Newspaper Page Text
the t'hei diaii Index.
I *
;/ r . /,’ YY'hv -luuild uni a coin
muni viiloji now am! then fiom Alibnm i be
intere-iio” lo your readers? True, we
have nothin” in lid- section ot i character .
itiv interesting, but I guess, a” “bi-other
Jonathan” would say, dial we arc pretty
inneli as oilier people, only I hope dial lew
otlieiM are altogether so had. We arc gt'll- :
erallv a higoUcd, careless ami selfish ••set” j
of people hue, and so they are every where: j
therefore, I shall venture occasionally with j
your permission to contribute my mile to j
the fund of thought and observation with’
which your good paper ever almonds And
■ve are not nltoeellier as had either as one
might suppose from what is sometimes
-aid and written id us, hut yet we arc had
enough in all ctnise.o tire.. Wo nave the
tippeueuiice ■ and goodue/-'. -much so as will
he found any where. Within three miles
ol mv residence there are the following
churches in regular operation, viz : one
Protestant Episcopal, one M< dyodist, two
Missionary Baptist, om Primitive Baptist,
one lililted Baptist • besides we have
pre idling frcitueiitly by a gentleman who
lives at some distance, belonging to the
Ifeldrinei ,or Bible (!lni-tiaus or G.nup
1, elides, or whatever you please to call
ilinse who propagate “ /he .'lndent (*ov
ic/."’ Wc have alio among us as many as
six puncher* and four hundred pnfexsed
i h list inm, belonging to the different de
iiomiiiation-’, and yet there is not a Mission
ary Society, a Bible class, a Sabbath school,
■ I Temperance Society, or any thing of the
hind within many miles ol us—none, at
least, coiimtcled with any ol the churches
shove named. Oil* ministers don i preach
except at the regular meetings ; our inoiii-
I era don’t attend regUd'rly to their churches,
prayer meetings are nevat held; the I as
ters receive very little for the’ 1 ’ services ,
dm llilile is not understood title ,seldom
read hv many, while good religious hooks
aie unknown among; us; drinking lo excess
is common with professors of religion, chil
dren are not •ashamed from mischief,’ in
short Piety is a “dead letter.’, We have
wrangling about doctrine, and discipline,
and government, and polities, and every
thing else that lends to produce, discord.—
Mv the wav, l should like to hear one of
our Presielrers make use ol the following
text in some of his sermons : lloli. vi. I
2, ‘-Therefore, leaving the principles of
the dor/l ine | singular | of Christ, let us
go on unto pclcclum ; not laying again the
foundation of repentance from dead works,
and ol luith toward Cod, of the doctrine
| singu/tir] of bn/ilixins | plural, \ and o*
laving on of hands, and ol resurieetiou of
the dead, and of eternal judgment Aie.”
11 is not a disposition fur mischief that
prompts nn‘ thus to make public tin; actions,
t|ie “saying anil doings,” and the condition
ol tlin churches by which 1 am surrounded;
hut a sincere desire that they may profit by
seeing themselves in their true position.—
I have no membership with either of them,
and they can hereby learn how they arc
looked upon by those who have no ciiii
lie< lion with them. Let them remember
that the eyes of the world are upon them,
;UUi lUul wr c/irfn
linns thus act; IK them remembut that
the Orttiwhom they profess to love and o
btty'f,is not mocked” and that 11 is eye
peers into the secret recesses of men’s
hearts.
The number of dram shops, or rather,
of ijkatii snot’s exceed that of the churches
by some seven or eight; and the number
of Temperance men is “too small to be vi
sible.” Sobriety lias but few admirers
here and Total Abstinence is “no go” at
all. Several efforts have been made to raise i
a band of Cold Wat r men, but with no
success, because the old women at.d all (he
children love to oppose it, and because the
old men and voting fellows love theii drain,
and because—a great many reasons might
he specified, not one of which has any
sense in it, or any hearing upon the subject.
We are going to try n again, however, be
fore a great while.
How suddenly all these tilings might bo
changed, ii people would do right! And
so they may be, for some interesting sea
sons are apptoathing, which are looked lot
with much anxiety; stteit is the (.tenoral
Mtviut: at • I'i imili > ‘ I t.qihzibah, and
bt ■ , o;;acted meeting at “Missionary,”
Liberty, and the Camp meeting at “Cni
ted.Shady lfrove. All these meetings
billow each other in quick succession, and
neither ui the chinches is two miles from
the others. Surely so much preaching
and so many efforts among the same [peo
ple all the lime, musl do some benelit.—
lint I’ll tell you how it is, Mr. Editor;—
one will overthrow what the others attempt
to establish, and they will divide and dis
ti.n l the public mind more than ever with
their dorlriiH's, and all that sort of thing.—
“Os it sun;” is what they all go for, and
“hi ii oimnkjns” is ‘vital they all wish to
establish. Hence, their .Ministers are for
ever preaching tip the opimonsof their pat
tv. instead of preaching Jesus. This will
never do for Religion, and consequently
no good will be done at these meetings.—
V few more members may ho added to each
party, and the breach between them may
he widened and more hard feelings maybe
gotten tip among them,—and this seems a
boul what they generally desire.
The drouth is very severe, and corn
and cotton ctops arc suffering greatly. It
has been over six weeks since we had rain
and a little while longer will ruin the pros
pect for reaping any thing from the fields.
I’ltc snriomiding country, however, has
been blessed with copious showers of late
am! tin; crops there ato excellent. The
heat is as severe as 1 have ever known it,
and for the last two days it has been almost
intolerable: several eases of sickness have
appeared at ibis early season, and oar ex
p.-route. .1 citizens expect a fall of immense
Buffeting among the people. Our friends
ap North should be informed that the ne
groes on Alabama plantations are not kept
exposed 100 much to tins broiling heat, nor
are they neglected when sickness conics
upon them ; nor are they permitted to go
untaught in the great Truths which relate
|to their salvation, j I our Norihern friends
] will just “be low ”*u> shall he able to
! manage our .-ervants and attend to our affairs
without their assistance. Our business ol j
! evety kintl, it would seem, —our benevo
lent donations, our religious proceeding,
i our state affairs, our-every thing, has to un
dergo a severe investigation at the North,
and then it seldom happens to please our
j “brethren” U4l there! Yours,
HACK WOODS.
Ml. .(effeison, Ala., June 21, 1815.
. /'or the Christian Index.
Hr. Waylariif’x I,dim to Rev R. Fuller.
No. 2.
In toy liist number, I reviewed the dis
cussion of the following topics;—l. Slave
ry was generally acknowledged to be wrong
at the time ol the adoption of our Constitu
tion. 2. The definition of slavery. 2.
The nature of moral evil.—l endeavored to
show that the Doctor had treated id these
! topics according to the rules of refined om
i lory, and not inn manner indicating the
calm pursuit of truth. I repeat, here, my
i purpose is not to attempt confutation ; for,
ifMr. Pullet has succeeded, such anattempt
would lit; unnecessary—if Mr. Fuller has
failed, I am not so vain ns to imagine th t I
could succeed.
I now come to the Doctor's discussion ol
Mr. Fuller’s argument from the Old Testa
ment. Mr. Fuller’s conclusion is this:
“ Slavery is no sin ;” his argument this—
“ Slavery was sanctioned to the llobicws
in the Old Testament.” Now, suppose a
man desirous of knowing whether this eon
elusion is just, this .iigiiineiit sound—what
would lie do ? lie would consider, in the
first place, these trnllis: “That all our Hi
rers originate fioin the basis of out ideas,
(and not from the form id’our reason i rigs”—
(that the above conclusion may either be the
(,i|iiscifiieut of a false idea, and then false ;
or lire consequent of a just idea, and then
just; or, it may not depend on any of the
ideas eiubra."ed in the argument, and then
doubtful, lie v ould ‘lien proceed to ascer
tain all the element./ properly contained in
both parts of the com'k' < U o n> and till those
properly contained in both parts -*>l the ar
gument, keeping out everything fxlrdii'tous.
Having done this, ami guarding against l*.* c
rise and influence of prejudices, ho would
be sure of arriving at a just opinion infs.'-’
sped to tiiis conclusion and argument; or, J
lie might compare slavery with the Old
Testament, closely searching whether they
agree or disagree—whether both may stand
together, ot one or the oihor must he re
jected ; or, he might collect all the undis
puted instances of sin in the Old Testament,
observing the laws and expressions of the
divine will in respect to each instance;
then ho would notice the mention of slave
vy wlttuuivt it oow*H in l)lC K.aiUC UuuU.
observing the laws and expressions ol the
divine will oil this subject. II lie found
sin in evety instance condemned, forbid
den, punished—and slavery nowhere con
demned, forbidden, punished—he would
infer that sin mid slavery did ttoi stand on
the same level in the sight of (loti, lint
llte Doctor resorts to the syllogistic art.
Now, sit, l am quite averse to this atlas a
form of argument. It is too artificial, too
distant from nature, from the modes of
thinking common among men ; and it is too
difficult must readers to detect the ma
ny fallacies that may bo concealed under its
forms. However, I presume we must see
whether the Doctor’s own art docs not shew
what he is aiming al. Mr. Fuller’s con
clusion is this—“ Slavery is no sin his
argument this—“ Slavery was sanctioned
to the Hebrews in the Old Testament.”
This conclusion falls properly under the
second figure of the syllogistic art; and, in
this figure, the predicate of the conclusion
is the subject of the major proposition.
According to the above rule, the Doctor
should, in fairness, have reduced that con
elusion to the following syllogism :
No sin was sanctioned to the Hebrews 1
in the Old Testament.
Slavery was sanctioned to the Hebrews
in the Old Testaini lit.
Therefore slavery is no sin.
Why did not tin? Doctor observe the
rules of his own art? The reason is <)b
viotts. lie would have been obliged to
confine himself to the single point,—
“ Slavery was sanctioned to the Hebrews
in the Old Testament,” —a compass too
narrow for his soaring oratory. lie would
not have dared to contest the major propo
sition—to assert that God, at any lime, to
any people, had sanctioned sin. Let us
see, now, what he has gained by forcing
Mr. fuller's reasoning into the syllogism
made us of.—l l is this : Whatever Ciod
sanctioned to the Hebrews lie sanctions to
nil men, and at all limes; God sanctioned
slavery among the Hebrews; thorefftre God
sanctions slavery to all men and at all times.
This done, he says sanction means com
mand, and then proceeds to overturn his
man of straw by insinuating all that was
commanded to the Hebrews. He mentions
the invasion of Canaan, the slaughter of the
Canaanites, and might have mentioned the
dossing the Red ISca, the travel through
the desert, circumcision, the building the
walls of Jerusalem, and a thousand things,
.11 going most conclusively to prove (what
no one has ever denied) that many things
were commanded to the Hebrews which
are not commanded tons. This reasoning
is too plainly after the manner of the on
cicn; school-men, who said to have
been more silly than suhrioltftpys in much
of iheii conduct. Mr. Fuller’s argument
depends on the principle that the sanction
of God ami sinfulness are so totally repug
nant, so opposite to each Other, as never
to co-exist in ihe same subject. Due or
the other must always be excluded. Dr.
Way land forces that argument into a de
pendence on a proposition known tqjbu un
tenable. Is this reasoning or scholastic
trickery ?
It is quite observable, too, that injall bis
letters the Doctor keeps in view this tr ixini
of the Roman orator: “Ornatissitnae snut
etc orutiones, qu;s latissimc vagwuir.”
And, sensible of its advantages, as tomi as
be assumes atopic, he takes his reajlcr by
the hand, and mounts with him lo the.geiier
ie idea. From this point he displays alt
the grand objects of moral Science— till the
endearments of social life; then turning
suddenly upon him, enraptured by die vis
ion. “All these things must be lost if .slave
ry is tight.”
A reader, thus acted on lay a master spi
rit, yields at once. “ Then slavery must
he wrong, horribly wrong, and must'iiu pm
do .vn at all hazards.” And Wits is just
; what tho Doctor is aiming to effect. .1.
for the Christian hulex.
Robert Hall. I
In my last letter, Mr. Editor, I pTofnis
ed you that I would give you some infor
mation ol Mr. Hail, which Ida not not/ re
member seeing in his biography. Th< se
incidents in his life I derived, not frtjni any
acquaintance with hint; hut from an article
which 1 read in the Huston Atlas. I re
gret I have not the letter or 1 would Trans
mit it to you for publication, since jt could
not fail to give interest to those who ad
mire the wiilings of this great man. But
as it now is I must content myself with
giving you, and your readers, the substance
of that letter, in my language.
The writer remarked, that Air- Hall at a
very early age betrayed a great thirst lor
knowledge; and that this passion increas
ed with his years. At the time, that lie be
came acquainted with him, lie was in the
zen th of his reputation, as a preacher,
ami that the learned, and the nobility were
always pleased to hear him. Oil oneocca
t sioti, lie saw lord Brougham, and Dr. Ghnl
mers present, and gives a minute Juserip
. lion of these two gentlemen. Nothing
i sot’ms to .have arrested his attention spmoch
in the’ forme' I '. as his nose; which ha repre
sents as being peculiar in its appearance,
coming in close proximity to his tnouth,
and incessantly twitching, as though jt was
dissatisfied with ii.? present position. Mr.
Hall was a son of affliction ! fur he know
not, what it was to be vvjlhout JDain Wr one
hour. To alleviate hissutiientigs, JieJfcsor
ted to almost every thing, hut fotinu ™>ih-j
ing ol so much service as
was his practice, before ilu’ i
pulpit to go into the vestry, pyjyl
off, jay himself down on a f
profusely, till the time united tor him to |
preach, and as soon as this duty was per
formed, he would light his pipe at the pul
pit lamp, and envelope him-ell'in smoke.
Asa preacher Mr. 11. had no equal, and
1 presume many years will elapse I),lore
an intellectual star of his dimension, and
brilliancy will shod it lustre over the men
tal world. ’The extensive reputation which
lie enjoyed induced strangers to fonii an
extravagant opinion of his merits, and it is
not therefore a matter of surprise : tlijit the
seemingly indifferent manner in which he
introduced his subject, should excite the
inquiry, “Is this Mr. Hall ?” “The great
Mr. Hull ?” This unfavorable impression
however, was soon removed ; lor becom
ing interested in his subject, as lie progress
ed, his soul soon became enflamed, aid he
spoke with an eloquence that made his au
ditors feel, that he was better suited to ad
dress an assembly of angels, than men
Great minds cannot be moved at ome.—
Like the Ocean, they lequirc time to be put
in motion , but when they are fairly exci
ted, they move with aginndeur that awak
ens fear, and admit alien.
Mr. H. was a very eccentric man. It Is
peculiar to great men. Instances, if I mis
take not un given in I,is biography; but;
the following I believe is not. On visiting j
a female friend, (a married lady.) site coked
him, whether he was no; mipried yet, ob
serving it was lime. Sh ortly after, a ser-1
vatu girl came in the room, and ‘ threw j
some coal in the tire. Mr. H. observed
that the manner in which she put the coal
on the file impressed linn very favorably.
He offered bis hand to the girl, but she
could not believe it to be an act of sincerity,
and laughed loudly in his face; that he
must he crazy again. (Mr. Hall was once
deranged, and placed in an asylum.) F lie
insisted upon it and they were niamsd.—
The w titer says they lived a happy life
One, however, would suppose that an as
sociate whose condition was more on an
equality with his own would have suited
him better. It frequently happens, that
some of the most pleasing changes in our
condition have been effected by some trivial
event. I read of a man, the path ofwhose
prosperity, and wealth was opened, by his
picking up a pin.
1 Mr H. was remarkable for his gift of satire,
lie could retort in a most masterly manner;
and no one who was ever rebuked hv him
i once, desired to be the second time. Mr.
Wilkes, a minister in London, is represen
ted as being very particularabout ministers’
deportment. He repioved all his ministe
rial brethren whose eonveisation was not
seasoned with seriousness. Mr". Hall was
fond of indulging occasionally in loose con
versation. Mr. Wilkes undertook one day,
1 in the presence of several, to rebuke him.—
Mr. 11. immediately turned the weapon,
•Sir. said he, in whose favor is the differ
ence. You speak your nonsense in the pul
pit, and I speak mine out of it.” Mr. W.
was never known to reprove Mr. H. strain.
Mr. H. was very absent minded. His
friends had frequently lo remind him of his
engagements. On one occasion lie look
tea with a friend, and he drank 20 cups, j
sending each cup back without the spoon.
When fie rose, there were tUi 20 spoons ;
he was joked about it, but he denied all
knowledge of it. May we emulate his vir
tues, and avoid his eccentricities.
VIATOR.
Extracts from our Correspondents.
The letter from which the following ex
tract is taken is dated Retirement, Leon
Go., F’lor,, June 20th. Our correspond
ent, Rev. Dr. Lang, is known and valued
by many brethren in Ga. We shall have
written lojiirn before this goes to press.
“I much regret dial I was prevented
from visiting the Convention at Forsyth,
but 1 trust 1 was amply repaid for my (ab
sence, by being present at the constitution
ol a Baptist church ilie week before, at
Fort Gaines in Georgia. We had a verv
interesting time, and marked solemnity
pervaded the congregation, which was very
large,—Brethren Everinghain, Joshua Mer
cer, and Wilcox were present with me,
The meeting laHedfive (lays—l may, at a
future day, give you a more full account of
this meeting, if my other Brethren do not
attend to it.
Thu great excitement, consequent upon
’■hq, organization of anew Slate, seems lo
Lave engrossed the public mind, lor some
time, in this section of my Master’s vine
yard; consequently, there have been but
few additions to our churches in Florida.
I have been blessed with a small increase,
in some of the chinches that l have under
my charge, and ! fondly hope, as the polit
ical excitement will shortly cease, I may be
able to give you more cheering accounts of
the work ol the Lord in this part of Ills
vineyard. May His blessing attend yonr
self and family-
I remain your brother in the bomb of a
peaceful gospel.
THOMAS LANG.
From the Atubemm Jlnjitist.
State Convention.
The Hoaid of Directors of the Alabama
Baptist Convention, held a meeting at Ma
rion on Saturday the 21st ult., the Presi
dent in the chair.
A communication was presented by the
President, from the Executive Committee
of the American and Foreign Bible Society,
in reply to inquiries addressed to the Socie
ty by the Boaid. tinder a resolution of the
Convention at its last annual meeting.
The communication contained the follow
ing.
STATEMENT.
“lit the midst of changes which have oc
! curred, and are perhaps to be anticipated
in oilier organizations for religious and e
vangclieal benevolence, it is the determined
purpose of the Managers of the American
-and Foreign Bible Society, to keep to their
; original platform ; and, adhereittg to the
i exclusive object* aimed at and defined in
1 the Sit ATTICTC of our constitution, we shall
to0 8t cordially welcome all who approve
!l)<! itfldamental principle of our organiza
tion, as t”' l,r coadjutors on terms of perfect
equality. - I * l selecting Managers (to fd!
vacancies) am.’ Agents preference is always
given to those i.ad®l esteemed and [confided
to by otir supporters’ in the region where
they reside, or are OX pelted to operate. It
has also been our invariable practice—
wherever we have State Aux iliary Societies
—as is the case in the most o. the Soti’.h
ern States—to devolve the duty’ Ol selecting
their own Soliciting Agents on them.—
They also appropriate or designate the
funds which they forward to ottr Treasury,
—which designation we always adhero to
with scrupulous fidelity.
The appointment of the llev. Dr. John
son as Agent for some of the Southern
Stales, last winter, was scarcely an excep
tion to this ordinary role : for lie was him
self president of the South Carolina Bible
Society, auxltliary to ours , and the Board
ol your Alabama Bible Society, voted to j
welcome him most cordially into that State, i
We cannot but think that his appointment
as Agent, and that oldie Rev. Dr. Fuller
as lirst Preacher, at our last anniversary, |
(both of them in die regular code of ottr
operations, anti without reference to any 1
agitating questions now or then prevalent)
ought to give satisfaction to our friends in
Alabama.”
After the reading of the communication
above, it was voted, unanimously.
That this Board is entirely satisfied with
the statement addressed to us by the Man
agers of the American and Foreign Bible
Society.
Also, resolved, That all monies in the
hands of the Treasure! of the Convention
for the distribution of the Gospel, be pass
ed over to the Treasurer of the Alabama
Bible Societv. Adjourned.
M. P. JEWETT, Ree. Sec.
Baptist Board of Managers for Domestic Mis
sions-
Agreeably to a call front the President,
this Board convened at the Baptist Church,
in Marion on Saturday the 21st inst.
In the absence of the President, the Rev.
J. Hartwell took the chair.
Opened with prayer.
A Letter from Prot. J. L. Reynolds was
read, in which lie declined the appointment
of Corresponding Secretary of the Board.
On motion, resolved to proceed to the
election of a Corresponding Secretary:
whereupon the Rev. I). P Bestor was
unanimously chosen.
A letter from the Rev. I. T. Hinton re
specting the Baptist Church in N. Orleans
] was laid before the Hoard’ The Corres-
I ponding Secretary was instructed to for-
I ward a reply. .
Messrs. Hartwell, DeVotie and Jewett
! were appointed a committee to confer with
| the Executive Committee of the American
j Baptist Home Mission Society, respecting
, any matters of common interest to tlte two
; orders.
After prayer, adjourned to meet at the
same place, at 9 o’clock A. M. on Tuesday
the 29th of July
M. P. .JEWETT, Rec- See.
PEN FIE LI),
FRIDAY, JULY 11, 1845.
To Correspondeuts-
We are very thankful for their favors.
Our correspondent from Monticello, Flori
da, is more than welcome. IV e hope he
will hereafter contribute to our columns as
often as may comport with his convenience.
We are pleased to find “ Backwoods”
still alive. It has been so long since we
have heard from him, that we were appre
hensive some ill had befallen him.
Brother Mercer’s communication has
been unavoidably delayed for several weeks.
VV. B. Hill, Forsyth, is credited to April
’4O.
‘The Pictoiial Library has not been pub
lished. We send brother E. Tucker No. 1 of
the Periodical Library, as directed. How
shall we dispose of the dollar sent us ?
To brother E. Ileildcn we would say,
nil is right. We only wanted to know
the fuel* iri the case. We will continue to
send the Index on the terms lie had suppo
sed.
Brother S. 11. Martin’s account is coi
rected accoiding to his statement. We
credited him according to our hook.
Brother J. Williams, of York, is credit
ed on our books to May ’4O. How the er
ror crept into our published receipts we
know not.
YVc give brother J. G. Holmes credit for
5 years from Oct. ’4O, lacking two months
—i. e. to August ’45.
We cheerfully accede to brother James
Whitten’s proposition.
|C7” Brother Keeling left us the first of
May. We have engaged the services of
brother Id. T. Winkler, of Savannah, as an
assistant, temporarily, expecting that broth
er Keeling will return in a few months.
Brother Winkler was prosecuting his stu
dies at Newton, at the time that ihe Boston
Bo'.rd decided to discard slaveholders. In
consequence of that decision, he, with oth
er young brethren from the Booth, returned
to their homes, lie has made considerable
proficiency iu his studies, and will proba
bly enter, at an early day, upon the active
duties of a gospel minister, should Divine
Providence point him to a field of labor.
Our Ateonills.— We ate still sending out
accounts. Some thankfully receive them;
othirs detect errors in them, become offend
ed, and discontinue their paper. Brethren
ought to remember that the. only way wc
i can nsenrtnio whi-ther tlicir accounts are
correct or not, is to submit them for tlicir
inspection. \\ e arc desirous of getting
win books straight. If we can once do this,
1 and can continue the services of an assis
tant, we can then, probably, keep them
r straight. \V e have never refused to correct
lan error. Brethren know not the arduous
and multiform nature of onr dirties, or the
difficulties we have to encounter in tlicir
performance, or we ate verv sure they
would lie as indulgent toward us as they
possibly could. We pray those \vho> stop
the Index to take some other Southern re
ligions papei in its place. YVe recommend
flic Religious Ilcrahl, Richmond, Va.; the
Biblical Rccortlci, Raleigh, N.G.; the Ala,
Baptist, Marion, Ala. ; the Baptist, Nash
ville, ‘Term.; the Banner and Pioneer,
Louisville. Ky. YVhatcver von do, dr> Rc t
remain ignorant, brethren, of what is trans
piring in the religious world around you.
How can you acquaint yourself with the
works of God—with what he is doincr fin
his church and people, it you neglect to
read religious papers.
fStSr \ citing gentlemen are referred to
our last page for two articles, fragiant with
virtue, that have distilled from the tiny lin
gers of two fair maidens, who can afford to
wait a year or two for their future consorts,
as they have not yet entered upon the im
passioned age of “ loud sixteen.”
Fourth of July.
The anniversary of our National {lnde
pendence was duly celebrated in ourvillage
on the -tilt inst. At 9 o’clock, the students
formed a procession before the store of
Messrs Wilburn and McWhorter, and pro
ceeded with the sound of music to the Fe
male Academy. There the procession
was completed and marched to the Chapel
in the following order, preceded by the
Musical Biass Band of ourvillage.
Ist. Students of the University.
2nd. Speaker.
3d. Reader. ,
■lth. Chaplain.
sth. Faculty of the University.
6th. Trustees.
7th. Teacher and Students of the Female
Seminary.
Bdt. Ladies Generally.
Oth. Gentlemen.
After music by the band, the chaplain of
the day opened the services with prayer—
music followed—the declaration of inde
pendence was read by Mr. Thus. C. Neal
of the Phi Della_ Society, who prefaced
the reading of it with some appropriate re
mraks. The Band then favored the audi
ence with another aii, after which a sensi
ble and eloquent oration was pronounced
by Mr. Richard Asberry, of the Ciceronian
Society. The youthful orator bestowed,
in passing, a handsome compliment on
Texas and on the conservative power of
religion. The services at the Chapel were
concluded with music by the Band and a
benediction by the chaplain. Mr. Wni.
F. Wilburn officiated, with credit to him
self, as marshal of the day.
In the afternoon a collation, prepared by
the ladies of the village, was served up iu
tine style, in the grove, near the Female
Academy, of which the students of the Uni
versity and young ladies of ihe Female
Seminary, the citizens of the town general
ly and their visiting friends, partook with
apparent delight.
The day passed off agreeably. No Al
coholic liquors were consumed, nor was
there any manifestation of boisterous miiih.
Our young people enjoyed themselves, we
are persuaded, much better than they would
have done, had they indulged in drinking
and carousing, as is too often done hv the
youth of our land, to their own ar.d their
country’s disgrace.
A mistake. —Dr. Pfnmer, editor of the
Watchman of the South, a Presbyterian
paper published in Richmond, Va., in noti
cing the first number of our Periodical Li
blary, says of Dr. Dagg’s Essay, “ We
think we have received the substance of
this discourse in another form some years
ago.” This amounts to an insinuation that
the Essay is not an original one. Our
brother ol the Watchman has certainly er
red in the thought of his heart, in this in
stance, and this should teach him to bo ve
ry distrustful of his own thoughts in refer
ence to our views and practice as Baptists.
The Essay was prepared by our special re
quest, and we had to wait for it several
mouths long r than we desired to wait. We
had supposed that Dr. P. was well acquaint
ed with the character of Dr. D., hut pre
sume we were mistaken ; lor, had he been
acquainted with Dr. [)„ we feel well assu
red he would never have suspected him of
being guilty ol publishing as original that
which was not original. If this article
should fail lo change the color of his
thoughts, will lie be kind enough to inform
us where he thinks lie saw the substance of
this discourse some years ago, an I we will
endeavor to satisfy him that his charity lias,
lor once, without any just ranse, thought
ill of a brother.
American and Foreign Bible Society.—
1 he reader will find a response Irom the
Board of this f>oeieyt to the Alabama rest-
Imions, which cannot fail, we should think,
to prove satisfae'ory to our Southern breth
ren generally. We highly approve the
course pursued try this Board. From our
personal knowledge of several of its mem
bers, we feel confident that they will con
tinue to pursue the same equitable course
they have hitherto pursued ; still we think
it t.t j-edient to have a Board of our own, to
whom may Ire comtnijted our Bible opera
tions.— 1, ‘That we may preclude the pos
aibility ol future collision with abolitionists ;
i hat we may secure the entire confi
dence of the most distrustful at the South ;
and That we may ib c more certainly
and effectually occupy the field of labor
opened before us. It is impossible for the
parent Society fully lo occupy this field—
it is nut credible that a Northern Board can
as well direct its operations as a Southern
Board. Let the funds collected, if yon
please, go ro the parent Society; hut let
them pass through tho hands of a Southern
Lowrd. \\ e see no evil that caw grow out
of Mich a course, bin we see and know of
evils that must inevitably clone if we neg
lect to confide otir Bible operations to a
Southern Board.
II our Richmond htethren persist in their
opposition to a Board to manage a “ kin
ifrtil object, they will ffnd themselves
reduced to an unpleasant dileann t before
three years expire. If they will refer to
the reports of the Foreign Mission Board,
tney will find that tip to 1813 Georgia con
tributed more for Foreign Missions titan any
otlici Southern State, Virginia .not ex
cepted ; and certainly her views and wish
es, as well as those of other Southern
States, are entitled to all due consideration.
Let not the border States endeavor to fore
stall the action ol the first annual meeting
of our Southern Convention, in reference
to the appointment of other Boards, or they
will revive strife, and most assuredly pro
duce another breach in the walls of our be
loved Zion. Is our brother of the Herald’
afraid for his readers to know the facts,
which we staled in reference to the rejec
tion, by the late Convention in Augusta,
of the resolution offered to appoint a Publi
cation Board—facts with which we request
ed bun to acquaint our Virginia brethren
in hin own way ?
See late report of their Bible Society.
A Trio of Yankee Teachers. —A Yankee
teacher, from a neighboring town, who has
been sustained by the “nobility,” visited
a transient brother Yankee in onr village,
last week, we are informed, armed with
whip and dirk, which led to. developments
that caused a Yankee instructress of his ac
quaintance (not of this place) to slope in
quick lime; and it is surmised thatlhc two
tetnaining members of the trio will soon
have to do the same thing. When will
the South have wisdom enough to patronize
her home raised teachers ?