tender age, behaved with becoming seriousness and decorum at this sacred place.

They went to church again in the same order, and behaved with equal decency in the afternoon: after which, by invitation, the young people all drank tea in Mrs. Teachum's parlour.

The conversation, during tea-time, turned upon religious subjects, which Mrs. Teachum was anxious to render particularly agreeable to the young people.

After tea, the Bible was again produced, and Miss Jenny Peace, as the eldest, was directed to read such parts as Mrs. Teachum thought proper to select.

The Bible is full of beautiful stories, which the more we read, the more interesting they become. This holy book, unlike every other, never wearies the attentive reader, but the more it is studied, the more it delights. And to speak its highest praise, this is the book, which, rightly understood, leads the wandering sinner back to his God, and sets him in the way of everlasting happiness.

Many of these little ones had never till this evening found any real pleasure in listening to the Scriptures; for till now they had not that preparation of heart which is necessary in order to render the word of God acceptable. But having by God's blessing, conceived the wish to do well, they found a pleasure in their religious duties of which they formerly could not even have formed an idea.

now,

At an early hour the little party retired to their sleeping-room, where they enjoyed that sweet and peaceful repose, to which the tranquillizing exer+ rises of the Sabbath do naturally lead the way.

Monday,

The fourth Day.

As soon as school was over in the morning, our little company were impatient to go into the arbour, to hear the story which their kind governess had promised them on the Saturday before. But Mrs. Teachum was now obliged to inform them that they must be otherwise employed: for that their writing-master, who lived some miles off, and who had been expected in the afternoon, was just then come in, and begged their attendance, though out of school-time, because he was obliged to be at home again before the afternoon, to meet a person from whom he expected a great favour, and who would be highly disobliged should he not keep his appointment. "And I know," said Mrs. Teachum," my little dears, you would rather lose your own amusement, than let any one suffer a real inconvenience on your account."

They all readily complied, and cheerfully went to their writing. So in the afternoon Mrs. Teachum permitted them to leave off work an hour sooner than usual, as a reward for the readiness they had shown to give up their morning amusement: and being met in the arbour, Miss Jenny Peace read to them as follows,

In the reign of Louis the Fourteenth, King of France, there was a large party among the king's ministers who were the determined enemies of pure religion, and who frequently employed themselves in forming plans for the destruction of such persons in the king's dominions as most eminently devoted themselves to the service of God.

Among those against whom the rancour of these wicked persons was particularly excited, were a certain race of poor people who inhabited the valleys of Piedmont, a district in the south of France, lying between the Alps and Pyrenees.

These poor people, called the Waldenses, having lived for many ages shut out from the world in deep and sequestered valleys, had there preserved among them the purity of the Christian religion without any mixture of human traditions; while all the surrounding countries were polluted with the errors of popery. They had no images in their churches; they invoked neither saints nor angels; neither did they acknowledge any other mediator than Jesus Christ, nor rely upon any other merit than that of his immaculate righteousness and his atoning death. They were a light shining in darkness. They were a poor and afflicted people, left in the midst of the wicked nations of Europe, trusting in the name of the Lord. (Zeph. iii. 12.)

It might seem extraordinary how so poor a race of people as these Waldenses, living in retirement, and quietly serving their God, should incur the hatred of the great men of a flourishing court.

did we not know, from the experience of ages, that the children of this world are always unfriendly to the children of God. Our Lord himself predicted that it should be so-If the world hate you, said he, in that last unutterably tender and affectionate discourse which he held with his disciples, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love its own but because ye are not of the world, but I have choson you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. (John xv. 18, 19.)

Accordingly therefore, as their master Christ had foretold, the Waldenses were hated by the world, and many plans for their destruction were formed by their enemies. Among other plans, it was proposed that some of the persecuting party should visit the inhabitants of these valleys in disguise, for the purpose of procuring evidence of their treasonable words or practices against church or state, if so be that any of their private words or actions might by any means be so interpreted. Several persons came forward to offer themselves for this horrible service: but he that was most importunate to be thus employed was Albert de la Hauteville, a young man of noble parentage, great address, handsome and accomplished, but utterly destitute of religious or moral feeling. Albert was believed to be best capable of accomplishing the hateful design of the court party, and his services accordingly were accepted in preference to those of every other person.

Albert de la Hauteville having received suitable instructions from his base employers, and being provided with every thing necessary for his jour1

ney, set out without loss of time from Paris. Ou arriving within a day's journey of the mountains, he there put off his own dress, and assumed that of a peasant of those parts. Then taking a staff in his hand, together with one of the books or confessions of the Waldenses, called The Noble Lesson, with a copy of which he had taken care to provide himself, he penetrated on foot into the valleys, endeavouring to make acquaintance with their poor and simple inhabitants wherever he He travelled for some days through scenes of extraordinary beauty, stopping at many houses in his way; but without seeing or hearing any thing that could be turned to the condemnation of these innocent people.

went.

His first night's lodging was at a cottage on the declivity of a hill. The cottage was so low, and the hill so steep, that the back part of the thatch of the house rested on the side of the hill; while the front of the cottage overhung a deep dingle, thickly planted with trees, which almost hid from the eye a stream that rushed rapidly along the bottom.

Here lived a very old man and his daughter, who was herself a widow, and not very young. On the traveller's asking for a night's lodging, these poor people received him kindly, supplying him with goat's milk and cakes baked on the hearth. He, in the mean time, pretending to be one of their own way of thinking, led the old man to speak upon religious subjects: and when he believed that he had won his confidence, he ventured to insinuate something against the king and the Roman Cotholic doctrines, hoping thus