Extracts from the Public Newspapers.

287 the wall, if the boy could be extricated in any other way, he sent another sweep up, who, after the greatest difficulty and danger, succeeded in bringing down the stone which had stopped the passage. The boy was then brought down. He exhibited a melancholy picture of distress, and it was some time before he recovered.-Glasgow Chronicle.

George, the son of Mr. Heyes, a farmer, of Lea, was engaged in ploughing one of his father's fields, and being provided with a fowling-piece, he had loaded it for the purpose of amusing himself as occasion might occur; but no such opportunity presenting itself, he placed the gun between the stilts of the plough with the muzzle towards him. He had not continued long before it went off, and discharged the contents into his head. The ploughboy who was with him ran off for assistance; but before any could be rendered, the man was dead.-Preston Pilot.

Alexander Sim, a private in the 92d regiment, at the imminent risk of his life, rescued the daughters of General Stewart, who, with their governess, were crossing the river Loscie, over the ice, during the winter of 1826, when the ice gave way, and they were all precipitated into the river, and would certainly have perished but for the undaunted bravery of the soldier. The Humane Society awarded the honorary medallion to the soldier, and his Colonel, the Hon. General Duff, granted him leave to attend from his regiment, now at Edinburgh, to receive the medallion from the Duke of Northumberland, at the anniversary dinner of the Humane Society, on Thursday the 17th ult. at the City of London Tavern.-Aberdeen Journal.

A woman, residing in the neighbourhood, while in a state of temporary derangement, precipitated herself into the water at full tide, and remained for a considerable time under the water. By the exertions of some young men who hastened to the spot she was got out, but not before animation was completely suspended. On being taken to the Humane Society's Institution, and the proper remedies applied by Mr. Alexander Smith, a student of medicine, who promptly and effectively adopted the most judicious treatment, she was in a short time recovered so as to be able to walk.-Ibid.

Forfar.-A melancholy accident happened lately at the Manse of Lintrathan. A young lad, servant of the Rev. Mr. Loudon, not making his appearance at the usual time in the morning, some of the other servants went to the stable, in which he slept, to ascertain whether he was out of bed. They found the stable door fast, and, after forcing it, they were shocked on discovering his body burned to ashes. The bed on which he lay was almost entirely consumed; and the fire had burned through one of the couples, but had extended no further. A pony, which was in the stable, was also found quite dead, although the fire had not reached the animal; it is supposed that it had been suffocated. The accident is conjectured to have happened in consequence of the boy having left a candle burning. Scotch Paper.

Justice Room, Shire Hall, Nottingham.-James Dams was convicted in two penalties of 10s. each, and costs, for riding on a cart, of which he was the driver, in the parish of Basford, without having any reins, or any person on foot or on horseback to guide the horses drawing the same.-William Bramley was convicted by Thomas Nixon, Esq. in the penalty of 10s. and costs, for having been at such a distance from a cart, of which he was the owner and driver, that he could not have the direction and government of the horses drawing the same, in the parish of Nuttall. Matthew Cooper was convicted by Launcelot Rolleston, Esq. in the penalty of 40s. and costs, for riding on a cart, of which he was the owner and driver, in the parish of Basford, without having any reins, or any person on foot or on horseback to guide the horses drawing the same. We do not wonder at a man seeking to rest himself by riding on the shafts, or in the cart; but when this is sometimes the cause of death to the driver or to others, we see the need of those laws which seek to prevent such fatal consequences.

A few days ago, a young woman, who had been enticed into a house of ill fame, at Mansfield, having been reproved by her father, the circumstance had such an influence upon her, that she swallowed two ounces of laudanum; but by the timely use of the stomach pump, the poison was extracted, and she is now likely to recover.-Nottingham Paper.

On Sunday afternoon last, as a child about six years of age, named Ann Hurst, of Spittal Row, North Gate, Newark, was endeavouring to take the kettle from the fire, in the absence of her mother, her pinafore caught fire, and burst into a blaze, and she was most miserably burnt.—Ibid.

Smith Knight, the driver of the Champion coach between Nottingham and Derby, was convicted before the Magistrates of Derby, in the mitigated penalty of 51. and costs, for negligently and furiously driving his coach up the Iron Gate, in Derby.— Ibid.

On Saturday last a valuable horse belonging to Mr. J. B. Timæus, bread and biscuit baker in this town, found its way to one yew faggots, and eat but a small quantity of the twigs, but died in about half an hour afterwards.-Bedford Gazette.

A party of tinkers had been drinking; they disputed, and fought among themselves in Forres. In the course of the affray one of them accidentally struck one of their own children a severe blow, of which it died in the course of a quarter of an hour. The parties, we understand, are imprisoned for the crime in the gaol of Forres.-Elgin Courier.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

We have received the communications of M. E.; L. I. K.; I. L. H.; M.; P.; and some Extracts from different Authors. M. and H. G. in our next.

THE

Cottager's Monthly Visitor.

JULY, 1828.

REMARKS ON THE SEVENTH CHAPTER OF EXODUS.

(Continued from p. 247.)

V. 1. "See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh ; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet." This is the Lord's answer to the complaint of Moses, "Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?" Nearly the same expression is used in the 4th chapter, when God promises to his unwilling servant the assistance of his brother-" he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God." It was as much as to say, that Moses should stand before the king of Egypt, clothed with the power and authority of God; and Aaron should be the speaker, and deliver the commands of God, as he received them from Moses-just as the prophets first received their message from the Lord, and then declared it to the people.

Ver. 2. "Thou shalt speak all that I command thee."-It is plain that the fears of Moses were great; he might, therefore, shrink from declaring those parts of the message of God which he felt would be particularly disagreeable to Pharaoh: hence arose the necessity for this special charge; just as, afterwards, Jeremiah was told, thou shalt speak" all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word:" and the apostles received NO. 7.-VOL. VIII.

this charge, "go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life." Human nature dreads suffering, cruel mockings, and even the slightest degree of ridicule and contempt; and on that account it was necessary that the duty of faithfully speaking what God had revealed to them, should be strongly enforced upon Moses and the prophets. But may we not gain a hint for ourselves from this subject?-Are there any who stand in the same way between God and men ?-Ministers are stewards of the mysteries of God; and though they do not receive a message from the lips of God himself, as Moses did, yet the Gospel is intrusted to them to preach; and they, like a steward, will have to render an account to their Lord-not only for themselves, (which all of us must do,) but of those among whom they have preached:" they watch for your souls as they that must give account." Never, then, be displeased at the faithfulness of your minister-remember, if he kept back what may displease you, he would do it at the peril of his own soul, as well as yours. (Ezek. iii. 18, 19.) If you think his reproofs harsh or ill-timed-recollect, he is commanded to speak "in season and out of season." (2 Tim. iv. 2.) If you are sometimes ready to complain of his conduct at interfering-call to mind that it is his bounden duty, whatever it may cost him or you, to instruct, exhort, rebuke; and that love for your soul forbids him to hold his peace, while he sees you plucking down ruin upon your own head. "Receive him therefore in the Lord with all readiness, and hold such in reputation," searching the Scriptures to know whether things are as he tells you.

V. 7. At the ages of eighty and eighty-three, Moses and Aaron would naturally command more respect than younger men could have done. Their advanced age must also have made it more evident that they spoke by the command of God. A man

Remarks on the Seventh Chapter of Exodus. 291

of eighty is not very liable to be seized with a fit of ambition, or even of courage. It could be no such feeling that led them to Pharaoh. They went plainly by the appointment of God.

V. 8-10. A miracle is a wonder-something beyond the power of man. The worshipping of idols, at the time we are speaking of, prevailed much in the world. This was specially the case in Egypt, where the most foolish and degrading kind of idolatry was practised-they worshipped cattle and serpents-and the Israelites were much infected with the prevailing evils. Now Jehovah saw fit to interpose, to convince his enemies that he was the Lord, and to rescue his people from the abominations as well as the servitude of Egypt. For this purpose he chose Moses, and instructed him what to say to Israel and to Pharaoh: and, upon proof being required that he really came from God, he was commanded to work such wonders as might convince them that he was the Lord's messenger. And what a proof this is to us of the truth of the Bible. Moses, who wrote the first five books of it, did such works as no man could do, but by the finger of God. Turning a great river into blood-causing the darkness of midnight to last three days-and slaying, in one night, the first-born of every family throughout the land; these are things which no man could do by his own power. But who wrote the account of them? was it not Moses himself? There are only three ways by which we can receive the knowledge of things long past. First, by the persons who saw them happen, giving their children the account of them, and these telling their children, and so on: this is called tradition. Now if we knew of the miracles of Moses only in this way,-by having heard them from our fathers, who again heard them from their fathers,-it would be very uncertain: for we all know how apt people are to add a little to a story in telling it, and especially to add