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their fruit in due season, plentiful fruit, much fruit, the best fruit. And what hinders them? Now, mark you, it is not said here, as in that mournful Psalm, The wild boar out of the wood doth root it up, and the wild beasts of the field devour it.' It is not said here, 'It is burnt with fire and cut down, and they shall perish at the rebuke of Thy countenance.' It is not said here, Why hast Thou then broken down her hedges, so that all they that go by pluck off her grapes?' No: it is the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the tender grapes. Look into your own hearts, and see if every word do not tell.

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"What is it that hinders your making more progress than you doholding a point when you have gained it, and then making a fresh advance-forgetting those things that are behind, and reaching forth to those that are before? What is there that hinders you from becoming saints? * * *

"Look at the text again. It is not, then, great temptations or great falls which keep you back. Probably, could a mere man of this world, a good man so far as its standard of goodness goes, look into your hearts, as I can look into them, he might think that they were altogether GoD's. Of little temptations, little failings, little self-indulgences, little falls, he would make no account. His eyes would glance over this your vineyard, and the little foxes would escape his notice, as they sometimes escape yours. Yes; and it is they, more than anything else, which spoil the tender grapes. Mind: it does not say that they destroy the vine, that they hinder it from bringing forth any fruit, that they spoil all the produce: no, they spoil only, not destroy-and they spoil the tender grapes-those proofs and actions of grace that are not yet strong, still new, and as it were untried.

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And, it is well said, the little foxes: for these things, in and by themselves, are little. A little piece of self-indulgence which seems scarcely to deserve the name of a fault: a little hesitation or difficulty in obeying, which, at first sight, hardly seems a sin of omission: a little carelessness in words, a little coldness in prayer, a little idleness, a little hanging back from the wise man's rule, Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. And you must weigh these things in the balance, not of the world, not of man's ideas, but of your LORD, before you can see the fault.

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Ought not this to be your daily aim, to take those little foxes-to discover them first, and then to destroy them? This is a science like any other science, and it must be learnt: this is a trade like any other trade, and it must be pursued.

"And notice, they are not only little, but they are foxes. They are not only easily overlooked because they are small, but they skulk and keep themselves out of sight, because they are crafty. They need prayer to find out-more prayer to put an end to.

"But, then, the comfort is that this is no strange or new difficulty. Here, notwithstanding all those words of love to the Bride, she was still thus tempted and vexed and harassed: her vineyard also was in danger of being spoilt; but then, she knows to Whom she should turn for help. She calls on Him to destroy those enemies. If He desires her to be more holy, more pure, more loving, more entirely His own, He

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must make her so. If He would have these little sins rooted out, these little temptations detected and overcome, the work must be His. And notice how she asks it. It is not simply, Take: nor yet, Take for me:. but, Take for us. She pleads with Him to help her, because it is their common cause. He has given her the rights of a Bride, and what is hers is His she cannot be hurt, but He also suffers. His vineyard as well as hers is exposed to be spoiled. My dear sisters, when you feel weak, unhappy, desponding, powerless to good, remember that your weakness and sorrow and fear are His as well as yours. When the husband first takes the dear bride, does he take her only in health, in wealth, in beauty, in youth? No: for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish and nothing but her own unfaithfulness can deprive her of that claim. Just so with you. Only be faithful to His love, and then with a good courage carry all your sins, all your sorrows, all your difficulties to Him. O LORD, I am oppressed; undertake for me.' If He sees His bride ready to sink beneath her Cross, He remembers that He thrice fell under His own; if He sees her trying to bring her will into subjection to His, He remembers that, in so far as He was Man, He prayed, 'O My FATHER, if this cup may not pass from Me except I drink of it, Thy will be done.' Why should He, dear sisters, have given you, not only His strength, but His weakness? Why should He have become, not only the Prophet, and the Teacher, and the Miracle-Worker, but the helpless baby also? Why should He not only have endured the Cross, but fallen under it, but to show you this-that He is ready to take you in your weakness as well as in your strength, to receive you in your poverty as well as in your riches (which riches can only be His gifts), to tend and comfort you in your infirmities as well as in your health?

And then notice the last clause. 'For our vines have tender grapes.' The flowers in that other and better land are hardy enough: they fear no rough wind-they can suffer from no spoilers in the region of immortality-they are themselves immortal. The Tree of Life bears twelve manner of fruits, and yields its fruit every month; for there is no winter there. But here it is not so. Here any kind of grace may be nipped by some cold blast of temptation; here the fruit may no sooner begin to come to maturity, than it is cut off. Our vines have tender grapes, indeed. And what is the lesson for you ? Why, surely this that every motion of God's grace must be carefully watched and tended; that the least influence you feel from that, you must cherish and give it all its scope. Those flowers, those plants, my dear sisters, can but lead a hothouse life in this strange and cold world. They must come back again to their native country, before they can thrive hardily: the winds here are too rough, and the frosts too bitter."-Pp. 94-101.

We regret that we cannot give many passages even more valuable than those we have quoted; but these will suffice to show the deep spirituality and great beauty of language which characterise this book.

We cannot, however, conscientiously close our notice of it with

out mentioning some points which have been subjects of regret to us in reading it. Admitting fully the extensive knowledge of the spiritual life which it displays, and with the warmest sympathy for institutions similar to that which has called forth the work, we cannot but think that the extremely familiar style of these sermons is very undesirable, not only for publication, but as a manner of address even to that peculiar audience. The repeated allusions to matters sacredly private to each individual sister, such as the experiences of confession, or the conviction awakened at the celebration, coupled with the expression of the preacher's own feelings in the course of his ministrations among them, must, we conceive, have tended to create self-consciousness, and an unhealthy state of mind in the community; whilst to the public it is likely to convey much misapprehension as to the relations of priest and penitent, as well as of the director of a sisterhood with the members thereof.

These, however, are simply blemishes of style, which might easily be removed, without disturbing the rich substance which they somewhat disfigure.

We conclude with one more short extract :

"He feedeth among the lilies.' It is written of Behemoth, the type of Satan in the Book of Job, that 'he lieth under the shadow of the tall trees.' But this spotless Lamb chooses no such lofty places. And what are these lilies among whom He feeds? Surely the pure in heart. This month of lilies speaks to us, not only of their innocence, but also of their reward. The straight stalk, standing up erect from the earth, its flowers, as high from the ground as possible-do they not tell us of heavenly-mindedness? Do they not seem to say, 'Set your affections on things above, not on things of the earth?' And if the spotless snow of the leaves teaches us of the grace, then the gold of the anthers tells us of that crown which shall be the reward of the grace. He feedeth among the lilies, then, here; but, in a more full and glorious sense, He rests among them in that land where these lilies thrive best. Not that He despises, not that He will not accept, the other flowers of His garden; but that, as His beloved Apostle saw, when he had the heavens opened to him, the hundred and forty and four thousand virgin souls alone follow Him whithersoever He goeth. Consider the lilies, how they grow,'how often, here, they were watered with the tears of true repentance; but are now nourished by the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the Throne of GOD and of the Lamb,-how, sometimes here, the delicate purity of their leaves was stained by an unholy thought; but there, in that peace and eternal sunshine, can never be defiled any more. It is well said then 'He feedeth among the lilies.' "Till when? Until the day break, and the shadows flee away.' The eternal day to which we are all looking forward: the day which will end the coldness and darkness of this world for ever: the day of which the promises of GOD are like the grey clouds that gather over the place where the sun is about to arise, speaking, but still very faintly,

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of His coming glory. It follows, then, that through the night in which we now are, we have our LORD with us. It is as if He said to us, 'That darkness in which you now are, O My true servants, I also was in: according to that saying of My Prophet, I walked in darkness, and had no light but I will not leave you so: I will be with you till the day break. It is a day, the brightness of which it hath not entered into the heart of man to conceive; but since you cannot enter into it without a deeper darkness, and a greater chill first, I will be with you till the day break. Of Me it is written, that when the morning was now come, I stood on the shore.' So also shall it be with you. When that morning shall have come, when that true day shall break, you also shall stand on the shore of everlasting rest, having safely passed through the waves of this troublesome world. But while the night lasts, until the day break, and the shadows flee away, 'Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.'"-Pp. 106-108.

REVIEWS AND NOTICES.

1. The Salisbury Hymn Book. London: Simpkin, Marshall, and Co. 2. Hymnal for use in the Services of the Church, authorized by the Bishop of Aberdeen. Rivingtons.

3. Hymns for Missions, &c. Masters.

WE hail the appearance of these three Hymnals (the last of which has been some while published) with great satisfaction, as indicating that the days of Tate and Brady are at length numbered.

No. 1. is the fruit of much and careful labour bestowed by Earl Nelson, and if it shall become in reality The Salisbury Hymnal, we shall be well content. Looking, that is to say, at the present state of that diocese in three-fourths of whose parishes Metrical Psalms (or something worse) probably continue to be sung to such tunes as "Lydia," and "Winchester," and " Cambridge New," we could hardly expect more than a compromise. As a compromise we can only regard his Lordship's Hymnal: it is better undoubtedly than what the diocese now has; but it is very far from what it might be. It is worse too, than what, after making all allowance for the difficulties attendant necessarily on the endeavour to prepare a Hymnal for general acceptance in the diocese, it ought to be. It is framed avowedly on the comprehensive principle, as the very large number of hymns inserted (204) plainly shows. And yet it omits the three very best hymns known, we mean the Vexilla Regis, the Pange lingua, and the Stabat Mater. Comparing, therefore, this collection with Hymnals already existing, we are bound to say that it is no gain,-the best, in our judgment, still being "the Hymns and Introits," originally prepared for use at Cum

brae, and now used at All Saints, London, and several other well known churches.

2. The Aberdeen Hymnal deserves nearly unqualified praise there is nothing in it that we should wish to see removed, and scarcely anything of importance omitted. It also gives (we think wisely) a very few of the favourite Metrical Psalms, but not, we are surprised to see, the 84th.

3. The "Mission Hymns" is a smaller collection, and endeavours to combine the best of the old Medieval Hymns with some that are better known in Conventicles. Not having had ourselves any experience of the kind of place for which these Hymns are designed, we do not venture to express any opinion on their merits. For use in an ordinary congregation however, we should certainly object to such lines as these: "JESU, too late I Thee have sought, How can I love Thee as I ought?"

Sermons for Special Occasions. By FRANCIS E. PAGET, M.A., Rector of Elford. London: Masters.

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We do not know exactly with what view this volume was designed; but there is one purpose which it seems to us exceedingly well calculated to fulfil-viz. to explain the theory of the Church's chief institutions. The Dissenter knows all about his own sect, historically and practically the Churchman, on the other hand, is generally found to possess neither knowledge nor interest in respect of the religious society of which he professes to be a member; neither can he tell you why he is a member of the Church, or what are the duties which attach to him in consequence of this membership. His distrust of the Clergy is usually not less than what is felt by his Dissenting neighbour: tithes and Church rates and Easter dues are equally begrudged by him: nor is he one whit less loud in denouncing the Athanasian Creed, or the surplice or, any characteristic doctrine, such as the Real Presence in the Holy Eucharist, or Regeneration in Baptism. Now the root of this great and crying evil is undoubtedly ignorance—an ignorance for which the Clergy are mainly responsible. They have not cared to appeal to the sympathies of their people, or to explain the rationale of things to them. And Mr. Paget's volume is well adapted for removing it. The Visitation,—the Ordination, the Village Feast,-the Parochial Choir,-the Ruridecanal Meeting, the Village School ;-all these are occasions for speaking on the politics of the Church (if we may use the phrase), which Mr. Paget has employed in his usual forcible manner. And many Clergy will do well, we think, to avail themselves of his help by circulating the present volume among their people.

The Editor of the Old Church Porch must, we conceive, by this time be convinced that he did not do wisely in publishing long and detailed accounts of the heresies which have recently afflicted the Church in this

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