on such an emergence; and become bold beggars in his cause where they would rather suffer than ask any thing for themselves. . . .

"I can truly say I seldom forget you and your's...I have lost my only brother, aged eighty-six, and my only sister aged seventy-seven, during the last year; and am the only survivor of thirteen children; and am dropping into the grave. May we be well prepared to go whenever the summons comes! Pray for me and mine: for me especially, that God would give me stronger faith; more lively, assured hope; more patience; more love; that I may finish my course with joy. Earnestly begging of our most merciful God abundantly to bless you and all your's, I remain, dear Mrs. Ryour affectionate friend and servant,

THOS. SCOTT." I shall now close this chapter with a few letters which I have reserved, in order to avoid too much which did not contribute to the narrative.

To a niece, left by the death of her mother at the head of a family:

You

"March 13, 1815.-Your situation at present, though it cannot and ought not perhaps to be declined, is one of great importance and difficulty, and probably of temptation; considering how early days the present are with you as to religion;, and how many things, being at the head of such a family, will bring under your management, and in your way. But without further information as to particulars, I cannot enter on much appropriate counsel. You have two duties: they cannot interfere, but they may seem to do so. must honor, and obey, and oblige your father, in all things, except when a higher duty to God forbids. You must follow his inclination in preference to your own; but not in preference to the will of God: and the more you give up your own will, the more you will find liberty to follow your conscience in respect of the will of God. By prudence and consulting propriety; by meekness and gentleness, united with firmness, in things of importance; it may be practicable to you to maintain comfort and respectability in your situation, and give a happier turn to all domestic concerns. But eagerness and pertinacity in little things, and pliableness in things of importance, will undo, or prevent all this.

"Allow me to touch one subject which I know requires great delicacy. A great deal indeed will depend on your

appearance and dress. I do not want to convert you into a quaker, or put you into livery, but I cannot be faithful without saying, that in your present station, and especially as being known to pay attention to religion, a considerable revolution will be necessary from what I saw when I last met you. You will take the hint in good part; it is well meant; and, if moderately attended to, as to style, expense, and attention to dress, will have the happiest effects, in every way. Especially it will make way for your becoming acquainted with those who would be a great help to you, and exempted from the giddy acquaintance of those who can only hinder and ensnare you.

"I should particularly recommend method to you, in your employments. If you would at all prosper in your soul, you must secure time for retirement, reading the scriptures, and helps in understanding them; and prayer, secret, particular, earnest prayer. Without this nothing will be done. This time, in your situation, will, I apprehend, be best secured by retrenching an hour from sleep, and such things. as merely relate to external decoration, in the morning, before your more hurrying engagements begin; and in the evening before it be too late. But securing time in the morning is the grand thing: not that the other should be neglected; but it will necessarily be exposed to more interruptions. A plan, however, should be laid down, and adhered to, with as much regularity, at least, as that about our meals. That must sometimes be broken in upon; yet not often. Above all, as much as possible, secure the whole of the Lord's day, and firmly stand out against Sunday-visitings. In addition to this, if you would improve your mind and heart, learn to redeem the fragments of time. Have a book at hand, that when you are waiting perhaps for your father or friends to dinner, or on similar occasions, you may not let the little oddments of time elapse, or rather heavily drawl on as a burden: but take the book, and read a little; and, if you lift up a short prayer over what you read, so much the better, It is surprising how much I have read and learned in these fragments of time, which most people lose. Gather up the fragments that nothing be lost.

"I am afraid your influence, at first at least, will be insufficient for what I am about to add; but persevering, firm, and mild efforts may do much: I mean in avoiding late visits, and the late entertainment of visitors. Even among pious persons, I scarcely know any thing more hostile to the re

ligion of the closet-that is, the religion of the heart and soul.

"What you mention in respect of original sin, lies at the bottom of all Christianity; and we never learn any thing else to much purpose, till we become deeply sensible of innate depravity; of a moral disease, which we cannot cure, and have not heart of ourselves to cure: but which the Lord alone can cure. We ought, however, to seek the cure from Him, as we do health from the physician, by applying to him, trusting him, following his directions, welcoming his medicines, avoiding what he inhibits, &c.—If you propose any special questions to me, in opening your mind as you mention, I will, if able, give you the best counsel I can. I remain, your affectionate uncle,

To the same.

THOMAS SCOTT."

"April 5, 1818.-I am not disposed to prescribe to any one an implicit deference to the sentiments or maxims of another, however, senior or superior: but, when the junior or inferior differs from the superior, it should be with great caution, and many prayers and fears lest the difference should be the effect of mistake, or inferior knowledge, judgment, and simplicity, rather than of more correct and scriptural views of truth and duty. The peculiarity, which I have sometimes noticed in approved characters with some disapprobation, I have in many instances lived to regard as the result of deeper experience, more enlarged observation, and a more exact knowledge of the word of God, of the human heart, and of the state of the world and the church.

"I believe that many cordially approve of the general outline of the established church, who yet dissent from it, even where they might hear the genuine gospel preached in the church, from some such objection as

has to the Athanasian creed. I, however, think that the advantages of our worship so much counterbalance what may be thought imperfections, that I am cordially attached to it; though not with such indiscriminating partiality as some are. I have little objection to the doctrine, or to the spirit, of the Athanasian creed. Properly understood, it only pronounces the damnatory sentence on those whom the scripture condemns; and this only in a declarative way, not as denouncing them, or imprecating evil upon them. But, as it endeavors too particularly to explain what, after all, is incomprehen

sible; as many have objections to it; and as it is appointed only in the morning service which is otherwise sufficiently long; I do not very frequently use it."

...

To a clergyman, the vicar of a large and important parish.

"August 12, 1819. Reverend and dear Sir, I should count it a privilege, if I could suggest any hints, which might help you in that most important charge to which the Lord has called you: but I especially am without experimental acquaintance with the subject. I have, however, made many observations on what others have attempted.

"When curate of Olney, I, as it were, inherited a prayermeeting conducted on the same plan, but not so wild and extravagant as the prayer-meetings in your parish are: but I soon found it needful or advisable to withdraw, and to leave the persons who conducted it to themselves; neither opposing nor countenancing it. Most of them became dissenters, some dissenting ministers. Since that time, I have never had any opening for any thing of the kind: but I used to advise my people when they visited one another, or were visited by relations from other places, or met on any occasion, that one of them should read a chapter, and that the same person, or some other, should pray particularly with the company, and for their neighbors, the sick, their minister, and ministers in general, and missionaries, and the enlargement, purity, and peace of the church: but not to attempt other prayer-meetings. This plan seemed to answer every needful purpose: and often, when I visited the sick, or went to a distant place, a number would collect around me: and I gave appropriate counsel and prayed with them. In this village the whole population does not much exceed seventy persons, my own family included—what a contrast to your parish! I expound in my kitchen to such as attend on a Sunday evening, and pray with them: and in winter on the week-day evening. But we have no praying men or praying-women, (I mean in public,) either to help or hinder us. In a neighboring village, there are prayermeetings, at which some of my congregation attend and assist; but I take no part in respect of them.

"In general, I am apt to think it very difficult for a minister in the establishment to form, or conduct prayer-meet, ings, in such a manner as that the aggregate good shall not be conterbalanced, or even over-balanced by positive eyil. But men of far greater experience, and capacity of

judging, have thought otherwise; among whom, I especially look up to Mr. Walker, of Truro, whose regulations I thought very judicious. But I am also, I fear, prejudiced; as the evils which arose from those at Olney induced such an association of ideas in my mind, as probably never can be dissolved.—Two or three effects were undeniable, 1st. They proved hotbeds, on which superficial and discreditable preachers were hastily raised up; whe, going forth on the Lord's day to the neighboring parishes; intercepted those who used to attend Mr. Newton. 2dly. Men were called to pray in public, whose conduct afterwards brought a deep disgrace on the gospel. 3dly. They produce a captious, criticising, self-wise spirit, so that even Mr. Newton himself could seldom please them. These things had no small effect in leading him to leave Olney. 4thly. They rendered the people so contemptuously indifferent to the worship of God at the church, and, indeed, many of them to any public worship in which they did not take a part, that I never before or since witnessed any thing like it: and this was one of my secret reasons for leaving Olney.

"As what I have written seems to go far towards a negative answer to your first question; it will be needless to give any opinion on the modification of such institutions. In general, if any are explicitly countenanced by the clergyman, they should exactly conform to such regulations as he shall deem expedient: or, if he attend, none should officiate except himself, or some clerical friend or assistant: for it must destroy all ministerial authority and influence, for him to be present, while one of his flock, a layman, is the mouth of God to the company, or of the company in addressing God. It is also an irregularity, which cannot be justified to our diocesans or others.

"If prayer-meetings cannot be thus conducted, under the countenance of the clergyman, it appears to me, that he had better leave them, and those concerned in them, to take their course, neither directly supporting nor opposing them; but endeavoring to inculcate those general principles, which may silently operate to regulate and purify them; and using his influence with the more teachable and manageable of those concerned, in private admonitions, counsels, and cautions, nearly in the manner which you describe. In the mean time, he must lay his account with being less popular than those who more humor the people, and give them more importance among their brethren; which is one grand