THE SNOW-DROP. 13 



of his healthful cheek, and increasing pensiveness 

 of his eye, bespoke the internal conflict, he yielded 

 to the snare so far as to devote many precious 

 hours which might have been profitably spent 

 among God's people, to associates, moral and re- 

 spectable indeed, but very far removed from the 

 ways of godhness. 



Frederick concealed from his wife the extent 

 of his sufferings, while she thus encouraged the 

 flesh to lust against the Spirit ; but she could not 

 be ignorant of it ; and that knowledge, as she 

 described it, only added strength to her endeavours. 

 She was coi:scious of a sort of jealousy, the re- 

 collection of which, overwhelmed her w^th horror : 

 in the selfish indulgence of an inordinate attach- 

 ment, she felt it as a wrong that her husband could 

 love God better than he loved her — she sought to 

 rival the Lord, to win from Him the allegiance of 

 a soul that He had betrothed unto himself: and 

 when, in the fiery furnace into which she was 

 shortly afterwards put, all these things were re- 

 called to mind — set in order before her — hc^v 

 fearful were the agonies of her remorseful spirit ! 

 If I could display its writhings as she described 

 them to me, the warning might be salutary to some 

 who are, in like manner, provoking the Lord to 

 jealousy, endangering abrother's safety, and braving 

 the storm of divine indignation. 



After some months passed in the manner above 

 2 



