in his heart, and they serve as a memorial of kindness and love to man, and fidelity toward God, which accompanies him wherever he goes, and keeps him safe and happy. The Bible is thus a light to his feet and a lamp to his paths. Which, now, of these, do you think, reads the Bible aright?

8. Let no child who reads this understand me to say that I consider two verses enough of the Bible to read each day. What I mean by this case is, that so much more depends upon the spirit and manner with which the Bible is read, than the quantity, that a very small portion properly read, may be far more useful than a much larger quantity hurried over in a careless and thoughtless manner.

LESSON LIV.

THE NATURE OF SIN.

1. THERE is one thing that children ought to understand very distinctly about sin; and that is, that its chief seat is the heart. It exists in the heart, and it is very difficult to drive it out from there. Two boys were quarrelling one day, on the road to school. They got very angry, and began to strike each other. This was sin; but the sin was not so much in the striking, as in the feelings of malice, hatred, and revenge, in their hearts.

2. Presently they saw the teacher coming along; they were afraid of him; so they stopped striking each other, and walked along, calling each other hard names, and using all sorts of violent and threat

ening language. This, too, was sin; but the sin did not consist so much in the angry and wicked words, as in the feelings of malice, hatred, and revenge in their hearts. Soon the teacher came up so near them that they could not talk without being overheard. They stopped talking, therefore, and walked along eyeing each other with ferocious and angry looks. This, too, was sin; but the sin was not so much in the looks, as in the malice, hatred, and revenge, which still raged in their hearts.

3. When the teacher came up actually to them, they dared no longer to show their passions in their looks, but walked along as if nothing were the matter; but the malice, and hatred, and revenge, still burned in their hearts as much as before. The mere coming up of the teacher had first stopped the sinful actions, then the sinful words, and at last the sinful looks; but the sin still remained in the heart as bad as ever: and there it would be very hard to reach it.

4. In fact, all sin is really in the heart. If a boy disobeys his father or mother, the great wickedness is in his disobedient, ungrateful heart, not in the action; and if he is afraid to do the action, while yet he has disobedient and ungrateful feelings at heart, it is almost as bad. Sometimes great sin is committed, while the child who commits it, seems to be doing nothing at all.

5. Two deceitful boys, for example, were one day going to fire a little cannon behind the house, in a place where they thought their father would not see them. So they got the powder and the fire, and loaded the cannon, feeling all the time guilty and wretched. Just then, they heard a noise, and one of

them sa their father was coming; so they pushed the cannon under a log, threw away the fire, and stood still, trying to look unconcerned; their father, as he passed along, saw them, and supposed that they were about some innocent play, and went on.

6. Now, perhaps you may think, that the great sin which these boys committed, was getting the cannon and the powder, when they knew their father disapproved of it. But no, this was not their greatest sin. It was a very great sin, but not the greatest. The greatest was committed while they were standing there, doing nothing.

7. It was then that their hearts were in their most sinful state,-unfaithfulness, disobedience, deceit, hypocrisy, were the sins of heart, which they were committing, while they stood still, doing nothing, saying nothing, and looking careless and unconcerned. Thus you see that all sins really belong to the heart, and some of the very worst belong to the heart alone; and every child who reads or hears this will see, if he looks within, and thinks of his past life, that his heart often has been, and still is, sadly filled with sin.

LESSON LV.

THE DRUNKARD'S DEATH-BED.

1. MR. WODEN's habits brought him, at length, to the brink of the grave. He was sick,-dangerously so. His friends conversed with him, telling him freely of his danger; for they had no hope of his recovery;

and also talked with him plainly of his former course. Of this, however, there was little need, for his mind began to wake up of itself, and he saw with the clearness of light, the wretchedness of his case.

2. His mother was very anxious on his account, and often conversed with him, with the hope of leading him to God. One evening he was lying pale and emaciated upon his bed. The setting sun shone calmly in at the western windows, and all around was quiet and reposed. His mother was the only person present, and there was nothing to disturb the peace of a dying man.

3. Still he was uneasy; he had that within his own bosom which destroyed his peace; turbulent passions, troubled thoughts, distressing doubts and fears, produced a commotion within, an anxiety that took away all repose. As he tossed about upon his bed, restless and uneasy, and sighed from heaviness of heart, his mother inquired if she could relieve him.

4. "Oh no!" he replied, "my bed is easy enough, but my conscience troubles me.”

"What is the matter, Samuel?" asked his mother. "Why, mother, I shall not live long, and I am afraid to die. I believe there is a God, and I am going to meet him; but how I shall meet him, I do not know. Within a few days I have been thinking of my past life, and am troubled about it."

5. "You know what Jesus Christ has said in regard to all who come to him."

"Yes, I know that; but then think, mother, how I have conducted. Oh what a life I have led! If I had sinned through ignorance or heedlessness, it would be different; but when I have gone on so wil