Reader, it is not I alone who urge you; it is the Spirit of God, in your conscience and in your heart. He is with you now. You know that his voice speaks in the inmost depths of your soul. The gentle, the compassionate Saviour is at your side. Oh, listen to his kind invitation, "Come unto me." Seek some quiet place where you may be alone with him; and, kneeling, say to him, "Lord, I come. Make me what thou would'st have me to be-a youthful pilgrim and thy faithful follower, now and for evermore!"

E. W.

BIBLE QUESTIONS.

[Read the passages, and, if you can, write them out neatly on your slate or a sheet of paper.]

1. WHO was the third son of Adam?-Gen. V. 3.

2. From which of the sons of Noah are the Jews descended ?-Gen. xi. 10-26.

3. To what city did the Lord send Jonah to prophesy its overthrow?-See the book of Jonah. 4. What is said in the book of Proverbs to be "the beginning of knowledge ?"-Prov. i. 7.

5. What did our Lord mean by the thorns which choked the good seed, in his parable of the sower?-Luke viii. 5-15.

6. What did our Lord say about tradition and the commandments of men ?-Mark vii. 7, 9, 13.

7. In which of the Epistles is our Lord called "the Beloved ?"-Ephes. i. 6.

8. What is said of the Holy Scriptures in the second Epistle to Timothy P-2 Tim. iii.

15-17.

9. How many people were saved in the ark when the flood was brought upon the ungodly P-Gen. vii. 13.

10. What is the promise to the merciful in our Lord's sermon on the mount P-Matt. v. 7. 11. What is the promise to those who hunger and thirst after righteousness ?-Matt. v. 6. 12. What promise is given in the New Testament to those who seek P-Luke xi. 9.

WHERE THE HONEY-BEE LIVES.

THE honey-bee is a well-known insect. Far and wide the pleasant hum of its busy wings has been heard, and sweet flowers in almost

every land bend their heads beneath the weight of its light footsteps, as it gathers its sweet store.

It is one of the most curious of all the insects, and is of interest to us on account of its skill and industry, as well as the benefits which it bestows on us by its honey and wax.

This little insect has long been thought by learned men to be worthy of much attention. We read of one person who, several hundred years ago, gave up nearly his whole life to the study of the habits of the bee. Another is said to have spent his days in the forests where the wild bees made their homes, in order to observe all their ways with the greatest care.

A very large number of books have been written about the honey-bee. It has been said that no nation of the earth has had its history so often written as this little insect; and we intend in this magazine to give, from month to month, some accounts of it that will please and instruct our readers.

The bee was well known in ancient times to the people of the land of Canaan. Honey and the honey-comb are often noticed in the Scriptures. Judea is many times called a "land flowing with milk and honey;" and though this no doubt refers to the richness of the country in general, yet the honey and milk spoken of must have been found in plentiful abundance, and highly valued by the people. The wild bees were very numerous; they formed their combs in any convenient place that offered, in the trees of the forests, or holes of the rocks. In these places were often found the richest honey-combs. Thus the Israelites were some

times fed "with honey out of the rock." Honey was used at their meals, with butter or milk, as a pleasant article of food. The honeycomb, cut in slices, with bowls of milk and cream and boiled rice, is served up to strangers and visitors at the present time by the Arabs.

We are told, that, in some parts of India, the forests swarm with bees; and large combs are seen, as you pass along, hanging from the trees, full of honey. They appear to be very common throughout every part of Africa. On the western coast, near the river Gambia, the natives formerly paid much attention to the care of the bees. They had hives, made of reeds and sedge, shaped like baskets, and hung on the outer boughs of the trees. The bees took possession of these hives, and built their combs in them. In some places, they were hung so thickly, that they looked, at a short distance, like large fruit on the branches.

In South Africa, a party of Hottentots, who were in company with some travellers, once took several pounds of good honey from a hole which had been the dwelling of the little weasel. In the same country, the bees are often found occupying the nests or hills, built by the white ants, then deserted, and left empty by them. The bees, in their wild state, seem not very particular in choosing a place for their home; or, perhaps, if they cannot find such a one as they like, they take the best they can get, and are satisfied with it.

In Southern Africa, a most remarkable little bird is sometimes seen, called the honey-guide. It is small in size, and of a light grey colour.

It is not alarmed at the presence of man, but seems rather to be pleased to make friends with him. It perches on a branch beside the traveller, chattering and twittering in a peculiar way; then flits from tree to tree, continuing all the time its note of invitation. This call is well understood by the natives, and a person invited by the honey-guide seldom refuses to follow. When the bird has succeeded in gaining attention, it flies lightly forward in the direction of the bees' nest; rising a little now and then in its flight, or alighting and looking back, as if to see if it is still followed. When, at length, it arrives at the hollow tree, or the deserted white ants-hill, which contains the honey, it hovers over it for a moment, then takes its place on the branch of a tree near, and awaits its portion of the spoil. A share of the honey is always given to the bird as a reward.

When the honey is taken, the honey-bird will often lead to a second, or even to a third nest. This singular bird, perhaps, finds itself unable to make war with the bees, or to get at the honey without more powerful help, and is thus led to invite the assistance of man.

He

The Creator, by whose wisdom this little insect was made, gave it also the skill to contrive, and the power to construct its comb, and carry on its labours, whether in holes of the rocks or trees, or in the convenient hive. formed its body, so curious in all its parts, and each so well adapted to the use for which it was intended. The largest and most powerful animals in the world, the huge elephant, the patient camel, or the noble horse, are not more remarkable, as the work of the Creator, than