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THE STARS' RESPONSE.

BY MRS. JULIA C. R. DORR.

"I envy not your glory-proud, pale stars!
Each on a separate throne-do ye not pine,
Flinging your dark arms vainly thro' the blank,
For some sweet twining touch? Do ye not yearn,
Searching through space with sadly burning eyes,
For our poor leaf-clad orb, where some small flower,
Leaning its cheek against another near,
Loves its frail life away?"

OH! dweller mid the leaves and flowers of Earth!
Thou, whose fond, human heart so warmly beats,
With love for all things beautiful and true,
And high and holy, why dost thou shut out
From the vast pale of sympathy, that binds
The universe in bonds of brotherhood,

The bright stars-us who nightly gleam and burn
In the blue heavens above ye? Thinkest thou
We know not love? That we, who dwell so near
The Throne of the Eternal, that the songs
Of Seraphim and Cherubim oft fall
Upon our ravished ears,-that we, who hear
The chorus of the angels, and keep time
To the glad music of their golden harps,
While round the gates of Paradise we tread,
Swerving not ever from the glorious paths,
Ages ago marked out for us, by Him

Whose holiest name is Love-that we, who catch
Faint glimpses of the white-robed throng, and see,
Though afar off, the gleam of snowy wings-
Think'st thou we know not love? Oh! not alone
Upon the green earth, with its sheltered nooks,
Where spring flowers ope their young buds to the light;
Its happy homes, where childhood's ringing laugh
Mocks the gay carol of the woodland bird;
Its countless altars, where young trusting hearts
Breathe the deep vows that never can be broken;
Its vast cathedrals, where the mighty sleep,
And its still hamlets, where, thro' clustering trees,
The humble spire pointeth to the skies-
Dwelleth the omnipresent spirit-Love!
When first the morning stars together sang,
Breaking the stillness that for aye had reigned
Through the dim realms of space, when Silence fled,
Amazed and startled, from its shadowy home--
The clear sweet cadence of her silvery voice
Swelled the full tide of harmony, that rolled
From sphere to sphere, till heaven's high, vaulted dome
Thrilled with th' exulting strain!

With humblest love
And reverence, we bow before thy throne,
Oh! Monarch of the skies, who sitt'st apart
In majesty sublime! We dare not look
Upon the awful splendour of thy brow;-
We veil our faces, and all pale and wan,

Draw clouds and darkness round us, when we hear
The rumbling of thy chariot; we shrink
From the oppressive brightness of thine eye,
And from thy glorious presence flee. But yet-
Sole Source of light, around whose dazzling throne
Myriads of worlds revolve, and as they pass
Bend low to pay their homage-even yet
We dare to love Thee! Thou on us hast showered
Rays from thine own exhaustless fount of light,
Our beauty and our glory! But for Thee,
Naked and noteless, we should darkly move
On our appointed way.

By many a tie,

As strong and holy, as are those that bind
Brother and sister on thy "leaf-clad orb,"
Oh, child of Earth! whose voice we hear afar,

MISS ELIZA L. SPROAT.

Are we all linked together. Not a star
Gleameth to-night above thee, but its heart
Thrills with a love as fervent and as deep,
As human breasts may know. As, one by one,
We nightly gather in the dark blue sky,
We joy to meet again, as friends rejoice,
Whose paths have long been severed, when once more
The eyes they love beam on them. And our love
Knoweth not ever chance, or change, or ill!
All is not truth on earth! "We did love once,"
Ye mortals say, and then ye sadly pause,
And by that pause, and by your mournful smile,
We know ye love no longer, and your hearts
Are haunted by the spectres of vain hopes,
That perished in their noonday, and of vows
Too soon forgotten. All's not peace on earth--
There, frail man warreth with his brother man,
And household gods are shattered in the strife,
And household altars broken. There, too oft,
Pale Jealousy, and Doubt, and dark Distrust
Breathe upon Love's young blossoms, and they die!
But in the purer regions where we dwell,
All, all is harmony! From the far North,
Where the bright pole-star burns, to distant realms
Where gleams the Southern Cross, the same glad song
Riseth spontaneously!

Once there was grief,

And mourning in the heavens. One band there was,
Amid our shining ranks, best loved of all--
One fair, young, sister band-the Pleiades-

One night, when high our wonted anthem swelled,

We missed a voice, that ever in the strain
Mingled its low, soft melody. Each eye
Turned towards the place whence that tone should have

risen,

But one among that sister band was not,-
The fairest had departed! Where is she?
Oh! we have asked the universe to bring
Tidings of her. There cometh no reply!
Arctarus mourned-Orion's eye grew dim,
Lyra's sweet harp was silent, and a wail

Rose from the "heavenly host." Years have passed by,
But still that void remaineth, and we list
Ever in vain for the familiar voice,

That was so dear!

And we love thee, oh Earth!
As a fond mother, o'er an erring child,
Bends with a yearning tenderness, e'en so
We bend above thee, and with earnest eyes
Look upon thee, beholding thee so fair.
We mourn for thee, oh Earth!-that sin hath marred
Aught that God made so very beautiful.

We bless thee, Earth,-for many hearts are thine
That bring rich store of love, and on our shrine
Lay down the priceless gift. We bless thee, Earth!
For many a lifted brow, where holy thoughts
And pure have left their signet, meet our gaze
Whene'er it rests on thee! We bless thee, Earth!
For the same hand that fashioned us, made thee,
And, more than all, because He loves thee well,
And Jesus died for thee. We bless thee, Earth!

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THE HON. AND REV. BAPTIST W. NOEL, M. A.

BY GEORGE CHAMBERS.

THE name of this gentleman, since his secession from the English Church Establishment, has been so frequently and so prominently before the world, that we are persuaded the accompanying portrait will be acceptable to our readers.

Baptist Wriothesley Noel is maternally derived from a distinguished Scotch family in Kincardineshire, and paternally related to the noble house of Hamilton.

"It would be possible to write (says a biographer in the Christian Times) a little romance of a certain Charles Middleton, born in Scotland, in 1726, who entered the navy, rose in his profession, and pushed his fortunes till he was created a peer by the title of Lord Barham, was made a member of his Majesty's Privy Council, and was First Lord of the Admiralty from May, 1805, to February, 1806, during which short administration not fewer than four memorable victories were gained over the French.

"Lord Barham had one child, a daughter, the wife of Sir Gerard Noel, great-grandson of the fourth Duke of Hamilton, who became Lady Barham in her own right; her eldest son succeeding to the title, which has since been changed, by his obtaining a step in the peerage, to that of the Earl of Gainsborough. Lady Barham, the solitary child of her father, bore to Sir Gerard Noel eighteen children, of whom Baptist is the sixteenth child, and eleventh son, born at Leithmont, near Leith, N. B., July 10, 1799."

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witness, "his elegant and gentlemanly bearing, the polish of his language, and the grace and propriety of his manner, combined with his quiet but deep and vivid enthusiasm, his freshness as a public speaker, and the exciting nature of his theme (the martyred missionary, Smith), together with the power and directness of his appeal, all tended to give interest and memorableness to his entrance on public life, and to raise the feelings and expectations of his auditors to the highest pitch."

Very soon after this event, Mr. Noel took Mr. Noel is now in the fiftieth year of his orders. As a preacher, he rapidly became age. He was educated partly at Westminster, popular, though rather by richness of fancy and partly at a private school, took his degree and copiousness of language, than by originaat Cambridge, and studied for the law. He lity or profundity of thought, compact or conwas thus engaged when, in May, 1824, at the vincing argument, or imaginative reasoning. anniversary meeting of the London Missionary His views settled at once into the Evangelical Society, he first appeared in public life. He is form: his sermons, therefore, were always disdescribed to have been, for some time previous, tinguished by the prominence given in them to firm and decided in his religious character and the Gospel, as emphatically the truth, by his views, and was already identified with religious allusions to the inward life of the believer, and men and religious movements evangelical in by his earnest appeals to the worldly and uncharacter and spirit. "Mr. Noel's youthful converted. He was devoted, as a pastor, to appearance on this occasion," says an eye- the interests of his flock, especially of the

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young; and his Bible classes, and other modes | earnest evangelical spirit, elevated thought, and of pastoral occupation, are thought to have other marks of accomplished writing. rendered him occasionally less effective in the pulpit; yet, when he girded himself up for any theme, few men could handle it with more vigour, clearness, or closeness, either of thought, reasoning, or application.

Mr. Noel's merits as a speaker at public meetings are of a high order. He is described as always self-possessed, calm, serious, flowing, elegant-rising, at times, into eloquence and passion. He delights in statistics, numbers, particulars, facts, and would seem often to have very carefully prepared and arranged these beforehand, though he may have left his language a good deal to the prompting of the moment. Few men have done more than Mr. Noel to make the platform respectable to the minister, or, through it, to promote everything connected with religion and philanthropy.

As an author, Mr. Noel has been frequently before the public, and in various characters. He has published a "Journey in Switzerland," and "Notes of a Tour through Ireland in 1836,' both interesting for their information, tone, and tendency. His religious works range from "Infant Piety-a Book for Little Children," to two volumes of sermons preached in the Chapel Royal by Mr. Noel, as Chaplain in Ordinary to the Queen. The second of these volumes was published last year, and is characterized by

Mr. Noel has taken part in controversial topics oftener than has been gratifying to his admirers. He prominently advocated the exclusion of Socinians from membership and office in the Bible Society, from which he withdrew; but afterwards reviewed his opinions, and returned. In the agitation upon “Church Reform," some sixteen years since, Mr. Noel stood up for a sweeping modification of the Episcopacy of the Establishment. He next lent his impressive aid to the building, and endowment by public money, of a very large number of new churches. "The case of the Free Church of Scotland," in book and lecture illustration, has also been warmly taken up by Mr. Noel, as well as the position of the Irish Church; and during the agitation for the repeal of the Corn Laws, Mr. Noel published a powerful tract, entitled "A Plea for the Poor," of which nearly 50,000 copies were circulated. Mr. Noel has also materially aided in the foundation of the "Evangelical Alliance."

Mr. Noel's recent secession from the Establishment could scarcely have surprised the attentive readers of his works. This was followed by the publication of his "Essay on the Union of the Church with the State," of which a large edition was sold within a few days.

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