The watchers on the mountain Ye wise and holy virgins, They meet the angel-choir. Ye saints, who here in patience When sorrow is no more. Palms of victory are there; Beyond the reach of war. There, after stormy winter, The flowers of earth arise, And from the grave's long slumber Before dismissing our readers, there is one point on which these beloved mothers in Israel, though dead, yet emphatically and very encouragingly speak to us, and that is the intimate and divinely appointed connection between maternal piety, consistency and gentle loving conduct towards her husband and her children, and the conversion of her children, and the conversion and spiritual advancement of her husband. Of this principle, the ministry, both living and dead, and the membership in the church in all ages, churches and countries, are standing proofs. Mothers, not only pious, but prudent, not only holy, but happy, not merely gracious, but gentle, not less firm than faithful,-mothers in whose heart is the law of love, drawing with the cords of a man the most reluctant hearts, and on whose lips is the law of kindness and persuasion, and in whose conscience is the law of heaven's purity, and in whose hands is the rod of correction, and the staff of authority-such women have ever been the nursing mothers of the church from the days of Han nah and Louis to the present time, and must continue to be the hope of the church, and of the State for all time to come. "There was once," says Rev. Dr. P. H. Fowler, "an obscure and pious woman living in the south of England. History is silent respecting her ancestry, her place of birth, and her education. She had an only son whom she made it her great business to train in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. In the seventh year of his age, his mother died, and a few years later the lad went to sea, and engaged at length as a sailor in the African slave-trade. He was soon an adept in vice, and though among the youngest of the crew, he was the most proficient is guilt. But his mother's instructions sent their echoes to him, and though at first he sought to deafen himself to them, they grew louder and louder, until listening to them at last, he became a fervent Christian, a successful preacher, the author of books which the church will never let die, and a writer of hymns the use of which is co-extensive with our tongue. "This wayward son whom his mother, though dead, addressed and reclaimed, was the means of the conversion of Claudius Buchanan, so distinguished for his labors in the East Indies; and the 'Star in the East,' a book published by Mr. Buchanan, first called the attention of our Judson to the missionary work, and sent him an apostle to Burmah. "The sailor, turned preacher, was also the means of delivering the Rev. Thomas Scott from the mazes of ruinous error, and introducing him to the way, the truth, and the life. Mr. Scott prepared the Commentary known by his name, and which still continues its mission of converting and sanctifying power. "The influence of this same minister and author, in connection with that of Doddridge, was principally instrumental in making Wilberforce the Christian he was. To Wilberforce's 'Practical View of Christianity,' the conversion of Legh Richmond may be ascribed, and Legh Richmond wrote The Dairyman's Daughter,' and other tracts, which have contributed to the salvation of thousands of souls. "Such are some of the results of that voice from the dead which spoke to John Newton; and what a small portion of the whole sum has yet been revealed!" A young man of Virginia, in the joyous flush of youth, and all the vigor and promise of life's morning, was as in a moment laid low, and a minister, who only knew that the young man had been sceptically inclined, was sent for. The minister entered the chamber apprehending a mournful scene of unpreparedness for the solemn change; but to his surprise and joy, he saw the countenance of the dying man lighted up with that celestial radiance which naught but a well-founded hope in Christ can impart to the last trying scene. He drew near, and tenderly inquired whether or not he felt ready and willing to depart, if such should be the Divine Will. "Oh, yes," exclaimed the dying man; "for me to die is gain; I long to depart and be with Christ." The minister inquired how long this blessed hope had been his, and to what instrumentality he referred this happy change in his views and character. "It was only a few days before I was taken sick that I was brought to submit entirely to Christ," said the young man; "and I owe it all, under God to my sainted mother's prayers, and her godly life. While in college, I imbibed, from corrupt associates, their sceptical views, learned to doubt the authenticity of the Bible, and stumbled at many of the doctrines of revealed religion, because I could not, with an unrenewed nature and a heart at enmity with God, comprehend them. But while thus setting at naught God's holy word, and the message of his servants, there was one thing I could not get over, and that was, my mother's holy life, a constant, living, breathing epitome of the religion she professed, which to my inmost soul whispered a refutation of all my scepticism. One thing was ever ringing in my ears and setting at naught all my arguments against Christianity-the memory of my mother's prayers for her prodigal son. I tried again and again to put them from me, but they would be heard; and at last, unable to continue the conflict longer, I was brought in humble penitence to the feet of Jesus, and there found peace and joy in believing in Him." Christian mother, are your prayers the best refutation of your son's scepticism? Is your life a living, breathing epitome of the gospel you profess? The weal or woe, for time and for eternity, of those you love, may hang upon you. Your faithfulness may elevate them to heaven, place a crown of glory upon their heads, and a tuneful harp in their hands, with which to swell Emmanuel's praise to all eternity; or your inconsistency and heartlesness may send them down to the blackness of dark despair, "where there is weaping and wailing and gnashing of teeth." Oh, let mothers hear and heed the teachings of the dead, and then may they hope when surrounded by their weeping children. as they gather into her dying chamber to comfort and soothe their latter hours, saying unto them What mean ye by this wailing, To break my bleeding heart? Knows neither time nor place, The love that God has planted Is lasting as His grace. Ye clasp these hands at parting, Ye gaze as on a vision Ye never could recall, While still each thought is with you, Ye say, "We hear, that yonder, Ye speak of different journeys, And have one end with you. Why should ye now be weeping Then let this hour of parting But be an hour of union More blessed with our Lord! With Him to guide and save us, No changes that await, Let us all listen to the teachings of the dead, and then shall the dead be still ours and we theirs, and heaven our common and eternal home. Meet again! yes, we shall meet again, Though now we part in pain. THE GENERAL Assembly which lately convened at Lexington, was said to be the most numerous assembly of our church that ever met. Many who have had large experience, also, pronounced it a very harmonious assembly. Its members were sent there by Presbyteries extending from Northern Indiana to Texas, from |