Akintvican X'regillgtevian
tom 'Jtauteliot.
rrivuRSDAY, JANUARY 10, mu,
lOHN W. MEANS, EDITOR.
ASSOCIATED WITH
t ALBERT BARNES, GEORGE DUFFIELD, JR.
THOMAS BRAINERD, JOHN JENKINS,
"[WIRY DARLING. THOMAS J. SHEPHERD.
A LIFE OF TRUST.
Pew Christian men there are who have not
encountered trying seasons and circumstances
in life which, for the time being, have taught
them the nature of trust, and led them to exer
cise it in a marked and high degree. They
have called upon God in the day of trouble,
with an humble faith which they never knew be
fore. But , if their trouble has passed away,
their peculiar sense of , dependence has gone
with it. If day after' day passes by, unmarked
by any unusual trial, it is unmarked alike by
any unusual conscious exercise of trust. Chris
tians can exercise simple, unconditional trust;
they can commit themselves unreservedly to
God, and male that their all is in His hands
ocoasionally,—when, as we might say, they
are compelled to do it; but to live A urn or
TRUST in a living present God, is, apparently, a
rare and difficult attainment.
Or, if some attain it in regard to spiritual
matters, there still remains a difficulty in ex
tending it to temporals. We may be able to
realize every day, in regard to our souls, that it
is not we that live, but Christ that liveth in us;
we may have grace given us every day to tri
umph over the ancient enemy, legality, and to
exclude boasting as to our salvation and 'growth
in grace, when we can realize no similar de
pendence on God for our daily bread, for the
support of our families, or for our success in
Wo. Even in much of our labor for the kingdom
of God,. °Specially for the secular side of it, we
may walk very much by sight, and not by faith,
depending upon effort more than upon fervent
prayer, losing heart or growing unduly elated
by
.the fluctuating tokens which meet us from
without, rather thin Strengthening ourselves in
cram communion with and. dependence upon
cur God.
Nen have been discouraged from a practical
carrying out of the principle of trust into their
daily lives, and their efforts for the cause of
Christ, from fear of running into the oppo
site evils of presumption and fanaticism. To
lake the promises of Scripture in reference to
The hearing and answering of prayer, with any
. grrat literalness, has seemed to them contrary
to the dictates of common prudence and com
mon sense. Hence there has grown up in con
nection with the Lord's work, all the compli
cated machinery of expedients for procuring the
needful means, which the world employs, in
carrying forward its objects. And we begin to
believe that both in regard to the temporal
wants of the Christian, and the means needful
for carrying on the work of the Lord in the
world, Christian people have espoused to a
criminal degree the principles and policy of
worldly wisdom. They have shrunk from an
• xeess of pietism, and have become intangled
in
. naturalism. The Christian world of to-day,
carried away with the active spirit of the age, is
In danger of trusting in work, instead of work
ing by trust.
Nevertheless, the Church has not been with
out bright examples of the life of trust. They .
have been found in the humble and private
'walks of life; in unknown instances of the hope
-1111 endurance of poverty, in which the necessary
wants of the believer and hie family have been
supplied in answer to prayer, and in the pa
i:ent, happy temper of the confirmed invalid,
and the life-long sufferer, where unwavering,
submissive trust; has converted their sick cham
bers into the banqueting house of the King,
with the banner of his love spread over them,
and all who drew near them, in the same spirit.
Of instances known to the public, until recently,
there has occurred nothing, illustrative of the
life of trust, more remarkable than the case of
A. H. Francke, and his experience in establish
ing the Orphan Home, of Halle. It seemed to
him a Christian duty to attempt something for
the relief of orphans. Without means of his
own, trusting in God, and praying for the ne
cessary supplies, he set about the work. As
the number of applicants increased, the sup
plies increased in answer to fervent, unceasing
prayer. This was about A. D., 1696. "Sim
ply by trust in the living God, the institutions,
resembling a large street, rather than a house,
were erected, and about two thousand children
instructed in them." When he died, thirty
years afterward, the work went on, and it has
continued to this day, providing education and
support for thousands of the poor and destitute,
having been, says President Wayland, "for a
century and a half, one of the most honored of
the charitable institutions of the continent of
Europe."
And we rejoice to know that in our own day,
another equally remarkable and equally be i nefleent
illmitzation of the Life of Trust 'has been given to
the Christian world. We allude to GEORGE MUEL
LER, of Bristol, England, who, for more than a
quarter of a century, has been laboring as a preach
er of the gospel, chiefly in that oily; has estab
lished and carried on an institution for the diffu
sion of Christian knowledge at home and abroad,
by teachers, Bible and Tract distributors, and by
Home and Foreign missionaries; and who has
established Orphan Houses in that eitypontaining
now eight hundred inmates, and expected to con
tain eleven hundred and fifty this, year, and has
procured the means
_for his own support, and that
of these institutions, amounting in that period to
nearly.a million of dollars, without any regular
thity or pew rents, without any machinery for
operating ,on the liberality of Christians, issuing
nothing, but a simple annual statement through
the press, and praying'and trusting in God every
day for the Means needful for the day. The ac
count of this wonderful work is given by Muller
himself, in the simple, uncolored, childlike narra
tive which, in the form of a diary, he issued at dif
ferent periods to the Rublie. It is a wonderful
narrative of the struggles, trials, growth, triumph
anti rich reward of a Life of Trust in the living
.God.
it
ilzottais Muntigt " a German by birth and
eflucation, who well ni roko his father's heart,
first,* his unworthy, Mess and prodigal ha
bits of life, and neat, by his entire change and
consecration of himself to the work of tho Lord,
for which his parent had seemingly little sympa
thy. His conversion took place at Halle, and was
the result of a movement which had already begun
in that vicinity, though in 'a very limited way,
when Dr. Tholuck arrived at the University. Mr.
Milner came to England with the intention of la
boring under the London Missionary Society for
the conversion of the Jews, but was led subse
quently to change his purpose, and first labored
in several places as an evangelist. Finally, he
took charge of a congregation in Bristol, which
became, and continues to be, the scene of his pe
culiar labors.
His NARRADIVII has been condensed by Rev.
H. Lincoln Wayland, of Worcester, and is pub
lished by Messrs. Gould & Lincoln, of Boston,*
with an introduction by President Wayland, from
which we have already quoted. We have no he
sitation in pronouncing it the most remarkable
religious book of the season. There is good rea
son for believing that as published in England, it
was Made the means, under God. by its encou
raging exhibition of the power of believing prayer,
of commencing the great awakening in Ireland of
1859 and 1860. And whatever may be thought
by hesitating or worldlkminded professors, as to
the principles it inculcates in regard to the prac
tical value of prayer for personal wants, and for
means to carry on the work of God from day to
day, we are free to assert, that its tendency, so far
as read and pondered, will be to raise the active
Christian people of the present era, a long way
upward toward that position :of personal commu
nion and daily trust in the living:God; which, as
individuals, as heads of families, as ministers and
servants of God, in various branches of his work
they greatly need to exercise.
A GREAT MEETING.
The degree of enthusiasm which exhibited it
self at the meeting called in honor of Major An
derson on Saturday evening last was extraordinary,
and demands notice as we think, of religious
journalists. The meeting was entirely the work
of the people, was called and carried through by
representative men of all the political divisions,
and was, we believe, a. perfictly frank, fair, and
conclusive exhibition of public sentiment among
us. From twelve to fifteen thousand persons are
represented to have been in attendance, and but
one soul seemed to move the immense throngs
and those who addressed them. We find on the
list of officers some of the.most honored names in
our own Church.
Two sentiments we believe to have prompted
this wonderfully enthusiastic gathering---narnely,
a feeling of reaction and of hope at the change
which has taken place in President Buchanan's
policy, beginning with his acceptance of Secre
tary Floyd's resignation; and secondly, a deep
seated loyalty to this great government of ours,
and a determination, so far as in us lay, to uphold
and transmit it to posterity, as' the most precious
legacy of the ages to the sops of men. There is
no drop of blood in our veins that does not tingle
at the thought of its overthrow for any cause that
has been named. In the language of the vene
rable Horace Biting, addressed to the meeting:
our hearts are bound up in this Union more than
in life; whether in clouds er sunshine, we hold to
it more than to life and worldly prosperity.
We begin to believe, that under God ,end in
answer to prayer; a better prospect for the avert
ing of threatened evils is appearing. We , seem
to behold some glimpses of light which are very
like answers to the earnest cries'of His people.
And if tenGodleering men could have- saved
Sodom; shall . it any wonder 'that the tree
Christians of this country, whom we venture to
suppose are at least in equal proportion with the
needed decade in Bodoni, have at' iist been
honored as the instruments of our political salva
tion?
The favorable appearances are such as these:
First, and above all; The firm stand at. length
taken by the chief Executive and his advisers, for
the Constitution and laws, and the unanimous and
powerful response given to it by the masses of the
North. Next; the calm attitude maintained by
the Border States,.who have successfully . resisted
a tremendous pressure of agents of treason within
and without. The Governor of Virginia does not
recommend a State Convention. Governor Hicks,
of Maryland, will not call an extra session of the
Legislature; and little Delaware, as one of the first
acts of her opening Legislature, heard the agent
of treason who bad come all the way from Mis
sissippi, and dismissed him with an emphatic dis
approval of his recommendation. Even the'Gulf
States may have sufficient of the salt, of patriotic
men to save them. We have just laid down an
evening paper, containing part of a speech of Mr.
Cobb, of Alabama, in the House at Washington,
in which be denies having joined in advising his
State to secession. God knew, he said, that his
prayers were for harmony. He was for. making
another effort for adjustment. He called not only
on the North, but on the South to do something
to save us from our present troubles. These are
but a portion of the indications for good, that by
God's favor are shining-upon us. Let us be thank
ful, take courage, and continue in prayer.
DR. WADSWORTH vs. PRINCETON RE-
VIEW
The Southern Presbyterian, of Columbia, S.
(1., in justifying secession, on the ground of the
alienation of. the North from the South, quotes
the Rev. Dr. Wadsworth's sermon, as authority
against Dr. Hodge, in the Review:
We will, however, only repeat the testimony
we have before given from the Rev. Dr. Wads
wo.rth, of Philadelphia. He affirmed, in refer
ence to the election of Mr. L., in a public dis
course, that "the whole rank'and file have kept
step in the march to the same old border slogan
—of war upon slavery," He spoke not of po
litical leaders and demagogues, but of "the
whole rank and file," ""the mass of the people
of the North." knd his testimony is at least
as good as that of the Princeton .Review.
THE CHRISTIAN HERALD.
Our excellent contemporary and fellow-labourer
at Cincinnati, formerly bearing the name Central
Christian Herald, now appears under the above
heading, in new and handsome type, and in en
larged size, exceeding our own sheet by about the
width of the border. We heartily rejoice in these
indications of prosperity, and this promise of the
increased usefulness of a sheet which has borne
part faithfully and well in the history of the
church and the, movements of the age. Every
good influence needs to be strengthened in the
times in which we live. May the Herald enjoy a
happy New Year, and may its shadow never grow
less.
STILL IN NEED.
We would tender our acknowledgments to such
subscribers and agents as have recently favored us
with remittances. At this time such attentions
are peculiarly opportune. We must express our
earnest wish and expectation that subscribers who
are still delinquent, and agents who are behind
band in their collections, will at once hasten to
discharge these duties.
* For sale by Smith, English & Co., Philadelphia.
Aintriratt Vrtoblterian and 6,entott granottiot,
FREEDOX OP SPEECH.
The tone of recent editorials and sermons, to
say nothing of speeches and resolutions on public
occasions, has called our attention to the above
topic. In the last Christian Intelligencer, we
find some noticeable remarks under the title "Free
Speech," which are introduced by the following
quotation• front Mr. Barnes:
"What evil is` there-which may not" be origi
nated or fomented by the tongue? What else is
there that might with so much- ropriety be re
presented as a little world of iniquity? With all
the good which it does, who can estimate the
amount of evil it causes? Who can measure the
evils which arise from scandal, and slander, and
profaneness, and perjury, and falsehood, and blas
phemy, and obscenity, and the inculcation of er
ror by the tongue? Who can gauge the amount
of broils, and contentions, and strifes, and wars,
and suspicions, and enmities, and alienations
among friends and neighbors, which, it produces?
Who can number the evils produced by the ho
neyed words of the seducer, er by the tongue of
the eloquent in the maintenance of error and the
defence of wrong?"
The editor then proceeds to speak of free speech
as at present understood and, practised, using no
little freedom himself in the description, as every
one who reads may see:
Thus free speech, according to the American
vocabulary, is aptly and justly understood to mean
the liberty of ,unrestricted lying against one's
neighbors ox fellow-citizens; The tongue of the
eloquent orator fails to charm, unless the poison
of asps be under it; and the pen of the political
journalist becomes valueless in the public regard,
unless it can bite like a serpent, and sting like an
adder. The privilege -of abuse, thus, is held to
be.the climax of all civil rights; and readiness in
philanthropic slander, the chief attainment in re
ligion.
The editor waxes warm, and even intemperate,
as he proceeds with his topic. Out of free speech
he conjures , up, a huge phantom; and from a just
indignation against slander and falsehood, he runs
to an extreme bordering upon the very evils he
denounces
Once this was a free country, but it is hardly'
so now. Free speech has conquered; unlimited
falsehood rules, and has , introduced a reign of ter
ror which leaves scarcely any man's person, rights,
or reputation safe, who will not submit to its law,
and bow to its edicts. _
Turning aside, for a moment, to the present po
sition of our country, he indulges himself in a style
of expression which, if it be not positively irre
verent, is at least more than free:
A' furious family quarrerhas broken out, and
every one clamors for the right of Arising - every
other. One has seized a broom,",...anether a poker,
another the tongs, another a chip from Plymouth.
Rock, another a twig of the sappy Palmetto, and
every tongue is voluble with rage. In the midst
of the hubbub, the good old grandfather, who has'
charge of the family, instead of chastising, with
paternal zeal, the ringleaders in the noisy mischief,
stands in dismal fright, exclaiming, a My eVildren,
let us fast and pray!" Well, prayer is good at all
times; but occasionally sprouts are useful 'also.
Fasting is good, but it should not be for strife
and debate. -
if any one chose to pick it out, he would doubt
less find much that is true in these and other
paragraphs. We do not wish to be understood as
defending those who have abused their preroga
tives as citizens of a free country. But we are
astonished that the author of such a paragraph
should be found complaining of freedom of speech,
as an evil and an oppression.
We find in the reports of several discourses
preached on the fast day of last week r allusions.to
the same supposed evils'of free speech, and shall
quote briefly from two of' these reports., , Of one
of our most popular city preachers, it is said that,
He discussed - the other sins of aid country, and
argued that we talk too much about our own rights,
and not enough about our duties. He thought
free speech and a free press had their limits.
Within these limits they were a good think
The most distinguished pulpit orator of the
other branch of the Chureh in this city, is reported
as saying:
We have borne false. witness against:our breth
ren. Because this institution is liable to, abuse,
we have denounced all slaveholders as abominable
sinners. This malignant misrepresentation has
scarcely .a parallel. For this privilege of abusint ,
men, we are now paying dearly at the cost of mil
lions of dollars. We have thus abused our breth
ren under the plea of freedom of
. speech and of
the press, as if personal liberty involved the li
cense to utter in all times and places whatever
may be inspired-by malignant passion—a lieense
incompatible with all higher personal rights and
all enlarged social welfare, and therefore no meter_
to be protected than the license, to. fling firebrands
into our ,dwellings, or plunge daggers into our
hearts. This license of evil speaking is a license
which the word of God has emphatically dextouncd,
declaring that "the tongue unrestrained," that is,
licentious speaking, is one of the sorest social
evils.
Editors and preachers like these are evidently
dissatisfied with the degree of liberty enjoyed or
exercised by the freemen of this country, in the
discussion of what they consider to be evils. They
do not distinctly propose any abridgment of these
liberties, yet " we do them no injustice when we
assume from the vague intimations they give us,
that some restriction would be agreeable to them;
with this reservation, hoivever,that the restriction
should be applied to such writers and speakers as
differ' with them on the great questions of the day.
For there are - few editors and few preachers upon
whom a general limitation of the freedom of speech
would fall more heavily, than those just quoted
as complaining of it. They are men accustomed
to speak their convictions unreserVedly, nor are
they reputed to be very tender in the choice of
terms to express their , opinions, or very sparing of
an antagonist's feelings, provided they firmly be
neve him to be in the wrong. They would be
speedily-shorn of their strength, if placed under
the workings of a law of restriction:
The free people of the. North, and indeed of
our whole country, excepting, perhaps, the Gulf
States, scorn all such suggestions, and tolerate
them only because they are determined to carry
out the principle of freedom , of speech towards its
very, enemies. It is perfeetly e idle.for men to de
claim against a right which is older than the Re
volution. They will accomplish as little as Ca
nute on the coast of England, opposing royal
mandate to the influx of the boundless ocean.
The Gulf States and their scattered allies in
the pulpit and press of the North, rani nantes,
would, indeed, be gratified, and peace would be
made, if instead of extending African slavery
all over the Union, the enslavement of the
white race of the, „ North in . tongue ' and pen
e ' i a
could bcceinplished. The London Times,
in an editorial on the recommendations of the
President'L Message, argues that this is the
great want of the South
The mischief has been done by the liberty of
speech and action in -the North. The remedy
would seem, therefore, to be to prohibit speech
and to fetter action. If the matrons of the
South can never feel themselves safe so long as
the North is allowed to talk and write, to quote
the Declaration of Independence, and appeal to
the - anti-slavery opinions of Washington and
Jeffertion, the case will be very little mended by
the remedies the President proposes.
*- *
What will all this avail, on Mr. Buchanan's
own showing, if the North be still allowed the
right of free . discussion i and nothing be done to
check in the bosom of Demoeracy the propaga
tion of vague notions offreedom?
This is the point ,
to which these editors and
preachers are tending. They . maynot be eon : .
sdi4ll3 of it-- Tiley , kould, perhaps, repudiate it,
when presented' in such plain terms. The ques.
tion of yielding giek,rightof speech, is too pre
posterous ever to oe put to the North. If it
came np in any shape in the communities and
sections where these editors and preachers live,
it might be whether their' abuse of the North
shall not be restricted; whether their charges of
"unrestricted lying7and "malignant misrepre
sentation," are to b' endured; whether teggnes
principles of liberty and equaliptyublic mind,
the
which
pe icha u r s e m un u d st er n th o be
i t nig, p h u l t under
the surveillance,
announced in
the Deciatation or Independence, and taught in
the New Testament. If it 'were conceivable
that any legislation should take place on the
subject, and if intolerance in the expression of
opinion were to be checked, then, iloribtless,
the people would pause and consider whether
they would check intolerance of liberty or into
lerarice of slaVary.'
,If it were conceivable that
the pulpits of the North should become amena
ble to law 'for `their utterances on moral Sq
jec4, we should " e afraid to trust to the
intelligent voters 'I.
law makers of the North,
whether they - wouldrencourage the men who
are striving to throiv around the system of
American slavery all the supports and sanctions
of religion, even while it is struggling to sub
sidize this government to its purposes, or revo
lutionizing the country in its disappointment.
But we neither, in the slightest degree, wish
nor expect such questions to arise. Editors
and preachers at the North will be entirely
free to profess their attachment to slavery, and
to call those who differ with them what hard
names they please.. All we aim at, in the pre.
, .
sent writing, is, to show clearly what they de
sire, and to what pitiable extremes they are led,
in their Mistaken defeice of a wrong cause.
VIEWS. OF THE :: OTTl'vdt' BRANCH OF
THE PRESBYTERIAN; CESURCH.
Since the " elolnent secession sermon" -of
Rev. br. Palmer,Atd the widely disseminated
,brarkure centiaititl advancedsheets of the
Princeton .IlevieicA.9. the State of the Coun
try," the "Old. School" branch of the church
has become an object of peculiar interest to all ,
Presbyterians Few of, the weekly journals of
that body have noticed the "advanced sheets."
The Presbyterian of this city-has hept silence.
A few of the. Sod ernjournals hive expressed
themselves; the South Carolina Presbyterian,
of course, in terms :of decided disapproval. It
may be thought: more, significantthat the Cen
tral Presbyterian. _Herald, published at Rich
mond, Va., haixlven its opinion in language
like the following
We have" have no words to express the sadness
and surprise with whichme have read this.pro
&action., With much of it we can agree. But
we are obliged to,-say that its argument is ex
ceedingly tinfair, its misrepresentations many
and injurious, 'ankirhat is worse, its spirit far
from being such as "becometh the gospel of
Christ." , . We,sat this with un'speakable•grief.
At the feet `ar' b Of the Princeton
.Review we sat, with a filial spirit, more than a
linarter of a century ago.. There is no man
not hound to us by the' ties of nature,
oroisiverui, - .4 , o4iftwa. Atreater'=vdneration, we
might say affectionate regard. ' We have tried
hard to reconcile silence with fluty, but we can
not.
,We must stand, as best, we can, in, our
hutithle lot, protesting against the unholy spirit
of this article, and . CiTntendingigainst its unrigh
teous views; tending to"rend • our country and
our church. •
The Banner, of Pittsbtirgb;withont noticing
the Bevieto r gives 'utterance to the following
sentiments; Tei7 mncli inAhe same spirit:
The cause of tliiilagitittion, then, is the belief,
on the part of the ictors,.that slavery is doomed
if the Union shall continue. • Thiy will break
up the Union, because, in their view, the insti
tution can be preserved in no other way. The
North must gyaranty to. the South the perpe
ttfilyof slavery.
The North will
a.' `'d
do any such thing. ' The
kooust#irtttki' desAot, require, this guarantee.
;• 1 1‘f.was'thit framed 115 r this - purpose. It was ar
il:Wiled- and ehttiblished, not to perpetuate
' 4 filiivery, but to "tie the blessings of liberty."
It leaves ski:very wt be States. If they choose
Ito aboliilkit, they can fo so. If they choose
to continue it, they•ohndo so, so far as the Con
stitution is coneerned":"The North will • abide
by the. Constitution. Sle - will respect the right
of the South to thanagClier own domestic po
licy. She will deliirer till, "persons held to ser
iice or labor in one. State, under the laws there
of, escaping into another." But let our South
ern brethren and fellow-citizens know assuredly,
that the people of 'the North will never gua
ranty.the perpetuation 'of slavery. They will not
interfere with it`where' it is, but they will . not
guaranty its continuance. It is not nominated
in'the bond, and no new bond will they receive.
And the North could`not, guaranty the per
petuity of slavery if she would..lt is beyond
her power. She 'night as well undertake to
guaranty a suspension of the law of gravita
tion, as to, guaranty hn arrest of, the onward
moving of Providence; by which, in his own
good time, every'yoke, shall be broken, and the
oppressed everyiv re go free. Slavery is
doomed—doomed only in, the Union, but
t
, throughbut the w6`_ It - It mast perish. But
let it do so under tke :good hand of God, per
, vading by his gospel the mind of both master
1 and servant.
Southern statesmen are in error, in thinking
that slavery can be preserved by a separate con
federacy:, In all probability" that would hasten
its destruction. The South needs the constitn-:
tional protection of the North, to prevent a,
sudden destruction of slavery, an. event that
would• be alike disaitrous to the master and the
Wave. If that protection be scorned and cast
away, ib will be by the pride which goeth be
fore destruction..
Christians at the North are not aggressive
on this subject. They are not propagandists
by violence. The gospel is their weapon. All
they ask of their slaveholdidg brethren is, that
they regulate slauary by etriatianity. They
will leave the tuattetwith them, simply desiring
them to apply the principles of the gospel in
all their treatment of the slaves. If the insti
tution can standthw application of those prin
ciples, let it stand forever; if it cannot stand
the application of these principles, no wisdom
of statesmen can prevent its fall.
NEWSPAPER INTROVEMENTS.
In our list of exchanges we observe that, be
.
side..the Christian ilerald, the Presbyter, of
Cincinnati, is enlarged and *proved. The
Western Christian Ade °eats, in the same, city,
has enlarged and talfen the double sheet form,
and the old Christian Advocate and Jo urnal
of New York, has . ,felloWed the fashion, and
changed. to the quarto form, without any ma
terial enlargement. All these are newspapers
of high character, and , every friend of Evangeli
cal literature Will rejoice in their prosperity.
* *
NATIVE HELPERS AT FIITICHAU: IMPORTANCE OF
MIL EDITOR:—Last Sabbath evening I attend
ed the usual Chinese service, held in the church
belonging to the mission of the American Board
at this place. Three young men, members of the
native church under care of that mission, two of
whom are employed as -naive heifer's, addtessed
the congregation, followed by closing remarks by,
the missionary in charge of the meeting.
The first speaker, aged 20, had a very , bashful
appearance. His delivery was, rather monotonous.
His remarks, however, indicated him to be, a so
ber and earnest thinker. He took, as his subject,
the closing part of the sth chapter of Matthew,
and explained at considerable length the manner
in which Jesus taught his disciples to treat their
slanderers and enemies.' The way in which he
handled this subject, as well as the, subject itself,
conciliated and interested the audience. He al
luded to several customs of the Chinese, and quoted
some of their maxims, relating to their treatment
of enemies, and exhibited in marked .and impres
sive contrast the principles which the Saviour laid'
down as rules for the guidance of his followers, in
regard to those who "cursed,": who "hated," and
whO "despitefully used and ,persecuted them." I
could not but be.gratefuller such4ain -and ear
nest remarks on this subject, so different from any
thing which exists either., in theory or practice
among the Chinese. ,
The second speaker, aged twenty-ftve, so far
as concerned' his manner : of delivery, was much
more pleasing and oratorical than the first. He
announced as his 'theme, John xv. 25; "They
hated me without a cause," and proceeded to show
the unreasonableness of the common objections
made by the Chinese against. Jesus. He declared
that his text was. fulfilled in Fulichau, in that Je
sus was hated without a cause. While he exposed,
in .a masterly manner, the sophistry and the po
pular excuses and objections against the phristian
religion, he did not fail to notice the real reasons
'Why the Chinese do not believe in the Saviour.
His words were simple, yet pointed, and his mean
ing unmistakable. His appeals were bold and
searching. I felt grateful when .he closed, that
the truth had been spoken so earnestly, and at the
same time so kindly.
The third speaker, aged . ..2D, discoursed- from .
Matt. x. 28. His voice was sharp and quick, yet i
quite distinct. He explained and 'enforced, in a
pleasing and direct manner, the duty of every one)
to fear God more than man. He spoke of the na
ture, the value, and the
. immortality of the soul,
in a way which rivetted the attention of the eon
gregation. He denied the sentiment.whialy seems
to be entertained, in theory at leait, by not, a few
learned Chinese, that the soul •perishes when the
body dies. The audience listened with .a kind of.
wondering interest, while he urged theta in a bold
and spirited manner to fear and obey that Beings
"who is Able to destroy, both soul and body in
hell," and not to fear man who can only kill the'
body, but cannot kill the soul.
What has been said,. as well as what has been
left-unsaid, about the exercises of that evening,,
illustrate two interesting facts, which ,I believe :tot
be eminently true of the , native helpers at this
port. ~.I have had ample opportunities of judging
in, this matter ever-since any• converts.were. em
,
ployed as helpers in the ntissionary work at Bull
chau. - • -
PRfLOTICAL AND EMINENTLYT§TIA.N.-
1 The native helpers Select Nery-practical and
important subjects when addressing_their country:.
men. Thep do not loin to dwell on abstruse, me
taphysical, or far-fetched themes, nor are they
fond- of presenting exclusiVely doctrinal points.
There is not much science, or philosophy, or his
tory embodied in their public addraises, but there
is a great deal of most important truth relating to
*the most practical subjects, prescribed by them in'
an earnest and kind manner. -
2. They are not ashamed to. Speak out' boldly
for Jesus. They literally and emphatically "Stand
up for Jesus" in all their. discourses. Indeed
their preaching and their addresses are so full of
'Jesus, and contain so many allusions to Ile life:
and fi; doctrines of the Saviour as the only proper
example and standard for men of all ages and all
nations, as, frequently, to irritate many of their
hearers. It is `a very coMmowooethenee to hear
some of those who have been listening to their ad
dresses,
imy in substance on leaving, that of every
10 sentences, 3 or 4 have Jesus in them, or are about
Jesus. 4nother forms of expressiktgztbasatne idea,
is that " one word out of every,pqs..Jesus."
not a &IV leave the'ehapel or the ch*anger,
uttering the abOve sentiment, with lou bit
ter curses .on the native helpers.
Prayer in behalf of fore_ign4missionaries, of - na
tive converts to Christianityini foreigklandsi of
Christian schools among thk4atheA?ainif of the
heathen generally, is very.trion-amwicPbris
dans in western countries::'BoV4Pilita?.4pe , .
dal prayer for the natio..helptrei,-****labor
ing for the conversion:of:their heathef'ol44‘yinett,
is rarely offered. far as toi.:,iiiitertAfine-mid
my recollection. sintvpsuch e.,*1: 1 / 4 a4 .treli/et; 15r
very seldom presented befoiOkSigyiseit t ba
family worship, fAhureh'oineiktitiOrb-Oiiitpia3ret
meetings, or evenidthe nionthlFertAr.Anie
rico. previous to aty sailing-for mat---liaallietie
been a.great 'change for the bett(*at tegaidi as'
subject? Would that I -knew a change had
already extensively been made IV - .
The subject of prayer for natii . .helpersis one
Of great and generapimportanee, 'considered with
reference to the'prokreSs of the Work in every mis
sionary field. Btoll shall briefly present the sub
ject, viewed from China, as my stand point. For
I feel that there are some grave eonSiderations,
some special reasons why frequent and fervent
prayer in behalf of the native helpers in China
should be offered by the Church. •
-NATIVE PREACHERS THE MATH non - FOR CHINA.
1. China is so immense
' and,so populous, its dis
tance so great from America and England, (the
present centres of interest-in the missionary'cause,)
and the necessary expense connected with the fo
reign missionaries so large and constant, that it is
idle to expect the evangelization of this empire'
mainly by th,e.lahor of foreigners. And besides,
the numbeA.Amissionaries, and; of candidates for
the : missionary" work, is immensely inadequate.
The Churili, at least, in the present state of her
zeal in the cause; of missions, has neither the mo
ney nor, tlip t lnen to spap s for the work in China.
Can she send and anpfert., annually several scores
or hundredp;not to say thousands, oP her, sons and
daughters in this empire to labor for Jesus? No:
China must be saved by the diviner,bleakiig resting
principally on the labors Qf lier n own 4 cenvertecl SOW
and daimhters. Natilleipttelgt:l. tinder God, are
her main hope. 110 - *kti: then, that suit
able persons should be raised the,right -time ;
and place, and in sufficient numbers to meekthe
• For the American Presbyterian•
LETTER FROM CHINA•
PRAYER FOR SUCH HELPERS.
ADDRESSES OP NATIVE HELPERS
growing demands of the work—to respond to the
loud call of Providence for more laborers in this
empire! Is it reasonable and consistent - to believe
that the evangelization of China will be achieved
without the importunate and effectual prayers of
the Church, in behalf of the native agents or in
struments in the work? Are' the . present or the
future missionaries in this land, on whom will de
volve the responsibility of selecting, training and
superintending the native , helpers, sufficient for
.
such a responsibility, unaided by the sympathies
and the prayers of western Christians, poured out
before God in behalf of these helpers?
PRECED.ENT IN CHINA
2. "As the twig is bent the tree is inclined,"
is an old adage, which has a moral application of
peculiar significancy and force, in such an empire
as China, where CUStO9II, and precedent are gene
rally more powerful than law or than right. The
founddions should be properly laid, if the super
structure is to he firm and durable. A low stan
dard of ,piety and devotion to the work, in those
who are first, or among the first to be employed
as native helpers or native preachers, would beta
calamity to be peculiarly dreaded-and deprecated
in this empire. Now maynot, should not a deep
and powerful interest be taken in this matter by
those at the West who are co-workers in the pro
motion of the cause of missions in this laud?
Ought they not, and will they not offer up special
and frequent prayer in behalf of native helpers or
native preachers in China, in view of the transcend
..
ent importance of rightly beginning as well as
.of rightly prosecuting the work by the instru
mentality of converted Chinese?
[To be continued.]
For the American Presbyterian.
THE SYRIAN SUFFERERS
The advices which reach us weekly from the
"Anglo-American Relief Committee" at Beirut,
demonstrate as well the prudence with which the
funds already remitted are dispensed to the pe
rishing multitudes, as the appalling destitution that
reigns in Syria. On the 4th of November they
wrote to the Syrian Relief Committee at New
York : " Our expenditure has been doubled, and
we see no reason to believe that it will decrease!'
In a village formerly numbering 512 souls, five
were killed in, the war, and forty-two had died
since its termination from want and exposure.
One-sixth of the remainder were sick. This is
but a sample of the villages in the Lebanon dis
trict, even before the setting in of the wintry Sea
son. Disease in its worst, forms is added to the
faniine;' and there is much need of medicine and
medical treatment The number of physicians
employed has been increased to eleven, eight of
whom give their services gratuitously. Under
their assiduous labors, it is true, the number of
Patients in the cities' rapidly diminishes.. "At
the date of the establishment of our medical corps
; at Damascus, more than 2,500 were reported sick.
Less than 300 are now (Nov. Bth) under treatment,
and but very few deaths have occurred." The
physicians report; "The number of patients is
gradually decreasing, but disease in general is ae,-
; quiring a more serious character, in consequence
I of the near approach of winter, dampness in the
houses and streets, and from noxious exhalations,
especially from the Christian quarter. In the lat
ter place :a considerable quantity of human limbs
are still lying exposed, and others are being daily
exhumed by the street do g s." On account of the
enormous expense that would necessarily attend the
employment of European phYsicians in the moon
tains, " the proposition to employ native doctors
has received .
,much favor; they will of course be
under the direction of the European and Ameri
can physicians now in the field.'' But while the
prospect
,for the alleviathm of "the sufferings a
- "the sick is in some points, encouraging, the de
mands on the charities of the West in behalf. of
the famishing augment as the rigor of the season
increases. 'Under date of Novvember 14th, Rev
Daniel M. Wilson, on his return from an explore
qion of the region about 13aalbee, reports to the
Committee that "the:Christians have lost much
the greater part of their cattle, without which no
ploughing can be done. Most of their ploughs are
missing. Last autumn and this spring these
twenty-nine villages sowed about eighty‘thousand,
bushels of grain, and all they saved of this year's
crop, together with the little received as food from
the government, iS less Ahem one-fifth of the
amount sown !" How are these multitudes, to. be
fed; and whence shall they receive seed' to sow
their fields for the ensuing year? "The'fund of
the French Committee is to be devoted exclusively
to repairing -villages, and to re-building the-par
tially destroyed convents." To the .destitute
Christians who must' be fed, are to ,be added
a body of Metawali, (Moslems,) who have re
ceived assistance from the Tripoli Auxiliary , Sub
committee. No Jews have as yet asked for relief.
Notwithstanding every attempt at retrenchment,
to-supply food Rercly,tg.27,ooo daily recipients
for the six months` to come, until hiirVest begins,
will cost £20,000," and much additional will' be
needed to clothe the naked, and shelter the house
less. The Christians of England and AmeriCa
have done nobly thus far. " Help must Come,"
says the Beirut Committee in concluding theirre-
cent appeal, "promptly, steadily, and largely, Or.
our distributions must cease in midwinter, and.
then the destruction of the Christian communities
of this land, commenced by Moslem fanaticism,
Druze ferocity, and the treachery of Turkish
Pashas, will.be completed by cold and nakedness
disease and' amine: -
SW" Mr. William A. Booth, No. 95 Front St.,
New York, is the Treasurer of the - Syrian Belief
'Committee. ik
For the American Presbyterian.
"ANNALS OP TEE POOR."
The meetings' held in our 'mission room on
Sabbath and Friday evenings, partake not only
of a religious cliracter, but also, strongly of a
,sociable nature latter caused, we think,
mostly by the former.
In consequence of these, our meetings - ate
largely attended, not only by the larger children
of the school, hut also by a number of grown
persons. Among the rest, has come one young
lady, who took a class in our school, and who,
night after night, has joined in our prayers, and
we had'hoped, become - one of us; but she disap
peared, her seat was vacant, and we must go
and see why. Thus came our visit to a family
in
BEDFORD STREET.
Our knock upon the front door, was soon an
swered, from the side yard, by our young friend,
and we were kindly asked . to walk in, which we
did. The room was, not the nicely carpeted one
we had expected to see, but the floor, though
bare, was - well scrubbed. The walls were white
and clean, and the' old cook-stove threw out
sufficient heat to keep the frame house warm.
The father was
,in the upper room working at
shoes, while the mother occupied her ;time be
tween her household cares and spooling;'yarn
for one of the neighboring factories. To* vy
-question,bovr they were affected by the "panic . ,,"
they told me it lad not stopped,their, work yet.
TAere seemed ,to be ho disposition to beg, bqt
my inquiries they returned prompt and
faii"answers• During my brief stay, I learned
.that when the mother was married, she had a good
Ripply of clothing, and that as her family need
ed; she would . take from her own wardrobe and
clothe her children, thinking that as she herself
would . want, .she_ could Purchase others. Their
weekly - eirtongs, all along, have been enough to
supply- thei.r - - - actual necessities only, and thus
the tootherVielothes have never . been replaced
by new ones, and for years she has not been able
to attend churett. Would, it not be a good act,
if some one 'or more Christian ladies would
quietly become acquainted with, and, burst these
"bonds" . which now fetter a sister, "and let the
oppressed gotree?"
EDITOR'S TABLE.
THE CLOUD WITH A GOLDEN BORDER • By Her F N .
Ffszt.r.rr, Author of "The Heights of Eidelberg." Phi
ladelphia: T. _Elwood Zell. 12m0., pp. 412.
A tale whose chief interest centres in a jewiA
family, thrown by accident among Christians, and
led, to the acceptance of the true Messiah by thei r
lives and conversation. The inward struggles and
divisions of sentiment produced among them, ar e
drawn with power and pathos. Some of the seems
cannot be read without the deepest emotion,,
such as that•which passed between Lemuel and
his father in reference to their uncle. Paul, and
the death of Uncle Paul himself. But beside s
this main object, and perhaps too much oversha
dowing it, we have an interesting group of cha
racters, whose lives illustrate some of the niot,
prominent traits, virtuous and vicious, of domestic
and social life. Radcliff and Cornelia meanly and
selfishly aspire to position, and meet with over
whelming disappointment; Howard and Marion
manifest true Christian generosity and modesty,
and are blessed with success. We cheerfully com
mend the work as calculated to give sound views
of life, and to set in a clear light the value of an
interest in the true Messiah. The authoress, con
cealed under a nom de plume is a Christian ady,
whose great worth is acknowledged by all her ac
quaintances, and whose character has undergone
the refinement of years of affliction, not yet com
plete.
PICTURES FROM THE HISTORY OF SPAIN. By
the author of Pictures from the History of the Swiss..
Boston: Brown & Taggard. 16mo. pp. 296. Illus
trated.
A very attractive volume, traversing nntrodden
ground in the domain of juvenile literature. His
tory, manners, lard cu:stoms; and choice anecdotes
are combined in a delightful melange, instructive
and entertaining to the youthful reader. The
persecutions of the Moors and Jews are graphical
ly described. For sale by W. S. &A. Martieu.
NELLIE AND HER BOAT. By JOSEPHINE Enswas.
Boston: Brown & niggard. IBmo. pp. 150.
One of a series of brief and interesting volumes,
designed to illustrate the progress which can be
made from a very low and degraded condition of
life to a more refined and elevated one, by the pro
per use of kindness, love, and gentle teaching.
For sale as above.
HISTORY OF LATIN CHRISTIANITY, including that
of the Popes to the Pontificate of -Nicholas V. By
HENRY BART linatert, D. D., Dean of St. Paul's. In
eight vols. Vol. 111. New York: Sheldon & Co.
Large 12nto. pp. 625.
This third volume of Milman's Latin Christia
nity, promptly issued by the American publishers,
carries the narrative down to the year 1095, the
period of the- excommunication of Philip I. of
France. For sale by S. al'llenry, 406 Walnut
Street.
COINS, MEDALS, AND SEALS, Ancient - and Modern.
Illustrated and described. Edited by W. C. Faint,
author of Boat-Life in Egypt and Nubia. New York:
Harper & Brothers, Square fivo. pp. 229, with one
hundred and fourteen plates, and two indexes.
This is a rare sort of a book, in the American
trade, being designed to meet the wants of a special
and limited class of connoisseurs. 'But it meets
these wants in such a way as to be attractive al
most to any intelligent! reader. The subject is,
indeed, one that touches the public interest on
more sides' than one,. being intimately connected
with the history of man, and of his commercial
transactions. The illustrations are as various and
extensive as civilization itself, and Mr. Prime has
done his part' in an.instructive and agreeable man
ner. For sale by Lindsay ida Blakiston.
LIFE IN THE OLD WORLD; or, Two Years in Salt
zerland and Italy. By Facrounta. BREMER. Translated
by Maar Howirr. Copyrighted. American edition,
from the Translator's manuscript. In two vols. Phi-
Iladelphia: T. B. Peterson & Bros. 12m0., pp. 488, 474.
The gifted authoress of these volumes throws
new attractions around .the familiar scenes of her
travels. Site, sees what others have not seen, she
groups •familiar objects -in new connections, she
interweaves ,with, skill the products of her own
genius. 'But she aims to do more than entertain
the reader Fith.slretches of travel, She professes
to seek out evidences of the progress of the divine.
kingdom among men, and utters ,vague longings
an this. subject. She has an ideal •of a church
greater than Protestantism. She communicates
no definite ideas of it; only it shall be wide enough
to include "Fenelon and °banning, Francis de
Sales and Herman - Franeke, Hildebrand and Lu
ther, Washington and Vinet, Elizabeth Fry and
St. Brigitte.' 'She shows her acquaintance with
the facts inyolied„ by declaring that the age of
Calvinisin is gone; and further reveals her own
spirit, hy thanking God forit! Yet she scarcely
seems `to understand'herself; for we find her again
speaking of "a too latitudinarian rationalism"
creeping into- the Waldensiin churches, and she
manifests `a very intelligent and appreciative in
terest in the movements of the Evangelical Church
in France, Switzerland,, and Geneva:': The books
will be read, and they contain. very much that
will repay, reading. But we are sorry we cannot
commend them unreservedly` to Our friends.
REMINISCENCES OF SCOTTISH LIFE AND CHA
RACTER. By B. B. RAMSAY Dean of Edinburgh.
From the . Seventh Edinburgh Edition. Boston: Tick
nor &Fields. 16m0., pp. 297, with anAndex.
The many Scotchmen, and descendents of Scotch
men,, in - this country, will welcome thie edition of
a- volume in which , so much of the flavour of Scot
tish life - and- conversation' is preserved. The to
pics are: Religious Feelings, and Observances;
Scottish Conviviality . ; the Old,Scottish Domestic
Servant; Hunteur. proceedin g from the Language,
including Scottish Proverbs. - Readers of all na
tionalities will , find in the volume innocent and
rational entertainment, some' of it of the most ir
resistible, side-splitting,-,characte r , combined with
much instruction upon- the lees known aspects of
the subject The author, Dean Ramsay, gives a
preface to the Ainerican Edition, in which he ex
presses himself as much gratified at this indication
of interest, by our countrymen, in his work. It
is gotten ,up in antique type, and in the usual ex
cellent style of the publishers. For sale by J. B.
Lippincott & Co.
BONNIE SCOTLAND. Tales of her History, Heroes,
and. Poets. By GRACE GREENWOOD. With Illustra
tions. Boston: Ticknor & Fields. 181 no., pp. 273.
Above, we noticed Scotland for the old folks.
Here we have Scotland for the children, served
up by a competent hand and a great favourite.
The selection of characterdand incidents is judi
demi. The story:of the Covenanters is told from
the Protestant side,,and the nmetyrdonl of the two
Margarets in the .rising tide of the sea, is affect
ingly reproduced. Sir William Wallace, Rob
Roy, Robert Bruce, Mary Queen of Scots, Robert
Burns, and-'Sir Waiter Scott figure in' the inte
resting miscellany.. For sale by J; B. Lippincott
BRUIN: THE GRAND BEAR' BUNT. By Captain
MAYNE Ry.pa. Boston: Tieknekr.& Fields. 1.8m0..,
pp. 371.
This is a book of stirring incident, and will in
fallibly fix'the attention of every youthful reader.
How farit will'prove instructive;'or communicate
healthful excitement, may well be doubted; as it
exhibits the, habits of 'the animal, who forms the
central figure in the exhibition, chiefly as' he ap
pears when purstied'with deadly intent by the su
perior animal,*man.; and there is not a little of
wantonness- both-in the spirit of the professional
huntsman,.and in making the excitement of the
chase the staple of a story for the For
sale by J. B. Lippincott & Co.
The..CONGRECIATIONAL QUARTERLY, VoL 111,
N 9 . 11: The noticeable articles in this number
are : New England - in the West, by Rev. Jos. S.
Clark, D. D., and Cong,regationalisin and Revivals,
by Rev. Henry M. Dexter. The annual Statistics
of the Denomination have been incorporated in
this Quarterly, an are given in this number for
the year 1860. oath
are:,260,889 members,
against 257,634 rtrd last year. Ministers,
2706 against 269 ported last year. Churches,
2734 against 2676 reported last year. This in
cludes some few figures which, on the plan of
uniotl, are Also reported in the minutes of our own
church.
WILE 'WORLD oftener rewards the appearance
.
of merit than merit -
4
Jan. 10,