WILLOWS LOVE WATER.

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ALL WILLOWS LOVE WATER.

They shall spring up among the grass, as willows by the water courses.-ISAIAH xliv. 4.

In many parts of South Africa, no trees are to be found but near rivers. The trees are of various kinds; the most plentiful was the lovely mimosa; but willows, when there were any, always stood in front of the others, on the very margin of the water, which was truly a river of life to them. Like those in Isaiah's days, they required much water-they could not prosper without it, therefore near it they were alone found ;—a loud call, by a silent example, to Christians to live near the throne of grace, word of grace, and ordinances of grace, if they wish to grow in wisdom, knowledge faith, and holiness.

NO REAL RAIN-MAKERS.

Are there any among the vanities [or idols] of the Gentiles [or heathens] that can give rain?—JER. xiv. 22.

There are persons among the South African nations who pretend to have power to bring rain in times of drought, and who are called rainmakers. A nation seldom employs their own rain-maker, but generally think those at a distance have more power to produce it than those at home. A rain-maker, from high up the country, once travelled with my party for a few weeks. asked him seriously, if he really believed that he

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SOWING BESIDE ALL WATERS.

had power to bring rain when he pleased? His reply was, that "he could not say he had, but he used means to bring it;" such as rolling great stones down the sides of mountains, to draw down the clouds. A rain-maker at Lattakoo who was unsuccessful, first said it was because he had not got sufficient presents of cattle. After getting more, he was still unable to bring it. He then desired them first to bring to him a live baboon : hundreds tried, but could not catch one. He next demanded a live owl, but they could not find one. No rain coming, they called him rogue, impostor, &c., and ordered him away.

SOWING BESIDE ALL WATERS.

Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.ISAIAH XXXii. 20.

The emigrants that went from England, some years ago, to the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, were chiefly located in a district called Albany, on the confines of Caffraria. Many of them were ruined by not literally attending to the contents of this text. They were not sufficiently aware of the indispensable necessity of water, or at least moisture underground, to render fields at all productive in a hot and dry climate. They ploughed land, and dug a deep ditch round each field, as they were accustomed to do in England; with the mould dug from it they formed a mud wall, which made all look very pretty and farmer-like.

SOWING BESIDE ALL WATERS.

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Dutch boors from a distance came to see what they were about. They told them their fields were too far from the river; that unless they could lead water upon them, they must not expect to have any harvest. Looking at the neat ditch that surrounded the field, they inquired what this was for? For defence, was the reply. "Yes," said the boors, "it will defend your field from receiving any moisture from the surrounding ground;" and, shaking their heads, said, "That is a bad defence."

From the high ideas they had of their own superior knowledge of agriculture, they only smiled at the remarks made by the African farmers.

The rainy season came, when the grain sprang up, and made rapid progress while that season lasted; but lo, the sun returned from its northern circuit, dispelled the clouds, and darted forth its unimpeded fiery rays, which soon caused the surface of the ground to become as hard as a brick, consequently the grain withered and died, and cleanness of teeth, for want of bread, was in all their hamlets for that season! But had there been plenty of water to lead over their fields, the crops would probably have been most abundant. The expression, "sending forth the feet of the ox and the ass," seems to refer to the practice said still to prevail in the East, where these animals are employed to tread the thin mud when saturated with water, to fit it for receiving the seed.

Should there be a river there, a fountain here, and a pool elsewhere, it is far wiser to have the fields near, than at a distance from any of these.

136 CERTAIN DESTRUCTION TO BABYLON.

Sometimes God gives peculiarly happy spiritual seasons to countries, or districts in countries, causing the river of life abundantly to flow, and streams from it extensively to spread its influence; then the wise husbandman will hasten to scatter his seed, in cities, towns, villages, hamlets, and among individual families, in expectation of a rich harvest, from the well watering of the garden of plants.

CERTAIN DESTRUCTION TO BABYLON.

For, lo, I will raise, and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country; and they shall set themselves in array against her from thence she shall be taken'; their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man ; none shall return in vain.-JER. 1. ix.

Babylon had long been employed as a scourge to other nations, now she was to be signally punished herself. Her scourge was to come from the north, viz., the Medes and Persians, who were to the north of Chaldea. Of the arrows shot by them, none shall return in vain, or without fulfilling the purpose for which it was designed.

The interior African nations fight with assagais, or long spears, and with bows and arrows. The former they never throw unless when they think they are sure of hitting their object, and also of recovering their spear. There was a man living at Lattakoo, who had once been a slave in the colony, from whence he had brought an iron

LOSS OF CATTLE A GREAT AFFLICTION. 137

musket-bullet, which he valued above its weight of gold. He had killed a number of animals with it. While he travelled with me I saw him shoot two or three with the same bullet, which he always recovered from the body of the animal. The first he shot, I remember, was a knoo, about the size of a small horse; which was no sooner cut open than he began to search for his bullet, which he soon found. Thus it had never returned to him in vain; it had always accomplished his object in firing it off. Perhaps this may also explain Isa. lv. 11: "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth; it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." This much accords with Psalm xlv. "Thine arrows," the arrows of conviction sent by the Messiah by his word, " are sharp in

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the heart of the king's enemies."

LOSS OF CATTLE TO A PASTORAL PEOPLE A GREAT AFFLICTION.

God is represented as saying to Nebuchadnezzar, his Scourge to various nations,-Arise ye, go up to Kedar, and spoil the men of the east. Their tents and their flocks shall they take away.-JER. xlix. 28, 29.

It is very difficult for a manufacturing or commercial people fully to conceive the greatness of such a catastrophe as this to a pastoral people, to be deprived of their flocks. Such might justly say, in the language of Micah, "Ye have taken