vidence of Almighty God, our Father in heaven, in connexion with the axiom upon which our paper is based, viz. :—“Whatever is at variance with the spirit of the gospel message, and the teachings of the Saviour of the world as set forth in the New Testament, is absolutely wrong and contrary to all sound policy; hence, however permitted for a time, it must surely have an end." No doctrine of expediency can be accepted in substitution of our position, no sophistry permanently veil, no argument disprove it. Writing in unity with the Society of Friends, we hold this amongst the fundamental views of our Christian profession, and warmly desire that all who profess with us may be blessed with that inward conviction and moral courage which enables men to hold, and act in accordance with, the truth. That the law of the spirit of life in Jesus Christ, the law of our God through and in Him, is a perfect law, and hence (however ignorance may be winked at, or pardoning love experienced) we have no authority for the sanctioning of anything short of the perfect righteousness of the New Covenant.

JOHN PEASE.

COLLOQUIAL LETTERS.

No. 3.-HALF-AN-HOUR IN A PHYSICIAN'S WAITING ROOM.

MY DEAR C.,-When thou kindly called upon me, in my retreat behind the Surrey hills, to condole with me as a friend should, on my present somewhat precarious health, I think I told thee a little of my visit to the London physician, Dr. P., and I have been calling to mind thy wish to have the account in a more expanded form in writing; so, having now abundance of leisure, I will occupy myself with filling a sheet or two with the impressions of a visit, which, though it had perhaps nothing about it very unusual, yet affords one among many opportunities for considering and depicting human life and character.

Thou knows the journey from the valley south of the Surrey hills almost as well as I do, and I need not stop to describe it. The pleasant fields, the gloomy tunnel, the stupendous cliffs, the "cutting," almost too vast for human pick-axe and spade to be accredited with it, the rounded chalk downs, quickly glide by, one after another, and we are presently on the outskirts of the great metropolis. Yonder, dazzling and glittering in the morning sun, is the glorious Palace of Glass-that excellent substitute, in many respects, for the play-house, the skittle-ground, and the fair; and now we ride smoothly over the broad Thames on the new iron bridge, and are landed in the heart of the great Babylon.

It was a fine spring morning, the air brisk and balmy, and those more delightful because we had been long suffering from the cold eastern gales, that had previously given themselves an edge on the bleak steppes of Siberia. Newsboys and orange girls, and vendors of penny wonders, were in full activity everywhere; the fresh spring air seemed to inspire

all hearts. Here was I, a poor invalid, oppressed with many anxious thoughts; more than uncertain of life (for that we all are), painfully feeling that the axe was laid at the root of a tree, which I had thought bore upon its branches some hopeful blossoms, that a future sun might have ripened into realities; and yet now, stirred up by the stimulus of the morning, and of the thronging crowd, I could turn away for a while from these often depressing thoughts, and by that marvellous power which the mind possesses, could push back these dark creditors of the soul, shut the door in their faces, and with my foot against it, calmly look round, and enjoy the time present!

Put it down in thy note-book, as a query to be answered, how and by what means the mind can at times resolutely shut down the safety-valve of painful and troublesome thoughts, and then, like the captain of a Mississippi steamer, sit upon it in proud defiance? That it can be done, witness every worldly heart that believes in a future judgment, and a world to come, and yet acts as if there were no God, no Heaven, no Hell; and on less momentous subjects I know it also to be possible, for I have often tried the experiment, and I achieved it that bright spring morning with more than usual success. The crowd of busy people seemed to stir my pulses; the vast variety of merchandize, and all the cunning works of man, piled up in such profusion everywhere, excited in me more than ordinary interest; and the general activity and bustle came with the stimulus of a strange freshness to the feelings. of one trained to the dead monotony of a village life.

I arrived at length at the physician's residence in Blank Square, and was led by a tall footman through an entrancehall, decorated with the fossilized remains of monsters of the earth and seas, who flourished in prehistoric ages, (the whole a little reminding me of Shakespeare's apothecary), and was finally ushered into a large waiting-room, to take my turn for an interview with the doctor.

I was somewhat wearied with my walk, and so, gladly sat down to have a little rest and meditation before going to be sounded, and scrutinized, and judged, and perhaps condemned. I naturally recurred to our occasional conversations on the present state of the medical art—its empirical character (using that word in its inoffensive, literal sense)-the blind way in which it gropes about when new forms of disease present,and yet the hold it has upon the public confidence. I recalled also the evidence of the wonderful advances it has made of later time, especially in rational treatment, in scientific method and appliance, and in the honest acknowledgment of its limited powers and resources. Perhaps I remembered, too, the cutting description of the medical profession fifty years ago, by an eminent member of it, and which I heard, I think from thyself, that a disease might be described as a demon struggling with the sufferer to filch away his life: that to these combatants is introduced the medical man, blindfolded and armed with a club, with which he strikes right and left, sometimes grievously wounding the patient, and sometimes crippling the disease. And if the thoughts gradually reached a loftier elevation, and dwelt a little on "the things unseen, which are eternal," and on the Invisible Governor of all, whose tender mercies are over all His works, it will not be surprising. The sense of the helplessness of man naturally drives us to seek help from God.

There were about thirty persons assembled in the waitingroom, nearly half of whom had probably come as companions of those who were needing medical advice. It was to me an affecting sight to look round upon the company, and scan the marks of failing health that were in many cases so apparent. In one corner sat a young tradesman (for such I judged him), full of the vigour of health, and by his side a gentle, delicate wife, whose pale wasted cheeks, and occasional cough, told of the inroads of a fatal disease. There was a touching aspect of matronly solicitude about her face, that made one think of

sweet babes at home, evidently soon to be deprived of a mother's training hand and cherishing love.

Near to them sat a smart young gentleman, dressed in flashy style, with staring waiscoat, flaming necktie, enormous gold pin, with dog's head upon it, and bunch of gewgaws at his watch chain: altogether equipped in what I thought very unquiet, not to say vulgar, attire. He was restless and impatient, and sometimes hummed a tune in a low voice, as if to wile away the time. By his side sat a gentleman, evidently his father, and whom I set down as a merchant from some large provincial town. The young man's face was wan and wasted; there was a dark line round his sunken eyes; and his cough had an unmistakable hollow sound. I was filled with pity as I looked at him, and seemed to forget my own ailments and trials at the sight of him. I longed to whisper to him in love and confidence, “Here we have no continuing city, so let us seek one to come-one that is durable, and hath foundations, of which none of the inhabitants can say, I am sick,' for the people that dwell therein have been forgiven their iniquities."

Just as this thought was passing through my mind, a gentleman with a kindly intelligent face, whom I had before noticed quietly reading a tract, rose, and handed it courteously to the young man, with a few whispered words.

Presently this young man with the gay attire was summoned into the doctor's presence, and thou wilt imagine how startled and solemnized I was, to find that the tract he had just been reading was headed with the very words that had risen so forcibly into my own thoughts in connection with him, "Here we have no continuing city." Could I do otherwise than feel that there was a warning in these words, specially intended for him and for me; and could I fail to be again reminded that God's tender mercies are over all His works? I felt quite happy that this arrow from the Divine hand had gone home, and that the physician's waiting-room had been visited by the Great Physician, whose power and wisdom and love are unfathomable.