Parental solicitude.

"This must be an act of your will. You see if you neglect it, it will be from choice. Ask your brother what it was that determined him to give himself up to God-ask, if it was not the act of his will. His mind was as much opposed as yours. He had as strong a will to bend into submission to God, as you have. What he has done, through the help of God, you can do. And Oh! what rejoicing will it cause in our hearts-what happiness to yourself, and what joy in heaven, should you, three brothers, be all united, on board one ship, in singing praises to God from your hearts, as well as with your voices, while you are sailing on the broad ocean. And how much good may you do among the seaman-how much good to other ships' officers-and how much would God be honored by such an event, wherever the ship goes, under such circumstances.

"If you can realize the importance of these things, as they appear to me, and as I am sure they must appear to you at some future day, you will resolve without delay to give yourself to God. This is what God requires of every crea ture. And what is the import of this gift? We are his already-His by creation-His by preservation, amidst all the snares and deaths, to which we have been exposed-His by the redeeming blood of his dear Son-His by dedication in holy baptism. By each of these several claims. His right to us has ever been beyond any ground of controversy on our part. But by our practice, we have denied His claim.-We have set up for ourselves—we have felt as though we could do without God. In our hearts we have said, we will not have God to reign over us. God requires that we should submit to his claim-that we should yield this controversy— and peaceably submit to his authority. This is what is meant by giving ourselves up to God. If you see that his claim is just, you must see that to oppose it, is wrong. you are willing then to do what you must see to be right, you will say henceforth the Lord shall be my God.' If you do this, the veracity of God is pledged for your salvation. If you find it hard, remember that the hardness consists merely in the strength of your opposition to God. The harder it is to submit, the more is the need of submission-for the more aggravated is the sin of opposition.

"These truths I doubt not will appear plain to your

If

mind.

The hopes and prospects of this family.

In a

But be warned of the subtlety of the great adversary. thousand ways, he continues to delude the soul that is convinced, and resolved on turning to God-and in thousands of instances his wiles are successful. 'Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketb about, seeking whom he may devour.' And he goes on the sea, as well as on the land.-May God sanctify these thoughts to the salvation of your soul, is the prayer of

"Your affectionate Father,

"SR.”

It has already been intimated that these brothers went on different voyages. J, to whom the above letter was addressed, went on board of an East-Indiaman, bound to Batavia and Manilla. A year or eighteen months were expected o elapse before its return.

Mr. and Mrs. R- never before felt so happy in the absence of their children. They believed that their eldest son had truly given his heart to God, and that the other brothers were seriously impressed. They now experienced great consolation in the thought, that they had given up their offspring in covenant to God. They could not but believe that God would remember his covenant, and make them the subjects of his saving and transforming grace.

There were several occurrences in the circle of their own home to cheer and gladden their hearts. Their two youngest daughters, the one twelve and the other ten years of age, had given striking evidence of a renewal of heart. More than a year had elapsed since this change had taken place, and though they were so young, yet their altered and consistent lives gave pleasing testimony that God had truly ren wed them by his Holy Spirit. Perhaps these parents never felt that they had such abundant cause for gratitude, as at this moment. They could look upon two of their children as garnered up in glory, and five of those that were`lest them, had enrolled their names among the followers of the Lamb. Though three of their sons were now absent, they felt that they were under the guardian care of Him who ruleth the raging of the sea, and maketh its waves to praise him. They had frequent and pleasing intelligence from G and NAnd J- who had gone to the

The voyage:-The letter :-Death of J—.

East Indies was expected in a few weeks. At length, through the public papers, they saw announced the arrival of the ship

in which he sailed, at the port of New-York. They were waiting with eager and anxious solicitude to welcome him to the paternal roof. In the course of two or three days a letter arrived. It bore the post-mark of New-York. It must be from J, announcing his arrival, and stating the time when they might expect that he would once more be with his beloved parents. With intense interest Mr. R- broke the seal, and rapidly glanced his eye over the lines. But no —it was not the hand-it bore not the signature of J——— ! Mr. R- read on the letter dropt from his hands-the tears rolled down his cheeks, and he exclaimed "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord!" Oh! what a moment of anxiety was this to the family who were yet unacquainted with the real intelligence the letter contained.

“What is it—what is it?" was the eager inquiry.

"This letter," said Mr. Rowner of the vessel in which J returned, but J

is not on board."

"is from Mr.

the

sailed. The vessel has

"Why?—where is he?" was asked by many voices. "In the bottom of the sea!” said the father, his heart swelling with emotions too big for utterance.

The scene that followed can be better conceived than described. Yet God was in the midst of them, and his comforts refreshed their souls.

The following facts were communicated in the letter which announced J- -'s death. The crew had a prosperous voyage to India, arrived in a good state at Batavia, where they discharged their cargo, and were on their way to Manilla, in the China Sea, when there suddenly blew up a heavy gale, and the vessel for a while was in some danger. J was on deck giving the men some orders in relation to putting the ship in proper trim to weather the gale, when a tremendous sea suddenly broke over the deck, and swept him off in a moment. Every effort was made to save him, but in vain. He never rose to the surface. No trace of his form could be found; and the ship was obliged to go on her way, and leave young R- to slumber in the depths of the ocean, till the resurrection morn.

1

The unfinished letter of J

When the first gush of grief had passed away, the solemn and startling inquiry came up in the minds of these parents— "In what state has J — gone to his last account? He was swept into eternity without a moment's warning! Was he prepared to go? Had his heart been renewed?" These were fearful questions. The clouds of darkness and uncertainty seemed to gather thick around his fate. One single ray of hope to lead them to believe that he had gone to the bosom of the Saviour, would reconcile them to this dispensation. Mr. R seemed at once to gather that ray of hope from God's convenanted promises. "This child," said he, "has long since been given up in convenant to God; and I have faith to believe that God did change his heart—did makę him truly regenerate before he took him out of the world."

Resting upon this hope, and fully believing that the Most High does all things well, he stayed his soul upon God, and was at peace. The stroke, however, to the wounded mother, was more than she could well bear. Her health declined, and she seemed fast hastening to the grave. That which pressed upon her heart from day to day like a load of ice, was not the recollection that her son was in the bottom of the deep, with sea-weed wrapt around his head-it was not that he had been swept into eternity so suddenly, but that he had gone without having left any evidence behind, that his peace was made with God.

In a few weeks the family had the mournful satisfaction of receiving the trunk, and various effects of J. Every scrap of paper written in his own hand was carefully examined and sacredly preserved. At length they came across an unfinished letter, carelessly thrown into his trunk, which appeared to have been addressed to his parents, and was evidently written only a short time before his death.

Although I have not been able to obtain the letter above alluded to, the following communication from one of his parents will give the reader an idea of its contents. The writer remarks in reference to J

:

"He had been trained up in the Sabbath School, and was very intelligent on religious subjects. He fully realized that he was a sinner against God, and that the blood of Christ alone could restore him to the divine favor. His views on this subject were not of a general character; he believed that he

could not be saved without a personal interest in the atone

ment.

"When he arrived from a previous voyage, his mind was deeply affected by the change he witnessed in his elder brother, who had become an heir of life during his absence. He remained at home a few weeks, which afforded frequent opportunities for conversation on the all important subject, and these opportunities, I trust, were not lost. It was then satisfactorily ascertained that he was in the habit of praying daily; and that he was determined to make religion the great concern of his life.

"When he left the paternal home for the last time, it was expected that he would sail with his two brothers. The pious parent may imagine but I shall not attempt to describe, the emotions with which we looked forward to this event, We could not be unconscious that the lives of three beloved sons would be involved in the fate of one frail bark, exposed to all the dangers of the tempestuous ocean. But we had, on the other hand, a covenant keeping God to look to. To that God we were enabled to commit the keeping of the souls and the bodies of our beloved children. But an unexpected interposition of Divine Providence, gave a different direction to this enterprise; and our deceased son sailed without his brothers. At first it seemed as though God might design the conversion of the two younger brothers, by the instrumentality of the elder. But it now appeared that he was to have no mortal hand to help him, that he might seek help directly from an almighty arm. Let us adore the mercy of God, who, foreseeing the end from the beginning, thus provided most effectually to bring our dear son to look directly to Himself for salvation.

"It is difficult, if not impossible, to convey to the mind of another, the force of that evidence, that has satisfied our minds that our beloved son was truly in Christ Jesus before his death. The letter which we regret it is not in our power to send you, was of a deeply interesting character, which however, none but his parents could duly appreciate, as it related to several things known only to them. The whole letter led us to believe-yea, left no doubts on our minds, that he had become supremely interested in the concerns of his soul, and that his heart was renewed by divine grace."

P