It is the deep prevailing love for the Queen, and the full appreciation of the magnitude of her loss, which have elicited such a universal manifestation. Most truly, she has thus had brought home to her, in her own severe trial, the vanity of all created things; and as far as we can yet learn, she has submitted to the visitation in no weak or repining spirit. To one who spoke to her of resignation, we are informed, that her Majesty replied through her tears, "I suppose I must not fret too much; many poor women have to go through the same trials." She felt then that she had no reason to expect that she should have any immunity assured to her: or that sovereigns were exempt from the sorrows and sufferings incident to human nature. For death can find an entrance as easily into the palace of the king, as into the cottage of the peasant. The sentence is passed upon all alike: "All flesh is grass." Her noble husband, however, had been spared to her, till, by God's mercy, he had accomplished no trivial or unimportant work. He had not been merely the sharer in the pleasures or the pageants of the royal court; he had carefully employed his strong good sense and practical wisdom, in training up and forming the minds and characters of those children with which God had blessed their marriage, and from whose future conduct so much of good or evil must result to this great empire and in this sacred labor of love the Queen was no ineffective assistant. And one noble-minded daughter, at least, was with her during all that trying time, who was old enough, and able and ready to be the ministering spirit to the dying father, and the stay and support of the weeping mother. And it must have been a most deeply touching and instructive, but heroic act, when, in the first moments of her widowhood, the Sovereign of the British Empire, and the mother of the deceased Prince's children, strong in the conviction of past parental duties piously fulfilled, pressing back for the time the feelings of the wife and the woman into the

* The London Morning Post tells us that "previous to the closing of the coffin containing the remains of the Prince Consort, a wreath of flowers made by the Princess Alice was placed over the corpse, and a miniature of the Queen placed by the hands."

depths of her bereaved heart, called, as we have been told she did, "her children around her at that trying and awful moment, and, invoking a blessing on their heads, prayed that they might obtain strength and wisdom to assist her in doing her duty to them and the country over which it had pleased PROVIDENCE to place her as supreme ruler." The burden of that solemn ejaculation and counsel must have fallen on the heart of the youthful Prince, whom we so lately were rejoicing to see amongst us, and on whom, in the course of nature, will devolve the government of the kingdom, when his Royal mother's reign shall have drawn to a close. He now stands in the place of a husband to his widowed parent. But not only he will not the whole empire, with one heart, yearn to do its best to supply her mighty loss? And shall we not all, with more earnestness and sincerity than ever, commend her in our prayers to our Heavenly Father, "the King of kings and Lord of lords, that He will be pleased to rule her heart in His faith, fear, and love; and be her defender and keeper, giving her the victory over all her enemies?" Yes! never, I believe, in the annals of her history, was there a time when the people of England were more satisfied with their political system; and never could it be said with more truth, that in affection and love, and all the finest and deepest feelings of our nature, the Queen of England may rely with confidence on her people, as her husband. They have ever been ready to rejoice with her in her joys; they are now one with her in this her deep sorrow; and will ever be one with her, whatever burden or heat of the day she may be called to bear. And happy is it for any people when such is the case! Happy is it for us here in Canada, where the country has so thriven and prospered under her beneficent rule; happy is it, in these days of perplexity, when we hear such rumors of war, and men's minds are so filled with many an anxious thought, that on this question of loyalty to our Queen and love for her person, and sympathy with her in her sorrow, there is no uncertain sound. God grant that we may never become subjected to all the stern realities of war. In itself, war must ever involve many consequences which cannot but be contrary to the principles of humanity and the spirit of the Gospel; and will embitter, for years to come, all future relations between

ourselves, and those with whom we ought to live in amity and close alliance. But the only war which now threatens to disturb us, will be on our part a war of defence, defence of our country, our altars and our homes. No war of aggression has ever for a moment been contemplated by those in authority over us. Unjust wars-wars prompted by ambition, or for the purpose of spoliation, are amongst the greatest of iniquities; "but a just and defensive war is the last and greatest appeal to the God of truth." If this shall unhappily, from any circumstances, be ever forced upon us, I trust that there will be no craven or recreant hearts amongst us; but that Canada will nobly respond to the call of our Queen in her hour of necessity-and commit the issue of the battle in all confidence to the Great Ruler of the World. But of this we may be certain, that if we desire peace, the best assurance that we shall be able to preserve it, is to be ever ready and prepared for the terrible alternative of war.

But does not the very mention of such events, as a possible contingency, suggest another most apposite commentary on the words of the text? Who can presume to foretell what shall be the issues of the morrow; and what assurance have we of any fixity of tenure in anything we now enjoy, whether as a nation or as individuals? Even

"The smile of home; the mutual look, When hearts are of each other sure,"

how soon may all be changed-as our beloved Queen has now been so painfully and unexpectedly taught the Word of the Lord, that alone endureth for ever.

And now I will close what I have wished to say this evening, with another short passage from Bishop Taylor's "Holy Dying," which will perhaps furnish us with some good thoughts to carry away with us for our quiet meditation at home:

"Since we stay not here, being people but of a day's abode. and our age is like that of a fly, and contemporary with a gourd; we must look somewhere else for our abiding city,-a place in another country to fix our mansion, whose walls and foundation is God, where we must find rest, or else be restless for ever. For

whatsoever ease we can have or fancy here, is shortly to be changed into sadness or tediousness; it goes away too soon, like the periods of our life; or, stays too long like the sorrows of a sinner; its own weariness, or a contrary disturbance is its load; or it is eased by its revolution into vanity and forgetfulness; and where either there is sorrow or an end of joy, there can be no true felicity, which, because it must be had by some instrument, and in some period of our duration, we must carry up our affections to the mansions prepared for us above, where eternity is the measure, and felicity is the state, angels are the company, the Lamb is the light, and God is the portion and inheritance."

SERMON VII.*

THE VICTOR'S CROWN.

I COR. ix. 25.

And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible.

WE find various expressions and illustrations used in Scripture to explain to us the nature of the Gospel, and the condition of the Christian. These everywhere meet us, both in the Parables of the Lord, and in the Epistles of the Apostles. In the former (the parables of Christ) we find perhaps more frequent allusions to the state of the Gospel Kingdom as a whole; in the epistles we are for ever reminded of our relation to that Kingdom as individuals, and of our place and duty as members of it. To describe the unity of such members one with another, and their connection with, and dependence upon Christ, St. Paul speaks of Christians. being living stones, built up into the spiritual temple of God, forming together one great and complete edifice, dedicated to God,

This sermon was preached in Christ Church Cathedral, Montreal, on Sunday, 26th August, 1860, whilst H. R. H. the Prince of Wales was in Montreal.

The following note from General Bruce was received by the Bishop, during the ensuing week, with the present accompanying it :

"MY DEAR LORD,-The Prince of Wales commands me to request your acceptance, on behalf of the Cathedral of Montreal, of the accompanying copy of the Holy Bible, as a slight memorial of his visit to that fine edifice, and attendance on your service there."

On the fly-leaf of the Bible, there is the following inscription in His Royal Highness' hand-writing :

"Presented to the Cathedral of Montreal, in memory of the 26th of August, 1860.

"ALBERT EDWARD,

"Prince of Wales."