the lake that burneth with brimstone and fire."t What a contrast are you to David, who could appeal to heaven in connexion with this subject: "I know also my God, thou searchest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness."u Others will tell you, when you solicit their co-operation, in some work of charity and labour of love, that they would help you, but the applications are so numerous. Well, and what if they are ?-the more the better, if you have any thing to spare for God and man; and if you had a Christian's heart, you would rejoice in the honour and privilege of doing good, and with gratitude would exclaim: "who am I, that I should be able to offer after this sort, for both riches and honour come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee?" Others will evade, by telling you the objects are unworthy. Granted, but what would be your own condition if a God of justice had conferred on you only what you deserved? But can you offer such an excuse, and yet pretend to be children of Him who makes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust?"y The recipients of your charity may abuse the gifts you bestow, but so do you with respect to many of those which are still continued by a God and Father of unwearied kindness, notwithstanding your ingratitude to, and forgetfulness of the donor. Whatever may be the misapplication of your bounty, remember you are commanded to "do good to all men," and "whoso has this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?"a And are you disposed to ask the cold-blooded question, who is my brother? and, am I my brother's keeper?"b let the conduct of the good Samaritan c supply you with an answer, and furnish you with a model and a precept. "Go and do thou likewise," is the moral of the tale as applied by our Saviour himself,d and how many of our brethren and sisters of mankind, (for God" has made of one blood all nations of men," and all are His offspring,e) are suffering from oppression, or penury, or sickness, and a thousand of those ills which flesh is heir to, and yet ye who are well fed, and well clothed, and who fare sumptuously every day, having enough and to spare, endeavour to cover your flimsy excuses by talking of the unworthiness, and the ingratitude, &c. &c. of the poor! No one believes you, and God and your own conscience condemn you, as selfish, hard-hearted, and insincere. Neither religion nor prudence would plead for indiscriminate charity, for he only is blessed in his deeds "who considereth the poor;"f and in many instances, giving money is a curse rather than a blessing. It is your duty to investigate every case, and adapt the nature of your bounty to its peculiar circumstances. "It is not enough to give silver or gold, which you do not want, or to add your name to the contributions of charity. You must give your time and your attention, and descend to the trouble of investigation; you must rise from the repose of contemplation and make yourself acquainted with the object of your charity, or t Revelations xxi. 8. 66 your bounty may be squandered in idleness and dissipation. Benevolence is not merely a feeling, but a principle: it is a work, and a labour, and often calls for the severest efforts of vigilance and industry, in the dark and dismal receptacles of misery; in the hospitals of disease; and in the putrid lanes of our great cities, where poverty dwells in lank and ragged wretchedness, agonized with pain, faint with hunger, and shivering in a frail and unsheltered tenement. You are not to conceive yourselves real lovers of your species, and entitled to the praise and reward of benevolence, because you weep over a fictitious representation of human misery. You may do this in the indolence of a studious and contemplative retirement, and may breathe all the tender aspirations of humanity; but what avails all this warm and effusive benevolence, if it is never exerted?—if it never rise to execution ?-if it never accomplish single benevolent purpose?-if it shrink from activity, and sickens at the pain of fatigue? It is easy enough to come forward with the cant and hypocrisy of fine sentiment-to have a heart trained to the emotions of benevolence, while the hand refuses the labour of discharging its offices-to weep for amusement, and have nothing to spare for human suffering, but the tribute of an indolent and imaginary sympathy !"g Sabbath Day Cheese-making not a work of necessity; or, Dialogues between a Country Clergyman and his Parishioners. By the Rev. J. Armitstead, M. A. Vicar of Sandbach. Mr. Fair. Do I understand you to say a single breach of the Sabbath? Cler." Sin is the transgression of the law ;"" the soul that sinneth, it shall die." Now, the law is as effectually broken in one transgression as in more; it is not so often, it is true; but that is all that can be said. It is on this principle that St. James saith, "Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, is guilty of all." Mr. Fair.-We must not then expect forgiveness so long as we forget the Sabbath? Cler. Your question is the same in reality, though not in terms, as that which St. Paul puts and answers; " Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein." The doing so, would infer, that you had not yet come to a true knowledge of Christ Jesus, who was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil. Mr. Fair.-There is no denying the truth of what you say; but is making cheese such a work as would be a breach of the Sabbath? Cows give milk on the Sabbath, and must be milked, and why not the milk made into cheese on the Sabbath? Cler. The question you ask is a very fair one, and a very important one, and in replying to it, it will become necessary to shew what may, and what may not, be done without offence on the Sabbath. Mr. Fair.-I shall be much obliged to you to do so. y Dr. Chalmers' Sermon on Psalm xli. 1. I am only anxious to know my duty, and I trust God will give me strength to perform it, when I know it. Cler. That is a great encouragement to me to go on. You ask, "Is cheese-making a breach of the Sabbath?" I might very fairly put the question in reply, upon what grounds do you ask me? You have already seen, that works of every kind are forbidden on that day. "Six days shalt thou labour, and do all that thou hast to do; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt do no manner of work." I will not, however, deny that I can in some manner account for it. There is a mistaken opinion abroad, that that is permitted under the Gospel, which is forbidden in the law; nay, mankind so far deceive themselves, as to quote the authority of the Son of God for their nonobservance of the law of God. It may seem strange that it should be so, (though I fear no less strange than true,) when we consider that in His holy and sinless obedience, he hath left us an example that we should follow his steps. How can it be possible that any thing that He either said or did, should be opposed to the law of God, his Father, previously declared? You see, on the contrary, how beautifully he carries out the principle of the law as binding even upon the thoughts, in his sermon upon the mount, (Matt. v.) which you would do well to read attentively; and there you will at once see, that he came not to destroy, but to fulfil the law. And how did he fulfil the law of the Sabbath? In its spirit, and not in the letter only. Mr. Fair.-You are now coming to the point on which I am very anxious to have your opinion. Cler. I am glad of it. It is possible to misunderstand Scripture, and I fear what we are now treating of has been greatly misunderstood. But let us, in dependence upon the teaching of His Spirit, endeavour to arrive at the truth, upon a point of such importance as the observance of the Sabbath. At the time when Christ appeared upon earth, the religion of the Jews had degenerated into mere formal, outward religion, upon the observance of which they were very scrupulous; they fasted often, they made long prayers; but, alas, to be seen of men. Upon the subject of the Sabbath, so scrupulous were they, that they found occasion of offence against our blessed Saviour, in that as "He went on the Sabbath-day through the corn, His disciples were an hungered, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat." Matt. xii. 1. "Behold," say they, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do on the Sabbath-day." And what do you think the offence was in their eyes ? Not the plucking of the ears of corn, for that in Deut. xxv. 25, was expressly allowed; but doing it on the Sabbath, plucking the ears, and rubbing them in their hands. 66 Mr. Fair. Well, that does appear a trifling labour indeed. Cler.-Yes; but our Saviour does not justify it on that score. Our Lord replies, that in cases of extreme necessity, the severity of the Jewish law may be dispensed with, as in the case of David, who, "when he was an hungered, entered into the house of God, and did eat the shew bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, but only for the priests." Or again, in that of the priests, who on the Sabbath-day profaned the temple, (as they might be said to do in the performance of the necessary duties of their office on that day,) and are blameless.” The Sabbath was to be kept holy, and therefore God to be worshipped in his holy temple. A neglect of duty on the part of the priests must have necessarily been followed by a more serious breach of the Sabbath in the consequent hindrance to the due performance of religious worship. This reminds me of a circumstance of recent occurrence, which took place at a meeting at which I was called upon to take a part, for the better observance of the Lord's day. A clergyman was speaking in glowing terms of the delight with which the sound of the church-bells must strike the ear of the pious Christian as they bid him welcome to the house of God, reminding him of the day of holy rest, of the privilege that he enjoyed, apart from the cares and the turmoils of life for a season, of drawing near unto God in ordinances of his own appointment, and worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. Upon which it was observed by a party present, though not so loud as to attract general attention, 6 Yes, and six men at work at the same time,' in allusion to the number of bells that the parish church contained. The name of the party I cannot tell you, for I did not hear it. If it were not of paramount importance, that parties at a distance should be thus reminded Sabbath by Sabbath, or if the custom handed down to us from our forefathers were not such as was calculated to promote the good of man and the glory of God, then ought the bells of every church in England to be silenced at once, for none but works of necessity and love can be done on that day. A candid mind will at once acknowledge that this custom is fully sanctioned by the principle contained in the passage before us. 66 Mr. Fair. I perfectly understand your meaning so far as you have gone; but you will believe me, that it is purely for the sake of information that I ask you to explain to me the following verse: If ye had known what this means, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless." Cler.-That I will, and I am glad you have asked me. It is quoted by the Saviour from the prophet Hosea, and would mean, not that God did not require sacrifice, or obedience to the law of the Sabbath, as in the case before us; but that, where obedience to the Sabbath interferes with the performance of acts of mercy and love, the former must give way to the latter. Mr. Fair. You would say then, that works of absolute necessity and love are allowable on the Sabbath. Cler. Certainly. You find the Saviour himself, immediately after this conversation, taking a man that had a withered hand, and healing him on the Sabbath-day, shewing them at the time, that he was acting in perfect accordance with the principle that directed their own actions. "What man shall there be among you (said he) that shall have one sheep, and if it shall fall into a pit on the Sabbath-day, will he not lay hold on it and lift it out?" Which would imply, that we may lawfully attend to the safety of our cattle on the Sabbath, in rescuing them from danger, or in giving them their necessary food, or in milking our cows on the Sabbath; duties which may not be postponed without danger to 66 the lives of the animals themselves. In St. John's gospel, (v. 17,) the example of the Father himself is brought before us. My Father (saith He) worketh hitherto, and I work." His providence on the Sabbath, as on other days, watches over and preserves the lives of his creatures. Mr. Fair.-Well, then, Sir, if I can prove cheese-making on the Sabbath to be a work of necessity, according to your own shewing, it is strictly lawful, and no breach of the spirit of Sabbath obedience, Cler. Clearly, but I do not think you can.-Our discussion on this point will be materially assisted by the presence of your wife. We will, therefore, if you please, defer our conversation till we reach your house. Mr. Fair.-That I willingly agree to. I am sure she will at least take my side of the argument, and it is very fair in you to propose that she should be present. Cler.-Whilst we are on the way, I will tell you an anecdote of a friend of mine, that really occurred, which may teach us how to meet and overcome difficulties. Like myself, he had come to the conclusion, that cheese-making on the Sabbath, was not only a very unholy practice, but very injurious in its effects; and he was determined to put a stop to it. He was a person of very considerable property in the ́cɔunty, and remarkable for an unflinching adherence to what he conceived to be just and right. Like many others, he did not put off, and put off, and so end in doing nothing at last, but he at once sent for the manager of his dairy; and I have it from his own lips that the following conversation took place :-Dr. L.: Mrs. P. I am come to the determination to make no more cheese on Sunday.-Mrs. P.: Indeed, Sir; I don't know how we shall manage. Dr. L.: You must make it on the Saturday and Monday.-Mrs. P.: The milk won't keep, Sir.Dr. L.: Then you must make butter.-Mr. P.: I am afraid, Sir, it will be attended with great loss.-Dr. L.: Then I will give up my dairy. This last speech acted like magic; and a small cheese was, from that time, made on the Saturday night, and a large one of three meals on the Monday morning, which practice was pursued for some time, until I proposed a method which I considered preferable, which was at once adopted, and is continued to this day. I shall have an opportunity, by and bye, of explaining it to you. You see, however, the principle before which difficulties give way, a fixed determination having ascertained our duty, with God's help, to do it. But I see we are arrived at the house. THE LAST DAYS OF THE BARON DE STAEL. WE lately brought before our readers some account of the Duchess De Broglie, from a little volume which has, we believe, been withdrawn from circulation. The two following letters giving an account of the last illness of her brother, the Baron de Stael, will be read with deep interest by them. They have been kindly given to us but have never yet been made public. These two children of the celebrated Madame De Stael, were suddenly removed from this mortal life, by a malady which it was heart-rending to witness; but |