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THE 'CHRISTIAN INDEX. VOL. 56-NO. 43. Table of Contents. First Page.—Alabama Department: Record of State Events ; Spirit of the Religious Press; The Sabbath—Poetry—Charles W. Hubner: The Mission Field; Baptist News and Notes; General Denominational News. &booxd Page. —Our Correspondents: A Review of the Discussion Between the Religious Her ald and the Mississippi Record, on Pulpit Affiliation, No. 11-W. H. J.; Further Notice of Dr. Campbell's Article—B. Boykin; A Lite Worthy of Imitation—Mrs. N. A. B.; Shim mings, Missionary and Gemral—Uncle Shad; Sunday-school Work in the “Central''—S. Boykin: Baptist History—Rev. B. W. Whildon. Third Page.—Our I ulpit: Seimon by Rev. J. H. Allen, before the Central Association, con vened at Madison, Augnst 26th, 1877. Ad vertisements. Fourth Page.—Fditorials: Miracles and Proph ecies Further Compared: A Query Anrwered— Rev. S. G. Hillyer, D.D. Baptist Female College; Doing Well; Macon, Georgia: Pastoral Changes—Rev. D. E. Butler. Faith—Poetry; Georgia Baptist News; The Sonship of Christ —Rev. J. L. Dagg, D.D. Fifth Page.—Secular Editorials: Poetry, Holi days-Henry W. Longfellow; Retter Times; ‘ Original Essays;” Planting the Upas; Postal Sayings Bauk; Wheat Exports; Cold Weather in Texas : Slander; Miscellaneous Paragraphs; News of the Week—Domestic and Foreign Sixth Page —The Sunday-school: Almost I’er snded—Lesson for Sunday, November 18th, 1877. Advertisements. Seventh I*aoe. Children#’ Cornei: ‘-The Bili’o Says I V ay"—Poet r\; Am t Cad's Letter to th Little fo'ks; Nellie’s Idea of Prayer; Hap py Young Life: New Advertisements. Eighth Page.—Publishers’ Department : To Agents of TnElsprx. and other Important Notices. Secular Editorial Paragraphs : To Our Exchanges; Crime Not a Crime; The Press. An Appeal—Rev. W. D. Atkinson. A New Steamship—" City of Macon.” Obituaries.! Advertisements. INDEX AND BAPTIST. ALABAMA DEPARTMENT. The new code is ready for distrl! ution. Cullman is to hrft'e a foundry. Anew Methodist church has been dedi cated at Clay Hill. The colored people of Autauga county are talking about emigrating to Liberia. The schools in Prattville have more than 100 students. The Baptist (colored) State Convention is in session in Eufaula. A good many people will go from Pike county to Texas this fall. A lodge ol Knights of Honor lias been or ganized in Greenville. The paupers of Coosa county are not as well treated as they should be. j Rz J. Woodward has beat Appointed sw perintendent of education of Clarke county. The telegraph office is to be retained at Gainesville. Rising Sun post office, Walker county, has been discontinued. The people will demand a reduction of taxation. Major Charles L. Scott has retired from the W ilcox [lndicator. The Prattville Grange is building a Grange hall. There is a great deal of malarial sickness in St. Clair county. A telegraph ( dice has been established at Vierna, Pickens count)’. The new court house at Jasper will cost only $3,500. The sale of spirituous liquors is prohibited within eight miles of St. Stephens, Washing ton county. J * "" ~ The Rev. Mr. Miller, of Versailles, Ky., has been pr< aching in the Baptist church at Gainesville. Thomas 11. Baily has been appointed su perintendent of education in Washington couDty. Air. James Armstrong has become editor and proprietor of the FellowCilnen, at Scotts boro. The Mobile city court grand jury exam ined 345 witnesses, investigated 18? cases and returned 89 indictments. ♦ ♦ ■ In Sumpter county twenty-nine white and forty-six colored schools were taught last year. About thirty families from the vicinity of Harrisburg. Pa., have settled near Birming ham. _ The Blount Springs Hews has been re moved to Blcuntsville, and will be known as the Blount County A < ics. More than fifty persons have professed re ligion in the revival in progress in the Bir mingham Methodist chutcb. The Sumpter medical society has elected Dr. J. D. Johnson president, D-. J. C Houston vice-president, and Dr. R. D, Webb secretary and treasurer. The General Baptist Association of South east Alabama aDd West Florida will con vene with the church at Newton, Dale county, on Saturday before the third Sunday in this month. THE SOUTH-WESTERN EAPTIST, of Alabama. Spirit of tlie Religious Press. “ —The introduction of the race track in the programmes of county and State fairs will ultimately drive all decent and consistent church members away from them,” says a Texas secular paper. Whereupon the Bap tist Herald remarks: "The above, from a sec ular paper, is a strong rebuke to church mem bers who attend horse races. It 9hows that, however they may view this practice, men of the world do not consider the race ground a suitable place for ‘decent and consistent church members. ’ ” To which we desire to add, that the the professors of religion who have an itching wish to serve the devil, ard are willing to he seen in his retinue, need not expect to hide their hypocrisy from the eye of non-profes sors. Tiny cannot screen themselves from the eye of the world. Let them be what they seem, and seem what they are. —ln an excellent article on "Truth vs. Suc cess” the New York Methodist clearly points out the danger of ministers who make eceles;- aslical successes the sumrnum bonum of their lives. Such a minister, in any question that demands his action and advocacy, is tempted to ask iot “what is truth, and what is duty?” 1 what wiil win ? How will my action in this case affect my prospects ?” That this is a real, and frequently a fatal temptation ib proved by the fact that many yield to it, and, instead of standing firmly for the truth, where such fidelity seems to endanger popularity and success, seek to temporize and compromise with error ; or, by suppressing their convic tions, and by silence, purchase immunity from such danger. Such conduct is not more injurious to the cause of truth than it is to themselves; lor, by habitually subordinating duty to inter est, they come to identify the two, and so lose the power to discet n what is duly, cease to feel the force of obligation and the authority of conscience, wherever they appear to conflict with success. The article, with force and truth, concludes that, “the great need of the times is men who have convictions and are not afraid to avow them, who are able to know what is truth and what is duty, and dare to act accord ingly, at whatever sacrifice, pecuniary or other wise.” —The following from the Examiner is sug gestive : What a philosophy of daily life is there in that injunction of Paul to the Corinthians: ‘‘Whether, therefore, ye eat and drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” Too often the daily duties are a drudgery, and spem petty, mean,degrading. But when we think that even in tiejiulesl >th*ngfc we may glorrfv God, how * our daily life elevated, beautified, dignified by keeping such an end ever in view. —The Journal and Messenger says it has but one good argument against aiding students for the ministry. Its language isaafollows: We know of but one goed and valid argu ment against helping a young man who gives evidence of a call of God to the work of the ministry, and that is that, in some instances, such men become so puffed up with pride aB to want to conceal the fact that they were ever aided, and try to suppress all reference to it. To our mind, this is a serious objection, and it applies to by far too many cases. —Speaking of reverence in prayer, Zion’s Herald, says: “Often the manner and tone of voice are as objectionable as the matter. The method may he described as rough, and wanting in the mellowness and grace of devotion. At a little distance you would tl ink the man driving his team, rather than saying his prayers. Such a style of adora tion is certaiuly suited better to a heathen than to a Christian.” —An exchange says: The problem of how to help young men to a ministerial education is one which has seri ously embarrassed the churches. It is claimed by some that to pay the way of an impecu nious young man through college and semi nary makes him feel like a pauper. On the other hand, it is alleged that but for such help a great many young men who would become good ministers might be pi evented from enter* ing on their ministry. Now, the Free will Baptists attempt to cut the Gordian knot of the difficulty. At their recent Conference, at Fairport, proposal was made to take from each theologic.il student a note for the amount expended on him, the note to be payable in four years from the time he enters the minis try. This is an ingenious idea, even if not a very practical one. The chief difficulty is likely to be the extreme improbability that the young preacher will be able, in four years, to make payment of his note. His only chance is to marry a rich wife, or in some other way outside of his regular ministerial salary, to get money. The average salary of a young minister is not more than enough to pay his board bill, and to save money from that lor the payment of notes is impossible. To compel a young man without resources to enter on his life work with a millstone of indebtedness hanging about his neck, is to cast his useful ness into the depths of the sea. It is to be hoped that the Free-will Baptists will see their way clear to the adoption of some plan equally ingenious, but more practical than this. —Dr. Summers, of the Chris ian Advocate, speaking if the vice of horse-racing, says pithily’: A gentleman—not a member of the church —told Dr. McFcrrin, the other day, that there ought to be an ameridmi nt to his res olution concerning improper diversities, lie ought to have included horsc-racing—lie considers that worse than all the rest. And we judge that he is not far wrong. The truth is horse racing is a scandal and a dis grace to a Christian country. It brings in its train gambling, drinking, swearing, licen tiousness, and almost every other vice. We FRANKLIN PRINTING HOUSE, ATLANTA, GEORGIA, NOVEMBER 15, 1877. deeply regret that any respectable, to sny nothing of professing Christians—should attend such scenes of dissipation. We wish our newspapers would say nothing of the “ Turf ” —except to condemn it. it is only evil continually. —Discoursing on “ Rainy Sundays,” the Christian at I York says it is good to have one “now and then, just to let us know where we are in Ihe most important busi ness of life, and whether or not we are let ting ourselves drift into indifference.” —Dr. Phillip Schaff, in an article in the Independent, on “ Words of Council to The ological Students,” gives the following; Where philosophy ends theology begins. The former is the knowledge of the natural, the latter Ihe know ledge of the supernatural. l The one if the science of reason, the other the science of revelation. But the uatural points lo the supernatural as the only ration al explanation of its own existence. So the body points to the soul which animates and uses it as its organ ; so the house points to the architect who built it; the law pre-sup poses a law-giver; the creature is inconceiv able without a Creator. Reason’s highest function is to prove the necessity of revela tion. Philosophy teaches that there may be a God, and that there ought to be a God; that man ito-t/ be immortal aud ought to be immortal. Theology knows that there is a God, and that man is immortal for weal or for woe. Philosophy cannot deny the terri ble ft ct of sin and the moral disorder ol' the universe; but it cannot explain it and still less to remedy it. Theology knows both the poison and the antidote. To him who knows from experience that he is a sinner, justly exposed to the wrath of a holy God, and who believes that Christ is his Savior, who satisfies all his spiritual wants and as pirations, the objections of infidelity have as little weight as water upon a rock, or paper balls upon a fort. —The Texas Baptist Herald , in an able editorial, discusses “ Religious Journalism, “ its character and purpose. It points out the meat influence, for good or evil, which a re ligious journal can compass, and.shows that true merit alouo can give such a paper per manent success. A religious paper’s mission, and commanding station in the attairs of life, are finely designated in the following paragraph : Religious journalism has a mission—a mission fraught with the gravest responsi bilities, and destined US the grandest achieve ments. Political journals have their special seasons of interest and a limited aim, but the religious paper is a perpetual campaign document, pushing for victory. Whui wrapped in the glory of truth and the beuu ty of holiness, it penetrates to the hovels of tiie poor and the mansions of the rich, bear ing only messages of love and precious com port by day and by night, it gives wisdom, cheer and joy, it blunts the shafts of the en emy, and draws the poison from a thousand stings of error. It is no iival to the pulpit, but stands itself, among) the grandest "fend rst#ongojit ol all pulpit# —Bt Ims been sag-' gesteii that by the use of the telephone,.one minister might address a hundred or a thou sand audiences at a lime. The press lifts anticipated this, and has become the pulpit for its tens of thousanilaof auditors through all parts of the land. Upon this platform the power for good oi evil is multiplied, and may be multiplied without limit. And every hearer may labor to iucrease the audience and the good. —The Watchman, on the subject of “Com ing in Late," gives the following brief lec ture—it is to this point, and we hope that those who feel the point as applicable to themselves, will heed the admonition : One of the New York dailies lately read a sharp lecture to those unmannerly people who are always late in getting to the theatre. The evil, it observed, is oue which has been steadily increasing for some lime. The ear ly part of the play is genet ally acted in dumb show, the voices of the players be ing drowned in the rustle of silks as rhe late comers press forward to their seats, or in the buzz of whispered greetin gs. The nui sance, it goes on to say, is a serious one, both to the actors, whose attention is distracted, and to the punctual members of the audience who, after having taken care to reach the theatre in good season, are utterly unable to hear, and sometimes even, to see, what is going ou upon the stage. We are cot versed in the course of things inside a theatre, hut suppose for theatre we substitute the home of God. Are not these criticisms equally applicable in that case? Have they cot, indeed, far more weight, as much more weight as tlie object of church going is more important than that of thea tre going? Yet who is not familiar with the sight of late-coiners in the hoase of God f The first ten or fifteen minutes is too often a distracting medley of prayer and praise, rustling of gowns, squeaking of boots, read ing of Scripture, anil rattling of canes and hymn books. Thus what some people, with unconscious irreverence, call “the prelimina ry exercises” are robbed of half their value as acts of worship, aud those who go early to enjoy them, and through them to gain preparation of heart for the sermon which is to follow, are selfishly defrauded of their right. Further than tiiis, such conduct is disrespectful and distracting to the minister, and worse Mian all, irreverent to Him for whose worst ip tie err ice is he]' 1 . If there were any solid reasons why a certain number of persons should be late at every church service, tlie distmbance might tie borne with something like equanimity. But why should those who are able to be up betimes on Monday morning and never miss “the train,” find it, so difficult to get to church promptly at half past ten on Sunday? The cotton factory of Prattville lias one hundred and twenty-eight looms, four thou sand six hundred and eight spindles, thirteen Higgins forty inch cards, and twenty-six small thirty inch cards. It gives em ployment to about one hundred aud thirty hands, uses two hundred and fifteen or twen ty bales of cotton per month, and is turning out about an average of seven thousand yards of osnahutgs per day. The company clears $79 a day. THE SABBAT a. Nothing draws along with such a glory as the Sabbath. Never has it unfolded without seme witness and welcome, some song and salutation. It has been the coronation day of martyrs—the first day of saints. It has been, from the first day till now, the sublime day of the Church of God; still the outgo ings of its morning and evening rejoice. Let us then remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Dr. Hamilton. Hil, holv Day ! thou crowned of Heaven ; HiJ, host-beloved of all the seven ! Row fair, from out the impurpled sky, LPtxh forth thy Rlory-be&mins; eye ! Sjveet Peace and Love, with thee that hide, 1 V'n thy golden chariot tide, Aji i from the welkin’s crystal sphere Tpsir blessings scatter, iar aud near. b?iyy be but a pleasing dr-am— l>t fairest all the earth I deem, Dtyiin , . purer, when thine hours Illume her bills, her streams and dowers. nf>w sweet the mom and evening bells > btm green the groves, how bright the dells ! Vnfcat blissful sounds are in the trees 1 WJnit tender music charms the breeze ! F.tim the rude Spirit of the Sea tl.y angolic ministry. Ape w hen then oomest to his breast, Tlpeks all his wanton waves to rest. I'iii Nature owns, in tuneful praise, I teUpVomgn loveliness and grace . ■yG from her wreathed altars rise ItjrßHneeuse, and soft harmonies ; V-'ty then should 1 refuse to bring MTS I 'awful spiiit’s offering? Or fad, with gladsome heart, to twine An humble song-wreath round thy shrine ? Wind pleasures blossom and expand To Life and light beneath thy hand ! He." bright the hopes by thee that live 1 j IIV sweet the solace thou cmist, give ! flowers, on which the storm hath burst, by sunshine back to life are nursed ; Thus skies look more serenely fair. Because the rainbow ahiueth there. OJlissful day ! how cold and bleak Life’s breath would blow from week to week, How sad aud dark the Hood would bo That rolletl: on, eternally, Didst, thou not, on the tide of Time A golden Isle of Solace, shine— Earth’s Eden, in whose radiant bowers Tin soul revives her failing powers With draughts from Heavens’ perennial springs. And balsam shod by angels’ wings ; And where the world’s discordant cries, Change to celestial melodies. , Chaiil.es W. Hubner. The Mission Field, —The recent meeting of a Foreign Mission ary Society, at St. Louis, was the occasion of interesting discussions of this grand cause. All the reports were hopeful and gave evidence of the prosperons condition of Foreign Mis sions under the auspices of the Society. An exchange says that when opportunity was given to all who desired membership in the Society, the invitation met with enthusiastic response. At this point in the exercises there ’j£urred a little episode of thrilling interest, flfc many 4jd sent up their names and ofoiil/ for membership Hi the SocSrty, a'wkiowla ed sister, who had not the money to give, and wko desired to aid in planting the pure Gospel in foreign fields, took off her gold watch and sent it up to be laid, as a free-will offering, on the altar of Foreign Missions. Theannounce ment thrilled the audience with the spirit of sacrifice. Brother llcbbs, taking advantage of the enthusiasm, mounted the platform and proposed to redeem the watch and return it to the donor. He wanted SIOO donated for that purpose. Sooner than the names could be written, $135 was raised and the watch re deemed. The sister—who modestly requests that her name be not given to the public—was brought forward, and the President of the Convention, Brother Isaac Errett, offered the watch to her, but she re-donated it to the Society, amid the cheers of an enthusiastic audience. Brother Moore says that watch will yield thousands of dollars to the Foreign Missionary Society. One hundred years ago a Moravian mission ary baptized the firet negro convert in Sur inam, Dutch Guiana. Now the Mission num bers 22,130. Henry Varley and Dr. Somerville, of England, are laboring as evangelists in Aus tralia, with considerable success. —The number of native Christians in China is from 12,000 to 13,000. —lrt Jap,an the demand for instant and en larged effort is without parallel in missionary history. There are now 1,503 laborers there. —The Reformed (Dutch) Mission Board re ceived the first five months of the fiscal year, beginning August Ist, $17,452. —We find the following in the Methodist: A Methodist clergyman mentioned to Rev. M. li. Barnitz, an earnest anti-tobacco mission ary, oi e member of bis church who last year gave SI.OO for Missions, who admitted that lie paid during the year at least SIOO lor tobacco, and another member who gave $3.00 for B ble, tract and mission purposes, whose tobacco bill for the year was $200! Mr. Barnitz has made a careful computation from the best available statistics, which shows that the professing Christians of A ruerica expend at least $25,000,- 000 annually for tobacco. —ln an addresa made by Mrs. Dickerson, of Chicago, on the subject of woman’s work in Missions, she said: “While it is true that many agencies are at work to Christianize the heathen of America, if there are millions still in ignoranee of the truth, ought we not, as Baptist women, to do our part in carrying the Gospel to them?” She referred fo the inroads of Catholicism, and what the Catholic church was doing to gain the votes of the peo ple. She gave some statistics and illustra tions, and argued that while Christians were not giving a cent too much for the darkened millions of Asia, thev were doing far too little for those who were living in as heathenish a state in America. THE CHRISTIA IST ZEUEZR^XTD BAPTIST NEWS AND NOTES. —A Convention is to meet in Overton, Texas, December 12th, to consider the expedi ency of organizing a general missionary body for Eastern Texas. —The German Baptists have, besides the Eastern and Western Conferences, a Triennial General Conference, which haR been held in Buffalo. About 200 delegates were present. —A writer in the Watchman, speaking of the Baptist churches in New York city, de plores the apathy of the members in spiritual things. A number of churches are in peril of collapse, and only three meeting-houses are paid for. The writer thinks the Baptists in New York are lacking in pride, and considers this one of the causes of these church failures. Commenting on this, the Blibical Recorder per tinently says: We refer to the matter for the sole purpose of giving it, as our opinion, that pride—pride in the Baptist churches on Filth Avenue, and at other points as Well —is the cause of all that he deplores. God has so ordered that just as soon as a Baptist church turns away from the poor and the ignorant, and runs after the rich and great, it dies out. And, as far as we un derstand the matter, the Hooner the better. —The Baptist Gleaner is the title of a pro posed denominational pa per, to be published at AHhville, N. 0. —Rev. B. 11. Womack, pastor of the First Church, Memphis, and Miss Annie S. Kirby, of Nashville, were united in marriage Novem ber 6th, at the residence of the bride’s mother. —lu the Tennessee Baptist Convention, re cently held at Chatlanooga, the question of loaning money lo students for the ministry came up, when Dr. J. P. Boyce spoke in op position to the plan. The Baptist Reflector says : He thought our colleges were doing a good work : and that in the future they would do a broader and grander work. He thought the plan of loaning money to students was un wise, and proceeded to meet the arguments generally used against the beneficiary plan, lie urged that young men should he sent into the ministry unirammeled and unbur dened. J. F. B. Mays followed in much the same line of thought A motion was then made by G. C. Connor to amend the report of the Ministerial Edncatit n Board, by striking out so much of the report as provided for loaning money to young min isters. Dr. Hendrickson spoke on the amend ment, stating that the Board submitted the matter to the body tor an expression of its opinion. The report was amended by strik ing out as above. The sum ol SSOO was raised in subscription and cash for the aid of this Board. —The Baptist Union for Ministerial Supp; rf of lowa, during the ten years past, has aided, in ] <id t, fifty young men in oljHyioing the ed utiftfijii which should prepare them for. their work in preaching the* gospel. The whole amount thus appropriated, in the pe riod named, was $7,972.96. —The New York Baptist State Conven tion met recently, at Troy. On the subject of Missions, reports show that fifty-three missionaries had labored 1,653 weeks, preached 4,880 sermons, held 3,101 prayer meetings, made 8,322 religious visits, and baptized 448 persons—ls 7 more than the year previous. The total receipts and ex* penditures had been $9,589.14; of this, $6,- 339 bad been paid to missionaries, $2,187.77 on indebtedness, $412 for publishing and distributing the annual report, $654.58 for clerk hire, postage, etc. There remained an indebtedness of $4,835.99, and, to cover this, the amount of $5,000 was raised, or pledged during the meeting. —The Baptists of Missouri are a working people. As shown by the reports presented to the General Association at its session in Lexington, the amount raised and expended in missionary work during the year was $4,374. Five missionaries had been em ployed, who had, in the aggregate, labored 916 days, traveled 7,107 miles, pr cached 758 sermons, and baptized 165 persons. Churches had been organized and built up, tracts dis tributed, schools organized, and a vast amount of unreported work accomplished. —Ninety-one persons were baptized by Rev. W. Shaw, the pastor of Zion’s Hill church, LittletoD, N. C., in thirty-five min utes. We leave our Pedobaptist exchanges to reckon how long, at this rate, it would have taken the twelve apostles to baptize the three thousand converted on the day of Pen to cost. —Mr. Thomas Cook writes, from Rome, to the London Baptist, that the chapel in process of erection in the Via Pudenziaca on the supposed site of the palace of the Roman Senator, Pudens, Paul’s friend and host, will be completed and ready for occu pancy sometime in January. The chapel, he says, is a good, solid structure, with ex tensive conveniences for school-rooms, resi dences lor two small families, or a staff of evangelists and colporteurs, with a good front shop for the sale of the Set iptures and other hooks, and at the hack a nice garden. The i.rr ingement of the platform and bap tistry will be novel and beautiful. It is pro posed to bring together at the opening the entire staff of Italian Baptist evangelists from every part of the country, that they may talk over tin ir affairs, and encourage each other in the good work now going for ward in Italy. The cost of the chapel will be about $15,000. The name proposed for it is the "Evangelical Chapel of Paul and Pudens,” of Tennessee. WHOLE NO. 2294 General Denominational Desk —lt is stated that in Bell county. T . ia,, Dr. S. J. Russel, a free-thinker, was t ike" out by about fifty men, and for liis opinion s sake was punished with one hundred ’rustics upon the bare back. The mob told Luna that lie was a good man and an able dr .. hut that there could be no free-thinking in Bell county, and that the next man who dared to publicly express himself as m in fidel, or free-thinker, would give hisiif. as the penalty. There is great indignation jvsr the outrage, and we hope the persons gull vr of the crime will he punished to the tu’.ie ; extent of the law. —Nebraska has 86,191 Suv.day-stk.oi children. —Theie are only liveLmkeian chu: :a in London—all GermnD. —The translation of the Scripture in t. Japanese is proceeding. —The New Hein ides Mission of the 7 c mi Cluuch of Scotland has nearly one thousand, church-members, and sixty-tw o schools in tended by about 2,000 pupils, connected -vu ... it. Two of the islands are Christian .'.red, and on eight others the truth is making .' • gress steadily. —The Old Catholic movement in Swi - erland is not progressing, and most !!>••:Ijr will fail. Rev. Wallace Duncan, elected Pres. : .a; of Randolph Macon College, has deed.: a the position. —The Presbyterians in North Can. id: t number 16,544 communicants, 214 chur d.-as and 113 ministers. The committee on ‘ Ag gressiveness of the Presbyterian church and: North Carolina,” reported to the late Sytt C io Charlotte, the following recommenda’.Vu (1) The employment of evangelists, •'. The more frequent efforts of settled pas: n to do missionary work outside of tiled fields. (3) An effort to preach more pr~u lar sermons. (4) The eldership to atteu ; the “Church courts” and shape “the legAia. tion of the church. (5) The more systt.auA ic and orderly and punctual administratl. a of the financial affairs under the control >; the deacon. —From the Triennial Report of the v a gregational Council, we learn that the num ber of churches is now 3,509, a gain of 184 in three years, mostly in the South anol W -t Number of church-members, 350,658 —a gain of 26,979—a yearly average of 8, >93, against the net yearly average of 5,720 :n in the previous three years. Number en rolled in Sabbath-schools, 405,092 —a gain of '3S 53S uteri*. cnn’rjbutions for the year, over 18740f $4 - 436. The annual current expenses of the churches are estimated at $4,000,0*00. Churches with pastors, 980; ministers it. pastoral service, 3,374. —lt is now formally announced by the Palestine Exploration Society, of England, that the survey of Western Palestine is completed. This survey has been in pro gress since January, 1872, with the excep tion of fifteen months in 1875 6. One of the leaders of the surveying party, Air. Tyr* whitt Drake, fell a victim to exposure and the climate. The chairman of the Execut ire Committee states that the new maps and. surveys will contain thousands of names, very many of the places in the Bible not before identified, together with many found in Talmudic, early Christian aud Crusading histories. —The American Church Missionary Sc ciety, (Protestant Episcopal), which wilt hereafter be merged in the Board of Mis sions, was organized in 1860. It grew cut of a dissatisfaction on the part of many at what appeared to be a prevalent tendency in. the operations of the Board to favor no particular class of views in the church. —The Brandenburg Consistory, Prussia, has cancelled the call of the Rev. Mr. Hoag, bach to the charge of the Parish of St James, in Berlin. Air. Hossbach is knewa as a decided rationalist, and the veto put upon the choice of the congregation by the Consistory has excited much remark in Ber lin. —The Committee of the Bonn Old Catho lic Synod, to which was referred the further consideration of the subject of celibacy of priests, has made an application to the State Alinistcr of Baden, asking what legal hind - rances are in the way of abolishing the ob ligation of celibacy in Baden, and what ob jections there wou and be to such a step. The Ministry, though not averse to the abolition of compulsory celibacy, has replied that it will act only in conjunction with other States, especially Prussia. —The Biblical Recorder says there are 30,. 000 members of Baptist churches in North Carolina who spend the Sabbath in idleness and frivolity, and do not go to Sunday-school. How many are there in Georgia? Would it not be well to send missionaries to these breth ren ? It is a broad and needy field. —"Well educated men can always make themselves understood," says brother Mayfield, of the Baptist Reflector. Not always. Men of profoundest erudition frequently adopt a rhetorical style, and am plify their sentences in such a way, that jt is as hard to discover their real meaning as it is to find a needle in a hay-stack.