Page images
PDF
EPUB

It was the second summer after the establishment of this school, and after little James had become well acquainted with his Testament and catechism, that his health also began to fail. This good young lady beheld his gradual decay with anxiety, visited him frequently, and always wept after having left him.

One pleasant afternoon she led him out by the hand, and at his request visited the spot where lay his mother and little brother. Their graves were both covered with grass, and on the smaller grave were some beautiful flowerets. It was in the cool of a serene summer's day, as they sat by the grave in silence; neither of them disposed to speaking. The lady gazed at the pale countenance of the little boy, while he looked at her with an eye that seemed to say, "I have not long to enjoy your society." Without saying a word, he cut a small stick, and measured the exact length of his little brother's grave, and again seated himself by the lady. She appeared sad while he calmly addressed her. "You see, Miss S- that this little grave is shorter than

mine will be."

She pressed his little bony hand within her own, and he continued

"Do you think I shall ever get well ?"

"Indeed I hope you will; but why ask that question ?"

"Because I feel I shall not live long; I believe I shall soon die; I shall then be laid beside my poor mother, and she will then have her two little boys, one on each side of her. But do not cry, Miss S., I am not afraid to die. You told me, and the Testament tells me, that Christ will suffer little children to come unto him, and though I know I am a very sinful little boy, yet I think I shall be happy, for I love this Saviour who can save such a wicked boy as I am. And I sometimes think I shall soon meet mother and little brother in happiness. I know you will come too, wont you? When I am dead I wish you to tell the Sunday scholars how much I loved them all; and tell them to come and measure the grave of little James, and then prepare to die."

The young lady wept, and could not answer him at that time, But she was enabled to converse with him many times afterwards on the grounds of his hope, and was satisfied that this little lamb was indeed of the fold of Jesus. She was sitting at his bed-side, and, with her own trembling hand, closed his lovely eyes as they shut in the slumber of death. He fell asleep with a smile, without a struggle. The lady was the only sincere mourner who followed the remains of the child to the grave.

Sunday School Teacher.

THE MISSIONARY CAUSE, AND WHAT THE TEACHER HAS TO DO WITH IT.

Ir is to be presumed that the Teacher's object in devoting himself to his good work, is to advance the glory of God, by training up the children of the Church in the way of salvation. It was shewn in a previous number that his Mission is threefold; being intended to supply a lack of service on the part of the Parent, the Sponsor, and the Pastor. This may be said to comprise his direct relation to the Church, and may stand for the measure of influence he is to possess, and the particular duties he is to discharge in that relation. But in addition to this he has many other opportunities of doing good, which may be called his privileges, as distinct from his mission. He can benefit the parents of his scholars by visiting them; he can put them in the way of reading sound and useful books; he can urge them to attend Church, and to see that their children say their prayers; he can exhort them to put money into a Sick Society, Clothing Club, or Savings' Bank, and so secure a small fund for times of sickness or distress. Besides this, when the Teachers in a Parish come to be organized and formed into one body, they present an association of zealous people whose influence and usefulness can scarcely be overstated. They are the hands of the Clergy, through whom the pastoral influence may be felt over a very large parish. Is a school-feast or examination determined on, the Teachers are foremost to help wherever they can. Is a public meeting to be held on behalf of any religious society, the Teachers are in the thick of it, they distribute notices, invite their friends, decorate the rooms, disperse tickets, and infuse life in a hundred quarters, which otherwise would be comparatively neglected.

S

It will be instantly seen how admirable a system is here supplied for giving support to the cause of Missions. Let a school-full of Teachers become impressed with the duty of supporting the Missionary operations of the Church, and under the sanction of the Clergyman take up the work with spirit, the result will astonish all parties concerned. Suppose a school to be blessed with twenty enthusiastic and right hearted Teachers, who fully enter into the spirit of the Church's system, and realise through it their union with the whole body of the faithful, and, consequently, the share they have in the work by which this lost world is to be recovered to God; suppose this little corps of devoted hearts formed into an association for promoting the cause of Missions, each one becoming a collector; upon an average each person may in the year collect one pound, and also obtain another collector who should collect in the year not less than ten shillings. Here would be £30 per annum through the instru mentality of these twenty Teachers. In this way upwards of £250,000 would be raised every year for this great object by Sunday School Teachers alone. These Collectors would receive from their Clergyman a regular supply of quarterly papers, tracts, and other publications, by means of which they would be able to circulate information and awaken interest. It is impossible to say what might not be accomplished by devoted Teachers working together in this way. No cause is so much akin to the regular work of Sunday School Teaching as that of Missions. The Teacher himself is a home missionary, undoing a great amount of evil, doing a great deal of good; and how shall he not be interested in and united in spirit to those of his fellow labourers, who, in other and distant parts of the world's wilderness, are seeking up Christ's stray sheep? What Teachers should feel is, that they, as members of the one true Church, are brethren of a great missionary corporation, whose work and object are a ceaseless, universal, and holy crusade against the wickedness of this world. They are individually the soldiers of a mighty army, whose spiritual

weapons are to achieve for their great Captain and Leader the highest victories. They are the assistants of the great Good Shepherd, whose desire is that every single lamb of his purchase should be recovered from earth's dark desert of sin and sorrow, to the sheltering arms and the watchful care of Him who laid down his life for the sheep. How ennobling a view do these considerations give of the dignity of our calling as Christians, and of the mercy of God who permits us to be fellow workers with the highest and holiest of his Saints in the most exalted and glorious of objects.

To encourage the zeal and guide the steps of those Teachers who, feeling the force of these remarks, may devote themselves to the zealous performing of this other part of their mission, we shall from time to time devote some of our pages to Missionary subjects, hoping by the blessing of God to advance in some measure this noble cause. K. K.

TALES FOR TEACHERS TO TELL TO THEIR CLASSES.

No. 2.-AN IRISH SKETCH.

At the edge of a peat-moss, near a grassy mound, called Caion Saggart, or the "priest's hill," stood two or three low and very poor looking cottages. In one of these lived Peggy Caller, and in another of these, Mattie Jamison. Both of these children had been noticed by the clergyman in whose parish they resided, and had from time to time received benefits at his hands. They were in the habit of attending the Sunday School and their Church with tolerable regularity; and on the Sunday morning one of their first cares was to listen for the bell, which at nine o'clock tolled to give notice to the parish that this was the day for assembling in the house of prayer. I said that they listened, but I was wrong in saying this: Peggy listened; Mattie, I am sorry to say, was less observant, and less anxious to observe. The consequence was that Peggy was always ready to commence her walk to Church quite in time to get there before the last bell had stopped, and the clergyman had gone into the reading-desk; whereas with Mattie it was not uncommon to see her within ten minutes of the hour of prayer, racing across the common in a very unseemly manner, and bustle to her seat after the reading

of the sentences of Scripture with which the Church Service commences, and sometimes disturbing the congregation in the midst of their confession of sins. Mattie was not a wilfully wicked child; but she was a careless, thoughtless one. Peggy had often waited for her as long, and rather longer than she could with safety; but she had resolved to do this no more. She had on one Sunday just reached the threshold of the Church as the minister entered the church-yard, and in return for the curtsies she stopped to drop him, he had said, "This is unlike you, Peggy, to be so late." A blush of confusion had overspread her face, and she resolved it should never happen again.

The next Sunday after this the wind set in a quarter which made it difficult to hear the ringing of the church bell to the distant inhabitants of the parish. And Caion Saggart was two miles from the parish Church. Peggy however listened from the top of the Caion, and heard it over the moss from time to time. She was quite sure she heard it, although only at intervals, and she called to Mattie to be quick and get ready. "Time enough,” replied Mattie, "there's no bell yet." "Indeed, and the bell has nearly tolled its time;" replied Peggy, and into the house she ran to get herself washed and dressed, and to make the breakfast for her little sister. She was busily occupied in washing the tin cans in which they had taken their food, when she saw Mattie looking in at the door, unwashed and undressed. "Oh! Mattie dear," said Peggy," and is that the way in which you are? and just the time as it is to start off for the Church." "Oh and there's plenty of time," replied Mattie. Peggy, however, knew there was not plenty of time, and although very fond of Mattie, she gave no heed to her, but continued her necessary household work, then kissed her mother, who had lately been confined with a baby, and reached the Church before the minister entered. She knelt down against the stool in the aisle, where she and many little girls of her own age usually sat, and had time to find out the psalms and collect for the day, before the bell stopped. She had her prayer-book open in her hand, and her eye fixed upon the sentences of Scripture where the service commences with the following words :-" When the wicked man turneth away from the wickedness which he hath committed, and doeth that which is right, he shall save his soul alive." These were words of the greatest comfort to our little cottager, for her father had brought much tronble upon her mother by his wild and irregular habits, but of late had become more steady, and had signified his determination to continue so. He had brought home all his earnings,

« PreviousContinue »