the providence and goodness of God. It may, indeed, seem fit to His all-seeing eye to withhold His usual supply to a people, either to bring down their too haughty hearts to a sense of their sins or to fill the souls of His people with compassion for the distressed; but, in either case, it is not the failing of His providence, but the provocation of His displeasure, that is to be feared. When the heart of a man is filled with the idea of his own greatness, either of riches, talents, abilities, or possessions, he is then most apt to forget his God, and to congratulate himself upon the productions of his own right hand, and to say-" The strength of mine arm hath gotten me this wealth :" whereas it is the Lord's doing : for who knoweth not in all these things that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? Whether a man is rich or poor, hath little or much, let him not forget the providence of God; that "He maketh poor, and maketh rich, He bringeth low and lifteth up ;" and that, if the sparrows of the field are not disregarded by Him when they chirp for their food, neither will He desert those who call upon Him faithfully. Vain was it for the poor comforters of Job to preach to him a wisdom which he knew better than they did when they told him—" Vain man would be wise, though man be born as a wild ass's colt." They said to him as if he knew it not, "If thou prepare thine heart and stretch out thine hand toward Him; if iniquity be in thine hand put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. For if thou shalt lift up thy face without spot, yea, thou shalt be stedfast and shalt not fear; because thou shalt forget thy misery and rem mber it as waters pass away. And thine age shall

be clearer than the noon-day: thou shalt shine forth; thou shalt be as the morning. But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost." They meant to impute a want of this knowledge to the suffering Job, and would have him confess that all his afflictions were just visitations of God. But Job answered his mistaken friends-" I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you : yea, who knoweth not such things as these?"

This good man, because he was such a pitiable object of infirmity, was not so ignorant as his wise friends thought him he had energy of mind though his body was so weak: he wanted not knowledge though he wanted health: he had no lack of faith though his misfortunes came thick upon him: and he saw that "man was born to trouble as the sparks fly upward!" "Yet, who knoweth not in all these things that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing and the breath of all mankind."

I have no doubt that, when you reflect seriously, you soon confess to your own hearts that these things are so: "that in God you live, move, and have your being;" and that at His bidding you must lay down your soul, even as you lie down at night upon your beds. Oh, how wise would you be if you did but walk with God!-if you did but make Him the strength of your life, and walk in the way of His commandments! And yet it was but for this very purpose that Christ made the great Atoning Sacrifice of Himself to God, that we might all walk from henceforth in newness of life.

It is from the want of gratitude to God that we

do not enjoy the gifts of His grace, showered down as they are upon His ungrateful people: we do not behold with that real thankfulness which we ought His especial goodness towards ourselves. At this season last year we were much alarmed at the scarcity of provisions, which it was then feared might visit a great portion of our countrymen. We have this day, throughout the land, addressed our God in behalf of those afflicted with that scarcity which at present we do not ourselves feel, and may God grant that we do not, by our indifference to the wants of others, provoke Him to send upon us the same visitation.* "Who knoweth not in all these things that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?" It may be on purpose that we may seek His face and show compassion towards others who require our aid.

At all events we know as Christians that, without His will, the earth would not produce its fruits; and that if it be His will and pleasure to afflict us for our sins, by bringing upon us the distress of our fellow-creatures, it is that we may extend our almsgiving whilst we can. "Let us, while we have time, do good unto all men." It is not meant we can find sufficient for all we certainly cannot, but God can: and we can pray for all, and our prayers being heard, and our five barley loaves and two small fishes accepted by God, in His hands the sufficiency to satisfy the famishing thousands can be multiplied, and their wants may be supplied.

Our prayer, then, to God is acceptable through Jesus Christ, through Him from whom only cometh

*Famine in Ireland.

the increase. By a singular fortuitous circumstance I have to apply to you for help for those suffering in another land. May our prayers at the throne of grace, and our almsgiving, be accepted through Jesus Christ.

Should the famine rage in other portions of the earth we may be called upon-not to give of our abundance, but of our self-denial-not of our surplus, but to spare something, even of our necessities. But may God prevent the spread of such a calamity and we be spared the pang of seeing it! But let us be very humble and very thankful; for " If His wrath be kindled but a little, blessed are all they that put their trust in the Lord!" But I am to appeal to you in behalf of those sufferers who, to use the language of our diocesan, are thus spoken of:-" It has pleased the Almighty to visit the colony of Newfoundland with a dreadful calamity, which suddenly swept away three-fourths of its wealthy and prosperous capital, the city of St. John's. By a fire which broke out on the morning of the 9th of June, and continned to rage the whole of the day, most of the public buildings of the city, and with one single exception all the wharfs, storehouses, and mercantile establishments, covering upwards of a mile in extent, have been reduced to ashes! It is estimated that two thousand houses, and property to the amount of six hundred thousand pounds to one million sterling were consumed by the flames, and that twelve thousand persons, of all conditions and classes, were left in a state of absolute destitution, without houses or clothing or the means of procuring food! Such provision as circumstances would allow was made for the immediate relief of the sufferers; but

more effectual aid than can be supplied from local resources, in the present overwhelming distress of the colony, is required to preserve many from perishing by hunger and cold, when the frost which often continues without intermission from the middle of autumn till late in the spring. I, therefore (adds the bishop to his clergy), as a minister of Christ, entreat you to give full effect to her Majesty's gracious intention, from the pulpit, and to enforce as strongly as possible the claims of the sufferers on the charity of their Christian brethren."*

Now, if any other kind of exhortation be required than these words of our diocesan, I would address the language of the great Head of our Church, the Lord Jesus Christ, to your hearts," All things whatsoever ye would men should do unto you do ye even so to them, for this is the law and the prophets." Had any sudden calamity driven us from our houses, and we were compelled without help to flee from the devouring foe, should we not cry for mercy and pity? Indeed, we should. We should, moreover, think it very hard if those who possessed shelter refused to give us a covering from the storm. Let us, then, do as we would be done by. It is true that my appeal to you could not be made upon a day when you, my poorer brethren, can be said to be worse off or have less to spare. I can readily believe, and I know it to be a fact, that many of you are yourselves distressed and require the assistance of the benevolent. I know some who have been compelled to sell their beds from under them to pay their creditors, and with the hope that they and their families may not be turned out of doors. I know other

*This is inserted as it happened.