On Prince Echvard Island mankind is most agreeable to the will of God . That which does not promote his happiness is opposed to the divine will. Every ruler is bound to remember that he is raised to the chair of magistracy for the good of those over whom he rules. "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord." From the let¬ ter and spirit of the text we purpose to show what is the character of a good ruler. I. The ruler ought to be a man of piety. The proof of this is complete from the words of the text. "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord." But a person canunot rule in the fear of the Lord unless he hath that fear. But the fear of the Lord means religion. The fearers of God mean religious persons. "Come all ye that fear the Lord and I will tell you what he hath done for my soul." "They that feared the Lord spake often one to another", that is, religious persons. The fear of the Lord then means religion, and it is a requisite in the character of a good ruler. We fear that this requisite is overlooked by many in their choice of rulers. In choosing persons to rule over them they do not look for religious persons. In forming an es¬ timate of the ingredients of a ruler they do not take into account the principal element—religion. They look only for persons who will suit their political ideas. If they can only have such persons, they can very well dispense with religion. This, however, is wrong. If there be any truth in the Bible, religion is an indispensable element in the character of a 249