THE

PERSECUTED FAMILY.

CHAPTER I.

"There stands the messenger of truth: there stands
The legate of the skies! His theme divine,

His office sacred, his credentials clear.
In doctrine uncorrupt; in language plain,
And plain in manner; decent, solemn, chaste
And natural in gesture; much impressed
Himself, as conscious of his awful charge,
And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds
May feel it too; affectionate in look,
And tender in address, as well becomes
A messenger of grace to guilty men."

CowPER.

THE Rev. Mr. James Bruce, the head of that family whose lives we are briefly to record, was the youngest son of a very respectable gentleman in the upper district of Lanarkshire. In his boyhood he gave such indications of superior talent, and love of piety and learning, as induced his father to educate him for the ministry. During the course of his studies in the university of

Glasgow, James applied himself to the various branches of education which were then taught, with an assiduity and success, which proved that his father was no ways wrong in the profession he had chosen for his son. In divine literature, to which the pious bent of his mind, as well as his future views, directed him chiefly, his progress was extremely rapid, and his acquirements solid and extensive. Of controversial theology he was by no means ignorant: although his mild and peaceful mind delighted itself especially in contemplating the plain truths of the Bible, and how they might be impressed with the happiest effects, on the souls of men. The New Testament he read continually; and his heart was warmed with its love, and his soul fashioned to its precepts. As his judgment was sound, so his feelings were strong. The history of our Saviour's life, and sufferings, and death, made a most extraordinary impression on his mind: and while he read, and loved, and adored, his soul took on the likeness of the great Testator, in the holy simplicity of his character, in resignation to the will of God, in devotion to the duties of religion, and in love to mankind. To those acquirements, without which a minister is ill fitted for his office, he added a

pretty extensive knowledge of philosophy and books of taste; and withal he was not an unsuccessful student of the human heart.

The romantic scenery amidst which his childhood had been nursed, had strongly imaged on his mind the pure objects of nature; and, following his own propensity, as well as imitating the writers of the Bible, he made ample use of them, in summoning them forth to bear witness to God's power, and wisdom, and goodness, and in illustrating by them the doctrines of the gospel.

With a mind thus prepared, in his twenty-sixth year, Mr. Bruce received a call from the inhabitants of S- (a small village on the water of Ayr) and its neighborhood, to be their minister. The call, as every minister of sincere heart would wish, was cordial and unanimous. The situation of the village, although this was only a secondary consideration with Mr. Bruce, was such as peculiarly concorded with his feelings and desires. Placed in a sequestered hollow, through which the Ayr led his stream, winding pleasantly, covered with hills, which rose abruptly on every side, giving root to the beech, the oak, and the birch, which interwove their varied robes in Nature's taste, the little village seemed to be the very home

of pensive goodness and holy meditation. These things urged him to accept the call. Above all, that he might be like his Saviour, continually engaged in his heavenly Father's work, instructing the ignorant, and training immortal spirits for heaven, he gladly complied with the invitation, and was, accordingly, settled among them.

Soon after this settlement he married Miss Eliza Inglis, the daughter of a gentleman who lived in the neighborhood of Mr. Bruce's father. This marriage was the result of a long-nourished affection, founded on like tastes and like desires. As they had spent their childhood and youth near one another, they became early acquainted, and early attached to each other. Miss Inglis, as she grew up, added to a handsome person, and an engaging countenance, the prudence and industry of domestic management, as well as some of those more liberal acquirements, fitted to render her a proper companion for a person of learning and taste. But what had attached Mr. Bruce to her, and what was still the charm that bound his heart closer and closer to her's, was the natural tenderness of her soul, and the meek loveliness of her piety. It was this holy kind-heartedness, this simplicity of nature, added to the humility of the

Christian, that threw enchantment into her look, and made her the more beloved, the more she was known.

Such was the young lady, whom, in her twentyfourth year, Mr. Bruce made the partner of his life. Her good report had reached the village before her, and she was received with joy. The meekness and innocence of her countenance was a passport into the hearts of all with whom she conversed; and the young as well as the old, the rich as well as the poor, applauded Mr. Bruce's prudent choice: and, no doubt, conscious as he was of this world's vanity, he pictured to himself a long perspective of the purest and sweetest of earthly felicity. And, indeed, if youth and health, the comforts of plenty, wedded affection, mutual and fondly cherished, founded on the best of motives, and strengthened and tempered by the influences of religion, together with the esteem and love of neighbors, and peace with ourself and our Maker, could warrant any man to hope for much and long lasting happiness under the sun, surely Mr. Bruce might well entertain this hope.

In the pulpit, Mr. Bruce was truly the messenger of God. He knew the dignity of his office, and its awful responsibility; and regardless of the