Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

THE BAPTIST RAWER. BY DAYTON, ELLS & CO. VOLUME IV. gsptisi giuwr, DEVOTED TO RELIGION AND LITERATURE, U published every Saturday, at Atlanta, Georgia, at the subscription price of rotra dollars per year. DAYTON, ELLS & CO., Proprietors. A. C. DAYTON. JAS. N. ELLS. 3. D NILES ohTwhatif the prospect be clouded. p* W. OtLMORE SIMMS. • ; Ch I what if the prospect be cl »uded, And want if he Bualfeht r«e fled f The bright Min himself may be shrouded, And the bright crown t >rn from his head ; Ba by yU4d* never long to the rigor Os ibu tempest that beat, on his form ; Anl Inrcome- 1 forth, anon full of vigor, More glorious b.cause of the storm. • Fmtn the sun let the 3oul take its morai, ' Nor shrink ’neatb the battle of life | Nour the c- pr as erows ever the Du el, And we pluck, as w> please from the strife, Though the foe presses ti rce wi- h his legions, I And ye stoop for the hour to his will. Keep firm hi the turbuu-nt regions, Aid the triumph enures you to s.iil I M-A.R.Y IsTEWTOISr. | THE WISE CHOICE. There are striking exceptions to the: bitter satire of the poet — “ Maidens, ’lke moths, are ever caught by glare, And Mamrno i wing, bis way where seraphs j might despair ’’ He who gave utterance to this sweeping i charge, knew but little of ’.hat affection I which,-directed by the grace and spirit of God, breathes forth the sentiment— ■“ 1 love thy commandments above gold, yea, above’ fine gold.” Yielding his own heart to thei supremacy of- self, he could not appreciate I a principle which would lead to a rejection; of the world with all its brilliant offers, and , a preference of the service of God and a! Jove for his law—y-a preference which gives! l itlCiiur ail ciaracter to every act of life, ( winch mollies and controls even the affeu-j tions that too often take the reins from the :< hands of reason and conscience, and lead; the heart and mind away from all the deci sions of calm judgment, and the counsels ufj whe, faithful triends. ; Ii is n>»t my purpose to write, for my’ young readers, a homily on the Bible,grand and glorious though the theme be, or to; draw a formal coutiast between the wealth that is found in the mines of the east and: the gold that is t ie object of worldly pur-, suit and ambition. Many a Christian, in! all the waiks of life, possesses in his own heart and experience indisputable evidence that the Bible, in its varied influences ano result--, is belter than the choicest riches of earth: Whoever yet regretted, when look ing ba k upon life as the night of death was closing up m him,-that he preferred the word of God a J us precious hopes and pi inci- 1 pies to the pursuits of earthly good, when-j ever it interfered with the services andji duties of the Christian faith? Nay, does not the experience of life itself daily cun- 1 firm the words of Him who spake as never! 1 man spake, which promise tv those who:, have ivrsakeu all tor Hus service, manifold < m<>rd eveu in this present time, as well as s life everlasting! < It is not strange that when the gentle! I Mary Newton sat tu/her portrait to he left < with the friends among whom she had long’ 1 found a iioine, w hen she was about to be-i ’ come the wife of one who was to conduct ’ her to a ne*’ home in the West, she should ’ have wanted her Bible to be painted with ’ her, clasped to her heart ns its richest trea- I sure, k was cho gift us h r dying widowed I mother, who with it bequeathed the memo ry us a holy eXmnple, and the influence ofh wise and faithful counsels. Though early' l left auorplian, she found a parent’s affection ' and care in a maternal relative, by whom] she was loved and treated as a daughter,! and in wn >se family she found a home.— , llsr name always brings up pleasant mem-1 ories <>futie who to nil the external graces with which nature had enriched her, added 1 a mind well disciplined and stern, a kindi and generous heart, and a spirit chastened,! ouufied and ennobled by the Influence ot; erue piety. It is nut to b3supposed that one possess ing such attractions as Mary Newton would pu-ui unnoticed, nor can we deny that her i return home, after completing her education; at a celebrated seminary for young ladies,; w.h the oo.uiion of an increase of calls at; th* mutUy q uiet and steady house us her; uuul*. Among those who were drawn ttntaJr was Archibald B , a young man of fortune, and of many brilli mt endow ments, whose attention soon became mark | ed, and who seemed destined tv outstrip all other claimants for her hand. Tne world •aeined to regard the matter as settled, and the cause us tne jou ign.au found (we iqust confer it) in the heart of Mary au earnest advocate. He had been educated abroad— had travelled extensively, his u«t** cultivated, his manners courtly, his conver ge m always attractive and instructing.—- While the vuj-At of his devotion was ju< rvaly V> jivid Up her whole heart to o-mtrol, an'incident occurred which *’hohy changed her thoughts and purposes. lu the, C »ur->e Ufa vuwrsativn which one evening enlisted her attention, the Bible as a reve lauou fruin H-a*en fe-cOne the subject ot diacussiuu- Appeals had been made to it A' S2.SB£Z®tXOST» AKB SOOfcl SBW'ASgg. ATLANTA, GEORGIA, SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 186-3. las the only standard of truth—and its in ' structions were quoted as directly opposed to theories which her lover had maintained as sacred and true. As the argument pro gressed, she heard from his lips the distinct announcement of his disbelief in the Scrip tures, as claiming in the least any authority as a Divine revelation. With all the elo quence and earnestness of a brilliant but misguided intellect, he argued that while many parts of the Bible contained excellent |Counsels and beautiful sentiments, its doc ! trines and commands had no binding obli gation upon man; avowed his belief that the time was coming when Science in its advance would prove the absurdity of its s atements. and that Reason would over throw the structure which had been reared upon it. With all his attractive manners, he was an infidel, rejecting the w hole scheme •ofredemption, and regarding the doctrines us Religion as the wild vagaries of ianati jcism and the dreams of s he enthusiast. It i was a sad and painful revulsion of feeling! , which Mary experienced. She had long listened with a deepening interest to his | glowing descriptions of other lands —to his appropriate and discriminating comments, on her favorite authors, or to the manly; ; tones of his voice as it breathed out the j ; very soul of love and devotion in some! 1 thrilling melody. Yet from his own lips she had heard a’ ' denial of truth on which her dearest hopes! ( were built.—her conscience reechoed the[ (question ot that sacred Word which her dying ioother had bequeathed to her— *• W hat part hath he that belleveth with an ! infidel?” Could she link her destinies fur ! life with one with whom, in the most sacred ■ of all her interests, she could have no corn-’ munion? Could she trust, her interests• with one who avowed his belief in senti-i merits which struck out the very foundation of all moral obligation, and left man the! victim of his own passions, with no guide but nature, whose instructions he was ever! disposed to misinterpret under the bias ot a corrupt heart? Could she love one who not only did not love, but wholly rejected* and denied .a Saviour in whom she trusted, ! and to whom she had given her best as ; sections ? it was a severe struggle which that fair! girkunderwent. But she formed herreso-! lution in view of what she believed, was . pleasing to God, and essential to her high est interests, both for time aud eternity.— ! Her lover insisted that religious belief should be no occasion for separation be ! tween ihem, and that while maintaining his' own opinions he was willing she should al-! so continue undisturbed in her belief. But he urged his suit in vain. Her own reso lution had been taken, and though it cost her h^nr! hitter grief, it was firmly main tained. The world wondered when it was under- • stood that the brilliant match it had decided ! upon was, after all, a failure. It could not j fathom the deep and holy affection which; underbid the whole character of Mary! Newton, and which caused her to love the 1 divine testimonies above fine gold. To ! say there was no secret sorrow in the heart ; of Mary—no thought of w.hat might have . been, but which never was to be—no mem-1 ories of a half-awakened affection, which might have ripened into a wife’s devotion — j would be to deny w hat she could not al-; w’ays conceal. But there was not a wound which Gra ■ -x-u'-i not heal, nor a grief ; which could nut be assuaged by the prom Ises of that Word ; Life on which all her; hopes were built. Like a true Christian ! woman she v <'<-.i f<>r’b to her wonted duties, t and found returning peace. Her presence; cheered many a home of sorrow and want ! with the blessed sunlight of sympathy and : kindne.-s. She was not one to sit down and waste life in unavi.iling regret, and she found her own wonn<L healed in ministering; to others. It is unnecess tr s explain how Mary was Induced to leave her pleasant home and share in the trial- and d’scomfartsof a new ! settlement in th' Vv e->t. nor could the world understand how she 1-. d been willing to t decline what, it railed a brilliant offer, and at length link her fortunes with one who 1 brought her no wealth or prospect of world ly grandeur. But she knew that something more was ne* ded to give her permanent happiness than the tinsel of outward show and the glitter us fashion. And when she : went forth ns a wife, it was with one to ' whom she could say *’ Thy people be my people, and thy God my God.” There was no pomp and parade when Mary and one of the playmates of her child hood were married. They had met after years of separation. He had struggled in to his profession, by an earnest and manly effort, amid all the discouragements of pov erty, but with a brave heart and an indomi table will had conquered. Returning from hischo”en home in the West, he hud told to Mary his successes and his hopes, and asked her tv share with him his fertuftes. His suit was successful, and in the midst of a few old and faithful friends they took upon themselves the vuws that made them une. Tne world as used wondered a; Mary’s ’’strange preference. It was an utter rever sal of the usual principle on which it “ mar ried and gave In marriage/’ The husband | of Mary had neithar iamuy nor wealth, and HIS BANNER OVER US IS LOVE. then to think of her burying herself in the western wilds, with her education an a tractions, it was strange that her frien ■» should have permitted it- Yet as no jus cause could be shown why that mig not be lawfully married, the ceremony was concluded—even though she wprld should ; ■ notever thereafter hull its peace. 1 *ey • went forth together to their new homqvith ’ brave and trusting hearts. Nor nas ■ ever regretted the choice she made. She had found one who united with a well stored and vigorous mind, true vnris ; - tian principle and a generous* ana noble, • heart; nor ever, when dwellingm the rudr • and humble cut of the pioneer, did she send • back one lingering memory on splendor which might have been hers, and wealth which might have placed her beyond the ' reach of want. There, in that forest home, she .ound the joy of blessed Christian sympathy and com munion, and the light of God’s word. There was a common altar from which went up the morning and the evening in cense of prayer and praise- There were blessed Christian influences which went out ! to otherhomes, and were felt for good amid the hardy settlers who came to cast in their i lot with them. And when that gentle wife, : who had often ministered to others, came !to experience in her own heart the hitter grief of the mourner, as she laid her fairest (and youngest child in the grave, aud turned ito and looked in h«v>h th<* vacant cradle, listening in vain to, ’<*> -nee made music to her soul, she turned t worn > of God, and found comfort p • ee and ! hope, and; clasping it to her hea”, -it that, ■amid every exigency of life, it A as to her, |in all its'blessed influences and truths, I mere precious tkan, gold. The Baptini Banur.} ! HOW TO TRY THEM. Fccntinved.] ... ■■. e i “f thought, Mr. Tonyad, that it was about ’ baptism and communion, chiefly, ‘ that you Baptists claimed to be so emi 1 neu’ly ' Scriptural” i 1 “We do not claim to be more Scripcu iral, madam, in regard tc one point than another. Our aim is to be like the Bible pattern in oil things that arc essential to the existence and operations of the church. A scriptural membership is the first .thing, ; because there can be no church withutit i members. This question must come up at I the very organization of any body of people ' professing to be a church : AV ho are to be received and regarded as members?— Then there will arise another: Who is to exercise authority—who is to administer .discipline? Here, then, is the next point ito be examined The discipline of your church is placed in the bauds oi the preach er in charge, and of the quarterly and gen !era! conferences. Is there any Scripture: ! for this ? If so, where is it? I have never ; I heard of any of your ministers or people I ■' who looked any higher fur the power to act, i thus than to a little bouk called the 4 Vis- 1 \cipline! and which all yout ministers are j i pledged to obey’, whether its provisions are | ■scriptural or ucscriptural. Your whole, ! system of government originated with Mr.; ! Wesley and his successors. It was not ur-; ‘ dained’by the Lord vr his apostles. There lis nothing of it in the word of God; He • never put the people under the priests, and j the priests under the presiding elders, and ; ail under the bishops.'' I “1 am sure, Mr. Tunyad, we read about eiders and bishops in the New Testament.” “8o we de, mada-i —-but they were not i like yours. A New-Testament bishop was simply the pastor of a church—nut a ruler over the clergy ; and an ‘elder’ in the New Testament was simply a minister of the word—not a ruler us a circuit. The Bap tists have elders and bishops, just like the ; first churches; but they have no office;s; like your eldersand bishops.” “ You Baptists are great peopie In your; own estimation I I would like to see wheth- • er you can show yourselves in the Bible 1 ” ; . ■ “If we have kept the order and the ordi nances of the Church as they were delivered by the Lord and his apostles, we surely are a great people, and must be a peculiar peo -1 pie. lam sorry we are not a better people. ■ll regret there is so little piety, so little real, Jso littfe l v ve. so little us rhe missionary !’spirit, among ns; but, bad as we are In the*e respects, we are right in onr Church i order and right in our ordinances. These ■ arc external and belong to action—-f-e ■ feelings of the heart are internal and ucloi g •. to the emotiu..s of the mind, which as ' orge.niz'-d bodv, we have no means us c' n • trolling. But even in regard to these e?> '- tions us the heart, I do not Know th«. -e are less like the first Christians than oxhe * ii who bear the name. I pray God to re.i>e I i us and give us new life, that in the interna •> . as well as the externals of religion we m-. v i! be all we oueht to be.” lb i . _j— Reiigio-'* »“ d Fumiiy Paper ’ Tax BAPTIST BANNER is pablisted every morning in Atlanta. Sa, by Dxxxvx, i i EXts & Co. Four doHar* par year- I LUrrcs, 4s-Co., [For The Banner.'} Oar Army Correspondence:. Lewisburg, Ala., July 28,1863. Prather Ells: I will be remembered by somj of your readers as the Vicksburg cor ; respondent of The Baptist B <nner in hap pier days gone by ; and, as you are doubt less ignorant of my whereabouts I have seized “ my grey goose quill,” which 1 hope will be “obedient to my will,” whilst I at tempt to pen you a few lines this morning I Os the battle of ‘-Baker’s Creek,” called j by the Y ankees “ Champion’s Hill,” fought on the 16ih May ; of‘‘Big Black,” on the day following, and of the heroic defence of the garrison at Vicksburg for forty-seven days, and final surrender of that stronghold on the 4ch instant, your readers have heard; but there seems to be so much misappre hension in the public mind concerning the trying campaign of the West, that J deem it my dui.y to undeceive tk em s <> far as it is ii my powpr. Defeat at Biker’s Creek fallowed the disaster al Port Gibson, just as naturally as any other eff-ct is produced by its legitimate cause. Port Gib-on, on the Ist May, was the place to repulse the enemy, if it was the intention of Pemberton to do it any where outside of thr- works at Vicksburg. Let me say here, in justifica tion of General Pembertprr, that it is said his plan was to remain at Vicksburg, col lect rations, strengthen his works, and meet them there. But General Johnston order ed him to attack Grant across the Big Black. ! Now, if Pemberton had been left to him • self, it is probable he would have collected sufficient stores from the Yazoo country ( from the time the enemj landed at Port; Gibson up to the time he invested Vicksburg j to have enabled our men to hold out a. month or two longer. 'Besides all the good; troop-i we lost at Baker’s Creek and other I places, would have been left to fill the! trenches at V icksburg. At Baker’s Creek : we had a panic-stricken army of eighteen < thousand men io set against Grant’s legions, ' As to Stephenson’s division, on that ecca-; ■ilon, it made no resistance Alabamians, i Georgians, and Tennesseeans ran off the; field in wild confusion at the very beginning : lof the attack. The enemy massed his col- ( umns on the right, ir. the direction of the, 3 ifithero RaWroid, pressing our left with such determination and strength, that we; were compelled to fall back, or have the • Yankees in our rear. When one regiment: fell back (being unable to hold its position ; with th- few bravo followers who had not run off with the panic stricken mob at the : commencement of the action) alike move ment on the part of other commands was ’ necessitated, and thm the retrograde soon ! become general. Genera! Pemberton’s; army was badly whipped when it crossed i Big Black on its way to Johnston—much worse indeed, thsu when it recrossed the > same river on its way to Vicksburg afn>.r ! the grand farce at Baker’s Creek had “play- jed out.” Genera! Lee wa; heard tn say ■ 1 I that the Yankees fought extremely bad! I there, and our men wo r?e . The truth is, ! I about our division ih-rc was but little fight-: |ing on either side. T’ : s impression has! j prevailed since the breaking out of the war, ■ i I believe, that the North- Western me:\fight : much better than the Down-Eisters ; aud i thus our success in »irgiria and ill-success | in the West is accounted for by those who! know nothing about It. Now, there can cot certainly be found in all the wide world a set of baser coward' than composed Grant’s army at the seige << Vicksburg.— Let me tell you the reason of our want of ( success in the West have had no men. ; there. Other sections us the Confederacy ; have been favored with armies almost equal-: ling the invaders in numbers —Richmond, for instance —while a handful of poorly ! disciplined troops have been playing “ hide j and seek” in the swamps of Mississippi, all ; the while exposed to the fc.nrfcr of i ' the Yankees. We have r.ev*?r gained a de-! cisive victory in the West, and surely nev er can, until the programme is changed.— ! Why Richmond is of "O much more import iance than the Mississippi River, the eat, j aud the balance of our iufaut Republic, may be very plain to those in authority, but it Is very difficult us solution to one -a hu has been in the West, bearing the hardships of ! her dreadful campaigns, and whose Inter-1 ests are as much allied to the Great W est ■ as any other section. Give us men m the west, and Joe Juho st on will whip the<u r of their b icts just as cs-y ns it has been l >r: j . so often, by uur brave buys in \ irgmta. i see from the papers that the .scribblers , have mysteriously multiplied sine.- Pern berton’s disxscerat ’»icksburg. Judgirz from : the Statements us some, the General w.ll have tu be beheaded to appease the ire they expect tu succeed in kindling in the public mind, concerning his (Pemberton’s) disloyalty. A boy ten years old wouldT.t be guilty us certain things they ascribe to Pemberton; and this is evident - - 1 ot the presumptiou and fully his traduv^rs.—- Erum the beginning of this struggle the Southern Confederacy has been curs-d with a few selfc mstituted unpaid, half crazed senskUior.ists, who seem tu think themselves peculiarly fitted to account fur all the re ’ verses with which w» meet; and it is just as easy u, charge disloyalty upon the com * rnatidieg General as anything else. This they do, or whatever appears to them the most plausible, and is the most likely to carry out their n< firious ends, and publish it to the world clothed In the garb of truth. Under the guidance of such imbeciles, we may soon distance the Yankees in placing upon the shelfour unfortunate, unsuccessful Generals. The yelping pack, now after Pemberton, are well trained. They got after Albert Sidney Johnston, the best man we ever had, because he fl-’d fv m Kentucky and Tennessee with his twelve thousand men, opposed, as he was. by a force of fifty or sixty thousand. Because he did’nt wait till the Yankees could eome up and take his little army prisoners, which would have resulted in the occupation us Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi by the Yankees, there being no army besides to protect 'hese States. They pursued him to the bloody fields of Shiloh, and then murdered the hero of our young nation Let it not be forgotten by the puplic that it actually became necessary for this brave manto write a private note tc. the President, vin dicating himself from the assaults of this pack of scribblers. He then offered up his life, having died with open veins, to testify the strength of that devotion ’q country, which had been called in question by the merciless horde of scribblers. They are now after Pemberton. . Whxt has he done worth;. - of death or bonds? Is he to laid on the shelf, or hanged?— What has he done? Do they reply, Pem berton being a Yankee sold Vicksburg out to his brethren ? 1 ask fur their authority From whom did they ascertain the fact?— From any one who could be relied on?—' No; they got thier information from Mr.! Grierson, cf raiding celebrity in the West. J Is he to be trusted ? Are we to frown on ! our leaders because a prowling band of, Yankee thievbs circulate false reports co , them 7 if’ve make this our rale of action we will soon have no leaders that can be ; trusted. Shall men professing to be loyal' hide behind such subterfuges as these, to j aim death blows at our Generals? For! shame, don’t do. it 1 Has this hue and cry i against Pemberton been raised because he f e l[ to work at Vicksburg.and defeiwled the 1 place fofi'ibrty-seven days pj rter ra-1 There was a time (though it is long j since passed !) when he would have been , applatided for his faithfulness ; but we have . fallen on strange times. * (J, the times;' O. the customs 1” Perhaps these scribblers 1 berate him. because, by surrendering ou 1 the fourt h of July, he got conditions which i would have been denied him on any other day thereafter ; having made arrangements with Grant fee the parole of all his men, by which th? brave and half starved surviv- i ors of that most terrible seige, were sax ed from Northern bastilps, insults, stinking i dens, and death. Then, wherein ie Pemberton culpab(e?i ia the ques’ion to be considered by sensi ble men. I reply ybr the scarcity of rations at Vicksburg, and nothing else. All ih.it 1 part of Mississippi bordering on the Yaz »o 1 teemed with inexhaustible supplies of the! good things of earth, and General Pember-: tun ought to have stored Vicksburg with' provisions for six or t welve mont'us. The ! Yazoo n ivlgation was vmdi.jturbed tc us—: he had all sorts of facilities for getting ti| . the necessary supplies. That Geucr.d Pem berton intended to supply Vicksburg from ! that part of Mississippi, appears from the fact that last winter he issued an order 1 prohibiting General Buckner fr-mi taking! any thing out of Mississippi to MuLjle.— Some think this satisfactuiy evidence us his j disloyalty or inability. lam disposed to! take the medium ground, and attribute it! to his negligence, or the fimfheia! severity ! the General felt, In common with the au- i thoritles at Richmond, and the great maj'>r-j itv of the people us the Confederacy, for the; entire safety of Vicksburg. Every bodj ! believed, and the rest <<f mankind, that, Vicksburg could never be taken by any force. . Let us see ike first . i last January our brigade reached the *’ hilled city ’ The enemy about that time, feeling he could never uccumplish anything with hia canal, had attempted to storm uur works at Chick-! asaw Ba/uu. Ha was met and gallantly ■ repulsed, having lust hundreds of his deau I and-dying on the bloody ground. A pan 1 of our division reached the scene us nc<i' ;> j in time to participate m th" fray. This am-, gle attempt from the front satisfied Grant i and r. p next v>t up the tamoUs 44 tiZoo cX ; ped ti* >u, ’ which 1 have every reason to beld ve. from recent developments, was onlj ' : inteud. j as as lnt bv Grant, to decoy oui j tr<>< os fn m Vfeksm'g, that he might the } better -ucceed m i assiog his gun boats and | e< ; dads, and at the same time to gel ' . ou.- ; o >ps so far from Port Gibson, the ; poL ‘ he Intendel to make a landing below Vi<4 'burg, that it would i>e impossible to 1 mart >; them to Port Gim on in time to in- i terfere w ith his project. Ihe plan succeeded, j for Grant had fended with his thousand * before Bowen with fib small division could get there to re fist him. The fe w men we had there fought bravely : out they were svo.i compelled tv flv befo*e the Yankees or fail into their hand- V\’e were com pletely out-geueraled, out was Pemberton alone to blame lor it ? W hen Gnmtabandoi:- led Yazoo it was sard he had given up ail TERMS — Four Dollars a-year. hopes of Vicksburg, and that he was actually sending his men lu large numbers to Mem phis, on their way to reinforce Rosecranz in Tennessee, it is said in reply ta this, our people ought not to belirve every thing they see in the papers now-a«days. I can’t say what our people believerPta the premi ses ; but I can tell j ou what the authorities <lid. Whether they based their action on these reports or nut I am uirable to say , but one thing is quite certain : they staried troops from Vicksburg an I Port Hudson to reinforce General B ragg. Some of these troops got as far as Montgomery on their way to Tennessee before countermanding orders were received by them. They were then hurried back, but too late to do any good. Now, if Pemberton is to blame f>r nut having kept up with Grant’s move ments, when every body was resting on ihrir oars, feeling that the day for activity in the West had passed for the season, it appears to me that some body efee was to blame, too, for ordering Pemberton’s men from his department at such a critical time. Now, “ Jet us hear the conclusion of the whole matterl don’t know, nor have I reason tu believe any une else more fortu nate, in this particular, than self, that any other leader v Ith the same handful ul men that Pemberton had, would have done any better than he, saving the ration ques tion., And a large supply of rations, let it be remembered, would have been a d< oid» d disadvantage to us at Vicksburg, unless, ly ho.ding out, Johnston could have relieved us. This he could hardly have done if we had remained three or four months, sinje Lee could furnish him with no men trom Virginia t and by that time our numbers would have been greatly curtailed by jel low fever and small pox, and the residue so hopelessly demoraliz 'd aud disheartwd as to be forever useless tu the service. Wuh the strong natural d* fences cuiuinandit g all the approaches to Vicksburg, strengthened by the preparations Grant had made to re : sist Johnston, it would have beui no small ; task to get to Vicksburg, unless a very large ' army had befen raisi d. If the people were as much inclined to do ■ their whole duty to the Cause of the C> nltd ; erac.V; as some of them are tc censure eve i ry General fin” certain things ascribed to I them —and of which they ate usually inno 'cent—the pleas uit time succeeding the meting out this even-hai d©d justice would be hailed by us all as the dawning of the millennium. Byron certainly told the 1 truth when he said, " A mxn niii’t serve his time to evc-y ‘rr.de Have c*ustiru-cril cs ah are ready made.’’ Let C iristian people refer their holy ' cause to the arbitrament of Heaven; let them get oii their knees before the Almighty at this trying period of doubt and fear; and let the masses work up to a true Sense as the dangers that surround them —work while it is yet day —and a diff'reut state of affairs will be visible in the hoiLon of our young Republic. T. B. E. [fc- The Baptist Banner.} Wisslonarjßeport. Decatur, Ga. } August Ist, 1863. .Dear Brother Wood: Since my last let ter to 3ou from Morristown 1 have been able to do very little sei Vite, having preach ed but four sermons and dLtributea 2500 pages of tracts, in coDbexuence us the laid made through that section by the enemy, reuderihS transportation for near two weeks, Out I did what 1 could under the circum stances. I arrived home safely, though very sick, on the lith of July. Ou tne 12m I was -ome better. That bring the SaOba.h, I tried to preach ; but since that I have not been able to do any thing in the ! <*ay of my missionary wurk, as you have ! seen from my quarterly report, bull am 1 uti to-day fur GeU. Bragg’s Hiiny. 1 rx i pect to labor in that portion of the army -rationed at Ku- xvilie, at which pjuce I bhall be glad to receive tor the soldiers any religious papers or books, lam indebted co the kiuUuess of Mr. 11. Hard, of Decatur, for several Volumes us religious works, I .vliich were gladly received by the soldiers. ! W hen 1 first C -mmejiced my work L; the i army the men often asktd for novels <>r ' story books hut now 1 find that they ca>e mure fur a religious book, paper, or tract chan any other, mid the h lends ot religion 1 would du well tv Send to the : such books us tht-j can ot a ivligious char- ■ acter, vr The Banner, The lud<x, or tume i other good paper you shall fear from me ! svuu it ide and health 1 .st. In the mean -1 while do nut forget to pray fur \<*ur broth , «r in Christ. P. A. H UGHES. ■ ■ i. ■ -- The liaptist Mt.iiiier. ■ The proprietors ot The Baptist Iferh'ttß would inform the re-add g public, u-i/ccillly ! heads of families, that, A an excellent HOME TAPEII, THE BANNER shall be surpassed by noria The LADIES, the CHILDREN, and the SOLDIERS IN OCR ARMY, will receive ! specUl uilenclo:and each number, in add!- ’' don to a carefully prepared synopsis of reli gious and secular NEWS, will contain a good aTORY—-together with enceriafeiug Mucella -1 [ ales, Sketches, wiC. NUMBER 39.