StfTOpniljmt PUBLIC OPINION in THE SOUTHERN CHURCHES. Knoxville, Tenn., Jan. 7, 1867 In my letter from New Orleans of the 3d, so much space Was occupied in stating the political situation as it appeared to me on my first visit to this city, as to compel the omission of many other incidents and observations of. much interest to me. And in respect to the political future, I may add, that during my two weeks’ stay in that city, I did not meet a single person of rebel proclivities who did not speak of the establishment of a territorial of provisional government for Louisiana, by the present Congress, as a fixed fact and a condition to he submitted to by them ; the inquiries on their part being generally directed to probable details in' the arrangement. Of the churches existing in New Orleans before the war, all, without a single exception, are rebel in their feeling and action—generally even more so than the politicians. In one of the most pro minent Episcopal churches, for two or three Sab baths, prayers for Congress had been omitted in their service. Singularly enough, the only min ister who gives any indications of “accepting the situation,” is the one who, perhaps, more than all the, others combined, contributed to hurry the State-into secession; and who, when it was an accomplished fact, himself entered, as a private, the rebel army—the Rev. Dr. Palmer, of the First Presbyterian Church. And in regard to him, the indications are strong that any further ex pressions of loyalty on his part will not be tole rated by his congregation. The First Congregational Church of New Or leans,, now ab.out a year old, is an exceedingly liv,e?,institution. The ordination of. its first pastoi;,, R,ev, Mr. Van Orden, of New York, took place durjag my visit. Rev. Dr. Kirk, of Boston, Eustis, of New Haven, and Palmer, of New Qr -1 cans,.Conducted the services of the occasion. The chprch has now a membership of thirty-four, about one-half being young men; it is self-sustain ing, and in every respect,"bears evidence of en ergy and vitality. Its edifice, a neat wooden building, well fitted up, capable of seating four or fiye..hundred persons, is well .located, and its trustees having, with the wisdom of a serpent, insured it in a thoroughly “ Secesh” company, it escaped conflagration on the night of the July riot. The building and site were purchased by the. American Congregational Union. The only other loyal religious organization in the city is that under the care of the Rev. Dr. New man, of the M. E. Church. Two churches were started under his care during the war, buildings from which rebel ministers had fled, being turned over ; to him by the general then in command of that department. These buildings, some time since, by order of the present Executive, were restored to their former rebel owners, and the congregations, having no place of worship of their ow.n, have perceptibly diminished. But it was no part, of the arrangement of that Church, now in its centennial year, to allow, so field to. be given up or go into decline. Steps were immediately taken to build new churches, and Bishop Simpson was sent here to look after the interests of this branch of their Zion. I heard him r preach, two Sabbaths since, to one of these congregations in the hall of the Mechanics’ In stitute, the hall in which the convention was as sembled when the riot of the 30 th of July occur red. The surroundings of the place seemed to me exceedingly fit for such an assembly on such an occasion. It was the place where Horton 'fell, a martyr to his devotion to the cause of liberty, when the echoes of his voice in supplication for the blessing of the Great Ruler of nations upon the deliberations, of the convention had scarcely died away, The walls of the room were scarred with the marks of a hundred bullets, the windows were still in the shattered condition in which the infuriated mob, five months before, had left them. An audience of a thousand persons was present, and the sermon of the Bishop was one worthy of tl;e place and the occasion. Another item of the discouraging effects of the President’s “benignant” reconstruction policy is in the discontinuance of Freedmen’s schools. At one time, under the vigorous military regime of Butler and Banks, the education of Freedmen was carried on with more energy and success than at any other point in the country, with the single exception of Washington. But the tax levied for their support, by the direction of the President has been discontinued: under the same authority, the funds of the Freedmen’s Bureau are no longer permitted to be used for that pur pose; No source of support remains, except the small amount appropriated by the various benev olent associations of/the North, and nearly all the schools 1 have of . necessity . been discontinued. When impartial suffrage, based on being able to read and; write, goes into operation, the benefi cence of our present Executive policy of recon struction, in introducing as small a portion as possible of the colored element into the demoral izing arena of politics, will become apparent. So far as-I am aware, the only, field which the Home, Missionary Committee of our Church has attempted, to occupy with any.degree of thorough ness in-the South, is that section of Tennessee, the centre of which is the point from which this letter is dated; and stopping over the Sabbath THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1867. here on my return Northward, I have had much interest in learning the condition of the work. I have been glad to find many facts most encour aging in their character, but I have also been much surprised’ at the magnitude and imminent necessity of the work that must be done at once, or disastrous consequences will follow. It is hardly overstating the fact to say, that two thirds of the churches in connection with our General Assembly in East Tennessee are at this moment without pastors and without ministerial supply; and there are no loyal ministers in Tennessee from whom the supply can be drawn. It is also true, that unless, provision is speedily made for these churches, they will be occupied by the Southern Church; not because there is a surplus of minis ters in the South, for many important churches of the denomination, and a largp portion of those of less importance, are vacant; nor because the prospective supply is unusually encouraging; for I believe the aggregate number of students in the seminaries of both branches of the Presbyterian Church in the South is less than thirty; but be cause East Tennessee is the only locality in the South in which any number of churches have re mained loyal to our organization, and it is deemed of the-utmqst consequence, at whatever hazard, that; this field shall be occupied' to the exclusion of loyal ministers, if possible.' The church building in this village is, perhaps, the finest of any belonging to any Presbyterian congregation in. the State, : and its eongregat'on, under the. care of Rev. Mr. Bachman, is rapidly recovering its ante-war condition of prosperity. In the county of Blount there are seven or eight churches without present or prospective; supply from; this quarter. The important church of Cleveland on The railroad from this point to; Chat tanooga is vacant; that at Jonesboro is about to become so, and, indeed, looking over this whole field,- “ the harvest is.plenteous, but the laborers are few:” F. H. MARGARETTA. She is dead, and yet she speaketh. She will always speak, to a wide circle of relatives and friends in her native place. She will speak to her fellow students and teachers in Ingham Uni versity. Perhaps she ought to be permitted to speak to yet others by the eloquent voice of. her blended suffering and working in the cause of Christ, for we are assured that Jesus has said to her, “He that heareth you, heareth me.” The admonition of the Master: “Work while the day lasts,” seems to echo hack from our every memory of her. Converted at an early age, throughout her school days she is acknowledged, by teachers, pastqrs, and prominent friends, as a faithful Christian worker. The smile of earth’ and heaven rested on her as she strove to prepare her mind and heart for future usefulness. The happy hours pass rapidly on. One year more, and she will graduate, and be ready for what ever life-work Providence shall assign her. But God’s ways are not as our ways. He sends to her sanguine, resolute spirit, the slow, sure angel, consumption. He paints her pale cheek with a hectic flush, and heaves her lungs with an omi nous and painful convulsion. The message can not he mistaken. It says: “Your days are numbered. You cannot on with your studies. To stay at home and die, and to do so cheerfully, is the study God assigns you,” It is the sever est lesson she ever tried to learn. The struggle it cost her is fully known only to herself and her God; but she succeeded, she learned her hard lesson by heart. Henceforth to suffer, rather than to do, is her accepted duty. , She is ready to take up her daily, hourly cross, and follow where Jesus leads. But by means of home-nursing, and her own happy, resolute heart, she rallies by the return of spring, and calling to. mind her favorite “Better wear out than rust out,” and believing that she could be doing as well as suffering for her God and her fellow creatures, despite the fears and remonstrances of friends, she takes a position as teacher in a primary school of a neighboring village. Here she toiled as she loved so well to toil, making even her hoarse cough seem musical to the children, by the loving words and smiles with which she muffled it. She is warned that she is hastening her end, that she will not live to see the end of the term. But she has sought the guidance and blessing of God, and she will not be fearfulbut believing, and God grants her according to her faith. Her days seem to be prolonged miraculously, like those of Hezekiah. Amid the careful, happy exercises of her school-room, she gains a little strength instead of losing. She gains yet more in the ensuing vacation, and with the opening of the fall term, she is strong enough to go again to the University. And here by the grace of God, she is strong enough to graduate at the head of her class. Her valedic tory, on “The Unseen Battle Field,” presented an exquisitely beautiful picture of those soul-con flicts in which she herself had so often been a vic- She was now honored by God and her affection tionate instructors with a situation as fellow teacher. Faithfully and well did she fulfil her trusts. Her vigorous intellect, her animated face, and the cheerful, earnest, affectionate tones of her voice, breathed the enthusiasm of life through her classes, even while her hollow, oft recurring cough, sounded a memento mori to the gayest heart. But her labors iii that fondly cherished sphere of action were closed in less than a year, and closed forever. The struggle to give up the luxury of noble toil is easier now. It was but a review of an old familial- lesson. ' SereDe and beautiful was that dear face as it again took its place in the home circle. It had not the passive physical beauty of some faces, but it did posses?, in a rare degree, the beauty of a glowing intelligence, and the grace of a trustful,: Christ-like spirit. It is true that the purple tinge of consumption was deepening on that patient countenance, but like the autumnal hues of inanimate nature, it only gave her spiritual nature an added glory. “Yornare not afraid, Retta,” said her pastor, “to look, upon your, position just as it is ?” “ Oh, no;” said “I accustom myself to do this.” For two long, weary years, she looked death in the face with The triumphant courage of a mar tyr. Now the pale messenger would approach within a step, and seem just about to snatch her, ;away; and then he would; stand aside, waiting ;the command of God, until her great fear was, that she should not be patient under her protract ed sufferings; When too weakTo have full , control;of her; thoughts; it; was, her delight to follow some Christian friend in addressing the ' throne of grace. When some: one was speaking of the ap-, preaching- thanksgiving, she exclaimed joyfully, “I shall spend.thanksgiving in heaven.” God took her at her word, and when her flesh and spirit seemed already parting’she broke forth with, rapturous assurance. “I; am taking one. more step in knowledge.V Sh'e felt as ! if she were slipping out of time into eternity; But she lingered on the threshold of heaven, lingered to fee even there, like her divine Master, the power of the Prince of Darkness in the hidings of her Heavenly. Eather’s countenance. In her utter weakness ;of mind and body, sinking in the ruin ;of;death;, she lost sight for a moment of her Sa viour; but she rallied quickly with the joyful cry, “Jesus will:bear me through,” Her heart and her flesh; were ■ failing her, but God was the strength. of her heart-and her portion forever. The pearly gates, so long ajar, closed behind her, and we saw her no more. At her funeral; “The voice said- cry, and I said, what shall I; cry ? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flowers of' the field. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God endureth forever.” D. S. LETTER FROM A COUNTRY PARSONAGE- TWENT.Y—ONE JJfINDUCTORS DISMISSED, So I overheard one passenger say to another as we were borne along on a late occasion to wards your, goodly city. “Twenty-one of them dismissed!” Why, what has occasioned such a wholesale delivery ? ” “Oh, the old story, actual or suspected em bezzlement of the company’s funds.” THE OLD STORY. This casual answer seemed very pregnant with meaning, and gave rise to these musings: Are railroad conductors, as a class, sinners above all other men, so as to warrant such a wholesale im putation? With them my acquaintance has generally been limited to the mere collection of fare and tickets, or the answering the various queries of passengers. Nothing, certainly, in their general appearance and demeanor, as they pass through the ears, which instinctively impels you to clap one hand upon your watch, and the other upon your pocket-book: There is per chance something in the employment itself pecu liarly trying to the under-layers of man’s moral constitution. The duties to which railroad com panies subject their conductors, may be such as to keep ia abeyance the honest tendencies—if such there be —of feeble human nature, and bring into active exercise all its original rascali ties. It must, no doubt, be admitted that the facili ties afforded by this business for appropriating the funds of others to personal use, are greater than in almost any other earthly employment. To fill honestly such a position, men of proper intellectual, moral, and spiritual balance are re quired. Men of tender conscience, sound princi ple, and from under whom no moral prop has been ruthlessly knocked away. Many such men we have in our community, notwithstanding the snarling assurance of infidelity; “that every man has his price.” Men sufficient are there in our Christian community, whose price is at least too high for the money of all the railroads to se duce into peculation and swindling. Unfortunately for railroad companies, their own wicked arrangements debar them from ob taining the services of such men: Stockholders persist in running their trains, and, in various other ways, breaking the Holy Sabbath. Truly honest, thoroughly trustworthy men cannot be induced for hire, to engage in such a business. Let stock owners understand, once'for all, and distinctly, that the man who can be induced to engage in a business, which by it§ known terms requires him to violate any one of God’s com mandments, that man will with equal facility, when occasion offers, violate any of his obliga tions to man, “Remember the Sabßath day to keep it holy,” is enjoined with equal emphasis and solemnity,:as “Thou shalt not steal ” He who lends himself for hire, knowingly, to violate the Fourth Commandment, will not hesitate to invade the eighth, in order to increase his gains. If those moneyed corporations are not, as charged, soulless, and will listen, the country par son will preach them a short sermon : YOUR POLICY, GENTLEMEN, IS BAD, In dismissing those twenty-one conductors, you have acted unwisely with respect to your own moneyed interests. Those discharged are no more dishonest than will be the twenty one with whom you expect to fill -the J vacant positions. Have you forgotten the fable of the fox and the flies. Reynard, by some mischance, got stuck in the mire. He was soon covered by a swarm of hungry flies, who were fast filling themselves with his life blood. A jackdow, seeing the -pitiable condition of his bushy-tailed friend, kindly pro posed to drive away the blood suckers. By no means, responded the fox; for, were these away, a new and hungry swarm would 1 immediately cover me, and in that case I am a dead fox. YOU ARE TEMPTERS TO EVIL. By running your trains upon the Sabbath, and inducing men for hire to conduct them, a direct and cruel temptation is thus placed before them to sin against Hod, by engaging to break His ex press command. You tempt men needing, em ployment, by almost a bribe to violate the divine law, and thus also furnish direct encouragement for them to violate the laws of your company. You swindle the Lord and all men and women, having a conscience, out of the Sabbath;, and, as a just retribution, men swindle you out of your money. YOU, HAVE NO FAITH IN MEN. Yourselves violating, without seeming com punction, the law of God for gain, you no doubt imagine that every one else is ready to do the same. In full sympathy, no doubt, are you with the old Scotch Divine; who, when commenting upon the, passage where the Psalmist exclaims, “I said in my haste that all men are liars,” merely remarked, “ Och, David, mon, did you but live here now, ye might say it at your leisure.” Gentlemen of the railroads, we preach to you a better gospel. Truth and honesty have yet a habitation among men, but you are, not in the way to, find them. Learn to act honestly towards God and men, and you will speedily have honesty meted to yourselves. Just dealing is profitable for this life, leaving the next out of account. JOHN W. FORNEY, In the almost frenzied efforts to break down, the sanctity of the Sabbath by the Editor of 'the Press, a perusal of the above short sermon is re quested. Does he forget; or has he yet to learn, that should the sanctity of the Fourth Com-, mandment'be destroyed, the eighth, yea; all the others, go down with it? : The greatest enemy of: his. race could .not act more to the injury bfthe community in which he lives, than one working for such a result.. Frazer, Pa, DESTRUCTION OR REFORMATION. One might expect that a Christian Church would be ever a power in defence of the people, an uplifter of the weak, an educator of the broad masses of humanity. But a Christian Church which has become corrupt, whose officials are self-indulgent, ambitious and covetous, allies itself with the oppressor, and handles ignorance and superstition as tools, whereby, Out of the people; to . make gain. Pharisees, of whatever age, lay burdens upon others, grievous to he borne, which they will not touch, and devour widows’ houses, as a profitable recreation from the pretentious sanctimony of long prayers. The Romish Church, now for these twelve cen turies, has had its Pharisaic element. Doubtless it has had priests of eminent self-denying toil in behalf of true holiness. It has had multitudes of lay-members who adorned the doctrine of God our Saviour; but as an organized body, (to speak with mild charity) its influence has been against the truth and against the progress of the people. Hence the lessening of its power has been sought by the lovers of Christ and humanity, and even its destruction has been prayed for and prophe sied. The year 1866 records a decisive blow at the temporal power of the Papacy. The Roman States will soon cease to be governed by the Pope. The head of dissolute priests, clothed with the powers of the State, loading the people with taxation and shutting out knowledge, im provement and spiritual light, will soon find the earthly sceptre falling from their frail hands, and the city of art, and of temples, the city of history and prophecy, will become part of United Italy, the capital of a constitutional monarchy. When the temporal power of the Pope ceases we may look for a moral improvement in the Romish Church. When the sphere of influence and activity is moral, then only by moral im provement can there be moral power; only by spiritual vitality can there be spiritual sway. The Romish Church must cease to be an in fluential Church, or it must cease to.be a secu lar, a corrupt and worldly Church. We may pray with faith that the work of reform shall commence within the Church. As in the days of John Huss, so in these days, leading priests shall pronounce against abuses, shall plant their arguments on the'word of God, shall preaeh the Gospel for the people. As in the days of Mar tin Luther, so now they shall proclaim, justifies, tion by faith, declare against celibacy, against A. M. Stewart. Lidia—Eighty Years' Progress;— The earliest 170 n °‘ the Unneveliy Church, bearing date A I). r ,oA IV .f nu T ber Pf Christiana as thirty-nine. in-1863 the Church numbered- 32,341 baptized per sons, and about 10,000 or 12,000-CatechunVens: ami s< ;J‘ ools . th fre were no fewer than Ufffi chiMren! The missionaries (Church of Ei g and) live in tents and move about from place to place throughout.the district of 1,200 miles square preaching to more than 300,000 souls.—-The Bishopric, of Calcutta has been -dtdined by th eeEnghsh ciergymen.—-The London Mission m Boeiety has t>v° native candidates for the min stry in India, who have been examined and their written answers sent forward to London for ex amination and approval. The Chumba Mission lSfi? 4 w w° St remarkable of our day. In 1863, Rev. W. Ferguson, in obedienc'e ; to a call of Gody resigned the chaplaincy of a Highland regi ment and started with two .interpreters for this WhiT, nC > , Here he was kindly received by the. Rajah; and has spent three veam in nro- T d °- life ia the streets a,itl suburbs, at first through an interpreter, living among Jie people, entering into their feeing fvS b ‘ mBc ' f of . every means to draw tlil ’people to called 6 ' a - 3 f resbyteriaQ * but refuses m put .Himself under society control. He has mi,!,- ssyssr •■"**•** «**« «*• “41 b“S” sion in Esvct with , ave had a mis printer, three female two' 3 f '° n ? ries ’ a tive helners ai T 1 ai l a twenty-nine 11a preaching is maintained Stati ®, ns A . rat f' and boardinff-schools “ leven day-schoois dance of 65°0 chfi about VmT- dai]y atteG ' Moslems. The succeas oftlm - being Jews 01 Copts (who number nearly.halfTmilr TTu thc so great that the missio'nmfiesAre hlefil T JW ' before long, a aeneral ref™-™ J m?peful of seeing Eastern Chmch Hundredl oA thia la ! jSCIi religious books are ffisposed of ” P a " d otber the Moslems and Jews P ll utl, i^„ year Weslyans have threl Africa the cuits, and in South A-friw fifteen c:r ' sixty-five circuks The wU fi i dlStMctB containl, 'f aries employed £ "T 1 "* °I “f" 0 '" gregate of members amount J ’ ‘ ,e “ S ‘ thousand. c A De . arly twemv blessed with a gi- e at - A So u ,tll Africa has been of a i er u^ e preacbin « have been received in 400 accessions dross Case'X T F l Veral pl %- A Car ' Colony,, havih? (£»;' F ’ of Hanover, Cape the Dutch Reformed fn° nV w te e L y a commission personality 0 f the deviUmTH of - h ? reSy ’ denyin " tl ‘ e human nature Uni, ad tbe Sln lessness ol Christ 6 derator of the’svno| h u Ctl ? n a S ainst the Uo ~- before the SuDreme rif”? ? btal,led a locus standi mulgation of?hia i 9° urt * b T alleging that the pro and then pleaded thaUhe"^ 0 ff rdiz . ed his position, (we do not aathlA nil, •-w\ &ynod or t le Commission tuted accordfngto the kws ofl " 0t prop ? rly 80Iimi ; that the evidence onwhilh ?Lq S ch " rch ’ anu true. The finun J . s y“od acted was not the Moderator ann^l% J llr nieht " in bis f avor i and donron the grS tb ? P Uvy Council in W for a epintuliAffeiL 4 , ! ?AV ltual sentence passed the worship of the Virgin Mary, against the abuses of the confessional; that in these United States, where the Romish Church holds so wide and strong a communion, it shall possess itself of the spirit of American institutions; that the country of free discussion and an open Bible, the country of Sabbath-schools and public schools shall become, through the reconstruction of this great church, not its hunting ground, but its home. The Romanists hare now in the United States 2,550 church edifices, which on an average of 300 members to each church, gives 765,000 com- a joopulationof 5,000,000. They have 15 Archbishops, 34 Bishops, 2,502 priests. They have 30 Golleges, 26 Theological Seminaries, 177 male andfemale Academies, 621 parochial schools, 171 convents, 139 hospitals and asylums. We may pray with faith that these Romish edifices,' these *iMtipHed- cathedrals, temples, colleges, asylums, shall be the dispensers of a.pure Gospel, the dwelling place of Christ the instruments of the' Holy Spirit for the Re generation of mankind. THE. THIRTY-TWO DOLLARS, The following is not a story, but a plain narra tive of facts. A benevolent-Christian'gentleman was applied to for help, by a poor 'man who was in want of work. He was informed where he could get employment in a r distent place, fur nished with money for his journey; a letter of recommendation, and provision was made for his family in his absence: l The pooFraatt' was full of gratitude to his 1 bettefacto'r, when the gentle man said to him“l do ilot'kttoW what your re ligious views may be; ■ bub are you able to see any connection between the deathidf*'the Lord Jesus Christ and* my giving you this thirty-two dollars." “No,” said -th’e l man; “ I : fe§l-verty much obliged to you, but l l cannot 1 say that*-!-' fvflly understand what you mean. l ” “ Why;” said 'the gentleman, “if Jesus Christ ba'd'ndt d&d-ott the cross, I would: not be a Christian 1 ' matt, IS'F hope I am. I would have had no feeling of kindness towards you, there would have been 1 h<F charity in this community, and 1 you and your l fairiily might have starved tO 1 death-. Never mind thanking me, but promise me that you will think of these things. Give-your love and' youf’thanks tb Him who has taught us thou shalt love thy-neighbor*as thyself, and whose blood clennsetli us 1 from 1 all *sin.” The lesson is obvious: Let us all think of these things, for •there ‘is ttothidgYeally good in the world which cannoi be’ traced directly to the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. ' To wanda, Pa. Swsiamtj girtfUiptif.
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