11P1
Amtvicau
iesiceolia nuttliot
THURSDAY, MAY 1861.
JOHN W. MEARS, EDITOR.
ASSOCLATfiIi WITH
ALBERT * BARNES. 'GEORGIC DOTIELD,
THOMAS BRAINERD, -/ JOHN JENKINS,
HENRY DARLING, THOMAS J. SHEPHERD.
OUR PAPER IN THE CRISIS.
With a due sense of imperfection and failure,
voican yet point with high satisfaction to the whole
course of our paper during the national crisis,
which is upon us. In the enthusiastic and unani
mous uprising of the people for the support of the
government, we behold an elevation of the popu
lar sentiment, to the position which we have held,
and insisted on as alone right from the beginning.
With -but few supporters and sympathizers amoug
the religious press in this part of the country,
with some, even of the most esteemed of our
brethren, half-inclined to remonstrate with us on
our course, we have held on our way of earnest,
outspoken, and determined adherence to the sim
ple principles of public and social order, which
so long have been threatened, and have protested
against the anarchy to which treason, tolerated by
those inhjgh places, was hurrying us as fast as pos
sible. We have felt that in the question of tole
rating the secession movement of the South, was
bound up the very life of the nation, and have in
elated that honor, principle, interest, patriotism, a
regard to the welfare of all posterity to come, and
responsibility to God for the blessings we enjoy
in this free government, called on us to plant our
selves broadly upon the constitution and laws, and
let what would oome. And in all the answering
glow of millions of the aroused•people; in all the
determined grasping of weapons, and marching of
legions from counting house, workshop, and farm,
from study, - parlor and club-room, at the call of the
government; in all the waving of the glorious stars
add stripes, lighting up the vast city with their
brilliant dyes; in all the unbarring of treasured
millions to be poured at the feet of the govern
ment, we rejoice to hear the somewhat tardy, but
at length unanimous and mighty, response, to the
sentiments which we, in common with others,
have earnestly endeavored to diffuse throughout
the circle of our influence.
•On the 13th of December we called attention
to the fact that even Mr. Buchanan, in one of his
messages, clearly intimated that no adequate
ground for the rebellious movements of the Gulf
States existed, and in view of the causelessness
of these movements we used the following lan
guage:—
"Of one thing we are sure; posterity—and
God grant it may not be a suffering, ruined,
crushed posterity—will hold the actors in this
drama to a fearful account, and, it may be, will
stamp their names with the deepest infamy that
history has ever visited upon her most detested
characters. Exactly proportioned to the peerless
fame of the authors of this government, must be
the shame of those who, without reason, dismem
ber and destroy it." •
In an article on Law and Government, in our is
sue of January 24th, we said:—
"The Federal Government is a government,
strong, good, wise r equitable, worthy of reverence
and support. If it be not worthy of reverence as
approximating to the demands of conscience, the
will of God-and the requirements of human socie
ty, then there is no government worthy of it upon
earth, and loyalty is but a name, and every peo
ple should be stirred up to instant rebellion, and
anarchy should be proclaimed around every throne
and every executive chair. Therefore, whatever
else be uncertain, and whatever other evils come
upon us, one truth is indisputable and one duty is
plain; our government is perfect enough to chal
lenge all the instinctive reverence of the soul for
rightful authority, and every citizen should prefer
to die in its defence rather than see it dishonored
and overthrown.
• On the 81st of the same month, arguing against
the "right of accession," we thus met the objec
tion that such a course would lead to civil war:
"If we do not admit the fight of secession, it
is said we cannot escape this bloody result. And
it is assumed that there could be nothing worse
than civil war. We deny it. Bad as it is, there
is something worse and that is the installation of
the principles of affarchy in place of Federal re
publicanism.
"That the American people, from fear of war,
should sit idly by, while traitors, unmolested, were
rending their government to pieces, would be a
greater disaster to themselves, to posterity, and to
the world, than half-a-dozen wars!'
We earnestly argued, in our issue of February
7th, against the misuse of the term "coercion,"
as applied to the enforcement of the laws; and
showed that a general and lamentable want of mo
ral firmness had taken possession of all intrusted
with authority in domestic, as well as in the civil,
relations of life, in the administration of justice,
on a narrower, as well as a broader, scale. We
said:—
"Mr, Buchanan's imbecility is both cause and
effect. It has betrayed the existence of a mor
bid sentiment among us, which has for a long
time been hindering the course of justice in va
rious ways; but which has never been forced out
into such a flagrant position, or has never so ex
tensively compromised us as a nation before.
But it is doing more; it is also a cause. It is
working its fruits in the minds of men. Its ef
fects are to bewilder. If we have a Constitution,
to maintain which is not a legitimate and holy
exercise of power but, "coercion," have we any
at all? Is a constitutional government among
freemen possible, if its organic law is without
penalty?
"Our national life is stifling in this narrow
atmosphere. We long to hear some bold and
manly proclamation for the law, which shall
scatter these oppressive mists and rally the
wavering thoughts of men, and in part undo
the mischiefs of this vacillating and half trea
sonable policy. We think it will come before
long."
On the 14th of the same month, we concluded
an article, in which we sought to expose the
enormity and atrocity of the whole secession
movement, and the various measures of vio
lence and outrage against the government to
which it had led, with the folloiiing words,
which are now receiving their verification:—
"Of one thing we are tolerably sure;
the
nation will not easily be brought to sacrifice a
hair's breadth of ftrinciple for the sake of win
ning back commodities so lost to honor and
justice, to a union which they may choose to
leave any moment after a re-construction has
been agreed upon."
We need not quote language so recently
uttered as that of oar article of the 28th of
March, in which we offered to agree to peace,
if, upon a fair expression of popular opinion in
the South, it really appeared that a separate
government was desired by that section. Such
an expression of opinion, however, bv...net been
allowed. On the contrary, war has Act wil
fully precipitated upon the nation by the leaders
in this qiovement. And we find the whole North
united in endorsing and carrying out, with all its
characteristic energy, and all its resources, the
principles of loyalty which we have,so earnestly
and consistently, and sometimes half-despond
ingly, advocated from the beginning. The peo
ple are prepared and determined to accept the
consequences of resisting the secession heresy,
whatever they may be. War, with all its evils,
is preferred to the far greater evil of the over
throw of our government. A sense of respon
sibility to posterity, as well as to their own age,
has aroused them; the incubus of an imbecile
example in high places has been thrown otr;
the public shame of an unjustifiable rebellion
receiving encouragement everywhere, in high
places and in low, in Church and in State, has
been atoned for; the trumpet call to rally the
hosts of freemen in defence of the hallowed
emblem of their national life and glory, has
scattered, in a moment, the oppressive mists
which had loaded the- atmosphere, . and has
taken the heaviest burden from the hearts of
patriots which had ever weighed upon them
since the days of the Revolution. The course
of our paper has been triumphantly vindicnted.
By a new right, we can justify the title of " Ame
rican," .which, for other reasons, we first con
nected with the paper. And we believe that oar
church will be found to be au American church
in this crisis in a most peculiar and happy sense.
THREE COUNSELS FOR THE . CRISIS.
We give below an extract from advanced sheets
of a discourse preached in Calvary Chure,hon
Sabbath, the 20th of April, by Rev. Dr. Jenrins,
and published, by request, by Lippincott & Co.,
under the title of Thoughts for the Crisis. The
suggestions are timely and important. The righte
ousness of the cause in which we are enlisted will
not of itself suffice to ensure proper feelings, or to
guard against the evils, contemplated in these sa
lutary cautions. When such fearful provocations
as those of the last few days have been given, we
need to be ... admonished of the duty of cultivating
the spirit of forgiveness and of prayer. The Coun
sels are:
1. AS TO THE DUTY OF SUBMISSION TO THE
WILL OF GOD.—Calm submission to the rod with
which he is now afflicting us. In a time of dark
ness, such as the Saviour even had known, he ex
ulted in his Father's sovereignty, and joyfully
submitted to his.will, exclaiming, "I thank thee,
0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou
host hid these things from the wise and prudent,
and bast revealed them unto babes. Even so,
Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight." Bre
thren, it is God who is "proving us," who is "try
ing us as silver is tried" it is he who is "bring
ing us into this net," and laying this "affliction
upon our loins;" it is he who is "causing men to
ride over our heads." But we have this consola
tion, that, though he may call us to "go through
fire and through water," he will at last "bring us
out into a wealthy place." I would have you,
then, withdraw from the turmoil of the people,
and commune with thoughts of God, of his provi
dence, of his sovereignty, of the certainty which
he gives you that in all these things he is accom
plishing the highest good for his church, and for
you as a part of that church—that Christ Jesus
has taken the helm of the world as she floats and
traverses through the ocean of space; that he guides
all things and orders all things after the counsel
of his will; that he putteth down one and exalteth
another in wisdom and righteousness; that, for
the purpose of securing his promised and covenant..
ed possession, "he breaketh" the nations "with
a rod of iron, and dasheth them in pieces like a
potter's vessel." Can you doubt that the King of
kings is at work in those throes which now toss
and distract the nations—in both the Old World
and the New? Can you doubt that this corneth
to pass to the end that "all enemies may be put
under his feet," according to the scriptural word?
Look at Italy, at Austria, at Russia, at Turkey I
See how they are tossed and distracted with im
pending disaster, as it frowns upon them with un
paralleled gloom. Look at home !at home, where,
as we have fondly thought nothing could harm,
much less destroy; where we have been wont to
paint the contrast between ourselves and the more
ancient dynasties and governments in Europe in
colors more bright and glowing than suited the page
of history. 0, IT IS THE LORD !—and naught is
left to a Christian people but to say, in lowly and
penitent submission, "LET HIM DO WHAT SEEMETH
11151 GOOD 1"
2. As TO THE DUTY OF CULTIVATING A KIND
AND LOVING SPIRIT.—Let us not forget that we are
Christians. Let us, in the conflict which is im
pending over us, curb our passiocs. the ge
nius of the Christian religion to allay the anger
and vengeance which arise—ah, how promptly and
luxuriantly!—in the natural mind. "Vengeance
is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord." This is a
work which wo may safely leave with him. The
truly enlightened Christian will be loyal to his
government—will be patriotic and self-sacrificing
for his country—but yet, he will remember the
spirit of the Gospel; as it is embodied by an apos
tle, "Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him;
if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou
shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not over
come of evil, but overcome evil with good." If
he will do this for his enemy, how much more for.
his brother when he is unhappily brought into
conflict with him! Let us temper also our words,
avoiding harsh and' vengeful expressions, as un
suited to the meekness and purity of, the Gospel.
A forgiving spirit, and a tongue of kindness, emi-,
neatly become the Christian in times of strife.
8. As TO THE DUTY OF PRAYER.—This last and
great resort is ever available to us. The most
significant answers to prayer which the Bible re
cords, are those that have been vouchsafed to the
prayers of patriots for their country. Witness
those of Moses, of Samuel, of David, of Elijah, of
Ilezekiah, of Nehemiah. Go, then, as they went,
to the God of nations. Go humbly, freely acknow
ledging the nation's sins; go earnestly, feeling the
great emergency which has risen in the land, and
which threatens every man with overwhelming
evil; go trustfully, remembering the almightiness
of the divine arm; and the magnanimity and merci
fulness of the divine mind; go submissively, say
ing, "Thy kingdom conic; thy will be done in
earth as it is done in heaven." Go daily,
go hourly; plead with Cod--implore his bless
ing upon the land; cry to him on behalf of
the President of the United States and his
counsellors, that they may receive wisdom; on
behalf .of the army and the navy of the country,
that they may be prospered; on behalf of those
who go forth from us in defence of our liberties,
that their lives may be spared; and on behalf, also,
of those misguided men 'who are seeking to over
throw the liberties of a great and prosperous na
tion, to retrace the steps which have been taken
toward human freedom, and to establish, on 'the
fairest soil upon which the sun ever shone, a go- vernm en t whose avowed aim is the perpetuity of hu
man thraldom. Pray, brethren! In this time of
Aintrirait grtoblteriatt anti 141 tumet 6rangtliot,
need call upon your God—keep near to the throne
of grace—visit oftentimes your closet, and shut
your door, and pray to your Father which is
in heaven. Turn ye unto God with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourn
ing call upon his name, for he is gracious and merci
ful, slow to anger and of, great kindness. , —who
knoweth if be will return and repent and leave a
blessing behind him! who knoWeth if he will arise
in his might and stay the progress of this conflict!
who knoweth if be will not command light to come
forth out of this darkness, and diffuse .love and
peace over a nation which is now distracted by
hatred and war.
"It is God that giveth salvation unto kings:
who dclivereth David his servant from the hurtful
sword. Rid me, and deliver me from the hand
of strange children, whose mouth speaketh vanity,
and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood:
that our sons may be as plants grown up in their
youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones,
polished after the similitude of a palace: that our
garner may be fuli, affording all manner of store;
that our sheep may'bring forth thousands and ten,
thousands in our streets: that our oxen may, be
strong to' labor; that there be no breaking in, nor
going out; that there be no complaining in our
streets.
"HAPPY IS THAT PEOPLE, THAT IS IN SUCH A
CASE: YEA, HAPPY IS THAT PEOPLE, WHOSE GOD
IS THE LORD."
MR. NEILL AND THE CHANCELLORSHIP.
•
We learn with much regret that the Rev. Ed
ward D. Neill, so well known to our readers in this
city, has resigned his position as Chancellor of the
University of Minnesota and Superintendent of
Public Instruction for the State._ We have heard
nothing from Mr. Neill on the subject, but we
gather from Minnesota papers, that a Mr. Jones,
made an attack in the Legislature upon the office
and Mr. Neill, and that a bill was brought into
that body, fixing his salary at $2OOO, and that this
was reduced to $l2OO. Mr. Neill then as a token
of self-respect offered his resignation. We make
two extracts from papers in Minnesota, to show
how the matter is regarded there.
The first is from the St. Paul Pioneer and .De
mocrat.
Every one acquainted with the present incum
bent, knows that if the law were entirely silent as
to his duties, he would be hereafter, as he 'has
been heretofore, not a whit the less vigilant in his
supervision of the interests of education, and that
if fifty pages of directory legislation were devoted
to regulating the routine of his administration . , it
could add nothing to the untiring zeal and indus
try with which he now discharges its duties. And
in this connection we may say by way of illustra
tion, that if the University had had a Chancellor
four or five years ago—above all, if Mr. Neill had
been that Chancellor—some $BO,OOO would un
doubtedly have been saved to the State. It can
not be too much impressed upon the minds of our
lawgivers that the best economy is not that which
saves the most now, but that whichsaves the most
in the end. .
Now one word more in relation to the proposed
salary of the School Superintendent. The present
bill makes the salary $l2OO per year. This is the
compensation proposed for the unremitting daily
services of a man who has spent twelve years in
developing the Educational interests of the State,
and who has probably done 'more for education
than any fifty other men in the State—a gentle
man whose attainments, ability and experience;
in this particular department, are second perhaps
to no similar officer in the United States. •
The other extract is from the Si. Anthony
.
The St. Paul papers of yesterday published a
letter from Rev. E. D. Neill to Governor Ramsay,ye
signing his office as Qhancellor of the University;
this carries with it a resignation of the office of
Superintendent of. Publiclnstruction.
The furious onslaught made by Mr. Jones of
Olmstead, in the Senate, though levelled ostensi
bly on account of the amount of salary proposed,,
was really an assault upon the office. Indepen
dent of the plea of absolute indigence urged by the
Senator, every consideration presented by him
against the office was narrow, contracted, un
worthy of an intelligent Senator of an enlightened
state. What his constituents think of his glorious
achievement in breaking down the strongest hope
of the state, we have no means of knowing. But
certain it is that others are satisfied that he has
devoted his powers to a very mean purpose. We
have already declared
. our conviction that the
necessities of any successful system demanded a
competent head, and never more imperatively than
in the original, formative period. This needs no
argument to any with sufficient judgment and ex
perience to have any opinion on the subject;
- .No one dare question the ability or the devo
tion-to the cause of education, evinced by the late
occupant of the Superintendent's office. From
opportunities afforded us for correct observation
we assert, that the office could not be filled with
a more efficient incumbent. Mr. Neill unites to
the requisite intellectual qualifications, a rare ex
ecutive ability, seldom found in such connexion.
So fur from the office of Chancellor having been,
with him a "myth," as Mr. Jones has it, or a
sinecure, Mr. Neill had initiated, and was pressing
with energy and with a reasonable prospect of
success, financial measures, which alone could res
cue the University from irretrievable ruin. To,
these he was bringing all the weight of his per
sonal, as well as of his official, influence.
As Superintendent of Schools his views and
plans were far-reaching, and his ambition was to
make the whole educational structure consistent
and suck as would be an honour to the State.
His heart was in the work. No one who knows
the man will doubt that he would make the office
a laborious and a useful one.
But narrow views have been urged, with the
addition of insulting charges of corruption and
fraud, and we do not wonder that Mr. Neill felt
impelled by self-respect to resign. The loss of
his services to the State we esteem a serious loss;
we could better have afforded the whole number
of his accusers and opponents.
WILMINGTON
The Young Men's Christian Association of the
Central Church, have just completed THE MON
ROE STREET CHAPEL, to be connected with that
church as out station, for the purposes of Sab
bath-school instruction, prayer-meetings and occa
sional public worship. The building was dedi
cated on last Sabbath, when addresses were
'delivered by the pastor, Rev. G. F. Wiswell, and
Rev. John W. Mears. It is a frame structure,
forty by fifty feet, and is a model of neatness and
economy.
The lot is eighty by one hundred feet, ample
for a larger building, which the growing wants of
the neighborhood will ere long demand. When
we consider how recently the Central Church it
self was organized, and what an effort they have
just made to erect their own church edifice, we
shall be prepared properly to estimate the difficul
ties which the persevering young men and young
women of the church have overcome in bringing
this important enterprise to completion. It is
entirely clear •of debt, and already has been sup
plied.with Sabbath school Hymn Books, and a
number of interesting publications of our Com
mittee.
EDITORS AND PUBLISHERS will please bave•pa
tience with us for another week, When we expect
'to clear our table of its valuable contents.
LETTER FROM REV. JOHN .O. SMITH, D. D.
Washington City, April .271 h, 1861.
On the 20th inst., I offered my . mbiisterial ser
vices to the War Department, as best I might
serve the troops brought, and,' to be brought here
for the defence of the ~.Capital: ~Yesterday,..
asked to be allowed ta attend particularly the sick
and wounded. in the diternoOn I received :a let
ter in the following words: •
SURGEON G - ENERAL'S'OEFIGE April 26th, 1861.
"SIR :—Your kind and considerate offer, made
this morning to the Surgeoil General, to visit the
sick, and wounded troops:n(4 in the Infirmary,
and requesting permission to give them your at
tention And services, I htiv4 been instructed to no
knowledge. ~
"A request, evincing so touch of the benevolence
of the humane gentleman, and the Christian mi
nister, finds a
.hearty reepotige in the Surgeon Ge
1
coral, and you are authori* d to visit the wards
. ,
and patients, at such times as the medical, officer
,
in charge, may deem to be of improper. -
I am Sir, with .great resp ct your obedient ser
vant, lawn . EDWARDS,
Surgeon, 3. S. A.
.4
1
"Reverend John C. Smitl
City, D. C."
I . gire the informatio n
i to my friends in the
States, whose hilsbeedY. o 'p e ans, or brothers, may be
among these troops, and,i#eed to-all who brothers, :
inte
rested,
,with the hope thit I maycontribute, to
their relief, in these times of anxiety' — `
and, to the comfort of ''.
d'ill peril,
any sick or woun_e_ whom
I may be able to reach. ' '
God being my helper,l will stand in my lot,
and meet the responsibilities of the hour.
Letters asking for information, or attentions,
will naive the regiment , do
ing officer. mPauy, and comm'acd_
JOHN C. S
Pastor of the Fourth Presbyterianah i u l r r ei r i'.
FINANCIAL PROSPECTS -OF =THE
BOARD.
Missionary douse, ,Boston, April 9,1861
Events, as unexpected as they are strange, oblige
the Prudential Committee to speak of an embar
rassed treasury:' 'At the Close otthe last Annual
.Meeting, they hoped- that no such necessity, for
many years at least,. would be laid, upon. them. In
making-the appropriations for BPI,. they endea
vored to act with due carefAess and forethought.
They granted to the inissios, not what was really,
needed, but what could not be refused without se
rious curtailment and-doss; They made no provi
sion for enlargement, strong as were the claims
of some of our fields; they did not even promise
to the existing stations the means of prosecuting
their work to the best advantage. Had they given
less, the approval of the churches, aS they supposed,
would have been withheld.
Of the clouds which hive' since darkened, and
still darken, our political prospects, it is needless
to speak.. By this generation, surely, they will•
not be forgotten however speedily they may pass
away. The Committee began at' an early day to
consider what the emergeacy' required. Oct the
26th of December, letters were sent to the jai's
. •
sionartes, strongly, urging them ta "relieve the
treasury of. the Board as much, as possible." They
have been fully apprized, all along, of our nation
al perils, as also of the diminished receipts of the
Board. As the Coinmitteelad confidence in - their
willingness ,to reduce theie -'expenditures to any
'reasonable extent, no instructions have been sent
as yet, that would derange . ,or damage their work.
Every thing short of this has bee* done.
The-urgency of tho-ease, 0.110-Pr44101 , 4411134-e-an--
ba!easily stated. If the ft neial year is` to close
without a debt, the receipts for the forirmonths,
April Ito August 1, must be 4200,000! This
surri appears to be large; it,=is large. But the
Coinmittee are fully persuaded that it can be raised
Without injury to other benevolent efforts, and
without any burdensome sacrifice cm the part of
our churches. •True, there la not a little of de- -
rangement andapprehension in the financial world,,
,and this may increase hereafter. Still,, for any
investment that might seem to be profitable and
secure, how many millions might be obtained
from Christian men I 'Ana shall it be said that
$200,000 canitot be obtained for Him who.elaims
all the silver and the gold as his, own? The only
question, as it seems .to the Committee, is this : 1
"How can $200,000 be realized prior to August
•
The achievement will be easy, provided "the
people" have "a mind to work." 1. Let every
congregation determine, - if, possible. to to raise as
much as it.did, Jest year,,(aside from any sums
which were contributed fof the debt.) 2. To ba
lance any deficiency that,' may, occur in certain
churches by reason of pii,iiridential hindernrices;
let such congregations swan' etilaiie their-dona
tions without difficulty; adiance upon those of last
year, remembering the Words of the Apostle,
"Bear ye one-another's bu'rdens, and so fulfil the
law of Christ." I
In the case 'of congregat ons which have already
made their annual collietions, but have re
ceded from the point which was reached last year
the Committee,take the liJerty of asking that in
some way the deficiency may be, made good. A
few individuals, doubtlesa l will be, able to do it.
Perhaps a sufficient` number can be found who
will give one dollar each, , in accordance with the
plan which succeeded soradmirably among onr
Baptist brethren, a short - time bine°. In the ease
of congregations which arp now taking, or may
hereafter take, their collections the Committee
would ask that the exceeding desirableness of at
least equalling the down* of last year may be
kept in mind. Should a diMinution be revealed- at
the completion of the effort,' the dollar plan' Or,
one that shall seem better) may be tried. -
The method which the Pommittee now propose
for the consideratipn of their friends, it will be
seen, has two features tb recommend it. I It di
vides the responsibilityinOtteeting the expendi
tures of the year ante* the 'Churches generally - .
2. It is simple, intelligible“easible„ Shall it not
receive a fait trial? •
It should be stated for ~the encouragement of
those who may look favoritbly upon this appeal,
that there are strong reaShas' for believing that
the $200,000 will be obtained. A liberal gentle
man in New York has receetly contributed $5,000.
Upon those whom the Lord has enabled to devise
liberal things, surely, such an example will not be
lost. Already a number of churches have advanced
upon their previous efforts ; and many others are
confidently expected to dOlikewise. Much of the
deficiency in the receipts, up to the present time,
has arisen from the postponement of collections;
and there is ample time tO brin,g up all arrearages.
Nothing is requisite but the " willing mind."
It may be said, perhapS, "The times are inau
spicious; our future is shrOuded•in gloom; let us
not go to other lands for objects of charity." But
this work of missions—is it not the work of Him
who is the First-begotten from the dead, the Prince
of the Kings of the earth? Is he not blessing it
even now with, the richest gifts which infinite'loVe
has to bestow? Hit is , hiswork,-can it be safe,
for our churches to neglect- it, because the times
are inauspicious? e - Itath*Fin such an hour as this
does not our safety lie, ;especially and pre-emi
nently, in keeping all his commandments, not' the
least of which is, "Go ye into all the, world, and
preach the gospel to every creature?" In obey
ing his precepts, may we not turn with confidence
to his own words of promise -and hope, "Because
thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also
will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which
shall come upon all the world, to try- them that
dwell upon theearth F" . -
in behalf of the Prudential Committee. ,
•
R.' ANDERSON, '
S. B. TREAT,
G. W. WOOD '
• Secretaries of the A. B. C. P. -At
I / D. D., Washington
"THE CHRISTIAN OBSERVER."
Two weeks ago, we called a ttention -to a sen
tence in this journal, which was as follows:
"A civil war in the present state of parties
might be more perilous to the government than to
any section of the country"
Ourremarks upon it were in these words:
"If we understand the sentence, it intimates
that the North isfull'of treason, and that it would
be unsafe to attempt to execute the laws. So far
as--a sentiment so false gains credence, it- has a
direct tendency to palsy the hand of-government,
and to encourage Southern traitors. Was such, its
design? WE HOPE Nov."
The OBSERVER professes to quote our remarks,
but, in doing so, omits the last three siords of the
paragraph! With an' antagonist' who quotes so
unfairly, we desire to have no controversy; but
we here challenge the OnsunvEtt, in the name of
the insulted' government under which it lives, and
for which the editor's own Ancestors offered to shed
their blood—in
_the name of true religion, which
teaches allegiance to the poWers that be, and in
the name of this loyal community, we challenge
that sheet to utter one manly,-out-spoken,. loyal
word for our country, in this its ,hour ; of peril and
of, agony; and one - word of indignant reproof at
the violators of oaths and solemn obligations, who
are moving heaven end earth for its destruction.
We have searched the last number from one end
to the other, and, can , find none. There• is a
weak and unmanly cry of ,peace---(Peace peace!
when there is no peace)—there is a letter from
Virginia which speaks of the governor ,of that
State refusing the President's call -for troops, • and
defending, g( the rightS of Virginia- as a sovereign
State," but, there -is, not one word of sympathy,
not one word which bears the _stamp, of true pa
triotism, or which could-set a patriotiesoul aglow.
THE APPEAL OF THE AMERICAN
BOARD.
We publish, in ,another column, the, appeal
of, our noblest American charity ; for aid at this
time. It is called to go, through a severe trial,
as is nearly every benevolent-and business enter
prise, but we would regard it as a calamity to the
church not, far below that which has•been threat
ening us as.a, nation, if its work should be sus
pended, and its missions, to any large degree,
curtailed. What can be ,done .to avert it, we:
know not; but, as we see money poured out like
water In defence of the 'great principles of go
vernment, we feel that there are means among
the supporters of the Board ample:for its neces
sities, which God, moving >upon the hearts of
Men, may pat freely at its disposaL We= ear
nestly hope and pray,. that he may incline, our
hearts to devise liheral things, and stir up the
pastors to their duty towards , tliis honored
channel of beneficenee to the heathen.
LETTER FROM BALTIMORE.
The following note was received from One of
our most esteemed subscribers in Baltimore, but
a few hours before going to press. We do not
know that it was designed for publication; but'
we give it a place, reserving our remarks till the
next issue.
REY. JOHN W. MEARS, Editor of AMERICAN
PRESBYTERIAN
Buy. AND DEAR SIR :—I have been a sub-
scriber to the „AMERICAN' PRESBYTERIAN . since
its- - fir,stib.;..-,- anti -son readite-tiitiolei3 with'
pleasure and profit; 'but I cannot help'express
ing to you the .pain and:sincere regret that the
leading editorial of this 'week has caused me.
It certainly does not breathe the'spirit of Christ,
which is the spirit of Peace.
.No one can deplore the unfoitunate circum
stance of Friday week more thin I do; and
thouiands of order-loving and Union-loving el
tizens -here .
deeply regret the outbreak; but
intuit a city; a majority of whose people are
loyal to the Union and its Compromises, be held
responsible for the acts of an excited mob ? The
destruction of the bridges, and the stoppage of
travel on our great thoroughfares, wore done for
the purpose of putting a stop to the passage of
troops, that the mob should have no cause for
further outbreak; and also, that time might be
allowed the troops, and the law and order citi
zens, to assemble, and control the turbulent ele
ment which was increasing in our midst, owing
to the 'blood which flowed in our streets from
the rifles of the attacked soldiers.
The peopli , of Baltimore hav&not yet spoken;
but as you now suggest "that this most right
eous war is betterthan peace, which traitors are
endeavoring to exact from you," I see no use
of speaking; for without compromises on both
sides, North .as well as South, we shall be
plunged into the most unholy and unnatural war
that the civilized world ever witnessed I
If ministers of Christ dose the door of com
promise, and feed the passions of excited men
by writing war articles, what better are we to
expect from the ungodly world without, than
war, and strife, and bloodshed
Try, my brother, and pour oil upon the trou
bled waters; rather than incite to War; in 'such
leading editorials as I should blush to see in
the Independent or . Tribune.
Excuse this hurried note from,
Yours truly, Sze
A VENERABLE AND beloved friend, who will
be remembered by many as the authoress of
some of our sweetest Hymns and, Tracts, thus
speahs of the American Presbyterian :
"I want to express, my weekly gratitude for
the It nierican Presbyterian. It is a good paper!
and I think grows.better week after week—per
haps because so appropriate in these days of re
buke. I often exclaim to myself, have I lived to
see this upheaving of our dear country; and its
government, for which our fathers fought and.
bled, rent and -torn ? I have thought that se
cession would terminate with a termination of
the institution of slavery in this country. This
great effort to perpetuate it by the. South, may
be its destruction. How many prayers of the
righteous are laid up, in Heaven against it, and
how soon dod, in his righteous government,
may proclaim liberty to the captives, who can
tell?"
THE EVANGELICAL REPOSITORY for May.
Contents':—Ministerial Consecration, An Ad
dress to the students of, the U. P. Seminary of
Pittsburgh,—Sound Spe,cch,—The- Lay Fie
menc-=-The-First- Presbytery of Ohio a and the
Covenant of UnioN--The Russian Revolution,
—Sabbath School Department: The Sabbath
School Tetipher, The Model Sabbath School
Teacher.--Dhildren's Department: Letter from
the U. P. Missionary in'lndia,s Rev. R. A. Hill,
"Honour thy Father and thy Mother • " Allie is.
Dead.—Our Ecclesiastieal Record—Editorial:
Fearful Times—New:Publications—Obituaries
—lndex to Vol. 19. Pp. 48. IV. S. Youlig,
Publisher, 52 N. Sixth Street. $1.50 per an
num. Single copies, 15 cents.
SUMNER WORK AND SUMNER DREAON-
ING.
[Read before the Harrisburgh Presbytery, and pub-
Relied at their request.]
Few, probably, have failed to observe that the vi
sible results of the ministerial work wear an aspect
varying with the seasons of - the "Year,' The
order of nature, there are seasons for sowing, for
cultivating, for reaping, and sees - ens also for some
thing like repose, when we rest and enjey the fruit
of our toil, and make preparation for the labors , of
another season; so fheie is, shall. call' it (?) an
order of grace, by which the harvests'of ministe
rial sowing and cultivating are reaped, and a sea
son of comparative rest and preparation. Their
season for reaping the fruits of pastoral labor, is
the winter of the natural year. We . speak of it,
then, not as a thing of necessity, for no one would'
dare thus to circurriscribe the operations of the"
Divine Spirit, the `Chief Worker in this vineyard;`
nor would the history of the Church warrant us
in doing so; hilt simply as' a Matter of fait, it 'is
'-
found to be very generally true, that•the souls'of
men are reached, convinced of!iiti, and conVerted
to 'God, the church is strengthened, periods of re
freshing and revival occur in the whiter of the na
tural year. • .
There are reasons why . this should be the case.
The winter is a season . of comparative leisure.
The labors of the agriculturist have taken a re
spite. Merchants and tradesmen are not thronged,
as at other seasons of .the year, by anxious cus
tomers. Most of the occupations of men feel the
influence of this pause in the world's business.
The long winter evenings, joined to that inele-'
mency of weather which prohibits the - eager pro
secution of business, lead men to turn their
thoughts to books, to scenes of amusements, to
social pleasures, to any thing that may fill up their
unoccupied time. And though the winter may be
a season , of increased gayety, vanity, and worldli
ness, yet it is also .a period for increased thought
fulness and self-reflection; and the testimony of
the past shows us that it has beep. the period of
greatest Christian activity, and of most abundant
success in calling•men from the ways of the world
to the path of life. A comparison of the- number
of• revivals, and of conversions, in summer and
whiter, reveal a• great disparity. -
So marked and so general-: is this condition of
things, that without any consultation and prior
consent, the ministry and the churches, and, T
may add, the world, have accepted it, almost is if
'it were the necessary order. They have ail, very
generally, ceased to anticipate periods of 'unusual
religious interest at other seasons than the winter;
and, ceasing to look for them, they have also Ceased
to laborand to pray for them—it may be, have well
nigh lost all faith in their possibility.
The minister of the adapts his preaehing
and 'his •pastoral labors, his viiitations, the fre
quency of- religious meetings, and' all * the. varied.
agency of his calling to the changed order of things
whichn' change of seasons ` brings. His sermons
assume a different Character. They,are expository
or doctrinal, of a, 'character adapted- to instruct or
eonfirni believeri; Or they are pungent, awaken
ing, hortatory, discourses, addressed to the cafe
less and impenitent! The =members of the church
accept insensibly the new Order of things. They
relax their diligence, - become less anxions in
saving-men, they are more negligent in attendance.
upon -the means of 'grace, they 'almost entirely
abandondirect' personal effort for the salvation of
men, prayer everywhere becomes less-iinportUnate
in the closet, at ,th'e family altar,: in the -prayer
meeting, and the sanctuary. .
The werld accepts the new order of things, and
with hardly a thought, postpones, for a year at
least; thoughts of repentance and care for the soul.
Apparently, the sinner- regards:all 'obligation to'
give heed to the claims of religion as having
passed away with the Winter. -
;There is doubtless much to be reprehended and
condemned, both - in the.action of the church and
of the world in this matter. ' God has not limited
himself in his divine working, and in the bestowal'
of blessings on human efforts to any particular
periods of the year. When his - people prepare
the way of the„Lord," He will come. Stime of
the most remarkable revivals recorded in the his
tory of the cheich, occurred at that-season of the
year which.we are apt to consider `the' -quest , •uri
propitious. They have been remarkable, in 'part'
because they: broke in upon an accepted order,of
things, upon the hurry and pressuie of worldly
-occupations, and compelled Christians tqlaKir and
pray,• and sinners- to be anxious and inquiring.
The Christian and Chriatian ministerare , neither
of them excused from seizing all opportunities to
bring men to a , knowledge Of the truth. And
Worldly men have' no dispensation from God - to
postpone, for,any reasons, the care of their souls,
and an immediate return `to obedience. .
Yet it still remains true, that, there is much-in
this condition of things which must be accepted
as inevitable; and the minister of the gospel who
. should disregard it, who should not adapt his mi
nistrations to it, 'and should' demand froni the
church as much labor, and as deep an interest,
and from the•world as much attention and serious=
ness in mid-sum Mer as in mid-winter,,whO should
preach as if revivals were as rational at one time.
as at - another, would' probably soon find he wai
greatly mistaken. There are junctures in' human
affairs, periods for the individual when the mind•
has been awakened by some providence, and the
heart; has been softened by affiiction . --4driods for
a church, or a cemmunity, or a nation ' , when"some
general calamity has called men to a spiritual' con
cern—periods, all of them, when -the 'servant of
Christ, who is wise in winning souls,-will'be on
the alert to adapt all ministrations to the occasions.;
The seasons of the year, and the changes they
bring, the increase or decrease of business, the
hurry or leisure, the peculiar effect 'of the season
itself in stimulating or depressing the mind, by
its colds or its heats,' and the external ob
jects by which, to a greater or less degree, it en
gages the mindSof inert; alFthese things are to he
taken into our reckoning when we approach men
with the claims and duties of religion. To any
one who has observed and reflected upon the his
tory_of religion among men, it is' already evident
that summer •work and summer preaching must
generally he different from winter work and win
ter preaching.
I speak of them .briefly in their order. 1. Sum
mer Work. • The winter is the season for thespe;
dal •toil of the paStor. There Is •that in the eir
cumstances by - which he is then surrounded ';'the
attitude of the' people, the widely prevalent 'idea
that the winter is a period specially favorable for
religious effort, the greater leisure or-inen, and
the increased pleasure of close study and earnest
thought, which leads the pastor to'tai all his ener
gies, and give all his time to" the inimediate end
before him. His sermons are more thorough and
impressive, his laborki are -more' abundant, his
anxieties are deeper, he multiplies the means of
grace,. and hopes and looks for a speedy relied
His:people are'all 'gathered aroUnd
mer many of them maybe gone. As the winter
passes away, and the warm mouths draw on, h e
feels a;:necessity for change. The demand f ir
special effort ceases, the means of grace, if the e
have been multiplied, are reduced again to their
usual order, and he enters, often sadly, into the
new condition of thinos.
(To be continued.)
NEW REVIEWS
The first article in the April number of the
PRINCETON REPERTORY, is a thorough discussion
of the itnportant topic of the Physical Trainipy
of Students. After noticing the spasmodic and
ineffectual efforts Made to improve the physic a l
organization of stndents. called out by the sy-m e _
toms of debility and degeneracy which they ex
hibited some thirty years ago, ,among which the
Manual Labor system is mentioned, the writer
notices; the present revival of interest in the sub.
ject as proceeding from "the shattered health and
early debility or death of great numbers of Ame
rican students!' The tendency in our day to an
excessive use of gymnastics, and to seek for an in
vigoratingprineiple in the mere development of nuts.
cle by rowing and such' exercises, popular among the
presen t generation of students, is justly condem n ed,
on the principle that it is a draft upon the surplus
vital forces, in a direction quite remote from the
point, where they are required in the case of the
student—the brain. "Those students who make
the development Of muscle their paramount aim,
abstract so far forth that energy from the brain
which it needs for the vigorous prosecution of its
duties!!. Nor does such undue development of
the muscles by any means secure 'permanent
health or a robust constitution. Adepts and vic
tors in boat-racing are liable to formidable dis
eases, at the age of thirty or sooner. tteyond all
question, says the, writer, other things being equal,
that exercise is most beneficial to the student
which is most in the open air, which best brings
the various parts of the body into due exercise,
and gives the most of exhilaration with the least
of weariness or. exhaustion. Gymnastics should
be used to supplement, but, not. to supplant or
overbear it. Among the causes which compel
our students to succumb to 'debility, the reviewer
regards as worthy of special mention, the want of
ventilation inour modern' methods of warming
apartments; the immense increase in the use of
tobacco, and the vast expansion of the college cur
riculum chiefly by the addition of the physical
sciences..-,We are glad to see that he has "heard
the purpose expressed on the part of some of the
most distinguished educators in our American col
leges to resist all further changes in their course
of study which involve any increased demand
upon the student!!
A writer on Covenant Education argues that
education is te matter of religion,—that half a
century ago-no Christian had imagined it possible
to educate his 'children apart from • the supreme
object of making them intelligent' and faithful
Christians; while now, from :the great variety of
denominations in our American Christianity, this
high object has been dropped out of view. Re
is alarmed, we think needlessly, at the extent to
which Sectarianism has had the effect of effacing
from even the management of our colleges, any
distinctive doctrinal character. Calvinism is
taught without heeitancy in the prominent insti
tutions,under:the control of orthodex :Congrega
tionalists and Presbyterians in this `country, just
as we suppose theepulpits of college chapels under
the control of Arminians unhesitatingly inculcate
the antagonistic system. The -miter is "not in
formed of a single educational institution under
the control of Presbyterians which contains a
church organization:within iteelf,?.as is the case
with Yale and other - 14yr Ragland colleges; and
as in his view, should be the case in all. This
would. guard against the leery natnral ' - results of
long absence:from one's own church, - exhibited in
frequent backslidings and even loss of Christian
hope ? It would also operate in effectually con
centrating the efforts of the pions ittidents for - the
conversion of their associates. We shouldinot be
afraid of the' denominational &Minter suchtt mea
snre would; give our colleges.
' The deeply interesting character of RitielitnOWS
.trero4eita is _presented in a, following' - aitiele.
The reliableness' Of 'the Ilistotian,and the great
value'- f 'the researches of the critic are clearly
shown. Thnsolenin significance of: the: 4 4postolie
Benediction is disenssed in- a, protracted article
—the heavy', ", article we s h ould' judge of the
Review. The writer claims that " the minister
should 'recognise himself as an.instrument of the
Holy` Spirit,' to increase-by prOnormping the Chris
tian benediction,,the gift of spiritual peace in the
hearts of thepeople."
The Church and the Country like Dr. Breck
enridge's article ire the =Danville -Quarterly, has
been more than eiertaken:by themareh of events.
The ;intention of the article in to vindicate the
writer from the attacks called out, by the "State
of the Country,' which`appeared in January, as
well as to argue the'eatapatibility of 'Church Unity
with political disruption.' It peoceeds on the sup
position of.a pernaanent-division of the country—
North and.Soutlie—in which case it is claimed the
Old School Church could- hold together, just as
some churches now in Canada beletigto Ateerican
organiltions. The of a "great "iMposing"
church is very' strong in the writer's mind; in
common with many others in his branch of the
church, he is disposed to idoliie church unity and
to cherish it even at the cost of 'sem ething more
valuable: 'The hostile feelings of the people in
the Gulf States towards the •North, Which have
been manifest in a general crusade against men of
moderate opinions like himself and Dr. Rice, and
against such conservative journals as the Ecru
York • Obsirver, Presbyterian, &c., who stand
where, they always hive stood on the subieet of
shiVery, pretty well 'satisfies him of the difficulty
and doubtfulness of the attempt to hold the church
together. We think
it a grievous .error on the part
of Dr. El when, in speaking:of the seizure of forts,
armories, and money by the South, and its justifica
tion•by the Southern conscience on the one hand;
and, on the other, the denunciation of those acts by
the majority of Northern Christians as spoliation
and rolthety, he should treat this wide difference as
resulting from merely transient states of feelings,
and thereforeas furnishing no, adequate ground for
permanent ecclesiastical changes. "What right,"
he asks, -" have ministers or 'members' tea tear
Christ's church asunder because they don't like each
Other 7!) A very euperficial view of the case, in
deed, is implied in such language, everrat he time
of his writing; for on a previous page he quotes a
venerable minister of the' church as saying We
may well feel grieved that so far as .know the
very extremest vindications of all the , t)zeasvres cif
the South come from...prominent Presbyterian
nisters."
It is more than being in open opposition to the
.„
goVernment—it is leadvng on - an - unjustifiable re
bellion—taking it at its lneeption;.and using the
pulpit avowedly as the means of deepening the
feeling of opposition to goveinment, and of urging
citizens to pour contempt on their most solemn
.
oaths and obligations. Does '' Dr. - Hodge suppose
that this loyal people can ever'e brought to par
don the men whom he rin this essay is endeavoring
to soothe and - to hold in the bonds of the same or
ganization by fair pleas and entreaties about church
unity ;--men who have done more perhaps, than
any respectable class of men in the South to cre
ate a 'public sentiment there, justifying treason
and oath-breaking and pillage on such a stupen
dous scale ? If the Old School Church can tole
rate them, we don't believe for a moment that the
American peoPle
Dr. Hodge, while contending that slaveholding
per se not sinful, rejects - with- manly indigna
tionthe new ultraisms of the South, which claim
approval and admiration for the system as it is,
and declares he would rather see the Union broken
into- a hundred piece.s than 'consent to admit
slavery to benational in its character and rights.
Nevertheless the men-who hold this ultraism, and
who have played:a notorious part in "the crime
of the country" are tobe fellowshiped in the other
branch of the Preshyterian Church in ceder to
preserve its imposing proportions ! " Both parties
have acquiesced in the decisions of the church al
ready made."' That is proof of all the unanimity
of sentiment which the:writer deems needful for
union?... Doubtless:the writer's views have under
gone. modification since"the article was prepared
for publication.
]fa}'