day, there is no room to call it severity, for every one had warning of it beforehand.

Son. But people do not look on the judgment at particular till it touches them personally, or that is points to them in a family capacity — that is to say, till it has gotten into the house.

Mother. That folks do not take warning is their folly and fault; but that God gives them warning is their mercy, if they know how to make use of it.

Son. Everybody is willing to hope they shall escape. Mother. But everybody ought to provide as if they were not to escape. Every soldier in the army hopes to escape being killed, but every soldier puts on his headpiece that he may fare the better if he is hit.

Son. We should prepare, no doubt; but to be apprehensive continually, as if we were sure to have the distemper, is even to fright us into it. All physicians agree that we should keep our minds easy and calm; that the passions of fear and anger prepare the heart to receive and nourish the infection, at least to dispirit and debilitate it, so that it is not duly fortified and encouraged to resist the approaching enemy which it is to struggle with.

Mother. You greatly mistake the thing, child, and mistake my meaning. I am of the same mind, and say as the doctors do, though upon other grounds: the mind should be kept calm and free, that Nature might be assisted to repulse the enemy that attacks her. But then I say that nothing can animate and encourage the mind like a firm resignation to the will of God, and a comfortable hope that it shall be

well with us beyond life. This is certainly the best preparation for the distemper.

Son. I do not deny but we should be always preparing for death, but we should not be discouraging ourselves before it comes.

Mother. What do you call discouraging yourselves? Preparation is the only way to avoid being discouraged.

Son. You talk of preparation as if I was sure it would come upon me.

Mother. As soon as we have reason to be satisfied that the distemper is begun, and is among us, I think every one, speaking of his preparation, should look upon himself as if absolutely struck, as much as if he saw the tokens upon his flesh.

Son. And is not that all phlegmatic and vapours, madam? Do not many, do ye think, in the plague, as they do in other distempers, fancy they have it till they really bring it, and so have it because they fancied they should have it?

Mother. You forgot what I said, son; I said as to our preparations.

Son. You distinguish nicely, madam, but others will take it another way. You say we should always look upon our case as if we really had the distemper; certainly that would be poring too much upon a thing so dreadful! Why, it would make some people go distracted.

Mother. I distinguish clearly, son, though not so nicely as you would have me. I say, as to our preparations, we should do thus, that is to say, we ought to prepare for death as if we had the distemper just

now upon us; and my reason is good, because, I can assure you, when the body is agitated with that distemper, there will be as little capacity as there may be time to look up to God and to prepare for death.

Son. Why, madam, you would have us think ourselves all dead men, or as if we were under a sentence of death, only reprieved, sine die, a little while, and to be executed at the pleasure of the judge.

Mother. Why, truly our case is no other than that in the whole ordinary course of life; but in this of the plague it is much more so, especially to such whose business and circumstances call them to continue in the city on such an occasion, as you say, son, yours does.

Son. Well, madam, you have been in London during two plagues, that in 1625 and that in 1636, and you are still alive; why may we not fare as well now if it should come?

Mother. The more I have of the mercy of God to account for, child. But I cannot say I was in the city all the while; for the last plague, I was absent in Cheshire; but the first, indeed, I saw wonderful things and terrible to relate; and this makes me say we should all look upon ourselves as dead persons or as reprieved criminals, and giving up ourselves entirely into God's hands, should stand ready expecting to answer at the first call, and say, "Come, Lord Jesus;" for, take my word, son, if it comes you'll say 't is a time to tremble at, a time to be prepared for, not a time to prepare in.

Son. But, madam, it may please God to avert the judgment; He may be better to us than our fears.

Mother. If it should be so, no man would ever repent of his preparations if they were sincere, or say it was so much lost. But flatter not yourself, son, with its not coming; it is not coming, but come. Have you not seen it begun? There are several dead of it already, and more than you think of.

Son. There has one or two died in St. Giles's parish, but it was last December, and we are now in March, and there has been but one more, so that I hope 't is over.

Mother. That hoping 't is over is a snare of the devil; flatter not yourself with it. When the plague begins, though there be one or two that die at first, you never hear it goes off so, it always goes on though it begins slowly, and that slowness of its beginning is what I call the merciful warning given to us all of the approach of the judgment.

Son. So that when one or two die, you would have us take it that the plague is begun?

Mother. Yes, I do insist upon it, and that it always goes on. But farther, let me tell you, I know very vell that when our weekly bills set down one or two to die of the plague, you may depend upon there being more, for people are always diligent to conceal their families being infected, because they would not have their shops forsaken, their houses shut up, or themselves be shunned as belonging to infected families; and, therefore, in the last plague of 1636, I remember there was so much fraud used by the parish clerks in forming the weekly bills, that it was certain there died 200 a week of the plague, when by the bills there was only ten, twelve, or fifteen, or thereabouts.

Son. So that you look on the plague as a thing already begun among us?

Mother. Indeed, child, I do! and I believe firmly that it is so at this time.

Son. And what would you have us do?

Mother. My answers, son, are short to that question, whether you mean by us, us of this family, or us of the nation. I would have us return to God, lie at His feet, take the words of the Scripture, and say, "Thou hast smitten and Thou wilt bind us up (Hos. vi. 1). In a word, I would have every one prepare themselves for death; prepare together, and prepare apart.

Son. As much as if they were on their deathbeds ? Mother. Ay, indeed, the very same; and be thankful, humbly thankful for the time allowed for it; thankful that God had in mercy spared them an hour with reserve of health and strength to turn to Him and repent; for then, be assured, when the visitation begins, there will be no room for it, all will be filled with horror and desolation, every one mourning for himself; no composure, no compassion, no affection; no one to comfort, none to assist; nothing but death in all its most dismal shapes, and in its most frightful appearances.

Son. Why, madam, if your rule was to be observed, there would be an immediate cessation of all business, from the king upon the throne to the schoolboy or the beggar in the street; all should fall on their knees together like the people of Nineveh.

Mother. Oh that such a sight was to be seen! I am so fully persuaded that the plague that is coming,