Christian ministers could say to him, made no impression. He never asked one to pity or pray for him.

Just before his departure, after he had been rolling from side to side for some time, with horror depicted in every feature, he called to his wife to bring him a cup of cold water; "for," said he, "in one hour I shall be where I shall never get another drop." She brought him the water, he drank it with greediness, and reached back the cup with a trembling hand; then staring her in the face, his eyes flashing with terror, he cried out, "Rebecca, Rebecca, you are the cause of my eternal damnation!" He turned over, and with an awful groan left the world, to enter upon a dread eternity.

Reader, meditate on this narrative. "Be not conformed to this world." Yield not to the temptations of the adversary of souls; lest as a hardened, impenitent sinner, or as a selfruined backslider, you finally inherit the portion of the hypocrite and unbeliever, " where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched," and where "the backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways."

CALLS OF USEFULNESS.

Call on the Father of a large Family.

Goon day to you, Mr. Jones. Good day to you all, young people; you look as fresh and as clean this morning as I could wish to see you. As times go, Mr. Jones, you must have enough to do to bring up such a family as you have; but there is an old saying, that when God is pleased to send mouths, he sends also something to put in them. Men with large families, who fear God, do quite as well, so far as I can see, as those who have a fewer number to provide for. One of the most learned ministers of the gospel, who has not long exchanged earth for heaven, thought it quite a holiday to leave his books and mingle with his children. On these occasions he would cry out to them, "Come all about me! Come all about me!" At the sound of his voice his little ones used to rush forward, striving which should get the first kiss, or the best seat upon his knee. After that, they would often clamber about him; one holding him fast round his neck, this he called his collar; two would hang from his shoulders, these were his shoulder knots; one clasping him round the waist, was his girdle; and one seated on each foot and clinging to his legs, he called his clogs; then taking an infant in his arms, the delighted father hobbled about the room, happier than the happiest of his laughing children.

Now this is, to me, a sweet family picture, and when God-fearing parents and God-fearing children can thus find delight in each other's company, there is a fair prospect that they will not only share pleasure together on earth, but glory in heaven. It is under such circumstances as these that children bid fair to be blessings to their fathers and their mothers, to themselves, and to all around them. It is in such cases as these that the words in the 127th Psalm strikes us as being full of beauty: "Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are the children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies at the gate

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I trust these few words will be an encouragement to you, Mr. Jones, amid the many cares which every one who brings up a large family must feel, for God can multiply his mercies faster than he has multiplied your children. Good day to you all.

Call on the Son of a Christian Parent.

Oh! I have found you at last, but not without some trouble, I assure you, George. Three times have I passed up and down the next street, and not a single person could show me where you lived. This is the book of handbills that I procured for your father; when he comes from his work, perhaps you will give it him; he will find it full of admonition, given in a very striking manner. You live opposite the church, I see. There is an old proverb, "The nearer the church, the further from God;" meaning that some who have the best opportunity of obtaining spiritual knowledge, are more neglectful than their neighbours. Your father is a God-fearing man, George, and I know does his best to bring you up in the fear of the Lord. May the blessing of the Most High rest on his endeavours'

The church clock, I see, is somewhat out of repair. I remember reading that Frederick the Great, king of Prussia, coming to a village church, where the dial plate of the clock was out of order, declared that his constitution was three times stronger and more durable than hardened iron; "for," said he, "the church clock, by the date, is only twenty-five years old, yet it is worn out, whereas I, who have been equally exposed to the elements, am seventy-five." Poor Frederick, strong as his constitution was, soon after that lay mouldering in the dust. He lived and died an infidel, and no hopeful ray of a glorious immortality brightened up the dark avenue of death when he passed through it. Better is it to be a God-fearing beggar, than a God-denying king!

Perhaps you will sometimes call this remark to remembrance when you look on the church clock. Ah! the hour is striking now! May it never strike unwelcome on a misspent hour, but always find you doing the will of your heavenly Father, and trusting for salvation in the merits and atonement of his Son Jesus Christ.

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Mind that your father has the book as soon as he comes home, and it will not hurt you to take a peep into it yourself. Good day, George! I shall know where to find you another time.

LETTERS OF JOHN CARELESS.

JOHN CARELESS was a weaver of Coventry, a devoted follower of the truth in the reign of King Edward VI. When Queen Mary came to the throne, and restored popery, he, as well as every other who refused to forsake the religion of the Bible, was persecuted. He was imprisoned for two years in Coventry gaol, and afterwards in the King's Bench prison in London, where he died in July, 1536, thus escaping the fiery death which he would soon have been called to suffer. The adversaries of the truth showed their malice by refusing him Christian burial, casting his body out naked into the fields, when some well-disposed persons, as in other like cases, buried it in a heap of rubbish. Fox says that on these occasions some of the citizens of London, who had gone out into the fields to practise archery, would stand round and sing Psalms, incurring considerable risk to themselves by such an expression of their sympathy towards those whom the bigoted papists represented as no better than beasts.

The examinations and several letters of Careless, are printed by Fox; the letters contain lively delineations of his Christian experience and faith in Christ. They were printed by the Religious Tract Society in the British Reformers, in a more complete form than they had been given to the public during the last two hundred

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and seventy years; but since that time two other letters have been found, which were printed in the year 1566 with a tract of Bishop Ridley's, but which were not printed either by Coverdale or Fox. They are reprinted here in the old spelling, that the reader may have them as first printed, and to show how much the value and usefulness of "The British Reformers" would have been diminished had the old spelling been retained in those volumes. Also it will be interesting to many to see these works as they appeared in former times; but after all the spelling is merely that of the printers of the day, for they did not attend to the spelling of the writer. Very few modern readers would have patience to read through a volume printed in this way, while the mere change of the spelling to the modern custom does not in the least affect the sense.

CERTEYNE GODLY AND COMFORTABLE LETTERS OF THE CONSTANT WYTNES OF CHRIST, JOHN CARELES, WRITTEN IN THE TIME OF HIS IMPRISONMENT, AND NOW FYRSTE SET FORTH IN PRINTE.

Anno Domini, 1566.

THOMAS PIRRY to the Christian reader, in commendation of that worthy man of God, John Careles.

Much care did careful Careles bide

In time of Romishe rage;

When flesh and bloud with fier was tried,
To make mennes fayth to swage.

But God be thanked for his grace,
Who did him so defende,
That in the truth he ran hys race,
And made a godly ende.

No man more carefull for the crosse
Of Christe his sauinge health:
No man more careles for the losse
Of frendes and worldly wealth.
When he was hated and abhorde
Of Cayphas, and his sede;
He caste his care vpon the Lorde,
And careles was in dede.

For why, he knewe that worldly power,
No farther coulde procede,

Then God whose worde doth still endure
Already had decreed.

And that the Lorde would in the ende
Work all things for the best;
When of great mercy he shoulde sende
His soule to ioyfull rest.

In hope wherof he careles was,
And redy to the stake;

If God so woulde, he did not passe,
Such ende on earth to make.

But God's will was he shoulde not die
Such death in open sighte;
Wherefore in prison ioyfully,

To Christe he yelde his sprite.

Psalm liv.-Caste thy care vpon the Lorde, and he shall nourishe thee, he will not suffer the righteous to fall for

euer.

From John Careles to Κ. Ε.

Grace, mercy, and peace from God our eternall and most deere louinge Father, with quyetnes of conscience in our swete Lorde and only Sauyour Jesus Chryst, with encrease of knowledge, health, strength, and spiritual ioy, in and through the mighty operation of the Holy Ghost, our euerlastinge comforte, be with you nowe and euer, my most deere and louing sister K. E. to the good perfourmance of all that he hathe so graciously begon in you, in such sort as may be moste to hys glory, the comforte of hys poore afflicted church, and to the encrease of your owne euerlasting ioye in hym. Amen.

As I am by no means hable (my deere harte in the Lord) in the least pointe to recompence any part of the greate loue, faithful frendship and manifolde kindnes, that you haue so largely extended vnto me; euen so am I not able to declare how much, and how depelye I am continuallye bound to geue God most humble praise and continuall thankes for you, and on your behalfe. Before God I speak it, I can not with pen expresse what ioy and comforte my poore afflycted hart hath conceyued of you, and that in mo respectes than I wyll or can now declare. Ah, my deare syster K., whose humble hart and lowly spirit doth to me presently appeare in youre most godly and louing letter, blessed are you, and all such meke handmaides of ye Lord. For doubtles you shal be exalted in that day, when ye proud persones of the world, and hyghminded Pharaseys shall be caste downe. God for evermore bee blessed who have geuen you (contrary to nature) such a meke and humble hart. For vpon al such (he saith himself) his Holy Spirit shall rest, which promis is ful wel verified in you; whych Holy Spirite of his, is the good guide and leader, yea, the only teacher and instructer of all the Lordes deare elect children. And as it hath trulye taught you to caste yourself doune, as it is most conuenient,