event, as one did in my congregation some years ago. He had only lived a short time in the village. No one knew from whence he came. I had been preaching on the eighth Commandment; and amongst other violations of it, had mentioned that of defrauding the revenue by smuggling and such like practices. The word was blest to the poor man in convincing him of sin. He came and told me all his history. He had been a smuggler on a large scale on the Kentish coast; but being found out, was obliged to flee; and was living under a feigned name, as a day-labourer in our village. He had thus come 300 miles to find out his sin, and I trust to be sincerely sorry for it. Is my reader a Drunkard? Oh! forget not, that your evil habit will grow upon you by indulgence, and perhaps hurry you into a state, in which there shall be nothing left for grace to work upon. Your mind and all your faculties may be past feeling: and even the most anxious minister can do nothing more, than see you die as senseless as the beasts that perish. Is my reader a Sabbath-breaker? It seems as if God put a peculiar mark of anger on such offenders. How often do the newspapers tell of the sudden deaths of Sunday bathers, Sunday pleasure takers, and of those, who like David Burton, fear not to stain this holy-day with the pollution of their week-day vices! Oh! reader, flee, flee for your life to the Saviour of sinners who alone can undertake for you. Beg his grace to change your evil heart, and make all new. Beseech him to wash away your guilt in his precious blood, that the Father of heaven may forgive you, and receive you into his favour. Bend the stubborn knee in prayer. Confess your sins. Implore mercy. And all may yet be well. You may be a brand plucked out of the fire; and the neighbours may be constrained to say, when they see your change, "What hath God wrought!" MISSIONARY HYMN. Come, thou mighty King of Kings, Thou hast mercy still in store Thou hast mercy to bestow. North, and south, and east, and west, Come, and bless them, Prince of Peace, Where th' Impostor's crescents wave, Plant thy blood-stain'd banner, Lord, Thus shall earth's extended frame Saviour, send thy Spirit down, All our efforts are in vain. SCRUTATOR. RELIGIOUS AND USEFUL INTELLIGENCE. Vaudois.-The Editor is happy to say, that measures are taking for the effectual relief of this interesting people. He wrote to Nice, respecting the disposal of the money entrusted to his care; and a reply dated Nov. 28. relates that a warm and zealous friend there of the Vaudois, Count Crotti, may be entirely depended upon for the best distribution of the money. It seems, however, both from that letter, and communications from other quarters, that some pious Englishmen are going through the vallies of Piedmont, and intend on their return home, to form a Committee in London for the purpose of assisting this afflicted people. The Editor will therefore delay the transfer of the money, until this very desirable channel is opened for it. The following is an extract from a letter dated Brussels, Nov. 13, 1823. "On the 7th of July, we departed for the vallies, and arrived on the 5th of August. There we were employed for nearly two months in a minute enquiry into the sent state of the Churches, as well as in collecting abundant materials for Mr.. - intended history of the Vaudois. My friend undertook to explore the villages and hamlets; which enables him pre to furnish an exact account of the religious state of the people, and the condition of their schools. The advanced state of the season did not permit us to do more for their immediate improvement, than to establish 20 new winter schools. There are now above 100, of which, you will be pleased to hear, nine are expressly for poor girls, and are to be conducted by mistresses. This plan is quite new to them. It is much to be wished, that there should be one on a superior scale for Ministers' Daughters and others.......... On the subject of a London Committee, Mr. will confer with you; and I think we may safely say, that such a Committee will find in the Pastors, friendly and grateful co-operators." FRIENDLY VISITOR. No. LXVI. MARCH, 1824. VOL. VI. TRUE RELIGION. The general spread of divine light in the present day, makes it needful for us constantly to bear in mind the genuine marks of sound conversion to God. I have no desire to undervalue the good that is now doing in the world; but I cannot help greatly fearing, that the nature of true religion is very little known amongst many, who make a great profession of it. It is not the crying Lord, Lord; or an attachment to a certain creed or party :-far, far from it. It is the doing what Christ has commanded. And sure I am, that the beauty of a Christian profession shines the brightest in the uniform and faithful discharge of the relative and social duties of life. We are apt to pride ourselves upon our superior advantages, but I very much fear we must turn to days of old, days of comparative darkness, for the choicest examples of such a profession. Where are the days of a Walker of Truro, a Baxter of Kidderminster? Doubtless we are looking forward to still happier days, than the Church of Christ has ever yet seen; but where is the Clergyman who would not gladly hail such a lovely scene, as the sun, then scarcely rising above the horizon, spread over their parishes Of Baxter it is related, "that Kidderminster, before he went there, was overrun with ignorance and profaneness; but by a divine blessing on his wise and faithful labours, the fruits of righteousness sprung up in great abundance. He at first found but a single instance or two of daily family worship in a whole street; and at his going away, but one family or two could be found in some streets that continued to neglect it. And on Lord's days, instead of the open profanation, which so awfully prevails in many places, a person passing through the town in the intervals of public worship, might overhear hundreds of families engaged in singing psalms, reading the Scriptures and other good books, or such sermons as they wrote down, while they heard them from the pulpit. His stated number of communicants rose to six hundred; of whom he himself declared, there were not twelve, of whose sincere piety he had not good hopes." Now what Clergyman in the present day can make the same happy report of his parish? Where are the streets full of family worshippers-the hundreds of stated communicants the towns marked by a holy reverence for the sabbath? And yet this is religion. These are the effects naturally produced by that grace of God which bringeth salvation. To be statedly obedient to the dying command of the Saviour; and not drawn to his table by the supposed necessity of some festival-day; to be raising the family altar night and morning; to be hallowing the sabbath by spending its hours in the temple, or in catechising children, instructing servants, speaking to each other in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs-this is religion. These are the fruits of his labour, for which the faithful minister watches. For unless people's religion makes them better parents and children, better masters and servants, better husbands and wives, better subjects and rulers, better members of society altogether, the profession of it is only a curse instead of a blessing. It increases the guilt of the possessors-it prejudices the ininds of the careless and ungodly. Would that all my dear readers would duly reflect upon these simple truths. The enemy is busily sowing tares, and many we are sure are led into dreadful errors. You |