shedding torrents of innocent blood, they truly, as the scriptures emphatically declare, Hab. ii. 12,"build with blood." Question. Is there any instance recorded in the holy Scriptures, of God punishing a wicked nation on account of its cruelty to his creatures? Answer.-Yes. Hosea iv. 1, 3, The Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land because there is no mercy. Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish; the beasts of the field, the fowls of heaven, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away. Jer. ix. 10, Both the fowls of the heavens, and the beasts are fled, they are gone. Jer. xii. 4, How long shall the land mourn for the wickedness of them that dwell therein ? The beasts are consumed, and the birds. Ezekiel vii. 23, The land is full of bloody crimes, wherefore destruction cometh. Ezekiel ix. 9, The land is full of blood. Ezekiel xxxvi. 18, Wherefore I poured out my fury upon them, for the blood that they had shed upon the land. Question.-Can a man be innocent in the sight of God that assists cruel men in their wantonly inflicting pain upon any of his dumb creatures, or in any way becomes a party to their wicked proceedings? Answer.-No. Amos iii. 3, Can two walk together except they be agreed? Prov. vi. 27, Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Prov. xi. 21, Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished. James iv. 4, Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. Eccles. xiii. 17, What fellowship hath the wolf with the lamb ? Question.—When wicked and cruel men endeavour to persuade you to join with them in their cruel and barbarous amusements, how has God in his holy word commanded you to act? Answer.-Proverbs i. 10, If sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, come with us, let us lay wait for blood; cast in thy lot among us, let us all have one purse: my son, walk not in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path for their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. "Abhor all cruelty, O gen'rous youth, Question.-Does not the word of God abound with representations of the infinite compassion of God towards his brute creatures? Answer.-Yes. There is no other book in the world that breathes so affectionate a spirit towards these dumb members of God's family below, or so fully exhibits the character of Jehovah as a God of boundless mercy, as the Bible. It is from the Bible we learn with what paternal care our common Father in heaven regards the meanest reptile that crawls the earth. At its commencement it informs us, Gen. i. 30-That the beast of the field, the fowl of the air, the reptile that crawleth upon the earth, and the fish that glideth through the waters under it, are all the objects of his beneficent Providence. No sooner were they called into being than he blessed them, and assigned them an ample portion of the produce of the ground for their support. And when the world and its inhabitants were about to be destroyed by a flood, accommodation and sustenance was provided for them as well as man. Gen. vi. 21. When the Almighty ratified a solemn covenant with Noah, for himself and posterity, God expressly included them in its benefits. Gen. ix. 10. When the Sabbath was instituted, it was declared to be, that they as well as man might rest. Nor were they forgotten when God gave a code of laws to his servant Moses, for the government of his peculiar people. Deut. xxv. 4. From the Bible we learn that God rebuked by a miracle the cruel oppressor of one of the most despised of them. Numb. xxii. 28. That for their sakes he spared in a great measure a city which he had purposed to destroy for their iniquity, Jonah iv. 11.—while he visited with the most signal judgments his own peculiar people, for the want of mercy, and their cruelty to his dumb creatures. Hosea iv. 3. Question.-Can you repeat to me any portions of God's word, which particularly describe God as a God of mercy and compassion? Answer.-Yes. Deut. iv. 31, The Lord thy God is a merciful God. 2 Chron. xxx. 9, For the Lord is merciful. Nehem. ix. 17, Thou art a God gracious and merciful. Psalm xxv. 10, All the paths of the Lord are mercy. Psalm xxxvi. 6, 7, The Lord shall save both man and beast. How excellent is thy mercy, O God. Psalm lxxxvi. 15, Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion and plenteous in mercy. Psalm c. 5, The Lord is good, his mercy is everlasting. Psalm ciii. 8, The Lord is merciful, and gracious and plenteous in mercy. Psalm ciii. 17, The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. Psalm cxi. 4, The Lord is full of compassion. Psalm cxvi. 5, Gracious is the Lord and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. Psalm cxix. 64, The earth, O Lord, is full of thy mercy. Psalm cxix. 156, Great are thy tender mercies, O Lord. Psalm cxlv. 8, 9, The Lord is full of compassion and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works. Jeremiah iii. 12, I am merciful, saith the Lord. L Jeremiah ix. 24, I delight, saith the Lord, in loving kindness. Daniel ix. 9, To the Lord our God belong mercies. Joel ii. 13, Turn unto the Lord, for he is merciful. Jonah iv. 2, I know that thou art a gracious God, and merciful. Micah vii. 18, He delighteth in mercy. James v. 11, For the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. MASTER. MY DEAR CHILDREN, I have now shewn you from the Word of God, the great value and importance of shewing mercy to the brute creation, the deeply sinful nature of cruelty, and that none but the wicked delight in cruelty. That God is a being of boundless mercy and compassion; that he delighteth in mercy and abhorreth cruelty; and that he will abundantly reward those who honor his commands and imitate his perfections. That it is the will of God that you should abstain from cruelty, and exercise humanity towards all his creatures. And as such is his will, it is your duty to obey it. I have shewn you, that every thing which breathes is the object of divine benevolence; that they who receive mercy from God are expected to practise it towards all that have life; and that the truly merciful man will be "merciful to his beast." I have also shewn you, that cruelty is the extreme of all vices-an offence to God, and an abhorrence to nature-a grief to good men, and |