ment from the conversations and the lessons of those happy Sundays. To some of them I was, while yet a teacher, called to pay the visit of a religious friend when death had, by illness, made his approach to their couch. More than one instance I can recollect in which the young and blooming were called to surrender the promise of life, with all its enticements, and to pace the "dark valley." But I am happy to add that in several of those cases the pilgrim could assure us, he did not, in facing its horrors, find himself alone. He had " a rod" and " a staff" in which he trusted; and I trust when "mortality shall put on immortality” I shall meet them again, and many more whom "I wot not of." There is one fact, however, I must mention. And in this lies the most valuable moral of my story. When I left the class I was succeeded by a friend of whom I shall ever speak with great respect. "His name was John," and much like the apostle whose name he bore, he was remarkable for meekness, for patience, for faith in his Master, and for love to the souls of those committed to his care. For some time before I left there had been no addition from my class to the church. This made me grieve. Before a twelvemonth had elapsed after my friend John had taken charge of the class, I believe seven young men had given in their names as candidates. Now how was this? John had, I think, no more ability, no more address, certainly no more learning than I. one secret explained it. He had more piety. Teachers! ponder this well. But O. M. TIDINGS OF A LOST HERO. "Twice seven times the sunny laughing Spring "The dim and blinding tears Gush to mine eyes. I cannot see them more. THERE is no longer any doubt or uncertainty as to the fate of Sir John Franklin, the gallant hero of the Arctic seas. Fourteen years ago, then a veteran voyager, he left the shores of England to make a further attempt to discover a north-west passage by sea from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans. The vessels fitted out for the service were of the most approved construction, and had before withstood the dangers of the frozen seas. The crews conjointly amounted to a hundred and thirty souls, all of whom had caught more or less the ardent hopefulness and enthusiasm of their leader. Every plan that former experience could suggest for the safety and preservation of the expedition was adopted, and the most sanguine anticipations were formed of the approximation to something like a successful issue of an enterprise so amply furnished and so gallantly conducted. Early in the summer of 1845, the "Erebus" and "Terror" left the shores of England. In three years, or at most in TIDINGS OF A LOST HERO. 413 four, Sir John hoped to return to his native land. Little did he think when he bade "Farewell to mossy vale, and sapphire sky, Green earth, and golden wood, and silver wave, and went forth into perilous polar seas, where "The red meteor arches span the sky, And o'er the dreary waste the shattered ice that neither he nor any of his associates would ever see again the daisied fields of old England! Yet so it has happened. The expedition sailed, as we have said, in the early part of the summer of 1845. In the July of the same year, it reached the coast of New Greenland, and anchored in a narrow channel between the Whalefish Islands. Letters and despatches announcing their arrival at that point were forwarded to England. The officers and crews were then in the highest spirits; and cheerfully anticipated the rigors and perils of an Arctic voyage. The gallant captain had already gained even more than the esteem and admiration of the whole of his brave companions. "Sir John Franklin," wrote one of the lieutenants, "has won not only the respect, but the love of every person on board by his amiable manner and kindness to all. He is in much better health than when we left England, and really looks ten years younger. He takes an active part in everything that goes on." A private letter from Sir John himself, written on the 9th of July, says, "I hope my dear wife and daughter will not be over anxious if we should not return by the time they have fixed upon." An official despatch, dated three days after, tells of the completion of all necessary preparations and supplies for three years, and of indications of a speedy and safe voyage to the point where the researches were to commence. About a fortnight afterwards the two ships were seen by Captain Dannett of the "Prince of Wales”, a whaler. They were then moored to an iceberg, in Baffin's Bay, about two hundred miles from the entrance to Lancaster Sound, and were waiting a favourable opportunity to proceed on their way. An invitation to dine with Sir John Franklin on board the "Erebus," on the following day, was sent to Captain Dannett, but a favourable breeze springing up in the meantime, it was thought prudent to take advantage of it, and the invitation was declined. The ships separated, and no more was seen or heard of Sir John Franklin; a mystery dark and sorrowful hung over his fate. For years we have been accustomed to say, that was the last sight obtained of him and his ships. Since then fourteen long winters have come and gone; expedition after expedition has been sent out in vain in search of him; upwards of thirty vessels have been equipped and manned, and have gone upon hazardous voyages in the hope of finding him; all that the love of a devoted wife, the wealth of a generous government, and the enterprise of a brave people could do has been done; the north-west passage has itself been discovered; and public anxiety having reached its highest point of expectation, has relapsed into mournful and hopeless despair; but for these long years of toil and research, until last month no definite results could be shown, and from the faint traces of this noble band of adventurers that unwearying and continuous exertion could discover, dark and terrible surmises as to their fate were all that Lady Franklin and a sympathising community were warranted to indulge in. "The princely barques winged their dread journey to the desolate main, Though here and there on sheets of shuddering ice, And scattered relics of their former homes." At length certain intelligence has been received, and the fate of the missing heroes has been ascertained. The final expedition, sent out by the unquenchable love and undying hope of Lady Franklin has met with complete success. Amid the storms and icebergs, and on the cold barren shores of a polar solitude, Captain M'Clintock, who undertook the command of this last and almost forlorn hope, has found memorials of the brave Sir Jol:n, and his ill-fated associates. First of all, as he tells us in his report, published a few weeks back, he hears of a ship crushed by the ice, several years ago, off the north shore of King William's Island, the crew of which landed safely, and went away to the Great Fish River, where they died. Then going forth again in a sledge drawn by four men, having an auxiliary sledge drawn by six dogs, he hears of a second ship drifting ashore on the same island, in the fall of the same year. No traces of either of the wrecks could be found; but many relics, and much valuable information were obtained. The "white men," having abandoned the ships, made for the main land, and "dropped" one by one on the way, leaving their bones to bleach upon the snow. Here was found a pocket-book containing a few letters, the contents of which are yet decipherable; there a whitened skeleton with fragments of European clothing lying around it. In one place were three small tents, empty and deserted, with blankets, clothing, and other relics close by; at another was a long boat, mounted upon a sledge, wherein were found a large quantity of clothing and two human skeletons. "One of these skeletons," says the melancholy story, "lay in the after part of the boat under a pile of clothing; the other, which was more disturbed, probably by animals, was found in the bow. Five pocket watches, a quantity of silver spoons and forks, and a few religious books were also found, but no journals, pocket-books, or even names upon any article of clothing. Two double-barrelled guns stood upright against the boat's side, precisely as they had been placed eleven years before. One barrel in each was loaded and cocked." But the great discovery was made upon Point Victory. Lying amongst some loose stones which had fallen from the top of a cairn was found a small tin case containing a record, which stated that the cairn was built by the Franklin expedition, and gave a summary of the history of the expedition up to that time. The Erebus and Terror, it appears, wintered at Beechy Island, in 1845, were beset in 1846, not far from the place where the cairn was built, lost their captain, Sir John Franklin, by death, on June 11th, 1847, and were abandoned by their crews in 1848. Of the hundred and thirty who went out, only ahundred and five then survived; and these fell one by one from cold, or famine, or fatigue, on their way to the Great Fish River. The fate of the gallant captain and his companions is now placed beyond the region of speculation and doubt. The dreams of his safety SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATED. 415 some so fondly cherished are for ever dispelled; and all hope of his again treading the shores of his native land, his bereaved wife and daughter must for ever abandon. Sir John Franklin has been dead for more than twelve years. Before the first expedition was sent out to his relief he had already gone to that bourne from whence no traveller returns. He died, probably, before the supplies of provisions were exhausted, and before much suffering and privation had been experienced by the crews. The record does not tell us of the cause and manner of his departure. Yet as we read it, and the narrative of Captain M'Clintock, we cannot refrain from asking, did that small pocket Bible found in the boat, and said to be interlined in many places, and to contain numerous references written in the margin, belong to the noble captain? From that Holy Book did he find consolation in his last hours, and by that blessed chart did he steer safely into the haven of eternal rest? These things, however, we must leave. God alone knows how and with what feelings the gallant chief of that ill-fated band passed away to his reward. Enough for us to be assured that he had near him at the hour of his death so precious a comforter as the Book of God. Sir John Franklin is gone; his devoted wife and daughter will see him no more. But his name, with the names of his brave comrades, will be henceforth surrounded with imperishable lustre. He takes his rank with the noble army of martyrs of which science may proudly boast. His fame will be glorious as long as the human race honours the memory of Columbus, of Galileo, of Cabot, and of Cook. He did not breathe his last on the bloody battle-field; he did not emulate the deeds of a Nelson or a Drake; but he was a true hero. Bravely he fought and fell in the pathway of progress, and for the interests of his countrymen. The frozen and silent solitudes of the Polar seas become sacred since they form the sepulchre of so self-denying a patriot, so intrepid a commander, and so noble a man. SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATED. CARMEL. One was among Two Carmels are mentioned in the Old Testament. the mountains of Judah, in the wilderness of Maon, about fifteen miles east of the Dead Sea, and twenty miles south of Jerusalem. This is mentioned in the books of Joshua (chap. xv. 55), and Samuel (1 Sam. xv. 12; xxv. 2). Here Saul set up the trophy of his victory over Amelek, and Nabal was shearing his sheep when the affair took place between this churlish man and David, in which Abigail bore so conspicuous a part. Dr. Robinson identified this place under the modern name of Kurmul, and has given, in his Biblical Researches, a minute description of its ruins. The other Carmel is a name applied, in a restricted sense, to the only great promontory on the coast of Palestine; and more largely, to the chain of hills to which that mountain belongs. The promontory forms the southern point of the beautiful bay of modern Acre, and rises about fifteen hundred feet above the level of the sea. The chain of hills runs in a south-easterly direction fromthe cape, six or eight miles towards the plain of Jezrel, and is skirted on the north, for a short distance, by the ancient river Kishon. we Quaint old George Sandys, who visited Palestine when the pedant James the First was monarch of this country, and dedicated his "Relation of a Journey," &c., to the Prince of Wales, afterwards Charles the First, thus speaks of Carmel: "He stretcheth from east to west, and hath his utmost basis washed by the sea; steepest toward the north, and of different altitude; rich. in olives and vines, when husbanded; and abounding with several sorts of fruits and herbs, both medicinal and fragrant, though now much over-grown with woods of sweet savour." Mariti describes it as a delightful region, and says that the good quality of the soil is apparent from the fact that many odoriferous plants and flowers, as hyacinths, jonquils, tazettos, anemones, &c., grow wild upon the mountains, "Mount Carmel," says Otto von Richter, "is entirely covered with verdure. On its summit are pines and oaks, and further down, olives and laurel trees, everywhere plentifully watered. It gives rise to a multitude of crystal brooks, the largest of which issues from the so-called fountain of Elijah; and they all hurry along, between banks thickly over-grown with bushes, to the Kishon. Every species of tillage succeeds admirably under this mild and cheerful sky. The prospect from the summit of the mountain over the gulf of Acre and its fertile shores, and over the blue heights of Lebanon and the white cape, is enchanting." "In the cool of the evening," writes Messrs. Bonar and M'Cheyne, ascended Mount Carmel by a deep and rocky ravine, a little way to the south. We conversed together on Elijah's wonderful answer to prayer obtained on this mountain, and felt that we could well spend the evening of the holy day in such a place. Having soon reached the summit, a considerable way above the Latin convent, we sat down at a point commanding a full view of the sea to the west and the north. The sun was going down beyond the sea, the air was cool and delightfully pure; scarcely a breath of wind stirred the leaves, yet the fragrant shrubs diffused their pleasant odours on every side. A true sabbath stillness rested on the sea and on the hill. The sea washes the hill on each side, and stretches out full in front, till lost in the distance. To the east and north-east lies that extension of the splendid plain of Esdraelon (Jezreel) which reaches to the white walls of Acre. To the south is seen the narrow plain between the mountains and the sea, which afterwards expands into the plain of Sharon; and along the ridge of Mount Carmel itself is a range of eminences, extending many miles to the south-east, all of them presenting a surface of table-land on the top, sometimes bare and rocky, and sometimes covered with mountain shrubs. The view we obtained that evening on Mount Carmel can never be forgotten. No scene we had witnessed surpassed its magnificence, and the features of it are still as fresh in our memory as if we had gazed on it but yesterday." When the vast extent of fruitful hills, running nearly eight miles in the country, was covered over with vineyards, olive-groves, and orchards of figs and almonds, not on the sides only, but also along the table-land of its summit-would not Carmel, (the fruitful field, the country of vineyards,) appear an immense hanging garden in the midst of the land? "Thine head upon thee is like Carmel," is the beautiful simile of Solomon when describing the bride, with her jewellery, ornaments, and coronal of flowers (Song of Songs, vii. 5). "The excellency (splendid ornaments) of Carmel and Sharon" shall be given unto "the wilderness and solitary place," is the suggestive |