VY.JAES A LL I S ON r ttlTotts yo)IASST PATTERSON, JIOILS ALLISON & CO., Proprietors. TERMS IN ADVANCE. iST MAIL, (Singly or la Clabs,)...„. $2.00 nra.crznao Ix 11Taet 07 2011 Clint! 2.50 rotor. s ending ua To subscribers and upwards, will a t thereby entitled ton paper without charge, and another 11 4 papa for the second ten ; , tre, s,aettuls should Ls prompt, a little bchsre the year expirea. I`..rect all lettere to JAMES ALLISON & CO., PITTSBURGH, PA. For the Prdsbyterian Danner. Letter from Siam, BANKOK, Feb. 25, 1864. p ea r 13anner :—We Americans here breathe a little more freely since the recap tkiu of the last mail. Indeed we had been ho i n g a dearth in the way of news. The Ittle steamer Chow Paya, which has been' supplying us so faithfully with our mails the lust three years, has•been obliged to .• into dock for repairs; and•to wait on a song vessel for mails at this season of the fo3r against the monsoon, and in such ex ,'sting times as these, is rather trying on the patience. We have been in the habit ufreceiving the substance of the semi monthly overland mail, several days in ad 53occ of the mail itself, by 'telegraph via limebay to Singapore. The liat news we, na d before• the steamer stopped, littui one of I pso telegrams, which gave the folleiVing in:eresting news : 14 Federals defeated' qv , it ywhere. Roseanne defeated---losi 814. 0 4, Meade defeated. Three Confederate victories in Texas?' Under the burden of igh news we were obliged to remain for ;anal weeks. 0 • we had long since learned to use our ab !traction in reference to the telegrams, for t hey were generally either . carelessly or wilfully distorted in favor of the Confeder ates; but still we knew there must be some f ou ndation for the news. We were amply repaid, however, for our suspense, when the neat mails brought us suchmenies as Grant's great victory at Chattnenteitasy And tlleot•e. pulse and retreat Longstreet trcui ville. v We are just havag ; our shire of the re bullion here now. You have doubtless long since heard of the tnagnifleent reception to the Pirate, Semmes, and the _Ala 4ania,by the authorities at Capet Own. It is said that even the stumps of cigars thrown away by that arch-pirate, were col ;mod by the Governor's son and others, and laid up as precious, The Ala -4lnia made her way thence. to the. Straits of Malacca, where she destroyed' several 'me vessels, with very valuable : cargoes. She coated at Singapore, and was even re= ported in the Gulf of Slam. Marty ship owners at home had sent their vessels east, =opposing that the pirates would not be able to leach these waters;. but when the Alabama made her sudden appearance here, Ship-masters were taken by surprise, and were obliged tdrernain in whatever neutral port they might .be, for they can neither get cargo 'nor insurance. Many of the finest American ships are now lying in this river, waiting for bettor times, among which is the N. B. Palmer, owned by A. A. Lowe S: Bros., New-York. She is acknowledged to be the best merchant vessel afloat any where, and has carried more missionaries to tha East than any other vessel. Several Inc vessels have been sold to the Siamese. The stay of some or those vessels here, however, appears to be providential for us, for we find among them some real good, warm-heartad Christians, who have sought as out, and worship with us. The master of one of the 'vessels has his wife and daughter on board, and is a good old fash ioned Methodist. He keeps up prayer . meetingsregularly on board, besides Sab bath services, and has been blessed during the last voyage with a revival on board, and several hopeful: conversions, among whom is his daughter,. youns girl about fifteen. One of the converts is a Seotehman by birth, and has been well trained, when young, in the Soriptures, and also in the Shorter Catechism ) but has latterly been a rery hard care,: and was not inside of a house of worship for eleven years. He sow appears full of Christ, and is perfectly delighted when talking on the subject of religion. The master of another vessel was originally a sailor boy, but was con rerted, and concluded to study fbr the min istry. Ho accordingly passed through Yale College, and partly through Union Semina ry, but his health failing, he again tcrek to the sea. Ho is now master and part owner of one of' the finest clipper barques afloat. lie also holds a license from the Fourth Presbytery, New-York, (N. S.). whir* en ables hint to preaeh,on board, and wherever else in the providence of God be may be. called to do so. He has given us several discourses in our 'mission chapel here, which would do honor to any pulpit; and brought. out to hear 'him, a number of seamen and others who otherwise would not have been present. I mention these eases, because they are so rare among seamen, and espe cially here in the East; and it does our heart good to meet with these here, who will worship with us insincerity, and sym pathizo with us in the great work in which we are engaged. Notwithstanding all that has already been written concerning this people, and notwithstanding they have' had embassies both to England and France, very little as yet appears to be known of their manners and customs. I was amused the other day to find in the Youths' Department of no lees a paper than the N. Y. Observer, dated Nov. 5,1863, the following statement : " In the country of Siam, a kingdom al Asia, he who tells a lie is punished according to law, by having his mouth sewed up." How such an absurd story got afloat, it is impos sible now to say, but I can only remark that if such were to be the puniahment for lying, the consumption of rice throughout the kingdom would soon materially de crease, for they are emphatically a nation or liars. I also saw a statement equally ridiculous ' not long since, in a number of Harper's Weekly:. Mostbooks concerning Eastern countsfes, are written by mere cur sory travelers, whose business is book mak 'V. They are totally ignorant of the lan guages 'of the countries through which they pars, and do, not remain sufficiently long to learn the customs of the people. The book must be filled up, and in the ab sence of better material, they give publici ty to such stories as meet their ears. .Ells Majesty, the first king of Siam, is sometimes rather whimsical, and hp lately been indulging himself with a little miff with the missionaries. Dr. 8., of a neigh boring mission, is in the habit of publish ing annually a calendar for the use of the. European citizens hero. Among the news items last year, he gave she number of wives and children of the kings of Siam, and perhaps rather imprudently .took roooa -510r; to give them a .short lecture op _,the evils of polygamy. This did not suit the royal palate of the first king, so this year when Dr. B. milled again fi'r the additions to hie family during the year, His Majesty refused for a time to give them. He and Dr. B. then got into a controversy in re gard to a new system of Rocoanising East ern languages by hfr. Bunsen, a Prussian, ante for not adopting which, his Majesty rather blames the missionaries. This peo ple can't discriminate, and when they ho noree offended with one of a certain class of people, they include all. His Majesty Paid some very hard things about all the missionaries. The clouds have, however, pasted away, and the royal sun again shines. At , member of our mission:, Ire-_.lately,Bo/Tad tO make a visit home hi h h W e n raluoisid to do at his own expense, but his fund& were in America, and 'to - get them out hero at the present rates of exchange, would be &killing bulbous i• so he &terrainode 3t ~ #O, WM, - the MO 9011m7. ' l 'i .7 t.ltiltei : 1 1'ttStrt)l . /tTi41t: .. .,, -- H ,:__..,_ _. + VOL. XII. NO. 37. amount here, and run the risk of exchange improving. He accordingly called on his Majesty, and found him very gracious in deed. He offered to lend him any sum he needed o for any time, without interest; and as a donation, offered to pay his passage to Singapore. A feeling of gratitude, too, which is such a rare virtue among the Si amese, also came up in his Majesty's heart. When hewas still a prince, Rev. J. Cass: well One of, the early missionaries here, spent much time in teaching him the-Eng lish language, of which he has now consid erable knowledge. His Majesty now feels truly ,grateful for the faior„ and not long since, he sent $l,OOO to America for the use of Mrs. Outman and children. He has now also instructed oir brother, when he goes home, to pay her $5OO more, making in m 1141,500 whteh his Majesty has sent to the destitute • family, of his old teacher. This , is very •little in proportion to his great wealth, but it is considerable for a heathen king, and especially a Siamese, among whom gratitude is generally a mi nus. quantity. - DNB. has, also lately, called on his rMaj estli; received some presents from' him in t -701 fairor. During his cdriversa t,lori, hoWever, with our brother, Dr. H., his Majesty took Malden to express his hatred for the Bible He has evidently received a little Colerisoiiim from some of those here, who ought to assist in teaching him the,only way of life. ' tie, said the Bible was .only a it collection of, old men's fables." Whether the Gospel . will ever take .hold or not upon the heart of His Majesty, none but its great `Author can tell; to all human appearances, it'is very doubt ful. It is still his cuitom, as it was of all former kings, to gild in idol every day of his reign. At the proper time a small idol is'brought to him ' which he gilds, with his ()Wu hands, so that the digs of his reign are numbered by idols. 'He also gilds every day a volume of their. sacred books. . The whole city and surrounding coun try has been absorbed for some time in preparations for the funeral services of the young princess, Chow Fa, only daughter of his Majesty by his late Queen consort. The child, seven, years old, died some months since" and her body has been lying in state. The preparations are on a grand er scale than any we have previously seen here. His Majesty says he is now in his sixtieth year and must make , a special ef fort, but there , is probably another reason. There have been quite a number of deaths of late in the royal family, and this special effort may be to acquire a great amount of merit, and try to avert coming calamities. Governors of provinces have been called in, and-men levie#:from almost all parts of the kingdom to work on the edifice. The funeral- edifice is placed upon an artificial mountain, about one hundred and fifty-feet high. The edifice on the top of the moun tain is in the form of, a. cross, something like other buildings on similar occasions, a photograph of one of Ithich I send you. On several promontories around the edifice were placed, in golden urns, the ashes of the King's ancestors. The ceremonies lasted about two-weeks. To bring out the ashes of each one of the ancestors required a procession. Then came the corpse itself in a large pro#ession, and was placed in the - edifice. After the burning; it again re quired several days to remove all the relics back again to the pal - ace. The grounds around the edifice were richly ornamented after the Siamese style, and around in many places were theatres, rope-dancers, &c. Several picas of, new gold coin were distributed, in :addition to the usual pres ents given on such occasions to priests and others. Fire-works were also kept : up ev ery night, and the match applied by the royal hand, The whole expenses will prob ably exceed $158,000. When will this people receive the Christian religion,. and bury their dead after the simple, Christian manner? Yours truly, 1110 D. For the Preebytertan Banner CIIATTANOOGA, 1 1 11.88 RS. EDITORS:_ I haveno doubt it; will gladden- the hearts of many of your readers, to hear of the good. work in pro gross in the Army af - the ,Outnberland. God has been pouring out hie Spirit hore, as well as elsewhere in the army. There is preaching everrnight in 'the Post Chap el, in this place, end almost -every night, there are some preciouS souls inquiring the way of life through a eruoifie&•.Saviour. Notwithstanding the. army has moved for ward, last Sabbath the chapel was filled both in the morning and it malt with sol diers. It was a strangely interesting congrega tion. No -little boys nor girls, and -no women. Nothing but the bronzed faces of war-worn veterans, were to be seen in that audience. The attention, teo,yrae marked, indicating clearly thafGed_was ;there. 0, how- it gladdens the ChtistintOs' heart to • see the answers to tha-prayers-Which have been aicending ,from many congregations, in times that are past. Verily, God is a prayer-hearing, and prayerranswering God; Sand here we•have the evidence. At Ringgold, in Georgia, 'a more power - Tl4l work of grace has been going forward, than here., ,Quite a number have been baptized, and. some Ave hundred conversions are reported. At Cleveland, also, a good work was in progress when the army moved. Oti the.night of the last Sabbath of April;thare were eighty inquirers in one congregation in .Cleveland.. Gen. How ard's Division lay here, and 'this Christian hero not only attended Divine service him self, bit rose. and exhorted his men to be folloWers of jeans. Would` to . - God • that we had many such Generals Then would" God be :honored, and high-handed wicked ness would skulk away, abashed,Trom their presence. Let us pray that God would make all our Generals Christian men. He is able to do so. And let us pray that this •work of grace ) which is now in progress, may go on increading in-power until all ; our, soldiers shall'llecolne good soldiers of Jesus Christ. I)iope that our good people at home will not forget to send the Presbyterian Banner to the soldiers. r see very few copies of the Banner hde. For this I am sorry, and I hope means will be placed at the dis losal of the Editors otthe Banner, so that the delegates of the Christian Commission may find the Presbyterian Banner in Chat tanooga as well as elsewhere. S. P. tJNICAID. Pride.—Mr; Astor ; the wealthy million airo of .New-York, was reluctant to sell some goods to a" mpg except for cash. The merehan'tqpsid , _for them, and took them on his shoulder to carry them out of the store. Mr. Astor looked in sur prise ; but before the merchant had gone many steps, he called him back, saying : You, may buy ou credit to any amount. lowa trust you, , sir. A man who is not ashainedilaydo his Own " work is kip to ape -6" IT O lesson for false pride. 4". There is ne ein , a man may , be tempted to) Vail's lint flita - Nroit9 l: ;: 6ol rfrat iTCre ,lfietidetb4niadvdting.- PITTSBURGH, WEDNESDAY, JUNE L 1864. PROCEEDINGS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, IN SESSION AT NEWARK, N.J. Fourth Day. MONDAT, May 23,1864. - Assembly met and. spent the first half hour in devotional exercises ; .prayer, being offered by the Moderator, Dr. McAlester, and elder Hast ings. Special prayer was made for the son of the pastor of the church in which the Assembly is meeting, who is very low from disease. The Minutes of Saturday were - read, corrected, and approved. The Permanent Clerk read a telegram from the New School General Assembly, stating .that that body cordially and unanimously seceded to the request of this Assembly, and would' unite with us in prayer for the'country next Wednes day afternoon. . . • An appeal and complaint from a decision of the Synod of Illinois was referred to the ju:dicial Committee. Dr. - Tuitin ,rose to a question of privilege. One of his colleagues from the Synod of Balti more had,'in the missionary meeting held in this schwa last night, denonneed the war which this country is now engaged, as wicked, tmneaes eery, and cruel. If he spoke of the war as waged by the Southern Confederacy, :well enough. But— At this point, Atr. Hays arose and said he meant no such thing as was attributed to him by the ven erable Doctor. His language was altogether in tended to designate the rebellion of the south. Mr. De Lancey called attention to the fact that this was altogether out of order, since the remarks in question were made in a meeting out side of the Assembly. Rev. Mr. De Lancey, from the Committee on the Bofird of Edgcation, made a report on that Board, commending its faithfulness and success during the year, recommending that the annual appropriation be increased—that of Academical students, from $BO to $100; College atudents, fiom $lOO to $120; Theological students, froth $l2O to slso—making favorable mention of Ashmun Institute ; calling the attention of the Board and the churches to the necessity of do ing something in the way of educating the Freedmen; and also advising that the funds en,. trusted to the Board by the Piesbytery of Cik cago,' for the promotion of Education among the French on the Kankakee, bo returned to the Presbytery, to be used as originally appro priated. Dr. Chester, Secretary of the Board, spoke of the difficulties encountered lent year, and of his desire not,to trespitss on the patience of the As sembly. Many of the young men under the 'care of the Board have • gone into the army., From one of our Colleges, seventeen of our can didates have fallen in defence of our country. In another College the entire Senior Class went into the service of our country. During the year the standard of education and qualifications had been raised. The rule requiring--examina tion or recommendation every year, before re ceiving any farther appropriations, had worked well. The oldest Theological Professor in our Church had remarked that, after a careful ex amination of the workings of the Board for forty years, he was convinced that no other arm of the Church's benevolence had done so much for the ,Church and the world. In the znost.in tluential Presbytery in the Church, which had had in all more than. one 'hundred and' thirty candidates under its care, there had not been a single failure. All of them were preaching the Gospel, or had gone to their reward. - • The Doctor made a direct;appeel in favor of authority being granted the <Board to establish Chriatian schools among the' Freedmen. The Board, according to its constitution,. required the authority of the Assembly before money could be , appropriated. No other claim .would draw more largely the benefactions of the people to this Board. Most happy results prom ised. The Ashmun Institute had been most sue- . , cessf 'ul. Three of its students were now at the head of three educational institutions in Africa. Dr. Nevin recited an instance of a young man, a candidate for the ministry, - who had gone into the army, but after being severely wounded so as - to be unfit for service, has returned to his studies. The Dr. had long known the workings of the Ashmun Institute: Simon the Cyrenean, who, according to Melville and. Barnes, was a black man, had borne.the.Saviotir's cross. Mr. Ernst moved that the Report be seamend ed that the appropriation for theologioal stu dents be increased from $l2O to $l6O per an num. He thought this was nothing more than reasonable. $2OO, when compared with the value of gold, was only, $lll. It was in the theological course that the most difficulties were encountered. Ordinarily, $3OO was as little as a theologioal student could get along with—slso for boarding, and $l6O for clothing and books. Rev. Mr. Dubois felt grateful to :Drs. Chester and Nevin for the remarks, in favor of Ashmun Institute. The Freedmen had pressing claims on us ; and he believed the beat means to reach .and help them was through Ashman- Institute. One great object was to train colored young men to be teachers. Here the Moderator reidinded the speaker that it was proper to take the vote on tbe amendment of Mr. Ernst, unlesS le wished to speak to that point. The vote on the amendment was taken. Lost. Rev. Mr. Grimes moved that vie add $26 to each of thi appropriationsrecommended - by the. Board and the Committee. This would give the Academical $126; the Collegiate $146, and the That:dogleg sli.6. He knew .of some of our Btu-, Aleuts reduced to great straits from want of proper styport. Some of theth were ooinpelled to engage in employments of a most laborious character, to eke out a support. • Rev: dr. De Lancey had bee.teinformed by the officers of the Board, that . this sum! over and above what was recommended, would .seriouslyr _ cripple',its - operatton, unless the Inns were greatly increased. Rev. Mr. Cowhick thought the motion should be separated, and give the $25 to the Theolog ;teal .stUdent. The Princeton scholarships, founded by individuals, now averaged more than Rev. Mr. Miller, 'of Ogdensburg, moved that this whole matter be referredj-to the Board itself. It was moved to.hear Dr. Chester on this sub- Sect. He remarked that the Board, after full de liberation, had concluded , that that ,was the ut most ,that could be done this year. Another year the Board might do better. This year the Board could expend $50,000 most judiciously in behalf of the Freedmen. Rev. Mr. Hays was opposed to any increase beyond what the Board recommended; - if there was the least danger of interfering with the work of the Board among the Freedmen. His Presbytery was doing something in that way. It had ordained and installed a colored man, a. short time ago, who had undergone a better ex amination than any other young man since he had become a member of that Presbytery. Rev. Mr. Speer thought that young men could do something in vacation to supplement the ap propriation. This would aid in fitting them for the active duties of life. Rev. Mr. Con - kick called for a division of the question, and that the Board raise the. sum for the Theologicarstudent to $175 per annum.. Thits" ; was adioosted by Dr. A. G. M'Candless, because,-when the Theological student comes to the Seminary his funds are generally altogether exhausted, and he has nothing leftt Dr..Musgraie was in favor of the a.ppropria tion of at least $176 to the Seminary student. . There was another cause for the diminution of the number of theological students. • It was owing to the fear of the want of support, and the difficulties in the way. He had been afraid that outside objects might interfere with the le gitimate work of the Board. Re was a loyal man ; he was in favor of the Administration ; he was in favor of old Lincoln. [Cheers.] Formerly he had been an extreme Conservative hating the shadow of Abolitionism. But he frankly confessed that the Rebel Confederacy, and the wicked and cruel war it. wad waging against our Government had - made him an Abo litionist. [Cheers.] Buthe opposed the perver sion of funds given to educate young men for the ministry, to any other object. i If you wish to educate the Freedmen, do it. lam in favor of it. But raise. a separate fund, or establish a. new Board. Dr. Musgrave Thep moved, as an amendment to the motion ' for reference - to the Board, that the Board increase the sum to Theological !stu dents to $176, it their fundi - will permit - - Dr. Lowrie moved to take 'WO the reoomniersda dons seriatim. Dr. Junkin opposed, because in this way the whole morning would be spent. The Moderator decided that any member had a right to call for this mode of The first recommendation was adopted: Also, the second. The third,, which expressed plea sure in the increased interest In our schools and colleges, ;and. especially in the Ashmun Institute, was next considered. ' • Rev. Mr. Dubois resumed. He had been'speak ing of the advantages of Ashmun Institute, with respect_ to the Yreedmen. .At the. hognn niag , they ha!l feared that. students eonld not .he laitteriti Ai:4* TrokWAY 0004; a fte r i ti aiing, might not find employment.. Now' the trouble was to keep the students long enough, there were so many calls fortheir labord as teachers of colored schools. c One of their students was now teaching's verylargi4lchool in Alexandria, 'Va. Another Professor wri4needed. If the Beard could help a little More, ,the use fulness of the institution would be 'greatly in creased, Colored teachers were the beSt,'when properly prepared, for colored people: He 'be lieved-ice were near the time whewtlWhate'and. curse of our country, slavaiy, Would be removed. Recommendation adopted. • -• The fourth was instructing the Board to,otab lish schookt among the Fieednien. Rev. Mr. 'De Lancey said„ the 'Board Simply asked the countenance of _the;Assembiyfor What it was abundantly able te:(l,9 from its organic constitution. . . Rev. Mr. Logan thought 'that ,the resolution • did not go far enough. There wae more to be done than could be done lhreagh„this Board. He was afraid that we woUl d7i* aside the. Board from its proper work 4:educating men for,: the 'Ministry, and ut the same time we *Quid, Coma fir short of our duty, to this pookle. ' fie believed that more money eqn;d„be,raissiii fcir_l this object from the Preslatf:riali'pliorch; than , for any other. He hoped this Ot t enibly would;; make some, suitable arrangeme to do its - ibity : :,* in this respect before rising..;. ; ''' was ha tioß ; 3 64., of racarriicg the whole mattifri. ,lielfieei,liafin: to.aspe&al Ceinutitted, , . A.- '. '. ' " `,' Rev. Mr. De-Lancey said 4lie Board had all the means' of entering iirtedtately upon the Work. He had passed hur whole , life in the Beath. file knew the wants Of this whole class. This was a question forced upon the Church, arid" it was just this: Is the bill& man to be saved, or to fade away as did the red man. On motion of Mr. Logan, the whole matter of the Freedmen was referred: to a Committee of five. The resolution recommending the observance of the last /Thursday of February as a day of prayer for Schools and Colleges, and for the youth of the•Church i was adopted. Rev. A. A. E. Taylor spoke : of the success of the work of our Church among the Germans in the West and North-West. There were difficulties in the way of securing proper preachers. He. recited the efforts of a Hollander, a. man of con siderable.self-educmtion, who became a minister of our Church in 1852, opened a school to edu cate - evangelical German ministers, and has sent forth ten young men thoroughly trained in the Calvinistic doctrine. Thiele Mr. Van Vliet,.and his young men had given the greatest satisfac tion as to doctrine and Christian experience. Other ministers had been brought in. . These students had given, no trouble. The people aie sending to him for ministers. He is unable to supply the demand. An appeal has been made 'for a.'house fOr his school. The students are' Supported v by the Board of Education. And had it not been for this Board the, one, thousand mem bers and three thousand hearers in our Ferman churches in the North-west would not; have been there. Mr. Van Vliet's, school had been placed under the care of two Presbyteries, that the Church Might have confidence in it. These Germans are accessible; they - are becoming ••wealthy,' and they will at :length become noble and useful Christians. The whole report was then adopted as amend ed, except the part concerning Freedmen, which was now referred to a committee, which consists of Drs. Mudgreve, Nevin, Rice, Rev. Mr. Logan, and Thomas Archer. - , Mr. De Lancey moved that the resolution passe& at Rochester requiring the Boards to bring up their records to the Assembly, every year, be repealed, on.j,ocount of the difficulty of 'bringing them to the Assembly, and the danger of losing them. Dr.v Deatty hoped we- would not pass such a sweeping, resolution without consideration. Be believed the resolution wise, and that it Ahould be retained. . , . Dr. hiusgrive said that it was as easy to bring the records of the Boards as those of the Synods ; nor was there any more danger, of loss in one case than in the other. We rauskretain our ec clesiastical control. If we are to retain the con fidence of our people in the Bisardaywe. must. retain our supervision. He movealhat the_mo r , belaid on the table. :Carried. • A letter was read, from . Rev. S. Irenaens Prime, D.D., stating that citizens of Now-York had made provision for an excursion to-. New-- York by the Assembly on Thursday afternoon, stating that carriages would be in readiness et the ferry, at 2i P. M., for an excursion .up Broadway through Central Park, and then re turn. The invitation was accepted, and the thanks of the Assembly were returned. The Stated Clerk was directed to invite the General - Conference, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the General. Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church,' and the. Synod of the Re formed Presbyterian Church, to unite . with this Assembly on Wednesday-afternoon, in praye • the country. Dr. Rice asked to be relieved from the duties-of Chairman of the Committee on the Superannuated and Disabled Ministers' Fund, on account of his duties on the Judicial Committee.. Request granted, and Dr. Dart appointed in-his plade. Closed, with-prayer by Br. Breckinridge. ViTiMiCtON SESSION Asttembly met and was opened with prayer: The paper of Dr. Mac Master, of which notice was given:on Saturday, was made - : the second or der of the day for to-raorrow, morning. . The Committees on, the Synode otAlbany, Buf fale, Pit.tsbuf.gh, New, Jersey, Obie, .Wheeling, and Sandusky, -with the exception•-of a protest *gag* the : - action of, the last Assembly,in the case et +- •Mr, Anderson, on the ground that a low er' Court could not protest against the action of a higher, Cincinnati, Northern Indiana, Illinois, Baltimore, Chicago, Wisconsin, .St. Paul, and lowa, reported, recommending -the approval of their Records. Adopted. - Tice Committee on the Synod of Kentucky; re- . potted, recommending the approval of their Re-' cords with the exception of, a censure passed up on Rev. Mr. Morrison; because he had.calledLup on the military power.to restore the Records and keys of the church of Mt. Pleasant. Mr. Ernst said he had been a. member of the Synod of Kentucky at its late meeting, and this action of the Synod was not objected tobyeither party. Therefore, he did not think the excep tion should be taken. . Rev. Mr. Allison, of Illinois, explained, say ing, that in the church of Mt. Ileasant,"ditlicill ties had arisen. The, disloyal had taken posses'- sion of the Records and keys;. and would only return them upon compulsion, and as the milita ry was the only power then in exercise, it was only this that-could be appealed to. Rev. Mr. Taylor, of Pa., said that amsar was the only power then re n cognized, and conseqpent ly it was to Csesar we must apptal. Rev. Mr. Young said, that the keys could have been obtained. There was no needfor the pas. tor to seek military aid. The booli was accessi ble, anti the doors were not locked. Moreover,. the Presbytery was about to meet. - Dr. Rice thought we had better not enter. this case, since we could not discuss its merits. And since neither. Mr. Morrison nor Dr. Breckkridge objected, we hid better let it pass. Dr. Lowrie called for 00 - reading of the Rec ord. It was read. . Dr. Maclean moved that the Records be ap proved, with the exception of the censure passed - upon the Pastor for invoking the aid of thEmil itarY powers, since the Record does not give.the facts upon which a judginent 'could be formed, and consequently this assembly is unable:to form a competent opinion. Dr. Beatty said it was dangerous to approve such a record as, that of the Synod. Brethren should reflect on what they were doing by a vote. Dr. Rice replied, that in approving this record we do not approve every act. The Records were then approved. The Records of the Synod of Sandusky,were recommitted as = were also the minutes of. the Synods of Misiouri and Philadelphia. The Cemiiiittee•on the Itlinutes of the Synod al' New-York, reported, recommending their ap proval, with the exception of an order from the Synod, directing the Second church of Brooklyn to give certificates to pertain persons, or to try them in a regular manner. Put upon the docket, after some .desultory de bate. • . - The Records of the Synod of Allegheny wane. approved. • - The second order of:the day s Report 'on Psalinedy, was taken Pup. Its; adoption• was_ moved: The paper was read. by Dr. Backus„ . - Dr. Beatty said that the *hole subject came up properly under the - first resolution. He would mention one or two things for the could-, eration, of the house. The first . was,Ahe _matter of expense._ The. best musical t alent ; required jixpenditure t The Board of Publication. is to bear the mtpense. - This is right, 2. He, loved the old Book, but he helieved our Pealmody was susceptible of, impravement. At thasama time It might be deteriorated., Our musical testes are various. _.Some coral= iltkether hymns which are highly yalued ,by othors., 3. • It 'has : been. urged:that we should not enter, upon new Book now, liatianse Opur, relations to the other Pf:41 3 1) fAnzilY.• gild it was true that this very matter affected our rola tione to other branches, and especially to one for whioh we had a Teri high regard,. and with which we had entered into correspondence. He did not oppose, but ho mentioned Abeie things for their consideration. ' Dr. Nevin was opposed to the introduction of Chants. It was engrafting a fragiaent of Bpis copacy upon our system. - Our Scotch Irish Presbyterians could not sing them f •nor would they. Ho had Veen brought•up on the - principle 44 that man hath perfect blessedness.". He. ad mired the course of, the , Moderator , in using the Psalms in - our Book instead of the Hymns; they were one degree nearer sod. Rev: Mr., Taylor favored trpeSdy action, and referred to some of 04 hymns. in' onr present BOCic,•which were not appropriate•forpraisC, The hour for devotional' exercises having ar rived, 'Mr:.!Taylor ceased, he' living when this subject is resumed.' • Closed with pray by the-Mtiderator. • ' Day. • Fifth' : Trrisniy,'May 24. Assembly Met, and wati,opened Writhprayer by the Moderator.. The first half hour was spen(in devotional' exercises,Rev: Mr. Steele; and Rev. Dre. Greenleaf and golikins leadinglifPrayer.' Minutes of yesterday were read; corrected, and Approved. Dr. Breekinridge, from the CoMmittee on Bills and OVertures,reportect the following papers: No. 8: from the Board of Direetbra of the Western The ologidalSeminary, asking the GeneralAsaembly to recommend Young men studying-fol.-"the iniuietry to unite with Presbyteries previous to entering the Seminarieg. The Coininittee recommended; the adoption of the suggestion. No. 13; a letter from the Rev. Mr. Montgomery, from the Pres bytery of Fayette, which has not met for several years, owing to the troubles in that region, ask ing the General Assembly to appoint a time and place fel. next meeting. 16. A Memorial from the Presbyteries of Salem andthe Synod of Balti more, concerning the Book of Discipline. The' Committee recommended its reference to the next. General Assembly. - 17. A Memorial from the Presbytery. of Ogdensburg and Miami, pray ing that measures' be taken by this Assembly to initiate the means Whereby a union may be af fected with the New School General Assembly. This was at once referred to a.Special Committee of five—coniMittee to be appointed by the Mod orator. 18.- From the Presbyterian Historical Society, asking the approbation of the efforts of this. Society toward erecting `a fire-pioof build ing for,the preservation of its treasures, and to ward a proper endowment for the success of, its objects. The Committee recommended the Soul etyto the consideration and benevolence of the Church. 19. A paper from the Preebytery of Columbus, asking permission to transfer Rev. Mr. Hendren to the. Presbytery of Lake . Superl, or, since that Presbytery is now without a trite rum to receive him—recommend that it be grant ed. 21. From the. Presbytery of Platte, or some of its members, requesting to be united , With the Presbytery of Upper Missouri—recommended that. it be granted. 16. A Memorial from the -Pres bytery of New Lisbon, concerning the Freed men ; also a paper from the Presbytery of Lou isville, respecting the Board of Domestic Mis sions—referred at 'once to the Committee on Freedmen. 6. Report of the Committee on Bills and Overtures, on the Memorial from the Pres bytery_ of Newton, on the subject of Slavery, was read , 4 1;ly Judge Stanley Matthews, and recom mended the adoption• by the General Assembly of the following paper: /n the:opinion of the General Assembly the solemn and momentous circumstances of our times, the state of our country and the condition of our Church,' demand a plain declaration of its sentiments upon the question of slavery in view of its prese-nt aspects in this conutry. In our early flays our Church in America delivered :une quivocal testimomocupon this subject, which it will be profitable now, to reaffirm: - In the year 17f7,•the 'Synod of New-York and Philadel phia, in view of movements then on foot looking tothe abo lition of slavery, and highly approving of them, declared that inasmuch as men introduced from a servile state to .a participation of all the privileges of civil society; ?with out a proper edifeation, and without previous habits, of in dustry, may be in many respects, dangerous to the commu nity, therefore they earnestly recommend to all the mem bers belonging to their - communion to give these, persons who.are at present held in servitude, such good education as to prepare them for the better;enjoyment of freedom. * * And finally they recommend it to all their people to use the most pradentmetentres consistent with the interest , and - the , state of civil society in the countries where they live, to procure eventually the final abolition of slavery in America." • In 1795, the General Assembly "assured all the thatches: under their care that they view with the deepeetconcern any , vestiges of slavery which may exist in our country:' ' In 1115 the following record watp made.: "The General Assembly have repeatedly declared their cordial approbation of those principles of civil liberty which appear to be receg nized by the Federal and State.governments ierthese United States. They have expressed their regret that -the elavery of the-Africans and- of their descendants still continua, se many ; Plates, and even among those within the pale of the Church, and have urged the Presbyteries under their care to 'adopt such measures as will secure, at least to the rising gen eration of slaves, within the bounds of the Church, a. - ligious education, that they may be prepared for the exer cise and enjoyment of liberty when God in his providence may open a door for their emancipation." The action of the General Assembly upon the subject of ' ,Slavery in the year 1818 is unequivocal, and so well known that it need not be recited at length: The following ex tracts, however, we regard as applicable to our present Mr; cumetances, and proper now to be reiterated: . "We consider the voluntary enslaving -of one portion 'of. the human race by another as a grqss violation of the most precious and sacred rights of human nature, as utterly 'in ' consistentwith the law of God which requires us to love our neighbor as oureelvee, and ea totally irreconcilable with the spirit and prinpiples of the Gospel of Christ which eejoin : that's all things whatsoever ye would that Men should do to you, do ye even so to them." Slavery creates- a 'Paradox iti the moral system; it exidbits rational, moral. and account , : able beings in inch circumstances as scarcely to leave them the power of moral action: It exhibita 'Gwen Ss dejmndent. on the will of others, whether they 'Shall) receive' religions instruction ; whether they shall know and wametip the true God; whether they shall enjoy the ordinances of .the Goa. psi ; whether they shall perform the &GCS and cherielt.the endearments of hnsbandifand wives, parents and children, neighbors and friend/3'i . wheth4r they shair..preserve their chastity ;tad purity, or regard the dictates of justice and Mt: . -manity.; Such tiro 'some of the consequences of slavery— consequences not imaginary, but which connect themselves withits very existence. a" s * *, "From thin view of the , : Conrequences resulting from the practice, into which Christian people have most inconsist ently fallen, of enslaving; a „portion of ' theit brethren of .mankind, * * * it is manifestly the, duty of all..Chrir tiara, who enjoy the light of the present day, when the in consistency of ala Very - both with the dictates of humanity and of religion, has been demonstrated and is generally .seen and acknowledged, to use their honest, alined and un wearied endeavorp to correct the errors of former times and as . speedily as'poesible to efface this blot on Our holy re ligion, and to obtain the: complete abolition of Slavery :throughout Christendoin, and if posaible, -throughout the world." . . They earnestly exhorted those portions Of. the, Church where the (Mil of slavery had been entailed upon thein, triton tinue, and, if possible,, to increase, their exertions to effect a. total abolition of slayery, and to Huffer no greater delay to take place in this meet intereedixtt cencern than a regard - to public welfare truly and indispensably demands; and de clare "that our country ought to be governedin this matter by no other consideration than an honest and' impartial re gard inthe happiness of the injured'party, uninfluenced by the expense or inconvenience' which such .a regard may In volve; warning " all who belong to our denomination of Christians agttinst unduly extending this plea of necessity; against making it a cover for the km and practice of Ida, very, or a pretence for not using efforts that are lawful and pramicable to extinguish this evil", • Such were the early and Unequivocal inetructiona of our Church. It is not necessary too minutely to inquire how faithful and obedient to these lessons and warninge those to whom they were addressed have been.: It ought - toe ao knowledgedthat we have much to confess and. lament as to our ShOrtcominge in title reapept. Whether : a"strict and careful application of this advice would have rescued the country, from the evil of, its condition and the dangers which have since threatened% is known to the Oniniscient alone ;, nor dO N 703,811111116 the right' confidently' to - declare that`the prevent judgments' orour HeavenlY Bather. and Almighty and Righteous Governor have been inflicted soldy, in pun ishment for our conscious continuance in this sin; Malt it our judgment that the recent events of our history and the present condition of our Church and country furnieb niam fest tokens that the time has_ at length Tome, theprovi deuce of god, when it is his will that every,vestige of ha, man dewily among ns should be, effaced, and that erery Christian man ahould address. himself with industry and earnestness to his appropriate part in the performance of. this great duty. - Whatever excuses for its. postponement may .heretofori have existed, no longer avail.S.'''Sibert the country was at peace within itself, 'and the,Cheirch, was unbroken,_ many. consciences were perplexed, in, the presence of this great evil, for the want of an adequate remedy. ' Rlavery was so formidably intrenched behind the ramparts of pzrsonal -in terests and prejudices, that to attack it with a view. to,its speedy overthrow appeared to be attacking the very exist, 'lettuce of the social order itself, and was characterized as the inevitable Introduction of an anarchy worse in its coin-- sequences than the evil for,which it seemed ,to be:the only cure. ,But the folly and weakness of men have been the illustrations of flod'H wisdom and power. Wader the MAU ewe of the most incomprehensible infatuation. of wicked , ness, those whe were mod deeply.interested in the Darned:v.' Mien of slavery, have taken away, from every good man,„ every motive for ihrfarther' toleration. The spirit of sla very, not content with its defences„ to be found in the lave of the States, the preVidens of the Federal Constitution, the prejudices in favor of exist ng inseitatione, and the fear of "change, has taken arms against lair, organized a bloody re ' bullion against the national authority, made formidable war upon thefederalfinion,, and in order to found , n emnire upon the corner-atone of slivery, threatens not only our extatence sea people, but the annihtlation of the principles of free Christian goveinnient; and thus has rendered the continuance: or negro , slavery,ineompatible with the pre 'sedition ofsur own liberty and independence:! • • Trt the struggle of the nation for existence against tide now-: WIG and wicked treason, the:highest national' authorities= have abolished slavery !pedant* of the, rebeiStateaand decreed its extinction by military force. They Ude alluded those formerly held aa slaves to be soldiers in the national . analeat They have taken measures to organize the lettered the freedmen, and Instituted measures for their supportand. government in their, new Condition. r lt la their declared policy mot to content the rehrganizationiinsivil meat within the. Seceded States;; upon. any other hisiktileni= that of emancipation: In the loyal -States where. skier' has net, been:abolished. measures of ernanbipaUen,in.differ: antdets prog.ress, have been 'set on rod; end are'ear their consummation; and for an amendinent tit the yederar Clenetihrtion,. prohibiting slavery In All•the States and Territories, are now pending inthe national grad •So that, in our present situation, the Interests - of peace and:of socdatorder are identified with•the meted-of the read Pf elltelletnetleM, Tile diffieldtfils which formerly Seemed .insimenountable, in' the, providence of God appear, now to be almost removed. The most formidable remaining. obstacle, we - think, will•he fonad to be Gierilrividilingnese the human , heart to een. and. accept -the truth. %vamat the prejudices of habit and. f interest; and to act toward tiled. who have been heretofore degraded as slaves with the chai r ' ity of Christian principle in the tidal's - wiry efforts tolmprove and elevate them.. - In view, therefore, of its ,former . testimonies upon" the subject, the General Annimbli &di hereby dertnitkanirittis its gratitude to Almighty God felle great deliverance btu prepared for ear Country frod/he,eyiltizoillnlit of - she , very ; Its nordialapprohation Fctila.muit t ris tati4 bl i the national aid State atifirdilialt 4 fdettextdrpidldn, ;al Xhe root bitter , niz'Oxibli boo ephisiefeliMitn4 irii; and WHOLE NO. 606. bloodshed, and the long list of horrors that follow in their train ; its earnest belief that the thorough removal of this prolific source of eiril and harm will be speedily followed by the blessings of our Heatenly Father, the return of peace, union and fraternity, and abounding proeperity to the whole land and recommend .to all in our communion to labor honestly, earnestly and unweariedly in their respective spheres for this glorious consummation, to which human Justice, Christian love, national peace.and prosperity, vrery earthly and every religious Interest, combine to pledge them. The report was ordered to be printett, and was made the order of the day for Friday evening. Pr. Backus moved to have evening sessions hereafter, beginning this evening Carried. • The order of the day was suspended, to re ceive. the report of the Committee on Theological Bentinariee, which was read by the ohairman, Dr.-Tonkin.. The. Asseinbly proceeded to receive uominti 7 tions. for this, Profeiaorship.a TheologY in the Wentern TheologiOat 'Seminary. Dr. Krebs nominated the ROY. A. A. Hedge, D.D., pastor:of the Presbyterian church at Wilkesbarre; Pr. Krebs spoke of lair high, reputatiuu as a selfolaiand an anthar.:. Dr. Nevin nominated Rev. SohnM LawheiD.D., of Fortirayni, Ind.; and spoke At' hisffine scholar ship, his adaPtedness,. and,abo,as to the doubts of himself and others about giving a single fam ilk the teaching of theology for the greater part of the Church. • • • Rev, Me. Colt spoke of Dr. A.A. Hodge's emi nent qualifipations, of his Undimbted loyaltY„ the feet that he Lad sacrificed his congregation and 'Big. library ar Fredericlistinig that, he might escaptfroni; the smoke of "this wicked rebellion. "Dr. Beatty said it was from no desirato tate to the ASsembly, but for its= information, that, he.vrould say, that taking all the interests of the Seminary into account, the choice of the Direc tors and its special friends was Dr. A. A. Hodge. His attainments were not disputed. And as that Seminary had been involved in trouble on this question, he would say that Dr. Hodge's loy alty was undoubted— ,That Seminary and all connected with itdersitiyal. Dr. Elliott, Sema - Professor in that Seminary, said that it was only at the request of others he would say a word on, this subject. The minds of the Directors and patrons hid beendirected to Dr. Hodge after long, careful, and prayerful inquiry. He had been a missionary, and the Western Theological seminary had been founded priniarily to educate' missionaries. Dr. hedge would be most cordially received by the Faculty and all the 'friends of the Seminary. Dr. Candee reprobated the tendency to•make our Seminaries mere. close Corporations. This was the work of the Church, and the entire Church had aright to partake in the deliberations and decisions concerning any or all of the Semi nariei of the Church. lie nominated Dr. E. D. Macinaster—a man of the profoundest erudition and the widest comprehension of all the subjects of theology. Dr. Claybangh, an eminent Profes sor of the Associate Reformed Church, said he 'never understOod the 9th chapter of Romans un til after he heard its, exposition by Dr. Mac-- master. Dr. Burt nominated Dr. Edwards, of Philadel . phut - , speaking of him as a man well known in the Church, a thorough Presbyterian, and an able theologian. Dr. junkin spoke in favor of the election of Dr. Lowrie as . a writer of high repute, a diligent student, • and as being a native of Pittsburgh, who knew the hang of things there.. He was op pssed to this dictation from Seminaries. He was the' friend of all the Seminaries.. It was an im putation on the Assembly for any persons to speak of themselves as the partiodlar friends of any Seminary. • Rev. Mr., Platt said Dr. Young had advised his students to go to a Seminary where there, was some Professor of acknowledged controlling influ ence., This was right, and the Assembly should ;keep this in mind in the present election to fill a vacancy in one of our most important Semina ries. Rev. Dr. Elliott led in prayer. After this, Dr. A. S. Mac Master suggested that Dr. Can dee should withdraw the, name of his brother from the nominees. He did not wish to be a. candidate for any existing. Seminary. If in, the future a Bewinary should be opened at Atlanta, Ga., or Chattanooga, to train ministerst.e . preack the—Gospel in hevast — regien opening up to in that quarter, he would willingly be a condi-, date for such a place. But now he knew his brother Wu not, a candidate for any place in the Church. , . Dr. Candeo then asked permission to withdraw the name of Dr. Machfaster. Granted. The ejection 'was appointed for Iri.day morn-, log. Dr. Backus presented the report of the Com mittee on the Board of ?Olio-aim. • Dr. Schenck,. the Seeretary , , then spoke of the success of the'Board during the year ; of the in crease in the cost of boo - It-making; of the- ad vance in the number and character of its. Sab bath Salad books ; of the, work of Colportage;• of the pubteations of our Board in the army, the hoSpitals, and among the prisoners , and -freed . jekst; and alio of the vast numberi of oar tracts ,boOks - distiihnted by chaplains and the .Chtistian Commission. • Re gays said he could bear witness to the blessed; sied effects of the publications of our Board, as distributed among the sick and wound ed in the hospitals in Baltimore, by the Chris, 'tian Commission. . • . . . . Dr. Junkin bore witness to the happy effects of the works of the Board among the Sons of the, Sea. The " Soldier's,Pockef-Book?!. lad taken the place, in great -Measure, of. the f,,Episcopal Prayer-Book among the men. Rev. Mr. Colt was a Chaplain, and -knew the blessed effects of the " Soldier's Bocket-Book," an editiori.of whiehliad been published in Ger-- man:. 240,000 copies had been distributed. All the churches should take an interest in. this Board,'and contribute to it, especially now when; from 'every church had gone forth the armed• eons of the land. , . . Dr. Musgrave-was glad to be able to express his gratification that the changes. effected last year had worked ,so well. All,the grievances had been removed— The Board had his sympa thies _and„ prayers. He thanked God_ that he could say so. Dr. Beatty had been the Chairman of the Com mittee on the-Board of Publication, and he re-.. joked that the Board had at once adopted, the directions of the. Assembly,,,and had heartily gorie to work according to their snggestions. Dr. Waters had been a Colporteur s of the, - Board in the valley of the Mississippi.: The offi-, cers of the colored regiments entreated for books for their Mon. The colored schools clamored for_ them., Among pipe theusandprisoners at, Rock Island thei had been most gratefully received. Dr. De Lancey had :witnessed the happy effects of our ,bitelts among the.rebel._ prisoners in. ,Bos ton harbor. He , would" correctthe .imp assion that none of the slaves, could read . Idol irithin the last few manthi. In almost every commu nity in the South there were one or two slaves who could iead. The last time he, had preached , in Dr. .Palmer's church New Orleans, it was to his colored dongregation t And the singinglras led by a colored _choir, using tune-books. He made these remarks to correct a false impression,„ and also to statelhat there were Some negroes now who were able_to read to,those who_were•un-• able to read for theraselveo.: The report was adopted : The Assembly, s,djourned.yrith prayer .by Dr. Elliott. ATTENOON sisilow-r8 o',clLocyr , . Asmitbly met and . ,was opened - with piayer by The order of the day being the hearing of Del egates from Corresponding bodies,the Modera tor introduced the Rev, J..T. Pressley, D.D., of the-United Presbyterian Church. Re appeared as a representative from one of the smaller tribes of our Prbsbyteria.n Israel. Re brought the sal utations ~of 'the United .Presbyteriab. Church, wishing peace, prosperity, and still greater en:. largement. Unhappily the Church is divided. But,it is one of the encouraging symptoms, that etrifeaand asperities are being removed. And fraternal intercourse may -tend to. d 6 this still more. The. United Presbyterian Church was the result of •a successful effort to unite 'the Associ ate and the. Associate 'Reformed' Churches. At :one time the wall- of separation seemed high ; but the mountain had been made a plainv and the parties now lived in peace and unity as one branch of the Chureh.. This may encourage .to still farther efforts toward union -among the dif oferent branshes of ',the great Presbyterian...fan:li- Differences May be unavoidable now, but 'thereAre many:things in which - _sra can: coilper. ate asidn:losdng Spirit may lie always fed The United Pxesbyteriaii'Church, like your its.noneiction of the need of:an -odiniated ministry, and kaarthree 'Theological -Schools; one at Monmouth, one at Xenia,. Ohim.and. one. at. Allegheny, Pa. We are trying -to do what,we can.iuthe Home, Mission field.. We have Foreign Miaidons'in. Syria, Egypt, in- SU, China, and Italy: The most prospermis is the one in.-Brypt ;-end..there is much to encour- - ,ag'e-int the work. in Italy.. . The distraetions 'oft .the country are exerting a hurtful, influence. on ;vital go"dliness... I conclude with assurances of 81110 a, regard to:you:and:All your-churches. _l. The ,Moderator replied:Able my privilege and 1. on, o eg o t prose- the high' . Chrlitiastregards:of :this,...itthionitblytki:youraelf end the lhurch -7471. k represeut-f-We lase: been long acoustonied THE PRESBYTERIAN BANNER. Publication Office: GAZETTE BUILDINGS, 84 FMB ST., PITTOBBROB, PA. SMITH, ENGLISH & CO, 22 . 2401vi-6v/ Sr., ADVERTISEMENTS: IAYNINT Ilf .411YA1TC11. IMANSINNT ADYIIIIIIISIIKUNTO, 10 Ours A NM Ibr each insertion. A liberal reductlaa to thaw vibe adm an largely. SPECIAL NOTICES, 15 Ctios a Li.i. ED/TOICIAX. NOT/O&5, or CARDS, oa geockad pogo. n CENTS A Mai. OBITUARY NOTICES, 6 OMITS A Lima. regard yours as in many respects a mod '3l Church. You area Bible-reading Church in se family and in the sanctuary. Your preaching is Bible preaching. You are a Sabbath-keeping Cbureh. You are a witness-bearing Church Yoar wit. nesses slain in the street have borne testimony to the truth. You instruct your children in the Bible and .Catechism,•and to this last 'fact you owe much of your success. Youaro's, mission ary Church. And we hope the time Is not' dist ant when you, with us, shall see the Truth ex tend from sea to sea s and from the river nuts the ends of the earth. The Moderator then, introduced Rev. Dr. De merest, of the Reformed Dutch Church, who said Grace; mercy arid peace be unto you. vwe years ago it was preposed by our Synod to cents, lending delegates, and to correspond by letter. But, you preferred the delegate. And of the propriety of this, your.delegate, (the old man eloquent,) Dr. George Junkin, convinced us. We recognize in you a strong and powerful Church. We regret that many formerly with I you are not here now. Yet we rejoice that you and that other great branch of the Presbyterian Church are being drawn closer - together. The Dutch Church is the oldest. in this country. The first persons who came to Manhattan, brought with them the pastor and the teacher=the Chnrch,and the School. It may be asked, Why has nelathiesChnrals, grown more rapidly? For mOrithan century, the ministers, though hay -Mg the zeal of a Paul, could not go beyond the • bedside of the Dui& gettlenterits. This , was ,owing .to the we of the:Dutch language.; and, until - this was done - away with, growth was ire , pessibles But now we have a Theological Semi nary With three Professork and about, fifty stu . dents; a College for the endowment of which $120,000 has been paid in; and an Academy in the West, which will soon be a College and s Theological School. We haVe all the Boards you -have; we have entered upon the work of Home and Foreign Missions; and now 1 say to you and to all, the Presbyterian Church in the United States, Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. The Moderator said: The nationality of your Church was different from ours. Your Church is mainly composed of descendants of Holland. ere. Ours is composed of English Puritans and Scotch Irish Presbyterians, Huguenots, and Dutch Caliiniste. But the Puritans had to come through Holland to reach this country But we are one in faith. Our Confessions are substan tially the same. In your modesty you Bay you are small. May you by the blessing of God soon become great and powerful. The Moderator then introduced Rev. Dr. Wil son, of the New School General Assembly. He said the last time he had been present at the meeting of this Gen. Assembly, was in the year 1887. He ,was then a young man, licensed; 'but not ordained. He had been - a close observer of the proceedings then. His views now were as then. But when he looked round and saw the changes which had been effected, he conffissed to a change. And he now was willing that every cause of difference should be taken away. New re lations had arisen, and, new combinations must be formed to meet them. Slavery was no longer a disturbing cause. Its destruction was certain. You were wiser than we. We went into the vol untary Societies ; but we made a mistake. We now have adopted your system of Ecclesiastical Boards. Symbols and forms are not necessary to Christian unity. There is a unity of spirit which we may cultivate. He was not in favor of large, overgrown Churches. This was one of the happiest days of his life. The chasm of twenty-seven years has been bridged over. We come # to the borders and shake hands. We are one. The disruptien of this Church was almost the prelude to national disruption ; may the re union be the prelude of national restoration. (Cheers.) When we left you, we could not walk alone, but we have now set up housekeeping for ourselves. - Those with whom we walked. were very willing to receive our money, but very un willing 'to pay any out for us. We have about sixty Foreign missionaries ; the people are wok big up to, this matter. Our Home Missions are all we could desire; and our Board of Publica tion is doing a good work. This year we have a redundancy of funds for .Education. This is bad. We have too many unemployed ministers, but this can be remedied. We have the same origin, the same history, the same great names— Calvin, Knox, and Chalmers—are composed of the same people, and we have the same Christian hope. We are one in Christ, and should be uni ted in the same great work as we expect the same great rest at last. The Moderator then introduced Judge Allison, of the same Church, who said his present posi tion was one of great' embarrassment, but also of distinguished honor. He endorsed all that had been said by Dr. Wilson. He had been all his life in. the Presbyterian Church. And now after twentysseven years we were brought nearly together. fie was gratified at the proposal from this Assembly that the laity should also be repre sented. However much better the ministry might iMderstand the philosophy of this matter, there was an intone() desire in the hearts of the people for union, not merely in spirit, but an or ganic union. ( Cheers.)' It was high time to be gin to talk about this. He looked forward to the time when this union would be effected. (Cheers.) Your delegate_ to our General Assembly had been listened to with an eagerness never surpassed. Young men were alive with hope, and tears trick led down the cheeks of aged warriors, such as Boman, Skinner, and Barnes.' We cannot but regard the tender which came from your dele gate as auguring areal organic union. The log ic of events is driving us to be one. Our polity is essentially the:same as yours. Your wisdom was wiser than- ours. We confess it. When the,,Home Mission Society refused to extend aid to applicants appointed by Presbyteries, unless • also appointed by their Committee, we left them. We adopted your plan. 'And though when at St. Louis we adopted a COnunittee of Missions, and Committees on oth ei subjects some members attempted to draw very. fine subjects; between Boards and Com mittees, as certain persons among you once did, but it amounted to nothing. • Nothing could have been kinder than your recommendation last year, that, the:members of the two bodies seek to live together in fraternal union. And this spirit would leadsto., the complete union of these two ssreat bodiesein one great Assembly. (Cheers.) There never has been any difficulty in ministers or members passing from one body to the oth •er, :And facts have been bringing us nearer. •He hoped•the history of former difficulties would scion be buried, or remain as warnings to be pointed at, that old difficulties might be avoided. -We. never anticipated that we would have to stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our country, against the most wicked of all human rebellions. But are we not standing as one Church inthis gruel work, whether at Dayton or Newark? And y standing together in this, must., we zeparate when peace has smiled ? I trust this Aseembly will vindicate again its loy -any. as mine has already done, without one dis senting voice. May these two bodies soon be again,blend into one. The MOderator remarked : This Assembly has .by surniiitakable indications, assured you of her ,siimpatliss, respect, and love. The division in, 1887 was a matter of history ; it never could be made otherwise. That division was the result 'of the Plan of Union in 1802. Incongruous ele ments had been, brought together, and they worked badly. lam content to let the history of the division remain as it is. Six years ago an eminent minister of the Church had thrown his arms around him saying, I know where you - stand, for you have , written a book ; I stand on the same platform, and am only separated by ec clesiastical lines. You and we are much nearer together than we were in 1837, in the matter of doctrine.: Then you were more anti-slavery than we. ,We were anti-slavery,, but conservative, keeping quiet*. order to prevent a schism. But events have: placed us on the same platform. And.if this war, terrible as it is, shall result in universal freedom, the cost will not be too great. And he believed the end was near. Letters were read from the delegates to the United Preshyterian General Assembly, and to the Synod of, the . Dutch Church, and the Rev. Dr. Tustin made a report in person, detailing the• • events of the disruption, the long separation, and the steps which at length led to this correspond ence. - Closed with prayer.. - EVENISCI SESSION -7k o'ox.ocs. After recess the Assembly met. Rey. Dr. A. S. hianlifaster read a paper calling on ourchiraies and people to observe the say -oath day_ Of, July as a day . of humiliation, fast ing, _arid prayer, enumerating as reasons for the ,observance of such a day—our complicity with slavery as a Church and nation, the growth of covetousness, corruption of manners, vice, dis regard of human life, disobedience of children to parents and its kistdred desecration of the 413b04, 144d : profanity, corrupting the Word of Ond,ja_theeorrnaudments and ordinances of men,,neglent.of_ the Bible and of public worship, unfaithfulnessof ministers, and worldly confor mity. He moved that this paper be adopted. Thialiaa:seconded. • pi. VinoMaster,proceeded. Is there a call Tar "a 'day such as this paper recommends.? Some may say that_ thsrc la a greater call for thanks giving. If it be 80 appoint such a day and I
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