by the youthful mind, especially when ardent and sanguine. "It is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth." But when a young man's way is beset with difficulties, when his fairest prospects are early beclouded, or his tree of hope unexpectedly blighted, he is apt to think that God has forsaken him; that Heaven cares not for the sorrows of earth; and that his life will be a gloomy day of hardship and privation. He judges rashly, not understanding the work of the Lord. Perhaps the trial of his faith is already nearly completed; and, if he continue to hope in God, his captivity will soon be turned, and his heaviness changed to joy. Hold out a little longer; and brighter hours will come. The servant is proved faithful in a little, before his Divine Master intrusts him with more. You are in the army of Immanuel, fighting against the world, the flesh, and the devil; and your Captain will see your wants supplied; but do you expect promotion without first giving evidence of your faith, and showing that you are prepared to sustain new honours?

The history of Joseph will naturally recur to mind, when meditating on these truths. It is a fascinating piece of biography. Mohammedans have decked it with all the blandishments of eastern imagery, and made it a prominent topic of contemplation to the luxurious Asiatic. Its very pathos is apt to steal away the heart, and prevent a strict examination of its important moral. We readily catch the main features of the story, and rejoice that the pious youth received so great a reward from his heavenly Father; but the philosophy of the narrative is not so generally appreciated. For it will be found that, in its general tenor, it is only a sample of a large class of cases, occurring in every generation of them that fear God and work righteousness.

"He that is faithful in the least, is faithful also in much." "To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance." Here is an ordinance of the Divine government; a general rule which the Lord works out in a variety of ways. The inference is, that the temporal favours bestowed upon Joseph were the reward of fidelity, and of strict adherence to righteousness; not a mere recompense for "injured innocence." It is true that he had suffered much injustice at the hand of man; but could he plead innocent before his Maker? Who can say that any amount of present affliction is more than his sins have deserved? Or, what do we know of the depth of Joseph's piety before the painful reverses to which he was subjected? Perhaps he, like the Psalmist, might have said, " Before I was afflicted I went astray but now I have kept thy word." Many years of lonely sorrow would strongly tend to bring a well-disposed mind into intimate communion with God, and to foster those nascent buds of righteousness which might have been otherwise blighted or contaminated. Thus he was also prepared to withstand the temptations of Egyptian greatness, and to flourish unscathed in the sunshine of brightest prosperity.

Another good resulted to Joseph from his thirteen years of captivity. He was then fitted for occupying a post of important business. It would have been a difficult, if not an impracticable, matter for a simple uneducated youth to transact the affairs of a Prime-Minister. Though God gives the principles of wisdom to those who ask it, yet the prudence of practical business must be gained in the experience of life. So, Joseph was first made steward of Potiphar's house and property, and was afterwards intrusted with the sole management of the state-prison. Being thus brought into contact with several of Pharaoh's officers, he obtained an insight into their administration of private and public affairs. The Lord

took these means of preparing His servant for the high office into which he was about to be installed.

Joseph endured suffering with pious resignation to the Divine will. We do not read that he resisted his brethren, or upbraided them for their cruel treatment when they sold him to the caravan of Ishmaelites. Nor does he appear to have wished to criminate Potiphar's wife, when she laid unjust accusations to his charge. When he was reviled, he reviled not again, but submitted to the will of God; expecting that He would bring forth his righteousness as the light, and his judgment as the noon-day. The oppressed exile committed his cause to the holy One of Israel, who undertook for him; and, though He did not right it so quickly as hasty man would have sought to do, He was working out a plan for insuring a larger measure of future advancement.

Joseph's integrity was unbending. As he had been a dutiful son, so he proved a faithful servant. When assailed with all the fascinations of strong allurement, he repelled the seduction. He reasoned not with flesh and blood; but his upright soul at once exclaimed, "How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" When he was called to suffer for righteousness' sake, he did so without petulance or repining. His captivity, indeed, was now darker; and it offered no prospect but that of lonely mourning. A ray of light which broke in upon his despondency, when Pharaoh's chief butler was pardoned, soon passed away, and left his case more hopeless than ever. But when the trial of his faith was finished to the satisfaction of his Divine Master, his enlargement was not delayed; and an extraordinary post of honour was the reward of his faithfulness.

The history of Joseph is given for the special instruction and encouragement of the young. The great moral which it conveys is the blessedness of patiently enduring those adversities which seem to blight the spring of life, and of firmly resisting those temptations which throng the path of youth. God often tries His young servants, to see if they are worthy to be trusted with honour or riches. To murmur because our early prospects are beclouded, or to yield to the enticements of sin, with a hope that it may be afterwards forgiven, is the surest way of lengthening the evil time, and preventing the brightness of our noon-day. "Rest on the Lord, and wait patiently for Him." "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass." "Wait on the Lord, and keep His way, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land." (Psalm xxxvii., passim.)

The man of Uz is another example of the reward of patient suffering. "Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy." This case was essentially different from the one already considered. It was not intended as a preparation for future advancement, or a proof of fidelity in small matters; but seems to have been a simple trial of faith and patience. It originated through the malice of Satan, who declared that righteousness would not sustain a man in the day of fierce adversity. God knew otherwise. He understood the power of His own grace. Faith can buoy up the heart amid the swelling tide, even when the waves are highest, and the storm is most furious.

Job had reached the meridian of life in wealth and honour. But the blandishments of prosperity had not injured his religion, nor tarnished his moral excellence. It is difficult to bear unbroken prosperity without spiritual loss. But the heart-searching God has portrayed the character of

Job: "There is none like him in all the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil." Here, then, was a fit person to show forth the power of religion, and to stand in the front rank of godly heroism. For the proof that the love of God is a potent principle in the soul, no timid or wavering believer must be exposed in the foreground of temptation. One was selected for the trial who could adopt for the motto of his crest," Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him."

The first portion of the Book of Job details a series of the heaviest calamities, following each other in quick succession; wave upon wave, flood upon flood, storm upon storm. Yet the house fell not, because it was founded upon a rock. (Matt. vii. 25.) It was an amazing duel,— -on which angels looked with intense anxiety, and-God with a smile,-when the Patriarch, alone, (yet supported by Divine grace,) withstood the attacks of the arch-fiend, who was backed by all the powers of nature, and who brought the force of all the elements to bear upon his naked opponent. The sword of an enemy was sent to destroy his substance; the lightning blasted his property; a tempest brought destruction on his family; a loathsome disease consumed his skin and polluted his flesh; the courage of his wife sank under her afflictions; and his friends upbraided him with accusations of secret sin. But faith and righteousness made Job more than conqueror.

It is true that "the patient man" used certain unguarded expressions, in reasoning with his friends on the character and ways of Jehovah. Whilst he fully acknowledged God's right to do what He pleased with His creatures, he did not entertain adequate views of the Divine wisdom and goodness in the administrations of Providence. The Lord condescended to instruct him on these points, and thus increased his submissive hope in unfailing mercy. When the trial was ended, and the victory was complete, God gave him the reward of his patience, by blessing his latter end more than the beginning.

Christians do not suffer only for their own sake. St. Paul endured much tribulation for the sake of the church. The power of religion must be exemplified in order to its being publicly acknowledged. The passive graces, "long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, patience," can only be known in the trial. The faithful must, therefore, be prepared ever to glorify the grace of God. But their Divine Master is "pitiful and tender;" and, whilst He will not permit them to be tempted above what they are able to bear, He will make a way for their escape, and grant them a subsequent blessing. Should He in sovereign wisdom decide to give them no recompense upon earth, the amends will be ample at the resurrection of the just.

From the concluding part of both these histories we learn, that God is at no loss for means to execute His purposes of mercy. We could imagine a variety of other plans than those which Infinite Wisdom chose to adopt. But there were numerous interests to be consulted for at the same time; and these none but a prescient Being could have adjusted. A man can never tell what is best for himself and for those who may be connected with his family and fortunes. In Joseph's case, God designed to promote a faithful servant, to humble his undutiful brethren, to provide for his father according to promise, to visit the guilty lands of Canaan and Egypt with a rod of correction, to make His own name glorious in sight of the Heathen, and to prepare a way for the settlement of His chosen people, and for the degradation of the idolatrous and hard-hearted Egyptians, Besides,

who can tell how many private cases of conversion to the worship of the true God may have been wrought by the exaltation and example of holy Joseph? or how many youthful hearts have been supported, during the early struggles of life, by the remembrance of God's dealings with the pious son of Israel? A dream (and princes often have fearful dreams!) changed the whole aspect of Egyptian affairs, raised Joseph from a prison to a palace, and was the turning-point of many eventful movements, not only to the then existing race of men, but to generations yet unborn. Who can despond, if he make Joseph's God his Friend and Guide?

The narrative of Job's trial is an instructive lesson in the mysterious wisdom of Divine Providence. Here no temporal interests seem to have been materially involved, except those of the Patriarch and his family. So, the mode of his subsequent advancement was not very striking, though sufficient to proclaim "the finger of God." Whilst the sufferer was employed (according to Divine appointment) in interceding for his friends, his own bodily sickness was healed. All his former friends and acquaintances, probably including most of the nomadic chiefs of Arabia, heard of the honour conferred upon him by God, and hastened to present their offerings of gold and silver. By these means he immediately acquired new property, which, being abundantly increased by the Divine blessing, speedily grew into vast riches. Domestic mercies were also vouchsafed; and his “hoary head was a crown of glory, being found in the way of righteousness." "In the evening time of his pilgrimage it was again "light."

Can we also bless the Lord's hand when it takes away, as well as when it gives? Can we praise Him in the storm as well as in the calm? When our sky is overcast, do we believe that the Sun of love shines above the murky clouds? The promise of Jehovah still stands sure,-"Them that honour me, I will honour." "The God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen."

THE EMU AND THE INKSTAND.

Ir may not be known that the emu is a bird of the giant class, and remarkable as much for its extreme wistlessness, especially in the matter of its food, as for its bulk. In its confined state, at least, it will swallow everything within its reach, without regard to any other circumstance than its capability of entering the stomach; a fact which seems sufficient to account for fable ascribing such amazing powers of digestion to the ostrich, -a bird of the same family. Nails, halfpence, and other articles equally contrary, one would think, to the guiding instinct of the creature as to its life, have been found within it, when the causes of its mortal and mysterious illness have been sought after. From this unaccountable characteristic arose a circumstance so interesting and instructive, that it should not, I think, be suffered to descend into oblivion altogether unnoticed, nor without leaving behind it some conspicuous trace of its being. The circumstance alluded to was related by the keeper of an extensive menagerie,—a man most observant of the peculiarities of every animal committed to his care. An emu was once brought into his custody, which most unaccountably sickened and died within a few weeks afterwards. Upon opening the body, to his astonishment he found the cause of her malady and death to be a glass inkstand, which was enveloped in the creature's stomach, and

which she had previously swallowed. His wonder was now transferred from the cause of her death to the manner in which she had possessed herself of so deadly a morsel; and, to solve this mystery, he inquired of all connected with the menagerie; but none could at all elucidate the matter, and he was constrained to leave it shrouded in conjectural uncertainty. But time, that great revealer of secrets, not long after brought the very Captain by whom the emu had been conveyed to the British shores, to the keeper's door; and, the conversation turning upon the occasion of their former interview and acquaintance, he was told the circumstances of its death, and subsequent examination. As the several particulars were related, an unlooked-for surprise and anxiety, accompanied by deep blushes, settled upon his countenance. At the close of the brief narrative, he paused a moment, and then said, "You will not wonder, Mr. that your state

ment has so affected me, when I tell you that I fear it will too truly explain an event which occurred on my homeward voyage, and which now pains me exceedingly. Yet I would not but have heard that statement for a thousand times the value of the poor bird. Can you show me the inkstand?" "O, yes," replied the keeper, as he took it from among similar curiosities on his mantel-shelf, and put it into his hand: "here it is." "This is the very thing," rejoined the Captain: "this inkstand was on the quarter-deck, close by my side, when I last used it, and the hapless emu was within an iron coop, not far off. I had occasion to go into my cabin ere I had finished my letter, and, on my return, the inkstand had disappeared. Positive that I had left it on the deck, I made every inquiry, and ordered the strictest search after it, but in vain; none had touched it, none had seen it, nor was it anywhere to be found. Far from imagining the true cause of my loss, the amount of which I was compelled to estimate not by cost, but the difficulty, if not the impossibility, of then replacing it, I became excessively angry, and at once accused the poor fellow whom I had left in its neighbourhood, and condemned him to be flogged for the suspected crime, notwithstanding his solemn protestations of innocence. He bore the grievous infliction with patience; for, though a black, he was, I believe, a Christian. And now, Sir, I cannot rest till I have found him out, and made him full reparation." So saying, the Captain took up his hat, and hastily departed, leaving his host and family wondering not more at his recital, than at the power of that principle which drove him so unceremoniously from their company. Reader, where is not the man who has so misjudged, so miscondemned, if not so unjustly punished, his brother? But where is he to be found who is equally prompt to retrace his steps, equally anxious to repair his fault?-The Christian Keepsake.

GEOMETRY AND GEOMETERS.*

RESPECTING the history of science, it has been remarked that it serves, at least, to commemorate the benefactors of mankind; an object which can scarcely be considered as unworthy or unimportant. It is probable

* These notices are abridged from the "Introduction" to the excellent University Edition of Euclid's Elements of Geometry, by Mr. Robert Potts, M.A., of Trinity College, Cambridge. That volume is now too well known and too highly esteemed in academical circles, to need any commendation of ours. But we take the opportunity of expressing our pleasure in Mr. Poits's success, and in the recent appearance of his third duodecimo edition, which has received additions amounting to more than fifty pages.-EDITS.