neral fatisfaction. In this important connection he was considered as a valuable and useful member.

But now we have a fad reverse to relate. This unhappy young man, after walking in the main confiftently for fome years, moft awfully fell by the hand of the enemy. failed in the hour of temptation; and, by one fad instance of departure from God, he deftroyed his peace of mind, fcandalized the facred name he bore, and pierced through his own foul with the feftering arrow of kecneft remorse. By the great goodness of God, he was not permitted actually to accomplith the crime to which he was tempted, but the dreadful confequences were nearly the fame. The following are his own words:

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Ah, my friend! little did I think, as we took sweet tounfel together about the things of God, on our walk to that only four days were to clapfe till I should act the part of a perjured traitor to my adorable Lord. O how deceitful is fin! or rather, how deceitful and defperately wicked the heart of a fallen finner! Should I attempt to trace the progrefs of the enemy, I would defcribe it thus: Your expreffions of warm affection-fuffer me to say they were too flattering-became, through my corruption, an incitement to that fatal difpofition, fpiritual pride. Through the blindness of self-complacency, I became heedlefs and unwatchful over that befetting fin which I may properly call mine own iniquity. Thus I was an eafy prey to the violence of a strong affault. Inftead of crying mightily to God for ftrength and deliverance, I tampered with the propenfity, I fanned the flames, and, to finish the tragedy, I defperately fell in with the temptation. Pity me, O my friend! for the hand of God hath touched me. I truft he has pardoned mine iniquity through the blood of an almighty Saviour; but my bones are broken, and my wounds corrupt, because of my foolishness. I must go mourning all my days in the bitterneís of cutting anguith and remorfe."

We have reafon to believe that the Shepherd of Ifrael did not fuffer this wanderer to continue in the pit into which he had fallen; but that he was graciously recovered from his backflidings by an immediate work of humiliation and repentance. Near a year has now elapfed fince the deplorable fall; but the righteous God is ftill vifiting the wretched E. with the rod of his chailifing hand. His foul is bowed down to the duft, and his wounds bleed afresh. So evil and bitter is it to forfake the Lord, and turn afide to lying vamities.

Chriftian

Chriftian reader! learn from this awful example to walk humbly, watchfully, and confcientiously. Thou ftandeft by faith; be not high-minded, but fear. If thou wouldít avoid fuch a fate, if thou wouldst enjoy peace of confcience, if thou wouldft walk in the light of God's favour, if thou wouldst honour thy profeffion, beware of felf-esteem, felf-dependence, and felf-pleafing. Live by faith on the fulness of Jefus; and in him thou wilt have not only pardon and righteousness, but holiness and strength.'

DEAR SIR,

FAMILY GOVERNMENT.

N the Supplement to the Evangelical Magazine for the year 1793, is a fenfible and pious paper on the prefent neglect of Religious Education; and it must be admitted, that the complaints on this fubject, and the evil confequences refulting from that neglect, are but too well founded. But there is another subject which must be confidered as being of equal importance, and without which even religious inftructions will, in general, have but little weight and influence towards forming the minds of children to habits of virtue and religion; and that is-Family Government. And I think that there is great reafon to lament the want of this in profeffing families. If, therefore, a few thoughts upon this fubject may be thought to deferve a place in your ufeful Mifcellany, they are at your service.

It may be taken for granted, that every pious parent feels very strongly for the future happinefs of his children, and that his own comfort and happiness are intimately concerned in that of his family. Now this commendable paffion, which is certainly improved by religion, will lead the parent to converfe frequently and familiarly with them, and toteach them betimes the distinction between good and evil, vice and virtue, and to exprefs his abhorrence of evil, and his approbation of virtuous actions.

It is a mistake, which there is reafon to believe many parents are chargeable with, to fuppofe that however perverfe children are when they are in their childhood, they will correct themfelves as they grow up. I allow that in fome inftances this may be the cafe: Childish things, which are but mere foibles, will be outgrown; but vicious difpo

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fitions,

sitions, froward and `undutiful tempers, if not corrected in time, will grow up with them, and the young masterless cub will grow up to be a lawless, ungovernable, and mifchievous bear; grow up to be at once the difgrace and plague of the parents, a peft to fociety, and, what is infinitely worse, a hardened rebel against God, a despicable outcast from the fociety of all wife and good men, and at last fink into remedilefs ruin. On the other hand, where a wife and judicious difcipline in the management of a family is exercifed, it may, in general, be expected that the members of it, and especially the children of it, who are more immediately the care of parents, will be dutiful, affectionate, obedient, and obliging in their tempers and manners; they will be confcientious in their whole conduct-be preferved from the vices and follies of youth-grow up in habits of modefty and virtue, of induftry and goodness-be held in esteem by all who know how to value real worth, and will be kept under the means of grace, which, through the bleffing of God, will make them wife, holy, and happy in time and to eternity. There is an important meaning in the words of the wife man, and it becomes the duty of every parent to learn the meaning of them-" Train up a child in the way he fhould go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it," and there is a wife meaning in that apoftolic exhortation, Eph. vi. 4. " And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord."

The first thing then that I would recommend to the attention of parents is, the beginning to exercife government at an early period. As foon as reafon begins to dawn, let the child know that you will be pleafed by being obeyed, or, in other words, by the child aiming to comply with your will, no matter in what, but in every little action of which it is capable, and that you will be offended by a refufal.

Secondly, the conduct of a parent fhould be exactly uniform, and all of a piece, firmly maintaining that authority which the law of God and of nature gives him; and at the fame time, let that authority be exercifed with that due ixture of mildnefs and affection, which is calculated to get and infpire reverence and love, and to convince his d or children of the reasonablenefs and propriety of his in all the reftrints which he lays them under, and ties he enjoins upon them; and that it is his love to his defire to promote their good, which dictate luct.

Thirdly,

Thirdly, another rule which a wife parent will lay down. to himself, will be this--Never, in any inftance, to fuffer himself to be difobeyed; but to infift perfeveringly on it, that he will be obeyed, that he will have his directions and injunctions regarded. Now if this rule be ftrictly adhered to, it will become a law to the family, and children will regard the parent's will as the rule of their conduct, and will not ordinarily depart or deviate from it; but will feel themfelves happy in having their parent's approbation, and proportionably feel themfelves unhappy, if, through indifcretion, they have incurred the parent's difpleafure, and will not be reconciled to themfelves, till the parent is reconciled to them, and harmony is reftored.

Fourthly, Parents ought, in order to the exercise of a proper goverment in their families, to exercife a due government over themselves, I mean over their own tempers; fo as never to be transported with an undue warmth, but let their refentment be proportioned to the nature of the offence. It is the great fault of fome parents to fuffer their anger to rife to a high degree against a child for fome trifling accident, while they will let difobedience, faucinefs, infolence, lying, or taking the name of God in vain, which are crimes of great turpitude, and should never efcape punifhment, pafs unnoticed and unregarded. Now fuch injudicious conduct in parents has a direct tendency to spoil the tempers of children, and to weaken, if not destroy, the parent's authority, and confequently to injure and ruin the morals of their children. If parents difcover anger, it fhould be at nothing but fin; and that is to be angry, and not fin.

Fifthly, Parents, who wish to maintain their authority in their families, muft of all things be cautious in their promifes and threatenings, and be punctual in both. One great object with a parent muft be, to poffefs himself of the full confidence of his children by his fidelity and ftrict adherence to truth; and therefore he must never deceive a child by promising it a favour which he does not mean to bestow, or by threatening it with a punishment which, in cafe of difobedience, he does not mean to inflict. I repeat it, that parents ought to be cautious never to promife any thing to their children, but as a reward of duty and obedience, and to promise nothing as a favour, but what they can and do mean to grant, if the condition of the promise on the child's part is complied with. And, on the other hand, a parent ought never (be the crime ever fo great) to threaten to

punish a child by a mode which he may not inflict. To luftrate this matter, I beg the reader's patience while relate a fact which fell under my own observation. My little boy, about five years of age, being at play with a neighbour's boy, about fix years of age, this neighbour's child, having been guilty of fome tranfgreffion, the mother threatened him in language to this effect: Sirrah, I'll knock your brains out, that I will." Upon hearing this, my little boy came home exceedingly terrified, and with tears in his eyes addreffed himself to his mamma, faying, Ma, S. S. is to have his brains knocked out.” To which it was replied, "Dear child, what do you talk about? I hope nothing fo dreadful will happen to him" to which he answered, But Ma, his mother told him, that he would knock his brains out;" and this idea feemed to poffefs the child's mind fo fully, that he could not be perfuaded to think that his neighbour would falfify her word; for he had no conception of a perfon faying what was not meant to be done; for he had never noticed fuch conduct before, and therefore lre firmly expected the fad catastrophe to follow. However, the next mornng my little boy faw his play-fellow in the full poffeffion of all his brains; at which fight he came home to exprefs his furprife, faying, "Ma, S. S. has not got his brains knocked out ! To which it was replied, "No, no, child, his mother did not mean any fuch thing; that would have been a fad fhocking thing indeed to knock her child's brains out!" To this he again replied, "But Ma, fhe faid the would; I heard her fay fhe would ;" and added, &C neighbour S. has told a fad ftory; has the not, Ma?** Well, this paffed off, and in the space of two or three days, this neighbour S. came to my houfe, and at that inftant my children were diverting themselves at play with each other, and making too much noife to fuit me; upon which I ordered them to be filent, and take themselves to their feats, which was immediately done. At this my

neighbour fignified furprise to fee my children fo governable, and expreffed a wish that her children were in fuch order: To which I answered, that, if the adopted my mode of management, the might obtain her with; and added, that I have laid down one thort rule, which I invariably, abide by; it is this, I will be obeyed; and all my children underftand that that is the law of my houfe, fo that they are feldom difpofed to difpute the point with me: But you will obferve, that I never enforce this law by threatening them