Newspaper Page Text
2
r '-CT
I
COLLEGE EDUCATION IN GEORGIA—
TUITION- WHAT SOME CATALOGUES
SAY.
' The following is an abstract of the tuition
fees and modes of pecuniary aid to students,
in the leading denominational colleges in
the Northern States, and of the young well
endowed and prosperous Vanderbilt in the
South: The time of foundation ; thed> nomi
nation; the amount of tuition : and the
number of students in the college of arte, or
regular college, are stated, so lar as known.
PBINCCTON COLLEGE.
Founded 1746. Presbyterian. Tuition 1120.
Number of students not given.
The number of students is not stated, in
■the pamphlet: “Requirements for Eu
trance,” which was sent in place of a cata
logue. Princeton is one of the patriarchs
among our colleges, and baa received muniti
cent gifts for building and endowments,
during the presidency of Dr. McCosh. The
.pamphlet has this, on
' pecunuby aid."
“▲limited number of students of good
moral character, intellectual ability and
promise needing assistance, are aided in
their efforts to obtain a liberal education, by
means of endowed scholarships, which yield
the college the amount of their tuition fees.”
“The college also posseses a fund given for
r ;he purpose of aiding indigent candidates
for the ministry of the Presbyterian church,
from which they can receive at least thirty
dollars a year each.”
COLUMBIA CjLLF-GE.
Founded 1754 Episcopal. Tuition $l5O
Students 285.
Free scholahbiiii’s Nineteen free scholar
ships are provided tor; seven on the Moffitt
ano Schermerhorn bequests of $7 000; four
on the appointment of the Association of
Alumni, and eight on the appointment of
the Society for promoting Religion and
Learning; these last twelve are authorized
by the Board of Trustees.
‘Free tuition. Fiee tuition is offered as
follows: ' The applicant must present acer
tificate signed by some person of good re
pute, stating that the writer is acquainted
with the circuimitances ot the applicant, and
knows him to ne unable to bear the expense
of his education if obliged to pay the tuition
fee; also that the writer is not himself a
relative of the applicant." The applicant
must also show a proficiency of 60 in 100 of
scholarship, on admission, and must not
fall below 70 during his col lege course, or he
forfeits bis place. The offer of free tuition
to indigent students is unlimited, with the
above conditions.
BROWN UMVEBSITY.
Founded 1764 Baptist. Tuition SIOO
Students 247.
“There are sixtysfour scholarships of one
thousand dollars each, the income of which
is given under the direction of a committee
appointed by the corporation, to meritorious
students who may need pecuniary assist
ance." Os these, four are from college funds
appropriated by the corporation to this use.
The others have been endowed by individ*
uals.
Besides these, there are the Bartlett and
Glover scholarships and the scholarship of
the class of 1838, founded on endowments of
about $12,000, and devoted to the support
and aid of students on the basis of character
and scholarship.
The Congressional Land Grant fund of
SSO 000 also yields an income, which is de
voted to the education of scholars, each at
the rate of one hundred dollars (the tuition)
per annum.
An Aid Fund of SB,OOO, given by two
friends, also yield an income for the aid of
young men of limited means.
From this, it appears that about one hund
red scholarships, amounting to two -fifths of
the number of students, has been provided
for by endowments of various kinds. The
University gives only four.
WILLIAMS COLLEGE.
Founded 1793. Congregational. Tuition
S9O Students 227.
The income of various endowments men
tioned, amounts to about $7 000, is distri
buted “among students known to need aid,
for the entire or partial payment of their
college bills." These funds and scholarships
go under thirty-four names, and range in
amount from S3OO, the smallest, to $28,000,
the largest.
New scholarships. “An effort is being
made to raise new scholarships of $2,5< 0
each, the income to be awarded for profi
ciency in the studies of the course, while
affording pecuniary aid.”
YALE COLLYGE.
Founded 1801. Congregational. Tuition
$l4O. Students 612.
“BENErietARY aid The sum of sl2 000 and
upwards, derived partly from permanent
charitable funds, is annually applied by the
corporation for the relief of students who
need pecuniary aid, especially of those pre
paring for the Christian ministry. About
one hundred thus have their tuition either
wholly or in part remitted." Eighteen other
scholarships afford aid to students selected
by the donors or the faculty.
WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY.
Founded 1831. Methodist. Tuition $75.
Students 163.
“Persons holding scholarships are exempt
from charges for tuition. A limited num
ber of such scholarships are available, at the
discretion of the President, for the use of
deserving students who need pecuniary
assistance.”
While the catalogue was passing through
the press. Mr. George I. Seney gave the col
lege $100,000; the income of which is to con
stitute thirty six scholarships to be distri
buted among the four college classes, and
worth each from SIOO to $250. They are
awarded for proficiency.
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY.
Founded 1873. Methodist. Matriculation
and tuition S6O. Students 240.
‘ Teachers' scholarships. Teachers of one I
year's approved standing, who design to
make teaching a profession, may be ad
mitted to free tuition, etc.
"The Whitthorne scholarship pays the
tuition of three students, and the Taylor
scholarship that of one student." Wilson
county, Tennessee, also nominates some on
the Cartmell fund."
A careful reading of the above rather
hasty digest, will givens an insight into the
results ofthe age and experience of onroldest
and most prosperous denominational col
leges. They will be worth taking Into ac
count, in our plannings for the good of
Mercer.
The writer will venture three remarks.
1. Tuition in the Northern colleges is
much higher than it is in the Southern. At
Wesleyan it is $75; at Williams S9O; at
Brown $100; at Princeton $120: at Yale
$140; and at Columbia $l5O. The more
prosperous the college, the higher
is the tuition. Their greater num
ber of students involves a greater expendi
ture in outfit, which is supplemented by the
higher tuition which their popularity au
thorizes them to charge.
2. These colleges are very jealous of their
tuition and give away the smallest possible
amount. The income from this source is
respectable in all, and princely in some.
Calculating on the basis of the tuition and
the students given above, without any abate
ment, the tuition amounts to the following
THE CHRISTIAN INDEX AND SOUTH-WESTERN BAPTIST : THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1881.
rami: At Wesleyan, sl2 225; at Williams,
$20,430; at Brown, $24 700; at Columbia,
$42 750: and at Yale SBS 680. Is it any won -
der that they can have large faculties ; that
students flock to them from the ends of the
earth ; and that wealthy friends confide to
them funds for magnificent building and
abundant provisions for the poor, where
they have shown economy, energy and
fidelity in the management of what they
already had ?
Abundant provision is made for the poor,
by independent endowment of scholarships,
which usually bear the names of the donors.
In some of the colleges, the tuition of nearly
half the students is thus provided for. This
is a capital bint for the friends of Mercer.
One friend might give SSOO another SIOOO,
to pay the ha'r tuition, or the whole tuition
of a student. And this plan might become
operative immediately A friend might
give SI,OOO and nominate and send a worthy
vouth, who needed aid. to Mercer Uni
versity. the next term. The college would
gain tuition and students to that extent,and
worthy young men might be assured of the
liberal education for which they bad longed
and toiled. A Baptist.
CALLING A PREACHER.
The calling of a preacher is usually—now
always treated purely from a financial
standpoint. The church, wanting a new
preacher, begins by casting about to deter
mine how much money they can obtain on
paper; that part of the work comblete, the
next item is to see how learned a preacher
they can induce to serve them as pastor lor
the amount named; then begins in earnest
the work of calling, to their oversight, a man
who Luke warns to “ take heed, therefore,
unto yours. Ives, and to all the flock over
which the Holy Ghost hath made you over
seers to feed the Church of God, which He
hath purcba-ed with His own blood;” for
getting that the Master takes notice of tbe
laborers in His vineyard, and assigns thrm
work, and that be should be implored,
through fasting and prayer, to send to them
the one who. in His divine wisdom, is tbe
one suited to His work in that special field ;
and who can, by that direction as the Apos
tie Keter says, “Feed the flock of God which
is among you, taking tbe oversight thereof,
not with constraint, but willingly; not for
filthy lucre, but of a ready mind," etc. If
the man of God has to be constrained, let it
be that of love, not of money. Preachers
are rarely paid in money, or its effects, one
tithe the value of their merit or labor, their
reward is of greater prize than this world’s
goods; but this does not relieve their tem
poral wants, nor that of their dear ones, nor
makes the responsibility that rests upon
professed Christians, to provide amply for
all their wants, any less. If, by bis labor lie
persuades one sinner to obey the gospel, be
has earned more than be will get in dollars
from churches durii g his natural life; and
on the other hand, if the membership of any
of the Baptist churches that I am acquaint! d
with would turn all tbe money they spend
fpr theatres, circuses, drinks ami goobers,—
to say nothing of the thousand and one other
useless exi e:.< it iret—his temporal kingdom
would be rich in this world's goods, and his
word would soon be at tbe door of every
habitation on the globe, and the gospel
preached in every community.
Now, Christians, the Lord of glory does not
claim any of your means that would render
you dishonest in heart or before the world.
Paul says live honestly in tbe sight of all
men and we are taught to "owe no man
anything, but to love one another.” Man is
also told to "lay by in store on the first day
of the week according as the Lord hath
prospered us»” Also to "be diligent in busi
ness, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.”
If the lessons taught in the few passages
recited from God's word in the above lines
were well learned, and their instructions
strictly obeyed, there are strong reasons to
believe that the cull'ng and supporting pas
tors, and speeding the gospel, the conversion
of souls and building up the churches would
be more in harmony with the Divine Spirit,
and God would be infinitely more glorified.
Churches and preachers that are accus
tomed to enter upon the work of calling a
pastor as they would that of buying a horse
or hiring a plow-boy, looking alone to the
amount of money received and work done,
received a worthy rebuke by a colored Bap
tist preacher, in Middle Georgia, not long
ago. He was sent for to preach —to preach a
trial sermon. He went, performed the task,
and when through one of the deacons arose
and inquired:
“ Well, brother P., what do you want to
prench for ?”
The preacher applied the Yankee tactics
and inquired : “ What do you want me to
preach for?"
Deacon promptly replied as if well pleased
with the sermon: “We think we can pay
you $100.”
Preacher to deacon No. 2—" Brother, what
do you want me to preach for ?”
Deacon —" We have agreed that we will
raise SIOO for you for the year.”
Preacher to a prominent layman—“ Brot
her, what do vou say;—what do you want me
to preach for?”
Layman—“ Well, brother P„ we have
talked it all over, and we are sure we can
give you that amount, and have concluded
to maKe you the offer.”
Preacher—" Well, brethren, I am not your
man. You had better call some other
preacher. I preach for the conversion of
sinners, and not for the hundred dollars;
that seems to be what you want me to preach
for.” Layman.
GENERAL MEETING.
The General Meeting of the Second Dis
trict Central Association met .with Har
mony church, Putnam county on Friday,
October 28th, and continued through Sun
day. The meeting was very pleasant, and
we hope profitable.
The following resolutions, offered by Rev.
I R. Branham, were adopted and the Clerk
requested to send them to The Index with
the request that they be published.
“ Whereas much destitution exist- within
the bounds of tbe Central Association, and
the need of an efficient missionary to occupy
this field is pressing, therefore be it resolved,
Ist, That this General Meeting recom
mend to tbe ministers and brethren of this
body to bring this matter before their res
pective churches, at the first opportunity,
and urge upon them to take immediate steps
to supply the need.
2nd, That we request the Corresponding
Secretary of the State Board of Missions to
appropriate the funds hereafter contributed
by the churches ofthe Central Association,
to the amount of five hundred dollars, for
the support of the missionary to be ap
pointed.
3rd, That the churches within the bounds
of the Association be urged to increase their
contributions for this object as well as for
other destitute portions of the State.
4th, Tbat the other districts of this Asso
ciation be requested to designate a man for
the work at their next General Meeting, and
that the Corresponding Secretary be request
ed to send him into the field as soon as the
funds will justify it.
sth, That we suggest brother Evan H.
Lawrence as man qualified for the work.”
The next meeting will be held with the
Eatonton church commencing on Friday,
January 27th. 1882. J. E. C.
Madison, Ga., Nov. Ist, 1881.
Ifwe pray the Lord’s Prayer understand
ingly, we are praying for the spread of the
?ospel and for the conversion of men. Tbe
wo petitions, "Thy kingdom come" and
“Thy will be done on earth,” should ever be
going up from the hearts of all that love the
missionary cause.—Rev. T. A. T. Hanna.
EREE TUITION.
In The Christian Index, of October 13th,
appears a communication slgne.l 'K. Lan
drum ” tn which the recent action of tbe
Legislature, in making tuition free at tbe
State Unlver-lty, is criticised and condemned
As a member of that body, who voted for the
bill upon Its passage, I ask leave to make a
short comment, through your columns, upon
tbat communication.
Dr. Landrum, tbe author of the article re
ferred to, Is a relative of mine, and I allude to
this purely personal fact in order that you,
and others who may read this tetter, may
understand tbat 1 have no quarrel with him,
and that any allusions that may be made to
him having tbe appearance of severity, are
made " more tn sorrow than tn anger.”
In the communication I refer to, he declares
that one of the reasons why there Is not a
large inciease of students at Mercer Universi
ty fs, “the mistaken policy ofthe Legislature
in making the State University a free school
so far.as tuition la concerned.” He then pro
ceeds to state three reasons why he styles this
action ot the Legislature a "mistaken policy”
—they are the following:
1. “Because it degiades University educa
tion, making it too cheap and common for
proper appreciation.
2. “Because it is wrong In principle and
damaging tn practice.
3. " Because, in the opinion of legal gentle,
men who were members of the lasi Constitu
tional Convention, It Is unconstitutional.”
For convenience, let us examine briefly
these three reasons In the Inverse order of
their statement.
Perhaps the Constltutiou Itself Is the high
est and best evidence ol what its piovislons
are upon this subject, as well as all others. If
Dr. laudrum will take the trouble to turn to
Article 8, Section 6. Paragraph 1, of the pres
ent Constitution, lie will find the following
words: ■■ In addition to the payment of the
annual Interest on the debt due by the State
to the University, the General Assembly may
—lrom time to time—make such donations
thereto as the condition of the Treasury will
authorize.”
How could those “ legal gentlemen, who
were members of the last Constitutional Con
vention,” have forgotten the above provision
when they expressed such an opinion as be
has ascribed to them? Suiely the Doctor
must be mistaken ; lie must have beendroam
Ing. Could any lawyer wl>« was a member
ot that laxly be ignorant of so important a
feature? It would be difficult to And a la*-'
yer In Georgia, whether he was In the Con-_
vention or not, who did not know better.'
Some wag has doubtless Imposed upon our
friend, the Doctor, with tills ridiculous cutnrd.
I pass to bls second reason. It the doctrine
contained In this somewhat loose and general
remark, that free tuition l«"wrongin prlncl
pie aud damaging In practice,” Is a correct
one, the civilized world Is certainly going
backward. If that declaration had been
made by a Spanish or Italian monk ol the
sixteenth century, it would have been in
keeping wit him, his surroundings, aud his
purposes; but, coming from a Baptist minis
ter of the nineteenth century—and an educa
ted man at that—lt Is astounding I For one,
1 womd not have believed tbatthegenileraau
whose name Is signed to that communication
had ever written such a sentiment, but tor
"•.lie sensible aud true avouc i of mine own
eyes. ' When we stop a moment and think
how much talent, how much money how
much zeal, how much time and eloquence
and labor are now being employed among all
civilized people In devising ways and means
for making education free: when we see
Governments and Individuals, and munici
palities, each In its own sphere struggling to
do this very thing, aud esteeming It a crown
Ing triumph when they succeed, such an
utterance as this of Dr. Landrum's sounds
like a pro est again t the civilization of the
age In whiih we live. >
It Is a common occurrence for wealthy citi
zens of benevolent Impulses to endow profes
sorships and found scholarship in Instil lona
of learning, soas to make tuition free. Wneu
ever they do, their names are heralded as
benefactors of their race, and so they are.
More than that, among thoughtful people It
Is beginning to be looked upon as the test and
measure ot the Intelligence an 1 enllghten
mentof a nation when its Government makes
provision for the free educailon ofthe people.
Whenever a city establishes a system of tree
schools, or a State or a county, it Is considered
a step forward, and there Is no fact In Its his
tory to which It points with more genuine
pride, and nothing which returns such au
abundant harvest of good results.
In the town of Lexington, tn the county of»
Oglethorpe, Is Meson Academy. Its founder,
a dr Meson, many years ago bequeathed to
Trustees, In his will, a considerable amouuM
ot property for the purpose ot founding thW
school aud aiding, to that extent, the cause or
free educailon He Iles burled In the school
yard, audaslabof marble commemorates his
virtues in an epitaph, aud chief among them
all stands credited to him the endowment of
the Academy No man can tell the amount
of good this school has done It Is true he
did not give enough to make tuition entirely
free, but It was a long step tn that direction.
Hundreds of youth have beeu educited there.
Some of the first men of Georgia, aud some of
the other States, were partly educated there.
It Is still In operation, doing Its beneficent
work. If the long roll of the youth who have
drunk at this ancient and venerab.e fountain
of learning were called, among other names
would be found that of Sylvanus Landrum
Did he find It ‘ damaging In practice” then ?
I am aware that tuition was not entirely free
al Meson Academy, buteducation waseneap
ened here by the endowment and the differ
ence is lu degree, aud not in kind It will be
a difficult task to persuade those whose pleas
ure it has beeu to listen to the eloquent
accents that fall from Dr. Landrum’s lips In
the pulpit, that It has had a "damaging”
effect upon him.
Let us now proceed to examine his remain
ing objection. It Is the strangest of the three.
He says free tuition "degrades University
education, making It too cheap and common
for proper appreciation.” In other words, a
poor boy. who Is not able to pay for a Univer
sity education, shall not have It—ilia:
Is about the English of it. if you aie
rich, aud can pay your way through the Uni
versity, you shall be a scholar; If you are
poor,'and have no means, you shall remain
Ignorant. What does he mean when he says
making it cheap and common degrades It?
It ought to be free and universal, much less
cheap aud common. The Reverend Doctor
has really lost bls moorings. I take leave
here and now to say to him 'hat there Is not
n poor hoy lu Georgia who is not good enough
for a University education who has mind
enough to receive It. When education stoops
and enters the hovel of the poor and takes by
the hand some bright-eyed boy of ready
mind, It then assumes Its most angelic form.
He who can succeed in making University
education cheap and common, will be enti
tled to be numbered among the benefactors ot
the State aud generation. "Too cheap aud
common.” It cannot be too cheap, It cannot
be too common.
If a traveler, twenty years from now, could
traverse the whole Slate of Georgia, and not
find a single youth to whom the blessings of a
University education were denied on account
of his poverty, he would And a State and a
people in tbe very front rank of tbe whole
civilized world.
Does Dr. Landrum believe that a University
education ought to be expensive and exclu
sive? Does he wish to draw a line, and If so.
where will he draw It? Who Is he willing to
see educated at the Universities in Georgia ?
Is it only those who are able to pay ? Would
he have the Legislature say, to the poor boys
of Georgia, that the higher branches shall not
be taught them unless they are able to pay ?
If he means to say that It will degrade educa
tion to bring It within the reach of the poor,
or to make It so cheap and common that the
poorest can enjoy It, if that will degrade It,
then I say let It be degraded. The sooner the
better.
The Legislature did not so think. They felt
that they were not only conferring a substan
tial benefit upon those who were not able to
help themselves, and who deserved to be
helped, but they believed that the cause of
University education was dignified and enno
bled when It was made free to all, even the
humblest.
But, In a subsequent part of Dr. Landrum's
letter, we find an expression which reveals
tbe secret animus of tils attack upon the Leg
islature. He says “this action of the Legisla
ture Is a damaging blow at Mercer and Emory
Colleges The Methodists anil Baptists of the •
State deserve better treatment by their legis
lators.”
When the Legislature passed this bill, they
were not thinking of ,r Mercer and Emory
Colleges,” nor were they thinking of the State
University, nor of Baptists nor Methodists,
nor Presbyterians nor Episcopalians. I will
tell you what they were thinking of: they
were thinking of their duty to the whole peo
ple of Georgia, without regard to sect or relig
ious belief. They were—a majority of them—
Methodistsand Baptists, aud they wereupon
an infinitely higher plane than the Doctor
seems to be writing from. Before them was
the whole people; they would have scorned
the Imputation that their action was con
trolled by any consideration springing out of
the idea that, as legislators, they owed a duty
to any particular religions denomination as
such. Like a Judge upon the bench, a legis
lator 11 (worn, ana he should be blind to the
fact that there are different religious sects
among the people for whom he Is to make
laws To him the Jew and the Gentile must
stand exactly alike. When Dr. Landrum,
therefore, talks about what the Methodists
and the B iptlsts deserve at the hands of “their
legislators,’’ be either forgets himself or Is
ready to introduce here lu a new form, doc
trines that our Methodist and Baptist fore
father wiped out lu blood a hundred years ago
What he really means Is this: because free
tuition could not be established at Mercer
and Emory, then It should not be established
anywhere. The people at large shall not have
It at all, anywhere, because they cannot have
It at those two Institutions He speaks ot the
“rival” Institutions and ‘ electioneering” for
pupils. What a dog in the manger spirit!
The Legislature ot Georgia that would refuse
the boon of free tuition to the people at tbe
State University, out of regard for sectarian
colleges, and make tbe people at large the
auflerers In order to make two such colleges
prosperous, would be unlit for their trust. I
believe that every member of the Legist iture
who voted for the bill making tuition free at
the State University, would have cheerfully
voted thesame amountto Mercer and Emory,
each, if It could have been lawfully done. I
am sure I would It would have given us
pleasure to have done more than we did, but
the Constitution permit ted one and prohibited
the other. (See Constitution, Art. 1, See 1.
Par. it) And tn this connection I would
again remind Dr Landrum that the men who
made that Constitution were—a majority of
them—Methodists and Baptists, as well as a
majority of the Legislature.
It Is not necessary for me to call attention
to the Inconsistency In the Doctor's letter
After his diatribe against free tuition at Univer
sities he sets bls wits to work to devise a scheme
to make It free at Mercer. I hope he may suc
ceed. It will be a blessing <o the Bt»te; and if he
will call on the members ot the Legislature - ho
voted tor the free tui.lon bill, they will all snb
scribe to help him make It free at Mercer. His
plan is a good one, and ough' to be put Into
operation. If It succeeds, I will underwrite that
free tuition at Mercer will not be found “damag
ing In practice.”
But 1 must take my leave of the Doc'or. In
doing so. I beg leave to say that in one respect
he has do le injustice to the Methodists and
Baptists of Georgia There is not In my opinion,
a more liberal minded, a more catholic, a more
tolerant, or a m re generous people on earth,
than the Methodists and Baptists of Georgia
They are the bone and sinew ot this State. They
fight its battles In war. and pay the greater part
oil's taxes in peace. Their motto is, “Live and
let live,” If I may nee a household word here.
They are singularly free from a iy and all parry
je tlousies, and If they are not always so fortuna’e
as their neighbors in everything, th y
will rejoice with them in th It prosperity
ail tbe same. They do not covet their
n Ighbor’s bouse nor bls wife, nor his
man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox,
nor his ass, nor hit fru tuition. Furthermore,
they are not now, and never were, a priest ridden
race, and they cannot be dragooned Into any sort
of aw n that .s not of their own making. They
do not sympathize with this effort to make these
Institutions of learning in the State riva s of each
other. Th y look upon Me c rand Emory, and
ihe State University, as all three useful and nec
essary They want to see all three of them pros
per, and geon with the grand work of University
education in Georgia hand-in hand, strengthen
ing each other, and with but one common object
in view. The spirit that would seek to tear down
one of tht se In order to build up the others, or to
refuse to have free tuition at one because they
cannot have It at all three, is a spirit they despise.
October 30th, 1881. Pope Barrow.
JOTTINGS BY THE WAY.
My last letter left me en route for Ebenezer
Association. Well. I made a mistake as to the
tlmeol the assembling of the Association, and
got there (Gordon) just twenty-four hours too
soon. When I discovered my mistake, and
realized that I might have spent this time
with my family, I wished I had paid a little
more attention to my “guide-book." How
ever, It was perhaps for the best that I made
the mistake Brother Ivey was at the depot,
had Just returne : from Macon, carried me up
home with him, aud tbe time at once began
to pass pleasantly.
There was not much for me to do In Gor
don. however, as every Baptist family lu tbe
place, except one, Is taking The Index.
Brother J. J. Hyman, making the same
mistake that I did, Came next morning Not
wishing to be Idle, we devoted a part of our
time (brother H. and I) In assisting the
brethren In complet ng the work at the stand.
Late In tbe afternoon we accompanied broth
er Swint home, some two or three miles In
the country, where we spent a pleasant nl,ht,
.Truly,
kAjktodLOloloak Saturday thaimwat h>4k4<*ii
gaflSs, and a goodly number of visitors, had
rrl -
Brother W. 8. Ramsey, of Dublin, preached
the Introductory sermon, and a good one it
was.
Wtille the dinner was being spread upon
the tables prepared for the purpose, the letters
were collected and read. Twenty churches
were represented; number of baptisms re
ported, between forty and fifty; seven
churches reported Sabbath-schools.
It Is proper that 1 should here state that a
considerable portion of the territory occupied
by this Association was once large p anta
tions upon which dweltagn at many colored
people. These large landed estates still exist.
Hence many of the white people live at too
great a distance from the churches to attend
Sunday-school conveniently. This, to some
extent at least, accounts lor the small number
of schools reported.
After dinner the Association assembled In
the church, (brother J. J. Hyman preaching
at the stand), and was regularly organized by
unanimously, and by acclamation, re-electing
Rev. G R. McCall. Moderator, and Rev. W. S.
Ramsey, Clerk. Later In the session, and at
the usual time with this Association, brother
W. A Davis was unanimously re-elected
Treasurer.
Under the able administration of brother
McCall, who has but few equals as a Modera
tor, the business was dispatched rapidly and
most pleasantly. In fact, the entire session
was just as pleasant as could be.
Brother McCan, of Rome, preached In the
Baptist church Saturday night.
The hea'ts of all were saddened Saturday
morning by the announcement that Mr.
Charlie Blow, a young man of bright promise,
was dead. The solace aud support of widowed
mother, and greatly beloved lu the communi
ty, his death is deeply deplored. He was
burled, with Impressive funeral services, con
ducted by Rev. B H. Ivey, pastor of the Bap
tist church, on Sunday morning, a large con
courseof sorrowing friends aud sympathizing
strangers following the remains to the grave
At 10 o’clock Sunday a Sabbath-school
mass-meeting was held In the Baptist church,
addressed by Rev. J. J. Hyman, of the Mount
Vernon Association. At 11 a.m. an immense
concourse of people, variously estimated at
from 1,500 to 2,000, assembled at the stand to
hear the Missionary sermon, by Rev. G. R.
McCall. The sermon was a grand one. dell v
ered with the fervency ahd zeal which char
acterizes this able preacher, and elicited pro
found attention. At the conclusion a collec
tion for missions was taken, amounting to
near forty dollars.
After partaking of a sumptuous dinner,
served in the grove near by, the people again
repaired to the stanr and listened to au Im
pressive sermon from Rev. P. W Edge.
At night brother Hymen preached In the
Baptist church, and brother McCan In the
Methodist, At the close of brother Hyman’s
sern on, an Invitation for prayer was given,
and a great many came forward.
The Association re assembled at 8:30 Mon
day morning. The report of the Committee
on Education elicited a number of Interesting
speeches In behalf of Mercer University.
Also, the report on Temperance—both sub
jects of great Importance, and so regarded by
the Association, and by every zealous Baptist.
The following brethren were elected dele
gates to the Georgia Baptist Convention : G.
R. McCall, W. 8. Ramsey, P. W. Edge, B. H.
Ivey, E. J. Coats, J. M Hall, B. C. Green, W.
A. Davis.
At 11 o'clock took a recess to hear Rev E J.
Coats preach. I regret to say that this excel
lent brother and able minister Is In feeble
health. His sermon to-day was a good one.
The buslnessof the Association was conclu
ded Monday as ernoon and a more pleasant
session I never attended.
The good people of Gordon and vicinity
were lavish In hospitality, entertaining dele
f;ates and visitors most kindly, aud doing all
n their power to make their stay a pleasant
one. Personal y, lam under special obliga
tions to so many that I scarcely know how to
name them. My home (aud a more pleasant
one I never had), was at brother Whitaker’s.
Mrs. Whitaker Is a werthy daughter of my
long-time friend, Judge David Holomon, de
ceased, and never were honored guests more
kindly entertained than were those of us who
shared her hospitality. Brother W„ being a
railroad man, was at home but very little, but
when there gave us the kindest attention. "o
brethren Smith aud Rice, and their excellent
families, I am greatly Indebted,
The next session of the Association will be
held at Poplar Springs, Laurens county, com
mencing on Saturday before the fourth Sun
day In October, 1882. J. M. G. Medlock.
P. B.—l omitted to state. In the proper place,
that brother J. M. Hall preached in the Bap
tist church Monday night, after the Associa
tion had adjourned, to a fine congregation.
Missionary Department.
REV. J. H DbVOTIK. D.D., I
REV. C. M. IRWIN, D.D., f “Hora.
ABRAHAM'S SEED IN A THREE FOLD
SENSE.
Paul's letter to the Galatians brings Abra
ham and his children to view in a three fold
sense, which must be kept in mind while
reading the way in which he combatted those
false teachers in Galatia, who said : “Except
ye be circumcised, and keep the law of
Moses, ye cannot be saved."
Ist. Paul shows his children by the bond
woman. Hagar represents the unbelievers,
who are after the flesh and not after tbe
promise, as was Isaac. These were all in
bondage os having rejected tbe gospel cove
nant against themselves, as found in Jerusa
lem, unbelieving Jerusalem.
2d. Paul showed that Sarah, the free
woman, and wife of Abraham, with all her
children in the line of Isaac, represented true
believers, as collected by faith to the Spiritual
Jerusalem, tbe mother of all who believe in
Jesus, and who are equally blesssd as having
become the children of Abraham by faith in
Christ Jesus, and as having all been baptized
into Jesus Christ, and as having thus put on
Christ in baptism ; so that ah former rela
tions and distinctions were swallowed up
upon the ground of this wonderful brother
hood, spiritual and Christian brotherhood.
Each, whether Jew or Gentile, male or
female, bond or free, being an heir of God
and joint heir with Christ, and all this not
by the law, not by circumcision or uncir
cumcision, but simply by faith, which works
by love to Christ and to one another in
Christ, etc. Hence, here we have Hagar and
her seed representing the nff-pnng ol Abra
ham in a fleshly line, and Isaac a child of
promise, and Sarah, bis mother, with all her
offspring, representing tbe believers of the
gospel and the spiritual children of Abra
ham.
And then, thirdly, withal, we have Christ
himself as tbe seed of Abraham, in whom all
tbe families or nations of the world, sooner
or later, should be blessed. As when God
said, “And not to thy seeds, which are
many, but seed as of one,” which was Christ.
Hence, all who remain in unbelief, are not
heirs of the promise of life, but believers are
heirs of Abraham and of God, and joint heirs
with Christ. And as the whole Jewish male
nation, whether born in Abraham's house,
or brought from Gentile nations, must needs
be circumcised under the law to distinguish
them from a l other nations till Christ should
come the first time; so, now, all true be
lievers in Jesus, males aud females, Jews
and Gentiles, must be baptized, under tbe
gospel, to distinguish them from all unbe
lievers till Christ shall come tbe second time
to take vengeance on them that know not
God, and obey not the gospel of our Lord
Jesus Christ.
Reader, what heirship do you bear to
Abraham ? Not that of Hagar and her chil
dren, I trust and hope. This is to remain in
bondage and sin, not that of the real heir,
Christ, for there can be but one only begot
ten Son of God, and that is Christ, What
then? Are you free-born, by faith, as was
Isaac, your progenetor? If so, by faith, as
were these Galatians, to whom Paul so ear
nestly said, "You are all the children of
God by faith in Christ Jtsus,” then you a-e
rich heirs of God, and you and other true
believers who have been baptized into Jesus
Christ, and have put on Christ in baptism,
are the offspring of Abraham in just as high
sense as any of our poor, fallen race can
possibly be. Give God all the praise of such
high and noble birth, which was accom
plished by your regeneration through God’s
gospel of saving power, and go on your way
in His spiritual service till He shall say
enough, tg|'d take you to Jjinwelf in His
highest heavenly glory. A“, by the way,
claim nothing for yourselves or your literal
offspring in unbelief or in away of natural
birth, but claim every ordinance of the gos
pel, with its promise aud oath of God, sim
ply by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and
teach your children to do the same, aud the
same only, and teach them, and learn your
self, that baptism is one thing with its own
name all through the New Testament, —that
sprinkling is another, and pouring another,
each with its own name of perfect distinction
also. Don’t help, by any means, to confound
names and services enjoined thereby, lest
God should not hold you guiltless.
I. H. Goss.
P. S.—l read Paul's Letter to the Galatians
last night after supper, and James's General
Epistle this morning before early breakfast,
and now I am trying to benefit others by
the lessons I reviewed thus. If I could only
have a larger measure of Paul's faith, of
James's wisdom, and of John’s love, how
glad I should be I
You and all your readers say, from your
hearts, Amen, Amen 1 I. H. G.
Bowman, Ga , Oct. 27th, 1881.
LIVING BY GIVING.
Religion is life; and life will cease without
exercise. A church grows richer by giving
its wealth. It grows stronger by the expendi
ture of its strength, just as the blacksmith’s
arm strengthens with every sturdy blow.
Show us tbe churches that have organized
mission bands and sent forth missionaries to
foreign lands and we will show, by actual
statistics, that they have received constant
accessions oi strength. For every new root
striking into deeper soil, for every branch
spreading out into clearer light and fuller
sunshine, the parent tree has grown larger
and healthier. On the other hand: Churches
that have closed their hearts to foreign
work have declined in numbers and in
strength. You will remember that Andrew
Fuller saved the church at Kettering from
declension and extinction by enlisting its
energies in the foreign field. While they
worked for self the Lord did not work with
them. Fifty years ago thirty Baptist
churches in Maryland declared themselves
opposed to missions, while two alone took a
stand in favor of them. The two increased
to thousands while the anti-mission churches
diminished, till they now number only
seven or eight persons. Thus the Lord of
the vineyard condemns the faithless owner
of the buried talent. Twenty-seven years
after its establishment, the Sandwich Island
Mission must have broken up and disbanded,
had they not extended their sympathies and
efforts to embrace others more destitute.
Dr. Anderson,in a lecture on “The Develop
ment of Modern Missions,” says, “It is im
possible for mission churches to reach their
highest and truest prosperity without the
aid of what is to them a foreign mission.”
And it is equally true of our home churches,
that their only salvation from effeminacy
and decay lies in a hearty espousal of the
cause of missions- Confined within the nar
row circles of home, sympathies grow weak,
energies slacken; love loses its strongest
stimulant—unselfish devotion ; and faith
lacks the vindication and confirmation
which crowns its conquests over barbarism.
As the Chinese woman's foot, cramped and
confined, renders weak and nerveless her
whole physical nature, so the dwarfing and
narrowing of Christian sympathy and
charity enervates the whole character.
When ecclesiastical tyranny tried to mould
the tree thought of the Puritans by ritual
and litany, and even to curb its expression
by chains and prison walls, it sought a
broader field for expansion in the New
World; and the remarkable growth of their
principles attests God’s approval of their
exodus to a wider sphere. The gospel is
like leaven ; it leavens the whole lump. It
is like the mustard tree which shall fill the
whole earth —Rev. C. F. Holbrook, in Bap
tist Missionary Magazine.
DR JUD&ON ABOUT BURMAH.
"If any one aak,” he writes to Rev. Mr.
Rice in this country, “what success I meet ■
with among tbe natives, tell them to look at
Otaheite, where the missionaries labored
nearly twenty years, and, not meeting with
the slightest success began to be neglected by
all the Christian world, and tbe very name
of Otaheite was considered a shame to the
cause of missions; but now the blessings be
gin to descend. Tell them to look at Ben
gal also, where Dr. Thomas had been labors
ing seventeen years before the first convert,
Krisha, was baptized. When a few converts
are once made things move on. But it re
quires a n uch longer time than I have been
here, to make a first impression on a heathen
people. If they ask again, What prospect of
ultimate success is there? tell them as much
as that there is an almighty and faithful
God, who will perform His promisee; and
no more. It this does not satisfy them, beg
them to let me stay and make the attempt,
and let you come and give us our bread ; or
if they are unwilling to risk their bread on
such a forlorn hope as has nothing but the
Word of God to sustain it, beg of them at
least not to prevent others from giving us
bread. And, if we live some twenty or
thirty years, they may bear from us again.”
Everlasting thanks be given to our Lord—
tney have been heard Irom. They went
forth weeping, bearing precious seed. The
harvest is being gathered. Innumerable are
the sheaves. So the word of God will every-,
where prevail. D.
A gentleman from Connecticut, in the
custom service of the United States’govern
ment, writes from Shanghai, China: The mis
sionary who comes to China determined to
consecrate bis powers for the elevation of the
race, has not long to remain before realizing
tbe magnitude of the work. He has to deal
with a people who are the slaves of igno
rance, gross superstitions aud prejudice, and
it is only patient, persevering labor that can
produce the results which he hopes and
prays for. Nevertheless in the face of every
obstacle, much has been done and there are
thousands of Chinese who have beon in
duced to forsake their old ways and live in
accordance with the teaching of the gospel.
I am g'ail to add in this connection also the
report of a missionary who has been long in
China and is well acquainted with the work
ing of missions. fie told me, in a voice
full of confidence as of satisfaction, that the
work instead of making slow progress or hex
ing at a stand still, was, on the other hand
progressing rapidly, and that its friends had
every reason to be encouraged. One of the
greatest difficulties, he said, that they ex
perience with tbe people is in trying to make
them understand that they have sinned and
need a change of heart. If a Chinaman is
asked whether he has sinned, whether he has
stolen, falsified or blasphemed, be will reply
‘ Oh yrs, of course; we wont say anything
about that.everybodydoes it, we don't call that
sin.” And then the missionary has to try to
set at naught all this man’s previous train
ing. his life long practices and those of his
friends and neighbors also, and when we
remember the fact that the Chinese are
among the most conservative people in the
world and will from prejudice alone refuse
to adopt certain ways that they can plainly
see are better than their own, we can better
understand what a task the missionary has
before him.
How Missions Pat—At the Inter-Semi
nary Convention at New Brunswick, the
Rev Dr. Scudder of Brooklyn, while enu
merating considerations that should stir en
thusiasm in a minister, made an incisive
statement of the ways in which missions
pay- They pay financially, as the old wheel
wright found who gave one dollar to mis
sions in tbe S indwich Islands, feeling as if
he bad dropped it into tbe sea, but was
amazed to receive not long after an order for
twenty carts at ninety- dollars each. They
pay scienti icaliy, as the sixty languages'
reduced by missionaries to grammatical
form attest. They pay restoratively, as the
Papuan and the Maori of the day bear wit
ness; and Africaner; aud Vara, a Sandwich
Islander, who, born a heathen, on bis death
bed said to friends about him, that bis canoe
was ready, its sail was spread, and his pilot
on board; and a certain Brahman, who,
when converted, beside being invincible in
argument, possessed such eloquence as to
bring tears to Brahman eyes,—a feat as diffi
cult as to wring moisture from the pebbles
of the brook. That they have restored so
ciety and whole nations, let the disappear
ance of Suttee, of Juggernaut, and of drown
ing in the Ganges declare ; and Madagascar
and Polynesia—that submerged continent —
and Fiji with her eight hundred churches
swell the testimony. If, after reflecting on
facts like these, a preacher should have no
zeal for missions, what a "narrow-chested,
spindle legged” character he must be!—
Foreign Missionary.
When the first American missionaries
reached India, the English Government res
fused them a landing. “Go back,” was the
imperious order; “go back in the ship in
which you came.” In the General Assembly
of tbe Church of Scotland, when it was first
proposed to send the gospel to the heathen,
reverend clergymen declared against the
fanatical scheme. They said that “ the
heathen were a contented and happy people,
and that it was no business of Scottish
Christians to disturb them.” And this in
face of our Lord's command, "Go ye into all
tbe world and preach the gospel to every
creature.”
Not a century has passed since that time,
yet now all Christendom rings with con
gratulation over the achievement of Chris
tian missions; and no other class of men is
so reverently canonized in the affections of
the church as her missionaries to the heathen
world. This is the fruit of God’s working
with minorities who were working for him.
Japan.—Dr. Francis Wayland’s books on
"Moral Science” and “Political Economy”
have been translated into Japanese, aud are
in use in all the high schools and colleges of
the country. They are highly appreciated.
Rev. J. Goble visited Mito; and the
teachers and authorities of tbe city, upon
learning tbat he belonged to the same
denomination as Dr. Wayland, received him
with great cordiality, and invited him to
lecture in the hall ofthe law school, which
he did to a large and attentive audience. Mr.
Goble urges that advantage be taken of the
favorable opening made by Dr. Wayland’s
works on the educated classes of Japan, by
translating his religious writings into that
language, and by sending out more Baptist
missionaries to that country.
Italy.—ls any country of Europe might
specially be expected to be eager about reli- *
gious questions, it is Italy, where possibly
two apostles died for Christ's sake; but
Pastor Calvine says, “ Rationalists, liberals,
Catholics, unbelievers, atheists, one meets at
every step; but in all my wanderings I have
sought in vain for a Roman Catholic who is
really such by conviction.” The wife of a
distinguished Italian statesman is quoted as
saying, “ In my circle in the world I see that
real faith is becoming a very rare thing even
among women. You do not often find among
us an infidelity that has been reasoned out, —
an absolute revolt against religion,—but
doubt, coldness and indifference.” —North-
ern Christian Advocate.
When the collection is made for missions
in your church, remember that it is not into
tha basket alone, but into tbe pierced hand
of your Saviour, that you drop your gifts.
The crumbs that fall from your table are for
the dogs : put into that hand something more
than a crumb.