Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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POETRY. From tiic Christian Keepsake. TI1E DYING BOY. [WRITTEN BY MRS. LARNED, OF PROVIDENCE.] The following lines were written after reading an account of the death of a young mother and three children, from the inhuman neglect of the husband and father. The wife was taken suddenly ill, and let alone with her lille ones, while her husband went to procure a physician, and other needful assistance, the nearest house being over two miles distant; but he forgot ever thing save his own depraved appetite, became intoxicated before accomplishing his errand, remained so for a week, and on his return found them all dead. It is supposed that the mother died soon after the j birth of her child, and that the child struggled ' longest?that in trying to sooth his expiring i sister, he sank down from weakness beside iter, and could not at last release himself from her grasp. On! mother dear, my lips are dry, ! And Bessv's hands are cold ; Mother, dear mother! help me nigh Your bosom?surely you can hold Your little boy. I will not cry, Nor a6k again for drink 01 bread, If you will only let rne lie Upon your breast and hold my head. Oh mother ! call jour little boy To your beda.de?he'll try to crawl; You said I was your only joy, Your dari ng Henry, and your all; And then, you looked and screamed out so? 44 Boy ! to your cruel father go, Why do you weep and wail to me ? Fly ! fly! Iv'o nothing here for thee !" Don't stare so 011 me mother, dear, I'm still?though Bessy will not stir ; And slie's too cold to he so near? O, why don't father corne to her? Poor Bessy cried herself to sleep ; I wish 1 could?but when try, My lids won't shut?and always keep Wide open 011 your staring eye ! Knvi* ran vnti lip ptiil iTXUUIIVI ??V?? V??. J - -m ? With the dead baby in your arms ' Who did the little dear one hill ? You said 'twas now safe from all harms Can't I be dead too mother, say ? I'm sure 'tis very lonesome here? Is heaven a very great long way ? And is our father waiting there ? I'm tired now, and cannot g<\ And the bright sun does blind me so Oh, shut your eyes, dear mother do ? And let me love to gaze on you. How can you see us lying thus, On this iced floor?our feet so cold 1 Once you would fondly run to us, And round us both the blankets fo'd. I'm falling?oh! the room turns round? I cannot see you now;?but hark ? 1 hear a soft and pleasant sound ; Perhaps it is the little lark. I love such sounds as these to hear, And it is dark no longer now; Dear little girls with wings are near, And they are smiling on me too. O, 'tis their songs so sweet and clear? ? iUirvlr T Kni?. Unm OAptN? Clt? A luioa ft uvoi b-u/? Dear children 6tay no longer here ;? Come, come with us, we'll lead the wayIt must be heaven where they dweii ; I come !?I come!?Mother farewell! # * * * * ***** HOW TO ENCOURAGE THE HEART AGAINST DEATH. There are seven arguments, which ! shall urge upon the people of God at such a time * as this, to make them cheerfully entertain the messengers of death, and die as well as live, like saints. And the first is this: Argument 1. The harmlessness oj death to the people of God. Though it keep its dart, it hath lost its sting. A saint (to allude to that, Isa. xt: 8.) "May play upon the hole of the asp," and put his -'hand into the cockatrice's den." Death is the cocka. * * 1 w MMflktrA IO V. I ** ,1,<M ? ^ trice, or asp, lii?S?ia?v 10 (in uuic ur ueu ; a saint need not fear to pet his hand boldly into it. It hath left and lost i:s sting in the sides ofChrist, 1 Cor. xv ; CO. '*0 death! where is thy sting?" Why art thou afraid, O saint, that this sickness may be thy death, as long as thou knowest that the death of Christ is the death of death ? Indeed, il thou didst die in thy sins, as John viii; 21 If death, ma king, did reign over thee, Rom. v : 14. If it could feed upon thee, as the lion doth upon the prey he hath taken, as Psalm xIix : 14. IfWiell followed the pale horse,*' as it is, Rev. vi: 1, then thou mightest well startle and shrink bark from it; but when Cod hath put away thy sins from thee, "as far as the east is from the west," Psal. ciii. 12; as long as thereis no other evil left in dead) for thee to en. counter with but boddv pain; as Ion" as the scriptures represent it io thee under such harmless and easy notions, as the put. ting off thy clothes, 2 Cor. v: 2; "And lying down to sleep upon thy bed," Isa. Ivii: 2, why shouldst thou be afraid ? There is as much difference betwixt death to the people of Cod, and others, as betwixi the unicorn's horn, when it is upon the head - ' " i i . , o! that nerce beast, anu wnen it is in the apothecary's shops, where it is made sulu. hrious and medicinal. Arg. 2. The hecut may be kept from shrinking back at such a time as this, by considering the necessity of death, in order to the fullfruition of God. Whether thou art willing to die or no, ] assure thee there is no other way to obtain the lull satisfaction of thy soul, and coitu ; p'ete its happiness, till the hand of death do' tl>ee the kind office to draw aside the cur- j tain nf the flosh. th V QiiiiI mnimf cm Onrl I ...... .. ? J VVAIIUVh OV/?j \JI VJU j This animal life stands betwixt him and! thee, 2 Cor. v : G ; "Whilst we are at home j in the body, we are absent from the Lord." j The body must be refined and ca>t into a; new mould, else that new wine of heavenly! glory would break it. Paul, in his highest i rapture, 2 Cor. xii: 4, when he heard things i unutterable, was then but a stand r-by, a J looker-on, not admitted into the company j as one oflh m : but us the angels ate in our assemblies, so was Pan! in that g;urh ; <"To V ;>'"n U'i r r? opipfW <>- t'jd yet even for this he must as it were, be taken out of the body, unclothed for a 1 i fie < time, to have a glimpse of that glory, and then put on his c!o h? s again. O then ! who would r.o: be wilim. 'o die for a lull sight j and enjoyment of God ? Metainks thy ! soul shoufd look and sigh, like a prisoner,! through the gates of this mortality: "O 1 that I had wings like a dove, then would j "I fly away, and beat restMost men need patience to die, but a saint that understands what death admits him to, should rather need patience to live; methinks he should often look out, and listen on a deathbed for his Lord's coming; and when he receives the news of his approaching change, should say, "The voice of my heloved ! behold, lie cometh upon the nioun- j * * ? " m . o i tarins, skipping upon trio rims, n <j , | Arg. 3. Another argument persuading to ! this willingness, is the immediate succession | of a more excellent and glorious life. It is but a wmk, and you shall see God. j Your happiness shall not be deferred till the resurrection; but as soon as the body is dead, the gracious soul is swallowed up in life, Rom. viii: 10, 11. W hen once you have loosed from this shore, in a few moments, your souls will be wafted over u;>on the wings of ungt Is lo the other shore of a ; glorious eternity. Phil, i: 23, '4 desire to j be dissolved, and to be with Christ." Did the soul a d body die together, as Bcrtlius taught; or d.d they sleep 'ill the resurrection, as otficrs have groundlessly fancied; it had been a madness for Paul to desire a dissolution lor the enjoyment of Christ. For if this were so, he enjoyed more of Christ whiist his soul dwelt in its fleshly tabernacle, than he should out of it. There are but two ways of the soul's living, known in scripture, viz. he life of faith, and the 1 fe of vision, 1 Cor. v: 5.? T.iose two divide all time, ho h present and future, betviixt them, 1 Cor. xiii: 12. If when faith fails, sight should not nnnie. diaHy succeed, what would become ol tinunbodied soul? But blpssed be God, this j great hear -establishing truth is evidently ! revealed n scripture, Luke xxiii: 43. You have Christ's promise, John xiv : 3. 1" j will come and nceive you to myself." 0 j what a change will a few moments mako upon your condition ? Rouse up, dying saint; when thy soul is come out a little further ; when it shall stand like Abraham, at its tent-door, he angels of God shall coon be w.ih thee ; the souls of the elect are, as it were, put out to the ang? Is to nur6e, and when they die, these angels earry them home again to their Father's house ; if an angel were caused to fly swiftly to bring a saint the answer of his prayer, Dan. ix: :2'2. how much more will the angels come post from heaven to receive and transler the praying sou! itself? Arg. 4. Farther, It may much conduce to thy willingness to die, to consider, that by death, God oftentimes hides his people out of the way of all temptations and troub~ Jes upon earthy Rev; xiv: 13. "Write, from henceforth, Blessed are the dead wh'ch die in the Lord." It is God's usual way, when some extraordinary calamines are coming upon the weld, to set his people out of harm's way before-hand, Isa. lvii: j 1. "Merciful men are taken away from j ! the evil to conn*." So, Mic. vii. 2, when j | such an evil time comes, as is there Joj scribed, "That they all lie in wait for blood, ; and every man hunts his brother with a net." j God, by an act of favor, houses his people j beforehand. Dost thou knew what evil ! may be in the earth, which thou art so | loth to leave ? Thy God removes thee for thy great advantage; thou art disbanded by death, and called oil* the field , other poor saints must stand to it, and endure a great fight of [afflictions. It is observed that Methuselah died the very year before the flood : Augustine, a little before the sacking of Hippo; Pareus, just before the taking of Heidelburg : Luther observes, that all the apostles died before the destruction of Jerusalem : and Luther himself died before the wars, broke out T? miu lh/1 I A.il ??r>f>e #h,i Ill UCIlIiailJ I 11 U?V/ XJUIU o^v.j lender heart cannot endure to see the misery, j or bear the temptations that are coming, and , j therefore will now gather thee to thy grave , | in peace ;?and yet wilt thou cry, O sp ire me a little longer! 7 Arg* 5. IJ yet thy heart hang lack, con. sider the great advantage you will have by , death, above all thai ever you enjoyed on , earth ; and that, (1.) As to your communion with God. (2.) As to your communion wi h saints. 1. For your communion with God : the time of perfecting that is now come; thy soul shall shortly stand before the face of God, and have the immediate emanations and beamings forth of his glorv upon it: here thy soul is remote from God, the beams of his glory upon it: htro :Iiy siul is remote from God, the beams of bis glory strike it but obliquely and feebly, but short, ly it wi 1 be under the line, and there the sun shall stand still, as it d.d in Gibeon ; there shall be no cloudings, nor declinings of it. O low should this fill thy soul with desires of being unclothed! 2. As for the enjoyment of sun's, here indeed we have fellowship with them of the lower form ; but that fellowship is so dia* sweetened by remain ng corr ip ions, that j there is no satisfaction in it; as it is the I greatest plague that can befal an hypocrite j to live in a pure church, so it is the greatest, I vexation to the spirit of a saint, to live in a ; ; corrupt and disordered church ; but when 1 | death hath admitted you into that glorious | ' assembly of the spirits of just men made per-! feet, you shall have the desire of your hearts; j here you cannot fully close with another;! yea, you cannot fully close with your own j souls. O what discords, jarrings, censur- J ings are here ? What perfect, blessed har? j rnony there! In heaven each saint loves, another as himself, they are altogether love, j lv. () my soul, has'e thee away from the | lion's dens, to the mountains of myrrh, and j liiils of franchincense :?thou ar; now going ' unf<i thine own people, as tic apostle's phit so imports, Cor. v : 8. Arg. 6. if tins will not do. Consider what i fiCO.l'tf h'l!f i-'-'int'/'lcrs J- " ] In this tabernacle we groan, being bur-! dened,(l.) With bodily distempers ; how J :ruc do we find that of Theophrustus The j soul pays a dear rent for the tenement it I now lives in. But glorified bodies are clog- j d with no indispositions : death is the best | physician ; it wdl cure tliee ot all diseases at once. (2.) With the indwelling of sin ; this makes us groan from lie very bowels, Rom. vii: 24. 4*1 Jut he that is dead, is free from sin." Rent, vi: 7. Hutl) justification destroyed its damning power, and sanctificatton its reigning power I So glorification d stroyes its very being and exiciunr/> f'A } Wn irrr.an under temnta ? \ - / - o tions here, but us soon as wo arc out ot'llie body, we are out of the reach of tempia lion : when once thou art got into heaven, thou mayesl say, Now Satan, I atn there where thou canst not come, for as the damned in hell are malo obformati, so fixed in sin and misery, that their condit'on cannot be altered ; so glorified saints are bono confirmuti, so fixed in holiness and glory, that they cannot be shaken. (4.) Merc we groan under various troubles and afflictions ; but then the days of our mourning are ended. God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes. 0 dten let us haste away, that we may be at rest! Arg. 7. If still thou linger, like Lot in Sodom, then, lastly, examine all the pleas and p/etences for a longer lime on earth. Win art tnou unwilling to die ? Objection 1. 0 1 have many relttions in the world, I know not what will becomo of them when I am gone. Solution. If thou art troubled abou their bodies, and outward condition, why sIiojI i not that wore satisfy thee, Jer. xlix : II. '"Leave thy fatherless childreu to me, * -1- --" 1 ln? willnwc I Will Keep uiuiu unve, uuu ici j trust in me." Lu:her, in his last will and tesament, hath this expression, 'Lord, thou la t giv< n me wife and children, I have noihiug to lo ive them, but I commit them unto thee. O Father of the futherless, and judge of widows, Nut ft, serva doce, nourish, keep, and teach them.' Or, art thou trou bled for their souls ? Thou canst not convert tbem, if thou shouldst live, and Go can make thy prayers and counsels to live, and take place upon thern when thou ar dead. Objection 2. I would fain live to do God more service in the world. Solution. Well, but if he have no more service for th? e to do here, why shouldst thou not say with David. "It he have no delight to use me any farther, hire am I, let him do what se -meih him good." In this world thou hast no more 10 do, but he s ^ailing thee to an higher service and em. ; loyment in heaven ; and what thou would do for him here, he can do that by othc? hands. Objecion 3. I am not yot fully ready, I am not as a bride, completely adorned for the bridegroom. Solution. Thyjustifica'ion is complete already,though thy sanctification be no: so ; ? and the way to make it so is to dit> : for till then ic will nave cu-iecis anu w;iiu?. Objection 4. O but I want asssurance; if I had that, I could die presently. Solution. Yea, there it sticks, indeed ; but then consider, th.r an he ?rty willingness to leave oil the wor d to be freed from sin and be with God, is the next way to that desired assurance ; no carnal person was ever i willing to die upon this ground. -tluvei. { From the Episcopal Recorder. A TRUE REVIVAL. j What Minister would not desire to come ! to Ins people each Sabbath morn "m the 1fulness of the blessing of the Gospel oj I Christ?" And yet now few consider th j full meaning oi this expression! We have thought it would bo profitable to our readers, to insert some remarks of the Rev. Thomas | Scott, from a discourse of his upon this ' subject. We shall see in these exiracts vvh.it wnrft hie rnnr.pnti ? ,<i m a mirlisl- i % i "coming in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel;" and we shall see also thut he thought that ministers ought to aim at the accomplishment of great things?and that | too often the cause why the ways of Zion do languid), and lew come to her solemn ; feasts, is that they who stand upon her wvlls t ecome careless and neglec . ?!, and do noi depend, as they should, upon the operat ons of the Holy Spirit, nor expect a large be sing. May these remarks of this d.siinguisned son of the Church, be a word j in season to us who bear the sacred vessels. If sinners will perish, let us look to it, 'hat ' it be not our fault. Let us lift up our voices , like a trumpet; let us fearlessly sound the alarm, white we look continually to God? and then, if nu n will go on ard prefer death j to life, their blood will not be upon our gar1 rncnts. ' Coming in tin fulness of the blessing of . the Gospel, means, in general, that not only one or two obtain a blessing from Iris min! istry, but thai large numbers receive the blessing, "yea, the tulness of the blessing of the gospel." When Peter first preached the gospel of repentance aiul remission of sins lie went amongst the murderers of Christ in the fulness of this blessing. Three thousand were converted in one day; soon ihey became five thousand; and soon ten thousand believed, and continued steadfast in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and were of one heart and soul, and great grace was u[ on them all." "From these instances, you may sec what I mein by a minister "coming in the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of Chr st." I: is when hundreds are brought to rep? ntance, faith, and newness of Ife, when a I .hat appear converted, or almost all, for a few even in the primitive church were deceivers, are of one heart and soul, i i:.-_ .v. i i ~ mm live in noiy communion, and forget their worlJIy habits and connexions, and in part to each other, and walk in the fear of God, and in the comfort of the Iloly Gnost, and maintain an upright, cheerful, benevolent, heavenly mied and conversation, when the Lord adds to the church daily such as shall be saved; when some arc tent forth as Ministers and .Missionaries to the heathen 'and*t when nnTr"h,j,rc*lv?c are founded when ' nt liomc and abroad truth kindles like a fire, di and spreads from heart to heart, from t'ami- th ly to family, from neighborhood to neigh, is borhood, from country to country; when aj the word of tho Lord "runs and is glori* or fied;" when the gospel is ?pr?*ached with kr the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven." bl "Thus it was in the primitive times with h* Peter, P?ul, and all the apostles. I'.'te U( 14,fishers ol men" cast a wide net, and took le i large shoals of fishes. Now the case is al- si I tered; we can only eaten a single fish now vv and then. But it was not merely in the d( primitive times, but in various ages, and in of different parts of the Christian church since w there have been revivals of religion, and h: great things have been done. In the days m of St. Augustine, and at the blessed Kefor- w, mation this was the case. In the time of fi: Mr. Whitfi* Id and Mr. Wesley also, great numb rs were truly converted, whatever errors were mixed with their proceedings, a Whenever tilings like these are seen, whenevt r numhers are brought to fear God and a: repent and love Christ, and live holy lives, then the gospel is preached in the fulness of blessing, "But these are blessings of which our fathers have told us?we have scarcely ev? or sen them ourselves. I have been ^ thirty-eight years a fide r of men, and not (> quite unsuccessful; but I never y et saw any of this fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.?Our profession, indeed, is such, that the least success in it is beter than the j( greatest in any other. One soul brought Q o sa'va'ion, is worth more than all the glories of the world. If but a single sinner re- ^ pents, there is joy in heaven?the only . event on earth, that we know of, that occasions that joy. If a man were to labor thirty-eight years, and gain but one soul, he > might consider himself as greatly ionored. ^ Still who that loves his Saviour, and has compassion for the souls of men, would not lt long for more enlarged success ? I would thank God for even a single soul, enlighi- ^ rinrr??,nn/l and sanctified. but Vet I tuv/U) miu ^?iuuuvw| - ? , if all my parish were converted, and there j were only one left in its sins, I would strug- (( i gle with the devil for that one. There are, in the present day, an increasing number jj of gospel Ministers; and, by all, some good ? is done; and in a course of years we get to. gether a little circle of converts. But such ^ success as I mean by the fulness of the blessing, has not been v< uchsafed to any of S( us in these days, I am not speaking of the ^ comparative success which one minister e may have above another, but the success of all of us put together would be but little Q compared with that of Paul or Peter. b lie next iuquires into the reason of this : "What can be the reason of this? Is the ' Lord's arm shortened that it cannot save ? Is 'he gospel another thingthan it was once? Are we 10 say we cannot work miracles? | Miracles never converted men, except as . the grace of God wrought with them.? There cannot be a greater mistake th .n to t) think that miracles can change the heart. j( It is the ordinary grace of the Holy Spirit winch produces that change. It was this that converted Saul into P rul." ^ His suggestions on the probable causes . of the decline of religion, and on the nieth- , ods best calculated to revive it, are the most | i importan pans of he discours : r "We may inquire whether our modern > preachers of ti?e gospel do so prominently hold out the peculiar ties of Christiatii'y, as the apostles did; whether they couie with " the holy law of God as the ministration of c condemnation in one hand, and the gospel of Christ, as tiie ministration of I'fe, m the ( 1 other; whether they warn sinne;s, like John , Baptist, not to trust in any outward forms, and then point out to them the Lamb of God. "It is the work of the Spirit to glorify c Christ. May we not then ask, whether God the Spirit is glorified in his person and grace, in his love and power in the work of v conversion, whether we do not hold the . i dectrine of the Holy Spirii slightly ? For, j; if we do not honor the Spirit, bow ran we ( expect that he will honor our Ministry?? We must expect all success from his pow. J er alone. If a man trust in knowledge, taleuts, eloquence, human suasion, he will j do nothing. It is our business indeed to do all that we can in inviting, entreating, a and instructing men; but when we have done a", it is the Spirit of God who alone | can quicken the dead and enlighten the ' . , . - I - * _U..II bl fici, and it we clepenu noi on mm ?vu suuu ^ no?, we cannot, succeed. q "We do not expect this fulness of bles- tj sing, and we are satisfied without it. There is a littleness in our faith and conception of Q thing?. We do not ask nor expect this ful- ^ ness, we have no idea of it, it does not enter ! .1 our minds. Can we wonder then that tli | Lord says (0 us, "According to thy faith ^ be it known unto thee ?" But the Apostles g went forth and expected, and asked a ful. g ness of blessing. When a man is in ear '4 nest, nothing will satisfy him but this. O h* n crs may be satisfied without success. They ; ' may go through a formal set of observances, i 0 and be contented; instead of examining their 1 u Ministry and their whoio conduct, and say, j, 1 ing, "Show me wherefore thou coniendest #, itii me." If we can be satisfied wi.hour H this enlarged blessing, certainly we shall y never have it. If a man savs, 4I have u ( | large, attentive congregation; I have a g<-od p i income, the people are obliging, my ciri cumstances are comfortable/ he is in a ,j i most dangerous state.. It is the same as if ! a fisherman should be satisfied because he l(: | has a good net and pleasant companion u ; and fair weather, though lie conies home j, 'empty. If any thing but usefulness will t; i satisfy us, I do not wonder we are not use- ? j ful. We must thank God for this and that aj j thing; but nothing must satisfy us but the e) I conversion of sinners. I 1 i 41 Our faithfulness and earnestness are in more in the pu/pit Own in the closet. We m preach Christ, as it in earnest, and we go bi and pray, as if not in earnest. There is h< Inn iivln wresfiiny with ftn.l for a blessin?. tl) "* "" " " n """ " - u I There is a want of the spirit of prayer. | m "There is a want of that holy, heavenly d( temper, and that gen* rul circuiuspecio?i of | b( conduct which would make us patterns of i itj Itovorks. Our example nrnv no* !k? t;? 0 [honoura ble, hut It is not so honorable to ! I ? gospel as it might be? Our example h not a scandal; but can wo say with the I ? oslle, ,4I have coveted no man's silver I gold or apparel?" Can wc say, "Ye I ow how holily and jus lyand unblamea- t ; wo behaved ourselves among you tha \ lievod ?" Do we embody Christiuiaty ? i we no' only put a copy before others and i ive them to write, but akc the pen and j ow them how to form each letter? Are ( ; men of God, heavenly, disinterested, ( ad to th'- pleasures, interests, and honors t this world ? What wouid Paul say if he c ;re to come among us ? Would he not r ve reason to say, "All seek their own, j no the things that are Jesus Chrisi's. Are / " ' C ? r - unllmiilUn I . i tuners 01 eujti, jamc, nwucj, tumui man hers of men ?" From the Episcopal Recorder. plain and practical address fron a minister to iiis parishioners. iriDGED FROM THE (LONDON] CHRISTIAN OuARDIAN, A. D. 1810. " Divine Instructor?Gracious Lord ! Be thou forever near, Teach me to love thy gracious word, And view my Savior there." The public servic- s of the sanctuary, as ey are instituted and blessed of God, have cr been found d powerful ins ruinent for ' e salvation ofsinuers, and it is a giea? 1 ercy to be favored with them. But they I eonly a mean* not an end, and if not folwed up by meditation, will be producti/e * little benefit to ill* soul. With man ofessors there is too much hearing only, ?cause no time being ailoted for the mind exercise itself on what has been presen- | d to it, one sermon does but drive out 1 tother ; and, though much is h< arJ, little ' retaiaed* I would then exhort you to 1 ?quent retirement and meditation and ex- { ninalion, that the word you hear be not 1 water spilt upon a rock, which canno: be ' ithered up again," that you be not ignorit of the state ofyour souls. Personal application is the great end c f jarng, and nothing is so well ealcula^d make a profitable and lusting impression 'the truths heard, as in retirement recaL ig them to our minds, and endeaverirg to i them firmly on our memories. Seek to >ssess self-knowledge ; many know much 'otheis but lifle of themselves. Commune ith your own hearts. Accustom your- ! dves to make use of what you read and jar, for the purpose of edification. By it taraine yourselves, " whether you are in e faith,"" try your own hearts." Too "ten much of what has been heard is lott, 1 V general/conversation after learning ;'t:?. species of religious dissipation. As we innot do better than go immediately from jr closet to the snctuary,so let the duties Irnmndi.nfi.ltf cilfV.PpH ihoSQ C f L UIO CIU9CI nil,..- ? j ie sanctuary, and from hearing go to moda i >n and prayer. Our minds recur, wi h peculiar pleasure, i the many affectionate warmings our beived Muster addresses to his disciples, : ilst we view tl em as proofs of his peratual solic tude for our spiritual welfare, 'et how frequently do we-hear him saying watch." thus touching us tha*, though we re indebted to him for all our Conquest*. re can hope for them only in the use of leans. \Va chfulness is an important dutv f Christ ani y. Som .ny are th inlets to in, that w ne d to be continually on our uarri; m I so many have fal'on through egleot of this, th it it is a subject wiiic ? an not be too strong! v pressed. Watch over your - 'ffections. The object f Divine Grace is to witrulrew the affecons from ** things of earth, and set thorn a <hings aboveto attract th-best foe!igs of our nature to the best of beings ; n I to teach us to love the creature, in sub rdin ition to the Creator* The character f the unregenerate is that he "minds arthly t' ings," and that to the exclusion fheaveidy. The soul, till renewed by race, cleaves to the dust, is absorbed in ar h and every aff-01100 settles and ceo. oc 'li. ro. Earih is its rest, its delight, its od. Even the renewed soul feel a meajreofthis earthly-mindednessstill remainijr, which calls lor con inual wahfuiaess, st it resume its for dominion. Nei rlbrthe natural deceitlulness of our hear s, ad thu hence arises the diugcr of ^our A ctions being again drawn to the world. Watch over your passions, t grace does at at once eradicate, but it subdues them ; 1 id remember grace can subdue them, hese turbulent emotions of the soul, like , ie rush of mighty waters, frequently rise jove every mound, am have caused the ernal ruin of thousands. Where real hristianity is professed we expect better liugs. Watch over your general temper and disisltion, that it bo spiritual. " Let the imo mind be in you which was in Christ." cek to humble dependence upon Mini for I 1 you need, and cultivate and display the j lild virtues of the Gospel. Carnal objects court our eyes, address j ir ears, and engage our thoughts ; let us atch last they pos&t ss our hearts. Often quire what ought ought to he prevailing mper of the Christian; of en examine j hetheritbe yours, and watch hourly lest h tu give way to a temper unworthy the j hristian character, an ' injurious to your, race and comfort. Never be off your ! i atch ; you are in an enemy's country, and j < at enemy pov/erful and indefatigable. j i The tide of life ebbs space ; the wings of. | 110 are has'ening us to the silent grave,' i id every moment our sands are decrens- i g. T:;o day, the night, reason, revela. I hi, raise their voices, an J cease not to cry, < redeem the time." Never shall we justly i iprociatc the value of time till we are in | er.iity ; and now its value will be appro- j < jted by us only as we live with eternity j i prospect. My dear young friends, how j i urh of the good land into which grace has j 0 g'n you yet remains to be possessed ? I w much have you yet to learn of truths 3" most momentous? livery minute, jch more every hour is precious, sejuan. I r none ; never bo without some valuable i ok to which you may recur as opportun- * offers, and from which something profi- * i may he fdot't^d * ?i 'ew wc.'l "T,,cf?n looks, and tkosa of a practical tendency, will bo found best calculated to promote I'-nuiue nie y and steamlcss in divine life. But recollect that every oiher book the Bi)le stands preeminent. Here you come otlie pure source oftru h uncontaminatcd vi:h the errors of main, and here Jehovah mmediately udJrcsses himself :o you. Be issured that nothing will so tend to your r row til in grace, and in the knowledge of Christ, as a constant perusal of the word of A f frtti iHtrMnnl JOU It) Secret. Ill we sucu^ W. uiuviuvuii lie mind more freely contemplates, more dearly comprehends, and more readily re? ains what is read ; and the Lord does, in a >ecuiiar manner, open to the understandings ?nd apply to the hearts of hts seeking peo>le, those precious truths which he hasgiv. :n them in his holy. Let this never be leglected ; Search the Scripture, in thera ^e have eternal life, and they are they which es'ify of m<," sai h Christ. That declensions from the paths of holu less begin at the closet, is a truth which tannot too deeply be impressed upon your ninds. Fearful is the state of that person however forward he may appear in every ither religious duty,) whose' heart com* ouues not with its God in secret. Souls enewed by divine grace have cares and fears which they can make known to God llone, a .d the r ntoval of which they expect alone from Him. Secret prayer has been jus lv call d the pulse of the soul, indicating hfe or death, declension or growth ; hence, everything in the Christian life goes ill, or well, ns this is neglected or practical. Beware of > llowing any motive, however plaus bl ',tc (i.duce you/or once, to remit this importan duty : that must be sinful which keeps the soul from God. So great aro the benefits the Cnrisnan derives from se? cret prayer, that Satan points all i s artillery against it, assured that if he can overcome here, he shulfsucceed in all. PIETY IN MINISTERIAL VISITS. It may not be improper to remark here, that a preacher of ordinary abilities, ifem? L .-J inenfy pious, mey ue expecieu w uu uwuu towards promoting the success of bis mioistry by his private visits. Preachers of this class freju ntly possess a more edfyinggift in conversation, than the man does taJeots and learning are of a higher order. They more easily put themselves ona level with men. 7 heir colloquial style is remarkably easy They pass without difficulty frotn one topic to another, and have a wonderful facility in laying hold of every incident which may give occasion for serious and pious remarks. Hence, they are highly acceptable in private circles. When a preacher of this, descnp. tion enters the house of one of his parish* ion rs, he is received, not only with respect, but with joy, by all the family. There is no stiffness or ceremony on ei her side. The preacher feels himself at home, and enters at once into free and familiar discourse whh parents, children and domestics.-?And there is so much delicacy, affectionan d humility in deportment, that no offence is taken by any one however serious and faithful his addresses. While he stays, he diffuses a sweet savor of truth and grace among all the inmates of the house. They feel tender and solemn and receive those salutary impressions, which are not easily effaced. Such oftham as are pious, are ch ter^d and encouraged in their spiritual course ; and tne rest almost persuaded toembricca rtb^iou which appears so .ov 1 in t icir kind and excellent pastor-**.. N r does the utility of his visits end here. Ti ev have a most important influence on nis public ministraion. His people will generally be junctu d in tbeir' at endance on the set vices of the sanctuary. They will no o hear the man, who manitests so much good nature and piety in private circles. Nor is tha all; tin y hear hun with the but most candor or rather wiih an affection e partiality. They give credit for all, and more than all- the knowledge and talent which he possesses. They are not ofiended when he preaches in tike plainest manner, and makes the most solemn and pun* gent appeals to the conscience and the heart. T ey are sure, that his object is not to wt u.id their feelings but to promote tho honor of God and the good of their sculs. An assembly joining iu the prayers, and listening to the preaching of such a minister, is one of the most interesting spectacles on this side heaven. There is, we will suppose nothing profound or brilliant in hisdis. courses. But to his hearers, especially to his pd'ows hearers, they are fragrant as the precious oinmnnt poured on the head of Aaron, and refreshing as the morning dews on Lebanon|an(i Bermon'Christian Review. _ Carus' Life op Simeon?American EDITION BY J3ISHOP MClLVAINE.?I hO Life of this eminent servant of God, which has been for a considerable time in a course of preparation by the Rev. Mr. Carus, of Cambridge, Eng., is, as we learn, nearly complete, and will be issued simultaneously from ihe London and Philadelphia Press. The American edition, which is to be pub. lished by Mr. Harman Hooker, will at the request of the Rev. Mr. Carus, be brought be brought out under the superintendence of Bishop Mcllvaine, with an introduction notice by him. Connected as were-.the labors of the venerable Simeon with one of the most inierestirg periods of the history ofthe English Church?the great revival of spirituality and zeal in her ministry and people?we cannot readily conceive of n of a more interesting subject for the pen of die biographer than that committed to Mr. (Jarus. His eminent qualifications as a cr?!:ni* nnrl riivino onrt ?t?? Inner and en* JV,,V' f IIIVJ UI?U IIIW IVW^ , deared intimacy which he enjoyed with Mr. Simeon, as a pupil, a friend and brolhM er in the ministry, afford ihc fullest assu. rancc that his forth coming work will do ample justice to the memory ol Simeon, and to the times in which he lived and labored for Christ and his Church. The introductory notice by the American Editor, who during his two visits to Eng. and enjoyed opportunities of the most un3 reserved, and fraternal intercourse both bvitli Simeon and his biographer, will, we Joubt not, contribute to give currency to . wrh ?h!? crur*ry.-(fw\b>er Observer