ORATIONS AND POETRY, MORAL AND RELIGIOUS SUBJECTS. BY ROSWELL RICE, EPC^., North White Creek, Washington County, N. Y. ALBANY rniNTED BY C. VAN BENTHUTSE.V 1858. i^"^^"! o '^^s^ f'ntercd according to act of Congress, in the Clerk's fifSce >^ the Northern District of New-York, By RoswELL Rice. Esq. INTRODUCTION. I was born in the year 1803, in the town of White- Creek, Washington county, New-York, in which place I have resided ever since. My parents were born in the state of Connecticut, and emigrated in early life to the place of my nativity. From the days of my infancy, much of my pilgrimage has been a scene of suffering. When about a year old my life was despaired of, and I was to all appearance near the grave ; but God said " Live," and I was restor- ed to health. Again I was stricken with disease at the age of eight years ; delirium seized my brain, and the night of death seemed to be just before me ; but God in his abundant mercy rebuked the disease. By the imprudence of youthful ambition, when about fifteen years of age, I struck the fatal blow, which gave me a wound nature's sweet restorer can never heal. Then earthly bliss expired — the diadem of youth passed away, and the doleful scourge bound me in the gloom of night. The pains of an injured body and a vile heart weighed down my spirit, and the shroud of moral darkness spread over me ; for I had trespassed on the laws of my physical constitu- tion, and the consequences were and must be sure. While I meditated on my sad condition, I could neither enjoy earth or heav^en. My mother, (now resting in the sepulchre) was a friend to her children, her Savior, and God. Her religious instructions in my early days, often aroused my memory, and the consciousness of my situation, and the necessity of a Savior, induced me to seek the salvation of my soul, and lay up my treasure in God. I met my Savior in Gethsemane, where he * INTRODUCTION. sweat blood for sinners, and to the foot of Mount Calvary, where he redeemed my soul. Here the strong chord which had bound sin as a heavy burden upon me, broke in sunder, and the mountain of guilt that pressed heavily on my soul, was washed away by the crimson stream that stained the brow of Cal- vary. My heart melted as I felt the love of Jesus, and my soul rejoiced in God my Savior. My frame was gradually sinking under the stroke I had brought upon it, and to all appearance I was soon to sleep in death. The physicians pronounced my disease mortal, and the direful sensations caused by the organic affection near the seat of life, con- firmed their opinion, in my estimation, with more than tenfold sanction. I had taken my farewell of the world, and made up my mind to die. My phy- sical constitution was sinking under its intolerable load ; sudden paroxysms seized me, under the in- fluence of which the tide of blood turned purple, caused by some obstruction in the aorta, the direful sensations of which indicated sudden dissolution. That dismal scene, which threatened with all the horrors of death, I shall never be able to describe to my reader — the like of which, may God prevent ever thwarting his pathway. After being confined to my bed for more than a year, my disease gradu- ally gave way to the restoring efficacy of my con- stitution, and at the expiration of five years my health was in part restored, so that I have been most of the time since able to attend to some of the easy avocations of life for a livelihood ; yet I am still af- flicted with the same disease, and never while in the body shall I enjoy good health again. Here lost hope rides forth in gloomy prospect, and weans the soul from all earth's fading flowers. When in the midst of my affliction, my mother (one of the kindest of w^omen) watched my couch, and gave me all the consolation maternal kindness could impart. To her it must have been a tiresome INTRODUCTION. O scene ; but patience performed its office to the last request. My elder sister also lent her aid in time of danger, and in the tenderness of her heart often administered to my necessities. All my relatives exhibited their kindness, and labored abundantly for my temporal welfare. Through my sore and linger- ing illness, I had no disposition to repine, but placed my confidence in God, who had power to wound and heal, to kill and make alive. Since that time He has blest my basket and my store, and often im- parted the riches of his grace to my soul. I have written the following work, not for earthly gain, but for the temporal and eternal welfare of manldnd. The infidel may insult his only Benefac- tor by denying his existence, but my soul shall give honor to the Creator and Preserver of all worlds ; who has sustained me to this present moment, and will be my shield and defence in being eternal fu- ture. And to God my heavenly Father, Christ my only Savior, and the Holy Ghost my Sanctifier, one triune Deity, I will ascribe all praise, dominion and power, henceforth forever ! Whose favor I sincerely implore to accompany this volume I am preparing for the inspection of the world ! may it melt the frozen heart, and lead the poor wandering sinner to repentance, hope, and Heaven ! console the Chris- tian ! stir up the lukewarm professor, and lead him to the Rock of his salvation. ORATION I. ON INTEMPERANCE. '• Drunkards shall not inherit the kingdom of God..^'— Corinthians vi 10. Man, ever since his fall in the garden of Eden, has been inspired with a spirit of deviation from righteousness, which often increases his misery. His imaginations are only evil continually — laying structures of wretchedness and wo f and hewing out vessels that can hold no water. Such is his digres- sion from the requirements of God, that he is a stran- ger to virtue, and lies buried in the open field of his pollution. But among all his wicked inventions, King Alcohol is the topmost stone. This Monster of Death, in his various forms, has marked our Union with blood and tears — has spread his wings far and wide — has poisoned even unto death America's sons, and hurried them on to the drunkard's grave. But unwilling to stop here in his march of wo, he has made his slaughter universal, and scarce a continent, or island on the globe, but has felt the direful influence, and more or less have fallen victims to this Juggernaut wheel of death. Such has been the reign of this mighty Tyrant, that many of the brightest stars have fallen from their high stations, and been transmitted to the grave of oblivion — their light forever eclipsed, and their utility lost to the world. Such has been the devastation of this baneful enemy, that he has laid prostrate all ranks of society, and converted millions upon mil- lions to the baneful practice of inebriation ; and ingulfed them in the perdition of one common grave. ON INTEMPERANCE. 7 But from whence came this black cloud of wit- nesses ? From what ranks arose this mighty army of inebriates ? They were made from the society of sober mea. Man was never born a drunkard. When he was created by the finger of God, he bore a bet- ter stamp, and possessed the pure features of man. His red eyes and bloated face, have been gradually manufactured by the evil practice of drinking rum. At first the captive took small portions of the bane ; but long habits increased the draughts, until at length he became established in his course, and fell a sad victim to his enemy. This is the way in which so many fall a prey to Alcohol, and make shipwreck of their better part, on the rocks of perdition. If this be true, it becomes every man to guard against this deadly foe. How often have we seen men possessing abun- dance of the affluence of this world — in good stand- ing in society — enjoying life, and permitting their wives and children to enjoy the same blessing ; every thing appeared prosperous around them ; and their anticipation of future glory in this life was as clear as the limpid stream. The welfare of these individuals had not yet been buried by Intemper- ance. But soon they began to tamper with the spark- ling bowl; and its deadly poison, like mortal canker, preyed upon their constitutions. The strong man became palsied ; and began to reel to and fro under the influence of the scourging waves. Their frail barks were now tossing on the tempestuous sea of life — at last their vessels sprung leak, and foundered in liquid flames. But they did not fall alone. If so, their case had been more tolerable. But the wailings of their wives and children were heard after their departure ; for all the legacy they left them was extreme poverty and disgrace. This is the curse which follows the bacchanalian through all his meanderings in life, doAvn to his gloomy sep- ulchre. This is the sin that swells the groans of 8 rice's orations. his offspring ; and long tells their woes by his re- cords of infamy. The sweet boon of life that stands higher in the estimation of man than any other gift bestowed, is often taken away ere its meridian glory, by the early habits of Intemperance. That eye which spaj^kled with youthful lustre, has lost all its brilliant splen- dor ! That lovely brow on which sat the diadem of youth, has been struck with untimely mildew. The whole visage which once bore the beauties of sanity, has become bloated and lost its healthy ap- pearance. The constitutional powers of man have been wrecked on this tempestuous sea of life, and bear the prognostication of soon finding a watery grave. Thus King Alcohol proves himself to be a baneful enemy, and has often destroyed both soul and body in hell. This is the rock, on which thou- sands split ; and their frail barks plunge the awful cataract of death, never to rise again. But the losses by Intemperance do not end here ; for they are almost supernumerary, and past the de- scription of man. But this one thing we know, that however bright the talent of genius may be — how- ever luminous the lamp may shine in the pure atmos- phere of reason ; yet if the cloud of this mortal ene- my shall rest upon it, there shall be no breaking of the thick darkness ; but a long, dreary night shall set in upon the unhappy captive forever. Whoso- ever is overcome by this poisonous enemy, loses all things. His time to him becomes of no estimation ; his character is stamped with disgrace ; his confed- erates are the ofFscouring of all things ; and his beastly appearance shuts the gate of mercy, and staggers the commiseration of man. Such are the imprecations upon him, such his degradation in the society he lives. The element in which he moves is poisoned by his noxious breath ; and he spreads malignant contagion, wheresoever he leaves his meandering vestige. Although this deformed being ON INTEMPERANCE. 9 is enough to make human nature shudder, and is depriv^ed of all form of comeliness ; yet man by na- ture is so involved in the mire of sin, that he often catches the same infamous spirit — enlists in the same ranks — fights the same battles of iniquity, and marches onward to the same grave. This tells the woes of man's gloomy history, and proves God's sa- cred volume true. Men and women were designed by their Creator to be helpmates for each other, and increase their happiness through life's dreary pilgrimage. Woman, the fairest gem that ever graced the brow of man — the fairest boon that ever nature's God imparted to solace him as he passes through this waste howling wilderness, fraught with disappointments, sickness and death. This rich jewel should be esteemed by him to possess infinite value, and be the mainspring of his happiness while on earth. But oh ! how changed ? What frantic inversion of this gift of God to man ? When an individual is under the influence of strong drink, he loses his natural affec- tions ; his mind becomes insane and revengeful — - he exchanges his noble powers for those of the fero- cious Tiger ; and darts with the fury of a madman on his innocent prey. His beloved companion, whose heart has often been broken in ten thousand pieces, receives again the lash of his anger, and the doleful execrations that fall from his polluted lips. She is truly a woman of sorrow, and always acquaint- ed with grief. The tears which have for years run down her cheeks, have left their furrowed channel, and vindicate without contradiction her long and gloomy sufferings. She little expects relief until the monster of iniquity is removed by death. Then the hand that often beat her, shall be cold and lifeless ; that heart which rose to anger, shall palpitate no more ; that tongue which uttered imprecations against her, shall be palsied by the embrace of death ; 10 rice's orations. and all his ill-treatment shall be terminated for- ever. But the wife of his bosom is not the only sufferer. Those children of his own body have shared in his ruin. Often have they waited his return from the tavern or grog-shop with trembling. As he entered his dwelling they would cling around their mother for protection, so if possible they might evade his cruel treatment and shield themselves from the in- human lashes of their father's anger. But they often sought refuge in vain ; for he pursued them through every lane of retreat, and seldom missed his track until he had satiated his infernal malice on these little innocents of his own body. In whatever place he lived he possessed the spirit of a demon ; and proved to be an enemy to himself and also to his fellow man. Perhaps I shall not digress, if I here mention the circumstances of a criminal on the scaffold of death. He was in the days of his youth, and the meridian of life he never saw. The crime that caused his early exit, was the murder of his bosom friend — that innocent female, which he once promised in the presence of angels and men, to befriend through life. But he broke his vow, and butchered the dear- est friend he had on earth. While under the influ- ence of the liquid poison, in an unguarded moment, when all his humane feelings forsook him, his pas- sions were raised to the highest point of madness — he basely drew the poniard of death and pierced her heart. Then hung the sword of vengeance over his guilty head ! Then the howling winds caught the mournful elegy, and bore it to the four quarters of the globe, while the demon of eternal night swiftly winged his way to bear the news to the regions of the damned, that the servant of King Alcohol had been valiant in the work of death ! This cruel murderer was taught by his parents in early life to partake of the noxious cup, until he was captivated ON INTEMPERANCE. IJ by its influence. He exclaimed in the last moments of his life, " It was the influence of strong drink that brought me to this place of execution." And after admonishing the vast multitude around him to flee from it as they would from their greatest enemy, he gave himself up to the executioner, and imme- diately expired. In almost every case, capital crimes are commit- ted by those who are under the influence of strong drink. It has a tendency to drive away fear and induces man to perpetrate deeds of the blackest dye, such as would make him shudder in his sober moments, and marvel to think, how he could have been the vile perpetrator. I presume that nine- tenths of those criminals which now throng the pri- sons of our United States, have riveted their chains while under the influence of intoxication. Our coun- ty houses of pauperism, and jails for criminals, would be like the comet's long absence ; and the voice of sedition seldom be used, if this bane of man could be transmitted to oblivion's grave. The riots in our streets, would seldom break in upon the peace of man. Those unnecessary factions, that so often draw wealth from our citizens, would be few and far between. Our cities and hamlets would be left tranquil; and instead of the imprecations of wicked inebriates, peace and rejoicing would swell the temperance song, and niessengers of mercy would bear the news to earth's remotest bounds : " The dead are alive, the lost are found." The unmarried females in the cause of tempe- rance, are most powerful in operation. It is for them to say how long the scourge shall remain ; and when the proud waves of Intemperance shall be stayed. There are very few women in comparison to men, who have formed habits of intoxication ; therefore for them there is no cross in total abstinence. And when we consider the powerful influence they have over thp male population, we are led to believe that 12 rice's orations. m them is tlie remedy of healing this baneful diii-- ease. But how shall the operation begin i Let every young lady shun the company of every young man, who does not belong to the tee-total pledge. Let her look well to this matter, that she be not de- ceived, that the hypocrisy of man does not blast her comfort in future life, and wound that heart which is worthy of a sober man. And if after having obtained a knowledge of the individual, he has been found to break the pledge, or has never signed it, then put thy veto upon him, and receive his com- pany no more until he becomes a temperate man. If this were the practice by all the young ladies, in a very few years there would scarcely be a drunkard on the gbbe. This practice would doubtless save oceans of tears, and dry up the fountain of iniquity that has long swelled the woes of the human race. It is a mournful truth, that we have so many among us who manufacture drunkards, who for a Httle paltry gain, will administer potions of intoxi- cation to their fellow men, -which are as sure to make inebriates as the river is to find its way to the ocean. Notwithstanding all the entreaties of the heart-broken wife, the groans and wailings of her suffering children, the poverty and privations under which they mourn, and the beastly appearance of him who staggers to and fro in the streets, these dealers in Alcohol will yet, for the love of gold, sell to their brethren the baneful Upas tree, and keep up the stool-pigeons of mortal attraction, that they may destroy the unwary, and feast on the purchase of their blood. But their recompense is yet to come. The most horrible appearance of the drunkard on earth, is when he is under the influence of Delirium Tremens. Here his woes are indescribable, and his misery passes all bounds of human understanding ! The flood-gates of inebriation, that have for many years broken in upon his constitution, seem now to be concentrated in one general flood of sufferings ON INTEMPERANCE. 13 and pierce his soul and body, with horrors not to be repeated, or ever forgotten ! As much of hell as is possible for man to experience on earth, has inspired his bosom ; for his frantic imaginations are intolera- ble beyond conception ; and the thoughts of his wounded spirit no tongue can tell ! His forebodings of sorrow have stung his deathless soul, and pierced him with barbed arrows, drawn from the quiver of the Eternal. How often does the sufferer under this most wretched disease, have a foretaste of his future destiny — believes that devils are forcing him away to the lake of fire — that the pit of awful per- dition expands its fiery jaws to receive him, and the thunder bolts of God pour forth their cargoes of death before he is borne away by demons to the " blackness of darkness forever." The veil of the eternal pit seems to him withdrawn ; and he beholds his destiny, ere he plunges his second death ! This mournful sight melts the hardest heart, and draws tears from eyes that seldom weep. The drunkard's course is gloomy in the extreme. He plunges himself into the pollution of the gutter — he gives himself up to all the propensities of a wick- ed heart — he is unconscious of to-morrow ; yet wails his sufferings in the gall of bitterness, and increases his strong bonds of iniquity. At first he has no expectation of being captivated by the flowing bowl, but increases the draught until he is overcome by its alluring charms. His unlawful appetite and vo- luntary passions yield themselves up to the dominion of this cruel Monster, in spite of all the warnings and admonitions of scripture, the remorse of con- science, the tears and agonies of friends, the loss of health, the swift approach of poverty, the prognostic of death, and the prelibation of the ruins of hell ! Let us now behold for a moment what friendship is broken by Intemperance ! what veneration lost ! How often has strong drink exterminated connubial friendship, and excluded the strong union of pater- 14 rice's orations. nal love ? How many husbands, who once exhibit- ed the tenderest affection for their wives, have re- versed it for inebriation ? How many wives, once pleasing and well beloved, have changed the bright- ness of their persons and their characters into shame and disgrace, brought ruin to their doors, and set forth to their children the crimsoned laws of sin ? How many children, once dutiful and pleasing, have, by frequent participation of strong drink, lost all affection to their parents, and become a nuisance to society ? To compute the v/hole in one short sen- tence — those who are under the influence of strong drink — the husband is turned into a brute, the wife a serpent, the parent a monster of iniquity, the friend an enemy of holiness, and the child a son to be lost. With what regret do we see the most refined cha- racters, talents, and strong powers, destroyed by this abortive ruin ? How dismal, to view the ex- panded buds of genius blasted by the fatal energy of intoxication ! But, alas ! too often are such in- stances displayed in their darkest colors. Men of the brightest talents and most cunning genius, pos- sessing the highest ranks in society, have fallen from their stations, and been reduced to fanaticism and penury. I have seen the most athletic constitution brought to imbecility. I have seen more than one promising youth, whose behavior bid fair for usefulness to so- ciety, ensnared by this insidious enemy, and become a most insignificant profligate. Those eyes that once sparkled with all the beauty and vigor of youth, had lost their brilliant splendor. The mind, naturally quick and active, had lost its lively tone. The mem- ory, once strong, had become wavering and deceit- ful ; and all the shoots of genius were rapidly pining away. At length the youth descended into the low- est depths of inebriation, and lost his morality for- ever. ON INTEMPERANCE. 15 When I meditate on such instances as have been related ; when I think of the vast number of supe- rior minds that have been destroyed by Intemper- ance ; I canaot but compare them with ancient Jeru- salem, now trodden under foot of men. As I sur- veyed, I beheld the magnificent Temple, once the beauty of the world — her foundatio'is woe sljakcii, and not one stone left upon aooLhev iinji>oved. Her pillars of architectural grandeur wece destroyed, according to prediction ; her veil was rent, and all her magnificent beauty fell into abolition. Such is the temple of man, when subdued by his deadly foe. The drunkard's career is on the broad road to ruin. The stream in which he firsts embarks may appear small and but little dangerous ; yet it emp- ties into a boundless ocean, and conv@3rs her vo- taries to the wailings of the second death ! The intemperate are seldom reclaimed. Their condi- tion is almost hopeless ; for when they begin their voyage, they seldom cease, until they launch in- to the dark profundity obscure, from whence no traveller returns. Their consciences are seared with perfect inveteracy; they bid defiance to all men, although admonished with deepest commisera- tion and sensitive gratitude. They are governed by an enemy that knows of no condescension ; who is fettering them stronger and stronger to that hold, which shall prove a baseless fabric, sinking beneath her builders, and leave them as fuel for that flame of wrath which survives the dissolution of worlds, and is perpetuated by the vengeance of an angry Deity. Intemperance appears to be one of the greatest evils at the present day practiced by man. It is a lamentable scourge, that presides over millions of the human race. It is without controversy the great destroyer of multitudes of Adam's progeny, and brings upon them untimely sufferings and death 16 eice's orations. Flying from the useful state of morality in society,, they become biased to bacchanalian excess andt debauchery, proving themselves enemies to peace; and piety, and are manacled in grossest iniquity. Methinks the w itched man is glorying in- h shame, at some freqaented tavern or grog-shop, while his helpless children are exclaiming within the walls ; of the inclement tenement, "Oh! that we had at] morsel of bread to prevent our suffering with hun-' ger, and satiate our keen appetite, made by the cruel I treatment of a father." But their cries prove ini vain. He has become hard as an adamant, and stems the torrent of oppression, without parental sympathy for the suffering children of his own body. What can be compared with Intemperance ? It is , like some mighty vortex of the ocean, that draws : ships nearer and nearer its centre, until they sink beneath the surface of the blue waves, and are lost in the mighty deep below. And will not the drunk- ard take warning, until he is buried in the whirl- pool of destruction, where liquids are plenty, and darkness presides ; in which if the abandoned soul shall enter, there shall be no hope of her exemption forever. We may suppose that Intemperance is a sin, which exasperates a holy God, to great indignation against the vile offender. He who suffers intoxication to de- stroy both soul and body, must absorb himself in the deepest ruins of the fall of man. Yes, the partici- pation of that cup, which imparts sensual glee, will add fuel to that fire which never shall be extinguish- ed ; it will greatly enhance the corrosive guilt of that worm which never dies. Let me now describe the object of a father's com- miseration and a mother's tears. He is their only son — the staff they expect to lean upon in the de- cline of life. But their hopes are soon blasted ; for the pillars of his clay tenement begin to tremble ; the prevailing excess of intoxication is demolishing ON INTEMPEKANCE. 13 and pierce his soul and body, with horrors not to be repeated, or ever forgotten ! As much of hell as is possible for man to experience on earth, has inspired his bosom ; for his frantic imaginations are intolera- ible" beyond conception; and ^ the thoughts of his wounded spirit no tongue can 'fell ! His forebodings of sorrow have stung his deathless soul, and pierced him with barbed arrows, drawn from the quiver of the Eternal. How often does the sufferer under this most wretched disease, have a foretaste of his future destiny — believes that devils are forcing him away to the lake of fire — that the pit of awful per- dition expands its fiery jaws to receive him, and the thunder bolts of God pour forth their cargoes of death before he is borne away by demons to the " blackness of darkness forever." The veil of the eternal pit seems to him withdrawn ; and he beholds his destiny, ere he plunges his second death ! This mournful sight melts the hardest heart, and draws tears from eyes that seldom weep. The drunkard's course is gloomy in the extreme. He plunges himself into the pollution of the gutter — he gives himself up to all the propensities of a wick- ed heart — he is unconscious of to-morrow ; yet wails his sufferings in the gall of bitterness, and increases his strong bonds, of iniquity. At first he has no expectation of being captivated by the flowing bowl, but increases the draught until he is overcome by its alluring charms. His unlawful appetite and vo- luntary passions yield themselves up to the dominion of this cruel Monster, in spite of all the warnings and admonitions of scripture, the remorse of con- science, the tears and agonies of friends, the loss of health, the swift approach of poverty, the prognostic of death, and the prelibation of the ruins of hell ! Let us now behold for a moment what friendship is broken by Intemperance ! what veneration lost ! How often has strong drink exterminated connubial friendship, and excluded the strong union of pater- 14 rice's orations. nal love ? How many husbands, who once exhibit- ed the tenderest affection for their wives, have re- versed it for inebriation ? How many wives, once pleasing and well beloved, have changed the bright- ness of their persons and their characters into shame and disgrace, brought ruin to their doors, and set forth to their children the crimsoned laws of sin ? How many children, once dutiful and pleasing, have, by frequent participation of strong drink, lost all affection to their parents, and become a nuisance to society ? To compute the v/hole in one short sen- tence — those who are under the influence of strong drink — the husband is turned into a brute, the wife a serpent, the parent a monster of iniquity, the friend an enemy of holiness, and the child a son to be lost. With what regret do we see the most refined cha- racters, talents, and strong powers, destroyed by this abortive ruin ? How dismal, to view the ex- panded buds of genius blasted by the fatal energy of intoxication ! But, alas ! too often are such in- stances displayed in their darkest colors. Men of the brightest talents and most cunning genius, pos- sessing the highest ranks in society, have fallen from their stations, and been reduced to fanaticism and penury. I have seen the most athletic constitution brought to imbecility. I have seen more than one promising youth, whose behavior bid fair for usefulness to so- ciety, ensnared by this insidious enemy, and become a most insignificant profligate. Those eyes that once sparkled with all the beauty and vigor of youth, had lost their brilliant splendor. The mind, naturally quick and active, had lost its lively tone. The mem- ory, once strong, had become wavering and deceit- ful ; and all the shoots of genius were rapidly pining away. At length the youth descended into the low- est depths of inebriation, and lost his morality for- ever. ON INTEMPERANCE. 15 When I meditate on such instances as have been related ; when I think of the vast number of supe- rior minds that have been destroyed by Intemper- ance ; I cannot but compare them with ancient Jeru- salem, now trodden under foot of men. As I sur- veyed, I beheld the magnificent Temple, once the beauty of the world — her foundations were shaken, and not one stone left upon another unmoved. Her pillars of architectural grandeur were destroyed, according to prediction ; her veil was rent, and all her magnificent beauty fell into abolition. Such is the temple of man, when subdued by his deadly foe. The drunkard's career is on the broad road to ruin. The stream in which he firsts embarks may appear small and but little dangerous ; yet it emp- ties into a boundless ocean, and conveys her vo- taries to the wailings of the second death ! The intemperate are seldom reclaimed. Their condi- tion is almost hopeless ; for when they begin their voyage, they seldom cease, until they launch in- to the dark profundity obsrure, from whence no traveller returns. Their consciences are seared with perfect inveteracy; they bid defiance to all men, although admonished with deepest commisera- tion and sensitive gratitude. They are governed by an enemy that knows of no condescension ; who is fettering them stronger and stronger to that hold, which shall prove a baseless fabric, sinking beneath her builders, and leave them as fuel for that flame of wrath which survives the dissolution of worlds, and is perpetuated by the vengeance of an angry Deity. Intemperance appears to be one of the greatest evils at the present day practiced by man. It is a lamentable scourge, that presides over millions of the human race. It is without controversy the great destroyer of multitudes of Adam's progeny, and brings upon them untimely sufferings and death 16 rice's orations. Flying from the useful state of morality in society, they become biased to bacchanalian excess and debauchery, proving themselves enemies to peace and piety, and are manacled in grossest iniquity. Methinks the wretched man is glorying in his shame, at some frequented tavern or grog-shop, v^^hile his helpless children are exclaiming within the walls of the inclement tenement, " Oh ! that we had a morsel of bread to prevent our suffering with hun- ger, and satiate our keen appetite, made by the cruel treatment of a father." But their cries prove in vain. He has become hard as an adamant, and stems the torrent of oppression, without parental sympathy for the suffering children of his own body. What can be compared with Intemperance ? It is like some mighty vortex of the ocean, that draws ships nearer and nearer its centre, until they sink beneath the surface of the blue waves, and are lost in the mighty deep below. And will not the drunk- ard take warning, until he is buried in the whirl- pool of destruction, where liquids are plenty, and darkness presides ; in which if the abandoned soul shall enter, there shall be no hope of her exemption forever. We may suppose that Intemperance is a sin, which exasperates a holy God, to great indignation against the vile offender. He who suffers intoxication to de- stroy both soul and bod}^, must absorb himself in the deepest ruins of the fall of man. Yes, the partici- pation of that cup, which imparts sensual glee, will add fuel to that fire which never shall be extinguish- ed ; it will greatly enhance the corrosive guilt of that worm which never dies. Let me now describe the object of a father's com- miseration and a mother's tears. He is their only son — the staff they expect to lean upon in the de- cline of life. But their hopes are soon blasted ; for the pillars of his clay tenement begin to tremble ; the prevailing excess of intoxication is demolishing ON INTEMPERANCE. 17 the powers of his constitution, and swiftly accele- rates the abolition of human life. He dies as he lived. The sorrow of his mother is too big for ut- terance ! Gladly would she pour it forth in tears, but cannot ! Even tears refuse to give relief. His father, vibrating in agony, is impending over his grave ; his bosom heaves at the heart-rending catas- trophe ; and he exclaims, " O my son ! my son ! thou hast made shipwreck of all thy nobler powers on earth ; and to render thy case doubly dreadful, thou hast exposed thy deathless spirit to the vengeance of God, and sealed thy undying woes in the world to come !" Thus ends his mournful history. Thus he commences his eternal existence. Much has been done on the part of God for the drunkard. The commiseration of Heaven has been ample beyond description on his behalf. The an- gelic hosts have desired his emancipation from his awful curse. His case was so deplorable in the depths of mire and pollution, that for him, his only Savior cast off His diadem of glory — left the song of angels — the golden streets of the New Jerusalem— the ambrosial realm of God and seraphim, and the harps and celestial armies of the upper world, that he might redeem the drunkard from death, and place his sliding feet on the rock of God. Among all the heavenly hosts there was none that could redeem his soul and restore to him his lost Eden. None but the Father's only Son, by treading the winepress of the wrath of God, and dipping his vesture in his own blood, could make the reconciliation between God and the drunkard's soul. From the throne of a King in Heaven, I see his plunge, while the sapphire vault spreads wide to make way for his glorious personage as he journeys to the abode of man. Angels attend him in adoration as he appears in the form of the Babe of Bethlehem — cradled in a manger. They sung to his eternal honor, while shepherds caught the sacred song, and hastened on their way to wor- 2 18 rice's orations. ship the new born Stranger. They beheld him with the smile of Heaven on his brow — the rich forebo- ding of free salvation. Wonder, O my soul ! and be astonished, O earth ! at this boundless love of God to man. At this exhibition of our Savior, the devil stood afar off in his black domain, and howled with the fury of an insulted king — suffused his baleful eyes in scalding tears, and mourned exceedingly that Adam's lost race had found hope in God. That it was possible for man to be washed from his pollu- tion by the blood of atonement, and be made a fit subject for the fair climes above. That the vile inebriate, through repentance and reform, has a Friend able to bear him up above the waves of lost spirits, and place his feet on the fair banks beyond Jordan. Well might the prince of devils be con- founded at the redemption of lost man. But if the drunkard is determined to persist in his wicked course until he destroys both soul and body in hell, to accomplish his design he must wade through tears and blood. The Savior's agony and sweat endured in the garden of Gethsemane, invite him to the Well of Life. That prayer from Cal- vary, put up in the chancery of the courts of God, should woo his soul to embrace the Gospel. That sacred stream which flowed from the Redeemer's side, as he was transfixed on the cursed tree, should induce him to lay up his treasure in God. The dis- play of the Almighty's power when his Son gave up the ghost on the cross, should warn him to flee from the wrath to come ; ere the gate of mercy shall be closed forever, and the chains of lost hope bind him fast in the prison-house of death. Then a great ransom cannot redeem him. The man that persists in the course of inebriation until his life terminates, loses Heaven. The song of the redeemed shall never salute his ear. The feast of God's anointed shall never satiate his ap ON INTEMPERANCE. 19 ■petite for bliss. The pure waters of the River of Life shall not slake his thirst ; for the fountain of mercy is withdrawn, and to him this precious gift shall be offered no more. All the beauties of Hea- ven and the sublime grandeur of the upper sanc- tuary are lost to the drunkard by his treason against God. When the riches of eternal salvation were freely offered through the intercession of the Savior, he could spurn the tide of mercy which caused Hea- ven to bleed from every pore. The Friend of sin- ners has given up his mediatorial seat, and the day of mercy is passed away. The barren fig tree shall no longer live by his lenient prayer ; for the voice of justice cries cut it down, why cumbereth it the ground ? The drunkard's loss has now become irre- vocable, and the vials of God's wrath set in upon him forever. We must now leave him under the awful denunciation of an inspired apostle, who de- clares, " The drunkard shall not inherit the king- dom of God." But to those on the shores of time there is one admonition more. The voice of mercy yet invites them to the Well of Life. The Savior's outstretch- ed arms of love yet plead in their behalf; and all that we can draw from the three worlds, Heaven, earth, and hell, conspire to induce the drunkard to flee the wrath of God, and scale those angelic mountains in the far off land of rest. To those who sleep in death, we have no exhortation — no sympathetic prayer, for they have crossed the isthmus and gone beyond our hope. But our prayer is for those who live — for those who have not made their bed in eternal sorrows — whose stakes are not yet immuta- bly thrown, nor their dies for eternity cast. Such are the subjects of our tears; and for such, Jesus groaned, bled and died ; and while the lamp of life is yet burning, the inebriate may urge his suit, change his course, and press into the kingdom of Heaven. 20 rice's orations. Seed time and harvest shall come and pass away. The hill and the valley shall smile with the luxu- ries of man. The cargoes of emporium shall float on the blue waves, and waft along the shores of the sublime highlands. The bells of minarets and bas- tions shall chime the midnight peal. The drunken revelries shall increase the history of death ; and the baneful Upas tree shall spread over all lands. The retreats of pollution, where King Alcohol waves his banner, shall swell the dirge of woe. The sound of the harp and viol shall chant the passions of 5^outh ; and the chandeliers of theatres, like terres- trial suns, shall deceive the unwary traveller. The card and the throw of the dice, where souls are- stamped for eternity, shall tell man's future history. The army of inebriates shall increase, ere they plunge the Jordan of death, to wait the resurrection fires and the direful woes of the final judgment. In all these scenes of pollution, man seems silent, as if at death, he closed his eyes in eternal sleep. But suddenly the voice of the archangel splits the sapphire vault above, and comes trumping down the eternal avenue with a mighty clangor, such as the world never knew. At the piercing sound of the trumpet, the drunkard awakes from his grave of centuries, amidst the awful volcanoes of the re- surrection morning. In a moment appears the grand- est scene ever witnessed on earth ; it is the Son of Man coming in the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory. This is the day the drunkard put afar off' — this is the day he hoped never to see. But it has come — laden with the retribution of eternity for men and angels, and not one of Adam's pro- gen}^ or demons lost, shall withstand the justice of their God. For it is written, " All that are in their graves, shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live, and shall come forth ; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life j ^N INTEMPERANCE. 21 and they tht^i 'luve done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." Ail the drunkards since the world began, or ever will be until the consummation of all things, have at this final day assembled around the white throne. The Judge in the greatness of his rnajesty assumes his seat. The books are opened. And the last des- tiny of men and angels will soon echo through the upper world, and pierce the drunkard's heart with horror, such as damned spirits only feel. The cloud of inebriates wait in awful suspense, to hear their doom. The Avenger of blood proclaims their sen- tence : " Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire." Deep gloom now covers their guilty souls ; and such wailings never pierced the heart of man. The ser- vants of God bind them fast in chains never to be broken, and force them down the slippery steeps of eternal damnation. They make their last plunge in4he lake of fire, and never shall rise again. Here the lost angels of Heaven and Adam's race, that d'espised redemption, meet together to drink the un- ceasing vengeance of the wrath of God. Here their parching tongues shall cry for water, to quench the flames ; but their cries shall be put forth in vain. Tossed to and fro on this tempestuous lake of fire, they find no rest day nor night ; " For the smoke of their torments ascendeth up forever and ever." They cry, but too late ; for their mediatorial hour is passed by, and the thick darkness sets in upon them, which knows no breaking, no morn beyond it, and no star. Their bolts of eternal perdition are driven deep, in the dark profundity obscure ; and none but the eter- nal God can unloose their ponderous chains. Here, sorrow is destined to tread upon the heels of sorrow, through the long, dreary night of the damned ; for the rich news of freedom shall never salute their ears. The great boon of redemption^ once oflered to man through the groans of Calvary, lost its power of salvation, at the isthmus of death ; and forevrr 22 EICE S ORATIOIs'S. rings with lost hope on the sinner's ear. How can the drunkard lay do.wn in this everlasting burning ? How can he endure this unquenchable fire ? But scenes more direful yet pierce the drunkard's soul. Horrible sights make him turn pale ; and the bowlings of the inebriate's damnation give terror to his ear ! But alas ! the hour of his redemption is passed by, and in vain he looks* back on mortal ex- istence, gone beyond recall. His heart beats in agony ! Hope dies ! But sorrow lives through the long night of the drunkard's execration. But how great the change ! That bosom friend, who suffered her husband's vengeance while on earth, made rich in God, ascends in the chariot of grace, to the abode of angels. His children, who received his cruelty on the shores of mortality, have bid adieu to all their sufferings ; and on the wings of mercy, through faith in their Savior, are wafted above the storms of earth, to the fair climes of Heaven. This tells the climax of the drunkard's doom. This swells his chain of misery never to be broken. While the gentle breezes of Heaven are wafting the rich fragrance through all the fields of bliss ; and those heaven- born sons and daughters of God receive the rich balm that makes the soul rejoice forever, the poor inebriate wails his. sufferings, and imbibes the igni- tion of sulphurous winds, through the long, dreary night of the damned ! And as he lifts up his eyes to Heaven, and beholds the vast multitude with harps in their hands, singing the rich song of redemption in honor to God and the Lamb, he inquires, how long must be my destiny in this prison-house of death ? The answer, borne on the expedition of the wrath of God, quickly strikes his ear, " Heaven and earth have passed away; but my sentence is immu- table, and in it thou must read thy eternal suffer- ings." Here trembling seizes his soul ! Despair sits on his countenance ! And hope sinks in her last ON INTEMPERANCE. 23 grave ! No imagination can conceive his untold misery ! No mortdl pen shall be able to describe his sufferings ! For experience alone can tell the future scenes of his last destiny. As he remains in his dungeon of despair, ages on ages shall pass away, while he looks for hope ; but hope shall never come. He cries in the desperation of his soul, " O eternity ! eternity ! the boundless duration of my sufferings, laden with the indignation of an angry God !" Here, death treads upon eternal death ! And his load of agony passes the description of man. On the shores of time. King Alcohol had his ope- ration on the bacchanalian's heart, and through obe- dience to his mortal instruction he has become a fit subject for the world of wo, and the society of lost spirits. Here, he entered the school of Intemper- ance, which trains up her disciples for untimely suf- ferings and disgrace — accelerates their molality, and confirms their eternal damnation. Often in his maniac revelry, though extremely poor, he was rich ; though weak he was strong — and although a fool, he thought himself wise ; in a word, he was every thing disgusting in the sight of God and man. But we must now leave him in the regions of despair, under the sentence of that Judge who presides over universal nature, and rules as King in the armies of Heaven. To him, the votaries of Intemperance must bow the knee, and confess to the glory of God the Father. And from him, the inebriate, with all other sinners, must receive the just punishment due to his crimes ; for no one shall be able to escape his omniscient eye. O, that I was a ready writer — that I possessed more knowledge of the spirit's doom — that I had a voice like seven thunders, so that I could penetrate the drunkard's heart, ere he crosses the bridgeless river and enters the mansion of his second death ; where no voice of mercy shall ever 24 rice's orations. reach his case — no blood of atonement save him from his last grave. The drunkard may by this time be ready to in- quire, how shall I escape the woes of this second death? The Gospel administers the remedy. "Touch not, taste not, handle not." If any man pursues this course, he will never be a drunkard. If he has been one, he will be one no more. Let him swear allegiance against King Alcohol, and stand fast in the cold-water ranks, and he will remain a sober man. He will show to the world that he has gained the victory over his most deadly foe. This is the brief history of the temperance re- form. But this alone cannot prepare the inebriate for the society of the blest. His heart may be yet stained with other crimes, which must be washed away in the efficacy of a Savior's blood, before he is a fit subject for the fair climes of Heaven. Then let him claim the word of God as his only hope, and never rest short of the rich possession of the spirit of the Gospel. Here he may build his hope for eternity ; here he may pluck a rich diadem, and lay up his treasures above. Thus we see hope, in the drunkard's case. We behold it possible for him to leave the slough of de- spair ; to awake from his degradation, and put on the beautiful garments of immortality. Could those legions of drunkards on earth see clearly the situa- tion of their lost brethren in the world to come, they would flee for their lives from the city of destruc- tion, and like valiant soldiers press through floods of opposition into the kingdom of Heaven. No time would be lost ; the watchword would be, on- ward — sink or swim — victory or death. ORATION II. ON WAR. No murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." — John iii. 15 As I look about on the mental field of actlcn, I behold topics of vast moment, discussed by the logi- cian,. politician and Christian ; topics that are worthy of exposition and acceptation. 1 behold temperance with its balmy wings, melioratmg the condition of man — drying up the widow's tears — and restraining the cup of indignation from thousands of our fellow- beings, who would otherwise drink it to its very dregs This cause is glorious in its nature, vindi- cates wisdom in its votaries, and is truly a modern and brilliant star arisen on the intellectual powers of man. But I anticipate another star soon to rise, whose lustre shall excel the one already arisen ; it is " Peace on earth and good will to men." This was the song of angels, and must be the song and practice of man, ere millennial glory shall inspire the world. And if War must cease ere the Millen- nium shall appear, it is the duty of every friend of humanity, to oppose its desolating influence, and support the rich precept, " Love your enemies,'* sanctioned by the expiring blood of the Son of God. War, in its nature, is the most deadly evil that ever disgraced the records of history. It stands as the climax of offence above all other treason, and is punished by the great Lawgiver, with capital pun- ishment. It is nefarious in its nature above all other 26 eice's orations. crimes, and robs man of the greatest boon he ever en- joyed on earth. It is his life ; take that away and all is lost. The position needs no proof, for the very na- ture of the case proves it true, beyond successful contradiction. From whence all these wailings, groans, tears and bloodshed ? From whence arise the widow's and the orphan's cry ? I need not point to the field of death, for all men know where the evil lies. Man may travel over the universal field of sorrow, and he finds no branch of atrocity that bears any comparison to the evils of War. Intem- perance, fornication and theft, are evils to be dread- ed in society ; but when compared to the evils of War, they sink into utter insignificance, for they neither sap the life blood, nor compel the wicked spirit to immediately leave its probationary state and enter its immutable existence. I consider War in its nature, to be the same crime between nations as it is between two individuals — with the exception that in the one case, men fight for themselves ; but in the other, they fight for their master. The evil that produces War in the breast of the king, is the same as that of two combatants. It is true, that the consequences in the one case are worse than in the other, because the ravages of de- struction are more extensive ; but the wicked inten- tion is one and the same thing. The causes which produce fightings and death, are desire of honor, re- taliation, wealth, and power. If rulers of nations were as desirous for the peace and welfare of their subjects, as they are to hazard their destruction, the national death-cry would forever cease. Kings would learn wisdom and humility, and instead of death in the field of battle, peace would cover the globe. The causes of national War, are generally trivial in their nature. Perhaps the subjects of some na- tion intrude on the subjects or rights of another. The offence is but small at the commencement, but before it is settled, amounts to an awful scene. The ON WAR. 27 ruler of the nation on whom the offence was com- mitted, rises up in the wickedness of his heart ; and instead of using the means of settling the disturb- ance amicably, breaks forth in the blaze of anger, until he kindles up all the horrors of War, when the same offence which ends in seas of blood, might at the beginning, have been settled between the two rulers on easy terms, without destroying the life of an individual. Such is the disposition of many in authority, that instead of doing what they should do, they go counter to the welfare of their subjects, and often involve them in poverty, destruction and death. It is believed, the time is not far distant, when the rulers of the various sections of the globe shall be as anxious for the peace and prosperity of their peo- ple, as they have hitherto been for their destruc- tion ; and would to God that this period had ar- rived. The devastation that has enveloped our globe in consequence of the inveteracy of man. is beyond the calculation of a finite mmd. The first account we have of shedding blood, was in that early period of the world when Cain slew his brother Abel. ' Here we see in the first scene of death God disapproved of it, and cursed the wickea perpetrator with a mark of lasting infamy. Since that time, according to the records of history, Wars have almost incessantly deluged our world with sanguinary streams of blood. How often has the widow's heart been rent in agony at the black seal from the battle ground, or the dole- ful news in some other form, " Thy husband sleeps in death?" What untimely sensations are these, which writhe her broken heart in anguish and blast the prospect of her earthly bliss forever ? She as- sumes all her energy of mmd to recall her former joy, but in vain she desires its return, for the object of her affection is no more on earth. Her eyes are swollen with tears, she weeps — she groans in the keen anguish of her soul, and perhaps in a short 28 rice's orations. time expires. But if her life be extended — if the lam^) yet burns for a season, it burns only in the gloom of untimely poverty and sufferings, and en- hances the misery of the forlorn object of despair. But there is a more solemn appeal to the champion's heart. It is the universal cry of millions of orphans, whose hapless condition calls in the tenderness of their souls, mercy from the monarch of their king- dom. Hear their mournful tale. Our fathers were forced from our dwellings — called to the battle field *in obedience to the requisition of one who sat in judgment. They died in the conflict, and left their offspring to wretchedness and woe. What oceans of tears must yet be shed by widows and orphans, to assuage the wickedness of man ? How long shall their needy prayers be put forth in vain ? The spirit of War has not been confined to Infi- dels, but has entered the hearts of those who pro- fess to wear the woolly fleece, and be called the ser- vants of the most high God ; these have also most inhumanly butchered their brethren, who professed with them the same religion of Jesus Christ ; but because they differed with them in some points of doctrine, many have been put to death by the most savage sufferings. If history be true, more than 50,000,000 have been slain since the Savior's birth, by professors of religion and conflicts arising from the same. This seems singular, indeed, that men who profess to believe the same Gospel, which de- clares, " No murderer hath eternal life abiding in him," should rise up and slay each other, because one party has got the ascendancy in points of law. Thus, we see what iniquity can be couched in the heart of professors of religion, who do not possess the true spiri'. of the Gospel. If there were no animal misery in War, and no spiritual imprecation in the same, yet it must be true, there is great loss both of wealth and character; because both parties lose their time and expenses, 01? WAR. 29 when but one party receives the prize — and that prize was in possession of one of the parties before the contest. It is very often the case, that the na- tion which conquers, spends as much time and mo- ney in obtaining victory over their enemies, as the amount of weakh they gain by the conquest ; and the subdued party, of course, must always be poorer than at the beginning of the conflict. It has been remarked by some, that War destroys that part of community which are a nuisance to so- ciety. I would ask in the name of logic, does not War, as a general thing, make two nuisances, where it removes one ? Thus we see it is injurious to community in a moral point of view. But when we recollect that those beings have immortal souls, that must live forever in bliss unutterable, or wail among the damned in hell ! and that to die in battle with a heart that even hates an enemy, is the sure ratifica- tion of the spirit's death in the world to come ; we see that the subject bears a momentous aspect; that the probationary existence of that being is ended, which probably would have been lengthened out had it not been for the combat ; and on that period of exist- ence hangs a dazzling crown, which worlds want wealth to buy ! and if lost, is past all redemption forever ! I do not wish to place the whole curse of War on rulers, or kings of nations, although they have the greater sin ; because every individual in a measure acts for himself; for no man can absolutely oblige another to shed blood. Man on this point, in a cer- tain extent, acts free. It is true that one man may punish another for not obeying martial requirements ; but man may better suffer for righteousness' sake, and attain a future reward, than persist in unrighteous- ness, and lose his reward. Some men say, we are obliged to fight ; but this is not the case. Man may put the innocent to death ; but he cannot make the innocent fight the guilty. Therefore every man *3 30 rice's orations. must give an account of his stewardship to God. If he has been a martialist, he must account for his demeanor. If he has been a peacemaker, he must account for the same. " For every man must give an account for the deeds which he hath done, whether they be good, or whether they be evil." I shall now attempt to show, that the War spirit in its nature counteracts the spirit of the Gospel. And if I can establish this position, by divine truth, I must of course convince every honest Christian, that passions of War in the breast of man are hein- ous beyond toleration. If man had no future exist- ence be^^ond death, it has been shown that War is most horrible, and ought to be expunged from the face of the earth. I do not pretend to say, but shedding of blood in some cases has been justified in the old Testament, in the dark ages of the world, before the Gospel had shed its lustre over the inhabitants of the earth. Let us for a moment reflect, and see the difference between the new and the old Testa- ments. It is written, saith the Savior, in the law, " An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." Now hear the Gospel assertion — " But I say unto you, love your enemies ; and pray for them that despite- fully use you and persecute you, that you may be called the children of your Father which is in Hea- ven." And again, he saith, " Old things have passed away, and all things have become new." As much as if he had said, the Mosaic law answered in the dark ages of the world, and stands recorded as truth ; yet I bring to man a new and living way, which, instead of covering the world with slaugh- tered millions, shall inspire it with peace and right- eousness. I consider the predictions of the old Tes- tament useful to us, as far as they go to corroborate the new ; and many of them being fulfilled at Christ's appearance, show that God directed the prophecy. I suppose the old Testament stands re- ON WAR. 31 recorded as God's truth, but contains for us no sal- vation. If these assertions be true, we have to go to the new Testament to vindicate the doctrine of peace. We are now to consider one question more ; that is, what kind of spirit was exhibited in the doctrine and practice of our Savior ? Was he an enemy of man- kind ? or did he love them ? What precepts are these that fall from his lips, sweeter than the voice of an- gels ? " Blessed are the peacemakers ; for they shall be called the children of God." " Blessed are the merciful ; for they shall obtain mercy." When Pe- ter fought in defence of his Lord, he said unto him, " Put up again thy sword into his place ; for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword." The whole Gospel declaration, as far as it relates to contention, is in favor of peace. It is called the " Gos- pel of peace," and there is nothing in the Savior's Will that goes to support War in any degree ; but everything to oppose it. How then shall a professor of Christianity justify himself in that nefarious act, which the Savior condemns ? How long before the eyes of multitudes, now shut in darkness against the true light, shall be opened, and they accept the fulgency of that star, which shall disperse their gloom, and illumine them on the narrow pathway to Heaven ? How strange it is, that this wicked prin- ciple has ever entered the hearts of those who pre- tend to be the meek followers of the -Lord ! But it is no more strange than true. The blessed Jesus " came to seek and to save that which was lost." Is there any spirit of destruction in this ? None. We may follow him through the whole course of his life ; and we see the same pa- cific spirit exhibited in all his ways. Who, when man had lost his primeval paradise, and became ex- posed, not only to temporal death, but the blackness of darkness forever, laid aside his beauteous gar- ments, looked upon with rapture by seraphim and 32 rice's orations. cherubim, and in their stead received the frail gaib of mortality, and dwelt among the children of men ? Thou blood-bought and immortality-born warrior, this was thy spotless Savior ! What kind of per- sonage was that, who, after there had been War in Heaven, and dark demons doomed to the lake of fire, passed by their black mansion of eternal death, with rapid flight winged his way to the gloomy re- gion of Adam's lost race, and promised to man the rich boon of redemption? This was truly the mur- derer's Friend ! Who was that, when he had led a life of sorrow, and was often acquainted with grief, sweat blood in the garden of Gethsemane for sin- ners — bore his cross to the fatal place of execution — by them and for them was nailed to the cursed tree, and for them expired the ignominious death of a malefactor ? This was truly the Friend of man. But I cannot yet leave the scene of sufferings. J behold his spotless life from the cradle to the tomb. It cannot be remembered that any have seen him laugh, but many have seen him weep. He was a man of poverty ; that we through his poverty might become rich. He was a poor houseless wanderer, having not where to lay his head. As a man, he was often faint and weary, as he bore the Gospel of salvation to distempered sinners. I see him across the Kidron stream, bearing the ponderous load of guilt due to man ; which pressed the bloody sweat through every pore, and in drops of bleeding mercy fell to the ground. Follow, O my soul ! thy Re- deemer to Pilate's bar ! See the Creator of all worlds condescend to be condemned by wicked man. Be- hold the blessed Jesus scourged by frail mortals, from whence streams of blood ran to the ground. See that blessed head, which ever meditated peace for lost sinners, encircled with a wreath of tho.'ns. See that face without spot or wrinkle, spit upon by the audacious scorner. See those eyes, that could ON WAR. 33 often weep for the miseries of a lost world, by thj enemies of peace sealed in the embrace of death. But lo ! the Savior is buffeted in the stre( ts of the Jews ! and moves in solemn gloom, to the place of execution ! He lies upon the bed of sorrows The adamantine soldiers, Avith the ponderous ham mer, drive the spikes through his hands and feet They rear him up, a spectacle to men and angels He bleeds — he groans — he dies ! A drop of that precious blood darkens the mid-day sun, while the rueful exhibition made the earth to her centre quake, the tombs burst, the rocks rend, and the veil of the temple sunder in twain from top to bottom. Surely this must prove the matchless commiseration of the Lamb of God. After our Savior had given up his life on the cross, for some cause a soldier pierced our Redeem- er's side — from which incision flowed blood and water. O, that the enemy of peace might drink freely of that mighty stream which flowed from the Savior's side, that he might catch the rich tide of mercy that saves the soul in the world to come ! But the merciful exhibition of the blessed Redeemer does not end here. He raised the widow's son from the chambers of death. He healed all manner of diseases, and cast out devils, without money and without price. I see his condescension, at the grave of Lazarus, where humanity bled at the loss of those he loved. Jesus wept with them who wept. " Then said the Jews, behold how he loved him." Jesus groaned in the spirit and was troubled ; after which he cried with a loud voice " Lazarus, come forth." And he that was dead immediately arose from the mansion of the grave. Thus we have proved that the Author of the Gospel of peace is the greatest Friend that ever showed mercy to the woes of suffering humanity. And if he is a Friend, such must be his disciples, for he calls them nil brethren. 34 rice's orations. I would to God that I was a finished painter, a ready writer, and had the pen of an angel, that I might do justice to my subject, and show forth to my countrymen and the world the mournful scene of the battle ground — the dying woes — the bloody carnage and crimsoned streams of death. That I could lay before the human understanding the awful tragedy of War — the expiring groans and flowing rivers of blood. Could I exhibit the speedy flight of millions upon millions of deathless spirits, who are hastened to the judgment unprepared to meet their God, I should arrive at that point which would happify my soul, and discharge a duty I owe to God and the world. Are there not sorrows enough in this life, that tread upon the heels of sorrow, with- out man's enhancing his awful curse and that of his fellow man ? Could there be tears in Heaven, they would freely fall from angels' eyes, as they behold the doleful exhibition of martial combats. In this case man's image of God is lost, and he ceases to be man. The War spirit of evil in the breast of man, is the great enemy of peace to the world. It is the spirit of the devil, who was a murderer from the be- ginning, and is incessantly going about like a roar- ing lion, seeking whom he may devour — making foes to the Prince of peace, and enlisting candidates for the wailings of the secpnd death. Thus we see that men are easily attracted by the wicked one — that their spirits resemble those lost angels — that many are fast hastening to the same gulf of per- dition, and nothing can save them from the curse but the acceptation of the free grace of God, be- cause for man there is but one Savior and one method of salvation. How vain the warrior's glory — how soon it ex- pires — how quick his fame is transmitted to obli- vion, and all his earthly encomiums transformed to death's eternal sleep ? How inconsistent is man to ON WAR. 35 aspire a momentary crown, which if once obtained is worthless in its nature, and lighter in the estima- tion of reason than the dust of the balance ? Sup- pose the warrior obtain victory over his enemy, this only increases his thirst for shedding blood and his desire for subduing other nations and kingdoms, until his heart becomes adamantine in the extreme, and his thirst for victory completely triumphs over mercy. Yes, he would if possible, be an Alexander, and conquer the world ; and to prove that his thirst for blood was not yet satiated, he would set down and weep, to think there was not another world for him to conquer. When man seriously ruminates on the subject of martial honor, he would suppose none but the frantic maniac would ever embark in such an undertaking, as to wade through the blood of his fellow men to obtain that eulogy disapproved of by his Creator, and destined to speedy annihilation. But such is the folly and wickedness of man, that he prefers a fading crown to one that never dies. How often have the brightest stars of our world been extinguished by the evil practice of dueling ? How have those lights been transmitted to oblivion, and all the nobler powers of man sunk in death's gloomy sleep ? Let America yet remember the woes arising from the Hoboken shore ! Let her reflect on that tragical scene when the rich blood of Hamilton flowed from his mighty heart, and let her ever reject with infamy, that practice which robbed her of so great a statesman. Those eyes that sparkled in anticipation of future bliss, are sealed in death. That heart which beat high for our welfare, has now lost its motion. That voice which ever plead our country's cause, shall be Tieard no more, and all that was so great and glori- ous in Hamilton, has, by the enemy of peace, been «wept away. " Ye Americans, approach and behold, while I »i.''t *rom his sepulchre its covering — ye admirers of 36 his greatness — ye -who are emulous of his talent? and his fame, approach and behold him now. How pale ? How silent ? No martial bands admire the adroitness of his movements. No fascinated throng weep, and melt and tremble at his eloquence ! Amazing change ! A shroud ! a coffin ! a narrow subterraneous cabin ! This is all that remains of Hamilton." And is this all that remains of him, who vied with European eloquence, and Grecian sages ? The deadly foe of Hamilton has been followed by the Avenger of blood. Poverty, affliction and dis- grace, have overtaken him since the foul deed was perpetrated. The widow's and the orphan's tear have been recorded in the archives of God, and have been remembered by the righteous Judge. And if there is justice in Heaven, that hostile murderer will be retaliated for all his wrongs, and all his confed- erates who are enlisted under the black banner: *' For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." How many warriors, after having received their mortal wounds, have repented and bewailed the cause of their sufferings ? Had they mountains of gold, they would freely give all for their exemption, but in vain they put forth their dying prayer, because their wounds are mortal, and hasten their passage through the waves of Jordan. The gift of life, pre- cious beyond description, they have bartered away for the warrior's glory. They now become frantic, arid no created arm can redeem them from their mournful execration. Could the warrior while in health, withdraw the veil from the battle ground and behold the misery he is exposed to there, he would flee from it as he would from the baneful Upas Tree, and turn his back forever on martial honor. "War would appear more terrible to him than the lion of the forest seeking his prey, or the deadly coils of the anaconda. But instead of weighing the subject ON WAR. 37 in the scale of reason, like those lost demons that fought against God, he rushes to battle with incau- tious steps until his temporal and eternal perdition is sealed beyond all hope. There is one topic more I have yet to mention. It is taking the life of him who sheds blood. If I were to express my opinion on this subject, I would gladly substitute another punishment for the scaffold of death, which is imprisonment during life, in such a manner, that the murderer can no more have an opportunity of taking the life of his fellow men. This gives him a greater chance for repentance and future salvation. If taking away the murderer's life would restore the life of his victim, there would be more wisdom in the case, but this can never come to pass. Therefore, because the servant of iniquity has committed the greatest possible crime, it does not look rational, that men who profess bet- ter things, should inflict the same punishment on his person. But instead of keeping up the rigor- ous practice of the Mosaic law, they should act in reference to the spirit of the Gospel. We see the noble operations of the spirit of peace in the case of William Penn. When he purchased his American lands of the British government, he did not consider himself the soil owner until he had bought it again of the aborigines, and settled with them on terms of peace, insomuch that it has been ever since high treason among the Indians to put to death a Quaker, who lived up to his profession. I suppose if all the emigrants who settled in America possessed the same spirit as William Penn, the red men of the forest had never shed the blood of a white man, nor the white men the blood of an Indian. If this inference be true, what waves of sorrow might have been silenced on terms of peace. To inspire the mind with the evils of War, let us view the horrid scenes of Waterloo. A few years 38 rice's orations. have passed away since Bonaparte and Wellington met on the battle field over which their mighty armies were manceuvering. As I reflect on the aw- ful scene, it sets in upon my vision and seems to be just before me. The direful cannonading now be- gins, and soon rolls the whole length of the lines. On the right, Jerome Bonaparte with 12,000 men descends like a mountain stream on the Chateau of Hougoumont. Column after column, — the dark masses march straight into the deadljr fire that opens in every direction. In perfect order, and steady front, they press up to the very walls, and thrust their bayonets through the door itself. At length, the house takes fire, and the shrieks of the wounded who are burning up, rise a moment over the roar of the strife, and then nought is heard but the con- fused noise of battle. Slowly, reluctantly, those 12,000 surge back from the walls ;— 12,000 did I say? No; in this rapid half hour 1,500 have fallen to rise no more, and there in that orchard of four acres, their bodies are scattered, nay, rather piled, besmeared with powder and blood. Between me and them, fresh columns of French infantry, headed by a long row of cannon that belch forth their fires every few moments, come steadily up to the English squares. Whole ranks of living men fall at every discharge, but those firm squares neither shake nor falter. The earth trembles as cannon answers cannon, burying their loads in solid masses of human flesh. In the midst of this awful melee, the brave Picton charges home on the French, and they roll back like a wave from the rock — but a bullet has entered his temple, and he sallies back and falls at the head of his followers. And yonder to save their flying infantry, a column of French cavalry throw themselves with the ocean's mighty swing on the foe ; but these rock-fast squares stand rooted to the ground. Slowly and desperately that daring column walk their horses round and round ON WAR. 39 the squares, dashing in at every opening, but in vain. And now from wing to wing it is one wild battle, and I see nothing but the smoke of cannon, the tossing of plumes, and the soaring of the French eagle over the charging columns ; and I hear nought but the roll of the drum, — the sound of martial music, — the explosion of artillery, and the blast of the bugle sounding the charge. There stands Wel- lington, weary and anxious. "Wherever a square has wavered, he has thrown himself into it, cheer- ing on his men. But now he stands and surveys the field of blood, and sees his posts driven in, his army exhausted, and exclaims, while he wipes the sweat from his brow, " Would to God that Blucher or night would come." The noble Gordon steps up to him, begging him not to stand where he is so ex- posed to the shots of the enemy, and while he is speaking, a bullet pierces his own body, and he falls. Bonaparte surveys the field of slaughter with savage ferocity, and pours fresh columns on the English lines, while the cavalry charge with desperate valor on the English infantry. For four long hours has the battle raged, and victory wavered. But look ! a dark object emerges from yonder distant wood, and stretches out into the field. And now there are banners, and horsemen, and moving columns. The Prussians are coming ! Bonaparte sees them, and knowing that nothing can save him but the destruc- tion of the English lines before they arrive, orders up his old imperial guard, that had been kept aloof from battle all the day. He addressed them in a few fiery words, telling them that all rests on their valor. They shout, " the Emperor forever," till the sound is heard even to the British lines. With the im- petuous Ney at their head, they move in perfect or- der and beautiful array down the slope. The storm of battle is hushed. No drum, or trumpet, or mar- tial strain cheers them on ! No bugle sounds the charge ! In dread silence and with steady step they 40 rice's orations. come. The allied forces look with indescribable awe and dread, on the approach of those battalions that had never yet been conquered. But the mo- mentary pause is like the hush of the storm ere it gathers for a fiercer sweep. The cannon open at once, and whole ranks of that gallant band fall like a snow wreath from the mountain, yet they falter not ; over the mangled forms they pass, and with steady, resistless force, come up face to face with their foe. The lines reel and totter, and sway back- ward. The field seems lost — but no, that awful discharge on their bosoms from that rank of men that seemed to rise from the ground, has turned the day — the invincible guard stop as if stunned by some terrible bloAv. A second discharge and they wheel and fly. The whole English line now advance to Ihe assault. Look at that mangled column, how that discharge of artillery has torn its head, and carried away half its number. 'Tis over; that magnificent army that formed in such beautiful order in the morning, on the heights, is n(nv rent, and the fugitives darken the field. ' Tis night ; but the Prussians, fresh on the field, pursue the flying the long night. Oh ! what scenes of horror and dread are witnessed, where the thun- der of distant cannon comes booming on the mid- night air ! Death is dragging his car over the mul- titude, and the very heavens look aghast at the mer- ciless slaughter. ' Tis night ; the roar of the far-ofT cannon is heard at intervals, but here it is all quiet. The battle is hushed, and the conflicting legions have parted to meet no more. The full round moon is sailing quietly up the blue heavens, serene and peaceful as ever. The stars shine on, as if they looked on no scene of woe. A weary form is slowly passing over the field ; it is Wellington, weeping as he goes ; for his horse's hoofs strike at every step in puddles of human blood ; and the moonbeams fall on more than ON WAR. 4i 20,000 corpses strewed over the trampled ground. The groans of the dying, and the shrieks of the suf- fering mingle together, while the sudden death- cry rings over all. And the unconscious moon is smiling on — painting the far-off landscape in beau- ty. God in Heaven, is this thy earth, and are those mangled mountains of flesh thy creatures ? How little nature seems to sympathize with the scenes that transpire in her presence ! It is true the grain lies trampled and crushed, and red on the plain, but the wind passes as gently over it, stirring the tree- tops as it goes, as if no groans were mingled with its breath. The full-orbed moon rides up her gor- geous path-way of stars, smiling down as sweetly on these crushed and shrieking masses, as if nought but the shepherd boy reclined on the field, and gazed on her beauty. Nay, God himself seems not to no- tice this fierce attack on the happiness of his crea- tures ; but lets nature, like a slumbering child, breathe peacefully on. And yet this is an awful night, and there is an aggregate of woe and agony here, no mind can measure. And he — the author of it all — the haughty homicide, who has strode like a demon over Europe, and left his infatuated armies on three continents, where is he ? A fugitive for life ; while the roar of the distant cannon coming faintly on his ear, tells him of the field and power he has left behind. His race is run ; that baleful star has gone down, and the nations can breathe free once more ! The Christian cannot muse over such a field of blood, without the deepest execration of Bonaparte's career. The warrior may recount the deeds wrought in that mighty conflict, but the Christian's eye looks farther — to the broken hearts it has made, and to the fearful retributions of the judgment. We will not speak of the physical suffering crowded into this one day, for we cannot appreciate it. The suffer- ings of one single man, with his shattered bones *4 42 rice's orations. piercing him as he struggles in his pain; his suffo-- cation, and thirst, and bitter pra3'ers, drowned amid the roar of battle ; his mental agony as he thinks of his wife and children ; his last death-shriek, are utterly inconceivable. Multiply the sum of this man's sufferings by 20,000, and the aggregate, who can tell ? Then charge all this to one man's ambi- tion, and who shall measure his guilt, or say how dark and terrible his doom should be ? Bonaparte was a man of great intellect ; but he stands charged with crimes that blacken and torture the soul forever; and his accusers and their witnesses will rise from almost every field in Europe, and come in crowds from the banks of the Nile. He met and conquered many armies ; but never stood face to face with such a terrible array, as when he shall be summoned from his grave to meet this host of witnesses. The murderous artillery, the terrific charge, and the headlong courage, will then avail him nothing. Truth, justice, and mercy, are the only helpers there, and they cannot help him. He trod them down in his pride and fury, and they shall tread him down forever. He assaulted the peace and happi- ness of the earth, and the day of reckoning is sure. He put his glory above all human good or ill, and drove his chariot over a pathway of human hearts, and the God of the human heart shall avenge them and abase him. I care not what good he did in founding institu- tions and overturning rotten thrones ; good was not his object, but personal glory. Besides this, sack- ing and burning down cities to build greater, has always been a favorite measure with conquerors, and the favorite apology with their eulogisers. It is false in fact, and false, if true in the inference drawn from it. It is not true that improvement was his purpose, nor does it exculpate him if it was. God does not permit man to produce happiness this way, without a special command. When he wishes a ON WAR. 43 corrupt nation or people to be swept away, he sends his earthquake or pestilence ; or if man is to be his anointed instrument, he anoints him in the presence of the world. He may, and does allow one wicked thing to scourge another, but the scourger is a cri- minal while he fulfils the design, for he acts not for the Deity, but for himself. The grand outline of Bona- parte's mental character — the great achievements he performed — the mighty power he wielded, and the awe with which he inspired the world, have blind- ed men to his true character, and he remains half deified to this day ; while the sadness of his fate — being sent to eat out his heart on a solitary rock in mid-ocean — has created a morbid sympathy for him, anything but manly or just. The very manner of his departure must have contributed to this wrong feel- ing. Expiring amidst an awful storm, while trees were falling, and the sea flinging itself, as if in con- vulsions, far up on the island, have imparted some- thing of the supernatural to him. And then his fierceness to the last ; for though the night was wild and terrible, a wilder night was over his heart, and his spirit in its last fitful struggle, was watching the current of battle. He has gone, and his mighty armies with him ; but the day shall come when the world shall read his history as they read that of Caesar, and point to his grave with a shudder. The followers of the Savior, in the early ages of the Christian church, denied the spirit of War in their faith and practice. They well knew that it opposed the precepts of their Master. That it was the deepest stain of iniquity that ever inspired the breast of a sinner. A Christian take up arms to slay his fellow men ! As well might hell be called Heaven, or the devil an angel of light ! The very reason why so many of the ancient Christians died martyrs, was because they practised the spirit of the Gospel, rather than destroy their murderers and prolong their own existence. The warrior then 44 rice's orations. bearing arms, and raging like a demon against his foe, as soon as he became a convert to Christianity, laid down his carnal weapons and began the spirit- ual w^arfare of his Master. No earthly wealth or crown sublime, could induce him to take the life of his enemy ; for he well knew the precept of his Lord, " He that loseth his life for my sake, the same shall keep it unto life eternal." The church for ages has been imbibing error, as the oceans swallow the rivers of water. Almost every sect claiming the name of Christians, believe in the practice of War. Laying aside the teach- ings of the Son of God, they have become trans- formed to the spirit of the world — desiring a name to live when dead — falsely professing Christianit}?-. Peace is the Banner of the Gospel ! Peace, the Christian's element ! And if there must be Wars and commotions to deluge our earth in blood, be it known they originate from the powers of darkness, and not from the church of God. If this position be established, how ought every servant of the Lord beware how he treads forbidden ground, lest he comes short of the crown of salvation. Lest he de- ceives others by the preaching and practice of his own delusion — becomes instrumental in their dam- nation, and rears a structure of opposition to God which at last will grind him to pow^der, and leave nothing but his soul to wail its eternal loss. In this luminous day, w^hen the Gospel of light beams wnth such lustre, I behold certain objects strange in appearance. They are those ministers of the sacred desk, who pretend to preach the Gos- pel of the Son of God, yet are Mahometans at heart — believe in shedding blood — teach their peo- ple the same precept ; and instead of preaching the doctrine of the Savior, they are recommending the greatest sin for virtue, that was ever perpetrated by man. Such are the characters that pierced the Re- deemer's side — that drove the nails through his ON WAR. 45 hands — and took his life on the brow of Calvary. Such are they, who counterfeit the truth of Heaven, and rob the Savior of his brightest crown. These evangelists shall have no excuse ; for they sin against light, under the influence of fashion, and have not religion enough in their hearts to enable them to bear their cross and preach the truth of God. Were all the teachers in Christendom preachers of divine truth, believers in religion would look on shedding of blood as the greater sin, and would flee from so cruel a practice, as they would from the fangs of the serpent. If the multitude of such preachers as many we now have, were sufficient to cover the globe, they would never be instrumental in bringing about the Millennium, without a direct miracle from God, to convert them and their disci- ples. Therefore the doctrine of peace should be declared by those who stand on the walls of Zion ; that there may be a line of distinction between the servants of the Lord and the servants of the wick- ed one. That the world may see " The Christian's weapons are spiritual, and mighty through God in pulling down the strong holds of Satan, and of building up the Redeemer's kingdom." How often have chaplains of armies, just before the commencement of battle, made solemn mockery of prayer, for those soldiers about to shed blood ? What faith, pretended to be based on the Gospel, was shook to its centre by the same truth ? What, a minister of God ! praying for the success of men, in the performance of the foulest deed that ever stained the archives of history. " O, tell it not in Gath — nor let the sound reach the streets of Aske- lon !" Their prayer should be for every soldier to sheath his sword, and flee the field of death. Thus they would prove their doctrine born of God, and comprised of the richest gold of Heaven. Could the tears and blood which have been shed in consequence of War, since the creation of man, 46 rice's orations. be convened in one mass, they would form a laker sufficiently large to float the United States navy. And could the groans and lamentations experienced in consequence of the flood gates of death, give the elegiac tune to the howling winds, they would waft this mighty fleet to and fro, on its sanguinary bo- som. And did these winds possess the power of retaliation, as they sometimes do, when directed by the finger of God, they Avould drive this martial 1 craft, by the scourge of destruction, against the iron- bound shores ; or make her devastation sure on the rocks of mortal damnation ! Then this mighty en- gine of death could no longer bear those savage blood hounds of hell to foreign shores, so they might scourge their brethren, and drive them to an untime- ly grave. But why all this pleading for peace on earth ? Why this anxiety for the heaven-born spirit of God, to inspire the world, and restore her to ancient glory? The friend of man would fain dispel the woes of his fellow man ; and would, through his obedience to the Gospel, place on his brow the golden crown, deposited in Heaven for the sons of God. Did the murderer look on shedding of blood as does the mur- derer's Friend, he would sooner give up every thing he holds dear on earth, than to take the life of his enemy ; if by so doing he could save his own. Such would be the commiseration of his soul — such would be his ejaculation to Heaven. But the drum shall yet drown the warrior's dying prayer. The reign of Beelzebub on earth shall swell the mournful dirge. War and rumors of War shall deluge the earth ; and the hill and valley shall re- sound with the artillery of death. Lost angels shall yet make brethren of Adam's race ; and urge them on to the perdition of ungodly men, where their por- tion must be scalding tears, and the red glare of undying flames. The hells of riot shall spread far and wide. The influence of bloody carnaa^e shall ON WAR. 4? draw man's heart from virtue. Martial atrocity shall pour forth in floods of desolation, and forever destroy the Christian's peace, were it not laid up in God. Such will be the scene on earth, until Satan takes his last farewell, and man receives the true spirit of the Gospel. When I survey the field of battle ; when I behold the untimely carnage, the quick exit from time to eternity, and the manner in which thousands depart, it shocks my mind with amazement at the dismal scene. Is not this the height of barbarism, the per- fection of madness, and the highest degree of folly ? I see multitudes of human beings, rushing forth to the slaughter, in high expectation of victory ; yet in reality they are in imminent danger. They are exposing their blood-bought souls, and all they hold dear on earth, to death and despair ; yet unconscious of this all-important truth, they rush forward, un- til they are apprehended by the death-ball's fa- tal motion, and close their eyes amid the shrieks of death. This I conceive to be the greatest infatu- ation that ever dictated the passions of man. Day and night shall visit the world — the wave of deathly sorrow shall in succession follow wave — the shrill clangor of the trumpet shall call men to arms ; the burst of cannon, like peals of thunder, shall swell the tale of wo, amidst the groans and cries of the dying — the sword of vengeance shall brandish the air, and drink the blood of the victim's heart — clouds of smoke shall envelop the field of carnage ; and if it were possible, clad the sun in mourn- ing at the awful scene — ere nations shall learn War no more, and millennial glory transform the world. I shall now attempt to draw the contrast between the bliss of the Christian and that of the warrior. Between him who fights with carnal weapons, and him who fights with spiritual. And to accomplish my object, I shall attempt to show the Christian's 48 rice's orations. pilgrimage through the paradisiacal fields of delight, '' and his participation of glory in the world to come. And to end the contrast, I shall describe the warrior's death, and his existence beyond the grave. Man, by his Creator has been endowed withaca-- pacity designed to magnify its first existence, andl verge with rapid strides towards creative power., He surveys the orb on which he sails through the] vast fields of ether by the mental powers of hiss giant mind. He has formed rules whereby he has 5 directed ships through vast oceans to foreign shores,, and measured the flight of blazing meteors over the fields of infinite space. He has formed laws and I systems of just regulations, whereby he has melio-- rated the condition of man, and silenced the voice: of tumult, sedition and death. All these things : have been performed by the intellectual powers of " man. Often on visionary pinions he mounts the far off' worlds that glitter on night's dreary mantle, andl wake up with increased glory, all the blushes of ' morning. Flying from worlds of light to „worldsv more amorous still by seraphic grandeur, lights oni some distant star — doubles the cape of heaven, them sails up the stream of time, where power creative first t began to energise, and where existence sprang forth i from chaotic embryo, by the finger of the great ti Original. But to prove the compassion of the spirit of peace, let us look back on some of those charac- ters that have long since slept in death, yet by their intelligent minds have made their names im- mortal. Ever since the creation of the world, we find some men who have stood like the mountain oak, reckless of the storms that beat around them. There have been men firm as the everlasting hills, whom no threatenings could terrify, and no wealth could bribe. ON WAR. 49 Such a man was Howard. Like an angel of mercy- he flew from prison to prison, searching out the abodes of misery, and pouring into the wounded spirit the balm of consolation. He could not stop to visit the ruins of Rome, or survey the grandeur of fallen temples, but like the spirits of other worlds he cared not for sumptuous palaces, golden gems or glittering crowns, for it was enough for him to dry up the tears of sorrow. As the stranger returning to his home after years of absence, stops not to view the flowers that may chance spring up in his path, so Howard urged his footsteps on in his work of mercy. Behold a Whitefield on European shores ; like some small light bursting through the clouds, he arose from poverty's deep gloom — became a shining star in the atmosphere of Heaven — preached salva- tion to his countrymen — moved the marble heart, and extracted tears from eyes that could seldom weep. Having a desire for the eternal welfare of man, he could not confine his labors to Europe, but with unequalled zeal, he embarked for the new world, and preached in the fair hamlets of America, the rich Gospel of the Son of God. But lo ! a personage of modern date, whose voice of eloquence mingled with grateful strains, melt- ed the vile hearts of his audience, and directed their visionary eyes to the delectable fields of Heaven — a richer paradise than our first parents knew. But Summerfield is no more. Ere his meridian glory had arisen upon the world, the angel of death had received his commission, and the fair prospect of this evangelist was terminated forever ! Who was it that surpassing the narrow limits which had hitherto been set to the mind of man, ranged the fair fields of unbounded space, discover- ed and explained those laws by which Deity limits, binds, and governs all things ? Who was it that passed the narrow bounds of Astronomy, hitherto 50 rice's orations. understood, and by his improvement on this science discovered the starry worlds, measured their spheres and called them by their names ? Who was it thati after having travelled the vast amphitheatre of hea- ven, passed by unnumbered suns, beheld the sap-- phire vaults of glory and mansions of purest ether, weighed himself in the balance of God, and laid his honor at the feet of Jesus ? It was the immor-- tal Newton. "Who was it that withdrew the veil which had fort^l ages enveloped the world, analyzed the human mind, discovered its properties, reduced its opera- tions to certain fixed laws, and became a brilliant star in the scientific world ? It was the celebrated Locke. What more shall I say ? For time would fail me to speak of Hale, learned in the law — of Bascom, admired in the schools — of Young and Pollock, celebrated among the poets — and of Paul, the worthy Evangelist of the Gospel. These were men worthy of encomium, whose minds almost un- bounded, soared towards angelic power, and sought the beauties of brighter vision. But the mind of man is like its Author, never to expire. It was not intended for a momentary be- ing in this clay building of earth, and pass from time at death's cold embrace into annihilation. It must survive the wreck of worlds, and rise higher and yet higher still, in the greatness of its strength ; for an increase of knowledge is the prerogative of the mind in the world to come. The most lofty an- gel that blazes around the throne of God, looks down upon Christians from his majestic seat, and beholds a period in eternity when they shall surpass his present glory. If man is formed for such am- plifications as these, where shall we place his bounds ? Let man remain silent and his Creator tell. Let us now cross the isthmus of death, and fol- low those heaven-born sons of God to the land of rest. Guided by heavenly wisdom they fly from ON WAR. 51 mansion to mansion, and from glory to glory, dart- ing the eye of fancy over the expansive fields of ether, where the beauties of the Son of righteous- ness forbode an eternity of joy. Sparkling with the animated vigor of the upper world, they gaze on the wonders of the grand machine, glancing the" ex- tracted eye of vision over the ethereal creation, until die darling beauties of such consummation, impede the progressive flight, and lessen the swift survey of an intellect, bounded only by an uncreated So- v^ereign. They may sail up the winding maze to dieir original existence, and by thwarting their me- ridian glory, they may soar and soar, on the pro- gressive flight of rapture, and find no end to their exalted being. When ages on ages shall have roll- ed away, when the mandate angel shall have taken his flight through Heaven, and lead the flaming choir with anthems of adoration to the Lamb, when millions of years shall have passed away in the de- lectable worship of the Son of God, those heavenly spirits may look farther with an all-cheering sight, and behold that eternity is just begun. Such is the joy of the Christian — but how unlike the war- rior's doom. Let us now reverse the picture, and follow the warrior to the end of human life. Let us see his last farewell, as he closes his accounts for eternity and shuts his eyes on all things beneath the sun. Farewell, green mountains and silver streams, for the long, dark, dreary night of death sets in upon me, which knows no breaking, no morn beyond it, and no star, until the voice of God shall shake earth's common grave. Farewell, martial confederates, un- til the resurrection morning, when we, from the long slumber of many centuries, shall burst the prison of death, and appear in the vast congregation of the final judgment. Farewell, terrestrial glory, for the red lightnings of earth's final conflagration shall dart across the azure vault with a gloomy magnifi- 52 RICE*S ORATIONS. cence, such as the world never beheld. Farewell,, my children and dear companion, until the com-- missioned angel of God shall announce the lastt catastrophe of nature, and publish to heaven and I er.rth by oath of affirmation, " Time shall be no ) longer." Most gladly would I now end my story, but I must follow the warrior across the bridgeless river and meet him at the last judgment. The veil of unbe- lief is now withdrawn from his eyes, and he sees his mediatorial hour past forever. That Savior who died, that the murderer might never die, has stores of wrath laid up against him. He stands self-con- demned amidst the judgment fires of God Almighty, and the Lamb. He becomes speechless at the aw- ful tragedy, and waits in despair to hear his last great sentence. The Judge assumes his seat and declares the retributions of eternity to men and an- gels : " Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire." Suddenly the warrior takes his flight to the region of the damned, where no voice of redemption shall ever salute his ear. In this pit of final perdition darkness presides. Here the seditious Jews and Romans that reiterated the cry of crucifixion against the Savior of the world, receive their reward. Here the adamantine soldier that pierced the Redeemer's side shall be retaliated for all his wrongs, and the blood thirsty murderers that nailed him to the cross with garments stained in blood. Here the disgrace- ful tyrants that have slain the apostles and disciples of the great Shepherd of the sheep with injustice, shall receive their reward. After all my entreaties, I expect millions of war- riors will wade through the Gospel of peace to hell. No price or petition can induce them to flee their approaching doom. Could I withdraw from the war- rior that veil which separates time from eternity, and excludes the wailings of the damned ! Could I fasten his eye on the bloody mantle, that shrouds ON WAR. 53 the wounded spirit, -which spent her day of grace in the field of carnage — opposing the peace of God and man ! Could I portray to his vision the red waves of endless fire, as they roll mountains high forever and ever, and beat on the undying sinner the surges of eternal death ! Could I inspire his heart with the sad reflection of the wounded soul in the world of woe, as she looks back on the day of grace forever lost ! Could I unfold to him the poor murderer's deep-toned wail, as his hope dies at the judgment sentence, and he sinks from the approbation of God, angels and Heaven ! methinks he would flee the field of death, and no longer rejoice in spurning the Gospel of his salvation. All the hosts of Heaven, and every friend of hu- manity, desire the warrior's reform, and fervently pray that those weapons of War, which have spilt rivers of blood, will soon be transmitted to eternal oblivion. The most powerful motives that can be drawn from three worlds. Heaven, earth and hell, call the warrior, like the voice of seven thunders, back to his native element. The society of saints and angels — the harps of gold — the songs of the New Jerusalem — the consolation of the Holy Spirit, and all the riches of Heaven, invite him to turn to God, and lay up his treasures above. The watei*s of salvation — the Tree of Life, and all the glories of the upper sanctuary, call him to flee from the wrath to come. And will he refuse the salvation of his soul ? If so, I must leave him to enter the abode of dying spirits — to plough the lake of fire, and wail in chains of lost hope, where tears of mercy shall never fall — where the blood of atonement na more shall salute his ear ; but death — eternal death I and the society of lost angels shall be his portion forever. We have seen the fruits of the warrior in this vale of tears. We have followed him from his cra- dle to the tomb. We have passed over the river *5 54 rice's orations. Jordan and described his undying woes, if he dies • without hope. We have also seen the friend of peace as he journeys to his gloomy sepulchre. We have followed him to the spirit land, and beheld his glory beyond the grave. And in viewing the sub- ject, we see an awful contrast between the peace- maker and the warrior. The one breathes conta- gion and death ! The other expands his wings of mercy. Over one rest clouds and darkness ! Over the other, the Star of Bethlehem, and the Gospel of peace. One makes his bed in hell ! While the other looks with an eye single for the joys beyond the tomb. Many are led to. believe there is no better way of settling contentions between nations, than by the sword. But this imagination is nought but the phantasm of the brain, and expires like the sound of the bell floating on the breeze. To use the sword, will only add fuel to the fire already enkindled, while the waters of condescension will immediately quench the flame. Difficulties between nations should be settled by Arbitration, and not by the shedding of blood. This should be one of the laws embodied in the constitution of every nation or king- dom on the globe. If this were the case, how easy would the small fires of malice be quenched, which so often end in general devastation and death. Let this principle be adopted, and the conflagrations of War will soon be extinguished from the world, and the balmy wings of peace and mercy cover the globe. ORATION III. ON THE ATONEMENT. Who gave Himself a Ransom for all-"— 1 Timothy ii. 6. When man was created by the finger of God, he bore the pure image of his Maker, and was happy in the garden of Eden — his heart was full of re- joicing, and beat high in anticipation of a glorious immortality. But how soon his hope expired, his happiness blasted, and his prospect of future bliss lost forever ! How fatal was that treason which drove him from his Paradise — brought death into the world, and all our wo — excluded the approbation of God to man, and left him under the doleful execra- tion of his disobedience ! He was expelled from the garden, became a stranger to virtue, and a lost alien to God. Those joys which would have been his forever, by fatal transgression died ; and his glorious hope, once founded on a Rock, has been transmitted to the grave of oblivion, while his me- ridian sun set in the gloom of night. This is the direful history of man — this the gloomy dirge of his mortality. Now methinks the light of Heaven is excluded, and mankind without hope. His lost Paradise seems irrevocable, and a ransom is beyond his power. If he gives his body as a sacrifice for sin, it cannot re- deem his soul from death. Though he may shed the blood of beasts on the altar, as an oblation for his guilt, it will not appease the vengeance of God, nor expiate for one of his transgressions ; for it must 56 rice's orations. needs be a perfect sacrifice to atone for the guilty. All the offerings ever offered up to God in the antedilu- vian world, had in themselves no efficacy to pardon sin, but were set forth as a type of Him who was to suffer without the gates of Jerusalem, and " make an offering once for all." Thus we see man plung- ed in the gloom of night, chained in his prison of moral darkness, having lost communion with his Maker, and possesses no power to recall it. But at length the commiseration of Heaven mov- ed for a guilty world. The Almighty spoke by in- terrogation in the courts above, saying, " Who will descend to the realm of man — endure his infamy — by him be buffeted and put to death, to save a world of sinners lost ?" As this question pervaded through the heavenly mansions, methinks the Ij^'es of an- gels ceased, and all was silence in Heaven, wonder- ing at this astonished scene. Not an angel among all the heavenly hosts could answer the question. At length the Son of God appeared, and with a voice sweeter than seraphs use, proclaimed — " Lo I come, as it is written, to do thy will, O my God !" At this answer, which promised salvation to the sin- ner, methinks angels again tuned their harps, and sung in higher notes of rapture to his name, in an- ticipation of an increase to their celestial throng. From the height of majesty, glory, and superla- tive bliss, the Son of God descended, was clad for a season in the garments of mortality, and took his abode among the children of men, degenerated in Adam's fall. Vast was his condescension. He by whom all things were created ; whose omnipotent energy pervades eternity, and presides with the Fa- ther over all creation, was pleased in satisfying Divine justice to withdraw from his sceptre, and endure the burlesque of an insidious world, that he might redeem them by his sufferings, and bring them home to God. Exercised with tender commise- ration for our race, he left the society of angels, cast ON THE ATONEMENT. 57 off his royal diadem, and with speedy flight urged his passage to this lower world, proving himself to be the greatest Messenger that ever visited the abode of man. Let us follow the star to Bethlehem, where the Son of God first manifested himself incarnate ! Be- hold he is born in a stable, and cradled in a manger, where the horned ox was wont to feed ! No room could be found in the Inn, for this glorious person- age from Heaven. Man was too proud to welcome the Savior in his humble advent. The Jews looked for his appearance in all the grandeur of his power; and, therefore, would not receive him. But they were disappointed in their expectation concerning the Messiah. Instead of appearing in the splendor of the upper world, he took upon him the form of a servant ; he became of no reputation — and therefore was looked upon with contempt by the wicked Jews. Angels at our Savior's appearance left the celes- tial city — passed the portal gates, and with hasty precipitation descended to this lower world, loudly proclaiming to the shepherds the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem — filling the air with their heavenly notes — exclaiming, " Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, and good will to men." Well might these angels be filled with flaming fire, when they saw a lost world about to be redeemed, and a vast number of aliens converted to their ethereal choir, to surround the throne of God, in ascribing all glory and honor to the Lamb, who was then appear- ing for their everlasting salvation. This con- gratulation of angels shows there is rejoicing with them in Heaven "over one sinner that re penteth." It seems the Savior had greater mercy for us than for those apostate angels who trespassed on the laws of Heaven, and incurred the displeasure of God ; for which they are " Reserved under 58 rice's orations. i chains of darkness, unto the Judgment of thet great day." Then- sins being so much greater than man's, that to them the gate of mercy is closed for- ever. We are informed but little about the life of ouri Savior until he arrived at the age of twelve years. At this time he began to display his wonderful pow- ers of mind, by conversing among the learned in the.' Temple — hearing them and asking them questions., Doubtless he was subject unto his parents, until he^ b.egan to announce the great work for which he de-- scended from Heaven. But a little further, and we behold the tragical! scene for which Jesus left the bosom of his Father, and took his abode among the children of men. Ai scene which burst the strong hold of iniquity, and! made it possible for man to escape from its dark dominions. The barred gate, which the apostacy of man had shut, flew wide — the road to the portals of Paradise became unobstructed, and again made ; spontaneous for the sons of men. At such a scene as this, well might the darkness recede — the light of Heaven shine — and the beatific splendor of the Son of God beam with brilliancy on the apostate race of Adam. Reader, I am now going about the most tremend- ous transaction ever witnessed by man. It is the passion of the LAMB of GOD — " who was seen of angels — believed on by Gentiles — preached unto the world — and reascended into glory ; who is the brightness of the Father, and the express image of his person ; by whom God made the worlds, and by whom all things consist ; having purged our sins, and wrought out everlasting salva'tion for all who believe ;" which salvation is now in contem- plation. my soul ! follow thy Savior to the first and last sufferings that were ever introduced for the salvation of man ! Follow him to the garden of Gethsemane, ON THE ATONEMENT. 59 where agonizing groans were pressed from his bo- som, as he sweat great drops of blood, which fell to the ground! Behold him pouring forth an ejacula- tion to Heaven, ere the wicked and seditious clan led him to Pilate's bar ! See that catastrophe which makes Heaven weep that man might smile, and Je- sus bleed that man might never die ! Witness the Darling of Heaven, now burdened with that load which would have crushed a world to hell, drinking the bitter cup of the wrath of God ! But lo ! the blessed Jesus — the glorious personage of Heaven-7- bears in his own body the guilt due to man ! For- saken by his disciples, and partially forsaken by his Father, he breathed forth his mighty prayer, while the purple tide in streams of mercy gushed through every pore ! Here the load of guilt, that binds the sinner in endless death, pressed heavily on the Son of God ! Here the chains that manacle in darkness the deathless spirit, burst in sunder by virtue of his blood ! And while in this awful tragedy, one of his own chosen lifts up his heel against him, and sells his Master to the wicked Jews. Jesus ends his prayer to God, and Judas the traitor betrays him with a kiss, while the multitude, with staves in their hands, lead him away to the court of the Jews ! Ye angels of glory, tell me if ye can, if such mercy was ever found, except in the bosom of the Son of God? What tongue can describe that scene, which God alone could display ? no minor power — an angel's pen must prove deficient there ! The love of the blessed Jesus surpasses all human understanding. Often in the forest, where no mor- tal beheld him, he has offered up prayers for sinners, and abundantly labored for their recovery. The cold mountains and surging billows have witnessed his kind devotion, and fervent prayers for a guilty world. He was often seen to weep, but never seen to laugti. The Jews resisted his tears, which he had shed over their city, even unto death. I behold 60 rice's orations. him at the grave of Lazarus weeping with those who wept. He cried with the voice of God, " Laz- arus come forth ;" and death immediately gave up his prey. Thus we see the boundless love of Jesus exhibited from the cradle to the tomb. Let us now follow our Redeemer to the most tra- gical scene that was ever passed on earth ! Follow him to Pilate's bar, where the envious Jews would fain crucify the Lord of life — crying " away with him — it is not fit that he should live !" Thus the Judge of all the earth received sentence by frail mortals — by them was nailed to the cross, and by this seditious faction was crucified and slain. Pilate, unwilling to put him to death, delivered him into the hands of the Jews and Romans, to do as they would, finding no fault in the man. Now they be- gin their mockery, by striping him quite naked ! They crown him with a wreath of thorns, to satiate the infernal malice of the faction, and beat them in- to his sacred temples, until his face is besmeared with gore ! See his back with lashes torn, stream- ing with blood, by which we are healed ! This is he, who " was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep dumb before her shearers, so he opened not his mouth. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away, and who shall declare his genera- tion ?" He arose the steep ascent of persecution — " He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." This is the Lord, mighty in his strength, vast in Redemption, and strong to save. At length he ascends the summit of Calvary, where he makes Heaven marvel, and all but vicious men and angels lament his final groans ! As he ascends the mount, he faints under the ponderous load ; and " they compel a Cyrenean to bear the cross with Jesus." The soldiers dig the hole in which the cross is to be erected — they nail him to the same, and rear it up. He is now a solemn'spec- tacle to Heaven and earth, expiring the ignominious ON THE ATONEMENT. 61 death of a malefactor — yet pure as the TREE of LIFE ! Where shall we find parallel sufferings to those on Calvary? Pervade earth, Heaven, and hell, and no such scene arises to our view. "It is true, for a good man some would dare to die ; hut while we were yet sinners Christ died for the ungodl}^," No- thing would satisfy the vindictive justice of the Al- mighty's wrath on merited man, but the vital fluid of the SON of GOD. He drank the cup of sufferings even to its dregs, that we may he blameless at the day of retribution ; having the righteousness of Christ through faith unto salvation. Was ever love like this ? Was ever benevolence so far extended ere this grand transaction ? When the ponderous hammer beat the nails through his hands, instead of crying out with the keen agonies they extorted, he meekly endured it with prayers for his cruel murderers. It was his groans, his heart- felt sufferings, and the load of guilt he bore for us, which opened the gate to Heaven, and purchased that pardon which makes the hell-bound sinner free. As his expiring groans drew near, and the Lamb of God was about to languish in the icy arms of death, the scene was too big for nature to witness ; she hid her face in sable gloom, and at the sight withdrew. The vast Luminary of heaven, whose light was never excluded except at short intervals since the organization of the solar system, now re- fused to shine for the space of three hours. At the great phenomenon of our Savior's passion, the dead could not sleep — bursting from their shrines, many of the saints appeared in Jerusalem. The veil of the Temple was rent in twain, from top to bottom — the rocks rent — and methinks the whole earth, while clad in mourning, shook to her centre at this tre- mendous scene. At the time of execution, a mother's heart was 62 rice's orations. there. She saw her Savior and her God in the ago- nies of death. Her soul was depressed with a pon- derous load — her heart was ready to burst with an- guish — her bosom writhed with sorrow for her Son, now in the atoning crisis for nefarious man. Dear was that affection which bound her heart to the in- carnate Savior. Shall a mother forget her Son, when dying groans assail, and separation draweth near ? What language can describe her mournful silence, as she sat by the cross, with her eyes directed to the fatal tree, where hung her hope — the solace of her care ? " And must this Son, in whom is heaven, leave me to mark my future life with sorrows seal- ed by his expiring groans ? Can I give up the dar- ling of my heart, and roam this inclement world, where murderers thirst for blood ?" But, alas ! He died. She heard his final prayer — bewailed his fatal sufferings — her blood was chilled with the mournful tragedy. Confounded by the rueful scene, she be- dewed the foot of the cross with tears. She writhed with convulsive pain. Her soul was in an agony. At length Jesus exclaimed from the fatal tree, in ac- cents mild, " Woman, behold thy Son ;" and to that disciple whom he loved, " Behold thy Mother j" then bade a hostile world adieu. Wonder, O my soul ! that sinners could remain adamant at that solemn groan which veiled the sun in darkness, and hid his beams from our opacious world ! Solemn silence appeared, as if the work of God was mourning for the wickedness of man, and the machine of nature faint by the wonderful dis- plays of Calvary. Every countenance bore the in- dex of a smitten conscience, and the marvelous ex- hibition pervaded the creature man. The affrighted fowls of the air fled with haste to their benighted habitations — the grazing herds retired from their pastures, and gazed with wonder on the untimely darkness around them. The beasts of the forest ON THE ATONEMENT. 63 repaired with speed to their caverns, and all but man believed the nocturnal shades had appeared. At this catastrophe, nature changed her beaute- ous colors for the sable garb of mourning. The sky, adorned with pleasing azure, was inverted for the gloom of night. Angels that surround the throne of God changed their song of adoration, to the grave elegy of Heaven expired, and reclined their heads upon the cloud of misery, bedewed with redeeming blood. The infernal angels and wicked spirits w^ere humming their hostile songs of joy, and hellish vic- tory, over the plastic Father's Son. They echo the theme through our world, " The Prince of life is slain," while devils incarnate promulgate " amen." Awake, my soul, to thy Savior's dying pangs ! A sudden trembling shook the ground ! Mount Cal- vary vibrated with amazement, and the vaults of the dead were lajd open ! Great was the concussion — the rocks cleaved asunder — the graves expanded — the dead were borne from thence in triumph, while the convicted sinner shook with dread alarm ! Sure- ly a God was there ; for chance never revolted from order in creation, to cause the miracles witnessed at the death of Heaven's Son ! The darkness that covered Judea was well known to be supernatural, for it made a Heathen philoso- pher exclaim, " Either the world is at an end, or the God of nature suffers." Those that beheld the sufferings of our Savior and saw them accompanied with such a wonderful exhibition of miraculous pow- er, smote their breast and returned to their dwellings with minds of pensive gloom. O Jerusalem ! Jeru- salem ! thou hast slain the prophets and apostles I and to render thy case doubly dreadful ! thou hast crucified the Savior of all thy mercies, and sealed thy eternal doom. After our Savior poured forth his last groans upon the cross, and had yielded up his spirit into the hands of his almighty Father, a soldier, either out of wan- 64 rice's orations. tonness or envy, pierced our Redeemer's side, from whence the blood and water flowed in ample streams, to perfect that Atonement for which our Savior left the courts of Heaven. It is said by some, the spear reached his heart ; be that as it may, it doubtless reached the pericardium, which would have put an end to his existence, had he not before expired. This came to pass in agreement with ancient prophecy. " They shall look on him whom they have pierced, and mourn." When this rueful scene had ended — when the Lord of glory had bidden valediction to the clay tenement then expanded on the tree of death, and angels had hailed his happy spirit to his celestial kingdom, Joseph of Arimathea, went boldly unto Pi- late and " craved the body of Jesus." Being assist- ed by Nicodemus, they took his bod}^, embalmed it with spices, and laid it in a sepulchre, wherein never man was laid. O death ! never did thy dark domain contain such a prisoner before ! But how short was thy boasted victory ? Scarce three days had expired be- fore thy icy chains gave way, and thou didst stand afar off, like an enemy put to flight, as this mighty Conqueror bursts through Joseph's tomb, and tri- umphed over the grave. Jesus, once a pale and bloody corpse, pressed the floor of the gloomy sepul- chre. Jesus arose from his bed of death with power far surpassing that of Samson, when he awoke from a transient slumber. Pilate's guard at his resurrec- tion, fell like dead men around the tomb. This tells the climax in the history of our Savior — this com pletes the work of man's Redemption. And in spite of all the malice of the Jews, who by their treach- ery, bribed the soldiers to publish a fiction to the world, the truth and power of his resurrection has been wielded by the finger of God, and will survive the ages of time, and forever live on the records of immortality. ON THE ATONEMENT. 65 As he arose from the grave, I behold a female form with spirit born of God. She weeps for the depar- ture of one she loves. Her hope has almost expired, for she has lost her only Savior. The gloom of night shrouds her soul as she bends over the grave of Je- sus. She looks with startled eyes, for her Lord is not there. Again she lets fall the bitter tear, and turns about to leave the tomb in search of her Mas- ter. While weeping she beholds a man she had often seen before, but she knew him not. He said unto her, " Mary !" At this well known voice, hope re- vived, and the dark cloud of despair gave way as she embraced her Savior. O my soul ! take sanctuary under the TREE of LIFE ! be cheered by the exhilarating brilliancy of its wings, then, though the elements shall melt with fervent heat, and the heavens be inverted into the dark profoundity of annihilation ; though the wicked take their bed in hell, and damned spirits bewail their sad destiny to all eternity ; hid in this saving pavil- ion, thou shalt be wafted through the gloom, and in Jordan's swellinsf waves, anofels shall escort thee to that supernal city, paved with richest gold, and filled with a vast number of the blood-washed throng. Thus we see what the blessed Jesus has done for guilty man. When he was clothed in his garments of mire and pollution — when he was exposed to the vengeance of God's holy law — under the penalty of eternal death, and could make no expiation for his crimes, Jesus, the sinner's Friend, who alone could atone for transgressions, took upon him the nature of man — became his substitute, and endured the most Ignominious death of the cross, to make an Atone- ment for the sins of the world, and bring man into a salvable state, whereby his iniquities might be for- given, and his soul saved through repentance, and faith in his Redeemer, in endless life beyond the grave. On these premises we see God and man *6 66 rice's orations. reconciled by the blood of Jesus, for thus it is writ- ten, " He that believeth on the Son, hath evertlast- ing life." After our Savior had finished the great Atone- ment by his resurrection from the grave, short was his stay on earth. Earth was too mean, too low a habitation to contain him longer. Scarce forty days had expired, until he led his disciples out as far as Bethany, and gave them his last verbal commission. The pensive scene of separation was now at hand. And v/hile he yet spake, behold a bright cloud ap- peared, in which he ascended out of sight. As he soared aloft, two men stood by them in white ap- parel, which said, " Ye men of Gallilee, why stand ye gazing up into Heaven ? this same Jesus shall so come again in like manner as he now ascend eth." Jesus has trod the dreadful path and smoothed it for our passport. Jesus sleeping in the mansion of the tomb, has brightened the way, and left a conso- ling perfume in the dismal beds of the dust. He that partakes the efficacy of a Savior's blood need not fear the summons of the king of terrors — being clothed upon by the God of all grace, he may ex- claim with David, " Though I pass through the dark valley and shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." Jordan's bridgeless river, is the only way that conveys any of the lost race to Heaven, for his ransom only eman- cipates from the second death. At the shrine of this Atonement all human ambi- tion dies — the ensanguined conqueror pauses — the royal crown falls from the imperial grasp — the blos- som dies in the patriot's garland — the Jewish phi- lacteries expire, and all the wealth and honors of the world are lighter than air, when compared to the blessed Gospel. By the sufferings of the cross the Heathen gods begin to tremble — the Ganges ceases to mingle with ON THE ATONEMENT. 67 the blood of her victims — the spell of Brahma is dissolving — the wheels of Juggernaut are scarce ensanguined — the custom of self-immolation is fast expiring — the warrior hastens to the Gospel stand- ard — Africa begins to rise from her degradation- the news of the Atonement breaks in upon her, while the benighted sons and daughters of the Gen- tile world, are emerging from darkness into light. Such is the power of this redemption which brings hope to man. But for whom was the vast exhibition of the Sa- vior's sufferings ? For whom was the unparalleled majesty of his resurrection displayed, when he burst the grave and triumphed over his great and last enemy ? It was for all the lost race of Adam. For all those persons of pollution, who by nature are strangers to God, and live without hope in the world. For it is written, "That he died for all, and rose again." " That he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world." " That he gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." And when ang-els suno^ " Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth and good will to men," their love was universal, for they saw the remedy was adequate to the disease of man. But again we see it recorded in the sacred volume, " Behold the LAMB of GOD, that taketh away the sins of the world." Here the rich news of Heaven salutes the sinner's ear. Here the doc- trine confirmed by the eternal Savior, commiserates the woes of man, and the waters of the River of Life have become free as the limpid stream. There is no contraction in this vast Atonement, for it ex- tends to every quarter of the globe, where sin has contaminated the human race. Behold the sufferer who is sentenced to his gloomy cell, in the lonely prison through life. His hope is lost to all future exemption. Horrible gloom covers his soul, and the chains of his fatal destiny clangor 68 on his ear. The news of pardon suddenly reaches his abode. The messenger bears the glad tidings of his reprieve, and flashes of light greet his trou- bled soul. His chains fall off. He leaps like the bounding roe, and again breathes the pure atmos- phere of freedom among his brethren. But how faint the emblem ? I see the sinner in his mire and pollution. He is covered with wounds, bruises, and putrifying sores. The sentence of death is upon him, and no created arm can save him from his fatal execution. But his woes are magnified beyond the shores of time. The groans of eternal death must swell the history of his last destiny. Those fires that never shall be quenched, shall increase his suf- ferings, " Where the w^orm dieth not," and hope never comes. But suddenly the light of Heaven breaks in upon him. The sound of man's redemp- tion echoes through the upper world, and angels quickly bear the news to earth which swells the song of victory and brings hope to man. " Right- eousness and truth have met together." " Mercy and peace have kissed each other." But all the commiseration of the Son of God — the ponderous agony which he endured in Geth- semane — his sufferings on the brow of Calvary — his resurrection from Joseph's sepulchre — his interces- sion with the Father, and all the glories of the up- per world, cannot save the sinner from the wrath to come, except he forsakes his sins and gives up his heart to God. The Savior has done all he can, con- sistent with his own nature, for the salvation of man in the world to come. All the invitations of the Gospel — the Spirit of God — the prayers of Chris- tians — the groans of Calvary, and the agonies of hell, conspire to urge the sinner to turn to God and lay up his treasure in the fair climes above. But in spite of all the warnings of Scripture — the remorse of conscience, and the eternal groans of lost spirits, he is determined to make his bed in hell, and lay ON THE ATONEMENT. 69 down in eternal sorrows. Follow him, O my soul ! to his last destiny. Behold him across the isthmus of death, chained by demons, ready to make his plunge in the lake of jfire. He enters his dark do- main, never to rise again. He looks back on the shores of time, with sorrows not to be repeated or ever forgotten. The love of Jesus — his bloody sweat in the garden — his prayer on the cross, forever ring with lost hope on his dying ear. Such must be his lamentation in the long dreary night of eternity ! Such the sinner's doom if he rejects the offered mercy of his Savior. But if the sinner loses Heaven, he loses all things. The song of redemption chanted by saints above shall never salute his ear. The ambrosial fields of the sons of God, shall never greet his eyes. The pure waters of the River of Life, shall never slake his thirst for bliss. The delicious fruit of the Tree of Life will be excluded from his presence, and no jubilee shall ever cheer his deathless soul. The glory of angels that congratulate each other from the tops of the holy mountains, shall be forever lost to his vision, and in its stead the cries of lost spirits shall pierce his heart. All the splendor of the New Jerusalem — her streets of richest gold — her walls of ambrosial sculpture, and the fair harps of Heaven, on which angels sing the eternal song of thanks- giving to God and the Lamb, shall be lost to the sinner if he dies without hope. All heaven is lost. Too late he begins his wailing and tears ! for his chains of perdition are commensurate to the wrath of God, and no boon of Calvary or redemption through the sinner's Friend, shall ever enter the abode of lost spirits with the rich news of exemption for the gloomy prisoner. The mercy he has slight- ed — the Savior he has spurned, and all the bliss of celestial spirits will roll mountains high, and swell his cries as he makes his last plunge in the lake of fire. 70 RICE S ORATIONS. But how can I leave the eternity-bound sinner in his guih and poUution, for whom mercy pleads, and for whom Jesus bled and died ? sinner ! I anti- cipate thy fearful doom, if thou pursueth even unto death the inclinations of thy wicked heart. The clouds of darkness will soon gather around thee, amidst the volcanoes of the resurrection morning, and the fiery indignation of the last Judgment. And although thy soul and body ere that day may be separated, and take their positions, one in the grave, and the other in the spirit's abode of final destiny; yet the voice of the last trumpet shall awake thy slumbering dust, and summon thy spirit from her gloomy realm, to form a reunion, never to be separated. Methinks I hear the sinner's cry in the last phenomena of nature, " Rocks and mountains fall on me, and hide me from the face of him who sits upon the throne." " Ye waves of the ocean roll over me, that I may be shrouded from the presence of my. Judge." " Let me fall into annihilation, that I may escape the woes of my eternal sufferings, and have no knowledge of future sorrows." But in vain he puts up his maniac prayer; for justice shall preside through all the councils of God, and the rich grace he once slighted shall be turned into wrath against him. But are there no charms for sinners in the great exhibition of the cross ? Can there not be found a lenient balm that pardons deviation, and soothes the mourning prisoner ? Yes, ye blood-bought and im- mortality-bound sinners, for whom Jesus died, your hope is expanded on the cursed tree, where just be- neath vast mountains fall by the deep groans your Savior bore. When you were with intrepidity stem- ming the crimsoned torrent for endless death ; when your feet were placed on the crumbling margin, and the billows of devouring fire were rolling just below; when there was not a span between II ON THE ATONEMENT. 71 3'ou and that death which never dies, a Savior's pity moved and saved you from, the flames. O sinners ! could I attract your attention to the gloomy garden, and to the summit of Calvary, where hangs your peril or safe-guard through future years ! Could I fix your minds with that sensitive vision a spirit feels, when condemned by a holy law ! Could I spread before you the cruel and unjust pangs of Heaven incarnate, when darkness veiled our globe ! In a word, could I show you your wretched situation b}^ nature, and what you must be by grace to es- cape the wrath to come, methinks ye would no longer trample under foot the cries of mercy, or rejoice in wading through a Savior's BLOOD to HELL! Perhaps you are by this time led to think my ex- hortation is too extreme. But being conscious now is the only time for your escape, I cannot by evasion bury the truth in oblivion, which if you die in your Ipresent situation will rise up in judgment against lyour never dying souls. Then it will be too late to iproclaim salvation, for the door of mercy will be shut jagainst you, and a Savior's blood will no longer fol- low after with the voice of pardon. Come, fellow sinners, and try redeeming love. Bury the weap- ons of rebellion, and by the fountain of salvation re- ceive ablution from all your sins. The voice of mercy now invites you to the Well of Life. Mercy pleads on your behalf, and desires your exemption from the fall. Sheath the dirk that will soon lavish your blood, and convey you to the woes of eternal pain. Be no longer a branch of that vine which produces bitter fruit ; but be engrafted into the true vine, which contributes life and joy to the soul. I must now leave the sinner, and would to God I could leave him in the arms of my Savior, that he might be counted worthy to escape the wrath to come, and make one of that happy nnmber that shall shine 72 rice's orations. in Heaven, " as the stars of the firmament, forever and ever," A word to the soldiers of the Cross, and I have dotif> Ye Christian followers of the Lord ! You have traced the life of your Savior from the cradle to the tomb. You have seen his resurrection from the deaci, and his ascension into Heaven. You have also be held the misery of the sinner, if he dies without hope. Drop one grateful tear at the mournful exhi- bition you have witnessed, and set out with doubh- diligence for Canaan's happy land. Imbibe a reso lution to leave this worthless world behind, with all that earth calls good or great. When you were in the open field of pollution, and no mortal could re- deem you from the precipice on which you tottered ; when your feet stood upon the gliding mountain of sin and error, from which a small concussion would have precipitated you into the dark mansion of eter- nal death ! when there was but a step between you and everlasting burnings, a Savior ushered in his richest grace by innocent blood, which saves you from the calid flame, and confirms to you, through obedience, a joyful region in the skies. Had it not been for your ransom by the scenes of Calvary, where would be your hope ? Lost in oblivion to all the joys of Heaven. You were condemned by that law which could not be appeased by the blood of beasts, or the vital fluid of man. Your condition would have remained entirely hopeless, had not the door of mercy been expanded by the tragedy of the garden, and the expiring groans of the Cross. If so much has been done for you, fellow Chris- tians ; if the ransom of your liberty cost nothing less than the groans of Heaven ! I admonish you by the voice of reason, be not backward in the service of your Lord. Let your lamps be well trimmed and burning, that you may show forth to the world that you are bound for a city out of sight, " whose maker ON THE ATONEMENT. 73 and builder is God." You need not be ashamed of your espousal to the Lamb ; for he is worthy of your utmost attention, and most pious service. He claims your highest interest, and demands your homage at the peril of your souls. What has he not done to bless and to save you ? His mercy in- terposed on your behalf, while justice slept — razed the strong-hold of death, by the bringing in a better hope ; and embalmed the grave with odors, bought with blood ! In him, fellow Christians, is your only security, your everlasting joy. You are engaged in a cause pleasing to angels. Every holy being in the universe of God rejoices in your pious devotion, your enrolment in the cause of Ghrist, your endeavors for the spread of the Gospel, and your everlasting welfare. Be not weary in well doing ; for you will reap an eternal reward if you faint not, when Christ shall be revealed from Hea- ven, wiih crowns of victory for all his faithful wor- shippers. Be not discouraged, though the world op- pose you in the cause of Christ ; for you know that such opposition existed when your Redeemer was on earth. Let not your hearts faint in the service of him who has done so much for you ; but rather the more diligently persevere ; " That you may be called the children of your Father which is in Hea- ven," and stand upon that Rock which remains im- pregnable, and will stand the test when our flaming world shall be one general mass of fire. Eternity-bound souls ! the time is short until our probation must cease, and we leave a world of im- mortal beings, bound for the bar to which we are fast hastening — the greater part in the dark laby- rinth of superstition, vice, and error. Every pass- ing moment — every heaving breath — every throb- bing motion of the heart — curtail our transient term of life, and bring us nearer the period when no eja- culation can ascend to Heaven, or admonitions of caution be imparted to the multitude of immortal 74 rice's orations. souls living without Christ in the world. Could we live in reference to eternity, how would this nether world sink beneath our feet, and all its objects in brighter visions lost ? How should we be excited in the publication of that news, purchased by a once crucified and again risen Savior — flying from house to house, and from city to city, announcing the glad notice to the unconverted number, of free salvation from the wrath to come ? Time is short ! O ye fellow workers with Jesus, let the weight of eternity rest upon you — let the cries of a Savior's blood cease not to be published with your voices to surrounding sinners, as long as you have breath ; for in so doing you may be able to extinguish the cry of neglect at the judgment day. If we trifle away this transient day of time in the neglect of Gospel requirements, what shall we do at the day of retribution, when a Savior will be ashamed of us before the angels of Heaven ? Every moment is big with eternal realities. Ever}?" step we take — every act we perform, and every transpir- ing thought, are recorded in the book of final de- cision, by the unerring pen of the great Testator. Let us " work while the day lasts, for the night Cometh when no man can work." Do we love im- mortal souls ? If so, how can we sleep, when ere the setting sun, many departing spirits will take their bed in hell by the seal of death ? We see multitudes of the human race slighting their only hope of happiness, and shall we hide the lamp of Heaven from their sight ? If so, their blood will be required at our hands. Ye Christian pilgrims of God! To you I make my last appeal ! and if you ever felt grief for an- other's wo, you must feel on this solemn occasion ! You are called to witness the death-bed of a sinner, whose iniquities have been arrayed before him by all the terrors of a broken law, and the conviction of a guilty soul ! He looks back on his past life, ON Christ's second advent, 75 and the burden of sin rolls mountains high, while arrows of deep conviction pierce his heart ! He looks forward, and in a few moments expects his day of life will terminate forever ! He raves like a ma- niac within the walls of his clay tenement — while 'kath pursues him close through every lane of life ! The waves of guilt and pollution roll on behind him, while demons around his bed are waiting to bear his spirit to the abodes of the damned ! In these his dying emotions, he struggles hard for retreat, but finds no refuge from the approaching storm ! He exclaims, under his conscious load of guilt, and his day of grace expired, " Oh, time ! time ! how art thou fled forever !" Thus, he has lost his day of mercy, while his meridian sun sinks in the gloom of niofht ! ORATION IV. ON CHRIST'S SECOND ADVENT. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment ; but the righteous into life eternal."'- Maitheio xxv. 46. When I contemplate the works of nature's God- when I behold the wonders of creation in endless variety — when I see mountains and lakes, rivers and oceans, valley and vegetation, man and beast, and the vast multitudes of monsters in the watery deep, that dart their way through the sunless medium — when I behold the fashion and motions of the world we inhabit, as she appears in all her grandeur — when I consider her speedy flight as she makes her 78 rice's orations. vast elliptic around the centre of the solar system, 1 am constrained to ascribe the glory to my Sa- vior — the Creator of this vast machinery — " By whom God made the worlds," and who, according to his own assertion, is " the Resurrection and the .life." From chaotic embryo, when all was darkness and confusion, God, in the greatness of his strength, stretched forth his hand, and the world was made He spoke, and his mighty pillars studded the uni- verse. He touched the element, and the azure vault surrounded the habitation of man. He said, " Let there be light," and light sprung into existence. He stretched out the heavens as a curtain, and crea- ted the mighty orb of day in all its splendor, to en- lighten our benighted world. He rode upon the wings of the wind, while angels cast their crowns at his feet. This is He who shall appear, and with a voice louder than ten thousand thunders, shall wake the sleeping dead from the mansions of the grave. But we have only viewed the suburbs of his crea- tion. This abode of man is but a mere speck in the universe of God. Strike it from existence, and it would hardly leave a blank in the vast expanse of worlds. Immortal man ! let the rich jewel of thy bosom wing its way with spirit motion — in the twinkling of an eye reach the vast luminary of day, behold its mighty organization and its vast dimen- sions, see those worlds and satellites that roll around it through the vast fields of ether — then leave this mighty structure, and with the flight of thy death- less soul, wing thy way to the starry worlds — suns to other systems — behold their vast revolutions in the trackless fields of ether, and when thou hast pondered on them with amazement, return to thy building of mortality, and on thy way give honor to the blessed Jesus, by whose autho- ON Christ's second advent. 77 rity the dead shall be raised and men and angels judged. Before the judgment day, the resurrection of the dead must appear ; therefore, we will give some particulars concerning it, before we com- mence on the final retribution of men and angels. As for that day and hour, month or year, when Christ shall appear for the first resurrection, "know- eth no man ; no, not the angels of Heaven, but the Father only." If it had been the will of God that man should know the time of Christ's second Ad- vent, He would have laid it down in plain terms in the word of life, so there could be no doubt on the subject. But to prove the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, and the final judgment, to the Infidel, I must in the first place prove Jesus to be the Son of God. I will therefore produce my reasons both from Scripture and profane history, which I think no can- did man in the light of the nineteenth century can reasonably deny. I shall attempt to prove Jesus to be the Son of God, in the first place, by the evidence which comes to my senses. In the second place, by the evidence which comes to my understanding ; and in the third place, by unquestionable wit- nesses. In the first place, I know a man walks, because I see him walk with my own eyes ; this is proof by one of the senses. Thus the disciples of the Son of God saw Him when he was manifest in the flesh. In the second place, I believe according to logic, that the three angles of a rectilineal triangle, are, together, equal to two right angles ; because it is proved by demonstration, to my understanding, be- yond contradiction. So Jesus proved himself to be the Son of God to the vast multitude that beheld him, by the mighty miracles he wrougjit when he dwelt among the children of men. In the third *7 78 rice's orations. place, I believe Jesus to be the Son of God, because. I have the testimony of persons of worthy credit, which I have the greatest reason to believe. Let us try the test of the evidence by example. I believe that George Washington was once president of the United States. Now, it is not because I ever saw the man, that I believe the fact ; but because I have had it from that intelligence which I cannot deny. So 1 believe Jesus to be the Son of God, be- cause I have the proof of it from a multitude of wit- nesses, who beheld his personage, his miracles, and his resurrection from the dead ; and have left their testimony on record, both in sacred and profane his- tory ; which has been saved by the wisdom of God against the malice of Deists and Infidels, and pre- served for the salvation of men, even until this pre- sent day. Thus reasoning, according to the law of common sense, I must believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Again : I have reason, as well as the Deist, to be- lieve in a God, by the intelligence I receive from the works of creation ; because creation indicates a first cause of its existence, and that first cause must be greater than the things created ; therefore I be- lieve the first cause must be the omnipotent God. I do not believe he is God because I have seen him or handled him, but by the proof I have in the WT>rks of creation. Thus I perceive we have no better proof in the existence of a God, than we have in the Son of God. But, again : I believe Jesus to be the Son of God, because his enemies, as well as his friends, corrobo- rate my faith. Josephus, a Jewish writer, Publius Lentilus, governor of Judea, Origen, Celsus, Cle- mens, Ammonius, and many others who lived in the days of the Savior or his apostles and early fol- lowers, left many facts in history that go to support the personage and Divinity of Jesus, although some ON Christ's second advent. 79 of these men, if not all, opposed the Christian reli- gion, One of them, speaking relative to the Sa- vior, says: "In these our days appeared a man of great virtue named Jesus Christ, who is yet living among us, and by the Gentiles is received as a great phophet of truth ; but by his own disciples is called the Son of God ! He raiseth the dead and cureth all manner of diseases," &c. This same Jesus, ac- cording to Josephus, predicted the destruction of Jerusalem before that generation in which he lived should pass away, and many other things pertaining to it, which actually came to pass in agreement with his prophecy. If the enemies of the blessed Sa- vior, as well as his friends, have recorded facts to prove his mission to be from God, what need have we of any further testimony ? Furthermore, I believe this Jesus to be a good man , because he cast out devils through divine agency, and went about doing good. Now, we know that God would not inspire the devil with power to do mira- cles, as did Jesus ; because light and darkness have no fellowship together; and what union hath God with the devil ? A miracle is something beyond the course of nature, and requires some supernatu- ral power to perform it, and that power belongs to God. Thus we see certain Jews accused by our Savior of committing the sin against the Holy Ghost ; because they said with malice in their hearts, " He casteth out devils through Beelzebub, the prince of devils," when their own observations proved their assertion false. But, again : I believe a good man will tell the truth ; and as I have already proved Jesus to be a man of that character, I must also believe him to be the Son of God ; for he said, " I am the Son of God," which assertion is vindicated beyond all con- tradiction by his Heavenly Father, when he was baptized in the River Jordan, saying, " This is my beloved Son, hear ye him." If the existence of a 80 rice's orations. God has been proved by the works of nature, much more has the existence of his Son been proved by the Bible and the enemies of Christianity. Moreover, I believe Jesus to be the Son of God, and inspired with divinity, because the miracles he wrought proved the fact ; and were witnessed by Jews, Gentiles, and Christians. Jesus spoke, " Peace, be still ;" and the troubled waters obeyed his voice. He commanded the bier to stand still, and by his authority the dead arose ! At his pre- sence demons left their victims and sanity was again restored ! He wept with those that wept ; and cried with a loud voice, " Lazarus, come forth," and the iron grasp of death, which had held its prey four days in the grave, gave up its victim, and the corpse awoke by the resurrection power of the Son of God. When we look back to the sources from whence Christianity sprung — the humility of its origin — the low state of its disciples — the phenomenon of its creation — the mighty victory it has acquired, not only over the civilized world, but over Paganism it- self — over lawless minds and brutalized regions — we must own the awful presence of Divinity; no- thinof less than the ffreat Jehovah could have done it ! The powers, the bigotry, and the superstition of the earth, were all in war against it ; it had no arms nor sceptre ; its Founder was dressed in the garb of poverty ; its apostles were poor fishermen ; its inspired prophets were lowly and uneducated ; its cradle was a manger ; its home a sable dun- geon ; its earthly diadem a crown of thorns ! But, in spite of all this opposition, it went forth ; that lowly, humble spirit, was implanted in the hearts of men ; the idols of the Heathen fell ; the thrones of governors and kings trembled ; and Paganism saw her votaries fall down and worship the Divine Con- queror ! If what has been produced does not prove ON CHRIST S SECOND ADVENT. 81 the Divinity of the Son of God, then will I yield to the hostile ambition of Deists and Infidels. As I said before, so say I again, that the time of the second Advent of Christ, when the deputized angel shall sound the first trumpet, knoweth no man ; but I shall give my opinion in a few particulars con- cerning the Millennium, as follows : I imagine our week is typical of the great week of time from the creation of Adam down to the commencement of the Millennium and the termination of the same^ That six days typifies 6,000 years ; at the end of which the trump of God shall awake the righteous dead, and change the living in the twinkling of an eye. Then the volcanoes, or some other instrument God may see fit to use, will envelop the world in one general conflagration, and melt the elements with fer- vent heat — wrap the heavens together as a scroll, and " there shall be a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness." Then man will be immortalized, and die no more. I imagine the day we call the Sabbath typifies the 1,000 years Millennium, when God shall reign on earth with his people, by the subduing operation of his spirit, and " they shall all know the Lord, from the least to the greatest ; and all tears shall be wiped away from their eyes." Through this all- cheering Millennium, satan shall be bound ; at the end of which he shall be be loosed a little season, and go out and deceive the nations and gather them together for battle, whose number shall be as the sands of the sea shore. Then will commence a con- test ; the devil and all his confederates will fight against the Lord and his company, and the Lord shall overcome him and all his colleagues, and the song of victory will be heard throughout the camp of the saints. At the end of the Millennium, before the last con- test just spoken of between the devil and the Lord, 82 rice's orations. I imagine the last trump shall sound, and all the wicked dead that have ever existed since Adam and died in unbelief, or ever will exist until that day appears, will hear the sound of the last trumpet and come to judgment. I imagine, furthermore, that the space between the first and last resurrections will be 1,000 years ; at the end of which the wicked dead will rise ; because, the apostle says, " We that re- main will not hinder them that sleep." I suppose he alludes to the righteous who live through the Millennium ; that they will not hinder the wicked dead to come forth at the sound of the last trumpet. According to divine truth there will be two resur- rections, and in the first the righteous only will be raised ; for St. John declares, " The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished;" which can imply nothing else .but the second resurrection, in which the wicked dead shall arise. Having removed the obstruction of Deism, I now hasten to oppose one obstruction more, before I com- mence the subject matter of my discourse. Has God from all eternity decreed whatsoever comes to pass ? If so, there is no future judgment to ceme ; because the decision was passed before the creation of the world, men or angels ; and if this be true, there can be no wisdom in believ- ing in a future day of retribution, because all things are bound fast in fate and admit of no varia- tion. Before we pursue, let us consider wliat is an ab- solute decree of God ? It is an act passed in the eternal mind and will of Deity, which admits of no possibility of change, and must be accomplished on the object concerned, in perfect agreement with the decree. Therefore, when we say God has de- creed whatsoever comes to pass, we mean that he has decreed all things that ever have taken place or ever Avill take place ; and all these things oN Christ's second advent. 8f> must be accomplished according to his predeslina- tion. If this doctrine be true, men or devils are not ac- countable to God ; because all transactions are done in perfect agreement to his decrees : therefore, no- thing has taken place, or ever will take place, but what He compels to be, either directly or indirectly by his Almighty hand. The libertine, that des- tro3^s the female character and glories in his de- bauchery, does the will of God. The robber who, for the love of gold, steals from his neighbor, obeys the will of his Creator. The miser, who worships the world and thereby forgets his God, fulfils his eter- nal decrees. The murderer, who dyes his hands in his brother's blood, cannot avoid the act, for the de- crees of God compel him to do the same. And every wicked crime ever committed on earth, or in hell, is in obedience to his will, and must be accom- plished. But again : if this doctrine be true, those that will finally be lost, were unconditionally damned before they had existence. For them, the Savior never shed his blood ; for them, he never offered up a prayer ; for them, he never groaned when his soul was sorrowful in the garden of Gethsemane ; and for them, no door of mercy was ever opened ; but they must go to hell and wail under chains of eternal darkness, because God intended them for that purpose long before their creation. Fur- thermore, those persons who will be finally saved, were just as sure of Heaven before the world began, without any conditions on their part, as they ever will be when they enter the New- Jerusalem. This is what is called limited atone- ment. If this sentiment be true, there never was a sin- ner in the universe of God. No being commits sin by performing an act that he cannot resist. The superior authority that compels him to commit the 84 rice's orations. act, is to blame, if there is any fault in the case. When the immortal spirit of man is compelled to act by some irresistible influence of God, either by motive or any other way, to that soul belong no fu- ture rewards or punishments for the deeds commit- ted while here in the body. If the system of divinit}^ now in consideration is true, then is the doctrine of universal salvation true also ; for God's revealed will can never contradict his decrees. It is recorded in the word of God, " There is one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who will have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." We see the will of God in the above quotation is the salvation of all men, and God's will must agree with his decrees ; therefore, all men must be saved. We see, in the same quotation, that Jesus made an expiation for all men. This destroys the foundation of a limited atonement, and makes man a proper subject for the future judgment, proves God's de- crees concerning man's immortal spirit to be condi- tional, and makes him a fit subject for the final re- tribution of eternity. But, my reader, I believe in the doctrine of pre- destination, as well as you, in all things consistent with the nature of God. Inanimate matter is fore- ordained by the Eternal to keep its location and mo- tion in a manner which God designed it should ; be- cause it is not accountable for its career. But the immortal soul of man God never compelled to do evil, either by motive or constraint ; for such deal- ings with spirit cannot exist — they counteract the nature of God, and destroy man's accountability. The deathless soul, destined for judgment and existence in eternal future, was never chained down by some unconditional preordination of the Poten- tate of Heaven, but was left free by the spirit of the Gospel, " which lighteth every man that cometh in- ON Christ's second advent. 85 to the world," in reference to the choice of Heaven or hell. In the garden of Eden man freely stood while he stood, and freely fell when he fell. So it is with every soul now in the body, in reference to the last judgment. On these premises I build my hope for eternity ; on this foundation I worship God. My reader may here observe, God foreknows every thing as certain, without any condition on the part of man, and his prescience amounts to a decree. God's foreknowledge is not a decree. Many things exist, which God foreknew ; but did not predesti- nate. All lies, and sin exist; but the Bible says the devil is the father of lies ; and that God cannot lie ; neither can he look upon sin with the least degree of allowance. God's predestination of all things, makes him the Author of all sin, and responsible for sin: but his prescience of sin, leaves the sinner responsible to God. The Astronomer may have foreknowledge of an eclipse ; but he is not the cause of that eclipse. Two architects may have perfect knowledge of a building before erected ; and but one of them have any thing to do with its erection. So God may have the prescience of all things, and not be the cause of all things. For this reason I am led to conclude, concerning the sins of men God only foreknows, and leaves them without any restraint by his decrees to act in reference to their eternal weal or woe. On these premises, accord- ing to my views of Revelation, hang the just retribu- tions of eternity for Adam's race, and on no other foundation can the world be judged in righteous- ness. Having removed some of the obstructions believed in by the children of men, and opened the way by exordium for the second coming of Christ,! shall now begin my theme. The words that I have chosen for the foundation of my subject, have reference to the Second Advent 86 rice's orations. of the Son of God in the clouds of Heaven — to the last great day of retribution for men and angels. It was for this day the Savior came into the world. For this day all other days were made. Were it not for this day, man never had existed ; and if he had, he would not receive the just reparations of eternity. For the events of this day, the Savior left the courts above and died to make man accountable to God, so the world could be judged in righteous- ness. Mankind were fallen in Adam ; and it would have been unjust in our Creator to have banished all the human race because Adam fell. There- fore, to make the judgment just, Jesus open- ed up a way for sinners, whereby they might, through obedience to his requirements, receive his approbation and be saved, or disregard them and be damned. The Judge now arrives with a cloud of witnesses ; he sits upon his throne of majesty, clothed with flaming fire ; his eyes sparkling with light, far ex- ceeding the blazing meteor; his head encircled with brilliancy, surpassing the mid-day sun ; his feet like unto fine brass, holding in his hand the seven stars ; he comes in the clouds of heaven — he appears in the glorious expedition of a God — he is surrounded by saints and angels — he wears a royal diadem — terror sits on his countenance — he appears ! But how unlike the man that sweat blood in Gethse- mane ! how unlike the man that died on Calvary ! No crown of thorns pierces his sacred temples ; no blood and sweat besmear the body of Jesus ! He comes with the resurrection voice of the first trum- pet. Before his presence, mountains melt away — the oceans heave with tremendous commotion — the earth trembles to her centre, and is wrapped in flames of fire — she spins on her axle like some giddy thing — she is deranged in her course of nature ; while she groans and expires under the wrath of ON Christ's second advent. 87 God. The moon is dressed in sackcloth — the liiin withdraws his light — the stars fall, like untimely figs, from heaven ; and all nature suffers in the agonies of death. Deputized by this heavenly King, " the angel swears that time shall be no longer.'' The trump is sounding, and I hear a voice saying, " Come forth, ye righteous dead." Great day of God Almighty and the Lamb ! Day for which God created man ! Day for which earth sprung from choas ! The day for which creation first be- gan ! At the sound of this trumpet the earth begins to tremble — the elements war in dread commotion — the tombs are bursting — saints are rising from their grave of centuries to behold the coming of the Son of Man — they are dressed with the garments of im- mortality, and never shall sleep again. The living are changed in a moment, and put on garlands that shall never fade — the rich purchase of blood. The Lord has come to dwell on the earth with his peo- ple, and shall reign with them a thousand years. All tears are wiped from their eyes, and there shall be nothing to make afraid in all the holy mountain. The bands of death have burst asunder, and the followers of God have found the victory over the grave. They give honor to Him who sits upon the throne, for the day of their redemption has come. At the commencement of this latter day glory, the commissioned angel of God, with a great chain in his hand, shall lay hold on the devil and bind him, and cast him into prison, and he shall abide there one thousand years, during the Millen- nium, and lose his deception and reign over the children of men. Then nations shall learn war no more, and the blood of the Cross redeem the world. Now the time appears when all the dead in Christ since Adam fell shall awake, and congratulate the 88 rice's orations. living saints now basking in millennial glory. The angel Gabriel advances with his holy train in front of the great Majesty of Heaven and earth, and sounds tlie alarm which rends the heavens and shakes the earth from pole to pole, while the ma- jestic Sire encircled with shining angels, and all the blood-washed throng clad with drapery of the skies, endows the voice with power surpassing foes of hell, which shakes the vaults and calls the dead to life ! Here the servant of the Lord, who, by command, repaired to Mount Moriah with his son, shall rise with garments white and crowns of honor, at the voice of that Savior once buffeted in the streets of the Jews. Now the prophet, once in the fiery bush, shall rise in beauty and exulting songs of everlast- ing rapture to the Lamb, while Pharaoh, with his fellows deep in art, remain until the final trump shall sound to wake those dead that feel the burn- ing flame ! Here the blest Psalmist, with all his heavenly choir, appear with beauty and immortal bloom, with harps well tuned to sing that song a Savior bought when en the cross he hung ! Isaiah, the phophet of the Lord, whose lips were touched with fire, no longer sounds the dread alarm on Zion's walls, and thus exposed, to die ; but life instead, and all the rapture of the upper world, inspire his soul with joy • Stephen, the first martyr from our Savior's death, who spake as with an angel's tongue, and bore a visage bright, now reaps the harvest bought with vital blood — with Paul, to whose feet his garments lay — converted by a sunbeam from on high, will join in rapture to that name which none but Jesus bears ! Peter, whose humble state changed his posture on the cross to that of his dear Lord's — sealed his pardon by his blood — ascends in clouds, 89 with all the fiery throng soaring with their Captain far on high ! From the vaults of Palestine, where lamentation spread by dying groans, arise another train of in- nocents, who, in flight of speedy pinions, with un- numbered since the fall, soar aloft to mansions in the skies ! Christians of all grades now burst the chains of death, and join the blissful band of har- mony and adoration to their King — bid death fare- well, and in the fiery chariot such as the prophet, knew, ride on in triumph and enter the golden gates of everlasting day ! The prayer of the church since creation is now changed for heavenly fruition ; the voices of lamen- tation and mourning have passed away, and the cries of innocent blood are heard no more. The martyrs that have sealed the testimony of Jesus by their sufferings and death, have gained the victory over their enemies, and rejoice in sweet repose. No friend of Satan shall ever annoy their peace, but sacred joy shall forever inspire their bosoms, as they worship God. The church is now triumphant from all fears, And left the dregs of wretchedness behind. The joys of time are mutable in their nature, and soon terminate ; but this happiness relative to the soul of man, shall live forever. Man's spirit can never die ! That thinking, that anticipating princi- ple, that powerful anxiety, which cannot be satisfied by the things of time, can never terminate. These faculties of the soul are capable of vast improve- ment. They may be inspired with a rapid increase of knowledge through this short existence, and at the close of life remain more ample for the same re- ception. Doubtless this intrinsic worth may go on forever with rapid strides of increasing wisdom and find no perfection. The most lofty seraph that sur- rounds the throne of God may look down on the ♦8 90 rice's orations. Christian, and behold a future period in eternity, when he shall surpass his present glory. Man has an intellect that surveys objects both past and fu- ture, and doubtless will go on in progressive vision in the expansive world to come. He can see good from evil, because in him was implanted the power of docility, far surpassing all other animal beings. Man is the noblest workmanship of God in this lower world, and was made for something more than to sleep in everlasting silence, as the beasts of the forest or the birds of the air. If man could, in this life, arrive to the highest point of knowledge attainable — that all his energies of mind could expand to the highest possible per- fection — that the flower could be in full bloom ere nature silenced the flame of animal life, we might presume an extinction of the immortal soul. But the progression of this rich jewel towards Deity's perfection, is like one of those mathematical lines that approaches nearer and nearer, without any pos- sibility of ever arriving to consummation. I will now refer to the truth of Revelation to prove man's immortality beyond the grave. That there is endless joy for the righteous, no one who believes the word of God will deny. The apostle says : ** Christ Jesus suffered without the camp, that we through his blood might enter into the dwelling of the holiest." Again, it is written, " He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." Again, saith Jesus, *' I know my sheep, and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life." Paul appeared to be con- firmed in the belief of everlasting happiness, when he exclaimed in striking accents ; " This light affliction which is for a moment, worketh out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." At the resurrection of the righteous, the body as well as the soul, is made immortal, and fashioned ON Christ's second advent. 91 like unto Christ's glorious body. It no longer re- mains a cumbrous load of grosser elements, but obeys the wish of the soul, and moves with it wheresoever it desires. As quick as thought, the body and soul light on the most distant star, and in a moment are in some other remote part of the universe of God. To them belong no location, except in the element of happiness ; for a spirit cannot be confined to place any more than thought ; and the spiritual body always obeys the immortal intellect. After our Savior arose from the dead, he could appear in a moment to the apostles, and as soon disappear out of their sight. So will it be with the saints of God. This mystery must be true ; yet no man can explain it on the principles of philosophy, any more than he can comprehend the eternal Divinity. At this Second Advent of Christ, the sorrows of the righteous terminate forever ; for they have found a heavenly realm through Christ their mediator. They have entered the harbor of safety, spoken of by the prophets and the apostles. Here their vision was faith in testimony, without a visible sight of the Testator ; but now they behold the reality of former anticipation. Here the brother welcomes his con- sanguinity, once separated by death, yet joined by the same faith. The father meets his son, and the daughter her mother, with the welcome news of a confederation death and hell can never disjoin However solemn the separation was on earth, it is now forgotten by the participation of uninterrupt- ed joy and paradisaical delight. This heaven-born pleasure surpasses the description of an angel's pen ; how, then, can I do justice to my subject ? This happiness belonging to the saints of God lu unspeakable and full of glory. In their celestial mansion is the immediate presence of the Lamb who was slain for their redemption. The Temple of Jerusalem was a magnificent edifice ; but the 92 rice's orations. holiest department, secluded by the inner veil, was a faint emblem of this triumphant Temple, " whose maker and builder is God." This celestial city- passes all resemblance of earthly things ; for they must wax old as doth a garment, and be dissolved. Heaven is paved with the richest gold — illuminated with the light of the Son of righteousness — secured by the authority of Deity — destined to remain without end — resounds with hymns of highest rapture — in- spired by disembodied saints, and surrounded by that horizon which excludes the unrenovated soul that never dies. In this holy Temple is implanted the tree of life, which produces the most delicious fruit — yields it every month — and the leaves thereof are for the healing of the nations. In this bright mansion flows the pure river containing the water of life ; the streams of which exhilarate the celestial para- dise. Nothing is deficient in this holy building, for all things are new. Every face has enstamped upon it the true omen of heaven-born delight. Here saints are clothed upon and mortality is swallowed up of life. Death has lost its sting — all things are completed — and victory is witnessed by the ethereal choir. Christ has given up the kingdom to God, even the Father ; and all enemies are trampled un- der his feet. Saints gather immortality on the de- lectable tree erected at the right hand of the eternal Divinity. Nothing unclean, or that worketh abom- ination, can enter this cit}', for all enemies are put to flight by the Captain of salvation. The beauties and excellencies of this paradise are so great, that no mortal eye can behold them and live. *' Eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive those things which God hath prepared for them that love him." If the glories of Heaven are so inexpressible, let my pen disgrace no longer this subject most di- vine. ON Christ's second advent. 93 Oh ! happy world ! Can a worm of yesterday hope for a region in the skies? In that kind mansion, redemption swells the song. There Jesus' name, divinely sweet, reiterates on every tongue ; there the heart shall never throb but with rapture ; there the countenance shall never appear, but with celes- tial beauty ; there the feet, once diverted, shall tra- verse the pavements of Heaven ; there the pilgrim, once wearied with the vicissitudes of a wicked world, has taken a fair asylum from all things be- neath the sun — no fears inspire his bosom with misery — no tears are extorted from his eyes by the convulsive lamentations of nature ; but all his facul- ties are the avenues of supreme delight. Amazing catastrophe ! Who purchased this sal- vation for guilty man ? Who opened the door of paradise, which the apostacy of man had barred ? Let the Mediator speak. On the cross, extended, hung the Son of God, as a malefactor, in the ago- nizing groans of death. From the tree where the Savior vibrated in dying pangs, and covered with blood, light appears and salvation smiles on guilty man. From the manger, Gethsemane, and Calvary, I see the load of guilt expelled from the sinner, his garments of pollution taken away, and a royal dia- dem placed on his brow of immortality. The spirit's hell, to which he was fast hastening, was evaded by the rich blood of atonement, and a heavenly pos- session purchased for him by the unparalleled suf- ferings of the all-prevailing Conqueror. For this cause, the name of Jesus is extolled by all the blood- washed throng. Fill'd with wisdom by the heavenly Dove They soar in rapture and ambrosial love; Lost to the anguish in the world before. Imbibe the flame and nature's God adore. Far in the skies, believ'd by mortals here. That song is sung, which will the spirit cheer: ' Tis bliss obtained by that expiring sigh, "Which bought for man a paradise on high. 94 rice's orations. ^.: Hear the martyr's song of redemption, smce he has gained the victory through the Lamb. He beholds the world behind him, and all its objects, in brighter visions lost. From his golden seat, he traces the meandering maze from time to his auspicious realm ; thorny was the path, beset with stratagem. Once his progressive speed was obstructed by inveterate enemies, which spread their dismal gloom around ; but now his theme is exultation. No more shall I wander in nature's lurid path — no more shall mortal scenes increase my fear, or chilling blasts disturb my halcyon soul, for sorrow and mourning have fled away, and all perils terminated in the bridgeless Jordan. Death can no longer boast of victory — dis- ease cannot inflict with torturing pangs ; because all sorrow is changed for inexpressible delight. Here the weapons of death are known no more, for all wars have terminated, and the bloody carnage has passed away. The parent shall no more witness the death-groans of his affectionate ofl^spring — the brother shall no more follow the brother to the gloomy sepulchre — the beggar shall no longer suffer for the bread that perisheth, but satiates his appetite from the banquet spread on high. Sorrow shall never tread on the heels of sorrow ; but bliss of celestial origin, and joys without end, shall inspire the soul with more than mortals know, and leave no- void without extatic fire. Having described the bliss of the servants of God, we now hasten to the sound of the last trumpet — to the resurrection of the wicked dead ; for, according to St. John, " the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished ;" this is the last resurrection, and on such the second death has power ; for they must all hear the voice of the Son of God, and come forth — " they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation." At this day of retribution, shall scenes transpire which make the boldest countenance turn pale and ON Christ's second advent. 95 the stony heart tremble with fear. Great must be the exhibition of this day, because of the vast num- ber that shall assemble around the throne, and the final destiny that awaits the wicked. From the grave of centuries, sinners of all ranks obey the sound of the last trumpet, and burst into life. They assemble in countless millions around the throne, clothed with the sable garments of immortality. Here the rich and poor, black and white, bond and free, male and female, monarch and beggar, all com- bine to form the black cloud of culprits on the left, and wait in awful suspense to hear their final doom. They tremble with consternation, ere they plunge their last grave. At this final day of judgment, the Son of Man will sit on the throne of his glory, surrounded by the saints redeemed among men, and the vast con- course of the heavenly hosts. He will be clothed in his celestial equipage, and before him shall al. nations be gathered together ; " and he shall sepa rate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats ; and he shall set the sheep on the right hand, but the goats on the left. Then- shall the King say to those on the right hand, ' Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit a kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;' but to those on the left, ' Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his an- gels.' " At this day of final decision, Beelzebub, with all his forces, begins his last engagement, and fights his spiritual battle against the Lord ; and the Lord and his agents overcome him and his vast company, and " bind them hand and foot, and thrust them into outer darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Here lost men and angels receive their last destiny ; here their chains of darkness are riveted, and they drink the unutterable vengeance of the wrath of God. The separation of relatives on earth, is often griev 96 kick's orations. ous and tormenting ; but how faint the emblem of the separation at the final judgment! How often have parents witnessed the dying groans of an affec- tionate child, while their very souls were absorbed in misery at the dissolution ! But weeping would not reclaim the beloved object, or retard its accelera- ted departure. How often have children been called to witness the obsequies of parents, dear by nature's ties, and thus become abandoned, wandering through an inclement world ! These separations are sore and unconsoling, yet the comparison is small to that separation where reunion is past all hope, and fixed destiny is lasting as the judgment of God. As there are sinners of various characters, I shall here mention some of them individually. How must the backslider lament his interminate ruin, " who has counted the blood of the covenant whereby he was sanctified an unholy thing, and done despite to the Spirit of grace ?" How he writhes in agony ! See his trembling soul naked before the bar of God, while his deeds are exposed to men and angels. He sighs under his intolerable load of guilt and hears his verdict sealed by Omnipotence — wit- nessed by cherubim and seraphim, "Depart, ye cursed blasphemer, into everlasting fire," while the voices of all the holy throng resound in the loud acclama- tions of amen. His eyes now penetrate the self-murderer, who IS convicted of his crime. He is conscious of com- mitting that sin which gave him no space for pardon, but terminated his probation without hope ; " For no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." He is full of repentance, but too late, since his day of grace ended at his expiring breath. His once pitiful Savior is now changed to indignation, saying, " Depart, ye cursed murderer, into that pit where there shall be weeping, w^ailing and 97 gnashing of teeth," while the witnesses exclaim, "amen!" The swearer is also at this tribunal. He is filled with amazement at that countenance which shoots destructive fire upon every sinner. Once he could soar on the impious delusion of blasphemy — spurn- ing the Gospel admonitions — groping in the dark maze of infatuated vice and error — committing trea- son against the law of Justice — sinning with a high hand against the Majesty of Heaven. Once he thought it the height of glory to throw forth great swelling words against his Sovereign ; but now he reaps the bitter rewards of his evil doings. Stand- ing in confusion on the sliding place where fiery anguish is rolling just below, see the trembling cul- prit at the bar, fearful to launch away ; yet the expel- ling ire of the Judge issues forth his expedition, and his troubled soul sinks where the voice of exemption never shall appear. As he surveys the multitude of sinners, he casta his eye upon the liar — justice finds him guilty, " Because all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone ;" " This is the second death." Here he travelled to and fro on the earth, seeking whom he might destroy by his deception ; but now he is caught in his own ways by the Judge, who is able to recompense both the just and the unjust. Hear his sentence: "Depart, ye cursed liar, into everlasting shame and contempt," while in agreement the witnesses say "Amen to his damnation." I The drunkard lingers not behind. Forced by that energy which no man can retard, he pensively appears. Condemned by the gnawings of that worm which never dies, he remains speechless and sur- prised. That face which once indicated the prog- nostic of salvation by the tragical groans of Calvary, is chanjTed into the omen of wrath aj^ainst the cul- prit at the bar. The time of his probation was 98 rice's orations. passed with indifference on futurity — his affections were riveted to that bane by which a vast number lose the brightest crown. The day of decision doubtless he sometimes viewed afar off, yet comfort- ed himself there was time enough yet to expel the noxious cup ; but at length he was overtaken sud- denly by the whirlwind of death, and his baseless imagination fell low as the grave and deep as the spirit's tomb. Now the tremendous day is at hand ! He beholds the gulf of destined misery at the left, while numberless demons are as a transient veil that hides the calid flames, just ready to receive that fuel never to be extinguished by the nature of the conflagration. Mourning the loss of time once occu- pied by intoxication, he heaves a fatal groan, which is the prior link to an eternal chain. The fire of spirits once absorbed his senses from activity ; but now his latent capacity of mind is participating that anguish which pen cannot describe or tongue express. How his pensive bosom heaves with pain ? He gazes on the vast ocean of woe, and sinks to rise no more in the dark mansion of misery ! " The drunkard shall not inherit the kingdom of God." ■ At this day, the Judge will thoroughly investigate all the doctrines ever established by man. All spu- rious systems shall be brought to light, and hay, wood, and stubble, shall be annihilated by the co- gent fire of the Almighty. At this day, vast multi- tudes shall be sundered from the fictious doctrine they imbibed on earth, and, if saved, will barely escape as a victim from the crater of the destructive volcano. At this juncture, methinks the restora- tioner trembles at the abortive fiction he proclaimed to man. His once affirmed aphorisms disappear as the morning dew, and nought but the indelible re- ality survives the final verdict. Self-condemned, with a biased disposition, once employed in hostility against the truth, he finds no refuge, but joins the ON Christ's second advent. 99 bttdd whose party preached the same doctrine in the garden, which is in opposition to the Gospel injunc- tion, " But he that sinneth against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation." There can be no danger of any thing that is not, or never can be ; therefore we may sup- pose there is, and ever will be, a place of misery, and that qualified by interminate duration. All the concerns that mankind are unwilling to reveal on the shores of time, now appear naked, be- fore the Judge of congregated millions. Whatever might have been concealed from the world is now brought to light by the Author of the conscientious catalogue. At this day, the deceiver and his doc- trine must take the last separation, and he reap the fatal consequences of his obnoxious career. If re- pentance at this crisis would save the soul, doubtless hell would remain a silent mansion, and every sin- ner escape from his intrication. But all hope ex- pires in the final condemnation of lost men and angels. I will here advance a few quotations of Scripture to prove the punishment of the finally impenitent shall have no end. For, saith Jesus, " The words that I speak unto you, the same shall judge you at the last day." " Sodom and Gomorrah, and other cities round about them, going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." Furthermore, "You that are trou- bled rest with us, until the Lord Jesus shall be re- vealed from Heaven, taking vengeance on all them that know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished with ever- lasting destruction." Furthermore, that disciple whom Jesus loved, in his Revelation declares, when speaking of the false worshiper's misery, " And the smoke of their torments ascendeth up forever and ever" Again : Peter, in describing the false teachers, ushers in this striking quotation : " These lOO rice's orations. are wells without water — clouds that are carried with a tempest, to whom the mist of darkness is reserved forever." If the word of God proves an eternal Heaven for the righteous, the same word proves an eternal hell for the Avicked ; for the terms are as strong in the one case as in the other ; and in my opinion, no honest man versed in the Scrip- tures, can for a moment doubt the fact. Where shall I find a rule to measure eternity ? Must I be deep in mathematics ? if so, I must be lost in a deficient system. The things of time may be measured by rules of application, and thereby the mental powers of man may survey the end. Shall I apply the rules of time to eternity ? If so, where shall I begin, or whither shall I cease in the vast meander of supernumerary years ? Let us ap- ply, for instance, the length of time, 6,000 years, to eternity, and this as often as once in a minute for three score years and ten, and see to what date we will arrive in immortality. It will be 220,902,780,000 of our years. At this extensive date, the hell-doom- ed sinner may apply the measurement already at- tained for 1,000 of our centuries, with the prior speed of application, and then exclaim in accents of desperation, eternity is just begun ! Momentous truth ! Shall man remain dormant at this eternal doom ? Should particles of this earth no larger than the smallest insect, be transmigrated to some other planet in the universe of nature, and but one par- ticle be removed in one thousand years, the time would appear in the progressive chain of action when the space occupied by this earth would be as void as the immeasurable wilds of ether. At the expiration of this incomprehensible progression, the thick darkness of the Almighty's wrath will inspire the pit of execration and exclude the hope of any pos- sibility of future emancipation from the wrath of God. Thus we see, all beings so unfortunate as to make ON Christ's second advent. 101 their bed in hell, can never be extilcated. When the door is once shut by the Master of the house, and the seal sanctioned by Him "who shutteth and no man openeth," in vain shall the culprit seek for escape. Jesus saith, " I am the beginning and the end, and have the keys of death and hell." While the saints are in Heaven continually gathering im- mortality on life's fair tree, this benighted faction are mingling in cries for mercy, " O for a drop of water to cool our parching tongues." Now they shall wish for death, but death shall flee away ! They curse the unhappy days of their beginning, and gnaw their tongues with pain. In this infernal mansion no Savior will ever descend to proclaim the news of Salvation by Heaven's expiring groans ! Here no brilliant star shall bear the tidings " good will," as did the angels in Bethlehem. Here the purple gore of the beloved Son of God can never flow, as on the summit of Calvary ! But despera- tion instead darkens the gloomy vale and excludes the way of mercy, which is now administered to our rebellious world. Let the eternity-bound sinners, for whom Jesus died, reflect on the misery of approaching doom ! sinners ! can you endure this unextinguishable fire ? Can you dwell with everlasting burnings, shut up in endless oblivion to the beauties of crea- tion, and drink the cup of eternal indignation with- out the consoling streams of the Savior's side ? Is this the desire of your intellectual faculties ? No. They do not wish such afflicting scenes as devils experience without a possibility of emancipation. Then, I beseech you, refrain ! The blackness of darkness is gathering around you I Soon the main- spring of free option will cease to act in your favor ; for your life is uncertain and death is near. Now the Physician stands ready to receive you with outstretch- ed arms of mercy — gladly would he pluck you as brands from eternal burnings ! He only waits ♦9 102 rice's orations. your petition ! Turn ! O turn ! while it is to- day ; for the night cometh, when no man can work out his salvation, though he may greatly fear and tremhle. Fellow sinners, we are condemned by a law that knows no pardon ! Where, then, shall we fly for escape and shield its fatal curse ? " Shall we go on in sin that grace may abound ?" " God forbid." We must fly to a Savior's bleeding veins, and for crimes committed in so long remaining adamant, and spurn- ing the way of salvation, descend the valley of holy compunction, and through faith gain justification. Our morning sun will soon pass his meridian splen- dor, and expire at that horizon which separates time from eternal pain ! A little longer, and the gloom of night will set in upon us fraught with all the ter- rors of endless death ! The howling winds shall blow over our spirits' grave, ignited with the doleful fires of the damned ! In that dreary realm, no blood of atonement will be sounded in our ears with the voice of pardon ! but lost hope shall inspire our deathless souls ! If this is the sinner's final doom, why are we not constrained by such powerful motives to commence the important work the Gospel requires ? Shall we longer remain in continual transgression, exposed to that spear which will soon lavish our blood ? Shall we rush on the fierce anger of that God, who is a consuming fire until his wrath is sealed against us with the irrevocable sentence of the flames of hell ? If some darling object of time were exposed to dan- ger, how soon would we approach for its security ? Yet, unconcerned about the surviving part, which is worth more than universal nature, that is destined to annihilation ; for when material matter shall be dissolved by fervent heat, the soul shall yet sur- vive ! Can we be so ignorant as to barter away the true riches of Heaven for the vain mammon of this world, and be forced at last to the lamentation, "The ON Christ's second advent. 103 harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." A few reflections on the immortality of the soul, and I shall leave the subject to my reader's better judgment. This mortal life is but the commencement of our being — a breath or two— we gasp in mortal agony, and begin our eternal existence. If we possess the world we inhabit, it cannot pass with us over Jor- dan ; but if we obtain the riches of Heaven they will buoy us up as we pass down the stream of time, amid the rolling ages of immortality. If poverty and affliction beset us here, death will soon close our suiferings ; but if we lose our souls, the loss sur- passes all finite comprehension. This is that end- less death, which mortal death cannot destroy. The world we inhabit, with all its fashionable grandeur, is swiftly passing away — the earth will soon grow crazy with old age, and reel on its axis like some giddy thing — the stars, like untimely figs, shall fall from heaven ; but the all conscious and deathless soul shall survive the wreck of worlds, and live in eternal future. And when another period of exist- ence as long as the world has been expires, and a thousand times as many such periods as there were moments in the first, our immortal souls shall have just begun their career. To stand on the eminence of Pizgah, and look over the river Jordan, what a prospect rushes on our vision ? Let fancy spread its wings and pursue the deathless soul through ages of bliss, sufiicient to dis- solve these clay buildings, and still progress through periods which human numbers fail to compute, until imagination is so far extended from home it can hardly be recalled ; it must give up the chase and leave the swift winged soul to explore the count- less ages of eternit}^ And when it returns to its clay prison, how inconstant appears all earthly 104 rice's orations. glory — a mere blank in the existence of the undying soul. Let imagination again spread her pinions, and follow the soul in agony through endless existence — through fires sufficient to melt down the starry worlds. One period after another passes away, as it takes its flight through the dark regions of lost spirits, then it returns, looks back on expiring mil- lions of years, as a speck in the firmament, and still hears the deathless soul in wailings exclaim, " My agony is just begun." God of mercy, save us from this eternity of woe ! The fainting mind will be inspired with the worth of the soul if it admits its eternal progression. It is very difficult to conceive of the soul's being forever in bliss or woe, without acquiring new ideas and increased capacities, which must enhance its joys in Heaven, or its pains in hell. And some por- tions of the word of God favor this opinion. I shall take it for granted, and see what an august being the soul will become that escapes the second death. Let us first observe its progression in this life, and the magnanimity it here obtains. Yesterday it was an infant in its mother's arms — to-day it is a child, and is chastised — to-morrow it becomes a philoso- pher, and receives honor of men. Let this progress be extended to millions of years, and how great has the soul magnified. Ten thousand times more dif- ference between it and a Newton, than between a Newton and a child. Mark that feature of man just opening his eyes in the morning of life ; yet that infant contains a soul that will outstrip the ranges of the most sublime intellect. That spark of eter- nal life begun will grow to the magnitude of an- gels ; and in a flood of glory swell the raptures of Heaven. ORATION V. ON SLAVERY. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. — James ii. 8. Amid the various operations of the day, Slavery stands pre-eminent on the list — is stamped with the black seal of cruelty, which eclipses the star-span- gled banner of America, and destroys her flag, on which liberty has long been falsely inscribed ; stains the Union with the brand of infamy, and calls the contempt of foreign powers upon her. England, with all her despotism and barbarity to her laborers, can affirm, with the voice of truth, " We have no slaves." The fetters of tyranny were too brutal, on bone of their bone, and flesh of their flesh, to have existence in the metropolis of the world, and were broken off by the incessant petitions of the friends of liberty, and discarded from the laws of the British kingdom. America, by turmoil and blood in her infancy, struggled for liberty from English oppression, and gained it. Yet there are laws of toleration in the American Constitution which assume a more dismal aspect than any in that kingdom from which she was emancipated. Hovv, then, can the American boast of liberty, when Slavery reigns triumphant ? Why rear the banner that bears the motto of fiction ? Why raise the cry of freedom, when the African re- mains in bondage ? Ye sons of America, blush for the treason you have committed on the flag of your liberty and the Declaration of your Independence. 106 ■ rice's orations. Lament for the iniquity you have brought upon your- selves, and the deep crimson by which you are stain- ed. Ahhough you have not all been engaged in the same personal transgressions, yet the black cloud of Heaven's vengeance will soon spread over you as a nation of criminals, and Avili pour forth its thun- der bolts of devastation and death, except you re- pent of your transgressions, and by reformation turn to God. Marvellous, indeed, that a nation which bears the name of a Republic, should destroy it by practice, and infringe upon their Declaration of Independence, which declares, " All men are born free and equal, having the same inalienable rights and privileges," and thereby render themselves obnoxious to their own authority, become exposed to the indignity of foreign powers, prove traitors to their own liberty, and aliens to the voice of freedom. Such are the beings that have stigmatized America with the black seal of infamy, and excluded from their bosom the last trait of humanity. Such are they that have robbed Africa of her sons and daughters, proved themselves hypocrites in the eyes of the world, glory in the rich productions of the sweat and blood of slaves, and pour forth their cruelty upon their unfor- tunate victims. Ye sons of America, who are not engaged in this traffic of cruelty, weep for your vile countrymen, and let your hearts and voices, in one simultaneous ejaculation, ascend to Heaven for their reform ; and with the might that God has given you, use all suitable means for their recovery. The spirit and practice of Slavery, counteract the spirit of the Gospel. And if we can prove this as- sertion, it, of course, must be an evil. If so, it must be followed with a curse. Therefore, it becomes us, as citizens of one common Republic, to destroy its baneful influence from our land, to oppose its vota- ries, and lift up our voices as friends to God and our country, with one united effort against it. It is the ON SLAVERY. 107 love of gold that holds the slave in bondage, and by it the slave-holder sells his soul : " For if any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him." The words which I have selected for the founda- tion of this discourse, are full of kind instruction. They strike the death-blow to cruelty and oppres- sion, and require man to use his fellow man as well as he does himself. This was the will of God con- cerning him in his first creation, and remains the same down to this present day. When our Savior commanded us to " Love our neighbor as ourselves,'' he did not intend we should bind him in chains, and lacerate him with stripes, until his blood ran to the ground. When he left the injunction, " Love your enemies," he did not mean we should steal them from their friends, their homes, the land that gave them birth, and bind them hand and foot, cast them into dungeons of despair, and oppress them with hunger and disease, for the want of food and the pure atmosphere of heaven, of which they have of- ten been deprived by their cruel masters. Nor did he intend they should be driven like cattle to the market, hand-cuffed and chained, and to the highest bidder sold. My reader ! behold the slave in all his gloomy ap- pearance ! See him torn by the kidnapper from his father and mother, brother and sister, children and wife, and from all the nearest and dearest ties of nature ; he is forced from his native country and borne to a foreign shore to dwell among strangers, to feel the lash of tigers who live in a land of Chris- tianity, and many of them professing the religion of the Son of God. If such be the practice of American citizens who have the name of Christians among the Gentile world, we need not marvel that the Heathen war against Christianity, when her professors are so strongly bound to the wicked one, and carry out his doctrine of high treason. Let the 108 rice's orations. slave-holder blush, nor longer profess to enjoy the true spirit of the Gospel. Africa ! ill-fated Africa ! Hard has been the lot of thy sons and daughters. Their tears have been extorted by the iron yoke of oppression, and much of that oppression has come from a nation called Republican, and recorded in the history of revolutions as the brightest Star that gilds the world. Yet this Star has been darkened by the foul prac- tice of robbery ; and what is worse than all, by the theft of human beings. Strange practice ! black with treason — in war with the God of Heaven and the laws of nature. Nothing but the long practice of Slavery could tolerate the curse and perpetuate Its brutal existence. It has been remarked by some, that Africans are unintelligent — that they were designed for slaves by the great Original of their creation — that they have a black mark upon them, showing the inferiority of their existence, and servitude was designed to be the burden of their lives. But this assertion has no foundation. Only give the African the same privileges as the American, the Irishman, or any other native on the globe, and let those privileges be handed down for a few generations, and you may see intellectual stars increased by Africans, that will do honor to the mental heavens. They will arise from their degradation of heathenism and ignorance, and act their part in the enlightened theatre of life. Others have remarked that the African cannot live by his own genius and industry, and it is better for him to be a slave than a free man. But it has been proved that the enlightened African can obtain a livelihood, and accumulate wealth, as well as the American. It is the nature of man to desire some high sta- tion in life ; and if he can gain it, he sooner rejoices in the downfall of his competitor than in his pros- perity, especially if by his overthrow he obtains his ON SLAVERY. 109 own desired eminence. Man, in the state of nature, cares nothing for just principles, any more than what contribute to his weahh and honor in this life. He would as soon rise to affluence by the degradation and servitude of others, as he would by their joy and happiness, because selfishness and envy lurk in his heart. Such is the principle of many who gain their wealth and eminence through the labor and sweat of degraded negroes, who are borne down by tyranny, live in ignorance, and in ignorance expire. No doubt some masters treat their slaves with much affection, while others use them worse than brutes. But the principle we despise ; for the very name of Slavery in a united Republic, destroys its honor and staggers the commiseration of man. The traveller, as he passes through the Southern States, has proof of amalgamation, beyond contra- diction. He sees a variety of colors, between the white man and the sons of Africa. And more than that, he witnesses the likeness of the master, his son, or driver, in the young population, in various instances. Here is a stamp of nature's God, that rises up as a swift witness against the polluted fa- ther, condemns him with infamy in this life, and a much darker stigma beyond his probationary ex- istence. Ye mothers of Israel inspired with philanthropy ! let us change the position of this deadly evil. Sup- pose you and your daughters were in the same sit- uation as the daughters of Slavery, how- would your hearts beat with agony and your spirits sink within you ! Then let your tears fall in sympathy, your petitions be presented, and all your energies combine with the population of the north and every other lover of liberty, until you reach the centre of this deadly malady. Do what you can for the healing of the nation, and if you cannot cure the disease, vou will be able to clear your skirts of innocent llood, by using all the influence God has given you. 10 110 rice's orations. Pause, my reader, and lament at the strange sig- nals of American liberty ! Behold her banner float- ing in the breeze, with false inscription, crimsoned with the blood of Africans, and marred with the chains of Slavery ! Hear her cannon roar from hill and dale, for the commemoration of Independence purchased by the blood of her ancestors, while op- pression and bondage triumph over the sons and daughters of Africa. See the sky rockets and rosin fires ascend the heavens as omens of American free- dom ; yet the friendless slave remains in perpetual bondage. Hear the shouts of triumph and liberty in voUies ascend from the white sons of freedom, while the wailing cries of the poor negroes for as- sistance, are put forth in vain. Strange reality ! which ought to make every citi- zen blush, and the slaveholder turn pale. Foul in- scriptions of liberty, black as hell, and daring as demons lost. 0, America ! vile and polluted Amer- ica I Put forth thy groans, and begin thy wailings, for the curse of God as a nation, shall come upon you for the crimes you have committed, and the be- som of his destruction will send you to the lowest hell. To the sons and daughters of this Republic, who have been favored by the King of kings above all nations on the globe, I speak ; yet, in the midst of such light, have spurned the requirements of Heaven ! how can you escape the wrath due to your crimes ? Nothing but true repentance and reform can shield you from the wrath of God and save you from your sins. We will now ask the question. Why is Slavery perpetuated in these United States ? Because the northern people bow to the south, and the slaveholder loves concupiscence and gold more than he does his God — desires to be called of men Rabbi, and to rear himself up on the downfall of others. As long as this principle remains in the majority of voters, public I ON SLAVERY. Ill opinion will never destroy the chains of Slavery. But there is a way to destroy Slavery and to make slaves — to take the yoke from one man's neck and place it on another. It is wading through seas of blood, either by foreign powers or home insurrection. And who can tell but ere long the slave shall be free and the white man brought into bondage ? But I hope such justice will be evaded by man's yielding to the terms of freedom and obeying the requirements of Heaven. Africa, long degraded in ignorance, shall be free. The cloud of darkness that has brooded over her for ages, is dispersing by the rich Gospel of the Son of God. The missionary with "Goodwill to all men," is spreading the news of salvation through her bor- ders. Her rivers and deserts, which have long been travelled by the sons of heathenism, " Begin to bud and blossom as the rose." The bright cloud of moral and divine intelligence will soon expand her golden wings over her, and her banner will be raised, on which will be inscribed. Liberty without fiction, and freedom without Slavery. " The Ethi- opian cannot change his skin, nor the leopard his spots ;" yet the blood-bought soul of the African may be made pure and comely as the white man's, e as beloved of God, and wear as bright a crown. Slavery, in this American Republic, will yet pre- vail. The master's car of pollution, in all its des- potism and death, shall still roll on. The slave ships shall spread their sails to the breeze, and bear their cargoes of flesh and blood over the blue waves, wliile the shrieks and groans from their gloomy cabins shall rend the air and break the strongest heart. Chains and hand-cuffs shall draw tears from Africans, and the dens of pollution gladden the debauchee's wicked soul. The driver's scourge and sword shall torment the negro and clothe him with his own blood. The foul practice of amalgamation shall 112 rice's orations. variegate the color and features of man. The father shall deflour his daughter and the son his sister, and rejoice in their wickedness without the fear of God. The cruelty of Slavery in all its branches, shall tri- umph over the voice of humanity, and lamentation's doleful sound be heard on our sea-beaten shores, while the wings of the wind shall bear the mourn- ful dirge over the blue Alleganies to the far-off val- ley of the west, where the same curse triumphs over Africa's sons and daughters. But the vengeance of God, though delayed, -will not always slumber. The storm of wrath is gather- ing over America, and will soon burst in seven-fold thunder and pour forth its artillery of death on the vile offender — " For he that soweth to the flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption." " And though the wicked go hand in hand, yet their sins will find them out, and they shall be punished for their ini- quities." Man may for a season escape justice, yet the time will come when his works shall be tried by fire — the fornicator judged, and if he dies without hope, will receive his final doom ; for at the end of the world, the judgment of God will be against him, saying, " He that is filthy, let him be filthy still." Nations, because they are Republican, need not think themselves impregnable. Where are the an- cient Republics ? Their sins have found them out — their crowns have been taken away, and monarchy has triumphed in their stead. In all probability, before many years expire, some unseen dagger will pierce the heart of our Constitution, and draw from her the last drop of vital blood; and on her ruins build up anarchy and death. Who knows but the sword of vengeance is already drawn, that will shake America to her very foundation? She has been guilty of the foulest crimes — driven the soil owner from his native home and possession — compelled him to flee to the Missouri, and take his residence ON SLAVERY. 113 among wild beasts and strangers ; and will soon compel him to scale the Rocky mountains, and for aught I know, he will finally make his grave in the Pacific ocean, and be forced to bid an eternal farewell to the residence of his ancestors — to the land which gave him birth. But this cannot satiate the malice of the white man ; he must continue his de- predations on the ignorant slave. Because the edu- cation of the African and Indian is inferior to his own, he glories in victory over them, for sin has filled his heart. Instead of the peaceable spirit that should inspire his soul, he possesses the animosity of a tiger, and sallies for revenge on his helpless prey. But why find fault with the cruelty of Slavery, if every thing that takes place was sanctioned by God long before man had existence. If all the transac- tions of men, and the powers that be, are immutably ordained of God, then the libertine does his will as well as the Christian, and the slave and slaveholder are fulfilling the wisdom of his eternal decrees. Therefore, it is the height of folly to censure any man for misdemeanor, since every act was con- firmed on the creature before he had existence; and he may as well undertake to create worlds, as to vary the least tittle from the predestination of God concerning him. But this black scheme of the devil to destroy the human family, cannot exist in the mind of Jehovah, any more than lost angels can be happy in Heaven. Man must be accountable to God, and if he commits sin the blame rests on his own soul ; " For by his works he shall be condemned, and by his works he shall be justified." Therefore, the slaveholder, with all saints and sinners, shall give an account of his stewardship to God; and when he is weighed in the balance and found want- mg, he must receive the bitter fruits of his own do- ings. In that day when God shall judge the world, he will find no refuge in the doctrine of eternal decrees of whatsoever comes to pass ; but will find *10 114 " whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin," and by his voluntary transgressions he must suffer the penahy of eternal death ; " for he that believeth not, shall be damned." There is but one remedy for removing the scourge of Slavery. It is repentance for holding the slave in bondage and voting to send delegates who rivet the chains of Slavery. It is the forsaking of all those vices which are degrading in their nature — brought the negro to the level of the brute creation by unjust authority, which intrudes upon the rights of God and man — shuts the cries of mercy's voice and expels the falling tear. When voters of the Northern States use their influence in deputizing men whom they know will operate in favor of Southern slave-holders, they are guilty of the same crime, stain their garments with the same dye, and must expect punishment for the same treason. There is no evasion of the crime ; for their raiment is red with the blood of their victims, which rises up as a swift witness against them. Slavery is an evil, and most degrading in its na- ture. It has spread over the negro its funeral pall for gone-by ages, has robbed him of his birthright, effaced the title of American Liberty, and stigma- tized our Republic with the foulest infamy that ever disgraced a nation of freemen. If so, let us arise from our slumber, flee to the rescue, lay side and shoulder to the wheel, until the car of freedom shall roll triumphant, and the flag of emancipation shall float on the gentle zephyrs through every star in the Union, and the poor degraded African breathe free once more. In so doing we shall prove our repent- ance and reform, and live on terms of friendship with God and man. Ye friends of liberty, who desire the emancipation of Southern slaves, lift up your voices like seven thunders against the foul blot of Slavery, which has long stained this American Republic ! Repeat your ON SLAVERY. 115 cries, and let them echo from the broad Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, and be heard over hill and valley until the hostile master withdraw his chains. Ye servants of the most high God ! ministers of the everlasting Gospel ! who believe in liberty on earth as well as in Heaven, in the fear of your Master and not of men, let the principle of Gospel freedom and the freedom of your country be heard from the sacred desk, until the poor negro shall breathe the pure atmosphere of the sons of God, and feel the true liberty of the white man. This is the just claim of Africans ; this the rich enterprise in which Heaven rejoices, and for which our fathers bled and died. Eeioice, ye worthies, who are engaged in the ex- emption of degraded Africans. Your case is one of the most just and momentous that ever inspired the breast of man. It is merciful in its nature, and is sustained by the declaration and true spirit of Hea- ven. The voice of reason and friendship recom- mend it to every heart ; and every man honestly engaged in it, proves that he loves the slave, his country, and his God. Ye devoted heroes for the liberty of Africans ! press on your way rejoicing ; be girded with the panoply of the Gospel, and your tears and petitions, in combination with the slave's, will move that arm that moves the world, and those miserable victims that are groaning under the lash of servitude and despair, will rise up and call you. blessed. And when the last retribution day of eter- nity shall award the final decision of lost men and angels, your labors of mercy shall be as stars in your crown of rejoicing, while the poor negro, freed from his chains of bondage and made rich in God, shall say amen to your salvation. And as you rise higher and yet higher still in the sublime raptures of Hea- ven, the glorious reflection on your past eflbrt to lib- erate the slave, will cheer your souls through eternal existence. ORATION VI. MISSIONARY CALL. ' Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature/ Mark xvi. 15. This injunction came from Heaven. It was the i solemn and powerful commission of the Son of God, , and was laden with realties momentous beyond de- • scription. It was given to the apostles by our Sav- ■ ior just before his ascension into Heaven, and has s ever since held its authority over every minister of the Lord Jesus, and in a fjreater or less decree on all 1 Christians. Almost every thing depends on the education of ' youth. On them is suspended the spiritual weal or r woe of our world in days j^et to be numbered. If " so, let us weigh the force of education. If the germ i is placed in just direction, it will ascend the heavens i and adorn the forest ; but if not, it will be a mere 3 nuisance among the neighboring trees. " Train up ) a child in the way he should go." said the wise man, , " and when he is old he will not depart from it." His meridian of life will be a star in the mental hea- vens, shining all about him, expelling the darkness of intellectual night, and will prove instrumental in leading immortal souls to the great Shepherd of the sheep. But if on the other hand, he be educated in sin and error, his footsteps will be marked with infamy, and he will spread the shades of midnight in every direction — poison the society in which he lives, arid lead them down to the spirit's hell. MISSIONARY CALL. 117 But the question is, how shall we educate youth for the most speedy spread of the Gospel, and con- version of the world ? Here my heart recoils ; for my pen is inadequate for the task. But through the help of Him who answers prayer, I will com- mence my theme. In the first place, the subject has strong claims on parents. Since mankind are born in sin, and sub- ject to the penalty of the divine law, the young should be taught by their parents their sad condi- tion by nature, and what they must be by grace to obtain the favor of God. Parents, with a holy zeal burning on the altar of their hearts, should urge the importance of regeneration to their offspring, and accompany it with their prayers, and a life of sin- cere devotion. They should put in action all their energies for the speedy conversion of their children ; for this is the first step of the Missionary of the cross. If a man possess all the science and riches of the world, without Christ in his barque, he wil run aground, or founder on the rocks of mortal per- dition. Again, if the worth of the souls of men be near parents' hearts, they will not confine that desire to their own bosoms, but will convey it with ardent soul to the tender minds of their children, as soon as they come to years of understanding. They will urge it on their memories time and again, as a rich memento of the Son of God, being his last Will and Testament, sealed by his dying groans on the cross, and his resurrection from the grave. They will urge on their minds the immortal worth of the souls of men, and press upon them with all the ten- der emotions and striking pathos of their hearts, a spirit of philanthropy for the world. Youth have also a claim on Sabbath school teach- ers, as well as on all christendomn. Every friend of God and man cannot fail to instruct the youth in those things that pertain to the happiness of the 118 rice's orations. world. When death shall end their parents career in this life, and they go home to the church triumph- ant, they are to become the pillars of the church militant, and adorn it by the rich reflection of the grace of God. Let the instructor have this in view, and he will use his utmost effort to improve those useful minds committed to his care, and magnify that spark of grace begun, by teaching them the re- quirements of the Gospel, and the burning zeal and persevering effort it demands for the salvation of men. He may behold in them the buds of genius beginning to expand, that will soon open in the full bloom of manhood, and become celestial stars, that will shine on man's moral darkness, until they shall wake up light in the Gentile world ; " for faith Cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." But to all persons who have " Christ in their souls the hope of glory," many of the branches of human literature are highly important, for usefulness through life. For any man whose heart is right toward God, it increases his power to do good, to grow in know- ledge. But the seminaries of education in which youth are trained ought to be selected with care. Instructors should be inspired with deep piety ; and as they teach the arts of men, they should never forget to teach the sublime art of Religion, which took its origin in Heaven, and cost the death of the incarnation of the Son of God, to make it accessible to man. In seminaries of the education of youth, Divinity should be ever kept in remembrance as well as literature, and the leading features of the Gos- pel be often repeated in the disciple's ear, that his zeal in the cause of God may not be mitigated through his term of labor to gain the arts and sci- ences. And when he obtains the rudiments of his usefulness through life, his soul may be on fire to spread the salvation of his Master's kingdom. Children should be taught to love all mankind, MISSIONARY CALL. 119 Liid to put their love in practice as fast as their means shall increase. When the riches of this world swell their stores, instead of holding their treasures with a miser's grasp, they should let their light shine to the world, and prove to be the stew- ards of God, by contributing to their brother's need. Though they cannot all sound the Gospel trumpet ; yet th§y may impart the means which God has given them to carry on the glorious work of Missionary enterprise for the conversion of the world. The name of Christian does not make one in reality ; but he that doeth the will of God. Therefore if any man will be a Missionary of Christ, he must be crucified to the world, and all he holds dear on earth must be laid upon God's altar, and there re- main at his disposal ; for it is impossible for any man to serve two masters — to hold the riches of the world in one hand, and Religion in the other. Youth should be educated to preach by example, that they be not stumbling blocks to the world, over which sinners may descend the steeps of eternal death. Moreover they should reprove the works of darkness in good faith, with all prudence, holding fast the testimony of God. As they behold sinners of every order pressing their way to the abodes of darkness, they should impart to them the kind ad- monitions of the Gospel, and entreat them by ex- postulation and tears to forsake their sins, and by repentance turn to God. The true Missionary of the Gospel may find work to do in every place. Whether he be among Gentiles, or where the Gos- pel has been preached for ages, the claims of God are upon him to do all that he can for man's salva- tion, for as long as sin aboundeth he must " cry aloud and spare not."- The youthful minds should be inspired with the necessity of missionary effort, to spread the Gospel over the world, when they consider the worth of the immortal soul. The most striking proof of the value 120 rice's orations. of the soul is drawn from the love of God to man. The eternal Divinity, after man was shut out of Par- adise, looked in mercy on his sad condition — sur- passed the wisdom of men or angels, and devised a plan for man's redemption. By the balances of his wisdom he weighed the immortal soul ! In one scale he put man's deathless spirit, and in the other piled worlds on worlds, and the all-conscioifs soul outweighed them all ! It was for this rich jewel God was manifest in the flesh — seen of angels, and preached to the world ! For this deathless prize the blood of Heaven stained the ground in Gethse- mane ! For this immortal gem destined for eterni- ty, the crimsoned stream of Jesus run down the brow of Calvary ! For this matchless worth God closed his eyes incarnate, while his voice rent the Temple — made the earth tremble, and raised the sleeping dead ! Thus Heaven died to redeem the immortal soul ! Again, missionaries should be excited to action when they consider that the Heathen world lie in darkness and the shadow of death ; since there is no other name given whereby they may be saved, but the name of Jesus, and that precious name they have never heard. Man's life is but a vapor. What ever is done by the servants of the Lord in preach- ing the Gospel, or sinners in believing the same, must be done quickly. Ever}'- moment is laden with eternal realities. The Gentile world are daily clos- ing their probationary state by thousands, without ever hearing the Gospel's joyful sound. Then let the Christian arise from his slumber, be up and do- ing while the day lasts for the conversion of the world, and when the angel of death shall end his earthly existence, " he will shine as the stars of the firmament forever and ever !" And as he surrounds the Tree of Life, that yields her fruit every month, whose leaves heal the nations, he will exclaim in honor to his great Deliverer, " here I am with the MISSIONARY CALL. 121 rich gems thou hast given me, crowned with the shining garments of the Son of righteousness, cheer- ing as the Waters of Life, and lasting as God's ex- istence." And when he shall look back on the shores of mortality, where he spent his day of grace in honor to God, toiling for man's future welfare ; the bright stars of glory, redeemed through the blood of Jesus, destined to shine in the firmament of Heaven through his instrumentality, shall ever reflect light on his soul, as they wave in banners of victory over the abode of lost spirits, in honor to the King of their salvation. And as they sing the song of redemption, and greet each other from the tops of the holy mountains, the sweet zephyrs of Hea- ven shall exhilarate his soul, as he enjoys the so- ciety of those stars in his crown of immortality ; while the silver waves of the sea of glass, that dash upon the crystal shores above, shall inspire him with rapture, as he sails in Zion's ship, wafted by the rich breezes of Heaven, on the ocean of eter- nal life ! If all this flood of glory remains for the missionary oi the cross and his converts to Jesus ; and that by the Gospel alone salvation is to "cover the globe, as the waters cover the mighty deep ;" and that man is to be the instrument to spread that Gospel over the world ; how all important that every Christian should be up and doing for the salvation of his coun- trymen, before midnight gloom shall terminate the probation of millions upon millions more ; and the spirit land of lost angels shall be their abode, among the groans and wailings of an endless night ! where no voice of mercy shall ever enter with the rich news of pardon to the sinner's ear — no blood of atonement bear on its healing wings " Salvation" through the medium of Calvary ! But instead of the cheering news of exemption, the sad cries of damned spirits shall re-echo through the dreary cav- erns of the lost, while " The smoke of their torments 11 122 rice's orations. ascendeth up forever and ever," and the cry of "Lost hope" confirms their doom in the dark prison of eter- nal death ! Awake ! ye servants of God awake ! put on the whole Christian armor — fight manfully the battles of the Lord — until lost Eden shall be restored, mankind rise from their degradation, and once more reflect the image of their Savior. Once more we infer the necessity of the spread of the Gospel, because of the eternal existence and progression of the soul in Heaven or hell. Let us consider for a moment the duration of the deathless spirit which was infused by the breath of God in the garment of mortality when man became a living soul. This miniature of God shall live forever. Yes, that spark, lit up by the great Jehovah, which is a part of his own nature, shall find no end to its existence ; sooner shall this earth crumble to ruins — the sun be darkened — the moon-turned to blood, and the stars fall from Heaven, than the soul terminate its being. Were every grain of sand on the shore a mil- lion of years, and every particle of dust in this mighty globe that million ten thousand times mag- nified, there will be a period in the future history of the spirit of man when these countless millions of years shall have passed away ; and in that far dis- tant date, beyond the reach of finite computation, the soul with astonishment will exclaim, either with the damned or saved, eternity with all its momentous realities is just begun. Again, w^e insist on the importance of the spread of the Gospel, because if the soul be lost, the loss surpasses all finite comprehension — and if it leave the body without hope in God through the merits of Christ, it can never scale the highlands of Heaven. The hell to Avhich the wicked spirit is fast hasten- ing, is a " bottomless pit" that knows no bounds of agon)\ And the very nature of the soul as well as testimony from God, indicate its eternal progression MISSIONARY CALL. 123 If SO, its torment must magnify forever. Yes, the time will appear in the future history of the lost spirit, when it shall have shed more tears, heaved more groans, and endured more sufferings, than all Adam's race down to this present moment. More than this. The time will come when the lost spirit shall have endured more agonies, than all the devils and spir- its in hell have endured since their first creation to the present hour. Nay, still more. The time will appear, when the lost soul under the wrath of God shall have suffered more torments than all the ban- ished creation of God's universe have suffered since their origin to the present now, or will suffer for millions of centuries to come. To have a full estimate of the worth of the Gos- pel and saving faith in the same, the soul must de- scend to the dreary caverns of the damned, and there spend an eternal progression in amplification of misery, and endure all the torments of the lost spirit under the execration of an offended God. More than this — he must ascend the mansions of Heaven which God has prepared for them that love him, and experience all the raptures in glory that a sanctified soul can enjoy in its eternal progression among the angels of light. If such be the immortal interests of the Gospel, how can the Christian refuse to labor for its promulgation ? Moreover, we see the necessity of the spread of the Gospel, because of the unspeakable joys of Hea- ven which are obtained by its saving efficacy. " Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man, to conceive those things which God has prepared for them that love him." Were the earth, sun, moon, and stars composed of pearl, gold, and diamonds of the most precious kind ; and we had them under our control to enjoy in all the buoyancy of youth for ten thousand years, they would be no more in comparison to the joys of Hea- ven than a feather floating in the breeze. As pro- 124 rice's orations. gresses the soul in hell, so is its progression in Hea ven ; but not in the same course. The saved souJ is approaching nearer and nearer to God, while the lost is departing from him. That soul which shall dwell in eternal life, shall arrive to a point in future existence, when it shall have more knowledge than Gabriel now has, and shall have enjoyed more hap- piness than all the saints and angels in Heaven have enjoyed down to this present moment. If such be the happiness produced by the blessed Gospel, let us labor with all the ability God has given us, for its circulation through the world. Furthermore, we plead the importance of the Gos- pel's promulgation, because it transforms the fallen soul. See that vile wretch in his moral pollution ; he spurns the ways of God, and loves the works of iniquity. The poison of death moves his tongue to utterance, and his steps take hold on the deepest hell. Mark his downward course. In the hours of midnight he revels at the chant of the viol ; sports at the gambling table ; haunts the grogshops of ine- briation ; curses the gentle hand that sustains him; steals his neighbor's gold ; and what is worse than all, takes his life. His heart is like an adamant, and his conscience seared beyond remorse. But see that child of the devil when under the influence of the blessed Gospel ; his heart melts within him, while his sins pierce his smitten soul. He looks to that Savior he once despised, and through faith se- cures his salvation. His heart leaps for joy; he be- comes anew man in Christ Jesus; a fit subject for the society of saints on earth, and a candidate for the upper sanctuary. How great the change ? Yes- terday he was under the bondage of sin ! now made free by the blood of Jesus. Yesterday, without hope in the world ! now prepared for the society of an- gels, and the church of the first born in Heaven. His tongue swells the song of thanksgiving to God, and his heart beats high for immortality. The MISSIONARY CALL. 125 friends of Jesus are his friends, and their resting place his eternal habitation. Lastly, we urge the universal spread of the Gos- pel, because it restores our lost Eden ; converts na- tions that thirst for blood to the practice of God's Revelation ; spreads the knowledge of the Savior where Paganism has long triumphed in savage cru- elty ; beats back the waves of sedition, which for gone-by ages have rolled mountains high with slaugh- ter, and on their ruins rears the flag of liberty, con- firmed by the blood of atonement and tha united Divinity of Heaven. This is peace on earth — " Good will to men " — a world restored from the dominion of satan to the worship of God. Such will be the future triumph of the Gospel; such the final salva- tion of the fallen race. Then let the nations of the earth shout aloud for joy, and pray for the day of their redemption; for the Lord God Omnipotent' reigneth ! and in him alone shall man be able to stand amid the expiring groans of nature, and the conflagration of a burning world. What more shall we say to urge the spread of the Redeemer's kingdom ? We have described the way in which it may be done. We have attempted to show the incalculable importance of its promulga- tion. What more can we say than we have already said ? "Let us work while the day lasts, for the night cometh when no man can work." Push the battle to the gate ! Use all our efforts to labor for God, that we may be instrumental in beating back the waves of darkness which will diminish that fune- ral throng which are daily plunging the fires that never shall be quenched. In so doing we may be able to extinguish the cry of neglect at the judgment day; be approved of God, and wear a heavenly crown. This, fellow youth, is the will of God concerning us ; this the only way to save our countrymen from devour- ing fire, and secure our own salvation amid conflicting elements and the decision of the last judgment. *11 ORATION VII. ON AUTUMN'S FADING GLORY. The grass withereth and the flower thereof falleth away."— Peter i. 25. When we cast our eyes around us on the works of nature's God — when we behold the luminary of day giving radiance to the world, from whose light vegetation springs into existence — when we see hills and valleys, rivers and oceans, smiling with the lux- uries of man — we lift our grateful eyes to Heaven in adoration to the Great Original of all these earth- ly glories. But again our eyes traverse the same landscape, and in quick flight survey the creation of God : And lo ! the scene is changed — the glories of Autumn are blasted by the frosts of Winter, and the general appearance of earth's amphitheatre is inverted for the gloom of death : and at the sight we marvel that all these glories are thus conquered by the fell tyrant, and behold in them the likeness of man's mortality. Again we lift up our eyes to Heaven and worship God ; for by the sacred tes- timony we believe, " Though man dies, yet shall he live again, for death shall no longer have do- minion over him." Thus mankind survive Au- tumn's fading glory, and live when the works of nature die. But the powers of mental attraction draw us to ancient ruins and revolutions. We look for them among the departed glories of former centuries ; and often treasure them up as the choicest portion of our early attainments. It were a jubilee to amuse our- ON autumn's fading glory. 127 selves by walking over the desolation of Thebes ; surrounding its pyramids, and mounting to their sum- mit. It were worth days of turmoil to enter the city of rock, the fortress of Edom, that we might obtain a fragment from the crumbling Avreck of structures, which cost the toil of ages. We could willingly spend days and months in exploring for some me- mento of Tadmor in the forest; or of Babylon, or of Nineveh, that great city of " three days' journey," in which God's servant preached. But we may read the death-knell of every earthly glory, and those devotees who shared a part in raising the mighty structures, which seem to challenge the gnawing tooth of time, by looking into the mirror of expir- ing nature, spread out before us at this Autumnal season. Let us ascend some lofty summit, survey the broad landscape, and behold the fading glories of the dy ing year. See the beauties of that shroud now ex- panded before us in all the splendor of golden hues ; in all the grandeur of sculpture, sketched and filled out by the hand of Him who transcends the skill of the ablest artist. I see the garments of death im- pending through every pathway of life. I see the rays of light as they fall from the king of day upon the dying habiliments of nature, and thoughts come pressing on at the spectacle, such as I would cherish when the sun shall have withdrawn his light, and this clod of mortality have relinquished the spark that gives it life. It is no fiction that excites my at- tention, as I survey nature's dying theatre. It is no bubble that I grasp when I commune with Autumn's final groans, as she expires in the agonies of death. No ; it is a solemn reality, that must soon thwart the path of every man, for " All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field." Awake, then, my soul ! come out of the depths of apathy ! retire from the busy crowds of life, and hold fellowship with God through the 128 rice's orations. works of nature, now exposed to the view of dying millions. Who can survey the fading glories of the season, and not feel his own corruption ? It is humbling to one elated with high expectations and fond hopes, that the very leaf he treads beneath his feet, is em- blematical of his own mortality. Pause, then, ye Alexanders, and meditate your own departure — ye who would conquer nations and subdue kingdoms : pause, ye mortals, who would ascend the summit of glory, or grasp the dross of time, that ye may be like some ancient monarch — the fading leaf is under your feet ; stoop down, and with it hold communion. See through the emblem of that leaf, where the giant arm has been withered, and become too weak to contend with children , where ambition, with a brow of adamant, and breast of savage cruelty, has sought with importunity a few drops of water to quench its thirst ; and where thoughtless gaiety, that drove " wisdom out of life," cries out with the dying queen, " Millions of money for a moment of time !" Would you estimate the number of those beings who have played in this theatre of human action, and learn the end of their fading glory? go count the leaves of the forest as they fade away, and tell the aggregate when sum- med up in one vast column too great for human com- putation. Such is the frailty of human life when contem- plated by the records of truth on this Autumnal oc- casion. Who among us will be spared another year, and to whom does dying nature speak, in the dark shade she now decks herself, to prepare to imitate ler, clad in funeral robes, before another season shall roll round ? Cast your eyes over this dying world, and see what vernal plants will survive the frosts of winter — what tree in the meridian of life, and what of riper years ? Had such a request been made at the last Autumn, would you have selected ON autumn's fading glory. 129 those who have been borne to the marble field dur- ing the year that has past ? For whom, then, does nature hold out her last warning, as she scatters the arrows of death among the children of men ? Is it for the young man or woman, or is it for the father or mother that watched over their infancy ? Disre- gard the voice of the living preacher if you will; let the admonitions imparted from the sacred desk, gathered from the book of Nature, of Providence, and of God, be forgotten ; but harken ye to the dy- ing voice of Autumn, as she pleads with you in all the pathos of kind devotion, for the appearance of her countenance calls up the liveliest emotions of a soul that never gets weary while contemplating her fading glories. Enchanting Nature ! I love thee with all thy vernal beauty ; and through thy rich intelligence by fields of living light, I hope ever to study the character of God. The fading flowers which now clothe the banks of the streams and val- leys ; and the variegated and sublime scenery spread out upon the hills and mountains, in one general combination and touching pathos, set in upon my soul. At this shrine of Nature, my stony heart shall melt, and often pay her tributary tears. Shall we remain unmoved at the sombre notes of sacred melody, which have so often vibrated in God's leafy temple ? Shall we keep silent, while the sil- ver scaled fish and the feathered songsters, dumbly speak the praise of God ? Let us search the works of Nature and listen to the requiem now sung by the organ of the universe in accents of the deepest melody. And as our minds contemplate the rivers of time, which bear upon their bosoms many of the broken fragments of life — as they pursue their wind- ing courses to the great receptacle of all streams — let not our careless stupidity or the sin of age close our ears against the warning voice of such monitors. May we not stand forth in the field of life like 130 the mountain oak, hardened by the frosts of seventy- winters ? See that tree, towering above its fellows, and remaining obdurate amid the sunshine and storm of almost a century. Since it began to live, many of its neighboring trees have fallen and crumbled to dust. There it stands, challenging every means which Heaven has thrown around it for its fall. God would have nourished it with the rich graces of Heaven for his own Eden, and transplanted it upon the banks of the "River of Life ;" but repeated mercies and threatenings have been disregarded. Lo ! these many years the Benefactor of life has been seeking fruit upon it, but found none. Oh, woodman, spare this aged tree ! nor let the Savior plead in vain. The fading glories of Autumn are not only em- blematical of our own mortality, but of the crush of matter and final wreck of worlds. This earth, which has stood for ages, and braved the revolutions of time, must grow weary by old age, deviate in her course, and expire by the fires of the last day ! The sparkling stars of heaven that have long glittered on the mantle of night, must fall from their sockets like the leaves of Autumn ! The vast luminary of day, that gives light to the planetary system, shall be darkened by the wrath of God, and swell the fu- neral dirge of dying worlds ! The silver moon, with her dim rays, which have so long dispelled night's dreary curtain, shall be turned to blood ! Amid this scenery of dying Nature, I see worlds on worlds expiring in the agonies of death ! For thus saith the Lord, "The sun shall be darkened — the moon turned to blood — the stars shall fall from heaven, and the earth pass away." O, my God ! in this final scene of ruin, secure me from thy wrath, and give me a hiding place in thy salvation. May the works of Nature, which have been pre- sented for our consideration, excite us to adore the Fountain of all our mercies ; and as the day closes THE devil's preaching. 131 by leaving its rays on the fading mountains, thus calmly may the writer and reader meet the Autumn of life. And when these barques of mortality shall be dissolved and enter one common sepulchre, may they, like the returning spring, be reanimated by the trump of the first resurrection, and awake in all the beauty of the rich sumbeams of the Son of God, and range the fields of light in the undying glories of the upper sanctuary. ORATION VIII. THE DEVIL'S PREACHING. 'And the Serpent said unto the woman, ye shall not surely die. Genesis iii. 4, The word of God is a source of vast instruction , it confirms to man the origin of his creation, his primitive state of innocence, and his apostacy from the commands and approbation of his God. We learn from the Bible, that man was stationed in the Garden of Eden, endowed with authority to partake of all its delicious fruits, except that of one tree, which he was prohibited to partake of under the penalty of death. In this delightful paradise our first parents remained happy, until a certain preacher in his pilgrimage appeared to them, destroyed their happiness by his prevailing effort in preaching to them a lie — " Ye shall not surely die." " She plucked — she ate." Mankind were lost — earth felt the wound, Groaned to her centre, and in pangs expired. 1^ This preacher has various titles given to him in the Scriptures ; but his most common name is the Devil. He was the instrument in destroying our first parents, as is evident from many passages of Scripture. Like an angel of glory he was once fill- ed with the light of Heaven, and to preach such doctrine he did violence to his own knowledge. He is an eminent preacher; he had existence long before men were created, and introduced the first falsehood ever preached to man, and by whose guile our first parents sunk beneath the curse of the law. Almost six thousand years he has been pro- claiming the same doctrine in its various forms, de- stroyed multitudes of the human family, and led them down to the second death. This preacher has much cunning. When the sor- cerer endeavored to turn away the people from the faith of the Gospel, he is called the " child of the Devil, and full of all manner of subtlety." This was not only on the account of his being an enemy of all righteousness, but in his manifesting his carnal cun- ning in destroying the souls of men. His labors are unabating ; his deception and zeal have been perpet- uated ever since the creation of man. The apostle compares him to a roaring lion, " walking about seeking whom he may devour." His answer to the question of the Lord, was " From going to and fro in the earth." His bounds are very extensive — he ranges through earth and hell, and his desires are to increase his numbers in his black domain. This preacher is heterogeneous. He lays hold of both truth and error to secure his victims. When he promised the Savior all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, this poor devil possessed not a foot of land in the universe. Thus we see his deception in all his branches of hypocrisy. In his preaching he uses great presumption. When God had declared in the plainest terms, *' Thou shalt surely die," this audacious deceiver had the impu- THE devil's preaching. 133 dence to oppose the declaration of God, and proclaim his own falsehood, "Ye shall not surely die." Thus he proved himself a liar by his own assertion, coun- teracting the declaration of Heaven. This preacher is successful in his labors to obtain numbers. Multitudes follow after him. He was successful with our first parents, and the old world. While Noah preached the righteousness of God to the spirits in prison, and the curse of disobedience, " Thou shalt surely die," this old deceiver would preach " Ye shall not surely die," and the people followed after him, and were destroyed. So, Avhen Lot preached to the Sodomites, " Up, get ye out of this place, for the Lord will destroy this city;" but they obeyed the old deceiver, who told them that Lot's preaching was false — there was no danger, " Ye shall not surely die." They obeyed his voice, and mocked at the preaching of Lot, and when the righteous fled from the city sudden destruction came upon them, and according to Jude, they are now "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." ,The doctrine of this preacher was universal sal- vation, " Ye sha]l not surely die." False and dar- ing assertion ! Not the least proof to confirm it ! The punishment contained in God's threatening, was doubtless eternal death, as nothing but this would represent God's extreme hatred of sin, or de- mand an infinite atonement to make reconciliation between God and man. If temporal death be the curse, then believers in Christ are not delivered from it ; for the Christian dies as well as the sinner. Therefore, the sentiments of'this universal preacher is no hell — no danger of eternal damnation — the wages of sin is not death, but eternal life. We will notice the person addressed in the text. It was a woman, called by an apostle, " the weaker vessel." " And the Serpent said unto the woman, ye shall not surely die." The reason he addressed Eve, v/as, because he thought she would not be as 12 134 rice's orations. firm against the temptation as the man, and in all probability would fall in with his fatal deception ; doubtless he embraced the opportunity in the absence i of her husband. This deceiver has had great suc- cess among the dark and ignorant portions of man- ^ kind. His kingdom is that of darkness, and he hates { the true light by which he fell from Heaven. Faukj describes him and his works, " For of this sort are ■ they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly- women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts." ' Again he declares: " Now, I beseech you, brethren,, mark them which cause divisions and offences con-- trary to the docrine which ye have learned, and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our • Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches, deceive the hearts of the simple." The Devil is a foe to all goodness and happiness. He even desires the misery of the brute creation. He gloried in tormenting the swine when he entered into them, and his main object is the torment of all) creation. The old Serpent, before he began to preach his doc- trine, was a cunning and happy creature ; but now all his beauty and glory have departed. The im- precation of God is upon him ; for the Lord said unto him, " Thou art cursed above every beast ; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all) the days of thy life." We see his cunning duplicity in this manner — for the Devil gets both the preacher and hearers. Sa- tan has many agents under him to do his will, be- cause his dominions are extensive ; and as he is a created being, he can exist only in one place at a time. We will now consider the instrument made use of by the preacher. It was a serpent ; but why should the Devil preach through a serpent ? To save his own name and the better complete his THE devil's preaching. 135 purposes. Had he appeared to the woman un- masked, she would with more ease have discerned his deception. The reality of eternal damnation is at times so clearly enstamped on the mind, that even the Devil sometimes confesses there is a hell; yet at other times he denies it. He desires to hide his lies from his prey, that he may with more ease secure it and save his own real character, which is black with treason, and full of all manner of hypocrisy. This same Devil that preached through the ser- pent to Eve, is still preaching the same falsehood, " Ye shall not surely die." Universal salvation, with a multitude of his other deceptions, has been his theme through all the generations of mankind, down to this present day. This doctrine is not new, but old and devilish. This is the ground why it should be rejected. The reason why Satan hates the Bible, is, because it proves him a liar, and de- stroys his false position when it says, " Go ye in- to all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved ; and he that believeth not shall be damn- ed." We see why Satan used such efforts to con- vince our first parents there was no hell, because he was afraid they would believe the truth of God and obey it, and be forever blessed with all their race, and he be damned alone, Avith all his fallen angels. If future punishment be not true, the Devil would be a fool to be so anxious to convince people there is none; for it is his nature to lie. "And when he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of himself, for he is a liar and the father of it." We infer from the text that ministers should not be proud of their preaching, especially if they preach the Devil's doctrine, for they only use his old ser- mon, "Ye shall not surely die." preached. by him almost six thousand years ago. This system of uni- versal salvation will prevail, for it well suits the 136 RICE S ORATIONS. wicked inclinations of man ; and the Devil, its au- thor, is not yet superannuated, nor will he be, until the commissioned angel of God " shall descend from Heaven with a great chain in his hand, and shall bind him and cast him into prison." Then shall his preaching die and his followers be no more on earth, " For all men shall know the Lord, from the least to the greatest." Every effort used against this universal preacher only excites his envy and enrages his black designs for the final destruction of the souls of men. If the Devil's scheme of universal salvation is true, and there be no possibility of eternal damnation, the heralds of that doctrine are inconsistent in using such exertion to publish their belief to mankind, for it mat- ters not what their faith and actions maybe, the Gos- pel net will finally bring them all into the New Jer- usalem, and a new song shall be put into their mouths, even praise to God. If this plan of the Devil is true, its votaries counteract common sense when they spend their money to support their preachers, and spread their principles with no avail ; for the unbeliever is as sure of eternal salvation as the believer, therefore man needs no knowledge in faith or practice to be saved. Again : If the Devil's preaching be true, the Bi- ble is false. Man may better believe in nothing future than to believe the words of the Devil, be- cause there is no truth in him, The precept of the Savior and that of Satan have no fellowship ; for the preaching of Satan is the universal and eternal salvation of all men, while that of the Sa- vior is eternal salvation for the righteous and eter- nal damnation for the wicked, because this is the testimony of the word of God : " He that sinneth against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation." Such a place THE devil's preaching. 137 therefore must exist, or there can be no danger of it. Again, saith Jesus: "Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire." Here the Greek word in the origi- nal is the same when applied to the saints as to the sinners ; so if there be an eternal Heaven for the righteous, there must be an eternal hell for the wick- ed. From scripture testimony, we have the same reason to believe one as the other; and to believe otherwise, is to prefer the preaching of Satan to that of the Lord ; to choose the works of the Devil in preference to the Gospel of the Son of God. This is the way the old Serpent and his preachers destroy the children of men, and lead them on in blindness down to eternal death. As the uncautious dove is taken by the springing of the net, so are sinners caught by Satan, and many of them will remain with eyes blinded, until they are opened among devils and damned spirits in the flames of hell, " Where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." To some, these may be hard sayings, but they are such as the word of God proclaims to man. If the Serpent's scheme of universal salvation be true, how inconsistent for Noah to warn the people of the impending storm that would soon burst on their devoted heads, when in that moment they perished their souls would receive " a far more ex- ceeding, and eternal weight of glory ?" And while they were basking in the full blaze of the Son of righteousness, Noah was left for many years to bear the burden of this life, losing for a season, at least, the unspeakable bliss of Heaven, which those vile transgressors, who had often railed on him and their God, were already enjoying. Righteous Lot must also have been exceedingly unwise, when he warn- ed the people of Sodom and Gomorrah to flee God's approaching vengeance, or to escape with his wife and two daughters from the city ; when in that mo- 12 138 rice's orations. ment brimstone and fire should descend from clouds surcharged with death, the soul with the speed of thought would leave her clay building and soar to the abode of cherubim, to magnify forever in the unspeakable bliss of Heaven. Thus we see the sooner the saint or sinner dies, the quicker his hap- piness is confirmed in all the glories of the upper world. According to the scheme of general salvation, no man has any reason to fear the change produced by death, but rather rejoice in it; for it accelerates his eternal life. The most hostile murderer that treads the green earth, has reason to give thanks to God that he is more expert than other men in opening the door of Heaven to his victims, and thereby in- cur the penalty of the law to hasten his own salva- tion. The vilest champion that ever lived has done the greatest good ; because he has hastened the eter- nal happiness of millions, and shortened their earthly sorrows, by producing their untimely death ; dried up the widow's and the orphan's tears, and made them rejoice that their relatives have speedily reach- ed the port of eternal rest. This is universalism in its plainest terms ; the preaching of the Serpent, in- spired with the poison of hell. This system of the Devil encourages mankind to carry out the propensities of human nature, without any motive to restrain their career. The liar can deceive his fellow men by his falsehood, without any fear of a future judgment. The swearer can rail on his God by his impious blasphemy, with a heart of adamant, fearless of the justice due to his crimes. The debauchee can glory in his iniquity ; yet have confidence in his future salvation. The robber that steals from his neighbor, has no remorse for his sins ; but, with a hope big with immortality, climbs Jacob's ladder and scales the highlands of Heaven. The tale-bearer that scatters the seed of con- tention, and proves himself a foul whelp of sin, casts THE devil's preaching. 139 his anchor within the vail, and feels his barque secure against the quicksands of death. The foulest being that lives on the footstool of God, guilty of murder, theft, and blasphemy, and every wicked act man can commit, may look with confidence on the blood of atonement, without repentance on the shores of time, and with unshaken hope call Jesus his Savior, and Heaven his eternal home. But why this great sal- vation for such a list of unconverted sinners, because the old Serpent says there is no hell — " Ye shall not surely die ?" Such is the black scheme of the Devil to intrude on the premises of God and the rights of man ; such his cunning to deceive Adam's lost race, until the day of mercy is closed against them, and they made fast by chains of God's wrath in the prison of eternal death. Awake, my soul ! and nil that is within me, against the intrusion of Satan's kingdom upon the just claims of God on the human race. All preachers and believers in universal salvation, have built their house upon the sand. And if their hearts are as vile as their creed is false, they stand on the verge of an endless hell ; on which, if they remain until death shall sunder soul and body, the abode of lost angels will be their habitation forever. For the Judge shall ascend his throne, " And before Him all nations shall be gathered together ; and He shall separate them one from another, and put the goats on the left hand ;" then shall He say unto them, "Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, pre- pared for the Devil and his angels." If the principles advanced be founded on the Bible, how presumptuous for any man " to believe a lie that he might be damned." This life is the time for men to awake from their lethargy and put on the gar- ments of truth and honesty, for " The night cometh, when no man can work." These few hints of caution I publish to that part of the human race who are yet on this side the river 140 rice's orations. Jordan, in possession of probationary ground, that they may flee from the Devil's preaching while it is called to-day, before they plunge the second death, where the atonement by a Savior's blood shall never enter with the voice of pardon, but the bitter wail- ings of the second death be closed upon them for- ever. Then, my reader, it will be too late to obtain salvation, for the summer will be past, the harvest ended, and the immortal spirit damned. This is the truth of Heaven — the sure declaration of the word of God. We learn that the Devil's preaching of universal salvation is dangerous in the extreme ; that it is one of the greatest libels that ever intruded on the word of God or the souls of men. It is the master-piece of Satan's devices, and the greatest cunning he ever used for the final destruction of the human race. By this game of deception, the eyes of multitudes have been closed in darkness until their day of mer- cy was passed, and their glaring eyes opened for the first time on the flames of hell, to wail in agony " in the blackness of darkness forever." If men, by this false scheme, are so unwise as to lose their souls, how great must be their loss — how great their lamen- tation ? At death their accounts will be sealed up for damnation, and for them there will be no reprieve. Too late they will cry out in the despair of their souls, " O, that I had been wise; that I had understood this ; that I had considered my lat- ter end." My reader ! this may be the last oration I shall ever offer to my fellow-travellers through life's dreary pilgrimage. And if such it may prove, be assured of this one thing, in whatever I have published I have had an eye single for man's temporal and eter- nal welfare. It has been my intention to clear my skirts of the blood of all men. And whether the drunkard, warrior, slaveholder, or any other being who deviates from the requirements of Heaven, will I THE devil's preaching. 141 near my admonitions or reject them, I have felt un- willing to enter the dreary sepulchre and sleep the long sleep of death, without leaving my last intel- lectual Will and Testament, sealed by the spirit of friendship for the happiness of my countrymen. My existence on earth is like the visionary dream, and will soon terminate forever. Ere long, I and my reader must stand before the great white throne, receive our final retribution, and inherit eternal life with the holy angels of Heaven or plunge the fires of endless damnation to wail with devils lost. Solemn realities ! laden with the momentous weight of im- mortal existence. * THE AUTHOR'S FAITH. Article 1. I believe in one uncreated, omnipotent, and eternal God, the creator and preserver of all worlds, existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Article 2. That God created man holy, left him to the freedom of his own choice ; that he sinned against God, and brought death upon himself and all his posterity. Article 3. " That by the disobedience of one man, judgment passed upon all men unto condemna- tion ; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life." Article 4. " That except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God ; for that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit." Article 5. That the Lord will reign on earth one thousand years ; at which time Satan shall be bound, and all mankind shall know the Lord from the least to the greatest. Article 6. That the earth shall be destroyed by fire, " And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." Article 7. That the Son of Man shall come in great power and glory to judge the world, and before Him all mankind shall be gathered together, and he shall separate the righteous from the wicked, and send the wicked into everlasting punishment, and receive the righteous into life eternal. Article 8. That the Lord has but one spiritual church on earth, composed of all those persons who have Christ in the soul the hope of glory. POETICAL INTRODUCTION. Go, richest boon my soul has power to give, On mercy's pinions through earth's regions fly; Tell the lost sinner he in Christ may live, And pluck the fruit of Life's fair Tree on high. Direct the alien to his risen God ; Urge him to leave the road that leads to hell ' Tell him this day to flee his Father's rod ; To-morrow he may wail where demons dwell. Point the sad mourner to that living beam. That shines through Him who did for sin atone Inspire his soul by that all-healing stream. That gushes forth from God's immortal throne. Then shall the writer of this little book Rejoice to see his work by Jesus blest; To feel the virtue of that smiling look. Which bears the spirit to eternal rest. God of all grace, send thy rich blessings down, Cheer up the reader's and the writer's heart ; May all the lost be wise to wear a crown Which thy free grace is waiting to impart. Then shall the glory to thy name be given. For thou art worthy — thou alone canst save , Thou art the true and living Way to Heaven, The only God that rescues from the grave. I 144 rice's rOETRY. GOD. O, Thou celestial King ! whose ample light Doth occupy all space, all nature guide; Immutable through time's destroying flight; The true and living God — there's none beside: King above all kings — the Omnific One, Whom saints and angels never can explore, Who. spoke creation, and the work was done; This is our Father — we this God adore. Philosoph}' , in research most sublime. May weigh the ocean and describe the star, But no skill in prose, or the poet's rhyme, Surve3^s our plastic Monarch in his car. Mysterious God ! Reason's brightest spark, Kindled by light from Thee, in vain would try To know thy wisdom infinite and dark ; Or search the ways of thy eternity. O God ! from non-existence thou didst call, First chaos — then all creation — from Thee Eternity took its boundless name — all Things created came from Thee — harmony, Life, light, bliss, thou art the origin— ^thine All glory is, for thou doest yet create; — Thy vivid rays inspire all space divine ; Thou God of light — sustaining Potentate. Thy arms the boundless universe surround ; Sustained by Thee — by thee inspired with breath ! Thou all creation in thy chains hast bound, And strangely sown the seeds of life and death. A As sparks ascending in the nitrous blaze ; *5 So sun and moon were born — stars sprung from Thee ; And as those orbs extend their fulgent rays, Like floods of silver I thy glory see. Unnumbered worlds created by thy hand. Wind their vast courses through the blue abyss, I rice's poetry. 145 Adore thy power, obey thy dread command, Teeming with life, and all complete with bliss. What are their names ? orbs of celestial light — A golden multitude of brilliant streams — Tapers of purest air — in lustre bright — Supernal suns with all their splendid beams. Just like a drop of water in the sea, In Thee, all this unequalled glory's lost ! What are the starry worlds compared to Thee ? And what am I with thy celestial host ? Though my immortal spirit be arrayed In all the rapture of angelic thought, ' Tis but a speck when in thy balance weighed, Compared to Thee, is but a cypher brought. Yet I'm the essence of thy light divine, Thy brilliant worlds inspire my bosom too, And on my heart doth thy blest spirit shine, As shines the sun upon the morning dew. I live, and move, and on thy mercy fly. Thy matchless love unites my soul to Thee j I ever feel thy quick'ning presence nigh, Which draws me on to thy Divinity. Thou art the sole Director of my heart ! let my wand'ring spirit learn of Thee ; Thy boundless mercy to my soul impart ; Though but a speck in thy immensity ! Yet I must live, since fashioned by thy hand, And rank above the fallen sons of earth ! Short is my stay among this mortal band ; Soon I'll ascend where angels have their birth. Infinite God ! thou did'st my soul create. And stamp in me a spark of endless life ! 0, save my spirit from lost angels' fate; Bear it above the woes of dying strife ! Escort me on the pinions of strong faith O'er Jordan's waves, and help my spirit rise Above this rolling sphere, by truth which saith, "Believe in God," and soar the upper skies. 13 146 rice's poetry. Creative being is in me complete, Though my frail dust of lowest order sigh; My step is onward to an angel's seat ; — I guide the lightnings as they madly fly ! A worm am I ! — yet spirit in my flight I Strangely constructed by some plastic Sire, Whose name is God, — the omnipresent light; Transporting aliens to a seraph's lyre. The stern commission of thy voice "Be still," The lightning's thunder with terrific sheen, — The bounding ocean and the flowing rill. Declare thy glory! — though a God unseen. The strange construction of the creature man, — All grades of life that through creation run, Confirm thy wisdom in its Godlike plan ; And prove thy nature and thy name is one. Thou art that God, who sympathized and wept With sisters, mourning at their brother's tomb. Thy voice awoke a Laz'rus, who had slept Four days a corse beneath the tyrant's doom. Though my frail dust in sundry atoms fly On curly winds, or float the beaten strand ; Yet shall 1 hear thy mandate from on high, "Arise, ye dead," and wing the spirit land. Yes, though I die, I sure shall rise again Amid the raging of our globe on fire ; And meet a world condemned because of sin, To feel the sentence of thy flaming ire. When thou shalt sit upon thy throne, God ! And call the dead around thy judgment bar, let me feel thy all-sustaining nod. And through thy Son be safe in Zion's car. Of thoughts unspeakable my soul is blest ! Though feeble my perception, Lord, of thee; Long shall thy fadeless glory fill my breast. And bear my homage to thy Deity. Father ! to thee alone my thoughts can soar ; Thou art my rock, my shield, and strong defence ; rice's poetry. 147 By lIij vast works tlij wisdom I adore, And call thee Father, God, Omnipotence. ACKOSTIC OX OKRA RICE. 0...n thy hopes of youthful fancy, R...ushing o'er earth's chequered scenes, R...ose a Star in full-orbed glory, A. ..11 bedecked with golden beams. R...est then graced thy dove-like features, I...nnocence inspired thine eye ; C.onflicts all with thee were over, E...v'ry tear and ev'ry sigh. SEEKING GOD EARLY. Come when the glory of thy years is brightest, Thou young sojourner in this lonely maze ; Come, when thy youthful heart is beating lightest, And God the Spirit sheds his purest rays ; Come, when thy thoughts the gems of life are holding, Which wake up glory in thy sinful breast ; Come, when the saving tide for thee is rolling. Drink of the fountain which secures thy rest. Soon will the vigor of thy youth be over. Thy days be past, thy spirit left forlorn ; Pleasure will lose her plume, and every lover Will to the region of the grave be borne ; Those who have blessed thee will .have passed the river, Their hearts of friendship shall be lost to thee ; Then wilt thou need from the Almighty Giver, That balm which heals and sets the sinner free. Come, while thy youthful blood is freely flowing Ere thy vain dreams of fleeting fancy die : 148 rice's poetry. Come, ere the spell mankind are round thee throwing, Fades like the sunbeam in the western sky. This life's a phantom, but the hope of glory Lights up thy pathway with a cheerful ray; 0, touch the sceptre, and repeat the story, Jesus my Savior washed my stain away. Then will the sorrows of this brief existence Seem naught but bubbles to thy raptured soul ; Thy race is fleeting, short will be the distance, Until thy spirit hail its final goal. Land of the pilgrims ! where all Heaven is ringing, And spirits linger in unfading bliss ; Where ransomed minstrels are with angels singing, Who would not come and seek a land like this ? "I WILL NOT LET THEE GO." Begone my unbelieving fear ! And in my heart no more have place ; My Jesus to my soul appear, Display the triumphs of thy grace j Dear Lord I cannot let thee go. And to the raging tempter yield, No, guarded, by my Savior, no, I never will give up my shield. What if the vine no fruit shall yield, The olive branch produce no oil ? The fig tree wither in the field, The earth evade the farmer's toil? What if the stall no herd afl^ord. And all the bleating race shall die? Yet will I claim the Gospel sword, And on faith's eagle pinions fly. What if my soul unfruitful be, And in my heart no grace appear ? No fruit for all my toil I see ? But sin and nauo^ht but sin is here. rice's poetry. 149 What if God's love to me is gone, And left my smitten heart to bleed ? Yet Jesus will not leave forlorn My soul to die, but shall it feed. By faith I claim my Savior's love ! His love my stricken heart shall bless ; His quick'ning spirit from above. Shall robe me with his righteousness : To me his mercy shall be nigh : By faith I'll soon outride the gale, And soar to mansions far on high. Where Satan shall no more assail. ALL THINGS MORTAL. A rose-bud blossomed on her stem, The queen of Flora's rich domain, She wore her matchless diadem. Most graceful of the blooming train; But eve came on with freezing breath, And ere the morning light of day, Her glories by the blast of death. And vernal beauties passed away. Lo ! when the morning graced the sky, I saw the harmless virgin's love ; 13 150 rice's poetry. Her charming voice with angels vie, S Her passions harmless as the dove : " But when the evening shades appear'd I saw her visage pale as clay ; In hasty flight she disappeared, And all her glory passed away. I saw the giant's lofty form, Like some strong tower where tempests blow, That braves the rao^inor of the storm, And firm retains its base below. Again I looked with piercing eye. His mighty strength had lost its sway; | He told me he must shortly die — ' And soon by death was borne away. I looked, and lo ! with deep surprise. This earth had no enduring grace ; Nothing to make man's spirit wise, No power to save the fallen race. I asked the grave, and it replied, Mankind must to my sceptre fall; All ancient ages groaned and died, The curse of God has passed on all. THE FINAL WRECK OF WORLDS. Awake, my soul, to future prospects ! Sing creation's dismal groan, Final scene foretold by prophets, Scene that makes all nature mourn : O ! what wailing, what confusion, Will the sinner's heart inspire ; What dismay, distress and sorrow. Reign when worlds dissolve in fire. Forked lightning, dismal thunder, ' Thwart the gloom in awful glare, Nature to her centre trembling. Makes affrighted sinners stare. RICE S POETRY. 151 Tow'ring rocks and crumbling mountains, On their firm foundations quake; Worlds on worlds heave to their centre, And their final groans partake. Oceans deep in dread commotion, Rage about their frightful shores ; Frantic winds in awful fury, Round each crumbling fabric roars. King of day is cloth'd in sackcloth, In deep mourning stands afright, Silver moon has lost her glory. Orbs on orbs are dress'd in night. Brilliant stars in lustre shining. Twinkling on the nightly robe, From their orbits hurl'd expiring, Each a dark and ruin'd globe. Lo ! the final trump is sounding, Sunders wide the azure sky, Direful wrath of God resounding. Countless worlds in mourning die. MISSIONARY HYMN. Come, my friends, and gather round me, All your ofl^^'rings freely bring, Pledge yourselves when waves surround me, You will pray to Christ, your King ; And when o'er the deep blue waters I shall preach a Savior's love, Pray that I and China's daughters May be harmless as the dove. Christ has said of ev'ry nation, Where the wave of sin doth roll, I will spread my great salvation. To set free the deathless soul ; China's gates are now expanded. Let us go and take the field. 152 rice's poetry. Strongest chains will be disbanded, And the works of darkness yield. What though kindred ties are broken, And the bitter tear must fall, When the " well done " Master's token, I'll with joy each scene recall ; I will fear not, God will save me, He will guide me o'er the deep, His all-cheering grace he'll give me, And my soul from danger keep. WASHINGTON'S FUNERAL DIRGE. *' Our Hero's dead, a doleful sound," Deep gloom enshrouds the fun'ral hall ; Dark waves of sorrow beat around. And tears of grief in mourning fall; Our Union bleeds from ev'ry vein ; Her Patriot lives on earth no more. Our Chieftain cruel death has slain, And left him sleeping in his gore. He led our armies in the field, And made the hostile Britons quail; God's favor was his giant shield. For by his strength he did prevail: He broke oppression's iron rod. And said " My people shall be free ;" And by the plastic arm of God, He raised the flag of liberty. By wisdom deep the British yoke He drove from our auspicious land ; All foreign chains by him were broke As he led forth the infant band ; The genius of his matchless skill Oft saved his men from wounds and death ; They were obedient to his will, Extolled him with their latest breath. ?.ICE's rOETRY. 153 The Man who did his country save From threatened bondage and despair, Lies cold and silent in the grave, Which long shall hold its victim there : His fame shall live, though he's no more, While wheels of time shall roll around ; His name shall spread from shore to slice, With lasting honors shall be crowned Mount Vernon is his resting place, The winds are howling o'er his tomb A monument his ashes grace. As he partakes our common doom. America, dry up your tears ; God will your land in mercy save ; Abandon all your doubts and fears, And live for him ye pious brave. Our Hero, from the climes above Looks down to see our country rise ; And with a soul endowed with love Beholds our well-begotten prize. Father ! we hail thee in that land, Where thou art ever with the free, To mingle with the blood-bought band Who wear the crowns of Calvary. THE COLPORTEUR'S MESSAGE. Go, Messenger of Jesus, O'er waters, hill and dale. And spread the name that pleases By ev'ry gentle gale ; On faith's all-cheering pinion Help on the joyful sound, Till Christ shall have dominion, And Satan shall be bound. Salvation, Salvation, Bear to the sinner's ear, 154 rice's poetry. Till ev'ry land and nation The joyful news shall hear: Go to the friends of Satan, Invite the hearts that grieve, Go to the heavy laden, Their mourning souls relieve. In all the haunts of pleasure, Where sordid joys are found, Unfold the richest treasure, Which for their souls abound ; Direct them to the Savior, Who hung upon the tree, That they might live forever And crowns of glory see. Endow'd w^ith Gospel treasures, Go to the drunkard's home. Unfold to him the pleasures Of Christians yet to come; Invite him to the Savior, Tell him there yet is room To leave his bad behavior, And shun the drunkard's doom. Go to the raging swearer. Who thus offends his Lord, Tell him you are the bearer Of God's most precious word; Pray him to furl his banner, So deeply stain'd with blood, And in an humble manner, Leave all his sins for God. Go to the guilty robber, Who for the love of gold Denied his Lord and Master, And by it lost his soul; Tell him by deep repentance Salvation is combin'd. Though he has had his sentence, Reprieve he yet may find. rice's poetry. 155 Go, pi each to all transgressors, The murd'rer and the thief, To all the vile oppressors, The Gospel sends relief; By sighs and deep repentance, Through faith in Jesus' name. The soul may yet have entrance, And live through mercy's claim. But if the Gospel treasure. The sinner will refuse, And in his ways take pleasure, The word of God abuse ; When death shall end the conflict, He down to hell must go, And there remain a convict To reap eternal woe. THE CHRISTIAN'S HOPE OF HEAVEN. Now let this mortal body fail. Now let it faint away and die. Yet my blest soul shall quit this vale And live in shining worlds on high; Will join the disembodied throng, And find through grace eternal rest. And sing with saints that glorious song Redemption wilh the angels blest. In Hope of that celestial crown I do my Savior's cross sustain. And as I wander up and down With patience bear my grief and pain — I'll suffer on my few short years, ' Till my sustaining Jesus come And take away my grief and fears. And waft me to my spirit home. What hath my Savior bought for me Before my starlit ravished eyes ? 156 rice's poetry. A fount of life divine I see, And living trees of Paradise. I see a cloud of spirits there All clothed in robes of spotless white; They stars of living vic'try wear, And crowns of Heaven-born lustre bright. What then are my short sufF'rings here, If Jesus count my spirit meet With that angelic host appear, And fall before his shining feet ? Give sorrows here, give joy or pain, Take dearej:t friends and life away, But let me find those friends again In climes of God's eternal day. THE FINAL JUDGMENT. Lo ! the Son of God appearing, Angels wait his voice to hear ; Clothed in power, is now descending, Horror strikes the sinner's ear ; On the full-arched golden rainbow- Christ exalted sits on high. Thousands of his flaming warriors Bear his mission as they fly. *' Go," saith Jesus, " go my heralds, Bring my children from afar — Those who in me found redemption, Bring them to the Morning Star." Soon a band of warriors mounted On swift wings to skim the skies, From the throne of God descended, Gather'd home the ransom'd prize. Rais'd from graves, poor sinners tremble, At the final trumpet's sound, Gazing on with consternation, WaiHng at the scene profound — rice's poetry. 157 Fill'd with fear and deepest anguish, Cry for rocks them to destro}^ Mournful tears — they sigh and languish, Wail the loss of endless joy. *' Come, ye sinners, come to judgment : "Word of God now draw thy sword ! Wicked world begin to wonder, Tremble at the awful word ! Go, ye curs'd, and drink my vengeance, Sink in gloomy pits of fire. You who did reject my mere}'-. Go partake my flaming ire." Down they sink in burning sulphur, Banish'd from the Savior's rest, Where the soul's undying horror, Ceaseless beats in ev'ry breast, There the sinner raves in darkness. Where the deathless fires shall roll — There the devils do surround him, And torment his dying soul. THE FARMER'S CONSOLATION. I saw the Farmer at his plough, As I was passing by ; And wearied was his toiling frame. Beneath the burning sky ; 14 158 rice's poetry. I thought his slavi.^h lot was hard, And thanks I gave to God, Tha'. 1 was not like him confined, In scorching suns to plod. I see him now with harvest decked, When garden, tree and field, Impart their flowing stores to fill His barns with what they yield. His children sprightly as the lark, At his command rejoice ; They all obey in needful toil Their father's friendly voice. The dog his master's joy partakes, And guards the loaded grain; The feathered poultry on the wing Call forth their joyful train. Perchance the husband's wife draws nigh, The ample scene surveys, And calls on God with grateful tears To guide their evening praise. The harvest Giver they adore, Creator of the soil ; Who made this earth to give them br^ad, And bless their daily toil. Behold them on a winter's day, With ample table spread ; And you may see the Farmer blest With raiment, meat, and bread. Such are the gifts that God bestows On those who till the ground. That they for food shall never beg, While fields of grain abound. The Farmer has his loss and pain ; But less by far than they. Who in the truant's footsteps run, To pass their time away. 159 ADORATION AND PRAYER. • Thou Great First Cause, least understood,* Who did all worlds create, And with thy voice pronounc'd them good, When in their finish'd state. No human skill can e'er survey The wonders of thy grace ; Unnumbered worlds do Thee obey, And all the heav'nly race. Man, from the dust thou did'st create, Made him a living soul ; From paradise he plunged in fate, By Satan's sad control. The starry worlds pronounce Thee good, And all creation round ; From thee we have our daily food. All other gifts abound. Though man has wander'd from his God, Yet streams of mercy flow ; *Twere just if man should feel his rod, And God no mercy show. *' Father of all ! in ev'ry age," While through this world I stray, May wisdom all my powers engage, ' Till I am call'd away. And as I pass throug^h life's short day, What'er my fate may be ; O, may I not forget to pray, And look by faith to Thee. And when my journey here shall end. And I am called to die ; Let some kind friend from Heaven descend To take me up on high. There I shall meet the chosen few, Who fear'd their Father's rod ; 160 rice's poetry. Who did in wisdom's path pursue, Which led them home to God : Join with the bright angelic band, On golden harps to sing ; And range fair Canaan's happy land. Where heav'nly arches ring. THE CHRISTIAN MARTYR. Strong was the dungeon's dreary wall, Hard was the marble floor ; Her iron bolts, and chains, and bars, Made fast her pond'rous door : No cheerino- licrht e'er shone within The Martyr's dreary cell ; But loathsome reptiles oft were known To with the captive dwell. No carpet and no curtain there, To cheer the dismal scene. Except that which a spider wove About the mildew green : There, bound in chains of deepest gloom, The pris'ner dwelt alone ; — His tiresome bed a heap of straw, Laid on a chilly stone. But scanty was his portioned food Of water and of bread ; And tattered were the clothes he wore, And sore his aching head : His grief-worn sorrows who can tell. That has not felt his doom ; The king of day has never shone To cheer his living tomb. In midnight gloom the angels know His prayer to God arose, " Save from the woes of endless night Mv most destructive foes: rice's poetry. 161 " Open their eyes that they may see This innocence of mine, And glorify thy worthy name While on the shores of time. " I ask Thee not to pluck this thorn ; But give me living faith, To honor thy Almighty name, In prison and in death." That living faith to him was given, While burning at the stake ; For on his brow shone light from Heaven, When in God's name he spake. PROOF OF GOD'S EXISTENCE. To prove a God all nature speaks ; Through earth and air his works we see ; From threat'ning clouds his lightning streaks, His morning sun makes darkness flee. The king of day in lustre bright All o'er the world's revolving frame, Declares by his effulgent light The glory of his Maker's name. Diffusing life to all around, With ample feasts the world o'erspread ; The fields are by his blessing crowned, And herbage rises from the dead. For man and beast abundant food All o'er the earth in mercy grows; And when they pant in thirsty mood, They drink the stream that gently flows. The flow'ry tribes i« all their train. Which far excel the power of art ; And birds with their exalted strain, Bear true conviction to the heart. The mind of man that roves abroad Through scenes of earth and worlds above. •u 162 rice's poetry. Surveys tlie footsteps of his Lord, And feels the presence of his love. The shining orbs that run their rounds, And with their lustre deck the sky; The Gospel which in grace abounds With revelation from on high ; The thunder with terrific roar, And show'rs that from the clouds descend Confirm a God ! — we ask no more : — His vast existence has no end. THE FLOWERS OF THE FIELD. The verdant Flow'rs are blooming, In ample troops appear, Their golden buds are breaking On landscapes far and near; — The meads and gardens waving With these rich gem-s of God, Cheer up the soul that 's mourning Under affliction's rod. These star-lit Flow'rs are bending By ev'ry gentle breeze ; O'er earth's broad circle smiling;— The feast of toiling bees ; From sun-lit waving oceans, Lake, vale, and mountain sod, RICE S rOETUY. 163 These gems in all their beauty Display the works of God. They come with full-orbed glory In summer's genial rays, And on earth's dreary surface Console man's eager gaze ; They fill each heart with wonder;—- King Solomon outshine, From all the sweets of nature Rich odors they combine. If God on Flowers is shining, And gives them ev'ry hue ; How much more bless the faithful, That in his truth pursue ? Sweet gems immortal waving, Shall grace the ransomed soul Of ev'ry saint in Heaven, While streams of mercy roll. Thou Son of God ! — Redeemer ! Who did the lily grace, Thy w^ord of pow'r has quickened Queen Flora's blooming race; Yet they are frail and fleeting, Each year they pass away, But thy unfading glory Shall live when Flow'rs decay. THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. The Lord exalted on his throne, His universal work surveys ; He marks those pilgrims for his own, That love to walk in all his ways : His eye rejoices to behold His children bear his easy yoke; To see them by his love unfold The bread of life their Savior broke. IB'i His saints their Master's voice obey, They toil and sweat his truth to spread; In midnij^ht shades they often pray, And tears of grief distil their bed : His holy love their hearts constrain. And wipes away their falling tears; They labor hard the field to gain, And rise above their toil and fears. Jesus beholds them with delight. Confirms to them a golden crown ; Nor does one hour tkeir comfort blight, But senis his promised blessing down. The burning zeal, — the Spirit's powers From God's eternal altar fall, And fill the saints with gracious showers That on the name of Jesus call. Dear Lord in haste thy leaven spread, Let Gospel seed through earth abound ; Let mercy's trumpet wake the dead, ' Till all the lost by grace are found : Then shall the world from death made free Feel God's renewing grace within, And in his holy temple be Exulting o'er the curse of sin. THE MOTHER'S TWIN SISTERS. When Cynthia's light bedecked the sky, Two sisters near each other prest ; Their infant hands too weak to vie. Were folded on each other's breast : From morning's light till evening's tinge, In lovely innocence they lie ; Their rosy lids, with graceful fringe, In beauty gem each sparkling eye There's not in India's coral strand. Or on this universal ball rice's poetry. lf$5 A lovelier pair in heart and hand, On which the eyes of friendship fall. My God, thou hast a fountain moved, Which must in waves eternal roll ; For thy creative power has proved Each sister has a deathless soul. These pleasing and mysterious things, These seeming angels sent from Heaven. These sisters with immortal wings To me, God, thy love has given ! Their feeble pulse first caught its stroke. Their blood its sanguine hue from me ; These little ones I did invoke Must live when time shall cease to be. A silent awe inspires my breast. My heart is full of hope and fear; My soul on awful themes is prest, Death and eternity appear ! Despair and hope in tumuk rise ; — Oh God ! I raise my prayer to thee ! " Give to my babes that Paradise, Which makes the dying spirit free." "LORD REMEMBER ME." My Lord ! to thee my grief is known ; Tempted Thou wert on earth like me ; Expel my woes, for thou alone Didst bear my sins on Calvary ! Remember that expiring cry ! Those tears of grief, and bloody sweat, When on the mountain Thou didst die, And with thy blood the garden wet. Ah ! why didst thou such wrath endure ? Why bear the cursings of the tree ? — By death alone Thou couldst procure That grace which sets my spirit free. 166 rice's poetrv. Lord ! thou art touched with human woe! Thy mercy moves the heart of man ; Drieo ap the ruuurner's teais that flow, And saves him by salvation's plan. My waiting spirit long has known, That Thou art faithful, just and true; — Angels and saints thy judgments own, And in thy perfect path pursue : The bruised reed Thou wilt not break, Nor quench the spark of grace begun, Till Thou the heart of sin shalt shake. And teach it hell's deep gulf to shun I know the day of feeble things Thy gracious eye will not despise; For thy rich Gospel's balmy wings Has brought salvation from the skies. On thy sustaining arm I rest. And feel thy spirit's power within ; By thy subduing grace possessed, I rise above the curse of sin. THE LABORER'S LAMENTATION. Bound in this house for moulding clay, No hill or dale the sight to cheer. My heart desires to be away, And for the distant woodland steer; Where warbling brooks by day and night In all their gushing beauty sing. And blooming flowers on zephyr's flight To me their fragrant odors bring. There nature has no square or line. But all things show the stamp of God, From poplar to the lofty pine, And ev'ry plant that decks the sod : The glorious orb of liy:ht above Imparts his rays to kiss the flower. rice's rOETRY. 167 And darts upon our world with love, Which hails the glory of his power. The passing breeze that greets me now Is scented by some fragrant field, And cheering fans my weary brow, Which braves my spirit not to yield : Those brilliant lamps that grace the sky With midnight glory gaze on me ; And uiove my stricken heart to sigh For scenes long passed in infancy. At eve, when sweat and toil have wrought From penury a short reprieve, My weary heart by God is taught For my condition not to grieve ; And yet 'tis hard for man to feel His life in want to pass away, While thousands live in all the weal That earthly treasures can convey. But s.)on these scenes of life shall end, And all my labors be forgot ; My soul angelic raptures blend And share salvation's better lot ; Shall mingle with those gems of light Where tears and sorrows will be o'er, And bask with angels in their flight When earth's vain glory is no more. MAN'S LIFE PASSETH AWAY. As I was musing on the strand. With finger shooting from my hand, I wrote upon the ocean's sand My name, year, month and day. Ere long the well-known spot I passed, A piercing look I fondly cast ; The crested wave was rolling fast And washed my lines away. 16S rice's poetry. Such is the type of ev'r}' man ; His days on earth are but a span ; He 's stricken with a mortal ban, By waves of time must die. Where'er he treads the sandy shore, He soon will see his track no more ; His works — the year — the name he bore, Will soon forgotten lie. But still I see a mighty hand, "Which holds the waters — counts the sand. By which my weary soul may stand When time shall be no more. Though this clay building shall be rent, And scenes of time be quickly spent ; Through faith in God I am content To stand on Zion's shore. TO THE DRUNKARD'S MEMORY. John Foster at the dawn of day Was at the grog-shop door. With bloated face and sunken eyes, And tattered clothes he wore. His starving boy was by his side, And crying to him said, " Come, father, my dear mother 's sick, And Mary cries for bread." With trembling limbs he staggered in Before the bar once more. And with the poison vender pled As he had done before. The landlord hears his sad request. And gives to him the bowl ; He drinks — while wife and children weep, To damn his ruined soul. Five years expired — when I passed b)''^ A crowd stood round the door ; — rice's poetry. 169 Short was my stay before I heard John Foster was no more. I saw his corpse when borne away ; — No wife and chihiren there ; For they had left their mortal clay, And ev'ry earthly care. Drunkards ! reflect before you plunge The fires of God's decree ; For you must loose eternal life Except the bowl you flee. Reflect for wife and children's sake ; — Fly from your murd'rcr, fly; Or you like John will wretched live, Like him forsaken die. THE TEMPERANCE FLAG. All o'er our wide spread nation The Temp'rance Flag doth rise, Whi.'e tears of lamentation Fast leave the mourners' eyes; This Star in lustre shining Shall drive our gloom away, Though hell's dark ranks combining Fight hard to win the day. Vast armies now assemble To face their deadly foe, They make old Bacchus tremble While they their darts do throw , Soon the cold-water Banner Shall float from shore to shore, And in a loathsome manner The Drunkard reel no more. What if the Lord of glory Shed mercy all around, And nations tell the story That they by him are crowned ; 15 170 rice's poetry. In vain with lavish kindness Do all these blessings flow, While Drunkard.- in their blindness To shame and ruin go. Shall we whose souls are lighted By virtue from on high, Wi'hhold from those now blighted That boon which they deny ? No ! our tongues inspired, unceasing Exemption sfiall proclaim, 'Till ev'rv heart that 's beating Shall flee ihe Drunkard's shame. Waft on ye gentle breezes. And swift ye waters roll, Until this Star that pleases Sliail shine from pole to pole ; ' Till Drunkards' chains shall sunder. Their liberty regain. And ev'ry nation wonder To see the Temp'rance reign. REGENERATION. Fearless I trod the downv/ard road. And spurned the Go pel's joyful day; Unconscious of my pond'rous load, When on the bii ik of hell I lay: But now I think of life, and death. The judgment, and the gaping grave ; And feel if I should yield my breatli, I have no grace my soul to save. I gaze upon the stream of time, Those hours of mirth forever fled; And must confess no skill in rhyire, Can ted the tears that I have shed • I see the book of record kept. My God's eternal truth revealed ; rice's poetry. 171 For which my dying Savior wept, When he with blood my pardon sealed. My heart in grief, oppressed with sin. Seeks refuge in the bloody cross ; And strives through grace a crown to win Which frees the soul from all its dross: My fainting heart falls at his feet. Who has the bloody winepress trod, To gain in Him a life complete. Which rescues from his Father's rod. I see the piercing crown he wore ; I feel the guilt that made him smart : From all his wounds his blood did pour To bring salvation to my heart : I see that look of holy love. When on the shameful cross he died, To bear my soul to worlds above. Where I shall meet the sanctified. I see Him on the cursed tree, There weh'ring in his purple gore ; ' Twas then he spilt his blood for me; Which blood shall stain the cross no more. In Joseph's grave I see Him sleep ; Three days he felt the tyrant's chain ; Entombed where Mar}' came to weep ; — But lo ! the Savior lives again. I see Him in his rapid car. Ascending his eternal throne ; And calling nations from afar, To put their trust in Him alone. I see before his Father spread, His bleeding feet, hi< hands and side; His resurrection from the dead. His truth extending far and wide. My God in mercy hears my cry. And bears my load of sin away , |72 rice's poetry. Through Him who on the cross did die, I feel the glorious light of day: I'm bound to gain the Holy Land, Though I the ills of life endure ; By faitli upon the Rock I stand, And know my anchor cast secure. I claim my Jesus for my all, And find a full release from sin ; His grace restores me from the fall. And makes my heart rejoice within: And when I shall this dust lay down, My soul shall take its upward flight; And wear a never-fading crown. With all the shinins" sons of iisfht. DEATH. Where'er I am, where'er I go, The works of death I see ; He makes his final overthrow, Not one his power can flee. Mankind by sin in Adam die, The curse falls on his race ; The shafts of Death triumphant fly, And kill in ev'ry place. The king from his exalted throne. Sinks down in shades of night ; The sons of men lament and groan,- By death are put to flight. No arm so strong as to withstand, This mighty tyrant's power; Unnumbered millions o'er the land,. Must die in life's short hour. Diseases spread in ev'ry form, Their victims chain by death; And leave surviving friends forlorn Yet to resicrn their breath. rice's poetry. 17} The low and tall, and flowers all Are soon to pass awa}' ; There ne'er was built so strong a wall, But death would have his prey. Though beauty grace the comely face, As roses white and fair ; A dying fall will spoil the grace, For Death shall triumph there. The earth and planets by old age, Shall crazy grow and die; The great philosopher and sage, And all the birds that fly. PRAYER FOR RESTORING GRACii. Lord, let my walk be close with thee, Calm and serene my frame ; That I may from all sin be (ree Through ihy reviving name. Where is the bliss I oiire enjoyed, When first my Lord I knew ? Where is the grace that sin destroyed, When I to Jesus flew ? Those hours of peace I then received, Their memory still is sweet ; But now I find my soul has grieved The spirit from its seat. Return to me, thou heavenly Dove, Sweet Messenger return ; I hate the sin that quenched thy love, Which made my spirit burn. The greatest idol I revere, Whatever it may be, O let me turn away, and steer My course direct to Thee : Then I shall walk by God's command Through life's besetting way; Receive those blessings from his hand That '••rown with endless day. •LS 174 rice's poetry. RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT. Day of Judgment, day of wonders! What alarming scenes appear^ Now the trumpet's mighty thunders ■ Speak the Resurrection near: ■ At the sound the dead are rising From the shrines in which they sleep , Bursting forth a scene surprising Breaks the fountains of the deep. Earth's strong pillars bow and tremble ., At the voice of God that flew ; | Saints arise, their Lord re::;emble, ^ Who has found the vici'ry through. All mankind since Adam sleeping, At the trump shall now revive; Sinners rise in sorrows weeping, And in vain for Heaven strive. Now the Atheists see the fiction. Which they once proclaimed to man ; But have lost God's benediction. Sanctioned by the Go^^pel plan. Boast no longer grisly tyrant, Now thy chains have burst away ; And the dead are raised in triumph, Saints are hailed to endless day. CHRIST'S INVITATION TO SINNERS. Hail ! Thou worthy Master Jesus, Hail, Thou matchless King of kings ; By thy blood Thou did'st redeem us, Thou did'st free salvation bring; In the courts where angels glory. Thou did'.st lay aside thy crown ; Come to earth to tell the siory, "I for man redemption found." rice's poetry. 175 *' Sinners, come to me m welcome, Come the Gospel feast partake, Turn to me by deep repentance. All your wickedness forsake ; Shun the way of sin and folly, By the purple tide be free, Look to me and be ye holy, And my glory you shall see. " For your sins I trod the winepress, Bore the wraih to sinners due. Drop one tear before you trespass On those rights so dear to you; For your souls 1 in the garden Agonized in sweat and blood, That in me ye might find pardon. And with angels live with God. " Sinners turn while I am calling, Now there 's mercy kept in store ; Wheels of time are fast revolving. Soon your life will be no more ; Bliss of angels calls you sinners, Can you spurn the gift of Heaven ? Choose ihe prize, by faith you '11 win her Through the blood }'Our Savior 's given." MOURNING PILGRIMS. Mourning Pilgrims weep no longer; Christ to you has comfort spoken, Your weak spirits shall be stronger; — *' Bruised reeds he ne'er has broken:" Ye who wander through this vale Where the shafts of death assail; ^e who are by sin distressed Seek the Savior and be blest. Lambs of Josus cease to slumber; Lo the crimsoned banner 's flying: 176 rice's poetry. If you are the chosen number, Let your hearts no more be sighing ; Greater love no man has known Than on Calv'ry has been shown ; Jesns' dying groans and pain Make you meet with him lo reign. Mourning Pilgrims weep no longer; Mercy's boon is ever shining, It can make the spirit stronger ; Why then always be repining: Jesus drives your gloom away, Fills you with celestial day: — Falling tears and broken sighs Is his chosen sacrifice. Soon these mountain waves of sorrow Will be from the weeper driven, And all fears of ills to-morrow Shall be lost for joys of Heaven ! There no sighs the heart shall rend, There no pain and sin shall blend ; There the saint from death made free Shall his Savior's glory see. I SAINTS AROUND THE THRONE. Who are these arrayed in white. Brighter than the morning sun ? Blazing round the Throne of light, Crying " Lord thy will be done ?'* These are they that faced the foe, For the truth of Jesus bled; Bore the cross that they might go Where the Martyr's spirit fled. These from tribulation came. Washed their robes in Jesus' blood ; For the crown endured the shame When they braved deep Jordan's flood. rice's poetry. 177 Now they fall before the Throne, Serve their Maker night and day; Worship Him who did atone, And for them did often pray. They were once a sufT'ring band When they dwelt in mortal clay; Now they wing the spirit land Where all tears are wiped away. They shall thirst and faint no more, No excessive rays shall shine; Bread of life is kept in store ; Take it Christian, it is thine. Jesus sits upon his Throne, And surveys his chosen flock ; Saying-, " Worship me alone ; You are built upon this Rock : Pluck the fruit of Life's fair tree, Drink the streams that never dry; Ever in my presence be. Ever with my angels fly." THE MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH Angels of God, now lend your aid. While we describe the pow'rs of art, This modern star, which we have made, In haste our notice to impart : In speed its flight excels the blaze. That rends in twain the vaulted skies; And makes us all with pleasure gaze. To see from man such wonders rise. We hail this all important gem, This Telegraph from shore to shore; Which crowns us with a diadem. Till wheels of time shall roll no more. The flight of thought can scarce excel This messenger in all his speed ; — 178 rice's poetry. In distant lands our foes may dwell, And in a trice our acts can read. Should dying man draw near the tomb, And wish his far off friends to tell, With light'ning speed they hear his doom, And find the place where he does dwell. If notice of vast moment rise, And should in haste be borne along; In the same instant, will surprise America's inventive throng. If in such speed on earth shall fly The wishes of each longing heart, Sooner shall pray'r ascend on high. And God his saving grace impart ! As quick as thought the angels sung, " Glory to God," at Jesus' birth ! Then Heav'n's new Telegraph was strung, Which brought siJvation down to earth. The golden wires of grace divine. Sealed by the blood of Calvary, Can make the lost with angels shine, And God's eternal glory see. Lo, when the last loud trump shall sound, And Telegraph earth's common grave; Then shall the saints in God be found, And feel his mighty pow'r to save. The soul and body joined in one. Shall on the chord of faith ascend; And know the wi.l of God is done Through Jesus, their eternal Friend! The Telegraph confirmed by grace. Shall run through all the courts above ; Shall bear the stamp of Jesus' face, And tell the wonders of his love. 179 "WHAT IS MAN?" Man is a strange mysterious thing ! The workmanship of curious art : Composed of muscle, nerve and spring, And blood, fast gushing through his heart. In him is ample proof of God ; No other hand could n\ould his frame : Jehovah's all creating nod, Through man declares his holy name. First he was fashioned out of clay ; His sinless heart was moved by love : From God partook the purest ray. With passions harmless as the dove. Behold he was I but is he now M:de free from sorrow, grief and pain? Alas ! I read upon his brow That seal, by which we all are slain. For sin we 're bound to mourn and weep, While passing through this thorny vale, Till death shall stamp with dreamless sleep Our barques, — so often made to quail. In man was formed a living soul. Which shall survive earth's final grave: — If saved by grace, it shall control Those demons, where lost spirits rave. Ah ! must this soul sink in despair. And spurn the brightest gem of Heaven ? Must it with fallen demons share, And lose the Holy Spirit's leaven ? Though bound by hell's eternal chain, I see by blood Man's spirit rise ! Made sure of Heav'n's triumphant reign, She through God's holy mansion flies. Man's soul is like an angel's wing, It rushes on from star to star ! 180 rice's poetry. Thence soars to courts where cherubs sing, And ever rides in Zion's car! Her knowledge shall through Jesus grow ; From saint she shall an angel be I Those streams that through all Heaven flow, Make her approach the Deity. THE SPIRIT'S ASCENSION. Give thanks unto Jesus on high, A brother has entered his rest; Has gone up wih angels to vie, And lean on Immanuel's breast. His spirit in rapture has fled, To swell the high anthems above , Has gone to the Savior that bled, And dwells in the arms of his love. What fullness of gbry divine He feels through the life giving blood * What riches ineffable shine. Made free by the mercy of God ? Arrayed in the garments of light, And decked with the pinions of grace, He wings in the speed of hi.^ flight With all the bright angelic race. The Savior there sits on his throne, And spreads his effulgence around. He who for our sins did atone, The legions of Heaven surround. Then why should our spirits bewail, And longer in solitude weep, When grace is so free to prevail, And mercy forbidden to sleep. No sorrows our brother inspire In his mortal prison of clay ; His soul breathes the angelic fire, And basks in the glories of day. 1 rice's poetry. 181 Dear Savior if thou art our shield While passing the regions of time ; O help us thy mercy to wield, And soar to the angelic clime. And when we from time shall remove, And wind up our sorrows and pain ; Thy unsullied glory we '11 prove, And in thy blest Zion remain : We '11 join vviih the spirits of light, And view the new city of gold, Where beauty shall dazzle our sight With riches no pen can unfold. RETROSPECTION. When my reflection takes its flight To view the past and gone. The fiin'ral pall disturbs my sight, My spirit weeps forlorn. Our parents first in Eden free, No vengeance on them fell, ' Till they partook the fatal tree, And sought the dregs of hell. The indignation of our God Expelled the fallen twain ; They felt the justice of his rod, For they by sin were slain. The curse pursues the fallen race Down to the present day ; Man's sinful acts his life disgrace, And lead his soul astray. He feels the ills of dying strife. His day is but a span ; He soon must lose his mortal life, *' So frail a thing is man." In ancient days God did appear By his destructive flood 16 182 rice's poetry. And swept away all but the Seer, And those that with him stood. The infidel and s -ofTers all Whi^'h did in Sodom dwell, God's vengeance called on them to fall In brimstone charged by hell. Proud Nineveh, that city great, Enclo ed by walls of might, Repented and prolon ed her fate; — iSow sinks in shades of night. Jerusalem that holy place Where priests and prophets died ; Though once for God, became a race Thai Jesus crucified. Go.i's judgment on that city fell, Their overthrow was sure ; — The carnage made no pen can tell. No weeping eye endure. The Romans with the sword and spear Cau:5ed blood their streets to flow ; The dying shriek — the falling tear Increased the scene of woe. Of Jews about one million bled, — The slaughter was severe ; Their streets were crimsoned with the dead. While thousands shook with fear. Since Christ his presence made on earth, And hostile Jews were slain, War and sedition found their birth The truth of God to stain. The church of Rome in sin arrayed Imbued her hands in blood ; From Gospel precepts long has strayed. And spread sins raging flood. Millions have by her hands been slain, Ail harmless as the dove ; I i rice's poetry, 183 Have felt the rack and bore the chain, Yet saved by Jesus' love. She's showed herself the monster sin, In deepest treason dyed ; And proved she had no grace within By Jesus crucified. THE JUDGMENT DAY. The glorious Judge in heaven appears, In all the grandeur of a God ; Our days, our weeks, our months and years, Are numbered as before the flood ! Behold he comes ! the sun is veiled ! The silver moon is turned to blood ! The Son of God has man assailed, — He feels the scourges of his rod. The trumpet sounds ! the world 's on fire ! And mo'jntains melt before his face ! All nature feels his flaming ire, And mourns because she 's run her race ! The wheels of time must now stand still, Their revolutions are no more ; They must obey their Maker's will, And in death's silence, him adore. Ye saints rejoice ! lift up your heads ! Your Savior comes in clouds of heaven; Arise from your long sleeping beds. Let honor to his name be given ! Smners awake ! the day has come ! The long predicted Judgment Day! When saints of God are gathered home, And sinners driven far away. Down, down you '11 sink in endless night, To dwell in groans and deep despair ! And never more behold the liu:ht, And never find a Savior there ' 184 rice's poetry. The boon of Heaven ye once refused, When Jesus wooed you to his arms ; — He will no longer be abused ; — Too long you 've spurned his gracious charms. The demon's wail, and spirit's groan Forever strike your deathless ear ! Your souls must in their dungeon mourn. Where men and devils quake with fear ! Night's dreary curtain veils 5^our grave, Hell's deepest gloom assembles there ! No blood of Jesus will you save ! No angels news of mercy bear. But God's dear children soar on high, And walk the golden streets above ; No more to weep, to mourn and die, But ever feel a Savior's love : " Glory," they sing through Jesus' name, " To God,"thesource of all their joy; From mountain tops they loud proclaim, " His name our praises shall employ." JESUS WEPT OVER JERUSALEM. Jesus from angels' courts above, Came down to visit man ; His heart was full of tender love, In streams of mercy ran : In friendship he came to his own, But they received him not ; They cursed Him who did sin atone. And all his love forgot. Behold, He o'er the city weeps ! His tears the Jews would save! His tender heart salvation keeps, To rescue from the grave. " City of God ! Jerusalem ! I would have made you free ; rice's poetry. 185 Would give to you that healing gem, Which makes the blind to see. "But when I called, ye turned away I Left me to shed my tears ; Shut from your eyes that only ray, Which drives away all fears : Your day of grace shall be no more ; You griev'd the Father's Son; Salvation now with you is o'er ; Your race is almost run. " Romans shall your vast city burn, Your fun'ral dirge shall sing ! Your foes shall live your names to spurn. And sorrows to you bring: Before this generation pass, The sword your blood shall spill ! I offered mercy, but alas ! You hate Mount Zion still." THE SAINT'S VICTORY. Rejoice, for a spirit has fled, And left this clay prison behind: No longer to weep for the dead ; No longer in sorro^vs confined. By faith let us follow her flight To mansions of glory above, And view her with angels of light, Rejoice in the Eden of love. We hail thee on Zion's bright shore. Where all the ship's company meet ! Thy sighing and pain are no more; They fell as the dust of thy feet. No portion of sickness or fear Shall ever disturb thee again, Like us who are striving to steer Through regions of sorrow and pain. •16 185 rice's poetry. Thou 'st left thy companion behind, To linger in death's gloomy bleep, *Till God the lost angel shall bind, And soothe the sad mourners that weep. And when the last trumpet shall sound. And shake the deep shrines of the dead. Then shall thy lost body be found, And join with the spirit that 's fled. When thy sleeping dust shall arise To meet thee around the white throne, And see the vast host of the skies, Where Jesus is worshiped alone ! Then shall thy full glory begin By treasures in Heaven made free; No more shalt thou weep for thy sin, No longer in misery be. The soul and the body in one, Made free from all pain and despair; Shall bask in the light of the Son, In all his full glory to share: As long as the Savior shall reign. Will through God's Jerusalem fly ; 'And with the bright angels obtain That fountain which never shall dry. "GOD IS LOVE." Farewell vain world ! thou hast no joys Worthy to claim my fond embrace ; Thy riches are but fleeting toys Compared with God's enduring grace; Then let me drink of Love's rich tide, And find a cleft in Jesus' side. What if my feeble mind complain. And dread so long with sin to vie ; I '11 rise above my mortal pain. And on Love's shining pinions fly; And when my flesh and heart shall fail, [ shall in Christ my Lord prevail. rice's poetry. 187 Come Thou immortal Spirit near, And save my soul from self despair; Appear, in my poor heart appear, And listen to my urgent prayer ; Speak, " Peace be still," celestial Dove, And let me know thy name is Love. All hail this Love ! sweet Jesus hail ! Thy whispers cheer my drooping heart; Thy light breaks in, Thou dost prevail, Thou dost to me thy Love impart ; Thou hast descended from above, And proved to me thy name is Love. My God, be near when I shall pass The waves of Jordan's rolling tide; . Bear me above the sea of glass, On golden pinions let me ride, Until 1 meet my Lord on high, Where streams of Love shall never dry. And when I find that happy place, Where raptured visions fire the soul ; Then I shall sing of thy free grace, And on the waves of glory roil ; Shall honor Him who reigns on high, Where saints and angels never die. There grace shall flow in living streams, Fast gushing from the throne of God; Like quiv'ring silver's richest beams, Shall quench the law's destructive rod ; Eternity shall swell with Love, By all the sacred hosts above. There golden gems shall cheer the soul Throughout the shining courts of Heaven The crystal waves of glory roll, From Love's rich fountain shall be given ; The weary saint be free from pain. And with his Lord in glory reign. fS8 rice's poetry. THE CRUCIFIED. Jerusalem ! Jerusalem ! Why gushes forth that crimsoned stream ? The Jewish priest, the Gentile band, The Romans from their foreign land ; And thousands more with envious will, Behold the scene of Calvary's hill. Yet onward moves the savage tide, The beggar, bridegroom, and the bride, Prince, soldier, and the Pharisee ; The youth and sire, the bond and free ; The wicked, raging, hellish clan, Cry " Crucify the Son of Man." But woe to thee, Jerusalem ! Thy foes triumphant soon shall come, Shall slay the bridegroom and the bride, And on the car of death shall ride ! And woe to thee ambition's shrine; The sword shall slay both thee and thine. The multitude still loudly cry. With raging voices rend the sky; — Urged by the assassin's cruel rod, In tneekness moves the Son of God; A cross upon his shoulders borne: His back with bloody scourges torn. Behold the man ! the cry of shame Is raging at the Savior's name ; — ^ With garments rent, and gnashing teeth, The sneer, the spite, the thorny wreath, All the expiring hour can bring, Surround thee now, immortal King. The word of death in haste is given; The Victim bound, the spikes are driven; — Now rail the Scribe and PHnrivee, The Gentile bends his mocking knee; 189 The cross is reared the work is done, The battle fought, the vict'ry won. While in his agonizing gloom His piercing eye foretells no doom ; No earthquake breaks — no thunders roll To smite with death the guilty soul! Those lips in dying anguish riven, Cry " Let my murd'rers be forgiven." Awake, my soul I behold Him die ! He groans between the earth and sky ; Enters the grave, and bursts her chains, And in triumphant glory reigns ; Destroys the monster's dying strife. And brings to man eternal life. He dies ! creation's awful King, That man may his redemption sing; He dies ! to thunder from the skies, And bid unnumbered millions rise ; — His footstool, earth — his throne is Heaven All honor to his name be given. THE PROMONTORY OF LIFE, While on a verging point of land, I view the regions as I stand. Where saints and sinners dwell ! This mortal life, a moment's space, Prepares me for yon heavenly place, Or binds me fast in hell. O, God of love convert my soul. And all my inward powers control, To run the Christian race. Help me to feel the solemn weight Of things divine before too late. By thy subduing grace. Before my soul in dread array. Impress the scenes of thai great day. t^ rice's rOETRV. When Christ m)' Lord shall come, Descending in his rapid car, To judge all nations at his bar, And call his servants home. O let it be my business here To serve my God with holy fear, And to the end endure. Lord thy reviving grace impart, And bind to thee my wand'ring heart, And make the prize secure. THE LAST SUPPER. Darksome and dreary was the night, On which the little flock assembled, And watched with fear the morning light, And for the coming morrow trembled; The day in which their Lord should see Expiring on the cursed tree. The Master there with lifted eye Took up the sacred bread and brake it ; He raised the cup and gave a sigh, Then bade hi.s weeping brethren take it; " As often as this cup you see. With grateful heans remember me." Lord did'st thou say, *' Remember me ?" Yes — here is love the sun outshining ! Sooner the stars shall cease to be, And all the elements combining, Than my fond heart forget to swell The gloiics of Immanuel. Shall we thy houseless nights forget, The dew-drops on thy temples lying? The scoff — the spear — the crimsoned sweat. The long dread agony of dying ? This love of God, boundless and free, Gives life to all eternity. rice's poetry. 191 And is our Savior's table decked, With dainties of his own preparing? And shall our souls such bliss reject, As holy anirels now are sharing ? We come, — Jesus, — hear our prayer. And bless our weeping spirits there. SALVATION BY THE CROSS Mercv divine ! what hast thou done! Jesus my Savior died for me ! The father's co-eternal Son, For sin expired upon the tree ! The King of kings for all has died, Jesus our Lord was crucified. You that pass by, behold the man ! The bleeding Jous, Prince of peace' Mortals adore your Maker's plan, That he your spirits may release; Come feel his sacred blood applied, Jesus our Lord was crucified. Was crucified for all our race. That he might bring us back to God; Believe in Him, and his free grace Will save us from his scourging rod ; A fountain gushes from his side, Jesus our Lord was crucified. Then let us learn to view the Cross, And live by its all cleansing stream; All things for Jesus count but loss, And in his glorious presence beam ; And nothing worship here beside Jesus our Lord the Crucified. And when these buildings made of dust Shall to their prior dust return ; Our souls committed to God's trust, RICE S POETRY. Shall in his holy presence burn ; Shall on the sea of glory ride By virtue of the Crucified. APPEAL FOR MISSIONS. Servants of God, possessed of shining gold, Go and contribute for your brother's need ; Shall love within 3^our thrilling breasts grow cold, Where Gospel faith has sown its holy seed ? How can you to the Gentile world refuse To spread that light which you in wisdom choose ? Servants of God, endowed with heavenly bread, Shall mortals languish m your blissful path ? 0, let yo ir hearts with rich compas=;ion spread That gift which saves from God's eternal wrath ; The heath'.^n world remain in shades of night, Lend, lend your aid before they take their flight. Ye have the bread and cup the Lord did bless j While in the presence of his chosen train; 1 Ye have the word of God, with high bequest, ^ "Go teach all nations," spread its heavenly strain. Throughout the world let the rich Gospel be Disseminated, till mankind are free. Do you, indeed, on life's tempestuous shore, Bear the meek spirit of the Son of God ? Vet lend no aid, no supplication pour. To save mankind from the Almighty's rod ? God of the Pilgrims ! warm the frozen heart, And let thy children needful gifts impart. Behold the heathen sinking in the grave. Amid the darkness of a foreign land ; O'er the vast depths of ocean's dismal wave, Your brethren call ; how can you idly stand ! Rich price of blood ! Servants of God, arise ! Shake ofl^your dust, and labor for the skies. i rice's poetry. 193 Lo ! the poor Gentiles wait God's word to hear, And Missionaries wish iiis truth to tell ; The funds are not — the ship delays to steer Across the ocean, Gospel news to swell. Faith comes by hearing — hearing by the word ; How then have faith on Him they have not heo^d ? DESTRUCTION BY TIME. Moved by a Monarch's awful power, That hastens on each fleeting hour, I touch the mournful string ; ' Tis now I see his wrinkled face. Under the mansion's crumbling base, Where moss and ivy cling. Night roll'd his darksome eye around, His grisly face with horror frowned ; No lustre him arrayed ; He seized, and lo ! a hero's bust, Returned unto its native dust. Sunk deep beneath the shade. Disease triumphant clothed his eyes, To helpless mortals, lo, he cries, *' How vain are all your schemes ? Under my chains the brightest form Sinks and dissolves beneath the storm- How vain are mortal dreams ?" *' The works of nature's God I spoil; The lofty arts of human toil, I blast as infant toys ; I trample down the mighty brave, Beauty I blight — low in the grave I bury earthly joys." Stop, thou Destroyer, stop ! I cried, Nor longer crush the dreams of pride, And man's vain hopes devour ; 17 194 Virtue shall live in endless bloom, Beyond the darkness of the tomb, And scorn thy ruthless power. In frantic rage the Demon fled, Roaring, as down the wall he sped, " The year is past and gone ;" M The falling spire, the mould 'ring tower, ^ Trembling fell before his power. While Time in haste flew on. Since youth and fame to Time must bow, And death destroy the fairest brow. Let endless light be yours ; % Man's deathless soul embahn'd in truth, Shall live in all the bloom of youth. As long as God endures. THE MILLENNIUM. When shall death prevail no more ? When shall pain and sin be o'er ? Adam's race no longer groan, Friends no more be call'd to mourn ? Sorrow cease from ev'ry mind, Ransom'd love the spirit find ? When shall future jo3's appear, Christ erect his glory here ? Satan's kingdom tumble down, Mercy's voice be spread around ? Altars rais'd in ev'ry heart. Sweet perfumes to God impart ? Oft shall dying groans assail ! Oft shall relatives bewail ! Dearest friends be sunder'd wide, Sorrow sail upon the tide. Ere the works of death decay, Ere the great Millennial day. rice's poetry. 195 Years of sorrow speed along, Hasten on the blissful song, Let the tide of beauty roll. Cheer the heart — awake the soul — Then the glorious sound shall fly Through the world, and reach the sky. JORDAN'S COLD STREAM. Cold Jordan's stream with rapid tide, This world, and future worlds divide, Where spirits dwell! Its chilly waters drear and deep. With frantic fury's awful sweep In madness swell. I saw the smiling infant stand Where Jordan's waves beat on the strand, To sweep it down! Thoughtless of death it neared the flood. Which froze the current of its blood, To wear a crown. I looked, and lo, with languid eye, A youth was called to weep and sigh; The grave was near ! He gazed upon the frightful stream, The waves rolled high — he gave a scream, And sunk with fear ! Again, a form of giant strength Heedless rushed on, 'till found at length To feel his chain ! Hopeless he raised his dying prayer, Then closed his eyes in wild despair By Jordan's reign. Next, stood upon the dismal shore A father, bowed with many a score Of g®ne-by years.' 196 rice's poetry. Earth-bound, he sadly left the brink Of time, in Jordan's waves to sink, Laden with fears. How bitter must Death's waters taste I How hard a thing for man to waste Away and die ! To leave his wealth and glory here, Be forced o'er Jordan's waves to steeFj Where spirit's sigh ! I gazed upon the stream again, I saw the friend of God was slain 5 Yet lives above ! Death is the end of all his toil ! By it he gains a heavenly soil Through Jesus' love. Strong pinions bore his spirit up. While flesh partook the bitter cup. And wailed in Death. With anchor cast within the vail, He spread his banner to the gale, And gave his breath. No more he '11 stand upon the shore. And feel the waves of Death roll o'er Him to destroy ! His ransomed soul shall dwell on high And through God's holy mansions fly, Inspired with joy. THE SCENES OF CALVARY. Awake my soul to that dread day, And strike thy harp in mournful lay, To view Mount Calvary. A Man of grief, a Man of prayer. Was forced by Jews his cross to bear, And die upon the tree. rice's poetry. 197 Behold the scene ! the mid-day light By miracle was put to flight; — Gloom did enshroud the earth ! The Temple's veil was rent in twain When the meek Son of God was slain To give salvation birth. For three long hours the Savior hung; — The harps of gold became unstrung; And angels stood affright ! The hosts above could sympathize With Him who left the upper skies ; But man his God could fight ! Methinks I hear the Victim cry, When hung between the earth and sky, " 'Tis done ! the crown is given." He bowed his head — gave up the Ghost ! Then quickly moved the upper host To spread the news through Heaven. Angels now strike their harps of gold, And God's free gift to man unfold Throughout the courts of ligh.* I Nor can they keep this boon on high ; But down with speedy pinions fly. That man may view the sight. Lo ! the Redeemer sleeps in death ! On Calv'ry's mount resigned his breath; Yet he a God remains. Behold, he rises from the tomb ! He stamps upon the grave her doom. And bursts the tyrant's chains. CONVULSIONS OF NATURE. Lo ! in deep portentous gloom, Clouds of wrath the heavens spread, Dark as if man's final doom 17 198 rice's poetry Broke upon his guilty head : Now the dreadful lightnings fly ! God in wrath is drawing nigh ! Hark ! I hear his chariot wheels Rumbling down the vaulted skies ; Nature, troubled nature reels, And puts forth her plaintive cries : Earth and ocean quake with fear ! Tremble ! for your God is near ! God of wrath enthroned above, While thy thunder bolts are hurled Save us ! for thy name is Love, Save a lost and ruined world ! Let thy burning ire be stayed By the bow of promise made. The storm is hushed, — silence reigns, Ocean billows cease to rise ; Winds no longer sweep the plains, Lightnings cease to rend the skies ! King of nature drops his rod ! Mercy is the will of God. JJCSUS' LOVE STRONGER THAN DEATH. Ye sons of God behold your King While in Gethsemane he prayed, ' Twas there he shed his blood to bring Salvation from the gaping grave ; His deep-toned wail, his piercing cries, Invoked an angel from the skies. *Twas midnight when He felt the load, Which would have crushed a world to hell ; At that dark hour his mercy flowed, That you might with his angels dwell : Remember all his groans and tears. And rise above your guilty fears. 199 Draw near and view the Judgment hall, Where hostile Jews the Savior led ; He drank the wormwood and the gall, And by the crown his temples bled : He bore the cross up Calvary To set the dying spirit free. Behold, he lies upon his bed, While spikes are driven through his feet ! He dies to save the wicked dead. And bless them at the Judgment seat: The mid-day sun his light withdrew When God the Savior bled for you. Come hasten to the marble tomb. And view the place where Jesus lay ; Learn by his death your mortal doom, And ever live to watch and pray : He rose triumphant o'er the grave, And reigns above, the soul to save. Lo, the Redeemer prays for man, At God's right hand I hear him cry, " save from Satan's cruel ban The lost, for which thy Son did die '.'* For Adam's fallen, ruined race He pleads before his Father's face. NOAH'S DOVE. Behold the floating ark, Ploughing the waters dark, The earth around ; There was no mountain seen, No tree, nor evergreen ; — All flesh was drowned. Then o'er the billows dread A Dove's soft wings were spread, The land to view ; 200 rice's poetry. But on that shoreless tide, No tow'ring mount she spied, When swift she flew. She to the ark returned, And by it Noah learned The waters raged ; He took her in to rest, AH weary and distressed, — Her grief assuaged. So man the ark has left, And of his peace bereft, — Exposed to hell ! Yet he may now return, And by salvation learn 'With God to dwell. CHRIST'S RESURRECTION. God our Redeemer rose, In triumph left the dead, High o'er his mortal foes Raised his exulting head : In wild disma}'- the guard were shook And to the earth like dead men felL Angelic bands appear. Around his grave they meet ; In haste to Him draw near, And worship at his feet ; They come with joy from worlds on high, And wing their way to Jesus' tomb. Then home to Heaven they fly. The glorious news to bear ! As they ascend the sky. Sweet anthems fill the air ! ** Jesus who bled," they loudly sing, ** In spite of death, this day arose." EICE S POETRY. 201 Let man, redeemed from hell, Proclaim the joyful sound ! To ev'ry nation tell. Salvation may be found ! In mercy cry, " The Lord, though dead, Has burst the tomb, no more to die." AH hail, triumphant King-, Who died our souls to save ! Let all creation sing. Thy vic'try o'er the grave ! Thou risen God, with thee we '11 rise ! And empires gain beyond the tomb. THE ORGANIZATION OF WORLDS. E're God the universe begun, In one rude chaos matter lay, And wild disorder overrun, Nor knew of light one glim'ring ray; While darkness spread throughout the whole, Confusion reigned without control. Then God arose, his thunder hurled, And bade the elements arise ; In air he hung the pendant world, And o'er it spread the azure skies ; Orbs in their circles caused to run, And in the centre fixed the Sun. Then man he called forth out of dust, And formed him with a living soul ; All things committed to his trust, And made him ruler of the whole; He proved ungrateful unto Heaven,— A rebel was from Eden driven. From thence proceeded all our woes, Nor could mankind expel their fear Until Christ'aniiy arose, 202 rice's poetry. And formed another Eden here. ' Tis only on religious ground Pleasure with innocence is found. ' Tis here the purest fountain flows ; Here nought corrupt can enter in; ' Tis here the tree of Knowledge grows, Whose fruit we taste, exempt from sin. In sacred friendship we abound, While God's dear Spirit hovers round. " IT IS WELL."— 2 Kings iv, 26. " Is it well with the child ?" And she answered '"Tis well;" As I looked on the weeper that cried ; And the fast falling tear, as it run from its cell, Proved she loved her fond son who had died. I beheld, and the child's living features had fled: For death had inspired him with gloom ; And the wearisome watchers had j ust left the dead, * And made ready to meet round his tomb. | •' Is it well with the child ?" And she answered, '"Tis well;" Yet she thought of his beauty and grace. When his juvenile bosom with laughter did swell, In his mother's consoling embrace. Through his darkly tinged eyebrows, when waking from sleep. His bright lamps in their sockets did roll ; Which constrained the sad mourner in silence to weep. And display the strong grief of her soul. " Is it well with the child ?" And she answered, " ' Tis well ;" For his sorrows and pain are all o'er :— rice's poetry. 203 Of the sigh, and the groan, and deep pang he might tell; But they never shall trouble him more. In the visions of night, he appears by my side, In the oarment of angels above ; And I hear his glad song, as he wings far and wide, In the cherubic mansions of love. " Is it well with the child ?" And she answered, '"Tiswell;" For with saints he shall pluck of life's tree ; By the boon of salvation with God he shall dwell And with him be eternally free. Now his heart-thrilling bosom no longer shall beat, With the throbs of affliction and pain ; Nor shall he, in his glory such foes ever meet. As he met when on earth he was slain. SPIRITUAL WORSHIP. How beautiful Lord, must thy Temple have been At the time of its first consecration, While the cherubim's wings wide spreading within, Gave grace to the ark's holy station. When the priests of Levi thy chosen well skilled To minister before the blest altar. Had withdrawn from the cloud the Temple had filled, Lo Israel adored with the psalter. Sublime was thy glory and majesty then, Yet the favor the Gospel discloses, More clearly extends thy salvation to men, And exceeds the ritual of Moses. But by whom were these rites of Heaven repealed, Save by Jesus from whom they were given ; — Free pardon for sin by his death he revealed. And the bars of the grave he has riven. 204 RICE S POETRY. His truth and redemption now show us the way To ascend on wings of his glory; Not like the vain shadows of that early day, But by the free grace of his story. This is the true worship the Savior made known When at Jacob's deep well he was talking; — The truth of his kingdom in lustre was shown, To the maid with her water-pot walking. All things become new, and old things pass away In the Gospel's complete dispensation ; And darkness recedes by the splendor of day Through the spirit of God's dedication. Then let us arise over sin and despair, And pursue the bright Star ever shining; And of the vain systems of error beware, Lest we fall by their darkness combining. Our Redeemer on high, with grace ever nigh, Has prepared the bright way by his favor, And songsters below soon with angels shall vie. To extol the adorable Savior. Then let us take courage and press on the way, Till our sorrows and pain shall be ended ; And our souls mount up to the regions of day, And our anthems with seraphs be blended. THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM. Behold the bright morn when Jesus the Savior, From realms of glory in mercy came down ; Go sinners and worship your Lord in a manger. Angels from heaven his birth-place do crown. The morning dew-drops his cradle are gilding. He takes his abode where oxen have trod ; Seraphs adore him, Christ's kingdom is building This is our Monarch, our Savior and God. rice's poetry. 205 With songs of angels the skies are resounding, They sing the blest anthem, " Good will to all men I" The shepherds astonished, yet faith is abounding, They follow the Star where angels have been. While gazing, they see their Lord in a manger, Where wise men offer their incense divine ; They fall and adore this heavenly stranger. Who news of salvation brought to mankind. Ye friends of this Savior, spread his appearing. This is the bright Star from eternity shone ; His name to sinners shall ever be cheering, While as Mediator he sits on his throne. "Brightest and best of the sons of the morning, Shine on our darkness and lend us thine aid ; Star in the East the horizon adorning. Guide where our infant Redeemer was laid." COME TO THE AVATERS. Rejoice ye prisoners, in that life immortal. Which flows spontaneous from the Word of God ! See Zion's wall expands her golden portal. To save the sinner from the direful rod ! Come to the Waters ! ye whose hearts are gushing With youthful action, uninspired with pain ; Whose tide of life in sanguine streams is rushing Like springs of water through the youthful vein. Ho all ye thirsty ! come to Zion's river. Where life is stamped with God's unerring truth ! Turn from earth's follies, hail the bounteous Giver, And drink the fountain of eternal youth ! Come to the AVaters ! ye whose heads are hoary, Sages and sires, whose lives will soon be o'er, Rise from your slumber, seek your ransomed glory, Drink of the river and you '11 thirst no more. 18 206 rice's poetry. Children of sorrow ! drest in sable mourning, Whose hearts are beating with their aching throes Come when the bahn of life dispels your groaning,^ Cheers up your spirits and expels your woes. Come to the Waters ! hail the crystal fountain Which gushes from the living throne of God ! All cheering stream ! it flows from Zion's mountain Surpassing that which followed Moses' rod. Come to the Waters ! ye whose lives are dreary, Whose earthly charms are passing fast away ; Cast off your burden ! never more be weary. Forsake your sins and shout eternal day ! Come all the world and drink the living Waters Slaves of the South, and Indians of the West, Monarchs and beggars, parents, sons and daughter;! Bathe in the fountain which secures your rest. This ample spring can never be exhausted ; Millions have drank, and yet may millions more Come precious souls this day you are accosted, Search for this treasure while it 's kept in store«! THE FAVOR OF GOD. God's Favor I see, when to Jesus I flee, And lay up my treasures on high ; No chains can control, the rich joys of my soul, When I on love's pinions do fly. Sweet comfort is mine, when God's mercy divine I find through the Lamb that was slain ; My heart it believes, and free pardon receives, Which frees it from sin's killing stain. ' Tis an Eden below, my Savior to know, And seraphs can do nothing more, Than bow at his feet, and his mercy repeat, And the Friend of sinners adore. rice's poetry. 207 Now all the day long, free salvation 's my song, From regions of darkness and pain; Jesus loves me I know, I will with him go, To mansions in glory to reign. On pinions of love, I will soar far above This world of destruction and sin. And light on the shore, where diseases no more Shall burden my spirit within. With songsters above, now enchanted with love, I have faith in glory to meet, A.nd with the bright band, who on Zion do stand, My Lord and Redeemer will greet. There springs ever flow, and rich waters bestow, To cheer the bright angels on high ! While saints shall mount higher, in chariots of fire, And glory with cherubs to vie. Dear Lord while I stay, in this building of clay, help me to watch unto prayer ; And when I must die, let me soar up on high, That I thy redemption may share. '' I AM WITH YOV.''— Mat, xxviii, 20. All hail ye blest pilgrims enlisted for glory. Who publish salvation to regions afar ; Who preach to the heathen the Gospel's rich story. Which leads them to Jesus, the bright morning star. Your calling is worthy, and high your commission, To spread the glad tidings of life all around; To tell the poor Gentile his hopeless condition. And point him where treasures of glory abouna. God speed the dear pilgrims to tell the sad stranger. Who falls down to worship his gods made of stone, That the blood of King Jesus can save him from danger, That he bled on the cross his sins to atone. 208 The song of redemption shall cheer ev^ry nation, And the flag of free grace shall float on the breeze ; Until God's disciples shall fill ev'ry station, From rivers to oceans and isles of the seas. Cheer up wandering pilgrims, though often forsaken, The God of the prophets your Savior shall be ; The land of the heathen by grace must be taken, And her sons and daughters in Jesus be free. Then shouts to the Savior in rapture resounding, Shall fill every heart and fire ev'ry tongue ; While robes of salvation through faith are abounding Made free by that God who on Calvary hung FREE GRACE. See the stream of Free Grace that flows from the fountain, Which invites Adam's race to climb Zion's mountain ; ; For sin and pollution and ev'ry transgression, The blood of the Savior makes free intercession. This fountain is perfect and ample to pardon. And buoy up the soul through the waters of Jordan ; Though the guilt of the heart shall wave like the ocean. The blood of atonement can still the commotion. Sweet Jesus ride on in the car of Salvation, ' Till shouts of thanksgiving shall swell ev'ry nation, ' Till the world shall unite with holy intention To honor the Savior who purchased Redemption. When we pass the cold waters and gain the bright! shore. With sweet anthems of glory well '11 praise ever- more ; We '11 sail the blest river, and soar to its fountain, With pinions of angels we '11 scale Zion's mountain rice's poetky. 209 There, free from temptation, we '11 range the blesC regions, And join in sweet anthems with cherubic legions ; We '11 bask in the sunshine of God's golden treasure, And worship King Jesus with undying pleasure. Ye redeemed of the Lord ! come drink of the waters. And press on to glory with Zion's fair daughters; Rich mercy 's now flowing through the Lamb that was slain ; Leave your crimes of pollution, your Eden regain. THE VICTOR FROM EDOM. What Victor is this from the fields of the slain, Arrayed with his garments of deep-crimsoned hue ? What Victor is this who has sufl^ered such pain. That souls of lost men might God's favor renew ? " It is I," saith the Lord, " I burst the strong hold With my sword of wrath and the strength of my hand; *Tis I who was often by prophets foretold, That destroyed the tyrant and broke his strong band." And why, O thou Victor ! why crimsoned in blood ? Why scarred with those wounds the lost sinner should pain ? Ah, why thus besmeared, with the heart's gushing flood, As if just returning from fields of the slain ? *' The winepress of Edom I 've trodden alone. Her banners are scattered, her armies are fled, Yet further will I, who their vengeance have borne, Pursue them by judgment to fields of the dead. * There was not a helper in Isr'el to save, No arm that could rescue the Lamb to be slain ; 18 210 rice's poetry. I looked ; but alas ! I must enter the grave, And in the dark mansion of Joseph remain. " But short was my stay in the tomb of the dead , Its bands burst asunder, in triumph I rose ; Go tell my disciples the Savior has fled, That an angel from Heaven his grave did unclose. " Go tell them he rose from the night of the slave, And broke the strong fetters of death and despair ; Go tell them rich news of redemption to save, For they by his triumph salvation shall share." ( REJOICING OF ANGELS. 0, why are the anthems of cherubs resounding, With sounds of sweet music through regions of love? And the song of the ransomed in union abounding, Responsive with harps of the Angels above ? And why do they listen from summits of gladness, Where all are rejoicing in raptures divine ? And what can they see in this region of sadness, That shall to them laurels of glory entwine ? m Behold in yon dark dreary cell — where reclining On earth, low and hopeless, the prisoner is bound ; No beam through his dungeon of hope ever shining. No accents of mercy with light do resound. By man his God leaving, through devil's enchanting. His soul sinks in darkness and feels the dire rod ; But the rich Mediator with glories advancing. Bids him trust in his Savior, his Maker and God. See down his pale cheeks the tears are fast stealing, And his prayer from lips trembling soars up on See sighs from his bosom his sorrows revealing. Call grace from the Fountain that never shall dry. RICE S POETRY. 211 Let US marvel no more at seraphs rejoicing, When saints to King Jesus their raptures do raise ; True faith and repentance man's sins are destroying, Which makes joy for Angels and Christians to praise. Then raise your blest anthems, ye bright stars of Heaven, And on your Creator eternally gaze ! So may God's salvation to sinners be given. Which ransoms the soul from the night of the grave. THE RUINS OF CANAAN. Where is the land with God's rich mercy flowing, Where gifts of gladness roll on fancy's theme ? Over her fields spontaneous weeds are growing, Where fire and blood have mingled in one stream. These are dire scenes to past'ral eyes beholding, God's vengeance rushes over Canaan's plain ; His arm of might his horrid wrath unfolding, And heaps on heaps are by his anger slain. Where is the bliss of honest hearts repenting, The sweet repose and sunshine of the soul ? The host above are to our joys consenting, And by repentance healing waters roll. Christians, awake ; the land shall soon be taken, God calls you to his saving fold again ; Though you by sin have justly been forsaken. Return and crowns of endless life obtain. Melt down our hearts thou Son of joy and gladness, And bring us back to Canaan's happy home : Disperse the gloom that fills our hearts with sadness, And buoy us up in hope of joys to come. And when the war note shall by death be ended. When foes by sin God's children fight no more ; May Calvary's gift and angels' songs be blended, To swell those hearts where life is kept in store. 212 rice's poetry. THE ROD. I looked on the bride in her glory and pride, Adorned in her shining array ; And the life-giving tide which glowed on her face, Was blooming, inviting, and gay. With honest devotion she gave her fond heart. To the fancy of treach'rous lov^ ; And bound all her hopes to the glory of earth, With affections kind as the dove. Soon I looked and her heart was wounded and faint, And her bonds were sundered in twain; She had sold her fancy for garments of woe, And her beauty for treach'rous gain. But I saw her Savior pour balm in her heart, And wiping the fast falling tear, He fastened the bonds which were broken apart. By his love which casts away fear. The mourner awoke from her sadness and woe, Lamented the path she had trod ; And hailed the sweet voice that whispered from Heaven, " I love thee ! pass under the rod." I saw the fond mother in beauty arrayed Bend over her innocent boy ; And she hailed the sweet voice which uttered her name, As the babe lay smiling with joy. As sweet as the rose-bud all shining with dew, With its fragrance floating in air ; So fresh and effulgent her son did appear As he slept in innocence there. Soon I saw her again beholding her boy, When veiled in the ruins of death ! By the ruthless angel his glories had fled For in haste he gave up his breath. rice's poetry. 213 But the Savior was nigh who wounded her heart, And swept the fair idol away j To entice her above he bore it on high, — And she rose her Lord to obey. While tears were fast falling she gave a deep sigh ! Then asked the forgiveness of God ; And hailed the sweet voice that whispered from Heaven, "I love thee ! pass under the rod.'* I beheld, and the parents fondly reclined On the arms of their duteous son; And the prospect of bliss grew strong in their sight. When they saw the treasures he 'd won. And when the last evening of life was at hand, Their pathway was bright to behold ; And the sweet star of love did over them shine, And glittered like spangles of gold. But ere long I saw them bend over the tomb, And their tears of sorrow did roll ; For their son had just died, and entered the grave, By the fate of nature's control. But the Savior in gladness bound up their hearts. And poured in the oil and the wine ; And bade them the fountain of waters partake, And ever in glory to shine. They found earthly treasures were fleeting and vam. And nothing could live but in God ; And they hailed the voice that whispered from Hea- ven, " I love thee ! pass under the rod." 214 rice's poetry. THE ROCK IN MID OCEAN. In the deep blue ocean, remote and alone Is a Rock, which sunders the waters in twain , Its towering bastions with fragments are strown — Its strong hold by nature is long to remain. Let frightful tornadoes rush on when they may, And the ocean's deep waves fast roll round its feet ; Let its crags ever drip with fast-falling spray, It shall brave ev'ry foe, and hold its strong seat. What though the huge breakers and whirlwinds maj sweep, That hermit of ages shall conquer them all : The sailor shall see it still braving the deep, And view from its surface the waters to fall. Long worn, but yet firm is that desolate Rock, It keeps its strong station where islands are born; In triumph looks down on the ocean's deep shock. And salutes its vain foes with laughter and scorn. Come thou, that reverest the Master on high. Stand fast on the Rock of salvation above : When thy passions rush on, and dangers are nigh, 1 Believe, and recline on the arms of his love. " When skeptics would have thee thy Savior disdain, And scorn that redemption, — the sinner to save j When they rail on his saints with infidel stain. Stand fast on the Rock, — the tempest to brave. Be firm like the bastion, nor wish to depart From precepts of Heaven, their cares, or their cost; Rich treasure eternal God made to impart ; But by man's rejection the gift shall be lost. With the wiles of the devil, — his wrath, or his mirth, Strive hard as the martys of Jesus have striven ; And all thy temptations and sorrows on earth, Shall be paid in the full fruition of Heaven. ■ RICE S POETRY. 215 THE LOAFER'S LAMENTATION. Come hear the sad wails of a poor drunken Loafer, Whose long-bearded face calls loud to be shorn ; For rum, lo he cries, ere his spree is quite over. While his money 's all gone and his clothes badly torn. His course he pursues to the rum-seller's station, Where he in profusion his rations did draw ; He calls to the landlord with strong invitation, " O, give me a smaller to moisten my craw." But the rum-seller's signal is, " Loafer be gone ; My house I keep civil and you can't be here ;" He takes his departure with spirits forlorn. Without understanding which way he shall steer. *' O, whiskey ! by thee I am s-adly forsaken, I dream of thy glory, yet thou dost not come ; Alas, my sad feelings ! — with tremens I 'm shaken, While the skin of my throat is dry as a drum. " My spree of rejoicing is quickly passed over. And I 'm left to wander in shame and despair ; The dog has a shelter his body to cover, But I have no friends, food, or clothing to wear." O, sad is the fate of thi':5 heart-broken stranger; No money to purchase the god of his soul ; He walks to and fro like a lost frantic ranger, ' Till forced to the mad-house his fate to condole. Insane by delirium in madness he rages, He trembles and shrieks on the verge of despair ; Disease reigns triumphant, until its last stages Break down his clay prison his fate to declare. Such are the dire scenes of this poor fallen creature, Wh.o but few months ago left the Emerald Isle : No relatives near to behold his sad feature. And sigh his farewell with the loss of a smile. 216 rice's poetry. He 's gone where the waves of destruction are rolling, Where fires of damnation can never expire ; Where his sighs and deep groans are ever unfolding The justice of God, and the curse of his ire. Thou Spirit of love ! stay the tide of destruction, Which like a tornado sweeps over the world ; By thy reformation make that introduction. Which expands thy glory, free grace has unfurled. PETITION FOR PEACE. How long shall we glory in war with the stranger ? How long shall our brethren in battle be slain ? Ah ! why shall we press on our forces to danger, When the life-blood of thousands is lavished like I How long shall we glory when tears are fast falling From widows and orphans the slaughter has made? Why rush on to danger with prospects appalling ? Though our warriors have been with triumph ar- rayed. Ah ! why should the war-cry for glory be longer ? And nations rejoice in rebellion and strife ? The weak may expire by the sword of the stronger , Yet what can avail such destruction of life ? My brethren awake to the Gospel trump sounding ; When our Savior was smitten he smote not again; Let that spirit of Peace in us be abounding ; And our souls shall live through the deep sanguine stain. Ah ! how can the warrior who claims martial glory, Aspire for those treasures in mansions above ? And how can he ever repeat the glad story, " My heart is made free by the Gospel of love ?" rice's poetry. 217 What avails this vain glory, when souls have de- parted, And taken their lodgings where demons bewail ? What good with lost angels to feel broken-hearted, Where the voice of salvation no more shall pre- vail ? Then let the strong banner of Peace be extended, And fan every soul by the breezes of Heaven ; Let justice and merc}'^ in union be blended, And the sound for battle no more shall be oriven. RELIGION. Hail, holy Spirit ! Messenger of love. Inspire my heart, and calm my troubl'd soul ; Rivers of mercy from thy fount above, Over my spirit healing waters roll. Thy dwelling place is in the humble heart, Which beats responsive to thy holy will, Though poverty beset with venomed dart. And make that heart with deepest sorrows thrill. Though every nerve vibrate with keenest grief. Though borne beneath oppression's pond'rous thrall, Thy fulgent smile would give some kind relief. And o'er the spirit calming lustre fall. Vhen thorns of sorrow hedge my gloomy path, Thy hand of mercy shall destroy their sting ; Vhen dismal clouds spread o'er my sky with wrath, Over these clouds hope's rainbow thou shalt fling : Vhen the fast beating pulse of life is dead, And hostile foes, the wealthy and the poor, lie low in death, each in his narrow bed. Where love and envy shall be known no more ; 'hen like some guardian angel drawing n)gh The place in which my mould'ring dust shall sleep 19 21S rice's poetry. Till God's last trumpet rend the azure sky, Th}'^ careful eye my sleeping dust shall keep. And when the angel's awful trump shall sound Through earth's vast region, " Time shall be n more :" When fire through all the elements abound. And the long dreamless sleep of death is o'er : Then wilt thou bear me to some heavenly sphere^ , Where deathless pleasures reign without alloy, , Where sweetest songs enchant the ravish'd ear, And life is one eternal scene of joy. THE SEPULCHRE. Mine eye beholds the dead. O'er battle field, the landscape and the plain, In waters deep, and shores where heroes bled, Are countless numbers slain. i Within the peopled street, The prisoner's gloomy cell and mansions high ; In fancy's domes, where pomp and folly meet, Men agonize and die. The poor and rich must fall ; Must bow beneath death's sceptre — and the brave- The bondman and the free — the low and tall, Sink in one common grave. The moonlight gilds the walls Of monarch's tombs inwrought with finest brass ; And the lone shadow of the willow falls Across the waving grass. The sons of gone-by time. Who did vast cities rear, and ships at sea, For ages stood in grandeur most sublime, But they no longer be. The orator and sage, The graceful poet and warrior brave, were there; I t rice's poetry. 219 And maniacs in all their frantic rage, And maidens white and fair. But their glory 's passed away ; Sun rose and set, earth flourished in her bloom ; While man was thoughtless, and in folly gay Sunk to his final tomb. " The dead are every where ;'* Where 'er compassion dwells — envy or faith , Or wealth and power appear in richest air; There reigns the victor, Death. THE BLISS OF HEAVEN. No death is there ; No mortal sickness wastes the frame away, No fearful shrinking from contagious air, No fear of scalding heat by summer's ray. No groans and sighs, No wild and frightful visions of the night. No living mortal mourns, and bleeds, and dies ; No eyes in tears, for glory heaves in sight. Care 's past away ; Within that realm of endless praise and song, Its surges break and leave a joyful day. Where saints redeemed have joined the spirit throng. The storm's dark wing Shall never blacken th' efl^ulgent skies ; Its chilly winds and thunders shall not fling Their shroud around the spirit as she flies. There is no night ; No frosty wind shall pierce the tender frame ; No sun or moon is there ; for God is light — Bids darkness flee by the Messiah's name. No friends shall part. And by some keen reflection have to weep ; 220 rice's poetry. No bed of death shall make the spirit smart, In vieAV of a swift-coming, pulseless sleep. No dying flower, Or fading leaves, those heavenly gardens know; No with'ring blast or fierce destroying shower, Spreads devastation like a ruthless foe. No martial word Awakes the heavenly hosts with dread or fear ; The joyful song of Bliss is ever heard, And love's rich jewel God and angels rear. Let us go home, If such bright glory fill the weary soul ; Thou stricken saint, look up ! God bids thee come, And weep no more by sorrow's stern control Faith is our guide ; With robes of innocence it leads the way ; Why fear we, then, to enter Jordan's tide, And find the pleasures of an endless day ? ACROSTIC ON JO JIN N. MAFFITT. J...ESUS' sweet name thy bosom doth inspire, 0...'er hill and dale the Gospel truth to spread ; H...eaven's rich glory doth thy spirit fire ; N...0 hell-bom foe shall waste thy living bread. N...ews of salvation fills thy ravished soul ! M.-an's blood-bought spirit cheers thy sparkling eye ! A... view of Calv'ry doth thy heart control ; F...or down that fount flow streams that never dryif F...riend of thy Savior and of sinners lost, I...n God's rich chariot ride on faith's strong wing! T...ell to the w^orld what man's redemption cost ; T...read down the serpent with his baneful sting. 4 '■V eice's poetry. 221 THE JOYS OF HEAVEN. Come saints all around, my Lord I have found, He 's spread a rich banquet above ; Are your hearts like mine, for Jesus to pine, Come enter the chariot of love. By faith we '11 arise, to crowns in the skies ; I By hope we this glory aspire ; I By love we have come, and entered our home, I With our hearts enraptur'd with fire. Behold the saints sing, how they make Heaven rmg In friendship they all do combine ; iThe choirs all unite, hearts, voices and might, ' And their song is mercy divine. (Hallelujahs they raise, in glory they praise. Their Master who sits on his throne ; They honor the Lamb, and the great I Am, Saying Jesus for sin did atone. The Lord on his throne, now dwells with his own, Where rivers of pleasure abide ; In day without night, saints feast on his might, And sail on eternity's tide. They '11 dwell with the Dove, and bask in his love, In regions of beauty on high ; And walk streets of gold, while eternity rolls. Where the songs of bliss never die. ACROSTIC ON JOHN SUMMERFIELD. J...TJST was the theme that bore his soul away 0...n faith's strong pinions to the climes above; H...is lofty spirit caught the heav'nly ray ; N...or could the world destroy his flaming love. S...hort was his pilgrimage on earth to preach U...pon God's truth, which did his bosom fire ; ♦19 222 rice's poetry. M...ercy's rich boon empowered his lips to teach ; — M...an's fallen Eden did his soul inspire. E...nraptured glory was his chosen theme ; R...efulgent Gospel fanned his weary soul ; F...ood from his Savior made his spirit beam I...n mid-day splendor at his final goal. E...nchanting angels from the courts on high, L...ooked down as he set forth a Savior's name ; D...ense crowds of hearers who in sin did vie, Caught the rich gem which did his bosom flame, ON SPRING. The Spring has come in all its glory, The dreary Winter' s passed away ; The birds begin their warbling story, And joyful sing their morning lay. The mountain snows disperse in water, And icy bridges float the stream ; The chilly winds from ev'ry quarter, Have all departed like a dream. The floating zephyrs' vernal breezes Revive new verdure o'er the plain ; The sun in all his splendor pleases Mankind with light on earth's domain. Lo, nature wrapped in death-like slumber, In haste returns to life again ; The king of day, rays without number. Calls for the Spring's enchanting strain. The forest trees shoot out their branches, The rosy buds burst forth in bloom ; The dormant power of nature stanches. And herbage rises from the tomb. So man shall enter his last slumber. As he descends his dreary grave ; 223 Yet God shall raise the countless number, That sink beneath death's scourging wave. In living beauty, bright and shining. Immortal man shall wing the skies I With Jesus' love and faith combining, He shall to golden mansions rise. Shall join angelic choirs in glory. And bask in one eternal Spring ; And ever tell salvation's story. And on the harps of angels sing. FAITH. Faith is a star to cheer and guide The pilgrim on his dreary course, Its light destroys sin's rapid tide, And points the soul to God, its source. Faith is a building on the plain. Beyond deep Jordan's rolling waves ! The Christian views the golden fane, And every storm and tempest braves. Faith is an anchor to the soul, . Which scales Mount Zion's holy hill ! The winds may rage, the breakers roll, Yet Jesus speaks, and all is still. Faith is the boon that leads above, The way of life the prophets trod. The joyful road of peace and love. The free and sovereign grace of God ! Faith is the healing balm of life, A certain cure for ills and pain ; It calms the passions' raging strife, And frees the soul from all her stain. Faith is a gem from yonder sky, A plant of some immortal birth ! 224 rice's poetry. It was not made to bloom and die, Like the vain crested flowers of earth. { Why then despise this brilliant star, This beacon tower, this anchor sure ? This foreign plant from mansions far, iM This medicine the soul to cure ? ^ Ah ! why not all the world receive This Faith, and soar above despair ? Give up their sins, in Christ believe. And learn their Master's yoke to bear ? This boon is worth the heart's desire. It saves mankind from endless pain. Endows them with celestial fire, And makes them meet with God to reign. Angels above in Faith rejoice, 1 And all the blissful throng on high ; Why then refuse salvation's voice. Which caused our Lord to bleed and die ? "GOD MANIFEST IN THE FLESH." Hail thrice happy day, when veiled in our clay, The Savior appeared upon earth ! My soul can't refrain, to join in the strain, That hailed King Immanuel's birth ! Behold this vast love, first issued above, To us through the Lamb is made known ! Our voices we '11 raise, exulting with praise That on earth salvation is strown ! Ye angels on high, and cherubs that vie, Extol him as King of all kings ! We also will join, in praises divine. And incense to Jesus will bring ! This Priest we '11 adore, and praise evermore ; For his arm will lead us to God ! 225 His treasure of gold, its wings will unfold, And save us from sin's killing rod ! We '11 spend all our days to Messiah's praise; For he our salvation has won ! He dwelt here beloAv, his mercy to show, And expired for sinners undone ! Now let us return, and view Joseph's urn, Where our Lord in triumph did rise ! And hail the blest day, when Jesus did say, " Seek treasures laid up in the skies !" may we prolong, this Heaven born song, And chant the sweet anthem below ! To kindle that fire, the nations desire, W^hich does in God's paradise grow ! Dear Savior while we pay homage to thee, Let us bless, admire and adore ! We honor that love, begotten above, Its Author we '11 praise evermore ! JESUS, THE STAR OF ETERNITY. While musing on the heavenly plain, I hear the choir of angels sing ; — The Savior is their joyful strain, For he this day is born a King. " Glory to God," the chorus break ! For man appears a diadem ! The sinner may this crown partake, And hail the Star of Bethlehem. When on the frightful deep I rode. The light'nings flashed — the night was dark, The direful tempest rudely blowed, Which threatened to destroy my barque ! The chills of death my vitals froze ! In haste I ceased the tide to stem ! 226 rice's poetry. ' Twas then a brilliant Star arose, The new-born Star of Bethlehem. This is the source of all my joy; It bids my dying spirit live, My vile affections shall destroy, My past offences will forgive. When safely landed on the shore, I '11 sing of the immortal gem ! Where perils, pain and grief are o'er, I '11 praise the Star of Bethlehem. My vital spark, made free from clay, Shall by this Star inflame with love ; And sing the song of endless day. With all the sacred hosts above. While God's eternal ages roll, With saints I'll pluck of Life's fair Tree; And slake the longings of my soul. Where servants of the Lord are free. PARDONING GRACE. From sore distress and midnight gloom. My God I raise my thoughts to thee ; O save me from the spirit's tomb, And let me thy salvation see. Thou hast confirmed thy throne of grace, To wash the sinner's stain away ; — Let vile seducers seek thy face, Believe in Thee and learn to pray. As the lost strangers often wait, With mourning hearts for some known guide So I will stand before thy gate, And in thy saving blood confide. My faith is fixed on treasures bor.n Above the starry lamps on high.'. I rice's poetry. 227 My Savior will not leave forlorn My ransomed soul to mourn and die ! God's love is great, boundless and free, Vast in Redemption through his Son ; O Father bind my heart to thee, That I may hell's damnation shun. Keep me in thy Almighty hand, Inspire my soul with mercy's tide ; And I shall find the promised land. And drink the stream of Jesus' side. ACROSTIC ON GEORGE WHITEFIELD. G...EORGE Whitefield's name breaks in upon my soul ; — E...ndearing mem'ry brings it back again; 0...'er land and sea he spread the flowing bowl, R...ich with salvation by the Savior slain. G...reat was that zeal which moved his pious breast, E...ndowed that heart which plead the Savior's love ; W...orthy that spirit with rich grace possessed, H...appy that soul which took its flight above. I...n gushing floods of rapture he did preach T...hat living boon which came from God on high ; E...ndowed from Zion's mountain, he did teach F...rail man to seek those gems that never die. I. ..mortal spirit ! thou hast took thy flight ! E... merged from earth to wing celestial skies! L...et fall thy mantle, and reflect that light, D...isplayed where God's rich fountain never dries. 228 rice's poetry. GOD'S OMNIPRESENCE. Great God, in vain my soul would try To flee my vast concerns with thee, To shun thy presence, or to fly Where thou no more shalt notice me. Thy all-pervading eye surveys My mid-day glory, and my rest, My daily walks, and all my ways, And ev'ry secret of my breast. My thoughts lay open to thy view, When first in me they found a place ; And ev'ry act that I pursue. Meets thy approval or disgrace. Infinite Wisdom, vast ajid deep ! Where shall a creature from thee hide ? Thy circling glories round me keep. And bear me up on ev'ry side. Should I my vital pulse destroy To fiee the wrath of God divine I He would his mighty arm employ, And make the grave her dust resign. Should I on wings of morning light. Fly far beyond the western sky; Thy piercing eye would take its flight, And soon my distant region spy. If o'er my wicked heart I draw The cheerless shades of midnight gloom, I can't evade thy perfect law, Nor find a shelter in the tomb. The light of day and midnight hour. Are both alike my Lor4 to thee ! O may I not provoke thy power, From which my spirit cannot flee. rice's roETRY. 229 GRIEVE NOT THY MOTHER. O grieve her not whose three score years Have drove the days of youth away; Nor rage at her when ills and fears, Press in on life's expiring ray. The footsteps of thy mother aid, And wreathe thy glory on her brow ; Let not her weeping eyes be made The fount of grief where sinners bow. Her active steps by age have failed. Her building totters made of clay; For God to man has long entailed That curse which calls us all away. Let thy strong arm her burdens bear, And cheer her when in life's decline, And with thy heart's most tender care, Impart to her God's truth divine. Remember in thy infant years Her arms oft raised thee to her breast, And drove away thy childish fears, And calmed thy troubled heart to rest. Think of that voice in accents mild, Which strove thy feeble mind to aid ; Behold that heart which loved her child. And for it prayed in midnight's shade. When sickness lingers on her cheek. And she draws near the gaping tomb. The words of Jesus to her speak, And cheer her through deep Jordan's gloom. Then shall thy spirit be at rest, While passing down life's rapid stream ; And God thy Father call thee blest. When in his image thou shalt beam. 20 230 rice's poetry. THE AUTHOR'S ACROSTIC IN PRAYER. R...efulgent Light ! in mercy beam, 0...n me display thy brilliant ray; S...et free my soul by power unseen ! W...elcome my heart to endless day. E...ternal Life ! and all I am ! L...et stains of guilt from me depart — L...et fall on me sweet Gilead's balm ! R...eflect thy love upon my heart. L..mmortal Spirit, Holy Dove ! C.ome in and fill me with thy fire; E...ndow my soul with joys above ! That I may after Heaven aspire. \ I THE CURSE OF WAR. Hark ! the loud cannon moves the troubl'd air, Spreads o'er the world the pall of deep despair, Swells a grave dirge by relatives around, While hellish fiends repel the gloomy sound. Fierce bent on blood the savage monster moves, Compels his men to wade the purple flood: — For what intent ? to stamp a hero's name, Throuirh seas of blood to shout immortal fame. mCE^S POETRY. 231 ■ Conflicting scene, what speculation's here ? Sweet boons departing, stamped with friendship dear, Sporting in glorious shame and motley strife, Each warrior moves to his departing life. I While the deep shades of hostile passions flow, Sudden the death-ball strikes the fatal blow ; The soul departs — in mournful gloom retires, Rolls in the flame of self-condoling fires. Is there civility in War ? If so. Withdraw my pen and let the rebel go ; I Urge him on to battle where honor 's found, I And let his blood for fame distil the ground. Is piety in War ? If this be true, ! Let man no more the way of peace pursue, I Let Gospel truth remain a fictions plan, I And every being join the hellish clan. Let the fair angel boast no more of love, The Son of God no more be call'd the Dove; Let Eden's bliss no man desire to find, Or wish for future glory of the kind. My muse awake ! let not thy reason sleep In fictious systems sinking in the deep; Receive the news thy Savior did proclaim, And let the spirit of affection reign. Wnere is the man that glories in the field ? Where men cause death stamp an eternal seal 1 Whose mind pervades the ample bliss on high; Imbibes the fame of his Redeemer's sigh. If drops of blood in some lone recess pour, If there a victim welters in his gore, The chase prevails until the murd'rer's found — Until he hears proclaim'd his deathly sound ! But if a sea of blood does stain the ground — If plains be flooded through the landscape round ; 232 rice's poetry. No coroner his inquisition holds, No solemn voice the fatal deed unfolds. The crime's too great for moral laws to rule, Therefore the play-boy glories in his school ; Fears not the bow that shoots eternal ire; Fears not the woes of hell's devouring fire. If War is wisdom, may I not pursue Its noxious branches, Avhich in gloom bestrew The path of life with horror, death and pain ; Clothing the world in mourning for the slain. If War is just, how can those angels mourn, Who fell from Heaven to grasp the fatal groan ? Wh}^ not rejoice in their infernal plan ? And God approve the savage course of man ? Our Savior's mandate is to love the foe ; By this all men the Holy Spirit know; — The carnal heart a friendly mind approves, But gen'ral friendship does the saint behoove. Thou Friend of Peace, immortal Light appear; Dispel the flood — convey thy Spirit near; Break up the deep, and let thy kingdom reign; Thy gentle breezes fill the broad domain. ACROSTIC ON HENRY B. BASCOM. H...AIL brilliant Star! bedecked with God's own hand ! E...nchanting rapture lights thee with a flame ! N...ews of salvation from celestial land, R...evives thy spirit through King Jesus' name. Y...ears of thy life are swiftly passing by, B...orne on the wings of time's destroying flight ! B...ut that bright crown for which thy soul doth vie, A...ssumes the regions of eternal light ! 233 S...urrounding mercy bids thy spirit rise, C.onfirms the prize of which pure angels boast ! 0..., live for glory ! and the upper skies M...ust swell thy anthem with the heavenly host. "HONOR THY FATHER." Adore thy Father whose gray hairs Sparse o'er his wasting temples spread ; Adore him when old age impairs That grace which once adorned his head. What though his falt'ring mind shall feel The burden of its mortal clay? What though old age its cares reveal, And break the shrine where treasures lay. His feeble steps in mercy aid. Bedeck his brow with filial love ; Let his inactive ear be made To hear thy voice sweet as the dove. Still, stay his hand, and bear his load ; Heal all his wounds with soothing balm ; Sustain him in his downward road, And all his sorrows strive to calm. Revere him, for his powerless arms Have often clasped thee to his breast, When infant woes and dread alarms Thy weak and tirnid heart distressed. Remember thou that well-known voice, Which strove thy youthful mind to aid i Give honor to thy Father's choice, Because for thee he often prayed. Let kindness bear him to his goal, Lest when he sleeps in death's embrace, The treason of thy guilty soul Shall vex thee with extreme disgrace. ^20 234 rice's poetry. For if this filial debt of love Does in thy heart no place retain ; Then shall thy Judge and Sire above, Declare thou shalt not with him reign. MINISTRATION OF ANGELS. On Zion's hill of brilliant light The Lord of glory makes his seat ; And clouds of Angels in their flight Expand their crowns before his feet. " Go," saith our God, " my Angels go, And hail the worthy Virgin's Son; In haste ye seraphs wing below, And loud proclaim salvation won." Angelic armies leave the skies. In lustre round Elisha stand ; In rapid flight a cherub flies, And breaks the grisly tyrant's band. Thy swift winged servants, O my God ! Thy mourning church on earth attend ; And when she feels affliction's rod, They do their utmost succor lend. These are thy soldiers, gracious Lord I At thy command they quickly fly, Thy word obey with one accord. And bear thy church to worlds on high. THE BACKSLIDER'S RETURN. O thou insulted Dove draw near, Though I have done thee much despite ; Appear in my poor heart, appear ! Nor hold from me thy sacred light. 235 Though I have steeled my wicked heart, And drove away my guilt and fears ; Have urged the Spirit to depart, For many past rebellious years : Though I have most unfaithful prov'd, Of all who have received thy grace ; Have the broad road of death pursued, And often shunn'd thy smiling face : Yet, God, the chief of rebels spare. In honor of my Savior's name, Nor in thy righteous judgment swear To banish me in endless pain. The inclinations of my heart, To leave the Lord, my dearest friend, Inspire my soul with cruel smart, And make me weep because of sin. O Lord, my weary heart set free. Uplift my soul with mercy's hand ; And may I hence thy servant be. And find, through faith, the promised land. THE LOVE OF GOD. While man was in his dark estate, And chained with all the ills of sin ; When death eternal was his fate. And love to God was lost within ; When evil triumphed in his heart, And led him on the road to hell ; When he from justice did depart. And vipers did his bosom swell : The Lord in kindness saw his fate, On mercy's pinions winged his way 5 Left all in glory, good and great, And took upon him mortal clay. 236 Down from the Father's courts he flew Was clothed in garments most divine ; His love did Adam's race pursue, When He expired for all mankind. The way to God hedged up by sin, Through blood divine he opened wide ; The sinner now may treasures win, May find a cleft in Jesus' side. For him his Savior bore the pain Of crucifixion on the tree ; That he might turn to God again, And bear the palms of victory. While in the garden knelt in prayer, My Savior's cries went up to God ; His angel flew — brought comfort there, Gave strength unto my dying Lord. All this the Savior did for man, To save him from the pains of hell ; All this is in salvation's plan. That Adam's race with God may dwell. THE FALLS OF NIAGARA. As I behold Lake Erie's waters, While passing down Niagara's stream, I tremble at their awful thunders, Like waking from some nightly dream. Here nature's God speaks to the stranger, And terrifies his soul with fear ; And shows to him his awful danger, If o'er this chasm he should steer. His mortal barque would dash in sunder. And break amid the raging stream ; The rocks and billows without number, Would soon destroy hope's faintest gleam. I rice's poetry. 237 The Indian warrior down was driven, Was threaten'd with the waves of death; He o'er the cataract was riven, And to his fate resigned his breath. Before he plunged the raging waters, Which did his boon of life destroy, He to the Spirit prayed for quarters, In the eternal world of joy. He took his martial bow and armor. And laid them gently by his side ; And heard the dismal waters murmur, As he sailed on the rapid tide. In steady gaze was fast descending, To plunge his deep and dreary grave ; At length he o'er the verge was bending, And sunk beneath the foaming wave. Such is the emblem of the sinner, Whose danger God has long foretold ; Yet he will spurn his only Savior, And sell his life for love of gold. THE SAINT'S VIEW OF HEAVEN. While on the bank of death I stand And look o'er Jordan's stream, By faith I view the promised land Where all my treasures beam. 0, what transporting, ravish'd scene Is this that heaves in sight ? Rich fields are dressed in living green, And streams of great delight. There trees of life with fruit abound, Which do immortal grow ; The brooks and landscape all around With richest treasures flow. 238 All o'er those vast, unbounded plains, The light of God doth shine ; There Christ, my Savior, ever reigns, And sheds his grace divine. No freezing winds or noxious breath Can reach that port of rest ; Disease and sorrow, pain and death, Can ne'er disturb the blest. When shall I find that happy place. And from all sin be free ? When shall I see my Savior's face, And in his presence be ? Filled with delight, my ravished soul Would bid this world farewell; Though waves of death around me roll, I would with Jesus dwell. There, on those plains where prophets stand, And all the blest on high. Our God we '11 worship in a band, Where pleasures never die. ACROSTIC ON LYDIA H. SIGOURNEY. L...OVE tunes thy harp with flaming grace ; Y...oung minstrels catch its softer strain; D...escanting thoughts oft leave their trace L..n thy lich mumbers, fraught with gain. A... poet's crest has flamed thy soul, H...igh o'er the sombre swain to soar! S...weet anthems from thy spirit roll , I...nspired with thy poetic lore. G...enius in rhyme expands thy flight! 0...'er landscapes wide thy name is known ! U...nnumbered songsters swell that light, R...eflected from thy Father's throne. rice's poetry. 239 N...0 years shall waste thy well earned fame, E...arth's future sons shall chime thy song ; Y...on mount of God shall own thy name, And bear thee home to Zion's throng. GOD THE EVERLASTING LIGHT. Farewell, ye shining lamps on high, With all your brilliant light ; Your golden charms were made to die, And turn to shades of night. Farewell, refulgent orb of day, In splendid flames arrayed ; My soul shall soar beyond thy ray, No longer want thy aid. The stars are but a dismal gleam Compared to my abode, Where lamps of life forever beam Throughout the courts of God. The Father of celestial Light Shall drive all gloom away. Nor shall one hour of darkness blight The glories of that day. No more shall tears of keenest grief, From my wet eyes distil, No more my heart shall seek relief, But Light my soul shall fill. There all the heavenly hosts shall stand Shall in one song unite, And in a firm, unbroken band. Shall worship with delight. 240 rice's poetry. "PEACE, BE STILL." Fear dwelt within the bounding bark When raging winds did blow, And billows rolling, drear and dark, The deck did overflow. The crew were breathless, filled with fear, And baffled was their skill ; They cried, " Is not the Savior here ?" He rose , said, " Peace be still." The raging winds and storm did cease, Obeyed their Maker's will ; The sea was calm, and joyful peace Did every bosom fill. The power of Jesus stilled the wave, The winds in silence fell ; So he shall rescue from the grave All those that in him dwell. 0, Lord ! thou didst in danger's hour, The howling tempest tame ; Come save me by thy Spirit's power, From hell's devouring flame. Thou who didst make the billows' pride Thy mission to fulfill, Destroy my passion's sinful tide, Speak, and say " Peace, be Still." Then I shall on thy bosom rest, And feel that all is well, Until I meet with angels blest, And in thy kingdom dwell. TO AN ABSENT WIFE. Hail, dearest one, though far away, I fain would with thee stay at home, rice's poetry. 241 And hear thee for thy children pray, In melting strains, " Thy kingdom come." The loss of health urged me to roam, And dwell in this far distant land, Where waves of deep Atlantic foam, And rush upon her beaten strand. I left thee and my offspring dear. To see if I. that balm «ould find, Which drives away disease and fear. And cheers with hope the troubled mind. The cross is great, it rends my heart, The breakers beat on every side ; For I from time must soon depart. And plunge deep Jordan's rolling tide. The hectic flush is on my cheek, Consumption triumphs o'er my frame ; Hopeless the boon of health I seek, Hopeless I to this region came. Mary, thy bosom heaves in vain, To hail once more my kind return, For death shall rend our hearts in twain, When I shall fill the silent urn. While morning breaks the midnight gloom, My vision does thy beauty spy, And as I hasten to the tomb. By faith I view thy weeping eye. Weep not fair angel, not for me. Though strangers do my bed surround; By faith we shall God's glory see. And in his paradise be crowned. Tis true I pass the lonesome night, Where tears of solitude distil ; And when I view the morning light. Kind thoughts of thee my bosom thrill. 21 242 rice's poetry. My strength is gone, I shall no more Salute thee with my fond embrace ; . My dying strife will soon be o'er, And blast in me each comely grace. My little ones no more shall see Their distant father's face again ; Lord, I commit them all to thee ! O, save them from eternal pain ! Soon I must sigh the last farewell, Until God's trump shall rend the tomb, And call his servants home to dwell In triumph o'er the tyrant's doom ! Then, may we in that kingdom rise, Where vipers never sting the soul, Where God will us immortalize, As long as sinless ages roll. There death no longer shall destroy These temples with his iron rod ! But rivers of eternal joy. Shall issue from the throne of God ! JESUS THE CROWN OF MY HOPE. My Jesus, the life of my soul, From thee my salvation does flow ; Thy truth let my spirit control, Thy mercy lost Eden bestow. Lord, save me from sin and despair, In oceans of rapture and love, That I may thy glory declare. And press to thy kingdom above. Let thy arm my weakness sustain, From sorrow and pain set me free ; O help, or I never shall gain The land where thy servants shall be. 243 My lot must be mingled with pain, While passing the regions of time ; O, may it inspire me to gain A seat in thy angelic clime. May all my sad trials below Excite me to look unto God, That he to my heart may bestow That pardon which saves from his rod. And when my frail pulse shall no more Give life to this animal frame, My spirit shall wing the blest shore. Where God shall his people reclaim. In bonds of redemption on high, I '11 sail round my Savior's bright throne ; And with his archangels will spy Those regions to me now unknown. His beauty shall light with a blaze My soul by the gems of his love ; On his face my vision shall gaze. With all the blest angels above. No sickness or sin shall destroy The glory that lights up the soul; No foes to God's kingdom annoy That feast his own lingers control. This glorious hope is my crown. It cheers me in life's gloomy path ; The altar of sin it breaks down, And saves from the curse of its wrath. THE PENITENT'S PRAYER. Deep in distress my spirit lies, Condemn'd by God's unerring law — Low in the dust I make my cries, That I may heav'nly waters draw. 244 God of my soul ! O hear my voice ! For I am burden'd sore with sin ; I fain would make thy love my choice — Come heal the wound — 'tis deep within. Often have I transgress'd thy law, By which I 'm now condemn'd to die ! I see my sins — they from me draw Strong tears of grief — O hear my cry ! Come gracious Lord — without thy aid My soul must sink beneath her load ! Grant me the pardon thou hast made, And lead me in the narrow road. Cleanse me from this my crimson'd stain, And make my spirit pure and free ; That I may in thy mansion reign, And thy eternal glory see. To thee, Lord, be all the praise ! For thou art worthy — thou alone ! — O let me in thy kingdom raise Some nobler song around thy throne. McCOMB AND McDONOUGH'S VICTORY, AT PLATTSBURGH AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN. My countrymen what thanks we owe To our Almighty's name ; Who armed us right, our troops to fight, And put our foes to shame. *Twas for a while our country mourned Oppression's cruel blow; And deep laid plans, by wicked bands, Which hurried us to woe. The haughty powers of England rose, Our rights to take away ; rice's poetrt. 245 By sea our men, had often been Captured as British prey. Now Lord Provost, with all his troops, Of fourteen thousand men; Did march away, from Canada, And come up to Champlain. While at Champlain, Provost inquired, Unto his friends did say, " Where is McComb, is he at home, Or has he run away ?" " Where is the brave McDonough now ? For him I 've come to seek ; I fear he 's run, my fleet to shun, Or hid in Otter creek." His friends then made him this reply, Unto their Lord did say, " They are both near, you need not fear. They '11 show you Yankee play.'* This British force to Plattsburgh came, And nigh the town did swarm ; The siege begin, and think to win. The town and fort by storm. Now near the river Saranac, The British first did come ; Attempt to cross, but met such loss, As crimsoned all the stream. Our valiant officer McComb, With well directed fire ; Did drive them back from Saranac, And caused them to retire. Wliile cannons their loud thunders roar, And buildings flame at night ! While shining o'er, from shore to shore A melancholy sight ! ^21 316 RICE*S POETRY. Green mountain boys turn out in swarms, Their country's cause was dear ; They fought for good, and firmly stood, No dangers they did fear. From hoary heads to beardless boys, By thousands here they met ; The laurels green, might here be seen. To wave in ev'ry hat. The New-York sons of Mars awake, Determined to be free, Turn out in haste, no time they waste, But fight for liberty. At length the fatal day arrived, The holy morning clear ; The British boats, the water hosts, Up Lake Champlain did steer. Now near the head of Cumberland, The British fleet appeared ; As they drew nigh, huzza they cry, And for our fleet did steer. Our Commodore addressed his men, " My boys be well prepared ;" The seamen bold, their matches hold, And wait their Captain's word. The dreadful conflict now begins. The most tremendous sound ; While air it shocks, the cottage rocks, And shakes the solid ground. Two hours or more the battle lasts, Our vict'ry did ensue ; The ball and shot, poured in so hot. Upon the British crew. Their valiant Commodore was killed, Their rudder shot away ; rice's poetry. S47 Their flag came down, before the town, While thousands cried huzza ! Let us go near, and view the scene, The naval fight explore. Of shattered hulls, and mangled skulls, And decks besmeared with gore. Come view old Saratoga now, The Champion of the lake ; She's broken now, from stern to bow, And lies a sinking wreck. Her shivered masts, her shattered hull, The water pouring through : They pumped, they bailed, at length prevailed And saved their wounded crew. Here lies their valiant Commodore, Thus he resigned his breath ; And many a score of Britons more. Here met with instant death. Look at their Eagle sloop of war. Since captured by her prey ; Her wings are clipp'd, her feathers trip'd, She's sick of Yankee play. The Growler she soon run aground. Supposed in a fright ; Well might she growl, when she run foul, For she 'd no chance to bite. Some little craft that lay behind, Attempt to sneak away; 0, it was fun, to see them run. And steer for Canada. Now British boys if you 've got home, Methinks you 'd better stay ; Think how Burgoyne, and Provost shine, Who tasted Yankee play. RICE S POETRY. On our brave officers and men, We will bestow much praise ; McDonough's fame, McComb by name. Shall last when time decays. My countr)^men, what thanks we owe To our Almighty's hand, Who armed with might our troops to fight. And save our sinking land. CHRIST'S CRUCIFIXION. My soul behold that solemn sight. When Jesus groan'd — shed tears and blood ! Witness that dark and dreary night, When agonized the Son of God ! Behold him led to Pilate's bar, By man was there condemn'd to die : The Jews and Romans from afar. Desire his death — and loudly cry ! Low on his bed the Savior lies. While spikes are driven through his hands ; They rear him up ! he groans ! he dies ! Amid the Jew and Gentile bands. Nature beheld the awful sight ! In deepest mourning felt the rod: The sun withdrew his brilliant light. When died for man the Lamb of God. The saints did rise, the mountains quake ! The Temple's veil was rent in twain : This mournful sight was for my sake, To save me from eternal pain. Three days in Joseph's marble tomb. The sinner's Friend was held in chains ! But lo ! he burst the silent gloom ! At God's right hand forever reigns. rice's poetry. 24& THE CUKSE OF THE LAW. Deep fell the storm of vengeance from above, On man devoted to his fictions god : That sin which drove away the precious Dove, Expos 'd him to Jehovah's awful rod. Low in his mire of sin and sable stain, He felt his torment, and let fall a tear: Mount Sinai shook ! to tell his soul was slain, And notice give, his case was full of fear. A mournful death has fell on guilty man ; His mortal part soon finds the dreary grave The soul departs in hell's deep gulf, to claim The pain of demons, where no help can save. Night's dreary curtain swells his mournful doom ! No day of mercy ever enters there ! The smoke and darkness make the spirit's tomb, And blast the soul with death and deep despair. ON THE DEATH OF A RELATIVE. jSweet blew the zephyr in the Western gale, With cheering prospect as it gently flew ; The soul now fled expected no assail, But soon was forced to bid us all adieu. The Monarch Death with iron nerves pursu'd In burning tide the crimson'd sluice of blood; A deadly chill his mortal track ensu'd. And drove the victim through the raging flood. His friends, snrpris'd approach'd his dying bed, Beheld his vital fluid mark'd with death ! His cheering visage by disease had fled ; Soon they beheld his last expiring breath. A mother's tears in kind affection flow, Distil upon his face, now cold and pale ! S^ rice's poetry. But hush ! he 's left this mortal vale of wo^ Methinks he 's wafted on a nobler gale. How oft have I in lowly accents heard His voice ascending to his God on high — " Father, save a rebel by thy word — A sinner by thy justice doom'd to die !" Keen was the blow ! 'twas unexpected fate, When he appear'd in dress of sable gloom ; Without returning in his former state, Was borne by friends unto his native home. Dry up your tears, and rend your hearts no more, For his departure from this barren strand : But weep for sin, and claim a brighter shore, Through Him, who bought for man fair Canaan's land. THE GOD OF THE TEMPEST. Great God ! thou ridest on the storm — Thy hand the elements control ! Man's fearful soul thou dost alarm. When lightnings flash and thunders roll. Thou darkenest the heavens above, The clouds in terror do appear ! The wind is swifter than the dove. And strikes the heart of man with fear. Before its strength the mighty oak, And tenements of fame are driven ; When God in wrath his word has spoke, All things before the blast are riven. The forest groans and then expires ! Man trembles at the awful scene, The kingly palace soon retires, And horror strikes the royal Queen. rice's poetry. 251 Let man adore this mighty God ! That rules the tempest — governs all ; By doing thus, he saves the rod, While towers and mighty temples falL His arm is great — he wields the whole ! Man 's but the dust beneath his feet ; But yet he saves the deathless soul, In mercy from his judgment seat. DESTRUCTION OF SODOM. It was a clear and brilliant morning, When Lot in haste from Sodom fled ! The Sun in lustre most adorning, Shone bright on man's devoted head. No signs appeared of swift destruction, By fire and brimstone from on high ; But soon God made an introduction, Pour'd out his wrath for man to die. The law of God, so often broken. Drew vengeance from the courts above i The Sodomites receiv'd the token ; 'Twas judgment for offended love. Long God had warned that wicked peopltff To flee from his impending storm, But they in no wise turn'd from evil, But followed sin in every form. The imprecations of Jehovah Rain'd brimstone in terrific roar ; The scene of death was quickly over, The Sodomites are here no more. 252 kice's poetry. ACROSTIC ON LORENZO DOW. L...ORENZO Dow, bold servant of his God, 0...'er land and sea did row against the tide ; R...ich with free grace, yet often felt the rod, E... scaped his foes, preached Jesus far and wide. N...ews of salvation moved his ravished heart, Z...ests from kind Heaven did his bosom swell, 0...'er hill and dale he did God's truth impart, D...irected souls to flee the gates of hell. 0...ver the world he like an angel flew, W...here sin and virtue mingled in their train , No Christian sect liis ample spirit knew, But such as on the Gospel truth remain. GOD RULES THE OCEAN. Great God, from whose Almighty form, The oceans vast received their birth, Who ridest on the direful storm Which fills with fear the sons of earth. Thou did'st in wisdom bound the sea, The mighty ocean dost assuage; All honor to thy name shall be, Thou still'st the waves in all their rage. At midnight when the dismal roar And storms of thunder beat around, The breakers and the frightful shore In all their terrors do abound. The mighty God who thus arose In direful wrath to threaten man, Can with his mercy interpose And check the ire he first began. The deep blue ocean he commands, Her waves are under his control ; RICE S POETRY. 253 Adore him all ye heavenly bands, And bless him my immortal soul. Ye mariners that sail the deep. Look to Him as your polar star ; Amid all danger He can keep And save you from the ocean's war. Salvation to his name belongs, He is the sailor's only hope ; Unto his praise we '11 raise our songs, His arm can bear our spirits up. And if our grave must be the deep, And we beneath its billows roll, We '11 trust in God, he will us keep, And save the never-dying soul. ON THE DEATH OF MY DAUGHTER. Her sun arose in morning glories. And shone with lustre on her face ; Her sparkling eyes and cheeks like roses, Did her fair form with beauty grace. She was her father's richest treasure. The gem her mother did embrace ; 22 254 rice's poetry. She fiU'd her parents' hearts with pleasure, But soon Eliza run her race. Her sky was clear and most adorning, But suddenly the tempest fell, Which veil'd her sun while it was morning. And angels took her home to dwell. Disease came on in awful presage, Enstainp'd her features in deep gloom; The tyrant, death, receiv'd his message, Which bore the victim to the tomb. Her dying strife we '11 long remember, Her dismal groans yet strike our ears ; Death-rattles in our thoughts engender. And cause our sympathetic tears. Six fleeting years her course has ended, Now our Eliza sleeps in death ; — Our joys and sorrows oft are blended, When we reflect her dying breath. No more we '11 hear her salutation. Her voice by death has pass'd away ; No more she '11 join in recreation. But tunes her harp in endless day. With her death groans have all departed, The ills of life she '11 fear no more ; Why then should we feel broken hearted, Or wish her on this mortal shore ? In brighter worlds I see her rising, Her spirit cloth'd in spotless white ; With saints above, in bliss surprising, She vies with angels in her flight. Now on the wings of endless glory She gathers fruit from Life's fair Tree, And ever tells her halcyon story, "Jesus, the Savior, died for me." 255 TO THE MEMORY OF DR. YOUNG. Great friend of man ! thy noble soul On matchless mercy oft did dwell ; Thy mental powers on themes did roll, Surpassing all that earth can tell. Thy intellect was fired with love, With sparkling gems in Heav'n born ; Thy soul was harmless as the dove And brilliant as the fulgent morn. Thy moral darkness did retire, Which left thy spirit cloth'd in white; The groans on Calvary did inspire Thy song with all the powers of light. The love of God who sent his Son To bleed and die for Adam's ban, Was the rich theme on which did run The spirit of this mighty man. Life, death, and immortality, Gave action to his giant soul — Those topics, boundless as the sea. Did all his powers of mind control. On things eternal he did soar, Enter'd the depths of Heaven and hell I Pointed the soul from whence did pour Sweet balm from King Immanuel. But Edward Young is here no more — This friend of God has gone to rest! Has anchor'd on the heavenly shore, And lives forever with the blest. Redemption is his glorious song, On this he dwelt while here below; He mingles with the blissful throng. Where fruits of life immortal grow. 256 rice's poetry. His wearied soul shall never tire, Nor mingle with the shades of night ; But raptur'd with celestial fire Shall vie with angels in its flight. There, sailing round the Tree of Life, It gathers immortality ; There, free from every care and strife, Is wafted on a boundless sea. Long as eternity shall roll, His spirit shall its God adore ; And gold of Heav'n bedeck his soul, While dew-drops from his Savior pour. All teare shall reign, and death be known no more. ANGELS BEAR ME HOME. Angels break my galling fetters, Bear me to a brighter sphere ; Let me go where Christ's dominion Wipes away each falling tear. 26 o02 rice's poetry. True this world has friends to bless me With their gifts of fondest love; But the songs of angels beckon Me to fairer worlds above. Let me soar be3'ond these waters, Marred by sin's destructive wavej^ Mountain surges dark and dreary, Prove no barque is sure to save. Short indeed are earth's vain flowers ; Soon their glories pass away ; — Angels bear me to those mansions, Shining with celestial day. Bear me Home, ye swift winged seraphs, Jesus' blood has made me free ! Bear me where my soul shall ever In God's holy presence be. Waft me through death's gate to Heaven, Let me to my Jesus fly ; Slake my thirst on crystal waters, Feast where spirits never die. Bear me Home ! for sounds seraphic Call me to their native shore ! ' Tis the friendly voice of cherubs On swift pinions flying o'er! Hark ! I hear them now descending ; Lo ! they bear my soul away, Where the raging waves of Jordan Shall be lost for endless day .' WHAT MAN WAS THAT ? What Man was that divinely bright, To laugh was never seen ? His visage fair, — bedecked with light ;— ' From sin his hands were clean ? 303 His beard was fork'd upon his chin, His eyes were quick and gray; His face was spotless, and within His heart a treasure lay. What Man was that, whose mouth and nose So perfectly were made, No one their beauty could disclose, — No painter cast the shade ? His cheeks were spotless, tinged with red, His hair in ringlets fell : He healed the sick, and raised the dead When he on earth did dwell. What man was that, whose hands and arms In beauty were arrayed ? What voice, inspired with unknown charms, When he that voice displayed ? The color of his waving hair Was like the filbert ripe ; And all his personage most fair Surpassing every type. What Man was that ? let angels tell " It was the King of kings," Who left the shining courts to dwell Where sin the sinner stings. He broke the strongest bars of death, And made the pris'ner free , When he for sin gave up his breath Upon the cursed tree. He died! but triumphed o'er the gravel He burst the tyrant's chain, That he the fallen soul might save From hell's eternal reign. 304 rice's poetry. THE WARRIOR'S DEATH. Inspired by War's destructive rage, The soldier puts on sword and shield ; Leaves wife and children to engage The carnage of the battle field. His spirit lit by fires of hell, Calls vhim to leave his native home ; The flames of War his bosotn swell, And urge his frantic mind to roam. Thoughtless he rushes to the place Where lances play and bullets fly; Desires his footsteps to retrace ; But if he leaves his post must die. Urged on by martial law to face His foes upon the field of death. He marches on with speedy pace, ' Till forced at once to yield his breath. The cannon's mighty thunder spoke, The death-ball took its mortal flight j His cistern to its centre broke ; His martial glory sunk in night. Why mourns the child ? why fall those tears * The father like a fool is lost ! In frantic madness disappears. And on the waves of hell is tost. Nor he alone ; but all who take The sword in hand shall by it fall ; Shall mourn in Hades burning lake, And groan beneath her fun'ral pall. Lend, lend your ear ye sons of War, Before you drink the spirit's wail; Be guided by the morning Star, And in the ship of Zion sail. RICE S POETRY. 3l/f5 And when your banner floats the sky, Let Peace in gold be written there, And He who made the worlds on high Shall land yowv souls beyond despair. THE CROWNS OF HEAVEN. Crowns of glory, raiment white, Palms of life's eternal day, Ever deck the saints of light, Who on harps of angels play. Lo the victors bring their palms To the Tree of Life on high, And declare in grateful psalms ' Jesus for our souls did die." Kings their mortal crowns resign, And proclaim on harps of gold, "Take the kingdom Lord, 'tis thine;"- Half thy glory can't be told. Priests around the altar stand. Clothed in garments white as snow Join with angels heart and hand. Crying, " Jesus made us so." These are they who dwelt on earth, Bore the stamp of Adam's race ; Bound in pain and sin by birth ; But were freed from all by grace. These were pilgrims here like us, Subject to the pangs of death ! May we be translated thus, When we vield our latest breath. '2S 306 kick's poetry. COMFORT IN DEATH. When sore diseases shake the frame, Each pleasure takes its flight ; The joys of earth are hut a dream, And day is turned to night. The grisly tyrant strikes the blow. And chills the stream of life ; While nature faints beneath her load Of pain and dying strife. The mortal frame must turn to dust, And fill the dreary grave ; Yet the undying soul may rest Throuf^h orrace made free to save. The man that looks o'er Jordan's stream, His burden casts on God ; When heart and strength in him shall fail. Will kiss his Father's rod. Death shall no more his soul alarm, For Jesus gives him sight ; And angels of the morning Star Bear him to worlds of light. His harp is tuned in highest strains, His songs in rapture swell; His treasure is in Heaven born Where all his brethren dwell. THE POWER OF GOD. Father ! thou sittest on thy throne .' No man shall see thy face and live ; Thou art the Lord, and God alone ! No power but thine can being give. rice's poetry. 307 Thy fingers doth all worlds control, Thy potent arm sustains them all; Thy name is known from pole to pole, Where'er thy hands of mercy fall. All nature hears thy mighty voice, Obsequious moves at thy command; The upper hosts in Thee rejoice, And worship in their spirit land. Thou didst the elements create, The starry lamps were made by Thee ; Thy plastic arm sealed Adam's fate When he partook the fatal tree. Thy power is great ! no eye can scan The works of thy creation round ; No being solve thy mighty plan, By which unnumbered worlds abound. When earth shall fo her centre quake, And stars like leaves of autumn fall, Thou wilt the guilty spirit shake. The righteous save in Zion's wall. My soul adore this mighty One, Who first bespoke creation's birth ! O, let his will in thee be done. And soar above this fadinof earth. GOD WORTHY OF PRAISE. To God all Praise belongs. His mercy crowns our songs, He is the source of all our joy. His worthy name our songs employ. The garden and the field, And all the vineyards' yield, 308 rice's poetky. With oil ihe olive trees bestow, To us God's loving kindness show. The herds that graze the hills, The waters of the rills, And clouds that send reviving rain, Call for our heart's thanksgiving strain. The ox the corn and swine. The pear and fruitful vine, And all the gifts that crown our land, Show mercy from our Father's hand. His good in gone by years. His shield in time of fears ; And when the hour of sickness prest, His kindness stilled our aching breast. To God our praise shall flow, Who does such gifts bestow; And when from time our souls shall fly On angels' harps we '11 praise on high. TERRORS OF DEATH. O, why should Christians fear to die, And cross the raging flood ? Death is the gate that leads on high Through faith in Jesus' blood. The mortal pain, the dying strife Impress our souls with fear; Though ills and toil beset our life, We dread the spoiler near. But if our Lord will meet us there We '11 stretch our spirit wing. To pass Death's gate, nor fear to bear The viper's mortal sting. rice's poetry. 309 Jesus surrounds the bed of Death By his sustaining grace, So when we yield our latest breath We see his smiling face. His hands shall waft us o'er the tomb, And plant us near his throne ; Why then lament our mortal doom, And fear our final groan ? THE MENTAL POWERS OF MAN. What vast improvements man has made ^ How great his mental skill ? Mysterious things, — long in the shade, Obey his giant will. He brings the star-lit regions near. And counts their orbs of light ; And as they to his sight appear, Computes their rapid flight. The ships that plough the mighty deep, Propelled by steam alone ; While they their useful courses keep, His deep invention own. The cars drove on by rapid speed. To traffic far and near ; Have been prepared in time of need By man, the world to cheer. The trembling wires have just been strung, To send our news away ; For which ten thousand voices rung. And hailed the joyful day. The golden mines by man explored, To 'vhich all nations run, Vast speculations shall afford, Which dazzle like the sun. 310 rice's poetry. What next in course shall heave in view, My vision cannot tell ; If I hut knew, I would pursue The cheerful song to swell. For all these gifts, to God belongs Our undivided praise; He is the Author of our songs, By his effulgent rays. PRAYER. Prayer is the burden of the soul, The motion of the breast ; That thirst no mortal can control, Unless by God represt. Prayer is the heart's sincere desire, The bitter tears that fall ; The hidden and prevailing fire ; — A wish on God to call. Prayer is the Christian's living breath, His hope of sins forgiven ; His triumph in the hour of death, His passport into Heaven. Prayer is the sinner's weeping cry. When he returns to God ; It stamps his soul for crowns on high, And breaks his Father's rod. Prayer is the smallest mode of speech, That infant lips can tell ; Empowers the fallen soul to reach The courts where angels dwell. In Prayer all Christians do combine, Their bonds of faith are one; In Heaven they all expect to shine Throuo-h God's eternal Son. rice's poetry. 311 Nor does the Christian pray alone ; Our Savior pleads on higii, Before his Father's shining throne, That man may never die. Angels rejoice, when sinners pray In Jesus' worthy name ; To Heaven they bear the news away In songs of holy flame. O Thou, who art the Way to God ! The One that answers Prayer; Help us to walk where thou hast trod, And break the fowler's snare. And when we shall no longer press Thy mercy seat below, May we thy shining throne address. Where tears shall never flow. WHAT IS HELL ? O what is Hell ? the raging fires Of hostile feelings in the breast, The burning thirst, the warm desires To drive away all peace and rest. what is Hell ? it is the ills That drown the happiness of life. And in man's peaceful breast distil The mortal dregs of dying strife. O what is Hell ? the orphan's groans, The widows' torn and fainting hearts, The beggar that in want bemoans, The patient's pain, disease imparts. O what is Hell ? let truth unfold. It is the warrior's fatal smart ; His deepest torments can't be told. When stricken by the mortal dart. 312 rice's poetry. pain, All bloodshed, and approaching death; ' Tis murder for intent of gain. And fear of the expiring breath. O what is Hell ? let angels tell, Who fell from Heaven to bind their chains; " It is the dirge that demons swell While God's eternal justice reigns." what is Hell ? lo Jesus' blood Was spilt upon the cursed tree, To save us from sin's raging flood, And from Hell's torments make us free. . CHRISTIAN FRIENDSHIP. Let spite and rage depart, No more the church o'erspread. Since " bond and free" are one in heart Through Christ their living Head. The Jew and Gentile band, In mutual love abound ; Heirs to the same celestial land, With the same blessings crowned. Let envy black as hell, Be driven far away ; In love the sons of God must dwell. If God they would obey. Then shall the church below. Resemble that above, Where living waters ever flow, And ev'ry heart is love. DARKNESS SHROUDS JERUSALEM. Night shrouds the land where Jesus spoke, No star the shepherds cheer ; rice's poetry. 313 There, sin with its oppressive yoke Brings death eternal near. No Gospel news sent from above, On angels' pinions bore, Cheers man with God's redeeming love. As in the days of yore. Ye sons of earth from sin made free, Who feel the proiiilse sure, Toil hard until your eyes shall see Jerusalem secure. Ye heralds of the Father's Son, Fast bear God's truth away, 'Till Salem's land by grace is won, Her sons to Jesus pray. Send forth that renovating light, Which saves the soul from hell; So when the Jew shall take his flight He may Avith Jesus dwell. Then shall the grace of God abound, Which makes the Gentile free ; The hostile Jew in Christ be found, And all his glory see. CHILDREN SHOULD LOVE EACH OTHER, Let dogs delight to rage and bite And prove their nature true ; Let lions growl and panthers fight. And tigers blood pursue. But children God commands to tread The way of joy and peace; That when they join the silent dead, He may their souls release. 27 314 rice's poetry. Peace should in all their actions run, And ev'ry word be calm; They should be like the virgin's Son, Who did his mother charm. His soul was harmless as the dove, That wings the ether sky ; And as he grew, increased in Love To man, and God on high. He reigns above, the Lord of all ; And from his dazz'ling throne. He listens to his children's call. And stamps them for his own. FAITH IS OUR GUIDE. Inspired by Faith of joys above, We walk through deserts here below. Confiding in our Savior's love, We feel his living waters flow. Our Faith supplies the want of sight. And opens wide the pearl}-- gate ; She looks to God with all her might, And i:oars above lost angels' fate. By Faith we tread this barren soil, In prospect of eternal joys ; Though lions roar, in hope we toil, To rise above earth's fading toys. Let death and dangers fill the way, And all the hosts of hell arise ; Yet in the strength of Faith we pray, And on her wings ascend the skies. So Abra'm, by his God's command, Left his ov/n house, a crown to gain; By Faith he viewed the promised land, Where all tiie saints with Jesus reign RICE S POETRY. 315 "JESUS." Jesus, how sweet thy name resounds To my poor dying ear ; It dries my tears, and heals my wounds, And takes away my fear. It sets the weeping spirit free, And gives the mourner rest; It makes each heart in love agree, And calms the raging breast. By Him my prayer is heard of God, He sends his blessing down ; Withdraws from me his Father's rod, And saves me for a crown. While life shall last I will proclaim His love in ev'ry breath ; Then may his all-prevailing name Sustam my soul in death. Jesus, let me ever feel Thy Spirit's power within ; My heart be full of holy zeal, And free from ev'ry sin. And when I'm called to bid farewell To all things here below, Lord Jesus, take me home to dwell, Where tears shall never flow. MY BIRTH DAY. My years pass by ! in haste I go, While down life's rapid stream I ride ; All things are fleeting here below. And sink beneath death's rolling tide. My years pass by ! the stream of time Conveys me through earth's chequered scene ', Her cold and heat, and varied clime. With joys and woes, I 've felt and seen. 316 rice's poetry. ■ My years pass by ! may I beware Of that design, for which they roll ; Through blood divine, secure a share Of grace, which saves the dying soul. My years pass by ! and as they pass, O, may they waft me to the shore, Which lies beyond the sea of glass, Where pain and death arc felt no more. My years pass by ! let my last Convey me to my Savior's throne ; Where I may find a rich repast. And ever know, as I am known. My years pass by ! soon I shall feel, That all my toil and grief are fled ; My soul imbibe angelic weal. My body triumph o'er the dead. THE LORD'S PRAYER VERSIFIED. Our Father who in Heaven art, Most holy is thy name ; Let thy renewing kingdom come, Thy will our hearts inflame. Impart this day our daily bread, Our trespasses forgive; As we remit our neighbor's wrongs, To us thy favor give. From all temptation save our souls, From evil set us free ; Thy kin jdom is at thy command. May we that kingdom see. Forever is all glory thine. To Thee all pow'r belongs ; Thy vast dominion shall remain, And swell our grateful songs. p rice's poetry. 317 THE CHRISTIAN'S FAREWELL. My time is come, and seraphs round me wait To take me to their glorious happy state, Where free from turmoil, death, and mortal pain, I shall with angels, and my Savior reign. Ye Christian partners of my heart adieu ! I can no longer stay on earth with you ; My Master calls me to his courts on high, Where saints redeemed with holy angels vie. But soon your sorrows in this world shall end, If you adopt the sinner's only Friend ; This life you '11 lose to gain a life on high, Where tears are lost, and Christians never sigh. There may we meet on that ambrosial plain, Where heav'nly raptures fill the broad domain ; Where cherubs pure, and blood-washed spirits meet, To worship Christ upon the judgment seat. SABBATH MORNING HYMN. When in the morning I awake, To God my pray'r shall rise ; My heart of flesh his name shall fear, And tears shall fill my eyes. Before his gracious throne above My Savior pleads for me ; Sends down the tokens of his grace. And sets my spirit free. Sinners in him take no delight. They never love his name ; — His justice drives them from his throne, To feed the burning flame. But to his house will I resort To plead his favor near; In love frequent his sacred courts, And worship in his fear. ^27 318 rice's poetry. O may his spirit be my guide While through this world I stray ; Make ev'ry path of duty plain, ' Till I must pass away. And when I 'm called to bid farewell To sorrows here below ; May I in Jesus take my flight, Where tears shall never flow. THE DAY OF GRACE. Life is the time to turn from sin, And in the word of God believe ; The time renewing Grace to win. Which shall the dying soul relieve. Life is the day bestowed from Heaven For us to flee the pains of hell; The day of Grace most freely given, Whereby in glory we may dwell. But if this hour we do despise, God's word neglect, we sure shall die ; Then may we all through Grace be wise To walk the golden streets on high. If on this day of life depend, Our souls' immortal weal or woe ! Ah ! why should we our God oflend, And to eternal torments go ? Low in the grave where we must lie, No acts of pardon shall be given ; Our fate is sanctioned when we die, Our dwelling either hell or Heaven. Then let us all be wise to-day, And Heaven's eternal mansions gam, God's righteous will in love obey. Which saves the soul from endless pain. rice's poetry. 319 THE GOLD OF CALIFORNIA. When from my slumber I awake, For gold I hear the raging cry ! From ocean to the distant lake, I see the frantic throng pass by. I asked the pilgrims whither bound ? " We 're on our journey round Cape Horn; For California's treasures found, We leave our land and stores of corn." '* Up Sacramento's golden stream, We shall abundant riches gain; — Our faith is no fictitious dream, — Ere long we shall the prize obtain." " We leave our wives and children all, From our fond parents we depart; In spite of friends obey the call, And cause to bleed each wounded heart." What mean these groans — these falling tears ? These sobs of grief — these hearts of woe ? These bosoms shook with rending fears, While friends to distant regions go ? This god of earth ! this love of Gold ! Will cause ten thousand hearts to bleed ! For it, all friendship shall be sold, And parting friends on husks shall feed. Suppose a few the prize obtain, — A smaller number back return, The loss will still excel the gain, As far as wisdom can discern. The boon of life surpasses Gold ; In search of which .shall dangers rise ; Whereby shall life for death be sold, Which proves the task to be unwise. The Indian tribes with cruel rage, All in their wild and savaofe state. 320 rice's poetry. In hostile fury shall engage, To hasten white men's dying fate. While on the long and tedious way, Which leads to that far distant land, Diseases often seize their prey. And scourge with death the mourning bana Hunger shall raise the dismal cry, " ' Tis not for Gold, but food I faint ;" The beggar in his want shall die, For none shall hear his sad complaint. Parties by land, that sweat and toil From day to day their prize to find, Shall by their blood enrich the soil. When they in death each other bind. Pirates for Gold will hoist their sail, The blood of their frail victims spill . Like tigers they will "brave the gale, Until they do their coffers fill. When all these dangers heave in view, And many more I cannot tell, I think the best that we can do Is stay at home, and flee from hell. If fallen man as well would love The Gold of Heav'n, as Gold of earth, He might with angels soar above. And claim by grace a higher birth. Jerusalem remains on high. For all who wear the raiment white ;-^ No groan or tear ! no pain or sigh ! Shall mar the saints' supreme delight. Her streets are paved with richest Gold, Her walls with beauty decked around ; Her trees of life their fruit unfold, Her healing streams with grace abound. RICE'S POETRY. ^1 How vain are all earth's treasures here, Compared with crowns through Jesus' blood ? Then may we on faith's pinions steer Our course above sin's raging flood. " WATCH AND PRAY." Ye sons of God be on your guard ; Ten thousand foes are gath'ring round ; And all your sins are pressing hard, To drive you from Immanuel's ground. As soldiers, learn to Watch and Pray, And never lay your armor down ; Renew your courage day by day, Until you wear an angel's crown. Don't think too soon, the battle o'er; For it must last while life endures : But labor hard to gain the shore ; Since work, through faith, your crown secures. Remember where your strength is found ; — Upon the arm of God rely : Sure vict'ry in his name is crowned ; — His valiant soldiers never die. Secured by his sustaining arm. You '11 triumph over ev'ry foe ; — No fiends of hell your souls alarm ; — You 're bound eternal life to go. And when the war shall have an end, Your spirits over Jordan pass ; With all the ransomed you shall blend, And rise above the sea of glass. THE BACKSLIDER'S SECRET PRAYER, My Savior let thy grace appear, And wash again my sins away; 822 rice's poetry. Draw near my weeping heart, draw near, That I may learn to watch and pray. I feel my bleeding spirit torn, Because no saving grace is there; How long my Savior shall I mourn, In this secluded place of prayer ? Dear Lord, now let thy piercing eye Search out the windings of my heart ; And if my prayer is heard, draw nigh, And thy subduing grace impart. Oft have I shut the closet door ; — Been blest where forest trees abound : Appear in my poor heart once more, Thou chiefest of ten thousand found. Without thy aid my soul must faint. And mourn in this sequestered bower; Draw nigh and hear my sad complaint. And let me feel thy ransomed power. Then shall my spirit be at rest, And feel that all is well within ; Then shall I mingle with the blest, And triumph o'er the curse of sin. *'l AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE." To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Be honor, praise, and glory given. By all of earth's expiring host, And all the sacred tribes of Heaven. This triune, co-eternal God, We will adore while life endures ; — Our sins demand his iron rod ; But "race eternal life secures. rice's poetry. 323 This is our omnipresent King ; He bled and died lost man to save ; On wings of mercy he did bring Salvation from the gloomy grave. All honor to this risen God ! The Monster Death he bound in chains : In Joseph's tomb, the grave he trod ; But now a God in glory reigns. If Christ be risen from the dead, And burst the iron bands of hell ; So shall we through our living Head Arise, and with our Savior dwell. By Adam's fall, death passed on all; — By Christ the resurrection came; Therefore we on our Jesus call, And sound abroad his worthy name. And when the last loud trump shall sound, We all shall feel the promise sure ; Then shall restoring life be found, Our dust an angel's crown secure. The soul and body both shall meet, Though countless ages roll between; Shall fall and kiss the Savior's feet, And view those gems, no man hath seen. *' JESUS WEPT." Jesus Christ the Lord descended, Took upon him flesh and blood ; God and man his nature blended, To destroy sin's raging flood. Lo the Savior ! see him weeping O'er his brother's mortal doom; He cries " Come forth ;" and the sleeping Laz'rus rises from the tomb. 324 rice's roETRv. Angels from your star-lit regions, See the Soa of God in tears ! Look, O earth ! with all your legions, And be free from doubts and fears. Wake, sinners ! from your slumber, To this weeping Savior flee ; And be counted in that number. Who from pains of hell are free. Now he reigns in courts of glory ; Tears are driven from his eyes : Saints around him tell the story, How the lost obtain the prize. To his Father he is pleading For the souls he wept and died ; Those five wounds are interceding, Which he felt when crucified. THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST. My Lord, I can no longer boast Of all the duties done by me ; My works are nought but dross at most ; My faith alone is built on Thee. My soul adores thy holy name ; What once I loved I count but loss; My sinful pride I own with shame. And hail the glory of thy cross. Yes, my immortal soul shall deem All things but loss for Jesus' sake ; I will his saving grace esteem, His righteousness by faith partake. When I was sunk beneath my load, And chains of death my spirit bound, The blood of Jesus marked the road, Through which eternal life is found. kice's poetry. 325 The choicest service of my hands Dares not before his throne appear : I give my heart as his demands , And feel his saving promise near. NONE BUT JESUS. My Lord if I depart from thee, O, whither shall I go ? Thou art the only guide to me Through this dark vale of wo. The Vv'orld look on tliy death with scorn, And spurn thy gentle reign ; Ah ! they could sharpen ev'ry thorn, And plat the crown again. Lord, I have felt thy dying love Subdue my wicked soul ; And fix my hope on joys above, Where crystal waters roll. Thou at my heart's supreme delight, When dangers thwart my path; The Captain, under whom 1 fight, To shun eternal wrath. Thy truth shall guide me to the grave, While I on earth shall dwell ; And when I die, thou wilt me save, From all the pains of hell. " PRAISE THE LORD." Rejoice ye nations of the earth, Before your great Almighty King ; ' Twas he that gave creation birth ; His grace did free salvation bring. 28 RICE S POETRY. With cheerful hearts your voices raise, And sound his fame in ev'ry land ; His name is worthy of all praise From earth, and all the heav'nly band. This is our God ! 'tis he alone, Who first our breath, and being gave ; We are his work, and not our own ; The sheep his soul delights to save. His heaHng grace is made secure, — To all creation he is kind j His love will through all time endure; In it eternal life we find. Seraphs this mighty God adore, And all the shining hosts on high ; By his sustaining arm we soar, Where saints redeemed shall never die. CHRIST'S DEATH AND RESURRECTION. Behold the Lord of glory dies, While darkness spreads its gloom around ; The shades of midnight veil the skies, And direful trembling shakes the ground. Ye friends of Jesus, drop a tear For him, who washed your sins away ; He died to bring salvation near, And bless you with eternal day. Here 's love expressed beyond degree, The sinner's Friend for man was slain; But lo ! triumphant joys I see, The dying Jesus lives again. The rising Savior leaves the tomb, Up to the courts of God he flies ; Escorting angels make him room. With loud hosannas throuofh the skies. rice's poetry. 327 Ye saints dry up your tears and tell, Your Lord though dead in glory reigns; Sing how he triumphed over hell, And bound the tyrant death in chains. Say live forever King of kings, Strong to redeem, and born to save ; Say cruel monster " where 's thy sling ? And where 's thy vict'ry, boasting grave V THE CHRISTIAN WARFARE. Arise, my soul, shake off thy fears, March in the road to endless joy; Let Gospel grace dry up thy tears. And songs to God thy praise employ. Thy sins and hell resist th}^ course ; But Jesus made them vanquish'd foes ; By his right arm they lost their force, When he from Joseph's tomb arose. Then my soul, march on the road, That leads thee to the heav'nly gate ; For thou hast lost sin's pond'rous load , And shining angels for thee wait. For thee remains a starry crown. Made sure by God's eternal grace, Which saves thee from thy Savior's frown, And makes thee greet his comely face. Thou shalt reflect angelic light, And in God's full orbed glory soar; In him shalt lose thy mortal sight, And walk the ways of sin no more. THE WORLD BANISHED FOR CHRIST. Let carnal men the World pursue, Its bubbles strive to gain ; 328 rice's poetry. Yet they must feel their loss to rue , For pleasure has its pain. As by the brightness of the morn The stars are all concealed, So ev'ry joy that 's earthly born By death is made to yield. This World no longer shall restrain My roving heart from God; — The virtue of my Savior slain Shall save me from his rod. My Lord, I w^ill be wholly thine. And live alone to thee ; Let thy salvation round me shine, Thy glory let me see. Though of all sinners I am chief, 1 cannot doubt thy love ; Thy saving arm shall send relief, And waft my soul above. The gems of earth are naught but dross. They fly like chaff away ; Why then should I refuse the cross, And lose eternal day ? THE BLOOD OF JESUS. There is a healing fount of Blood, Drawn from the Savior's veins; And sinners by that cleansing flood. Are washed from all their stains. God's servant Paul, rejoiced to see That fountain opened wide ; And there may I, as well as he, Find rest in Jesus side. rice's poetry. 329 Dear Savior this, thy Blood divine Can't lose its power to save, 'Till thy elect, as angels shine In triumph o'er the grave. Since I beheld the healing stream, That from thy side did flow. Atoning blood has been my theme, And shall, while here below. And when I lay my body down, And tread this earth no more. My soul through Blood shall wear a crown On Canaan's peaceful shore. There with the saints around thy throne, By thy rich Blood divine, I '11 sing the power of God, thy own. And feel salvation mine. INVITATION HYMN. Sinners, your Savior's voice obey ! His mercy speaks to you; He fain would have you in the way Of Gospel truth pursue. This earth is but a fading show, Its blossoms weep and die ; All joy is transient here below. But fadeless up on high. Like raging seas, devoid of peace, Your spirits have no rest ; Your sorrows like a flood increase, To wring your troubled breasts. Your way is verging on to hell ! Why not desert the path 1 Can you with hostile demons dwell, And feel Jehovah's wrath ? ^28 330 rice's poetry. Why will you still in folly go, And drink the cup of sin ? Toil hard to reap eternal wo, And feel no peace within ? Draw near to Jesus, and his grace Shall make your spirits free ; Then you shall view his smiling face, And all his glory see. AMERICAN LIBERTY. To thee, our Father and our Friend, Our praises all belong : — From thy exalted courts descend, And bless our sacred song. Our fathers' voices joined in one, Their songs of freedom raised ; The same by us shall now be done j Thy name shall still be praised. Rich gifts from thy Almighty hand Are scattered far and free ; O'er lake and ocean, sea and land We do thy goodness see. Father, still bless our fruitful soil With tokens of thy grace ; May we in all our future toil Behold thy smiling face. But ah ! there 's one thing we confess, By which from Thee we stray ; * Tis slav'ry with its deep distress ; ' Tis hell's destructive way. Forgive that sin which binds the slave In bonds of deep despair; Teach us to live like freemen brave, To breathe one common air. rice's poetry. 331 Shake off the negro's galling chain, Let him rejoice to know His freedom from his master's reign, And tears shall cease to flow. Slavery ! no deeper stain but one Our records can disgrace ! My God devise what shall be done, To save our stubborn race. Let freedom's voice no longer sound, Until our slaves can feel Their chains have fallen to the ground, And we that truth reveal. Then shall our happy land no more Feel slav'ry's cruel blow ; But freedom's voice from shore to shore, In sweetest strains shall flow. The black and white shall then be free, Their Father to adore ; His righteousness they all may see, As did the Jews of yore. They all shall in one voice unite. To bless their native land ; And as soil owners they will fight, In one triumphant band. "GLAD TIDINGS." Great God, this universal earth, And all therein are thine ; In these we see thy matchless worth, In full orbed glory shine. But, Lord, thy greater gift has been Sent down to man from Heaven ; Which saves his marble heart from sin, And speaks his soul forgiven. 8^ rice's poetry. Lord, when shall tidings of thy grace Spread o'er this spacious ball, And save, through faith, our ruined race From their destructive fall ? When shall benighted Africa The Gospel truth enjoy. Her sable sons to Jesus pray — His praise their tongues employ ? When shall degraded Heathen all Bow at their Father's feet, And worship Him, whose gracious call, Can make their joj^s complete? Hasten, my Lord, that happy day, When ev'ry tongue shall tell, " Jesus has washed my sins away, And saved my soul from hell." Then shall the world to glory rise, And feel their Heaven secure ; * On golden pinions wing the skies, While crowns of life endure. JULIZA, THE ADOPTED OKPHAN. Earth has no pleasure li'ce thy notes my daughter., The sky no beauty like thy sparkling eye, No grace like thy cheek has the crystal water, The air no fragrance like thy heaving sigh. Thou art the boon to my rich fancy given, Type of all gems that glow with tenderness; What claim had I on this fond gift of Heaven, To dwell on earth my wounded heart to bless. I hail the glory of thy youthful gambols, The brightest lustre of thy morning sun ; In prayer I bear thee in my forest rambles To Him who has thy soul's salvation won. rice's poetry. 333 Fairest of earth where didst thou learn that power Of music made by brook or feathered throng ? Where learn to love the wood-land and the flower, And chime in rapture all creation's song? What mean those smiles thy rosy lips entwining, Thy sparkling gaze with gushing wonder fraught ? Why glow those eyes in full orbed glory shining, As if inspired by some celestial thought ? Kind angel guides have taught thee ways of win- ning, So as to make all sainted hearts secure ; How can I bend to earth and cleave to sinning, Since I am blest by one with love so pure ? It is with fearful joy my heart embraces Thy star-lit beauty with a trembling gaze ; My mind thy youthful pilgrimage retraces. And quails to think how short thy fleeting days. And yet methinks I can confide in Heaven, In Him who is the helpless orphan's shield ; He has to all his faithful promise given That will draw near to claim their pardon sealed. My God direct ' till days of earth are ended, 'Till pain and joy shall cease her heart to thrill ; Then may her harp with harps of Heav'n be blended, To chant with angels on Mount Zion's hill. There shall the sorrows of this world no longer Inspire her heart with pain and dying strife ; Her mortal foes shall bow before the Stronger, Where ev'ry saint is swallowed up of life. 334 rice's poetry. LOVE STRONGER THAN DEATH. The gloom of night was brooding o'er the wc.rld; And time spread out his wings in search of prey ; — Seized his victim, — laid him on his couch, — soon To feel the pangs of dissolving nature, and Bow down in death's strong agony. It was The man of God laden with four score years. His head was silvered o'er ; for he had wrought In his Master's service more than half a Century. Night and day he ceased not to Cry from Zion's wall to tell the sinner Of his marble heart, and point him to the Ran>:om made for sin, and to Jesus the Only Savior of the soul. Deep silence Prevailed ! No voice of lamentation heard ; — No lukewarm prayers for mercy slighted long ; No plea to stay the destroying angel; No frightful groans amid his mortal pain ; No cloud was brooding o'er his sky. His eye Was bright with celestial glory, and his Ear seemed to catch the sound of that angel's Wing, who came to bear him to the courts where God unveils his light — where saints in glory Bow, and all the upper host strike with joy, With bliss unspeakable their harps of gold. Full well he knew the fatal hour was nigh; His work was done. On his trembling frame prest Heavily the weight of years. Ah ! soon he Felt the chords of life would sunder; yet With anchor cast within the veil, he laid Him down to die. No fear disturbed his peace ; His faith was over Jordan cast, where all His brethren dwell. It was the house of death, Where ev'ry mourner bore a visage grave. And sobs of grief fast rose from broken hearts RICE S POETRY. 335 That formed the weeping group. Once more they prest Around his bed to view the object of Their dying hopes, and catch the last glance of Their departing Sire. ' Twas then his heart moved To pity — his eyes filled with tears as he Looked around on his household band. ' Twas Then a shade o'erspread his dying features ! Parental affection moved his breast; yet He pled not for longer life ; but gently Raised his hand to give the parting blessing, And exclaimed, " I love my wife and children All, full well ; but more, far more I love my Savior. " This was Love stronger than death, which Bore his spirit up to its native home. TIME'S DESTROYING FLIGHT. Night's dreary curtain shrouds the world, man m Sleep reposes — the din of action is Hushed to silence — the birds of heaven have Gone to rest; the grazing herds that range the Lawn have laid them down to bathe in dews Of heaven, and watch the morning light : — the Knell of midnight, borne on the breeze tells of Days and years departed, and of the slaughtered Millions that sleep by Time's destructive flight ! Yet he moves on with his grisly form, and Like the snow-wreath from the lofty mountain Sweeps down his victims by his rapid car, And clothes the world in mournino- for the slain 336 RICE S rOETUY, ' Tis midnight, and the moon-bcanis shine faintly On ocean, hill, and valley. Nature seems Wrapt in silence, and heeds not the victim's Groan, nor the warrior's tear. The leaves are Fast falling — the forest is naked for The winter blasts — and icy bridges cross The silver slreams. A calm o'erspreads the earth, Silence prevails. But suddenly the wind Is howling — inspired with a furious Sweep — the forest bows before it — the domes Totter, while the minarets and bastions Tremble, as if struck by some terrible Blow I yet Time moves on fearless of the scene Around, as if no devastation shook The works of nature — no pain was felt by Man. Lo, the sleeper rises from his couch — Feels the scourges of the storm, and flies for Eefuge, but flies in vain — curses the day Of his existence, and in lost hope expires. Time sits on his iron throne, and sways The sceptre of his vast domain. He hurls His mortal darts — cnts down the fairest flowers. And holds the keys of earth's common tomb. The Gay, the sober, the rich and poor, the saint And seer, and all the nobles of the earth Have felt the torments of his baneful Sting, and gone to their dreamless slumber. The strong Gigantic form that seems to challenge his Gnawing tooth is driven like chaff' before The wind. The warrior that flies to arms, and Rushes to the battle field, hastens the Wings of Time to drink his blood, and leaves no Laurels to grace his bones, fast bleaching on The soil of death. O Time ! remorseless Time ! Thy steps come silent on, surcharged with woe ! Thou giant murderer ! the fiend of man, And his greatest dread. No power can stay Thy course, or make thy heart to bleed. Thy rice's poetry. 337 Track is onward, and none shall be able To wear thy crown, and stop thy chariot wheels. The proud condor of the lofty Andes That soars on high amid the vault of heaven, And with his pinions braves the fury of The tornado, or wings the blue ether Beyond the burst of lightning, or the Loud thunder's voice, when night comes on furls his broad Wing, and fast descends to the mountain top. But Time desires no rest. Night's mid darkness Can find no chains his wings to bind. His strong Pinions rush over the world, producing I^evolution upon revolution, Like the frightful visions of the night, that Trouble the dreamer's heart. Cities rise and Fall like the ocean's waves. Islands of fire Spring up amid the mighty waters, and Sink beneath the surges of the deep. The Lofty mountains with their burning craters, and Sable cliifs have bowed to kiss the plains. New Kingdoms rise bound by the strength of ages ; yet They sink, like ships in the maelstroom, to be Seen no more. And those stars above, that gild The azure vault, and with their gushing fires Form the amphitheatre of heaven. Like lamps of gold, shme from their vast abyss, Shoot from their sockets, and pass away in The trackless void of ether. Yet Time, the Grave-digger, holds his stiflfened reins — winds up The sinner's probation — makes fast his chains, And sweeps him down with one ruthless blow, to Plunge the lake of fire, and wail with demons Lost, where merc3''s voice shall never reach his Ear. All stern and fearless he falters not Amid the groans of victims — the crush of Matter, and the wreck of worlds ! but looks on like Other victors while sitting on his throne, Regardless of the ruin he has made. 29 338 rice's poetry. M}^ reader pause! Time has not yet been thy Murderer; but soon must build thy tomb. The Moon may wax and wane — years may revolve, ere He shall cut thee down ; yet thy destiny Is sure. Time shall reign triumphant o'er thrones And dominions — earth shall to him bow. Thy Soul shall survive the wreck of Time. If clad In divinity God will sustain thee When the angel shall swear, "Time shall be no Longer." Then shall immortality swell Thy bosom, and Time be exchanged for Heaven ; Thy joy shall be that of angels, and thy Golden harp chant the diadem of Life. DEATH OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. Death prevails. That aged Sire — our country's Friend, who for gone by years had pled within The Capitol — .sustained our rights, our wrongs Condemned — beheld by many a sparkling £ye, — bejoved by «.!! who their country loved. BiXi that well known voice shall plead no longer ! Those- eyes no more brighten in prospect of tOur country's welfare, or blaze with fearful Wrath oUl foes to God and man. That graceful Form no lorsger shall stand in the Congress iHall, and eou,tend with giant intellect Petition's righit— break down his foes — the flag Of Liberty sustain. His useful life Is endedj and bis mortal remains have Been borne away to fill the gaping tomb. Death prevails. That heart which had long been raised To Heaven for .our Liberty and Peace, shall Beat no longer, Tnat Jiving form which has Ever acted for the happiness of Man, has gone to its dreamless slumber. That Well known seat, which has been honored by one I rice's poetry. 339 Of the brightest Stars in our Union is Now vacant ; — no one to fill it, and say- To the political tempest, " Peace, be Still !" The matchless Oracle of Freedom In tliat splendid mansion where he had So long sustained Truth and Justice, breathed his last !— A strong memento to his brethren of Their mortality. Silent must that tongue Forever be, which spoke in wisdom's voice, And often hushed the storm that brooded o'er The Capitol. Death found him at his post, And quickly broke the golden chords of life In sunder ; yet with conscience clean before God and. man, he met the grim Messenger Rejoicing — his dying thoughts were upward — Borne on heavenly zephyrs, they reached the courts Above. His tongue palsied by the fatal Shock, gave its final utterance, " Tins is The last of earth — I am content." Soon the Dying scene was over — sighs followed sighs — Tears fell upon tears — and deep mourning in Solemn silence shrouded the Judgment Hall. Friend of Liberty, and of thy country Farewell. Rememb'rance shall long hold thee Dear in the land of thy nativity ; but Thy voice and thy presence shall be seen And heard no more. Farewell! 'till the crumbling Republics of time shall have passed aw^ay, And nothing shall endure, but treasures laid Up in God. Farewell! 'till the trump of the Resurrection morning shall awake the Sleeping dead ! then shall thy dust arise in The full bloom of immortality, and If clad in the robes of Divinity, thou Shah hail the ransomed throng in endless life — Meet thy Savior and thy Father in peace — Join the Republic of Heaven above — Confirmed by God around his shining throne. 340 rice's poetry. MESSIAH. Ye sons of earth awake ! your fate deplore ' Fierce wrath of God for you is kept in store, A direful storm is gathered o'er your head, And waits to bear you to the silent dead: Your spirits by your ancient father slain Are fast approaching- hell's eternal pain. The way to death is open far and wide, And thousands walk therein with rapid stride ; They live for woe — unconscious of their doom Until they plunge the spirit's final tomb ! The die is cast — God's law declares them dead. And pours its thunders on their guilty head; All hope is lost — the fallen sinner dies, With banished demons in deep anguish cries; Pours forth his wails, but finds no list'ning ear To cheer his heart, and wnpe the falling tear; Mourns his sad fate — laments his father's fall, Which bound the chains of moral death on all, Shut out the spirit from its Eden sky, To feel the sword of vengeance from on high. My soul arise above this mournful strain ! Though man is lost, he may salvation gain. Hark ! hark ! I hear from angel courts above In songs of rapture — God's eternal love. Resounding through the upper worlds of light, Brought down to earth by seraphs' rapid flight, In chanting music to the shepherd's ear. To charm his soul, and drive away his fear. " Glory to God," in highest strains they sing, " To you this day is born a Prince and King,' The Savior, who shall bind the sinner's foe, And all the works of darkness overthrow; The Son of God, who since has burst the tomb, And drove from man the shades of midnight gloom. Hail Mediator! man's eternal Rock! The living Shepherd of thy chosen flock; The Father's Son, bv ancient bards foretold ; rice's poetry. 341 The Man of God — the price of sin had sold ; In endless wonder, must thy love remain In ev'ry heart, since Thou for sin wast slain. Lo in the garden I behold the Man, Ere he was taken by the wicked clan, Kneeling before his Father — hear him cry '• Save from this hour !" for sin I groan and die ! But soon I hear the voice of God's dear Son, " Except I drink this cup thy will be done." Judas the traitor stretches forth his hand. And gives the signal to the wicked band ; They bound the Savior — led him to the hall; Bearing the scoffs and infamy of all ; Condemned by man — by man was crucified ; For man he groaned upon the cross and died ; For man he prayed — the sun withdrew his light, Three hours refused to view the gloomy sight ; The rocks were rent — the Jewish Temple shook, When God the Son his dying clay forsook. Awake my soul to that expiring groan. Which caused the earth in midnight shades to mouni; See the life-blood gush from the Savior's heart, Through ev'ry nerve he bears the cruel smart ; Behold him buried in the marble tomb, Where he partook the sinners' common doom. But short his stay — the angel from the skies Rolled back the stone, and bid the Savior rise ; His chains fell off — he burst the tyrant's seal, That he the wounds of sin and death might heal. Yet forty days, from earth he took his flight, Soared to the regions of his own delight ; There free from turmoil, death, and every pain, The true Messiah shall in glory reign. THE ANGEL BINDING BEELZEBUB. The lofty Angel from the Father's throne, Descends and enters through the gate alone ; ^29 342 rice's poetry. Inspired with pow'r from the exalted skies, He binds the Demon 'till the last revive ! On the dark pit he stamps the fatal seal, And drives the soldiers from the battle field ! Infernal foes, now sundered from their king, Flee from the earth, and leave the saints to sing The song of vict'ry, by the cross unfurled — The restoration of a dying world. THE DYING SINNER. In that dread moment, how the frantic soul Raves through the walls of her clay tenement ? Pressing to ev'ry avenue for help ! But finds no plastic Sire ready to slay The enemy of man, or him disthrone. He comes in triumphant victory ! Sways the sceptre over all human flesh, He crops the bloom of life — the victim falls, And takes a realm in yonder sable tomb. But alas ! the soul with all her anguish! How she shrieks under the fatal agony ? Much greater in the anticipation Of unerring death, that never expires. She heaves u si'gh, too big for utterance ! Yet a little longer, O might I stay ! To wash away forbidden stains, and fit Me for my passage ! but she cries in vain ! The monster death, prevails in victory! The edifice consumes, and lifeless falls ! While the immortal part, wings in quick flight To the gloomy mansion, or second death. To rise no more forever i * * * THE DRUNKARD'S EPITAPH. * * * * In infamy he dies ! The catalogue arose — the book appears — The Judge assumes his seat — awards are giv n rice's poetry. 343 There stands trembling in anticipation Of his fearful doom — manacled in chains ! At length he hears the last sentence given — Proclaimed by Jesus, and ils expelling force Drives him from the seat of justice, ever In that opaque region or second death, To dwell with the infernal ghosts of hell ! He heaves a groan that never can expire. REDEMPTION. How shall I announce this theme, thai Dares the pen of angels ? Its height So ample mounts beyond my thoughts — Retires in depths of eternity, By that veil which shuts from me the Vast infinite of the great I AM, and drowns my senses in the Tracing search of what the ample Theme demands. Redemption ! it came From Heaven. It rears the hell-bound Spirit tinctured by the fall, to The abode of smiling angels. O, may I breathe as long as breath Is given, in adoration to Him Who waded hell's vast abyss, and Slew the strongest foe. " Adore Him All ye nations ! Praise Him all ye People," with harps well tuned by strings Imbued in his atoning blood. HE GAVE UP THE GHOST. The work is finished — He bowed his head- Gave up the Ghost, and left his mangled Body on the purple tree. What spear Is this that drank his blood — blushing with Crimson from his heart ? Lo the soldier S44 rice's poetry. Wades in a Savior's gore — compressd with A- garment dipt in Adam's fall — shuts The gate of mercy's voice ; and sheds no Mourning tears. Here, my soul ! let all Thy passions roll! Here drink the balm That cheers the mind — dispels all sin, and Stamps the soul for Heaven. * * THE SPIRIT'S GRAVE. I hear the fun'ral dirge of spirits damned, And see the fiery waves around them roll ; Forever burning, yet never consumed ! Always expiring, but shall never die ! There groan in quick succession follows groan, And sorrow treads on the heels of sorrow ! There sighs are raging in the troubled heart, And scalding tears from eyes that ever weep Distil the lake of fire with devils damn'd ! There mercy never sees or feels the woes And lamentations of the dying soul. ON THE DEATH OF SOPHIA B. HUBBARD. My harp awake ! put forth thy mournful strains To swell the dirge of one whose fleeting years Are numbered, and whose lifeless clay slumbers In the tomb. She was the object of a Father's love, and the rich jewel of a Mother's heart. They had watched her youthful days And marked her path with kindness, until the Age of womanhood graced her comely form. But soon mortality wound up the chain. And eartlr^s frail victim fell. Death sundered wide The husband and the wife, and closed the scene Forever. The day ere she died, all seemed Well. Health was smilinjr on her cheek, and for rice's poetry. 345 Alight was known on earth, might live for many Y^ears. But the angel of death had spread his Speedy pinions, and in quick flight urged his Way to the sad victim's heart — dried up the Sanguiferous tide ; the arterial Action grew weaker, and yet weaker still ; At length her heart gave its last faint motion, And ail was silent as the house of death ! Then dust returned to dust, and the soul to God that gave it. Around her dynig couch Stood her husband and her friends, unwiihng To let her go. With anchor cast within The veil she had hope in death, and gave them Her last faint warning ; " This is the end of Life ! Soon like me you must feel dissolving Nature I Prepare to meet your God." Then came The angel of the everlasting Word, And bore her away from the building of Mortality up to the spirit land. Deep silence prevailed ! and naught was heard but The broken wails and sobs of wounded hearts. Our friend is gone. Her face we '11 see no more. Earth was too low a realm for her soul — made Free by Jesus' Blood. Torn from all below She took her flight in the morn of life to The abode of angels ; and left her friends To verge the gaping tomb. No pain shall swell Her bosom — no tears of grief, no sighs of Woe. Death struggles have passed away, and her Mental powers the avenues of supreme Delight. Sainted spirit, farewell. No more Shall we meet on earth. Heaven grant that we All may meet in the church triumphant, there Surround the Tree of Life, and pluck the fruit By which immortal spirits live on high. 346 rice's poetry. THE ASCENSION OF THE SON OF GOD. From toil, reproach, deep sighs, and mortal groans, The Victim breaks the fetters of the tomb, And soars in triiimph to his Father's throne. Daughters of Jerusalem, weep ! begin Your deep toned wail of woe ; for his fair eyes Of mercy shall no longer weep for you At Salem's gates. Your day of his gracious Visitation is passed away; the night Of solemn darkness clouds your sky ; The long night of centuries yet to come, Charged with the incensed anger of your God. Your widows are now forsaken ; for the Sweet voice of Jesus no more shall dry up Their funeral tears, nor awake their loved Ones from the slumber of the grave, until That great day, when all the sleeping dead shall Obey the voice of God's exalted Son. He rose at the morning watch, when from the Walls of ancient Solyma — the bliss of earth. Night's weary watchers from their posts had fled. The orient light had just begun to Dispel Judea's nocturnal shades. In The city, deep silence prevailed, save the Murmur of Kidron's stream, or the Loud scream of the soaring eagle, as he winged In triumph above the Temple's lofty Dome, toward the fading stars, losing their Light by fulgency of morn ; prophetic Bird against Jerusalem. Did He rise ? The marble tomb — the massy stone — Cesar's Seal — Pilate's men of war — myriads of Angels lost, and death itself, no longer Could hold the Prisoner. The angel Of the everlasting covenant flew From the portal of the skies ; deputized By Him, who is the resurrection and The life, sundered the icy chains of death — 347 The Victim rose, while soldiers lay like dead Men round the tomb of God's eternal Son. Soon as the sacred gates were opened wide, Jesus advances to the holy mount, To return no more, until the hostile Jews confess their smitten Lord. PI is chosen Flock now with him journey on, winding their Way with anxious step and eager thought, while Each by turn converses on the faith of Israel's ransom, and the incessant reign Of God's dear One on David's vacant throne. The morning sun in all his splendid rays Shone bright, as when it first on Eden rose. The midnight dews that fell on Zion's hill, Had met the sunbeams in a flood of tears. Yet the Jews remained unconscious of their doom, As if no wrath for them was kept in store ; Their eyes were closed, they spurned to see him rise, Who claimed the glory of His Father's throne. Awhile they toiled, and gained th-e mountain's top And viewed the choicest scene of Jacob's land. A cloud appeared of unknown brilliant light. Calmly descending from the upper skies, To bear away the everlasting God. The steeds and chariots of the Lord were there, Flaming with angelic charioteers. That choir which sung creation's morrjing song. Again had passed the golden gates of Heaven, To hail the Savior to his native land. It was the most peaceful hour earth's Stranger Ever knew, since the squadron of angels Broke the mornin elibation, soon destroyed the rich Visions of her soul. Better had she dwelt Alone — better had she never been called Mother. Years passed away — children were born, Then misery's strong fetters followed to the Tomb. Disease, slow in its progress, yet sure In its aim, seized her vitals — the hectic Flush was on her cheek — her ruby lips were Blasted — her eyes in wild appearance rolled — Her heart digressive in its action, beat With hastened motion, until nature was Overcome, and the poor sufferer died. In her last mortal agony, methinks I hear her faint whispers, " Jesus is my Hope ! through faith he bears me up ; and now as I plunge the cold waters of death, I feel Myself safe in Zion's ship, and soon shall Brave the breakers, and scale the highlands of Heaven." "Father, into thy hands I commit These little ones thou hast given me ; for Thou hast promised to be the orphan's God." Having thus closed the dire scene, her heart gave Its final motion, and her spirit took Its everlasting flight \ * * * * How changed thy realm ? For if Jesus is thy Friend, angels are thy sister spirits — the Song of Heaven is thy song, and the New Jerusalem is thy dwelling place. Here Thou didst reside in an humble mansion — No vestments of grandeur attended thy Lonely pilgrimage — by the rich, the wise, And noble of this world, thou wert not known But if known by Jesus — the sinner's Friend, Thou shalt be borne on wings of cherubim Far above the frail grandeur and riches Of earth, to dwell in thy Father's kingdom — To be adorned with glory in endless Life. And as the foolish rich man, who has No treasure laid up in God, wails in his 355 Prison-house of woe, among angels lost, Thy heart shall swell in rapture with kindred Spirits in the fair climes of Heaven, and Chant the anthems of thy Savior's love ! Joy Of celestial origin shall fill thy Soul, where drops of mercy ever fall, and Waves of grief shall roll no more. ***** Farewell, sweet Songster ! Rich grace now tunes thy golden harp- Grace that cost thy Savior's agony in Gethsemane — his death-groans on the mount Of Calvary, and all his sufferings Through this vale of tears. Farewell! until thy Slumbering dust shall hear the trumpet's voice Of the first resurrection, and awake In all the beauties of eternal life, In shouts of triumph o'er the final tomb. Farewell ! until the red lightnings of Earth's final dissolution, shall fire these Heavens, darkened by the wrath of God, because Of sin, and shake the world with the terrors Of the last judgment. Farewell! until all That sleep in earth's common grave, shall hear the Voice of God, and receive the just rewards Of Eternity ! then shall we meet again. THE LAST GREAT DAY. Ye harps of angels, begin your mournful Dirge in tones of woe. The jubilee is Passed away ; the day of mirth is over ; Soon past ; for joy counts not her fleeting years. Satan's chains have fallen, and wars prevail ; Violence, revelry and sedition Are heard in the streets ; while murder, revenge, And intoxication, destroy the bliss Of life, and shake the world with dying groans. Servants of the living God, put on the 1 356 rice's poetry. Helmet of salvation — gird up your loins With truth — add the shield of faith, and hold fast The sword of God : watch and pray, for the Day Is nigh at hand — the day for which earth from Chaos rose — for which angels and men were Made — the great Day of God's exalted Son. Ye fallen angels, thrust in j^our sickles And reap — the harvest of sin is fully Ripe, and vengeance begins to tread the great Winepress of God Almighty's wrath ; for the Rich blood of mercy shall plead no longer. Hark ! methinks I hear creation's dying Pangs. From whence that cloud of darkness — those peals Of thunder and chains of lightning, that rend The air, and shake the world? Why does the sun Withdraw his light — the moon wade in blood, and As blasted figs the lamps of heaven fall ? From whence these yells of wo — the funeral Dirge of the sinner's lost hope — his dying Wails, which tread on the heels of sorrow, that Never end ? Jesus comes in the car Of his Divinity ! but how changed ? how Unlike the man that died on Calvary? No crown of thorns, and bloody scourge, besmear His back and sacred temples. He comes in The robes of his glory, at whose presence The earth is wrapped in flames of fire, and whose Power of dissolution makes creation weep. The angels of death now flap their baneful Wings and range the putrid air in search of Prey. The mountains quake, and all the stars of Heaven grow dim in lamentation for earth's Final groans — sadly revealing their Creator's wrath. The loud thunder utters His voice, chiming the ocean's troubled roar. The long night has come — the dark night of lost Spirits, that knows no breaking, no Son of rice's poetry. 3-57 God to cheer its gloom. Heaven's long spurned justice, Now claims her rights. Earth, bow thyself before The Lord, and cry for mercy; for thou art Growing old in sin, and all thy glory Mourns, and bleeds, and dies. Thou flaming king of Day, whose solar light has stood the test of Ages, put on thy weeds of mourning ; and Thou queen of night, begin to drop thy tears. Ye stars ! kind sentinels of heaven, that wing Your flight through the fields of ether, and dance Along the pavements of the blue sky — sweet Watchers of earth, prepare your winding sheets — Your lamps are growing dim — 'your disease is Mortal — your graves are dug, and God's angels Are now ready to bear you to the tomb. Where is the choir of God's elect, that dwell On earth or Heaven, whose harps shall sing the Dying world asleep, and weep behind the Funeral of the stars ? What chord shall string Your harps, what strains of mourning, what signs of Woe, shall tell the deep toned wailings of the Damned, and utter forth the plaintive dirge Of spirits lost in hell's eternal fire ? Far on the left of God's exalted Son, I see the dark cloud of fallen spirits Hover over the gloomy pit : Mercy Withdraws her arm — they sink amid the shrieks Of angels lost, where their portion must be Scalding tears— the curse of lost hope, and the Red glare of undying flames. * * * THE LAST DECISION. ****** Fatal vision ! Methought I stood before the judgment seat, Naked and pale, the last unsentencM sinner; On either side a dread array of angels, 358 rice's poetry. Pure as their Creator — sunder'd wide The righteous and the wicked. In the midst. Glorious in his wrath, appeared the Judge ! Doom'd in my conscience, scarce dar'd I to lift My eyes to meet his visage, lest his glance, Instant, should hurl me to perdition. The books lay open — how my spirit shook As list'ning myriads piled on myriads round, Expectant stood. On the left, dark demons Longing to grasp their prey, and mock and curse Another being ever doom'd to share Their own unutterable agonies ! There a bright band, waiting to strike their harps, And hail another soul to endless life. I heard the irrevocable sentence ! 'Twas just ! Instant the never dying worm Of keen remorse stuck deep his gnawing fangs Within my tortur'd bosom, then the flame Of unextinguishable suffering Intensely burnt around — upon — within ; At that moment the bright seraphic band, Shrouded from my sight — was gone forever! Oh, as it passed away, and the dark veil. Of everlasting blackness drew around, I heard the enchanting, blissful harmony Of those who soar'd to happier regions ! Music sweeter than the exquisite tones Produc'd on earth — but each enthrilling note Vibrated on my ear with thrilling pangs Damned spirits only feel. # * * TRUTH AND UNIVERSALISM CON- TRASTED. UNIVERSALISM. When oceans waste and skies in smoke decay, Rocks turn to dust and mountains sink away, In pond'rous chains shall death be ever bound, And hell's grim tyrant feel his dying wound. rice's poetry. 359 But Satan's children reach the heavenly shore, To reign in bliss, their father see no more ; The raging drunkard shall to glory reel, And concubines eternal pleasures feel. Bless'd are the misers who depress the poor, For they unbounded riches shall secure ; Bless'd are all those who scoff at truth divine, For all revilers endless glory find. Happy those virgins that no oil possess'd, For they shall dwell in heaven with the bless'd. Bless'd are all felons, who desire to find A chance for robbing and to cheat mankind ; Such die to live, for God to them has given A right to steal, and then to enter Heaven. Bless'd be the man whose bowels never move With Gospel mercy or with filial love ; Bless'd all those warriors who rejoice to fight, From seas of blood they soar to worlds of light. Go sinner, riot, every crime pursue. For crowns of glory shall be sav'd for you ; Fear not to walk in sin's polluted way ; Live as you please, you 'II gain eternal day. The Infidel, who has his Lord denied, And all the Gospel treasures long defied. Dies without faith, yet soars to worlds on high, Where saints are bless'd and angels never die. Serpent of old, thou gav'st a just reply To ancient Eve, " Ye shall not surely die." TRUTH. But let my reader, in the fear of God, Leave the broad road in which the devil trod! With Satan's lies the Savior's truth compare, And see if all men endless glory share. The adamantine sinner must go down, In chains of hell must be forever bound, Except he to his Lord and Savior flies. Repents of sin and labors for the skies. But why do men the Bible truth deny ^ 360 kick's poetry. The imprecations of God's word defy ? Evade that part which justly damns the soul? Believe a lie, that mercy saves the wholo ? False faith, indeed ! for such no proof is given, By Gospel news sent down to man from Heaven. This is the faith congenial to the heart, Built up by Satan, to deceive a part; Until the pulse of life by death expire, The culprit lost in hell's eternal ire. Awake ! O reader, in God's truth believe ; The Devil's falsehood can but make you grieve : Hold fast true faith, while mercy's arms extend, And rise to glory when your life shall end ; For if there is a New Jerusalem, Where servants of the Lord are gathered home. There is a hell where waves of terror roll. Destroy the sinner and torment the soul. Devils and men may lead mankind astray. Add to God's word and from it take away ; Yet they no portion in life's book shall claim, But down must sink amid the burning flame. Reader, beware ! upon this life depends Abodes of glory or a place with fiends : Repent, believe, obey high Heaven's command, And dwell with angels in fair Canaan's land. If in the world of woe, where devils groan. And damned spirits do their case bemoan, Thy soul shall enter — no Savior shall appear "With news to pardon, or rich grace to cheer. All hope is lost, thy spirit ever dies. Reflects on mercies past, pours forth her cries. Wails in lost hope, but finds no listening ear To calm her waves and chase away her fear. RICE S POETRY. 361 HOPE. All cheering Hope ! rich Gem in Heaven bom ! Reviving minstrel of the soul forlorn ; While sunk beneath affliction's pond'rous thrall, Clothed in deep mourning with the fun'ral pall; When borne beneath oppression's direful rod, Hope leads the pris'ner in the road to God. While death's dark curtain spreads its dreary sway, And earth-born light withdraws her faintest ray; When chills of death-sweat on the brow shall stand ; And lips fast trembling by the tyrant's band; When all the powers of life sink in the tomb, And turn to slumber in primeval gloom ; Hope points the soul across deep Jordan's wave, And buoys her up in triumph o'er the grave ; Empowers the spirit as the eagle's flight, To mount the regions of eternal light. When man shall hear the trumpet's awful sound, And wake from his long slumber under ground; When rocks shall melt and earth's last embers die. And vengeance thunder from the exalted sky ; All nature tremble at the direful rod, Obey the mandate of Almighty God ! Hope then shall set the ransomed pris'ner free, And give him fruit from Life's immortal Tree ; Shall cheer his spirit as she onward flies, Through realms of bliss, while groaning nature dies. When sinners lost shall plunge the fires of hell, 31 362 rice's poetry. With taunting demons must forever dwell ; The pilgrim's Hope shall swell the ransomed songf, And Avorship God among the heav'nly throng ; The bread of life shall cheer his deathless soul, While angels live and crystal waters roll. From whence this Hope for mortals frail as man? From whence the source this blazing star began ? Awake my soul, on mercy's pinions fly. And view the Victim who for man did die ; See through the medium of Mount Calvary, By faith's strong hold the sons of men are free ; See through those wounds that run in streams of blood, The soul 's redeemed and learns the way to God ; View the deep groans across the Kidron stream. And nature mourning at the direful scene ; Hear the last sigh, which heaved the Savior's breast, That man might live in Heaven with the blest. Here Hope began — rich jewel born on high; Inspires the soul with joys that never die ; Sets free the pris'ner from the wails of hell ; Makes meet the spirit with its God to dwell. Martyrs o^ Jesus — ransomed friends of Heaven, Confirmed in Hope — for truth your lives were given! Through seas of blood you 've ga'ned the port of rest, Have braved the foe, and with your Master blest! No more you 're called to wade sin's raging flood ! No more shall Satan's children drink your blood I No more shall fiends of God your bosoms swell. With deep-toned anguish from the waves of hell ! Your race is run — all tears are wiped away, And Hope shall mingle with eternal day ! The bliss of angels shall your souls inspire. While God shall reign, and demons rage in fire ! While Hope expinng shall your foes destroy, You '11 shout exemption in a world of joy ; On angel's pinions take your deathless flight, And feel the raptures of immortal light. kick's poetry. 363 THE SIN OF INTEMPERANCE. How great the sin, — what immorality Lies here ? It is the death of honor, ere Nature dies, or vital blood in silence Sleeps. Is this the greatness of man ? If so I ask deliverance from such a noble. Yet in reality most vulgar title. Is there no infamy in the vestige ? If not let us adore the practical Theorem of inebriation, and Spurn the track no more, sadly marked by the Meandering traveller. Awake to Reason, O my fellow men ! behold youi Surrounding country, and see the objects Of Intemperance ! mark their vulgar course, — Their ample treason to both God and man. See the misery they procure by their Atrocious excess ; — disgrace their offspring ; And grasp the burning flame. By this bane of Empires, how many nobles fall from their Morality, — how many logicians lose Their reason, — how many worthy minds are Blasted, — how many immortal spirits Shun the way of peace and happiness on Earth, and sail with rapid tide on the broad River to hell ? Let those beings who have Not grasped the tinctured poison, take solemn Warning by the sad fall of surrounding Multitudes ; and shun the fatal cup, which Thousand sup to their eternal ruin ! Let the drunkard forego his wrongs by deep Repentance for deviation, and he may Restore his morality, and save his Soul from the jaws of devouring fire. Be wise, O fellow youth ! and flee from that Sin, which will condemn the delinquent at The bar of God with an eternal doom. 364 rice's poetry. THE DESTROYING ANGEL. The Pale White Horse without remorse Appears in ghastly form ; His way is dark just like the barque Before the driving storm ! Like torrid night with baleful light In sanguine met'ors glare ; Or burning ire volcanic fire Spreads through the calid air. Direful and swift the black clouds drift, And all their anguish bring! Vast numbers slain bestrew the plain, To slake a thirsty king ! But still a pall, far worse than all Surrounds my gloomy path, Since I arose from my repose, — Slave of my Master's wrath ! Angel of God ! hold fast the rod, And scourge earth's vast domain ; Her sons with shame have spurn'd my name, And pierced the Savior slain ! The low and tall are doomed to fall; — Thy poniard shall destroy ! Their treason great has sealed their fate, And buried all their joy. Master I go, and fill with woe The nations far and near ! And as I pass like falling grass The dying quake with fear ! Sad wails I raise in wild amaze From victims as I fly ! The orphans' groans, and widows' moans Send forth their plaintive cry ! Kings on their thrones my name shall own, And fear approaching death ! rice's poetry 365 Under my wings, which venom bring, In haste shall yield their breath ! Angel am I, in Speed I fly, My mission is to kill ; The infant small and giant tall Alike the grave shall fill. My pow'r shall stand by God's command ; — My darts of poison fly. Until the slave shall rend the grave. And death itself shall die ! Then hear O earth ! forsake your mirth ! "■ Obey your Maker's nod ; From courts above implore his love, And shun his awful rod. Awake ! awake ! my wings I shake ! From your deep slumber rise ; Turn to the Lord with one accord ; By faith ascend the skies ; For my dread power will make you cower, And cause your hearts to bleed ; Why then should man reject the plan God deigned his soul to feed ? Beyond life's hour no blasting shower Shall rend the Christian's breast ; Death is the gate which ends his fate, And gives his spirit rest ! Loud from the sky God's voice shall fly, And wake the sleeping dust ; The crested wave, and ev'ry grave Shall yield their sacred trust. Then death shall end, and joys shall blend On Zion's peaceful shore ; The Angel's dart, that rends the heart. Shall slay mankind no more ! / 366 Then groans and tears, and ghastly fears, Which here inspire with pain, Shall lose their source, and end their course Through God the Savior slain. Then angels' songs shall bless the throngs, That bow before the throne ! And Eden's joy shall saints employ Restored by grace alone ! " Glory" they cry, as on they fly " To God the Father's Son !" For by his loss when on the cross The sinner's crown was won. ACROSTIC ON JOHN KNOX SHAW, J...ohn ! let thy vision on that period run, 0...'erlook the world and soar beyond the sun; H...ear the trumpet's sound, — see the world on fire, N...aiure's deep mourning at the judgment ire. K...now well this truth the moon is turned to blood N...OW sun and stars lament the rueful flood I 0...'er the wide world the conflagration runs ! X...erxes long dead now from his grave returns. S...ee o'er the earth unnumbered millions rise ! H...ear the last trumpet from the vaulted skieS ! A. ..round the judgment seat they soon appear, W...ith hearts of rapture, or lost angels' fear. DEATH OF HARRISON. The battle's foug'ht, the vict'ry won, The garland placed on Harrison, — He was the people's choice ! They put upon his royal head Honors that shall survive the dead, Which made his friends rejoice. IlICES POETRY. 367 Brave Harrison is here no more, His earthly reign was quickly o'er, By death was put to flight ! His tent was mortal, down it fell, Thus all his motives, e'er so well, Sank in the gloom of night. So frail is man, that ev'ry crown Of earthly nature tumbles down, — All glory soon is fled ! His fame in time can only last By those who do his death surpass. But this can't reach the dead. All things are silent in the grave. Where sleeps the royal mighty brave ;- No honors reach his ear ! Yet long his name on record stands, Because he led the martial bands Triumphant from all fear. All things are fleeting here below, On wheels of time they swiftly go, And share one common grave ! No earthly honor e'er so high Exempts us from the fate to die. Nor can one moment save. Then let our hearts forget to dwell On themes where waves of Jordan swell. And spread their fun'ral pall ! Hope claims the prize within the veil. Where hell's expiring hosts shall fail ' To scale mount Zion's wall. THE CHOLERA. The Cholera's destructive car Sweeps onward to the tomb ! 368 eice's poetey. How quick it does death's gate unbar, And show to man his doom ! Great God ! this scourge at thy command Slays millions of our race ; From ocean to the distant land It runs with speedy pace. The atmosphere inspired with death, Appears in dread array ; To which the living yield their breath. And pass from time away : The rich and poor — the small and great— The drunkard and the knave, And warrior in his martial state, Descend the dreary grave. The monarch on his regal throne. With thousands at his nod, Has had his dust and vestments strown, All by the scourge of God ! The giant like the lofty oak. The winds no longer brave, Falls by the hand he did provoke, And finds no power to save. The maiden in her glowing hue, Adorned with raiment white ; And blithesome beaus that sin pursue Sink in the shades of night ! Thn lovers bound by dearest ties. In haste are sundered wide ; And misers grasping for a prize. By Cholera have died. The hunters seeking after gold In California's mine, Have often failed as I've been told, And made the grave their shrine I RICE*S POETRY. 369 The negroes bound in sordid chains, Who for their masters toil, Have felt the scourge's mortal pains, And thus manured the soil. The murderer no law has found, And robber strolling free, Have by the chains of death been bound, And lost their liberty : The infidel that spurned the love Of him who wore the crown. Has been constrained to own the Dove, And feel his piercing frown. Unconscious of the fatal dart We glory in our shame 'Till forced at last God does impart The justice of his name ! The dreadful poison of the soul Invokes Jehovah's rod: — How long shall sin our hearts control. And keep us far from God ? May we approach his mercy seat. To him our sins confess, 'Till our vile hearts shall learn to beat For streams of righteousness : Then shall our anchor be secure. Let life or death prevail ; Our spirits' glory shall endure When sun and moon shall fail. LIFE TEMPORAL AND ETERNAL. Just like the falling of a star. Or eagles rapid flight ; Or vapors rising from afar. Or dew drops of the night : 370 rice's poetry. Just like the spring in verdant hue, Or bubbles of the wave, Does man his span of life pursue, And sink into the grave. As shooting stars are seen no more. Or eagles soar away ; As waves are hushed from shore to shore, Or night is turned to day ; So man in all his glory dies, His mortal clay must fail ; But if he labors for the skies, He will in God prevail. His soul shall brave the wreck of time, And dwell in weal or woe, When all the works of earth's frail clime Shall back to ruin go. The soul on wings of grace conveyed Above deep Jordan's tide. Shall be in garments white arrayed By God the Crucified. Then mortal pain shall pass away, And death itself shall die ; The spirit claim her dying clay. And live with God on high : They both shall wear an angel's crown, And vie with saints above ; No more to feel a Father's frown. Or want a Saviors' love. But if the sinner here shall shun The Savior's smiling face. And gird himself for death to run, And spurn the means of grace; He shall be bound in hellish chains. To rage in seas of fire ; Where blood shall never wash his stains, To shun his Father's ire. rice's poetry. 371 FAREWELL SARAH. Farewell, Sarah ! thou art sleeping In the dark and dreary grave ; Earthly friends are round thee weeping, Tost by time's destructive wave. Like the lovely flower that closes Ere its transient day is o'er ; Or the gale that soon reposes, Thou dost rest, to weep no more. Who would break thy dreamless slumber, — Rob the grave of sacred trust ? There no cares of life shall cumber. There no passions move thy dust. While our friendship is resigning Earth to earth from whence it came, All our broken hearts are twining Garlands to thy worthy name. Hope expands her golden pinions. Faith her piercing eye extends, Looks be3'ond death's dark dominions Where thy glory ne'er shall end. Here thy mortal course was fleeting. Oft beset with tears and woe ; Now the angels thou art greeting, Where the saints of Jesus go. There in spirit land supernal. Where the holy cherubs sing, Thou dost rest with the Eternal, And thy crown to Jesus bring. THE FINAL DOOMSDAY. Awake my muse the final dirge to sing ; Behold the scene expiring worlds shall bring ; 372 rice's poetry. Hark ! hark ! I hear the last loud thunders sound, Which shake the world and rend the solid ground Now the volcanoes by caloric ire Inflame the air, and set the world on fire, Dry up the deep, — begin their gen'ral flames, And plainly prove a God Almighty reigns. Hark ! the dread angel wings the vaulted sky ! Sounds the alarm through heavens far on high ! All planets in the solar system feel The voice of God, and from their order reel. Nature in mourning at the shock appears. The planets tremble in their rolling spheres ; The stars from their established motions fall ; Here drops an atom, there a heavenly ball. The angel swears that time shall be no more ! The news is felt along the trembling shore ! The oceans deep in raging madness foam ; All nature feels her last expiring groan ! The Sun, that from the birth of time has shone, Now wades in darkness, and descends his throne ' The beauties of the Moon have fled away. And every orb has lost its lucid ray. In awful pomp the Judge assumes his seat While Adam's race bow down before his feet; Devils in chains around his throne appear. And sinners tremble with eternal fear. Lost men and angels now must meet their doom, Must enter hell and find the spirit's tomb ! " Go" saith the Judge, " and plunge the lake of fire Go drink the vengeance of my Father's ire." •' Ye bless'd of God in rapture raise your eyes ! On wings of faith ascend the upper skies I Go dwell with seraphs in the church above, A.nd sing what angel's can't, — redeeming love." ei€e's poetry. 373 HARRIET'S ACROSTIC. H...ast thou surveyed the sorrows of our race, A...nd viewed the scourge, that runs with speedy pace ! R...epeird by death, thy colleagues fast retire ; R...esume the grave, and leave all earth's desire. I...ndulgent friend, thy prospects may be fair ; E...ach flying moment free from all despair ; T...hy youthful form, though now with grace bedeck'd, P...er death's dark shades may suddenly be wreck'd. E...thereal Light ! O let thy spirit find ! A...ngelic bliss cheer thy immortal mind : R...efin'd by Jesus, thou may'st bid farewell ; L...ook up on high, and with thy Savior dwell. ROSANNAH'S EXIT. Ere four short years had passed away, Rosannah bloomed to die ; Bid earth farewell to wear a crown In shining worlds on high. No more her star-lit eyes shall blaze, Her father's face to greet ; No more her mother's kind return. Her grateful heart shall meet. No more shall gushing tears distil Her sighs and grief to tell; For Love Divine expelled her fears, When she on earth did dwell. Her feeble pulse of joy and woe, Comprised her fleeting race ; From earth's frail regions soon she flew Her Savior to embrace. 32 374 rice's poetry. Her day was transient here below, As dew-drops of the night ; For angels' vans she left her clay, To vie in worlds of light. Nor shall her clay forever sleep, For God shall bid it rise ; Then soul and body both shall meet To wing celestial skies. Hail holy one, by blood made free From sin and ev'ry pain ; Though we shall see thy face no more, Thou shah with Jesus reign. DEATH IN THE SABBATH SCHOOL. I do not hear or see them now, They've left the place they filled, We miss each light and sunny brow, And voices sweet that thrilled ; In vain we look for smile or mirth, That often cheered our way. They all have gone and left the earth, While in the morn of day. But few short Sabbath days have sped. Since they forsook our band, To number with the silent dead And view the spirit land ; Their dust now slumbers in the tomb, But Jesus' cheering ray Has shed around its mournful gloom. The light of endless day. No more they'll meet on earth to praise With us their voices blend, But tune their harps for angels' lays Where Sabbaths never end ; rice's poetky. 375 Their names have lost their record here, But thanks to Jesus' love, They by the stamp of gold appear In life's fair book above. No more their eager footsteps spring Their teacher's face to meet. No more to him their lessons bring With pleasure to repeat ; No, never 'till that day of doom, When the last trump shall sound, And ev'ry victim leave the tomb, And death itself be bound. Then, shall they all in rapture see Each other's face once more, And worship Him who made them free From waves of hell that roar ; In Jesus was their vict'ry found O'er Jordan's raging flood, For all their sins which did abound Were washed away with blood. Then they shall see their Master's face, And wing the ether skies, Shall ever sing of his free grace. By which their spirits rise ; No more shall pain and death destroy Their peace with angels pure, But rivers of eternal joy Their flaming eyes secure. » While they look back on days of yore. When they on earth did meet. And felt rich streams of mercy pour, While bowed at Jesus' feet ; In loud hosannas, lo they cry ! To God the Father's Son, *' In Sabbath Schools we learned to spy The crown on Calv'ry won.' 9^76 kice's poetry. ENVY, THE FOULEST WHELP OF SIN. From whence these fiends that rise my song to kill? Are they the rowdies of incarnate hell? Servants of wrath under the Serpent's will, That played the devil when our parent's fell? Ashamed of light, in deep oblivion's shade The treach'rous lawyer hides his curly head ; Like savage foes he keeps in ambush laid. Until he dreams his harmless victim dead. Nature's own dwarf, seeking a poet's crown, Whose eyes are blood-shot with the sparkling glass ; Once claimed to hold an editor's renown. Must with the hopeless bacchanalian class. Next comes the critic in sheep's clothing dressed Unjustly called True Wesleyan by name ; Pours forth his satire with unjust request. And spreads his fiction with a demon's flame. Such are the fiends that hiss at ev'ry gem 0£ sacred poets, lit by Gospel fire ; Who fain would pluck from man that diadem. Which saves the soul from hell's eternal ire. Who next shall rise my volume to destroy. Comprised of labor, love, and ardent zeal, May rest assured my soul I will employ To plead my Savior may his pardon seal. Love is a gem that fires the Christian's heart, It took its birth a native of the skies ; Through faith divine it shall God's grace impart, When ocean's waste, and earth's creation dies. Envy ! foul whelp of sin ! the blackest pall That ever stained the beating heart of man! rice's poetry. 377 Sanctioned to make God's flaming wrath to fall, And bind the foe in one eternal ban ! Though critics hiss, — though hostile demons rise, And strike the blow intent on virtue's fall, My numbers long shall echo for the skies, And tell for Him who freely died for all. Yes, if God's truth shall wield my sacred rhyme, No archer's arrow dipped in baneful dye Shall quell my song, — it shall remain through time, And aid the lost to shining worlds on high. THOUGHTS OF HEAVEN. No finite knowledge can define The glories that through Jesus shine In worlds of light above ; Alone by faith we can command A view of that celestial land. Bedecked by God's Almighty hand. And crowned with perfect love. No man hath heard such music sweet, As that where saints and angels meet. And in one chorus sing ; United in a heav'nly choir, At once they touch each sacred lyre, In rapture praise their worthy Sire, Their Savior, and their Kmg. No mortal eye that light can bear, Which sinners saved from bondage share. Enclosed in Jesus' fold ; In all the beauties of the Dove They feast on angel's food above. And slake their thirst on streams of love, No seraph can unfold. '32 fm Made free from sin, and ev*ry foe, They range the fields, secure from woe, In pure celestial skies ; On living pastures, always green They feed, and drink the healing stream. Where crystal waters ever teem With new and rich supplies. The days of sorrow there shall end. And ev'ry saint his praise shall blend With spirits clothed in white ; The sun no more shall give his ray. Nor shall the moon her light display. For Jesus through an endless day Shall be the source of light. What joys await the Christian there. Who does his Master's armor bear, Hope cheers his troubled breast ; Though persecutions bring him low. Though aliens strike their cruel blow. And death his fatal dart shall throw. Yet Heaven shall be his rest. Then let the blood-bought soul arise, And bend her course to yonder skies. The place where angels dwell ; Think of those mansions far on high. Where God's redeemed shall never die, But on their golden pinions fly. His ransomed love to tell. All hail ! my Savior, angels hail ! Soon I shall end my dying wail, And worlds celestial see ; Ere long shall this frail prison break. Then shall my soul in Jesus wake, And of the spirit land partake. To all eternity. rice's poetry. 379 THE PAST AND FUTURE. Thou dread of man ! relentless Past ! Strong bolts secure thy dark domain ! The angel death has bound thee fast In deep oblivion's pulseless reign. Far in thy distant realms withdrawn Old empires sit in sullen gloom ! Near three score ages past and gone Lie deep within thy silent tomb. Lo, childhood with its var'ous mirth, — Manhood and youth, — all kiss the ground ! Millions of creatures, — once on earth, Are in thy dark dominions bound ! In thee are found my better years ; — Thou hast my friends, — the good, — the kind ! — All gone to thee, mid pain, and tears ! — The worthy form, — exalted mind. My spirit yearns them back to bring, — Those lovely ones, with soul intense ; And struggles hard thy bolts to wring. And force thy dreamless captives thence ! I strive in vain ! thy gates deny To all but those who hence depart ; — No sigh of woe, — no streaming eye Can bring them to my bleeding heart. Beauty and excellence unknown Alike in thy deep caverns hide : — As rain-drops on the earth are strown, So man is lost in all his pride. The great and good, — the mighty Drave, And giant form, all slumber there ; The meanest dwarf, and vilest knave Do in thy gloomy caverns share. But soon shall end thy wonted course ; — The word of God shall free the slave ; — 380 rice's poetry. The angel's final trump shall force The sleeping captive from the grave ' Then shall those long lost ones appear In triumph o'er their flying foe ! No more their earthly prison fear ! No more remain in speechless woe. The soul that learned the way to God, Ere to the Past a victim fell, Escapes the sin-avenging rod, And scales the mount where angels dwell! But' the lone culprit, strongly bound Beneath the law of sacred ire, Must go where demons lost are found. And plunge the lake of endless fire. Then let all victims chained in sin Obey that voice that wakes the dead, By faith in God be wise to win A crown, when earth's vain glory 's fled. What if this mortal frame shall die, And sink to dust from whence it came, The soul and body soon shall fly Far, far beyond earth's final flame. JESUS REFUGE FROM THE TEMPEST. Jesus, Savior of my soul ! To thy bleeding side I fly, While the waves around me roll, And the lightning rends my sky. Hide me, blessed Savior hide, 'Till the tempest shall be o'er ; Guide me to thy haven, guide, Where the breakers roll no more. Lord, I fain would learn of thee. Thou art all my soul's desire ; rice's poetry. 381 Help me from the tempter flee, Fill me with thy sacred fire. By thy blood thou didst atone, That my spirit might be blest ; Let thy saving arm alone Bear me to eternal rest. Savior, thou art all I need ; Love so great no man has found ; Let me on thy banquet feed. Free to all the world around. Thou art holy, just and true, I by sin exposed to pain ; May I truth divine pursue. And through faith the crown obtain. Thou art full of saving grace, Grace to wash my sins away ; Let me see thy smiling face While I here on earth shall stay. Thou alone the fountain art, Help me drink its healing stream, Which shall make my broken heart In eternal glory beam. ASSURANCE OF HEAVEN. Death may destroy my body now. And bear it to the silent tomb ; Yet God my spirit shall endow, And save it from lost angels' doom. By his exulting grace I'll soar. And O'er the grisly monarch ride, Though waves of death around me roar, I'll sail above the raging tide. God has prepared a crown for me, Where golden treasures never fade, 382 rice's poetry. And I that living gem shall see, For on my head it shall be laid Nor was that crown for me alone, Prepared by God's eternal Son, But he for all did sin atone, For all has free salvation won. Jesus my Lord shall guide me safe. While I shall over Jordan sail ; He '11 nerve my waiting soul to brave, The raging surges of the gale. He is my everlasting Friend ; — AH hell's dark regions rave in vain ; His own right arm shall me defend. While devils wail in endless pain. TIME SHALL BE NO LONGER. As I was musing on the days of youth, My mind reverted to a solemn truth ; Oh, what is Time ? I to the faction ci^ed ; "It is our god," they instantly replied. I asked the miser, who depressed the poor, To gain earth's mammon, finite to endure. Oh, what is Time ? He trembles at the sight ; For all his riches take a speedy flight. I asked the careless sinner, who had trod The ways of sin against a holy God, Oh what is Time ? " I've lost it and must share The wail of demons in their wild despair." I asked the Savior, who upon the tree Was crucified and put to death for me, Oh, what is Time ? " He spoke upon it hangs Thy paradise, or hell's eternal pangs.'* I asked the exiled spirit, which had found The second death, where darkness spread around. rice's poetry. 383 Oh, what is Time ? *'I've lost it was his cry. And in sad anguish must forever die." I asked the Christian, who had found the shore Where sin expands her sable wings no more. Oh, what is Time ? " Time was the race I run, T* gain the prize of God's eternal Son." I asked the holy angel, who shall stand One foot upon the sea and one on land, Oh, what is Time ? " Time is, but ►shall not be ; Time must be lost for vast eternity." THE STRANGER GREETING AMERICA. Hail thrice happy land ! the abode of the free With her Banner of Stars, rich floating in gold, Whose empire o'ershadows from oceans to sea. And free to the Stranger her gateways unfold. The land of the river, the land of the lake. And mountains and valleys in nature's own pride, Where blood of the Fathers their fetters did break, And purishase the soil for whose freedom they died. The base of thy Standard the marble has stayed. To brave every foe, invading thy soil ; Thy cities and hamlets, in glory arrayed. Abundantly pay for thy champions' toil. Thy Southern dominions with treasures abound, Inviting the stranger from regions afar ; Thy ample deposits, the hunters have found. Called landscapes of gold, and the world's morning star. Thou Beacon of empires I though wide be the main That severs thy glory from my native land, I hear from thy heroes, the sons of the slain, A welcome for aliens to join their strong band. As long as thy waters to oceans shall run, And the fountain of light his beams shall display, 384 kice's poetry. Be the hearts of thy children united as one, And Peace shed her rays like the sun at noon-day. Then shall distant nations with envious gaze Behold thy exemption from birthright of kings, Then shall they desire in thy glory to blaze, And rush for thy Banner on mercy's broad wings. Thou Star of Republics I the Light of the world ! A guide to all kingdoms now groaning in chains ; By thy rich example shall tyrants be hurled, As long as the Flag of thy Union remains. GOD'S OMNIPOTENCE. Almighty Power ! whose vast abode Declares the glory of a God ! Thy space is far beyond the road. Where stars obey their Maker's nod. To Thee, while the archangels sing. Behind their wings their faces veil ; And countless hosts their homage bring, As they around thy banner sail. Thy name is floating on the breeze, — All heaven obey thy dread command ; From stars above, to earth and seas. All things are subject to thy hand. When man had lost his smiling God, Was by his wrath from Eden driven ' No mortal arm could stay his rod. And bring lost sinners back to heaven. What can this earth and ashes do ? We would this mighty King adore ! From courts above his mercy flew, And on us did salvation pour. rice's poetry. 886 Great God I the earth has heard thy fame And worms profess thy worthy praise ; But the vast glories of thy name, Unnumbered millions fail to raise. THE EXCELLENCE OF CHRIST. could I all the glories tell, Of Him who saved my soul from hell When on the cross he died ! I'd soar and touch the sacred lyre, With angels praise my worthySire, My God, the Crucified. I'd sing the blood he spilt for me, My ransom made upon the tree, To save from wrath divine ! I'd sing the treasures of his grace, And view with joy his smiling face In matchless glory shine. I'd sing the excellence he bears, - The beauty of that crown he wears While seated on his throne ! Lit up by Heaven's brightest rays, With seraphs I would join to praise, And make his virtue known. Soon I shall heave my final sigh, Then shining cherubs from on high Will bear me home to rest ! There with my Savior, Brother, Friend, I'll sing that song which ne'er shall end, " Redemption," with the blest. THE JUDGE ON HIS THRONE. Behold he comes I the Judge severe ! His final trumpet shakes the ground ' 33 386 rice's poetry. The graves expand, — the dead appear, His judgment seat assemble round. Descending in his rapid car, All nations press his shining throne ! His voice shall ev'ry grave unbar. And ev'ry tongue his name shall own. Hark ! hark ! I hear the angel choir, Escort the flaming Son of God ! His piercing eyes, and burning ire, Declare the vengeance of his rod. In endless death his thunders roar ! They pierce the guilty sinner's ear ! Make hell's dark waves to lash the shore, And all its victims quake with fear. But saints redeemed shall shout his praise. Their anthems echo through the skies ! They on his face shall ever gaze. As they to golden mansions rise. Let us this awful Judge adore, Whose arm alone the lost can save ! That when his flaming wrath shall pour. Our souls may flee the spirit's grave. THE ROCK CHRIST JESUS. Lord, why do I forget Thy pard'ning love to me ? The nail, the spear, the sweat, Thy last sad agony ? Though Jesus died to save, I am a captive led ! Lord, calm the pond'rous wave, That beats around my head. When grief weighs down my heart, And cares, or fears distress. rice's poetry. Mf Jesus thy grace impart, For thou alone canst bless ! ! lead me to the Rock, That Rock once cleft for me, Which saves thy chosen flock Above life's raging sea. Free from the v^orld's vain care, I would forever rest, And with my Savior share The comforts of his breast. My Jesus thou art mine, My faith has brought thee near ; 1 feel thy love divine, Dispel my raging fear. THE TIME OF DEATH. Flow'rs have their time to fall, And leaves to fade by Autumn's freezing breath, And Sun to set — but all Seasons are thine, thou mighty victor Death ! The feast foretells its hour. Its time of mirth — its gaiety, and wine ; But soon shall come thy pow'r Death ! and claim all earth-born glory thine. The day is made of care. The eve for social converse round the hearth, The night for rest, and pray'r ; But all time is thine, — thou might'est of earth. Youth like the blooming rose May seem to be too brilliant for decay ; — But thou art none of those That wait meridian bloom, to seize their prey. We know when ships shall start. When summer birds shall cross the raging sea, 888 rice's poetry. When fields shall food impart ; But who can tell the hour to look for thee ? Is it when Spring appears To tell us where the breaking rose-buds lie ? Or when the lilly sears ? One time they have — all times are ours to die. Thou art where foe meets foe, Where cannon thunder on the battle field, Where streams of life-blood flow ; — There, hostile victims to thy sceptre yield. Thou art where surges foam, Where music melts upon the ravished ear ! Thou art where strangers roam, And beasts of prey inspire their hearts with fear. Thou art where friend meets friend, Where lovers hail each others fond embrace ; Thou art where lightnings rend. Where ev'ry ill destroys the human race. Flow'rs have their time to fall, And leaves to fade by Autumn's freezing breath, And Sun to set — but all Seasons are thine, thou mighty victor Death ! BROTHERLY LOVE. My Lord, 'tis beautiful to see Those friendly brethren all unite, Their cheerful hearts in love agree. While angels view the joyful sight. They drink the bliss of Mercy's spring, AVhich flows to ev'ry waiting soul. And on hope's bright enchanting wing, They feel the living waters roll. 'Tis like the oil of odor sweet, That run down Aaron's hoary head ; rice's poetrt. 88®^ The falling drops perfumed his feet, And on his raiment virtue spread. Tis pleasant as the shining dew, That falls upon mount Zion's hill, To see God's people all pursue The road that meets his holy will. The world may rage in all their spite, Yet God's dear children should agree ; Should in the bonds of faith unite, 'Till from their mortal prisons free. And when life's fleeting scenes are o'er. And earthly glory droops to die, God's saints shall claim fair Eden's shore, And bask where golden cherubs fly. PRAISE FOR REDEMPTION. Let biased heathen chime their songs In honor to some fictions God ; But to the Lord my praise belongs, AVho has the bloody winepress trod. Lo, the Redeemer bleeds and dies To save a world from gaping hell ! From Joseph's tomb I see him rise, That man may with his angels dwell. While God's eternal justice rose, To drive a world to endless pain ! The Father's Son did interpose, And was for rebel sinners slain. 0, what hast thou my Savior done ? To thee shall lasting honors rise ! Thy arm has free salvation won. And made man welcome to the skies. Thy glory on the morning's wing. Shall take its flight creation round ; '33 S90 rice's poetry. And all the hosts above shall sing, " Redemption for lost man is found." Hail Holy Light ! immortal Beam ! The Father's co-eternal Son ! No blood but thine could man redeem, And teach him hell's deep gulf to shun. THE BRIDE'S MISERY. Come all young maidens wherever you be, Give ear to my story while you are free ; Reflect on these lines in friendship you hear. And beware to count a single life dear. Behold the maid who in marriage is bound, In mourning she wails the loss she has found, For want of joy she expected to gain, Deep sorrows are flowing in misery's train. *' Had I all the wealth the Indies possessed, I'd freely give all to find former rest ; But now I am fettered in pain and despair, — Beware, blooming girls, of marriage beware. I once could appear in finest array. Could go when I pleased, and when I pleased stay- But now my babes are in poverty clad. Which pierces my heart, and makes me look sad." What fraud is in man ! no pen can impart The guilt and deceit inspiring his heart ! His form is noble before he is wed. But soon his beauty and friendship are fled. The cares of his life depress him with grief, 'J'he wants of his children cry out for relief. Their food and raiment must ever be found. While blood in the channels of life moves around. rice's poetry. 891 " The man who promised with kindness to treat His Bride, while on earth permitted to meet, Has proved himself false, unkind and untrue, Has lost his friendship, and bid me adieu. " Before nuptial ties I thought he was kind, But I must confess I truly was blind ; He has chosen his cups, to his drunkenness gone, And I and my children must suffer forlorn. " Too late do I mourn, too late do I weep. Too late I withhold my wet eyes from sleep I Farewell earthly joys, I'm ever to sigh ! To mourn and to suffer, to weep and to die. " No hope is for me except in free grace, That beams on my spirit through Jesus' face ; Then wake, my soul ! from hopeless despair, And grasp the free treasures in Heaven to share." THE NEAV JERUSALEM. Jerusalem, my blest abode. When shall I rest in thee ; Leave all my pain and sin below, And God my Savior see. Thy walks are decked with living gems. Thy streets are made of gold. The grandeur of thy pearly gates No tongue has ever told. The glory of thy pleasant walks Inspire my holy theme ; By faith I view thy sacred courts In richest treasures beam. No freezing winds, or noxious breath, Shall spread contagion there ; But ev'ry saint in raiment white Shall full Redemption share. S92 rice's poetry. If Heav'n be such a glor'ous place, Why should I longer stay lu this dark vale of tears and death, And fear to launch away ? Reach down, Lord, thy saving arm, And bear me home to rest, To share the riches of thy grace Forever with the blest. JESUS DIED FOR ME. Jesus, the Savior of mankind, Hung bleeding on the tree ! How vast that love his soul inclined, To give his life for me. Behold, the God of nature dies. While earth's strong pillars shake ! A solemn darkness veils the skies, The rocks in sunder break ! " 'Tis done," he paid the ransom down, When he in death's embrace Expired that I might wear a crown, And greet his smiling face. Behold, he rises from the tomb ! He breaks the tyrant's chain ! And stamps upon the grave her doom By his triumphant reign. It was my sins that drove the nail ! That pierced his sacred side ! That caused his tears, and dying wail, When he was crucified. Let rocks and hills his love proclaim ! Let saints and angels tell The glory of their God, who came To conquer death and hell. rtoe's poetry. 393 PEACE OF CONSCIENCE IN AFFLICTION. My God, how happy and secure Are they who feel their sins forgiven ! While they the ills of life endure, They find their anchor cast in Heaven. Their day of life while passing by, Is mingled with the Savior's love ; And as they journey for the sky, Their souls are harmless as the dove. How oft they view supernal hills. Where streams from living fountains flow ; And as they drink those slaking rills. They gladly would to Jesus go. They scorn the fading joys of earth, Which vanish like the morning rose ; But claim by grace a higher birth, And on the truth of God repose. When cares of life and want distress, And scoffers lift their raging voice, The Gospel truth their souls shall bless, And make them in their God rejoice. ON THE DEATH OF GEN. ZACHARY TAYLOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. A deep-toned wail floats on the breeze ; Its scalding tears a Nation showers ! A dirge is rushing o'er the seas, From frozen zones to zones of flowers ; From evergreens of mountain Maine, To California's golden sands. And deep Atlantic's foaming plain. To broad Pacific's desert strands. That Star which decked our brilliant sky, And shone in full-orbed glory there ! 394 rice's poetry. That key-stone of our temple high, Though firmly bound, lies in despair ! With drooping plume, and falling spear Our country weeps her richest blood ! For he who fills that hero's bier Has sunk beneath deep Jordan's flood. The death-flag streams in sable gloom I Low in the grave our patriot lies ! Weep ! Nation, weep around his tomb ! For death has claimed our highest prize ! The garland wreathed upon his head Is fanned with zephyrs wet with tears ; For this, he bands of warr'ors led, And braved his foes uplifted spears. Hark ! hark ! the wailing dies away ! " Our wounded hearts again are healed ; All darkness is exchanged for day. And prior glory takes the field ! A star may lose its brilliant sphere, Yet thousands more shall deck the sky ; It only drops its lustre here To shine in brighter worlds on high. ORATION IX. MESSIAH'S KINGDOM. An Exit uot from the Works o{ Nature, "God manifest in the Flesh/' and the Wisdom of Men. God, in his majesty, stretched forth his arm and made the world, the air, the water, and dry land. All things created sprang from his omnific word. He made the sun a light by day, the moon by night, and stars that glitter in their sockets like sparkling gems of silver. He made the herb of the field, and every green thing; the river and ocean, the hill and dale, the feathered songsters to chant his praise, and the countless millions of finny tribes, which tell as livitig witnesses of his creative power, and dumbly set forth the glory of his omnipotence. After which, God created man in his own image; pronounced his benediction upon him; made him ruler over fish, fowl, beast and bird, and every living thing that creepeth, or on the earth doth move. Now God created man, male and female; prepared an Eden for their souls' delight; commissioned them to eat of all the fruit of the garden, except the forbidden "tree of good and evil," on which was stamped the penalty of death. But how short their glory ! How soon the death-knell tolled their sad mortality, and sapient angels dropped their silent tears, put on their robes of mourning, and stood confounded at the strange imbecility of man. The Prince of Darkness, foe to all goodness, beguiled the woman; *'she plucked, she ate;" at that moment the loud acclamations of hell were heard through its black domains, while heaven let fall a tear. The woman beguiled the man; he also partook of the forbidden tree, thereby incurred the curse of God's 396 rice's oration interdiction, drove back the chariot of his Father's love, and bound himself and his offspring in the dark dominions of death and hell. In that dread moment all was lost ! Earth felt her chains, heaved to her centre, and in pangs expired. Man, in his dread dilemma, cursed of his God, and driven from the garden by the avenging sword guarding the forbidden tree, becomes a sad vagrant in his ruined Btate, sees no star to illume his darkness, no aid to cheer his fallen soul. The curse of a broken law remains upon him; "he is covered with wounds and bruises," and the fires of Mount Sinai make his soul to quake with fear. He looks back, and his load of guilt over- shadows him ; before him is death temporal and eternal, and no created arm can save him from the fall. He has lost his Eden, the favor of his Lord, and must swell the sad dirge of his temporal and eternal pain. God I Is this man's doom by heaven's divine decree? But, lo! I hear the ministration of the angel band. The morning stars begin their song of deliverance, and bring hope to man. The sapient conclave of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, have found a scheme for a lost world's redemption, and the sweet harbingers of heaven begin to proclaim their anthems of deliverance from the tops of the holy mountains: "The seed of the woman sliall bruise the serpent's head;" "Jehovah shall be clothed incarnate;" "God shall be manifest in the flesh, seen of angels, believed on by the world, and re-ascend into glory; shall tread the w^ine-press alone, dip his vesture in his own blood, be buffeted in the streets of the Jews, and bear the cross up Mount Calvary." And all this for who? For the vile offender, the miscreant aiiainst God's law, for all Adam's lost sons and daughters. Wonder, heavens I and be astonished, earth! at I his boundless love of God to man. No blood of beasts, or sprinkling priest, can make reconciliation between Jehovah and a lost world. No- thing, but God the Son, clothed in his humanity, can make an atonement for the sinner's soul, save him from ON Messiah's kingdom. 397 impending wrath, and restore him to his lost Eden. Therefore, the second person in the Trinity leaves the abode of the heavenly hosts, casts off his diadem, fulfills the prophecy, is born in a stable and cradled in a manger; the son of Mary, and Son of God. This is the love of Jesus for us, the hope of our redemption. Wonder, my soul I for the Lord has promised to ransom mankind, when he shall give up his life on Culvary. We now approach the scene of a Savior's sufferings to restore a lost world. See him across the Kidron stream, forsaken by his disciples, his Father's counte- nance withdrawn, divinity receding from suffering humanity, in the dire scene of unparalleled agony, when God's wrath, for sin, fell on the shoulders of our surety, our only hope. Here, in his midnight conflict with heaven, earth and hell, "it pleased Jehovah to bruise him." "God spared not his own Son." " The chas- tisement of our peace was upon him." "By his stripes we are healed." Three times, in Gethsemane, shrinking humanity deprecated the cup. Three times he pros- trated himself in prayer to his Father ; and three times he arose in the conflict, resolved to reach the goal of his sufferings. God I what power stayed thy arm in thy Son's mortal agony I To describe the scene, the utmost powers of conception fail. We but approach the verge of the tragedy. What pen can tell the anguish of his heart, or exhibit its bruised emotions? The alternative was before him. If he failed to die, his Father, of Adam's progeny, would feed the flames of hell ! Millions upon millions must tread the road to perdition, and the blighting curse of God, unreconciled, set in upon them forever! Satan would shout in victory, and boast in his bound confed- erates! Heaven would be lost, and the prospective thrones of eternity exchanged for chains of perdition. The untrodden wine-press was before him ! The hour of almighty conflict had arrived ! The devotees of sin were about him, and heaven's squadrons above, but 84 398 rice's oration. none to help. Therefore, by his own might, he drank the cup alone, mingled with dregs of death and hell I The design of the Savior's sufferings connects itself with the history of his propitiation. The effect, the end, explain the cause producing the result. The circumstances attending his death prove it the most momentous event that ever occurred in the liistory of man. Prophets, apostles, heroes, and maityi's have been burned, banished, stoned, and sawed asunder; myriads have died in battle; pestilence, witli putrefac- tive breath, has inspired the lungs of pallid millions; thrones, in a niglit, have been destroyed; but no event on the records of history has been so attested by nature and nature's God, as the death of Christ. This proves the dignity of the sufferer, and the divine grandeur of the sacrifice. Sis days before his death, he makes it known to his disciples ! He announces his resurrection ! after which, he agrees to meet his brethren in a mountain of Galilee. He is arrested and brought before Annas, Caiaphas. Hero], and Pilate; proved guilty by false witnesses, and sentenced to an execution, more infamous and painftd in its nature, than any in the code of nations. In the hall he is scourged, buffeted, and spit upon, | mocked, crowned with thorns, and sceptred with a reed. From the pavement of Pilate, he bears his cross through the streets of the Jews. He faints under his load, "and they compel a Cyrenian to bear the cross" up the hill "with Jesus." Thus he was sentenced by man, and by him crucified and slain. Here we pause. Was the compulsion ever regretted by the Cyrenian in bearing the cross? and did the daughter of Paganism, the wife of Pilate, lament that she sought the salvation of Jesus, in urging her husband j to have nothing to do "with that just person?" And | when she died, was her plea for the God-man left unre- warded ? But he heeds not her prayer. The reprobate mob, and mass of Jewish -spectators shout, "his blood be on us, and on our children;" invoking his curse by ON Messiah's kingdom. 399 the foulest envy. God ! in what woe shall the future tell the consummation of their chosen anathema! what numbers measure their guilt! what pencil paint their doom. Again we pause, and view another shade in the pic- ture. A few Christian daughters gaze on their Master, and bewail his anguish. Thank God, this little band could not riot in his torture. Jesus, ever mindful of goodness, with eyes sinking in death, cast a look of godlike philanthropy, and exclaimed, "Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but for yourselves, and for your children." This city, in which I am judged unfit to live or die, before this generation pass, shall be drenched in blood ! Before two years expire, Caiaphas, the stern bigot, shall wind up his career in suicide and death ! In the mean time, the treacherous Pilate, in the same manner, shall die by his own hands ! Soon, Herod, in his malice, shall be smitten of God, and eaten up of worms! The land of Judea shall be without altar, or temple, and even the Holy of Holies shall fall beneath the Roman's spear! The Sanhedrim, with the multitude of Jews, who raised their voices from a thousand quarters with the cry of crucifixion, shall be crucified, until there shall not be room in the suburbs of Jerusalem to build their crosses; for the vengeance of Rome shall be glutted by every where exhibiting to the lost Jew a surrounding horizon of crucified sufferers. My G'.^'d ! save us from the curse of this unparalleled doom ! For this Deicide, this crime uncqualed in the history of worlds, the Jews, branded and scorned, shall be scattered in every quarter of the globe, without syna- gogue or temple, while millions shall perish in their contest with the Gentiles. For this crime, the unerring prophecy has fallen upon them like thunder-bolts from heaven. More than a million and a half foil in the Roman conflict; and, without glancing at the future, near two thousand years have swept in darkness over their desolate pomp and curse-bowed grandeur. No 400 rice's oration longer beloved of God, deistical in faith, they roam without shrine or priest. The four quarters of the globe confirm their dispersion, and seal their infamy. The page of history is stained with their blood, and the winds of heaven bear to insulted majesty the story of their wrongs, and record of their sighs ! We now approach the final sufferings of the Son of Grod ! We stand at the base of Calvary ! The clam- orous multitude surround the cross, that their eyes may drink the blood, and their ears the last groans of mur- dered innocence! The cross is now prepared! The suffering victim is stretched upon it ! His hands and feet receive their position ! and the stern executioner, with his ponderous hammer and rugged spikes, is in haste to give the blow, that nails to the fatal wood the sacred humanity of the Son of God! The cross is reared, and by a fearful concussion it enters the mortised rock. God ! what an appeal this distension must have been to the sufl'ering Redeemer, tearing the nerves, muscles, and tendons of his hands and feet, and sending sick convulsions to his heart. Well might the prophet exclaim of his suff'erings, ''no man hath sorrows like unto my sorrows." In tliis deed of more than hellish venture, the ruth- less soldiery, and heartless mob, led by the chief priests, scribes, and elders, all united ; even one of the thieves, suspended his death-sobs to revile him, while the shout- ings and rejoicings of hell's votaries shook the base of the mountain : " If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross, and we will believe." Eternal justice, where was thy wrath? Angel of God, where slept thy sword, and by what arm restrained? But we live again when we reflect, on that engine of death bleeds a Victim, whose ransom shall tell on the world's destiny through the ages of time, and be a ral- lying point of interest among all the worlds of God. Though the multitude about him now conspire to bow the knee in mock prostration, and invite him down from »he cross, "he saved others, let him save himself.'" ON Messiah's kingdom. 401 here hangs the christian's hope, bequeathed by the life-Dlood of the Man of Calvary. But the scene changes. Jesus discharges the duties of a son to her, who was identified with him in the scenes of Bethlehem, and story of the manger. He prays for his murdeirers, and cries with a loud voice, "My God! my God! why hast thou forsaken me?" That these Pagans and Jews forsake me is not so strange ; that men should withdraw their aid, and angels refuse to minister, is what I expected. A faithless world and frowning skies I can endure; but, "my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ! " When did I refuse to force thy claims, and sustain thy rights? When did I fail to publish thy name and relieve the hopeless sufferer? When did the poor, the needy, the halt, and blind, ask of me and did not receive? When did the heart-broken father, the weeping mother, and orphan sisters ask me back their dead, and I did not relume the sightless eye, and pulse the lifeless heart? And is this my recompense ? Must I not only bear the malice of the mob, fury of fiends, desertion of the world, and murmurings of the heavens above, but also have mingled in this dreadful cup the hidings of my Father's face? "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me! " Now, when his suffering humanity had uttered its last complaint, and was about to receive its final shock; when Heaven and earth conspired to recede from the poor sufferer ; when the divine intercourse was checked, and paternal presence withdrawn ; when alone, without friend or assistance, he had to contend with the con- flicting and scourging elements of the universe ; at this strange phenomenon, nature could no longer endure the dread sufferings of her Creator: she vibrated with conscious horror through all her dominions. The sun, shrouded in darkness, rolled back his chariot from the cursed abode of man ; refused to see the Son of Eight- eousness, from whom he had received his beams, sinking beneath a horizon of darkness, blood, and death ! The •34 402 rice's oration rocks rent, earth shook, and trembling mountains pro-- longed the terror of the scene ; men scoffed, hell howled, and heaven let fall a tear. Death heard the cry of the world's redemption in his dark dominions, forgot his prey, let fall the chains which bound his prisoners ; they started into life, while revengeful creation, mantled with, sackcloth, "hung the heavens with the habiliments of mourning! " And all this for man, for you and me. The human soul was at stake, and by such an altar and such a sac- rifice, it is proved to be of more value than the whole amplitude of insentient worlds. That, upon which Heaven has embarked so godlike an expenditure of effort, must possess the true value of the immortal soul ! But, the tragical scene is over ; the Almighty's wrath seems subsided ; nature has put off her garb of mourn- ing; the sun gilds the world in prior glory; the moon ascends her pathway of stars ; the mountains cease to tremble on their deep foundations ; mossy graves retain their remaining dead ; and creation seems to rest over the Savior's tragedy. His disciples have now lost their Master, and become the scoff of Jewish murderers. Death, with hands dyed in Heaven's blood, now sways his sceptre over the grave of Jesus, and holds the chains, that bind in the tomb, the humanity of the Son of God' Hell exclaims, in a shout of triumph with her countless millions through all the deep caverns of the damned, "the Prince of Life is slain," while earth's demons conspire in the loud acclamation of "Amen." The Savior is yet nailed to the cursed wood I His head is bowed in the still slumbers of death ! His eyes, once sparkling with life, now sleep in silence ! His face, without spot or wrinkle, is cold and lifeless I His feet, that bore salvation, have lost their motion; and his beneficent hands, that relieved suffering humanity, are dead in crucifixion. He now remains a spectacle to angels and men, cold and lifeless on the bloody cross! But a friend now approaches the body of Jesus. ON MESSIAH'S KINGDOM. 403 Joseph of Arimathea, takes him down from the cross, embalms him in spices, and lays him in his own sepul- chre, hewn out of a rock. His grave is sealed by Jewish priests, and secured by Roman soldiers. He lies "numbered with transgressors," the pale and pulse- less corpse of Joseph's tomb I What a spectacle was exhibited in this memorable sepulchre. He, who clothed himself with light, and rode in his chariot, borne on the breezes of heaven, was pleased to put on the habiliments of mortality, and press the tomb of the prostrate dead. Who can repeat this truth too often ? Who can dwell on this theme too long ? He, who sustains the thrones of glory, and gives light to the heavenly host, is now a pale corpse, and chained by the Prince of Darkness. But his Divinity only slumbers to prove the claims of his humanity, when he shall tread upon the neck of his last enemy, and raise the banner of the cross over the combined powers of death and hell : then shall his ruthless foes be put to flight, and the song of free grace, by the blood of Jesus, shall redeem the world. In this, the hour of'thy triumph, death! never did thy dark realm contain such a prisoner before. Prisoner did I say? No, he was more than conqueror! He arose from his icy bed more mightily than Samson from a transient slumber; broke down the iron bars of death, and razed the strong holds of its dark dominions. And this, mortals ! is our security, our only consolation. Jesus has trod the rugged pathway, and smoothed it for our passport. Jesus, sleeping in the tomb, has bright- ened the mansion, and left an odor in those beds of dust. The dying Jesus is our sure protection and guide through the territories of the grave. If we believe in him, he will transmit us to heaven when we pass under the curtain of our dissolution ; for his voice has declared, "whosoever believeth in me, shall never die." Our exit will terminate our sufferings, and our final groan be our admission to everlasting joy; "for, if Christ be risen, then shall we also be raised." "Now is he risen 404 rice's oration from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept." So, ill Christ's resurrection, is the consumma- tion of man's redemption. Our lost hope in Christ's death, revives in his victory over the tomb. We turn from the dark picture, the garden, cross and grave, to gaze on the renewed splen- dor of the Prince of Life. When the dawn of the morning broke on the night-watch of the disciples, they felt the whole heaven of their hopes was lost, and the sepulchre of their Master was the grave of immortality. But soon they saw the banner of life waving above the citadel of death, when their Jesus triumphed over his last great enemy. Then our nature took wing, and mounted with him from the tomb. Our faith revives in the retrospect, and the future is full of hope before us. When the "great Captain of our salvation" had met and satisfied the last demands of justice; had entered, as our surety, the dark dominions of the dead ; had ren- dered grateful the retreat of the tomb ; had perfumed the grave for the believer, and planted the flower of Heaven's eternal spring in the moss of the dark sepul- chre: then, then he rose in grandeur over death's proudest hopes, and in godlike triumph, dragged to his ascending car the captivity of a dying world ! But we turn to another shade in the picture : and we here notice, that the types, shadows, and predictions of the Jewish dispensation, were set forth to show the sufferings, death, and resurrection of the Savior: and now being fulfilled by his victory over the grave, prove, beyond contradiction, that God directed the prophecy. When the victim flamed on the altar, it prefigured the offering of Calvary. When Moses lifted up the serpent, he represented Jesus on the cross. When the prophet smote the rock, it was typical of Christ. When the goat was made an expiatory sacrifice for the congrega- tion, it was done to symbolize him, who "bore our sins upon the tree;" the atoning " Lamb of Grod, that taketh away the sins of the world." If the paschal blood stayed the drawn sword of the destroying angel, how ON MESSIAH'S KINGDOM. 405 much more snail the blood of Christ "our passover slain for us?" We see prophecy held the same language, and tra- vailed on the same immortal theme. This was the spring of the prophets' action, the goal of their hope, and recompense of their desire. In their describing the great sacrifice of the new dispensation, every word broke with the burden of a special revelation. In whatever course inspiration threw their vision, they saw the cross, in triumph, rising upon the broad horizon of humanity, dissipating the gloom of surrounding millions, and lighting up with splendor, the baneful valley of the shadow of death. In this light our Savior regarded his advent and crucifixion. It was this sustained him. Look at his patience and resolution mid the insults of his foes, and tears of his friends. Even when the former did shout for his execution, and cried, "not this man, but Barab- bas;" and his loved ones, despair-stricken, shed tears of immortal disappointment, with godlike firmness he braved the fury, for he had before him the prospect of his passion. He beheld the period, when all nations shall load the altar of his crucifixion with the incense of piety, and celebrate the grandeur of his mission, and his death ! Having .noticed man's creation and fall ; the suffer- ings, death, and resurrection of "God manifest in the flesh;" I shall now contemplate his own Divinity, God- head, and reign, by referring to the declarations of inspired prophets and apostles as positive testimony. To be able to confide in the high commission of the Son of God in the uplifting our fallen nature to the fellowship of divine, we must reason on the subject, regarding him as the self-existing Almighty, Creator and Ruler of all; the Sustainer of Heaven's rights, and at the same time retrieving the guilt of mankind : and to prove Messiah's claims, we must notice him as do the scriptures, in his pre-existing, viilitant, and, glorified 406 states. In doing this, the New Testament must furnish a key to unlock the Old. Without preface, or anticipated contradiction, these holy expositions tell us that "he came down from heaven;" that he is "God over all;" "God manifest in the flesh;" that "he was before Abraham;" had "glory with the Father before the world began;" that "he was sent," "was given," "was made flesh," was "Alpha and Omega," "the first and last;" "was, and is, and is to come;" "the Prince of Life;" "the Loid of glory;" "all things were made by him," and "by him all things exist." Thus, the pre-existence of Jesus Christ is every where exprcssl}'^ assumed in the New Testament; therefore, we cannot fail to give it due prominence, for this is our safety ; all is sea beside. To the same eftect of the New, is the language of the Old Testament. Here he is the expressed God of uni- versal dominion. In Genesis, as " the seed of the woman," he should obtain victory over the powers of darkness. As the "seed of Abraham," he was to invest himself with glory in the gate of his enemy. He is Job's "redeeming" God. David calls him "Jehovah," the "King of Sion," and his throne "eternal." Agur styles him "God's Son." Isaiah proclaims him the "mighty God, and everlasting Father;" "Immanuel, God with us;" the "God of hosts, and only Savior." Daniel declares his "kingdom without end." Joel gives him the name of "Jehovah;" and in Malachi he is called "the Lord God of hosts." Here we have a cloud of witnesses, all conspiring in the suprenje glory and infinite power of God's Messiah. In his militant state on earth, he gave evidence that he was "God manifest in the flesh." At his baptism on the banks of Jordan, the powers of the world to come vouched to the Divinity of his mission ! In the Mount of Temptation, he foiled the sagacity of hell by the defeat of her sovereign ! In Cana of Galilee, the elements obeyed his creative mandate, while water, casting off" the law of its nature, blushed to wine ! On ON Messiah's kingdom. 407 the shore of the Lake Genesareth, "the mother of Peter's wife" was taught that disease and death obey his voice I The stormy sea of Galilee, the surging roll of the agitated Tiberias, felt his presence ; and the one was still, while the other became as adamant under his feet! In the forest of Bethesda, more than twenty thousand heard his voice, and hung on his lips in breath- less expectation, while beholding the supernatural mul- tiplication of bread and fish in the hands and mouth of the eater. By the wayside, a beggar, in rags and mis- ery, directs his sightless balls to the way his Lord was passing; stretched his palsied hands, and feeling for information, he cries, "Jesus, thou son of Dcivid, have mercy on me;" and straightway he chides the curse of nature, by throwing the light of heaven on the opening eyes of the blind-born gazer ! A female invalid "troubled him in the crowd," and restoring virtue ran through all her frame in the contact ! His rebuke drove life from the fig tree, and anon it withered away ! He said to the damsel, ''Talitha cumi^''^ and death fled from her bier! He cried, "Lazarus, come forth," and his putrefaction began to tremble with the vital spark, and his pulse of life to beat in the tomb ! He commanded demons to "depart," and they fled to rejoin the damned! Confession, from lips of devils, declared him to be the holy one of God ! The eff'ul- gence of his Deity shone on the Mount of Transfigura- tion ! In the procession that attended him through the cantons of Jewry, those who had never seen, "opened their eyes;" and the first object they saw, was him who gave thei\:i sight. None but Jehovah could release the woes of suflFering humanity, and burst the chains of the death-bound prisoner, as did Jesus, when he took upon him our nature, and dwelt among the sons of men. Behold him entering Jerusalem ! His disciples shouted him as their God and Kedeemer. The throng of spectators rent the skies with their loud acclamations, " Hosanna in the highest." The streets of the Jews, and the bendin"; heavens, resounded with the shouts of 408 rice's oration the multitude; and had they been silent, the stones beneath their feet would have cried in honor to his grandeur ! Again we look at the closing scene of his eventful life. He met death upon the cross, with no aid from earth, save the tears of his friends, amid the scoff of thousands I and yet there was no defeat in his death. The scenes of the crucifixion confirmed his godhead, and threw "the gazer on his knee." The terrific dra- pery, which, in that dread hour, was thrown around the theatre of nature, proclaimed his dignity, and the god- like glory of his sacrifice. The glorified state of the Messiah, which commenced at his resurrection, and was confirmed by his ascension and the descent of the Holy Spirit, includes the range of liis administration. His resurrection sealed the Divinity of his mission, when he led captivity captive; spoiled principalities and powers, and fastened to his chariot wheels the conquered millions of death and hell. And when he ascended in his glory through the bound- less concave of the heavens, had earth possessed angelic ears, slie might have heard his princely heralds surprise the waiting throngs of eternity with the voice of thun- der, "Lift up your heads, ye everlasting gates, and let the King of Glory in." Earth might have asked, in the language of prophecy, " Who is the King of Glory?" and heaven have replied, earth has crucified him; " the Lord of Hosts, he is the King of Glory ! " Such was the triumph of the Son of God ! Thus, in his pre-existent, militant and glorified states, the Godhead belongs to the Messiah, and all the works of Deity are ascribed to him. He was the appearing Jehovah of the world in the days of Noah ; the uncre- ated acting angel in the Jewish ages; the resident God of the temple, and Supreme Head of the Christian church ; reigning and controlling the interest and desti- nies of the universe, with a sway steady as the flow of time, and lasting as the years of eternity ! We now consider his humiliation. He was Lord of ON Messiah's kingdom. 409 pavid, yet he became his afflicted " Son." The "root " became the offspring of David, and '* the eternal Father the Son given." Temptation and sufferings are the great sources of human misery ; and to these our Lord was subject during his ministry on earth. As our Re- deemer, he humbled himself; as our God, he b iist the bands of the sepulchre, and assumed the glory he possessed "before the world was." Infinite was his humiliation in becoming man, yet greater still in dying for man. But in yielding to a death so painful and ignominious as that of the cross, the wonder is magni- fied, and as we pause on its horizon, we only repeat, "he humbled himself." Almighty condescension could stoop no lower. This is the mystery of our faith. The law of heaven seems inverted. The God of angels was comforted in Gethsemane by an angel of God. The Judsre of the Universe was arraigned before the bar of Pilate, and compelled to bear the engine of his own death to the place of execution. He, who had received the homage of heaven from everlasting, had his spotless cheek pol- luted by the lips of hell; those lips that sold him, and sealed the compact of his death ! Those hands that bwilt the arches of the heavens, and flung through immensity its wilderness of suns ; and those feet that trod the sapphire plains of the celestial world, and had the earth a footstool, were spiked in agony to the cursed wood ! His brow, that from eternity shone with immor- tal majesty, was pierced with a diadem of thorns! He, who led the choir of angels, and tuned their golden harps, was crucified between two thieves! He, who supplies your springs, swells your rivers, and bowls the immeasurable ocean, said, "I thirst," and "they gave him gall to drink!" What a boundless surrender of claim ! He was born in a stable ; was driven by Herod into Egypt; was obscurely educated in Galilee; was tempted by the devil ; was derided by his kindred ; was traduced by the Jews, persecuted by the priesthood, betrayed by 35 410 rice's oration his disciples, and crucified by the world ! Here is the climax of his glory and humiliation. God of eternity, teach us the import of this trans-human mystery, and in our conscious being, penetrate the springs of devout emotion ! In his passion, he drank deep of the cup of sorrow before his exaltation to the throne of hisDivinity. His ij soul seemed to be engaged in tlie displeasure ot lieaven. Whatever confidence he had in God the Father, it is evident he labored under a suspension of heavenly com- j fort. The passion was a severe trial of the natural affections and moral virtues of our Lord, together with a fearful amount of penal sufTt^ring. It was the hour and power of darkness, arrived in the plenitude of their gloom and last visitation. ;! During the final enjiagemont, the scales of God's i justice seemed to tremble with a fearful equipoise. It was an eventful crisis, because the war comprised infi- } nite elements. The hero of the struggle entered into ji the breach of a world cursed of God, and the strife of ' contending destinies shook the pillars on which its am- ' plitude was poised. Universal nature sympathized with theSuif rer, and her avenging administrations rebuked | the apathy of earth, as tlie rocks and mountains con- | spiring with the mourning heavens, broke their eternal silence to vindicate his claims. I shall now contemplate Messiah's reign. His scep- tre comprehends 'all power in heaven and inearth;" and his administration is universal. He has a two-fold claim upon the children of the world ; he made us, and afterwards redeemed us. As "God over all," his right to rule is inherent in his nature ; and he also possesses the same right to his Messiahship by his "obedience unto death ;" for which cause he stands as mediator between heaven and earth, administering mercy and justice to the children of men. The constitution of hU kingdom was chartered and confirmed before its actual existence over the face of our world. It was the covenant of redemi-lion first jjublished ON MESSIAH'S KINGDOM. 411 in Paradise ; enlarged upon by Abraham ; further un- folded at Sion; announced by prophets, and finally consummated by the advent of the Messiah. This covenant includes the true worshippers of all nations in every age of the world, whether before or since our Lord assumed his humanity. The Jew, the Gentile, the wide world with its teem- ing population, infernal agency and degeneracy of its nature, the pride of intellect and turbulence of passion, these are the enemies of Messiah's reign, and every fifty years of his administration, for nearly sixty centu- ries, has consigned to heaven or hell, from our world alone, some five hundred millions of immortal souls, to live and sing in the one, or sigh and wail in the other! He holds in his hand the weal and woe of his subjects; and from his throne of thrones, he will defend, main- tain, and extend his rights. His reign mingles joy and grief, and he imparts, by his mighty scale, his just ret- ribution for good and evil, as determined by the char- acter of his subjects. The reign of the Messiah spreads over the expanse of immensity, and comprehends the length and breadth of his empire. It goes back to the throne of Jehovah, when the "sons of God first shouted for joy," and em- braces every intelligence, form and grade of being; it stretches forward until we are lost in the infinities of the future, and only know that the crowned millions of the blest in the central abodes of Deity, find the glories of eternity magnified by " the Lamb being the light thereof/' The laws of this kingdom are those of the Gospel, and relate principally to the manifestations of the divine nature, the medium and method of acceptance with Heaven; and finally, the laws and rules of morality, which are the great principles in regulating the actions of mankind. To show the past, present, and future extent of this kingdom, we appeal to history, observation, and anal- ogy. And in appealing to history, we know not whero 412 to begin. Through all ages, what nation, not utterly savage, is not a debtor to the cause we plead ? Where is it, the lamp of his empire has not been seen penetra- ting the gloom of nature's night? Where is it, that light has not shone in darkness, and gilded the gloom of earth's horizon, to direct her aliens home to God? Where is it, that salvation's morning has not arisen upon the world, as it first broke upon the shepherds' ear, on the hills of Bethlehem ! Every brief term in the calendar of time is adding some new province to the dominions of the Son of God. Every rising sun that gilds the heavens, brings in some new trophy of his reign. At every short interval, the recording angel stamps on the ledger of immortality, that the Gospel has conquered another language of the bab- bling earth, and soon it shall pour its salutary streams of light and life through the channels of every dialect! East, West, North and South ; through all the zones of earth, the world's moral midnight is straggling for her coming dawn ! Every where, over the vast expanse of nations, light is flashing through the mind, giving direc- tion to the hopes, and shedding its lustre upon the path of humanity. The vast river of the water of life is rolling in heaven-born grandeur, and will soon flood the world in millennial glory, and bear on its bosom the emporium of God. The seed of the kingdom, already sown upon the tops of the mountains, shall yield its fruit in suc- ceeding ages, and wave like the cedars of Lebanon, bending by the winds of heaven. The foundation of the kingdom is already planted in the breasts of millions, and its heavenly breezes are every where inspiring the children of men, and will successively augment in its accunmlating triumphs, until "faith" shall become uni- versal, and the world restored to God. In this way, Christianity shall stain the pride of all human glory ; subdue the world with its vile elements, and on its grave raise the banner of Messiah's kingdom. The Prince of Darkness shall lose his reign on earth, ON MESSIAH'S KINGDOM. 413 and all men learn to do the will of God. The gilded curse of war shall receive its dishonor in the esteem of nations; and auspicious memory, instead of recounting the vain glory in the battles of slaughtered victims, shall consecrate its hallowed recollections to "peace on earth, and good will to men." The subjects of this kingdom are the servants of God, flourishing in the "beauties of holiness." They are free volunteers, ready to obey the commands of their Master, and are influenced by the life-giving doc- trines of the cross. In numbers, "they shall be as the stars of heaven, and sands upon the sea shore." Messiah, in his reign, not only saves his people, but destroys his enemies. Look at the past ages of the world's history, and see the Almighty breathing his just imprecations on the children of men. From his lips our first parents received the sentence of death. Because of unbelief, he destroyed the antediluvian world by the flood of his wrath. With fire and brim- stone he demolished the cities of the plain, while their devotees of Atheism suff'ocated in death. The ruins of Egypt, Tyre, Babylon, Nineveh, Jerusalem, and Rome remain, to this day, imperishable memorials of the vengeance of Heaven. Look at the Jews, cursed of God, and trodden beneath the insulting feet of an un- grateful world. Look at " the seven churches of Asia,'* and the cities in which they were found; see their noiseless streets, hymnless temples, and desolated altars. Look at Herod, Pilate, Julian, and many others who persecuted the church ; dark and ghastly are the recol- lections of their madness. Look at the insanity of infidelity in the God-reject- ing republic of France at the close of the last century. See that powerful, civilized, and lettered nation throw- ing the gauntlet of defiance at the foot of God's throne, and M^aving, as the flag of their national distinction, the standard of Atheism before his face! Look at their combined allies, shrewd, artful, and malignant, leagued in the shape of turbulent propagandists, for the exter- ^35 <14 rice's oration mination of all religion. Look at the prince, subaltern, gazetteer, philosopher, and demagogue, uniting in giving organic structure to impiety ; elevating unbelief to the dignity of science, and reducing blasphemy to a trade ! Of Jehovah's retribution, in the progress and sequel of this terrible crusade, we need not describe. The principal actors fell from their skeptic thrones, as if God had withered up their being. The minister of vengeance, with his accusing presence, seems to have blasted their gaze, and they perished before the rebuke of him, in whose eye empire is a speck, and man an atom! All this we have seen, and yet we fear the reckoning is but commenced, and that the future will exact a still more fearful atonement. All possible means of torture have been wielded to destroy Christianity. The axe, the cross, the stake, the fire, and amphitheatre, these only threw a resplen- dent halo of glory around the ascending martyr. The fadeless crowns of immortality cheered his vision, and bore him above the waves of Jordan. Every infernal project concerted to extinguish the hopes and being of the true church of Christ, only amplified the sphere, and augmented the number of her triumphs. Such has been the past history of Christendom; and prophecy foretells a corresponding train of events shall appear in the future. The Gospel is already published in more than two hundred languages of the vocal and reading earth. In' almost every nation of our globe, "the Son of Right- eousness is" beginning to shine "with healing in his wings." The sons and daughters of Paganism are emerging from darkness into light. The idolater of the Ganges, and the savage of the Pacific ; the Tungusian ranger of the torrid zone, and the shivering Icelander, amid his icebergs of eternal frost, have caught the radi- ance of redemption's star, and with tears of joy are pressing their way to the unfurled banner of Messiah's kingdom. The imposture of Mecca, whose baptism is blood ON Messiah's kinared. All nature has laws, by her Creator Made ; and justice demands obedience To her great Author's name. God has showed his Mercy in the' creation of man, — made him Spotless as the driven snow, — perfect in Holiness, — pure as the seraph, and a i.ittlc lower than the angels. He gave To liim volitions of his own, with pow'r To revere his Creator, and retain His purity ; or obey the tempter's Voice, — become defiled, and lose the favor Of his God. A law was put before him, xVnd for tlie disobed'ence of which, was The penalty of death. Soon the Serpent Beguiled the woman, " She plucked, she ate," — the Woman beguiled the man, — he also took Of the forbidden tree. Thus the holy Twain became defiled, — incurred God's wrath, and AVere from Eden driven. In that moment All was lost ! — earth felt the wound ! — groaned to her Centre ! Heaven let fall a tear ! while Hell Shouted in triumph through her dark domain. 0, my soul, what a fall was that ! which cursed With two-fold death every victim slain. Since man has trespassed on Jehovah's laws. And plucked the fruit his justice had forbid'n ; Has chosen death, — excluded mercy's voice. And surdv beneath the direful curse of Heav'n ; God's holy light has left his fallen soul, To range in darkness, and sadly plod its Way in sin's forbidden path, — laden with Guilt, sorrow, pain, and death. Ev'ry beating Pulse tells him of his fall. E Like flaming love on midnight shone, Embosomed in the air. 480 rice's poetry. O'er Olive's trembling outline hung This flame whence brighter glory sprung Than ever silvered earth ! Were evr'y golden vesper dim, Thy light would roll its waves to him, Who gave salvation birth. The sages saw this Star of love AVand'ring below the arc above, Where planets gambol wild ! In haste they took their gifts to crown Their King, who brought such glory down, And blest the holy child. In brighter light the rad'ance glowed, When Mary to the wise men showed Her infant in the lair ! let my soul with shepherds bow, And to this Savior make my vow, And pay my homage there. ACROSTIC ON FELICIA HEMANS. F...rail child of woe ! to earthly sorrows born ! E...ach rose for thee retained a piercing thorn: L...ove moved thy heart with a returnless flame, I...nvokiug one, unworthy of thy name. C...omfort for thee, was not in earth-born ties; I...nvolved in sorrows, tears oft wet thine eyes : A... friend was sought, but guileless sought in vain; H...is vows fast bound thy adamantine chain. E...ach sting of earth, that pierced thy tender frame, M...ade thee resolve, to give to Heav'n thy name: A...bove earth's waves, thy faith in rapid flight, N... eared the rich Fountain of eternal light. S...ustained by grace, a native of the skies, And blood divine, thy new-born soul did rise ; Poured forth its numbers in their melting strain; Then left the world for Heaven's bright domain. rice's poetry. ' 481 THE BRIDE'S VALEDICTION. Why do I mourn to leave the pleasant vine, Whose clusters wave around ? The fir, the ash, the elm, oh ! call them mine. And flow'rs from velvet ground. A thousand thoughts make sad my stricken heart Like surges of the deep, And tell that I with all these gems must part ! — Why, why shall I not weep ? Farewell my sister ! though we long have played In days and months of yore. Where the myrtle green, and the olive shade Were near the ocean's roar ! Yes, we have often by the silver streams, Where finny tribes did leap, Rejoiced ! but now are fled those morning dreams ! — Why, why shall I not weep ? I leave thee, brother ! though we kindly met In praise and fervent pray'r With mourners sad, where gushing tears did wet Our eyes in circles there ! Those tears were not in vain, — they all are kept By Him who does not sleep. By Him, who over Salem's daughters wept ! — AVhy, why shall I not weep ? I must leave thee, mother ! though on thy breast I poured my weal and woe ! Thy love to me has oft my spirit blest ; Yet I must shortly go ! Thy lips have lulled me with their evening strain, Thine eyes have watched my sleep ; ^ Such charms I ne'er expect to find again ! — Why, why shall I not weep ? I leave thee, father ! The merid'an sun Some other feet must guide. To tell thee thy refreshing meal is done. And waits thy welcome stride ! 40 482 rice's poetry. In thy kind heart, thy smiling child to bless, Lay golden treasures deep, Which on her mind have made their pure impress ! Why, why shall I not weep ? MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM. Just as the marriage knot was tied Between my bride and I, John said her age was twenty-five, This Mary did deny : But to confute the sad dispute, And sundry musings end, I'll give some items to compute, By enemy and friend. 'Twas when her age was multiplied By three and three times three, It bore resemblance unto mine As you hereafter see ; Four one-fourth years to twenty-four Her age compared to mine ; So doubt no longer as before, — The problem now define. Ans. — Age Sixteen. A FUNERAL DIRGE. My harp once more awake, Thy mournful dirge impart, And for the mourners' sake, Console each bleeding heart ; Let all thy plaintive strains abound With healing balm for ev'ry wound. rice's poetry. 483 Our elder brother born Long palsied by disease; With trembling frame forlorn He was deprived of ease ; His mind impaired, and feeble tread, Bore him along to join the dead. Sad was the warning given, — The fatal shock was sure ; His mortal frame was riven, — Death did his prey secure : No finite arm could longer save His temple from the gaping grave. Alone he cannot sleep In his cold, pulseless bed ; For eyes that o'er him weep Must number with the dead ! Nor they alone, — lost Adam's race Shall all be bound in death's embrace. But lo, an angel's voice Shall thunder from the skies, And make the dead rejoice That shall be first to rise ; His resurrection trump shall sound, And wake those pris'ners death has bound. ACROSTIC ON HENRY CLAY. H...e stood upon the mountain's height, E...nrolled among the great and proud; N...ear him was Webster in his might, R...evered as rainbows of the cloud. 484 rice's poetry. Y...et still he took his seat on high, C.ontroUing lions, wont to rave; L...it up his tones of wrath to vie, A...nd save our land from error's grave. y...ears swelled his voice like bugle blast, Which stamped his fame on freedom's shore Like Washington his name shall last, " Till wheels of time shall roll no more." SARATOGA SPRINGS. On Saratoga's gushing springs The world with wonder gazes. Where friend his suffring kindred brings To sing their magic praises. From North to South, from East to West, They seek those min'ral w^aters ; And try what spring has virtues best To heal their sons and daughters. Not only those with illness, fast To this famed spot are rushing ; But sportsmen stamped with sundry cast, And cheeks in health full blushing. In Saratoga you may find The Christian and the dandy. And others of the gambling kind That drain the pock-ets handy. This sandy vill on earth's expanse, With all its gushing water, Fierce bites the man who loves to dance With fangs from ev'ry quarter. True, science here in glory reigns, And shows its chequered lustre ; While evergreens dot barren plains, And vines that seldom cluster. rice's poetry. 485 iTes Saratog ! thy fame is spread For gaiety and pleasure ; But thou hast failed to raise the dead With all thy healing treasure. Here beaux and damsels do combine To light their flaming gases ; And maidens vain would fain outshine The more exalted lasses. Ye sighing sons of pain and grief, AVho by disease do languish ; These waters seldom give relief To pain and mortal anguish. They're cried above their healing pow'r By avaricious numbers ; For which the croakers gain a dow'r In all their gasy plunders. Could I the stars hold in my hand, And make the sun to tremble, Nations would not at my command Hard by these Springs assemble. Ye cripples all make long delay, Ye blithesome and old fogies. Beware the net, keep far away From gongs of Saratoga. Although your pockets greatly swell With current notes and silver, You'll have the doleful tale to tell, "They waned by modern pilfer." It may not be what law calls theft. Confirmed by statute pages ; But you will find unjust bereft By hounds of modern ages. THE NIGHTINGALE'S FAREWELL. Farewell, Farewell, ye wood-land groves Deep sighs my fainting heart ! *40 40 486 rice's poetry. The rose, the blooming rose is gone, And I will soon depart ; The glory of the forest trees Begins to feel the blast, The flowing rills have changed their tones, The days of summer past. The sun now lingers in the east Ere morning beams appear. And chilling frosts by northern winds My heart forestalls with fear ; I hear a mournful voice declare From ev'ry bough and wave. The fol'age, and the flow'r-cups all Must sink in autumn's grave. The swallow, red-breast, and the lark, Will soon have flown away ; The bee will to his hive return; — Why shall I longer stay ? Farewell, Farewell, ye wood-land groves, In pensive strains I sing ! I'll wing my flight 'till I shall find A more congen'al spring. I soon shall meet those fair lo\*ed ones That swell the glens with song, And hail the summer's cheering ray With all my native throng ! Alone I will not linger here To meet the freezing blast, Or see the leaves of autumn fall, Since days of hope are past. Upon the last warm southern breeze I'll make my rapid flight, Until I find the blooming rose, And fields of my delight ! Farewell, Farewell, ye woodland groves Exults my bounding heart ! I soon will reach my native zone, — With summer I'll depart. rice's poetry. 487 THE CONDOR. Majestic bird ! thy potent wing Sweeps not with songsters of the spring, O'er earth's lone breast! Thy pinions bear thee far on high, To sail the bosom of the sky, And choose thy rest. The mountain's lofty peak is bare, No human foot has rested there ; But thou dost soar Above its summit; and the plain Long waits to hear thy wing in vain Swift rushing o'er. Thou art a king ! but where repose Thy wings at daylight's fading close ? In what lone night, Dost thou in silence and alone, Where sounds no voice or kindred tone. Suspend thy flight ? The confines of thy course no eye Has traced ; thy trackless path on high Is yet unknown ! The san thy piercing gaze may share, Amid the boundless realms of air, Where thou hast flown. Thou monarch ranger ! storms that shake Earth's temple, and make cities quake, Are far from thee ! Beyond the bolt, and lightning's gleam, Thou dost bask in the sun's bright beam On ether's sea. So the winged soul, with flight like thine, May sweep through realms where angel's shine. And spurn sin's pow'rs ! 488 rice's poetrt. May soar where God's celestial light, Shall cheer the spirit with delight In Heaven's bow'rs. ACROSTIC ON GEOKGE G. N. BYRON. G... raced with those gifts kind nature could impart; E...ndowed with light from sundry founts of lore; 0...'er land and sea thy fancied soul could dart ; R...egale on gems, — the starry worlds explore. G...reat was thy boon for time's poetic song; E...nrobed with genius, — born to fleeting fame: G...reece ne'er surpassed thee with its lettered throng; N...or had Rome sons that shone in brighter flame. B...ut thy sought themes, to earth-born fancy bound, Y...ield no repast to hopes ascending flight! R...eceive no treasures on Mount Calv'ry found ' — 0...n baneful wings exclude eternal light. N...ews from the Savior did not move thy soul; The world involved the mainspring of thy heart : O'er Jordan's waves thy numbers failed to roll, And tell mankind salvation's healing art. CHRIST STILLING THE TEMPEST Hark ! hear the billows' raging strife, See how they lash the shore ! The thunders roar, the lightnings gleam, And the proud eagle soars ! The clouds' dark wings, like midnight's pall, Spread o'er the foaming deep ! And raging winds in fearful blast, Do the blue waters sweep. RICE'S POETRY. Chorazin's watch-light from afar, Appears in feeble sheen ; While vivid lightnings rend the air In all their frightful mien ! Like spectres rising from the earth, Are seen Mount Tabor's form And tow'rs of old Capernaum, Where drives the raging storm. The clouds spread terror as they roar, The thunders shake the sky, While man bewails like demons dire, Who can but weep and sigh ! On billows dread the bounding barque Still ploughs the raging deep ! But hark ! I hear the frantic cry, " Master, why dost thou sleep ?" He rose and stood upon the deck I — A God shone on his brow I The storm was hushed at his command, And to his will did bow I The winds obeyed that voice, — "Be still!' And in deep silence fell ; The clouds in which the lightnings shone, Dispersed in peace to dwell. God of the storm ! before thy face The raging Tempests bow ! And bounding waves in rev'rence fall, To pay their silent vow ! So breathe upon the heart of man. His sinful passions tame ; Let saving pow'r his soul inspire. To glorify thy name. ►40 490 rice's poetry. THE EFFECTS OF TIME. I saw a green sequestered vale, From which a stream was ever gushing , Its rippling tide passed through the dale, With crystal waters onward rushing. Like Time, the rill flowed swift along To mingle with the briny ocean ; And all that graced its native song, Lay buried in the waves' commotion. I saw upon the banks of Nile Huge pyramids their heads upreariug ; The cloud-capt tow'rs of ancient style, And marble tombs with grace appearing. I saw old Pompey brave the storm, With tow'ring height and gorgeous column; The Jewish Temple's lofty form. With Salem's minstrels, grave and solemn. Again I sought those towTs of yore; But ah ! how little of them lingers, For Salem's walls are seen no more, They fell by Time's destroying fingers. And where is Athens ? where is Pvome ? And Greece, that shone in classic story ? And where is Balbec's lofty dome? Time touched them, and they lost their glory. Where now are Bab'lon's mighty walls. And Sodom with its vile pollution ? And where Gomorrah's splendid halls, And maids of virtue's destitution ? They fell beneath the curse of time. Long gone to rest in dreamless slumber ; Like Babel's tow'r once held sublime. With things that were they only number. rice's poetry. 4^1 Beware, man ! of this beware ! Thy days on earth are nought but fleeting; The rust of Time thy barque must share; Yet thy lone spirit may have greeting. Come, let thy plaintive soul arise Upon the flight of eagles' pinions ; And view earth's ruins from the skies, When thou shalt soar to Christ's dominions. ACROSTIC ON GEOKGE D. PRENTICE. G...ems from thy pen disperse our midnight gloom! E...xtend thy fame with eagle flight afar ! — 0...n " Henry Clay" thy numbers long shall bloom, R...eflecting love from ev'ry morning star. Gr...reat is thy rhyme ! Thy lyrics oft have flown ; — E...ndowed with strength, which proves them giant born ! D...ear is thy name where thy rich verse is strown ! — P...ure are thy precepts, which the world adorn. R...ush on thy descant of the " Closing Year;" — E...xtol the "Cave" where thy deep numbers rolled: N...erve up thy soul ! for thunders shook with fear T...he man that through the yawning cavern strolled. I...ndu]gent friend ! still may thy lyrics fly, C.onstrain the world true Wisdom to adore : E...ach number then shall calm the raging sigh, And waft the spirit to its native shore. THE POET'S GRAVE. Here lies the man, whose numbers flow O'er Jordan's raging stream; Which brought the woes of Hell to view, And Heav'n's eternal beam. 492 rice's poetry. CAMBRIDGIE WOODLANDS CEMETERY. As I passed through the marble field, Late purchased for the dead ; Revolving thoughts to me revealed Life's dreams would soon be fled. Here fifteen acres are enclosed By pickets, posts and rails: Where Northern wind that often blows, Is felt in feeble gales. From North White creek two hundred rods, This Cemetery lies ; — The stranger here his way soon plods, To satiate his eyes. 'Tis bounded on the turnpike East ; Has roads of winding grade, With lots all numbered, once at least. On plots surveyors made. From here a view of Cambridge vill Is held in prospect fair ; And waters of that curly rill, That pass through lands of Blair Six churches, with their domes and spires, From these Woodlands are seen ; And village lamps from ker'sene fires. That burn for evening sheen. The iron horse of matchless flight Is seen to sweep the vale, With flaming lamp of gushing light, To shine upon the trail. The distant lawns of nature's face. Here meet the gazer's eye ; And domicils of sundry grace, And vales and mountains high. rice's poetry. 493 While here, thought I, on this lone ground, Comprised of hill and dale ; And arbor, numbers shall be found, That now the breeze inhale. The rich and poor by death shall fall, And feel their pangs severe ; The infant small and giant tall, Alike shall slumber here. Mid shade and vale, and summit height, Shall marble slabs arise ; And monuments of granite white, Point where each sleeper lies. Oft shall kind mourners seek this place, Where some dear friend is laid ; And with their tears the hillocks grace, Beneath the willows' shade. Age upon age shall pass away, And fill this sacred spot ; Yet still in some far distant day I This place may be forgot. May sons and daughters yet unborn, Be grateful to those men ; Who chose with care this rural lawn, Hard by Old Cambridge glen. ACROSTIC ON WILLIAM C. BRYANT. W...here lives the man this country born, I...nspired with Bryant's lyric skill? L...oud sounds his harp ! though env'ous scorn L...it up the torch his verse to kill. 41 494 rice's poetry. I...ndulgent poet, thou dost sing A. ..strain of nature's weal and woe: M...id friends and foes thy numbers bring C.ommending wisdom, as they flow. B...orne on the wings of deathless fame, R...ich hymns are issued from thy pen ;- Y...oung men and maidens loud proclaim, A...nd hail thy royal diadem. N...0 man has yet outweighed thy strain T...inged by the blood of freedom's son; Thy song shall kiss earth's broad domain As long as gushing fountains run. GOD'S x\NGELIC MESSENGERS. Are ye to your skies departed ? Will you visit earth no more ? Ye, whose wings in splendor darted Eden's groves in days of yore. No ! ye have not man forsaken, Though from God he's gone astray ! Ye have Heaven's message taken, Which imparts eternal day. From your fulgent wings descending. Light awoke the sleeper's eye! On hope's Ladder, faith ascending, Caused your flight from worlds on high. When in Jordnn's waters healing, The baptismal act was done ! You from courts of God revealing, Loud proclaimed " This is my Son !'* rice's poetry. 495 When the Savior's blood was falling, Fast by Kedron's flowing stream ; And his sorrows most appalling, You displayed angelic beam. Yet once more you left your dwelling, Broke the seal of Joseph's tomb I There to friendly weepers telling, " Jesus burst death's silent gloom !" When on Olives' Mount, the Savior Left this world for brighter skies ; You in words of holy favor Dried the tears of weeping eyes. While God's servant was in prison, Fast between the soldiers bound ; By your aid and piercing vision, Duors were opened, — he unbound. Still methinks on us you're gazing, Fraught with wonder, love and grace; Bearing us in char'ots blazing, Onward to our Savior's face. Watch us when life's scene is ending, Save us from our Father's rod ' And on mercy's wings ascending, Bear our spirits home to God. THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH. Ye lofty hills, lift up your heads. And portals of the sea, give way ! Ye lightnings from your azure beds, And oceans with your foaming spray ! Ye winds that sweep the raging main. And forests with your plaintive song ! Come join Niag'ra's trembling strain, And warbling rills the vales along. To hail the birth of the Atlantic chain! 496 rice's poetry. Let all the world as one unite, To sing the glory of this day ! Since the Atlantic in its might, Has to its victor fell a prey ! A Cyrus new with Titan chain, Has bound the captive at his will ! Not by the blood of thousands slain, Or God's command of " Peace, be still!" But by the product of B. Morse's skill ! All nations now with joy arise, And Telegraph from shore to shore ; They hail the cord with smiling eyes, Deep laid beneath the ocean's roar? Our Stars and England now commune, As friends converse with friend or foe; No more they wait to pitch their tune, But strike at once their deadly blow. Or graut the kindest news earth can bestow ! In our New World this light was born, Yet deigns to shed its beams afar ; Then why should nations, once forlorn, Ptefuse to hail this morning star ? May this vast cord, beneath the waves, Long bind the Old World with the New ; 'Till wars shall cease, and peace that saves Teach man its precepts to pursue ; — Then to the lost shall Heav'n appear in view. The kings and queens of distant shores, Extend their palms our hands to meet; — As long as the Atlantic roars. May we thus learn our friends to greet ? This bird of Paradise shall fly, Laden with news of joy and pain ; Shall sweep through kingdoms far and nigh, 'Till God restore lost Eden's plain, And love supreme shall fill earth's broad domain ? INDEX. ORATIONS. Page. Introduction, 3 On Intemperance, 6 On War, 25 On the Atonement, 65 On Christ's Second Advent, 75 On Slavery, 105 Missionary Call, 116 On Autumn's Fading Glory, 126 The Devil's Preaching, 131 The Author's Faith, 142 Messiah's Kingdom, 396 POETRY. All Things Mortal, 189 Adoration and Prayer, 169 Appeal for Missions, 192 Acrostic on J. N. Maffit, 220 John Summerfield, 221 George Whitefield, 227 Henry B. Bascom, 232 Lydia H. Sigourney, 233 Lorenzo Dow, 252 Sir Isaac Newton, 258 Edward D. Griffin, 268 Eliphalet Nott, 271 John Milton, 292 John Knox Shaw, 366 William Shakspeare, 465 Thomas Moore, 467 James Montgomery, 470 The Exit of Luther J. Howe, 475 Orra Rice, 147 Felicia Hemans, 480 Henry Clay, ^ 483 George G. N. Byron, 488 George D. Prentice, 491 William C. Bryant, 493 41 498 Address to the Youth, 261 Acrostic for a Brother, 265 Adams Fall and Restoration, 263 A Morning Hymn, 277 An Evening Hymn, 278 Atheism Confuted, 285 Angels Bear me Home, 301 American Liberty, 330 Assurance of Heaven, 381 A Funeral Dirge, 482 Brotherly Love, 388 Christ's Invitation to Sinners, 174 Convulsions of Nature, 197 Christ s Resurrection, 200 Come to the Waters, 205 Christs Crucifixion, 248 Christ's Agony in the Garden, 260 Christ's Death and Resurrection, 326 Charity, 288 Caution to the Reader, 301 Comfort in Death, 306 Christian Friendship, 312 Children should Love each other, 313 Christ Stilling the Tempest, 488 Cambridge Woodlands Cemetery, 492 Death, 172 Destruction by Time, 193 Destruction of Sodom, 251 Decision of the Judge, 275 Darkness Shrouds Jerusalem, 312 Death of John Quiney Adams, 338 Death of Harrison, 366 Death in the Sabbath School, 374 Descant on Time and Immortality, « 416 Epitaph, 271 Envy the Foulest Whelp of Sin, 376 Europe 's Dead, 475 Free Grace, 208 Faith, 223 Faith is our Guide, 314 Farewell, Sarah, 371 God, 144 God is Love, 186 God Manifest in the Flesh, 224 God's Omnipresence, 228 Grieve not thy Mother, 229 God the Everlasting Light, 239 God Rules the Ocean, 252 499 God's Omniscience, 272 God my Refuge in Distress, 279 God Seen in the Oceans, 283 God Worthy of Praise, 307 God"s Omnipotence, 384 Gods Angelic Messengers, 494 " Glad Tidings," 331 Honor thy Father, 233 Hymn of Praise, 273 He gave up the Ghost, 343 Hope, 361 Harriet's Acrostic, 373 Hymn to Flowers, 472 I will not let Thee Go, 148 It is well, 202 I am AVith You, 209 In God is my Salvation, 295 " I am the Resurrection and the Life," 322 Invitation Hymn, 329 Jesus Wept over Jerusalem, 184 Jordan's Cold Stream-, 195 Jesus' Love Stronger than Death, 198 Jesus, the Star of Eternity, 225 Jesus, the Crown of my Hope, 242 Jesus our Hope in Affliction, 276 '♦' Jesus," 315 *' Jesus Wept," 322 Jesus the Refuge from the Tempest, 380 Jesus Died for Me, 392 • Juliza, the Adopted Orphan, 332 Lord Remember Mc, 165 Love Saves the Sinner, 294 Love Stronger than Death, 334 Life Temporal and Eternal, 369 Missionary Hymn, 151 Mans Life Passeth Away, 167 Mourning Pilgrims, 175 MeComb and McDonald's Victory, 244 My Mothers Exit, 258 My Birth Day, 315 Messiah', 340 My Sister's Exit, 348 My Father's Exit, 351 Ministration of Angels, 234 Mathematical Problem, 482 Noah's Dove, 199 No Rest on Earth, 280 None but Jesus, 325 500 On Spring, 222 On the Death of a Relative, 249 On the Death of my Daughter, 253 On the Death of Sophia B. Hubbard, 344 Poetical Introduction, 143 Prayer for Restoring Grace, 173 Proof of God's Existence, 173 Petition for Peace, 216 Pardoning Grace, 226 Peace, Be Still, 240 Prayer in Sickness, 266 Perils of the Ocean, 269 Prayer for Salvation, 281 Prayer in Affliction, 293 Prayer, 310 ^' Praise the Lord," 325 Praise for Redemption, 389 Peace of Conscience in Affliction, 393 Regeneration, 170 Retrospection, 181 Rejoicing of Angels, 210 Religion, 217 Redemption, 343 Resurrection and Judgment, 174 Rosannah's Exit, 373 Seeking God Early, 147 Saints Around the Throne, 176 Salvation by the Cross, 191 Spiritual Worship, 263 Shall the Sword Devour Forever ? 274 Salvation by the Gospel, 276 Spurn not the Sinner, 287 Song of the Redeemed, 292 Sabbath Morning Hymn, 317 Scenes of Mount Tabor, 460 Song of the Departed Spirit, 477 Saratoga Springs, 484 Star of the East, 479 The Final Wreck of Worlds, 150 The Colporteur's Message, 153 The Christian's Hope of Heaven, 155 The Final Judgment, . 156 The Farmer's Consolation, 157 The Christian Martyr, 160 The Temperance Flag, 169 The Laborer's Lamentation, 166 The Flowers of the Field, 162 The Power of the Gospel, 163 The Mother's Twin Sisters, 164 The Magnetic Telegraph, 177 501 The Spirit's Ascension, 180 The Judgment Day, 183 The Saint^s Victory, 185 The Crucified, 188. The Promontory of Life, 189 The Last Supper, 190 The Millennium, 194 The Scenes of Calvary, 196 The Organization of Worlds, 201 The Star of Bethlehem, 204 The Favor of God, 206 The Victor from Edom, 209 The Ruins of Canaan, 211 The Rod, 212 The Rock in Mid Ocean, 214 The Loafer's Lamentation, 215 The Sepulchre, 218 The Bliss of Heaven, 219 The Joys of Heaven, 221 The Author's Acrostic in Prayer, 230 The Curse of War, 230 The Backslider's Return, 234 The Love of God, 235 The Falls of Niagara, 236 The Saint's View of Heaven, 237 The Penitent's Prayer, 243 The Curse of the Law, 249 The God of the Tempest, 250 The Sailor Boy, 256 The Dying Christian, 264 The Land of the Free, 267 The Frantic Lover in Search of a Wife, 270 The Only True God, 273 The Grave, 280 The Mourner's Petition, 282 The Sinner's Prayer for Salvation, 284 The Christian Pilgrim, 289 The Temperance Strain, 290 The Dying Son's Petition, 291 The Waters of Salvation, 392 The Beggar's Lamentation, 296 The Better Choice, 298 The Battle Field, 399 The Sabbath School, 300 The Warrior's Death, 304 The Crowns of Heaven, 305 The Power of God, 306 The Mental Powers of Man, 309 The Lord's Prayer Versified, 316 The Christian's Farewell, 317 The Day of Grace, 318 The Gold of California, 319 The Backslider's Secret Prayer, 321 The Righteousness of Christ, 324 602 The Christian Warfare, 327 The World Banished for Christ, 327 The Blood of Jesus, - 328 The Angel Binding Beelzebub, 341 The Dying Sinner, 342 The Drunkard's Epitaph, 342 The Spirit's Grave, 344 The Ascension of the Son of God, 346 The Wreck of the Steamer Swallow, 352 The Mother's Departure, 353 The Last Great Day, 355 The Last Decision, 357 The Sin of Intemperance, 363 The Destroying Angel, 364 The Cholera, 367 The Final Doomsday, 371 Thoughts of Heaven, 377 To the Drunkard's Memory, 168 To an Absent Wife, 240 To the Memory of Dr. Young, 255 To the Memory of Robert Pollok, 257 Time and Immortality, 297 Terrors of Death, 308 Time's Destroying Flight, 335 Truth and Universalism Contrasted, 358 The Past and Future, 379 Time Shall be no Longer, 382 The Stranger Greeting America, 383 The Excellence of Christ, 385 The Judge on his Throne, 385 The Rock Christ Jesus, 386 The Death of Zachary Taylor, 393 The Bride's Misery, 390 The New Jerusalem, 391 The Time of Death, 387 The Neglected Cemetery, 465 Treasures of the Ocean, 466 To the Memory of Washington, 468 The Mourner and the Angels, 469 The Damsel's Prayer to the Virgin Mary, 471 The Iron Horse, 478 The Bride's Valediction, 481 The Nightingale's Farewell, 485 The Condor, 487 The Effects of Time, 490 The Poet's Grave, 491 The Atlantic Telegraph, 495 Washington's Funeral Dirge, * 152 What is Man? 179 What Man was That ? 302 What is Hell? 311 Watch and Pray, - 321 %77-9