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'Oh, I wish you had been with us last night. You would have been elevated when listening to Bowen discoursing on these wondrous themes, a meek, lowly, despised man; but oh, how happy! living in that miserable hut in the Bazaar, holding converse with his God. Hunter is greatly enamoured of him, the more so because he is very musical. Last night, before going away, he played an accompaniment on the piano to Hunter's violoncello, "Weep not for Sorrow." You need not be surprised if you hear of both of us taking up our quarters with Bowen in the Bazaar at Rs.10 a month! I wonder what would say! We must try and see more of the dear man, for his society is most improving, and I know not when I have relished an evening so much. Still, we must watch against creatureworship, and bear in mind that Bowen, and C., and M., and N., are only reflectors, in a most imperfect degree, of the glory of Christ. They are but candles: He is the sun. Let us seek more acquaintance with Him, and in close and intimate communion, make known all our requests by prayer and thanksgiving. What encouragement have we to do so! He says to us: "The companions hearken to thy voice; cause me to hear it;" and again: "Let me hear thy voice, for sweet is thy voice." Wondrous words! but the Song abounds with such, and I am only now beginning to find it out. Let us drink deep into the spirit of this love-song, and ever listen to the Bridegroom's voice, opening the interview, "Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away;' "These things have I spoken unto you, that your joy may be full;" and again: "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name; ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.”

'Poor C. H.'s case is a very sad one. It is part of the "tribulation" she must pass through,

for it must be bitter experience indeed to see those she loves hurrying to destruction. Here, though, she can surely realize the sympathy of Jesus. Pray give her my very kind love, and ask her to study Rom. viii. 32. She will now get some new light on that passage. We have all some cross to bear, some trial to suffer. Mine is an evil heart, which has been making some fearful discoveries lately of its depravity. ...

'You have chosen a good motto to commence the year with, and one that used to be a good deal before my mind. Now, I look more to the words of Jesus himself: "Let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice." "Eat, O friends, drink abundantly, O beloved." As M'Cheyne says, "We can't put greater dishonour on the master of a feast, when a grand banquet is spread before us, than being content with a few crumbs under the table; yet is not this the way we treat the Saviour? Oh, how much we lose by not asking! Let us take God at his word more than we have hitherto done."

'I must now be looking out for something to read to the Parelle people to-morrow morning. I am thankful to say I have been somewhat stirred up of late, and have had some real delight in prayer and study of the Bible, particularly the Song of Solomon. I would fain sit under the shadow of Christ, and find his fruit sweet to my taste, having the banner of love spread over me, and drinking out of his fulness. I seem never to have drunk yet. True, I have come; but He says, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink." Oh, let us obey the invitation, and enter into very close fellowship with Jesus. He invites us, assuring us that "we are in the clefts of the rock." We should not be much troubled with doubts, if we were on such terms as these with the Judge."

CHARITY.

ON no quality in the Christian's character do there exist ideas so erroneous as on charity. To be generous is not always to be charitable, but often to be uncharitable. Charity must not be measured by its profuseness, but by its judiciousness. There are few blessings which may not become curses by being perverted; nor is charity an exception. The refusal of a favour may seem unkind; but to grant it may be still unkinder. The stern denial may be interpreted as springing from an unfeeling and unkind heart; but is often the dictate of one wiser than our own, and of one who saw more charity in the denial than in the concession. If by being profuse in charity indigence is only engendered, it does but sap the tree it was intended to support, and create wants it was intended to relieve. On the other hand, by a discriminating carefulness in the distribution of charity, what suffering may be relieved, what care softened, what sorrow lightened! If by holding out the timely hand, by the kindly encouraging voice, one struggling though unfor

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tunate pilgrim, who has sunk beneath the burden of accumulating misfortunes, is again enabled to proceed on his journey, then indeed has charity achieved a triumph. To help the struggling, to true object of charity; but charity misplaced strengthen the weak, to aid the willing, is the only fosters indigence. There is yet another thing to be observed in charity-it must be assisted by prayer. Little is the use of giving-little is the use, indeed, of judicious giving-unless it is the result of an heartfelt sympathy with suffering, and not the mere mechanical giving which is the result of habit. Charity must be sincere: it must be given not because we think we are doing an action which will merit applause in this world and reward in the next. No, readers, such is not charity. It must be accompanied by prayer

prayer that our feeble efforts in the alleviation of suffering may be assisted by Him who, in his incomprehensible wisdom, thinks fit to wound; and who, in his boundless mercy, may think fit to heal. Reader, think before you give, and pray when you have given.

WITTY PREACHERS.

THERE is a class of preachers-we hope it is a small one-who come within the descriptive line of Cowper, of those who court a grin where they should woo a soul;' aiming to say amusing and funny things to move the risibles of their auditors, seemingly forgetful that their vocation is something far more serious than this. A careful study of the ministerial epistles of Paul would fail to discover any directions on the value of securing attention by keeping an audience in jolly good humour. Paul himself was a model minister in matter and manner. We hear of his earnest exhortation and persuasion-of his consuming self-sacrifice and zeal-of his weeping and tears while beseeching sinners; but never of his effort to make his hearers laugh. He had too awful a sense of his responsibility in delivering his message, which was to prove a savour of life or death to others, and of his anxiety to be free from the blood of all men. But where do we hear of his studied attempts to amuse? He habitually remembered the ministry of his Master, who wept over the incorrigible, and was even

occasionally angry at their obstinate unbelief, without once being jocose or comical. The discovery was left to more modern times to visit an infirmary in a merry mood, that the diseased and dying might be diverted from their real condition. If there is a time to laugh,' it is certainly not in the sanctuary, or when sacred and momentous truths are to be enforced on the attention of dying sinners. Make merry over the prodigal returned, if you will; it is out of place while he is spending his substance in riotous living. A bishop should be gravely in earnest, whether he occupies the pulpit or platform; serious while he handles serious things; and tremble at the thought of putting sinners into good humour with him or themselves by the outflowings of an eccentric wit. What! it may be said, would you recommend ministers to be stupid in the pulpit? Surely this is not the alternative. He that would be in danger of becoming stupid in fulfilling God's solemn embassy to dying men, in a solemn way, may possibly have mistaken his vocation altogether.

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The Treasury Hymnal.

The hymns are selected from Dr. Bonar's "Hymns of Faith and Hope." The Letter-note Method of musical notation, by permission of Messrs. Colville & Bentley, is introduced as a help to young singers.

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D

CHAPTER X.

WILLIAM FAREL,

THE SWISS REFORMER.

URING the year 1545, Chaponneau,
Farel's colleague at Neuchâtel, died.
He was succeeded by Fabri, minister

of Thonon.

Calvin tried to induce Farel to rejoin him as fellow-labourer at Geneva, but failed; and he now made an attempt to draw him into his neighbourhood, by suggesting to the senate, that, as he was a good Hebrew scholar, his appointment to the professorship of divinity at Lausanne would be very advantageous to the interests of the church. But though the government readily acknowledged his services, in that he had been the principal instrument in promoting the Reformation in the Valais, Neuchâtel, and Geneva, they refused to follow Calvin's advice. Farel's hasty temper, his bold, uncompromising tone in stating his opinions, and, perhaps more than all, his having refused to make the church at Berne his model for that at Geneva, probably caused his rejection. Besides, Berne was rather afraid of bringing Calvin, Farel, and Viret together, as, being actuated by one spirit, they were likely to succeed in any object they set themselves to accomplish; and this excited the jealousy and envy of Berne. This second effort, therefore, to remove Farel from Neuchâtel failed; and Beza was appointed to the Lausanne professorship.

Mathurin Cordier, head master of the school at Neuchâtel, who had been tutor to Calvin, was now removed to Lausanne, and in much anxiety the Bernese senate wrote to the council of Neuchâtel on the importance of seeking an efficient teacher to supply his place in a school designed for promoting the glory of God, and instructing the young in the divine word and propriety of conduct.' 'Certain tyrants,' | they added, who undertake to suppress and extirpate the gospel, know of no better method than the abolition of the Latin schools.' Farel entered fully into these sentiments, convinced that darkness would again overspread the church, if young men were not carefully trained for the ministry. He therefore entreated the council to educate some candidates for the ministry at the public expense. To this the council agreed, and arranged that four should be thus provided for, who should be required to study Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, with a view to the more perfect knowledge of the Scriptures, and also make themselves acquainted with natural history, to understand how wonderful the Creator is, how weak and short-sighted is man.' Logic and rhetoric were also to be cultivated, that the students might learn to express themselves so as to arrest and fix the attention of their hearers. Truly,' said Farel, these sciences are the gifts of God, and must not be condemned or rejected on account of the perversity of men, who abuse them in short, for the sake of public welfare,

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let no one in any way obstruct the cultivation of learning, or of the arts and sciences.'

He especially pressed this upon the attention of parents, saying, 'If you are desirous of worthily bearing the honourable name of father, which God applies to you, and assumes also for himself,-if you wish to be fathers in reality, and not in name only,-give your children pious and faithful teachers, or bring them up yourselves in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.'

This year Farel published a small work, somewhat similar to the Confessions of St. Augustine; and about the same time, he wrote pastoral letters for the consolation of those who were suffering for righteousness' sake.

The Anabaptists gave him much anxiety. To Peloux, one of their leaders, he wrote a severe letter, in reply to some of his writings, which had been extensively circulated in Germany. He had also to contend against philosophers, falsely so called,' who, while boasting of their knowledge, led many astray by their pernicious example.

A few of the sect of the Libertines now appeared in Geneva and other parts of Switzerland. They came from the Netherlands, and, under the pretence of correcting the errors of Popery, endeavoured to undermine the foundations of religion. Farel had known something of their doctrines before, and now openly rebuked them, saying, 'Beware, as of infernal spirits, of those who say that the Scriptures contain profound mysteries too deep and spiritual to be expressed. For though it is true that divine things are sublime and unsearchable, so that we must humbly ask God's assistance to learn his holy will, to be governed by it, and to obey it, yet, that which God has revealed for our salvation is so plain, that no father can speak more intelligibly to his children than God speaks to us. Whether the Papists boast themselves, the Turks conquer, the Jews continue hardened, heretics lift up their heads, or innumerable sects buzz around us, like swarms of guats, let the gracious Saviour be all in all to us. To Him we will firmly adhere, and prefer his poverty and humility to all Popish grandeur, and all worldly riches.'

The dangers which threatened the church, involved him in an extensive correspondence; his advice being anxiously sought, and freely given. Bucer wrote to him from England, detailing his 'sufferings, dangers, and labours,' and was cheered by his hearty sympathy. Shortly afterwards, Farel thus alludes to his death: 'Our friend has happily seized the prize, and left us struggling in the course below. We deplore our loss, and that of the church, in being deprived of a man so distinguished, and whose labours in the Lord's service were invaluable. While on earth, his enemies persecuted this holy man, not, indeed, to the extent of their wishes, but of those limits which were set to the endeavours of Satan

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