feared in danger of a gaol. The father's hear was half melted at this account, and his affec tion was for a time awakened. But Mrs. Brag well oppofed his fending her any affiftance. She always made it a point of duty never to forgive "for fhe faid it only encouraged those who had done wrong once to do worse next time. For her part she had never yet been guilty of fo mear and pitiful a weaknefs as to forgive any one for to pardon an injury always fhewed eithe want of fpirit to feel it, or want of power to refent it. She was refolved fhe would neve fquander the money for which fhe had worke early and late, on a baggage who had throw berfelf away on a beggar, while fhe had a daugh ter fingle who might raise her family by a grea match." I am forry to fay that Mrs. Bragwell anger was not owing to the undutifulness of th daughter, or the worthleffnefs of the hufband poverty was in her eyes the grand crime. Th doctrine of forgivenefs, as a religious principl made no more a part of Mr. Bragwell's fyfte than of his wife's, but in natural feeling, part cularly for this offending daughter, he much e ceeded her. In a few months, the youngest Mifs Bragwe defired leave to return home from Mr. Wo thy's. She had, indeed, only confented to g thither as a lefs evil of the two, than ftaying her father's houfe after her fifter's elopemer But the fobriety and fimplicity of Mr. Worthy family were irkfome to her. Habits of vani and idleness were become fo rooted in her mind, that any degree of restraint was a burthen; and though fhe was outwardly civil, it was eafy to fee that fhe longed to get away. She refolved, however, to profit by her fifter's faults; and made her parents eafy by affuring them fhe never would throw herself away on a man who was worth nothing. Encouraged by thefe promifes, which were all that her parents thought they could in reafon expect, her father allowed her to come home. Mr. Worthy, who accompanied her found. Mr. Bragwell gloomy and dejected. As his house was no longer a scene of vanity and feftivity, Mr. Bragwell tried to make himself and his friend believe that he was grown religious; whereas he was only become difcontented. As he had always fancied that piety was a melancholy gloomy thing, and as he felt his own mind. really gloomy, he was willing to think that he was growing pious, he had indeed, gone more conftantly to church, and had taken lefs pleafure in feafting, and cards, and now and then read a chapter in the bible; but all this was becaufe his fpirits were low, and not because his heart was changed. The outward actions were more regular, but the inward man was the fame. The forms of religion were reforted to as a painful duty; but this only added to his mifery, while he was utterly ignorant of its fpirit and its power. He ftill, however, referved religion as a loathfome medicine, to which he feared he must R have recourse at laft, and of which he even now confidered every abftinence from pleasure, or every exercife of piety as a bitter dofe. His health alfo was impaired, fo that his friend found him in a pitiable state, neither able to receive pleafure from the world, which he fo dearly loved, nor from religion which he fo greatly feared. He expected to have been much commended by Worthy for the change in his way of life; but Worthy, who faw that the alteration was only owing to the lofs of animal. fpirits, and to the cafual abfence of temptation, was cautious of flattering him too much. "I thought, Mr. Worthy," faid he, "to have received more comfort from you. I was told too, that religion was full of comfort, but I do not much find it." You were told the truth, replied Worthy, Religion is full of comfort. but you must first be brought into a ftate fit to receive it before it can become fo; you must be brought to a deep and humbling fenfe of fin. To give you comfort while you are puffed up with high thoughts of yourself, would be to give you a ftrong cordial in a high fever. Religion keeps back her cordials till the patient is lowered and emptied; emptied of felf, Mr. Bragwell. If you had a wound, it must be examined and cleanfed, aye, and probed too, before it would be fafe to put on a healing plaifter. Curing it to the outward eye, while it was corrupt at bottom, would only bring on a mortification, and you would be a dead man while you trufted that the plaifter was - curing you. You must be, indeed, a Christian, before you can be entitled to the comforts of Christanity. I am a Chriftian, faid Bragwell, many of my friends are Chriftians, but I do not fee it has done us much good.-Christianity itfelf answered Worthy, cannot make us good unless it be applied to our hearts. Chriftian privileges will not make us Chriftians unless we make use of them. On that fhelf I fee stands your medicine. The doctor orders you to take it. "Have you taken it?" Yes, replied Bragwell. Are you the better for it? faid Worthy. I think I am, he replied.-But, added Worthy, are you the better because the doctor has ordered it merely, or because you have also taken it? What a foolish question, cried Bragwell. Why, to be fure, the doctor might be the best doctor, and his phyfic the best phyfic in the world; but if it ftood forever on the fhelf, I could not expect to be cured by it. My doctor is not a mountebank. He does not pretend to cure by a charm. The phyfic is good, and as it fuits my cafe, though it is bitter, I take it. You have now, faid Worthy, explained undefignedly the reafon why Religion does fo little good in the world. It is not a mountebank; it does not work by a charm; but offers to cure your worft corruptions by wholefome, though fometimes bitter preferiptions. But you will not take them; you will not apply to God with the fame earneft defire to be healed with which you apply to your doctor; you will not confefs your fins to the one as honeftly as you tell your fymptoms to the other, nor read your Bible with the fame faith and fubmiffion with which you take your your medicine. In reading it, however, you must take care not to apply to yourself the comforts which are not fuited to your cafe. You muft, by the grace of God, be brought into a condition to be entitled to the promises, before you can expect the comfort of them. Conviction is not converfion; that wordly difcontent which is the effect of worldly disappointment, is not that godly forrow which worketh repentence. Befides, while you have been purfuing all the gratifications of the world, do not complain that you have not all the comforts of Religion too. Could you live in the full enjoyment of both, the bible would not be true. Bragwell now feemed refolved to fet about the matter in earnest, but he refolved in his own ftrength; and, unluckily, the very day Mr. Worthy took leave, there happened to be a grand ball at the next town, on account of the affizes. An affize-ball is a fcene to which gentlemen and ladies periodically refort to celebrate the crimes and calamities of their fellowcreatures by dancing and music, and to divert themfelves with feafting and drinking, while unhappy wretches are receiving fentence of death. To this Ball Mifs Bragwell went, dreffed out with a double portion of finery, pouring out on her own head the whole band-box of feathers |
