EASTER SUNDAY 39 



that affected nie in a Avay I did not thoroughly com- 

 prehend, and therefore cannot properly express — some- 

 thins: it was that divested the mind of all thous-hts 

 of the common occurrences of daily life, and impressed 

 the heart with a joyful sentiment, exceeding all that 

 could be derived from any sensual or social enjoyment. 

 AVhether it be that vouno- Sprin"; is then advancino-, 

 arrayed in that beauteous garment Nature has so taste- 

 fully provided for her, pouring forth her delightful 

 carols, and bearing in her lap sweet perfumed emblems 

 of her bounty ; or whether it be the commemoration of 

 the promises made by the God of Nature, of an eternal 

 Spring to those responsible beings who have faith in 

 His revealed will, hope in His most merciful dispen- 

 sation, and good-will towards their fellow-creatures — 

 either one or the other, or both, will dispose the senses 

 to the purer and more exalted feelings of our condition. 



I bent my knee in prayer to the great Giver of good — 

 I joined in the holy chaunt that reverberated round 

 those ancient walls — I listened with attention to the 

 exposition of His holy text — I admired the vastness and 

 solidity of the structure, inspected the different monu- 

 ments that ornamented its pillars or its pavement, and 

 departed with what? With feelings of reverence for the 

 piety of our ancestors who had erected this edifice to 

 the honour of the holy martyr whose name it bears ? 

 No. Or with a lively sense of gratitude for the benefits 

 to be derived from an implicit trust in the mercies and 

 mediation of One whose entrance into everlasting life we 

 were this day called on joyfully to remember ? x\las ! 

 no. But with much curiosity and a determination to 



