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4 TheGhristianlndex T. P. BELL, I Editors. I J. VAN NESS, f * DIT ° THE PERMANENT COUNCIL. Sometime ago a number of the Baptist churches of New York City inaugurated a brand new de parture in our denominational cooperation. Many evils have undoubtedly existed in connec tion with our Baptist work in the great city of New York. Much of this grows out of tin* peculiar life of that city. Even Brooklyn has not suffered to the same extent. To correct these evils and at the same time make a forward move ment. what is known as the Per manent Council was devised. Councils are the common method of advice and admonition among the Northern Baptists rather than presbyteries. '1 he plan was to constitute a council on the basis of the ordinary council of ordination or advice, but to let this be a permanent body. Churches instead of asking for a council come to this already con stituted body for advice, cither as to the ordination of preachers or the settlement of vexing ques tions. 'The churches entering into this arrangement restrict their calls to the already existing permanent council. We presume these churches would also decline to sit in councils asked for by churches not cooperating in the Permanent Council. In his review of the Baptist life for the last year. Dr. 11. C. Vedder mentions this new depart ure, which has also been intro duced in Detroit, as one of the most notable occurrences of the year, ami one likely to influence the future policy of the denomi nation. It will be of interest then for us to look at the annual series of recommendations. Dur ing the year the Council has as sisted in several ordinations and considered one or two matters of dispute. Here are the recommen dations, as we find them in (he Standard, of Chicago: The following recommendations pass ed by the New York City Permanent Council at its last meeting will be of interest to Baptists throughout the country: While the Permanent Council of Baptist churches of New York City and vicinity does not deem it wise to pre sent anything so formal as a definite denominational policy, it offers to the churches represented in it the follow ing recommendations for the promo tion of their common interests: (1) That churches having any un usual trials, present to the council a statement of their difficulties and bur dens, and the condition of their fields, in order that the brethren may learn of their needs and peculiar circum stances, and consult and advise regard ing the best methods of relief. (2) That prompt attention be given in all cases to requests for letters of dismission; that members of our churches who reside at a distance from their places of worship, anil are there by prevented from attending them, be requested to unite with some Baptist church in their vicinity, where they can be of service; and that their names and addresses be given to the pastor of-the church nearest to them, with the hope that they may be induced to join it. (3) That exchanges between pastors be arranged so that they may lie of mutual service, especially in evangelis tic work for a number of days. (4) That our policy be that of strengthening existing interests on promising fields, rather than that of hastily beginning new enterprises. (5) That the needs and opportunities of the annexed district be specially con sidered and fostered, without, however, overlooking or neglecting the peculiar necessities of the down town fields. (6) That the consolidation of churches practically occupying the same field be encouraged, rather than the continued maintenance of separate organizations, which cannot secure adequate support. (7) That the irresponsible establish ment of mission stations be discourag ed, and that in all cases the previous concurrence, and supervision of some neighboring church, or of the New York City Baptist Mission Society, be secured. Os the wisdom of these recom mendations no one can be in doubt. Leaving out, for a mo ment, the first, that invites the submission of “unusual trials’' to the Permanent Council, we most heartily commend all the others— not the source from which they come, but the great wisdom they display. In a city too much em phasis cannot be placed on mem bership in accessible churches. Cities need some large, strong churches, but the mu>ds are fully met only when with these each neighborhood has its substantial church. It is not well to allow any large number of our Baptist people to be without effective pas toral oversight. Then again, every city presents a present need for the strengthening of existing interests. Our cities have grown rapidly in the last decade or so, and it is necessary to establish what we already have. It is as necessary to strengthen our stakes as to lengthen our cords. In fact, the lengthening of our cords is made effective by the strengthening of the stakes.’ The consolidation of churches on the same territory is also wise. We gain in effectiveness. So much for the wisdom dis played by this new body, as its first contribution to the progress of denominational life. The first year of its history has at least seen no disasters. But was it to be expected that the bad would come out so soon? History does not reveal that ecclesiastical in novations ever started out as dan gerous. Their inauguration us ually had usefulness as an ex cuse. It is only when such new schemes become old and familiar that they do harm. There are, however, objections to such permanent bodies for the direct purpose of influencing churches. In the first place it is absolutely unscriptural. Councils have Scripture warrant in the meeting of the church at Jerusa lem to advise the brethren from Antioch. But for such a perma nent body sending out invitation to be consulted, not the least warrant exists. We of course recognize the existence of certain extra scriptural methods of co operation, but these all proceed from a standpoint entirely differ ent. They are not constituted by the churches to control the churches, but are constituted by the churches to do work that these churches recognize can thus be better done. Nor does it seem at all neces sary to set up such a permanent council. Every bit of this advice could have come from a Church Extension Society with equal force. These recommendations will affect weak or obstreperous churches only as they need money. The same (‘fleet will be produced by a combination for cooperative work in the City Mis sion Society. Unless managed with great wisdom such a council will be a combination of (he strong against the weak and the poor against the rich. Those who have anything to gain will be its friends: when there is gain by staying out it will be done. The (ruth is, there will always be certain defects in our Bap tist system, from a purely hu man standpoint. Only a deep re ligious life, and the cultivation of the spirit of love, mutual interest and kindly helpfulness, can keep us on right terms with each other. The chief factor in the unification of our city forces is the pastors. For ourselves, we believe an in fluence of untold good is being de veloped by our Pastors’ Confer ences. These have practically no organization, but in them are ma tured, by the freedom of familiar ity and friendship, far reaching plans and most effective influ ences. When the pastors in a city are friends and mutually helpful and loving, there is no trouble in working along common lines. FAITH IN US. We are often exhorted to have faith in Jesus. Does it often oc cur to us that Jesus must also have faith in us? As the Bible narrative gives us the incidents connected with the coming of Nicodemus, at night, to Jesus, it mentions that Jesus did not com mit himself to every one, because reading their hearts he found them half hearted or untrue. In Nicodemus, on the contrary, he did have faith, and because of it he confided to him the truth he desired to teach. Nicodemus had but an incipient faith in Jesus, but Jesus had faith in Nicodemus, and because he did, greatly blessed him. It is thus when Jesus bestows pardoning grace on a sinner. An insincere repentance and an in sincere purpose to quit sin and surernder to Christ, bring little response. The risk must be taken ami the heart given. We search and find when we search with all our hearts. Jesus never turned away a soul in whom he had faith. So the Bible exhorts com plete surrender. Jesus wants us to show that we are actually in earnest. It may well be in our minds as we ask favors of God. Jesus asked of the beggar at Bethesda, “Wilt thou be made whole?” It was a pertinent question. Did the man who had always begged want to be able to work Could he be trusted with health and strength? Once assured of this Jesus heals him. May Jesus not well ask the same of us, as we come for blessings? We talk much aljout our faith in him, may it not be that he has no faith in us and dare not trust to us what we desire? The same is doubtless true of prayer. Our faith is one thing. Jesus’ faith in us another. We must remember as we come praying that this is one of its conditions. We must be in a po sition to be trusted by Jesus. So, possibly, it is in our efforts to work. We are lacking in faith, perhaps, but we accept the prom ises and attempt to do. In how many cases, however, are we so that no faith can be reposed in us. Jesus is a never-failing re liance for faith. We are very uncertain terms ourselves. Mr. Moody is said to have determined to show the world what God could do with a man wholly given up to him. Not a little of success may be attributed to that un flinching faithfulness that has characterized him. Success could be intrusted to him. It may not be amiss for us to consider this more frequently in our approaches to Christ and our THE CHRISTIAN INDEX: THURSDAY. JANUARY 24. 1897. requests from him. Let us not only seek to trust, but be so sin cere and earnest that we may ask him to trust us. When those who can be trusted, trust him, there is no limit but his will to either blessing or power. Our friend, Dr. C. C. Brown, of South Carolina, sent us an expia tion of the largely increased re ceipts of the Sunday School Board, when he had predicted its great discomfiture owing to the cut in prices by the Publication Society. We excused his desire to get out of a rather bad plight as a predictor of events, but real ly did not like to expose him to the good-natured smiles of his enemies. He insists, however, that the increase came because of some arrangement with the negroes by which they use por tions of our series. This arrange ment does not seem to be well understood by our brother, but he supposes the increase of near ly SI,OOO in a month's business came from the negro conspiracy. Knowing very positively that whatever arrangement exists does not, and did not, give our Board a cent, we hated to expose our brother. We have been in tight places ourselves. He seems hurt, however, that his “discred ited guess” was not given public ity. In the last Baptist Courier he waxes eloquent over the Janu ary numbers of the Kind Words and counts the number of articles on work among the colored peo ple. Os course those who are in terested in the work of the South ern Baptist Convention, know that January was the month in which all the Woman’s Unions, the Young People’s Unions and the Sunbeam Societies studied this particular phase of our mis sion work. It was very natural, however, for our brother to have been ignorant, and we must ex cuse him, as we would any one in New England or Minnesota. We recommend to Bro. Brown one year of good, hearty, all around, up and down support of the Southern Baptist Convention in all its work. This, with a read ing of the Christian Index, ought to tone him up. Really, as friends of the Publication Society, we would suggest to them that they send Dr. Brown along on Dr. Blackall's tour to Palestine. He predicts too much, and makes is sues that are calculated to work against them. We are inclined Io think he did theSundaySchool Board more good this year than any other one cause. We love Bro. Brown, and it is always a joy to pass compliments with him. May he live long and pros per, even as the Sunday School Board is prospering. May he, like them, soon dwell under his own vine and fig tree and have no one any longer molest him or make him afraid. May he, like the Sunday School Board, grow in usefulness and favor. We are sure he will appreciate such abundant good wishes. As for the arrangement with our colored brethren, we are very sure that no wrong has been done to any one. We have seen some papers on the subject ourselves, but there seemed to be two opinions expressed. As we have known our esteemed colored friends to sometimes see things differently we have learned to be cautious in judging their affairs. But that Southern Baptists are at all like ly to do too much for the negro we seriously doubt. Come, Bro. Brown, you have sent on your contribution to our Foreign and Home Boards, now send on a little to the Sunday School Board for Bible work, and be a fully or ganized Baptist, called by provi dence to dwell in the South. You will feel just like a genuine New Englander does when he gives to the Missionary Union, the Home Mission Society and the Publica tion Society, and as fervently prays for the Southern Baptists and their prosperity. The best union for the Baptists of this country is hearty loyalty to their common faith, and a cordial sup port of the institutions over against them. Few lecturers in Atlanta have been given a more cordial recep tion than Dr. Russell 11. Con well. He was formally greeted by a number of representative Baptists at the Aragon Hotel previous to his lecture. The lec ture brought an audience of un usual size, and they listened for two hours and then were not tired. The subject was “Acres of Diamonds.” It was an intensely practical enforcement of the idea that wealth, usefulness and great ness are to be sought near at hand in our ordinary surround ings. We fancy the lecture will bear fruit in many lives. The special meetings in the At lanta churches continue. The four already started, at Central, Capitol Avenue, Third and Jack son Hill, all go on another week. It is probable that a meeting will be started at the Fifth church this week. The noonday prayer meeting will be held at the Second church this present week. Let is be remembered that this is a common work and will finally end in a union of all the Baptist forces at the Second and First churches. GEORGIA'S LIQUOR DISGRACE The blush of shame should come to every Georgian's face as he reads the reports in the daily papers of the trial, before a legis lative committee, of two judges, on the charge of drunkenness. Whatever opinion one may enter tain concerning the finding of the committee, yet sure it is that one judge, in open committee, in his own defense, tells the shameful story of his having been drunk, having been so drunk as to vomit, and pleads only that thus reliev ed, he was sober enough to hold court without exhibiting his in toxication. Alas! And in a tone that implies con tempt for the whole investigation, the leading daily of the State says of the other judge, that all that was proved was that he oc casionally took “a snap.” In the very paper in which much of this abominable stuff was paraded be fore the public was a long an nouncement of a banquet to be held in this city. The menu of the banquet was given in full. Three kinds of liquors were in cluded and the announcement made of toasts to be drunk. As responding to some of these toasts were given the names of Atlanta’s Mayor and Georgia’s Governor. And even the name, sacred to many, of Robt. E. Lee, was dragged into this drinking spree; for at the mention of his name, the guests were to arise and drink the toast in silence. What a picture for our chil dren to look upon. The public schools are suspended in honor of Gen. Lee and his name is dishon ored by the leading men of the State associating it with liquor drinking. An object lesson truly of evil in which the men that Georgia’s good people have hon ored with their votes, are the most prominent figures. “Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink.” Verily, there is work for the temperance people of this State to do. We have to apologize for some peculiarly atrocious typographi cal mistakes in a portion of our last issue. Tht> forms for the pa per are usually made up Tuesday and proofs from the press fur nished before the edition is print ed. In this case the forms were prepared for the press with the expectation that early the follow ing morning the final proofs could be read. Owing to pressure of work, our printers went ahead at night and before the next morning came had printed a thousand copies. To make it worse, a whole column or more of editorial was slipped in with out having been read at all by us until we got hold of a copy in the morning. Os course that one thousand copies will get to every one critically inclined. We are sorry. It was not our fault. Printing offices, like homes, will go w rong sometimes. Mercer is to have an alumni commencement this year. Dr. Kerr B. Tupper, of Philadelphia, an alumnus, will be the preacher, and ex-Governor Hubbard the orator of the occasion. A ban quet for the alumni will be held and special efforts are being made to get a large number to attend. This is a move in the right direction. In fact, Prof. Pollock is doing so many things along the right line, that after a little none of us will have any further suggestions to make. We will just sit around and see Mercer go on toward her rightful place. We anticipate much pleasure from a trip to Louisville the com ing week. By request of the Woman’s Missionary Union offi cials we go to address the stu dents of the Seminary on the gen eral subject of the work of this Union. The Seminary, under the leadrof Dr. Harris, gives one day eacK month to the consideration of ikissions. In this connection the different lines of work car ried on by the Southern Baptists are presented to the students. We anticipate many other inter esting experiences among the Louisville Baptists. The First Baptist church, of Atlanta, has recently adopted the plan of weekly contributions by the envelope system. It is working wonders. Last Sunday we met a good brother on his way from Sunday-school before its dismissal. He said as he passed, “This envelope system is a great thing, it is making me walk three quarters of a mile.” He had for gotten his envelope but did not propose to miss c'oing his duty for that day. A system like this does double good. It gets money and it gets hold of the people, too. Either result justifies it as wise, both combined make it the wis est system. gpiutt the saptUt The Journal and Messenger: It seems to us that such a presentation of the question of mystery is whole some, and that it ought to be less com mon in our theological schools. On the contrary, it seems to be uppermost in the thought of most teachers that they are not only expected to solve all the mysteries of God, but are to fill the minds of their students with the idea that they also should undertake the same task, for the people to whom they are sent. They are taught to re ject, as untrue, whatever of the Word of God does not yield to their manipu lations, whatever cannot be analyzed in their laboratory. We do not mean to say that the student should not be brought face to face with mysteries; on the other hand we believe that he should be confronted by them, and he should be bidden and encouraged to try his hand on them, to solve them if he can; but he should not be allowed to go away with the absurd idea that he has solved them when he has not, or that he i* only to go on along the line marked out for him, and he will be likely to attain to his object. He should be plainly told that, while a greater intellect, a rapt saint in the glory land, will probably be able to understand what is now mystery, there is no probability that he, while here, will be able to do more than his pre decessors have done, and that there will probably be mysteries after he has passed on with all his marvellous wisdom and ingenuity. In a word, the student in theology, as well as the Christian in common life, should be told distinctly where the bound of hu man knowledge seems to be, what he ought to know, and when he has reached the probable limit of his at tainments and achievements in that direction. There is a science of elec tricity, even though men do not know what electricity is; so there is a sci ence of theology, even though men do not know how a man can be "born when he is old.” The Western Recorder; We know of no Baptists who hold that the valid ity of baptism depends on our ability to trace a succession of administrators back to the days of the apostles. That would involve sacramentalism, which Baptists have ever resisted to their ut most. All Baptists make their appeal to Scripture; and in so far as a man appeals away from the Bible to his tory, to establish the validity of obedi ence to any of God’s commands, just so far he is not a Baptist. Many Bap tists (and we are among the number) believe unfalteringly that there have been those who were essentially Bap tists (by whatever name they may have been called), “from the days of John the Baptist until now.” We be lieve this because the Bible so teaches, and would believe it if all history were a blank from the days of Paul to the days of Judson. God has promised the continuity of his people, but he has not promised to give us a continuous record of their existence. The fact rests on God’s promise, while the rec ord rests on historic research. Since such research is the work of man. to build on that would be to build on a human foundation; and this no Bap tist can do. It is, to be sure, gratify ing to know that the more historic re search is prosecuted, the more evidence is found that God has fulfilled his promise through the centuries and has never left himself without witnesses. Our denomination ought to press such research with all vigor. We have much to gain and nothing to lose by such investigation. The Religious Herald: How is this? In the comments on the Sunday-school lesson in the Western Recorder of Jan uary 7th, we find the following re markable utterance on a well-known passage: “For the remission of sins.” “If they would repent of their sins and show by their obedience that they had faith in the great doctrines of the blood and of regeneration which- baptism sym bolized, God would pardon their sins, and they, too, would receive the gift of baptismal regeneration in Peter’s words.” “Baptismal regeneration,” “baptis mal regeneration”—what under the sun does this mean? “The gift of baptismal regeneration in Peter’s words.” Really this is too much. Whither is the Western Recorder drifting? What new doctrine is it promulgating? We are bewildered. We are sure such doctrine as this could not have escaped the watchful eye of Dr. Hall, lately on the editorial staff of the Recorder, now editing the American Baptist. But, alas! he is in St. Louis. Still Dr. Spencer is in Ken tucky, and there are others. Our Louis ville friends must not become so ab sorbed in the question of the Kiffin manuscripts as to let such rank Camp bellism as this pass muster. “They, too, would receive the gift of baptismal regeneration in Peter’s words.” Think of such heresy in the Western Re corder! The Watchman: If this diagnosis is correct, the question naturally arises, What kind of appeal is best adapted to arouse these low-toned Christians? We are not doubtful of the answer. It is that presentation of the Gospel which makes it supremely desirable, which makes its blessings, its privi leges and opportunities supereminent. When the man finds “a pearl of great price” or stumbles on “a treasure hid in a field,” he is ready at once to "sell all that he has” to possess it. We need preachers who shall be able to present the Gospel as the most desira ble thing in the universe. That was one great excellence of Phillips Brooks as a preacher. His doctrinal positions were not always beyond criticism, but he made the Christian life great and noble, and worthy, supremely attract ive to the highest desires. He pre sented it so that the service of Christ, and the reward of his fellowship, ap peared as the one supremely worthy thing in life. In response to that ap peal the spiritual horizon cleared and widened, and men went down to their homes less worldly, more vividly con scious of the eternal life. The Baptist News: The kingdom of God when first it comes into a man is like a grain of mustard seed planted in the field. The seed planted in the field is all right and has in it the mustard life, but in the field are weeds and briers. They are indigenous to the soil. They will cover and choke the plant which comes from the mus tard seed, if they are left alone. So the man in whom the kingdom of God is planted has in his nature the old appetites, the old passions, the old ten dencies. These are liable to hinder the growth of the kingdom more or less. They must be constantly watched and kept under. The Baptist Courier. A common, unvarying moral standard is of in finitely greater significance. Such a standard is set up once for all in the Gospel. In its beauty, symmetry, love- t liness and power it shines there, stea-‘" dying human thought amid the dizzy whirls of our narrow little reflections, fixing a great sun-lllte, full orbed glory in our sky that casts its splendor to the utmost limits of our destiny, so that we can see our way. We know henceforth what to approve and what to condemn; we know what to be like. The perfect manhood of Jesus Christ is destined to unify man’s moral conceptions the world over, and displace every partial, human, inferior ideal. Let us labor in this sublime hope of our calling. The example and the character of our Lord instantly commend themselves to those acquainted with them. And when all come into the faith of Christ, and unto the stature of the fulness of the Christ we shall not see a dead, unbroken uni formity of character, tiresome to be hold, but the profoundest, richest, most blessed variety of character and of Christian manhood. Christ-likeness does not mean sameness, dreary mon otony, but the richness of life, just as we have it in nature, life manifold and boundless in its upspringing and forth reaching. Christian unity does not nec essarily involve sameness of thought on a dogmatic basis. Forcing similar ity of thought on the basis of dogma has always been a futile, unprofitable business. The grandest unity is that formed in an agreement to be like Christ, to apprehend as best finite be ings may, the thought, the inner most, sacredest life of the Lord. Where this aim is present and operative in its full vigor, there will be that spiritual unity for which the Lord prays in his well-known intercessory prayer. The Alabama Baptist: To preach before the Queen of England is the ambition of many a young clergyman, but very few attain the coveted honor. Dr. Macleod, when he preached his first sermon in the presence of the queen, not only did well, but captured her to so great a degree that in speak ing of it she said, “Anything finer I never heard; the sermon, entirely ex tempore, was quite admirable; so sim ple and yet so elegant, and so beauti fully argued and put.” This was cer tainly a fine compliment. Here now is the reason why it so impressed her majesty—listen to Dr. Macleod’s own account of it: “I preached without a note —and I never looked once at the royal seat, but solely at the congrega tion. I tried to forget the great ones I saw, and remember the great ones I saw not.” These last words tell the marvelous strength and power and effectiveness of evangelical preaching. Forget self, forget the rich, the learn ed, the famous, and remember the great ones you see not. Worldly minded, ambitious, aspiring preachers may tickle the fancy, captivate the superficial, charm the pleasure seeker, without ever proclaiming a single Gos pel truth. What we need is more simple portrayal of the truths of the blessed Son of God. Tell the old, old story so that the most ignorant and unlearned can grasp it. Learn of the Great Teacher, as he preached that memorable Sermon on the Mount with so much earnestness and simplicity. The Standard: In a meeting re cently held in Chicago to consider plans for a general evangelistic move ment, two different opinions were ex pressed as to the degree of publicity to be given to revival meetings. Some of those who had been asked to be present at the conference replied that they doubted the wisdom of bringing the preliminary arrangements of such an enterprise before the public, just as they doubted the value of the news paper reports, often sensational and misleading, of such meetings as those held by Mr. Moody in New York and Boston. A son-in-law of Mr. Moody, on the other hand, who has been asso ciated with the evangelist, expressed the opinion that the good accomplished by these newspaper reports is far greater than any incidental misunder standing due to errors. He did not except even the metropolitan journals, notorious for their ability to turn everything into a jest; some of them have been the means of doing great good. The Biblical Recorder: Men say they wish their occupations Were not secular—such as farming, blacksmith ing, manufacturing, store-keeping and the like. They profess and probably believe, that they would be very happy if their entire time were given to re ligious work. They make a great mistake. The all-wise Father intend ed that there should be more farmers than preachers, and he did not intend that there should be less witnesses for Christ than there are Christian farmers. Any man who makes an honest living and also witnesses for Christ does his duty just as fully as the preacher who answers the call to preach. To Christians there should be no secular occupation. Christ made his carpenter-shop sacred; Paul made his business of tent-making sacred. So can any modern worker. The trouble with those who fail to do this is not in their work, but in them; they do not disobey God as to their work, but they do disobey him in refusing also to wit ness for Christ. The Baptist Outlook: What a pecu liarly Christian motive for industry is that which the apostle gives in his letter to the Ephesian church when he exhorts —“Rather let him labor, work ing with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have whereof to give to him that needeth”! That a man should be industrious and thrifty and prudent not for his own or his family's sake, or to keep the wolf from his own door, or that he may be able to spend money upon luxurious indulgences, but that he may have something to give away to others in charity, is in full ac cord with the spirit of Christianity, though not by any means the usual motive. It illustrates from a some what novel point of view the moral power and benevolent impulses of the Gospel. * The Examiner: We have received information that the arbitration treaty is in serious peril. The contemptible spite of senators promises to defeat this most righteous agreement between the two leading Christian nations of the world, unless tremendous pressure is brought to bear upon them to ratify it. We therefore urge our readers to send letters or telegrams to their sen ators at once, protesting vehemently against the defeat or postponement of the treaty. Failure to ratify it would be a colossal disgrace. Let the Senate know that the country will not pa tiently submit to its petty objections to this crowning achievement of the century. yews. HELD NOTES. The farmers are turning up the soil in a hurry in South Georgia for the new crop. Brother farmers in Georgia: Plant an abundance of corn this year, so that there may be bread and to spare in ’97. Errata, last week’s field notes. sth note, R. H. Baskin and not N. H. Bas kin. 14th note, ourself and not our selves. In 16th note, Kollock St. church and not Hollock St. church. In 18th note, predestinated-medium and not medicine-twice. In a private letter from Pastor B. B. Williams, of Girard, Ala., we learn that our church there had a prosper ous year last year—twenty-nine new members received, seventeen by bap tism. We wish pastor and church a prosperous new year. At Americus, Ga., Pastor J. B. Tur pin is in deep sympatny with the State paper—the Index. He prepared his people for the coming of the Index man, by giving his brethren and sis ters a good Index talk the Sabbath be fore our coming. Two sad deaths occurred in the Americus church while we were there. They were Mr. Bloom Brown, and young Mr. Hart. We sympathize hear tily with their loved ones who are left behind. Brother and Sister J. W. Harris, of Americus, gave us a royal welcome, and helped us in our work much by lending us their horse and buggy, and giving us good cheer. We are very grateful. Brother Ben Worthey, bookkeeper for J. W. Harris in Americus, made the field editor a present of a splendid I. X. L. pocket-knife last week. Thank you, Bro. Ben. Since our last visit to Americus Bro. Robert L. Maynard has been elevated to the county judgeship, and Bro. Frank A. Hooper to the position of so licitor-general. We enjoyed worshiping with the Americus saints at their mid-week ser vice last week. Pastor Turpin was sick and could not attend. He was bet ter on Friday. At Buena Vista we found Pastor N. R. Sanborn sick with grip, but able to sit up. The pastor’s home is a thing of beauty since it has re ceived a new jacket of new paint. Sis ter Sanborn is a charming housewife, and preacher’s helper. The church is delighted With their new pastor and his family. Prof. J. H. Melson Is principal of the high school at Buena Vista. has a fine school, and his patrons have a fine teacher. The grip is greatly in terferring with the attendance there and everywhere. Deacon E. M. Thorpe, of Buena Vis ta, together with his dear family, have suffered much with grip, but are im proving. We are grateful to Bro. Thorpe for keeping our Index folks stirred np. We did a fine work in a short time. At Ellaville Ga., we missed Uncle Jimmie and Aunt Bess. It was not their meeting day. Pastor J. A. Griffin and his flock at Ellaville are sun in love* with each other; may it ever be thus. Brother Charley Chambliss, of Ella ville, Ga., will act as our Index agent for that office. The brothers out in the country will please leave their reve nues with him. The citizens of Ellaville are building themselves a fine, new, commodious academy. The town and villages all over Georgia are building elegant school-houses, and in most instances, have fine schools. Deacon Cullen L. Battle, of Ella ville, is eighty years old; he has been a constant subscriber to the In dex for more than fifty years. He has been a deacon for about the same length of time. He acted as pastor pro tem, and helped us much. Dear Cousins in the Corner: Did you read Uncle Jimmie’s suggestions in last week’s field notes? We hope you did, and. that his fatherly advice may do you much good in this new year. Now, everyone of you ought to read the New Testament through in this new year. Suppose every one of you qommences right now and read a chap ter every day. Be sure and study hard, so you may un derstand what you read about. Sup pose each one of you begins now and sees how many chapters of Scripture you can commit to memory in ’97; it will help you so much. The Scriptures we committed to memory' when we were young, are still fresh in our mind, and they have done us so much good. Try it, won’t you? We hear quite a lot of complaint among the good old brethren and sis ters in many churches in Georgia, be cause their pastors do not preach enough about the grand old doctrines of grace. They say that they are al most starving for the bread and meat of the Gospel. Wake up, brother pas tors, and feed the flock. In traveling over Georgia and taking a careful look at men and things, we are powerfully convinced that the greatest opportunity the Baptists have ever had in this State is upon them now—to give no uncertain Gospel sound, but to preach a whole Gospel. Salvation by grace, through faith, in many pulpits, is almost an unheard-of thing. We are sure that the Lord is looking to Baptists to give the Gospel to this State, the truth as it is—in Je sus Christ. Shall we fail to do it? Shall the Lord look to us in vain? We feel quite sure that there are too many of our preachers in dear old Georgia who are proclaiming from their pul pits, from Sabbath to Sabbath, every thing else but the Gospel of the grace of God as it is found only in the New Testament? What is the matter with us preacners anyhow? Have we become apes? Are we afraid of the Philis tines? or have we taken up the union cry, that it don’t make any difference what church we belong to, or that it don’t make any difference which road we take. Are there Lords many, and ways many, and Gospels many, and salvations many, and baptisms many? We, for one, don’t think so, but like Paul, we believe that there is but “one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.” Now, brother preachers, let us wake up and give the lost sinners of Georgia the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Let us be loyal to God and his precious word of grace, or—well, just quit, and don’t be called a preacher of the Gospel any more. JAMES F. EDENS, 380 Woodward Ave., Atlanta, Ga.