When prevented by indisposition from attending the school, he anticipated, with peculiar pleasure, the kind visit of his teacher; and often expressed the satisfaction he had from it. What a pleasure to teach such a scholar! He also felt a deep and lively interest in the success of the cause of God, and especially in missionary operations; the Foreign Missionary Society and the Itinerant Society were the objects of his sincere delight. He read with great interest the accounts of the labours of missionaries among the heathen; and never did he appear more in his element than when he could contribute to their funds himself, or induce others to do so. The love of order and accuracy were very strikingly seen in him: he kept a regular debtor and creditor account, putting down all the little sums of money he received on the one hand, and what they were expended for upon the other; nor did he ever make any allotment of his little sums without consulting his parents; and you may be sure that there were no entries there for lollypops or gingerbread, or such sort of things. One of the last things that he did before he was taken too ill to attend to such things, was to wrap up some money he had by him in various parcels to be appropriated to certain purposes he named; which, it is needless to say, was done after his decease. Our young readers may learn much from little Ben; and may they all be blessed with that grace that shone so conspicuously in him! Dear young reader, think of happy Ben, and see in him the loveliness of religion. Bristol, Oct. 1847. J. J. LETTER FROM THE LATE REV. W. HAWEIS COOPER, OF DUBLIN, TO A LITTLE BOY WHO WAS VERY ILL. "London, July 27, 1842. "MY VERY DEAR WILLY,-I don't expect you to be able to read this letter; but, perhaps, you can get mamma, or Miss J, to read it for you. You remember when you and I used to be toge ther at Mrs. F's, in Glasgow; and I know you remember the text I told you to get off for me: 'Suffer little children to come unto me.' Do you know who said that?-Was it not Christ? And where is Christ?-Is he not in heaven? Then, little children, in order to go to Christ, so as to see him, and be with him for ever, must go to him in heaven. And they cannot go to heaven without dying. You had to get into the steam-boat in order to go to kind Mrs. F -'s, at Glasgow; and you were not afraid of going into the steam-boat, because you knew, that, notwithstanding all the noise and smoke, it meant no harm, but was designed to carry you over the water to so kind a friend. Now, death is the steam-boat that Christ sends to bring little children to himself in heaven! and they sometimes get frightened at the noise, and the pain, and the sickness; but, if they were to think that this is the way in which Christ' suffers little children to come unto him,' they would not be frightened, but would rejoice at the thought of going to Christ. "Mrs. F― was very kind to you, and you loved her. And papa and mamma are very kind to you, and you ought to love them more. He was God's own Son, and lived in heaven; but he came down, and was a little boy like you, and grew this world, but to suffer a great deal, and, up to be a man, not to enjoy himself in at last, to die in great agony on a cross of wood for your sake, and in order to get you off from being wretched and miserable for ever! For we are all so wicked,even little children too,- that God could never have forgiven us if our Lord Jesus Christ had not said: Punish me instead of them. I will bear to be beaten and whipped for them, if God will only forgive them.' And, having borne all for us, and, at last, died for us, he went to heaven, to wait till he should bring us there. And now he sends out different diseases, like so many steam-packets, and says to them, Bring that little child home to me.' And the child takes ill, (it is no more than getting into a steampacket to sail to heaven,) and he is very sick, as we sometimes are, you know, at sea, and he falls asleep, perhaps after a little pain and crying; and then he wakes up, and opens his eyes, and sees that dear Saviour who said, Suffer little children to come unto me.' And he sees hosts of angels, and everything is bright and happy; and that place is his home for ever after. It is heaven! He meets many friends there; and, by-and-by, mamma and papa, and Mr. and Mrs. F-, and all the good, kind people that he loved here in this world, will come to him there, and live with him there for ever, without growing old or dying. Oh! will not that be beautiful! Then, my dear little boy, think of these things, and don't be afraid of dying. Christ will be with you; or, if he choose, he can make you quite well again, and let you live a little longer. My dear little boy, pray for me as I do now for you. I am your very loving friend, "W. HAWEIS COOPER." THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR. IN some countries, where the heat of the climate is great, exists that gigantic species of the serpent tribe, called the boaconstrictor. This formidable creature subsists principally on animal food, such as deer, goats, and other game; and, for the purpose of securing its prey, it is endowed with a muscular system of vast power and activity. Its usual mode is to lie in wait near pools or streams, frequently suspending itself from the branches of trees, and swinging to and fro as if in playful motion, until some animal approaches. When the latter is sufficiently near, the wily serpent, darting towards it, quickly enfolds itself around the body of the victim, and exerting its constrictive energy, crushes it into a lifeless mass, which it then proceeds to devour. These facts may serve to illustrate the progress and effects of sin. Sin is a monster which is working the death of every unconverted man. It aims not at physical death merely, but at what is infinitely more awful, the death of the soul! It is, as it were, stealthily coiling itself around the thoughtless sinner, whom it will at length utterly destroy, unless the mercy of God interpose to prevent the dreadful catastrophe. Nothing can be more certain than that sin, unrepented of and unpardoned, must ultimately crush all the hopes of man, and sink him lower than the grave. While the present life continues, escape is, indeed, possible; but ever after it is wholly hopeless. Salvation must be obtained, if at all, in time. There is a mighty Saviour, Christ Jesus, who is able to deliver the sinner from his guilt and danger; but he only can do it. Efficient aid can come from no other source. Let us, then, ask ourselves, whether we have applied to the Saviour?-have we sought mercy and help through him? The case admits of no reasonable postponement. A day of judgment and of retribution is rapidly approaching, which will be infinitely terrible to all who finally persist in their neglect of gospel mercy and grace. For such deliverance then, when all opportunity is past, and the destiny fixed for ever, it will be too late. Accordingly, Scripture urges upon us, by every solemn consideration, the duty of a present attention to this important matter, and gives encouragement by the assurance, that now Ged is willing to hear our supplications to save us from the indescribable evils of sin; and to communicate, through Christ, whatever is necessary for our everlasting safety. To manifest insensibility, and practise delay, in regard to our souls, is most offensive in the sight of God, and calculated to provoke his awful vengeance. Nor can there be anything more guilty and perilous than rejection of the Saviour; because God will never pardon and accept any who refuse to receive these blessings through the medium of his Son Jesus Christ! M. The Cabinet. CONGREGATIONAL ADDRESSES. BY A COUNTRY PASTOR. "The way of salvation."-ACTS xvi. 17. MY BELOVED FRIENDS,-To show unto men the way of salvation, is a work of such vast importance, that every scriptural means available to the faithful preacher may properly, and indeed ought to be, laid under contribution for its accomplishment. Finding it impossible in my own case to make you visits to the extent I could desire, and follow up my public instructions in your own dwellings by further illustration and enforcement, I have thought I might, to some extent, promote the end desired, by issuing now and then a plain, pointed, affectionate address, on some leading topic connected with my public ministry; and thereby afford my hearers the opportunity of contemplating, in a somewhat more tangible form than their own recollections could supply, in the solitude of their own chambers, those themes of solemn interest which it is my anxious wish to unfold and press upon their consideration from the pulpit. It is a weighty matter, dear friends, to be called to preach the Gospel. In the pulpit, and everywhere as occasion offers, it is my business to show unto you the way of salvation. Of all kinds of work this is undoubtedly the most important, the most sublime, and the most responsible. Conscious, I trust, in some degree, of my awful responsibility, it is my anxiety that it should be well done; that on no mind there should rest the shadow of a shade of doubt as regards the character of the way of life; that the path to heaven may be delineated as with a sunbeam, so that the ignorant and unbelieving may fully know it, and be taught to walk therein. How many of my hearers are ready to ask me, what is this way of salvation? and how may we be saved? What awakened sinner cries out, What must I do to be saved? Methinks I hear some one give utterance to these words in deep, conscience-stricken anxiety. Oh, interesting inquiry! important, unspeakably momentous question! God help me to direct you aright-to unfold to you the answer which, blessed be God! the Scriptures so fully and distinctly supply. But, first, let me entreat you to recollect, that you must be deeply conscious of your guilt and misery before it were possible for you to apprehend clearly the way of salvation. A passing qualm of conscience; a momentary feeling of excitement under an awakening discourse; a disquieting pang of remorse springing from the accusations of a guilty conscience;-none of these comes up to the scriptural idea of genuine conviction. Oh, how important that the inquirer after salvation should be thoroughly awakened to a sense of his guilt and danger! Be assured, then, O sinner, thou art in immi nent peril. Thou treadest on the brink of the all-devouring pit. The wing of an unforeseen circumstance may plunge thee in a moment into the abyss of everlasting woe. Every step thou takest, till directed into the way of life, is fraught with danger. Perilous, unutterably perilous, is thy state. But listen. Exposed to misery as thou art, guilty, and fearfully dangerous as thy condition is, there is yet hope for thee—a way of salvation lies before thee, broad, plain, glorious, suitable to thee, honourable to God! When the awakened jailor of Philippi gave utterance to the momentous question, "What must I do to be saved?" he was answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." This brief sentence unfolds the way of salvation; and there is none other. Whosoever will may walk in this way and be saved. Alas for them who know it not! To save from all misconception in this most solemn matter, permit me, dear friends, to notice the following things, as implied in a saving knowledge of the way of salvation, to which I would most earnestly solicit attention. Such knowledge implies 1. An abandonment of all trust in ourselves.-Self-righteousness is the sure ruin of the soul. It has destroyed its thousands, and its tens of thousands. Sinner, beware of it! Trust not in thyself, nor in aught about thyself. There are self-righteous prayers, and selfrighteous tears, as well as self-righteous works, and all are alike ruinous to the soul. The bridge by which the self-righteous man expects to cross the gulf of past and present guiltiness, to acceptance and peace with God, will break down under his feet, and he himself sink in the destroying flood. The web of self-righteousness which his own hands have put together, in which he seeks to wrap himself up as a protection against the storm of Jehovah's wrath, will one day be rent in pieces, and he exposed to the peltings and fury of an everlasting tempest of Divine indignation. Awakened sinner, renounce thyself! flee to the refuge set before thee in the gospel, and, casting thyself at the foot of the cross, let thy prayer be that of the Publican of old, “God be merciful to me a sinner!" 2. A saving acquaintance with the " 'way of salvation," implies a knowledge of the character and work of the Saviour.-When the apostle said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved," he meant that the confidence and hope of the sinner should rest exclusively on the atoning work of Christ. It is essential, therefore, to our being saved, that the grounds of salvation be known, otherwise they cannot be made the foundation of trust. But on this point the testimony of Scripture is full and explicit: "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God had set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the redemption of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, at this time, his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus." Many other passages might be adduced, unfolding in similar terms the doctrine of an all-sufficient propitiation; a knowledge of which is indispensable to our being saved from the wrath to come. 3. Entire reliance on the work of Christ is included in being savingly acquainted with the " way of salvation."-This is what we mean by faith, or believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. The importance of this is frequently and strongly insisted upon in the New Testament: "He that believeth on the Son of God hath life; but he that believeth not shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him." Faith is, therefore, of the utmost importance in the economy of our redemption. It is (if I may so speak) the_hand_ that receives the gift, the rich gift, of eternal life; and he who will not take the trouble of stretching out the hand to receive it—that is, the unbeliever-must perish ! the way. 4. A saving knowledge of the " way of salvation," is inseparable from holiness of heart and life.-"The grace of God," says Paul, “ that bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men; teaching us, that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world. The way of salvar tion is the way of purity, as well as the way of peace and safety. Ah, sinner! deceive not thyself with the vain hope that thou art a child of God; that thou hast passed from death unto life; that thy steps have been turned from the paths wherein destroyers go, into of peace and righteousness, whilst thou art walking according to the course of the world, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. Such hope is all a delusion. There is no merit, it is true, in a holy practice. Never dream of that. But there is the genuine evidence of being saved, the only legitimate proof of acceptance with God, and of possessing the new heart and the right spirit. Whilst a man's life remains unchanged, whatever his profession may be, whilst he can habitually indulge in known sin, it is morally certain that he is still a stranger to the life of God in the soul, under the sentence of condemnation, and exposed to everlasting misery. Finally; let me implore you, men and brethren, to weigh well these considerations. Whatever tends to explain and illustrate "the way of salvation," demands your most serious attention. To know the way of wealth, the way of earthly honour, the way of human learning, compared with the knowledge of this way, is as nothing, as "the small dust of the balance,' as a shining bubble in the sunbeam compared with the radiant brightness of the celestial luminary. Riches, honour, fame; - what are these but ، trifles light as air," in comparison of the eternal well-being of the soul? Your higher interests, therefore, beloved friends, require that you should be satisfied with no hasty, partial, ill-considered views in a matter of such unspeakable moment. Treading in the way I have been endeavouring to explain and set before you, till you reach the brink of the Jordan of death, you shall pass the gloomy stream in safety, and by this way ascend in triumph to the gate of the celestial |