"shall fall upon thee, thou shalt not be "able to put it off, and desolation shall

come upon thee suddenly, which thou "shalt not know." Isaiah xlvii. 8, 11.

And I pray you, my good girls, do not deceive yourselves, nor suppose because you see many bad women around you, that God will spare them for their numbers: the city of Sodom, in which there were not ten good men, was burnt with fire from Heaven; so were there not ten good girls in the town or village in which you live, the multitude of the sinners would not save them. All bad people will have their portion in the lake which burns with brimstone and fire.

Nor must you hope that you will be saved by being secret in your crimes, for night is not dark with God. He knows even all your thoughts; and if we suffer our minds to be filled with evil thoughts, he will not receive us into heaven when we die.

Attend therefore, my good girls, to what an old man says, who has studied God's book from his cradle to his old age; and all of you try to equal Susan Gray, that you may with her enter into the joy of your Lord.

But now let me proceed to tell you her story, as I heard it from herself.

SUSAN GRAY's

ACCOUNT OF HERSELF.

THE early part of my life, whilst my beloved parents were living, is very well known to you, sir, said Susan Gray; I will therefore begin my story from the time when I was taken by my aunt, from the poor-house in this parish to her dwelling in a little narrow street in the town of Ludlow. I was too young to feel very much the sad change; a sad one indeed it was, for even in the poor-house I had lived in cleanliness, and had been encouraged to behave well, but with my poor aunt I lived in dirt and rags; I was suffered to keep company with bad children, to tell lies, to take God's name in vain, and even to steal. My aunt was old, and made herself very sickly by the constant habit, from her youth up, of drinking spirits and strong liquor. She had never been an industrious cleanly woman; and now that she was advanced in years, she became so dirty and disagreeable, that no decent person cared to enter our house.

She had since the death of her husband, sold by little and little all her furniture, till there was nothing left in her house but two or three broken chairs, a dresser which had not been properly cleaned for years, some

old plates, and a set of cracked tea-cups. The floor of the house was covered with litter and dirt, and the broken windows were filled up with paper and rags; we had no other than straw beds to sleep upon.

But what was worse than all this, was the wickedness which went on in this house. My aunt not only herself took God's name in vain, and entirely neglected all religious duties, never going to church for years, but she encouraged all sorts of bad people to come about her. I never loved my aunt; for although she often indulged me in all my wishes, giving me of the best of what she had to eat or drink, and suffered me to go unpunished for all my faults, yet she sometimes fell into the most violent passions with me upon the most trifling occasion.

She

would sometimes beat me severely for throwing down her tobacco pipe or snuff-box; and would at the same time allow me to swear and tell lies, without correcting me in the least.

In this manner I lived till I was about ten years of age, and was not underservedly thought by the neighbours, one of the most idle, mischievous, and dishonest little girls in the town.

. It was about this time that early one summer's morning, my aunt sent me to gather sticks in the fields. I took with me

as a companion a little girl of my own age, the daughter of a widow who kept an huckster's shop exactly opposite to my aunt's house. This child, whose name was Charlotte Owen, was not much better taught than myself, although there was scarcely a girl in the town who was dressed in a more costly manner. Her mother had often forbid her to play with me, telling her that she was much above me, and that it was beneath her to be seen with a little ragged girl. But Charlotte was fond of me because I was lively and active, because I was more expert than herself in finding bird's nests, and in catching butterflies; and she therefore resolved that she would still play with me unknown to her mother.

When Charlotte and I had got into the fields opposite to the castle, instead of looking for sticks, we began to run races and to gather flowers.

At last being tired we sat down upon the grass, and began to talk.

The day after to-morrow, said Charlotte, is Sunday, and I shall go to church.

So shall not I, I said; I never go to church, I have not time.

Oh! said Charlotte, it is not because you have not time, that you do not go to church. I can tell you why though.

And why? said I hastily.

Because, said Charlotte, you have nothing but those dirty rags to go in: what do you think the people would say to see such a creature come into the church?

I began to be very angry, and jumping up, I said, don't talk to me about rags; I don't see what any body is the better for the gown they wear. I am as good as the best of them, indeed 1 am; and I began to cry with passion.

I wish I had my mother's great lookingglass here, said Charlotte, laughing, that you might see yourself in that old brown stuff gown and ragged apron, and find what a' different sort of figure you cut to me, in this nice stuff coat, this scarlet petticoat, and blue hat.

Oh! I wish, I wish, I cried, that my father and mother had lived, and then they could have afforded to have bought me finer clothes than those.

They might have bought finer than these, said Charlotte; but they could not have bought clothes for you half so fine as those I am to wear on Sunday.

Yes, they could, said I.

On which Charlotte gave me a slap, which I returned; and we began to fight. We fought till we were out of breath; and Charlotte then ran home crying because her apron was torn, and I went farther on into the fields to get my sticks.