66 may you. Your earthly judge refused to shew you mercy, though solicited by the jury that found you guilty; and your petition for mercy has been rejected by your sovereign; but if you make your appeal to God, relying for acceptance on the death and intercession of the Redeemer, he will not refuse, you, He delighteth in mercy." "Do you think, Sir," he asked, with an intense degree of earnestness, "that ever any human being ascended from the platform of a public execution to heaven?" Yes. You have read, I presume, the account of the dying malefactor, which is recorded in the Scriptures.""If I have, Sir," he replied, "I now forget it." I then opened my Bible, and read it to him. "And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering, rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise. Here is one doomed to suffer an ignominious death-so hardened in sin that he reproached and insulted the Redeemer, who was hanging by his side, and yet, when he felt the deep convictions of guilt, and implored mercy, he was forgiven, and spent the evening of that gloomy day in the celestial paradise. What a change! In the morning he was in his cell; at noon the terrors of death were falling upon him; at night he was uniting with the rest of the redeemed, singing in the sweetest melody of praise the lovely anthem of the heavenly temple, Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." He listened to this deeply interesting factwith the most profound attention, and then remarked, This malefactor had one privilege which I shall not enjoy. The Saviour was with him; he could make his appeal to his tender sympathy in person. But I am to *The evangelist Mark says, And they that were crucified with him reviled him. die alone. There will be no Saviour with me on the fatal platform, from whose lips I can receive the promise of future bliss." There will be," I remarked, "no Saviour with you, whom you can see or hear; but his visible presence is not necessary to render your supplications availing. He can see you, when enveloped in the cheerless gloom of your cell; he can hear you, when presenting your secret prayers; he can support you with the consolations of his presence, though he remain unseen; and will save you from the bitter pangs of the second death, if you believe in him." "What, Sir, must I do? A few days will decide my fate for ever. I feel the terror of my condition. I shall never more look on earth, except" *he burst into tears. When he became more composed he said, “I could meet death with fortitude, if I could indulge a hope of a blissful immortality; but I dread standing before that tribunal from whence I shall be compelled to depart oh eternity!-eternity!-eternity!how I dread eternity!" "You must pray, Sir, to him, who is exalted to give repentance and remission of sin.” "But will he hear me?" He has said, All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." We knelt * * down, and prayed:- "O thou that hearest prayer! permit us, we humbly beseech thee, to approach thy footstool, through the mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are sinful and depraved creatures; we have transgressed thy holy laws; we have justly incurred thy displeasure; and if thou wert to banish us from thy presence, and consign us to the blackness of darkness for ever, thou wouldst not punish us beyond the demerit of our crimes. We acknowledge our transgressions, and our sin is ever before us. We thank thee, O Lord, that thou hast so loved the world, that thou gavest thine only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlastiny life. Look down, we earnestly beseech thee, on our brother, who is now doomed to die, and prepare him for the awful scene through which he has now to pass. Keep his mind calm and composed. Suffer him not to be distracted by the cares of this world, or overpowered by the terrors of the next. Enlighten the eyes of his un derstanding, that he may perceive the evil of sin; and do thou, we humbly beseech thee, exhibit the truths of the Gospel to him in such a clear and penetrating manner, that they may enter into his heart, producing repentance towards thee, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Thou hast been pleased to save the chief of sinners; and we trust thou wilt save him. Suffer him not to despair of thy mercy; suffer him not to sink into a state of mental indifference; but do thon cause the day-star of hope to arise in his troubled soul, and give him grace to work out his salvation with fear and trembling. And when the last moment comes that awful moment, at the approach of which nature shudders, and turns pale with anguish, oh thou, who hast endured a more painful and ignominious death, condescend to be touched by the feeling of his infirmity, and grant unto him that degree of confidence in thy mercy, which will raise him above the fear of dying, and cheer him with the prospect of eternal life. And we most humbly beseech thee to bless his affectionate wife. Support her under this overwhelming affliction. May she find that peace in thee which an unfeeling world denies her. Be thou her friend. Watch over her rising charge, and preserve them from the snares of the wicked one; and may they, in the future days and years of their short life, fear, and serve, and honour thee. These supplications we humbly present unto thee, O thou Father of mercies, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; to whom, with thyself, and Holy Spirit, we ascribe equal and everlasting praises. Amen." We now left him, and on the following day I received the following letter. "MY DEAR FRIEND, 66 You will I hope excuse the liberty I now take, in soliciting the favour of your company as early as you can make it convenient. Your conversation yesterday has made a deep impression on my heart. It has opened before me a new scene-a delightful scene-a scene so captivating, that my mind begins to unloose itself from those bonds of hopeless misery in which it was held; and though I feel jealous lest I should catch at a premature hope, yet I feel that I cannot despair of mercy When I look back on my past life, and retrace the steps which I have trodden-when I think on my dear departed parents, and of her, whom I most tenderly love, and the children she has borne me when I bring before my imagination the prospect which opened before me a few years since, and then gaze on my present state of infamy and degradation, my heart sinks within me, and I cannot forbear giving utterance to the most poignant self-reproaches. I was beguiled into the path of ruin by a course of novel reading, which first vitiated my taste and then corrupted my principles; and though my union with my dear Amelia reclaimed me for a season, yet my heart remained unchanged. I became an easy prey to the wicked one. The theatre, the midnight tavern, the card party, the billiard table, weaned my affection from my once peaceful and happy home, and induced me to desert my wife and children for scenes of dissipation and crime. But now the end is come, and I trust, that in this receptacle of woe I shall be made wise unto salvation; and when cast off as too vile to tread the earth of my beloved country, it will please the Saviour of sinners to take me to dwell with him in the heavenly paradise. The case of the dying malefactor, to which you so feelingly called my attention, has encouraged me to pray, Lord, remember me now thou art in thy kingdom; and though no cheering voice breaks in upon the awful silence of this dreary abode, yet I feel a degree of comfort which astonishes me. Is this the dead calm of presumptuous confidence? or is it the tranquillity of a good hope through grace? Before visited me, I was terrified by my fears, but now my hope alarms me, as I dread self-deception no less than utter despair. I will thank you to present my kind. regards to my dear friend, Mr. Llewellin, and if you can spare time to and offer some few words of consolation to my dear wife, I trust that you will do it. you go "I am, dear Sir, Cell, Newgate. I hastered to see him. As soon as I entered his cell he took me by the hand, and said, "I am happy to see you. The words which you spake to me yesterday have proved the words of consolation to my troubled spirit. The difficulties which stood in the way of my salvation are now removed. I thought I could not be saved because God is just; but now I perceive how he can maintain the honour of his justice, while he pardons the greatest transgressor. Oh! Sir, what a glorious scheme of redemption does the Gospel of Jesus Christ exhibit! How adapted to man, and yet man neglects it! How astonishing! What should I now do if it were not for such a method of salvation? I must perish in hopeless despair. Blessed be that God who has opened my eyes to see my danger, and led me to repose my confidence in Jesus Christ, who suffered the just for the unjust." "It gives me pleasure," I remarked," to see the light of hope beaming upon you, and I trust that you will enjoy the consolations of mercy when you most need them." We were now interrupted by the entrance of one of the keepers, who informed Mr. Phillips that his wife was waiting to see him. "Request her," he said, "to walk in." She entered, and they immediately rushed together, and remained for several minutes locked in each other's embrace, without being able to give utterance to any sounds but sobs, and heart-rending sighs, and groans. Ah! thought I, could the Senators of the land see this scene they would no longer suffer the sentence of death to stand as the punishment to be inflicted for the crime of forgery. Ah! thought I, could the humane and generous sovereign of the British people see this sight he would no more sign the death-warrant which cuts off the forger from the land of the living. After their agonized grief had somewhat subsided, they sat down and became more composed. "I hope my dear," said Mrs. Phillips, "you will be able to meet your approaching death with the fortitude and resignation of a Christian." "I hope I shall," he replied, this gentleman (pointing to me) has brought me words of consolation. He has explained to me, how God can maintain the honour of his justice, and yet save the chief of sinners. I have implored forgiveness through the mediation of Jesus Christ; and though I have heard no voice saying unto me, Thou shalt be with me in Paradise, yet I feel a heavenly calm in my spirit which |