sake, and I was ashamed of murmuring. But self-ignorance,
conceit, and vanity were so rooted in me, that my progress was very
gradual, and I had the sorrow to feel how much the power of long bad
habits keeps down the growth of religion in the heart, even after
the principle itself has begun to take root. I was so ignorant of
divine things, that I hardly knew words to frame a prayer; but when
I got acquainted with the Psalms, I there learned how to pour out
the fullness of my heart, while in the gospel I rejoiced to see what
great things God had done for my soul.

"I now took down once more from the shelf 'Doddridge's Rise and
Progress;' and oh! with what new eyes did I read it! I now saw
clearly, that not only the thief and the drunkard, the murderer and
the adulterer are sinners, for that I knew before! but I found out
that the unbeliever, the selfish, the proud, the worldly-minded,
all, in short, who live without God in the world, are sinners. I
did not now apply the reproofs I met with to my husband, or my
father, or other people, as I used to do; but brought them home to
myself. In this book I traced, with strong emotions and close
self-application, the sinner through all his course; his first
awakening, his convictions, repentance, joys, sorrows, backsliding,
and recovering, despondency, and delight, to a triumphant
death-bed; and God was pleased to make it a chief instrument in
bringing me to himself. Here it is," continued Mrs. Incle, untying
her little bundle, and taking out a book; "accept it, my dear
father, and I will pray that God may bless it to you, as He has
done to me.

"When I was able to come down, I passed my time with these good old
people, and soon won their affection. I was surprised to find they
had very good sense, which I never had thought poor people could
have; but, indeed, worldly persons do not know how much religion,
while it mends the heart, enlightens the understanding also. I now
regretted the evenings I had wasted in my solitary garret, when I
might have passed them in reading the Bible with these good folks.
This was their refreshing cordial after a weary day, which sweetened
the pains of want and age. I one day expressed my surprise that my
unfortunate husband, the son of such pious parents, should have
turned out so ill: the poor old man said with tears, 'I fear we have
been guilty of the sin of Eli; our love was of the wrong sort. Alas!
like him, _we honored our son more than God