runs without a wise, judicious, and right motive will find to his sorrow that one wrong step is the cause of serious and sad misfortunes. When we reflect how near we live to eternity, how transitory are all earthly things, how soon the brightest hopes are blasted, of how little value is wealth, station, honour, in our approach to another world, we may well wonder at the anxiety that is felt to possess a larger portion of earthly treasure. How blinded is the mind under the influence of desires which God does not sanction, and how certain does the result prove that the want of contentment is a source of deep solicitude and useless regret to the very end of life! To cultivate a spirit of contentment is to enjoy a quiet conscience, and be satisfied with the portion allotted to us. God sees that our views of personal wants agree not with his designs. He frustrates, therefore, our aims when we take the wrong direction, and guards us from certain snares and dangers, could we have climbed to the pinnacle of cherished desire. What he appoints is the best to promote our spiritual and eternal welfare. What he withholds is to teach us the lesson that without him we can do nothing, and that all our concerns are in his hand, controlled by his power, and ordained to work together for our good. "Godliness with contentment is great gain." Tiverton, Aug. 19, 1852. F. S. G. AN AFRICAN FUNERAL. THE room in which the body was lying was crowded with women. All of them appeared very sad, and tears were rolling down the faces of many of them. The people had came together, as they do here, to perform the last rites for the dead. They have no sacred inclosure to bury their friends in, such as are everywhere found in this country. The forest is their grave-yard. Slaves carry out the body and dispose of it. No friend or relative follows it to the grave, nor do they ever visit the place where it is laid. The term for burying, in their language, literally means "thrown away.' While the women were weeping, some men were getting ready a rude box, somewhat like a coffin. The body was dressed, as he used to be while living, with a cloth fastened round the waist and extending below the knee, and a hat on the head. His other clothes, some of which were quite gay, were spread over him, and his face was kept covered. After he was laid in his coffin, a cup was put in for him to drink with, and a knife and fork for him to use in eating. Then they nailed on the cover, and lashed a long stick, lengthwise, on the top, by which to carry it. After these arrangements, which had occupied much time, were completed, a rude drum was brought, and preparations were made for "mourning," Women came, bringing their chairs with them, and sat round the door. When all was ready, the drum was beat, and the women all set up the most piteous cry and wailing, which they continued for half an hour. They mourned like those without hope. It seemed like giving voice to the wail of a lost soul. When they ceased, eight or ten slaves took up the body and carried it into the "bush These washed all their clothes after to bury it. they came back, and when night came they built a fire, and danced round it, and yelled till morning, making the mangrove forest ring again. This they did to keep off the spirit of the dead Alas! they do not know about him. The white people who have been among them, have almost all been wicked. They have not sought to make them better. They have sold them rum and fire-arms, and have excited them to war, that they might make slaves of each other to load their vessels with. So these people have not yet learned about Christ and eternal life. A few have pitied their condition and gone to teach them. But many more teachers are wanted. Perhaps it is your duty to devote yourself to this work. You will think about it, I know. You would find it a great and good work. It would bring you a rich reward in heaven. INTERIOR OF JERUSALEM. WITHIN the walls, Jerusalem is among the most picturesque of cities. It is very small. You can walk quite round it in less than an hour. There are only some seventeen thousand inhabit ants, of whom nearly half are Jews. The material of the city is a cheerful stone, and so massively are the lofty, blind-house walls laid, that, in pacing the more solitary streets, you seem to be threading the mazes of a huge fortress. Often the houses extend over the street, which winds under them in dark archways, and where there are no overhanging buildings, there are often supports of masonry thrown across from house to house. There are ... no windows upon the street, except a few picturesque, projecting lattices. Jerusalem is an utter ruin. The houses, so fair in seeming, are often all crumbled away upon the interior. The arches are shattered, and vines and flowers wave and bloom down all the vistas. The streets are never straight for fifty rods; but climb and wind with broken steps, and the bold buildings thrust out buttressed corners, graced with luxuriant growths, and arched with niches for statue and fountain. It is a mass of "beautiful bits," as artists say. And you will see no fairer sight in the world than the groups of brilliantly-draped Orientals emerging into the sun from the vine-fringed darkness of the arched ways The beautiful building stands within a spacious inclosure of green lawn and arcades. Olive, orange, and cypress trees grow around the court, which, in good sooth, is "a little heaven below," for the Muslim, who lie dreaming in the soft shade from morning till night. In the picturesque gloom and brightness of the city, the mosque is a dream of heaven, even to the unbelievers. There are many entrances, and as you saunter under the dark archways of the streets, and look suddenly up a long dim arcade, upon the side, you perceive, closing the vista the sunny green of the mosque grounds, and feel the warm air stealing outward from its silence, and see the men and women and children praying under the trees. Biography. MARY LOUISA HOLLIS. "The flower fadeth."-ISA. xl. 7. MARY LOUISA HOLLIS, the third child and second daughter of the Rev. H. Hollis, was born at Framlingham, in Suffolk, August the 21st, 1840. She was a lovely babe, but her birth nearly occasioned the death of her mother, who was seized with an inflammation which threatened to prove fatal; but He who heareth and answereth prayer listened to the supplications of Christian friends on her behalf, and the mother was spared to watch over the delicate flower. When about three months of age, the little one was so reduced that there seemed little prospect of her needing the care of her mother for any length of time, but after a while she became a healthy child, full of spirits and energy, and hope was entertained that the flower might be brought to maturity. But God has taught the parents of the loved one that she belongs to him more than unto them, and they desire to acknowledge his right, and cheerfully to submit to his sovereign and righteous and it was very evident that restoration to health could not be expected. During the month of July, she appeared to be fast sinking, and overwhelming were the feelings with which she who gave her birth looked on, not being fully assured that that great change had taken place, without which we cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven. But he who saw the bleeding will. "He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" His sovereignty is one of the essential attributes of his nature. The act of creation and the infinite excellence of his nature, give him a right to do as he pleases; and it is our consolation to know that his sovereign will is always under the con-heart appeared in mercy, and a bright trol of perfect wisdom and goodness. "The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works." The dispensations of his providence are manifestations of his glory, they are full of instruction, and are intended to teach us many valuable lessons. May we cherish a humble spirit and listen to the voice of our Father in heaven, then the visitations of his providence, though painful, will be profitable, and will advance our preparation for that world where we shall see clearly that he hath done all things well. "He openeth their ear to discipline," or instruction. Should these lines be read by any parent who is mourning over the loss of beloved children, let the writer remind him, or her, of a precious sentence which has been a balm to his own bleeding heart, which has hushed the storm rising in his soul, strengthened him in the day of weakness, and encouraged him to hope in God. The golden sentence is this"God is love." Yea, he is love when he takes away as well as when he gives. His love takes away our fragile flowers from the storms of the wilderness to the heavenly paradise where they shall bloom in eternal vigour, beauty, and glory. The beloved subject of this brief memoir had a second attack in the year 1849, and her medical attendant pronounced that there was disease in one lung, but the health of the other might possibly spare her for a time. Since that period hope and fear have alternately prevailed. The winter of 1850 was passed with more comfort than could have been expected, but towards the spring of the year 1851 the disease again appeared with increased certainty of its having made deep inroads in her constitution. Her cough was violent, her weakness much increased, light was seen in the cloud. The seed "He The dear sufferer directed the atten- And help me to resign The other hymn was— "And let this feeble body fail, And let it faint or die, From this memorable day the gradual development of the Christian character became very apparent. She was naturally of a lively disposition, and at times was prone to exaggerate, but from the period referred to there was a marked carefulness in what she said. She felt that her sickness was unto death, and she set her little affairs in order. Her toys, her books, and her work were neatly arranged in her drawer, seeming to say that she had done with them. She named some friends to whom she wished her books to be given, and stated how she wished what little money she had to be applied. About a month before her departure she said, "I want to go-I want to go." She was asked where. She replied, "I want to go to Jesus." Her mamma said to her, "We are thankful, dear, to see you able to bear your afflictions so patiently, and we hope you are not expecting on this ground to get to heaven." She emphatically shook her head, saying, "No." On another occasion she was asked, "Do you think God is dealing hardly with you in afflicting you so heavily ?" She said, "No." "Do you think your sufferings can make an atonement for your sins ?" She replied, "Oh, no." "Do you feel that you are a sinner?" She replied, "Yes." "Are you resting on the righteousness of Christ for pardon and acceptance with God." She replied, "Yes." When her mamma was writing to a friend, she said, "Give my love to her, and tell her though I shall not see her again here, I hope to meet her again in heaven." To her sister at school she sent this message, "Give my love to her, and tell her I hope she will seek the Lord while she is in health, and not leave it to a time of sickness." The same day she said, "These words are much on my mind- Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near."" One evening she said, "Papa, I think you will be very glad that you took in for me the 'Child's Companion,' it has been very useful to me; I have thought much more of my soul since my affliction than I did before." Her sufferings were very great, and during the last six weeks of her life she was frequently unable to turn herself, which from her extreme state of emaciation was often needful, but not a murmur escaped her lips. Often did she express her gratitude for the many mercies she enjoyed. She was asked whether she could not say something to some children who wished to see her. She replied, "No, I cannot; you know I am young, and I feel shy; but give them each a little book. They may be useful to them." She was glad to see friends who would talk to her of Jesus and pray with her, though she felt unable to converse with them. When asked"Are you happy?" "Is Christ precious to you?" "Have you sought the Lord ?" She invariably gave a nod of assent, which for sometime was her usual manner for saying "Yes." The calmness with which she endured her acute suffering was beautifully touching. God's strength was glorified in her weakness. Her peace and calmness, we have reason to hope, arose from her simple faith in Christ. When a remark was made to her respecting an aged friend who appeared near her eternal home, she quickly said, "I think I shall be in heaven before her." Her mamma said, "Then you think, Mary, Jesus Christ will receive you?" "Oh, yes," she replied, "Whoso believeth on him shall not be ashamed.'" "Are you a believer in Jesus ?" She replied, “Yes.” During the last three weeks she was in daily expectation of death, but the long-expected visitant did not appear until Lord's day, the 26th of October, 1851. About twelve o'clock she was seized with convulsions, which continued, with short intervals, until within a few minutes of her death, which took place about twenty minutes to two o'clock, p.m. "The flower fadeth." Human life is flattering in its commencement. "He cometh forth like a flower." This beautiful image has been employed by writers in all ages. A flower is a beautiful emblem of childhood. Children are like flowers in the bud, which gradually unfold their beauty. But how soon they fade! "Thou destroyest the hope of man." The flower fadeth. The rude hand of death cuts it down. We are born to die, and begin to die as soon as born. Sometimes the flower is so delicate that the passing wind of disease destroys it. "As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children; to such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them." Here is our hope, our consola tion, the stay of our souls. Children die, but God lives, and his mercy is our refuge in the storm. This will sustain our souls, comfort our hearts, and bring us to eternal rest. Human life is frail in its origin. Man is born of a woman. That which is weak, observes one, cannot produce that which is strong. Job speaks of man as born of a woman, to remind us of his weakness. Man, being born of a woman, the weaker vessel, must needs be a vessel of weakness. Job alludes to the delicacy and feebleness of the female sex, and says, that the offspring of one so frail must be frail: the Ichild of one so feeble must be feeble. "Man that is born of woman is of few days, and full of trouble." Human life is sorrowful in its progress. Some have many sorrows in a few days. "Sin is the seed of trouble, and trouble is all the harvest we reap by sin." There are inward and outward troubles. Our relations are often troubles as well as comforts. Human life is short in its duration. Life in its longest period is but a short journey from the cradle to the tomb. "Are not my days few?" They are. Then let me make a good use of them. Let me improve them for the purpose for which God has given them, and then I shall prepare for eternity. Human life is uncertain in its continuance. Who can tell when death will enter his garden, and take his flower? Sometimes it fades in a moment. The wind passeth over it and it is gone. And how eventful is human life in its issue! "But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?" What a solemn question! "Where is he?" When his body is in the grave, where is his soul? The Scriptures inform us, it is either in heaven or in hell. Here let me see the importance of prompt attention to the concerns of my soul. "He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down : he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not." Suppose death should cut me down before I have obtained mercy, what will become of my guilty soul? Let me think of this and not trifle, but be wise, and diligently prepare for my latter end. Human life is incessant in its course. Like a sha dow it is constantly moving on silently, and is soon gone. And what if it should pass away before I have sought the Lord! Oh the folly, as well as sinfulness and danger of delay! The child hopes to be a youth, the youth to be a man, the man to see old age. But as there is no certain continuance here, let me be anxious to lay hold on eternal life. Eternity depends on time. Were you born of a woman? Then reckon not on the future. What a great work you have to do, and but few days to do it in! Now Christ calls you to run into his arms of mercy, and be happy and safe for | eternity. "Hear ye him." This brief memoir teaches parents that they may have but a short period for imparting instruction to their children, and therefore should seize the present opportunity. They may be taken from us, or we from them, but the good seed we sow in faith will not perish. He who has said, "Take this child and nurse it for me," will aid us in our important and honourable work. Let us, in conclusion, listen to the voice of a mother, who says, " With pleasure and thankfulness do I look back to the seasons when surrounded by my little family, we used to search the Scriptures, praying that my dear children might thereby be either fitted for usefulness on earth, or trained for that land of pure delight, where saints im mortal reign.' Thither six of my precious ones, I trust, now are, beholding the glory of Him who washed their robes and made them white in his blood. They have began the new song, and call upon us to follow them. They have commenced life in an eternal home; but we are still in a changeful, tearful, dying world. They are dwelling in perpetual sunshine, without a cloud to obscure the glorious Sun of righteousness. Let us praise our God that, through the blood of his dear Son, they are safe, and we are anxious for them no more." What an unspeakable blessing is the glorious Gospel of Christ, which brings life and immortality to light! This gives us the hope of seeing our loved ones again in the paradise of God, where our intercourse shall be pure, uninterrupted, and eternal. This turns |