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CHRISTIAN INTf-'Kv Y«irSODTH-WESTERN BAPTIST. VOL. 50—NO. 21. A Religious and Family Paper, PUBLISHED WEEKLY UT ATLSXTA. OA-. AT Three Dollars per Annum, Invariably in advance. J. J. TOON Proprietor Stay, Holy Spirit* Words written by an invalid in time of extreme suffering of body, yet strong in faith, and joyous in the hope of the gospel. In hope that they may comfort others, they art humbly submitted. Stay, gentle Spirit, Stay, And bear my tale of sadness : ’Tis long—the night in which I pray, And woo Thee, long make Thy delay: I came not here in madness. Stav, gentle Spirit, stay, With Thee my last breath pleadeth. This once again I call to Thee; On! leave me not, but let mine lie Thy help my soul now needeth. Insulted Spirit, stay, Nor take Tbv flight forever: Thy presence oft has strengthened me, When pain and anguish would not flee, And death stood near me ever. Stay, peaceful Spirit, stay, And turn away my sorrow ; I will not fear while Thou art near, Tho' death his icy fingers bear Upon my life-^-to-morrow. Stay, holy Spirit, stay— My soul in dust repineth -. Far angry words and vicious thought, Anti heart with only evii fraught, To wicked acts inelineth. Ah. blessed Spirit, Thou In life has not forsaken This earthly house of poorest clay, Who has not. known earth’s brightest way, But bitterest cup partaken. Yes, gracious Spirit, stay. Nor leave me now at twilight; The lamp of life is waning fast, And soon the midnight must be passed, Then comes the long, long death-night. No light of life I see, But death-shades gather round me. Then while I tread this lonely vale, And every fibre seems to fail, Keep, Mighty Spirit, near me. Through life's unseen way, Companion, friend fatemal Thou hast been. Oh ’ let me be Sharer of heavenly joys with Thee, In that bright day eternal. OuJeJen, Ala., H-jy 10M, I*7l. Good Templars A Cos. In the good old times ‘‘gone by,’’ I wrote a “ medley” or two for the public —that is, j a little about this, and a little about that, all j mixed up together, or intermixed, as you ; m..y please to have it. Now, if I should have nothing better than a medley about Good . Templars «k Company, it may at least offer j occasion for brethren to say that, “ Phil j Crusty is at his old pranks.” ft is rumored that the people love whisk/, brandy, gin, rum, wines, beers and cider. Madatr. Rumor also has it that they use these articles to ex cess, and that too many Baptists sympathize with the people in their taste, so far as to give tangible proof of alliance with them. The avowed object of Good Templars, is to put a stop to this liquor loving and liquor using. So far, so good. The object being good, mar y good nun have become members of the or ganization, who deserve oqr respect for good intentions; and it may be that, after awhile, Uncle Phil will feel thankful that he was mis taken in his objections to the order. At present, the following difficulties are in his way, preventing his union with the Order: 1. There has been, for twenty years, in this country, a tendency to centralism in Church and State, and of late this tendency has grown wonderfully stronger,and all such or ganizations are schools to educate the young to this lesult. Here is a North American organization, the only strictly law-making power in the whole concern. This central power makes all the Constitutions of State Lodges and subordinate Lodges in the States, provides for the expenses to keep up the con cern, assesses the taxes upon subordinate Lodges, dictates the oaths and pledges to be administered, and provides for the suspension or expulsion for disobedience. This to be sure, is in harmony with the pre-ent United States Government. Congress now' not only amends, at pleasure, the General Constitution, but dictates State Constitutions, imposes taxes, dictates test oaths, and for disobedience, provides for suspension and expulsion as well as reconstruction. This harmony constitutes one of Uncle Phil’s objections, and he ad mits that it may be unfortunate that he be longs to the Jeffersonian, Calhoun school in politics, and the Boptistic in church matters. Not for the sake of mushroom reformations— not for the sake of the pleasing novelties which fascinate the young, am l willing to lend my aid to educate the young to such views as 1 deprecate. 2. I fear that such institutions, while there appears to be good accompaniments for the time, in their ultimatum produce ruinons re sults. Should 1 charge good brethren with training children and youth for perjury, they would resent it indignantly. They have no such intention. The only serious thing, iu this respect, which our brethren overlook, is not examining the seed they sow, An oath, a pledge for life, is a very solemn thing. If vou induce a youth to include harmless things, in a pledge of abstinence, he will soon see this, and make a plea for perjury', thinking but little more of the perjury than of the sweet cider or other harmless things of which he drinks. This breaks the way to all other disregard of his oaths. If perchance many unite because of the parade and social enter tainments, (as some have contessed to me to have done, and as many others prove they have done, by what they say of their weekly entertainments.) such persons will grow tired of these, as they grow older aud the cares ol life press upon them, and will perjure them selves before they are aware of it. The idea is too horrible to entertain as a question of morals. The pill must be sugar-coated so as to swallow it without knowing it. Look well to your seed. 3. I object to the organization especially as a Baptist. Its constitution and operations generally, are in conflict with our long-estab lished pi incipies. If brethren say that the national, the central, the late-making, tax-im posing, disciplinary, and test oath elements are held in common by Good Templars, Uni ted States Government, Methodists, Presby terians, Episcopalians, Catholics, Masons and Odd Fellows, and a thousand and one other organizations, and that they are all doing good my answer is, that you have a majority on your side; but, then, Uncle Phil belongs to none of these, except to the United States “ so-called and would like to see its central idea knocked into a “ cocked hat,” and the hat put in the bottom of the biggest ocean — that is, I would like to know it was put there without seeing it, —would prefer to stay on terra jirma, and work as a Baptist awhile longer; do not care to be baptized as deeply as the hat. If it is said that the central, law-making, oath-bound idea is necessary to strength and efficiency, the answer is, that Baptists have been strong enough to stand the test of ages, and efficient enough to do \m A year, f FRANKLIN PRINTING HOUSE, ATLANTA, GA, MAY 25, 1871. \ A RAM something, and their organization is neither national, central, nor oath-bound. Their union, their strength, is cooperative. A stronger, more influential, more efficient body of men cannot be similarly collected in the United States, than this day assembles in St. Louis, (but for sickness, how gladly 1 would be there to see them,) and yet, all of them combined have not one particle af law-making , tax-imposing, oath-binding power. Oh, how we love them, and love their blood-baptized principles! Brethren, look well to your moorings. I think lean show how we.sbonld promote temperance, if brethren will hear from me. Phil Crusty. A Yindication of“R.” and “J. S. B.” In the Index and Baptist of the 27th April is an article from the pen of our very worthy brother, H. B. McCalluio, (whom, though 1 know him not personally, I esteem and love as a brother and faithful fellow laborer in the vineyard of our common Lord and Saviour,) which presents “R.” and “J. B. S.” in a very unfavorable light before the public. As their reputation cannot be injuriously affected with out affecting injuriously the cause of Christ— whose servants they profess to be—a vindica tion of their character is due alike to Christ and to them. 1. “R.” one of the Alabama editors of this paper, is represented as an assailant of “Florida Baptists.” Bro. McC. says: ‘‘l infer that ‘R.’ said some hard things about the action of the Florida Baptist Convention in accepting,” etc. As this inference is drawn from an article of mine, I owe it to “R.” to say, it is erroneous. If he has said or written hard or soft things of “Florida Baptists,” 1 know it not. The inference is wholly unwar ranted by anything in the article from which it is said to be deduced. For the satisfaction of Bro. McC, 1 will state, that “R.” (Bro. Rentroe) was ashed what he thought oi the prospect of permanence in our Southern or ganizations; and, in the article of his to which I referred, he assigned reasons for fearing they would not be sustained. The action of the Florida Baptist Convention appeared to me (how it appeared to “R.” I know not) well calculated to excite such a fear. Sorry lam that Bro. McC. overlooked “R’s” editorial. *2. Bro. McC. questions the truthfulness of my statement that the Horn** Mission Board ofN.Y. had offered to expend in Florida S4OO more than the S. D. M. Board at Ma rion. This statement was based upon a pub-, lished report of the H. B. and a statement published in the Index by Bro. A. B. C., of Monticelio, Fla. The former, in a schedule to which 1 referred in my late response to Bro. J. 11. C., proposed to expend in Florida, during the fiscal year, $2,400, and the latter stated, that he had been informed the Secre tary of the S. D. M. Board had expressed an intention of expending in the State $2,000, and congratulated his Florida brethren on the prospect of having their field well cultivated between (or by) the two boards. lam happy to add, he did not propose, as I understand Bro, McC. and the Florida Baptist Conven tion to do, to exclude the S. D. M. B. from a cooperation in this good work. Have I misunderstood them ? Let us see. The Convention resolved to co-operate with (or by an auxiliary of) the H. M. Board. If this d*>es not amount to an exclusion of, or a refusal to co-operate with, the S. D. M. 8., then we have erred—greatly erred—in the use we have uniformly made, in our contro versies w ith Pedobaptists, of the ancient and approved law maxim, “ Expressio unius est exclusio altenus" —“the naming of one is an exclusion of the other.” As certainly as the command to baptist believers excludes infants from baptism, so certainly does a resolution to co operate with a Northern Board amount to a refusal to co-operate w ith a Southern one. Whether the members of the Convention generally designed by their resolution to ex clude our Southern Board I cannot say. I hope better things of them; but it would ap pear, from the article of Bro. McC., that he designed by his vote to exclude our Southern Board from all fellowship in missionary la bora within the State—indeed, from all par ticipation in missionary labors in any portion of our country. Hear him. He says: “ I believe Bro. Sumner himself, were he ac quainted with all the circumstances, would say, ‘Co-operate with the Home Mission So ciety, but give us your aid in Foreign Mis sions, and iu the Sabbath School work,’ (the Italics are mine;) and this, I believe, would be the advice of our wisest and best men of other States.” If this does not amount to the expression of a wish that Bro. Sumner would w holly abandon the work assigned him and assigned by the Southern Baptist Convention to other Boaids, 1 know not to what it amounts. The members of the S. B. C. may not be the “wisest and best men,” but, be they wise or foolish, good or evil, they have decided, time and again, most unequivocally, publicly and officially, that they deem the Board, of which Bro. Sumner is the Corres ponding Secretary, if not an essential, cer tainly an important instrumentality in the successful prosecution of missionary labor in the South. Bro. S. could not give the coun sel which it is supposed, were he duly en lightened, he would give, without proving re creant to the trust confided to him by the S. B. C. Bro. McC. says: “Tlad J. S. B. been pre sent, . . I have no doubt he would have given the weight of his counsel for coopera tion.” Certainly he would have favored co operation with the N. Y. Board, but would have protested against any act that could be construed as indicating a wish or desire to expel the Marion Board. That Board heard the cries of your State, my brother, for help, when it was like an infant in its swaddling clothes. It was moved with compassion; hastened to afford such relief as it could, and for five and twenty years or more, has been yearly sending it, by its missionaries, the food and raiment treasured up in Christ Jesus, of which we read in the Scriptures. Even in the times of war, and subsequently, though its resources were greatly curtailed, it still continued its benefactions, * robbing other churches to do your service.’ It has never refused its aid, but now the little infant, through the blessing of Heaven and the fbs -1 tering care of our Southern Board, is growing jup to man’s estate. It desires more aid than • our Board can afford to give. Here comes i our Northern Board —-(1 say our, for, being, I trust, a Christian, 1 feel l have an interest in it as well as our Northern brethren.) The winds of adversity which have swept away our wealth has wafted it into the laps of our Northern brethren, and thanks be to God, they appear disposed to make a good use of it a part of it at least. One of their Boards knocks at your door; you open it; the stranger is clothed in goodly raiment; he tells you the Lord has blessed him with wealth ; he comes to offer you a portion of it; you bid him welcome,tender him your thanks, resolve that you will banish that old friend of yours in his thread-bare coat, who is in the act of dividing with you, in his poverty, his scanty treasure; and further, resolve to em brace this new friend in his gorgeous apparel, and bind him to you by a formal covenant of perpetual friendship, to the exclusion of all all others! My counsel may not be worth much, but such as it is, I will give it you. You may receive it or reject it as you list, ■ Your reception or rejection of it will not be ■ likely to affect my standing with my Maker, . (whatever it may do among men,; nor in my condition in that eternal world into which I i know and feel that I must soon, very soon enter , It is this: Receive your new friend cordially and co-operate with him actively, provided he does not require you to abandon your old, , well-tried and faithful friend. If he makes such a requirement of you, point him (not your old rieud) to the do »r, and bid him go and learn true charity at the feet of Jesus. 1 ever take more pleasure in correcting an error than in committing one. I therefore candidly confess that 1 erred in supposing that the late Florida Baptist Convention was composed of only 10 or 12 brethren. The public are hereby duly notified that it was composed of fully a score of brethren who represented in the act to which I have object ed) their own wishes. If any Church or Asso ciation has expressed a desire that its fellow ship in missionary operations should be trans ferred from our Southern to our Northern Board, I have seen no record of the fact—nor heard of any. The commendations of Bro. P. P. Bishop were unnecessary. He has a good report of all who kuow him, and the Christian confi dence of many who have no personal acquaint ance with him. Such was the confidence of the present writer in him; based upon the testimony of reliable brethren, that he did not hesitate to recommend his call to the pastor ate of a church occupying (I say not one of) the most important positions in S. Georgia. The commendations of Bro. McC. are likely to do him more injury than good, by awaken ing a suspicion that the Convention acted at his instigation, and that he came South as an agent of the 11. M. Board, not to co-operate with our Southern Boards and help to build them up, but to break them down—to “di vide and conquer” —to reconstruct our South ern organizations! N-ne who kuow Bro. Bishop personally will indulge such a suspi cion, but his personal acquaintance with his Southern brethren is, as yet, butlimited, and I fear Bro. McC’s article will injure him in the estimation of those to whom he is un known. It appears to me calculated to injure, also, in a similar manner, Bro. McC. himself, the 11. M. 8., ar.d the members of the late Florida Baptist Convention ; for while repell ing the idea of being “knocked down to the highest bidder,” he tells us of the liberal pe cuniary aid given to them, as if to justify the action'of the Convention in cutting loose from the Southern Board and tying on to the North ern! Tfiis looks very much like being in fluenced, not by principles of right and wrong, or Southern interests, but by dollars and cents—purely mercenary considerations. As to the members of the Board of Trus tees, I know and love them all as brethren. Their names are registered on the tablet of my memory among my best and most disin teiested friends; and often does my prayer ascend to my Heavenly Father, that He would reward them liberally for all the kindness they have shown to His unworthy servant. As soon could I forget my parents or my children as forget the sympathy they have severally extended to me in my afflictions, the words of cheer they have spoken to me’raid dark hours of adversity, and the promptness and liber ality with which they have ministered to my necessities in time 9 of need. I ask no further favors for myself, but I do most earnestly entreat them to rectify, at the next meeting of their Convention, error.which it appears to me was committed at their last session, in transferring their fellowship and co-operation in mission work from our Southern Board to a Northern one, and that without the slightest ■recognition of, or any expression of gratitude for, the long-continued and valuable services of the former, or any expression of a desire that it would not withdraw its support from the missionaries it was at that time sustaining in the State, in conclusion, allow me to re min 1 you, brethren, of the old Latin adage, '•Haminis est err art, ir.npier.tu veto perteverart.” The English of which is, “It is common to man to err, but it is the characteristic of a fool to persevere in error.” J. S. B. P. s.—Bro. McC. tells of the large amount expended by the H. M. B. in Florida, but neglects to inform the reader that a large poriion of that amount was contributed, not to sustain missionaries, but to help to build or repair church edifices in certain towns, as in Jacksonville and Lake City, and, I believe, in Gainsville- Again, he tells us that the missionaries are selected and recommended bv the Board of Trustees for appointment, but he does not tell us whether, to secure their appointment, it is not necessary for their recommendation to be endorsed, directly or indirtCtly, by some agent or missionary of the Northern Board. Would the Northern Board appoint as one of their missionaries, a brother who refuses to recognize the validity of bap tism administered by Pedobaptists if ap prized of the fact ? 1 doubt it. J. S. B. Gratitude—Prayer. Our recent Convention in Cartersville in duced the pleasant emotion of gratitude to well up in our bosom, which suggested the strongest possible motive for devout prayer and thanksgiving. Two things tended to ex cite in us this feeling of gratitude. The first is well known to ail—the spirit and results of our Convention. We could heartily adopt the sentiment of the Pslamist, when he ex claimed, “ Behold how good and how pieas aut it is for brethren to dwell together in unity 1 .” Another source of gratitude, I must be allowed to mention, although appertaining to myself, yet we doubt not will interest others', lncause of its historical bearing. At Cartersville we grasped the hand of a number of precious ministeriog brethren, with w hom we associated more or less, as fellow-students in Pennfield, from the middle of the year 1846 to the last of the year 1549. I will be gin with the name of Bro. 11. H. Tucker, whose words were very suggestive. When I shook the Dr. by the hand, in the presence of several of Mercer’s sons, he said, in his open manner, Here are a good many of us who were in Pennfield at the same time, and have been working in the cause of Christ ever since.” The truth is, the Dr. was in Penfield a few weeks as a student, when (as I under stand it) the Faculty advised him to enter at once upon active duty, as they regarded him in every way well qualified. But to proceed. We took by the hand, Cooper, Atkinson, Jen nings, Davi's, McCall, Callaway,Gwin, Steed, Overton, and the two Kilpatricks. This greet ing called to mind many other precious breth ren in the ministry who were students at Mercer (more or less) during our stay at that place. Here they are: Dagg, (J. F.,) Ste vens, Williams, Gaskili, Howel, Clark, Hogue, Matthews, Davis, (X. K.,) White, Gallium, Powel, Earl, Everett, Falkuer, Spalding, Wallace, Cloud, Wilson, Lipford and Dues. Without the aid of a catalogue, these are all the names we can now call to mind. As to the stewardship of these brethren, to our mind, it compares well. Out of the whole number, j so far as known to us, but/oiir have been called from their labor to their reward in , heaven during the period of twenty years! : And only two of the number have turned l aside from the Master’s work, so far as to de i in and discipline. What a wonderful power . these brethren have wielded for good in Geor . gia, and in regions beyond ! Then, when we add to the above catalogue of names those noblemen of G°d who preceded our day iu Penfield, together with those who succeeded us, we have a mighty host for whom we will be grateful. Mercer University once was a success. The- introductory Sermon at Cartersv ille portrayed what was patent so ail—-that our edcational enterprise in Georgia, for some time past, and at the presenme, was, and is, unsuccessful. The Educational Sermon on the Sabbath following, proved to our mind that education was necessary now to success in the ministry; and that a> fe« we must have who are eminently educated, in order to meet and refute error, and defend successfully “ the faith once delivered to the saiute.” This dis course ought to be printed in convenient form, that it might be sent to resioDs beyond, where many minds are yet muddy on this subject. ' Now, lam prepared to press nome to every true Christain heart the importance of earnest and devout prayer to Almighty God that the mantle of Sanders, Dagg, Mell, Crawfiwd and Hillyer may fall upon those now entrus ted with our educational er.te7prise, located in the city of Macon ; nay more, that a double portion of the spirit of those worthies above named, may be given the Facul ty of our University. Everything, just now, looks propitious. The letter from Penfield, showing the confirmation of thi action of the Convention, is magnanimous.-<£lod grant us a bright and glorious future ! . J. Stillwell. The Toar of Pindom,— and \i .tat I Saw by the Way.-So. I ‘ Leaving the artificial mourn 4 mentioned in my last article, it was in my v, ay to pass an other curiosity of no less note with which I was familiar before the war. On this wise I made the discovery: Passing, oi.e day, by the house of an Indian on the hn el v banks of the Verdigris, I saw that the dip-gap of his cow-pen was made of very singular materials, more like legs than rails: and upon a nearer inspection, I discovered to my agreeable sur prise, that they were the fossil bones of the mastodon, megatherium, or some other huge monster of antiquity! I called to the man of the house, and said: “Jo. Suttohtokko, —Jo. Apple,—(for that was his name * “what mon ster bones are these?” “ ihev are the bones,” (said he in Creek, smiling,) “they are the bones of oxen that father Noah used in hauling the gunnels of the arfc!" “ Where did you find them?” said I. “There are plenty of them just down that steep bluff,” was the English of his reply. I proceeded at once downAhe very steep declivity and soon found quite a number of these very curious fossiLs. The Verdigris being quite iow, made it favorable to my search; for when that stream is high, it covers all the curious relics of the sublime past. (I should premise my observation by saying that I am an amateur geologian, but not a scientific one ) The bluff, as J said, is steep and high; bu{ I could not see, from rocks or gravels, that it belonged to the drift period. On the B'ew trees not unlike those that adorned Qte margin of the river in other localities; beneath them was a rich soil of the tertiary period; below that soil was a clay like that v%ich underlies the soil of this r* di country; jjpow that was a grayish pipe cl ben a stratum or bed of heavy gray roc ing iu a straight line this "• t.-Vn. -a . e lik>- ,-.i many dep '.-its «*Kjßß|EW|,*varioo periods. until they of slate; and still Itelow this slate, erv lowest water-mark, the were im bedded, or rested upon a stiflHpte clay of the consistency of whea 1 . doughfAw covered by the slate. Here, by digging, I found two fossil teeth with the enamel perfect; one resem bling an eye tooth, weighing six pounds, and the other a grinder, weighing seven and a half pounds. These I kept uutil I lokr them (as I did everything else) by the war. I searched in the biue clay only to assure myself that it was the bed on which the fossils lay; for then I could have gathered any number of them that lay in the shallow water and on the gravel beds, having been washed from their resting-place of untold ages by previous freshets. I found no tusks, and have heard of none being found by others-benjamin Mar shal, a deacon in the MoskoFe church, told me that he found a rib tha. measured ten feet in length, which he sent to Real’s museum. Martin. Vann, my host of the lake, found a thigh bone that required threc_men to lift it iu = a canoe, and they were compelled to throw it out to prevent the canoe from cap sizing. Some of these bones.are petrified and others are not, but will crumble by fric tion when expcee.l to the air and sun. Their size Is no less wonderful than their number, especially when we take into fee account the strong presumption, that for untold centuries thev have been decaying, and have been all the while carried off by swift currents from the swollen Verdigris as they' now are! If they were not drifted. —of which I can see no evidence that is satisfactory, —how came it to pass that so many huge mo&sters left their bones in that particular locality? There Is a lick near by at present, and various kinds of waters, as salt, alum and chalybeate; some above, and others below the bed of fossils Did they come to lick as cow- do now?—but then, there is no miry marsh?: why did they die in that place? The laV« also and the river are near by, and the Artificial mounds are not many miles the mound builders kill them?—for no tone can prove that the latter lived, loved s-d labored in the historic period; and tV ! *s of the former are in a better state of preser ration. How ignorant are we, and yet how pre tending! How “great aud marvellous are thv works, Lord God Almighty!” One thing is certain: these animals lived when there was a climate differing widely from the pre sent one; for neither the flora nor fauna of our country, at this time, could support them. If they were herbiverous, they could have browsed the leaves and twigs from the tops of our trees, and the grass beneath, and then have lain down hungry at might! On the occasion of this last visit the river was very high, and I could find no more than the ar ticulation of a thigh and leg bone, the size of a half bushel measure, and part of a jaw bone, too big for Sampson to have used in slaying the undrcumcised; go I left and pro ceeded on my Tour of Pinddm. H. F. Bucornr.. Afiw). Creek Satin. Worthy or lßuUtUou. The Bapti.-t churches in Bur mail are an ex ample to the American churches. Mr. Brav ton, the Baptist missionary now in this coun try, says that every one of the more than twenty thousand members of the burmah churches, is a total abstinence man or woman, and that a member would be disciplined for tippling, as soon as for idolatry. Would that all our churches could show such a record. And why should they not? Hie evils and inevitable resaits of” tippling” are the same here as in Burmah. The prae lice jeopardizes the Christian character, and destroys the influence of the professed disci ple here as it does there. Why, then, we ask—and earnestly do we press the ques tion—why, then, should not our churches also | raise up a standard against this enemy, which is coming in like a flood upon our Zion ? Fealty to our blessed Lord requires it. Christ’s work is the rooting out of the seeds, as well as the fruit of all sin; and the churches are his ordained agents to carry on this work. “ Tippling” is the seed from which drunken ness springs. And drunkenness, the Saviour declares to be a sit which closes heaven agaiust its victims. The church, then, which harbors in its bosom the drunkard, or negh cts to warn and admonish the tippler, who is on the road to drunkenness, is unfaithful to its trust, and the blessed Saviour is wounded and dishonored in the house of His professed friends. Faithfulness to our erring brother requires our testimony against this sin. If be con tinues tippling and becomes a drunkard, his soul—precious beyond all price may be lost, lost forever. What a sad reflection! A professed disciple of Jesus loat from the fold, eternally lost, through the unfaithful ness of the church of which be is a member. What church is willing to have such a record as that ? Faithfulness to ourselves, brethren,requires this testimony. If we fail in our duty to our brother, we “ suffer sin upon him,” and guilt lietb at our door. The blood of our brother who perishes through our neglect, will be upon our skirts, and the righteous Judge will nut hold us guiltless. B. W. I. Baptist Looking-Glass—sa. 4. Evening Familt Prayer. Ministers cf the Gospel, in partaking of-the hospitalities of their brethren, have frequently seen aa evil, as connected with this duty. The family remain up to a very late hour; some of the members of the family become fatigued, and some of the children fall asleep, or perhaps are sent to bed. By and by the minister is asked to “go to worship He takes the Bible in order to make a beginning, and it is with difficulty, sornttimes, even in a large family, that the presence of more than the father and mother can be obtained. This is certainly not family worship; it may be worship, but it can hardly be called family worship, as the most of the family ar e absent. Sometimes, too, the minister is engaged in this duty while the children are asleep, or some of the older members of the family are nodding in the room in which the service is performed. God, by the mouth of the prophet Malachi, says, “ifye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil ? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil ? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleated with thee or accept thy person ? saith the Lord of hosts.” The evening family devotions are frequent ly conducted at such a late hour that those engaged may be said to be offering before God the sacrifice of the blind, the lame, and the s'ck. Among the Jews, the very best was rtquired fur sacrifice, and the pious Jew would wish to offer nothing short of the best. God, in the gospel dispensation, calls for nothing less in our devotion, than the very best feelings in our hearts. But we are far from offering these, when we gather around the family altar, with feelings better suiting subjects lor the bed, than with those feelings that should pos6ess supplicants at the throne of grace. For those of our brethren who are not regular in the performance of the duty of family prayer, morning and evening, we sup pose a suggestion on the suoject of evening family prater to be useless; but for those who are in the habit of calling their families around them to offer the morning and eve ning sacrifice of devotion, we make a few re marks. We believe that such will find it a good plan, as soon as the evening repast is over, to attend to the duty we are consider ing. Let the Bible be at hand, and let it be understood, that it be the first duty as soon as the meat is finished. They will thus secure the presence of all the members of the fami ly. The duty wiil not likely be neglected, if mis be the rule. But allow this time to pass, and there is great probability that in many cases the duty will not be performed. Some thing unexpected may occur in the course of the evening that requires the presence of the head of the family to a late hour; or a neigh bor may pay a visit, and then there is a temptation presented for the neglect of the duty, as it may seem to be an intimation to the neighbor (if the duty is performed) that it is time for him to go to his home. We suppose that some of our brethren de siring to be punctual in family worship, have been hindered from the duty by the circum stances that we have mentioned, and perhaps by others. We aie partial to the custom of this duty being performed before the members of the family rise from the table. If a neighbor should then call to spend the evening, he will not feel that he is hurried home , nor will a friend from a distance feel that he is hurried to bed, if it is mentioned to each, that tins is the family rule. This meth od leaves all the members of a family at liberty to make their own bed time, and it gives the same privilege to the fatigued jour neying minister, who is expected to lead the devotions of the family. The minister, how ever wearied he may be with his journey, dis likes to ask to retire if he knows he is ex pected to conduct family worship; he is fre quently a sufferer (to a greater extent than is know n) on accouut of the delay cf this duty to a late hour. In penning the above, we have taken (what we regard as) a common sense view as well as religious view of the subject. A CORRESPONDENT OF THE INDEX. Plurality of Elderg. Several months ago, the Editor of the In dex discussed the question, whether deacons are anywhere in Scripture called elders. He argued that elders were officers appointed to rule; and since all ruling most be by the word of God, he drew the conclusion that elders must have been ministers or teachers of the word. The argument was satisfactory to me, and on this point my mind has been at rest; but it has frequently revolved a question which he suggested in connection with this subject, namely: W hether we have not departed from the usage of primitive times in not having a plurality of elders in our several churches. No correspondent of the Index, as far as I have observed, has no ticed this suggestion; and perhaps some of my thoughts on the subject may not be unac ceptable to the readers of the paper. We read in Acts xiv: 23, that elders were ordained in every church; and in Tit. i: 5, that Titus was left in Crete to ordain elders in every city. We may infer from these texts that a plurality of elders was common, if not universal, in the apostolic churches. We have, therefore, departed from the primitive cus tom, and the inquiry arises. How shall we return to it ? Shall we insist that all our churches —some of which have now no elders —-dv.dl at once appoint two or more to this office ? To make men ministers of the word whom the Holy Spirit has not qualified for the work, wilf result in evil. What is to be done? We ought to return to the primitive custom; and if we cannot do it without causing more harm than good, we are in a sad dilemma. if we examine the subject thoroughly, we shall discover that our departure from the usage of the primitive times has originated in onr departure from the spirit of these times. The way to restore the apostolic custom, is to regain the apostolic spirit. We attend to our secular affairs with engrossing interest; and we forget that our chief duty is to advance the kingdom of Christ and save the souls of men. All this is work of so little importance in our estimation, that we do not think many laborers in it to be necessary, and we conse quently do not pray that the Lord would send laborers into the harvest. A single elder can do for any church all the work which that church wishes to accomplish. The gift which the Holy Spirit bestows to make men useful, we do not sufficiently prize ; and we do not pray that they may be bestowed on ourselves and others. We do not covet earnestly the best gift. Here begins our failure. In 1 Cor. xii, Paul speaks of diversities of gifts proceeding from one Spirit, and of di versities of members in the one spiritual body of Christ. Every member in this body has its proper office, and no one of them can say to the rest, “ I have no need of you.” Near the close of the chapter he enumerates vari ous functions for which different members are qualified by the peculiar gifts bestowed on them; and among these he includes teachers, and helps in government. If Bro. Shaver is right, both of these may be included in the class of elders, since both teaching and gov erning require the use of the word. We have a like distinction in Eph. iv: 11, where evan gelists, pastors and teachers are mentioued. Without including deacons in the elders’ offices, then, are diversities of gifts in that office qualify itg men for different servibes. We want many such men in our churches. We want men who will gladly perform the precise service for which they are qualified, as the different members of the body fulfill their proper functions without saying, “Be cause I am not the head I am not of the body.” We want men who will harmo niously co operate with all other members of the spiritual body without seeking the pre eminence, and without declining to labor because they do not possess it. Such men cannot abound too much in our churches, and there is work enough for them all, before the world is conquered into subjection to Christ. This diversity of gifts iu the single office of eldership, is “ for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” It will be a glorious time when every church will have a number of these elders. D. Rhetoric—Logic. We use the word Rhetoric as that which has reference to the manner of composing orations, essays, etc., and also as the art of speaking with propriety, elegance and force. Aristotle is gen erally regarded as the first who gave to rhetoric a scientific form. Some may ask, “ Was there no oratory before rhetoric was reduced to a science ?” We at once answer, that there was, just as there is a language before a language is reduced to a system. Those who wrote on rhetoric or gave in structions in it, and those who afterwards reduced it tc a system, obtained their principles from the best works and from the oratorical performances of those who were distinguished for oratory. Some sages of ancient Greece were once en gaged in the discussion of the question, “ Which is the best form of government ?” The one who spoke last gave it as bis opinion, “ that that is the best form under which an injury done to the hura bteei citizen, is regarded as injury done to the Slate.” . This was,tbe kind of government in tho Grecian States ft. owe liundr-dand fifty years. Then U was that freedom of speech on ail important pub lic matters was permitted and encouraged. Then it was that oratory had her palmiest days ; then it was that Demosthenes, and Pericles, and others charmed the listening and enraptured audience, moved the hardest heart, and drew tears from eyes unused to weep. It is frequently the case, however, in the pre sent day, mat the one that is most easily affected under the eloquent appeal of some public speaker, is the ver f one that will object to the study of rhetoric. No two studies have been more mis represented than rhetoric and logic. The object of rhetoric is not (as some have sup posed) to cause us to forget nature, but to bring us back to nature—to correct errors into which every one is liable to falL When the pupil writes an essay, we do not design, through rhetoric, to teach him how tnaDy words he &hould have in every sentence, and how many sentences he should have in every paragraph ; what arguments he should adduce, and with what figures he should adorn bis subject. When the pupil speaks, we do not design, through rhetoric, to teach him bow often be should raise his band and point to the heavens, or extend bis hand and point to the objects around him. We only design to give some general hints, and to lay down some general prin ciples for his guidance. “ Nature and art,” says the writer, “so far from being always opposed, are often the very same thing. Thus, to adduce a familiar example, and one closely related to the present subject, it is nat ural for a man wbo feeis that be has not given adequate expression to a thought, though he may b&ve used the first words suggested, to attempt it again aud again. He, each time, approximates nearer to the mark, and at length desists, satisfied either that be has done what he wishes, or that he cannot perfectly do it, as the case may be. A writer, with this end, is continually transposing clauses, reconstructing sentences, striking out one word and putting in another. All this may be said to be art, or the deliberate application of means to ends; but it is art consistent with na ture.” With regard to Logie , some have supposed that it is an art of reasoning, or, in other word?, that its object is to teach the pupil to perplex and de ceive others with false reasoning. So far from teaching us to use sophistry in arguing with others, the object is directly the opposite. The object is to prevent others from misleading vs with their sophisms. Logic is a friend , not an enemy to truth. If she goes into the recesses of error, it is not that she has any friendship for error. As the vigilant public officer brings the transgressors of the law from their hiding-places, that thus they may be arraigned before the bar of their country, so logic goes where error lies con cealed, to bring her out into public view, that all may behold her and pass sentence against her. This is her recommendation, and no higher can be demanded for her. The minister of the gospel should make use of every lawful means that can assist him in his great work. Paul’s “ preaching was not with en ticing words of man's wisdom”—be did not rely on anything human for success, yet he was both an orator and a logician. The minister should bring, not his studies, but the/nuf of his studies, into the pulpit After be has done all that human preparation can do, he should remember, “ God givetb the increase.” B. W. Whi jikx. MerskallttUU, Ga. A Tbit to a Lunatic Asylum. There are two institutions for the insane in Kentucky. It has been my good fortune to visit the one located near Hopkinsville, called the Western Lunatic Asylum. With the genial editor of the Western Recorder, and some other friends, one bright morning in April, we entered a rock kindly provided for us by Dr. Rodman, and rode about two miles to the institution. The en. tertaining conversation of Bro. Rust and Dr. Rod man, with now and then a word from Bro. Dun can, so shortened the distance, that we were only fairly prepared to begin our ride when the im mense pile of buildings loomed up before us. By the way, if we ever take a long trip and have the choice of compenior.s, give us these gentlemen. Their knowledge of the world, exteat of informa tion and ready command of what they know, ad mirably fit them for *• compagnons du toyage." The asylum for the insane has been, for several years past, under the superintendence of Dr. Rod man. As we drew near to it, we saw, on every side, evidence of his taste and skilL The first thing which struck us, was the air of neatness which pervaded the entire establishment. Every part of the building which we visited, ap- WHOLE NO. 2541. peared as if it had just passed under the supervi sion of an eminent admirer of neatness, who had been making special arrangements for the recep tiotf of guests. Yet we have reason to believe that we saw the institution in its every-day dress. In the hall, we were introduced to the amiable wife of Dr. Rodman, whose presence adds so much to the happiness of the unfortunate inmates of this sad abode. . As we passed from ward to ward, we could but admire the admirable arrangements for the com fort of the inmates. We are not surprised to learn that so many of them are happy and contented. While we were there, a poor lady, who was aware of her condition, made an application for admis sion. All that Christian benevolence can require, and cnltivated medical skill suggest, appears to be done for tbe improvement of the unfortunate in mates. It is singular what a variety there is in the manifestations of insanity. Some were seated with folded hands and down-cast eyes, the very picture of despair; while others laughed merrily, and seemed full of glee. Some were busily en gaged, working as if compelled to finish an assign ed task in a given time, while others were leisurely sauntering to and fro. Some were* disposed to cooverse, while others turned away in sullen si lence. We felt like thanking God for placing it in the heart of men to provide such a comfortaole refuge for the afflicted of our State. We visited the bakery, where s skilled artisan was preparing loaves of excellent breid—the en gine-room, where a beautiful machine was quietly performing its daily labors, and saw it throw a stream of water to a great height; and the chapel, where religious worship will soon be held; and everywhere noticed the same marks of care and management We certainly shall not soon forget our visit to the Western Lunatic Asylum. W. Loose Discipline. ' 1 frequently see passing remarks in regard to discipline, on which I wish to say a few things. Ist. I say that discipline is the foundation of all institutions, both civil and religious. Without a foundation nothing can stand. Loose discipline is worse than none. Then, when the rains descend, that house must fall, according to the Scriptures. 2nd. The remedy. I think the remedy lies couched in the hands of the ministry. 1 see in the small sphere of my acquaintance some members absent from conference from thiee to six months; hear of some drinking, fighting, gambling, dancing, selling whiskey, making w hiskey, etc., and the preacher in charge seemingly unconcerned. Oh, alas ! watchman, what of the night 1 3rd. The process of remedy. I frankly acknowledge, 1 approach this with reluctance and timidity, that 1 should advise you or any of my superiors. But this i9 it: Let us have from your pen, or some other able or worthy brother, a note appear in the Index from now until the convening of our Asso tions, on strict discipline. Urge upon that body to endeavor to do something to save us from ruin, caused by loose discipline. Wm. McCarter. Rod Mills, Ala , May 3rd, IS7I. New Ideas to Many. First. An experienced, intelligent, sys tematic, extemporaneous public speaker can compose and memorize a speech in leoa time, without pen or pencil, than with them. Second. Nearly all systematic, well-di gested discourses have boen previously mem orized, almost verbatim et literatim , whether delivered by Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian or Statesmen. Third. Every orator of note uses notes as a help. Fourth. One of the most difficult things that an inexperience public speaker has to learn, is that of arranging his notes to the best advantage. Fifth. Our public speakers, as a class, are our deepest and most profound philosphers. No more at present. Mac. Jfffedsm Cos., 6a. Tests of Pastoral Efficiency. is there iiot a lack of prayer in seeking for, and calling Pastors 1 The conduct of some churches is singularly inconsistent.— Sometimes a hot haste, a greedy covetous ness, is apparent in their calls. Examples are numerous where there could have been but little inquiry or prayer. One minister of the writer’s acquantance, not espeically gifted, and certainly not a profound theolo gian, has beeu invited to churches in twelve different States. It is harsh to affirm that importunate prayer had not preceded these diverse calls. Precipitate action is some times the result of a reputation for popular oratory. Desire to possess a showy and at tractive man in the pulpit may concpal itself among the motives prompting a preference. It is much to be feared that there exists, even among Christians, very erroneous esti mates of the requisite qualification tor the ministry. There is too little reliance upon the Holy Spirit, and too feeble a sense of indispensableness of active co-operation be twixt Pastor and people. Culture is a less potent element of ministerial success than Christian character. Zeal, piety, common sense faith, earnestness, loving mamiers, of ten win that which learning and eloquence fail to secure. Statistical tables are not the conclusive proofs of church prosperity. A better way may be found than the baptisms in a year. Baptisms are to be desired, la bored for, but a church 19 to be instructed and trained. The greatest preacher is the one who does the most good. The most suc cessful Pastor is the one who gets his mem bers to work [and keeps them at it. I sus pect that our churches need much instruction in reference to the ministery, and reference also to the duties and obligations of Chris tians, individually acting in association. TheProvidkktial Order. —A man of rank possessed a painting, which looked at as it lay extended upon a Jong table, showed onlj a tew coarse strokes and patches of color; but when viewed through a glass, w hich was fixed at one end, beautifully portrayed a most charming woman. This picture very aptly represents the all-wise government ot the world. Viewed merely ou the surface, noth ing can seem more jarring or disordered. It offends not only the heathen, but also Chris tians. Solomon saw that the race was not to the swift nor the battle to the strong; nor yet bread to the wise; nor yet riches to men of understanding. On the other hand, they who contemplate the state of the world through the glass of the word and of faith speedily be come convinced that a secret order runs through this apparent disorder; so that what wc call fortune, accident or chance, is in re ality nothing but the execution of His merci ful, righteous and inscrutable plans. — Got thold. Hastt Crrrds. —As unnealed glass will fly to pieces because the surface has hardened into form, without giving time to the parti cles within to take their natural positions, to a creed or a church which is accepted out wardly, before the mind within is prepared, is likely to be broken apart. Such a creed or church may have the outward aspect ot unity, but it is in a condition of unstable equi librium within. Its emblem is the gltss toy called a Prince Rupert’s bubble, made ot glass suddenly ohilka, which w.ll fly asunler if you scratch the turface anywhere ever so