GENESEE EVANGELIST.—WhoIe No. 735-
CONSOLATION.
BY MAHY HOWITT.
There is a land where beauty cannot
Nor sorrow dim the eye;
Where* free Tore shall not droop, nor tyft^amfayed,
' Ahdnone shall ererdie!
■ "Where is that land! Oh, where!
For I would hasten there; “v
Tell me—l fain would |6,
For I am weary,with a heavy wot
The beautiful hare left, me all alone;
The true, the tender, front my path have gone!
Oh I guide me with thy hand,
If thou dost knowthat land,
For lam burdened, with oppyeflalre oare, ?- . ; r
And I am weak and fearftd wl|h despair.
Where Is It? Tell me where!
Friend, thou must trust in Him Who trod before
• The desolate path* of life; '
Must bear in meekness, as he meekly bore,"
Sorrow, and pain, and strife 1,
Think how the Son of Cfod *
. These thorny paths has trod} '
Think how if longed to go, , , . „•«. ,
' Yet tarried for thee, theappolnted wo,—.
ik of Hie weariness in places dim, . r ;
ire no man comforted or caredfor.Himl
Think of the blood-like sweat,
With whioh Hie brow was wet;
it how he prayed, unaided and alone,
that greet agony—“ Thy will be done!”
•lend, da not,then despair} ,
irlst, from Ms heaven of heavens, will hear thy prayer.
tfam-sjtott&ettce.
For the American Presbyterian.
A CRITICISM REVIEWED.
In a late number of the American Rresby
itlanwe noticed a criticism upon ourversian
l it occurs in Heb. i.
-esented under the caption!of Kat’Aeohas.
'e have no acquaintance with the author, but
'eaume that it-was made with a love for truth,
evidently with a desire to obviate what, in
the mind of the writer, appeared to be a diffi
culty, from Geology. What those " unlettered
readers,” of Whom he spoke, may gain by such
an exposition, we cannot tell. But we can easily
decide what value thoaewho are not “unlettered”
would attach to such a criticism, by the consi
deration of the following facts., , ~,, ( . .
The critic says ‘fJ&k
words, signifying “,?»
lation of Heb. i. 10, should thus be read, and-he
very summarily condemns the translators to the
punishment and plagues written iriHev. xxii. 18,
for attempting to add to God’s word, I sup
pose the critic applied the wrong'veree in his
application of the sentence of; condemnation,
and should have quoted the 19th verse, ito,
according to his showing, they took oioop.at
;ast several beginnings in removing one letter.
But let us examine the facts. Does this critic
know that the apostle was quoting the 102 d
psalm, 25th verse, in this chapter of Hebrews?
Certainly he does. Does he know, being a
“lettered” man,, that the words in the Greek
are word for word an exact quotation from the
Septnagint, which was -the accepted translation
in the apostle’s time ? Oertainlyi. and Wkndws
that this Greek “Eat' Archas" was used to con
vey the meaning of the corresponding Hebrew
word in the 102 d psalm, 25th Verse, which the
apostle quoted. Certainly. Well then, what was
that word in the Hebrew psalm translated by j
“KaV ArcKas,” and in TEngUsh “beginning ?’.’
Why, it is a word of a plural form, hot of a sin
gular signification; a word never used otherwise
than in a plarai form in all its uses as a common
noun, and in the psalm signifying in “times
before,” or “of old,” and it is translated,
“Of old hast thou laid the foundation,” &e.
What is the word in the original of that psalm
thus quoted? It is, in English, letters, “le
panim ;” the word in the singular would mean
“ a face,” but it is used adverbially, and never
in the singular, butmusi nevertheless be trans
lated as singular, in the English. What’s the
■oof? Gen. xxxii. 30, “I have seen God face
to face"— the Hebrew words are “panim el
panim” The termination “im’f indicates the
plural. Suppose we take the critic’s literal
translation, “I have seen God faces to faces.”
Again. Deut. xxxlv. 10, “Mdses, whom the
>rd knew face to face.” Precisely the same
.ebrew words. Would you render therii in the
dural? Try it! Again; Job, i. 11. “Game
bee to thy face," same plural word. Try the
-oposed literal translation, curse tbde to “thy
ices.” Is this conveying to the unlettered rea
ier the meaning, or is “it calculated to deceive
im ?” So in Job, xxi. 31, Isaiah, lxv. 8, arid
many other passages. But how does this
•d become translated “of old,” or “in the
inning?” Why, this latter is a secondary
ming, as is frequently, found in connection
,h some words in every language'. The “face,”
hat which is before, and hence in regard to
the word is need adverbially for tfcat yrhich
ipfore all, or in advance; andvhence in the
. psalm translated, “of old,” dr “in the be
ning.” ' ' ;;r; v
t is alluded td bnfc onoe in the New Tehta
t, namely inAhe passage in question, and
it is in a literal Greek translation of those
:ew words “ le panlm,”'the adverbial phrase,
:h is no more used in the eingtflar.tbwtir th«f
scissor used as singular 1 of scissors, or. tong
tongs. Turning to the Old Testament wd
-e Amos, i. 1, “two years before the earth
ike.” In Hebrew, the same plural word is
:d precisely. Now supply our critic’s words,
it reads, “ two years • in beginnings' of the
•thquake.” Again. Is. xviii. 5. “Forafore
harvest,” The critic’s translation Will read
For ‘ in beginnings 1 of the harvest.” Again,
xiii. 10. “Before the Lord destroyed
om and Gomorrah.” The same word and
iber: Pray how many >rbeofdngs ” did the
rd make in that work? .So in Gen. xxx. 30,
Before I came.” Jer. xxviil. 8. “Thepro
mts that have been before.tae, and before those
old prophesied.” How many “ beginnings ”
i there to a man’s death? Yet this word,
instated “ Kat’ Archas,” is used in
h Moses’death. Deut. xxxiii. 1. “He blessed
children of Israel before his death. ” JRe
\ber, these are only a few of many instances
ie word (excepting in the proper name
del) is never used in the singular —and yet
it be translated as singular in English,
tides, if the critic is so critical, by What un
ity from heaven or earth, does he pat “be
lings” to the word vie panim?” It;means
rally “to face"— less literally it means
iefore,”orleastof all “ of old,” or “ofancient
tes.” There is nothing to perch his “begin-,
qlngß ” upon, not even in the Greek translation;
for that is not a particle more authoritative
than the English; Now if onr critic wishes to
pick a quarrel with any translators, don’t let
him stop at good and learned English vergionists,
bat go back to the Septuagint translators, even
back of the Latin version of Jerome before 400
A. D., and' quote Rev;' xxii:"l ! 8, : as their 1 con- :
!Z%^#eretheorigita : ators
of “Kat 5 iArchas,’? Os the translation of ! “ ei
jpom'h»i” Yl| fhfeh “ 'el
outstart of all hoary-hairedantiquity, tbeliteral
and primary signification of “beginnings;’*
md jt* because Of the extreme ahSidty of
Septuagiiit translators to 1
Dr. Moses Sthart says, they frequently sacrifice
the sense to the literal translation. Therefore;
"-Kaf Arches,” the pet of our good critic’s cri
ticism; if he is a faithful interpreter, can never
help the “rocks” a whit If thoae ’ < froofei”
have ho better foundation to rest upon than
this criticism of “Kat’Arcbaa,’’they’ll come
down upon our ctitic’s head, as the rocks' did
once upon ‘ Samson’s, which he pulled down
atodhd his ears; and the last sound to the critic
before the fall, will be, Rev. xxii. 18. It would
not help the affrighted critic ‘at all, unless it
was to a stone-bound sepulchre, and hence we
Object to the criticism fof this, and other reasons
which might at another time,- and in another
place, be more appropriate and acceptable. '
, .F<» the American Presbyterian.
“MODERN ANTIftiriTIES.’: v ;
, Imastneeds takea text, or the reader, after
looking at the above caption, willnofc believe that
I am in sober earnest.Welfhere it is—Lev.
xxi. 17-^24—-read it leisure:; it is -too
ldiig-for me to,qiiote . < 1
► I -have: read*' it trith surprise, Xi presume;,
many have,, to see that God should have made. " a
blemish,” as it is called, in man’s physical organi
zation—a oause.for rejecting him from serving at
the altar. “Aflat hose, a club foot, a hunchback; '
or- he that :hatb the Beurvy,’’-&c., should be ex
oluded from the service ofthe.iLord! “He .might
eat of the bread of: his God, both that,which is. the
holy, duds that s which thei ! most; holy.;. but jbe
must not come 'nigh to offerthat is,- he must not
attempt to officiate'iaS a priest..;
Ifa. aH ottter oases, I believe, in the Bible, moral
“blemiahes,” and; these . alonei disqualifted their
possessor, for serving, at the' altar of God; but here
we have several, for which a man is neither praise
norblame-worthy, anympreithanforthclength of
his nosey.or thevoolor of they were
a sufficient reason for thrusting out their .possessor,
and closing against him the; house of ;
And why ? uot.because any blame could be at
tached to their but,for a yesydiffisent
reason, SH*ely. Mm fire men, and while they “TO
Btich, if they can find ?.h®T
the* these ;be moral ~or those which - are purely
will
cause of. their depravity, but by reasoti. of fheii
native preference for that which is perfect j for it
is seldom, if ever, thatjthese; bleWshes/’.asfhey
are called ,in the text,; awaken any. other emotions
than those of pain, which would not he the case,
were they rendered, agreeable fd us, by, reason, of
our common depravity. There is a natural love
of beauty implanted in every-human breast, whe
ther of form or countenance, or what-not: a natu
ral love of order, consistency, propriety, justice,
benevolence, and the like. .Wo are.so made that
we cannot help revolting or turning away with
disgust from any spectacle of horror or deformity
that we are left to contemplate.
Hence ttie necessity for shutting out those per-
had been thus marred “ in^theieqiMPS
had they heeh-gufferdd-to: stand before the
congregation of the Lord, and dfficiated'at his al
tar, the hearer, the common worshipper, would
not have been ablo tq take his mind off from them
for a single moment. “A split nose'/ would be.
the only thing the hearer could* see. - His inind
and soul, which ought, of course, to be occupied
with heavenly and eternal things, would be,look
ing at “blemishes," and consequently would lose
the instruction, or miss the improvement;, which
otherwise he might hope to secure, and which
were intended for him. Who ever yetsaw a crip
ple, and could think of any thing but his defor
mities; while looking at him? Who ever witnessed
any remarkable deviation from the established
modes'of dress, and could follow an argument, or
listen to an exhortation, or ariy thing of the kind,
while the object of his; ourioßity;was before him ?
This being the ease;,all paintings on-the wails
of bur churches, in the rear of the speaker espe
cially, should be repudiated—whether they be de
lineations of good iori evil, well ill executed.
Before the hearer is aware of it, his mind is drawn
to .them, and he loses the thread of the dis
course." He may chide himself for it, as much
as he will, and aeep#idni»Blf!of a want' pf interest
in tbeidiscourse;: bhii lie :eahnot help tooks
Steadily at‘.these" unimportant»thjh^, ! >while the ini’
tcrests of eternity are neglected. : =
It was in obedience to this law of our nature,
that the law of our. text was enacted. It was a
faot Well Ichown to the' Creator, that while the
hearer knew of any moral deformity in the speak
er, however eloquent or solemn bis discourse, how
ever-well-argnUd or conclusive, he would be think
ing bf nothing else while the speaker'was before,
him. A man may have been, in the course of his
life, , a very great sinner, and by repentance and
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, he may have be
come* one of Hod VehmV yet he should
the station of a minister of the church, for the
above reason: all his gdod deeds will be forgotten,
whilethose of infamy will be remembered.
Application, by way of inference. No man
should enter the sacred desk, to officiate at the
altar of Hod, while bis fdce is in subh a Costume
as to irresistibly) the - of bis
hearers. A certain mancame to ’our peaeeful vil
lage, a few days since, whose - reputation as a mi
nister of Christ was very fair,—who also stood
high asi a preacher of logician—-#
an “ eloquent orator" —a man to whose name some
excellent institution of learning had seen fit to add
, a those isemi-lunar-fardels,” D. D., and onr. pulpit
being vacant, he was invited to preach; No fault
could be well found with his sermon; it was well
well delivered, accompanied with every
necessary degree: of action; but, alas, his, tamh
it looked as if it bad sunk'back into retirement,
affii#t a w|ld‘ profusion ofhkir.and beMd-rihns
taobe and bristles! It was too much,'far.too
'much, for poor human nature. We could not
look thereon* and hear "the discourse, so we turned
ourselves about. 'The. gentleman thrSwdiis head
back, with all bis might, to give his voice a pas
sage through, tbs thicket which* had Withered
round the natural ioutletfof soundj but it was of
lit&e 'use—his words fbrth its 'if they 1 had
been strained thrOugh-a'-hair sieve. No body
seemed to ha veheardhis* sermon j or to be able'th
gltei auy iaccount of it, thVnext day.* One man
remarked that the Jews would probably start soon
on their return, as the high-priest was evidently
irrmotion; - Another expressed a wish that this
fashion Of everyJotberia
ppendage,amongmihisterB,’had beendeferredtill
fe had gOt- through' with the present* worlds t
must not-say what-some of the ottief sex Said "of
it. Two or- thfee inquiredj With' a Very kigiriflcani
twirl lof vthe dip, ijrhether the Dr. were a .married
man or: not.' In short,evety Ohehad sOeto his
givehny
account Of hS eermon, at least,- none that' spoke
of it.
My'dear .Tender, will you jnsfcvbe kind enough
to opew your Bible, and read the text? Read It
all, from beginning to ehd^—seeif ‘yoxt can "dis
cover whatus meant *by Antiquities or
more important' still, see if you catl eonjecture why
the lawof the text was written. t :Z- — —A.
-For the; American Presbyterian.
SKEPTICAL CHEISTIAHS.
If 6ne could, With tears,' exclaim, from the
depths of his paternal anxiety and, distress, to the
Redeemer himself—‘‘Ldrd, I believe; help thou
my unbelief, ” XMMkixf24,’) and was not rebuked,
how should we Hesitate before looking with cold
distrust and suspicion upon those about us now
who are filled with doubts and unbelief, hotwitni
standing tfieir severe internal struggleß, prayers,
and supphcatibnbT,' 1 ~./, '.J,
‘ From 'thie 1 appearance. and’; manners of some
| Christians, the journey to heaven would,seem but
I a triumphal rnarohy resounding with paeans andre-
I joicings.- Fof'them ; there would seem no foes to
I face. Even thisjile world but appears *‘a frie'hc.
to grace to help them on to God.” ’ Totheni there
are ifd difficulties in religion. No doubts or ques-
tions arise upon' the perusal of theßible, andfroni
the’ peculiar structure of 'their minds, if one is
presented to them, they will not entertain it’for a
m'diheflt as a'matter' of meditation; or as an object
of which it is desirable 'to possess 'a solution; but
quickly dismiss it as a messenger of Satan sent to
buffet'them,"dr in 1 eibalatioh'frbm the bottomless
pit itself. To them it is unwise to employ reason
'and'' their owh faculties ; ih the interpretation of
the : sacred as they do, 1 that
hath said— <c Come how, let us reason
together;” (Is. i. 18.) :
; These Christians, it is true, will complain ai
times of trialihy the Way-; but however much
of bodily afiSihtibhs; ! of the ibss.of
j health and property, these* they ; may properly tor
gard hs in ®tis gift, and’ at : his yet a
I doubt, with its troublesome distress,_ never
seems once to enter into their minds, and if they
meet one who eneoiwtets honest difficulties in
the 1 Bible, which agonize his heart with’ doubts,
their : Christian sympathies seem to shrink and
cotigealj their love for him cools, his society be
comes either irksome or pernicious,- and his pre
sence is to be avoided. * ‘ :i ■ ‘‘
• It not be untrue that the difficulties in
practice which the -rejoicing- Christian often expe
riences,-to the 'doubting Christian may be no dife
Acuities at all;'brut least but; trifling. -These'be
has -no trouble: with’ and rather performs them
with ease- and; < joy, indeed, he thinks ever
cmt i oomet'o]hisbreastU-.li6sshf friends, property j
health, reputation, &c., he bears with apparently
the same amount of Christian fortitude, and, for
any thing that appears; he evinces us much resig
nationun,seasons of keen: distress and hfflictipp, i
Difficulties in specUlatiOn' are his trials, and it is
those which give him that, worn .appearance, and
often a dejected airi . It is of those, with which
heris, 1 . 4 sickbed o’erwiththe pale - cast of thought.”
To him* alone the remark; is applicable, that “diffi
culties in speculation c&much' come* intbrthe) no
tion- of-'aPstate: of disciplige/ffs.difficalries Mp'rae
tice.” :-V-- - TWi.:-"o'’ r-y .:?'f:
Again, while the happy Christian shciul'd he
thankful for all tWe joy andioowfort heexperieneesj
yet it; would ibe fwell -fordiinf Ao bear in mind that
as <a thing tbosq of i b? 8 temperament are
less : zealous for inward purification, and more fre T
quently fail in the ; discharge of the commonest
duties of their profession, and oftener. bring dis
grace and dishonor, on the cause of their Master,
beforetheeyes of the world and infidels, than the
doubting -Christian; for, we think; it will be ap
parent, upon observation, that the. latter are more
careful “to ;depart frominiquity,’walk cir
cumspectly, and .to be- more sensitive.in regard to
the .-hoppt. of religion,rr-forsin,fact,-though strange
as' it msy, appear;4 their i velry skepticism prompts
them to a scrupulous discharge*of alh,tkeireqßire
ments of religion, often so: much so 88 fo lay them
open to the charge of endeavoring, to gain heaven
Christ." Upon
this very positapn onejof the mostprofound -think
ers that has yet appeared among men, bas.reT
marked;: “ If- the make and constitution of .man,
tjie, circumstances he is placed in, pr the reaspn of
things, afford the. best hint that virtue is tho law
he is born under, sfepticisJß tteeff should lead him
to the most strict and inviolable . practice qf ft.”
He will not, indeed, be heard to give vent to any
expression of joy and rapture, neither will he tell
of many seasons of secret . comfortable commu
nions, with God, much less will he reveal any
visions of spiritual elevation, but he will be found
to be walking softly before the Lord, and puncti
lious in the discharge of the most trivial duties,of
every-day life, and sustaining his heart with the
words.of the, Psalmist, “ Wait on the Lord, be. of
good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart,
wait, I say, on the Lord.” : vn. , ;
It must not be supposed from what has been
aaid' that we desigu to ascribe any merit to skepti
cism, or that it should be thought desirable to
cultivate it, hut these remarks may serve to create
iu the minds of some Christians a better estimate
of their doubting brethren. . ,
- Again, the doubting Christian is not.so because
he thinks Christianity untrue, but -.because he
bees somer.eatqn si>x its trnth, which is more than,
if hr itherbrethren often do, and he has
many.oi, us en iq» •»%-.
ijihe ,moral, integrity to, act in pursuance of the
[’degree of evidence afforded him. He does not
turn aside, Beeatfse not see the
whole from eriibadfrassuients, there
fore,' I will have nothing to it. He ra
tter'eonneets'the light'which ® has upon the
subject, with its acknowledged immrtahce, and acts
as if he were thoroughly cobvi^d 'of it in dl its
details—a subject of wbicTi* his iHrethren are real'
Iy no more informed than te is,'Snd probably to
more capable of. solving the diMeulties which ate
to him so harassing and distressifig. * The doubt
ing Christian considers that “ ! »is as teal an im
perfection in the moral character not to be influ
enced in practice by a lower d|pfee of evidence,
when discerned, as it is in the understanding not
to discern it.” [Butler’s imak#, part 11., chap.
... . ' . ■■£. .
‘ Lastly, while the happy Ch|stian should he
tbankftdfor the degree of conif|irtwhich he en
joys; hej should his doubting
brStSerf - Be'jpatietff wi®
withhim in-hismentad-drcublefep—for if that be
true which we have said about h»v strict and in
violable discharge of duties, theu|it becometh him
to respect his brother; for “his Strict discharge of
duty, with his less, sensible .evidence, does imply
a better dtfiracter than thesaiucdiligenee in the
discharge of it upon more sensib|e evidence.”
SEE EDITORIAL EX<|jßSlOff.
A correspbndent to whom the
Baltimore and Ohio Bailsoad lies 'extended the
courtesy of an: invitation rWi joiwinithe Editorial
utf the df-a por
tion of bis; trip.
Drab' Editoiss :— After an rapid
nth, I find thyself in this city of broad' streets,
magnificent’ distances, 'handsome' 'public buildings,
beautiful flower gardens and' residences:
with a' smaller population, it m! larger church
accommodations for its size thssfcany city iiPthe
middle'StateS.‘ l ”There'are no’w 26 churches herb;
itteludißg 2<6f diir own denomination:
* The rkpidity of the growth has
been certainly wonderful. Nine-years ago it had
9000 inhabitants. Now it has 28,000; It is one
of the greatest railroad centres ;in the country;
eight railroads branch out. towards all Ijofate
the compass, and an average of .-3000 pcople-ar
riye and depart from, its, spacious depot every
day.. It is really bewildering lif stand ferf a few
moments in the depot, and watch the trains from
all qnartersj.come and go, bearing their precious
loads, of humanity, each individual eager in press
ing onvrard in his own direction, and upon his
own-errand. : ■ ‘ -
I can scarcely realize that with: so little trouble
or weariness I hav® come over the 800 miles that
lie between us to-day. T left. Philadelphia at 11
o’clock, ;P. M., by sleeping. cars-'on the Wilming
ton and J^ltimorerailroa^-s^WTOke^gray
__ ... . ty X JCIU VJ liu‘6
Baltimore and Ohio railroad, an& wis Boon wind
ing my way along the beautiful where
.new and: charming scenery meets die eye,at every
turn'. At lllidott's Mills, the-, faonntriins arid
rocks show symptoms of violent 'throes of'nature,
in a primeval age, forming very bold and striking
scenery. The numerous mills all built; solidly of
stone, the pretty river, the high perpendicular
crags, all combineto makeittheveryspot for a
stereoscopic artist-to visit, and ~ to catch half-a-dozen
views'such as no one else has. The deep cut
through the overhanging ; rock above,the town,
would make a very striking picture. ‘
Soou we were upon the banks of the Potomac,
and aSuddtb turh Of the road, and a rrish; through
a dark bridge brings us to Harper's Jerry. Is
there a grander scene upon earth than the piling
np of those mighty crags on the Nortbside of the
river, and their opposite abutment below the junc
tion of the Shenandoah ? Thomas-Jeffersbn truly
said, .that .the.sight ,was. wel£,’Hy)rtb a voyage across
the Atlantic to behold. The impressionfdfees it-*
self Upon the mind that the Blue Ridge has at one
time been continuous across the stream —forming
another NiagSrij'with a lafge expanse of lakes
the rocky harrier thas since hrien cut
throughj leaving tiie: hold, precisions rocks piled
on each - side, full 1000 feet bighi (Had we pasSeS
hefe in the night, I should have half expected to
see olcl Brown’s ghost flitting-about the engine
house. . ;i: , >: - - i'
How it. came about that 15 men. took so large
a place, my visit made no blearer, than it has al
ways been, to my mind. -•
At Martinsburg, we dined most sumptuously.
It is certainly verycredi table to the-railroad com
pany that this feature is so satisfactory. They
gave us not only ample’time to eat, but' an abun
dance of the very best fare, sSrved up in the most
pleanly and inviting .mapner..- always, in
travelling, wish for Martiusburg tp.be thedining
station. With the byer-ehanging views of a ka
leidoscope, we wbuhd- f aiqDg the beart#tuhPotomac
,jor many miles, and before lopg.eame-to the old
|moky town of Cumberland, among the
hills. Formerly this was the end of all .Western
railroad travel, the passengers; here -taking, stages;
and the goods being transferred to’ Conestoga
team wagons. This was then a Very active place,
crowded with teamsters, and stage drivers and the
like, but those days are passed forever, and seem
really to be sunk in the oblivion of a? hundred
bygone years. Can it be that only eight short
years ago the iron.horse ran the Conestoga clean
off the track ? , What may we not see in eight
years-more? ■ .•.■ ......
We are soon atPiPdmont,where webegan in
good' bat nest to climb > the 'Allegheny s. ' A-fe n
whfeel locomotive of great power .is here attached,'
and we mount for 17 miles a grade of 117 feet to
the mile. No pen can describe, the wonderful
beauty and grandeur of the scenes here presented:
We wind around corners of the mountains, dart
through dark tunnels, and deep cuts through solid
rock 100 feet high on each side of.us., Then,.loop
feet.belpw usi dark and deep in the valley, yee
catch occasional glimpses of a. -little. streamthat
g6es tfhnbling and roaring over thei rocky Bed?
Beyond the stream rises the mojjmtaiif again’TSOO
fpet at fleast above it, addin some few. places cul
tivated almost to the summit, but mainly ah un
broken wilderness. In some of thp side-hill cut
tings, strata of poal were laid bare, showing what
rich seres', of wealth a kind Providence has laid
up in this wilderness for. the wealth and comfort
of future, generations. At Oakland,l27oo.- feet
.above the sea : level,' we got a supper.
Such temptingly white bread;’and'rich golden
Indianapolis! May 23J, 1860.
batter from the Glades, are rarely met with any-
Now came on dark, Bight, and the magnificent
Glades,, those level steppes,,on 'the:sops sPf'tbe
mountains, wqre all shut, out from view. At
Grafton, the cheerful gas light invited us to. stop
and- lodge for the night in the company’s spacious
hotel. , At.day da.wn we took-the train again and
commenced, such a run as travellers do not always
enjoy. We made 80 miles an, hour, including -,
stoppages, for 12 hoars straight ahead; landing
ns, by 4 o’clock in the afternoon, far away in
western Ohio. The mist and rain prevented our
seeing much after leaving .Grafton* save some fine
iron, bridges, and the passing ; through of many
Ipng and immensely expensive tunnels; all arched
overhead with cut stone masonry. By 8 o’clock
we were quietly taking our. breakfast.on hoard the
“Brown Diclr,” the ferry steamer on'the Ohio
river, and were soop in the splendid wide cars'of
t&e~psgti3L.Ohio* road, on-.onr way to Columbus,
A thriving-looking country here opens upon us,
with abundance of coal underground, and, easy
cultivation on an undulatiifg surface. At Zanes
ville, which has grown to he quite a city, there is
great manufacturing activity apparent. They
build cars and locomotives, roll iron, and make
machinery generally. '-' Beside steani, the immense
water power of the Muskingum is used in-driving
some of the most extensive flouring - mills in the
land. At Golnmbns, we dined, and only got a
glimpse of the city and its splendid capitol of white
marble, saoh as our 'own State should have* a
building that would stand as a monument of the
skill and taste of this era for ages to come.
’ The country now became surpassingly beauti
ful. Rich waving fields arid beautiful farm houses.
No waste land, all blooming and .refreshing to look
upon* Now comes Dayton. What a city of pretty
residences,- active business marts, thriving manu
facturing establishments, and endless entangle
ments of railroad' tracks. At Xenia, our light
ning speed little,.and we are takinga ra
ther slow pace, to Indianapolis, where we arrived at
8 o’clock' in the evening, passing .through a rich,
well-tilled country all the way from-Columbus.
The National Road, , which has -been n«ir'to us
nearly all the time, has opened this country early,
and made a belt of rich cultivation all through
Ohio arid Indiana, far in advance of other parts of
the State. , I came 7, here with but three changes
of cars all the way from Philadelphia, viz.: at
at Ben "Wood, (Ohio river,) and at
Columbus, and if I .had chosen to leave Baltimore
in the night train, and not lay over, could have
made the trip in 82 hours frpm Philadelphia. f
My father tells me that, when I was a lad, he
often performed the journey in 25, days on horse
back. r . , , ... . G. W. M. ’
THE CHURCH AND THE COLLEGE.
; It is a fact too well authenticated' to bb denied,
that almosteverygreatimpulEegiveo-toeducatioi^
Of all the great schoqis .and universities in the
world, by far the gredter parf were founded by re-'
ligioris 'jnen, arid for religions purposes. The
World at large* are not insensible of the value of
learning, and worldly men are ofterf ready enough
to avail themselves of their opportunities to give
their sons so valuable a benefit. , It has often
happened that men of this class have given
liberally to the endowment of colleges. ■ But few
among them have had the forethought, or the be
nevolence, or the faith to encounter the discou
ragements, of raising' frpm its;infant feebleness an
institution of the higher order. Corrupt or de
fective Christianity has had vitality enough to dri
it; but infidelity or * religious indifference almost
never.y > 1
And did the disposition exist, theChurehwould
be exceedingly, unwise to leave tp such bands the
founding and direction of colleges. The ,edueatipn
which she requires for her purposes'is, Ohruiidh
education, an education : based and constructed
throughout on religious principles, one whose cul
ture shalljbe moral;apd religious: norless’ than ipf
tellectual, and whose learning, ir in .sili its;,depart
ments, shall not fall short of those first principles
which are to be found only in the'attributes and
purposes of God. The college -which ignores
Christianity; will bey to - all practical purposes, an
infidel institutipn. And as are the colleges sueh
are likely to be the common schools of the country.
As are the,colleges', such will be, sooner or later,
the pulpits, such tlie prevailing character of the
press; such all :the other- great fountains of -poplar
opinion. ■; Whoever controls, these - institutions,
holds the ,|ey to the religious character of the
surrounding region. Harvard, Yale, Princeton,
Dartmouth, thhse formed, in the carl£ days, opr
northern quadrilateral.- It was hard for infidelity
or heresy to get- much foothold while these re
mained faithful. What was it that made eastern
Massachusetts to so great an extent Unitarian?
The religious defection of Harvard. What led
the way in the recovery? - The advancement of
Williams and the rise of Autherst. - Yale college
has, for years, given tone to the theology of
Cbnnepticuu And.the strong Presbyterianism of
New Jersey is -to be traced, not more direetiy to
Princeton Theological Seminary than td Princeton
college, Over its own graduates, the religious in
fluence of a college is hardly less than of a
; mother’s early lessons. Even tbd worldly-among
them feei its force, ft abides ,throqgh'4ife, and
; |tsdlf;dfftb Si their habits ofi thinking,
The opportunity thus offdi-ed of impressing Chris
tian trutfoupon the minds of those; who shall here
after occupy posts of influence in' the State and
the secular professions, is one which must repay
tenfold all the expense which the Church; must
incur in taking these institutions under her patron
age.’ "And'then, there is the education of her
own ministers. Will she" trust to the State, in
fected as all its agencies are,'and must be, with
the corrupt atmosphere,of politics, will sheljrust
• to any agency not specifically and emphatically
Christian, to give them the most controlling ele
inehts of all their thinking? Will she trust to
; her ability to give that thinking a new direction
afterward, in the-theological seminary? It is the
marvellous out|pjringsof God’s Spirit, in con
; nexion with the lessons of holy wisdom given in
Christian colleges, that is bringing so many young
men into the classes of these seminaries. Ana
were it otherwise, it might then be quite too late'
to give their minds a new bias, especially if the
chairs of sacred science were all filled, ;as they
would be likoly to be, by ambitious men trained
themselves'in the same manner. No. If the
Church would' have at her service, and- as-the
leaders of-progressin her noble, enterprise, men of
the right stamp, she must .educate them herself.
She must have, colleges her owp, . indeed, in
every aspect of the case, it is an essential requi
site of success that she possess the colleges of
the land and imbue them with her influence; and
if so, then, she.must found them. She must in
cur. the qipense of sustaining them; she must en
dow them., The motto, “Christo et eeclesise,”
-find that still earlier device on.the seal of the first
collego ever founded in our land, ah open Bible
with Yebhjas written across its sacred leaves,
must be the stamp of their character god the;
'guide of. their destiny. ' \
. the Ohurch in -thiscountryhas riot,
ihus unmindful of ber privilege inithis
particular Our fathers showed a pious alacrity
to anticipate all others in the founding of college's. 11
Scarcely bad the band of Puritans in Massachu
setts Bay reared their houses and their.cburehes
before; they wore at work breaking ground for
such an, institution. Nor was it a casual- oc
currence tbat the theology of Calvin, transplanted j
to this unknown wilderness, began thus, and has
gone on multiplying and improving institutions of
the same character at every step of its progress. .
It was a necessity growing out of its own nature.
The tree was in the seed germ, and time and cir
cumstances did but give it development. • The
faith of the Gospel is a vigorously intellectual, as
well as "emotional and sesthetie faith. ,f - This strong
form of the Christian faith, this faith which more
than all others grapples with roots and, days, its
foundations among the primitive formations of
mental and ontological' science,.requires learning,
requires libraries as the food of learning, requires
colleges as the trainers of the mind to vigorous
and penetrative thiuking.' ; Harvard College was
emphatically the child, the ‘ Church, and the
pliurch nurtured it. Yale was founded a few years
ater' ‘‘from a sincere regard and 2eM’]for the
holding of the ProteMami rijligion •by a* sSSeesstoSl
of learned: and' orthodox 5 men:” Princeton -bad I
itS;birth in a?gr6at religitfus revival,: and-its chief
motive was to .provide men who should perpetuate
the influence of the revival. And what shall we I
say of bttr young and yet struggling colleges of j
the West ? A touching incident, related' in one j
of the reports of this Society, respecting one of
them, may serve as a specimen The en terprise j
was resolved upon at the dose, of a meeting for con- I
saltation aricE prayer held by several almost penniless
Home Missionaries, and continued through three
days. This J little company of praying. men then
proceeded in .a- body to the intended location in |
the primeval forest,; and there,., kneeling on. .thej
snow, dedicated the. site to the Father, the Son,
and. the / Holy Ghost, for a Christian college.”
There is something to me inimitably beautiful and
subiitnein that simple incident. When the valley
‘pf : the Mississippi, shall become the centre of an
empire second to none that the,world ever saw for
numbers and power, and from its now infant in
stitutions' shall go forth an influence to be felt
roAid the world, this little story of the founding
of Wabash College will, I doubt not, take rank in
r.espeet-b) interest with tbe.^tory:of the Pilgrim
Fathers, or, the oath of Grutli in. the land of Tell
‘ *' Eev.-Jona.JP'.StearnsjD.D.
LETTER FROM METTEBNICH TO Him:-
OhMs oven early preference for (he Natural Sci
ences —the relation of modern science to true
religion, &c
My Deak'Baron * * T I know how to
designate the place which belongs to;.; me ins-the
avenue of scienee, and which to t my- regret is-far
from the sanctuary. , ' . . .
• What I Wave 1 told you, my dear Baron, is nei
ther- gasconade, nor an excess 'of'inodesty; it is
the unvarnished history-of tny life. You do' not
know this history, and I will relate it to you in a
few; words.
At the age at which life takes its directions,
I contracted an inclination for the exact and na
tural sciences, which: I would permit- niyself to
describe as irresistible, and a disgust for practical
life, which I would call unconquerable, if I had
i not overcome both this disgast . and this inclina
j tion. * ' * * - Fate has separated me from the
iiny ; We'ppdri tWh
ri&ad’l should not Wave chosen. 'Once started, I
submitted without losing sight of the goal of my
.wishds,and the. result was that what-I should have
wislilif to regard f»- tWaim u oF my life has become
only the solace of it'. The King has set the mark
of a learned man upon hie; I know to whoni this
is.to be-attributed. If it is a question of the-heart,
the King is not mistaken. :
What, you tell me of the forthcoming second
volume of the Cosmos, makes me look forward to
the study of it with impatience; you are not to be
read; you must be studied, and the: place of a
pupil .suits me exactly. No one is more, called
,uppn;than.l am to do justice to your remark.rela
tive; to the. influence exercised by Christianity on
tlie natural sciences,* as upon mankind in general,
: and hence nponallscienee, for tbatremark has
long since dawned upon my mind. It is correct in
all respects, aud its.generating cause is simple
as are all other truths, those: which are, as well
as thoto which are not understood, for the latter
circumstance has no’ effect on the substance of
a truth.’ Error leads' to error, as truth is the
guide to rtruth. • As long as the mind remained
in error, in tlie-,sphere of thought which is the
most elevated of all those attainable, by the
human mind, this deplorable state of things
cduld hot fail lo rfe-act upon every quarter of
the nioral compass, upon all intellectual and
social questions, and"to appear to their: deve
lopment in the right direction, an insurmount
able The good news once told, the
position could not but change. It was not by
bestowing divine honor on effects, that they
could be traced to the-fountain head of truth;
the investigation continued to be confined to
the abstract speculations of the philosophers,
and to the rhapsodies of the poets. The cause
once laid’bare the hearts of men were comforted,
and their minds opened to conviction. Never
theless; the latter still-remained for a long time
shrouded in the? mists of pagan skepticism until
at last scholastic philosophy was unhorsed by
experimental science. Do you admit the force
of my reasoning? If yop do, I have no doubt
you will share my fears that true scientific pro
gress is in danger of being checked by too am
bitious spirits, who desire to rise from the effects
to the cause, and who finding the approach cut
off by the impassable barriers which. God has
set upon human intelligence, and finding them
selves unable to advance; roll back upon them
selves, and relapse into paganism,' in seeking
the cause in the effect.
The world, my dear Baron, is in a dangerous
position. The social body is in fermentation.
You would do me a great favor if you could
teach me the nature of this fermentation, whether
it is spirituous, acid Or putrid ? I greatly fear
that the verdict will he for the last named of
these kinds, and it is not I who could teach you
that these products are hfcrdly beneficial.
Be pleased to accept * * * the assu
rance of the continuance of my old attachment.
/MeTTEBNICH. - :
Correspondence of Humboldt. , :
* Note by Hcmboidt. Iliadspoken of the intensity of
the love of nature-. 1 had compared .St. Basil with Ber
nardin de St. Pierre.
PRESBYTERIAHISM Iff EUROPE.
, The following, from the English correspondence
of the Christian Intelligencer j contains a summary
of interesting facts, most of which have appeared
in a distinct form in our columns, but which make
a better impression collected in a single paragraph.
The cause .of Presbyterianism is beginning to
revive in many different countries; 1 ' This' revival
is proportiohal to the increase of vitality in diffe
rent churches.. --
The present awakening in Sweden is marked
by a desire for the reqniring.o'f Synodical power.
The, King of Prussia, who, notwithstanding many
unwarranted calumuies, has long been, a steadfast
and 'earnest Christian, was anxious,' for. many
■years, to establish a Presbyterian government,
based chiefly on the Scottish model, but was de
ferred only by the dead state of' the community,-
;who, he feared, would appoint rationalistic elders
and representatives; And the Prince of Prussia
has, within ; the last few weeks; taken the bold
step, of; proclaiming a Presbyterian, Organization
for the Church of the eastern provinces, where no
VOL IV— NO. 42.—Whole No. 207.
BOLDT.
Vienna, May 10,'1846.
such organization befoTe existed. In the Rhine
provinces, Presbyteries and Sy nodshaye long been
held.
In Hungary, the Church is Struggling for the
action of her Synods, .and the mainten&fl,cie,.Qf .her
old Scriptural forms of government. In France,
the desire for independent Presbyterial and Syno
dical aetion is strongf ;The more earnest minis
ters of the National Church wait impatiently for
such liberty.
All the signs of the times connected with the
great revival of religion, advancing contempora
neously in so many different countries; grove that
there is a tendency,,as vitality increases, to have
genuine Ghurch government; and tbat the form
of government Universally aimed at. is Presbyte
rian. '' ' "
THE-STORY OF THE CROSS;
Every attentive reader of missionary journals
Las noticed bowtoften the simple story of r the cross
has touched,the hearts of inquiring , heathen, and
awakened their wonder and admiration, , The. case
the Greenlander, BLayatriak; has Been often
peated. He had'shown no interest in any truth,
till,; one day,; the missionary read to him, from
Lube’s , Gospel, the account of Christ’s qgpny in
| the garden, when he up to the tajble,
I with an air of
I was that? Tell me that once hiorß, fori} CBB;
desire to be saved.” - ’• • ; ■
An affecting-instance of 'this ; kind is recorded
in the London Juvenile Missionary. Magazine Sot
March last' It occurred in a school,for girls in
China. These girls had learned to read, and every
morning tlieyread a chapter ini the Bible, which
was explained tb them by the missionary. They
were very attentive,. and remembered a great deal
that they heard, so as to.- repeat, it afterwards-
When a chapter containing ah account, of pur Sa
viour’s crucifixion was rea'd for the first time by
these Chinese girls, themissionarysaw tears start
inthe eyes of some of: them. '- -Presently'thenß was
a low, suppressed , sob, and then they .all burstinto
loud weeping. ' It wasiropossible to .proceed with
the lesson, so difficult was it for the girls to sup
press their emotion, or rebover their self-boutrol
so as to study or converse. After this they always
heard the story :of Christ’s- death in* deeply se
rious atid feeling manner. ; , :
Why is it; that in thisrChristian Jand, the same
narrative is read or heard, without apparently the
least feeling or concern ? ? Is it possible that; from
long repetition end familiarity, that:story has lost
its power with ns,-and.-become as an .idle tale?. ■
The first convert to Christianity. in Nprthern
India, was Krjshnoo,and he .was baptized, by lir.
Carey. One day a man said to Krishnoo,
“ Well, you have left off all the customs of your
i ancestors; what is the Tcason,?’’ - . , -
He replied, “ Have patience with me, and I
will tell you., , I am a great sinner,.! tried Hindoo
worship, but got no gbocb After a while I heard
of Christ, and how he labored muchyandlaid down
His life ftm sinners. I thought—what love is this?
And-here-1 made my resting place.: Now-say; if
any thing, like-this love was. ever shown by.your
gods? Did Hoorga, pr or Krishna, die for
Sinners? You know that they only sought them
own ease; and have nolovefor-any' one:” ' ; : ’ t
A North American Indian, who had been con
verted to Christ, was one day assailed ,by
who tried to persuade him. -the.mißsioppries were
not true teachers. . To. this theaged and honest
Indian replied:
‘‘Tbey-nmyb 6 -what-sr«*y wiil; but I knbW"wliitfc
they have told me; and what has been wroughtia
me. .Look at imy poor: countrymen there; lying
drunk faefore. ybur door;, why don't ypu.sayh
if you cap? . hour years ago 1 nlso lived like a
beast, and. hot one of you troubled yourself-about
mo; but when the missionaries came, they jfrebpheil
the cross of ,Christ, and I have experienced the
power of His blood, and am free from the domi
nion of sin.” ...
What shall we sqy to these things, we who have
from Childhood,' bhen instructed in the th ings of
Christ and-His:cross ? . Shall we see'the children
of China, and Hindooidolaterfii and savage Indi
ans, and crowds from, all the dark places of earth,
bowing and .weeping at the cross,'and confessing
its grace ; and power, while we pass by, ah if Christ
were ho more than Doorga or Kaiee, to ns? • It
were, better, a thousand times, never fc.have known
the way of life,, than to-live and perish tbps..
- Watchman and Reflector.
GOD ITT THE STORM.
Wo find the. following interesting account of ■
ibe tornado in Portsmouth, Ohio, in a recent
number of the Central Christian Herald.. It is
from the pen of Rev. Dr. E. P. Pratt, pastor of
the Presbyterian Church in that city. ""
The Violent storm of wind and hail that passed
oyer. 1 your city (6ipein i na|i)‘s[ast Monday, 2lst of
May, inflPbrtembißth with great'keVerityl
It cbmmetieed hfefe at five minutes past 4 o’clbckj
P. M., and lasted-for about ten minutes, in; its
greatest fury. T,he damage done to, property Was
great. A large number of business houses in difr
fetoht localities Were unroofed, and parts of the
tipper stories were blown off in some cases. Shade
trees suffered, and fruit trees were, rooted up or
blown doynj and worse than all, three lives were
lost —one a little child of some six years, and two
hien, Mr. Price and Mr. M'Callister. The tall
steeple of our church was blown down, and about
one-third'of the roof torn off. In the steeple was
a fine bell, weighing some 2,000 lbs*, and a city
clock, which is greatly missed, as it had come to
be a necessity to pur citizens. The bell was un
injured, save the breaking of the cast iron globe
and clapper, With the steel springs inside the bell.
The clock was bhdlyismasbed. Tip'and: neatly ru
ined. , Tbe-sfeeple was lifted up, as aman said who
saw it fall from the corner of the street, and carried
towards the North, some fifteen feet, and then fell
due east, smiting down in a narrow alley between
two' houses, Where there was- barely room enough'
for it to pass. ’lf it had fallen a few feet on either
side, the. destruction of human life must haye been
inevitable. One ofthe buildings, a small frame,
on Which it would have fallen but for being carried
ho the North, was full of persons who had run in
as a-protection from the storm. It was a meat
shop,,and a gentleman told me : there were at least
a dozen meu*in it, and four of them were bracing
against the door to keep it from blowing open.
God's hand just seemed to guide the fall, as he
guides the fall of the little sparrow. ,It was won
derful, in a city of ten thousand, that the loss of
human life was so small. . Another-wonder was
that all those who were killed, were prepared, as
we hope, for a better world,."where no storms
ride the troubled ait.” God’ spares sinners—why
is it, but that they, may repent and devote their
lives to his blessed service ? One of the men killed,
Mr. M'Gallister,.: had recently been converted,
as we trust, in the precious meetings we have been
holding in our church for the last four weeks.
On the Sabbath night previous, the very night
befoto, he was killed, he rose for prayer, aiid to
show that he was determined to be on the Lord s
side. He told me that night that; he felt happy
in trusting in the Saviour. He was a man, I
should tbink, over fifty, years of age, a hard-work
ing, industrious mechanic. He lost a son a few
months since, and a brother only three weeks ago.
These afflictions seemed to be blessll to his own
soul. About , forty , have attended the meeting
for inquiry, or come forward or risen for prayers
during" ourmeetiings. Our Union Prayer-meetings
are well attended now, every evening, at 8 o’clock,
and a general seriousness pervades our community.
. -jTruly youra, - E. P. Pratt.
, A great many drop a tear at the door oi
poverty, when they should rather drop a sixpence.