ment. The approbation of a living, and the desire of a deceased parent, will sanctify their union. "I must break off through weakness."

"Monday 23.

"I resume my pen, which I thought I had held for the last time. May God bless and direct our children! Infinite wisdom permits me not to see their union. Indeed my interest in all earthly things weakens. Even my solicitude for this event is somewhat diminished. The most important circumstance, if it have not God for its object, now seems comparatively little. The longest life, with all its concerns, shrinks to a point in the sight of a dying man whose eye is filled by eternity. Eternity! Oh my friend, Eternity is a depth which no geometry can measure, no arithmetic calculate, no imagination conceive, no rhetoric describe. The eye of a dying Christian seems gifted to penetrate depths hid from the wisdom of philosophy. It looks athwart the dark valley without dismay, cheered by the bright scene beyond it. It looks with a kind of chastised impatience to that land where happiness will be only holiness perfected. There all the promises of the gospel will be accomplished. There afflicted virtue will rejoice at its past trials, and acknowledge their subservience to its present bliss. There the secret self-denials of the righteous shall be recognized and rewarded-and all the hopes of the Christian shall have their complete consummation."

"Saturday 28.

"My weakness increases-I have written this at many intervals. My body faints, but in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. Oh Stanley! if pain is trying, if death is awful to him, who knows in whom

he has trusted; how is pain endured, how is death encountered by those who have no such support?"

"Tuesday the 31st.

"I am better to-day-If I experience little of that rapture which some require, as the sign of their acceptance, I yet have a hope through grace. Nay there are moments when I rejoice with joy unspeakable. I would not produce this joy as any certain criterion of my safety, because, from the nature of my disease, there are also moments when my spirits sink, and this might equally furnish arguments against my state, to those who decide by frames and feelings. I think my faith as sound, my pardon as sure, when these privileges are withdrawn, as when I enjoy them. No depression of spirits can make my evidences less solid, though it may render the review of them less delightful."

"Friday, 3d April.

"Stanley! my departure is at hand. My eternal redemption draweth nigh. My hope is full of immortality. This is my comfort-not that my sins are few or small, but that they are, I humbly trust, pardoned, through Him who loved me, and gave himself for me. Faithful is HE that has promised, and His promises are not too great to be made good-for Omniscience is my promiser, and I have Omnipotence itself for my security. Adieu!

On the cover was written, in Mr. Stanley's handHe died three days after!

It is impossible to describe the mingled and conAicting emotions of my soul, while I perused this let

ter. Gratitude that I had possessed such a fathersorrow that I had lost him-transport in anticipating an event which had been his earnest wish for almost twenty years-regret that he was not permitted to witness it-devout joy that he was in a state so superior to even my sense of happiness-a strong feeling of the uncertainty and brevity of all happiness-a solemn resolution that I would never act unworthy of such a father-a fervent prayer that I might be enabled to keep that resolution :-all these emotions so agitated and divided my whole mind, as to render me unfit for any society, even for that of Lucilla. I withdrew, gratefully pressing Mr. Stanley's hand; he kindly returned the pressure, but neither of us attempted to speak.

He silently put my father's pacquet into my hands. I shut myself into my apartment, and read for three hours, letters for which I hope to be the better in time and in eternity. I found in them a treasure of religious wisdom, excellent maxims of human prudence, a thorough acquaintance with life and manners, a keen insight into human nature in the abstract, and a nice discrimination of individual characters; admirable docum --ments for general education; the application of those documents to my particular turn of character, and diversified methods for improving it.The pure delight to which I looked forward in reading these letters with Lucilla, soon became my predominant feeling.

I returned to the company with a sense of felicity, which the above feelings and reflections had composed into a soothing tranquillity. My joy was sobered without being abated. I received the cordial congratulations of my friends. Mrs. Stanley behaved to me with increased affection; she presented

me to her daughter, with whom I afterwards passed two hours. This interview left me nothing to desire, but that my gratitude to the Almighty Dispenser of happiness might bear some little proportion to his blessings.

As I was passing through the hall after dinner, I spied little Celia peeping out of the door of the children's apartment, in hope of seeing me pass. She flew to me, and begged I would take her into the company. As I knew the interdict was taken off, I carried her into the saloon where they were sitting. She ran into Lucilla's arms, and said, in a voice which she meant for a wisper, but loud enough to be heard by the whole company, "Do, dear Lucilla, forgive me; I will never say another word about the curricle, and you shan't go to the Priory since you don't like it." Lucilla found means to silence her, by shewing her the pictures in the "Peacock at Home ;" and without looking up to observe the general smile, contrived to attract the sweet child's attention to this beautiful little poem, in spite of Sir John, who did his utmost to widen the mischief.

CHAP. XLIV.

THE HE next day in the afternoon Dr. Barlow called on us. By the uncommon seriousness of his countenance I saw something was the matter. "You will

be shocked," said he, " to hear that Mr. Tyrrel is dying, if not actually dead. He was the night before last seized with a paralytic stroke. He lay for a long time without sense or motion; a delirium followed, In a short interval of reason he sent, earnestly imploring to see me. Seldom have I witnessed so distres

sing a scene.

"As I entered the room he fixed his glassy eyes full upon me, quite unconscious who I was, and groaned out in an inward hollow voice-" Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl, for your miseries are come upon you." I asked how he did: he replied still from St. James-" How? why my gold and silver are cankered, the rust of them shall witness against me; they eat up my flesh as it were fire."

"I was astonished," continued Dr. Barlow, "to see. so exact a memory coupled with so wild an imagination. Be composed, Sir,' said I, seeing he began to recollect me, 'this deep contrition is a favourable symptom. Dr. Barlow,' replied he, grasping my hand with a vehemence which corresponded with his look, have you never heard of riches kept by the owner thereof to his hurt? Restitution! Doctor, restitution!—and it must be immediate, or it will be too late.' I was now deeply alarmed. Surely, Sir,' said I, 6 you are not unhappily driven to adopt St. James's next words" forgive me ;"-but you cannot