The little band of exiles took different roads, entered the city unobserved, and met safely in the house of Charon, a resolute partisan, where they were joined by others, until the whole number amounted to forty-eight. They had not been long assembled, however, before they were threatened with danger. A message came from Archias to summon Charon into his presence. It seemed that the plot was discovered; but Archias had only heard that some of the exiles were concealed in the city, and he had sent for Charon, without any suspicion, to make inquiries on the subject. Charon denied any knowledge of the circumstance, and Archias and Philippas, who were at the banquet of Phyllidas, were too much heated with wine to think seriously of danger. Soon after, indeed, a letter was brought to Archias from an Athenian of the same name, who was at this time hierophant, the appointed intepreter of mysteries, communicating to him the details of the plot; and though the bearer conjured him to read this letter, inasmuch as it unfolded some grave concerns, Archias, heated and stupified by his debauch, laid it aside unopened, exclaiming: "GRAVE CERNS TO-MORROW ;" and expressed his desire for the appearance of the Theban

women.

CON

This was the moment chosen for attacking him. Mellon, and a few of his companions, were at the door in disguise as women or revellers, and Phyllidas admitting them, after a brief struggle, they dispatched Archias, Philippas, and the other guests. Thebes was finally rescued from the power of the Spartans by the conspirators.

How much does the conduct of Archias resemble that of the world at large at the present day. The drunkard is cautioned to think seriously of his doings, because the word of God declares that no drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of heaven, (1 Cor. vi. 10;) and he laughingly replies: "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW." Reader, are you a drunkard? If you are, remember that "to-morrow may never dawn upon you.

"The drunkard is a vessel weakly mann'd, That's wrecked and cast away upon dry land." The glutton is warned of the results of his gluttonous delights, disease and death, and bade to prepare for his latter end; and as he looks over the dainties spread with a lavish hand upon his board, he

The man of pleasure is affectionately advised to moderate his desires for the things of this world, and to set his affections on things above, and as his eyes rove upon his visions of earthly bliss, he joins the common cry: "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW." Reader, are you a man of pleasure? If so, remember that your eyes may be closed upon all that is dear to you in this world before the sunrise of "to-morrow."

The rich man who has long been saying to his soul: "Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry," is cautioned to think of the day when he must part with his treasures, and to prepare for his latter end; and as he looks upon his coffers and overflowing barns, pleased at the goodly prospect, he joins the universal cry: "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW." Reader, are you a worldly-minded rich man? If so, this very night thy soul may be required.

The man who has reached his threescore years and ten, is earnestly entreated to spend the remnant of his life in preparing for that dread eternity into which it is certain he must soon enter; and, strange to say, although one foot is already in the grave, he exclaims, also, "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW." Reader, are you an aged man? If so, we say to you with tenfold earnestness, you may be numbered among the dead "to-morrow."

The middle-aged are told of the uncertainty of life, and are exhorted to prepare for death; but as they cast their eyes upon their vigorous frame, which seems built for some thirty years to come, reckoning in full confidence upon walking the earth during that period, they despise the exhortation, and say, "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW!" Reader, have you attained the age of full-blown strength? If you have, although your bones may be full of marrow, the stroke of death may yet cut you down, and you may never see "to-morrow."

The young are affectionately entreated to consider, that though they are in the morning of life, they are not too young to die; that they may be cut down as a flower; and with a countenance full of joy, they likewise exclaim, "GRAVE

To whatever class of character you may belong, and of whatever age you may be, into whose hands these lines may fall, oh remember the words of the wise

Let these hints be as a letter to warn you of the danger of delay in the matter of salvation. Throw it not aside as Archias did, unheeded, and with the exclamation, "GRAVE CONCERNS TO-MORROW." Lay its warnings to heart, for you may never know "to-morrow." Like as Archias was, so you may be summoned away from earth, and all you love, suddenly. Even now, Death may be standing at your door, ready to execute his fearful work. St. James saith emphatically, "Go to now, ye that say, To-day or to-morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away,' Jas. iv. 13, 14. Prepare then to meet thy God! “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation," 2 Cor. vi. 2. "To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts," Heb. iii. 7, 8. Before the dawn of "tomorrow, you may be in that fearful place, where its sound is never heard. Seek peace then with God Now through the atoning blood, and the all-sufficient merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. seek it at the throne of grace, and delay not. "He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy," Prov. xxix. 1.-F.

FRESCO PAINTING.

Go,

We learn from Mr. Latilla that fresco, (so called from its being painted on a prepared stucco while fresh plastered and wet,) is the most masterly of all modes for mural adornment. The Greeks introduced it among the Romans, and most of the ancient frescoes and encaustics were the work of the former, as those of Pompeii and Herculaneum. In various

brought to light, and Vasari says, that such was the beauty and freshness of the baths of Titus, when first opened, that Raffaelle and Giovanni da Udine, who had come to see them, remained for some time transfixed with amazement.

Among the advantages of fresco for mural decoration are, the absence of glare, with exceeding purity and freshness of colour. Fresco, reflecting instead of absorbing light, renders it particularly beautiful by candlelight, though its bland mellowness of tone is at all times very charming.

By the practice of this admirable mode of painting, the artist will soon lay aside the lesser excellences required in oil, as they would not be called for, and indeed cannot be exercised in it; the firmness of touch and celerity necessary for completing the part prepared for the day, with a constant reference to the effect of the whole, will prove to the painter that more beauty is caused by simple colour, more grandeur by preserving the flow of outline, the vigour and general character of the subject, than by attending to tints, glazings, and all the intricacies of oil. Local colour should remain unbroken by various hues; and the chiaro-scuro in fresco seems amply to supply the want of variety of tints. To manage fresco well, requires a practice in the large, after which the painter may successfully treat small subjects; but the material is so adapted for an ample area, that its beauty and facility of manipulation are much lost in very circumscribed limits.Polytechnic Journal.

THE JOY OF A CHRISTIAN.

The joy of a Christian in these worldly things is limited, and ever awed with fear of excess, but recompensed abundantly with his spiritual mirth: whereas the worldling gives the reins to his mind, and pours himself out into pleasure, fearing only that he shall not joy enough. He that is but half a Christian, lives but miserably; for he neither enjoyeth God nor the world: not God, because he hath not grace enough to make him his own; not the world, because he hath some taste of grace, enough to show him the vanity and sin of his pleasures. So the sound Christian hath his heaven above, the worldling here below, the unsettled Christian nowhere.-Bishop Hall.

ENGLISH HISTORY.

CHARLES I.

THE determination of Charles to proceed in the course upon which he had entered, was shown immediately after his return from Scotland, by appointing Laud to succeed Abbot, as archbishop of Canterbury. Laud has recorded, that on the same day he had the offer from an authorized party to be made a cardinal. He declined, but evidently had not the reluctance which any ecclesiastic really attached to the Reformation would have felt. About this time, the king and his advisers gave cause for new suspicions of their sincerity, by sending an envoy to Rome, as from the queen, and allowing three accredited agents of the pope to reside in London, in succession, till 1640. This request for the cardinal's hat for Laud seems to have originated with the queen, whose priests were afterwards sent to the pope's nuncio, at Paris, where the latter spoke highly in praise of Laud, and of his willingness to show favour to the papists. The following statement of the modern Romish historian of England, is important. He says that Panazani, the second of the three agents, from Rome, in December, 1634, was received graciously by the queen, and assured through secretary Windebank, that he might remain in safety. From his despatches, it appears that among the most zealous churchmen, there were some who, alarmed at the increasing numbers, and persevering hos

tility of the Puritans, began to think of a re-union with the see of Rome, as the best safeguard for the church of England. Of this number were Windebank, Cottington, Goodman, bishop of Gloucester, and Montagu, bishop of Chichester. The latter conferred three times with the Italian on the subject, and assured him that the English clergy would not refuse to the pope a supremacy, purely spiritual, such as was admitted by the French romanists; that among the prelates, three only, those of Durham, Salisbury, and Exeter, would object; and that Laud, though he was too timid and too cautious to commit himself by an open avowal, was in reality desirous of such an union.

In 1632, the reading of the Book of Sports was again commanded; this was done to discountenance the proceedings of two judges on the western circuit, who had given force to some measures for the better outward observance of the Lord'sday. Such a measure was distasteful to Laud and the court, as savouring of puritanism; but they forgot the especial blessings promised to nations and public bodies, as well as to individuals, who keep the Sabbath; and surely their opposition led to increased profaneness, and added to the national guilt. This recalls to mind the description of Judah, given by the prophet, "She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the LORD; she drew not near to her God. Her princes within her are

roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves. Her prophets are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law. The just Lord is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity every morning doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not," Zeph. iii. 2-5.

Laud evidently was determined to put down all true and vital religion, if it savoured of what was regarded as puritanism. The judges before mentioned were compelled to revoke their order at the next circuit; and every bishop was directed to require that the Book of Sports, issued by king James, should be again read in all the churches. May's History of the Parliament of England states, that "this attempt to put down puritanism by setting up irreligion, instead of producing the intended effect, may credibly be thought to have been one motive to a stricter observance of that day. Many men who had before been loose and careless, began upon that occasion to enter into a more serious consideration of it, and were ashamed to be invited by the authority of churchmen, to that which themselves, at the best, could but have pardoned in themselves, as a matter of infirmity."

In the visitation of his new diocese, Laud enforced an exact observance of outward regulations and ceremonials, and did much to repair and beautify the churches, even causing the king to undertake to restore St. Paul's to its former splendour; but every thing opposing his own doctrinal views was discountenanced, and as much as possible put down. Hinderances were thrown in the way of obtaining ordination by any who differed from him; and in stopping the lectures in churches, he followed out the course he openly adopted early in 1633, when by the aid of the star chamber, he put an end to a trust, designed to devote large subscriptions to the purchase of livings, and the endowment of lectures in populous neighbourhoods, to be supplied by pious and active clergymen. These lectures were chiefly established in towns, and were very needful for the instruction of the people, when a large part of the pastors were incompetent to preach to their flocks. The amount raised for these purposes was declared forfeited to the crown, and the trustees threatened with personal punishment, if they attempted to carry on their praiseworthy design. From this fact, it is not difficult to suppose how Laud

would have regarded the efforts of Bible, Tract, and Missionary Societies, had he lived in the present day!

The care for repairing churches could not but please all reflecting minds, till they saw that the chief efforts were not to render the edifices commodious for increasing congregations, and suitable for the celebration of Divine worship, so that all might unite therein, but rather that especial facilities might be given for the celebration of what was called the sacrifice of the eucharist; changing the reverend and due participation of the Lord's Supper into the performance of a sacrificial memorial. The tables were removed to the east end of the churches, placed altar-wise, inclosed with rails, and raised on steps; this was enforced so as to oppose, and set aside a canon upon the subject then existing. In many cases by litigation, and the removal of galleries, monuments, and other erections within the church, attempts were made farther to sanction the idea of a special manifestation of the Deity at one part of the building, forgetful of the scriptural declaration, "Howbeit the Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands," Acts vii. 48. Serious offence was hereby given to many reflecting minds; the more from the pains and penalties inflicted by the spiritual courts on all who resisted their proceedings; and shortly after these courts were conducted in the name of the bishops, and not of the king as heretofore. In the consecration of the church of St. Katherine Cree, in London, Laud carried more fully into practice his love for ceremonials, to the alarm of many, and the disgust of the nation in general, introducing several ceremonies directly opposed to what had been customary on the like occasions, since the Reformation. As Pennant observes, in reference to this consecration, "Laud attempted innovations in the ceremonies of the church, at a season he ought to have left them in the state he found them."

One of the churches repaired at considerable cost about this period, was that of St. Peter's, Cornhill, represented in the annexed engraving, of which church a tradition was current, and recorded on a tablet then placed therein, that the church was the first Christian edifice for worship erected in London, being originally founded on that spot A. D. 179, by Lucius, said to have been the first Christian king in Britain. In itself the legendary story is of no value, but the re

ference to Lucius may be considered as forming a part of the chain of irrefragable evidence, which establishes undeniably the existence of a purer Christian faith in our land, before Augustine, on the sending of pope Gregory, had introduced the more corrupted form of Christianity prevalent in the sixth and seventh centuries.

Some other instances must be shown of the impolitic and violent proceedings of the ruling party. Prynne, a learned barrister, was tried in the star chamber; his offence was, that in a volume against stage plays he had used expressions relative to actresses, which some applied to the queen, though his work was published some weeks before a mask in which she appeared as a performer. Laud excited the royal wrath against Prynne. The work was condemned as seditious; the author was fined £5000, pilloried, and his ears cut off; while the societies of lawyers were induced to show their disagreement with their associate, by acting a masked pageant which cost £21,000. This was in 1632, but in his imprisonment, Prynne wrote a tract still more violent, in which he reflected on the prelates for this, by direction of Laud, he was again tried with Bastwick and Burton, who had also written against prelacy. They were all condemned to the pillory, and loss of their ears. They were afterwards sent to Scilly, Guernsey, and Jersey, to be imprisoned, debarred from pen and ink, and not allowed to see any friends or relatives. Their sufferings were regarded as martyrdom. Prynne having already lost his ears, the executioner cut away the scraps of flesh that remained. Laud openly took part in these proceedings; though he might have plainly seen that he was contending, not with a few enthusiastic, discontented spirits, but with the general feeling of the nation; and he pushed forward that terrible engine of oppression, the star chamber, into active contest with the press. An instance of his unforgiving anger was shown in the prosecution of bishop Williams, once his friend; but having counselled the king against these acts of severity on the plea of religion, he was prosecuted, and, after a suit which lasted many years, condemned in 1639 to be suspended from his office, and heavily fined, his crowning offence being that a letter addressed to him was found in his pocket, in which the writer spoke with disrespect of Laud.

Another case which was regarded as

still more favourable to popery, was that of Sherfield, the recorder of Salisbury. He had in various ways shown readiness to support the measures of the ruling party, but there were some pictorial representations decidedly idolatrous, in a church which he attended, having been originally monastic, and a private chapel, till given to the parish during the last reign. Here was a window, having seven pictures of God the Father, as an aged man, in a coat of red and blue, engaged in creating the world, depicted with all the grossness and absurdity of the darkest ages, before which ignorant people were still repeatedly seen kneeling and worshipping as in the days of popery. Sherfield, with the consent of the vestry, at which six magistrates were present, offered to replace this window with plain glass, and, being about to proceed to London, he broke the objectionable panes of glass, that the workmen might not mistake the window to be removed. Three years after, he was cited in the star chamber for breaking a church window. Laud aggravated the offence, and palliated the idolatry by referring to the passage, Dan. vii. 13, where the prophet speaks of the Ancient of days. Strafford supported the bishop, but the earl of Dorset, who also sat as judge, said the prosecutor ought to be punished, and not Sherfield. This obliged Laud to mitigate the fine he at first proposed, but Sherfield was sentenced to pay 500l., while the first cost of the glass did not exceed forty shillings. A prebendary of Durham was fined and imprisoned for publicly censuring the dean for having placed a number of lighted candles on the communion table; two lecturers were imprisoned for preaching against crucifixes; and Laud did not hesitate to require bishop Hall to omit passages in an intended publication in which he spoke of the pope as Antichrist.

Laud was not contented with filling what would now be called the place of prime minister: he entered into the details of office, and took the place of one of the lords commissioners of the treasury on the death of the earl of Portland, who had been a decided opponent of his policy. His eager temper, and ignorance of business, caused him to be repeatedly imposed upon : he found himself unequal to its duties, and gave up the office in 1635, but prevailed upon the king to continue it in the hands of an ecclesiastic. Juxon, bishop of London, was appointed.