The ball allures with meretricious charms; and (there innocence of heart is often exchanged for sorrow and disease. At one time feasts invite, at another diversions and public places; all tending to mislead and corrupt. Having enumerated a sufficient specimen of the amusements of winter, let me conclude by reminding my fellow creaturcs of the part they ought to act respecting such diversions. I wish not to discourage and repress that inclination for social intercourse which, particularly at this season of the year is highly delightful; but I wish you hot to suffer it to take such firm hold of your mind as to become a passion. Allowing that when you meet together nothing passes that can derogate from virtue and good manners, yet such par. ties may be hurtful by consuming too much of your time, and occasioning the neglect of your domestic economy. Pleasure is not the business of our lives; the power of obtaining it is granted us by a beneficent God, to serve for a relaxation from the severer duties of business or study. To be too eager in the pursuit of pleasure is at the risk of never obtaining your end, or of acquiring that which may ultimately produce sorrow and remorse. Be very careful then with what society you mix; lavish not your time in those amusements which you cannot enjoy without injuring your virtue, your reputation, or the peace of your family. Let not those heedless pleasures that disturb your neighbours, excite their lamentations, and fil them with sorrow, and by which you may be lost to the duties of so. ciety and of religion, ever find access to your heart. Suf fer not even the most innocent gratifications to render you insensible to the pure and permanent pleasures of Christianity, or to make you dissatisfied with your more serious occupations.

Oh God! govern with thy gracious influence our hearts; and grant that amidst earthly enjoyments we may never forget thy most holy name. That in our intercourse with men, the remembrance of thy presence may secure us from temptations, and that from day to day we may become more and more devoted to the exercise of our duties as Christians, parents, and citizens; whilst we shun those fleeting pleasures which so easily allure us from the path of rectitude, and diminish our zeal for good works. What inducement can we have to seek for frivolous amusements,

when we possess within ourselves the sources of the most pure and refined pleasures? The contemplation of the great works of nature at all times is grand, and filis the mind with wonder and reverence for the Creator. In winter, as well as in the other seasons, they shine forth equally manifest. The starry heavens, the fields, far as the eye can reach, covered with snow, inspire the noblest and most sublime ideas, create a constant succession of pleasure, and elevate and dignify the soul.

JANUARY VI.

God's providential Care of the Animal Creation during Winter.

MILLIONS of rational beings, dispersed among the various nations of the earth, are provided at this season with every thing necessary to supply their wants, or add to their comforts. But Divine goodness is not extended to man alone, it is diffused over the whole creation; and infinitely more numerous than the children of Adam are the animated beings partaking of it. Admirable as is the preservation of the human species, God gives still greater proofs of his wisdom and power in the care which he manifests for the brute creation. That the innumerable tribes of animals existing on this globe find, during the continunce of summer, food and shelter, is not surprising; all na

re teeming with fertility conduces to this great end; but hat in this season of the year such numbers of creatures birds, quadrupeds, reptiles, insects, and fishes-should ntinue to exist, must demand the admiration of every ecting being. Nature has provided most animals with Covering to defend them from the winter's cold, as well from the summer's heat. Those wild animals which ell amid the forest and the desert are so admirably or ized, that their hair, as summer advances, begins to fall m their skin, and grows again in winter with such luxuace as to become a thick fur, capable of preserving from the severity of the season.

When cold renders a place of security requisite, other species of animals find retreats; some under the bark of trees, others in the crevices of old buildings, and some within the clefts of rocks, and in the caverns of mountains. It is there they either live upon the food which instinct has taught them to provide, or they are nourished and supported by the fat which they had previously secreted, or they pass the tedious length of winter in a state of torpescent insensibility, each according to the habits of its tribe. Birds at the approach of winter retire to sheltered places; and some species possess an instinct, which leads them at the commencement of cold to quit the frozen regions of the north, winging their bold and arduous flight for more genial climes.

The resources of those animals which do not change their abode in winter are various. Birds feed upon the insects which they are taught to peck among the moss and in the clefts of the bark of trees many animals live upon the provisions they have providently stored in their dens dur ing the summer, others are obliged to burrow beneath the ice and the snow to find support. Many species of insects and of fishes, though confined within marshes stiff by the frost, and in rivers whose surfaces are frozen, yet preserve their vitality.

Let us then unite in adoration to the all-powerful and merciful Creator, whose majesty and whose grandeur cover all the creatures of the earth; all of which, from the stately elephant to the most feeble and minute animal under the heavens, owe to him their life, their abode, and their support. Where nature seems barren and destitute of resour ees, he still finds means to make her productive. Let these considerations strengthen our confidence in God, and banish from our minds all doubts of the continuance of his protection and support during the rigours of winter.

That God who provides a covering for animals, who points out to them secure retreats in the caves of the mountains, will also know how to clothe thee, O man! And he who supplies them with food and with warmth, even beneath the ice and the snow, will ever be thy support, and thou wilt find a sure harbour, where thy days may glide in peace and in tranquillity, safe from storms and commotions. Let such reflections as these raise in thy bosom a

a friend to support us, and of a companion to cheer our drooping spirit, who can smooth life's rugged path, and heighten all her pleasures. And surely our Heavenly Father has already chosen for us such a friend; one who, when doubt and uncertainty perplex, will advise us how to act, and when misfortune threatens, will be our chief support and consolation; who, during the full tide of prosperity, will partake of our joys and who will assist our reasoning faculties when enfeebled and enervated,

It was not by accident or without design, that we came into the world. As a part of the great system of nature, our destiny is overruled by an all-seeing Providence, of whose designs respecting us we are ignorant, but who knows all, and governs all with wisdom and harmony; and whatever unknown disasters impend, or unexpected benefits await us, this present year, let us bow down with reverence and with gratitude to his Divine will. Whatsoever be our lot, whether to endure the chilling blasts of penury, or to suffer the heart-rending anguish of a once dear friend forgetting the ties of affection, let us strengthen our belief in the all-protecting arm of God. Though dangers may threaten, and persecution afflict, we will yet look up to that Almighty Power which raised our feeble frame to its present state of hardihood, which cherished the tender bud from all the storms and perils that frowned upon its expansion; we will believe that He, who thus protected our infancy, will not be less the father and the supporter of our old age.

JANUARY IL

Winter has blessings which are often disregarded.

IF we examine the works of God with attention, we shall find, even in this season, many subjects which may lead us to rejoice in the goodness of the Lord, and to exalt the miracles of his wisdom. During the budding spring, the boun tiful summer,and the luxuriant autumn, when Nature, from the most simple, assumes her gayest and most splendid robes, hardened and callous, indeed, must be that heart

which does not throb with pleasure, and pulsate with gratitude, for such choice gifts. But when the north wind blows, when a biting frost stiffens the face of the earth, when the fields, stripped of their fruits, and divested of all their charms, present one wild and desolating view, then it is that men of the greatest sensibility will sometimes forget to be grateful. But is it true that the earth at this season is so utterly destitute of the blessings of Heaven, that it possesses nothing that can excite the emotions of gratitude and of piety in the heart of man? Certainly not. Let us only bestow more attention upon the works of nature, and we shall never find occasion to arraign the wisdom of God.

Reflect for a moment upon the misery of being exposed to the rigours of winter, with no clothes to defend your shivering frame, no fire to cheer and to animate your be numbed body: and then rejoice and be grateful for the favours you receive. You have every thing that can contribute to your comfort. Though you cannot penetrate through the veil which overshadows the creation, though the great First Cause of all things be hidden from your view, rest assured, that nothing is created in vain; all tends to one grand point, the glory of God, and the hap piness of man.

JANUARY III.

God continually presides over his Creation.

NOT to acknowledge the greatness and wisdom of God in the least of his works, as well as in great and extraordinary phenomena, betrays alike our ignorance and our weakness. The formation and evolution of the child in the mother's womb displays as much the power of God, as did the creation of the first man from the dust of the earth. Our own individual experience is sufficient to convince us, that a Supreme Being suspends the thread of our destiny. We cannot ensure for ourselves another moment's existence; a thousand unseen causes may hasten the period of its termination; what unknown evils may not be impending to stop the vital current, and forbid the pure air again to renovate our blood!