While taking an airing one day in a chaise, says Mrs. E. with my mother and my little brother, we passed a circus. "Mother! mother!" said Thomas, with anticipations of joy beaming in his young face, "If papa is willing, may I go to the circus to night?" My mother replied with emphasis, "No, my son; when I dedicated you to God, I promised not only to train you up in the way you should go, but to restrain you from every evil way. If I should permit you to go to such places of amusement, I should violate my promise. Would you have me displease God?" I have heard my mother say, that a similar request was never afterwards made to her, by my little brother. For the Mother's Magazine. EVELINA. AN ADDRESS OF A TEACHER TO HER PUPILS. My dear young friends: When this Magazine first appeared, I thought it was designed only for mothers to read, and that others would take very little interest in it. But soon teachers began to read it. They found that it contained much which they ought to know; and I have often seen little girls and boys take it from their mothers' work table, and sit down and read whole pages of it. I hope you all read, not simply to pass away time, or to amuse yourselves, but for the better and more commendable purpose of learning something which will be useful to you, make you more intelligent, improve your moral character, and thus increase your capacity of doing good to others; for we cannot live in this world, without increasing the misery or the happiness, of those who are associated with us. We cannot live long in this world without making others better or worse, by our example. In proportion to the degree in which we affect their characters, will be our power over their minds; and this power we call influence. Now even a little child has influence at home and at school; and this influence is felt when you do not think of it, and others are often affected by it, when they do not know it. I will now give you some account of one of my pupils, which will illustrate what I mean. Evelina is the child of pious parents, who often told her when she was very young, that they desired nothing so earnestly, as that she might love God and serve Jesus Christ, in the days of her youth. They loved to pray with her, and to tell her how much the blessed Savior has done to save sin ners, and what he says of those who seek him early. She was so well in structed that she knew her duty when she was very young, and when she did wrong, could not plead that she did not know it. She was amiable in her disposition, kind in her deportment, attentive to her studies, and acquired a degree of intelligence, not often possessed by children of her age. When she was eleven years old, there was a very solemn season in the Church to which her parents belonged. A large number of people in the congregation young and old, became anxious about the salvation of their souls. The Holy Spirit seemed to pass from one to another, telling them that they were sinners; that if they did not repent, they would not go to Heaven, and that Jesus Christ was able and willing to save them, if they would only be sorry that they had sinned against God, and give up their opposition to him. Evelina felt that she had an interest in these scenes. She had learned that her heart was wicked, and she knew that with such feelings as she now possessed, she could not be happy in this world, nor even in Heaven, if she was there. She knew that God is angry with the wicked every day; and that while she continued such, God could not take any pleasure in her. She could not sleep at night, because she remembered so many of her sins, and knew that they were not pardoned. Her Parents and her Pastor prayed and talked with her, and tried to induce her to come to Jesus Christ immediately, who is always able and willing to save those who are sorry for their sins, determined to forsake them, and willing to give their hearts to him; for his blood cleanses from all sin. She went to the conference meeting, and while there and with her pious parents, she thought she could love God, confess and forsake her sins, and take Jesus Christ for her Savior. When she was with these good people, she was willing to be a Christian; but when she thought of her school-mates, who were all thoughtless and careless about their souls, who did not know any thing about such feelings as she had been the subject of for some days, and of her teacher who was not pious, she drew back from her purpose; she did not wish them to know how she had felt, through fear that they would think she had been more wicked than any one else. She knew there were some things done in school in which she could take no part; some amusements in which she could not participate, if she gave her heart to Jesus Christ. She did not care about the pleasure she derived from them, for she felt they could not make her happy; but she was afraid that they would laugh at her, and think her very foolish to mind such things. She made every effort to conceal her feelings, and to appear as gay and trifling as ever; and soon became quite contented to live without having a new heart, and knowing that her sins were pardoned for Jesus' sake. The Holy Spirit was grieved because she was ashamed of Christ, and I am afraid that this blessed agent has left her heart to grow more wicked every day. When she came to my school I found she did not love to read and talk about what Jesus Christ has done for poor sinners, as well as some of my other children, and I tried many ways to interest her mind in these subjects; but she appeared restlesss and uneasy, and would try to turn the subject to something else. All her duties were hurried, and her countenance often anxious, as if she was not happy. Here I must leave Evelina. You now see who influenced Evelina to reject Jesus Christ. If all the children, who read what I have written on this subject, will think of it, I have no doubt they will desire to do right, that they may influence others to do right. Love God and keep his commandments that your example may induce others to choose the path of wisdom, which is a pleasant one, and the end of which is peace. IOTA. WHO was Abraham's Father? In what place did his Father dwell? Why did Abraham leave his Father's house to go into a strange land? What blessing did the Lord promise him? Did Abraham believe that God would fulfil his promises? Heb. xi. 8. Whom did Abraham take with him? To what land did they go? At what place, in Canaan, did they stop? Who appeared unto Abraham at Sichem ? What promise did the Lord there make to Abraham? What did Abraham build there? Why did Abraham and his family go down to Egypt? Of what sin was Abraham guilty when he came near to Egypt? Is it ever right for children to deceive? Prov. xxiv. 28. In what manner did the Lord protect Sarai, in the house of Pharaoh ? When Abraham and Lot returned from Egypt, in what did his riches consist? To what place did they return? What is the meaning of Bethel ? Should not every little child have a place that he can name Bethel ? Why could not Abraham and Lot continue to dwell together? What did Abraham propose to Lot? What lesson should children learn from the kindness and condescension of Abraham? What place did Lot choose for his residence? What is said of the men of Sodom? Is it dangerous to live among wicked neighbors ? Where did Abraham dwell? To what place did Abraham remove his tent? Why did he build an altar there? For what purpose was the altar used? Should every family imitate Abraham's example? EXTRACT from the "Eighth Annual Report of the Prison Discipline Society, Boston. "Causes of Crime."-Neglect of family government, disobedience to parents, Sabbath breaking, &c. An opinion has existed extensively, and whether it is becoming more or less frequent, we cannot tell, that the rod may be dispensed with in the government of children. Now we wish to say to all parents, that we learn no such thing from the history of crime. On the contrary, we find prisons tenanted with those who were not resolutely and thoroughly corrected in childhood; and if there is any one truth impressed upon our minds, by a laborious examination of many persons who have fallen in crime, it is this:-" He that spareth his rod hateth his son; but he that loveth him, chasteneth him betimes." THE MOTHER'S MAGAZINE FOR MARCH, 1834. For the Mother's Magazine. THE OPENING FLOWERS. Dear Madam.-With no common feelings did I hail the announcement of your Magazine; I hastened to become a subscriber to it, and have read it with increasing interest and pleasure. Your object is one which claims the support, encouragement, and prayers of every Christian mother throughout our union. It is most intimately connected with the honor of God, and the happiness of man. The efforts which are making at the present day, to correct the numerous errors and mistakes of parents, in the education of their children, and to lead them to attend, with equal care, to their spiritual, mental, and physical culture, I cannot but regard as an important era in the history of the church. The seed sown in our nurseries will take deep root; and in a few years, will produce corresponding fruit, in the parents, the teachers, and the statesmen of our country. And shall this seed be scattered by a careless hand, without culling and examining, lest possibly some tares be concealed among it? Shall those on whom our Creator has laid the responsibility of training up the dear children he has given them in the way they should go, leave them to the blind guidance of ignorance and superstition? Or shall they, from a weak and foolish tenderness, refrain from imposing those restraints which they sometimes need, and from resorting to such salutary discipline as they need at other times? These evils have existed, and still do exist, to an alarming extent; but the eyes of parents begin to open; and we hope and believe that the time is not far distant, when we shall see those apartments which have too often been emphatically nurseries of pride, passion, self-will, anger, and disobedience, converted into nurseries of love, peace, and piety. But while so much is said and done to assist in training those precious tenants of the nursery, let us not forget the tender flowers which have just been transplanted from it, tender and immature, to the open field, where they are exposed to many a rough wind, and many a rude hand. There are few objects whom I view with more opening solicitude than these; especially of the female sex; they are beset with dangers and snares on every side-they have neither wisdom |