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REV. DAVID lIITINNEY,
Pittsburgh, Pa. VOL. XI.. NO. 2,1, PITTSBURGH, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1863. WHOLE
For the Presbyterian liatinor .
Seeing and Believing.
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"11 aster, wo would see a sign from
ice," the Scribes and Pharisees demanded
Christ, when he came to teach them.
hat sign showest thou, then, that we
:we and believe thee ?" the people de
,nded. "Our fathers did eat manna in
I desert," can you give us the manna
It Moses gave ? That was the constant
\and of a carnal people. Some startling
ig—somo flashes of Divinity —some
Ims of Omnipotence, like lightning out
t cloudless sky. That was what they
waitinr , b for.This " calm, sweet sun
" is all so natural, so " calin and
," we begin to doubt whether there is
ling above it and behind it. Let us
the thunder from a clear sky, and we
acknowledge the voice of God. True,
might have been satisfied with Christ's
\e love, his Divine pity and goodness,
kke any thing they had ever seen be-
this was all so man-like; they want
" sign " not so man-like, but more
pike, as if true manhood was not the
type and revelation of Godhood—man
in the image of God. But they
not be satisfied with these quiet dis
of Divinity. They want some bulk
measure of greatness, some display
measure of power. They wanted to
the " Mighty Band of God" made
; and they did see it. Look at Laza
brought from the grave at a word from
3; look at Dorcas, waked from her
of death to her work of charity by a
to, " Maid, I say unto thee arise."
at the nobleman's son, healed without
d or a look—he in his sick-bed at
and Jesus away in the country 1
were "signs" that they might "see
believe." But what I wish to say is,
such signs, necessary as they are some
1, are not the highest order of evidence;
as 6 feet 4 inches and 300 lbs. weight
of the best evidence of a great man.
)re is much significance in Christ's
" Because thou , hast seen me, 'thou
believed; blessed are they that have
seen, and yet have believed." Mira
are not the highest order of evidence;
y appeal to •thR senses, but the senses
not the highest faculties•of our nature.
not believe in that which makes its
d to the mind, the heart, the con
ice, as well as on that which appeals to
eye, the ear, and the touch ? Why not
eve a man to be Divine whose words
'spirit have kindled a divine life in our
rts, as well as one who has called a dead
from the grave? There might be
e mistake about the miracle; at least,
might fear there was; the eye may
deceived us, but there can be no mis
'tout these silent, irresistible impres
wn our hearts. There they are, like
:ints in the granite rook. If we re
:hey-resist. As• readily may we come
tbt the reality of our own existence,
reality of this ,new life awakened
Word and Spirit of Jesus. Such a
was the nobleman's who came to Je
o heal his son—faith in Jesus, not
in miracles wrought by Jesus. Christ
to him, " Except ye see signs and
1, ye will not believe." The man
;most impatiently, " Sir, comedown,
child die." Jesus said, "Go thy
ly son liveth. And the man believed
.d that Jesus had spoken unto him."
was true faith, and this is Gospel
We claim the blessing of those who
not seen, and ,yet have believed."
t know how much more blessed it is
Jesus' Spirit live within us, than
brilliant miracles glitter before our
The best " sign" is, Jesus himself
the eye of a loving faith. H.
For the Preebytertan Banner.
Soldier Life.
Lave said that soldier life embraces
departments—life in the camp, life
I march, and the battle. These are
somewhat intermingled: there may
It and encampment of several days
Joh • and the battle, at least in the
of skirmishing, may occur without
interrupting progress or disturbing
march of an army embraces the
J t of the whole body, with all its
;nanees. Fifty, or eighty or a bun
ousand men are advanced. Large
of cavalry, numerous and heavy
of artillery, thousands of ambulances
wily loaded wagons, are incorpora
le moving mass. These all have to
along with the foot soldiers, for the
fence of supplies, and for safe and
action. Nor can they be strung
in weak and extended lines. Two
te roads are not sufficient for their
accommodation. Every available
it be occupied, and new ones must
ge. The Infantry often have to
through fields, and woods, over steep
and through deep ravines, that the
may be left free for the trains. • The
force is to reach a certain place at
the same time; and it requires genius
and great engineering skill to ac
sh this. The whole diversified and
idinous host must be kept advancing,
t long delay to any part, and with
mding or fbrced marches to any.
Ting each other, in their daily
the whole forces is steadily ad-
Hence, when a Division advances,
;s through camps, as though all the
;xcept itself were at rest; and when
;nips for a day, the passing of troops
it appear as though all the army,
itself, were in motion. Occasionally,
le crown of a hill, looking forward
ikward, the road seems filled with
/lag mass of the whole army; but,
same time, in the distance, perhaps,
right and left, similar moving lines
tins are seen on parallel roads. I
it requires great genius and mon,
'll to move an army, in an orderly
atire advance, keeping the parts in
,proper places, supplying rations and
in proper season, and securing to
Id beast suitable repose. It requires,
part of commanders, a little more
o say, " Forward, march"; and is a
1- lat more formidable undertaking, for
, than to shoulder their guns and
me with the music across a parade-
is are unavoidable. A large army,
e baggage—appropriately called by
Lus, impedimenta, hindranoes—oan
'e rapidly, for any considerable time
wee. The roads, the weather, the
ty of enemies, and a hundred other
,envies, may coulee delays. A
mud-hole ; a baulky mule ; or, what is
equally common, a baulky driver; the loss
of a finch-pin ; the breaking of a harne
string, may cause the stoppage for half an
hour, of five hundred wagons. One never
knows the frequency or feels the vexatious
ness of these stops, till he has been on .the
rear-guard, following the train; when, per
haps, every ten rods, or every five rods, for
hours together, the regiment or brigade has
to halt and stand, till the huge worm, be
fore, begins to crawl on again.
Here, a word concerning Virginia roads
may be seasonable. It is extremely diffi
cult to, conjecture what they were, and not
easy to discover where they were, ante Lel
/um—before the war. It is still more
problematical where they will be, after the
wards over. The old roads are quite ig
nored, by our independent wagon trains
wherever it suits them. There are no
fences any where, to interfere with their
freedom, or to obstruct their movements;,
and they feel no obligation to follow the
deep, sandy gully that has done duty as a
road for generations, when they can save
half the distauee and all the mud, by going
across the fields. Virginia has, in this
way, more new roads on her old, effete soil,
than her own industry has made in a cen
tury. Not only new roads are made, but
our Pioneers and Fatigue parties have re
paired many of the old ones. When the
" Old Dominion" returns to her duty, she
cab take her pick out of the whole number.
The Government owes her nothing on the
score of roads. She is welcome to our civil
engineering,
On the score of fences, the account stands
more doubtfal: Pine rails offer au irre
sistible temptation to the soldier, weary,
chilled, and thirsting for his coffee. He.
has not, it must be acknowledged, been
proof against this temptation. To sum it
all up, in one word : the only rebel fences
in the rear of the army, are a few very
' substantial ones in Fauquier County; but
they are stone-walls. To the soldiers, these
had a most forbidding and inhospitable
look, as they filed into their gloomy enclo
sures, at two o'clock of a cold, windy, rainy
morning, after a long day and night march.
It reminded one of a grave-yard. And the
illusion was favored, by the sight of 'the
brave fellows, in ten minutes, lying in
rows, wrapped in their blankets, on the
cold, damp ground.
Nor is the future prospect, of this part
of Virginia very promising, for fences.
The timber, though it covers a good deal of
ground, is not plentiful. It consists, main
ly, of a second growth of pines that have
overspread the old, exhausted tobacco
fields. . A large part of it has already been
used in constructing camp-cabins, and in
in the supply of innumerable camp-fires.
This desolation is, of course, to be deplored;
but it is unavoidable in the prosecution of
the war, in this deluded State. The blame
must justly be laid on infatuated and ambi
tious leaders of the rebellion. The feeling.
of the army toward the poor people of this
region—and nearly all of them are in that
condition—is a feeling of pity. They are
treated with humanity, and sympathy is
often expressed; in view of their losses and
privations. But men must have fires, and
the fuel 'they must get where they can find
it. There is no wanton destruction of
property of any kind, in passing through
the country. During the fierce raging of
the battle, when the enemy were firing
their deadly-missiles-on our men in Fred
ericksburg, there may have been some
plundering of houses and destruction of
property; but it is not a, common thing on
a march. I have seen instances of kind
ness, in word and deed, to the poor people
in the vicinity of our transient encamp
ments. Words of cheer have'been spoken
to the alarmed and the sorrowful.; and
bread from the soldier's haversack has fed
the poor of these poor regions.
I have spoken of the march of the huge
army. Let us look at the individual sol
diers—the foot soldiers, as more familiar
to my observation.
The order to be ready to march on short
notice, is sometimes given for several suc
cessive days, before the peremptory order
to move at a fixed hour comes. It is not
disregarded; the troops are kept in a state
of readiness, and should they be ordered at
any time,
day or night, to move in an hour,
they would be in line at the time. When
I first heard, at. Sharpsburg, the order to
be ready, I was in bed. And being green
in such matters, my first impulse was to
sprine• n up and get ready, on the moment.
But the old campaigners at the Headqart
ers, I found were not in a hurry ; and fol
lowing their early example, I slept and
woke for a week before we were ordered to
march. When that order reaches the com
mander of a regiment, it is speedily passed
to the commanders of companies, and is
given to the men all through the camp.
It produces a stirring effect. Blankets are
shaken and rolled up. Knapsacks are
packed, tents are struck and folded, the
back load and the accoutrements are buck
eled on, and the gun is taken into the
I hand. At the word "Fall in," the regi
ment is formed in line; " Right face, for
ward," is the word from the Colonel, ech
oed by the captains, and the line is in mo
tion—on the march—leaving the camp that
was an hour before, so neat and well ar
ranged, a scene of confusion, littered over
with straw, corn-stalks, and pine twigs—
the under-bedding of the men—old clothes,
fragments of wood, worn-out coffee pots,
&o. Not a man in the ranks, not an offi
cer at the head of a company, not a colonel
perhaps, knows, when they leave camp,
whether they are to file right or file left, to
go North, South, East or West. Somebody
knows; he gives the order or takes the
lead. In marching, the men walk four
abreast, though not with so strict a regard
to dressing and covering their files, as on a
parade or in a field drill. But, four lines
is the rule, which are maintained as well
as the road will allow. Along roads slight
ly softened by rain, they make four paths.
In a field, when a regiment or two have
passed, the four paths are plainly visible.
Besides these, there are some who take to
the sides of the road and make short cuts
over fields and across curves and corners.
These outside lines are composed of the
feeble men, the unarmed men, the servants,
the darkies, and perhaps I may say the la
zy men. The generic name of stragglers
is applied to them all.
The soldier on a march is a heavily load
ed man. Let us take an inventory of his
burden; his gun and accoutrements, with
from forty to sixty rounds of ammunition;
his knapsack, containing his little personal
effects and his extra clothing; his blanket
and gum-blanket or shelter tent; his can
teen; his haversack with three days'. pro
visions in it; and any cooking pan or coffee
pot that he may possess. This load weighs
from lifty.to sixty pounds. It is something 1
to lift it. It may be borne by a stout,
healthy man for two or three hourt, with
out serious inconvenience; but to bear it
for five, six or eight hours, wearing a great
coat at the time, and marching at a good,
round pace up hill and down, is a very fa
tiguing toil. Of course, a very consider
ate leader gives little seasons for rest; and,
occasionally, a rest long enough to stack
the arms and unsling the knapsack; but a
march under such a load is wearisome and
exhausting at the best; and doubly so
when the roads or the weather, or both,
are bad. And yet ft is unavoidable ; the
transportation of . the knapsacks in wagons
would require the trains to be of imprac
ticable length; and would, besides, occa
sion confusion of individual property, and
frequent losses. Any such arrangement
would entail both inconvenience and priva-•
tion on the men. The wagon trains are
not unfrequently some hours behind the
great body of the troops, in arriving at the
place of encampment; and the men would
thus -be without their tents and blankets
all this time. As it is, they can have their
supper and be snugly asleep in their tents,
with all their worldly goods around them,
in an hour's time after the halt. The pri
vate soldier, under this arrangement, fares
better often on the march, than the officer
does. The baggage of the latter is per
haps three or four miles off, just when he
most needs it. The first march from Sharps
burg, after being drenched all day with
rain, many an officer was drenched all night;
while numbers of the men, set up their lit
tle tents, and, though wet, had shelter
through the weary hours of that doleful
time. Of that first day'S military travell
ing in my.experience ; of the steady rain;
of the deepening mud; of the night's wea
risome -and unavailing conflict with cold,
wind, ilind smoke; of small fires extin
guished by great rains; of senseless-search
es ibr a dry spot to sit on; of sleeplessness
and discomfort—the recollections of some
thousands of men are anything but agreea
ble. Yet many. of those thousands posi
tively aver that one march—that from
Hunter's Mills, in the Spring—was worse
than this. I don't think so; but I did
not share in the experiences at Hunter's
Mills.
On an ordinary march, the men are
usually buoyant and social. By an ordinary
march, I mean one of moderate speed—
when the Colonel's horse is not too fast a
walker—extended only to a moderate
length, and made in the day time. Fair
weather, not too hot or too cold; roads
neither muddy nor dusty, are pleasant ac
emery circumstances. Decided silence in
the ranks betokens .a degree, of fatigue that
deinands a halt,.as soon as the inflexible
" exigencies of the service " will allow it.
Evening or night marches are almost always
still ones. Soldiers like to go to rest early,
and lose their sociability when the march
is pushed on into the night.
Here I cannot forbear, in the remem
brance of day and night marches, to offer
my tribute to the wise, humanity of our
_government, in: furnishing our soldiers with
the oft-mentioned gum blanket. This in
dispensable article is made like, the Span
ish Poncho, having a slit in the middle,
through which to pass the head, and then
it falls down over the whole person., cover
ing knapsack, haversack, accouterments,
and all, and forming a perfect protection
from the rain: Many times, when seeing
the regiments on the road, or the guards
walking their beats, the rain pattering
harmlessly on their ponchos, have I felt it
my heart to say, "Bless goocl i othicle Sam,
for that humane provision for his brave
boys." Thrown over the person, it keeps
him dry as a duck; and keeps his woolen
blanket dry for his bed, at night. Spread
on the ground, it preserves him from the
damp. Raised on the rods, as a. tent, it
shelters him from the snow, the rain, the
wind, and the sun-heat.
The march is sometimes begun, as it often
ends, in the night. There is, tome, some
thing solemn in the sight of an army leav
ing its camp in the night. Before the
battle of Fredericksburg, a portion of our
Division left their quarters at midnight.
With a few others, I remained till morn
ing. How lonesome it was ! The fires
burning, the finished and half-finiihed cab
ins standing, a few scattered men sitting
here and there; but it was still; it was
solemn. Perhaps it was because we knew
they had gone on a perilous enterprise, and
would be soon involved in the terrible con
flict. On, another occasion, the Division
started at dawn of day—all, the prepara
tions, the striking of tents, the loading of
wagons, the morning meal, were accom
plished by the light of the full moon, in
the coldest morning of the Winter. The
breakfast at headquarters, was eaten by that
clear, silvery moonlight, the " hard tack "
being none the harder for the frosty atmos
phere, and the steaming coffee being- a
grateful alleviation of it. In a few min
utes after, the regiment filed through a gap
in the hills, and our lately populous vale
was empty.
In this vale where the Division was
crowded uncomfortably together for several
days, I sat one afternoon, in the door of the
tent, enjoying the blazing fire in front of it.
It was the second and last time we have
seen snow this Winter. Most of the men
were in their tents, a few stood around
their out-door fires. Solitary guards were
pacing their beats in different parts, on the
borders of the camp, with their coat-capes
drawn over their heads. The ground was
whitened with snow, the air darkened with
smoke from the camp fires, and the sky ob
scured by wintry clouds. Slowly ascending
the short, steep hill on the opposite side of
the narrow valley, I saw a company of un
armed men, preceded by an ambulance.
The men bent before the storm ; their
shoulders were covered with snow. The
pine bushes through which they were pass
ing, bowed almost to prostration under
their freezing burden. The procession
stopped at the hospital tent on the top of
the hill. I could see, through the falling
snow, the coffin placed in the ambulance,
and the gray-haired chaplain turn back
into the tent, as the procession moved, and
the subdued tones of the fife and muffled
drum, in the dead march, indicated that
another young soldier was being carried to
his last resting-place. The sound died
away in the distance; the funeral train
turned the point .of a hill and passed out of
view. Let the mother, whose name he
spoke tenderly in his sickness,l take comfort
from the assurance that, led by that sym
pathizing and faithful servant of God who
watched kindly over her dying boy, be ,
came to Jesus, and found hope - and comfort
in his tinbraoe.
The arrangements for the sick, either in
camp or on a march, are not equal to those
of home, even in its humblest condition;
but they are as good as it is practicable to
make them. If the patients can ride, they
are carried in the ambulances, either in a
sitting posture or lying down. If not, they
do not accompany the troops on a march.
At a halt, for a night or a longer time, the
hospital tent is raised tor their accommoda
tion. The surgeons attend to their duties,
and the hospital stewards supply the sick
'with their food. But sickness, in the army,
is a sad trial, and recovery is rendered un
certain and slow by the unavoidable ex.
posurc and fatigue. The lack of home
comforts and of woman's tender and assid
uous care, is the severest privation.
May a merciful Providence so order
events, that these noble young men, having
achieved the object of their , terrible but im
portant mission, may return in peace to their
" sweet homes," and tn'lliose who make
them sweet.
The Allegheny Bible Society.
The Twenty-third Ainnal Meeting of
the Allegheny Bible So iety was held in
the First U. P. church (Dr. Pressly's). Al
legheny city, January 20th (Tuesday even
ing.) The exercises were introduced by
reading Scripture, by Rev. D. Bradford,
and prayer by Rev. Thornas Sproul], D.D.,
after which the 100th Psalm was sung with
fine. effect by the congregation. The re
ports of the Corresponding Secretary,
Treasurer and Librarian were then, read,
after which, on motion,tbe following gentle
men were elected to serve for the ensuing
year :
First Presbyterian Church, (Dr. Swift's)
--Messrs. 3. M. Burchfield, C. P. Whis
ton, and R. Davis.
Central Presbyterian Church—S. S.
Bryant, W. D. Riddle, and W. H. For
syth.
First U. P. Church—A. Lysle, 3. Pat
terson. and Thos. McCance.
Second U. P.' Church—Wm. M. Bell,
John Dean, and Jas. McCandleSs.
Third U. P. Church—Wm. Park, Thos.
Wakeham, and Jas. Frazier.
Fourth U. P. Church--Chas. Arbuthnot,
David Dennison, and Joseph MiNaugher.
Fifth IL P. Church—lL Glasgow, and
Hare.
Reformed Presbyterinn 'Chnre (Dr
Sproul'i,)—D. Gregg, L Taylor, and D
Ewer
Reformed Presbyterian Church, (Rev.
J. M'Millan's)—J. P. Fliming, J. Will
iams, and Dr. W. M. Herron.
Baptist Church, Sandusky Street—L.
H. Eaton, Burchfield, 'and Francis
Torrence.
Evangelical Lutheran Church—C. Yea
ger, B. Heckert, and D. Manspeaker.
Methodist Protestant Church—J. H.
Clancy, and James Reno.
Disciples' Church----Itobert Ashworth.
Addressee were then delivered by Rev.
J. Allison, and_ Rev. A.. M. Stewart.
On motion it was
Resolved, That the ,planks: - of the Soci
ety be tendered the reverend speakers for
their eloquent and impressive addresses,
and also to the Trustees for the use of the
church.
• The congregation then joined in singing
a portion of the 72d Psalm.
The following is, an abstract from the
annual Report:
The applications to the Board during
the past year, for copies of the Scriptures,
have been unusually large, and the follow
ing grants appear on our record
50 Bibles to the Western House of Ref
uge ; 94 Bibles and 12 New. Testaments to
Diamont Insane Asylum ; 25 Bibles and
100 copies of New Testaments to Third
Ward Mission School; 50 copies of, the
New Testament to the Fourth Ward Mis
sion. School ; 20 Bibles and 50 copies of
New Testaments to the Friendship. Mission
School in the Fourth Ward.
At the May meeting a special commit
tee was appointed to ascertain and supply
the wants'of the sick and wounded soldiers
at the United. States Marine Hospital, near.
our city, and, in the discharge of their du
ties this comniittee bestowed 25 copies of
the Bible. Six copies of the Bible, also,
have been granted to the " Home for the
Friendless,' in this city; and our Bible
Misaionary, in his explorations of the city
and suburbs, has placed in the hands of
persons who were destitute of them, 42
Bibles and 292 copies of the New Testa
ment. In addition to these direct grants
from this Society, some members of. this
Board, aided by friends of the Bible in one
of our churches, charged themselves with
the duty of supplying such of the men of
the 139th Regiment Pa. Vols., (Col. Col
lier's) as had not already received copies
of the Scriptures. This was done just be
fore the departure of the regiment, and
about 500 copies of' the New Testament
were distributed to the men, and thank
fully received—makinc , b an aggregate of
nearly thirteen . hundred copies otthe Srip
tures which have been distributed during
the year, and which have been bestowed
with care and judgment by those entrusted
with the duty.
We have sown the seed—" the seed is
the Word—and now we ask the Christian
people who sustain the Board, and, whose
representatives we are that they will water
it with their prayers, and ask God in his
own time to bring forth therefrom a har
vest, of righteousness. Without his
to our labor is in vain. Follow it to the
humble homes of poverty, with, a prayer
that it may reveal to the inmates the
riches which are in God's right hand, and
which prince and beggar alike may have
for asking; to the Asylum which society
provides for those on whom the world has
not smiled, with a prayer that God's Word
may light and guide them to the Eternal
mansions, prepared in a better world for
the poor of this, and follow it, too, to those
twin Institutions, alike the offspring of a
Bible age, where die orphaned child, and
those other neglected ones—worse than or
phaned—are tenderly reared by the hand
of Christian benevolence, and pray that
the same Bible precepts which have pro
vided them a refuge in their youth may,
when they finally go out into the world,
still be their counsellor, and their silent
monitor against surrounding temptations.
During the first half of the present fis
cal year we had no agent in the field, the
Board having yielded to considerations of
economy and sug g estions of retrenchment
from. valued friens. The townships, there
fore, have not been explored this year.
Neither have we any collections from the
country districts. Our agent and mission
ary, ,Mr. Robert Davis,commenoed. his
work of exploration and supply - at the first
of July, devoting the first three months
mainly to exploring the suburbs of the city;
finding out all who are destitute of the
Bible, supplying the want so far as possi
ble, and kindly and earnestly commending
it to their heart and judgment—and the
last three months mainly to exploring the
city, and making collections.
During this time ho visited 1,762 fami
lies and persons. Found destitute of the
Scriptures 126; of whom 37 were sup
plied, and refused to be supplied". He
gave to persons unable to pay for them, 21
Bibles and 253 copies of the NeW Testa
ment, (the valtw.of which was; $26.280 -
and Bel* 21 Bibles and 89, copies of the
New Testament for full or part value, real
izing for such sales $18.34. He also re
ceived subscriptions to the funds of the
society, amounting to. $878.37, of which
he pollected $734.12, leaving .outstanding
subscriptions to =punt of $146.25. The
amount collected on the outstanding sub-.
seriptions of last year is $72.65.
These results shows falling off, as coin
pered,With the former years, but it will be
noticed that they have been attained with
about half the ordinary expenditure, ,and
in about half the time ordinarily spent.
We do not, however, deem the economizing
of a few dollar's a matter of any gratula
tion, unless we could assure the society
that every household in the country had
been visited,. and that every family owned
a Bible. This Board have felt impressed
with the importance of more fully enlisting
the sympathies of the Christian people of
the several churches in behalf of our work,
and, thereby, securing their prayers and
cobperation. A committee, appointed to
consider how this could best be done,
recommend that our Bible Missienary be
instructed to prepare a report once a year,
to be laid the several congregations
at such times as he may, deem most season
able—the report to embrace only facts and
incidents of striking interest; drawn from
his daily experience, and such as might
awaken a more lively concern in the work
of supplying a Bible to every household
within our bounds. We commend this
suggestion to the Board of Managers, for
the coming year, trusting• that it maybe
approved and acted on. And if acted on,
we solicit for the missionary's simple nar
rative a kind hearing in the churches ; the
facts he has laid before us from month to
Month, as the result of his explorations,
have moved our feelings and sympathies
deeply, and should be more generally known
in this Christian community.• We feel per
suad.ed that a knowledge of them would
greatly increase your interest and zeal in
the Bible cause.
We have received contriblitions this year
to constitute ,twulpersons,Life Members of
the Parent Society, and in making the rec
ord we cannot forbear asking, Why. is it
that so few life memberships in the Bible
Society are conferred in token of friend
ship or Christian regard ? Surely it is an
honor and a privilege to be a member for
life of the Bible Society ; and if so, why
not do your friend or your child the kind
ness to inscribe his name on that roll of
honor, and, thereby, almost certainly secure
his deeper interests in the objects and suc
cess of the Bible Society. $3O constitutes
any, one a life member. •
OBlTuAwr.—At our first meeting after
the last anniversary there was one present
who never met with us again. Mr. -Wil
liam Dyer, one of the gentlemen appointed
to represent the Third United Presbyterian
church in this Board, and who had been
elected--a member of the Executive Com
mittee, died in the interval between our
first and second meetings. At the unani- i
mous request of the Board, his colleagues
prepared an appropriate minute for entry
on our records, in which beautiful and feel
ing testimony is borne to the loveliness of
character possessed by the deceased and
eitihibited in all his social relations, as head
of a family, a virtuous and industrious cit
izen, and a useful and exemplary member
of Christ's Church on. earth. May we, his
brethren, be admonished and work while
it is to-day, knowing that the night cometh,
in which no man can work.!
W. M. Bell, Esq., Treasurer, reports :
Cash from all sources during the year, in
cluding cash on hand at beginning of year,
$939.05; disbursed as follows :
Paid for current expenses of Board, 20.50
" " books to Pa. Bible Soc., 131K117
" " services of Missionary, 278.00
Surplus funds paid over to the
Pennsylvania Bible Society,
Balance of, cash, on hand,
EDROPEIN. CORRESPONDENCE.
Tory Press and "Recognition "—Letters of " Cru
sader " and " A Southerner "—The English Peo
ple Anti-Slavery—Not of the Beebher Stamp—
Lancashire .Distress—Statiatics as to Numbers
Receiving Relief—Weekly Expenditure—Workers
"full time," " short time," and " out of work"—
Weekly Loss of Wages—Loss to the Revenue—
French Finances—M. Pouters Budget, Free Trade,
and the War in Mexico—The Imperial Sphinx—
The South Condemned by Anthony Trollope and
by W H. Russel-Criais at Constantinople—Dr.
Cummings—New Year's Address—Armageddon
—Postscript.
LONDON, January 10, 1862
RECIOGNITION of the South, is onee more
the cry of a few of the Tory papers. And.
the Morning Herald thinks that in the
event of our recognizing the Confederate
States, we have no right to .attach to our
act any conditions whatever, bearing on the
internal condition of the country. Recog
nition, itiiays, is not an act of favor, but
Of justice. This last, you will observe, is
meant to bear on the known feeling of the
English people against any condonement by
our statesmen of Southern slavery; or
rather it is an attempt to deprecate any re
monstrances being addressed to the South,
(should either separation or recognition
take place,) with regard to the " peculiar
institution. The ugly thing crops up in
spite of itself; and you may depend upon
it, that the overwhelming mass of the na
tion will never change its opinion as to its
abominations. No Cabinet, even if recog
nition were agreed on, would dare practi
cally to endorse the views of the South, in
the way of approving of slavery. Indeed,
I believe that as far as pressure could be
brought to bear, it would be for a promise
of gradual emancipation.
A writer in the Times, signing himself
" Crusader," quotes a letter of last week
,from Mr. Spence, of Liverpool, in which he
says "Mediation is impossible; recognition
is the first Step." The concluding sentence,
" Our Government sees this deadly strug
gle," shows what , badgering Lord Palmer
ston and : the .Qabkriet , have endured from a
small but noisy section. My own impres-
sion is, that the English Cabinet has hard
ly had justice done them in this matter. I
always assured your readers that reticence,
patience, courtesy, and consideration—in
spite of what one man said—ruled the
ministerial councils, and it amazed me to
find that Mr. Seward and others weie
threatening us with war for what was not
intended. I repeat what I have often said,
that the English nation, as a whole, has no
to the peOple of the United States;
but they deplore the incompetency of Gen
erals, the disasters that have fallen on fam
ilies, the hurrying of thousands into eter
nity, and the piling up of a mountain of
debt, the pressure of which, though little
felt now must surely - come. I believe also,
that while the mass are for the abolition of
slavery, they are not " abolitionists," after
the Che.ever, Tyng, and Beecher pattern.
These men seem to disgrace their position,
and virtually preach wholesale murder and
extermination. It is no wonder that En-
ropean-epinion should condemn them, .or
should revolt against. what is called the
"vigor" of Generarllutler at New-,
Orleans. We now hear of the bloody edict
of Jefferson Davis ' and fear to have news
of terrible reprisals.
Another writer heads his letter with the'
question, "Who are the abolitionists ?"
He signs himself "A. Southerner," and
says, " Lbelieve, and many other planters
with myself think, that the real truth con
cerning this matter 'cannot be too widely
known." He then adds
" First, Ate; let us inquire, Who are
he actual slavemakers ? From whose
ports are the slave ships fitted out? Who
find the money, the equipment, the crews ?
" Secondly, Where are most of the;
slaves landed? Who convey the negroes
across from Africa—Yankees or Southern
ers ?
"Thirdly, Who, directly or indirectly,
have reaped, and possibly still are reaping,
the largest share of the pecuniary profits of
slavery in America? Who receive, in re
ran for imported ' human chattels,' the
raw produce. of the South for sale, thus
making an enormous and double profit?
" Fourthly, Who are kinder to the blacks
—South on N orth ?
" We in the South have long appreciated
the pharisaical zeal which would take all
the credit of humanity and yet pocket all
the profits of what they pretend to decry.
Ofcourse, the sincerity of the Aboli
tionists' is not now likely to be put to the
money proof, nor are the Northerners now
likely to have the chance of confiscating
other men's property. . Still, we believe
that nearly all the anti-slavery agitation is
no more than one of the factious cries for
which New-York has become so unhappily
notorious."
Here again in the expression, " other
men's property," the readers of the Times
have the antidote to the venom of the let
ter, and see the cloven foot which covetous
ness tries to conceal.
While the Times thinks that there is
"-much in Scripture which naturally tends
to the mitigation, the elevation, and the
final extinction' - of-slavery," it declares
that " there. is not one single text in the
Bible which can be perverted to show that
slavery is unlawful." It then adds—and
here you have a line of argument often
adopted in the North itself
"In the New Testament we have an
Epistle written by the man who represents
the last revealed phase and development of
the- Gospel, sent by the hand of runaway
slave, who had sought a refuge with the
writer, to his lawful master, to the purport
that the master and his slave were to get
on better, and do their duty to one another
more thoroughly for- the future. The same
writer tells his recent converts that. if they
are slaves they must make the best of that
condition, and not try to escape it, at least
by any means contrary to the laws of the
country. The only possible doubt about
the exact meaning of his advice is, whether
slaves .are to refuse their liberty, even if it
be offered ; or, whether they are merely to
remain true to their masters; even if chance
presents the opportunity of escape. The
context which says that a faithful and du
tiful Christian slave becomes the freedman
of his Heavenly Master clearly proves that
a slave who refuses the' offer of freedom
has a high scriptural argument for his
choice. If it be said that Slavery is at
variance with the spirit of the Gospel, so
also are a good many things which are not
yet laid under the ban of Abolition, ,or
threatened with the g War. Power.' Sump
tuous fare, purple and fine linen, wealth,
ecclesiastical titles, unmarried clergy, good
clerical incomes, and many other things
are contrary to the spirit of the Gospel, or,
at least, can be proved so as easily as slav
ery. But the Roman Catholics have just
as much to-say tor any one of their pecu
liar doctrines as the Abolitionists have for
their one article of a standing or falling
community. Whether the Confederates
have done right to throw off the Union is
a distinct question, but they cannot have a
better defence than a proclamation of war
to the knife, .3. solemn invocation of the
War Power' against every slave-owner
who still claims the duty of his slave."
The Times recalls the time when Mrs.
Beecher Stowe, after the publication of
" Uncle Tom," visited London accompanied
by her brother, and how be told the crowd
at Willis's Rooms that if they were con
sistent they would leave off the use of cot
ton, sugar, and tobacco.
• "Of course he knew, well enough that
of the very eomforta.ble looking people be
fore him, not one in a hundred would prac
tise any such denial. But it. was easy to
lay down the law, and it is not less easy to
preach from Boston or New-York, the ex
termination of the Southerner. * * But
will the North ever declare that slave
grown cotton, sugar, or tobacco, are an un
clean thing, and must not be touched or
carried in Yankee ships, or bought or sold
with Yankee money?"
409.5
99.93
$939.05
STATISTICS 4 8.8 to the extent of Lancash
ire distress, and also as to the extent of the
'relief furnished up to this time, are as fol
lows There are 494,584 persons 'now re
ceiving relief either from the poor rates or
voluntary subscriptions, or from both col:G
-inned. Of these the rates are the entire
support of 78,933. The Relief Commit
tees provided for 234,078, and 181,573 re
ceived assistance from both sources. The
total•number of cases on the books of the
Relief Committeei is 415,651, and the
Guardians are distributing out door relief
to 260,106 persons. These returns com
prise a population of 529,895 work people.
The total weekly expenditure, including
supplies of clothing, amounts to £46;000.
The names of :places given receiving , more
or less relief, fill two columns of the Times
NO. 541
are 163,9%9 working "short time," and,
nearly a quarter of a million (245,718)
out of work. The estimated weekly loni
of wages is one hundred and sixty-eight
thousand pounds and upwards. The Chan
cellor of the Exchequer, in a recent ad
dress at Chester, reckoned the present loss
of weekly wages either directly from the
cotton manufacture, or in.trades dependent
on it, at more than twelve million sterling
a. year. The 4ktettial loss to the revenue for
the ourrent year, he estimated at more than
one million. Should the dreadful and san.
guinary war which now desolated America
and threw the surplus of its curses upon
us, be brought to a close, a great and gen
eral relief might 'be expected. 116 prc.u3ed
the noble `independence and patience of the
factory work people i but reminded them
that they would•.have to put up with low
wages for some time after resuming their
work.
TB.E PRESBYTERIAN BANNER
Publication Office:-
'AXETTB. BUILDINGS, 88 Frrlß BT., Prvrommon, PA.
PHILADELPHIA, SouTu-WuT Con. or Tau 81W 011381181
ADVERTISEMENTS.
TEEMS IN ADVANOIC.
A Bluaro, (8 lines or less.) one insertion, 80 cents
subsequent Insertion, 40 cents; each lirie beyond eight, 5 eta
A Square per quarter, $4.00; each line additional, aft cents
A REDUCTION made to advertisers by the yen*.
BUSINESS NOTICE/3 of Tun lines or less, $l.OO each ad
ditional line, 10 cents.
- REV. DAVID MIKINNETi
PROPRIETOR. AND Yunnan,.
—along with columns of the number of work
ers in mills "full time" and "short time,"
and also the number of operatives "out of
work.'' Over the whole manufacturing
district.? of Lancashire, and in some places
in Yorkshire, there are only 109,748
who obtain work for full time
FRENCU FINANCE would be in a favora
ble condition, but for two causes—the want
of cotton and the war in Mexico. In De-
eember, 1861, the Emperor made a peni
tential confession to his Minister, and
through him to Europe, that the finances
of the Empire were in a very dangerous
state, and surrendered the prerogative of
opening." extraordinary credits," by which
he had, by his own simple decree, raised
£10,000,000 a year. M. Fould, the He
brew Finance Minister, finds his calcula
tions made this time last year for 1862, in
advance put out as to expense. For the
Mexican expedition, the total cost up to
this time is £3,320,000. More money,
much more, will be flung into the same
gulf. But meanwhile such is the elastici
ty of the revenue from the Imperial and
wise policy of free trade; with England es
pecially, and with other countries too, that
the actual receipts of 1862 exceeds the es
timates by two millions sterling, and an ex
cess of more than four millions is expected
to cover the expense of the present year
fir the Mexican expedition. •
Perhaps the Emperor was hoodwinked
and deceived—as General Prim says in the
Spanish Cortes—by the plausibilities of
Juarez; perhaps he feels himself to be in
a mess, through which, or out of which, ho
must do his bold best to struggle; perhaps
he thinks to have much compensation in
pleasing the priests in France and Mexico;
and perhaps, nay, surely, he hopes that
this " little war " will be a safety-valve-to
the restlessness of the French people and
the army. But alas ! of " glory,' hitherto
there has been none • and of disease and
death, the accounts; (though attempted to
be cooped or concealed,) are deplorable.
An advance cannot take place on Mexico
without fresh , troops amounting to 12,00.0;
and zf in Mexico, the questions, arise,
" What next? and next?" Southerners
may hope for his aid or alliance; North
erners may suspect that he means mon
archy, annexation, and mischief in general.
But even he is under Divine control, and
his subtlest counsels, and most skilfully
spun webs of diplomacy, can be marred and
broken by the Hand that rules the universe.
A MINISTERIAL Cams has taken place
at Constantinople. Different opinions have
been expressed about the Sultan—some ac
cusing him of prodigal expenditure as well
as Mohammedan bigotry, and vice versa.
Fuad Pasha has been dismissed from office,
and Kramil 'Pasha, as Grand Vizier, reigns
in his stead. A large loan was obtained in
London, on the faith of financial reforms,
and_ the stock has become valuable to the
original shareholders. But as long as Mo
hammedanism combines with oriental lazi
ness, it is difficult to see how Turkey can
be regenerated. There is far more promise
for Egypt, because the Pasha is inoculated
with European ideas.
DOCTOR GUMMING, in a New Year's
" prophetic " address, has been relating
how Russia has been lately making a pur
chase in Palestine, and said that students
of prophecy believed that the 38th and
39th of Ezekiel referred to that country.
A great Northern Power was to make war,
and that great Power was to be shattered
in Palestine. And as to France, " she
is the centre of the areal revolutionary
force- which is to bring on war, the con
tending parties of which are to meet at
Armageddon." The " three unclean spirits
coming out of the mouth of the dragon like
frogs," refer to France. Why? Because
"the old and real French armies were three
frogs." There is a large class of gobe
mouche, good people who open their mouths
wide at such expositions as these. They
are borrowed from Elliott on the.Apoch
alypse," and are just as consistent with gen
uine criticism, and with prelation, as are
Dr. Cumming's application to modern steam
ships of the ." vessels of bulrushes," of
Isaiah xviii.
P. S.—Mrs. Beecher Stowe addresses a
remonstrance to the ladies. of England,
who, on or after her visit to this eountry,
expressed anti-slavery sentiments. .Her
representation of " The Union " is rather
what she and her friends would have it to
be, than what it has been in reference to
the recognition in times past of slavery.
The declaration in favor of negro citi
zenship on the part of a high legal func
tionary of the United States, is a most sig
nificant fact.
Mr. Barnes, M. P. for Bolton, tells the
cotton working men of the town not to
buoy themselves up with the idea of speedy
relief. It will take time to develops the
cotton-producing powers of different coun
tries. Be says that since the North adopt
ed, an anti-slavery policy, bis sympathies
are entirely with it.
The Daily News (pro-Northern) ex
presses regret that the New-York mer
chants, so generous to Lancashire distress,
have not also sent succors to kindred suf
ferers in France.
The BMW) FOrekilOWledge.—The follow
ing is from the argument of the Rev. Brew
in Grant, in a discussion with an infidel,
June, 1858: " When it is assumed that
God ought by his omnipotence to prevent
what Ms omniscience foresees, there is a
cluster of contradictions. First, to omnis
cience there can be no fore or after; all is
there, present always. Secondly, to pre
vent what he foresees, is itself a contradic
tion ; for, if he foresect it, how can he pre
vent it ? since, then, he would foresee what
never comes after—in other words, he
would foresee nothing."
There