although it has been for many years entirely neglected and forgotten in most parishes. It is however your Pastor's intention to act upon it in this parish; and to provide two such chests or boxes as those spoken of in the canon or law. One of these shall be called the Poor Neighbours' Box,' and the other the Missionary Box.' They shall be placed in the Church, on each side of the door, and thus every person may at all times have an opportunity of giving what he can, be it much, or be it little. The people shall be informed what money is found in these boxes. The money in the Poor Neighbours' Box,' shall be divided into two parts; half shall go to the Friendly Help Society,' and half to the aged and infirm in the parish who are most in want. The money in the Missionary Box' shall also be divided into two parts; half shall be given to the Church Missionary Society, and half to the Society for converting the Jews. May God send his blessing upon this arrangement. May many hearts be stirred up to a Christian liberality, so that much distress may be relieved: and may every one who puts the smallest sum into these boxes find the truth of “ the words of the Lord Jesus, that it is more blessed to give than to receive." LXXII. A WORD FROM THE PASTOR TO HIS FLOCK. The present truth. 2 Pet. i. 12. 12 Nov. 1837. For the eighth time, we are about to assemble together at the yearly meeting, for the purpose of being stirred up to our christian duty in sending the Gospel to those who are lying in darkness and the shadow of death, without the knowledge of the salvation of Christ. The same plan will be acted upon as last year; the public meeting in the School-room will come first, and several clergymen are expected to attend, to explain the subject of Missionary duties, as upon former years. At this meeting there will be no collection, although any persons who wish to give something to forward the Missionary cause may take that opportunity of doing so, if they choose. The minds of the people having been prepared with information upon the subject at this meeting, the christian doctrine and duty relating to it, will be placed before them, in the sermon, upon next Sunday morning, after which there will be the usual collection. Persons who subscribe will be good enough to pay the subscriptions which may be due, to the collectors, early in the week, and the collectors will pay the sums they may have collected to at the School room, some time in the course of Thursday or Friday morning. Those persons who have Missionary Boxes in their houses will also be good enough to bring them, on one of those days, that they may be opened, and the money carried to the year's account. This will be a very proper occasion for those to begin to subscribe who have not yet done so; and those who feel disposed to take charge of a Missionary Box, may have them at the time of the Missionary meeting. May God put it into the hearts of many of this flock, to desire to send to the heathen that Gospel, concerning which they have so many opportunities of instruction. Our yearly course of Psalmody is now completed, and will form a small volume, which will in future serve, year after year, for our singing in the church. The proper Psalmody for every week has been regularly sent to every house in the parish this has been given to the people without any expense to them. Every person who chooses may now send these hymns to at the School-room; the remaining portions (being about fifty extra hymns) shall be added, and they shall be bound up neatly and strongly. This shall be done for sixpence each to those who have already received the hymns. Every body must however send their hymns in the course of the present week; that all may be received by Saturday next, the 18th November. This will allow time for the binding of them, that they may be ready for use again in the Church services on Advent Sunday. It would be very desirable that every person before he sends in the weekly hymns, should arrange them in the order in which the services come in the Prayer Book. Until the books are returned to the parishioners, the hymns will be given out in the Church by two lines at a time, to enable all the congregation to join in the singing, although they have not the words before them. This practice will however be discontinued on Advent Sunday, when the Psalmody will be again in the hands of the people. The price of the hymn-book, bound, will be two shillings. As your Pastor has made a gift of one copy to each house in the parish, it is not his intention to give away any more; but, in future, he will allow any of his own flock, to purchase them at half-price. Complete hymn-books are now ready, and any person in the parish may have them upon applying and paying one shilling for each. Make it the subject of your secret prayers, while you are engaged in your daily work, that there may be such a blessing upon the Missionary Meeting this week, that many poor heathens may in consequence have the opportunity of singing the praises of the Lord Jesus Christ, even as we do in our Church services. LXXIII. A WORD FROM THE PASTOR TO HIS FLOCK. The present truth. 2 Pet. i. 12. 7 Jan. 1838. We have entered into a new year-another of those portions of time into which our life is divided. Your attention has been already called to the subject in the proverb which was sent to you on Sunday; and more particularly in the sermon on Sunday morning. The application of that sermon by each of you would be considered a matter of common prudence if there were a real understanding of the true value of time, as regards its employment for the object for which it was given us: and it is for the purpose of leading you all to a serious sense of the importance of taking advantage of the time that we have, to secure an interest in the atonement of Jesus Christ, that a statement is now sent to you of the facts which were mentioned in that sermon; that you may read them calmly at your leisure, and have time to consider the effect which they ought to have upon yourselves. In the course of the year 1837, just passed, sixteen persons who lived in this parish, have been called out of this life to appear before God, and their state in eternity has been fixed. Remember that it is not for us to trouble our minds as to what that state is: they are gone, and by their deaths they have taught us the lesson pointed out by our Lord in Luke xiii. 1-5. All we have to say concerning them is that their state is fixed, whatever it is; and as soon as any one of us is called out of this world, our condition will be fixed also—just in the state of mind in which the stroke of death finds us, in that state we shall remain for ever; either in sin, and selfishness, and worldliness, without God-and the state of such will be to be cast out from God for ever-or in faith, in spiritual life, in practical religion, and in the good works which are its necessary fruits; in a word, in Christ-and the state of such will be in Christ's glory for ever. None of us can tell whether our present state may not be fixed for ever by the stroke of death in the course of the present year. important then, above all things, must it be, state should be the right state; and if it be nestly should we, above all things, hasten to weight, and the sin which most easily besets us," that we may make our calling and election sure, even to-day, while it is called to-day." (Heb. iii. 12—15.) How that our present not so, how ear "lay aside every Of the sixteen souls who have been called away from amongst us, during the last year, two were infants: of the remaining number five were ripened into mature age. But the most striking lesson is taught by the fact, that the others were all persons who were in the strength of their life, whose ages were far short of the term of man's days (Psalm xc. 10.) The number of these were nine; a greater number than the aged and infants together. To make the truth conveyed by these facts more likely to strike the mind, and come more plainly before us, it may be as well to look back a few years, and examine the facts upon a larger scale. Your Pastor has just completed the ninth year of his ministry amongst you. What would have been the effect, if, on the first day of his preaching the word of God to you, he had said that in nine years he should be called upon to bury a hundred and twenty-five of the people? Yet this has been the case. Of these thirty-six have been infants, most of whom were unborn at the beginning of the nine years; and thirty-eight have dropped off in the maturity of years but no less than fifty-one persons have died within the last nine years, who were in the strength of their life, without |