delusion, or the uniform evidence of a most cheering truth, considered simply as a phenomenon of mind, and an operation of nature; it would be extremely difficult to account for this on any other principle than its reality. Nature is not wont to deceive her children. And it is impossible to admit religion to have any foundation in truth, and especially to be divine, on the supposition that any deception can be allowed in such circumstances. Surely God would not permit his immortal offspring to be deluded, in their dying moments, with false hopes! Consequently, the invariable confidence placed on the atonement in these instances, is the true faith exercising itself on a real and valid object; and its victories are the admirable triumphs of the soul over the fear of death, through him who has conquered death, and "brought life and immortality to light by the gospel."-Rev. James Dixon.

BIBLICAL NOTES.

SNOW OF LEBANON.- "Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field?"-Jeremiah, xviii. 14. The chief benefit the mountain of Lebanon serves for is, that by its exceeding height it proves a conservatory for abundance of snow, which, thawing in the heat of summer, affords supplies of water to the rivers and fountains in the valleys below.-Maundrell.

THE SCORPION.-" Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?"-Luke, xi. 12. The scorpion is a species of insect without wings, generally two inches in length, of a yellow, brown, or black colour, of an oval form, not unlike a lobster, tail long and slender, with several joints or divisions, and a sharp-pointed weapon at the end, in which the poison is lodged, the whole covered with a hardish skin, and having eight eyes and eight legs. Bochart produces testimonies to prove that a species of scorpion in Judea was similar in size and form to an egg.-Bagster's Comp. Bib.

SLEEPING ON HOUSE-TOPS.

WE have repeated intimations in Scripture, of a custom which would be extremely inconvenient in England-that of sleeping on the top of the house, exposed to the open air and sky. (1 Sam. ix. 25, 26. Prov. xxv. 24.) "It has ever been a custom with them (the Arabs), equally connected with health and pleasure, to pass the nights in summer upon the house-tops, which, for this very purpose,

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SLEEPING ON HOUSE-TOPS.

are made flat, and divided from each other by walls. We found this way of sleeping extremely agreeable; as we thereby enjoyed the cool air, above the reach of gnats and vapours, without any other covering than the canopy of the heavens, which unavoidably presents itself in different pleasing forms, upon every interruption of rest, when silence and solitude strongly dispose the mind to contemplation."-(Wood's Balbec, Introduction.) The propriety of the Mosaic precept (Deut. xxii. 8), which orders a kind of balustrade or parapet to surround the roof, lest any man should fall from thence, is strongly enforced by this relation; for if we suppose a person to rise in the night without being fully awake, he might easily kill himself by falling from the roof. Something of the kind appears in the history of Amaziah (2 Kings, i. 2). In several places Scripture hints at grass growing on the house-tops, but which comes to nothing. The following quotation will shew the nature of this: "In the morning the master of the house laid in a stock of earth, which was carried up, and spread evenly on the top of the house, which is flat. The whole roof is thus formed of mere earth, laid on, and rolled hard and flat. On the top of every house is a large stone roller, for the purpose of hardening and flattening this layer of made soil, so that the rain may not penetrate; but upon this surface, as may be supposed, grass and weeds grow freely. It is to such grass that the Psalmist alludes, as useless and bad.”—(Jowett's Chris. Researches.) There is also mention of persons on the housetop hastily escaping from thence without entering the house, to secure their property, as if hastily awaked out of sleep by the clamours of an invading enemy. (Dr. Shaw.)—Calmet's Dict. Frag. by Taylor.

EASTERN SHEPHERDS.

THE shepherds of antiquity were "an abomination unto the Egyptians;" and so they are among the Hindoos: and as the Egyptians would not eat with the Hebrews, so neither will the various castes of India eat with their shepherds. The pastoral office in the East is far more responsible than in England; and it is only by looking at it in its various relations and peculiarities that we can gain a correct view of many passages of Scripture. Flocks at home are generally in fine fields, surrounded by hedges or fences, but there they are generally in the wilderness, and, were it not for the shepherds, would go astray, and be exposed to the wild beasts. As the sons of Jacob had to go a great distance to feed their flocks, so still, in India, shepherds are absent for one or two months together, in places where there is plenty of pasturage. In their removals, it is an interesting sight to see the shepherds carrying the lambs in

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their bosoms, and also to witness how "gently they lead those that are with young." Another interesting fact is, the relationship which exists between the pastor and his flock; for being so much together, they acquire a friendly feeling. Hence the sheep "know his voice;" and "a stranger will they not follow." Does he wish to remove them to another place? He goes to such a distance, as that they can hear his voice; and then he imitates the noise which is made by a sheep; and immediately they may be seen bounding along to the spot where he is. Thus "he goeth before them; and the sheep follow him; for they know his voice." Another way of leading a flock, especially where there are goats, is to take the branch of a tree, and continue to shew it to them; which causes them to run along more cheerfully. He also "calleth his own sheep by name:" and it is interesting to notice how appropriate the names are to the animals. Thus, should a sheep or a cow have a bad temper, or any other failing, it will be called the angry one, the malicious, or sulky, or wandering; the killer of her young, the fiend; the mad one, the jumper, the limper, the dwarf, the barren, the unfruitful, the short, the fat, the long, the tricky one. The cows also are called after some of their goddesses, whose names may be heard in every herd. To bulls are given the names of men and devils. Before the sun has gained his meridian, the shepherds seek out a shady place, where they may make their flocks to "rest at noon." As the shepherd who mounted the throne of Israel carried his sling and his stone; so these generally have the same missiles, by which they correct the wanderers and keep off their foes. The dog is scarcely ever used in attending or guiding of flocks. As Jacob was often remunerated in kind, so are the shepherds in India, and therefore have not any other wages, except occasionally a little cloth or rice. Often a certain number of rams are given as pay: and to this also the patriarch may allude,-" The rams of the flock, have I not eaten." In most of these particulars we see described the character of the Lord Jesus, who is "the shepherd, the stone of Israel;" who laid prostrate "the roaring lion" of hell, and who keeps us in safety, so that the foe cannot pluck us out of his hand. Roberts's Oriental Illustrations of Scripture.

MISCELLANEOUS EXTRACTS.

INATTENTION.-In most cases our habits of inattention may be traced to a want of curiosity; and therefore such habits are to be corrected, not by endeavouring to force the attention in particular instances, but by gradually learning to place the ideas which we wish to remember in an interesting point of view.-Dugald Stewart.

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ORIENTAL CUSTOM OF NAMING SHEEP.-The Rev. John Hartley, who has travelled as a missionary in Greece, records in his Journal the following interesting Scriptural illustration :-" Having had my attention directed last night to the words (John, x. 3), 'The sheep hear his voice, and he calleth his own sheep by name,' &c. I asked my man if it was usual in Greece to give names to sheep. He informed me that it was, and that the sheep obeyed the shepherd when he called them by their names. This morning I had an opportunity of verifying the truth of this remark. Passing by a flock of sheep, I asked the shepherd the same question which I put to my servant, and he gave the same answer. I then bade him to call one of his sheep. He did so, and it instantly left its pasturage and its companions, and ran up to the hand of the shepherd, with signs of pleasure, and with a prompt obedience which I had never before observed in any other animal. It is also true of the sheep in this country, that 'a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him; for they know not the voice of strangers.' The shepherd told me that many of his sheep are still WILD; that they had not yet learned their names; but that by teaching they would all learn them. The others, which knew their names, he called

LITERARY HABITS.-Habits of literary conversation, and still more, habits of extempore discussion in a popular assembly, are peculiarly useful in giving us a ready and practical command of our knowledge. There is much good sense in the following aphorism of Bacon: "Reading makes a full man, writing a correct man, and speaking a ready man."-Dugald Stewart.

ANCIENT MUSIC.-The Egyptian flute was only a cow's horn with three or four holes in it, and their harp or lyre had only three strings; the Grecian lyre had only seven strings, and was very small, being held in one hand; the Jewish trumpets that made the walls of Jericho fall down, were only ram's horns; their flute was the same as the Egyptian; they had no other instrumental music but by percussion, of which the greatest boast made was the psaltery, a small triangular harp or lyre with wire strings, and struck with an iron needle or stick; their sackbut was something like a bag-pipe; the timbrel was a tamborine, and the dulcimer was a horizontal harp, with wire strings, and struck with a stick like the psaltery. They had no written music; had scarcely a vowel in their language; and yet (according to Josephus) had two hundred thousand musicians playing at the dedication of the temple of Solomon. Mozart would have died in such a concert in the greatest agonies-Dr. Burney.

FRAGMENTS.-What is true honour? Not riches, not rank, not beauty, not learning, not courage. No; but virtue. Whether it be clad in the garb of poverty or the robe of affluence; whether it

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hold the plough or grasp the sceptre; whether it be seated at the table or stand behind the chair,- virtue is honour.-Rev. J. A. James.

To think of glorifying Christ without hearts warmed, enlarged, made tender, compassionate, by gospel love, is to think to fly without wings, or to walk without feet.-Dr. Owen.

Religion! Salvation! Heaven! These are empty sounds, or they demand any exertion, any sacrifice. Compared with the high import of these terms, the most holy and generous Christian feels that he has done nothing; and blushes that he is so unprofitable a servant. Know, men of the world, that when all the schemes of business and of empire, all the exploits of heroism and science, all the splendour of palaces and thrones, shall have disappeared, as sparks extinguished in their native fires, the souls that shall be awakened to reflection and penitence, and faith and prayer,-that shall be born again from above, and put on the holy form of the Redeemer,—that shall here be made meet for the inheritance with the saints, these souls shall remain uninjured by the great shock, and spring up from time into eternity in the beauty of holiness and the vigour of immortality.-Rev. J. K. Foster.

While our friends yet live, inhabitants of the same world with ourselves, they seem still to live to us: we are sure that they sometimes think of us, and, however improbable it may seem, it is never impossible that we may see each other once again. But the grave, like a great gulf, swallows all such expectations, and in a moment, when a beloved friend sinks into it, a thousand tender recollections awaken a regret, that will be felt in spite of all reasonings, and let our warnings have been what they may.-Cowper.

I pity the man who can travel from Dan to Beer-sheba, and cry, "It is all barren." No man has a right to be idle-not to speak of that great work which we all have to accomplish, (and surely the whole attention of a short and precarious life is not more than an eternal interest may well require ;) where is it that in such a world as this, health, and leisure, and affluence, may not find some ignorance to instruct, some wrong to redress, some want to supply, some misery to alleviate? Shall ambition and avarice never sleep? Shall they never want objects on which to fasten? Shall they be so observant to discover, so acute to discern, so eager, so patient to pursue, and shall the benevolence of Christians want employment? -Wilberforce.

Let your employment be fitted to your person and calling. Some there are, that employ their time in affairs infinitely below the dignity of their person, and being called by God or the republic to help to bear great burdens, and to judge a people, do enfeeble their un