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the mirth of the marriage-feast, enjoy the society of Mary and Martha, as well as weep over Jerusalem, and pray that the cup might be taken from Him. No one need hesitate to take Christ for his ideal for fear that the proper enjoyments of life must be a sacrifice thereto; rath er will be find them sanctified as he participates in them in the spirit of his Master.

the altar and there profess his faith in and allegiance to Christ. Decry such conduct as you may, repress the sentiments which struggle for utterance, and cast the imputation of insincerity upon them if you please, there is something far manlier, far nobler, far more exalting in it than in all the imbecile twaddle that would magnify a molehill into a mountain, or ask you to refresh yourself in the shadow of a blasted palm in the To make Christ one's pattern and exdesert. For the youth of this land, as emplar means, first, foremost, and altofor any other country, not even the mar-gether, to yield one's self to the direction tyred Garfield can be a saviour.

There is undoubtedly a class of persons who are insincere in their protestations. Their life shows one principle of action quite at variance with their profession. That may offend; but it must be remembered that the pattern of such lives is not the Master, but rather His unworthy disciple, who was a thief, bare the bag, and carried what was put therein. A crowd of funeral-faced croakers is not an attractive body for any young man; but that need not worry him. I should rather pity the young man who is always complaining that the God whom he serves is thwarting his every impulse to enjoy the gifts of his Creator, than to take to task the merry-hearted one who can brighten the glow of the sunshine on the fairest day. Seasons of earnestness and seriousness are not incompatible with periods of joy and rejoicing. Has not the sagest of men as with the finger of God written to us, "There is a time for everything?"

Nor is it at all in the path of realizing the life which takes Christ for its ideal, for us to drag our slow length wearily along, and whine that the world is growing so very evil, reproach our Maker for keeping us so long in it, and slyly hint to Him in every sigh that it might suit us better to be taken hence. That has been put forth as a Christian life; but we find nothing like it in the history of our ideal. He was earnest, grave; did not the salvation of an entire world rest upon Him? He was solemn, serious, at times sorrowful; was not the weight of man's guilt on His shoulders? But He was affable, joyous, open to the innocent enjoyments of the young; did not children love to caress Him, as He took them up into His arms and blessed them? He could share in

of His Spirit. It involves the paradox of realizing freely two distinct lives,Christ's and one's own. Neither does Christ become the individual Christian, nor is the individual absorbed into Christ. You will remain yourself; the nearest that you will ever get to Christ is to become Christ-like. And to realize in your own life the fulness of your ideal, it is essential that your life is from the beginning modelled after the life of Christ; not only that, but a prime necessity is that the development of your life should also go forward after the manner of Christ's growth. For the young Christian it is not only a most interesting study, but at the same time a most edifying one, to contemplate well the formative period of his Master's life. The mode of our Saviour's unfolding is the pattern of a right development; and it behooves especially every young man at this time, when so many smaller ideals are held up for his adoption,-it behooves every young man who would once for all set before himself a prize worth striving for, to consider the ideal of ideals, Jesus Christ.

LET every pious parent regard his family as a little school for the church, and act as a teacher designated by the Saviour, on purpose to train the children for His service, and we shall see a glorious result. Let parents neglect this duty, and their children will prove incompetent to meet the responsibilities awaiting them, and the parents must answer for the ruin that will ensue. The laws of Lycurgus required that all children of Sparta should be trained for the State. Jesus teaches His subjects to believe that children are a heritage of the Lord and to train for the church.

A LEGEND OF STRASBURG CATHEDRAL.
Tis said where Strasburg's glorious spire
Its sculptured beauty lifts on high,
One lovely, polished stone is found,

Though now unseen by mortal eye.
Long years agone-when love and zeal
Aspired the holy fane to raise-
A peasant woman longed to aid

In building up God's house and praise.

Over one stone her loving care

For many a weary year was poured,
Till, bowed with age, at last she brought
Her finished offering to the Lord.

"Too late," the builder kindly said,
"Your offering comes, no place below
Is left in which your polished stone

Its beauty to the world can show."

"Far up upon the lofty spire

One little niche is left to hold Your gift, but ah ! no human eye Your work of love can there behold!"

A smile lit up her old, worn face; "That niche is just the place for meMy stone will meet the eyes I love

The angels and my Lord can see."

Think you, among the priceless gifts
Lavished on that cathedral grand,
One gift of greater worth was given
Than that brought by the peasant's hand?

Ah no! to win the praise of men

Full many a treasure there was poured, While she a lifetime gladly spent

To make her's only for the Lord.

The stone our love has polished long,
In life's cathedral may not gain
An honored place, but not for that
Was love's work ever wrought in vain.

Be sure the waiting niche is kept

For all work wrought by loving hands, Where the cathedral God has built

In heaven's emblazoned glory stands. -Hannah Allyn Heydon.

THREE QUEENS.

BY THE EDITOR.

Sorrow ascends to royal palaces and often changes a diadem into a crown of thorns. It is all nonsense to talk about being "as happy as a king," for there is no position in the world that is less conducive to happiness. The pomp and splendor of royalty soon become wearisome, and the flattery of a silly court cannot compensate for the loss of all

that is sweet in domestic life. In times of civil convulsion kings and queens are apt to be the first to suffer, and many royal personages might be enumerated, even in our generation, who have been driven from their thrones into exile and obscurity. Among the royal personages of Europe, who, like the psalmist of Israel, sought relief in song, three noble women deserve to be especially remembered. They were great sufferers and earnest Christians. It may not be in vain to give our readers a brief sketch of their lives, with specimens of their sacred poetry.

I. MARIA OF HUNGARY. This queen was a daughter of Philip I, of Spain, and a sister of the Emperor Charles V. She was born September 17th, 1505, and was married at an early age to King Louis, of Hungary. Her literary acquirements were remarkable, and it is said that, though she could not speak Hungarian, she addressed the assembled nobles in excellent Latin. When she attended church she always took her Latin Bible with her, and referred to the Scripture passages which were mentioned in the sermon. Her profound study of the Scriptures early led her to sympathize with the Reformation, and she secretly corresponded with Luther. When the Turks invaded Hungary in 1526 her husband went forth to meet them, but he was killed in the disastrous battle of Mohacz, and Maria was left a defenceless widow. Luther then wrote her a consoling letter, and dedicated to her his exposition of several of the Psalms. As she could no longer consistently remain a Roman Catholic, she publicly accepted the Evangelical faith, but was so bitterly persecuted that she was compelled to flee to Germany. It was at this time of deep humiliation that she wrote her hymn, "Mag ich Unglück nit widerstahn," of which the following is a partial and imperfect translation:

"Can I my fate no more withstand
Nor 'scape the hand

That for faith would grieve me?
This is my strength that well I know
In weal or we

God's love the world must leave me.
God is not far; though hidden now,
He soon shall rise and make them bow
Who of His word bereave me.

"All has its day, the proverb saith, This is my faith:

Thou, Christ, wilt be beside me, And look in all this pain of mine As it were Thine.

When sharpest woes betide me, Must I then tread this path? I yield. World, as thou wilt, God is my shield, And He will rightly guide me."

The later history of this unhappy queen is somewhat obscure. All her relatives were fanatical Roman Catholics, and no doubt, after she fell into their hands she had to suffer greatly. It was subsequently announced that she bad become reconciled with the Catholic church, but the Protestants did not believe it. She died October 18th, 1558, at Cicales, in Spain.

II. LOUISA HENRIETTA, OF
BRANDENBURG.

This celebrated poetess was born Nov. 17th, 1627, at the Hague, in Holland. She was the eldest daughter of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange, and a grand-daughter of the famous Coligni, Grand Admiral of France, who lost his life for his faith at the massacre of St. Bartholomew. Her pious parents gave her an excellent education, but did not regard it as below the dignity of her station to become familiar with every kind of household labor. At the age of nineteen she was married to Frederick William of Brandenburg, who is called "the Great Elector," and who is properly regarded as the real founder of the kingdom of Prussia. Though he did not assume the royal title he was as really a king as any one of his successors. Louisa soon proved herself the worthy consort of a great ruler. Her marriage occurred just before the close of the Thirty Years' War, when Germany had been trampled by contending armies until it was almost ruined. The princess labored with all her might to improve the condition of her subjects. She introduced the cultivation of potatoes, and induced some of the best farmers in Holland to remove to Germany and establish model farms. Her popularity was so great that, it is said, almost every female child born during the first years of her reign was called "Louisa." Though she and her husband were both earnestly attached to the Reformed

faith, they labored earnestly for the reconciliation of the two evangelical churches. They refused to promulgate the decrees of the Synod of Dordrecht, which they regarded as an apple of discord.

The domestic life of the royal pair was blessed by mutual affection, but apart lives were "a chain of sorrows." Nearly from this, it has been said that their all of their relatives died early, and some of them under most distressing circumdreadful wars, and sometimes it seemed There was stances. a succession of as though their enemies would succeed in destroying them. Their greatest grief died in infancy. For eleven years they was the death of their only son, who had no other child, and it seemed as though the House of Hohenzollern must become extinct. The people appreciated the complications to which such an event must give rise. There would be terrible wars for the succession, and the land must again be given over to ruin and desolation. Hence they, most unjustly, began to regard the princess with aversion, and many wished her out of the way for the good of the country.

All this preyed on the mind of the Electress Louisa. She prayed over it, and at last regarded it as her duty to make a formal application for a divorce. One day she appeared publicly before the Elector and said: "I beg leave to apply for a divorce. Take another wife who will bless the country with an heir to the throne. You owe this to the wishes of your people." The Elector, however, refused to accept the sacrifice, and replied: "As far as I am concerned I am determined to keep the vow which I made at the altar, and if it pleases God to punish me and the country, we will have to endure it. Louisa! have you forgotten the words of Scripture: What God hath joined together let not man put asunder."" Then he gave her his hand and said, smiling; "Well! who knows what may yet happen?"

Greatly comforted by the unswerving affection of her husband, Louisa retired to her palace at Oranienburg, where she spent her time in prayer and deeds of beneficence. Her health gradually improved, and in the following year she had a son. Three years later a second heir was granted her, and the latter prince

was afterwards Frederick I, of Prussia, the direct ancestor of the present emperor. The prayers of Louisa were answered, and as a memorial of her thankfulness she established an Orphan Asylum, which is still flourishing.

Napoleon Bonaparte, it will be remembered, divorced his first wife, Josephine, as he claimed, from motives of public policy. How much better it would have been for both of them if they had followed the example of the great Elector and his pious consort.

The Electress died June 18th, 1667, soon after the birth of her sixth child, Prince Louis, of Cleves. Some of her death-bed sayings have been recorded. Once she exclaimed: "I am drawing near the harbor! I see the pinnacles of the celestial city! If I should get well it would throw me back into the stormy ocean." Just before her death she said: "I have passed with Elijah through the storm, the earthquake and the fire. Now I am waiting for the still, small voice." Her last words were: "I hear the still, small voice."

It is as the authoress of a number of hymns that Louisa of Brandenburg is best remembered. The best known of these are, "Jesus meine Zuversicht," and "Ich will von meiner Missethat," which are sung wherever the German language is spoken. The former, it is said, is always sung at the burial of a member of the royal family of Prussia. Some years ago the king presented to the church in which his ancestors used to worship a large bell, which he named "Zuversicht," bearing as an inscription the first two lines of her celebrated hymn, which may be rendered:

"Jesus, my eternal Trust,
And my Savior, lives forever."

This hymn has been so frequently translated that, in some form, it is probably familiar to most English readers. We give several stanzas, from a version by an unknown author, which though not very literal contains much of the spirit of the original:

"Jesus, my Redeemer lives;

Christ, my trust, is dead no. more!
In the strength this knowledge gives,
Shall not all my fears be o'er,
Though the night of death be fraught
Still with many an anxious thought?

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This unfortunate queen was born in 1596 and died in 1662. She was the daughter of James I, of England, and the grandmother of George I. At an early age she was married to Frederick V, Elector of the Palatinate. Though her capital at Heidelberg was, in those days, one of the most brilliant in Europe, she was not satisfied because she was not called a queen, and her ambition proved her ruin. Her husband was regarded as the natural leader of the Protestant party, and when the Bohemians revolted against the emperor and chose the elector of the Palatinate to be their king, his wife induced him to accept the dangerous position. On this occasion she made the foolish speech, which took the rounds of Germany, that "she would rather eat sauer-kraut with a king than roast beef with an elector." She had her wish. Her husband was crowned king of Bohemia, but was only able to sustain himself in his new position a single winter. Hence he is called the 'Winter King' and his wife the 'Winter Queen.' While they were seeking a kingdom the emperor seized the Palatinate, and they were thus entirely deprived of sovereign power. After great difficulties and privations the royal pair escaped to Holland, where they subsequently lived in retirement.

The Bohemian rebellion was the beginning of the Thirty Years' War, and the 'Winter King' and his queen were popularly blamed for having inaugurated It is, however, generally acknow

it.

THE MOTHER'S SACRIFICE.

BY S. E. DUBBS.

ledged that if Frederick had possessed his wife's ability he might possibly have retained his throne. It is also said that the royal pair were sincerely devoted to the Protestant cause, but the fact that the Protestants were divided among themselves prevented them from receiving the support which was essential to actress--awakens our sympathy, particu

success.

In her humiliation the unfortunate queen was capable of inspiring sentiments of chivalrous devotion. Duke Christian, of Brunswick, bound her glove on his helmet, after the fashion of a knight-errant, and swore a solemn oath not to make peace until he had restored her husband to the throne of Bohemia. He died without accomplishing his purpose. It was this prince who struck medals with the inscription: "Gottes Freund, der Pfaffen Feind."

During her later years the 'Winter Queen' seems to have entirely given up her ambitious projects, and devoted her time to charity and devotion. She also wrote verses, which were generally of a religious charac ́er.

We give, in conclusion, a specimen of her religious poetry, which, it is said, was composed during her girlhood. It is tender and touching, though some what deficient in metrical form:

"This is joy, this is true pleasure, If we best things make our treasure, "And enjoy them at full leisure, Evermore in richest measure.

God is only excellent,

Let up to Him our love be sent;
Whose desires are set or bent,
On aught else shall much repent.

Let us love of heaven receive,
These are joys our hearts will heave
Higher than we can conceive,
And shall us not faint nor leave.

Earthly things do fade, decay,
Constant to us not one day;
Suddenly they pass away,
And we cannot make them stay.

To me grace, O, Father send,
On Thee wholly to depend,
That all may to Thy glory tend,
So let me live, so let me end.

Now to the true, Eternal King,
Not seen with human eye,

The immortal, only wise, true God,
Be praise perpetually."

The temple scene in "Shiloh," where the Ark of God rested-Eli, the quiet spectator, and Hannah, the chief

larly when we contemplate the domestic affliction and grievance of the suppliant, now wrestling in the intensity of feeling, and the grace of a strong faith before the altar of Jehovah.

With what abandonment of her late grief, do we behold her leaving the temple, and in unspeakable peace, seeking the solitude and duties of home! Evidently God must have manifested His presence and promise to her, in the hour of her intercession before Him at His "footstool," and the words of promise spoken by His servant the High Priest, must have been the sign and seal of her future hope.

With this assurance she humbly awaits the realization of the divine promise. Not long was faith kept in suspense; the full glory of the wife, and the deepest consciousness of maternity blessed her, and she forgot the reproach of the childless.

Possibly, her heart was so filled with the higher emotions of gratitude and religious favor, as to render her wholly superior to the base and passion of carnal exultation over a domestic foe. Here as elsewhere, one cannot help admiring the true nature method of delineating character one meets through out the Old Testament. No effort is made to present the bright side; but the virtues like fine streaks of light, are depicted here and there breaking in upon depraved human nature, that then as now, alternately conquers sin, or is conquered by it.

To Hannah, we can imagine that such a season of mental superiority had come, wherein inferior emotions-envy, contention, fickleness, vanity-strike upon the senses as spray dashes upon the rock, that neither repels nor greets them, but remains as immovable as truth itself.

And Hannah becomes in very truth a mother. Among the lofty hills of Ramah, she nursed the joy of her heart -her son, her first born! To her his

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