INUNDATION OF THE NILE.

EGYPT is a curious country. It is one long, broad valley, down the middle of which runs the river Nile. Every summer, the river overflows it banks. All the winter long it is very low, and shallow, so that boats often run aground. But in the spring, the water begins gradually to rise; and it increases, till at last it runs over the banks, and almost the whole country is flooded. What do the

poor people do then? O, they have their villages built on mounds; so that though the water flows all over their fields, it cannot hurt their houses. Indeed if it did ever reach their houses, it would soon wash them all down, for they are built of nothing but mud. You see in the picture an Egyptian village, on a mound. Those walls you see, which look like fortifications, are all made of

mud. Those two high kind of towers are pigeon cotes. The trees are palms. You see the water is rising; it has covered all the fields, and surrounded the village, and the people are busy driving all their cows and sheep and goats on to dry land.

How inconvenient it would be, if all England was under water all the summer through, except just where the hills and the towns and villages are! But the people of Egypt do not at all mind their country being flooded. Indeed, they like it. I wonder if you know why? It is because this is the only time their fields ever get any water! There is never any rain in Egypt! So the river rises and waters it instead. Is not this a kind provision of a good God, to supply the want of rain? And the river does much more than any rain could ever do, for it not only waters the country, but manures it too! It saves all the trouble of manure, carts, for it brings a quantity of rich mud along with it, and this settles on the land, when the water subsides in winter, and makes it very fertile.

Now, why does the Nile overflow in summer time? It is a wonderful thing, that no one ever knew this, till a few months ago. Wise men have often tried to think, and discover why it was; but the Nile was so many thousand miles long, that they could not succeed. But about a year ago, some of our good missionaries, who were travelling about, preaching the Gospel in the middle of Africa,

under the burning hot sun,-found to their surprise some tremendously high mountains, all covered with snow! And here at last was the mystery disclosed. We had no idea before that there were such mountains in Africa. But it is quite evident now, where the Nile comes from, and why it overflows its banks in the summer. The river comes down from these mountains. In the winter the

snow falls on them very thickly. But when the summer's sun begins to grow hot, it melts the snow fast, and then the water rushes down in torrents, too large for the channel to carry it, and so it must overflow. Now can you find in the Bible, anything about the fertility of Egypt? What it says about there being no rain" in Egypt? And what good man did the river Nile once very nearly drown?

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POOR ZEKE.

C.

In a wild sequestered place, quite away from the bounds of my congregation, there lived a very wicked family-a father, mother, two brothers, and three sisters. None of them attended any church. One of the brothers was wanting in common sense. His name was Ezekiel. As he was not supposed to have mind enough to be put to any work, he used to stroll away, and be gone sometimes several days. One day as I was preaching on the pity Jesus has for poor sinners, I observed "poor Zeke" looking me in the face, and

every time I said, "Jesus pitied poor sinners," the tears would start from his eyes.

As there was more than usual attention to religion, we had meetings often; and whether it was a lecture or a prayer-meeting, or an inquiry-meeting, "poor Zeke" was sure to be there. At length I asked him if he loved Jesus; and he answered, "Yes." Why do you love Jesus?" said I. "O, cause he love poor wicked Zeke been wicked?" "Yes, I

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80."
Have you
full, full of wicked."

"Do you pray? said I. "O, yes." "What do you say when you pray? "I say, O my Jesus, pity poor Zeke! O take all my wicked away!"

After a while he went home. His appearance was changed: he had lost his seeming vacancy of look and thought. But he dared not pray in the house, for it was full of noise and confusion. So he went to the barn, and there he fell on his knees and uttered his broken prayer to Him who "hath chosen the weak things of this world to confound the mighty." His brother, going into the barn, heard him crying to God so fervently, that it alarmed him. He went in and told his father, with an oath, that Zeke was in the barn praying. At this, his father ran to the barn and listened, and found the boy indeed at prayer. He went in and spoke to him; but he "cried so much the more, a great deal." Stop your noise, Zeke!" said his angry father; but he kept on. they took hold of him and got him into the

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house, in hopes of quieting him. They asked him where he had been, and how he came to feel so. He told them a very rational story about it; but the more he talked, the more his father scolded. Poor Zeke found he could say no more, and then fell down on his knees again. His father tried to silence him; but his mother loved her poor boy, and begged them to let him pray. When he had arisen from prayer his mother said, "It is high time we all prayed. Ezekiel, will you pray for your mother?' "O, yes," he said; and down again he went upon his knees, and his mother with him. Not many days after, she too was full of joy at the thought of Jesus' dying pity. By this time, the brother who first heard him pray was sobbing out, "What shall I do?" Poor Zeke said, "Go to Jesus." Then he and his mother prayed for him, and he too found his distress giving way for unspeakable joy. Then there were three to pray for a hardened husband and an unfeeling father. He fought and ridiculed, until their three daughters were added to the Lord. This made five who had now joined Ezekiel, and embraced his religion. At last his father saw himself alone. His heart broke; he wept like a child. He went to his son and confessed his sin in opposing him, and got him to pray for him. His burden was removed; he rejoiced in God. He erected the family altar,-and it was a solemn sight to see seven persons who had a few weeks