saw a more distressing scene. Every means was used for her recovery, but all in vain. She was a most amiable child. But few children so much respected. All loved her. Her death is greatly lamented. Her parents and the family were almost overwhelmed by the stroke. She discovered great concern about a future state when in the exercise of reason. Would call on others to pray for her, and was often in prayer for herself. Many prayers were put up for her. But an all-wise God saw fit to call her away. We have great reason to hope that she is gone to rest, and is now sharing the rewards of the righteous. She has left us many warnings to prepare for death. I hope they may make a deep impression on the minds of us who survive. If sweetness of temper, amiable conduct, love and esteem of friends could exempt from death, she would still have continued. But alas! there is no discharge in this war. It was a loud call to our youth. Oh! that it might not prove in vain.

I preached on the occasion of her funeral from 2 Kings iv., 19, 20; "And he said unto his father, My head, my head! And he said to a lad, carry him to his mother. And when he had taken him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died."

We have greatly to lament the low state of religion among us. How is it with you? I think we may say, in some sense, that it is neither day nor night. Yours sincerely,

LEMUEL HAYNES.

*

In 1808 he was severely afflicted by sickness, and on his recovery he thus wrote to a friend :-"I have only a moment's time to write. I am just raised up from the brink of the grave for some purpose. Nothing very important has taken place of late. Wickedness reigns triumphant. There is an extraordinary work of God in Sudbury, twenty miles to the north of us. Eight or nine are hopefully converted in a week.

Our missionary and evangelical societies in this state flourish; how is it with you?"

On the Sabbath, he selected a subject suited to the occasion of his restoration to his labours. The text was Rom. xiv., 8; "For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord; whether we live, therefore, or die, we are the Lord's." In this sermon his own thoughts and feelings seem to have been an affecting illustration of the sentiments of the apostle. "I might," said he, "I might, if it was not too much like preaching self, apply the subject to my own case. It has pleased God to bring me from the borders of the grave. Strange to reflect, that I stand this day in the midst of you, as one raised from the brink of death. I am convinced that a sick bed is no place for repentance. It was reliance on the merits of the Saviour that supported me. Had I a thousand souls, I would venture them on him. "Tis for your sakes that I am spared. I have no desire to live for the sake of living to self. But to God would I devote all my life. 'Tis by your prayers that I am delivered to you, and O that you would pray that my spared life may be wholly devoted to his service."

It is not improbable that Mr. Haynes, during his ministry, preached as many as six hundred funeral sermons. His labours among the bereaved were often requested in neighbouring towns, especially on distinguished occasions. He was in the habit also of improving such dispensations of Providence for the benefit of his own people, by preaching on the occasion of the death of eminently useful men. The following sermon will present a specimen of his talents and aptness in this respect.

The substance of the Rev. LEMUEL HAYNES's sermon, delivered at Rutland (West Parish), Oct. 28th, 1804. Occasioned by the sudden and much lamented death of the late Rev. JOB SWIFt, D. D.

2 TIм. iv., 6:—“ And the time of my departure is at hand."

Among the many sources of evil to men, there are few more hurtful than their inattention to future scenes: this subjects them to unavoidable troubles here, and endless sorrow hereafter. Men are generally disposed to crowd eternal realities from them, and put far away the evil day. Having the last week heard of the sudden death of the Rev. Dr. Swift, which I consider, speaking after the manner of men, a greater loss to the church than could have taken place in the death of a single individual in this state; and having lately had so agreeable an interview with him, it has fixed my mind so intensely on eternal realities that I found some difficulty in turning my attention on any other subject.

If ever the sentiment in my text was proclaimed in powerful and significant language, it is in this alarming dispensation of Divine providence. The time of my departure is at hand.

St. Paul wrote this epistle after his last confinement at Rome, about nine years after the former, and a little before his death, as intimated in the text. Although the exact time of our death is fixed by the unalterable purpose of God, Job vii., 1; xiv., 5, yet this moment to us is uncertain. We are not to suppose that Paul understood this; but by what he could discern by the conduct and temper of his enemies, he concluded that his exit was near. Analuseoos, which is rendered departure, signifies "to return home; to weigh or loose anchor; to change our place. It is a metaphor taken from mariners, importing the sailing from one port to another. Death is, as it were, the unfolding the net, or breaking open the prison door by which the soul was

before detained in a kind of thraldom."-See Leigh's Critica Sacra. Paul expected to live in a future state, and that death was not an eternal sleep, but that a crown of glory awaited him beyond the grave. That we ought to live in the constant expectation of death, is the point to which our attention is particularly called on the present occasion.

The nature and importance of the duty will be considered. There are many people who, though they have the clearest intimations that they must die, yet do not expect it. Every age of the world affords us painful examples of the truth of this observation. Death often comes and finds us sleeping. Many no doubt will go into eternity within one hour, that have no expectation of dying for years yet to come. Some of you who are now present will doubtless die within a few weeks, who are not looking for such an event. Many of you have more worldly schemes already laid out than you can accomplish to the day of your death. Follow men to their death-bed, and you will generally find that death is an unwelcome and unexpected messenger. Who those are that live in the expectation of death, is a question of serious importance.

People who expect to die will have their thoughts much on the subject, as one who is about to remove to a great distance will think and converse much about the matter. Job called the grave his house, and made his bed in the darkness; and said to corruption, Thou art my father, and to the worm, Thou art my mother and my sister. The man who considers that the time of his departure is at hand, will not be much elated with sublunary objects. Of whatever importance they may be to others, yet to him they are of little consequence, as he is just ready to leave them. 1 Cor. vii., 29, 30, 31. "But this I say, brethren, the time is short. It remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none; and they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; and they that use this world, as not abusing it; for the

fashion of this world passeth away." Neither prosperity nor adversity will much affect him who expects every hour to come to the end of his journey, or close his eyes on things below.

The man who expects soon to remove, will have his mind much taken up with the country to which he is going. He will inquire about it, and form as much acquaintance with it as possible; he will attend to the geog raphy of it, and will have it much in his conversation; I will wish to know how it is like to fare with him when he arrives there. The dying man, who acts in character, will read the word of God-that informs us about eternal things;—will endeavour to obtain a knowledge of the heavenly state-of its laws, inhabitants, and employments. He will look upon the things that are not seen -that are eternal. 1 Cor. iv., 18. And his conversation will be in heaven, Phil. iii., 20.

A man that adopts the sentiment in my text will set immediately about the work of preparation for death,will, without any delay, set his house in order. Being struck with a sense of the shortness and uncertainty of life, he will summon every faculty of his soul to the most vigorous exertion in this great work; will do with his might what his hand findeth to do: he will not put off that work until to-morrow that should be attended to to-day, since he knows not what a day may bring forth. He will pay a diligent attention to the means of grace. Prayer, reading, meditation, and attending religious institutions, will be matters of serious importance. When men are apprehensive that they are drawing near the eternal world, they commonly have very different views of many external duties that they despise in days of health. Visits from ministers and pious friends, prayer and religious conversation, now appear valuable. The man that really expects soon to die, like Paul in the text, will be solemn, serious, and honest; will not trifle with sacred things; but will act in view of a judgment

to come.

Farther: They who are properly looking out for death, look upon it as an event to which they are ex