and his servant. But what said the centurion himself? "O Lord," saith he, "trouble not thyself, for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof, neither did I think myself worthy to come unto thee, but only speak thou the word, and my servant shall be healed." And this message, says the evangelist, he sent to Christ by his friends, as if they who pleaded his works and worthiness were his enemies and not his friends. But how did the Lord Jesus receive this message? He marvelled at such humility, and commended the faith of the centurion, even by the name of great faith," to show that merit-mongers have no faith at all, except the faith of devils. W. BURTON.

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HEAR WHAT JESUS HATH DONE FOR MY SOUL.
SAV'D by blood, I live to tell

What the love of Christ hath done;

He redeem'd my soul from hell,

Of a rebel made a son.

Oh! I tremble still to think

How secure I liv'd in sin,
Sporting on destruction's brink,
Yet preserv'd from falling in.
In his own appointed hour

To my heart the Saviour spoke,
Touch'd me by his Spirit's power,
And my dang'rous slumbers broke;
Then I saw and own'd my guilt,
Soon my gracious Lord replied,
"Fear not, I my blood have spilt,
'Twas for such as thee I died."
Shame and wonder, joy and love,
All at once possess'd my heart;
Can I hope thy grace to prove
After acting such a part?
"Thou hast greatly sinned," he said,
"But I freely all forgive,

I myself the debt have paid,

Now I bid thee rise and live."

Come, my fellow sinner, try,

Jesu's heart is full of love,

Oh that you, as well as I,

May his wond'rous mercy prove;

He has sent me to declare

All is ready, all is free,

Why should any soul despair,

When he saved a wretch like me?

Extracts of Correspondence.

COLONIAL.

From a Clergyman in Newfoundland.

BEING a subscriber to the Tract Society, but more particularly because I have derived very great assistance in my pastoral duties from its valuable publications, I would express my sense of my obligations to the Institution. I can bear testimony, that the publications have done much good in settlements in which they have been circulated, in stemming the flood of iniquity, in unmasking the delusions of popery, as well as in disabusing the minds of nominal christians of those erroneous notions, which lead so many to lay "other foundation than that is laid." I occasionally visit four or five settlements; and although in the more populous ones the Newfoundland School Society are continually distributing your tracts, yet I rejoice at finding, that the thirst for tracts is satiated in neither the young nor the old; the people crowd around any one who has them to give away. On visiting, with the superintendent of the School Society, not long since, a ship bound to Quebec, with emigrants from the counties of Hants and Berks, the eagerness of men, women, and children to secure a tract was delightful..

From an Agent of the Newfoundland School Society. HAVING been requested to furnish you with any interesting account of good done through the instrumentality of tracts published by your society, I beg to inform you that one poor woman in this place, who had been brought up in the church of Rome from the time she was fifteen years of age, was led, a short time back, (through the reading of a tract given by me, and published by the Religious Tract Society, and which was blessed to her soul,) to question the authority of her church in withholding the Scriptures from the people, and on other points. She sent for me, and told me the state of her mind; I directed her to the God of truth for 'the promised teaching of his Spirit, 'at the same time proving from Scripture that the pope is antichrist. After having visited her a few times, she expressed her conviction that popery was contrary to the spirit of the Gospel, and declared herself ready to come out and to be separated from it; this was her feeling after much prayer and many tears, and therefore I trust the blessed effect of the Holy Spirit influencing the heart. She has joined the Protestant episcopal church, and is now, I sincerely hope, enjoying that peace of conscience which nothing can give but a firm belief in the Son of God, as the only Mediator and Advocate.

SEA COAST AND FRANCE.

From an active Tract Distributor.

MANY of the tracts have been distributed in Portsmouth harbour in the boats which carry eight passengers at a time across the harbour, in which I usually cross many times in the week, and in which it is very desirable there should be a few tracts distributed every time a boat goes from one side to the other.

Many of them have been received with thankfulness by sailors and others on shore, and in ships at Portsmouth, Southampton, Lymington, the Channel Islands, &c. I have been favoured to read " Payson's address" to many congregations in the open air, on the quays at Southampton, Guernsey, &c., and have always found the most solemn attention given to that admirable tract.

A sailor's wife has called upon me to return thanks for tracts given to her husband, who is on board the Melville at Bermuda, and who writes that they have been exceedingly useful to the men in that ship.

Being at Jersey, and feeling persuaded that there was much need of further exertions in France, I went to St. Malo. In St. Malo, St. Servan, Dinan, and the surrounding villages, I found a large population as dark as ignorance, immorality, and superstition could make them. The sabbath-breaking was truly awful. I had rather an arduous engagement during my sojourning in France in giving short addresses in the streets, and in distributing the tracts from house to house. Some English gentlemen, who travelled with me from St. Servan to Dinan, told me that I should not find any one in Dinan to receive the tracts, but arriving there at night, and knowing that my time would be very short in that large and ancient city, I had distributed the whole of my tracts, (some hundreds,) from house to house, by half past seven the next morning. In a very few instances they were torn to pieces, and the fragments scattered before my eyes, but in all other cases they were received with the greatest thankfulness; and having distributed some as I went down some populous but narrow streets I had great difficulty in endeavouring to return up those streets, on account of the number of people who had placed themselves all along the street to obtain tracts as I returned. The Lord render effectual the precious seed thus scattered where such awful barrenness prevails! Having given away many tracts early in the morning at Dinan, I went about noon to several of the houses to ascertain that they were not destroyed, and found groups of persons deeply engaged in perusing "Amélie Gale," and other tracts. Many more applied to me for tracts when my supply was totally exhausted.

At St. Servan I was one morning, before breakfast, distributing some tracts in a lane leading from the town to the country, and had entered a cottage where there were some clean rustics and well dressed females. Not one of them could read, but a voice from the outside said, "Je sais lire," the whole company then went out from the cottage to two " blanchisseuses" with immense loads of clothes on their heads, and one of them stood thus reading the tract to the others, until, feeling pained to see her under such a burden, I gave her one to take home, and she left the other for the cottagers.

My wife gave the tract" Fool's Pence" to a woman in Gosport. She afterwards came and said that a man who was in the habit of drinking had read it, and said the publican should have no more of his fool's pence.

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From a Correspondent on the Coast.

Tracts circulated by Fishermen.

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I HAVE given away a large number of French tracts lately to the fishermen from the opposite coast, who come here during the herring season. There are two pious fishermen in this town, who, not long since, went to business. I freighted their boat with French Bibles, Testaments, and tracts, all of which they distributed. "On reaching one of them says, "I took a bundle of tracts into the market-place and lifted up my heart to God in prayer that he would give me the opportunity of distributing some of these books." That opportunity was soon afforded. A woman came up to him and having received one she went away; others then applied to him. At last these good men had a difficulty to get through the streets, so thronged were they by persons desirous of getting a tract. At night, when they retired to their boat to sleep, some went down to the shore to them in the dark to ask for tracts, who were probably afraid or ashamed to do so in the day. is a fishing town, and it evidently excited surprise and interest among its inhabitants to find two English fishermen giving away these religious books. This was exactly the effect I hoped for. The influence of the priests, even among such a population, is on the decline. One of them snatched from a young man his tract, who instantly declared if it was not given back he would get another. The priest restored it. In prosecuting their business, our two friends met with a young gentleman who was expressing a great desire to go to a large fair. They reasoned with him (he spoke English) on the evil of such places, and dissuaded him from going. To strengthen his purpose they gave him some tracts. He read them, acknowledged that his humble monitors were right, and promised not to go. He asked for and received more tracts for other members of his family.

FORTY days together had the Philistines and Israelites faced each other: they pitched on two hills, one in the sight of the other; nothing but a valley was betwixt them: both stand on defence and advantage: if they had not meant to fight, they had never drawn so near; and if they had been eager to fight, a valley could not have parted them. Actions of hazard require deliberation.

Joshua destroyed the giant Anakim out of the land of Israel, yet some were left; both to show Israel what adversaries their forefathers found in Canaan, and whom they mastered; as also, that God might win glory to himself by these subsequent executions. Of that race was Goliath, whose strength was answerable to his stature, his weapons answerable to his strength, his pride exceeded all.

Carnal

hearts are carried away with presumption of their own abilities; and, not finding matches to themselves in outward appearance, insult over the impotence of inferiors; and, as those that can see no invisible opposition, promise themselves certainty of success. Insolence and self-confidence argue the heart to be but a lump of proud flesh.

The first challenge of duel, that ever we find, came out of the mouth of an uncircumcised Philistine; yet was that in open war, and tended to the saving of many lives, by adventuring one or two; and whosoever imitates, nay, surpasses him in challenge to private duels, in the attempt No. 40. APRIL, 1837.

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