For God had made thine heart His blest abode,
His temple of bright hopes and pure desires;
And kindled on its shrine a flame that glowed
With quenchless fires!

And from thy meek Redeemer's wounded side The fountain sprung that washed thy sins away, That guiltless thou should'st stand, and justified, On the great day!

And thou didst ever take the lowest place,-
The mind that was in Christ shone forth in thee,-

That sweet, retiring, and unconscious grace,

Humility.

Yet from that lowly heart, deep-rooted there, High principles and generous deeds sprung forth:

The plain strong sense of right, the judgment clear, Of priceless worth.

Thine only standard God's unerring Word;
Divinely taught its vital truths to see;

Thine only pattern that incarnate Lord

Who died for thee!

And thou didst walk in wisdom's pleasant ways, Thy feet with holiest peace divinely shod; Unmoved alike by human blame or praise,

True to thy God!

Thy smiles, thy gentle smiles, we still recall,-
For thou wert gentle as the gentle dove,—
Shedding their lovely influence on all
Who shared thy love.

We saw them still, when we could only weep,
Spreading a lustre round thy dying bed;

Their lingering sweetness, in that breathless sleep,
Was o'er thee shed.

But thou art gone,-from every care removed,— Thy blest exchange, ah! why should we deplore! Or weep, with selfish tears, that one so loved Should weep no more?

For why associate now with grief or woe
Thy saintly brightness, and thy glorious rest:
Linking thy life in heaven, with earth below,
Since thou art blest?

A little while farewell! we soon shall have
Glad meetings-yet a little while delayed.
Farewell! We hang this garland on the grave

Where thou art laid.

"Some said, 'John, print it;' others said, 'Not so;'
Some said, 'It might do good;' others said, 'No.'"

JOHN BUNYAN.

Two reasons have led to the publication of this volume, both of which laid upon me a pleasant constraint. It was intimated, at the conclusion of a former volume, Thankfulness, that its reception would probably determine the question, whether a sequel to it should appear. Many letters have come to me from unknown writers-more than one even from America—and I could not choose but comply with requests which they contained, that the partly-promised volume should be published. I candidly state, that the requests of my unknown friends were in accordance with my own wishes.

The second reason, above referred to, was, that, some years ago, a letter was put into my hand, by a most valued friend, from a clergyman quite unknown to me, an extract from which I here give :"I am not at all sure that the subject of this note is worth

attention, for the thoughts, oftentimes doleful, of a poor old country parson, driven into an obscure corner of the universe, and shut up there, are politically and ecclesiastically little or nothing worth; but it has occurred to me, in the cogitations which our present circumstances have well-nigh forced upon me, that a book, not long or expensive, written in a lively style of genuine piety and scriptural soundness on the following subject, might be very useful; and being myself quite unable to write such a book, a question arose, in my mind, whether the Rev. C. B. Tayler, of Chester, might not treat such a point in a popular, sound, and useful manner. The title might be of this sort: Ideal of a Christian Church, drawn from Scripture, and from that which has been most conformed to the spirit of Scripture, both in the best and worst times.'

"I think that a simple sketch of a pious, humble, spiritual Episcopate, Parochial Ministry, Lay Associations, &c., &c., might be very pleasing and profitable. George Herbert might be referred to, with great advantage, in many cases, the lives of some bishops, such as Leighton, or clergymen, also of some laymen. Perhaps a peep into some records connected with the Episcopal Church in America, might be of service."