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bè níggardly in our exhortation, bút lét áll our fellow prifoners have à fhare: good gaoler, let them be permitted to ftánd hère, while 'I ttempt to improve them." Thús faying, 'I nade án effort to rife from my straw, bút vanted strength, and was able only to recline ginft the wall. The prifoners affémbled aceding to my directions, for they loved to ear my counfel; my fn ánd his mother fupted me on either fide; I looked and faw hit none were wanting, and then addréffed hém with the following exhortation.

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The equal dealings of providence demonstrated with regard to the happy and the inferable here below. That from the nature of pleasure and pain, the wretched must be repaid the balarce of their fufferings in the life hereafter. My friends, my children, and fellow fúfferrs, when I reflect on the diftribution of good nd evil here below, I find thát múch hás en given mán to enjoy, yet ftill more to uffer. Though we fhould examine the whole vorld, we fhall not find one mán fò happy is to have nothing left to wifh for: bút we aily fee thoufands who by fuicide fhòw ús hey have nothing left to hope. In this life then it appears that we cannot be enti ely left; but yet we may be complètely míferable.

Why mán fhould thus feel pain, why our wretchedness should bè réquifite in the forma-" tion of universal felícity, why, when all other fýstems are made perfect by the perfection of

their fubordinate párts, the great fyftem fho require for its perféction, párts that are n only fubordinate to others, but imperfect themselves? These áre questions that never ca bé explained, and mìght bè ùfelefs if know 'On this fubject providence has thought fit elude our curiófity, fátisfied with granting s motives to confolation.

'In this fituation, mán hás called in th friendly affiftance of philofophy, and heave feeing the incapácity of that to confòle hím hás given hím the aid of relígion. The con folations of philofophy áre very amùling, but óften fallacious. It tells us that life is filled with cómforts, if we will bút enjoỳ thém; ánd on the other hand, thát thòugh wè unavoida bly have míferies hère, life is fhórt, and they will foon bè òver. Thús do these confolations deftroy each other; fór íf life ís à plàce of comfort, íts fhórtness múst bè mifery, and if be lóng, our griefs are protracted. Thus philofophy is weak: bút religion cómforts in án higher ftrain. Mán ís hère, ít télls ús, fitting up his mind, and preparing ít for another abode. When the good mán leaves the body, ánḍ ís áll à glòrious mind, hè will find hè hás been making himfélf à heaven of happiness hère, while the wretch thát hás been maimed ánd contaminated by hís vìces, fhrínks fróm hís body with térror, ánd finds thát hè hás anticipated the vengeance of heaven. To religion then wè múst hòld ín évery círcumstance óf life for our trúeft cómfort; fór íf already wè áre happy, ít ís à pléafure to think that we cán make that happiness unénding; and if we áre míferable, it is very confòling to think that thére ís à plàce óf réft. Thús to the fortunate,

religion hòlds out à contínuance of blífs, tó the wretched, à change fróm pain.

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Bút though religion ís véry kind tỏ áll mén, it has promifed peculiar rewards to the unháppy; thẻ fick, the naked, the houseless, the eavy laden, and the prifoner, háve ever mòft réquent prómifes ín óur fàcred law. uthor of our relígion évery where proféffes imfélf the wretch's friend, and unlike the alle ónes of this world, bestòws all his caref les upon the forlórn. The unthinking have cénfured this ás partiálity, ás à préference without mérit to deférve it. But they never refléct hát ít is nót in the power even of heaven it elf to make the offer of uncèafing felícity ás great a gift to the happy ás to the míferable. To the firft, eternity is bút à fíngle bléffing, ince át mòất ít bút eucréafes whát they al. réady poffefs. To the latter ít ís à double advántage; fór ít dimínishes their pain hère, ánd rewards them with heavenly blífs hereafter.

Bút providence ís ín another refpéct kinder to the poor thán thẻ xích; fór ás ít thus makes the life after death mòre defirable, fò ít foot s the páffage there. The wretched háve hád à long familiarity with every face of térror. Thẻ mán óf fórrows lays himself quietly down, without poffefions to regrét, ánd bút few ties do stóp his departure; hè feèls only nature's páng in the final feparation, and this is nò way greater thán hè hás óften fainted under before; fór àfter à certain degree of pain, every new breach that death òpens in the con titùtion, nature kindly covers with infenfibility.

Thús providence has given the wretched two advantages over the happy in this life, greater felícity in dying, and in heaven áll

thát fuperiority of pleasure which arifes fróm contráfted enjoyment. 'And this fuperiority, my friends, ís nò fmáll advántage, and feèms to be one of the pleasures of the poor mán in the parable; for though he was already in hea

ánd félt áll the ráptures it could give, yet it was mentioned ás án addition to hís háppi nefs, that hè hád ónce been wretched and nów wás cómforted; thát hè hád known what it was to be míferable, and nów félt what it was to be happy y).

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Thús, my friends, you fèe religión dóes whát philoophy could never dò: ít fhows the equal dealings of heaven to the happy ánd the unhappy, and levels áll human enjoyments to nearly the same stándard. 'It gives to both rích and poor the fame happiness hereafter. ánd equal hopes to afpire after it; bút if the rich have the advantage of enjoyng pleasure here, the poor have the endless fatisfaction of knowing what it was once to bè míferable, when crowned with endless felícity hereafter; ́ánd even though this fhould be called à fmáll ad vántage, yet being án etérnal óne, ít múst make úp by duration what the temporal happiness of the great may have exceeded by inténfeness.

Thefe are therefore thé confolations which the wretched háve peculiar to themfélves, and in which they are above the rést óf mánkìnd; ín other refpécts they are below them. They who would know the míferies óf the poor, muft fèe life ánd endure ít. Tỏ declaim ón the temporal advantages they enjoy, ís only repeating what none either believe or práctise.

Y) S. Evangelium Lucä, Kap. 16. V. 19. . f.

The men who have the néceffaries of living áre nót poor, and they who want them múlt be míferable. Yés my friends wè múft bè míferable nò vàin efforts of à refined imagination cán footh the wants óf nature, cán gíve elástic fweetness to the dánk vapour óf à dúngeon, ór ease to the throbbings of à broken heart. the philofopher from his cóuch of fóftnefs téll ús that we can refift all these. Alás! the effort by which we refift them is ftill the greatest pain! Death is flight, and ány mán may sustain it; bút torments áre dreadful, and thèse nò mán cán endure.

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Tỏ ús then, my friends, the promises óf happiness in heaven fhould be peculiarly dear; for if our reward be in this life alone, wè áre then indeed óf áll mén the mòft míferable. When I look round thefe gloomy walls, made to terrify, ás well as to confine ús; thís-light that only ferves to fhew the horrors of the place, thofe fháckles thát tyranny hás impofed, or crime made néceffary; when I furvey thefe amáciated looks, and hear thòfe groans. O my friends, what à glòrious exchange would, heaven be for thefe! To fly through regions unconfined ás àir, tó báfk in the funfhine of etérnal blífs, tó cárol óver éndlefs hymns of pràife, to have nò máfter to threaten or infúlt ús but the form of goodness himself for ever ín óur eyes; wh'n I think of théfe things, death becomes the méffenger of véry glád tìdings; when I think of these things, his fhárpeft árrow becomes the staff of my fupport; when I think of these things, what is there ín life worth having? when I think of these things, what is there that should not be fpúrned away? kíngs ín their pálaces should gròan fór fúch

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