Jehoshaphat. It is adorned with Grecian enrichments; probably such adornments on the tombs of the prophets, gave rise to Christ's expression of the "garnishing of the sepulchres." The Jews still throw stones at Absalom's tomb as they pass, expressive of detestation of his conduct. T. R. G. P. LITTLE THINGS. WE were all at our games in the play-ground, with sparkling eyes and ruddy cheeks, when a tall man stepped across the street from the doctor's house, and came among us, he had a smile on his face as though he was pleased to see us happy, and yet he looked thoughtful. We wondered who the tall man could be. He stood on the step by the school-door, and beckoned us with his hand in a minute or two we were all around him. He was dressed in a loose grey coat, and his white hair waved in the wind. We had never seen him before: we had never heard of him; and yet we loved him before he opened his lips, he seemed so mild and kind. What he was going to say to us we could not tell. "Hearken to me!" said he, "hearken to me! This is the lesson that I wish to impress on your youthful hearts. Never despise little things. That which is little at one time may become great at another, for little beginnings have oftentimes great endings. "All great things are made up of little things: the sea is formed of drops of water; the highest mountains are composed of grains of earth; and time itself is made up of moments. Remember, then, 'While time is spreading wide his wings, "You have all of you made paper boats. I made one yesterday, and set it on the water of the running rivulet, and pleasantly did it glide down the stream. It came to a part where the rivulet divided one stream went among the flowery fields, and the other ran into the brook by the water-mill. For a moment I did not know which of the two streams the boat would take; it was at last sailing for the meadows, but a little straw turned it suddenly towards the mill. On it went rapidly, and in a few minutes it was carried round by the water-wheel, and destroyed. It was the little straw that occasioned its destruction, and a little thing may occasion yours. Be cautious, then; be cautious! 'While care around his shadow flings, For a moment the tall man made a pause, and looked at us as if he wanted to know whether or not he was making an impression on our minds; he then again went on :—“A rat once bored a little hole through the bank of a river, and the water trickled through it in drops. But the little hole soon became larger, and the trickling drops turned into a stream. The stream strengthened itself by degrees, till it broke down the bank, and the rushing water of the river carried away the neighbouring cottages, and overflooded the surrounding lands. A servant man once dropped a spark among some dry straw. It was but a little spark, but for all that it set the barn on fire. The wind blew and the fire flared, till it caught the farm-house and burned it down to the very ground. If a little hole may be the means of breaking down a river's bank, and a little spark destroy a farm-house, have a care that no little error of yours may lead you into evil. While every day its evil brings, Take special care of little things.'" Here the tall man stopped again, as though he would give us time to reflect on what he had said, after which he continued his remarks: "Do you know your own hearts? No, that you do not. There are many evil things in the world, but the heart is the worst among them all. Every bad thought, bad word, and bad deed of a human being comes out of its heart. Look at the oak-tree yonder; why, big as it is, it sprang from a little acorn! A little sin in the heart grows faster than a little acorn in the ground. I see that you have gardens near your play-ground, and I dare say that you weed them well. Weed your hearts as well as your gardens. I knew a boy who had a weed in his heart that he did not pull up by the roots—a bad thought that he made no effort to check. It tempted him to run away from his parents and go to sea. At first it was but a little longing, then it became a strong desire, and at last a headstrong determination. To sea he went, where he passed through unnumbered hardships; and what was the end of his career? He brought down both his parents, by his disobedience, with sorrow to the grave; and perished himself by shipwreck in the raging waves. Be mindful! 'If every heart to evil clings, Take special care of little things.' The tall man saw that we all listened to him. Our eyes were fixed on his face, and we lost not a single word that fell from his lips as he thus went on :— "Some day or other many of you may become apprentices. An apprentice-boy was once tempted to take a little pleasure on the Sabbath-day, instead of going to the house of God; but that little pleasure was his ruin. It is the first little step that leads the wanderer astray. The apprentice-boy so enjoyed his pleasure, that the next Sabbath-day he took it again. It became a habit: his bad companions led him on from one thing to another, till they brought him to ruin. He learned to lie, to swear, to steal, and to rob on the highway. His pleasure was little, but the misery it brought upon him was great. Take warning by my words! While pleasure like a syren sings, Take special care of little things.'" We here thought that the tall man had come to a close, but we were wrong, for after waiting a very little while, he again went on : "Our lives are made up of seconds, and a second is a very little portion of time; yet despise it not, for you know not how few such little portions may be yours. A multitude of young people die, where one old man is carried to the grave. None can escape death; neither the young nor the old, the fearful nor the bold. The wise man dies in his wisdom, and the fool in his folly, the rich in his wealth, and the poor in his poverty. Think then, of death; but think also of Him who died, that they who trust in him may live for ever-even Jesus Christ. It was but yesterday that I visited the burialplace of a king. Neither his wealth nor his wide dominion could protect him from the grave. Be mindful, then, of the moments; the little portions of time that make up your lives : 'If time and death can conquer kings, Take special care of little things.'" • The tall man here came down from the step: but a sudden thought seemed to strike him, and he again stood upon it, speaking thus: "One more remark, and I have done. Never despise little things, for a little diamond is worth more than a large pebble. Above all things, never despise little texts of Scripture. Here is one; All have sinned.' (Rom. iii. 23.) Here is another; 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.' (1 Tim. i. 15.) Why, these little texts are worth a large library of common books. Fear God and keep his commandments. Love the Saviour, and while the birds are warbling in the air, and Christian people are singing God's praise on the earth, join you in their hallelujahs! 'While earth and air with rapture rings, Take special care of little things.' Here the tall man ended his remarks, came among us, walked with us round the play-ground, visited our gardens, talked with us kindly, and gave us a number of nice little books, and shook us by the hand, and bade us farewell. We know not whether he has forgotten us; but I hardly think that we shall ever forget him, or the lesson he gave us about little things.-Child's Companion. MEMOIR OF JAMES TURNER, OF PRESTON. THE subject of this memoir was born in the town of Preston, in the year 1836. His early years were distinguished by a marked affection for, and respect to, his parents. His delight was to render them a cheerful and ready obedience. He was rarely known wilfully to cause them sorrow or grief. He was naturally endowed with a mild and amiable disposition; and these graces gave a peculiar softness to his address, and kindness to all his words and actions. Early impressed with the truth that "evil communications corrupt good manners," made him select in the choice of companions. He avoided the company of the dissolute and profane, and, long before his conversion, his friends were those who went with him to the house of God. Many pleasing incidents might here be cited, illustrative of this and other traits of his character, that might serve as beacons and examples to youth; but these would enlarge the present memorial beyond its prescribed limits. His connection with the Sunday-school began when he was only four years of age. Having a quick perception, and retentive memory, and ardent desire for learning, he was soon enabled to read the Holy Scriptures; and frequently, when very young, the appeals of the Bible aroused his conscience, and showed him his need of a Saviour. In |
