GENESEE EVANGELIST.—WhoIe No. 780.
ottrg.
PATRIOTIC HYMN•
DV tame W. MEINA, D. D.
God's blessing be upon
Our own, our native laud!
The land our fathers won
By the strong heart and hand,
The keen axe and the brand;
When they felled the forest's pride,
And the tyrant foe defied,
The free, the rich, the wide;
Ood fur our native land.
To none upon allbrone
But God, we bend the knee;
No noble name we own
Hut noble liberty;
Ouys tea brother band;
For the spirit of our sires
each patriot bosom fires,
And the strong faith inspires;
God for our native land!
Up with the starry sign,
The red stripes and the white!
Where'er Its glories shine,
In peace or in the fight,
We own ite high command;
For the flag our Fathers gave,
O'er our children's heads shall wave,
And their children's children's graves:
God for our native land!
America! to thee
In one united vow,
To keep thee strong and free,
And glorious as now,
We pledge each heart and hand;
By the blood our fathers shed!
By the ashes of our dead!
By the sacred soil we tread!
God of our native land.
For the American Presbyterian.
A CHRISTIAN WEDDING IN CHINA,
Fuhchau, China, Jan. sth, 1861.
EDITOR:—By your permission, I present
your readers with an account of a Christian wed
ding I attended yesterday in the country, about
18 or 14 miles distant from Fuhohau. I doubt
not many of them would prefer to have been mem
bers of the party of foreignnrs who were present
as spectators, rather than read this hurried, im
perfect sketch.
My invitation to attend it, given in the name
of the eldest living paternal uncle 'of the bride
groom, was received on New Year's day. It con
sists of a red piece of paper, nine and a half by
four and a half inches. On one side was written,
in Chinese, of course, the name of said uncle, the
nephew to be married, the time selected, and a
few other items, all in Chinese style, inviting me
to "enlighten" the occasion by my presence.
This card was enclosed in an unsealed envelope of
red paper, ten inches by five and a half. My
Chinese name was written on a narrow slip of red
paper, extending the whole length' of the envelope,
and attached to It - at the top aua - .N.n - tnose
who receive such a formal invitation to a wedding,
whether they attend or not, are expected to make
a present of money to the bridegroom, which goes
towards defraying expenses.
.0.01511.117111T -K _
tattoos, were two missionary ladies and the Rev.
Otis Gibson, a member of the American Metho
dist Mission, located at this city, who had been
invited to perform the marriage ceremony, in ac
cordance with the principles of the Christian reli
gion. We went on board the Chinese boat fur- .
nished to take us a part of the way, about half
past four o'clock in the morning. We had pro
vided ourselves with provisions for a cold breakfast
to be eaten on the boat, to which we did ample
justice. The boat was propelled by Chinamen,
who rowed standing, as Chinese usuallydo. The
tide was favorable, and we made good progress.
We reached the landing place about day-break,
distant from Fuhohau some eight or nine miles.
But here we were disappointed in ascertaining
that the coolies who were to be in readiness to
carry the sedan chair, brought thus far in the boat
for the accommodation of the ladies, were nowhere
to be found. The original plan was for the ladies
to walk and ride alternately, from the landing place
to the scene of the wedding. It was too late to
send to the neighboring villages to endeavor to
hire other bearers, unless we were willing to make
a considerable delay, so the ladies undertook to
walk the distance yet to be passed over, some four
or five miles. Our way lay for a mile or more
across a large paddy or rice field. The autumnal
crop of rice had been harvested, and some of the
ground was covered with winter wheat, sown in
beds, in drills, or in rows of hills, about seven or
eight inches apart. The wheat was already some
eight or ten inches high, and presented a very
fine appearance. After we had walked nearly three
miles, we succeeded in finding men who could
oarry the sedan chair when holding a living per
son, it having been brought on from the boat by
one of the hands and another Chinaman. Those
who carry the sedan well, must have considerable
practice, and be trained to the work. The ladies
now rode in turn for a short distance. Our path
soon leaving the paddy fields, led us along the side
of a valley, and gradually became more and more
inclined. We aeon found ourselves in very ro
mantic if not grand scenery; we, were in the
midst of lofty hills; covered Principally with a
kind of stinted pine, wild fern, and a singular
species of very tall grass. On our left, a hundred
or more feet below us, a small rivulet wound its
way down towards the Min. In duct time, about
half past 8 o'clock, we arrived at the residence of
the bridegroom, all delighted with the sublime
beauty of the scenery around us.
We frequently met on our way, companies of
men, women and , boys, carrying wood or produce
on corrying-poles, resting on their shoulders, down
from their homes, in the mountains, to the river
side for sale. We were overtaken and passed se
veral times by companies of women, boys and
girls, on their way to the hills for loads of grass,
leaves and brush, to be carried home in a similar
way, for fuel. On our return in the afternoon,
we saw several tiers of them going homeward,
loaded with as much as they could carry of such
fuel, tied up in bundles, and suspended from the
ends of a pole balanced on their shoulders.
lie'e found a large company, considering bow
early
it was, already assembled at the residence of
e bridegroom. He, and several of his family
relatives, were converts to Christianity, and were
nierabors of one of the native churches connected.
with the Methodist mission. His intended bride
was not a church member. On inquiry we found
she had
brought up
bought when a child, and had been
in the family as hid betrothed wife.
The custom of buying female children, or of re
ceiving them as gifts from their parents when
quite young, and of bringing them up as the fu
ture wives of some of the boys in one's family, is
very common among the poorer classes in Fuhohau
and vicitkity. It implies no particular disgrace,
but is an index of the low pecuniary circumstances
of the family which buys or receives the girl thus
to be brought up , .
The ceremony was.to be performed in a covered
court, the reception room of the house. A plain
table was placed in the front part of it, and on it
were set two old-looking goblets; tied together by
a common red cotton string, about three or four
feet long. The arrangements having been com
pleted, the bridegroom took his position, and the
bride was led along by her bridesmaid, a married
woman some 40 years old. The parties stood
facing the missionary clergyman. The foreign
guests stood along the two sides of the court, and
in front on the outside.
The bridegroom was about 26 years old, of plea
sant manners, dignified and composed. We wore
a pair of Chinese boots, the uppers of Which were
made of satin; and the Chinese cap of ceremony,
which had a brass button and red silk tassels on
its top. His outer garment was made of fine blue
black silk, and extended nearly to his feet. The
bride was about 19, and seemed much discomposed
during part of the ceremony. She belonged to
the large-footed class of Chinese women, and of
course her dress was made according to the fashion
which prevails among such women at Fuhchau.
Her shoes, worn on feet which were stockingless,
were of black cottfin cloth, embroidered with , red
silk, having thick white soles, and red silk tas
sels on the top. Her outside dress was made
of black cotton cloth, and extended only a little
below her hips. Beneath were pantaloons of
the same color and same kind of material. Her
costume resembled, in general, the Bloomer cos
tume, more nearly than the present popular style
of ladies' dress in America. She 'wore no veil
or bonnet, but had ear-rings about three inches
in diameter. From the top of the hair on her
bead 'projected a metallic ornament, washed
with gold, some six or eight inches , long, re
sembling, as much as anything I can think of,
the 'crooked end of some plough handles, or, as
others say, a cow's horn turned backwards.
Sonie ten or twelve artificial flowers, of several
different kinds, were so arranged in a sort of
wreath around her head, as to stick out three
or four inches from her hair.
The minister commenced the services by
giving out an accommodated translation of the
hymn familiarly called, in English, "The Happy
Land," and the Christian part of the congrega
tion united in singing it, as follows:
" Tieng tong to mo kG nang, muang hok hd tie,
He then proceeded to rend the marriage
remony of the Methodist Ohnrch, which
been translated, with slime Ate ffiftraiktitt4
peenbaritieTs in Chinese easy'
eir invt-
The portion which challenges the audience
object now or never, if there were good-go: Raids
of objection, to the marrive_nf-thelaitties, was
wisely omitteddn xionritif the fact that they had
been engaged for quite a number.of years, as
all their acquaintances knew. In the estima
tion of the Chinese friends such a challenge
would be eminently ridiculous and unnecessary.
When that portion was reached which; in the
original form, requires the parties to join their
hands, in token of their willingness to take and
acknowledge each other as husband and wife,
the reading was suspended for a moment. A
person stepped forward with some hot Chinese
wine in a small stone pitcher, and poured a por
tion of its steaming contents into the Iwo gob
lets standing on the table by them, and tied to
gether by the red string. These goblets were
then taken by the bridesmaid, one in each hand,
who first presented one to the month of the
bridegroom, who sipped a little of the wine, but
without touching the goblet with his hands; and
then held the other to the lips of the bride, who
sipped some in a similar manner. This drink
ing of wine from these goblets, which is a Chi
nese custom invariably practised at marriages
among themselves, was substituted in place of
the parties taking each other by the hand.
All the parties, (bridegrooni, bride, and cler
gyman,) knelt down in their places, while the
reading of the ceremony was continued to the
end. A. long metre doxology was sung in con,
elusion. The husband made, slowly and respect
fully, a low bow towards his wife, which com
pliment she returned, by the assistance of the
bridesmaid, by bowing thrice towards him. They
then retired to the bride's room, accompanied
by some of their relatives and friends, and the
company broke up.
As soon as convenient, several tables were
arranged in the court where the ceremony had
been performed, for breakfast for the male por-:
tion of the guests. I noticed five square tables,
which seated forty persons, each table accom
modating eight guests. ,In a room in another
part of the house two or three similar tables
were spread, for the entertainment of the female
guests. The sexes never eat together on pub
lie festive occasions. It is said that about one
hundred guests were expected to breakfast.
Some might have been entertained in another
place, not observed by us.
- We, foreigners, were provided with an enter
tainment of the foreign fashion. It seems that
one or two young men, who had lived in mis
sionary families, and who knew how to provide
food for foreigners, bad been engaged to pre
pare breakfast for us. We had sausages, roast
chicken, pork chops, boiled pork, ham and eggs,
rice and potatoes, wheat bread, with fruit, figs,
dates, two kinds of oranges, &c. The bride
groom, with his cap of ceremony still on his
head, did us the honour to sit down with us, and
testified to the quality of the provisions, and
the keenness of his appetite, by eating' very
heartily. He managed foreign knives and forks
much more dextrously than we should have
managed chopsticks, under similar circum
stances. The bride, during part of the meal,
sat down at our table, but remained in perfect
silence, and could not not be prevailed upon to
eat a morsel, which taciturnity and fasting were
in complete accordance with the rules of Chi
nese etiquette on such occasions. To attri
bute her conduct to moroseness or displeasure,
PRILADELPITIA, TRUIATAY: APRIL • 25,
.1861.
would be doing her manifest injustice; for she
evidently enjoyed.the dinner. Several times she
came very near laughing outright, on catching
a glimpse of some of her female friends in an
adjoining room, who `were looking at our com
pany. But she strove to maintain her gravity,
for to laugh would have been as much out of
the way as to eat heartily, according to. Chinese
notions of propriety.
As above intimated, this was. a Christian wed
ding. And it was this fact which gave the oc
casion its principal interest to the foreign guests.
Such events are a sort of era in this part of Chi
na. There have been only some five or six such
weddings, where =one or both of the parties were
converts from idolatry, in connexion with Pro
testant Missions at Fuh Chau, since their com
mencement in 1847. • And this was the only one
celebrated in the country. One was celebrated
last Christmas within the 'walls of Fuh Chau,
where both the parties were members of the
church under the care of the American Board's
mission, the bride being formerly& member of
the Mission. Boarding. School, and the bride
groom being a native helper.
We were cheered by what we saw and what
we heard•at the marriage yesterday in the coun
try, in proof "of the Christian character of the
household. They greeted us as Christians on
our arrival. We heard no improper language,
nor did we see any traces of heathenism remain
ing about the premises. We 'observed, with
great satisfaction, that around three sides of the
reception room, or the court where the cere
mony was performed, there were suspended from
the walls seven-large paper hangings, on which
were written, in large characters, quotations
from the Old and New , Testaments. One of
these, some four or five feet wide by seven or
eight feet long, contained a translation of the
Ten Commandments, the characters for which
were written in a bold and beautiful style. On
most of the posts of the tout°, and on the door
posts, we noticed, also, that a large number of
pieces of red paper had been pasted up, con
taining sentiments, prepared in Chinese style
and according to Chinese taste, alluding to the
Bible, or to the truths of the Bible. They re
minded us of the command recorded in Dent.
vi. 9. They consisted of couplets of five or
seven characters in each line, written on slips of
paper several feet long and a few inches wide,
'and were substituted for the heathen sentiments,
or quotations from the Chinese classics, which
formerly occupied their - place. For example,
on the posts of the doors of the bride's room,
was posted up a couplet, which taught that
"males and females ought to learn the true doc
trine, "and that "children and grand-children
should listen to the gospel."
There 1 3_,..durA0-..nacesßity for a longer visit,
ltarted on our way back to the river about
m o'clock, the ladies walking the whole dis
-1- 'We stopped-for a short time, about half
to way, at a plaea...
A. young native ex
horter is living there, with his family. That
mission are building there a small substantial
chapel, assisted by a voluntary contribution of
some available material, and two hundred and
seventy days' work, from the native converts
living in that vicinity—a large amount, consi
dering their great poverty. Just before we left
we had a season of prayer, suggested by one of
the native brethren.
We pursued our course to the boat, and.
reached Fuh Chan about 5 o'clock, P. M., and
found that the bi-monthly mail from America
via England, had arrived but a short time pre
vious. SWIM.
For the Amertean Presbyterian.
A THIRD ERROR?
A careful, reading of an article entitled "Two
Errors" which appeared in a late number of the
AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, has suggested the fol
lowing thoughts, which may possibly be of as
sistance to some who sincerely 'seek the truth.
The first person therein described is, a young lady
of intelligence and refinement, who is devoting
her life to teaching poor ignorant children in New
York City. A "belief in. God," and "reverent
sympathy with Him, desiring to do the work
which He -would have her to do in the world,"
are the motives given for her self-denying labor.
Her creed is "very defective" in some points
which we consider "essential to a perfect belief."
From the whole tone of the article, we may infer
that she does not believe in a divine, God-incar
nate Saviour, through whom alone she can be ac
cepted and - saved. Her outward life is beautifill,
noble, and worthy of all imitation, but she has
not living faith in Christ as "God manifest in the
flesh" for her sins. Without this, how can - her
character or life be pleasing to God, when He has
said, "He that bath the Son hath life; and he
that bath not the Son of God hath not life ?"
Can the receiving of. Christ as a created being,
sent as a great example of benevolence and good
works, be -such a vital thing as this? " God
seeth not as man seeth," and while we love and
admire such a person as the one described, we
cannot feel that her heart is right in His sight,
until she cordially receives his Son as her Sa
viour. It matters little, we think, in what .other
points her creed is "defective." There may be.a
world-wide difference in belief on- other doctrines
or truths, but in this, all true Christians must"
agree, for it is the only "door" by which we can'
enter into eternal life.
The other person described in the article in 1
question, is one whose creed is all right, and out- '
ward life not inconsistent with his profession---but
whose main object is to lead a pleasant, conve
nient, moral life, with little, if any, self-denial
for Christ's sake. That such a person as this,
is a hearty, growing Christian, we can hardly be
lieve. If in his "perfect creed," he holds from
his inmost soul the life-giving declaration, "I be--
hove in Jesus Christ His Son," that makes him
a Christian, though he must be in a sad state of
lukewarmness and indifference to duty, from which
God may'mercifully awaken him by some visita
tion of His chastening rod. If, on the contrary,
that precious doctrine is but part of a creed be
lieved in by the intellect, while.the heart is un
touched by true love to' Christ and faith in Him,
that man cannot be a Christian. His "fluent
prayers,". his "strong augments," his "regular
`performance of ordinary devotional ilaties," do
THE NORTH BROAD STREET PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
This Church edifice is to be erected on the N. E. corner of Broad and Green streets. The let is 135
feet in length, and 80 feet in breadth, exclusive of twelve feet for side walk.
The Church edifice is to be 75 feet by 117, with a tower in the centre of the front; 25 feet broad at the
base, and with spire 215 feet in height,—all of Trenton brown stone. A porch of wrought stone, and a
rosette window are to adorn the front. The height of the main building is 50 feet:from pavement to eaves,
and 95 to the ridge. The style of architecture is Norman. Interior; floor of basement two feet from pave
ment, and height of ceiling fifteen feet in the clear. The basement will be divided into a Lecture Room
to seat 300, School Rooms to accommodate 500, and Session Rooms. The Audience Room will he 65 by
80 feet, to seat 800. Projecting Gallery, to seat 150. All will accommodate 1000 person's. The seats
will be two feet nine inches apart, Snd circular, with wall and side aisles; pews to be circular, in three
double blocks. The height of the rbom is 52 feet clear, with arched ceiling, radius 26 feet. There will
be five entries in front, with five stairways, and two entries in the rear. The whole is to be warmed by
furnaces of the best construction, and ventilated in the most effectual way. The cost of the Church edifice
to be $32.700.
not make him a Christian in any sense. There
fore his life is no more or less pleasing to God
than the other one described. Neither is walk
ing in the way which God has appointed- 2 -neither is
receiving the Saviour He has provided—One is
rejecting Him in her creed, the other in his life.
Can God look with favor AM either, or on one
•
more than the other?, -
We have written' this under Ihe supposition
viers- --- unce - mTor -- m - Ine-...r-Or - t a o
denying or doubting the divinity and vicarious
atonement of Christ. Otherwise it would not
have been said that "belief in God" led her to
the life she leads, nor would the defects in her
creed have been deemed so "essential." Per
haps we have been confirmed in this idea by the
fact that exactly such a person as the one de
scribed is known to us, engaged in the very labor
mentioned—and we have reasoned on her case.
"A few truths cordially received" are more
than enough to save the soul—one truth, that of
salvation through Christ alone, thanks be to God,
is enough. But " a few truths received," leaving
this one out; form, it seems to us, no ground of
hope whatever, any more than a perfect creed,
which is only a creed, does so. The article in
question concludes by saying, "Arenot those who
thus subscribe to the essential articles of our faith
in a more hopeful state, &0.," referring to the life
of the lady described. We do not regard such
a life as necessarily subscribing Ab those articles.
We think such a life might be led, with no saving
faith in Christ in the heart, which surely is an
"essential article of our belief." It might be led,
based on wrong ideas of her relation to God as a
sinner, .and her position towards Christ as not
needing, and therefore, rejecting his mediation.
For a person leading the life described, the
most yearning pity cannot but be felt by a heart
that knows the love of Christ. Vainly seeking
peace and rest from sin and self, that thirsty soul
will never be satisfied till it takes the cup of sal
vation, and drinks of the water'f life freely.
MODERATE CALVINISM.
Rey. Leonard Withington, D. D., a venerable
Congregational minister of Newburyport, contri
butes a paper of unusual interest to the April num
ber of the Bibliodzeca Sacra; in which-he replies
to the inquiry of a correspondent as to-tho degree
in which. the views adopted by litim.iq'vuth, har—
monize with the views of his more experienced
and riper period of life. There is a truly Christian.
sweetness of tone and spirit in the article, that com
ports well with the aged author's nearness to the.
heavenly world. We would like to copy the whole
of it into our columns, as a delightful evidence of a
rare balance of Christian character and of the com
patibility of a genuine Calvinistic creed with ge
niality of temperament, but our limits forbid any
thing beyond the closing portion, which is in re
sponse to the question: Why am I a moderate
Calvinist?
Some say that this is an impossibility. They
ask . : What is moderate Calvinism ? It stands on
the side of a declivity, and must slip down to
something softer and better. Dr. Channing ea.ys :
“If the stern reformer of Geneva could lift up
his head and hear the mitigated tone in which
some of his professed followers dispense his fear
ful doctrines, we fear he could not lie down in
peace until he had poured out his displeasure on
their cowardice and degeneracy. He would
,tell
them, with a frown, that moderate Calvinism was
a solecism, a contradiction in terms; and would
bid them, in scorn, join their realfriend Artuinius.
Such is the power of public opinion, that naked,
undisguised Calvinism is not•veryfond of showing
itself; and many of consequence, know imperfect
ly what it means." Yet notwithstanding - this
blast of condemnation, moderate Calvinism. always
has existed in the, church, and.l trust always will.
But you may ask : What is moderate Calvinitim?
Now, moderate Calvinism consists, not in denying
any one of the great doctrines,, but in mixing
them with other truths equally obvious and
equally important. A moderate Calvinist is not
a man of one idea... He is willing to take alLthe
elements of our moral being, into one, comprehen:
sive creed. He knows the maguitude of -these
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speculations and the weakness of our moral power;
and therefore he does not make all the deduction
from such high declarations which a rigid logic
would seem, to demand. He knows the greatness of
God and the weakness of man. He knows how
inadequate the,human mind is to grasp the vast
conception of the plans and purposes of God. - He
often says, this great doctrine may be true, but
then, I...see ft throu , h a , ass, darkly. J. must
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,one limitation sanctioned in his word. When.
he reasons from God down to man, the divine per
fections seem to necessitate the reception of the
doctrine of an absolute and absorbing predestina
tion. It is an ocean; it swallows np everything.
But that truth does not stand alone. When he
reasons from man up to God, the freedom and re
sponsibility of the creature seem to be necessary
to our simplest conception of duty and religion.
Here, then, is another truth standing on its own
basis, and one of the eternal pillars of religion.
And this truth is taught and assumed, ill the Bi
ble, as clearly and as often as the other. God is
sovereign; man is free. God sees no contingency;
man meets scarcely anything else. God foreor
dains ; man is capable of good and evil. God
works in us; and yet the gospel gate is wide open.
Now, I must mingle these truths just as they are
mingled in the Bible, and I have no right to make
the one weaken the other. The one class of truths
is as ',necessary to the fulness of the gospel as the
other. I have no right to strike a single quantity
from this celestial equation. I must let it stand
just as it is. I must leave the compound with
all its perplexities and divine contradictions. The
different notes are the harmony of the whole tune,
and although this mixture is a delicate one, and
even good men may differ in the degree of promi
nence they give to each of the .parts, yet I must
do as welt as I 'can. I must see that these op
posing powers form the harmony of the whole sys
tem; and this is, as [conceive, moderate Calvin
ism. It tells the whole truth; it reads the whole
Bible. It is not afraid of, earth-born antagonisms;
it aims to be filled with all the fulness of God.
All this may be illustrated by what takes place
in the natural world. We find that through the
whole system of our sun and'planets there prevails
the law of attraction s by which all things are
drawn to one common centre; and you might
ask: Why do they not rusk to one consoli
dated union? There is another law, by which
they are repelled. And these two laws act in op
position to each other; and that opposition is the
harmony of the whole. So in the-spiritual world
two pillars support the fabric, of which, if either
be removed, the roof falls—God and necessity;
moral subjects and freedom. Nay, the law of an
tagonism reigns throughout all nature: "All na
ture's difference keeps all nature's,peaee."
The moderate Calvinist is the more confirmed
in his views, inasmuch as he finds his system in
',jived, as eitirer of parts assume an inordinate
proportion. I have no hesitation in saying, that
the worst error that ever infested the church is a
distorted orthodoxy, a caricature of truth, a tree
with its branches without itslroots; predestination
without free agency; a divine will without a di
vine reason; a physical necessity, controlling a
moral being . ; faith without works; action without
motive; sin without law, or a gospel that annihi
lates the law; an Antinomian gospel; a God whose
only attribute is irresistible power; a God those
will makes all things right, whose only righteous
ness is his aril All this is horrible, and the more
horrible for its partial resemblance to divine truth.
Such a rock I have always aimed to shun.
Calvin his one fault: he makes sovereignty too
absorbing. He was pressed to it by the reaction
of the age. I have endeavored to preach a sim
pler gospel. I deny nothing in the old forms; I
believe all. I have only made a different mixture.
I have tried to give my hearers an ampler whole :
God is sovereign; man is free. He works in us
to will and to do; and when we will well, we do
his work.
On the question of original or inherited sin, I
have always been a moderate Calvinist, seeking to
utter no more than the Bible allowed me to know.
On this Sensitive point, which always, must come
up in ordainingeouncils, and when candidates are
examined for the ministry, and on which some
good men concentrate all their wisdom, you might
see me sitting a 'patient listener, silent as Ig,no
ranee herself should be, with my longest finger
over one eye and my thumb folded over the other
waiting .the result, which was always similar, and
having one consolation, that the process must
finally . end. It has always seemed to me that
Paul, in the sth of Romans (which is the seat• of
this doctrine) is very clear as to the effect' of
Adam's" transgression, anti , says very littlelis to
the mode of the transmission. It seems 10 me he
is arguing, in this chapter, against a favorite tenet
of the Jews, that the gospel was for them, not so
free for the Gentiles; they were the children of
Abraham, and heirs of the promise; and yet they
were'obliged to confess, from their own authorita
tive record, that all men were the children of
Aden]. Now the aßostle adroitly seizes this con
cession, and proves to them that the Gospel was
for ill, because all needed it; and that men were
just as certainly sinners as they were descendants
of Adam. His object is to teach the universality
of sin, as the foundation of a universal 'offer of
the benefits of redemption. The mode of jOntICX-•
ion or transmission he does not stay to discuss.
The broad fact is enough for his purpose. I have
been very cautious of adding to his words. I have
not chosen to make a paradox where he has only
left a mystery.. I suppose that the connexion
between my sinful bias and Adam's first trans
gression is wholly owing to the sovereign appoint
ment of God; if so, it is highly improper to adduce
the original, endowments - of Adam as , a solution of
the obligations of man,according to our "taunt/
apprehensions of justice. From the very nature
of the case, you cannot'make a mystery an expla
nation Of itself. =All the formulas about Adam
being our federal' head, duk. representative, our
sinning in him, and falling with him in his first
transgression, of his sin being imputed . to us, etc.,
may be' reduced to one, viz., that for certain un
revealed reasons, God willed that man should be
born with just such propensities as he is born with.
All these forms of expression resolve themselves
into sovereignty. We must bow to his sovereign
will. It is right, because the Lord hath done it.
The fault'of the high Calvinist was, he sought an
explanation where God intended none. His spe
culations always play between a mystery and an ex
ponent. Sin, from its very nature , is the violation,
of an obligation; and in order to now the nature
of sin, we wish to know the nature of those obli
gations it violates. Now, I cannot see that Paul
intends our union with dani as such an explana
nation. You cannot make a mystery an explana
tion. What was given to try our faith, .was
never intended to satisfy our reason.
If, then you ask me, my dear Rusticus, how
these sentiments appear on review, after the lapse
of half a century, to a man who has one Riot in
the grave, and the eternal world just before him,
I sigh and say, Alas ! I see mtich to lament in my
defective spirit, my want of zeal and a want of vi
tality to the orthodoxy I embraced; when the truth,
was constantly seen, the impression was too feeble,
and my preaching was the stammering of a child.
But the creed I threw into the council at twenty
seven years of age, is my creed, now that I am be
yond threescore and ten. I have been, always, a
moderate Calvinist: This is not boasting, for
some will say, it is a miserable confession; a man
ought to be more progressive. Why should he
ride at anchor all his life, when he ought to be
sailing? I can only reply that lam ready to pull
up my anchor when I know whither I am going,
and am assured of profitable discoveries.
One reason of my cleaving to Calvinism is, that
when you have slain the body of it, you cannot
exorcise the ghost. It will remain and will.haunt
you, and you cannot think its residuum into non
existence. As it is with regard to the substratum
of matter,"denied or reduced to a minimum by
certain Metaphysicians, you cannot think of quali
ties without thinking of a primitive in which they
inherepo'it is with the hypostasis of this system:
it w,ill. not down at your biddingi it will haunt
• rr:epuen. lotions 44 he aeny it. - The stron - gest'
opponents of the system have felt its power even
-when—denyin g -it - The invisible chain of necessi
ty was around Erasmus, Episcopus, Whitby, and
all the vigorous minds who have striven to break
its material form. Priestley himself ran away
from Calvinism, and fell into the chains of a
stronger necessity.
I must add, however, that in my religious in
vestigations I have never been under the play of
polemic antagonisms. I have never been fond of
pursuing truth in that way. My battles have
been with my own objections. My issues have
been, almost all 'of them, mental. I have been
my own opponent and my own convert, and have
never, fora moment, dreamed that I was born to
stand sentinel over the orthodoxy of the church.
I have cheerfully devolved this duty on those of
my brethren who selected this mission because
they felt themselves born for it. I have always
bad enough to do to;? get rid of - my own heresies.
I have found- the pitlyof truth so dark and diffi
cult, that I have not wondered if some have missed
it.
As I draw near to the eternal world, j. must
confess I feel an increasing, perhaps I - should say
an alarming, indifference to the niceties of mere
speculation. The spirit of the gospel is all : a
spontaneous, an all-absorbing love, is the best
light when we tread the dark passage. 0, blessed
Redeemer, beam on my dying hour with thy
light, and I can adjourn all my speculative diffi
culties to the world where I shall know even as 1
am known.
IRE RONAN QUESTION.
COUNT' CAVOUR I S SPEECH-ROME THE CAPITAL
OF ITALY
From the important speech delivered in the
Sardinian - Chamber of Deputies on the 25th of
March, by Count Cavonr, we make the follow
ing extracts. It will 6e seen that the location
of the capital of Italy is in a fair way of defi
nite settlement:
ROME THE CAPITAL.
The first truth to be proclaimed is, that it is
impossible to conceive a constituted Italian
kingdom without Rome.for its capital. If we
have aright—if it is our duty to wish to pos
sess Rome—it is because of this impossibility,
Eminent and sincere men may feel a preference
for one town or anotheri_but it is incontestable
that, if Rome were once our capital, all discus
sion on this point would thenceforth be impos
sible. The fact alone would bring about an
absolute and universal agreement. I avow that,
personally, I perhaps prefer the simple and
plain streets of my native city to, the ancient
and modern monuments of the Eternal City.
But my resolution is taken, like that of my
countrymen; like that—and I now speak as the
representative of Turin—of the noble city which
is resigned to that sacrifice which the, country
demands of it. We must go to Rome; but with
out trenching upon the independence- of the
Pope, without bringing the, Church under the
domination of the State. f, though I believe
that to be ,impossible, France found herself pow
erless to oppose our entry into. Rome, we would
not, in order to effect that entry, use violence
towards her. Let us not imitate Austria in the
ingratitude avowed, with a deplorable courage,
by the lips of one of her statesmen.
DUTIES OF SARDINIA TO NAPOLEON AND THE
When, in 1859, we asked for the support of
Prance, the Emperor did not dissemble to him
self the difficulties of the situation in which this
war would place him with.respect, to the court;
of Rome. We cannot, after having accepted
the boon, aggravate the embarrasiment in which
it may involye the benefactor. If we can suc
ceed in convincing batholics that the re-union
of Rome with the rest of Italy cannot place the
church in a position of dependence, the ques
tion will have made a great step towards solu
tion. Many conscientious people think, indeed,
that if the Parliament were in Rome, and the
Ring at the Quirinal, the'Pope would lose much
of his independence,. andwould! be nothing more
than thegrand almoner or the chaplain of the
Sing. If these fears were well founded, I should
VOL. V.—NO. 35.—Whole - No. 252.
not hesitate to say that this re-union would be
fatal, not only to Catholicism, but to Italy. No
greater calamity can befall a people than the
concentration, in the hands of the government,
of spiritual and temporal power. When these
powers are united, liberty disappears, the rule
of caliphs prevails. ' It will never be so in Italy.
Let us examine,- under all aspects, this ques
tion of the influence of the union of Rome with
Italy upon the .jndependence of the spiritual
power. Now, in the first instance, does the
temporal power render the Pontiff really inde
pendent? If it were so, I would hesitate to
solve the problem. Bat no person can main
tain such a view in the times when sovereigns,
resting upon the divine right, regard their do
mination as a right of absolute property over
men and things.
But this is asking what the Pope cannot
grant; for his position as a political sovereign
is subordinate to his rank as Head of the Church,
ince his temporal power ought to be, to him
no more than a guarantee, a safeguard for his
spiritual power, which latter must stand su
preme. By making concessions he would vio
late his duties as a pontiff. He may accept and
tolerate certain institutions, but he may not
consecrate them. Thus, for example, he tole
rates civil marriage in France, but he cannot
proclaim it in his own dominions. It is the
same with a host of other institutions which are
opposed to Catholic precepts, but of which it
is nevertheless necessary to admit the existence.
The Pope should not be reproached for that
which is, in reality, not obstinacy, but firmness,
and for which I hold that Catholics ought to be
grateful to him as a meritorious fidelity to his
duty. I have often combated the opinion of
those who have insisted that the Pope should
grant reforms, and have blamed him for not con
ceding them.
At the Congress of Paris I was asked to point
out which might be exacted of him. I refused
to indicate any. I professed openly the opi
nions which am upholding here; and, in con
junction with M. Mingbetti, who took an impor
tant part in these negotiations, I declared that
the only means of governing those countries
without military occupation, was the absolute
separation of the spiritual from the temporal
power. All these efforts will be defeated by
the radical impossibilities which result from the
confusion of the two powers. Europe has long
been laboring to invent reforms for Turkey;
there is not an effort which has not been made
for this purpose; it has been sought to recon
cile there the rights of civil life with the govern
ment such as is there constituted. The attempt
has not succeeded, and never will succeed; the
union of the two powers renders its failure ine
vitable. Thus the temporal power does not
make the Pope independent.
Can it be said that in losing it he will only
change the form of his subjection? No; we can
give him the independence of which he stands so
much in need. It is precisely the separation of
the powers which will give it to him. When the
Church is 'once emancipated from all connection
with the temporal power, and separated from the
State by distinctly marked limits, the liberty of
the Holy See will no longer have to suffer from
the shackles imposed upon' it by concordats and
the werogatives•o'? the divil-power, which the tem
poral power of the Court of Rome has alone.ren
clued necessary up to the present time. I believe
that every sincere Catholic desires above all things
such an enfranchisement. The only difficulty is
to discover by what guarantees-this liberty of the
Church -will be assured. We will give it ample
guarantees; we will inscribe the principle of the
reciprocal independence of the Church and of the
State in the fundamental statute of the Kingdom,
and we will ensure by all possible means its com
plete realization.
But the surest guarantee is the thoroughly Ca
tholic character of the Italian people. Italy has
often made great efforts for the reform of ecclesias
tical discipline, but she has never raised her hand
against the religion with which it is connected.
The country of Arnold of Brescia, of Dante, of
Savonarola, of Sarpi, of Giannone, has ever, like
them sought only the reform of the Church; that
ardent desire has always been accompanied by the
firm determination that the Church, purified, should
subsist and become more free. That freedom will
be better ensured by the love of 26,000,000 of
citizens than by a few mercenaries. It is said
these hopes are fallacious; all your proposals and
negotiations are repulsed. I shall not enter into
any detail upon this delicate point. I admit that
up to this time none of our efforts have succeeded;
but I also declare that heretofore we have never
explained our intentions openly and fully, as we
explain them now. We may, therefore, still che
rish some hope.
I am not the defender of the temporal power,
but I must be just towards it. I hold neither the
Pope nor his ministers to be responsible for the
atrocious acts to which, at certain points, the re
action tended. These acts only prove the deplora
ble influence which such a regime exercises over
human character. I believe I have sufficiently
established the antagonism which exists betr en the
Holy See and the populations. If that be so, this
power is not for the Pope a guarantee of inde
pendence. It is said to be necessary for Catholic
Society, and that it ought to be guarantied by the
Catholic powers. Are human sacrifices still ne
cessary to render the gods propitious? Is it in the
name of Him who gave His life for the world the
sacrifice of a nation should be demanded for his
representative? It is said: But the Pope may
conciliate the people by reforn a; a id those who
think thus make efforts to obtain fi om the Pope such
concessions, never suffering themselves to be dis
couraged by refusals.
. History shows us that Rome, invaded by the
Spaniards of Charles V. saw the Pope some time
afterwards crown Charles V. and ally himself with
him. 'Why may we not see the same change
wrought on Pins IX. at the present day? But if
the Pope should repulse us, as he has hitherto
done, we shall not cease to remain faithful to the
same principles. Arrived at Rome, we shall pro
claim the separation of the Church from the State,
and the liberty of the Church. When this has
been done, and consecrated by the representatives
of 'the nation, and when the veritable tendencies
of Italians and their sympathy for the religion of
their fathers have . been made evident in the" face
of Europe, the great majority of Catholics will ap
prove, and will cause to fall on the right head the
responsibility of the struggle into which the court
of Rome would have sought to enter with the na
tion. At the risk of being deemed Utopian, I
avow my belief that when these principles have
been proclaimed and consecrated by you, the soul
of Pius IX,. opening itself anew to the generous
sentiments which earned for him such hearty ap
proval some years ago, will stimulate him to seek
to acquire the immortal glory of having reconciled
the Italian nation with the Church, and religion
with liberty.
CLERICAL COSTUME.—In the year 1524 Luther
laid aside the monk's costume, and henceforth
dressed according to the fashion of the world. He
chose black clothes, and consequently this color
has become the fashion of the clergy. His reason
for choosing this cloth was, the Elector of Saxony
took an interest in him, and now and then-scut a
piece of blmtilloth, being at that time the court
fashion ;A cause Luther preferred it, so his
scholars thought it became them to wear the same
color as their master. From that time black has
been the color mostly worn by the clergy.
THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE POPE
THE TEMPORAL POWER