present time is most unseasonable to carry it into effect.

There surely never was a time in which every serious Christian was so awfully called upon, as in our days, to the discharge of his sacred duties. If we look upon the surrounding nations, we cannot but acknowledge that the judgments of God are now abroad in the earth-the axe is now laid to the root of the trees, and every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. Why has our land been hitherto distinguished and preserved, amidst the wreck of thrones and communities? Its crimes are great and many: but, in most instances, we have been sensible to the cries of the poor; and we are told that benevolence to them will arrest the shaft of judgment. Is not this the charity that hath covered the multitude of our sins? If so, let charity have its perfect work, and let us confide in the Almighty for the fulfilment of his gracious promises. If we piously ac 'knowledge that we have been preserved by the interposition of the divine Providence, because a few righteous are left within the

city, shall we not, as we hope for the continuance of God's favour, contribute our part to increase their number? Shall we not approach the throne of grace with this peace-offering in our hand? God will be more pleased with our charitable act, in bringing the poor into his house, than with all the thanks and praises we can offer him whilst this great duty is left undone.

It is true that, during a long and expensive war, the exigencies of the state have made large demands upon us but they have not deprived us of our Christianity. We are not, surely, so entirely devoted to the destruction of our enemies, that we cannot afford to give a comparative trifle, to promote the welfare, and save the souls, of our poor brethren. In doing this, we shall sanctify our public expences, and secure the prosperity of our cause: for, the battle is the Lord's; and we may hope for his blessing and support, not when we confide in our own strength, but when we attend to our sacred duties, and obey his divine commands.

I leave these reflections upon your minds, with the full persuasion that, if ye are moved

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by a sense of duty to God and man, or by a just regard to your own present and future interest, ye will no longer hesitate to extend the blessing of a religious education to the children of the indigent, or to bring the poor and needy into the one fold of the flock of Christ.

And now let me address myself to you, my humble brethren, whose lot in this world is lowly and depressed. Let me earnestly exhort you, to seek with diligence, and chcerfully to embrace, every opportunity to obtain the knowledge of the Gospel, and sincerely to apply yourselves to its duties; and, above all, not to neglect the means of procuring for your children the benefit of a religious education.

Your station perhaps requires, that ye should rise early, late take rest, and eat the bread of carefulness. It may be, that, amidst anxieties and perplexities, your utmost exertion of labour and industry procures but a homely and scanty subsistence for yourselves and your offspring. Without religion, where is the comfort of your condition; and where, indeed, the blessing of your existence? But, even to you, religion

offers its comforts.

They are great, and they are consoling. Ye will find, in the book of the Lord, that the meanness of your rank is no proof that ye are either forgotten or disregarded by your heavenly Father. Your condition is not meaner than that in which he placed his own beloved Son. He was born in a manger. He earned his bread by labour, as an humble mechanic and when he went forth to preach the Gospel to the poor, he endured hunger and thirst, without a home, without the meanest cottage wherein to lay his head, and without a friend in the world excepting a few poor persons who attached themselves to his company, whose only wealth, whose only comfort, was their religion, and the society of their Saviour. And by these, his faithful disciples, he made it known to the world, that the poorest creature who follows his example shall fare as he now does, in his exalted state, and shall be acknowledged and honoured by him in his Father's kingdom.

Thus it appears, that worldly prosperity is no proof of the favour of God: 'nor is it a test of happiness even in this life; for the

apostles of Christ, in the midst of their poverty and affliction, rejoiced with joy unceasing. God might, with infinite ease, bestow upon each of us plenty and affluence, if he saw it to be for our benefit. But in this state of trial, our conditions and our supplies, which are all of his appointment, are diversified as it seems best to his supreme wisdom. One man is tried with wealth, another with power and dignity: and woe be to them, if it shall appear, at the great day of account, that they have failed in their probation, and misemployed the talents committed to their trust. Another is tried with poverty and indigence; and religion points out his duty, to acknowledge and submit to the divine appointment, and to cultivate the meek virtues of industry, sobriety, honesty, and humility, If the indigent has not the seducements of wealth and fashion, he has the less temptation to forget his Maker, and to forfeit the blessing of a pure conscience. If his knowledge is circumscribed within narrower bounds than that of others, he has still an opportunity, with due application, of knowing what God requires of him. And the