Yes me!-the feeblest-vilest-worst! By sin and Satan justly cursed, Go! Where? to thee, O bleeding heart, Oh! if indeed it were not so If men beneath thy eye, How soon their hope must die; Then let me hope, though broken now, Look up then, soul, mid sorrow's night, His grace can make thee triumph yet. WAITING. "I wait for the Lord; my soul doth wait, and Waiting, waiting, lowly waiting, Waiting, waiting, fitly waiting, Till awaking in his likeness, January 13, 1867. THE ARK. THERE is no change of time and place with THEE; Where'er I go, with me 'tis still the same; Within thy presence I rejoice to be, And always hallow thy most holy name. The world doth ever change; there is no peace Amid the billows of the storm-vexed breast; With every breath the frothy waves increase, They toss up mire and dirt, they cannot rest. I thank THEE that within thy strong-built ark My soul across the uncertain sea can sail, And though the night of death be long and dark, My hope in Christ shall reach within the veil; And to the promised haven steady steer, Whose rest to those who love is ever near. THE BLESSED. "Blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed."-JOHN XX. 29. WE saw thee not when Thou didst tread, And waken them to second birth; On that first glorious Easter-day; "The Lord is risen, He is not here,! Come, see the place where Jesus lay." But we believe that Thou didst quell The banded powers of death and hell. We saw Thee not return on high; And now, our longing sight to bless, No ray of glory from the sky Shines down upon our wilderness; But we believe that Thou art there, And seek Thee, Lord, in praise and prayer. From the German. MORTALITY. YET a few days, and thee The all-beholding sun shall see no more Nor in the embrace of oceans, shall exist Thy image. Earth that nourished thee shall claim Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again; Yet not to thy dark resting-place Shalt thou retire alone. Thou shalt lie down With patriarchs of the infant world-with kings, The powerful of the earth-the wise, the good, Fair forms, and hoary seers, of ages past, So shalt thou rest; and what if thou withdraw, Unheeded by the living, and no friend Take note of thy departure? All that breathe Will share thy destiny. The gay will laugh When thou art gone--the solemn brood of care Plod on, and each one, as before, will chase His favourite phantom; yet all these shall leave Their mirth and their employment, and shall come And make their bed with thee. As the long train Of ages glide away, the sons of men, The youth in life's green spring, and he who goes In the full strength of years, matron and maid, And the sweet babe, and the grey-headed man, Shall, one by one, be gathered to thy side, By those who, in their turn, shall follow them. So live, that when thy summons comes to join His chamber in the silent halls of death, By an unfaltering Trust, approach thy grave Like one that draws the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. The Portfolio. THE world is like the ivy which first draws out the cement between the bricks. and then, while hastening their decay, holds them temporarily together. It apparently keeps society together, but really it destroys religion, by which alone men can be made to live in harmony and love. To believe in the realization of our wishes, in relation to temporal comforts, is one thing; to believe in GoD, to whom those wishes are expressed, is quite another. What is wanted, then, to dissipate anxieties, to scatter the dark cloud of over-carefulness, to fill the heart with holy composure, and to irradiate the soul with the blessed light of Heaven, is simply this the divine, the potent, the perfect remedy-unwavering faith in God. The Christian, to be consistent with his sublime profession, must surrender not merely selfrighteousness, but self-will, self-wishes, self-guidance, self-everything. He is in the unerring hands of the Lord who redeemed him, who keeps him, who loves him, who guides him continually, and who will surely bring him to glory. He may meet with difficulties, crosses, losses, bereavements. It is not in the covenant that he shall not; but it is in the covenant that he shall be supported under them all, that they shall all be sanctified to him, and that all things shall work together for his good. What more would he?-W. L. THERE is a volume of thought suggested by the extreme simplicity of these words, "Remember me," Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me and see," were the words of Jesus while still on earth. Now, He says, "Do this" (i.e. eat the bread, and drink the wine, which are the outward signs of the body and blood of Christ), " in remembrance of me." "Don't forget my body; remember it still, all the while I am away, till I come again." Where then is the body of Jesus now? Thither let the eye of faith be turned whilst feeding on these outward remembrances of it. Think not only how Jesus has once died, but, "rather," how He now lives! It is Jesus "as He is" that He bids us remember, "to our great and endless comfort."-A. L. NEWTON. Avow your willingness to be Christ's. Place your whole soul and heart in His redeeming hands. Wrestle with Him. Let Him not go, until your burdens fall, and peace swells like a rising tide. He can bring back to God. He can assure of pardon. He can reveal His pierced hands and side. He can bestow the title-deeds of life. He can admit you, as an adopted child, to the high family of grace. Then you will fully feel, how true are Moses' last words, "Happy art thou, O Israel; who is like unto thee, A people saved by the Lord, the shield of thy help, and who is the sword of thy excellency! And thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee; and thou shalt tread upon their high places."-ARCHDEACON LAW. LET this triumphant name, "The Lord our Righteousnesss," settle every difficulty, solve every doubt, and silence every accusation. When conscience tells thee thy sins are both many and great, answer thou, "Christ cleanseth from all sin." When reminded of your ignorance, say, "Christ is my wisdom." When your ground and title to the kingdom are demanded, say, "Christ is my righteousness." When your meetness to enter within its sacred walls is challenged, say, "Christ is my sanctification. When sin and the law-when death and Satan claim thee as their captive, reply to them all, "Christ is my redemption." The Law saith, Pay thy debt. The Gospel saith, Christ paid it. The Law saith, Make amends for thy sins. The Gospel saith, Christ hath made it for thee. The Law saith, Thou art a sinner; despair, for thou shalt be condemned. The Gospel saith, Thy sins are forgiven thee; be of good comfort; thou shalt be saved.REV. JOHN STEVENSON. We doubt not that there will be seasons, even in the happiest Christian pilgrimage, when the soul will be discouraged, because of the way. When difficulties which we thought had passed over, will re-appear; when temptations, which we hoped had been for ever vanquished, will again rise up against us; when sins, which we trusted we had forsaken, will once more mar our path; and these things will lead us to feel a deep sensation of despondency; we shall he tempted to think that God cannot pardon delinquencies so frequent and unprovoked, and that we shall certainly perish on the journey, and never arrive at that journey's blissful end. Let us be careful that such feelings lead us not into temptation; that they do not close our eyes and our hearts against the infinity of God's mercy in Christ Jesus.-BLUNT. THE child of God has nothing to dread, actually nothing. O dear friend, what a happy life we may, and, I trust, shall lead; and this also is the gift of God, for joy is a fruit of the Spirit. The pure, rich, deep stream of Jehovah's love pouring itself in ever-increasing fulness through the soul, which he has transformed into his image; and the knowledge, the practical knowledge every moment experienced, that each event, and every portion of each event, is working for good, that all past falls have been really subservient to God's glory and our ultimate benefit.-Letter to a Friend. THERE is much contest in the world about property; but believers, taking Christ for their only property, whom nobody can take from them, have, in him alone, immense treasures and lasting peace.-BOGATZKY. A MAN never sees the awful danger he was in, until it is past; never truly sees himself until he is safe; and never admits the connection between his sins and their consequences, until the former are forgiven and the latter removed by the efficacy of atoning blood. Hence, the grace which pardons transgression makes a new creature of the transgressor at the same moment. He hears with other ears, sees with other eyes, and feels as he never felt before. His loyalty is secured to the King who forgives him, not as the result of a process of thought that thus it should be out of gratitude for such a marvellous blessing, but simultaneously with the act of forgiveness, a new life diffuses itself through the heart, and constrains it to lay itself at the feet of the glorious Sovereign. The process of thought comes afterward, comes daily throughout the whole subsequent life, and, whatever be its premises, the conclusion is invariably the same, that the ransomed life belongs exclusively to the Ransomer.-W. L. GOD never takes anything from his children, but he gives them something better. If he takes away the sixpence of comforts, he gives them the shilling of grace. (2 Cor. xii. 7.) IF thou hast a Christ in thy heart, a cross on thy shoulder, a world under thy feet, and heaven in thy view, thou art a happy man. CHRIST is clothed with majesty, but the garment in which he most delights is the "vesture dipt in blood." (Rev. xix. 13. DID you ever go to God, as a God who is perfectly at peace with you, believing that there is not a thought in his heart but it is in love to you? When the believer goes to him otherwise, he greatly dishonours him, because it implies that God was not satisfied with what Christ has done and suffered. FAITH is like the mainspring of a clock, it keeps all going. (See Heb. xi. 6.) HEAVEN'S Songs are all about grace; there will be no Pharisee there. (Rev. v. 9.) IT will be found at last that none did so much for Christ as those who built their salvation on a free-grace bottom. (Acts xx. 24.) GIVE the tree of promise a shake with the hand of faith, and blessed fruit will drop. The Children's Page. THE ALPINE HUNTER. AMONG all the hunters on or near the Wengam Alps, there was no one more fearless, or daring, or successful, than Pierre Bernard. He not only knew where the wild chamois had his home, but the very peaks of the rocks on which he would be likely to perch, as he lay down snuffing every breeze that came over him. There were no cliffs which Pierre could not climb, no abyss over which he would not find access. Hence, he seldom returned home without a chamois thrown over one shoulder, while his great bored rifle rested on the other. Sometimes he would be miles away and far up the awful mountains, when day-light first gilded their peaks. Sometimes he would at night-fall be up far among the peaks and horns watching to see this mountain goat go to rest. When once he saw his game, his eye was so true and his nerves so strong, that he was about sure of him. Late and early, he was never at a loss. Once, near the Alpine winter, just at night, he found himself far up among the highest peaks, many miles from home. For hours he had been following a flock of chamois as they leaped from rock to rock, and even up and down steeps which it would seem that no hoof could tread. Just as the sun had set, he got his first chance, and his shot gave him a noble chamois. But darkness was now coming on, and night was beginning to spread her solemn mantle over these awful solitudes. It grew intensely cold, and the winds were rising, and sweeping and moaning among the rocks. He threw his game over his shoulder and set out for home. He well knew that if he should stop he would freeze to death. Over the jagged rocks he went as fast as 66 But his heavy load would allow him. darkness came on fast. He knew that for many a mile he must find his way pathless, and unmarked, not by eyeing the peaks as in the day-time, but by his best judgment. He knew, too, that he had one awful chasm to pass over. It was hundreds of feet deep, and about twenty feet across its top. He knew that at a particular spot, one single log had been thrown over as a bridge. He knew that over that log he must cross with his load on his back. He knew, too, that through this chasm the winds rushed very strong. He knew he must find the log and get over it, or he would perish with cold. Would he be able to find it? Could he get over it? Fearing he might be belated, he had brought a small lamp in his pocket. So when it became dark he crouched under a great rock in a weary land," and with a match, lighted his little lamp. What was his horror to find that he had but one single match! A single gust of wind might put out his lamp, and then-! So he hung it to a string, and let it down, near the ground, to be "a lamp to his feet." Step by step he went, holding his little lamp most carefully-for if that failed, he must perish. At last he came to the chasm, and after a long search, found the log. It was a small, smooth, spruce log. And how fearfully the winds moaned and groaned through the chasm! A single strong gust would put out the lamp, and then-! Pierre offered one short, earnest prayer, and laid himself on the log, to creep over. He tied his load to his back, and with one hand grasped the log, and with the other held the string, by which the lamp hung over the dark, deep abyss. Slowly, almost breathlessly, he crept along on the log-the winds blew, the flame flickered and wavered, as life and death hung on it. But he kept moving, slowly, carefully, and got over. How joyfully, how thankfully he rose up and felt that he was safe! When-whew! a horrible gust of wind came and his lamp was out! And now he must die, perish in the cold! No! he raised his eyes and saw the dawn of day peeping over the mountains. He leaped for joy, for in a few moments, the day opened, the day-star, or sun was up, and he was saved! He had "the lamp to wwwww Monthly Notes on Passing Ebents. THE IRISH CHURCH question still forms the prominent topic in election addresses and in the daily and weekly press, though nearly all has been said upon it that can be said. The Government maintains a discreet silence, and Mr. Disraeli has as yet made no sign. Yet every now and then there are indications that the Irish Church will not be maintained, if it stands in the way of the retention of place and power by the Conservative party. The Archbishop of Dublin (Dr. Trench) and the Lord Primate of Ireland have made what defence is possible for the huge anomaly of which they are the leading representatives, dwelling on the danger to "the Union" and to the rights of property which its removal would involve. As if the "property of the Church" has not been dealt with in a summary manner over and over again; notably at the Reformation in England and in the time of William and Mary, when all the revenues and titles of the Episcopal Church in Scotland were transferred to the Presbyterian Church.- -The accession of the Rev. Canon Miller, of Greenwich, to the ranks of Mr. Gladstone's supporters will, we hope, have great weight with the Evangelical clergy from whom he thus separates himself. But the fact is only a proof that he has mastered the complete bearings of the question, and sees that the disestablishment of the Irish Church is as much to the real interests of Protestantism as it is in accordance with the principles of justice. THE RITUALISTS.-The Ritualistic party seems bent on notoriety. The Mass, under another name, and the Confessional have been for some time among their recognized English Institutions; but now to complete the system they have added Mariolatry, Celibacy, and Penance. Well may they long for union with the "elder branch of DR. VAUGHAN, of Doncaster, thus appeals to the members of his church and of the Church of England in general on the prospect of the disestablishment of the Established Church: "When the Church of England ceases, with or without our will, to be an established, privileged, or favoured Church at all, then how many of you will be found to come forward in its maintenance ? How many of you will worship with her when there is no longer any traditional or conventional induce |