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BY MRS. SHERWOOD,
Author of "Little Henry and His Bearer," &c. &c.

IN SEVEN VOLUMES.

VOLUME IV.

PHILADELPHIA:

TOWAR, J. & D. M. HOGAN; Pittsburg-HOGAN & CO.

Stereotyped by L. Johnson.

22464.10

HARVARD

COLLEGE

LIBRARY

THE

LADY OF THE MANOR.

CHAPTER XVIII.

Sixth Commandment.-Thou shalt do no murder.

THE lady of the manor, finding herself again surrounded by her young people, asked one of them to repeat the sixth commandment, viz. "Thou shalt do no murder," which was to furnish the subject for conversation during the evening.

"I remember the time, and indeed it is not a very distant one," remarked one of the young ladies, “when I should have said, 'Here at least I am guiltless; here at least I am safe: I never committed murder, that is very certain.""

"And would you not venture to assert as much now, my dear Miss Emmeline?" said the lady of the manor, smiling.

The young lady shook her head, and replied, “No, no; I have already been brought in guilty in every conversation, and now I dare not plead innocence on any occasion."

"Until we are made sensible of the spirituality and extent of the law of God, my dear young people," remarked their excellent instructress, 66 we may possibly buoy ourselves up with the idea that we have duly observed

some parts of it; but those persons who have enlarged views on this subject cannot possibly deceive themselves in this manner. Hence the importance of studying the law, and regarding it as our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ for when any individual is convinced that he is condemned on every side by the law, he sees himself compelled to fly for safety to the Gospel.

'But, to leave the law in general, and to recur to that particular part of it now chosen for our consideration, let us meditate upon these words, viz. 'Thou shalt do no murder;' and endeavour thoroughly to comprehend the nature of that thing from which we are here commanded to abstain.

"Thou shalt do no murder;' that is, Thou shalt not cause or countenance the death of any fellow creature. The question then is, What is the death which we are forbidden to inflict?

"In reply, I remark, that as man partakes of a twofold nature, so that by which alone we can be wholly destroyed must also be of a two-fold nature. The first death is, therefore, two-fold, namely, temporal and spiritual; besides which there is a second death, that takes place when the first death is completed."

The lady then proceeded to describe the several parts and natures of the first and second death, and spoke to this effect

"Temporal Death is the separation of the soul from the body.

"Spiritual Death is the separation of soul and body from God's favour in this life, which is the natural state of all unregenerate persons, who are all destitute of the quickening powers of grace.

"Eternal Death (called the second death) consists in the everlasting separation of the whole man from God.

"And as the first death is two-fold," continued the lady of the manor, "and is followed by a second death; so also is the first life two-fold, consisting of the natural and spiritual life, and these are succeeded by that which is eternal. Adam, by his disobedience, made his children liable to death in all its forms; and Christ, by his obedience, abolished death and brought life and immortality to light. (2 Tim. i. 10.) All living crea

tures on earth are subject to temporal death; all unregenerate persons are under the dominion of spiritual death; and all men who die unrenewed will be delivered over to eternal death. Temporal death is the mildest and least to be dreaded of any of these modes of death: and hence the Saviour provides no exemption from this, which is, at most, but a light affliction, enduring only for a moment; but, on the contrary, calls on his children to submit to it with joy and rejoicing, inasmuch as it promotes their entrance into glory. "ex

'I have now," continued the lady of the manor, plained to you, my dear children, the nature of death; and will proceed next to point out the various modes in which that commandment which saith, 'Thou shalt do no murder,' may be transgressed.

"If," proceeded the lady of the manor, "I, through design or negligence, hasten the dissolution of my own body, or that of any other human being, I am, in fact, guilty of murder. If I privately desire the death of any one in order to advance what I suppose to be my own interest, I am guilty of murder in thought and before God. For it is written, Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. (1 John iii. 15.) All ambitious and vindictive expressions partake of the nature of murder, and frequently tend to it in a direct way. All wars and fightings, except in actual self-defence, and after all other means have been tried without success to preserve peace, undoubtedly partake of the same character. But inasmuch as wars between nations are commonly beyond the province of females in retired life, I say the less on this part of my subject; only remarking, that it should be the object of every woman on all occasions to promote peace, and to inspire the mind of her husband, brothers, or sons, with the dread of occasioning death in any form.

"It is, I trust," continued the lady of the manor, "almost needless, in the present day, to remark that the practice of duelling is nothing more nor less than a genteel way of committing murder; and I am sorry to add, that I fear there are few duels of which women, if not the occasions, are not the instigators and promoters. It

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