to you.' But," continued my uncle, "the present embarrassed state of his affairs, and the darkened prospects of his family, too painfully prove, that his habits of wanton, reckless expenditure have been of serious consequence to his wife, and to all connected with him. Nor is it in pecuniary expenses alone, that this person, and others, who, like him, are bent on their own gratification, say, they don't care what it costs. They don't care what restraints they break through; they don't care what wounds they inflict on those whom they ought to revere, love, and cherish; they don't care what consequences they entail on themselves by their headstrong folly. 'Get it for me, it pleases me well,' is the language of their turbulent passions; and, like him of old, who uttered it, they generally find, as the result, that, in pleasing their eager fancy, they have plagued their hearts. I think you were quite right in telling little Ellen that Don't care is always a bad word."

My conscience reproached me as uncle made this remark, for my own experience confirmed the truth of his observation; happily it was in a comparatively small matter. About four miles from my uncle's residence is a high hill, a part of which being excavated to a great depth, many marine productions in a fossil state are found bedded in the earth. I had long had a desire to collect some of these monuments of antiquity; and one hot summer's day I obtained a basket from Mrs. Rogers, who did not question me as to the object of my expedition, but supposed I was going to gather strawberries, or to collect plants. She, however, charged me to keep in the shade, and not overheat myself. After a toilsome walk, I

reached the spot; spent an hour or two in exploring the cleft and collecting specimens, with which I filled my basket, and, placing it on my head, returned with my cumbrous load. With difficulty I reached home, and on setting down my basket, I sunk down, completely overcome with heat and fatigue. "Oh, master Samuel, master Samuel! what have you been doing? Little did I think, when you came to me for the basket, what you were after. To think of your toiling up that hill this hot day, and bringing home this load of stones! Why it is enough to be the death of you!" Such were the exclamations that awaited me on my returning to consciousness: " There, he is coming to, now-but-poor dear! how his head throbs! Does it not ache very badly?" I could not deny that I had a bad headach. "But," said I, "what do I care for the headach? Look at my basket of fossils!" A serious illness was the result; and I learned that pleasure may be bought too dear, and that the achievement of a favourite object is not always an adequate return for the cost and risk incurred in obtaining it.

But I must briefly mention a few more instances of the "Don't care spirit, as they were spoken of at my uncle's, or have since come under my own observation.

There is the "Don't care of procrastination. "I fully meant to have discharged such a duty; or done such an act of kindness; or made such an effort at usefulness, to-day, but I quite forgot it. Ah, well, I don't care,' I can do it to-morrow." But oh! how impossible is it that to-morrow, in addition to its own duties, should bear the superadded burden of the neglects of its predecessor!

How very probable is it that there will not even be an attempt to fulfil the resolve entered into in so careless a spirit, to say nothing of the uncertainty of to-morrow coming at all.

"I

There is the "Don't care" of self-will. don't care what mischief I do in effecting my purpose. I am determined to accomplish a certain object; and if one method fails, I will try another." Alas! how many individuals have been ruined, families divided, and societies broken up, to effect the unhallowed purpose of one self-willed, ambitious, and powerful man!

There is the "Don't care of childish perverseness. "If I cannot have it exactly my own way, I don't care about it at all. I will throw away the thing altogether." Thus the king of Israel cared not for all his extensive possessions and dominions, because he could not obtain one little plot of ground to grow a few herbs on, 1 Kings xxi. And all the greatness, and wealth, and honour of Haman availed nothing to his content or satisfaction, so long as he saw Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate, Esther v. 9-13.

There is the "Don't care" of bitter resentment. "He has offended me, and I will have my revenge on him." "But it will do you no good to injure him." "I don't care for that; revenge is sweet." The following is a fact :-Two builders resided next door to each other. Both were desirous of

obtaining a certain contract. The tender of one was accepted. The other, enraged at his disappointment, declared he would leave no means untried to injure his rival. The houses which the two parties occupied had been built before the modern enactment that requires party walls, and

the house of J. had been built to the wall of D. Hence D. had the legal right to pull down his own wall: a right of which he was inhuman enough to avail himself, at a time when he knew that the wife of J. was just confined in the room which he laid open. No remonstrances, concessions, or offers of remuneration on the part of J., could divert him from his malevolent purpose. This most unseasonable exposure to cold threw the poor woman into a rheumatic fever: for two years she was unable to walk; and, though she lived many years afterwards, she suffered excruciating pain in her limbs to the day of her death. The unhappy D. did not long enjoy his revenge; for, while superintending the work of spoliation, he fell from the top of a ladder, and broke his leg, of which he died.

There is the "Don't care "that expresses disregard of the admonition of danger. "Such a practice is dangerous. It may not be absolutely sinful; but it is not 'lovely' or 'of good report.' Your conduct may give occasion, to those who would seek occasion, to speak evil of you. It would be wiser and safer to alter your course." Such admonitions are too often met with the reply, "I don't care what people say of me: they are not my judges. If my own conscience does not condemn me, I don't care for the opinion of others." But you ought to care. It is mentioned to the honour of ancient believers, and as a matter of consistency with what God, and the church, and the world had a right to expect from them, that they." obtained a good report," Heb. xi. 39; and others are spoken of, professors of religion, yet who follow pernicious ways, by reason

of whom the way of truth is evil spoken of, 2 Peter ii. 2. A Christian is bound to avoid not only evil, but the very appearance of evil, 1 Thess. v. 22; and not only not to open the mouths of gainsayers, but, by his well doing, to put to silence the ignorance of foolish men, I Pet. ii. 15; and the professor, who can be careless as to what people think or say of him, so far from satisfying himself that he has the testimony of a good conscience, ought to suspect himself, lest his conscience should be blinded or seared, since it allows him to retain so favourable an opinion of conduct, which, in the eyes of other people, is inconsistent and censurable.

not care

Then, again, "Take care-such an act is dangerous; though in itself seemingly trifling, it may prove the beginning of evil." Who is it that makes light of such an admonition? that "does "for the caution? that flatters himself there can be no great harm in such a thing for once, and is sure that he is in no danger of making a practice of it? It is he, who, in presumptuous folly, seats himself on the sands of the sea-shore, and will not retreat, though warned, on the approach of the waves; but flatters himself of security, in saying to the rising element, "Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further." Yes; and he who despises caution against the incipient power of a habit, is the same who, in a little time, gives himself up to the determined indulgence of habit, and still meets remonstrance with, "I don't care; I cannot help it now; I have loved idols, and after them I will go," Jer. ii. 25.

There is the "Don't care" of unbelief and presumption. I heard a flippant daughter of vanity