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The Church was in a good state when able to say to God, "The desire of my soul is to thy name." A genuine believer is in a good frame when able to say, "With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early." "My soul followeth hard after God." "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none"-there is nothing-" upon earth that I desire beside thee." This desire is the very essence of worship, and as the desire is habitual, so is the worship. The demands made upon Christian believers for unceasing prayer are thus shown not to be extravagant,-they are not beyond the real exercises of living Christians: Pray without ceasing ;" "praying always with all prayer and supplication;"" in everything by prayer with supplication and thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." These demands for prayer correspond with the exercises of the renewed heart. Those who are born from above do habitually seek the things that are above. Born of God, they seek his face continually, they ery to him day and night. When these desires are expressed in words, as must frequently be done, a godly one will say, "Lord, teach me thy statutes: open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." Lead me in thy truth, and teach me." "Reveal thy Son in me. "Create a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me." O to be more humble! to be more spiritual in my thoughts, and affections, and desires to be more heavenly minded! O that I could love God with more fervour! O that I could feel more benevolence and compassion to man! O for new victory over sin within me, and new power to resist the world and Satan, and every temptation and enemy without! O to be more devoted to God, and to be more holy in heart and in all manner of conversation! O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes! These ardent desires of the heart after God account for the activity and zeal of the godly in seeking him in all his institutions. They seek for God in secret and in family devotions, and in occasional meetings for prayer, and in the sanctuary, because they feel after him, and cannot be at rest without enjoying communion with him. They rejoice when they find Him whom their soul loveth, and they resolve to call upon him as long as they live. The truly pious do not seek God in vain. His gracious presence is frequently made known to them by communications from himself. He grants them liberty in prayer. He gives them power to resist sin, to overcome the world, and to rise above many fears, and temptations, and enemies. They enjoy peace, and comfort, and hope; they attain holy fortitude to meet difficulties, and to perform duties; and they "become strong in the Lord and in the power of his might." There are times in the experience of the godly, when one can say with feelings of gratitude and of joy in the Lord," Behold, God has become my salvation;" "I joy in God through the Lord Jesus Christ" "the joy of the Lord is mv strength."

Those who enjoy friendly intercourse with God resolve to live to his glory. They rejoice in God, in his perfections and laws, in his works of creation and providence, and especially in the salvation which he has provided for them. They peruse his Word, that they may become better acquainted with his character and doings, and that they may be able to praise him with understanding and with the whole soul. It is their desire that God may be everywhere praised, and that he may be praised to eternity. With holy pleasure they look upon the visible heavens and upon the earth, which bear the signatures of his invisible perfections, and which tell of his power, and wisdom, and goodness, and they desire to glorify him in ways which these great works cannot do. It is their desire to employ their thoughts and affections, their time, their strength, their influence in the world, their words, and all their movements and transactions, to promote the glory of God their Saviour. It is their aim to comply with the demands made upon living Christians: "Ye are not your own, ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body and spirit, which are his." These are they who have the commandments of God, as well as the faith of Jesus Christ; these are they who have the words and the commandments of Jesus, and who keep them; these are they who give evidence that they love the Father and the Son; these are they whom the Father and the Son do love; to them the Father and the Son will come, and make their abode with them.

While they live in love to God the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, it is also their desire to do good to their brethren of mankind as they have opportunity. By their manner of living before the world, as well as by their profession, they declare and exemplify the benignity and glory of the true God. They will let their glory so shine before men, that others may see their good works, and glorify their Father in heaven. They bear testimony against wickedness, that they may glorify the holiness of their God. In all their opportunities of doing good and resisting evil, it is the habitual language of their hearts," Let God be glorified ; let the whole earth be filled with his glory."

These remarks, if accompanied with the teaching of the Holy Spirit, may be useful to assist our meditations on the many passages of Scripture alluded to. They may also guide us to correct ideas of the holiness, the goodness, and the bounty of God to his people. They may also guide us to suitable impressions concerning the character and friendship of that God who is love. They may also convince us that the state of mind mentioned, and partly illustrated, is in itself excellent and suitable for intelligent creatures. We do not live in a manner worthy of God, or suitable to the dignity of our intelligent nature, unless we live near God, and to his glory. "The righteous is more excellent than his neighbour." The people who live to God are with great propriety called by the Holy Spirit "the excellent of the earth," they have excellent

sires, and they possess excellent blessings, while they exhibit an excellent character.

Such a state of mind is true happiness, it is the beginning of heaven. Here is a dignified, a satisfying felicity; here is the commencement of everlasting bliss; here is the sure presage of that rest which remains for the people of God. Those who believe do now enter into rest. We should seek by experience, to know the excellence of this felicity. If any desire happiness, this alone will give satisfaction. Let us seek to lay our hands upon it as our own. Let us seek to have it in our hearts. It is in God; let us seek to admit God into our hearts as our best friend; let us not treat him as we would treat an enemy by keeping at a distance from him. Let us lay aside every day our enmity against God, and cherish love to him in our hearts. Love to God on earth is the beginning of heaven. Let us seek to have this principle within us, it is a sure pledge of everlasting bliss in heaven. From a principle of love to himself seek now to live near God. Seek his friendship. "In his favour is life."

It s our duty to contemplate his revealed character and works with the desire of being better acquainted with a God so glorious. Even the ungodly, by a little more knowledge of his character, might partly be convinced that their neglect of him is very unreasonable, and ungrateful, and wicked; and they might be persuaded, so far, that his offered friendship ought not to be despised, and that his offered salvation ought not to be treated with contempt. We ought to inquire after God our maker. Let us look, therefore, at his works which men behold. Look at the heavens, at the sun, and moon, and stars, and clouds, and rain, and snow, and hail. Look at this world, exhibiting to view many a scene of loveliness and magnificence. Look at the plants, and flowers, and fruits, and all the useful productions of the earth. Look at the animals on the land and in the waters. Look at man,-look at yourselves. The God of glory is present in them all. You may see his beauty; you may hear his voice; you may mark the movements of his arm; you may taste the fruits of his goodness in all places. Look, and meditate, and attempt, with holy reverence, to speak to that God who is ever near you, and by whom you live. Ask the heavens, and they will tell you, the earth, and it will open its mouth to declare the power and glory of Jehovah. Ask himself, and he will teach you that "he is, and that he is the rewarder of them who diligently seek him." Listen to his friendly voice addressed to you in the Scriptures of truth, "Be ye reconciled to God." Persist not in your ungrateful hostility to the God of love. Drop the weapons of rebelyour lion. Keep not at a distance. "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you." "Come now," saith the Holy One, "and let us reason together." "Seek the Lord, and ye shall live." Then shall ye know, "if ye follow on to know the Lord."

As it is only through Jesus Christ that any of us

better acquainted with the Saviour. He is the way, the true and the living way. He who knoweth the Son, knoweth the Father also. We should search the Scriptures, which testify of Jesus. We should persevere in our researches, till we are able to say, "We have found him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets did write." We should also, by persevering in prayer, beseech God to reveal his Son in us. "He who hath the Son hath life." If the Son of God be in us, the Father also is in us, and we will abide in the Son and in the Father. O, how precious is Christ! He can bring a lost and condemned sinner to the family of God, to the enjoyment of God, to everlasting glory, to consummate bliss.

The agency of the Holy Spirit is also necessary to bring any of our race near to God. He must give spiritual life, he must open the eyes of the understanding, and he must shed abroad love to God in the heart, before we can even desire to enjoy the friendship of God. It is His work, to take of the things of Christ, and show them to the soul. As soon as these things are known, they meet the approbation of the renewed mind, and they excite ardent desires to draw near to God. By common teaching, we see no beauty in Christ why we should desire him: but by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, Jesus appears altogether lovely; he is admired, and esteemed, and welcomed into the heart.

The love of the Father manifested in the gift of his Son, now excites new wonder and gratitude. The sufficiency of Christ as a Saviour, his unchanging love, his rich grace, his amazing condescension, possess new power to draw the soul to God. Now a new, a complete, an everlasting union is effected between the holy God and the sinner who was ready to perish. God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now takes possession of the heart; and this is the commencement of a friendship, a union, and communion, which shall endure to eternity. God makes with his people an everlasting covenant.

These considerations should induce us to examine into, and judge of, our attainments and profession. What is all our religion, if we have not been brought near God? We ought to continue in the appointed means of salvation, waiting for the Holy Spirit. Till He come, there is nothing good in us. With humility, with self-abasement, with reverence, with submission to the awful sovereignty of God, and with a sense of unworthiness, we should continue to cry unto the God of salva

tion, till the Holy Spirit be poured down upon us from on high.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. MRS HARRIET W. L. WINSLOW, Late of the American Mission to Ceylon. (Continued from page 134.) THE first point to which the Missionaries directed their attention, on their arrival at the place of their final destination, was the acquisition of the language. As soon as they were able to hold communication with

the natives, they set about the establishment of free schools for boys in several of the surrounding villages. Female education was then impracticable among the Hindoos, and they refrained, therefore, for a time, from attempting it. As native education, however, was rightly regarded by them as one of the most effective means of diffusing a knowledge of Christianity among the people, they directed their efforts chiefly to this one important object. Besides instituting village schools, accordingly, they adopted the plan of free boarding-schools, thus separating a few children from their heathen friends, and bringing them into immediate connection with the mission families; and the result of this plan, which was first suggested by the American Missionaries at Bombay, was most gratifying. At first the utmost difficulty was experienced in prevailing upon parents to avail themselves of the opportunity thus afforded them of obtaining instruction for their children. The strong prejudices, however, of the people at length gave way, and the boarding-school system was commenced. As an instance of the benefit arising from the mode of education adopted, and of the obstacles thrown in the way of the Missionaries, we may extract the narrative of an occurrence which, though it took place at a period prior to the arrival of Mr and Mrs Winslow in Ceylon, is well deserving of the attention of our readers, and the more especially, as it may remind them of the similar treatment which one of the young men connected with the General Assembly's Institution at Calcutta recently experienced. The story of the Ceylonese youth is thus related by Mrs Winslow's biographer:

"There were two day-scholars, Supyen and Sandera Sagaren, who excited pleasing hopes, but were deterred by persecution from continuing in a Christian course. The case of the former was very interesting, and may be mentioned to illustrate one of the trials of Missionaries. He was an intelligent Tamul lad of about nineteen; his father was wealthy, and connected with one of the temples near Jaffnapatam. Part of a Tamul Bible was lent to him by another young man, which excited his desire to become acquainted with Christianity. He asked permission of his father to go to the school at Tillipally, which was granted; and he there soon professed his belief in the Bible. This came to the knowledge of his father, who was much alarmed; and, when he next returned home, caused him to be confined, and kept for a time without food. He then ordered him to perform certain heathen ceremonies. Supyen refused; and, when shut up in a dark room, made his escape, and fled to Tillipally, where he told Mr Poor what had befallen him. He took a Testament, and pointing to the 10th of Matthew, from the 34th to the 39th verses, said with tears, good. His father hearing where he was, sent for him; and as he did not return immediately, went after him bimself. On arriving at Tillipally, he inquired for his son, in a very kind manner; and said, as he had left home without taking leave of his mother, who was much grieved in consequence, he wished him to return for a day or two; after which, he might pursue his studies in the school. His hypocrisy was evident, but the young man was obliged to accompany him. They were no sooner out of sight, than his father stripped him of his good cloth, put on one so poor as to be disgraceful to him, placed a burden on his head, as though he was a slave, and beat him frequently with a slipper until he reached home. Every

that very

To be beaten with a slipper is very disgraceful among the Hindoos.

art was then practised to make him renounce Chris. tianity. His relations said the Missionaries had given him some medicine to make him a Christian, and asked what it was? He replied, 'the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A great variety of drugs were put into his food to turn him back to idolatry; and, an idol-feast being made by some of his young friends, he was or dered by his parents to make the customary offering to the idol. When the time came, he entered the little room, where the idol was enthroned, pulled off its ornaments, and kneeled down to pray to the true God. One of his companions, looking through the curtain, saw what was done, and told his father, who punished him severely, and sent him for a time to Kandy, in the interior. Afterwards his father changed his conduct, and lavished caresses upon him. He showed him his various possessions, and told him he should have all, if he would give up the idea of being a Christian, and if not he should be an outcast for ever. Supyen chose banishment from his father's house, saying, 'I do not need house or land if I have an interest in heaven.' He attempted to go to Tillipally, but was followed and taken back by force. They then tried to bring him under engagements to marry a heathen girl, but he would not consent. He even tore the contract when offered him. In short, they put his feet in the stocks, beat him, caused him to be conveyed to the neighbouring continent, and at length wearied him out, so that he signed a recantation of Christianity. His father is since dead, and he for some years has seemed settled down in heathenism."

As soon as Mr and Mrs Winslow had succeeded in mastering the Tamul language, they entered with the greatest vigour and alacrity upon the work of the mission. While Mr Winslow joined his brethren in preaching the Gospel to the natives, and establishing and superintending schools, his devoted partner, besides attending to the domestic duties of the establishment, was intrusted with the care of the children who had been permitted by their parents to reside in the missionhouse. In the discharge of this latter duty Mrs Winslow felt a peculiar interest, and, accordingly, we find her thus writing in her journal under date 22d September 1820:

"The last week I may well call the pleasantest of my missionary life on heathen ground. On Monday morning one of our day-scholars came with twelve boys to live with us. Soon after, a respectable man brought two of his sons, and gave them to Mr W. and myself with much ceremony. He placed a band of each in ours, and said, They are no longer my children, but yours. You are their father and mother.' We received nine of the boys. The care of them devolves on me ; and I cannot tell you with how much pleasure I direct their studies, and attempt to give them religious instruction, besides supplying their daily wants. I could not but say to Mr W. while we looked at them to-night, seated on the floor, each with a plate of rice and curry before him, from which he was ready to help himself with his right hand instead of a spoon or knife, as soon as a blessing should be asked; could our dear friends at home see these children, some of the best feelings of their hearts would be gratified. You will not wonder that they already seem peculiarly near to me. I desire to feel more my responsibility.'

The life of a Missionary among the Heathen is one of exalted privilege and of pure enjoyment. He feels that he is engaged as a fellow-worker with God in the salvation of a lost world, and that he thus occupies a position more honourable as well as more useful than if he had "sprung from loins enthroned, or rulers of the

earth." But while his work is glorious and ennobling, he is subject to many discouragements in the discharge of it. The degradation and ignorance which prevail around him, the listlessness and utter indifference with which the people listen to his message, and yet the enthusiasm which they display in their idolatrous feasts and ceremonies, all prey upon his sensitive and feeling heart, leading him sometimes to exclaim, in the bitterness of his soul, How long, O Lord, how long?" To such feelings Mrs Winslow was no stranger; but she had drunk too deeply into the spirit of her Master, to relax in her exertions under the influence of such discouragements. On the contrary, the more difficult the work, the more ardent and persevering her efforts to lend her aid in its accomplishment. Amid frequent attacks of ill health, she laboured with an energy much beyond her bodily strength. Besides being secretary to an association which was formed among the Missionaries' wives for mutual encouragement and assistance in rearing and educating their own children, she succeeded in forming a school for teaching native female children. This was regarded at the time as a singular triumph over the prejudices of the Hindoos.

The Mission now made rapid progress. Several natives were admitted members of the Church by baptism, and three native preachers were set apart to the work of the ministry. Meanwhile, Mrs Winslow continued to labour in the important duties which devolved upon her, connected not merely with her own family,

but with the heathen children in the mission-house. The following account of these last is given in a letter which she wrote in January 1823 to a friend in America:

"I should like to make you acquainted with my little family of heathen children, and some of the trials I have with them. These children are comforts in prospect. Now, they require so much patience, forbearance, and self-denial, that I sometimes think myself altogether inadequate to the proper management of them. Indeed, I feel more need of being furnished from above, to discharge my duties towards these children, than for almost any thing else. They are heathen children, from the first moment of life accustomed to witness scenes of vice which scarcely ever enter the minds of children in Christian countries, and as soon as they can speak and go alone, to imitate the examples of their parents, and often to obey their cominands, in lying, stealing, and swearing. It is impossible at once to make them feel that these things are sinful, or in any way to break up their bad habits. I am obliged to put every thing under lock and key, that would be a temptation to these little creatures; for I know not that we have one in the family who would refrain from pilfering if there were an opportunity. It seems to be a part of their very nature to tell a lie if it will serve their purpose any better than the truth, and to lay their hands on any thing which they wish to possess. In these trials, however, we have the happiness of seeing that they fear and love us, and become more and more conformed to our precepts. We have, besides, a rational and sure prospect, that it will eventually be better with these children, than with their fathers."

Such was the success of the boarding-establishments, that the Missionaries began to think of devising some means for raising the standard of education in their institutions. It was accordingly proposed to commence a school on a more extended scale, so as to embrace within the range of their system of teaching not merely

the literature of the country, but the English language and the elements of European science. The great ob ject contemplated by this enlargement of their original plan, was to prepare catechists, schoolmasters, and in course of time native preachers; and it was also a subsidiary design, to destroy that intricate system of false science and philosophy which is so interwoven with the superstition and idolatry of the East, that, as has been often said, they must stand or fall together. This school was accordingly commenced at Batticotta, and has gradually increased until it has become one of the most flourishing institutions in the East. The plan, it will be observed, as well as the object of the Mission seminary at Ceylon, is very similar in character to that of the General Assembly's Institution at Calcutta; and the wisdom of the views which have given rise to both of them, is shown by the very flattering success which, by the divine blessing, has attended them.

Soon after commencing the seminary for boys, it was judged right to establish also a central school for girls. Such an institution was accordingly begun at Oodooville, principally under the charge of Mrs Winslow; and the efficiency with which her operations were conducted, as well as the evident blessing from on high dantly manifest. All the girls who had passed through which descended upon her labours, have been abuna regular course at school previous to her death were members of the Church, and not one of them, though twenty-four in number, had, up to the period when her Memoir was published (1833,) reflected discredit upon their Christian profession.

The numbers who flocked to the Missionaries for instruction were such as to give the most cheering prospects of the Mission, both in regard to adults and the young. The establishment of the seminaries for both boys and girls was the means of exciting considerable interest among the natives. Many inquirers appeared, who were anxious to learn the way of salvation; and in 1824, the Missionaries had the high satisfaction of admitting to the Church no fewer than forty-one at one

time.

We extract an account of their baptism:-"The large temporary building erected for the occasion, was in a scattered grove of palm trees, in the village of Santillepay, which is central to all our stations. It was about one hundred feet long, and nearly seventy in width. At one end was placed a decent pulpit, brought from one of our stations, and towards the other the floor of earth was made a little ascending, to bring the audience into view, as they sat upon it, on neat mats, with which the whole was spread. The top and sides of the building, which were covered with the braided leaves of the cocoa-nut tree, were lined with white cotton cloth, giving the whole a light and neat appearance. In front were two or three fine spreading trees, like large branching elms. On one side, open rice fields were in sight, and on the other thick gardens filled with large fruit trees, shading the low mud-walled and leaf-covered houses of the natives. In the rear was a school bungalow, where many heathen children had been taught the first principles of Christianity, and the Word of God had been often preached, and prayer frequently offered, but neither the place where the temporary Church stood, nor the adjacent habitations, had ever resounded with the voice of prayer or praise.

"In front of the pulpit was the communion table, before which, in the form of a half-moon, were the can didates, forty-one in number, and native members. Back