Raphael's. Lovers of art cannot enjoy it to the full till they have made it their own by prolonged communion with its matchless forms. Says one of its admirers,-"I could spend an hour every day, for years, upon that assemblage of human, and angelic, and divine ideals, and on the last day of the last year discover some new beauty, and a new joy."

I have seen men standing in the street before an engraving of that gem of the Dresden Gallery, a longer time than a good man will sometimes devote to his evening prayer. Yet what thoughts, what ideals of grace, can genius express in a painting, demanding time for their appreciation and enjoyment, like those great thoughts of God, of heaven, of eternity, which the soul needs to conceive vividly, in order to know the blessedness of prayer? What conceptions can art imagine of the "Divine Child," which can equal in spirituality the thoughts which one needs to entertain of Christ in the "prayer of faith"? We cannot hope, commonly, to spring into possession of such thoughts in the twinkling of an eye.-PROFESSOR PHELPS' "Still Hour."

ECCLES. ix. 10, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with

thy might.

843. Neglect and its Consequences.-During the eighty years' war, which resulted in the triumphant establishment of the "United Netherlands," the city of Antwerp was besieged by the Spaniards, under the celebrated Prince of Parma. The possession of that city was the turning-point in the war, as far as the southern provinces (now Belgium) were concerned. Parma had nearly gained possession, by constructing, at vast outlay, a bridge across the river Scheldt. To blow up that bridge was the aim of the Protestant forces within the beleaguered city. Accordingly, two fire-ships, loaded with all manner of combustibles and terrible explosives, were floated down toward the bridge during the darkness of the night. As soon as the "hell-burners" (as the Dutchmen styled them) blew the bridge to atoms, a rocket was to be sent up, and the heavily armed Dutch fleet lying below were to force their way through and bring relief and triumph into Antwerp. Had that signal been made the city would have been delivered, the Spaniards driven out of the Low Countries, fifty years of bloody war prevented, and, probably, all Belgium would have been to this

day a part of Protestant Holland. The weary patriots on the wharves of Antwerp heard the tremendous explosion of the fireships, and anxiously watched for the rising of the rocket. But, alas! as Motley tells us in his brilliant narrative of the scene, "" that rocket never rose!" And after the lapse of three centuries, it is difficult to restrain the bitter indignation which follows every mention of that stupid Dutch admiral, who failed to make the simple signal at the critical moment.-REV. THEODORE L. CUYLER.

ECCLES. ix. 3, "The heart of the sons of men is full of evil."

844. The Heart of Stone.-Near by a stone, in a mass of rock that had fallen from some overhanging crag, we once came upon an adder as it lay in ribbon coil basking on the sunny ground. At our approach the reptile stirred, uncoiled itself, and hissing, gave signs of battle. Attacked, it retreated; and making for that grey stone wormed itself into a hole in its side. Its nest and home were there. And looking on that sheltered rock, the home and nest of the adder, it seemed to me a fitting emblem of that heart which the Bible describes as a heart of stone."-DR. GUTHRIE.

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GEN. xli. 42, " And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand,
and put it upon Joseph's hand."

845. Signet Rings. In the ring there is generally a seal, on which the name of the sovereign is engraved. This signet is dipped in a coloured matter, and impressed over the royal orders, instead of the king's title. Whoever is in possession of this seal, can issue commands in the name of the king. What is said in this text would be expressed in modern language by "Pharaoh raised Joseph to the dignity of Grand Vizier." The symbol of power and authority given to the Grand Vizier is the seal of the Sultan with his cipher, which is entrusted to his care. The signet was considered in the East, from the most ancient times, as the sign of delegated power. That given to the Grand Vizier is so great, that no officer of state, no minister, dares to resist, or even to contradict his orders, without risking his head, because every one of his commands is obeyed as if it had proceeded from the throne, or from the mouth of the Sultan. He likewise receives almost royal honours; all about him bears the stamp of the highest

honour, power, and splendour. ("Government, &c., of the Turkish Empire," by Joseph von Hammer.) Lüdecke, in his "Description of the Turkish Empire," says, "The Grand Vizier is the principal of all the officers of state, and his dignity is similar to that with which Pharaoh invested Joseph. He is called Your Highness. The emperor scarcely differs from him except in name. There is nothing at the European courts similar to his dignity, and the premiers ministres, as they are called, are nothing to him. Being keeper of the imperial signet, he always has it suspended round his neck. The investing him with it is the sign of his elevation to office, and the taking it off, of his discharge. Without further orders or responsibility, he issues all orders for the empire." When, therefore, Alexander the Great, on his death-bed, delivered his signet to Perdiccas, it was concluded that he had also given to him his royal powers, and intended him for his successor.

1 COR. xii. 2, "Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away
unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led."

846. Paganism in England.-British Christians ought to recollect that their ancestors were once blind idolaters, serving them that by nature are no gods. Dr. Plaifere, in a sermon preached before the University of Cambridge, in 1573, remarks, "that before the preaching of the gospel of Christ, no church here existed but the temple of an idol; no priesthood but that of paganism; no God but the sun, the moon, or some hideous image. To the cruel rites of the Druidical worship succeeded the abominations of the Roman idolatry. In Scotland stood the temple of Mars; in Cornwall, the temple of Mercury; in Bangor, the temple of Minerva; at Malden, the temple of Victoria; in Bath, the temple of Apollo; at Leicester, the temple of Janus; at York, where St. Peter's now stands, the temple of Bellona; in London, on the site of St. Paul's Cathedral, the temple of Diana; and at Westminster, where the Abbey rears its venerable pile, a temple of Apollo." Through the mercy of God, our country is now blessed with thousands of christian churches, and multitudes of gospel ministers. The land is full of Bibles; and British Christians, sensible of their privileges, are engaged in diffusing the light of divine truth among the benighted nations.

COL. i. 1, 2, "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse."

847. Colosse.-A city of Phrygia, in Asia Minor, in the upper part of the basin of the Mæander, near the affluence of the Lycus. Hartley, Arundell, and other travellers, have identified ruins near the modern village of Khonas with the ancient Colosse. Mr. Arundell's description affords a general idea of the locality with which Colosse was associated :

Khonas is situated most picturesquely under the immense range of Mount Cadmus, which rises to a very lofty and perpendicular height behind the village, in some parts clothed with pines, in others bare of soil, with immense chasms and caverns. Immediately at the back of Khonas there is a very narrow and almost perpendicular chasm in the mountain, affording an outlet for a wide mountain torrent, the bed of which was now nearly dry; and on the summit of the rock, forming the left side of this chasm or ravine, stand the ruins of an old castle. The approach to Khonas, as well as the village itself,

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is beautiful, abounding with tall trees, from which are suspended vines of the most luxuriant growth. On entering the village, and afterwards passing through it, we passed several dry but wide and deep watercourses, worn by the torrents from Mount Cadmus, which in a rainy season must be terrific.

"We first ascended the rock on which the castle stands, an almost inaccessible steep of enormous height; on the summit are several fragments of old walls, but none of very ancient date. Descending, we passed through the village on the eastern side, and found it to be of considerable extent; the multitude of fragments of marble pillars, upon almost every terraced roof, proved the existence of some considerable ancient town in the neighbourhood. . . After walking a considerable time, our guide brought us to a place where a number of large, squared stones lay about, and there showed us what seemed to have been a small church, which had been lately excavated, having been completely under the surface of the soil. It was long and narrow, and semicircular at the east end. Passing through several fields, in which were many more stones, I remarked one which had an imperfect inscription. Not far from hence we saw a few vaults, and were told by a Greek that some walls not far off were the remains of two churches. Beyond this we came to a level space, elevated by a perpendicular brow, of considerable height, above the fields below. Here were several vestiges of an ancient city-arches, vaults, &c, and the whole of this and the adjoining grounds strewed with broken pottery. From thence we went much farther,

and coming to a green ridge, full of rocks, which seemed to have been cut either as a quarry or for other purposes, we observed under them several vaults with small, square entrances. Thunder, and a sky as black as night, threatening instant torrents, we retraced our course, and when the rain began, took shelter in a natural cave, formed of beautiful stalactites, immediately in the side of the perpendicular rock upon which the remains we had seen were placed. In many of the grounds adjoining were vaults and ancient vestiges, but we could find no inscriptions."

It would appear, from the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians, that some of the converts had been perverted from the faith by the heresy of angel-worship, which prevailed among the Colossians, and a remarkable confirmation of the prevalence of this superstition is found in connection with one of the peculiar topographical features of the place. There is a legend that, during a great inundation,