gagement, and signified the death by which he would, as a martyr for his truth, glorify God." No doubt that this information, however awful, was gratefully received by the devoted, ardent, though, at times, the unstable, follower of his beloved Master; as it proved the Saviour's confidence in him, notwithstanding all his errors. There was, indeed, an energy of character in Peter, which fitted him to be an apostle and a martyr. He was the questioning, the observing, the conversing, disciple. The others were probably withheld by timidity from talking with their Lord, and putting frequent questions to him; but Peter was the willing spokesman on all occasions; and to him we owe that impressive lesson afforded us by the Saviour's reply, when asked by him how often he was to forgive an offending brother, "I say not unto thee until seven times, but unto seventy times seven." But, whether we contemplate Peter as an example, or as a warning, in the early part of his religious career, it is cheering and instructive, indeed, to acquaint ourselves with him in his writings, when he approached the painful and awful close of it. When, having been enabled to fight a good fight, in fulfilment of his blessed Lord's prayer, that his faith might not fail;" and having been "converted himself," and having strengthened his brethren, be addressed his last awfully impressive Epistle to his Christian brethren, before he himself was summoned to that awful trial, after which he was to receive the end of "his faith," even "the salvation of his soul!" Who can read, without trembling awe, his eloquent description of the day of judgment; " that day," which, as he says, "will come like a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; and the works that are therein shall be burned up," while he adds this impressive lesson, "seeing then that all things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness?" And who can contemplate, without affectionate admiration, the undoubting, but unfearing, certainty with which he speaks of his approaching death. as foretold by our Lord; "knowing," said he, " that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed us !" Soon after he had thus written, it is probable that he repaired to the expected scene of his suffering, and met his doom-met it, undoubtedly, as became one taught by experience to his own recurring weakness, admonished often by the remembrance of that eye, which had once beamed in mild reproof upon him; but which, I doubt not, he beheld in the hour of his last trial and dying agonies, fixed upon him with tender encouragement and approving love; while, in his closing ear, seemed once again to sound the welcome promise to the devoted follower of the cross, "well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." We, of these latter days, can see the founder of our religion only in the record of his word, and hear him only in his ever-enduring precepts; but, though we hear him not externally with our ears, he still speaks in the heart of us all, if we will but listen to his purifying voice; and though the look of his reproachful eye can be beheld by us only with our mental vision, still, that eye is continually over us; and when, like the apostle, we are tempt ed to feel too great security in our own strength, and to neglect to implore the assistance which cometh from above, let us recal the look which Jesus gave the offending Peter, and remember that the same eye, although unseen, is watching and regarding us still. Oh! could we ever lie, even upon what are called trifling occasions, if we once believed the certain, however disregarded, truth, that the Lord takes cognizance of every species of falsehood, and that the eye, which looked the apostle into shame and agonizing contrition, beholds our lying lips with the same indignation with which it reproved him, reminding us that "all liars shall have their part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone," and that without the city of life is "whosoever loveth and maketh a lie." CHAPTER XVII. THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. I SHALL not give many individual instances of those whom even the fear of death has not been able to terrify into falsehood, because they were supported in their integrity by the fear of God; but such facts are on record. The history of the primitive Christians contains many examples both of men and women whom neither threats nor bribes could induce for a moment to withhold or falsify the truth, or to conceal their newly-embraced opinions, though certain that torture and death would be the consequence; fearless and determined beings, who, though their rulers, averse to punish them, would gladly have allowed their change to pass unnoticed, persisted, like the prophet Daniel, openly to display the faith that was in them, exclaiming at every interrogatory, and in the midst of tortures and of death, "we are Christians; we are Christians!" Some martyrs of more modern days, Catholics, as well as Protestants, have borne the same unshaken testimony to what they believed to be religious truth; but Latimer, more especially, was so famous among the latter, not only for the pureness of his life, but for the sincerity and goodness of his evangelical doctrine; (which, since the beginning of his preaching, had, in all points been conformable to the teaching of Christ and of his apostles,) that the very adversaries of God's truth, with all their menacing words and cruel imprisonment, could not withdraw him from it. But, whatsoever he had once preached, he valiantly defended the same before the world, without fear of any mortal creature, although of ever so great power and high authority; wishing and minding rather to suffer not only loss of worldly possessions, but of life, than that the glory of God, and the truth of Christ's Gospel should is any point be obscured or defaced through him." Thus this eminent person exhibited a striking contrast to that fear of man, which is the root of all lying, and all dissimulation; that mean, grovelling, and pernicious fear, which every day is leading us either to disguise or withhold our real opinion; if not, to be absolutely guilty of uttering falsehood, and which induces us but too often, to remain silent, and ineffective, even when the oppressed and the insulted require us to speak in their defence, and when the cause of truth, and of righteousness, is injured by our silence. The early FRIENDS were exemplary instances of the power of faith to lift the Christian above all fear of man; and not only George Fox himself, but many of his humblest followers, were known to be persons " who would rather have died than spoken a lie." There was one female Friend amongst others, of the name of Mary Dyar, who, after undergoing some persecution for the sake of her religious tenets at Boston, in America, was led to the gallows between two young men, condemned, like herself, to suffer for conscience' sake; but, having seen them executed, she was reprieved, carried back to prison, and then, being discharged, was permitted to go to another part of the country; but, apprehending it to be her duty to return to "the bloody town of Boston," she was summoned before the general court. On her appearance there, the governor, John Endicott, said, "Are you the same Mary Dyar that was here before?" And it seems he was preparing an evasion for her; there having been another of that name returned from Old England. But she was so far from disguising the truth, that she answered undauntedly, "I am the same Mary Dyar that was here the last general court." The consequence was immediate imprisonment; and soon after, death. But the following narrative, which, like the preceding one, is recorded in Sewell's History of the people called Quakers, bears so directly on the point in question, that I am tempted to give it to my readers in all its details. "About the fore part of this year, if I mistake not, there happened a case at Edmond's-Bury, which I cannot well pass by in silence; viz. a certain young woman was committed to prison for |