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£l)c Pailn Courier. B. T. CHAPMAN, KDiTOK A N I* PUOI*It IK T O It. MAMMOTH STEAM POWER-PRESS. rniurtATicus cr the cobmek. tT7*Commnnicatton* n<t Irttir* cont*lnlr Dw. from *ll quarter* an* respectfully soll-ilteJ E7*ltejectet mvnu-rript* will not le return* 1. j tut •teitrero I ncoorlins to rrqur.t CfS o communication or letter will to in-ort- ! e>l. Hnte** the name of liie author m-i'oinpittiie-i it. ITT-AU communication* on 1 |.-ttori-mu l to written on one silo only of the piper, to iu-ure m-ertion. ,i /•l.rttrr* nn*t communication* oer.t hr mail mu*l he poitpaiJ or they will uot le; taken from : the odea. For pri X ulart / ItrWl ore First Tot* niscornsE. - -i 11V Till: REV. It. 1.. BitKCK. or v icox. JXHcrrrtl Ir fatt the Syno.l of Georgia, in the Jit.tr /tendent Prts'.yt, ei.ttt Church in the Ci ty of Sn-annnh, oil T/t.mlsgt ftng Jt.ii/, .Xorein'er 25/ tt, 1 S.V2. Jhtht to l.ath the t.o ./ A'//-e/ in “ 1 famst, hi. It Tli * history of th* great State of Georgia i* bounded on either extreme by thunk-git ing. One hundred mi l nineteen years since from Felitnnry last, the little band who were the flrwt to plant the standard of civilization and of Anglo Saxon rule within the present ex tend nl limit* of the State, whilst yet enjoying the hospitality of your neighbor* across the r.ver that sweeps hv your beautiful city, upon the return of their distinguished leader who had come forward and Selected the Spot Upon which we now stand ns the place to commence the subjugation of the forest, observed a day of solemn thanksgiving to the great Author of life, for their preservation amid the perils of the deep and the .prospect of speedy settlement in their now home. To-day their descendant*, and tbo*e who have with them *ueeec led to the land, the perils of whose wilderness state were first braved hy them, defended hy them sue eesrively from Indian depredation, Sptni-h aggression, and llritish tyranny, in neoorl nnee with the proelamation of the Chief Magi*. Irate of the Commonwealth, nre congregated in their numerous Christian temples to return thanks to the Itnler of earth for preservation from that hour to the present time, anil es pecially for the prosperity and hleseings of the passing y >ar. The prevalence of this beauti ful custom at this remote |>eriod, and the pub lic sentiment which re min s mi l sustains it, are gratifying evidences that the spirit of piety which characterised the founders of the’colony s > eminently, and which was manifested hy the eoloni-ts on.this occasion, still lives milling thi* people. The introduction to the history of the colony upon its arrival in the Western world was prayer and thanksgiving, and the lat page, which we this day add to the history of the Slate, is praise. The occasion which this people have for thanksgiving is great, mi l i< obvious upon the review of their history from the period to which have referred, or of the agricultural year, the fruit* of which are now being gather ed in. The place in which we stand, and the present advanced mi l prosperous condition of the commonwealth, arc favorable to a com parative retro-peet to that day of thanksgiving which bounds the other side of its history.— Then a feeble hand, poor and fortuneless, de pendent upon the noble philanthropy w.ich laid the foundation of the Stat; stood with an unbroken forest in prospect before them. Its stillne-s had never hern d'sturbed hy the sound if the white- man's axe, or hammer, or saw. The red man was abroad in the lan I. A fickle, unstable friend, a mereih--* foe, they would bo liable at any 10-ur of the night to be wakened by the lurid flame'of their dwellings’ kindled by him, and by hi* wild and savage war-whoop. Several year*after, the Indian vil lage of Vaniacraw stood side by side with the vil lage of Sax am mb. At a still later period when, it hundred year* ago, hy the limitation of the charter, the colony passed from the hands of those noble men whose bcnevolanec had given it being, and had watched over its infancy, and was merged into the l'.rili-h crown, Savan nah was s.'d a village of a few hundred inhab itant*. The second city of the State, now alive with commerce, and the sounds of the spindle and loom, was still smaller; and the thir l and fourth cities of the present commonwealth had no existence until three quarters of a century later. A few scattered s -ttleinents, at this time, were found along the Savannah and Oge. ehce. mi l on the north hank of the Altnmnhn, and a single village and fortification near tin* | coast further south. The contrast presented by the present condition of the State, is one j that cannot, with those who have any sense of an overiuling providence, hut call for gratitude ; mid thanksgiving t th - Iluler of nations and 1 States. The tide of Anglo-Saxon population, 1 which a hundred years ago rested on the Alta inalia, ha< crossed that stream, nnd moving on westward, has crossed the Oconee, the Ocinul- j •gee, ihe Flint, and left the western boundary of; the State on the distant Chattahoochee. Nor ha* it stopped with tin- limits of the State, hut j Tolling on, forming other PtaU-s in it* course,! has overleaped the Chattahoochee, the Ala bama, the Tombeckbec, the great Mississippi, j the Sabine, the Ilraros, the Colorado, and now 1 stands re*t!e* and impatient on the bank of the Kio del Norte. From a C-eble colony, in n century, lleorgia has grown to be a great anil powerful State; from a few thousand |>eoplo, it now numbers nearly a million of inhabitant*.. Surviving a most wretelied nnd destructive leg iilntire policy adopted for it during its colonial infancy, pri.iing safely through the danger* from Indian and S|ni.-h incursion, preserved through the struggle of the Revolution, the blessing of <sod resting upon its State policy, it has arisen from a position of comparative in- I f.-riority, which it occupied only n few years since, to be the empire State of the South, and one of the first in the confederacy for the j wealth and refinement of Its people, its m.anii- j facture* and valuable Internal Improvements. I A hundred years ago, at the time of the roe. *- I ron of Ueorgia to tho crown of England, Ful • ton was not horn. Now the locomotive rushes I and plunge* along It* iron track, from the At- j lantie to th ? Tenncafee, from the Savannah to ; the Chattahoochee ; and your steamer* follow- i Ing the track of commerce on your rivers, hear i forth to th- bo*om >f the Ocean your great sta- ! pie—a richer staple far than the silk with which the founder* of tloorgia thought to en- - rich the mother country—there to he distrihut- ‘ cl to every portion of the earth. The past history of th- commonwealth then, the foster-, lug care of <lo<l, which ha* brought it to its pcesent high position, demand* of tlinso who enjoy it* blessing* nnd immunities, this memo- j rial in the consecration of ibis day to the grate- j ful worship of the Author of it* prosperity. Rut present hh-**ing, th blessing* of the ! passing year, call still more loudly for praise i from thi* people. If nny Stnte* in theconfed- I eraoy are more manifestly d-pcndciit upon i Divine Providence than others, they are those whose sustenance and wealth, are depend ent upon a single staple, mid that so pre- carious in its growlh anil so variable in its re turn* a* the great Maple of the southern States. During the agricultural nnd commercial year which expire! within the present civil year, the return.” of your lands in this staple were unprecedented—more than sufficient to supply j those productions of necessary consumption, j from the failure of which, otherwise, many of your people would have been reduced to great , extremity. During the present year, a still more favoring Providence has crowned your I field* with plenty, has made your granaries to 1 teem with stores, and is crowding your levees, ! your warehouses, your depots, and is lading down your steamers, with the great product of 1 your State. The uncertain thread, so slender, ’ and of such brittle material, upon which the t yearly interests of the State are hung, ha*been | woven Into a great cable, sufficient to render ; secure the sustenance aud wealth of the people, j These, w ith the blessings of peace, exemption : from the pestilences with which other commu nities have been visited, free, ‘civil, and reli gious'institutions, which have been preserved to you, and national prosperity which, ns a mem ber of the confederacy you share, make a highly favored lot in view of which the people of this commonwealth may well make the me morial of til!* day, nu I ’ • the language of praise with Samuel and the Israelite", “Hither to lintli til* Lord helped s.” To you, fathers and brethren in the ministry and eldership, the concurrence of this day of public tli ink “giving with the annual meeting of your Synod, cannot fail to heacircumstance of some interest. It adds also to the interest of the and <y. in the reception of the tributary of your praise nud thanksgiving ns a body re pr. s nting more than a hundrei congregations of intelligent Christian*. Your pres nee here, rend ring iinprauicnhle public religious servi c-s in many of the congregations, transfers to this spot the formal recognition of the day by the Presbyterian I'hurch of the State. Whilst the destitution of our church and worship . within th* hounds of your Synod are numerous am! great; whilst I’reshyterinnism, although a Presbyterian church and congregation were among the fir-t emigrations to the colony, has yet been slow in it- permanent establishment; and whilst it remains’ numerically far in the, 1 rear of other great bodies of Christians in tiro I State 1 yet there is much in n retrospect nud comparison of the present with the past which, ought to elicit your thankfulness and praise as a court of Christ. Although early established here, Presbyterianism i< comparatively new. and has been sines it* permanent establish ment, of rapid growth. The first Presbytery ujut the ground now coverd by vour Synod, appears first on the minutes of the liencral . Assembly, in 1798. with only one more than l the constitutional number of members. So late ns the year lNilrt, it had only seven minis tts nnd three hundred and forty communi cant* in its connection. There nre before me a few ven -ruble men who were upon the ground as early ns this date, or shortly after, who have be -n witnesses to t’.o rise of all tho other Pr >by b rie* forming constituent members of your body, and witnesses to the rise of tho • Synod. In thirty-two year.*, the Church, fur outstripping the ratio of the population of the Btat •, ha* increased from seven to seventy five canisters, nnd from three hundred nnd forty to more than five thnusnn 1 communicant*. | Since the organization of your Synod, also, t seven years ago, with thirty five hundred corn niunivant? nnd forty-five ministers, the minutes of the bi lv shoe, an increase in the ministry nnd membership in advance of the increase of population. Whilst, then, there are many things to mo;im “.er, th e things call fe r the gratitude and praise of the Church to tts gread Ilea l, nnd we may well mingle that praise with the thanksgiving of this day. Hut it is important on an occasion like this, whilst returning thank* for past nnd present blessing and prosperity, to consider the mean* of their preservation. Accordingly, suggested hv the circumstances surrounding us to-day, we direct your attention to the itnportan *e of the church in the preservation nnd perpetuity of our free institution*. Tempted l,y the place and circumstance.*, to protract these introductory remarks to this length, we can only make the discussion of this subject, the more brief. The wisest statesmen have appreciated the importance of religion and it* institution* in the state. Only in our own country has it been placed upon ill true and proper. ground. Th” two extremes in it* and -predation have been its neglect and exclusion on the on-hand; and, on the other, its degradation by its connection I with the State as though an unworthy, incapa -11 j or dangerous sep-rato and independent agency in moulding the opinion* and charae ! ters of men. lint whilst we have given the , church n more proper nnd elevated position, we yet perhaps have not n sufficient apprecin tion of its importance, especially in’ its relation to our free institutions. • Foremost among the . agepeies for their preservation, coming con stantly in contact with the masses of the people, must be placed a free, independent nnd evan gelical church. These grent agencies. may per haps he reduced to three, 1-rming the tripod of our liberties, and found represented in almost every county town in your commonwealth. Near by tho quiet village, just without the limits, stand* a building, alone, apart from all | others, ami presenting'* lonely a*|>ect to the | observer a* ho passes liy. A few shade trees surround it nt n distance in tho yard. Here and there a pane of glass is broken out of a window, or a shutter hangs by a single hinge. It ha* a desolate appearance, i* evidently not a dwelling for man ; and is just such a place a* the superstitious would e.\|eet ghosts and hob goblin* ‘o fre qnent nt night. Yet tho hard pressed soil wround, tells of tho numerous feet by which it has been trodden. Here nnd there the sol worn through about a tree or a stone,or a stake driven in tho earth, and the smooth, | well-drained and hard trodden earth at tho end of tho building, mark tho centres for the fre quent trampers here. Th-* stillness of the grave now rest* over the spot, hut in the morning the old house and yard will present a lively scene. Kacing, leaping, tho loud laugh", morry shout* and hounding halls for awhile, nnd then tho ‘ hell ring* nnd the throng of youthful form* panting and perspiring, pour in. In a few ‘ moments the scene is quiet ngain. Not far dis- • taut frotn this scene in the centre of the town, with shop*nnd stores, and offices on every side, stand* another building npnrt. The uncurtain- ‘ cd windows almost coveted with du*t nnd cob web* within, indicate that thi* nlso is not ten- ‘ anted as a dwelling. This solemn looking square building, L* surmountoj by a little cupo la in which hang* nu'old hell which occas'onally tolls forth its notes to cat! the multitude togeth er. Around is a fence inclosing a s piaro yard, an I without a low railing to protect the side wnlk, which surround* it. On certain days of { the month a stream of men may he seen pass ing in and forth this building, and occasionally the old house is crowded almost to suffocation, indicating how general is the interest in tin j matters transacted here. On the other side of the town, is a third building with perhaps a 1 green plat in front, standing on a gentle emi nence neat in its exterior, still neater in its in- : lerior; Its window shutters painted green; its THE SAVANNAH DAILY COURIER, NOVEMBER 28, 1852. nent white cupola terminating in a modest, un- | protending spire glittering in the snn. Around this humble building sleep the former genera tion* of the village, the matron and the maiden, the infant and the gray haired patriarch, pa rent* and children, the rich nnd the poor, the oppressor and the oppressed, the humble and the proud. A worlJ of hope* lie buried here. The doors are now closed, and it seems a fit temple for the dead. But every seventh day the ch-nr notes of the bell are heard ringing through tho air, and soon the living crowds, did nnd young, arrayed in their holiday clothe*, nre seen moving towards the sanctuary. Such is the (external) appearance to the multitude, of what wilt apt car to the philosophic or re flecting inind, the great conservative elements in our social structure, nnd the great agencies preservative of our civil institutions. In the first of these building*, we perhaps recognize the old school house, the familiar path to which we trod so often in the days of our boyhood. Without pausing to consider the many associations which cluster about it, of the master, our companions, our friendships nnd animosities, contests and emulations, the bright j hopes, of those days, which have been dashed, ’ tho number who tlu-n, standing with us upon I the arena, now lie beneath the clod* of the valley ! Without pausing to consider these, we ■nay find in that old s -bool house a subject of more important reflection. Here the youth of the town, for generations jierhnps, have been instructed, prepared for a higher course of learning, or ushered diycetly into tho world. 1 How many have pas'* ! through it up to the . stage of human : lion, obtained there their furniture f.>r the trial of life, received there the impressions according to which have been moulded their destinies, and the destiny of others with whom in tlu* great world they have been thrown in contact, on earth, and perchance for the eternal world ! Tlo-y nre novr at the bar, in the pulpit, sustaining the important relation of physiean, in the count ing room, nnd mine have gono to high posts of honor—scattered everywhere throughout j the land. Who can estimate the influence of ! that old school house it|Kin the community ? | Rut this is hut representative of a vast nnm | her from the infant .diool to the university, dotting over the whole face of the country. I A* the single school to the community in the j midst of which it is located, so is this great j number to the country at large. Here rest . the hopes of the country, to a considerable extent, for advancement in the art* nnd s-ion ! ees. for the morality of the people, and the p-r ---i peluity of our free institutions. The school is j the nursery of g uilts, which may sonic day, | far overleap the teaching* there given it. and ■ deduce new anil amazing trutlijJli we learned, ’ which will astonish it* more flmvly travelling teiteher, and confer lasting blessings on the j world. Vice, 100, most generally dwell* with ignorance, and tint* the school house i* to a i groat extent its preventive. Look at the re- I port* of the prisons of our land, and see how j rapidly the proportion of inmate* decroa*o* downward* from “highly educated” “liberally ! educated” “common edu-ation” “read and writs” to “no edit-itiun.” FMu-ation n!.*n, from these considerations, nnd from its direct influence, is necessary to a high state of civil liberty. An ignorant people or a vicious peo ple, can not he an eminently free people ; nnd so on the other hand, you can not enslave n people the masses of whom are educated and intelligent. The second on - of these building* deserihed, we probably recognize a* the old Court House ; in tho town in which we were reared. It was ! a boas.’ Wi. petit up- t M-cr entered in youth . i cept on some of tleV • o-casion* of deep and thrilling int-Tost, wh -n a fellow being was ar raigned for hi* own, for taking another’s life, and th - talent of the bar was arrayed on either side.. Here it was the ends of justice were ac complished between man and man, the injured foiin 1 redress, mid th • entiles* difficulties ari sing from pecuniary transactions were put to rest. With it* appendage, which stood not far removed with windows of iron grate, it was also a preventive of crime ami a terror to evil doers. But the Court House stands here nnd there in all portion* of our land. Occasionally it assumes more elegant anti classic proportions,, the lofty nr.di, the magnificent dome, tho im posing column. Thi* too i* luit a type of a vast system which extend* over nil our country The e piitable administration of the law, and i especially of th* common law, which prevails in our Courts, is one of the most potent agen cies for the preservation of our liberties. The j comni .n law will secure a free people wherever it prevails. It is republican in its nature ; its : very fiindam *ntal, essential idea, is Republican i ism. Composed of precedent*, derived from ’ the legislation of no man ors ‘t of men, but | recognising a universal right prior to all legis lation, ninl resting upon the great principles of natural justice inherent to the consciousness of J men, and set forth in immemorial Usage, this vast structure In* been for ages building up, receiving the additions of successive genera | lions: and now, like the spanning arch of j heaven, reaching from the remote ages of tho past, and down to the end of time we trust, it i spreads itsranopy over ns for light nnd for protection. As it is Republican in its nature, so also is it Republican in it* tendeniies. The first idea of liberty nnd independence com mences between man and man, in the defini tion of respective rights. In it is the germ of the most high-toned Repiildirnnism, which de veloped, w ill tear down thrones, nnd tear nway enactments and statute* hy which the people may be oppressed. The common law with an independent judiciary and open pleadings, is a most effectual security against tyranny nnd oppression. And the bar, notwithstanding so many of the profession turn away from it to seek the potty honor of th- legislator, may be made the place of most effective ndvoeaey of freedom and the right* of mnn, a* it rung with the eloquence of Patrick Henry during those years of the disturbing of tho waters preceding the breaking forth of the Revolution. In the third-of these building* described, we’ probably recognise the Church in our native village, tho call of whoso Sabbath bell we so often obeyed in the days of childhood nnd youth. Like the others, it is emblematic of a great system—the great system of Protestant Christianity in our country. The School hoii % the Court house and the Church, these nre the fountains of influence which nro to keep pure and bright the spirit of liberty, the pillars upon which rest our social nnd civil structure. We hear much said of the ballot box nnd the press; these nro indeed potent agencies, hut not original ns the first three. Hack of them, creating and controlling them, are the education of the people, the adminis tration of individual justice, nnd the religious institutions of the country. Keep these great fountains pure, nnd you will keep the ballot box and the press pure. Rut whilst wo tako pleasure in paying our tribute to these auxilia ries for the preservation of our liberties, we must yet place foremost among tho agencies fur it* accomplishment, a free and nn Evangelical Church. In order to show it* importance and j its superiority over these and all other agencies, we will enumerate some ol the points in which the adaptation of the Church to this end, par ticularly appears. First—Consider the Church as a mere teach ing instrumentality, and its importance is es tablished beyond that of any other agency at work In our country for that end. It is con ceded that intelligence ©f its people is neces sary to the existence nnd perpetuity of a Republic. It is from this the School house— the system of general education—derives its importance. Whilst this is not the most Im portant character of the Church, nnd whilst education in a worldly sense is not the primary end at which it aims, yet it would probably bo no exaggeration of the worth and blessing of Protestant Christianity, to say that it is equal to all other ng-mcies united in tho education of the people. To sum up its influence* of this character, wo must commence with the minis try. Not merely teachers of moral and re ligious truth, hut in the exposition of the word of (Sod, calling in ail the aiJs of learning, exploring nil its fields for the confirmation and \ illustration of that truth j with many deriving i from them ntuiost all the knowledge they ro ; reive foreign to their immediate vocations in I life ami outside a limited political reading; their teaching* rendered most valuable hy the combination of the moral amt the intellectual, educating both the conscience and the intel lect; nnd located ns tln v are in all portion* of our land : the instruction they impart becomes va*t in its aggregate nnd incalculable in its . results. Making neee*. ary deductions for i those in infirm healtl a.;d those engaged in I our institutions of leuml’-f, it may he perhaps | safely estimated that tw 1 v Ilian thirty thou ! sand Protestant Ministei* are engaged in in structing the people of mtr country every Sab bath. Who can cstimn'o the influence, even narrowing it down to the j articular point with reference to which we now eontemplatc it, of thirty thousand pulpits weekly sending forth their teaching* among the (ample! Who can estimate the influence, in forming tho taste* nnd character* of our people, in the instruc tion and elevulion ol the masses, of thirty thousand men, ninny of them highly educated, some of them men of commanding ability, and nil of them for intelligence nnd virtuous prin ciples, it will he admitted, averaging fairly with any other class of men, tcnchcrs or others, in our own country ! Again, in estimating the influence of the Church as a mere tenth, r of th.- people, the Sabbath School enters largely into the eon siderntion. Here the xmih of our land nre receiving, .both that tleinentnry instruction which will fit them for deriving knowledge fioin books, nnd that healthful knowledge which will give stability nnd elevation to their characters, and especially prepare them for the responsibilities of citizens of n free republic. Many here obtain th* ir only education. In the great cities, especially, it reaches the classes which can Ik-reached l>y no other in j strumentality, and thus*, most necessary to he i reached—the poor, and otherwise, vicious, nnd therefore liable most to endanger our iustitu ; lions. It is difficult to make a correct estimate ! of the number of teacbecr engaged every Sal>- j hath in our schools, mil especially, ns without ! recent reports of the Sunday School Union, we ; have'to make the calculation from data de ’ rived from reports made s -veral years since. : The number of teachers would no doubt, cer j tainly reach, and perhaps, go far beyond two hundred thousand, mi l that of the scholars, a million and a half, lit re, again, who can esti mate the influence n;> in our institutions, of two hundred thousand teachers, mostly pious ; and intelligent, gat her.-d with their million and | a half of pupil- Again, in j estimating thisinduen. iof the Church, e*pe | eial consideration uiil-t be given to the fact that n large portion of the institutions of learn ’ ing, from the primary school to the University, have been created, anil nro both really and nominally sustained nnd controlled hy the Church. Many of ottr primary schools and academics are connected directly with particular congregations, nnd the great majority of others are supplied with teachers from Colleges found ed nnd sustained hy the Church. When we consider the higher institutions for tho more thorough eduention of our youth, the fart that thi* nation is under obligations to the Church, for its (mpular education, is still more impress ed upon us. The list ■of chartered colleges in tile Udited States, numbering, perhaps, one hundred and fifty or one hundred and seventy five, will probably c.xliihit not more than ten or twelve nt farthest, wholly endowed by the States. The great portion of tho others are under the control nnd supervision of tho vari ous bodies of professing Christians; and no small proportion of the instructors in those thus sustained are fumi-licd by the Church. The periodical nnd p-rmanent issues of the pres*, if we could arrive at the statistics, would exhibit even a more amazing result. The newspaper is the great feature in our literature, one growing naturally out of onr institutions. Every citizen under our government i* a politi cian, called to take part in the affairs of gov ernm.'nt, nnd must have information of a po litical character. IF-nc* arises the newspa per. But even in this and ‘pnrtment the church is supplying the nation with no small part of its literature. Aeonrdiw: to the census of 1850 the circulation of newspapers and other periodi cals in the United States, was five million*. Without the mean* of ne (iraey, from tho best estimate we can make, we cannot place the circulation of the papers under direct religious influence nnd under the patronage of tho churches, nt less than one fifth of this number, or a circulation of one million. The statistics, necessarily very difficult to bo arrived at, of the other isues of the j would probably exhibit the fact, to ninny j Umnding, that the eliiirrh, notwithstanding lie immensa number of hooks yearly sent forth from other sources, and especially the vast amount of fiction with which our country is flooded, is yet supplying the greater (>ortioii of the rending of onr peo ple. F’or every novel, we believe you will find a Bible or a Testament, or a llynin book, for every licentious or infidel book, a copy of Ban yan, Baxter, I>odJsidge, Flavel, Edwards or Nelson, affording encouragement to the Chris tian philanthropist, .whilst it shows tho high rnnk of tho church ns ate icher of the people. Tnke one or two statistics from two of those great institutions fr ■ tho provision of a reli gious literature—selected not hy wny of eleva tion over others, but from the convenience of their reports, and from tlie*uperior magnitude of their operations. During the last financial year, there were published by the American Bible Society, in addition t-> numerous editions hy private individuals, and in addition to those introduced from other eoun'ries 6rtfi,ols copies of the Itilde nnd Tcstnmcn*, —and during the thirty-six years of its exisl nee, it has printed risr/it millions, tiro hniirJml on.l richty-eight (honanntJ, nine Intnt/mJ and righty-tsco Bi- Ur* And there are annually poured forth from all <|Unrters, into the urdst of the people, no less than three <|narters of a million of B 1 hies and Testaments ! Dicing the proceeding year, the American Tract jßociety pnblished fi,801,000 tract*, and 1,140.51 0 bound volumes, a total of about eight millions, and since its organization it ba; produced the astonishing amount of 3,034,750,250 pages of religious j truth. The results of the two institutions trom I their beginning, reducing the issues of the Bible Society to pages, make tho vast nggre- ; gate of about tix killiout, nine hitutired and i forty millions of /tages.’ We nre to bear ini mind, also, in making this estimate, the ex- i istence of similar institution.*. Nearly all the { great bodies of Christian* in the country have : their publishing institutions, constantly ma king vnluablc additions to our literature. Our own Board of publication, although in its in fancy nnd comparatively feeble a* yet, pro duced last year ei"hf him.lint and eixht.cn ; th” it sand tut) hundred und fifty copies of re ligious books and tracts 1 When wo leave the consideration of these ecclesiastical nnd benevolent board*, it is a question not of ensy determination whether the church does not give to the nation the greater portion of its remaining literature. Who nre our American nuthors f If not the greater portion, nre not nt least a large number of them among the clergy, the ministers of the various churches, who constitute the largest class of highly educated men in the country ? Who then will estimate the influence of the church upon, the institutions of our country Sit the way of educating the people ? Eduention lias j been pronounced “ the’ cheap defence of na- i tions.” Who or what is raising higher this hulwnrk than the church? Who will define the influence of its thirty thnusnnd ministers, i it* two hundred thousand Sabbath school teachers with their million and a half pupil*. ; its thousands of pri oary schools,’ ils hundred ; colleges, its million regular ps|iers, its millions of volumes of wholesome, healthful truth it is ! constantly throwing ntnong the people 7 Secondly—The vnlue of the church as an agency for tlu* preservation of our institutions, , I appears from the rotitervatisni of tho religion of tlie Bible which it teaches. It places its hand upon the passions of men, restrains from violence and from uttraism of every kind. It inculcates justice, rc?|>eet for the rights of all men, moderation and forbearance. Nothing can be further from tho spirit of than fanaticism or agrarianism. It rebukes j the wild madman, or political incendiary, who j would lilt his arm against the institutions- or . well-being of his country. Nothing could i more strikingly exhibit this, than the manner , ill whi.-h the Bible and it* t ‘aching* have been set aside ly the leaders of abolition nnd the j teachers of fourierism, communism, woman's rights, nnd similar extravagancies. Its utter . want of harmony with their principles and ; practi ‘0 Ims led them to its open repudiation. This conservatism which thus provokes the tip position of all ultraism nnd fanaticism, which routes to us through the institutions of the Church, is a most indi.*|ien*:ihle element in ii republic, which, of nil other governments, re quire# most a stable, just, nnd conservative people. We need it to regulate o'nr interna tional intercourse, and to preserve us from do ’ inestic strife. We need to have it infused into j onr system of laws, to which we are already j so much indebted, hut which might yet lie greatly perfected hy the larger pervasion of the spirit of the gospel. Whenever the Ban dt-cts of Rom • and the In-titute* of Justinian, shall give way to the mild and beautiful -pre cept* ot the law of Hod in the regulation of in ternational lnw, then shall we have universal peace, and wnr with its horrors will .cease to en danger our institutions; and when the inibl spirit of our blessed religion shall come to gov ern nil our people, the mad spirit of filibuster, foreign aggression, rapine and plunder, which now perils our amicable foreign relations, the character of our nation nn I not very remctcly. our liberties ns a (>cople, wilt cease to exist. With reference to our domestic policy, it is in teresting to observe how applicable the .great conservative principles of Use Ri’.ile nre to onr present condition nnd how easily, i! left to their decision, would be put to rest the great ques tions which have shaken our political structure to its very centre, and which may continue for years to come, to endanger our union nnd pro*. •perity.’ Not’ only have we the general and characteristic requisition of the gospel, ol peace and love to all men, requiring in il* expansion in various portion* of the sacred writings, a just regard to the rights and interests of others from tho security of property up to the most delicate courtesy and respect for feeling which they bnvc a right to expect from us: Wot only have we taught tho divine orJinntion of gov ernment nnd the consequent sacred ■ authority of inw, that “tlie powers that be are ordained of God” an 1 “wliosooTer therefore resisleth the power reisteth tho ordinance of God;” hut as if designed with speeial reference to the issue* of our day, we have a divine precedent nn 1 the precedent of an apostle in the respect for pro perty and the restoration of the slave. To the church, which professes to teach the gentle and conservative precepts of the blessed Saviour, have we n right to look, and to it alone can wo look, for the influences which will lead to ths peaceable anil final repose of those question*. And if ever faction nnd fanaticism shall ac complish the destruction of our Union, the overthrow of our liberties, it will he through tho recreance of the ministry to their high nnd solemn engagement*, or else they will march over tlio crushed and bleeding form of the church. And if the conservatism of the church shall ever be lost, if it* heart shall ever cease to bent with the love of liberty! equality, virtue and glory, tho hop* of our country will perish. Ifit shall ever ho entered hy political dissen sions and he severed by faction upon the lino of our political institutions, it will be tho se vering of the great artery'ol the nation, from which its life-blood in unchecked torrents will (.our fourth. Already it is bleeding from the severance of one great ligament; but enough remains for the healthful flow of life in all its parts, and rightly nourished and cherished, the wound may yet be honied. Thirdly—The value of tho church as an agency for the preservation of onr institutious, is seen from its rJpithlic.tnism. The dawn of the Reformation was the dawn of liberty in Europe ; and pr>.tcstant Christianity has ever been tlie friend of reptiiilie.au principle*. So true is this, we may fin I in every church a correspondence between it* amount of repub licanism • nnd its amount of protestantisin. This is illustrated hy reference to tho struggle for republican principles during the American revolution—-in the parts performed hy the sev eral Churches—the comparative amount of sympathy with the mother country in those churches uot completely reformed, hut having the remnant of Rome, a prelatical government. We, however, cheerfully recognize those two great hoilies of ehristian*—the government of one of which has been more republieanised hy the introduction of a lay element, nnd within the bosom of the other of which, there must soon he a great struggle upon this point—as among the guardian* of our liberties, in that they gire to the people an open Bihte; though we could accorl to them higher |>osilions in this work, if republican in their polity as re formed in their doctrine*. Evidence of the re publicanism of Profestant Christianity, the con neo ion of the op*n Bible, which it places ia the hands of the people, with their liberties, is presented by a comparison of protestant with papal countries. England and the United | States, the most thoroughly protertant coun- j trie* on enrth, enjoy the highest measure of tiherty. Compare these with and with Italy. Poor Italy, in the language of her histo rian, mourning over degradation, “is crushed— she is chained and covered with blood.' 1 But her woes are not yet over. Even now a voice of. weeping comes to us from the galleys of Tuscany. The condemnation of the noble Madiai is the rekindling of the fires ofpersecu tion in Italy. May we learn the priceless val ue of a frea church and an open Bible in our own land. These will naturally work out re publicanism. The gospel gives dignity to the individual—gives him the conception of his own importance as an immortal being—and prepares him to feel and to assort his rights.— And we lielieve further that it may be shown, that the form of government given to the church hy God in his holy word, is as directly republi can, as the doctrines of grace are republican in their tendencies. Fourthly—The promised providential bles sing of God upon those who acknowledge nnd serve Him, whether individual* or communi ties, presents the value of the church, in con nection with our free institutions, as the church j i* designed to promote his worship, which will I thus secure this blessing and effect the perpe tuity of our liberties. There are two doc rincs respecting this point, which inay he tb-mon- i 1 rtmted from history, prophecy and the word of i | God. The first is, that there is a providence ; exercised by God overall his creatures nnd all : hi* works, and embracing in its vast design the nation* nnd communities of earth. The second | is, that that Providence will he characterised hy favor and blessing to the people, who fear | and honor the Lord —that aside from the natu | rai results of its principles, religion secures the , favor anil direct bles.-ing of God. These truths 1 ire believe; our presence here this day attests i it. And we rejoice that they begin to lie re | cognised hy our rulers. This Inst we regard as one of the most important consideration* in i the estimate of the worth of an evangelical 1 church to the Republic; nnd besides it, there I are many others which might b* mentioned : ! it proclaim* the purest and most perfect rode of morals, it teaches the most valuable principles I , of jiirisptttdenee, it enjoins indn*trv ami econo- ‘ 1 my, thy great sources of individual andnution | nl wealth ; it est.ahlishe'# humane institutions i for the alleviation of the poor, the distressed, j tlie deaf, the blind, the unfortunate ; hut the 1 length to which thi# discourse has already been 1 protracted, warns us against trespassing upon 1 your patience. We therefore leave these to ! hasten to a conclusion. Who now, my hearers, is prepared to place i the Church second to any other influence or ; agency for the elevation and happiness of onr i people, for the preservation and strengthening ;of our Union and our free institution* ? Pos- 1 sesing not the show and display of other in- \ 1 strumcntnlitie*. it i* thus silently hut power ■ fully working out this end. And who is there j I who ean place the influence of the faithful ! servants ol the Church, upon onr institutions,, as second to any. other class of.men? The brief space of the last three years has been re markable for the addition of great names to the lift of mighty dead. Front this city we tuny stand ninl look off ii|>oii the (state of the great Calhoun. However much we may differ respecting the ptiliey to which he wns devoted, now that he is no more among living actors, We are all ready to concede the purity of his life and the greatness of his mind. His name is now upon that list. Tlie angel of death next claimed nnd removed the great Sage of Ashland, amid whose beauteous walk* and shades and flowers, were spent his intervals of repose during half a century. Next nnd last, one month ago, from his beautiful New England home, passed away, the spirit of the great diplomatist and statesman, who fills one of the largest places in American history, and one of Ilia highest niches in the temple of fame. These were n great trio/ Their characters are monumental and will never perish while our liberties or language remain. But go with us to the old grave<yard of Prince ton. sacred, hallowed spot, and there arc the j humble tombs of another trio, who have fall en in about the same period. Mingling not in the strife of Bars and Senates, without the show and glitter if civil office, their every movement not proclaimed upon the wings of the lightning throughout our land; hut coming down, one of them from the generation of patriots who bought so dearly, our liberties ; all of them sharing largely in the eduention or those who now fill the most responsible places in our land, nnd nil of them preachers of the gospel of Christ; they, not lex*, perhaps, than these great state.-men, have left their impress upon our institutions and upon the character of ourpcnple. Over each one of this first trio will *oon arise the lofty monumental column: nor would wa tear one stone from these tri butes of n grateful people to tlie expounders and defender* of their rights and of human freedom. Over each"’ of the last trio will he iilnced a simple slab to niark their last resting places to future grateful visitors to the spot: nor wraild we Imre this otherwise; it suits well their unprctciidiug lives. But may this people never forget that hy tho mild, con servative, republican and Christian principles they taught, they united with the humble office of servant of Christ, that of friend, preserva lor to our liberties. May this people learn the value of the ministry nnd the institutions of the Church—its intimate connexion with their liberties. Blot out the Church, and yon extinguish the “ tallest column of light” which ever arose from this Continent! Blot out fh<* Church, and you break down the grentest har rier to radicalism and fanaticism aud faction in our land ! Blot out the Church, or closo the Bible whose precepts it teaches, and you close up the greatest source of republican principles and stop tho voice of the most eloquent advo cate of the rights of man! Blot out the . Church, and you tear down the rod which climbing over the glorious structure under which we dwell, protects us from the wrath of nn otherwise offended and angry God. May you respected friends, who unite with us in these services, learn from the reflections , of this day, the value of the Church, the duty of giving it your most’ anient support, and ; especially the duty of prayer to the great Ruler of nations and Author of all blessing, fur tlie union, peace and prosperity of our coun try ! And may we, fathers and brethren in the ministry, return to our charges from this sol emn convocation, resolving to give ourselves with more earnestness to our work—for tho ! ‘salvation of souls aud the perpetuity of our ‘ liberties 1 - Sailing of Ocean Straun-rs. rsns isnici. anira. irivu ron ostk. Canals, tl'i#t<m, Liverpool, Nov. 24 Pai-iflr Xew-York Liverpool. Nor. 27 1 A*ia. Ncw-Vnrk, Liverpool, Bee. 1 Hermann. Xew-York, Bremen. Dee. 4 America, Boston, Liverpool, Bee. H , ran* irann. SKIPS. LCAVBS ron PATH, j Franklin, Havre, Xew-York, Xov. 24 Liverpool,- Boiton. Xov. 27 Arrtic, Llverpoo., Xew-York, 1 Africa. ..Liverpool, Xew-Y'ork, Bee.’ 4: City of Manchester do. Pbitadel’a,’ Bee. 8 [ Washington,.... Bremen. New York. Dee. 3 Washington,.. .Soulhaaip’n. Xew-York, Dee. 8 SAVANNAH, GE O.w M XDVY. NOVEMBER i*. 1-i.VJ PARTICULAR NOTICE. The Patrons of the Courier are respectfully notified that the Business It/fier ia ©n the first floor of Owens’ Building*, third door fronting on Monument Square, where they are request ed to leave all advertisements and other favors intended fur the paper, and where they will always find persons in attendance fur tho transaction of the business of the concern. BY MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH run TBR SAVASXAU COI'SIER. The Freshet—Tlie Rail Roads. We are still without any intelligence from Macon in regard to the extent of the damage .done hy the freshet. The passenger train which left yesterday morning, returned last night, having proceeded, as far as the seventy-nine mile station; finding there a continuous sheet of water lur three quarters of a mile upon the track, and deeming it imprudent to proceed br iber. The following despatch was received last evening, dated. LATER PROM THE FRESHET. Griffix 93 Mile Statics, \ Nov. 27th, SP. M. j The train which left Savannah at 8 o’clock, i thi* morning has not yet rearhed (his point, | and the Bark Camp Bridge etnhankment can not he mnde safe until the water full.‘~ Tha~ extent of tlie wash is about 68 feet, but the water is nearly six feet deep upon the track.— I think it would not bo snfe to send a night train to night. Th-re is no nows fiom above, and of course we kno# nothing of the extent of tlie damage done there. The through train has gone as high as 9 1-2. The track there - was still overflowed, hut the water was falling I slowly. STILL LATER’ Gtttrns, ‘Jfl Mile Station, ) Nov. 27th, 5.30 P. M. j We have just learned that the abutment cf the bridge at the 99th mile has been Washed away, and that the water is flowing over the track from that |K>int to station 10 1-2. From these dispatches we apprehend the re | ceipt of unplea*ant intelligence from above.— i We nre happy, however, to learn that Mr. Mll.- i.ex was nt the 79 mile .nation yesterday, with pile driver*, utensils, hands nnd every thing ‘else, prepared to put the track’ in order, with the least (mssible delay. An additional force wilt leave in the car* this morning for the scene j of the disaster. I The communication by telegraph with Au ; gusta is still interrupted. The following dis patch from the Charleston pnj>trs of yesterday morning, contains the only intelligence from that quarter.. It is only rale .tinted to create ’ the most painful apprehensions os (0 the prob i able.result: FRESHET AT AUG VST A. AcacsTA, Nov. 26, 8.10 P. M. — Within the past day or two we have hul heavy rains, i wliirh have extended into tlie interior. Along the line of the Georgia Railroad heavy rains , have fallen, and it is apprehended that some | portions of that road hate suffered damage, j The water :s now running on Ray street, in \ this city, on a line with tlie fence of the up|>er - wharves. The river has risen sixteen or seven teen feet, nnd is still rising, about two inches per hour. It will, however, have to rise ten ’ feet-more before it can reach Rroad-street.- Os about four thousand hales of Cotton that- were upon the wharf, awaiting shipment, all have hern saved in a wet stnte, except about two hundred bales, which driftei off. A steamer, however, has been sent after them, and it is anticipated that n< art/ all of them will be ’ saved also. The Ret. Mr. Breek's IH-ronrse. We tnke great ple.ositre this morning in pla cing before our readers the sermon of the Rev. j Mr. UnrcK .of Macon, delivered in ltie~Tffd?*'- i pendent Presbyterian Church on Thursday last. It will he found a chaste, readable, instructive discourse, full of both pious and,patriotic sen timent. The speaker, is a young Kentuckian, of excellent family, refined education,- and ex eeding promise in his profession, who has re cently become pastor of the Presbyterian | Church in Macon, and who is destissed to be come “a bright and shining light” to> the South :cm Churches. The discourse which has evi dently been written, rnrrci’te AtlairtV, contains | so many evidence of native genius, and stud ied culture, that it cannot fail to be interesting, ■ CTcn to mew of the world. Members of the church of every denomination wil* find in it , much te edify and enlighten—much to expand tho intellect as well as to warm and quicken the emotions of the heart. Religious Nervier*. The following arrangements for divine r vice have been made for this day. Fiwpat, 28lh inst, FirH Prwbyterlhn Church. Morning, Rev. Dr. Hoyt; afternoon. Rev. E. P. Rogers. Independent Presbyterian Church. Morn ing, llcv. Dr. Church ; afternoon Rev. Dr. Tal madge; evening Missionary report, by Rev. E. P. Rogers, anJ addresses, hy Rev. Mr. Lrnnrau, i late of Palestine Mission, and the Rev. Mr. 1 Wilson, rcturnei Mi*t-ionary, late from Africa. Fir*t Baptist Church. Morning, Rev. Mr- Swift ; afternoon, Rev. W. 11. Thompson, i Second Ilaptist Church. Morning, Rev. J. R. ; Bowman; erening Bev. Mr. Beman.- Lutheran Church- Morning,- Iter. Johir ; Jones; afternoon, Rev. Mr. Ketchom. I Methodist Church. Morning, preaching bf i Rev. Wm M. Canningham; lAcmvou, preach ing by Rev. J. S. Wilson, D. D; evening, 1 preaching by Rev. J. C. Patterson. Arrival of tlie Mate of Georgia. The Steam Ship State of Georgian. Capt. Walton, arrived yesterday, from Philadelphia. She experienced strong head-winds throughout her entire passage. On tho 25th inst., south of | Cn|>e Lookout, encountered a severe gale frenv the South-East, and South-South-West, which j lasted for eighteen hours. The same evening, nt 6 1-2 P. M , thirty miles South of Hatteras, exchanged signal* with Steam Ship James Ad ; ger, bound from Charleston for New York. The K iink I Opera Troupe. The lovers of fun are referred to tho attrac tive programme, presented by the above popu lar Trou|>e, We are assured that the enter tainments offered during the present week, will -be far superior to anything heretofore pre sented. | Araoug the premiums awarded by tip- South , Carolina Institute, nn Wednesday evening, to | the successful contributors to the recent Fair, | was a Silver Medal to the “Howard Manufoc ’ tory,” Columbus, Ga., for one bale of 4-4 Brown Shirting, mention of which was ac cidentally omitted to be made in the official report, published in our last. j The owners of Charleston steamer Florida, ; Captain Charles W illey, have libelled the Sa vannah steam-r. HY /h im Gaston, Capt. Shaw, for damages sustained from a collision which occurred on the St. John's River, on the even, j. ing of the 29th ult. The cause was to havo | been tried at St. Augustine, Florida, on Mon day last. —Charleston Courier.