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"The quaint remark led to further conversation, and I replied, 'I am glad to hear you repeat one text, and hope you are acquainted with many others in the precious Word of God, and, above all, that you know that dear Saviour there revealed to us.' 'Yes,' answered the old man, 'I know something-a little of His love.' When I had expressed my joy that such was the case, he asked, 'Is it possible to know that our sins are forgiven?' The reason of his putting this question I could not quite comprehend; it was evidently not for his own satisfaction,— perhaps it was for the sake of his aged companion. 'Certainly,' I answered, 'there can be no solid peace for a convinced sinner, if he has no sense of the forgiveness of his sins, and our Lord says to His disciples, "Peace I give unto you."' Many other passages of Scripture were mentioned, such as Rom. v. 1, and viii. 16; 1 John iii. 14. 'Well,' said the old man, 'I have been, and I am, a poor sinful creature, but my sins are all forgiven.' He then spoke with joyful anticipation of the period when he should have no more sin, and should serve the Lord Jesus without a hindrance, see Him as He is, and be made like Him. And does your companion know anything of the love of Christ?' I inquired. Answer for yourself,' said he who had just spoken. The aged man raised his eyes from the heap of broken rock before him, on which they had been fixed the whole time his work-fellow and myself had been talking. 'Yes,' he said, in a humble and rather mournful tone, I know Him, I have known Him these five-andtwenty years.'

"We had a little more conversation on the divine faithfulness in keeping His people through a long life, even to old age and to hoary hairs, and His promise to uphold them to the end of their days, and to bring them safely to His heavenly kingdom. When I was about to walk on, I said, 'We have never met before, and may never meet again till we reach heaven'; but I believe we shall know each other there, and remember this morning; for the apostle speaks of his Thessalonian converts as his "crown of rejoicing" at the coming of Christ; this could not be unless he knew them.' The second old man, again looking up, repeated the whole passage: "For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even

ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.""

"I bade these aged pilgrims farewell with a lighter heart than I met them; and, as the rough hand of the

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poor stone-breaker pressed mine, and both added their hearty amen' to my expression-May the Lord be with you and bless you,' I thanked God for thus refreshing my spirit by Christian intercourse, and encouraging me in His own work, and I unhesitatingly gave away every tract I had with me before I reached home."

THE SABBATH SCHOOL AND OUR SICK AND
WOUNDED SOLDIERS.

We are very much obliged by the kindness which enables us to print, for the use of all our readers, the following letter to the children of the Gourock Church Sabbath School from their late Pastor, who is now so usefully employed in ministering to the sick and wounded soldiers in the hospitals at Scutari.

All our readers who have helped to send out books to our camp or hospitals abroad, will feel as much interest in this nice letter as if it had been written to them by name. And we trust they will all take home to themselves the serious counsel and encouragement which this letter gives them to abound in effort and in prayer for the spiritual good of the brave men who have risked their lives for us in the present war.

TO THE CHILDREN OF THE GOUROCK CHURCH

SABBATH SCHOOL.

MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS,-I had the very great pleasure, last evening, of opening a box, containing among other things a gift of books, sent by you for the use of our soldiers in the East. I had before heard of this gift, and was happy to think that you had not forgotten me, and that you were willing to collect for the purpose of putting into my hands such books as your teachers might think fit to select. And I was also happy to think that some other friends, friends both of yours and mine, friends at once of the Sabbath school and the soldier, had been at the pains to forward the books so that your contribution might reach me free of cost. But you may fancy that it gave me still greater pleasure to see the box set down in my room, and after unfastening the key, and applying it to the lock, hear

the bolt sweetly slip back, and on lifting the lid, take out one by one the books which your money had purchased. Many a day I looked for this box, and now it has come, and I have the pleasure of handling, as I expect to have the pleasure of putting into the hands of others, the very books which have come from Gourock.

I shall not suppose that these books were chosen by the scholars themselves, or that all of you had read them or even knew their names. But I may tell you, and you will be happy to hear it, that whoever made the selection has contrived to get just the very description of books which, if I had sailed all the way back to Scotland on purpose, I should have been likely to have picked out for reading here. You have sent a few Bibles and Testaments, which are always the best books, but many were not needed, as other friends have remembered us this way. You have sent some tracts, and smaller books, and these are useful, because they are easily carried in a soldier's knapsack, and easily handled by a sick man in bed, and can be read by those who feel too feeble to take up a large book. Among these I am particularly pleased to observe a tract which relates to your own 66 pretty village," and holds out a terrible warning to the reckless swearer. Many of the men I meet with know well the localities in the neighbourhood of "Partan Bank," and will therefore take all the more interest in reading it. And it may be that this tract I will be blessed to them as I trust it has been to some in Gourock. I am not sorry, too, to find a bundle of Juvenile Magazines, and that one kind friend has put in some Juvenile Catechisms, and a few copies of your beautiful Sabbath school Hymns. These will serve to remind me of my juvenile friends at home, and those who have sent them have doubtless rightly judged that what is suited for the young may be read with advantage by those who are older. And I may meet with some soldier to whom the Mother's Catechism, and the Sunday school hymn, shall bring back recollections of other days, and whom they shall remind of the lessons of earlier years.

And then there have been sent, for those who have time and strength for reading, larger books, some of the best that the English language contains. Here is James's Anxious Inquirer, a book which I have heard rated as next in value to the Bible. There is Doddridge's Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul, a favourite book with all pious people, and which has been the means of leading many to think seriously and turn to God. Of these two books a

considerate friend has furnished several copies. There is that wonderful book The Pilgrim's Progress, of which a larger number of copies have been printed than of any one book but the Bible, and perhaps one other. Of this you have sent only one copy, and it is enough, for so great a favourite is it with many that great numbers have been sent already, and many of the men had read it at home. And then there are volumes by Baxter, and Boston, and Alleine, and Bickersteth, and a number of others, all excellent, and well worth reading, and some of them particularly suited for the sick.

It will be pleasing to you to think that these are not only good books, but books which are likely to be read, and carefully read by some at least of the soldiers. Since I came here I have known some of the same books to be read with great attention, and in some cases regretted that I had not more copies to put into the hands of other men. Doddridge's Rise and Progress was kept by one young man for several weeks in succession, and he expressed his desire to me to be allowed to have it all the time he was in hospital. Baxter's Call to the Unconverted was read more than once by a young Irishman, and returned with thanks. Bunyan has been asked for again and again, lent from one man to another, and I have often seen men stretched on their beds busily engaged in reading the story of his Pilgrim. The Anxious Inquirer has been frequently lent out, and longer time has sometimes been asked for its perusal: so that I am in hopes, with the additional copies you have sent me, and the other books as well, that I may be able to supply many men who will read these with care.

But I hope you will remember, my dear young friends, that good books cannot save, any more than good_men, that it is God alone who saves by His Son Christ Jesus, and, therefore, when you are offering up prayers to Him, oh! do not forget the poor soldier. Think of the man who is suffering from a broken arm or a wounded leg, or who is so weak, after a burning fever, or an attack of dysentery, that he is as helpless as a little child, and as unable to carry his musket. Think of such a man, lying on his bed, and counting the hours from sunset till daybreak, and from daybreak till sunset, taking up, to pass the time, one of your tracts or books, and oh! pray that that man may profit by reading it, that he may be directed to the way of life, that so, if he does suffer here, he may not have eternal sufferings hereafter. You have done something for the soldier, and you have my best thanks, and the thanks, I am sure,

of many a poor man whose eyes will glance upon the pages of these books. But you have not done all. The long tedious hours spent on a sick-bed will come to an end, and it will make little matter then what amount of present relief reading has given to the sufferer. But the soul will live for ever, and it will make all the difference in the world whether it is saved or lost. What a blessed thing it would be if we could point to men who have been confined here for weeks or months, and say of them, in the highest sense of the words, "This man, or that man, was born there." What a blessed thing, if such a man could single out some tract or book from Gourock, which had been blessed of God to lead him to the Saviour. And oh! how greatly blessed would that Sabbath scholar be to whom Jesus should say at the last, speaking in the name of some of these poor soldiers-"I was sick, and ye came unto me," or who should be welcomed to heaven by some who could say "Your prayers were heard, your books were blessed to me, and although I had been careless and godless, I was led by them to forsake sin, and follow Jesus, and now I have reached the "land of pure delight." Oh! may God grant that many, both of you who send, and of the soldiers who read these books, may at last be gathered together on "Immanuel's ground." May God prepare us for that happy time.

"And then we shall with Jesus reign,
And never, never part again."

I had thought of telling you something about the Hospitals in this letter, but as I do not wish to weary you by saying too much, I shall conclude, commending you all to the care and keeping of the Lord Jesus Christ, the good Shepherd of the sheep, and hoping that the instructions of your minister and teachers may be blessed to your souls, I am, my dear children, your affectionate friend,

SCUTARI, 29th September 1855.

ROBERT MACNAIR.

WHAT JESUS HAS DONE FOR SINNERS.

Ir is related of a Christian convert in India, that, on being asked by a European who scoffed at religion, "What, after all, has your Jesus done for you?" he replied with great animation, "He has saved me, He has saved me!" "And what is that?" said the European. "Step with me to the door," was the reply, "and I will shew you." So saying,

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