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with the patience of a martyr: but it has been otherwise; my own carelessness, if not my own folly, has reduced me; for though I have never wilfully or willingly injured another, yet have I, thoughtlessly or through neglect, foolishly lost my property, and thereby not only shorn myself of my comforts, but injured also those who are about me. My trouble is not my deprivations alone, but the knowledge that I have brought them on myself."

I must frankly admit that this alters your case, and flings a darker cloud around you; but there is a rainbow even in this shadowy and showery state of things, for your being so sensible of your own demerits is a sign with which I would not willingly part. Once more I say, Take your trouble, be what it may, to the compassionate Redeemer. Cast your burden on him who hath said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Do this humbly, heartily, perseveringly, and confidingly, and you shall yet sing of mercy. Though you have lost much, you have not lost all; though the feast has gone by, you may haply, even yet, fill up seven baskets with the fragments that remain ; for what with humility of mind, patience, acquiescence to the Divine will, watchfulness over yourself, increased diligence, a prayerful spirit,

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and a grateful heart, you may be a wiser, a better, and a happier man than you were in the days of your prosperity. In the midst of your more limited means, and your less dainty bits and drops, you may have more true sunshine of soul than ever you had before. The Lord may lift up the light of his countenance upon you, and put gladness into your heart, more than in the time when your corn and wine increased.

my

If there be any of readers who have escaped me; if my drag-net has let a few go by, who are neither troubled in mind, body, nor estate, (I apprehend there cannot be very many of this description,) to such I would say, Have a care of yourselves, for yours is no common case. Hardly do I know whether or not to congratulate you on your freedom from affliction. However, as it is not at all likely to last long, let me urge you to be thankful-morning, noon, and night-for the ease you enjoy, and also to prepare for trial; for " man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward," Job. v. 7.

If you know anything of the occupation of a fisherman, you are aware that it cannot be carried on long together without weariness, and will, therefore, not be surprised if I now quietly walk away with my drag-net on my shoulder. You shall have, however, a parting admonition in the

words of the apostle Peter, who was, you know, an eminent fisherman: "If any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf;" and, "Let them that suffer according to the will of God, commit the keeping of their souls to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator," 1 Pet. iv. 16, 19.

A HOMELY CHAPTER.

It is no uncommon affair for young people to measure themselves two or three times a year, and it would be no bad thing if we were all in the habit of measuring ourselves in after life; not to see the height of our poor perishing bodies, but to know the state of our minds; to find out whether, or not, we are growing in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. This remark is capable of application by all; at the present moment, it will be applied by

me.

When stealing a glance at the many subjects on which my pen has been employed, and on the manner in which I have treated them, some fear is entertained by me, of having, at times, lost sight of that unaffected homeliness and simplicity with which I began my observations, and which I intended should characterize all that fell from my pen. I am quite inclined to believe, that the indulgence awarded me, and the kind manner in which I have been welcomed, has been mainly

owing to the plain, familiar, and friendly style I have adopted. My readers have felt at home: they have not been afraid of me; they have found me willing to learn as well as to teach; and, while I have faithfully pointed out their infirmities, I have not been backward in acknowledging my

own.

were.

This being the case, it behoves me, now and then, to look over my former productions; for I really am afraid that no single article of mine has appeared more likely to be useful, or more generally acceptable to my indulgent readers, than they This is rather a humiliating truth, and it makes me anxious to measure myself: to go back to years gone by, and see if, haply, I may not profit from the past, by comparing the stream with the fountain. Not willingly, as the furrows increase on my brow, would I decrease in usefulness, or decline in the estimation of my friends.

I have taken up my pen, on the present occasion, to write a plain and homely chapter, on the bodily afflictions of such of my fellow pilgrims as I meet with in my daily walks, thinking that this subject will come home to the hearts of others as well as to my own. Just at this time I feel more than ordinarily desirous of the attention of my poorer readers. I should rejoice to be a means of usefulness among the inhabitants of Hanover

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