VOYAGE OF THE ENGLISH "GOSPELLERS" TO AMERICA. brethren at Delfthaven. It was a dreary and most desolate shore opposite which the Mayflower dropped anchor. So uninviting did it appear, that, notwithstanding all the miseries of their voyage, the pilgrims hesitated, and wished to explore the coast; but the captain was determined to put them ashore, and threatened to employ physical force if they refused. But the long-boat had been so damaged and opened with the people lying in her, that the carpenter was more than a fortnight in making her seaworthy. Meanwhile a party went on shore on an expedition of discovery. While on this expedition, they found the trail of Indians, and lighted on a number of graves, in one of which they found a quantity of corn, which, considering that its proprietor no longer needed it, they judged it advisable to secure. Further on they found a large quantity of corn buried in the earth; it was an inestimable treasure. Under such circumstances things are seen in their true value, Had they hit upon the richest diggings in Australia at that time, all the treasures of those golden regions would have been contemptible compared with the corn which they found in the Indian's grave, for that corn, reserved as seed, became the salvation of the infant colony. They found great numbers of graves, but no more corn. Nothing but graves, graves, graves -a striking circumstance, which superstitious minds would have interpreted into an omen of calamity; but these brave men were not superstitious. Yet they saw the sorrowful emblems of death; they saw that the destroyer had been busy on that coast, for they beheld no other human habitation than the narrow house appointed for all living. But, after all, see here again the wonderful dispensations of God's providence. The Hebrew minstrel, referring to the history of his nation, said, "Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt; thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it. Thou preparedst room before it." Thus did the superintending care of God anticipate the pilgrims' necessities. Had those pilgrims landed there a few years earlier, they would in all probability have been massacred by the wild tribes of Massachusetts, who had experienced bad treatment from the crews of fishing vessels that had sometimes touched on the coast. But, marvellous to relate, not long before the landing of the pilgrims, a pestilence had actually swept over the entire district, and almost utterly extirpated the tribes inhabiting the very spot to which, contrary to their intentions and desire, the pilgrims had been led. POETRY. Poetry. "WHAT'S THE NEWS." The following, it is said, was sent to a Lady in the South of England, by her Brother-in-law the day before his death. WHENE'ER we meet, you always say, What's the news? what's the news? Pray, what's the order of the day? What's the news? what's the news? Oh! I have got good news to tell; my Saviour hath done all things well? And triumphed over death and hell. That's the news! That's the news! The Lamb was slain on Calvary. That's the news! That's the news! To set a world of sinners free. That's the news! That's the news! 'Twas there his precious blood was shed; 'twas there he bowed his sacred head; But now he's risen from the dead. That's the news! That's the news! That's the news! That's the news! To heaven above the Conqueror's gone. That's the news! That's the news! That's the news! That's the news. That's the news! His work is spreading all around. name; And all around they spread his fame. That's the news! That's the news! The Lord has pardoned all my sins. That's the news! I feel the witness now within. That's the news! That's the news! That's the news! and taught me how to watch and pray, That's the news. That's the news! And Christ the Lord can save you now. That's the news! That's the news! And then if any one should say. What's the news? What's the news? ANECDOTES AND SELECTIONS. Anecdotes and Selections. THE SABBATH NECESSARY TO HUMAN LIFE.-A celebrated English physician has lately given the following evidence before the House of Commons on the physical uses of the Sabbath:-"I have been in the habit, during a great many years, of considering the uses of the Sabbath, and its abuses. The abuses are chiefly manifested in labour and dissipation. The use medically speaking is that of a day of rest. In a theological sense it is a holy rest, providing for the instruction of new and sublime ideas in the mind of man, preparing him for his future state. As a day of rest I view it as a day of compensation for the inadequate restorative power of the body under continued labour and excitement. If I show that there are provisions in the laws of nature which correspond with the divine commandment, you will see that the Sabbath was made for man, as a necessary appointment. A physician is anxious to preserve the balance of circulation as necessary to the restorative power of the body. The ordinary exertions of man run down the circulation every day of his life; and the first general law of nature by which God (who is not only the giver, but also the preserver and sustainer of life) prevents man from destroying himself, is the alternating of day and night, that repose may succeed action. But although the night apparently equalizes the circulation well, yet it does not sufficiently restore its balance for the attainment of a long life. Hence, one day in seven, by the bounty of Providence, is thrown in as a day of compensation, to perfect by its repose the animal system. I consider that, in the bountiful providence made by Almighty God for the preservation of human life, the Sabbatical appointment is not, as it has been sometimes theologically viewed, simply a precept partaking of the nature of a political institution; but that it is to be numbered amongst the natural duties, if the preservation of life be admitted to be a duty, and the premature destruction of it a suicidal act. This is said simply as a physician and without reference at all to the theological question; but if you consider further the proper effect of real Christianity-namely, peace of mind, confiding trust in God, and good will to man-you will perceive in this source of renewed vigour to the mind, and through the mind to the body, an additional spring of life imparted from this higher use of the Sabbath as a holy rest. I would point out the Sabbatical rest as necessary to man, and that the great enemies of the Sabbath, and consequently the enemies of man, are all laborious exercises of the body or mind, and dissipation, which force the circulation on that day on which it should repose; whilst relaxation from the ordinary cares of life, the enjoyment of this repose in the bosom of one's family, with the religious studies and ANECDOTES AND SELECTIONS, duties which the day enjoins, (not one of which, if rightly exercised, tends to abridge life,) constitute the beneficial and appropriate service of the day." "RENEWED DAY BY DAY."-Balmy sleep! It is a blessed thing to be refreshed by sleep. The body was wearied through the mind's working more than by physical toil. Each remaining task seemed difficult as the evening still lasted. Rest does not come at once. The mind is wakeful and thoughtful. But soon the drooping wings of sense are folded over all the quieted faculties. They nestle and sink into unconsciousness. Hours pass. We awake in the morning and know, not by the light alone, but by that half consciousness which keeps watch over the slumberer, as well as by the rested limbs, that a night has passed. Nature seems rested and freshened by a night of darkness. The air is pure. The light is soft. The sky is like one awaking. Slowly, the faculties unfold like the leaves of a morning flower, as fresh and untainted. Then we are ready for anything pure, for anything generous. Strength is in the morning. We begin our labour like a strong man rejoicing to run a race. Toil seems easy. We forget that we were ever weary or that we shall be again. We bless Him who giveth his beloved sleep, and go forth to our toil again until the evening. Soon will come that awakening to be weary never more. Soon that NONE LIVETH TO HIMSELF.-No human being can come into this world without increasing or diminishing the sum total of human happiness, not only of the present but of every subsequent age of humanity. No one can detach himself from this connection. There is no sequestered spot in the universe to which he can retreat from his relations to others, where he can withdraw the influence of his existence upon the moral destiny of the world-everywhere his presence or absence will be felt-everywhere he will have companions who will be better or worse for his influence. It is an old saying, and one of fearful and fathomless import-that we are forming characters for eternity. Forming characters! Whose, our own or others? Both; and in that momentous fact lies the peril and responsibility of our existence. Who is sufficient for the thought? Thousands of my fellow-beings will yearly enter eternity with characters differing from those they would have carried thither had I never lived!-Elihu Burrit. ANECDOTES AND SELECTIONS. THE USE OF A PENNY.-What could a journeyman shoemaker do with a penny? I answer at once: Buy a pennyworth of leather, make a pair of trouser-straps, and sell them for twopence. Put another proposition: What could a journeyman tailor do with a penny? I have known boys' caps to be made out of the merest scraps of cloth, and to be sold at a profit very large in comparison with the cost of the material. A carpenter with a bit of wood-a tinman with a bit of tin-a comb-maker with a bit of bone-an engraver with a piece of copper or a bit of wood-a fan-maker with a piece of paper and a few chips-a designer with a blacklead pencil and a sheet of paper-a glazier with a bit of glass-a needle-woman with needle and thread-a gardener with a small packet of seed and a square yard of ground-a ticket-writer with a little colour and a piece of cardboard-an engrosser with pen and ink-indeed, anybody with anything, resolved upon making a beginning, can do it....... Many will say that, had they a few pounds they feel that they could do something. To such persons I say: Begin and get the few pounds. Do not let life slip away and see you still lamenting the want of opportunity. Begin-work first for the opportunity-and then for the result. How a Penny became a Thousand Pounds. THE LIQUOR BLACK-LIST FOR THE YEAR.-The Alliance Weekly News-a paper devoted to the Total Abstinence and Maine Law cause-says in its number for July 19, 1856:-"It is a solemn and awful truth, that from an average of not more than twenty newspapers, and one or two private correspondents per week, we have been enabled to derive information during the last fifty-one weeks, wherefrom to register two thousand two hundred and ten cases of serious accidents, premature deaths, robberies, suicides, murders, or other crimes encountered or perpetrated by or upon persons who were under the operation of alcohol. Including those in this week's list, we have recorded within the year711 brawls or violent assaults, including many cases of stabbing, cutting, and wounding; 294 robberies by or upon drunken persons; 237 cases of atrocious cruelty upon wives or children; 166 cases of serious accident or striking bodily peril; 162 actual or attempted suicides; 520 premature deaths, generally with horrible accessories; and 121 manslaughters and murders." CARE OF PROVIDENCE.-It is a great comfort to have faith in Providence constantly impressed upon the mind, so as to have recourse to it in the midst of all confusions and all calamities, whether from without or from within-to be able to say, The great King who is also my Father, is the Supreme Ruler of all these things, and with Him all my interests are secure-in every distress, when all hope of human assistance is swallowed up in despair, to silence all my fears with these comfortable words-"God will provide." |