to fear the God of Israel, and at the same time to encourage his own people to put their trust in him, the Lord defeated Syria before Israel. After an interval of three years, Ahab and Benhadad met at Ramoth-Gilead, and there Israel's king received his death wound. Syria had dominion over Israel, or, at least, maintained a threatening attitude when Naaman went to be healed of his leprosy, and shortly after Benhadad besieged Samaria till mothers were driven by famine to boil and eat their children. Many other quarrels arose between these neighbours, till Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, came and took Israel's enemy into captivity. These neighbours, however, soon met again, for Israel fell under the power of Assyria, and its people were transported into some of the same countries that the conquered Syrians were placed in. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Assyrian empire, and sent the captive Syrians home again. When Judah fell before the Chaldean king, the Syrians joined in the general rejoicing, but the favour of Nebuchadnezzar was not to be depended on, for on account of some slight offence he turned his arms against the newly liberated Syrians, burnt their chief cities, and sent the people into a second captivity. Since those days Syria has acknowledged the power of many conquerors, and is at present a part of the Ottoman empire.

H.

TENACITY OF ERROR.-It is a melancholy fact, verified by every day's observation, that the experience of the past is totally lost both upon individuals and nations. A few persons, indeed, who have attended to the history of former errors, are aware of the consequences to which they invariably lead, and lament the progress of national violence in the same way as they do the career of individual intemperance. But, upon the great mass of mankind-the young, the active, and the ambitious-such examples are wholly thrown away. Each successive generation plunges into the abyss of passion, without the slightest regard to the fatal effects which such conduct has produced upon their predecessors; and lament, when too late, the rashness with which they slighted the advice of experience, and stifled the voice of reason.-Steele.

Anecdotes of the Great and Good.

SOCRATES.-The oracle pronounced Socrates the wisest man in Greece. There were few either wiser or better in the whole heathen world. His friend Alcibiades was one day boasting of the great estates he possessed, when Socrates conducted him to a geographical map, and asked him to point out Attica, the province in which Athens was situated. With some difficulty he found it, but upon being desired to find his own estate in Attica, he declared it was too small to be distinguished on such a map. "See then,” replied the philosopher, "how much you are affected about an imperceptible point of land."

BISHOP LATIMER." In the world ye shall have tribulation." This doctrine Latimer believed. On one occasion he had put up at the house of a gentleman on whom Providence had smiled abundantly. In the course of conversation the host said, "I never had a sorrow in my life." "Then," said the good Bishop, "give me my horse; I'll not stay in a house that never had a sorrow in it, for certain I am that God is not there."

JOHN NEWTON.-An excellent Hebrew scholar disbelieved that Jesus of Nazareth was he "of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write." In conversation with Mr. Newton on this subject he said, "I have examined every word in the Hebrew Bible seventeen times, but I cannot find Christ there." "I do not wonder at that," said Mr. Newton. "I once went to light my candle with the extinguisher on, but I failed. Christ is indeed spoken of by 'Moses and the prophets;' but unless the extinguisher of your prejudice is removed you will never find him."

KIRCHER.-One of the friends of this eminent astronomer denied the existence of a God. On one of his visits to the astronomer's room he observed a beautiful celestial globe in one corner of it. Having examined it with surprise and pleasure, he began to converse with Kircher about it. The astronomer affected complete ignorance of the matter. How the globe got into the room, and who was the owner, it seemed quite to puzzle him. At last he said, "Oh, it must have come here by chance." "That is impossible," said his atheistical friend. "Well," said Kircher, "if you will not believe that such an insignificant object as this is can possibly come here by chance, how can those heavenly bodies of which this small globe is only a faint resemblance come into existence without order and design?"

DR. ROWLAND TAYLOR.-The town of Hadley, in Suffolk, had been the residence of Dr. Taylor, and there his enemies determined that he should suffer. He was burnt for his adhesion to the Protestant faith during the reign of Queen Mary. When drawing near the place assigned for his martyrdom he was asked how he felt. "Never better," said he, "for

now I know that I am almost at home." Looking over the meadow between him and the stake, he said, "Only two stiles more to get over, and I am at my Father's house."

PALISSY, the " Huguenot Potter," was a staunch Protestant. He was far advanced in years when the massacre of St. Bartholomew broke out. Being in the King's favour, his escape was permitted; but he was soon after taken and shut up in the Bastile. While there he was visited by the King, who entreated him to become a Roman Catholic, adding, “If you will not, I shall be forced to leave you in the hands of your enemies." "Forced!" replied Palissy. "That is not to speak like a King; but they who force you cannot force me--I can die!" He ended his life in the Bastile, in the 90th year of his age.

VESPASIAN.-On the death of Vitellius in 69, the army chose Vespasian as Emperor of Rome. His father did not belong to the first rank of nobility in Rome; but such was the merit of Vespasian himself, that the senate willingly confirmed the choice of the army. After his elevation it was his practice to call himself to an account every night for the actions of the past day. When he found he had lived any one day without doing some good action, he entered upon his diary the memorandum, "I have lost a day!"

Useful Statistics.

LORD MAYORS OF LONDON.-For the last 800 years the City of London has had its own representative of the sovereign power. These were formerly called Portgraves, or Justiciars, but since the reign of King John they have been styled Mayors, and from the time of Edward III. Lord Mayor has been their title. Of these chief magistrates we have the names of about 600, being all who have held office from A.D. 1212 to the present time. A great many have had the honourable position twice over, but even these have not usually been re-elected till after an interval of some years. Three have held office for six consecutive years, three others for five years, and six for three years. On the other hand, it has happened eleven times that there has been two Lord Mayors in one year. These officers of justice have themselves sometimes been deemed offenders, for three have been deposed, and one was committed to the Tower. Up to the present time there have been about an equal number of Popish and Protestant Mayors, the latter beginning in 1549. Sir Rowland Hill was the first Protestant Lord Mayor of London. On the 9th of November a procession is formed for the purpose of conducting the newly-elected officer to Westminster Hall to take certain oaths. Before 1454 this procession was of a very simple character, but Sir John Norman converted it into a pageant, and so it has continued for 411 years.