SOME OLD MAY-DAY CUSTOMS.

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he had gained over the other servant, but did not in the least anticipate any villany. The woman, as instructed, took ship to Australia, and I there awaited her return.

"The vessel in which she started arrived safely, but did not bring her back. I cabled to England, but my friends assured me that they saw her off from there, and that they could not understand her non-arrival. I waited till the next ship came into port; but as she did not arrive by that my suspicions were aroused. There was some conspiracy, I felt sure, between my little daughter's nurse and the man. Perhaps he desired to be revenged upon me for discharging him; and when I thought this, I hoped that he was only trying to alarm me. I was soon to know differently, however, as you

are aware.

"I communicated my suspicions to the proper authorities, who instituted inquiries into the matter. The captain of the vessel in which the woman embarked was consulted, and he informed us that he remembered a man (who answered to the description of my former servant) visiting her at Gravesend, where the vessel stopped; and that both she and my little daughter went ashore at Plymouth, and did not return to the vessel. That is the last I heard of either of them until I found you out a few days ago. Every effort was made by my friends in England, but to no purpose. They had to all appearance vanished from the earth. For myself, knowing that both the servants were Australian born, I remained out there, hoping that they might return, or perhaps communicate with me at some time with a view to extort money, but my hopes were disappointed. Feeling that I could do no good by coming back to the old country, I plunged with the greatest earnestness into my work, to save me from breaking down under the burden of my double loss; and in a few years, having saved a considerable sum of money, returned to England. So far as my story is concerned, you know the rest."

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(To be continued.)

SOME OLD MAY-DAY CUSTOMS.

AY-DAY was the great rural festival of our forefathers. Their hearts responded merrily to the cheerfulness of the season. At the dawn of May morning the lads and lasses left their towns and villages, and, repairing to the woodlands, by sound of music they gathered the may, or blossomed branches of the trees, and bound them with wreaths of flowers; then returning to their homes by sunrise, they decorated the cottages and doors with the sweet-smelling spoil of their joyous journey, and spent the remaining hours in sports and pastimes.

The May-pole is now almost a thing of the past, although it is still

set up in some parts of the country. An old author, in relating the fetching in of the may, says, "But their chiefest jewell they bring is their May-pole, which they bring home thus. They have twenty

or forty yoke of oxen, every ox having a sweet nosegay of flowers tied on the tip of his horns, and these oxen draw home this May-pole, which is covered all over with flowers and herbes, bound round about with strings, from the top to the bottom, and sometimes painted with variable colours, with two or three hundred men, women, and children following. And thus being reared up, with handkerchiefs and flags streaming on the top, they strew the ground about it, set up summer halls, bowers, and arbours hard by it, as the heathen people did at the dedication of their idols." In 1644 May-poles were forbidden by Parliament.

In some parts of the country, it was formerly the custom for Maying parties to affix branches of flowers and branches of hawthorn to the doors of those whom they desired to honour; whilst those who had rendered themselves in any way unpopular would often find their doors adorned with branches of elder and bunches of nettles. This was done before daybreak.

Another custom observed on the first of May was that of choosing the May-queen. This custom is still observed in some villages in the country. The popular beauty of the village is crowned with May flowers and receives the homage of the villagers for the day.

In London the name Mayfair still survives to mark a spot which was once the scene of much merry-making at this season. Very little notice is now taken, however, of May-day in the metropolis. "Jackin-the-Green," an entertainment formerly provided by the chimneysweeps, is now seldom seen. Milkmaids are almost unknown in London. Formerly they existed in great numbers; and on May-day they would carry round the "milkmaid's garland." This garland was a pyramidal frame, covered with damask, glittering on each side with polished metal and adorned with knots of gay-coloured ribbons, such as those with which carmen or carters still decorate their horses. The garland was carried by two men, preceded by music, to which the milkmaids danced at the doors of their customers. Some milkmaids, instead of following a garland, would lead about a sleek cow, decked with flowers and ribbons. This custom brings to mind the Anglo-Saxon name for the month of May-Trimilki, "because in that month they began to milk their kine three times in the day."

In concluding this short notice of some old May-day customs, we sincerely say to our readers, in the words of a very old "Mayers' " song

"So God bless you all, both great and small,}

And send you a joyful May."

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RED-LETTER DAYS OF THE CHURCH'S YEAR.

MAY.

AY 1: St. Philip and St. James, Apostles and Martyrs. Bethsaida, in Galilee, was the native place of St. Philip. It was a mean and poor place, and its inhabitants were looked upon as more rude and ignorant than those of any other part of Palestine. But "the things which are despised hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are." It is thought by some that to St. Philip belongs the peculiar privilege of having been our Lord's first-called disciple. Although our Saviour, after his return from the wilderness, first met Andrew and his brother Peter, and spoke with them, yet they immediately afterwards returned to their work. The next day, as Jesus was passing through Galilee, he met Philip, whom he commanded to follow him. It was not until a

year afterwards that Andrew and Peter were called.

Philip immediately recognised Jesus as the Messias. Although he lived in such a humble place, and although he probably occupied no higher rank in life than that of a poor hard-working and illeducated fisherman, Philip appears to have been well acquainted with the Scriptures, however, for directly he is called he hastens to Nathanael and tells him the good news in words which indicate this. Such knowledge does not imply unusual intelligence or knowledge on the part of Philip; for the prophecies concerning the coming of Messias must have been at that time a common topic of conversation among the Jews. Thus he says to Nathanael, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Philip had needed the performance of no striking miracle to convince him of the Divinity of Jesus, unless, indeed, there was some miraculous influence in the Divine presence, some subtle charm of attraction, in the presence of which all possibility of doubt was dispelled, so that upon this occasion merely to see was to believe. And so when Nathanael met Philip's enthusiastic announcement with the hesitating question, "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Philip shows how strongly he himself was impressed by the simple rejoinder, "Come and see." And a few words from Jesus proved sufficient testimony for Nathanael, and he reverently exclaimed, "Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel."

The chief scene of St. Philip's apostolic labours is believed to have been Upper Asia. At Hierapolis, in Phrygia, a rich and populous city, but given over to the grossest forms of idolatry, St. Philip preached and admonished with so much success, and obtained so much influence over large numbers of the people, that the rulers of

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RED LETTER DAYS OF THE CHURCH'S YEAR. the place were provoked to jealousy and alarm. St. Philip was at length cast into prison, scourged, and finally executed-probably by means of crucifixion. He has left us no writing of his own; but his life furnishes us with a noble example of obedience, of zeal, and of steadfastness even unto death.

St. James the Less, called also St. James the Just, is in Galatians i. 19 mentioned as "the Lord's brother." This may mean that he was the son of Joseph by a former wife; but as among the Jews the term brother includes almost every degree of relationship, we have an alternative supposition. Indeed, the identity of James the Less with James the Just, first Bishop of Jerusalem-the mother of all other churches-is a point upon which the best authorities are divided in opinion. We need not here perplex ourselves with the discussion of that question-whether or not he was identical with St. James the Less. It is the head of the Church at Jerusalem, and the writer of the Epistle, St. James the Just, whose memory we celebrate upon this day. His great wisdom and knowledge were accompanied by exceeding meekness of manner. Tradition states that he led a life remarkable for its self-denial, and that he neither ate meat nor drank wine. His zeal in the cause of Christ appears to have greatly incensed the Scribes and Pharisees. It is related that they took him to the top of the temple in the hope that by flattering speeches they might persuade him to deny Christ to the assembled multitude. But St. James, although he well knew his peril, opened his lips only to give noble testimony to the truth. His enraged tempters hurled him from the pinnacle. He was not at once killed, but was enabled to get upon his knees and pray for his persecutors. In that attitude he was stoned to death. This is said to have happened about twentyfour years after our Lord's ascension. Thus he, like St. Philip,

steadfastly walked in the way which leadeth to eternal life."

SCRIPTURAL PROPERTIES ENUMERATED.-The properties of Scripture may be summarily enumerated as follows:-1. All of it is clear and intelligible enough, to persons who sincerely desire to conform the heart and life accordingly. 2. The word of God is found to be of special effect upon the human heart, for conviction, conversion, instruction, and comfort, in all ages and all nations; and hereby evinces-3. Its Divine authority, whence it follows. 4. That it is the standard for determining every controversy in matters of faith. 5. It is perfect, as containing whatever is necessary to be known and believed, in order to salvation. 6. It is also profitable, as containing nothing irrelevant or useless. 7. The providence of God has watched over it, so that it retains its purity unsullied, and can be enjoyed now as it ever could be from thẹ beginning.-Bengel.