poor creatures who writhed in the last agonies of death, and by the distant rumbling of the Russian batteries, still sending forth shots which touched only the corpses of the slain. Here and there men bearing litters walked over the battle-field, seeking and carrying off the survivors.

At the moment that one of these litters, borne and escorted by soldiers, preceded by a woman with a lantern, passed near a heap of bodies horribly mutilated, a voice cried feebly, "To me, my friends!" It was a young foot soldier; a shot had terribly torn his side; he was just about to die. "You cannot bear me hence," said he, "I know that my last moment is fast approaching, but I am glad to see friendly faces before my reason forsakes me. * * * I have a great favour to ask, and I hope that one of you will be preserved to accomplish it." Then, perceiving the woman, "Oh! Madame, God will preserve you for this mission; you will go to my poor mother, you will console lier, for women alone know how to use words which can heal a wounded heart. Tell her that her son died like a soldier; tell her also that he died a Christian. Take her this New Testament, which some unknown friend gave me when we were embarking. Tell my mother that this book has made of a bad subjeet, of a swearer, of a profligate man, a new creature; it has discovered to him the abyss into which he was plunged; it has shewn him the means of salvation by the grace of God, and through faith in the merits of a Saviour, it has been a succour to him in days of trouble, and it has given him in his last moments the courage necessary to appear with calmness before his last great trial-the heavenly tribunal. You will find my mother in the 'Market of the Innocents,' at Paris. She will have received the fatal news, she will be inconsolable; but you will give her this message of peace; you will read it with her; you will embrace all my loved ones for me, and Isidore Briche will thank you for it, in begging you to unite with him in his last prayer."

The hardest and most unbelieving heart could not have resisted the last request of the dying man. These soldiers, who had doubtless faced without flinching the immense perils of that day, fell on their knees by the side of the sufferer.

The woman had passed her arm under the heavy head of the soldier. "O our God," said he, "Thou all good and almighty, Thou who hast taught me to pray, bless Thou my mother, console her, make her forget the wanderings of my youth; grant to her the same knowledge of thyself that Thou hast given to me; grant that my brothers and sisters

may learn Thy ways. Take care of these brave men whom Thou hast sent to me in answer to my earnest prayer; keep them from the misery of living far from Thee; assist this woman in the work that I have given her to do. And now, my God, I thank Thee that Thou hast opened to me the door of life. May thy blessing rest on those pious Christians who are distributing thy Word to the soldiers, and on those, also, who come to bring that Word into our camp. I thank Thee, I thank Thee for Thy boundless mercies!"

*

He was silent, and the pale light of the moon lit up his dying but happy face; his spirit was fast passing away; the soldiers were thoughtful and silent; the woman in tears. The sufferer perceived her; he turned gently towards her, "You will remember my name," said he, "because it is written on the first page of my Testament." * He was silent again; his features expressed the sufferings he was undergoing. The sergeant approached him: "I shall write before to-morrow to Madame Briche," said he; "my handwriting is known to her, and will not alarm her. I shall be able by degrees to break the sad news to her; and, on our return, if God brings us back, we shall be able to finish the work of consolation which you have committed to us." "Thank you, sergeant; when all is over, you will take this book, for I shall keep it to the end, which is not far off. Stay near me with your wife, the rest can leave me; I cannot profit by their kind attentions, they will be more useful elsewhere." At a sign from Robert they departed, and he knelt down near his wife to assist in supporting their young friend. Soon the blood began to flow from the mouth of the dying man, the death rattle was heard, delirium followed. An hour thus passed. At length his senses returned for a moment, he feebly murmured, "Pardon-my mother, thanks-my God." His head fell backwards, he was no more. The young woman leant towards him, gave him the last kiss, and took from his hands, already growing cold, the book which had led him to eternal life.

MISSIONARY WORK IN AFRICA.

A KIND correspondent has sent the following letter to our readers, which we are sure will deeply interest them :— DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS,-One morning, about five and twenty years ago, a young man, Mr. William Ross, pre

sented himself at a parish school in the Carse of Gowrie, wishing to be furthered in his study of the Latin tongue. The teacher was particularly glad to devote to his instruction a few hours each day ere beginning his usual public labours. The student cheerfully assisted in return in teaching the classes of the school. By and bye he went to town to attend a classical seminary, where he devoted all his energies to the acquisition of Latin and Greek. He proceeded next to St. Andrews University, and acquitted himself most creditably in the various branches of philosophy, &c. After which, he entered the Divinity Hall of the United Secession Body in London, and duly received license to preach the Gospel of Jesus. Then became known the grand object he had had in view, in leaving the plough, and leaving the planes, for he had been both a ploughman and a wright of the first class, as also his anxiety to acquire a little money at these trades. It was to educate himself for the holy ministry, and by his skill to win the confidence of the poor heathen to whom he had resolved on going to tell "what God had done for his soul," and what He is as willing to do for theirs.

At this time the distinguished African missionary, the Rev. Mr. Moffat, was in London, and lectured on his great work. After hearing one of his intensely interesting addresses, Mr. Ross was introduced to him, and offered to accompany him back to the field of his arduous exertions, which offer was at once accepted by Mr. Moffat, and by the London Missionary Society in whose Mission he had so long been labouring. Like true heroes of the cross, who have, at different times, urgently volunteered to go to inhospitable climes, naturally dreaded by others as being the very valley and shadow of death to white men; so our friend, on being pressed as to the unhealthiness of the climate, and the many difficulties to be encountered among the degraded heathen in Africa, and especially the difficulty of learning a language, not one word of which he knew, and to which even the Latin tongue seemed no key, heroically replied, "I will just put a stout heart to a stey brae,'" (to a steep hill.)

Again, being remonstrated with, by a personal mutual friend, in name of his father and sister, (both long since numbered with the dead, as his mother had previously been,) and entreated to return to his kindred and his home, he, like one who had "counted the cost," answered from London: "Tell them, it is not that I love my father and sister less, but I love Jesus more, and rejoice to go to

preach to the poor perishing heathen the unsearchable riches of Christ."

This brave missionary, while glorying in carrying the cross amidst Afric's benighted sons, proclaiming a free and full salvation through the only begotten Son of the One true and living God, is not forgetful of the land of his birth, or of his early teacher, but keeps up through him a constant correspondence on the great cause. And perhaps a few sentences from a letter just received from Mr. Ross, may interest you in his work, and may win your prayers; and I have no doubt he, like myself, believes that while every believing prayer is heard and answered, that of little children, the lambs of Christ's flock, is peculiarly precious in the ear of the missionary's God, the Almighty Redeemer.

The letter is dated April 6th, 1856, and is from Lilcatlong, apparently not very far from Lattakoo, (marked in your map,) which was the first scene of Mr. Ross's labours.

"Here I have the largest congregation of Bechuanas (natives) in the country, between six and seven hundred, and a day-school of one hundred and thirty, two outstations, as well as other two where I formerly laboured. Perhaps there are not less than one thousand three hundred inhabitants in the district, six hundred and six church members, and five schools with about three hundred and thirty scholars. I preach twice every Lord's day, lecture on Wednesday afternoon, teach in the large school every week day except Saturday, visit the sick and the dying, and itinerate to the out-stations as often as possible. But beside the spiritual exercises among so many, there is an immense amount of manual labour to be superintended, and to go through my own hands, especially at a station like this, which has been allowed to fall into a state of great dilapidation. I am truly thankful that I have had, in the kind Providence of God, such a thorough training, first in my native land, and during the last fifteen years in this my adopted land, so that I can say, I like the language, I love the people, and I delight in my work, my great work, of preaching Christ, teaching useful arts, and spending and being spent in a cause so glorious, so worthy of all my powers of body and mind in time and in eternity. Yet it is by the grace of God I am what I am."

The list, as sent to Mr. Ross, of former acquaintances, young as well as old, who had died in the space of two or three years, was very long, and concerning it he says: "Your Mortality Bill is one which speaks in unmistakeable

language, 'Be ye also ready.' Let the good Christian ministers around you know, that I and all in the Missionfields greatly need your unceasing prayers, and I am certain that if God's people were all more unanimous in asking the heathen for Christ's heritage, and the Holy Spirit to be poured out on all, that more, much more, success would be the result. The jubilee of the Gospel is at hand, and Christ shall reign spiritually in His Church universal.

"We have twenty anxious inquirers," (that is, about the way of salvation,) “may their number greatly increase, " even of such as shall be saved.'"

F M

September 6, 1856.

F.

CHURCH OF SCOTLAND'S MISSION TO THE JEWS
AT SALONICA.

Mr. ROSENBERG, assistant Missionary at Salonica, writes:"I have to give you an account of our conversations with four Mohammedans, two of whom are Turks by birth, and of the other two the one is by birth a Greek, and the other a son of Abraham,-both he and the Greek having embraced the Mohammedan religion several years ago. Of the two who are Mohammedans by birth, one is a priest, and appears to be rather of a serious disposition and anxious to find out the true religion. On coming to our Magazine, he inquired for the Protestant priest, meaning me. When I asked him what he wanted, he said: 'I wish to know which is the true religion, because I wish to die in it. Now that we have got liberty to confess openly any religion we choose, I should like to hear from you about your religion as much as possible.' Upon this we had some discussion together, and he left the place promising to come again and bring some of his friends with him. The other Turk came to our colporteur, asking from him the Protestant Book, by which he meant our Bible. His reason for buying the Protestant Book was, he said, because it was the best book, and the Protestants were the best people, of whom he wished to be one after some time. This individual has since visited our Magazine again.

"The Greek likewise came to our Magazine expressing his desire to abandon the Mohammedan religion, and to be come a member of the Protestant Church, which, so far as