no abatement. He laboured quite as much as ever; and his public addresses were, if possible, even more acceptable than at any former period. As he became well stricken in years, there was nothing about him morose or crabbed: he resembled, rather, the precious fruit of the earth, which, when it ceases to increase in magnitude, grows in ripeness, mellowness, and sweetness. He lived in the constant enjoyment of the Divine favour, and habitually walked with God. The graces of the Holy Spirit shone brightly forth in the child-like gentleness of his spirit, and the benevolence of his active life. In his domestic relations, he was, perhaps, equalled by few, surpassed by none. Anxious that his children should become good citizens of the world, he was much more deeply concerned that they should be devoted to Christ, and useful in His cause. Often did he express his gratitude to God, that he lived to see both these objects happily accomplished. To his beloved family he has left a rich legacy of kind solicitude, good example, and earnest prayers. With him, religion evidently pervaded the common affairs of life; and he took it with him wherever he went. One day, when driving in his gig, he was overheard in devout soliloquy, by a labourer in the field :- "What! leave me now-after I have been trying to serve Him, and He has kept me so long? No, He will never leave me."

In the erection of the elegant chapel at Baldock he took a most lively interest. The list of subscriptions he headed with a handsome sum; and, at the request of the Trustees, he laid the first stone, manifesting much pious feeling, and contributing at the time a second liberal donation. The opening services will long be remembered as seasons of great intellectual and spiritual enjoyment: but to none were they more so than to the subject of these pages. A spirit of remarkable generosity was poured out upon the people; so that, in public collections alone, the sum realized amounted to several hundred pounds. In this chapel Mr. Hine delivered his last public discourse, just a fortnight before his death; selecting his text from his favourite Book of Psalms: "I will meditate in Thy precepts." (Psalm exix. 15.) On this most solemn occasion he was much assisted from on high, and greatly blessed in his own soul.

In 1856, his estimable son, who had succeeded him at Newnham, was taken away by death. This was a heavy stroke; but the venerable father was supported by the twofold consideration, that the Lord had done it, and that his Joseph had lived and died in Christ. The blow was felt by the entire Circuit, which mourned its loss, not as those without hope, but yet with many tears. The moral effect upon the bereaved father was all that could be desired, and evidently tended more fully to prepare him for the joys of a speedy re-union in heaven. To himself, and to his friends, his death seemed, nevertheless, to be still a somewhat distant event. But the Almighty had otherwise determined. Early on Friday morning, August 28th, 1857, he was suddenly seized with illness, which baffled all the resources of medical skill. His prostration was extreme, and the sickness very speedily terminated in death; so that his utterances were few. To his son he

said, distinctly," My trust is alone in Christ." Again, on his last day," I think I shall sink under this attack; but I rely upon Christ." Speech failed, but consciousness remained. About half an hour before his exit, while the Rev. Thomas Chope was engaged in prayer, he was observed to lift his hand, in token of the response of his heart to the petitions offered. He was spared the trial of a protracted affliction; and in the afternoon of the day but one after he was seized,—namely, of August 30th, 1857,-he fell asleep in Jesus, in the sixty-sixth year of his age.

Mr. Hine was no ordinary man, and no ordinary Christian. He was an honour and a blessing to his generation. The Rev. Thomas Wood, late of the Biggleswade Circuit, observes :-" He was distinguished by urbanity of manners, and a kindliness of disposition which won the esteem of all who knew him. It would be said by some, that nature had cast him in a beautiful mould; in other words, that he was naturally of a lovely spirit. But all was refined, improved, and sanctified by the grace of God. This made him, peculiarly, a man of peace. As a Christian, and a man of honour and integrity, his character is without a stain; and none who knew him could do otherwise than love him. As a Methodist, and as one of the chief officers of the Circuit in which he resided, he long ranked high, and deservedly so. What he did, he did heartily, in the name of Christ, and for His glory. This object lay near his heart, and at this he devoutly aimed. No Minister, among all whose lot has been cast during many years past in the Biggleswade Circuit, would hesitate to subscribe the statement, that in Mr. Hine he found on all occasions a firm, fast, and invaluable friend, whose kindness knew no decline, and was marked by no change."

DIED, July 10th, 1856, at Newnham, near Baldock, Mr. Joseph Hine, in his thirty-sixth year. He was born at Milton, near Bedford. By his excellent parents he was trained in the good and the right way; and the training was, by God's blessing, productive of inestimable results in a life of consistency and zeal. When a pupil in Mr. Conquest's establishment at Biggleswade, he became, through the instrumentality of judicious counsel and prayerful discipline, a subject of the grace of God; and in later years he affirmed his belief that he was then soundly converted. He avowed himself on the Lord's side. The grace received he seems, indeed, to have in a great measure lost : for, though for years moral, upright, and regular in attending the sanctuary, there were wanting the fruits and evidences of a saving transformation. Having arrived at years of maturity, and succeeded his father in the farm at Newnham, he married the daughter of Mr. Roope, of Sloane-street, Chelsea. In prospect of this event, he made a solemn vow that he would give his heart to God, and unite with His church. Such vows are often a hazard, and have in very many cases passed unfulfilled and forgotten. In the case of Mr. Hine, the pledge was well remembered and faithfully kept. During a gracious revival which spread to several parts of the Biggleswade Circuit in the

He

years 1845 and 1846, he enlisted with decision in God's service. attended the Covenant Service at Baldock on the first Lord's day of January, 1846, when he was much blessed and encouraged; and he remained till a late hour conversing with his brother and sister-inlaw, (Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Hine,) and urging on them the necessity of earnestly seeking the pardon and acceptance with God he himself was desiring. On leaving, he said, "I believe I am not far from the kingdom of God." While on his way home, (three miles,) on horseback, he found the pearl of great price, the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins. "O Lord," he cried, "I will praise Thee: though Thou wast angry with me, Thine anger is turned away, and Thou comfortedst me." Stirred by hallowed and rapturous emotions, he shouted aloud, "Glory be to God!" Full of peace and joy in believing, and anxious that others, and especially those near to him, should share the same consolation, he rode to Baldock in the morning, purposely to tell his relatives how happy he was in the love of God, and to counsel and encourage them not to rest till blessed with this great salvation. To his wife, then in London, he wrote a delightful letter, descriptive of his state of mind, and of his solemn and earnest purpose to cleave to Christ. From that time, till his lamented death, he held on his way; his unswerving consistency, his growing Christian experience, and his pure and amiable character, all illustrating the grace of God in him. With Mr. Hine it was impossible to be intimately acquainted without being struck with his firm, manly, truly religious decision; his sound, clear, discriminating judgment; his habitual, uncompromising fidelity; and his sterling honour and uprightness. These inestimable features were brought out in marked and attractive prominence, amid all pursuits and interests which claimed his time, whether civil, social, or sacred. matter appertaining to the cause and church of the Redeemer excited the warm and intense sympathies of his heart, and needed only to be put before him to command his best counsel and aid. In the village where Providence cast his lot, his character, example, and influence, as a man, a master, and a Christian, were of worth appreciable only to persons acquainted with him on the spot.

Every

Mr. Hine's health was for some years enfeebled, his frame exceedingly tender and fragile; so that he was incapable of any lengthened effort. Still he gave to the interests of the church all the service he could; and that was no scant or mean proportion. Here, especially, he seemed always as though acting with the sound of the royal Preacher's injunction in his ears, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." In the Circuit, and in all meetings gathered for the conduct of its businessaffairs, he wielded a power always positively beneficial, and of solid value, the loss of which is keenly felt both by Ministers and other office-bearers. In the erection of the neat and attractive sanctuary at Baldock, A.D. 1853, he took a very active part, being one of its most assiduous, liberal, and judicious promoters. The consecration of that

house to the worship of the Most High, and the anniversary occasions he was permitted to witness, were to him seasons of pure and elevated enjoyment. It is monitory to add, that on the day fixed for the third anniversary, (which had been postponed in hope that he might be able to join in the solemnities,) he passed to the higher and holier services of the church above. In Mr. Hine there was observable a most enlightened attachment to the ordinances of God's house, and to the ministry of the Gospel. He paid a marked and earnest attention to the word of truth, as proclaimed from the pulpit; and not unfrequently cheered the Preacher by testifying how instructive and profitable it had been to his soul. He heard for himself in the spirit of devotion, and in expectation of a present blessing. His attachment to his Ministers, and his ready disposition to render them every aid within the compass of his ability, must be specially and gratefully mentioned. None who, during the last ten years, have exercised the ministerial office in the Biggleswade Circuit, will fail to entertain an affectionate remembrance of his manifold kindresses, or of the solid excellence of his character.

Mr. Hine maintained the union with the Saviour into which he had been introduced by faith, and yielded in his life "the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God." At the Christmas visitation of his class, 1855, he referred to his shattered and enfeebled health, and expressed the settled conviction he felt of the need of a continual witness of personal acceptance with God; declaring that this assurance through faith in Christ he held and enjoyed, and that he was then walking in the light of God's countenance. Hence, when death threatened him, though on various accounts life appeared unspeakably desirable, he was calm and confiding. He went to London, as was his wont, in the latter end of April, for a few days; attended, on Monday, May 5th, the Anniversary of the Missionary Society in Exeter-Hall; and highly enjoyed the instructive and spirit-stirring speeches delivered, and the holy influ ence which pervaded that memorable Meeting. He returned home on the following day, not, it was hoped, materially worse for the exertion and excitement. Before night arrived, however, serious hemorrhage commenced, which continued more or less for many days, and reduced him to extreme debility. Life hung in fearful suspense. He slightly recovered, gathering a little strength; and the fond hope was indulged that he might be spared for a time to exercise a supervision over his business, and the interests and education of his children. When just able to sit up, he freely stated that, during the season of his utmost weakness, he had been consoled and tranquillized by the presence of God; that he felt himself in his Father's hands; and that, whatever might occur, he was satisfied all would be well. As, during the conversation, three of his lovely little ones came to kiss him, and say "good night," he watched them as they passed out of the room, then turned to the writer, and said, with a smile on his countenance, while he wiped a tear from his eye, "It is rather hard work to give up these little ones. I do not feel that I am called to it yet; but if I

be, the Lord can do for them better than I can." For some weeks before his decease his friends were impressed with the mournful conviction that life was ebbing out. He expressed himself as, "though not transported with joy, yet on the rock;"-" compelled to hold by peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; and there sustained and comforted." In this frame he continued till his change came. In the midst of pain, he testified, "I am in possession of the favour of God, and the Psalmist tells me that is better than life." Worn and exhausted, he could say but little; nor was this necessary. Still his tongue was employed, as strength allowed, in telling of the peace and consolation which calmed his final hour, and in speaking kindly and faithfully to all. He charged his wife to meet him in heaven, and bring all the children, not leaving one behind; and, as his last and dying act, he invoked blessings on several of these, solemnly charging them, and commending them to the care of God. Thus closed his intercourse with earth; and, about an hour after, he calmly resigned his spirit into the hands of God. He had feared that his passage from time to eternity would not be easy; and, fearing this, he prayed that God would deliver him. That prayer was heard: his closing moments were so peaceful, that those who stood anxiously watching around could scarcely discern the last breath.

"His God was with him in his final hour;
His final hour brought glory to his God."

APOSTOLIC PREACHING:

A SERMON PREACHED BEFORE THE IRISH CONFERENCE,
IN CORK, JUNE, 1857,

BY THE REV. ROBERT YOUNG.

(PUBLISHED BY REQUEST OF THAT CONFERENCE.)

"For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” (1 Cor. i. 22-24.)

THE doctrine of "Christ crucified" holds a most distinguished place in the system of revealed truth. It is the sure foundation laid in Zion, upon which believers, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house. It is the sun in the moral hemisphere, dispelling the darkness of sin, and bringing out all the lovely hues of Christian holiness. It is the great fact in the universe, which exhibits in beautiful harmony the glorious perfections of the Deity, excites the inquiry of adoring angels, and inspires the highest songs of heaven. Such being the importance of this doctrine, it claims prominence in the ministrations of the sanctuary; and ambassadors of Christ, however enriched with wisdom and eloquence, can never exhaust the subject. On this