tisfied with his conduct, and that a silent sorrow was preying upon her mind. She listened inattentively and languidly to his favourite schemes, and very often expressed dissent to the remarks he made. All this produced its natural effect on two such persons as Esther and Joseph. He had little true affection for her, and therefore her griefs and sorrows excited but slight commiseration in him; the more sad and low-spirited she became, the more gladly did he absent himself from her; and the greater his unkindness and the more apparent his inattention, the more poignant became her grief. It was evident to the few who occasionally saw them together that they were mutually dissatisfied, and that Esther's health was gradually sinking under the troubles which oppressed her; in fact her illness was now so apparent that some of the neighbours who had seen the state she was in, and to whom she had told some of the causes of her sorrow, apprised her parents of it, and endeavoured to induce them to take her back to their home, or at all events to provide some asylum for her. This, however, they were unwilling to do.

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It happened one evening when they were sitting alone, and, as was often the case, expressing in strong terms their dissatisfaction at Esther's conduct, that the vicar came in. 'We are talking, sir," said Mr. Simmonds, "about our Esther, who after all that she has done, wishes now to return home, and bring upon us a greater shame and disgrace than she has done already."

It is that subject," replied Mr. Clare, "upon which I wished to speak to you, and which brought me here this evening. I understand that the poor girl is in a dying state, and is desirous of being placed in some situation where she will be freed from the presence of her heartless seducer, and escape some of those wretched scenes which she is now obliged to witness." "It is a hard case," answered Mrs. Simmonds, that after she has done wrong just to please herself, she should bring all the trouble and shame of it upon us. I'm sure we gave her good advice enough on the subject, and she might

have profited by it, instead of doing what she has done. No pains were spared in her education; and she never saw any such things as she has done in either of us. That Joseph Freethink is a horrible man,-why didn't he marry her, instead of leading her into all this wickedness? I'm sure she's as good as he is, and a good deal better too, and how she could have fancied such a man as that, I can't tell; he must have talked her over with some of that abominable infidelity which he believes in ; people say that he and such like him talk about marriage as a useless form, and say that nature never made marriage, and never intended that people should be married, but that men and women can live together just as well without it as with it. I cant bear to think of poor Esther's dying with such a man, but it would be such a disgrace for us to take her back in her present state, that I'm sure we should not like to do it."

"My good woman," replied the vicar, "you must excuse me for interrupting you, and at the same time allow me to speak to you plainly on this distressing event which has occurred. I would not willingly hurt your feelings or those of your husband, but, painful as the duty is, I think it right to place the matter before you in its true and proper light. I do not attempt to excuse Esther for the course she has pursued; she has committed a great and grievous sin against Gon and man. May it please that gracious Being who granted forgiveness to the penitent Magdalene, to grant your daughter repentance for her faults, and forgiveness! But, I speak with all seriousness, much of all that has occured is to be laid at your door. In the course of my ministerial life I have been witness to many painful and distressing cases in some respects similar to your own. You perhaps will express surprise when I tell you that I trace up the cause of all your daughter's present distress to that one apparently trifling circumstance which occurred many years since—I mean, your removal of her from Mrs. Short's school.

(To be continued)

A HYMN FOR SUNDAY SCHOOLS,

WHEN He, who died for human guilt,
Became a human child,

No earthly glories crown'd His head,
No blessings round Him smil'd.
In humble home His youth was pass'd,
t toil His manhood spent ;
Ye still His duteous breast enjoy'd
The blessings of content.

He liv'd for others, not Himself;
His days and nights were given
To do His Father's will on earth,
And bring mankind to heaven.
We, Father! not, like Him, for love,
But for our fearful fall,

Must care and toil for daily bread,
As He once toil'd for all.

If we but share His lowly lot,

Like His let ours be borne :

Why should the just who seek His crown,
Shrink trembling from His thorn?

Teach us, O Lord! like Him to live

Teach us like Him to die;

And give us, for our span of Time,
Thine own Eternity!

A QUERY.

Should a good angel and a bad between
Th' Infirmary and Theatre be seen;
One going to be present at the play,

The other, where the sick and wounded lay;
Quere, were your conjecture to be had,

Which would the good one go to, which the bad?

Byrom.

THE RECTOR OF STILLBY.

(Continued from page 37.)

CHAPTER II.

FOR his religion, it was fit

To match his learning and his wit:
'Twas Presbyterian true blue;
For he was of that stubborn crew
Of errant saints, whom all men grant
To be the true church inilitant;
Such as do build their faith upon
The holy text of pike and gun;
Decide all controversies by
Infallible artillery;

And prove their doctrine orthodox
By Apostolic blows and knocks:
Call fire and sword, and desolation,
A godly, thorough, reformation,
Which always must be carried on,
And still be doing, never done;
As if religion were intended

For nothing else but to be mended.
BUTLER.

As soon as Mr. Peters had been taken away from the committee-room, the president (whose name was Greipher) ordered John Grainger to be removed, but to be in readiness when called upon. "Well, Mr. Daleby," said he to his brother commissioner, "what are we now to do? this job seems finished." "Finished!" exclaimed the other, "oh no; there is a great deal to be done before this job is finished. We have not got half out of this malignant parson that we shall get; first of all we must send off some of our soldiers to Stillby with other of our friends to clear out all this fellow's bag and baggage. He has a wife and children, all malignants, I warrant ye, and whom we must not leave there to corrupt the whole parish, and stir them up against us and our masters. And then

there's his goods, his plate, and furniture and linen, and books-aye, his books; these men, Mr. Greipher, have generally a great many books, which, although containing much of ungodliness, such as neither you nor I should wish to read, are yet eagerly bought up by some of their deluded followers, and on the whole perhaps it is better to sell them than to burn them, as money is as you know, in these days, very acceptable to the Parliament,—aye, and to their committee-men, Mr. Greipher, eh?" "Well, let us do things in order," said the president; "so give our clerk directions to make out such orders as on these occasions are right, and we will sign them, and send the soldiers off." The orders were accordingly made out, and twelve soldiers, with two of the committee at their head, sent off to turn the rector's family out of doors, and to spoil his goods. How well they succeded in this we were told at the conclusion of the last chapter, and we shall hear more of it hereafter.

'What next?" said the president, as soon as these matters had been arranged. "Why, the next thing to be done, is to find a successor for this Peters, a right down thorough parliament-man we must have, one that will root out these abominable doctrines of Church and king which this malignant old sinner has been teaching them. Eh! what think you of our friend Joshua Mudy here, would'nt he do for the job very well? Joshua, man, what say you?" These words were addressed to the third committee-man, a Scotch Presbyterian, who was present, and who had been a witness, but a very inattentive one, to all the proceedings we have stated. The question, however, now addressed to him appeared to rouse him from his listless state, and to excite him to something like attention to what was going on. "Eh!" said he, "what!-would you have me take the place of this malignant man, and preach the Gospel to his deluded and infatuated flock, for, alas! such I hear they be. Would you have me go and do my Master's service, in that spot of darkness, where the foul machinations of this superstitious and malignant one have wrought ruin