yet mild and Christian faithfulness, won the gratitude of many, and the esteem of all. Half Ready. A MOTHER was seated at a table with her little son, a child about eight years old. She had been reading the Bible to him for some time.-He had been very attentive to what she had said, and seemingly a great deal impressed by it. "It says in the Scripture," said she, "Therefore, be ye also ready for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh!" now this may be said in respect to death, as well as to the coming of the Savior, for we cannot tell how suddenly we may be called away from the world. "Are you ready, my love, if it should please God to take you to himself?" The child remained silent for a little while, and then replied; "I think, mamma, that I am only about half ready. How many thousands are there just in the same situation as this child? Are there not tens of thousands of professing Christians, who kneel at a throne of grace, who attend divine ordinances, who read the word of God, and are edified by its doctrines and reproofs, and encouraged by its consolations who, were the same question put to them, must be constrained to give the same answer, "I am only half ready." We may gain wisdom from the high and the low, the old and the young; we may gather it from the sayings of the wise man, and glean it from the lispings of the simple child; therefore, whether you are a youthful pilgrim in the road of life, or whether you have nearly reached the end of your journey, let much more of your thoughts be given to the subject of death and eternity, so that, should the question be put to you, "Are you prepar ed to die?" You may be able to give a satisfactory an swer, and not be compelled to reply, "Alas I am only about half ready." Cultivation of Conscience. CONSCIENCE, as we all know, may be listened to or disregarded; and in this, habit has great influence. The following story, from the Juvenile Miscellany, illustrates this. "A lady who found it difficult to awake so early as she desired in the morning, purchased an alarm watch. This kind of watch is so contrived as to strike with a very loud whizzing noise at any time the owner pleases. The lady placed the watch at the head of the bed, and at the appointed time, she found herself effectually roused by the loud rattling sound. She immediately obeyed the summons, and felt the better all day for her early rising. This continued for several weeks. The alarm watch faithfully performed its office, and was distinctly heard so long as it was promptly obeyed. But, after a time, the lady grew tired of early rising, and, when awakened by the noisy monitor, merely turned herself and slept again. In a few days, the watch ceased to arouse her from slumber. It spoke as loudly as ever, but she did not hear it, because she had acquired the habit of disobeying it. Finding that she might just as well be without an alarm watch, she formed the wise resolution, that, if she ever heard the sound again, she would jump up instantly, and she would never allow herself to disobey the friendly warning. Just so it is with conscience. If we obey its dictates, even to the most trifling particulars, we always hear its voice clear and strong. But if we allow ourselves to do what we fear is not quite right, we shall grow more and more sleepy, until the voice of conscience has no longer any power to waken us." On Chastising Children. ABоVF twenty years ago, being in the habits of intimacy and connexion in civil life with a respectable gentleman, he one day, in conversation on family affairs, related, with tears, a transaction between himself and one of his sons, a fine boy, about ten or cleven years of age. The son was by no means the lowest in the esteem of his father, but had a full share of his affection. It happened one day that the boy told an untruth knowingly, which afterwards came to the knowledge of his father, who determined to chastise him severely for it. He took the boy and an instrument of correction into a chamber, and there reprimanded him, by setting forth the exceeding heinousness of the sin against God, and the danger thereby of his own soul. He then proceeded to the distressing work of correction, (I have no doubt that every stroke was as afflictive to the parent as to the child;) after which, on leaving the room, the father began to fear that he had exceeded a due measure, (which I conceived was an excess of parental affection,) he made as though he was going down the stairs after shutting the door; but pausing a little, he returned softly to the door, where he waited some time, hearing the sobbing and crying of the boy. After a while the Father heard a movement and began to think of retreating, but after descending a step or two, he heard his son speak, on which he softly resumed his former station, and looking through the key-hole of the door, perceived his son on his knees, acknowledging his guilt and shame before God, and praying for forgiveness; thanking God for favoring him with such a father as would not suffer sin upon him: also praying for his brothers and family. To parents, it is unnecessary to dwell on the feelings of an affectionate father under such circumstances, the language of whom corresponds with that of his heavenly Father:-"As many as I love I rebuke and chasten"-"Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him."-Psalm ciii. 13. Regina, the German Girl. MANY years ago, several German families left their country and settled in North America. Amongst these was a man from Wurtemburgh, who, with his wife and a large family, established himself in Pennsylvania. There were no churches or schools then in that neighborhood, and he was obliged to be satisfied with keeping the Sab bath at home with his family, and instructing them him self to read the Bible and pray to God. He used very often to read the Bible to them, and always used first to say, "Now, my children, be still and listen to what I am going to read, for it is God who speaks to us in this book." In the year 1754, a dreadful war broke out in Canada, between the French and English. The Indians took the side of the French, and made excursions as far as Pennsylvania, where they plundered and burned the houses they came to, and murdered the people. In 1755, they reached the dwelling of the poor family from Wurtemburg, while the wife and one of the sons were gone to a mill, a few miles distant, to get some corn ground. husband, the eldest son, and two little girls, named Barbara and Regina, were at home. The father and his son were instantly killed by the savages, but they carried the two little girls away into captivity, with a great many other children who were taken in the same manner. They were led many miles through the woods and thorny bushes, that nobody might follow them. In this condition they were brought to the habitation of the Indians, who divided amongst themselves all the children whom they had taken captives. The Barbara was at this time ten years old, and Regina nine. It was never known what became of Barbara: but Regina, with a little girl of two years old, whom she had never seen before, were given to an old widow, who was a very cruel woman. Her only son lived with her and maintained her, but he was sometimes from home for weeks together, and then these poor children were forced to go into forests to gather roots and other provisions for the old woman, and when they did not bring her enongh to eat, she would beat them in so cruel manner, that they were near being killed. The little girl always kept close to Regina, and when she knelt down under a tree, and repeated those prayers to the Lord Jesus, and those hymns which her father had taught her, then the little. girl prayed with her, and learned the hymns and prayers by heart. In this melancholy state of slavery, these children remained nine long years, till Regina reached the age of nineteen, and her little companion was eleven years old. They were both fine looking girls, particularly Regina. While captives, their hearts seemed to have always been drawn towards what was good. Regina continually repeated the verses from the Bible, and the hymns which she had learned when at home, and she had taught them to the little girl. They used to cheer each other with one hymn from the hymn book used at Halle in Germany: "Alone, yet not alone am I, She constantly hoped that the Lord Jesus would, sometime, bring them back to their Christian friends. In 1764, their hope was realized. The merciful providence of God brought the English Colonel Boquet to the place where they were in captivity. He conquered the Indians, and forced them to ask for peace. The first condition he made was, that they should restore all the prisoners they had taken. Thus the two poor girls were released. More than four hundred captives were brought to Colonel Boquet. It was a woful sight to see so many young people wretched and distressed. The colonel and his soldiers gave them food and clothes, and Colonel Boquet brought them all to a town called Carlisle, and published in the Pennsylvania newspapers, that all parents who had lost their children might come to this place, and in case of their finding them, they should be restored to them. Poor Regina's sorrowing mother came, among many other bereaved parents, to Carlisle ; but, alas! her child had become a stranger to her. Regina had acquired the appearance and manner, as well as the language of the natives. the poor mother went up and down amongst the young persons assembled, but by no efforts could she discover her daughters. She wept in bitter grief and disappointment. Colonel Boquet said, "Do you recollect nothing by which your children might be discovered?" She answered that she recollected nothing but a hymn, which she used often to sing with them, and which was as fol lows: "Alone, yet not alone am I, Though in this solitude so drear; I am with him, and he with me, |