Chap. XIV. DEPRAVITY— ITS TREATMENT. 259 



welkin rings with the singing of birds, which is not so delightful 

 as the notes of birds at home, because I have not been familiar 

 with them from infancy. The notes here, however, strike the 

 mind by their loudness and variety, as the wellings forth from 

 joyous hearts, of praise to Him who fills them with overflowing 

 gladness. All of us rise early to enjoy the luscious balmy air of 

 the morning. We then have worship ; but amidst all the beauty 

 and loveliness with which we are surrounded, there is still a 

 feeling of want in the soul in viewing one's poor companions, 

 and hearing bitter impure words jarring on the ear in the per- 

 fection of the scenes of nature, and a longing that both their 

 hearts and ours might be brought into harmony with the Great 

 Father of Spirits. I pointed out, in, as usual, the simplest 

 words I could employ, the remedy which God has presented to 

 us, in the inexpressibly precious gift of His own Son, on whom 

 the Lord " laid the iniquity of us all." The great difficulty in 

 dealing with these people is to make the subject plain. The 

 minds of the auditors cannot be understood by one who has not 

 mingled much with them. They readily pray for the forgive- 

 ness of sins, and then sin again ; confess the evil of it, and there 

 the matter ends. 



I shall not often advert to their depravity. My practice has 

 always been to apply the remedy with all possible earnestness, 

 but never allow my own mind to dwell on the dark shades of 

 men's characters. I have never been able to draw pictures of 

 guilt, as if that could awaken Christian sympathy. The evil is 

 there. But all around in this fair creation are scenes of beauty, 

 and to turn from these to ponder on deeds of sin, cannot promote 

 a healthy state of the faculties. I attribute much of the bodily 

 health I enjoy to following the plan, adopted by most physicians, 

 who, while engaged in active, laborious efforts to assist the 

 needy, at the same time follow the delightful studies of some 

 department of natural history. The human misery and sin 

 we endeavour to alleviate and cure, may be likened to the sick- 

 ness and impurity of some of the back slums of great cities. 

 One, contents himself by ministering to the sick and trying 

 to remove the causes, without remaining longer in the filth than 

 is necessary for his work ; another, equally anxious for the 



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