
But the Star of Bethlehem
Storm and tempest cannot dim.
Through this desert drear and wide,
Star of hope, be thou my guide.

From the spirit land a voice
Bids me evermore rejoice:
May not some of sister birth,
With sweet sympathy for earth,
Bend thus down their eye of love
From their angel home above?
Gentle guardians, though unknown,
Soon your song may be my own;
And my earth-born harp may be
Tuned to heavenly harmony.
Homeward bound! they call me on,
The loved ones who before have gone:
Once on earthly ground they toil'd,
Yet their garments kept unsoiled:
Once they meekly bore the cross,
Counting all things else but loss:
Now as witnesses they stand,
Beck'ning to the shining land,
While in robes of white they sing
Praises to their Savior, King.

Homeward bound! homeward bound!
Light from heaven beams around:
Brighter still that light shall be
'Till its blessed source I see.

Though I have not heard or seen,

By a mortal sense I ween;
Yet the Spirit doth reveal
To the hearts he comes to seal,
Things that worldlings never knew,
Gloriously sweet and true.

Lo! my elder brother waits
At the everlasting gates:

Will He murmur? Will he mourn

At the prodigal's return?
Will he frown upon me now,
When before his throne I bow?
No! He died that I might win
Freedom from the curse of sin:
Bowed his head that curse to share;
Died to name me fellow-heir.
Homeward bound! my motto be,
Weal and woe alike to me;
Knowing well I cannot fall
While I trust in Christ my all.
He will lighten every cross;
He will lessen every loss-
Guide me over Jordan's wave-
Save me from the gloomy grave,
And at last my soul receive,
Ever in his smile to live.

A BOY sat by a streamlet,

Below an arching tree;

And he watched, beneath the beamlet,
The wave dance merrily.

The breeze came softly playing,

With his curls of golden hair;

And the flower perfume was straying
Through the sweet and cloudless air.

And as, in groves so pleasant,

The birds trilled, wild with glee, His soul from out the present

To the future wandered free.

And he dreamed his dreams elysian-
Those soft and soul-like dreams,
Which rise up in derision

At the founts of youth's glad streams

Which Fancy's hand discloses,

And the heart greets fast and free, As the butterfly doth roses,

Or the honey-getting bee!

He thought, from life's shore roving,
He wooed the fresh'ning gale;

And Love and Hope, approving,

With their bright wings fanned his sail.

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And he glided o'er time's waters

With a swift and sure career; While the hours (Earth's laughing daughters)

With garlands hovered near.

Lo! he looked far out in ocean,
Where his bark was yet to be,
And he feared no wind's commotion
On that broad and sunny sea.

But he reached the space of battle-
Of the warfare stern of days;
And he 'scaped the cannon's rattle,
And he wore the glistening bays!
Then away from all retiring,

He illumed the sacred fire,
And, the artist's wreath desiring,
He attuned the golden wire:
Like the poets old and glorious,

Who, in by-gone ages, strung
A lyre o'er time victorious,
And grew godlike while they sung-

Who on the Grecian mountain,
Or in the Mantuan grove,
Or by sweet Avon's fountain,

In silence loved to rove,

Till the wild thoughts in their bosoms
Grew vigorous and strong,

And up sprung the beauteous blossoms
And undying buds of song!

Thus dreamed the boy desiring;
But the fateful future gave
Dark toil and vain aspiring,

And a lone and nameless grave!

"FEAR NOT THE BREAKERS." "FEAR not the breakers:" though they dash Their mountain masses wide and high, Their summits foaming as they lash, Are welcome to the sailor's eye.

"Fear not the breakers:" he who guides
The ship has rode these waves before:
He heeds them not: the struggling tides
Bear him the swifter to the shore.
"Fear not the breakers," Christian: deep
Though sorrow's waves around thee roar,
And sins and fears, in mountains steep,
Seem passless barriers to the shore.
"Fear not the breakers:" Jesus still

Is with thee in the pathless way;
He bids thee trust; and know he will
Himself command-thou must obey.
"Fear not the breakers:" safe at home

Rests many a happy spirit: lo!
The sins forgiven-the griefs they've known,
Give heaven's pure joys a richer glow.

CAPACITY OF ESTEEM.

AN ESSAY.

How satisfactory a portion of our perceptive life is the appreciation with which we contemplate the merits, respectability, order, and propriety of the relative characters which surround us!-in short, the capacity of esteem. And of all the regards, whether spontaneous or reflective, with which we view character, we shall find this test not only the most agreeable and satisfactory, but also the safest and the most enduring. The force of this truth is undeniable to the convictions of age and experience. The young, however, have not as yet witnessed that uniformity of action which is the crowning test of moral inferences. They have not as yet lived long enough to prefer this sentiment to others-others more vivid and more alluring, but neither so profound nor so rational as this. Whilst esteem is a sentiment deduced from the positive moral excellences of its object, it possesses in itself the uncommon property of eliciting, in exact measure, the correspondent homage and respect which suits it. By a sort of moral chemistry, its affinities of excellence are unerring, both in proportion and quality.

Whilst there are many points in the characters and manners of our associates which may mislead and bewilder our tastes, the "sober certainty" of approval by this test is never at fault. Do we find ourself swayed and attracted toward some person not intimately known to us in all the bearings of character-one who is, perhaps, devoid of those graces of manner, and that engaging apprehensiveness of mind, which attracts us at once; yet, as our acquaintance progresses, and our observation ripens, we find ourself better and better pleased with their course and management; and finally there comes to be established in us a respect, an indubitable regard, which has grown upon us by the regular action of certain merits of conduct, perceived by us, though unconsciously, whilst addressing itself to its proper sense within us, and which thus recognizes its proper object of esteem.

Let us, then, ever cherish these perceptions! Let us not, from any selfish anxieties, nor any churlishness of humor, stint our approval, nor deny the outgoing of our hearts to these sympathies. No doubt sympathetic encouragements to character are of great assistance in the progress of social morality. Neither should any, gifted with delicacy to perceive merit, deem themselves innocent in withholding its expression.

Comparing the sentiment of esteem with that of any other form of regard, we shall find it more pure as well as more constant than many other affections of the soul. Love, properly so called, is proverbially subject to deceptions of various sorts-to caprice, either in its entertainer or its object-to doubts, to declension, to jealousies, and many other harassing