OPHELIA.—­We feel for “Ophelia” very sincerely; but she should rouse herself, and not give way to morbid brooding over her troubles.  Has she no sacred duties to perform to those around her?  No Lord and Master above to serve and glorify, by submission to His dispensations?  Has she no blessed hope of a life beyond the grave?  We could not insert your verses.  “All else” is not “gone,” whoever was removed, when you have “one that sticketh closer than a brother” to lean upon.  Read St. John xiv.; indeed, you had better study the whole Gospel, and set yourself resolutely to devote yourself to others.

MAY ELWIN.—­Our publisher, Mr. Tarn, sent us your letter.  We suppose you thought him the editor.  The writer of the poems you name is not one with whom we are acquainted.

MYSELF.—­We cannot do better than refer you to the abuses of the Lord’s supper, to which St. Paul alludes in 1 Cor. ii. 21, 22, which answers your question.  Also see Hebrews x. 25, and 1 Cor. xiv. 40.  Beware how you trifle with sacred rites and sacraments.  You had better look up the whole of the text about Elders and their office in the New Testament Epistles.  Our Lord’s promise is that where two or three are gathered together He would be in their midst and bless them.  You had better look out the word communion in the dictionary, as it cannot refer to one person alone; it is an act performed by a certain number of persons together, more or less.  Again, when the clergyman prays for his congregation, is he not a mediator?  And when you and your friends pray for each other, are you not mediators?  And this, without disparagement to the doctrine that Christ is the great and chief Mediator, without whose divine mediation all other would be useless.

BRUNETTE.—­The soul does not attain its highest state of bliss until it be re-united to the body; but the soul of a believer in Christ (by which we mean one of His faithful people, who loves, serves, and trusts in Him and His atonement alone) will enter into a happy and sinless rest.  He has made “an everlasting covenant with them,” not with those who deny Him.  Any mercy shown to such would be uncovenanted.  See for yourself what the Scriptures say.  We know nothing more than what is revealed in them.  As to the heathen who have not heard the Gospel, they are “a law unto themselves,” and will be judged as such, not as those who rejected Christ.

ONE WANTING TO LEARN.—­We are glad that you find the Sulhampstead Question Society, which we recommended, so useful in helping forward your education.  We do not print our correspondents’ letters.

ROY.—­We regret that we cannot accede to your request.  It would interfere with the general usefulness of our magazine if we were to introduce the subject of politics into it.  We do not even discuss vexed questions of religious belief, because our paper is meant for persons of all denominations, whose feelings should be respected.  We limit our teaching to the broad principles of our common Christianity.