These charges, though awful, you cannot deny. How great then must be your guilt, and how imminent your danger! It is nothing less than everlasting punishment, a state of endless woe and misery, wherein you will be tormented by unavailing sorrow and regret, by despair and remorse of conscience, together with the just severities of the divine displeasure, which will be as a worm that dieth not, and as a fire that is not quenched. And do not flatter yourselves that this is a light matter, or that these miseries may either be avoided or terminated. Consider well what has been said upon the certainty and eternity of future punishment. A hasty or prejudiced look into these subjects will do you no good, and may do you immense harm. Do not jest with things so serious, do not trifle with interests so vast; but weigh the arguments with the utmost attention, and then say whether you are willing to risk the consequences of a life spent in sin. Now you are probationers for the kingdom of heaven. Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation. You now have the offer of salvation. In the name of Christ, and in the presence of all these, his ministers, I make you the offer of salvation upon condition of repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ; and these shall be witnesses against you in that day, if you are found in your sins. Yes, your blood shall be upon your own heads, if you perish with a Saviour in your view. Turn, therefore, to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to-day do I declare that I will render double unto you, saith the Lord. To whom be glory for ever. Amen. Biography. MEMOIR OF THE REV. WILLIAM PENN CHANDLer. THE subject of this memoir, was born in Charles county, Maryland, June 22d, 1764. At the age of twenty-six years, he experienced the work of regeneration, on the 20th of August, 1790, at half past 8 o'clock in the evening, in St. George's Church, in Philadelphia. He was admitted into the Travelling Connexion on probation, at the Philadelphia Conference in 1797, and appointed to Strasburg circuit. In 1798 he travelled on Strasburg and Chester circuits. In 1799 he was admitted into full connexion, ordained deacon and appointed to Cecil circuit, and in 1800 he travelled Cecil and Dover. In 1801 he was ordained elder, and appointed to Bristol. In 1802 he was stationed in Philadelphia, and in 1803 he travelled Milford circuit. In 1804 he was appointed presiding elder on Delaware district, which office he filled with uncommon success for four years; and in 1808 he was put in charge of Chesapeake district, where his health failing, he was entered on the minutes at the following conference supernumerary, but without a station. In 1810 he was stationed on Bristol circuit, and in 1811 his health failing, he took a superannuated relation. He received a location in 1813. Such, however, was his inviolable attachment to the Travelling Connexion, that in the last year of his life, he begged the privilege of dying with his itinerant brethren, and his humble, affectionate request was granted, and his name was enrolled on the minutes with his superannuated brethren, at the Philadelphia Conference, in May, 1822, and on the 8th of December following he was welcomed into the joy of his Lord. That unerring hand, which led him to his crown conducted, him to it in the following manner, viz. On the first Sabbath in May, 1820, while our beloved brother was in the delightful work of preaching a crucified Saviour, in Ebenezer church in Philadelphia, he was visited with a paralytic shock, which disabled wholly his left side, from which he never fully recovered. In July 1822 he took a voyage to the West-Indies, under the nursing hand of his affectionate wife, for the amendment of his health; and after a passage of twenty-four days, arrived in St. Eustatia, and on the week following, he had a second stroke of the Palsy, and that on his right side, which after his return home, and lingering twelve weeks, terminated his mortal career. A specimen of the general state of his mind as the closing scene drew near, may appear from the following fact, viz. His class-leader, Brother T. Jackson, on his way to church one Sabbath, calling to see him, he inquired of Brother J. the day of the week, and on hearing the word Sunday; "Sunday!" said the triumphant saint, "Go then to the meeting and tell them that I am dying, shouting the praises of God." His ecstacy then being very great, he turned to his wife and said, "My dear Mary, open the window, and let me proclaim to the people in the streets the goodness of God." An affectionate brother, a Physician, gives the following account. "I visited Dr. Chandler daily during his last illness, which was of long_continuance; his disease was an almost universal Paralysis. The attack had at first been confined to one side and after a partial recovery only of that side, the other became affected in like manner with the first. His mind as well as his body, felt the effects of the disease, which at times caused a considerable derangement of intellect: but notwithstanding the confusion that was apparent in his mental operations, his constant theme was his God and the salvation of his soul: and on these subjects it was truly surprising to hear him converse. Although Dr. Chandler seemed incapable of rational reflection on other subjects, yet on that of religion, at intervals, he never conversed with more fluency, correctness and feeling, at any period of his life. He appeared to be exceedingly jealous of himself, and occasionally labouring under fear, lest he might have deceived himself, and that he should finally become a cast-away; but of these apprehensions he was generally relieved, whenever we approached a throne of grace, which we were in the habit of doing on almost every visit. In this state he remained until within a few days of his death, when the Lord was graciously pleased, in a most extraordinary manner, to pour out his Spirit upon his servant; and although his body was fast sinking, his mind for two days was restored to perfect vigour and correctness. During this time, he seemed to be in the borders of the heavenly inheritance. He spoke of the glories, the joys, and the inhabitants of heaven, as though he had been in the midst of them. He remarked to me at the time, that he felt that his soul had begun to dissolve its connection with the body; and that there was a freedom, a clearness and ease in its views and operations, that were entirely new to him, and that he had never before formed a conception of in fact, said he, I know not whether I am in the body or out of it. Soon after this he sunk into a stupor, in which he remained to the last. On the Sabbath following, his funeral sermon was preached by the author of these lines, to a large and deeply affected congregation, from these fine words of the Apostle, But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them that are asleep, and that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope." As a Christian, and as a Christian minister, W. P. Chandler was a man of no ordinary grade. In his deportment, dignity and humility, fervour and gentleness, plainness and brotherly kindness, with uniform piety, were strikingly exemplified. In the pulpit, his soul was in his eloquence, his Saviour was his theme; and the Divine unction that rested upon him, and the evangelical energy of his sermons, gave a success to his labours, that has been exceeded by few. He studied to shew himself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth: and how good a proficient he was in this study, thousands who were blessed under his ministry, can heartily testify: many of whom are living witnesses of the happy effects of his labours, while he is now reaping his eternal reward. Scripture Illustrated. ILLUSTRATION OF HEBREWS XI. 35. And others were tortured, not expecting deliverance. A short account of the BASTINADO, supposed to be referred to in this verse. On the 15th of Nov. 1779, Mr. Antes, returning from a short country excursion to Grand Cairo, was seized by some of the attendants of Osman Bey, a Mamaluke chief; and, after stripVOL. VI. 42 ping him of his clothes, they demanded money; which he not having about him, they dragged him before the Bey, telling him that he was a European, from whom he might get something. In order to extort money from him, the Bey ordered him to be bastinadoed: they first threw him down flat on his face, and then bent up his legs, so that the soles of his feet were horizontal; they then brought a strong staff, about six feet long, with an iron chain fixed to it at both ends. This chain they threw round both feet above the ancles, and twisted them together; and two fellows on each side, provided with what they call a corbage, held up the soles of the feet by means of the stick. When thus placed, an officer whispered in his ear, "Do not suffer yourself to be beaten; give him a thousand dollars, and he will let you go." Mr. Antes, not willing to give up the money which he had received for the goods of other merchants, refused: the two men then began to beat the soles of his feet, at first moderately; but when a second application for money was refused, and then the demand was two thousand dollars, they began to lay on more roughly, and every stroke felt like the application of a red hot poker. Finding they could get no money, supposing he might have some choice goods, a third application was made to him by the officer: he told them he had a fine silver-mounted blunderbuss at his lodging which he would give The Bey asked what he offered; the officer sneered, and said, bir carabina, i. e. one blunderbuss;" on which the Bey said, ettrup il kulp, "beat the dog." Then they began to lay on with all their might. "At first," says Mr. Antes, "the pain was excruciating; but, after some time, my feeling grew numb, and it was like beating a bag of wool." Finding that nothing was to be got from him, and knowing that he had done nothing to deserve punishment; the Bey ordered them to let him go. One of the attendants anointed his feet, and bound them up with some rags, put him on an ass, and conducted him to his house in Cairo, and laid him on his bed, where he was confined for six weeks before he could walk even with crutches; and for more than three years his feet and ancles were very much swelled; and, though twenty years had elapsed when he published this account; his feet and ancles were affected, that, on any strong exertion, they were accustomed to swell. 66 He mentions instances of the bastinado having been applied for three days successively; and, if the person survived, the feet were rendered useless for life; but in general, he observes, when they have received between five and six hundred strokes, the blood gushes from their mouth and nose, and they die either under or soon after the operation. How he felt his mind affected on this distressing occasion, he thus piously describes: "I at once gave up myself for lost, well knowing that my life depended on the caprice of a brute, in hu man shape; and having heard and seen such examples of unrelenting cruelty, I could not expect to fare better than others had done before me: I had therefore nothing left but to cast myself on the mercy of God, commending my soul to him; and indeed I must in gratitude confess, that I experienced His support most powerfully; so that all fear of death was taken from me; and if I could have bought my life for one halfpenny, I should, I believe, have hesitated to accept the offer." Observations on the Manners, &c. of the Egyptians, by REFLECTIONS ON THE ATMOSPHERE, BY THE REV. J. HERVEY. "Ir we turn our thoughts to the atmosphere, we find a most curious and exquisite apparatus of air. This is a source of innumerable advantages; all which are fetched from the very jaws of ruin. To explain this: the pressure of the air on a person of a moderate size is equal to the weight of twenty thousand pounds. Tremendous consideration! Should a house fall upon us with half that force, it would break every bone of our bodies. Yet so admirably has the Divine Wisdom contrived the air, and so nicely counterpoised its dreadful power, that we suffer no manner of inconvenience; we even enjoy the load. Instead of being as a mountain on our loins, it is as wings to our feet, or sinews to our limbs. Is not this common ordination of Providence, somewhat like the miracle of the burning bush? Well may we say unto God, O how terrible, yet how beneficent art thou in thy works! "The air, though too weak to support our flight is a thoroughfare for innumerable wings. Here the whole commonwealth of birds expatiate, beyond the reach of their adversaries. Were they to run upon the earth, they would be in ten thousand dangers, without strength to resist, or speed to escape them: whereas by mounting the skies, they are secure from peril, they 'scorn the horse and his rider.' Some of them perching on the boughs, or soaring aloft, entertain us with their notes. Many of them yield us wholesome and agreeable food, and yet give us no trouble, put us to no expence, but till the time we want them, are wholly out of the way. "The air is charged also with several offices, absolutely needful for mankind. In our lungs it ventilates the blood, qualifies its warmth, promotes the animal secretions. We might live even months, without the light of the sun, yea, or the glimmering of a |