tor of heaven and earth, our Father everlasting, cur Saviour and our Friend, hearken, we beseech thee, to the prayers of thy poor creatures, who have hitherto lived under the dominion of sin, the slaves of our own lusts, and of various evil passions, which will assuredly bring us to everlasting destruction, unless thou, O Lord our God, wilt lift up the light of thy countenance upon us, and dispel the darkness of our minds. To thee, O God the Father, we look up, as to Him who loved us ere yet we entered into being, and planned our salvation ere yet the foundations of the world were laid. To thee, O God the Son, we apply, as to our brother in the flesh, whose infinite merits and precious death have procured for us the inestimable blessing of justification. And to thee, O God the Holy Ghost, we address our imperfect petitious, knowing that from thee proceed the incalculable privileges of regeneration and sanctification. Blessed and holy Lord God, make us, we beseech thee, new creatures; regenerate and sanctify us, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, give us power to contend with the corruptions of our vile nature, conform our wills in all respects to thine, and enable us to say on every occasion of trial, Thy will, O God, be done.' Teach us to consider self, and its inbred corruptions, as the enemy which we have reason above all others to dread, and assist us to detect its wiles, under however specious a form it may appear to act. Leave us not to ourselves, we earnestly entreat thee; leave us not with our worst of foes; neither take account of our past sins, nor of the countless number of our evil thoughts, our wayward tempers, and corrupt desires. Impute to us, we earnestly pray thee, that righteousness of Christ, which is without spot or stain of sin. Wash us in his blood, feed us with the bread of heaven, give us power to trample upon our lusts, renew and sanctify our polluted hearts, and enable us finally, triumphing over sin, to enter into everlasting glory. O blessed Lord God, hear the voice of our humble supplications, for the sake of him who shed his blood for us upon the cross, and render us acceptable to thyself, through the sanctifying and purifying power of thy blessed Spirit. And now to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, be all glo

ry, and honour, and praise, henceforward, and for everAmen."

more.

CHAPTER VIII.

SECOND CONVERSATION ON THE SINFUL LUSTS OF THE FLESH.

It was a fine evening in the month of May when the little assembly again collected at the manor-house. The evenings were now considerably longer than when they had first met, and they sat before the windows to take their tea and to converse, while they enjoyed the beautiful prospect, and were led by their pious instructress to magnify the Lord in his works.

When the tea-equipage was removed, and order restored, the lady of the manor commenced her instructions with a reference to the subject of their last conversation. "The sinful desires of the flesh," said the lady of the manor, "are a root of bitterness, shooting out its branches in every possible direction, and bearing fruit unto death, while its seeds are scattered unto the four winds of heaven.

"When we last met," proceeded she, "I presented you with an example, which you no doubt thought an exceedingly lovely one, of the will of a human creature effectually brought under control to that of God. I am now about to lay before you the fatal effects of indulged selfishness and though I cannot hope that the history of Constantia will furnish you with the same entertain

ment as that of Theodosia, yet I trust that it will, at least, afford you an useful warning.

"But, before I proceed to my story, I must make some remarks on the nature of this love of self. Self is the greatest enemy of mankind; that domestic tyrant through whose assistance our great spiritual foe acts on our minds, and through whom he obtains all his victories. This enemy is perpetually present with us, is our companion by day and by night, an active, restless, incessant tormenter, continually shifting its ground, and accommodating its temptations to all the various changes of life. In the unconverted soul it reigns without control; it keeps up a perpetual warfare within the breasts of the children of light; and is only conquered by the strong and constant exercise of faith. Self-love employs all those feelings of man's nature, which were originally given him for good purposes, as the means and engines of man's destruction; perverting every natural endowment to some evil purpose. It is ever ready to close with Satan in every attempt to ruin the soul, remaining unmortified under persecutions, afflictions, and even death itself.

"But," continued the lady of the manor, "inasmuch as it may be more easy to make you comprehend the ill effects of selfishness by example than by a regular course of reasoning, I shall proceed immediately to the little narrative which I promised you."

The lady then opening a small manuscript volume, read as follows.

THE HISTORY OF CONSTANTIA.

A certain widow lady, of the name of Honoria, resided, about forty years ago, on a moderate but wellregulated estate, which she possessed in one of the most beautiful counties of this our pleasant and fertile island. The two elder of her daughters, viz. Mrs. Jane and Mrs. Kitty, had, at the time whence I shall commence my narrative, attained a considerable age in a state of celibacy, and were, as well as their mother, persons whose manners and general deportment fitted them for the best society which their neighbourhood afforded.

The youngest of Honoria's daughters having married and become a widow, she had returned to her mother's

house with one little girl, who was only three years of age when her father died. Under such circumstances, it will not be questioned but that the little Constantia (for such was the name of Honoria's grandaughter) ran no small risk of being made a person of more consequence than was altogether proper; inasmuch as her education was to be directed by a widowed mother, two aunts, and a grandmother, all of whom were continually looking to this child as the sole hope of their family.

Constantia's mother had been handsome, and in consequence much flattered: she was now sunk into an indolent, worldly woman, who sought only her own indulgence. It was therefore natural that she should allow the care of her daughter to devolve almost wholly upon her mother and her more bustling sisters; the latter of whom busied themselves not a little about the child, and by endeavouring to do more than ever had been done before, brought less to pass than the most ordinary education in the mest ordinary hands would have effected.

Miss Kitty, who was the most notable person of the family, and who was the chief manager of this elaborate concern, was as entirely ignorant of human nature as she was of the Arabic or Chinese language: in consequence, while she utterly overlooked all matters of importance, she multiplied without end certain little arrangements respecting the child, which, although totally insignificant in themselves, were made of such serious consequence in the family, that every servant in the house was called to account, and an universal ferment excited, if the smallest of them happened to be disregarded. And this was so much the case, that if boiled mutton chanced to be served up to the little lady's table when roasted chicken was the order of the day, Mrs. Kitty would hear no reason, but would descant on this unimportant matter with as much warmth as if her darling had met with some very serious injury. It could not, therefore, be wondered at, if many circumstances of this kind, together with the scrupulous attention which was regularly paid to her idle prattle and frequent questions, should suggest to Constantia the idea of her being a person of no ordinary importance. As she was naturally quick and sprightly, and had no little companions to

whom it might be sometimes necessary to give way, she soon acquired a pertness of manner and a stubbornness of will which began to alarm her grandmother.

The old lady was not indeed enlightened on the subject of religion, but she was a woman of sense; and although she did not rightly understand the cause of Constantia's pertness and self-confidence, she lamented its existence, and often represented to Mrs. Kitty and Mrs. Jane, the absolute necessity of putting some check upon their niece, and of steadily exacting obedience from her whenever she presumed to set up her own will in opposition to that of her elders.

The frequently repeated expostulations of the old lady, however, met with but little attention from her daughters; and thus the time wore away till Constantia had arrived at that age when it became necessary to teach her the art of reading. And now, inasmuch as there is no royal way to learning, the two aunts began to anticipate difficulties which they feared would not be surmounted without some change of system: accordingly it appeared, that every day's lesson produced a contest, which was carried on with no small degree of spirit and firmness on the part of the little girl. Sometimes, by coaxing, or address, or through the expectation of some pleasure to be enjoyed after finishing the lesson, Constantia might be persuaded to go through her daily tasks without an open rupture; but it oftener happened that, before the child could be induced to submit, a violent uproar was occasioned, sufficient to derange the whole establishment: mamma cried, the grandmother became nervous, the two aunts were thrown into the utmost disorder, and every servant in the house put into a state of agitation.

If, perchance, it was found necessary to use any kind of chastisement, the aunt who inflicted it would let the child see, that she herself received more pain on the occasion than she gave. If Constantia was to be punished by confinement in her own apartment, the old housekeeper, and sometimes both the aunts, would visit her every hour, in order to enquire into the state of her mind, endeavouring by every argument which could be devised, to persuade her to submit to her duty. All this produced no humiliating effect upon Constantia :