The Christian index and southern Baptist. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1881-1892, September 08, 1881, Page 4, Image 4

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4 HENRY H. TUCKER, Editor, ••GETTING TO HE A VEN." If I can only get to heaven that’s all that I care for; and all that anybody ought to care for. After I get there, what difference will it make to me how I got there, or how anybody got there, or what happened in this life, or what’either I or anybody else be lieved, or said, or did? The preachers waste their time in talking about non essentials. The truth is, that non-es tials are virtually and practically non entities —mere nothings; and it is ■pitiful to see men excited about such wretched trifles. If a man is only sure of heaven,how perfectly contemp tible are all those things so much talked about, which have nothing to •do (as the preachers themselves ad mit) with his getting there; and after he gets there, who will ever think of them? And what good would come of giving them a thought? Such talk as this is often heard in private life, and sometimes, what amounts to nearly the same thing is heard from the pulpit. To all who speak in this way, we have simply to say, that the sentiment which possess es them is one which gives strong ev idence that they are not on the way to heaven, nor in such state of mind that they would enjoy it if they were there. Their spirit is wiercenary; they Tvork for pay; their religion, so far as they have any, is like the labor of a hireling, who despises his work, but performs it for a consideration. Their spirit is selfish ; they have no thought of anything outside of their own interest; the will of God they care nothing about; the truth of God they have no regard for; the welfare of others does not concern them ; with them self is the universe; it engrosses their whole thought, and every other person, and thing, and interest, is ex cluded ; it is a practical annihilation (subjectively) of all in this world, or in the world to come, except self. Their spirit is an ungrateful one. God, who so loved the world as to give his only begotten Son for its salvation, is not thought of; Christ who died for us, and gave himself for us, and bare •our sins in his own body on the tree, is forgotten ; the Holy Spirit is not a comforter, nor a companion. The sal vation which they suppose to be offer ed is grasped at with greed enough, but with no thanks to him who offers it, and with no regard to his wish or pleasure. If he has said anything, we can afford to disregard it, so we only get to heaven. If he claims our affec tions, we can afford to refuse them, so we only get to heaven. It is a self deluding spirit. No such salvation as they dream of has ever been offered, or is possible. The heav en of their hopes is a fictitious heaven; no such heaven exists. They desire to be freed from the penalties of sin, and made happy, while yet they have no appetite for the things which are essential to happiness, and from which alone it springs. The heaven of the Bible is a reality; the heaven of their imagination is a phantom. The joy of the blest is based on the eternal principles of right; the joy they an ticipate is based on nothing. Nay, they hope for a heaven, which is the very antagonism of the heaven which God has provided for the people whom he loves, and who love him. It is a disobedient spirit. Such com .Tnands as must be obeyed in order that we may get to heaven, are obeyed not for the pleasure we take in obedience, but for what we expect to gain by it. Other commands we can afford to dis obey, and even laugh at, and ridicule, for after we get to heaven, what differ ence will it make whether we have obeyed them or not? If God has com manded a non-essential thing the folly is on his side in commanding it, and the wisdom is on our side in disregard ing that which practically amounts to nothing. It is an irreverent spirit; for it makes light of the holy words which proceed from the mouth of God; it makes a jest of the most solemn, the most sa cred, the mostawful, and the most sub lime things of tune, or of eternity. It is an unbeli ving spirit. There may be much of Divine truth revealed io men for their instruction, and com fort, and edification, and growth in grace, which is not essential to salva tion. The man who treats all this as if it were a trifle, shows want of confi dence in the wisdom, or in the truth of God, or in both. Surely this spirit is not compatible with that faith with out which it is impossible to please him. The spirit which, in this indi rect way, treats the word of God with -contempt, will grow as all spirits grow, and when it has attained its full growth, it will make short work, and call God a liar. This hastily sketched analysis shows the elements of which that spirit is composed which says, “I care for noth ing so I get to heavenit is mercena . ry, selfish, ungrateful, self-deluding, 1 disobedient, irreverent and unbelieving, | < Is one thus possessed likely ever to get there? His whole being is the strongest possible antithesis to the charactcrof the I saints, who work not for pay but for i love; whose self is crucified; whose j THE CHRISTIAN INDEX AND SOUTH-WESTERN 3APTIST ! THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1881. souls are running over with grateful emotion ; who obey not because they must, but because»they may; who diligently seek to know the will of God, because they rejoice to do it; who are filled with loving wonder and delight, with holy surprise and rapturous ad miration, in view of the sweet, and precious, and glorious disclosures of wisdom and mercy set forth in the sacred oracles; who believing that any word that comes from God is of infi nite value, seize it, and appropriate it, and try to incorporate it into their very being, so as to identify themselves, so far as possible, with the embodiment of all beauty and loveliness, and holi ness, and excellence. Surely they who are last described give thrilling evi dence that they are on the way to the pearly gates, and that when they en ter there, they will be at home! Just as surely, those whose character is the opposite of all this, have turned their backs on the heavenly city, and with every breath they draw, are nearing 1 the place prepared for them, where they too, will be at home! If the two should exchange homes, both would , be equally miserable, for to the saints absence from God is perdition indeed, and heaven is hell to him who has not ' heaven in himself. ; > THE -COLORED MAN.” ) We have too much respect for a - Negro to call him a “colored man.” If - | he is not called a Negro it would be > i better to call him a black man, for l ■ this is at least descriptive, which the . i phrase “colored man” is not. For one • would naturally ask, What color? It is ; moreover impolite, if not insulting to i “call a man out of his name.” This ; careful avoidance of the real name im plies that there is something of dis- > credit if not of disgrace attached to it, • and those who practice it are acknowl- - edging tacitly if unwittingly that they I speak of a degraded people—of a peo s pie so low in the scale of humanity that their very name is unworthy of i being pronounced. It is remarkable ■ too that those who claim to be the greatest friends (?) of the Negro,never call him by name. Whenever they come to that word, they shun it as a black leprosy and resort to a silly and meaningless circumlocution, calling him, with a display of outward respect which implies inward contempt, a col ored man ! This senseless appellation is a mere nickname, a left-handed com pliment and a reproach. We have never offered this indignity to the Afri can race ; we have always called them Negroes ; and their own pride ought to prompt them to speak of themselves in the same way. We confess however to have been faulty in one particular; we have usu ally spelled the word with a small “n.” We followed the fashion, but the sash- ■ ion is wrong, and we shall follow it no more. We have just read an article written by a Negro for a Negro paper, . published in Philadelphia, from which . we copy an extract. ; I have just finished reading your issue of ' July 28tli, and in that issue (as in every 1 issue.) you use the noun “Negro” but spell , it with a small *n;” why is this thus? I i only went to school eighteen months, but I learned in that short time that the word negro was the name of a race of people of over 165,000,000 in number, and consequent ly a noun. I can't understand why the most of our “big” men spell this word with a small “n,” Even such men as Mr. Douglass make this same mistake. In his recent article in the North American Review, he spells Teutonic, Caucasian, Jew, Saxon, Norman, European, Irish, American, Mongolian, Chinaman, Turk, German, Hibernian, and Hebrew with capital letters, but when he comes to the poor negro he uses a small “n.” We stand corrected; the Negro is right; and hereafter we shall always give the Negro his due in a capital N. Strange to say the Negro editor of the paper in question refuses to be correc ted and adheres to the small “n.” He prefers to be called an “American.” An American he may be as to citizen ship, but as to race, Negroes must be Negroes, and instead of being ashamed of thtir name, they ought to be asham ed of themselves for having been ashamed of it. It is amusing to observe that the Negro writer above quoted, while rebuking others for spelling the name of his race with a small “n,” falls into the same error himself in two instances. We shall profit by the tuition of our teacher as well as by bis failure to use the proper letter in the spelling of his own name. Covington Star: The protracted meeting at the Baptist church last week, resulted in the addition of two to the church—Luther and Lillian Brittain—son and daughter of Elder J. M. Brittain, the pastor. They were baptized in the church baptistry on Saturday night. The ceremony was unusually impressive. Relative to the above meeting Bro. Brittain writes: We have just closed an interesting meeting at Covington. The church was very much revived, and we have reason to believe that some good was done in the community. We had only two accessions during the meeting. It was my sweet privilege to baptize my two oldest children. The scene was unusually interesting, and the vast congregation present seemed to be very much impressed. For this evidence of God’s loving kindness we are very grateful. Greensboro Herald: There is an in teresting revival meeting in progress at Baird’s church. Dr. Mell and Rev. Mr. Straton are conducting it. A CHAPTER FROM TYNDALE. Very few of our readers have ever seen any other version of the Scrip tures than the one in common use. Not merely to gratify their curiosity, but for more serious purposes, we pub lish below a chapter from Tyndale’s New Testament. It will be observed that some of the expressions are pecu liar, and that the spelling is very ec centric. At the time this book was published, our language had not crys tallized into its present shape, and the orthography was unsettled. It will be seen, however, that in this rude Eng lish the sense is as clearly conveyed as in the more polished language of the present day. Tyndale’s Testament, which appeared in the year 1526, was the first translation from the original Greek ever published in the English language. Previous to this, in 1380, the Bible had been translated into English by John Wiclif or Wyckliffe; but this was fifty years before the art of printing was invented, (about 1430,) and the book was circulated only in manu script. A few copies of this manu script still exist. The book was first printed in 1731, and has been reprint ed since. But this was not a transla tion from the Greek ; it was translated from a Latin version known as the Vulgate. Thus it was a translation of a translation; and everyone must know that every translation impairs, somewhat, the force of any composi tion, and opens additional sources of error. Tyndale’s may be regarded as practically the first version of the Scriptures published in the English language, as it was actually the first translated from the original tongue. It is the basis of the version now in use; and, indeed, every translation into English since Tyndale’s day, has been little more than a revision of his work. It was prepared under great persecu tion, and Tyndale, the Christian schol ar, and hero, and martyr, the father of the English Bible, was rewarded for his marvellous labors by being first strangled and then burnt near Ant werp, A. D. 1536, when in his sixtieth year. Wyckliffe, his predecessor, died a natural death (1384), but his bones were afterwards dug up and burnt,and the ashes were thrown on a dunghill. But here is the chapter: THE THIRDE CHAPTER. In those dayes Jhon the baptisercam and preached in the wildernes off iury saynge: Repent the kyngdome of heven is at honde. This is he of whom it is spoken be the prophet Esay which sayeth : The voyce off a cryer in wyl dernes prepare the lordes way and make hyspathes strayght. This Jhon had his garment offcam els heer and a gerdell off a skynne aboute his loynes. His meate was lo custes and wyld bony. Then went out to him Jerusalem and all and and all the region rounde aboute Jor dan and were baptised of hym in Jor dan knoledging their synnes. When he sawe many off the phari ses and off the saduces come to hys baptism he sayde vnto them : O gene ration of vipers who hath taught you to fle from the vengeaunce to come? brynge forthe therefore the frutes be longynge to repentaunce. And se that ye ons thinke not tosayein your selves we have Abraham to oure fath er. For I say vnto you that God is able off these stones to rayse up chyl dren vnto Abraham. Evennowisthe ax put vnto the rote of the trees: soo that every tree which bringeth not fforthe goode frute shalbe hewne doune and cast into the fyre. I Baptise you in water in token of repentaunce but he that cometh after me is myghtier than I: whose shues I am not worthy to beare. he shal bap tise you with the holy gost and with fyre which hath also his fan in his hond and will pourge his floore and gadre the wheet into his garner and will burne the chaffe with everlastynge fyre. Then cam Jesus from Galile into Jordan to Jhon ffor to be baptised off hym. But Jhon fforbade hym saynge: I ought to be baptysed off the: and commest thou too me? Jesus answer ed and sayde to hym : Lett hyt be so nowe. For thus hitt becommeth us to fulfyll all rightewesnes. Then he suf fred hym. And Jesus as sone as he was baptised came strayght out of the water: And lo heven was open vnto hym : and he saw the spirite of God descende lyke a dove and lyght vpon hym. And lo there cam a voice from heven sayng: thys ys my deare sonne in whom is my delyte. ANOTHER SURRENDER. The N. Y. Independent speaking of the change by which sprinkling was substituted for baptism and the bap tism of infants for that of believers, has these remarkable words—remark able for their frankness: This, we suppose, may be considered as settled, that, if a change in anything is good, it is according to the mind of Christ. The only question is whether an ordinance ap pointed by Christ is so sacred that no change can be good. It appears to us that in the mind of Christ the ordinance is only a means to an end. The end is all that Christ cared for when on earth, or cares for now. If any ordinance of his,or if his method of perform ing it, fails to meet in the best way the end he had in view, he would, if he were on earth, modify it. And we should judge that what he would do, if he were with his Church, that Church has the right to do, al ways holding fast to the great purpose which was to be gained by his Word and bis wor ship. We repeat this extraordinary de liverance sentence by sentence with a comment on each. Tris, we suppose, may be considered as settled, that if a change in anything is good, it is according to the mind of Christ. Who is to decide that a change in a positive precept is good? Who has the authority to change the law of Christ? “He that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully.” Is it faithfulness to change the word? The only question is whether an ordinance appointed" by Christ is so sacred that no change can be good. And this is no question at all. We are not prepared to argue on any such subject. Will our Presbyterian and Methodist exchanges come to our re lief? “What is the chaff to the wheat, saith the Lord?” It appears to ns that in the mind of Christ the ordinance is only a means to an end. It appears to us, that the mind of Christ is best expressed in his own words; "Go teach . . . baptizing." The end is all that Christ cared for when on earth, or cares for now. One great end that he cared for then, and cares for now, is exact obe dience. “If ye love me, keep my com mandments.” It any ordinance of his, or if his method of performing it. fails to meet in the best wav the end he had in view, he would, if he were on earth, modify it. If, if, if! Oh that word if I If the Son of God ; i/ the Eternal Word that was in the beginning with God, and that was God, — if he made a mistake in se lecting the best means to accomplish his end! We have nothing to say and call on our Pedobaptist friends again for help. And we should judge that what he would do, if he were with his church, <that church has the right to do, always holding fast to the great purpose which was to be gained by his Word and his worship. Here it is assumed that he would substitute sprinkling for baptism and infants for believers as the subjects of it, if he were with us, because these are improvements; and this implies that he actually erred in his first teach ings, and has learned by experiment, how to amend them. How does the Independent know that Christ has dis covered his mistake? and that if he were with us he would correct it? For our part, we prefer to be guided by what he has said and commanded, rather then by what men presumptu ously imagine he would say and com mand, if with increasing light, he had the opportunity. Now beloved brethren of the Pedo baptist world, who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity, see where your champions are leadingyeu! They have abandoned Scripture ground altogeth er, leaving us Baptists in undisputed possession of it. They have made ab solute and unconditional surrender of the whole sacred territory, and have put themselves outside the pale of Scripture argument. Os course, they would not have taken such position unless they were in extremity, and could do nothing better. Are you willing to abandon the word of God, and go with them? If not, you must either occupy ground acknowledged by your own champions to be unten able, or else come to us. Perhaps you will say that the Independent does not represent your ablest defenders. Re member then, that that journal has only followed the lead of the late Dean Stanley, whose eulogy has been penned by ten thousand writers, and who is confessedly one of your most learned men; and remember too, that he fol lowed the lead of Neander, and we may say of the whole school of German theologians. The weight of Pedobap tist authority and scholarship, taken as a whole, is with the Independent, and largely so; though in this coun try there are not many so frank and bold as he. In short,there are two theo ries, the Bible theory and the develop ment theory; those who hold to the former ought to come to us; the ad herents of the latter are at home with the Independent, and with Dean Stan ley, and with the German neologists. There is no half way ground. Dear brethren of the Pedobaptist world, may God grant you grace to see and do the right. Rev. A. Van Hoose writes from Se noia : I closed a very interesting meet ing at Greenville last Sabbath. It commenced on the night of August 4th. On account of rain and wind it did not really commence until Satur day the 6th, and lasted until the 14th. On the last day eight were baptized and one left to be baptized at my next ap pointment. Bro. Harris, of Greenville, was with me all the meeting and did good service. Bro. J. H. Hall ,of New nan, also preached four excellent ser mons and did good service in other ways, Bro. J. B. S. Davis writes from New nan : Recently the church at Grant ville has been greatly revived and blessed and fifteen added by experience and baptism. The church also at Eb enezer, in this county, has enjoyed a season of refreshing, and four added by experience and baptism. Rev. J. H. Corley, pastor of the Bap tist church at Fort Gaines, has accept ed a call from the church at Shorter ville, Ala., and it is quite probable that he will remove his family from Dawson to that place. GLIMPSES AND HINTS. —Rev. 8- Landrum, D.D., has returned to the State from bis Northern trip. He found it impossible to secure funds for Mercer University from abroad, for luckof time and personal acquaintance; and it is his convic tion that the Baptists of Georgia must them selves sustain and endow their College. He thinks that the income of the University must be supplemented by regular church collections until the endowment is secured. —The First Baptist church, Galveston. Texas, has called Rev. A. T. Spalding, D.D., of Atlanta, as pastor- We do not think that he will accept the position tendered him, although, so far as we know, he has not spoken on the subject. —Georgb Macdonald represents “fluency of speech’’ as “the crowning glory and ruin of a fool.” —The tendency in Germany. Joseph Cook tells ns,. is’ toward evangelical doctrine. Rationalistic Heidelberg has 24 theological students, while of the evangelical institutions Berlin has 280, Halle 504 and Leipsic 438. —Alexander Carson says: “If God avows the whole Scriptures as his word, a falsehood as to anything will aftect the revelation. The Bible must not utter a philosophical lie, nor a historical lie, more than a relig ious lie. If it lies on one subject, who will believe it on another? If it lies as to earthly things, who will believe it about heavenly things?” —Spurgeon has a “Book Fund,” manaced chiefly by bis wife,for thegratuitous distribu tion of religious works among ministers of all denominations, who are too poor and too poorly paid to purchase them. The con tributions to the Fund in 1880 amounted to $6,202 46; and volumes were sent to 22 Pres byterian, 130 Episcopal, 154 Independent, 258 Baptist and 317 Methodist ministers. —The Texas Bapt’st Herald reports “more of the revival spirit in that State than for several years past.” This is true of Georgia also, we think, and, in fact, of the South generally. —The conscience should be sensitive to right and wrong. The Christian stiould seek the influence ot the Holy Spirit to make it so, and strive, by continual, prompt obedi ence, to keep it so. It should be as sensitive and delicate as the scales for weighing gold in the Assay Office at New York, which, when brought to a balance with two pieces of paper of equal size, find that balance dis turbed by the weight of a mere name written with a lead pencil on one piece. —Dr. Crosby, in a recent sermon, spoke of Americans as ‘a nation of hypocrites.” Alas, if the Judge so regards us! —lt is not the will, but the effort, which God takes for the deed—at least wherever the effort lies within the power of the hand. • —Rev. T. H. Pritchard writes to the Bib lical Recorder trom Pniladelphia: “The truth is the Baptists of this country, North and Soutn, are unalterably fixed in tne principle of restricted or scriptural commun ion ; and I am assured that no man wtio is suspected of unsoundness on thispointcould be called to any respectable Baptist church at the North. In some sections the churches are sounder than their pastors, but there has been and still is a healthy reaction going on among the ministers." More than twenty years, then, have only served to confirm the belief that Northern’Baptists are sound on this question, for the avowal of which we encountered some obloquy in certain quar ters. —Mr. McArthur, mayor of London, a Methodist, refused permission to dance to a company’ of twelve hundred persons, who assembled, on a recent evening, at his home, to do him honor. By this act he honored himself more than they did or could have done. —The Committee of Arrangements for the national celebration of the British surrender at Yorktown a century ago, have placed the religious exercises of that occasion under the control of two Romish prelates,—the bishop of Richmond and the archbishop of Balti more. They are sharply criticized in the newspapers for this action, and thecriticism we think is just. —lt is the Texas Baptist State Convention that supports Rev. W. M. Flonrnov as mis sionary to Mexico. Dr. O. C. Pope has made himself personally responsible for his salary. —Andrew Fuller, who so powerfully in fluenced Baptist theology, was ignorant of Hebrew and Greek; and some men, for that reason, dismiss him with a sneer. But this ignorance, attached itself also to Thomas Aquinas, “the angelical doctor” of Roman ists, “whose summary of divine knowledge was solemnly laid open on the altar at the Council of Trent, together with the Bible and the pontifical decrees, as being of co ordinate authority to inspire and control the decisions of the assembled Fathers, and who has been proclaimed” by Leo XIII, the present Pope, “as the champion in whose name and by whose weapons the aberrations of modern sceptical thought may be most effectually corrected." —The late Empress of China, in her will, said: “I was, ot all others in the palace, the most economical and the least careful as to my dress.” She was queenly in this, at least. —The Independent says: “Immersion is more frequently used by Methodists in New England than elsewhere; and infant baptism in some sections of New England is com paratively rare, showing the prevalence of a strong Baptist influence.” Well: New Eng land claims to be the most thoroughly edu cated section of our country—the section of highest “culture;’’ and it may be a signifi cant fact that just there infant baptism most declines and immersion most prevails outside of Baptist churches. —There is an Episcopal minister in Lon don with only two parishioners, and his annual pay is $3,700. —The London Quarterly tells us that, "on an average, two earthquakes occur every day in some part or other of the globe;” ascribes them to “discharges of terrestrial electricity accumulated in the bowels of the earth;" and expresses the hope that men of science may yet be able to “turn these inter nal supplies of electric force to the use of man in lighting, warming, locomotion, etc., and, not improbably, to devise some means of averting the fearful calamity of the earth quake shocks in years to come!" —“Hay Fever” is regarded by many as a disease of modern origin. What will they say, as to “the early summer edition of hay fever,” which is getting into the papers under the name of “Rose Cold ?” —The Chicago Evangelist says that,during a doctrinal discussion in the Synod of Glas gow, Rev. Daniel McAskill caught Rev. Laughlin McArthur by the throat and almost strangled him before the other di vines could interfere. —The contributions of Northern Presby terians, the past year, to all purposes, in cluding the support of the churches as well as missionary and benevolent gifts, amount ed to $8,674,281,—an increase of $313,253, and an average per member of $14.92. —The Wesleyan Conference, England, ha* diiected the proof texts from the New Testa-, ment in their Church Catechisms to be con formed to the recent revision; and this revision is regularly used in the pulpits of twenty leading Presbyterian churches in New York city. GEORGIA BAPTIST NEWS. Augusta Evening News : At a meet ing of the Calvary Baptist Church the resignation of the pastor, Rev. E. R. Carswell, Jr., was tendered and accept ed. Rev. Mr. Carswell has been serv ing the church as pastor during the past and the reason prompting his resignation is the inability to pay the salary promised. The members deeply regret to part with one who has served them so faithfully, and who has ever walked worthy of his “high voca tion,” and kept himself unspotted from the world. Mr. Carswell has talents of a high order, is a genuine Christian, and we predict for him a field of much useful ness in his chosen profession. Bro. E. B. Waters, of Benton, made us a pleasant visit on the third. Bro. Waters came to Atlanta for treatment of his eyes under Dr. Calhoun, and has been greatly benefitted. He is one of our most zealous workers. The Athens Banner says: “Rev. J. A. Munday, of this city, has just re ceived a call to the pastorate of Kol lock Street Baptist Church in Augus ta, and has the same under advise ment. This is the church at which Mr. Munday conducted such a success ful revival this summer, preaching there for several weeks in succession. The membership and congregation were deeply impressed with his piety, earnestness and ability, and as their present pastor is about to dissolve his connection with them, they have uni ted in calling Mr. Munday. If he shall accept the call we are sure he will be able to affect great good for that people in the name of the Master. He has not yet signified his intention.” Correspondent of Walker county Messenger : Last week we had a revi val at New Prospect. It was conduct ed by Revs. Tucker and King. The well attended meeting lasted eight days, and several were added to the church, some by letter, and five by baptism. Four of them were immers ed by Mr. Tucker. To-day after bap tizing, all went to the house and listen ed to one of the best sermons. Then the right hand of fellowship was giv en, and the meeting closed. The protracted meeting proposed to be held at the Baptist church, LaFay« ette, has been postponed, owing to sickness in the family of the pastor, Rev, H. W. Moore. Barnesville Gazette: It is cause for gratitude that so many in our community have recently professed faith in Christ and publicly announced their intention of living the Christian life. The meeting which has recently been in progress at the Baptist church, under charge of Dr. Battle has resulted in this great good to our community. And while a large number of the candidates for member ship were young, their course has been marked by considerateness and calm deliberation that showed their general intelligence, and convinced every one that they were not influenced by mere youthful feeling. Last Friday morn ing while the early beams of the sun yet fell tenderly upon the earth, and while all things were in harmony with the freshness of the early morning, a goodly company met under the spread ing shade of trees just in the rear of the Baptist church for the purpose of witnessing the ordinance of baptism administered to those who had recent ly presented them themselves for church membership. Here gathered about their beloved pastor, his people gladly heard from his lips as with a new power and an added brightness, the reason for their faith in this ordi nance of Christ. Baptism was then administered to twelve candidates in a most solemn and impressive manner. It was beautiful indeed to see there the tender, pure faced boy; the blooming countenances of those just entering young womanhood; the serene brow of the matron ; the calm face of age, each disappearing for a moment as they were thus “buried with Christ in Baptism” and “arose to newness of life.” Dr. Battle has accomplished a great go rd in our midst by l ie eloquent and powerful appeals to the unconverted, and his forcible presentation of the truths of the Gospel. He his been as sisted in his faithful labors by Rev. Mr. Mcßride, of Macon, Rev. Mr. Moncrief, and Mr. Medlock, of The Christian Index. The words which fell from the lips of these good men as they broke to the people the bread of life, will long live in the hearts of many of their hearers, and the fruit of their la bors will be seen long after they have departed, and we trust will produce a rich harvest for the garners of the Lord. Rev. L. A. Patillo writes to the Spar ta Ishmaelite : It was my pleasure to be with Rev. S. A. Leonard, pastor of Oconee church, in Putnan County’ Services began on Monday, 19th, and continued up to Monday night. We had a gracious time; 16 were added to the church, and we left a large num ber inquiring the way of eternal life. Bro. Leonard is an earnest preacher, and he is fully in the hearts of the people. Methodist and Baptist preach ed, praised, prayed and rejoiced togeth er. We had large congregations and everybody seemed to enjoy every ser vice. I found the people very kind and hospitable. It was my pleasure to see several young men come out on the Lord’s side.