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SOUTHWESTERN BAPTIST, / THE CHRISTIAN HERALD,
of Alabama. or Tsnnbbskk.
HARRISON, WHARTON & LAWTON,
Proprietors.
ght geligiouf gresf.
Ministers and private Christians, who
strive to do their whole duty, in spite of
their deep sense of personal inefficiency, may
derive comfort, if not courage, from the
words of the Congregationalist:
Said Horace Mann, “The mattock will
make a deeper hole in the ground than light
ning.” True; and the unpretending out
earnest and faithful believer, who does not
regard himself as a “shining light” in the
church, but humbly and prayerfully does
with all his heart the successive duties which
devolve upon him as a Christian, is worth
more to the church and the community than
a dozen of the showy people who are in
clined to harangue others whenever there
is an opportunity, and to boast of their in
timacy with God, and to pose in public as
eminent Christians.
The Christian at Work's sympathies are
called out by the very kind reception
given it by all the denominational papers,
and it says that if ever it becomes a denomi
national paper it will be Congrepresbymetho
baptistepiscoreformed. Don’t forget about
that domestic fowl. She undertook to incu
bate twelve dozen eggs. They didn’t all
hatch. — Interior.
In the invention of such words, our New
York contemporary might be more fitly called
the Christian at Play. And yet that word ex
actly describes the kind of church which
certain advocates of loose communion would
establish —a merging of all denominations
into one, where every man should be free to
hold his individual creed and every local
assembly to observe its own forms of gov
ernment and order.
—“When an excuse is wanted it is not a
difficult matter to frame some sort of one.”—
Tennessee Baptist. “How does The Baptist
know?” — Christian Index. "From reading the
Index— your controversy with Bro. L., of the
Journal and Messenger."—Tennessee Baptist.
We can hardly think that “the oldest Bap
tist editor in the United States” can serious
ly and honestly profess to have become a
learner from one of the youngest. But if he
has, we can only say that he sadly mislearns,
after the fashion illustrated by the fact that
Herbert Spencer learned from Hamilton the
atheism that Hamilton never taught—and
the antinomianism that Calvin never
taught Crisp nevertheless learned from Cal
vin. We never had anything deserving to
be called a controversy with the Journal and
Messenger. In the nearest approach to it the
Baptist was on our side, we think. Did he
range himself with us then because of the
lesson he now professes to have learned from
us 1
The Hartford Beligious Herald puts us in
possession of a fact which speaks badly for
Congregational deacons; are there any Bap
tist deacons who see in this story their own
likeness? There are some, we know, and,
we believe, there are many, who do not; but
is this true of all ?
“One of the most gifted and efficient Chris
tian workers, when remonstrated with as
doing too much, said, “Well, I will keep on
as long as I can, and when I can’t do any
more, will get appointed deacon and rest.”
It was not said with censoriousness but with
humor.
The Atlanta Constitution has made the dis
covery that Spurgeon’s sermons are “such
stuff’,” and that their publication would be
newspaper “suicide.” In behalf of evangel
ical Christians generally, we thank that
journal for information so important in
itself, and conveyed to the public in a style
so gentlemanly.
Ata Ministers’ Meeting in the Presbyteri
an Rooms of St. Louis, one of the brethren
was glancing through Prof. Patton’s article
on Pentat.euchal Criticism, which has just
appeared in the Presbyterian Review, and sud
. denly exclaimed, “Listen, brethren, to gome-
ATLANTA, GA, THURSDAY, MAY 31, 1883.
thing rich from Prof. Brown.” He then
read as follows the quotation given by Prof.
Patton: “If, indeed, it should ever appear
that Jesus, for the purpose of avoiding a
strife with the Jews which might have ob
structed His work, and in which no princi
ple was at stake, used His absolute discretion
in omitting to make any statement as to the
authorship of the Pentateuch, because He
knew the popular belief to be false, while
He freely and rightly appealed to Moses’
authority whenever it could serve His pur
pose, we could only admire his wise cau
tion.” This was received with a shout of
laughter, and another of the brethren said,
“Well, the other day a revivalist came to me
with a story of a remarkable awakening
which had occurred under his preaching.
He was unhappily married, and, believing
that if it were known he had a disagreeable
and badly behaved wife, his influence would
be sorely crippled and the revival come to
an untimely end, when he was plainly asked
if he were married, he promptly answered,
‘I am not.’ Brethren, you can make your
own application of this authentic narrative
to the views of Prof. Brown concerning the
Lord Jesus Christ.”— St. Louis Evangelist.
The cases are fairly parallel. The “Crit
icism” which reduces the sinless One to the
level of this untruthful revivalist may call
itself “Higherbut the work it does cer
tainly belongs to the Lower Religion.
“Leigh-street has such an organist as has
not been heard of before in these parts. He
opens the choir-practicings with prayer, ac
quaints its members with the history of
hymns, so that they may better sing with
the spirit and the understanding, and as
sembles them ten or fifteen minutes before
the hour of worship that they may cultivate
a devotional frame of mind.”—S. C. Clopton,
in Central Baptist.
There is reason to fear, in many cases,
that singing is the part of Christian worship
which is least Christian. Perhaps, it should
be most so, as praise is the highest form of
devotion, and singing is the highest form of
praise. Faults here are like flaws in the
keystone of the arch.
John Brown, the late faithful servant of
the Queen, was indulged in life, and honor
ed in death by his Sovereign. To all except
the Queen, his arrogance had been unbeara
ble. Princess and noblemen had been snub
bed and treated as his equals. He knew the
Queen was indulgent. The memorial wreath
of the Queen had a memorial card attached,
bearing the following words in her own
handwriting : “A tribute of loving, grate
ful and everlasting friendship and affection,
from his truest, best and most faithful
friend, Victoria, R, I.” A card for Lord
Beaconsfield had this inscription: “A mark
of true affection, friendship and regret.”
That for Dean Stanley was inscribed : “A
mark of sincere affection and high esteem.”
John Brown, the menial, got the strongest,
warmest expression.— Christian Visitor, St.
John, New Brunswick.
The heart is not governed by external dis
tinctions —is one obvious inference from
these facts. And another, quite as obvious,
when stated is, that royalty carries with it a
terrible isolation, which often drives the
heart across the lines of external distinction
in quest of objects, on which friendship and
affection may rest. Less than any one of
her subjects, was Queen Victoria at liberty
to choose her associates; and the vital need
of companionship, thus “cabined, crib
bed, confined” in its indulgence, turned to
the menial, largely because he was within
its reach as others were not.
“The ink of it is a brave man’s life-blood,”
wrote Carlyle, of Hugh Miller’s last work.
And there is rarely anything spoken or writ
ten so as to lay hold on the life and heart of
others unless more or less of the life-blood
of him who utters it has gone into its com
position or its expression.— Sunday school
Times.
This is a profound truth ; and akin to it is
the saying of Goethe, “If you would create
something, you must be something.” The
religious teacher must experience the truth
which he hopes to proclaim with effect; it
must be rather his heart that speaks it, than
his lips. Paul could not preacjj “Christ Je-
sus as Lord,’’without preaching himself as
the “bond-servant” of men “for Jesus’
sake.” (2 Cor. 4 : 5).
The Christian women of 1883 are doing the
very work done by them when Phebe, Pris
cilla, Dorcas, and others, were exponents of
the gospel truth, and living examples of its
dinine power. Woman’s work for Christ in
this day is a restoration, not an innovation.
—Nashville Christian Advocate.
It is neither—it is a continuation. If there
is any “succession” on which we may count
as both scriptural and historical with abso
lute assurance, it is the succession of the
Phebes,the Priscillas, and their like, through
all the ages.
The social influence of Unitarianism is
enervating on church creeds. Dr. Duryea
said recently that Boston is the hardest
place on the continent for a minister who
preaches a pure gospel, and that it requires
years for such a man to make his influence
widely felt. It is good news for Baptists
everywhere, that as our churches were the
chief guardians of orthodoxy in the first
general apostacy to Unitarianism, so they
are the strongest and most successful
defenders of an evangelical faith to
day. They have never faltered, and their
influence is deeper and more pervasive than
at any previous time.
This testimony by the Boston correspon
dent of the N. Y. Examiner, as to the state of
our churches in “the modern Athens,’’speaks
well for the people whom Providence has
called to protest through the ages against
“New Theologies,” and to stand for the de
fence of “the faith delivered once for all to
the saints.”
From Mexico.
[Atlanta Post-Appeal.] f
Dr. James S. Lawton, of Atlanta, who
left with a large party from Georgia to At
tend the Southern Baptist Convenrfon
which met in Waco, Tex., some weeks/ago,
returned to the city yesterday, lookin/ hale
and hearty. A Post-Appeal representative
found the Doctor in conversation wi/h Colo
nel Redding at the Agricultural Depar
tment yesterday, and straightway began
asking him about the “Lone Statr State :
“Just back from Texas, Doctrf?”
“Yes, sir.” f
“Had a pleasant trip, did ydu ?”
“Oh, yes. But I enjoyed mwtrip to Mexi
co much better than I did ts Texas.”
“To Mexico?” /
“Yes, to Mexico. AndAt is the poorest
country I ever saw.” /
“Well, tell me something about your
trip ?” J-
“There is really noipnuch to tell. The ex
cursion was tendera^our party by the rail
roads from LaredoJ’ which is 277 kilometers
from Monterey, Jwhich was our objective
point. There wjre about three hundred in
the party, and Won’t think I ever felt as op
pressive weather in my life. The thermom
eter ran up t<j 112 degrees, and with the
muddy water‘which we had to drink it was
almost unbearable. The country between
Laredo and Monterey is low’, and being be
tween two mountains it would be reasonable
to suppose that it was very fertile and rich,
but not so. The soil is poor and dry and is
covored with wild cactus, which, when cut
down and the thistles burned off, makes the
principal forage for cattle. The mosquite
tree grows in abundance over the valley,
and resembles very much our common wil
low, being small and crooked. Now and
then I saw small patches of corn, but it
looked mighty sickly for the want of rain.
The only irrigation the valley receives is
from the little streams that flow down from
the mountains, and of course it is almost
impossible for vegetation to grow at all.
I noticed one very large flock of goats
and some cattle and sheep.”
“If there is no corn or cotton raised, and
but few cattle, how do the people subsist?”
“Well, they are known to be the laziest
race of people on the globe, and I suppose
they depend mainly upon smuggling. To
show you what kind of people they are, an
American and one who had been in the
country for some time,told me that the race,
generally speaking, had the cunning of a
Spaniard, the treachery of an Indian, the la
ziness of a negro and the meanness of Amer
icans.”
F.«tabll>hert IHal.
VOLUME 01.—NUMBER 23.
“Doctor, are the cities laid off with any
uniformity or symmetry ?”
“Yes, the cities, or rather the only one I
saw, was laid off in angles, with the streets
painfully narrow. The houses are all built
of solid rock, and perfectly square. The ho
tel at which I stopped was built like a fort.
There was but. one entrance and that was
heavily barred with large iron hinges at
night. Inside there is a court and the
rooms have but one door and that opens out
on that court. There is not a single window
to any of the rooms, and to keep from suffo
cating you have to leave your door open all
the time. This style was adopted on account
of so many attacks made by the neighboring
tribes.”
“What sort of fare do they have at the ho
tels ?”
“The fare may suit some people, but please
excuse me. The most popular dishes are
‘Leche de Burro,’ or asses’ milk, which is
used for coffee and drinking purposes. An
other is ‘Chile Con Carne,’ which is made of
beef and red pepper, with a large majority
of the latter. This is also a very popular
dish. I noticed another very striking dis
similarity between that country and ours.
Everybody gambles—men, women and child
ren. They have tents pitched on the plazas,
and they carry on every species of gambling
known to them. Old women go in and
throw down their money with as much grace
as a gambling prince. It is not looked on
as a crime, but upon the other hand they es
teem a successful gambler. By the way,l visit
ed Bishop’s Castle,which stands on the moun
tain and overlooks Monterey. This is the
place where General Taylor held Monterey
so long. Everything looks natural; the old
cannons are still there and the Castle has bid
defiance to the hand of time.”
“Didyyou witness the popular Mexican
amusement a “Bull Fight ?”
“No, but the party secured an invitation
to attend, but they could not stay over.” I
/‘So you don’t like Mexico?” “Nipt
jtuch.”
r “Much obliged Doctor.” »
■ “You’re welcome.”
Thus the reporter left, with the smoke.oi
a fragrant Mexican cigar, which the Doctor,
bad given him, curling over his head.
Governor McDaniel.
We take pleasure in reproducing in this
issue of the Index, for the benefit of our j
readers, the fine portrait of Gov. McDaniel, :
which appears in the June number of the
Southern Cultivator. Gov. McDaniel is the t
son of brother I. O. McDaniel, a most excel- ’
lent Christian gentleman, and, like his dis- ■
tinguished son, an active and devoted mem
ber of the Baptist denomination. Governor
McDaniel’s father has served the denomina
tion with great zeal. He was one of the
most prominent founders of the Second
Baptist church, of this city, purchasing the
lot on which this splendid building now
stands, and presenting it as his gift to the
church. He was also a large contributor to
the building fund.
We had a pleasant call from him last
week, and he gave us a very interesting ac
count of the early history of this church, as
well as of Atlanta. Our brother Irwin was
the first pastor of this church. In 1855, after
the building had been roofed in, a storm
swept the roof away, and otherwise damaged
the building. It looked like an irreparable
loss, but brother McDaniel was not discour
aged, and the work progressed with renewed
vigor. Surely the reward of his labor has
been great, and the fruits thereof will grow
long after he has been “called up higher.”
It was in Atlanta that the present Govern
or of Georgia was taught by precept and ex
ample the lessons of Christian manhood,
which have ripened him into the man he
now is, the Chief Executive of a great State,
a wise Christian statesman, beloved and es
teemed by all classes. No doubt the people
will see to it, that his fine abilities and qual
ities of bead and heart will find still broader
fields of usefulness in the future, for the
benefit of the Commonwealth.
—“Fanning a spark of slander into a flame
of blood,”is the latest specimen of Kentucky
rhetoric in a trial for murder.