doubt. But one visit, in particular, has been most satisfactory. May the Lord's true spiritual healing (shadowed forth in the text) be experimentally known by her Oh, what a school is this! Death, and dying day by day!

Sunday, 18th.-Went this morning, after the first service, to a distressed house in Mary-street. In an upper back room (a mere hovel) lived a poor mau, his wife, and two children, whom I had been in the habit of visiting and relieving. The wife had recently died-then a child-and now I found the poor man himself was dead. He died of fever, and in a state of raving! As only three of the inmates of that hapless house were free from the fever, which I found was raging in it, no one, it appears, would enter it to do the last sad offices upon that poor man, although he had been dead upwards of four-and-twenty hours. Two hale women had just begun to wash the body as I entered, and as he there lay, a most pitiable object. For the safety of their own lives, as well as the lives of others, I besought them to desist, urging them quickly to place him in his coffin, and have him buried. [One of these poor women, strong as she then was, took the fever, and has since died.] Below-stairs I found a mother and child, in one bed, in fever. [The child is since dead.] In another bed, in the same room, were two children, both sick, and I believe in fever. In a back room, were a man, his wife, and six children, the merest skeletons; just the bare frames of skin and bones, in which it would seem impossible that life could exist; they had lately come from a distant part of the parish. This has certainly been the worst scene I have witnessed. It has thoroughly prostrated me this day. [Four of these children have since died, and, indeed, I count it a mercy to see the poor children removed.]

Monday, 19th.-A most impressive scene at the Military Hospital to-day. In one of the wards where Mr. Sandford was lecturing, a poor man had just died, and there lay his body, as a touching comment upon the truths which were then brought forward. [The fever having broken out among the soldiers here, many a fine fellow is attacked, and speedily overcome by the king of terrors.]

Tuesday, 20th.-Was much struck with the apathy of an old man at the point of death, in Plane. He told me I could "prepare" him for eternity. Poor deluded mortal! And then the moment I began to tell him of his error, and to endeavour to point out his state as a dying man, he would seek to waive the subject, either by asking for bread, or something to clothe his body, which, in a few days at most, must become food for worms, or turn to the low door-way, to see if there were any listeners likely to carry tidings to the priest. Poor man! he soon found the helplessness of a sinful mortal like himself, and how awfully presuming the attempt to "prepare" him for that eternity upon which he has now entered.] In another cabin, in the same locality, found a poor Romanist very ill, and apparently on the verge of the grave. He seemed to regard himself as a dying man, but, like his deluded neighbour, was reposing the welfare and the security of his immortal soul in

the mistaken notion of what the priest could do.. But when a more excellent way" was brought before him; when the simplicity of Gospeltidings-Jesus and his great salvation-were talked about, he opened his eyes as upon a new world. He strove to raise himself in bed, and looked like a man whose attention had been arrested with some wonderful discovery. I rehearsed a few passages in his hearing, and left him. [This poor man, too, has gone to his last account. When I called again, two or three days after, I found the corner in which he lay was vacant. His weeping widow said he had been calling for me all through the night previous to his death; but whether the word had laid hold of his heart-whether the Lord had opened his eyes in reality-must remain a secret till the great day.]

Thursday, 21st.-The fever rages fearfully in Mary-street. Whole families are attacked. In one house I saw four in one bed, and two in another in the same room. Unless prompt measures are adopted, the ravages will he awful; for the coming season, of warm sultry weather, combining with the filth of the cabins, and unwholesome habits of the people, will greatly conduce to the spread of the disease. [A temporary fever hospital has since been opened; this, with the former, was speedily filled.]

Tuesday, 27th.-Notwithstanding the most passionate vociferations from the altar on Sunday, in which the people" who came to hear one who was endeavouring to entrap them with a little meal," were declared to be standing within the very precincts of hell, and for which (if they attempted to persevere), they would be excommunicated with bell, book, and candle, about double the number came to the mountaincabin to-day.

TO THE READERS OF THE GOSPEL MAGAZINE.
MEN AND BRETHREN,

I FEEL a strong desire and inclination to drop a few lines to those of the living family of God, who may be readers of the GOSPEL MAGAZINE, on the present signs of the times.

We live in a day of great profession in the "perilous times," spoken of by the inspired apostle, when there is a form of godliness amongst the great mass of mankind, yet who alas! alas! almost invariably deny the power thereof, more especially in this our own beloved highly favoured, but God dishonouring ungrateful country. When I cast my eyes around me and see on the one side the rapid strides popery is making through the length and breadth of the land, and on the other the multitudes of professors that abound in every part of the kingdoin, swallowing with avidity and delight the soul-destroying errors preached to them, it makes my soul cry, "How is the gold become dim! How is the most fine gold changed! The stones of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of every street. The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!" How is the "truth fallen in the streets!" But here is our mercy, if we are the partakers of divine

grace, though we are poor, foolish, fickle, feeble, helpless, helldeserving, unworthy worms of the earth, we shall never, though hell, popery, graceless professors, the world, and, above all, our own base deceitful hearts will oppose, be finally turned aside, for "the righteous shall hold on his way."

Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God is, that He will pour upon us the spirit of prayer and supplication, and enable us to wrestle ardently with Him, that He would send forth more labourers into His vineyard, strengthen them with all might, equip them with His heavenly armour, clothe His word, spoken through them with Almighty power, to the pulling down of the strong hold of Satan, make them faithful, honest, humble, experimental, and devoted ministers of the everlasting gospel, separating the precious from the vile, caring nothing about the approbation or smiles of ungodly professors that hold the truth in unrighteousness, doing the will of God from the heart, and through their instrumentality encourage and build up his own blood-bought ransomed children in the faith once delivered to the saints, so that they may be in some measure prepared for the fearful and terrible struggle, which is but too surely rapidly approaching.

Round us the Romanists are making every exertion to spread their soul-destroying and pernicious errors; these things, and an earnest desire for the welfare of Zion, has caused my soul at times to wrestle with the Lord, and beg Him to raise up more of His children for the defence of the Gospel. Shall I say I include myself? Yea, I candidly confess such is the case; and from the singleness of eye to His glory that I feel when pouring out my soul before Him, and feeling no rebuke in my conscience for so doing, encourages my soul to hope that it is according to His own mind and will, though at present no door is open.

Children of God, heirs of Eternal Life, are ye asleep to the momentous things hinted at above? It is the firm belief of many of God's dear family, that things are drawing to a crisis, from the various occurrences daily taking place. May the Lord keep our souls, and enable us to follow Him through evil report and through good report, to witness a good confession, to be enabled to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand, having our loins girt and our staff in our hands, and make us faithful unto death.. Sure I am, if we are His children, we shall prove what the dear poet says on another point :"Our captain stood the fiery test, And we shall stand through Him."

66

Is there not a falling away at this time? Is not the man of sin revealed the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that He, as God, sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that He is God. The Lord lay these things deeply on our hearts if it please Him.

AMEN.

A. P. S.

THE

GOSPEL MAGAZINE.

"COMFORT YE, COMFORT YE, MY PEOPLE, SAITH YOUR GOD." "ENDEAVOURING TO KEEP THE UNITY OF THE SPIRIT IN THE BOND OF PEACE." "JESUS CHRIST, THE SAME YESTERDAY, TO-DAY, AND FOR EVER. WHOм TO KNOW IS LIFE ETERNAL."

VOL. VII.]

JULY, 1847.

[No. 79.

PRAYER, AN EVIDENCE OF LIFE.

"Behold, he prayeth."-Acts ix. 11.

Ir there be any one subject more than another, respecting which the Holy Ghost is dishonoured, it is on that of PRAYER; and the ground of this dishonour is the lack of a full apprehension of the nature and extent of the fall. Did men really believe the record of God's written word, that all men by nature are "dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph. ii. 1), that they are as really void of spiritual existence as the poor body, when the breath hath departed, is destitute of natural life and animation, then would they be willing to grant that all true conviction of sin, and every real spiritual breathing, must be from some new and distinct

source.

Let a man once admit the fact-let him have been brought by a deep heartfelt experience to a knowledge of it-that the entrance of sin into our world effected a COMPLETE WORK; that by it man lost both will and power either to desire or to attain anything that is good; and then he is prepared--and that fully-to affirm, that fresh light and a change of desire must necessarily be the offspring of another Power.

Possibly, however, we shall be met with the argument, that, low as man is sunk-deep as was the fall, there is still a relic of good left in natural conscience, which hath sufficient light to possess a man with

conviction of evil, and to awaken a certain amount of anxiety on account thereof; and that, consequently, the early awakenings- the first tremblings of emotion cannot be ascribed to a new agency. To this we answer, that whilst the light of natural conscience operating as set forth by St. Paul (Romans i. 20) will be the great instrument by which God shall justify Himself in the condemnation of the wicked, yet its very exercise is contaminated; man, in bringing conscience to bear upon the things of God (and that not with respect to his fellow-man merely) makes that conscience the instrument of evil rather than of good, inasmuch as he sets about stitching together a fig-tree dress of his own-a mere patchwork covering, proving to a demonstration the truth of the Holy Ghost's testimony, as given by the Apostle (Romans x. 3), "For they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God." So that, in a word, the abuse-instead of the right use of this so greatly lauded natural Conscience, will lead a man away from God rather than to God. The reason that men introduce the subject of conscience at all, and make a kind of boast of it, is simply that they may lay claim to something, and not yield to the very humiliating confession of utter helplessness entire bankruptcy. To have nothing at all to do with salvation; to receive it so freely, so pauper-like-without any money 14 and without any price (when they have so much in the coffers wherewith to purchase it) is really too humbling. Hence this said conscience is made use of to self-righteous purposes; it must in some way be brought into account; and the man by it is raising a superstructure that must be thrown down, ere the foundation of that temple which God sets up in the heart can be laid. So that he who in any-the least-degree is building his hopes of salvation upon the mere light, promptings, or operations of natural conscience (however good that little monitor may be in itself) is laying the keystone of his house upon the sand, the whole of which shall be swept away by the first gust of temptation that blows, or flood of corruption or infidelity that rises within his breast.

It may, moreover, be suggested that, "whilst we admit with you, that conviction is not conversion, will you neutralize, as it were, consciencewill you throw away its dictates and its inducements, as if of no value?" To this we reply, certainly not. It has its place-it does its work : but the great fault we have to find is, the ascribing to it a power and a dignity which does not belong to it, but to God alone, and that in his new or super-creation work.

Again, it may be asked. "Then how do you define between the workings of conscience, and that operation which you say is specially and peculiarly of the Holy Ghost?" We answer, for a season at least, it may be said to be undefinable. Time must prove it; effects must demonstrate it; that whilst the language of our Lord to Nicodemus (John iii. 8), "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the Spirit," shall in the case of every