provinces of the East; even her enemies acknowledged her qualifications and merit. She claimed descent from the celebrated Cleopatra of Egypt, and like that queen, was possessed of fine scholastic attainments. She could speak fluently, and write both in the Syriac, Greek, and Egyptian languages, and was not unacquainted with the Latin. She prepared for her own use a volume of oriental history, and under the eye of her instructor, the celebrated Longinus, she pleasantly compared the beauties of Plato and Homer. She governed her dominion with gentleness and firmness. The neighboring kingdoms of Arabia, Armenia, and Persia, dreaded her power and solicited her friendship and alliance. The pomp and splendor of her court, vied with that of Persia, and far exceeded that of Rome. Her children received a princely education in her palace at Palmyra. But, alas! the spoiler was near. When Aurelian succeeded to the throne at Rome, and had demolished other rivals, who had dared to assume the purple, he turned his arms eastward, and resolved that the pride of the powerful Zenobia should be crushed. Aware of his intentions, she prepared her vast armies, and marched in person at the head of them to meet the invincible Romans. They met, they fought, and in two hostile conflicts the Romans were victorious. She then shut herself up in her capital, and made every preparation for a vigorous defence. The emperor in pressing the siege, was wounded, and an epistle written by him at this time, will give an idea of the extent of her power. "The Roman people speak with contempt of a war I am waging against a woman! they are ignorant of the character and power of Zenobia. It is impossible to enumerate her warlike preparations, of stones, of arrows, of every species of missile weapons. Every part of the wall is provided with two or three balistac, and artificial fires are thrown from her military engines. The fear of punishment has armed her with a desperate courage. Yet still I trust in the protecting deities of Rome, who have hitherto been favorable to all my undertakings." After a protracted siege, the emperor sent ambassadors to the queen with offers of peace. She rejected them with proud disdain. Daily was she expecting an army from Persia to her assistance; they came not, and hearing that many of her own followers were deserting to the foe, as a last resort, she resolved to fly. Seated upon her swiftest dromedary, and escorted by a few guards, she escaped like an arrow. Yet she was overtaken upon the banks of the Euphrates, sixty miles from her capital, and brought back a prisoner, to the feet of the emperor. He sternly demanded "why she had dared to rise in arms against her sovereign?" Her reply displays her womanly tact and prudence. "Becanse I disdained to consider as Roman emperors an Areolus or a Gallienus. You alone I regard as my conqueror, and my sovereign." Palmyra soon after surrendered, and this proud capital of the East, which at one time vied with Rome itself in splendor, was destroyed, and never again beheld its former glory. Zenobia was a prisoner of war; yet was treated with the respect due to her station, during the long and wearisome march to Rome. Universal peace was then restored to the empire, and according to the ancient custom, the triumph of Aurelian was celebrated with pomp and magnificence. The scene was opened by three hundred curious animals of distant climates; next came the arms and wealth of conquered nations, heaped in the most showy and admirable disorder. Then the foreign ambassadors, and following these the captive queen, upon whom every eye was riveted. She was on foot, dressed in the splendor of her sunniest days; her fine figure was confined by a golden fetter, and a slave supported the massive gold chain which encircled her neck. She almost fainted under the weight of jewelry which oppressed her. Then came her elegant carriage, preceding the car of the emperor, and lastly the Roman senators, people and army, closed the imposing scene. But the dethroned queen was ever kindly treated by her conqueror. A beautiful villa was presented her, twenty miles from Rome, and as years passed away, she became like the ladies of Rome, and seemed almost to forget that she was once a queen. Her children were given in marriage to honorable Romans, and her posterity were numerous on the earth, yet none of them ever inherited the superior abilities, which so strongly characterized their brave and beautiful "BEFORE I came here, I erroneously supposed that one should be immediately struck, and overpowered, and enchanted at first, but that afterward there would be a certain degree of monot seemed like a white-winged sunbreak when it blazed on the snowy glare of the ever-foaming cataracts. "I hardly ever saw before such dazzling light ony attached to that unvarying sublimity, whichning; and those reverberating peals of Niagara I wrongly believed to be the great characteristic of Niagara. But, how miserably did I do it injustice! Perhaps the most peculiar and transcendent attribute of this matchless cataract, is its almost endless variety. The innumerable diversities of its appearance, the continual countless rapid alterations in its aspect; in short, the perpetually varying phases which it displays, are indeed wondrous and truly indescribable. This is a great deal owing to the enormous volumes of spray which are almost incessantly shifting and changing their forms like the clouds above. Niagara, indeed, has its own clouds, and they not only give it the great charm and interest of an ever-beautiful and exquisite variety, but also environ it with a lovely and bewildering atmosphere of mystery, which seems the very crown of its manifold perfections and glories. "Niagara has its changes like the sea, and in its lesser space circumscribed, they seem fully as comprehensive and multitudinous. I have dwelt long on this, because I do not remember to have seen this mighty and transcendent feature of Niagara particularly noticed in any of the descriptions I have read of it, and it has most especially delighted and astonished me. "We were so very fortunate as to have a tremendous thunderstorm here on Tuesday night, and it may be guessed what a tremendous thunderstorm must be here! The heavens seemed literally opening just over the great cataracts, and the intensely vivid lightning, brighter than day, lit up the giant Falls, and seemed mixed and mingling with dazzling mountains of spray, which then looked more beautiful and beatific than ever. It was a wild windy night, as if all the elements were reveling together in a stormy chaotic carnival, of their own, till it really presented altogether a scene almost too awfully magnificent. "The deafening roar of the crashing thunder was yet louder than the roar of the cataract, and completely appeared to drown it while it lasted; but the moment the stormy roll of the thunder died away, it was grand indeed to hear again the imposing, unceasing sound of Niagara-like the voice of a giant conqueror uttering a stunning but stately cry of victory. Then soon the bellowing thunder broke forth again, fiercer and louder than before; and oh, the lightning! it out-voicing thunder were truly terrific, and appeared quite close. Heaven and earth seemed shouting to one another in those sublime and stupendous voices; and what a glorious hymn they sang between them! At first, the lightning was only like summer flashes, and it kept glancing round the maddened waters as if playing with them, and defying them in sport; but after a little while, a fearful flash updarted really like a sudden sun, behind the great Horse Shoe Fall, and the whole blazed out into almost unendurable light in a moment. The storm continued the whole night. "From our drawing-room windows we have a magnificent view of the Horse Shoe Fall, and almost the whole of the American one besides ; and what a sublime pomp and pageant of Nature it is! What a thrilling, soul-stirring sight; and, ever new and ever changing, and eternally suggesting fresh thoughts, fresh feelings and emotions. Just now, a violent gust of wind drove a huge cloud of spray quite on our side of the Canadian Falls, and it was hovering between the two glorious cataracts like a mighty, suspended avalanche, till it dispersed. This transcendently beautiful spray is generally most brilWe saw a liantly white, like a sunlit snow. vast resplendent rainbow on the water itself on Tuesday afternoon, of colors quite unimaginably bright, and we had a marvelously glorious sunset last evening. There were flaming, bloodred reflections on the rocks, trees, and islands; but the most delicate suffusions only, of a rich soft rose color, rested on the fantastic forms of the matchless spray-as if it softened and refined every thing that came near it, and made all that touched it as rare and exquisite as its own etherialized self. He who has not seen, can have no idea of the absorbing nature of the admiration excited in one's mind by this surpassing and astounding marvel of creation; I feel quite enthralled and fascinated by it, and time seems to fly by at an electric-telegraph pace here, while I am watching it. "I feel so rooted and riveted to this spot by the unutterable enchantments of this masterpiece of Nature, I can scarcely believe that two days have passed since I first arrived. One becomes here, indeed, utterly Niagarized; and the great cataract goes sounding through all one's soul, and heart, and mind, commingling itself with all one's innermost feelings and fancies. The sounds of the Fall vary nearly as much as their aspect; sometimes very hollow, at other times solemn and full-toned, like an host of organs uttering out their grand voices together; and sometimes, as I heard it said, the other day, with a rolling kettle drum, gong-like sound, in addition-as if it were a temporary and accidental accompaniment to their majestic oceanic roar." [THE following poem is the product of a very pleasant exercise of talent between two bosom friends at a Seminary in Rhode Island. They frequently wrote poems and dialogues together, and a most happy blending of like poetic thought and unity of expression, showed how many affinities of mind united them together. Beautiful are these school friendships, where the union is truly of the purest and best feelings and affections, where rivalry is lost in the oneness of aspiration, and each is willing to pour into the soul of the other whatever of beauty may be given it. The following poem was written conjointly by A. E. Remington and her friend "May"-whose daguerreotype we lately looked upon with a desire to see those lips move that we are sure can talk as easily as our canary sings his song of the morning. We should be pleased to have her a more frequent correspondent. ED.] ONA AND IDA. ΟΝΑ. OH! dark browed sister of the sunny South, Look up! behold!— See where our giant mountains rise in snow, Pure, white and cold. Great Odin's smile in sunlight falls on them In radiated brightness unto heaven. Of dizzy steeps the daring hunter thinks, The priestess of Narnir dwells Amid the snow. IDA. With an eager restless longing for the hills with vintage crowned, Wearily my sad eye wanders, wanders wearily around. Not a bird with shining feathers flieth singing through the air, Not a flower bends before me in its silent evening prayer. In my home the sunshine nestles 'mid the fruit of shining gold, With a loving which is absent on your mountains bright and cold. ONA. Look then beyond our mountains to the North, In one continuous blaze of living light, The glory of our Odin's presence fills Goes up in music, throbbing audibly IDA. All is bright, fair northern maiden, but our skies are ever blue, Save when rich-robed sunset tints them with its glowing rainbow hue. When the twilight cometh stilly-cometh with its shadows dim, With the evening breath of flowers goeth up our vesper hymn. And when moonlight every wavelet with a crest of silver tips, Songs come o'er the water stealing, and the oar melodious dips. ΟΝΑ. Mark well our warrior chieftains, noble maid, With clear blue eyes and golden floating hair, Look on the peerless daughters of our snows, Supreme in woman majesty they rise, Bend with us in our worship to our God List the revealings of the mystic three 'Twixt heaven and earth, weave human destinies, While on our souls In power sublime and high the awful flood Throw back thy shining ebon locks, unclose Sad stranger, 'mid our northern snows dream not In a discussion on Slavery, at one of the sittings of the Cincinnati Synod of Presbyterians, Dr. Junkin, President of Miami University, declaimed against any limit being put to the extended meaning of forever, and used the following classic and beautiful language in replying to the idea that the year of Jubilee limited the bondage of a Hebrew slave: "If forever means but thirty days, or ten days, or one day; then rejoice all ye devils and damned spirits; rejoice ye thieves, and liars, and drunkards, and profane swearers, and Sabbath breakers; for behold we bring unto you glad tidings we proclaim in hell a Universalist jubilee; you shall be punished indeed forever; but glory be to licentious criticism, forever means but thirty days, or one day! Do you believe it, Mr. Moderator? Is there a devil in hell so foolish as to believe it ?" He gave force to this declamation by supposing the case of a slave purchased a few days before the Jubilee-a month, for instance; then forever would be limited to a month. There is nothing absurd in this. A slave bought a month before the year of Jubilee, would be bought with that limit in view, as a lease is purchased, or the time of a minor who has but a month of his minority left. Dr. Junkin gave his opponent in debate a good thrust when he said, “My brother did not reason so in his late discussion with the Universalist."And just so it is all around us. Ministers arguing against Universalism, give meanings to words opposite to the meaning they attach to them when reasoning against slavery, or some object within their own borders. One thing is certain. Jonah declared "the earth with her bars was about me forever," Jonah ii. 6; and we know the limit of this time of bondage was three days, and therefore three days is spoken of as forever. It is the thing, the matter, the circumstance, that limits all words implying extension of time; for an hour seems nothing to a man about to be hung, but it is a short eternity to one waiting a reprieve which he believes is on the road for him. SPEAKING of future retributions, Dr. Channing says: "A solemn darkness bangs over the prison-house of the condemned. One thing alone is certain, that we shall suffer greatly hereafter, if we live here in neglect of God's known will, his providential aid, his revelation by Christ." He does not simply say that it is certain that the soul neglecting here God's known will, must suffer greatly hereafter, but he strengthens his expression by saying that this is the one thing alone that is certain. Here is the great difference between Unitarianism and Universalism. Allowing the certainty of the punishment of wilful sin in the future state, Universalism enables us to say that this is not the only thing certain; it is also certain that the Fatherhood of God will be the same there as here, and, in the language of Channing, "nothing is too great a good to expect from such a Father as Christianity presents." How, in view of such a thought, he could say, "God's mercy, if it shall be extended to the impenitent, is not yet revealed," we know not. He adds: "Such a hope forms no part of my message, for in my view it makes no part of revelation. The Scriptures show us the wicked banished into darkness. In that exile it leaves them. That darkness hides them from our sight. If mercy is to be extended, it is mercy to be revealed hereafter." "IT is not the height to which men are advanced that makes them giddy; it is the looking down with contempt upon those beneath." WHAT IS DONE WITH THE WICKED? A SUBSCRIBER in Morgan, Ashtabula County, Ohio, writes to us thus: "Here the question is often asked of the Universalist, what is done with one who dies in the act of sin? If it is not too much for me to ask, will you give me your answer to such a question? and also your view of the orthodox doctrine of man's probation, with your reasons?" We are always glad to aid any mind towards the great truths of religion, and if we ever delay, as in this case we have delayed, the answer, the reason should be understood to be the pressure of claims on our time. We do not know that we can better answer our correspondent than by an extract from one of our articles in a former volume of the Repository, as this will answer both questions-as to what is done with the man who dies in the act of sin, and what we think of the orthodox doctrine of probation. We reject this doctrine of probation, because it is manifest to us that here in this mortal state there is retribution—“ Verily, He is a God that judgeth in the earth." Psalm lviii. 11. transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward" Heb. ii. 2. The orthodox doctrine of probation is based on the denial of present retribution; this is a sufficient reason for rejecting it. We believe in Probation and Retribution here. 'Every Now, let us fix our minds on one single question-Into what condition do the dead go, so far as relates to means of improvement? There are but three propositions which can be set up, and these I will set forth, and let us discriminate and choose wisely: 1. God will, by an act of irresistible power, or by the action of laws already established and operative, place every soul, at death, in a state of perfect and unalterable misery; or, 2. He will by an act of irresistible power, or by the action of laws already established and operative, fix every soul in a state of complete and unalterable happiness; or, 3. He will do neither, but afford to every soul hereafter, as here, the means of improvement and of obtaining thereby happiness. Now, which of these propositions is most reasonable? No reasonable idea of God will involve the truth of the first proposition. Such an exercise of sovereign power is too horrid to think of a moment,-it involves the whole of our race in one common and inevitable ruin. 18 VOL. XX. I am not inclined to adopt the second. Happiness is purest and best when it comes through the free action of our minds yielding to the good motives and endearing persuasives of Divine Grace. The pressure of necessity is hard to bear even when it bears on to enjoyment. The ceaseless flow of the river, unaffected by storms, carrying along the boat without any need of effort to impel or guide its course, is not the happiest stream on which to sail. Blancho White,-a man of great mental power, said he felt it a sad thought at times, that he must be immortal, that no choice could be made. But this were asking too much freedom of will, and we might be left to make our choice in a way that would eclipse entirely the parental, over-ruling love of God. But this shows how the strong mind dislikes the pressure of necessity,-the proud steed champs the iron of the bits that rule him, though his way be the path of glory. Now, if these propositions are both rejected, yet they must be measurably received if the common doctrine of no change subsequent to death is admitted. The idea of the exercise of irresistible power to fix in unalterable happiness and woe is inevitable, where the popular doctrine is received. While in this world, the good man may become bad, and the bad man good, and the best of good men remind us of the activity of some evil in them. Now, if when death ensues, the good man is so circumstanced outwardly or inwardly, or both, that he can sin no more, but the whole force of his immortal being must be given unto good and good only; and if the bad man must pursue only evil to all eternity, then there is an exercise of irresistible power in both cases; and that which confirms the good in goodness, is also employed to confirm the evil in evil. Is there not something abhorrent to right reason in this view of things? and does it not throw upon the Deity directly the eternal continuance of sin? Let this be pondered, for here is the point at which centres all the arguments of the dominant church. Eminent divines in speaking of the heathen, their exposure to wrath, tell us it is very easy to decide the question whether the heathen must be utterly lost, if they die unregenerated. And what is the easy test,-what is the grand solvent of the difficulty? It is this: Look, it is said, at their sins, their courses of evil, and only imagine them made immortal, and you must see that they can never be happy : what renders them debased and wretched here, must render them debased and wretched hereaf |