an impression of the extraordinary scene that room presents, night after night, as houseless and friendless men and boys drift in from the streets of London, to lie down in those cribs provided for them there-and to enjoy the luxury of a good washing and a loaf before they leave the refuge. We will also add one or two short extracts from the annual report for the past year, which the refuge master kindly gave us on the occasion of our visit :— "Following the example of our blessed Redeemer, the Committee have endeavoured to seek and to save those who are lost.' A temporary night shelter is provided for the most destitute, whether old or young. The Committee attach very great importance to the reading of the Word of God, night and morning, by the master; believing the inspired Word has an efficacious and salutary influence upon the human soul; stifling the bad passions of men; awakening the recollection of that presence, under whose eye they live amidst the struggles and casualties of their chequered existence. Prayer and supplication is daily made for God's blessing to rest upon the efforts to be made to obtain honest employment during the day. Cleanliness is enforced by the constant use of the lavatory and by baths. Every kind of language of a debasing or corrupting nature is suppressed. Every encouragement is given for the cultivation of habits of industry, to stimulate self-dependence and self-respect, and by the endeavour at all times to keep before the inmates the high destiny and moral responsibility of man. A 6-oz. loaf is given to each inmate night and morning. "It is with great thankfulness to Almighty God that the Committee are able to report the preservation of the Refuge from all contagious diseases during the year, notwithstanding the number who have enjoyed its benefits. There have been admitted: 12,220 to sleep in the Refuge with tickets; that is, those who have attended the Bible Classes regularly. 6,708 without tickets, those who have attended the Bible Classes casually. 1,092 strangers to the school Total, 20,020, or an average of 55 per night throughout the entire year, to whom 56,612 6-oz. loaves have been given. The Committee rejoice to know that this shelter, this teaching, this care, have not been in vain. 113 have obtained employment from the Refuge. 21 have been restored to their friends. Thus 212 youths and men have been taken from the streets and prisons, and been provided for. Although a result highly satisfactory in itself, this is by no means the most encouraging fact, for through the instruction received, the Committee believe that many of these poor outcasts have been led to see their sinful state before God, and to seek an interest in Christ's death and resurrection. Aged men have been placed in positions of respectability, and young men who never attempted to do a week's regular work before, but lived at enmity with every man, their only resource being to take what they had not earnedthese have found friends who have led them to the Scriptures, to that God whose pardon and blessing has been promised to those who forsake evil and give Him their hearts; many have believed and realised to their own enjoyment the blessedness of the promise. "There is another class of persons to whom your Refuge has been of great assistance, taking parties by the hand before they fall into almost hopeless ruin, of which the following may be taken as an example: "J. P., aged 29, from Liverpool, had been well educated and properly brought up; but, for associating with frequenters of theatres and beer shops, had been discharged. Came to London, and for six weeks wandered about the streets seeking employment, till he became ragged and destitute. He was taken into the Refuge, and conducted himself satisfactorily. His case having been brought under the notice of your superintendent, suitable clothes were provided, which enabled him to make a respectable appearance. He soon ob. tained employment, and has since returned to the Refuge to express his gratitude for the kindness and help he received, believing he was saved from utter ruin.' "The Refuge is to them as the cliffs of the rock, where they hide themselves till their calamities are overpast :— "J. K., aged 17, no parents; has been in the Refuge six months; has been in prison five times; flogged twice for picking pockets. On the day the Queen distributed medals to the Crimean heroes, extracted a purse from a lady's pocket, containing thirty-two sovereigns. Not content with that, got three pocket handkerchiefs; was detected taking a fourth; was chased; threw away the purse and escaped in the crowd. Has given up thieving; has not been to prison for six months. Says he gets on as well as if he had a handkerchief every day; left off going to plays; soup and bread for 3d. is better.' A gentleman coming to the Refuge wanted a lad; but they were all too ill-dressed for his place. It was suggested that 2s. 6d. would fit him out from head to foot. This sum was advanced, with the following result:-A good pair of shoes, 6d.; jacket, 5d.; plaid vest, 3d.; trousers, 5d.; cap, 1d.; shirt, 4d.; shoe-ties, d.; neckcloth, 1d.; total, 2s. 24d., leaving 44d. to commence his new career. Who would not spare a few half-crowns for such a purpose! "The following touching narrative is full of interest and encouragement to all who are engaged in this hallowed work:: "R. T., a lad in my class,' says this teacher, 'said to me one evening last spring, "Teacher, our baby died last week, it was a twelvemonth old." "Did it, my boy? and are you not rejoiced to think it is happy? and were you with it when it died ?” "Yes, teacher," said he, "there was only me and mother up with it when it died. Father was asleep drunk in the corner, and I felt so bad, for mother took on so when it was gone; oh! how I wished for you, teacher." "Well, my boy, I would have come." "But it was in the middle of the night, teacher." "Well, my boy, I would have come." "Besides, I should not like you to come to such a poor place as ours, but I would have given the world for you to have come and comforted my poor mother, as you sometimes talk to us; but as I knew you couldn't, I got the Bible and read a bit to her, and it did seem to comfort us both so. I felt so thankful to you for having taught me to think anything about these things, and there seemed to read just the very things we wanted. I told mother that the Saviour took all the babies to Himself." Such artless affection could not fail to rob the poor mother of half the bitterness of her loss. But for a Ragged School, this poor lad would have known nothing of these truths, and could not have comforted his sorrowing parent. He received a two years' prize at St. Martin's Hall.' "This teacher has received several interesting letters from one of the youths who enlisted, and who is now at Aldershott, showing that the lessons learned at Field Lane were not forgotten there. 'On Sunday we assemble in the open air, two or four regiments together, for Divine service, but in a way which to a reflecting mind is not comfortable. What I mean is, the service is hasty, and the blessed Word of God falls like a shower of priceless pearls out of reach-in a word, as you, dear teacher, can best understand, there is no commun. ion of sentiment, no ministering friend to reason and counsel, such as I have enjoyed as hearty food and sweets from you and the rest of the dear friends at Field Lane. God bless you, and all dear friends there. Soldiers of the cross, God is your reward. For myself, I endeavour, as God helps me, to lead a godly, sober life. Cursing, blas. pheming, and drunkenness, are around me, and I have much to put up with from my companions.' "At a later period the same youth writes Since I have come back from camp, I have seen and shaken hands with one of our class, M. I was surprised to see him, and to find he had joined my old regiment. Another old face I have found out, which is W. I found them both in our reading room-for I must tell you we have lately had a library, which is going through the camp successfully. I was glad to meet them in such suitable company, and trust and pray for the improvement of their minds, and that they may settle down to a sober life, which God lead to a decisive choice; as far as an example in me will do it, and an earnest prayer at a throne of grace for their souls' welfare will do it, they have both from me. May God prosper, and crown with his blessing, Field Lane School! the blessings I have received from instruction there, constrain me to say, "Peace be within those walls and prosperity." Many happy moments have I spent there, and many are the grateful recollections I retain in my mind, for the words of admonition, counsel, and sympathy breathed into my ears. Thanks be to God, they have not been in vain. I have ever to bless God, dear teacher, that I went there, that I was brought from my backsliding, and shed tears at the feet of my Saviour, tears of repentance and sorrow for my past prodigal course of life.' As we read all these delightful details, there seem to rise to our lips, as applicable to this Refuge in Field Lane, those lines of the Christian poet : Through paths of loving-kindness led, Hark! the sweet voice of pity calls The breaking heart, the wounded breast, Here the whole family of woe Shall friends, and home, and comfort know; The blasted form and ship-wrecked mind Shall here a tranquil haven find. And Thou, dread Power, whose sovereign breath "THE FAREWELL OF THE EDITORS." THE closing month of the year is a season at which it is impossible not to have our minds filled with many solemn reflections. But to us, these reflections are now made peculiarly solemn, by the prospect of this month closing our labours as Editors of the Juvenile Missionary Record. We desired to continue these labours of love. Willingly would we still have devoted ourselves to them. But we have failed in the attempt to arrange for our being allowed to carry on these labours, on the only ground where we could be at liberty to do what we felt to be our duty in regard to the Indian Missions of the Church of Scotland. We have therefore been obliged to seek relief from the responsibility of conducting this Magazine. And thus is severed between us and our Young Friends, the readers of the Juvenile Record, a tie, which was formed nearly twenty years ago! and which we have felt every year increasingly to be a very tender bond of union with them. Our readers will easily understand, therefore, how we should feel the reflections which crowd upon us, in the review of these years during which we have been privileged to hold monthly communication with them, to be reflections of a very solemn kind. We will not trust ourselves to enlarge in expressing them. We would only in a single farewell sentence remind them, that, the two great designs we have all along tried to keep steadily in view, are first, to win our dear young readers to the faith and love of Christ for their own soul's salvation, and then to bring to maturity in them, as the fruits of love to Christ, tender compassion for the souls of others, and self-denying efforts for their conversion. In now parting with them, we would only farther inquire, in one or two solemn questions, as to these fruits of love to Christ. Say, dear young friends, are your hearts in any degree more touched with the cry of misery than they were? Do you feel more deeply, do you pray more heartily, do you give more |