astrian Nuotginias -AND.- GENESEE EVANGELIST. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1863• JOHN W. NEARS, ACIENOWLEDOMMT.—Received at this office, during the past week, FOE SOLDIERS' PAPERS. Third Church, Pine street, - THE UNITED PRAYER MEETING OP OUR ORTIROHES. Tins meeting, commenced after the Week of Prayer, in January, has been kept up with great spirit and excellent attendance. The tone of feeling has been most happy and calculated fa vorably to affect our churches. It is held every Tuesday afternoon commencing at half past three o'clock. The hour seems , unfavorable for the attendance of the male members of our churches; at least, from some cause, very few are present. Certain it is, that whatever hour is chosen, the ladies are always largely in the ascendancy as to numbers, while the gentleman are but a sprink ling in the audience. Wti feel inclined to try counting the men present, from week to week, and' reporting the number in our columns. Or if any one can suggest a better plan for getting out this portion of our membership, we are ready to lend it our influence. The Committee who have the matter in charge might be induced to throw one out of four of the meetings, say the first in every month, into the evening, for the better accommodation of our business men. Will they not make a serious effort to attend, and thus lend their aid in maintaining a warm practical sympathy. between our churches, and in promoting a spirit of revival among us ? Will they not join with those already in attendance, whose hearts are burdened with longing for the outpouring of God's Spirit upon us, that in uni ted earnest prayer we , may see the beginning of the fulfilment of our desire ? The nest meeting will be held in Kensington Church ) BAY. Mr. Eva pastor. THE snror TIVBELIET.• He that believeth not shall be. damned." To many, perhaps even of those who accept the doctrine of eternal punishment, this declaration seems mysteriously severe. Why should unbe lief be made a capital offence under the govern ment of God t Murderers and liars, profane and seditious men, drunkards and drunkard makers, extortioners and adulterers, may well have their portion in the burning lake; but few minds de tect anything of enormity in the simple failure to receive and rest upon the promise and plan of God to save the soul. Even the convicted sin ner, struggling under his load of sin, is not pre pared to admit that his prolonged reluctance under various pleas to accept Christ, is but an iidditional, and in fact the crowning, sin of his condition. Yet such is the fact. The Holy Spirit finally reaching his heart, convinces him of sin, became he believes not in Christ. Unbelief is. discrediting God. It is depreciat ing or neglecting the evidences of his power, of his providence, of his justice, of his mercy. It is refusing to receive the testimony of his word, to put confidence in his promises and his threatenings. It is bringing his truth and his authority, so far as we have influence, into disre spect. He who will not believe God shows a want of confidence in him, which strikes at the very foundation of order and of obedience. Every sin flows directly or indirectly from unbe lief, and unbelief which refuses to accept God's plan of forgiveness, aggravates every sin. Our first parents fell, before the fruit was eaten, in discrediting the threatening of God : In the day that ye eat thereof, ye shall surely die. The enormity of unbelief is illustrated by its operation in human affairs. There is nothing which any government, imperilled like ours, so much needs, as the confidence of the people. He who fails to cherish this confidence, and by his ex ample in the business world, and in conversation, throw discredit on its policy or its finances, does it as much harm as open rebels, and sometimes much more. He who exaggerates the difficulties of its position, who parades its mistakes, who prophesies evil and failure in the future, does a great part in enhancing the difficulties, errors, and disasters which he professes to deplore. When the government issues its promises to pay the soldiers and other creditors, those who cause lessly deny the value of those promises, and who I labor to overturn the public credit by exciting groundless fears, are justly classed among the most malignant and effective enemies of the re public. It matters not that they do not take arms and fight openly on the side of the rebels; they are pursuing a much more mischevous course by destroying confidence in the very foundations of our civil structure. Should their unbelief prevail extensively, everything would be over thrown. The country now, under God, depends for its salvation upon the men who cherish faith in our cause and in our ability to make the ex ertions and bear the expense it demands of us. —And shall we esteem faith so highly, and brand unbelief so ikon g ly, when they are mani fested in earthly relations, and regard them as unimportant characteristics in our relations to divine things? True, man's unbelief cannot overturn the government of God or render the faithfulness of God " of none effect ;" but that is its practical tendency. It disaffects men towards the government of God, it tends to land the race in the awful chaos in which they would lie if there were no God and no divine government; it involves them in the most lamentable uncer tainty as to the character of the being who has supreme control over their destiny; it makes it impossible, so far as it operates, for. God to com municate the facts of his government or of his merciful disposition towards the race by hie Word. It frustrates his gracious purpose to save the sinner by the sacrifice of his Son. Un belief is the great element of discord in the moral relations of men, the secret spirit of re bellion against God in the human breast. Take heed lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. He that believeth not God bath made him a liar, because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son. FOURTH CHURCH, INDIANAPOLIS. - Rev. C. H. Marshall is still supplying very acceptably the pulpit of this church. The church is in a pros cereus condition, and free from debt. MODESTY AND AUTHORITY IN THE PREACHER. The divine authority for preaching has already beeir noticed. Under the head of " Character" allusion was also made to authority in the preach er. With the sanction and command of God, with the loftiest and holiest themes ; with the grandeur of aim which should swell the bosom of him who stands before men in the name of God, with the certain results that follow the ministry of truth, we cannot excuse ourselves for distrust, or misgiving in our work. We have the right, and it is our duly, to be 'bold. Modesty is indeed, always graceful, always ap propriate. It is not a small matter to stand in the presence of an intelligent assembly to instruct men, to persuade them to a new and important course of thought and of action. We assume, by the act, a degree of superiority over those who hear. We assert the possession of more intelli gence, better views, or superior character. To take such an attitude even in the lower fields of thought and interest, demands some nerve, and should be done with a sense of personal imper fection. But to address men on the duty, worth, and destiny of souls, on the stupendous questions of eternity, of the Divine Government and attri, butes, a man of honest purpose, of conscious de ficiency, may well tremble,—since on his words may be suspended the state of multitudes for this life, and the life to come. It is not for the speaker to imagine that his hearers are dunces. He cannot well lose his self-consciousness in that fancy ; and if he could, it would be unworthy both of them and of himself. It is not a bad in dication when he hesitates and trembles, for the mind of the whole assembly and the eye of God are on him. Nor is such a state a serious hind rance to the speaker. It mellows his tone, it drives him to his theme and to his Maker, and often stimulates his soul to the highest emo tion. Animal courage is not always the quality of great minds. The most susceptible are often most timid, and yet they as often rise to sublime moral daring; they struggle to throw off the pressure of human presence and magnify the truth above opinions. While captains are not generally eloquent, poets and orators are rarely brave. Cicero al most invariably trembled when rising to address an assembly. Demosthenes was not a bold man. Only in the heat of argument and inspired by a sense of justice did he evince a fearless soul. Whitefield was timid. Most of the distinguished living preachers are tremulous when they rise to speak, whereas many of our third and fourth rate ranters are as bold as a lion. "Of all qualities animal courage is least allied to other excellen cies; and it will be observed that of all public speakers, those braggadocios who fear nothing have 'generally least of that sensibility, which frequently makes a trembling man a son of thun der or an angel of consolation."* Diffidence de notes sensibility which is an essential element of . eloquence. Says the younger Pliny—"A confu sion and concern in the countenance of the speaker casts a grace upon all that he utters; for there is a certain decent timidity,which, •I know not how, is infinitely more engaging than the assumed self sufficient air of confidence." r • It is related by an eye-witness that _T anie Webster, when he appeared, for the first time, before the Supreme Court of the United States, in the celebrated case, " The Trustees of Dartmouth College vs. Wm. H. Woodward," was pale and tremulous. His hands were clench ed and pressed to his side. His lip quivered. He began slowly by stating the question to be decided, then gave a history of the charter of the collegecexplained its meaning, and bow it was understood by the Trustees and by the State Legislature, cited act after act in English and American law concerning such institutions of learning, rose from facts to arguments, and as be rose the eyes of the court were bent on him, his features resumed their composure and dignity, the muscles of his hands relaxed, his voice came out in its deep, rich, awe-inspiring tones, his gestures asserted his release from fear, and when the "authorities" had been set in solid, phalanx before the Judges, and the last words of appeal had fallen on their ears, the case was gained, the assent was written on every face, and the "quern enim alium appellem 7 quem obtester ? quem implorem ?" with which he closed, changed the moment of fear into a day of glory. Now if there is such authority in the lower fields of oratory, if it may assert itself the more triumphantly for the diffidence by which it is introduced and attended, surely in the sacred office, in the utterance of God's thought, while modesty and self-distrust become us, we may yet speak with authority. "Truth has rights which pass to its representative." And those who hear us may demand " this seal to our discourse." Authority is the right to speak, to be believed. We may claim it; We ought to be conscious of the right and yet modest in the claim. But this right will not be felt 'without conviction, zeal, knoteledge,—specially of the Scriptures ; 'piety, faith in success, a commanding sense of God, a burning love for man, a large view of the future, and deep satisfaction in the work of the ministry. To s peak with authority, we must have charac- Id, decision, boldness, confidence in truth, con sistency of life, devotion to our work, and along with modesty the seeming paradox of self-forget fulness, " abandon"—when we get into the heat and glow of discourse. It is essential that we feel ourselves to be commissioned of God, and to make others feel it. We should be able to say like Luther—" This is not my work 0 God, thou knowest, it is thine; Thou bast sent me." Like Paul—" I believe and therefore speak." What we want most religiously and profoundly in the pulpit, is the conviction that we are there to set God before men; to hold up Christ as Lord, Saviour, \ King ! To lose ourselves in the message; to get back the freedom and resolution of the Prophets and Apostles; to know and feel the spirit of our calling. The world has no right to circumscribe the liberty of the pulpit, neither has the church. Our law is the command of God. Our themes are. the truths of God. W e fight a real enemy and must have real armor. We have no mock battles. We are in the place of God, and are to speak asM d o e s e e p x Moses e di pr d e o e , i i e nh e is ; name; with the testimony of a with the corroborating power of harmony between what we are and what we say; with a sense of personal sinfulness; with self-oblivion, with charity and deep affection, with dependence on the aids of the Spirit, and with the firm persua sion that truth will conquer. Editor. $14.00 * Abel Stevens. PREACHING--..N0. 6. BY REV. E. E. ADAMS Auttrirait gittobtftrian and 1 41tittort 6rangtliot. NATIONAL SINS. At such a time as this, it is right and appro priate for the public teachers of the people to point out and denounce the prevailing sins of the nation. It is essential that we should be brought to confess and forsake them, and so fulfill a great providential purpose of our present national afflictions. But while it may be well to go over the whole field, and point out every national fail ing, there is a disermination that should be ex cised, and those sins of which we as a nation are mainly guilty, should be made the subject of most earnest investigation and remonstrance, while others may be mentioned in due propor tion. In this nation there are' just now certain sins rampant; they are more prominent here than in any other part of the civilized world; they have brought us to the verge of destruction ; they are working like a pestilent leaven all through our community. And the minister who ignores them, while he bewails other: offences less bold, less peculiar to us as a nation, less operative to our injury, shows a lament able ignorance or indifference towards the most serious realities. Our peculiar national sins are not covetousness, not licentiousness, not profanity, not Sabbath breaking; in these we but share the guilt of other nations, and, for the most part, fall far below it. The pressing sins of our day which are digging our national grave, and in which, for the present, , we stand alone, are : dis respect of rightful authority ; an utterly selfish and unscrupulous party:spirit; and hatred' of an inferior race. If God does not speedily deliver us from the power of these monstrous and truly national sins, we are gone I And we call upon the ministry to turn their attention to these sins as the true marks of their sharpest arrows of de nunciation, as a field for their most earnest and impassioned oratory. " Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a - trumpet, and shew my pee- their trangressions and the house of Jacob their sins." FIRST COLORED CHURCH, WASHINGTON. We are pleased to learn that this church is in a prosperous condition. It is under the care of a loyal and zealous brother, Rev. W. B. Evans, late pastor of Granite and Harmony churches. In a recent note to us, Mr. Evans says': " When I took charge as stated supply, I found the church in debt to the amount of nearly $6OO. I am glad to say that it is not only out of debt, but we were able, during the Christmas holidays to raise, from concerts &c., the noble sum of $4OO for the poor contrabands in this city. Was, not that a noble work for a colored congregation to accomplish in three nights ? "I have just received a present of a suit of clothes, complete, from my congregation ; you may judge of its value when I tell you that it cost $B7. " I would say that one member of the church paid for his freedom the large sum of $3.000, his wife also paid for hers, the additional sum of $6OO. They live in their own house, have edu cated seven daughters in the city of Boston, and More accomplished ladies I have not found in all my travels. I dined with them a few Sabbaths ago, and I must say I was delighted and sur prised to find such refinement mixed with true piety; for the parents and children are 'members of the church." Who will say that such a people is unfit for freedom ? We venture to, say that more of such instances of liberality, and capacity for refinement and culture and real piety, can be found among the colored people of our land, than among twice the number of those who deride them at the North. We are ashamed to hear in the Congress of a free country, from the lips of a man like Mr. Crittenden, the expression, as reported in the debate on enlisting colored soldiers, that the blacts " are not worthy to aspire to the position of freemen I" Such language is an insult to the God that made them; and no contest waged on such a, principle can ultimately succeed. We welcome such evidences of the advancement :of the race, as are presented by the First Colored Church in Washington, with thankfulness and hope. ORURO AND STATE.--HOW IT WORKS. In the Established Church of Scotland, min isters are presented to the various,pastoral charges,by the Queen or the nobility, who are regarded as the supreme authorities in the Church. The individual Church or Congregation is not allowed formally to take the initiative in calling a pastor, but is expected to ratify the appointments of the Government, before Presbytery proceeds to in stal the, appointee. It is presumed that, the wishes of the Congregation are consulted - and respected in these appointments, and that all abuse of power in the intrusion of an undesirable candidate is thereby avoided. That this is not always the case, however, appears in a recent in stance, which occurred in the parish Church of Dunbog, Presbytery of Cupar. The Congrega tion after havino asked permission of her Ma jesty to choose their own minister, had cordially I united the preceding July, on Rev. John Webster I of East Anstruther and had informed the Home Secretary, Sir George Grey of their choice. What was"'their surprise and disappointment to learn in the following October, that a different individual, Rev. J. P. Edgar of. Berwick-on- Tweed had been "presented":to the vacant parish by the crown. The Presbytery of Cupar met in the parish Church January Bth, to mo derate the call, when a scene of general disorder took place, highly unfavorable to the repute of Scotland, and of Presbytery in, general, for good order, and, rarely paralleled in the churches of democratic America. The church was well filled by the parishioners, who were deeply dis appointed in not having Mr. Webster, the man of their choice, and were in no mood to receive an entirely different person as the appointee of the Crown. When the Presbytery, according to order, called first upon " heritors or their man dataries " to come forward and sign the call, the tenant of Dunbog, as " mandatory" for the Earl of Zetland responded, and we are told that his appearance was the signal for a storm of hissing, hooting, and groaning, from nearly all parts of the church, similar to the reception given in front of the hustings to an unpopular candidate on the occasion of a general election. The Mod erator and the clerk both called out in the mid dle of the hissing : This cannot be permitted,' but the interruption continued for some time amid cries of chair and order'. Mr. Ballingall Signed the call amidst continued hissing , and hooting, which increased in vehemence as he re turned to hie pew." At this point, a solicitor, who appeared on be half of the only elder and a large number of the communicants, attempted to get a hearing; stating amid loud and prolonged applause, that the Pres bytery and the Church at large would find it to be a very serious matter 'to obstruct the people. It was ruled that he ,eotdd not be heard at this stage; and the clerk of Presbytery proceeded to ask whether any communicants were disposed to sign the call. "In answer to this invitation, five women and one man rose and left their pews to comply with the invitation of the Moderator. Their rising was the signal for another outburst of hissing, and groaning, amidst which some one said,—No, that's not Free Kirk, let them sign. The 'hissing and hooting, mingled with cries of various kinds, continued all the time the signa tures were being appended to the call. The Moderator and several members of Presbytery made one or two attempts to check it, but they proved ineffectual. Several of the signers excited more indignation than others ; those who were most hooted at being one or two who had • previously engaged to sign no call to any other than the one who was the choice of the congre gation. These were greeted with such cries as Traitor,' and, 'Oh, Willie! One young woman, as she returned to her Flew . after signing the call, was hailed amidst laigriter, with the cry,—' She dinna attend her `ain kiek very often." The signers consisted altogether of`the Earl of Zetland, and twelve members of the congrega tion—all from'the farm of Dunbog—and six per sons not belonging to, the parish at all. At this point, the selicitor was heard on be halfof 143 communicants and 86 adherents, who in a lengthy document to which their names were appended; recited the facts in the case, and pro tested strongly against the intrusion of Mr. Ed gar. In this document it was stated that, after hear ing of what the Crown had done, the congregation sent another petition to be allowed to choose their own minister, to which Sir Geo. Grey re plied that the Home Secretary considered that he had discharged his .duty in regard to their spiritual interests ,by the , selection of Mr. Edgar. It did not seem clear to the solicitor what the Presbytery could do for the relief of the people, butitwas hoped they would co-operate with them in securing their wishes., ' After a discussion it was resolved that the document be " allowed to lie on the table," and , earnest a expr essions of sympathy with the people were made by members of the Presbytery. Lord Aberdeen's Act, and Regulations of the Assembly, were referred to by speakers, as serious obstacles in the way of obtaining redress, and Presbytery adjourned to the 17th of January, in the hope that meantime the whole matter might be satisfactorily adjusted among the individuals concerned. We submit that this whole scene, as, reported in the Weekly Review, is scandalous and humiliating: Here is a Church and congregation in a tumult at the de nial of their plainest rights as a spiritual commu nity, and a Presbytery, a high court of the Church of Christ, powerless to aid them. A church ses sion and a Presbytery are but the instruments of registering the will of a state government in re gard to one of their most essential prerogatives. What amount of temporal advantage would com pensate for going under such a yoke,? THE CHUBOR ENfiRPRIBE AT CAIRO. Rev. Robert Stewart writes to the Evangelist, an encouraging account of the condition and pros pects of this Church, 'in the origination of which he was mainly instrumental. The ,house was built under the directiOn of Mr. Stewart, acting as MisSionary of the Alton Presbytery—one of the crimes, he says, for which the Presbytery suffered ,so severely from the. Secretaries of the American Home Missionary Society. The build ing was completed in January 1856; the church was organized (?) Dec. 20, 1857, with ten mem bers, only, and no elders. For want of a suita ble pastor, it has, at times, been well nigh ex tinct. When Mr. Stewart arrived there last Jfine, there was the same number, ten, with considerable changes in the individuals. A pro tracted meeting was held in November, Rev. J. T. Avery assisting. Mr. Stewart says: During these meetings •many of the soldiers attende and several young men were converted and wen on, to the battle-field, rejoicing in hope. Nine , persons were added to the Church, six on pro fession; Christians were greatly , revived and brought up to a new stand-point of activity. As a result of this work we have a young men's prayer-meeting, which promises good. The Lord be praised, for he has verified the riches.of his grace to us. They that sow in tears shall reap in joy." HOME MISSIONS. The Evangelist giv . es the following list of re cent liberal contributions to this cause in New York city. We hope it may, soon be matched in Philadelphia. The contribution from the Third Church, Pittsburg, is , recommended to the no tice of the New York Independent and the Bos ton Congregationalist, as a proof of the degree of interest felt in the cause by Presbyterians of Pennsylvania. LIBERAL CO/VTRIBIT,TIONS.—The following Churches have taken upc„their collection for the Committee of Honte Missions and have contrib- uted as follows : 1. West Presbyterian, Rev. T. S. Hastings, pastor, $4OO. 2. Church of the Cov enant, Dr. Prentiss, pastm, $556. 3. The Mercer street Church, Rev. R. It. Booth, pastor, $513. 36. 4. Fourteenth.street Presbyterian Church, Dr. Asa I). Smith, pastor, $620. 5. Madison- Square, Presbyterian Church, Dr. Adams, pastor, $2291. In all, $4380 36. We have just learned also of the collection in the Third Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, of which the. General Secretary of the committee on Home Missions was, and Rev. H. Johnson is now, pastor. The collection reaches $l5OO. This it should be said, was the result of no spe cial appeal, the cause being regularly presented by the pastor. " The Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian Society, of Detroit," raised over $B,OOO for the year 1862. Their mortgage debt, and all their debts and current expenses up to January Ist, 1863, have been paid, leaving a small balance in the Trea• sury. Their church and lot have cost about $65,000. The Church, organized in 1853, is in a prosperous condition, under the ministrations of its Pastor, Rev. Wm. flogarth, D.D. They have about 200 members, and a flourishing Sunday school of over 200 'children; also, a Mission school of about 150 children, in charge of mem bers of that Church. APPEAL OP THE HOME MISSIONARY COMMITTEE. PRESBYTERIAN 110IISE, PHILADELPHIA, January 20th, 1863. To the Sessions of the Churches : DEAR BRETHREN:—The undersigned were appointed by the Synod of Pennsylvania, at its late meeting in Wilmington, Del., to address the several churches of the Synod on the subject of Home Missions. The design of this brief appeal is to impress the churches with the necessity of the most vigorous exertions to secure their All proportion of the 875,000 needed by the Per manent Committee of Home Missions the present year. From the limited contributions hitherto made to Home Missions, by our branch of the Church, it is clear that this sum cannot be raised without an energetic effort throughout our entire Church. With a united and zealous effort, we will succeed ; but if we are satisfied with the former standard of contributions to this object, we will fail. No church, however feeble, can be released from its due share of responsibility in this matter. The followina reasons urge our churches to this united and vigorous effort at the present time:- 1. The disturbed state of the country has in terfered .with the prosperity of many of the mis sionary churches: Some, before the . war, were on the eve of being able to sustain their ministers, but this trying event has obscured this bright prospect. In many cases, a large proportion of young men, who were active in the Sunday-sehool and prayer meeting, have gone to the .war; and the people that remain are less able than former ly to make their usual contribution to the support of the means of grace among them. These chur ches have fewer active members, endless pecuni ary ability, and they are greatly discouraged. They have therefore a special claim on our sym pathy and help, and neither patriotism nor piety willkwarrant us in turning a deaf ear to their cry for succor. 2. The General Assembly has undertaken to foster its own missionary churches, without aid from foreign societies. It has encouraged these feeble churches to rely with confidence on their own denomination for sympathy in the time of need; and they are now doing so. Indeed, while they are ecclesiastically connected with us, they can obtain help from no other source. The new rules of the American Home Missionary Society cut them off from all aid from that institution, lf, then, the Assembly fail to render them need ful help, they must languish and die, or change their ecclesiastical relation as a means of self preservation. In either case, our whole denomi nation will be disgraced, and the cause of religion through our entire bounds be damaged. 3. That the strong should bear the burdens of the weak, is an evangelical principle. When this law is in force throughout the denomination, all parts of the Church are bound together by Chris tian sympathy and affection. A union formed on such a basis must be strong and enduring. The benefactor and the beneficiary, by kind min istrations and by the gratitude these ministrations awaken, begin to realize they are one in the sa cred work of diffusing the blessings of the Gos pel among the lost. Though residing in different and distant parts of the country, they are, by this fraternal remembrance of each other, brought into the most endeared relationship, and realize that they are members of that one glorious Church which Christ, loved and for which he gave him self—that they are inspired by the same spirit, laboring for the same object, and animated by the same blessed hope. Let this law of Christ pervade our entire. Church, and the missionary and his people will be encouraged in their self denying work, and the glow of Christian love will influence the hearts of the patrons of Home Missions and prevent them from becoming weary in well•doing. We see, then, that the honor of our denomina tion, the necessities of our numerous feeble churches, and the glory of our divine Lord, in the expansion of our Church through the land, urge us to embark in the Home Mission cause with more than ordinary zeal and liberality. In calling your attention to this matter, we have f'ulfilled the end of our appointment. To you, as the session of the Church, belongs the responsi ility of responding to this appeal according to your estimate of its importance. We gladly leave the matter in your hands, expressing the hope that the collection fur this object will be taken up at the earliest time possible. Funds are greatly needed to pay the missionaries, many of whose claims are still uncap celed. Moneys may be sent to FION. EDWD. A. LAMBERT, Treasurer, No. 150 Nassau Street, New York City; or, to ROBT. ADAIR, Associate Secretary, No. 1334 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. 1 ROBERT AnAnt, Conn. of Sinod ' HENRY DARLING, of B. D. STEWART, Pennsylvania. [The following note is appended by the Asso ciate Secretary.] Please by return of mail, if possible, let me know the month and the Sabbath of the month in which your Congregation make their contribu tion to Home Missions. lam anxious to obtain this information for the use of the Permanent Committee on Home Missions. ROBERT ADAIR, A.ssociate Sec'y of, Com. of H. Missions, 1334 CHESTNUT STREET. NATIONAL CURRENCY AB A BOND OP UNION. Secretary Chase, in his magnificent Report on the Finances of the Nation, proposes the substi tution of U. S. bonds as a basis for all Banking operations in the country, and U. S. notes as an exclusive paper currency. He, says " The proposed plan is recommended, finally, by the firm anchorage it will supply to the union of the States. Every banking association whose bonds are deposited in the treasury of the Union; every individual who holds a dollar of the circu lation secured by such deposit; every merchant, every manufacturer, every farmer, every me chanic, interested in transactions dependent for success on the credit of that circulation, will feel as an injury every attempt to rend the national unity ; with the permanence and stability of which all their interests are EO closely •and vitally con nected. Had the system been possible, and had it actually existed two years ago, can it be doubt ed that the national interests and sentiments en listed by it for the Union would have so strength ened the motives for adhesion derived from other sources, that the wild treason of Secession would have been impossible ? " REV. THOMAS Towun bas removed from Jackson, Jackson Co., 0., to Breckville, Cay.: ahoga, Co., having accepted, an invitation to.act as stated supply of the Presbyterian Church in the latter place. ' DIRECTORY OF PRESBYTERIAN MINIS , TEES & CHURCHES OF PHILADELPHIA. PRESBYTERIAN HOUSE, MN CHESTNUT ST NAMES OF MINISTERS AND I RESIDENCES AND CLIIIRCHES. LOCATIONS. Alums, E. E. - - - - 1632 Mt. Vernon Street. N. Broad street church. Sy. Garden and 13th Sts. AD,AJR, ROBERT- - - - Norristown. Asst. Sec. H. M. Com. Presbyterian House. BARNES, ALBERT - - - 255 South Eighth Street, Ist Church. - •' - - Wash. Sq. cor. Seventh., BRAINERD, T., D.D., - - 634 Pine Street. Brd Church. - - - - Fourth and Pine Streets. BROWN CHARLES - - - Spruce ab. 40th, W. P. See. Phila. Ed. Soey. Presbyterian House. BRUEN, EDWARD B. - - 1631 Chestnut Street. BURDETT, M. - - - - 718 Sansom Street. BUTLER, JAMES G. - - Chestnut ab. 40th, W. P. Walnutst.Church,W P. Walnut Street, ab. 89th. CRITTENDEN, S. W. - - Darby. 2nd Church, Darby. - - CULVER, ANDREW - - - Manayunk Church. - - DARLING, HENRY D.D. - DoLLes JOHN W. - - - Sec. i'resb. Pub. Corn. Eve, W. T. - - - - - ' let Church, Kensington HELFFENETEIN, J' 8., DD. Mkt Rause Sq. Church. JENKINS, JOHN, D,D. - - Calvary Church. - - JOHNSTON, THOMAS S. - Mantua Church, W. P. MALIN, DAVID, D.D. - - MA'acrr, D. - - - - - Clinton street Church. MCCABE'S, JAMES - - - South-western Church. McLuon, JOHN - - Sec. A. B. C. F.M.- Warts, Jona . W. - - • Ed. Am. Presbyterian, MILLER, JEREMIAH Phil. Sab. Association. MITCHELL ' • JAMES Y. - - Central Church, N. L. NEILL, E. D. - - - Chaplain U.S. Hospit'ls PATTON, John, D.D. - - Logan Square Church. PIERCE, E. J. - - - REEVE, J. B. - - Lombard st. Cent. Ch. ROBBINS, FRANK L. - Green Hill Church. - SHEPHERD, THOMAS J. - Ist Church, N. L. - CHARLES A., D.D. Western Church. - - SMITH H. AUGUSTUS - - Twelfth Church. - - TAYLOR, W. W. - - - Olivet Church, - - - VAN DRUBS, GEORGE - - Tabor Mission. - - - SOUTHWARK IST. CHURCH^ ICENDERTON CHIIBOH• - • A SUGGESTION APPROVED. Many of our exchanges have copied the sug gestion made in our columns a few weeks ago, in regard to a public announcement of the results of a collection for benevolent objects. The ed itor of the Hartford Religious. Herald says: "We have adopted this course, and have found that it operated well. When a contribution 'is taken in the church, we publicly announce on the Sabbath following, the amount received. . . 'We only add, that there has been a steady increase in the amount of our contributions." WE, THIS WEEK, send out bills to a number of our Agents in New York State; to which we ask their prompt attention. Such of these bills, as were due in advance at the first of the year, are made out at $2.50 ; a reduction . of fifty cents being allowed if paid before the first of April next. We are happy to be able to announce the con tinued success of the paper as a self-supporting enterprise. New subscribers are coming in, in an encouraging degree, and almost every old subscription is renewed. While other and older sheets are disappearing entirely, or greatly re ducing their dimensions, the steadiness with which the AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN maintains its position is a matter of congratulation and thankfulness. We hope our friends will take courage and prosecute their efforts for the enlargement of the circulation and influence of the paper. New correspondents of ability and experience are em ploying their pens for our columns, and arrange- Tents are making for additional features of interest and value. COMMISSIONERS To THE GENERAL .ASSEM BLY. Presbytery Genesee Valley:,Rev. J. B. Baker and Elder A. B. Palmer. Of Chemung Revs. 0. C. Carr, and F. S. Howe, and Elders D. B: Westlade and J. A. Redfield. u'ltt elturrti ftwo, WE understand that the First Dutch Church of Jersey City have offered a call to Rev. ,Dr. Bell, of the Presbyterian Church (N. S.), of California.— Christian Intelligence:r. REV. O. A. Lyman has resigned., his, army chaplaincy in Col. Charles Anderson's regiment, and returned to his home itt Dayton, in impaired health. Rzv. W. H. Rogers has been invited by the 69th Ohio Regiment (Col. L. D. Campbell's) to become their chaplain. The Governor has been applied to for a commission, and. Mr. Ro gers will doubtless receive and , accept the appoint ment: AT a pro-re-nata meeting of the Presbytery of Cincinnati, held recently the Third and Eighth Churches were united ; the name of the new or ganization to be the Third Presbyterian Church, and its place of worship that of the Eighth Church. REV. R. D. VAN'DEURSEN having been obli ged to leave the army, in which he has been: ac tive as chaplain, on account of the failure of his health, has resumed his labors as pastor at Galli polls. The congregations are reported as min sually good. THE FIRST dHURCII ADRIAN, MICHIGAN, Rev Geo. Duffield, Jr., pastor, are just finishing a room for the infant departm.ent of their Sabbath school, with a gallery,"after the Lee Avenue plan. Mr. Duffield says " This is the Primary .De partment. By January Ist, those who' have learned to read, and are able to recite the Lord's Prayer and the Ten Commandmenti and Brown's ,Catechism, are expected to graduate from this department, and enter- the Sunday school proper_ Remainingthere until they are able to stand , a satisfactory examination on the Life of Christ, or Sacred Geography, and in the Shorter'-Cate chism; they might then be promoted td the Bible class department. " In the State Convention held at Ann Arbor in October. I took the ground, that Michigan should, aim at nothing less than to have a Sunday school system equally excellent with that of her graded , public schools: It is an awful thought-- almost too awful to express for fear ofheing,mia understood—but, what an unexaniple'd oppor tunity is now afferded---by the 'destruction to s o great an .extent of one generation, for training np another ?4 Green Lane, Manayunk. Manayunk. Germantown Chestnut ab. 40th, W. P. Presbyterian House. 1116 Columbia Av., East. Girard Av. near Han. St. Germantown. Germantown. 1814 Pine Street. Locust Street, ab 16th. • Sycamore and 36th, W.P 6th and Bridge Sts.,W.P 1614 Chestnut Street. 822 Pine Street. - • - - _ Tenth Street, bel. spruce. 425 S. Twentieth Street. Fitzwater and 20th Sts. `Reeseville, -Penna. Presbyterian House. 300 N. Eighteenth Street. Presbyterian House. 1106 Callowbill Street. 1033 North Fifth Street. Coates. Street, ab. Third 2319 Green Street. 1621 Summer Street 20th and Vine Streets. 718 Sansom Street. 11th and Race Streets. Lombard ab. Bth Street. Girard Av. & 16th Street Girard Av. ab. 16th St. 507 Brown Street. Buttonwood below 6th. 1580 Arch Street. 17th and Filbert Streets. 1580 Arch Street. South Street, aboire 11th. 2021 Wallace Strret. 22nd and Mt. Vernon Sts. 250 S. Juniper Street. 'l7th and Fitzwater Sts. German ab. Third. Street. Tioga Street, ab. 17th. REV. B. P. El - AMNON]) IN THE NORTH CHURCH, N. Y.—Dr. Hatfield writes to the Evangelist as follows : " Yon will be pleased to learn that Mr. Hammond's labors in this Church have resulted in an interesting work of grace. Altlibugh he has been obliged, on account of severe cold, to limit himself in the number and amount of his services, yet he has not labored in vain. Large congregations have gathered, night after night, to hear the. Word; and scores of hear ers have been led to seek the salvation of their souls. Some very remarkable cases of hopeful conversion have :occurred, and among them a sportsman well known to the fraternity, and of large influance among them. But it is among the children the work extends most. Hundreds appear to have been more or less seriously im pressed, and scores of them profess to have been °converted. We trust that the work will be deep ened, and obtain a wide prevalence among us. Let prayer be made everywhere for our city." ONE OF OVE LTOENTIATES has recently been ordained in Louisiana. This seems like an omen of the spread of a purer Presbyterianism in the emancipated regions of the South West. Mr. Philander Reed who had nearly completed his theological studies at Auburn, enlisted as a private in the 75th N. Y. Volunteers, and was sent with the regiment to Louisiana. Since ar riving in that section, he has been elected chap lain of the 4th regiment, Louisiana Home Guard, (colored), and was ordained by a council con vened in the chaplain's tent;of the 110th N. Y. regiment, at Camp Mansfield, Carrollton, Janu ary 4th.. The Council was composed of ministers of four evangelical Christian •denominations. After ex amining the candidate it was resolved to ordain him as an Evangelist. The members of the regi ment were formed in, a hollow square, as is usual for religious services. According to arrange ment, Rev. W. M. Modezitt, chaplain of the 116th N. Y. V., read the Scriptures ; Rev. E. Lord proposed the Constitutional Questions and offered the Ordaining Prayer; Rev. W. Putnam, chaplain of the 160th N. Y. V., gave the Charge to the newly Ordained Evangelist. Rev. J. B. Van Petten, Lieut. Colonel of the 160th N. Y. V., addressed the soldiers present, and Rev. Wm. W. Potter, Captain in the 160th N. Y. V., pro nounced the Benediction. The services were held in the open air, just at evening, and were deeply interesting to all who were present.— Evangelist. Tim NEW EDIFICE of the First Church, Bay City, Michigan, was dedicated Dec. 24th. It re places the one destroyed by fire, February 2d.1362. The dimensions are 40 by 70 feet, with a spire 115 feet high Only $3OO are due on it, besides the loan from the Church Erection Fund. A Church with only about. sixty members, and not a rich man in it, completing two houses of worship within one year, is certainly evidence of energy and enterprise, and also of the blessing of God. Buy. JOEL PARKER, D. D., having entered upon his labors in his new char g e, the Park Presbyterian Church, Newark N. J, the Aev..R. D. Hitchcock, D. D., has .been engaged to supply the pulpit of the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian Church every Sabbath, morning and evening. TRE CONTRIBUTIONS of the First Church, 'Buf falo Rev.. W. Clarke: D.D.—Pastor; for 1862 are double those of the preceding year. TE(E REFORMED DUTCH church of Fishicill Lan ding, has tendered a call to the Rev Mr. Kimbal, of our church.. fir< <3 üblizatiou,o. 'PATRIARCHAL SHADOWS of Christ and his Church;.exhibited in passages drawn from the life of Joseph and his brethren. This is one of Rev. Dr. O. Winslow's treaties, in many respects so attractive to pious readers. The aim of the writer is exalted and important : to present a " living Christ" to the apprehension of the believer. This he does by the skilful handling of the events of Joseph's life as types of spiritual truth. Dr.,' W. delights in fanciful titles and is somewhat fanciful in the treatment of the facts of Scripture; yet the earnestness force and warm Christian spirit in which he writes, commend his books to general regard. New York, R. Carter & Bros.; Philadelphia, Presbyterian Book Store. MA.GAZINES, I'AMPHLETS,. ETC. MESSRS. SCHAEFFER & KORADI have issued, in .. Philadelphia =and Leipsic, a little pamphlet embodying the results Ofmuch research in an• cleat hiStorY and ethnography, in the form, and withihe . title, of HISTORICAL QUESTIONS, we commend to the reard of teachers and elm ses in the higher grades. There are few whose knowledge of the subject would stand the test of these' searching inquiries presented in this un pretending, form. The'latest advances made in the .branches treated of'are duly noticed. Ro bert H. Labberton; Author. Pp. 32; price 20 cents. The same author announces as in prepa ration Rhode's historical Atlas containing S 4 maps, illustrating Sacred, Classical, Medieval and ,Modern, History.. , WE , have received: a , pamphlet copy of 31r. Wm. Welsh's . Letters on' the Home Missionary work of the Protestint Episcopal Chuck, pubs Ii ... ed at the request ot Bishop Stevens. J. S. Me - Calla Jr. PhiladelPhia. THE STUDENT AND SCHOOLMATE, for Februa ry, contains its usual variety of matter, instru:- tire, entertaining, quickening to the youthful intellect, genial and wholesome in its moral tone not aline of the moderate space between its ov covers being wasted. The enigmas, rebuses. exercises in, speaking, and music are valuable features, Gralen,. James and Co. Boston, $l. per annum. ECLECTIC MAGAZINE for February, contains a *niscellany of eighteen valuable articles mon , : which, are "What: shall we do with our old maids?" coleus° on the Pentateuch," ate. The portrait of the Five Secretaries is not very flattering. DR. BURNS THOMSON, one of the most valued agents ofthe Edinburgh Medical Mission, who was sent out to Madagascar by the London Mission ary Society, has written home that he has bees appointed Court Physician to the King. He has six young men under medical and religious train ' ing) and his dispensary is conducted on the same Principal as in the Medical Mission in the Co ;gate of Edinburgh ;'religious exercises and instrue thm forming a regular part of his daily werk FEB. 12,
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers