CiDtrt,sll,mintrt. OPEN AIR PREACHERS. NO. IV. ROWLAND KILL. BY EDWARD PAYSON UAMMOND "PREACH THE GOSPEL TO EVERY CREA TURE," was the last command of our risen Lord. In seeking to obey this commis sion, the preacher of the Gospel finds two distinct 'departments of work 'open before him. He has first to win souls to Jesus, and thus make disciples of them, and then instruct thein in the ways of holiness. As an embassador for Christ, he has first to induce men ignorant of the Gospel, or careless about it, to`listen, and then to learn. He may find assemblies gathered in churches and ready to hearken to the words of eternal life, but in that case, a preliminary work has been done for them, which has not been accom plished for the great majority in our land. We read-that when our Saviour " saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them because they fainted, and were scattered abroad as sheep hating no shepherd." Then said He unto His disciples, " The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few." He who truly reflects the image of his Saviour, can but feel something of that divine " compassion" in his soul as he looks upon the multitudes without a shepherd, scattered all over our broad land. The true pastor will not only take care of those gathered from the dart mountains of sin, but will also at titnes, feel constrained to leave the " ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that _which was lost." Of necessity, some must enter on other -men's labors, and reap where others have sown, but is it not equally urgent that i others break up fallow ground ? Ha*e not too many SO2cialed' prospe rous congregations seemingly forgotten that the lost must be sought after, and followed, and " compelled"le:come in ?1 Farmers make but little progress when they have no care to break up the fallow ground. Isaiah's prophecy declared that ..!'the wilderness and the solitary plade shall be glad ; 'and the desert - shall rejoice .and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly; and rejoice even with joy and singing." But how are we to sees this prophecy fulfilled unless there are those who are willing to go forth into " the wilderness" scattering " the good seed," believing that though some "tares" may appear, there will also be found there "the children of the kingdom" to "rejoice even with joy and singing?" • , ML iIwAND •Hrtm Wits ono of those who saw before him the two dis tinct spheres of -labor to which reference has just been made. He loved to pros& to the people of his charge in Surrey Chapel. That place which he had erected, was dear to him, and there be continued except at intervals, .to hold up the standard of the cross till 1833, when he died in his eighty-ninth year. Bilt though he for so many years sustained his relation to his beloved people, he was often moved with compassion' for those scattered as sheep having no shepherd. He longed to see "the wilderness blossom as the rose." He saw the blessed re sults of open air preaching as conducted by Whitefield, and his soul was fired to follow in his footsteps. Dr. Belcher uses very strong language with regard to the blessing which attend ed his labors. He says, "He was emi nently dignified in person, possessed extraordinary zeal, and was honored by his groat Master with probably more success in the direct work of saving souls, than any other minister of his day." Like Whitefield, he was educated for the ministry in the Established Church, but could not yield to the .re straints there imposed upon him. He would preach wherever he could find an opportunity. His father, a gentleman of title, was greatly opposed to his speaking to the rabble in fields and parks. - At a time when Mr. Hill was depressed, on account of the frowns of his honored parents, who deemed him "righteous overmuch," Whitefield wrote to him, "If I am not Mistaken, the great Shepherd .and Bishop of souls will' let the world and his O,WII children too know that he will riot' be prescribed to in respect to men, or garbs, or places. I wish you very much pros perity—you will, have it.. This is the way, walk ye in it. I pray for you night and day. This present _opposition cannot last long ; if it does, to obey God rather than man, when forbidden to do what is - undoubted duty, is the invariable rule." Rowland Hill acted upon this advice, and feared not to " go forth with out the camp ;" and saw verified the words of Isaiah, " Then shall the lame man leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing; for in the wilder neas shall waters break out, and streams in the desert." After preaching in Bristol, he writes-- " A gracious gale through mercy, attended all ,clay. Who would not be a slave for, Jesus Christ ?" On the' morn ing of the following day he preached at Kingswood, and " in the evening," he says, "he renewed field preaching in Bristol to some thousands, upon Acts iii. 19. Repent ye, therefore, and be' con verted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the time of refreshing shall 'come from the presence of the Lord.' The word was with power, the people were deeply attentive, and a great blessing seemed visibly in the midst of us. jam THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 1865. fully satisfied as to field preaching. I know the Lord puts honor upon it." In the year 1793, Mr. Rowland Hill (as his biographer states) paid his first visit to Scotland. He was invited there by a few zealous persons who had engaged the circus in Edinburgh as a chapel, on the plan of the Tabernacle in London. They requested Mr. Hill to come and, open it, and spend five or six weeks with them. He was pleased with the idea, and readily acceded to their re quest. The circus had been secured for one year only, by way - of experiment, and it was agreed to fix the hours of service at seven o'clock in the morning and six in the evening, that there might be no interference with the regular attend ance of persons at their own place of worship ; a plan of which Mr. Rowland Hill entirely approved. On the day after his arrival, Sunday, July 29, he opened. the circus. His text was the prayer of Moses, Exodus xxxiii. 14, 15. "If thy presence go not 'with me, carry us not up hence." In the morning the attendance consisted of only a few hundreds, but in the evening the place was full. His subject was, 1 Cor. i., 22, 23, 24, and he " employed some time in showing Paul's method of-treat ing the proud Corinthian hearers." "glow very different," he proceeds, "is the imme diate •and direct • simplicity that is in Christ How lovely in its effects, while the minister preaches just as he feels, wisely regulated by the word of God, and warmly animated with a desire to bring salvation to the sinner's heart 1" The singularity of Mr. Rowland Hill's manner, the fervor of his address, and the brilliant powers of his active and ener getic mind, soon drew vast multitudes around him. The circus; large as it was, could not contain half: the numbers, who flocked to hear,him ; and they cried out that the galleries were giving way under the pressure of the i prowd. He accord ingly went forth to the Calton Hill, where he preached from a platform to a max of people amounting'to at leatrteh thonsiind in number: The spo r t was well adapted to such a purpose ; the platform, was placed in the centre of a sort of natural basin, and the green slopes which surrounded it were covered with innumerable. immortal beings, silent as the breathlesa, evening of ,aulamii, fixed in deep attention to the words that issued from the sonorous and conirtrand-' ing voice of the speaker as he delivered, in all the majesty and dignity of his office, his message of mercy to the lost and ruined sinner. The retiring of the multitude under the most solemn impreS sions, was indeed a touching sight; every person seemed deep in thought, and numbers were , for the first time absorbed in the concerns - of their souls and of eternity. The old women as they looked out of their, doors, at the slowly passing stream of human 'beings, observing a party of soldiers among them, exclaimed, " Eh, sirs, what will become of us now I what will this turn to ! the very sodgers are ganging to hear preaching." It was always a principle with Mr. Rowland Hill, to expect great things from his labors : ', While we are straightened," he says, "in our expectations, the bless ing is withheld ; but when onr hearts are enlarged, the more we ask the more we have." Rowland Hill's second visit to Edin burgh was marked by au increase even of the immense crowds who had previ ously flocked to hear him. On the Calton Hill he now calculates the num bers at fifteen thousand, in addressing whom,.his principal aim in his sermons was to alarm the 'sinner. The last time he preached on Calton Hill, it is supposed the congregation amounted to nearly twenty thousand, though the rain threatened.' He thus expressed the feelings of his mind on the occasion : "to be clear from ,the blood of such a multitude, and to de clare to them the whole counsel of God, what wisdoin and grace does it require!" In the autumn of 1860, it was my privilege to stand on that same Calton Hill, so full of interesting associations. There met my eye the tomb of David Hume, on which was the simple inscrip tion— " DAVID HUME, Born 1711. Died 1776." Above, upon a beautiful vase, was the name of• his wife, with the words, " Be hold I come quickly. Thanks he to God who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." As I stood gazing upon these words, and thinking of the contrast between this believing wife and her infidel husband, I was much impressed with this fact, then stated to me by a resident of Edinburgh. Just before dying, Mr. Hume called to a nephew who' was a believer in Jesus, and said to him, in a jesting manner, " Place my tomb on the highest part of Calton Hill, that I may be the first to liear when the last trumpet sounds." His Christian nephew answered, " You forget, uncle, The dead in Christ shall rise first.' " Ah, yes, when "the hour cofneth in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His, voice, - and shall come forth ; they that have done good unto the resur rection of life, and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation," when the thousands who on Calton Hill listened to the burning words of Rowland Hill, and received with faith the Lord Jesus, whom he preached, " shall be raised incorruptible," " when the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God," then shall David Hume learn the inspired truth— " Th e dead in Christ shall rise first." What a contrast between the death of the infidel historian and that of Rowland Hill, who was ever ready to obey the command of the Master: "Go out unto the high Ways and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled !" During the last few years of Hill's life, he used frequently to repeat those words which Whitefield loved so much— " And when I'm to die, Receive me, I'll cry, For Jesus has loved me, I cannot tell why. But this Ido find, . . . We two are sojoint, . • That He'll notbe in lory and leave me behind." He was enabled to preach the blessed Gospel with "scarcely diminished power until within a few weeks of his death." But when at last in his eighty-ninth year, he came to the borders of the " grave in full age, like as a shock of corn his season." As he lay apparently unconscious, gasping for breath, a friend put his mouth close to 'his ear, and repeated slowly his favorite lines— " And when I'm to die," etc. For a moment the fading light beamed again in his eye ; a smile played upon his pale face, and while attempting him self to articulate the words, his ransomed soul took its flight " Through the wonder-teeming space, To the everlasting portals—to the spirit's resting place." LETTER FROM CHAPLAIN ARM STRONG. Sensations and RejMotions on becoming a Soldier—Powir of the Oath, and the "U. S." on Domestic and - Patriotic Feeling—A .Mmve Pennsylvania Cav alry Regiment tingle Combat and Death of a RebeF—Kind and Chris tian Treatnient of the Fallen Alabam ian,— The SOldierlph,o'received Lizzie's Famous Letter Leading to his Con version—Appeal for Reading Matter. _ HEADQUARTERS 4TN. inIORIGAN. CAVALRY, NEAR LOUISVILLE, KY., Dee. 21st, 1864. Dear Brother Mears—You may be not a little surprised to be hailed by the writer from "away down South in Dixie." -Perhaps not more than I at' the fact: Church-building apd soldiering are not the same, ba-..yog and I know that in these days our government makes sol dier out of atLer.aftivf me'n, as our' Lord made`his first disciples soldiers of the cross. It came about thus. It was hard to bedoing the sober, commonplace business of life, when I last took your hand, and looked upon - your beautiful City of Brotherly Love. This wfta just when Grant was marching down by the "Wil derness," towards Richmond, just as the summer heats were coming, and the sum mer green was growing dee% .'. 11 rich,. and I knew that thousands our sol dier-brothers were bleeding Ad dying, and my pulse would not be still. :Well, I worked on, and said to my restless heart, "wait." But every dispatch from 'Grant would almost make it Wild again,. and the news from Sherman (" Crazy Bill") as he pursued his war-path south ward, in his unparalleled campaign, would raise a fever heat. I applied the ordinary pacifies and worked on, till at length, just as autum.d's golden haze was coming, on the Ist of September, ,to my own sur prise, I awoke and found: nyself a soldier. Can you, my brother,'. appreciate ',the significance of a metamorphosis from a citizen to a soldier? • Let' me tell you that the world becomes another world, and the war another thing from tile standpoint of a soldier. Soldiering is a stern reality. It makes the war quite a different enterprise from what you saw from the distance of your peaceful home. It takes away the romance. It gives it a deeper and more positive coloring than it had as seen in the daily papers, or on a cursory visit to the army, or even in the character of a six months' delegate of the Christian — Commission. Put on tie hat and coat of a soldier, after the oath to serve three years, and•you are another man. Many a mother could scarcely re cognize her son in his cap and suit of blue; and stranger still, many a man with difficulty has identified himself, as a soldier. Young America - has been ac customed to escape too early from his nurses. Is it_ not one of the many glori ous results of the present bloody strug gle, that the whole nation has been pUt into an army, there to learn to submit, learn to obey, to defer to rightful autho rity? Will not a few.years' discipline in the army prepare us to appreciate Dr. Cox's exposition of the 13th of Romans, to know the rightful supremacy of law? Will it not dignify the law and make the nation strong? Will it not thus become a warrant for permanent peace in the future? Aye, dear brother, soldiering in re ality is earnest work. From the mo ment that the "11 S." is placed upon the man, he is conscious of the metamorpho sis. He learns better who, 'and how great, and how strong, and how digni fied, this venerable old Uncle Samuel is; and, if I mistake not, he will, even from that moment, the more deeply venerate and the more truly love and glory in the relationship he • bears to that hoary old Uncle. From that moment, too, home, with all its love, its treasures and refining power, has a higher and holier signifi cance. My home, my country, the sol dier's watchwords. Heaven preserve them. Kind angels hover near and scat ter smiles and all the richest gifts. AIL! there will be patriots after the war, and lovers of home, and the refinements of so ciety, and the pursuits of peace. Yes, even though you and I have found many in these days who could betray their country with a kiss, or sell it for a mess of pottage—though there were-many who did not know the value and power of the home-born sympathies, and of the sweet restraints of society, and though some may be weaned away from these, yet thousands of .our soldier brothers and boys will return from campaigning to the delights of'domestic and civil life, with a thousand fold higher appreciation than of old. But, my brother, I did not begin this letter for a homily, or for the purpose of moralizing upon the war, but to open another -medium of communication be tween Pennsylvania and a body of her - finest soldiers, namely, her Seventh cav alry. This noble regiment has been brigaded with one of Michigan's regi ments, Fourth cavalry, under Col. R. H. G. Minty, 'arid together with the Fourth regular cavalry they have done a great amount of hard marching and fighting, and have won laurels with their noble commander from more than a hundred hard fought fields of battle. In the month of September last I joined the brigade as chaplain of the Fourth Michi gan cavalry: I found then, and during the long and arduous campaign follow ing, no , other chaplain in the entire bri gade, and I became acquainted with only one other in the whole division. I learned subsequently, that not only this yenth Pennsylvania regiment, but several others in the division, have chap lains, who, however, by reason of sick ness and for other causes, are absent from their charges. Of course my own direct labors have been with my own regiment; but I have been able occa sionally to issue a ration of reading mat= ter through the entire brigade, and I have at my - own services, and elsewhere, made the acquaintance of valuable men of -he Seventh Pennsylvania, both of ficers and privates. I am glad to find some positive Christiant, men who carry Christian principles with them in the army. The following incident may illustrate this truth. In a spirited fight at Rome,. Ga., in which the First Brigade covered' itself with, glory, among the examples of personal, bravery was the following. Two brigades of rebel cavalry made an attack upon our division. The First Brigade (which was then, our designation) was ordered to a sabre charge. (These regi ments are armed with the Spencer car bine,, a seven-shooting gun, as well as the sabre.). They. went forward with that fearful yell and rush that ever attends the charges of these regiments. The enemy was broken and fled in confusion, their artillery fell at once into our hands, and though probably not less than twice or thrict our number, our boys pursued them, flying in all directions, through fields and over hills. In the pursuit all manner of encounters occurred, and among others the . following. Corporal T. F. D—. Co. Seventh Pennsylvania, came upon a rebel officer, a captain, dis mounted, carrying a sabre in one hand -and-a revolver in the other,_and- making desperate efforts to escape. The corporal ordered him to halt, surrender, and throw down his arms, which he dmmediately obeyed. But turning and observing only one man, he sprang again to his arms, saying, "No, I will fight you." He ran to a tree about twenty paces from his enerny, and fired two shots from his re volver, neither of them taking effect. The corporal dismounted, and taking shelter behind his horse, evaded two other shots from the revolver, one of which wounded the horse, unfitting him for further service. The captain then came out from the tree and took to a corner of a fence, two paces nearer his antagonist. The corporal then raising his carbine) called out " sur render," which the captain not heeding, the former 'fired just as the latter was about bringing his revolver to bear again. The shot was fatal, passing through his bowels ; the captain fell, saying, " I am a dead man 1" The corporal threw down his gun, ran to him, and gave him his hand. The captain. said, "You have killed, a good man." "Yes, but yours is the responsibility." "True, you did your duty." "Are you prepared tp die?" " No," said the captain, in evident an guish, and he began to pray. The cor poral knelt over the dying man and prayed, after which he seemed calm and peaceful. The corporal gave him water and every possible comfort, till the stretch er-bearers came and took him tq an am bulance. During the conversation with the corporal, the captain gave him 'his diary, containing some letters, and money. with the address of his wife, requesting him to use his best efforts to get his diary into her hands. The diary is now in my hands, and the corporal is a live sol dier and a living Christian, known and honored in the army. The captain died after four hours. His name is William H. Lawrence, of Mobile, Ala. I have another point of contact with your city. It is Corporal S. L. N., Co. Fourth Michigan Cavalry. This is the soldier into whose hands the letter and -testament of ‘, Lizzie S., of North - Ninth street, Philadelphia," was placed, and who, after he had been led into the truth as it is in Jesus, wrote a reply, both which, you know, were published by the American Tract Society, Nassau street, N. Y. This man is also a living and witnessing Christian, and under the Spirit of God, the active agency in pro ducing the change seems to have been the letter of little Lizzie. God bless her, and make her opening life a growth into Christian knowledge and usefulness. You will find the letters enclosed. Let this suggest a thought, with which I will close for the present my already too lengthy- communication. It is this : the great need in the army of suitable reading in anything like an adequate supply. No influence is more effectual with soldiers than any comfauthcatiOn from home, or anything that brings them into contact with home. Papers or ma gazines from some home friend will do great good. There is a great dearth (especially in the cavalry arm of the ser vice) of reading matter. Suppose some of the Many friends whose hearts are burning with love to the soldier, and a desire to do something, should subscribe for some paper like the AMERICAN . PRES BYTERIAN, or for some magazine like the Eclectic, Harper, or the Atlantic, for one year, and then write a letter like that of little Lizzie, and let it be placed in the hands of some soldier by. the chaplain, (or colonel, if there be no chaplain,), thus making a new friend, if - the soldier was not personally known. Many a father, mother, sister, friend, has some dear one in the army, whose wants they would delight to anticipate, but they have never thought of his wants in this direction. Good reading would save, in thousands of . instances, from the evils of gaming, intemperance, &c., through the whole catalogue of camp vices. Will not some of the many friends . of the Seventh take up this matter, and make an addition to our reading,matter through the mail? or cannot you, Brother Editor, make some suggestion or move ment that will reach the same result. While L am writing, glorious news is reaching us from every side. What is God doing in our day ? What - a trio of men has He given for the crisis under " Father Abraham." Grant, " Pap " Thomas, (as the soldiers say,) and Sher man, (" Crazy Bill.") The day of jubi lee is coming. Let all the nations be ready to see the coming glory, and the bells of, freedom in all the earth prepare to ring out their loudest and happiest peals, The beginning of the end is here. C. S. A. REV. A. M. STEWART'S LETTER. WASHINGTON The capital city of any people usually becomes the miniature of said nation. London is England condensed. Paris is France and the -French Empire in a ca mera. Rome is Italy in its grandeur and littleness, in its riches and poverty. And does Washington also truthfully represent the United States and American people? More truly so than has been generally supposed, and certainly much more so than when the present revolu tion was inaugurated. Up till 1860 this remained still the city of - magnificent- distances—public buildings far separated—an occasional second or third-class hotel—motley groups of pinched boarding-hnises, crowded in winter and empty in ' summer—sparse dwellings, whose fame arose from -their occupants rather than from costliness or beauty of structure—here and there a scurvy merchant or penny grocer; not a few tenements. also,whose real character tlia — faitidlous wish not to see in print. Such was our capital a quartette of years since. Very. different is the Washington of to-day. 'Few greater marvels or more thorough changes effected by the present enormous struggle, than by comparison are to be witnessed here.' Inhabitants, business, bustle, importance, have all more than doubled; even tripled and quadrupled within., this short period. More than sixty, strong forts now sur round the nation's capital, whose loca tions at the opening of the war were old worn-out 'fields or stunted brushwood ; all these built and manned by Northern soldiers, and defended by thousands of heavy guns, moulded in Northern -work shops. The wharves' of. Washington, Georgetown, and Alexandria are no longer solitary, with now and then a stray shal lop or dingee oyster boat, but often crowd , - ed with immense fleets, comprising ves sels of all shapes, sizes, and tonnage; numerous granaries, of hasty construction yet enormous magnitude; depots for horses, cattle, mules,- wagons, ambulan ces, artillery, and all manner of military. stores, arranged and organized, for which there are scarcely any parallels in the world's history of warfare. Ten thou sand additional clerks have been imported to perform the extra writing demanded by the war. Twenty thousand employees, not soldiers, have been brought to do the lifting, loading, shipping, unshipping, and guarding.. Forty thousand freedmen, of all ages, sexes, and • complexions, - have huddled themselves into the District. Office-seekers, merchants, shopkeepers, sutlers, jobbers, speculators, adventurers, swindlers, pimps, blacklegs, and strum pets have flocked here in almost incredi ble numbers, in order to ply their various avocations. Various horse railroads have sprung into existence, and are rivaling any city in the world for the crowded and uncomfortable condition of - their cars Many of the streets-are as crowded and bustling as -those of New York. No longer can Washington be justly termed an inland town or country village, but it is fast assuming the appearance.of capital to a great and free people. The strangest anomaly among all the many -contradictions of the present vast overturning, is that the city is con nected with the great North, and through it with the outer world, bj but a single track railroad. Few but will suspect that said single track between Washing ton and Baltimore is SL' monopoly, and the virtue of our Congressmen quite easy; else would we ere this have had, half a dozen railroads connecting the capital with the only section of the nation from whence is derived all its men, horses, mules, cattle, provisions, and implements of war. The mere, breaking of an axle, at present, on this single-track road blocks the wheels of Government until the piece of iron be mended. This fact may afford a strong suspicion that a deep current of feeling exists in the great West and Northwest that ere long the capital may be removedr not only to a more central, but also a far more convenient locality. Should these sections, in the readjustment of things at the closing tip of this , rebellion, demand the erection Of new public buildings far away from this locality, the'thing must be done. While, however, Washington continues to be our capital, every true citizen must have some interest to learn of its present and prospective condition, both as it re spects morals and temporalities. Matters, therefore, in connection with local inte rest, inhabitants, institutions, churches, schools, moral and intellectual 'aspects of Congress, together with the increasing number of Freedmen, and the efforts making for their improvement, will afford themes for future sketches. A. VILLAGE IN WESTERN NEW YORK. Position—Oil Creek and the Ancient Indian Oil Wells—Politics—Why Evangelical Ministers are Republi cans— Spritual Condition—Extradr- dinary Longevity of Father and Son. Cuba, New York, is a busy little vil lage, situated on the northern slope of the Allegheny Mountains. It is nestled in a narrow valley, into which the slui dows of the surrounding hills, six hundred feet high, fall. Oil Creek, whose surface is at times quite oleaginous from the .pe troleum ozoing into it from its oily banks, flows at the side of the village. From the great elevation of the place aliove the sea, the climate resembles that of Nova Scotia, vide Haliburtr's "Nine Months of Winter and Three Months of Cold Weather, making up the Year." Being situated on both the Erie Railway and the Genesee Valley Canal, it ,can conveniently exchange products with other places. About a mile and a half from thwil lage there is an oil spring,. from which the, Indians have obtained their cele brated " Seneca Oil" from time immemo rial. Around this spring a number of wells are now being sunk, and the Cu bans are hoping that some one will strike the whale. Cuba, politically, is strongly Union. In every good work it lends its aid. When there was a call last summer for "blackberry brandy" for the sick soldiers, it soon prepared and forwarded one hun dred gallons. It contains the man (De mocrat of course) who has discovered why it is that Evangelical ministers, almost to a man, are Republicans. He "thinks it a pity ministers don't read and inform themselves." In regard to the spiritual condition of the place, a favorable account can also be given. - God graciously revived His work during the latter part of last winter in all the churches. As fruit, in part, of the work, thirty-six have been added during the year to the Presbyterian Church, and a still larger number to the Baptist, with a goodly number also to the Methodists. A daily union prayer meeting was sustained for about eleven months of the year. There is connected with the Presby terian Church a man named Abner Hunt ley, who was born August 4th, 1767, and is hence 97 years old. He has voted at every Presidential ElectiOn, and has never, in a single instance, failed to vote at State and town elections since he was twenty-one. He is very vigorous, and can, without difficulty, walk twelve or fourteen miles in a day. He reads coarse print, and only shows his extreme lon gevity by his defective hearing and weak ened memory. He has apparently mental and physical energy enough to carry him through ten more winters. His father attained the age of 103, and such was his strength when 80 years old, that he could (says his son) take hold of the rim of a potash barrel with his teeth, and, by striking the barrel with his foot, throw it over his head. The son declares that both the longevity of his father and him self is due to their strictly temperate habits. I remain yours, truly, THE AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY. (BOSTON.) This pioneer institutionin systematic efforts to supply our soldiers with suitable reading matter, we are pleased to learn, not only con tinues but strengthens and enlarges its benefi cent work. Speciineng - of the Society's pub lications for our- soldiers and fieedmen have a beauty of execution and adaptation unsur passed. The Christian Banner has, as we are assured, no rival among our soldiers.. The Freedman—a monthly paper—is a novelty in its way, a genuine Yankee notion ; a news paper .designed for a class of persons who are unable to read—having in it all, from A B C to the writing lesson, which the colored soldier needs for his instruction in camp. " The Freedmen's Primer," first of a series of school books, seems equally, suited to the millions for whom it is designed. The larger volumes of the society's publications are as beotiful specimens of book-making as we have ever seen. The Society and United States Christian Commission have lately effected an arrange ment whereby the .work of both is facilitated, enlarged, and strengthened. The Commis sion purehases largely each month of the So ciety's publications, it donating to the Com mission as much more; all which is distributed in our camps and hospitals by the active and devoted4delegates of the Commission. Chap,liin A. M. Stewart, who has been in the froneservice sinc'e'the opening of the war, has at present charge of the society's opera tions in Washington, and is now in Philadel phia presenting its works, objects, and claims. Any communications or donations will reach him at the rooms of the Christian Commis sion. Chaplain Stewart will also visit, during the coming season various, other localities in Pennsylvania and adjacent States. 'We be speak for him such a reception as the great ness.a,nd importance of the object demand. A. M. STEWAB.T Jomsr E. BAKBit
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