fresfcgtwi## (Smplist. THURSDAY. JULY 11. 1801. JOHN W- MEANS, EDITOR. associated with ALBERT BARNES, , GEORGE DUFFIELD, Jb. THOMAS BRAINERD, J JOHN JENKINS, HENRY DARLING, I THOMAS J. SHEPHERD, A YEAR OF EDITING. In the providence of God, by the death of our associate, wo were left in eharge of the editorial department of this paper a year ago. The illness and growing infirmities of Dr. Houghton had trans ferred to us, one after another, the duties and re sponsibilities of the position; but his removal at last was a surprise, and we felt ourselves summoned to a work, for which our experience was inadequate, | and our fitness unproven. Thus led by Provi dence, however, we hesiiated not a moment; and depending on him for aid, and looking to a world within and without the Church, all alive with evi dences of the divine working, and teeming with the promise of great events, for inspiration, we took : up the pen audentered upon our editorial novi- J date. In many respects it has been a happy period of our public life. While close and systematic study and scholarly pursuits have been impracticable, it has afforded us an opportunity of scanning the moving world in its religious, ecclesiastical, literary and political phases, in every part of the globe, and in a period of unparalleled significance and interest, suoh as can scarcely he enjoyed any where else. To have come to the editorial chair at suoh a time as this, we have felt to he a privi lege, to be thankfully acknowledged and enjoyed. Questions of the most stirring nature, the discus sion of which tends to enlarged views of life and morals and of the relations of God’s kingdom upon earth, have come up, with bearings of the utmost praotical value. The popular mind has been in a state peculiarly susceptible to the moulding in fluences of suoh an institution as the press. Ar tificial means for exciting an interest in editorial discussions have .not been required. It is an age of wakeful earnestness, when any one who has the ear of the public, may well congratulate himself upon his unwonted opportunities. Argument, entreaty, reproof even, fall upon willing ears, if but the key-note of the popular feeling is struck. It is a time when God is so manifestly drawing near by his judgments, that the nations are dis posed to learn righteousness, to hear their sins de nounced, and to give heed to those who, with a fair degree of wisdom, point out the personal and na tional hearing of the visitations of a just and angry God under which we are living. Ah editor’s life is not devoid of the usual ap pointment of trials great and small, peculiar and general. Inexperience will leave room for errors, and the errors of an editor aro public and hard to remedy, even though the acknowledgment of them he equally public. We have had the grief to see our mistakes oopied far and wide; while our cor rections, equally explicit and prominent, have been Utterly neglected. Our honest fixed opinions, too, have not only elicited such counter statements and arguments from opponents, as every friend of truth and free discussion is ever willing to see and to respond to; they have also brought out such in dications of ill-temper, of bitterness, of invective without argument, as we frequently felt to he ut terly unfit for a place in our columns, or for an answer according to their folly. Southern editors have raged against us with that intemperate hate, and that copiousness of angry vituperation, which is the peculiar vein of their chivalry. It is no pleasure to us to be abused even by those whose praise would be disgraceful, and we have no heart or conscience to respond to such attacks. We ac cept them as a sad necessity of our position; we have opinions; we try to have decidod ones on im portant subjects and where light is to be found. We would not give a groat for the poor privilege of a comfortable life, procured by the sacrifice of the freeman’s birthright, to entertain and dissemi nate his opinions at the bidding of an enlightened conscience. We would not sit an hour in an edi torial chair, where it was required to put peace before purity; and, by God’s grace, while we hold such a position, we design to use it for the pur pose of speaking the truth —in love—that is, with a sincere purpose of promoting the welfare, and not merely the mental quietude of those we reach, or of merely securing their friendly attitude to wards ourselves. We ask our readers’ prayers. If the position we hove held has been exciting and interesting, it has been solemnly responsible. The audience vouchsafed ns, raises within ns, over and over again, the inquiry: are we meeting its wants; are we wisely contributing our share of the influence, which, in this susceptible era, is shaping their principles, and which, in this age of prompt and energetic action, is flowing forth every day into realisation—into history? We seek no greater reward than a humble consciousness that in such a time and place, we are approximately performing our duty. One proof of it we are finding, and Still more expeot to find, in the sympathy and sup port of onr subscribers and friends. Whether our work shall continue to be prosecuted through these trying times, and through years to come, under God, rests with them. We call upon them to stand by ns noW, while we enter upon another year of editing. For the American Presbyterian. A BOARDING SCHOOL JOB YOUNG LA DIES, IN CLINTON, ONEIDA, CO., N. Y. It will gratify the many friends and former pupils of Mrs, Gallup, of Canandaigua, formerly Mias Houghton, Principal for five years of In gham University, at Leroy, to learn that she is about to open, in Clinton, New York, a Board ing School of the first elass for yonng ladies. The first session of the School will commence early in September. Mrs. Gallnp was herself one of the pupils of Mary Lyon; and to all who knew her large success at Leroy, as well as her high qualifications personally for her work, it will be quite 'Unnecessary to speak her praise. We of this region regard her accession to us as a great addition to the educational facilities of Central and Western New York; and we are aura that many beyond onr own bounds, who desire a thorough earnest Christian edneation for their daughters, will be swift to avail them selves of the opportunity thus furnished. Mrs. Gallup Is a sister of the late Rev. Dr. Hough ton, of Philadelphia; who was, during his last illness, under the care of Dr. Gallnp, her hus band ; and she is, in her religions affinities, de cidedly Presbyterian. D. Clinton, N, T, Juty 2d, 1861. the BIBLE AS A COLLEGE TEXT-BOOK. President Fisher has done honor to himself and to his position as an educator, at the head of Hamilton College, by the proposition which he made in his Inangnral for the recognition of the Bible ag one of the regular text-books of the College course. As Cicero plead for the study of the twelve tables in the education of every Roman youth, contending that they “were worth more than all the libraries of the philoso pher,” so the excellent and trnly Christian President of Hamilton College, argues for the Bible as “ worth more than all philosophy, all natural science, all other forms of thought,” and consequently worthy, of all books, to be “the most profoundly studied, the most con stantly present through the whole course of edu cation.” Dr. Fisher’s plan, as announced in the Inau gural and other addresses, would be to give the Bible substantially the same position in the college curriculum, as any other study. “We must make it,” he says, “ the book which our youth shall study—study from Genesis to Re velation—study in its history, its laws, its pro phecy, its poetry, its philosophy, its theology, its Christology.” Proficiencyin the knowledge of the Bible “should enter into the final estimate of the character and standing”,of the student. [ “Instead of being left to the caprice of the stu dent to be engaged in or not, as he may choose, it shohld'be enforced precisely as is the study of the classics, or mathematics. You canhbt compel men, young or old, to think ; but you can plaee the young in such circumstances, and surround them with- such influences as will con tribute powerfully to awaken thought in any desirable direction.” We find these important suggestions, quoted to our hand, in the last number of the Ameri can Theological Review, in a favorable notice of Dr. Fisher’s published volume of sermons and addresses. The Reviewer adds some sugges tions of his own, which may be profitably-copied in this connexion. Speaking of the manner in which this science or study of the Bible should be taught, he says the Professor of this branch “ should be a. man of enthusiasm in his depart ment. He should have his recitations fixed and definite in the course of college study; and it should be his aim to make them as clear and as impressive as possible. He should cherish the utmost freedom of inquiry on the part of his class, encouraging them to bring forward all their objections, and all their ‘ strong reasons ’ against the Bible; and he should be prepared to meet them and show their fallacy. Such a process of teaching the Bible two or three times a week through the year, would do more, in our judgment, to exterminate infidelity from the, precincts of a-college, than any other human agency.” For ourselves, we are glad to see this very important matter brought forward again for dis cussion. Certain it is, that some counteracting agency to the undue development of mere intel lect, and with it, of intellectual pride, which is the natural result of scholarly pursuits, needs to be introduced among the regular studies of our under-graduates. The proper balance of the moral and spiritual with'the intellectual, should be provided for. Nor is there any sphere of life in which educated men would not find a scientific knowledge of the Scripture of the highest practical value. When all but the mere disciplinary influence of Greek, Latin and ma thematics had passed away, their Biblical at tainments would come into play at almost every turn in their affairs. And instead of turning out a race of educated youth, whose intellectual pride leads them to skepticism in regard to the Scriptures, because it is just these that they have no scientific acquaintance with—they are not skeptical as to the Copernican system, or as to the great age of the geological formations—we shall have our professional men, and men of in fluence in society, Instructed in the emptiness of infidel objections, awake to the vital import ance of maintaining a cordial sympathy between faith and philosophy, and with characters more effectively trained under the influence of true and elevated views of that Boob, which suffers, in the youthful mind, from the. commonplace light in which it has been for the most part re garded. Who can doubt that such an interweaving of the study of the best of books in the studies of our youth, in that susceptible era when their souls are a-glow with a noble eagerness for learning, and when in every pursuit we seem to hear the ringing cry “excelsior” burst from their lips, would communicate a healthful influ ence to the very textnre of their souls—would result in the engrafting of the word upon their moral and intellectual natures, often to the saving of their souls, but almost invariably te the training np of a race of citizens, competent more than ever, to influence and to direct the affairs of a great republic; to counsel, to legislate, to jndge and to execute, in all its departments, upon the soundest and most elevated principles of statesmanship, steering ns towards onr great destiny by no tortuous channels of low expe diency, bnt along the broad, straight track of principle, by the guiding star of divine Truth. REV. GEORGE DUFFIELD, JR. We are again compelled to chroniele a sun dering of pastoral relations in one of our city chnrcbes, and the consequent removal of another of onr colleagnes from his labors in onr midst. We deeply feei the loss of Mr. Dnffield from our ministerial circle, and from the narrower and closer relations of warm personal friendship. As a man and a Christian bis frank and cordial nature, his glowing piety and evangelical zeal, bis hopefulness and vivacity, his bright and wakeful intellect and powers of conversation endeared him to ns, and to all with whom he came in contact. His services in onr city as a pastor, a Presbyter, an advocate of temperance, and contributor to the evangelical press, and especially, in connexion with the revival, and the consequent great expansion of evangelical effort among the firemen and the neglected masses, will not soon—will never be forgotten. His little work “ Pentecost,” descriptive of the revival in Philadelphia, has been widely circu lated in both continents. Having accepted a call to the church in Adrian, Michigan, he has proceeded at once to the new scene of his la bors. Harmless Bombs —Some of the bombs fired by Federal troops were fonnd filled with saw dust; bnt the rebels have some of the same kind. One fired from the rifled cannon at Big Bethel was sent to the TJ. S. Arsenal, at Troy, where it was opened and fonnd to be filled with rice. Therq must be a little treachery on both sides. Itmmcait IftfSi&gifjiatt attfl (SvattgcliS't. PROGRESS OF THE CONFLICT. The United States Congress meets, for the first time in our history, under the protection of an army. Were it not for the seventy-five thousand brave and disciplined men, who since the 15th of April have been gathering and forming in solid column for its defence, the legislative body of our nation would have been driven to some remote .place of assembly, and the fair historic structure in which it now meets, would have been a prey of violence —perhaps a heap of ruins. For this peaceful and secure assembling amid all the old emblems of power and sovereignty, for this unin terrupted course of public legislation, under God, we have to thank, first, the General in chief of our army, Lieutenant General Winfield Scott, who, six months ago, was making his cautious preparations for defence; and with him and se conding his plans, the grand army of the Union, summoned into being from the bosom of a peaceful and peace-loving people, by the proclamation of the President. For this result, brave men have had to offer their blood, like Corporal Needham in Baltimore, and Colonel Ellsworth in Alexandria. The fourth of July, 1776, will hereafter be coupled in public remembrance with the fourth of July, 1861. The first recalls the struggle which revealed our power and purpose to win nationality; the second strikingly reveals the necessity, determina tion, and ability of the Government to maintain that nationality against inward plots and hos tilities. - We have given the message, which was delivered to Congress on the sth, entire,'"in another part of the paper. Every one will wish to preserve a document which will remain among the most memorable of our national papers: It is not unworthy of the occasion. Its simple, una dorned, manly style; the calm dignity of its state ments and reasonings; the transparency of the policy which it both explains as past and fore shadows as future; the confidence it so freely ex presses in the people, will commend .it to the popular heart and judgment above all the state papers of this generation. It is the evident effu sion of Mr. Lincoln’s own honest, capable, and unaided mind. The country chose him rather than others, whose personal claims'seemed to he higher, but whose antecedents were too deeply in terwoven in the entanglements of a long public life; the country’s choice on that score has justi fied itself, and in nothing more than in the un diplomatic frankness and sturdy*simplicity of this war-message. In every patriotic heart what an echo is returned to those grand and simple words at the close: “ Having thus chosen onr course, without guile and with pure purpose, let us renew our trust in God, and go forward without fear and with manly hearts.” Nobler words have not been . written in the records of American statesmanship, ; and the whole American people will one day ad mire and honor his memory for‘them, and for what else of similar purport this memorable docu ment contains. The House, after a single ballot, elected the Hon. Galusha A. Grow, of Pennsylvania, Speaker, and the late representative from Tennessee, Hon. Emerson Etheridge, Clerk. In the latter.instance the republican majority showed themselves above all mere partisan feeling, and desirous of recog nising and honoring true patriotism in the dis tricts where rebellion prevails. On the field, we are permitted to speak of very great advantages gained by General Pattersons column in Virginia. On the 3d of July, after patient waiting, having crossed the Potomac once and returned to Hagerstown, and after pursuing a policy of wise maneuvering, doubtless after Gen. Scott’s own heart, if not in strict conformity to his orders, Gen. Patterson again crossed the Po tomac, near Williamsport, and fell upon the enemy on the Virginia side, at about 11 o’clock, A. M. M'Mullin’s Rangers, from Philadelphia, the Phila delphia City Troop, and a Wisconsin regiment, with Doubleday’s _and other artillery, led the ad, vance. The enemy, said to he 10,000 strong, were utterly routed by this advance, before the main body of our forces reached the scene of ac tion. The loss, on our side, was three killed and ten wounded. The enemy’s loss was three or four times as great. The next day the United States troops occupied Martinsburg, Va., and pushed forward gaining further advantages over-the re treating foe. In Western Virginia, too, a very decided ad vantage was gained by. part of Gen. M'Clellan’s column at Buchanan, where several thousand of the rebel force were totally routed, with the loss of twenty killed, slight casualties only being re ported on onr side. CORRESPONDENCE. PROM THE CAPITOL: THE SOLDIER’S FRIEND. Rev- Me. Butler, Chaplain of the Penn sylvania sth, now in Alexandfia, writes to the Rev. Mr. Dalles:— -Washington, D. C., July 4th, 1861, Rev. and Dear Brother: After some delay, the package of the “ Soldier’s Friend ” came to hand. They were distributed as judiciously as possible to the men of the sth Regiment, on Sabbath last, at onr service. I need hardly assure you they were most eagerly seized by the men, and, I trust, will be properly used. I am much pleased with the arrangement and character of the truth yon havefgiyen ns in this form. Yon will thank the unknown donor for me, and for the men, to whom it is very pleasant to minister, lam not without encouragement in this work. I have reason to know that the good seed sown is already bearing fruit. The camp affords an extensive field of usefulness to the earnest follower of Jeans. Thereare many good men in the army, and, I am persuaded, many good purposes are formed by others for the future. If, through the liberality of any of the friends of Christ, you are enabled to grant additional supplies of the “ Soldier’s'Friend,” they will be highly appreciated by the men of the sth Regi ment. Truly, your brother, PROM REV. JOHN 0. SMITH, D, D., Washington City, July"6th, 1861. Editors op American Presbyterian.—l am indebted to you or some benevolent friend for 25 copies of your paper of 27th June, postagepaid, which I took from the Post Office to the U. S. Hospital, where I am in daily attendance , under the written authority of the Surgeon General, and Hon. Secretary of War. I entered upon these duties 26th of April, and find them pleasant to myself, and agreeable and profitable to the sick and wounded soldiers. 'The number varies,but averages about 100 in all the wards. They are generally men of intelligence, and some of them are church members at home, and seem to be much interested in spiritual things. My aim is, every day, to have at least a few words with every man in my visits, and to give a testament, tract, J. Geo. Butler.' or book, or some paper. These are gladly re ceived, and often with grateful expressions. Tracts and testaments are furnished from depositories here gratuitously. I belie ve.they are read. In many cases I know they are, and carefully preserved. I will gladly distribute -any books and papers, that may be sent to ]tsl; The package of 25 co pies was not markedffor the. hospital, but I sup posed it was intended for the men under my care. With my many pastoral duties, l must confine extra efforts to the; hospitah In my brief service I have had daily conversation with at least four or five hundred men,; beginning with the wounded Massachusetts men of memorable 19th of April in Baltimore. The hospital is under the direction .of U. S. Army Surgeons of fine-talents and large experi ence, with a corps of nurses, male and female. The arrangements are the very best for the com fort and recovery of the sick and wounded. The number of deaths has been particularly small, and these have been in most cases from Pennsylvania. I get no pay, have no military title, but am al ways yours, ; , John C. Smith, Pastor ith, Presbyterian church. FROM BOSTON. “HONOR TO WHOM HONOR.” Mr. Editor - The.writer attended th e fiftieth anniversary of the ordination of Rev. Richard S. Storrs, D. D., of Bffeitree, Mass., July 3d, 1861, and as your paper is the,chronieler of the daily transactions of the church, it may not be amiss to send you a oLthe proceedings, Your cor respondent'hasjhad of this church and' of its pastor;add from this personal know ledge he hesitates not to say there is no pastor more worthy of,commendation, or more justly de serving the respect of his brethren or the grati tude of the church, than Dr. Storrs. The house is nearly hew, of fine dimensions, 6/ Gothic style, very jarge for a country church; every thing—-pulpit, pews, singers, hearers, all where.they ought torhe; and yet, there is one of the greatest inconveniences attending this that I have ever found in any house of worship. Ac cording .to the meaning of words as'mannfactured by that indefatigable word-maker, Rev. S. Hanson Cox, by variegated .colored glass, .“they-stained the light of heaven before they let it in'.” Now, the fault I wish to find is this, they should have stained it more, or not have built the window so high (as they did;) no curtain could he got up to It; and so, w||)e attempting to take a few notes for the benefit of your readers, I almost lost my eye-sight by the solar rays being poured di rectly on my head so that'l could not see. - The morning was occupied with a sermon from the very worthy .pastor who has fed this flock half a century. He spoke of the manner in which the Lord had helped him during all that time It was partially a partially historical, and most deeply interesting from beginning to end. In the afternoon, the service was introduced by prayer by a neighboring clergyman. An ode was then sung fay the midif, composed for the occa sion by Richard Storrs Willis, a namesake-it is presumed of the Dr. Rev. R. Sv Storrs, Jr., D. D , of Brooklyn, then made a speech, and acted as chairman of the meeting. Your people in Philadelphia know “somewhat” of him, as he has lectured there once or twice beforet“ The People’s Literary As sociation.” He revived the Doctorate quite young, and is, dqnlpess, a man of full ordinary abilityj-but'tfough 'jfowln lie vigor of his days, he foils for short of bis venerable father. Besides, he has not done the very thing for which his fa ther received all commendation, namely, remain ing In one place for fifty years. Young Storrs removed from Brookline, Mass., to Brooklyn, New York. : Prof. Edwards AiPark, of Andover, came next. He gave an historical sketch of each pastor of the eboreh since it wap first gathered in 1677, by Rev. Hugh Adams., At Mr. Adams’ ordination Cotton Mather preached. Mr. A. was paßtor but three years, when he left on account of not getting his salary. He went to Chatham, Mass., from which he removed again on account of the non payment of his salary. From thence he removed to Durham, N. H., and preached to a society called the Oyster Bay Society, where, after labor ing for some years land not receiving his salary, he petitioned the general Court of N. H, for a law to enforce, thippaymeht of it in full with promptness. Thisi petition had some very curi ous items in it, and they were enforced by very peculiar arguments! It represented that for this non-payment of the minister’s dues the people of N. H.- had been visited with the throat-ail, of Which many had died ; while in Mass., where they paid their ministers fully and promptly, (after Mr. A. had driven them to it,) they were not visited by this terrible disease. Mr. Adams seemed to believe that he was raised up to accom plish this one great work—to secure the payment of ministers’ salaries. Still, it was a little re markable that be. should come so near to “a state of starvation in the parish of Oyster Bay." The second minister was Samuel Miles, of Rhode Island, Mr. Miles preached his own or dination sermon. The third minister of Braintree was Ezra Weld, born in Pomfret, (jonm , . Each of these ministers, (the last two I mean,) preached, or was pagtor fifty years, and asthe pre sent incumbent hw now been pastor -fifty years; this church, with toe ministry of three pastors, has been served one htindred and fifty years. Prof. Park’s address wasjwitty and amusing, and passed off very pleasantly. * * * * Next' came the! compliments of the Norfolk Association of Clergymen to Dr. Storrs, which was represented by Rev. Mr. Means, of Dorches ter, successor to Rbv. Dr.Codman. It had been said that for some teason Dr. Codman, when Dr. Storrs was ordained would. not give him “the right hand of fellowship." It therefore seemed meet to the brethren that Mr. Means should now give Dr. S. the right band of commendation. This part of the performance, also, was well me rited by Dr. Storrs. I should have said that the venerable Dr. With ington, of Newburyport, made some very enter taining remarks ujjon the utility of a “Permanent Ministry." First,■ he said, permanent ministers pud much attention to their sermons., Second, they were gentlemen—had hearts as well as heads. Third, they verei"dunned their people. Dr. W. gave a fine account of the ministry of some of the old clergymen of Massachusetts. On the whole, j Mr. Editor; this wag a jubilee of more than ordinary interest, and though it was made to magnify Congregationalism, a; little as to its permanency, (yet, all things considered, it passed off nobly. ’ It was all due to our father, Dr. Storm. j It is now the 4tli of July, 1861. Boston was never so quiet on such a day. Alh. the rowdies have gone to the lebelllibn, and the good people have decreed not to spend their money for naught. LETTER FROM NEW ENGLAND. Dorchester, Massachusetts, June 24th, 1861, Rev. J. W. Mears, Dear Sir:—Every week, punctual to a day, I find in my post office box your esteemed paper. Its pleasant face I greet with a cordial welcome. I rejoice in its noble patriotism. When I first began to look through its columns,: I;felt thatTthough its editor and my self were personally strangers, yet we were “one in, Christ Jesus-j ” but since the great uprising in April, I feel that we are drawn heart to heart in the noblest cause for which a Christian has-ever been permitted to draw the sword. When I was a boy my father bought three pictures, in hand some gilt frames. I wondered why he felt so much interest in them. They now hang side By side on the walls of the family mansion, and I often find myself gazing upon them with admira tion. They are full-length portraits of Washing ton and La Fayetto, at the right and left of a very large French engraving, (after Trumbull,) of the Signing of the Declaration; I never realized till now the spirit that filled those heroiemen. I can never again read the record of those days as a glowing history, but as a living fact; and the actors in that great drama were flesh and blood, winning my sympathy and even moving my tears,. I never understood till, now, how a man could love God and fight against an enemy. To draw back, or even hesitate in an hour like this, would seem to provoke the severedispleasure of our God. I had an opportunity a few-weeks since to address a com pany of soldiers who volunteered from our village, and are now on the “ sacred” soil- of Virginia. Among them was one of our Sabbath-School scho lars, a thoughtful, upright youth, whom I congra tulated in' his class when I first learned his pur pose. My address was in our church, and I told the people that our school had made frequent contributions to religious and benevolent objects, but never to one more worthy than that to which we then gave a scholar) for next to a soldier of the cross stands the soldier of his country. I ad dressed* the company as a band of home mission aries, going forth to preserve for us an entire country, wherein it should yet be possible for us to p'feach the gospel to every creature. So- that from the Lakes to the Gulf, on the mountains of Virginia and the banks of the Mississippi, the cotton-fields of Carolina and the sugar plantations of Louisiana, the truth as it is in Jesus might be made known to all who have ears ,to hear. Allow me to thank you for your kindness, and believe me to be, Very truly yours, —— LACK OF SYMPATHY EXPLAINED. Mr. Editor. —lt seems that some of the Old Seliool Editors-—I refer especially to the Presby terian in your city—are greatly exercised that wej of the New School do not seem to pity them very much, now that they expect their body to be “rent in twain.” The following considerations must be our justification for any lack of sympathy for their sufferings. ’ 1. They never expressed any sympathy with ms, when the Southern chvrches left us. I was a member of the “ Cleveland Assembly,” and heard the protest of the Southern seceders, and knew what to expect.. And when they with drew from ns, I watched for the expression of the “Old School” elrnrch on the subject, and if any Editor of-that branch, either North orSoutli expressed any pity for us, I failed to see it. I remember that Dr. Breckinridge called it “ the first imbecile scltism,” the'beginning of our dis integration and destruction. And now when the secessionists are trying to crush the Doctor’s last pet, the New Danville Review, and this “great Caesar,” for the first time, perhaps, turns his face to the North for help, and says “ Help me, Cassius, lest I sink;” it may be very wrong in me not to pity the Dr. more, but I cannot help it I 2. They uniformly exulted over theirs as the only national church. - They never took any pains to tell their readers, why we had no churches in the South: they did not hesitate -to call us a sectional church, and slur- and stigmatize our branch of it, as if we had done some unworthy act, to bring such a calamity on ourselves. If any of them have ever fairly set forth the grounds of division in our church, ex pressing one word of sympathy with the Anti- Slavery 'North, which simply reaffirmed the Old Presbyterian doctrine—-the statement has never fallen into my hands. 3. Every one else saw by the tone of their pa pers,-—perhaps they did not, —that they put a very high estimate on numbers, and a low one on pu rity and truth. They knew that their position on the question of slavery was equivocal; they claimed to be anti-slavery at the North, and pro-slavery at the South. At the South they claimed that the testi mony, on the subject, by the Assembly of 1818, was “virtually repealed;’’ at the North they claimed that it was not; and yet all the intelligent men, at both North and South, knew this state of things. But the plea of all the leading men in tlie church, before the Assembly met and during the session, was that the discussion of that subject would divide the church, not that it would not promote purity and the cause of truth. They could bear to be misunderstood; but they could not bear to be reduced in numbers. And the whole question seemed to be, with many, not what truth and righteousness and the church and the country demand; but how shall we keep our church together! And the lamentations over the “indications that this great Old School church is to share the calamity thathas-rent others in-twain" remind one of Rev. xviii. 10: “Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city ! for in one hour is thy judgment come." The pride of this church was also; manifest, in its claiming always, to be the Presbyterian church. “The United Presbyterian church," which has a good many fhousalid members, and our church which has a good many thousand more, were not recognised or spoken of as Presbyterian churches. And the superciliousness and exclusiveness of our 0. S. brethren was little less thin that of the Episcopalians or Roman Catholics. 4. The action which seems Ulcely to divide their church cannot command much respect. That action was an expression of loyalty to the Government. It was proper. I like it. But when 1 remember that the first resolution of Dr. Spring, which was simply to raise a Committee to inquire what ought to be said of the state of. the country, was voted down, and kept down till; the indigna tion of the country frightened the majority, and that it was at the cud of many days—and finally, with but a two-thirds vote, that a mild expression of loyalty was extorted from the assembly—they must pardon me if I cannot pity them on account of a division resulting from it.- They may take.it as a special mark of God’s favor that such a revelation did not rend them into a thousand fragments. fi.. Perhaps the. end will prove that they have, not lost much. *• , t W— P—, July Ist, 1861. Sixteen Thousand members seceded from us, on account of the “Cleveland action;” and yet comparing the minutes of 1857 and 1860, we see that in three years twelve thousand were made up to us again. 6. They that could "excind," sixty-thousand church members, without trial , and therefore un-, constitutionally; must not Jbe hard on us, if we do not sufficiently commiserate their lot, though sixty thousand" secede.” Yours,_&c., Y. S. Forthe American Presbyterian. THE PHILADELPHIA- HOME MISSION . ARY SOCIETY. This Society which has for many years heen an auxiliary of the A. H. M. S-, at an adjourned meeting held recently in the Presbyterian House, dissolved its connection with the institution at New York. The second article of the Constitu tion was so changed as to read, thus:— fi. '■ 5 “ Art. 11. The object of this Society shall be to eo-operate with the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America in assisting churches that are unable to support the gospel ministry, and to send the gos pel to the destitute, particularly in . the States of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Mary land.” This alteration, as it will be seen, restricts its appropriations jto churches in connexion with our own branch of the Presbyterian church. All contributions, therefore, made to this Society will be expended exclusively for the benefit of needy churches belonging to Presbyteries within the States of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, connected with our General As sembly. - What amount of aid we will be able to render such churches, must depend on the contri butions of former friends. If their donations are exclusively directed to tjjie Treasurer of the Pres byterian Committee of Gome Missions of the Ge neral Assembly, these feeble’ churches and their needy pastors must suffer, for we do not suppose they can receive aid for the present from that Committee. We have some fifty such churches dependent on ns at present, and in view of the monetary stringency of the times, and the exclu sive attention of the churches being directed to the new Home Missionary movement of the de nomination, we fear these churches and their pas tors will be greatly embarrassed during the year. This will. be the case if those who have hitherto helped us should now withhold their aid. Our receipts thus far,.this-year, have fallen much-below those of the corresponding period, of-last year. We have several new and pressing applications for missionary aid in the office, and our response to these, as well as our ability to cancel present obligations, must be determined-by the action of our patrons> through whose generosity we have in past years been able, to cheer and sustain so many churches, struggling amid many difficulties to maintain the means of grace among the desti tute. The following facts show that the seed sown by this Society has, under God; produced fruit that will survive long after it has fulfilled its mis sion, and is numbered with the institutions of by-gone days. Results since the organization of the Society , July , Funds received during these twenty- ' * one years, of which one-quarter was expended beyond the limits of this field) . • . , $222,000 00 Churches organized, 52 Sabbath-Schools, 89 Churches attained to a position of self-support, . . ' 55 Places of worship erected, . , 73 Parsonages secured, . TO Hopeful conversions, over . i . 6,000 Added to the churches, over ’ . 6,300 Benevolent contributions, . . $38,000 00 Moneys expended in erecting and re pairing houses of worship, and can celling church debts for the last > severe years, (hot fully reported be fore on this subject,) = . $28,000 00 The efficiency of the Society in future will de pend on the co-operation ofPresby teries, churches, and individuals. Donations may be forwarded to the Secretary, No. 1334- Chestnut St., or : Mr. Hemy Perkins, Treasurer, S. E. Corner Third and Walnut Sts., 2d story. ROBERT ADAIR, Secretary.' AMERICAN AFFAIRS IN ENGLAND. We will cheerfully abandon the view in which all parts of our country, North and South, at one time agreed, as to the friendly attitude of the. Eng lish government toward the rebellion when it as sumed the proportions of open war, as fast as we receive satisfactory evidence that the contrary is or was the fact. , One thing should be acknow ledged on all hands, namely that too much impor tance was attached to the utterances of the Lon don Times upon our affairs. From the best in formed Englishmen, and from various reliable au thorities, we have come to the conclusion that the Tmes is not more reliable as an exponent of the controlling public sentiment of England, than is the New York Herald in regard to that of our country. The people, it is said in every quarter, are thoroughly and keartily witk us of the North. The government is indeed behind the people, but is rapidly coming up to their requirements. Says a recent correspondent of the New York Ex aminer: The general feeling among our people is, that he [Lord John Russell,] should have spoken out more decidedly in favor of the North, and that his condemnation of the South ought to have been clear and unmistakable. The expressions of indignation at Lord John’s course, elicited all through the North and at the American Meeting in Paris, however, have quite astonished the 1 British people, who seem to have been entirely unconscious and innocent of the un friendly construction we have put upon their acts. We cannot altogether divest ourselves of the impression that the British government was really disposed at first to sympathize with the rebellion. Snell reasons as a low tariff, access to the cotton supply, a willingness (which is certainly Iranian and therefore British,) to see a great commercial rival crippled, and a possible military rival de graded from' the front rank of nations; besides onr own'hesitancy at home; nnd inadequate representa tion abroad; such reasons influenced the govern ment to regard the movement favorably—so we tlunk—whiJe on the other hand, a truer instinct gumed the mass of the Christian people.' But we cannot do better than allow the correspondent to state the case at length. He says: So fir as appears, two causes of complaint are assigned: Ist. It is apprehended that mH* Government mean . to aid the South' in their rebellion, and speedily to recognise their independence. I am sure that no such design is entertained, because I am sure that no Government could stand an hour which adopted such a policy. They would bo ejected from office immediately on its announce, ment, and would not be allowed to remain lon-, enough to carryit into effect. I know only one person in Great Britain who entertains the wish or thought of such a course, and that is an I r ; s j l Tory in the House of Commons, named Gregory He has once or twice endeavored to bring fe r ’ ward a motion to that effect before the House, but he has not heen allowed even to introduce it' or make a speech upon it, so unanimous was the feeling of the House against him. Let me most earnestly disabuse the minds of your readers of any apprehension on that score. 2d. It is complained that we have recognise! the belligerent rights of the South. Let mo cull your attention to the very careful and guarded way in which this was done. A very clear di>. tinction was drawn between the recognition of in. dependence and ; the recognition of belligerent rights. The former was not conceded—the hi(f. r was. Observe, too, the different terms in wlii.], the two sections of your country have been spoken of in all offiejal documents. Invariably, our t vernment-have forborne to give the seeeders tb,. title they claim. They are always styled li the called Confederate States,” or “calling thcmstUc the Confederate. States.” This usage has not been departed from in a single instance. Now I mu, t say that such language, in a declaration of n cu . trality, is all you have a right to demand. Conn led with the fact that the representatives of tile Confederates have now been in England for six weeks, seeking recognition in vain, and not eve-, admitted to an audience, they may complain that our professed neutrality is one-sided, and in your favor. But why recognise their belligerent rights? yo u ask. For a very obvious reason. It is inevitable that difficulties and ugly questions should arise as to the infringement of private or public ridit and that our Government may have to seek redress from somebody. The South are, as they always have been, very unscrupulous. Causes of com plaint have already arisen, respecting the impress ment of-British •subjects. To whom shall we »o for redress? The act of which you complain, rc. lieves your Government of all responsibility in the matter. We must note demand redress, not from the Government at Washington, but from the local authorities—and indeed, have already done so. The recognition of the belligerent rights of the South is tantamount to recognition that you in the North are not responsible for what they may do. * Let-it he remembered yet further, that until very recently, your orators, journalists and states men, spoke of the secession as a feet accomplished. It is only since the attack on Fort Sumter that you in the North have taken such high gronnd, and used such strong language toward the rebels. Indeed, so far as the facts presented themselves, we conjectured that you would recognise the Southern Confederation'. There seemed to be, at that time, a general unanimity of opinion that the South eould not be brought back to its allegiance by force of arms. This seemed to be the mean ing of Mr. Seward’s speech on taking office, and we gathered from many sources that these views were endorsed by very large sections of the com munity. At that time we were Stronger in your cause .-.than you yourselves were. We always in sisted that you had the right to compel, even when your own statesmen questioned or denied it. But we doubted then, and doubt stiU, whether r you Imve the power to do so. * * *' Let me,Tn conclusion, give you the confident assurance, that nothing would give us more complete satisfaction than to hear of your speedy success, the vindication of Northern principles, and the peaceful re-establish ment of your Federal authority. HEW REVIEWS. . The richly-freighted Quarterlies of New England and New York, are gathering on our, table again. The range and quality of their articles demand a niore thorough examination than can be well af forded or appreciated in these sultry days. The American Theological Review, “under the editorial direction of Prof. Henry B. Smith, D. D., contains the concluding portion of the ar ticle on Biblical and Talmudic Slaveryptranskted froin Dr. Mifelziner, of. Copenhagen. It treats of the condition .of the slaves of. foreign descent. There is no evidence, giyen from Scripture, justi fjing>tbe: Rabbinic view of the religious and civil condition of the slave, according 1 to which his tes timony before a court was invalid, and his mar riage neither a civil nor a religious contract. The Hebrew slaves were treated with-great kindness. No instance of insurrection—very common among the slaves of Greece and Rome—can be found in the history of Hebrew slavery. . This may also in par* be accounted' for from the fewness of the slaves. Reference ismaade to Job’s acknowledg ment of the equal human worth of the slave with that of himself; (Job xxxi. 13—15;) also to the warning against vilifying a servant before his master. (Prov. xxx. 10.) Oh the whole, the es say is somewhat disappointing. Information on the condition of this class in all nations is scanty. The Hebrews, it is clear,- were far from believing in the necessity of keeping the laboring classes, as such, in a'servile condition. ' That was reserved for heathen Rome and'Grefece, and for would-be states men and theologians .of modern times. The ll»b -bis insisted strongly on the dignity of labor, and in nothing is our Saviour’s conformity to Jewish usagemore manifest, than in His acquiring tbe trade of the carpenter, as his father had-done before him. It was not respectable for a Jew to be brought up in ignorance of all handicrafts. The author argues that not a trace of extensive slave traflic, or special slave marts exists among the He brews. ... Dr. Goodwin, Provost of the University of Pennsylvania, contributes an article on Powell’s Essay, on the Study of the .Evidences of Christi anity in the “Essays and Reviews.” . . . Rev. J.G- Wilson, of Terre Haute, continues his arguments on the Unity of the Human Race. . . . The edi tor reviews President Fisher’s Sermons and Ad dresses, with chief reference to the valuable sug gestion. of the President, to incorporate the BiUe as a regular text-book in the curriculum, of college studies. We are glad to see the suggestion so ably seconded, and in a quarter that wilt be sure to command attention. Exactly how it can be carried out, in the press of studies now threaten ing to oveitask the. student, we do not see. The editor- proposes that a professorship of the Bible be founded in every college, to be’ filled by a mao of- the highest attainments and personal fitness, who should have regular recitations and conversa tions with the students, in which, as in the case of President Dwight, the students should have op portunity freely to present and argue their skepti cal objections. This shonld oecur two or three times a week through the whole college course. In all probability the .scheme might be introduced in some such practical way, but merely to refute .error, and forestall'infidelity, would be, in our judgment, the smallest part of the end in view. . .. . Prof. Hitchcock contributes a continuation of his article on the Ante-Nicene Trinitarianism. which is yet to be concluded The depart ments of Theological and Literary Intelligence, and Literary and Critical Notices of Books, are highly valuable. We know of nothing resembling them in any American .journal, and regard them as furnishing facilities of the highest order for keeping the reader well informed upon these to pics. ; Schooii Voices. —This is a beautiful sheet issued by the COixegiate Institution r° E Voting Ladies, 1530 Areh St., Rev. Charles A- Smith, D. D., Principal. It is filled with choice productions from the pens of the ladies of the In stitution, and gives creditable proof of their pro ficiency in the art of English composition. The titles of the brief essays are:-— Tempera meat, Dreams, The Flowers and their Queen, L’Envoi. Passing Away, The Three Wishes, Life Real and Unreal, Beggars, A, Lake Scene. take this opportunity to commend D r - Smiths Institution to the patronage of ° ur friends. The term et Collegiate” id designed to have a real significance, as the pupils only g r3 ‘ duate, after a very thorough course, 'embracing many of tbe branches pursued at.our colleges. The School • Voices, .containing a circular, may be had at the Presbyterian House, 1331 Chestnut St. July \\
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers