Vol. VI, No. 35.—Whole No. 304. ottrg. Columbia's Safety. Where lies thy strength, my Country—where alone ? Let ages past declare—. Nay, let thine own brief history make known, Thy sure dependence, where. 'Tis notiboasting—that's the poltroon's wit, The coward's shield of glass, A coin whose surface, silver's counterfeit. With fools alone shall pass. 'Tis not in threats—these are the weapons light Of brutes, and not of men : A barking og's despised; but if he bite, Wo to his clamors then I 'Tis not in bargains made to cover wrong I There open weakness lies; A righteous cause is in itself strong, And needs no compromise. Ten thousand bulwarks which should mock the might Of armies compassing, Secure not those, who hold one human right A secondary thing. There are some souls so fearful to offend, They lay their courage low; And sooner trample o'er a prostrate friend, Than fail t' embrace a foe. Safety proceeds from Him alone who lays Foundations formed to last: This simple truth oomentres all the rays Of all the ages past. 1 141' omnipotence of right, its own shall save, Though hell itself oppose ; One faithful Abdiel may fearless brave Unnumbered rebel foes. Faith, Freedom, Conseienee--these are words which give The true metallic ring 1 For these to die were evermore to dive— Man's noblest offering. Rise then I Columbia's sacred rights restore I Bid all her foes to flee, Or perish I Then shall Washington once more His country's Father be. -Continental rotahly. (003fildttNTOATIO).) CHURCH EXTENSION. Who bath despised the day of small things? IN a village on the upper waters of the Delaware, stands a neat little Presbyterian church, whose brief history may perhaps prove of some interest. In the fall of 1858, two resident families, assisted by several persons from a neighbor ing city, were impressed with the duty of gathering in the children who might be seen every fine Sabbath, fishing or boating on the river, or roaming over the fields, spendipg the ay, to say the least, very unprofitably ; and they concluded` to organize a new Sab bath school. Some delay occurred In the search for a suitable room. A little place dignified by the name of " Temperance Hall," was at last obtained. Although very much out of order, whitewash outside and paper within, together with a general cleaning and mend ing up, gave the place quite a respectable appearance. 1111'• Meanwhile the families in the village were all visited. Where the children attended any school, they were encouraged to con tinue ; where they . did not, they were cor dially invited to join the new school. In this way forty names were procured ; and, on the opening Sabbath, twenty-five children were present, with nine teachers. Officers were elected, the children classified and teachers appointed. Every one seemed gratified with this beginning. During the week a, library was collected, partly by purchase, partly by donation. A prayer-Meeting was opened on Thursday evening, and the little barque •vas fairly afloat. The attendance increased steadily, until the room was too small to accommodate the children, making it necessary to find a more commodious place, There was a building originally intended for a paper_ mill, which had never been fin ished. The stone walls and roof.were stand ing ; the windows had for years been a target for the boys; there was no floor, no plaster, nothing but the bare walls ; still it was large and substantial, and could be had for the fit ting up, with a very low rent. The owner offered to give the amount of four years' rent in lumber. After some consideration as to the best mode of raising the necessary funds, a sale of fancy articles was held, and was well pa tronized, clearing $175. With this, and the aid of other donations, the room was put into nice order; the ground was dug down to in crease the height of the oeiling, and when completed and furnished, it was pronounced by all a neat, .comfortable and attractive room, capable of seating about two hundred. To this room, the teachers and scholars ad journed on the last Sabbath in March, with much joy, it having been dedicated on the Thursday evening •previous. The prayer meetings were kept up regularly, with occa sional preaching. In June of the same year, it was thought wise to organize a church . , and a petition was sent to Presbytery to look over the field. By a misunderstanding, a committee was ap pointed to organize a church, which was con sidered by some premature. It being finally thought best as the notice had been given, to have it carried through, the day was ap pointed, and the church organized, with eighteen members: On the next Sabbath, at their first communion, three adults were received, and at the next communion ten, on profession ; all of whom dated, their first se rious impressions from the little prayer-meet ing in Temperance Hall The pulpit was supplied during the summer and until late in the fall, when a pastor was called. The church and school increased rapidly ; and during the summer and fall of 1860, the subject of a church edifice was agitated, re sulting in the necessary measures towards raising the funds. In the sprin_g, a. fine lot was purchased and paid for. Early in the Bummer the corner-stone was laid, and the new building speedily completed. The main building is of brick, with a neat and tasteful spire. In the rear is a cheerful Sabbath school and lecture-room ; the =whole cost, in cluding the lot, being $8000: It was the desire and expectation of this little company to have entered their new church free of debt ; but being overtaken by the " hard times," sonic were unable to pay their subscriptions ; and churches who were pledged to assist them, thought it wiser to wait awhile ; con sequently they were obliged to give a mort gage of 6800. This they hope will soon be paid through the liberality of large-hearted friends, whom the Lord may yet raise up for them. The ladies of the place took the fur nishing of the church upon themselves, col lecting e3OO for .that purpose ; and on the second Sabbath in September, 1861, the hearts of all interested in the enterprise were made glad by the dedication of this new. church .to the worship of Almighty God. There are now about sixty members, with a growing and attentive congregation. The Sabbath school has 140 names upon the roll, while the average attendance is much better this year than heretofore. Four-of the older scholars and five teachers have united with this church upon profession ; - seven others have joined other denominations, and one teacher united with a neighboring Presbyte rian church. There is still a great deal of interest manifest in the school. Probably two or three more will come out at the next communion, and there are many others who have the subject under serious consideration. There is certainly much in this simple statement of facts to encourage any who wish to work in the vineyard of the Lord ; for, as " the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong," so the few in number and weak in faith are often made instruments in His hands, of accomplishing much geed. _ LESSONS OF WAR. Net. IT. THERE are few things connected with war from which so many disasters have arisen, as from contempt of an enemy produced by recent victory, A 'brigade of Lacedemoni- . a,ns heavy-armed wire once marching near the hostile city of Corinth, which hyd been lately humbled by their power, and as they, in consequence, held her people in contempt, and supposed they would not, under any cir cumstances, presume to offer them battle, they sent away their horse.upon another er rand, and thus left themselves defenseless in face of an adversary who, though beaten in the field, was yet in possession of means to do them deadly harm if an opportunity should present itself. Accordingly the Co rinthians rushed out upon them with ,their targetiers, who galling them from a distance with their arrows, succeeded in cutting them off almost to a man, encumbered as they were by the weight of their armor, and destitute of the means to advance to the encounter or to cover their retreat. Thus these men,. ren dered vain and. scornful by success, are led through their unwise disregard of the enemy, to abandon the fruit of that success; and rashly throw away their lives. . The same_kinitA:presehaptiolt,heealreedy produced its evil in the present war ; and:the undue confidence created by previous success had almost resulted in.the loss of one of the finest armies of the Union, before the walls of another Corinth. The successes, likewise, of individuals, fre quently serve only to disarm and divide their energies, and hasten their destruction. Elated by a fortunate turn in our affairs, we are often led to neglect the means by which it was brought about, and to put ourselves in a position in which the advantages gained at the expense of great labor and anxiety may he easily snatched away from us. We relax our efforts to glory over a half surmounted difficulty; and so leave ourselves exposed to whatever resources it may yet possess for our annoyance. A rival is- never so likely to outrun us in the path of true greatness and success as when he has quit the field, ceased to be a source of jealousy and terror to our thoughts, and betaken himself -to the pursuit of sure and solid objects, to vhich we, in the inso lence of success, cannot permit ourselves to descend. He is never so formidable as when, at the climax of his disappointments, he is obliged to clothe himself with humility and dependence upon God—weapons against the force of which our pride had left us unpro tected, as it had led us, perhaps, to under"; value and reject their use. For in this way he finds the means of renewing the conflict and redeeming the day, in the depth and completeness of his very fall. A competitor is seldom so utterly worsted that he can be safely despised. To despise him so far as to be off our guard against his remaining resources, is to put the sword he had lost or surrendered, again into his hand, and to lay our bosom open to the blow. The ruin of men and nations comes most frequently from a quarter whence it was not expected,and from causes the least threatening and conside rable. The arrows of the Almighty's quiver are countless ; and in, their - form mid nature they are varied to infinity: He is never at a loss for a weapon to reach the arrogant in any position or at any height. With instru ments the most- weak - and despised, nay, by the very nothingness of things, he can break in pieces the proud and mighty things that are. It is, therefore, the utmost pitch of madness, when, by the kindness of God, we have succeeded in 'surmounting difficulties, or overcoming opposition to forget Him to whom we - owe it all, and grow unscrupulous and secure, as if we bad now dried up with the sole of our foot, every channel through which adversity could possibly overtake us. Prosperity is never a blessing, only when it awakens a corresponding feeling of grad tilde to God, and begets a spirit of lowly de pendence upon his - goodness ; when it hum bles and subdties the heart - ; when it corrects self-confidence ; when it makes us solicitous to retain the divine favor, and watchful and fearful , of the sins by which it might be lest. S. P -.3anner of the Covenant. The Society of Gustavus Adoipus, of which the numerous ramifications have already gained such a wide extension, has been> for some time actively engaged in founding a branch association in Russia, to facilitate the preaching of the pure Gospel among the many Protestants who are scattered through: that vast empire. An asylum for Protestant orphans will soon be opened at Kronstadt in Finland, through the exertions of the same, society. " God only is Great." PHILADELPHIA TaLTR§DAY MAX 1, 18.62. CHAPLAIN BENTON AND THE BATTLE OY NEWBERN. FROM the pen of Mrs. Benton, the bereav ed-widow, and from other sources, we have gathered a full, and we think interesting and valuable, account of the services rendered by Mr. B. as the spiritual guide of his regiment, and of his heroic, soldierly conduct on the field of battle, which resulted in his death. The Church and the Army, as well as his wife, children and friends, have suffered a serious loss in his death, though the inspiring example of his last hours will remain among us as a precious and imperishable legacy. Mrs. B. says :—" While near the front of the regiment (New York Fifty-first) encouraging the unharmed, and exhorting them to do their duty, and administering to the dying and wounded, the Colonel came forward and called for fifty men to go forward to the left to an eminence commanding the enemy's batteries, to charge them. Mr. Benton told a member of his church who ministered to his wants while life remained, That he saw that the men hesitated about going, that he sprang forward and called upon them to come on.' Another, from this place, has written the same, being one who followed him and an eye witness, and adds that ' When Mr. Benton fell, he was standing sideways to the enemy, calling on the men to come on.'• The ball entered over the hip and penetrated his; spine: When huwent forward all were feel ing that there was little hope of victory. When asked, as he came forward, by one who has written me, what he thought of their prospects,' he replied, We must win.' When found by the same one lying, in a ra vine, and told the victory is ours,' he said, 'Thank God for it: " He entered the army, feeling that not only:the welfare of our own nation, but of all the human family to all time was involved in this struggle ; that Christ's kingdom was to be 4 greatly advanced by the success of our cause, He labored not only to win souls to Christ there, but also to inspire them with a pure and holy patriotism.' He diligently sought their temporal comfort, and won their love and confidence thereby. He was just beginning to see the harvest-time appear. In letters I received the day, of the battle, he wrote joyfully of the increasng number of inquirers,' and was expecting a great work if the excitement of battle came not too soon. There were occasional inquirers and conver sions from the first." Mrs. B. sends us another account, prepar ed by Rev. S. H. Hall, from facts supplied by herself, and published in an Owego paper. From this we gather that Mr. Benton was first found by one of the members of his church with his, head lying down the hill. He, placed him in an easier position and gave him water. Soon after he was borne a`short distance to arise 'of ground, where the woun ded were temporarily collected. v There the surgeon visited him; and there in the o ten airlieWatfrityrefftliritifrtfibie; as o i a opportunity, he besought officers and men to become Christians and prepare to meet him in heaven. As one of the men saw his , beloved chap lain so terribly wounded. he cursed the rebels to hell ; " No, (said the chaplain), send them to heaven." As soon as it could be done, he was laid upon a stretcher anit carried through the woods, over - the wounded and dying, to a small blockhouse in the centre of the enemy's works. There he lay, suffering intensely, until nearly ten o'clock on Saturday niorning,when he breathed his last, In this place he was visited by a chaplain connected with one of the Massachusetts re giments. A Christian 'brother, engaged as a reporter for one of the New York papers, also came in and prayed with him. He hoped to get up from his wounds, but ex pressed his most perfect resignation to the will of Gad, and a blessed assurance of eter nal glory through the death of Christ. He sent back messages of the most affect ing and impressive character to his church and congregation, telling them to " practice the Gospel he had preached to them," and to live for Jesus. He was very minute in the disposition he made of his effects ; and commending the cause in which he was en gaged, his dear people, his wife and his little ones to God, he slept in Jesus. " Death found him at his post : His brow is glory-crowned." The death of the chaplain called forth a most touching expression of love for him throughout the whole regiment. Colonel Feuer° writes to Mrs. Benton, " your hus band fell nobly defending the flag of his country. Words cannot express how deeply we all feel his loss." • His fellow officers, upon learning of,his death were melted to tears. Captain Sims, bent over hi% kissed his cold, noble fore head, and- 2 werit like a' Chia In various other ways it appeared that he was held in the highest personal esteem, and appreciated for his prayerful devotion to the temporal and spiritual interests committed to his care. CHAPLAIN JAMS' ACCOUNT. A very full account of the battle from the pen of chaplain James,_appeared in the Con gregationalist, April 18th, from which ire make some extracts, cmoborating the above statuments, as to the doubtfulness of the struggle, and the value of every true man in the critical moment . Some time ago we re marked that "if may yet visibly appear that our salvation in battle, and through this great conflict, rests not with bold, bad men, not with the profane, the reckless, the clam orous, whose courage oozes away as they draw near the scene .of actual conflict, but, under God, with those leaders and Men who are calmed, and nerved, and steadied by the Pauline balance of thought, by the wonderful wisdom of the consolations of Scripture,. by_ Christ the end.of living and the gain o dy ing." We regard chaplain Benton's heroic part at the crisis of the battle of Newbern as a shining illustration of our remarks. Chap lain . James says "Before the battle-our. Generals knew no- - thing of the defences beyond the railroad, for they had been constructed within three days., It was therefore found more difficult to turn the enemy's right flank than had been-anti cipated. All our regiments had now been brought up, and were fully engaged, and yet the foe gave no sign of being weakened in the least degree. For nearly two hours they had poured upon us an incessant fire 'of musket ry, round shot, shell and grape ; our boat howiizers had almost exhausted their amain- nition, and had Tf'st more than - half their men ; and a feelinibegan to prevail in all parts of the field "Oat it was desperate work, and that the scale hung doubtful. No one felt disposed to ran, there was no shrinking or fear, but only a- feeling like, this : 'is it not an impossibility, with our force, to take that breastwork; with its thousands of de fenders ?' At this crisis in the battle, my heart was going up God in prayer. ** * " At this moment, General Burnside and General Foster, b6th mounted, were together just in the rear e the center, and under a dangerous fire, when the Lieutenant com manding the homitiers sent word to them that their ammunition was expended, and nearly all their men killed or disabled. At the same moments came one of General Reno's aids, sayinW,Sir, General Am) bids me - say that he cannot turn the enemy's right.' The Gene:rikli4ooked at one another conversed a mornent*lr then General Burn side said with great etePhasis, Tell General Reno their right must' tunied: Ciff'galL loped the aid, the 2* were brought up to support the howitzeri, and the 21st ordered to ,charge across tilt railroad into the en trenchment. Four companies of that regi ment did so, under the lead of Colonel (late Major) Clark, and look possession of •five guns, the Colonel actually mounting upon one of them in "triumph. Bat two regiments of the enemy, froM their reserve, charged down upon them itq fihe style, before they could turn the gumPlabout, and drove them pell-mell over the ramparts, and they made their way by the fosse, with little loss, back to their old position. - • " The earthwork etcl now been entered ; the charm was broken; and the, impetuosity of our men could bei restrained no longer. The 4th Rhode Island and the Bth Connec ticut on the left, by th'o railroad, and the 25th Massachusetts by th§ main road and sally . port, in front, now *de an almost simulta neous rush upon. their'Vorks, and in an in stant, as if by, ml their flags were all fluttering inaide the. armlet. and the rebels I had broken and fled. 4 every point from the river. ' Thank God,,t hank God,' said I, as my eyes caught the gleam of the Stars and. Stripes over the I:lastwork, `the day ,is ours.'l was waiting', upon a wounded Cap tain of our regiment; whose leg was broken by a rifle ball. t told him that the enemy were beaten, and alFietory was won. 4 Thank God,' he replied,' my wound is nothing, if this be so.' ' . . , Of chaplain Bentdn, he. says : "It was here I learned of thnlall of my dear bro ther, Rev. 0. N. Benton, of the 51st New - York, a man and a Christian of the noblest type. He vas the firs chaplain to greet' me at Annapolis, and one with whom I took sweet counsel on many .occasions: He was devoted to the welfarevf -his regiment, full of good fruits, alwaye cheerful, and as bold as a lion. His came was close to ours in -lanaP( ll4B ,. wimatir.frsF his brother chaplains,... andtoward all the sol diers of whatsoever rkimelif. "Ile was very near the front when "die fell, whither he had gone to minister to a -wounded man. He has fought a good fight, helati finished his course; he has kept the faitl4 both •of his country and his God. Who can doubt that he is now wearing .a crown of joy in the world where the wicked cease from, troubling and where none can molest or make afaid." The very wide appreciation of our fallen brother appears further in the following verses, published in a recent number of .the New. York Christian Times (Prot. Episc.), "On the Death of Rev. O. N. Benton, by W. Waldron, A. 8.:" Muse of 'a mourtno. o harp attune thy lays • I A champion of his country needs thy grim. No pleasure now we bring--all joy Three . ; A Christian herb claims a strain of woe. Benton, a long farewell we bid to the! Crowned now with , fadelesa immortality; Long will it be ere friencliso true we'll find, Where heart meets heart, and Mira responds to mind. . - There is this state of rigid trial o'er There will the anxious bosom beat no, more; The human hea.r,t.no longer breathe the sigh, Nor sorrow ever dim the mourner's eye. How glorious there to sing in heavenly lays, Angels and men uniting in their praise ! In loud hosannas mid the saints above, How sweet the harmony l how sweet the love I THE ART OF EXPOUNDING. OUR early fathers thought much of this; but it has of late years very strangely fallen into disuse, to the great - detriment both of ministers and people. The pulpit has lost one of the brightest radiations of its glory. There is a general impinision that it is un popular ;'and the only, reason is, that, it has fallen into reluctant haftds. ! We can make any style of preaching unpopular by not learning our trade. If it is unpopular,you must make it popular. The burning f the anthracite coal was exceedingly' unpopular until people had learned how to use it. The truth is, there is no mode of presenting sa cred truth-so rich,.so various, so impressive, so fascinating: You have all history, rich with, spoils of time, to help you. It has this important benefit, 'that it connects your philo logical studies with. your public ministrations. It keeps up your interest in bibliCal investi gation ; it makes you a better Ilebrew,scho lar ;* it makes you at once a-familiar tenant, both of the old. world and new; and you firing down the wealth of the former to increase the accumulated irnportions of the latter. It' leads you to inspect every part of the Bible, and the more you spend the richer you groir. I can.conceive of _nothing more improving than tracing the progress of language (the sacred' language of God; too), the laws of thought, the uniformity and variety of reve lation, comparing the two opposite -poles of the extremest ancient.and modern life ; and the divine art by which God himself unfolds his complicated - purposes to man. A fowl- *Let me ,turn aside gratefully to remember the advice the late Professor Gibbs gave me, when a young man and he a fellow student, but, less of a fellow-student , than an instructor. Mentioning to Hut the danger of forgetting our studiesin the care of a parish; " There 'is " said he, " one excellent way to,prevent this : take a passage,—a Psaltn i a chapter Isaiah,' or a whole•book,—stu.dy it criti cally and thoroughly, and expound it to your people; you need not, of course, bring out all the points you examine, but bring out, the result. You will find the benefit both for you and for them." Never were words more fitly spokee; and this, and many other counsels, I can only forget; when I follow him ..to the grave, and perhaps not even then. tain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon. One important point in lecturing or ex pounding on a chapter, a psalm, or a section, is selection; that is, with a quick eye to dis cover what is practical and proper for the people. This is the cumulative point of all legitimate investigation. We must not be pedants ; we must not attempt to lead the people through the mazes of learned wisdom or, learned trifling, which amuses the recesses of academic subtelty. ' Selection, skilful se lection' must be your rule. You are to see, with adivine tact, what belongs to yourself and what to offer to your people. Sift the material, and keep the bran to yourself, and offer the meal to them. The benefits of this mode of preaching are, that you keep fresh your seminary. lessons; you become a biblical critic; your Ffebreiv and your Greek never fade; they are renewed, by little andlittle, every week; you occupy rich ground; you forestall your own narrow. ing idiosyncracies ; you are nevef at a loss for a subject ; you throw yourself on the tow line of Providence ; you find wonderful coin cidences; your discourses will have a sur prising application ; you are pften., faithful to existing sin, without seeming to design it ; yott are always sheltered , behind a sacred shield ; y - bu neglect no part .of revelation ; you almost become a prophet of God, and you• go to Egypt to encounter its corruptions and its hosts with the rod. of God in' your hand.—. Dr. Withington in Bib. Sacra. . SABBATII-DAY BATTLES. GOD - ordained the Sabbath as a day of sa cred-rest and worship, and he promised to his people Israel that if they would observe it according to his directions, he Would ":cause them to ride upon the high places of the earth." The spirit of that promise holds good at all times and toward any people. Its verification seems to be signally manifest to ward the parties now waging a warfare for supremaoy on the soil of the United States. The " Confederacy" is -a rebellion most wicked ; but while our armies, violated God's Sabbath, he would not be*with them. Their hearts grew weak and they fled before their foes. Since they have- observed the Lord's day, they are courageous and success ful. So signally marked, in this respect, is God's providence, that it is noted extenaive ly by the secular press. We are pleased to be able to quote as follows,' from the New York Times " SUNDAY BATTLES.—The late terrible struggle at Pittsburgh adds another to the long list of Sundry battles. The facts are so clear in this and numerous other conflicts, and the results have been so.uniform and de cisive, that comment "is not only warranted but demanded, alike by philosophy, p4riot- • ttro - 015realiteiterrien . 471,0- not be gainsayed, that the more important movements of the National forces, in the par ly stages of the present war, were Made on Sunday, and that they were undeniably fail ures. ' Patterson's cblumn was constantly notorious for its maneuvering on Sundays —and for little else. Big Bethel, Bull Run, and Ball's Bluff, were the great blunders aril defeats.of attacking armies on Sunday. All these engagements, excepting Ball's Bluff, under the now imprisoned Gen. Stone, pre ceded Gen. M'Clellan's noble Sabbath order. libncefOrward. the" rebels have made the Sunday assaults, with invariable loss of the battles thus waged. Mill Spring opened their career of Sunday fighting, which closes with Pittsburgh. The battle of Winchester was begun on Sunday Inorning. The"first of these battles cost the rebels Kentucky; the second, the valley of Virginia; and the third, the - Mississippi Valley. The literri mae too, after its destructive Saturday's raid,.:ran a muck, against the Monifor .on. Sunday, and has ;spent a month in repairing damages. "Add to the facts, that most of the Gene. rals Commanding whose names figure as as sailants in these battles, were slain in them, and there is food for reflection in these bits of history. What has become of our Gen. Pierce, of Big Bethel memory? What of Gen. Stime ? Where are Zollicoffer and Sidney Johnston?- In short, since we have ceased the business of Sunday - fighting and the rebels took it up, we have had only vic tories-to record, and they only defeats and surrenders. Fort Donelson and Island No. 10 were our Sunday morning benison on week-day prowess. " - "Nor are these isolated historical facts. History is full of them. The British forces assailed us on Lake Champlain and at New- Orleans on Sunday, and were defeated. We assailed them at Quebec; our army was re pulsed and its leader slain. We began the battle of Monmouth.and had the worst of it. Napoleon began the battle of Waterloo, and lost his army and his empire. The battle of Blenheim which has been repeatedly ' cited by the .Herald, with its usual accuracy, as a successful Sunday battle, was not fought on Sunday,lnit began on'Wednesilay. - "We content ourselves with the 'simple collation of these suggestive facts. Let them. go to swell that mighty volume of testimony to the supremacy, and. stability of a law as old as creation, which claims quite other use of one-seventh part of time than the work of willing human butchery." We are not to regard the Sabbath- under the impression of a bargain with God, the compensation' for which is to be uniform vic tory. There are many obstacles to success, besides that of profaning the Lord's day. God may righteously chastis9 for other sins; but let us avoid the additional provocation of violating the fourth commandment. And if we would be uniformly blessed, let us keep all God's precepts, serving him in fear and love.—Pittsburg Banner. CAIRO AND MOUND CITY. HOSPITALS. Rev. Jeremiah Porter, of Chicago, a chaplain in the U . . S. Army, and now acting the part of an, angel of mercy in the hospi tals at Cairo and Mound City,.has written a letter to Tuthill King, Esq, of :that city, from which we are permitted to make some extracts After requesting of the Young Men's Christian Association of that city a donation for Hymn Books, he remarks :"I find-it a great privilege to be here where I can preach to soldiers and citizens on the Sabbath,, be seeching them with tears to bt reconciled to God, and I visit them during the week, in camp, on steamboats, and in hospitals, and seatter-leares from the tree of life that are for the healing of the nations. Could you witness the scenes which have passed before me dilring the last fortnight your heart would bleed, for our poor, suffering soldiers, and yet would rejoice in the privilege of awakening a smile on faded cheekt and offer ing consolation to wounded spirits. I have visited the hospital at Mound City, the largest in the United States, and well con du.cted, containing more than 1200 patients, under every form of disease. I found but one man in the great hospital who refused to receive my books and tracts. Most of them seemed very grateful, the wounded prisoners not less than our own. The patients are well and kindly treated, and yet the dead and dying are daily here, and while some express hope in Christ, and some are seeking Him, many -give no sign -of penitence and faith. On Sabbath morning in one of the hospitals I found three cold and lifeless bodies. Two days before I had conversed with each of them. One, a lad of seventeen, was then deranged : ; one other was bleeding to death while I pointed him to Christ. The third had just then received a letter from his mother, which I read to him. She urged him to become a Christian, and he seemed determined to give his heart to Christ. As I point these dying ones to Christ I am greatly encouraged by the thought that your noon day prayer meeting, and other Christian friends, are offering for them the prayer of faith. To-day, I found, in one of the hospi tals, a young man, son of a Baptist minister, in the last stages of disease. He was a mem ber of his father's church. Another soldier from the same church took me to his cot. He was conscious of his condition, and Christ was precious to his soul. As I knelt and commended his departing spirit to Christ, his companion was bathed in tears, but he was calm, peaceful, and full of joy. Glad tidings for his praying father ! Glorious exchange ! That sickeniiig hospital for Heaven ! From him I went to one who had seemed a penitent at my last interview. I gave to him then that blessed resolve " Just as I am, without one plea, But that thy blood was shed For me," etc. He read it through, aloud, and as he re peated-- - " 0 Lamb of God, I come, I come," His tears and mine flowed freely. He soon exclaimed, " Bless the Lord I bless the Lord !" To-day I found him rapidly Aink ing, and yet not satisfied that God had par doned his sins, and yet he said, "I do love God ; I know I do, and then again he plead earnestly that God would pardon his sins. It is this opportunity of pointing the - sick and dying to Christ that makes my position an enviable -one. Three regiments have_passe& herein'boats tO*yrarnron each one of them I have drs tiiibuted a basket of books and papers, which were received with great eagerness and gratitude. The books, tracts and testaments are being read by hundreds, as they ascend the Ohio and Tennessee, to-day. Pray that conviction may follow the reading, and that being converted to Christ these readers may be ready to fall on the battle-field, or to die in the hospital, if God so determine.—Home Visitor. THE NEW CODE OF AUSTRIA•- ACCORDING to the Wiener Zeitung, the first fourteen articles of a bill presented to the Chamber of Deputie . s at Vienna, by a committee instructed by the Chamber to make a draft of a law on the relations of the Church and State, were as follows :-- GENERAL PRINCIPLES--SECTION I. Chap. I. Religious Liberty. Art 1. Full liberty of confession and of conscience, as well as the domestic exercise of his religion, is guaranteed to every indi vidual. Chap. IL Choke of a Religion. Art. 2. Every individual may make choice of a belief according to his own free convic tion. Nevertheless, whoever makes, such a choice must have attained the age-required, and must not be found, at the moment of choosing, to be in any mental or moral con dition incompatible with a free and intimate conviction. Art. 3. The age required for the choice of a religious confession is fixed at 18 years for both sexes. Chap. 111. Religion of Children. • Art. 4. In the case of-children; so long as they shall not have attained the age required for choosing a religious belief, the belief to which they must be attached, and in which they must be instructed and brought up, will be determined by the rules laid down in the article next following. Art. 5. 'When the parents belong to one . and the same religion, this religion must be also that of their-legitimate children, and of all children whom they may place on the same footing. In case the parents are at tached to two different religions, the religion of thenbildren must be determined, in the first place,_ by any legal compacts which may have been , concluded 'on this subject between the . parents„ In the absence of a compact of this kind, the determination of the sons' religion belongs to the father ' and that of the daughters' to the mother. Furthermore, this determination constitutes a part of the right of education; and he who possesses this right in respect to a child, has also the right of determining the religion of that child. Art. 6. The religious belief resolved upon for a child, in conformity with the above article, cannot be changed until the child himself makes a free choice of a different religion. Art. 7. Parents and tutors, as well as the ministers of religion, are responsible for the punctual' accomplishment of the preceding enactments. In case these enactments are violated, the, nearest relatives, as well as the heads - of churches, and of religious societies (whom it may concern) have a right to de mand the interference of the authorities, who will have to examine the affair, and see that the law be respected. - Art. 8. As soon as a child shall have at tained the age required for the choice of a religion, the authorities must protect him or her in the enjoyment of this liberty. Chap. IV. Oivil and Religious Rights to be Independent of the Religious., Confession. Art. 9. The enjoyment of civil and politi cal rights does not depend on the religious confession, and can suffer no limitationsln GENESEE EVA_NGELIST.---Whole No. $32 1 consequence of this confession. No religious 1 confession can exempt any one from the ac complishment of public duties. Art: 10. Diversity of religion Constitutes no civil impediment to marriage. Art . It No difference in point of religion between children and their parents, or the persons called upon to educate them, can deprive the latter parties of the educational rights which belong to them. Art. 12. Any person may, irrespectively of religion, reside anywhere in-the various territories of the monarchy, establish a house- I hold, exercise a profession, and obtain the Frights of citizenship in a commune, in the same. Furthermore all persons are entitled, irrespectively .of religion, to acquire, any where in these various territories, the pos session and proprietorship of any goods, movable or immovable, and of any rights theretoattached. Art. 13. The belieVers of Various religions are by right equally entitled to all dignities, functions ; and public employments. Art. 14. Oaths shall be admininistered to all persons, irrespectively of their religious persuasion, in the form "So help me God." Those persons - whose religion does not allow them to take an oath at all, shall bind them selves to their affirmations by extending their hands, which will have the same effect. RELIGIOUS WORLD ABROAD. TIIE careful letters of our foreign corres pondents will make our readers familiar with the state of religion in Europe, especially in Great Britain. From other sources, parti cularly the News of the Churches, we give a summary of such facts of importance as have escaped their notice. PRESBYTERIAN UNION. A conference of once-bearers of the Pres byterian churches in New Zealand was held in the month of November, in the First Church, Dunedin. Dr. Burns having been chosen president, and Rev. Mr. Moir and Mr. Forsaith, clerks, the former opened the proceedings with a suitable -sermon and address. The confer ence having declared that the union of the different branches of the Presbyterian church in this colony into the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand, was desirable and prac ticable, proceeded to consider the basis of union. After very free and full discussion, a 'oasis on which a union might be effected, was unanimously adopted.. At a public meeting subsequently held, the principal speaker, Mr. Bruce, detailed the steps by which they had been led to holding the conference. He said that it had long been felt that if some broad basis could be hit upon, on which all could conscientiously stand, it would be the means of enabling them to husband their resources both as re ,tards men, and money, befaes nfecading a. bond of - Union that would strengthen each other's hands and hearts. As to the basis of union, he might say that they approached that subject with some fears, but was happy to say they had all been chased away like a dream of the morning. When they came to compare notes, they found that they all saw pretty much eye to eye, and that they could all cheerfully and heartily unite agreeably to all, without sacrificing the principle of any. He could not then go into particulars, as the document had to be revised. Separate copies would then be forwarded for approval to the several Presbyteries, and returned for adop .tion at a future Synod or General Assembly. FRJIXCE. Twenty-one Protestant places of worship had been opened in - France during 1861, which is an increase of eight on the two pre ceding years, during each of which the num ber had,been thirteen respectively. In the Rationalist 'camp, some are courage ously speaking clearly, as they think. Would that all were so bold! At Cette, the.junior pastor took the opportunity afforded him by Christmas-day, to state distinctly that, in his opinion, the Lord Jesus is not God. The majority of the hearers immediately left the sacred edifice. The Presbyterial Council de sired him to resign, which he did, but after wards withdrew his resignation, and ascended the pulpit one Sabbath, in the stead of the elder pastor, who, for the sake of peace, al lowed it. Spontaneously, .the whole congre gation arose, and left the young man in the empty church. The same party are trying to get the Ra tionalist Genevan edition (1835) of the Bible into the Protestant Bible Society of Paris ; but this change is forbidden by the rules of the Society, which only admit versions in com mon use in the church, and give no power of translation or revision to its members. GERMANY. Tlee Pre.sbyterian Organization.—ln Prus sia, the organization of the parishes by the election of representatives is steadily pro gressing. The object in view is to accustom the people more by .a feeling of propriety than by direct enactment, or by subscription of articles, -to. elect none but proper persons to such an important office. In Baden, the Church and State are so thoroughly com bined, that the elections of elders are going on just as any other popular election, with universal male suffrage. All the elections must be - finished before Easter. Every ves tige of a Christian Church is vanished, and a mere civil institution has taken its place, where the inhabitants of a district elect re presentatives who, in their turn, elect an office-bearer, whose business -it is to baptize their children, and. once a week to deliver an address on morality, philosophy, - or reli gion, as the case may be. The pious minis ters will no doubt labor faithfully, as they have ever done; but . in Baden they bear a small proportion to the whole body. Liberality of G-erman, Protestants—There are many evidences of progress in this res pect. The l inissionary societies need only show that they are working and actually re quire the money, and they can obtain any amount they want. The treasurers of reli gious institutions are seldom .afraid to ad vance large amounts beyond. the Means in hand, knowing, that 'what is needful will.be provided. The Neue Evan' gelisehe Kireken zeitung was able to collect foi the Christians in Syria above 60,000 dollars, and the com mittee. at. Beirout are_ able, after liberally supplying the wants of the place, and contri buting liberally to. Dr. Fliedner's schools and hospitals, to lay past „some, 16,000 dollars, or £2250, to be afterwards disposed of as circumstances may require. '
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