came a story about dear little Esther Brown and her wonderful answering; and so it went on till at last the meeting broke up. I thought I never spent a more unprofitable hour in my life. Not a word that could in any way help one in the knowledge of how to explain Seripture or to teach." eldest daughter, the children's governess, the village schoolmistress, and a farmer's daughter in the neigh. bourhood; they pray together, and then take the portion of Scripture to be taught, and talk over it; and when I was staying there I thought it very interesting and useful." แ a general smile at There was Elinor's description. "I should hope," said Lina, "there are not many meetings so ill conducted as that." "I am afraid," said Mrs. Villers, "it is not a solitary instance. I remember, in my early Sunday-school experiences, attending a meeting carried on very much in the same way." "I can't see much good in teachers' meetings," said Sophia; "I think they are mere waste of time." "That depends," said Mrs. Villers. "There are many ways of managing a meeting. I once worked for several months at a place where they were made very useful. We all met weekly, and were superintended by the clergyman. He gave out the verse or subject to be taught, and questioned us all round, first on the context, then on the meaning of the passage discussed, then on the best manner of conveying that meaning to our pupil. We were encouraged to ask questions; we generally made notes; and I found it a most useful exercise, and very stimulating and helpful to oneself." "And I have a friend," said Agnes Graham, "who does nearly the same, under greater difficulties. She is a clergyman's wife in a very retired country neighbourhood, with a scattered parish and scarcely any gentry; and her husband has so much to do that he has to leave the Sunday-school entirely to her. But she has a little teachers' meeting' every Saturday, consisting of her "Well, then," said Mrs. Villers, as we are all at leisure just now, and not likely to be interrupted-for I see it is beginning to rain hardsuppose we have a little teachers' meeting' here among ourselves, to talk over the best way of making Sunday-schools useful. Most of us are engaged in some such work, or have been at some period." "I am sure it would be the greatest help to me," said Lina. "And to us all," added Elinor. "But how should we begin? "Let us see how schools are usually conducted," said Agnes, "and then consider which of the ordinary modes pursued answers best." "That will be very useful," said Mrs. Villers; "will you begin?" "A little while ago," said Agnes, "I was at a country place where I Iwas asked to take a class in the place of a lady who was ill. There were eight or nine girls, apparently from nine to twelve years old. After the clergyman had commenced with a hymn and prayer, and the classes were all arranged, I was told that each of my girls must repeat her verses. Each had five verses from St. John's gospel to repeat. All this took up some time, though I must say the verses were said very quietly. Then there were hymns to repeat; every girl repeated a hymn of about four stanzas. I wished after this to question them, and see if they understood what they had said; but there was no time to do so, as I was informed that in the school course a certain portion of Scripture SUNDAY-SCHOOL TEACHING: A CONVERSATION. through, according to ent. The chapter for a very long one in e time it was read me was so nearly up ly ask a few general le children were very well behaved; but vearied, and I could g that they had gained the lesson." is a common way of nday-schools," said "and it certainly le ignorance we somehose who apparently arefully taught for ght in a school," said we had the epistle go through, besides a and it was quite a through it all before e came." Agnes, "I think I y. The managers of ave often children to ve little opportunity ything of the Bible = perhaps they are ork, or helping their at they cannot go to en teachers are natuget all the scriptural can into the Sunday." 1, but not wise," said "If a child could pod meal in the week, t enable him to eat meals in one. You lieve this well-meant cram a quantity of an hour or two is the mental digessuch a meal would ay," said Agnes, " is, nsider what objects keep in view, and much at a time." time. A good questioner will find enough matter in half a dozen verses from one of the gospels to occupy an hour one less skilful will find a chapter insufficient." "And how would you question upon a verse or a series of verses?" inquired Lina. "I once took down notes of a very interesting lecture on the subject, from an experienced Sunday-school superintendent," said Mrs. Villers "I have them here, and will read them : "There are four points it is important to keep in view in teaching a verse first, to make clear the meaning of each separate word; next, the meaning of the whole sentence; thirdly, its connection with what comes before and after it; and fourthly, the lesson the whole is intended to convey. "In the first place, the teacher should be very particular about the meaning of each word and its connection. Suppose, for example, that the verse is Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.' If you are not sure that your class understands it, you must go over it. What must we be?' Justified by what? 'What have we?' 'Peace with whom?' Through whom?' 'What is it to justify?' What is peace?' etc. Then take the context; remark the therefore,' nevertheless,' or but'-anything that unites the sentence with the preceding one or with those that come afterwards. เ : "Then point out the doctrine to be taught, or practical lesson to be enforced. If the pupils are tolerably advanced, you can call on them to find the passage which will either confirm or explain the text: if they are not used to this, begin with naming the passages, and telling each in turn to read one; by degrees they will learn to find them for themselves. It is very important to teach them to compare Scripture with Scripture, and to remember the parts of the Bible which mutually throw light on each other: for instance, there is constant reference in the Epistle to the Hebrews to Exodus and Leviticus; John iii. 3 should be taken with Ezekiel xxxvi. and similar passages; Psalm li. is elucidated by a reference to Isaiah i. 18 and 1 John i. 7, 8; and so on. "But where the Sunday is the only day for giving general scriptural knowledge, the teaching of course cannot be so minute; still, by the plan already suggested of letting the chapter be read by the elder children by themselves before school, time will be obtained not only for understanding the general aim and scope of the chapter, but also for looking for other passages which throw light on it. "With regard to younger children, a different method should bei employed. With them it is often a good plan to read yourself, in a clear distinct voice, the chapter or portion chosen, then question them on the leading points and illustrate the lesson to be conveyed: here anecdotes are useful; a picture or a lively verbal description will often be a help. Try and make the parables and miracles of the gospels, and the narratives of the Old Testament. in this way real to the children. "In reading a chapter either to your pupils or with them, there are two ways of accompanying the reading with questioning or explanation. One is, to explain verse by verse, as you read on, or after every two or three verses pause and question; this is best with young children, or very ignorant pupils, whose attention requires to be constantly kept up: the other is to read the chapter or portion through, and question afterwards, which with old pupils sometimes answers best." "The notes you have read are very suggestive, and would help one very much in teaching,” said Lina; “but I should like, dear Mrs. Villers, to have a few more hints about the way of questioning, and also about illustrations. I have tried, when teaching, to help out with little anecdotes or comparisons, and I have often found that what I thought would make the subject clear only puzzled it the more. "You are thinking of those scholars of yours the other day," said Sophia, laughing; "but you know they were an uncommonly stupid set." "What did they say?" asked Mrs. Villers. "Oh, I was trying to explain the passage about the lost sheep; and I said, If a poor little lamb strayed away from the fold and fell into a pit or a deep ditch, what could it do to help itself? and, to my consider able dismay, two or three answered at once, 'Pray to God.'" "That is only," said Sophia, "because those children, and most I think of the common run at Sundayschools, have a certain set of answers in their head, which seem as if they were shaken together in a bag, and any answer may come out at random to any question. 'Be good,' say your prayers,' 'go to church,'' go to heaven; any one of these replies will do, without the least regard to meaning." 6 Lina could not help laughing. "Yes," she said, "and the same with names of people. If I ask the children who it is says such and such words, one calls out 'God,' another 'Moses,'' David,' 'Peter,' perfectly at random." "It shows the habit they have acquired of speaking without thinking; and the only way you can cure it," said Mrs. Villers, "is to question backwards and forwards in such a way as to make mechanical answering impossible." (To be continued.) “IN GOD HAVE I PUT MY TRUST." Nor in an arm of flesh; no mortal power, Can cheer my soul when storms and tempests lower, Just like the flower, all human might must fade, From earth I turn, and humbly look for aid "Thou tellest all my wanderings," and my tears When weary, trembling, heart-distressed, and faint, In times when sorrow bowed my troubled soul, Through all the windings of the pilgrim road, In all my future journey be Thou near; If e'er by suffering or by care oppressed, And glorify Thy holy name in me; In joy or sadness, happiness or woe, Thy mercies oh remember, and Thy love! C. I. CHASTENED ONES. "EXTREMES are dangerous" is a very |