• *P - RE - SE.ITE.R AN A - "D . . ER & CAT J. Presbyterial& Barmen Vol. VI, ■a. 40. Presbyterial. Advosatst Vol. Zl t no. 35.1 DAVID PiIeKINNEY, Editor and Proprietor. iESMS.-IN ADVANCE. original Vottrg. To an Old Schoolmate• Fond memory oft retraces scenes That happened long ago, When youth's bright dreams were all of joy And happiness, below. Life's hopes were all the fairest then, And bright as opening day; But 08,d experience met us soon, And chased our hopes away. Like leaves from some tall forest tree, Touched by a withering frost, So, hopes of youthful days arb gone, In life's great tempest lost. With sohoolmates, once so fond and true, Our time flew swiftly by; The present all our thoughts engaged, The /Wars eaused no sigh. And oft we wandered through the wood, Or olimed the lofty hill, Or near the dashing waters sta— (l think I hear them still,) The wind comes sighing through the woods, With soothing sound to me; For wind, and wood, and murm'ring stream, All seem to speak of thee. But Death, and Time, together, friend, A wond'rons change have made ; And different now are all the haunts Where you and I have strayed. Our hopes, so bright in days of yore, Are dimm'd and tarnished now By scenes and Dares; far different they From those we wished to know. - And where are friends of bygone days? Alas we hear it said, "Some wander fax' from native land, And some are with the dead !" The friend who was so dear to us, Whom we oould always trust ; The hand so oft in friendship olasp'd, Now moulders in the dust! For death, so jealous of our joys, Approaoh'd with silent tread; He touch'd our friends with icy band, And laid them with the dead. Yet still, my friend, we 'll courage take— How many joys remain! Oar friends I they live in worlds above, And we 'shall meet again. _ _ The United Presbyterian Church in North America. This body, recently formed in our city, by the junction of .the Associate and Associate Reformed Synods, takes an important posi tion among the religious organizations of the times. It is destined, we trust, to the accomplishing of a great amount' of good. Hence a little sketch of the denominational history leading to the organization, may be of interest. We quote from the Ilia -West Telescope, which is the organ of the AOBO elate Reformed Synod of the South; a body which has not come into the union. In 1558, just three centuries ago, the Protestants in Scotland entered into `a solemn compact which they called The Covenant," far the purpose of strengthening their own hands and protecting themselves from foreign influence. The union of the crowns of England and Scotland in 1603, led to the introduction into Scotland in 1637 of the English liturgy. To resist this a new Covenant was formed among the Soots, in the year following. Afterwards the "solemn league and covenant" was en tered into between the Protestants in Scot land and the English Parliament, which se cured the independence of the Presbyterian churches. Near the close of the seventeenth century, Episcopacy was established in Eng land and Presbyterianism in Scotland. This aroused the Covenanters in Scotland again, and some of them, they were the minority, formed another covenant to resist the establishment. This was the origin of the Covenanters, or Reformed Presbyterians in Scotland, and from them descended the Church of the same name in the United States. The Covenanters were in advance of their age. Rev. Jno. McMillan (no doubt of the same family with the MeMillans, or MI,- Mullens, as they are, now generally called, of the Associate Reformed Synod of the South,) was the first minister of the Cove nanter Church in Scotland. The "Re formed Presbytery" was organized in Scot land in 1743. Rev. Mr. Craighead organized the first Reformed Churches in North America. This was about the middle of the last century. He was joined in 1752 by Rev. Messrs. Cuthbertson from Scotland', and Linn and Dobbin from Ireland. These men com posed the Reformed Presbytery as originally organized in Pennsylvania in 1774. In the early part of the 17th century, the right of settling ministers, withont re ference to the wishes of congregations, un der the hew of patronage was exerciaed in Scotland.. At length •the principle was yielded and the practice given up by an act of Parliament. But in the beginning of the 18th century the doctrine of patronage wag again revived. It gave mach offence at the time, bat was submitted to, until an instance occurred in which a minister was forced upon a congregation much against the desires of a large majority of the peo ple. The case was taken before the General Assembly in 1732, and the Assembly adopt ed an act roundly asserting the doctrine of patronage, and approving the conduct of the anthorittes in the Use brought before them. Against this act of the Assembly, together with other sins of the time, Rev. Ebenezer Erskine, then a leading member, preached a sermon et the' opening of the Synod of Perth and Sterling in October, 1732. • This was the beginning 'Of 'which the end was, the organization of the Associate Presby tePy of Scotland in 1788 ; With the Ersitines at its head. Twenty-two years after this, the Associate Presbytery of Pennsylvania' was organized by Rev. Messrs. Gillatly Arnot, who were sent out by the Assooiate:Synod of Scotland. In 1776 the Presbytery' having increased considerably, WEIS divided and a new Presbytery formed, which wag' called the Presbytery of New York. In this - memorable year of 1776, a propo sition was made to unite the Reformed 1 1 ref!= byte?) , of Peunsyltinia, and the Associate , Presbytery coverin g ct the same Territory. Negotiations were kept up for six years, and in 1782 the union was consummated, all the members of the Reformed Presbytery, and all' of the Assoeiate ministers, except Messrs. Marshall and Clarkson of Pennsylvania, en tering into it. ! The name adopted by the united body was "The Associate Reformed Church." The body thus organized grew and multi plied, until in 1802 it was divided into four Synods, spread over the United States, viz.: The Synod of New York; the Synod of Pennsylvania; the Synod of Sciota; and the Synod of the Carolinas. Out of these four suhordinate Synods, a General Synod was made up. Thus composed, the General Synod was held annually until 1820 ; when beoause of the labor and expense necessari ly incurred by their delegates in attending, as well an some growing disaffection on cer tain matters, the Synods of Sciota and the Carolinas withdrew, and became independ ent Synods. In 1821 the General Synod, then composed of two Synods,, proposed a Man. with the General. Assembly. In 1822 a partial union was effected, and about a. dozen congregations with their pastors went over to the Presbyterian Church. The Associate Reformed Church was then com posed of the following Synods: The Synod of New York, the Synod of the West, and the Synod of, the Carolinas. So it remained until 1856, when the Synod of New York and the Synod of the West were 'united. The Synod of the Carolinas remains intact, undivided, and unabsorbed. Now, let us go back a little. It has been stated that in 1782 the union between the Reformed and Associated Churchei was ef fected. But it is a mournful feet, that while the union embraced all the Reformed ministers and all of the Associate but two, that, in both these Churches, there were some of the people who were wiser than their leaders, and who refused to go into the union. These remnants formed the seed, which being carefully nursed and cul tivated, have grown up into flourishing Church - es retaining their old names, Reform ed and Associate. About twenty years ago a proposition was made by some one, for a union between these two bodies and the General Associate Reformed Synod of the West. The propo aition was entertained, and many meetings for consultation were held. At length the Reformed Synod despaired of the object and withdrew. The negotiation between the Associate and Associate Reformed Synods have been kept up. And on Wednesday, the 22d ult., the union was flnallfeonsum mated, and the United body is hebeeforth to be known as " the United Presbyterian Church of North America." The Synod of the South is now " the As• societe Reformed Presbyterian Church, of North America." 1115 E The Source of Death. By the Rev. W. B. Stevens, D.D., Pastor of St Andrew's Church, Philadelphia. A religious truth, taught by anatomy and physiology is, that there are, in the human system, the seeds of death; which death was broight into the world by sin. Carpenter, the mot learned of English physiologists, , remarks : "It seems inherent in the very nature of vital action that it can only be sustained during a limited period, by any organized body." And a distinguished American physiologist (Draper,) declares, that "the whole science of physiology is a commentary on the truth, that the condition of life Is death." Paradoxical as this asser tion of the learned Professor may seem, it is fully sustained by the facts of physiology. The fundamental components of the animal ' frame are cells. "It is by cells and their derivatives, that all the proper vital actions ' of the body are performed ;" but it is a law of physiology "that the amount of vital action that can be performed by each living cell; has a definite limit, and when that cer tain point has been once reached, a diminu tion in the vital activity of the cell must ensue." Hence, there is a steady wasting away of all parts of the animal mechanism; ; there is no part of the human system ex empt from this law of disintegration and repair; but the power to repair the perpet ual wastage gradually ceases,. and then the waste increases beyond the repair, and death supervenes. • What a striking, and I might also say, scientific comment is this law of physiology, on the original curse, pronounced on man in Eden. In appointing the tree of knowl edge of good and evil to be the test of Ad am's obedience, God said, "In the day thou eastest thereof thou shalt surely, die ;" or, as the Hebrew literally reads, "Dying thou shalt die." Death did not come upon Adam on the literal day on which he ate the forbidden fruit; on the con trary, he lived many hundred years afterwards, but on thpt day of disobe dience, that day of man's ruin, and man's curse?he became mortal; there was made by the same Power, which originally created him out of the dust, that change in his physical system, by which he was ever to bear about a dying life, by which a process of interstitial death was ever to be going on in his body; decline and death being stamped on each component tissue, be it a cell, a fibre, a,membrane. It has been strikingly remarked by one of our own most accom plished Professors, (.F. Gurney Smith,) that "every movement of a muscle, every exer cise of the brain, whether of thought or volition; in a word, every action that we per form, causes the death of some of the cells of the organ that perform it; so that, in truth, we die daily, in order , that we may live." And though, in many instances, this degenerating process is met and recom pensed by the regenerative process of the vital power; yet, like a life:clock whBse weights are hung to run for an appointed time, this regenerative power has .its limit, and somatic death is but the sequence of long.continued molectilar death, and :thus the curse, "Dying thou shalt die," had then, as now, and as long as sin reigns in the world, shall have, its full and physiolo gical verification. Thus it is that.man ever bears about hint the seeds of death; every cell in the human body, though seen only through the eye of the microscope, is a seed of death; and hence, all the tissues and.organs of the'body, made up of these countless cells, Are but so many aggregates of death-seed, ripening with greater or leas rapidity for the harvest of "death, and the garner of the grave. r But witenie this death ? Here physical "ONE THING IS NEEDFUL:" "ONE THING HAVE I DESIRED OF THE LORD:" "THIS ONE THING I DO." PUBLICATION OFFICE, GAZETTE BUILDING, :FIFTH STREET, ABOVE SMITHFIELD, PITTSBURGH, PA. TURDAY, JUNE 26, 1858. science is dumb. And we must go to Rev elation for an answer. "By one man," says St. Paul, "sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for all men have sinned." Death, then, wherever we meet it, islthe result of sin, and its 'sepulchral voice ever repeats, man has sinned. Every funeral knell tolls the word sin, ; every stroke of the hammer that drives a nail into the coffin strikes the sharp,quick word sin; everypaseing hearse rattles the word sin; every, stroke of the chisel upon, the glavestone clicks the word sin ; every burial service tells of, sin. It is the one startling monosyllable‘Which rings all day long, and all night loog,_ like the cricket's monotone, from every grave yard; it is the one syllable which the ,great sea moans forth from charnel depths; it is the one fearful cry which dwells, on the bloodless lips of the pestilence • it is the one appalling shriek which rings louder than the cannon's roar on the field of blood.; and there is not a day, an hour, a minute, a second of time, when Death as he hurls his dartinto some`victim's heart, does not shout the word, which tells the whole story of himself and his deeds, and that one word is C gm!, A Safe Place There,is hope for a church member so long as he is in the Sabbath School. Sab bath School members are the pra3rer meet ing -members, and they are the bone and sinew of the Church—the Aarons and Huffs of the tribe. - You seldom, if ever, hear of a regular Sabbath School teacher making ship wreck of the faith.. Men join the Church. They are never seen in the Sabbath School, or the prayer-ineeting. In a short time they complain they do. not feel at home; they, know no one in the church; and the pastor hardly speaks to them, &e.,and they must go somewhere else. That ault is their own. They have stood aloof from those places where acquaintances are formed. They have constituted themselves honorary mem bers; therefore, ordinary members; conse quently, useless members. If I were asked by a young Christian, what he ought to do in order to resist temp tation' enjoy his religion, and make himself useful, I would say, go into the Sabbath School, either as a teacher or as a scholar, and stay there until you are providentially prevented from going. If I were asked by, an old Christian troubled with doubts and fears, how to get rid of them, I would say to - him, go into the Sabbath School, and tell others what you know about Christ and his blessed Word, and it shall be true of you, "He that watereth shall be "watered also himself." If I were asked by a young roan, what he should do in order to become a successful minister of Jesus Christ, I would reply:: let your first effort, after taking charge of a church, be to secure a fionrishiog Sabbath Sch . ool; and if the presence of a hundred or more of young hearts every Sabbath does not make you eloquent and useful, then you are, hard and rather a hopeless ease. I pity the man who -is afflicted with a church without a Sabbath School—where either there are no children to form one, or not piety enough in' the members to sus tain one. Half of his supplies are thus cat off, and the right arm of his strength is broken. He is a subject for, the deepest Sympathy of his brethren. There may be a church without a bishoP, and it may flourish, too; but may the Lord in his mercy deliver me from achurchwith out a Sabbath School. The absence of Sab bath Schools is the, chief reason of so many feeble churches and inefficient ministers. Fundamentals in Religion—Justification. The, smaller the number ,of those things which the Gospel will warrant us to regard• as requisite to the Christianity of Churches and men, the more of both can we Con scientiously embrace with the feelings, of cordial and unmitigated brotherhood. lam accustomed, in meditating upon this matter, to take, my stand where, as it seems to my apprehension, the Apostle Paul took his. * * * If ever he referred to what is to be considered fundamental, he referred, to it when he' said, though we, or au angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel' unto you than that which we haie preached un to you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again. If any man preach any other Gospel. unto. you than that ye have received, let him be ac cursed." Whatever ~the Gospel, was, to which the apostle thus solemnly referred, it is obvious that no man and no church that rejects it can properly be Christian. On a subject, involving consequences so moment ous, it would be presumptuous to speak but with caution and candor. Honesty and faithfulness, hewever, equally demand that what we do think should be declared with explicitness. * * * "To the law and to, the testimony ;" guided, we trust, by that, we do not hesitate to say, that we consider the apostle to refer, as the whole tenor, of the epistle shows, to the doctrine off/tat/flaw:on —justification on.the exclusive, ground of faith in the atoning sacrifice of the Son of God. The whole argument of the apostle is directed, not, perhaps, against a verbal and actual, but against an implied and vir tual, denial of this doctrine, by a primitive perversion of 'it, which seduced the Gala. plans from the simplicity of Christ; and this circumstance imparts an additional im portance to the truth itself, and additional force to the apostolic anathema. "By the works of the law shall nelfesh be justified." " Christ has redeemed us from the,, curse ,of the law, being made a curse forus." Who ever, therefore, denies this doctrine, and seeks, in whole or in part, to be justified by law, "Christ can profit him nothing."' He preaches or believes "another Gospel, which is not another," and, in the language of the apostle, "Christ," in regard to that man, "has died in vain." The awful conse quence inevitably results—awful to eontem plate,--awful to express—that, whatever else he may believe or disbelieve i he is not united to."the.Head of the body=" and therefore he cannot be included in the unity of that body itself. If a society denies this doctrine, whatever may' be its external forin—wha.tever it may have, or what ever it may not have, as to other things— however simple or however splendid its ritual and. cerernonies—it, also,- has ' abaci cloned fthe faith :for." another Gospel,": and has put itself in a , position, in , which, it inipossibl to recegpize it la in lateral part of the Christian community. This grand. fundamental doctrine involves in it, as it seems to us, the divinity of Christ, and the necessity of renewal and ,sanctification by the spirit; but it doP, not it,v4tve e.ither I the classes of opiniou wbioh distinguish Calvinists and Arminians ; nor. has it any thing to do with a particular form of Church government., It may be"held in connexion with great variety of sentiment, on subor dinate points; and it may be:preached, as fully and as Scripturally, by 'tile ennobled episcopal bishop of a place, asitby the plain congregational bishop of a peale.—Rev. Biuney. , , Prom our London Correspondent. The Vote of;Censure Withrtraton-IWhy P--Scene in the House—Leaders—The Sabbath-Day, Plot —Palmerston and the Papists—W:4oestant A/licence , and its Operation--iyaffnar Teenier anee League—Statisties and Drinking CuAtosar— improvement—lreland and Whiskii,-Chureh and -Chapel Union—State of the lifaasii=Speech of a Witty Barrister—Free Church: tiveynbly ancHts Doings—Death of the Duchess _pf Oryans- 7 . Gold Medals to •dir. Dallas and Ifeishew=Lord Stratford, Turkey, and the Yeair,4ntbaseador— Mr. Disraeli and the , 4 Cabal." , - LONDON, May 281, .1858. THE WITHDRAWMENT OF 17 . 41 VOTE OF CENSURE on the Derbyite Ministry, put an abrupt and unexpected termination, on Fri day last, to a debate which -had rgitated the whole country, and .whose issues ?had been ,the subject of 'interest sill . over Europe. You are already aware that by the...publica 'tionof a dis Patch severely reproving . Lord Canning' for his - proclamation, such a storm had been raised as compelled' Ellenborough to resign. , But the Palmerstorrparty eagerly seized on the occasion, seeking to turn it to their own advantage. Panting ler officio, they formed their plans • a vote of censure Was agreed on,' and the majerity, e,Np s of the' . Ultraiberals agreed tO support A ft Pates the debate progressed, these list mentioned gentlemen began to rue their pled cre find when to 1. at last arrived, in the very nick - of time, from Calcutta, the true explanation of th meaning na and designs of the proclamation, ~r; ~r,. -Card well's motion, declaring in its'preamble that " information was Wanting," r ,felrto' the ground. A general election, with till ,its ex penses and changes of, seats, was imminent 1 if the motion was passed ; the country, too, deprecated a fresh, shock to , commerce gradually reviving ; and besides ' this, a strong feeling against theyeturre.,,Pf the Whigs to office, unmistakably , showed itself. Sir James Graham damaged theraterribly by a great speech. Mr._ Bright ,"scathed them in his own ,vehement and tellirig,way; and altogether, when a fair ,opening was offered for escape, the Liberals., were ,only too glad to cry out " withdrawn;" ,audMr. Cardwell, miens volens, ,did withdraw his motion accordingly.; . , .„l , • ' Great was, and is the exultation.'ef the ,' Tories. The Morning Advertiser, no ~ very great authority, thivatens them 'with a vote of confidence before a month is over. _ But the Times can only deplore the break up of parties. For my part, I have no faith in Palmerston, as 'a real Liberal. He is an aristocrat to the core, and he his nlaYed for many years fast'and loose. with the cause of liberalism on the Continent. As tor the Derby Ministry, its leader is not: a man to, command : the confidence of Chrisiians, and Mr. Disraeli is very slippery. ,But. they know that their political existence ~: d epends on paying attention and, giving effect to pub lic opinien, and, on the whole, their regime for the present, is nineli to be preferred. It , is very clear that the conspiracy to, upset. the Ministry, formed at Cambridge House, (Palmerston's ' residence,) on the SoZbath day, included promises to the ",Pope's , Brass Band," of Irish Members. One, of their. number, Mr. Se,rjeant'Deßsy, seconded Mr. - Cardwell's motion. That, party, „always petted by the Whigs, receive far more than, their share of patronage in Ireland. It is worthy also of notice that all the Roman Catholic Peers voted against Lord Derby, in the division taken in that House. This shows concert. No doubt Cullen and Wise man were behind the eiiiiain, pulling the strings. THE PROTESTANT ALLIANCE held - its annual meeting, this ' week, at Freemason's Hall. This association . embraces all Evan. gelical Protesta.nts, and-hest Lord Shafts., bury at its head, as President. It has done 1 a noble work. It has been a kind of detec tine officer, always on the- track of ; the emissaries of Rome, and> revealing its dark deeds not only in the United Kingdom, but on the Continent ofEurope o Its opposition to Maynooth, its exposure of the Nunnery system, and its demand for the inspention of convents; its measures to provide tem porary asylum for priests quitting the Church of Rome ; . its exposure of Popish cunning in foisting ". : Outlines of English History,' : into the list.of Privy. Council. School Books, in which Queen Mary's.atroeities were eon,- cealed ; its correspondence .with the authori ties at Oxford University, leading to the. r withdawment from the books recommended . by the examiners in law and modern history, of the Popish " Lingarer s History , of England;" the opposition given by it teat tempts to force Romish priests into,pols ~as; paid chaplains, and ,to, kindred. efforts =to make,. by Act of Parliament, Reformatory Schools, paid nurseries, for Ronmnism„ to, g,ether with memorials ,presented to our Foreign Secretary on behalf of oppressed converts on the Oontinent- 7 -such services as these to the, cause of Protestantism, have marked the, history of the . Alliance. during the last twelve months. • , As one of the Examiners, abute,-time . since, of young men, who offereVtitem, selves as candidates for prizes for the best, written answers, (given without...bogkei.: and written down in the presence of the, examiners, in answer to printed queries put , before them,) it fell to my lot to urge ,upon, the meeting the, necessity for ,providing., funds for continuing, this important means ; of training a number of young men who , could at any time expose the subtleties and meet the plausible,. arguments of Rome. . The Scottish Reformation Society has re— cently awarded prizes to a number of stye> dents, with this design. The eandidates of, our English,Alliance were not 4 g students,'.' , in - the ordinary sense , of the word, bat young men—members of Christian Associations generally—engaged in business. As Lord Shaftsbury said, " Tlais,Society, D by its watchfulness, its associations, ~and affthitions in various parts of the country ; bi* correspondence with various bodies in America and various parts of Europe; ,by. its offering itself as a general centre , of ac tion, has rendered essential service to the cause of Protestantism throughout the world." Tile NATIONAL TEMPEEAN CB LEA GE E held its annual leading, last, week, in Exe ter Sall. Interesting statistics on the sub ject of intoxicating drinks, were given in the Report. The average annual consump tion in the -United Kingdom, of, British spirits, from 1835 to 1839—the first five years of the Temperance League movement 25,525,87 gallons; malt, 41,653,466 bushels. Duriag'the laet five years of the movement,--the.annual average consumption of British, spirits .was 24,272,730 gallons, a cleoreaie" of two per cent.,, and .malt, only 38,346,033, bushels, a decrease of tort per cent. ' .dther 'kindsOAA'aiiioxicatiOg falliYnt Off ifiWohiniinrition, with the exception' of French brandy, Hob. lands, and lightwines, which, have slightly increased; • the,population,, in the,meantime, having increased about twenty, per cent. During the same" period; the increased Con sumption of:tea and coffee wag aboiit'sixty ;;per cent., There is,no doubt at all that progress has been made, in national, sobriety. Bat our 'Seek' drinking' customs still exercise mis chievous sway over the working Chissee'and the-well-paid artiza,ne, Who;in spite of high wages, ,even in good times, as a rule, save .nothing for the " miny,day.'? 1T,_,.11e use of malt liquor, relo;c1 at: home, would., be are turn to old Inglieh habits, and,taken in - small =quantities at meali, it is rigarded by multitudes of ..families in the middle daises !rola wholesome beverage. Spirit drinking is,the great evil.- The consumption ,of gO, by'women, of the lower class, as well as men, prevails largely in London and elsewhere. The facilities for lieenie pnblin house's ; the introduction of music saloons and eassi noes,