Presbyterian banner. (Pittsburgh, Pa.) 1860-1898, May 11, 1864, Image 1

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    ALLISON,
ED/TORS
it T PATTERSON,
GAMES ALLISON & CO., Proprietors.
TL:RNIS lIN ADVANCE..
Bir MAIL, Usi only or in 0111 be,) $2.00
//gLi9 tiFIIP EIT/In Of THE 9.50
TeAtul,, TEN Pubscriberm and upwards, win
ciditlini to g a paper Nrithout eliarge, and another
oe
nnon tor t lie eeeoud ten ;
t lcw •wmeAliould be ['romp!, o little before the year expires.
pildct all WWI to
JAMES ALLISON & CO.,
PITTSBURGH, PA
For the Presbyterian Banner.
Leiter from China,
To - Nucnow, China, Jan. 20, 1864
After a voyage of one hundred and six
ty-seven days on the ship St. Paul, we
reviained in Shanghai a fortnight, waiting
fir a vessel going North. At length the
steamer Swatow left, January 3d, for
Chao°, about seven hundred miles dis
tant by water. The passengers consisted
o f Bro. Blateer and wife, ourselves, and
six others, including two English mission
aries—one having a with and little child.
Wo had a very pleasant and gentlemanly
Captain, and good! accommodations, whioh
contrasted most favorably with our former
voyage. We steamed along against the N.
E monsoon and high sea till Wednesday
evening. At 8 o'clock the Captain told us
in two hours we would be anchored in Cho
foe. We all gathered round the cabin
determime&nat to retire till the an
chor was down. Land bad - been in sight
all day. Many of the high peaks were
covered with snow, and with, the sun shining
on them, were really beautiful. The night
was dark and the coast dangerous, but the
Captain had been along it very often ; so
wo sat, singing, talking, and enjoying our
selves, almost as though we had been at
home, feeling perfectly secure. In leas
than half an hour the ship struck, (rock
as we supposed, She struck again and
again and again, till she was fast in the
sand. The waves• dashed the ship about
so furiously that every moment we were
afraid of being broken in pieces. Our
feelings cannot be described during those
long momenta—each sat appalled and held
his breath. After the ship became more
steady, we all knelt down and prayed to
our heavenly Father, and wore comforted.
The Captain told us the ship was wrecked
so that there was no hope of getting her
off; that there was no present danger in
remaining on the ship, yet if a gale, or
even a light wind should spring up, as he
feared there might with the coming tide,
the ship would certainly be lost, being an
iron vessel. He advised us to get ready at
once to go on shore. The life•boat was
lowered, and two of the passengers, with
several_ sailors, started for the shore, prob
ably fifty rods distant. They reached it
after much delay and difficulty. They
made a cable fast between the ship and
shore, and other necessary precautions for
safety. It was a very cold night, and the
ground was covered - with snow, so ye
clothed ourselves as warmly as we could
and left, taking but little with us except a
blanket each. By this time it was near II
o'clock. Not a house in sight. Nothing
but a barren coast before us. We started
without a guide, not knowing where we
were going. We felt as we bad not before,
that wo were indeed 4 $ strangers in a strange
land." The Captain had told us we were
only about five miles from . Chefoo ; but he
bad gretetly missed his reckoning, being
misled by a ship which bad been wrecked
in the same place a short time before, but
still standing, and as he supposed, lying at
anchor. We were really thirty miles off,
as we afterwards learned.
On, on we walked, aver hills and across
plains—often through snow almost knee
deep. Thus hour after hour passed, Os
casionelly we spread sour blankets on the
snow and reated, but only for a fe* min
utes at a time, because of the cold, At
Tait, when it seemed as though :some of
our number could go no farther, wo heard
the barking of a dog--Ldelightful music to
us. Soon we came to a small village. -By
this time it was five o'clock A. M. For a
while we were no better off than before, for
it was with the greatest difficulty that we
could persuade any one to let us in. They
were afraid of foreigners. After trying
for nearly an hour, a man brought a light,
and looked at us most attentively. At last
the sight of the little child touched his
heart, for at, once he started to find us a
house. le soon returned and took Is to a
work•shop, in which some servants were
sleeping on a kong—a sort of couch with
fire underneath. They left, giving their
place to us. ,We found it very comfortable
to our wet and almost frozen feet. The
couch was heated . by burning straw, and•as
there was no chimney, we could searcelP
breathe for the smoke. As soon as it was
light the two young men started, with a
guide, for Chefoo, for help, supposing it
only three miles distant. Our presence in
the village sop became known, and crowd
after crowd clime gazing at us with eager
curiosity. We had frequently to bolt the
door to keep them from crowding , us out.
The house, built of mud,' and with a
thatched floor, had but one window, with
paper for glass. This they picked full of
holes to get a peep at us. The ladies
walked out during the day, and crowds of
men, women .ant children followed wher
ever they went. 'Probably they had never
seen a white woman before. I suppose we
seemed to them as singular in appearance
as Chinamen, with their shaven head and
queues, would to you at home. About 8
o'clock they brought us a breakfast of sweet
potatoes and porridge, treating us very
kindly indeed. After breakfast two of the
men went back to the ship,to,try to get
some of our baggage off, if possible; the
rest remained in the village. In the even
ing some Englishmen who bad come to sur
vey the wrecked ship which led us astray,
found us and gave us the supper they had
brought along for themselves,and some
bard bread for breakfast. e felt as
though we were fed by the ravens. We
laid us down to sleep on the heated couch,
anti smoked, and baked, and slept, so
crowded that we could scarcely move ; thus
the night passed. The next morning the
natives brought us a basket of eggs ; so we
made quite a breakfast on eggs and hard
bread. You can imagine how we looked
sitting on the bed and eating our eggs out
of the shell, talking and laughing as mer
rily as though we were surrounded with
every comfort and luxury.
About noon -the news oame that the
hoglish gunboat from Chefoo had oome
for our relief, and we must hasten at once
to her, two miles distant. We hired don
keys, and each mounted one, except two of
the ladies, who preferred walking to riding
on pack waddles. We were soon safely
on the gunboat, and truly thankful, I trust,
for such assistance. The officers treated
us with the greatest kindness, doing all in
their power to make us comf ortable. The
night was so dark that the boat anchored;
AO we did not reach Chefoo till Saturday
morning—thankful that our dangers on
the deep were over for this time.
We remained at Dr. M'Certee's till
Wednesday, then started for Tungehow,
about sixty miles across the country. Each
of us bad a litter carried between two
mules, with extra mules and donkey to
carry baggage, and about ten Chinamen to
lead the mules and take oare of things gen
erally. So we formed quite a train, which
would doubtless have called out many spec
tators had we passed through an American
viilage. 'We stopped for the, night at a
Chinese Inn. It, as usual, bad a ground
door, anti was very much like the house in
the village. We had our own provisions
with us. Slept again on a heated comb.
The next morning it was so cold that we
! ft/4 • fot;get the Chinamen started before
cti , l o
lit/malt
lirts
4,
VOL. XII. NO. 34
ten o'clock, so, to our great disappointment,
we had to spend a second night on. the
way. We suffered very much from the
cold. The roads were very narrow—mere
bridle-pathei in many' places—and icy, so
that it was not a very safe way of traveling.
Hills were constantly in sight, but the
country is comparatively level. Not a
fence was to be seen, although every foot of
ground that could be,. is cultivated with
the greatest care in Summer.: The people
all live in villages, so you never see a
house standing alone. The country seems
to be almost entirely destitute of timber.
At noon the third day, • January 15th,
we safely.reached Tungclkow. Only those
who have had similar experience, can know
how glad and thankful we were to reach.
our journey's end. We had been traveling
constantly for almost seven months. When
we left home, we expected to be here at
least two months sooner. It is good to
find a place which we can call lfbme, even
in a heathen land. We went to the house
of Bro. Mills, who was the only missionary
of our Church at this place. We had only
been there a few minutes, until the mis
sionaries of the Baptist Church—two fam
ilies and the widow of one who was killed
by rebels a year ago—came to bid us wel
come. Many of the native Christians, too,
came -to welcome us. They seemed as glad
to see us as though their own kindred bad
'come from a Tar land. The missionaries
.tell us that the native Christians have long
been praying for us, that we might be
brought to them in safety. It was good to
meet Christians in this dark corner of the
earth.
For the present, the three families of the
'Presbyterian Mission 'are all living in a
heathen temple 'which has been rented and
fitted up. We were allowed by the priests
to bury one of the largest idols—the oth
ers are stored away in a lumber room.
There are no foreigners in the city except
the missionaries I have mentioned. Tung
chow is a walled city, with a population of
one hundred thousand. It is beautifully
situatea, overlooking the ocean. The wall
itself is about forty feet high, built of
qizarried stone, and is in very good repair .
The majority of the houses are .built of
stone, and present a much better appear
ance than the cities in the South. This
is a cold, dry and healthy climate.
In regard to the missionary work, prac
tically we know but little; but if Chris
tians at home could only spend a single
Sabbath here, and see the people busy at
their work as on other days,they could then
understand something of the meaning of
that passage, " They are without God and
without hope in the world." If they could
mingle among the heathen for a while, I
think many would realize more than they
do, that they, too, have immortal. Sonia
Yet thousands are dying every year who
know nothing of Christ and his salvation,
and yet are "without excuse." Should
not the mission work enlist the warmest
sympathy, interest and prayers of all God's
people ? HUNTER CORBETT.
For tho Preabybirlan Banner.
The lowa Indians as they were 'in - the
Year 1887.
It was on the ifith of April, 1837, when
I first visited the lowa. Indians, in what,
was , then called ; the Platt Plirchatya, now
forming an important pert of the'State of
Missouri". The year previous, they had
made a treaty with the government, which
obliged them to leave that country and take
a new home in, what is now, the State of
Kansas.
They numbered, in •all, eight hundred
and thirty. They were a wild, warlike;
roving people, and in a moat wretched con
dition—depending, mainly*, upon the chase
for a subsistence.
Their habitations were of the 'most frail
and temporary kind. They were shelters,
in the form of houses or huts, made of the
bark of trees, stretched over slender poles
and tied together with bark strings. Or,
they were tents or lodges, made of the
skins of the buffalo or elk, and sewed to
gether with the sinews of these animals.
These bark houses were merely for Summer
shelters, and would in a few years yield to
the wear of time, :when -they would be
abandoned and a new Ancation sought.
Their akin tents are carried with them and
make their habitation Wherever they chance
to stop. They were, Strictly, a migratory
and unsettled people.
Domestic animals, excepting ponies and
dogi, were , not among them. Indeed, to
some of them, such things as cattle, hogs,
Sheep, and poultry, were ahnost unknown ;
and did such animals happen their. way,
they would pounce upon them for present
food, as quickly as upon a buffalo or wild
turkey.'
Their
Their ponies or horses, being of the wild
Mexican or mountain stock, shifted for
themselves in the Winter; and their poor,
half-famished dogs had'a miserable exist
ence, excepting in the betbir hunting sea
sons. -
Their farming utensils were's " Squaw
axe," (a miserable looking piece of iron,
with a beveled edge and an eye like a gar
den hoe, which a man; now.a.days would
not know what to do with) and heavy hoe
just introduced hy,the traders.
Household and kitchen furniture consist
ed of a few wooden bows and ladles, and a
vamp . kettle, lately bought from the traders.
Their bedding was of mats, made of flags
or rushes, with the skins -of the buffalo,
elk and bear, to which was added, in the
better, cases, a French blanket. Their fin
est and best personal dress was, for the
men, buffalo and deer skins; the latter for
leggings and moccasins, and the former for
robes or mantles. For the women, some
cloth and blankets had been obtained from
the traders.
With the men, war was the chief employ
ment and great delight. War parties were
almost constantly coming or going, and the
war dances, either preparatory to, or on re
turn from, war were almost constantly on
hand at the village. The women, also, en
tered considerably, into the war spirit.
They took a large part in the war dance.
They would dress and paint in a fantastic
manner, and move in large circles, their
shrill voices chiming in with the war 'song
and war whoop. The more honored in the
circle would carry a shrub or branch of a
tree, as large as could be carried, pendent
from which, were mutilated parts of the
bodies of their enemies, such 44 a sealp,
fingers, toes, and even feet and hands.
In.one instance, ktiown to the writer, an
old woman of fonr-score, on hearing that a
grandson had so distinguished himself in a
war party, as to be entitled to the honor of
a brave, by .some means got upon a pony or
horse, and rode through the village at full
speed, her gray hairs floating in the air,
and at the top of .her voice telling the glad
news, and solacing herself thus.: " Did I
think I should over live to see. so happy a
day!"
Their notions of a future state were in
keeping with their physical condition.
They believed they would exist hereafter,
but in some way that would 'expose even
the beat, to the ordinary vicissitudes of this
present life. Soon after we came among
them, one of the lowa women, familiar at
the, Mission, lost little SO% a year and a
PITTSBURGH, WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 1864.
half old. It was buried near the village,
and a bowl full of the best cooked corn and
beans (the best provision they had) with a
little wooden spoon, was set by his •grave,
and there revived. She soon after went
on their Winter hunt, and was absent near
six months. Oh her return, she came to
the Mission and asked for some bread,
which was given her. She did not eat it,
but with a mother's tenderness, went and
put it by the grave of her little son. In
the Summer, melons and beans were culti
vated at the grave, and left , for his benefit.
For the aged and 'the warrior, horses were
often killed at the graves, with a hope that
the spirit of the animal might, in some
way, help the soul of the deceasedin the
spirit land. The dead were sometimes put
in the ground in a. sitting posture. Fre
quently, after being wrapped in blankets,
buffalo skins r and bark, were laid upon scaf
folds, made for the purpose, or in the forks
of trees, and in all cases accompanied with
implements of war, provisions, &c.
• Virtie and piety with them, had its full
est developments in fierce . and uncomp.ro
mising hatred and revenge' upon enemies,
and large benevolence and generosity to
friends; while the timid,selfish, and effem ,
inate were in the future state, doomed to a
cold, sterile land, without game or natural
fruit.
The year after the lowas moved to their
new homes, the Government, under treaty
stipulation, built for them five, double log
houses, with a passage of ten feet between,
being equal to ten' houses of sixteen by
eighteen ,etch, with good shingle roof, glass
windows, floors and doors, and' ood stone
chimneys. Also, broke and fenced two
hundred acres of ground in ten acre lots.
The rails were soon used for camp-fires ; the
,houses, some of them, were occupied for d
short time, but all were eventually aban
doned. The floors, doors, windows, and all
that 'could be, were sold for whisky and
trinkets, and the logs were . finally burped.
Thus in a few years the houses were nit to
be found, and the places where the fields
had been, could not be designated.
Under provision of the same treaty,'ono
hundred head of milch cows, and one hun-.
dred head of stock hogs were delivered to
them ; also a/large quantity of farming
utensils. The cattle and hogs were soon,
devoured for food, farm 'tools were traded
off for whisky and the like, so that in a
very short time all was gone. A water
mill, built by Government, at a cost of two
thousand eight hundred dollars, was burned
to ashes.
'Whisky shops gathered around, and
drunkenness prevailed to a fearful extent.
Under its influence, often was the case
that a brother would fall by the hand of a
brother, or afather by the hand .of a son.
Their intercourse with the whisky traders
and the vagrant frontire settlements, seemed
to have a demoralizing influence. Bad as
they were by nature, they were made worse
by these associations. Passing over things
that cannot be told, I will mention a few,
to prove the point. Packs of play cards
used by whites for gambling and amuse
ment, were at times sold to them as the
g• white man's Bible." Dishonesty, lying,
tricks, and stealing, have been taught them
in many ways. Profanity has been shame
fully introduced. There are no profane
words in the Indian language,—rio light or
irreverent way of speaking of the " Great
Spirit." One- day, as I was crossing th
Missouri River with. a number of Indians,
one of our horses 'became restive and Un
willing to go upon the craft. An old In
diati with whip in hand, made a flourish at
the animal, and at, the same moment, blus
tered out a broken, profane, English. word,
Through an interpreter (for at the time I
did not know the language). I told the
old Indian, kindly, that the wt.rd he used
was a bad one, and should not be spoken.
He seemed surprised, and said he did not
know that; it was a word he heard
,white
men use at such times, and he " thought it
would make the horse go."
Not long after we came to ,the Mission,
an elderly Indian came and
,told us his son
was learning to talk Englis very fast—he
could speak many worda, well. We told
him we would like to see his son, and if we
could, would help him to learn. In a few
days he came, 'and our surprise may be
imagined when •we tell you it 'was nothing
but a few profane, English and French
oaths that the boy had learned, like - a par
ret, without knowing what they meant.
Besidea all this, we soon found there was
a deep and settled opposition"to the mis
sionaries and the mission work: This spir
it was fostered, perhaps planted, by wicked
and unprincipled white men, not excepting
in many instances, Government agents..
'the traders were decidedly opposed to the
Mission, because, that by it, their craft was
in danger. They told the Indians that the
missionaries ''were afeir their land, their
peltries, ortheir horses;, and if 'the Indi
ans gave them their '-children, they would
be taken doWn the river and sold for slaves.
So high did this run, that, as we learned
years after, our lives were in danger—eoun
oils of war were held with the; view of put
ting, us out of the way.
Idleness, excepting in war and hunting,
prevailed wonderfully—indeed was popular
and fashionable. An old and broken down
wan or woman would prefer .to do the
drudgery of the camp, than to allow the
young or grown tiOn to do it. His business
was to Aress, paint, smoke, and go to war.
Parental authority was but little regarded ;
as soon as a boy could outrun his mother
he was free from her jurisdiction.
In this state of things, and under these
blighting influences,. the Nation wasted
away like snow before an April sun, until
in a few years they sank from eight hun
dred and thirty, to about three hundred.
At this point, Christianity and eivililation
seemed to reach their case, and a phasing
reaction took place, which has resulted in
a changersorne account of! which. I will
offer you in my.riext.
. Respectfully, your obedierl servant,
S. M. lavni. -
• .
~:
EUROPEAN" BM W, ,
4
LIMEPAIMA POR TILE PRUSYT4II-IMZMER:,iI
THE TER-CENTENARY ANNIVERSARY 0
Shakspeare has just been celebrated in Eu
tome and America.
A correspondent of- an English paper
gives an interesting account of a late visit
to' Stratford, from which we take an ex
tract desciiptive of the Grammar School
and Shakspeare's house which our reader's
will delight to read. lie says : •
It is but, a short distance to the old
grammar school, where fancy has woven
bright pictures of Shakspeare s 'schoolboy
days. The schoolroom is above the old
Town Hall.. This is joined at the east by
the Chapel of the Guild—a Gothic building
of the fourteenth century, with battlement..
ed parapet rising above the eaves and but
tresses between the windows, terminating
in pinnacles. It has a square tower. at the
north end, with corner buttresses, also ter
minating in pionaeles, and a; battlethented
parapet round the the top. The old TOwn
Hall as, in all probability; the place where
Sbakspeare received those first impressions
of the drama which so influenced his after
life. It was whilst.hio 'father was Chief
Magistrate of Stratford .that he would .see
the Bailiff's plays—entertainitents given by
the Queen's players, and subsequently by
the companies of the Earls of Leicesterand
Worcester, and also those of the Lord of
Warwick l The Chapel of the Guild is di
vided from the garden wall of New Place
by a lane. Of Shakspeare's house nothing
remains—perhaps some part of the old gar
den wall, but that is doubtful. A yellow
washed house, with plain front, facing the
street, stands on part of the site. The back
part of' the building is pieturksque, and
whilSt, sketching it, we thought it looked
so antique that surely some part of it must
be of Shakspeare's day. No, no—the whole
of his building had been ruthlessly de
stroyed. The house of New - Place had
been built by Sir Hugh Cloptort; a classical
name, as he was Sheriff of London. in the
time of Richard HI.; and Lcird Mayor in
the reign of Henry VII.---Shakspeare's
Richuiond. Sir Hugh gave`: tiiid fine bridge
to Stratford, still called the Cloptpu Bridge.
New Place was purchased by . 'Shakspeare,
and altered,and fitted to his'own taste. He
left it by will to his eldest daughter, Susan
na,— (Mrs. Hall.) That the hoimg was spacious
and large there can be littledoubt, as it
was occupied by Henrietta Miriti; Queen of
Charles First, for three wee during the
civil war. After the restora'q, #411c46- )
purchased by the Clopton fatitilA Sidlsnb
sequently fell into the posed - 6.4
Gastrell, q clergyman, whti r 'lii4ause
male dispute with the authoriOe's of Strat
ford about local rates, and alsoln virtue of
that questionable doctrine r :a that --a man
may do as be pleases with fits own," pulled
down the house where Stiakspear must
have written " 14 Macbeth" and some of his
greatest later works. This ;Gastrell's name
will stand enrolled in they Calendar with
the incendiary of Ephestis t 'ihe defacers of
ik a qparthenon, and the !wig catalogue -of
Vandals who have inutilitCd or destroyed
the milestones of history.' The Falcon
Inn stands opposite the garden, of . New
Place. It is an old house—as old perhaps
as Shakspeare's day. In itthey - show a
room with wainscotting add to have cov
ered the walls of an apartment ..in- New
Place House. This, and its collection of
portraits, will well repay an .hour'a visit to,
the Falcon.
What a strange and weird sensation stole
on us, as we moved on withOose-drawn lip
and stealthy step, with 'tagueTeeling that
something not of earth would stop our way I
Perhaps it was the ViSsirti , storm which_ -
had caused or aided rie effect upon our
senses, but its like Ile neyer, felt . before-
The feeling that all tjiat earth contained of
M
mighty Shakspeare pg, clo's'e beside us
weighed on linemindia with strange rever
ence; but that was L ylMt' all. Scattering
cicuds still fretted *.suabeains, chasing
shadows across floor arirl4vll, and now and
then a denser mass woUld,clond the Church
in sombre gloom. "Telt as if around,
above, and' near us irife shadows of the
long-departed dead. , Kings, nobles, warri
ors, rose in dark *I- silent, gloom. All
mourning, mourning No gaudy spangled
velvets, no tartan Minos, with rose-pink
gashes: it, was the ihadows of thedepart-,
ed great—stern, passionlesis, and pale; The
Shakspeare of Our fernier thoughts Ind.
passed away, and4llll,llW a long troupe
of mountebankairtPuppar Nowa grand
and lofty'spirit, throned in solemn majesty,
presided o'er the shadows of the mighty
dead. Never before had we so felt that
Shakspeare's wondrous creations were pure-
Ip of the mind which fled
from human touch, scorning the pasteboard
habitations of vulgar merr. Stratford
church is no common village fane. Its
lofty timber roof, its monuments and carv
ings, render it no unworthy mausoleum for
Shakspesite's dust. As yet we stand not
for details. It was Shakspeere's monument
and tomb.. On- the broad plat in front of,
and one step below, the altar, is the stone
with the well-known inscription. The
clerk rolled away the matting, and turning
our backs to the altar, we knelt and read:
" Good Friend for Jesus' sake forbear
To dig T:B. Dust Enclosed HERS,
Bless be T-E Man.that spares T-Es stones,
And curet be He that moves my Bones.
To dig, the dust? Might not this same
slab with the doggrel on it have been taken
from the church-yard, and placed here be
ciuse it suited for size or some Other con
renierd quality. It may have previously
covered some tenant of the church-yard
whose bonds, spite of the curso, may have
been thrown into the •charnel house at a
time when.plague and sickness crowded the
place. The charnel house formerly stood
on the north of the chancel. It is now re
moved. Immediately to the north of the
stone which covers Shakspeare's- tomb is a
flagstone, upon which is a brass plate, with
the inscription—" Here lythe the body of
- Annerwife - of Mt. William Shakspeare,
who depaited this life the . 6th day of Au
gust,-1623, being of the age. of 67 years."
Under this is the following :
" Vbera, tu mater, tu las vitamq. dedisti,
Vie milli; pro tanto =mere, Saxa dabo
Quoin mallem amoYeat lapidem, bonus An
gel'ore'
Rim ut Christi Corpus, imago tua I
Sed nil vote valent,•venies alto Cristo resur
get,
Clause liaet tumalo mater, et astra petet."
One would°imagine that Susanna had in
herited some of her father's poetic spirit.
The lines breathe love and reverence for
her mother. To the south of • the first
mentionedelab is another with the follow
ing inseription—" Here lieth the body • of
Susanna, wife of John , Hall, gent., ye
daughter, of William ShJspeare, gent.
She deceased ye 11th July, A. 0., 1649,
aged 66.". Upon the north wall, perhaps
smile six or eight feet up, and above the
line of tombs mentioned, is the famous
Stratfordmonument and bust. The mon
ument is now so well `known, from print
and drawing, that it would be wasting
space to describe it. It projects from the
wall, and is supported on three corbels.
In the niche sits the half-leaning figure of
Shaispeare, as in the act of writing:
If MAY be noticed, as a singular fact,
that although England by her occupation
tables, shows that, a slightly larger pro
portion of her population is in the re
ceipt of instruction as scholars—via.:
15.7 per cent. of her population—the
number of adults able to sign their names
in . the marriage registers is very much
below that of Scotland. .Thus, in 1859,
the latest year • for which detailed re
turns have been pUblished for Scotland,
89.1 pei'fient. of the men and 77.8 per
cent. of"the women who married in Scot
land, weTe able to sign their names in the
marriage register.. In England, during the
seine year, only 73.3 per cent.,a the men,
and 62.4 per cent. of the women who mar
ried were , able to sign their natues.
Tax Nor profits of the bank of Edin
burgh for last year, after providing for bad
debts, and applying £5,000 to the bank
premises account, amounted to £103,942
Os. 9d.., which, •after deducting the divi-
dends paid during the year, amounting to
£90,000, left 1E13,942 Os. 9d. to •be added
to the undivided profits, increasing them to
£243,071 9s. 3d. The dividend is at the
rate of 9 per cent.
AT A MEETING o ladies in the Free
Presbytery Hall, Edinburgh, it was re,
solved immediately to - endeavor to raise
i r
£5,000 in order to put the Foreign fission
Fund in a proper position by the: me Dr.
Duff arrives to undertake the .o nvenor
ship. It is expected that this movement
will extend to Glasgow and other parts of
Scotland.
TWENTY-SEVEN years ago the work of
settling South Australia was commenced.
A handful of men at (Ilenelg—the very
spot where thousands• of pleasure-seekers
now betake themselves—were preparing to
build their first rude houses and to put
their first plough into the soil.. Sixteen
thousand miles of sea were behind them,
and an unknown country was before them.
An immense work had to be done, and the
labor necessary for it had to be brought all
the way from England. But full of diffi
culty as tie 'undertaking was, there was a
fundnf energy and perseverance equal to
it. This- is seen by the ,result which is
now, before us. The few pioneers of the
colony' who had landed at Glenelg twenty
seven years ago are now represented by a
population Of.1•15,00"0 souls; and the work
of government, which was then commenced
by an assemblage of colonists under a pa
triarchal gun-tree,. where Governor Hind
.
pooh_ read his first, proclamation, is now
4Uirritill'louV i a f , : fariiatlient acting through
responsible, ministers; local districts
- 6y fifty-four :municipal bodies, all: electeil
by the people themselves. • . N.
ESC acted.]
ett the Last. -
]Wan goeth forth unto his work, and to his labor, nal
tha ovening."- 7 ys&tx en: 23.
The stream is-calmest when it nears the tide
And flowers are sweetest at the eventide,
And birds meat musical at ',close of day,
And saints divinest when they pass away.
Morning is-lovely, but .a holier balm
Lies folded close in evening's robe of calm ;
And weary roan must ever love her beat,
For morning-calls to toil, but night to rest.
She conies fr,ont heaven, and on her wings doth
bear -
A , holy, fragrance, like the breath of prayer;
Footsteps of angels follow in her trace,
To shat'the weary eyes of day4n peace.
All things are bushed before her, as she throws
O'er earth and sky her mantle of repose;
There:is a ealm;,a.beituty, and a power,
That morning ,knows not,* the evening hour.
tc Until the 'evening,'! we must weep and toil,
Plough. ,life's, stern furrow, dig the weary Soil;
Tread with sad feet our rough and• thorny way,
And bear the heat and burden of the day.
0, when our sun is setting, may we glide
Like Samnier evening downrthe golden tide;
And leave behind us as we Pass away,
Sweet starry twilight round our - sidepiag clay.
For the'Preebyterfan Banner
From' the South.west;
MESsa§. Eunons :--I have thought it
might, he'interesting to your readers to tell
theni something about Cumberland Hospi
tal, near. Nashville; Tenn: _This is one of
the most complete hospitals I have been
in since coming to the Army of the Cum
berland. Everything indicates that the
comfort of our brave soldiers was:carefully
studied by thosnwho planned this hospital.
Wis - heid out beautifully in city style, hav
ing. its streets'and rows of tents, all (mu : .
pying theft. proper places. Chi the right,
of the gate
.by which you enter this little
city, stands the office occupied by Dr. Mc-
Dumont, head surgeon of the hospital.
The Dr. is Christian gentleman, ever
ready to accommodate, and having an eye
single to the welfare of those under his
care. Farther dein on the same street,
stands the office of the. Christian Commis
sion. Here tue soldiers feel at home.
They come to read and write letters, and
listen to the public instructions which are
afforded. The soldiers seem to appreciate
the efforts which the Christian Commission
is making in 'their behalf. Hence they
meet the delegates, who come to instruct
them, with a smiling countenance, and
listen attentively to their words of cheer.
Still farther dotrn, on the same street,
•
stands the building in which the cooking
and washing of the hospital are done.
This building is well arrlinged, and the
washing and cooking are on a grand scale.
How could it be 'otherwise, when there are
over two thousand, in all, to be fed and
kept clean ! In the Light Diet Kitchen
connected ;with this. hospital, you may meet
Miss Mary Moorhead, of Pittsburgh, and.
Miss Hannah Shaw, of Allegheny County,
both of :whom have left theirs homes to
minister to the afflicted soldiers.
'The washing and - ironing is principally
done by oontrabands. lam sure it would
make our good people at home stare, if
they could see the piles of dirty clothes
brought together here to be washed; and
then look out 'at the numerous lines cov
ered with clean clothes drying; mud' again,
look at the piles that are ironed and ready
for use. The wash-room is supplied with
a row of tubs all along one side; each tub
having'two pipes conducting water into it
r—One pipe supplies it with warm water,
and the other withcold.• There is also a
room containing .a number of frames for
drying clothes by steam.
The readers of the Banner may learn
from, the`short account which I have given
of this hospital, something of the interest
which is taken in our brave and suffering
soldiers. Here are seventeen 'hundred
sick men gathered together in one hospital.
'heir temporal wants are' many, and it
seems to be the aim of those who have
charge of this' hospital, to meet their wants
as fully.as possible. Nor are •their Spirit
ual wants neglected. There are two chap,
loins in this hospital—one German and one
English. With these chaplains the dele
gates of the Christian Commission cal:-
orate. They-- enter the hospital and go
from cot to cot, cheering and instructing
these suffering ones by pointing them to
the " Lamb of God who taketh away the
sin of the world."
Surely there is yet hope for'that country
whose sons and daughters can leave their
homes and friends, and come-in the name
of the-blessed Jesus to make the hearts of
the afflicted glad. S. P. KIN4AID.
Nashville, Apra 19.
For the Presbyterian Banner
Letter From the Army.
CAMP STONBALAN.—No. IT.
Mn. JOSEPH ALBREE, Treasurer of u.
S. Christian Commission: Dear Sir :=.zin
my last communicatioo, I promised to give
in my next some facts and incidents, which
came ,under my observation in the. hospi
tal& •The hospitals open a wide doer...to
the delegates-of the Christian Commission
foi doing good. - There are so many, in and
around Washington City, that time and.
space forbid me to speak at length of them.
• The Saint Elizabeth Hospital, used be
fore the war entirely for the benefit - Of the -
Iniane, is now oecupied in part `as a hospi
tal' for our soldiers. The, eminence on
which it stands is one of the finest in the.
vicinityof the Capital, and commands the
most beautiful view, of the city any where
to be had. The edifice is an -immense
structure, 711 feet in length. But it is a
sad sight to see the wreck of, mind. How
WHOLE NO. 606.
thankful we ought to be to the Giver of all
our mercies, for the use of our mental fac
ulties I As we entered the large enclosure
surrounding the building, those unfortu
nate creatures (the insane), at that hour,
were walking through it. Quite a number
inquind for tobacco. We supplied our
soldiers with reading matter. It is to this
hospital soldiers are sent, who have lost
their legs in war, to be supplied with arti
ficial ones. They make them there. The
contractor furnishes them at fifty dollars a
piece.
One afternoon, while visiting a hospital,
we met a young man from Michigan (.1. E.
C.), who was very low. We copversed
with him,
also prayed for him; after which
he struck up that beautiful hymn— •
"Alas! and did my Saviour bleed,"
his feeble voice failing him after singing
the first line, the remaining lines were
quoted to him—
And did my Sovereign die ?
Would he devote that sacred head
- For such a worm as I r t
We then left him ; but while preachieg at
another place, that night, I was told that
the young man I had visited that after
noon,_ in the barracks, was .-dying. As
:soon as r diMeltided the services,,l hastened
to his
_bedside. He was in great pain—
prayed earnestly for himself, and asked me
to-pray for. him. :About ten minutes be
fore he breathed his last, he
,rayied that
beihtiful little prayer—
"Now I lay me Awn to sleeP,
I "pray ` -the Lord my soul to keep;
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lird my soul. to take."
These were the last audible words he. ut
tered. He died at nine o'clock. Thus,
far from home, surrounded by strangers, ih
the crowded hospital, he remembered, and
prayed that sweet little p'rayer, doubtless
taught him' at his mother's knee when a
child. I shall always think more of this
little prayer than I did before this touching
incident. What encouragement for parents
to early instill into the youthful mind
wholesome truths !
In the same barracks was a -soldier, too
low to tell his parents' name, or his resi
dence; but when spoken to about: Jesus, a.
smile rested upon his countenancer-.could
say, in broken accents, "Yes, I know:him!'
Often, as I have been passing through
these hospitals, I have been requested by
the sick and dying soldier to pray for him.
Just the day before left Camp Stoneman,
as I was passing through one of them, I
was addressed : ." Chaplain, there is a
young man here, who wisheri to eee, you,":
:He was very sick. I conversed with him,
and prayed for him; but the thankfulness
he expressed, both in words and in that
cheerful countenance, can never be forgot
ten by me. - I then seemed doubly thank
ful, as my term of service had expired, I
had gone as- a delegate of the Christian.
Commission, to Jailor and pray for the sal
vation of those who are fast passing away.
How glorious is the mission of .him, who,
in the hospital filled-with those, amidst dis
ease, sickness and death, can point its suf.
fering inmates to that beautiful world,
whore its " inhabitants shall not say "°I am
sick"—where there is no parting, no tears
shed, no war—where love reigns stipreme.
During my visit to the army, I saw Gen
erals, Colonels, Majors and other officers,
with -straps—upon. their_shoulders, with
thousands of men at their command. I
also saw our Senators and Congressmen in
session, at the Capitol of the 'United States.
I thought, What great 'responsibility rests
upon these men, and how Minh is expected
from them I But a greater responsibility
rests upon the minister of Christ, for " he
watches for souls," &e.; and fills a higher
office, for he points suffering humanity be
yond their present trials, if they are the
children of God, to " a far more exceeding
and' eternal weight of glory," beyond the
fleeting honors of earth, and its transitory
pleasures, to the distinguished honor of
reigning with Christ in heaven, when the
honors of earth and its short-lived joys shall
have passed away forever. No,..place has
the delegate of the Christian Commission
a better opportunity than amidst so much
distress and suffering, to point the afflicted
ones to' that heavenly home where the chil
dren of God shall bask amid the sunshine
of the everlasting hills, and say,'" My trials
and sufferings are ended." '
But, fearful I may weary your readers
with long' letters, I will reserve some addi
kional remarks for another, time
WM. F. MORGA.N.
Rural Valley, Pa.
For the Presbyterian Banner.
Presbytery of Schuyler.
Schuyler Presbytery met at Prairie City,
McDonough County, Illinois, April 14th,
and was opened by a sermon on Matt.
asviii : 18, by the Moderator Rev Samuel
Hart.
Rev. 3. M. Jamieson,D.D. was, chosen
Moderator, and Revs. .W. Williams and
George orcross were chosen Temporary
Clerks. Nineteen ministers were present,
and ten absent. Eighteen elders were
present,- and twenty-two churches were un
represented. -
Corresponding .Drembers.,---Rev. S. E.
Vance, Presbytery of Palestine ; Rev. G.
M. Johnson, Presbytery of Peoria ; Rev.
J. E. Nesbitt, Presbytery of Chicago;
Rev. A. D. M'Cool, Central Illinois Con
ference of the M. E.
_Church ; Rev. B. F.
Worrel Central Association of the Con
gregational Church; Rev. E. 3. Lockwood,
Salem Baptist Association.
Rev. George W. Ash was chosen Stated
Clerk and Treaturer, in place of Rev. T.
B. Vaill, removed from our bounds.
Rev. J. M. Jamieson, D.D.; w.ss appoint
ed on the Committee oDoinestie Missions,
in place of Rev. T. S. Vail. -
Rev. - R. C. Matthews, and Rev. 3.
M. Jamieson, D.D., and elder Norcross,
were appointed a Special COmmittee to. ex
amine the beneficiaries at Monmouth, and
report to the Standing Committee.
Revs. C. Leavenworth and 3. H. Mar
shall, and elder Withrow, were appointed
a Committee to draw up and report, at the
next stated meeting of Presbytery, a Paper,
embodying certain authoritative instructions
for the guidance of Clerks of Sessions
,in
making up their records.
Revs. S. E. Vance and 3. H. - Nesbitt, on
the, presentation of certificates,
and exam
ination, were received as members of this
this, Presbytery.
Three calls were presented to Presby
tery—one from the John Knox church, for
the pastoral.labors of Rev. S. E.-Vance, for
one-half his time; one front the Macomb
church, for the ministerial services of Rev.
H. Nesbitt ; and, one from the Camp
Creek church, for the services of Rev.
Sautes T. Bliss.- Bros. Matthews, Mar;
shall,-and-Piper, were appointed to, install
Bro. Nesbitt, on thelast Saturday in May,
at 1.1 o'clock .A.,M.; and .Bros. Nesbitt,
Marshall, and Leavenwoith,: to install Bro.
Bliss, on the first Saturday in May, at 11
o'clock A. M.
The Committee appointed to . install Rev.
Samuel Hart, at, Carthage, reported, not all
present, lad noinstallation. The Commit=
tee were continued, and the installation to
to be on - Friday, June 10tb, at 21 o'clock
P. IL
THE fRESBYTERIAN BANNER.
Publication °Moe
GAZETTE 1311/LIAN6B, 84 Rata Sr., P:s . x , sacßoa, pe
8 . Z.111.11, EN0.1.,181.1 & CO., 25 NOWNL-tiTH Tan.'4, F
ADVERTISEMENTS:
pArmENT IN, AD VANCE•
TRANSIENT ADVERTISEMENTS, 10 CV:2II a Luca for
each Insertion. A liberal reduction to thuds who adcer•
Use lergely. 51
SPECIAL NOTICES, 15 CENTS A. Lin.
EDITORIAL NOTICES, or CARDS, on aecond page. 25
CENT6.OLran.
OBITUARY NOTICES, 5 Cs= 6 LINE. •
The Merceri l ,Collegiate Institute, at the
request of the Trustees, was div,l27-d from
its connection with Presbyter:, an„ is
hereafter to be merely an Ac is mic l In
stitution. The following p:rsons were
elected on the Board of Trustees, viz.:
John 31'Ginnis, Thomas Likely, Hopkins
Boon, James Thompson, Henry Lee, and
Graham Lee.
The following Commissioners to the
General Assembly w,,ro elected : Rev. I.
N. Candee, D.D., Itc.v. Joseph Platt, and
elders William K. Oat and J. 11. Wilson,
principals; and Rev. A. Piper, Rev. J. R.
Brown, and elders Edward Connett and J.
C. Dobbins, alternates.
The following supplies were appointed :
New Boston—Bros. Matthews, Hanson,
and Williams, to preach one Sabbath each,
as missionary supplies.
Commissioners Pulpits—At Galesburg,
Bro. Nesbitt, Fourth Sabbath in May, and
Bro. Vance, Fifth Sabbath in May. At
Pittsfield, Bro. Brown, Fourth Sabbath in
May, and Ash, Fifth Sabbath in May.
The statistical reports show an encour
aging increase•in the contributions of our
churches to the various Boards of the
Church: The Statistical Report to the
General Assembly presents 40 churches, 31
ministers, 4 licentiates, and 2,300 commu
nicants;
The Narrative to the Assembly indicates
a marked increase of inter st in our
churches in sustaining the Christian ordi
nances, and.the . blessing of God upon the
means of grace.
The next stated meeting of Presbytery
will be held , at Keithsburg, 111., on Satur
day, October 15th, at_23- o'clock P. M.
GEo.' W. Asa, Stated Clerk.
For the Presbyterian Banner
Presbytery of Steubenville.
MESSRS. EDITORS :—The following items
of business, among others ; were transacted
by the Presbyiery of Steubenville, at its
recent sessions in Steubenville First church,
from Tuesday, . April 26th, to Thursday
afternoon, April 28th.
Mr. R. Thompson Price, of the Western
Theological Seminary, was licensed to
preaoh the Gospel, as a probationer for the
ministry.
Rev. J. K. Andrews, Chaplain 126th Reg.
0. V. 1., was received a member of Presby
tery. from the U. P. Presbytery of Steuben
ville.
Calls were put into the hands of Rev.
George W. Fisher, from the congregations
of Evans' Creek and Linton, v here Mr.
Fisher has,been laboring for some time as
Stated Supply, each asking for, + +e•balf. of
his time. Mr. Fisher signified his accept
ance of these calls, and arrangements were
'made for his installation on the last Mon
day of May; the services•to be held in
Evans' Cieek church.
Rev. W, 0. Neely signifies his accept
ance of the call, placed in his hands at the
meeting of Presbytery in January last,
from the congregation of Urichsville, and
a Committee of Presbytery was appointed
to install him there on the Fourth Monday
or June next.
. A .call was presented from Wellsville
congregation, for Rev. W. W. Laverty.
Mr. Laverty, obtained permission to hold
this call in his hands for consideration un
=til the June meeting.
'The pastoral relation, at the instance of
the pastor, was dissplved between the Rev.
William,-Eaton and the congregation of
Carrollton:
Rev. Thomas G. Scott, on account of ill
health, was dismissed from the pastoral
charge of the united congregations of
Corinth and Monroeville.
, Revs. Dr. Beatty and W. T. Laverty
were appointed ministerial, and Messrs. J.
G. Allen and E. T. Bell, lay Commission
ers to the General Assembly.
A considerable part of the time and at
tendon of Presbytery was taken up with
the making of arrangements with a view ,!
to the supply of our vacant churches with .1
the stated means of grace; and the mil&
vation of the territory added to our formei
bounds by the General Assembly a 4
last meeting, and the previous one.
are now -within our limits certainly four, , ,i . ;-f
and possibly eve, pastoral charges that are
without pastors or stated supplies. Min 74-
isters - withont'eharge, and desiring a settle-4,
ment in Eastern Ohio, can obtain any
formation they . desire by addressing thak-
Stated Clerk, in reference to these eharge4 ,
PRESBYTER,
For the Presbyterian Banner.
Supplies Appointed by Steubenville Presbytery.
Carrollton—Second Sabbath of May,
Fraser. Fourth Sabbath of May, Feely.
Second Sabbath of June, Dr. .11: own,
Fourth Sabbath of June, Swaney, Second
Sabbath of July, Watson. Fourth Sabbath
of July, R. T. Price. Second Sabbath of
August, Milligan. Fourth Sabbath? .of
August, G. Scott. Second Sabbath of Sep
tember, Hamilton. Fourth Sabbath of Sep
tember, Samuel Patterson ; to administer
the Lord's Supper and take un cob tram
tion for Disabled Ministers' Fund.
Amsterdam—Third Sabbath of May, Dr.
Brown. Third Sabbath of J une, 3larquis;
to administer the' Lord's Supper and take
up a contribtition for Domestic
Third Sabbath of 'July, 'Watson. Third
Sabbath of August, Herron. Third Sab
bath of September, Eaton.
Corinth—Second Sabbath of May, R. T.
Price. Second Sabbath of August, Eatun;
to administer the Lord's Supper and to
take up a contribution for Domestic M
sloes.
New Cumberland—Fourth Sabbath of
June, Laverty; to administer the Lord's
Supper and take up a contribution for Dis
abled Ministers.
Wellsville—Fourth Sabbath of May
Reed. Fifth Sabbath of May, Marquis.
'Monroeville—Second Sabbath of May,
Arthur. Second Sabbath of September,
Parkinson.
Centre Unity—First Sabbath of June,
G. Scott. First Sabbath' of September,
Frazer; to administer the Lord's Supper
and take up a contribution for Foreign Mis
sions.
Cross Creek—Second Sabbath of June,
Reed. Second Sabbath of Ahust, Dr.
Brown ; to administer the Lord's Supper
and take up a contribution for Board of
Publication.
New Philadelphia—Fourth Sabbath of
May, Fisher.
: Fourth Sabbath of August,
Dr. Brown; to administer the Lord's Sup
per and take up a collection for Disabled
Ministers.
Big Spring—Fifth Sabbath of May,
Price. Fourth Sabbath- of August, Her
ron;, to administer the Lord's Supper and
take up a contribution, for Foreign Mis
sions.
Chestnut Ridge—Third Sabbath of May,
Eaton: Third' Sabbath of June, R. T.
Price. Third Sabbath of July, Dr. Beatty.
-Third' Sabbath of August, G. Scott. Third
Sabbath of September,/Dr. Brown.
New . Harrisbirg—Fourth Sabbath of
June, R. T. Price. Third Sabbath of
August, Israel Price. , •
Fairmount—Third Sabbath of June, G.
Scott. Third Sabbath of August R. T.
Price. ROBERT H.ZRAON, S. C.