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Their leaf shall not fade, and for med'cine is good,*
Their fruit shall not fail, being monthly renew'd:
Come, drink of this river, 'twill ease you from pain,
And though dead in sin, will revive you again.
This fountain springs up from out of the throne
Of God and the Lamb, fill'd with mercy alone,
Its streams of salvation no vengeance convey,
But pardon and love to all who obey.

In figures, and types, and by prophets of old,
This fountain of mercy was often foretold:
He who hung on the cross, with his spear-pierced side,
Open'd there this rich fountain, when bleeding he died,

Oh! all ye that thirst, to this river repair,

Drink, abundantly drink, and drown all your care;
You will ne'er thirst again when its waters you taste;
While the trees on its banks yield delicious repast.
'Tis for those who have drank of these waters to say
What joy, peace, and love, to their hearts they convey:
Baptiz'd in this flood, by his spirit they trace
The footsteps of Jesus, and sing of his grace.

With putrified sores, wounds, and bruises, spread o'er,
Ye guilty, polluted, haste, haste to its shore:
Plunge into this river, 'twill make you all clean,-
From guilt it will purge you, and fetch out each stain.
Who, who are all these in robes pure and white?
Once captives of satan, now children of light;
Once guilty, and wretched, and filthy, and bare,
Now cloth'd in white raiment all spotless and fair.

And still this pure fountain is open for sin :

May my heart then be wash'd from uncleanness within,
And in its blest ocean of peace, joy, and love,
May I swim 'till I join with the ransom'd above.†

I long to be with them in glory to sing
In loud hallelujahs of Jesus our King;

To join with the millions, redeemed to God,

From all kindreds and people, by his precious blood. Whitchurch, Hants.

* Ezekiel xlvii. 12. + Ezekiel xlvii. 5.

S. L.

THE MINISTER'S SON.

WRITTEN BY HIS FATHER.

OUR dear John was nearly six years of age when he died. He was always a very delicate child, and we often feared that he would not arrive at manhood. He was, from an early age, much more attentive to what we said to him on divine subjects than our other children; though we had no particular reason to think, till within the last few months, that he was under the teaching of the Holy Spirit. We had noticed a great change in him as to his temper, his regard for divine things, and his views of death. At one time he was of an irritable and fretful disposition; but he latterly manifested much meekness, and a sweet, obedient, affectionate spirit. He was remarkably submissive to our will. He formerly had a great dread of death, and often wished that he might go to heaven without dying. But this dread was at length taken away; and he sometimes expressed a wish to die. On being asked why? he answered, "That I may go to be with Jesus." He often spoke with much animation on the happiness of heaven. He was delighted with the thought that there was no sin there, nor any pain; and that all who are there are for ever with the Lord, and see his face.

Near the close of his life he showed the most marked delight in prayer, in reading the bible, in talking about Jesus and spiritual things, and in the employments of the sabbath. He manifested great hatred of sin, and an ardent desire to be made holy. He sometimes shed tears of grief for his sins, when we were speaking or reading to him on the nature and evil of sin, or on what Jesus had done for sinners. His manner of praying was particularly striking. In very expressive, though often in broken language, he breathed out his little prayers before God. He evidently felt the petitions he offered up. He was so

earnest and fervent in the exercise, that he often reminded us of Jacob wrestling in prayer. Whenever any in the family were ill, or when he went with us to visit a sick person in the neighbourhood, or when he noticed anything particular in the case or character of any one with whom we conversed, he was sure to remember them in his prayer at night. Of late, he always prayed very earnestly on the sabbath mornings, before he went to the house of God, that God would give him an understanding to understand his word; and that sinners might be converted that day. He was very attentive during the time of prayer; and while his father was preaching, his eyes were steadfastly fixed on him with devout attention without the least intermission. On his way from the house of God, he used to talk over the sermon to his mother; and could give a tolerably good account of it. One sabbath, (which was the last he was ever at a place of worship,) when the sermon was on the Law, he asked his mother as they went home, what was the use of the Law? She answered that it was to shew us our sin. He said, "O then, mother, the law shews us our sins, and then we are to go to Jesus for the pardon of them." As soon as he reached home from the house of God, he always went up stairs to pray over what he had heard; and he turned the parts of the sermon he could remember into petitions. The sermon one sabbath being on the conversation between our Lord and the Samaritan woman, (see John iv. chapter) he prayed every day during the following week that Christ would give him the water of life. After dinner on the sabbath, he used to take his bible and go to his mother, and say, Now, mother, I want to find all the passages in the bible which father mentioned in his sermon." He then generally repeated several scripture passages quoted in the sermon. He one day incidentally mentioned to his mother a sentence in a sermon which he had heard several weeks before. He

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said, "Mother, you know father spoke in his sermon about a person going on a wrong road; and when he saw that he was wrong, he would turn about and get into the right one. Now, mother, is it not thus with those who have been living in sin, and turn to God? They first see that they have been in the wrong road; and they turn and get into the right road." He was much struck with that paasage, Isaiah xl. 11,—" He shall feed his flock like a shepherd, and gather the lambs in his arms," and said to his mother one day, that he wished very much his father would preach from that text. He felt peculiar delight and interest in the following chapters in the bible:-Genesis i. ii. iii; Exodus xx.; St. John's Gospel i. iii x. xv. xvi. xvii ; Romans viii.

On observing some people at the house of God who he thought were too finely dressed, he said to his mother, when he returned home, "I wish father would preach a sermon on pride in dress; do you think there is a text that would suit it ?" On seeing a boy playing one sabbath, though naturally diffident, he went up to him and reproved him, telling him how naughty it was to play on the Lord's-day. He often spoke on the necessity of repentance and prayer to those with whom he could converse freely. After doing so one day, he went to his mother, and said, "I have been talking to about prayer, but she gave me no answer; I am afraid she does not love prayer." He often reproved his little brothers for being naughty. One day when one of them strnck at the other in a passion, John instantly fell down on his knees, and asked God to forgive his brother for being so naughty. When he saw them looking from the window at any boys playing in the streets on the sabbath, he used to tell them that in thus looking at the boys playing, they were as naughty as the boys themselves.

What is mentioned above occurred previous to his

last illness. The complaint of which he died was water in the head. His illness was of a very short duration, only about ten days. At the commencement of it, he one day desired his mother to pray for him! She asked him what she should pray for? He answered, "That I may be made well." She said to him, "Do you then, my dear, wish rather to be well than to die?" He answered, "No; but I wish to be made a holy boy, and be washed in the blood of the Lamb, and be a child of God; and then you know, mother, I shall go to heaven if I die; and if I were made a holy boy, I had rather die."

While his senses were retained, he was continually asking us to pray for him; and when he was delirious, he was constantly talking about prayer, and often asked God to make him holy. His sufferings were very great during his short illness; and he manifested a sweet patient spirit under them. During the three or four last days, he was unable to speak.

Young reader, do you wish to be "washed in the blood of the Lamb, and be a child of God?" Do you?

PARENTAL RESIGNATION.

IN MEMORY OF EZRA CASSON,

Who died on the 21st of April, 1846, aged 8 years.

THE child is not!-the little darling child,
Whose harmless joys our griefs and cares beguil❜d:
We would submit without a murmuring word;
We yield the treasure.-Peace:-It is the Lord.

This treasure lent through eight revolving years,
We tended with alternate hopes and fears;
'Tis now recall'd: and why should we complain ?
Recall'd awhile, to be restor❜d again.

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