f lie American Presbyterian
ANb
GENESEE EVANGELIST.
RELIGIONS AND. PAMILY NEWSPAPER,
•
IX TINI IMMIX . OP TIC
0 0/ 1 8titiltiOnal Presbyterian Church,
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY, '
.A.T THE PRESBYTERIAN HOUSE,
1884 Chestnut Street, (2d Story,) Philadelphia.
Ray. JOHN W. MEARS, :Editor and Publisher.
CONTENTS OF INSIDE PAGES.
SSOOND Peos—Fiant,v:
Blessed is the Man Whom Thou Chastenest—The
Old House Far Away—The :Young Bavarian, Chapter
1. Eilatsorrows : Benson, a Soldier's Story—A New
Thought for Old Barlow—l-raying Mothers—Novel
Reading and Insanity,-Asking Father—The Advan
tage of a Trunk.
THIRD PAGE—EDITOR'S TABLE :
Gillett's "Life Lasso= in the School of Christian Duty"
—Thompson's "Bryant Gray"—"Tales and Sketches
of Christian Life"—Jarnesha's "Legends of the Mo
nastic Orders"—" Hymns of, the Ages"—" Mark Bar
nett, the Cripple"—Penniman's •! Winfield, the Law
yer's Soul"—Pamphlets and Periodicals,-Literary
Items.
SIXTH PAGI-00B.11.116PO1DZWOZ :
Open Air Meetings No. X—Brovrning' W s Death of 81.
John, the Evangelist, third paper — esters College
Society—Homenfissions—Candid Views from Across
the Si. Lawretee—Frederick Douglass on Emancipa
tion in Maryland—Memorable Dates.
GBVINTH PACIZ—MISOELIANE9I:I3 •
Bishop Hopitins—Soutbern Evangelization—Dogs
and Dog Laws—lnteresting to'Farmers—Miraeles.
REVIVAL AFFECTIONS.
Certain. states of the regenerated heart
are understood to be indications and ne-
cessary condition's of a revival. It is
well to remind ourselves of them, if we
may thereby do nothing more than gain
a view' of our remoteness from such a
desirable condition. Let us hope that our
readers'may also be stirred up to labour
more zealously and definitely for a de-
aided and wide•spread movement in be
half of the spiritual interests of men.
1. We first name-an awakened con
acioneness of wandering, of personal de
ficieney, of spiritual need; a longing
after higher degrees of holiness and of
nearness to God ; a new and exalted
estimate of the beauty of holy living;
quickened conscience and a deepened
loathing. for sin. The Christian pauses
and finds the world taking. too deep a
hold upon his heart, religion slipping
into the background, prayer becoming
formal, cold and heartless, the love ,of the
Saviour ceasing to command his affec
tions,-his gratitude, his service. Some-
thing has arrested his attention, afflic
tions, perhaps ; perhaps the conversa
tion of a more devoted Christian, or the
deepened spirituality of his pastor's
preaching. Then as a mariner who
" has been tossed for Many days in
thick weather, and on an unknown sea,
he naturally avails himself of the first
pause in the storm, the earliest glance
.of the sun to take his latitude and as-
certain how far the elements have driven
him from his true course."
In humble acknowledgment, in shame
and grief for his ingratitude, in bitter
remembrance of worldliness, of besott
ing sin unconquered, of coldness and
tardiness in the pursuit of holiness, and
with new longings for a higher estimate
of all the spiritual facts and capacities
of his being, he prostrates himself before
'God for pardon and favour, and for new
'supplies of grace which will put him and
keep him upon a higher plane of Chris-
tian life and duty.
2. Love for souls is a certain and an
indispensable mark of a revived state.
From a condition of indifference, the
revived Christian finds himself roused
to a consciousness of solemn and thril
ling interests impending in the case of
every impenitent sinner. He beholds
kiimself surrounded with perishing souls.
Other facts in their condition may be
interesting and important ; but his eyes
zre now opened to see their spiritual
, condition, the contingencies of their
immortal existence and their peril as
'unredeemed men, to be infinitely more 1 1
important than their highest temporal
.concerns. His soul is stirred with
yearning and anxiety. Tbit , deep foun
tain of Christian charity in his renewed
ieart is broken up. He sees his family,
:this friends and neighbors, his fellow
men, smitten with the plague of sin,
and going down to destrUction. He
- mourns over the .wide-spread and soul
destroying indifference which prevails
*on the pubject. Shall such multitudes
go down to death without strenuous
.efforts, self-denials and 'strong cryings
'to God on their account? Shall we see
' - anen ready and eager by hundreds of
thousands to sacrifice bu&iness prospects,
to abandon home and its comforts and
to meet all the perils and hardships of
- war to save for their fellow-citizens an
earthly country— a temporal inheri
tance—while Christians remain as a
body, unmoved, inactive, reluctant to
/undergo the self-denial necessary in
=securing for immortal souls a heavenly
inheritance, and in diffusing those prin
.
.ciples of religion, without which the
•earthly country, for which so much
:blood is spilt and suffering undergone,
is of little temporal value? The re
vived Christian's zeal is kindled.. With
tearful earnestness and importunity not
to be dented, :he pleads with God for
New Series, Vol. I, No. 49.
souls. Like John Knox, he, is so op
pressed and burdened, - that he must have
his quest or he dies. With tender
interest, and irrepressible , concern, he
labors as he has opportunity for the
conversion of men. If he is a preacher
of the Gospel, his- sermons overflow
witb„the burden, of his " heart'S desire
and prayer to God." The work to be
done is great, the.interests at stake . are
vast; the Sonia that perish are those of
his own intimate and dearly-loved circle,
the time is short—these are the consid
erations which have revived his affec•
Lions, and prepared, him to rouse his
fellow Christians and the community.
3. Zeal for the glory of God and the
extension of his kingdom. Deep as is,
the source of that love for souls just
described, there is a deeper, holier spring
of activity. It is much indeed to be
awakened to the, solemn fact of the
worth and jeopardy of the soul, but we
need to pass from all lower considera
tions, to see all things in their relations
to the divine glory, and to have all
other desires and considerations merged .
in the supreme desire that God the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
may be honored in the fulfillment of his
plan for. redeeming a lost world. The
truly revived soul ardently longs for the
coming of his Kingdom, for the over
throw of his enemies and for the entrance
of his all-cpnquering light and love into
every dark heart of man. He wishes
every lost sinning one to see the supreme
excellence and amazing love of Christ,
to be convinced of his complete fitness
for his wants, to honor him by trusting
the salvation of his soul to his hands,
and to praise him here [ind hereafter.
forever. He longs for a genuine revival
as a display of the divine attributes of
power, love, condescension, mercy, in
regenerating the soul, in triumphing
over the' opposition of the stubborn
heart, in transforming selfish, carnal,
proud natures into temples for the in
dwelling of the glorious Trinity, and in
bringing the rainbow•girdled throne_ of
redeeming grace' to the very confines
of our fallen world. Revivals teach him
to anticipate the glad time when earth's
ransomed population shall echo the
ascriptions of lieaven : " Worthy is the'
Lamb that was slain to receive power,
and riches, and wisdom, and strength,
and honor, and glory, and ,blessing;
and when every creature which' is in
heaven and on the earth and under the
earth, and such as are in the sea and all
that are in them," shall be heard,
" saying : Blessing, and glory, and honor,
and power, be unto him that sitteth
upon the throne and unto the Lamb
forever and ever.".
Such are some of the leading affec
tions which presage, attend, and con
stitute a revival of religion. It becomes
us to inquire in what degree, if at all,
we share them, and to use every means
within our reach to kindle them in our
hearts and the hearts of our fellow-
Christians. We rejoice to believe that,
while no actual revivals can be reported,
there are not' a few of God's people in
whom' revival affections are kindled and
active at this time. And we may point
Christians, who seek for such aids as
the history of God's Providence in past
revivals furnishes,' to a recent work
called• the " HARvzsT WORK 'OF THE
HOLY SPIRIT," in which many remark
able and stirring accounts of revivals in
Great Britain and this country in the
years 1860-'62 are recorded.
INDEPENDENOY 13.11 N MAD,
We see it stated in The Examiner,
(Baptist,) that in a late meeting of a
Baptist Association, a proposal to have
an Associational celebration of the
Lord's Supper fell through, chiefly on',,
the ground that the communion was to
be regarded as Cch,urch ordinance, and
hence it required the authority of a
particular church to render its obser
vance proper. It was insisted that the
only right way of coming at the object
proposed, would be for the church in
whose house they were assembled, to
appoint a communion, with the under
standing that members of the. Associa
tion might, in the character of individ
ual visiting Christians, be invited to
participate with them. There was pro
bably too much machinery in this plan
to be readily extemporized : at least,
the matter was dropped. The corres
pondent of the Examiner severely ilisap
proves the ground taken as over-nice:
he might have said whimsical.
S 1 $ al
1 A
° :
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CRUELTY OF REBEL AUTHORITIES,
TO PRISONERS OF WAR,
There are some things spoken of as
sufficient to open the eyes of the blind
and to unstop the ears of the deaf.
They are overwhelming Fa.cn, before
which the most inveterate prejudices
and - the most cherished judgments must
go down, and which no'amount of influ
ence can keep from passing into the
body of history and the settled convic
tions'of mankind. Such is the story of
the massacre of St. bartholomew, the
persecutiou of the Huguenots, Albigen
ses and Waldenses, of Spanish Protes
tants by Philip, and of Datch Protes
ta•nts by Alva. No amount of white
washing can hide the true tint of the
scarlet whore, ean make a merciftil man
out of Nero, or Herod the Great, a good
man out of Judas, a just man out of Pi
late, or a martyr out of Pharaoh. Cer
tain developments, are being made in
this war which will set a brand as inef
faceable and as infamonS as any of these,
upon the Character of the rebellion. An
example of inhumanity as conspicuous
as any the world has ever seen will pass
into history in connection with its
name. It will stand beside the Inquisi
tion and the Sepoy rebellion, and the
page on which its barbarities are writ
ten will be hurried over, like theirs,
with a shudder.
It is indeed possible, by subtle reason
ing, to Shake somewhat the grounds of
belief in some of the .enormities referr
ed to as recorded in history ; and in tlie
absence of the specific testimony of eye
witnesses, we: are obliged to depend. up
on the gen;tral verdict of cotemporaries.
But the Commissions of Inquiry .ap-.
pointed by the Government and by the
Sanitary Comthission, have put the
whole matter of rebel barbarity upon . a,
footing as satisfactory as any court of
justice could require, in a case of life or
death. While the documents . which
they have issued endure, no mind capa
ble of receiving testimony will be able
to...hesitate_ a moment as to the_reality_
of the lamentable and shameful facts:
We have before us the thick pam
phlet, issued from the Living Age office,
which contains the narrative and sworn
'testimony collected by tlie agents of the
Sanitary Commission upon, the priva
tions and sufferings of IT.‘ S. officers and
soldiers, while prisoners of war in the
hands of the rebel authorities. We
hope our countrymen will read it. They
ought to know the diabolical intensity
and malignity of the spirit with which
they are contending. They ought to
be instructed into what depths of inhu
manity an unjustifiable rebellion—a proo
slavery mania stimulated to open war
can plunge their former fellow-citizens,
how it can unman and brutalize the
most chivalric and polished of people.
They ought to understand the measure
of suffering, worse than wounding,
maiming and death, which their noble
citizen soldiers are enduring for their
sake. They should have deeply wrought
into their souls a, sense of the duty laid
upon them, as ministers of justice and
of God, bearing not the sword in vain,
to crush such iniquities, and to make
the punishment as broad, as signal and
as conspicuous as the crime. It would
indeed be a fresh crime, to be, in the
slightest degree, indifferent to such
crimes or lukewarm as to their punish
ment. The deepest perils must envi
ron a people who can calmly frame their
policy to conciliate the authors of such
enormities. The very - foundations of
morality and of justice must be under
mined where this can occur.
We cannot even epitonize the details
of these harrowing recitals. Every
paragraph of the Narrative seems bur
dened'.with some fresh horror. First,
the captives are systematically robbed,
even of necessary articles of clothing.
They are packed away in their prison
houses' like the miserable cargo of a
slave-ship amid indescribable accumula-
tions of uncleanness. They are wan
tonly shot down in their defenceless and
pitiable condition, for the sport of their
brutal guards. They are deliberately
starved and suffered to pine away with
hunger and cold—a slow torture, which
even the Indians, with all their refine
ments of cruelty, did not inflict on their
victims. The succour sent by their
friends in the North, is plundered from
them, or piled up in the sight, but be
yond the reach of the famished men,
thus putting them in the hell of the an
cient mythology and inflicting on theF
Genesee Evangelist, No. 008.
BEE
the pangs of Tantalus. Dogs, rats,
bones, cast-away refuse, were eagerly
seized by these famine-stricken Men for
food. Some were thrust into green and
slimy dungeons,, so full that all were
obliged:to stand all night. Loathsome;
ness, vermin, cold. and hunger, hospitals
scarcely -, equal to good hog-pens, swept
them , away by hundreds. Even the
bodies of those Who fell victims to
these cruelties, were suffered to •be
partly devoured by hogs, dogs, and•
rats. And preparations were actu
ally made to blow, up, the Richmond
prilions, with all, their inmates, in the
event of the capture of the city by our
forces. And as or those who escaped
• aliVe and were returned exchanged to
the North, language fails to describe
their pitiable, emaciated, lOathsome
condition; some idiotic, some imbecile,
many dying, many requiring months of
clean Sing to, 'restore; the functions of the
skin, Arne partially blind, deaf and
dumb,• some maimed from frost,- and all
ravenous beyond expression for food.
They were not the victims of disease,
but of Systematic starvation, of over
crowding, of confinement in foul. abodes,
and of 'exposure like beasts to all the
changes of the seasons and the atmos-
And. all these sufferings befel them at
the tan& of an enemy- who was able to
feed, clothe, nurse and give adequate
Medical attention to his own army, and
-who could plead no act of our Govern
ment towards his own men in our
hands, as a justification. Thus far
every statement is proved-beyond pos
sibility of doubt. '.Tens;of thousands
of helpless men have been and are now
being disabled and destroyed by a pro
, cess, as certain as poison, and as cruel as
the torture or burning at the stake, be
cause nearly as, agonizing , and more pro
longed. This spectacle is daily beheld
arid allowed by the rebel government."
And what is the crushing and inevitable
inference ? That these sufferings "were,
designedly inflicted upon them by the
anthoAt - y -of the rebel -government."
The commission see no possible alterna
tive, much as they desired to avoid the
conclusion.
The race of men who under the debas
ing influence of slavery have become
capable of such unspeakable cruelties,
and who are so unconscious 'cif their
Criminality as 'to appeal to Heaven and
to mankind 'in justification of their
cause, cannot be tolerated by the ad
vancing civilization of the world, any
iikore than the cruel and. crafty red-man
of the forest. They will not reform ;
they will not accept offers of peace.
God in his justice will suffer them to
harden their hearts -like Pharaoh and
will cosign them to Pharaoh's doom.
The South will persist, will again, and
again rally and fill up tha ranks of her
shattered armies, will be suffered to
gather courage from partial defeats
and repulses of the North, will in fine
prolong the war sufficiently to secure
the sweeping of her cruel and relentless
population from the face of the earth.*
* Just as we lift our pen from the paper, we hear of
our Government purchasing flour for the rebel prisoners
at Fort Delaware, of a quality Commanding the price by
the thousand barrels of $12,50 per barrel. That will do as a
specimen of our mode of treatment of our captured
enemies.
A DILEMMA.
We notice since the results of the
late election have been declared, decided
manifestations of rejoicing in some
quarters, where, before and on the day
itself, there was a disposition to under
rate the magnitude of the questions at
issue. Especially is the victory wel
comed, as a triumph or anti-slavery
principles,—as a proof that the election
has settled the fate of slavery, securing
the enforcement of the emancipation
proclamation, and the passage of the
amendment to the constitution provid
ing for the abolition of slavery through
out the land. .
The fair inference from these excla
mations of joy is, that, had the election
resulted differently, slavery would have
been safe, the proclamation would have
been withdrawn and the amendment
would not have carried. The rejocing
parties must have believed these to be
the alternatives: Why, then, did they
not say so plainly during the campaign?
If all that the best part of the Christian
Church in this country for fifty years
has been striving to reach was, on the
Bth of November, in jeopardy; if the
moral gains of three years of terrible
war were on the point of being thrown
away;' if our attitude before the civi
lized world •would have been degraded
by a different result, and if Christian
and anti-slavery journalists knew and
felt this, how, in the name of religion
and humanity, could they put their
hands on their mouths and meekly
withdraw from the contest as'" political"
only ? Eow dash the enthusiasm of
earnest workers for the right, by plain
intimations that the, contest was not
vital—that the dangers were, exagger
ated? If
. they felt so cool that they
could , counsel moderation, why rejoide
'now ? If the contest was only a strife
bet Ween parties, if there was no essen
tial- iiiirenanae bet Ween the candidales
calling upon religious journals and ad
vocates of human - rights to take si,des,
if either party was sufficiently patriotic
to be safely entrusted with the reins of
power, why emphasize the vote as an
unalterable decision in favor of national
unity, why hail it with joy and "amens"
as sealing the fate of Slavery ? The
dilemma is inevitable and awkward.
We are sorry to see any respectable
journals so entangled. '
No doubt - their joy is sincere. But
how much greater and purer would it
be if they could look back upon a.
record of faithful -labors, freely,, boldly
heartily given to promote the cause,
and could feel that they, as journalists,
had_ honored their calling, by contribut
ing what lay in their power, to bring
to pass a triumph so glorious and blessed
in an hour so critical to the country,
and to the best interests of man!
PRESENT CONDITION OP .THE EDUCA
TION CAUSE.
The difficulties in past years attend
ing the inauguration .of a scheme for in
creasing the ministry throughout our
entire Church, are all happily removed,
and the whole body now stands pledged
to co-operate in a wise, effective and -un
iform plan, which is calculated to in
crease the spirituality and efficiency of
the Church in general, at the same time
that it will awaken interest, prayer, ac
tivity and liberality, in behalf of the Ed
ucation cause. Ministers and Elders
should understand this and other
scheraes of our Church, as certainly as
the officers of :thearmy should know
the first principles Of military science.
A. brief exposition of it-is, contained in
the last Annual Report of the Perma
nent Committee on Education to the
General Assembly, which has been wide
ly distributed by mail, and which is
earnestly commended to their attention.
The General Assembly has inaugurated
no plans which are not essential to the
discharge of its responsibilities, and
each one in its proper place and propor
tion has strong claims to fair considers_
tion and loyal support.
The first and great need of this cause
is an increase in the right kind of young
men. If proper care be taken, according
to the plan, in their selection, there is
no danger of securing too large a num
ber. Every young man in the Church,
whether self-supporting or dependent,
who ought to preach the Gospel, should
be sought out, instructed and encour
aged to do so ; and such as need pecu
niary assistance in pursuing their stud
ies, should have it furnished them. This
shows the propriety and necessity of a
compliance with the General. Assembly's
recommendation, that at least once ev
ery year this subject shall be suitably
presented from the pulpit to every con
gregation, and a contribution be taken
in behalf of the cause. While such con
tributions will gather a multitude of
smaller sums, there will be still room
left for individuals who have the ability
s to establish either temporary or perma
nent scholarships in the charge of the
Permanent Coraraittee.
The number of young men receiving
assistance from the General Assembly's
Education 'Fund at present is about
ninety—the same as last year ; and is
considerably smaller than it would have
been but for the strong call upon the
youth of the country to enter the army
in the present crisis. About fifty of
them are in theological seminaries, and
the remainder mostly in colleges. The
appropriations have been, advanced
twenty per cent. by order of the last
Assembly, and now are : To students in
theological seminaries, $144 ; in colleges,
$120; in academies, $9O per annum.
They are yet too low to afford the de
sired aid in such times as these. A
ne
cessity is thus created that the churches
miENmi
Per annum,
in advance:
By , Mail, 83. By Carrier, 83 50
Fifty cents additional, after three months.
Clubs.—Ten or more papers, sent to one address
payable strictly in advance and in one remittance:
By Mail, $2 50 per annum. By Carriers. 33 per annum.
Ministers and Ministers' Widows, $2 in advance.
HOMeMarie% $1 50 in advance.
Fifty cents additional after three months.
Remittances by mail are at our risk
Postage.—Five cents quarterly, in advance, paid by
subscribers at the office of delivery.
ADVERTISEMENTS.
1234 cents per line for the first, and 10 cents for the
second insertion.
One square, (ten linevl one month 4 3 00
two months b 50
" three " TOO
six " 12 00
t 6 one year 18 00
The following discount on lone advertisements
inserted for three months and upwards is allowed:—
Over 20 lines, l 0 per cent. off; over 50 lineS, 20 per
cent.; over 100 line 4, 334 per cent. off.
hitherto contributing shall show increas
ed liberality, and that a much larger
number than have yet done so shall
contribute. Why should it be thought
impossible that as a general rule an an
nual contribution should be made by
each congregation for this and the oth
er causes, the management of which has
been,undertaken by our General Assem
bly? On no other system can the ac
tivity and resources of the Church be
self-developed; on, this there will be a
sufficiency ample for all our wants; and
only when this is done will the duty and
privilege of the Church as a great mis
sionary body be fulfilled.
The first appropriation for this year
has been paid; the remaining ones will
be due about the first of January, March
and May. These days come close to
. •
gether, and as they will require the fre
quent, and large disbursement of funds
from the treasury, they will make an
imperative demand for a constant in
crease. The ecclesiastical year closes
the first of May next.- Whatever is
done after that day will go to the cred
it of next year. All who propose to do
anything in the way of contribution the
present year, must do it before that
time; and it is desirable thattpontribu:
tions should be taken at the earliest con
venient day, and promptly forwarded.
Let no church or individual refrain from
giving because their contribution must
be small. It is those who do give, and
give cheerfully, that the Lord loves; not
those who through false pride or any
other reason refuse to give. " A man
is accepted according to what he hath,
and. not according to what he hath not."
Contributions should be sent directly
to J. W. Benedict, Treasurer, 128 Broad
way, New York; or when it may be
more safe and convenient, they may be
forwarded to him through either of the
following correspondents of the Com
mittee : Rev. E. A. Huntington, Au
burn, N. Y. ; Rev. George E. Day, Wal
nut Hills, Ohio ; and Rev. Charles
Brown, Presbyterian House, Philadel
peia. T. A. MILLS,
General Secretary of Education.
PRESBYTERIAN Rooms,
New York, Dec. lat, 1864,
0011REOTED STATEMENT.
The following is from The Presbyte
rian Standard of week before last :
"The American Presbyterian in an ar
ticle on this subject, says, ' we are told
that at the late meeting of the Synod
of Philadelphia, (0. S.) a proposal for a
friendly convention of members of the
two branches in this region to forward
the cause, failed, but that resolutions
expressive of kindly feeling towards it
were cordially adopted.' We fear this
statement may not make a fair impres
sion. We had the honor of introducing
the proposal,' and we think it but just
to say that it was not voted on. After
a long discussion in which very few fa
vored the negative side, the Rev. Dr.
Edwards, who at first favored the origi
nal proposition, submitted a modified
paper with a view of producing harmony
of views, which with an amendment of
fered by the Rev. Dr. Breed, for the
same purpose, was adopted with very
great unanimity. The ' proposal,' we
think was made to .give place to its sub
stitute, not so much from any objection
on the part of any considerable number
to the object at which it aimed, as from
doubt of the expediency of the proposed
convention, especially at this time."
DEATH OF . A MiIqIBTER AND EDITOR.
Rev. Isaac N. McKinney, of the 0. S.
Presbyterian Church, died at Sewickly,
Pa, on the 20th ult., in the thirty-seventh
year of his age. He was the son of the
venerable and widely known Rev. Dr.
McKinney, and had, of late years, been
associated editorially with his father,
first in the editorship of the Presbyterian
Banner, and since, of the Family Trea
sure. He had previously filled the
chair of the Professorship of Latin in
Jefferson College in this State. We re
cord this event with sadness, and offer
to the bereaved father sincere sympa
thy. Few journals reach us which are
editorially better sustained than " the
Family Treasure."
REV. Du. BUTLER, of Walnut Street
Church, West Philadelphia, will repeat,
on Sunday evening next, his Thanks
giving Sermon ; subject : " God's Pur_
pose and Providence our Pledge of Per
petuity."
The next Union Prayer-meeting of
our churches will be held in the First
Church, Kensington, Rev. Wm. T. Eva's.
Access by the red cars on Second street.