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able of the earth," Isa. xxiii. 3. 8. By its wisdom and traffic it increased its riches, and was replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of the seas.' In Ezekiel xxvii., we are presented with a full and graphic delineation of the extent of its commerce and of the wealth that by this means accrued to the parent city. It was, no doubt, in consequence of his intercourse with Hiram, king of Tyre, that Solomon, in whose reign the Jewish kingdom attained its highest point of prosperity, was induced to build a "navy of ships in Ezion-geber;" and this fleet, in conjunction with that of the Tyrian monarch, brought every three years gold, and silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. In one year, we read, the weight of gold brought to Solomon was six hundred and sixty-six talents; and after such a description of commercial energy and prosperity, we are not surprised to find that in his days, silver was in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as the sycamore trees that are in the vale for abundance, 1 Kings x.

The fishing boats of Galilee were honoured to be the pulpit and the resting place of Emmanuel upon earth, whence he addressed the listening crowd, summoned from their watery abode the fishes of the sea, and with a wonder-working word stilled the roaring of the waves and raging of the wind. Within the "wooden walls of old England," constructed in haste by an awestruck and defenceless people, a little band of noble hearts, bold in the cause of their country and their Protestant religion, dared to await the attack of an hostile armament far exceeding them in number, size, and maritime skill; but "He (the Lord of heaven, and earth, and sea,) blew with his winds and they were scattered;" the invincible armada, blessed by the Roman pontiff, and formed from the treasures of a rich and mighty kingdom, melted away as snow before the southern gale. And in yet more recent days, by means of these vehicles of the wave, have our daring countrymen trod the pathless ocean, and exchanged the arts and manufactures of their native land, for the valuable and spontaneous productions of many a distant clime. Thus, too, have the heroes of Christian missions penetrated to earth's remotest bounds and the distant islands of the sea, their standard the cross, their watchword

their Saviour's command, and their anchor his sure word of promise and prophecy; there to wage war, not with flesh and blood, but superstition, cruelty, and barbarism, to proclaim to the people that sit in darkness and the shadow of death, the good tidings of great joy contained in the gospel of peace and salvation.

Some authors have characterized the

alder as "an ugly, melancholy tree," and too many pass it by unmindful, if not ignorant of its value and utility. But "in nature there is nothing melancholy," and with equal truth we may add, nothing without utility. All are created to answer some appointed end, and each without failure or fault discharges that duty. The scarcely visible grain of sand has its niche in that impassable boundary, which, though the waves of the sea are mighty and rage fearfully, they cannot pass. The light and feathery pappus down, the sport of every wind, is the fleet and buoyant agent by which the seeds of many of the most useful tribes of the vegetable kingdom are conveyed to distant spots, and fixed upon their destined sites. Even the casts thrown up by the poor earth worm, tend to fertilize the ground and unlock its hard and frozen surface. The alder does not hang over the limpid stream or the reed-grown pond merely to derive from them the sustenance it requires, cumbering without benefiting the spot. Its numerous fibrous creeping roots serve to strengthen and support the bank on which it grows, and some writers have considered that it exhales properties which correct the unhealthy miasma generally prevailing in low and marshy grounds. On these accounts, the alder is often planted, when not naturally found in such spots, to form a remedy for the evils which attend them. Like a true and attached friend, it repays, according to its power, the benefit received; and hence poets, both ancient and modern, have adopted it as the emblem of gratitude and devoted affection. -There the alder, darkly green,

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In such fix'd attitude doth fondly lean
O'er the clear brook, as 'twould not lose one tone
Of its sweet parley as it journey'd on.
And then, what time the soft winds gently stirr'd
Its darkling leaves, it too would breathe some
words

Of answering kindness. Ah! in bye gone hours
When fancy, proud to try her new-born powers,
From all she saw or heard stole some sweet

thought,

Oft has that tree some theme for musing brought.

If harsh of mood, too hardly would she deem
'Twas in self-homage bending o'er the stream,
Like beauty o'er her mirror, pleas'd to find
Its image in the glassy stream enshrined.
Anon, repenting of a thought so rude,
'Twould seem to her the type of gratitude,
Shading the brook that fed it, lest the sun
In mid career should gaze too fierce thereon;
And then, a softer image it supplied,
For ever bending o'er that crystal tide,
For ever listening to its liquid chime,
Though all the sights and sounds of summer
time-

A sky all glory, and an earth all bloom,
Gales breathing only music and perfume,
Seem'd all intent to win its love-but no!
It mark'd alone that streamlet's gentle flow."
L. A. TWAMLEY.

And thus should the eye of the Christian be ever "looking unto Jesus," the source whence alone his hope, and strength, and peace are derived.' But alas! the fiery glow of the furnace of affliction, the engrossing cares of time, and even the blessings which surround his path, too often draw away his regards from his Saviour; and thus lessen the supply of spiritual life which he can only receive out of this fulness, and cause his graces to droop and wither. It is only as drinking daily and hourly from the brook of living water flowing forth from the smitten rock, that he can lift up his head, extend his sheltering shade, and perform the duties allotted to his station. Thus planted by the Divine Husbandman in the house of the Lord, the church of the living God, and founded on Christ, the sure and tried foundation stone, he shall flourish and bring forth fruit abundantly, and even in declining days be fat and well liking, proving the faithfulness of the Lord his strength, until transplanted into the paradise above.

SUPERSTITIOUS RITES IN CHINA.

WHEN the crew of a Chinese vessel are about to weigh anchor, they, in conformity with authorized custom, deem it right to commend themselves to the care of the unseen deities, and to propitiate their prospering favour by an act of worship. One of the crew lights a bundle of gilded paper, bows, and throws it while blazing into the water; another takes the loud sounding gong, and beats a pealing strain upon it, generally with very little regard to measure or rhythm. A similar rite is performed at sunset every day while in harbour or at sea. The writer was present when two gongs were beaten in cadence, in a sort of rivalry between

two men, who responded to each other in measures of eight strokes each. This is remarkable, as the number eight occurs oftentimes in western music; many airs have eight measures in each strain; and in the minuet and other kindred exercises there are eight evolutions in each series of movements. When the sun or moon suffers an eclipse, these gongs are beaten without intermission, lanterns are hoisted, and the flaming scrolls are committed to the deep with a most unsparing hand. By a vulgar error, a dragon is supposed to swallow either of those orbs during a total eclipse, and these ceremonies are performed with the view of making him disgorge his morsel. The dragon was perhaps used as an emblem of that power, which keeps the heavenly bodies in their circuits; but tradition mistook the emblem for the thing itself. A ink is, fe lung tsae teen, "the flying common phrase on the cakes of Indian dragon is in heaven." Chinese astrowith the mathematicians from the west, nomers, long before their acquaintance explained the nature of an eclipse; but the superstitious crowd chose to have bitants on shore are very punctual in the matter their own way. The inhatheir devotions at night and morning, if any observance in honour of these things, which in the language of the Old Testament are called the "vanities of the nations," merits a term so significant. A bundle of incense sticks is lighted, and perhaps two or three wax the niche wherein his imaginary presence candles, and placed before an idol on is supposed to reside. The act is performed very frequently by one of the junior branches of the family, either because he has the greatest share of leisure, or the smallest accumulation of guilt. At times, a large tray is set before the niche with offerings of boiled rice, fowl, fish, and different kinds of vegetables. The best of their kinds are selected for the occasion; for a Chinese, amid the deep ignorance and confusion of his mind, is on one point more consistent than some nominal Christians, who propose to give the best of their days to sin, and reserve only the refuse and leavings of life for their Maker. When one of the natives, while busily occupied in a sacrifice of this sort, was questioned as to the motive by which he was influenced, he replied in broken

* Optima quæque dies, Virg. Georg. iii.

English, "Chinaman fashion:" another was bold in alleging his reasons, for when ridiculed for worshipping a few gay emblems, he said his forefathers and himself had always done so, and had thereby obtained many a large draught of fish and a safe return to their homes after a voyage. A similar defence was made by the women who poured out drink offerings and made cakes for the queen of heaven in the time of Jeremiah: see Jer. xliv. 17

19.

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The lintels of a Chinese house are often adorned with red paper, gilded and cut in checquered spaces, and an inscription is fastened over the door, which contains a short prayer, that happiness or some special favour may descend and enter the dwelling. A bundle of plants, consisting of the cactus and a few common denizens of the garden, are hung up over the door, as the averter of evil influences. Every house has a cell in the upper side or frontispiece, in which the character for shin is written in large dimensions. This word may be translated "spirit,' as it is applied to the intellectual part of man, which, according to their philosophy, resides in the heart during life, and ascends to heaven at death. Before this cell, a vase for incense is placed, with perhaps an urn or a candlestick upon each side upon the table, which fulfils the office of an altar. The wall on each side of the cell is sometimes adorned with a pretty scroll, suggesting some moral sentiment in harmony with its fellow. The Tanker boats which convey the passengers from Canton to the island of Honan, very often present a niche or cell of this kind, though instead of the word shin, the representation of the deity is set

up.

Before this niche the members of the household kneel and bow, especially on any joyous or festive occasion.

The Chinese are nationally characterized by their excessive fondness for inquiring into futurity. Hence they often repair to temples, and after a prayer that they may be rightly directed, proceed to draw lots, by taking a slip of bamboo out of a number which are contained in a cylindrical vessel. The slip is marked with a certain sign which corresponds with one inscribed upon a scroll setting forth in very poetic and ambiguous terms

the destiny of the inquirer, which he interprets by the scantling of his own hopes or fears. A native, who had often affected to slight the superstitious practices of his countrymen, and had described in some classic verses the philanthropy of the Son of God, in dying to rescue his people, was not proof against the enchantment which a visionary hope excites in an over curious mind; so one morning he comes not at the appointed hour, but at length makes his appearance with these responses" in his hand. As the writer had given the man credit for knowing better, he supposed that these had been brought for his instruction, and could hardly be persuaded that his friend thought there was any truth in things couched in words so dark and mysterious.

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In spring and autumn it is customary for all the natives to repair and decorate the graves of their ancestors. There would be little to blame in such an act of respect for those of their forefathers, whom death had mingled with the dust; but they do not stop here, but present offerings of fowls, pigs, rice, vegetables, tea, etc., with libations of wine or spirit. Tapers of wax and incense sticks are kindled and placed in front of the gravestone or monumental tablet. While these are shedding their light and their fragrance, the worshipper, who is often hired for the occasion, with his assistants kneel upon a mat spread for that purpose, pours out the wine and recites a form of prayer. Whether they do this as an act of homage merely, or believe that the shades of the departed derive some refreshment from these oblations, it is not easy to say. When a native thus employed, was asked whether "he did not think that the dead must be very hungry, seeing they got only one or at the most two meals in the course of the year ?" instead of a reply, he abused the stranger for asking him such an impertinent question. The minds of his countrymen are not clear upon the subject, as they grope in darkness at noonday; a definite answer, therefore, was more than we could expect from him.

The priests are not numerous when compared with the population of the country. Temples are frequent, and so indicate that there is a superstitious zeal among the majority of the people.

The larger kinds provide an accommodation for the priests within their enclosure. Here they live in a state of idleness, chatting with their companions, counting their beads, or sitting in an unmeaning fit of dreaming contemplation. At day fall a drum is beaten, and the inmates of the temple assemble for prayers. These are recited with hands folded and in a chanting voice, while a small bell by its tinkling serves as an accompaniment and a guide at the same time.

The drum, first mentioned, resembles a cask, and rests upon a stand in some convenient part of the temple. A large bell often occupies a similar situation, and is struck with a hammer as a prelude to the rites of service. A band of music is, on particular occasions, called upon to bear a part in the ceremonies of worship, and to fill up the interludes by melodies of a sad and plaintive character. It is the opinion of the writer, that when the budhistic doctrines were introduced into China from India, some compromise was made as to the rites of worship; for they seem to be indigenous. The rites performed by the Chinese to their ancestors, the worthies of their country, or to any of the native gods, are childish perhaps, but are never offensive. When the new sect about 65 B.C., propagated their views in China, they were obliged, it appears, to adopt many forms then in use, and to lay aside everything of a revolting character which they might have learned in that infatuated country from whence they came. By way of synopsis we may state, that there are three religions in China, or perhaps to speak with more accuracy, there are three aspects under which superstition may be viewed. 1. The budhistic modification, which enjoins celibacy upon its votaries, renunciation of the world, perpetual abstraction, and the worship of the three budhs with a rabble of reputed saints. This is extraneous, and not the growth of the country. 2. The Taou system or modification, which seems to have been derived from the ancient superstitions of the Chinese nation. The priests of this religion wear their hair wreathed into a tuft on the crown of the head after the original fashion they are clad in a long scarlet robe, which has the emblems of Chinese philosophy, or the yin and yang and

the pa kwa of fuh he, the author or authors of civil polity, embroidered upon its back; and they are seen walking in procession with drums and clarionets, and a portable altar to pay the dues of observance to the different gods of the country. 3. The philosophical, or rather the ethical system of worship, which commands the adoration of progenitors, and of the sages who have reformed mankind. This is founded upon a consideration of that debt which mankind owe to their forefathers for birth and nurture, and to moral instructors, for their invaluable lessons, by which the multitude was led to organize itself into a civil community, and exchanged the life of a wild animal for that of a man. When survivors are anxious that a spirit should wend its way in safety to the hills, the abodes of the genii, a Taou priest is called, who, as he stands at the feet of the dead, chants a prayer, rings a little bell, and sprinkles the body with wine to frighten away all evil spirits. If souls are supposed to be in purgatory, a company of budhist priests are sent for, who chant, beat a drum, sound a cymbal, and ring a bell. But if, at the anniversary of some sage, the offering of a swine, a sheep, and a large table garnished with every sort of viand within ordinary reach, is to be accompanied by certain sacrificial rites, persons of official rank in their proper garments attend and perform those rites. A Taou priest is seen perchance, but he takes no part in the ceremony; he acts only as the superintendent of the preliminary arrangements, or warden of the temple. In practice, there seems to be little or no competition between these three aspects or modifications of the Chinese religion; but each has its time and its influence, by a tacit permission of the other two.

If the reader knows the worth of prayer, the writer earnestly entreats that China may have a prominent place among those intercessions which are made for the salvation of the world. The movements now in progress may humble the power by which so many millions are kept in bondage, and then the missionary will have free

course in his endeavours to contrast the supreme excellences of the gospel with the useless, "beggarly," and absurd ceremonies of idolatry.

G. T. L.

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Mountain Pheasant of Australia. Now or Ngow-co. THE MOUNTAIN PHEASANT OF

AUSTRALIA.

THE mountain pheasant (Now or Ngow-oo) is closely allied to the species described in our last number; it is, however, more gracefully formed, the head and neck are thickly clothed with feathers, and the colouring of the plumage is beautifully variegated.

Mr. Gould gives the subjoined communication respecting the habits of this bird from Mr. J. Gilbert.

"The following account," says Mr. Gilbert, "of the habits, manners, and nidification of the present species, has been detailed to me by G. Moore, Esq., Advocate General; Mr. Armstrong, aboriginal interpreter; and some of the more intelligent natives of western Australia. Mr. Moore saw a great many of these birds about sixty miles north of Perth; but its most favourite country appears to be the barren sandy plains of the interior 1,011 miles north and east of York.

"It is a ground bird, never taking to a tree unless when closely hunted.

When pursued, it will frequently run its head into a bush, and is then easily taken. In its actions and manners, it is very like the domestic fowl. Its food generally consists of seeds and berries. It has a mournful note, very like that of a pigeon, but with a more inward tone.

"The eggs are placed in a mound of sand, the formation of which is the work of both sexes. The natives say they scratch up the sand for many yards around, forming a mound of about three feet in height, the inside being constructed of dried leaves, grasses, etc., among which the eggs are deposited, to the number of twelve and upwards, and covered up by the birds as laid; or, as the natives express it, the countenances of the eggs are never visible.

"The bird never sits upon the eggs; but when she has laid her number, the whole are covered up, after, which the mound of sand resembles an ants' nest. The eggs are hatched by the heat of the sun's rays, the vegetable lining of the hillock retaining sufficient warmth

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