After Moses had received the command of Jehovah, he summoned all the children of Israel together, and delivered his message. He laid before them the command of Jehovah, and called upon them to bring in their offerings unto the Lord, for the erection of the tabernacle. This offering was to come only from a "willing heart." It was to consist of the most costly materials which could be procured among the children of Israel. And these various offerings were to be of such a nature as to come within the reach of the different ages, sexes, and conditions of the great congregation; and yet the materials of which this tent was composed were so costly that some have doubted whether they could be furnished by such a nomadic race.

Immediately after receiving the command of Jehovah, from the mouth of Moses, the children of Israel set themselves at work, both men and women. The men brought their gold, their goods, and their valuable timber, &c. The women brought their "bracelets, and ear-rings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold." "And all the women that were wise-hearted did spin with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, both of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine linen." "The children of Israel brought a willing offering unto the Lord, every man and woman, whose heart made them willing to bring, for all manner of work which the Lord had commanded to be made, by the hand of Moses." The following will give a general idea of this struc

ture:

The entrance of the tabernacle was toward the east, and was closed by a splendid curtain of byssus, into which figures were woven. This curtain was supported by wooden columns, which were plated with gold. The interior of the tabernacle was divided into two rooms. The sanctuary was twenty cubits long, ten wide, and ten high. The holy of holies was ten cubits square and ten high, and was separated from the sanctuary by a curtain, into which the figures of cherubim were woven, and which was supported by four columns plated with gold. The tabernacle was surrounded by a court-yard, which was one hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide, and was surrounded by columns, from which cotton curtains were suspended. The entrance was twenty cubits

wide, and was closed by a suspended curtain. In the holy of holies stood the ark of the covenant. In the sanctuary was placed on the north the table with the twelve loaves of shew-bread, together with cups, saucers, &c. Opposite to the table, toward the south, stood the golden candlestick with six branches.

In the middle, between the table and the golden candlestick, stood the altar of incense. In the court, under the open sky, stood the altar of burnt-offerings, and between this altar and the sanctuary was placed the brazen laver. The whole inside of the tabernacle was covered with costly tapestry.

Never was there a more costly or a more willing offering made unto the Lord. This tabernacle exceeded in costliness and splendor, in proportion to the slender means of that people, the magnificence of any temple of the present day, compared with the wealth of the surrounding population. The whole expense connected with this offering is estimated at about a million of dollars. And what appears to be remarkable, is, that Moses was directed by Jehovah to erect this magnificent tabernacle by the free-will offering of the people. There were to be no taxes, no compulsion; and when it was finished there was no remaining debt, secured by a mortgage, on this house of God. Here the rich and the poor met together,

When Moses had finished the work-" then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went on in all their journeys. But

if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys." Thus did Jehovah follow this tabernacle with his presence and blessing.

INTERIOR OF THE EARTH.

BY PROFESSOR SILLIMAN.

A FACT of general interest has been proved by the boring of the Artesian wells in the suburbs of Paris, namely, as we go towards the centre of the earth, the temperature increases at the rate of about one degree for every fifty feet. That the whole interior portion of the earth, or at least a great portion of it, is an ingenious ocean of melted rock, agitated by violent winds, though I dare not affirm it, is still rendered highly probable by the phenomena of volcanoes. The facts connected with their eruption have been ascertained and placed beyond a doubt. How then are they to be accounted for? The theory prevalent some years since, that they are caused by immense coal beds, is perfectly puerile, and entirely abandoned. All the coal in the world would never afford fuel enough for a single capital exhibition of Vesuvius. We must look higher than this, and I have little doubt that the whole rests on the action of electric and galvanic principles, which are constantly in operation in the earth.

We know that when certain metals are brought together, powerful electric action is developed, and a light is produced, superior even in effulgence to the light of the sun. Now if a small arrangement produce such results, what may we not expect from the combination of those immense beds of metal to be found in the earth? Here we may have the key to all the grand phenomena of volcanic action. An illustration, on a small scale, may be seen in an instrument called the theo electrical battery, made of zine, bismuth, and antimony, packed in a box varnished. In this, heat is involved below, while the top is cold; and here we have the very cause of the volcanoes, when in the interior a fiery ocean is heaving its surges, while its peak is capped with everlasting snow.

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THE RELATION OF BROTHERS AND SISTERS.

BY REV. ANSEL D. EDDY, D. D,

"It is not a blessing to live merely," said Seneca, "but to live well." "Life in itself," he adds, " if life without wisdom is a blessing, it is a blessing that is common to me with the meanest reptiles; and he who gave me nothing more than life, gave me only what a fly or worm may boast. If, in the love and hope of virtue, I have employed that life, which my parents conferred on me, in studies that were to render me more noble in the sight of Heaven, I have paid back to them more than I have received. My father gave me to myself rude and ignorant; I have given him a son of whom it may delight him to be a father."

If a heathen philosopher could say, "to live merely is not a blessing, but to live well," how should we advance, on the principles of philosophy, in rendering ourselves noble in the sight of Heaven: To LIVE WELL, should be our high and holy ambition. To live for others, for God and eternity.

We have already addressed our young readers on the honor and happiness which they may confer on their parents by a life of intelligence and virtue. And we know of no lovelier scene on earth, than the filial circle around the aged patriarch, giving to his last hours the consolation of their mutual endearment, and receiving from his lips his last benediction. Here are the ripened fruits of his life, the joy of his heart, the hopes of his eternity, reflecting the blessing of God upon his labors, and ensuring the promise of heaven, when the resurrection shall reunite these dissolving and endeared relations.

The beauty and blessing of the domestic constitution is never more clearly seen, and the perfection of parental and filial excellence more delightfully illustrated, than in the harmony of the fraternal society.

That parental influence and discipline cannot be radically defective, where the fraternal obligations are discharged, and peace and charity reign among the heirs of the same natures and the

same home. Here is the summer and the sunshine of domestic happiness, the rich harvest of earthly enjoyment. It is the most engaging spectacle of the social economy, save that tender scene which closes, like a summer day, the parental journey, under the care and kindness, the watchings and support of filial love. These are like the autumn clouds upon the evening sky, spreading their hues of beauty and of grandeur, where gently sinks the setting sun, as in a bed of glory.

Charity, friendship, and peace are nowhere so amiable and engaging as among those "whom one roof has sheltered through life, and whose ashes are afterward to mingle in the same sepulchre." This was the sentiment of the Roman orator, and yet more beautiful is the language of the Christian poet

"How pleasant 'tis to see

Kindred and friends agree!
Each in their proper station move,
And each fulfill his part,
With sympathizing heart,

In all the cares of life and love.

Like fruitful showers of rain,
That water all the plain,
Descending from the neighboring hills;

Such strains of pleasure roll,
Through every friendly soul,

When love, like heavenly dew, distills.”

The subject to which we would now invite special attention is the relation and duties of brothers and sisters.

1. The first and most obvious duty is to cultivate the fraternal affections, and to promote each other's happiness.

The peace and mutual pleasure of the inmates of the same home and children of the same family cannot be too much studied, nor is any labor too great to secure them. Here is a most sacred duty. Indifference to the interest and pleasure of those so near whose very form and features are but a reflection of your own, is melancholy proof of a selfish spirit, and the absence of every virtuous and noble feeling.

you,

Through days and years you must of necessity mingle together, and the amount of harmony and happiness, or of discord and sor