form outshining in brilliancy the bright orb of day! only the treasury of the skies, and Every atom of its trust The grave is Rests in hope again to rise! Calmly then, may we for a while commit the bodies of our loved ones "to their dark home." The moment of the resurrection will not be always future, and then, Oh what joyful meetings! What heavenly greetings!-proportioned I think to the pain and anguish of parting. Oh ye orphan ones that are soon to see the grave close over the remains of fond and tender parents, hear the sweet accents of Jesus; "Thy father, thy mother, shall rise again. I am the resurrection and the life; I sympathize with you, I weep with you; for in all your afflictions, I am afflicted." Weeping parents, listen to the same voice of love; for to you also it speaks, and in language equally soothing. daughter shall rise again she is only resting a little while, 'In the sepulchre's quiet repose.' "Thy I will raise her up, to share my triumphs, and partake of my joy! Brothers and sisters, are you sorrowing for the loss of those dear companions of your early years, whose anxious solicitude was to give you pleasure, Oh hear the voice of Jesus. "Thy brother,"-thy sister "shall rise again," no more to be encircled in the arms of death!" No more to see corruption !" The language of every afflicting dispensation, seems to me to have the same words inscribed upon it, "Be still and know, that I am God," words which we shall do well attentively to consider; and the assurance, that God will be with us in trouble,—that nothing can happen by chance, ought to keep all his children from rebellious or murmuring thoughts. All the dark and bended lines of his providence "meet in the centre of his love." Earthly friends are, and should be dear unto us, and when removed, whether suddenly or otherwise, a void is created, but not too wide for Omnipotence to fill. We are apt to cling too closely to earth, and to the interests of time, and often need a powerful voice to proclaim in our ears, "Arise ye, and depart, for this is not your rest." And what voice more powerful than the voice of death? Our Father in heaven knows, that none is so likely to break the charm by which we are bound, and therefore sends this rough messenger; but generally, he lets his children feel that the messenger received his commission from him. Disease and death around us fly; If the receiving of every blessing as from a father's hand enhances its value, as most assuredly it does, then the receiving of every trial as a proof of the same Father's love, must certainly render it less bitter, and more endurable. "As many as I love I rebuke and chasten." He wants our whole hearts, and therefore he sees it necessary, sometimes, to remove those who are, so to speak, contending the point with Him; and surely this must be kindness, must be love; and ought also to be a cause of gratitude. May all who are in the furnace of affliction have cause, with the writer, to say "HE HATH done all THINGS WELL." STAR LIGHT. FROM THE RUSSIAN OF DERZHAVIN. A million torches lighted by GoD'S HAND, THE NATURALIST. No. IX.-SEPTEMBER. "And what if NO PECULIAR CAUSE Thus gives THE HARVEST MOON TO SHINE ;- Her silver orb through heaven's high way May best, to all beneath the sky, Its light, as most they need, supply ; Shall we for this, the rather fail And most, when autumn most requires The cresset of her useful fires, To glad the farmer's longing sight, And bless him with the HARVEST LIGHT." "SEPTEMBER,"* says an old English writer, "hath his name, as being the seventh month from March; he is drawn with a merry and cheerful countenance, and in a purple robe." The attributes of a "merry and cheerful countenance" and of a "purple robe," have reference, doubtless, to the abundance with which mankind is blessed in this "ripe month;" when the fruits of the earth have attained their maturity, and when "the valleys stand so thick with corn, that they laugh and sing." For a full explanation of the causes of the phenomenon to which the motto which we have chosen for this article relates, we must refer our readers to the SIXTH NUMBER of " FAMILIAR ASTRONOMY," * In September, the first month of autumn, a reduction of temperature begins to be felt; less, however, during the night than by day. Although the power of the sun now decreases, some of the finest weather of the year generally occurs during this month. The changes of the barometer, in September, are often great and sudden; and towards the end of this month, or early in October, equinoctial gales may be expected. Upon an average, more rain falls in September than in August; and, in general it may be observed, that more rain falls while the sun is below, than while he is above the horizon. published in the Christian Mother's Magazine for July. That paper will Explain to those who mark aright Each monthly course with watchful sight," the causes which, at this particular season, accelerate the rising of THE HARVEST MOON, namely that moon which is FULL, nearest to the autumnal equinox; the causes which "Make her, in her path, decline, And Reapers, by her beams serene, Behold postpon'd the approaching night, Of the autumnal fruits in general,-especially of apples, pears, and the numerous varieties of the plum,-it may be observed, that, in their raw state, they are less wholesome than the earlier fruits of summer. * The summer birds of passage being either now departing or having actually departed, those birds which pass their winter with us are beginning to flock in from climates farther north. Among the former class may be mentioned, the Wood Wren, the Fauvette, the Nightingale, the Blackcap, The White Throat, the Sedge Bird, the Chimney Swallow, the Wheatear, the Hay Bird, and others. Of these, some, like the swallow, depart in flock; while others withdraw separately, or in parties of two or three. With regard to the Wheatear, (Saxicola Enanthe) the Rev. G. White † expresses some doubt as to the fact of its being, universally, a bird of passage. After quoting the words of another naturalist, who observes, that "if Wheatears do not quit England, they certainly shift places; for about harvest they are not to be found, where there was before great plenty of them;" he proceeds to say, "this well accounts for the vast quantities that are caught about harvest time, near Lewes, where they are esteemed a delicacy. And though such multitudes are taken, I never saw, (and I am well acquainted with those parts) above two or three at a time; for they are never gregarious. They may, perhaps, migrate in general; and for that purpose, draw towards the coast of *The Latin names of these birds have been given in former numbers. Sussex in autumn, but that they do not ALL withdraw, I am sure; because I see a few stragglers in many countries, at all times of the year, especially about warrens and stone quarries." Of birds of passage, some take their departure from our shores by daylight; but it has been stated by accurate observers, that the greater part take their flight by night; and especially, by moonlight. During this month, the Fieldfare, the Snipe, the Curlew, and some other birds quit their northern summer quarters; the males, generally, first reaching our island. Respecting the migration of the Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris), from the north; and the regular appearance of flocks of that bird in England, during the month of September, the naturalist already quoted makes some interesting observations; and with regard to the migration of birds, generally-a subject on which the most scientific observers of nature have been divided in opinionhis remarks are often peculiarly acute and characteristic. The following passage which concludes some observations on this topic, has great beauty. "When I used to rise in a morning last autumn, and see the swallows and martins clustering on the chimneys and thatch of the neighbouring cottages, I could not help being touched with a secret delight, mixed with some degree of mortification; wi h delight, to observe with how much ardour and punctuality those poor little birds obeyed the strong impulse towards migration, or hiding, imprinted on their minds by the great Creator; and with some degree of mortification, when I reflected, that, after all our pains and inquiries, we are yet not quite certain to what regions they do migrate; and are still further embarrassed to find, that some do not actually migrate at all." Of BUTTERFLIES, some may still, occasionally, be seen, in favourable situations. Among these may be enumerated the Swallow-tail Butterfly, (Papilio Machaon), which beautiful insect is one of the largest of our indigenous butterflies, the female being sometimes found to measure three inches and a half from tip to tip of wing. The colours of this insect are chiefly yellow and black; variegated with blue and red spots. The clouded Yellow Butterfly, (Colias edusa), the general tint of which is indicated by its name, seems to prefer the vicinity of the sea; being found more copiously than elsewhere in England, along the south-east coast, and, especially, in the neighbourhood of Dover. This insect, which, in Britain, is seldom met with to the north of the Trent, is common in most parts of the continent of Europe, and has been seen in southern Africa, and amid the mountains of |