How much did I suffer during these days of conflict! I felt that I must read the book of God, in spite of myself; and my religion strove against those passages which condemned it; I seemed already an unbeliever; I detested what I considered a delusion, and apostasy.

One word of Christ's occasioned a still greater struggle. This was respecting going to confession, as I had been used to do and considered an ordinance appointed by God. This text was the address of Christ to the penitent sinner: "Go in peace, thy sins are forgiven thee." I thought, Did Jesus say this to a woman, degraded in his sight by the greatness of her crimes, and will he not say the same to me? Are not his love and mercy still the same? If I go to him and confess my sins to him, will he not say to me the words he spoke to this poor sinner?

This thought impressed me so strongly, that I no longer hesitated to tell my confessor that I must give up my visits to him. He was much offended, and his answer disturbed me much. I lost my rest, and regretting the want of that ease in which I had once lived, I resolved no longer to read the Scriptures, which always made me uneasy, and I turned to my other books, "Of the Imitation of Jesus Christ," "The Inward Life of the Soul," and others. But the work God had begun could not remain unfinished, and I found no repose in my determined return to the offices of our church and my private devotions.

The remembrance of my mother seemed like a voice from heaven; and as, on the one hand, I could not resist it, on the other, I could no longer approve what I had discovered to be error; therefore I tried to bargain with my conscience; and deceitfully resting on this text, "Hast thou faith, have it in thyself towards God," I tried to persuade myself that it was not necessary to leave the church of Rome; and that it was sufficient for me, being more enlightened than some other devout souls, to lay aside a few doctrines and some practices, yet remain faithful to the worship of the ancient church. This arrangement satisfied me for a time, though I could not hide from myself its disingenuousness; and an unexpected occurrence showed me the fallacy of my reasoning. One day, when alone in my room, I mechanically took up my Tes

How surprised was I to read, as a sort of preface to this epistle, words to the following effect. The converted Jews having been persecuted by their own countrymen, several were overcome, and returned to their synagogues. St. Paul having heard this, wrote the following epistle, A.D. 63, to strengthen their faith, and afford them consolation. The Jews boasted of all that was splendid in the observances of their religion, of their sacrifices, their ark of the covenant, of all the ceremonies appointed in their law, and they reproached the Christians for having nothing of the sort. St. Paul, therefore, endeavoured to support the Hebrews against this temptation, by showing the superiority of the sacrifice of Christ to the sacrifices under the law, which were but a shadow, and not the real benefits which can only be derived from Jesus, the High Priest of the New Testament.

These words dismayed me, and well understanding what would be the drift of this epistle, I at first refused to read it. But I could not persist in this intention, and I began the perusal. I had not yet been staggered respecting the sacrifice of the mass and its ceremonies. I had heard it discussed by several persons, without any impression being made on my mind, and I had always attended its performance regularly. But after reading this epistle, another field seemed to open before me; and the mass, as a repetition of the sacrifice of Christ, though without shedding of blood, appeared at least useless. I thought, "If Jesus has not offered himself often, and by one offering hath perfected for ever those that were sanctified by the will of God, where is the need of a sacrifice being repeated, which can add nothing to what the Saviour has already accomplished?" The next morning I returned to the priest, and told him what was passing in my mind. After a long conversation, which could not convince me, he advised me to read an "Exposition of Catholic Doctrine,” by Bossuet; and I proceeded carefully to study that work, but it afforded so little relief, that my suspicions, on the contrary, were deepened by it. But I did not indulge them, without self-condemnation for opposing so learned a teacher as Bossuet. Surely, I thought, I must have have misunderstood St. Paul; and I read through the epistle again with

renewed diligence. Every chapter, or rather every verse, was like a blow from a hammer, at the foundation of the Romish faith, and. the ceremonies and observances hitherto so dear to me.

Observe here the resistance made by my heart and imagination. Though I was thus pressed on all sides by Scripture, I refused to yield to its evidences, and thought to escape from them by reading the history of the early ages of the church, especially of the first Christian martyrs, whose lives and deaths would show what was the religion of their times. I procured a book, called "The Acts of the Martyrs," by Ruinart, a Benedictine monk of St. Maur, whose name inspired my confidence. The work began with the acts of St. James, bishop of Jerusalem, Ignatius, Polycarp, and other martyrs.

These I read; but I was at once surprised and dejected, to find,. in no one part of their lives or writings, the slightest mention of the sacrifice of the mass, or its ceremonies, the worship of the Virgin, the intercession of saints, or any sort of confession, except that one of the martyrs, who went to suffer death, exclaimed, "I am a Christian."

These first few pages might have satisfied me; but I went on reading, till I came to the martyrdom of Philip, bishop of Heraclea, where I met with this ac

count:

"Aristomachus, an officer of the garrison of Heraclea, entered the church, expelled the Christians from it, and placed on the door the seal of government. Philip looked at him with pity, and said: Think not that the Almighty God dwelleth under a roof and within walls. Knowest thou not that the heart of man is the abode which he loves best? Surely thou hast not read the prophecy of Isaiah, where thou wouldest have read these words: 'Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me?"" I wept before my God, humbled and overcome by these last words; for I, too, had never read the prophecy of Isaiah. I met with this account one evening, and I spent the hours of night in comparing the words of Philip with my own religion. The next day, as soon as possible, I sent for a Bible; it was Martin's version, and I felt some suspicions, but as no other was.within my reach, I began to read the whole of Isaiah from the beginning, seeking for the text in

question. I cannot describe what I felt, when reading these words, "My people, whom I have chosen, "I have redeemed thee," nor the eagerness with which I studied the chapters forty to forty-eight inclusive.

I had quite forgotten my design, and when I resumed my reading, it was not till I reached chapter sixty-six that I found the words I sought in the first verse. “Here it is!” I exclaimed, as I found it ; and having read it again and again, I laid my finger on the text, and added in full conviction of its truth, "What is the use of our altar, our temple, our holy vessels and sacraments, our doctrine of the real presence, and our continually burning lamps? They are mists! they are shadows! And what will become of our ceremonies, images, and ornaments! All are vanity." But instead of deeper humiliation, I felt only irritation and obstinacy at the conviction which pressed upon me. "What did I want with this?" I said to myself; "I was happy when I knew nothing about it; and now what can I do?" I remained in this state of mind for several days. I read no more from the word of God, and I went twice to the church. The first time I went of my own accord; and during the whole service of the mass I was very uneasy, especially at the moment of the elevation of the wafer. I found myself surrounded by a crowd of prostrate worshippers. I hesitated a moment as to whether I should kneel or stand; and at last I half bent, from a fear of being observed; but feeling deeply grieved, I rose, in spite of myself, and quickly left the church.

The next day I went to the priest, and declared that I could no longer attend at church, and even related my struggle the day before. He replied, with much kindness, "This is a time of severe temptation ;". and used various arguments to persuade me to go again to the church. So I went the following Sunday, and while waiting for the service to begin, I read my book of hours, (a manual of devotion,) and found in one place the following verse from Psalm xcv.: "To-day, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts."

I had often read these words without being struck by them, but now they were to me a reproof from the Lord himself for my resistance to his word; and at this moment I felt an earnest desire to believe simply what is revealed in the Holy Scriptures. Fully employed by these

sion; if you resolve to cleave to your own religion, merely because it is your own, not because it comes from God, then you despise-perhaps with anger-every attempt to deliver you from your delusion, and enlighten you by the true light of God, which is in Jesus Christ; if that is indeed your firm resolve, your determination, go on and persevere. But for the love of your own soul, do not thus resolve and persevere till you are sure, before God and from his word, that you have indeed entered on the way to heaven-that this is the path through which you have been led in childhood and in youth, and in which you now pause to consider your ways. The Scriptures say, "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." "Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into

the ditch ?"

To continue to slumber, when over come with drowsiness, at the top of the mast of a ship, is to prepare for a dan- | gerous fall and awful death, as soon as the tempest shall shake the vessel. To persevere in the mere outward forms and observances of religion, relying on them as necessary to salvation, is to forget that the wicked may also bring a sacrifice, but that his offering is abomination to the Lord. Yet he does not flatter himself, that his worship is faultless, and that by its performance he ensures to himself the favour of God.

Be not satisfied with mere negative obedience; still less with self-deception, or sinful carelessness. If you do not yourself watch over your own soul, no one else can do it for you. "Every man," saith the Scripture, "shall bear his own burden;" and each must answer for himself to an infallible Judge, from whose sentence none can escape. The Bible lies before you. It is given to you by a God of love, who bids you read, believe, and be happy, in following its guidance, now and for ever.

Here, then, you may clearly perceive the true road to heaven. It is that where the pilgrim finds guides, who offer to him the Bible, who tell him of the Bible, explain the Bible to him, and require him to obey the Bible. This, assuredly, is the heavenly road. Keep that path, and press forward in it.

But observe, that where the Bible is hidden from you, refused, seldom read, never explained, and on no occasion applied as the only sure and infallible guide, this road cannot be the path of

life. In the first road there is Jesus, for the Bible is his word. He is not to be found in the other course, from which his word is banished.

Fear not, reader; you are accountable to God for your choice for your decision; and if God were but as one, and the religion of the world ten thousand, I ask of what avail would be the ten thousand voices of the world, compared with the voice-the one voice of God.

WONDERS OF THE HUMAN FRAME.

THERE is arising from every point of your body (says Dr. Johnson) a countless number of little vessels, which are at this moment, and every moment of your life, actively engaged in the pleasant task of eating you up. They may be compared to a swarming host of long, delicate, and slender leeches, attached by innumerable mouths, to every point in your fabric, and having their bodies gradually and progressively united together until they all terminate in one tail; which tail perforates the side of one of the large veins at the bottom of the neck at the left side; so that whatever is taken in at their mouths is all emptied, by the other extremity, into that vein, where it becomes mixed with the blood contained in that vein. Now, for a moment turn your eyes inward, contemplate these greedy little cormorants, complacently if you can-observe their activity-remark their unwearied assiduity→ behold the dogged perseverance, the unerring certainty, the beautiful precision, with which they are devouring you. See! mouthful after mouthful is going-going. They never tire, nor are they satisfied; for every atom which each mouth sucks up, and converts into fluid is instantly conducted along the tail, by which it is discharged into the above-mentioned vein. Thus, though for ever feeding, they are for ever hungry. 'Tis true they take in but small mouthfuls at a time; but when it is considered that these mouths are millions in number, and that they are never shut, but constantly at work, night and day, you will easily see that the entire body would speedily be devoured, and carried away into the blood, if there were no contrivance to build the body as fast as these little vessels eat it down and carry it off. These vessels, which I have just introduced to your notice, are the absorbents.

ENGLISH HISTORY.

GEORGE I.

A GENERAL pacification took place in February, 1720, when the quadruple alliance formed between Austria, France, Holland, and England was acceded to by Spain: it was then settled that Sicily should be united to Naples, Sardinia being given in lieu to the duke of Savoy, and Spain giving up all claims upon either island.

The disastrous proceeding known as the South Sea scheme next claims attention. It is necessary to revert to the year 1711, when Harley, finding the government embarrassed by the extent of the national debts outstanding in various forms, incurred to carry on the wars of Marl borough, proposed that a large sum should be made a permanent debt, and an interest of 6 per cent. paid, with farther benefits to the holders of these claims by their being formed into a Joint Stock

South Sea Company. These benefits, however, proved only to be a disgraceful share in the slave-trade to South America, and the privilege of sending one ship every year with a cargo of goods. The commercial scheme being found a failure, a financial operation was planned which, it was thought, might advantage the company and benefit the nation. On certain terms the company were to become responsible for the whole public debt, the proprietors of annuities and other securities were to be induced to relinquish their direct claims on the public, in consideration of greater advantages to be given by the company. Blunt, the leader of the company, induced Stanhope, Sunderland, and the ministers generally, to support this offer, but Walpole and others urging that offers should also be received from other public bodies, the Bank of England was admitted to compete: the South Sea Company then only obtained the preference upon offering the

F