Voi. TI, No. 12.—'Whole No. 281.
EVENING.
i. \bide with ua) for it ia towards evening, and the
day is far spent.”— Luke xxiv. 29.
’Tis gone, that bright and orbed blaze
Fast fading from our wistful gaze;
Yon mantling cloud has bid from sight
The last faint pulse of quivering night.
Sun of my soul! Thou Saviour dear,
It is not night if Thou art near:
Oh 1 may no earth-bom oloud arise
To hide Thee from Thy servant’s eyes.
When the soft dows of kindly sleep
My wearied eyelids gently steep,
Be my last thought, how, sweet to rest
Forever on my Saviour’s breast.
Abide with me from morn till eve,
For without Thee I cannot live :
Abide with me when night is nigh,
For without Thee I dare not die.
If some poor wandering child of Thine,
Have spurned to-day, the voice divine,
Now Lord, the gracious work begin:
Let him lie down no more in sin.
Watch by the sick: enrich the poor
With blessings from Thy boundless store:
Be every mourner’s sleep to-night,
Like infant slumbers pure and light.
Come near and bless ns when we wake,
Ere through the world our way we take;
Till in the ocean of Thy love,
We lose ourselves in heaven above.
—Reble.
JOHN 4. ADAMS AS A STATESMAN.
BY WM. M.. CORNELL, M, D,—READ BEFORE THE NEW,
ENBLAND SOCIETY OF PHILADELPHIA.
Sometime since we published a sketch of
the private life of Mr. Adams by Dr. Cor
nell, read to the “Younjr Men’s Christian
Association of Philadelphia.” That address*
said nothing of the_publlc career of this emi
nent statesman. He was well called “the
Sage of Quincy.” No man in our country
ever had a more thorough training in diplo
macy than Mr. Adams, and we are now hap
py to present to our readers a sketch of his
powerful mind as a statesman from a reliable
source.
He was by profession a lawyer. As such,
he gloried in his profession. Only five years
before his decease he said, in an address to
the bar in Cincinnati, “I have been a mem
lier of your profession more than fifty years.
I chose this under the impression, which I
first received from my mother, that every one
in this country should have a trade. After
having completed an education, in which,
perhaps, more than any other citizen at that
time, I had advantages, and which, of course,
brought with it the incumbent duty of mani
festing by rnv
advantages had not been •worthlessly be
stowed, I chose this profession of the law.”
He was versed in history beyond almost
any of his cotemporaries, and' his opinion
upon any controverted point was almost al
ways well founded. It is well known that
the authorship of the Letters of Junius has
never been settled. Upon this disputed sub
ject, Mr. Adams expressed himself as fol
lows:—“Junius was essentially a sophist.
His religion was infidelity; his abstract
ethics depraved; his temper bitterly malig
nant, and his nervous system timid and cow
ardly. The concealment of his name, at the
time lie wrote, was the effect of dishonest
fear. He magnified mole hills into mountains;
mllamed pin scratches into deadly wounds;
and, at last, abandoned his cause in despair,
when he might have pursued it with the most
effect. Sir Philip Francis was, undoubted
ly, the author of these Letters.”
Perhaps it is but justice to say that, as
a ("Aitwal man, Mr. Adams had very strong
feelings; and it is not surprising if, upon
'■oine exciting subjects, and towards some of
his opponents, he should have said some
things which he had better not have said,
«ml manifested some feelings which had bet
ter have been concealed. Andrew Jackson,
lv ho was his immediate successor as Presi
(lent of the United States, was never a fa
vorite of Mr. Adams; and when he came to
the Presidency the latter did not disguise
his feelings.
Henry A. Wise, the late Governor of Vir- •
ginia, was another political opponent never ;
Wloved by Mr. Adams. They frequently '
came in collision in the House of Represen
tatives; and it was generally considered that
the latter usually came off conqueror. ' In
deed so frequently was this the case that a
statesman of considerable eminence said,
when Mr. Wise was appointed Minister to
Prance, that “the Administration sent him
°tit of the counter , as -*° • jp§
tint of the grasp of Mr. AdAiftS as for any
other purpose.” Probabiy the man has
never lived who had such power of \jareasm
* 3 Mr. Adams possessed. There was morel
seorn and biting irony, convoyed I
ef his head ana the accompanying twirl of
his finger than ever any Other man could
convey. No person who has not seen and
heard him can form any just idea of his
Power in this particular. Heaven seems to
have raised him up to fill an important place
lri advocating the right of petition on the
«oor of Congress', He was, undoubtedly; in
the right in so doing, and the whole North
an< l West sustained him in it. Like many
ot h(‘r politicians, Mr, A. had vacillated oc
casionally from the standard of the party to
’ V W eh ho belonged. This was first mani
csted in his forsaking' the old Federalists,
ot which John Adams, his father, was to the
«ul of his life a staunch advocate. This
" a 3 said to be the reason why the father
S!i >d, when it was announced to- him that his
i?'b John Quincy, had been elected by the
louse of Representatives,,“That is no plea
to me.” So about’ the time that the j
Sl| ujeet of petition came up Mr. A. had
u :'‘i'ed somewhat from the. Whig party, of
'tch ho bad formerly been an active mem-
About that period he wrq|« the famous
la! 1 *■? Hon.- Butty J. Pierce; of Rhode
i" llu J) in which he used the graphic expres
tJ"!l tinit “ The Whigs had always been ready
' ’““orifice any man who had more principle
t'hey had,” or words to that effect.
, I ' i ls had led many of the Whig party to
- J3 pect or desert Mm at that time. But his
--tnpionship. of the right of petition brought
him up again in the estimation of all the
Northern Whigs,
The appearance oi Mr A was peculiar
He was below the medium stature, compact
and firmly built,.,with the tears always over
flowing from his eyes, on account of the
lachrymal ducts being obstructed. To reme
dy this infirmity, he wore a style for many
years, but on account of the irritatioif pro
duced by it, he laid it aside .several years
before, his death. There has been an ‘anec
dote connected with the subject of his tears
as follows: “Mr. Adams and Henry Clay
boarded at the same house, and there was a
beautiful maid servant there, whom Mr.
Clay, jocosely, one day attempted to kiss!
She firmly, refused. And said to Mr. Clay,
“how can I allow you to do such a thing
when I have just refused Mr. A, with tears
in Ms eyes ?” Our remarks will be confined
to the public career of Mr. A. after he left
the Presidential chair, in March, 1829. He
retired, as he then supposed, forever from
public life. He directed his attention to
studying the works of Cicero, translating
the Psalms of David, writing commentaries
upon the Scriptures, making astronomical
observations, collecting and planting seeds,
and recording their growth and development.
Hut he was not permitted to remain long as
a private citizen, for before two months of
the Administration of President Jackson
had elapsed, a citizen of Washington spoke
to him with great severity of the course pur
sued by the President in reference to his re
movals from office. Mr. A. ascribed very
much of the course pursued .by the Execu
tive to Mr. Van Buren, who was then Secre
tary of State. He considered Mr. Yan
Buren as the mover of ail the wheels of the
Administration.
At the same time he wrote as follows on
the subject of slavery: “It is possible that
the danger of the Abolition doctrines, when
brought home to Southern statesmen, may
teach them the .value of the Union, as the
onlyihing that can maintain their system of
slavery.” ' ‘
Of Mr.%Jefferson’s expressions and feel
ings on the subject of slavery, Mr. A. said:
“His love of liberty was sincere and ardent.
He was above that execrable sophistry of
the South Carolina nullifiers, whioh would
make-of slavery the corner-stone of the Tem
ple of Liberty. He saw the gross inconsis
tency between the principles of the Declara
tion of Independence and the fact of negro
slavery, and he could not, or would not,
prostitute the faculties of his mind, to the
vindication of that slavery which) trim his
soul, he abhorred.”
(To be continued.}
[FOR THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN.]
FUH CHAU AND THE TEA TRADE.
Fuh Chau, August 3d, 1861
Mr. Editor: Having sent you quite a
number of letters from this port, relating to
the missionary work here and the supersti
t Lftvia.ouatom6.«f the -Chinese,
whether your readers might not be glad to
hear something on the commercial import
ance of this place, and on the opening up of
new marts of trade, connectedwith the ful
filling of the new treaties made with the
four Western Powers—-England, France,
Russia, and United States. I venture to
send you a few statistics of fa'ets.
- Fuh Chau became a port of direct expor
tation of teas to Western lands only in
1853, though it had been occupied by mis
sionaries since 184 T. Its facilities .for the
furnishing of, teas were never developed till
eight years ago. Since then its commercial
importance has been constantly increasing.
I quote the following comparative statement
from a circular prepared by one of the Eng
lish firms engaged in business here. The
figures refer to the number of pounds ex
ported for the three tea seasons specified:— '
1860-61. 1866r60. 1858-59.
•,, 1 , , > .
Greafßritain, 88,560,700 25,652.300 23.364,000
America, 11,293,601) 9,076,800 6,353.800-
Colonies, 11,953,500 5,856,600 5,374,300
I tale from the China Mail, published at
Hong Hong, an acqount of the entire export
of tea to the United States for the season
1859-60, commencing with July, 1859, from
the different ports of China From Canton,
3,558,424; from Amoy, 5,265,100;. from
Fuh Chau, 11,298,600, and from Shanghai,
6,898,900, in all amounting to 21,011,024
pounds.
The following is the amount .of tea sent to
England for the same period, taken from the
same source:—From Canton, 41,586,000;
from Fuh Chau, 86,085,000, and from
Shanghai, 12,881,000, making in all to
Great Britain in last year the sum of
89,902,000 pounds, being an increase of more
than 4,500,000 pounds compared with the
season 1859-60.
From the above it will be seen that of the
teas exported to America during the season
ending the first of July of this year Fuh
Chau sent more than three times as much as
Canton, and nearly twice as much as Shang
hai, thopgh not half; <off the? »wlnms
amount sen# from China to that-land, and
more than from any other port.
It will also be seen that while it sent to Eng
land only about 5,000,000 pounds less than
Canton, (which, previous to the opium war of
1840—41, used to send all the teas exported
from China to Western countries,) Fuh Chau
sent to England about three.times as much
as Shanghai did.. Of, the whole amount
sent to Great Britain, it sent considerably
more than one-third.
From these facts, it is readily inferred
that tea-drinkers, both in America and in
England, have a kind of interest in the Port
of Fuh Chau; for a large proportion of the
leaves, which they so gladly purchase, with
which to prepare their favorite beverage,
comes from Fuh Chau. Let the American
tea-drinker remember that probably about
one-half of the tea which he uses was ex
ported from the Chinese port, where it is the
great privilege of your correspondent to re
side. The Christian tea-drinkers of Ameri
ca have also another and a better ground of
j interest in KahOhau. I refers to the fact
that some of-weir sons and daughters, and
some of their brethern and sisters, are en
gaged in the missionary work in this city, to
the support of whom some of the money
they annually contribute to the American
Board, and to the Methodist Episcopal Mis
sionary Society, is appropriated by the offi
cers.J&o§e; societies. To many persons,
1 the connection, between tea and missions, or
PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY NOV
between the drinking of tea and prayer for
the success of missionary labor) may not
seen very intimate and evident, still will you
allow the writer to ask pious tea-drinkers in
his. native land, while they are enjoying their
delicious beverage, not to forget to pray fer
vently and frequently for the blessing from
on High to rest on the labors of their rela
tives; or their countrymen, who are dwellers
in the .country whence comes the missionary
leaf? .
The secession troubles in the United States
have already had a very distressing influence
on the. export of tea in China. This may be
seen from the fact that not a single vessel
has sailed from this port for America with
teas during _ the past month (July), while in
July of the last tea season three ships left
having on board more than 2,200,000 pounds.
Two ships are reported as having jailed for
England fiom Fuh Chau during July of this
year with 1,381,800 pounds: while six left
in July, 1861, for England, with moj-e than"
3,874 000 pounds, tvo ship- with 1 073 500
pounds of tea re reported - having left
Canton for America in July this "year, hut
not one for England, whereas, in July 1860
seven ships sailed fiom Canton for England
with caigoes mounting to more th n
5,301,000 pounds. How much the; political
disturbances have to do with the diminished
exportation of teas to England, I am unable
precisely to say. They have, however, very
much to do with the diminished exportation
of teas to America from Fuh Chau. Ship
pers hesitate to send to America in conse
quence of the impossibility of effecting in
surances on their cargoes on satisfactory
terms. The prospect then is that few teas
will be sent this .year, or, if sent at all, they
will.be started very late in the season. War
in that land will have the inevitable ten
dency to make tea both scarce and dear.
The treaties negotiated three years since
at Tientsin have had the result to open up
several.places in the North of China and in
the centre ofthe empire, on the .banks of the
Yang-tsze-Kiangj 'become
soon the rendezvous of a very extensive fo
reign trade in Western imported articles,
unless the long-haired insurgents prevent it.
I refer particularly to Hankon, on that river,
and to Tientsin the seaport of the capital,
about seventy miles from Peking, situated
on the White river ."which runs'into the Gulf
of Pechele, One or the. other pprts, on the
Yang-tsze-Riang, and one or two* lying still
further north, on or near the Gulf of Pechele,
opened by these treaties to foreign trade and
missionary labors, are more or- less threaten
ed by the rebels from Nanking, or by hordes
of predatory or local robbers. This state of
things renders qoinm£rei§l enterprises un
safe. Were it riot' thirt Niugpci; and Shang
hai are protected by English vessels of war
or gun-boats, they would- doubtless before
this—daring the present year—have been
visited by the insurgents, who are prowling
about the country not far distant from them.
Their presence interferes with trade "enous
ly, and, I am very sorry to add, also with
-of the Ctrtm
try. The central and the northern portions
of the empire are m a state of constant fer
ment, owing to the udden successes oi the
sudden reverses, of the insurgent forces, or
of the imperial forces.
Christians in the West will be glad to
learn that several of the new ports have
been already occupied by Protestant mis
sionaries, principally removing from Shang
hai. Probably twelve or fifteen families are
already at Tientsin, Chefoo, Tung Chau,
and Hankow, though, in some instances, the
missionaries may not have yet removed their
families to .their new fields of labor.
In view of these new ports where mission
aries may reside;- and whence they may itin
erate in the neighboring country, taken in
connection with the fact that the, old consu
lar ports are not adequately supplied with
missionaries, there is great burden and're
sponsibility thrown on Western Christians
at" this time when many probably feel they
can 'bear no more and do no more. After
many years of incessant; prayer to the God,
of Missions, China is now in* great measure
open to missionary effort, as well as to fo
reign commercial enterprise. The merchant
is on the alert to secure all the possible ad
vantages of this wonderful opening, and
shall the Church falter and draw back?
Shall she misinterpret or fail to improve to
the glory of God these providences? Many
more servants of Christ are imperatively
needed in this vast and most populous land.
While the human prospect is that scarcely
will those on the ground .be.sustained by the
Church; May God come to the rescue of
his people and encourage them to “go for
ward” in the great and glorious enterprise
commenced by Morison fifty-four years
ago.
• Especially let not the pious tea-drinkers
forget to pray for the land whence they ob
tain this favorite and refreshing. beverage.
Rather let them drink less tea than pray less
for China, or than give less to sustain the
work in this heathen land. And if they can
give many of
wte&pbnsin the 'cause’ of Liberty, can they
do less than give a few of them to enlist in
the cause of saving these dark-minded peo
ple? SINIM.
MISTAKES OF EDUCATED MEN.
In an address recently delivered by Pro
fessor John S Hart, on this subject, we find
some thoughts well worthy of the careful at
tention of every professional man, and'‘of
every student. Prof. Hart’s long experience
in fitting young men for usefulness in life,
and his opportunities for observation of their
habits after entering on their various spheres
of duty, entitle him to be heard and heeded
on these things which so intimately concern
happiness and usefulness.
Six “ mistakes of educated men” arp pro
minently alluded to, although we are dis
tinctly given to understand that these six are
by no means all the mistakes into which the
educated are apt to fall. *
, Mistake Ho. 1, is, .that
is not sufficiently careful of his bodily health.
How ffiany men do we see laid'aside from
labor, from this cause ! Men of mighty in
tellect, with mental vigor sufficient to adorn
pulpit or bar, but groaning under the weight
of some dyspeptic or bronchial burden, which
might, with proper care, have been avoided.
Men, who have never taken exercise,,and
fear it wilLikp feem if they begin to .take it.
Men with gristly
• footstep. . Pale, feeble, duioate, frightened
-1 looking men, creeping thrcpgh life with .only
half a performance of thei: 'duties, only* hdlf
an enjoyment of their b gssings;—merely
because they have negleeti d the timely pre
cautions which would havj life happy
and useful.. tr
Mistake second is the failure “to be be
forehand. in whatever you itadertake.” Many
a pulpit performance teqlfeeß to the fact
that its performer made .thjfß mistake. The
pastor’s study on Saturday).night;—rap at
the door and you hear r no .answer. Rap
again, for you have seen through the key
hole that there is a light)within-; a hasty
answerj somewhat petulafif, perhaps;—-its
burden, “ don’t bother me/’ The gaslight
burns till the small holds, of the Sabbath
morning; pastor, after almost falling) asleep
over ink and, paper, retires to snatch a few
hours of disquieted slumthp, Sunrise finds
him agitated and not fiffly ready for the
pulpit. Half past ten mace ready,-,
but more nervous. The 4jfe!*3Sff^i^biie,'
hut he has not enjoyed it with the fear
that nobody else has enjoyixl if, he retires to
bis study and locks himselMn again to finish
up hr work for fhe evening. This kind of
work may d<s once or twice,.in cases of emer
gency ; but when it is cajjjed on year after
year, pastor breaks doi£n, and has to be
sent to Europe. .
It can be otherwise arranged. Finish up
the work of the week bejforc Thursday, in
stead- of indulging in a feeling of “ Monday
ishness” until Wednesday.-. Do your work
first, and then play or refit afterwards, and
it will add twenty years t3*your life.
Miyake the third; —“ Not holding on to
the calling which you fiilt choose.” And
here Prof. Hart wisely remarks that no ab
solute rule is possible. (As we are circum
stanced, especially in tb| present times of
fluctuation, men may havq to make -changes,
and may often make them wisely. But :tke
man who sets out'to be appryer, and tries
that fjjr a year or twOjAHKjl -then dips for a
year or two in then goes
to medicine, theology, ie Stage, and then
‘to something elsef is the 1 ian who brings up
at last in nothingness, anq finds that his life
has been a failure. ci ! ,
Educated men in think
ing that their education' is finished, and
therefore ceasing to strivl for farther intel
lectual acquisition. (They, who do this are
like a finished city* no im
provement; no growth. ‘'Fortunately, edu
cated men of this class by any means
the majority. A liftle 'ttgftdy industry, a
little determined perseverance, will keep
most men freim thus blooming fossilized
monuments of fogyism. %
Fifth; —The mistake of exclusivism. The
theologian who studies Oply theology; the
lawyer who knows only lgw 5 the physician
who carefully confines hif reading to medi
cine these may be useful men in their.own
peculiar ways, but whenqjyhrown into the
rough and tumble of the riSrild, are as. help
riess as the' poor the * : surf
throws him over on his back. The merchant
who converses- only with merchants, the mo
ther who see - nothing beyond the care of her
children and household, fffil to develop their
character to the extent tj) which it might be
devolped did they but freely with
others whose thoughts and’ pursuits are dif
ferent from their own.
The last mistake to •which Prof. H. calls
attention, is the neglect of* habits of conver
sation. And here we quote his own re
marks: “To be able, to converse well is
quite as valuable a gift as popular eloquence.
The ablest administrators of affairs have
been celebrated for their skill in this line.
. . . . The mere possession of knowledge
does not make a good talker. The most
learned men are often the very dullest in
society. Their learning, is of no more use in
ordinary conversation than is the antiquated
umber stowed .away, in yqjir grandmother’s
garret. Yet these of Earning are the
very, ones who have it tb
redeem conversation from. its $66 common
insipidity.”
We "wish this address were published in
smair pocket-book form, that every student
and professional man might have opportunity
to-learn its valuable lessons.
PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS IN
madagascas.
Ida Pfeiffer’s “Last Travels,” just pub
lished by Messrs. Harper will be
received with great interest. A brief sketch
of her life precedes the diary, from which
we learn that this remarkable woman ex
hibited decidedly masculine traits in early
life, which were encouraged by the fact that
until she was nine years old, she was the
only girl in a party of six children. We
also learn that her travels extended over
nearly 150,000 miles of sea and 20,000
miles of land. We are sorry/tibat the book
is marred by vei’y. pnkiad unhandsome
gtatementSdei regsrdjijtp the
sionaries of Madagascar? ’-Sim" herself was
brought up a Roman Cathohe; nevertheless
her testimony as to the persecution of the
Christian converts by .Queen Ranavola, and
their admirable and heroic behaviour, is va
luable and interesting. We quote from her
diary, begining with the substance of Queen
I Ranavoms proclamation of July 6d, 1859:
. '“The Queen had long suspected that there
were irany Christians among her people.
Within the last few days shak-had -become
certain of the fact,, and had heard with
horror that several thousands of this sect
dwelt in and around Tananarive. Every one
knew how much she hated and detested this
sect, and how strictly she had forbidden the
practice of their religion. As her commands
were so little regarded, she should use every
effort to discover the guilty, and should pun
ish them with the greatest severity. The
duration of the kabar was fixed for fifteen
days, and it was announced to the people, in
conclusion, that those . who. gave-themselves
up during that period should jptve their lives
that ali<who : wdrblteHQitticed by
others might be prepared to‘ die a terrible
death.
“Who would believe that the traitor, the
denouncer of the Christians, was a Christian
himself, and half a priest, into the bargain,
whom the English missionaries had ’honored
with the title ‘ Reverendissimus!” The name
of this miserable creature is ftatsimandisa.
IJe belongSttp-ibe race.of .the HovaS, and is
<}f and &• seflai-
BER 21, 1861.
European education, which unfortunately
had no' effect in ennobling his mind or his
heart.' 11l order to win the favor of the
qneen, and hoping to obtain a great reward,
he declared that he only pretended to adopt
the Christian religion with the view of get
ting a knowledge of all the Christians, and
thus giving the queen an opportunity of an
nihilating them at one blow. He had really
made out a complete register of the names
of Christians residing in Tananariva. For
tunately, it did not 00001- to him to request
an audience of the queen, and to give this
register into her own hands. He gave it to
one of the ministers who belonged to Prince
Rakoto’s party, and was one of the prince's
mo3t faithful, followers. This man would not
deliver a dooument of such importance to the
.queen without first telling the prince of the
circumstance. No sooner had the latter read
the document than he tore it in pieces, and .
announced that any one who-dared to make
aulrtF^9ee<^adri^stl•or•Bvert‘4o.acee|lt^'OT^e-wdtll ,
the intention of laying iirbefore the govern
ment, should be immediately put to death.
This action certainly saved the lives of some
thousands of Christians; they gained time,
and had an opportunity of escaping, of which
the majority have availed themselves. But
in"the wild, inhospitable forests,-where alone
they can hide themselves, without a roof to
shelter them, without food to eat, how many
of these poor people must fall victims to
hunger and misery!
“ To increase their misfortune, an English
missionary, Mr., Lebrun, had come from the
Mauritius to Tamatave for a few days, short
ly before Ratsimandi&a's treason, and had
■written letters from Q’amatave to several
Christians in Tananariva, exhorting them
to .be - firm in -their faith, and seeking to
strengthen their courage with the assurance
that the day of persecution would not last
much longer, and that better times would
soon come for them. The poor among-them
also received promises of. aid, and some mo
ney was, it is said, distributed among them.
Unhappily, a few of these letters fell into
the hands of the govevninent, and others
were found during the search instituted in
the houses of those suspected of Christiani
ty.; and as the names of several Christians
were mentioned in these letters, to whom
the missionary sent messages or greeting
through the recipients, these at least could
be seized. The unhappy people were tor
tured in all kinds of ways, like the Protes
tants of Spain in the days of the Inquisi
tion, to-induce them to give up the names , of
the Christians they knew, and the govern
ment succeeded in capturing a tolerable
number in the first few days. l
“July 6. More than two hundred Chris
tians are said to have been either denounced
or discovered in the few days that have
elapsed since the fcahar was announced.
They are being sought fori every where.
Every house is entered—every one
of Christianity, be it man.,' woman, or. child,
-is sensed by the sqjSHersf,* and-dragged- -ttr oneV
of the. prisons. -
* * * * *
“July 8. Our slaves tell us that more than
eight hundred soldiers are employed in
searching for Christians; they not Only
search the whole town, but scour the coun
try within a circuit of between- twenty and
thirty miles:- but, happily, it is said they do
not take many prisoners.. All flee to the
mountains and forests, and in such numbers
that small detachments of soldiers, who pur
sue the fugitives and seek to' capture them,
are put to fight.
“ July 9. To-day we received fresh news
of the persecution against the Christians.
The queen has heard that until how very
few prisoners, comparatively, have been
brought in; she is stated to be extremely
enraged at this, and to have exclaimed in
great aDger that the bowels of the earth
must be searched, and the rivers and lakes
tdragged with nets, so, that, of the
traitors may escape his just' punishment.
,'hese inflamed expressions; and the new and
strict orders she has issued to the officers and
soldiers charged with the fluty of pursuing
the Christians, have, however, I am thank
ful to say, had no great result. Her majesty
will doubtless be enraged when she hears
that the inhabitants of whole villages have
succeeded in escaping from her vengeance
by flight. Thus it happened, a few days
ago, in the village of Ambohitra-Biby, nine
miles from Tananariva, that when the
soldiers arrived they found nothing hut the
empty huts.
DEATH.
Not long ago, a group of Alpine villagers
were engaged, in early summer, weeding
their crops close to their native hamlet.
Above them rose mountain piled on moun
tain, crested with jagged peaks of everlast
ing snow. A low, murmuring,
soShd ,i was’ heard; ait eventide,-bigh bp among
these cliffs ; a sound too familiar to be mis
taken by experienced ears. It was the aw
ful messenger of wrath and destruction. A
fragment ol rock, loomed in the topmost
crags, became.the nucleus and feeder of the
avalanche. came the terrible invader,
sweeping all before it, and bhrying the hand
ful of huts in a common ruin. The villagers'
themselves escaped unhurt. Disentangling
their mutilated furniture from the midst of
the broken pine-rafters and stones, and thank
ful for their providential escape, they moved
to the, opposite slope of the valley, ana reared
their dwellings anew.
Death is that avalanche! “At such a
time as we think not !” It may be in smil.
ing spring, or in radiant summer, or hoary
winter—down it comes, destroying all that
is fair and lovely and beauteous,——rooting up
tender flowers, budding blossoms, trellised
vines, primeval forests,—overwhelming “ the
house of the earthly tabernacle,” and leaving
it a mass of dilapidated walls and shattered
timbers. -But what of the inmate? What
of the immortal inhabitant ? The house' is
dissolved, but the tenant is safe. A new
home is reared for it.' The soul quits the
wrecked* bodily frame-work, and seeks the
* building of God,” “ eternal in the Hea
vens.” The same idea is beautifully ex
pressed by a Christian poet of the land of
Luther in one of their funeral Hymns
“.Here in an inn a stranger dwelt,
Here joy and grief by. turns heJelt;
Boor dwelling, now. we close thy door,
isd’e?) 1 ' -
The sojoumer returns no more t
“ Now of a lasting Home possest,
He goes to seek a deeper rest.
The Lord broughtjiere; He calls away,
.Make no. delay,
This home was for a passing day.—
The golden-winged butterfly soars aloft from
its broken chrysalis home. Death, like the
angel in Peter’s dungeon, breaks the fetter
of mortality, throws opdn the prison doors*
and from the gloom of night, and the crash
of the earthquake, leads the spirit out to
gladsome day. Oh that we would ever view
it as such—the .exodus of life—the out
marching of the soul from its chains and its
bondage to the land of rest and liberty and
peace!— MacDuff’s Sunsets.
THE BIBLE.
What a crowd of witnesses could be sum
moned to give personal evidence of its pre
ciousness land., rvalues •• • How- many, aching:,
heads would raise tfiemselVes from their pib
lows and tell of their obligations to. its sooth
ing messages of love andpow^r! How many
death-beds could send their occupants with
pallid lips’ to tell of the staff which upheld
them in the dark valley! How many, in
the' hour of bereavement, could lay tKcir fin
ger on the promise that first dried the tear
from their eye,- and*brought back the smile
to their saddened countenances! Howmany
voyagers in life’s tempestuous ocean, now
landed on the heavenly shore, would be ready
to hush their golden harps and descend to
earth with the testimony, that this was the
blessed beacon-light which enabled them to
avoid the treacherous reefs, and guided them
to their desired haven!
Ah, Philosophy ! thou hast never yet as
this Book, taught a man how to die! Iteason!
with thy flickering torch, thou hast never
yet guided to such sublime mysteries, such
comforting truths as these! Science ! thou
hast penetrated the arcana of nature, sunk
thy shafts into earth’s recesses, unburied its
stores, counted its strata, measured the
height of its massive pillars, down to the
very pedestals of primeval'granite. Thou
hast tracked the lightning, traced the path
of the tornado, uncurtained the distant
planet, foretold the coming of the comet, and
the return of the eclipse. But thou hast
never been able to guage the depths of man’s
soul; or to answer the* question, “What
must I do to be saved?”
No, no: this antiquated volume is still the
“ Book of books,” the oracle of oracles, the
beacon of beacons: the poor man’s treasury;
the child’s companion: the sick man’s health;
the dying man’s life shallow * for the infant
to walk in,—depth foi grnt intellect to ex
plore and adore ! Philosophy, if she would
but own it, is indebted here foi the noblest
of her maxims: Poetrv for the loftiest of her
themes.*- Painting has gathered her noblest
inspiration. Music has ran eked these
golden stores for the gi mdest of her strains
And if there be life in the Church of Christ,
.—if-her. mtssammi-es- are. -car
rying the torch of salvation through the
world, —where is that torch lighted, but at
these same undying lt i fires '! When a
philosophy, “ falsely so cr lied “hall beeome
dominant, and seek, with it piofound dog
mas, to supersede this divine philosophy ;• —‘
when the old Bible of Joshua, and David,
and Timothy, and P ul is cl * sped and closed,-
—the only morality and philosophy worth
speaking of, will have perished 'from the :
earth. Dagon will have taken the place of
G-od’s ark—the world’s funeral pile may be
kindled!— lbid.
CHARACTER Of SAMUEL.
If there be a character which we would,
more than another.—like the enchantress at
the cave of Endor—-conjure up from the in
visible world, as a grand pattern for the
times, it is this great Ai’istides* of the He
brew Commonwealth,—this venerable imper
sonation of" old world honor and integrity.
Would none cower in guilty shame at his ap
parition ? Would no knees tremble if the
shade appeared in the shop, the warehouse,
the market-place, the exchange? We have
plenty of Sauls now-a-days men of brave
heart, and fiery impulse, and warrior-spirit,
all ready with the greaves of brass and spear
of iron. We need more of the Samuels;
who, with the moral armor of probity and
honor, will save their country from a sadder
invasion than that of sword and bayonet, and
from a more humiliating and debasing ruin.
Avoid—and young men especially—-avoid
all base, servile, underhand, sneaking ‘ways.
Part with anything sooner than your inte
grity and “conscious rectitude ;” flee from
injustice as you would from a viper’s fangs;
avoid a lie as you would the gates of hell.
Some there are who are callous as to this.
Some there are who, in stooping to mercan
tile dishonor and baseness, in driving the
immoral bargain, think they have done a
clever action. Things are, often called by
the wrong names—duplicity is ealled shrewd
ness, and wrong-heartedness is 'called long
headedness, evil is called good, and good 1
evil, and darkness is put for light, and light
for darkness- Well! be it so. You may be
prosperous in your own eyes; you may have
realized an envied fortune; you may have
your carriage, and plate, and servants, and
pageantry; but rather the shieling and the
crust-of bread with a good conscience, than
the stately dwelling or palace without it.
Rather than the marble mausoleum, which
gilds and smothers tales of heartless villainy
and fraud—rather, far rather, that lowly
heap of grass we' were wont often to gaze
upon in an old village churchyard, with the
simple stone that bore record of a cottar’s
virtues, “Here lies an honest man!”—Mac
duff's Sunsets.
* Called so by Grotius.
. From the German Reformed Messenger
we cull some items pf interest. It thus re
ports an encouraging incident in Egypt, in
which our countrymen and President Lin
coln performed an honorable part: Messrs.
Lansing and Barnet, two missionaries of the
United Presbyterian Church of America, at
Alexandria, had a Syrian physician as their
agent, to distribute the Bible in Upper
Egypt. In, Oseut,* a Christian woman had
beon compelled to profess Mohammedanism.
Wishing to return, to her original faith, the
GENESEE EIINGEI/IST.~~¥kol6 No. 809
physician acted las. her attorney. According
to the laws of Turkey this was an innocent
act, since the fii'tnao'oUtlie late Sultan.
fuarantees religious toleration to all in the
urkish Empire. The citizens of Oseut,
however, thought otherwise, and with the
the .consent of their Pasha had the physician
bastinadoed —that is, gave him a flogging on
-Sfilhs of his feet until the blood came.
iThe' missionaries appealed to Mr. Thayer,
pun Consul General at. Alexandria, for re
press-:. He applied to the Viceroy or Pasha
°? ®gypt, who, after considerable parleying,
punished the Pasha of Oseut and all the
ringleaders with one vear ? s imprisonmeut.
and paid the Consul General $5,0.00in gold
as ah atonement for the offence. Besides
this, the woman is allowed to return to
Christianity without molestation. In the
present sensitive and jealous condition of
Mohammedanism, this act of toleration to-
Christianity;, and of respect for a
natfph is highly espe
cially since, it happened in connection with
Upper Egypt, one of the most populous
strongholds of' Moslem, bigotry and intole
rance. The following autographic letter was
senttothe Viceroy of Egypt by the President,
approving of and applauding the act in the
name of the Government of the United
States:—
To his Highness Mohammed Said Pacha,
Viceroy of Egypt and its Dependencies,
etc'., etc.
Great and Good Friend:—l have re
ceived from Mr. Thayer, ConSul General of
United States at Alexandria, a full account
of the. liberal enlightened and energetic pro
ceedings which, on his complaint, you have
adopted in bringing to speedy and condign
punishment the parties, subjects of your
highness in Upper Egypt, who were con
cerned in an act of cruel persecution against
Jaris, an agent of certain Christian mission
aries in Upper Egypt.
I pray your highness to be assured that
these proceedings, at once So prompt and so
just, will be regarded as a new and unmis
takable proof equally of your highness’s
friendship for the United* States, and of the
firmness,. integrity and wisdom with which
the government of your highness is con
ducted.
Wishing you great prosperity and suc
cess, I am your good friend,
Abraham Lincoln.-
Washington, Get, 9, 1861. ,
By the President—William H. Seward,
Secretary of State.
The Gustavus Adolphus Association.-
The eighteenth meeting of the Gustav-
Adolph-Stiftung convened in Hanover on
the 27th of August. The object of this in
stitution is. to assist destitute Protestant con-
-
Its doctrinal basis is broad; by some indeed
it is regarded as too latitudinarian, admit
ting to its fellowship persons of known he
retical views. But as its object is altogether
practical, it prescribes no particular doctri
aal tests, but simply affords a channel of
benevolent activity to the various branches.
of : Protestantism in * the different parts of ,
Germany. One of the most gratifying
events of this meeting was the application
of a branch society in Austria for admission -
into membership. It is but eighty, years
since Protestant churches were first tolerated
in the Sclavonic parts of Germany. . Since
the Bth of April the Emperor of Austria has
given them equal (?) rights with those of the
Catholic Church. As the fruit of these
liberal laws an Austrian Gustavus Adolphus
Society has been organized, under encourag
ing auspices. The Emperor Joseph, although
a Catholic, offered a handsome present to the
association, and the officers were authorized
to extend to his Majesty, by telegraph, the
thanks bf the’wholeEvangelical
Gustavus-Adolphus community. Tbiaty-four
branch societies and twenty-eight fbmale so
cieties were constituted during the year. -
The female societies have contributed 15,627
Prussian dollars, and the sum-total contri
buted amounts to 151,628. During the year
529 congregations received aid (26 more
than in the preceding year) 14 churches and .
20 school-houses and parsonages were dedi
cated.
The Swiss Pastoral Conference. —This
Association held its annual meeting in the
ancient city of Bern on the 13th and 14th
of August, at which 835 members were pre
sent. This is a voluntary association, em
bracing pastors from all the Cantons of
Switzerland. The meetings, are chiefly of a
discursive and devotional caste. The battle
between Evangelical orthodoxy and Ration
alism, which at least in the sphere pf scien
tific theology has already been successfully
foiight in hforthern Germany, is just being
waged in Reformed Switzerland. The elec
tion of the famous author of “ The
Life of Jesus,” and of. the mythical theology,
to. a professorship in the. University of . Zu
rich some years ago, was a sad indication of
certain dangerous theological tendencies.
-Had not the native pious good sense of the
Zurich peasantry resorted to their ancient
method of settling mooted questions, and
driven this foe of their faith from their city
with scythes and pitchforks, he might have
injected his theological poison into the par
ishes of Switzerland through his students,
and made her condition infinitely worse even
than'it is now. The two wings of the Swiss
Reformed Church again warmly contested
their ground at the late Pastoral Conference.
The first subject of discussion, “The influ
ence of the theological standpoint of the
Church upon the practical efficiency of min
isterial activity,” at once brought the vital
question before the body. Dr. Riggenbait,
a leading orthodox member of the Confer- .;
ence, and Professor of the University of|;
Basle, is said to have reached his present
position and faith 1 through the bleak desert
iri'which his antagonists are still lingering.
At one time his mental conflicts drove him
to the verge of scepticism, but by the grace
and light of Christ he was led out of dark
ness and doubt into the clear light of a child
like faith.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
PRESIDENT OP THE H. S. OP AMERICA.
How stands it with ns ? Are God’s glory
and honor paramount? or are we content
with seeking our own glory, our own projects
of self-aggrandisement and worldly ambi
tion-? “ -