Popery. The Albigenses and the Waldenses have principally resided there. The counts of Toulouse afforded protection to those of their subjects who refused to submit to the authority asserted by the Romish priests.

Pope Innocent the Third instigated a crusade, or war, against the Albigenses and Waldenses, whom he denounced as awful heretics; because they would not acknowledge the authority of the Papal Church, or worship the Virgin Mary, or profess to believe the absurd dogma of Transubstantiation, which asserts that the wafer and wine used by the Romish priests in the service, called the Mass, are changed into the very body and blood of Jesus Christ. Monks and Friars were sent into various countries to excite princes and others to take up arms to extirpate the heretics. These Romish preachers were authorised by the Pope to promise all who should for forty days fight against the Albigenses, that they should have all the indulgences which former Popes had given to those who fought against the followers of Mahomet, the forgiveness of all their sins, and after death admission into heaven. The Pope in his Bull said-"We moreover promise to all who shall take up arms the pardon and remission of their sins. We exhort you that you would endeavour to destroy the wicked heresy of the Albigenses, and do this with more rigour than you would use towards the Saracens themselves. Persecute them with a strong hand; deprive them of their lands and possessions; banish them and put Roman Catholics in their stead."

The Romish preachers frequently took as a text, Psalm xciv. 16, "Who will rise up for me against the evil doers, or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity?" These words they impudently and wickedly used in the following manner, saying, "You see, most dear brethren, how great the wickedness of the heretics is, and how much mischief they do in the world. You see, also the tenderness of the Church, and by how many pious methods she labours to reclaim them; but with them they prove ineffectual, and they all fly to the secular power for their defence. Therefore, our holy mother, the Church,

though with great reluctance and grief, calls together against them the Christian army. If, then, you have any zeal for the faith; if you are touched with any concern for the glory of God; if you would reap the benefit of this great indulgence,--Paradise and the pardon of all sin,— come and receive the sign of the cross, and join yourselves to the army of the crucified Saviour." Thus they persuaded poor blind zealots, that it was a very pious deed to murder those who refused to be Papists.

Professing that he was averse to the shedding of blood, the Pope stated that he was desirous of reclaiming the heretics by the gentle and reasonable methods of persuasion. The Albigenses then published that they were ready to hold a public conference with their opponents, where the points in dispute might be discussed, on condition that the standard of appeal should be the Holy Scriptures, and the discussion be fairly conducted. A conference was appointed to be held. Several ministers of the Albigenses met a number of Romish bishops and monks. The Albigenses had the best of the discussion; but the Papist soldiers advanced and decided the controversy by killing a large number of the Albigenses. The crusaders entered many of the towns in which the Albigenses resided, slew and burned multitudes of the inhabitants.

The Popish hatred was very fierce against the States of Count Raymond of Toulouse, and those of his nephew, Raymond Roger, viscount of Alby, Beziéres, Carcassonne, and Limoux. The Pope's legate, Peter de Castlenau, had behaved very insolently to Count Raymond; and afterwards one of the gentlemen of the court quarrelled with the legate and put him to death, by wounding him with a poignard. The Pope was enraged, and issued a Bull, in which he anathematised Count Raymond, and called upon his subjects to discontinue their submission to him. Count Raymond was alarmed, and sought by submission to make peace with the Roman pontiff. The Pope professed to be reconciled to the count; but the Pope at the same time was plotting the destruction of the count; for the Pope

wrote privately to one of his servants, saying,—“ We counsel you to employ guile with regard to this count, for in this case it ought to be called prudence. We must attack, separately, those who are separated from unity; leave for a time the Count of Toulouse, employing towards him a wide dissimulation, that the other heretics may be more easily defeated, and that afterwards we may crush him, when he shall be left alone." Such is the awful hypocrisy which the Popes have been accustomed to practice.

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Raymond Roger, the viscount of Beziéres, in vain attempted to pacify the Pope. The Pope's legate told Raymond Roger, he should have no mercy. The Bishop of Beziéres visited the legate, and delivered to him a list of persons whom he regarded as heretics. He then returned and represented to the citizens the dangers to which they were exposed, from the approach of the crusaders, and exhorted them to surrender those of their fellow-citizens, who were not members of the Romish Church, to the avengers of the faith," and thus to avoid drawing down on themselves, their wives, and children, the wrath of Heaven and the church. The citizens indignantly rejected his advice. Soon however the crusaders encamped under the walls of Beziéres; and so great was the multitude of the besiegers, that the besieged were greatly astonished· Some of the citizens came out to attack the crusaders; but they were unsuccessful, and were driven back into Beziéres, and the crusaders followed them and pressed after the citizens through the gates, and thus obtained possession of the place.

The inhabitants fled to the churches for safety; the Cathedral was filled, and the defenceless creatures were cruelly put to death. The leaders of the crusaders asked the Pope's legate, how the Catholics might be known from the heretics? The legate with great barbarity and impiety, replied, "Kill them all--the Lord will know well those who are his." After the crusaders had butchered the inhabitants they set fire to the place. Many thousands of men, women, and children, thus perished at Beziéres.

The persecutions which Popery has caused are horrible to contemplate. Its spirit is still tyrannical and awfully cruel. This is proved to be the case by its practices wherever it is able to obtain the aid of the power of the State. We have much reason to be thankful that we are delivered from its hateful domination. We ought to be very thankful that we can read our Bibles, and go to our Sabbathschools, and places of worship, without being afraid of having to suffer the loss of our lives or homes, as was formerly the case with many, even in this land. We hope that Popery will never obtain power to persecute in this country, and we pray that the time may soon come when Papal Babylon, or the power of the Pope to injure and oppress mankind, may be entirely destroyed.

JANE HALL, THE HONEST GIRL.

A SIMPLE STORY FOR YOUNG READERS.

"Thou shalt not steal."

JANE HALL was a very little girl when her father died. He was a poor man, but he was one who loved and feared God, and loved to read his Bible and to pray to God. When he was well, he used to work hard; and then Jane and her mother had good food to eat and clothes to wear; but one day he went out into the woods to cut down some trees, and the axe struck his leg and cut it to the bone. Some men took him home, but his leg grew more and more sore, and at last it was cut off. Then he grew more sick every day; and when he was told that he could not live but a few days, he called his wife and little Jane to the side of his bed, and told them that he must die: "And then, who will take care of you when I am gone?" said he.

"God will take care of us," said Jane's mother.

"Yes, God will take care of you," said the poor man, "if you love and serve him; the will of the Lord be done." Soon after this, he bade them good-bye, and died. Poor

little Jane cried very much when she saw her dear father laid in the ground; but her mother told her that his soul was not there. His body was laid in the ground, but his soul had gone to be happy with God, and he would never be poor or sick, and never would suffer any more.

"Oh!" said little Jane, "I wish we could go there, too, for we shall always be poor, now father is gone."

"God will take care of us," said her mother, as she took little Jane's hand in hers, and led her from the grave.

Jane's mother, found some work to do, but she had to work very hard to get money to buy food to eat, and clothes to wear, and wood to keep them warm-for it was very cold, and the snow was very deep, and the wind blew through the poor log-house in which Jane and her mother lived.

At last, one very cold day, when they had no food to eat, Jane's mother went to take home some work she had done for a lady. The snow was very deep, and Jane took a little spade, and tried to make a path from the door for her mother to get into the road. After she had gone, Jane had found some chips and sticks, and tried to make a little fire to warm her mother when she came home.

When her mother came in, she said, "Jane, dear, I am very sick and very cold; help me to bed."

Jane did all that such a little girl could do for her mother, and then she said,

Mother, you told me you would buy some bread and some tea with the money which the lady would pay you." "She paid me no money, my poor child," said her mother; "the lady was not at home, and I had to leave my work."

"Oh, dear! what shall we do?" cried little Jane.

"God will take care of us, my child," said her mother. "Oh, mother! that is what you always say," said Jane; "but God does not take care of us. You are sick, and we are poor and cold, and I am so very, very hungry."

"Hush! Jane, hush!" said her mother; "you must not talk so. Has not God taken care of us so far? We still have a place to live in; and he has not yet left us to starve.