the social distinctions, the political right to equal advantages in the acquisition of knowledge must be accorded to all. III. It must be supported at the public expense, as an elementary function of a republican government. This upon the simple principle that, if "all men are created equal," and "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," while it is selfevident that for the defense of these rights government is instituted so also it is self-evident that the nature, exercise and limits of these rights must be taught in the appropriate period of youth, to each generation. Thus the ends of government are accomplished in the most cheap, effectual, and wholesome way. IV. It must embody in its instructions the morality of Christianity. Christianity as a religion is that upon which the common law is based. Its morality is the purest, best, and most complete; it alone is revealed from God, based upon the authority of God, and enforced by the promises and threatenings of the eternal government of God. Without the morality of Christianity republican institutions cannot accomplish their ends, and cannot long endure. The instructions required are not to be conveyed in the formal statements of any creed, are not to use the catechisms of any church, are not to favor the interpretations of any as to minor and disputed points of religion. But each day the Bible should be read as an authority, and for its information upon matters of infinite value to the soul of man; a brief prayer, in some simple form if preferred, should be offered; the singing of juvenile hymns should be practised; and a spirit of reverence towards God and respect for his truth should pervade the literature and tuition of the school room. How important is it that the Presbyterian ministry and people of the United States comprehend the spirit of our national education, and throw in their whole influence to shield it from the attacks of its enemies, to preserve it pure, and to make it successful as to its great designs! Here is a field which every pastor of a church should feel is a part of what he is called, by his vows to God, by his professional duty, by his interest in the future of the youth, and by his patriotism to diligently cultivate. Here is employment for earnest and intelligent young men, to adopt teaching as an honorable, useful, and remunerative profession for life. Every considerate parent should be watchful that suitable and faithful teachers are employed in the schools of his district; that the libraries exclude books of an injurious character; that the class books are of a proper kind; that profanity, filthiness, indolence, and disorder are banished from the school and its vicinity; and that this be the nursery of benefits to our families, to the land, and to mankind. An Old Prediction verified Anew. "They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before Him," said the royal prophet (Psalm lxx.) three thousand years ago. It has been fulfilled in many nations amidst the wastes of the old continents. We have an interesting illustration before us of its accomplishment among those of the New World. While our civil war was raging in the South, the homes of the peaceful inhabitants of the far Northwest were suddenly deluged with the bloodshed, and desolated with the flames, of a terrible Indian massacre. From that same region there comes an appeal for the Board of Education to aid a young Dakota, converted under the labours of Dr. Williamson and others who have been missionaries of the American Board, to prepare himself to preach the gospel to his people. The letter of recommendation to the Board from Dr. Williamson and Artemas Ehnamani, the latter a Dakota minister, says the Presbytery is scattered over "a wilderness of four hundred miles in breadth." The request of the young man himself to the Dakota Presbytery shows his earnestness and sincerity. He says:— 66 Believing that myself and all men are by nature sinner, in danger of eternal misery, and that none can be saved except through the knowledge of Jesus the son of God, who died to save sinners, I dayly and crnerstly pray to God to enable me clearly to understand his word, and to make it known to my people who are perish because they do not know it; and feeling that I have not sufficient knowledge to do it, I hereby requist of you and the other members of the Presbyteny such instruction and assistance as it may be in your power to give, and you think will fit me for this work. ALBERT E. FRAZIER." We trust he will be remembered in the prayers of those who watch for the day when all "that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before" the Prince of peace, and that the Board will be helped with the pecuniary means necessary to accomplish its charge to raise up the man through whose labours this end shall be obtained. A most acceptable Gift from an Aged Pastor. Cannot I, as a minister, contribute something liberal to aid my young brethren to obtain intellectual advantages such as those which a kind Providence has granted me?-is a question which many a man, holding that sacred office, may ask of himself. "Like priest, like people," is an old maxim. Were we, as pastors, to lead the way, how many of our church members would contribute largely, who now give nothing to Education and the missionary work. Such thoughts are suggested by the following interesting letter from a venerable father of the Church connected with the liberal gift of tenfold the amount which he himself had received; which he desired to be paid in his name to a theological student. "More than forty years ago, when a student in the Theological Seminary at Princeton, New Jersey, a brother informed that Dr. Alexander wished to see me, which information somewhat startled me, and the inquiry arose: have I been negligent of duty? or have I done anything amiss, that the doctor sends for me to call at his study? Not knowing of any such thing, I, however, entered his room in a state of trepidation, and being invited to a seat, in his usual way he informed me that he had received a letter from a friend of mine, and while he was not at liberty to give the author's name, he would read the letter, which in substance was as follows: 'Dear Sir, I have been in the habit of laying by a small sum every week for some benevolent object, which, at the end of the year, I find amounts to fifteen dollars, which I have decided to send to you for the use of P.H.' "Then locking at me in his peculiar manner, he said, 'If you will sign a receipt for this amount, you shall have the money.' This I assure I did with very grateful feelings, and returned to my room, much encouraged with my special favour. Although the sum was not large, yet it was very opportune, as my purse was nearly empty, and I viewed the fact as further evidence that the good Lord had some work for me to do in the holy ministry. Why should I not then, when having the means, aid another who needs in his preparation for the sacred office ?" A Man who wants a Hundred Sons. There is a missionary in the great West who wants "a hundred sons" to preach the gospel. He has given one recently to the work. If he has given that which is so dear to him, his Isaac, who will furnish the small amount-a hundred and twenty dollars-which is necessary to aid that son a year at college? In money alone, an industrious son is worth, to a man in the West, hundreds of dollars a year. This dear brother gives cheerfully his son to the Church's work. Send on the money to help us to educate him. The letter is as follows: "I have paid money to assist my son from my own means, and find myself cramped. We never intended to ask anything extra for him. But I have just moved to Kansas. My means are very limited. I have spent a considerable sum in reaching here, and find that every missionary here out of the towns has to, or has had to, build his own house-and it might amuse you to learn what kind of houses we live in. I expect to move into one that will cost me sixty dollars— lumber and all-in a few days; and another missionary of our Board has been since last June burrowing under about five hundred feet of lumber. Some of us are too poor either to stay or get away. "We admire the country. We think that when the Lord resolved to address himself to his people in poetry-in blank verse, he made Southern Kansas. Southern Kansas is a poem-a divine poem, and who shall unfold to coming readers its latent and unrevealed beauties? Who shall interpret to the human mind the conceptions and expressions of this poem-this masterpiece of the Divine mind? "Oh that I had a hundred sons and that all of them were preachers ready to stand on these hills and in these valleys and interpret to coming thousands this work-this volume prophetic of the approach and glory of its coming Lord!" RECEIPTS AT PHILADELPHIA IN AUGUST, 1870. I. FUND FOR CANDIDATES. $7.00 Phy of Rock River-Osco ch 4; Zion ch 5 9 00 26 31 Pby of St Paul-Andrew ch 9 80; Harrison eh 12 90 9.00 Phy of Scioto-Hanging Rock ch 28.00 Phy of Chenango-Mt Pleasant ch 10; New Brighton 1st ch 22 40 32 40 BOARD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS. Recent Intelligence. CONVERTS RECEIVED AS COMMUNICANTS.-At Rio de Janeiro, two persons were admitted to the communion of the church in July. We do not find in the letters of the last month notices of any other additions to the churches,—a fact to be considered with much regret. There are references, however, to special cases of interest in religion at some of the stations. Mr. Carleton speaks of two families coming out from the heathen and joining the little Christian community under his care in Upper India. Dr. Happer refers to six applicants for baptism at Canton, and Mr. Noyes of the same mission writes, "Our work is on the whole encouraging. Dr. Happer says he has never had so promising a class in the training school as he has now. The attendance at the chapels is good, and the attention seems better than formerly." Dr. Nevius says of the district west and south of Tungchow, "The interest in the gospel is constantly spreading among the villages of Ping-tu. When I visited that region about a year ago, we had but one church member there. We have now more than twenty. They are scattered over a tract of country about thirty miles long, living in nearly a dozen different villages. Some of them are men of considerable influence in the neighbourhood where they reside. They are all entirely independent of the mission in pecuniary matters. In nearly all the villages occupied by these native Christians there are earnest inquirers." Mr. Carrothers at Yedo speaks of his teacher as very much interested in Christianity. He has read the greater part of the New Testament, and part of the Old. I hope it will not be long before he is willing to make a profession of his faith in the Lord Jesus." MISSIONS TO THE INDIAN TRIBES.-We are glad to mention that the notice lately published in the religious newspapers, concerning suitable men as Indian Agents in certain tribes, has called forth offers of service from more than could be nominated for appointmemt. The Board is now anxious to obtain the services of the right men as missionaries-see a reference to the subject in another column. ORDINATION OF A NATIVE AFRICAN.-The Presbytery of Corisco ordained Mr. Ibia, on the 5th of April, as a minister of the gospel. In the absence of any other missionaries, he has now sole charge of the work on the Island of Corisco-a work altogether too great for him; indeed, one that has heretofore required the services of two missionaries from this country. ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE OF MISSIONARIES.-The Rev. John Menaul has arrived from Corisco, and expects to enter on missionary work before long among the Indians in Arizona Territory. The Rev. C. De Heer and his wife have also arrived from Corisco, on a visit for their health. The Rev. Hugh W. McKee and his family arrived from Brazil on the 20th of August. He will be warmly welcomed, and we hope he will soon find a useful field of labour in this country. D. B. McCartee, D.D., and his wife have started on their return to Ningpo, expecting to take the steamer from San Francisco of October 1st. The Rev. Messrs. George F. Fitch, and J. Fisher Crossette and their wives also expect to go out to China in the same steamer. These brethren are graduates of Lane Theological Seminary, and are members of the Presbytery of Cincinnati. Mr. Fitch was happily settled as the pastor of two churches in that Presbytery, with the best prospects of usefulness in this relation. The Rev. Royal G. Wilder and his family left New York for Kolapore, India, on the 17th of July, to resume his important work there. We commend all these missionary friends to the blessing of God, and ask for them a remembrance in the prayers of our churches. DECLINATURE OF REV. H. H. JESSUP, D.D.-We regret to mention that Dr. Jessup feels constrained to decline the appointment as a Corresponding Secretary of the Board. His excellent letter, giving his views of the subject, as published in the Foreign Missionary and the newspapers, will be read with much interest and will no doubt meet with the approval of the friends of missions. RECEIPTS, MAY 1ST TO SEPTEMBER 1ST.-From churches $17,887; from legacies, $4,843; from miscellaneous donors, $2,279; in all, $25,010. Receipts in the same months last year, $43,544-of which, from churches, $23,736. The church collections of the next three or four months will very probably decide the question of the Board's being able to enlarge its work in the ensuing year. LETTERS RECEIVED TO SEPTEMBER 14th.-From the Chippewa Mission, August 29th; Omaha, August 31st; Seminole, August 31st; Creek, September 2d; San Francisco, August 24th; Yedo, July 20th; Tungchow, July 4th; Chefoo, July 6th; Hangchow, June 28th; Ningpo, July 9th; Shanghai, July 11th; Canton, July 11th; Bangkok, June 8th; Allahabad, July 23d; Etawah, June 21st; Futtehgarh, June 30th; Dehra, July 19th; Landour, July 9th; Monrovia, August 3d; Rio de Janeiro, July 25th; Bogota, August 11th. In the next few Months Many of the churches will soon be making their regular annual collections for the Board. We therefore beg our brethren in the ministry to take up again the last Annual Report, and carefully consider its statements, so that they may be prepared to commend this cause, not in general terms, but with particular information, to the minds and hearts of their people. 2. Next, we wish to remind all our Christian friends that the work of missions has been steadily going forward, since the Annual Report was prepared for the General Assembly. Several new missionaries have been sent out, others are on the eve of starting for their different fields of labour, and some also are returning to their stations; in all thirteen ministers, one physician, and ten ladies are thus included. Several of these brethren and their wives belonged to the late New School part of our Church. One mission, formerly under the care of the American Board, has already been transferred to our Board, and others soon will be, as we have reason to believe, besides the Kolapore mission lately received. Thus the work of the Board is much enlarged, and it is hoped that a greatly increased interest will be felt by all of our churches in the missions as now and hereafter to be conducted. From the missions themselves, we have for the most part most encouraging accounts. In numerous cases, reports of conversions have been received. The Laos mission is considered safe, and its prospects are greatly encouraging. In several missions, the brethren ask for dwelling houses; in somne, for chapels; in some, for more labourers-especially in the Corisco and Gaboon Missions, and also in the Syria Mission, expected soon to be taken under the care of the Board. But we cannot enter here into many details. In general, this work is growing. 3. The report of the receipts of the Board for the first four months of the year is not encouraging-see the paragraph on this subject under "Recent Intelligence." Dear brethren, watch this point. Do not let unusual or special efforts, however excellent in themselves, lessen the regular flow of gifts to this sacred cause. Can |