when thou awakest in the morning, after the comforta ble refreshment of sleep, by laying up the word of Christ in thy heart, thy first thoughts will run upon it, and it will suggest useful directions for the conduct of the day.

9. Such are the advantages of regarding Divine and pareutal counsel. May the consideration of these prevail on thee, my young reader, henceforth, if not before, 'to keep thy father's commandment, and not to forsake the law of thy mother!'

HYMN FOR A CHILD.

OUR FATHER, WHICH ART IN HEAVEN.

GREAT God, and wilt thou condescend
To be my Father and my Friend?
I, a poor child, and thou so high,
The Lord of Earth, and Air, and Sky!

Art thou my Father? Canst thou bear
To hear my poor imperfect prayer
Or stoop to listen to the praise
That such a little one can raise ?

"Art thou my Father? Let me be
A meek, obedient child to thee;
And try in word, and deed, and thought,
To serve and praise thee as I ought!

Art thou my Father? I'll depend

Upon the care of such a friend;

"And only wish to do, and be

That which seems right and best to thee.

Art thou my Father? Then at last,
When all my days on earth are past,
Send down and take me, in thy love,

"To be thy better child above!

17*

PART VII.

EPISTOLARY.

THE NATURE, CAUSE, EFFECTS, AND CURE OF RESERVE.

A RESERVED man is of a cold, distant, unfeeling carriage; not made for society, but for himself; for whatever he knows is his own, and not communicated to others. He makes profound secrets of the veriest trifles in the world, and if you would put a double lock on his mouth, the way to do it is to solicit him to be free.

2. A certain air of dissatisfaction covers him in every company, and while he is not free to them, they are suspicious of him, taking him to be an overwise critic, who disdains them, or an egregiously ignorant person beneath their notice. So that while this remains, he is sure to be destitute of one of the greatest blessings in the world, a free and faithful friend."

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3. Such a one may be a good man; but, like Israel in Hosea's time, is "an empty vine bringing forth fruit unto himself." He gathers much manna under the cloud of witnesses, but greedily devours all, not giving a morsel away. He has a gift of prayer, but forgets that gifts are for the edifying the body of Christ. He has many books, but, like a private dram-drinker, swallows all in a corner. He visits many societies of Christians, but more resembles a wasp, who steals the labour of others, than the industrious bee, who, casting his mite into the common stock, enriches the hive.

4. God has invested him with an excellent ornament, the gift of speech; but he, as if insensible of the favour, seldom puts it on; acting herein, like the unthrifty servant, who hid his lord's talent in a napkin. But he ought to remember, that a rebuke is due for his praetice; for while he condemns the Popish practice of shut

ting up monks in cloisters, and so robbing the world of many useful gifts, himself is guilty of the same; being at once, pope and monk himself, imprisoning and imprisoned; and this he does perpetually to his own loss and nobody's gain.

5. The root of this fruitless reserve is pride, and the botanist under whose management the growth is, is Satan, whose employ is ever to keep the saints at a distance from each other; for hereby he disables them from bearing one another's burdens and so keeps them from fulfilling the law of Christ.

6. That its root is pride is plain; for could he be assured that all the company would approve of and admire whatever he says, his tongue would be loosed immediately. But he suspects that this man will pity his ignorance, and that censure his rashness; and so, to escape reproach, does not venture to speak at all.

7. Or unbelief may produce it; for he may be dumb because he believes not, as Zechariah was; and certainly, if he lived under the practical belief of that exhortation, "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that it may minister edifying to the hearers," he would know that he was to speak always, that is, at every convenient opportunity, and to aim therein at the edification of the hearers.

8. Or perhaps, ignorance is a cause of reserve. For does such a man act as if he knew, (supposing he labours under a sense of his weakness) say, does he act as if he knew that God ever did and ever will," by things that are not, bring to nought things that are," to stain the pride of all flesh? This known, leaves us no excuse from our weakness.

9. Or it may be envy; for he tells himself, if he had the abilities of others, he would speak freely, and thus tacitly charges God with being strait-handed to him, not having dealt out so liberally to him as he should have done. In short, whatever be the cause, sure we are that it is not a Christian grace: for grace teaches a man to resemble his heavenly Father, "who makes his sun to rise, and rain descend, on the just and unjust, the evil and the good." He is a liberal God, and we should be a communicating people.

40. The effects of this reserve are, first, barrenness in a man's own soul.

Teaching we learn, and giving we retain." YOUNG.

"

11. If God has said, "he_that soweth sparingly shall reap sparingly," sure I am that he who sows nothing shall starve. Though I am at a loss to say, wwhether reserve is an effect of barrenness, of barrenness an effect of reserve, yet I am not at a loss to see that they are constant companions, and mostly reside in the same person.

12. If the love of God, shed abroad in the heart, dilates and expands the soul, the want of it shrivels and contracts. If the one opens the mouth, making the stammerer to speak plainly, the other will make a man silent as the grave. If the mouth speaketh out of the abundance of the heart, then a still close mouth argues a penurious soul, the poverty and not the abundance of the mind.

13. He who speaks his experiences freely in company, puts his principal out; and as he thereby draws the experiences of others out, he receives interest an hundred fold. In the former he sowed his seed; in the latter the earth brings forth by handfuls.

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14. A second effect of reserve is, the "begetting a suspicion in the minds of the godly that we are only pro fessors, have a name to live, but are dead." For, if they are asked about such a one, “ he is,” they say, sober, moral man; but we never heard him say any thing of the Spirit's work upon his heart, and therefore we are uncertain whether he is a regenerate man or not.” So that they are forced to suspend their judgments, and also their brotherly love towards such a man. Thus reserve makes a 'dam to stop the current of grace.

45. A third effect is stumbling the weak, for they expect “ to be borne on the sides, and dandled on the knee” (as one may say) of elder Christians. But when nothing is said to them, it damps their spirits, and they (ready to write bitter things against themselves) take the shyness of others, whom they hope to be good men,

for an evidence that you think they have no grace; and so reserve is forged into fetters for their poor souls.

16. How endless are the effects! Here can be no reproof, exhortation, consolation, nor any Christian duty performed, while it prevails; for in all these the tongue bears a part.

17. To help any to a cure, to rub off this rust, I would propose, first, much secret prayer. He who converses much in his closet with God, will become expert at prayer, and need not fear, when used to the presence-chamber, that he shall act awkwardly when amongst his equals. I fear our slowness to pray with others, is a proof that we do not too often pray by ourselves.

18. Secondly, Labour to affect yourselves with the various means of emboldening a bashful Christian: such as the worth of men's souls, the excellency of Jesus Christ, the necessity of living a holy, useful life, the shortness of your stay in this world, the blessing given to him who converts any soul from the error of his way, the obligations you are under to the Lord, the reward you shall reap in another world. These, resting with weight on the mind, will force speech, and, like the wind pent up in the earth, will pursue the water till it bubbles up and runs above ground.

19. Thirdly, Believe that the Lord has done something for your soul, and that he may use you as an instrument to other souls. Beg to be delivered from that dangerous sin, overlooking what God has wrought for you; and never think that you will either please God or profit men by questioning or denying the day of small things. Immediately on your enjoying the Divine presence, you will begin to relate, more or less to others and the way to enjoy the presence of God, is to acknowledge and be thankful for the work of God.

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20. Fourthly, Be in the company of free, open-hearted Christians. You'll catch their spirit before you are aware. Try and cast off your reserve, and get some friend to correct you; only be sure to arm yourself with patience, ever necessary, but especially so when you are reproved. Let your friend observe your carriage; and when he judges it proper, submit to his reproof.