"How do you know it is a watch?"

"It ticks, sir."

"Very well, can any of you hear it ick?

All listen now." After a pause-" Yes, sir; we hear it." He then took off the case, and held the case in one hand, and the watch in the other.

"Now, children, which is the watch?-you see there are two which look like watches?"

The little one, in your right hand, sir."

"Very well, again; now I will lay the case aside; put it away down there in my hat. Now let us see if you can hear the watch tick."

"Yes, sir; we hear it," exclaimed several voices.

"Well, the watch can tick, and go, and keep time, you see, when the case is taken off and put in my hat. The watch goes just as well. So it is with you, children. Your body is nothing but the case; the soul is inside. The case the body may be taken off and buried up in the ground, and the soul will live and think, just as well as this watch will go, as you see, when the case is off.

Pastoral Visits.

MR. JONES was the pastor of a church in a small country village. One pleasant morning he set off, as was his custom, to visit the families of his charge. He first entered the house of an humble family, the mother of which was a member of his church; but the father was an irreligious man, and but seldom seen at public worship. He had conversed a few minutes with this pious mother, when her husband entered, and with the well meaning air of a very blunt man addressed him thus:

"Good morning, sir; happy to see you. I had the pleasure of hearing you preach yesterday afternoon, sir.' "Yes! I observed that you were at church, and was pleased to see it."

"Well, Mr. Jones, I'm a plain man, and you must excuse me if I am somewhat plain in my way of talking. If you always preached as you did yesterday, I should go to meeting oftener. You preached without notes yesterday, and that is what I call preaching. Where a man

goes up into his pulpit and reads off his sermon, why, 1 may just as well stay at home and read a sermon out of a book."

"I think myself," said Mr. Jones, "that preaching ex tempore is on many accounts preferable to reading written sermons, but still extemporaneous preaching will not suit all. I should be perfectly willing to preach without notes all the time, if I thought it would be equally profit able to all my people."

"Well," said the man, laughing, "if you will let me know when you are going to preach without notes, I will always come and hear you. But it is against my religion to go and hear men read instead of preaching." After a little further conversation Mr. Jones bade them good morning, and continued his walk.

The next door he knocked at was that of a lawyer, whose manners and conduct were such as to show very distinctly that he had a most profound respect for himself.

"Good morning, Mr. Jones," said this respectful gentleman, in slow and courteous accents; I am happy to see you this morning, and to have an opportunity of telling you how much we were gratified with your forenoon sermon yesterday," (placing a special emphasis on the word forenoon.) "That is the kind of preaching which elevates the people; it improves their minds, it cultivates their taste. A discourse well digested and carefully written is substantial food for the mind. I think if clergymen have not time to write out two sermons a week, they had better exchange a little more frequently, so that they will never be under the necessity of preaching ex tempore."

He felt

Mr. Jones was a man of acute sensibilities. such remarks, but under the tuition of his blessed Master he had learned self-control. He was sufficiently acquainted with human nature to know the folly of arguing with such a mind, and therefore quietly waived the subject, and after a little further conversation he bade the family good morning and escaped further pain.

"How do you do Mr. Jones?" exclaimed a man who was plonghing by the road-side. Mr. Jones raised his eyes from the ground, and kindly responded to the salutation. The farmer was a member of the church, active

and useful, but wart of humility was his infirmity. Mr. Jones inquired of him if there was any thing interesting of a religious nature among his neighbors. "Why, yes, sir," said the farmer, "yes sir, I think things look more encouraging. My neighbors are more ready to talk upon the subject than they have been for a long time. It appears to me that forcible appeals to the heart are all that we want now. I know there are some persons who like doctrinal sermons, and I suppose they are important in their place; but the trouble with our people is, that they know their duty, but they won't do it. It isn't enlightening that they want, it isn't instruction, but melting appeals to the heart, to make them feel. That is my view of the matter, Mr. Jones."

"There is certainly some good sense in what you say; but a man cannot feel unless he believe. We must convince a man of his danger before he can feel it."

"True, sir, true; but if I may be so bold it appears to me that you preach doctrinal sermons a little too much, Mr. Jones. I have been reading some of Whitefield's sermons lately, and I am taken with them mightily; all heart, sir, all heart. And only see how successful he was. It is really astonishing."

Mr. Jones continued the conversation a little longer, and then went on his way. As he was passing the door of his aged deacon, he thought he would step in a moment. The deacon was eighty years of age, a man of old fashions, and deeply versed in theological lore. The good old man gave his pastor a cordial greeting, for he loved him, but he thought the times sadly degenerate. He took from his shelf a volume of sermons, preached some fifty years ago, and placing it in the hand of Mr. Jones, saiù,

"There is an interesting volume which I have been reading lately. It is a real treat to me to get hold of good old-fashioned doctrinal sermons. The fact is, Mr. Jones, you modern preachers are altogether out of the way. The doctrines are the very marrow of the Gospel. And it is doctrinal preaching that we want, to enlighten the public mind. Now I have lived eighty years, Mr. Jones, and have seen the effect of all kinds of preaching, and you may depend upon it, that the great thing needed is, to have men well indoctrinated.' I do think it would be a

great improvement if you would preach doctrinal sermons rather more. Shall I not lend you this volume, sir? perhaps you would like to look it over."

Mr. Jones smiled at the delicate hint which his good deacon supposed he was giving, and taking the book endeavored to lead the conversation to subjects of practicol godliness; and after uniting with his venerable deacon in prayer, continued his parochial visits.

In the middle of this little village there was a milliner's shop, where Mr. Jones occasionally called. As Mr. Jones entered the door, he heard the voice of a female exclaim;

"Well don't you think it is very improper for a minis ter's wife to dress as Mrs. Jones does? Last Sabbath she had two large bows on her bonnet."

"Why, Mary," said another, "I was working last week at Mrs. Bently's, and she said that she thought it was too bad for Mrs. Jones to dress so meanly. She was finding fault with that very bonnet, and said that Mrs. Jones acted as though she thought there was sin in every pretty color.

"Well," replied Mary, "I cannot help what Mrs. Bently thinks, but I think that a minister's wife ought to avoid every ornament whatever; and if I have a good opportunity I shall make bold to tell Mrs. Jones my mind on the subject."

Mr. Jones was an unwilling listener to this conversation, and endeavored by walking about the shop to make a noise and attract their attention. But those who were talking were in the back shop, and were too much interested in the discussion to hear him. He therefore quietly left the shop and went on his way.

He walked home to his study, discouraged rather tnan animated by his morning walk. Hardly had he entered when a parishioner called who had been for some weeks absent from town. "I have come," said he, "to tell you the good news from Harlow. Oh they have a most precious minister there. He is the most faithful, active man I ever saw. He is all the time visiting from house to house. It appears to me that such activity and zeal as he possesses, must be successful any where. People cannot be unconcerned when the importance of religion is urged so incessantly upon them in their houses."

As Mr. Jones did not consider it necessary to enter upon

a defence of his views of duty, his good parishioner sup posed that he had been rather too obscure in his hints, and was growing more personal in his allusions, when he was interrupted by the entrance of another visiter.

Mr. Henry, who last entered was a gentleman of sin cere piety, and of a refined mind. He was fond of close reasoning and shrunk from every thing which was not perfectly in good taste. After the usual salutations, he said, "I had the pleasure, Mr. Jones, of hearing Dr. Simpkins preach last Sabbath. He certainly is a most eloquent man. He is a most indefatigable student. You always find him in his study. I understand that he generally studies twelve hours a day. And now he has risen to be one of the most eminent men in the country. How wretchedly those ministers mistake who fritter away their time in running about from house to house. There is the minister of Harlow, for instance; they say that he is a very friendly man, and talks very pleasantly in the family, but it is no matter what text he takes, he always preaches the same sermon. The men who live in the study and who devote their energies to the pulpit are the men who do the most good."

Now Mr. Jones, though he loved his study, thought it his duty to devote a portion of his time to parochial visiting; and as the two visitors eagerly engaged in dispute, he pleasantly suggested to them the propriety of embracing some other time and place for their discussion.

As they withdrew, Mr. Jones resolved, as he had done a thousand times before, that he would do that which appeared to him to be right in the sight of God, and most for the spiritual good of his people, and leave others to think and say what they pleased.

Be a Good Neighbor.

A MAN wished to drain a marshy pool in his garden, and very impudently turned the water in, under the fence, to his neighbor's garden. The man whose rights were thus invaded was a christian. He said nothing, but 'mmediately employed a man to dig a trench and provide or the removal of the water. He greeted his neighbor as