have been conferred on them.* Honour and high reputation and influence are often, no doubt, their portion even in this life; but they have, for the most part, come to them when they were the last thing they either thought of or cared for, and when, indeed, their minds were entirely engrossed by other objects and pursuits. We might point to many instances of high honour being obtained "The way of the slothful man is an them to be. hedge of thorns; but the way of the righteous is made plain." A FAMILY PRAYER, in the service of God-a reputation that filled the ON BEHALF OF OUR PROTESTANT CHURCH, AND world; but what did the subjects of them care for them? What were all the honours and applauses of this world to such men as Heber and Martyn and Swartz, compared with the happy consciousness in their own bosoms of their having served the cause of the Almighty in the least degree, and being made instrumental in the salvation of men's souls? Ah! this is the beautiful characteristic of the discipline with which God exercises his servants. He fortifies the minds of his people against he snare of worldly honours ere he sends them honour. It is when they are fitted by his grace, and prepared and qualified to bear those honours without injury, he bestows them. It is when their motives are pure, their aims high, when they are chiefly occupied with a sense of the responsibility of their office, that the honours and applause are sent them, which might else prove a snare and downfall. For no foolish dreams are allowed in his family. He gives his people "a right understanding in all things." They may be safely left to the guidance of his Spirit. Under it they will be kept soberminded, chastened in every situation of life, in every variety of circumstances. God will preserve them from the snares and artifices and deceptions and illusions and vain dreams, by which others are beguiled and led astray. He keeps them lowest in their own estimation, when they are highest in his. The effect produced upon the minds of his servants, by the discipline they are made to undergo, is to make them fearful above all things of choosing any path for themselves. That which others are most forward to do, they shrink back from as the most hazardous of all things. They would leave their affairs in his hands. Of all things what the believer most dreads is to move on without the pillar of cloud going before him. If God lead the way, he will follow him any whither: without him he would go no where. This is what makes the believer so dread what may be termed deceptive or delusive openings of Providence. He knows what snares these may be to the soul. Therefore there is nothing that he more earnestly deprecates than such deceptive openings. This makes him fearful of changes. He would rather remain in the most desolate path: he would rather march through the wilderness itself, provided "the cloud pillar" led the way, than enter the most fertile land of his own choosing. And he alone has learnt that one of the best rewards which God can give to his faithful servants is to make their way plain before them, and to give them a peaceful and comfortable conviction that they are in the path which he himself has made choice of for them, and where, in short, he would have *I have known, even myself, limited as my opportunities are, of cases where a call to assume the highest ecclesiastical dignities has been the cause of the greatest agitation and distress of mind. FOR THE CONVERSION OF ALL THAT ARE IN BY THE REV. J. BULL, M.A., Late Incumbent of St. John's, Walthamstow. ALMIGHTY and eternal God, the Father of lights, who hast made thyself known to us by the works of thy hands, and by the counsels of wisdom and when we draw near unto thee in supplication and mercy in thy holy scriptures, graciously hear us prayer. We are thy sinful creatures, and are unworthy of thy notice; but thou art a God who hearest prayer, and wilt favourably receive the petitions of those who humbly and penitently come unto thee in the name of thy dear Son. O heavenly Father, look down upon us from thy throne of grace, and grant us pardon and peace and light and comfort. We desire to bless thy holy name, that thou hast brought us out of darkness into the marvellous light of the gospel of Christ; that we are not left to follow vain idols, as our forefathers did (in these lands), and that thou didst plant among us a goodly, living vine, brought from thine own vineyard in Judea. 66 Thy church in our land, watered and nourished by showers from above, was this fruitful plant, a branch of the "true Vine," sent in mercy from "the hill of Zion." Return, we beseech thee, O Lord God of hosts; look down from heaven, and behold and visit this vine, and the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted, and the branch that thou madest so strong for thyself." Thou, O Lord, hast again and again defended this thy favoured vineyard from the rage of its enemies. And when, through the negligence of its keepers, it was overrun with noxious plants, and was greatly obscured and defiled, thou didst mercifully cleanse it again, and "didst cause thy face to shine upon it." Thou didst reform it, and beautify it, and didst make it again the glory of the land. O Lord, Almighty Father, still behold this vine, and defend it from those that would "root it up." Enlarge its boundaries, and purify it from every thing that is displeasing in thy sight. Endue all its watchmen and keepers with wisdom and zeal. O Lord Jesus Christ, "the son of David," "behold the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted," and "let not the gates of hell prevail This prayer was drawn up some years ago, on hearing that the hon. and rev. G. Spencer, then a convert to popery, proposed, in France, prayers and intercessions for the conversion of the English nation to the church of Rome. against it." Visit it in mercy, and not in judgment, lest thou bring it to nothing. Water it, and refresh it with the dew of thy heavenly grace, and make it abundantly fruitful to the glory of thy holy name. Let its goodly boughs be stretched out over the British islands, where thy power and goodness have been wonderfully shown, and over all the distant colonies, to their increasing joy. O Lord, "the Spirit of truth," breathe upon every branch of this vine with thy reviving influence. Endae it with life and vigour and heavenly power, that it may grow and flourish, and plentifully yield those fruits which are pleasing unto God, and profitable unto men. Diffuse over it the warning light of Christ, "the Sun of righteousness." Bless all its overseers, its bishops, and pastors, and make them the zealous defenders of this thy church, faithful husbandmen, and diligent labourers in the Lord's vineyard. 66 "O merciful Lord, we beseech thee to cast the bright beams of light upon thy church, that it being enlightened by the doctrine of thy blessed apostles and evangelists, may so walk in the light of thy truth, that it may at length attain to the light of everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord." "Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of the church is governed and sanctified, receive our supplications and prayers, which we offer before thee for all estates of men in thy holy church, that every member of the same in his vocation and ministry may truly and godly serve thee, through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." thy favour, with the light of thy gospel to us and our posterity for evermore; and that for thy dear Son's sake, Jesus Christ, our only Mediator and Advocate." Be favourable, O Lord, be favourable to thy people in these realms, especially to the members of our church; and turn away from us all those evils which we most justly have deserved. Direct and uphold our counsellors, and teach our senators wisdom. Bless and preserve our gracious somother" to thy church, now established in her dovereign the ueen, and make her a nursing works, she may ever seek thy honour and glory, "hat in all her thoughts, words, and minions, and study to preserve thy people committed to her charge in wealth, peace, and godliness. Grant this, merciful Father, for thy dear Son's sake, Jesus Christ our Lord." Amen. NOTICE OF BOOKS. WE have received "Notes and Reflections on the Psalms;" by Arth Pridham. Bath: Binns and Co. 1852. Mr. Pridham is becoming quite a voluminous writer. We ar glad to observe in his preface a disclaimer of any intention to appeal to the German De Wette as interpreter of scripture. But why appeal to him st all, in a book intended for popular reading? Mr. P. will certainly be understood by most persons as recommending a writer to whom he so frequently reiers. Gesenius and De Wette are, in all respects, very unsafe guides. We have reason to know that the fir living authority, professor Lee, entertains no high opinion of the scholarship of Gesenius; and the expo sures of Stuart have made sad work with De Wette "O merciful God, who hast made all men, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, nor wouldest the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and live, have mercy upon all Jews, Turks, infidels, and heretics; and take from them critical reputation. And even Mr. Pridham acknow. all ignorance, hardness of heart, and contempt of ledges that "he is to be read with caution." W: thy word, and so fetch them home, blessed Lord, have repeatedly expressed our opinion of the auther to thy flock, that they may be saved among the before us: it is as a devotional writer that he is chiefy remnant of the true Israelites, and be made one to be valued, and we have no doubt that many ஈட் fold under one Shepherd, Jesus Christ our Lord, find his " otes" suggestive of profitable thought who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy their minds. We shall take the opportunity, as Spirit, one God, world without end." have previously done, of presenting an extract or t from the present volume. Be merciful, also, O God, be merciful to those who call themselves the church of Rome, who are now seeking to bring us back into that cruel bondage of error and superstition, from which Christ our Lord has set us free. Enlighten their minds, and turn their hearts, and show unto them the glorious doctrines of thy holy word. Have mercy on those many thousands who are still held in captivity under this hard and cruel yoke. Cause them to see that "there is no other Mediator between God and men but the man Christ Jesus," thine only Son, who was "God manifested in the flesh." Grant, O Lord, that their church also may be "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone." "Let the consideration of thy repeated goodness, O Lord, work in us all true repentance, that iniquity may not be our ruin.' And increase in us more and more a lively faith and love, fruitful in all holy obedience, that thou mayst still continue "Twelve Lectures on the History of Joseph;" by the rev. John M. Randall, vicar of Langham, Norfolk, London: Nisbet. 1852. These lectures are published in the hope of raising a small fund to complete the repairing of Langham church. They are written in plain and simple style adapted to a village congre gation. The author is an earnest man, and we hope his well-intended efforts may be useful. We shal hereafter give an extract. London: Published for the Proprietors, by JOHN HUGHES, 12, Ave-Maria Laue, St. Paul's; and to be procured, by order, of all Booksellers in Town and Country, PRINTED BY ROGERSON AND TUXFORD, NOTES ON RELIGION IN FRANCE. ST. MARY'S CHURCH, WHITTLESEY. WHITTLESEY is a small town situated in the BY THE AUTHOR level fen country of Cambridgeshire, closely bordering on Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire, about five miles east of the city of Peterborough. It comprises two distinct parishes, St. Andrew and St. Mary; though it is stated that but a single register is kept for them both. OF "BRITTANY AND THE No. IV. FRANCE, civilized as she is, speaking generally, and disposed in most things to innovate on estabThe waters which drain off through this part of lished forms, is yet on certain points strangely the kingdom form several considerable meres or backward and attached to ancient customs. How lakes, the largest of which, locally in Hunting-wise is that aphorism of lord Bacon, pithy and donshire, is Whittlesey mere. It is about five or six miles in length and three miles broad, possessing no pretensions to picturesque beauty, but well stocked with tench, pike, and other fish. The mode heretofore adopted of conveying these fish alive to London was curious. They were placed in butts filled with water, each having a little flap ten or twelve inches square, which could be set open in order to give air to the fish. Every night upon the journey the water was changed; and thus the fish arrived in the metropolis in the same state as in their native haunts. The progress of improvement has, however, no where been more remarkable than in the fen level. Land, formerly covered wholly or partially with water, has now become most valuable to the agriculturist. Nor have the lakes remained untouched. The process of drainage has been applied to them; and hereafter, it seems, that the name only of Whittlesey mere is to exist. There were many rich abbeys in this part of the country, such as Peterborough, Croyland, Thorney, &c., of some of which only dilapidated remains have been spared. To one of these, viz., Thorney, the manor of Whittlesey St. Mary belonged that of Whittlesey St. Andrew was appropriated to the prior and convent of Ely. St. Mary's church is a noble edifice: the steeple especially claims notice, consisting of a lofty tower at the western end of the nave, surmounted by a slender enriched spire of beautiful proportions. The population of Whittlesey at the census of 1841 was 6,874. No. 967. full of practical good sense, "Men's thoughts are according to inclination, their discourse according to their learning, but their deeds according to their custom !" How many men there are, whom you can no more draw out of their custom than you can draw a snail out of its shell! You argue and reason with them until their intellect is convinced, and, though most willing to do so, they are unable to find a reply: they silently listen to you, and at length retire, leaving you in possession of a hardly-fought field. But do not flatter yourself that the victory is won. Under cover of night your adversary calls up and recruits his forces, caution regains her sway, reflection is all in one direction, custom returns like a strong man dispossessed, and all the more strong for the dispossession, the bow returns to its natural shape; and in the morning you find that your efforts have all been wasted, or have only produced a distrust of yourself, and disinclination to hear you for the future. The state of public opinion in France on the subject of duelling is an illustration of these principles. In England public opinion has all but abolished this absurd relic of the dark ages. It may be said to repose quietly in the lumber room, together with the castellated head-dresses, wooden dressing-skewers, ram's-horn shoes, pasteboard breeches, and other inconvenient habits of our ancestors. And there let it rest, the modern remnant of the ordeal by fire. Without the devotion which marked the sire, the child has perished ingloriously by the measuring-yard of a linendraper; for certainly it was killed by Mirfin of |