GENESEE EVANGELIST.—WhoIe No. 713.
For the American Presbyterian.
LIIE IS HP A FLOWER.
BY J. B. jpORSFALL.
In ypn sweet vale, but'yesterday,
There bloomed a fragrant flower,
Surpassing ait that e’er I saw,
' In wood or garden bower.
I’ve sought it in the vale to-day,
But oh! I found it not;
The blooming flower of yesterday
Has met its destined lot.
Alas t just so is human life,—
Uncertain and unknown \
A spirit may be here to-day,
To-morrow may have flown.
Such was the fate of one I knew,
She bloomed but for an. honr;
When death’s untimely blast was blown,
She withered like the flower.
HotftttspttfottCE.
For the American Presbyterian.
INDIA.
IBTTER PROM A NATIVE CONVERT.
My Dear Editors:—A letter just received
from India brings two items of intelligence con
nected with our missionary work there, which
may interest some of your readers. The letter
was written by Bamkrishnapuni, or as his name
is generally Anglicised in the Missionary Herald,
Rev. R. V. Maduk, who is now pastor of a na
tive chnreh in the city of Bombay. Yon will
excuse his imperfect English, and prefer his own
language to any digest of it which I could
make. His first paragraph refers to a recent
rebellious movement by a class of people called
Naghers , subjects of a native prince in Georrat
called the Gaekivar. Speaking of this move
ment, he says:
“ The Bunzas and Marwadis of this city'
(two of the mercantile classes of Bombay) have
all put on a great mourning for the distress and
calamity which has come on their great God in
Dwarka, in the kingdom of the Gaekwar.
The Naghers raised a rebellion, and collected in
the Fort on the island of Dwarka. The Gaek
war could not subdue them, and sp gave them
into the hands of the English, who sent a small
force and took the island—destroyed the Fort
and temple, and plundered the whole of it, and
broke the, gods of- gold and silver. The
wealthy and respectable Bunzas sent a deputa
tion to the Governor to complain about the
great calamity his force brought upon the
gods, and to ask for redress. The Governor
promised to return to the worshippers all the
property of the temple that had been brought
away, except the private plunder which the
soldiers had got. The Bunzas and others are
going to rafso sevetaflacs of *Bpees '(a lae
. equals $50,000) to restore th,e distressed god to
his former splendor. How foolish all this!
But poor, benighted as many of them are, they
do not see this. 0 when will these people cast
their idol gods to the moles and the bats, and
worship the only true God, and believe in the
only true Saviour, that they may be saved, and
use their now wasted money for his glory ? I
hope the time is not very far. The great re
vivals in your country will bring blessings from
God, who hears prayer, upon this land also.
There is now more of a spirit of prayer in this
country. In every city, daily prayer meetings are
held. Here in Bombay, three daily prayer
meetings are held, two in English and one in
Mahratta. So in Poona and in Ahmednuggar
also. May these dry bones be soon raised to
life.”
This paragraph brings to view two incidental
results of the late terrible mutiny. One ap
pears in the necessary destruction of idols and
temples when the rebels have fled to them as
their strongholds, and which ought to convince
the people of the utter impotence of their gods,
and the futility of their superstitions rites and
worship, But the result most gratifying to those
who wait and pray for the conversion of the
millions in India, pertains to .the character and
spirit of British rule in that land. Events con
nected with this meeting lw.e revealing, to the
nations the fact that the alliance between the
British Government and their false religion is
one of sheer policy, existing more in appearance
than reality, and may not prove
In this instance of the destruction of the famous
temple and idols on the island of Dwarka, large
and influential classes of the people petitioned
the British Government for redress, and doubt
less with pretty sanguine expectations that tbeir
petition would be heard and granted. But the
government only restores so mnch property as
had come into its own possession. It interferes
not with the private plunder of the soldiers,
and makes no pledge to restore the temples and
■ idols to their former splendor. Now all the
past policy of the British Government, in build
ing and repairing temples and supporting idola
try, furnishes abundant precedents for the peti
tioners to plead, and doubtless encouraged
11 their-hopes that Government would rep'air their
losses. Its refusal to do so may well lead £hem
to feel that ’the palmy days of Hindoo idolatry
have gone The strongest bulwark of idola
try In India for the last century has been the
prestige, power and patronage of the British
Government, let these be withdrawn, and
the inherent weakness of idolatry in the pre
sence of true science arid Christianity would
speedily become apparent.
That the tone and spirit of BritiSh legislation in
India are gradually changing, is matter' for profoud
gratitude to God, and gives ground?t©|lbpe for the
more speedy progress of Christianity’there. This
‘ change is hitherto slow and slight; obtains only
by struggling against resolute opposition, and is
visible only to those who watch narrowly for the
signs of progress there. But itiiiS none, the less
real, and we trust it marks the high purpose of
God to hasten the evangelization of the millions
of that land. The remaining paragraph of the
letter in question develops this change in the go
vernment in its 1 bearings .on native converts.
Cruel have been the disabilities resting on these
converts through all the period of British rule in
i..lndia. IJot tintil i;850,4id the British pass an
enactment guarantying their civil tights; and to
what extent it has remained a dead letter since,
may be somewhat inferred from this one fact
brought to view in the following extract, viz.:
“Mr. B ,(a missionary) at the solicitation
of our native Christians, spoke to the Governor
about their being allowed to take water from the
public wells and tanks. The Secretary of the
Governor said he thought there was no; objection
to their, doing so, as the law says those, who change
their religion do not lose.their former rights,, .Our
brethren accordingly took water from the public
tanks) when hundreds and thousands of Hindoos
and Mohammedans came to hinder them. A
great row was made, and all the shops in the city
[Ahmednuggar] were closed: They petitioned
the Magistrate to prevent the Christians from pol
luting their water. Tho Magistrate would not in
terfere, They telegraphed several petitions to tke
Government (at Bombay.) The Magistrate also
wrote to the Government. The final decision of
the Government oame in favor of the Christians.
God be, praised for His goodness in inducing the
Government to acknowledge the rights of the
Christians so boldly and justly. I hope you are
going soon to return to India. With our united
kind regards to you and to Mrs. W.,
Yours, very truly, . R. Y. Maduk.
I make no comment on this strange fact, that
until the present time native Christians living
Under British rule in, India, and inost of them
really BritisE born subjects, have been kept in a
social position so far below the common and high
caste Hindoos, and prevented even from procuring
water from the public reservoirs. Doubtless some
will be ready to share in the feelings of good Bi
shop Heber, when he exclaimed, in view of these
disabilities imposed on native converts by the
British in his day, “Surely in matters of oar
own religion we are the most lukewarm and
cowardly people on the face of the earth F But
let us rather rejoice that the hearts of both rulers
and people> kings and subjects,, are Iff the hands
of the Lord, and He can cause even the wrath of
man to work out His praise. His work is pros
pering in India, and one blessed evidence of this
fact is, that God has magnified, his own. truth by
raising up such native preachers and pastors as
the writer of this letter.
May this week of prayer be ever memorable in
the history of the church in India and throughout
the world, and let me suggest that one special sub
ject of prayer may be, the native converts in hea
then lands, arid especially those of them who, like
this brother, are helpers and co-workers with us
in efforts to win. their • idolatrous friends and
countrymen to Christ.
Yours truly, R. G. Wilder.
To the Minister?, Elders and Members of the
Presbyterian Church , in the Western Church
Extension Department. '
Tour attention is earnestly requested to the fol
lowing .Statement:
In accordance with the word of G-od/ and the
naidre oTtlie case, the Constitution of the Presby
terian Church .places the management and control
of the Missionary work in its own Ecclesiastical
bodies. In Chapter IBthof our Form of Govern
ment is' this language-: “The General Assembly
. may send Missionaries to any part jto plant churches,
or to supply vacancies.” Acting in view of these
provisions and of the necessities which had arisen,
our General Assembly, at its session in 1855, ap
pointed The ChurSi Extension Coniniittee.
To this Committee was assigned thefunetion of
employing exploring Missionaries for planting
churches an our rapidly settling territory, and also
the founding of churches,in cities and large vil
lages. "
Dnringithe first year of their existence this Com
mittee had at their disposal only a very limited
amount of funds; but they made a good begin
ning.
. The General Assembly of 1856 commended the
Committee to the confidence and liberality of the
churches, and requested the Commissioners to
bring the cause of-Church Extension to the notice
of their respective Presbyteries.
The next year the available means .of the Com
mittee amounted to 85,066. They employed 14 *
Missionaries. The Assembly of that year recom
mended to all the churches in our connection to
make each an annual collection for Church Ex
tension.
The next Ecclesiastical year, the operations of
the Committee were considerably enlarged. They
employed 26 Missionaries, and expended in their
work ?6,090. The Assembly again, urgently com
mended the Committee to the “increasedliberality
of the churches.”
- ‘.This review brings us down to the present year
—a year memorable in the history of Church Ex
tension. Immediately upon the meeting of the
last. General Assembly at Wilmington, it became
manifest, that there was really hut one subject be
fore them. Difficulties which had for years been
felt in the conduct of the Missionary work—-grow
ing out of the unfortunate separation which existed
between our benevolent spirit and its legitimate
outward expression—seemed, in Some directions
to have come to a head. The diseussions, though
deeply earnest, were pre-eminently kind, courteous
and fraternal, and continued through more than
two weeks. The result, reached through different
shapes, was in brief, the unanimous affirmation
of the principle,— That it is our rigi» and
DUTY TO CONTROL AND MANAGE OUR OWN BE
NEVOLENT OPERATIONS.
The necessity for the solemn and repeated affir
mation of this self-evident principle arose mainly
from the fact that the Society, through whioh for
many years we had performed the larger part of
our Home Missionary work, was gradually as
suming the entire control and management thereof,
and claiming them as its own inherent right. To
this assumption the Assembly felt they could ne
ver give place —no, not for an hour. The ulti
mate effect of yielding to the assumption, and of
allowing the claim, would have been to deliver the
whole Church, bound hand and foot, into the hands
of a civil corporation. Its immediate, instant
effect would have been the entire destruction of
the whole Church Extension scheme, the necessity
and great utility-of, which had been affirmed by
four successive General Assemblies. ’
While therefore solemnly affirming, and in va
rious ways, the great, general principle which has
been mentioned, the Assembly took care specially
to commend to the churches that specific develop
ment and practical application of the principle
called Church Extension. This they did both
on account of the inherent importance of that
work, and because it was directly an.d specially
endangered by the outside assumption and claim,
to which reference has been made.
The report of the Church Extension Committee,
presented to that Assembly, showed an encouraging
advance in the work. The contributions were
upwards of 810,000, against about 86,000 of the
previous year.
A silent, but significant and powerful rebuke
was, administered to the Society, which was shown
to be insidiously and most dangerously impinging
oh the rights of the Church. The Assembly did
not commend that Society to the confidence of the
churches,—a. thing which has not happened before
since we had a separate, denominational existence.
The work to, which the Church Extension Com
PHILADELPHIA, THURi§AI, JANUARY 12, 1800.
mittee are now instructed to address themselves,
comprises the following particulars: 1. The
employment of Exploring Agents. Such agents
are greatly needed,, one at least in each, of the
thirteen Synods, which lie west of Pennsylvania
and Virginia. Besides the territory lying within
the present limits of these Synods, there are. im
mense regions icy on d, which; we should hasten to
occupy before the ever active enemy of all good
has thickly sown them with the seeds of error and
false rejig ion. Such are the territories of Ne
braska, Dacotah, Washington, the Lake Superior
region, and the State of Oregon.
It is,—and we ought to know it andawakeu to
the high destiny,—the especial mission of our
Church to go wherever in our country there is free
soil; and wherever, as in Missouri, the, curse of
slavery is passing away. Our sister denomination,
which rejoices in, the name of Old School, is,
from her territorial .position, her history aud course
for the past 25 years—if not from her creed and
polity—vastly better fitted than we are to go into
those parte where slavery is regarded as a divine
institution. v
It is nehissarywe should perform this exploring
Work in our Ecclesiastical, or denominational cha
racter, because it involves at every step Ecclesi
astical acts, especially the organizing of churches.
This work we cannot 'commit to the Society,
because, (a) They refuse to fie controlled by us.
They will do our work of decline it, just as they
please. Besides ;jf they attempt its performance,
it may be as we wish, or directly contrary to our
wishes, (b) They can as a Society perform no
Ecclesiastical a,ct. They .are hot a Church, but
simply a civil corporation, and can no more perform
Ecclesiastical acts than an Insurance Company, or
a Bail Koad corporation, or a Lodge of Free Masons.
True, their Missionaries have a connection with
Ecclesiastical bodies, and may therefore in virtue
solely of that connection, perform Ecclesiastical
aet>». But if, while Missionaries of the Society,
they actually exercise this power, it will^—in the
existing state of the two denominations represented
in the Society;—inevitably'create heart-burnings
and jealousies. Besides; upon the principle
“ that what a man does by another, he does him
self,” the Soeiety'actually organizes those churches
yrhich-its Missionaries i. e. it actually
'does, iji ev&y SUch case, what it has no right nor
power to do: This shows the Society to bf.
INHERENTLY INCAPACITATED TO CONDUCT THE
"WOUK OP EXPLORATION.
2. The Church Extension Committee are in
structed to give attention to cities and large villages,
in which there is a call for churehes of our faith
and order.
Instances of this kind aremultiplying; and they
hold out great promise of usefulness. Aid im
parted for a year or two, in the infancy of-SUch ah
enterprise, often brings into being a strong Congre
gation, able to bear a large part in sustaining-the
general enterprises of the Church. We have a
vigorous, self-sustaining chureh in St. Paul; and
another in Dubuque, established in this way. Our
Committee are now aiding a very promising en
terprise in Peoria. Their help is sought in other
' instances equally deserving, and equally hopeful.
-The Society, utterly refuses to impart aid to such
enterprises. The Chureh Extension Committee
-is the only source to which our brethren in Cities
and large villages, where we have no organization,
can look for aid. > The question' is, shall they be
belpedto.begin, or shall we consent to have no
name .and no influence in < many of nur rapidly
. growing-eitioß?- ' -.n- r- *: ■'
3. .Quite a number of our feeble churches have
■been: refused aid from the Society, because the
Presbyteries with which they held connection had
-undertaken to perform their exploring Missionary
-work in their own name, and at their own charges.
1 The; Presbyteries concerned broughtthisrefasal
.of the Society to the notice of the last Assembly ;
andithat body unanimously and emphatically ap
proved their course. :
The feeble , churches in Alton, Schuyler and
Monroe Presbyteries are now in this list; and the
number,of such churches may at any moment be
-indefinitely increased. Christian brotherhood and
sympathy urge us to assist them, - for they are em
phatically .suffering for “righteousness’ sake,” —
for their firm, self-sacrificing adherence to the
great principle that it is our right and duty, as a
-Christian denomination,to;eontrol our own benevo
lent, operations.
~- The Presbytery of Alton are meeting the emer
jgepcy in a noble spirit. Since the- last meeting
of the Assembly they have paid, for the purpose
of aiding their feeble churches, more than sl,ooo,
.and, baye ..pledged upwards of another $l,OOO.
Buf these amounts are not sufficient. Their feeble
churches ,are numerous. Their territory vast.
Their present exertions too great to, be: continued.
They must have help. They appeal to tfie Church
Extension Committee foraid, as do also the feeble
churches .in. Schuyler and M onroe -Presbyteries.
; 4. The Church Extension. Committee have ear
nest appeals from the State of Missouri.,.
The Assembly say, “ The fast increasing, portion
of the people of that State in sympathy with the
spirit of our church and accordant with her posi
tion in matters of controlling, interest renders the
summons to help her irresistible.” ,
Our Synod in that State, which for two years
occupied an independent, position, last September
voted unanimously to return to the Assembly.
The Church Extension Committee have just
appointed Bev. T. Hill, exploring Agent and
Missionary for that ; State. Mr. Hill has entered
upon his work with encouraging prospects. But
every step he takes will make work for our Com
mittee; for the churches he organizes will he
obliged, during the period of their infancy and
.feebleness, to look to the Committee for aid.
Such is a brief view of the work our Chureh
Extension Committee have before them. It has
been steadily increasing from the beginning, and
has now assumed such proportions thatl,it would
be far more appropriate to call it The Assembly's
Domestic Missionary Work.
In view of its exEunt and importance, the last
Assembly enlarged the powers of the Church Ex
tension Committee, so as to meet all the cases
which have been mentioned and-any similar ones
which may arise, and authorized them to increase
their collecting force, so far as they might deem
it expedient. They have aecdrdingly appointed
two additional men to look after'the interests of
this cause, one for the State of New York and
another for the West. The former is Rev. A tjbet.
M. Stowe, of Canandaigua, N. Y., the latter my
self. My field and duties are- thus described in
my commission. “The field includes all the parts
of our Church lying West and North of New
York, Pennsylvania and Virginia; the special
duties are to raise funds for the Committee; to
, explore the country with a view to plant churches;
to report upon applications for aid; and in gene
ral to supervise the work of Church Extension for
the Committee in that region.”
This field is in extent an empire» It is not to
be occupied by any one man, or any twenty men.
The reasons why no more are appointed to work
in it are:' 1. A desire to keep down expense to
J the lowest possible amount. 2. The expectation
that our; Pastors and Stated Supplies, and Church
Sessions, and Church members will see that an
annual collection is taken for this cause iu their re
spective congregations, the moment they come to
understand its true nature, urgency and impor
tance.
. Some twenty or thirty applications for commis
sions are before the Committee. .Most of them
they are extremely anxious to grant, and will do
so at the earliest practicable moment. That time,
however, must be delayed until the Treasury is
somewhat replenished; for the. Assembly have in-,
structed them to make no appropriations in< ad
vance of their receipts.
As a servant, therefore, of the Church, deriving:
my commission from the Church,—as her, voice
I aek your help for the caui? how briefly spread
before you. I ask it, Ist, on the ground of the
inherent importance of the wprk., It is an essen
tial part of the great cause of Home Evangeliza
tion. . , •" ■ °
I ask it, 2d, because it is our own work. We
Undertake it in our own name,-—as Constitutional
Presbyterians,—as those who honestly believe we
are best promoting the. cause of Christ by estab
lishing, our own faith and order. , Ido not ask you
in general terms, to give to Home: Missions irre
spective of any particular denomination, but to
give ,to_ Presbyterian Domestic Missions. It is
expressly meant and designed that your offerings
shall go to the building pp of Presbyterian
churches of our own denomination , an : d that the
specific appropriation of them, will be made by our
Church Extension Committee. ■ Of that' Commit
tee, Rev. Abbeet Barnes is chairman. For the;
manner in which they perform thor work .they, ace
directly responsible to the Gencajl Assembly, and
through that body to the cbufcjijSi
I ask your aid, 4th, becauSb iby giving it you
will so far assert and vindiste ' sour liberty
as members of an independent Christian denomi
nation to prosecute the work of Domestic Missions
as you deem wisest and best,—in that, method
.which will be a legitimate setting forth of your
Missionary spirit. Not to be permitted to. “pro
vide for our own,”—not. to be permitted to “build
up the, wall over against our own house,” ;is the
very .essence of. degradation and slavery. Yet,
strange as it may seeui, the “seryant whom we
had nourished and delicately brought up until he
had at length become a son,” attempts to take
from us, this inherent, God-given; right,—thus re
quiting our confidence and pare with ingrati
tude: Says Solomon, (Erov. xxx. 21, 22,) “For
three things .the earth is disquieted.” The first
of these is, “For a servant when ho reigneth.”
Theearth is ever disquieted,r-rconfusion and
difiieully eyer ensue when the. proper relations of
government and control are reversed,—when the
subject divots, the ruler, the child controls the
parent, the agent .assumes tobe'fiie principal and
the employee usurps the place pf;the employer. ,
I ask your aid, sth, because Jevery dollar you
give will be expended on your field,' ini pro
moting your own work. /; **s?:
I ask your aid, 6th, because Ire, here at the
West, are asking and expecting assistance in this
very cause, from our churches at Jbhe East. The
best and most prevailing argument we can present
to them will be our own example.,: If they see us
earnestly helping ourselves and practising self
denial that we may do so, they will be vastly .more
ready-to extend their own.aid. His a command
of Providence and a dictate of common sense, as
well as a homely maxim,—“Help those that help
themselves.”
7th.‘ Bis my full conviction that our existence,
as a Christian denomination, is wrapped up in the
answer to the question y. Will will we not
vigorously sustain and carry forward this work
of Church Extension? If we will not do it, a
very few years will seal our doom,, and “ Illiiim
fuit” will be written on our denominational se
pulchre. Bpt if, on the other hind, this cause
and the affiliated denominational causes he carried
vigorously forward, the Constitutional Presbyte
rian Church will spread Herself through .all the
West; become a mighty bulwark and propagator
of civil freedom, of general education, of Bible
faith and of that.bea4ti|uj order
and polity equally removed from hie
rarchical despotism and anarchical misrule and
excess. That God, in his providehce, has made
us such a Church, and the only Church in the
land capable of doing all these filings, cannot, I
imagine, be seriously questiobed by any thinking,
impartial mind. Shall we then fulfil our destiny,
and do the work assigned us? Or shall wc be
guilty of the crime' of suicide? Between these
two courses there lies no middle grpund.
A. T, NbBTON,
Secretary of Church Extension for the West.
Chicago , Jan., 1860. ..
HOW A CONGRESSIONAL CHAPLAIN
WAS ELECTED.
The river was low—fogs came on. Sunday
morning'arrived; we were yet eighty miles below
Wheeling, and there was no platte where we could
land to spend the Sabbath. At breakfast-time a
committee of the passengers waited upon me to
know if I would preach to them. Never did" I say
yes more gladly; for never had I Been so anxious
to speak my mind. A congregation of nearly
three hundred persons assembled ajj-half-past ten
o’clock, and ! took my th.e ladies’
and gentlemen’s cabins. Seated in the places of
honor upon my right and left hand were most of
my late objects of interest—the'members of Con
gress. I had 'never before spoken under such cir
cumstances, but; nevertheless, preached as well as
I could, which is not saying p>.uch. At the close
of the discourse proper, however, I could not re
sist the impulse to speak a straightforward word
.to the men on my right and left; turning to them,
therefore, I said somethingto the following effect:
—“I understand that you are members "of the
Congress of the United States, and as such you
are, or should be, ; the representatives not only of
the political opinions, but also of the intellectual,
moral, and religious condition of the people of this
country. As I had rarely seen men of your class,
I felt, oil Coming aboard this boat, a natural interest
to hear your conversation, and to observe ydur habits.
If l am to judge the nation by you, I can come; to no
other conclusionthan that it is composed of profane
swearers, eard-players, and drunkards. Suppose
there should be an intelligent foreigner’on this
boat, travelling through the country with the in
tent of forming a .well-considered and unbiassed
Opinion as to the practiearworkingp£.otir free in
stitutions—seeing yon and learningqpur position,
what would be’his conclusion? Inevitably, that
our experiment is a failure, and our country.is
hastening to destruction: Consider the influence'
of your example upon the young men of the nation;
what a school of vice, you are establishing! If
you insist upon the right of ruining yourselves, do
not by your example corrupt and debauch those
who are the hope of the land. I; must tell you
that, as an American citizen, I feel disgraced by
your behaviour; as a preacher of the Gospel, Tarn
commissioned to tell you that unless you renounce
your evil courses, reprint of your sins, arid’believe
.upon the Lord Jesus Christ with hearts unto
righteousness, you will certainly be damned.”
At the close of the servifces, I retired to my state
room to-considermy impromptu address word by
word, and whether, if I were called to a reckoning
for it, I should be willing to abide by it and its
consequences. Plain speaking and stern acting
are common things among the men of the West
and the Southwest; and whosoever starts to run
a of this kind, should be prepared-to go un
flinchingly to the goal. I came to the conclusion
that nothing had been said of which I ought to
be ashamed, and that I would stand by every word
of it, let the issue be what it 5 might/ While co
gitating, there was a tap at the door. ' A gentle
man entered, who said, “I have been requested"
to wait upon you by the members of Congress on
board, who have had a meeting since. the close of
the religious exercises. They desire me to pre
sent you with this purse of money ”4—handing me
between fifty and a hundred dollars—“as a token
of their appreciation of your sincerity and fear
lessness in reproving them for misconduct; they
have also desired me to ask if you will allow your
name to be used at the coming election of chap
lain for Congress. If you will consent to this,
they are ready to assure you an honorable elec
tion.” Quite gunned with this double message,
I asked time for quiet reflection and for 'consult-'
ing. with my friends. He warmly, urged my ac
lceptance of the offer. As the boat neared Whee
iug, my decision was asked. I assented to their
proposal. They- went forward to the Capitol; I
tarried in Wheeling to preach. But the sermon
on the boat was far more remunerative' than 'MI
the labors ait Cincinnati and Wheeling. By the
agency of my hew friends, I was in due time
elected. Their money paid my expenses to
Washington, and so I entered upon ipy, duties, as
chaplain tp Congress.
W. H. Milburn, the blind preacher.
GREASING THE WHEELS.
. A few mornings since, as I was in one of the
city, cars, a son of the Emerald Isle. ehtered and
.me if he would bp in time to mail a letter by the
stepiner that was to. leave that day. 1 answered
hisquestioH in a maimer which probably encou
raged bipi to ask /another; and We Soon fell into
'conversation UpoHjhis native} land, the* Irish Revi
yal, and other matters in which he seemed to be
interested. As we were passing a certain street
Kp pointed to the depot of ohe of the omnibus
companies and saidv “I worked there tbi-ee years
before going where I now dm; I had to be up
every night ; I greased the wheels of the owni
busses; and, you know,” he added, “it is very
needful that the wheels should.be greased.” He
said this not as if he thought he was the most im
portant man in the establishment, but with such
an evident sense of his responsibility and of the
importance of his humble calling as made me in
stinctively honor the man. His remark awakened
quite a train of reflections. :! ’
Here was one whom Providence had placed in
ah obscure position: few situations could be more
so;; he bad to work by night, shut out from the
observation of others; the amount of his duties
was to grease the wheels of public coaches, and
yet he regarded and performed his labor with the
motives which would ennoble' any right calling and
ennoble any one who should engage in it,with the
same feelings. • . , ...
Ip the train pf thought which his words and
manner awakened, the saying of the Apostle cam s
to my* ifaihd, “X magnify' mine office:” These
words were used in reference to another and a
higher sprvice, and; yet-T am inclined-to', believe
that there is much false sentiment prevailing in
the world, in the Christian world, in regard to' this
very subject. Tfie‘ higfiest servlce in which any
one can engage is the very work* whatever it may
be, which God has called: him to perform. Many
who occupy the .humbler positions of life spend
a great portion of their strength in sighing after
the more exalted stations or wider fields of useful
ness, not remembering that the station's which they,
occupy arerfke most important for them, and may
be in some respects the most important absolutely.
Every piece of machinery has what are called tri
vial parts, and yet they are just as essential as any,
and have as iiTsport-int a part to perform in” refe
rence to the whole. A pin or a pivot is just as
important in its place as the'majestic beam whose
oscillations propel the mighty steamer. It would
contribute greatly to the power and usefulness, of
the church, of her members and her ministers, if
all had this spirit, magnifying each his offibe,
whatever and how humble soever it may be, even
though it be greasing the wheels, for this, in the
progress pf the of Christ, as well as upon
the world’s highway, is /‘ very needful.”.
John Newton said,.and said truly, that if two
angels were sent to our world, one to rule a king
dom and the other to sweep the streets of a-city,
they would hot have any choice as to which ser
vice, one .or, the other should perform,pthey would
be equally ready to perform either. Could as much
be said of‘any two of us?
Every man is to be judged and to be rewarded
not according to what he would do in other cir
cumstances, in a wider sphere, but according as
he does the work which God has actually given
him to do. “He that is faithful in that which is
least, is faithful also in much; 'and he that is un
just in the least, is unjust also in much”
D’ATTBIGNE Oil PHYSICAL PHENOMENA
IN THE IRISH REVIVAL.
The eminent historian of the Reformation is
not . disposed to distrust the great .revival in
Ireland, because of the bodily influences by
which it is often attended, pis large observa
tion has taught him, that the sympathy between
the human Ibody and spirit is so intimate, that
a powerful influence operating on the one makes
its presence felt in the other. At the recent
opening of the Theological school in Geneva,
Dr. D’Aubigire delivered an address bn the'ge
neral.need of a revival in our age, and discussed
at length the nature and effects of the great
work in Ireland. We give an extract from the
address, found in the News of the Churches
“We would ask,” he said, “the adversaries
of this movement if it is surprising that a strong
emotion of the mind should also aet , upon the
body ? Are, then, these two parts of man two
separate beings? Are they not, on the con
trary, most intimately united? Psychology
teaches us the different systems invented to
explain this close union. Whether we subscribe
to that of a pre-established harmony; or to some
other system, it matters little. According to
them all, the mind and body form one and the
same being. And yet some are now to be found
who would affirm that one part of this being
cannot, and ought riot; to feel that which passes
In the other. What lis it not a fact, that an
eloquent orator, a great actor, a skilful physi
cian, sometimes even the simplest person, can
in certain cases work upon those who are quite
strangers to tfiem, arid affect them with the. most
powerful eniotibri; and is this influence to be
considered inadmissible when it refers to the
mutual action between two parts of the same
being?
“I was present lately at a meeting in an im
portant continental town, where several learhed
doctors, as well as many-fervent Christians,
j'ggre : assembled. T brought before them the
principal features of the revival in Ireland. A
few-of these theologians advanced some of the
objections to which I - have alluded, but they
wbre unanimous in saying that that which re
lated to the physical affections had no weight
whatever in; their eyes. One of them, a man of
great experience, said:
“ ‘The influence of the mind upon the body
is a palpable truth which ought to be recognised
by every one. I can give an example to prove
it. About forty years ago I was a young man
of twenty-five years of age, full of strength and
vigor. I had been separated bv the sea, from
my father, for about sixteen years, but had rea
son to hope that he would soon come to see me,
or that I might go and visit him. One day the
servant entered the room, saying, ‘Your father
is here:’ The sensation produced upon my
mind had such an effect upon my body, that I
fell powerless to the ground.
“‘Ah, if that joyful announcement, • ‘ Your
father is here,’ could make such an. impression,
what might not be produced upop a newly awa
kened conscience by the double tidings, ‘Sin is
in thy heart; thou art lost!’ Then, ‘Behold
thy Saviour; thou art saved!’”
After he had done speaking, a pious layman
asked leave to relate an incident from bis own
experience.
“ *1 bad been converted,’ said be, ‘about fif
teen years, but had become cold and indifferent.
One day, my conscience aecusiDg me, .1 shut my
self up in ray room, and falling on: ray knees, I
reviewed rriy life during the past fifteen years.
The retrospect brought my sins visibly before
my mind, and I was so terrified aV the thought
New York Observer.
David rejoiced “all the day long,’’ and.remem
bered his “song in the .night;’’ and, while he was
musing, the fire of love. burned within him. The
innumerable blessings'David enjoyed made him a
cheerful Christian. ’ You also enjoy “ innumerable
blessings.” Shouldnot your cheerful countenance
tell the world you are not unmindful of them ?
Again, consider, the influence of this cold, emo
tionless professor on the worldly-minded; if his
course is not positively injurious, it certainly must
be considered as productive of less gbod to the
cause of Christ. It is. justly claimed for Chris
tianity, that among Its effects arc -joy, love, and
..peace; hut the-unbeliever will assert, and with
. good ground, as he looks into this face of unyield
ing frigidity,-that its positive effects are not joy,
love, and peace; indeed, he may conclude, if a
change of heart, and the privilege of enjoying a
hope'of heaven, the certainty of an escape from
hell, and the assurances of God’s love, result in a
never-smiling face, a seriously-lined countenance,
and a shrinking within oneself,‘as though in con
stant danger of contamination from the world, it
i would be better to avoid this change of heart with
all the serious results
. . 9.^ r * st ’ au -^ r °ther # for the sake, of the cause of
C™?t, for the sake of poor dying sinners around
you, thro.v off this strait jacket with which the
devil las encased, you, and enjoy the “liberty
of them, that I fell down insensible, and re
mained in that state for some time.’
“I mysllf remember, gentlemen, having been,
thirty-five or forty years ago, at a Swiss village
on the Rhine, of which the excellent Spliess
was pastor. That learned and pions man died
long ago. Antistes, (President) of the church
of Schaffhausen; his biography, which has
lately been published in German, I beg to re
commend to your notice. His preaching pro
duced, at the time I speak .of, a remarkable
awakening, which was accompanied in many
oases by physical affections, even more extraor
dinary than those which are witnessed in Ire
land- The converts were sometimes seen pass
ing their hands rapidly over their'body, as if to
drive away the evil spirit. Well, after forty
years that work still' Subsists in the Canton of
Shaff hausen free from all excess, and manifested
—■amongst other ways—by charitable institu
tions of interesting character. This
last objection, therefore, which has arisen from
the state of those who have been stricken in
Ireland, cannot, any more than the others, be
brought forward as a charge against the re
vival. The bodily, affections only prove one
thing—the existence in the soni of a deep and
powerful feeling.”
A WORK FOR THE NEW YEAR.
For a long time past we have earnestly desired
to call the attention of the churches throughout
the land to a great and important work to be per
formed for the- advancement of the kingdom of
Christ and the salvation of men. In going out of
the city and attending public worship on the Sab
bath, especially in country places, we have repeat
edly been struck with the smallness of the num
ber seen in the house of God, compared with the
large population which surround it. In many
places may be seen a comparatively small, and
even with that a half-filled church, while the
country around teems with people. It is truly
deplorable to: see the multitudes who arc practi
caljy turning their backs upon the means of graee
and upon the Saviour, while in many places, at
least,*hero is abundant room for them in the
Sanctuary.'
In many of the cities the work has not only
been undertaken, but it has been accomplished to
a great extent. This city, for instance, has been
districted, and every part of it again and again
thoroughly visited; every family has been called
on; the children invited to the Sabbath School;
and all invited to the house of God to hear the
preaching of the word. Out of this effort have
sprang up the various mission churches which are
scattered over the city, and which are attended
by large congregations; while the mission Sabbath
Schools -have gathered tens of thousands of chil
dren who are receiving blessing themselves, and
preparing to be a blessing to their parents and to
society. Eternity alone will bring to light the
amount of personal effort which lias been put forth
in this direction in this and other cities, and the
amount of good which has been accomplished.
The same work might be undertaken with the
same results throughout'the.country. Eyeryeon
gregation in the land ought to arouse itself and
look around upon the multitudes who are perish
ing almost within the sound of the gospel, and see
whether something cannot be done to bring them,
rafder'iti influence. Let the territory belonging
to each church be districted, and suitable visitors
for each district appointed, who shall go from
house to house and invite the people ahd urge
them kindly But importunately to come to the
house of'God; and if they do not come hpon one
invitation, let it be renewed and pressed judicious
ly until it takes effect. In every church, some
members .desire a field of active usefulness. Here
is one which is open to all, white to the harvest,
waiting for reapers, and the grain will perish un
less it be reaped. ,
Will not some, in every congregation in the
land which this article may reach, rise up from its
perusal resblved to undertake at once this impor
tant work, of persuading the neglecters of God’s
house and God’s worship to come to the place of
prayer and; of preaching. From long observation,
we believe it is (hq great work which the private
members of the Church are at the present time
called .to engage in, and the one which promises
ah abundant return of blessing. .
If the existing church edifices are not sufficient
•to hold the congregations which may he gathered,
it.is a plain duty to provide others. Churches are
not built like private houses for the accommoda
tion of those who build them, but as the. means of
doing good to others. 1 Too many, even of Chris
tians, seem to think that their own’ personal ac
commodation is the extent of their personal obli
gation in regard to church edifices, whereas they
are erected, like lighthouses for all who '.are out
upon the sea of human life, to guide them to a
place of safety, to the haven of eternal rest.
THE HAPPY CHRISTIAN.
, There are some Christians, whose ascetic course
deprives them of much of the enjoyment which,
as followers of Christ, they might otherwise have.
They look and act as though, in the reading of the
Bible, ‘that passage had entirely escaped their no
tice, which says, “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad;
for great is your reward in heaven.”
These dismal Christians, by their rigid course,
deprive themselves of much of the “pleasure by
the way,” and so far from proving themselves-hea
venly-minded,:proye themselves quite the’eontrary,
to our minds; for where, in all that we read of
heaven, is there any evidence of its adaptation to
this austere professor?. Heaven is a place of joy.
•Why, Christian brother —you whose head is like
;the bulrush, always bowed down, did you ever
think there was joy in heaven when you felt the
power of redeeming blood? Think of the hun
dreds who are daily experiencing the joys of par
doning. mercy, thus causing a. continual chorus of
•joy in the heavenly'mansions ; and shall you go
moping along, as though nothing was transpiring
that should elevate your.feelings, or light up your
face with joy? Certainly there is much to make
you happy —enough, at least, to dissipate the
gloom resting on your countenance; which is now
; proving, you; positively unhappy.. *
“Lift up the heart, lift up the voice;
Rejoice aloud, ye saints, rejoice.”
VOL. IV.—NO. 20.—Whole No. 185.
wherewith Christ has made yon free,” and tell to
sinners, by your cheerful deportment, what a dear
Saviour you have found.
“Rejoice, and he exceeding glad; for great is
your reward in heaven.”
Gowper was one of those gentle and lovely
-spirits, afteT his conversion, the fragrance of whose
good name lives long upon the earth. Yet, he
was once in a fair way to lose his soul. He was
thoughtless and skeptical, and, like Gallio, “cared
for none of these things.” He was one of those
persons whom it is difficult to approach upon the
subject of religion—a young man upon whom
most Christians look with little hope. A student
of human nature might have approached him with
success, but others would have failed in every at
tempt to press the elaifoshf religion upon his mind.
He moved in a. circle of the gay and worldly, -
which is usually environed with prejudice and
practical infidelity. The close tie that united him
to godless companions was enough to cause Chris
tians to look upon him hopelessly. One of these
social bonds is frequently stronger than avowed
opposition, to stand up against religions appeals.
Few, then, seem to be in.greater moral peril than
Cowper was at eighteen years of age.
But God plucked him as a brand from the burn
ing. As if no person but one from a similar group
of companions could be the honored instrument
of bringing him to Christ, God converted a young
man who was familiar with all the gayety of the
world, and made him the means of bringing Cow
per to Christ. This young maii was .Martin
Madam. He was spending an evening at a coffee
house in company with other young men, jesting,
as usual about religion, and things pertaining
thereto. This was at the time Wesley was in his
glory, and he was preaching that evening in the
neighborhood. It was proposed by the company,
that Madan should go to hear him, and then re
turn to the cpffeerhouse, to, “take him off.” To
this he consented, and soon he was listening to
the melting words of the distinguished preacher.
The text was, “Prepare to meet thy God;” and it
was announced in that tone of impressive and even
awful solemnity, which Wesley alone could com
mand. The enunciation of the text startled Madan
as a trumpet-peal from the skies. He forgot that
he was the emissary of an infidel club, in his won- ,
der and terror at the grave import of the truth"
announced. As the preacher advanced with his
subject, growing more and more earnest and elo
quent, the young skeptic actually trembled in his
seat, and there resolved to prepare to meit his
God. After the service, he returned to the coffee
house, and ;his companions inquired laughingly,
if “he had taken off the old Methodist,” to which
he replied, without a smile upon his face, “No,
gentlemen, but he has taken me off.” Immedi
ately he left his gay associates, sought and found
the Saviour, and was soon inducted into the mi
nisterial office. This man was the first to reach
Cowper’s heart. He knew from experience'just
where and how he was intrenched against the gos
pel, so that be was able to converse with him as
n:> other believer could. By his wise and intelli
gent counsels, sanctified by the Holy Spirit, he
soon became a -sincere and devoted follower of
Christ.
We behold here the hand of Providence in his
conversion, as - we dff'in'every instance of the kind,
where God: would call the attention of the world
to the converted one. The fact has its lesson for
every Christian. God seems to say by it, “Be
wise as the serpent and harmless as the dove” in
approaching sinners. It is not every one that can
appeal’to certain unbelievers. The proper instru
ment will reach the most hopeless eases. Be en-.
couraged by the thought that all hearts are in God’s
hands, and he can turn them whithersoever he
will.
1. It is a mistake for a pastor to suppose
that he con have his people take an interest in
the religions movements of the day, without
having a religious newspaper circulated amoag
them. ”
2. It is a mistake for a pastor to suppose
that his people' can be acquainted with the pro
gress and wants of bis own denomination, and
contribute liberally to the support of its institu
tions, unless they are readers of a newspaper
devoted especially to the interests of that branch
of the Christian Church.
3. It is a mistake for any one to suppose
that he can, by the same expenditure in any
other way, bring as much religious information
before bis family, as by subscribing and paying
for a well conducted religious newspaper.
4. It is. a mistake for a man to begin to prac
tise economy by stopping his religious news
paper. To do this is to deprive himself and
family of a great benefit. ~
5. It .is a mistake for any one to suppose
that a newspaper can be made exactly wbat
every one would like it to be. The general
taste and wants must be consulted.
N. Y. Observer.
6. It is a mistake for any to think that edi
tors can, by any possibility, admit to their co
lumns every article that is sent them. They
must often decline contributions ably written,
because space is demanded for something of
present interest of which the Church and the
world- wish to read.
1. It is a mistake for one who can compose
lines containing a certain number of syllables, to
suppose himself a true-born poet.’
8. It is a mistake to suppose that 'editors
have much leisure, lead an easy life, or are too
well paid.
** FIVE MINUTES TOO FAST.
Some people are accustomed to keep their
watches five or ten minutes too fast, especially
when they are dependent upon the cars for con
veyance. “Your clock is too fast,” we said to a
Boston’ merchant, “ Yes,” -he replied, “I go out
every day, and I keep it a little fast that I may
not be behind the cars.” We have thought of
this reply many- times since, and finally have come
to the conclusion that men who keep their watches
five minutes too fast are laboring under a strong
delusion. . *
What does one of this elass gain by it? He
understands very well that his watch is too fast,
so that if he needs five minutes more at his coun
ter with a customer, he wili not hesitate to take
it. Knowing that’be can reach the cars in sea
son, he is tempted to stay to the time be would;*;
if his watch were exactly right. What, then, ’:
does he gain? If Be did not know .that his watch
was in advance of the true time, then he might
be aided by keeping it five minutes too fast. Bat
as. it is, the temptation to stay too long at his store
is not diminished.
But there is a valid objection to this practice.
We suppose it is done generally as a sort of com
promise with a disposition to be tardy—not quite
up to the mark. If it be dorie for this object, then
there could not be a greater delusion. For the
direct tendency of keeping a watch too fast, is to
keep the old habit of dilatoriness strong as ever,
if not stronger. If a man would overcome a dis
position to be tardy , and cultivate an heroic prompt
ness, he must keep his watch on the mark, and
regulate his steps accordingly. Five minutes of
leeway is long enough to minister to the old trait
of putting off, and putting off what should be done
at the moment. Such a habit can be cured only
by putting on it the strait jacket of just on the
time. . If this will not correct .it, nothing can.-
No discipline can be better for a dilatory man than
|p-be dependent on the cars, and keep his watch
exactly by car time. If this will not
prompt, then he-must have been born into the
world a little behind-time.
Christian Intelligencer.
COWPER’S CONVERSION.
MISTAKES.