death. At first, a few shillings, at convenient and far-distant opportunities, sufficed, or rather, was as much as I dared to take; but at length I proceeded to pounds. I could not, however, be happy under such circumstances, and I plainly saw that ruin would ensue: I was therefore anxious to leave my engagement, and enter upon some course of business where I should be less exposed to temptation, or where I could make use of only my own property. I had made several attempts to effect my purpose, and should probably have succeeded; but, in the mean time, suspicion fell upon me. A snare was laid by one of the firm, and I fell into it. Oh, what words can express my horror, when, on one Saturday morning, my employer called me into his parlour, and charged me with robbery. I denied the charge: he persisted, and begged me to confess, threatening to send for an officer if I did not. I was confounded, and could not confess, though I wished to do so. He produced my signature for money which I had not accounted for: I still equivocated. My brother, who had lately engaged in the same house, was called in. Oh, who can describe his agony ! He conjured me to confess my guilt, if guilty; but, while I hesitated, or rather attempted to explain, the police-officer arrived. My drawers and boxes were examined, and several suspicious circumstances appeared. I was given up to the officer, who led me off to Union Hall, and placed me in the prisoner's box, with several of the lowest

blackguards London could produce. Alas! what a situation was I in! Overwhelmed with shame, I sank down on the box, and hid myself among these wretches by sitting on the floor. At length my name was called out, and my charge read over to me in open court. The magistrate, however, advised me to make no reply. This, I believe, was at the instigation of my employer and brother, who wished to avoid pushing matters to an extremity with me. I was then taken away by the officer, fastened by handcuffs to a dirty-looking fellow, and thrust into a dark hole. The business of the day, at length closed at the office, a cart drew up for the criminals, and myself, with about a dozen others, were thrust into it, handcuffed, and tied together by a long cord. In this way we were conducted to Horsemonger-lane prison. Here my appearance made my wretchedness the greater, for the dandyism of my person afforded the prisoners fair ground for their scurrilous wit. On arriving at the prison, I was ordered, in a savage voice, to pull off my boot which was replaced by a heavy iron. In vain I remonstrated; all the reply I could get was, "People don't come here for their good behaviour." My person was strictly searched, and my watch, money, and every thing valuable was taken from me; so that I was left without a farthing to help myself. Thus, in the middle of winter, the day before Christmas-day, which I had anticipated spending with some gay friends in the country, was I thrust into a cold

prison; a stone cell was my sleeping-room, a wooden block was my bedstead, and a little, poor, thin covering was all I had to wrap myself up in. By day I was called to mix with about thirty abandoned sinners, in a small, dirty apartment, in my division of the prison; and, by night, was locked, bolted, and barred in my solitary cell. Our food consisted of bread and water, with, now and then a little soup, supplied by the charity of some benevolent people in the neighbourhood. My legs were galled with the heavy iron, and my distracted mind much more galled by a sense of my shame and guilt.

"Oh what a scene does a common prison present! And how much fitted is such a place to harden the inmates in crime, and to turn even the well-disposed into consummate villains. Here every thing wicked and abominable is laughed at: The man who manifests any remorse is bantered and ridiculed, till he is glad to shake it off, and sear his conscience. If any one seemed disposed to plead guilty of his charge, he was taunted with, 'Oh! you are going to tell God Almighty's truth, are you?' Plans of villany are talked over; the different means of disposing of stolen property are pointed out; technical language is taught for every purpose; and, in short, an introduction is afforded to every vice the devil can wish his votaries to engage in. I was at first disgusted and dismayed, but matters of convenience induced me to try and forget myself, and descend to the base level of the

wicked throng. I joined them in several of their low revelries, and forced myself into a sort of complacence of their conduct.

"I at first thought I should be left to suffer alone, and my country friends know nothing of my disgrace: but here also I was disappointed; for a lad from my native town saw and knew me, and carried the news of my imprisonment down among my friends. I was confounded and astonished at what I had done; but my severest exercises of mind referred to the anguish that I knew I should bring upon the mind of my aged father. I felt that I should bring down his "gray hairs with sorrow to the grave." My nights were to me intolerable. I was then left alone in my gloom, to review the past, and feel the upbraidings of my guilty conscience. I would gladly have escaped; but I had now no wish to lay violent hands on myself. I was determined not to add to my load of crime, but to submit to whatever might come upon me."

I now present to you a still more awful scene and more tragic narrative than this, which is related by the Rev. Hubbard Winslow, of America:-

"The inspired writer says, 'Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after,' 1 Tim. v. 24. That is, sometimes sin begins to be overtaken with retributions in the present world, so far at least as to illustrate the fact that we are under a righteous moral government. Such instances seem to anti

cipate the retributions of eternity. Many are so sceptical in regard to what lies beyond the grave, that God sometimes brings the judgment, as it were, to this side of it. As he sometimes grants a portion of the very joys of heaven to the soul of a dying Christian, that he may thereby encourage the pious in the way of obedience, he also sometimes sends a portion of the very woes of perdition to the soul of the dying sinner, that he may thereby teach the wicked to turn from his evil ways, and live.

"As an illustration of this, I have concluded, after much hesitation, to mention the particulars of a case which fell under my own observation. I shall state the facts as they occurred, without any exaggeration or embellishment.

"A young man left his father's house in the country, at the age of fifteen. He had a pious mother, and had been the subject of early religious instructions and impressions. After he began to reside in the city, according to his parent's directions, he attended for a while upon the faithful preaching of the gospel, and was of hopeful habits. He, however, kept himself aloof from the more personal and special means of religion, yet still believing it to be important, and designing to attend to it at a future time. He formed an acquaintance with associates less favourable to piety, with whom his feelings gradually learned to sympathize. He went on in this way for four or five years without much obvious change; though he was, of course,