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can scarcely produce air enough to carry him aloft; if he at length respires freely, and takes flight; if he no longer feels the pulpit beneath his feet; if he draws in a full breath of the Divine Spirit, and pours forth from this lofty height to his hearers the inspiration which comes to them as the word of God-this being is no longer individual man; he becomes an organ of the Divine will, a prophetic voice.

2. And what a voice! A voice which is never hoarse, broken, soured, irritated, or troubled by the worldly and passionate struggles of interest peculiar to the time; a voice which, like that of the thunder in the clouds, or the organ in the cathedral, has never been any thing but the medium of power and Divine persuasion to the soul; a voice which only speaks to kneeling auditors; a voice which is listened to in profound silence, to which none reply save by an inclination of the head or by falling tears-those mute applauses of the soul! a voice which is never refuted or contradicted, even when it astonishes or wounds; a voice, in fine, which does not speak in the name of opinion, which is variable; nor in the name of philosophy, which is open to discussion; nor in the name of country, which is local; nor in the name of regal supremacy, which is temporal; nor in the name of the speaker himself, who is an agent transformed for the occasion; but which speaks, in the name of God, an authority of language. unequalled upon earth, and against which the lowest murmur impious and the smallest opposition a blasphemy.

LAMARTINE.

46. WHAT IS GLORY?

[These graceful and expressive lines contain a profusion of illustrations crowded into a brief space, each preserving its own individuality, and none repeating the idea presented by any of those preceding it.]

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A flower that blossoms for a day,
Dying next morrow;

A stream that hurries on its way,
Singing of sorrow;

The last drop of a bootless shower,
Shed on a sear and leafless bower;
A rose stuck in a dead man's breast-
This is the world's fame, at the best!

8. "What is fame? and what is glory?
A dream-a jester's lying story,
To tickle fools withal, or be
A theme for second infancy;
A joke scrawled on an epitaph,
A grin at death's own ghastly laugh;
A visioning that tempts the eye,
But mocks the touch-nonentity;
A rainbow, substanceless as bright,
Flitting forever,

O'er hill-top to more distant height,
Nearing us never;

A bubble blown by fond conceit,
In very sooth itself to cheat;
The witch-fire of a frenzied brain,
A fortune that to lose were gain;
A word of praise, perchance of blame,
The wreck of a time-bandied name-
Ah! this is Glory! this is Fame !"

MOTHERWELL

47. CHRISTENDOM.

[Novalis belonged to that brilliant society, consisting of Tieck, the two Schlegels, and Stolberg, which, at the commencement of the present century, exerted so powerful an influence in arresting the progress of that literary Paganism which Lessing, Goethe, and others had encouraged and promoted.

Novalis possessed wonderful versatility of genius, and his style is remarkable for poetical richness and variety. In the midst of the irreligious spirit that pervaded Germany, he caught a glimpse of the glories which radiate from the sanctuary of the Church-when he was snatched away by the pitiless hand of death.]

THOSE

were the brilliant and glorious times, when Europe formed one Christian country, when one Christendom innabited this civilized portion of the globe; and one common interest bound together the most remote provinces of this widely-extended spiritual empire. Without great secular possessions, one head guided and united the great political powers. A numerons corporation, to which every one had access, stood in subordination to this head and executed its mandates, and zealously strove to consolidate its salutary power. Every member of this order was universally respected. 2. A filial confidence attached men to their instructions. How serenely could each one perform his daily task, when by these holy men a secure futurity was prepared for him, and every transgression was forgiven, and every dark passage of life was blotted out and effaced! They were the experienced pilots on the great unknown sea, under whose guidance we might safely disregard all storms, and confidently expect a secure landing on the coast of our true country.

3. The most savage and impetuous passions were compelled to bend with awe and submission to their words. Peace went out from them. They preached nothing but love for the holy, marvellous Virgin of Christianity, who, endowed with a heavenly power, was prepared to rescue every believer from the most fearful dangers.

4. They spake of long-departed men of God, who, by their ttachment and fidelity to that blessed Mother and her divine Child, had withstood the temptations of the world, had at tained unto heavenly honors, and were now become tutelary and beneficent powers to their brethren on earth, willing helpers in their wants, intercessors for human frailty, and effica cious friends to humanity at the throne of God.

5. With what serenity of mind did men leave the beautiful

assemblies in those churches, which were adorned with heartstirring pictures, filled with the sweetest odors, and enlivened by a holy and exalting music! In them were gratefully preserved, in costly vessels, the sacred relics of these venerable servants of God. And in these churches, too, glorious signs and miracles attested as well the efficacious beneficence of these happy saints, as the Divine goodness and omnipotence.

6. In the same way as tender souls preserve locks of hair, or autographs of their departed loves, and nourish thereby the sweet flame of affection, down to the reuniting hour of death; so men then gathered with pious assiduity whatever had belonged to those holy souls, and every one esteemed himself happy who could possess, or even touch, such consoling relics.

7. Here and there the grace of heaven lighted down on some favored image or tombstone. Thither men flocked from all countries to proffer their fair donations, and brought back in return those celestial gifts-peace of mind and health of body.

8. This powerful but pacific society zealously labored to make all men participators in its beautiful faith, and sent forth its missionaries to announce every where the gospel of life, and make the kingdom of heaven the only kingdom of this world.

9. At the court of the head of the Church the most prudent and the most venerable men in Europe were assembled. Thither all treasures flowed; the destroyed Jerusalem had avenged herself, and Rome had become Jerusalem-the holy abode of God's government on earth.

10. Princes submitted their disputes to the arbitration of the common Father of Christendom, willingly laid down at his feet their crowns and their regal pomp, and esteemed it a glory to become members of the great clerical fraternity, and pass the evening of their lives in divine contemplation within the walls of a cloister.

11. How very beneficial, how well adapted to the exigencies of human nature were these religious institutions, is proved

by the vigorous expansion of all human energies-by the har monious development of all moral and intellectual faculties which they prominoted-by the prodigious height which indi viduals attained to in every department of art and scienceand by the universally prosperous condition of trade, whether in intellectual or material merchandise, throughout the whole extent of Europe, and even to the remotest India !

NOVALIS.

48. THE GOOD OLD TIMES.

[Rev. J. M. Neale is a Puseyite clergyman. The following extracts from his late work, "Hierologus," apply with much force to the state of England at the present time.]

I.

OH! the good old times of England, ere in her evil day,

From their Holy Faith, and her ancient rites, her people

fell away;

When her gentlemen had hands to give, and her yeomen hearts to feel;

And they raised full many a bead-house, but never a bastile; And the poor they honored, for they knew that He who for us

bled,

Had seldom, when He came on earth, whereon to lay His head; And by the poor man's dying bed the holy pastor stood,

To fortify the parting soul with that celestial Food.

II.

And in the mortal agony the priest ye might behold,

Commending to his Father's hands a sheep of his own fold; And, when the soul was fled from earth, the Church could do yet more;

For the chanting priests came slow in front, and the Cross went on before,

And o'er the poor man's pall they bade the sacred banner wave, To teach her sons that Holy Church hath victory o'er the

grave;

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