an opposition to the spirit of the "gospel, Nor were his exertions in the cause of popery confined to these proceedings. He wrote several treatises in defence of the romish doctrines and practices; among them he even defended the cause of monkery, and the begging friars, whom he had censured in the strongest terms in his early writings. The value of these services to the romish clergy was shown by their collecting for Sir Thomas the sum of five thousand pounds, equal to one hundred thousand pounds, at the present day. But covetousness was not among More's failings. Although his circumstances were limited, he refused to accept this noble present, or to allow his family to receive any part. His reply showed that he had engaged in this literary work as a matter of conscience. He said, "Though your lordships' offer is very friendly and honourable to me, yet I set so much by my pleasure, and so little by my profit, that in good faith I would not, for a much larger have lost the rest of so many nights' sleep as was spent upon these writings." He added, "Yet notwithstanding that, upon condition that all heresies were suppressed, I wish that all my books were burnt, and my labour entirely lost." sum, It is however stated that his fondness for wit and repartee, in one instance at least, got the better of his persecuting zeal. A man named Silver being brought before him, he said, "Silver, you must be tried by fire." Yes," replied the prisoner, 66 but you know, my lord, that Quick Silver cannot abide the fire." Pleased with the answer, he suffered the man to depart. 66 (To be continued.) ON SOME PECULIARITIES OF THE HUMAN 66 VOICE. THE following observations may not be out of order if introduced into the "The Weekly Visitor," which ministers to the spiritual appetite, in providing what is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness," and exhibits also, from time to time, the wonders of creation, the handiwork of that Almighty Being, by whom all things were made. "Without him was not any thing made that was made." The other day, when reflecting on the human voice, I was struck with a peculiarity in reference to it which had never before occurred to me, nor do I remember ever having seen it alluded to in any publication. The human voice may be familiarly defined to be occasioned by the emission of the breath with different degrees of force, the organs of speech adapting themselves to the sounds which are required. These organs then may be considered as a musical instrument, and the breath modulated thereby, constitutes its music. The peculiarity which struck me was this, that these organs should possess the power of producing the same tones whether they acted upon the breath before or after it passed through the mouth; or, in other words, that a human being should be able to speak audibly and intelligibly, either by emitting or drawing in his breath. This may appear a simple, but it is nevertheless a very singular fact. That any simple musical instrument, such as the small round tin whistle, with which boys imitate the lark, should produce the same sound whether the breath be forced through it, one way or the other, is not remarkable, because, having two apertures, the one exactly resembling the other, each communicating with the centre of the instrument in the same manner, it is of no consequence which way the air is impelled or drawn through it; but it is a very different thing with regard to the human subject, where the only mouth-piece is on one side, and the organs of speech all on the other. If the breath be emitted, it passes the teeth and lips after it has passed the tongue; but if drawn in, it passes the lips and teeth before it comes in contact with the tongue, and yet the voice is intelligible. In the common mode of speaking, the breath is acted upon by the organs of speech before it escapes from the mouth in the form of words; but when a person speaks while he draws in his breath, this order is altogether inverted, and the breath enters the mouth before it is acted upon by the organs of speech. In pronouncing the different letters of the alphabet in respiring and inspiring, the organs of speech assume the same position. To pronounce A, the mouth must be open; to pronounce B, the lips must be compressed; to pronounce C, the tongue and teeth must be near together. Nor am I aware, that a single similar sound can be made by respiration and inspiration, without the organs of speech assuming the same, or nearly the same position. When a person speaks, drawing in his breath, he does it with difficulty, and the sound of his voice is unpleasant, resembling that made by a dumb man, who has been taught to utter a few sentences; but the wonder is, that the words should be intelligible at all; that the musical in- | our minds, indeed, take in and digest the strument, played backwards and for- sacred similitudes in scripture, the very wards, should produce the same intelligible music. The circumstance may afford a little, not unprofitable reflection; for it exhibits in a novel point of view, one of the many important faculties with which Divine Providence has endued us: well may we say, "I will praise thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." "O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall speak forth thy praise." ON WALKING WITH GOD. 66 How simple, comprehensive, and dignified is that memorial of the life of Enoch, "He walked with God!" and O, that our conduct may be such, that when our heads are laid beneath the clods of the earth, it may be said of each of us, "He walked with God." Whilst Enoch was in the world, he lived above the world. "He walked with God." The expression implies a knowledge of God; an intimate acquaintance with his adorable nature and perfections. It implies reconciliation with God. "Before his translation he had this testimony that he pleased God." The metaphor also conveys the idea of unanimity, cordiality, and intimacy. There is an interchange of affections maintained. between the mind and God. And it bespeaks a mind unreservedly devoted to God. His was a course of steady, persevering, pious, and cheerful obedience; he ran in the way of God's commandments with enlargedness of heart. The sentence, "Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return," was, in this case, remitted, as a favour to a distinguished servant, and that the church might be taught the connexion between faith in God, and the hope of a resurrection from the dead. Now it should be our concern, whilst here, to walk with God, that we may be admitted to the complete enjoyment of him hereafter. In the mean time, let us search our hearts, and try our thoughts, and see if we have any reason to hope that our enmity against him is, in some degree, subdued, that we are reconciled to him by the blood of his Son: for if not "there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful looking for of wrath and of fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries." C. J. M. SCRIPTURE METAPHORS. METAPHORS are of excellent use to make us seek after the things above. Did objects of sense would prompt us to be heavenly; outward things being but the shadows, would lead us to the true substance. The sun would tell us, that there is a more glorious One above, who shines with healing under his wings. The wind would remind us that the best gales come from the Holy Spirit. The fountains would suggest to us, that there is a well of water, which springs up into life everlasting. The old creation would be a gloss and paraphrase upon the new; every where we should meet with Christ and holy mysteries. The design and tendency of these holy metaphors is such, that a due improvement of them must needs render our minds very spiritual and divine.— Polhil. THE GIN-DRINKER. "Two persons, who had been drinking gin to excess at Hoxton, were so intoxicated that they could not stand. After reeling about for some time, they were both put into a hand-cart, and carried off, amidst the shouts and derision of an assembled rabble." What would the gin-drinker say, if in passing along the street, he were to be suddenly dragged into a dirty, close, disagreeand a poison poured therein so strong as to able hole; to have his mouth forced open, deprive him not only of the use of his limbs, but of his reason; and afterwards to be left to all the dangers of accident, would bitterly complain of such an outrage, robbery, and ill-usage? No doubt, he and yet he acts in this outrageous manner against himself every time he visits a ginshop, and drinks to excess. If other men used the gin-drinker as ill as he uses himself, they would be sent to the tread-mill, at least, for their pains. What would the gin-drinker say, if in his absence from home, some scoundrel were to rob his house of furniture, food, and comforts, leaving his wife and children destitute and afflicted? Why, he would cry aloud for justice against the man who had robbed him of his property. And yet, he is acting the part of this thief himself, for by habitual gin-drinking he robs himself and his family continually. What would the gin-drinker say to the man who made it his business to go from one place to another blasting his reputation, and spreading the report that he was idle, wasteful, disorderly, riotous, a brawler and a drunkard? No doubt he would be filled with rage against such a libeller, and yet, he goes about himself and proclaims all this, and ten times more, by gin-drinking every day of his life. These things are bad enough, but the gin-drinker is not satisfied in doing even evil by halves. It is not enough to render himself and those around him miserable in this world, but he is industrious in blotting out all hope of happiness in the world which is to come. There are many ways to misery, but gindrinking is one of the nearest. gions of our globe; while those, again, the general distribution of which would have been regarded rather as a curse than a blessing, have been, with few exceptions, rendered the invariable inmates either of the hottest or the coldest climes. By way of illustration, let us take an example from each of the two extremes. Were a tiger conveyed from the jungles of tropical Asia to the northern steppes of Siberia, or the shores of the Arctic Sea, how soon would he lose his gigantic strength and ferocious vigour! Or were a Polar bear transferred from his bleak eternity of floating icebergs, to a sultry island of the Indian Archipe ON THE POWERS OF ANIMALS OF THE lago, how speedily would the surly savage TEMPERATE LATITUDE FOR BEARING It is probable that most of those species which have their centre of dominion in temperate countries are capable of enduring the most widely-extended geographical distribution. This may be illustrated even by the different varieties of the human race. A native of Britain braves alike the most fiery breath of the torrid zone, and the frozen climates of Greenland; but an Esquimaux would perish on the shores of the Congo; and a negro, although better supplied than were the Russian sailors under similar circumstances, would hardly survive amid the desolate snows of Spitzbergen. Most of those animals which we have domesticated, and carried along with us in our almost universal migrations, such as the horse, sheep, and goat, have their origin in the temperate countries of higher Asia, among the mountains and elevated plains of which, their originals are still to be traced. It is no doubt owing to the physical conditions of clime and.country, that these, and certain other species, have been enabled to follow their masters, and to breed and prosper under almost every variety of climate. On the other hand, had they been native to an equatorial region, they would have been comparatively of little service in the northern parts of Europe or America; or had they been naturally confined to the vicinity of the Arctic circle, their value would have suffered a corresponding diminution in relation to the inhabitants of intra-tropical climes. It is thus, by an admirable law of Divine benevolence, that all those animals, from the domestication and culture of which, the most widely-spread and essential advantage was capable of resulting to the human race, have been created and retained the natural inmates of the temperate re cease to create alarm! The spirit of the same observation might be applied to much more serviceable animals, which, however, not being natives of temperate countries, are, for that very reason, incapable of being rendered useful in the most extensive and, therefore, highest degree. We may adduce, as familiar examples, the rein-deer and dromedary, the former of which, the wandering Bedouin of the desert would as soon attempt to rear amid the shifting sands of Arabia, as the Nomadian of the north would the latter in the cold and lofty plains of Finmark or Norway-See" Historical and Descriptive Account of British India,” vol. iii. p. 17-19. A GOOD MIRROR.-We ought to look with deep earnestness of spirit into the holy scriptures-the mirror of God's word, in order to find out our faults, that they may be corrected, in order to find christian graces therein which may be improved; in order to find the blessed doctrines of our Saviour, which we may learn to adorn in all things. We are not to wish our Bible to flatter us, as some persons love to be flattered by their mirror. The Bible flatters none; it shows infirmity in the strongest, deformity in the fairest, defilement in the purest christian. It is the faithful mirror of God's holy perfections, and of man's miserable failings; the more you look into it, the more you will grow like God, and be changed from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of our God. JOHN DAVIS, 56, Paternoster Row, London. Price d. each, or in Monthly Parts, containing Five Numbers in a Cover, 3d. W. TYLER, Printer, 4, Ivy Lane, St. Paul's. THE CHLAMYPHORUS, OR PICHICIAGO. (Continued from page 282.) THE Chlamyphorus, or Pichiciago, is as we have seen a creature appointed to pass its existence in subterranean burrows, from which most probably it seldom emerges to visit the light. In its mines it is born, lives, and dies. Night, or the dusk of evening, is in all probability the season of its activity, when, if at all, it ventures from its concealment. Admirably formed for its peculiar mode of life, it is as ill adapted for dwelling in the air and sunshine of the upper world, as any animal can be ; but it is wisely ordained, that in every creature, the habits, instincts, and organization, are in exact and beautiful harmony. Remembering, then, that the Chlamyphorus is essentially subterranean, and as we have seen its external endowments expressly qualifying it for such a mode of life, let us now take a superficial glance at its skeleton. Its general appearance is that of strength and solidity. The head is large and of an irregular conical figure, and the bones composing it are soldered together, so that no sutures are visible. From the forehead project two solid processes, rising above the level of the rest of the skull; it is to these VOL. II. that the shield is firmly attached; in fact, they support it, and prevent its being pressed down upon the skull while the animal is engaged in its mining operations. The external aperture of the organ of hearing is continued in the form of a tube of bone arched regularly forwards and upwards. The chest is very capacious, and is bounded by eleven ribs on each side, of which the first is remarkably broad and strong. The collar-bones are distinct and long, keeping the shoulders far apart, and attached at one end to the sternum, or breast-bone, at the other to a projection (the acromion) of the scapula. The scapula, or shoulder-bone, is very spacious, spreading widely over the ribs, and well covered with muscles of great power and volume; it has two spinous projections running its whole length. The bones of the arm are prodigiously thick, and irregular in their figure, having all the points connected with muscular developement enlarged to an almost incredible extent, indicating the vast powers of this singular creature. The vertebral column is thick, and the processes arising from each separate vertebra are stout and large. The pelvis (bones of the hips) consists of 20 a solid piece presenting an irregular figure,, the edges of its anterior portion being elevated above the level of the spinal column; while at its posterior part, where the shield of the back seems cut off to join a perpendicular plate, two processes stand out, for the purpose of supporting that plate, and to which it is firmly attached. The hinder limbs are much less feeble than in the mole; indeed, in length they exceed the fore limbs, and are also strongly made, but far less so than the fore limbs, which comparatively speaking are more massive, and indicate greater powers relatively than those of the hugest quadruped. In some respects the skeleton of the Chlamyphorus has an affinity to that of the mole, (see Weekly Visitor, vol. i. page 129,) especially as it regards the shortness of the bones of the fore limbs, and the breadth and solidity of the hand; but here the resemblance ends. To the skeleton of the armadillo the resemblance is much more strong and general; in many important details, however, it is perfectly unique. Looking at the skeleton as a whole, we are struck with its firmness, and the massiveness of its proportions; it is the skeleton of a creature of gigantic powers in miniature. This solidity of frame-work, and these powers of muscle are not random gifts: consider the creature's habits,-it has to mine and scrape, and force its way through galleries beneath the surface of the earth, tight and narrow, and only capable of admitting the passage of its body; it has to work as it proceeds, excavating the solid earth before it, and making itself a way by dint of hard labour. Is this work for the slightly built, or the feeble? No. Destined by its Maker to a life of labour, to be a miner all its days, it is gifted with those qualifications which render those operations easy and accordant tasks, which would otherwise be insupportable. M. REFLECTION. REFLECTION, among other advantages, enables men to arrive at the point to which they would go by a plainer and shorter pathway, than that usually trodden. How often have we accomplished undertakings with great labour and pains, which experience has afterwards enabled us to effect, in a much better manner, with half the exertion. A man has a boggy field through which his family must pass in their road to a place of divine worship, or go half a mile round by a dirty lane. He sets to work to form a pathway, and with great labour makes a bad road half across the boggy ground, and then gives it up on account of the expense and trouble. A neighbour, of greater reflection, advises him to lay small faggots of wood, at greater distances from each other, to step on, by this means he constructs a good dry footpath, with one-half the expense, and one-third of the trouble, beside the advantage of enabling his family to go regularly, where before they went very seldom, to hear the word of God. Or whether mean and poor, Or blessed with house and lands; A farmer, having to drive his team daily along a lane in which is a deep valley, and after that a steep hill, resolves to dig gravel in a neighbouring pit, wherewith to fill up the valley, but no sooner does he set to work, than a reflecting friend gives him a little useful advice. "If," says he, "instead of getting your gravel from the pit, you take it off the steep hill, you will do your work much sooner, and get rid of two evils instead of one. Your hill will be lowered, and your valley raised up to the level of the road. Here again is the advantage of reflection. While thoughtless mortals waste their strength in vain, Reflecting minds with ease their ends attain. A husbandman, finding the road from his farm blocked up with snow, determines to cut a way through it, but while he ponders on the great labour of his undertaking, he is struck with the plan of rolling it over with a heavy roller, thus rendering the road passable with little trouble. The plan succeeds, and he becomes convinced of the advantages of reflection. The process of beating down the snow by drawing over it a heavy iron roller with stout horses, is practised with advantage in America; and on one occasion, the road from Stobo Castle to Peebles in Scotland, a distance of seven miles, when blocked up with snow, was in a few hours rendered passable for loaded carts. Reflection serves alike the small and great, It smooths the rough, and makes the crooked straight. But if Reflection is useful in mending the roads of earth, it is equally useful in clearing the pathway to heaven. How many a stumbling-block in the road of christian duty is removed; how many a rough dispensation has been made plain; how many a crooked providence has been straightened, by reflecting on God's goodness, and meditating on his precious |