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g ve the right hand of fellowship alter giv
ing in experience, or to be deferred till after
baptism !
.insicer. —The word of God being si
lent as to the time when the right hand of
fellowship should be given to a member,
the Association are of opinion that each
Church be left to her o>vn discretion at pre
sent. We make no comment on the ques
tion. EDMUND TALBOT.*
NOTES not preached, by the Pastor of
the first Church in Nashville, to his
people, but which he would preach, if
he could , to all the Churches qnd Pus
tors in the Southwest.
I’ttii.i.. 1: 10 ‘‘That yc may approve
things that are excellent.’
This is the season at which out Church
es, generally, “renew their engagements
with their Pastors for the year, and the
Pastors determine what labors they willitn
dertakc, and where they will bestow them.
We wish, therefore, to say a few words to
hoi,, parties. We are now, brethren, com
paratively an old Man. We have been in
the n ‘liistry twenty-three years, and a pas
tor eightee i years. We have had ample
opportunity lor observation and experience.
You will, therefore, bear what we have to
sav kindly and Affectionately.
1. To the Churches throughout the
Southwest —“ That ye may approve things
that are iwcoflunt.”—Well, vvlr.il things !
J answer, the following excellent things:
Each of you ought to have entirely the
services of your I’aslor. He should lie re
quired to live in the midst of you—preach
to you, at your own house of worship, eve
ly Cord’s Ha y—and visit,and hold prayer
meetings in your neighborhoods, all the
week. You have been satisfied with too
little religious instruction, and especially’
with too little pastoral attention. The
cause is sufTci iug, am! will, unless more is
done, stiller irreparably.
But perhaps you think you are unable to
support your Pastor wholly yourselves,
and wish him to lake auothei Church, so
that you may have assistance, by relin
quishing a purl of bis labors. Then, se
cure him (or half his time, if you can do
n i better, ami see that lie set res you. No
minister can do full justice ip even two,
much loss to three or four Chun lies. This
way of preaching but once u month, and
performing almost iia pastoral Services, will
starve out any Church. The time was
when nothing better could bo done, but n
is not so now : the praciioo is continued,
we suspect, mostly from mere habit. It
ought to ho, and I trust it soon will be, re
formed.
lu relation to the obligation of support
ing ministers, we need say very little. \on
all admit tliat it is yottr duty. Some, we
Know, laymen and preachers lon, say that
a preacher oils'll! not In he/mill. Very
well, if he attends to his own business all
the week, and just goes and preaches on
Sunday, and goes hack to Ins own allairs,
as hut too many have been in the habit of
lining, wo agree with them. Snell preach
ers .ought not to he paid. If there is ant
paying in the case, those who hear deserve
it as much as those who preach. Hut, if
the minister is real!y ti Pastor, he needs
support, and (Jod requires that von shall
give it; and you can, with only a little pru
dence and management, give it much more
easily than you have supposed. Do von
ask, how ? We answer—discard the no
tion, (we speak of country Churches more
particularly,) that whatever you subscribe
tot that purpose must he in iiwnei/. .Monet
is dillioult to got, and, therefore, t our Pas
tor's share of what little comes to you is
likely to be very small. Remember that
he has a family, and consider that they
want many other tilings besides money.
They must have a house to live in, clothes
to wear, and food to eat. Ilotv will you :
go to work? Wlkv, let each < ‘litucli se
cure a lew acres ol laud, near the place of
worship, and build a bouse upon it. A
plain cheap bouse will do very well. Pul
your Pastor there—that is, as the Scotch |
call it, your .1 tanse. One important point
is now gained. A hundred or two dollars;
a year tor rent is saved. Then subscribe j
what money you are sure von will, with
(rod's blessing, pin/ —for he must have, as i
you know, some money. The remainder
you can make up In subscribing—one so
many barrels ol corn, another so many
bushels of wheal, or barrels of flour, and
another so many weight of pork; and so
mi, as respects all the articles required. 1
I'hcn send them to him at the proper time.
You need not put yourselves to the trou
ble to sell these, and get the mon y for
them. It you do, your Pastor must take
the money and go ami buy, and piobablv
nt an advanced price, the very same art:-
vies. Semi them to him directly, and you
will save both yourself and him it great ileal j
ol useless expens • atui labor. Thus you ;
can handsomely sustain your Pastor very
easily.
Upon one thing, however, we must in
sist—and that is. that you never deeeiec
your Pastor, by telling him, or otherwise
making him believe, that you will pay him
money, or any thing else, at a certain time, (
tor his support, and then neglect it entire
ly, or fail to do it promptly. If you are
not certain, do not promise it. If you sus
pect that probably you will do nothing, or
very- little, say so. Bo frank. To deceive
vour Pastor, as Churches often do, in such
things, is wrong—it fs cruel, wicked. It
will surely he attended with numerous most
disastrous results. It will produce in the
bosom of your Pastor a feeling unfavorable
to successful preaching; it will lower his
opinion of your Christian character, and j
consequently will cool his love for you—
check his desires and exertions lor your
welfare ; wilt subject hint to the mortifica
tion of failing to meet his own obligations,
into which lie has enteredNipou the i.iith of
your promises. His character ami influ
encc will then sink with his creditors, and
the community, and in this wav his power
of usefulness will he abridged. ‘Thus a
miserable condition of tilings will lie
brought about, such as no Church should
involuntarily incur. Again, therefore, we
say, brethren, do not, we beg you, do not.
jin anything, deceive your Pastor. Tell
him, candidly, what, be it much or little,
he may depend upon; and then meet, to
the full, and at the time, your obligations.
We will say no more to the Churches in
j these notes, but leave you to digest this les
i son carefully.
2. To the Pastors throughout the South
West —“Thatye may approve things that
are excellent”—we will say a few words.
Brethten, if you can, in any way’, be
sustained Uy one Church, never take two ;
and if two are necessary do not take more,
j Accept, each of you, the pastoral charge of
: as few Churches as possible. It is wrong
1 for you to undertake what you know you
j cannot do, and you cannot perform, as it
1 should he, the pastoral cilice in three or
four congregations. It is not necessary
; that you should try, because thereare other
ministers, now disengaged, with whom you
may shaie the labor. To you we say, do
not deceive the Churches, by promising to
he their Pastors, and failing —and fail you
surely do, if you only preach to them once
i a month, and scarcely, in a whole year,
1 visit live families among them.
W u have known neighborhoods in which
| two or three or more ministeis resided, and
j because one of them was superior in some
respects, lie was pastor of all the Churches,
and the others had no regular charge !
This, we take it, is wrong—-decidedly
wrong. You ought not to (to this, u or af
low n to lie done, lint, perhaps we are
told that these unoccupied ministers are in
competent—that they cannot preach, or
they are not orthodox, or that their man
ners are repulsive, or their temper incom
patible, or that they are of questionable mo
-1 nils, or some such tiling. Then we say,
! they should not be ministers, and the soon
er you disrobe them ol their official func
tions the belter. You, probably, ought
j not, at first, to have ordained them. Ordi
j nations have been lamentably loose in our
land. A brother, because he wishes to
preach, or is zealous, or can pray, or ex
hort well, must not necessarily, therefore,
ha ordained, lie certain to ordain no man,
j who is not competent to be a pastor. If
j there arc preachers enough lo supply each
Church, let every Church have ilsovvnpas
j tor. What il someone of your number is
; much superior to the others? If the
Churches wish to hear hint, let the pastors
j frequently exchange ‘pulpits on the Sab- i
; hath. 11l this way all the people may he j
j gratified, and all the ministers he employ- j
i ed. Brethren, ministers, you can arrange!
this matter, and il is your duty to do it. i
Then you will bring fully into the field all J
j the strength you have, and the results? will I
lie most happy.
Permit a few remarks to you, brother
i ministers, about your support. Do not,
we pray you, be so reluctant to speak of
, ibis topic in the pulpit. The duty of mill-!
islet ial support is a part of the Gospel, and
il you do not instruct your (.'hurdles in ill
i as a mailer of principle, you are not faithful i
to them or to God. If you have not care-
Itilly taught .them this, as well as every I
ollmr duly, bow could von say, with Paul
—“ I have not slimmed to declare to you i
the whole counsel of God?” Ilow can!
you expect tliciu to lie conscientiously 1
i nuroM in ihi s pnrtfcufnr ? If they fail, and
i you and they both suffer fur it, it is more i
i your limit than it is theirs. You have
yourself to blame. You deserve the neg- ‘
j lent with which you are visited.
I Again, upon this subject. When your!
people consult you about your annual al
lowance, lie frank and candid. ’Toll them |
exactly the state of the case, what yourcir
cuHistanccs arc, and what you will expect. !
Have a perfect understanding with them,
it you will not do this, and the Churches
i do not meet your anticipations, do not. we
pray you, leel bad, and complain, and all
that. \uur Churches have probably been
expecting one tliingand you another. You
have been so reserved, and dark about the
matter, that they do not know what you
want, or wbat to do. Understand each
other distinctly. Then let the Deacons,
•he divinely appointed financial officers ol
tin Churcl:, do llieir duty, and all will be
well.
Respecting your office as Bishops, dear
brethren, Miller a lew suggestions, in re- i
ganl to two points of duty.
In relation, in the first place, to preach
ing—seek to impart a larger amount of
scriptural knowledge. Our people need
more information on nearly all doctiinal
subjects. This is necessary in order to
their steadfastness, comfort and usefulness.
If you would preserve your Churches Iron)
being carried away by Anti-ism, on life one
liami, or Campbellism, on the other; il
you would have them vigorous, and pros
peious—-instruct them thoroughly. We
are not opposed to feeling, or excitement.
We think men must be excited. But in
producing feeling you ate generally sulli
cienily successful. Before, however, you
seek to excite, thoroughly imbue your peo
ple with knowledge. Then—
“ If you have whispered truth,
Whisper no longer;
But speak as the thunder doth,
Sterner and stronger.”
Intlie second place, be more sedulous!
and constant in the performance of your
pastoral duties. Here, we apprehend, our
ministry generally arc most deficient. Vis
it, dear brethren, as often as possible, cve
i v family, any of whose members attend
your preaching, in the kindest and most
delicate and affectionate manner; find put
the spiritual condition of each inmate ; con
verse with them all appropriately; and, if
practicable, invariably lead the scriptures,
and pray with them, before you leave
them. Repeat this process as frequently
as you can. When you go to a house, do
not stay too long. We have seen ministers
who would remain for hours, lolling about,
chatting, and cracking jokes, on all subjects !
Brethren, this will* nevei do; it is, in a
Pitslot, disastrous, sinful. Feel, always,
the dignity of your calling ; be industrious ;
do what your duty requires at one house,
and go on to another. Continue in this
wark, and you will soon find that you can
preach, an ! pray too, much belter, because
you will better understand die wants of
your people, and feel much more engaged
for their salvation ; your congregations will
be greatly enlarged and more attentive! and
your Churches will be more and
faithful. You will also soon be convict'd, i
whatever may be your preaching abilities, j
that, in all that pertains to the conversion of;
sinners, attaching Christians to the cause of j
Christ, and building up your Churches,
you will do about five times as much cut
ol the pulpit, as you can do in it.
Suffer, brethren, a word on another sub
ject. Cultivate, in the pulpit, and out* ofi
it, the warmest feelings of affecthin fp all
classes of men. Never withhold antfpart !
ol what you believe to be the til th.,
Breach it, pnugently, but afiectionateE-, in I
a lender style, and novel denounce •nvJti.ie.
Treat, with great forbearance, ogr anti
missionary brethren, and win thonVVpiis
sible. Most of those who are itdrniiaj lo .
us, are good men, but have their judg neiiis :
misled. (Jain their affections, script thiirj
confidence, convince them that voir Know j
more of the Bible than they and . affi lion,,
and not before, you can enlighteir Hem, ’
and they will• instantly be with yoi.< —!
Adopt, as your model, Cowpei’s bfAjttful
description of a faithful minister: M
j “ Simple, grave, sincere, I-
In doctrine um orrtipt, in language p|a ti,
i And plain in manner, decent,
j And natural in gesture; much impipreM
Himself, us conscious ol his awful cltbjEc, -
j And anxious mainly that the flock Ire lends
May feel it too; afi’ucliunate in look*
i And lender in address, as w fit becomes ,
! A messenger of grace to guilty men.”', j
So much we have thought it properlnow
j to say to our Churches, and their Bailors.
We deem them necessary, infinite! V'Siin-:
j poitant, ‘•excellent things .” Derived!
brethren, do you “ approve” them t 1
It remains only Unit we ollfr a few
I words of
APPLICATION.
Churches, Pastors :—Ye arc the silt of
I the earth ; ye are the light of the world.
.Study, closely, eaielully, the word ol God;
be instant ami fervent in-prayer; be laith
lul, in ail things, and faithful unto death.
Lot your light so shine before men that
they may see your good works, and glorify
j your Father which is in heaven.” Honor i
! your own principles, and they will he hdti-j
I oiedby others. Thus, only, can you make
i them triumphant.
Beloved Pastors, and Churches: —lys,
time for us to cast aside loitering and indo
lence, and to he in earnest. Enemies tu j
truth and holiness are multiply itig on every j
side. Dangers are thickening around us.;
Souls are perishing. Up, then, to your j
master’s work. We have no more time ]
fur inglorious ease. “ Cod expects evertf.
man to do his duly."—The Baptist. \
For the Christian Index.
Mr. Editor. — By writing you at this
time l may involve myself in a controversy
at least unpleasant if not unprofitable. It
will not be surprising if lie who can indulge |
in, and give vent to bitter wolds aud in- i
veetives against brethren of the Presbyte
rian and Methodist denominations,aud who;
can reconcile it to bis conscience to vilify ;
and abuse the Bible as now translated, ]
should handle without gloves, any one wlm;
would have the temerity to cross his path, j
or difl’eiiiig in opinion with him, shojld |
dare express that opinion. Be that as it!
may a stern sense of duly prompts me on. |
It is one of those cases, where rebuke is j
demanded from every Christian tongue mid
pen;—Mind perhaps Mr. Editor (begging ’
your pardon in advance for the insinuation)
this lebuke is due not only to the man who
wrote, but to the editor who published the
communication to which l allude.
In the Christian Index of 17th January
1845 is a communication dated Abbeville 1
C. 11., S. C., Dee- 184 t, and signed K. S.
Roberts, M. G. Well in the first place
Mr. editor, permit me to enquire what in the
name ol wonder does ibis M. (I. at the end
of Mr. Roberts’s name stand for? liar! it
been M. J).—A. M.—A. B.—L. L. D.—
or D. 1). 1 could (though no Yankee) have
guessed what was intended. But M. G.
!is a puzzler. But let us to the matter in
hand. The communication is headed
“ Baptists in Fault” and knowing that
Baptists as well as others, are very often
‘in fault,’ and knowing too that the first
step towards correcting a “fault” is discov
ering it. I commenced its perusal, hop
ing to derive instruction and profit from it.,
What then was my surprise, when 1 limn I
j the very second sentence abusing and eon
j denming, in no measured terms, our ver
: sion of the I‘oly Scriptures!!! Mr.Ro
| berts writes thus :—“The truth as it is in
the Lord Jesus Christ, and as it was de
livered to the saints, is incompatible jwitl
our present, very false version of the Holy
Scriptures; and I, contend that the King
James’s version in use, copied from the
Bishops Bible is not the Gospel, and ought |
not to he used by Christians as it prevents j
the conversion of the world—for it perpet-|
nates the power of the Beast, therefore the!
sooner we got rid of the snake the better.
lasit is continually biting us.” Patience.!
i Patience !! a professed follower of Christ
; speaking of our Bible (admitting its errors!-,
as a snake, continually biting us, and the
sooner we get rid of it the better! A pro
, lossed follower of Christ, saying, that the
i truth as it is in Jesus, ami as it‘was deliv
ered to the saints, is totally incompatible
’ with our present version of the Holy Scrip
jlures ‘• A professed follower of Christ]
J saying, that our Bible is nut the Gospel!!
And that it prevents the conversion of the j
world .! . \\ hat would he our feelings if
j sa,ne language were used by an avow,
led Infidel or Atheist? What would bo
our feelings it this same language wero
! quoted from a Paine, a llumc ora Voltaire?
Could we find language sufficiently stron”
to express our indignation ? HVould waj
not anathematise them along with the hold
I blasphemer ? And shall we suffer such
| expressions and sentiments to pass unnotie-i
j ed, because they emanate from the brain
of a professed follower of Clnist ? Bv no
1 means.
Will facts sustain Mr. Robeits in his
j positions ? Will he pretend to say that we
j cannot from reading our piesent version,
’ ascertain The truth as it is in the Lord Je- j
j sus Christ, and as it was delivered to the ’
saints? Have none ever ascertained this
; save from~ihe original Greek ? And can
none ascertain it for himself, unless in the
j language of Mr. Roberts, he knows the
“distinction between metamelomai and me
tanoeo ?” If indeed this knowledge be con
! fined to so few, Heaven save the mark !
Can Mr. Roberts prove his assertion true,
: that ours is a very false version of the Ho
ly Scriptures ? That many errors exist, is |
i beyond doubt, but are they such as lo war
j rant the charge, *• Very Jalse ?” Surely j
not! Again, can he establish it as a fact, ;
that our Bible is ‘’not the Gospel”—“that j
il should not be used by Christians, and j
I ‘hat it prevents the conversion of the !
i* world?” Heaven he praised he cannot es- !
; tablisli it! Oh no 1 The thrilling response j
; ol ten thousand Christian hearts which have
, been breathed upon by ihe Holy Spirit,
j and have drank in Sacred truth from its
! pure fountain, would contradict effectually
the most labored argument, which Mr. R. 1
jor any other petson could advance in its !
(•support. And then to compare this Holy j
; Book to a snake, that is continually biting ;
: us! Mr F.ditor, Mr. Roberts may rest as
sured this is no snake, but inethinks ere this !
, bis conscience must have smitten him foi
(tius writing of this Holy Book. Yes, with
all tin? errors of its translation a Holy book. ,
Yes, just as it is, a fountain ofiiving waters,
where every one that tliirsteth may come
and drink of the waters of life freely. Yea
buy wine and milk witbouf’inoney and
without price. Again, lie speaks of the j
Bible as we have it, as “an unfaithful book”
—“impure trash” and the “causeol amass 1
of error, and irreligiou existing in the
churches.” .dll of this is extremely un
just and unwarrantable, not to speak of it
in any harsher terms.
Mr. Roberts lias made a number of grave
. and severe charges against out Bible, but
has not attempted to prove one of them
I correct. Now as lie holds the affirmative,
it is liis duty to prove his allegations true,
& until he shall do this 1 will content myself
(so far as this part of the subject is concern
ed) with contradicting his assertions, and
thus the issue being joined to throw him on
his proof.
There is one other feature in this commu
nication which I must notice, and that is
the unchristian and uncharitable spirit man
ifested towards our Presbyterian and Meth
odist brethren. They are our brethren in
Christ—brethren whom we should love.—
‘They, equally with us, are soldiers of the
Cross, doing battle with us in one common
cause. They are good soldiets too—they
fight well. Tis tme they have not been
immersed, but are they a whit behind us in
labors of love—in deeds of charity ? Ate
they not as zealous in the cause of Christ
as we, and are they not accomplishing at
least as much as we, towards evangelizing
the world > llmv then can Mr. Roberts
speak of “Presbyterians aud Methodists,
standing ready to pervert the law and the
testimony ? Let him beware whilst he pay
tithes of mint, annise and cummin, he omit
the weightier matters of the law. Why
should lie wish to “put to shame the Meth
odists and Presbyterians?” Would it not
be more christian-like to wish to stir them
up to every good word nnd work. He
speaks of the “dark corners of the earth,
where old school unenlightened Presbyte
rianism reigns, in all its iniquity.” Truly
he must have got into some Dark corner.
He must have remained in that same dark
dark corner so long, that the light of day
now obstructs his vision. In all honesty
let Mr. R. say, whether of the two denom
inations, Baptists or Presbyterians, laking
laymen and clergymen into consideration,
is the least enlightened, and then let him
remember the old adage, “He that lives in
a glass house should not throw stones.”
1 am not acquainted Mr. editor with your
correspondent, (Mr. R.) but doubt not I
should like him personally, better than I do
his communications. He appears to be a
man of considerable information, and to
have some knowledge of Greek, but I can
not agree with him, that “all out brethren
ought to be taught to know the distinction
between Metameloinai and Metanoeo.”—
Should he attempt to accomplish it he would
discover, he had undertaken a difficult task.
Many of our good old brethren would gaze
and stare and wonder.*
“W by should such mighty difference be
’ Twixt tweedledum and tweedledee.”
But should he succeed he would certainly
merit a diploma, which lpresume would
conl'ei a higher degree than M. (J.
Yours Respectfully,
E. H. BACON.
Walthourviile, Ist Feb. 1845.
For the Christian Index.
REV. HOSIER THORNTON.
I am indebted to A E, Whitten of Lex
ington, Mi. lor the following account.ol old
Father Thornton, which 1 give in the words
of the writer, in the hope that others will
favor me with additional facts Fot all such
favors I shall be gratified.
“Hosier Thornton died in Franklin Cos.
of your State in October, 1843. Very
few. if any, have evinced through life more
piety than did this worthy disciple. To
give you some idea of his general deport
ment in his social relation* of life, permit
me to state, tiiat on one occasion we visited
a sister who was attacked with fever.—
When we approached her bedside, Father
T. spoke to her in language like this,
** Well, daughter, how do you feel this
morning?” Her reply was, that “she
thought she felt a little belter.” No soon
er said, than the old Father raised both
; hands, fell on his knees, and said.—“ Let
jus thank God for it.” When he had clos
!ed his supplications, he took his seat by
; the sister and dwelt some time on the sweet
i and precious promises to the believer.—
j From that place, in company with a young
brother, he visited a family some 2; miles
! distant. Before leaving the family, he re
’ quired the young brother to make prayer.
; With another family, they took dinner,
where he engaged in prayer himself.—
Thence he proceeded on a tour of preach
ing for some two weeks, pursuing the same
course pretty much during the whole trip.
While in company with him, on one oc-,
casion, he related to me some of his trials, i
and stated that alter he had settled At Vans j
l Creek in Elbert Cos. Ga., he was travelling j
in North Carolina. * ***** * ’
While on his way he came fc in sight of a 1
: fine dwelling, which was discoverable
through a beautiful avenue. Some strong j
impreesion was made upon his mind, to go j
up and pray for the people that abode ;
there. So, ever ready to be led by the j
spirit, he turned to the house, rode up. and |
inquired of the Lady tiie number of the
family and whether he could see them to
gether ? “Yes, if he would alight from his j
horse and come in,” The family were j
collected, by which time he was prepared j
for religions service—read a chapter, and j
made a brief coinment-A-in short, preached
unto them Jesus : then sung a by mil, pray- :
ed, bade them farewell, and proceeded on j
his journey homeward. Sjpme mouths af
terwards, two young men of this family j
came all the way from N. C. to Georgia to
be baptized by Father TANARUS“ Having traced
him up, they related that two of their sis
ters and their mother as well as themselves
had been brought to a knowlege of Christ
as the result of the visit above referred to.
This was universally the course of Fa
ther I’, —and I long to see the time come
when all the Lord’s servants shall ever be
found at their posts, as he was—preferring
to be found praying for their neighbors,
rather than instructing them in politics.”
J. H. CAMPBELL.
For the Christian Index.
My Dear Pro. —l am glad that we are
to have a series of essays on the long vex
ed question of close communion from so
able a pen as that of the Professor of The
ology in our University. In this essay the
proper adjective is prefixed to the ordinance.
What we practice is strict not close com
munion. I have been more frequently
constrained to correct the misconceptions
which have existed, and to explain our
position in this matter, than any other ar
ticle of our laith or practice.
In the eyes of a large portion of the ehris’
tian world, we arc looked upon as the most
illiberal people, in excluding uubnptizcd i
believers fiom the Lord’s table—when the
truth is, that the Great Head of the
Church has excluded them. An essay, j
which will place the matter in its pro
per light, and expose the true source of j
Hall’s error, must prove a valuable ae j
quisilion to our Baptist literature. 1 .
congratulate my brethren, that this subject;
is to be discussed by one so well qualified
as the Rev. l)r. I)agg. Its circulation
must do great good. When published in
pamphlet form—pul my name down for
five copies. TIIEOPHILUS.
We are thankful for the encouragement
afforded us in the above communication, to
publish, in pamphlet form, for general cir
culation, Dr. Dagg’s Essay, and hope that
many brethren will speedily subscribe for
5, or 10 copies, or more.—Another bro.
engages 12 copies. For the price, see our
prospectus of the “ Periodical Library. ’-Ed.
For the Christian Index.
Lfttcr from Merle D’Aubignc.
New York, Jan. 27, 1845.
My dear Urol her, —1 have just received
a letter, by the Steamship Cambria, from
Dr. Merle D’Aubigne, ofGeneva, in which
he authorizes me to say to you that, in or-1
der to obviate all difficulty in relation to the !
future publication of his History of the Re
formation tn the Sixteenth Century, by the
American Tract Society, he will endeavor
to put the work in such form that it will j
he possible lor you to issue it without cen ■
sure from any quarter. He states that fee
will revise the omissions made and see
which of them he can adopt. He will also
prepate an appropriate Prelace for this new
Edition. By some slight additions he <
deems it possible to remove some of the i
obstacles which have been in the way of i
the Society’s publishing the work as it was
originally written.
Yours most respectfully,
R. BAIRD.
Rev. Win. A Hallock, Cor. Sec. of the
Am. ‘Tract Society.
The English Penny Post, after paying
the whole of its expenses, yields an income
of more than £OOO,OOO a year. The op
ponents of the system attempted to make it j
appear otherwise, by merging the expenses j
of foreign- packets, steamers, &e., in their j
estimates; but this attempt was opposed, j
and the amount of annual profit ascertain
ed as above. The franking system is
wholly abolished ! Even the Queen her
self cannot frank a letter, and is compelled
to pay her penny, and thus to acknowledge
the supremacy of the Post Office law, as
much as any of hei subjects, whenever she
writes to a friend or other correspondents.
The treaty negotiated by Mr. Cushing
with China, secures to Americans ihe
privilege of erecting hospitals and temples
of worship at each of the five free ports —
I an indulgence never before allowed to for
eigners, and a most honorable expression
[ from the Chinese in favor of our mission.
PENFIELD.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1845.
Try Again.
Some of our friends are discouraged
when they apply to a brother to subscribe
for the Index and receive a refusal. We
would say to sueh, “try again”— : try anoth
j er and another, and never cease trying while
j one brother or sister of youi acquaintance
i remains untried. It would be well to pre
face your efforts with piayer to God, to
! give the people a thirst for religious knowl
j edge, and to direct and bless your efforts.
■
Take Notice.
We never stop any one’s paper without
I an order so to do, or a notice that our paper
is not taken out of the F. Office, or with*
! out giving l previous notice of our intention
jto stop. Papers are frequently returned to
us marked not wanted—refused—please
i discontinue, &c. without any post mark on
j them. In such cases we frequently fail to
1 find the name, and, consequently,. the pa
per is continued lo our loss. We neverre
fuse to send a paper to anew subscriber,
because he does not send the amount ofsuh
scriplion with his order. If brethren will
notice, and remember the above remarks,
it may occasionally save them from some
“hard thoughts” of the editor.
All Afflictive Providence.
Bro. I. O. McDaniel, of Henry Cos. un
der dale 13th Inst., writes:—“My nephew
Win. Philip, eldest sort of A. W. and Ma
ry A. Mitchell of this settlement, while on
the road to Macon with his father, two oi
three days since, accidentally got one foot
caught under the fore wheel of a heavy
•uaded waggon, which threw him down
and both wheels passed over him, killing
him instantly. The accident of rotirse has
brought a sore affliction on the family.
The father and mother seem to be distress
ed beyond measure. The little boy was,
I believe about nine years old.”
Baptist Library anti Baptist Pictorial,
j Oil our last page our readers will find a
! prospectus of each ol the above works.—
! I he first volume of the Baptist Library is,
jin our estimation, worth five times the a
monnt charged for the fiist tlnec volumes.
The Baptist Pictorial, we should judge,
will prove a very interesting, useful and
popular periodical. Mr. Hill is an enter*
prizing brother. He has had to stent a
i counter current, brought to hear against
him by monopolists. His success has
been beyond our expectations, am! it is as
cril able, mainly, to Ills it dii idtial energy of
cliaractei and, his patient perseverance in
well doing.
Postmasters will transmit names and mo
ney for either of die above works, free of
expense.
Mercer University,
Students are still coining in. Many of
the friends nfeduca i m think that we ought
to make a vigorous effort to ndd'to the funds
of this institution. A large portion of our
readers, probably, would not understand
the necessity of such efforts without a long
explanation ol the present state at our funds,
our wants and our prospects. Such ex.
phmations cannot well he given in our col
umns. (Ye learn that il is probable—oral
least possible that an agentmnv he employ
ed, before long, to enlighten the public
mind on this subject. Had we $50,000 to
giveaway, we would give at least lour
fifths of that amount to our College This
we would not have said three years ago ;
for at that time we were comparatively
ignorant of the true state of things, anti
doubt! I of ill efinal results of the effort to
establish a Baptist College that would
do honor to our State and our den- nation;
hut since we have been on the .'-pot, we
have investigated the affairs of site College
closely, and noted such things as appear to
make for and against it. Our decided
opinion now is, that nothingis wanting but
the confidence of our people, their united
patronage and the endowment of two or
three additional professorships to make
our institution rank with the first in our
country and prove a lasting blessing to our
denomination and the community at large.
Complimentary.
We copy the following from the Alabam
a Baptist for two reasons ; 1. Because it
will evince to our patrons the high estima
tion, in which our colleague is held by oth
ers. 2. Because it will ;dso evince that
bro. Jewett, notwithstanding his occasion
al sparring with us, has really no unkinil
feelings towards us or our paper. We
know him to he kind hearted, and if he
would only take a little more care to be cor
rect, when he reports our statements, we
should never write about him with a “steel
pen,” Long may he live to be a blessing
to those amongst whom he labors.
“The Index is highly fortunate, in secur
ing lot tWe winter, the services of the
Henry Keeling of Virginia, to assist broth
er Baker in his editorial labors. Mr. K. is
a man of fine talents and ripe scholarship,
of an excellent spirit, and he has had sever
al years experience in conducting religious
periodicals, particularly as Editor of the
Rejigious Herald, Richmond, and ’of the
Baptist Preacher. The united efforts of
these brethren must render the Index pre
eminently worthy of the patronage of the
churches.”