seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not." Levit. xvi. 13. While the incense was offering in the temple, the people prayed in the outer court and their prayers ascended with its sweet odors towards Heaven. It was in this service that Zacharias the priest was engaged, when the angel of the Lord appeared unto him and foretold the birth of John the Baptist. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without, at the time of incense. Luke i. 10. Thus incense has come to be a symbol of prayer. David says: "Let my prayer be set before thee as incense, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice." Ps. cxli 2. "Instead of offerings, let my prayer Like morning incense rise: My lifted hand supply the place "And another angel came and stood at the altar having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand." Rev. viii. 3, 4. As already intimated, incense of some kind is still employed in the worship of the Roman Catholic Church. We trust we may say of them what Lactantius, the Christian Cicero, said of believers in the fourth century, namely: To the smoke of incense they joined their prayers." 166 "Thuris suffitui preces adjungebant." Of the articles which the Magi offered to the infant Saviour, and which were common in the East, as being necessary to their worship," frankincense was one. How welcome must have been their gold, frankincense and myrrh to the poor Virgin Mother. It was a providential supply, which doubtless procured the means of subsistence for the Holy Family during their sojourn in Egypt. Having been brought by the Magi from the East, for the purpose of presenting it to the infant Saviour, whom they hailed as king, we may well suppose that it was of the best quality and consequently very valuable. The associations connected with the incense daily offered in the temple service are especially interesting, because for many centuries previous to His coming, it prefigured, and pointed Old Testament believers to the Great Sacrifice, in the person of Jesus Christ "The types and figures were a glass In which they saw the Saviour's face." He," after he had offered one sacrifice for sins, forever sat down on the right hand of God." Heb. ix. 4-28; x. 10-14. Christ having thus consecrated for us a new and living way, through the vail, that is to say, His flesh, it behooves us to draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience. Heb. x. 20–22. Glorious will be the day when the prophecy of Malachi shall have been fulfilled: "From the rising of the sun even to the going down of the same, my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the Lord of hosts." Mal. i. 11. WHAT MAKES A LADY. BY JOHN. In this free, republican land of ours, woman enjoys many privileges. And we might search in vain, on the whole face of the globe, for a people or nation, where she is held in higher estimation than here. Woman has a power in our land. She was a main instrumentality in shaping the happy destinies of this young nation. We would not now be a nation so great and so mighty, had it not been for the private influence of American woman. I say private-for it is well known that their infuence is not so much seen, as it is felt. It was the discreet religious training which Washington received from his mother, that, to a great extent, made him what he was. And many of the purest and best statesmen that have, at any time, graced our national council-chambers, received the moulding of their characters by the side of wise and prudent mothers. In a country like ours, every woman should make it her specific and constant aim to act well her part. To do this she must aim to be a lady. Perhaps you say-most certainly the majority of females all the world over are ladies." I answer, emphatically, no! While every lady is a woman, not every woman is a lady. In many parts of Europe, and especially in England, the term lady is applied to every woman of distinction, more particularly to such whose husbands bear the title of Lord. In England, also, the title-lady-is given to any woman, whose husband is not of lower rank than a Knight, or whose father was a nobleman not lower than an Earl. But there have been many hundreds of these titled women, whose character and deportment have been the exact counterpart of what constitutes a real lady. man. The term lady, in our country, is applied, often, to any well dressed woEspecially is this the case among the plain and uneducated classes of society. Seeing a woman attired in rich and beautiful garments, they say: "0 my, but she is a lady!" But alas! How delusive is often the outward appearance! How little of the real lady there may be, notwithstanding the costliest and most fashionable outward decorations. It is said sometimes, also, by the uninitiated, and by those who are unacquainted with the definition of terms, when they see a woman who can afford to live without work: "O she is quite a lady; she need not work !” Again, you hear it said sometimes of a woman that will not work—“ She wants to be a great lady; for she does not want to do anything at all.!" There can be no greater misapplication of terms and ideas than are presented in utterances like these. True, many a woman that can afford to live without work is no doubt a genuine lady, but it is not this exemption from labor that makes her one. Labor dignifies and ennobles a wo man as well as a man. And to suppose that any one is entitled to the name lady, only because she will not work, is to suppose a very blameable absurdity. "What is in a name?" is a question once propounded by a poet. His answer was "nothing!" "That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet." But the principle involved in this poetical sentiment is false. There is something in a name. There should always be an actual correspondence between the name and the thing named. In this respect the ancient Hebrews were peculiarly distinguished. Nearly all their proper names are significant words. The name generally expressed something in the inward disposition or outward circumstances of the possessors. The term lady is very often inappropriately applied. Birth and rank cannot make one a lady. A daughter of the proud Empress of France, or of the exemplary Queen of England, might be as destitute of the chief elements of a lady, as the daughter of the poorest peasant in their realms. You need but look to the Queens of England, in the 16th century, to learn that the highest born are not always the highest examples of genuine worth. Mary, Queen of Scots, was a woman of keen perception, ready intelligence and irresolute will, but she was withal guilty of most monstrous crimes. With all her queenly titles and inherited honors she was not a lady. Wealth cannot make one a lady. There is contingency about wealth which has nothing to do with moral or intellectual character. A woman as wealthy as the Queen of Sheba was, might after all, be wanting in every essential lady-like quality. Riches in themselves furnish no criterion by which we may measure the soul and judge of true character. ""Tis not the fairest form that holds The same is true of mental acquirements. We would not underrate education. It possesses a power which we cannot doubt. Its influence and happy effects are felt throughout the wide world. It is an indispensable auxiliary to the steady advancement of Christianity. Ignorance is generally dangerous to the well being of society; and for the sake of national prosperity and Christian progress is ever to be dreaded But a woman of high intellectual attainments, though in this respect she may stand beyond the power of criticism, yet this does not necessarily make her a lady. The very best education, when used for unholy purposes, becomes a curse to the possessor, and to all within the reach of its fatal influence. Woman was born to humility and love. Where these qualities are not conspicuously characteristic no one can properly act her part in life or win the affections of those around her. It has been truly said: "The greatest influence on earth, whether for good or for evil, is possessed by woman." Every woman by her honor or her dishonor, by her wisdom or her folly, by her virtue or her vice, by her dignity or her levity, is daily adding something to the elevation or degradation of society. No good govern ment can be destroyed, nor can the peace of a community be overthrown, so long as woman fulfills her proper mission. If you would be a lady, you must aim to be useful. Did you ever rightly weigh the peculiar significance and delightful import of that common word-usefulness? And did you, on the other hand, ever reflect upon the dark and fearful meaning of the word-uselessness? Now, to be useful, do not suppose that your sphere is too narrow and your stage of action too contracted. There is a false notion prevalent among some persons, that woman has too few rights and privileges, and that therefore she cannot make her influence felt. There are those who plead continually for woman's rights. Woman's rights! In an age as enlightened as this nineteenth century and in a country as blessed with heaven-born freedom as ours we need no apologists for woman's rights. She has her rights. Woman is in no sense a man. "As well might the dew assume the place of the shower, or the violet stand for the oak, or the soft evening zephyr attempt to perform the part of the hoarse thunder," as that woman should take the place of man. Woman has her rights. And though they are different from those of man, yet they are, on this account, no less great and sacred. It is not woman's sphere to mount the rostrum and harangue an audience with a political speech, or to enter the pulpit and preach a sermon. This would be contrary to the spirit of womanly humility. In place of calling these woman's rights, they should be called woman's wrongs. It is in proportion as a woman becomes masculine that she ceases to be a true woman. The proper sphere of woman is home. "Tis not to lead the battle on, "Tis not to speak in congress halls No, none of these are woman's rights, ?? You cannot be a lad as long as your heart is not full of love. Unless a womans actions declare the love of her heart as unmistakably as the heavens declare the glory of God, she cannot properly know or fulfill her mission. Woman was born to love, and when this virtue is not prominent in all she does, she becomes false to her nature. Were all hearts full of love as God designed they should be, how happy a world we would have! Every thing around us would be attractive and lovely. "There is beauty in the forest Where the trees are green and fair, Where the wild flowers scent the air, And the soft blue sky above, Kindness and benevolence enter into the essential elements of a true lady. An unkind and ungenerous woman is always dreaded. A lady will be kind to all around her. She will treat with becoming respect all that come within the circle of her influence. Her words are words of tenderness and all her deeds sparkle with the glitter of affection. To the rich and great, she is courteous and affable; to the poor and lowly, she is charitable and condescending. She rejoices with the joyful, she weeps with the weeping, she sympathises with the sorrowful, she is a friend to the friendless. It is the gentleness of a woman that helps to make her great. No one can be a lady, if she is not gentle. A lady conquers by submission. Her smiles are winning. Her tears melt the stoutest heart. Her characteristic patience vanquishes the most imposing obstacles. Her desire is always to dispense happiness around her, and in making others happy she is happy herself. In duty she is determined, in temptations she is watchful, in trials she is patient, in bereavement she is submissive, to friends she is friendly, to enemies she is forgiving. A lady's dress is neat and beautiful without being ostentatiously gaudy or unbecomingly gay. always thinks well before she speaks. She is wise in counsel, prudent in example, and truthful in all things. Her manners are refined without being tinctured with affectation. It is her constant aim to make every one happy and easy in her presence. A lady will not stoop to anything wrong or mean. descend to compromise with the world's delusive follies. into the secrets of others. And just here I will quote I confess contain more truth than poetry. She will not conShe will not pry a few lines which A real lady takes no selfish advantage of a person's mistakes. She never looks disdainfully upon others, only because their position in life may be inferior to her own. She never pouts, nor flirts, nor flatters. She is not one thing to your face, and another at your back. She never goes into fitful passions on account of mere trifles. She never laughs and whispers |