tion which was remarkably verified in the character of the deceased. Her enmity strongly displayed itself in various respects; as in the difficulty with which she was prevailed upon to hear the gospel; in her reluctance to see, or converse with religious people; and in the opposition set up against the exercises of prayer, reading the Scriptures, &c. in the family, as performed by her husband. This rooted dislike was of long continuance; and various means that were used, in order to remove it, seemed ineffectual.

Divine grace is, however, invincible. By degrees, her aversion so far abated, that she occasionally heard the gospel; by which, and the perusal of the Obituaries in the Evangelical Magazine, consider able impressions were made on her mind. Yet she resisted convictions; and laboured, though in vain, to stifle them. During this period, it pleased the Lord to visit her with a series of painful afflictions. These were also followed by a tedious illness, which proved fatal. Indisposition and confinement, joined with the apprehension that her complaint, which was consumptive, might end in death, sharpened conviction; and, under the blessing of God, constrained her to think seriously. Her views of divine things now underwent an important change; and she began 40 wish for the society and converse of those, whom formerly she had been wont to shun with disgust.

From this time the visits of religious friends, for the purposes of reading, prayer, &c. met with a grateful reception. The returns of those opportunities she earnestly solicited; and manifestly derived from them instruction and comfort. The restraints imposed upon her, by a natural timidity and bashful ness, which appeared in conversation, especially with strangers, were overcame by a deep sense of the importance of her soul's concerns. In an humble manner, she confessed her guilt as a sinner; and lamented, with much feeling, the continued resistance offered to God, and the convictions of her conscience, as

ll as the contempt she had

thrown on the means of grace and the professors of religion. Whether there was mercy for her? Whether Christ was as willing to save as he is able? - were now the questions on which her thoughts were anxiously exercised; nor was it till after an interval of several weeks, that she obtained relief. The promises and examples made known in the word of God, of pardoning mercy bought by the blood of Christ, and flowing, through that medium, to the chief of sinners, became at length, by the divine blessing, a source of hope. Far from trusting in herself that she was righteous, and convinced of the deluded condition of all who seek justification, in whole or in part, from their own works, she avowed the Lord alone to be her righteousness; and that nothing short of the blood of Christ could cleanse away her sins. But here she rested; here she enjoyed peace! From the promises of grace, she drank in those consolations that so sweetly refresh the thirsty soul. The fears of death, which before had harrassed her, retreated at the prospect which faith presented, of joys beyond the grave; and she not only became willing to leave the world, and those who were peculiarly dear to her, but desired, with submission to the will of God, the moment of release; trusting, that when the earthly house of her tabernacle was dissolved," she had a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens !" Her wish to die, as connected with a comfortable hope of being found in Jesus, were the last sentiments she was heard to express.

During her confinement, she lamented the careless frame of mind in which she had often heard sermons; and also her inability now to attend upon religious ordinances, when she had reason to hope they would be more profitable to her. She manifested likewise much pity towards those of her acquaintance, whom she knew to be strangers to Christ as the way of salvation ; praying for them, and expressing a hope, that, notwithstanding ther

She con

MRS. HELEN GREEN, of Newborough, in Lancashire, Was born at Halton, near Lancaster, of very respectable parents, of the name of Hartley. Until she was about sixteen years old, she lived with her parents; who, from her infancy, endeavoured to impress her mind with the necessity of the outward forms of religion. She was taught to revere the Bible as the word of God; and to value books which treated on religious subjects. When she left her parents, she was employed as a lady's maid; and, about the age of twenty-six, was married to a Mr. Green. With him she lived near ten years, when, owing to derangement in his circumstances, he went to America; and left her, with three children, to follow him. To this period Mrs. Green is to be considered as a person destitute of divine grace., She had the form of godliness, but knew nothing of its power. After he had been in America a little time, she received information that he was ill; but, if spared, was to return to England in the first vessel that came. Soon after this, two of her children were taken in: one 'died; and the other was expected every day to follow. In this distressed situation, in dying circum stances, she received a letter of the death of her husband! She was naturally an affectionate wife and tender mother. In this state, there fore, what she felt exceeds all de scription. Those who knew her intimately, thought her distress was greater than she could bear;

At this time the Methodists came to preach about a mile from where she lived. The first time they came, she went to hear; and was much pleased, because she found her case described by them; and God's word explained in such a manner, as she had never heard it at church. Still, however, she was the subject of much distress; and could not think there was a person in the world so wicked as she had been. She at last opened her mind to one of her neighbours, who seemed to pay attention to religion, but found her much in the same state as herself, After this, she opened her mind, by letter, to a minister in Liverpool; and, by his answer and frequent correspond. ence, afterwards found some degree of hope. But never was her soul set at liberty, till she heard, in the late Mr. Medley's chapel, at Liverpool, a Mr. Harrison, from Shropshire. His subject was, "The willingness of Christ to save sinners;" and he spoke in such a manner, she could no longer doubt the willingness of Christ to save her. Of this circumstance she would

frequently speak with the greatest pleasure and thankfulness. The writer of this has heard her say, She used to think O, how happy they should be, if they could have preaching regularly once a quarter! However, she did not spend her Sab. bath in idleness. She held meetings regularly in her own house for reading, prayer, and singing, with those of her neighbours who were disposed to attend. Thus, in fact, she became the leader of the little band who were disposed to serve God, or hear of his ways. Thus she became a mother in Israel; and while she was diligent, in the midst of much reproach, the Lord hon oured her with tokens of his approbation. Many have been blessed while she thus read the word of God, Evangelical Sermons, and prayed to God with them. Some are left behind who are living witnesses of this.

Here the writer cannot help noticing the manner in which she was first brought to devote the whole of the Sabbath to the Lord: She kept a small shop; and there, as in many other places, perhaps more business was done on the Sabbath than on any day beside. She had been taught, that it was not wrong to sell and receive money on the morning of the Sabbath, before church-time. This, therefore, for some time she did, though not without keen pangs of conscience. She was remarkably open to conviction; and one day a very intimate Christian friend asked her this very plain but pertinent question, "Pray," said she, "what time of the day does the Sabbath begin?" She had no occasion to add any more. For some time she suffered much in her mind on account of this evil, but from that time, laid aside the sinful practice.

She was much attached to her Bible; and able to give a reason of the hope that was in her, and of the truths she believed, in a convincing manner. From the word of God she saw clearly into those truths which are generally termed Calvinistic; and particularly admired the works of Watts, Cennick, Owen,

Doddridge, Macgowan, and Bur der's Village Sermons, &c. &c. In these she read much; and out of these read to her neighbours: and though she had, in the latter part of her life, much business on her hands, when business was over, she sat up frequently very late to read and meditate on the word of God.

It has been mentioned, how she earnestly wished to have preaching occasionally in the village where she lived. About a year and a half before she died, the Lord stirred up the minds of some worthy ministers, and others, in Lancashire, to support an itinerant in that county; and after some time, the Lord, in his kind providence, sent that itinerant to preach in this village. This gave her much satis faction; and she enjoyed this blessing for many months before she died, every week. Her diligence was worthy of imitation, for she was never absent from the meetings but in consequence of heavy afflic tion. She wrote much of what she heard and read, as well as the state of her own mind at times, &c. But when these papers were enquired for, her eldest daughter said, Her mother burned them not a great while before she was taken ill, saying, Nothing should be seen of hers when she was gone. How. ever, among some letters, one that she had written, and was to have been sent to a young minister, was found, dated Nov. 24, 1800; in which she writes thus: "For my own part, I know of no happiness equal to being an humble follower of the meek and lowly Jesus! But, O Mr. H-t, I am an unthankful creature, else I should never want the comforts of his blessed presence! I long to live more upon him; but this deceitful heart rubs me of much happiness, which I know is experienced by a constant communion with him whom my soul loveth. You, my dear friend, have wisely began to seek the Le d while young: your example will be a blessing to niany! The Lord will bless you, I trust, in your public ministry, by giving the young and thoughtless for your hire,