and "he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins."

If the Holy Spirit were to be poured out upon our young educated Christian men, the Lord Jesus would be the Friend whom each would first consult in choosing his work for life. He would say to Him, "Lord, what wilt THOU have me to do?" It may be that many would recognise His providential call in the urgent need which so many thousands of their fellow-countrymen have of a larger supply of faithful clergy. For one look at their own acknowledged weakness, these young men will take ten looks at the heart of the Lord Jesus, and at the riches of His grace, placed within the reach of the hand of faith, and sufficient for all their need.

5. After all, the great reason of the too scanty supply of clergy for real missionary work at home and abroad is, that many of our Christian young men are wanting in two things. These are the very things which we elders also most need, and nothing will unite our hearts more to-day than the deep feeling and the humble acknowledgment of our common need, and our loving trust in the Lord Jesus to supply that need. If we elders had these two things in a higher degree, God would make us to be much more efficient in promoting the supply of clergy.

These two things which our Christian young men most need are, first, entire unreserved devotion of themselves to the Lord Jesus to do His will and His work, at any cost, in any position, in any parish, in any climate, to which He may draw them by showing them the spiritual destitution of sinners for whom He died. The second thing needed is, the means to the above end, namely, simple, thorough, unhesitating faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for grace sufficient to enable them to do any work to which He may call them; and grace sufficient to enable them to yield to Him that entire devotion of themselves to His service which He requires of His redeemed people. We must have a greater number of young laymen entirely consecrated to the Lord for His work, before we shall have a sufficient supply of clergy.

The Queen has a large army of brave soldiers ready to go anywhere, and to do anything, or at least to try to do anything, which she, by her Government, commands them to do.

Where is the young officer who would be unwilling to go, at the Queen's command, to do any service, however dangerous, in India, China, or Africa? But the Lord Jesus has no such loyal, self-sacrificing army, as our Queen commands. The Lord Jesus has a few isolated, devoted missionaries whom their young Christian brethren at home coldly leave, in the midst of the Lord's enemies, to fight and die exhausted almost alone. The only young men who are afraid of the climate of India are those who are asked to go out as missionaries! Young men were eager to go to the bloody trenches before Sebastopol, or to encounter the dangers of war and climate at the siege of Delhi, or at the Relief of Lucknow, or those of a long march through a deadly African forest to the country of the Ashantees. But how very few are ready to go to a nobler warfare in heathen lands which God's providence has opened for spiritual conquests, for Him who said, "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world”— a warfare of faith and love for the rescue by the gospel of those fellowsubjects in India lying blind and in darkness and under the power of

Satan! The Lord's last command is neglected. His promises are distrusted. Self is regarded. An easier course is preferred.

The very same want of entire devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ, and of faith in Him for sufficient grace to qualify them for the work to which He calls His servants-the very same want which keeps back young men from offering themselves for missionary work amongst the heathen, keeps them back from offering themselves for self-denying, difficult work in our poor and populous parishes. Many Christian young men do not seem able to trust their God to supply all their need, both their spiritual and their temporal need, "according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

6. If the love of God be shed abroad in the hearts of the rich members of our Church, by the Holy Ghost given to them, they will feel it to be one of the sweetest pleasures their riches can give them, to send cheques to some of the excellent Clerical Education Societies, for educating pious and able young men for the ministry, who could not without this aid go to a university or to a theological college. For example, to the one of which the Rev. Edward Auriol, of 35 Mecklenburgh Square, London, Rector of St Dunstan's, Fleet Street, is the Honorary Secretary.

Such large-hearted Christians will not be content with bewailing the spread of scepticism, but will prove the reality of their own faith by such good works as these.

When, through the power of the Holy Ghost working in their hearts, the love of Christ becomes the ruling passion with rich Christians, some of them will found clerical scholarships for unattached students at Oxford or Cambridge; or exhibitions at our colleges of divinity; so that pious and able young men of small resources, who desire to devote their lives to the ministry of the gospel in our Church, may be enabled to obtain the training they need.

I have the best possible means of knowing with certainty that £60 a year will pay the board, lodging, and tuition of an unattached student at Oxford or Cambridge, or of a student at a college of divinity. Of course, the student must be one who, from conscientious motives, practises a rigid economy with firm resolution.

There are many pious and able young men, the sons of widows and others, who have no resources to carry them through the university, and yet are quite as much gentlemen in birth, education, mind, and manners, as richer young men. Such men are lost to the ministry of our Church for want of so small a sum as £200 to pay the expenses of a three years' course at a university, or at a college of divinity, and of another £100 to pay their vacation and other expenses during their three years' training.

7. That the supply of clergy may be well qualified to meet the sceptical tendencies of the day, I would earnestly recommend candidates for holy orders, after taking their B. A. degree, to place themselves for a year under some sound divine who has made these subjects his special study. For example, under such a one as Dr Boultbee, Principal of St John's Hall, Highbury, or the Rev. Saumarez Smith, Principal of St Aidan's College, Birkenhead.

Would it not be well also for the universities or for the archbishops to establish an annual "Christian Evidences Tripos," in which all young clergymen possessed of some mental energy who have not passed more

than three years since they were ordained deacons may seek to obtain a class? Might not the bishops encourage the study of the Evidences of Christianity by making a high place in this Tripos one among other things to guide them in their making choice of young clergymen to fill vacant incumbencies in towns? This Tripos would open to young clergymen who have not a university degree an opportunity of obtaining a distinction more directly expressive of qualification for the ministry of the gospel.

8. As one who has known hundreds of undergraduates at Oxford and Cambridge during the last sixteen years, and who never knew so many true-hearted Christian young men anywhere else, I have reason to value most highly university men. I am altogether opposed to the adoption of a faint-hearted, desponding tone with respect to our universities, as if these great seats of learning and nurseries of the clergy were to be abandoned to unbelievers. The dark side may be very dark, but there is also a bright side.

I believe that there never were more young men desiring to serve Christ at our universities than there are now. But I think that we must take heed that "the supply of clergy" is not discouraged by an unfair and undistinguishing prejudice against the very valuable class of clergy who have not taken a degree at a university.

It would do something to remove this prejudice to ascertain how many clergymen without a university degree, during the last ten years, have read the gospel when ordained deacons, because they passed the best examination before the bishop and his chaplains, and so far proved themselves to be better qualified for holy orders than any of the university men ordained with them. I leave it to others to speak of the distinctions obtained by other theological colleges. For the sake of definiteness and accuracy, I will take a single college as an example, and will speak of the results obtained by Dr Boultbee and his assistant tutors at St John's Hall, Highbury. From this college, designated "The London College of Divinity," 131 students have been ordained during the last ten years. Of these no less than twenty have been placed first at the bishop's examination, and have therefore read the gospel at the ordination. That is, two out of every thirteen of those men trained at this college. Only one of these twenty was a graduate of a university. Thus, at nineteen ordinations within ten years, a student from one small college of divinity passed a better examination before the bishop and his chaplains than any of the university men ordained with them. I doubt not that many trained at other theological colleges, without having been at a university, have also read the gospel when ordained deacons.

But this is not all which non-university men have done. "The Prelimi nary Examination of Candidates for Holy Orders," held twice a year at Cambridge, "is conducted under the direction of the Divinity professors and members of the theological faculty, in co-operation with many of the bishops. It has been established with a view to aid in promoting a more systematic and better distributed course of preparation for holy orders." There were thirteen men in the First Class after this examination last October. Four of these were trained at St John's Hall, Highbury; and only three of the thirteen are university men. There were thirty-seven in the Second Class. Of these seven were trained at St John's Hall, and seventeen at

universities. Thus, these seventeen university men in the Second Class were surpassed in this university examination, conducted by three Oxford and three Cambridge examiners, by no less than ten men who were never members of a university, who, with only three university men, made up the First Class of thirteen. Last April the First Class at the Cambridge “Preliminary Examination" contained seven men-two from St Aidan's, Birkenhead, one from St Bees, one not a member of any college, and three university men. Thus, in this examination, four students who were never at a university passed a better examination than no less than twenty-seven university men in the Second Class. Surely after such results of examinations conducted by learned university men, it is time for less learned university men to give up disparaging brother clergymen who have not taken a university degree. English fairness, common sense, good manners, and Christian brotherly love, all combine with the results of these theological examinations' to condemn any uncourteous and undistinguishing disparagement of really valuable non-university men. The clergyman who knows Christ and His gospel and the Word of God best, and who preaches Christ most faithfully, and who, in the power of the Holy Ghost, lives most by faith in Christ, and is most fully consecrated to His service, is the best clergyman, whether trained at a university, or at a college of divinity.

9. It is a very important consideration how far it is possible now to abide by the instructions given to Timothy and Titus. They were directed by the Holy Ghost, through the apostle, to choose out seasoned Christians, family men, known and trusted. We send very young men to college, and press all the Latin and Greek we can into them by means of the very necessary stimulus of examinations, during a three years' university course, and we expect them to become well qualified "elders" at the age of twenty-four. I only state the contrast, let it be well considered.

When the Church is starving for want of curates, and thousands of souls are therefore neglected for whom Christ died, might it not be well for our bishops to make their rule a little more elastic, and to ordain pious and able men of experience and energy, who have proved themselves to be fit for ministerial work by their Christian labours as laymen?

It was usually men of this kind rather than young men fresh from the schools of Athens and Alexandria that were ordained" elders" in every city by apostolical missionaries. It may be that the sooner we follow the example of the fathers in this matter the better. We cannot afford to give up the present system of ordaining very young men, but may not the apostolical method be used also in very special cases?

He

Let me give an example of a useful clergyman who began life in a very different calling. Twenty-nine years ago Mr Squire, who had been a lieutenant in the Royal Navy, was appointed vicar of Swansea. found that great town destitute of any Church week-day school, and destitute of any Church Sunday-school. But since then in the schools which he has built, 28,000 children have been educated, who have paid £12,700 in school pence. And the amount he has raised for the building of additional churches and schools, and for other local objects, and for home and foreign missions, has reached nearly £100,000.

The Principal of one of our most successful theological colleges, who was himself in the first class of the classical Tripos, and a Fellow of Trinity

College, Cambridge, and therefore naturally is strongly predisposed to set a high value upon classical studies as a means of culture, wrote to me thus a few days ago: "The question, whether linguistic acquirements (Latin and Greek) for candidates for holy orders should be enforced, as a sine qua non in every case, is a question which ought to be faced, and wisely and patiently considered. I believe that, in many cases, the time devoted to Latin and Greek would be better spent in English; and that Bible knowledge ought to be more insisted on and cared for in all cases." There is nothing at the present time more satisfactory in all our theological examinations, both in those at the universities and in those before the bishops, than the undoubted fact that a knowledge of the Bible is, in all of them, made the principal and most indispensable subject.

To conclude. Our great want in seeking to promote the supply of clergy, as in all other departments of the Lord's work, is more faith in our God and in His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. By faith we abide in Christ, and He said, "He that abideth in Me, and I in Him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without ME ye can do nothing" (John xv. 5). Success in leading young men to devote themselves to the service of God in the ministry of the gospel comes like "the fruits of righteousness,” only “by Jesus Christ," according to our faith in Him. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." I close with a portion of that Word which may encourage us in seeking to increase "the supply of clergy;" and may, through the Spirit, call some young laymen to seek the ministry of the gospel. "The same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him. For whosoever shall call on the Name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe on Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent ? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things" (Romans x. 12-15).

DISCUSSION.

Rev. W. REYNER COSENS, D.D., Vicar of Dudley,
Worcestershire.

For many years I have been engaged in the endeavour to increase the supply of clergy, and my present position as vicar of a parish of 15,000 people forces me to the sad conclusion, that one of the weakest points in our Church is the supply of its clergy. If the words of the Bishop of Carlisle this morning be true (and no doubt they were carefully written and pondered by him), that many of the clergy had not the slightest notion of what they had to do when they went into their parishes, then this subject is the most important of all those which are upon the paper. I will ask two questions, and endeavour, very briefly, to answer them. First, what is the best system of giving to young men the opportunity of becoming probationers? I do not think that the mere sending of a young man to a theological college, which probably is situated in a village, is in any way the probation which is required for preparing a man for work in such parts of the country as that in which my own lot is cast. I am of opinion