and in our spirit, which are His," and to "let our conversation be as becometh the Gospel of Christ." We are to live in the world, "as not of it," but "to testify against it that its works are evil." We are commanded to "let our light so shine before men, that they may see our good works, and glorify our Father which is in heaven." The twelfth and thirteenth chapters of Romans contain a beautiful epitome of what the Christian life should be. When the world looks complacently on us, we may conclude ourselves to be in danger; as our Lord says, "If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.' And again, "Marvel not if the world hate you; ye know that it hated me before it hated you." There is sadly too much, even amongst real Christians, of meeting the world half-way, in conformity to its fashions and habits, instead of being transformed in the spirit of our mind; and Satan is ever ready to catch us when off our guard. What need then have we to "put on the whole armour of God, that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil!" How earnestly and constantly should we seek that grace which is sufficient for us, and that strength which is made perfect in our weakness, guarding as much as possible against spiritual slothfulness, knowing that it is high time that we should "awake out of sleep." "Be sober, be vigilant; for your adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." "Whom resist, stedfast in the faith." But it must be by prayer that we must prevail and by great watchfulness, the enemy is so insidious.

"Restraining prayer, we cease to fight;

Prayer makes the Christian's armour bright;
And Satan trembles when he sees

The weakest saint upon his knees."

But, lest these remarks should discourage any one who is compelled to mix to some extent with the world in his or her lawful calling, they may be reminded that, whilst in the world, it is quite possible to be not of it, since we are to use it, but not abuse it; some are called upon to do this in a far greater degree than others, and possibly what might be a temptation to one, another might pass through unscathed. Let no one, however, presume upon their own strength to overcome; those are safest who are looking up for grace and strength to help in every time of need, keeping a strict watch over their own hearts against encroachments; for the way must be fought for inch by inch, like Christian against Apollyon. These hints may be summed up in the words of our blessed Master, "And what I say unto you I say unto all, WATCH." Manchester.

A LITTLE ONE.

THE "CITY DIARY AND ALMANACK" [price One Shilling. London: W. H. Collingridge, 117 to 120, Aldersgate Street, E.C.] has again made its appearance. In addition to the matter ordinarily given in a diary for the desk, it contains a large mass of information not to be found in any other publication, the whole being carefully compiled and well arranged for reference. There is ample space for daily entries, and the blottingpaper with which the diary is interleaved is a very useful feature.

WESLEY'S AND TOPLADY'S HYMNS.

To the Editor of the Gospel Magazine.

SIR,-In the July number of the Gospel Magazine for 1867 occurs the following remarks by your correspondent " C," upon the Hymns of Charles Wesley-"not knowing that they had passed through the hands of the elder brother, and were by him altered to suit his own unscriptural views, from which the younger brother widely differed to the last."

That the collection does contain Arminian hymns no one will deny, but that they were so altered by John Wesley is wrong, for John Wesley did not, and says in the preface to the collection, "None is able to mend either the sense or the verse " of his brother's hymns. It is known as truth that John Wesley was less Arminian than his brother Charles, and that he often persuaded him to compose his hymns less Arminian than he usually did. As for John Wesley mutilating and altering his brother's hymns, we have positive proof that he did nothing of the kind, for every hymn in the collection is faithfully printed from the originals, all of which are before me.

Sun Street, London.

DANIEL SEDGWICK.

Passing Events.- Monthly Note.

"Can ye not discern the signs of the times ?"-MATT. xvi. 3.

SEVERAL important Anti-Ritualistic and Anti-Roman-Catholic meetings have been recently held, showing that a spirit of true Protestantism still largely prevails amongst us, notwithstanding the rapid progress of Romanism and semi-Romanism. One meeting especially claims our attention as being of considerable importance; viz., that of the members and supporters of the Church Association, for the purpose of protesting against the errors so subtlely brought forward by some professed (but traitorous) members of the Church, and also for the purpose of eliciting the common sentiment of earnest and faithful members of the Reformed Church of England and Ireland at this crisis in her history, so as to arrive at a clear decision as to the policy now to be pursued by Protestant Evangelical Churchmen. The assembly numbered upwards of six hundred gentlemen from various and distant parts of the country; and, we are informed, that " on the platform, and scattered through the meeting, there were clergymen of the highest mark and reputation as scholars, as preachers, and as divines. There were Oxford first-classmen and Cambridge wranglers, University preachers, and Bampton lecturers, with others whose names are familiar as household words from their pulpit eminence, presenting an array of men of whom, in point of numbers and academical note, the evangelical school could not have boasted thirty or forty years ago. The unanimity which pervaded the conference was its most remarkable characteristic. There was in all its deliberations a meekness of wisdom which added double force to the determination to uphold the faith of the Church of England, and repel the aggressions of the reckless and Romanizing innovators by whom its doctrines are now so rudely assailed. The resolutions proposed for acceptance by the Council were unaminously adopted, with some slight but judicious alterations. There was one unanimous protest against the attempt to restore the blasphemous idolatry of the Mass, and to defile all domestic purity by reproducing the sacerdotal assumptions of absolution and the abominations of the con

fessional. And the representatives of the Church of England from all parts of the country declared that the hallowed office of the English presbyter is not to be degraded into that of a sacrificing priest, arrogating to himself as the prerogatives of God, and usurping the office of the one High Priest." The laity also were not behind-hand on the occasion. Sir Herbert Edwardes spoke on their behalf in a speech which is described as being of "great argumentative power and thrilling eloquence." We are thankful for such a meeting as this, and hope that the sentiments so boldly expressed at it may be courageously maintained and may largely spread.

Again has the subject of Fenianism been prominently brought before us, and this time with circumstances of very painful interest. Three unhappy men paid the penalty of their lives for the part that they had taken in the insurrection, and it was thought that this punishment would have had the effect of striking terror into the hearts of those who still adhered to it. When the insurrection first broke out, the Government were evidently inclined to treat it with leniency, and several offenders who might have justly been punished with death, had their sentences commuted to those of much lighter punishment; but it soon became manifest that this policy would never answer, and consequently, the next worst offenders, three unhappy men concerned in an attack upon a prisonvan at Manchester, had the severer penalty of the law-death-inflicted upon them. This has intensely excited the wrath of their poor deluded comrades, and they seem ready for any mischief, apparently caring little whether in their madness they inflict that mischief upon young or old, rich or poor, government official or private individual, as we see in the case of their recent attempt to rescue two of their leaders by exploding a quantity of gunpowder (or other explosive compound) against the wall of the prison in which they were confined, thereby inflicting severe, and, in some cases, mortal, injuries upon many innocent persons. No wonder that this should have produced a profound sensation throughout the country, and that it has intensified the feeling of insecurity which had previously existed. We trust, however, that this state of things will not be allowed to proceed much further, and that the poor deluded men, perceiving the guilt and folly of their course, will settle down to some wiser and more peaceful employment. We have reason to be truly thankful for the contentment and loyalty which at the present time seem to reign amongst the great bulk of our population; if it had not been for this, the Fenian insurrection might have become a far more formidable affair.

Truly, we live in a most wonderful age. Our forefathers, probably, thought the same with regard to themselves and their day; but the wonderful occurrences of our time appear completely to eclipse theirs. Not only is our age remarkable for its marvellous development of steam-power and of electricity, and for its advances in the arts and sciences, but it promises to be, in some respects, still more remarkable for its discoveries of ancient records and memorials-records and memorials which have lain hidden beneath the earth for many hundreds, probably thousands, of years. The discoveries made at Nineveh and in Egypt seem about to be supplemented by still more interesting discoveries in the Holy Land, which are being made by the Palestine Exploration Expedition. Professor Porter, of Belfast, in supporting the claims of the Palestine Exploration Fund, gives a testimony which has peculiar weight from his own extensive knowledge of the Holy Land. Speaking of the wonderful dis

coveries of Mr. Farren in and around Jesusalem, he says: "Their importance to the Biblical archaeologist can scarcely be over-estimated. He cannot but feel that the great vexed questions of the topography of the Holy City and its sacred monuments are on the eve of solution. In common with many others, I have been watching with the most intense eagerness every fresh stage in the excavations, as it corroborated some fact in history, or illustrated some statement in the Bible. The courses of the three ancient city walls, sominutely described by Josephus, are now being gradually traced. The exact sites of the most hallowed spots on earth-the Holy Sepulchre and the Jewish Temple-are in a fair way of being determined. The colossal foundations of the temple wall, in which are 'stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits,' laid by Solomon or his successors on the throne, are now being laid bare at the enormous depth of ninety feet and more beneath the present surface. The bridge that once spanned the ravine between the Palace on Zion and the Temple on Moriah is now proved to have been upwards of one hundred and fifty feet high. If this be, as it seems, the 'ascent' to the house of the Lord, which Solomon showed to the Queen of Sheba, we cannot wonder that on seeing it 'there was no more spirit in her.' The pinnacle of the Temple,' on which the tempter placed the Saviour, has just been uncovered to its base, and is found still to have an elevation of one hundred and thirty-three feet. The statement of Josephus is therefore no exaggeration: 'If any one looked from the battlements into the valley he would be giddy, while his sight could not reach to such an immense depth.' Sections of the ancient wall of Ophel have been exhumed, showing that, as Josephus says, it was joined to the south-east angle of the Temple. Aqueducts, cisterns, and rock-hewn channels and passages, have also been discovered within and around the Haram, throwing new light on the buildings, the arrangements, and the services of the Temple. The great work of a complete exploration of ancient Jerusalem is thus fairly and auspiciously commenced.'

SUPPLEMENTARY WORDS-(See Page 16).

AFTER the first article was in type, my dear daughter placed the annexed in my hand: "Dear mamma rallied wonderfully on the day at the close of which she had a second and last seizure. Her intellect became so clear, and her speech more distinct: so much so, that she quite surprised her doctor and nurses. I asked her, 'How she felt?' and she answered, 'Much better;' and immediately added,' Oh, Emily, do you think I am going to get better?' I answered, We cannot tell, dear mamma; we hope so.' 'Oh,' she said, and the tears rolled down her cheeks as she spoke, 'I should be so sorry to get better.' How different to the worldling, eager to grasp at a straw for a little longer life! To comfort her, I said, 'Mamma darling, the apostle Paul learned the lesson, ""To me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." 'Ah,' she said, 'that's it.' She was 'longing to go home, to her heavenly home;' sometimes saying, 'the journey is long, but the end will soon be reached.' Two or three times she was heard repeating, All the days of my appointed time will I wait, until my change come.' When we were very anxious about dear papa, she said one morning, whilst talking to me, I don't think, my

E

dear child, he is going to be taken; I think I shall die first.' Indeed, for the last two years of her life I noticed how little she seemed to think of the world and earthly things. Often and often would she point out to me the uncertainty of life; how there was nothing worth living for here.' Truly she was setting her affections more on things above, and less on things on the earth. I have often wondered at her thorough unworldliness, and she used to say, 'Ah, my child, you are young; but, when you come to my age, you will have learned what a dream this life is.' How often and with what delight she would speak of heaven!

"In her illness she said, 'Emily, is not, "We all do fade as a leaf," somewhere in this room?' I said, 'It is hung up by your bed.' She replied, That is like me. When we go home, you will see I am fading fast, fading as a leaf.' Her impression at this time was she should live a few months, and be enabled to return to Bristol.

"Her absent sons dwelt much on her mind, and I heard her repeating softly to herself, ' My poor boys, what a dreadful blow it will be to them!' and yet so often she said, 'My children are very dear to me, but I will give them up to the Lord. He will take better care

of them than I should.'

"She was so grateful for any little thing that was done for her, always a quiet Thank you;' and her consideration for her nurses was extreme. Every one among her relatives was asked for, and spoken of with much love. The Lord's goodness to her was her constant theme.

"Two years ago she suffered from rheumatic fever, and I am sure, from that time, she thought her life would be short. I remember her telling me so at the time. Never, in all her life, did she suffer from fear of the article of death; to her it was only the shadow. It must be remembered she was a woman of great personal courage, never flinching in the least from anything she thought a duty, and always trying to make her children self-reliant.

"One of her first remarks, on recovering from the seizure, was, 'My poor Emily! she will think she is going to lose father and mother too.' When my little sister and I were being left in much grief at seeing dear papa go to Southsea as an invalid, she said, 'Good bye!' and then came back to kiss us once more, so tenderly, saying, 'Don't fret, my children; all will yet be well.' How little did I think the parting was really from her, and this was to be the last time I should see my loved mother in her wonted health! The next time she did not recognise me. I stood by her bedside, but she knew me not. Oh, what a change a few days had wrought! Bitterly did I feel the transitory nature of earthly things! Hard was it to bow to His will, and say, 'It is the Lord; let Him do what seemeth Him good!'

"But with what mercy was the tabernacle taken down! A period of consciousness allowed her to recognise and talk with us. Gently, most gently, was she taken home. We could not wish her back again, even though our poor stricken hearts are writhing under the stroke."