Ari t ginat tiymmunitatitoto.
THE FATAL DRAUGHT.
By Rev. Peter Stryker, D.D.
" Sir, will you, come this afternoon, and attend
the funeral of my wife
Often before had I received such invitations,
for alas! a large part ea pastor's duty is to com
fort the bereaved, and assist them in paying due
respect to the dead they must soon bury out of
their sight. But this was a peculiar cue. The
first glance at the countenance of the stranger who.
stood before me, afforded ample evidence of this,
fact. Poor man! he looked the very .pertionifica , .,
tion of despair. He was young, probably,u,ot,over,
twenty-five years of age. He was sprymptly ;in
humble circumstances, yet very respeo Wl.ein his
person and demeanor.
His answer to a few general questions :whichl ,
necessarily asked him for information, reycaled a
desire on his part to tell me his history. • His
heart was overflowing, and it was an actof benevo
lence to listen to his tale of sorrow. The ac
count he gave of himself is full of painful inter
est. I rehearse .it not because it is tragical, but
because 1 trust, it may suggest some useful les
sons to my readers. Let me give it as ()ming,
from his lips, although the words may not . be pre
cisely those be used in relating it to me.
"1 was married aboitt a year ago to her who
now:lies a corpse at my dreary home.. She was
kind and affectionate, and very pleasantly we lived ;
together,.., I . was brought up in
_the Reformed
Dutch Church, and attended the ministry of the
Rev. Dr. S., of whose church my mother is still ;
a member. After !marriage my wife and myself
attended the Methodist,Episcopal Church. W
often went to the.meetings held on week evenings
as well a.s.those held on the Sabbath day, and
both of us became deeply interested in the subject
of religion. With good health, a prosperous bus
iness, industrious habits, and affection for each
other, and Ltrust an increasing, regard for God
and holy things, life with us passed pleasantly
along.
"But oh 1 how short the joy ! . Through. the
treachery of one who professed friendship, the
money w j hieh.for severallyears I had,accumulated
by my industry and economy, in one day, was
torn from me. I lost my position in business, and
was left penniless. This exceedingly, mortified as
well as discouraged me.
"With a weary heart I left and in
the great cOmmereial, metropolis, New• York,
sought to,obtain business and establish a home.
Having. obtained comfortable and• respectable
apartments, I brought hither my wife and furni
ture, and, our hope was, with youth / and strength,
and earnestness ion our side, we would be prosper
ous, and in time be able to regain that which we,
had ,lost.
"But our 'misfortunes had only commenced:
like, landlord with whom I had formed an agree
ment, regardless of his word, and 'careful only , to
secure his own pecuniary interests, had let our
rooms to others, and we were, compelled to. take
temporary residence in a tenement house in a
wretched part of the city. This greatly depressed
us both.. Still we rallied each other,, hoped for
better things, and tried to be cheerful.
"My first effort now 'was to find work. lam
by trade a silver plater`; and although only a
journeyman, often do what is called over-work.
The poisonOus'sOlatious used in our husinesi
almost always had' mimed - at my home; ready to be
used as opportunity 'offered. This "gave me no
. care, 'as there were no children or servants about
who migh'theinjuied 'bythem. My wife knew
all about the nature of these solutions, for she
often saw me Prepare and-use them. Only a few
days ago when I was preparing one of these so
lutions, she playful* , asked - if a draught of it
would prove fatal. I feilied, I did not know,
probably 'it would, but certainly it would produce
very serious injury to any one who might
taste it.
'The day'after this conversation I went out'
again' itr search of employment. Weary and un
successful I - Tett:lined in the a . fternoon f and judge
of my astonishment and mortification, when I per
ceived- from her looks and words and actions that
my wife was partially intoxicated. 'This was a
new trial, and greater by flu* than all the others.
We had iboth always. been temperate, strictly.
temperate. , How then •had this occurred•?
" When I questioned ler 'she said an English
woman had enticed her, and had induced •her to
drink a glass of liquor., I reproved her for being
so intimate with a stranger, and especially for
drinking` Witlf her: My poor wife—she was very
quick in' her teniper—l 'cannot think she meant
to kill herself. Stimulated by the vile liquor
which she' had' taken; She surely could,not have'
known what , shO was about. Instantly she be
came enraged at my Words ofcensure, end nothing
conld-1 say to pacify her.
'"With a Sad heart h dropped into a Asir, and
leaned trithead upon my hand, thinking what I
cOtild:sity to - quiet her temper. While thus mus
inkover 'my afflictions, I heard a elickoind tam
ing,lntw nit wife hOldingle cup-the' poison cup—
the very.odeishe]had'i day'or two before askdd me
abouttLana it etas eoin . pty. She had just drained
it of its Atftents. 'How do you like that, for a
chan;9B7tVida t eh f e. The 'dreadful truth - flashed
over -niLt•iil ssir it-in the empty cup. I saw it
in the already changing countenance Of the
but erring one. She was poisoned, and that by
THE AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1868.
her own hand. I laid her upon the bed, and flew
for the doctor. In a few moments I returned,
but it was too late—the draught had proved fatal
—she was dead. 0 sir, lam a wretched man.
Pray for me, and come and speak a few kind
words at the funeral of my poor wife."
This was substantially the story of the bereaved
young husband as he related it to me. It filled
my heart with sorrow and induced a train of re
flections. There would be very little satisfaction,
dear reader, for you to accompany ms to thellons6
of mourning. All that we can do there is to try
to comfort the few disconsolate friends who weep
around the boffin 'of that e.rring one. But there
s i re lessons of instructien . which may not be, ex
pressed in that circle, but which you and I should
dimply lay to heart. let us now glande
1. One step in, life leads to another. Ifuman
experience is a chain, and days and deeds fur'
nisli the links of which it, is composed: The,
man who basely cheated that young mechanic
out
, of his accumulated saving:s.was guilty of mur-,
der. Pprhaps he did not 'intend this. But he
forged the - first link in that chain which teftni
natea iti . the Tearful death wp haVe notfced. , Nay
God have mercy on him. , :and' the thousand of
other iron=hearted wretches in' the commercial'
community who, like hnugry beasts of .prey, fat
ten on the bodies and souls of their weaker fel
low .mortals
That landlord, who for a trifling consideration,
violated his verbal contract. - and deprived' that
young couple 'vf their' home, was guilty of mur
der. He forgkci the second' great link in that
chain which lea I to death. May God have mer
cy on • those rapace us capitalists who speculate on:
the hearts and hoa of the poor, and'hesitate net
to defraud the
,hell aif they can add a farthing
to their own unhallo d abundance l •
That rumseller . - wh sold the drtigged liquor
which:proved so, evil in its consequences,,and
the stranger who;, not content with making a brute
of herself, - enticed another to swerve from the
path of sobriety and safety—they each were , guil-•
ty of the crime of murder. It would be 'useless
for such persons to say they only sell , or give to those
who wish to buy, or are willing to .drink. The
terrible effects of the liquors now in market are',
well known. They are nothing but poison. May
God have mercy on.the thousands'of guilty ven-,
der.% and the ten thousauds of giiilty:tempters
who decoy the young and unstable •in paths of
inebriety arid death • ' '
The. subject. of cause and effect is very, exten
sive: LetUs see to it,'When the great day of rev
elation appears; and these intricacies are uurav
elled, when our treacherous memory is revived,
and truth in its various bearings and dates re ,
vealed--let us see to it we do
. not then stand
among : the guilty throng who hy temptation and.
fraud have brought ruin upon our neighbors.and
destroyed them soul and body.
2. That one glass of intoxicating liquor proied
fatal, for, its immediate effent led to the draught
of poison. It is the first glass that always does
the mischief. This makes the drunkard. .This,
leads the,drunkard often to the depths of crime
as well,.as dissipation. If all would-avoid the
one glass, the first glass, what a different 'world
this would be! No inebriate woUld then - walk
our streets, or roll in our gutters. '
" Fa`milies
would not be disgraced, and hearts and homes
would not ,be , rendered desolate. The scaffold
would then hardly be known. Our prisons and
jails might be cloged, and offices of justice
would be gentlemen of leisure, and. civil law
might hold a long and happy jubilee. Imagina
tion can hardly picture the beautiful scene that
would then spring to view, Earth would again
'be changed to,Eden, and innocence , and joy again
bless our race.
And why not pray to G,od i and plead with , man,'
and try with 'self to , -secure this blessed idatiltl
Why P44OO l OE l * ?, shy not,
I ask,.by example and :perguasiorr, and , ' iffarnest,
'holy, untiring influence;' endeavor' dash to the
ground that first glass; <Which - so often leads to
ruin? Nie)pr44oni , !de - not
with your irresistible, voice and , smile, ask that
young man to take.from.,yourland thakone: glass
of sparkling beverage, for it may lead ,him to
drunkenness, debauchery, eternal,death. MAW?
Christian, do not lift that one, glass to your lips,
lest : your child.; or 'some beloved young .friend,
who depends mach upon your ,ex.ample, should
see t the act, and, imitating you,. drink, ,drink
deeply, and, die. Dear youth, listen ; to our im
portunate entreaty Think well before ypu; touch
the intoxicating bowl. .",,Look not up,on the
wine when it is red, When. it giveth,his . color in
the cup, when it,movethritself aright, At last it
biteth like a serpent and ! stingeth, like an adder."
Prov. xxiii..3l, 32.
There is a demon lurking in that ond glass.
His eye is fixed on you:: lie has selected you as
his victim. Only drink, and he will ttike up,his
abode 'within you, and commence those, insidious
operatians which will bb likely to end in your
everlasting destruction: , Refuse the.liquor,!tread
on 'the head of the ;vile: serpent; , and you Will be
safe. In, this' age of ,temptatioii, fraud , and ine
briation, the only sanctuary 'for, moral virtne,
next'to piety, is in total. abstinence from! all' that
will intoxicate, and the great hope is ,in the youth,
who as yet` is 'uncontaminated' Iby the deadly
poison ;
3.'What a.danyferous thing t's•an9dr. Likel
rniiawa'y ho'ne, it breaks through all restraint,
and considers not whither it goes, or what will be
the final result of its action. How careful should
we be to keep our passions in control. Conscious
of the fact that there is much in this world that
is irritating, and that we are liable at any mo
ment to meet with that which will tend to pro
voke us, it is the part of wisdom for each to guard
himself against the trial, come in what form it
may. By prayer, by the cultivation of meekness
and forgiveness, by meditation, gld more than
all, by trust in Jesus andfe imitation of
Hid'forbearance and .holy suffgring, we should.
constantly brice ourselves for the season of pro
vocation, which sooner or later will come.
Hasty brother, put your tongue under bonds
to keep the peace. gtibject your passions to bit
and bridle, and then, like a good reinsman, hold
on Gaily and VatchfnllY. Let your judgment
ever preside over the citadel of your mind, and
keep'all the forces in therough command. "An
ger resteth in the bosom of fools," Ecc. vii. 9.
" He that bath no rale over liis'own spirit, is like`
a city that is 'broken. dawn and without walls,"
Prcii
•
Go to the coffin of that young wife, and as leu
loOk upon teat form dad and arrayed' for burial,
think of the folly bran'ger. One wiCked• thought,'
one wicked yielding,to Satan, One hasty deed, and
what a sad and aWful result And So it may be
with you, passionateman. With your excitable
disposition you are in constant' and, imminent
danger. Be persuaded to watch and pray lest .
,you enterinto temptation. ReStrain your thoughts'
and feelings, your words and deeds, or in some
unguarded moment yea may speak a word, or
strike a blow which will end in disgrace, perhaps
death to another or yourself.
"Passions indulged beyond a certain bound
Lead,to a precipice, and plunge in woe
Tli'e,beedleis agent." • -
REV. A. At. STEWAIVPS LETTERS--XVW.
•CAL}FOR.NIA;'ST,A4E PAIR
Words often'ehange , their meaning, as do per
sons their conditions, or a. people :their habit's.
Our Vanglish'word FAIR, requires 'an academic
education in order to comprehend its varied ark-
Plications, and the'idea's and things it is used to
cover. With the adj'ective-noun , State prefixek
we are not expected to write of things clear, beaui
tiful,Ture,4en, favorable, candid, spotless or
honest as maybe done under :this' same volatil
e
word. If as a State affair ; the word be derived
from the Latin Forirm—all right. -The Forumi
was a wide open space, where our Latin grandamesl
with their gallitnis , met together to talk, and gos-i
arulhear'speeehes and in , gbneral way killi
time: TheVietee nary Jew_aad. _cunning crafts
.man, though at first on
. the sly, introduced 'for'
safe-their wares and pelf into this fashionat;le
,gathering. ' It was a hit. The:thing grew, and
the gorthia: became at length a Fait.
Church • •If charity county''-fairs,
State :fairs had I seen on the Ithintie slope
even to repletion:— A-strong—desire, however,
existed
. 49 ~see„i a Fair, , on the _PncifiA l
This not so much :in order to look upon the cattle,
pigs and fast horses; j the machinery and fine arts;
the men and women on this side of our Continent
, in all these the Atlantic side must still excel.
My special deslie was' to, look upon a collection of
fruits ,and vegetables from all party of California.
On : my preaching tout frorn i :niddle'pjevada to San
Francisco desire was gralited. Saeramento, the
State. ;apical, was the place itir - the eibibition of
1868. Here I arrived when thAhoi had been
in progress fora week, and to continue in fniiiblast
for an additional seven , days. :Could State 'fair
projectors in Eastern, &id - die; or N'ortlaern States
manve to keep an inimense gathering for two
weeks together, with the interest unabatedit their
exhibitions? The - se Californians excel.
WMBE-RACING AND G*NIBIANG
As titid yeketieral impression) i4ideOpettitig, that
,nearly all our Eastern State and county Fairsare•
fast degenerating--fallidg under the controllt of
torse-jockeys, sharpersland 4/lacklegs. Such ex
hibitions may and' ought' to be thade.honorabley ,
i pleasani ind'pibfitable/for ;advancing 'and perfect- ,
ing the interests?of - haticuAture, farming and me:
chatiism. A .hope didieiist that •California • in.
ber.marveliens farmititintere.sta might bean ex-)
ceptiori—g - et`a. better start and do ap Fairs More .
henestly, honorably, and profitably. This hope is
gone. Her. anniversary , has 'been seen and the.
impression, was a deep and sad one, that 'the large
majority of the, gathering are sharpers,„ jOckeys,
blacklegs and abandoneil, wonien, , and by their ,
speciinfluence the interest of the, fair is kept,
up tor' two weeks, together, , .
Our train from Nevada across 'the Sierra. Ne
vada mountains arrived' in Sacramento; ,at
Stage, omnibus and carriage drivers were shoat,
ing `at every "street corner; l'out bits to the
, Fair
grounds." • These •were out from the city, two
miles.' .I was soon °Thud there—paid my entrance.
fee
,of, tour,bits,.aind stood within the' large en,
closure. My .first inquiry,was after the place. of
exhibition Tor fruits, manufactures and machinery;
and I was coollydnformed; were in the large
pavilion back in the city and would be open in
the evening." Sold to the ganiblers was' yOur
correspondent; and he tried to ,make the'best, of
his barter. ' I -
Th,e show of horses, cattle and sheep was ma:
gre:and! without special .excellence. No pigs,
tnrkeyS, geese, duckS•and'ehickens with which
E h aftern:airs are alWays.ornaniented; ' L'he races.
J•
were the fair, and were presently sounded. An
immense assembly of men and women, boys and
girls was there. Rugged looking men, coarse wo
men and rude boys and girls. Was this Califor
nia ? My heart was sick and hopes for her fu
ture dimmed. There was an openness, a perfec
tion, a mere business matter in the stakes, the
bets and the gambling, not heretofore understood.
As two or three horses were parading and getting
ready for the course; a crier, appointed for the
purpose, mounted a stand with a clerk on each
hand, and shouted; "Who bids r —pointing to
or naming such or such a horse. From hundreds
down to fives were usually shouted with the mo
ney at the same time deposited on the spot—name
and amount entered by the clerks. •Thus each
horse was gone, over and his favorers heard from.;
The race came. Nothing extra either in horses
or time; yet ;did that vast crowd of men and wo
men sway to and; fro, clap hands, •shout ;and
scream; as one or another poor animal, lashed to
its utmost speed distances its competitor. A. most
degrading scene. Little in advance of a bull fight
or the old gladiatorial show.
At and around the entrance to the race course
were tiumerdus . large tents and hastily constructedl
wooden .buildings, in which gambling was carried
on, informs, and to - an extent; which in•my ig
norance had not hitherto been conceived. Being
in for * the show, I took an extended tour of •ob
servation through each and all of them. -Piles
of gold Itnd silver, as in a bank, were on billiard;
card, dice and faro tables; and constantly chang
ing hands. Here andthere'a fashionably dressed
female was handling the dice and the 'money
with a quickness and facility, which did credit'tn
the most adroit blackleg. During rny inspectien,
occasional hanter‘for a •Stake and a 'throw were'
given : , .1 escaped, however, by a neglect in early
education, not knowing the difference between one
card , and another. California , is thus •reaping.
some of the sad fruits, outgrowths from that wild
fever after gold which, in years past; so flooded
all her territory; nor has as yet altogether abated.
Strung along each side of the way from race
course to city and into the city, were all manner
of shom4, giin-cracks, fables, wonders, and gerry--
manders—all with signs and voice inviting' pas
isers:bie to enterand be amused for a considera-.
tion. It' was" , in such a place that Whitfield
:erected his stand-and successfully preached Christ.
'Ohl for Whitfield's zeal and eloquence here.. •
EVENING .EXHIBITION
A new and beautiful world it seemed. In an
immense pavilion hall, , with .high .basem9nt for.
Ifruits and vegetables and adjoining sheds for
'machinery, was, held' the fair proper. 'Not
,orie
of the crowd racers and . gamblers seemed to
'be present. A new generation of humanity was
'there. An assemblage of real gentlemen and ladies
—refined, fintelligent antiinterested--eiOwded the
spacious'corrid'ors. How delightful 14 tontiast
with 'the' gathering of the afternOon I Hope for
CalifOrnia yet.
In machinery, mainafactures and industrial
arts, the Exhibition was pleasing and promising
, --)Terhad I 'Seen larger and finer. inierdst
1;
was the basement among earth's immediate
,prodnetimis. ' Horticultural exhibitions and beau
' itiful ones too, had been seen in various Atlantic
I :States ; yet nothing like this. I had never im
, agined that such product;ions grew on tiees or in
the ground. Stich apples, pears, peaches, plums,
I rneetarines, figs; lemons, oranges, pomegranates,
almonds, strawberries—strawberries all the year
'round, anitgiwpes, than which Esdhcol could have
yiel'de'd none finer.' And'all these produced with
a certainty, a re.ularity, with 'an ease and in ari
~ a.bizindanee only;ualed :by the demand. ' Even'
mow the amount of these coveted fruits far ex
ceeds any demand or want. Abundance of 'fruits
th,t would amaze Philad.ilphialnarkerers, dedaYs
jupbritthe ground' for lack of consumers t. '
The fegfetdble grcivith is equally abundant; d
'even more *Onderful. I almost hesitate, for fear
ordisbelief to name the'weight of the fergetabied
- I )everything in California goes by wei:ght: Onion `s`
and potatoes weighing pounds ; and beets from
teil'toa hundred and fifty pounds. The endr
anneS oned'not the growth.of 'a single : season,-biit
.bn't -twO or threo years together. By easy
this wonderful region may.readily
Made tie' '"Garden of the world?' lia.Twe not
antieipate'ere long a railroad from here to Philo,-
, delphia., New York, and Boston, and used for no
other purpose than the speedy and not'toO costly
'transportation of California fruits and vegetables.
Delightful' union this between the Atlantic and
Pabific. 'A. M. ,
SITEWART.
- 'Sept., - 1868. -
, ,-,OUR OWN MISSIONS.
Kansas City is on the extreme western border
of Missouri. A few years since it was .the head
quarters ,Of the ,Border Ituffitans—the outpost of,
civilization. With great difficulty religion gained
a footholditt:that reckless community. A church
was plaiated,.other churches followed, there and,
beyond; far into the wilderness. The work, goes
on bravely
. On the, first Sabbath of •this month (October); :
'Kansas City witnessed `a strange eight , r-a thril=
ling, scene. The Synod of Missouri were in' ses
sion. Ten young.men, all, of them buf; two .from
the last senior_ class . of New York,Union.TheoloL,
gical Seminary, college-bred; one of them,a,,Co,•
lonel and.,manther a Major in, the Union 'Army,-
:made ; aphaationrto be ; ordained to ' t4O : NvOTk. of
'the gospel ministry. Their application was grant-
ed. The ordination service took place in the
evening. The use of the Southern Baptist Church
was courteously granted for the occasion. It was
a new thing under the sun. No such scene had
ever before been witnessed beyond the Missis
sippi.
The next day they went forth to their work—
the most of them among the new settlements in
south-eititern ICansas,—all of them having been
commissioned and sent forth by the Presbyterian
Committee of Home Missions. The event was
signaltzed by the prospective erection of the Sy
nod of Kansas,—two new Presbyteries, Humboldt
and Smoky. Hill, having 'been created for the
purpose. •
These results, so cheering and so full of prom
ise, have not been reached Without a large outlay
,of 'missionary appropriations, involving a heavy
burden for years to come. At the same time, new
missionaries have been sent to feeble churches in
the East, in the Center, and in other parts of 7 tie
West—to Wisconsin, lowa, Minnesota, Colorado
and California—others will soon be on their way
to Wyoming Territory, and the Pacific coast;
The Committee . have deemed it their sacred
duty to avalfthernselv - es, of - every providentialcp
,portunity to send forth laborers of suitable quali
fications into the vast harvest field, and to extend
the boundscf the Church as:far and as fast as God
, opened the. way.
,A.t,the same, time, they have
withheld aid from none of the feeble churches
that asked - it, in any part orthe field, when ' ap
plication Rhea been ;properly, made, and recom
mended.
To meet these increased expenses .they must
look to-the Churches .the 'almoners cf . God's
bounty., While the American Board was appeal
ing so loudly, of late, for'the .$200,000 of which
they stood in need, it was not deemed best to make
a special appeal for Home Missions. That, exi
gency has happily passed away. And now another
;exigency is !won us. Our own Missions here at
ho'rne demand a large 'iAcre . ase in contributions.
To 'meet the claims of the missionaries the Trea
surefliaS been compelled"to procure loans to the
amount of eighteen thousand dollars, leaving in
addition to thisnum an indebtedness to the mis
sionaries of more than . ten thousand dolla.rs.. Not
less 'than thirty thousand dollars are needed to-day
to meet these and other accruing obligations. All
this is needed at once, and' should be forthcom
ing.
This state of the Treasury is owing not to any
extraordinary deficiency in receipts. The income
for - the past five months has been in excess of the
corresponding months in 1867. The summer
months, however, yield much less than the winter
months. Consequently the latter must be dis
°counted to help out the former. In the mean
itime, the work las,grown rapidly. Larger con
;tribntions are demanded from the friends of Mis
sions. Fifties should 'be made hundreds, and
hundreds thousands. Ile who gave ten mustgive
twenty dollars. Thank offerings should flow into
the' treasury for prOVidential mercies. All our
pastors and sttited'auPplieS should see to it that
the annual collection be not delayed; that the
people be thorOughly infermed as to the greatness
of the work, and the pressing need of funds, and
secure as large a contribution for the cause as
possible. An urgent'necessity is •on us to extend
'our operations Southward among the Freedmen:
and arrangements are new in progress' for earnest
and speedy work in this 'direction, of which the
churehes will soon'e duly infoemed.
then, to the reseue. Put the Committee
in funds." Bid them"go forward. One church,
that gave last year' $278; gives this year nearly
01,006. .others are doing nobly. Let every
church - do its best, and do it speedilY.
In behalf of the Committee,
EDWIN F.' HATFIELD,
Ohairtrtcr`rz and actirig Secretary.
AmoNat WommeS most indisputable "Rights"
must be reckoned that of settling the principles
and'methods of her own dressing according to the
dictates of 'common sense. The following rehear
ses a movement which is certainly in the" right
direction 'and would bohr copying in other parts
of the' world
"A Conference of the women of Germany has
been called to meet at Stuttgart on Saturday last.
Among the subjeCts tcl ; be . discrissed a reform in
women's dress by: whichthe vagaries of fashion
will be obviated. As : a basis for such a reform, the
promoters of the Conference have agreed that no
thing shall be regarded as old-fashioned which
has once been found useful, appropriate, and be
coming; than nothing new shall be adopted until
itlas ;been proved to, be,.suitable and in good
taste;. that all garments and, al.l appliances of the
toilet that - are,,unwhelesome shall be cast aside;
and that,aa inquiry shall be made whether a large
saving May not be :realized in articles of dress. En
that expettetti may be brought more into harmony
with income." ,
Self SupportAnionOgstem.Christians.—The
Harpoot ('Turkey) plismon has fifty-nine preaching
stations, in a district comprising ®istered Pro
testant population, of 2910 souls. 01 this whole
number,
.2,834 on an average attend the Sabbath Eer
vie4deaving - only an - average of seventy-six per'
sons-at'hotne or.unreprtsehted. Our.church edifices
would .):)e '" too strait forms ".,if any such , phenome
non of devOtion were to 'happen in America. Again'
t h e n cOntribUtion's of '`this' thia- oppressed and poverty
`stricken people incraasedlast, year-f rom 90,0()0 to
1113,000, Tiastres; "dnaost, all giving a tenth of all
thfy got. In the city Harpoot, the ChriF-
Alan who 'does mot igive iiitc-tenth is -an exception
(here, the one who does, , is.the exception), and the
'rule is rapidly growing to a universal one through
out the-mission churchiCa.'The same principle is be
ginning to takezoot. among.the native pariatians in
India.