appointed feasts my soul hateth; they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.' No wonder that they are said to 'bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders,' and that they had reduced them to a bondage worse than the Egyptian slavery. Nor can we wonder at the effect on the pride of men produced by a careful carrying out of the petty ceremonial. The Pharisee thought that very few people could be saved; and how few, we learn from a curious fragment from one of them, Beresith Rabba, which sounds more like a translation from the Hindoo than anything else— so much do like causes produce like effects. 'Rabbi Simeon, son of Jochai, said: the world is not worth thirty righteous persons such as our father Abraham. If there were only thirty righteous persons in the world, I and my son should make two of them and if there were only twenty, I and my son should be of the number; and if there were only ten, I and my son would be of them; and if there were only five, I and my son would be of the five and if there were but two, I and my son would be those two; and if there were but one, myself should be that one.' We see it all centres in self; and though there are many now who in public would be ashamed to repeat the above litany of Rabbi Simeon, yet, in private, how many look up to God daily and pray for : self, self, self, and hardly think of their toiling brothers and sisters that are around them. So far as we can make out, personal religion, if it be confined to self, is just the one way which is the worst to save a man in this world or the next. It narrows all religions; it breaks men up into sects; it makes people deal out damnation to others; it is the root of all troubles. It is the personally pious king who becomes a slayer of his kind. It is the personally good, pious, and prayerful man who quietly assists at burning to death another man who does not agree with him. It is the personally pious child who is taught to glorify itself. There was a tract put into our hands the other day relating the death of a child about twelve years old, and representing-we hope falsely that the poor child wanted to die, 'because,' she said, 'I have seen my angel guard, that is to take me up to heaven, and I have seen my harp and my crownoh, they are such beauties!' Here selfishness and silliness are combined. Is heaven a toyshop? Is the humble soul to be trumpeted into the awe-full presence of its Judge? Is it, indeed-our creed says otherwiseto burst from this world into the next at once, without the Judgment of the quick and the dead, and to claim its reward unabashed from beneath the fiery splendours of the great White Throne? A Courtier's Truth-Shade-Love Me, Love My Dog-Alcibiades-Raleigh's Remains - The Worth of Traitors-Flattery -A Prevailing Weakness--Whole Nations Misled-Peppering the People-Judicious praise. HEY tell a story of King Charles II., which has been told of other kings too, but it is so much to our purpose that we will repeat it. Playing at bowls on a fine sunny afternoon at Hampton Court, there was a dispute as to whether the king's bowl lay or lay not nearest the Jack. Rochester was appealed to, and he, without looking, gave his word against the king. Odd's fish, man!' said the goodnatured king, 'why, you never looked; how can you judge?'' Dost think, sir,' cried Rochester, 'that those courtiers would have dared to question you, if you had not been shamefully beaten ?' The king saw the truth, |