CHAPTER VIII. FRANCIS L. MACKENZIE, THE STUDENT. "I thy servant fear the Lord from my youth."-1 KINGS Xviii. 12. "Learn thou, O young man, God hath appointed wisdom the reward Of study. 'Tis a well of living waters, Whose inexhaustible bounties all might drink, But few dig deep enough." MANY of the most attractive and useful memoirs are those of persons who were early removed from this scene. Brainerd and Martyn, M'Cheyne and Hewitson, John Macintosh and Hedley Vicars, were all young men whose careers were as brief as they were brilliant, but whose biographies have multiplied the beauty of their Christian characters, and extended their usefulness in spheres where personally they could not have found admission. Though a grievous loss as was the death of each of these "burning and shining lights," their removal in the very midst of strength and usefulness has had its great compensation in the many souls their recorded experience has won to Jesus. Early Death not Premature, is the appropriate title to a Memoir of Francis L. Mackenzie, which has been admirably compiled by the Rev. Dr. C. P. Miles, of Glasgow. It is another instance of the remarks just made. It adds another name to the noble roll of young men in the service of Christ here, and in the glory of Christ above. F. L. MACKENZIE was the second son of Lord Mackenzie, lately one of the judges in Scotland, and grandson of the celebrated Henry Mackenzie, author of The Man of Feeling. Blessed with pious parents, especially a judicious Christian mother, Frank early evinced a beauty and grace of character that won for him the affection of all who knew him, and a decision that left no doubt of his sanctification to the Lord in his tenderest years. The picture of the home at Belmont, given fully in the Memoir by Dr. Miles, is one of the most charming and exemplary, and shows how unostentatious goodness, and the denial of the world, may be realized in the highest circles of society. Belmont is not a solitary instance. There are in our time not a few mansions of the great that are nurseries for heaven. Though subject to like passions with others, and expressing them occasionally, the childhood of Frank Mackenzie was intelligent devotion. "The children used to meet in their mother's bed-room at eight o'clock every morning, for Bible-reading, conversation, and prayer. One day the passage read (Exod. xxvii. 20) was descriptive of the oil for the vessels of the tabernacle, and the meaning and practical application were illustrated by passages from the New Testament. Frank was then only five years old; it was not imagined that he could feel the slightest interest in a subject supposed to be beyond his age; but when the elder children were dismissed, and he was brought forward to be taught some of the more simple portions of Scripture, he knelt down as usual to pray, and in the midst of his prayer, pausing for a moment, ejaculated with impressive earnestness, 'O my God, make me to burn this day with pure oil." He was taught the need of prayer, and he loved the exercise. Sensitive in conscience, he scarcely ever forgot to seek pardon for the sins of the day, and particularly after outbursts of temper or acts of disobedience. On one occasion his mother found him sobbing, and asked the cause. He said that he wished to be alone. He was left; and his mother, who waited behind the door, heard him engage in prayer. Upon her entrance, and asking the cause of his sorrow and anxiety to be alone, he replied with suffused eyes, “I intended to tell everything, but I could not until I had first confessed my sin to God, and obtained his pardon." Generous and compassionate, he was ever ready to share his portion with the poor, and longed to be a medical missionary. When "asked one day by some friends of the family-and he was then scarcely five years old-whether he would like to be a judge, he answered, 'I think I should like better still to teach the children about the Bible-to tell them about Jesus, and how he loved them, and hung upon the cross for them; for that would make them love him, and if they loved him, they would be good, and not need to be judged at all.” When eight years old, being at the Isle of Wight with his mamma, he took delight in reading the Bible to an aged woman in a cottage; and Annie Symons was blessed by the labours of the prayerful child. He did much to comfort a young sufferer "entirely confined to his couch." He delighted to give tracts on the roads and streets, and never loved flattery for his labours. His was a genuine, unaffected piety-a service of the heart to the Lord. From a child he knew the Holy Scriptures, which made him wise unto salvation, through faith that is in Christ Jesus. What encouragement to godly training! O mothers, be cheered in your heavenly work! "Mother, watch the little tongue, Prattling, eloquent, and wild; What is said, and what is sung, By thy happy, joyous child. "Mother, watch the little heart, Beating soft and warm for you; Wholesome lessons now impart, Keep, oh! keep that young heart true. Sowing good and precious seed, Harvest rich you then may see Ripening for eternity." The mind of a child gets often more of heaven in it than the full-grown man. Simplicity is essential to faith. The trustful child is the best example. "I look upon them [children] as the best commentators on the Bible," says a popular writer. It is such faith as marked our infancy that we recur to in age and in a dying hour. It was this that irradiated the last hours of the great philosopher Arago. The memory of his mother's nursery-teaching seemed his only gospel knowledge. Sir Isaac Newton felt the same. My dear reader, strive to realize this simple faith. How many look back on childhood with sorrow, as the poet : The school days of Frank Mackenzie were marked by the same beauty of character, piety, and dutifulness, which belonged to his childhood. He attended the Edinburgh Academy for six years, and made good progress. In 1849 he entered the University of Glasgow, where he studied during three sessions before going to Cambridge. At this time he had an ardent desire to qualify himself to be a medical missionary, and to spend his life in labours of love among the heathen. Circumstances led him afterwards to change his intention, but his missionary spirit remained strong. While at Glasgow, Frank was called to endure afflictions. His father, Lord Mackenzie, died November 17, 1851, and his brother Henry was seriously ill at the Bridge of Allan. Henry was a most interesting young man, of good abilities, of rare affection, and of earnest piety. The two brothers, who were fondly attached to each other, were wont to hold a little meeting for Scripture reading and prayer. In 1839 it was commenced, and continued daily to the last while they were together. "It is not possible," says Dr. Miles, “to over-estimate the value of the practice. Habitual fellowship in prayer in childhood is a preservative from many of the evils which, being indigenous, soon attain mature and permanent growth; it is the cementing bond of love among the inmates of the same household." After a temporary sojourn in France, a brief residence at Belmont, and during his removal to Torquay, Henry died in London, October 13, 1853. Mrs. Mackenzie was then very poorly, and had only partially recovered a serious attack. Henry's death was peace. He had been most decided, prayerful, and submissive, in his Christian course, and at the last rested calmly on his Saviour. He was a very successful student, and was the author of a valuable essay on The Christian Clergy of the First Ten Centuries; their Beneficial Influence on European Progress,—a work which reveals the loss sustained in his early death. Frank entered Trinity College, Cambridge, in October 1852. Throughout his academic career, he devoted himself with great diligence to his studies, but never forgot the great concerns of religion. His letters breathe a spirituality of tone. His readings were always associated with some practical book, and his conversation was in heaven. He regularly taught a class in Jesus Lane Sunday School, Cambridge, and was a |