AMONG the occasional attendants at my Railway Bible-class is a little boy of four years old, who sometimes comes with his grandfather, and delights in the privilege of carrying Bibles from the box to the tables. Last Sunday, before closing, having during the lesson alluded to the incident so beautifully told by Miss Thornton in "The Platelayer's Story," I said, "There may possibly be one here who will not be taking a copy of THE SIGNAL to-day, so I will read you the verses I spoke of." This morning, happening to meet the child's grandfather, I was told that the little fellow, on going home yesterday, had said to his mother, Mamma, there is a beautiful hymn in the Railway paper. ,, "How do you know, my dear?" she asked. "Because the lady read it, and it was all about a Railway guard."

I could not keep thinking that the dear little child's attention was suggestive of another side of the question. Should it not remind parents and others of the harm they may do by taking the little ones where, instead of hearing "a beautiful hymn," their ears are polluted and their memories charged with words and songs of a very different character. Let us keep the children as holy treasures, pure and undefiled, to speak to us of Him who said, "Suffer little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven." H. M. B.

"KEEPING PLACES."

DIVESTED of a few sentences, the following is a letter from a Railwayman who appreciates an article in our last issue:

Thanks for your advice; that is how I understand my Bible. Why, our blessed Master teaches us to do our duty to our fellow-creatures as in the sight of our Father in heaven; and so does the apostles. The man that shuts out the religion of Jesus from his daily duty loses half its sweetness (and I don't think his is the religion of Jesus, do you?) Why, bless the Lord, my Jesus helps me to do my duty. I love to feel His presence; it helps me. How sweet, when leaving duty, to feel we have the smile of our heavenly Father resting upon us, and that we are not ashamed of what we have done. I cannot do without Jesus on duty, and He don't want me to. When He is with me, and I am tempted to do wrong, He just reminds me of His presence, and that His Father will not approve of it; then He helps me to overcome. I say you are right; we want Christ in our hearts first, then Christ in our words. in our actions, in our homes, in our daily duty-Christ all in all. F. W.

A MONTH'S CASUALTIES.

We do not pretend that the following is a complete list of the accidents which have occurred since our last issue; they are merely such as we have found recorded in the papers, besides one or two sent by readers :APRIL 22.-With other young men, John Taylor trespassed on the Metropolitan line, between Harrow and Neasden. In running to get out of the way of an approaching train, he fell, and was instantly killed by the engine.

April 24.-Collision at Todmorden Station, tilting up guard's van and disabling an engine, but no personal injuries.

April 26.-Thomas A. Watson, goods guard, was knocked down by an engine at Newcastle, injuring an arm so severely as to necessitate amputation.

April 27.-A lad named Williams killed by an express, while crossing the line at Hightown, between Liverpool and Southport. He be longed to Penkull, Stoke-on-Trent, and was to have left school next day. A newly married pair were starting by train from Holme Lacey (G.W.R.), under a salute of fog-signals. These frightened two horses attached to a waggon; the driver, attempting to quiet them, was knocked down and run over, then taken to Hereford Infirmary, where he died.

April 28.-A train left the metals when in the tunnel underneath Clifton Suspension Bridge, near Bristol. No one was injured, but traffic was blocked for eight hours.

May 1.-George Hall, foreman platelayer at Stanningley, near Leeds, whilst inspecting the metals, had both legs cut off by an engine, and died shortly afterwards.

May 8.-Man and horse killed at a level crossing between Guisborough and Middlesborough.- -A man named Driscoll knocked down and killed while crossing the line near Cork. The driver asserts that he saw the man deliberately throw himself across the metals. May 9.-At Anerley (L.B. & S.C.), Henry Ember fell off a footboard on to the platform, breaking his arm and injuring his head. May 13.-As the Liverpool express was rushing through Boxmoor Station, it ran into a gang of platelayers, two of whom, named Scott and Harroway, were killed on the spot.

May 15.-Robert Anderson, porter at Bellgrove Station, City of Glasgow Union Railway, handed a parcel to the guard of the 10.5 p.m. express to Hyndlands, while the train was in motion. Stepping off the footboard, he collided with a person on the platform, fell between the platform and the train, and received severe internal injuries, from which he died three hours afterwards in the Royal Infirmary. May 17.-A gentleman, while about to enter a train at Chatham, fell down, and received such injuries as caused almost instant death. May 18.-William Armer, L. & N.W. guard, killed at Tebay Junction while engaged in shunting.

May 19.-A bricklayer killed in Walton Tunnel, Liverpool, owing to the negligence of a signalman whose duty it was to place fog-signals on the line to warn the workmen of the approach of a train.

IN THE TUNNEL.

WHEN travelling by rail in the company of children, I have often been interested in observing the effect upon them when the train enters a tunnel. Some are so frightened that they burst out crying; others, though they do not lose their self-control, are very nervous and timid; while others, again, seem to enjoy the excitement of whirling through the darkness. I remember once sitting opposite to a little girl of about three years old, who was very merry, and, in the exuberance of her high spirits, stood up on the seat, laughing down at her mother, who sat by her side. Suddenly, without any warning, we entered a tunnel, and the little thing had no time to stir from her position. When we came into the light again I scanned her countenance, feeling curious to see if she looked at all alarmed, and was surprised to find her with the same happy smile upon her face. But soon I discovered the secret of her calmness-her mother's arm was clasped round her waist. Directly the dark tunnel was entered, the loving arm was thrown round the little one.

Was not this a picture of the Christian, who, on the journey of life, has now and again to enter a dark tunnel of trial or difficulty? Some marvel at the way in which a child of God can pass through anxious times with a trusting calm; it is because he feels that "underneath are the everlasting arms." A. B. L.

ANXIETY OF SOUL.-Any to whom the way of salvation is not clear, are invited to communicate, either personally or by letter, to W. S., care of Evangelistic Secretary, Exeter Hall, Strand, W.C.

only of his own staff, but of the numerous merchants and other traders with whom he was brought into relation. The proof of the respect and goodwill thus engendered found expression in a banquet given in his honour at the Mackworth Hotel, Swansea, by merchants, solicitors, engineers, and Railway officials at Swansea, Neath, Llanelly, &c.—all representative men, numbering about one hundred.

"In 1876 Mr. Lambert came to, London, having been appointed District Goods Manager at head-quarters. Three years afterwards, on the death of Mr. John Grant, he became Chief Goods Manager -a post which he held until 1887, until he, in fact, was appointed to his present position of General Manager of one of the largest Railways in the world. It is not necessary to dwell upon the ability with which he has discharged the duties of the various posts he has fulfilled on the Great Western. The recent appointment by the Directors to the post of supreme control is the most eloquent testimony to his merits and capacity-capacity aided, happily, by a splendid phy que-the best guarantee for good mental work."

ON READING THE BIBLE.

GOOD many people have their favourite portions of Scripture, and their pet opinions as to which are the best. In times of trouble there are some portions more suitable than others. In times of joy there are passages that seem to fit the best. When the mood of searching for knowledge comes over one, there are portions that seem to be set out, and we would here give to our friends a few hints on reading the Bible. Let us remember that it is but one Book-the revelation of God to man, Creation reveals God's power and wisdom, but it does not speak to us in words. It tells of a Mighty One, living, moving, ordering, and preserving all things, and causing everything to work together for the benefit of man; but Creation does not tell us the way to get rid of sin, the way to be happy in our souls, the way to be useful in our day and generation. Lessons we may learn from every creature that crawls the earth, flies in the air, and from everything that grows in the field; and there is much in the Bible that will strike us on these subjects as well as upon others. But let us always remember, in opening the good Book, that therein lies a revelation of what God is, of what He does, and of His heart of love to the people whom He has created for His own glory. And when we say that man is created for the glory of God, it does not mean that he is to live to the glory of God to his own inconvenience; for those who are highest in the scale of giving glory to God, are highest in the scale of happiness.

There are sixty-six books in what is called the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed; the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. What we get in type and shadow from Genesis to Malachi, we get in explanation and fact from Matthew to Revelation, excepting those portions which refer to the future. So that, in considering the Bible as a whole, we want to read it as if it were one book; and though we may from time to time, and daily indeed, go to various parts of the Book to learn the will of God on any given subject, there should always be, above and beyond the separate readings and preparations for teaching and preaching, a consecutive course of reading. By this we mean, read the Books chronologically—that is, in the order in which they were written. Read the Bible carefully, and get a grasp of its historical aspect. It is a good thing to study the maps along with the reading, as one goes from place to place. Turn up the references to those portions that are to be found in other parts of the Book, compare them carefully, see what one supplies that the other does

not, and try to take a firm grip of the actual historical statements that are therein given. Then remember the circumstances under which those portions were written, to whom and by whom they were written, and do not confound the Scriptures that refer to the past or present with those that belong to the future. Endeavour to understand those portions that have been fulfilled, and learn the moral lessons that are to be found in them, the principles of which are equally applicable to all classes of men, through all time.

Then note that the Old Testament has a doctrinal aspect also. The great doctrines of the Gospel are to be found very clearly put. Take, for instance, Genesis, which gives an account of the creation. Notice the parallel truth in the New Testament as regards the new creation. Observe that the things which are created in Genesis are not required in the new-created sphere of the Revelation. Thus, to begin with the first chapter, just as God moved upon the face of the waters by His Spirit in bringing order out of chaos, so God, by His Spirit, moves upon the hearts of men, producing in them a new life of regeneration. Then takę Exodus. There we find the doctrine of the Atonement unmistakably put. Read Exodus along with Hebrews and other portions respecting the blood, and the necessity of faith in the sacrifice that Christ made, which was the antitype of all the other types that were ever given. Then in Leviticus we have the subject of worship very plainly taught. The Temple worship, and all the order of its services, are minutely described, so that we may see the spiritual through the literal. Hebrews again gives us the heavenly or spiritual worship of God's people of to-day, of which the Levitical worship was a type. So we might go on reading through the Book, and learning lessons of this kind over and over again.

But while we earnestly advocate the chronological reading of the Seriptures, we would not omit to state that we might begin Genesis and Matthew together, read a portion every day, and so go quietly on until we reached the very end of both Old and New Testaments;

and by the time we got once through the Old Testament, we shall have twice read through the New, and then we can begin again. Many lovers of the Bible read it through once a year, others once in two years. Perhaps Railway-men, with little time on their hands, would not be able to get right through the Old Testament once, and the New Testament twice, in less than three years. But we venture to predict that if such were to go upon the plan we have suggested, there would be a great deal more Bible knowledge, and people would not be found turning to Malachi when they want to find Leviticus, or to the Gospels when they want to find Titus and Philemon. For the sake of memorising the books of the Bible, we might notice that the names of them can be sung to the tune of "Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear; "if any are interested in this, they can get the words and the music from the publisher, Mr. Stoneman, Paternoster-row, London.

In reading the Prophecies, it is very important to observe those portions that have been fulfilled; and it is only by reading other portions concerning the things themselves that we can learn whether they have been falfilled or not. There are many historical books outside the Bible that give a descriptive account of the fulfilment of prophecies in the past. These are very good in them. selves, and we would not discourage any from using them; but it is best to learn as much as you can from the Book itself. It is a good thing to read the Psalms frequently, and to sing them too, for they can all be sung to well-known chants; and what can be nicer than to see a household at family worship joining in singing a psalm of praise to God, whether it is in the very language of the Bible, or put in metre, as in our Scotch version.

With regard to the New Testament, there are four Gospels that give an account of the life and death of our Lord Jesus Christ.

ABOUT RAILWAYS.

They are much the ame, though each has many things that the others have not, and treat the subject from a different point of view. In Matthew, for instance, we have an account of the Lord Jesus as a King; in Mark as the Son of Man; in Luke very much the same; but in John we have Him as the Son of God. The omissions of one are supplied by the other, and in reading a portion in Matthew to be found in the other Gospels, it is always well to read them together, lest we should interpret one to mean what the other contradicts. For example, in one Gospel it is stated that unless a man hate his father and mother he cannot be a disciple; but in another it states that if he loves his father or mother more than he loves Christ, he cannot be a disciple. These two, read together explain what the word "hate" means, even without turning to the original-viz., to love less, and not in the sense in which we talk about one man hating another.

The Epistle to the Romans teaches justification by faith, and gives important instructions concerning the people of Israel in their past and future, particularly the latter. Corinthians deals with the question of sundry doctrines, and matters connected with Church membership, as well as correcting sad evils that were to be found practised by even Christian people. The other Epistles have their various teachings, all of which are very apparent to an intelligent mind. We need, therefore, to read the Bible historically, doctrinally, and practically. The history embraces past, present, and fature; the doctrine, all the principles of the Christian faith; and the practical, all those things which we should do.

In conclusion, we would very strongly urge on all the readers of THE RAILWAY SIGNAL the importance of going closely by what the Bible says, not to take from it or add to it, but to use the very language of the Book, stick to it, and not be turned away from the sound speech which is plainly given to us in the Word of God. Let us remember that it is God's Word. Let us love it, read it, live it out, and proclaim it wherever we go, and know that whatever word we give is like seed sown, and will in God's own time bring forth fruit.

OUR RAILWAY BOYS.

Ir is very pleasing to find that a good many superintendents in different parts of the country are giving some special attention to the Railway-boys. There are thousands of them in the kingdom, and they very much need the Christian attention that those who love the Lord can give them. Many are linked with ungodly men in their daily work, while some have parents who are not spiritually interested in themselves, much less in their children. Those who know the results of the nine years' labour among the boys by our friend Mr. Eliot Walton, will not be weary in well doing in this respect, as results are not always seen at once.

We are just going to build a mission-hall in the very district where Mr. Walton began his work among the boys fourteen years ago. Numbers of Railway-lads have been converted, and a good many young men are now to be found doing something to win their mates to Christ. We therefore wish to give a word of encouragement to the superintendents and secretaries of all the Missions, as well as the workers generally, to have a separate meeting now and then for the boys, even if there is not a sufficient number to make a permanent class.

BY WILLIAM LUFF.

Never Mind thE STONES.-All along the line were clinkers and stones in tons: but the line was clear, so we went ahead. God has removed every stone off the track; but there are many between the tracks. Difficulties, discrepancies, doubts, and doctrines hard to be understood, are in the Bible; but I can serve them as the train serves the new laid broken rocks-run over them. I need not stop to clear them all away; indeed, if I did, I should spoil the line. They are there for a purpose; but, thank Heaven, the line is clear.

"The way to heaven is straight and plain;
Repent, believe, be born again."

Go ahead, and never mind the stones.

I WILL GUIDE THEE.-I was in the signal-box the other day, and this was what I thought I heard the signalman say to the train, and he guided it too. Over went the points, and the engine was sent safely into the station. Mr. Engine-driver, clever as he was, had nothing to do with that business; the man above, who knew all, and was in connection with the whole line, managed it beautifully. And he was appointed to do it, that was more. Thank God, I do not choose my own lines. One above sees and arranges all: I have but to heed the signals and go accordingly, and when any change is needful, I say, “Turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for Thou art the Lord my God." (Jer. xxxi. 18.)

SOME DO NOT KNOW WHICH WAY THEY GO.-In a tunnel it is difficult to decide which way one is going: indeed, one seems going in the very opposite direction to what is really the case. Why? In the dark we cannot see. Shall I be content to travel thus in life? Traveller, are you going to Birmingham or London? "I don't quite know, sir, I'm in the dark; mind your own business. It will all come right." Twaddle! May God bring you into the light, and let you know what course you are taking. "He that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth" (John xii. 35). The danger is, men go to sleep in the dark, and when they wake up, they find themselves at the wrong terminus.

THE MAN WHO GREASES THE WHEELS.-I reckon he does much for the comfort and safety of the passengers. He may not wear the brightest livery the company provides; he may not cause his voice to be heard; but as he goes from wheel to wheel, he prevents much woe, and does a real work as well as a wheel work. So do those dear souls who are always ready to ease the friction of life with a little love. Wife, have the greasepot ready when the good man comes in: the journey may have exhausted his store; give him a fresh supply. And don't be backward with your own contribution for your lady-love, Mr. Husband. "A soft answer turneth away wrath," and prevents the train taking fire.

CANAL AND RAIL.-The canal was about as crooked as a serpent; the railway was as straight as a school ruler. There is just this difference in characters. Some people curve and turn and twist and bend every. where. A friend of mine says their conscience is like an eight-cord elastic, it stretches any way. The country decides their course.

"High, low, or level,

Angel, saint, or devil."

They are like the canal, and run according to circumstances. Others are like the railroad, and if the country rises even to a hill, they still go forward. "Straight on " is their motto-they run according to the plan of the Great Engineer, and their line is a straight line. Which are you-a crooked canal or a "straight forward" railroad? There is One who can make the crooked straight (Isa. xl. 4; Luke iii. 5).

A WORD TO OFFICIALS.

WE have in these pages frequently urged the importance of every man upon the lines, irrespective of his position, doing his duty in the sphere in which he is placed. Will the officials allow us a word to themselves? We have often heard these gentlemen, from General Managers down to Stationmasters, say something like the following:

"Well, you see, I sympathise with your work; BUT, as an official, I could not encourage it among the servants, lest it should be taken advantage of."

Now, this is jumping before you get to the stile, and very much like the man who refused to learn the letter "A" because he would then be obliged to learn the letter "B."

From a good deal of observation in the various departments of the Railway service, and a tolerably extensive intercourse with some of the best officials upon our Railways, we are quite certain that the statement above is a fallacy throughout. If there are any men in the service who should keep their positions, and do their work as in the sight of God, it is the Christian men. A noble principle in service is everywhere enjoined and commended in the Bible. We should like to get more sympathy from officials; it would help the men very much in believing in their Christianity.