The recruiting Serjeant constantly traverses the country, and among the recruits he gathers there are not a few lads of our own-children of the humbler classes of our people. No doubt many of these youths would not have enlisted, except under some feeling of discontent, or in moments of recklessness induced by their own misconduct. Many, on the other hand, regard the military profession as honourable; and the more this persuasion can be justified by experience, the better will it be for England. Some of their parents were soldiers, or bore commissions; and they deliberately follow the same course of life, beginning with enlistment, education, or purchase. It is a great mistake to imagine that no young men of good character enlist, and that young officers are all ungodly. Facts daily occur to demonstrate the contrary. Thousands upon thousands of private soldiers were taught in our Sunday and day schools; no inconsiderable portion of these were presented to God in holy baptism by our Ministers; and even if they have yielded to evil passions, and fallen into the grossest conceivable immorality, so much the stronger is the reason why they should be regarded with compassion. May God forbid that any man, bearing the name of Methodist, should ever despise or neglect another man because he is a sinner! Rather let us hasten to fulfil the duty which is owing to them the more deeply in proportion to the depth of their fall, and not less owing to many a Methodist parent who mourns over the wanderings of a foolish child, and longs for the help of some Gospel messenger who will recall that wanderer to the fold of the good Shepherd. And if these men are not the children of Wesleyan Methodists, or of any kindred bodies, still they are fellow-men and fellow-countrymen, to whom certainly we owe no less a debt of pity than if they had been born at the antipodes. They bear arms in defence of their native country: and, but for such as these, our homes would soon cease to be secure; the coasts of this island would be open to invasions, like that of the Norman eight hundred years ago; the colonial empire would be dismembered; dominion and commerce would expire; British merchants would cease to amass wealth, and British subjects would sink, unprotected, under barbarian contempt and wrongs. If it were not for these brave men, instead of their hoisting the British flag proudly in every latitude, and on the shores of an empire wider than any other that ever was, this little island would soon become too large for the subjects of a dishonoured crown; and fleets, garrisons, factories, plantations, colonies, and Mission-stations, would be alike severed from the mother-country, and subjected to intestine anarchy or to foreign oppressors.

All this is true: but let regiments be recruited as ever, yet, if they are neglected, as they too generally have been by the church of Christ, especially in England, they will become a disgrace, a burden, and a curse to those whom it is their duty to defend. So thought Mr. Wesley, when, in the year 1745, spending a few days in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, his attention was drawn to this very subject. He sat down in his lodgings, and, as we read in his Journal, (October 26th,) wrote Mr. Alderman Ridley a very earnest letter, declaring that "the fear of God, the love of his

country, and the regard he had for His Majesty, King George, constrained him to write plain words." King George II., be it observed, had an army then encamped near Newcastle; the Pretender had his head-quarters in Edinburgh; and civil war was raging. Wesley's soul was pained, day by day, at the senseless, shameless wickedness, and ignorant profaneness, of the men to whom "his life was intrusted;" and, after describing their conduct, he asked, "Can any that either fear God, or love their neighbour, hear this without concern? especially if they consider the interest of our country, as well as of these unhappy men themselves. For, can it be expected that God should be on their side who are daily affronting Him to His face? And if God be not on their side, how little will either their number, or courage, or strength avail !" None, it seems, cared for their souls, not even some who ought to do so, since they received large pay, but did just nothing. Then mark his words: "I am ready to do what in me lies to call these poor sinners to repentance, once or twice a day, while I remain in these parts, at any hour or at any place. And I desire no pay at all for doing this, unless what my Lord shall give at His appearing."

Mr. Ridley promised to communicate this offer to the General, whom Mr. Wesley did not know, and who seems to have passed the offer by in silence; but, not choosing to be himself silent, Mr. Wesley preached repeatedly near the camp to abundance of people, "horse and foot, rich and poor." The Germans, also, he once addressed in their own language; and he records that "they gathered up close together, and drank in every word." Well might he take courage! Within the year and half preceding, letters from the Continent had informed him of a glorious work in the heart of many a Methodist soldier, especially in that eminent evangelist, John Haime, whose faith, love, and zeal were equally conspicuous in the tent, in the hospital, and on the field of battle. As a battle with the French at Dettingen began, this noble soldier exclaimed, "Lord, in Thee have I trusted, let me never be confounded;" and told his comrades that, if he fell that day, he should rest in the everlasting arms of Christ. We have not space to transcribe from Mr. Wesley's Journals numerous records of most fervent and exemplary piety in the army; but every one who has read them will remember with what marked satisfaction our Founder caught at every opportunity of preaching in barracks, or near them, both in Great Britain and Ireland, manifesting a regard for the soldier which contrasts with the apathy, and even the disinclination, of some otherwise devoted persons.

Since the years when Wesley corresponded with his military brethren in active service, at home and on the Continent, the responsibility, of which he felt the weight, has multiplied in equal proportion with the increase of colonies, and with the elevation of these dominions to the summit of power and influence. Although a far less military people than any other, excepting, as yet, the United States of America, the regular army alone-exclusive of the East India Company's troops,

the militia at home and abroad, officers on half-pay, and pensioners, with civilians in various branches of service in connexion with the army, and a vast number of wives and children-cannot fall short of 150,000 men in full vigour of life and health. By the conduct of its members wherever they are stationed, both at home and in the colonies, and, again, by an unceasing succession of discharges and retirement, this mass gives out a constant stream of influence on civil society, for good or evil, and, by recruiting and commissions, as constantly absorbs a correspondent number from all parts of this country. Missionaries alone can tell how ready the soldier is, when on foreign service, to hear words whereby he may be saved, and how considerable is the assistance rendered by military members on not a few of the most important stations. Any Missionary who has been stationed in South Africa, India, Canada, or Gibraltar, will answer on this point with a readiness and explicitness which must give instant confirmation to our statement. And, if other witnesses were wanting, we would confidently appeal to almost any commanding officer in the service, whether many of his most trusty non-commissioned officers have not been Wesleyan Methodists,-probably raised from the ranks by force of religious character, notable for talent and fidelity above their fellows.

In short, this leaven has gone on spreading in the army until it is impossible to be insensible of the fact that the mass is extensively pervaded by Methodism, and that our church has there an interest incalculably larger than we have ourselves been accustomed to imagine. Already there is material enough to fill a large volume in illustration of the general fact; but, instead of attempting to gather illustrations from so wide a field, we fix attention for a moment on the single Mission-station of Gibraltar.

So long ago as June 9th, 1769, a garrison-order, issued by Lord Cornwallis, marks the birth of Methodism there. The order is as follows:-" Whereas divers soldiers and inhabitants assemble themselves every evening to prayer, it is the Governor's positive order that no person whatever presume to molest them, nor go into their meeting to behave indecently there." The "inhabitants," it should be observed, were persons who had either served previously in the army, or were employed in civil service in the garrison; and the soldiers who held prayer-meetings with them every evening had been awakened and converted by the ministry of Methodism when stationed in English or Irish towns; so that soldiers were in effect the first Missionaries to the British possessions in the Mediterranean. Twenty-three years later, after the little spark had glowed in the heart of a population where there was no civil Chaplain, nor any building erected for Christian worship, but where ungodliness was rampant, it was fanned into a flame. Three regiments, the 46th, 51st, and 61st, then arrived from Ireland, bringing ten or eleven men who had met in class, of whom one was a Local Preacher, and two were Exhorters. These good men hired a room for private worship; the sound of their hymns attracted the attention of several inhabitants, who gathered around the

door and entreated for admittance. The Governor, hearing that they were Methodists, readily sanctioned their assemblage; and this led to the occupation of a larger, and again of a yet larger, room. Many began to be concerned about the salvation of their souls, and not a few rejoiced in the experience that the Lord Jesus Christ has power upon earth to forgive sins. Numbers in the classes were noted as fifty, and again as one hundred and twenty. General O'Hara protected them from their persecutors, so far as possible; wishing, as he said, that there were twenty for one of them; "for then should we have fewer court-martials in the garrison than we have." Meanwhile, the French Revolution broke out; these regiments were marched to fields of battle, and several of the brethren, after giving evidence of undying trust in the God of their salvation, were numbered with the slain. Gibraltar, however, did not lose the lamp of Gospel power; and in August, 1796, the 28th regiment brought with it, from England, an officer who preached. New conversions followed; persecutions came to bless the infant church; and the erection of a small place of worship was the consequence, with the formation of a system of spiritual discipline, agreed upon by themselves in the absence of a Minister. From Gibraltar the work extended to Minorca, Malta, and Egypt; and not only soldiers, but civilians, shared the benefit. Then came a period of persecution, which is painful to relate, but which may now serve to increase our thankfulness for the establishment of religious liberty in the army. A garrison-Chaplain, and a Chaplain of the Duke of Kent, importuned His Royal Highness, then commanding, to extirpate the "democrats; and their attempt was not without producing some effect. Soon after the departure of the Duke for England, the soldiers of one regiment were forbidden to attend at the Methodist chapel under pain of being tried for disobedience. A few soldiers disobeyed. The minutes of a court-martial contain the names of prisoners" Corporals James Lamb and Richard Russell; Privates James Hampton, John Reeves, and John Fluccard, of the Queen's regiment, confined by Serjeant-Major Wright for unsoldierlike conduct, in attending a Methodist meeting, contrary to regimental orders." The Court found them guilty of the crime, and sentenced the two Corporals to be reduced, and each of the five to receive five hundred lashes! The Corporals were reduced, and suffered, on that very evening, June 11th, 1803, two hundred lashes each. The remainder of the sentence was not inflicted: the private soldiers were forgiven; but Methodism in the army was for the present branded as a crime; nor did any authoritative interposition from the Horse Guards check the fury of their enemies. The first Missionary was appointed by the Conference of 1804. He landed amidst pestilence, and fell a victim; but even then, and after the plague had passed away, the few surviving pious soldiers were not allowed to meet for the worship of Almighty God. Nevertheless, the holy cause became established. Thousands of men and officers have since had reason to bless God for the ministrations of our Missionaries; and a general regulation, issued by Lord Hill, in 1839, served to nullify the last effort, as we believe, to crush

Methodism by authority in that garrison, and to render such a form of persecution impossible anywhere else. The Wesleyan Minister in charge of the English department of the Gibraltar Mission has for many years received an officer's daily ration, in consideration of his relation as Chaplain to the members of his own church. Now, it is contrary to the Queen's own orders to prevent any soldier, in any part of the empire, from attending his own place of worship, or to compel him to attend the services of a church of which he is not a member.

Speaking of Methodism in the army, we desire most thankfully and most respectfully to acknowledge the happy change witnessed in that service by other churches. No doubt, among the few Chaplains,* there are some evidences of sincere desire to do good; and it must be hoped that the improvement thus begun, and only begun, will henceforth advance. One eminent example of piety has lately commanded universal admiration. As the name of Colonel Gardiner long represented a small class of pious officers, now that of Captain Hedley Vicars represents a numerous class of his brethren, who are not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. The memorials of his life are so extensively circulated, that they might now be passed over with this. brief mention of the name; yet justice to a great question requires that we should place before our own readers a few sentences extracted from his letters:

"I have often heard it said, 'The worse the man, the better the soldier!' Facts contradict this untruth. Were I ever, as leader of a forlorn hope, allowed to select my men, it would be most certainly from among the soldiers of Christ; for who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after-terrors?"

In another letter he says what might startle some who fancy that a Christian man could not continue to be a soldier, but, when converted, ought to quit the service :—

"But do not suppose, because I say this, or from anything I have lately said, that I am beginning to show the white feather,' and that, finding a soldier's cross too irksome, I would change it for one less weighty. Never! The Lord God has called me to eternal life in the army, and as a soldier I will die. Had I loved Jesus when I was seventeen, or rather had the love of Jesus been then made known to my soul, I certainly should not have been a soldier; but as it is, death alone shall ever make me leave my colours. Did our God and King, Jesus Himself, the great Captain of our salvation,' spare no toil, fatigue, anguish, or bodily suffering even unto death, to obtain forgiveness of our sins? And shall not we, towards whom this infinite love and compassion have been shown, be constrained to do something for Jesus in return, nor care if our path of duty should prove a rough and thorny one?-for He cleared a way through the briers first, and we but follow in the Saviour's footsteps."

And, again, he vindicates himself and his brethren from the cruel

*So few that we cannot trust ourselves to state the number as it would appear from the Army List. We must hope that there are many acting Chaplains whose names are not there entered.