She took the typhus fever; and her hitherto perfect state of health rendering it impossible to reduce her strength with sufficient rapidity, the day week after she was taken ill, she was laid in the grave. We hear, we read of such things—a sigh, an involuntary shudder, dismisses them from our thoughts. It happens to one of our acquaintance—of our friends, and then, alas! the impression is but transitory. Still we defer making religion our constant guide. We think we are young, and time lies before us—in sickness, in sorrow, we will seek comfort from God. But deceive not yourselves-you must worship your Creator in the days of your youth, to find him a refuge in time of trouble. And remember that life is short, that man is like a shadow that passeth away, and that in the midst of life we are in death; that we cannot say with certainty we will do this, and we will do that, for we know not if to-morrow's sun will rise for us. Whilst engaged in the pursuits, or enjoying the pleasures of this life, your souls may be required of you. Remember that after death cometh judgment, and before the throne of God a sudden death will be no excuse for commandments transgressed, duties neglected, parental commands disobeyed, parental love slighted. Then worship God in the days of your youth, and find mercy early in his sight: and watch, and pray, and be stedfast in welldoing, for ye know neither the day nor the hour in which death cometh. A HINT FOR THE DISPOSAL OF CAST-OFF APPAREL. ONE of the uses of a periodical publication is to call attention to whatever may seem worthy of it. In a small tract, written for the poor, entitled James Heselden, we met with the following remarks; and thinking them more appropriate to the rich, who will probably not see them there, we asked leave of the author to transfer them to our pages. "I cannot let slip the present opportunity of dropping a hint to those in a superior station of life, if any such should condescend to cast their eyes over this little book, to those Christians especially who view the heart as the seat of every thing that is unholy, and from their knowledge of the corruption of our nature, desire carefully to guard against every thing which may be the occasion of sin, either in others or themselves. I would address myself to such persons, and ladies in particular, whether they have not observed the increasing and prevailing love of dress among the lower orders, especially among that useful and most necessary part of the community, female servants. I would gently remind them, that one great cause of this growing evil, is the practice too generally pursued by mistresses, of giving to their domesticks their own cast-off clothes. A servant having once put on a gown worn by her mistress, can no longer be satisfied with the plain apparel suited to her purse, or rather her station-for it is to be lamented, in this point of view, that flimsy, showy dress is in reality cheaper than good and substantial articles. Is it not natural, when a servant apes to be a lady, which, in her estimation, consists chiefly in dressing like one, she should despise those in her own sphere, and seek and desire the attention of her superiors? Surely in this enlightened age, when the true principles of Christianity are every day more and more clearly understood, it becomes a necessary duty to put some check on the vanity, which the present practice of mistresses seems rather calculated to encourage. But how, some will say, can that of which you complain be avoided? Can we differ from the usual practice? How are we to dispose of our cast-off clothes? The first question is easily set at rest: if none will dare to do right because others do wrong, then they are shackled indeed; shackled in a manner which, in this age of free enquiry, can scarcely be believed possible; but as to what may be done with the clothes, I wish it were as easy to abolish the custom referred to, as it is to find out more advisable means for their disposal. Are there not among your acquaintance some well-educated and reduced persons pining in solitude, in need perhaps of the necessaries of life, debarred the society of their equals, for want of the means of making a respectable appearance? To such, how acceptable would be an annual present of half-worn articles of dress! If you fear wounding the feelings of such persons, the articles may be sent anonymously; or if you are strangers to such claimants on your kindness, commit your little wardrobe to that interesting society, supported by members of the Church of England, for assisting married clergymen with small incomes. How valuable would fine half-worn materials be to those who, with the feelings and education of gentlewomen, live on a pittance far inferior to the wages of our men-servants! If I am not mis-informed, there are many instances where clergymen have only £30 a year to subsist on. I knew a lady once, who was a pattern for a manager of a family, and whose habits of regularity and economy She dressed hand induced her to put every thing to its best use. somely and expensively without being extravagant; every thing that she put off as unwearable for herself, she laid aside in a chamber allotted to the purpose, and once a year she sorted and arranged the articles; the more common ones she would give to her nurse and lady's-maid, but the greatest part of them she sent off to a young lady of small income, whose ingenuity and industry converted them to so good a use, as to make them scarcely known again, even to the lady who sent them. Sometimes a friend, hearing of her judicious plan for using these things, would send her a considerable addition to her store, when it was a fresh pleasure to dispatch this second packet, and to think of the happiness she was conferring. REVIEW OF BOOKS. Biblical Researches, and Travels in Russia, &c. By Nisbet, THE interest with which this work is perused, will depend very much upon the mind of the reader-whether that which was the purpose of the author's travel, and of course the chief object of his attention, be a subject of interest or a matter of indifference. There are many to whom a Bible is a thing of no value. It may have sometimes disturbed their happiness, but has added nothing to it. It may have robbed them of some Sabbath hours of profit or amusement, but has never cheered their spirits or enhanced their gains. It is impossible that any one so circumstanced should care where Bibles are and where they are not-and the purpose of the expedition, and the biblical tone of it, will give them too much disgust, to admit of their liking the book, however entertaining else. There are others who, without despising the possession, hold it so common as not to need a fuss. They see Holy Bibles in every bookseller's window, and Holy Bibles upon the shelves of every library-and ever since they were born they have had so many more Bibles than were necessary, they are at a loss to conceive how Bibles can be scarce, and why £100,000 a year should be spent in printing them, and the world put in commotion to circulate them. They tell us in their simplicity that the world is overstocked with Bibles-Bibles old and new can be bought at any stall for the value of a song-How can (a want that never has been felt), the world want Bibles? Or if for shame they do not say so, at heart they are sick to death with hearing of Bible Reports, Bible Researches, &c. &c.-not so much that they do not consider the Scriptures of any value, as because, not over-much given to thinking beyond the sphere of their observations, they cannot conceive of any body's wanting a Bible and not being able to get it. They have not imagined among civilized people under a European government, in a Christian country, an intelhigent man, possessed of a number of religious books, in whose mind so great an interest was excited by a part of the New Testament put into his hand, that he sate up all night to read it-of another who had heard there was such a book, but had seen no part of it but the Psalms— of churches, towns, and monasteries, of which it is worthy of remark that they have a copy of the Bibleof Bishops who, if they had a Bible, could not read it. How difficult is it to conceive a want that never has been felt, or estimate a delight we can never experience that of possessing for the first time the words of life and truth. Yet it would be well to stretch our minds to a little larger compass, before we either express ourselves thus foolishly, or feel disgust so unreasonable. To us who, though we have never wanted a Bible, have known moments when to want one would have been more painful than to want bread, and to have one has been joy, when other joy would have been very difficult to find, this narrative presents pictures of very lively interest respecting the professed object of the journey; besides much amusing detail respecting places and people with whom we are but little acquainted: the travellers having passed through Russia and Russian Tartary, to the shores of the Caspian and the Caucasian Mountains, for the purpose of planting or encouraging societies and depositaries for the distribution and sale of Bibles, in the languages of the country: and however stale a thing a Bible Society Committee may seem in an English country town, we cannot without interest imagine a committee of Don Cossacks on the banks of the Don. The book is written in a light and entertaining style, and except a few pages of Biblical criticism interesting only to the curious, we think it a work of much interest to general readers, containing very good description of the scenery passed through, adventures met by the way, and peculiar sects and settlements of people, of Jews particularly, that the travellers encountered. Nothing excited our attention more than the places selected for depôts of Bibles-scenes so contrasted, in which the pilgrim is to find this stranger treasure. Such was the following-speaking of Kief, one of the most ancient towns of Southern Russia. "The following morning, at eight o'clock, we again visited this place, according to appointment, in order to make the tour of the Catacombs, or the extensive dominions of the dead, consisting of subterranean labyrinths of great extent, which are excavated in the precipitous declivity of the hill forming the bank of the river. Following a young monk, who had been selected to conduct us, and who shewed every disposition to gratify our curiosity, we made our egress from the convent by a wicket-gate in the massy stone wall by which it is surrounded; and proceeding down a small steep lane, paved with stones, we came to a covered walk, or gallery of wood, about 500 feet in length, which led us to a magnificent chapel, with three gilded turrets, dedicated to "the Elevation of the Cross," and designed to receive the donations of those who descend into the gloomy abodes below. Our lights being provided, we descended into the passage leading to the Catacombs, known by the name of St. Anthony's, the founder of the monastery, whose relics are preserved in a cubitory at the extremity of the labyrinth. This passage is about six feet in height, but so extremely narrow, that it is with difficulty two persons can pass each other. Like all the other apertures and subterranean galleries to which it leads, it is dug out of the hill, which seems to consist of a mixture of sand and clay, possessing a considerable degree of adhesion, but too soft to be entitled to the character of stone. The sides and roof are, for the most part, black from the smoke of the torches which are incessantly conveyed through the passage; and where there is any turn or winding in it, the projecting angle is partly smooth and worn away by the friction occasioned by the numerous companies of visitors. |