what you clearly demonstrate from the Scripture, if he hath clear brains; if he hath not, your force may puzzle and puddle his brains more by the passion of anger and hatred, may make him abhor you and your arguments, but never lovingly embrace you or them; and thus you may hazard his soul by hatred, and your own soul also by provoking him to it, but never save his soul by a true belief. But, perchance, you will conclude that he doth not believe the Seripture, because he doth not believe your arguments from Scripture (a strange conclusion!)-but what then? Would you, can you, force him to believe the Scripture? Can you drive faith, like a nail, into his head or heart with a hammer? Nay, it is not in a man's own power to make himself believe any thing farther than his reason shows him, much less divine things.-Dr. Herbert Croft-Naked Truth.

CXIV.

Savages first seeing a Watch.—One morning, during Finnow's stay at this island, some of the natives brought Mr. Mariner's watch, which they had procured from his chest, and with looks of curiosity, inquired what it was. He took it from them, wound it up, put it to the ear of one of them, and returned it. Every hand was now outstretched with eagerness to take hold of it;-it was applied by turns to their ears; they were astonished at the noise it made; they listened again to it, turned it on every side, and exclaimed, "Mo-ooi!" (It is alive!) They then pinched and hit it, as if expecting it would speak out. They looked at each other with wonder, laughed aloud, and snapped their fingers. One brought a sharp stone for Mr. Mariner to force it open with. He opened it in the proper way, and showed them the works. Several endea

voured to seize hold of it at once, but one ran off with it, and all the rest after him. About an hour afterwards they returned with the watch completely broken to pieces; and giving him the fragments, made signs to make him do as it did before. Upon his making them understand that they had killed it, and that it was impossible to bring it to life again, the man, who considered it as his property, exclaiming mow-mow (spoiled!) and making a hissing noise, expressive of disappointment, accused the rest of using violence, and they in return accused him and each other. Whilst they were in high dispute, another native approached, who had seen and learned the use of a watch on board a French ship. Understanding the cause of their dispute, he called them all cow vale (a pack of fools,) and explained in the following manner, the use of the watch:—making a circle in the sand, with sundry marks about its circumference, and turning a stick about the centre of the circle, to represent an index, he informed them that the use of the watch was to tell where the sun was: that when the sun was in the east, the watch would point to such a mark, and when the sun was highest it would point here, and when in the west it would point there; and this, he said, the watch would do, although it was in a house and could not see the sun: adding, that in the night-time it would tell what portion of a day's length it would be before the sun would rise again, It would be difficult to convey an adequate idea of their astonishment, One said it was an animal, another said it was a plant; but when he told them it was manufactured, they all exclaimed, "Foonnooa boto!" (What an ingenious people!) -Mariner's Account of the Tonga Islands.

CXV.

Church Reform.-I don't know any thing which requires a greater reform than the state of the clergy; as brethren they should be more upon a level, not so much for their own sakes, as for that of religion; for themselves, it would only be lowering the pride of the exalted, and raising the humility of the oppressed. It may be necessary to keep up a subordination in the church, but it is not necessary, for its dignity, that any of its professors should have £5000 or £6000 a-year, and be called "My-Lord." In Scotland, where religion is as much respected as in any country in the world, few of its professors have more than £200 a year; but if it is requisite, where the episcopacy is established, to have several subordinate classes of clergy, bishops should have sufficient to place them above acts of simony, to enable them, yearly or oftener, to visit the remotest parts of their diocesses, and keep an open table occasionally for the reception of their clergy. £1500 a-year would be sufficient for this purpose, and then archdeacons might be dispensed with; as, should a bishop at any time be ill, he might depute some rector to officiate for him, as judges do the serjeants at law, in their respective circuits. The clergy in France, Holland, and the Roman Catholic clergy in Ireland, have no such large incomes, and yet a proper subordination is observed; and they are comfortably and honourably provided for: but so great is the present disparity, in the income of our clergy, that many incumbents have £2000 a-year, whilst others have not £30; and let a man's living be as great as it may, he never thinks of giving his curate more than it is in the power of his diocesan to compel him.-Rev. Dr. Trusler's Memoirs.

CXVI.

Physic.-Physic, for the most part, is nothing else but the substitute of exercise or temperance.-Addison.

CXVII.

Imaginary Evils.—Imaginary evils soon become real ones, by indulging our reflections on them; as he who is in a melancholy fancy sees something like a face on the wall or wainscot, can, by two or three touches with a lead pencil, make it look visible, and agreeing with what he fancied.-Swift.

CXVIII.

Conversation.-There is speaking well, speaking easily, speaking justly, and speaking seasonably. It is offending against the last, to speak of entertainments before the indigent; of sound limbs and health before the infirm; of houses and lands before one who has not so much as a dwelling; in a word, to speak of your prosperity before the miserable; this conversation is cruel, and the comparison, which naturally rises in them betwixt their condition and yours, is excruciating.-Bruyere.

CXIX.

Self-Love.-Self-love is a principle in human nature of such extensive energy, and the interest of each individual is, in general, so closely connected with that of the community, that those philosophers were excusable, who fancied that all our concern for the public might be resolved into a concern for our own happiness and preservation.Hume.

cxx.

A Motive to virtue.-Allowing the performance of an honourable action to be attended with labour, the labour is soon over, but the honour is immortal: whereas, should even pleasure wait on the commission of what is dishonourable, the pleasure is soon gone, but the dishonour is eternal. John Stewart.

CXXI.

Time Mispent. We all complain of the shortness of time, and yet have much more than we know what to do with. Our lives are spent either in doing nothing at all, or in doing nothing to the purpose, or in doing nothing that we ought to do; we are always complaining our days are few, and acting as though there would be no end of them. Seneca.

CXXII.

The Mind. The mind has a certain vegetative power, which cannot be wholly idle. If it is not laid out and cultivated into a beautiful garden, it will of itself shoot up in weeds or flowers of a wild growth.-Spectator.

CXXIII.

A Secret.-It is a secret known but to a few, yet of no small use in the conduct of life, that when you fall into a man's conversation, the first thing you should consider is, whether he has a greater inclination to hear you, or that you should hear him.-Steele.

CXXIV.

Effects of Prohibition.-Man seldom has a strong desire for any lawful thing that is easily obtained. We are