whether they have sinned against one another by quarrelling, leading in sin, etc. Servants should examine themselves concerning disobedience and murmuring against masters and mistresses, dishonesty, laziness, slander, tattling, or leading the children of the house to any wickedness. Contempt, scorn, evil speaking against superiors, especially the servants of the Church. Raising party spirit and strife. Disobedience against the regular laws of the Church and its ordinances. Slanders and mischievous faultfinding, hate and contempt, refusal to perform your obligations, refractoriness, rebellion, treason, and conspiracy. Parents should examine themselves whether they have brought up their children in the Christian faith, kept them to Church, school, and all good things; shielded them from temptation, dangerous company, reading bad books, punished their faults, giving them offence through evil example or conversation. Masters, whether they have treated their servants and workmen with kindness and consideration, not hindered them from attending Church on Sundays, or receiving the Holy

not

Sacrament, but have rather encouraged them; whether they have controlled their actions, allowing no sinful or improper behaviour, and have sent immodest workmen or servants out of the house, Superiors and magistrates, whether they have fulfilled their several duties truly, with zeal for the welfare of their inferiors and dependents, with justice and good example.

COM. VI.-Examine yourself whether you have injured the life or health of others, or misused them in any way; if you have wished the death of any one, or that evil should happen to them; if you have lived in enmity with any one, how long, and are you still in the same mind? Is it with any one nearly related? Have you injured the souls of others by leading them into sin, by unbelief, by inciting to evil, by bad example? Have you ever, through discontent, wished yourself dead, or ever had any intention of taking away your life? Have you ever, through passion or sin, injured your own health?

COM. VII.-Those who before God are conscious of having up to the present time abominated all impurity, and,

through the grace of God, have kept themselves pure and chaste, should not spend time in examining themselves on this commandment. Should they, however, acknowledge that they have sinned even in the slightest degree by thought or otherwise against virtue or purity, they must with true repentance confess it, for that is the only means to keep a holy purity. When you have so sinned, be both courageous and humble, acknowledge your sin with true contrition, and you will find rest for your soul, freedom from your passions, and, however stained and defiled your soul may be, through the mercy of God, by confession, it will become pure and white again, and well-pleasing in His sight. Examine yourself whether you have sinned in thought, by wilfully encouraging impure thoughts, wishes, desires; in words, by impure words, conversations, songs; by impure desires, listening to immodest conversation, reading immodest books, by indecency in dress and conduct, by immodest looks, by dangerous company, going to places dangerous to good morals, being with people you are forbidden to associate

with, or by any immodest

actions.

COм. VIII.-Theft, buying or receiving stolen goods, or favouring theft, not returning things that are lent, keeping things that are found, making small debts and not paying them, fraud, false weight or measure, bad or damaged goods, imposture, unlawful judgment in business, unjust lawsuit, usury, oppressing the poor, or workpeople, destruction of property or anything belonging to other people, extravagance, gambling, or neglecting the duties owing to your family.

COM. IX.-Lying (in joke, or to excuse yourself, through vanity, or to the harm of others), hypocrisy, calumny in discovering the faults and failings of others, accusing a person of faults he has not, or increasing his real failings, disclosing the hidden sins of others; gossip, telling your neighhour something another has said of him, listening with pleasure to any calumny, backbiting, and talking about other's faults, insulting and deriding others, false suspicion, and frivolous judgment.

COM. X.-Wrongfully coveting and desiring anything belonging to another.

EXAMINATION ON THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS.

This is the root

On Pride. of all sins, as humility is the foundation of all virtues. Pride is to be recognized in the following faults:-When proud, and vain of beauty, clothes, possessions, appearance, family, knowledge, talent, virtues; when you willingly talk of yourself, praise yourself, or seek the praise of men, or play the hypocrite before people; when you despise others, speak contemptuously of others, or get angry when others are praised; when you are inordinately vexed when blamed, humiliated, or placed in the background; when you are obstinate, disputative, imperious, or ambitious; when from pride you will not pardon offences, or acknowledge yourself to be in the wrong; when you are disobedient and insolent to superiors, contemptuous and repulsive to inferiors, and indiscreet to your equals; when you are proud even against God, so that through pride you will not believe, nor pray, nor humiliate yourself to Him; when you will not confess your sins, and perhaps nourish a contempt and disinclination for

Christianity itself, because it requires humility.

On Avarice. This sin consists in prizing too greatly earthly things, and in inordinate desire after earthly possessions; it is distinctly against Christian liberality and disregard of worldly things.

you

This sin is to be recognized when you regard money and riches as the highest good, when strive after them too much, when you are through your longing after them full of wickedness, envy, and evil desire; when you are niggardly towards your own family, hard to the poor, and without liberality; when you set too ing principally about it; when great a store on money, thinkyou wish for the good or possessions of others, or possess yourself unjustly of them.

On Lust. You will have examined yourself sufficiently on this sin by the Seventh Commandment.

me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.

O let me hear Thy lovingkindness betimes in the morning, for in Thee is my trust: show Thou me the way that I should walk In, for I lift up my soul unto Thee.

Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: for I flee unto Thee to hide me.

Teach me to do the thing that pleaseth Thee, for Thou art my God: let Thy loving Spirit lead me forth into the land of tighteousness.

Quicken me, O Lord, for Thy Name's sake and for Thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble.

And of Thy goodness slay mine enemies and destroy all them that vex my soul; for I am Thy servant.

MAKER of Heaven and Earth, King of kings, and Lord of lords, Who out of nothing createdst me to Thine own image, and redeemedst me with Thy most precious Blood, Whom I, a sinner, am not worthy to name nor so much as to think on, I humbly desire that Thou wouldest look upon me in Thy pity, and have compassion upon me, Who showedst mercy to the

woman of Canaan and to Mary. Magdalene, Who forgavest the publican and the penitent thief. To Thee, most holy God, I confess my sins, which, if I would, I cannot hide from Thy sight: Have mercy upon me, O Christ, for I have exceedingly offended Thee in thought, word, and deed; Through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault. Therefore I most humbly beseech Thee, O Christ, Who for my sake descendest from Heaven, have mercy on me. Thou art my Creator and Helper, my Maker and Redeemer, my Ruler and most indulgent Father. Thou art my Strength and Refuge, my Hope and Resurrection, my life and eternal felicity. If I have committed that for which Thou mayest condemn me, yet Thou hast not lost that whereby Thou canst forgive me. Let not my wickedness, O Lord, overcome Thy goodness. Spare me, O my dearest Saviour, and take compassion on my sinful soul. To whom should I fly but to Thee? If Thou cast me off, who will receive me? If Thou despise me and turn away Thy Face from me, who shall look on me? Receive me, therefore, O my gracious Lord, return

ing to Thee, though sinful and unworthy; for if I am impure, Thou canst make me clean; if I am sick, Thou canst heal me; if I am dead and buried, Thou canst revive me. Thy mercy is far greater than my iniquity, and Thou canst forgive more than I can offend. Consider not, therefore, O Lord, the number of my sins; but, according to the greatness of Thy mercy, pardon all my transgressions. Say to my soul, I am Thy salvation, Who saidst to all the world, I will not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and live. Convert me to Thee, O Lord, and make me to live hereafter in greater fear of offending Thee. Make me to direct all my actions to Thy honour, and diligently to redeem the time I have misspent; that, by a holy life, I may be brought to a happy death, and rejoice with Thee to all eternity. Amen.

MOST loving Lord Jesu

Christ, I am a wretched and unhappy sinner, who have wounded Thee, and have again and again crucified Thee by my sins. I kneel before Thee, my Judge, and yet my Saviour, guilty of many offences, imploring Thee, by Thy com

passion, to wash my guilty, wretched, wounded soul with Thy most precious Blood until I am wholly and perfectly cleansed. Turn not, O Lord, Thy Face from me, but of Thine infinite mercy look upon me as Thou didst upon the sinful woman at Thy feet, upon S. Peter in the high priest's house, and upon the thief upon the Cross. Give me a true knowledge of my sins, and a fitting sorrow for them. Pardon me. Take away from me every evil that dwells in my heart, O Thou Who hast said, If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto Me. Wherefore I pray Thee, O Redeemer of my soul, draw me unto Thee, and cleanse me of my secret sins. O True Light, illumine the darkness of my heart. O Eternal Fire of Love, destroy in me my sins and vices. Come and visit my sickly soul, purify my conscience, and make me a dwelling-place pleasing unto Thee. O most loving Lord, stretched upon the Tree of the Cross, draw me out of the pollution of my sins, and, having cleansed me from every stain, receive me for Thine own. O Thou Who was nailed and pierced for me, how wast Thou wounded for