self with the blood of its innocent victim; while the adder coils itself about his path, ready to pierce him with its deadly sting. On one hand is seen the hungry wolf ravening for prey; on the other the insidious crocodile waiting to seize upon him, and drag him down to its den of rushes. In his hopeless condition, he longs for the wings of the dove which he sees flying over his head, for then he would escape them all; he would fly away from the forest of wild beasts to the open wilderness; there would he be at rest.

This is an Emblem of what the Christian oftentimes has to suffer while passing through this world to his eternal home. Sometimes persecution, like the mad bull and furious lion seen in the picture, rages, and threatens to destroy Christianity itself, and to lot out the remembrance of it from the earth. The prophet Daniel was thus assailed, and cast into a den of lions. The early Christians were subjected to ten fierce and bloody persecutions, which terminated not until the Church had lost its character for holiness.

In the short reign of the bloody queen Mary (about five years), of fire and faggot memory, persecution in this form devoured 277 persons, among whom were 5 bishops, 21 clergymen, 8 gentlemen of fortune, 84 tradesmen, 100 husbandmen, 55 women, and 4 children. These were all burned alive, besides numerous confiscations, &c.

Persecution, however, exists very frequently in a different form from the above. The backbiter plies his mean, cowardly trade, in order to injure the character of the righteous. The barking, snarling cur is the most useless of the dog kind : so the backbiter is the most despicable among men. Yet he is able, oftentimes, to vex the souls of the pious.

Sometimes slander, grown bold, like a hungry wolf, attacks the reputation of the man of God, as Shimei assailed David in the day of his adversity.

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Envy is known to plot in secret the destruction of that excellence she cannot reach; while fraud takes advantage of the unsuspecting child of God, and seeks to draw him into sin and trouble. In the midst of his persecutions, the Christian would fain borrow the wings of a dove, and seek refuge in some vast wilderness, boundless contiguity of shade," or rather, the wings of some heavenly cherub; then would he fly to mansions of eternal repose, where the wicked cease from troubling, and where the weary are for ever at rest."

some

"O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?"-ROM. vii. 24.

THE SOUL INBONDAGE.

Horror of horrors ! what a sight is here
Life linked with death, in terror and despair.
Thus cruel tyrants, when they won the field,
Were wont to punish those compell'd to yield.
The wounded captive, writhing still with pain,
Was made to wear the adamantine chain,
That round the limb of one new-slain was led,
And bound the living to the putrid dead,
Till, choked with stench, the lingering victim lay,
And breathed in agony his life away.

'Tis thus the soul, enlighten'd by the word,
Descries the path that upwards leads to God,
And fain would run, but feels a galling chain
That quickly drags him to the world again;
Corruption's body opens to his eye,

He sees the cause but oh ! he cannot fly.

Who, who he asks, with trembling, struggling breath,
Will save me from this fearful mass of death?

He calls on Moses now to break his chain,
Moses is deaf-he calls on him in vain ;
He calls on Jesus-wondrous name! He hears,
And breaks his chain, and scatters all his fears.
Now, like the bird that from its prison flies,

On wings of love soars upward ot the skies.

THIS engraving represents the horrid custom of ancient tyrants, who, in order to strike terror into the hearts of their ene mics in

vented a mode of punishment more terrible than death itself. They chained the living prisoner to the body of a dead person. Virgil, referring to this monstrous practise, says: "The tyrants inflicted a punishment hitherto unheard of: they bound the living to the dead, limb to limb, and face to face, until suffocated with the abominable stench, in loathsome embraces they gave up the ghost." This mode of torture was considered more appalling than that of burning alive, breaking upon the rack or even crucifixion itself.

It is no doubt, to this custom that the Apostle Paul alludes in his Epistle to the Romans. No other image could so well illustrate his meaning. His readers were familiar with it. Peter sleeping in the prison, bound with chains to the bodies of two live men, would not suit the apostle's purpose. It is very important that we try to make out his meaning. I am brought, he says, into "captivity to the law of sin," and wounded, conquered, and chained to this body of death. The soul is under the law or power of sin, and chained to a body of death-a mass of corruption. An evil heart, unholy passions, depraved affections predominate. The light of the Holy Spirit shines into the soul, and the man discovers that the law of God is holy, just, and good, and would fain keep it; that God himself is indeed altogether lovely, and He would acquaint himself with him. He now sees the path that leads to endless life, and he desires to walk in it. But when he would do good, evil is present with him; when he would approach the seat of Divine Perfection, something keeps him back; when he would walk in the path of life, he finds himself enchained. Now he follows the links of his chain, and discovers the body of corruption to which it is secured.

He tries to free himself by some good things he did years ago this only makes the case worse. He calls on his friends for help; but vain is the help of man. He calls upon Moses, he tries to reform his outward deportment; but by "the deeds of the law" he cannot extricate himself. At length, in the bitterness of his soul, he exclaims, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from this body of death?" And now the angel of mercy directs him to the Breaker of chains-the Abolisher of death—the Conqueror of the grave the glorious Giver of life and immortality-Jesus, Emanuel, God with us. The Saviour is propitious, deliverance is obtained, and the soul, like a bird escaped from the snare of the fowler, sings triumphantly:

The things impossible to men

Are possible to God.

,,There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death."-PROV. xvi. 25.

DANGER OF SELF-INDULGENCE.

With cheerful step, at blush of early day,
The traveller began his arduous way;
He seeks at noon some pleasant, cool retreat,
Where he may shelter from the noontide heat.
But oh! beneath a tuft of flowery green,
A poisonous serpent slily lurks unseen;
With deadly aim he from his covert flies,
The traveller, wounded, in the forest dies.

Thus some begin to run the Christian race,
And for a while keep up a steady pace;
Till soft indulgence near their path lies wait,
And spreads deceitfully her pleasing bait;
O'ercome by sloth, to sin they fall a prey,
And never more pursue the good old way.

THIS engraving represents a traveller fatally bitten by a serpent.
With a light heart and a firm step he started on his journey at
early dawn. Everything looked lovely around him; he thought
of nothing but success. He journeyed on very well until noon
arrived, when he began to feel somewhat tired. He looked round
for some cool, sequestered spot, where he might while away a few
hours. At a little distance from the path, he discovered a pleasant,
shady grove.
For a moment he hesitated; but his love of ease
prevailed. Now he forgets everything except his present conveni-

ence; he enters the grove; he is delighted with its cool air and agreeable fragrance.

Suddenly he is bitten to the quick. A serpent, concealed hitherto in the grass, fixes in his flesh its poisonous fang; the wound is mortal; his life's blood is poisoned; fires intolerable course through his veins. He now repents of his folly; he wishes he had borne the heat of the day. The venom reaches his heart; he thinks of home and friends; his spirits sink, his head swims, his eyes—they close in death. The leaves of autumn are strewn around him, and the place that knew him once knows him no more for ever. This is an emblem of the danger of self-indulgence. With alacrity and delight the convert sets out on his journey to the kingdom of heaven. He anticipates the pleasures he will meet with on his arrival. He thinks not of the dangers of the road, nor of his own besetments. For a while he makes rapid progress. By and by persecutions and trouble come upon him; he grows weary. He looks round for some other way, that has in it less danger and difsi culty. Soon he discovers one apparently more easy and pleasing to flesh and blood. For awhile he stands in doubt; His love of selfindulgence overcomes him. "He will not endure hardships as a good soldier of Jesus Christ." He enters the forbidden path. Now all seems pleasant and delightful. The pleasures of the road lull to sleep his spiritual sense. Sin, like a serpent, now, assails him; he has no strength to resist; he falls a victim to his folly and guilt; and remorse stings him to the quick. "Fool that I was,” he exclaims. "Oh! that I had continued in the path of duty." It is too late. Wretched man, self-indulgence has proved his ruin.

The disobedient prophet fell a victim to self-indulgence, when he turned aside to "eat bread and drink water," and a lion met him by the way and slew him. The five foolish virgins, also, who "slumbered and slept" when they ought to have been watching, fell by the same insidious foe. They awoke in outer darkness, and found the door of the kingdom of heaven fast closed against them for ever.

"If any man will be my disciple," said the Saviour, "let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." To them who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory, and honour, and immortality: eternal life. "He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved."