The Sunday School from London, Greater London, England • Page 2

274 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL APRIL, IQ, 11894. your daily lessons, and all your learning, and the rest will be cared for you, and appointed of God for you when the time comes. Two days ago I took a walk, and came the body small infant cast out naked. The Chinese, when a child dies, thiik there is an evil spirit in the case, which will come back and trouble tljem if they bury the child in the family graveyard. So they cast out the little body for the dogs and pigs to I have a great niany patients here, and we have prayers and hymn-singing every evening with the Christians.

One man, a Chinaman, is to be baptised on Sunday. There are three other candidates, but they may perhaps have to wait a little, or perhaps they may turn back. Some do turn back. Did I tell you about Parker's dog in my last letter It is a young dog. The other day it had been doing something wrong in a shop in front of our inn.

I saw a man carrying about a broken dish to let it see it. The dog looked so frightened. It ran away. Then it came into the inn and skulked away. I spoke to it.

It was so pleased, but at once left me and went away to stand behind a large stone trough, and kept looking under it towards the gate to see if the man was coming. The dog could see the gate, but no one at the gate could see it. Then it went away and lay down where it could see and not be seen. Cunning dog, wasn't he One day he stole such a lot of nice food belonging to Mr. Parker's boy.

It was in a basin. The dog ate it all up. The boy brought in the empty basin, put it down in the middle of the floor, and pointed it out to Mr. Parker. Mr.

Parker could not but laugh. With many prayers for you, my dear sons, and hoping you will have happy Easter, summer, and Christmas holidays, believe me, Your affectionate father, JAMES GILMOUR. Peking, December 16th, 1887. MY DEAR SONS, JIMMIE AND am well and thankful for it. I have a sad duty to perform.

It is to tell you that your little brother, Alexander, died this morning at ten o'clock. The dear little lad had been ill a week or more. At first he was not thought to be very ill. Later it was seen that his head was affected. That was more serious.

I had just gone to Tien-Tsin, and was sent for. I left Tien-Tsin on Monday morning at two o'clock a.m., and reached Peking on Tuesday evening at dark. Alick did not know me. He lingered on till this morning, Friday, at ten o'clock. He did not suffer much most of the time, and even when he seemed to suffer I don't think he was very conscious.

The funeral is to be on Monday. His little coffin is to be placed next to Mama's. Poor dear wee Alick He never was very well since Mama died. His to curve some months ago. Now, my dear sons, his brothers, don't be too sorry about him.

He has gone to Mama, and to Grandmama, and to Jesus, in that city of beauty where no one is ever sick, and where all is beautiful. There are lots of little girls and boys playing all about, and no bad boys or bad people to annoy him or teach him evil. And would not Mama receive him into her loving arms, just as she used to hold you and him when she was here Dear, dear, old pretty Mama dear, dear wee Alick. I think I see her hugging him, and him nestling on her bosom just when he arrived. They are for ever with the Lord.

Jesus likes to see them. They like to see Jesus. The Angels as they pass stop to look at them, and say, Your son The Angels say, Has he any brothers and sisters Mama says, Two brothers at school in Harnilton, Scotland." The Angels say Papa Mama says Papa is a missionary in China." The Angels say, The brothers and papa will all come some day if they belong to Jesus." Mama says, Won't that be nice." Now boys, be sure you belong to Jesus, and you are all right. Tell Jesus you are glad he is taking such care of Mama and Alick. Ask Him to take care of you, and to take care of me, and some day we'll all be there together.

Meantime let us be very careful to do and say just what Jesus likes. I don't know who will go first. Perhaps grandpa. Won't they all be glad to see him, and won't they give him a good welcome. I know grandpa wants Jesus to save him, and I know Jesus wants to save him.

Meantime, good-bye, my sons. Ask Jesus keep you. Don't sorrow over Alick. He is with Jesus. Your loving.

PAPA. PINPOINTS OF PRACTICE. Illustration is a ypry im 'pojtant SiSopl Hsioh. isiiseful for Scholars of ritijf and an abMu cessitJr lot the younger classes. If, like Se take their evident pleasure will lead us right in the We all 'Know how eyes grow bright and faces more attentive at the words: I remember," Once upon time," or It is like." This being so, we should try to make our illustration as effective as we may.

It is a wide subject. Everything that throws light on a lesson is, in some sense, an It may appeal to the ear or to the ey6. It may be a picture, a blackboard sketch, an object, a story, a parable, a simple comparison. Visible illustrations are a great help to the younger children. Every infant class should be provided with the Scripture pictures, which are now so good and cheap.

Not only so, the blackboard should be in and objects introduced wherever they will throw light on the lesson, A sparrow's nest, five pictured birds, two copper farthings will' impress 1 the- lesson of our Father's care on the tiniest babies in the School; so impress them that they will go home eager to tell the Wonderful story. Such teaching is fascinating work, and is long rememberejd by the children. Effective use can be made of the hands for the same purpose. A word for each of the five little fingers; the upturned palm for the Sea of Galilee with Capernaum here, Bethsaida or, the indicating of hill or river, even in the air, all help the children to understand and remember the thing spoken of. Eyes arid hands and voice should all illustrate the lesson, li it be expressed in the teacher's face, it will be reflected in the children's sympathy.

Early Bible lessons must be largely taught through observation, activity, and sympathy. A little later the child reaches the age of imagination. Visible illustrations may now very much give place to word picturing, This is a most valuable exercise. It was very much the secret of David Stow's success in teaching, and those who wish to the art would do well to study his Training System." By its Kelp the phildren learn their early lessons easily and pleasantly; but this is not all. The trained Imagination, the power, to see with the mind's eye things read or described, is a possession for life.

Few anecdotes are needed at this stage. The Bible stories themselves are so new, so fresh, so wonderful, that if we can make them real to the children we need no other help. It is not always an easy matter, especially to, those who have not the natural gift but.it can be done by patience and, perseverance. The reason why many teachers cannot picture out a story is that their own idea of it is not clear. This holds good especially of the better-known incidents.

We have told them so often that the wonder and the beauty are apt to die in the telling." If the teacher feels that the Bible characters are true men and women, real boys and girls and babies, it will come home to the children by pure sympathy. Unreal notions are often the outcome of misty teaching. We should take all the help we can get from the Bible, master the story, its references, its details, its allusions. We should study the characters as we do those of Shakespeare or of Goethe, in the light of their circumstances, of their actions and of their spoken Words. Much of the commonplaceness of religious teaching arises frorri taking things for granted.

We will study Hamlet" or Faust," but we think we know all about Moses or Elijah, Daniel or Paul, and so thinking we go to our classes and present to them a ghostly i far-off figure as unlike the living breathing hero of the book as anything well can be. Another aid is to try to realise the time, the place, and the circumstances amid which.they lived. Books are useful, also a knowledge of Eastern manners, customs, dresses, scenery and. geography. It is well to dwell much on character and on motive.

They may be made very real; for though circumstances have changed, human nature is the same still. The children should feel that these heroes of the olden time were men of like passions with Ourselves. In the ordinary juvenile classes of the Sunday in the ordinary sense is more required. A child of nine or ten can learn something more than a Bible story and its one outstanding lesson, and nothing impresses a point more strongly than a -good illustration. To be really good it should be simple, and not obscured by unnecessary circumstances.

It should be simpler than the thing illustratated, so clear that all the class may understand and so interesting that it will be remembered forits own sake. Above all things it should be to the point. Every unnecessary detail lessens the impression. Illustrations may be drawn from many sources. Perhaps the most effective are those from the teachers oWnVexperience.

'M have eyes to see and ears to hear what goesori around us, Nature and common life will furnish us with many an anecdote Bible stories are also very useful. They purpose of increasing the Scripture knowledge of thes 'Many are to be found in history, literature, and These aire a great help in developing the intelligence of a class, and the search for them will richly reward the teacher. Young people also take pleasure in poetical quotations. Valuable help may be found even in story-books, an incident in one, the plot a quotation irpm a third. Some good anecdotes are to be found in collections but, generally, the freshest and best are those which a teacher, or writer of lesson notes,.