The first time, however, that they could talk together without being overheard, Denis began to question Cola afresh concerning his home, and his friends, and especially about that Judgment Day of which Cola had spoken several times. Cola seemed surprised that Denis did not know, but he tried to explain to him what he had himself been taught by his mother and by Father Pia, that all the world had been made by a very great and good God, whose servants all people are, and that by and by (it might be a long, long time to come) all the people who had ever lived would have to stand before God and his blessed Son Jesus Christ, to be judged for everything they had done in all their lives; and those who had been good would live happily with Him for ever, but the bad would be sent to a miserable place of pain, and that for ever too. And this was why Father Pia was anxious to fulfill all his own duties, and to teach Cola and all his flock to do theirs.

Denis had never heard of this before; it was very strange; but how could God remember all about everybody, and what they had done? He often could not remember things that had only happened a few months.

Cola said that God was not like boys or men. He knew everything and saw and heard everthing; and Father Pia said that if a boy did but take a fig or a bunch of grapes that belonged to another, God saw it, and was angry with the boy, and remembered it against the Day of Judgment.

(To be Continued.)

RELIGION OF THE CHINESE.

OUR readers will remember that we gave them, a few months since, an account of the domestic man ners of this remarkable people; we now proceed to speak of some of their religions, and we are sure that this must interest those who remember that the Chinese empire contains about 400,000,000, or nearly one-third of the inhabitants of the globe.

The religion of the Chinese is very singular, They do not believe in the Bible, nor do they know at present very much about it. The learned men have, in fact, very little religion at all. They pay great reverence to the opinions of Confucius, an ancient Chinese philosopher.

The common people, however, are chiefly wor shippers of a deity who bears the name of Fo. He is said to have been both king and priest in a country of the west. He was obliged to leave his throne, and live in retirement for twelve years, at the end of which time he came again into public, and taught the dogma of the transmigration of souls. Ultimately he regained his power, and departed this life at an advanced age, being at once transformed into the god Fo, or Budhu.

The priests of Budhu are very numerous in China: they are taken from the lowest of the people, are stupid and ignorant, and in general very poor. They are called Bonzes; and the people are fond of processions and pompous religious ceremonies.

The temples are filled with gigantic images, to

which they attribute great virtues, and pay great devotion. The truth is, the Chinese are an ignorant and superstitious people, and their religion is a system contrived by cunning priests, to obtain influence over them. Like the religion of Mahomet, it is a false religion; it does not make men good, or wise, or happy; it does not teach them how to live well in this world, or how to make due preparation for another. Though the Chinese are clever at some things, they are very unwise in others. In nothing, however, is their great folly shown so much as in matters relating to religion.

Our missionaries have made several attempts to introduce the knowledge of the Christian religion to these idolatrous people. One of the missionaries describes a visit he paid to a Chinese village. He says:"We called at several of their houses, and found in each an idol of some kind. That which most surprised us was a French engraving of the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, in a gilt frame, before which incense was burning; and the old man to whom the picture belonged, in my presence, paid it divine honours, bowing himself in various antic attitudes, and offering a prayer for blessings on himself and his family. When I asked him why he worshipped that as a god which came from Europe, and not from his own country, he frankly replied, 'Oh, we worship anything.'

How sad is the thought that intelligent beings should be so darkened as to worship idols instead of the one true God. Our Church has of late years made great efforts to introduce Christianity into that vast and populous empire," to proclaim liberty

"to

to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." An attack has been made on the idolatry of that country, and we are encouraged by God's Word to look forward with hope to the time when its images shall fall, maimed as Dagon was at the foot of the ark, before the ever-blessed gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Can you and I do anything towards this great end? Thank God we can. If we have no store of worldly wealth to give, we can pray as our Lord taught his disciples :-"Thy kingdom come: Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven."

WHAT CAN I DO FOR CHRIST?

SOME years ago a missionary in a distant land was sitting quietly at home with his Bible on his knee, seeking for some word of comfort as well as guidance for the time to come. His heart yearned with love towards his poor ignorant fellow-men around him; he wanted them to know and love the Saviour as he himself had learned to know and love Him, that so they also might enjoy a Saviour's love. How should he win them to Christ? how should he be able to overcome their prejudices? All at once a trifling incident occurred to cheer him. A gentle tap was heard at the door, then all was still. Again the gentle tap, and when he rose from his seat and opened the door, there stood before him a finely grown boy of about ten years old. Sur