ADDRESS 
 
 DELIVERED BEFORE THE 
 
 Historical Society of the 
 
 South Carolina Conference, 
 
 DECEMBER 13th, 1881, 
 
 By WHITEFORD SMITH. 
 
 <a 
 
 Asinthe material world two opposite 
 forces are necessary, to preserve the equi- 
 librium, so in the world of mind the same 
 necessity would seem to exist; and the con- 
 servatism of age is indispensable to keep in 
 check the impetuosity of youth, while the 
 vigor and daring of youth is necessary to 
 prevent the stagnation and inaction of old 
 age. Ifthe one were wanting, there would 
 be no progress; the absence of the other 
 would result in perpetual innovation and 
 change. Hither without the other would be 
 a bar to all improvement. 
 
 Neither the one nor the other sets a proper 
 value upon the present. Age is apt to un- 
 dervalue the present as compared with the 
 remembered glories of the past, while youth 
 views the present as nothing in comparisow 
 with the splendor of the ideal future. Whe» 
 the corner-stone of the second temple was 
 laid, on the return of the Jews from their 
 captivity in Babylon, there wasa mingled 
 sound of weeping and shouting; for many 
 of the old men wept over the departed glory 
 of the former house, and the young men 
 shouted for joy over the anticipated 
 glory of the newone. [Hzraiii. 12.] And 
 so it always is in this world; weeping and 
 shouting, mourning and rejoicing are ever 
 heard in seemingly strange combination. 
 And so long as good and evil continue their 
 contest for supremacy in this arena of hu- 
 man action, so will it ever be. 
 
 It was a very sad conclusion to which the 
 wise King Solomon was led, as the result of 
 long and extensive observation, “the thin 
 that hath been, it is that which shall be; and 
 that which is done is that which shall be 
 done; and there is no new thing under the 
 sun.” eee ce ee Om «There is no 
 remembrance of former things, neither 
 shall there be any remembrance of things 
 that are to come, with those that shall 
 come after.” [Eccls. i. 9-11.] In these words 
 he expresses the great truth, that men will 
 learn only by their own experience; that the 
 experience of progenitors is of no avail to 
 their posterity; the lessons of history are 
 read with incredulity. We are always 
 
 
 
 ready to think that there are some modifi- 
 cations in the circumstances of our times 
 that make the lessons of the past inapplica- 
 ble to us. And thus it is that the world 
 grows so little wiser with the lapse of years 
 and ages, There comes a time, however, 
 in the life of man, when he discovers the 
 folly of this neglect, and when it is too late, 
 gives utterance to the bitter words of una- 
 vailing repentance, <‘How have I hated in- 
 struction, and my heart despised reproof; 
 and have not obeyed the voice of my teach- 
 ers, nor inclined mine ear to them that in- 
 structed me.” [Prov. v. 12, 13.] 
 
 The world fancies that it is growing wiser 
 as it grows older, but the excavation of long- 
 buried cities shows that many of the inven- 
 tions upun which the moderns pride them- 
 selves were known to the people of centu- 
 ries ago. The ever-changing fashions are 
 but the repetition of those which prevailed 
 in former times, and even of many of those 
 things which we regard as novelties, it may 
 be said, ‘‘there is no new thing under the 
 sun,” 
 
 The recorded events of history are so 
 alike in successive empires which have 
 arisen, flourished and fallen, that we have 
 come to say,as aproverb, ‘‘History repeats 
 itself.” The simplicity of manners, the 
 honesty and frugality, the industry and pa- 
 tience, which have laid the foundation of 
 national greatness, have been followed by 
 the vices which usually attend upon the 
 accumulation of wealth and power, until 
 sloth and luxury and licentiousness have 
 precipitated their ruin. But, of what avail 
 were the experiences of Egypt and Assyria, 
 to the kingdoms thatcame after them? Are 
 we, to-day, any wiser for the lesson written 
 in the experience of every nation that has 
 once flourished and decayed, that the per- 
 petuity and glory of nations stand not 
 in their material prosperity and esthetic 
 culture, but in the virtue and intelligence of 
 their people? 
 
 Has not the history of the world furnish- 
 ed lesson after lesson to the nations, that 
 ‘he that taketh the sword.shall perish with 
 
 ag 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
the sword?” Wars undertaken for the op- 
 pression of neighboring States, for enlarge- 
 ment of territory, for national aggrandise- 
 ment, however successful at first, have they 
 not been followed by the downfall of those 
 who have employed them? And yet, with 
 the experience of all the centuries, are not 
 the nations, to-day, as mad in the career of 
 
 tion? 
 ** Cassandra-like, 
 Amid the din of battle, none will hear, 
 Or hearing, heed.” 
 
 It is sad to think that this is no less true 
 of the history of the Church. Infidelity 
 and heresies which appeared in the early 
 periods of Christianity, though again and 
 again refuted, still make their appearance 
 in each succeeding age. The flippant unbe- 
 liever of to-day imagines that he has dis- 
 covered some new objection to revealed 
 truth, while he is only reproducing the stale 
 and obsolete notions of those who lived 
 some centuries ago, which have been so 
 successfully overthrown that they have 
 long been buried from public observation. 
 
 The great work of the preacher in bring- 
 ing men to Christ is the same now that it 
 has always been. The natural hostility of 
 the heart to God and to what is good is 
 the same that it has always been. The 
 truths of our holy religion are the same 
 which our Lord gave in the days when he 
 dwelt among men. And His declaration is 
 as true now as when it was first uttered: 
 “This is the condemnation, that light is come 
 into the world, and men loved darkness 
 rather than light, because their deeds were 
 evil.” (John iii. 19). 
 
 To convince men of their sins—to set 
 forth Christ as the only and the loving Sa- 
 viour—to proclaim faith in Him as the only 
 means of salvation—to urge upon the guilty 
 the duty of repentance, and upon the par- 
 doned believer the duty of constant growth 
 in grace ;—these are the topics for the pulpit, 
 
 as they have ever beep; and he who uses | 
 
 them with the help of that Spirit who is 
 promised in answer to faithful prayer, need 
 never be afraid of failure in the work of the 
 ministry. These are the mighty truths that 
 reached the conscience of Felix, and made 
 him tremble; that extorted from Agrippa 
 
 the confession, ‘‘ Almost thou persuadest | 
 
 me to be a Christian;” that swept the field 
 upon the day of Pentecost, and delivered 
 three thousand ‘‘ prisoners of hope” from 
 
 the bondage of Satan; that calmed the fears | 
 
 of the Phillipian jailor amid the terrors of 
 the earthquake, and brought peace to his 
 troubled soul; that. reached the heart of the 
 Athenian Areopagite, and made Dyonysius 
 a Christian convert; that broke the tyranny 
 of superstition when Luther nailed his 
 theses to the door of the church; that re- 
 kindled the almost extinguished light of 
 Christianity when Wesley and Whitefield 
 
 } 
 
 
 
 preached in Moorfields; which has swept 
 the States of North America “ike an autum- 
 nal prairie fire;’ and which promises, with 
 the blessing of God, to move on with all its 
 wondrous, saving power, till Christ ‘* sball 
 come to be glorified in His saints, and to be 
 admired in all them that believe.” As long 
 
 | as we are true and faithful to the pure doc- 
 ambition and conquest and. plunder, asif no 
 such record had been made for their instruc- 
 
 trines of Scripture, we need entertain no 
 fear on this score. Experience has fully 
 confirmed the promise of the Saviour, “ Lo, 
 I am with you alway, even unto the end of 
 the world.” 
 
 There is a point, however, upon which 
 the experience of the past may well awaken 
 serious apprehension. Mr. Wedley had not 
 read in vain the history of the Church, 
 when he anticipated the danger to which 
 Methodism would be exposed by its very 
 successes. His sagacity led him to see that 
 the industry and frugality of his converts 
 would necessarily result in their accumula- 
 tion of wealth; that wealth, as it always 
 does, would exert its influence; that losing 
 the simplicity of their religious character, 
 they would aspire to worldly display and 
 grandeur, and then their glory would de- 
 part. This disposition to seek after worldly 
 position, to become great in the estimation 
 of the world and to exhibit that greatness 
 with pompous ostentation, seems inherent 
 in the nature of man. . 
 
 Under ihe Jewish dispensation it was 
 strikingly shown. Though their dispensa- 
 tion was greatly inferior to ours, yet it was 
 vastly superior to any other then known to 
 the world. But they soon became dissatis- 
 fied with their theocracy and desired a king, 
 like the nations round about them. They 
 gradually perverted their whole system of 
 religion; and their very temple, which was 
 
 | designed for the service of God, became 
 
 the object of their idolatry. ‘The thing sig- 
 nified was lost sight of in the undue im- 
 portance given to the sign; the substance 
 was lost in the shadow. The command- 
 ments of God were made of none effect by 
 their traditions. The Church was exalted 
 to the place of the Cbureh’s God. The 
 warning voice of prophecy, foretelling the 
 fearful results of this corruption, was rais- 
 ed in vain, and the declension proceeded from 
 bad to worse until the day of retribution 
 came. When Jesus, for the last time left 
 the temple, ‘‘the Spirit departed, though 
 the lifeless body yet remained, like on er | 
 in the funereal chamber; but the torch o 
 
 the Roman soldier was enkindling to fire the 
 devoted pile, and reduce both the priesthood 
 and temple to ashes, which the winds of 
 heaven should scatter, and which no power 
 on earth should be able to gather together 
 again,” [Stratton on the Priesthood, pp. 
 22, 23.] 
 
 From the time when Christianity conquer- 
 ed the Roman Empire under vVonstantine, 
 the Christian Church, forgetful of the lesson 
 taught by the history of the Jewish Church, 
 has shown a disposition to indulge in the 
 
same boastful spirit, and to arrogate to it- 
 self worldly splendor, and exercise worldly 
 power. Despite the declaration of our 
 Lord, ‘‘My kingdom is not of this world,” 
 the Church has been too often found as- 
 suming the false position of an earthly 
 kingdom, and seeking to invest itself with 
 the prerogatives and powers which belong 
 to worldly monarchies. For the personal 
 Christ, living in her as the source of her 
 spiritual life, there has been too often sub- 
 stituted the ecclesiastical organization, with 
 its mitred priesthood, demanding the sub- 
 mission of men to her edicts and decrees, 
 and even enforcing.obedience with fire and 
 sword. 
 
 With the freedom and intelligence of our 
 times we think it impossible that these 
 things which have been, shall ever be again. 
 We boast of our deliverance from the bond- 
 age of superstition and ecclesiastical tyranny, 
 and looking around us, we see nothing to 
 indicate danger. 
 
 “Ts thy servant a dog that he should do 
 this?” was the indignant reply of Hazael to 
 Elisha when the prophet foretold with tears 
 the evils which Hazael should do to Israel. 
 When Christ told Peter that he would deny 
 him three times in that very night, the dis- 
 ciple was so shocked at the thought of so 
 base a crime that he replied, ‘‘ though I 
 should die with thee, yet will I never deny 
 thee.” Poor human nature is unconscious 
 of its weakness, and we are ready to repu- 
 diate the thought that we could be led by 
 any temptation to do what we so grievously 
 condemn. We smile at the superstitions of 
 Popery, and wonder at the credulity of its 
 victims; but it would be well for us to re- 
 member what Archbishop Whately has so 
 admirably taught, that the errors of Roman- 
 ism are to be traced to their true origin i hu- 
 man nature. Let us not suppose that there is 
 atalismanic virtue in the names of Wesley 
 and Methodism. to prevent all who bear 
 those names from being led away with the 
 error of the wicked and falling from their 
 own steadfastness. The Church of England 
 to-day bears the name of PRoTESTANT, yet 
 how far have many of her children gone back 
 on the way to Rome! And have not some 
 of her most distinguished sons aiready taken 
 the fatal step? The men who fled for re- 
 fuge from persecution to the wilds of Amer- 
 ica that they might secure freedom to wor- 
 ship God according to the dictates of their 
 own consciences, would have been shocked 
 if they had been told that they would soon 
 be found engaged in the work of persecu- 
 tion for opinion’s sake. 
 
 The possibility of spiritual declension and 
 falling from grace is one of the accepted 
 doctrines of Arminian theology. It is so 
 fully and distinctly stated in the Scriptures, 
 and so frequently and sadly illustrated in 
 individual experience, that we never stop to 
 question its truth, But the danger lies in 
 this: that while we admit the general state- 
 ment, we fail to feel its personal application 
 
 3 
 
 to ourselves. And this very blindness to 
 our danger only makes it the greater. Who 
 can imagine that with so pure « creed thereis 
 apy danger of our goingastray? Yet the Is 
 raelites, under the shadow of Sinai, while 
 the echoes of the Divinevoice were yet 
 sounding in their ears, ‘‘Ye sha'l have no 
 other gods before me,” called on Aaron to 
 make them gods to go before them, and wor- 
 
 
 
 shipped the golden calf. So, too, Solomon, 
 whose warnings against the lascivious wo- 
 man have pictured, in fearful colors, ‘‘her 
 house as the way to hell, going down to the 
 chambers of death,” fell himself beneath 
 the temptations of the strange woman, and 
 joined ia the lewd rites of her idolatry. 
 
 Let us ask ourselves whether, in the less 
 than 150 years of her history, there has 
 been nodeparture from the simplicity and 
 purity of Methodism in what pertains to the 
 practical life of her members. Has no spirit 
 of worldliness crept in insidiously among 
 us? Has there been no yielding to the 
 usages of unsanctified society? Has the 
 virgin chastity of true religion not been sul- 
 lied by the meretricious embrace of the 
 world, so, that what at one time would 
 have shocked her sensibility, is now re- 
 garded with indifference, if not with 
 positive satisfaction? Not many years 
 ago, a Methodist would no more _ bave 
 thought of joining in the revels of the 
 dance, or of attending theatrical shows, or 
 horse racing, or card playing than of openly 
 denying the Saviour who redeemed him. 
 The line which separated the Church from 
 the world, at least among Methodists, was 
 so plain and clearly marked that every one 
 saw and knew it. No plausible defences of 
 forbidden pleasures, which were incompati- 
 ble with the solemn vows to renounce the 
 world, the flesh, and the devil, then found 
 placeamong us, The preacher had courage 
 to say, as John said to Herod, ‘“‘Iris Nor 
 LAWFUL.” He was not afraid to proclaim 
 the words of St. James, “‘Ye adulterers and 
 adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship 
 of the world is enmity with God? whosoever 
 therefore will be the friend of the world is 
 the enemy of God;” and those of St. John, 
 “‘Tf any man love the world, the love of the 
 Father is not in him;” and those of the Sa- 
 viour himself, ‘‘ No mancan serve two mas- 
 ters, for either he will hate the one and love 
 the other; or else he will bold to the one and 
 despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and 
 Mammon. 
 
 Is itso to-day? The word of God has 
 not changed, the requirements of Christ 
 have not been altered: “If any man will 
 come after me, let him deny himself, and 
 take up his cross, and follow me.” Why, 
 
 | then, this laxity of moral discipline? this 
 
 decline in spiritual life? Is there no cause 
 for searching of heart? for humiliation and 
 repentance? 
 
 
 
 “Say not thou, what is the cause that the 
 former days were better than these? for thou 
 dost not enquire wisely concerning this.” 
 
4 
 
 But ‘‘stand ye in the ways and see, and ask ) 
 for the old paths, where is the good way, | Not bigh-wrought walls of polished marble, 
 
 and walk therein; and ye shall find rest for 
 your souls.” 
 
 It was a wise and most Christian wish 
 which St. John expressed for his beloved 
 Gaius, that he might prosper in all things, 
 and be in health even as his soul prospered; 
 a desire that his felicity and temporal pros- 
 perity might bein proportion to his spiritual 
 health. Can we desire anything more or 
 better for the Church? 
 
 Attention might well be called to the ten- 
 dency now so prevalent, to measure the piety 
 of the Church by the increase of its mem- 
 bership, and the splendor of its church- 
 buildings, and other external signs. These 
 are too often boastfully mentioned, and 
 sometimes with invidious comparison, as 
 the indications of success and prosperity. 
 Yet, how often are these ornate buildings 
 erected upon credit, or borrowed funds, and 
 the sympathy and loyalty of Methodists ap- 
 pealed to, to liquidate the debt? Or, if paid 
 for, the amount expended for one such cost- 
 ly edifice might have built three or four 
 commodious houses of worship, affording 
 room for a much larger number of wor- 
 shippers, and in keeping with the simplicity 
 of Methodism. True, nothing is too good 
 or rich to give to God, but it is a sign of 
 
 spiritual declension when the furniture and | 
 
 drapery of a church-building become the 
 objects of our pride and boasting, instead 
 of the Divine presence and the power of 
 the quickening spirit. 
 
 It was a fearful mistake which David 
 made when he determined to number Israel; 
 and the inspired record tells us that it was 
 because of the sins of the people that the 
 Lord permitted him to be tempted to do it. 
 He turned away from the counsel of those 
 who would have dissuaded him from it, and 
 numbered the people from Dan even to Beer- 
 sheba. The Divine reproof and punish- 
 ment for his folly came speedily, and seven- 
 ty thousand men fell before the pestilence in 
 three days. Thestrength of the Lord’s sacra- 
 mental host stands not inits numbers, The 
 kings of the earth may number their forces 
 and count upon the strength of their battal- 
 ions for war, by the multitudes or their peo- 
 ple; but ‘‘ not by might, nor by power, but by 
 my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.” Let 
 us not glory in men; neither in their riches, 
 nor in their wisdom, nor in their numbers, 
 ce he that glorieth, let him glory in the 
 
 ord,” 
 
 Have we not been led into a like error? 
 Has there been no, pride or self-sufficiency 
 exhibited of late in the continual reference 
 to our increasing numbers? How often are 
 our calculations of what the Church is able 
 to accomplish, measured by the numbers of 
 her members, and their wealth and intelli- 
 gence, rather than by their zeal and spiritu- 
 ality, and consecration to God? 
 
 
 
 
 
 What constitutes a Church? 
 
 strong, - 
 With lofty towers, and spires that pierce 
 the clouds ;— 
 
 Not frescoed walls, and sumptuous drapery, 
 
 And long-drawn aisles, and cushioned seats 
 that tempt 
 
 The listless hearer to indulge in sleep ;— 
 
 Not the large numbers who in erowds may 
 come 
 
 To listen to the speaker's silver tones. 
 
 Or, to the music of the well-trained choir. 
 
 No: ~sie are not the Church; but human 
 souls * 
 
 Redeemed, and wasbed, and sanctified; in 
 whom 
 
 The living Spirit of the Saviour dwells, 
 
 And fills with light, and love, and heavenly 
 peace: 
 
 Souls ge: have learned to bear the cross for 
 
 im 
 
 Who died upon the cross to rescue them: 
 
 Souls that live daily but to do His will, 
 
 And by obedience justify their faith. 
 
 These constitute the Church, the living 
 Church, ; 
 
 The Church endued with power, able to 
 stand 
 
 Against the malice of her hellish foes; 
 
 And win the victory through Christ, her Lord. 
 
 Pardon an old man, my brethren, if he 
 probes a little deeply. ‘Faithful are the 
 wounds of a friend.” The fathers who, with 
 toil and tears, prepared for you the fat pas- 
 tures which you now enjoy, were very faith- 
 ful in their dealings with each other. They 
 watched over each other with godly jeal- 
 ousy; and if, at times, they seemed a little 
 
 | censorious, it was because, in some sense, 
 
 they felt that they were their brothers’ keep- 
 ers. Their examination of character in 
 Conference was not confined simply to the 
 points of soundness in doctrine and atten- 
 tion to the collections, but to everything in 
 manner and behavior which might militate 
 against a preacher’s character or usefulness. 
 Frivolity of conduct, and light and foolish 
 conversation they regarded as no trivial 
 faults. They would have the man of God 
 an example to the believers; one able tu 
 say, ‘‘Follow me as I follow Christ.” 
 
 The cheerfulness of true religion need 
 not be confounded with the laughter of 
 fools; but the dignity of the Christian min- 
 ister must be so maintained as not to give 
 the adversary cause to speak reproachfully. 
 “Ye are the light of the world.” 
 
 If we confine our attention only to those 
 things which indicate a declension of zeal 
 and spirituality, we may become croakers, 
 and lose all hope and heart. Itis well, then, 
 that we should also look at those which indi- 
 cate improvement. 
 
 We may congratulate ourselves upon the 
 advantages we enjoy over all our predeces- 
 sors, in the facilities afforded us for the 
 study of the Scriptures. The learned labors 
 
of eminent men have shed additional light 
 upon the true text of our sacred volume, 
 and afforded the explanation of many of its 
 difficult passages; while judicious condensa- 
 tion and compilation have made the acqui- 
 sition of Biblical knowledge much less ex- 
 pensive in time and labor aud money. A 
 few wellselected books of our day are equal, 
 in their intrinsic value, to a large collection 
 of fifty years ago. Just as the invention of 
 the cotton gin and the steam engine have 
 given a wonderful impulse to mechanical 
 industry, so have the published results of 
 the researches of our Biblical scholars given 
 great impulse to our investigations of Scrip- 
 ture. 
 
 Another important advantage which we pos- 
 sess Over our fathers, is the change which has 
 been made in the size of our circuits. While 
 there were some advantages in our former 
 
 plan, particularly the bodily exercise af- | 
 
 forded by the daily ride to the appointments, 
 and the opportunity of perfecting sermons 
 by their occasional repetition at distant 
 points; yet the advantages of the small cir- 
 cuits more than counterbalance them. In 
 our sparse and agricultural population the 
 week-day appointments were necessarilv 
 very thinly attended, and the average con- 
 gregation was very small. By the new ar- 
 rangement the preacher has access to much 
 larger numbers, and his opportunity for 
 usefulnessis much enlarged. Time is af- 
 forded, also, for pastoral visitations and 
 becoming acquainted with tbe spiritual con- 
 dition and wants of the people, and thus his 
 pulpit ministrations may be made more ef- 
 fective. 
 devoted to faithful and earnest study, what 
 an opportunity is given for intellectual im- 
 provement! The increased intelligence of 
 the people makes a stronger demand upon 
 the preacher, and he fails to recognize his 
 ministerial obligations who does not obey 
 the apostolic injunction, ‘‘ give attendance 
 to reading ”—*‘study to show thyself ap- 
 proved.” 
 
 There is another feature of the times 
 which is highly encouraging, The contro- 
 versies on points of metaphysical theology, 
 which used to be the bane of the Church, 
 have well-nigh ceased, and the different sects 
 of Christians have been learning to think 
 more of the things on which they all agree, 
 and less of those on which they differ. The 
 Christian charity, which is the bond of 
 perfectness, prevails extensively throughout 
 the Churches, and they are beginning to 
 present tothe world a solid front in their 
 spiritual unity as ‘‘terrible as an army with 
 banners,” 
 
 Another characteristic mark of these times | 
 is the large numbers of men offering them- | 
 
 selves for the work of the ministry. If you 
 will look into our Conference records of the 
 early part of the last half century, you will 
 ficd resolutions passed annually, appointing 
 days of fasting and prayer, especially that 
 the Lord would raise up and send forth la- 
 
 If the time saved from traveling is | 
 
 5 
 
 ‘borers into His harvest. The fields were 
 white unto the harvest, but the laborers 
 were few. Now we have more men offer- 
 ing for the ministry than we can supply 
 with appointments. If, however, we _ re- 
 member our Saviour’s words, “the field is 
 the world,” there is yet ample room for all 
 who, in the trueapostolic spirit, are ready 
 to carry the gospel into the regions beyond. 
 The territory to be conquered for Christ is not 
 limited by the narrow boundaries of state 
 lines; and it behooves the young and strong 
 who feel the mighty impulse of the Spirit 
 moving them to take upon them this office 
 and ministry, to consider well and prayer- 
 fully how far providential indications point 
 out the great mission field as their path of 
 duty. Never before has the heathen world 
 appeared to he so ready for the reception of 
 the gospel. Never have the conversions to 
 Christianity been so numerous and encour- 
 aging. What Christian heart glowing with 
 | zeal and burning with love to the Redeemer 
 does not long to jein the advance corps of 
 that small but heroic army which is plant- 
 ing the standard of the Cross upon the 
 | crumbling altars of idolatry, and pressing 
 | the battle to the gate against the powers of 
 darkness? Responses to the call for volun- 
 teers in this glorious campaign are already 
 beginning to be heard, and some noble 
 youths have answered to the call. Royal 
 and Loebr have joined Allen and Lambuth 
 and Parker inthe Celestial Empire, where 
 the sainted Marvin so lately steod to cheer 
 and animate the heroic band. Koger, from 
 our own Conference, is already at work in 
 Brazil; and McDonnell, of Georgia, has 
 | joined Patterson in Mexico. How long shall 
 }it be ere some more of the young men of 
 | our Conference shall plough the broad Pa- 
 | cific or the Gulf of Mexico to re-inforce this 
 missionary vanguard? 
 And now, as if God were causing all the 
 spiritual forces to converge to this common 
 point, He has stirred up the spirit of the 
 women of the Church, and with one consent 
 they, too, are working in this great cause of 
 missions. The alabaster boxes of »recious 
 ointment are poured out on the Saviour's 
 feet, not to anoint Him for His burial,—the 
 |spices are prepared, not to embalm His 
 body; but they are brought to shed their 
 fragrance at his triumphant banquet and 
 glorious coronation, 
 
 
 
 When Israel’s lost and scattered race, 
 With Gentiles hear His call: 
 
 And come to celebrate His grace, 
 And crown Him Lord of all. 
 
 What Christian heart does not throb with 
 delight at the tidings which reach us from 
 the remotest ends of the earth, that the dark 
 mists which have overspread the nations 
 are being dispeiled by the bright Sun of 
 Righteousness, and that the kingdoms of 
 tue world are becoming the kingdomsof our 
 | Lord and of His Christ? ‘‘Allelulia! for 
 the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth!” 
 
 
 
6 
 
 The children of the Church, too, are join- | 
 ing in this blessed work, and the Sunday- 
 scools are bringing their consecrated offer- 
 ings to the treasury of the Lord. 
 
 And now, in conclusion, what lesson shall 
 we learn from allthis? Not vainly to be- 
 moan the departed past; not carelessly to 
 neglect its salutary lessons. Lord Bacon 
 said: ‘‘ We are the real antiquity.” Upon 
 which Horace Bushnell admirably says: ‘‘In 
 this he affirms, both that all the wealth of 
 antiquity is accumulated upon us, and that 
 we have it as material out of which to make 
 afuture. If we cast off the lessons of an- 
 tiquity, we are not wise. If we allow our- 
 selves to be the mere ducts of antiquity, 
 supposing that antiquity is to repeat itself 
 in us, we are not wise. But we are wise 
 
 = 
 
 only when we take note of the past, observe 
 it carefully, study it respectfully, correct 
 ourselves by its wisdom and its errors, and 
 apply it to fortify our own free jidemens 
 and use.” (Building Eras, by H. Bushnell). 
 
 If we do this, we shall perform, in some 
 measure at least, the great work which was 
 foretold of the Forerunner of the Messiah, 
 in ‘‘ turning the heart of the fathers to the 
 children, and the, heart of the children to 
 their fathers.” Conservatism and Progress 
 shall then go hand in hand, when “ the 
 fathers recognize the pew needs, and the 
 new powers of the children, and the chil- 
 dren recognize the valne of the institutions 
 and traditions which they inherit from the 
 fathers.” (Dean Stanley’s Jewish Church, 
 3d Series).