forlorn appearance presented by this spot, unsheltered as it is, by a single tree, which is in striking contrast with the thick shades and beautiful order of the Turkish places of burial."

"The immense burial grounds of the Turks on the Asiatic side of Constantinople, have been much celebrated by travellers. There is also a cemetery of the Armenians close to Pera, which I often visited with peculiar delight. The eye beholds to a wide extent, stone after stone, glittering upon innumerable graves; whilst thick spreading trees extend their branches and their shade above them. Whilst contemplating the scene a silent awe pervades the mind.”

The "Tombs of the Kings" at Thebes-the sepulchre in which were deposited the earthly remains of the ancient Egyptian monarchs, were nearly two thousand years ago, as they still continue to be, objects of wonder and curiosity to visiters from different parts of the earth. Here, in the expressive language of an inspired prophet, "All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house."

To a very large portion of the human family, even among those of us to whom the cheering light and warmth of the Christian faith has been communicated, and by whom the great central truth of the soul's immortality is most undoubtingly cherished-the idea of death, and of its accompaniments-the grave, the shroud, the coffin, the pall, the funeral-comes clothed in repulsivness and gloom. Is this the teaching of nature, of revelation, of wisdom and sound philosophy? or is it not rather the result of a false education early imbibed-continually inculcated by precept and example, and pervading all the departments of social organization? Nature in all her broad domains, tells of decay and death: but not in tones of abiding sadness, or of heart-stricken desolation. The changing verdure, the falling leaf, the withered flower, the exhausted energies of vegetable life-all speak of dissolution in accordance with an organic law of their being; but how forcibly, how prowerfully do they speak to us, at the same time, of reproduction-of renewed life, of a long and interminable succession of growth, progress and improvement, under the benignant and invariable influences of the same elementary law of their mysterious existence! Is it because our eyes have seen and our. senses witnessed the repeated and uniform recurrence of these wonderful phenomena of life, death and reproduction, that we so associate them, in imagination, as to divest the autumnal metamorphosis of every other feeling than a chastened and subdued softness-a pleasing melancholy, softening and improving the heart? Why should we not, in the strong light of a living faith, look beyond the wintery gloom of the grave, to the certain resurrection of the dead— and accept the beautiful and impressive analogies which every where surround us, commissioned as they are to unfold with more than mortal eloquence, the great designs and purposes of creative wisdom and goodness? Why should we be so solicitous to clothe the last great change in all the attributes of darkness and of gloom-to look

forward to its advent with fear and apprehension-to gather around the portals of the tomb all the varied paraphernalia of grief and mourning to check the bouyant gladness of artless youth and hope and innocence, with "cold obstruction"? The myriad voices of nature and the trumpet tones of revelation, do they not alike point to this termination of earthly cares and troubles as the entrance to the courts of immortality-the commencement of a new and interminable existence, unincumbered and unimpeded by the clogs and barriers which have here weighed down the elastic energies of the soul and shut us out from a view of our higher nature? If death were not a necessary portion of that mysterious but most benevolent process which constitutes our proper being-if it were not essentially subservient to the great purposes of that existence which appertains to us as recipients of an immortal spirit; if in reality, it involved only a painful and an agonizing struggle between the sentient principle of vitality and the operation of a paramount law of dissolution and decay; we may be well assured that it would have found no place in the physical or moral economy of that system of creation and providence, which pervades all the workmanship of the Deity. Why, then, should we fear to look it calmly in the face-to confront the silent memorials of its presence in those "cities of the dead,” which lie side by side with the great thoroughfares of the busy world, and familiarly to commune, in the presence and under the benign influences of nature, with the spirits of those who quietly repose beneath the green turf of the valley ?

To the solitary mourner-heart-sticken and afflicted-to the child of adversity and sorrow-to the contemplative Christian, whatever may be his circumstances, and however exempt in the beneficent dispensation of a kind Providence, may have been his lot, from the common calamities of life-how blessed, how benignant, how soothing are the influences springing up from this companionship with nature in her primeval quietness and beauty, tenderly guarding, sheltering and consecrating that "dreamless sleep" that "knows no waking!" How grateful and how salutary to the wearied and flagging energies of the man of business, the artisan, the laborerovercome with "the heat and burden of the day" spent with fatigue, vexation, anxiety, and "all the numerous ills which flesh is heir to"-at the quiet evening hour, or on the hallowed day of rest to "drink in the inspiration" of such a scene, to breathe the pure and fragrant air loaded with incense from the thick groves, and made vocal with the music of innumerable songsters from nature's own choir-to look abroad, far as the eye can reach upon the magnificent scenery of hill and dale, of river, lake, or ocean, and amid the "speaking solitude" around, to hold converse with his own heart in the presence of those silent but solemn witnesses!

Viewed in these relations, the recent consecration of a retired and romantic spot of ground, near the suburbs of our city, for the purpose of a "Rural Cemetery" cannot fail to exert a salutary and most beneficial influence upon the great mass of our fellow citizens; and we hail it as a strongly marked and decided indication of an upward tendency in public morals, and of the prevalence of enlightened sentiments and just ideas of refinement and taste. We trust the liberal and spirited views of the pioneers in the noble undertaking, will be effectally sustained by all classes of community; for whatever may be the jostlings in the crowded marts of business and of active life, here there can be no difference. Death levels all distinction-and the "bruised spirits" of the survivors can here mingle in sympathy, regardless of the factitious shades which elsewhere separate their destinies. Let us all, then, co-operate in the grateful and holy task of adorning and beautifying this shaded retreat; set apart for the final resting place of the dead, and in whose still and quiet glades our own dust may "sleep the sleep that knows no waking. Let us reverently lay upon this consecrated altar of humanity, those offerings which the living may, with a peculiar fitness, bestow upon the memory of the dead; and let us avail ourselves of the perennial beauties of nature, the music of her living streams, the soothing melodies of her unrivalled songsters, and the solemn quietude of her secluded retreats, to meditate upon the deep problem of our own mysterious being, our duties and our destinies, in time and in eternity. Albany, October, 1844.

Written for the Gavel.

ODD FELLOW'S EPITAPH OVER A STRANGER'S GRAVE.

BY C. C. BURR.

SOFT, softly here! O pause to breathe
A Brother's prayer o'er the corse beneath.
Though stranger-hands in silence spread
The gloomy sand that hides the dead,
Yet here, as mystic science tells,
A guardian spirit ever dwells.
Such gentle spirits still will seek

The tear that scalds the widow's cheek;
Then bring those precious drops to lave
The sainted stranger's lonely grave.

Soft, softly here! for on this mound
The badge of Brotherhood is found!
Revere that sign! for in his breast
Its friendly virtues were confessed;
And, while on earth, he lived to prove
The worth of Friendship, Truth and Love.
If in thy breast be found that sign,
Which pledges charity divine;

O give this grave one dutious tear,—
Thy friend and BROTHER slumbers here!

This church was incorporated in 1811, at which time the congregation erected a house of worship in Division street, which they continued to occupy until the present year, when in consequence of inconvenience, in the arrangement of the building, it was disposed of and the present beautiful and commodious edifice erected, making now 5 Methodist Episcopal Churches in this city and one Wesleyan. The trustees of this church are

John T. Crew, Jacob Hochstrasser, Silas B. Howe, Becker Bicknell, John P. Romaine, Robert P. Wiles, Abraham Keyser, James Van Namee, Clement Warren. Zebulon Phillips, Pastor.

The edifice, of which the above is a representation, is situated between Hudson and Plain streets, having an entrance from each. The principal front is on Hudson street. It is built of brick, in a chaste, and simple, yet imposing style, is 92 feetlong, and 67 feet wide. The proportions and arrangement of the interior are in good taste, and of beautiful execution. There are 122 pews, exclusive of the galleries. We find the above particulars in the CITY GUIDE, a useful little work by Mr. Wilson, for sale at the book stores.

The Methodists form a very numerous sect in the city, and it is believed that their increase in this country is unparalleled. In 1755 five Methodists settled in New York, and formed the first society in America. The number gradually increased, and in 1766 they erected a house of worship in John street. From this small beginning they have become a great denomination, exercising their influence not merely in populous cities, but even to the sources of the Columbia river, in Oregon, where regular stations are held.-Religious Spect'r.

Written for the Gavel.

MEMORY.

BY JENNIE.

WHAT a fruitful source of happiness is our Memory! Not limited by the perceptions of our senses; it may extend far back in the records of time, and fold in its embrace all the dear objects of affection, and at times hold with them as real communion as though communicated through the natural senses! Think you, reader, that for any such, memory will be extinct? Have we not proof that it is an ever living principle of the soul? And though it will not always tenant these breathing bodies, may it not yet live in all its essential elements? How is human nature exalted and dignified by such capabilities? Who that remembers that such is our creation, would ever degrade it to such grovelling pursuits, and sordid, earth-directed passions, as sometimes riot unrestrained in the dark recess of the soul.

GRAND REPRESENTATIVES' REPORT.

To the R. W. Grand Lodge of New York:

The Representatives of this R. W. Grand Lodge to the G. Lodge of the U. States, respectfully report: That at the last Annual Session, besides the Grand Officers, there were present representations from G. Lodges of Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, District of Columbia, Delaware, New Jersey, Kentucky, Virginia, Indiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Connecticut, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia, and from Grand Encampments of Maryland, New York, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. During the session delegates were also received from Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, in which states Dispensations had before been granted for G. Lodges, and who, in the early part of the session, had their warrants confirmed. Warrants for G. Lodges in Wales, Michigan and Canada, have also been granted, and subordinate Lodges and Encampments have been established in Iowa, Wisconsin, &c.

In all of the above named places, the Order is in a most prosperous condition. In the state of Maine, particularly, the increase of the Order is without a precedent. But while your representatives rejoice over the success of the Order generally, they have to lament its sickly condition in Texas and the state of Illinois. The Grand Lodge of the United States has taken action on this subject, and it is hoped that the result will be gratifying and satisfactory, so that in another year it may be said, that the Order is in a flourishing condition through the whole extent of our jurisdiction.