it were a sapphire stone. Justly abides a star in that gem whose pervading tint is the symbol of faith and the hue of the firmament, and whose brilliance has even been supposed to wax and wane in sympathy with the sky's fluctuating brightness.

Of mystical virtues let us mark four as of old fancifully connected with the sapphire: it demands and guards purity, losing lustre and loveliness if worn by the unchaste; it releases prisoners, reconciles enmity, enforces prayer. And we Christians enjoy in very truth our corresponding privileges :

Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried.Daniel xii. 10.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; He hath sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.—Isaiah lxi. 1.

Forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.— Colossians iii. 13.

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My Name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.-St. John xvi. 24.

The rod and tablets of Moses are said by the Hebrews to have been formed of sapphire, which signifies beauty:

Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.-Numbers xii. 3. The Lord taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation.-Psalm cxlix. 4.

Now we who have praised the sapphire, let us praise

that Wisdom which designed, which created, which excelleth the sapphire: which assigneth to saints on earth the sapphire of faith, and to saints in heaven the sapphire of perfection: which here pitieth flaws, but there abolisheth any such thing: which being a loving spirit hath made the fear of the Lord our wisdom, and hath left to us a promise: "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever."Daniel xii. 3.

Ivy.

Not strong, except with a prop.

VY, though greenest when putting forth fresh foliage, remains green and luxuriant the whole year round. Its leaves, which are often of so crowded a growth as to overlap each other, are glossy and full-coloured on that upper surface

which spreads towards the sun; duller and paler underneath where they face earthwards. Each individual leaf has its edges fashioned in special curves, or peaked with particular points, unlike the curves and points of a million others; some are boldly rounded, some notched and very delicately tapered off. Ivy flowers in October with a greenish-whitish brushy blossom, not showy but plentiful: in December it is adorned by black or deep purple berries. Its foliage is often dark and even dusky in colour, and is of a solid texture: its stems are rugged and woody, fringed in parts by a coarse shag

of rootlets, like bark combed to shreds, or like hundreds of minute fingers helping to attach it here or there. the whole, ivy wears a sober aspect, yet by an exception it will show forth a wonderful beauty and grace: its branches hanging in garlands, or creeping in exquisite

traceries; its leaves decked with a delicate lacework of veins, or blushing with a rich redness, or wholly pale as if carved out of ivory; while let but the sun shine through the tangle of foliage, and it will put on a rich verdure, or a harmony of lights and shadows.

Ivy affects not to stand alone, but by clinging and

clambering it will scale a lofty height till it overhangs the sustaining oak or pine. Objects which lack beauty, whether decaying trunk, ruin, or chasm, ivy will embrace or bridge over and clothe with grace and comeliness. The entire plant gives out a peculiar aroma; the old stems when bruised exude a very fragrant resin. Ivy flourishes in sunshine and in shade, it mounts skywards, it nestles in nooks, it refuses not to trail along the ground: everywhere and at all times, except by some special freak of beauty, it is green; it is sometimes more than green, but at the least it is green with an unfading greenness.

He is green before the sun, and his branch shooteth forth in his garden.--Job viii. 16.

St. Stephen,

DEACON.

26 DECEMBER.

The Sacred Text.

HEN the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. And the saying pleased the whole multitude and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost. . . . Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people. Then there arose certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and Cyrenians, and