friend, a wife, must needs, I think, feel a little heart-ache at the thought of an eternal separation from the objects of her regard; and not to know them when she meets them in another life, or never to meet them at all, amounts, though not altogether, yet nearly to the same tiring. Remember them, I think, she needs must. To hear that they are happy, will indeed be no small addition to her own felicity; but to see them so, will surely be a greater. Thus, at least, it appears to our present human apprehension; consequently, therefore, to think, that when we leave them, we lose them for ever; that we must remain eternally ignorant whether they, that were flesh of our flesh, and bone of our bone, partake with us of celestial glory, or are disinherited of their heavenly portion, must shed a dismal gloom over all our present connections. For my own part, this life is such a momentary thing, and all its interests have so shrunk in my estimation, since by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ I became attentive to the things of another, that, like a worm in the bud of all my friendships and affections, this very thought would eat out the heart of them all, had I a thousand; and were their date to terminate with this life, I think I should have no inclination to cultivate and improve such a fugitive business. Yet friendship is necessary to our happiness here, and built upon Christian principles, upon which only it can stand, is a thing even of religious sanction for what is that love which the Holy Spirit, speaking by St. John, so much inculcates, but friendship? The only love which deserves the name; a love which can toil, and watch, and deny itself, and go to death for its brother. Worldly friendships are a poor weed compared with this; and even this union of spirit in the bond of peace, would suffer in my mind at least, could I think it were only coeval with our earthly mausions. It may possibly argue great weakness in me, in this instance, to stand so much in need of future hopes to support me in the discharge of present duty. But so it is: I am far, I know, very far from being perfect in Christian love, or any other divine attainment; and am therefore unwilling to forego whatever may help me in my progress. -- You are so kind as to enquire after my health; for which reason I must tell you, what otherwise would not be worth mientioning, that I have lately been just enough indisposed to convinee me, that not only human life in general, but line in particular, hangs by a slender thread. I am stout enough in appearance; yet a little illness demolishes me. I have had a severe shake; and the building is not so firm as it was. But I If the inner man be but heart. my bless God for it with all strengthened day by day, as I hope under the renewing influ ences of the Holy Ghost, it will be no matter how soon the outward is dissolved. He who has in a manner raised me from the dead, in a literal sense, has given me the grace, I trust, te 3 R 2 be ready, at the shortest notice, to surrender up to him that life which I have twice received from him. Whether I live or die, I desire it may be to his glory; and it must be to my happiness. -I thank God that I have those amongst my kindred to whom I can write without reserve of sentiments upon this subject, as I do to you. A letter upon any other subject is more insipid to me than ever my task was when a school-boy; and I say not this in vain-glory; God forbid! but to shew you what the Almighty, whose name I am unworthy to mention, has done for me, the chief of sinners. Once he was a terror to me; and his. service, oh what a weariness it was! Now I can say I love him, and his holy name; and am never so happy as when I speak of his mercies to me. Huntingdon, Sept. 3d, 1766. Yours, W. COWPER. BIBLICAL CRITICISM. ▲ certuin man made a great supper, and bade many; and sent his servants, at supper-time, to say to them that were bidden, Come, for all things are now ready. - Luke xiv. 16, 17. THERE is a striking conformity between the circumstances intimated in the introductory part of this parable, and the cere monies attendant upon a Chinese entertainment. Among this people," an invitation to an entertainment is not supposed to be given with sincerity, until it has been renewed three or four times in writing. A card is sent on the evening before the entertainment; another, on the morning of the ap pointed day; and a third, when every thing is prepared *."— The invitation to this great supper is supposed to have been given when the certain man had resolved upon making it; but it is again repeated at supper-time, when all things were ready. Now, as it does not appear that the renewal of it arose from the refusal of the persons invited, of which no hint is yet given, we may suppose it was customary thus to send repeated messages. The practice was very ancient among the Chinese; and if admitted to have prevailed among the Jews, certainly gives a significancy to the words not usually perceived. REFLECTIONS. The repetition of gospel-invitations does not arise from the want of sincerity, but from the earnest solicitude of the See Goldsmith's Geography, p. 117. : Founder of the feast to bring sinners to partake of it. How happy are they to whom these calls are addressed! But how is that felicity augmented when they effectually reach the heart, and are followed by a believing approach to the Lord Jesus Christ! Let the men of the world enjoy its vain delights such as have tasted that the Lord is gracious, can no longer relish them. Let the religious formalist satisfy himself with customary duties and services, the lively Christian seeks to obtain the provisions of God's grace, through the medium of ordinances. He is not satisfied to neglect the means, but he cannot be comfortable till he enjoys the blessing promised to be thereby communicated. St. Albans. S. B. ANECDOTE. --- A GENTLEMAN of my acquaintance was asked in company, What led him first to embrace the truths of the gospel, which formerly he was known to have neglected and despised? He said, "My call and conversion to God our Saviour was produced by very singular means: A person put into my hand Paine's Age of Reason: I read it with attention; and was very much struck with the strong and ridiculous representations he made of so many passages of the Bible. I confess, to my shame, I never had read the Bible through; but from what I remembered to have heard at church, or accidentally on other occasions, I could not persuade myself that Paine's report was quite exact, and the Bible quite so absurd a book as he represented it. I resolved, therefore, that I would read the Bible regularly through, and compare the passages when I had done so, that I might give the book fair play. I accordingly set myself to the task; and as I advanced, was so struck with the majesty which spoke, the awfulness of the truths contained, and the strong evidence of its divine original, which increased with every page, that I finished my enquiry with the fullest satisfaction of the truth as it is in Jesus; and with my heart penetrated with a sense of obligation I had never felt before, resolved henceforth to take the sacred word for my guide, and be a faithful follower of the Son of God. But, judge of my surprize! I no sooner began to avow my sentiments, and to change my course of life, than those who never reproached me for my ignorance and infidelity, branded me as a Methodist !--Will any of you, my friends, let me know the real meaning of this term, and what are the characteristic marks of this reproachful term, Methodism?” T. 11. MYDOW, AN OTAHEITAN YOUTH. Obituary. MYDOW and OLEY, two Otaheitan youths, were brought to England about two years ago, by a South Whaler, and, from motives of Christian compassion, were taken under the wing of the Missionary Society, who committed them to the care of the Brethren's Society in Yorkshire. The climate appears to have disa greed with them; and it was in the contemplation of the Society to send them back, if possible, to their owncountry. Inthis, however, they have been disappointed; but it affords much pleasure to perceive some hopeful appearances of the power of Divine Grace in their hearts; and that Mydow, who is dead, was thought by the Brethren to have died in the faith and hope of the Gospel, as appears by the following letter to the Secretary:· Rev. and Dear Sir, : Yesterday evening I returned from Misfield, whither I had been called by an express, on Saturday the 24th My last to you was of the 31st of August, written just before my departure from London, in which I once more made what observations I then could de, concerning the proposal of the Directors of the Missionary Society to bring the Otaheitan youths to London, with a view to their return to their native island. When I came to Fulnec, I examined into their situation, and, according to the wish of the Directors, made a report of it to Mr. Hardcastle, who no doubt has communicated to you what I wrote. When I left Fulnec, Sep. 16th, they were both at Misfield; where I had visited and taken leave of them. I expected shortly to hear, that either Mydow or Oley was worse; but a brother from hence having paid a visit to Fulnec and Mishfield last week, I obtained from him on Friday night, 23d, some informa tion respecting them, which to me appeared of so satisfactory a nature (as far as related to their best interest) that I was going, on Saturday morning, to make it the subject of another letter to you or Mr. Hardcastle, when I received a letter from Dr. Okely, by express, requesting, that if I had not settled otherwise, I might return to Misfield and attend the baptism of Oley, and funes ral of Mydow. In this letter he informs me, that ever since I left Yorkshire, Mydow had been growing weaker, that there seemed a gathering in his neck, which put him to great pain and inconvenience; and that," on Wednesday and Thursday, it had plainly appeared that his dissolution was approaching; in consequence of which his repeated urgent request to be baptized had been taken into serious consideration by the minis ters of our Yorkshire congregation, who happened to be assembled at Misfield on that day, to hold the customary half-yearly meeting with that congregation. The bap tism was resolved to be adminis tered in the afternoon of the same day; and many of our brethren from our other Yorkshire settle. ments being present, all took a most lively interest in the transaction. At first, it was intended to have baptized him on his sick bed, in his apartment; but a general wish be ing expressed that it might be done in the chapel, he was carried in his bed into the chapel, and placed in the middle, the bed-stead being covered with a white cloth; the congregation sat all round; the chil dren in the inner rows. After the singing of some verses, and an ap propriate address, the situation of the patient not admitting of the use of the liturgy, usual on such occasions,-Mr. Benade, a bishop of our church, and minister of Fulnec, declared in the name of the candidate, his often repeated request to be ad. mitted into the church of Christ by OBITUARY, holy baptism; his faith in Jesus, as "The Saviour's blood and righteousness The following morning, about again desired to administer baptism: Six bre and I begged that his name might be The funeral of Christian was ap Thus departed into eternal bliss a poor Otaheitan, who was brought to this country by what the world calls accident, led to the knowledge of his Saviour and Redeemer by your instrumentality, and that of a few friends, who providentially met with him, and provided the means of his instruction, in humble reliance upon the Lord's blessing and support, in which we have not been disappointed.--I expect very shortly to hear that Joseph has followed his brother into the realms above. A more detailed account of their proceedings amongst us, I have |